Why Is It Taking The Lebanese Army So Long?

There has been much speculation as to why it has taken the Lebanese Army so long to crush the Fatah Al Islam (FAI) fighters, knowing that there were initially as few as 300 of them.


Here are some of the reasons according to a retired Lebanese Army officer who is still well connected in Yarze:

• The FAI fighters are well dug-in and willing to fight to the end, rather than surrender. Further, they have nowhere to go, and their options are either to surrender or die fighting.
  
  
• The terrain is quite difficult, with narrow streets and tightly packed buildings filled with booby traps.
  
  
• The Army is trying hard to limit civilian casualties and limit the amount of destruction caused by the fighting. This is in big part in trying to prevent the fighting from spreading to the other Palestinian "camps" and to maintain the support of friendly Arab nations.
  
  
• The Army wants to limit the number of casualties in the ranks of its troops.
  
  
• The Army believes that time is on its side, at least to a certain extent and is willing to sacrifice time in order to attain the other objectives stated above.

With respect to the military supplies the Army has received from friendly nations, they do not provide it with a decisive advantage. Most of the supplies that were flown in consisted of body armor, helmets, rifles and ammunition. And while the 2 Gazelle gunships provided by the UAE are a good morale boost, they are only moderately effective in a dense urban setting.

Lebanese Army Puts Military Aid to Use

During the last 48 hours, Lebanese Army started putting to use the equipment it has received from Jordan, the UAE and the US. The most visible element of this aid are the two Gazelle helicopters that were delivered by the UAE, which still bear their original desert colors. The Lebanese Air Force did possess a number of Gazelles in the 80's, and it is therefore able to maintain and fly the helicopters without much lead time.


Other, less spectacular gear includes new US-style helmets, body armor and M4 rifles. The M4 is a shorter version of the M16 that is more convenient for troops riding in the cramped confines on an APC, and more practical for the close combat that is taking place in the narrow streets of the Palestinian "camp".

Nasrallah Shows His True Colors

By warning the Lebanese Army not to enter any Palestinian camps, Hizballa's Nasrallah shows his true colors and his real allegiance.

Nasrallah find himself in a position of indirectly defending a group that is responsible for many terrorist attacks in Lebanon that killed a number of innocent citizens, and promotes imposing an Islamic state in the country. Fatah Al Islam (FAI) is also a group controlled by Damascus, with the aim of creating chaos in Lebanon, in preparation for Syria to reclaim its control of its neighbor.

Why would Nasrallah take such a position, at a time where all the Lebanese are supportive of the Army? The answer is simple: He is obeying orders he received from his Iranian and Syrian masters.

It will be interesting to see how the Aounist camp will react to Hizballah position. The Aounists have, after all, been staunch supporters of the Army's actions in Tripoli.