The Doublespeak of Lebanon’s Other Shiite Leader |
Middle East and North Africa
In late February, as Hezbollah attacked Israel at Iran’s behest, Lebanon’s Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri issued a rare rebuke. He was reportedly “shocked” by Hezbollah’s actions. A few days later, he wielded his political power against the group and refrained from blocking Lebanon’s decision to ban Hezbollah’s military arm.
Berri is the leader of the Amal Movement, a Shiite political party that together with Hezbollah has composed a Shiite duopoly in Lebanon since the 1980s. Berri had reportedly been assured by Hezbollah that it wouldn’t intervene in the United States and Israel’s conflict with Iran and plunge Lebanon into another war. And yet Hezbollah did, shaking the Shiite alliance.
In late February, as Hezbollah attacked Israel at Iran’s behest, Lebanon’s Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri issued a rare rebuke. He was reportedly “shocked” by Hezbollah’s actions. A few days later, he wielded his political power against the group and refrained from blocking Lebanon’s decision to ban Hezbollah’s military arm.
Berri is the leader of the Amal Movement, a Shiite political party that together with Hezbollah has composed a Shiite duopoly in Lebanon since the 1980s. Berri had reportedly been assured by Hezbollah that it wouldn’t intervene in the United States and Israel’s conflict with Iran and plunge Lebanon into another war. And yet Hezbollah did, shaking the Shiite alliance.
The ban on Hezbollah’s military arm has not yet led to disarmament of the group or stopped the war, but it did display national cohesion. This led to speculation that the Amal Movement might be ready to break from the group and forge a separate path for the Lebanese Shiite community, one that strengthens the state and isolates Hezbollah.
Berri, however, is a master of doublespeak. While he has created the impression that he might be distancing himself from Hezbollah, he has also continued to guard the group’s interests and provided it with the cover needed to continue bombing Israel and remain armed. He called for a “calm and consensual........