The March 14 coalition in Lebanon have faced an incredible set of odds after congealing in 2005 to toss the Syrian military out of their country. They watched Syria’s local puppet (Hezbollah) assassinate their MPs, start a war with Israel that dragged the entire country in, and even split the Christian community by playing on General Michel Aoun’s ego.
Today (Election Day in Lebanon) was supposed to be Hezbollah’s triumph. Instead, the March 14 folks held their Sunni base (no surprise there) and stunned Aoun in the Christian areas by scoring unexpected victories (Washington Post).
Today’s result doesn’t end the Hezbollah threat (Syria and Iran will make sure their puppet stays around for a while yet), but it does keep Lebanon free of the tyrants’ grip. It also makes abundantly clear that when the voters in the Middle East actually have the choice to reject terrorism (unlike Palestine in 2006, where voting against terrorism wasn’t an option), they will grab it with both hands.
Hats off to them.
