مـحمد خــواجــوئــى

I“Iranian President derided Israel at its own border.” (Le Figaro(I

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s two-day visit to Lebanon, which was his first sojourn to that country, ended on Thursday, October 14, 2010, but its reverberations in Lebanon and the whole region still continue. I

The two sides signed 17 cooperation memorandums of understanding and agreements in such

The two sides signed 17 cooperation memorandums of understanding and agreements in such fields as agriculture, energy, oil and gas, commerce, handicraft, tourism, higher education, health, environment, information and communication technology, new technologies, and media which are telltale of profound ties between Tehran and Beirut. I

Impacts of President Ahmadinejad’s Lebanon visit, however, were not limited to those agreements. I

Major concern about success of his trip to Lebanon had caused his enemies to embark on negative propaganda a few weeks ahead of his visit in order to either dissuade Ahmadinejad, or prevent the visit to be a positive development in Iran’s interactions with friendly countries. I

The most important outcome of the visit was increased political influence of anti-Israeli resistance in Lebanon and the whole region. Many analysts maintain that the resistance axis, which they believe is led by the Islamic Republic of Iran, consists of countries and groups which form the frontline of struggles against Israel’s and the United States’ expansionist policies. I

Ahmadinejad’s trip to Lebanon and reiteration of Iran’s support for resistance groups was a great boost to regional standing of resistance forces, especially Hezbollah. I

At the same time, great efforts had been made in the past few months to discredit Hezbollah on various grounds, including the findings of an international tribunal which investigated assassination of the former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri. I

The Iranian president’s visit also revealed further aspects of Hezbollah’s position in Lebanon. Most international media, especially western media, claimed that Hezbollah was, in fact, Ahmadinejad’s host in Lebanon, not the Lebanese government. Considered from this angle, this means that Hezbollah is of such power, standing, as well as social, cultural and political influence in Lebanon that it is able to draw hundreds of thousands of its supporters to streets in Beirut to welcome the Iranian president. What we saw on all global news networks clearly proved this.Ahmadinejad met people from various walks of life freely on Beirut’s streets and responded to their sentiments. I

The power and clout of Hezbollah was so high that most political figures who had previously announced that they would not meet with Ahmadinejad, and most of them were on the side of the Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, changed their mind after Ahmadinejad’s plane touched down at Beirut airport and rushed to meet with him. I

If March 14 Alliance had invited a world leader or an Arab leader to Lebanon, it could not have arranged such a magnificent welcome to that leader. I

At the same time, western media alleged that Hezbollah’s security apparatus was fully in charge of security of the Iranian president. This means that Hezbollah is powerful enough to ensure security of one of the most important president of the Middle East. Therefore, Hezbollah was totally successful to flaunt its security finesse at his opponents during the Iranian president’s visit to Beirut. I

Strengthening Iran’s influence and power in the region was another outcome of Ahmadinejad’s visit to Lebanon. I

During the past few months, Iran has been under the most severe global pressures as well as international and unilateral sanctions and some sources even openly talked about possibility of a military attack against the country. Iran was able to take good advantage of the trip and thwart those pressures by banking on such powerful allies as Hezbollah to prove its regional clout to enemies. I

Ahmadinejad’s Lebanon visit was also important in that he flaunted the power and influence of the resistance axis, whose main supporter is Iran, at Israel. The Iranian president made a good display of that influence and power at Lebanon’s border with Israel. Ahmadinejad proved at this critical juncture of Lebanon’s history that Iran was able to show off its power to regional and transregional enemies like Israel and the United States even at critical times. I

Ahmadinejad’s address at Bint Jbeil where photos of the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei were brandished along with the Iranian flags at a border region between Lebanon and Israel followed by the inauguration of Iran Park at Maroun al-Ras border area where streets are named after the Iranian cities, were alarming signs of Iran’s expanding influence for the United States and Israel. I

On the other hand, the warm welcome accorded to the Iranian president by various political groups in Lebanon and Ahmadinejad’s emphasis on the need for unity among Lebanese groups proved futility of claims that Iran was against a powerful Lebanon. Meetings with Lebanese officials from Seyed Hassan Nasrollah, Nabih Berri, Michel Suleiman, and Michele Aoun to Saad Hariri proved that the majority of the Lebanese political groups were happy with development of relations with Iran. I

Perhaps, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s remarks that he felt pity for the Lebanese people who “have lost their independence and national sovereignty by turning their country into a branch of the Islamic Republic of Iran” are good evidence to how successful President Ahmadinejad’s trip has been for the Islamic Republic of Iran as well as the resistance axis in Lebanon and the region and how maddening it has been to Israeli officials. I

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