Amidst the Syrian upheaval and its repercussions on Lebanon and Syria in the region, the often heated topic of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) has surprisingly been absent from public debates over the past few months.
In a flurry of diplomatic activity, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffery Feltman stopped in Beirut this week on a visit that coincided with an Iranian delegation arriving from Tehran.
In a rare interview with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Russian TV, Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah offered that the group act as a mediator in the Syrian conflict. He confirmed that Hezbollah had contacted the Syrian opposition, offering them a channel of dialogue with the Syrian regime, but the opposition members rejected it.
As he commemorated the 15th anniversary of the assassination of his father this week, Walid Jumblatt placed the Syrian opposition flag atop Kamal Jumblatt's grave. Over the course of his political career, Walid Jumblatt has made some of the most arguably unexpected alliances, seeking to shield the minority Druze community from sectarian conflict.
A year into the Syrian uprising, Lebanon has arguably managed to avoid a major spurt of violence many feared would spread in the region. With violence devolving into a protracted bloody fight between the Assad regime and Syrian rebels, Lebanon fears that its own political divisions may be fed by conflict in Syria.
U.S. Treasury Undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence David Cohen sent a clear warning to Lebanese bankers this week when, during a visit to Beirut, he urged them not to allow evasions of U.S.
Born from the flurry of protests that engulfed the country following the death of late Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005, the March 14 Alliance celebrated its seventh anniversary this week. Contrary to previous years, politicians chose to take the back seat this year and give civil society leaders the platform to preach values March 14 officials have been supporting for years.
The debate over a standardized account of Lebanon's recent history has been going on for more than two decades, yet this discourse remains one of the most contentious and divisive issues in the country.
The Syrian uprising has severely undermined the triad of Iran, Syria, and Hezbollah, threatening the movement of weapons between Iran and its Lebanese protégé.
As the uprising rages on in Syria, some Lebanese leaders are calling for isolating the country from regional conflict, while many, including Druze leader Walid Jumblatt are still hedging their bets.
