The Sunni-Shiaa Relationship

A very fragile bond, but one with a lot at stake

The relationship between Hassan Nassrallah and Saad al Hariri has no shortage of drama. First you have the declaration of friendship, when Hassan Nassrallah stood on march 8th in front of hundreds of thousands of people, and told everyone that he, and ex-PM Hariri saw eye-to-eye on most vital issues. They had conducted, he said, secret high-level meetings to discuss Lebanon’s future, “in an atmosphere of trust and friendship”.
Then came the reciprocation, “we should be proud of our resistance” shouted Bahia Al Hariri on March 14th in front of a million Lebanese, most of which were pre-disposed to hate her newly declared object of affection.
The two parties had lived some good times since then: they were partners in the elections and in the government, and they relatively trusted each other. Most importantly, they were willing to talk about their differences…

But rumors started spreading, causing a chill in the relationship. A bird whispered in Hariri’s ears that Hezbollah has been involved in the killing of his father; they were the tools the Syrians used to kill him. The bird then went to Hassan Nassrallah’s ears: The Mehlis team is just an instrument the United States is using to implicate you in Hariri’s murder, and Saad Hariri, who is emotional and inexperienced, is bent on disarming you after the report implicates you.
The “bird” then started distributing leaflets all over Beirut: Sunnis are getting armed. They want to kill the Shiaas for killing Hariri. Sunni Jihadists are coming from Iraq to kill Shiaa leaders. Shiaas want to form a “Shiit crescent”…etc

Of course, usually, rumors remain rumors, unless there are fertile grounds for the rumors to grow. The fertile grounds in question are in one part historical, and in the other Geo-strategic: The Lebanese Sunnis and Shiaas have very different outlooks for the future of Lebanon. The formers, city dwelling pacifists with a tradition of trade, want Lebanon to be part of the international community, for a free flow of goods and goodwill. The latters, a minority (in the wider region) with a history of oppression and a tradition of militancy, see the future with an existential lens. A future filled with threats. Threats that we have to be constantly preparing to face.

It is in this context, that we have to look at the sudden rapprochement now taking place between the two parties (and by extension, Jumblat). They were all waiting for Mehlis’ press conference: will he mention Hezbollah?? Thank God he didn’t.
We could almost hear the huge sigh of relief on all sides. Hariri-owned Almustaqbal newspaper quickly mentioned the lack of any Hezbollah connection in the first page in broad letters. Nassrallah started giving interviews, stressing “the need not to succumb to rumors”. In a statement yesterday, he said that the Lebanese should be more responsible, and “place a hundred filters between their ears and anything they hear”. His comments were also quickly showcased in the first page of Almustaqbal, and given a big chunk of today’s Future TV news bulletins. Sanioura called him to commend him on his “excellent and responsible speech”. Seniora and Jumblat are both planning on visiting Nassrallah soon.

They can now focus on removing Lahhoud without any side concerns. What will the Christians do about this? A comment on a previous post by a certain doctor gives an Aounist perspective, but I will expand on that in a future post.