Word: nasrallah
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...exchange prisoners with Hizballah, Olmert met personally with the Regev and Goldwasser families, who expressed their approval of the cabinet decision and said they expected a swift conclusion to the deal. Israeli leaders are hoping to oblige the families, but the timing is now up to Hizballah chief Hassan Nasrallah, who may drag the process out for weeks, or even months, say Israelis. Olmert and the cabinet, however, have achieved their primary goal: catering to the public opinion ahead of the election. -With reporting by Aaron J. Klein/Jerusalem
...Nasrallah unleashed his fighters on the streets of Beirut after the government tried to shut down Hizballah's private telecommunications network. But he has been spoiling for this fight since November 2006, when Shi'ite parties walked out of Siniora's coalition Cabinet. Although Lebanon is a democracy, the legitimacy of its government depends on a system of sectarian quotas; without the Shi'ites--the country's largest, fastest-growing group--the Prime Minister, a Sunni, has lacked both validity and street cred. The Shi'ites' price for returning: a greater share of power, including the right to veto major...
That train has left the station. The speed and ease with which Nasrallah's fighters took over Beirut--and the military's reluctance to stop them--suggest that Hizballah has free rein of the country. Unlike Hamas, which is confined to poverty-stricken Gaza, Hizballah has at its disposal an entire country, complete with a sophisticated banking system, an international airport and a friendly neighbor in Syria. Never has a terrorist organization had that kind of infrastructure. Saab notes that Hizballah's leaders can now have their cake and eat it too: "They're in control in Lebanon without having...
...very bad news for Israel, which was drawn into a war with Hizballah in 2006 that cost 1,600 lives mainly on the Lebanese side. "Lebanon," says Israeli Vice Premier Haim Ramon, "is controlled by this terrorist organization, and its government has become irrelevant." Israelis point out that behind Nasrallah and his fighters lurks a possibly greater threat: Iran. Hizballah's dominance in Beirut allows Tehran to project its power into the Mediterranean Sea, something the U.S. and its European allies must now factor into their calculations. (The Pentagon denied reports that the U.S.S. Cole, heading to the Mediterranean from...
...Israel has given no indication it will make any such concession, and few in Lebanon expect Nasrallah and his militia to weaken anytime soon. That's why some U.S. allies in Siniora's government believe it's better to engage Hizballah than pretend it can be crushed. On May 11, Walid Jumblatt, one of the leaders of the governing coalition, placed a call to Nabih Berri, the speaker of Parliament and a Hizballah ally, while TIME waited nearby for an interview. "Tell [Nasrallah] I lost the battle and he wins," Jumblatt said. "So let's sit and talk to reach...