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Lahad Vows to Stay and Fight
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| Lahad defiantly vows to fight at an April 3 press conference |
South Lebanon Army (SLA) commander Gen. Antoine Lahad sent shock waves through Israel, Syria and Lebanon earlier this month with his unexpected announcement that he will remain in south Lebanon after the withdrawal of Israeli forces in July to defend the residents of the security zone. "After the withdrawal, you'll see the SLA standing on its feet." he said, insisting that his men would prefer to "die on their own land" rather than live as refugees in other countries. Lahad admitted that he had previously considered leaving south Lebanon to join his family in France, "but decided to stay because of the difficult situation. I'm responsible not only for the SLA, but also for a population of 80,000 people."
Nevertheless, he held out the prospect of cooperating with the Lebanese government if it disavows its intention to execute top SLA officials and imprison thousands of rank and file SLA soldiers. "We'll examine the steps taken by the Lebanese government and by Hezbollah, and then things will be clearer." If the sentences are annulled and the government "respects us," he said, "we'll accept it with open arms."1
Lahad's announcement was interpreted by many as a bluff designed to draw in an international peacekeeping force to protect the south Lebanese population after the Israeli withdrawal. Shortly after Lahad's announcement, American Defense Secretary William Cohen said that the United States will not deploy any troops in south Lebanon after Israel withdraws from the area. Israeli officials have met with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to discuss the deployment of a UN peacekeeping force.
It appears, however, that Lahad may not be bluffing. SLA officials have begun a massive recruitment effort to increase the numerical strength of the militia, which currently stands at 2,600. SLA sources claim to have enlisted "hundreds" of new recruits, though these numbers have not been independently confirmed.2
Moreover, the SLA has recently begun fortifying its positions and opening new military roads through the interior of the security zone in order to bolster its ability to defend the area from Hezbollah and other Syrian-armed paramilitary groups. SLA outposts are now equipped with protective netting designed to intercept advanced wire-guided missiles recently supplied to Hezbollah by Iran. The road connecting Aaramta and Rihan, its two most exposed positions in the central sector of the security zone, has been diverted to pass beneath them in order to prevent guerrillas from planting roadside bombs,3
Official Israeli reaction to Lahad's plans was initially rather vague. Speaking at the same press conference as Lahad, IDF Brigadier General Benny Ganz said only that "they are the ones to decide about their own futures."4 However, UNIFIL [UN Interim Force in Lebanon] officials told the Israelis that they will refuse to deploy in the area as long as the SLA is still operating. IDF forces began confiscating SLA heavy weaponry shortly thereafter.
1 Ha'aretz, 4 April 2000.
2 Ma'ariv, 6 April 2000.
3 AFP, 31 March 2000.
4 Ha'aretz, 4 April 2000.
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