Lebanon in crisis: an interview with editor Samah Idriss

Today Lebanon's government has maintained a contested hold on official state power in Lebanon without representation from Hizballah since they withdrew their ministers over one year ago. This week the government declared illegal Hizballah's independent communications network operating in Lebanon partly prompting the current crisis. Hizballah's independent communications system is considered to be a critical element to the success of the Lebanese resistance group's halting of Israel's 2006 attack on Lebanon. The fate of Hizballah's weapons is at the heart of Lebanon's political impasse pitting the pro-US government coalition versus the opposition -- fitting into the larger polarized pattern in the region.

Samah Idriss is a co-founder of the Campaign to Boycott Supporters of Israel, lexicographer, literary critic who earned a Ph.D from Columbia University in 1991, and is editor-in-chief of al-Adab, a Lebanese Arabic-language arts and culture magazine based in Beirut. Samah is also deeply involved in the Civil Resistance Campaign in Lebanon that organizes Lebanese and internationals to provide direct aid at a grassroots level to people impacted by the 2006 Israeli attack on Lebanon. Samah Idriss spoke with Stefan Christoff concerning the current political crisis in Lebanon.

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