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Viewing cable 07BEIRUT1944, LEBANON: NGO HEAD SAYS HIZBALLAH FAVORS SHIA IN

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
07BEIRUT1944 2007-12-11 15:37 2011-08-24 16:30 UNCLASSIFIED Embassy Beirut
VZCZCXRO8968
PP RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHKUK RUEHROV
DE RUEHLB #1944/01 3451537
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 111537Z DEC 07 ZFF5
FM AMEMBASSY BEIRUT
TO RUEHEE/ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0471
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 1773
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC PRIORITY
RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIRUT 001944 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NEA/ELA/PI AND S/P JARED COHEN, NSC FOR ABRAMS/SINGH/YERGER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID ECON LE PGOV PREL SY
SUBJECT: LEBANON: NGO HEAD SAYS HIZBALLAH FAVORS SHIA IN 
SOUTH LEBANON OVER THOSE IN NORTH BEKAA 
 
SUMMARY 
-------- 
 
1. (SBU) Dr. Abbas Yaghi, a Shia local community leader from 
the north Bekaa region and Shia rival of Hizballah, described 
to Emboffs what he sees as Hizballah's favoritism towards the 
Shia in south Lebanon, to the detriment to those Shia living 
in the north Bekaa.  Yaghi noted the vast differences between 
reconstruction efforts currently underway in north Bekaa in 
comparison to southern Lebanon, although both are 
predominately Shia areas.  He said there is a lack of 
development assistance from the GOL, international donors 
countries, and Hizballah for the isolated citizens of the 
north Bekaa region and that they are in desperate need of 
access to resources and outside influences to combat 
traditional Hizballah, Syrian, and Iranian influences.  Yaghi 
also gave an update on development projects underway in the 
northern Bekaa region and provided a summary of future 
projects he is planning.  End Summary. 
 
HIZBALLAH DEVELOPS THE SOUTH WHILE IGNORING NORTH BEKAA 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
2. (SBU) Emboffs met with Dr. Abbas Yaghi, head of 'ACT for 
Lebanon' on December 4 to discuss development projects in 
north Bekaa (Note: Bekaa is the valley region running north 
to south in central Lebanon.  End Note)  Yaghi, a local Shia 
leader with strong family ties to the north Bekaa region and 
who views Hizballah as a rival to his family's own secular 
organization, vented his frustration at what he sees as 
Hizballah's efforts to discriminate against local Shia 
leaders like himself who refuse to join Hizballah and who are 
seeking to improve conditions in their communities without 
the organization's help.  With its position of strength and 
lack of competition, Hizballah continues to gain ground in 
north Bekaa according to Yaghi. 
 
3.  (SBU) Nevertheless, Yaghi said that Hizballah still 
favors the Shia population in South Lebanon at the expense of 
development in the north Bekaa region, whose less educated 
and more isolated citizens actually need it more.  Perhaps, 
said Yaghi, Hizballah feels it has to try harder to keep 
southern residents' loyalty.  Meanwhile, Shia loyalty in the 
north is being taken for granted by Hizballah because 
citizens of the north Bekaa region are almost completely 
dependent on Hizballah for local development, unlike their 
Shia countrymen in the south. 
 
4.  (SBU) Yaghi also highlighted what he sees as 
disproportionate levels of assistance between south Lebanon 
and north Bekaa, two regions where many Shia live.  In his 
opinion, the Bekaa has seen fewer development funds invested 
in the area from the GOL, international donor countries, and 
Hizballah in comparison to the south, where development 
efforts are clearly visible and being funded by a number of 
local and international actors.  Yaghi claims that there are 
so many schools in the south that a number have had to be 
shut down due to a lack of students.  However, the opposite 
is true in north Bekaa, where there are not enough schools 
for all of the students.  Yaghi also said that even before 
the 2006 war with Israel, there were clear investment 
projects in infrastructure such as roads, bridges, and 
electricity plants in the south, funded by international 
donors.  Yaghi noted that, except for the United Nations 
Development Program (UNDP) and a United States Agency for 
International Development (USAID)- funded Mercy Corp project, 
there are no development projects underway in north Bekaa. 
 
5. (SBU) Yaghi said that this disparity exists because of the 
fact that the south has, over the years, seen an influx of 
different actors who play a role in the area.  Yaghi added 
that the Israelis, Europeans, and now the Lebanese Armed 
Forces and the Government of Lebanon (GOL) have all been, or 
are now, present in the south. Yaghi noted that the LAF and 
GOL had no presence in the south, unlike the Israelis who 
were present in the region from 1982 to 2000 and United 
Nations peace-keepers (UNIFIL) who have been present in south 
Lebanon since 1978 and continue to be present in the area 
today.  Yaghi said after the Israeli withdrawal from south 
Lebanon in 2000, Hizballah became the dominant force in the 
region, until the end of last summer's July War with Israel 
when the LAF deployed to south Lebanon for the first time 
since 1968 to enforce Security Council Resolution 1701 and 
the GOL began trying to reassert it's presence as a governing 
 
BEIRUT 00001944  002 OF 002 
 
 
body in the area after a 40 year hiatus.  Yaghi believes that 
the south's "cosmopolitan" history and geographic location 
have helped raise its level of strategic importance and 
attract more reconstruction assistance.  Yaghi argued that 
north Bekaa has remained relatively isolated from the outside 
world due to its poor roads and mountainous terrain.  Yaghi 
said that Bekaa residents have a much more restricted mind 
set and mentality due to the area's location in a valley 
between two mountain ranges.  According to Yaghi, citizens of 
the north Bekaa region only know the Syrians and Hizballah 
and should be exposed to influences from the wider world. 
 
SMALL PROJECTS UNDERWAY IN BEKAA 
-------------------------------- 
 
6. (SBU) After lamenting about Hizballah, Yaghi then talked 
about two projects under his supervision in particular, being 
initiated by his organization in the northern Bekaa region. 
First, Yaghi has begun work on a business center for small 
and medium enterprise institutions.  Services will be offered 
to residents who need to use computers, copiers, fax 
machines, and scanners.  Yaghi added there would also be 
office space available in the building for residents and 
business owners to rent as their own personal office space at 
a low cost. 
 
7. (SBU) Yaghi has also begun construction on a multi-million 
dollar sporting complex.  The complex will include a soccer 
field, basketball court, tennis, volleyball, and swimming 
pool.  Yaghi said next door to this complex is a Hizballah 
controlled mosque.  He is hopeful that no problems will arise 
between the residents enjoying the mixed gender swimming pool 
and the conservative mosque attendees.  Yaghi noted that the 
GOL built a huge sporting stadium in the Bekaa, however, 
because its an outdoor field, it is only available in the 
summer and is not very useful outside of this season due to 
the area's harsh mountainous weather.  Yaghi added that at 
the moment he only has land for the sporting complex and that 
the he would need an investment of around USD 2 million to 
complete the project.  MEPI Emboffs told Yaghi that MEPI 
funds do not usually go towards infrastructure projects. 
 
8. (SBU) Yaghi also commented on his organization's 
participation in raising over USD 170,000 for the "Teach For 
All"  initiative in Lebanon, modeled on Teach for America. 
Yaghi's organization is represented on the local Teach For 
All group's board of directors and the board hopes to raise 
around USD 1 million for the program for its first year. 
However, Yaghi noted that all of the money to date has been 
raised in the United States, primarily from Lebanese diaspora 
living in the New York area.  Yaghi commented fundraising is 
difficult in country given the lack of emphasis placed on 
charitable giving in the Lebanese society and culture. 
 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
9. (SBU) Yaghi's father was a former member of parliament and 
mayor of the Bekaa city of Baalbeck.  However, due to 
Hizballah's growing strength in the area, this seat 
traditionally held by his family has gone to Hizballah. 
Yaghi himself wants to run for parliament, but does not want 
to fight with Hizballah over his father's former seat. 
 
10. (SBU) Yaghi seems to have a number of good ideas about 
developing the Bekaa and is looking for a more informal, low 
key, and flexible partnership.  MEPI funding may be more 
appropriate in terms of assisting Yaghi with training or 
materials for his business center of providing some type of 
assistance to the Teach for All program.  End Comment. 
FELTMAN