US Marks Historic Lebanon Framework With Precision Fireworks Over Iran - Hezbollah Left Feeling Deeply Misunderstood

Just hours earlier, Secretary of State Marco Rubio had presided over the signing of a framework agreement between Israel and Lebanon that promises lasting peace and restored sovereignty.

The framework itself envisions Israeli withdrawal once certain performance benchmarks are met, Lebanese state authority over pilot zones, and a general improvement in the regional atmosphere. What it does not contain is any mechanism for consulting the party whose cooperation would be most relevant to actually making any of those things happen.

It was only later, as the celebratory devices continued to light up the Iranian coastline, that attention turned to the situation on the ground in Lebanon itself.

There, elements associated with Hezbollah have reportedly been involved in fresh exchanges in and around the capital, expressing what can only be described as a profound sense of exclusion.

These are not, analysts stress, simple terrorists. They are a complex, historically rooted movement with deep social ties, extensive welfare networks, and a well-developed political wing - people who want to feel that their perspective has been taken into account before major decisions about their way of life are finalized in Washington.

Instead, they have once again been reduced to spectators.

While diplomats in air-conditioned rooms drew pilot zones on maps and American aircraft conducted their tasteful fireworks display over the group’s primary backer, the people on the ground in Beirut and southern Lebanon were left to process their feelings through more traditional means.

At press time, we were still waiting for the wise and balanced words of António Guterres.