Saudis back Hezbollah competitor

Goal remains to fight Israel, 'enemies of Arabs'

January 14, 2009

A new Shiite resistance group back by Saudi Arabia is emerging in Lebanon, and its leader promises to provide competition to the Iranian-backed Hezbollah in their mutual goal of fighting Israel, according to a report from Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin.

Arab Islamic Resistance founder Sayyed Mohamed Ali al-Husseini said his group will fight enemies of Arabs and intends to lead the movement in Lebanon.

The group apparently is the armed offshoot of the Arab Islamic Council, which believes its responsibility is to solve "any conflict that might appear in our Arabic nation, and [try] to gather all Arabs to be a strong power that can't be divided."

At the same time, al-Husseini said it was possible for the two groups to cooperate in the event Lebanon is attacked by Israel, which he called "the first enemy of the Arab nation."

Al-Husseini claims that his group includes more than 3,000 fighters with another 1,500 volunteers who seek to join the group from the Gulf region.

"The new resistance group is now a military organization and has training camps in Lebanon and enough weapons to face any enemy," Al-Husseini said.

He said the Islamic Arab Resistance group differs from Hezbollah, which favors strong links between the Shiites of Lebanon and Iran rather than the Arab world.

Indeed, Shiites in Gulf Arab countries have prompted concern among Arab Sunnis, especially in Saudi Arabia, which believes that they are coming under the increasing influence of Shiite Iran.

Al-Husseini, however, was very positive to Saudi assistance but was critical of Syria, Iran and Hezbollah.

"Everybody, near and far, friend and foe, realizes that the role of the Saudi kingdom – the kingdom of Arabism, of Islam, and of humanism – the role that this kingdom has played and is still playing in Lebanon and in the Arab world is one of reconciliation and unification," Al-Husseini said.

However, he blamed Syria for attempting to "tarnish" Saudi intentions.

"Never have we seen the Syrian regime intervene in anything without ruining it," Al-Husseini said. "Never have we seen the Syrian regime entering any region without destroying it."

Source: World Net Daily.
Link: http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=86117.