Lebanon's senior Shiite cleric on civil war and Al Qaeda in Lebanon

And on whether Shiites have been creating chaos in the region lately. From The (Beirut) Daily Star:

Senior Shiite cleric Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah said Thursday that a civil war is not likely to erupt in Lebanon. "Neither the United States nor other international forces want a civil war to happen in Lebanon because it will complicate things even more in the region," Fadlallah told As-Safir newspaper in an interview published Thursday.

Hmmm, I wonder why he remains conspicuously silent on whether the Lebanese are willing to go to war with themselves...Is this because even someone in his position can't predict what the militias will do? (Note that he has always resisted being called the spiritual leader of Hizbullah though the leadership of Hizbullah certainly looks to him for guidance.) Or is he just offering up the usual excuse - that all problems in the region can be attributed to meddlesome outsiders?

Anyway, as the Star report continued:

Asked whether the Al-Qaeda terrorist organization had any significant presence or influence in Lebanon, Fadlallah replied that they do. "However," he added, "they cannot be as harmful as they are in Afghanistan or Iraq for their area of operations is a lot more restrained."

...Fadllalah also defended Shiites in the Middle East. "They have not played a negative role in the Arab world despite the marginalization and oppression they are subject to ... and in Lebanon they are among the keenest sects to preserve security," Fadlallah said.

And some more words of encouragement from the cleric:

He said Shiites are open to cooperation with other sects to make Lebanon a "sovereign, free and independent, country."

Fadlallah said Hizbullah's arms were never used against the Lebanese, "and they will surrender their weapons as soon as we have a strong state capable of protecting its citizens."

"Shiites do no want Iran or Syria to rule over Lebanon ... they want to be equal with citizens from other sects, and any other description is not acceptable," he added.

Well, let's just hope someone other than me gets this important message.