Hezbollah Sits On The Sidelines As Ally, Hamas, Burns

There's a great article on the non-action of terrorist group Hezbollah in Lebanon while their jihadist brothers in Gaza, Hamas, continue to get their asses handed to them here at Breitbart. Here's a bit from that article:

Lebanon's powerful Hezbollah guerrilla movement—widely seen as the Arab world's most effective force against Israel—is a staunch Hamas supporter but has so far held its fire as its Palestinian ally faces down Israel's assault in Gaza.
Hezbollah possesses a formidable arsenal of rockets and missiles that bloodied Israel during a monthlong war between them in 2006, but is constrained by its own domestic political goals and fears of Israeli retaliation.

Nasrallah put his men on alert in southern Lebanon in case Israel attacks and claimed he was ready to fight back if provoked. He promised not to abandon Hamas. The Islamic Sunni group is also backed by Hezbollah allies Iran and Syria.
But he made no threat to open fire on northern Israel to relieve Gaza—an act that would certainly provoke another war with Israel.
Hezbollah "cannot afford to enter a full-scale war with Israel, which would be devastating for Lebanon," said Paul Salem, Beirut-based director of the Carnegie Middle East Center, an arm of the Washington-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Some of us expected some sort of action already out of Hezbollah but I think there are several factors that have caused the mighty Hezbollah to sit on their hands during Israel's Cast Lead Operation:

1. First off, even though the Israelis made some major blunders in the 2006 Lebanon war, they actually did kick the shit out of Hezbollah at that time and Hezbollah commanders remember it well.

2. Hezbollah's sugar daddy, Iran, is a bit nervous about being included in the latest Israeli rage and my guess is that they have told Hezbollah to lay low.

3. Hezbollah knows that their new found place in the Lebanon government is fragile - if they are seen as an aggressor that brings Israeli wrath down on the people and government of Lebanon, they could find themselves losing all of their political gain.

4. Finally, I think Hezbollah has seen so far in the Gaza operation that Israel is not fucking around this time. In fact, Hezbollah I'm sure has sensed that the Israelis actually would relish an operation that could send air support into southern Lebanon and wipe out a good share of Hezbollah's rocket arsenals. Also, let's not forget that Hezbollah typically fights better on the defensive.

With all that being said, I still think Hezbollah is having a hard time not dipping their toe in the water here. I think if the opportunity presents itself, Hezbollah could try another IDF soldier grab in the next week or so. But as each day passes, it appears that Hezbollah has lost much of its spine.

Hezbollah watches for now as Israel hits Hamas

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AP) - Lebanon's powerful Hezbollah guerrilla movement—widely seen as the Arab world's most effective force against Israel—is a staunch Hamas supporter but has so far held its fire as its Palestinian ally faces down Israel's assault in Gaza.
Hezbollah possesses a formidable arsenal of rockets and missiles that bloodied Israel during a monthlong war between them in 2006, but is constrained by its own domestic political goals and fears of Israeli retaliation.
Once considered as just a fighting force backed by Iran and Syria, Hezbollah has seen its political power in Lebanon grow since 2006. With Israel threatening massive retaliation if Hezbollah renews its rocket bombardments, that influence could come into doubt by Lebanese reluctant to be drawn into another war.
So Hezbollah is instead calling for protests in Lebanon and across the Middle East to pressure Arab governments to act against Israel.
That call hasn't drawn any action for now—Egypt on Tuesday said it would not end its blockade of Gaza as long as Hamas remains in power there, and no Arab government has offered anything stronger than words and humanitarian assistance in response to Israel's assault.
Hezbollah's leader Hassan Nasrallah drew tens of thousands, waving Palestinian, Hezbollah and Lebanese flags, for a rally Monday in his south Beirut stronghold. He professed that Israel's Gaza offensive will ultimately fail.
Nasrallah put his men on alert in southern Lebanon in case Israel attacks and claimed he was ready to fight back if provoked. He promised not to abandon Hamas. The Islamic Sunni group is also backed by Hezbollah allies Iran and Syria.
But he made no threat to open fire on northern Israel to relieve Gaza—an act that would certainly provoke another war with Israel.
Hezbollah "cannot afford to enter a full-scale war with Israel, which would be devastating for Lebanon," said Paul Salem, Beirut-based director of the Carnegie Middle East Center, an arm of the Washington-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
The 2006 war was sparked when Hezbollah guerrillas snatched two Israel soldiers from northern Israel. Israel unleashed a massive bombardment of southern Lebanon and other parts of the country and Hezbollah fired thousands of rockets into Israel. The violence devastated much of southern Lebanon, and more than 1,000 Lebanese and about 160 Israelis were killed.
In May, Hezbollah gained significant clout by joining a national unity government with pro-U.S. rivals in Lebanon. The country is now enjoying an unusually long stretch of relative calm and prosperity—and many Lebanese fear anything that could disturb the stability.