The EU kicks in troops for the Lebanon `peacekeeping' force

Originally, Israel and the US conceived of a `robust' multinational force as a guarantee of its border security against terrorist attack and a boost for the Lebanese army to disarm Hezbollah. Then France and the Arab League got involved.

Now, what we have is a token group of observers without a mandate to do anything meaningful.

After lots of back and forth, Italy ended up pledging 3,000 troops and Belgium 400 to boost UNIFIL in South Lebanon after France finally got shamed into committing 1,600. Like most pledges, we'll have to wait and see, especially since Chirac is already whining about the size of the committment.

The force, dubbed by Kofi Annan UNIFIL-2 has no operational plan to enforce the UN arms embargo mandated by the UN ceasefire resolution...which would involve shutting down the heavy flow of Iranian arms shipments entering Lebanon day by day via Syria.

Long, heavily laden truck convoys are en route from the Syrian ports of Latakia and Tartus to the Hezbollah's bases in the Bek'aa Valley, bringing Hizballah its first heavy missiles - the Russian-made Scud-B adapted by Iran as the Shahab-1, which has a one-ton warhead.

The most that the European troops will number (and I'll believe it when I see it)is about 6,000 troops, to move into position and allow IDF troops to pull out.

The object,of course, is to boost the 60,000-strong Lebanese army (40% of whom are Shiites) sufficiently to extend the Fouad Siniora government’s sovereignty to the whole of Lebanon. The reality is that under cover of this deployment, Hezbollah (and Iran) is rearming and tightening its grip on Lebanon. All you have to do is observe the huge posters of Iran’s president Ahmadinejad and Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, mushrooming alongside Nasrallah’s along the highways and roads of Lebanon.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah is rearming under UNIFIL's protection and setting up new military positions ready for their next round against Israel.

Yep. Another succesfull UN mission is unfolding before our eyes.