Michael Young

Creating unrealistic expectations for the military may cause it to rupture, which would be catastrophic for the Lebanese state, too

The supposed plan to uproot Hezbollah from parts of the country is likely to backfire for a number of reasons

Beirut's decision to declare the group's military activities illegal is a reflection of the country's broad-based antipathy towards it

The group’s intransigence is making a military option more likely

Lebanon should serve as a bridge, not a battleground, for foreign powers

Foreign and sectarian interests have often sought to dismantle these countries, but it rarely seems to work

As long as it continues to be a biased negotiator, it is not going to achieve its aim of disarming Hezbollah

In a country where corruption meets complexity, a new government alone doesn't guarantee progress

Domestic and geopolitical conditions do not favour such an endgame

At the heart of the problem is Lebanon’s deep dysfunctionality as a state

The country is being buffeted by all sides in the region, with limited capacities to satisfy any one of them

There's only a narrow domestic margin of manoeuvre that Lebanon has to expand the military delegation to include civilians,

It's proving hard to disarm Hamas, and it's likely to be difficult with Hezbollah, too

Beirut should also explore whether other countries can help

Hezbollah might be willing to surrender its weapons if reform, or the Taif Agreement, were implemented fully