Hezbollah and Syrian harassment of and extortion from the Sunni civilian population, particularly in the Beirut area. [LBN0336]

The dissolution of the central leadership in Lebanon led to a situation where the main militias were the de facto authority within the areas that they controlled, "holding territory and prisoners, [and] collecting taxes". [ Lara Marlowe, "War-Weary Lebanon Reaches a New Low: Rarely Have the People of Beirut Known Such Despair", Financial Times, 2 August 1989.] Hezbollah is one of the militias with temporary control in parts of Beirut, south Lebanon and the Baalbek valley. In June 1989, the Muslim Cabinet leader Salim al-Hoss blamed shortages in supplies on the leaders of militias operating in Lebanon. [ Mohammad Salam, "Lebanon's Moslem Cabinet Head Hoss Blames Militia Leaders for Abducting Civil Servant", Financial Times, 23 June 1989.] In addition to levying taxes, the militias are accused of blowing up power poles and blocking fuel supplies to force the population to buy things from the militias or their business partners. [ Salam.] Please see the attached articles:
-

Lara Marlowe, "War-Weary Lebanon Reaches a New Low: Rarely Have the People of Beirut Known Such Despair", Financial Times, 2 August 1989;
-

Mohammad Salam, "Lebanon's Moslem Cabinet Head Hoss Blames Militia Leaders for Abducting of Civil Servant", Associated Press, 23 June 1989;
-

"Rival Moslem and Christian Cabinets Have Little Influence in Militia-ruled Lebanon", Associated Press, 24 Sept. 1988.

Because Hezbollah is a Shi'ite party, it exercises control in predominantly Shi'ite sectors. Sunnis within the enclave would also be subject to the authority of the controlling militia (in this case Hezbollah), and would be viewed with suspicion in the prevailing climate of hostility where, in the words of one authority on Lebanon, "If you're not with us, you must be against us". [ Mr. Badri Hamadi, contacted through the auspices of the National Council for Canada Arab Relations.] It should be noted that other government functions (aside from "taxation") have been implemented by militias. For example, a report in Keesing's Record of World Events (January 1988, p. 35671) mentions that Hezbollah "committees effectively controlled a large number of villages, and in southern Beirut in particular they operated subsidized supermarkets and pharmacies and arranged a system of cash payments to poor families". [ Keesing's Record of World Events, Volume XXXIV, January 1988, p. 35671.] No specific information on the techniques Hezbollah employs to extract taxes is currently available to the IRBDC.

Although the war is largely based on intercommunal religious differences, the volatile political climate has precipitated swiftly changing alliances and expediency has placed Hezbollah in opposition and in partnership with Sunnis in the past few years. For example, in August 1989, 18 Muslim and leftist militias and organizations formed the National Front in opposition to General Aoun. [ Ihsan Hijazi, "Lebanese Muslims Warn of Final Battle", The New York Times, 29 August 1989.] Over the past two years, one of Hezbollah's principal militia opponents has been Amal (as well as some confrontations in the south with the South Lebanon Army) (please refer to Keesing's and other sources in the Toronto Documentation Centre for more information). The conflict between Amal and Hezbollah degenerated into street battles in south Beirut as each vied for the leadership role within the Shi'ite community.