Taef: All or Nothing

Ahmad Hussein El Husseini is a political analyst and essayist who writes on Middle Eastern geopolitics, U.S. foreign policy, and the evolving structure of regional power, with particular focus on Lebanon, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the Arab Gulf, and the future of American influence in the region.For years, many of Lebanon's Christian political leaders complained, often correctly, about the selective implementation of the Taef Accord. They argued that the agreement had been applied in ways that weakened the presidency while leaving untouched the structural reforms that were supposed to create a functioning state. During the Rafik Hariri era, this grievance became a central pillar of Christian political discourse. Taef, they argued, had been implemented à la carte. Today, however, the same complaint has largely disappeared among the same...