WikiLeaks: Saniora Feared Hizbullah Would Topple his Cabinet

Former Premier Fouad Saniora reportedly said after the 2006 war that he feared Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah would topple the government.

In a WikiLeaks cable dated August 16, 2006, Saniora told then U.S. Ambassador Jeffrey Feltman that he was making every effort to deploy the Lebanese army as quick as possible in the south.

Furthermore, the deployment of UNIFIL in the area further consolidates the army, he said.

Saniora expressed fears, however, that Nasrallah would seek to topple his cabinet, achieving what he failed to accomplish during the war with Israel.

According to the cable, the former PM saw Nasrallah’s claims of victory as “empty words” given the large number of casualties in Lebanon.