Positive Developments in Lebanon

In Lebanon this week, the final Syrian troops pulled out of Lebanon. I have been pleasantly surprised at Syria keeping its word to pull out all of its troops. I thought it was going to take the implementation of sanctions for Syria to uphold its promise. While this is a great development for the pro-democracy forces in Lebanon, there is still much work that needs to be done if Lebanon hopes to stay on the path towards democracy. Hezbollah needs to be disarmed. This will be difficult to accomplish, especially when Hezbollah is making the ridiculous assertion that UN Resolution 1559 does not apply to them because they are resistance movement and not a militia. In addition, the various factions must find a way to work together. A new government must still be formed in order for elections to take place in May. While there are significant challenges ahead for Lebanese people, they have already overcome the most difficult challenge, which is the day-to-day meddling of the Syria.