Lebanon is trying to exert its control over Hezbollah.

According to Al Jazeera, Elias Murr, Lebanon's defense minister, said "that anyone who violated a cease-fire deal by firing rockets into Israel from Lebanon would be arrested and tried by a military court."

Kudos for Lebanon. At least they are standing up in the face of adversity and trying to remain free. I wish I can say the same for France.

The article goes on to state how, "France is particularly unhappy that the UN mandate allows Unifil to use force only in circumstances of direct self-defence, and not to enforce the resolution as it had sought", but that "Chirac has sought to muster contributions from countries such as Italy and Turkey while seeking to clarify the UN force's mandate and rules of engagement before committing any more troops."

I find this interesting. France had a large part in drafting UN Resolution 1701. Now they are concerned about its mandate and rules of engagement. Additionally, committing only 200 of the 2500 to 4000 troops originally promised, they are trying to get Italy and Turkey to send troops they are unwilling to commit to keep the peace. If that ain't cowardous, I don't know what is.

There is hope for Lebanese democracy, but not for France's future.