US rejects Israeli criticism of aid to Lebanon

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/271651

A senior State Department official has rejected Israeli criticism regarding US assistance to the Lebanese armed forces, as well as the Israeli demand to condition the aid on the Lebanese government acting against Hezbollah’s precision missile factories, Barak Ravid of Channel 13 News reported on Wednesday.

The US gives the Lebanese army around $105 million a year and supports it with training and equipment. Israel is concerned that the Lebanese army is infiltrated by Hezbollah and that any US assistance to the Lebanese army will end up in the terror organization’s hands.

But David Schenker, the US assistant secretary of state for Near East Affairs, said in a briefing with reporters in Jerusalem on Wednesday that the Trump administration thinks giving aid to the Lebanese army is “a good investment."