Reply #36: US tries to counter Hizbollah rebuilding efforts

[Robbien]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Concerned that Hizbollah has an early advantage in rebuilding shattered south Lebanon, the Bush administration is trying to speed up aid and encouraging Arab states to step in quickly, U.S. officials said this week.

The White House is "cracking the whip" on rebuilding efforts so Iranian-backed Hizbollah is not seen taking the lead and winning any more support among the local population, said a senior State Department official.

"I've said we have got to get with this. These guys (Hizbollah) are out there with their own bulldozers and what are we doing? It takes forever for us to start up rebuilding projects," said the senior official, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue.

. . .

A donors conference on humanitarian aid is set for August 31 in Stockholm and a later one may be held to deal directly with repairing Lebanon's shattered infrastructure. Bridges and roads took a pounding in the conflict.

Any large-scale U.S.-funded rebuilding effort could take months, just as it did in Iraq where the Bush administration's efforts are still faltering.

http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2006-08-17T230029Z_01_N17430166_RTRUKOC_0_US-MIDEAST-USA-REBUILDING.xml