THE ROSS REPORT: Support for Hezbollah: mile wide, but how deep?

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 8/9/6 | Andrew Ross

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While Hezbollah and its leader, Sheik Hassan Nasrrallah, have been crowned the latest kings of the Arab street, that may not be translating into much concrete support, outside of routine statements, the most bellicose of which come from the organization's patrons, Syria and Iran.

Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, in the face of "inflamed" public opinion, "flatly ruled out" calls for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador and economic boycotts of Israel and the U.S.

"Boycotts have negative effects on the economy of any country," he was quoted as telling members of the ruling National Democratic Party on Monday.

And in case anyone had ideas of a wider regional jihad, Mubarak made it quite clear that it would be without the participation of the largest Arab army of them all.

"The army of Egypt is strong to defend its territory and soil, and Egypt will not be provoked into any military operations outside its territory," Mubarak was quoted as saying.

In Saudi Arabia, Al Jazeera reports, police last weekend detained at least seven people after the latest "in a series of pro-Hezbollah protests in the east of the kingdom, home to its Shia minority."

Although Arab leaders have dutifully reined in their initial criticisms of Hezbollah, there are are still Arab voices speaking out against the militant Shiite organization.

Ahmed Al-Jarallah

One of the most consistently critical has been Kuwait's Arab Times. In an editorial published Tuesday, the paper's editor-in-chief, Ahmed Al-Jarallah, excoriated "Hezbollah and its followers [who]are still talking about an imaginary victory, just because Lebanon has been able resist Israel's aggression for so long.

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Pakistani infants at a pro-Hezbollah rally in Karachi today

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Terror Ping