Lebanese military gets U.S. aid

BEIRUT, Lebanon, Oct. 26 (UPI) -- The U.S. military is supplying military aid and equipment to the Lebanese military, which was once considered ineffective, officials say.

Groups of Lebanese soldiers drive new American Humvees and trucks, and some of the country's soldiers carry new American rifles and grenade launchers, The New York Times reported Sunday.

The aid program, the first major American military assistance to Lebanon since the 1980s, is meant to bolster a military force so it can stabilize Lebanon and provide an alternative to Hezbollah, the Shiite militant group that controls southern Lebanon.

Officials at the U.S. State Department and the Pentagon say rebuilding Lebanon's military is necessary to achieve peace efforts in the region.

"United States policy is that Lebanon (should) be sovereign and independent, and the Lebanon government and its institutions govern all of Lebanon's territory and disarm militias," said Christopher Straub, deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Middle East. "We recognize that is not going to happen overnight, but that is our policy."