The past week will be a turning point for Lebanon by all measures. Observers agree that this was no ordinary presidential election and not only because it ended a long-standing presidential vacuum that reflected a systemic political crisis.

I am not a fan of the excessive use of the term “minorities,” let alone exploiting it to reshape nations based on external interests.

It must be said that very few of us anticipated the developments in Syria that unfolded over a month ago. A 54-year chapter in the history of the country ended in less than two weeks — a massive achievement.

Regardless of what one says, words remain inadequate for doing justice to the major shift that Syria has seen over the past week.

The latest speech made by new Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem was extremely important for several reasons, in terms of both its timing and content.

No one disagrees that stability, as the Lebanese understand it and desire, is not a priority for Israel. This has been repeatedly demonstrated in the past and it is evident today.

It would be absurd for any political commentator to ignore the US presidential election, in which a very substantial number of voters had already cast their ballots through early voting before the official election day on Tuesday.

Optimism based on wishful thinking suggests that the Israeli military campaign against Lebanon may end “in a short period,” as military and political sources in Tel Aviv are saying.

The future seems worrying, or rather catastrophic, to the Lebanese who have found themselves becoming burdensome guests in their own country.

I do not doubt, not for a moment, that terror and pain are grinding the displaced who are overwhelmed by fear for the future in both Lebanon and Palestine.