At the end of his interview tonight with Rachel Maddow, Richard Engel, NBC News chief foreign correspondent, talked about the strategic importance of the Syrian city of al Qusayr:
They're very concerned about losing the city of Qusayr, and that is why you're seeing so much activity in Lebanon right now. The city of Qusayr is not far from the Lebanese border and it sits along a highway that effectively connects the Shiite militatnts, Hezbollah, and the Syrian regime in the city of Homs. And Syria wants to keep this flow open. It wants to be able to have connectivity between Hezbollah and between key government posts inside Syria. And Qusayr, which has long been held by the rebels, sits right in the middle of this pipeline, if you will, or this supply line, and now Hezbollah is sending more fighters in.
There were several funerals just today for Hezbollah fighters who have been dying in Qusayr and that's why you're hearing Hezbollah talk so much about it, because it's very close to the Lebanese border and it is considered strategic by Hezbollah, which likes to keep connectivity with the Syrian regime, and Syria, which believes it needs Hezbollah to have its sophistication, to have its weapons, and to have its men.
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