LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
September 16/09

Bible Reading of the day
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 19:25-27. Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, "Woman, behold, your son." Then he said to the disciple, "Behold, your mother." And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.

Free Opinions, Releases, letters & Special Reports
War drums begin beating in Washington over Iran's nuclear work/By Inter Press Service/By: Daniel Luban and Jim Lob/September 15/09
Syria isn't changing; the US should re-evaluate conciliation/By David Schenker/September 15/09
A little common sense and an abundance of senselessness in Lebanon/The Daily Star/ September 15/09
A dangerous reminder/Now Lebanon/September 15, 09
Interview with Michel Aoun/LNNA/September 14, 2009
Who’s afraid of the STL? By:Hussain Abdul-Hussain/Now Lebanon/September 14, 09

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for September 15/09
Mitchell, Netanyahu fail to agree on settlement halt/Haaretz & Reuters
IDF chief: We`ll be ready if no quiet on Lebanon border-Ha'aretz
WJC: World must boycott Ahmadinejad speech at UN/Haaretz
Bellemare: STL to knock on door of four generals if evidence is found against them/Now Lebanon
Abu Jamra: It is in Lebanon’s best interests for Hariri to include everyone in cabinet/Now Lebanon
Hariri-Berri Tension Amid New Round of Consultations to Name PM/Naharnet
French Presidential Envoy in Beirut Soon/Naharnet
Jumblat Links Stability with Syrian-Saudi Relations/Naharnet
Lynn Pascoe Links Rocket Firing to Cabinet Deadlock/Naharnet
War drums begin beating in Washington over Iran's nuclear work -By Inter Press Service
Iraq to hand Turkey 'proof' of Syria-led attacks-By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Hariri: It's my right to try a 'different' cabinet strategy-Daily Star
Hariri tribunal asks for patience over slow-moving case-Daily Star
Lebanon slams belligerent Israeli response to rocket fire-Daily Star
Hamas official backs Fadlallah's stance on Israel-Daily Star
Marouni decries political interference from Syria-Daily Star
US-Lebanese man on trial in UAE was 'tortured'-Daily Star
Taking stock on International Day of Democracy-Daily Star
Opposition in crosshairs at Gemayel memorial-Daily Star
New TV's Eid rleased on bail after turning herself in-Daily Star
Beirut forum to focus on climate change in region-Daily Star
Whatever happened to the bustling nightlife on Monnot?-Daily Star
Lebanon's political top-dogs show their contorted faces-Daily Star
Netanyahu refuses to freeze Jewish settlement construction-Daily Star
Bounced checks for Ezzeddine worth 40 million dollars/Future News
Jumblatt: Internal Circumstances Not Helpful to Hariri.Future News
Sleiman and Assad Discuss Lebanese Developments/Future News
Zahra: Bassil is a “flimsy tool” of a regional policy/Future News

Sleiman and Assad Discuss Lebanese Developments
Date: September 15th, 2009
Source: Al-Hayat/President Michel Sleiman and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad discussed over the phone the regional developments and the Lebanese situation as well as the future prospects of the peace process on the eve of the U.S commissioner George Mitchel’s visit to Beirut, the Pan-Arab daily Al-Hayat reported Tuesday. “The discussion also tackled the issue of the Lebanese-Syrian relations and the Lebanese internal situation with regard to the government entitlement and the necessity of the formation of a national unity government,” a reliable source who spoke on the condition of anonymity told the paper. “They also agreed on the need for speeding up the formation of an effective cabinet capable of dealing with the Israeli threats as well as with the regional developments,”

Bounced checks for Ezzeddine worth 40 million dollars
Date: September 15th, 2009
Future News/Central risk department received bounced checks from customers of Salah Ezzeddine and his partners, upon the request of Bank of Lebanon in an attempt to limit the list of victims who have dealt with him before the cessation of payments. Almustaqbal.org reported that the bounced checks from a single bank till last Saturday, worth more than 40 million dollars, while banking sources pointed that “more bounced checks given from Ezzeddine and Ali Al-Jeshi may appear this week.” The checks bounced due to insufficient supply to cover the drawer, and it does not entail a burden on the banks concerned, but only the customers who were not paid. Banking sources wonder about the reason for the delayed announcement of bounced checks, especially as the banks are bound by a circular of the Bank of Lebanon to inform the central risk of such checks and if they were covered or not, in addition to the date of coverage. Banks may tolerate in this regard, depending on the solvency of the customer and his credit record, but this situation does not apply to Ezzeddine and his partners, unless the customers delayed the withdrawal of the checks. This raises the questions of another confused nature.

Zahra: Bassil is a “flimsy tool” of a regional policy
Date: September 15th, 2009/Source: Future News
Lebanese Forces bloc member MP Antoine Zahra described outgoing Telecommunications Minister Gebran Bassil as “a flimsy tool of a regional policy.”“The (Change and Reform bloc’s) demand to reappoint Bassil in the new cabinet is a regional tool to escalate the situation in Lebanon,” he said. In an interview to Future News, Zahra noted that the people did not choose Bassil to represent them in the parliament during the June 7 polls, arguing that the people will not accept him to represent them in government.

IDF chief: We'll be ready for any turmoil on Lebanon border
By Eli Ashkenazi, Haaretz Correspondent
14/09/2009/Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi said during a tour of northern Israel on Tuesday that the military would be ready in the event that war breaks out along the Lebanese border. "All the sides are interested in quiet, which has prevailed here since the Second Lebanon War (in 2006). If there is no quiet, they will find us ready," Ashkenazi said, while referring to a Hezbollah rocket cache that exploded in southern Lebanon in July. "The explosions showed that Hezbollah is arming and getting stronger, but the IDF is organized and ready for everything." Ashkenazi added that he planned to spend the upcoming Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah in the north, to "celebrate, have a good time and enjoy the views that the Galilee offers." Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday that Israel holds the Lebanese government accountable for last week''s rocket attacks on northern Israel. Two rockets launched from Lebanon hit open areas in the Western Galilee on Friday. An Israel Defense Forces artillery unit shot back at the launch area, firing some 12 artillery shells. No casualties or damage were reported on either side.

Mitchell, Netanyahu fail to agree on settlement halt
By Barak Ravid and Jonathan Lis, Haaretz Correspondents, and Reuters
14/09/2009/ Israel and the United States failed Tuesday to reach a compromise on the contentious issue of West Bank settlement construction.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met for two hours in Jerusalem with U.S. President Barack Obama's special envoy to the Middle East, George Mitchell. The meeting ended with no results. The prime minister's bureau released a statement to the press describing the sit-down as "good." The two men will resume their discussions in Netanyahu's office Thursday morning.
The inability to strike a final deal thus forces Mitchell to extend his stay in Israel. The envoy has been engaged in intensive efforts to wrest an Israeli commitment to halt settlement construction in time for next week's United Nations General Assembly meeting. Washington would like to arrange a tripartite summit meeting between Obama, Netanyahu, and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. The Palestinians have been adamant in demanding an Israeli settlement freeze as a precondition for the resumption of peace negotiations.
At the start of the meeting, envoy George Mitchell told the premier that he is hopeful the U.S. and Israel can reach agreement on the future of settlement construction in the West Bank.
"We hope to bring this phase of our discussions to early conclusion and to move forward in our common search for a comprehensive peace in the region," Mitchell told reporters at the start of the meeting, indicating he hoped to wrap up a deal.
Understandings between the U.S. and Israel on the issue would pave the way for peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, Mitchell told Netanyahu.
In addition, Mitchell said he is hopeful that Netanyahu, Obama, and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will jointly meet on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York later this month. The Palestinians are demanding a complete freeze on settlement construction as a precondition to peace talks with Israel.
Netanyahu is willing to approve only a partial construction freeze for a period less than the year the Americans are demanding. It is believed that the two sides will compromise on a nine-month hiatus in construction. Following his meeting with Netanyahu, Mitchell will travel to Ramallah for a meeting with Abbas. In recent weeks, senior American officials relayed messages to Israel asking that it soften its stance on the settlements and offer the Palestinians an opportunity to retreat from their hardline position on the possibility of a tripartite meeting at the UN.
Netanyahu, who met with the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Sunday, said that a tripartite meeting at the UN is not a certainty.
"Nothing has been agreed regarding a meeting with Abu Mazen," the prime minister told the MKs.
Earlier this week, Netanyahu commented on the impending meeting with Mitchell during a conference with Likud cabinet members. Netanyahu was asked if Israel had agreed to a two-year timeline for negotiations and the prime minister responded that the U.S. administration had undertaken not to spring policy surprises on Jerusalem. "In any case, I will not agree to enter into talks whose results are defined and known in advance," Netanyahu told his party. "That's what negotiations are for and we are willing to begin right away." In discussing the talks with the United States on freezing construction in the settlements, Netanyahu stressed that the agreement is only about "cutting down the construction" and said that it was still uncertain how long the restrictions would apply. Netanyahu said that the agreement includes the continued construction of 2,500 housing units on which work has already begun, and 450 new housing units in the large settlement blocs. Netanyahu also said that public structures will be allowed, including schools, synagogues and more.
The prime minister also blamed the Palestinians for delaying the resumption of negotiations and accused them of "hardening their positions."

Bellemare Returns to The Hague
Naharnet/The Prosecutor of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, Daniel Bellemare, returned on Saturday to The Hague from Canada where he underwent treatment. "The Prosecutor would like to express his deepest gratitude to all those from the diplomatic and legal communities, the media corps in Lebanon and elsewhere, and to States' officials, civil society figures and others as well the STL officials and staff who enquired about his health," Bellemare's office said in a statement Monday. "He would like to extend his special thanks and appreciation to his own staff whose dedication and professionalism proved to be instrumental in enabling him to run the work of his office during his absence from The Hague," the statement added.
Beirut, 15 Sep 09, 07:09

Bellemare: We Will Knock 4 Generals' Doors if we Find Evidence Against Them
Naharnet/The Prosecutor of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, Daniel Bellemare, said the four generals, who were released from Roumieh prison in April, could be called to appear at the court if evidence was found against them in the case of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri's assassination. "We will knock on their doors if we have evidence against them," Bellemare told pan-Arab daily al-Hayat in an interview published Tuesday. In answering a question as to whether the four generals would be summoned to the court, Bellemare said: "The answer is simple. The generals haven't been prosecuted in order to be found innocent. They were released because we don't have enough evidence against them to keep them in prison." Bellemare told al-Hayat at his office near The Hague that the biggest challenge to his job is his security and of those working in his team. He said he has a big security force that accompanies him wherever he goes. "The one who committed these crimes is a professional group that hides facts skillfully." The Canadian judge denied that a date has been set to indict the criminals or announce the results of the investigation. About non-cooperation by some states with the probe into Hariri's Feb. 2005 murder, Bellemare said: "There are procedures to urge them to speed up their response."
He hinted that he could take the issue to the United Nations "after all efforts were exerted." Bellemare told al-Hayat that he was satisfied with the Lebanese government's cooperation and that he wasn't worried about financial contributions to the tribunal. He added that Americans have made more financial contributions since the election of President Barack Obama, who has stressed support for the court's functioning. The prosecutor unveiled that the STL's president, Judge Antonio Cassese, will issue in two weeks a report that does not include any reference to an indictment in the Hariri case. Bellemare snapped back at those accusing the court of being politicized, saying those making the accusations without proof should present their evidence to the court. He added that he would resign if he felt there was political influence on the STL's functioning. He also refused to comment on the report issued by Deir Spiegel several months ago, which accused Hizbullah of involvement in Hariri's murder. "I don't reply to claims," Bellemare stressed. Meanwhile, the STL's Registrar, David Tolbert, who assumed his post last month following Robin Vincent's resignation, told An Nahar daily that all of the tribunal's institutions enjoy full independence in their work. He said in the interview that the court's functioning has nothing to do with preparations for the courtroom, which is expected to be ready in February or March next year. Tolbert urged the Lebanese people to "be patient and let justice take its course." Beirut, 15 Sep 09, 08:31

Siddiq to Be Tried in Abu Dhabi on Charges of Illegal Entry
UAE Federal Supreme Court has decided to postpone till Oct. 5 looking into the case of Syrian national Mohammed Zuheir Siddiq for illegal entry.
Siddiq entered the United Arab Emirates with a forged Czeck passport in the spring of 2009. On Monday the court held a second session, where Siddiq's defense lawyer said his client entered UAE under a "special permit," only to find out it was a forged Czeck passport. Siddiq had left French territory abruptly and was said to have headed to a Gulf country, only to surface in Sharjah with his family. Siddiq, who was dubbed "key witness" in ex-Premier Rafik Hariri's assassination, told the judge he was unaware that he was holding a fake passport. Beirut, 15 Sep 09, 11:30

Hariri-Berri Tension Amid New Round of Consultations to Name PM
Naharnet/MP Saad Hariri stressed on Monday that he has the right to adopt a "different" negotiations approach amid tension between him and Speaker Nabih Berri. "I have kept my hand extended but they (the opposition) have always rejected our open approach," Hariri said during an iftar at his residence in Qoreitem. "In face of such rigid stance, it then becomes my constitutional right to adopt a different strategy."He said he would reveal such a strategy if he is reappointed as PM-designate. "We would then see how much the other parties would cooperate on cabinet formation." "No one tells me what to do as long as I am working within my constitutional authorities that allow me to form the cabinet in cooperation with the president," he stressed. The MP added that his alliance had agreed to include Hizbullah in the cabinet, despite Israeli threats and he was ready to make sacrifices "in order to preserve Lebanon's interests." The Mustaqbal movement leader's comments came on the eve of a new round of consultations between President Michel Suleiman and parliamentary blocs on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Development and Liberation bloc headed by Berri said that its members awaited a declaration by Hariri regarding his commitment to the 15-10-5 cabinet formula before nominating him again as premier. Beirut media said Tuesday that following the bloc's decision, 71 majority lawmakers and only two opposition MPs from the Tashnag party are expected to name Hariri during the two-day consultations. Beirut, 15 Sep 09, 11:24

French Presidential Envoy in Beirut Soon
Naharnet/French President Nicolas Sarkozy will send to Beirut a top envoy on a mission most probably linked to the cabinet crisis in Lebanon, a diplomatic source told al-Liwaa daily.
The envoy would visit Lebanon in a period not later than end of this month, the source added. He refused to name the top official and discuss the nature of his mission. However, involved sources told al-Liwaa that the French official will discuss the difficulties facing cabinet formation.
Beirut, 15 Sep 09, 12:19

WJC: World must boycott Ahmadinejad speech at UN
By Shlomo Shamir, Haaretz Correspondent
14/09/2009
The World Jewish Congress on Monday launched a new global campaign on to convince world leaders to boycott Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's address to the United Nations General Assembly next week. Ahmadinejad is set to speak at the General Assembly on September 23, at a special session to be opened by United States President Barack Obama. In a petition published Monday, WJC President Ronald Lauder urged the leaders of the UN's member states to "show that the values and goals of the UN Charter will be upheld at this year's General Assembly meeting. "We ask UN leaders to send a strong message to Ahmedinejad, who regularly uses these forums to spread invective, threats and unspeakable accusations," he said, adding that "member states have an obligation to show that the UN cannot be hijacked for the purposes of spreading the kind of racist diatribe and bigoted views which the organization was founded to combat and overcome.'

Opposition in crosshairs at Gemayel memorial
By Elias Sakr /-Daily Star staff
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
BEIRUT: Former MP and widow of assassinated President-elect Bachir Gemayel, Solange Gemayel, stressed on Monday that the parliamentary majority would not allow foreign intervention to destabilize the country’s security situation. The mass to commemorate the 27th anniversary of Gemayel’s assassination was attended by Phalange Party head Amin Gemayel, Phalange MP and son of Bashir, Nadim Gemayel as well as Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea and representatives of President Michel Sleiman, Speaker Nabih Berri and caretaker Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. Speaking during a rally following the mass at the church’s yard in Achrafieh, Solange Gemayel accused the opposition of obstructing Future Movement leader Saad Hariri’s efforts to form a national-unity cabinet “by the force of arms.” as well as hindering the presidency’s role.
She also slammed the opposition for “hindering” the role of the state’s constitutional institutions over the past four years, as she recalled the withdrawal of Hizbullah and Amal Movement ministers from the government in late 2006, the May 7 events and the presidential elections. Two years of political deadlock followed the November 2006 withdrawal of Hizbullah and Amal Movement ministers’ from the government then headed by Siniora. The stalemate was followed by bloody clashes on May 7, 2008 between opposition and pro-government gunmen after the Cabinet took a decision to dismantle Hizbullah’s private telecommunications network.
The clashes ended with the Qatari-brokered Doha Accord, which led to the election of Sleiman and the formation of a national-unity cabinet which gave the opposition veto power.
Gemayel said the rejection of Hariri’s “positive” cabinet line-up proposal by the opposition aimed “to abolish the outcome of the democratic elections [on June 7]” and exert pressure on the Lebanese. Bashir was killed along with 22 other party members in a bomb explosion that targeted the Phalange Party headquarters in the Beirut neighborhood of Achrafieh in 1982, only 20 days following his election as president and two weeks prior to his acceptance speech. The wife of the slain Phalange leader praised the sacrifices of the party’s members who were killed on September 14, 1982 along with Bashir and recalled the “martyrs of the March 14 Cedar Revolution.” The term “Cedar Revolution” refers to the Independence Intifada, or the massive street demonstrations that erupted in the aftermath of the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri on February 14, 2005.The demonstrators demand the withdrawal of Syrian troops, who eventually left Lebanon later the same year. During Lebanon’s 18-month deadlock between 2006 and 2008 a number of March 14 politicians were assassinated.

War drums begin beating in Washington over Iran's nuclear work
By Inter Press Service
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Analysis
Daniel Luban and Jim Lobe
Inter Press Service
WASHINGTON: As nuclear negotiations between Iran and the West continue to move slowly, US President Barack Obama is coming under growing pressure from what appears to be a concerted lobbying and media campaign urging him to act more aggressively to stop Iran’s nuclear program.
Iran and world powers, including the US, have agreed to start negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear program on October 1. But already hawks in the US backed by hardline pro-Israel organizations have pressed Obama to quickly impose “crippling” economic sanctions against Tehran, and some are arguing that he should make preparations for a military attack on Iranian nuclear facilities.
The pressure campaign kicked off in earnest last week. Last Thursday, hundreds of leaders and activists from the US Jewish community descended on Washington to lobby for harsher sanctions, while widely-publicized media reports suggested that Iran is already nearing the verge of a nuclear capability. Leaders from Jewish groups came for a national “Advocacy Day on Iran,” during which they met with key Congressional figures. Republican Howard Berman, a California Democrat who heads the House Foreign Affairs Committee, suggested the clock “has almost run out” on Iran’s nuclear program, and indicated that he would move ahead next month with a bill imposing sanctions on Iran’s refined petroleum imports “absent some compelling evidence why I should do otherwise.”
The bill, the Iran Refined Petroleum Sanctions Act (IRPSA), has for months been the top lobbying priority of hawkish pro-Israel lobbying groups led by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). To their frustration, Berman has held up consideration of the bill for most of the past year. But not all US Jewish groups are lining up behind the legislation.
Americans for Peace Now (APN), for instance, issued a statement arguing that “arbitrary deadlines are a mistake” and that “pursuing sanctions that target the Iranian people, rather than their leaders, is a morally and strategically perilous path the Obama administration must reject.” M.J. Rosenberg, a foreign-policy analyst at Media Matters Action Network, suggested on the website TPMCafe that the advocacy day “marks the start of the fall push on Iran.” The advocacy group United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) has launched an intensive television advertising campaign this month claiming that the US “must isolate Iran economically to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.”
UANI’s two co-founders are now both high-ranking officials in the Obama administration: Dennis Ross, currently overseeing Iran policy at the National Security Council (NSC), and Richard Holbrooke, now the State Department special representative in charge of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Also on Thursday, the New York Times published a front-page story claiming that US intelligence agencies believe “that Iran has created enough nuclear fuel to make a rapid, if risky, sprint for a nuclear weapon,” although the article did not provide an estimate of when Iran could have a nuclear capability. The same day, the Wall Street Journal published an op-ed by former Senators Charles Robb and Daniel Coats and retired four-star Air Force General Chuck Wald claiming that Iran “will be able to manufacture enough highly enriched uranium for a nuclear weapon in 2010,” the authors urged Obama “to begin preparations for the use of military options” against Iran. However, official American intelligence estimates provide a far slower timeline. In February, director of National Intelligence (DNI) Dennis Blair told Congress that Iran would be unable to produce highly enriched uranium (HEU) until at least 2013, and stated that there was “no evidence” that the Islamic Republic had even made a decision to produce HEU.
Iran insists that its nuclear program is intended solely for civilian purposes. In 2007, the US intelligence community released a National Intelligence Estimate suggesting that Iran had halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003. While Obama faces pressure to move quickly to sanctions, the government of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is still struggling at home to overcome challenges to its legitimacy resulting from the disputed presidential election in June. Many analysts suggest that the Tehran government is currently in no position to respond coherently to US engagement.
Last week, Ahmadinejad’s government finally issued a formal reply to proposals by the P5+1 powers – the United States, China, Russia, Britain, France, and Germany – for talks on its nuclear program and related issues. But the five-page-reply has been deemed too vague by Washington, with State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley dismissing it on Thursday as “not really responsive” to American concerns. Other analysts have suggested that the Iranian proposal was more promising than initial media reports would indicate.
He suggests that the proposal’s language “may offer an opening to push strongly for transparency and acceptance of intrusive inspections and verification mechanisms.”
The Obama administration, however, continues to hold out hope for the engagement strategy. “We’ll be looking to see how ready Iran is to actually engage, and we will be testing that willingness to engage in the next few weeks,” Crowley said. At the same time, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov all but ruled out his country’s cooperation with new sanctions against Tehran at the Security Council, and called instead for renewed negotiations based on Iran’s reply.
Lavrov’s comments came shortly after a secret and still-mysterious visit to Russia by Israel’s right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The latest developments – along with growing amount of attention being paid to US policy in Afghanistan, at the expense of Iran – have only added to the frustration of Iran hawks in Washington. They believe increasingly that economic sanctions alone, even if they are imposed multilaterally, are unlikely to be enough to persuade Tehran to halt what they see as its drive to obtain a nuclear weapon. For this reason, many suggest that the United States should either make preparations to attack Iran militarily itself, or step aside and allow Israel to do so.
“No one should believe that tighter sanctions will, in the foreseeable future, have any impact on Iran’s nuclear weapons program,” former UN Ambassador John Bolton, a noted hardliner, wrote in the Wall Street Journal last month. “Adopting tougher economic sanctions is simply another detour away from hard decisions on whether to accept a nuclear Iran or support using force to prevent it.” But critics suggest that the constant threats of military action against Tehran will only make the regime’s leadership more intransigent on the nuclear issue.
“Pointing a gun at their heads merely reinforces their desire for a reliable deterrent, and probably strengthens the hand of any Iranian officials who think they ought to get a bomb as soon as possible,” wrote Stephen Walt, a professor of international relations at Harvard University, on the website of Foreign Policy magazine. – with The Daily Star

Hariri: It's my right to try a 'different' cabinet strategy
‘There was no place for wise dialogue’
By Elias Sakr and Nafez Qawas
Daily Star staff
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
BEIRUT: Future Movement leader MP Saad Hariri stressed on Monday that he was one of the biggest supporters of the formation of a national unity government, adding that he has the right to adopt a “different” negotiations approach. “I have kept my hand extended but they [the opposition] have always rejected our open approach,” he said during an iftar banquet in honor of Beiruti families at his residence in Qoreitem. “In face of such rigid stance, it then becomes my constitutional right to adopt a different strategy,” he said.
He said he would reveal such a strategy if he is re-appointed as prime-minister designate. Hariri said he had stepped down as a premier designate “not because I was intending to create a crisis but because I realized that there was no place for wise dialogue.” He added that his alliance had agreed to include Hizbullah in the cabinet, despite Israeli threats.
“I have been patient for 73 days. Why should I keep patient?” he asked, adding that his national duties require him to adopt a patient and wise attitude for the sake of the country.
Hariri stressed that he was ready to make sacrifices, “in order to preserve Lebanon’s interests and to save the struggling Lebanese.” On Monday Hariri’s Lebanon First parliamentary bloc said it would nominate Hariri as prime minister during a second round of binding parliamentary consultations conducted by President Michel Sleiman. The consultations are set to begin on Tuesday. After a meeting headed by Hariri at his residence in Qoreitem, the bloc stressed in a statement its commitment to constitutional norms with regard to the cabinet formation process.
“The bloc urges all political parties and parliamentary blocs to tackle the issue based on Lebanon’s democratic parliamentary regime which should be respected under all circumstances,” the statement added.
Hariri repeatedly rejected preconditions imposed by opposition groups, while stressing the constitutional prerogatives of the president along with the prime minister-designate in forming a cabinet. According to the Constitution, the president signs the cabinet’s formation decree along with the premier-designate.
The bloc underlined that its decision to reappoint Hariri stemmed from its commitment to the outcome of the June 7 polls and the country’s need for a national-unity cabinet capable of facing future challenges and securing stability. Tackling Hariri’s efforts to form a cabinet prior to his resignation last Thursday, the lawmakers praised the Future Movement leader’s attempts to reach an agreement over a national-unity government. “However, unfortunately Hariri’s attempts were hampered by a set of conditions aimed at obstructing the democratic process and confronting the majority’s openness with a blockade,” the statement said. Hariri stepped down as prime minister-designate on Thursday, accusing the opposition of hampering his efforts to form a cabinet. Meanwhile, the Development and Liberation bloc headed by Speaker Nabih Berri said on Monday that its members awaited a declaration by Hariri regarding his commitment to the 15-10-5 cabinet formula before nominating him again as premier.
The 15-10-5 structure grants the majority 15 ministers, the opposition 10 and Sleiman 5 seats guaranteeing him the tipping vote. Both the majority and the opposition are respectively denied absolute majority or veto power.
Following their meeting, the bloc issued a statement slamming Hariri’s stance on Sunday, adding that they do not submit to threats and awaited a clear stance by the Future Movement leader. “Dangerous remarks [by Hariri] clearly mean that he disapproves a national-unity cabinet,” the statement added.
Hariri warned during an iftar on Sunday that he would reciprocate toward any parties that refrained from re-nominating him as premier-designate. “Whoever wishes to nominate Saad Hariri, let him do, and whoever refrains to do so, I would act with him following my designation like he acted with me prior to it,” he said.
The Development and Liberation bloc added that Berri along with Sleiman and Jumblatt had urged Hariri not to step down before Monday but their efforts were in vain since the Future Movement leader rushed to resign and voiced remarks rejecting to a national-unity cabinet. Meanwhile, Berri’s ally, Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) leader MP Michel Aoun said on Monday that MPs should not bound to designate Hariri in order to communicate with him. “We can have reservations about communicating with Hariri but [as a premier] he can’t have reservations about us,” Aoun said. Opposition forces have voiced their renewed support for the agreed upon 15-10-5 formula following Hariri’s resignation. Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblatt had expressed his explicit commitment to the structure.
Jumblatt has moved recently toward a more centrist position between the opposition and the majority but expressed his full support for Hariri’s task to form a cabinet. However, March 14 officials stressed that it was up to the new premier-designate to decide upon the continued validity of the 15-10-5 as they stressed the need to resume deliberations on the cabinet issue from scratch while denying attempts to overthrow it. Tackling the cabinet formula, Future Movement MP Okab Sakr said adoption of the 15-10-5 formula was tied to the opposition’s demands and acceptance of Hariri’s cabinet proposal. “The majority does not want to impose conditions nor have them imposed on them,” Sakr added.
Sakr said that if the cabinet lineup submitted by Hariri was rejected, a “political technocrat cabinet, embracing politically affiliated ministers but professionally qualified, may be the last resort.” Echoing Sakr, Future Movement MP Moustapha Alloush said during an iftar in Tripoli that starting Tuesday, a new phase begins, adding that deliberations would kick off from scratch as compromises made by Hariri during the past period would not re-occur. Meanwhile, the FPM reiterated its demands on Monday to re-appoint Caretaker Telecommunications Minister Jebran Bassil for another term. Bassil, Aoun’s son-in-law stressed that each political party is entitled to nominate their own candidates in the next government.
Hariri had reiterated on several occasions his alliance’s opposition to the nomination of candidates who lost in the elections and insisted on the principle of rotating ministerial portfolios among political parties. Bassil, who ran for one of two seats in his hometown of Batroun, lost to March 14 MPs. Following talks with President Sleiman, Caretaker Premier Fouad Siniora stressed on Monday the need to form a national-unity cabinet without pre-conditions and to do so on the basis of the outcome of the June 7 polls as well as in accordance with the president and the premier-designate’s constitutional powers. Siniora said that introducing new conventions to the Lebanese Constitution would not be in any party’s interest, adding that he would nominate Hariri to head the cabinet following his return on Wednesday from Saudi Arabia, where he would perform Omra rituals. Separately, Hizbullah’s Loyalty to Resistance bloc MP Nawwaf Moussawi emphasized on Monday that coexistence can only survive in Lebanon through consensus and compromises among political parties.

Hariri tribunal asks for patience over slow-moving case
Daily Star staff
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
BEIRUT: Registrar of the UN-backed tribunal to investigate the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri on Monday asked members of the public to remain patient with the slow-moving case. The investigation into Hari­ri’s murder by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) was ongoing, David Tolbert told Al-Arabiyya Television, urging those criticizing the court’s sluggish pace to be patient with the complexities of the task. “Slow investigations do not affect the integrity of the tribunal and it is imperative to be patient because investigations usually take a long time,” Tolbert said. The registrar added that he intended to visit Leba­non soon to inaugurate the tribunal’s Beirut offices.
He also dismissed the idea that the failure of Future Movement leader Saad Hariri to form a national unity government would have negative repercussions on the tribunal or annul previous STL agreements signed with Beirut. “The commitments made by Lebanon to the tribunal are commitments made by the Lebanese state and do not change with a change of government,” Tolbert said. Rafik Hariri’s son Saad stepped down as Lebanon’s premier-designate on Thursday after accusing the Hizbullah-led opposition of hindering efforts to form a national unity government. Responding to criticism that Deputy Prosecutor Jocelyne Tabet had still not relocated to the tribunal’s headquarters in The Hague, Tolbert said the delay was due to UN employment protocol and was nothing unusual. Tabet was appointed to the post by the Lebanese government in July. Lebanese critics have said her delay in joining colleagues in The Hague reflected a pattern of UN foot-dragging on appointments to the tribunal. Reiterating previous remarks, Tolbert emphasized the independence of STL judges, saying the officials adhered to international demands and “we have no doubts about their integrity.” Tolbert also told Al-Arabiyya that a recent agreement signed by the STL and INTERPOL was “essential.”
The Interim Agreement, which came into force on August 24, allows the STL to request INTERPOL’s assistance for on­going investigations carried out by the Office of the STL Prosecutor, Daniel Bellemare, until a more comprehensive cooperation agreement is signed. Tolbert said the Tribunal had received a commitment from the Lebanese government to work toward a more extensive agreement. He stressed the need to work in “a serious manner because it is essential that Lebanon fulfills all its commitments, especially financial commitments to the STL.” Tolbert’s comments came two days after Bellemare’s return to The Hague following medical treatment in Canada. “The prosecutor would like to express his deepest gratitude to all those from the diplomatic and legal communities, the media corps in Lebanon and elsewhere, and to states’ officials, civil society figures and others as well the STL officials and staff who enquired about his health,” his office said in a press statement on Monday. Bellemare left for Canada in July. American citizen Tolbert commenced his duties as STL registrar in late August. He is the tribunal’s second registrar, succeeding Robin Vincent. – The Daily Star. The MP added that defiance would have negative repercussions on all groups.

Hamas official backs Fadlallah's stance on Israel
Daily Star staff/Tuesday, September 15, 2009
BEIRUT: Hamas movement political official in Lebanon, Ali Barakah has saluted senior Shiite cleric Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah’s recent stance to consider Palestine as an “Arab Islamic land that we cannot give away.” In a statement on Sunday Fadlallah said resistance was “the strategic choice” to liberate Palestine and regain Palestinian rights. In the same statement the cleric issued a fatwa, or religious ruling, banning the normalization of ties with Israel. “Normalization with the Zionist enemy, in any form, is prohibited by Sharia [Islamic law],” Fadlallah said. Barakah also praised Future Movement leader Saad Hariri’s plan to grant Palestinian refugees in Lebanon their civil rights. “Such a decision opens the door for a new solution to the Palestinian dossier in Lebanon and all its political, human, judicial, and security aspects,” the Hamas official added. During Ramadan iftar banquets, Hariri had reiterated that the Palestinian cause remained the “major concern and challenge for Arabs.” – The Daily Star

US-Lebanese man on trial in UAE was 'tortured'
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
ABU DHABI: A United States citizen of Lebanese origin facing trial on terrorism charges in the United Arab Emirates confessed under torture, and his case should not be heard in a UAE court, his lawyer told a court on Monday. Naji Hamdan, who has been in custody in the UAE, is charged with “supporting terrorism” and being a member of Iraqi militant group Ansar al-Sunna because he entered an Islamist website and donated money to an Islamic charity. The charges carry a penalty of 10 to 15 years in jail followed by deportation. A verdict is due on October 12. Hamdan denied charges when he first appeared in court in June, after earlier confessing after he was detained by UAE state security forces a year ago.
“The confessions attributed to Hamdan were given under duress and torture,” lawyer Abdel-Qadir al-Haithami told the supreme court. “And how can there be any evidence of torture after 90 days in state security?” he asked. Public prosecutors say Hamdan donated $2,000 to an unnamed Islamic charity and that the money was used for firing two rockets on Israel. It was not clear from where or when. His lawyer said other evidence used against Hamdan was that he copied an item from an Islamist website and sent it to another website.
He said this was not a crime in UAE law and that UAE courts were not competent to hear the case since the alleged crimes were committed in the United States.
The UAE has no diplomatic ties with Israel but backs the self-rule government of US-backed Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who favors negotiations over armed action in the Palestinians’ quest for statehood. The US Embassy in the UAE has declined to comment on the case except to say that Hamdan has been given consular support.
The American Civil Liberties Union has said US authorities referred the case to the Arab Gulf country because there was not sufficient evidence for a trial in US courts. Hamdan lived in the United States for 20 years where he ran an auto parts business, but moved to the UAE in 2006. “His house, car, garage, and safe have all been searched, with not a single piece of evidence found,” his lawyer told the court. “How can someone, accused of being in touch with terrorist organizations, not leave any evidence?” – Reuters, with AP

Marouni decries political interference from Syria
Daily Star staff/Tuesday, September 15, 2009
BEIRUT: Tourism Minister Elie Marouni said on Monday that Syria’s interference in Lebanese political affairs had become “obvious, especially since the Syrian newspaper Al-Watan reported that the Lebanese cabinet would not be formed before winter.” Speaking to LBC television, Marouni said the Phalange Party would demand being granted two ministers in the new government, however, he added: “If our demands are not met, we will not obstruct the cabinet formation.” Marouni said he insisted on reappointing Future Movement leader MP Saad Hariri as prime minister-designate, “since he is capable of launching a development campaign.” The caretaker minister accused Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun of being a “mere cover for Hizbullah, which is the main obstructer of the cabinet formation.” Marouni commented on MP Nicholas Fattouch’s decision to dismiss him from Zahle in the Heart bloc, saying that “no one” has the right to take such a decision, especially as there is no bylaw within the bloc that stipulates that the head of the bloc can dismiss members. Marouni revealed that he was deliberating with Fattouch to resolve the conflict. – The Daily Star

Lebanon slams belligerent Israeli response to rocket fire
Beirut demands Israel coordinate with UNIFIL before violating 1701
By Patrick Galey /Daily Star staff
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s Foreign Ministry called on Monday for Israel to coordinate with UN peacekeeping troops before reacting to any future Blue Line security breach. In a letter submitted to UN Secretary General Ban Ki- moon in the wake of Friday’s exchange of rocket fire between Lebanon and Israel, the ministry labeled the attacks a “violation of Lebanese sovereignty and Security Council Resolution 1701” and criticized the Israeli Army for responding to provocation without first consulting UNIFIL troops in the region.
The letter also stated that “any incident should not be dealt with unilaterally under the pretext of self defense,” in reference to the estimated dozen artillery shells Israel responded with on Friday. No casualties were reported from either side in the wake of the incident, thought to be the third of its kind this year.
Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh told The Daily Star that the rocket attacks were a clear violation of Resolution 1701, “which we fully support.”
He said that Israel should communicate more with UNIFIL troop commanders near the Blue Line – UN monitored boundary of Israeli military withdrawal from Lebanon – in order to avoid further escalation. “We condemn these attacks and we condemn the retaliation by Israel. They should have consulted UNIFIL before retaliating,” he said.
“Israel should stop its violations [of 1701],” Salloukh added, saying that its continuous violations near the Blue Line needed to cease.
Former long-term UNIFIL adviser Timur Goksel was skeptical as to the efficacy of such requests, as something asked for by Lebanon is unlikely to be granted by Israel.
“It’s good to put such claims on the record,” Goksel told The Daily Star. “They [Israel] protest to the UN and this is a kind of coordination. But response to violence requires firmer actions.
“Hopefully it works but I very much doubt that it will,” he added.
The Foreign Ministry’s letter came two days after Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Gabriela Shalev, submitted a letter to the Security Council, complaining about the rockets launched from south Lebanon. On Sunday Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he was holding the Leba­nese government accountable for the incident and warned that Israel would respond to any future provocation.
“We will not hold back when Israeli territory comes under fire,” Netanyahu told his Cabinet in a weekly address.
Israel also accused Lebanon of “turning a blind-eye” to what it claims to be the continuous flow of weapons to Hizbullah from Iran and Syria. Hizbullah was quick to deny any involvement in Friday’s exchange of fire. Responsibility for Friday’s attack was claimed on Monday by a group alleged to be linked to Al-Qaeda. “Your brothers fired two Katuysha rockets from south Lebanon which landed in the Naharia settlement in the north of occupied Palestine,” said a statement from the little-known militant cell, the “Battalions of Ziad Jarrah.”
The statement, reported on the intelligence website SITE, referenced Israel’s blockade of Gaza and its refusal to allow worshippers to pray at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem as motivation behind the attack.
It added the two rockets were fired in response to “flagrant hostility” displayed by Israel against Palestinians and Muslims across the region.
Goksel said that the statement issued over the weekend by UNIFIL spokesman Milos Strugar – in which he suggested that investigations into the rocket attacks “are focusing on the extremist groups that might be linked to refugee camps” – was a significant development. “This time UNIFIL made an interesting statement, pointing the finger in the direction of the Palestinian camps,” he said. He, however, doubted the legitimacy of Monday’s claims.
“It’s the same as you or me claiming responsibility,” he said. “It’s probably a small group which is trying to put itself on the map, putting themselves forward because they are always accused of not doing anything for Palestine.
“They are certainly not a very organized military operation,” Goksel said. In July, the group claimed responsibility for the rocket attacks on Israel at the beginning of 2009 in a video featuring footage of two masked men assembling and preparing missiles to fire from what was purported to be south Lebanon. Credibility for the claims has so far proved impossible to ascertain, as little is known about the size and weapons capacity – if any – of the outfit. A group using the same moniker claimed it carried out the bombings at the Egyptian tourist resort of Sharm El-Sheikh in 2005.
Israeli mlitary fires on lebanese fishing boat BEIRUT: The Lebanese Army Command issued a statement on Monday saying the Israeli military fired on Sunday from their position in the Lebanese border town of Naqoura on a Lebanese fisherman’s boat inside Lebanese territorial waters. According to the statement, the Israeli act was a violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, which put an end to the summer 2006 war with Israel. – The Daily Star

New TV's Eid rleased on bail after turning herself in
Daily Star staff/Tuesday, September 15, 2009
BEIRUT: New Television journalist Ghada Eid was released on bail Monday after turning herself in to the Lebanese authorities to face charges of slander. After surrendering, Eid was taken in handcuffs to the office of investigating Judge Raffoul Boustani in Mount Lebanon for questioning. She was released within hours after paying six million Lebanese pounds in bail.
Eid, who presents the weekly television program “Al-Fasad,” Arabic for “corruption,” is charged with slandering Judge Shaheed Salameh. She had spent several weeks evading arrest and had previously managed to sneak past police camped outside New Television studios in Beirut’s Wata al-Msaitbeh neighborhood.
Salameh has accused Eid of slander during an episode of her show when she discussed the 2008 assassination of Phalange Party official Nasri Marouni in 2008. Marouni, who is Eid’s cousin, was fatally shot by unidentified gunmen near the party’s headquarters in the Bekaa town of Zahle. Free Patriotic Movement MP Ibrahim Kanaan has also accused Eid of slander. The MP spoke on Eid’s television show in June and accused her of committing “political assassination” against him and of fabricating stories about his involvement in corruption during Lebanon’s June 7 parliamentary elections. The angry verbal exchange was aired on television channels throughout the Middle East, with a YouTube video clip of the altercation attracting over 31,500 viewers. Eid has responded to the charges by filing a lawsuit against Kanaan. – The Daily Star

A little common sense and an abundance of senselessness in Lebanon
By The Daily Star
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Editorial
Lebanon’s efforts to form a government were boosted this week by a bit of common sense, but unfortunately the prevailing senselessness of the country’s political process continues to negate any progress. The common sense came from Future Movement leader Saad Hariri, whose nearly three-month attempt to form a cabinet ended in failure last week. Hariri warned on Sunday that next time around, if he is reappointed as prime minister, he would take an eye-for-an-eye approach to the process, and would no longer lend his support to those parties that refuse to back his bid as premier.
Hariri’s decision makes sense, not only because it’s fair, but also because the goal of the process should be to produce a functional government. What good is a cabinet that is hobbled by irreconcilable differences? If groups like Hizbullah and Amal nominate Hariri, it is only logical that they would be included in the cabinet line-up, but if they back someone else for the premiership, then there is good reason to exclude them.
Despite Hariri’s demonstration of good common sense, the Future Movement leader remains, along with the vast majority of his colleagues in the political class, a source of senselessness Hariri has indicated that he is ready to take over the helm of the premiership, but he still has not produced a platform that would indicate how he plans to run the country. By failing to produce an agenda, he has helped strip the political process of meaning and allowed the battle for cabinet seats to be reduced to a high-school-style popularity contest.
At the opposite end of the political spectrum from Hariri, however, we encounter a source of supreme senselessness: Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun. Like Hariri, he too has no discernable plan for governing the country, nor are his criticisms of the parliamentary majority based on issues of substance. His only interest seems to be guaranteeing his family member’s representation in the next cabinet. Because he calls himself as an opposition leader in a political arena long dominated by feudal families, we expected more from the FPM chief. The role of any viable counterweight to the governing alliance should be to hold it to task on the basis of substantive issues.
Sadly, nobody in Lebanon’s political class seems interested in issues of substance. The trivial debates dominating the airwaves demonstrate that neither the parliamentary majority nor the opposition are taking their jobs as public servants seriously. And thus senselessness prevails.

Fox News reveals mounting Hezbollah terror threat in US
http://www.examiner.com/x-2684-Law-Enforcement-Examiner~y2009m9d14-Fox-News-reveals-mounting-Hezbollah-terror-threat-in-US
September 14, 9:35 AM
Law Enforcement Examiner
Jim Kouri
While many US government officials are deeply concerned over Iran’s nuclear program, according to a report on Fox News Channel on Sunday, investigations by Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Justice Department reveal that the Lebanon-based terrorist group Hezbollah may be plotting attacks in the United States. These attacks may be launched by their sleeper cells in New York and several other US cities should the US up its pressure on Iran to stop its nuclear weapons program.
According to the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and the Jewish organization B'nai B'rith, Hezbollah's largest headquarters outside of the Middle East is located in Toronto.
In the story on Fox News, law-enforcement and intelligence officials were quoted as saying that though there is no imminent threat of any attacks, security should be stepped up after the reports of a meeting between Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and leaders of Hezbollah and other terror groups.
The Iranian Mission to the United Nations in New York City is being kept under surveillance by federal and local intelligence officers, according to the NYPD. The New York City Police Department possesses one of the largest intelligence divisions in the world.
Hezbollah, or God's Party, grew out of the Lebanese civil war in the early 1980s and quickly became the region's leading radical Islamic movement. Their primary goal was to drive Israeli and American troops out of Lebanon.
For many years, Hezbollah was synonymous with terror, suicide bombings and kidnappings. In 1983, militants who went on to join Hezbollah's ranks carried out a suicide bombing attack that killed 241 US marines in Beirut, which lead to President Ronald Reagan's withdrawal order for all US military peacekeepers.
In May 2000 -- due to the success of the Hezbollah's so-called military arm -- one of its main aims was achieved. Israel's military was forced to end almost 20 years of occupation in southern Labanon. Hezbollah now serves as an inspiration to Palestinian factions fighting to liberate more territory.
Hezbollah's political rhetoric's central theme is the total annihilation of the state of Israel. Its definition of Israeli occupation has also encompassed the idea that the whole of Palestine is occupied Muslim land and it has argued that Israel has no right to exist. Hezbollah's spiritual head Sheikh Fadlallah is close to Iranian government and is believed responsible for the vitriolic speeches of the Iranian president.
Hezbollah is funded, armed and trained by the Iranians and given free reign by Syria's ruling Ba'athist Party. Its international network, according to terrorism analysts, is believed to include at least 15,000 operatives in cells in the US, Canada, Venezuela, Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil, most of Western Europe, Indonesia, Malaysia, and throughout Africa. Western intelligence sources estimate Hezbollah's annual budget to be approximately $400 million, including almost $100 million annually from Iran.
Other sources of funding include Syria, charitable organizations, individual donations, legitimate business, and illegitimate businesses such as illegal arms trading, cigarette smuggling, currency counterfeiting, credit card fraud, theft, operating illegal telephone exchanges, and drug trafficking. Recently two men were convicted of running a criminal operation that helped to fund Hezbollah.
Hezbollah's growing international terrorist activity has raised concerns that the terrorist group may be emerging as a more serious threat than previously considered. Its global terrorist reach has serious policy implications for Democratic countries.
However, there are international organizations that continue to insist that Hezbollah is a legitimate political party in Lebanon and that it does not warrant the designation of "terrorist group."
Note: For the best news coverage of national and homeland security issues watch Fox News Channel's National Security Correspondent Catherine Herridge. Herridge possesses access to the top law enforcement, intelligence and political sources in the nation.
***Jim Kouri, CPP is currently fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police and he's a staff writer for the New Media Alliance (thenma.org). In addition, he's the new editor for the House Conservatives Fund's weblog. Kouri also serves as political advisor for Emmy and Golden Globe winning actor Michael Moriarty.
He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at a New Jersey university and director of security for several major organizations. He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country. Kouri writes for many police and security magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times, The Narc Officer and others. He's a news writer for TheConservativeVoice.Com and PHXnews.com. He's also a columnist for AmericanDaily.Com, MensNewsDaily.Com, MichNews.Com, and he's syndicated by AXcessNews.Com. He's appeared as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc.

A dangerous reminder
September 15, 2009
Now Lebanon
Italian UNIFIL soldiers arrive with Brigadier General Carmello De Cicco (C-L) and Lebanese security forces to inspect the site from which rockets were fired into Israel on September 11. (AFP/Mahmoud Zayat)
Three days after rockets were fired into the north Israeli town of Nahariya from the southern Lebanese village of Qleileh, UNIFIL spokesman Milos Struger warned of an increased threat to both the peacekeepers and the Lebanese army operating in South Lebanon. It was a reaction to another move in a game of regional chess that began on June 8, the day after Saad Hariri’s March 14 coalition won a clear majority in the Lebanese parliamentary elections. The March 8 alliance had lost and the battle and was now trying to stymie, using all means possible, the formation of a government that would further distance Beirut from the regional aspirations of Syria and Iran.
Fast forward nearly 80 days to Thursday of last week, when Saad Hariri stepped down from his post as Lebanon’s prime minister-designate. The game had reached a stalemate. He was unable to present a cabinet that satisfied an opposition that felt it was holding all the cards. To give any more would have diluted the fact that Hariri’s coalition actually won the elections.
It was time for the opposition and its backers in Syria and Iran to make their move.
One day later, US President Barak Obama stood in the pouring rain in Washington, DC to remember the victims of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. American antennae were momentarily tuned to the nightmare perpetrated by Al-Qaeda on that day eight years ago, and the opportunity for a PR stunt was obviously too tempting to resist for those designated with ensuring that the maximum political capital was exploited by the Hariri resignation. At least two rockets were fired from southern Lebanon into Israel. The perpetrators, we learned on Monday, were the rascals from the Ziad Jarrah Division of the Abdullah Azzam Brigade, who, no doubt, used the eighth anniversary of the 2001 attacks to chalk one up for Sunni jihadists everywhere.
Only there probably were no jihadists, and certainly none from the Ziad Jarrah Brigade, which is surely a stage name conjured up especially for the occasion by the Damascus-backed Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command or some other pro-Syrian group. Ziad Jarrah, as we all know, was the Lebanese Sunni from Al-Marj who piloted the United 93 flight that crashed in Pennsylvania on September 11.
For those who seek to sow chaos and confusion in Lebanon, the objective was simple: show that, on top of the fact that Hariri was unable to form a government, South Lebanon is teeming with jihadists who are working on the side of Al-Qaeda.
The Sunni militant bogeyman is an old, trusty card, one that kept the Lebanese army – not to mention the government – occupied with the uprising in the northern refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared throughout the summer of 2007. It is also likely that the order to sanction such a dangerous pantomime act came from Damascus, whose default strategy for the past three decades has been to contain Sunni political power in Lebanon.
Thus Friday’s message was three-pronged: it was a reminder to Hariri that Syria demands a Lebanese government formed in Damascus. To the Americans, it was an obvious attempt to paint Lebanon as a problem that it can only solve by allowing Syria to restore its influence over the country. Finally, to Israel, it was a message that true security on its northern border can only come about if volatile little Lebanon has a strong overlord.
We wonder who they can be thinking of.

Salah Ezzedine: Lebanon's Own 'Madoff'
Naharnet/From wealthy Lebanese expatriates to local villagers to top Hizbullah officials: financier Salah Ezzedine spared no one as he allegedly concocted a Ponzi scheme that saw more than a billion dollars go up in smoke. Dubbed "Lebanon's Bernard Madoff" by the local and international press, Ezzedine made headlines earlier this month after he filed for bankruptcy and was placed under arrest. Madoff, the disgraced Wall Street financier, is serving a 150-year sentence for fraud.
Lebanese authorities at the weekend charged the 47-year-old mogul and his business partner, Youssef Faour, with fraud, embezzlement, distributing bounced cheques and violating Lebanese fiscal law. Faour, who has also been arrested, is the deputy mayor of the southern Lebanese village of Maaroub, Ezzedine's hometown, and -- according to some local residents -- a Hizbullah member. Reports say Ezzedine, who also has ties to Hizbullah, squandered more than one billion dollars (688 million euros) of his clients' money, mainly Shiites from southern Lebanon. Ezzedine gained fame among Lebanon's sizeable Shiite community in the early 1990s, when he began organizing pilgrimages to Mecca.
He then began to dabble in oil and diamond trade, but kept most of his financial business outside of Lebanon, mainly Iran, Algeria and China, residents of Maaroub told AFP.
Ezzedine's publishing house, located in the southern suburbs of Beirut, was named after Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's late son Hadi and was shut down by state officials after his arrest.
His victims say his entrepreneurial skills and reputation as a "good man" led many to look to him as their financial shepherd. Jamil Fneish, a Lebanese living in Canada, told AFP that he and his six sons lost more than one million dollars they had entrusted to Ezzedine. Fneish, like many in Maaroub, says he is still stunned by the revelations concerning the local 'golden boy' who built the town hall, sports stadium and two mosques. "He was a good man who was very generous with the poor," said Ali, a local shopkeeper. "He would cover tuition fees, hospital bills and medicine costs for those in need." Even when Ezzedine struck an unlucky deal in aluminum trade, he still let his clients pay only "five percent interest instead of the usual 20 to 25 percent or more," said Fneish, who traveled to Lebanon this summer and returned to Canada on Monday to rejoin his 11 children and 25 grandchildren. Another Maaroub resident, Ali Fneish, said many in Lebanon's Shiite community have borne the brunt of his financial foils.
"I hold Hizbullah and the Lebanese state responsible," the 67-year-old said. "Are they not responsible for their people? And where were they when their people were investing their money illegally?" Mohammed al-Duheini, mayor of the southern village of Toura, said that around 250 local residents had placed their money with Ezzedine who would give them interest rates that topped 25 percent. "He managed to win the trust of the Shiites of south Lebanon and handled a lot of their money," he told AFP.
Hizbullah leader Nasrallah insists that Ezzedine is not linked to the militant party but acknowledges that some party officials had invested money with him.
Among them is Hizbullah MP Hussein Hajj Hassan who has filed a complaint over a bounced cheque signed by Ezzedine. Nasrallah at the weekend said that he had set up a crisis unit to help those who fell victim to the alleged fraud. A banking official in southern Lebanon, who requested his name not be revealed, said he expected the number of lawsuits against Ezzedine to rise sharply. "Our clients have deposited around 20 bounced cheques coming from one of Ezzedine's companies, called 'Through the Gulf for Trade and Industry'," he told AFP on condition of anonymity. The cheques were written for a minimum of 200,000 dollars (137,000 euros) each, he added. Under Lebanon's banking secrecy law, banks cannot reveal their clients' names, assets or holdings except in cases of bankruptcy or if granted written authorization by the client.(AFP) Beirut, 15 Sep 09, 10:54

Michel Aoun
September 14, 2009
On September 13, the Lebanese National News Agency carried the transcript of the head of the Change and Reform Bloc General Michel Aoun’s interview on Al-Jazeera television:
Is the crisis today one of political leadership or one of the authority?
… Today, the authority is not sound due to the violation of the constitution and the democratic principles adopted by Lebanon since its establishment and until this day. This is the internal facet of the problem. On the external level, we have dictations to which the majority is succumbing by generating crises, knowing that there is no crisis to begin with. Once an agreement over the government formula was reached, the problems emerged due to the unwillingness of the Arab and foreign countries to see the formation of this government.
The crisis began before the parliamentary elections, back when the majority was saying it wanted a majority government, and became clearer with the statements of the Maronite Patriarch who reiterated his wish to see a government of a majority and a minority. This goes against the Lebanese constitution and democratic life in Lebanon because it enjoys a consensual system and all the populations around the globe enjoy a primary and a secondary identity. We are all Lebanese people, but within this Lebanese identity, there is a sectarian system in which each carries a secondary identity.
Therefore, and as long as we have two identities, we must have consensus...
You are accusing the majority forces of succumbing to foreign dictations aimed at preventing the formation of the government. But the March 14 forces won the elections and want more than anyone else to form this government.
The national unity government is at the core of the Lebanese system. However, they do not want that. They want to impose a government with their own conditions and want the other parties to have little to say about their decisions.
Are you saying that foreign forces are supporting the majority in its formation of a government in which you would have no say?
… All the European countries, America and Israel are supporting the majority to the point where we have started hearing voices which are not against naturalization in Lebanon. Many within the majority do not talk about naturalization, knowing it is the topic of the hour. For his part, Netanyahu opposed Hezbollah’s ascension to the Cabinet and Israel said that if this were to happen, there will be war. These statements affected the votes in the elections and tilted the balance in favor of the current majority against Hezbollah and the opposition...
But Al-Hariri rejected the Israeli interference and said that Hezbollah will partake in the government.
He said he relinquished the two thirds. Where did he get these two thirds? The parliament is currently divided between 45% [for the opposition] and 55% [for the majority] and this percentage does not constitute the two thirds. A fair allocation of the ministerial seats in the thirty-minister government would be seventeen for him and thirteen for us... Before the elections they used to say they did not want a national unity government but a majority one. However, when they found that the issue exceeded their powers, they accepted the formation of a national unity government based on the 15-10-5 formula which we accepted. They thus faced a predicament because they did not wish to proceed with it and placed impossible conditions while waging a fictive war against the appointment of Gebran Bassil as minister...
How can we exit the predicament now?
We must have politicians standing on their own two feet and refusing any connection with certain [foreign] decisions. What did I do to America to be targeted by it? I did not carry out the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York or the Pentagon or the London subway? Why are the Americans always attacking us?…
Speaker Berri is saying that the S-S [Syrian-Saudi Arabia] equation is the one that generates calm or tension in the country.
Some in Lebanon might be affected by one of the two sides, but on my end, I am not affected by the Syrian-Saudi conflict and no one asked me to issue any positions. I have defined certain demands which are less than what I am entitled to have, so let them give them to me.
The non-formation of the government was due to Al-Hariri’s inability to meet your demands?
This inability was a cover up for the non-formation of the government to waste time, because something has not ripened yet. We were the first to make sacrifices and are entitled as a Free Patriotic Movement to be in the government...
Why is the Telecommunications Ministry posing a problem? Presidential candidate John McCain previously said that Hezbollah wanted it to control telecommunications.
This is a false accusation because Gebran Bassil was the only Telecommunications Minister to regulate tapping and we presented a dossier in this regard to the judiciary. The problem is that they no longer have access to our telecommunication due to our presence in power. They can no longer acquire the information they want...
Did the previous Telecommunications ministries give out information?
There were reports presented to the embassies. I received information from security sources saying they provided foreign embassies with information. The Barouk network is not an easy thing to build and there is corruption in the ministry...
The government can only be formed with the participation of Hezbollah, Berri and Aoun. Is that true?
Absolutely.
In the next stage, will you hold on to the same conditions?
Let us not rush things.
Saad al-Hariri is saying you are holding on to the Telecommunications Ministry and Gibran Bassil.
The government could be formed without me but my allies are holding on to Bassil more than I because it is a matter of principle.
The majority generated a non-existent problem before we even started naming the ministers. We were still trying to reach an agreement over the formula when the campaign was launched...
Who does Cairo support in Lebanon?
This was not revealed yet.
Is it someone other than Siniora?
A man said to another: If you know what is in this basket I will give you two apples.
Are you saying that Riyadh is supporting Hariri and Egypt is supporting Siniora?
This is one of the conclusions. In diplomacy, there are hidden cards whether on the Arab or on the international levels. Reality can be hidden and the contradiction was clear on the ground. We have heard such talk from prominent figures and knowledgeable sources.
Al-Hariri will be reappointed to form a government. Will you name another?
We will not name anyone...
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassem Jaber the Second offered to host a conference to form the government. However, some majority deputies fiercely attacked this proposal. What do you think?
Why would we accept the initiative of an Arab country and reject that of Qatar which in Doha helped us resolve a major crisis? I do not deny the right of any Arab country wishing to help us, especially since it has no ambitions and is not paying money to fake the elections in the country.
So, you do not reject this initiative?
I do not reject any mediation, especially in the absence of ambitions. During the Doha meetings, they did not ask for any positions or power...
How do you perceive the coming stage?
The issue is not in my hands and we will exert all possible efforts to prevent the detonation of the situation and the spread of chaos. We will handle the crisis like we handled the previous one for two consecutive years. As for the formation of the government without us, I have not reached this possibility yet.