LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
April 22/09
Bible Reading of the day.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ
according to Saint John 3,7-15.
Do not be amazed that I told you, 'You must be born from above.' The wind blows
where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes, but you do not know where
it comes from or where it goes; so it is with everyone who is born of the
Spirit." Nicodemus answered and said to him, "How can this happen?" Jesus
answered and said to him, "You are the teacher of Israel and you do not
understand this? Amen, amen, I say to you, we speak of what we know and we
testify to what we have seen, but you people do not accept our testimony. If I
tell you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I
tell you about heavenly things? No one has gone up to heaven except the one who
has come down from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the
serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up,so that everyone who
believes in him may have eternal life."
Free Opinions, Releases, letters &
Special Reports
Jihad Corsairs on High Seas: What's
Behind them?By Walid Phares 21/04/09
Al-sharq al-Awsat editor:
Ahmadinejad only helps Israel/Israel News 21.04.09
International Christian
Concern/Pray for Marzieh and Maryam from Iran 21/04/09
The art of horse-trading/Future
News 21.04.09
Ahmadinejad's Wager, The World's Peril. By Barry Rubin 21/04/09
Latest News Reports From
Miscellaneous Sources for April
21/09
Lebanese Authorities Accused of
'Conspiring' with Hizbullah Cell-Naharnet
Hizbullah surprised with Hamas’s
disclaimer/Future
News
Is Hizbullah, Al-Qaeda No: 2?Future
Bews
Parliament Session Postponed till May 7 Due to Lack of Quorum-Naharnet
Siddiq: Arrested or Not Arrested-Naharnet
Shehayeb: Lebanese-Syrian Supreme
Council is useless/Future
News
U.S.
Urges Holding Free, Fair Elections-Naharnet
Suleiman in Turkey-Naharnet
Efforts to Win Uncontested
Beirut Second Constituency Elections-Naharnet
Tripoli, Akkar, Minieh
Lists Finalized-Naharnet
Jamaa Islamiya Likely to
Break Alliance with Hariri-Naharnet
Khazen, Bon Announce
'Independent Kesrouan Decision' List-Naharnet
Aoun Describes March 14 as
a 'Weakening' Alliance-Naharnet
Hariri: We Will Not Hand
Western Bekaa-Rashaya Over to 'Fake Leaderships'-Naharnet
Lebanon's First Ambassador
to Damascus Takes Office-Naharnet
Abu Faour Stresses on
Reconciliation as he Conveys Messages to Sfeir from Jumblat-Naharnet
Ex-MP Emile Lahoud
Withdraws from Electoral Race-Naharnet
France, Lebanon to Sign
Security Accord-Naharnet
Minority Names Three
Candidates in Koura Ticket-Naharnet
Sudan Leader in Ethiopia Despite War-Crime Warrant-Naharnet
Kuwaiti Candidate Urges
Ties With Israel-Naharnet
HRW
says Hamas must end political killings in Gaza.(AFP)
Ahmadinejad prompts walkout at racism summit-Daily
Star
Lebanese army presses on with Bekaa crackdown-Middle
East Times
On jumpy Israel-Lebanon frontier, a quiet drug war-Boston
Globe
Meshal to address British mps by video from
Syria-Ha'aretz
Lebanese Ambassador Khoury takes up post in Damascus-Daily
Star
Hariri vows March 14 won't 'surrender' Bekaa-Daily
Star
Fadlallah calls for dialogue between Muslims, Jews-Daily
Star
Najjar defends Egypt's right to prosecute crimes on its territories-Daily
Star
Key suspect in Hariri killing arrested in Dubai - diplomat-Daily
Star
Qabalan cites need for reconciliation-Daily
Star
Teenager reported missing in Mazraat al-Chouf-Daily
Star
Abou
Faour delivers message to Sfeir from Jumblatt-Daily
Star
Raad: Resistance only way to protect country-Daily
Star
Alam helped Mossad officer escape, sent photos to Israel-Daily
Star
Fuleihan Foundation hands out 'Words for Peace' awards-Daily
Star
Mystery donor gives $15,000 to cluster bomb victims-Daily
Star
Some
prep for battle, others settle outcome before polls-Daily
Star
Lebanon set to make fashionably late arrival on tango scene-Daily
Star
The art of horse-trading
Date: April 21st, 2009 Source: Future News
The “Thank You Syria” crowd knows nothing but the art of horse-trading.
It knows nothing from politics and of politics except only what guarantees the
interest of its leaders regardless of the interest of Lebanon and its economic
development.
All what matters for this crowd is the continuation of its power even if it
leads to violence and civil conflict. The minority is using the economy as a
football bouncing in the face of the government. A clear example was the outcry
of the opposition deputies when the parliament failed to convene for lack of
quorum, blaming the government for turning its head on the growing price of fuel
even though t it is increasing worldwide. The minority has banned the parliament
from electing a president of the republic on 10 different occasions thus keeping
the seat of the presidency vacant for six months at time the whole country was
prone to gangsters’ ruling without any eye blink from that same group. It is
clear from all the above that the minority is not ashamed of its acts, on the
contrary it brags about its capability of imposing lawlessness and threatening
the nation’s security every time the government fails to submit adequate answers
to the budget deficit-- largely caused by demands for electoral purposes, they
allegedly claim they are for development. What is happening can only be
described as: horse-trading , rudeness and disrespect.
Is Hizbullah, Al-Qaeda No: 2?
Date: April 21st, 2009 Source: Future News
Palestinian security sources said Tuesday that the crisis Hizbullah has created
with Cairo would destroy the long-time support of the Egyptian to the
Palestinian people.
The sources said “Egypt has evidence enough to prove that Hizbullah is working
independently inside Palestine to form cells of its own on the Egyptian
territories which places the party in a similar position to Al-Qaeda, headed by
Osama bin Laden.”
Hizbullah surprised with Hamas’s disclaimer
Date: April 21st, 2009 Source: Future News
Hizbullah crisis with the Egyptian authority got worse when Hamas movement
disclaimed any relation with the party’s captured cell which was evident in the
statement of Khaled Mashaal, the head of the movement’s political bureau who
said that Hamas is not concerned with Hizbullah’s acts, a political figure close
to the Palestinian authority said Tuesday. “Hizbullah was disappointed and lost
a major popular back up when Hamas Movement and the Islamic Jihad disclaimed any
relation to the case. The party was betting on the support of the Palestinian
factions to appear before the Arab and the Lebanese people as victim of the
Egyptian fight against resistance option in the Arab world,” the unidentified
source added. “The debate between Hizbullah and Cairo on the party’s cell
captured by Egyptian security services will not cease until Hizbullah
acknowledges crossing the red lines and pledging to stop interfering in the
Palestinian issue,” He confirmed. He pointed out “Hizbullah campaign against
Egypt and its attempt to smuggle arms into the Gaza Strip without the permission
of the Egyptian authority is far more serious than what the party’s
Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah tried to depict the case as limited to
pass arms to Palestinian resistance factions.” The source noted “Cairo would
have disregarded smuggling arms into the Gaza Strip- like it has always done
since 1993- if it was for the Palestinian resistance factions. Egypt was never
against a solid Palestinian resistance provided it has a national agenda and not
a regional one.”
Politics- MP Shuhaeb wonders about the continued presence
of the Lebanese-Syrian Higher Council
NNA- 21/04/2009 Democratic Gathering member, Deputy Akram Shuhaeb wondered about
the continued presence of the Lebanese-Syrian Higher Council at a time when
Lebanon and Syria started diplomatic relations. Commenting on the Lebanese
ambassador to Syria who assumed his post in Damascus yesterday, Shuhaeb said
that this development was the achievement of the Cedar revolution which calls
for distinguished relations between the two countries based on mutual respect.
But the MP also asked March 8 forces to comment on the remarks by Syrian
officials that the Lebanese and Syrian people are one nation in two separate
states.
He also wondered why Syria is reluctant to demarcate the joint borders with
Lebanon "so we can live like other nations." Shuhaeb called on Lebanese voters
to elect March 14 representatives in the next parliamentary elections to
preserve Lebanon's independence and sovereignty. He also was very critical of a
Lebanese-Syrian conference that was held in Damascus which justified the Syrian
behavior in Lebanon.
Pray for Marzieh and Maryam from Iran
From: International Christian Concern (icc@persecution.org)
April 20, 2009
Would you take a moment to join us in prayer for the safety and protection of
two formerly Muslim women who recently became Christians? These two Christian
women live in Iran:
Marzieh Amairizadeh Esmaeilabad, 30, and Maryam Rustampoor, 27, were imprisoned
by Iranian officials on March 5 and incarcerated in the infamous Evin prison.
Inmates at this prison are tortured and face other forms of mistreatment. The
two women were imprisoned because they were practicing their Christian faith,
but Iranian officials allege that they were involved in 'anti-government
activities.'
Iranian officials asked the women to post bail at the staggering amount of
$400,000 in order to be released, but when Marzieh's sisters tried to pay the
bail fee, the government officials refused to accept it. This makes it clear
that the Iranian officials are determined to severely punish our Christian
sisters.
Both women are allowed just a one minute telephone call every day to their
immediate families. Both are unwell and in need of urgent medical attention.
During their last call on March 28, Marzieh said that she was suffering from an
infection and a high fever. She said 'I am dying.'
Please pray that both women will be released from prison.
Pray that the Holy Spirit would give them strength and comfort in the face of
torture and other mistreatment that they experience.
Pray that the Lord would give strength to their families.
We also would like to let you know that God has answered your prayers for the
four believers who had been detained in Libya. The four Christians were freed on
April 13. Thank you so much for praying, and please continue praying for their
safety and strength.
Sincerely in Christ,
Jeff King
President, ICC
International Christian Concern
P.O. Box 8056
Silver Spring, MD 20907
Phone: (800) ICC-5441
Fax: (301) 585-5918
U.S. Urges Holding Free, Fair Elections
Naharnet/Washington urged the various Lebanese political parties to ensure free,
fair and transparent legislative elections.
The U.S. stance was expressed by Deputy Permanent Representative to the United
Nations Alejandro Wolff, who referred to the upcoming parliamentary elections
while addressing the U.N. Security Council Monday evening on the situation in
the Middle East. Wolff expressed U.S. support to an "independent Lebanese state
that enjoys sovereignty and is far removed from any foreign interventions based
on U.N. Security Council resolutions 1559,1680 and 1701. Wolff expressed
continued U.S. concern regarding the smuggling of arms into Lebanon in a clear
violation of UNSC resolutions 1559 and 1701 an act that undermines state
sovereignty and the exclusive right of the Lebanese armed forces in imposing the
rule of law over Lebanon. He went on to add that armed militias continue to bear
arms in Lebanon in a manner that contradicts state authority and is contrary to
U.N. resolutions. Beirut, 21 Apr 09, 10:03
France, Lebanon to Sign
Security Accord
Naharnet/France and Lebanon on Monday approved the framework of a security
agreement which they expect to sign within weeks, a French official said.
The accord was agreed during talks in Beirut between Lebanese Interior Minister
Ziad Baroud and French counterpart Michele Alliot-Marie, who invited Baroud to
Paris "for the signing in the coming weeks," the source said. The agreement also
stipulates bilateral cooperation to combat terrorism as well as drugs and arms
trafficking, illegal immigration and cyber-crime. Alliot-Marie, who arrived in
Beirut on Sunday, met top officials including President Michel Suleiman and also
attended the opening of Security Middle East, a regional arms exhibition being
staged in Lebanon for the first time.(AFP) Beirut, 20 Apr 09, 18:07
Lebanese Authorities Accused of 'Conspiring' with Hizbullah
Cell
Naharnet/Investigation with the so-called Hizbullah cell detained in Cairo has
reportedly uncovered a "conspiracy" between the Shiite group and Lebanese
authorities – putting Lebanon in a weak position for a confrontation with Egypt.
Pan-Arab daily Al Hayat, citing well-informed Egyptian sources, said Tuesday
that Egypt will file an official request with Lebanon demanding to open an
investigation into what it called "serious deviations" the probe has revealed,
most significantly of all is Lebanese authorities' "conspiracy" in facilitating
the work of the Hizbullah cell. The sources spoke of "grave breaches," including
the usage of official Lebanese stamps to mark approval on forged documents. They
said Hizbullah detainee Mohammed Youssef Mansour, known as Sami Shehab, entered
Egypt several times on a forged passport under the name of Salim Bassem Sami
Hashem.
The sources said the fake passport carried the real picture of Mansour, an
indication that an official Lebanese authority or a person working for that
authority has facilitated access to the passport. They said the official
document requesting to assign attorney Montasser al-Zayat to represent Mansour
"was issued in the same way."
The power of attorney, according to the sources, is signed by Walid Shehab in
his capacity as the defendant's brother. Mansour denied having a brother under
that name. The forged document was nevertheless officially authenticated, the
sources added.
They said the power of attorney was signed by a Beirut notary with an official
Lebanese stamp on it and then authenticated by the Lebanese foreign ministry
followed by approval from the Egyptian embassy in Beirut. The sources said they
believed Lebanese authorities or Lebanese people working for official Lebanese
bodies had conspired with Hizbullah in preparing the forged documents with
genuine stamps. Meanwhile, Asharq al-Awsat newspaper said defendant Nasser Abu
Amra was interrogated up to 10 times over the past few days, given that he is
the link between Mansour and a number of other detainees.
It said Abu Amra confessed that he possessed explosive belts he planned to
smuggle into the Gaza Strip. Mansour was among 49 suspects arrested over the
past five months and accused of plotting attacks in Egypt on behalf of Hizbullah,
a claim the Lebanese group denied, saying Mansour was responsible for helping
transport arms to the Gaza Strip. Beirut, 21 Apr 09, 08:24
Kuwaiti Candidate Urges Ties With Israel
Naharnet/A Kuwaiti journalist who signed up to run in next month's general
election called on Tuesday on the Gulf state to establish full diplomatic ties
with Israel.
"Israel is a reality and has international influence... Kuwait would benefit
from Israel's influence if we establish relations with them," Saleh Bahman, who
is running as an independent, told AFP. He also said Kuwaiti ties with Israel
would improve the oil-rich emirate's standing in the West. U.S. ally Kuwait has
so far resisted pressure to end its boycott of Israel and has repeatedly said it
will be the last Arab state to establish ties with the Jewish state after any
peace deal with the Palestinians. Earlier this year, a number of Kuwaiti
lawmakers submitted a bill calling for a total ban on dealing with Israel and
proposing hefty penalties for violators. The bill has not been yet been debated.
A parliamentary election is scheduled for May 16 in Kuwait.(AFP)
Siddiq: Arrested or Not Arrested
Naharnet/There has been conflicting reports as to whether or not Mohammed Zuheir
Siddiq, key witness in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri,
had been arrested or not. Official sources in the United Arab Emirates refused
to confirm or deny Siddiq's reported arrest. Dubai police chief Gen. Dahi
Khalfan also denied in remarks published Tuesday by pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat
that Siddiq has been arrested in Dubai. "He was not arrested on Dubai
territory," Khalfan said, claiming no knowledge that Siddiq had been arrested in
another Emirate. An Arab diplomat told the Associated Press news agency on
Sunday that Siddiq, one of the suspects in Hariri's murder, has been arrested in
Dubai. Siddiq, purported Syrian intelligence officer, was named a suspect by a
U.N. commission investigating the 2005 assassination. Hariri was killed in a
massive bombing that many Lebanese believe was carried out by Syria, Lebanon's
long dominant neighbor. Syria denies involvement. Initially Siddiq was a witness
who gave evidence to U.N. investigators. His information, however, was later
discredited, and at the U.N. commission's recommendation, he was arrested in
France in October 2005 as a suspect in the murder. He disappeared from house
arrest in France in March 2008, according to French authorities. The UAE's
Foreign Ministry could not confirm he was living in the country and did not know
if he was arrested. The Arab diplomat said Siddiq was arrested Friday in Dubai
and that Syria has requested his extradition. Syrian media reports have said
Siddiq is wanted there for allegedly giving false testimony implicating Syria in
the assassination. Only four other suspects in the killing are in custody. They
are pro-Syria generals who led Lebanon's police, intelligence service and an
elite army unit at the time of the assassination. They have not been formally
charged. An international tribunal in the Netherlands took up the case in
February.
Beirut, 21 Apr 09, 09:07
Parliament Session Postponed till May 7 Due to Lack of
Quorum
Naharnet/Speaker Nabih Berri on Tuesday postponed a parliament session till May
7due to lack of quorum. The session, which kicked off at 11 am, witnessed the
presence of 67 legislators -- the minimum number required to begin a sitting.
News reports said a heated argument broke out between MPs Butros Harb Robert
Ghanem. The agenda, like the previous sessions, included controversial items
including bringing heads-of-state and Cabinet ministers to trial, a draft law to
grant a general amnesty for crimes committed before April 27, 2005 and
eliminating taxes on gas. Berri has previously warned that he will not add any
new draft law to the agenda and will schedule a new session every time there is
no quorum. Beirut, 21 Apr 09, 12:32
Sudan Leader in Ethiopia Despite War-Crime Warrant
Naharnet/Sudan's president made his sixth foreign trip since his indictment on
charges of war crimes in Darfur, traveling Tuesday to Ethiopia despite the
international warrant for his arrest. An Ethiopian foreign ministry spokesman
said President Omar al-Bashir would not face arrest.
He will discuss "political, economic and security matters" issues with Ethiopian
officials during a daylong visit and will meet with Prime Minister Meles Zenawi,
spokesman Wahide Belay said. "He is welcome as a guest to Ethiopia," he said.
"As you know, we have opposed the arrest warrant as a country, as a government,
within (regional groups) and within the African Union. There is no reason to
take any action on the president."
Wahide said al-Bashir would leave Ethiopia on Wednesday. Since the International
Criminal Court issued the arrest warrant on March 4, al-Bashir has visited
Eritrea, Egypt and Libya, attended an Arab League summit in Qatar and performed
a pilgrimage to Islam's holiest city, Mecca, in Saudi Arabia. In March, the Arab
League formally rejected the charges against al-Bashir. Many African countries
have said they will not arrest al-Bashir. The African Union, which is based in
Ethiopia, has said al-Bashir's arrest would dangerously imperil the fragile
peace process in Sudan and has asked the U.N. to defer the warrant for one year.
While al-Bashir appears to have safe haven in Africa and Arab countries, other
nations have supported the arrest warrant.
The United States, Britain and France have strongly opposed any deferral of the
warrant for his arrest. President Barack Obama in March denounced the "genocide"
in Darfur. But the U.S. has not recognized the ICC's jurisdiction, citing fears
that Americans would be unfairly prosecuted for political reasons.
ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo has said that al-Bashir should be arrested
once he leaves Sudanese airspace and that prosecutors are monitoring al-Bashir's
movements. However, the Hague-based court has no police force to execute the
warrant. Al-Bashir's Arab-led government has been battling ethnic African rebels
in the region since 2003, and some 300,000 people have died in fighting and 2.7
million displaced in the conflict, according to U.N. figures. Sudan says the
numbers are exaggerated. Sudan's government expelled more than a dozen local and
international aid agencies after the arrest warrant.(AP) Beirut, 21 Apr 09,
13:44
Release: Canadian Minister Minister of Foreign
Affairs, Mr, Cannon Expresses Deep Concern over Iran’s Sentencing of Roxana
Saberi
April 20, 2009
No. 106
The Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today made the
following statement regarding Iran’s sentencing of American journalist Roxana
Saberi.
“Canada is deeply concerned about the case of Roxana Saberi, who was sentenced
last week to eight years in prison following a non-transparent judicial process.
The Government of Canada believes that the accusations of espionage against Ms.
Saberi are without foundation, and calls upon the Iranian authorities to release
her without delay.
“Canada remains seriously concerned by the continuously deteriorating human
rights situation in Iran. Canada urges Iran to fully respect all of its human
rights obligations, both in law and in practice. We continue to support freedom,
democracy, human rights and the rule of law in Iran.”
- 30 -
For further information, media representatives may contact:
Natalie Sarafian
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs
613-995-1851
Foreign Affairs Media Relations Office
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
613-995-1874
www.international.gc.ca/index.aspx
HRW says Hamas must end political killings in Gaza
By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
GAZA CITY: Hamas rulers of Gaza must stop killings and torture of political
rivals that have left several dozen people dead since the start of the year,
Human Rights Watch said Monday. "Hamas should end its attacks on political
opponents and suspected collaborators in Gaza, which have killed at least 32
Palestinians and maimed several dozen more during and since the recent Israeli
military offensive," it said in a report. The killings outlined in the 26-page
report began after Israel launched its war on the coastal strip in December,
setting off "arbitrary arrests and detentions, torture, maimings by shooting and
extrajudicial executions by alleged members of Hamas security forces."During the
22-day war, 18 men were summarily executed, most suspected of collaborating with
Israel, and in the three months since there have been "14 more killings, at
least four of them of people in detention," the rights group said. A Hamas
spokesman in Gaza, Fawzi Barhum, rejected the report as "inexact, hasty and
truncated." - AFP
Raad: Resistance only way to protect country
Daily Star staff/Tuesday, April 21, 2009
BEIRUT: A senior Hizbullah member said Sunday there has never been an
"alternative to resistance" to ward off Israeli threats. "I have heard of an
option - not an alternative - to protect Lebanon," MP Mohammed Raad said during
the inauguration of a mosque in the southern town of Kfartibneet. "The option is
to depend on Israel's friends around the world to push it to stop threatening
Lebanon," said Raad, who heads the Loyalty to the Resistance bloc in Parliament.
"The international alliances that some people are betting on to protect Lebanon
are essentially based on states that we believe to be friendly and that want
eliminate a strategy to ensure Israel's strategic superiority in the region ...
No one can convince us of the usefulness of such a bet," he added. Raad said
Lebanon has been coming under pressure "not to invest in its ground and fresh
water resources." "Israel can no longer forbid us from investing in our land,
water and maybe we can see our airspace anymore," he said. - The Daily Star
Meshal to address British MPs by video from Syria
By Barak Ravid
Hamas political bureau chief Khaled Meshal is to deliver an unprecedented
videoconference address to a closed meeting of British MPs today. The Foreign
Ministry is fuming over the event, which is going ahead despite pressure on
senior British parliamentarians.
The event was arranged by MP Clare Short, who was ejected from the Labor Party a
few years ago by then-prime minister Tony Blair. Short recently led a delegation
of British MPs to meet with Meshal in Damascus. Short extended personal
invitations about a week ago to dozens of MPs to attend the videoconference, to
be broadcast to a meeting room in the MPs' office building. A large number of
MPs are expected to attend. The Israeli Embassy in London tried unsuccessfully
to get pro-Israel MPs to exert pressure to cancel the event. Israeli Ambassador
Ron Prosor said yesterday: "If Khaled Meshal would ask to enter the U.K., he
would be denied, because the British government knows very well that Hamas is a
terror organization. It is therefore a very serious matter when the British
Parliament gets around this obstacle and opens its doors to a terror leader by
means of a videoconference." In recent months, particularly after Operation Cast
Lead, several MPs have met with Meshal in Damascus and with Ismail Haniyeh in
Gaza. The British government does not meet officially with Hamas, as it is on
the European Union's list of terror groups.
U.K.-Israeli relations have been overshadowed recently by closer relations by
British politicians and Hamas.
On jumpy Israel-Lebanon frontier, a quiet drug
war
(Associated Press)
By Matti Friedman
Associated Press / April 19, 2009
ALONG ISRAEL-LEBANON BORDER, Israel - Filmed with a night-vision camera just
before Israeli narcotics officers pounced from nearby bushes, the video shows a
Lebanese courier lobbing half-kilo packages of heroin over the border fence into
Israel and an Israeli courier throwing back packages of $100 bills.
Israeli soldiers and Hezbollah guerrillas have been battling for years along
this frontier. But a quieter war goes on here every night, one between Inspector
Gal Ben Ish's narcotics teams and the smugglers who have turned this jumpy
border into the main conduit for heroin bound for Israeli drug markets.
Police here believe the trade, worth hundreds of millions of dollars a year, is
controlled in large part by Hezbollah, and call it "narco-terrorism."
In the nighttime bust caught on camera last September, Ben Ish's men netted 55
kilograms of heroin, 10 of hashish, $650,000 in cash, and both drug mules. Hopes
of repeating that success, and a sense that the smuggling here is more than just
crime, have brought them back to this wooded hill in the middle of a biting
Galilee night.
"We know that it's not just criminal activity - here there's always the aspect
of national defense. We're helping the country's security," said Ben Ish, whose
black knitted cap hid a shaved head. He spoke as his men slipped batteries into
night-vision goggles at headquarters ahead of the night's ambush, their four
green-painted M-16s resting on a beat-up sofa.
Israeli police say Hezbollah, the dominant power in the towns and villages of
south Lebanon, takes a cut of the trade and uses the money to fund operations
and recruit agents inside Israel, one of them an Israeli army colonel now in
jail for trading secrets for drugs and cash.
Information freely changes hands between guerrillas and smugglers, police say.
The hard-to-see spots along the fence where Hezbollah ambushed and captured
Israeli soldiers twice in the past decade were previously used as drop points
for drugs.
To drive home the point that Israeli addicts and dealers are helping Hezbollah's
war against their own country, a government anti-drug ad last year portrayed the
group's leader, the bearded cleric Hassan Nasrallah, emerging grinning from a
bong like a genie from a bottle.
The security forces of the Lebanese government, in which Hezbollah wields veto
power, say they are trying to combat the smuggling. A Hezbollah spokesman in
Beirut refused to comment on the allegations that the group is involved in the
drug trade.
At the night's ambush site, two policemen sat amid bushes near the border fence,
covering themselves with camouflage nets and pulling masks over their faces. Two
other cops with rifles and motorcycle helmets waited nearby with an all-terrain
vehicle while Eli Makias, a 20-year police veteran, manned a lookout point on a
hill to the south. Every month the policemen average hundreds of hours of
boredom and one significant bust.
"You develop senses like an animal," said Amir, a 10-year-veteran. "You're
coiled like a spring, and then when it actually happens, the catch, the
adrenaline starts."
Like most of the unit's officers, he declined to give his family name because of
concerns he could be located by smugglers.
Between four and five tons of heroin entered Israel in 2008, nearly all of it
through Lebanon, according to an estimate from the government's Anti-Drug
Authority. Most originates in Afghanistan, with a small portion produced in
Turkey, Iraq and in the opium fields of Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, which have
recently seen a resurgence after several years of decreased production. In that
same period of time, Ben Ish's men caught a total of 155 kilograms, along with
smaller amounts of other drugs and nearly $1 million in cash - a record year for
the unit but a fraction of the drugs and money changing hands.
On the Israeli side, the trade is controlled by Israeli Arab crime families with
close ties to their counterparts in Lebanon. The couriers are Israeli Arabs.
© Copyright 2009 Globe Newspaper Company.
Jihad Corsairs on High Seas:
What's Behind them?
By Walid Phares
Most of the media discussion about piracy in the Gulf of Aden has drifted
understandably towards the sensational part of the story: how are the Pirates
able to roam the Ocean? Is paying them ransom a better option than to engage
them militarily? Last but not least, will a military intervention against the
Pirates worsen the situation; will it lead to a massive escalation in Somalia
and a Vietnam like quagmire for many years to come?
The armed bands on the waters are still roaming the seas of Aden and the Indian
Ocean across from Somalia and Kenya, are not impressed with the dozens of naval
units dispatched by powerful navies from around the world.
What is behind this Piracy phenomenon, what lays ahead if the international
community intervenes and what could develop in that region if the latter is late
to intervene or doesn’t meet the challenge? It appears the strategic challenge
is even bigger than the mere piracy. Indeed the strategy now contemplated by
regional powers could become a major military debacle. Here is why:
Jihadi Corsairs: Who and what is behind them?
These so-called Somali pirates are strategically different from their historical
predecessors in the Caribbean or from their contemporary colleagues in
archipelagoes around the world. They aren’t a vast collection of individual
thugs, acting as bands replicating what successful sea gangs have accomplished
for centuries before them. They are too many, operating from extremely long
shores, all using similar methods, and are backed from hinterland forces.
They may seem like pirates as they seize ships and negotiate for the ransom. But
these water thugs actually belong to a wider chess game. The grand ensemble of
the army of little boats is in fact part of a regional Jihadi apparatus being
deployed in the horn of Africa and beyond. The Jihadi grand circle building in
the region is not limited to the pirates but involves hostile forces from the
mid Red Sea to East Africa. The Somali pirates are merely one facet of this
grand circle.
Ironically, the term used in Arabic (and now in Arabic media) to depict the
Somali pirates is Qursaan, which derives from Corsairs, the swashbuckling French
privateers from a bygone era. A view of the operations map of these Somali
Qursaan leaves little room that the end aim is to create a vast zone of
insecurity stretching from East Africa to the Red Sea. A closer look allows
strategists to easily realize that these are the maritime passages from the Oil
rich Gulf to the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal and also parts of the East
African alternative routes the most economic via Cape Town. So, above and beyond
the globally low (even if locally lucrative) revenues that these operations
bring to their little pirates, the greater Qursaan operation is of
regional-international dimension. It is about holding these passages hostages
thereby bringing global negotiation. This is nothing more than a maritime Jihad
striking at the Western/international lifeline on high seas to bring about a
change in balance of power.
If the West (with other democracies or powers) decides to engage the Qursaan on
high seas only, there will be more waves of piracy action, and revenge actions
will gradually take place against the countries whose vessels conducted the
military interdictions. When such escalation takes place the options are only
two: either the powers suspend the operations and negotiate with the
pirates/corsairs or they shall take offensive against their ports of launching,
that is, on Somali soil. If the US and its allies drop the naval campaign and
assign diplomats to treat the matter, the Qursaan will grow in numbers and
influence and eventually their outreach will close the waters between the
Arabian Peninsula and Africa. But if the international coalition (which yet has
to take shape) decides to take on the points of origins of the attackers, this
will lead to a massive campaign along the Somali-Kenyan coastlines forcing
actions to be taken against ports, many small ports and eventually beachheads,
establishing security enclaves.
Such a projection will re-create a multinational force to perform the missions,
reprisal operations and eventually inland deployment, deeper and deeper inside
Somalia. That’s precisely what the Jihadists are looking for: brigades of
international forces landing in that country, Kuffar (infidels) in nature, so
that the Shabab al Jihad and other remnants of the Mahakam have the honor of
fighting.
The so-called pirates are being used by land-based forces to drag the enemy into
a wider war in the region, with all probabilities and possibilities open. To
each decision made by the West and its allies, a counter plan will be applied.
These are the types of complex threats that twenty-first century terror forces
will develop to upset the balance of forces. For by challenging a previously
stable area of transportation and commerce, the forces behind the Qursaan will
be scoring a major victory. If the foe negotiates, they win, and in their view
also, if the foe engages militarily, the Jihadists win too.
Indeed, if Somalia will go back to full war, the forces engaged in such campaign
will involve many navies in the area.
Two months ago, Eritrea and the Iranian regime signed an agreement granting
naval facilities to the Khomeinist military ships to use the country’s ports and
eventually build a base on the Red Sea. Last month, reports signaling an
alignment of military intelligence between the Sudanese and Iranian regimes and
Hezbollah’s networks in the region.
In our media debate we are still at the stage of sensationalist stories and
footage of modern day piracy. In the war rooms of the other side, the Qursaan
are probably a tip of an Islamic iceberg moving slowly towards one of the most
sensitive regions of the world. The gap between our debate and strategic
realities has always been at the core of failures. This time we should catch up
before we fall behind and stumble terribly.
Behind the Corsairs: Shabab al Jihad, al Qaeda, Iran, Hezbollah?
*****
Dr Walid Phares is the author of The Confrontation: Winning the War against
Future Jihad. He is the Director of the Future Terrorism Project at the
Foundation for Defense of Democracies and a visiting scholar at the European
Foundation for Democracy.
April 20, 2009
Al-sharq al-Awsat editor:
Ahmadinejad only helps Israel
Tariq Alhomayed, editor-in-chief of one of Arab world's leading newspapers slams
Iranian president's speech at UN anti-racism conference on Monday, saying it
only led 'international community to rally around Israel'
Roee Nahmias Published: 04.21.09, 11:47 / Israel News
"How will the Iranian president's speech contribute to the Palestinian issue or
the good of the occupied Arab lands?" wondered Tariq Alhomayed, Editor-in-Chief
of Al-sharq al-Awsat Arabic newspaper in an opinion article published on
Tuesday.
"We have also promised in the past to dump Israel into the sea, but what does
Ahmadinejad have to add? After all, all he did yesterday was push the
international community to rally around Israel, to boycott the conference for
it, and anyone who didn't boycott it walked out of the hall in protest."
Nevertheless
US calls Iranian speech vile, but open to dialogue / Yitzhak Benhorin
Washington denounces Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's speech as racist, shameful but says
will still pursue avenues of negotiations on nuclear program
Alhomayed, the editor of one of the most influential newspapers in the Arab
world, that is considered to hold relatively liberal opinions, wrote the harsh
editorial following Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's speech on Monday at
the UN's anti-racism conference in Geneva.
"When Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad spoke yesterday, attacking Israel
and calling it a racist country at the UN anti-racism conference known as Durban
II, he spoke more to us than to the international community," Alhomayed wrote.
"What Ahmadinejad said yesterday about Israel was nothing more than the refined
version of things he used to say repeatedly in the past, and the Iranian
president did promise to wipe Israel off the map in the past, described it as
illegitimate, said it could not exist and said that the Holocaust was nothing
more than a legend.
"If we remember all this today, we can see that his speech yesterday was a
softer version of his words. It is obvious that this speech was intended mainly
for the Arab and Islamic street," he wrote.
"The Arabs fought six wars with Israel, not to mention the other battles that
cannot be described as anything short of wars. We lost hundreds of thousands of
dead and injured in them, our cities and our lands were occupied and we lost
great treasures," he continued.
"Is talk enough for us today? Did Iran lose even one tree for Palestine? Did
Tehran sacrifice a single dead man on the front against Israel? Memory of the
recent past teaches us that the Iranians refrained from participating in the
last war on Gaza, under the orders of the highest authority in Iran."
"Do we need speeches and threats? Of course not! We need actions. And the
actions that we witnessed yesterday faded in the squeals of Ahmadinejad's speech
and the western countries' boycotting of his speech. The real actions that Iran
committed yesterday was the Iranian court ruling that sent Iranian-American
journalist Roxana Saberi to eight years in prison for spying.
"The second action was Ahmadinejad's meeting with the Swiss president two days
ago. Switzerland has been in charge of following American interests in Iran from
the time of the hostage crisis at the American Embassy. These two points are far
more deserving of attention than Ahmadinejad's speech that was intended for the
Arab and Islamic world," he concluded
Ahmadinejad's Wager, The
World's Peril
By Barry Rubin*
April 21, 2009
Why did Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, with the full backing of Iran's
regime, behave as he did at the Durban-2 conference?
One reason, of course, is that he believed every word he said, and much of the
Iranian Islamist regime thinks the same way. This factor should always be
remembered, lest people think this was only some cynical ploy.
As the Iranian Islamist regime's founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, once
said, the revolution was not just about lowering the price of watermelons. That
is, this was not merely a movement for materialist reasons but one that believes
it was executing God's will on earth. Ideology was central.
To explain this properly, permit me to digress a moment. People often ask: why
did Jews under Nazi rule in Eastern Europe flee or do more to escape the Shoah
(Holocaust). After extensive research and interviewing, it is clear to me that
while there were a number of factors but foremost was the disbelief that the
Germans would murder them all.
Remember that these Jews were forced into slave labor. They produced goods,
farmed crops, and repaired roads. In effect, they were helping the German war
effort. These laborers were paid nothing and fed barely enough to stay alive.
Why, then, would the Germans destroy, so to speak, a goose that was laying eggs
if not necessarily golden ones, possibly losing the war in the process?
The answer is: because they believed in their own ideology they would not act
pragmatically but rather make their own defeat-and own deaths-more likely.
The second factor that should be remembered is that of miscalculation. A leader,
particularly if reckless and overconfident, will take an action he thinks is in
his interest but turns out to be a disaster. The best internal Middle East
examples are those of Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser provoking the crisis
that led to the 1967 war and Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait
in 1990.
Nasser thought he could score points in the Arab arena and at home by
threatening to wipe Israel off the map and taking at least some major steps
toward war. He miscalculated. Israel attacked and inflicted a huge defeat on
him.
Saddam Hussein thought he could score points in the Arab arena and at home by
seizing Kuwait, making himself the Arab world's leader, plus getting many
billions of dollars from that oil-rich little country. He miscalculated. A
U.S.-led coalition attacked and inflicted a huge defeat on him.
For Ahmadinejad, then, ideology and miscalculation are major factors. They will
continue to be major factors if Iran gets nuclear weapon.
But of course, as with Nasser and Saddam Hussein, there are shorter-run
calculations. Three are important:
Domestic popularity. This is always a basic factor with Middle Eastern radical
regimes. Not all Iranians will support Ahmadinejad and many hate the regime. But
among the 20 percent hardcore and perhaps 50 percent total who can be mobilized,
they may cheer Ahmadinejad. Iran is strong, its enemies are weak, and its
leadership is courageous. America, the Jews, and the West are satanic. Rally to
the Islamic regime!
Regional popularity. Iran's regime is seeking to be leader of the Muslim world
and the leading power in the Middle East. But in doing so it has two very big
problems: Iran is mostly Shia Muslim; most Muslims (especially Arabs) are Sunni
Muslims. Iran is mostly ethnically Persian; Arabs are Arab. How to overcome
these barriers? Iran already has Arab and largely Sunni allies--Syria, Hamas,
Hizballah-but that's not enough. So by becoming the leader against America, the
West, and Israel, Iran hopes to override these problems. Who cares if we are
Persian and Shia, Ahmadinejad says, we are the true Muslims doing what your
governments aren't doing.
Global popularity. While this is a miscalculation, Ahmadinejad and other regime
leaders believe that this kind of behavior can make them popular throughout the
world. This includes not only Muslim-majority countries but also the Third World
and even the West. In a recent interview with Der Spiegel magazine [see source
below] Ahmadinejad said that he believed most Germans also hated Israel and
wanted to see it wiped out. Certainly, there is reason for him to believe such
things.
Some better-informed regime leaders view Ahmadinejad as a disaster. The problem
is that the top leadership is backing him, and thus his words and actions do
represent the regime. The June elections will almost certainly return him to
office for more years, years during which Iran will get nuclear weapons.
There's one other extremely important point on which Ahmadinejad is
misunderstood. It is true that he does not control the government. The most
powerful man in Iran remains the supreme guide, Ali Khamenei. But Ahmadinejad,
allied with powerful current and former Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps
officers, is building his own apparatus. In the future, he could well emerge as
the uncontested leader of Iran. For the moment, though, it is enough that he has
the regime's backing.
Ahmadinejad and other Iranian leaders-though not all-believe the West is weak
and cannot respond to their aggression. They are not, as sympathizers portray
them in the West, trembling people motivated by fear of external attack.
Clearly, Iran has legitimate security concerns. But the real threats are
heightened by their own behavior. If they were in fact so frightened they could
change policy and reduce the threat. Some regime leaders, though not those in
control right now, advocate just such a policy. Unfortunately, the West hasn't
helped them enough by making that threat more credible through denunciations and
effective sanctions.
So here's the bottom line: by failing to oppose Iran more effectively, the West
is unintentionally encouraging it to be more extremist and dangerous. By failing
to help relatively moderate Arab regimes, the West is making them more
susceptible to having to appease Iran. By pressuring and criticizing Israel, the
West is encouraging Iran's regime to believe it can be destroyed.
Not a pretty picture. But neither is that of the would-be fuehrer being an
honored guest at UN meetings. No wonder Ahmadinejad and his backers believe that
theirs is a winning bet.
For more on Ahmadinejad's interview with Der Spiegel, see
http://www.gloria-center.org/blog/2009/04/President-Ahmadinejad-East.html.
**Barry Rubin is director of the Global Research in International Affairs
(GLORIA) Center and editor of the Middle East Review of International Affairs (MERIA)
Journal. His latest books are The Israel-Arab Reader (seventh edition), with
Walter Laqueur (Viking-Penguin); the paperback edition of The Truth About Syria
(Palgrave-Macmillan); A Chronological History of Terrorism, with Judy Colp
Rubin, (Sharpe); and The Long War for Freedom: The Arab Struggle for Democracy
in the Middle East (Wiley). To read and subscribe to MERIA, GLORIA articles, or
to order books, go to http://www.gloria-center.org