LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
January 14/09
Bible Reading of the
day.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 1,21-28. Then they came to
Capernaum, and on the sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught. The people
were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority and
not as the scribes. In their synagogue was a man with an unclean spirit; he
cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to
destroy us? I know who you are--the Holy One of God!" Jesus rebuked him and
said, "Quiet! Come out of him!" The unclean spirit convulsed him and with a loud
cry came out of him. All were amazed and asked one another, "What is this? A new
teaching with authority. He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey
him." His fame spread everywhere throughout the whole region of Galilee.
Saint Jerome (347-420), priest, translator of the Bible, Doctor of the Church
Commentary on Saint Mark's Gospel, 2; PLS 2,125f./"Quiet! Come out of him!"
«Jesus rebuked the demon and said: 'Quiet! Come out of this man.» The Truth has
no need of the Liar's testimony... «I do not need to be recognized by the one I
have determined to cast out. Quiet! May my glory burst forth from your silence.
I don't want it to be your voice that offers me praise but your torment, for
your expulsion is my triumph... Quiet, and come out of this man!» It is as
though he were saying: «Come out of my house; what do you think you are doing
under my roof? I am wanting to enter so, quiet!, and come out of this man – of
man, that being endowed with reason. Leave this dwelling made ready for my
benefit. The Lord wants his house; come out of this man»...See how precious
man's soul is. This runs counter to those who think that we humans and the
animals are endowed with exactly the same soul and are moved by the same spirit.
On another occasion the demon was cast out of a single man and was sent into two
thousand pigs (Mt 8,32); the spirit that is precious is opposed to the spirit
that is base; one is saved, the other lost. «Come out of this man, get into
those pigs; go where you will, go to hell. Get out of man, namely what belongs
to me; I won't let you possess man since it would injure me if you were to
settle in him in my stead. I assumed a human body, I dwell in man: that flesh
you possess forms part of my flesh. Come out of man.»
Free
Opinions, Releases, letters & Special Reports
The Price of Individual Wars. By:
Elias Harfoush/Al-Hayat 13/01/09
Rice, Eager to Depart, Heartily
Defends Record.By Glenn Kessler.Washington
Post 13/01/09
Latest News Reports From
Miscellaneous Sources for January 13/09
Israel says it's sending
top negotiator for 'decisive' talks in Egypt-AP
Lebanese Composer Mansour
Rahbani Dies at 83-Naharnet
Qatar's Call for Emergency
Summit Awaits Approval by Two Thirds of Arab States-Naharnet
Heated Arguments in Lebanese Cabinet, Discussions Resume on Tuesday-Naharnet
Lebanese Cabinet Approves Cellular Deal-Naharnet
Aoun
Criticizes Neutral Candidates in the Parliamentary Elections-Naharnet
Murr: UNIFIL Plastics Not
Explosive-Naharnet
Berri: A Rare Chance
Allowed Israel to Attack Gaza-Naharnet
President Suleiman Urges
Palestinians to Unify Ranks-Naharnet
Lebanese Parliament
Session on Saturday to Hear Ban Speech-Naharnet
Efforts to Bring Together
Jumblat, Raad Resume-Naharnet
Report:Lebanese National
Dialogue Postponed for Few Days-Naharnet
Progress Made in Probe
Into Rocket Attack on Israelfrom Lebanon-Naharnet
Shots fired at Israeli patrol on
Jordan border-AP
Israelis strike 60 Gaza
targets-BBC
News
Israeli leader warns Hamas of
'iron fist'-AP
Lebanese Cabinet accepts invitation to emergency Arab League summit-Daily
Star
New York Times proffers Beirut as prime destination-Daily
Star
Time runs short for deminers working in south Lebanon-Daily
Star
Bloodbath in Gaza 'boosts Hizbullah's case for resistance-Daily
Star
UNIFIL peacekeepers may owe huge debt to sniffer dog after bomb scare-Daily
Star
Gaza: a tragedy for the region-Daily
Star
Will Hizbullah intervene in the Gaza conflict?-Daily
Star
EIU study lowers Lebanon's growth forecast again-Daily
Star
AUB helps Palestinian children cope with bloodshed in Gaza-Daily
Star
Lebanese
Composer Mansour Rahbani Dies at 83
Naharnet/Veteran Lebanese composer and musician Mansour Rahbani, a well-known
figure in the Arab world, died on Tuesday after a battle with illness. He was
83. The National News Agency said Rahbani was recently hospitalized for
suffering from acute influenza. He was later placed in Hotel Dieu hospital's
intensive care unit for three days under observation by this doctors. Rahbani
was born in 1925 in the town of Antelias, north of Beirut.
He was the brother-in-law of Lebanese singing diva Fairuz, for whom he composed
many poems and songs along with his older brother Assi. The two men were known
as "the Rahbani Brothers."Following Assi Rahbani's death in 1986, Mansour's name
came out for the first time after he wrote the play Summer 840. He later wrote
and produced other grand theatrical plays, including The Will, The Last Days of
Socrates, Moulouk al Tawaef, The Last Day, Hekm al Rehyan, Gebran and the
Prophet, Zenobia, and The Return of the Phoenix which is now playing in Casino
du Liban. Beirut, 13 Jan 09, 12:01
Israel
says it's sending top negotiator for 'decisive' talks in Egypt
By Ibrahim Barzak And Josef Federman, The Associated Press
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Israel's chief negotiator will go to Egypt for
"decisive" talks on a ceasefire with Hamas, officials said Tuesday, as the sound
of battles between Israeli troops and Palestinian fighters rang out in the
crowded streets of Gaza City.
With international outrage mounting over the toll on Gaza's civilians, Israel's
decision to send Defence Ministry official Amos Gilad to Egypt on Thursday could
be a signal of progress. Gilad had postponed the trip for days.
Diplomatic efforts to end 18 days of fighting have moved slowly, in part because
of the wide gaps between Israel and Hamas, who do not negotiate directly.
Israel says it will push forward with the offensive until Hamas ends all rocket
fire on southern Israel, and there are guarantees the group will stop smuggling
weapons into Gaza through the porous Egyptian border.
Hamas has said it will only observe a ceasefire if Israel withdraws from Gaza.
Much of the diplomacy focuses on an area of southern Gaza just across the
Egyptian border that serves as a weapons smuggling route, making Egypt critical
to both sides in any deal.
Israel wants smuggling tunnels along the border sealed and monitored as part of
any deal, and has been bombing the tunnels throughout the campaign.
The push into the Tel Hawwa neighbourhood was the farthest Israel has moved into
Gaza City, and brought ground forces within 1.5 kilometres of the crowded city
centre. Gaza hospital officials say more than 900 Palestinians, half of them
civilians, have been killed over more than two weeks of fighting.
Palestinian rocket fire has been greatly reduced, but not halted altogether,
since the offensive was launched. Some 15 rockets and mortar shells were fired
toward Israel on Tuesday, causing no injuries, the army said. A total of 13
Israelis have died since Dec. 27.
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon was headed to the region Tuesday to
press for a ceasefire, and a Hamas delegation resumed talks in Cairo with
Egyptian intelligence officials.
Israeli military officials say that depending on what happens with what they
described as "decisive" talks in Cairo, Israel will either move closer to a
ceasefire or press on with an even tougher stage of its offensive. They spoke on
condition of anonymity because they were discussing sensitive policy matters.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has vowed to press forward with an "iron fist,"
despite growing international calls for an end to the fighting.
Israel's army has largely avoided the difficult terrain of Gaza City's narrow
alleyways and crowded neighbourhoods.
Palestinian medical officials reported at least 21 people killed in fighting
Tuesday throughout Gaza, though the Israeli army suggested the number could be
higher.
One resident, Khader Mussa, said he fled his house while waving a white flag as
the Israeli forces advanced. He spent the night huddling in the basement of a
relative with 25 other people, including his pregnant wife and his parents.
"Thank God we survived this time and got out alive from here. But we don't know
how long we'll be safe in my brother's home," Mussa, 35, told The Associated
Press by telephone.
Several buildings were on fire, witnesses said, including a lumberyard. The
sounds of battle could be heard clearly around the city of 400,000 as the
Israeli forces, backed by artillery and attack helicopters, moved in. Israeli
gunboats shelled the coast from the west.
The Israeli military said it carried out some 60 air strikes overnight, hitting
groups of Hamas fighters holed up in a hotel, a house and a mosque. It said it
also struck 15 squads of gunmen, rocket launching sites and 15 smuggling tunnels
along the Egyptian border.
The army said it had killed or wounded about 30 fighters, and that three
soldiers were wounded in overnight clashes. Among them was an officer who was
seriously wounded when a bomb exploded in a northern Gaza house that he was
searching. Weapons, including a machine-gun, were later found in the house, the
military said.
Dr. Moaiya Hassanain, a Palestinian Health Ministry official, said dozens of
calls for ambulances had been received, but they could not be dispatched because
of the fighting.
The Gaza fighting has raised tensions around the region and galvanized anger
toward Israel throughout the Arab world. On Tuesday, at least one gunman opened
fire at an Israeli army patrol along the desert border between Israel and
Jordan, the military said. There were no casualties, and Jordan said the claim
was "baseless."
There was a similar shooting on the Israel-Syria border Sunday, and last week
fighters in Lebanon fired rockets into an Israeli town in an apparent attempt to
draw Israel into a second front.
The Israeli military has tightly controlled information from the battlefield,
but indications have been that Hamas has not put up a serious fight.
Of the nine Israeli soldiers killed during the offensive, four were killed in
"friendly fire incidents," a military inquiry concluded. Repeated Hamas claims
of spectacular attacks on the Israelis have turned out to be false.
Speaking in parliament Tuesday, Israel's military chief said his troops have
achieved a lot but "still have work to do" in fighting Hamas in Gaza.
"The soldiers are doing exceptional work, with many achievements in inflicting
damage on Hamas, its infrastructure, its government and military wing," he said.
But the fighting has raised concerns about a looming humanitarian disaster in
Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of people are without power and running water.
The Israeli army said about 100 truckloads of humanitarian aid, including wheat,
flour and medical supplies, were expected to be let into the territory Tuesday.
The aid was sent through during a daily three-hour lull that Israel has declared
to allow humanitarian supplies to be delivered.
In Brussels, the European Union's aid chief said Tuesday that Israel has not
respected international humanitarian aid during the war. EU Commissioner Louis
Michel, speaking in a published interview, cited the high number of civilian
casualties and difficulties of delivering aid to the needed.
In Oslo, Norway, meanwhile, the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees,
Karen Abu Zayd, urged the Israeli army to do more to allow supplies into the
besieged area. "We are getting a lot of help from the Israeli Defence Forces on
the one crossing that's open to get more and more trucks in, but it's just not
enough," she said.
The Price
of Individual Wars
Elias Harfoush Al-Hayat - 12/01/09//
The battle of Gaza has proven, as have before it Israel's wars against Lebanon,
that the time of Arab wars against Israel has ended. What we mean by "Arab wars"
are those wars which the Arabs fought together, under a single military strategy
aimed at reaching a single goal.
The war of 1973 was the last of these wars, and it is because it was so that it
was able to return some land and some dignity. Arab history has continued to
mention it as a late correction, one which has remained a single occurrence, of
the catastrophe that befell the Arabs and their lands in 1967, as a result of
poor planning and estimation in entering the war, and also because slogans and
radio enthusiasm replaced fighting abilities in facing Israel.
After 1973, the Arabs entered the era of individual peace and individual wars.
Individual peace was able to return their lands to each of Egypt and Jordan, as
it was able to give the Palestinians a chance of returning their authority, even
if limited, to their own land. Individual wars, on the other hand, have often
produced disastrous results.
The Palestinian Resistance fought the war of 1982 alone on Lebanese soil,
supported as usual by a fair number of protests, slogans and declarations of
support. It ended up ousted from the most significant position it had obtained,
being at the border to confront Israel, and sent to Tunisia and other lands of
exile. Hezbollah also fought its war alone in 2006, and Hezbollah's
Secretary-General, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, eventually had to confess that, if
he had known what the war on Lebanon would result in, he would never have
approved of it. That war also ended with Hezbollah forces being moved away from
the direct lines of confrontation.
As for the Palestinians, they too have fought their disproportionate battles,
whether in the two Intifadas or in the various confrontations with the Israelis
in different regions of the occupied land. The gains that they did achieve,
whether in politics or on the battlefield, were not at all proportional to their
great sacrifices and to the large number of casualties. The war taking place
today in Gaza is only further evidence of the danger of individually deciding to
go to war against an enemy armed with the latest technology, and with
underestimated international diplomatic and political support, and against a
political situation in the Arab world and the region which no longer agrees with
the individual strategies and plans of the forces that are behind these wars.
What adds to the danger of such individual action is that the forces which Hamas
had thought would be its main support in this war have also retreated to
protecting their own interests and figuring out the opportunities of exploiting
this war. Of course, here we are not discussing the forces which the Islamic
movement considers to be "neutral," but rather those that are allied to Hamas,
whether in the Arab World or in the region. It is noteworthy, for instance, in a
regional power of the size of Iran, which is considered the main reservoir for
the ideology and ethics of Islamic resistance, to see the Supreme Leader
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, speaking to Iranian youths who seek to enroll and join
the Palestinian fighters, saying: "It is important for you to realize that we
cannot do anything on this level!", at a time when he accuses countries in the
region of having "let down" the Palestinians.
Kamenei admitting his inability to do anything could have been considered of the
utmost realism, and Hamas leaders should have thus listened to his words
carefully, had they not been preceded by other words. Indeed, before the start
of the battles, Kamenei himself spoke of "the duty of all Mujahideen and
believers in the Muslim World to defend the innocent women and children of
Gaza."
There is nothing wrong with governments of the region taking a few steps back
and weighing their decisions carefully, in the face of the coming changes, and
especially when nearing the arrival of a new US administration, one that has
been suggesting the possibility of opening dialogue channels, instead of
adopting a posture of confrontation, with the Iranian regime and the regimes and
forces allied with it in the region. However, it is wrong, and in fact criminal,
for Gaza, with its children, women and elderly, to be the fuel necessary to
prove the ability of those regimes and forces to walk the path of realism and
toss aside the slogans of yesterday, if there is indeed a price appropriate for
this
Is there anyone who Wishes to Stop the Massacres in Gaza?
Elias Harfoush Al-Hayat - 11/01/09//
There is a race of diplomatic efforts taking place which aims at reaching a
ceasefire, one that would stop the Israeli killing machine and thus put an end
to the fall of casualties among the Palestinians. There is also a race of
relentless attempts to exploit this tragic situation to serve the political
interests of parties benefiting from it.
The ceasefire resolution that was taken by the Security Council, as a result of
intense pressures from the Arab ministerial delegation which followed
negotiations in New York, could have represented a suitable prelude for ending
this painful episode of disproportion between the numbers of Palestinian and
Israeli casualties (at least 770 Palestinians, more than half of them women and
children, as opposed to thirteen Israelis, ten of them soldiers). However, both
parties in this confrontation have concluded that approving such a resolution
and committing to its clauses is in neither of their interests. Indeed, Israel
has considered that it neither protects its interests nor ensures the security
of the inhabitants of the towns and settlements that are being targeted by the
rockets. As for Hamas, it has declared that the resolution "does not take into
account the goals and aspirations of the Palestinian people, but rather fosters
Israel's security interests and aims at saving the face of the occupation after
the series of failures it has faced in the Gaza Strip".
Are there any goals that are more important right now for the Palestinian people
than to stop the massacres perpetrated by Israel? Will all the cries and calls,
including those of international humanitarian organizations who accuse the
Israelis of deliberate killing and of violating the most basic international
laws for the protection of civilians during war, be sufficient to put an end to
these violations?
It is in Israel's interest to complete its killing spree to the very end. This
has always been its policy to begin with: to use the greatest amount of force
and perpetrate the highest rate of massacres to force the Palestinians and Arabs
to submit and accept the guarantees which Israel claims and demands in order to
protect its existence in our region. The Hebrew State has proven throughout the
various periods of conflict that it is capable of doing so. In fact, it has
proved successful at this, first and foremost because of the weakness and
internal division of the Arabs (and currently of the Palestinians), and also as
a result of the sympathy and support it enjoys from most countries around the
world, and most prominently of course from the United States. Israel now has the
opportunity to complete the confrontation until it reaches its desired end,
under the pressure of internal elections in which no political party can afford
to be satisfied with any less than the objectives that were announced for this
war, and during a period of hiatus between a departing US administration, whose
policy has been fully identified with that of Israel, and a coming
administration which heralds possibilities of openness to the different parties
in the conflict, including the Hamas movement.
As for Hamas, it considers this war to be an "opportunity" to once again assert
its existence on the political map of Palestine and the region. Perhaps this is
what the movement means when it justifies its objection to the UN resolution by
stating that it "was not a party" in the talks that led to it. Within such a
political context, the death toll becomes, from the perspective of the Islamist
movement, a burden for those in Israel who made the decision to wage war and for
those who have appointed them and kept quiet about their crimes, more than it is
for the families of the victims, as well as for their fellow Palestinians, Arabs
and Muslims. The latter were in fact supposed, as they still are, to use all and
any means that would prevent the aggressors from continuing to perpetrate their
crimes, not to say not to provide the aggressors with the pretexts they can use
to continue their offensive.
This is precisely where lies the difference between, on the one hand, Arab
officials, in addition to the international diplomats who wave supported them,
who rushed to reach a ceasefire that would put an end to Israel's massacres
while awaiting the completion of the remaining arrangements that would allow for
a permanent solution, one which would include lifting the siege and ensuring the
security of the crossings, as well as the issue of weapons smuggling into Gaza,
and, on the other, those who consider the war to be part of a political process
that can only end in complete victory. Such a victory, on the Palestinian side,
clearly seems to come at an extremely high cost. Thus it becomes legitimate to
ask about the meaning and the purpose of such a victory, assuming it is even one
that can be achieved.
If Israel is able to endure this war until it reaches its desired ends, as long
its own death toll does not so far represent a means to apply pressure on the
political decision to stop the war, is it sound for Hamas to behave in the same
way, when faced with the tremendous number of Palestinian casualties so far, at
an average of 70 victims per day? Is the absence of a political calculation
machine in Gaza sufficient to justify this kind of behavior, one which is moving
towards its inevitable end?
The
President and the Scale
Ghassan Charbel Al-Hayat - 12/01/09//
Lebanon is fully concerned by the Gaza events. Israel's massacres there have
strained the Lebanese, Arab and Islamic streets. Such tensions are multiplied
inside the Palestinian camps scattered in Lebanon. Also, the small country has
other reasons for concern: the Gaza war is the first broad confrontation of the
Israeli army after the July 2006 setback. This war smacks of Israel's feeling of
revenge and desire to retrieve its dignity and "deterrence" capacity.
It is not easy for Lebanon to coexist with a long war in Gaza and the sight of
big and small corpses under the rubble. It is also not easy for the Palestinian
camps to practice self-restraint until the end. Likewise, it is not easy for
Hezbollah to observe for very long the attempt to crush both Gaza and Hamas. The
matter is not easy for all Arabs either, regardless of their diverging opinions.
It is also not easy for Iran, which expressed a strong wish to be involved in
the Mediterranean, and more specifically in the heart of the Palestinian-Israeli
conflict.
In Beirut, which was worried by the rockets fired at Northern Israel,
coexistence with this war remains difficult. When journalistic curiosity got the
best of me, I went to Baabda palace to conduct my investigations. I saw
President General Michel Suleiman busily following the details of this dangerous
unstable situation - particularly after the Security Council's resolution failed
to consecrate a ceasefire. I found the President aware of the gravity of the
situation, but I also sensed his great confidence in Lebanon's ability to
overcome this phase without paying its price. I felt that the lines of Baabda
palace were open to the parties that are able to cause or prevent the escalation
of the situation.
I felt that the President's assurance - which is relative in the dangerous and
unstable situation - is the fruit of many elements, the first of which is the
unified stance of the Lebanese government towards the ongoing events, despite
the deep political divisions and the decisive parliamentary elections scheduled
for next June. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the consensual
president's main concern, or rather primary obsession, is upholding the unified
stance.
As for the second element, it is the prevailing feeling in the country that
Lebanon's contribution to support the Gaza inhabitants must be made under the
Arab umbrella, while respecting Lebanon's obligations towards the international
legitimacy - and without saddling the country with further burdens whilst it is
still nurturing its previous wounds. The third element is the President's
credibility he has built up in his relations with all the Lebanese, the
resistance, and Syria during the last tumultuous years.
What a difficult mission Michel Suleiman is faced with. The Lebanese divisions
run deep, the Arab divisions run deep, and the international situation is hazy
on the eve of Obama's inauguration. The open battle of roles and cards in the
region since the demise of Saddam Hussein's regime and the July war exceeds the
capacities of the small country that is unable to turn into a big player or open
playground. Perhaps this is why the President speaks like someone whose eyes are
constantly on the balance and its scales.
What a difficult mission Michel Suleiman is faced with. He wishes to keep the
idea of the State and institutions alive, and he knows that Lebanon lives
beneath the remains of the State and institutions. Through the repeated dialogue
meetings, he is attempting to weave an umbrella that would protect the slow
steps from internal and external winds.
Between the March 14 and March 8 camps, between the Doha and the Taef
agreements, between the adherence to constants and the need to adapt to changes,
the President's task seems extremely hard - not to say impossible.
The President speaks with moderation and caution about the forces and the
people. He is aware of the abilities of the State and the limits of his role. He
tries to muster up some force for the State and the country without giving up,
taking risks, or rushing. He still has the dream of the State as well as the
ability to talk to everyone, and tries to have the capacity to wait, in a
dangerous and unstable situation
Is There
a Lebanese-Syrian Divergence?
Abdullah Iskandar Al-Hayat - 11/01/09//
The repercussions of the Israeli offensive on Gaza have so far spared Lebanon.
The official and popular reactions have been limited to condemning and
denouncing the Israeli war crimes in the Strip, in total solidarity with the
Palestinian people in the face of the Israeli killing machine. The rockets fired
two days ago at Nahariya from South Lebanon offered the Lebanese government, the
political parties, the UN and the states contributing to the UNIFIL an
opportunity to confirm the need not to embroil Lebanon in any field
confrontation with the Israeli troops, as this will jeopardize the country, the
Security Council Resolution 1701 and the UNIFIL missions.
Even though Hezbollah has attributed its ambiguous stance to the nature of its
strategy in confronting Israel, the cabinet - of which it is part - has
consensually declined to see South Lebanon turn into a battlefield in the
current confrontation. As such, the official stance has prevailed over field
neutrality, with the parties to the government, including Hezbollah, supporting
the measures taken by the army in cooperation with the UNIFIL to prevent any
party from opening the Lebanese front in light of the assault on Gaza. Such a
party has been repeatedly identified as the Damascus-based armed Palestinian
factions with bases in Lebanon.
The rockets launched from the South were described by many as a message to the
Lebanese State. But most importantly, the content of this message must be
well-understood, not to mention its impact on the situation in Lebanon.
This message does not target the status quo in the South nor does it threaten to
blow it up. Lebanon, Israel, the countries of the region, and influential
capitals all know that such a step is impossible without a Hezbollah decision.
In turn, this decision is not linked to enthusiastic impulses but to a series of
regional calculations. Most probably, this message was addressed in light of
Lebanon's participation in the Arab ministerial delegation to the UN and its
Foreign Minister's involvement in the Saudi-led efforts to reach the Security
Council Resolution 1860 on a ceasefire in Gaza. Fawzi Salloukh is said to
represent the opposition in the national unity government.
As such, Lebanon's approach to the offensive differs from Syria's. Following his
meeting with his French counterpart, Nicolas Sarkozy, who arrived in Syria to
promote the Egyptian initiative, Syrian President Bashar Assad called for an
Arab Summit even if unattended by all member states. The aim was to reject the
initiative that became a goal to attain in the Resolution 1860. In turn, Syria's
foreign minister branded as "short-sighted" the Arabs' referring the case to the
Security Council. For this reason, the Syrian diplomacy rejected the efforts by
the delegation, including Salloukh's who hailed their results. As for Tishreen
newspaper, it described the Resolution 1860 as "tailored to Israel's
conditions."
Amidst the prevailing Arab divisions, the Lebanese diplomacy has adopted a
stance different than Syria's in a matter of paramount importance to Syria.
Lebanon has not opposed Syria's policy in this respect nor has it rallied behind
a particular Arab axis. But at the very least, it has not taken Syria's
considerations into account. This takes place for the first time since the Taef
Agreement in the late 80s and the policy of the concomitance of tracks.
The question has to do now with this conflict; how it will impact the bilateral
relations in the next stage and Lebanon's ability to uphold such a conflict -
especially when the Israeli killing machine stops in Gaza, accounts are made,
and prices are demanded. Moreover, there is the issue of the Syrian approach to
Lebanon in light of the unhurried exchange of ambassadors, which was supposed to
take place before the end of 2008. The issue is also related to the effects it
will have upon the allies of Damascus in Lebanon and their conduct in Parliament
until the coming parliamentary elections scheduled for next June. Moreover,
there is the relation with President Michel Suleiman, who enters into a
political atmosphere that is different than the one produced by the Doha
agreement, which had led to his election.
Shots
fired at Israeli patrol on Jordan border
JERUSALEM – AP/The Israeli military says one or more gunmen have opened fire on
an army patrol along the Israel-Jordan border. The military says there were no
casualties in the incident, which took place along the desert frontier between
the two countries in southern Israel. The details remain unclear. But tensions
are high in the region because of Israel's devastating offensive against Hamas
in the Gaza Strip. Israel and Jordan signed a peace agreement in 1994 and the
border is usually quiet. There was a similar shooting incident Sunday along the
Israel-Syria border.Israelis strike 60 Gaza targets
Qatar's Call for Emergency
Summit Awaits Approval by Two Thirds of Arab States
Naharnet/Prime Minister of Qatar Hamad Bin Jassem Bin Jaber al-Thani announced
Monday that his country has called for an emergency Arab summit scheduled for
Friday at Doha to tackle the Gaza situation. However, Arab League Secretary
General Amr Moussa said the call requires approval by two thirds of the league
member states. Moussa also said a ministerial meeting is scheduled for Friday in
Kuwait to tackle the Gaza situation. Sheik Hamad, who also is foreign minister,
said the emergency summit should "look into measures capable of putting an end
to the Israeli aggression on Gaza in light of Israel's refusal to respect UNSCR
1860." Kuwait is to host an Arab Economic Summit on Jan. 19-20. A meeting by
Governors of Arab Central Banks is scheduled for Wednesday to set the stage for
the economic summit. Beirut, 12 Jan 09, 22:35
Heated Arguments in Cabinet, Discussions Resume on Tuesday
Naharnet/The government on Tuesday will resume discussion of the state budget
bill for fiscal 2009, a day after a cabinet session witnessed heated arguments
on electricity, the health ministry's budget, the Council of the South and the
Central Fund for the Displaced. An Nahar daily said that Health Minister
Mohammad Jawad Khalifeh expressed reservations on the draft budget because it
failed to allocate more funds for the health ministry. As for discussions on the
power crisis, a Cabinet member told An Nahar that an argument broke out with
Energy Minister Alain Tabourian over a suggestion to increase electricity
tariffs. As Safir daily said Finance Minister Mohammed Shatah suggested
increased tariffs but Tabourian refused claiming fuel prices are decreasing
worldwide. The newspaper said the issue will be discussed again in Tuesday's
session. Minister of Administrative Reform Ibrahim Shamseddine, according to An
Nahar, brought up the issue of the Central Fund for the Displaced and the
Council of the South, asking when they will be cancelled since the budget bill
does not mention them. Beirut, 13 Jan 09, 09:01
Cabinet Approves Cellular Deal
Naharnet/The Lebanese Cabinet on Monday granted two firms rights to operate
cellular communication services. Information Minister Tareq Mitri said Egypt's
Orascom and Kuwait's Zain won the tender to operate the two networks. He did not
disclose further details. However, the cabinet decided to resume on Tuesday
discussion of the state budget bill for fiscal 2009, Mitri said. Beirut, 12 Jan
09, 23:10
Aoun Criticizes Neutral Candidates in the Parliamentary
Elections
Naharnet/Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun on Monday criticized efforts
to form a neutral parliamentary bloc in the forthcoming elections, charging that
neutral politicians are "like water, tasteless, colorless and odorless." Forming
a neutral parliamentary bloc, Aoun added, would "damage the balance of powers"
within the house. "They would nominate disguised candidates and term them
neutral candidates," Aoun told reporters after the weekly meeting by members of
his Change and Reform parliamentary bloc. President Michel Suleiman, according
to Aoun, "does not want a parliamentary bloc … he is not our foe and we are not
his foes."
On Sunday, Aoun urged all those who don't have a chance to win the parliamentary
elections to withdraw their candidacies because he won't back anyone who has
limited capabilities. "Those who have announced their candidacies and don't have
a chance to win (they should) withdraw because I won't support anyone who can't
(even) become head of municipality," Aoun told a visiting delegation from the
Engineering Alumni Association. "Or else I could take technocrats and support
them" because they would be more useful later, he said. "We welcome all FPM
friends who want to announce their candidacies under three conditions: First
they should harmonize with colleagues, second they should support change and
reform and third they should have the biggest chance among their colleagues to
win the elections," Aoun said. Beirut, 12 Jan 09, 18:28
Murr: UNIFIL Plastics Not Explosive
Naharnet/Defense Minister Elias Murr said Monday plastics found in a garbage
truck serving Italian peacekeepers in south Lebanon "were not explosive
material."
Murr, talking to reporters prior to a cabinet session at Baabda Palace, said the
two people arrested in connection with the case have been released.
Press reports said two cleaning workers were arrested Sunday upon discovery of
the plastics in their truck at the main gate to the headquarters in the southern
town of Tibnin of the Italian Battalion serving with the U.N. Interim Force in
Lebanon. Beirut, 12 Jan 09, 22:00
Berri: A Rare Chance Allowed Israel to Attack Gaza
Naharnet/Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Monday said Israel "benefited from a
rare chance … to strike at Gaza."Berri, addressing foreign Consuls accredited to
Lebanon, said Israel "benefited from the intra-Palestinian split and the
inter-Arab split … to attack Gaza." He said UNSCR 1860 on Gaza was adopted "but
would not be implemented." Lebanon, he said, is "heading to recovery, though at
turtle speed." Beirut, 12 Jan 09, 18:17
Efforts to Bring Together Jumblat, Raad Resume
Naharnet/Efforts to set up a meeting between Progressive Socialist Party (PSP)
leader Walid Jumblat and Head of Hizbullah's parliamentary bloc Mohammed Raad
have resumed, As Safir newspaper reported Monday. It said progress was made to
bring the two sides together after Lebanese Democratic Party (LDP) chief
Minister Talal Arslan resumed his mediation between the PSP and Hizbullah. As
Safir quoted Jumblat as saying that during his meeting with Arslan at the
latter's residence in Khaldeh last Monday, the LDP leader "suggested to resume
contacts" to arrange a meeting between the PSP chief and MP Raad. "I informed
him (Arslan) that I am ready (for such talks)," Jumblat told the daily. Sources
close to the contacts between both sides told As Safir that Jumblat wants the
meeting with Raad to pave the way for future talks with Hizbullah chief Sayyed
Hassan Nasrallah. Beirut, 12 Jan 09, 09:32
Report: National Dialogue Postponed for Few Days
Naharnet/President Michel Suleiman has decided to postpone the national dialogue
session to January 26, As Safir daily reported Monday. It said the session that
was scheduled to discuss Lebanon's defense strategy at Baabda Palace on Jan. 22
will be held on the 26th because Suleiman is planning to attend an Arab economic
summit in Kuwait. During the last session, Lebanese leaders decided to form a
military committee to study defense strategy suggestions. As Safir quoted
sources as saying the next dialogue session will be followed by another meeting
in March, the last talks before the parliamentary elections set for June 7.
Beirut, 12 Jan 09, 08:57
UN chief heads to Mideast to
press Gaza resolution
By EDITH M. LEDERER, Associated Press Writer Edith M. Lederer, Associated Press
Writer –
UNITED NATIONS – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon heads to the Mideast on Tuesday
to step up diplomatic efforts to get Israel and Hamas to adhere to a U.N.
cease-fire resolution in the Gaza Strip and allow humanitarian aid into the
devastated Palestinian territory.
Since Israel launched its air and ground offensive on Dec. 27, Ban said he has
been on the phone constantly with top officials in the Middle East, Europe and
the United States promoting a cease-fire. But he said phone calls aren't a
substitute for direct talks with leaders who have influence on the parties.
"To both sides, I say: Just stop, now," the U.N. chief told a news conference
Monday. "Too many people have died. There has been too much civilian suffering.
Too many people, Israelis and Palestinians, live in daily fear of their lives."
The secretary-general said he was trying to visit all countries that "can make a
difference." He will meet senior officials in Egypt and Jordan Wednesday, then
head to Israel, the Palestinian-controlled West Bank, Turkey, Lebanon, Syria and
Kuwait where he said an Arab League summit may add an extra session to tackle
the Gaza conflict. His itinerary does not include a stop in Gaza because of the
ongoing conflict.
Ban said he will be discussing an immediate cease-fire with Egypt's President
Hosni Mubarak, who is hosting separate talks with the Israelis and Hamas, and
pressing Israel's leaders, and the presidents of Turkey and Syria, who have
influence with Hamas, for a halt to the fighting.
He added that he has been discussing the conflict with the Americans, Israel's
closest ally, every day.
Ban said he would also be encouraging diplomatic initiatives — including one by
Mubarak — to open border crossings, strengthen border security, provide
humanitarian assistance, protect the Palestinian population in Gaza, and reunite
Hamas-controlled Gaza and the Fatah-controlled West Bank.
Ban said the United Nations maintains diplomatic relations with the Palestinian
Authority, headed by President Mahmoud Abbas whom he will visit in Ramallah, but
U.N. officials have only technical contact with Hamas representatives, which
seized control of Gaza from Abbas' government in 2007.
"I urge again that Hamas militants — they must stop, they must look to the
future of the Palestinian people," he said.
The Security Council resolution adopted Thursday by a vote of 14-0, with the
U.S. abstaining, "stresses the urgency of and calls for an immediate, durable
and fully respected cease-fire, leading to the full withdrawal of Israeli forces
from Gaza."
The U.N. chief will return to New York on Jan. 20, just before Barack Obama's
inauguration.
The Israeli air force supported
ground troops in Gaza
BBC 13/01/09/Israel says it attacked more than 60 targets overnight in Gaza as
its offensive against Hamas entered its 18th day. The air assault came as
Israeli troops advanced in the southern and eastern suburbs of Gaza City. The
Israeli military also announced another three-hour ceasefire, starting at 0900
local time (0700 GMT), to allow aid lorries into Gaza. The truce coincides with
visits by UN and Red Cross officials to Gaza. On Tuesday, the western areas of
Gaza City also came under shellfire from Israeli gunboats. The Israeli military
has denied a Hamas claim that it had destroyed two Israeli tanks. The BBC's
Aleem Maqbool, on the Israeli-Gaza border, said Israeli shelling had continued
despite the three-hour humanitarian ceasefire. The UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon,
has implored Israel and Palestinian militants to halt the fighting in Gaza
immediately. Ban Ki-moon calls for an immediate ceasefire
Ahead of a trip to the region to push for a truce, Ban Ki-moon said too many
people had died and there had been too much civilian suffering.
"My message is simple, direct and to the point: the fighting must stop," Mr Ban
told a news conference in New York ahead of his departure on Tuesday for the
Middle East. "In Gaza, the very foundation of society is being destroyed:
people's homes, civic infrastructure, public health facilities and schools."
His diplomatic tour will see talks with the leaders of Egypt, Israel and Syria
as well as the Palestinian president in Ramallah.
However, UN officials say he will not be meeting representatives of Hamas, and
it is not clear whether he will go to Gaza itself during his week-long trip.
Also on Tuesday, an Israeli army patrol in the West Bank came under fire from
inside Jordan, the army said. No-one was hurt in the incident and the patrol
returned fire. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Palestinian militants
will keep on feeling Israel's "iron fist" as long as Hamas fires rockets at
Israel.
But a senior Hamas leader, Ismail Haniya, said the group was "approaching
victory". "After 17 days of this foolish war, Gaza has not been broken and Gaza
will not collapse," he said in a televised address from a secret location in
Gaza.
Death toll
Both Hamas and Israel rejected last week's UN Security Council resolution
calling for an immediate ceasefire.
Palestinian medical sources say 910 people have been killed in Gaza so far, of
whom 292 were children and 75 were women. Israeli officials say 13 Israelis,
including three civilians, have been killed.
On Monday, casualty reports from Palestinian medics ranged from nine to 26 dead,
while Israel said five of its soldiers had been injured, one of them seriously.
Israel is preventing international journalists from entering Gaza, making it
impossible to independently confirm casualty figures.
Meanwhile, reports suggest diplomatic efforts between Egypt and Hamas in Cairo
are progressing.
After meeting Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Middle East Quartet envoy Tony
Blair said the elements were in place for a ceasefire agreement.
"I am hopeful we can put an agreement together but it's going to have to be
worked on very hard and it's got to be credible," he told journalists.
Israel hopes the scale of its operation will greatly reduce the number of
missiles fired from Gaza into southern Israel, while eroding support for Hamas.
Israeli leader warns Hamas of 'iron fist'
By IBRAHIM BARZAK and CHRISTOPHER TORCHIA, Associated f … GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert stood within Hamas rocket range Monday and
warned Islamic militants that they face an "iron fist" unless they agree to
Israeli terms for an end to war in the Gaza Strip. Hamas showed no signs of
wavering, however, with its leader, Ismail Haniyeh, saying the militants were
"closer to victory."
Despite the tough words, Egypt said it was making slow progress in brokering a
truce, and special Mideast envoy Tony Blair said elements were in place for a
cease-fire.As Olmert spoke in the Israeli city of Ashkelon, Israeli tanks,
gunboats and warplanes hammered suspected hiding places of Hamas operatives who
control the poor, densely populated territory just across the border.
After nightfall, flares and explosions lit up the sky over Gaza and heavy
gunfire was heard in parts of the coastal territory of 1.4 million people.
Hamas' fighters battled Israeli troops on the outskirts of Gaza City and
launched 15 rockets at southern Israel. The group's prime minister insisted on
an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and the opening of blockaded border crossings as
part of any truce.
"As we are in the middle of this crisis, we tell our people we, God willing, are
closer to victory. All the blood that is being shed will not go to waste,"
Haniyeh said on Hamas' Al Aqsa television. But he said the group was also
pursuing a diplomatic track to end the conflict that "will not close."
Haniyeh sat a desk in a room with a Palestinian flag and a Quran in the
background. His location was unclear; Israeli airstrikes have targeted militant
chiefs, and most are in hiding.
The fighting began Dec. 27 and has killed more than 900 Palestinians, about half
of them civilians, according to Palestinian medical officials. Thirteen
Israelis, including 10 soldiers, have been killed. As diplomats struggled for
traction in truce efforts, Olmert said Israel would only end military operations
if Hamas stops rocketing Israel, as it has done for years, and is unable to
rearm after combat subsides.
"Anything else will be met with the Israeli people's iron fist," Olmert said.
"We will continue to strike with full strength, with full force until there is
quiet and rearmament stops."A few hours before Olmert spoke, a rocket hit a
house in Ashkelon but caused no casualties. Olmert addressed regional mayors in
the relative safety of the basement of a public building during his two-hour
visit; he has toured other towns hit by rockets since the war began.
Later, he tempered his tough talk, saying: "I really hope that the efforts we
are making with the Egyptians these days will ripen to a result that will enable
us to end the fighting."Ashkelon is 10 miles from the border with Gaza. The
Israeli military says Hamas has Iranian-supplied rockets that can reach 25 miles
into southern Israel.
Inside Gaza, an Israeli battalion commander identified only as Lt. Col. Yehuda
said troops had not met significant resistance and had found several houses
booby-trapped either with regular explosives, or by sealing the windows and
doors and opening cooking gas valves.
"A couple of days ago, an armed squad popped up from a tunnel that was concealed
by a nearby building. We took them out with tank fire and a bulldozer," he said.
In another incident, the commander said, his men spotted a suicide bomber on a
bicycle.
"He ran off to take cover in a building, presumably to draw us in," Yehuda said.
"We demolished the building on top of him with a bulldozer."
Brig. Gen. Eyal Eisenberg said troops were "tightening the encirclement" of Gaza
City and were "constantly on the move."
The comments by Yehuda and Eisenberg were approved by Israeli military censors.
They spoke to a small group of reporters who accompanied Israeli units inside
Gaza. Israeli forces have not allowed journalists to enter Gaza to cover the
war.
Israeli warplanes pounded suspected Hamas positions in Gaza City, and navy
gunboats fired at least 25 shells. Smoke billowed over buildings.
At least 20 Palestinians died Monday, some of them from wounds suffered on
previous days, Gaza health officials said.
A girl, a doctor and a Hamas militant were killed in the northern Gaza Strip,
said Basim Abu Wardeh, head of Kamal Adwan hospital.
The doctor rushed to evacuate the wounded from a building where two airstrikes
had taken place and was killed by a third, Abu Wardeh said. Four other medics
were injured, one critically. The Israeli military said four soldiers were
injured, one seriously, in what an initial inquiry concluded was a "friendly
fire" incident in northern Gaza.
Israel has sent reserve units into Gaza to help thousands of ground forces
already in the territory, and fighting has persisted despite a U.N. Security
Council resolution calling for a cease-fire. Egypt has assumed a role as
mediator between Israel and Hamas.
Talks "are progressing slowly but surely because each party wants to score some
points," Hossam Zaki, the spokesman for Egypt's Foreign Ministry, told the
British Broadcasting Corp. "We would like to be able to bridge some gaps and
then proceed immediately to a cease-fire."
Zaki, however, said Egypt could not provide certain guarantees that Israelis
seek, such as a halt to rocket fire.
"We'll enhance our efforts, but this is not an issue between Israel and Egypt,"
Zaki told the BBC. "It is an issue between Israel and Gaza, and this is
something that will have to be worked out, as the (U.N.) Security Council says,
in Gaza."
Much of the diplomacy focuses on an area of southern Gaza just across the
Egyptian border known as the Philadelphi corridor that serves as a weapons
smuggling route, making Egypt critical to both sides in any deal. The name of
the corridor is an Israel military label.
Israel wants those routes sealed and monitored as part of any peace deal, and
has been bombing tunnels that run under that border.
"I think the elements of an agreement for the immediate cease-fire are there,"
Blair said in Cairo. He added that, while more work needed to be done, he hoped
to see a cease-fire "in the coming days."
Israeli Defense Ministry official Amos Gilad planned to travel Tuesday to Egypt
for talks.
In Paris, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said European military
observers should be sent to Gaza to monitor any eventual cease-fire.
Israel's chief military spokesman, Brig. Gen. Avi Benayahu, said the fighting
was "difficult and complex" and that Hamas militants were setting boobytraps and
firing missiles from the rooftops of civilian homes.
"There is a whole city built underground in Gaza. Lots of big weapons
warehouses," Benayahu said. Soldiers also uncovered a tunnel dug inside Gaza
that led 300 yards into Israel, he said.
In Monday's fighting, the army said it carried out more than 25 airstrikes,
hitting squads of gunmen, mortar launchers and two vehicles carrying Hamas
militants.
It said ground troops came under fire from militants in a mosque. An Israeli
aircraft attacked the squad, and Israeli troops then took over the mosque,
confiscating rockets and mortar shells.
With Israeli troops surrounding Gaza's main population centers, Israeli leaders
have said the operation is close to achieving its goals. Security officials say
they have killed hundreds of Hamas fighters, including top commanders, but there
has been no way to confirm the claims.
Aid agencies said they have resumed relief operations in Gaza, but fighting
still prevents them from evacuating the sickest people and reaching all those
who need help.
The international Red Cross said it brought in seven truckloads of medical
supplies and would distribute them to hospitals overwhelmed by the influx of
patients.
International aid groups, however, say Israel is not doing enough to protect
Palestinian civilians as well as aid workers. Tens of thousands of people have
been displaced and many basic food items are no longer available, the office of
the U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator said.
As many 88 percent of Gaza's residents now require food aid, up from 80 percent
before the war, said Helene Gayle, president of the international aid agency
CARE.
The three-hour lull in fighting that Israel allows for humanitarian aid to move
around Gaza is not sufficient, she said.
**Barzak reported from Gaza City; Torchia from Jerusalem. Carley Petesch in New
York and Eliane Engeler contributed to this report.
Rice,
Eager to Depart, Heartily Defends Record
By Glenn Kessler
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, January 13, 2009; Page A06
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice didn't blink.
Told that Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora said recently the United States simply can't deliver on its promises because of deference to Israel, Rice explained away the diplomatic dispute that distressed Siniora and then pointedly claimed credit for U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah war that devastated Lebanon.
"There would have been no 1701 without me," she declared in an interview with Washington Post editors and reporters.
In a conversation that stretched to 75 minutes -- and which Rice seemed reluctant to end -- the secretary of state said she was counting the hours until Jan. 20. But she yielded little ground in defense of her own record or the administration's performance over the past eight years. After being peppered with questions about regrets, she joked, "Aren't you going to say, 'Aren't you thrilled that . . .?' "
What was more important than current controversies, she argued, slapping the table for emphasis, is how the decisions look 25 or 30 years later. "If you get very focused on whether someone thinks your policies are popular, you won't do the right thing," she said.
Arguing that Iraq shows signs of becoming an inclusive state -- it even "declared Christmas a national holiday" -- Rice said that if the country eventually emerges as a democratic, multiethnic state that has friendly ties with the United States, "that will be more important than what anybody thought in 2002 or 2003."
Rice added: "That's not to say that it didn't come at great cost. I myself will be haunted by the lives that were lost. I will always think about the people I visited at Walter Reed or at Bethesda and wonder what their lives are like. I also know that nothing of value is won without sacrifice."
On North Korea, Rice made the case that the Bush administration has made unappreciated strides in eliminating that country's nuclear weapon programs. When Bush became president, North Korea's plutonium-based nuclear facility was already frozen, with 8,000 spent fuel rods under international supervision. After a dispute with the Bush administration, North Korea restarted its facility and processed the fuel rods into nuclear weapons material, even testing a nuclear device in 2006.
But Rice argued that events turned out for the best. "Yes, it's unfortunate that they reprocessed in that period of time, creating some stockpile of plutonium, but, frankly, given the attention now on their program . . . I think it is a very good development" because, she said, nations in the region now have joined together in a diplomatic process to persuade Pyongyang to give up the weapons it built.
Even in her final days as secretary, Rice has had to deal with war in Gaza and the controversy surrounding last week's decision to abstain from a U.N. Security Council vote on a cease-fire resolution. The abstention surprised many observers because Rice had spent three days in New York working on a resolution.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert took credit yesterday for the U.S. abstention. "I said, 'Get me President Bush on the phone,' " he said in a speech, saying he had interrupted Bush during a speech and demanded that the United States not vote in favor of the resolution. Olmert said Bush then called Rice. "She was left pretty embarrassed," Olmert said.
Rice, who said the vote was "not an easy decision but a right one," declined to discuss her conversation with Bush. "I am not going to talk about anything more than that except to say I think you know my relationship with the president," she said. "I have a relationship in which we can discuss these things and come to the best decision."
Rice, who will return to Stanford University and write books, including one on her parents, offered praise for President-elect Barack Obama. She noted that she was impressed by his performance on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "From the very beginning, he was someone who asked probing questions, good questions, but no polemics, no fireworks . . . really soliciting information, not speaking for the camera. . . . Those are characteristics that bode well."