LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
March 14/09
Bible Reading of the day.
Luke12/16-19 He spoke a parable to them, saying,
“The ground of a certain rich man brought forth abundantly. 12:17 He reasoned
within himself, saying, ‘What will I do, because I don’t have room to store my
crops?’ 12:18 He said, ‘This is what I will do. I will pull down my barns, and
build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 12:19 I
will tell my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years. Take your
ease, eat, drink, be merry.” 12:20 “But God said to him, ‘You foolish one, tonight your soul is required of
you. The things which you have prepared—whose will they be?’ 12:21 So is he who
lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”
Free Opinions, Releases, letters &
Special Reports
Snuggling Up with Syria. By Claude
Cartaginese/FrontPageMagazine.com 13/03/09
High Stakes, High Anxiety: Campaigning in Lebanon-By David Schenker/13/03/09
INTERVIEW-Netanyahu aide sceptical of Syria talks prospects-Reuters
13/03/09
Israeli Spy Chief: Time Running
Out.By P. David Hornik/FrontPageMagazine.com 13/03/09
Latest News Reports From
Miscellaneous Sources for March
13/09
12 Wounded As Bus Drivers
Clash-Naharnet
Stalemate over Appointment
of International Tribunal Deputy Attorney General-Naharnet
Russian Expert: Iran Could Become Untouchable and Broaden its Support for
Hizbullah-Naharnet
Israel Intensifies Border Patrols as UNIFIL Starts Maneuvers-Naharnet
Signs of U.S. Discontent Over British Contact with Hizbullah-Naharnet
Lebanon's Population: 5.33
Million in 2050-Naharnet
Michel Murr: Aoun Is a Main Symbol of Alliance With Syrian Regime-Naharnet
Lebanese
Cabinet Approves MoU Draft with Special Tribunal for Protection of Judges-Naharnet
Qahwaji Soon to Visit Cairo to Discuss Military Aid-Naharnet
Cabinet approves plan to protect judges for Hariri tribunal-Daily
Star
Saniora to Assad: Government Alone Can Monopolize Right to Negotiation-Naharnet
Stalemate over Appointment of International Tribunal Deputy Attorney General-Naharnet
Joint Lebanese-Iranian Economic Committee Revived after 8-Year Pause-Naharnet
Khalife: Cabinet Approval
of Health Reform Plan Most Important Decision So Far-Naharnet
Jumblat: Lebanon Still
Requires 'Stabilization' and Keeps to Dialogue with Berri-Naharnet
Armed Clashes in Sidon-Naharnet
Three New TV reporters receive journalism awards-Daily
Star
Israel steps up patrols as UNIFIL begins drills-Daily
Star
Tasknak party to announce electoral
alliances soon-Daily
Star
Report From Riyadh Summit: Syria Won't Sever
Relations With Iran-MEMRI
Turkey says willing to continue Syria mediation-Ynetnews
SYRIA: Damascus getting courted from all sides-Los
Angeles Times
Try to avoid embarrassment again-Economist
British Government Under Fire for Allowing Hezbollah Official to ...CNSNews.com
Duped by
a Smile-theTrumpet.com
UK-Hezbollah dialogue won’t impact on Israel’s security: Foreign ...Trend
News Agency
US maintains Lebanese Hezbollah on terrorist
list-Xinhua
Total assets of Lebanese banks show slight drop.Daily
Star
One killed, four wounded in armed clashes in Bab al-Tabbaneh-Daily
Star
ISF officers receive leadership
training in US-Daily
Star
Court delays LBC versus Lebanese
Forces hearing-Daily
Star
Hikers trek to Rashaya to mark
Women's Day-Daily
Star
Lebanese protest in solidarity with
Iraqi shoe thrower-Daily
Star
Decree aims to improve disabled
citizens' access to polls-By
IRIN News.org
Norwegian aid enables cluster-bomb
clearance teams to keep working-Daily
Star
Michel Murr: Aoun Is a Main Symbol of Alliance With
Syrian Regime
Naharnet/Parliament member Michel Murr said that Free Patriotic Movement leader
MP Michel Aoun is today a main symbol of alliance with the Syrian regime.
In an television interview with Kalam el-Nas program on the Lebanese
Broadcasting Corporation on Friday, Murr said that he is neither far from March
14 Forces, nor is he far removed from the opposing March 8 Forces. He added that
if elected all the MPs that would elected with me would nominate Nabih Berri as
parliament speaker and Saad Hariri as prime minister because both men have
patriotic positions. Murr said that his nomination at the Matn region aims to
form a parliamentary bloc that would stand between both March 8 and 14 Forces at
the legislature and seek to keep them from hindering government. He added that
President Michel Suleiman has nothing to do with the centrist bloc, but added
that if this bloc were to back the president, the president wouldn't object.
"Matn residents wish to remain independent," Murr said. He added: "If the Matn
residents asked the FPM what have you done for us over the past 4 years? We
would not be able to answer them, that's why I left the FPM one year prior to
the legislative elections."
Murr denied reports that his son Defense Minister Elias had carried a message to
him from Syrian officials during his recent visit to Damascus, "but he carried
greetings from some (Syrian) officials to me." He said that he won't visit
Damascus now because Syrian officials are not interfering with the Lebanese
legislative elections. He added that the special tribunal would demonstrate
whether Syria had anything to do with the assassination attempt on his son in
2005. Beirut, 13 Mar 09, 00:42
Lebanon's Population: 5.33
Million in 2050
Naharnet/The world population is projected to top nine billion in 2050, up from
6.8 billion this year and seven billion early in 2012, while Lebanon's
population is expected to reach 5.33 million in 50 years, according to U.N.
estimates. "There have been no big changes for the recent estimates and we have
not changed the assumptions for the future," Hania Zlotnik, Director of the
Population Division at the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA),
told reporters in New York.
"We're still projecting that by 2050 the population of the world will be around
9.1 billion," she said, as she presented the 2008 Revision of the World
Population Prospects. The Revision also says that nine countries are expected to
account for half of the world's projected increase from 2010 to 2050: India,
Pakistan, Nigeria, Ethiopia, United States, the Democratic Republic of Congo
(DRC), Tanzania, China and Bangladesh.
Zlotnik noted that current projections are based on the assumption that
fertility is going to decline from the current global level of 2.5 children per
woman to 2.1 children per woman from now until 2050. The population of the 49
least developed countries (LDCs) is still the fastest growing in the world, at
2.3 per cent per year, according to a news release issued by the Population
Division. While the population of developing countries as a whole is projected
to rise from 5.6 billion in 2009 to 7.9 billion in 2050, the population of more
developed regions is expected to change minimally, passing from 1.23 billion to
1.28 billion.
The 2008 Revision of the World Population Prospects said Lebanon's population
which currently stands at 4.224 million, will rise to 5.33 million in 2050.
Lebanon's male population will be 2.468 million while there will be 2.565
million women in 2050, according to the U.N. estimates.(AFP file photo shows
Lebanese people and tourists at a restaurant in downtown Beirut) Beirut, 13 Mar
09, 08:16
Signs of U.S. Discontent Over British Contact with
Hizbullah
Naharnet/A senior U.S. official said Thursday he was unhappy with a British
decision to open low-level contact with Hizbullah and suggested London only
indirectly informed the new administration ahead of time. The remarks contrasted
with those last week from the State Department which said U.S. officials had
been informed about the move in advance and gave no sign of displeasure -- even
if Washington was not ready to follow London's lead.
The senior U.S. government official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to a
group of journalists in Washington, clearly expressed discomfort with the
British decision. He said he would like the British to explain to him "the
difference between the political, military and social wings of Hizbullah because
we don't see a difference between the integrated leadership that they see." In
London, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said March 6 that Britain had
authorized low-level contact with the political wing of Hizbullah to stress the
urgency of disbanding militias. The U.S. government official, when asked if
London consulted Washington ahead of time, replied: "I would say informed under
a previous administration is a more accurate description."
He was apparently referring to the administration of President George Bush,
which was succeeded January 20 by that of President Barack Obama.
The official also objected to the glorification in the Hizbullah stronghold of
south Beirut of Imad Mughniyeh, the Hizbullah military commander who was killed
in a Damascus car bombing in Feb. 2008 that the movement blamed on Israel. "For
years Hizbullah denied having any knowledge of Imad Mughniyeh, for years
Hizbullah pretended that Imad Mughniyeh and that whole era of Hizbullah was not
really Hizbullah, it was something else," the official said.
"And now all over south Beirut are all these posters extolling the virtues of
Imad Mughniyeh," said the official of the man who made America's most wanted
list for his role in anti-U.S. and anti-Israeli attacks in the 1980s and 1990s.
When a journalist suggested he did not sound happy with the British decision, he
replied: "No."
Last week, Gordon Duguid, a State Department spokesman said "we are not ready to
take the same step" that the British took, declining to either praise or
criticize it.
However, the Obama administration, which has talked about engaging states
hostile to the United States, seemed interested in the results of the British
contacts with Hizbullah when Duguid said "we will watch how that proceeds." And
in sharp contrast to the senior government official, a State Department official
told reporters on the condition of anonymity last week that Washington
envisioned possible benefits from the British decision.(AFP) Beirut, 13 Mar 09,
08:40
Russian Expert: Iran Could Become Untouchable and Broaden
its Support for Hizbullah
Naharnet/A Russian strategic arms control expert said Thursday that Iran could
produce an atomic weapon in "one or two years," allowing Tehran to broaden its
support for Hamas and Hizbullah. "One can speak of one or two years," Vladimir
Dvorkin, a retired general and veteran participant in U.S.-Soviet disarmament
talks in the 1970s and 1980s, told reporters when asked how close Iran was to
having a nuclear weapon.
"The threat is that Iran, which has effectively ignored all the resolutions and
sanctions imposed by the United Nations Security Council, as a nuclear state
would become untouchable, allowing it to broaden its support for terrorist
organizations such as Hamas and Hizbullah," he said.
"In the technical sense, what may be holding them back is the lack of enough
weapons-grade uranium," said Dvorkin, who today heads a strategic arms research
centre at the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow. "I consider this a
significant threat," said Dvorkin, who stressed that he was voicing his personal
views and not those of the Russian government. Officially, Russian diplomats
have downplayed U.S. and Israeli fears that Iran is on the verge of building an
atomic weapon, while Moscow has resisted calls for tougher sanctions on Tehran
for its disputed nuclear program. Russia has also been helping Iran build a
civilian nuclear power plant even as Western governments have expressed concern
that Tehran's uranium-enrichment program is aimed at building material for a
bomb.
Moscow has also however pointed out that Iran is geographically closer to Russia
than to any Western country and has maintained that it is opposed to any effort
by Tehran to obtain nuclear weapons. Dvorkin, who helped shape a series of
U.S.-Soviet arms control treaties in the 1970s and 1980s, now heads the Center
for International Security at the Institute for World Economy and International
Relations in Moscow.(AFP-Naharnet) Beirut, 13 Mar 09, 07:52
Stalemate over Appointment of International Tribunal Deputy
Attorney General
Naharnet/Cabinet on Thursday approved a draft agreement with the international
tribunal to protect Lebanese judges appointed to the court, but failed to agree
on the appointment of the court's deputy attorney general. The daily Al
Mustaqbal said the post remains vacant despite discussions between the Lebanese
government and the United Nations Secretariat that ended up agreeing on the name
of the Lebanese judge who will fill the position. Italian judge Antonio Cassese
has been named to head the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, according to Al
Mustaqbal. Cassese was the first President of the International Criminal
Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, holding the position between 1993 and 1997.
Al Mustaqbal said a pre-trial judge from Belgium has also been appointed.
Beirut, 13 Mar 09, 09:19
Saniora to Assad: Government Alone Can Monopolize Right to
Negotiation
Naharnet/Prime Minister Fouad Saniora hit back at Syrian President Bashar
al-Assad for considering including Hizbullah in a peace process with Israel.
"The Lebanese government alone can monopolize the right to negotiations (with
Israel)," said Saniora. "And no one can strip us of this right." Saniora's
remarks came during Thursday night's Cabinet meeting. In a recent interview,
Assad emphasized the importance of including major parties in a peace process
with Israel, adding that he would work to bring Hamas and Hizbullah to the
table. "I will work to involve Hizbullah and Hamas in the negotiations to
achieve peace in the region," Assad told Japan's Asahi Shimbun in an interview
published Wednesday. The daily As Safir on Friday said Assad's statement was
discussed during Cabinet's meeting. It quoted Finance Minister Mohammed Shatah
as requesting inquiry into the issue. Beirut, 13 Mar 09, 10:47
Joint Lebanese-Iranian Economic Committee Revived after
8-Year Pause
Naharnet/After an eight-year break, a memorandum of understanding on cooperation
in the fields of economic, trade, customs and banking was signed between Beirut
and Tehran during a visit by an Iranian delegation to Lebanon. Lebanon and Iran
have signed a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in the fields of
economy, trade, customs and banking. The agreement was signed by Lebanese
Economy Minister Mohammed Safadi and Iran's housing minister.
Beirut, 13 Mar 09, 11:44
Khalife: Cabinet Approval of Health Reform Plan Most
Important Decision So Far
Naharnet/A health reform plan proposed by Health Minister Mohammed Jawad Khalife
was approved by Cabinet late Thursday.
Khalife described the reform plan as a "historic achievement." "Cabinet's
approval of the health reform plan is the most important decision (taken) so
far," Khalife said in remarks published by the daily As Safir on Friday.Cabinet
also formed a committee that will follow up on drafting a law for making health
coverage obligatory to all uninsured citizens within two months. The plan
includes issuing national health cards aimed at strengthening the social status
of Lebanese citizens. In earlier remarks, Khalife said the heath card allows
health insurance to more than half of the Lebanese people. Beirut, 13 Mar 09,
09:03
Jumblat: Lebanon Still Requires 'Stabilization' and Keeps to Dialogue with Berri
Naharnet/Democratic Gathering leader Walid Jumblat said that the improving
political climate in Lebanon still requires "stabilization and fortification"
and called for more dialogue among the Lebanese. The political atmosphere "needs
additional effort for its stabilization and fortification," the head of the
Progressive Socialist Party told As-Safir daily in remarks published Friday.
Jumblat also said he was pleased with the meeting between Prime Minister Fouad
Saniora and Speaker Nabih Berri at Baabda Palace on Wednesday. Concerning his
own talks with Berri, Jumblat told An-Nahar newspaper that he considered
Lebanon's Shiites to be "partners."
"Are we going to work towards isolating them or are we going to embark on
dialogue with them?" he asked.
He also continued to praise regional developments by saying "the atmosphere that
the Arab region has witnessed concerning the reconciliations is a positive
thing," adding that "they should reflect positively on Lebanon." "We should
benefit from [the reconciliations] and employ them in developing the dialogue
amongst ourselves," the Druze leader said. Beirut, 13 Mar 09, 12:16
Armed Clashes in Sidon
Naharnet/Armed men clashed in the southern port city of Sidon late Thursday, al-Mustaqbal
newspaper reported.
The daily said an argument broke out between two groups of young men at around
10:30 pm in the Furn al-Saha neighborhood and escalated into a shootout that
lasted until midnight. Al-Mustaqbal said the army interfered and cordoned off
the area. No casualties were reported in the shootout. The military later
carried out series of raids in old Sidon's neighborhoods in search for those
involved in the incident. Beirut, 13 Mar 09, 11:10
Cabinet Approves MoU Draft with Special Tribunal for
Protection of Judges
Naharnet/The Lebanese cabinet approved on Thursday, the draft agreement with the
International Special Tribunal that protects the Lebanese judges appointed to
the tribunal and their families. Cabinet also approved a group of health
measures unifying contracts between government insurance bodies and hospital
institutions.
Moreover, cabinet formed a committee that will follow up on placing a draft law
making health coverage obligatory to all uninsured citizens within two months.
Prime Minister Fouad Saniora briefed cabinet ministers on his meeting on
Wednesday with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri at Baabda presidential palace that
helped ease a track for settling issues. He also briefed the cabinet on his
upcoming visit to Morocco. Beirut, 13 Mar 09, 00:14
Cabinet Approves MoU Draft with Special Tribunal for Protection of Judges
Naharnet/The Lebanese cabinet approved on Thursday, the draft agreement with the
International Special Tribunal that protects the Lebanese judges appointed to
the tribunal and their families. Cabinet also approved a group of health
measures unifying contracts between government insurance bodies and hospital
institutions.
Moreover, cabinet formed a committee that will follow up on placing a draft law
making health coverage obligatory to all uninsured citizens within two months.
Prime Minister Fouad Saniora briefed cabinet ministers on his meeting on
Wednesday with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri at Baabda presidential palace that
helped ease a track for settling issues. He also briefed the cabinet on his
upcoming visit to Morocco. eirut, 13 Mar 09, 00:14
PolicyWatch #1488
High Stakes, High Anxiety: Campaigning in Lebanon
By David Schenker
March 12, 2009
This Saturday, Lebanon's pro-West March 14 coalition officially kicks off its
election campaign in Beirut. Two weeks ago, the Hizballah-led opposition --
backed by Syria and Iran -- started campaigning in its stronghold in the Beqa
Valley. With less than three months until Lebanon's parliamentary election, the
contest, which pits March 14 against Hizballah's so-called March 8 coalition,
promises to be extremely close. Four years ago, March 14 won a thin majority in
the parliamentary elections, but it is unclear whether the coalition will return
to power this June. Should the opposition prevail, the impact on Lebanese and
regional politics -- as well as on Washington's relations with Beirut -- could
be profound.
Background
Just four months after the February 2005 assassination of former Lebanese
premier Rafiq Hariri, Lebanon went to the polls to elect a new 128-member
parliament. The resulting legislature broke down into essentially three blocs:
first, the March 14 alliance, a coalition of Sunnis, Druze, and some Christians
led by Saad Hariri (the slain premier's son), Walid Jumblatt, and Samir Geagea,
which took 72 seats; second, the Shiite Hizballah-Amal bloc, led by Hassan
Nasrallah and Nabih Berri, which secured 35 seats; and third, the Free Patriotic
Movement (FPM), an overwhelmingly Christian bloc led by General Michel Aoun,
which garnered 21 seats.
In February 2006, Hizballah and Aoun's FPM joined forces, providing the
opposition with a formidable 56-seat bloc. This development was followed by a
series of political assassinations allegedly perpetrated by Syria and its
Lebanese allies. The killings depleted the majority bloc from 72 to 68 out of
128 seats, raising concerns that further attrition would culminate in an
opposition takeover. Since then, although tensions have remained high, the
status quo has not changed dramatically.
The most significant change to the election dynamic since 2005 was the June 2008
election of former Lebanese Armed Forces chief of staff Michel Sulaiman as
president. Sulaiman, who is widely viewed as neutral in spite of his past close
ties to Damascus, has lent his support to the establishment of a "centrist bloc"
to compete for parliamentary seats, a move that could potentially siphon off
Christian votes from Aoun's FPM in key districts.
March 14 Preparations
For months, March 14 has been working behind the scenes to broker a complicated
compromise to the contentious issue of seat allocation -- coordinating which
coalition partner will stand for seats in each district. At the same time, March
14 has worked to forge electoral alliances in key districts to improve the
coalition's electoral chances. To this end, the coalition has courted former
Lebanese prime minister Najib Mikati and the small but significant Armenian
Tashnaq party, which has proved pivotal in recent elections, particularly the
2007 by-election in Metn to fill the seat of assassinated March 14
parliamentarian Pierre Gemayel. (Former Lebanese president Amin Gemayel ran for
the seat but was defeated by a previously unknown Aounist by a margin of 418
Tashnaq votes.)
There are some tentative indications that March 14's strategy might bear fruit.
In the crucial district of Metn, an alliance appears to have been struck between
the March 14-affilated Phalange Party and longtime political operator Michel
Murr. Murr backs the idea of a centrist bloc, but his list is closely affiliated
with March 14, effectively undermining opposition inroads in Metn and other
districts. Importantly, Murr is also expected to deliver a significant portion
of the Tashnaq constituency to March 14.
Meanwhile, March 14 has been honing its campaign platform, focusing on state
legitimacy and sovereignty -- in particular, the need for all weapons to be
under the control of the state -- and a commitment to implement UN Security
Council resolutions toward Lebanon.
Hizballah and the Free Patriotic Movement
In early March, Hizballah deputy secretary general and general observer for
elections Naim Qassem held a campaign rally in the Beqa, reportedly attended by
ten thousand supporters from the Baalbak-Hermel and Zahle districts. Under the
slogan of "Together we will resist, together we will build Lebanon," Qassem
presented the broad outlines of the Resistance and Development bloc.
During his speech, Qassem discussed the traditional Hizballah concept of
"resistance," boasting that in addition to countering the "Israeli threat," the
opposition had also demonstrated its bona fides in recent years by "clip[ping]
America's fingernails in Lebanon." On the topic of development, Qassem touted a
kinder and gentler side of Hizballah, which he said believes that it is
"unacceptable to deal with people as numbers." In this context, he pledged his
party's support for "universal social and health insurance" and claimed his
party would be a "model for fighting corruption."
The FPM also launched its campaign in the beginning of March, with Aoun framing
the election as a choice between "Change and Reform" -- the name of his bloc --
and the alleged corruption of March 14. Since then, Aoun has been narrowly
focused on attacking President Suleiman, Michel Murr, the idea of a centrist
bloc, and the Maronite patriarch who has come out strongly in the bloc's favor.
Aoun has also spent time fending off rumors that he might be excommunicated for
allegedly slandering Lebanese patriarch Nasrallah Sfair, who earlier this month
stated that it would be a "historic mistake" if March 8 won a majority in
parliament.
Key Questions and Imperfect Polls
In Lebanon, where polling is largely a subjective matter, it is difficult to
ascertain the relative support for March 14 vis-a-vis the opposition. According
to the calculations of prominent March 8 pollster Kamal Feghali, the opposition
has 53 secure seats while March 14 has 41, leaving 34 to be contested.
Meanwhile, a poll released by the opposition-aligned Lebanese daily al-Akhbar on
March 9 predicts 47 percent (60 seats) for the opposition and 38 percent (49
seats) for March 14, with 19 seats up for grabs. Earlier this week, Hizballah's
Naim Qassem predicted a majority of 67 or 68 seats.
Not surprisingly, March 14 polling provides an entirely different picture. March
14 has performed strongly in recent union and student body elections, and
according to the ruling coalition's numbers, if the centrist bloc with Michel
Murr remains a serious and robust factor, March 14 will secure 66 seats -- and a
continued majority -- while the opposition will take 58. On February 17, Murr
announced that his electoral alliance with Gemayel in Metn was "final," but
Syria and its allies will surely continue to press Murr to move away from March
14. A 2005 assassination attempt against Murr's son, March 14 defense minister
Elias Murr, may have permanently soured Murr on Damascus. Should Murr succumb,
however, the overall electoral balance could shift in favor of March 8.
Conclusion
Hizballah and Syria have said that regardless of who wins in June, Beirut should
establish a government of national unity where the minority possesses a
"blocking third" -- the ability to veto all major government initiatives. March
14, which currently governs under this constraint, has made no such reciprocal
offer, and majority leader Saad Hariri has announced that his Future Movement
would not participate in a Hizballah-led government. While a boycott might
undermine the local and regional legitimacy of the government, as Naim Qassem
notes, a Hizballah victory would confer upon the organization the benefits of
greater global acceptance.
For Washington, the loss of Lebanon would represent a significant setback on
many fronts. In the aftermath of Britain's recent ill-advised decision to
diplomatically engage Hizballah, the prospect of the organization making
increased inroads into Europe would be particularly troubling. At the same time,
the region would perceive the reversal of the Cedar Revolution as a victory for
Tehran and Damascus and a defeat for Washington -- a dynamic that could further
complicate U.S. efforts to end Iran's nuclear program and convince Syria to
modify its unhelpful policies. Assuredly, a Hizballah government in Beirut would
also undermine the bilateral relationship with Washington.
Fortunately, while this scenario is troubling, it is far from ordained. Against
all odds, with three months to go, March 14 stands a decent chance of squeaking
out another narrow victory. In the sensitive context of Lebanese elections, the
most productive action Washington can take is to help guarantee a level playing
field. While little can be done to stem Tehran's considerable funding for
Hizballah, the Obama administration can curtail, if not prevent, some of the
more egregious foreign interference at the polls. In this regard, it is
essential that Washington take full advantage of its renewed diplomatic
engagement with Syria to ensure that its new interlocutors in Damascus do not
meddle in the elections.
**David Schenker is a Washington Institute senior fellow and director of its
Program on Arab Politics.
WCCR letter to UK PM Gordon Brown: "Grave mistake to open dialogue with
Hezbollah"
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Washington 12th of March 2009
The World Council of the Cedars Revolution issued a letter to UK PM Gordon Brown
raising the concern of any dialogue with a terrorist organization such as
Hezbollah. Here is the content of letter
Dear Prime Minister Brown,
The World Council of the Cedars Revolution (WCCR) has enjoyed a very strong and
fruitful partnership with Great Britain and the broader European Parliament in
our mutual struggle against terrorism.
We have an enormous respect for Great Britain’s continued support for the
protection and preservation of democracies such as that of Lebanon. However, we
are extremely concerned at your recent announcement that you are considering or
have decided to open dialogue with the very terrorist militia which has caused
untold damage to the lives of many Lebanese over decades and to innocent people
in many spots around the world, including in Iraq and Argentina.
Are you aware of the pain and suffering this decision has already caused and
will continue to cause to millions of people simply by announcing the
possibility of opening dialogue with that terrorist militia Hezbollah?
Can you imagine the hurt, the despair and the feeling of betrayal by the
families of over thousands of victims who were killed in the defense of their
sovereignty, independence and democratic freedoms at the hands of Hezbollah's
evil sponsors the Syrian and Iranian regimes in Lebanon? Already Hezbollah
tramples upon their memory, their graves and their legitimate right to honorable
recognition of their martyrdom.
Great Britain has been a powerful leader in the struggle against terrorism
wherever it may be throughout the world. Great Britain has been a strong
advocate of United Nations Security Council Resolutions (UNSCR) 1559 and 1701.
As such, the question that begs asking is what has changed in the recent past to
divert The United Kingdom from its original course?
We should respectfully point out that dialogue with Hezbollah is not similar to
negotiations with the IRA who had a fully fledged political institution separate
from their military operational structure. The IRA had at the very least reached
a position of motivation for peace. This is an entirely different ball game
where Hassan Nasrallah is the political Lord and master and also the head of
Hezbollah’s military planning and execution. His motivation is a totalitarian
ideology and absolute power; and his plan is to take Lebanon back to the dark
ages of ruthless dictatorship and Islamist Khomeinism with no respect for the
plural nature of Lebanon. You cannot have dialogue or negotiations with such
totalitarians before their reform. It would be the equivalent of establishing a
dialogue with the Nazis during a time of war, before their claim to the Third
Reich and racial cleansing is reformed.
Hassan Nasrallah was explosive in his rejection of your predecessor’s visit to
Lebanon, as he was aggressively humiliating in his attacks against Prime
Minister Siniora for having invited the former Prime Minster of Great Britain to
Lebanon.
The State of play at the present moment is that Hezbollah is one of the most
destructive terrorist organizations in the world. Your government’s legitimizing
their entity as a major power with which you open dialogue and with which you
would negotiate, would not only exacerbate all previous efforts to disarm them,
but would also add fuel to their claim and determination to acquire, possess and
use Iranian and Syrian supplied rockets with nuclear war heads against any
community be it within Lebanon or against Lebanon’s southern neighbor Israel.
Any acknowledgement of their status as a legitimate representative of any
community in Lebanon prior to full implementation of UNSCR 1559 and 1701 would
completely undermine all the efforts of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC)
and its resolutions. Hassan Nasrallah together with Iranian and Syrian regimes
would scoff at any threat by the UNSC; and would further their objectives of
growing their terrorism in the region.
Dear Prime Minister, we are very concerned that Great Britain which has been a
strong ally, might hand the terrorists this powerful advantage. We call on you
to exert your strength in the full implementation of the United Nations Security
Council Resolutions 1559 and 1701 which would liberate the people of Lebanon
form tyranny.
For the World Council of the Cedars Revolution
International Non Governmental Organization, Washington DC
Joseph P Baini
President
Snuggling Up with Syria
By Claude Cartaginese
FrontPageMagazine.com | Friday, March 13, 2009
http://frontpagemagazine.com/Articles/Read.aspx?GUID=A096ACAD-DF4B-44D3-B02D-1992BBE0409D
Just as an international tribunal has convened to examine the level of Syrian
involvement in the 2005 murder of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri,
as well as the deaths of several other anti-Syrian politicians and journalists,
the Obama administration has decided that now would be the perfect time to send
its top envoy over to Syria to have a cup of tea with its dictator, Bashir
Assad.
Syria has done nothing to deserve this diplomatic treatment. It remains the same
country that brutally occupied Lebanon over thirty years, and which has openly
supported Hezbollah, Hamas and al Qaeda in Iraq. According to current Lebanese
Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, Syria even today is fomenting unrest in Lebanon in
an effort to destabilize it enough to justify a re-subjugation.
Naturally, Syria’s neighbors, especially Lebanon, Jordan and Israel, are nervous
about this visit. So much so that before going to Syria, envoys Jeffrey Feltman
and Michele Sison made a special visit to Lebanon to reassure Siniora that Assad
is now a changed man and worth talking to.
And yet, Syria is still Syria. It has done nothing to cooperate with the Hariri
tribunal. In fact, according to Siniora, it has done everything possible to
hinder the tribunal while continuing to bully its tiny neighbor: “They are
threatening," says Siniora. "They are intimidating.... Continuously intimidating
the country, intimidating the people.”
Still, the Obama administration’s overture towards Syria is not at all
surprising when one considers that President Obama, Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton, and even former President Bill Clinton have relied heavily on the
counsel of the longtime pro-Arafat advisor Robert Malley, who calls for U.S.
disengagement from Israel and is a strong advocate of outreach to Syria.
This is the same Robert Malley who became foreign policy advisor to presidential
candidate Barack Obama in 2007 and who was sent last year to the Middle East by
Obama to outline the latter’s policy in the region. Now, under Malley’s good
counsel, ruthless, Syria’s political repression and regional misrule will be
rewarded with engagement from the new American administration.
During the presidential campaign, even Obama’s Democratic rivals questioned his
naïveté on foreign affairs. Their concerns now have a basis in American policy
toward Syria
Israeli Spy Chief: Time Running
Out
By P. David Hornik
FrontPageMagazine.com | Friday, March 13, 2009
Iran has “crossed the technological threshold,” Maj.-Gen. Amos Yadlin, head of
Israeli Military Intelligence, told the Israeli cabinet this week. “Iran is
continuing to amass hundreds of kilograms of low-enriched uranium, and it hopes
to exploit the dialogue with the West and Washington to advance toward the
production of an atomic bomb.”
Yadlin’s warning was all the more blunt considering that he’s not what’s known
abroad as a hardliner. He’s known to be open to the idea of Israel handing over
the Golan Heights to Syria. At the same cabinet meeting this week, he described
Hamas as having been weakened by the recent Gaza war—while Public Security
Minister Avi Dichter, citing renewed arms transfers from Egypt to Gaza, said
“The effect of [Operation] Cast Lead has melted away in the last month…when we
look at Hamas’s preparedness for a new round of fighting, the results are
problematic.”
On Iran, though, Yadlin, too, had nothing reassuring to say, adding: “Iran’s
plan for the continuation of its nuclear program while simultaneously holding
talks with the new administration in Washington is being received with caution
in the Middle East. The moderates are worried that this approach will come at
their expense and will be used by the radical axis to continue to carry out
terror activities and rearm. In contrast, those in the radical axis are saying
that despite the change in the Americans’ stance, they will continue to act
against them.”
Yadlin was, in other words, expressing a bipartisan sense in Israel that the
clock on Iran is ticking—fast—and for the Obama administration to engage in
“dialogue” with Tehran is not only pointless, but could be profoundly harmful to
the region and to international stability. Yadlin was, however, sending this
message at a time when the Western talking-fever—when it comes to the Middle
East’s most radical actors—is at its height.
Obama’s recent expression of interest in reaching out to elements of the Taliban
seems to leave Al Qaeda as the last taboo. And of the four parties most active
against Israel—Hamas, Hezbollah, and Syria in addition to Iran—all are currently
the subject of direct or indirect Western wooing.
The idea that the road to Damascus somehow leads to peace, set aside during the
Bush administration, has been taken up again with Sen. John Kerry going there
last month and painting Syria as constructive and benign, and two officials,
Jeffrey Feltman and Daniel Shapiro, making the trip last week. As for Hamas, its
current reconciliation talks with Fatah led U.S. Middle East envoy George
Mitchell to say a Hamas-Fatah government would be “a step forward” and something
the U.S. could potentially support—unlike the Bush administration which shunned
the idea.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has also said Hamas would have to live up to
the “three criteria”—recognizing Israel, renouncing terror, and accepting
previous Israeli-Palestinian agreements—for the U.S. to deal with it. Israeli
officials are concerned that a way could be found to fudge the criteria, and
also that European governments are more eager to put them aside and welcome
Hamas into the fold.
In this climate, Britain has already announced that it is opening talks with
Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Hezbollah—with its long string of vicious attacks on
Western targets—is calling for “a new American and European approach” and “new
language by the West.” British foreign secretary David Miliband acknowledged
that “we’ve sanctioned low-level contacts with them,” and his ministry stated
that “our objective…remains to encourage them to move away from violence and
play a constructive, democratic and peaceful role….”
In the complex world of realpolitik, contacts even with the most extreme
actors—for purposes like setting red lines in conflicts, arranging prisoner
releases, conveying warnings and understandings—are sometimes necessary. The
belief, though, that radical aggressors can be talked and bribed out of their
intentions is a Western affliction that appears invincible.
Secretary of State Robert Gates’s recent downplaying of Iran’s nuclear progress
doesn’t jibe with Israeli assessments and implies a sharpening of Jerusalem’s
dilemma. While Tehran’s malevolence toward Israel, and designs on the region,
are so stark that soft-liners like Yadlin, too, have no illusions on the matter,
Israel may find itself in a quandary of facing a mounting, intolerable danger
while the Obama administration is still hoping to unclench Iran’s fist.
**P. David Hornik is a freelance writer and translator living in Tel Aviv. He
blogs at http://pdavidhornik.typepad.com/. He can be reached at
pdavidh2001@yahoo.com