LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
October 01/08

Bible Reading of the day.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 9,51-56. When the days for his being taken up were fulfilled, he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem, and he sent messengers ahead of him. On the way they entered a Samaritan village to prepare for his reception there,
but they would not welcome him because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem. When the disciples James and John saw this they asked, "Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?" Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they journeyed to another village.

Saint Augustine (354-430), Bishop of Hippo (North Africa) and Doctor of the Church/Sermon on Psalm 64
"They would not welcome him because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem"
There are two cities: one is called Babylon, the other Jerusalem. Babylon means 'confusion'; Jerusalem means 'vision of peace'. Look well at the city of confusion if you would better understand the vision of peace. Bear with the first; sigh for the second. What allows us to distinguish between these two cities? Can we, even now, separate one from the other? Each is interpenetrated with the other and, ever since the dawn of man, they have accompanied each other thus towards time's ending. Jerusalem was born along with Abel; Babylon with Cain... These two material towns were built only later but, symbolically, they represent those two immaterial cities whose origins go back to the beginning of time and must endure here below until the end of the ages. Then the Lord will separate them when he sets some at his right hand and others at his left (Mt 25,33)...However, there is something that, even now, distinguishes the citizens of Jerusalem from the citizens of Babylon: that is their two loves. Love of God is what constitutes Jerusalem; love of the world, Babylon. Ask who you love and you will know who you are. If you find yourself to be a citizen of Babylon, uproot covetousness from your heart and plant charity within yourself. If you find yourself to be a citizen of Jerusalem, endure your captivity patiently and hope for your liberation. Indeed, many of the citizens of our holy mother Jerusalem (Gal 4,26) were first of all prisoners of Bablyon...How can we awaken within ourselves a love for our homeland, Jerusalem, whose memory we have lost in the tediousness of exile? The Father himself writes to us and relights within us even here below a longing to return by his letters, which are the Holy Scriptures.

Free Opinions, Releases, letters & Special Reports
More on the “Master Campaign”By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. 30/09/08
Interview with  Walid Moallem.Wall Street Journal 30/09/08
Nasrallah to Lebanese Army: When All Else Fails, Turn East!. By Nicholas Noe 30/09/08
Lebanon's election law: The more things change, the more they stay the same/ The Daily Star 30/09/08

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for September 30/08

Sfeir on Christian Reconciliation: We will Take Action at ...Naharnet
France Warns Syria against Military Intervention in North Lebanon-Naharnet
Hariri Wants Arab Team to Check Borders with Syria-Naharnet
Lebanese Sunni leader lash out at Syria-Xinhua
Rice Says US May Engage Syria as Middle East Tensions Ease-Bloomberg
Tripoli Turmoil Increases Risk of a Sunni-Shiite War in Lebanon-Bloomberg
Bin Laden's Son Makes Return to Pakistan-New York Sun
American Diplomats Meet Syrians in Sign of Thaw-Wall Street Journal
Parliament Adopts New Electoral Law-Naharnet
Ban, Security Council Hope Tripoli Bombers Would be Brought to Justice-Naharnet
Washington Condemns 'Senseless' Tripoli Bombing-Naharnet
Assad warns North Lebanon has become base for extremism, poses ...Daily Star
US condemns 'senseless' bombing in Lebanon-AFP
UN leader condemns bomb attack in Lebanon-Monsters and Critics.com
Lebanon's election law: The more things change, the more they stay ...Daily Star
Explosion in Tripoli kills five people, including four soldiers-Daily Star
Hariri lashes out at Damascus in wake of bombing in North-Daily Star
Assad warns North Lebanon has become base for extremism, poses danger to Syria-(AFP)
Peace key prerequisite for development, says UN deputy secretary general-Daily Star
MPs chose partisan interests over reforms - analysts-Daily Star
Hizbullah tells army some areas 'off limits' - report-Daily Star
Rice says Israeli pullout should precede talks-Daily Star
Beirut bourse loses ground as investors fret storm clouds in US markets-Daily Star
12-year-old girl killed in Bekaa shooting incident-Daily Star
Grenade targets Baath Party office in Ras Nabaa-Daily Star
Engineer harnesses wind energy to make electricity in Ghazieh-Daily Star
Caving enthusiast urges state to promote its 'riches-Daily Star
Sunni, Shiite clerics condemn deadly attack in Tripol-Daily Star
Egyptian forces rescue abducted European tourists-(AFP)

More on the “Master Campaign” W. Thomas Smith Jr.
29 Sep 2008
By W. Thomas Smith Jr.
Hezbollah’s Al Manar TV and other media — both bad guys (like Hezbollah) and good guys — are reporting a statement purportedly uttered by Syrian Pres. Bashar Assad during a recent interview for Hawadeth magazine, which clearly supports Dr. Walid Phares’ analysis (read for background here and here) that Syria may well-be prepping the international community – setting up some justification – for that country’s forthcoming cross-border military operations into Lebanon. “North Lebanon became a real base for extremism and constitutes a danger for Syria,” Assad said in the interview, slated to be published Friday. Phares discusses the comment further at Counterterrorism Blog.
Meanwhile, the Daily Star is reporting that parliamentarian Saad Hariri, leader of the Future Movement and son of the assassinated former prime minister Rafik Hariri, said: “Some agencies were smuggling extremist fighters over the borders ‘in order to spread chaos and commit terrorist acts that target army officers and civilians.’“He [Hariri] said last week’s deployment of Syrian troops all along Lebanon’s northern borders was carried out under the pretext of preventing smuggling, but was actually intended to frighten the Lebanese. “Hariri questioned why similar deployments had not occurred on Syria’s borders with Israel and Iraq. The Syrian leadership was looking for any excuse to obstruct the normalization of relations with Lebanon, Hariri said, adding that the people of Lebanon would not accept Assad reassurances, because his actions contained an honest and direct threat to Lebanon’s sovereignty. “Hariri also warned the international community not to accept any Syrian intervention in Lebanon under the guise of confronting extremists.”
— Visit W. Thomas Smith Jr. online at uswriter.com.

Canada Condemns Recent Violence in Syria and Lebanon
September 29, 2008 (7:40 p.m. EDT)
Foreign Affairs Media Relations Office/The Government of Canada today issued the following statement condemning the recent attacks in Syria and Lebanon:
Canada condemns the bombings that occurred on September 27 near Damascus, Syria, and on September 29 in Tripoli, Lebanon. We extend our sincere condolences to the families of those killed, and our support to the governments of Syria and Lebanon.
Nothing can justify such brutal tactics, and they cannot be allowed to undermine the recent steps toward increased stability and security in the region. We strongly condemn terrorism and those people and organizations that support it.
 

France Warns Syria against Military Intervention in North Lebanon
Naharnet/France on Tuesday has reportedly warned Syria against any military intervention in north Lebanon in the wake of repeated bomb attacks in Damascus and Tripoli. The daily As Safir, citing French sources, said Paris has advised Syria against allowing recent bomb attacks in Damascus and Tripoli "affect Syria's commitment to Lebanon or allowing change in French-Syrian priorities that have been agreed on toward strengthening stability in Lebanon."
It quoted the sources as confirming that ongoing discussions are underway in France to study the possibilities of a Syrian military intervention in northern Lebanon which Syrian President Bashar al-Assad described as "posing a threat to his country's national security." The source said France is relaying "letters" to Damascus warning it against any intervention "which could take the situation in Lebanon back to square one, in addition to the collapse of the understandings in which a roadmap had been drawn to strengthen stability" in the country. "It will also lead to dumping huge gains Damascus had achieved in breaking its political isolation," the source added.  As Safir said the French foreign ministry does not see Syria's military buildup along its border with Lebanon as a "scenario" for a Syrian intervention in northern Lebanon.
The paper said north Lebanon had become a "source of concern" to French security authorities, particularly after investigation showed that two leaders of a French-Islamic network made up of nine activists with links to al-Qaida had been in the northern refugee camp of Nahr el-Bared.
As Safir said the two commanders would "soon be tried."French judge Mark Tredivik, in charge of the terror group case, visited Beirut a few months ago and met a leading Islamist inmate at Roumieh prison, who confirmed he was a member of the French-Islamic network. The inmate had also confessed to having received advanced military training at an al-Qaida camp in Lebanon. Assad had stressed that north Lebanon had become a base for extremists and pose a threat to Syria.
Beirut, 30 Sep 08, 08:37

Parliament Adopts New Electoral Law
Naharnet/Parliament adopted a new electoral law overnight in a key move aimed at paving the way for legislative polls due early next year.
The move was the final step of a peace deal struck in May between Lebanon's rival camps to end an 18-month political crisis that had brought the country to the brink of civil war. The legislation, which amends one adopted in 1960, calls for several reforms including the redrawing of electoral districts and the holding of elections in one day rather than over several days. Parliament, however, rejected several proposed reforms such as lowering the voting age from 21 to 18, introducing a quota for women in parliament and allowing Lebanese citizens living abroad to cast ballots. Under the new law Lebanese expatriates will be allowed to vote in 2013. The peace accord struck in the Qatari capital Doha in May had called for a new electoral law, following the election of army commander Gen. Michel Suleiman as president and the formation of a national unity government. The deal also called for a national dialogue between rival political leaders. A first session was held earlier this month and a second one is scheduled for November 5.(AFP-Naharnet) Beirut, 30 Sep 08, 09:29

Ban, Security Council Hope Tripoli Bombers Would be Brought to Justice
Naharnet/U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon and the Security Council on Monday strongly condemned the car bombing that left five people dead in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli and expressed hope that those responsible would be brought to justice. "The Secretary General strongly condemns the terrorist attack that took place today in the city of Tripoli," his press office said in a statement. "He hopes that the perpetrators of this act will be brought to justice (and) remains encouraged by the measures taken in recent weeks by the Lebanese to resume the national dialogue and calls upon them not to be deterred by this new attack," it added.
The 15-member Security Council issued a similar statement and also stressed the need to end impunity for the repeated terrorist attacks in Lebanon.
Four Lebanese soldiers and a civilian were killed in Monday's car bombing that targeted an army bus on the outskirts of Tripoli, Lebanese security and military officials said.(AFP) Beirut, 30 Sep 08, 02:57

Hariri Wants Arab Team to Check Borders with Syria
Naharnet/Mustaqbal Movement leader Saad Hariri on Monday accused Syrian President Bashar Assad of "searching for reasons to block the normalization of relations with Lebanon." Hariri, in a statement, also accused the Assad regime of "infiltrating extremists to north Lebanon to carry out terrorist attacks targeting the Lebanese Army and civilians." He said a recent deployment of Syrian troops off Lebanon's northern borders aims at "horrifying Lebanon."
"How many soldiers Syria deploys along the borders with Israel?" Hariri asked. Assad's recent remarks are "direct threats to Lebanon's sovereignty and to the province of north Lebanon," Hariri said. He urged the Arab League to "shoulder its responsibility regarding Lebanon by dispatching an Arab team to check the borders with Syria." Beirut, 29 Sep 08, 22:10

Iran Blames Israel for the Tripoli Bombing
Naharnet/Iran denounced as a terrorist attack the car bombing that targeted a military bus in north Lebanon killing four soldiers and a civilian and wounding 32 people, and blamed it on Israel. The Iranian Foreign Ministry's spokesman Hassan Kashkawi said the "terrorist crime contradicts all human values."
Such acts, according to Kashkawi, "only serve the interests of Israel by destabilizing Lebanon and targeting its sovereignty and unity." Beirut, 29 Sep 08, 21:46

Washington Condemns 'Senseless' Tripoli Bombing
Naharnet/The United States condemned Monday what it called the "senseless attack" in northern Lebanon that security officials say killed four Lebanese soldiers.
"We condemn the senseless attack today on a bus carrying Lebanese army troops in Tripoli, Lebanon," State Department deputy spokesman Robert Wood said in a statement. "This incident is particularly abhorrent as it comes during the holy month of Ramadan," he said. "We express our deep condolences to the Lebanese Armed Forces and the families of those soldiers and civilians killed in the attack," he added. "This tragic event further underscores the importance of bringing all arms in Lebanon under the control of the state. The United States remains firmly committed to supporting Lebanon's state institutions and its security services.
"We support the Lebanese government and its efforts to bring the perpetrators of this terrible attack to justice," according to Wood's statement. (AFP) Beirut, 29 Sep 08, 21:39

Assad warns North Lebanon has become base for extremism, poses danger to Syria
By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Compiled by Daily Star staff
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Syrian President Bashar Assad told the head of Lebanon's Journalists Union Melhem Karam Monday that North Lebanon had become "a real base for extremism and constitutes a danger for Syria." Syria denounced the bomb attack in the restive Northern Lebanese city of Tripoli Monday that killed five soldiers, two days after a deadly car bombing in the Syrian capital.
"Syria condemns the terrorist and criminal act which targeted Lebanese soldiers and civilians," a Syrian official said, according to the state-run SANA news agency.
"Syria expresses its solidarity with brotherly Lebanon in the face of parties who are undermining the country's security and stability," the official said.
It was the second deadly attack in two months targeting the Lebanese Army and came two days after a bombing which left 17 people dead in Damascus.
In the interview which will be published on Friday in Karam's Hawadeth magazine, Assad said that President Michel Sleiman's visit to Syria in August had helped lead to a new phase in relations between Lebanon and Syria, in which both countries were able to overcome the past differences.
Forging relations with Lebanon did not mean that Syria would intervene in Lebanon's domestic affairs, Assad said.
"I told President [Michel] Sleiman that Syria supports him," he said, adding that the Doha agreement, which was established without foreign interference, had prevented civil war.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy also condemned the explosion, saying in a press release issued on Monday that the explosion was "awful and cowardly," and offered his "condolences to the families of the victims, the Lebanese authorities and the people Lebanese population." Sarkozy said his country supported Lebanon's authorities and security services in confronting terrorism. He added that he was committed to working for peace and stability in the Middle East.
Spain on Monday also condemned the "terrorist attack," with a Foreign Ministry statement saying: "The government forcefully condemns the terrorist attack that took place in Tripoli today." Madrid is "convinced that this new attack will not achieve its objective, which is to undermine Lebanon's democratic institutions, national dialogue and reconciliation among all Lebanese."
Arab League chief Amr Moussa condemned the attack, calling it a "criminal attack."
Moussa said in a statement that some parties had no interest in Lebanese stability. He called on Lebanon's leaders to continue pursuing national reconciliation, and to commit to the agreements reached in Doha last May in order to thwart those trying to spread chaos and division.
Jordan's King Abdullah II condemned the bus bombing in a letter he sent to Sleiman.
Abdullah said that Jordan supported Lebanon, and hoped that the country would overcome the repercussions of the incident, and achieve national consensus. He also offered his condolences to the victims' families.
The United States also condemned what it called a "senseless attack." State Department deputy spokesman Robert Wood said in a statement that "This tragic event further underscores the importance of bringing all arms in Lebanon under the control of the state." - AFP, with The Daily Star

US condemns 'senseless' bombing in Lebanon
WASHINGTON (AFP) — The United States condemned Monday what it called the "senseless attack" in northern Lebanon that security officials say killed four Lebanese soldiers. "We condemn the senseless attack today on a bus carrying Lebanese army troops in Tripoli, Lebanon," State Department deputy spokesman Robert Wood said in a statement. "This incident is particularly abhorrent as it comes during the holy month of Ramadan," he said.
"We express our deep condolences to the Lebanese Armed Forces and the families of those soldiers and civilians killed in the attack," he added.
"This tragic event further underscores the importance of bringing all arms in Lebanon under the control of the state. The United States remains firmly committed to supporting Lebanon's state institutions and its security services. "We support the Lebanese government and its efforts to bring the perpetrators of this terrible attack to justice," according to Wood's statement

Lebanon's election law: The more things change, the more they stay the same
By The Daily Star Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Editorial
Even before Lebanon's Parliament began its pell-mell overhaul of the country's schizophrenic election system, it was apparent that many of the wise suggestions made by the Butros Commission - and outwardly supported by a considerable number of MPs - were likely to be ignored. The panel's recommendations included things like introducing proportional representation and lowering the voting age from 21 to 18, and since these represented obvious threats to entrenched centers of political power, it was certain that they would encounter heavy opposition - and that many of those who supplied that opposition would lack both the courage to acknowledge their positions early on and the integrity to explain themselves. Instead of a bold stroke that might have launched the Lebanese political system on a trajectory toward the 21st century, therefore, Parliament has opted for timid steps that could just as easily have been taken in the 19th.
In a recent speech, Hizbullah's leader, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, extolled the virtues of what many refer to as "consensus democracy," promising that if he and his allies in the March 8 Forces prevail in the next election, they will not exclude the opposition from Cabinet. That might be a noble sentiment, but not when the electoral mechanism has been jury-rigged in such a fashion as to eliminate the suspense from all but a few contests, denying the Lebanese an opportunity to join a genuinely democratic process - and so a chance to begin learning the habits and responsibilities of participatory citizenship. It is one thing to argue that Lebanon and the Lebanese are not yet capable of managing the implications of winner-take-all politics, quite another to do so while taking no measures aimed at rectifying that situation.
It would be ridiculous to lay all of the blame on Nasrallah: He is but one of several actors in this play. Lebanese politicians have generations of experience at misleading their constituents, and none of the dramatic events of the past three years has caused them to change their ways. For most of them, the overriding goal remains the maintenance of their own affluence and influence, an ambition best served by ensuring that the traditional currencies of Lebanese politics - feudal economics, tribal social structures, and sectarian politics - remain the only means of exchange.
For these cynics, the advent of truly adversarial politics (as opposed to the Potemkin fa�ade that has long hidden both shameless horse-trading and Mafia-style turf wars) is a mortal threat. They prefer to keep most Lebanese convinced that their votes are irrelevant, that accountability is an impossible dream, that whatever alterations take place around the edges, real power will never really change hands. But the test of a democracy is not whether people are allowed to vote: It is whether their consent is honestly sought, accurately measured, and consistently obeyed. Lebanon's new election law will not even pretend to address the first two requirements, so there is little reason to expect that those who created it will seek to accomplish the third.

Explosion in Tripoli kills five people, including four soldiers
Army Command says 'terrorist act' aims to derail reconciliation efforts
By Andrew Wander
Daily Star staff
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
BEIRUT: A devastating explosion ripped through a bus packed with Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) soldiers in Tripoli on Monday, killing at least five people and wounding at least 33 others. The blast happened during the morning rush hour, at about 7.45 a.m., in the Al-Bahsas area of the city. A parked car rigged with explosives was remotely detonated as the bus passed by. About 20 soldiers were traveling in the bus at the time of the explosion, and four were killed, along with a civilian passer-by. The blast also destroyed several nearby cars and shop fronts.
The dead soldiers were identified as Fouad Qadaweh, Ali Mohammed al-Ali, Anwar al-Khatib and Ahmad Shehab.
Many of the injured were taken to the nearby hospitals for treatment. Workers from the Haikal hospital said that families of the dead and wounded had gathered there in the hours after the bombing to seek information about their loved ones, and that the treatment of military and civilian casualties was "ongoing."
At the Al-Nini hospital, staff said on Monday afternoon that they were treating four or five people in a "serious condition" as a result of the blast, and one patient had died. The bomb was packed with metal balls to maximize the damage it caused. The army immediately sealed off the area and began investigations at the scene. Marwan Abdul Salam Sabra, the man who owned the car used in the blast, was taken in for questioning. Security sources told The Daily Star that he had parked his car at the blast site on Sunday evening, and they believed the bomb was planted without his knowledge overnight.
The source said that the blast site was overlooked by hills from which the remote detonation could have taken place. Monday's blast is the second such incident in Tripoli in as many months. In August, an almost identical attack left 15 people dead when a bomb hidden in a suitcase detonated at a bus stop in the city. The army was the apparent target of both attacks. Army Command released a statement in which it said that this "new terrorist act" was trying to derail Lebanon's reconciliation process. It said a military investigation had begun to track down those responsible. The bombing prompted an emergency meeting between Interior Minister Ziyad Baroud and Defence Minister Elias Murr. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said the attack was an act of revenge against the army and pledged that Lebanon would confront the "bloody challenge" of terrorism. Tripoli had been enjoying a period of relative stability following a peace deal signed earlier this month between Sunnis loyal to Future Movement leader MP Saad Hariri and Alawites who support closer links to Syria. Fighting between the two factions over the summer had left at least 22 people dead, but violence has calmed in recent weeks.
The blast came two days after a massive explosion in the Syrian capital Damascus which left 17 people dead. The Syrian state news agency, SANA, said on Monday that an Islamist suicide bomber from a neighboring Arab country was responsible for Saturday's explosion. It did not specify the country, but several commentators in Syria have accused Lebanon-based militants of carrying out the attack.
Earlier this month, Syrian president Bashar Assad warned of "extremist forces" operating in and around Tripoli, and analysts said that the two explosions could be related. "There could be a link," said Ahmad Mousalli, an expert in Islamic extremism at the American University of Beirut. "We are seeing these jihadist groups are ready to take on the state. They have the ideology, and they have the means." He warned that there could be further trouble in coming months. "I'm expecting further attacks on civilians and the military," he said. "We are beyond a peaceful settlement with these groups. They are going to create problems."
Others pointed to common traits between the attacks on military targets in Tripoli that suggested that those behind the blasts were well organized.
"It's becoming a pattern," retired LAF General Elias Hanna, now a senior lecturer at Notre Dame University, told The Daily Star. "The terrorists are highly rational, and they are proficient enough to plan, carry out, and create an exit strategy for these attacks. They hit at the softest point."
He added that that the method used was a technique that had spread through the region since the US-led invasion of Iraq. "The use of IED's [improvised explosive devices] has proliferated. The knowledge is easy to access," he said. He warned that militant Islamists who had traveled to Iraq to fight against US forces may have returned to Lebanon armed with the practical skills to wreak havoc on the local population. "When these people are squeezed in Iraq they go to the safest place, which in Lebanon are the camps. So in a sense what we see today is a direct result of [US military commander] General [David] Petraeus' success in Iraq."
He warned that the only way to combat the problem of Islamic extremism was with reliable intelligence about the groups behind the blasts. "This is an intelligence war, not a war of brute force," he said

MPs chose partisan interests over reforms - analysts
'This Parliament has proven to be more anti-reform than any of its predecessors'
By Michael Bluhm -Daily Star staff
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
BEIRUT: In amending the electoral act, MPs pursued their partisan interests and the preservation of the country's long-standing political elite instead of seeking genuine reform, a number of analysts told The Daily Star on Monday. "All reform-loving people in Lebanon and around the world are deeply disappointed by this law," said Oussama Safa, executive director of the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies. Parliament was expected to pass the remaining provisions late Monday night. "It does actually favor the patriarchs of politics in Lebanon, the heads of big sects. They already know who will win, and they have already calculated the results. "This Parliament has proven to be more anti-reform than any Parliament before it." While it may be premature to say that the changes will translate into gains for either of the rival March 14 or March 8 camps, the new law will most likely mean a vast majority of MPs retain their seats, Safa added.
"What it has guaranteed is the large bulk of March 14 and March 8 being re-elected," Safa said, adding that 85 to 90 MPs of the total of 128 legislators were locks to return. The ambitious plans for electoral reform elaborated by the 2006 Butros Commission came undone when feuding politicians met in Doha to bring an end to May's explosion of civil strife - their talks also redrew electoral districts and abandoned the commission's plan for a mixed proportional-majority system, he added.
"That has destroyed any hope of fair and equitable elections," he said. "They have gotten together and decided that their interests dictated that there be no serious reforms." "A lot of the reforms that have passed are empty or half-hearted," he added, referring to limits on campaign spending and advertising. "It's very difficult for you to put your hand on it or for you to define it - all of these were murky definitions. We're not going to be able to tell who violated what."
Among the reforms rejected by deputies were proposals to lower the voting age from 21 to 18 and to allow Lebanese citizens living abroad to vote. MPs viewed the two recommendations in tandem, because of a belief the former would increase the number of Muslim voters and the latter the roster of Christian voters, but both changes fell victim to the MPs' aversion to reform and to youth, Safa said.
The failure of these two reforms clearly reflects Lebanon's democracy deficit and its hidebound political culture, said Hilal Khashan, chair of the department of political science and public administration at the American University of Beirut. "I find this difficult to understand," he said. "We allow young people to die at the age of 18 in defense of their country, but we don't allow them to vote. I don't really think this has been motivated by a particular political reason. This is just traditional political behavior." In addition, enabling expatriates to vote would present logistical obstacles greater than Lebanon's feeble state could overcome, Khashan added.
"This would require machinery to supervise the elections that Lebanon will never be able to manage," he said. The ministry already appears "unwilling" to tackle the task of arranging for the millions of Lebanese abroad to vote, Safa said.
Meanwhile, the political self-interest of Change and Reform Bloc leader MP Michel Aoun stood behind his objections to allowing mayors and municipality heads to run in the next general elections, slated for May 2009, said Safa. Aoun feared that these strong Christian politicians - all rivals of the Hizbullah-led March 8 alliance that Aoun belongs to - would defeat his candidates in the upcoming polls, Safa added. "Michel Aoun clearly did not want half a dozen municipal leaders to run against him," Safa said, naming former MP Dory Chamoun as a particular rival. "Michel Aoun was adamant against these people."
Legislators also refused to reverse the ban on military personnel voting, another electoral idiosyncrasy that defies the logic of democracy, said Khashan.
"That's crazy," he said, adding that the Internal Security Forces should be able to maintain security on election day. "These people are supposed to defend the country and die, and these people don't have a say. This is a third-world country - we are neither civil nor civic."
However, the prohibition does stem from the bad experiences under former presidents Fouad Chehab and Charles Helou, who used the intelligence services to push favored candidates among the officer corps and their families, Safa said.
Even though soldiers have an undeniable theoretical right to vote, the grave crises of a roiling security situation - evidenced by Monday's bombing in Tripoli - and a deeply divided population give the politicians cover for putting off reform, said retired General Elias Hanna, who teaches political science at Notre Dame University.
"I am with the voting of the military, but not now," he said. "You cannot do it in Lebanon now. Even the army is polarized. You are putting the army into the volcano.""You don't do things like this in a crisis. You don't want to see it, if something goes wrong during the elections."
The amended electoral law also seems to favor the country's Christians, Hanna added. As well as stipulating that half of the legislators must be Christian, despite Christians making up less than 50 percent of Lebanon's population, the smaller districts for 2009 will reduce the influence of Muslims in predominantly Christian areas, Hanna added. "It is favorable for Christians as a whole," he said. "Now the Christians are able to choose 40 to 45 out of their 64 deputies."
With majority Sunni and Shiite precincts expected to tilt decisively for the March 14 and March 8 factions, respectively, the law also positions the Christian wards as the swing districts likely to decide the election, Hanna and Safa said.
They both added that it was too early to tell which side would benefit more from the new act, while Khashan said the law's smaller districts would help the March 8 camp. "It favors March 8, definitely," Khashan said, adding: "As it stands right now, I don't think March 14 will have a majority in 2009

Hizbullah tells army some areas 'off limits' - report
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
BEIRUT: Hizbullah has reportedly asked the Lebanese Army to stop flying over several areas of southern Lebanon, defined as off-limits by the party, according to a report published by the German magazine Der Spiegel on Sunday. The report said Hizbullah has sent a letter to the Lebanese army demanding "in a threatening tone" that the military stop flights over areas considered off-limits by the group. Der Spiegel said the letter had raised "outrage" among senior officers who called on army commander Jean Qahwaji to take a stance on the Hizbullah measure. It said the off-limit areas included a massive part of central and southern Bekaa Valley all the way to the Syrian border as well as the area north of the Litani River almost all the way to the southern coast, in addition to Beirut's southern suburbs. The magazine said Hizbullah continues to receive financial support from Iran as well as arms secretly smuggled via Syria despite UN's persistent border monitoring. - Naharnet

Rice says Israeli pullout should precede talks
Daily Star staff
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
BEIRUT: US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in remarks published on Monday that all issues related to the Lebanese-Israeli track must be resolved before any direct talks can be held between Lebanon and the Jewish state. Rice told An-Nahar daily that she encouraged direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel. Asked if Lebanon was ready to enter into direct peace talks with Israel, Rice said that the Lebanese government has to set the means to reach such an objective, meaning solving all issues related to the Lebanese-Israeli track. She stressed the need to implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701 with regard to finding a solution to the Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms area and the demarcation of the border. Rice also welcomed the launching of national dialogue among feuding Lebanese politicians by President Michel Sleiman whom she met on Thursday. Rice told An-Nahar that she hoped Lebanon would take the opportunity of improving the atmosphere in the Middle East "so that all parties could resolve their differences." - The Daily Star

12-year-old girl killed in Bekaa shooting incident
Daily Star staff
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
BEIRUT: Marwa Tarchichi, a 12-year-old girl, was killed by gunfire in the Riyak area of the Bekaa, near one of the region's large agricultural cooperatives, according to a security report on Monday. The girl was an innocent bystander, who was caught in a family feud that erupted when a man identified as "J. Zeaiter" shot at another man identified as "N. Zeaiter and his wife. - The Daily Star

Sunni, Shiite clerics condemn deadly attack in Tripoli
Blast aimed to halt 'civil peace march'
Daily Star staff-Tuesday, September 30, 2008
BEIRUT: Senior Shiite cleric Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah said in a statement on Monday that Lebanon required political and economic reforms, including the establishment of a national defense strategy, in order to stop foreign interference from destabilizing the country. The sayyed stressed that reconciliations must take place on the popular level in order to forge a sense of unity among citizens. He also urged leaders to refrain from provocative and sectarian rhetoric.
Fadlallah said that following Israel's failure in its war against Lebanon "the enemy" was trying to infiltrate the country's security through assassinations and bombings with the assistance of internal factions that serve its interests, whether "voluntary or indirectly."
He also urged Arab and Muslim nations to take advantage of the United States' economic crisis in order to revolt against American hegemony in the region and better serve their people's interests. Fadlallah added that when "Muslim blood is spilled for political and sectarian ends," this benefits the Israeli and American occupation. Also on Monday Sunni grand mufti Mohammad Rashid Qabbani stressed that the Lebanese would remain united despite Monday's "criminal and terrorist" bombing in the northern city of Tripoli.
The explosion Monday morning in al-Bahsas neighborhood in Tripoli targeted a military bus and left four soldiers and one civilian dead and at least 24 wounded.
Qabbani said the bombing aimed to rupture reconciliation efforts and diminish the confidence in the Lebanese Armed Forces' ability to secure the country's stability.
Also commenting on the blast in Tripoli, Higher Shiite Council head Sheikh Abdel Amir Qabalan condemned the attack that he said intended to put an end to "the civil peace march." He urged the Lebanese people to unite and support the military institution. "Lebanon's military institution must remain a guarantee to the citizens' security," he added. Qabalan called on the security forces to enhance investigations in order to identify those who carried out the bombing and impose severe punishment. "The hands behind the explosion wanted to break reconciliation among Lebanese but the will of the people is stronger than terrorist acts," he added.
The sheikh linked the explosion to other terrorist attacks in the region, pointing to Damascus bombing on Saturday. "The attacks serve the Zionist enemy's interests," he added.The car bomb in southern Damascus on a road to the airport killed 17 people and wounded 14, drawing worldwide condemnation.
Qabalan also offered his condolences to the families of those killed in the attack and added that he hoped Lebanon would regain its stability.
Separately, Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir headed on Monday the Maronite Council to discuss means to enforce its resolutions following several reports issued by the council's committee. Sfeir, who will preside over the monthly meeting of Maronite bishops on Wednesday October 1, 2008, will also participate this weekend in the Cardinals' Synod at the Vatican. - The Daily Star


Nasrallah to Lebanese Army: When All Else Fails, Turn East!
By NICHOLAS NOE
Middle East Times
Published: September 30, 2008
BEIRUT -- Wasting little time in capitalizing on the continued unwillingness of the U.S. George W. Bush administration to provide the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) with the advanced equipment it says it needs, Hezbollah leader Sayed Hassan Nasrallah suggested late Friday that the government of Fouad Siniora should simply go to the international arms market and procure the desired equipment.
His proposal, of course will not be an easy one to execute, even if the government agrees to it. The national budget devotes precious little to procurement (estimated at less than $10 million per year), while the United States has banked (but not delivered) hundreds of millions of dollars in grants for U.S.-made equipment, training and spare parts purchases – an attractive incentive for hewing to the constraints of what U.S. officials euphemistically call "what we can do" for LAF.
Still, the recent fiasco this month surrounding the transfer (now apparently delayed, downgraded or denied, no one seems certain) of Cobra attack helicopters has nevertheless provided Nasrallah and the opposition with yet another compelling example of the hopelessness of relying on the oft-stated promises of the Bush administration to fully support the armed forces and the state-building process – that is, without preconditions and with an eye purely toward the needs cited by leaders on the ground, as U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission Bill Grant put it to the pro-U.S. An-Nahar daily in mid-August.
Indeed, a quick review of the Cobra controversy shows exactly why this is, and apparently will remain, the case.
In late August, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Asia and the Near East David Hale swooped into Lebanon and promptly ratcheted up expectations that Cobra helicopters were in the offing for the LAF – equipment that Grant had earlier said, in more general terms, the LAF "asked" for and which would have represented the most sophisticated U.S. transfer of weapons to date.
According to the pro-U.S. Web site Now Lebanon, which touted Hale's statements in a story headlined, "Hale Conveys U.S. Offer of Cobra Helicopters," the ambassador "submitted a list of U.S.-made helicopters, at the top of which came the AH-1 COBRA fighter helicopter, to the Lebanese Ministry of Defense."
With expectations rising that Lebanese President Michel Suleiman's first visit to the White House Sept. 25 would bring a concrete announcement on a delivery schedule, news reports in the pro-opposition Al-Akhbar and the Saudi-owned Al-Hayat revealed, only a week before the visit, that U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary Jeffrey Feltman was in Israel on a mission to discuss the helicopter issue – the Israelis being opposed in principle to such transfers, according to a number of reports in the Israeli media.
Suleiman's meeting came and went, however, and nothing was announced on the issue of the Cobras. Ambassador Hale, for his part, was reduced to saying that Washington would provide the Lebanese army with "stronger and more effective" equipment.
Undoubtedly aware of the Lebanese press headlines stirring on the issue, U.S. officials began to make themselves available, without attribution, in order to walk back the expectations that they themselves had earlier raised.
According to one report in An-Nahar, a Pentagon official promptly threw the issue onto the Siniora government, saying that, "the U.S. administration has not yet received an official or detailed request from the Lebanese defense ministry for any specific kind of weapons…. He said the delay was from Lebanon since the U.S. Defense Department had been waiting for a visit by Defense Minister Elias Murr this September 'to go into the details of the needs of the Lebanese army. But this visit did not take place for Lebanese, and not American, considerations.'" [The ministry of defense, when contacted, declined to provide comment, as did the Pentagon.]
Unsatisfied with merely ignoring previous public statements by U.S. officials suggesting the Cobras had indeed been "asked" for and that the United States had reviewed the Cobra purchase specifically with Lebanese officials in late August, the unnamed Pentagon official went further and suggested that the whole idea of Cobras might not be a sound one: "The official wondered … whether exhausting the amounts for the assistance of the Lebanese army on a limited number of combat helicopters 'would make the Lebanese army capable of confronting the challenges facing it.'"
But the final expectations' drop-kick was to be provided elsewhere in the form of the sympathetic and knowledgeable U.S. Congressman Nick Rahhal – who is of Lebanese origin. Squelching hopes that the United States might reverse course and commit itself not only to the limited sale of the Cobras, but perhaps to a wider array of advanced equipment, Rahhal told the opposition-leaning As-Safir after a meeting with Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, "there will be no heavy American military assistance to the Lebanese army."
He added that the meeting between Suleiman and Gates "discussed the type of equipment needed by the army, and they aren't heavy weapons but necessary equipment that allows the army to fulfill its task such as night [vision] goggles and helicopters. All the armies in the world possess such equipment'" – except, apparently, Lebanon's forces to date.
As the dust was settling over the controversy – one which may yet be resolved in favor of the Cobra transfer (but more likely in the form of "armed" transport helicopters long sought after by the ministry of defense) – Nasrallah quickly seized on the issue, apparently to the irritation of the same confounded U.S. official who complained to An-Nahar, "How can those who want to antagonize us request us to arm them so they could fight us?"
Unfortunately, while the U.S. officials' closing barb seems to have been the last on the subject for now, Washington's handling of the controversy over the past few weeks has only served to reinforce the strong impression in Lebanon of an Israeli veto against anything that might disrupt its so-called Qualitative Military Edge.
The far deeper problem, however, particularly from the perspective of regional U.S. interests, is that Nasrallah's comments signal the moves which U.S. adversaries are making toward filling in precisely the gaps which the Bush administration has long neglected.
Chief among these adversaries, of course, are China, Russia and Iran.
All three are strengthening their existing presence in the Eastern Mediterranean (Russia via Syria, and Iran through Hezbollah), with even China now engaging in a multi-million dollar aid program that reportedly includes training for the LAF.
With elections approaching next year, where the distinct possibility of an opposition win is arguably increasing, these developments should be particularly worrisome for U.S. officials.
After all, both Russia and Iran offered large amounts of hardware (albeit without training and support) during the Nahr al-Barid battle – offers which the Siniora government successfully refused.
Should the opposition in fact gain the majority, however, we might very well see the LAF turning not toward the black market, as headlines suggested after Nasrallah's speech, but East, toward the rising foes of U.S. influence in the Middle East.
To stave off this scenario, U.S. officials must break the logjam over supplying Lebanon by moving quickly to articulate a comprehensive vision for Congress and the Israelis as to how a strong LAF (linked to an ending of the Shebaa Farms and overflights issues) would be a risk worth taking, especially in light of the alternative where only Hezbollah is seeing its military power grow exponentially.
To date, the United States has utterly failed to do just that – and as a result, the Israelis, whose interests are so closely identified with that of America, have little reason to believe that such a risk would bring anything more than a short-term boost for Siniora and longer-term strategic threat.
Given the well-known belief within March 14 as to the potential power of precisely such a U.S.-led approach, one is left wondering again whether Bush administration officials have really listened to their purported allies over the years – or rather if, all along, they just really don't understand Lebanon, much less Hezbollah.
**Nicholas Noe is the author of a forthcoming Century Foundation report on U.S. Lebanon Policy (October 2008). He is also a doctoral candidate in Political Science at the Lebanese University and the Co-Founder of the Beirut-based Mideastwire.com news service.

Syria's Walid Moallem
September 3/08
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122272833204487997.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
more in World »Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem talked to The Wall Street Journal's Jay Solomon Monday in New York. Read an edited transcript. (See related article on U.S.-Syria talks.)
The Wall Street Journal: How do you describe your meeting Friday with Condoleezza Rice?
Walid Moallem
Walid Moallem: She expressed her satisfaction with the situation moving forward in Lebanon, also about the indirect talks between Syria and Israel. She said they support these talks and they are ready to assist. I consider this good progress in the American position…The atmosphere was positive. We decided to continue this dialogue.
WSJ: Can you describe Syria's role in the Middle East?
Mr. Moallem:: Frankly speaking, we were exerting efforts and supporting the Lebanese dialogue in al-Doha [Qatar]. When they reached consensus, or agreement, we supported this immediately. We supported the elected president, Michel Suleiman. It was known to the American and Iraqi side the efforts to strengthen security on the Syrian-Iraqi border. These are the main topics that took place during the recent six months, which, in my opinion, are very important and proving that Syria is part of the solution because of its geography and history.
WSJ: How do you view Iraq's security situation?
Mr. Moallem: I admit that the security situation has improved, but it doesn't mean that Iraq has moved towards stability. There are still many issues…that stand as obstacles. One is the future of Kirkuk; the Iraq unity; building the national army; the timetable for American troop withdrawal…All of these issues are obstacles.
WSJ: Where do Israel-Syria peace talks stand?
Mr. Moallem: We had four rounds of talks, promising talks, in Istanbul. We agreed to have the fifth round, on seventh September. But because of the situation in Israel, the Israeli side asked the Turks to postpone it. We are waiting to see what the position will be of Ms. Livni's government. So are they ready to resume or not?... The most important thing is not to continue or not. But to have the will, the political will, to achieve peace based on the Madrid terms of reference and land-for-peace.
WSJ: What type of relations do you want with the next U.S. administration?
Mr. Moallem: We were passing eight years of this administration, which do not consider achieving comprehensive peace in the Middle East one of its priorities. And because the American role is important in our region, we hope that the coming administration will consider to change towards making a comprehensive peace in the Middle East one of its priorities. In the Middle East, each crisis influences the other. But the main crisis, the Arab-Israeli conflict, influences all other crises in the region.
WSJ: How is power shifting in the Middle East?
Mr. Moallem: New regional players emerged in the Middle East. When Damascus hosted the Quartet Summit -- France, Qatar, Turkey, Syria -- and they discussed and tackled issues in Lebanon, the Arab-Israeli conflict, Iraq, Darfur, the Iran nuclear file. This means that regional players, supported by an international player, are determined to find a solution through political means.
WSJ: How are Syria's relations with Lebanon changing?
Mr. Moallem: The visit of President Michel Suleiman to Damascus last month was an important visit. It was agreed to build a strong base for the future of relations between Syria and Lebanon, starting from exchanging diplomatic relations, demarcation of the borders, and security cooperation between both countries. These issues are important and build on the mutual respect for sovereignty and independence of both countries.
WSJ: How does Syria view the establishment of an international tribunal to charge those involved in the murder of Rafik Hariri?
Mr. Moallem: We've always said that this issue is purely between Lebanon and the United Nations. Syria has nothing to do with it. It's not an issue of concern for Syria.
WSJ: What's Syria's view on Israel's attack last September on an alleged nuclear reactor?
Mr. Moallem: The American side admits they were collecting information, supplied by a third country in the Middle East… Israel... to attack this location, claiming it's a nuclear reactor, which is totally untrue. We agreed with the…IAEA. They sent their observers to this location. They took biological samples, and we are waiting for them to give us their report on the result. The important issue is that this is a military location, not a nuclear location.
At the same time, we want to tell the American side we would not repeat their experience and lies on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction before the war in Iraq. You can't be partners in an aggression against a target in a sovereign country, and you're a member of this Agency. And after destroying this target you go to the Agency and say this is a nuclear target. You should have done this before.
WSJ: How would Syrian-Israeli peace impact Damascus's relations with Iran?
Mr. Moallem: We must not put the horse behind the carriage. And I'm not going to jump to the conclusion before achieving the conclusion. And no doubt, peace between Israel and Syria is part of a comprehensive peace involving the Lebanese, the Palestinians, and Israel also. If we reach this point, it will have strategic implications for the entire Middle East. Whether we accept it or not, Iran is an important player in the region. And Iran always supported Syria's right to liberate the Golan Heights and the Palestinian people's rights. If we achieve this through peaceful means, I don't see the Iranians opposed.