LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
April 26/08

Bible Reading of the day.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 16,15-20. He said to them, "Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. They will pick up serpents (with their hands), and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." So then the Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them, was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God. But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs.)

Free Opinions, Releases, letters & Special Reports
Berri can do more to sell his dialogue proposal to both sides.The Daily Star 25/04/08
We already have peace with Syria.By:Guy Becho.25/04/08
Al-Zawahiri and Lebanon. By: Abdullah Iskandar 25/04/08
No Middle East Peace Without Tough Love. By: Henry Siegman 25/04/08
The Crises of Lebanon and Iraq in Kuwait. By: Randa Takieddin 25/04/08
Will Muslim chaplains radicalize U.S. troops? Congresswoman calls for probe of all green-lighted by terrorist.© 2008 WorldNetDaily 25/04/08

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for April 25/08
March 14 shows signs of warming to call for dialogue-Daily Star
Angry inmates take seven guards hostage during fiery riot at Roumieh-Daily Star
Suleiman: Only Parliament can extend my mandate-Daily Star
Tempers cool in Zahle after mediators arrange talks between Gemayel, Skaff-Daily Star
Fadlallah urges Iraqis to resist US attempts at stirring tensions-Daily Star
Israeli cluster bomb injures five boys in South-Daily Star
Geagea sues over location of mass graves-Daily Star
Sayyed accuses PSP of pressuring judiciary-Daily Star
Has Lebanon taken a first step toward real politics?-Daily Star
Beirut puts off plans to privatize cellular-phone networks - again-Daily Star
Forest fire breaks out in Chouf-Daily Star
Network aims to change way of treating drug addicts-Daily Star
Better education requires united effort-Daily Star
Armenian-Lebanese mark Genocide Day-Daily Star
US assistance helps Jounieh municipality go online-Daily Star
Two Lebanese expats to climb Mt. Elbrus to help local charities-Daily Star
Officials report riot at Lebanon's largest prison-The Associated Press
U.S. Embassy Limits Movement of Personnel to Zahle-Naharnet
Riot Police Advance in Roumiyeh Prison to Disperse Mutiny, Free Hostages-Naharnet
U.S. Trains Lebanese Army on Medical Command-Naharnet
Gemayel: Berri's Offer is Tantamount to Death Threat-Naharnet
Five Boys Wounded by Cluster Bomb Explosion in South-Naharnet
Wahab Warns Against Granting UNIFIL More Powers-Naharnet
Skaff Cancels Press Conference-Naharnet
U.S. says it has proof of Syria-North Korea nuclear ties. AP
Armed Elements Intercept UNIFIL Patrol, 1701 Challenged Seriously-Naharnet
Saudi FM Rejects Muallem's Internationalization Charge-Naharnet
US presence seen vital to re-launch talks with Syria-Ha'aretz
Fire Erupts in Aramoun Forests-Naharnet
U.N.: UNIFIL, Lebanese Army Adopted Additional Measures Since March 30 Incident-Naharnet
Mubarak, Merkel Urge Quick End to Lebanon's Presidential Crisis-Naharnet
Muallem, Mottaki for a Made in Lebanon Solution to Crisis-Naharnet
U.N. Slams Hizbullah as a Continuing Challenge to Lebanon-Naharnet
U.S.: Lebanese Don't Find Zawahiri's Vision Attractive-Naharnet
Phalange Party Hammers Skaff's 'Shameful' Stand-Naharnet
Israeli Troops Search Wazzani River Bank-Naharnet
Jumblat Backs Berri's Call for Dialogue, Says Hizbullah Arms to be Eventually Dealt With-Naharnet
Arslan Targets Army, Government, Jumblat-Naharnet
Army Command: Troops are Loyal Only to the Establishment-Naharnet
Hizbullah Slams U.S., U.N.-Naharnet
Mouawad Accuses Hizbullah of Sheltering Zahle Criminal-Naharnet
France: Kouchner-Muallem Meeting No Sign of Thaw-Naharnet

Skaff Cancels Press Conference
Naharnet/Head of the Popular Bloc MP Elias Skaff canceled a press conference scheduled for Thursday at his office in Zahle and stressed the need to safeguard stability in the eastern city, Voice of Lebanon radio station reported. After Skaff's announcement, Phalange party and Lebanese Forces supporters moved a sit-in they intended to hold in front of the Popular Bloc offices in Zahle to the cemeteries where victims Nasri Marouni and Salim Assi were laid to rest. An Nahar newspaper said contacts and mediation efforts were underway Wednesday evening to soothe the tense situation and prevent any unanticipated consequences. Zahle Patriarch Gregorios III Lahham instructed former ambassador Fouad al-Turk to carry out the mediation efforts, An Nahar said. Phalange party leader Amin Gemayel on Tuesday accused Skaff of "advance knowledge" of the Zahle crime and urged him to turn the culprits in to justice. Gemayel warned Skaff not to get himself, his supporters and the Zahle area involved "in a battle that is much bigger than you. Do not try to play with fire for you know what the Phalange Party is." He also urged him to "turn the culprits in, without delay, and we will be ready to confront anything." Beirut, 24 Apr 08, 10:24

Riot Police Advance in Roumiyeh Prison to Disperse Mutiny, Free Hostages
Naharnet/Riot policemen inched their way across the convicts building of the central Roumiyeh Prison Thursday to disperse a mutiny and free eight guards taken hostages. Security sources told Naharnet hundreds of riot policemen advanced across the ground floor of the building after firefighters extinguished a blaze that inmates had started in mattresses after taking guards hostage.
"The riot police force moved into the building through emergency outlets, cleared the ground floor which includes the management offices and moved into the first floor" of the three-story building, said one source who asked not to be identified. Each floor includes 60 cells.
"In brief, the force would have to search 180 cells. It is expected to be a complicated operation that might last until Friday, unless the mutineers surrender," he added. The rioting inmates are armed with makeshift knives, and "sharp tools," the source added.
"They don't have firearms simply because the guards they took hostage were not armed in line with prison rules," the source explained.
The advancing force is using "tear gas canisters to control the inmates, some of whom are surrendering," he added.
Most of the mutineers are convicts of Palestinian descent, the source said.
He explained that four ex-security commanders, jailed in Roumiyeh in connection with the 2005 murder of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri, are in "another building that is 150 meters away from the convicts' compound." Meanwhile, army paratroopers cordoned off the walled prison compound sitting on a hill east of Beirut, in a precautionary measure to prevent possible escape of mutineers or reinforcement. The mutiny started at 4:35 p.m. as a dispute between one of the inmates and a guard distributing food, the source added. "It quickly developed into a mutiny as other inmates joined in and overpowered guards," he added.

U.S. Trains Lebanese Army on Medical Command
Naharnet/The U.S. Chargé d'Affaires Michele Sison on Thursday presented certificates to the members of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) who completed an emergency medical training course provided by the U. S. Government. An embassy statement said the "training increases the capacity of the LAF Medical Command to offer health care." "The U.S. Government and the LAF are engaged in an active program of training and assistance designed to upgrade the capability of the LAF across a range of areas," the statement added. In her speech at the closing ceremony, Sison said that she "is impressed with the different training programs in which LAF soldiers take part." She added that "U.S. Government support to the LAF is an integral part of the overall U.S. assistance to Lebanon."
Since 2006, the United States has committed 371 million dollars in security assistance to the LAF, and the United States will continue to provide equipment and training to the LAF, the statement added. It stressed: "The United States is committed to building the capabilities of the LAF and it will continue to support the government of Lebanon and the LAF as they continue their efforts to safeguard the peace, unity and sovereignty of Lebanon." Beirut, 24 Apr 08, 18:59

U.S. Embassy Limits Movement of Personnel to Zahle
Naharnet/The U.S. Embassy on Thursday said it was "limiting" the movement of its personnel to Zahle and advised citizens to maintain a low profile. The embassy, in a statement, informed its citizens residing in Lebanon of the tense situation in Zahle following the killing Sunday of two Phalange Party members by a pro-Syrian assailant. It also advised U.S. citizens in Lebanon to maintain a low profile and take adequate security measures in their movements in addition to maintaining contact with their embassy. Beirut, 24 Apr 08, 18:51

Gemayel: Berri's Offer is Tantamount to Death Threat
Naharnet/Ex-President Amin Gemayel on Thursday said a call by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri for agreement on a parcel deal between the opposition and majority is tantamount to a death threat. "It is like directing a gun at your head. You either accept the whole basket or get killed," Gemayel told reporters. He criticized Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem for claiming that Lebanon's friends who had met in Kuwait want to internationalize the Lebanon crisis.
"Lebanon is at the United Nation's intensive care … since UNSCR 1559 was adopted" in September, 2004, Gemayel told reporters. Beirut, 24 Apr 08, 18:40 Beirut, 24 Apr 08, 17:21

Mouawad Accuses Hizbullah of Sheltering Zahle Criminal
Naharnet/March 14 official Michel Mouawad on Wednesday accused Hizbullah of sheltering Zahle criminal Joseph Zouki in south Lebanon in coordination with MP Elias Skaff. "Joseph Zouki is in south Lebanon within the framework of coordination between Hizbullah and MP Elias Skaff," Mouawad said from Bkirki.
He also accused Free Patriotic Movement leader Gen. Michel Aoun of "imitating" former President Emile Lahoud and Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.
Beirut, 23 Apr 08, 13:49

Phalange Party Hammers Skaff's 'Shameful' Stand
Naharnet/The Phalange Party on Wednesday labeled "shameful" remarks by opposition MP Elie Skaff ridiculing the mourning of two victims gunned down in Zahle by one of his alleged partisans. "It is shameful in all humanitarian and ethical standards," the Phalange Party statement said of a remark by Skaff that the funeral procession for the Zahle victims was "folklore" practice. The party accused Skaff of "desperately defending the criminals, which raises doubts that he had, at least, advance knowledge of planning the crime." Beirut, 23 Apr 08, 17:28

U.N. Slams Hizbullah as a Continuing Challenge to Lebanon
Hizbullah's continued armed strength poses a key challenge to Lebanese sovereignty, U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon says in a report released this week.
"Hizbullah's maintenance of a para-military capacity poses a key challenge to the government's monopoly on the legitimate use of force," he said in his seventh report on implementation of Security Council resolution 1559 adopted in 2004. He reiterated his view that "the disarming and disbanding of Lebanese and non-Lebanese militias, called for under Resolution 1559, should take place through "an inclusive political dialogue." Ban said Syria and Iran, which maintained close ties with Hizbullah "bear a significant responsibility in supporting such a process, for the sake of Lebanon's and the wider region's security, stability and welfare."
He pointed to an incident during the night of March 30 to 31 in which a patrol of the U.N. mission in Lebanon (UNIFIL) encountered "unidentified armed elements in its area of operation," in "serious violation" of Security Council resolutions 1559 and 1701. U.N. officials said at the time that a UNIFIL patrol challenged the armed elements who were following "a suspicious pickup truck towing a trailer" and who left the area "before a positive identification could be made.
The armed elements were believed to be Hizbullah fighters. Resolution 1701, which set the terms of the ceasefire that ended that 34-day war, also calls for the disarmament of all Lebanese militias. The deadlock between Lebanon's government and the Iranian- and Syrian-backed opposition has left the country without a president since last November -- and the government unable to pass legislation since 2006.(AFP) Beirut, 23 Apr 08, 21:03

Fire Erupts in Aramoun Forests
Naharnet/A huge fire erupted in the pine forests of Aramoun district amid warnings of other fires starting due to the high temperatures and hot air masses blowing on the region. Premier Fouad Saniora telephoned Interior Minister Hassan al-Sabaa and officials of the civil defense and Lebanese army to get informed on the latest developments and efforts to control the blaze. Saniora asked firefighting personnel to be on full alert and move quickly and efficiently to extinguish the fires. Meanwhile, Aramoun residents demanded quick interference to control the blaze before it reaches their houses. Beirut, 24 Apr 08, 12:13

U.N.: UNIFIL, Lebanese Army Adopted Additional Measures Since March 30 Incident
Naharnet/U.N. Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Angela Kane said Wednesday that Lebanon was suffering from "an intense political crisis" that has left it without a president. "Lebanon remained in the grip of an intense political crisis," Kane told the Security Council during a briefing on the situation in the Middle East. On south Lebanon, Kate said that the situation in the area of operations of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon "was mostly quiet, but tense."
She also referred to the incident of March 30 when a UNIFIL patrol was blocked "for a few minutes" by two vehicles, denying peacekeepers their "freedom of movement in the area of operations." "The vehicle's five occupants were armed with assault rifles -- the first such incident since the end of the 2006 war in the mission's area of operations. The patrol challenged the individuals, who left the area before a positive identification could be made," Kane said.
She said peacekeepers and the Lebanese army have since adopted additional coordinated measures, including patrols and checkpoints, "to ensure that unauthorized armed personnel were not present and to prevent the transfer of weapons into the area between the Litani River and the Blue Line."Kane, during her briefing, also mentioned continued Israeli violations of Lebanese airspace. UNIFIL had recorded a steep increase in the number of Israeli air violations, from 282 in February to 692 in March and 476 during the first half of April. "The overflights constitute violations of Lebanese sovereignty and the Blue Line and continue to undermine the credibility of UNIFIL and the Lebanese Armed Forces," she stressed. Beirut, 24 Apr 08, 07:32

Muallem, Mottaki for a Made in Lebanon Solution to Crisis
Naharnet/The Syrian and Iranian foreign ministers have stressed that agreement among Lebanon's bickering politicians without foreign interference was the way out of the country's protracted political crisis. "The solution in Lebanon must be internal and comprehensive and with the agreement of all political sides to come out of the current situation," Iran's World satellite TV network, which broadcasts in Arabic, quoted Walid Muallem and Manouchehr Mottaki as saying Wednesday.
The station said Mottaki stressed that "foreign interferences were among the factors preventing a solution to the presidential crisis in Lebanon."
Muallem traveled to Tehran to meet Mottaki after participating in Kuwait at a conference on Iraq. Syria's state-run news agency, SANA, said Muallem and Mottaki had common stances on regional issues including Iraq, Lebanon and the Palestinian territories. Beirut, 24 Apr 08, 06:20

Mubarak, Merkel Urge Quick End to Lebanon's Presidential Crisis
Naharnet/Egyptian President Husni Mubarak and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have agreed on the need for a quick end to the Lebanese crisis and the immediate election of a new president. The two sides agreed Wednesday on the "importance of ending the presidential crisis in Lebanon without delay in accordance with the Arab initiative," Mubarak said after meeting Merkel in Berlin. He stressed that Egypt wasn't taking sides in the Lebanese crisis and its priority was to see Lebanon stable. "We talk with the different sides, with March 14 and others," Mubarak told reporters.
He said he told Lebanese Speaker Nabih Berri when they last met in Cairo that it was "important to solve the presidential problem and elect a head of state."
The German Chancellor, in her turn, stressed the need to "achieve progress in this regard" and elect a new Lebanese president. She also hoped that the commission investigating ex-Premier Rafik Hariri's Feb. 2005 assassination would achieve results. Also in Berlin, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani stressed after meeting Merkel that a Lebanese president should be elected first "because the head of state will entrust the prime minister with forming the government and then agreement could be reached on all other issues." Beirut, 24 Apr 08, 05:40

U.S., Britain, France Protest Libya's Comment on Nazis
Naharnet/Envoys from the U.S. and several nations walked out of a U.N. Security Council meeting Wednesday after Libya compared the situation in Gaza to Nazi concentration camps, council diplomats said. The walkout was a rare protest by diplomats on the U.N.'s most powerful body against one of their own members. Libya is the only Arab representative on the council. Council members held a closed meeting to discuss the possibility of issuing a press statement following a briefing on the situation in the Middle East. Assistant Secretary-General Angela Kane had reported on the escalation in violence and growing humanitarian plight in Gaza as well as rocket attacks against Israel.
According to several diplomats, Libya's deputy U.N. Ambassador Ibrahim Dabbashi ended a long speech about the plight of the Palestinians by comparing the situation in Gaza to the German concentration camps in World War II. Immediately after Dabbashi mentioned the concentration camps, diplomats said, French Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert, U.S. deputy ambassador Alejandro Wolff, Britain's deputy ambassador Karen Pierce, Belgian Ambassador Johan Verbeke and Costa Rica's deputy ambassador walked out of the council's consultation room.
South Africa's U.N. Ambassador Dumisani Kumalo, the current council president, then ended the meeting.
"We support the South African presidency's decision to close the meeting," Britain's Pierce said in a statement. "A number of council members were dismayed by the approach taken by Libya and do not believe that such language helps advance the peace process." Kumalo would not confirm the walkout, saying "ambassadors always walk in and out" of council meetings. Syria's U.N. Ambassador Bashar Ja'afari, who is not a Security Council member, told reporters afterwards that he agreed with Libya's characterization of the situation in Gaza. "We have many times compared this situation — I mean the one prevailing in the occupied Palestinian territories — to the situation in Europe during World War II," he said. Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki, in a letter to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on the situation in Gaza, accused the Israeli military of perpetrating "atrocious crimes against humanity." "There is no doubt that the continuation of this genocide and actual holocaust will bring about dangerous ramifications for the peace, stability, tranquility and security," Mottaki warned in the letter obtained Wednesday by the Associated Press.(AP) Beirut, 24 Apr 08, 08:24

U.S.: Lebanese Don't Find Zawahiri's Vision Attractive
Naharnet/The U.S. government has said that a call by al-Qaida's No. 2 leader Ayman al-Zawahiri for militants in Lebanon to attack U.N. peacekeepers will gain little support in the country. "We're always concerned about any threats from al-Qaida, whether they're directed at the United States or directed at a good friend like Lebanon," State Department Deputy Spokesman Tom Casey said during a press briefing. "I think it's pretty clear, though, that the people of Lebanon don't particularly find attractive the kind of vision that's being offered by al-Zawahiri or Osama bin Laden or any of the folks involved in al-Qaida," Casey stressed.
"We would hope that Lebanon would be a central base for the Lebanese people to have a democratic government that supports them and achieves their political aspirations," he said. Osama bin Laden's deputy chief on Tuesday called on militants in an audiotape "to expel the invading Crusaders who pretend to be peacekeeping forces in Lebanon and not to accept resolution 1701." Al-Zawahiri was referring to the U.N. resolution that ended the war between Israel and Hizbullah in the summer of 2006. A 13,500-strong U.N. force, known as UNIFIL, monitors the truce in southern Lebanon. "The road is long but they have to break the siege imposed on them and to shove their way to Palestine," al-Zawahiri said, referring to militants in Lebanon. Beirut, 24 Apr 08, 06:55

Israeli Troops Search Wazzani River Bank
Naharnet/An Israeli infantry patrol crossed into the eastern bank of south Lebanon's Wazzani River on Wednesday and launched a search campaign for about two hours, local reporters said. A reporter told Naharnet the Israeli patrol also used trained dogs in the search operation, but did not cross the Blue Line into Lebanese territory. "They were within 100 meters maximum from river bank restaurants. I have them on video. The soldiers pointed rifles at me and at restaurant employees as the search operation was underway," added the reporter in a telephone dispatch from Wazzani, which is a U.N.-policed area in the eastern sector of south Lebanon. The Israeli infantry patrol carried out the search as two Israeli tanks observed the terrain from a distance, the reporter added. No acts of violence were reported, he said. Beirut, 23 Apr 08, 17:18

Will Muslim chaplains radicalize U.S. troops?
Congresswoman calls for probe of all green-lighted by terrorist
Posted: April 24, 2008
© 2008 WorldNetDaily
Fearing the radicalization of U.S. soldiers, the leader of the Congressional Anti-Terrorism Caucus has called for a government investigation of all Muslim chaplains serving in the U.S. military to determine whether they have ties to radical Islamic groups. Rep. Sue Myrick, R-N.C., says the Pentagon has failed to properly vet the Muslim chaplains ministering to U.S forces since it first set up its Muslim chaplain corps 15 years ago. The military chaplains were approved by a convicted terrorism supporter who at the time headed the American Muslim Council. Abdurahman Alamoudi is now serving a 23-year prison sentence on federal terrorism charges. The U.S. Department of Treasury in 2005 announced in a statement that "Alamoudi had a close relationship with al-Qaida and had raised money for al-Qaida in the United States." According to Myrick, the chaplains he sponsored have not been re-screened since his sentencing.
"Alamoudi placed Muslim chaplains throughout the military. He is now in jail on charges of terrorism," she said. "The chaplains to my knowledge are still in their current positions."
Myrick added that "while there may be nothing wrong with the Muslim chaplains that he approved, it seems logical that our government would re-check the chaplains who were approved by a convicted terrorist." In January 2007, Myrick founded the Congressional Anti-Terrorism Caucus. The bipartisan group, with more than 120 members and headed by Myrick and Reps. Bud Cramer, D-Ala., and Jane Harman, D-Calif., was formed to allow members to meet with terrorism experts and become educated about the dangers radical Islamists pose to America. The caucus meets twice a month and hears from terrorism experts, including Ken Pollack, Steve Emerson, Walid Phares, Gen. Anthony Zinni and Lawrence Wright. Myrick, who is up for re-election this year, has been working on numerous issues related to radical Islamists, such as writing letters to the Department of Justice and FBI taking issue with their outreach to radical groups, as well as looking into similar issues at the Pentagon.
Myrick's call for a formal probe of Muslim chaplains coincides with her release of an ambitious 10-point legislative agenda, dubbed "Wake Up America." She says Washington is not doing enough to protect the nation from the threat from radical Islam, and the public as a consequence has grown complacent.
"People would rather watch 'American Idol,'" she said.
She also is calling for a government investigation of all U.S. prison chaplains who were approved by Alamoudi. At least one Muslim cleric who contracted with the Federal Bureau of Prisons in New York had supported al-Qaida and the 9/11 hijackings.
The FBI says U.S. prisons are a top recruiting ground for al-Qaida now that it is trying to lower its Arab profile and recruit American converts.
In addition, the congresswoman will ask the Government Accountability Office to investigate the selection process of Arabic translators hired by the FBI and Department of Defense. Since 9/11, several federal translators have been charged with espionage-related crimes, according to Paul Sperry, author of "Infiltration: How Muslim Spies and Subversives Have Penetrated Washington."
Myrick complains that the FBI, desperate to hire Arabic-speaking translators and agents, is currently recruiting candidates through pro-jihad publications, organizations and even mosques connected to the radical Muslim Brotherhood.
As part of her 10-point agenda, Myrick also plans to ask the Internal Revenue Service to investigate the Council on American-Islamic Relations' non-profit status, which restricts lobbying on behalf of foreign governments. U.S. prosecutors say CAIR, which receives financing from Saudi and UAE sheiks, is a foreign-funded front for the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas. The Brotherhood has a stated objective of destroying America from within, and Hamas is an officially designated terrorist group. U.S. prosecutors last year named the Washington-based CAIR an unindicted co-conspirator in a scheme to funnel more than $12 million to Hamas suicide bombers and their families. CAIR's ethnic-Palestinian founder was listed as a Brotherhood leader in America.
More than a dozen CAIR officials have been caught up in counterterrorism investigations, with several landing in jail.
CAIR insists it receives most of its money from member dues and none from foreign governments. It dismissed Myrick's concerns as Islamophobic.
"It sounds like your usual laundry list of talking points you can see on anti-Muslim hate sites on the Internet," said CAIR spokesman Ibrahim Hooper, who in the past has stated his desire to see America become an Islamic state.
Myrick says she will also introduce a bill making it an act of sedition or treason to preach or publish materials that call for violent jihad and the death of Americans or the destruction of American property. She will also ask GAO to conduct an audit to verify the total amount of sovereign wealth fund investment from the Middle East in the United States.
What's more, she says she will rally Congress to cancel the scholarship student visa program with Saudi Arabia until they reform their textbooks. Despite promises by the Saudi government to reform its texts, independent reviews show they still preach hatred and violence against Westerners.
The State Department plans to double the number of student visas issued to young Saudi men from 15,000 to 30,000 -- despite the fact that nearly all of the 9/11 hijackers were Saudi nationals who immigrated to the U.S. on visas.
"We aim to increase their numbers to 30,000 over the next five years," U.S. Ambassador Ford Fraker this month told Saudi officials at the Al-Jouf Chamber of Commerce and Industry. In the past, a large number of Saudi students have failed to show up for classes, coast to coast, and have overstayed their visas. Many of them have been caught up in terrorism investigations. In addition, Myrick will introduce a bill to restrict R-1 religious visas for Muslim clerics who come from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and other countries that do not allow reciprocal visits by non-Muslim clergy.
Since 9/11, several foreign imams have been prosecuted or deported for soliciting jihad, including a Pakistani cleric in Lodi, Calif.
Myrick also plans as part of her anti-terror legislative action to introduce a bill to cancel U.S. contracts to train Saudi police and other security forces in U.S. counterterrorism tactics until the Saudis certify the prosecution of designated al-Qaida financiers – such as wealthy Saudi businessman Yasin al-Kadi – as well as the detention of repatriated Guantanamo terrorists whom the Saudis have released back into the general population after being "rehabilitated."
Some Gitmo detainees repatriated to Saudi Arabia have re-joined the jihad against U.S. troops overseas.
The U.S. trains Saudi security forces in counterterror techniques at both the Quantico Marine headquarters in Virginia and Sandia National Laboratory in New Mexico. Finally, Myrick says she will introduce or sponsor a bill to block the sale of sensitive military munitions – especially Joint Direct Attack Munitions – to Saudi Arabia. JDAMs include so-called smart bombs

Al-Zawahiri and Lebanon
Abdullah Iskandar
Al-Hayat - 23/04/08//
It is unlikely that Speaker Nabih Berri's new approach will lead to any breakthrough in the presidential crisis, especially that the core of the political conflict remains unchanged. The opposition is still trying to improve its ability to make decisions at the authority level, while the majority considers such improvement an encroachment on its understanding of the concept of authority and the general direction of its policies. Before and even after Berri launched his initiative for dialogue as a platform for presidential elections, the general impression is that all sides are betting their stakes on time and on unexpected developments that would force the other side to make concessions. In other words, despite all Arab and international efforts, the issue is about passing time with the least possible losses. However, this bet on time only reinforces the constitutional void.
So far, this void remains under control. The government continues to conduct the general affairs of the state, although in the least effective manner, given the exceptional position it is allowed to maneuver in. At the same time, the parties remain committed to avoiding violent confrontations, at least explicitly, and even when inflammatory and fiery speeches are occasionally translated into actions on the ground in this or that area among mobilized partisans, hence exerting more pressure on security forces.
In all cases, this organized void which the local Lebanese players perceive as advantageous as they expend time, may sooner or later turn against them all. All of them, at least explicitly, considered themselves harmed in the Nahr al-Bared military confrontations when the void in North Lebanon was exploited to build Fateh Al-Islam. It is the same void that offers sanctuary inside camps and security zones to radicals, and all this will backfire on all Lebanese parties. The Iraqi experience in this respect is loaded with lessons to be learned. Al-Qaeda was able to find refuge in Mesopotamia as a result of the void suffered by the institutions and state, as well as the political-sectarian divide. In other words, regardless of its causes and motives, terrorism can only grow amid vacuum. Terrorism even benefits the most when local opponents believe that they can exploit it to their advantage and employ it to serve their objectives. Once it finds its place along with contradictions, terrorism then imposes itself on all sides. Once again, the Iraqi experience offers numerous lessons for those who wish to learn.
In Lebanon, while Speaker Berri was proposing the renewed theory of dialogue to end the crisis, and regardless of the factors that led to it, Ayman al-Zawahiri was reminding all of the Iraqi lesson. He announced that the "jihadists" should expel the UNIFIL forces, rejecting UNSC Resolution 1701. On the one hand, this may respond to the opposition's desire to end the consequences of the July war, even in a most remote manner. However, al-Zawahiri also pointed out that those "mujahideen" are caught between two fires, one of which includes "regional powers" that continuously come under criticism from the majority.
Hence, when the acting powers in Lebanon bet on the void as a means to expend time, there are those who try to pitch in at this opportunity. As the Iraqi experience evidently shows, and as the Fateh al-Islam clearly proved in Lebanon, al-Qaeda is no illusionary danger. It is operating on the ground and taking advantage of mobilization by all sides. Moreover, while al-Qaeda attempts to target the West and its lifestyles represented by the majority elites in Lebanon, it never forgets its fundamental battle with political Shiism and its regional ties that are currently represented by the opposition in Lebanon

No Middle East Peace Without Tough Love
By: Henry Siegman
Al-Hayat - 23/04/08//
We now have word that Tony Blair, envoy of the Middle East Quartet (the UN, the EU, Russia and the United States), and German Chancellor Angela Merkel intend to organize yet another peace conference, this time in Berlin in June. It is hard to believe that after the long string of failed peace initiatives, stretching back at least to the Madrid conference of 1991, statesmen and stateswomen are recycling these failures without seemingly having a clue as to why the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is even more hopeless today than before these peace exercises first got underway. The scandal of the international community's impotence in resolving
one of history's longest bloodlettings is that it knows what the problem is but does not have the courage to speak the truth, much less deal with it. The next peace conference in Germany (or in Moscow, where the Russians want to hold it) will suffer from the same gutlessness that has marked all previous efforts. It will deal with everything except the problem primarily responsible for this conflict's multi-generational impasse. That problem is that for all of the sins attributable to the Palestinians - and they are legion, including inept and corrupt leadership, failed institution-building and the murderous violence of the rejectionist groups-there is no prospect for a viable, sovereign Palestinian state primarily because Israel's various governments, from 1967 until today, have never intended allowing such a state to come into being. It is one thing if Israeli governments had insisted on delaying a Palestinian state until certain Israeli security concerns were dealt with. But no government that is serious about a two-state solution to the conflict would have pursued without let-up the theft and fragmentation of Palestinian lands that even a child understands makes Palestinian statehood impossible.
Given the overwhelming disproportion of power between the occupier and the occupied, it is hardly surprising that Israeli governments and their military and security establishments found it difficult to resist the acquisition of Palestinian land. What is astounding is that the international community, pretending to believe Israel's claim that it is the victim and its occupied subjects the aggressors, has allowed this devastating dispossession to continue and the law of the jungle to prevail.
As long as Israel knows that by delaying the peace process it buys time to create facts on the ground that will prove irreversible, and that the international community will continue to indulge Israel's pretense that its desire for a two-state solution is being frustrated by the Palestinians, no new peace initiative can succeed, and the dispossession of the Palestinian people will indeed become irreversible. There can be no greater delusion on the part of Western countries weighed down by guilt about the Holocaust than the belief that accommodating such an outcome would be an act of friendship to the Jewish people. The abandonment of the Palestinians now is surely not an atonement for the abandonment of European Jewry seventy years ago, nor will it serve the security of the State of Israel and its people.
John Vinocur of the New York Times recently suggested that the virtually unqualified declarations of support for Israel by Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy are "at a minimum an attempt to seek Israeli moderation by means of public assurances with this tacit subtext: these days, the European Union is not, or is no longer, its reflexive antagonist." But the expectation that uncritical Western support of Israel would lead to greater Israeli moderation and greater willingness to take risks for peace is blatantly contradicted by the conflict's history.
Time and again, this history has shown that the less opposition Israel encounters from its friends in the West for its dispossession of the Palestinians, the more uncompromising its behavior. Indeed, Olmert's reaction to Sarkozy's and Merkel's expressions of eternal solidarity and friendship have had exactly that result: Olmert approved massive new construction in East Jerusalem- authorizing housing projects that were frozen for years by previous governments because of their destructive impact on the possibility of a peace agreement-as well as continued expansion of Israel's settlements. And Olmert's defense minister, Ehud Barak, declared shortly after Merkel's departure that he will remove only a token number of the more than 500 checkpoints and roadblocks that Israel has repeatedly promised, and just as repeatedly failed, to dismantle.
That announcement shattered whatever hope Palestinians may have had for recovery of their economy as a consequence of the seven billion dollars in new aid promised by the international donor community in Paris last December. In these circumstances, the donor countries, not to speak of the private sector, will not pour good money after bad, as they so often have in the past.
So what is required of statesmen is not more peace conferences or clever adjustments to previous peace formulations, but the moral and political courage to end their collaboration with the massive hoax the peace process has been turned into. Of course, Palestinian violence must be condemned and stopped, particularly when it targets civilians. But is it not utterly disingenuous to pretend that Israel's occupation-maintained by IDF-manned checkpoints and barricades,
helicopter gunships, jet fighter planes, targeted assassinations and military incursions, not to speak of the massive theft of Palestinian lands-is not itself an exercise in continuous and unrelenting violence against more than 3 million Palestinian civilians? If Israel were to renounce violence, could the occupation last even one day?
Israel's designs on the West Bank are not much different than the designs of the Arab forces that attacked the Jewish state in 1948 - the nullification of the international community's partition resolution of 1947. Short of addressing the problem by its right name-something that is of an entirely different order than hollow statements that "settlements do not advance peace"-and taking effective collective action to end a colonial enterprise that disgraces what began as a
noble Jewish national liberation struggle, further peace conferences, no matter how well intentioned, make their participants accessories to one of the longest and cruelest deceptions in the annals of international diplomacy.
* Henry Siegman, director of the US/Middle East Project in New York, is research professor at the Sir Joseph Hotung Middle East Program, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. Siegman is a former national director of the American Jewish Congress and of the Synagogue Council of America

The Crises of Lebanon and Iraq in Kuwait
Randa Takieddine
Al-Hayat - 23/04/08//
The woman playing the guitar in the hall reserved for foreign ministers at the Sheraton Hotel in Kuwait yesterday lent an atmosphere of calm to the proceedings, in contrast to the two main topics that dominated side discussions among ministers on the sidelines of the conference of Iraq's neighbors and Lebanon's friends. The Saudi Foreign Minister, Saud al-Faisal, was on one side of the hall, holding discussions with his Iranian counterpart, Manouchehr Muttaki. On the other side, the UAE Foreign Minister, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, was meeting with Lebanese Foreign Minister Tareq Mitri and Mohammed Shatah, an adviser to Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. Then, the French Foreign Minister, Bernard Kouchner, joined Saud al-Faisal during his meeting with the Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa, while the Lebanese delegation took part in the discussions.
Kouchner had met in the morning with the Syrian foreign minister, far away from the soothing music of the hall. The atmosphere was surreal during the ministerial meetings. Everyone was discussing the text of the statement that would be issued by the friends of Lebanon. Everyone was aware that unfortunately, it would only express solidarity and support for a sovereign and independent Lebanon, and for the Siniora government. It would not involve a profound discussion of how to exit the crisis that, according to more than one observer, will not be solved any time soon. The United Nations was represented by Terje Roed-Larsen, who is tasked with following up the implementation of UN Security Resolution 1559. The Assistant US Secretary of State, David Welch, was also holding discussions with all sides, while the Iranian minister held side discussions with the foreign ministers of Turkey and Japan.
The upshot of discussions about the two items, Iraq and Lebanon, revolved around the wish of the international community, especially the friends of both countries, to see them defuse their respective crises. Both are dangerous for the entire region, due to the regional policies of Iran and Syria.
The female guitarist was not close-by when the dangers of the situation in Iraq and Lebanon were discussed. All of the discussions were aimed at finding solutions to the crises. However, everyone knew that this was not possible. Kouchner met with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem, knowing that there would be no great benefit derived from the conversation. The French minister held these meetings because he believes it is necessary to talk to all sides, and because he was discussing and thinking deeply about how to find a solution for Lebanon and help confront the prospect of a return of Syrian hegemony over the country in the long term if the situation does not change.
In France, there are those who believe that time is on the side of the parliamentary majority in Lebanon, and not Syria. However, others in France believe that the allies of Iran and Syria in Lebanon will benefit from the vacuum over the long term, and that the Lebanese state is gradually fading away, in favor of the "state of Hizbullah," with political cover from Michel Aoun. All of these analyses lead to a single conclusion: pessimism prevails with regard to the solution, and the international court for Lebanon is the key date with regard to this crisis. A sovereign and independent Lebanon suits some people, while others prefer the formula of the past, when Syria would appoint the Lebanese president, ministers and officials. Those concerned with the situation in Lebanon are asking: Where is the civil society in all of this? Why don't we hear its voice; why don't people demonstrate to demand sovereignty, independence and progress in the way out of the crisis, as they did when former Prime Minister Rafic Hariri was assassinated? The Lebanese have the right to strive for their independence and sovereignty. They have the right to have an embassy in Syria, and not see their president appointed by a foreign power. But things today are not headed in this direction. We are very far off from an imminent solution. Today, everyone believes that the election of a president has become practically impossible. The next important date on the calendar is the spring of 2009, namely a round of parliamentary elections. This is the prevailing position, despite all of the international meetings. The solidarity with Lebanon reflects the frustration of the international community, due to its failure in confronting Syria's rejection of implementing the Arab League initiative and dealing with French ideas about how to solve the crisis

We already have peace with Syria
Quiet that has prevailed on Syria-Israel border for years may be better than peace
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3535441,00.html
Guy Bechor / Israel Opinion /ynetnews
Published: 04.24.08, 17:00 /
There is not much difference between the peace we have with Syria today and the peace with have with Egypt, with the exception of the written agreement whose exact details nobody remembers.
Bashar Assad has not traveled to Jerusalem, but when did Hosni Mubarak visit Israel? Only once, for the funeral of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, when the Americans forced the Egyptian president to do so.
Moreover, our border with Syria is quiet and stable and no clash has taken place there for dozens of years, as opposed to the “border of peace” with Egypt, which is replete with criminal and terror infiltrations, as well as other troubles. Compared to Syria’s border with Jordan and Iraq, its border with Israel is an asset: Damascus is enjoying the quiet and security too.
Syria lost its hold on the Arab world, most of which boycotted her by not sending top leaders to the last summit meeting in Damascus. Today, Syria is isolated, lacks legitimacy, and a peace treaty with Israel would only serve to isolate it even more and further reinforce the Syrian leadership’s illegitimacy among Arabs.
A peace agreement with Israel will turn Iran into Syria’s greatest enemy: A dangerous enemy that has a hold on Iraq and Lebanon, Syria’s neighbors. Syria lost Lebanon, and therefore a peace treaty with Damascus does not mean a peace deal with Lebanon as well. On the contrary, there will be elements in Lebanon that would do everything to undermine an agreement between Syria and Israel.
On the Golan Heights, IDF and Syrian forces are separated by a buffer in the form of UN forces. Each side knows its place, while an effective and powerful Israeli deterrence system exists. It must remain powerful in the future has well. Both our prime minister and the Syria president admitted that in recent months they created a system of signals, clarifications, and possibly even deterrence, for fear of misunderstandings.
The Syria front is again stable, after a period of disquiet in the wake of the Lebanon War. What else can we ask for?
Peace threatens Assad regime
And no less important: As opposed to the old model of peace with Arab states, Israel continues to hold on to territory here, that is, the Golan Heights. This is the only case of “peace” between us and our neighbors where we hold on to both territory and stability. This is a much more advanced model for us than the Egyptian or Jordanian model.
Paradoxically, at this time it appears that the only element the Syrian regime can rely on may be Israel. As opposed to the hatred it faces in Lebanon, Jordan, and Turkey, quiet with Israel is a supreme interest for Damascus.
When will we realize that the peace we seek threatens the Syrian regime? Just like we frighten it with war, we do the same inadvertently with our desire for peace. This peace phantom threatens to sink Assad’s regime.
Yet our media outlets have continued to numb us with this conditioned peace reflex for dozens of years now, and the sense around here is that absolute happiness is right around the corner. If only we cede the Golan Heights, the Mideastern heaven will open its gates to us.
Today, the Golan Heights stabilizes the Galilee and northern Israel in an existential manner. What will be our fate should we make the mistake and evacuate the Golan? The peace will end, the stability will end, and the quiet will end. Moreover, the Syrians will immediately dispatch a million Syrians to settle the area, just as they did in Lebanon, and with the option of a “resistance movement” just like in Lebanon.
And what will happen should the minority regime in Syria be toppled and replaced by a radical Islamic state that would be situated deep in our Galilee region?
Instead of lamenting our absence of peace with Syria, perhaps we need to understand that we already have peace with Syria, and possibly a situation that is even better than peace