LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
January 22/08

Bible Reading of the day
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 2,18-22. The disciples of John and of the Pharisees were accustomed to fast. People came to him and objected, "Why do the disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?"Jesus answered them, "Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them they cannot fast. But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast on that day. No one sews a piece of unshrunken cloth on an old cloak. If he does, its fullness pulls away, the new from the old, and the tear gets worse. Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the skins are ruined. Rather, new wine is poured into fresh wineskins."

New Releases, Reports, Editorials & Letters for January 21/08
Victor, No Vanquished. By: Walid Choucair. January 21/08
Lebanon's Arab brothers owe it more than they can ever repay-The Daily Star. January 21/08
Avoiding war is a priority in Lebanon's standoff-By Oussama K. Safa. January 21/08

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for January 21/08
Gemayel Accuses Opposition of Seeking to Change Lebanon Regime-Naharnet
Moussa: No Dead End, Just Closed Door-Naharnet
Hobeish: Three 10s is a 'Prelude' to 3-Way Division of Power-Naharnet
Lebanese Army Opens Fire at Israeli Warplanes-Naharnet
Damascus Suggested Substitute for Suleiman-Naharnet
Raad: Arab Plan Wasting Time Pending U.S. Decision-Naharnet
Sarkozy Slams Berri Over Parliament Key-Naharnet
Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon Protest Gaza Blockade-Naharnet
Barak Snubs Nasrallah Despite Elimination Calls-Naharnet
Hamade: Berri Eulogized the Arab Initiative-Naharnet
A 13th Delay of The Presidential Election-Naharnet
Aoun's Illness Postpones Moussa-Sponsored Meeting-Naharnet
Qandil Wants Opposition Represented at Arab Foreign Ministers' Conference-Naharnet
Grenade blast hits car of Lebanon judge's wife-AFP
Lebanese army shoots at Israeli jets-AFP
Sfeir expresses gratitude for support after Franjieh attack-Daily Star
Ministers call to kill Nasrallah-Jerusalem Post
Berri: Syrian-Saudi reconciliation key to Lebanon solution-Daily Star
Gül asks for Syrian help to resolve Lebanon crisis-Today's Zaman
Bolton disclaims PM's account of the end of Lebanon war-Ha'aretz
Nasrallah's taunt gets under Israel's skin-Daily Star
Saudi, Syria cut number of fighters getting into Iraq: US-AFP
Nasrallah electrifies faithful in Beirut's southern suburbs-Daily Star
Lebanon static amid spurt in MENA economic freedom-Daily Star
Lebanon's Arab brothers owe it more than they can ever repay-Daily Star
My clarification of AL plan is the only official one, says Moussa-Ya Libnan
Tens of thousands attend Ashura ceremony in Nabatiyeh-Daily Star
AUB panel stresses need for reforms-Daily Star
UNIFIL performs maneuvers off coast in South-Daily Star
Lebanese election put off for 13th time-Daily Star
Berri: Syrian-Saudi reconciliation key to Lebanon solution-Daily Star
Lebanese Option Group slams Hizbullah-Daily Star
Assailants burn car of Al-Anbaa director-Daily Star
Security Council condemns attack on US Embassy car-Daily Star
Nasrallah electrifies faithful in Beirut's southern suburbs-AFP
The reinvention of Lebanese Shiite history-Daily Star

 “Victor”, No Vanquished
Walid Choucair Al-Hayat - 20/01/08//
One of the reasons hindering the attempts for a political settlement in Lebanon to end the presidential vacuum, that might lead to a political and institutional one, in case that reason persists, is the principle of "no victor, no vanquished" underlying proposals and plans to make a breach in the wall, at a time when one side in the conflict considers itself the victor while the other does not consider itself vanquished.
This principle has withstood and persisted as one of the bases of political settlements in Lebanon for decades - dictated by the Lebanese confessional system. It was the principle referred to when settling the short civil war of 1958, after which the Arabs sponsored peace accords in 1989 that would be called the Taef Accords. In addition, the principle of "no victor, no vanquished" was the basis of circumstantial settlement of issues inside the institutions of the Lebanese political system, be they minor or "more important".
In the attempt to apply this principle to the current situation, as claimed by the Lebanese leaders and the Arab and Syrian officials, when describing the Arab League plan stated by the Ministers Of Foreign Affairs, words do not coincide with deeds.
The conditions placed by the opposition, and thus Syria, for filling the presidential vacuum are those of a party that sees itself as victorious in the recent conflict that has taken bloody, political and media forms both locally and regionally. March 14, however, which enjoys international and wide Arab support, does not see itself as vanquished, and thus, obliged to accept the opposition's conditions, be they for forming a cabinet following the election of General Michel Sleiman as the President of the Republic, running the affairs of the country in the near future, naming the next Prime Minister, etc... Damascus openly considered itself victorious, as shown by Vice President Farouk Al Sharaa's announcement that Syria's allies in Lebanon are more powerful now than before. For Damascus has been preparing for this victory since before its withdrawal from Lebanon in 2005, although Foreign Minister Walid Moallem assured Syria's adherence to the principle of "no victor, no vanquished."

Sarkozy Slams Berri Over Parliament Key
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has slammed Speaker Nabih Berri for shutting parliament's doors and stressed the Lebanese should elect a head of state through "understanding.""We want the election of a president in Lebanon through understanding. We don't accept that the parliament speaker keeps the key of the legislature to shut it," Sarkozy told Al Jazeera TV network in French on Sunday. "Which country in the world accepts" this, the French president wondered.
"We are with Lebanon because Lebanon represents diversity," he stressed in the interview. Sarkozy's comments came the same day Berri postponed to February 11 a parliament session to elect a new Lebanese president. The latest delay brings to 13 the number of sessions that have been postponed since September, amid failure by the rival parties to pick a successor to President Emile Lahoud whose term ended in November. Beirut, 21 Jan 08, 09:51

Gemayel Accuses Opposition of Seeking to Change Lebanon Regime
Former President Amin Gemayel on Monday said the Hizbullah-led opposition does not want to negotiate compromises put forwarded by an Arab League plan to end the presidential crisis, but is rather seeking to "change the regime in Lebanon.""We are certain, and we have information that if we grant the opposition veto power or the three 10s, it will find other exits to block any settlement," Gemayel said at a news conference. "We are certain they want to change the regime … and we believe this is a coup against Taef and the constitution," Gemayel told reporters from his residence in Sin el-Fil. "Does the aim behind an institutional void serve Hizbullah's mini-state?" Gemayel asked. "Is the aim behind obstructing a national decision for the good of Hizbullah?" Gemayel wondered. He reiterated that the majority March 14 alliance backs the Arab plan and said clarifications of the initiative by Arab League chief Amr Moussa were "fair." Gemayel said that March 14 has accepted to give up its right of an absolute majority in return for the opposition's approval to abandon its veto power demand. The Phalange Party leader also stressed that the majority adheres to the nomination of army commander Gen. Michel Suleiman as President. Beirut, 21 Jan 08, 13:24

Moussa: No Dead End, Just Closed Door
Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa has acknowledged there were difficulties to solve Lebanon's presidential crisis but denied the Arab initiative has reached a "dead end.""There are difficulties in all pillars" of the crisis, Moussa was quoted as telling the daily An Nahar Monday before traveling back to Cairo.
He said the Arab initiative, which called for the election of Army Chief Gen. Michel Suleiman president and the formation of a national unity cabinet, reached a "closed door which could be opened."He denied, however, that the initiative has reached a "dead end," saying "the issue needs a lot of work."
Moussa also told the daily that he believed Damascus was willing to play a constructive role to help him in his mission. "Syria agrees that negotiations should be between the feuding sides" over seats in the future government, he said. He said the Hizbullah-led opposition was suggesting 10 seats for the pro-cabinet March 14 forces, 10 for the anti-government camp and 10 for the new president, while the majority in parliament was with a 14+10+6 formula. Despite Moussa's comments on a possible cooperation by Syria, As Safir daily's correspondent in Damascus said the Arab League chief did not make any progress in his talks with Syrian officials. The newspaper quoted Syrian official sources as saying the Assad regime was making a "word for word interpretation" of the Arab plan which meant that neither side would have veto power or monopoly in the future cabinet. Arab diplomatic sources told As Safir that the meeting of Arab foreign ministers on January 27 will likely extend Moussa's mission to stress Arab support for Lebanon and prevent the "internationalization" of the presidential crisis. Beirut, 21 Jan 08, 09:04

Hobeish: Three 10s is a 'Prelude' to 3-Way Division of Power
Al Moustaqbal MP Hadi Hobeish said that the 10+10+10 formula is a "prelude" to a three-way division of power in Lebanon among Sunnis, Shiites and Christians which the Hizbullah-led opposition is apparently pushing for. "With a three-way division of power you are canceling out democracy ... We either have a democracy or we revert to tribal rule," Hobeish told The Daily Star. He said that a majority that enjoys an equal share of cabinet seats with the opposition is "no majority at all," adding that the Arabs will neither "cancel out" the majority nor the opposition in Lebanon. Hobeish said the only settlement would be for the opposition to accept the Arab League plan as it stands. "We all agreed to listen to Moussa and to the Arab solution but the opposition held on to their demand for a blocking third or a three-way split in the form of the 10+10+10 formula," Hobeish said. He stressed that the decision to resolve the ongoing impasse was regional, not domestic.
Beirut, 21 Jan 08, 14:11

Damascus Suggested Substitute for Suleiman
News circled in Beirut that Damascus suggested a substitute for army commander Gen. Michel Suleiman, the presidential candidate accepted by Lebanon's warring camps. Reports said that Damascus had informed Arab League chief Amr Moussa of its offer and that it had named a presidential candidate from a list previously drawn by Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir. They said Moussa, however, rejected the offer, insisting that he will not bypass the three-point Arab plan which calls for the election of Suleiman as President. Meanwhile, Syrian officials expressed their "support for the Arab initiative," insisting that clarification of the plan was a "Lebanese concern."The officials said they informed Moussa of their unwillingness to go through what they called "the number game" each Lebanese party would get in a new cabinet. A pro-opposition newspaper said Moussa's talks in Damascus did not make any progress as Syrian officials refused to "go into details."
Other sources said that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad informed Moussa of Syria's backing to Suleiman's nomination for the presidency.
Assad, at the same time, informed Moussa that he cannot ask his allies in Lebanon for additional concessions regarding formation of a new cabinet, saying the opposition had already abandoned veto power in return for a 10+10+10 formula. Moussa held renewed talks on Sunday with feuding political leaders in a bid to win support for the Arab plan to end the crisis in Lebanon which has been without a president since November 24.
The three-point initiative calls for the election of Suleiman as president, the formation of a national unity government in which no one party has veto power and the adoption of a new electoral law. The ruling majority has accepted the bid but the Hizbullah-led opposition, backed by Syria and Iran, demands that it be granted a third of the seats in a new government so the opposition can have veto power. Beirut, 21 Jan 08, 11:46

Raad: Arab Plan Wasting Time Pending U.S. Decision
Hizbullah MP Mohammed Raad slammed the Arab League initiative, saying it was meant for "wasting time pending a U.S. decision" regarding the presidential crisis.
"The Americans don't know what they want. They just want to back the Saniora government because it proved worthy of serving its schemes," Raad told Hizbullah supporters in the town of Jebaa in Iqlim al-Tuffah on Sunday. "The Arab initiative's text can only be understood as proposing a three-way split in the government," Raad added. "Today the majority wants to give the President's share of cabinet ministers from those of the opposition. Why?" Raad asked. Arab League Chief Amr Moussa said Sunday the Hizbullah-led opposition was suggesting 10 seats for the pro-cabinet March 14 forces, 10 for the anti-government camp and 10 for the new president, while the majority in parliament was with a 14+10+6 formula. "No humiliating agreement would be imposed on the opposition," Raad emphasized. He insisted that the "only" solution, in the eyes of the Syrian-backed March 8 coalition, was by granting the opposition veto power. Beirut, 21 Jan 08, 11:30

Hamade: Berri Eulogized the Arab Initiative
Minister of communications Marwan Hamade said Sunday a recent statement by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri was tantamount to "eulogizing the Arab initiative"
Hamade, speaking to Voice of Lebanon Radio, said Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa's mission in Damascus has "failed."
"We know what it means in (Moussa's) diplomatic parlance to describe his mission as serious and detailed," he added. Moussa, he added, "would not despair immediately, he would try once again, but he has concluded from his Damascus visit and the contacts he held in Lebanon, who is blocking and who is facilitating (his mission)." Hamade recalled that calls for distribution of power along a tripartite formula was "the reason for conflict between (the late) cabinet minister Pierre Gemayel and Hizbullah ministers."Gemayel was gunned down by unidentified assailants on Nov. 21 2006. "The tripartite formula has one aim, and that is to finish the democratic parliamentary system."He cautioned that the issue "has been placed on a constitutional path, unless the recipe is a new civil war in which 100.000 people would be killed and the Christians would lose their share in power."Responding to a threat by Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah, Hamade said: "We (March 14) would shoulder our responsibilities too … The government is legal and would stay in power."He asked Army Commander Gen. Michel Suleiman to "accept his election president first, to carry out consultations after that with the aim of forming a national unity cabinet.""The army commander has a responsibility (to shoulder) in this regard," Hamade added. Beirut, 20 Jan 08, 15:03

Lebanese Army Opens Fire at Israeli Warplanes
The Lebanese army on Monday opened fire on Israeli warplanes as they flew over the south of the country in violation of Lebanon's airspace, police said.
"The army's anti-aircraft units fired at four Israeli jets overflying the south on two occasions between 9:00 am and 11:00 am (0700 and 0900 GMT)," a police official told AFP on condition of anonymity. He said none of the aircraft was hit. Monday's incident follows a weekend speech by Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in which he taunted Israel by boasting that his group had the body parts of Israeli soldiers who died during the 2006 war in Lebanon.
On several occasions in recent months, the Lebanese army has opened fire on Israeli jets flying low near the border area between the two countries.
Such overflights are a violation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, which brought an end to the 34-day war between Israel and Hizbullah in August 2006.
The United Nations has called on Israel to stop violating Lebanese airspace. It says the overflights undermine the credibility of U.N. peacekeepers stationed in southern Lebanon and compromise efforts to stabilize the region.(AFP) Beirut, 21 Jan 08, 12:46

Lebanese army shoots at Israeli jets
TYRE, Lebanon (AFP) — The Lebanese army on Monday opened fire on Israeli warplanes as they flew over the south of the country in violation of Lebanon's airspace, police said. "The army's anti-aircraft units fired at four Israeli jets overflying the south on two occasions between 9:00 am and 11:00 am (0700 and 0900 GMT)," a police official told AFP on condition of anonymity. He said none of the aircraft was hit. Monday's incident follows a weekend speech by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in which he taunted Israel by boasting that his guerrilla group had the body parts of Israeli soldiers who died during the 2006 war in Lebanon.
On several occasions in recent months, the Lebanese army has opened fire on Israeli jets flying low near the border area between the two countries.
Such overflights are a violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which brought an end to the 34-day war between Israel and the Shiite Muslim Hezbollah group in August 2006. The United Nations has called on Israel to stop violating Lebanese airspace. It says the overflights undermine the credibility of UN peacekeepers stationed in southern Lebanon and compromise efforts to stabilise the region.

Grenade blast hits car of Lebanon judge's wife
BEIRUT (AFP) — A grenade blast set ablaze a car belonging to the wife of a top military prosecutor in Lebanon on Monday, but no-one was injured, a senior security official said. The attack occurred the day after Lebanon again delayed a parliamentary vote to choose a new president because of prolonged political deadlock between the Western-backed ruling coalition and the Syrian-backed opposition. The grenade was thrown at the car of the wife of assistant military prosecutor Judge Ahmed Oueidat while it was parked outside their home in Museitbeh, a Muslim district of Beirut, the security official told AFP. "We dont know whether the attack was politically motivated. We are not sure which car was targeted. An investigation is under way," he said. The blast also destroyed a car belonging to a relative of former Lebanese presidential guard chief General Mustafa Hamdan, who was arrested over the 2005 assassination of former billionaire prime minister Rafiq Hariri. A parliament session had been due to take place on Monday to elect a successor to former pro-Syrian president Emile Lahoud, who stood down in November. But the speaker's office announced on Sunday the vote had been delayed, for the 13th time, to February 11 to allow time for the feuding political factions to try to agree on an Arab League-sponsored initiative to end the crisis.  Since Hariri's murder, Lebanon has been rocked by a wave of attacks mainly targeting prominent anti-Syrian figures

Avoiding war is a priority in Lebanon's standoff
By Oussama K. Safa -Daily Star
Monday, January 21, 2008
On December 31, the Lebanese bid good riddance to 2007, a tumultuous year of upheaval that brought the country's political logjam to unprecedented heights. The passing year was characterized by the assassinations of two parliamentarians and a senior military figure, a devastating battle involving the Lebanese Army, and a series of destabilizing moves that included dangerous sectarian clashes in the streets of Beirut reminiscent of the Civil War. Lebanese institutions of governance continue to be held hostage by the political crisis, with the government incapable of exercising its authority, the Parliament not convening in over a year and, more recently, the presidency left vacant. The army, the single most trustworthy institution still functioning, took a debilitating hit with the assassination on December 12 of its chief of operations, General Francois Hajj.
Intensive European and Arab mediation initiatives have until now failed to bring together the opposition and government loyalists to elect as a consensus president army commander General Michel Suleiman. The naming of Suleiman by the loyalists as their candidate of choice took the opposition by surprise and ushered in a new chapter of political polarization. Suleiman's election requires a constitutional amendment that must be proposed to Parliament by the current government. The opposition, which considers the government illegitimate, has refused to accept any amendment proposal from it and has decided to up the ante by demanding full agreement on the makeup of the next government, the appointment of heads of security agencies and a new electoral law before Suleiman's election. If agreed, these demands will strip the president-elect of significant powers to appoint ministers and fill security posts.
There is no end in sight to the political crisis. Spearheading the current confrontation are the Sunnis who lead the pro-government loyalists and the Shiites who lead the opposition - with each camp including Christian leaders engaged in a power struggle. The present impasse masks larger demands for power-sharing by the opposition that would potentially alter the fundamental principles on which post-civil war Lebanon rests. If the pro-Syrian opposition succeeds in securing a blocking minority vote in the next government along with the package deal it is currently demanding, and with Parliament controlled by an opposition speaker, the opposition will effectively control the major institutions of Lebanon.
This will mean the anchoring of Hizbullah's influence in the political system and will nip in the bud any talk of disarming its military units. It will also mean continued stalling in the implementation of UN Security Council resolutions on the control of borders, the flow of arms and the establishment of an international tribunal to pursue the assassins of the late Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Worse, it will mean the return to Lebanon of Syrian security and political influence at a time when the loyalists have been struggling to regain sovereignty and independence.
In 2008, we might see renewed international pressures exerted on Damascus to facilitate the election of Suleiman as president, and the recent Arab plan for Lebanon may be an example of this, although its outcome remains unclear. Such pressure is probably the only glimmer of hope government loyalists can cling to. Meanwhile, the opposition led by Hizbullah is reaping the benefits of crippling the government and other significant institutions. Seeing that time is on its side, Hizbullah's security and military apparatuses have gone unchecked and are in fact stronger than ever before. While the government is under siege, the Party of God has been hard at work developing new military strategies, rearming itself, and concocting plans for deployment and control of major roads and institutions should the confrontation escalate again into street violence.
It is clear by now that without the full approval and participation of the opposition, a president of Lebanon will not be elected. Yet the continuation of the presidential vacuum is a precedent that risks rendering that position irrelevant in the long term. The powers of the presidency are currently exercised by the government. If the republic can function despite the long absence of its head, then this will further weaken the presidency and marginalize its influence in politics; if the government succeeds in using the powers of the presidency to pass major decisions, this will end any relevancy that the presidency had. All told, these developments might warrant the re-examining of presidential prerogatives as dictated by the Constitution.
Whichever way we look at the current crisis in Lebanon, its solution will not be found in a simple settlement of the constitutional amendment and election of a president. In the long run, the crisis has exposed the defects of the standing power-sharing formula that ended the Civil War and that the Syrian regime nurtured for 15 years. If and when the issues between the loyalists and the opposition are resolved, it will be necessary to ensure that a damaging standoff does not recur. In order for this to happen, and to put the country on course toward political stability, a new assessment of the national accords that have kept the Lebanese together for almost two decades needs to be carried out seriously and objectively. Meanwhile, averting civil strife will be on every Lebanese mind in 2008.
***Oussama Safa is general director of the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies in Beirut. This commentary first appeared at bitterlemons-international.org, an online newsletter.

German Jews Warned of Terror Threat From Lebanon
Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift:
Security is being increased outside synagogues and other Jewish buildings
Germany's domestic security service has warned the country's Jewish community and the Israeli embassy of an increased danger of terrorist attack. The threat appears to emanate from Lebanon. The general secretary of the Central Council of German Jews, Stephan Kramer, has confirmed weekend news reports that increased precautions were being taken Germany-wide. However, he also warned against scaremongering. Kramer told daily Berliner Zeitung that the Council had been approached ten days ago by the German security authority, the BKA, following the arrest of a suspected Al Qaeda member in Lebanon.
Security measures reinforced 
Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Police patrols are routine outside many Jewish insitutions in Germany
Police have also been warned to be more vigilant. In Berlin, police are increasing the number of units deployed to guard buildings linked with the Jewish community.
Four Arab men were arrested while acting suspiciously near Jewish institutions in Berlin on Saturday, Jan. 19. Three of them have subsequently been released because of insufficient evidence. The fourth is being held for unrelated offences. Concrete blocks are reportedly set to be erected outside a least three buildings in the capital this week, including the city's Jewish Museum and a major synagogue. The additional security measures are designed to stop attacks with vehicles.
Kramer referred to information from Lebanon and a possible link to the current trial in Dusseldorf of a Lebanese man, Youssef al-Hajj Dib, 23, on charges of attempting to blow up two German trains with suitcase bombs in July 2006. German authorities have declined to comment on the reports, which came just days after another terror alert about a possible attack on the German justice ministry was downgraded.