LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

Bible Reading of the day
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 9,57-62. As they were proceeding on their journey someone said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go."Jesus answered him, "Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head." And to another he said, "Follow me." But he replied, "(Lord,) let me go first and bury my father." But he answered him, "Let the dead bury their dead. But you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God."And another said, "I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say farewell to my family at home." (To him) Jesus said, "No one who sets a hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God."

Maronite Bishops: History won't Forgive who Blocks Solutions
Naharnet/Maronite Bishops' Council warned on Wednesday that history will not forgive states or individuals who block solutions to Lebanon's ongoing political crisis. Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir presided over the monthly meeting held in Bkerki to discuss national and clerical issues.
"The hateful political atmosphere which prevailed in Lebanon throughout the past months and the political bickering wouldn't help in easing the current impasse," a statement issued following the meeting reported. "History wouldn't forgive. All states or individuals who block solutions are responsible for the tragedies that the Lebanese people are enduring", the statement warned. the Bishops noted that "the constitutional controversy over the presidential elections even after agreement on a candidate for this important post reveals the vast differences between politicians". The council's secretary Monsegnieur Yousef Tok, who read the statement, said "some politicians serve their own benefit rather than their country's". The Bishops reminded the Lebanese that the past year "was full of assassinations and disasters which didn't even spare the Lebanese Army", expressing hopes of a "new beginning for this small country in the new year". Beirut, 02 Jan 08, 13:44

Syria retaliates against France on Lebanon
DAMASCUS (AFP) — Foreign Minister Walid Muallem announced on Wednesday that Syria was breaking off contacts with France on the political crisis in Lebanon, responding to a similar gesture by Paris three days ago. "Syria has decided to cease Franco-Syrian cooperation on the Lebanese crisis," the minister told a press conference in Damascus. Muallem said Syria had been surprised by President Nicolas Sarkozy's announcement on Sunday that France was cutting contacts as it came just two days after Damascus had reached agreement with Paris on a comprehensive deal to end the crisis. He said Syria had been led to believe that the deal had the support of Lebanon's Western-backed cabinet but that Sarkozy's chief of staff Claude Gueant later revealed it had been vetoed by the head of the pro-government bloc in the Lebanese parliament, Saad Hariri. "We were surprised to learn of the comments of the French president during a press conference in Cairo in which he said Syria and the Lebanese opposition are responsible for the failure" to end the crisis which has left Lebanon without a president for more than a month, Muallem said. "On December 28, Syria and France reached agreement on a comprehensive settlement in Lebanon... providing for the election of a consensus president, the formation of a government of national unity in which every faction would be represented according to its political weight, and the drawing up of a fair electoral law," he said. "This plan was submitted to the (governing) majority who accepted it. "After Mr Sarkozy's statement, Mr Gueant called me on December 31 to tell me that (France) had been unable to sell the deal we had agreed on to Saad Hariri. "I rang Mr Gueant back in the afternoon and he told me that France had decided to break off contacts. "He told me France was unhappy with the fact that (Syria's) official SANA news agency had divulged the contents of the telephone calls. I retorted that Syria had nothing to hide and was not ashamed of its position."Lebanon's Syrian- and Iranian-backed opposition has been campaigning for a government of national unity ever since November last year, when its six ministers quit the cabinet and launched a sit-in outside its offices. The opposition refuses to recognize the legitimacy of Prime Minister Fuad Siniora's rump cabinet, saying that its failure to represent all of the country's myriad confessional and political groups runs roughshod over the power-sharing arrangements in force since the 1975-90 civil war.
The opposition has also called for reform of an electoral system that it says leaves it at a disadvantage.
During his news conference in Cairo on Sunday, Sarkozy accused Syria of failing to match its words about wanting a settlement to the crisis in Lebanon with deeds on the ground. France "will have no more contact with Syria... until we have proof of Syrian willingness to let Lebanon appoint a president by consensus," he said. The French foreign ministry reiterated that position on Wednesday."What we have told the Syrians is that our political contacts are at an end until Syria shows good faith," ministry spokeswoman Pascale Andreani said. Muallem mocked the French calls for Syria to use its influence saying they flew in the face of repeated Western demands for it to keep out of Lebanon's affairs. "They keep asking us not to intervene in Lebanon but at the same they ask us to use our influence with our Lebanese allies," the minister complained. Asked whether France's mediation efforts, which saw Gueant hold talks in Damascus late last year, had given Syria a renewed prominence in its smaller neighbour's affairs, the foreign ministry spokeswoman insisted they had not."France remains engaged and is still ready to do its bit in the search for a solution." Andreani said. On Friday, a Lebanese parliament session called to elect a president was postponed until January 12, the 11th time that a vote had been put off. The Lebanese cabinet has accused the opposition of repeatedly blocking the vote at the behest of Syria after the two sides reached agreement on army chief Michel Sleiman as a compromise candidate for the presidency.

Aude Criticizes Aoun's Comments
Naharnet/Greek Orthodox Archbishop of Beirut Elias Audeh expressed aggravation over insulting religious leaders after MP Michel Aoun said Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir does not represent public opinion. Audeh, in a sermon during New Year's mass Tuesday, criticized "low-standard morals" and "insulting" religious leaders.The Free Patriotic Movement leader on Monday said Sfeir represents the Church and not public opinion. The Patriarch, Aoun said, "is free to express his opinion regarding the political situation … but he does not decide our constitutional powers on behalf of us." He asked Sfeir to "clarify what is being said" about Bkirki's support for Premier Fouad Saniora's government.Sfeir, however, refrained on Tuesday from directly mentioning Lebanon's presidential crisis during his sermon. He rather focused on Pope Benedict XVI's appeal for world peace. Beirut, 02 Jan 08, 11:21

Seven Injured in Hizbullah-Mustaqbal Basta Clashes
Naharnet/Army troops on Tuesday opened fire in the air to disperse angry crowds from the Mustaqbal movement and Hizbullah in Beirut's Basta district, a security source reported. The source told Naharnet a group of Mustaqbal Movement partisans were re-erecting a poster of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri when attacked by Hizbullah members in the densely-populated Basta district, which wounded seven people. The Hariri poster, according to the source, was torn apart Monday night by unidentified assailants. Mustaqbal Movement lodged a complaint with the security authorities against the attack. The movement was advised to re-erect the poster that had been registered with the Beirut Municipality and for which legal fees had been paid. The army intervened when the Mustaqbal partisans were attacked and opened fire in the air to disperse both groups and avert a clash between the Sunni and Shiite factions, the source added. Army units cordoned off the district and its environs demanding surrender of the Hizbullah members, who tried to prevent Mustaqbal from re-erecting the poster, added the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Beirut, 01 Jan 08, 18:05

Syria Hits Back at France: No Cooperation over Lebanon
Naharnet/Syria will halt contacts with France on the political crisis in Lebanon, Foreign Minister Walid Muallem announced Wednesday, responding to a similar gesture by Paris three days earlier. "Syria has decided to cease Franco-Syrian cooperation on the Lebanese crisis," Muallem told a press conference in Damascus.
He accused the French of trying to blame the failure of international efforts to resolve the crisis in neighboring Lebanon on Syria and the Damascus-backed opposition in Beirut. "We were surprised to learn of the comments of the French president during a press conference in Cairo in which he said Syria and the Lebanese opposition are responsible for the failure -- despite Syria's efforts, which are well known to France, and the flexibility shown by the opposition to facilitate a consensual settlement," Muallem said. France "will have no more contact with Syria... until we have proof of Syrian willingness to let Lebanon appoint a president by consensus," French President Nicolas Sarkozy told reporters after talks with Egyptian counterpart Husni Mubarak Sunday.
France "wants a president for Lebanon," Sarkozy said. "It's time to provide proof (of goodwill), it's time for Syria to show it."
"It's time for Syria to prove with facts what it has not stopped saying in speeches," Sarkozy added. "We are now waiting for acts on Syria's part and not speeches."
Only last month, Sarkozy called Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, reopening top-level contacts after a three-year break in a bid to end Lebanon's political crisis, Syrian media reported at the time. And also in November, while French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner shuttled between rival leaders in Beirut, two aides to Sarkozy also met Assad in Damascus.Lebanon has been without a president since November 23 when Emile Lahoud's term ended with rival parties unable to agree on a successor. A parliamentary vote to elect a president has been postponed 11 times amid sharp divisions between the government of Prime Minister Fouad Saniora and the opposition. Earlier this month, U.S. President George Bush also ruled out direct talks with the Syrian leader, saying: "My patience ran out on President Assad a long time ago." On Sunday, Sarkozy also said France would free up funds for a planned international tribunal intended to try those behind a series of assassinations in Lebanon that began with the murder of ex-premier Rafik Hariri in 2005. U.N. investigators probing Hariri's murder have identified several people who they say may have been involved in the slaying, but no one has been charged. Many in Lebanon blame Syria for the attacks, charges denied by Damascus.(AFP) Beirut, 02 Jan 08, 13:10

Visit of Moussa's Representative Postponed
The visit of Arab League Chief Amr Moussa's assistant to Beirut has been postponed until after Sunday's meeting of Arab Foreign Ministers, al-Mustaqbal daily reported Wednesday. It said Hisham Youssef, who was expected to arrive in Lebanon on Tuesday, will visit Beirut after the meeting that will be held in the Egyptian capital to discuss the Lebanese Presidential crisis. Al-Mustaqbal also said that the Cairo meeting will issue a strong stance on the need to hold presidential elections without prior conditions and will announce support for Premier Fouad Saniora's government and the Lebanese army. The Hizbullah-led opposition is at loggerheads with the pro-government March 14 forces over the formation of the next cabinet. While both sides have agreed on army Chief Gen. Michel Suleiman as a compromise choice to fill the vacant candidacy, the opposition wants to have veto power in the government before electing a new head of state. Beirut, 02 Jan 08, 06:03