LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS
BULLETIN
January 08/08
Bible Reading of the day
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew
4,12-17.23-25. When he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to
Galilee. He left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum by the sea, in the
region of Zebulun and Naphtali, that what had been said through Isaiah the
prophet might be fulfilled: Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way to the
sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles, the people who sit in darkness
have seen a great light, on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death light
has arisen." From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say, "Repent, for the
kingdom of heaven is at hand."He went around all of Galilee, teaching in their
synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and curing every disease and
illness among the people. His fame spread to all of Syria, and they brought to
him all who were sick with various diseases and racked with pain, those who were
possessed, lunatics, and paralytics, and he cured them. And great crowds from
Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan
followed him.
Free Opinions and Releases
Interview of the President (Bush)by Nadia Bilbassy-Charters, Al
Arabiya TV.Reuters
-January 07/08
Interview of the President (Bush) by Hisham Bourar, Al Hurra TV-Reuters.
January 07/08
Daughter of Lebanese migrants who prospered.The Age -
Melbourne,Victoria,Australia. January 07/08
Latest News Reports From
Miscellaneous Sources for January 07/08
Soeid Hints that Aoun Harmed by Arab Initiative-Naharnet
Arab League Backs Plan to End Lebanon Stalemate-New
York Times
Lessons from Lebanon-Boston
Globe
Winograd Commission: Final Lebanon War Report on Jan 30-Naharnet
UN seeks to halt Hizbollah arms in Lebanon-Telegraph.co.uk
The Region: The president's last year in office-Jerusalem
Post
Samir Franjieh Ridicules Nasrallah's Threats and Places Bets on Pressuring Syria-Naharnet
Berri Welcomes Arab
Foreign Minister's Stand on Lebanon-Naharnet
Larijani Calls for
Speedy Solution to Lebanese Crisis-Naharnet
Berri Welcomes The Arab Foreign Minister's Stand on Lebanon-Naharnet
Lebanese politicians praise Arab statement endorsing new
president-International Herald Tribune
Moussa Carries Arab Rescue Plan to Beirut-Naharnet
Winograd Commission: Final Lebanon War Report on Jan 30
The Israeli government commission investigating state and military conduct
during the 2006 offensive on Lebanon has said it will release its final findings
at the end of this month. "The committee investigating the 2006 Lebanon war will
submit to the prime minister and defense minister its final report on Wednesday,
January 30," the Winograd Commission said in a statement Sunday. An official
closely involved in the commission's work told Agence France Presse that "the
report will be as harsh as the previous one," referring to the interim findings
the committee released at the end of April last year.
Those findings roasted Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, former defense minister Amir
Peretz and ex-chief of staff Dan Halutz over the 34-day war with Hizbullah in
July-August 2006. The interim report accused Olmert of "serious failure" and
lacking "judgment, responsibility and prudence" in his decision to go to war
against the Shiite group. The findings also blasted Peretz and Halutz, who
resigned last year, for failing in their duties. But in a big boost to Olmert,
the commission's final report is not expected to include personal
recommendations. The premier is the only senior leader who has held on to his
post despite the widespread opinion in Israel that the war was a failure, and he
has refused to step down. On December 26, Zehava Gal-On, a lawmaker from the
left-wing Meretz party, said Olmert told her that he had "absolutely no
intention of resigning following the publication of the Winograd report." The
Winograd Commission, named after retired judge Eliahu Winograd who heads it, was
set up in late 2006.(AFP-Naharnet) (AFP file photo shows Israeli soldiers
walking back to northern Israel from south Lebanon in August 2006)
Beirut, 07 Jan 08, 05:27
UN seeks to halt Hizbollah arms in Lebanon
By Damien McElroy, Foreign Affairs Correspondent
07/01/2008
United Nations forces in Lebanon have stepped up joint patrols with the
country's army to intercept shipments of heavy weapons by the terrorist group
Hizbollah to the border regions with Israel. The organisation is known to have
restocked its strongholds north of the strategic Litani river with weapons from
Iran and Syria.
But the presence of 3,500 troops of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) has
so far deterred movement of arms further south.
Officials said relations between Unifil, commanded by an Italian, Maj Gen
Claudio Graziano, and Hizbollah deteriorated in recent weeks as the security
forces cracked down on movements over the Litani's bridges. Hizbollah mobilised
volunteer units across southern Lebanon late last year in a move interpreted as
a signal of intent to restore its fighting capacity to pre-war levels. Reports
in the aftermath of the war estimated that the organisation had lost half its
weapons stockpile. With Lebanon in the grips of a political crisis over its
presidency, diplomats have expressed concern that Hizbollah is using its
political position to distract attention from the expansion of its military
power. A Unifil spokesman said limiting the fallout from the struggle for power
in Beirut was a key challenge. "We are observing closely the situation in the
capital and the manoeuvres for president," said Andrea Tenenti.
"We are maintaining a high alert to make sure nothing changes in the south. It
is true we haven't encountered any weapons so far but that is our task, to
monitor and prevent any movements." Lebanon has not had a president since Emile
Lahoud resigned in November. The parliament has repeatedly postponed sessions to
select a new head of state and major political factions show no signs of
resolving a deadlock over powersharing. The power struggle has not so far
derailed co-operation between Unifil and the Lebanese Army, which now has
offices in the UN headquarters and contributes troops to international
operations.
Some Israeli officials have accused Unifil of failing to confront Hizbollah in
the border region. According to claims in Tel Aviv, Hizbollah mounts
checkpoints, conducts training exercises and closely shadows Unifil's movements
in the region.
The Region: The president's last year in office
By BARRY RUBIN
What should President George W. Bush, currently visiting the Middle East, expect
to achieve during his last year in office, even as the American people choose
his successor?
The answer could not possibly be objectively clearer, yet subjectively more
obscure. The gap between the real Middle East versus how it is perceived by all
too many people in Washington and in the academic-journalistic elite is far too
wide.
Three quick examples are useful to underline this point: First, the Annapolis
summit was hailed throughout America and the West as a big success. In the
region, however, less than one-fifth of Israelis and Palestinians thought it had
done any good. People here knew better.
Second, many in the US have hailed what seems to be a de-escalation of American
pressure on Iran over the nuclear issue. The response by Gulf Arab states,
though, has been to conclude that America is weak and retreating, followed by
their escalated efforts to make their own appeasement deal with Teheran.
Analyze This: When presidents come a-calling
Third, the same is true for Syria, where American efforts at conciliation have
emboldened Damascus and demoralized the Lebanese moderates resisting Syrian
domination.
THE FOLLOWING points are very much in the interests of both the United States
and Bush personally:
Don't promise to resolve the Arab-Israel conflict in 2008. It isn't going to
happen, and these words will be used to ridicule you in 2009. Over-promising
doesn't build confidence but makes the radicals more eager to sabotage you and
the moderates more passive, letting you do all the work.
Use the leverage you have with the Palestinian Authority and Fatah to press
them toward changing their ways. Giving billions of dollars with no strings
attached is a formula not only for wasting the money, but for ensuring that the
PA is thrown out by Hamas. Demand that the PA do something about stopping terror
and ending incitement.
Keep the US-Israel relationship strong. Sacrificing Israel's defensive needs
will not make anyone else in the region love you and will not make the radicals
less popular or aggressive.
Don't fool around with the nonsensical idea that Iran and Syria can be split.
The alliance benefits both too much and, after all, they think they are winning.
And if you try, and fail, to manipulate those who are far better at manipulating
the West, you will only persuade the next president to give up even more in
exchange for nothing.
Before you leave office, precisely because you believe that the situation in
Iraq is improving, begin a transition to the next step. Give your successor the
basis for continuing that strategy. If you don't, the next president will
probably be tempted to withdraw as proof of doing a better job than you did.
Remember that Europe is not the same as it was, especially given the election
of Francois Sarkozy in France, along with good cooperation with Britain and
Germany. The United States can work with Europe on a tougher policy toward
Syria, Iran and Hamas in a way not possible in the past.
While, of course, your goal is to build an alliance with moderate (relative to
Syria at least) Arab states, don't ever forget that these regimes will do as
little as possible to help you. And do keep in mind that it is their own
survival, not the Arab-Israeli conflict, that motivates them, despite what they
(or the State Department) might say.
Whatever you do, don't sell out Lebanon. The Lebanese government and its
supporters are the most courageous and moderate regime in the Arab world today.
Lebanon's survival free of control by Iran, Syria and Hizbullah is one of the
most vital US interests. And Lebanon's fall is the worst defeat in the region
you could suffer in the next year.
Keep up your deep-seated moral conviction that it is wrong and dangerous to
whitewash terrorists driven by an aggressive ideology as being misguided souls
who must be won over by kindness and confidence-building measures.
Don't forget that Iran's possession of nuclear weapons is the most dangerous
scenario in the Middle East for US interests. Not only might Teheran use the
bombs, but a nuclear-armed Iran would lead the region just as Saddam Hussein
would have done if he'd kept Kuwait back in 1991.
Finally, and ultimately most important, talk to your probable successors - and
be persuasive. One of the most disheartening aspects of US foreign policy is the
failure to properly transmit experience. Many people still don't understand that
your failure to intervene energetically on Arab-Israeli issues for your first
term is because you saw what happened to president Bill Clinton and remembered
what he told you.
IN THE EYES of many Americans, what the November 2008 election will show is that
the invasion of Iraq was a big mistake. Far worse, everything learned due to the
Cold War's end - the victory over Saddam Hussein in 1991, the failed
Arab-Israeli peace process, and September 11 is in jeopardy of being forgotten.
Antagonism over Iraq should not be allowed to discredit the need for a strong
policy that confronts extremist forces. For you, the best-case outcome would be
having a legacy judged on that basis, as the president who stood up after
September 11 to the challenge of a new anti-American threat. Adopting some of
your enemies' worst ideas will neither win their respect nor help the Middle
East.
The writer is director of the Global Research in International Affairs (GLORIA)
Center at IDC Herzliya and editor of the Middle East Review of International
Affairs Journal. His latest book is The Truth About Syria.
Samir Franjieh Ridicules Nasrallah's Threats and Places
Bets on Pressuring Syria
By Dalia Nahme
MP Samir Franjieh said threats and deadlines set by Hizbullah leader Sayyed
Hassan Nasrallah would not result in destabilizing Lebanon and the Arabs would
not let Lebanon become an arena for Iranian-U.S. confrontation. In an interview
with Naharnet, Franjieh said Nasrallah's threats "make me laugh."
"Hizbullah has been making threats for over a year, starting with demonstrations
(in January last year) and occupying central Beirut, blocking traffic and
preventing people from practicing their work," Franjieh said. "Such threats
produced no results," he added. Franjieh recalled that Nasrallah "set schedules
five or six times in a year time, and I do not believe that anyone is capable of
achieving anything by resorting to force."He also noted that the Arab Summit
conference held in Saudi Arabia last March resulted in setting up a new regional
Arab order. "Striking at Lebanon aims at striking at this regional Arab order,
and aims at calling off the Arab world, so that the area would be an arena for
Iranian-U.S. confrontation as if the Arabs have ceased to exist," Franjieh
explained.
"If Lebanon was dismantled, the only example for pluralism in the Arab world
would cease to exist
You cannot adhere to the slogan outlined during the
Riyadh Summit that peace is a strategic option and change Lebanon into an
emirate fighting on behalf of Iran," he stressed. Franjeh said partnership in
ruling Lebanon, as demanded by Hizbullah, is tantamount to "partnership by Iran
and Syria in the national Lebanese decision-making." Hizbullah, he noted,
maintains "security, financial and military relations with these states
this
poses major threats to the Arab World."Franjieh also stressed on the fact that
the March 14 alliance is "committed to nominating Army Commander Gen. Michel
Suleiman for president."
He said blocking Suleiman's election and chaining him with pre-conditions "are
the result of a Syrian decision to block the elections." Hizbullah and
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri's AMAL movement have "lost their ability to
maneuver, that is why they assigned (Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel) Aoun
to negotiate, because they know that would lead to finishing off dialogue,"
according to Franjieh. He said destabilizing Lebanon "has a high cost on the
nation
but it actually speeds up the creation of the international
tribunal."Syrian President Bashar Assad's Baathist regime in Franjieh's words,
is not advised to repeat the example of the late Iraqi President Saddam Hussein
by threatening neighboring states. "This is a primitive concept
We still have
some hope in a change," Franjieh said without further elaboration. He concluded
by stressing: "Our problem is not with Hassan Nasrallah, our problem is with the
Syrian Regime. The issue is related to Arab and international pressures on
Syria." Beirut, 06 Jan 08, 14:41
Berri Welcomes Arab Foreign Minister's Stand on Lebanon
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a prominent figure in the Hizbullah-led
opposition, welcomed a decision by Arab Foreign ministers backing the election
of Army Commander Gen. Michel Suleiman president and expressed hope for its
implementation. Berri, in a statement, praised "Arab unanimity on (safeguarding)
Lebanon's supreme interest." The foreign ministers adopted an "historic stand in
support of inter-Lebanese consensus" by urging Suleiman's election and the
formation of a national unity government in which neither the opposition nor the
majority can pass decisions, while urging for adopting a new law for election.
Berri, in a statement distributed by the state-run national news agency, paid
tribute to "Arab kings, presidents and ministers as well as Arab League
Secretary General (Amr Moussa) for efforts exerted to accomplish" the stand
adopted during a meeting in Cairo on Saturday.
"We hope it would be carried out in reality," Berri said. He concluded by
stressing: "I tell the Lebanese people that we can proceed from the Arab
statement to Lebanese implementation that stresses on our unity and guarantees
our safety." Beirut, 06 Jan 08, 14:27
Lebanese politicians praise Arab statement endorsing new
president
The Associated Press - Published: January 6, 2008
BEIRUT, Lebanon: Lebanon's feuding politicians on Sunday welcomed the decision
by Arab nations, including Syria, to back the head of Lebanon's army as the next
president, expressing hope the move would help end the country's political
crisis.
Arab foreign ministers issued the endorsement of Gen. Michel Suleiman on
Saturday after meeting in the Egyptian capital of Cairo. Syria's willingness to
back the statement is expected to soften demands by the opposition led by the
Syrian-backed militant group Hezbollah that it receive Cabinet veto power
before allowing Suleiman to be elected. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, who is
allied with the opposition, thanked the Arab ministers for their call, saying
"we hope that it will be translated on the ground to ward off any strife and end
the current crisis."
"I tell the Lebanese that we can start with the Arab resolution to ... confirm
our unity," Berri added in a statement released by his office.
Saad Hariri, head of the anti-Syrian parliamentary majority, echoed Berri's
endorsement, describing the resolution as a "historic stance that expresses the
real Arab will in rejecting all kinds of pressure on our country."
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"It also gives the Lebanese people moral, political and national support that
will enable them, God willing, to overcome the current period," he added.
The ruling coalition has accused the opposition of obstructing the election of a
new president under orders from Syria and Iran. In turn, the opposition has
claimed pro-government groups in the parliament majority follow U.S. policies.
Speaking from Cairo, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem told Hezbollah's
Al-Manar television that his country has repeatedly said it is ready to help end
Lebanon's political crisis but "cannot put pressure on anyone in Lebanon because
the solution should be Lebanese."
Speaking about his meeting Saturday with Saudi counterpart Saud al-Faisal, al-Moallem
said, "Syria has its friends in Lebanon and Saudi Arabia has its friends in
Lebanon and we have agreed to cooperate."Al-Moallem was apparently referring to
Hariri, who holds Saudi citizenship and has close relations with the royal
family in the oil-rich nation.
Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora called the leaders of Saudi Arabia and
Egypt on Sunday, as well as other Arab officials, to thank them for helping find
a solution to the crisis, his office said in a statement.Saniora also called
pro-government Lebanese officials and urged them to back the Arab initiative,
calling it "a major development on the road to solving the crisis in
Lebanon."Lebanon has been without a president since pro-Syrian President Emile
Lahoud's term ended Nov. 23. The crisis over the presidency has capped a
yearlong power struggle between anti-Syrian politicians, who hold a slim
majority in parliament and support the Western-backed government of Saniora, and
the pro-Syrian opposition.
Lawmakers on both sides have agreed to back Suleiman as a compromise candidate,
but the parliament must first amend the constitution to allow a sitting military
chief to become president. This process has been complicated by the opposition's
demand for a new unity government that would give it veto power over major
decisions. Opposition boycotts have thwarted attempts to choose a president by
preventing a two-thirds quorum.
The Arab foreign ministers statement called on Lebanon to elect Suleiman by Jan.
27, then resolve the issues surrounding a national unity government. The
ministers also said the new president should have the power to cast his vote to
break ties in the Cabinet.
Hezbollah legislator Hassan Fadlallah said the opposition will "openly discuss
the Arab initiative because it (the opposition) is keen to find a solution to
the political crisis."Despite the decision by the Arab ministers not to support
opposition veto power, Fadlallah praised their statement for addressing both the
need to elect a president and form a new national unity government. Meanwhile,
Syrian President Bashar Assad and Vice President Farouk al-Sharaa discussed the
situation in Lebanon on Sunday with Iranian envoy Ali Larijani, who is a close
aide to the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Larijani, who was visiting the Syrian capital of Damascus, said Iran supports
any push to create consensus among the Lebanese people.
"We wish success for Amr Moussa's efforts" said Larijani, referring to the head
of the Arab League, who is scheduled to visit Lebanon in the coming days.
Soeid Hints that Aoun Harmed by Arab Initiative
Former MP Fares Soeid on Monday hinted that Free Patriotic Movement leader Gen.
Michel Aoun was harmed by the Arab initiative which adopted the election of Gen.
Michel Suleiman as president. "Some Lebanese parties are harmed by this (Arab)
decision because they are running for the presidency," Soeid told Voice of
Lebanon radio station, pointing to remarks by FPM officials in this regard. FPM
official Jebran Bassil has said in response to the Arab initiative that his
movement wants the new president to be given a "fair say" in the next
government. Soeid, who described as a "balanced decision" the Arab plan adopted
in Cairo on Sunday, warned against "any adventure to re-evaluate the Taef
Accord." He stressed that "the importance of the Arab foreign ministers meeting
was that it adopted the candidacy of Gen. Michel Suleiman and (called for) his
immediate election, thus putting an end to the vacuum." Beirut, 07 Jan 08, 09:37
Arab League Backs Plan to End Lebanon Stalemate
By REUTERS
Published: January 7, 2008
CAIRO (Reuters) The Arab League on Sunday approved a proposal to end the
constitutional crisis in Lebanon. Diplomats said the plan had support from
Syria, which has ties to the Lebanese opposition, and from the Lebanese
parliamentary majority.
Times Topics: Lebanon
But members of Hezbollah, the Shiite group at the heart of the Lebanese
opposition, gave a more cautious response to the plan, which says a national
unity government should be formed in such a way that no one party can impose or
block any decision. Lebanon has not had a president since Nov. 23, initially
because of disagreements over who should hold the post, and more recently over
the details of a new national unity cabinet. The plan, approved by Arab foreign
ministers meeting at the Arab League in Cairo, endorses the choice of the army
chief, Gen. Michel Suleiman, as the next president of Lebanon and provides that
he be the arbiter in any contested decisions. The leader of the Lebanese
parliamentary majority, Saad al-Hariri, welcomed the plan. The declaration by
the Arab foreign ministers presents the Lebanese with a new chance to elect a
consensus president and fill the presidency, he said in a statement. He said
that the Lebanese should treat the results of the Cairo meeting as an
achievement. But a Hezbollah member of Parliament, Hussein Haj Hassan, told Al
Manar, the Hezbollah television station, that the opposition wanted
clarifications on some aspects of the next government. Muhammad Raad, the leader
of Hezbollahs parliamentary bloc, said the movement would wait to see what
happened next. We dont want to be pessimistic or block the route to any
productive decision, especially in a complicated matter like the Lebanese
issue, he added. The Syrian foreign minister, Walid al-Moallem, told reporters
that a solution in Lebanon was up to the Lebanese. I hope that our Lebanese
brothers will think hard before reacting while they wait for the secretary
general of the Arab League to arrive to hear from him the Arab point of view,
he added. But Arab diplomatic sources said Syria, the main foreign power behind
the Lebanese opposition, had agreed to the plan, even if it did not overtly give
the opposition veto power. Mr. Moallem said the United States was obstructing
consensus in Lebanon, through words and deeds. He did not elaborate.
The draft does not attack Syria, and it enhances the role of General Suleiman,
widely seen as sympathetic to Syrian interests. Lebanese officials said the Arab
League secretary general, Amr Moussa, would visit their capital, Beirut, this
week to push through a deal.
Elliot Abrams's Victories in Lebanon
Mostafa Zein
Al-Hayat - 22/12/07//
Before his visit to the Middle East at the beginning of next month, President
George Bush reassured the Lebanese about the exhaustion of his patience with
President Bashar al-Assad. He no longer wanted to hear his name. There is no
possibility for any dialogue between Washington and Damascus. His administration
is united in this approach. It is not possible to say that in his administration
there are hawks who take orders from his vice-president Cheney, and doves who
incline toward Minister Rice. He sent to Beirut Assistant Secretary of State
David Welch and deputy National Security Adviser Elliot Abrams.
The Lebanese know the American officials well. The first barely left Beirut at
times of crises. The second participated in the planning for the "Cedar
Revolution" with a number of them in the year 2000. They issued a document
entitled "The Role of the United States in Ending the Syrian Occupation of
Lebanon." With him were Ziad Abdelnur, Samir Bustani, Nabil el-Hajj, Habib Malek,
Daniel Nassif, Charles Sahyoun, and others. The document called upon Washington
to remove the weapons of mass destruction from Syria, and to remove Syria from
Lebanon by force. His interest in this question matured at that advanced stage,
and perhaps before it. At that time, the division between the Lebanese was not
as clear. The Syrian army was still firmly established in Lebanon. Rafiq
al-Hariri was prime minister and Walid Jumblatt was still a friend of Ghazi
Kanaan and then Rustum Ghazaleh. Samir Gaegea was in prison, Hizbullah was
getting ready to liberate the South (the document was written before May 2000).
It is the man's biography that he believes in achieving peace only by force. His
star began to rise in the era of former President Ronald Reagan. His name was
connected with the "Contra" scandal and the arming of it in Nicaragua. He only
sees in the Middle East the interest of Israel. He stood with the hawks of
Likud, such as Sharon and Netanyahu. He was against Oslo. He criticized Bill
Clinton sharply because he became engaged in the negotiations between the
Palestinians and the Israelis. In 1997 he signed with many Likudists "the
Project for the American Century, which calls upon Washington to increase
military spending and to bear its responsibilities in spreading democracy by
force in the world. He also participated in the signing of a letter that was
sent to Clinton (1998) that calls on him to get rid of the Iraqi regime because
it was no longer possible to ascertain the extent of its armament, and it had
become a danger for the United Sates and Israel. He has worked toward and is
still working toward strengthening the relationship between Zionism and
Christian fundamentalism.
In January 2006, Abrams visited Beirut. He came to examine his accomplishments
and they had been realized. He came to witness the realization of his dream with
the transformation of Lebanon from a country that supported Palestinian rights,
united around the resistance, to a country where anarchy reigned. He came with
Welch to visit and support his friends. He justifies the Israeli aggression and
emphasizes that the Hebrew State was not defeated in the July 2006 War. He
listens for a long time to "the arms of treachery." He loved to hear this
expression, which means that Israeli was right.
After one year exactly, Abrams returns , with Welch, taking on themselves the
same mission: to strengthen the determination of friends, and to stand by their
side, since their alliance was almost coming to an end, after Walid Jumblatt
discovered the secret, during his trip to Washington. He returned to Beirut to
announce his retreat from all of his previous positions, for fear of an
American-Syrian deal at the expense of March 14, and "to preserve the gains that
have been realized by the alliance, as long as the defeat occurred and so that
we do not relinquish more and to protect the resistance."
Abrams returned to Beirut to celebrate his victory once more, and to verify that
Lebanon was on the edge of the abyss. His presence among sincere friends is
sufficient so that this conclusion is correct. How if we joined that with the
exhaustion of Bush's patience with al-Assad
Daughter of Lebanese migrants who prospered
January 7, 2008
Page 1 of 2 | Single page
Advertisement
Eileen Huntley, businesswoman
16-9-1915 - 7-11-2007
EILEEN Huntley began life in Gawler, South Australia, and died at 92 from a
heart attack at home in Parkdale, Victoria.
She was fiercely independent until her last breath and the fact that she died,
caring for her home and garden, would have made her smile with relief. This was
her castle and she always hoped to die there in her old age.
Her life spanned almost a century and she witnessed changes in customs,
medicines, fashions, music, technology, politics and the environment and kept
up with all of it. If you ever wondered who was that small, white-haired
Parkdale women, walking up and down the hills pulling a shopping trolley every
alternate day en route to "do her messages", that was Eileen. She would walk via
her favourite cafι, Parker's, where the owner and staff would provide a latte
for a rest stop and a chat.
Born Eileen Rawady, she was proud of her Lebanese heritage. When she was born,
the midwife thought that she was going to die and she was given the last rites.
Not only did she recover, she showed considerable courage and resilience in her
92 years.
Her parents came from northern Lebanon (the family originating in islands off
the coast of Tripoli) in the early 1900s, and her father, Nicholas Rawady, was a
hawker. His wife, Theodora Nini, chosen for him, migrated to Australia later and
bore him six children. Eileen was the youngest.
"Sittee" (Lebanese for "grandma") raised the children, sometimes in South
Australia, mostly in Carlton, while Nicholas travelled Australia selling his
wares. Each child was trained in the arts of cooking, running a house, the girls
dressmaking and embroidery, and the boys making shoes and woodwork, selling
papers and groceries for pocket money.
This migrant family strove to establish roots not just material but ethical
and cultural here in Australia. For them, manners and cleanliness weren't next
to godliness, but were godliness. This impacted on them all, as each kept a
house that was as neat as a pin and spotlessly clean, Eileen leaving no speck of
dust behind when she died.
Preserving her Lebanese heritage, she could cook all its edible delicacies, from
khoubbeh to vine-leaf rolls to bahklewa and ma'amoules, but she was also a proud
Australian. If you visited for a meal, she would also cook a full Australian
menu roast lamb with all the trimmings "just in case you didn't like
Lebanese food". The leftovers would feed a family for days as she never let
guests leave empty-handed
Eileen was not only a housewife par excellence and a generous, endlessly
hospitable cook and hostess. She was an astute businesswoman who developed her
sharp mind over many years, in retail and wholesale. Eileen began her career in
the shoe department in the Myer Bourke Street store, soon rising to the post of
manager.
In a dress made by her sister Mary, she married Ronald Huntley, who spent three
years in the army during the war, later becoming Australian sales manager at the
Guest Biscuit company.
In 1952, Eileen decided to go into business. She purchased a delicatessen in
Regent Street, Regent, single-handedly building it into a successful enterprise.
The success of that shop allowed her to save enough money to design and build a
new home in Buchanan Avenue, North Balwyn, which, coincidentally, was being
demolished on the day of her death.
Eileen's husband was not interested in joining her business, even when the Jan
Brothers, entrepreneurial grocers, approached her to work with them in setting
up Australia's first large toy store. Regretfully, she did not expand into toys.
However, she also worked for Maurice Levy in the rag trade, managing some of his
stores in the city and suburbs. She was also a trained and certified Susan
Johnston demonstrator working in Myer introducing numerous new products to
passing customers.
When Ronald died of cancer in 1981, she was widowed but rarely alone.
Her friends and cousins were always a great part of her life and, as a result,
she became the keeper of the family mythology, gathering photos and details of
the extended Rawady and Huntley clans. She was the one who knew all the cousins
and their positions on the family tree.
Eileen was proud to count among that number Victoria's former premier Steve
Bracks, the famed Rawady brothers, store-owners in Kapunda, South Australia, and
Dr Nini, a well-known doctor and humanitarian in Tripoli, Lebanon, with whom she
kept up correspondence until his death.
In Parkdale, she continued to walk to the shops, even during recent roadworks
when the road outside was excavated. Seeing her plight, the road crew graded a
smooth path for her and often assisted her to walk past the rough patches to
ensure her safety, once again, assisting her to live independently as she had
always wished.
The photographs and family history that she compiled and preserved are the
backbone of an intriguing and uplifting tale of early Lebanese migration and
much of 20th century Melbourne.
Eileen is survived by her only child, Ron, and two grandchildren, Claire and
Marcus, but was the designated "mother" to the whole Rawady clan for many
decades.
Lessons from Lebanon
By Daniel Levy
January 7, 2008
WITH THE Annapolis conference and the Paris fund-raising effort to aid the
Palestinians behind us, the Middle East peace process is now in need of constant
vigilance. President Bush will visit the region this week, but it is Condoleezza
Rice who will be looked upon to provide a guiding hand.
The new peace effort is very much her baby. A look at the war in Lebanon in
2006, and Rice's management of it, provides some clues to the challenges ahead.
In his recently released study of Rice, "The Confidante: Condoleezza Rice and
the Creation of the Bush Legacy," Glenn Kessler, a Washington Post
correspondent, recounts a memorable episode from that conflict. Two weeks into
the fighting, with no end in sight, the world and the region were agitated and
the Italians convened a high-level conference. Rice refused to endorse an
immediate cease-fire, arguing instead for a more permanent change to the status
quo in Lebanon.
Kessler describes a sweltering midsummer Roman conference hall, the image of a
"bedraggled Rice . . . wiping beads of sweat from her forehead" being splashed
across the world.
According to Kessler, "Rice did not look strong or in control; she looked in
over her head."
That image was banished at Annapolis. Rice looked the very embodiment of poise,
stature, and accomplishment.
To be effective in peace however, she will need to learn three lessons from her
handling of the Lebanon war:
That fragile Arab polities are best stabilized by reconciliation, not
confrontation.
That US diplomatic leadership should be timely and persistent, not sluggish and
sporadic.
That the special relationship between Jerusalem and Washington should be used to
help Israel climb down from precarious ladders, not scramble further up them.
The war in Lebanon was supposed to be about handing Hezbollah a crushing defeat
and reshaping that country's politics. Things didn't work out that way. Lebanon
is deeply divided, and exacerbating that division was counterproductive.
Political progress will necessitate difficult compromises.
The reality for the Palestinians is somewhat similar. A sustainable
Israeli-Palestinian peace cannot be constructed on the edifice of Palestinian
division. Hamas should be offered incentives to join the process.
Hamas is important not only because it poses the threat of violence, but also
because it is potentially capable of bestowing greater legitimacy on a fragile
peace effort, making possible the implementation of any deal that is reached.
Rice must remember Lebanon, pursue a Gaza-Israel cease-fire, and encourage
reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas.
The most conspicuous aspect of American diplomacy in that summer of war was that
it went AWOL for a critical month. Only on day 34 of the fighting did the United
States facilitate UN passage of Security Council Resolution 1701, ending the
war.
Rice's diplomacy, or lack thereof, prevented the push for an immediate
cease-fire.
Success after Annapolis requires early and frequent American intervention. Bush
and Rice have talked about supporting a bilateral process between Israel and the
Palestinians. They will have to do more than that. It is already evident that
the United States needs to baby-sit the parties. This applies to commitments
undertaken to improve daily life - freezing settlements, improving security, and
easing closures. Beyond that, the United States should be ready to submit
bridging proposals to seal a detailed framework agreement on the core issues -
territory, Jerusalem, refugees, and security.
US diplomatic leadership does not mean US soloism. The United States should
better integrate Europe, Russia, the United Nations, and Arab states into the
process, including Syria. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel recently told the
newspaper Haaretz if Israel did not achieve a two-state solution, it was
"finished."
It is hard not to see this message as being addressed to both an Israeli and
American audience. A translation for the nuance-challenged: Help me to do what I
know to be necessary for Israel's survival. It is easier for an Israeli prime
minister to say yes on a tough issue to an American president than to the
chairman of the PLO.
The United States does neither itself nor its friends in Jerusalem any favors
when it out-koshers the Israelis. The special relationship is more
constructively deployed when it helps Israel get beyond debilitating addictions
to occupied territories and settlements, for instance.
By opposing an early diplomatic exit strategy to the Lebanon war, Rice displayed
a simplistic reading of the special relationship and ultimately harmed both
Israel's security and America's standing.
Senior Israeli ministers are on record testifying to an investigating committee
that when they voted in the Cabinet to authorize the initial military strike
they did not consider this to be the start of a prolonged war. Their working
assumption was that diplomatic pressure would end the military conflict after 48
to 96 hours.
That did not happen - America prevented it, thereby making Israel a prisoner to
accomplishing a mission that wasn't realistic. The delay in diplomacy did not
change the substance of the deal eventually reached; it did, however, cause more
death, destruction, and loss of American prestige.
Rice knows both the parameters of an Israeli-Palestinian agreement and that
delay in reaching that deal has similar but far more devastating consequences.
The challenge now is for her to learn the lessons of that sticky day in Rome.
Daniel Levy is a senior fellow at the New America Foundation and The Century
Foundation. He served in the Israeli prime minister's office under Ehud Barak
and was an official negotiator at the Oslo II and Taba peace talks.
Rice's diplomacy, or lack thereof, prevented the push for an immediate
cease-fire.
more stories like thisSuccess after Annapolis requires early and frequent
American intervention. Bush and Rice have talked about supporting a bilateral
process between Israel and the Palestinians. They will have to do more than
that. It is already evident that the United States needs to baby-sit the
parties. This applies to commitments undertaken to improve daily life - freezing
settlements, improving security, and easing closures. Beyond that, the United
States should be ready to submit bridging proposals to seal a detailed framework
agreement on the core issues - territory, Jerusalem, refugees, and security.
US diplomatic leadership does not mean US soloism. The United States should
better integrate Europe, Russia, the United Nations, and Arab states into the
process, including Syria. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel recently told the
newspaper Haaretz if Israel did not achieve a two-state solution, it was
"finished."
It is hard not to see this message as being addressed to both an Israeli and
American audience. A translation for the nuance-challenged: Help me to do what I
know to be necessary for Israel's survival. It is easier for an Israeli prime
minister to say yes on a tough issue to an American president than to the
chairman of the PLO.
The United States does neither itself nor its friends in Jerusalem any favors
when it out-koshers the Israelis. The special relationship is more
constructively deployed when it helps Israel get beyond debilitating addictions
to occupied territories and settlements, for instance.
By opposing an early diplomatic exit strategy to the Lebanon war, Rice displayed
a simplistic reading of the special relationship and ultimately harmed both
Israel's security and America's standing.
Senior Israeli ministers are on record testifying to an investigating committee
that when they voted in the Cabinet to authorize the initial military strike
they did not consider this to be the start of a prolonged war. Their working
assumption was that diplomatic pressure would end the military conflict after 48
to 96 hours.
That did not happen - America prevented it, thereby making Israel a prisoner to
accomplishing a mission that wasn't realistic. The delay in diplomacy did not
change the substance of the deal eventually reached; it did, however, cause more
death, destruction, and loss of American prestige.
Rice knows both the parameters of an Israeli-Palestinian agreement and that
delay in reaching that deal has similar but far more devastating consequences.
The challenge now is for her to learn the lessons of that sticky day in Rome.
Daniel Levy is a senior fellow at the New America Foundation and The Century
Foundation. He served in the Israeli prime minister's office under Ehud Barak
and was an official negotiator at the Oslo II and Taba peace talks.
© Copyright 2008 Globe Newspaper Company.
Interview of the President by Nadia Bilbassy-Charters, Al Arabiya TV (4Ί)
06/01/2008 23:22:00 Business Wire Q Absolutely.
Secretary Gates told Al-Arabiya in an interview recently that the diplomatic
option is still 100 percent in focus.
Does that mean that you re going to still pressure Iran on the diplomatic front?
And how far can you go before your patience will run out? THE PRESIDENT: We
definitely will continue to pressure them on the diplomatic front.
And it s hard, because sometimes people are more interested in market share for
their goods than they are for achieving peace.
And so I ve spent a lot of time with allies in Europe, for example, convincing
them of the importance of working together to send a common to the Iranian
regime.
So, yes, the diplomatic option is on the table and it s active and we re working
hard.
Q On the Syria issue -- I don t know if I m allowed to ask one -- THE PRESIDENT:
Keep going.
All you got to do is ask; I ll handle it.
(Laughter.) Q Thank you.
On the Syria issue, I mean, we already talked about -- you actually told me that
you -- patience with Assad is running out.
But we still have no Lebanese elections.
What does it mean? What can you do? Is it negotiation? Is it a military strike?
Is it sanctions against Syria? What can you do? THE PRESIDENT: Well, what we can
do is make sure that the world understands our position and try to convince them
that we ought to work together to say to the Syrians, let Sleiman go forward.
That s the President that the people want there in Beirut, and he ought to go
forward.
And that s going to be on my agenda when I talk to friends and allies in the
Middle East, that -- and we can collectively send the message to President
Assad.
We ve sanctioned Syria, and I m looking at different ways to keep sending a
tough message, because so far, he has shown no willingness to be constructive on
Lebanon or in dealing with a militant Hamas or in stopping suiciders from
heading into Iraq.
In other words, some reasonable things that we would like to see done in order
to improve relations, which he has not done.
We re working very carefully -- closely with the French, for example.
I ve had a conversation with President Sarkozy on the subject.
I ll be talking to my friend King Abdallah of Saudi Arabia on the subject, who
has got a very keen interest in seeing to it that the Lebanese democracy goes
forward.
And so we ve got a very good chance to have a more focused, concerted, universal
message that President Assad, I hope, will listen to.
Q But some will say they might wait for another year until you leave office, and
then -- THE PRESIDENT: Well, he could try to -- but in the meantime, there will
be others around who he will have irritated as a result of his stubbornness.
And so, yes, I mean, he could try to wait me out, but there s other leaders in
the world that are as equally concerned as I am about Syria not letting the
presidency go forward and really hurting this very important democracy in the
Middle East.
Lebanon s survival as a democracy is, in my judgment, very important for the
world.
And Syria is -- has been -- when we passed the resolution out of the United
Nations, it worked.
President Chirac and I worked together, got our foreign ministries working
together, and it worked.
And yet, as opposed to honoring the notion of staying out of -- and to stop
obstructing politics, Syria just has not been helpful at all.
Q So will you impose sanctions on Syria? THE PRESIDENT: We have already, and we
re looking at different