LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
March 20/08

Bible Reading of the day.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 26,14-25. Then one of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscar iot, went to the chief priests and said, "What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?" They paid him thirty pieces of silver, and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to hand him over. On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the disciples approached Jesus and said, "Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover?"He said, "Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, 'The teacher says, "My appointed time draws near; in your house I shall celebrate the Passover with my disciples."'"The disciples then did as Jesus had ordered, and prepared the Passover. When it was evening, he reclined at table with the Twelve. And while they were eating, he said, "Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me." Deeply distressed at this, they began to say to him one after another, "Surely it is not I, Lord?" He said in reply, "He who has dipped his hand into the dish with me is the one who will betray me. The Son of Man indeed goes, as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed. It would be better for that man if he had never been born."Then Judas, his betrayer, said in reply, "Surely it is not I, Rabbi?" He answered, "You have said so."

Free Opinions, Releases, letters & Special Reports
Terrorism in Lebanon. By: Bilal Saab.Middle East Times 20/08
New Book: The Confrontation: Winning the War Against Future Jihad.By Walid Phares. 20/03/08

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for March 19/08
Mehlis says Tueni's Murder was Threat Against him, Insists No One is Above the Law-Naharnet
March 25: Cabinet Meeting, Parliament Session Over 2 Major Issues-Naharnet
Kouchner Pessimistic About Lebanon's Presidential Elections-Naharnet
McCain: Hizbullah, Hamas Dedicated to U.S., West Destruction-Naharnet
Jumblat: Relations with Hizbullah Reached 'Point of No Return'-Naharnet
Nicolas Michel's Resignation Related to Hariri Tribunal!-Naharnet
Army: Israeli Warship Entered Lebanese Territorial Waters-Naharnet
Antiquity Smuggling - Usually Sent to Beirut, other Cities - Finances Terror-Naharnet
Franjieh: Opposition Preparing for Next Phase-Naharnet
Kuwait's Emir Kicks Off Talks to Resolve Political Crisis-Naharnet
Merkel: Germans 'Filled with Shame' About Holocaust-Naharnet
US tight-lipped on reports of meeting with Shiites-Daily Star
International tribunal for Lebanon killings reaches start-up phase ...Scoop.co.nz
Mehlis insists detainment of four security chiefs 'legal'-Daily Star
Beirut leans toward low-level role at Damascus summit-Daily Star
Elections plans drive infighting in both March 8 and March 14-Daily Star
Official exams to start on June 16 - Qabbani-Daily Star
Hizbullah's valor is best served by discretion for now-Daily Star
Graziano lauds compatriots in UNIFIL at ceremony in South-Daily Star
Blame game afoot in Syria as inflation erodes wages-AFP
Lebanon edges upward in creditworthiness poll-Daily Star
Bank Audi confirms merger talks with EFG Hermes-Daily Star
Judge shuts down day care center over death of child-Daily Star
Tourism Ministry announces start of traveling 'Food and Feast' festival-Daily Star
Hammana residents plant trees in bid to put municipality 'on tourist map -Daily Star
Farmers in South eke out a living amid war fallout-Daily Star

Mehlis says Tueni's Murder was Threat Against him, Insists No One is Above the Law
Naharnet/Former Chief U.N. investigator Detlev Mehlis has said the assassination of MP and An Nahar General Manager Gebran Tueni was part of threats made against the German prosecutor and the commission he headed. Mehlis told LBCI's Bi Kul Jur'a talk show in Berlin Tuesday that "dangerous threats" were made against him during his mission in Beirut and Tueni's killing in a car bombing on Dec. 12, 2005 was part of such threats because it came a day before the former investigator handed over his last report to the U.N. Security Council. "The late MP Gebran Tueni was assassinated a day before I released the December 2005 report," Mehlis said in his first TV interview since he stepped down as head of the U.N. commission investigating ex-Premier Rafik Hariri's Feb. 14, 2005 assassination and related crimes. Criminals are feeling "safe" in their attacks and erecting security "cameras in every street corner" could help catch the murderers, the German prosecutor told anchorwoman May Chidiac about the series of assassinations since Hariri's killing in a massive explosion in Beirut. When asked that some parties in Lebanon refused erecting security cameras, Mehlis said: "Better being spied on than getting killed."
He stressed that the U.N. Security Council would not provide any cover for those involved in Hariri's murder and stressed he was convinced that the truth will come out with all its details."No one is above the law even Rome's pope," Mehlis said during the talk show when asked if Syria would allow some of its officials to be accused of involvement in the five-time prime minister's murder. The Special Tribunal for Lebanon will not protect heads of state and could accuse or punish every person found to have been involved in Hariri's murder, Mehlis stressed. He said the U.N. could impose sanctions on a state or even take "military procedures" if that country refuses to hand over suspects or witnesses. Mehlis insisted that the detainment of the four former security chiefs is legal. "As an observer, I think their detainment is fully legal," he said. Surete Generale's Jamil al-Sayyed, Ali al-Hajj of the Internal Security Forces, Raymond Azar of the Army Intelligence and Mustafa Hamdan of the Presidential Guards Brigade have been detained since August 2005 for alleged involvement in Hariri's killing.
"We had indications that they were planning to leave the country and most importantly we had indications of their strong involvement in the murder," Mehlis told Chidiac, adding that he had never seen "an official U.N. recommendation to release the suspects." About the ongoing investigation into the series of killings in Lebanon, Mehlis said: "The U.N. established the probe committee to bring some hope to the Lebanese, therefore credibility and transparency should characterize the committee's work." The German prosecutor added that it was the right of Lebanese citizens to "be informed about the latest developments concerning investigations." Beirut, 19 Mar 08, 05:42

McCain: Hizbullah, Hamas Dedicated to U.S., West Destruction
Naharnet/Visiting U.S. Republican presidential candidate John McCain on Wednesday signaled vigorous support for Israel during a fact-finding mission widely seen as a bid to polish his credentials as a statesman. The Arizona senator warned that Israel's armed foes threatened not only the Jewish state but also U.S. interests and everything the West holds dear. In an interview with the Jerusalem Post published on Wednesday, he said Hamas, the Islamist movement that runs the Gaza Strip, and Lebanon's Hizbullah, both threaten the interests of the United States and the West in general.
"If Hamas, Hizbullah succeed here, they are going to succeed everywhere," he said. "They are dedicated to the extinction of everything that the U.S., Israel and the West believe and stand for," he said. "So America does have an interest in what happens here, far above and beyond our alliance with the State of Israel," the presumptive Republican presidential nominee added. McCain, a former Vietnam prisoner of war, also indicated support for Israel's military response to rocket attacks launched from Gaza. In a further signal of solidarity with Israel, McCain has said he supported the state's claim to Jerusalem as its capital, which the international community rejects. McCain, who touts his foreign affairs experience over that of his Democratic rivals, was in Jerusalem at the head of a congressional tour that also took him to Iraq and Jordan. He has insisted the trip was not political, though he clearly stood to gain from being seen on the world stage at a time when Democratic presidential hopefuls Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton brawled at home. During his trip he conveyed strong support for Israel, a country he has visited several times in the past. Asked about almost daily rocket attacks launched from Gaza, McCain said that if the United States found itself in a similar situation, "the American people would probably demand pretty vigorous actions in response."
The senator also called Iran "a threat for the region," expressing certainty Tehran was "pursuing nuclear weapons."
McCain arrived in Israel on Tuesday evening after a visit to Jordan, where he said he supported "Jerusalem as the capital of Israel."
Israel annexed Arab east Jerusalem after the 1967 Middle East war and declared it part of its eternal undivided capital, a claim not recognized by the international community. The fate of Jerusalem is one of the thorniest issues in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and renewed Israeli settlement activity in the occupied eastern part is hampering peace talks revived only in November.The Palestinians, who want to make east Jerusalem the capital of their promised state, said McCain's statements contradicted the two-state solution to the Middle East conflict laid out by U.S. President George Bush. McCain was to tour Israel by helicopter with Defense Minister Ehud Barak to acquaint himself with the country's security problems, and hold talks with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni.(AFP) Beirut, 19 Mar 08, 11:05

Jumblat: Relations with Hizbullah Reached 'Point of No Return'
Naharnet/Druze leader Walid Jumblat said relations with Hizbullah have reached the "point of no return" since the Shiite group takes orders from Iran and Syria.
"We must reach a joint defense strategy to protect Lebanon through the state's exclusive right to make war and peace decisions," Jumblat said in an interview published Wednesday with the Kuwaiti daily Al-Qabas. Jumblat ruled out the eruption of civil war in Lebanon. "This does not mean that Syria and Iran would not likely order their allies in Lebanon to incite security incidents," he said. In response to a question on whether Israel would attack Lebanon, Jumblat said: "We will face any confrontation with all our moral, political and social power. This is our national duty." In his weekly al-Anbaa newspaper, Jumblat reiterated his position from the Arab summit, saying that Lebanon's attendance was "ridiculous" when the ruling March 14 coalition accused Syria of assassinations.
He called on the Arab League to show "real support" for Lebanon in order to consolidate its stability and independence.Jumblat said the Arab League should prod Damascus toward establishing diplomatic relations with Lebanon and recognize it as an independent entity. Beirut, 19 Mar 08, 10:14

Nicolas Michel's Resignation Related to Hariri Tribunal!
Naharnet/The United Nations Undersecretary General for Legal Affairs Nicolas Michel has resigned from his post, a U.N. spokesperson has said.
U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon's deputy spokesperson Marie Okabe cited "family and administrative reasons" behind Michel's resignation. "Michel had informed the secretary general through his chef of cabinet in January 2008 that he regretted that he would not be able to be available for a further extension of his contract when it expires at the end of August, mainly for family and administrative reasons," Okabe said. The Daily Star has said that Lawyer Akram Azouri, attorney of detained former Surete Generale chief Jamil al-Sayyed tied Michel's resignation with the Special Tribunal for Lebanon that will try suspects in the February 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Azour said that "political pressures are likely to stand behind such resignation." Sayyed, along with Ali al-Hajj of the Internal Security Forces, Raymond Azar of the Army Intelligence and Mustafa Hamdan of the Presidential Guards Brigade, have been detained since August 2005 for alleged involvement in Hariri's killing. Belgian prosecutor Serge Brammertz, former head of the U.N. probe commission, has said that the detainment of the four former security chiefs was the responsibility of the Lebanese judiciary. In his latest statement issued through the office of his attorney, Sayyed lashed out at General Prosecutor Saeed Mirza and investigative Magistrate Saqr Saqr, holding them responsible for his "arbitrary" detention. Lawyer Mohammad Mattar, who represents the heirs of the four Hariri bodyguards killed in the February 14, 2005 car bombing, said Sayyed's claims were "groundless." Beirut, 19 Mar 08, 08:33

March 25: Cabinet Meeting, Parliament Session Over 2 Major Issues
Naharnet/The Lebanese cabinet decided early Wednesday to hold a session on March 25 for a final decision about Lebanon's participation in the Arab summit, the same day parliament is scheduled to make a 17th attempt to elect a new president. The government will hold a session next Tuesday "to continue discussion and take the proper decision" about Lebanon's participation or boycott of the March 29-30 summit in Damascus, said Information Minister Ghazi Aridi following the six-hour session, which ended after midnight. There is a tendency to "boycott the summit because the invitation wasn't delivered in a proper way," Minister of State for Administrative Reform Jean Oghassabian told Future News Television. The cabinet meeting is expected to be held Tuesday evening as parliament is scheduled to hold a session the same day to elect a new head of state. But Lebanese media on Wednesday were pessimistic about the election of a president on March 25 after 16 previous attempts have been postponed amid a deadlock between the majority and the opposition. Beirut, 19 Mar 08, 05:03

Kouchner Pessimistic About Lebanon's Presidential Elections
Naharnet/French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner has said the Lebanese parliament will not elect a new president during a scheduled legislative session on March 25. "No. A president will not be elected. And I am very sorry for that," Kouchner said in Paris Tuesday when asked about the probability of the election process moving forward. He also believed a new Lebanese head of state will not be elected before the March 29-30 Arab summit in the Syrian capital.
"Are there going to be presidential elections before the Arab Summit in Damascus?" he asked, "No I don't think so. But I hope I am mistaken," he told the news conference. He wondered whether all Lebanese are willing that the French get in contact with all sides in Beirut should Paris launch a new initiative.
"The French initiative didn't succeed and later became an Arab initiative comprising three points upon which the majority and the opposition reach an agreement" with our help, he said. He denied that France was launching a new initiative, but said it would be better to have a European plan aimed at solving Lebanon's presidential crisis. Kouchner stressed that the European Union does not have a common stance regarding the crisis in the Middle East and Lebanon.
The stance "hasn't been unanimous because it is difficult to take a unanimous position by 27 states inside the European Union," he told reporters.
An Nahar daily on Wednesday quoted French diplomatic sources as saying the Security Council will discuss Lebanon's political crisis during consultations about U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon's report on the implementation of Resolution 1559. The sources said that the United Nations is worried about the dangerous situation in Lebanon and that discussions might pave the way for a new initiative by the international community. Beirut, 19 Mar 08, 04:08

Army: Israeli Warship Entered Lebanese Territorial Waters
Naharnet/An Israeli warship has briefly entered Lebanese waters but was intercepted by an Italian ship operating as part of the U.N. peacekeeping force, the army said on Tuesday. "An Israeli Saar warship entered Lebanese territorial waters at 7:30 am (0530 GMT) yesterday morning before being intercepted by the Italian navy's Bettica, which is part of UNIFIL," an army spokesman told Agence France Presse. The Israeli vessel on Monday traveled about five kilometers before leaving, according to an army statement. Israeli jets regularly violate Lebanese airspace, but it is rare for warships to enter Lebanese territorial waters.
Yasmina Bouziane, spokeswoman for the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), said an investigation was underway. "We received a report saying that a ship coming from Israel entered the maritime area of operation without proper procedures, violating Lebanese territorial waters," she said. "UNIFIL is investigating this issue and UNIFIL command has contacted the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces)."(AFP) Beirut, 19 Mar 08, 03:47

Antiquity Smuggling - Usually Sent to Beirut, other Cities - Finances Terror
Naharnet/When Baghdad fell to the U.S.-led coalition that toppled Saddam Hussein, the world watched in horror as looters ransacked the museum that housed some of Iraq's most prized treasures. Today, trafficking of stolen Iraqi antiquities is helping to finance al-Qaida in Iraq and Shiite militias, according to the U.S. investigator who led the probe into the looting of the National Museum. U.S. Marine Reserve Col. Matthew Bogdanos, a New York assistant district attorney called up to duty shortly after 9/11, said that while kidnappings and extortion remain insurgents' main source of funds, the link between terrorism and antiquities smuggling has become "undeniable." "The Taliban are using opium to finance their activities in Afghanistan," Bogdanos told The Associated Press in an interview. "Well, they don't have opium in Iraq. What they have is an almost limitless supply of is antiquities. And so they're using antiquities." Bogdanos spoke on the sidelines of a UNESCO-organized international conference Monday and Tuesday on returning antiquities to their country of origin. The murky world of antiquities trafficking extends across the globe and is immensely lucrative -- private collectors can pay tens of millions of dollars for the most valuable artifacts. It's almost impossible to put an authoritative monetary value on Iraqi antiquities. But as an indication, the colonel said one piece looted from the National Museum -- an 8th century B.C. Assyrian ivory carving of a lioness attacking a Nubian boy, overlaid with gold and inlaid with lapis lazuli -- could sell for US$100 million (-63.4 million). "That would be cheap, I really believe," he said of the object, which is still missing. Bogdanos described the route for smuggled Iraqi antiquities as follows: From illegal excavations or plundered museums, they are driven overland either west to Jordan or north to Syria; they are then usually sent to one of three cities -- Beirut, Dubai or Geneva -- in order to obtain papers and "surface"; they can then be sold on to private collectors or even well-known auction houses.
Bogdanos said the complex routes for the trade in plundered antiquities appear to have generated an underground tariff system.
"According to my sources, (Lebanese) Hizbullah is now taxing antiquities," he said.
Bogdanos, 51, an amateur boxer with a Masters degree in Classics who won the Bronze Star fighting in Afghanistan, said the antiquities trade was not an immediate source of revenue for insurgents after the U.S.-led invasion. "That was not something they did initially. They were not that sophisticated," he said, adding that it was not until late 2004 "that we saw the use of antiquities in funding initially the Sunnis and al-Qaida in Iraq, and now the Shiite militias."
Although security has improved dramatically in Iraq since mid-2007, the country is still violence-ridden, with bombings and kidnappings a daily occurrence. In such a climate, it is all but impossible for Iraq's 1,500 archaeological guards to protect the country's more than 12,000 archaeological sites.
"Unauthorized excavations are proliferating throughout the world, especially in conflict zones," Francoise Riviere, the assistant director-general of UNESCO's cultural branch, said at the conference. She said UNESCO was deeply concerned about the "decimation" of Iraq's cultural heritage.
"The damage inflicted on the National Museum in Baghdad, the increasingly precarious state and the systematic pillage of sites, are alarming facts which are a great challenge to the international community," Riviere said. Bahaa Mayah, an adviser to Iraq's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities who attended the conference in Athens, says looters sometimes use heavy machinery to dig up artifacts -- and destroy the site while they loot. Mayah decried a lack of cooperation among some European countries, which he refused to name, in returning trafficked goods seized from smugglers. "We are facing now, especially in Europe, tremendous difficulties in recovering our objects that are seized," he said. Bogdanos said smuggling networks did not appear with or after the war. "It's a pre-existing infrastructure ... looting's been going on forever."
But it was in the days after the fall of Baghdad in March 2003 that the National Museum was looted. The U.S. came under intense criticism for not protecting the museum -- a treasure trove of antiquities from the Stone Age and Babylon to the Assyrians and Islamic art. Bogdanos said that according to the latest inventories, a total of about 15,000 artifacts were stolen. Of those, about 4,000 have been returned to the museum, and a total of about 6,000 have been recovered.
Bogdanos was already in Iraq searching for banned weapons and investigating terrorist funding when he volunteered to lead the investigation into the looting after Saddam Hussein's ouster. Much of the museum's looting was carried out by insiders and senior government officials of the time, said Bogdanos, who co-authored a book about the investigation, "Thieves of Baghdad," with William Patrick. Royalties from the book are donated to the museum. Bogdanos said not enough is being done by organizations such as UNESCO to protect Iraq's heritage. "There's no other way to say it. There's a vacuum at the top," he said.(AP) (AP file photo shows a U.S. soldier looking at a painting as workers at Baghdad's Archaeological Museum carry in some of the recovered items that had been looted following the U.S.-led invasion) Beirut, 19 Mar 08, 09:18

Franjieh: Opposition Preparing for Next Phase
Naharnet/Marada Movement leader Suleiman Franjieh has said the Hizbullah-led opposition was preparing for the next phase. "We were under the impression that the current phase would not take such a long time and that things were supposed to be solved in a short time," Franjieh said Tuesday after meeting a delegation from the Syrian Social Nationalist Party headed by Ali Qanso. "But now that the situation has developed, the opposition must get ready to face the developments," he said, adding that it was only "normal" given the political status quo. "We are working to unite the opposition, and the most important thing is that we have a common view," Franjieh said. Qanso, for his part, rejected the political declaration adopted by the ruling majority on March 14 to mark the third anniversary of the mass protest that along with international pressure led to the withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon. Qanso accused March 14 of blocking all initiatives aimed at ending the ongoing political crisis, adding that the pro-government coalition was "extracting strength from the U.S." Beirut, 19 Mar 08, 07:30

McCain Concerned About Iran's 'Assistance to Hizbullah'
U.S. Republican presidential candidate John McCain expressed fresh concern Tuesday about Iran's influence in Iraq and support of Hizbullah.
"We continue to be concerned about Iranian influence and assistance to Hizbullah as well as Iranian pursuit of nuclear weapons," McCain said in Jordan on the latest leg of a visit to the region. He also said that he supported Israel's claim to Jerusalem as the capital of the Jewish state. "I support Jerusalem as the capital of Israel," McCain said. McCain visited Baghdad and is to go on to Israel. Israel annexed east Jerusalem after seizing it in the Arab-Israeli war in June 1967 and declared it part of its eternal undivided capital, a claim not recognized by the international community. The Palestinians want to make the eastern part of the Holy City the capital of their future promised state. The United States, along with other foreign governments, maintains its embassy in Tel Aviv.(AFP-AP-Naharnet) Beirut, 18 Mar 08, 16:00

US tight-lipped on reports of meeting with Shiites
Daily says replacement of ministers in works
By Hussein Abdallah -Daily Star staff
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
BEIRUT: The US Embassy on Tuesday refused to either confirm or deny information published in Lebanese newspaper Ad-Diyar on Tuesday about an alleged meeting Monday night between US Charge D'affaires Michel Sison and a number of independent Shiite politicians at the mission in Awkar. "The US charge d'affaires meets with Lebanese frequently," embassy sources told The Daily Star on Tuesday.
The newspaper had said the meeting included former Energy and Water Minister Mohammad Abdel-Hamid Beydoun, Khalil Khalil, who is the son of late MP Kazem Khalil, Ministry of Social Affairs Director Neamat Kanaan and others. The meeting was aimed at discussing the possibility of reshuffling the current Lebanese Cabinet in a bid to replace the five resigned Shiite ministers, according to Ad-Diyar. The Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, is missing seven ministers after six opposition ministers stood down in November 2006 and Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel was assassinated the same month. Earlier reports said that the ruling coalition is likely to decide on replacing the missing ministers if the presidential vacuum persists after the upcoming Arab summit in Damascus later this month. Mohammad Shattah, an adviser to Siniora, told The Daily Star that expanding the government was an option to be considered after the summit. But Shattah distinguished between appointing a new minister to replace Gemayel and appointing new ministers to fill in for the resigned ones: "Appointing a replacement to late Gemayel is highly possible, whereas replacing the other ministers is not as urgent." Meanwhile, independent Shiite politician Ahmad Asaad, son of former Parliament Speaker Kamel Asaad, told The Daily Star on Tuesday he knew nothing about the alleged meeting. Asaad added that Ad-Diyar was not a credible news source. He said he would not mind meeting the Americans openly. "If I wanted to meet the Americans, I would not do it discreetly. We share common interests with the United States," he said. Hizbullah and the Amal Movement enjoy broad support in most of Lebanon's Shiite community. Replacing ministers affiliated to both groups might be seen as a provocative measure.

Tribunal For Lebanon Killings At Start-Up Phase
Wednesday, 19 March 2008, 10:15 am
Press Release: United Nations
International tribunal for Lebanon killings reaches start-up phase - UN report
18 March 2008 - The international tribunal being set up to try those responsible for political killings in Lebanon, particularly the 2005 attack that killed former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, has moved into its start-up phase, according to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. All actions relating to the tribunal's preparatory phase have been undertaken, including the signing an agreement with the Netherlands to host the proceedings and the identification of premises there, Mr. Ban says in his latest report to the Security Council, which details the steps taken since he was authorized to establish the Special Tribunal for Lebanon by a Council resolution last year. The selection of the judges, the prosecutor and the registrar has also been completed and a draft budget will be submitted soon to the tribunal's management committee. In regard to financing, the Secretary-General states that adequate funds for the start-up have been deposited into a trust fund made up of contributions of UN Member States. "I am confident that the contributions received, together with other expected contributions, will meet the budgetary requirements for the establishment and the first 12 months of operations of the Tribunal," he says. As of 27 February, the trust fund held nearly $30 million, with additional firm pledges totalling over $16 million, he states. The Security Council asked the Secretary-General to set up the court after Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora asked the 15-member body to put the tribunal into effect as a matter of urgency because all domestic options had been exhausted, due to the country's ongoing political crisis. The tribunal will follow on the work of the International Independent Investigation Commission (IIIC), which is charged with probing the murder of Mr. Hariri, who was killed along with 22 others in a massive car bombing in Beirut on 14 February 2005. Once it is formally established, it will be up to the tribunal to determine whether other political killings in Lebanon since October 2004 were connected to Mr. Hariri's assassination and could therefore be dealt with by the tribunal.

Mehlis insists detainment of four security chiefs 'legal'
Daily Star staff
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
BEIRUT: The former head of the UN International Independent Investigative Commission into the assassination of former Lebanese Premier Rafik Hariri told LBCI television on Tuesday that he still considered the detainment of the four former security chiefs legal. "As an observer, I think their detainment is fully legal," Mehlis told journalist May Chidiac during the weekly "Bi Kul Jura'a" political talk show. The four former security chiefs - Jamil al-Sayyed of General Security, Ali al-Hajj of the Internal Security Forces, Raymond Azar of army intelligence and Mustafa Hamdan of the Presidential Guards - have been detained since 2005 for alleged involvement in Hariri's killing. The former head of the UN probe commission, Belgian prosecutor Serge Brammertz, said the detainment of the four was the responsibility of the Lebanese judiciary. In the interview Mehlis said he had recommended that the four former generals be put into provisional detention. "We had indications that they were planning to leave the country and most importantly we had indications of their strong involvement in the murder," he said, adding that he had never seen "an official UN recommendation to release the suspects.""Moreover," Mehlis said, "I have full trust in the Lebanese judiciary, especially State Prosecutor Saeed Mirza and Investigatiing Magistrate Saqr Saqr." Sayyed had repeatedly held Mirza and Saqr responsible for his "arbitrary" detention. Mehlis revealed that during his tenure he was subject to "dangerous threats." "The late MP Gebran Tueni was assassinated a day before I released the December 2005 report," Mehlis noted. The German prosector added that it was the right of Lebanese citizens to "be informed about the latest developments concerning investigations.""The UN established the probe committee to bring some hope to the Lebanese, therefore credibility and transparency should characterize the committee's work," he added.

The Confrontation: Winning the War Against Future Jihad’
By Walid Phares (bio)
Dr. Walid Phares, the Director of the Future of Terrorism Project at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, is a respected author whose latest book is available to the public today. Titled The Confrontation: Winning the War Against Future Jihad, Dr. Phares, who has been acclaimed by peers as the “one who can best understand the minds of the Jihadists,” will finally tell us what he thinks should be done “globally” about the threat posed by Jihad.
In his first post 9/11 book, Future Jihad: Terrorist Strategies Against the West, Professor Walid Phares, the Director of Future Terrorism Project at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, explained the roots, the strengths and the strategies of the Jihadist regimes and movements. In short he explained to us “what do they want to do.” In his following book, The War of Ideas: Jihadism Against Democracy, Dr Phares showed us how the Jihadi forces waged three campaigns to seize the minds and hearts of millions of people. The first war of ideas was when they penetrated the Arab and Muslim world. The second war of ideas was when they infiltrated the West. And the Third War of Ideas is taking place now. Phares explains “how they did it.”
His first two books were both read widely, particularly by members of the U.S. Congress, the UK House of Lords and the European Parliament, as well as the defense, national security and expert communities. This is a critical year. Americans are debating the future of the War on Terror and their own national security future. As voters head to the polls, they must decide what the best policies are to be adopted by the next White House and Congress. In his previous tomes, Dr. Phares analyzed the long-term plans of the terror forces and their capacities both in the nation and around the world. Now, he outlines the blueprints for the next stage. The Confrontation offers an all-out strategic plan to gather all possible national resources and reconstruct a world front against Jihadi terror. According to Dr Phares, “Not only is it possible, but this is our only way as democracies to win the conflict.” His book also makes the case for a revolutionary agenda based on what the Jihadi forces are planning on doing -and what we can do about it.
Dr. Phares argues that the first step is to identify the threat. He uses several chapters to explain how we cannot make progress if we don’t know why – and how – the enemy is moving forward. Thus, the War on Terror must be redefined. To do this, a cultural and intellectual revolution is necessary within the Western free world. Such intellectual developments, based on public awareness, must enable the public to understand the history, ideology and strategies of the Salafists, Khomeinists and their allies worldwide. Once an understanding is achieved, it will lead to an economic and diplomatic revolution within the West so that the terrorists won’t be able to use our systems and needs against us.
We also need to seize every inch of common ground we have with potential allies against Jihadists, from France to Russia to India and beyond.
Finally, Dr. Phares calls for a revolution in the Arab and Muslim world: a war of ideas to enable the weak, democratic and ant-terrorist sectors of that society – our real allies in this deadly conflict. All of these rational (and daring) steps are needed to reverse the balance of power and isolate the radicals. In chapter after chapter, Dr. Phares answers many of the questions raised in the U.S. political debate: Iraq, Afghanistan, al Qaeda, Homeland Security, Homegrown Terror, Europe, Russia, Africa and the Greater Middle East. The Confrontation has been praised and endorsed by leading members of Congress and the European Parliament who are familiar with Dr. Phares’ previous work, and is a must-read regarding the new studies of world conflict. This year, however, it will have significant influence on our choices for our future directions in the War on Terror.

Terrorism in Lebanon
By: Bilal Saab
March 19, 2008T
Middle East Times
http://www.metimes.com/Opinion/2008/03/19/op-ed_bilal_saab_-_terrorism_in_lebanon/2383/
In spite of its ongoing political crisis, an institutionally crippled Lebanon is performing well on a front it ironically has little experience in: counterterrorism.
Five months after the Lebanese army's bloody though ultimately successful battle against the al-Qaida-inspired group, Fatah al-Islam, in the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp in northern Lebanon, the Lebanese are still concerned about a repeat of that scenario in some other Palestinian camp. And they have every right to worry.
The militant Salafi current in Lebanon may have suffered a heavy blow in Nahr al-Bared, but given its fluidity and the favorable circumstances it operates in – an acutely polarized political environment with heightened sectarian tensions – it is capable of regrouping and finding new leaders. Al-Qaida in Iraq still has its eyes on Lebanon, and the Syrian-Lebanese borders are yet to be secured.
But there is a strong reason for optimism. The recent efforts and initiatives by Lebanese public officials, civil society groups, and official religious institutions aimed at curbing the radicalization current in the north suggest that the country as a whole is starting to think strategically about the threat of Salafi militancy.
The healthy consensus inside the Lebanese military and security institutions on the limitations of the use of force as a means to neutralize the threat of militant radicalism suggests that the counterterrorism campaign is moving in the right direction. Most Lebanese public officials are becoming aware of the tenet that Lebanon's most potent antidote to extremist and militant ideology involves a socio-economic vision that is rooted in policies of balanced development.
A few weeks ago, parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri announced the launch of $52 million worth of major developmental, educational and health projects in Tripoli, Akkar and other regions in the north. (Initially, those projects were slated to be carried out by the Lebanese state, but funding was severely lacking due to the budget deficit.)
Meanwhile, the newly-elected Lebanese mufti of Tripoli and the north, Sheikh Malek al-Shaar (the highest ranking Sunni religious scholar), declared the promulgation of a new comprehensive program for Dar al-Ifta, the Sunni religious establishment in Lebanon, which aims at creating a directorate for religious education tasked with supervising Islamic schools, colleges and institutes, and an advisory board consisting of all Islamic parties and groups in the north. This directorate should be of great help in making sure Islamic groups' activity in the north does not stray or flirt with extremism.
At the Lebanese internal security forces (ISF) directorate, Major General Ashraf Rifi met with a large delegation of Sunni preachers and religious scholars as well as directors and presidents of Salafist organizations and institutes in the north. The purpose was to start a dialogue and form a cooperative relationship with these individuals and bodies, whose access to Sunni Muslim constituencies and role in convincing extremist elements to snub extremism and militancy is critical.
The international community's efforts in helping Lebanon recover from the widespread destruction of Nahr al-Bared during months of fighting should not be discounted either. The most important actor is UNRWA, which has been working with some 20 non-governmental organizations to implement preventive measures for the children in Nahr al-Bared, such as psychological and recreational activities. UNRWA has also trained about 200 teachers to identify the signs of trauma and refer students for help.
A donor conference is expected to be held in the second half of April to raise money for the reconstruction of the refugee camp. Foreign governments such as Saudi Arabia and Norway, and Lebanese political parties, including Hariri's Future Movement, have also provided substantial financial and logistical assistance to Nahr al-Bared's reconstruction process.
Shocked by the eye-opening experience of Nahr al-Bared, Lebanese society seems determined to erase the memory of last summer's fighting between soldiers and Islamic militants and make sure that the events are never repeated. While some praiseworthy preventive measures have been devised since then by an amalgam of local and foreign actors, they remain largely outside the boundaries of the Lebanese state.
To tap its full potential, the counter-terrorism campaign must be owned by the Lebanese state. Such a campaign should be viewed by all Lebanese (and the international community) as a collective, as opposed to a particularistic effort. Only the state and the large resources it can offer in terms of employment, education, social security and general welfare can neutralize and ultimately eliminate the threat of militant religious extremism in Lebanon. Hence the critical need to break the current political stalemate and immediately reactivate all Lebanese state institutions.
If the Iraqi experience is of any lesson, al-Qaida thrives on political vacuums and looks to exploit societal fault lines. Lebanon should know better.
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Bilal Y. Saab is a senior research assistant at the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution. This article was written for the Common Ground News Service (CGNews).