LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
February 13/2010
Bible Of the
Day
Luke 12/33-40: "Sell that which you have, and give gifts to the needy. Make for
yourselves purses which don’t grow old, a treasure in the heavens that doesn’t
fail, where no thief approaches, neither moth destroys. 12:34 For where your
treasure is, there will your heart be also. 12:35 “Let your waist be dressed and
your lamps burning. 12:36 Be like men watching for their lord, when he returns
from the marriage feast; that, when he comes and knocks, they may immediately
open to him. 12:37 Blessed are those servants, whom the lord will find watching
when he comes. Most certainly I tell you, that he will dress himself, and make
them recline, and will come and serve them. 12:38 They will be blessed if he
comes in the second or third watch, and finds them so. 12:39 But know this, that
if the master of the house had known in what hour the thief was coming, he would
have watched, and not allowed his house to be broken into. 12:40 Therefore be
ready also, for the Son of Man is coming in an hour that you don’t expect him.”
Free Opinions, Releases, letters & Special
Reports
Statement by Canadian Foreign
Minister Mr.Cannon on Iran’s Decision to Further Enrich Uranium/February
12/10
Is the Ethiopian crash
turning into a major scandal?/By:
Michael Young/February 11, 10
Iran:
Two dramas, one big threat/The
Daily Star/February
12/10
The magic has gone/Now
Lebanon/February
12/10
The limits of American engagement
with Iran/By: Elie Fawaz/February 12, 10
Latest News Reports From
Miscellaneous Sources for February 12/10
Report:
U.S. Proposes to Provide Lebanon with Light Attack Aircraft by 2013./Naharnet
Khalife
Confirms 45 Bodies Identified so Far, Boeing Says no Official Result on Cause of
Plane Crash./Naharnet
France
Delays Aoun's Visit, Seeks to Invite Sfeir./Naharnet
1st Judicial Ruling on
Plane Crash: Khazen's Father to Control his Assets./Naharnet
Khoja in Beirut: Man of
the Year 2009./Naharnet
Naharnet Exclusive: Nadim
Gemayel Says Aoun Seeking Obstruction, Hindering Everything Not in His Interest./Naharnet
Naharnet Exclusive: Nicola
Says 'We Are the Sons of the Orient, Not the Remnants of the Crusaders'./Naharnet
Aoun Opposes Holding
Municipal Elections without Implementing Suggested Reforms./Naharnet
Aridi: Naameh Coast
Off-Limits, No Final Say until Missing Piece of Cockpit Recorder is Found./Naharnet
Hariri: We Won't Split
Beirut, No Compromise on International Tribunal./Naharnet
Fate of Proportional Representation
Unknown Amid Clear Cabinet Divisions over Electoral Reforms./Naharnet
March 14
officials urge massive participation in February 14 rally/Daily
Star
Cabinet
remains divided over key electoral reforms ahead of polls/Daily
Star
Bassil:
electricity crisis costs economy $5.75 billion annually/Daily
Star
NSSF
under fire for neglecting retired workers/Daily
Star
Technical problems, explosion ruled out as causes of Ethiopian Airlines crash/Daily
Star
Five
years on, Lebanon's 'Cedar Revolution' wanes/AFP
Antonine
University angers leading politicians/Daily
Star
AUB
signs gains affiliation with Najjar Hospital/Daily
Star
Activists protest outside Starbucks over 'links to Israel'/Daily
Star
Japan
envoy signs grant for repairs at Nabatieh school/Daily
Star
Spanish
ambassador kicks off waste-treatment project/Daily
Star
Green
Party holds annual congress in Beirut/Daily
Star
Anti-smoking activists push for comprehensive ban/Daily
Star
Lebanese
designer's ethical fashion techniques causing worldwide stir/Daily
Star
Head of
BBC Arabic looks to offer impartial news service/Daily
Star
Statement by Canadian Foreign Minister Mr.Cannon on Iran’s Decision to Further
Enrich Uranium
http://www.international.gc.ca/media/aff/news-communiques/2010/063.aspx
(No. 63 - February 11, 2010 - 3:55 p.m. ET) The following is an edited
transcript of a statement made to media by the Honourable Lawrence Cannon,
Minister of Foreign Affairs, on Iran’s decision to further enrich nuclear
material. The statement was made at Foreign Affairs and International Trade
Canada headquarters at 11:45 a.m. on Thursday, February 11, 2010.
“I’d like to say a few words regarding the Iranian regime’s decision to further
enrich uranium
“Canada is deeply disappointed by the Iranian regime’s decision to further
enrich its nuclear material—in defiance of UN Security Council resolutions. This
regime continues to blatantly ignore its international obligations, and this
threatens global security.
“Canada and the international community will not accept the regime’s latest
moves, which bring Iran considerably closer to possessing weapons-grade
material. Iran must suspend its enrichment activity and take immediate steps
toward transparency and compliance.
“Iran’s regime must address the serious lack of confidence that members of the
international community have in its government.
“As Prime Minister [Stephen] Harper said yesterday, Canada will continue to work
with our allies to find strong and viable solutions, including sanctions, to
hold Iran to account.
“Canada will use its G8 presidency to continue to focus international attention
and action on the Iranian regime. I will also be advancing this at the G8
Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Gatineau in March.
“The Government of Canada is also seriously concerned with the Iranian regime’s
continued stifling of democracy, its blatant disregard of basic human rights and
its irresponsible behaviour—behaviour that is threatening regional and global
stability. It is completely unacceptable that the regime continues to use brute
force and intimidation in responding to peaceful
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
PUBLIC STATEMENT
12 February 2010
AI Index: MDE 18/001/2010
Lebanon: Release Joseph Sader, abducted a year ago today
The abductors of Lebanese national Joseph Sader, whose fate and whereabouts have
been shrouded in uncertainty since he was snatched from a road in Beirut one
year ago today, must release him without delay, said Amnesty International.
Joseph Sader, aged 57, was abducted by unidentified men on the morning of 12
February 2009, while travelling from his home in Maghdoushe, 50km south of
Beirut, to the Middle East Airlines (MEA) office near Beirut’s international
airport, where he worked as MEA’s IT operational services director.
According to Amnesty International’s information, having alighted from a minivan
taxi on a bridge in the Cocody area of south Beirut, he was walking to the
highway leading to the MEA office when he was intercepted by a white Chevrolet
Venture car. Two men in plain clothes reportedly jumped out of the car and
forced him into it, through its sliding door; the car, driven by a third man,
then sped off.
Joseph Sader has not been seen since then, nor has he been permitted contact
with his family or others, prompting grave fears for his safety. However,
information gathered by Amnesty International indicates that Joseph Sader has
been held against his will and at an unknown location by members of a non-state
armed group.
Those responsible for his abduction and unlawful detention apparently suspect
him of providing information to Israel’s intelligence services.
Amnesty International wrote to the Lebanese authorities last December to request
information on steps taken by the Lebanese authorities to secure Joseph Sader’s
release. It also said that, if there was evidence to indicate that he might have
committed espionage or other crimes, he should be charged and promptly brought
to trial by the state authorities in proceedings that are in line with
international fair standards and have no recourse to the death penalty.
Minister of Interior Ziad Baroud responded to Amnesty International in January
to say that the Lebanese authorities were conducting ongoing investigations into
the abduction in co-ordination with the Lebanese army and intelligence services,
that the case had been entrusted to the competent judicial authorities and that
his family had been given assurances that the authorities attached the highest
importance to resolving the matter.
Background
Over the course of 2009 and early 2010, the Lebanese authorities have announced
that they have been uncovering a number of spying networks working for Israel.
At the same time, at least 70 individuals suspected of being part of these
networks have been arrested, charged and, in most cases, remain in detention
awaiting trial. They were generally arrested by Lebanese security forces, but at
least one individual, Marwan al-Fakih, was reportedly apprehended, detained and
questioned first by Hizbullah, an armed group and political party, before being
handed over to the Lebanese authorities.
While there have been a number of other cases in recent years of armed groups
unlawfully apprehending, detaining and questioning individuals before releasing
them or handing them over to the Lebanese authorities, these have been sporadic
incidents in comparison with events following the withdrawal of Israeli forces
from southern Lebanon in May 2000. Then, scores of suspected collaborators with
Israel were apprehended by Hizbullah and Amal, another political party, in the
south of the country. Some were held briefly in detention facilities belonging
to these groups before being released. Others were held captive for weeks, and
in some cases months, before being handed over to the Lebanese authorities. They
were often subsequently charged and tried, usually before military tribunals.
ENDs/
-------------------------------------
East Mediterranean Team
Amnesty International, International Secretariat
Peter Benenson House, 1 Easton Street
London WC1X 0DW
United Kingdom
E-mail: Eastmed@amnesty.org
Tel: +44 (0)20 7413 5500
Fax: +44 (0)20 7413 5719
Working to protect human rights worldwide
DISCLAIMER
Internet communications are not secure and therefore Amnesty International Ltd
does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this message. If you
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in this e-mail. Any views or opinions presented are solely those of the author
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Naharnet Exclusive: Nadim Gemayel Says Aoun Seeking Obstruction, Hindering
Everything Not in His Interest
Naharnet/Phalange Party bloc MP Nadim Gemayel on Thursday said that Free
Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun is seeking obstruction as he is
concerned with "hindering everything that is not in his interest." "He is
insisting on adopting the electoral reforms, the thing which may take a lot of
time and delay holding the municipal elections," Gemayel said in an exclusive
interview with Naharnet. "General Aoun had four years to make the reforms, not
only regarding municipal elections, but also regarding parliamentary elections,
law amendments, and others," added Gemayel. He stressed that the efforts for the
rise and progress of the State should begin with respecting the constitutional
timeframes on the one side, and respecting the State's sovereignty, freedom, and
independence on the other. "This was the demand of all forces which have been
rallying in Martyrs Square since 2005 up till now," Gemayel added. "This was our
cause and it will remain until we fulfill our complete objectives, therefore,
the form and content of our speeches in Freedom Square will not change."
Answering a question on Brad's St. Maroun celebrations, Gemayel sarcastically
said: "The people have missed seeing the faces of the politicians who
participated in Brad's St. Maroun mass, such as former president Emile Lahoud
and other symbols of the Syrian regime which wanted to dominate Lebanon and turn
it into the 'one opinion' regime."
As to the national dialogue table, Gemayel revealed he was not so optimistic
about it "when it first convened." "But since it will tackle -- if it convenes
again – the sole issue of (Hizbullah's) arms, then we can be optimistic about
it, despite the fact that those who consider their weapons as sacred cannot
easily abandon them," he added. Beirut, 11 Feb 10, 20:14
Report: U.S. Proposes to Provide Lebanon with Light Attack Aircraft by 2013
Naharnet/The United States has reportedly announced readiness to provide the
Lebanese army by 2013 with aircraft designed for light attack to improve its
capabilities in reconnaissance missions and counter-insurgency operations. As
Safir daily said Friday the Pentagon has proposed to provide Lebanon with
Hawker-Beechcraft AT-6 or Embraer Super Tucano planes. The proposal came during
talks between Lebanese army and U.S. military officials in Washington. A
Lebanese army delegation is accompanying Defense Minister Elias Murr during his
visit to the U.S. capital. Despite the bad weather, Murr met with several U.S.
officials, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Defense Secretary
Robert Gates on Thursday.
Murr's meeting with U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon in New York was cancelled due to the
snow storm slamming the East Coast. The minister and his accompanying military
delegation return to Beirut on Saturday. As Safir said. The secretary-general's
spokesperson Martin Nesirky told reporters that the meeting was cancelled
"because of the weather." He didn't clarify whether the meeting was rescheduled
or not. Beirut, 12 Feb 10, 10:32
Fate of Proportional Representation Unknown Amid Clear Cabinet Divisions over
Electoral Reforms
Naharnet/The cabinet has failed to reach agreement over controversial reforms
during a session at Baabda palace on Thursday amid insistence by President
Michel Suleiman to hold the municipal elections on time, whether reforms to the
electoral law were adopted by the government or not. Suleiman's stance was in
clear contradiction with that of Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun who
said his parliamentary bloc would reject holding the municipal polls if reforms
to the electoral law were not adopted. Despite more than four hours of talks
mostly dedicated to the issue of proportionality, the cabinet "failed to
complete its mission," An Nahar daily said Friday. The session ended with
divisions between those backing proportional representation in all of Lebanon,
those rejecting it and a third party which backed it with conditions and
reservations. A fifth session on the issue was set for next Wednesday. The
cabinet will also hold its routine weekly session on Thursday. Suleiman will
reportedly hold separate meetings with representatives of parliamentary blocs to
see if there was any change in their points of view before Wednesday's session.
A proposal by Suleiman to allow soldiers to vote in the elections was dropped
following opposition by al-Mustaqbal, Progressive Socialist Party and Hizbullah
representatives in the government. The cabinet approved, however, the adoption
of pre-printed ballots in the municipal polls. During the session, Suleiman also
proposed holding a national commemoration day for the victims of the Ethiopian
plane crash. Details of the event would be discussed during a meeting between
involved cabinet ministers and Premier Saad Hariri. Beirut, 12 Feb 10, 08:23
1st Judicial Ruling on Plane Crash: Khazen's Father to Control his Assets
Naharnet/In the first judicial ruling on the Ethiopian plane crash, a Mount
Lebanon court granted the father of one of the victims control over his
financial assets. Judge John Qazzi issued the ruling on Thursday allowing Nami
Emile al-Khazen to control the assets of his son Khalil Nami al-Khazen, whose
body hasn't been found yet. The court's decision is aimed at helping the father
to provide financial care to his son's two children. Nami al-Khazen asked the
court on February 8 to provide him with "the appropriate solution to keep the
rights of his son and his grandchildren and protect them as soon as possible."
Beirut, 12 Feb 10, 08:52
Khalife Confirms 45 Bodies Identified so Far, Boeing Says no Official Result on
Cause of Plane Crash
Naharnet/Health Minister Mohammed Jawad Khalife said in remarks published Friday
that "six new bodies of (Ethiopian) plane passengers were identified in the past
hours."
With Khalife's announcement to As Safir daily, the number of identified victims
in the past 2 days rose to 30, in addition to 15 Lebanese and Ethiopian
passengers that had previously been identified. As Safir said, however, that the
bodies of Ethiopian victims would not be transported to Addis Ababa before all
routine procedures were taken. Sources at the Ethiopian embassy in Beirut said
the procedures would be ready by the end of the week. The newspaper quoted
sources as saying that more human remains were retrieved from the sea and the
plane's left engine and left wing were also recovered. Meanwhile, civilian
vessel Ocean Alert will leave Lebanese territorial waters on Sunday or Monday to
be replaced by the Odyssey Explorer, a vessel operated by a private US firm that
specializes in underwater recovery. Odyssey Explorer is expected to reach
Lebanese waters on Friday or Saturday, according to As Safir.
Ethiopian Airlines Flight 409 plunged into the Mediterranean Sea shortly after
takeoff from Beirut airport on January 25 during a fierce storm. The Boeing
737-800 was bound for Addis Ababa with 83 passengers and seven crew on board. No
survivors were found. Boeing official Fakher Daghestani told pan-Arab daily
Asharq al-Awsat that "any official results of the investigation into the cause
of the plane crash haven't been announced yet." "Things need time," he said.
Black box data show sabotage cannot be blamed for the crash, Transport Minister
Ghazi Aridi said Thursday. The conclusion was reached based on a preliminary
report of technical information found in the flight data recorder following
expert analysis in France. The data "showed that all the aircraft's instruments
functioned well until it crashed, which rejects the hypothesis of an act (of
sabotage) involving an explosion," Aridi told a news conference at Beirut
airport. Meanwhile, The Lebanese cabinet decided Thursday to hold a national
commemoration day for the plane's victims. Beirut, 12 Feb 10, 09:57
Activists protest outside Starbucks over 'links to Israel'
Daily Star staff/Friday, February 12, 2010
BEIRUT: Young activists protested in the streets of Hamra, Beirut, Wednesday
evening against Starbucks, a coffee shop they claim is supportive of Israel and
Zionists. The protesters gathered in front of the coffee shop and raised
Palestinian flags and banners condemning Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz. They
called for boycotting US products because they were linked to Israel and
demanded the coffeehouse chain be shut down. The activists also prevented anyone
from entering the shop by cordoning off its surrounding “just like Israel put a
siege on Gaza,” one of them said. They then scheduled another protest for
Saturday against Israel’s siege on Gaza. The march will start from the cemetery
of the Sabra and Shatila victims toward the Egyptian Embassy in Bir Hassam in
Beirut. – The Daily Star
Antonine University angers leading politicians
Daily Star staff/Friday, February 12, 2010
BEIRUT: The Antonine University drew the ire of leading Lebanese politicians on
Thursday after it supposedly offended Prime Minister Saad Hariri and his
political authority. The university launched on Thursday a conference under the
patronage of Hariri dubbed: “The Powers of Lebanese Prime Ministers in Lebanon:
the Difficulties and the Future.” However, the university’s vice president for
cultural affairs, Pascale Lahoud, gave a speech during the gathering, which
according to a statement by Saad Hariri’s press office, insulted former prime
ministers Rafik Hariri and Salim al-Hoss as well as the authority they
represented. Lahoud’s speech led Hariri’s representative, Information Minister
Tarek Mitri, along with several other politicians and participants to exit the
conference room, and forced Hariri to withdraw his patronage. “We hope the
administration of the university takes the necessary measures to mend this
offense,” Hariri’s media office said. Former Prime Minister Fouad Siniora also
condemned the university’s remarks and suspended his participation in the
conference after his representative, Aref al-Abed left the room. Siniora was
scheduled to give a lecture at the conference on Friday to share his experience
as a Lebanese premier. As for the university, it suspended the conference, and
released a statement in which it denied having meant any insult and confirmed
its “total respect” for Hariri and the authority he represented. “The university
never intended to offend anyone, especially not a prime minister it has close
relations with,” the statement said. The university also regretted the reactions
to Lahoud’s speech and said it was “sure that Hariri would look at this matter
in an objective and just way.” – The Daily Star
Iran: Two dramas, one big threat
By The Daily Star /Friday, February 12, 2010
Editorial
The celebrations and protests in the Islamic Republic of Iran, to mark the 31st
anniversary of Khomeini’s revolution, are facing strong competition in the
international media from President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who continues with his
one-man political show entitled “how to run a terrible public relations
campaign.” While the nuclear issue is important, it’s not the be-all and end-all
of the story, which lies squarely within the Iranian regime itself. When it
comes to Iran’s nuclear saga, one can easily pinpoint and monitor several key
players: Tehran, the West, and wildcards Russia and China, perhaps with a small
role for the IAEA thrown in.
But Thursday’s events on the ground in Iran, where the ramifications will unfold
over the next days and weeks, aren’t as easy to decipher. The clashes and
protests that took place, along with the regime’s forceful stance, might not be
a game-changer in the evolving domestic situation. However, they still provide
an important indicator of how things stand. The protests were strong enough to
register as significant event, but weak enough to indicate that the regime can
probably take matters into hand over the short term.
One of the key aspects remains the decentralized, issue-based nature of the
protesting side. Pundits, scholars, and the protestors themselves remind us it’s
about a call for reform. It’s not about putting a specific individual in the
driver’s seat, as was the case in 1979, with the simple and effective formula of
Shah out-Khomeini in.
The “green revolution” gains credibility because it represents diverse elements
of Iranian society, and hasn’t deviated from its guiding principle: reform. But
this doesn’t necessarily translate into a tipping point. For now, the regime’s
tough response – the apparent arrest and/or assault of leading figures in the
green ranks, indicate that the authorities can still fight back effectively.
But if they don’t address the legitimate demand of political reform, the
grievances will grow like rot in the system and eventually damage or destroy it.
The key question is whether supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the
Revolutionary Guards will dig in for a simple defense of their economic and
political interests, or be amenable to a compromise. What is for now a bleeding
in the system will end up being a major hemorrhage if the regime continues to
callously disregard why people are protesting.
The media will tell us much about Iran’s supposed military and nuclear
capabilities in the coming weeks and months, if ultimatums and deadlines
continue. But for Iran and its neighbors, and the entire region, the far more
momentous question is the following: can this rigid authoritarian system reform
itself? For more than one country, Iran’s domestic reverberations and their
endgame are far more worrying than its nuclear chess game.
Bill Clinton Undergoes Heart Procedure
Naharnet/Former President Bill Clinton, who had quadruple bypass surgery more
than five years ago, was hospitalized Thursday to have a clogged heart artery
opened after suffering discomfort in his chest. Two stents resembling tiny mesh
scaffolds were placed inside the artery as part of a medical procedure that is
common for people with severe heart disease.
The 63-year-old Clinton was "in good spirits and will continue to focus on the
work of his foundation and Haiti's relief and long-term recovery efforts," said
an adviser, Douglas Band.
Terry McAuliffe, former Democratic National Committee chairman and a close
friend of the Clintons, said Clinton participated in a conference call on
earthquake relief as he was being wheeled into an operating room. He expected
Clinton to be released from the hospital Friday.
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton traveled from Washington to New York
to be with her husband, who underwent the procedure at New York Presbyterian
Hospital, the same place where his bypass surgery was done in September 2004. At
that time, four of his arteries were blocked, some almost completely, and he was
in danger of an imminent heart attack.
Cardiologist Allan Schwartz said the former president had been feeling
discomfort in his chest for several days, and tests showed that one of the
bypasses from the surgery was completely blocked. Instead of trying to open the
blocked bypass, doctors reopened one of his original blocked arteries and
inserted the two stents. The procedure took about an hour, and Clinton was able
to get up two hours later, Schwartz said.
There was no sign the former president had suffered a heart attack, and the new
blockage was not a result of his diet, Schwartz said.
The doctor said Clinton could return to work Monday.
"The procedure went very smoothly," Schwartz said, describing Clinton's
prognosis as excellent.
In an angioplasty, the procedure Clinton had on Thursday, doctors thread a tube
through a blood vessel in the groin to a blocked artery and inflate a balloon to
flatten the clog. Often, one or more stents are used to prop the artery open.
The angioplasty is usually done with the patient awake but sedated. It's one of
the most common medical procedures done worldwide. More than a million
angioplasties are done in the United States each year, most involving stents.
"It's not unexpected" for Clinton to need another procedure years after his
bypass, said Dr. Clyde Yancy, cardiologist at Baylor University Medical Center
in Dallas and president of the American Heart Association.
The sections of blood vessels used to create detours around the original
blockages tend to develop clogs five to 10 years after a bypass, Yancy
explained. New blockages also can develop in new areas.
"This kind of disease is progressive. It's not a one-time event, so it really
points out the need for constant surveillance" and treating risk factors such as
high cholesterol and high blood pressure, he said.
The need for another artery-opening procedure will not affect Clinton's
long-term prognosis, said Dr. William O'Neill, a cardiologist and executive dean
of clinical affairs at the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine.
"It doesn't really affect long-term survival. It's a quality-of-life thing.
He'll have to have careful monitoring, regular stress tests."
O'Neill said he had done 10 or 15 such procedures in a single patient over a
period of time, and they still live long lives.
Former Senate Republican leader Bill Frist of Tennessee, a heart surgeon, said
on his Twitter page that Clinton was "doing well."
"Thousands of these done every week. He will be fine. He will be active again
very, very soon," Frist said.
Nearly 1 in 5 patients who have angioplasties have previously had a bypass
operation, according to a patient registry maintained by the American College of
Cardiology.
Doctors will have to watch Clinton closely for signs of excessive bleeding from
the spot in the leg where doctors inserted a catheter, said Dr. Spencer King, a
cardiologist at St. Joseph's Heart and Vascular Institute in Atlanta and past
president of the cardiology college.
Complications are rare. The death rate from non-emergency angioplasty is well
under 1 percent, King said.
After seeing his cardiologist, Clinton's Secret Service motorcade took him to
the hospital, where he walked in on his own.
A White House official said the former president's condition did not come up
during a meeting Thursday between President Barack Obama and the secretary of
state. The afternoon meeting took place a few hours before word of Clinton's
heart procedure became public.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because details of the meeting were
considered private.
Aides to Mrs. Clinton said she still planned to go ahead with a previously
scheduled trip to the Persian Gulf. The trip was to begin Friday afternoon, but
now she is planning to leave Saturday so that she does not have to rush back to
Washington. She left the hospital at about 11:30 p.m. without speaking to
reporters.
Clinton's daughter, Chelsea, was also with him at the hospital.
The former president has been working in recent weeks to help relief efforts in
Haiti. Since leaving office, he has maintained a busy schedule working on
humanitarian projects through his foundation.
Clinton's legend as an unhealthy eater was sealed in 1992, when the newly minted
presidential candidate took reporters on jogs to McDonald's. He liked
hamburgers, steaks, French fries — lots of them — and was a voracious eater who
could gobble an apple (core and all) in two bites and ask for more. Two of his
favorite Arkansas restaurants were known for their large portions — a hamburger
the size of a hubcap and steaks as thick as fists. He was famously spoofed on
"Saturday Night Live" as a gluttonous McDonald's customer.
Friends and family say Clinton changed his eating habits for the better after
his bypass surgery. Other than his heart ailments, Clinton has suffered only
typical problems that come with aging.
In 1996, he had a precancerous lesion removed from his nose, and a year before a
benign cyst was taken off his chest. Shortly after leaving office, he had a
cancerous growth removed from his back. In 1997, he was fitted with hearing
aids.(AP) Beirut, 12 Feb 10, 09:08
France Delays Aoun's Visit, Seeks to Invite Sfeir
Naharnet/Paris will send an official invitation to Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah
Sfeir to visit Paris and believes that Sfeir's trip to the French capital is
more pressing than the visit of Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun,
well-informed French sources told pan-Arab daily al-Hayat. One of the sources
said in remarks published Friday that an official invitation will be sent to
Sfeir soon because French President Nicolas Sarkozy visited Beirut twice and
didn't meet with the head of the Maronite church due to his short stay. French
Premier Francois Fillon has also skipped a meeting with the patriarch during his
trip to the Lebanese capital. Other sources said Aoun's visit to Paris has been
under discussion since Syrian President Bashar Assad's talks with Sarkozy.
However, Paris believes that Sfeir's trip is more pressing now that the Lebanese
national unity cabinet has been formed. Beirut, 12 Feb 10, 10:55
Khoja in Beirut: Man of the Year 2009
Naharnet/Saudi Culture and Information Minister Abdulaziz Khoja, who has been
selected Man of the Year 2009 by the American University of Beirut, met with
President Michel Suleiman on Thursday. A delegation from the AUB alumni
association accompanied Khoja to Baabda palace and informed Suleiman about the
award granted to the former Saudi ambassador.
The Lebanese president congratulated Khoja and lauded his role in consolidating
Lebanon's ties with Riyadh. The Saudi minister also met with Premier Saad Hariri
at the Grand Serail and Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat in
Clemenceau. Public Works and Transportation Minister Ghazi Aridi held a lunch
banquet in Khoja's honor and MP Bahia Hariri honored him during a ceremony in
Beirut. Beirut, 12 Feb 10,
Naharnet Exclusive: Nicola Says 'We Are the Sons of the Orient, Not the Remnants
of the Crusaders'
Naharnet/Change and Reform bloc MP Nabil Nicola stressed that "Free Patriotic
Movement is totally convinced with what it had done and with what it is doing."
"Going to Syria to commemorate St. Maroun anniversary aims at reactivating the
memory, especially that of the Christians, reminding them that they are the sons
of the Orient and not intruders," Nicola said in an interview with Naharnet.
"We also wanted to remind the western countries that we are the descendants of
Eastern peoples, and not the remnants of the Crusader invasions," added Nicola.
As to the forthcoming municipal elections, Nicola stressed that FPM's demands do
not aim at obstruction, adding that "keeping the old (law) means postponing
reform until the next polls."
He stressed that the repeated demands of FPM leader MP Michel Aoun to work on
political edification in schools are not random, "but rather aim to enlighten
the youth during high school so that they become ready for political action at
the age of eighteen."
Nicola reiterated that the FPM had not associated lowering the voting age to 18
years with passing the law allowing immigrants to vote. He added that the Change
and Reform bloc was the only parliamentary bloc to vote in favor of the law in
the previous parliamentary mandate, and that today the law has become effective
after it was adopted by the current parliament. "The foreign ministry is
currently working on the mechanism, so why would we obstruct?" Nicola wondered.
Beirut, 11 Feb 10, 21:40
New
Opinion: The magic has gone
February 12, 2010
Now Lebanon
A billboard of Rafik Hariri, urging supporters to attend the February 14 rally
in commemoration of the slain former PM. (NOW Lebanon)
The stacks of plastic chairs said it all. The traditional seating for political
meetings and rallies up and down the country has also become a metaphor for
rent-a-crowd, partisan tedium. It is fitting therefore that in the last week
they have come to represent the buildup of an event held by a movement that has
lost its momentum, passion, energy and even, dare we say it, credibility.
Five years ago on February 14, 2005, the assassination of former Prime Minister
Rafik Hariri, arguably the most seismic single event in Lebanon’s short history,
ignited an explosion of people power, the likes of which had never been
witnessed in the Middle East.
One month later, on March 14, those Lebanese who had already voiced their fury
at political violence and the ongoing Syrian occupation gave a stiff rebuke to
the stage-managed, pro-Syrian rally held on March 8, 2005 that tried to lend
legitimacy to Syria’s 29-year sojourn by dressing itself up as a thank you and
farewell to Damascus. Whatever the March 8 bloc could do, the advocates of
sovereignty, independence and freedom could do better.
But what made the Cedar Revolution so magnificent was that its followers were
not just the card-carrying members of the Lebanese Forces, the Progressive
Socialist Party or the Kataeb. They were not only made up of the diehard
supporters of the exiled General Michel Aoun, and they did not solely march from
Tarek al-Jdeideh to pay homage to a slain Sunni leader.
No, the element that produced the whiff of magic was the participation of
ordinary people; the professionals, the businessmen and the young idealists who
would not ever have been so politically engaged had it not been for the
bloodbath at the St. Georges Hotel, and who, a month earlier, had been resigned
to living their lives in the shadow of the Baathist jackboot and the cronyism
that defined Lebanese politics. They had looked at revolutions in Ukraine and
Georgia and said “it’s a pity that nothing like that can happen here. If only we
could mobilize like that.”Well we did. It took an outrage that saw Hariri and 21
others blown to bits by a 1-ton bomb to do it, not because death is a stranger
to the streets of Lebanon (he knows us well), but because Hariri was a man who,
despite his ability to play the game, represented modernity. He wasn’t a
warlord; he was a businessman, a tycoon who surrounded himself with people who
carried laptops, not machine guns; he relied on advice from MBAs, not goons. And
this is why, when he died alongside Bassil Fleihan, another man who represented
all that was good about Lebanese talent, there was such a massive reaction from
people who would not normally have set foot in the arena of political activism.
We felt part of something. We felt we were affecting change. And when Samir
Kassir and then George Hawi and then Gebran Tueni were murdered less than one
year after Hariri was, we honored these modern martyrs by redoubling our efforts
to sustain the momentum of reform. We saw May Chidiac bravely fight her injuries
and defiantly return to work; and all the while the bombers tried to chip away
at our resolve.
We also saw the arrests of the four generals. Surely this was proof that the
gloves were off, that old order was crumbling before our eyes. Men who to all
intents and purposes ran the country, who wielded power above and beyond the
official remit of their office, were now answerable to Lebanese justice. The
Special Tribunal for Lebanon was established, and we saw what we thought was
another brick in the wall of nation building and accountability, all
underwritten by international support.
Now it’s all over. War, blackmail, civil violence, regional horse-trading and
even bare-faced hypocrisy have put an end to the dream. Hezbollah is still
armed, the drums of war are once again beating, the speaker of parliament was
reelected by the very politicians his gunmen tried to topple, the tribunal is
going nowhere fast, and, last but not least, the arm of Syrian influence once
again reaches into the very heart of Lebanese power. The end came in 2009 when,
on polling day, millions of Lebanese voters said “yes” to prosperity, democracy
and sovereignty and “no” to the forces for whom violence is the final option,
only to have these votes ripped up in their faces.
The people who made the Cedar Revolution so different and special and who
believed that they were present at the birth of a new nation will in all
probability not be at Martyrs Square on Sunday. They
have had their fill of white plastic chairs.
Is the
Ethiopian crash turning into a major scandal?
Michael Young, February 11, 2010
Now Lebanon
Airplane crashes often produce maelstroms of spin, efforts by all the parties
concerned to shape the information in their favor. We are in the midst of that
today over the Ethiopian Airlines disaster, and Lebanese officials are not
emerging from the mess looking particularly good.
In recent days, two ministers have said contradictory things about the crash. On
Tuesday, the health minister, Muhammad Jawad Khalifeh, declared that the
Ethiopian airplane had been brought down by an explosion, though he hastily
added that this was not the result of a bomb. A day later, the information
minister, Tariq Mitri, tried to put a different interpretation on his
colleague’s statement by saying that Khalifeh meant the aircraft had exploded
upon impact with the sea – something the health minister decidedly had not said.
Indeed, Khalifeh went to great lengths to graphically explain why the explosion
had occurred in midair.
On the day of the crash, a Defense Ministry source had also indicated that the
Ethiopian airliner disintegrated in the air, even as President Michel Sleiman,
with no evidence in hand, was ruling out a terrorist attack. Instead, Lebanese
officials began highlighting that the pilot had diverted from the flight path
given to him by the control tower, while earlier this week there was an
anonymous leak to Reuters, by a source allegedly “close to the investigation”,
suggesting that analysis of the first black box sent to Paris indicated that
pilot error was behind the downing.
We can assume that all this information is either speculative or designed to
draw attention away from possible Lebanese responsibility in the catastrophe.
Until a full inquiry is conducted abroad, it’s best to remain skeptical. In fact
only Ethiopian Airlines has shown a modicum of seriousness until now, issuing a
statement on Wednesday declaring that it did not rule out any cause for the
accident, including sabotage, and that it was too early in the investigation to
arrive at conclusions.
Yet there is one aspect of the case that has not been highlighted, but whose
importance may yet emerge later on. It is no secret that Hezbollah has
considerable sway over the airport and that the state’s exercise of authority in
the facility often requires party consent. Recall the clash between the March
14-led government and Hezbollah in May 2008 over the head of airport security,
Wafiq Choucair. At the time the government had dismissed him, only to see the
party reverse the decision by force.
Nor has there been any news for over a year about what happened to Joseph Sader,
the Middle East Airlines employee who was kidnapped within spitting distance of
the airport entrance, and whose fate has been scandalously ignored by the
authorities since then.
Whatever happens at the airport in light of the Ethiopian air crash will be of
acute interest to Hezbollah. If the airliner was brought down because of a bomb,
this could focus international attention on the facility, which may have
significant consequences for how the party conducts its future affairs there.
Even if the crash was the result, let’s say, of a technical mistake by the
ground maintenance crew, that too has the potential of leading to growing
outside demands for better supervision of the airport complex.
The Lebanese state has to be very careful – far more careful than it has been –
about how it manages the situation. If there is a perception in Europe and the
United States that it is trying to draw attention away from developments at the
airport, thereby indirectly covering for Hezbollah, that could severely damage
the government’s credibility and that of the airport itself as a reliable travel
hub. The consequences for Lebanon’s aviation industry, and ultimately for
tourism, could be quite damaging.
That’s not to suggest that Hezbollah had anything to do with the crash. On the
contrary, the episode was surely a headache the party could have done without.
And that’s assuming that someone in Hezbollah, or close to it, was not the
target of a bomb attack. However, we can ask whether Hezbollah’s portraying the
crash as a Shia tragedy (for in part it was) did not have something to do with
its desire to compensate for the fact that anything taking place at the airport
tends to be placed at the party’s door.
Or more cynically, by depicting the tragedy as one for the community, was
Hezbollah warning Lebanese investigators in particular that they had better look
elsewhere for the truth than within the airport’s confines?
Whatever the answer, the state has displayed borderline incompetence in the
Ethiopian airline affair. From the president on down officials have repeatedly
preempted the conclusions of an inquiry through statements they could not prove.
But being faulted for incompetence could be the least of their worries. If they
are seen in foreign capitals as having manipulated the realities of the crash
for domestic political reasons, Lebanon could find itself at the center of an
international scandal.
**Michael Young is opinion editor of the Daily Star newspaper in Beirut.
The
limits of American engagement with Iran
Elie Fawaz, February 12, 2010
Now Lebanon
There is nothing solid to the eloquent words US President Barack Obama uses to
address the many crises his country is experiencing, especially in the Middle
East. By now it has become obvious for enemies and allies of the United States
alike that this American administration has no foreign policy at all, and this
is a luxury that the United States cannot afford, especially when it comes to
the Middle East – the home of 70% of the oil reserves in the world – unless it
has decided to cease being the world super power and is instead gunning for the
Miss Congeniality title. Obviously the myriad envoys coming to the region with
the mantra of engagement without coercion has sent the wrong message and has so
far led the region to the edge of a destructive war. This became clear during
the American presidential campaign, when America’s enemies and allies understood
that an Obama victory would mean the undoing of everything George W. Bush did
for the past eight years, regardless of the consequences.
The enemies of the United States had to be a little patient, the allies weary.
Undoing Bush’s policies in the Middle East meant giving the region up to the
next strongest power. It happened in the 1980s, when Iran and its allies decided
to push America out of the region successfully, but with the small difference
that at the time America’s allies were by far stronger, and Iran wasn’t going
nuclear.
When a bunch of angry students stormed the American Embassy in Tehran in 1979
and held American staff members hostage for hundreds of days, the Iranian
revolutionaries were determined but not in total control, Khomeini hadn’t yet
started the purge that bloodied his country for two years in order to cement his
theocracy, and he feared the American reaction, which he thought could be fatal
for his revolution. The US reaction soon came in an ill-fated secret rescue
mission, Operation Eagle Claw, followed by a letter from then-President Jimmy
Carter to the “man of God” – Khomeini. Iran knew then that the Americans were
unwilling to act and decided death should be the fate of America.
And death fell on the Americans and their allies starting from that moment,
everywhere Iran could reach: from the killing of Dean of the American University
of Beirut Malcolm Kerr and the murder and kidnappings of other Westerners by
Iranian proxies in Beirut, to the 1983 bombing of the marine barracks in
Lebanon, the 1996 Khobar bombings in Saudi Arabia, and the many attacks
targeting American soldiers today in Iraq and Afghanistan.
But back then the Americans were able to retreat from the region, secure in that
Saddam Hussein of Iraq was heavily armed and able to contain Iran’s outreach,
Turkey was an ally and able to contain and pressure Syria if needed (mostly
through water access), Israel was in control of South Lebanon and Hamas was
still an embryo.
Today, after ousting Saddam from power, the US helped unleash the Iranian dream
of spreading the Islamic Revolution throughout the Middle East. Tehran, with its
nuclear ambition, is now trying to reshape the region in its own image, with the
help of its powerful proxies in Hezbollah and Hamas. America’s traditional
allies are either weak or incapable militarily.
For Iran and its allies, it seems the destructive policies they have followed
finally paid off. They destabilized Iraq, they provoked Israel into entering
wars in South Lebanon and Gaza, they armed the Houthi rebels in Yemen and sent
them into war against Saudi Arabia, their proxies in Lebanon took over Beirut in
May 2008, and their partners in Egypt, the Gulf, the Occupied Territories and
Lebanon infiltrated the ranks of power and destabilized the countries. Today
these forces are waiting for Obama to withdraw from the region in order to make
a complete takeover and force the world to accept a nuclear Iran in control.
You can’t blame Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for doing what he is
doing. Obama saw the Iranian Revolutionary Guards killing innocent protesters on
the street and savagely crushing their peaceful Green Revolution but decided to
turn a blind eye. Worse, Obama decided to send two letters to the supreme leader
of Iran saying that "If countries like Iran are willing to unclench their fist,
they will find an extended hand from us." But he failed to say what would happen
if the fist remained clenched.
China might veto paralyzing sanctions on Iran, Russia is actively helping it
develop a nuclear weapon. All this inaction on America’s part is only leading to
one path, a war that will erode US influence. Even Syrian President Bashar
al-Assad, who works to undermine American influence in the Middle East, said
this about American power to journalist Seymour Hersh recently: “Now the problem
is that the United States is weaker, and the whole influential world is weak as
well…. You always need power to do politics. Now nobody is doing politics…. So
what you need is strong United States with good politics, not weaker United
States. If you have weaker United States, it is not good for the balance of the
world.”
In the end it seems that even a bad policy is better than no policy at all.