LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِDecember
12/2010
Bible Of The
Day
Ecclesiastes 11/1-10/11:1 Cast your bread on the waters; for you shall find it
after many days. 11:2 Give a portion to seven, yes, even to eight; for you don’t
know what evil will be on the earth. 11:3 If the clouds are full of rain, they
empty themselves on the earth; and if a tree falls toward the south, or toward
the north, in the place where the tree falls, there shall it be. 11:4 He who
observes the wind won’t sow; and he who regards the clouds won’t reap. 11:5 As
you don’t know what is the way of the wind, nor how the bones grow in the womb
of her who is with child; even so you don’t know the work of God who does all.
11:6 In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening don’t withhold your hand;
for you don’t know which will prosper, whether this or that, or whether they
both will be equally good. 11:7 Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing
it is for the eyes to see the sun. 11:8 Yes, if a man lives many years, let him
rejoice in them all; but let him remember the days of darkness, for they shall
be many. All that comes is vanity. 11:9 Rejoice, young man, in your youth, and
let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth, and walk in the ways of your
heart, and in the sight of your eyes; but know that for all these things God
will bring you into judgment. 11:10 Therefore remove sorrow from your heart, and
put away evil from your flesh; for youth and the dawn of life are vanity.
Free Opinions, Releases,
letters, Interviews & Special Reports
Arab World: Fight or flight?/By JONATHAN SPYER/December
11/10
Treasury Sanctions Hezbollah Financial Network/By:
Samuel Rubenfeld/December 11/10
Put up or shut up/Now Lebanon/December11/10
Fighting violence bottom up/By: Hanin Ghaddar/December
11/10
Wiki-Gate/By: Eli Fawaz/December 11/10
Saad Hariri'S speech/NNA/December 11/10
Thanks a lot, Julian Assange/By: Michael Young/December
11/10
Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for December
11/10
Rainfall, Strong Winds Wreak Havoc
in Lebanon/Naharnet
Biden Reaffirms to Hariri U.S.
Commitment to Lebanese Sovereignty/Naharnet
Nasrallah: We Read the WikiLeaks
Cables and we Will See Greater Conspiracies/Naharnet
Presidency, Premiership Arranging
Controversial Cabinet Session/Naharnet
Raad: They Must Seize Solution
Opportunity before Decisive Stage Begins/Naharnet
Minister Cannon Reaffirms Canada’s
Commitment to Protecting and Promoting Human Rights Around the World/Canada
Israelis abroad warned of possible attacks/UPI
State Department's Wikipocrisy/MWC News
Karam Reportedly Admitted to
Informing Mossad About FPM, Hizbullah/Naharnet
WikiLeaks: will
the civil war return to Lebanon?
WikiLeaks: will the civil war
return to Lebanon?/Telegraph.co.uk
Syria's Assad warns against
interference in Hariri
probe/AFP
Soueid says Hezbollah’s
“threatening logic” is ineffective/Naharnet
Russian deputy FM meets Hariri,
reaffirms ties/Naharnet
Harb has “reasonable solutions” to
Lebanese impasse, says Houri/Now Lebanon
Violent winds destroy training
planes at Beirut airport/Naharnet
Hezbollah finalizes post-STL
indictment scenarios, says source/Now Lebanon/December
11/10
Qassem: Our Partners in This
Country Must Work with Us to Stop STL Conspiracy or Bear Consequences/Naharnet
Rainfall,
Strong Winds Wreak Havoc in Lebanon
Now Lebanon/The much anticipated storm that lashed Lebanon on Saturday caused
considerable damage to public property as a result of strong winds and heavy
rain.
The meteorological department of the Civil Aviation Authority said there was
heavy snowfall at an altitude of 1,400 meters. Even heavier snowfall is expected
Sunday night, at an altitude of 1,200 meters.Temperatures ranged Saturday
between 10 degrees Celsius and 21 degrees in coastal areas, between 5 degrees
and 15 degrees in the mountains and between 5 and 17 degrees in the Bekaa. The
storm is expected to last until Monday, ending weeks of unseasonable warm and
dry weather and bringing the first snowfall of winter.
Despite the good news, a transmission pole fell in Beirut's neighborhood of
Karakol Druze, damaging four vehicles.Three training planes were also damaged at
Beirut airport because of the storm. The small planes were parked at the airport
when they were pushed by strong winds. No one was hurt in the incident.Several
advertising billboards, including one at the airport, were severely damaged.
Some even fell on parked vehicles. Furthermore, aviation was affected at Rafik
Hariri international airport with several flights delayed due to strong winds
that reached up to 100 kilometers per hour. The telecommunications system also
suffered. Some streets in the capital or its suburbs were filled with rainwater
causing bumper-to-bumper traffic and stranding drivers in their vehicles.
Beirut, 11 Dec 10, 12:45
Prayers
answered as heavy rain hits Lebanon
Lebanese brace for weekend of intense storms, snowfall at high altitudes
By Wassim Mroueh /Daily Star staff
Saturday, December 11, 2010
BEIRUT: A heavy weekend storm is expected to lash Lebanon until Monday, ending
weeks of unseasonable warm and dry weather and bringing the first snowfall of
winter.
Despite the heavy rain that battered the capital on Friday evening, Beirut
residents took to the streets and engaged in impromptu dancing to celebrate the
long-awaited deluge. One week earlier, preachers held public prayers for rain in
the wake of the worrying dry spell, which has had a negative impact on the
country’s water supplies. The meteorological department of the Civil Aviation
Authority said the weather Saturday will see heavy rainfall and storms, with a
significant drop in temperature, and snowfall at an altitude of 1,400 meters.
The department said winds are expected to reach 100 kilometers per hour, as the
storm impairs visibility on the coast and the mountains. It also warned that the
heavy rainfall could flood streets and impair sewage networks. Even heavier
snowfall is expected Sunday night, at an altitude of 1,200 meters, while on
Monday snow is expected to fall at 1,100 meters in the Bekaa Valley and North
Lebanon. Temperatures will range Saturday between 11 degrees Celsius and 22
degrees Celsius in coastal areas, between 6 degrees Celsius and 14 degrees
Celsius in the mountains, between 0 degrees Celsius and 9 degrees Celsius in the
Cedars and between 5 degrees Celsius and 18 degrees Celsius in interior regions.
Media reports said a total of 200 mm of rain is expected to fall during the
storm, after Lebanon experienced a nearly precipitation-free November. Waves on
the coast are expected to reach 6 meters. As for any effects on aviation, an
official from the department told The Daily Star that authorities at Rafik
Hariri International Airport were the only side to judge whether the storm would
have any negative impact on the terminal’s activity. The official said people
should beware of loose objects that might fall from buildings due to windy
weather and those driving in mountainous areas should watch out for possible
landslides. He recommended that drivers at an altitude above 1,200 meters equip
their cars with iron chains, as the country’s fishermen’s ports are expected to
either close or exercise caution due to the rough weather. The official said no
accurate predictions could be made on whether the storm would reoccur soon, and
added that the storm might start to ease by Monday. The Civil Defense, Internal
Security Forces and municipalities across the country were busy undertaking
preparations ahead of the storm.
Biden
Reaffirms to Hariri U.S. Commitment to Lebanese Sovereignty
Naharnet/U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has assured Prime Minister Saad Hariri of
U.S. support as a U.N. tribunal probes the 2005 assassination of his father
stoking tensions in Lebanon.
Biden "spoke by phone today (Friday) with... Hariri to discuss recent
developments in Lebanon and the region," the White House said in a statement,
adding the vice president "reaffirmed the administration's commitment to
Lebanon's sovereignty, independence, and stability." The vice president also
underscored "the commitment of the United States to supporting the development
of strong and effective Lebanese state institutions," it added. Hariri is faced
with a difficult choice over the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, whose pursuit of
his father's assassins could wreak havoc on his country. The U.N. tribunal has
said it will issue indictments "very soon."(AFP) Beirut, 11 Dec 10, 07:37
Hezbollah finalizes post-STL indictment scenarios, says source
December 11, 2010 /Now Lebanon/Hezbollah has finalized its plans to deal with
the period that follows the issue of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon’s (STL)
indictment, an unnamed source from the party said, amid fears that the court
might cast blame on Hezbollah members for the 2005 assassination of former Prime
Minister Rafik Hariri.The anonymous source was quoted by Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Rai’s
Saturday edition as saying that Hezbollah’s plans were divided into two parts:
defensive and offensive. According to the source, the post-STL indictment plans
include a withdrawal of March 8 ministers and Democratic Gathering bloc
ministers from the cabinet to form later on a cabinet that excludes Future
Movement representatives. The source added that the new cabinet will operate
regardless of its recognition from foreign countries, and will add a principle
clause in its Ministerial Statement, fully legitimizing the role of Hezbollah as
the country’s Resistance. Hezbollah also set a plan to corner UNIFIL forces and
“deal with them as hostages if it had to,” the source added. Tension is high in
Lebanon amid unconfirmed reports that STL will soon issue its indictment in its
investigation of the Rafik Hariri murder. It is rumored that the indictment will
name Hezbollah members, a move the party has repeatedly warned against.-NOW
Lebanon
Soueid says Hezbollah’s “threatening logic” is ineffective
December 11, 2010 /Naharnet/March 14 General Coordinator Fares Soueid said on
Saturday that Hezbollah’s “threatening logic” will not yield solutions to the
current Lebanese impasse.
“Hezbollah’s logic is not effective in resolving current disputes,” Soueid told
LBCI television. He also reiterated March 14’s commitment to the Special
Tribunal for Lebanon (STL).
Tensions are high in Lebanon amid unconfirmed reports that the STL may soon
indict Hezbollah members in its investigation of former Prime Minister Rafik
Hariri’s 2005 murder.
In a speech on November 11, Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah
said that Hezbollah will “cut off the hand” of anyone who tries to arrest any of
its members in the case.
-NOW Lebanon
Russian deputy FM meets Hariri, reaffirms ties
December 11, 2010 /Prime Minister Saad Hariri met Saturday in Beirut with
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Soltanov, after which the latter
highlighted Lebanese-Russian relations. “Our visit to Lebanon comes as part of a
new tour in the region in order to maintain [bilateral] talks,” Soltanov said,
according to a statement issued by Hariri’s office.
“We will maintain our talks [with Lebanon] and focus on the developments in the
Middle East and in Beirut.”Soltanov arrived in Beirut on Saturday morning for an
official visit.
-NOW Lebanon
Harb has “reasonable solutions” to Lebanese impasse, says Houri
December 11, 2010 /Lebanon First bloc MP Ammar Houri said on Saturday that Labor
Minister Boutros Harb’s proposal includes reasonable solutions for the current
Lebanese impasse.
Houri told LBCI television that “there are many exits” for current disputes in
the country. The MP also said that Hezbollah’s “threatening ways do not scare
any party.”
Harb – a March 14 minister – on Friday called for the Syrian arrest warrants in
the case of former General Security chief Jamil as-Sayyed to be transferred to
the Lebanese judiciary.
In October, Syria issued 33 arrest warrants against judges, officers,
politicians and journalists of Lebanese, Arab and other nationalities named in
an October 2009 lawsuit Sayyed filed in Damascus. Sayyed was arrested in 2005 on
suspicion of involvement in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik
Hariri and was released in 2009 due to a lack of evidence. His lawsuit charges
that he was the victim of a conspiracy of false testimonies.March 8 politicians
have also called for the cabinet to task the Justice Council with investigating
the issue of witnesses who gave unreliable testimonies to the international
probe into the 2005 Rafik Hariri murder, while March 14 figures have said that
the regular judiciary should handle the matter.
-NOW Lebanon
Violent winds destroy training planes at Beirut airport
December 11, 2010 /Four small pilot training airplanes that were parked at
Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport runway were destroyed as result of
strong winds pounding the country. Only material damages were caused by the
storm, the National News Agency (NNA) reported. Fierce gusts hit regions of
Lebanon starting Friday after months of drought in the country.
-NOW Lebanon
Fighting violence bottom up
Hanin Ghaddar , December 11, 2010
Now Lebanon
All Lebanese condemn violence. They denounce it every day and promise to
confront it. They raised hell in May 2008, when arms were used against other
Lebanese, and constantly point the finger at Israel because of all the violence
it has inflicted upon Lebanon for years. True, violence is awful, and using arms
against innocent people is outrageous, but that is the public; what about the
private? Now ten days running, a campaign, “16 Days of Activism against Violence
against Women”, has been putting pressure on the Lebanese parliament to pass a
law designed to protect women from domestic violence.
After years of activism and continuous efforts to raise awareness, the Lebanese
cabinet finally approved a draft law to protect women from family violence in
April 2010. The new law would require those guilty of abuse to pay their victims
compensation and be subject to court-ordered rehabilitation. It would also allow
women to obtain restraining orders against their husbands while claims of
domestic violence are being investigated. However, since its inception, the law
has been met with opposition from religious leaders, who are afraid it might
undermine religious laws. Thus, parliament hasn’t had the time, or maybe the
will, to endorse it. The reason is very simple: women are still considered
second-class citizens.
Granting them equal rights might upset the religious institutions and, of
course, politicians hate to let down their religious figures.
The crux of the matter lies in the fact that Lebanese law recognizes 18
confessions and grants authority to religious courts. Therefore, personal status
law depends on these various religious laws and not on one unified civil code.
The state-religion-family power triangle makes it too complicated for women to
break away. Religion imposes discriminatory laws on the state, and these laws
are welcomed by the traditional family structure, which prefers to keep women in
check. The public sphere is left to men, who control politics, religion and
family. It is a vicious circle.
Discrimination still exists in the civil status, nationality, labor and social
security laws, and the penal code.
The personal status laws threaten women with divorce and polygamy. Women come
second on matters of compensation, child custody and inheritance. There is still
no legislative text to protect women from domestic violence.
On the other hand, violence is becoming a symbol of manliness and masculinity.
The problem is that it is becoming so difficult to condemn street or armed
violence when it is practiced at home every day. We flatter ourselves by
claiming to be “modern”, “educated” and “civilized” people, but who are we
kidding? We live by a public image, and do not care about what happens behind
closed doors.
As long as it happens in the private sphere, society rarely cares and the state
does not interfere, but this only weakens the state and its authority. Endorsing
the law would make women who fall victim to domestic violence the responsibility
of the state, but it seems that’s something the state authorities do not want to
deal with.
It is a patriarchal gender power structure that encourages violence against
women, and deep down inside, condones violence in its other forms. Politically
and socially, the rhetoric of violence has been linked to the perception of
honor. A woman suffers physical and moral violence and is subject to honor
crimes because she symbolizes the honor of the family.
On the other hand, the use of arms in Lebanon is also linked to the honor of the
community. Hezbollah’s rhetoric has recently adopted the honor concept many
times. After the 2006 war, slogans addressing the people of the south as “the
most honorable people” filled the streets in southern villages and towns to
compensate for the death and damage. In May 2008, the attacks on Beirut were
committed in the name of the honor of the Resistance. And finally, after the
international investigators were attacked by a group of women at a women’s
clinic in the southern suburbs, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah justified the
attack by saying that the investigators violated the honor of women who visit
this clinic.
Honor is the word, and protecting honor justifies violence. If those who say
they refuse violence condemn Hezbollah’s practices, based on honor, then the
same people should also condemn violence against women in private. Otherwise, it
is pure hypocrisy.
If we don’t try to fight violence on the cultural and social levels, we will
never be able to eliminate it on the political level. The only way to end
violence is to address it on all levels, personal, structural and cultural. No
tradition and no religion should stand in the way of this law, because if we
really want to protect our society from violence, we need to start at the roots.
Parliament needs to discuss this issue as a priority, and start looking at women
not only as half of the society, because it is not a matter of numbers. Women
should be regarded as equal and treated accordingly. If the Lebanese parliament
cannot recognize this simple fact, then Lebanon will never be a real country and
real justice will never be achieved.
**Hanin Ghaddar is managing editor of NOW Lebanon
Wiki-Gate
Eli Fawaz, December 10, 2010
Now Lebanon
WikiLeaks’ name will for a long time echo in Arab diplomatic courts and lounges,
and much will be said and written about these leaks. The lovers of conspiracy
theories will of course rush to dig through the secret documents and records the
site has published, seeking to prove that America is the enemy of the “conquered
Arab peoples.”
The massive volume of the published documents may require a long time to examine
and analyze, but at first glance it is possible to say that nothing new comes
from reading these secret publications that describe American officials’
conversations with the leaders of Arab states. There are details that may
embarrass some US allies, while exposing the lives of some others to danger.
In any case, what the documents reveal about Arab leaders’ objections to Iran’s
possession of nuclear weapons is no secret, and neither is their call for the US
to prevent this by force if necessary. The Jordanian king has long warned of the
danger that the “Shia crescent” poses to the region, and on more than one
occasion has called with the Saudi king for a Middle East that is free of
nuclear weapons.
Similarly, the documents do not give us any new insight into the Qatari emir and
his foreign policy, which is based on a bundle of contradictions. Qatar hosts
the biggest American military base and yet at the same time funds the largest
Arab satellite television station opposed to the American presence in the Gulf.
In keeping with this policy, WikiLeaks says that the emir encouraged the
Americans to negotiate with the Iranian regime but at the same time warned them
against taking what the Iranians said seriously. Also, everyone knows that the
Arab states do not think it possible that US President Barack Obama’s
administration will succeed in separating the Syrian track from Iran. Even in
Lebanon, it is well-known that there are those who oppose Hezbollah openly, and
that there are also those who follow a policy of dissimulation in confronting
them. In this context, it is natural that Hezbollah use these documents to
attack its adversaries, and confirm its accusation that they are working to do
away with Hezbollah.
However, the most important question revolves around the effect of these leaks
on the relationships between the US and its Arab allies, and the extent of their
effect on the balance of power in the Middle East. It appears clear to all that
consecutive US administrations, from Bush’s to Obama’s, on the one hand have not
given weight or paid attention to what their officials and envoys were relaying
from Arab leaders, and on the other hand are not lifting a finger to respond to
Iran’s war against them and their allies in Iraq, Lebanon and the Gulf states.
We should not be surprised, then, if we hear tomorrow that some Arab regimes
will strive to develop nuclear weapons in their effort to protect themselves
from their enemies. This step will not be merely a response to Iran’s effort to
possess nuclear weapons; so much as it will be a result of American weakness and
cowardice in defending her allies in dire times. As for how a young man of
Australian origin can play around with American policy and make a mere joke of
it, this is another matter. As for today, does “Wiki-Gate” confirm the
superiority of the “Death to America” theory and its conduct against everything
else?This article is a translation of the original, which appeared on the NOW
Arabic site December 8, 2010.
Saad Hariri
December 10, 2010
The Lebanese National News Agency (NNA) carried the following report on December
9:
Prime Minister Saad Hariri, in the presence of Saudi Prince Khaled al-Faisal,
sponsored the Arab Thought Foundation at Biel tonight to distribute the Arab
Creativity awards for the year 2010. During the ceremony, Hariri said, “Today,
we are meeting to honor the most creative people in the land of the Arabs in the
intellectual, scientific, economic, social, cultural, media, literary and
artistic fields. In other words, we are honoring Lebanon and Beirut, as the
capital of the Arabs and the capital of their creativity, thinking and culture.
We are honoring our true Arab identity that is modern, open, creative and on the
rise. We thus thank you your highness, as we thank the Arab Thought Foundation
and all of you who are present here in this particular location.
Honoring the creative Arabs in the capital of the Arabs and Pan-Arabism Beirut,
is like honoring a creative man from Lebanon, one who believed in Lebanon while
it was still burning, who believed in the Lebanese at the peak of their
infighting, and who gave all he had in terms of intellectual, economic and
social creativity to stop the war, rebuild Lebanon and restore its status among
the Arabs and around the world. It is truly an honoring of martyred Prime
Minister Rafik Hariri who eventually paid the price for his visions, dreams and
ambitions for Lebanon and the Arabs out of his own blood. Rafik Hariri taught us
that creativity should be at the service of the people, their interests,
affairs, security and stability. He taught us that truly creative people set
goals for themselves and worked to achieve them. He was the object of campaigns
and false accusation, but he proceeded with the reconstruction march.
For our part, brothers and sisters, we chose to uphold the school of Rafik
Hariri and the legacy of Rafik Hariri. Therefore, the moment we won the
elections, we extended our hands to form a national-unity government with the
primary goal of serving the people and their affairs. This is why we have
endured and will continue to endure – just like Rafik Hariri - the accusations,
the slander and the insults, and will continue to work for Lebanon and for the
Lebanese people. The political crises are an inherent part of our democratic
life and our democratic system, but it is unacceptable to allow the Lebanese,
their interests and affairs to be hijacked in the context of the political
dispute and to allow the obstruction of the state and its course, the
obstruction of national dialogue, and the obstruction of the budgets,
legislations and decisions to be so easy and accessible. This is especially true
considering that this obstruction is also affecting a positive and successful
dialogue for which we are grateful between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Syria
to maintain stability in our country.
We thus call on all the sides to put their disputes aside and go back to the
constitution, the institutions and the implementation of the points to which we
all committed in the ministerial statement, in order to serve the citizens and
immunize our ability to stand fast in the face of the Israeli enemy and its
plans to undermine our stability. The enemy wants our country to be paralyzed
and wants our citizens to be exhausted on the economic, social, security,
intellectual and cultural levels. However, we will continue working to ensure
stability and will keep calling for a positive rhetoric and for dialogue to
resolve our civil problems. We will continue saying to Israel that Palestine is
our cause, that there is no other cause for us, that the Palestinian state is
coming, that the right of return of our brothers the refugees will prevail with
God’s will and that Holy Jerusalem will be the capital of this state.
Today, Lebanon embodies two conflicting states: the first state is that of
permanent dialogue at the level of its historical message around the world, a
state conveyed by the experience of Islamic-Christian dialogue and coexistence.
As for the second, it is that of the discontinuation of dialogue between its
political leaders. Lebanon’s space will remain one for freedom of thought,
expression and creativity. It is the equivalent of freedom in the Arab East and
deserves to remain the appropriate arena for dialogue, without which there can
be no new ideas and the nation will not be able to become a real partner in
drawing up the path toward the future. When dialogue stops, minds become the
hostages of readymade ideas and one-sided opinions, which could lead to
extremism and subject the people to loss, concerns and stalemate.”
Thanks a lot, Julian Assange
Michael Young, December 10, 2010
How many people can seriously say that they regret reading through the American
diplomatic cables currently being distributed and uploaded by the WikiLeaks
website? For journalists, the documents are a fountain that just keeps giving;
for historians, a useful corrective to interpretative ambiguities about past
events. For everyone, they provide a valuable window into how the US government
functions.Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, has both been hailed as a
champion of free speech and condemned as an irresponsible jerk, even a criminal.
But how does he view himself, and his endeavors? In The Australian this week,
Assange took a broadly libertarian approach in explaining why he has leaked US
diplomatic and military documents. “Democratic societies need a strong media and
WikiLeaks is part of that media,” he wrote. “The media helps keep government
honest.”
Assange explained, “WikiLeaks coined a new type of journalism: scientific
journalism. We work with other media outlets to bring people the news, but also
to prove it is true. Scientific journalism allows you to read a news story, then
to click online to see the original document it is based on. That way you can
judge for yourself: Is the story true? Did the journalist report it
accurately?”Uncovering the truth is an ambition that most honest observers of
politics seek to fulfill. However, there are three major problems with Assange’s
disclosure of the American diplomatic cables, but also American war logs from
Afghanistan and Iraq. The first is fairly straightforward, and has been widely
debated. The release of the documents risks the lives of America’s foreign
sources or informants if their names are not concealed. Assange has defended
himself poorly in this regard. Although he claims that no one has been harmed
because of the publication of names, the evidence suggests otherwise.
According to a portrait of Assange in the New York Times, for instance, the
Taliban have prepared a wanted list of 1,800 Afghans whom they consider
traitors. A Taliban spokesperson told the newspaper that a nine-member
commission had been formed to examine the names of “spies” whose identities were
divulged in the Afghan war logs released by WikiLeaks, and was checking these
against the names on the wanted list. Even people within the WikiLeaks
organization have clashed with Assange over his reckless refusal to delete names
in many documents.
A second problem is that even though WikiLeaks has put out some documents not
related to the United States, by far the most significant material the website
has publicized addresses American foreign policy concerns. That is, perhaps,
understandable, since Assange was lucky enough to receive a treasure trove of
papers and videos downloaded by an American soldier, Bradley Manning. But
Assange has also openly expressed his hostility to the US, telling the New York
Times that it was increasingly a “militarized society and a threat to
democracy”. He also noted, “we have been attacked by the United States, so we
are forced into a position where we must defend ourselves.”
That begs the question: Is Assange out to keep government and media honest, or
is he out to punish the United States? He might answer that he is pursuing both
aims, but today the second is being achieved at the expense of the first,
especially in the Middle East. Partisan media outlets here are printing and
highlighting only those cables that support their political line, and most of
them are doing so by focusing on the links between their political enemies and
Washington. In no way have the WikiLeaks leaks improved media behavior. On the
contrary.
A third problem is that Assange, in his The Australian article, describes
himself as following in the line of his fellow Australian Queenslanders, who
“[speak] their minds bluntly” and “[distrust] big government as something that
could be corrupted if not watched carefully”.
Sure, big government corrupts, but does Assange really believe that his release
of diplomatic documents will do anything but spur Washington to expand its
powers? The Obama administration is already throwing its weight around to compel
Sweden to extradite Assange; and given American anger over the leaks, we can now
expect information to be more tightly controlled by the US government, and
officials to be less willing to talk to journalists, than ever before. The leaks
won’t help make the US government more open and accountable; they practically
ensure that it will be excessively suspicious, imperious and secretive.
So what do we really have with the leak of diplomatic cables? An America that
feels, with some justification, that Assange’s prime objective is to humiliate
it and impair its information gathering capacities. We have an America more
likely to bolster its substantial ability to curb the dissemination of
information, while punishing those who dissent. And we have media all over the
world behaving like sharks in a feeding frenzy, acting even less responsibly
than they normally do.
All we can say to that is thanks a lot Julian Assange.
**Michael Young is opinion editor of the Daily Star newspaper in Beirut and
author of the recent The Ghosts of Martyrs Square: An Eyewitness Account of
Lebanon’s Life Struggle Simon & Schuster).
Nasrallah: We Read the WikiLeaks Cables and we Will See Greater Conspiracies
Naharnet/Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said during an Ashoura council
that the party would be targeted by greater conspiracies than the plots unveiled
by the cables released by whistleblower WikiLeaks. Addressing those at the
council, Nasrallah said western organizations had carried out studies after the
2006 war between Israel and Hizbullah when homes were being destroyed and 1
million Lebanese were displaced as a result of the Israeli aggression. Although
the Lebanese emerged victorious, many people lost their lives and "faced big
threats and conspiracies," Hizbullah's secretary-general said. "We are seeing
this in WikiLeaks day after day and we will see greater" plots. Those who
carried out the studies, were amazed by the fact that the Lebanese returned to
their destroyed homes and villages and built their lives again, Nasrallah
said.He lauded his supporters for overcoming the past and pain and "building the
future." Beirut, 11 Dec 10, 08:03
Presidency, Premiership Arranging Controversial Cabinet Session
Naharnet/President Michel Suleiman and Premier Saad Hariri reportedly agreed to
call for a cabinet session for next Wednesday with the issue of false witnesses
at the top of the agenda.
An Nahar daily said that Hariri is expected to call for the session on Saturday.
Ministerial sources close to Suleiman said that although the president accepted
to put false witnesses as the first item on the cabinet agenda, he is keen on
consensus among all parties ahead of the session. That's why the president is
making consultations to guarantee a calm cabinet session, they said.
Presidential sources, however, did not confirm to As Safir newspaper if the
false witnesses file topped the agenda of the session. Minister Mohammed Fneish
told the daily that the March 8 forces insisted on having the issue as first
agenda item. Speaker Nabih Berri's political advisor Ali Hassan Khalil
reiterated that the council of ministers should have the final say on the file
as soon as possible. Beirut, 11 Dec 10, 09:27
Hariri Meets with Sultanov
Naharnet/Premier Saad Hariri held talks with visiting Russian Deputy Foreign
Minister Alexander Sultanov on Saturday. Russia's ambassador Alexander Zasypkin
and advisor George Chaaban also attended the talks at Center House. After the
meeting, Sultanov said: "Our visit to Lebanon comes within the framework of a
new tour in the region."
"Our meetings aim at continuing the contacts between the leaderships in both
countries, after the visits of President Michel Suleiman and Prime Minister Saad
Hariri to Moscow and the talks they held with Russian President Medvedev and
Prime Minister Putin," Sultanov said. "The meetings gave a new impetus to
bilateral relations," he added. Beirut, 11 Dec 10, 13:23
Syrian Sources: Force Won't Solve the Lebanese Crisis
Now Lebanon/Well informed sources in Damascus said force would not bring a
solution to the Lebanese crisis advising the Lebanese to resort to dialogue. The
sources told An Nahar newspaper that Syria was working with active regional and
international sides to consolidate security and stability in Lebanon to avoid
crises that could damage Lebanese institutions."The institutions should be kept
away from political bickering because they belong to the Lebanese," they said.
"The logic of force to solve crises will only bring destruction to all parties
involved," the sources added. The sources also said that Syrian President Bashar
Assad discussed the Lebanese situation with French officials during his visit to
Paris and Foreign Minister Walid Muallem also touched on the deadlock in Beirut
with Turkish officials.Beirut, 11 Dec 10, 08:41
Raad: They Must Seize Solution Opportunity before Decisive Stage Begins
Naharnet/Head of Hizbullah's Loyalty to Resistance bloc, MP Mohammed Raad, on
Friday warned that "time is running low" for finding a solution to the crisis
over the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. "Time is running low and we've offered
arguments and evidences so that we don't leave any alibis for anyone to use. A
decisive stance is approaching and everyone must revise their calculations in
light of their view of the national interest and of their people's interest,"
Raad noted."At this moment, we have given the final chance for the Saudi-Syrian
effort to reach a settlement that would pull Lebanon out of the dilemma of the
tribunal and its repercussions, and I hope this effort would yield positive
results," said the top Hizbullah official.
He said that "those colluded with the tyrants against the Resistance must revise
their calculations.""There is currently an opportunity that may last two, three
or four days. They must seize this opportunity because if time comes for taking
a decisive stance (by Hizbullah and its allies), Lebanon will go into a new
stage and we hope they revise their calculations before it's too late," Raad
warned. Beirut, 10 Dec 10, 22:42
Karam Reportedly Admitted to Informing Mossad About FPM, Hizbullah
Naharnet/Military Investigative Judge Riyad Abu Ghida's indictment against
retired army general Fayez Karam charges him with collaborating with the Israeli
intelligence and supplying the Mossad with info about meetings between Free
Patriotic Movement and Hizbullah officials, media reports said Saturday. Karam
also provided the Israeli Mossad with information about ties between the FPM and
the Phalange party, according to the reports. Israel reportedly paid the retired
general 14,000 euros. FPM leader Michel Aoun and his team have defended Karam
and repeatedly slammed ISF's Information Branch, calling it "illegitimate." In
an interview published Friday, Rifi said that Karam's interrogation had been
conducted with the highest degree of professionalism. However, Aoun told Arab
satellite TV network al-Jazeera that major violations were made during the
interrogation with Karam. "Based on that, a request could be made to interrogate
(him) again." Beirut, 11 Dec 10, 10:16
Qassem: Our Partners in This Country Must Work with Us to Stop STL Conspiracy or
Bear Consequences
Naharnet/Hizbullah deputy chief Sheikh Naim Qassem on Friday slammed the Special
Tribunal for Lebanon as a "conspiratorial tribunal," noting that his party
"totally rejects" the U.N.-backed court "because it is being used to harm the
Resistance." Qassem called on "the international community and our partners in
this country to work on terminating the role of this tribunal for the sake of
everyone's protection against the American-Israeli conspiracy.""This is a test
for our partners in this country: are they willing to take this honorable stance
in foiling the conspiracy against Lebanon and the Resistance?""Our partners in
this country better find a solution, in cooperation with us, so that we end this
conspiracy against Lebanon and the Resistance, because if they don't exert the
appropriate efforts and don't take the appropriate stance, they will have to
suffer the consequences of this conspiracy," Hizbullah number two added.He vowed
that Hizbullah would remain "steadfast" in the face of "the STL's trap …
whatever the considerations or costs may be." Beirut, 10 Dec 10, 22:01
Put up or shut up
December 9, 2010
Now Lebanon/Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has repeatedly
called the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) an Israeli tool. (AFP/HO/Al-Manar)
At a press conference on Wednesday, Hezbollah MP Mohammad Raad declared that the
only way to restore the credibility of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL),
the court created by the UN to bring to justice the killers of former Prime
Minister Rafik Hariri and other victims of political violence, was to prosecute
those people, the so-called false witnesses, who had given unreliable
testimonies to the investigation.
Therefore, without getting into a whole other debate about the whether the false
witness argument is even valid, we can infer from Raad’s words that the
international tribunal is otherwise essentially sound as any prosecution of
those charged with perjury would be done in a Lebanese court, the makeup of
which is currently being thrashed-out domestically. Of course, as we still don’t
know who said what, this is all speculation, but if we take Raad’s words at face
value, he was not dismissing the court out of hand.
Or was he? Earlier the MP had adopted a different tack and called the STL an
instrument serving foreign agendas, one that had created “tensions and
divisions.” That’s more like it. This was much more in line with March 8’s
rhetoric on the STL and appears to be the latest argument peddled by those
trying to discredit the STL. Indeed on the same day as Raad was sending us mixed
signals, Lebanese Democratic Party leader MP Talal Arslan went one step further,
telling the National News Agency (NNA) that STL was nothing less than “an
Israeli court and its indictment is Israeli”.
The day before, Hezbollah Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Qassem said that
he too rejected any indictment handed down by the STL “because it is forged” and
that those who sponsor it are “serving Israel and are being instructed by the
US.” He finished off with gusto by saying that “nothing will harm the
Resistance.” It doesn’t appear as if charging a few witnesses with perjury will
restore his faith the tribunal.
So is the court essentially a good thing whose credibility has been tarnished by
a few bad eggs that tried to mislead it (something could be said about any major
investigation) or is it a Trojan horse, serving an evil Zionist agenda to bring
down the Resistance.
Hezbollah and March 8 don’t seem to know themselves, but one thing is clear: If
anyone is creating “tensions and divisions” within the country, March 8 is the
bloc doing it by claiming that the STL will take Lebanon to hell in a hand
basket.
The Egyptian commentator, Mona Eltahawy, famously said that Israel is the opium
of the people. March 8 in general, and Hezbollah in particular, have taken
Lebanon’s opportunity to achieve justice and set a precedent in the prosecution
of politically motivated murders, and coated it with the Israel opiate, purely
to serve their political ends.
Ever since the summer, during which it became clear that indictments would be
handed down to Hezbollah members, March 8 has flogged the Israeli conspiracy to
death. That they have offered us no evidence is apparently of little
consequence. They know that just by throwing the word “Israel” or “America” out
there it will stick with enough people and muddy the tribunal’s waters. It is a
cynical means to a potentially explosive end.
It is about time that March 8 either deliver concrete proof that the STL is
indeed an international construct designed to either sell Lebanese dignity and
plunge the country into a crisis from which others will benefit, or shut up. For
such unsubstantiated allegations only create alarm and insecurity, not to
mention “tensions and divisions.”
State
Dept. Changes Name of Hezbollah to “Resistance Movement”
By News on the Net Friday, December 10, 2010
By Aaron Klein,/Pieces of U.S. State Department diplomatic correspondence have
been referring to the Hezbollah terrorist organization as a “resistance” group,
according to cables released by WikiLeaks and reviewed by WND. Outside of
al-Qaida, the Iranian-backed Hezbollah has the distinction of having killed the
most Americans in terror attacks. It is also responsible for scores of terrorist
actions targeting Israelis, including rocket launchings against civilian
population centers. Hezbollah’s attacks against the Israeli north in 2006 killed
43 Israeli civilians and wounded more than 4,000.And the State Department
officially designates Hezbollah as a terrorist organization.
Treasury Sanctions Hezbollah Financial Network.
By Samuel Rubenfeld
http://blogs.wsj.com/corruption-currents/2010/12/09/treasury-sanctions-hezbollah-financial-network/
December 9, 2010
The U.S. Treasury Department said Thursday it sanctioned two brothers for
allegedly doing fundraising for Hezbollah.
Ali Tajideen and Husayn Tajideen, brothers who served as business partners for
the previously sanctioned Kassim Tajideen, were targeted along with their
business interests in The Gambia, Lebanon, Sierra Leone, the Democratic Republic
of Congo, Angola, and the British Virgin Islands. Ali is a former Hezbollah
commander in Hanouay, Tyre, Lebanon, and has provided cash to Hezbollah, in
tranches as large as $1 million, the Treasury said. Husayn operated primarily in
The Gambia. “Today’s designation targets two of Hezbollah’s top financiers in
Africa,” said Stuart Levey, undersecretary of the Treasury for terrorism and
financial intelligence. “Ali and Husayn Tajideen’s multinational network
generates millions of dollars in funding and secures strategic geographical
strongholds for Hezbollah.” Hezbollah is a Shi’ite Islamist militia, political
party and social welfare organization in Lebanon that gets much of its funding
from Iran and Syria, and operates as a “state within a state,” according to a
recent Congressional Research Service report (pdf). The State Department
designated it as a terrorist organization in 1997.
Thursday’s designation also included a number of businesses operated by the
brothers, including Tajco, a multinational company involved in international
trade and real estate that Kassim allegedly used to funnel millions of dollars
to Hezbollah, according to the Treasury statement. Ali is a major player in
Jihad Al Bina, a Lebanon-based construction company formed and operated by
Hezbollah that was designated in February 2007. Also designated Thursday was
Bilal Mohsen Wehbe, a Hezbollah member who has served as Hezbollah’s chief
representative in South America. He has been involved in transferring funds
collected in Brazil to Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Arab World: Fight or
flight?
By JONATHAN SPYER
12/10/2010 16:31
J.Post
Saudi FM Saud al-Faisal observes that Iran is advancing on a number of "regional
fronts." But the Saudis are loath to confront the threat alone.
The revelation that the Saudis sought to create a military option for
anti-Iranian forces in Lebanon is the latest item to fall into the category of
“non-surprising surprises” revealed by the WikiLeaks cables. This is not
intended as an expression of disappointment.
Having one’s previously expressed suspicions confirmed is one of the more
pleasant experiences for a researcher and journalist.
Unfortunately, the issues underlying the Saudi foreign minister’s request and
the US ambassador’s brush-off have not disappeared. The same mechanisms are at
work today in Lebanon, underlying and dominating events and continuing to
benefit Iran and its allies.
On one level, Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal’s request for the assembling of a
force capable of resisting Hizbullah sounds like obvious common sense. It was
made at a time that Hizbullah was engaged in the culmination of an 18- month
period of revolt against the Saudi and US-backed elected government of Lebanon.
Hizbullah and allied fighters had launched something resembling a coup against
the authorities, brushing aside feeble resistance and seizing control of West
Beirut.
Lebanon was on the verge of civil war. It had become obvious that the entire
project of the “Cedar Revolution” and the attempt to build an independent and
sovereign Lebanon was faced with an armed attempt by Iran and Syria to destroy
it through the use of a proxy military force. The Lebanese Armed Forces,
themselves divided along sectarian lines and with a large Shi’ite element, were
useless as an instrument for the defense of the state’s sovereignty. They would
have split and ceased to exist if ordered to fight Hizbullah, and would have
been defeated in the unlikely event that they had attempted to do so.
In such circumstances, the two stark options for the international guarantors of
the March 14 government were to fight or to surrender.
BUT ON closer inspection, Faisal al- Saud was not exactly proposing the former
in this meeting. The Saudis, being the Saudis, do not commit to get involved in
any fighting themselves.
Rather, Saud proposed to US ambassador to Iraq David Satterfield in 2008 the
creation of an “Arab force” composed of troops from unnamed Arab states, which
would take on and destroy Hizbullah under UN auspices and with US, UNIFIL and
NATO backing.
In its details, the Saudi proposal sounds somewhat hallucinatory, and one can
thus understand Satterfield’s cautious return of the ball with his promise that
the US would “carefully study” any Arab decision in this regard. The Saudis
generally like the Americans to do their fighting for them, and the proposal
sounds something like an example of this. There would have been little support
in the US in 2008 for a further entanglement of US forces on the ground in a
Middle Eastern country.
The reason why we are only finding out about this proposal two years later is
because nothing subsequently happened.
There was an Arab decision following the Hizbullah coup of May 2008, but it was
not in the direction of an armed defense of the Lebanese government.
Rather, the Saudis, having sounded out their American allies and found them
reluctant, concluded that since fighting wasn’t an option, the only remaining
path was accommodation.
Hence the concessions subsequently made by the Saudi’s March 14 clients in the
Doha negotiations – including the ceding of veto power over government decisions
to Hizbullah.
WHILE THe Saudis’ talents as fighters and organizers appear modest from this
episode, the clarity of their analysis is once again very impressive.
Saud correctly observed that Iran was advancing on a number of “regional fronts”
– he mentioned Iraq and the Palestinians as the other two. He noted, again
correctly, that a Hizbullah victory would imply an “Iranian takeover” of
Lebanon.
This brings us to the lessons for the present day. Accommodation in fact meant
submission. The Saudis’ subsequent response to US unwillingness to underwrite
the elected government of Lebanon was to seek rapprochement with Syria, and to
formalize Hizbullah’s para-state in Lebanon and its status as a
supra-governmental organization.
The result has been that the Iranian advance up to that point was formalized,
with the March 14 government allowed to remain in place – increasingly as a kind
of decoration.
The next episode in this process may shortly be upon us. Hizbullah is
threatening renewed civil strife if its members are indicted by the Special
Tribunal on Lebanon for the murder of former prime minister Rafik Hariri.
The Saudis are once more talking to the Syrians in an effort to find a way to
“contain” the impact of indictments.
That is, in effect, the Saudis appear to be seeking to finesse the next act of
surrender.
It is clear that even if Hizbullah members are indicted, no mechanism for
apprehending them exists. Hizbullah’s and Iran’s threats in recent weeks have
been intended to deter their domestic and regional opponents from even thinking
about trying to implement any decision by the tribunal.
These threats seem to have worked.
So the meeting between Satterfield and the Saudi foreign minister represents a
snapshot in a larger process that has been under way in the region over the last
half decade. It is a fascinating insight into the depth of Saudi fears, and the
shrewd understanding of power relations of which Riyadh is capable.
Unfortunately, the Arab autocracies are incapable of maintaining the boundaries
of their system by themselves, and this is the reason why the Iranians have so
successfully penetrated this system at various of its weakest points.
Saud al-Faisal, having correctly identified the problem, could then only beg the
Americans to lead in confronting it. The request unheeded, the House of Saud has
sought to accommodate the new strong men, granting them their current point of
advancement.
But in the long run, this won’t work either.
The Iranians and their friends have ambitions that can’t be accommodated.
So in the long run, we are back to fight or flight. There is no third way.
More about: Rafic Hariri, Saudi Arabia, Lebanese Armed Forces, Saud bin Faisal
bin Abdul Aziz
Question: "What does it mean that God is holy, holy, holy?"
Answer: The phrase “holy, holy, holy” appears twice in the Bible, once in the
Old Testament (Isaiah 6:3) and once in the New (Revelation 4:8). Both times, the
phrase is spoken or sung by heavenly creatures and both times, it is revealed to
us in the descriptions of visions of two men who were transported to the throne
of God, the prophet Isaiah and the apostle John. Before addressing the
three-fold repetition of God’s holiness, it’s important to understand what
exactly is meant by God’s holiness.
The holiness of God is the most difficult of all God’s attributes to explain,
partly because it is one of His essential attributes that is not shared by man.
We are created in God’s image, and we share many of His attributes, to a much
lesser extent of course—love, mercy, faithfulness, etc. But some of God’s
attributes will never be shared by created beings—omnipresence, omniscience,
omnipotence, and holiness. God’s holiness is what separates Him from all other
beings, what makes Him separate and distinct from everything else. God’s
holiness is more than just His perfection or sinless purity; it is the essence
of His “other-ness,” His transcendence. God’s holiness embodies the mystery of
His awesomeness and causes us to gaze in wonder at Him as we begin to comprehend
just a little of His majesty.
Isaiah was a firsthand witness of God’s holiness in his vision described in
Isaiah 6. Even though Isaiah was a prophet of God and a righteous man, his
reaction to the vision of God’s holiness was to be aware of his own sinfulness
and to despair for his life (Isaiah 6:5). Even the angels in God’s presence,
those who were crying “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty,” covered their
faces and feet with four of their six wings. Covering the face and feet no doubt
denotes the reverence and awe inspired by the immediate presence of God (Exodus
3:4-5). The seraphim stood covered, as if concealing themselves as much as
possible, in recognition of their unworthiness in the presence of the Holy One.
And if the pure and holy seraphim exhibit such reverence in the presence of
Jehovah, with what profound awe should we, polluted and sinful creatures,
presume to draw near to Him! The reverence shown to God by the angels should
remind us of our own presumption when we rush thoughtlessly and irreverently
into His presence, as we often do because we do not understand His holiness.
John’s vision of the throne of God in Revelation 4 was similar to that of
Isaiah. Again, there were living creatures around the throne crying, “Holy,
holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty” (Revelation 4:8), in reverence and awe of
the Holy One of Israel. John goes on to describe these creatures giving glory
and honor and reverence to God continually around His throne. Interestingly,
John’s reaction to the vision of God in His throne was different from Isaiah’s.
There is no record of John falling down in terror and awareness of his own
sinful state, perhaps because John had already encountered the risen Christ at
the beginning of his vision (Revelation 1:17) who placed His hand upon John and
told him not to be afraid. In the same way, we can approach the throne of grace
if we have the hand of Christ upon us in the form of His righteousness,
exchanged for our sin at the cross (2 Corinthians 5:21).
But why the three-fold repetition (called the trihagion) of God’s holiness? The
repetition of a name or an expression, three times, was quite common among the
Jews. In Jeremiah 7:4, the Jews are represented by the prophet as saying “the
temple of the Lord” three times, expressing their intense confidence in their
own worship, even though it was hypocritical and corrupt. Jeremiah 22:29,
Ezekiel 21:27, and 1 Samuel 18:23 contain similar three-fold expressions of
intensity. Therefore, when the angels around the throne call or cry to one
another “Holy, holy, holy,” they are expressing with force and passion the truth
of the supreme holiness of God, that essential characteristic which expresses
His awesome and majestic nature.
In addition, the trihagion expresses the triune nature of God, the three Persons
of the Godhead, each equal in holiness and majesty. Jesus Christ is the Holy One
who would not “see decay” in the grave, but would be resurrected to be exalted
at the right hand of God (Acts 1:26-33). Jesus is the “Holy and Righteous One”
(Acts 3:14) whose death on the cross allows us to stand before the throne of our
holy God unashamed. The third Person of the trinity—the Holy Spirit—by His very
name denotes the importance of holiness in the essence of the Godhead.
Finally, the two visions of the angels around the throne crying “Holy, holy,
holy” is a clear indication that the idea of God being different in the two
testaments is simply false. So often we think of the God of the Old Testament as
a God of wrath and the God of the New Testament as a God of love. But Isaiah and
John present a unified picture of our holy, majestic, awesome God who does not
change (Malachi 3:6), who is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews
13:8) and “with whom is no variableness nor shadow of turning” (James 1:17).
God’s holiness is eternal, just as He is eternal.
**Recommended Resource: The Holiness of God by R.C. Sproul.
A Damning
Wikileaks Revelation
The Story of Elias Murr, Saboteur
http://www.counterpunch.org/amiri12102010.html
By RANNIE AMIRI
When Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers crossed into southern Lebanon and
were caught snooping around the village of Ayta al-Shab on July 12, 2006, it was
the pretext needed for Israel to launch a vicious 34-day land, sea and aerial
assault on the country. The offensive’s principal objective—the destruction of
Hezbollah—was not achieved. Two years after the war’s end we now learn, thanks
to WikiLeaks, that Lebanese Defense Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Elias
Murr gave Israel strategic military advice on how to finish the job.
The 2006 Lebanon War resulted in the widespread destruction of civilian
infrastructure, primarily in the Shia Muslim-majority areas of southern Lebanon
and southern suburb of Beirut known as the Dahiyeh. Of the 1,200 Lebanese killed
and 4,400 injured, the vast majority were civilians. A full quarter of the
population was displaced. Of the 160 Israelis killed, most were soldiers.
Evidence soon surfaced that the Lebanese government under the leadership of
then-Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, was complicit in the Israeli attack.
Haaretz correspondents Amos Haren and Avi Issacharoff write in their book
“Spider Webs – The Story of the Second Lebanon War” (2008, published in English
as “34 Days: Israel, Hezbollah, and the War in Lebanon”):
“For the first time, we reveal … that moderate Arab states and the people close
to the Lebanese government have conveyed messages to the Israeli government via
different sides demanding Israel continue the war until Hezbollah was completely
crushed.”
Cables to the U.S. State Department disclosed by WikiLeaks reveal the continued
collusion of Lebanese government ministers with Israel.
Israel’s inside man
The diplomatic cable of note was first published in Lebanon’s leftist Al-Akhbar
daily on Dec. 7 [1]. It recounts a March 2008 meeting that took place in Beirut
between U.S. Chargé D'affaires Michele Sison (who later became ambassador to
Lebanon) and Defense Minister Murr.
In the conversation with Sison, Murr made suggestions and offered Israel advice
on how best to defeat Hezbollah in a war he believed was imminent.
U.S. officials were quoted as saying:
“Murr told us that Israel would do well to avoid two things when it comes for
Hizballah. One, it must not touch the Blue Line [the line demarcating the
Israeli-Lebanese border] or the UNSCR 1701 areas [the buffer zone patrolled by
United Nations peacekeepers] as this will keep Hezbollah out of these areas.
Two, Israel cannot bomb bridges and infrastructure in the Christian areas. The
Christians were supporting Israel in 2006 until they started bombing their
bridges.”
Murr tried to determine how long the invading Israeli forces would take to
“clean out” Hezbollah fighters from the Beka’a valley so he could determine the
amount of supplies needed to support Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) troops
stationed in an area sympathetic to Hezbollah:
“Murr was especially concerned for members of the 1st and 8th Brigades in the
Beka’a valley. Murr thinks that these units will be cut off from HQ support
while Israel is conducting operations against Hizballah in the Beka'a … The LAF
will move to pre-position food, money, and water with these units so they can
stay on their bases when Israel comes for Hizballah—discreetly, Murr added.”
It was amusing to note how he made clear that Hezbollah—who forced the mighty
IDF to retreat from Lebanon twice, in 2000 and 2006—could not count on help from
the woefully ill-equipped and under-supplied LAF. He told then-LAF commander and
current Lebanese President Michel Suleiman to stay out of the fighting “when
Israel comes” but “take over, once Hezbollah's militia has been destroyed.”
Murr relayed to American embassy officials that he was not responsible for
passing messages to Israel, but by giving military advice to their closest ally,
he knew he was doing exactly that.
When confronted with the revelations, an aide to Murr said, “The information
posted by WikiLeaks is not complete and is not accurate.”
“Operation Cedar Sweep”
WikiLeaks also exposed that the U.S. flew U-2 reconnaissance missions over
Hezbollah positions in Lebanon, known as “Operation Cedar Sweep,” and used a
British airbase in Cyprus to do so.
In addition to expressing fears they might become de facto accomplices to
torture should the U.S. end up capturing and interrogating Hezbollah members,
according to Reuters, “British officials were also concerned that the Lebanese
request for the intelligence flights, dubbed “Operation Cedar Sweep,” had come
solely from Lebanon's Defense Ministry without endorsement from the government
as a whole” (emphasis added).
The Los Angeles Times wrote: “Britain, U.S. diplomatic officials bristled,
wanted assurances that the entire Lebanese Cabinet, which included Hezbollah,
and not just Murr had signed off on the missions and that captured Hezbollah
members would not be tortured” (emphasis added).
It is clear from the March 10, 2008 cable that even after Israel ravaged Lebanon
in the July 2006 war, Murr was giving them tips on the best way to defeat
Hezbollah when the next one erupts. He also displayed clear sectarian bias in
advising Israel not to attack the Christian areas of the country while
apparently having no qualms about bombs falling on the heads of Shia civilians:
“If Israel has to bomb all of these places in the Shia areas as a matter of
operational concern, that is Hizballah’s problem,” he said.
(In another cable [2], Murr extols the virtues of Lebanese Christians soldiers,
lauding their “trustworthiness and reliability” but said Shia LAF soldiers “…
come to the Army for a salary and to eat. Christians come with a sense of
community service …”).
He seems more suited to lead one of Lebanon’s Christian militias than Lebanon’s
defense ministry.
Regardless of whether Murr’s advice was considered helpful, he nonetheless
provided an enemy with guidance on how to attack his country, even if that meant
Lebanese civilians ostensibly under his protection would be killed.
If there is any question why Hezbollah refuses to surrender its arms to the LAF,
under the authority and command of defense ministers like Murr, WikiLeaks has
given us the answer.
The unanswered questions
Who else in the government, then and now, knew about Murr’s actions?
What authority did he have in asking the U.S. to spy on Hezbollah locations in
Lebanon without government approval?
How much of what Murr said to Sison did then-Army Commander Michel Suleiman
know? Was he aware that Murr passed on military advice to the IDF?
What was Suleiman’s reaction to Murr’s instruction for the army to stand down
should Israel attack?
The cable read: “Defense Minister Murr told us that he promised Sleiman the
political cover for LAF inaction.”
Is Suleiman, Lebanon’s current president, also complicit?
There are petitions circulating calling for Murr to resign or be fired. When one
betrays the defense of his nation to a foreign power, it does not call for a
simple resignation letter or job termination. It requires a thorough judicial
inquiry. After the WikiLeaks memo is authenticated and its veracity confirmed,
Murr must stand trial for treason.
Addendum
Shortly after this article’s completion, Al-Akhbar’s website was attacked and
brought down, likely over their publication of WikiLeaks documents. Once
functionality has been restored, the referenced cables can be read here:
[1] http://www.al-akhbar.com/ar/node/216464
[2] http://www.al-akhbar.com/ar/node/216466
Rannie Amiri is an independent Middle East commentator.
CounterPunch Print Edition Exclusive!
To view this document on the
department website, please click on the following link:
http://www.international.gc.ca/media/aff/news-communiques/2010/391.aspx
Minister Cannon Reaffirms Canada’s Commitment to Protecting and Promoting Human
Rights Around the World
Canada marks Human Rights Day
(No. 391 – December 10, 2010 – 7:45 p.m. ET) The Honourable Lawrence Cannon,
Minister of Foreign Affairs, today issued the following statement marking Human
Rights Day and the 62nd anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights:
“Today, Canada marks Human Rights Day and reaffirms Canada’s commitment to
upholding the fundamental human rights of all human beings, at home and around
the world.
“Canada has been a relentless advocate of human rights in all corners of the
world. Time and again, Canada has expressed its deep concerns about the
deplorable human rights situation in Iran. Canada continues to take the lead in
bringing forward UN resolutions on Iran, which send a strong message to Iranian
authorities that the international community will never abandon the Iranian
people in their quest for human rights. We continue to call on Iran to provide
fair and due process for all its citizens, including Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani
and Saeed Malekpour, as well as the many others in Iranian prisons for their
religious, political or social beliefs.
“Canada continues to raise the unacceptable human rights situation in North
Korea. Its people suffer under oppressive conditions, including forced labour,
extrajudicial executions, collective punishment, torture, and indefinite
detention of political prisoners in prison camps.
“Canada supports the Government of Afghanistan and Afghan civil society
organizations in their efforts to promote and protect human rights, especially
those of women and children. Canada consistently raises human rights issues such
as freedom of expression and women’s rights with the Government of Afghanistan.
“To use Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s words, ‘We have a solemn duty to defend
the vulnerable, to challenge the aggressor, to protect and promote human rights,
human dignity, at home and abroad’.”
- 30 –
For further information, media representatives may contact:
Melissa Lantsman
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs
613-995-1851
Foreign Affairs Media Relations Office
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
613-995-1874
Follow us on Twitter.
WikiLeaks: will the civil war return to Lebanon?
WikiLeaks: Why is Julian Assange picking on the United States?10 Dec 2010
The Wikileaks cables reveal how, over a two and a half hour lunch with American
diplomats, Mr Murr spelt out areas that Israeli jets should hit.
He also revealed he had ordered the Lebanese army 'not to get involved in any
fighting and to fulfil a civil defence role”.
The minister’s only concern was that the invading force refrain from attacking
Christian areas. Attacks on Shia Muslims was 'Hizbollah’s problem’ and Mr Murr -
a Christian in a Sunni-led government - hoped that the offensive would allow the
army to displace the radical Iranian-backed group that is Lebanon’s strongest
force.
His plan was for the Lebanese army to remain in its bases – then take over once
Hizbollah’s militia forces had been defeated.
The Americans concluded that Murr 'seems intent on ensuring the Army stays out
of the way so what Hizbollah bears the full weight of an Israeli offensive.’
Almost as damaging, Murr’s testimony directly implicates the Lebanese president
Michel Sleiman. In March 2008, at the time of the conversation, the Lebanese
president was army chief of staff. And Murr told his American friends that he
had already instructed Sleiman that the Lebanese army should not get involved
'when Israel comes.’
It has been commonly claimed that the Julian Assange’s Wikileaks revelations
have contained no dazzling revelations. But these revelations are bound to
inflict long term damage on the already troubled government of Prime Minister
Hariri.
It is true that local reaction in Beirut has been measured, even from Hizbollah,
and that Elias Murr himself has reacted with amazing insouciance.In a statement
he called for Lebanese who have labelled him a traitor to be put on trial. He
asked: 'Who will try those who are accusing other Lebanese of treason only
because they hold a different opinion?’
But this muted reaction is only because the Lebanon is already facing what
threatens to become the country’s greatest crisis since the end of the civil war
twenty years ago.
A United Nations investigation into the 2005 assasination of Prime Minister
Rafiq Hariri (father of the current premier) is set to issue draft indictments
that are widely expected that the tribunal to identify Hizbollah as the
perpetrators of the crime.
Sources say the indictment will go to the judge within days.
When the charges are published many believe Lebanon will face a dangerous
conflagration.
Hizbollah was yesterday mounting a last ditch attempt to discredit the tribunal,
warning that it will cause 'chaos.’
Ammar Mousawi, Hizbollah’s director of international relations, issued a steely
warning to me at its headquarters in southern Beirut. He said: “We view the
tribunal as an aggression against us. We will deal with this aggression with
means and methods that are required.”
A finding against Hizbollah would license Sunnis to mount revenge attacks on
Shias and could trigger all out fighting. The tribunal has been viewed as flawed
by Hizbollah from the start. He said: 'I want to underline a point. Our position
against the indictment is not a position against justice or truth. At the
dialogue table all parties including us were concerned with punishing the
perpetrators. We still adopt the same position.
“But in any offence or criminal act the investigators start by looking at the
list of those who have benefitted. But there was no motive for Hizbollah. We and
the Syrians were the people who were most disadvantaged by the killing of
Hariri.”
The Israelis, suggested Mousawi, were more likely the guilty party.
The danger of a return to violence has stimulated a desperate last minute
campaign by Saudi Arabia and Syria to stop the tribunal in its tracks.
This would involve Prime Minister Saad Hariri withdrawing his support for the
tribunal. As the son of the murdered man, Harriri’s acquiesence carry’s huge
weight in the Arab world.
Deals like these may sound unsavoury- and contrary to natural justice- but in
Beirut it may avert diaster.
The government is already in paralysis because of the tribunal - the cabinet has
not met for the last three weeks because of the dispute.
Beirut has seen a return to peace and even prosperity after the desperate
decades of internal strife. Cafes and restaurants are full amidst an
unprecedented construction boom which has seen many of the loveliest parts of
the old historic city replaced by towering blocks of flats.
But this week, the question I was most often asked by tremulous waiters,
cab-drivers and hotel staff was: 'Are we about to return to civil war?
.