LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِJuly
22/2010
Bible Of
the Day
Peter's Second Letter
1:1 Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have
obtained a like precious faith with us in the righteousness of our God and
Savior, Jesus Christ: 1:2 Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge
of God and of Jesus our Lord, 1:3 seeing that his divine power has granted to us
all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who
called us by his own glory and virtue; 1:4 by which he has granted to us his
precious and exceedingly great promises; that through these you may become
partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in
the world by lust. 1:5 Yes, and for this very cause adding on your part all
diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence; and in moral excellence,
knowledge; 1:6 and in knowledge, self-control; and in self-control patience; and
in patience godliness; 1:7 and in godliness brotherly affection; and in
brotherly affection, love. 1:8 For if these things are yours and abound, they
make you to be not idle nor unfruitful to the knowledge of our Lord Jesus
Christ. 1:9 For he who lacks these things is blind, seeing only what is near,
having forgotten the cleansing from his old sins. 1:10 Therefore, brothers, be
more diligent to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these
things, you will never stumble. 1:11 For thus you will be richly supplied with
the entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
1:12 Therefore I will not be negligent to remind you of these things, though you
know them, and are established in the present truth. 1:13 I think it right, as
long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you; 1:14 knowing that
the putting off of my tent comes swiftly, even as our Lord Jesus Christ made
clear to me. 1:15 Yes, I will make every effort that you may always be able to
remember these things even after my departure. 1:16 For we did not follow
cunningly devised fables, when we made known to you the power and coming of our
Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 1:17 For he received
from God the Father honor and glory, when the voice came to him from the
Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”* 1:18 We
heard this voice come out of heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain.
Free Opinions, Releases,
letters, Interviews & Special Reports
Dr. Geagea's MTV
Interview/July 21/10
Risks of escalation in
Lebanon/By:Paul Salem/Al-Ahram
Weekly/July
21/10
Fadlallah's perspective on
Palestine/By: Mohsen Saleh/Al-Ahram Weekly//July 21/10
IED kills Canadian soldier in
Afghanistan Module body/Canadian Press/21 July/10
Latest News
Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for July 21/10
National Bloc: Hizbullah has
Abandoned National Dialogue Consensus and Government's Policy Statement/Naharnet
Connelly: Hizbullah Trying to
Expand its Influence, U.S. Won't Support Forced Naturalization/Naharnet
Israel threatens to attack
populated Lebanese areas/Daily Star
Bellemare: Army hinted it won't
arrest Hizbullah men/Daily Star
Fire at Lebanese Forces' Ashrafiyeh
Offices/Naharnet
1 Killed, 5 Wounded in Armed
Clashes Between Rival Families in Ouzai/Naharnet
Geagea: Aoun Responsible for Any Acts of Violence against Any Christian Area,
Spies Recruited during Syrian Era /Naharnet
Hariri Denies Links to Spy Suspect Tareq al-Rabaa /Naharnet
Suleiman Meets Franjieh, Gemayel,
Harb as he Continues Talks with Bloc Leaders/Naharnet
Raad: Suleiman Called for Dialogue
to Limit Tension, Nasrallah's Speech Aimed at Warning Against Strife/Naharnet
Soaid: Nasrallah's Positions 'Out
of True Fear of Tribunal'/Naharnet
Nasrallah, Jumblat Discuss
Security, Political Repercussions of Regional Situation/Naharnet
Aoun Confirms 'Imagined Scenario,'
Geagea Insists on Holding Him Responsible/Naharnet
Murr from London: I Got UK's
Support for Lebanon, Army/Naharnet
Police Rescue Lebanese Kidnapped in
Benin, Arrest Kidnappers/Naharnet
Plane Lands Safely in Beirut after
Bird Strike, Stray Bullet Said to Be Behind Another Jet Emergency
Landing/Naharnet
Aoun: What As-Safir Reported is
Baseless, What Would Happen if Rules of Political Game Were Changed? /Naharnet
Berri Again Rules Out War, Calls
for Focusing on Domestic Situations
/Naharnet
Gulf Air Jet Makes Emergency
Landing at Beirut Airport after Cockpit Window Shattered /Naharnet
Hariri Informs Suleiman about Damascus Visit; President Meets Aoun, Saniora,
Raad /Naharnet
Abu Zeinab Responds to Souaid:
False Accusations and Lies are What Expose Lebanon to Dangers /Naharnet
Zahra: Aoun’s As-Safir statement is
shameful/Naharnet
Egypt: Mubarak in good
health/Ynetnews
Fearing Israel: Lebanon phone
system under scrutiny/Ynetnews
Bassil, Baroud at Loggerheads over
Hizb ut-Tahrir Permit/Naharnet
National Bloc: Hizbullah has Abandoned National Dialogue Consensus and
Government's Policy Statement
Naharnet/The National Bloc condemned on Wednesday
Hizbullah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and the party's MPs recent
statements about the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, saying that Hizbullah has
abandoned the consensus reached at the national dialogue and the government's
policy statement. The bloc said in a statement after a meeting headed by its
leader Carlos Edde: "Hizbullah believes that it is more important than
agreements and national consensuses, which is why the National Bloc rejected the
Doha accord because any agreement with Hizbullah does not achieve any guarantees
as long as the party maintains its possession of weapons."It noted that the
country is now divided into two camps, the first possesses arms that grants it
veto power and impose its views, and the second is not ready to assume its
responsibilities and impose the law and constitution. "It is unfortunate that
the first camp has been victorious so far," the statement added. Addressing Free
Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun's recent statements reported in As
Safir, the bloc said: "His comments that the remarks were a figment of his
imagination are very dangerous as he either blends fact with fiction or he is no
longer able to differentiate between them." "In either case, a man suffering
from any one of these cases should not be in a position of power," the statement
said. Beirut, 21 Jul 10,
Bellemare: Army hinted it won't arrest Hizbullah men
By The Daily Star /Wednesday, July 21, 2010
BEIRUT: The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL)’s general prosecutor said
Lebanese army officials have insinuated that the army would not arrest any
Hizbullah official accused of involvement in the assassination of former Prime
Minister Rafik Hariri, As-Safir newspaper reported Tuesday.
The newspaper said that STL’s Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare headed to the US
during the second week of July to ask for US financial support for the STL in
light of his fear that the Lebanese government would not cover its assigned 49
percent of the Tribunal’s expenses.
However, the newspaper reported that based on official information it received,
Bellemare told US officials in New York that the STL’s indictments would be
issued in at least two rounds, between September and the end of the 2010.
The first round would target between three and five Hizbullah officials and the
second would indict around 20 of them, it said.
According to As-Safir, the ranks and levels of indicted Hizbullah officials
would rise gradually, but no accusations would be made against the party’s
command.
Also, Bellemare voiced his fear that the absence of any Syrian citizens among
the indicted would be considered as “an acquittal of Syria.”
According to the paper, reports circulating in New York and at the STL suggest
that a diagram of cellular telecommunications was first presented via power
point to Bellemare’s predecessor Serge Brammertz, but the latter did not take
the information seriously.
Upon assuming his post, Bellemare decided to build on the diagram, a fact that
changed the course of the investigations.
The diagram was prepared by the head of the technical section in the Internal
Security Force’s Information Branch Captain Wissam Eid, who was assassinated on
January 25, 2007.
STL’s general prosecutor said he had enough evidence to back six or seven
indictments, but voiced concern that he would not be able to provide “strong
legal evidence” when the trial kicks off, a period during which the STL would
base its charges on cellular communications reports rather than witnesses.
Bellemare said that Lebanese Army officials have unofficially informed him that
the army would not act if Hizbullah faced accusations.
He also urged the international community “to do its best to respond to
Hizbullah’s attacks on the tribunal” via statements and public addresses.
During a speech he delivered on Friday, Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah
made a strongly worded statement accusing the STL of being an “Israeli project”
and focused on the recent discovery of Israeli agents and espionage networks,
allegedly operating out of mobile telephone firm Alfa.
According to reports, the STL is believed to depend on telecommunications
reports when issuing its indictments.
Hariri was assassinated in a massive car bomb in Beirut on February 14, 2005.
Fingers were pointed by many Lebanese figures along with Western states and the
US toward Syria. But Syria repeatedly denied any involvement.
However, rumors of Hizbullah’s involvement in Hariri’s assassination surfaced
following a report published by German Der Spiegel magazine that hinted to such
a possibility.
The report was published in May 2009.
A senior former official in the US administration told As-Safir that the US
policy regarding Lebanon would not change after the STL issues indictments. –
The Daily Star
Connelly: Hizbullah Trying to Expand its Influence, U.S. Won't Support Forced
Naturalization
Naharnet/The candidate for the post of U.S. ambassador to Lebanon Maura Connelly
said during a hearing at a Senate hearing that Hizbullah was trying to expand
its influence.
She said Hizbullah's media has launched a nonstop campaign against U.S. military
aid to Lebanon.
The military assistance, according to Connelly, is aimed to provide security and
prevent turning south Lebanon into a platform for launching rockets against
Israel.
She pointed out that divisions in the period after 2005 began to surface "blurry
in the eyes of many in Lebanon and the region, but the options for Lebanon
remain stark, however: if the future of Lebanon in the hands of the leaders who
understand that regional peace is vital, or the future of Lebanon in the hands
of those who preach eternal resistance and paint a specific future image of
violence."Connelly expressed concern about Hizbullah's rebuilding of its arsenal
since 2006, warning that "this leads to miscalculation in the region."
"This is not in anyone's interest," she added. Connelly stressed that Washington
will not support the forced naturalization of Palestinians in Lebanon.
U.S. President Barack Obama plans to nominate Maura Connelly as the new U.S.
ambassador to Lebanon, replacing Michele Sison. Beirut, 21 Jul 10, 06:21
Geagea: Aoun Responsible for Any Acts of Violence against Any Christian Area,
Spies Recruited during Syrian Era
Naharnet/Geagea: Aoun Responsible for Any Acts of Violence against Any Christian
Area, Spies Recruited during Syrian Era
Naharnet/Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea on Tuesday held Free Patriotic
Movement leader MP Michel Aoun "responsible for any acts of violence that may be
waged against any Christian area," following As-Safir newspaper's report that
Aoun had advised Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah "to change the rules of
the game."
"Why weren't the rules of the game changed in the 2009 parliamentary elections?
This means that Aoun is asking Nasrallah to use force to change the rules of the
game," Geagea added.
In an interview with MTV, Geagea said that "during the last five days, the other
camp has given the impression that it has taken a decision to overthrow the
democratic game in order to reach its objectives."
"The other camp wants to corner PM (Saad) Hariri and force him to renounce the
Special Tribunal for Lebanon," Geagea noted.
"If Hizbullah is confident of its innocence, then why it is afraid and so
nervous about the indictment of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon," the LF leader
wondered.
Geagea noted that he would reject the indictment of the STL if it turned out to
be "fabricated", calling on Hizbullah not to "anticipate things."
"If the Special Tribunal for Lebanon turned out to be politicized, then we,
ahead of Hizbullah, will reject it," he added.
"Sayyed Nasrallah is speaking as if he is the 'Supreme Leader', as the powers of
the Supreme Leader (of Iran) include the ratification and timing of presidential
elections; sacking the government; dropping or softening of judicial verdicts;
and the command of all armed forces," Geagea said.
Geagea warned that he has "the impression that the country may again witness
political assassinations."
"I'm aware that I'm under the threat of assassination, but I'm not scared and
I'm taking the necessary protection measures," Geagea answered to a question.
"Since nine months, the other camp has started to believe that it took over
everything and that only a small island called the Lebanese Forces is left. The
other camp is trying to isolate the LF and get rid of it."
As to the issue of the major crackdown on Israeli espionage rings, Geagea noted
that "all those agents were recruited during the period of 1991-2005," wondering
"who was the 'incubative environment' during that period," in a clear reference
to the era of Syrian hegemony over Lebanon.
Geagea noted that those who are talking about a change to the cabinet are
seeking a governmental vacuum in Lebanon.
On the other hand, Geagea said that the restructuring of the LF had not
witnessed "any hindrance", adding that they needed "some time" to organize their
internal affairs.
"When the door of admission to the LF opens, there will be a chance for everyone
to join the party, but we can't accept the membership of a former Syrian Social
National Party member for example, or of an individual whose manners are not fit
for joining the party," Geagea added. Beirut, 20 Jul 10,
Samir Geagea
July 21, 2010
On July 20, the Lebanese National News Agency carried the following report: Head
of the Lebanese Forces Executive Committee Samir Geagea stated: “No one should
ask about Hezbollah’s anger following the Special Tribunal’s indictment, rather
about ours since we are awaiting this tribunal’s indictment in regard to our
martyrs… All of sudden, attacks surfaced against this tribunal and state
institutions, and I am now convinced that the other team wants to control the
state. What has the Special Tribunal done so far so that it is attacked that
way? If it is booby-trapped or politicized, we before Hezbollah will not accept
it. Nonetheless, the behavior we are currently seeing is unacceptable.”
Geagea then described Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah as
“the Supreme Guide,” stressing that the latter was acting as though this was the
case and assuring that the Supreme Guide in Iran enjoyed the prerogative to
dismiss the prime minister while “Nasrallah wanted to dismiss the entire
Lebanese government.
“The state must go back to being the supreme guide and all the sides must assume
their responsibilities.” On the other hand, Geagea held General Michel Aoun
responsible for any acts of violence that occur in any Christian areas against
the backdrop of his call on Hezbollah to change the rules of the game. He asked
him to give any information he has to the correct side, i.e. the Lebanese army
and not Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah “who is neither the president of the republic
nor the army commander.” Asked about Lebanese-Syrian relations, Geagea said:
“None of the important issues was resolved and we are seeking this resolution
whose date is still unknown.” He pointed out that “the Lebanese Forces as a
party was not present in Damascus. However, we had two ministers as part of the
governmental delegation and this is how relations between two states should be.
Lebanese-Syrian relations are improving but slowly.”
On the fifth anniversary of his exit from prison, Samir Geagea gave an interview
to the show Bi Mawdouiya [Objectively] on MTV hosted by journalist Walid Abboud.
He said in regard to his anniversary “from detention” as he called it: “When I
learned I will exit my detention for the first time, I was scared of losing the
calm I enjoyed. Five years later, this fear has dissipated and I was able to
maintain my connection with the other dimension while integrating the details of
daily life…” On the other hand, Geagea believes that “nine months ago, the other
team believes it took everything and that there was still a small island called
the Lebanese Forces which they will try to isolate and eliminate,” indicating
that his nomination for the presidency of the republic position was not on the
table after he heard one of the heroes of the other team, threatening that they
will do their best to prevent him from reaching this post after they had tried
to isolate him.
“We have placed all our weight on the parliamentary elections and won them. This
means we are still part of the team prevailing in Lebanon and whose convictions
and principles we adopt…” Regarding the restructuring of the Lebanese Forces,
Geagea assured: “There was no delay in the restructuring of the LF. We needed
some time to arrange our internal affairs and reunite. We had major national
responsibilities but eventually reached our destination, one which undermined
the talk that the LF is a one-person party or specifically one which is limited
to Samir Geagea. When the door of the Lebanese Forces is opened, it will be open
to all but on the basis of ethics. For example, we cannot accept the membership
of a person who used to belong to the Syrian Social National Party or a person
whose ethical values do not allow him to join us.”
Geagea then revealed he had the impression we will see the resumption of
political assassinations in Lebanon, assuring he was completely aware of the
fact that he was personally targeted and that the solution resided in the
adoption of the necessary measures. In regard to the Special Tribunal, Geagea
indicated: “What the other team is now doing makes no sense. Only six days ago,
the political climate in the country was acceptable, but it is as though the
other team decided to topple it all along with civil peace to achieve its goals…
All of a sudden, all hell broke loose over this tribunal and state institutions.
However, this situation is hopeless and I am convinced that the other team
wishes to control the state… They want to put Prime Minister Saad Hariri in a
corner in order to force him to relinquish the Special Tribunal. All they did
during the last parliamentary elections was for that purpose and now they want
to topple everything by force, which will certainly not work. They claimed that
Tareq al-Rabaa was Hariri’s relative, at a time when the information I have
revealed he was close to the Projects Association.”
Consequently, Geagea called on the authority to strike with an iron fist and not
to allow any team to threaten another Lebanese team, asking officials and
constitutional institutions to prevent these things… “Will Prime Minister Hariri
allow another to be accused of killing his father by the tribunal or will
President Gemayel accept that another be accused of assassinating his son? Has
the indictment of the Special Tribunal come out? Is Der Spiegel or Le Figaro the
tribunal? Had I been in Hezbollah’s shoes, I would have waited for the evidence
to surface and would have acted accordingly because had Hezbollah been confident
in this issue, it would not have shown all these tensions... Our position toward
Hezbollah’s arms preceded the Special Tribunal and we are therefore not counting
on it in this regard. I never doubted that Hezbollah had any connection to the
assassination of Hariri…”
Aoun: What As-Safir
Reported is Baseless, What Would Happen if Rules of Political Game Were Changed?
Naharnet/Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun denied on Tuesday
statements reported by As-Safir in which he alleged that an indictment in the
Special Tribunal for Lebanon would be followed by an Israeli war on Lebanon. He
said after his movement's weekly meeting: "What As-Safir reported is baseless
and what would happen if the rules of the political game were changed?" "What I
told Hizbullah Secretary General Nasrallah was a theory that I hope I am wrong
about," he added. As long as there are no individuals in Lebanon collaborating
with Israel, then the Jewish state will not wage a war on the country, "the
current signs, however, are not good," he observed. Furthermore, Aoun noted that
the resignation of several employees and judges from the STL is a sign of a flaw
in its work. The MP said that the FPM meeting also tackled the traffic crisis in
Lebanon, stating that a solution for it lies in administrative and economic
decentralization and developing carpooling. Talks addressed the legitimacy of
the decisions of the Saniora government, stressing that some of the decisions
that were taken are unconstitutional and should be revised. The meeting
discussed granting Palestinian refugees in Lebanon their rights on which Aoun
commented that failure to do so would be "dangerous". Beirut, 20 Jul 10,
Hariri Denies Links to Spy Suspect Tareq al-Rabaa
Naharnet/Premier Saad Hariri's press office described as "fabricated, incorrect
and baseless" on Tuesday a media report that an alleged spy had close ties to
al-Mustaqbal movement.
The denial came in response to a report in al-Akhbar newspaper that Tareq al-Rabaa
was closely linked to al-Mustaqbal and Hariri. The report also said that the
alleged spy was the prime minister's right arm in the telecommunications sector,
in addition to his relation with the ISF Information Bureau which gave him
special facilities and licenses due to his position within the team.
Al-Mustaqbal movement also denied another report in the same newspaper about
links between the party and Fatah members. Beirut, 20 Jul 10,
Israel
threatens to attack populated Lebanese areas
By Patrick Galey /Daily Star staff
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
BEIRUT: Israel threatened on Tuesday to attack highly populated areas of Lebanon
as its military chief claimed Hizbullah was using urban infrastructure to
conceal weapons.
Chief of General Staff for the Israeli Army, Lieutenant General Gabi Ashkenazi,
said his force would not hesitate to strike Lebanese towns and villages if
forced into any fresh conflict.
“Hizbullah is consolidating its presence in inhabited areas where the United
Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) can’t discover weapons,” Ashkenazi
told Israeli radio while on a trip to Italy. “We will move in these areas if
need be.”
Ashkenazi reiterated Israeli overtures of preparedness for a new war by saying
the Israeli Army was “ready for all possibilities,” even while admitting the
situation along the Blue Line was currently calm. Earlier in July, Tel Aviv
published a series of Israeli Army Intelligence images of southern Lebanese
towns. Highlighted in the images were sites purported by Israel to be used as
Hizbullah missile silos. Al-Khiam village, 4 kilometers from the Blue Line and
deep in an area mandated for UN peacekeeping troops, was featured in the images.
The war of words between Hizbullah and Israel was reignited in April when
Israeli President Shimon Peres accused the party of gathering long-range SCUDs
from Syria, a claim stridently denied by Damascus.
Hizbullah, believed by Israel to have amassed over 40,000 rockets since the end
of the summer 2006 war, has repeatedly refused to comment on the size and makeup
of its arsenal.
Ashkenazi had earlier accused Hizbullah of exploiting the recent discord between
UN peacekeepers and residents of south Lebanon which led to two UNIFIL patrols
being attacked by stone-throwing villagers.
“Throughout Lebanon, including south Lebanon, residential villages were turned
into ‘surface-to-surface’ rocket villages,’ while Hizbullah is taking advantage
of the local population and the lack of UNIFIL’s mandated authority, to
strengthen its command centers and rocket launchers inside the village,”
Ashkenazi told Italian media late Monday.
But he added that Hizbullah was not seeking a renewal of the conflict which
claimed the lives of more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians and 160
Israelis, mostly military
“As for now, I do not identify an interest by Hizbullah or other factions to
initiate a conflict with Israel or to cause for a deterioration of the
situation, but my responsibility as the head of the military is to ensure the
alertness of our intelligence, our operational readiness and the preparedness of
the military for any scenario,” Ashkenazi said.
Also on Tuesday, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported that military officials had
yet to decide on the capacity of the “Iron Dome” missile defense system due to
“prohibitive costs.”
The Israeli Defense Ministry announced Monday that the final tests of the
system, which is designed to intercept short range missiles fired into Israel
from Gaza and south Lebanon, had been successful and was expecting the “Iron
Dome” to be fully operational in November.
The $205 million cost is being footed by the US, but the Israeli Army is faced
with a shortfall in funds, Haaretz wrote.
While a new quarter of a billion-dollar funding program was recently announced
by the Obama administration to cover the cost of nine “Iron Dome” launch
batteries, some defense experts believe that more than 20 are required for the
system to be fully effective, the paper said.
Fire at Lebanese Forces' Ashrafiyeh Offices
Naharnet/The Lebanese Forces on Wednesday said its office in Hay Serian in
Beirut's Ashrafiyeh neighborhood was attacked and set on fire early in the
morning. Investigations are currently underway to determine the perpetrators.
Beirut, 21 Jul 10, 09:04
Raad: Suleiman Called for Dialogue to Limit Tension, Nasrallah's Speech Aimed at
Warning Against Strife
Naharnet/Loyalty to the Resistance bloc leader MP Mohammed Raad said President
Michel Suleiman is holding talks with heads of parliamentary blocs to urge them
for calm and solving problems through dialogue.
"President Suleiman is feeling the dangers of sliding into internal strife.
That's why he decided to meet with leaders of the national dialogue, hoping for
calm and urging them to settle issues with more dialogue and contacts," Raad
told As Safir newspaper in remarks published Wednesday.
He said he told Suleiman about Hizbullah's point of view on the "deliberate"
tension created in the country and the campaign against the party.
Raad also said that he asked the president for more positive reaction from
Hizbullah's foes that are "grabbing dangerous information leakage from abroad."
He lamented that some Lebanese sides "are riding the wave of Israeli attempts to
create internal strife." The lawmaker defended the speech of Hizbullah leader
Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, saying the secretary-general was issuing a warning
against the slide into strife and the Israeli-American project in the country.
"In order to get out of the crisis, not a single Lebanese side should play this
dangerous game," Raad stressed. Beirut, 21 Jul 10, 10:00
Nasrallah, Jumblat Discuss Security, Political Repercussions of Regional
Situation
Naharnet/Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and Progressive Socialist
Party chief Walid Jumblat stressed during talks Tuesday the importance of
coordination between the two parties, a Hizbullah statement said. The statement
issued Wednesday said Nasrallah and Jumblat discussed the situation in Lebanon
and the region and their implications at the security and political levels.
Discussions also focused on Palestinian rights, spy networks and latest rumors
and arguments over the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and the expected findings of
Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare. According to the statement, Nasrallah and Jumblat
discussed consolidation of ties between Hizbullah and the PSP through joint
meetings.
Ministers Ghazi Aridi and Akram Shehayyeb accompanied Jumblat in his visit to
Nasrallah. Hizbullah official Wafiq Safa also attended the talks. Beirut, 21 Jul
10, 12:13
Plane Lands Safely in Beirut after Bird Strike, Stray Bullet Said to Be Behind
Another Jet Emergency Landing
Naharnet/A Jordanian plane landed safely at Beirut airport after reporting a
bird strike. Local media said a large bird hit a Royal Jordanian Airline plane
over Shekka, about 50 kilometers north of Beirut, early Wednesday. They said the
bird's blood splattered on the plane's windshield, but the jet landed safely at
Rafik Hariri Airport. None of the 75 passengers on board was hurt. Meanwhile,
Ad-Diyar newspaper said Wednesday that a "stray bullet" from clashes between
rival families in Ouzai was behind the emergency landing of a Gulf jet. A Gulf
Air plane carrying 101 passengers on board made an emergency landing late
Tuesday at Beirut airport after the glass of one of its cockpit windows was
shattered. Beirut, 21 Jul 10, 07:09
Suleiman Meets Franjieh, Gemayel, Harb as he Continues Talks with Bloc Leaders
Naharnet/President Michel Suleiman continued consultations with heads of
parliamentary blocs on Wednesday by holding talks with several officials.The
president met with Marada leader Suleiman Franjieh, Phalange party chief Amin
Gemayel and Labor Minister Butros Harb. Discussions are focusing on keeping
political and security calm by pacifying political speech, the National News
Agency said. Suleiman is also urging the officials to adopt calm political
rhetoric to keep stability during the tourism season, NNA added. Beirut, 21 Jul
10, 11:53
Aoun Confirms 'Imagined Scenario,' Geagea Insists on Holding Him Responsible
Naharnet/A new verbal clash has erupted between Free Patriotic Movement leader
Michel Aoun and Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea.
While Aoun continued to show his commitment to the "scenario" of sectarian
strife, Geagea was adamant to hold the former army general responsible for any
acts of violence against Christian areas. During a press conference on Tuesday
following his weekly FPM meeting, Aoun confirmed quotes attributed to him in
which he said that the "next phase will witness a Christian side involved in
sectarian strife." "Absolutely not. I don't deny this scenario at all. This is
how I imagined it," Aoun told reporters.
"I am a military man and a specialist in revolutionary wars. It absolutely don't
it (scenario), " he stressed. Asked whether the "side" meant was the Lebanese
Forces, Aoun said: "Don't call them a 'side' but rather Christian spies because
spies are found in all (political) parties." He warned that "some Christian
parties" would seek to impose a new status quo in their regions while
fundamentalist groups in Palestinian camps would act the same way. Geagea hit
back at Aoun, warning that he will hold the FPM leader "responsible for any acts
of violence that may be waged against any Christian area." He was responding to
a report by As-Safir newspaper in which Aoun advised Hizbullah chief Sayyed
Hassan Nasrallah "to change the rules of the game."
"Why weren't the rules of the game changed in the 2009 parliamentary elections?
This means that Aoun is asking Nasrallah to use force to change the rules of the
game," Geagea added.
In an interview with MTV, Geagea said that "during the last five days, the other
camp has given the impression that it has taken a decision to overthrow the
democratic game in order to reach its objectives." "The other camp wants to
corner PM (Saad) Hariri and force him to renounce the Special Tribunal for
Lebanon," Geagea noted. Beirut, 21 Jul 10,
Murr from London: I Got UK's Support for Lebanon, Army
Naharnet/Defense Minister Elias Murr said Wednesday after meeting his British
counterpart in London that he received U.K.'s support for Lebanon and its army.
Murr said he discussed with British Defense Secretary Liam Fox ways to boost
ties between the two countries and strengthen the Lebanese army's capabilities.
Beirut, 21 Jul 10, 11:18
Police Rescue Lebanese Kidnapped in Benin, Arrest Kidnappers
Naharnet/Police in the West African country of Benin rescued a Lebanese man
kidnapped by three gunmen, one of them a Nigerian, a police source in the city
of Cotonou said Tuesday night.The head of the special force that carried out the
operation to release Abdel Rida al-Duhaini said the gunmen were arrested. Al-Duhaini
is "safe and sound," he said. A police source had said that al-Duhaini, 33, was
kidnapped by four gunmen while he was on his way home on Sunday. He works in the
trade of cars. The kidnappers, who were making calls from Nigerian phone lines,
asked for a 50,000 dollar ransom. However, they agreed to accept 30,000 dollars
after negotiations, the source said. Beirut, 21 Jul 10, 07:45
Soaid: Nasrallah's Positions 'Out of True Fear of Tribunal'
March 14 Forces General Secretariat Coordinator Fares Soaid said statements by
Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah were the result of "true fear" of the
Special Tribunal for Lebanon. Nasrallah's statements were the "result of true
fear of the issuance of indictments by the International Tribunal which could
charge members linked to the party (Hizbullah) of involvement in the
assassination" of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, Soaid said in remarks
published Wednesday by the Kuwaiti Assiyassah. He expressed surprise at
how "Hizbullah placed itself in the accusation circle by seeking to torpedo the
Doha agreement like it o longer existed." "This situation cannot go on without
any political response from the stakeholders and specifically from within the
Cabinet and not from lawmakers in order to put an end to this ongoing
exaggeration," Soaid thought. Beirut, 21 Jul 10, 11:01
1 Killed, 5 Wounded in Armed Clashes Between Rival Families in Ouzai
Naharnet/Armed clashes between rival families broke out in Beirut's Ouzai
neighborhood overnight. State-run National News Agency on Wednesday said one
person was killed and five wounded in the clashes with automatic gunfire that
pitted Assaf family against Siblani. Local media said army troops deployed in
the area and dispersed the gunmen. Beirut, 21 Jul 10, 07:29
Zahra: Aoun’s As-Safir statement is shameful
July 21, 2010 /Naharnet/Lebanese Forces bloc MP Antoine Zahra told Future News
on Wednesday that Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun’s alleged
request—as reported in As-Safir newspaper last week—for Hezbollah Secretary
General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah “to change the rules of the game” is shameful
and serves petty political aims.
The daily also reported that Aoun told Nasrallah that there are military groups,
especially among the Christians—a possible reference to the Kataeb Party and
LF—that want to change the status quo in Christian areas.Zahra also warned
against “any possible military maneuvers that could [destroy] Lebanon,” saying
that Israel and Hezbollah could trigger a regional conflict.
-NOW Lebanon
Khamenei Says Muslims Must Fight 'Savage' U.S., British Terrorism
Naharnet/Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Wednesday called on Muslims to
fight the "blind and savage terrorism" fuelled by U.S. and Britain, whom he
blamed for deadly bombings of an Iranian mosque. "In our region... the blind and
savage terrorism is born out of the evil policies of the United States, Britain
and their state and non-state mercenaries," Khamenei said in a statement marking
the seventh day of mourning for victims of the bombings of a Shiite mosque in
southeastern Iran.
"All Muslims are required to combat and confront this evil and sinister
offspring which is the epitome of corruption on earth and of waging war against
God," the all-powerful Khamenei said in the statement read out on state
television. Two suicide bombers on Thursday blew themselves up at a Shiite
mosque in Zahedan, the capital of Sistan-Baluchestan province which borders
Afghanistan and Pakistan, killing 28 people and wounding hundreds. Khamenei said
this "bloody incident" was carried out by the "devious, bigoted Wahabis with the
support and plotting of foreign spy organizations," adding the Zahedan bombings
were aimed at dividing Iranian Muslims. "The Shiite and Sunni thinkers in all
Islamic and Arab countries should define the wicked intentions of the enemies
which is to instigate sectarian terrorism for all and prevent them (Muslim
nations) from the great danger of religious unrest," Khamenei said.
He said Iran was the "target of the spy services of the U.S. and Zionist
regimes, and Britain" who wanted to "push it into religious unrest and into a
Shiite-Sunni conflict."
"But the Islamic republic will not allow the agents of global arrogance to
incite division among Muslim brothers," he added.(AFP) Beirut, 21 Jul 10, 13:51
Michel Aoun in his capacity as a “popular organization”
Hazem Saghiyeh, July 19, 2010
Now Lebanon
In semi-totalitarian and totalitarian regimes, the “masses” or “popular
organizations” urge the leader to take the initiative and settle issues. They
warn him against dangers and conspiracies he may have overlooked and call on him
to take speedy action to crush the conspirators and preserve “the people’s
gains.” Hence, voices, shouts and banners are raised by organizations of
peasants, workers, students, women, etc. warning the leader against yielding to
his humanitarian dispositions, mercy and compassion by overlooking or being
lenient with the major conspiracy and those behind it.
The leader actually never overlooks these details and never slackens when
dealing with them, and he always has an insatiable appetite to “crush the
conspirators.” However, every play has its plot and every behavior calls for a
proper pretext, such as the leader’s saying: Due to the pressure exerted on me
by the people and popular organizations, I am compelled to take this or that
initiative.
This is exactly what General Michel Aoun has done recently: play the role of
popular organizations. According to As-Safir’s July 17 edition, he got
“information” from “Western diplomatic sources” and recently transmitted them in
substance to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Hezbollah Secretary General
Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. Nasrallah briefed some allies on them, including
Speaker Nabih Berri and MP Sleiman Franjieh, during the prolonged meeting with
the latter over dinner the night before last.
Sources told As-Safir that Aoun expressed his concern regarding a potential
dramatic scenario in which the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, Israel and Lebanese
domestic issues are overlapping. This scenario would be to provide the adequate
domestic political environment for the STL’s indictment through the theory of
“the undisciplined group.” This goes along with domestic tensions among the
Lebanese, and between the Lebanese and the Palestinians. When the indictment is
issued, it would trigger the countdown to an extensive Israeli military action,
thus trapping the Resistance between Israeli fire and domestic strife. The
Resistance’s supporters would thus be caught in the crossfire. Aoun expressed
his concerns that the indictment and the Israeli aggression would come alongside
new action undertaken by military groups domestically, especially on the
Christian level, to impose a new status quo in Christian areas. At the same
time, Aoun went on, some extremist groups, especially within the Palestinian
camps, would draw the outline of new realities in some communities. The strife
project in Lebanon would, thus, “be open to several possibilities.”
Here comes the lustful moment where Aoun’s and As-Safir’s “information” seem to
concur:
Given these factors, Aoun asked Hezbollah to be ready for strife, starting with
a review of the current cabinet lineup, since such a cabinet will not be able to
confront strife given the existence of an influent party within it, one that is
betting on strife and perhaps even playing a role in covering it. Aoun addressed
Nasrallah in those terms: “They want to kill you again, Sayyed … And it is
forbidden for you to defend yourselves. A certain Lebanese party is still
betting on a new Israeli war. Therefore, I advise you to change the rules of the
game.”
The author of these lines apologies to the readers for this lengthy quote, but
the quoted sections are worth knowing by heart. Indeed, they are probably the
most important Lebanese statement in the culture of “popular organizations” when
they urge a leader to take action, knowing that he lacks neither the will nor
the determination to do so.
This article is a translation of the original, which was published on the NOW
Arabic site on Monday July 19, 2010
Ashkenazi: Israel to Move into Lebanese Populated Areas If
Need Be
Naharnet/Israeli army chief Gabi Ashkenazi said Tuesday that the Jewish state is
ready to attack Hizbullah in populated areas if the need arises. "Hizbullah is
consolidating its presence in inhabited areas where the United Nations Interim
Force in Lebanon can't discover weapons," Ashkenazi told Israel radio while on a
visit to Rome. "We will move in these areas if need be," he said. Ashkenazi
reiterated that Israel was "ready for all possibilities" although he said the
situation on the border is currently calm. Earlier this month, the Israeli
military published a series of aerial photographs of south Lebanon showing what
it says is evidence of Hizbullah stockpiling weapons in towns and villages near
the border. The images and maps show what the military says are bunkers and arms
caches located in the middle of al-Khiam village, only four kilometers from the
border. Beirut, 20 Jul 10,
Fearing
Israel: Lebanon phone system under scrutiny
Hezbollah paper: Team to identify 'weak points' in cell networks following spy
affairs
Roee Nahmias Published: 07.20.10, 17:38 / Israel News
Lebanon's Telecommunications Minister Charbel Nahas has set up a technical team
to map all communications networks in Lebanon, senior sources in Lebanon's
Telecommunications Ministry said Tuesday to al-Akhbar, a newspaper associated
with Hezbollah.
The move comes after an Israeli spy ring was discovered in Lebanon. According to
Hezbollah, the alleged spies took advantage of the country's cell phone
networks.
Rare Interview
Nasrallah's father recounts son's rise to fame / Dudi Cohen
Abu-Hassan Nasrallah tells Iranian reporter he wanted Hezbollah chief to be
engineer or lawyer
The aim of the new team is to identify "weak points" in the networks, both from
a technical and a "human" point of view, which may enable Lebanon to be
infiltrated like those arrested in the recent spy-ring affair have admitted to
doing.
According to the same Ministry sources, the team will be assisted by experts
from outside the Ministry and seek to "tighten the loose screws" within
communications companies which had been under insufficient surveillance.
They also said that during his interrogation one of those arrested from the Alfa
cell phone company had offered testimony which was far more dangerous to Lebanon
that that of his colleague Charbel Azzi, who admitted to working for Israeli
intelligence services.
The newspaper noted that Hezbollah continues to lead the effort against "Israeli
aggression" via espionage in all areas of Lebanese life.
Any steps taken by the telecommunications minister will probably be coordinated
with Hezbollah. During his latest speech last Friday, the organization's
Secretary-General Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah called for the death sentence for all
those convicted of spying for Israel.
The new moves to crack down on alleged spying can be felt at ground level too.
Lebanese sources told Ynet there is real fear that use of instant messaging
programs like Skype with Israelis, even if it has no security implications, may
come under Hezbollah surveillance.
IED kills
Canadian soldier in Afghanistan Module body
By Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - A young Canadian soldier who had escaped death in an
earlier encounter with an improvised explosive device was killed Tuesday while
on a foot patrol southwest of Kandahar city.
Sapper Brian Collier, 24, had dismounted from his vehicle in the village of
Nakhonay, 15 kilometres southwest of Kandahar city, when he was killed by an IED
blast.
It's the first Canadian death in Afghanistan since June 26, when two medics —
Master Cpl. Kristal Giesebrecht, 34 and Pte. Andrew Miller, 21 — died. Their
vehicle had also detonated an IED.
"Canadian soldiers are in a constant struggle with insurgents in places like
Nakhonay and elsewhere in the Panjwaii district," said Brig.-Gen. Jonathan
Vance, the commander of Task Force Kandahar.
"We are working so diligently in the Panjwaii district so that we can bring
about the sort of positive changes that have resulted from our operations over
the past year in neighbouring Dand district. We seek to do the same in Panjwaii
over the next year."
Collier had been wounded earlier on this tour of duty.
"Previously injured in a separate IED strike, Sapper Collier fought hard to
overcome his injury in order to get back to doing his job with his comrades,"
said Vance.
"Today, the entire task force — both military and civilian — is mourning our
fallen comrade. Any Canadian who could have seen Brian in action would have been
proud of him and proud of our country for the work being done with and for
Afghans," he added.
Collier was born in Toronto and raised in Bradford, Ont.
A member of 1 Combat Engineer Regiment based at CFB Edmonton, he was serving in
Afghanistan with the 1st Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group. It
was his first deployment to Afghanistan.
Vance said Collier was known for his easygoing nature and sense of humour, and
was an automobile enthusiast who loved to spend time with his Audi.
Since his arrival in Afghanistan in May, Collier actively posted updates and
photos on his Facebook account, giving his friends a glimpse into his life
there.
On July 7, he thanked his friends for birthday wishes.
"My cake was food from a bag... My surprise was gettin shot at by Taliban...
awesome!," he wrote in a posting publicly accessible on the social networking
site.
One of his final posts was about longing for a beer. A friend replied that a
cold brew would be waiting for him upon his return to Canada.
Collier had recently joined a group entitled "Canadian Combat Engineers:
Remembering the Fallen."
His profile indicated he planned to take a trip to Bali, Indonesia in November.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper extended his condolences on behalf of all
Canadians to Collier's family and friends.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with them during this difficult time," he said in
a statement. "The bravery and remarkable commitment of Canadians like Sapper
Collier are bringing safety and stability to the people of Afghanistan."
Harper said the government was proud of the Canadian Forces, whose dedication
and work was protecting Canadian interests and values at home and abroad.
"Sapper Collier’s sacrifice will not be forgotten," he said.
The latest death brings to 151 the total number of Canadian military personnel
who have died as part of the Afghanistan mission since it began in 2002.
IEDs have been the single biggest cause of death among Canadian troops in
Afghanistan.
Eleven out of the 13 Canadian deaths this year were the result of an IED blast.
In all, 92 of the 151 Canadian fatalities in the eight-year-old mission came
about from IEDs — which include roadside bombs and certain other type of
explosives, according to the Department of National Defence.
Two civilians — diplomat Glyn Berry and journalist Michelle Lang — have also
been killed in Canada's mission to Afghanistan.
Risks of
escalation in Lebanon
Paul Salem*
Al-Ahram Weekly
With tensions mounting in Lebanon over a number of national and regional issues,
international efforts should remain focussed on avoiding conflict, argues Paul
Salem*
Despite overall calm and a record tourist season this summer, Lebanon's
political system has been struggling to manage a number of major issues. These
include skirmishes with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in
the south, escalating rhetoric with Israel over oil and gas exploration, the
renewal of debate over Palestinian civil rights in Lebanon, and concerns that
the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) will soon issue its preliminary findings
in the investigation into the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister
Rafik Al-Hariri.
Although UNIFIL forces and local inhabitants have had run-ins before,
confrontations this summer were more serious than previously and left a number
of people on both sides injured. UNIFIL says that it met organised civilian
resistance during normal exercises and patrols in its area of deployment. Other
sources say that UNIFIL did not adequately coordinate its exercises with the
Lebanese army and local communities, and that they were unnecessarily showy and
provocative. Both UNIFIL and its French contingent have new commanding officers,
and they may have misread the local situation and gone further than previous
commanders.
The Lebanese army command and UNIFIL moved quickly to defuse the situation.
Nevertheless, the reaction from local inhabitants -- many of whom are influenced
by Hizbullah -- was unusually combative, and statements from pro-Hizbullah
leaders have also been somewhat threatening to UNIFIL. While Hizbullah has
generally accommodated UNIFIL's presence on the southern strip to help it avoid
another war with Israel, the organisation regards UNIFIL generally as an
observer force and has previously resisted UNIFIL's attempts to flex its muscles
or conduct effective operations and searches in its zone of operations.
Given Hizbullah's links to Tehran, the new tension with UNIFIL could reflect
Iranian responses to the new wave of sanctions against it, and send a signal to
European countries -- including France, Italy, and Spain -- not to add to the UN
and US sanctions already in place.
The tensions with UNIFIL have also raised concerns that it might become a
hostage to regional events, or that the UNIFIL mission could begin to unravel.
If any major contingent withdraws and UNIFIL indeed dissolves, then the calm
that has prevailed on the Lebanese- Israeli border since 2006 will disappear and
the two countries could slide quickly back into war. National, regional and
international officials should move quickly to contain this crisis and maintain
UNIFIL's buffer role.
The recent discovery of a major gas field off the shores of Israel (the Tamar
field, with estimated reserves of six trillion cubic feet) has also catapulted
energy to the forefront of political and security concerns. The find has the
potential to transform Israel into an energy independent nation and indicates
that gas and oil reserves under the eastern Mediterranean Sea might be more
significant than previously thought.
While Lebanon has agreements with Cyprus and Egypt over offshore exploration
zones, it does not have any such agreement with Israel, and the Lebanese-Israeli
maritime border is not properly delimited. Lebanese officials have warned Israel
not to drill close to Lebanon's maritime waters, and Hizbullah has issued
warnings that it will protect Lebanon's offshore rights if necessary. Israel has
responded with stiff warnings of its own.
Both Israel and Cyprus started to organise oil and gas exploration off their
shores years ago. The Lebanese government -- belatedly realising that such
resources might exist in significant amounts and could help pay down the
country's debt -- is trying to push an oil and gas bill through parliament this
summer. This law would establish an energy authority to manage exploration
contracts and a Lebanese sovereign wealth fund to receive the proceeds if and
when they materialise. Even if the law goes through, however, the process of
contracting, exploring, extracting and generating revenues from the reserves
will take years.
In the meantime, the issue of offshore energy resources is just one more point
of contention between Lebanon and Israel and adds to an already fractious
relationship. It is in both Lebanon and the region's interests to indirectly
mediate in the Lebanese-Israeli maritime border disputes and to make sure that
offshore drilling does not become another cause of armed conflict.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian issue returned to the scene on June 15, when Druze
leader Walid Jumblatt caused a minor political earthquake by tabling a law to
grant Palestinian refugees long overdue social and economic rights. The proposal
immediately polarised the Lebanese political scene along old civil war lines,
with Christian leaders opposing it and Muslim leaders favouring it. That
response may have been just what Jumblatt intended, allowing him to weaken both
Sunni-Christian and Shia- Christian alliances and rebuild the old alliance
systems -- grouping Sunnis, Shias and Palestinians against a mainstream
Christian coalition -- of which he (and previously his father) was a key
component.
The draft proposes granting Palestinian refugees the right to buy property in
Lebanon, the right to work, and the right to receive social security and medical
coverage as well as end-of- service insurance from the Lebanese social security
fund. Proponents argue that it is a humanitarian necessity and will help ease
tensions in the overcrowded refugee camps.
However, opponents argue that it will put new burdens on already deeply indebted
public finances, that it should be preceded by the disarming of the Palestinian
militias, and that it is a prelude to the effective naturalisation of the
Palestinian refugees. Opponents also say that the welfare of the refugees is the
responsibility of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and argue
that international and regional donors are not funding their fair share and are
trying to transfer the burden onto refugee host countries. The draft law is now
in parliamentary committee and is unlikely to pass in its current form. A
watered-down version, however, might eventually see the light of day.
The timing of the proposal is interesting. While it could be just another one of
Jumblatt's attempts to shuffle the political deck, the proposal is unlikely to
have proceeded without Syria's knowledge and/or approval. As US envoys continue
to try to revive the Israeli- Palestinian peace talks while largely ignoring
Damascus, Syria might be indicating that its influence in Lebanon can be
relevant in addressing the Palestinian refugee question. Although Syria would
oppose full naturalisation in Lebanon and Syria because it would dramatically
affect sectarian balances in both countries, it could support the granting of
social and economic rights to refugees in Lebanon.
Unfortunately, the sectarian reactions to the proposal indicate that Lebanon has
not moved beyond the discourse that prevailed during the civil war. While the
Palestinians urgently need these social and economic rights, the matter needs to
be handled in such a way that it does not ignite another civil war in Lebanon.
And it also should not be used as an excuse to rob the Palestinians of their
right of return, regardless of whether that right is eventually exercised or
compensated.
Moreover, the findings of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon could also spur
violence in the country. Although the work of STL investigator Daniel Bellemare
is still secret, there has been increasing speculation that his investigation is
close to submitting its findings to the Special Tribunal. If the investigation
fingers Syria, Hizbullah, or both, it could lead to unforeseen and unmanageable
consequences. Of course, the investigation may be inconclusive or find another
party guilty.
Yet, the shadow of the tribunal has returned to Lebanon. Former minister Wiam
Wahhab, who is close to both Syria and Hizbullah, has warned the Lebanese
government to stop cooperating with the Tribunal and said that its decisions
could affect "UNIFIL and other UN institutions in Lebanon." The recent troubles
with UNIFIL might be a prelude to this. Israeli army chief Gabi Ashkenazi told
the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee that Israel expects tensions
to increase in Lebanon following the indictment of Al-Hariri's assassins "in
September".
It is worth noting that the political situation has changed dramatically since
the UN investigation was launched. Syria is no longer isolated or targeted for
regime change by the international community, and Hizbullah is a full partner in
a national unity government led by the assassinated former prime minister's son,
Saad Al-Hariri.
If the investigation had concluded in 2006, the United States, France and Saudi
Arabia might have used the results to seriously undermine the regime in Syria or
to go after Hizbullah. Today, the major regional and international powers have
rebuilt -- or are rebuilding -- relations with Syria, and would want to ensure
that a guilty finding does not undermine the regime. This is similar to the
approach that was eventually taken with Libya and Muammar Gaddafi over the
Lockerbie bombing. If the indictment points at Hizbullah operatives, Saudi
Arabia and others are aware that if they push the issue against Hizbullah, the
party may counterpunch violently and possibly trigger a brief civil war. If this
were the case, the Sunnis of Lebanon would be the bigger losers.
In other words, most of the players have an interest in downplaying the results
of the investigation, but the shock of large-scale revelations could trigger
reactions and events that are beyond any party's control.
War erupted in Lebanon days after the last World Cup ended in 2006, and gallows
humour in Lebanon had it that another war was coming after the end of this
year's tournament. While the country might have escaped imminent war, the
gathering crises indicate that tensions in the country and the region are high
and getting higher, and that any one of the above issues could trigger local or
regional conflagrations.
Until real progress is made in achieving regional peace or in resolving the
nuclear issue with Iran, regional and international diplomacy should remain
focussed on conflict management. Although peace might not be at hand, war must
be avoided.
* The writer is a researcher at the Carnegie Middle East Center, Beirut.
© Copyright Al-Ahram Weekly. All rights reserved
Fadlallah's perspective on Palestine
Mohsen Saleh*
Al-Ahram
Grand Ayatollah Mohamed Fadlallah, who died recently in Lebanon, was a lifelong
supporter of the Palestinian cause, writes
The past few months have provided an opportunity to review the ideology of the
late scholar Mohamed Hussein Fadlallah, who died recently in Lebanon, and his
vision of the Palestinian situation. There is no doubt that Grand Ayatollah
Fadlallah was one of the world's greatest Shia authorities. His personality was
characterised by openness, moderation and innovation in Shia ideology and
doctrine, and at the same time he was a leading theorist and supporter of the
resistance against the Israeli occupation.
A careful reading of Ayatollah Fadlallah's writings and speeches shows a depth
of vision able to overcome sectarianism in order to put his ideas into a wider
Islamic framework embracing a humanitarian outlook. At the core was Ayatollah
Fadlallah's vision of Islam, which called for its adoption as a complete way of
life in thought and deed. Similarly, his cultural vision was open to
accommodating others, which enabled meetings on common ground to serve the
nation and confront its enemies.
For Ayatollah Fadlallah, Palestine was a Muslim issue that was more important
than any other in the world today, and one from which spring all the other
issues affecting Arab and Muslim countries. Hence, he said, "our position
towards the Palestinian cause is part of a religion we believe in, and not just
a political slogan we consume today and leave tomorrow."
He stressed that Palestine encapsulates the experience of the past century, with
all the pains and dreams of the nation. "I do not dream without Palestine, and
all dreams fall when Palestine falls," he said. "It is not a battle, not
negotiation, and not a detail: Palestine is the story of the nation."
Ayatollah Fadlallah called for the adoption of Islam as the best method to
achieve victory over the Zionists, saying that "there is an alliance, and that
is Islam in the face of Israel... We are stronger because we are with Islam. The
political battle of Islam is the conflict with Israel, and there is no Islam and
no Islamic political movement that is outside the conflict with Israel."
He stressed that Israel was a usurper state. "Usurping [others' rights] is
forbidden just as alcohol is forbidden," he said, "and there will never come a
time when usurpation becomes lawful." The passage of time, even the passage of
hundreds of years, does not give legitimacy to the taking of something that is
not rightfully yours.
He was part of the scholarly consensus that forbids the giving up of any part of
Palestine. If an individual wishes to give up a part of his own home, that's one
thing. But a nation does not have the right to give up its land, because the
nation does not just belong to the people living at any one time. A nation is
the sum of the generations of people who have lived and died.
"The duty of the nation's scholars, whether Sunni or Shia," he said, "is to
restore Palestine in its entirety, from the river [Jordan] to the sea, and to
mobilise the Arab and Muslim conscience for its sake."
Justice, Ayatollah Fadlallah believed, is a supreme value that helps to sustain
life, and the removal of injustice and the restoration of people's rights,
including the right of Palestinians to live in freedom and independence in their
land with its holy places, is what justice requires. It is a mission founded in
religion. "Your righteousness lies with God, with yourselves, with people and
with life. This sums up all religions," the Ayatollah said. "To be unjust means
being neither Muslim nor Christian nor a follower of Moses, because injustice
has no religion. Justice is what unites the religions."
According to Ayatollah Fadlallah, it is impossible to distinguish between Mecca
and Jerusalem in terms of their importance for Muslims. He drew attention to the
symbolic importance of Jerusalem, as a place that gives land, region and
politics a meaning that goes beyond the city's size. The land itself becomes an
issue and a message, he said. Politics needed to have a message, the Ayatollah
believed, as did the homeland, and this symbolic need was gathered up in
Jerusalem because the city was the cradle of messages from God, who wanted,
through this pure place, to give humanity meaning.
The size and seriousness of the challenge, Ayatollah Fadlallah believed,
requires us to widen the conflict and integrate its concentric circles --
Palestinian, Arab, Islamic and human. It also requires us to prepare for battle,
until God wishes victory and liberation. The Palestinian issue, he said, is
Palestinian in its geography and people, Arab in its nationality, and Islamic in
the depth of its meanings.
As a result, Ayatollah Fadlallah refused to allow those who follow national,
Islamist and leftist ideologies to indulge in disputes that could distract them
from liberation, or exhaust their energies in differences among themselves. He
said that Israel will not be strong forever and Arabs and Muslims will not be
weak forever.
As such, he said, the struggle to liberate Palestine could span generations, and
he invited Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims not to impose time limits on
resolving the issue. Just as, he said, we face an enemy that lived for many
generations until it usurped the land, we must live for even more generations in
order to recover what is rightfully ours. This "equation of freedom," he said,
"is only truly understood by the mujahideen ".
Although Ayatollah Fadlallah saw the struggle with Israel and Zionist Jews as
having a religious dimension, he dismissed this with regard to Jewish
politicians who, he felt, looked at religion as just a source of slogans that
did not affect their policies or their relationships with aspects of Judaism.
They had made the issue one of Jewish nationalism, which incorporates many
racist ideas.
For Ayatollah Fadlallah, the Zionists and Jews in general did not distinguish
between Zionism and Judaism because a distorted view of Judaism contained within
itself the concept of a "chosen people" that could lend itself to racist ideas
against others who were not Jews. It has thus been relatively easy to mobilise
Jewish thought and actions against Arabs and Muslims.
In the eyes of Ayatollah Fadlallah, Israel represented an extension of Western
civilisation. It had been established as a result of Western colonialism, and it
was built on mutual interests that benefit both parties at the expense of
Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims. This alliance puts Israel under the protection
of the West, especially the United States, whose representatives have control
over UN resolutions and the international media.
In seeking by all possible means to uphold Israel's security, these forces,
Ayatollah Fadlallah said, are like "an octopus that has an arm in every part of
the world." This meant that "the issue between us and Israel is not limited to
facing Israel in Palestine. Instead, it is a battle between the forces of global
arrogance and the vulnerable."
Conflict with Zionist Jews is not just a Palestinian matter, he believed, but
was related to the Arab and Muslim presence in a region where America and other
Western countries have sought to secure their interests. Hence, they created
Israel and made sure that it was a strong state in the heart of the Arab world,
in order to prevent the latter from interfering in Western economic and
political interests in times of either war or peace.
America's support for Israel, concluded Ayatollah Fadlallah, was the reason for
Arab and Muslim hatred of American policies. US policy on Palestine was
hypocritical, since it gave lethal weaponry to Israel and only words to the
Palestinians. America, he claimed, was not interested in peace. Instead, it
wanted to buy time and to create despair, until such a time as Israel had
completed its plan to control most of Palestine and imposed its terms for an
agreement.
Ayatollah Fadlallah supported the resistance against the Israeli occupation and
the Intifada in Palestine with all his strength. Although the Intifada alone
could not liberate Palestine, he said, it could liberate our collective belief
that the Israelis were unbeatable. The Intifada has let it be known that the
Arab is not the man who is always slain, but is a man "who kills and gets
killed," as the Quran puts it.
He issued a fatwa, or religious ruling, authorising martyrdom operations against
the Israeli enemy, since he said that there was no other option, even if the
operations meant the killing of civilians. A martyrdom operation, he said,
represented the oppressed depth of Palestinian conscience, with, contained
within it, aspects of the Muslim Arab character with all its aspirations, pain,
and spiritual values of jihad, pride, dignity and freedom, leading to the
approval of God and paradise.
In such operations, Ayatollah Fadlallah said, the body had no meaning, and male
or female martyrs were taking on the pain of the nation in their actions, as
though the nation were struggling through them and gathering itself to give them
strength and courage. Thus, he ruled that "martyrdom operations are jihadist
operations that are the highest types of jihad." There was no difference between
a man or a woman carrying out such operations, he said, though a woman's
martyrdom had greater rewards and was more altruistic than a man's.
He often stressed the need to refuse to surrender to a reality that was being
imposed by others, and he called for the adoption of a revolutionary reality
that would refuse to accept the current reality and would seek to change it.
The Ayatollah expressed his appreciation of the role played by Hamas, Islamic
Jihad and the resistance factions in the Al-Aqsa Intifada, and he did not hide
his delight at the victory of Hamas in the Palestinian Legislative Council
elections. He supported the position of Hamas and its government in the Gaza
Strip, as well as its steadfastness in the face of the siege.
He supported efforts to lift the siege, and he met with a delegation from one of
the ships that managed to break the siege and thanked them for their efforts,
saying, "the Gaza Strip is the world's largest prison. Not only are Palestinians
dying because they cannot get what they need, but their deaths are being ignored
by the world's conscience, which does not consider others except in terms of its
own material interests."
A "peace agreement" would be in the interest of the Israelis and Americans, he
said, but both were pushing to get the greatest gains for themselves while
leaving the Palestinians with nothing beyond basic autonomy. He asked supporters
of the negotiations to "show me one ray of light" in them. In the Gaza/Jericho
agreement (the Oslo Accords) he saw an Israeli agreement, not an Arab or a
Palestinian one. It was an agreement that represented "Arab Palestinian defeat,"
he said, "an agreement of crime in every sense of the word."
The most difficult dilemma facing the Palestinian leadership involved in the
negotiations today, he felt, was that the leadership could neither abandon them
nor continue with them. Nevertheless, Ayatollah Fadlallah remained optimistic
about the future of the Palestinian resistance, saying that "the future will
smile for the Palestinian people through bleeding wounds, and through a stream
of blood that flows with giving, jihad and martyrdom."
In considering Ayatollah Fadlallah's perspective on the Palestinian issue, it
can be seen that he regarded it as something that could unite Sunnis and Shias,
who could then use their combined energies to take on the enemies of Islam and
win.
* The writer is a professor of modern Arab history and director of the Al-Zaytouna
Centre for Studies and Consultations in Beirut.
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