LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِNovember
15/2010
Bible Of The
Day
Peter's Second Letter/2:20 For if, after they have
escaped the defilement of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in it and overcome, the last state has
become worse for them than the first. 2:21 For it would be better for them not
to have known the way of righteousness, than, after knowing it, to turn back
from the holy commandment delivered to them. 2:22 But it has happened to them
according to the true proverb, “The dog turns to his own vomit again,”* and “the
sow that has washed to wallowing in the mire.”
Free Opinions,
Releases, letters, Interviews & Special Reports
Egyptian Security Attempts to Stop
Construction of Church/AINA/November
14/10
Memorial Service Held in London for
Baghdad Church Massacre Victims/AINA/November
14/10
Drumming up support on campus/By:
Aline Sara/November
14/10
Latest News
Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for November
14/10
Sfeir: Justice is Important Even If
Indictment should Produce Repercussions/Naharnet
Muallem: No One Can Sabotage
Syrian-Saudi Effort to Maintain Lebanon Stability/Naharnet
Raad
Warns of 'Painful' Hizbullah Response if 'We're Stabbed in the Back'/Naharnet
Does anyone believe
Siniora defended Resistance?, Moussawi asks/Now Lebanon
Fatfat: Nahhas’ comments
reminiscent of Rafik Hariri’s murder/Now Lebanon
US releases $100 million in aid to Lebanese Army/Haaretz
Aoun in
France on Official Visit/Naharnet
Hizbullah-Saniora Battle
Rages On over 2006 War/Naharnet
Israel Maneuvering on
Ghajar Pullout/Naharnet
Suleiman Calls for Good
Management of Differences/Naharnet
Hariri: Ready for Calm
Dialogue over Indictment, But I Won't Succumb to Threats/Naharnet
Jumblat Visit to Tehran
Possible at the Right Time: Finding a Settlement in the Region is Almost
Impossible/Naharnet
Cassese: I'll Submit
Report on Nasrallah's Stance to Ban, He Decides How to Approach Security Council/Naharnet
March 14: Nasrallah
Unleashed His Imagination in Conspiratorial Explanation of Events, We Won't
Yield to Blackmail/Naharnet
U.N. Stresses that STL
Contributes to Stability: We Call on All Sides to Cooperate with it/Naharnet
Egypt “not doing enough”
to stop Gaza arms smuggling/Now Lebanon
Israel hands over Lebanese
citizen to UNIFIL/Now Lebanon
Egyptian Security Attempts to Stop Construction of
Church
GMT 11-13-2010 23:53:49/Naharnet
Assyrian International News Agency
(AINA) -- Thousands of Copts staged a sit-in inside and outside the Church of
the St. Mary in Talbiya, in the Pyramids area, since the morning of November 11,
to protest the storming of the church premises by dozens of security forces to
stop construction work and demolish stairs and toilets inside the church,
despite the church having obtained the necessary permits.
As soon as news of the arrival of security forces at the church became known,
hundreds of Copts arrived to congregate. The angry protesters vowed to remain in
the church, having heard that security is waiting for them to leave the premises
so as to come back and seal it off. They said they are adamant that this is
their church and no one is going to stop them from praying there. "Even if
President Mubarak himself comes, the church building will go on," said Mansour
el-Sharkawy in the interview. "They are just finding excuses to put their foot
in, then start demolishing the church."
More than one million Copts live in the Talbiya area, without a single church to
serve them, having to travel for miles every Sunday with their children to the
nearest church. The protesters pointed out that the area is full of mosques
without licenses, but when it comes to the Copts, they toil for years to obtain
a permit for a church, then security comes out with some sort of excuse to stop
them from praying there.
The standoff started on Thursday morning, when the Omrania local authorities
committee came under the pretext of completing the papers for the construction
works and found that builders were building a second staircase, as well as
toilets, which they considered to be in violation of the permit granted. "It was
the Civil Defense authorities who asked the church to erect a second staircase
to relieve congestion inside the church in case of emergencies and the necessary
permit amendments were made," said Shehata, adding that "if a fire broke out,
how do you get hundreds of people out of church with just one staircase, and if
women and children want to use the toilets, where should they go?"
After the local authorities left the church, five priests and the contractor
went to the local authorities to solve the problem, but were unsuccessful. After
their return, security forces arrived with their vehicles.
According to Shehata they were in church when the security forces arrived in
huge numbers, to force them to stop construction. "As a means of intimidation,
the forces tried to break the church door down, arrest the builders and take
away the children as young as seven years old who were present at church. One of
the children, a 7 year-old girl named Marina, was terrorized by officers and
their rifles. She sobbed and begged one officer, saying "I beg of you uncle, let
us live, We don't want to die, for God's sake." A ten-year-old Coptic boy, a
nephew of the church contractor, was on his way to church, but was detained and
asked by security to get into their car. He was later released.
"They wanted to get the women out of the building, so that they can arrest the
builders and church youth who were helping them," Shehata said. "They are just
finding excuses to prevent the building of the church; but the builders are
still working and nothing will stop them." Land for the church was bought over
20 years ago, but the necessary permit to build the Church was granted only six
years ago, but it was stopped by the security authorities. This year President
Mubarak was approached and he granted another decree to build the church.
"I would like to know what wrong have we committed, we are just asking for our
rights to have a place of worship," said Shehata to Coptic activist Miriam Ragey.
"The moment the Muslims saw the Church domes being built, they went mad," she
added.
It was said that when Muslims learned of the construction of the church, they
started dumping rubbish on the land to be used for the church.
On September 15, 2010, an Islamic Jihadist Forum called Islamic Atahadi
(Challenge) Network, which is said to be an affiliate of Al-Qaida, published on
its website under the title "Images of the Church under construction in the
Pyramids and how to demolish it, in retaliation for Camelia." Camelia is the
priest's wife, falsely rumored by Muslims to have converted to Islam and
subsequently "abducted" by the Coptic Church (AINA 9-18-2010).
The Forum told its members showing photos of the church's construction and
instructions on how to demolish the St. Mary's Church in Talbiya, Pyramids: "An
easy and affordable way for the demolition of the church before its completion,
no need for demonstrations, no need for the use of weapons or explosives, you
only need to introduce certain quantities of sugar, yes normal sugar." They went
on to explain how to introduce reasonable quantities of sugar inside the forms
prepared for pouring the columns, "Because sugar affects concrete and cancels
the chemical reaction which makes the sand and gravel hold together with the
cement." They advised in their the step by step instructions that timing was
very important in the process; the best time being immediately before pouring
the roof" (link).
On the morning of November 12 it was reported that security prevented the entry
of bricks and sand to the Church site. The congregation, who were still guarding
the church, said they got threats published on the Internet, that their girls
will be abducted, and to keep them indoors. Priests at St. Mary's Church refused
to make any statements, in order to avoid a clash with security and on the
instructions of Bishop Theodosius of Giza, who is expected to return from
Germany this evening, to resolve the Church crisis.
By Mary Abdelmassih
This item is available as: html
Copyright (C) 2010, Assyrian International News Agency. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use.
Memorial Service Held in London for Baghdad Church Massacre Victims
GMT 11-13-2010 23:29:17/Assyrian International News Agency
London (AINA) -- A memorial service was held yesterday for the victims of the
Baghdad church massacre, which killed 58 Assyrians (also known as Chaldeans and
Syriacs). Father Nizar Samaan, the Syriac Catholic Bishop of London, said
"History will disgrace all of us if we do not expose to the world what happened,
raise our voice, condemn the killing, and do our best to prevent it from
happening again."According to Father Samman, Assyrians are for Iraq and Iraq is for all
Assyrians. He vowed that Assyrians will not leave Iraq and will not allow
terrorism to prevail.
Father Samaan demanded a stronger response to the massacre, not only from
politicians but from Islamic Authorities as well. He asked that Islamic clerics
issue fatwas (religious edicts) against killing innocent people.
The Baghdad church massacre occurred on October 31, when the Islamic State of
Iraq, an Al-Qaeda affiliated group, stormed Our Lady of Deliverance Syrian
Catholic Church and killed 58 parishioners and wounded 75. Assyrians have
demanded an end to the low-grade genocide of Assyrians which began on June 26,
2004, when the first church was bombed. Since that time, 66 churches have been
bombed, 15 priests and bishops and hundreds of Assyrians have been killed and
nearly half have fled to Syria and Jordan
Copyright (C) 2010, Assyrian International News Agency. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use.
Sfeir: Justice is Important Even If Indictment should Produce Repercussions
Naharnet/Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir on Sunday stressed the importance of
achieving justice even if an indictment by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon
produced repercussions.
"The Court must take its course if we want to put an end to assassinations,"
Sfeir told the Voice of Lebanon radio station. Beirut, 14 Nov 10, 14:36
Muslim Cleric Omar Bakri Arrested in Tripoli
Naharnet/Lebanese police on Sunday arrested radical Islamic preacher Omar Bakri,
just days after the formerly British-based cleric boasted he would "not spend
one day" of a life sentence behind bars. "He was arrested by a patrol of
intelligence agents from the Internal Security Force in his home in (the main
northern city of) Tripoli," a security official told AFP.
"He is currently being transferred to Beirut." An AFP correspondent at the scene
said police had fired in the air to disperse curious onlookers who had gathered
around Bakri's home.
Bakri, a fundamentalist Sunni Muslim who has praised the September 11, 2001
attacks and hailed the hijackers as the "magnificent 19," was sentenced to life
by a Lebanese military court on Thursday. The 50-year-old, who lived in Britain
for 20 years, was found guilty, along with more than 40 other Lebanese,
Palestinians, Syrians and Saudis, of "incitement to murder, theft and the
possession of arms and explosives." The day after the sentence was handed down
he vowed he would "not spend one day in prison."
"I will not hand myself in to any court. I do not believe in the law in Britain
as in Lebanon," he told AFP at his home. Bakri, who failed to show up for
sentencing on Thursday, said he had not been formally told the court would issue
a verdict and insisted he was innocent. The Syrian-born cleric, a holder of
Lebanese nationality, also denied he had any links to Al-Qaeda. "I have no ties
to Al-Qaeda, direct or indirect, other than the fact that I believe in the same
ideology," he said at his home in Tripoli's Abi Samra neighborhood, a hub for
radical Islamist groups. Bakri was banned from Britain in 2005 as part of
government measures following the London underground and bus bombings that year.
He sparked outrage in Britain in the wake of the bombings for saying he would
not hand over to police Muslims planning to launch attacks.
He also called Britain's former Prime Minister John Major and Russia's former
president Vladimir Putin "legitimate targets." Upon his arrival in Beirut in
2005, Bakri was detained but freed the next day. No charges were pressed against
him at the time. Born in 1960 to a wealthy Syrian family, Bakri began studying
Islam at the age of five and at 15 joined the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood. He
later abandoned the Brotherhood and joined the Hizb ut-Tahrir (Arabic for Party
of Liberation), a movement that aims to join all Islamic states under one
caliphate.
He split with Hizb ut-Tahrir in 1983 and founded his own group, Al-Muhajirun
(The Emigrants), in Jeddah that year. When expelled from Saudi Arabia in 1986,
he moved to Britain and gained a following as a preacher before his expulsion.
Al-Muhajirun has also been proscribed under the UK Terrorism Act 2000. Bakri has
two wives -- British and Lebanese -- and seven children. He is expecting an
eighth child with his Lebanese wife.(AFP)
Muallem: No One Can Sabotage Syrian-Saudi Effort to Maintain Lebanon Stability
Naharnet/Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem on Sunday confirmed ongoing
Syrian-Saudi efforts to maintain Lebanon stability. "Lebanon's stability is part
of the security and stability of Syria," Muallem told a conference. "Syria is
Lebanon's direct neighbor. And President Bashar al-Assad gives Lebanon's
stability great importance," he said, pointing to Syrian-Saudi "coordination" in
this regard. Damascus and Riyadh are engaged in efforts to mediate a solution to
the crisis over the upcoming indictments in the assassination of ex-PM Rafik
Hariri. "Anyone who tries to sabotage this effort will not succeed," he warned.
Muallem did not rule out an Egyptian role in trying to find a solution to the
Lebanon crisis. Beirut, 14 Nov 10, 10:53
Raad Warns of 'Painful' Hizbullah Response if 'We're Stabbed in the Back'
Naharnet/Head of Hizbullah's parliamentary bloc MP Mohammed Raad on Sunday
warned of a "painful" response if "we were stabbed in the back.""Beware, beware
of betraying our march," Raad said during a Hizbullah ceremony in south Lebanon.
"Beware of stabbing us in the back. We are capable of responding in a much
painful way," he warned. "No international resolutions, no U.N. Charters, no
principles or ethics or human values deter the enemy from any aggression on
Lebanon," he stressed. "The only thing that would stop the enemy ... is the
readiness of the Resistance which awaits the joyful moment when the enemy
commits any folly against Lebanon," Raad thought. "We have given efforts to
reach a compromise a chance so that Lebanon's stability is maintained and on the
basis that the Resistance won't be nailed down or accused" in the assassination
of former PM Rafik Hariri, he added.
"We hope these efforts would produce positive results to spare Lebanon
Sunni-Shiite strife or a confrontation between the Resistance and what others
want," Raad said.
"Yet, our options are clear and decisive in the event of miscalculations of
others, and we hope they will not fall into this big mistake," Raad warned.
Beirut, 14 Nov 10, 13:09
Aoun in France on Official Visit
Naharnet/Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun headed to France on Sunday
on an official visit.News reports said Aoun will meet French President Nicolas
Sarkozy and other French officials.
Does anyone believe Siniora defended Resistance?, Moussawi asks
November 14, 2010 /“Does anyone believe that [former] Prime Minister Fouad
Siniora was defending the Resistance?,” Loyalty to the Resistance bloc MP Nawwaf
Moussawi asked in a statement on Sunday, the National News Agency (NNA)
reported. “Siniora traveled to Sudan [before the 2006 July War broke out] to
attend the Arab Summit where he tried to [delete] all [references] to the
“Resistance” from the summit’s final statement. Some Arab leaders [intervened]
and prevented this from happening,” Moussawi said, adding that Siniora also
tried to do the same thing in the Ministerial Statement of his cabinet. “Sinora
[also] attempted to disburse the compensations for the [summer] war and
manipulate them.”
Did the world forget the Bristol conference –held after the July War by the
March 14 coalition – which called for disarming the Resistance?, the MP asked.
“How can someone who did that be defending the Resistance?,” he added. Why did
Siniora insist – after the UN Security Council Resolution 1701 was issued – on
tasking the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) with confiscating arms from south of the
Litani River even if they had to raid houses?, Moussawi also inquired, adding
that the intent was to disarm the Resistance and drag the country into a civil
war by pitting the LAF against the Resistance. “If Siniora wants evidence and
records, then let us begin with the cabinet’s minutes during the [2006] July
War,” he added.
A statement issued by Siniora’s press office on Saturday responded by saying
Moussawi is repeating a story that no one believes when he claims Siniora’s
government worked to lengthen the July 2006 War.In a speech on Thursday,
Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said that Siniora’s cabinet
and some March 14 leaders colluded with Israel to delay the end of the summer
war.-NOW Lebanon
Hizbullah-Saniora Battle Rages On over 2006 War
Naharnet/Former Prime Minister Fouad Saniora hit back at accusations made by
Hizbullah MP Nawaf Moussawi, denying he had wanted to prolong the 2006 Israeli
war on Lebanon.
Saniora, in a late-night statement issued by his office, said his government had
rejected a U.S.-French proposal back then that suggested the deployment of a
multinational force without mention to Shebaa Farms or the seven-point
cease-fire plan crafted by the Saniora Cabinet. Instead, Saniora said, the
Lebanese government insisted on a comprehensive cease-fire deal that includes an
Israeli withdrawal behind the Lebanese border and the deployment of both the
Lebanese army and the peacekeeping forces. On Saturday, Moussawi said the French
were the ones who informed Hizbullah that the Saniora government does not want
the war to stop unless it includes an end to Hizbullah presence south of the
Litani. He pointed out that the French statements were recorded and can be found
in Government files. Saniora challenged Moussawi to present these documents.
"Why doesn't he reveal the name of this (French) official who gave him this
information and why not inform the public of the statements recorded verbatim as
he says?" Saniora said, addressing Mousswi. Beirut, 14 Nov 10, 07:44
Israel Maneuvering on Ghajar Pullout
Naharnet/Israel reportedly continues to maneuver on the issue of withdrawal from
the Lebanese border town of Ghajar. Ad-Diyar newspaper on Sunday, citing
well-informed diplomatic sources, said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
"resorts to maneuvering on the issue of withdrawing from Ghajar every time he
wants to attract more U.S. military and financial aid."
Earlier this month, Netanyahu informed U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon that Israel plans
to withdraw from the northern part of of Ghajar. The sources, however, did not
expect such a move to take place in the near future, pointing out that UNIFIL
has been trying for more than two years to coordinate an Israeli withdrawal from
Ghajar. Beirut, 14 Nov 10, 08:52
Jumblat Visit to Tehran Possible at the Right Time: Finding a Settlement in the
Region is Almost Impossible
Naharnet/Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat stressed on Friday
that the situation in Lebanon is "very critical", which requires all political
forces to act vigilantly and "be aware of the size of the dangers facing Lebanon
and the region."He told the Iran's IRNA: "There are political talks in regional
capitals concerned with the situation in Lebanon, but that does not eliminate
the Lebanese' responsibility in settling disputes and ongoing
tensions."Addressing the regional scene, he said that despite U.S. President
Barack Obama's positive intentions, the American administration is cornered by
Zionist lobbies, "which makes finding a settlement in the region almost
impossible."Asked about the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, the Druze leader said:
"Justice and stability cannot be separated and we cannot address the tribunal
without taking into consideration the various regional and international
developments."
Assessing Iranian President Mahmoud Ahamdinejad's recent visit to Lebanon,
Jumblat said: "Iran has stood by Lebanon in the darkest times … and there is no
doubt that economic cooperation can be bolstered between the two sides in
several fields."Addressing his ties with Iran, he stated that he has restored
his old relationship with it after a long period of separation, adding that his
visit to Tehran will take place at the appropriate time. Beirut, 13 Nov 10,
14:37
Fatfat: Nahhas’ comments reminiscent of Rafik Hariri’s murder
November 14, 2010
Communications Minister Charbel Nahhas’ comment that Prime Minister Saad Hariri
is subject to foreign pressures is “reminiscent of what was said to former Prime
Minister Rafik Hariri before his [2005] assassination,” Lebanon First bloc MP
Ahmad Fatfat said in an interview published on Sunday.Nahhas’ Wednesday
statement is a “political assassination of the current Premier Hariri” and is an
escape attempt by “those themselves accused of collaboration with Israel,”
Fatfat told the Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Anbaa.
Fatfat voiced fear that March 8’s stance against the Special Tribunal for
Lebanon (STL) is a “service to Israel and collaboration, since the goal is
domestic strife.”
True justice serves those who really want to resist Israel and “not those who
exploit weapons for domestic political gain under the slogan of fighting
Israel,” he added.
March 8’s attacks on the STL’s credibility were “spurred on by the stances of [STL]
Pre-Trial Judge Daniel Fransen, which have been in [former General Security
chief] Jamil as-Sayyed’s favor multiple times,” he also said.“After today, March
14 forces will not concede to March 8… [because] their concessions have been
considered weakness.”
On Thursday, Lebanon First bloc MP Okab Sakr lashed out at Nahhas over the
latter’s Wednesday comment during a cabinet session that Hariri is under Israeli
pressure.
“Let Nahhas ask his colleague, [arrested Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) official]
Fayez Karam, about Israeli collaboration. Let him also ask [FPM leader MP]
Michel Aoun about a meeting he held with Karam during the 2006 July War,” Sakr
said.Later Thursday, Nahhas said that Hariri “took [my] comments as an
accusation because of the [tense atmosphere in Wednesday’s cabinet session] and
replied in an agitated way.”-NOW Lebanon
Drumming up support on campus
The means and methods of student election campaigns
Aline Sara , November 14, 2010
Now Lebanon
“Soap football. I think that’s what they call it,” said Notre Dame University
student Carlo Mouzannar. He wasn’t referring to any campus-sponsored festivity.
He was talking about the “Social Club” - followers of Michel Aoun’s Free
Patriotic Movement (FPM) - and their latest event in the run up to the
hotly-contested student elections. “It’s fun…they bring this giant inflatable
mattress covered in soap. The sun is up, people are out playing barefoot,” said
Mouzannar.
In Lebanon, anyone familiar with the local political scene knows that November
is student elections month and the nation’s campuses are thrust into the
forefront of local politics.
As early as late September, students are already being showered with chocolate,
invited to dance parties, and even given the chance to bungee jump. It is
through such organized events, academic counseling and other, less transparent
means, that politically affiliated student clubs attract potential supporters.
To many Lebanese, the stakes in these “junior” elections are high. But given all
the fuss both inside and out of the schools, how exactly, both practically and
monetarily, do these youngsters accomplish their mission? Whereas in the US,
candidates market themselves through academic or on-campus related campaigns,
their Lebanese counterparts are known for their brand of politics.
According to undergraduate Mohammed Ghotmeh, one of the representatives of the
secular club at the American University of Beirut, “it’s about academics, but
it’s unfortunately, also heavily related to politics.” He is against
sectarianism and the country’s current political leaders, and how “the youth
follows them blindly.” Even when the various groups have ideas in common, they
find a way to go around it, he said. Ultimately, “it’s more about showing off [a
group’s capabilities] rather than actually doing something [more concrete for
the campus and students],” added Ghotmeh.
Lebanese universities are a microcosm of the country’s wider political scene.
But according to most representatives NOW Lebanon spoke to, official parties
provide support from a distance and only provide ‘minimal’ funding for their
student delegations.
“Candidates usually fund the campaign;” stated FPM representative Marc Sassine;
and if they are running short, “we help pay the difference.” It also depends on
the campus, he noted, declining to provide any specific figures.
Assistant to Amal’s head of the Youth and Sports division Youssef Jaber argued
that his party’s role is more emotional. “We give them moral support. Monetary
contributions are insignificant,” he said. “We are a popular movement, and
individuals choose to help out of their own will,” he added.
Charbel Eid, the Lebanese Forces’ director of student delegations, echoed that
students invest their own time and money into campaigning. When asked whether
the LF offered economic support, he insisted the LF students were successful
because of their political discourse, “which promotes dignity, sovereignty, the
principles of the constitution,” and not because of “expensive campaigning,”
events or other promotions.
Though political party representatives themselves didn’t give official figures,
some of the candidates provided estimates. AUB’s Ghatmeh said his Secular Club,
allied with the Palestinian and Jordanian clubs, had a budget of around $8,000.
“But we are not affiliated to a [known political] leader,” he noted, implying
that their income comes strictly from fundraising and donations.
Rey Baliki, president of LAU Jbeil’s Lebanese Student Front (LSF), which
combines the Lebanese Forces, Kataeb and Future movement, said his alliance had
an overall budget of $18,000-20,000 per year. The money is used to fund two main
events: an extreme sports day as well as a desserts and candies event, “$5000
worth of sweets,” boasts Baliki. “We also help on the academic side,
distributing notes, extra sessions for large classes, and so on,” he said.
LSF’s competitor, the Campus Life Club-Social alliance also provides academic
support, said Mazen Abi Saad, the Social group’s former vice-president at LAU
Jbeil. “We invest in making flyers, shirts and hosting events such as the
Lebanese Day, BBQ day and the ‘all you can eat day’.” To him, it’s more about
creating an ambiance. “Right now for example, we are all dressed in black and
white T-shirts,” he said during a phone conversation four days before LAU’s
election. Each color represents a different camp.
But as passionate as most undergraduates may be, some look at the entire process
with either a critical eye or plain indifference. Universite Saint Joseph’s
Brahim Najem, a second year student in Economics said he feels it’s more about
showing off. “March 14 offers all these free food stands, and then March 8
responds by distributing flyers that read ‘don’t be bought by food’” even though
he said they do have electoral programs, with proposals to reform USJ’s system,
request more networking events, and more. He supports neither camp.
Saad Kurdi, who finishes his undergraduate studies at AUB this year said, “no
one really knows in terms of money and funding, but I remember back in 2008 when
there were rumors that the Future Movement had paid for students’ phone bills or
recharge cards, but they all do this type of thing,” he insisted. He has even
seen people get driven from their homes to school on Election Day, courtesy of
the party for which they are voting.
Sayf Diab, President of the Future Movement at LAU Beirut said that lately,
there had been fewer events on his campus, probably due to more restrictions,
but that the goal behind these events is to show that “we are capable of
organization, that people can have fun, regardless of their background, and that
the main point is not about politics.”
But his counterpart, Nadih Fawaz, president of LAU Beirut’s Amal Group believes
otherwise. “The campaign’s focus is political rather than academic, because we
can’t change anything in the institution,” he said. When asked about how much
money his alliance invested in the campaign, he said he had no figure though
insisted that some parties invest up to $50 000. “It’s just known,” he said.
Israel hands over Lebanese citizen to UNIFIL
November 14, 2010 /The Lebanese Army Command–Directorate of Orientation issued a
statement on Sunday saying that Israel released elderly Lebanese citizen Aicha
Tabet and turned her over to UNIFIL troops. Tabet was apprehended by Israel
Defense Forces (IDF) after she became tangled up in barbed wire being used to
mark the Blue Line in the south of Lebanon.
UNIFIL then transferred Tabet to the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) late Saturday
night, the statement added.
-NOW Lebanon
Egypt “not doing enough” to stop Gaza arms smuggling
November 14, 2010 /Egypt is not doing enough to stop arms smuggling into the
Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, a senior Israeli intelligence official said on Sunday,
in a rare criticism of Cairo.
"There is a problem with Egypt -- they are not doing enough to block the
smuggling of weapons into the Gaza Strip," the official said, speaking on
condition of anonymity. Israel is usually cautious about directly criticizing
Egypt, one of only two Arab states to have signed a peace deal with the Jewish
state. Egypt has also been key in maintaining a blockade on Gaza which was
imposed in June 2006 after militants there kidnapped an Israeli soldier, then
tightened a year later when Hamas seized power in the tiny coastal strip. But
the official said Cairo could do a lot more, particularly to stop the smugglers
who have dug hundreds of tunnels under the border between Egypt and Gaza.
"Egypt has lost control of what is happening," he said, accusing Cairo of
lacking motivation to do anything about it. "Soldiers are standing fewer than 20
meters from the tunnels and nobody is doing anything about this."Egypt could
stop this in less than 24 hours but there is not enough motivation."
-AFP/NOW Lebanon