LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِFebeuary
11/2011
Bible Of The
Day
The Good News According to John 11/9-11: "Jesus answered, “Aren’t there twelve
hours of daylight? If a man walks in the day, he doesn’t stumble, because he
sees the light of this world. 11:10 But if a man walks in the night, he
stumbles, because the light isn’t in him.” 11:11 He said these things, and after
that, he said to them, “Our friend, Lazarus, has fallen asleep, but I am going
so that I may awake him out of sleep.”
Latest
analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases
from
miscellaneous
sources
Why Syria is not next/By: Ana Maria
Luca/ February
10/11
What will become of Israel if
Mubarak falls?/By: Amos Harel/February
10/11
Hosni’s very balanced system/By:
Michael Young/February
10/11
Egypt…we see, but do we
understand?/By Tariq Alhomayed/February
10/11
Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for February
10/11
Fatfat:
March 14 wants no part of a cabinet of thugs/Now Lebanon
U.S. Lawmaker Slams Obama
Administration over Lebanon, Egypt/Naharnet
French Sources: Indictment within 10 Days/Naharnet
Saudi
embassy dismisses rumors of king’s death/Now Lebanon
Hariri: We
accept the alternation of power/Now Lebanon
France Reportedly Delays
Rocket Supply to Lebanon/Naharnet
Miqati: Government 'Not'
Near-Birth, To Include Non-Provocative Figures/Naharnet
Assad, Aoun Discuss Lebanese Situation, Efforts to Form New Govt/Naharnet
Muallem: Lebanon's
Stability Lies in National Unity Government that Includes All Segments of
Society/Naharnet
Britain: Scale of Any Possible Israel-Hizbullah Conflict is Growing/Naharnet
Bishop Boulos Matar:
Strong, Capable State Remains Sole Protector of Lebanon/Naharnet
Harb: Should Suleiman and Miqati
Form One-Sided Government then We Will Become the Opposition/Naharnet
Berri Says Things Heading
in Right Direction, Expects Announcement of Cabinet this Week/Naharnet
Battle Over Cabinet Seats
Heats Up/Naharnet
Ahmed Hariri: Miqati
Became PM after Promising to Torpedo Agreement with Tribunal/Naharnet
Obama Discusses Egypt with Saudi
King as White House Warns: Basic Citizen Demands Unmet by Mubarak/Naharnet
Abul Gheit Warns of Army Crackdown,
Says U.S. 'Imposing' Its Will on Egypt/Naharnet
Mubarak Meets Top Russian Envoy/Naharnet
Egypt protesters
undeterred by crackdown threat/AFP
Madameek: A Struggle for Peace in a Zone Of War
By: Elias Bejjani*
"Greater love has no one than this, that someone
lay down his life for his friends". (John: 15:13)
Crystal clear patriotic stances are extremely hazardous and challenging when
against all odds an individual dearly and stubbornly embraces them and holds on
to the triangle code of faith, self respect and gratitude. The Holy Bible
stressed the crucial importance of stances in many verses: "So, because you are
lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth."
(Revelation 3:16). "The person who isn't with me is against me, and the person
who isn't gathering with me is scattering." (Matthew 12:30).
Colonel Charbel R. Barakat deeply loves his mother country, Lebanon, and her
people. He sturdily honors the sacrifices of its martyrs throughout their land’s
tumultuous history and genuinely endeavors to show his overt gratitude to their
heroism. He also respects himself and never compromises on his faith or
patriotic stance. He is a benevolent Lebanese Christian intellectual who has
willingly devoted all his life to loudly and staunchly advocating for and
defending the cause of freedom of our beloved Lebanon.
Colonel Barakat's main focus since he was a teenager living in his ancestors'
ancient Christian village "Ain Eibel", (South Lebanon), was and still is the
dignity, culture, education, prosperity, safety, history, traditions and faith
of his people. As an officer in the Lebanese army, leader of the South Lebanese
Army (SLA), teacher, human rights advocate, writer, and specialist on terrorism
he never deviated from these moral paths.
In spite of all the hardships, actual threats from and wars with terrorists, and
all kinds of losses and sacrifices, Barakat has never allowed fear, the
temptation of earthly riches or authority and positions to stand in his way. He
deeply trusted in Almighty God and decided to "strive to enter by the narrow
door" (Luke 13:24), unlike so many others.
The salvation of his country and people was and remains his prime goal
regardless what sacrifices he had to tangibly pay: “I tell you, my friends,
don’t be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that
they can do. But I will warn you whom you should fear. Fear him, who after he
has killed, has power to cast into Gehenna. Yes, I tell you, fear him."
(Luke12:4-5).
All Colonel Barakat's values, knowledge, honesty, experience, and love for
Lebanon and her people are portrayed in his extremely informative book, "The
Madameek"
With great interest and self gratification I read Barakat's original Arabic
version of "The Madameek" in 2000 and was overwhelmed by the depth and richness
of the information it contained about the Middle East, a region that was and
remains a puzzle for many Western researchers, politicians, academics and think
tanks. Based on his extensive firsthand experience, the author has genuinely
portrayed the dire hardships of his people, the Southern Lebanese citizens, who
despite their anguish, sacrifices and losses remained tall as the cedars of
their country and held dearly to their land, identity, faith and history. They
never gave up the hope and dream of freedom, democracy and peace.
I am extremely joyful because last month "The Madameek" appeared in its English
translated version. I genuinely believe that this precious book will be
extremely informative to all those interested in the Middle East's deeply rooted
history of wars, conflicts, terrorism, and diverse cultures. Barakat approaches
and addresses all these subjects in an unprecedented informative and unbiased
way.
Dr. Walid Phares, the well known Lebanese American writer and scholar in global
conflicts based in Washington DC, read the book and wrote: "The building blocks
of a nation… I have read Charbel Barakat's powerful story, Madameek, in its
original version in Arabic. It is a narrative expressing lived moments and
historical stages by a brave population in the most dangerous places on the
Planet. Barakat, a retired officer, a historian and a prolific writer, acts as a
witness on behalf of a community thrown into the arena of violence and freedom
deprivation. The story of the villages and towns of the southern border of
Lebanon, of their ordinary people of those who suffered from terror and
suppression, was still hidden under the rubbles of the exodus that dispersed
thousands of them around the world. Barakat's book reassembles these building
blocks and makes the case for them, particularly the suppression of their cause
and their rights as citizens of a nation, bleeding and aching still. It is a
must read for those who seek the truth, behind the smallest stone".
Much gratitude is due to Colonel Barakat, for his tireless efforts to accomplish
this difficult work in making his valuable and informative book available in
English. He also deserves our thanks, we the Lebanese activists, for being a
role model and witness for the sake of truth that many other intellectuals,
leaders and politicians in our Lebanese Christian communities in both Lebanon
and the Diaspora did not have the faith, patriotism and courage to do.
It is true that our people in Lebanon are oppressed and persecuted by the Axis
of Evil, Syria, Iran and Hezbollah, but what is true too is that they will
never, ever under any circumstances accept the status of slavery, or forsake
their freedom and faith. Khalil Gibran who was a Lebanese Christian intellectual
knew this reality: "Not everyone in chains is subdued; at times, a chain is
greater than a necklace."
Those interested in obtaining a copy of Madameek Courses, should click on this
link and follow the instructions,
http://www.authorhouse.com/Bookstore/BookDetail.aspx?BookId=SKU-000368253 .
*Elias Bejjani
*Canadian-Lebanese Human Rights activist, journalist and political
commentator
*Email
phoenicia@hotmail.com
*Web sites
http://www.10452lccc.com &
http://www.clhrf.com
*Mailing phoenicia group
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Phoenicia/.
Fatfat: March 14 wants no part of a 'cabinet of thugs'
February 10, 2011 /“The March 8 coalition has shown an intention to exclude. If
[March 8] aims to form a 'cabinet of thugs', we are not candidates to be part of
this cabinet,” Lebanon First bloc MP Ahmad Fatfat told Voice of Lebanon (93.3)
radio on Thursday. Fatfat also said that everything March 14 asked of Prime
Minister-designate Najib Mikati was based on national principles to which all
Lebanese have already agreed. Commenting on today’s meeting at Dar al-Fatwa,
Fatfat said “We do not [aim] to exert religious pressures. We [aim] to determine
national and clear [principles] that will specify the course of political [work]
for the next stage.”“If Mikati, who has been invited to the meeting, does not
want to attend, then he will have excluded himself, not been excluded by
others.”Last Thursday, Marada Movement leader MP Sleiman Franjieh said that the
new cabinet should be composed of “thugs” to confront Internal Security Forces (ISF)
– Information Branch head Wissam al-Hassan, ISF Director General Achraf Rifi and
Attorney General Judge Said Mirza. Mikati was appointed to the premiership on
January 25 with the backing of the Hezbollah-led March 8 coalition. His
appointment followed the January 12 collapse of Saad Hariri’s unity government
due to a long-running controversy over the Special Tribunal for Lebanon’s (STL)
investigation of former PM Rafik Hariri’s 2005 murder. The PM-designate has
called on all Lebanese parties to join his upcoming cabinet, but March 14
parties have said that they will not take part in a cabinet headed by a March 8
nominee and have also asked that Mikati first clarify his stance on non-state
weapons and the UN-backed tribunal.-NOW Lebanon
Hariri: We accept the alternation of power
February 10, 2011 /“We accept the principle of alternation of power,” outgoing
Prime Minister Saad Hariri said during Dar al-Fatwa’s meeting on Thursday.
“Disputes in the current stage are linked to three issues: domination through
power, the denial of [parliamentary] election results, and the Special Tribunal
for Lebanon (STL),” MTV quoted Hariri as saying. An unnamed source also told the
station that Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati’s condition for attending the
meeting was the alteration of an article in the statement set to be issued after
the meeting. According to the source, the article contained a “request that [Mikati]
review his stance based on the Sunni consensus.”Mikati was appointed to the
premiership on January 25 with the backing of the Hezbollah-led March 8
coalition. His appointment followed the January 12 collapse of Saad Hariri’s
unity government due to a long-running controversy over the STL’s investigation
of former PM Rafik Hariri’s 2005 murder. The PM-designate has called on all
Lebanese parties to join his upcoming cabinet, but March 14 parties have said
that they will not take part in a cabinet headed by a March 8 nominee and have
also asked that Mikati first clarify his stance on non-state weapons and the
UN-backed tribunal.-NOW Lebanon
Saudi embassy dismisses rumors of king’s death
February 10, 2011 /The Saudi embassy in Morocco, where Saudi King Abdullah bin
Abdel Aziz has been convalescing after surgery in the US, on Thursday strongly
denied rumors that the octogenarian monarch had died. "I can assure that the
health of King Abdullah is excellent and gives no cause for any concern," a
senior embassy official told AFP. An informed source told AFP: "These are
baseless rumors. The king is alive and well, and he has held several audiences
since his telephone call with [US President Barack] Obama." The website
www.islamtimes.org said in a Thursday article that King Abdullah had died of a
heart attack the previous day after a heated telephone debate with Obama on the
situation in Egypt. The Times of London reported on Thursday that in a "testy,
personal" telephone call with Obama on January 29, the king had threatened to
bankroll the Egyptian regime if the US withdrew its aid. King Abdullah arrived
in Morocco on January 22. He had flown to New York on November 22 and was
operated on two days later for a debilitating herniated disc complicated by a
haematoma that put pressure on his spine.-AFP/NOW Lebanon
Why Syria is not next
Ana Maria Luca, February 10, 2011
Analysts say Syrian President Bashar al Assad still has support among the people
(AFP photo/ Louai Bechara)
“I typed www.facebook.com and it worked! For the first time in three years!
Never thought this day would come!” said one Syrian Twitter user. The news that
the government in Damascus decided to lift the ban on social media websites
created a wave of enthusiasm among the Twitterati in Syria. The state-owned
internet service provider in Damascus announced yesterday that it unblocked
websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Blogspot and Youtube, although Wikipedia
remains restricted.
The Syrian government decided to lift the years-old ban on certain websites in
the wake of the recent revolts against authoritarian regimes in Tunisia and
Egypt, and protests in Jordan and Yemen. The move came after Syrian opposition
members living abroad created a Facebook group called “The Syrian Revolution
2011” calling for mass protests in Syrian cities on February 4 and 5 in order to
topple the government in Damascus.
Yet contrary to the hopes of opposition members, the calls for protests did not
materialize into a large-scale uprising like that in Egypt, but only an
increased presence of the state security apparatus on the streets. Some
activists were even arrested at small rallies held at the end of last week,
according to Human Rights Watch.
On February 2 a group of around 20 people dressed in civilian clothes beat up
and dispersed 15 demonstrators who had assembled in Bab Touma in old Damascus to
hold a candlelight vigil for Egyptian demonstrators, according to organizers. A
Human Rights Watch press release said that the police were present at the scene
and did not intervene. Suheir Atassi, an activist who attended the small vigil,
was reportedly arrested on Monday after she complained that the police officers
slapped her at a police station and called her “germ” and “agent of foreign
powers.”
According to HRW, Ghassan al Najjar, the leader of the Islamic Democratic
Current, a small opposition group in Syria, was also arrested after he publicly
called for protests in Aleppo, while Syria’s security services summoned more
than 10 activists before the demonstrations called for on Facebook took place.
The security apparatus in Damascus keeps activists under tight surveillance and
intimidates them. According to Nadim Houri, the head of the Human Rights Watch’s
bureau in Lebanon, it was very difficult to get in touch with the activists in
Syria and get information from the ground. “Many of them just don’t talk; they
haven’t responded to us. They are afraid,” he told NOW Lebanon.
But analysts also explain that the reason Syria did not have uprisings similar
to those in Egypt and Tunisia in spite of it also being an autocracy is because
it is not a majority system, the opposition is banned and has little resources
to mobilize, while the head of state is young and enjoys the support of part of
the Syrian youth.
Andrew Tabler, Next Generation Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East
Policy, explains that unlike the kingdoms in the Gulf where succession is not
questionable, Egypt, Tunisia and Syria are all republics with authoritarian
regimes. This similarity provokes people to think the revolution would spread to
Syria. “But Syria is ruled by a minority [Allawites]. Egypt is not; it is a
majority system. The discipline of the [Syrian] regime itself is stricter as
they are less susceptible to pressure from the masses. The military is
controlled by the minorities in Syria, and it has less of an independent role as
it did in Tunis and in Egypt,” he told NOW Lebanon.
He also added that another difference is that the members of the Syrian
opposition with real appeal, those who were behind the Damascus Declaration for
National Democratic Change in 2005, are in prison, are under house arrest or are
very scared.
Another reason Syria is different from Tunisia and Egypt, according to Joshua
Landis, Associate Professor of Middle Eastern Studies at the University of
Oklahoma and publisher of daily newsletter Syria Comment is that Syrian
President Bashar al-Assad enjoys a certain level of support among his people. “I
think you can make a strong case that young people like [Bashar] al-Assad,
identify with him. They criticize corruption, they criticize the people around
him, but not him,” he told NOW Lebanon. He also said that the lack of political
parties and the lack of civil society in Syria had a big role to play in the
failure of the “day of rage” called for by opposition members.
“The Syrians are also notoriously fragmented and divided, and that has been
their big weakness, because they can’t work together. The Kurds are the biggest
and most powerful opposition group. They’ve been more courageous, more daring,
more organized in the past. But they have 14 opposition groups, and it is quite
easy for the government to play them off each other,” Landis explained.
Syrian activist Ammar Abdulhamid agreed that the opposition needs more time to
organize. “Syria’s internal and geopolitical situation requires the infusion of
a heavy dose of cold, rational calculations in addition to raw emotions as we
prepare for our showdown, the timing of which will have to be determined by the
activists on the ground,” he told NOW Lebanon. “Syria’s internal heterogeneity –
that is, its religious and ethnic diversity and the reliance of the regime on
its ability to stoke fears and hatreds – imposes on activists the responsibility
to ensure that a popular protest movement needs to involve representation from
all communities in order to avoid a sectarian or national showdown. The regime
was able to contain the Kurdish uprising of 2004, exactly because it was
Kurdish, and Arabs were not involved,” he explained.
The “Syrian Revolution 2011” and its “day of rage” was confined to the Syrian
diaspora and on Facebook, where the group dedicated to a revolution in the
country gathered over 10,000 members who are still calling for mass protests
next Friday.
Abdulhamid, however, does not think anything will happen in Syria in the near
future. “The gist of my argument is that a revolution in Syria requires a
greater amount of planning and forethought than what we have witnessed in
Tunisia and Egypt. That planning will have to take place outside the traditional
circles of known opposition groups,” he said.
What will become of Israel if Mubarak falls? The growing
possibility of a radically Islamist Egypt has serious Middle East security
implications
Amos Harel/The Guardian,
Wednesday 9 February 2011
The Israeli perspective of the historic events currently under way in Egypt is
quite different from those commonly found in western countries. The US and
Europe are more likely to support the removal of a government that denies its
citizens basic freedoms, while Israel's main concern is that the unrest in Egypt
will have serious regional security implications. If Hosni Mubarak's regime
collapses it could endanger the peace agreements Israel has with Jordan and
Egypt, Israel's main strategic assets after its alliance with Washington. In the
longer run, the new reality on its southern border may also require structural
military changes and place an extra burden on the Israeli economy.
Israel's political leadership and security branches have been struggling to
decode the US's Middle East policies. The surprise of Obama's speech in Cairo in
2009 has been replaced with amazement at just how quickly the US has abandoned
its old ally. Like Jimmy Carter when the Iranian shah's regime collapsed in
1979, Obama is wavering between supporting a dedicated partner and the basic
American inclination to back a popular freedom struggle. Like Carter, a
Democrat, Obama chose the second option. Jerusalem has reservations about the
American tendency to see events in Cairo as an Arabic version of the Boston tea
party. In the Middle East people generally prefer bitter coffee.
Israel suspects that behind ordinary citizens protesting about the economic
situation and election fraud stands a new Islamist order. The Muslim Brotherhood
does not yet pull the strings, but it remains the only organised force within
the Egyptian opposition. Israel believes that, if Mubarak falls, it will be
first to recover and exploit the confusion and seize power.
Although the Brotherhood has threatened to pull out of talks, Israel is still
worried that it might come out victorious. Seared in Israeli memory is a fresh
precedent: in January 2006 parliamentary elections were held in the Palestinian
territories, under pressure from President George W Bush. Hamas's victory
encouraged its takeover of the Gaza Strip in June 2007. Today a radical Islamist
regime is in control of Gaza, severely depressing its residents, much more
repressive than the Mubarak regime – and of course very hostile to Israel.
If Mubarak is overthrown there will be serious consequences for Israel and its
quiet co-operation with Egypt. It may also lead to a thaw between Egypt and the
Hamas government in Gaza. It could damage the status of the international
peacekeeping force in Sinai and lead to a refusal by Egypt to allow movement of
Israeli military submarines and ships in the Suez Canal, employed in the last
two years as a deterrent against Iran and to combat weapons-smuggling from the
Red Sea to the Gaza Strip. In the long run, if a radical government gains power,
there is likely to be a real freeze in the already cold peace with Israel.
For the army, this will require reorganisation. It is more than 20 years since
it had to prepare to deal with a real threat from Egypt. The army is trained for
clashes with Hezbollah and Hamas, at the most in combination with Syria. No one
has seriously planned for a scenario in which, for example, Egypt identifies
with Hamas in the event of an Israeli attack in Gaza.
The Israeli-Egyptian peace agreement, signed in 1979, enabled a gradual cutback
in the deployment of forces, a reduction in the age of those exempt from reserve
duty, and a sweeping diversion of resources toward social and economic goals,
assisting the economic recovery in the mid-80s. This happened after the "lost
decade" (1974-1984) in which Israel has invested huge sums to its army,
following the trauma of the 1973 Yom Kippur War. It is still too soon to reach
conclusions, but it seems that if the Mubarak regime collapses, the pendulum
will swing back, and Israel will have to gradually prepare its army for
worst-case scenarios. The 1973 intelligence failure was again mentioned this
week, after both military intelligence the Mossad did not foresee the intensity
of popular unrest in Egypt. In all fairness, neither did anybody else.
After that first turbulent weekend in Cairo, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime
minister, asked his ministers not to speak on the subject due to its
sensitivity. But he could not restrain himself at a press conference with German
Chancellor Angela Merkel in Jerusalem, and warned against takeover of Egypt by a
radical Islamist regime. The last thing Mubarak needed was a hug from Netanyahu
– yet he got it. Anyone watching the broadcasts from Egypt could hear the
protesters repeating words of hostility towards Israel in Independence Square.
When Mubarak announced the appointment of the veteran intelligence minister Omar
Suleiman as his deputy, al-Jazeera rushed to the archives to broadcast pictures
of Suleiman with senior Israeli officials. The subtext was clear: the likely
heir is an Israeli agent.
In recent years, Israeli spokesmen described the developments in the Middle East
as a struggle between the moderates – primarily Egypt and Saudi Arabia – and
Iran and its partners in radicalism. Events in Cairo indicate the moderate Sunni
states are in retreat. Within Israel, the Egyptian revolution will be
interpreted as an ideological victory for those warning against territorial
concessions, even as part of a comprehensive peace agreement. For most of the
public in Israel, the withdrawal of the Israel Defence Forces from South Lebanon
(in 2000) and Gaza (in 2005) led to rocket fire from the territories that were
evacuated. Now, as Cairo plunges into an uncertain transition, a question mark
hangs even over the fate of the old peace agreement with Egypt. The conclusion
of the right is clear – and has already been expressed in recent days: as long
as its neighbours are undemocratic and under constant threat of an Islamist
coup, Israel must not take unnecessary risks.
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Hosni’s very balanced system
Michael Young,
February 9, 2011
The Obama administration’s recent shifts on Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak
have betrayed American confusion over the way his regime is structured. That’s
mystifying: Egypt is among America’s closest Arab allies and the second-largest
recipient of foreign aid.
Last week, President Barack Obama issued a statement saying, “My belief is that
an orderly transition [in Egypt] must be meaningful, must be peaceful, and it
must begin now.” Obama’s press secretary clarified the thought a day later,
observing: “When we said ‘now,’ we meant ‘yesterday’ ... That's what the people
of Egypt want to see.”
However, over the weekend the United States backtracked from its demand that
Mubarak exit quickly. In Munich, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton
warned against too early a departure, declaring that a two-month deadline for a
presidential election “doesn’t give anybody any time” to prepare for a smooth
changeover.
The flip-flopping showed how little the United States has grasped the greatest
talent of Arab regimes: manufacturing stalemate. Amid the rapid developments
soon after Egypt’s saga began, the administration thought it could direct a
speedy change in gears. Mubarak would quietly leave office (and American
officials and envoys were on hand to push him out), his recently-appointed vice
president, Omar Suleiman, would take over for a transitional period, and Egypt
would move toward stability, supervised by the pro-American military.
That may yet happen, but the Americans never asked why Mubarak resisted this
convenient scenario, and why the army has seemed so reluctant to disagree with
him. The fact is that even to the hardened men of the Egyptian regime, Mubarak
is a patron whom they’re not used to dealing without. For three decades the
president has protected their interests, has appointed most of them to their
posts, knows their dirty little secrets and their enmities, and overall has
structured Egypt’s military, political and economic hierarchies in such a way
that different power centers can cancel each other out.
For Washington to assume that Suleiman has the legitimacy to abruptly replace
Mubarak is to assume –optimistically, even hubristically – that the chief of the
General Intelligence Directorate has the unanimous backing of senior military
commanders and other officials. Suleiman may yet earn that legitimacy, but he
will have to work very hard to do so in a system in which fellow officers will
make him pay a steep price for their approval. They will expect him to defend
both their personal welfare and that of the armed forces. Moreover, Suleiman was
only promoted under duress, consequently his latitude to make concessions to the
opposition is limited.
Herein lays a dilemma: If Mubarak stays on in office, even with restricted
powers (if this is in any way realistic), Suleiman’s margin of maneuver in a
transitional period will be narrow; but if Mubarak leaves office, Suleiman will
struggle even more to fill the ensuing vacuum. Mubarak sits atop an equilibrium
that he has imposed and presided over for many years. He is the glue tying
together the different limbs of the regime writ large – the armed forces, the
security services, the National Democratic Party, the military-dominated
economic sectors, the pro-Mubarak business elite, and so on.
This is hardly to suggest that the Egyptian leader must stay in power. Rather,
it is to point out the complexities of getting him out of power, which the Obama
administration should have been more sensitive to before sonorously setting a
virtual deadline for Mubarak’s removal. In assuming that Egypt’s institutions
could be bent out of shape in line with their own priorities, the Americans
failed to see that Egypt doesn’t quite function in that way. Its institutions
may often be dysfunctional, but that doesn’t mean that Egyptians will readily
endorse their debasement. Which is why Mubarak’s foolhardy project to bring his
son, Gamal, to power sat so poorly with his countrymen.
Barack Obama will need to show more patience than he has shown to resolve his
Egyptian headache. He failed to hoodwink Mubarak, but the answer lies not in
hoodwinking the protestors. Washington cannot afford a void in Egypt, but nor
should it presume that its own salvation lies in sponsoring a new authoritarian
leadership.
**Michael Young is opinion editor of the Daily Star newspaper in Beirut and
author of the recent The Ghosts of Martyrs Square: An Eyewitness Account of
Lebanon’s Life Struggle (Simon & Schuster)
U.S. Lawmaker Slams Obama Administration over Lebanon, Egypt
Naharnet/U.S. President Barack Obama's administration was the target of harsh
criticism in Congress Wednesday for not doing enough to support "pro-democracy
forces" in Lebanon and Egypt. "In both Egypt and Lebanon, we have failed to
effectively leverage U.S. assistance in support of peaceful, pro-democracy
forces and to help build strong, accountable, independent, democratic
institutions as a bulwark against the instability that is now spreading
throughout much of the region," said Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen at a
hearing of the Foreign Affairs Committee she heads. "Instead of being proactive,
we have been obsessed with maintaining short-term, personality-based stability
-- stability that was never really all that stable, as the events of recent
weeks demonstrate." In Egypt, the Republican lawmaker said, "the administration
failed to seize the opportunity to press for reform to address the
demonstrators' frustrations and prevent chaos and violence." In Lebanon, where
the Hizbullah-led camp has forced the collapse of the government, she said, "We
are again confronted by the absence of a long-term U.S. strategy." Criticism
also came from the Democratic side, with Representative Gary Ackerman arguing
that Washington is failing to capitalize on the democracy movement.
"In Egypt I fear we are snatching failure from the jaws of success," Ackerman
said. "We simply cannot afford to be viewed in Egypt as the bankrollers of
repression. The people yearn to be free. I cannot help but muse if (actor)
Charlton Heston were to be appointed the special envoy onto Egypt. He would
stand there speaking softly with the big stick in hand and say to President
Mubarak, 'your people have let you go.'" Robert Satloff, executive director of
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said the delay in a democratic
transition is negative for Washington. "Mubarak said (a transition should be)
eight months, Obama said now. And every day since then has been a victory for
Mubarak," Satloff said.
Satloff said Washington should be concerned about the possibility of radical
Islamic groups like the Muslim Brotherhood -- which has begun negotiations with
Mubarak's government -- getting involved in Egyptian politics. "The Muslim
Brotherhood was founded to Islamize the society, to govern under the sharia
law," he said.
"It has never given up its goal."(AFP) Beirut, 09 Feb 11, 21:50
Obama Discusses Egypt with Saudi King as White House Warns: Basic Citizen
Demands Unmet by Mubarak
Naharnet/President Barack Obama stressed the need for a meaningful and lasting
political transition in Egypt in a telephone call with key ally King Abdullah of
Saudi Arabia, officials said.
"The President spoke today with King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia about the
situation in Egypt," the White House said in a statement.
"The President emphasized the importance of taking immediate steps toward an
orderly transition that is meaningful, lasting, legitimate, and responsive to
the aspirations of the Egyptian people. "The President also reaffirmed the
long-term commitment of the United States to peace and security in the region."
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who is under siege after days of raging street
protest is known to be close to King Abdullah, who has condemned efforts by what
he said were "intruders" to interfere with Egypt's stability. Along with Egypt,
Saudi Arabia is a key US ally in the Middle East and has been a lynch-pin of
American regional strategy for decades.
US reports have suggested that regional allies have expressed deep concerns to
the United States about the impact of cascading protests in the Arab world on
the vital strategic region's stability. US officials however refuse to divulge
comments made by foreign leaders in calls to Obama, who has said Mubarak must
make the "right decision" for the future of his nation and embrace an "orderly"
transition to democratic rule.
The White House also warned Egypt's leaders to expect unrelenting protests
unless they start to show real reforms and a transition to a freer society,
dismissing governmental concessions so far as not having met even the minimum
threshold of what people want. Obama administration officials were increasingly
blunt in describing the limits of their leverage, reasserting that the United
States is not seeking to dictate events in Egypt — and that it cannot.
"We're not going to be able to force them do anything," White House spokesman
Robert Gibbs told reporters Wednesday. Still, Gibbs and other officials called
on Egypt's leaders to end the harassment of activists, to broaden the makeup of
their negotiations with opposition leaders, to lift a repressive emergency law,
and to take up a series of other moves the Obama government has requested for
days. Obama reinforced that message in a phone call Wednesday with King Abdullah
of Saudi Arabia in which the president emphasized the need for "immediate steps
toward an orderly transition that is meaningful, lasting, legitimate and
responsive," the White House said.
The developments came as the Obama administration sought to get out a unified
message and to maintain its tricky diplomatic balance of suggesting what must
happen in Egypt without prescribing exactly how it must happen, who must do it
or how progress will be measured. Thousands of state workers and impoverished
Egyptians launched fresh strikes and protests around the country on Wednesday
over their economic woes, despite warnings from Egyptian Vice President Omar
Suleiman that they won't be tolerated much longer.
Gibbs suggested that some Egyptian leaders thought they could wait out the
protesters by offering up some concessions and assuming "life will return to
normal" after years of repression.
"I think that's largely been answered by a greater number of people,
representing a greater cross-section of Egyptian society, who have come out
seeking their grievances to be addressed," he said. "Those are not likely to
dissipate until the government takes some genuine steps." Suleiman has promised
concessions such as new committees on constitutional amendments and oversight of
proposed reforms.
At the State Department, spokesman P.J. Crowley said that when U.S. officials
criticize Egypt's government or advise it to take steps like removing the
30-year-old emergency law, that does not mean the United States is meddling. "We
don't see that as interference," Crowley said. Obama's team has been grappling
with complaints that its message on Egypt has been inconsistent and muddled,
particularly on whether the administration has become more accepting of a slower
transition from President Hosni Mubarak's power to a new government.
On Wednesday, a White House official and a State Department official held a
joint conference call with the media, backing each other's points. They insisted
the Obama administration has been clear all along about its core points of
pushing for nonviolence, respect for universal rights and lasting, meaningful
change in Egypt.
"The theory of the case has remained consistent across the statements of this
government," said Jake Sullivan, director of policy planning at the State
Department. Meanwhile, in an interview with "PBS NewsHour," Egyptian Foreign
Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said he was furious at what he described as confusing
messages from the Obama administration in the early days of the protests, which
are now in their third week. Aboul Gheit said demands for "change now" were
equivalent to "imposing your will" on Egypt. He said the Obama administration's
message is now much better because he believes it understands that abrupt change
will lead to chaos. "I think we now have an administration that understands
exactly the difficulties of the situation and the dangers and the risks that are
entailed in a rush toward chaos without end," Aboul Gheit said.(AP-AFP) Beirut,
10 Feb 11, 10:10
French Sources: Indictment within 10 Days
Naharnet/Pan-Arab daily Al-Hayat on Thursday quoted high-ranking French sources
as saying that the indictment in the 2005 assassination of former PM Rrafik
Hariri is likely to be issued "within the coming 10 days." The Special Tribunal
for Lebanon is reportedly poised to indict Hizbullah members in the Hariri
murder. Hizbullah had warned against such a move. The Shiite group has been
pressuring outgoing PM Saad Hariri for months to stop the tribunal before it
forced the collapse of his government on January 12. Beirut, 10 Feb 11, 07:35
France Reportedly Delays Rocket Supply to Lebanon
Naharnet/France has reportedly delayed a supply of rockets to the Lebanon,
Pan-Arab Al-Hayat newspaper said Thursday.It said the shipment, bound for the
Lebanese army, was based on a promise made to outgoing PM Saad Hariri. Al-Hayat
quoted French sources as saying that France has adopted a wait-and-see attitude
toward Hizbullah-backed Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati. "The issue of
rockets is postponed for now," one source told Al-Hayat. The source said France
"will be cautious. It will wait to see what Miqati is going to do before taking
a decision." Beirut, 10 Feb 11, 08:00
Ahmed Hariri: Miqati Became PM after Promising to Torpedo Agreement with
Tribunal
Naharnet/Future Movement Secretary-General Ahmed Hariri said business tycoon
Najib Miqati had "already" gave the Hizbullah-led March 8 alliance guarantees
that he would abolish the agreement with the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. "He
already made commitments to the other team that nominated him for the
premiership that he would torpedo the cooperation protocol between Lebanon and
the tribunal," Hariri said in remarks published Wednesday by al-Sayyad magazine.
"This pledge was the key to becoming a prime minister," he added. Beirut, 09 Feb
11, 15:45
Miqati: Government 'Not' Near-Birth, To Include Non-Provocative Figures
Naharnet/Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati said the government was "not
near-birth," uncovering that he favors a 24-strong Cabinet that would include
non-provocative figures.
"The birth of the government is not in the coming 24 or 48 hours," Miqati said
in an interview published Thursday by pan-Arab Al-Hayat daily. He said he was in
no hurry to form a Cabinet and refused to set a date for the formation of the
new government. Miqati, on the other hand, did not rule out the possibility of a
Cabinet formation before the end of this week or early next week if "crucial
negotiations made it safely." He said consultations were ongoing with the
various parliamentary blocs based on a government made up of 24 ministers,
stressing that "contacts were not yet ripe." Miqati, however, said he would
consider raising the number of ministers to 30 on condition the government
includes qualified and new figures.
"I do not mind raising the number (of ministers) providing this will produce a
homogeneous and constructive government," Miqati stressed. Local media said
Miqati was preparing to kick off a new round of talks on government formation
with Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun who has just returned from Syria
after attending a mass marking Saint Maroun Day.
They said the premier-designate will also get in touch with Speaker Nabih Berri
who is back home from Qatar. Beirut, 10 Feb 11, 06:55
Assad, Aoun Discuss Lebanese Situation, Efforts to Form New Govt
Naharnet/Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and visiting Free Patriotic Movement
leader MP Michel Aoun held talks Wednesday on the situation in Lebanon and the
ongoing efforts to form a new Lebanese government, Syria's state-run news agency
SANA reported.Talks also tackled "the latest developments in the Arab and
regional arenas," SANA said. Aoun expressed to Assad "appreciation for Syria's
stances in support of Lebanon and its keenness on doing what would consolidate
its unity and stability." The meeting was attended by caretaker Energy and Water
Minister Jebran Bassil. Earlier Wednesday, Aoun, who arrived Tuesday in Syria to
take part in the celebrations of Saint Maroun Day in the Aleppo village of Brad,
called on Lebanese Christians to return to "our roots" and "get out of
isolation." "Our goal is to return to our environment, to our roots," he said
after taking part in a mass marking St. Maroun Day in Brad. "Our goal is not
utilitarian, but to get out of isolation," he stressed. "Christianity and Islam
share the same values," Aoun said. He pointed to Isalmophobia, accusing "some"
of taking the word "phobia" and sticking it onto Islam, citing the latest church
bombings in the Iraqi capital Baghdad and the Egyptian port city of Alexandria.
"We are here to tell the whole world that this region will remain a meeting
place of diverse religions," Aoun pledged. Beirut, 09 Feb 11, 19:30
Muallem: Lebanon's Stability Lies in National Unity Government that Includes All
Segments of Society
Naharnet/Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem stated on Wednesday that the
process of forming a national unity government in Lebanon has reached its final
stage, stressing his country's keenness on Lebanon achieving national unity. He
said before a delegation of Kuwaiti journalists: "Stability in Lebanon lies in a
national unity government that includes all segments of the society, which is
what Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati is aiming to achieve." Furthermore,
the minister emphasized that Syria is eager to establish the best ties with
Lebanon, hoping that the 18 agreements that were signed under Caretaker Prime
Minister Saad Hariri's government would be implemented. Muallem noted that
Miqati proved his centrist position when he was a prime minister the first time
in 2005. Beirut, 09 Feb 11, 18:41
Egypt…we see, but do we understand?
10/02/2011/By Tariq Alhomayed/Asharq Al-Awsat
It seems that everyone is in need of an interpreter in order to facilitate
dialogue between “Ancient Egypt” and “Tahrir Square Egypt”, for it is clear that
there is difficulty in understanding what is going on in the country today.
Yesterday, a remarkable event took place with great significance, when the
young, yes young, Egyptian popstar Tamer Hosni was expelled from Tahrir Square.
He was booed by the young protestors there, when he tried to deliver a speech to
them.
The youth were hostile towards Tamer Hosni because he tried to support the
regime when demonstrations first broke out across Egypt, but this is not the
important matter here. It was the reaction of Tamer Hosni that was significant.
Having previously enjoyed a high level of popularity amongst Egypt’s youth, he
proceeded to cry hysterically, and swear he had been deceived. He said that the
ruling regime had told him at the beginning of the crisis: Go out and say
something, save the people! He added that he had come to Tahrir Square to tell
the youth protestors he understood he had made a mistake!
Tamer Hosni’s tearful outburst means there is now another source of authority in
Egypt, coming from Tahrir Square. The Egyptian popstar was not the only one to
experience this, for the media personality Amr Adeeb has been subjected to the
same issue. According to “Al-Masry Al-Youm” newspaper, [when Adeeb tried to join
the protestors], the young people in Tahrir Square did not want him there. This
means that Tahrir Square is now imposing a genuine reality on Egyptian affairs.
As a result, notable Egyptian personalities have come to the Square to be
amongst the protestors, including Amr Moussa, Osama al-Baz, and other key
figures in society, not to mention the multitude of academics, judges,
clergymen, and of course the artists and media figures. This represents a
diverse spectrum of Egyptian society.
Another highly significant point is that the protests are not confined to the
people of Cairo or Alexandria, or amongst specific classes, but they have also
affected the people of rural Egypt. They have arrived in the New Valley
Governorate, which has witnessed acts of violence and the buildings being
burned, including those belonging to the ruling party, and police stations!
Demonstrations have also spread to Port Said, Suez and Ismalia. The protestors
have also surrounded the Council of Ministers building, and the Parliament, and
these are all important indicators. As I noted yesterday, even the official
Egyptian media has begun to change, to the extent that if you read the headlines
of an official Egyptian newspaper, you may be confused into thinking you were
reading an independent, or even opposition paper!
Therefore we ask ourselves: when we look at what is happening in Egypt, do we
understand it? Here lies the danger, for Egypt is not in a state of change,
Egypt has already changed, but we do not know in what direction it will go.
There is optimism, and there is pessimism, and we are all clinging on to hope,
but what is most worrying is that our region does not yet understand that Egypt
has changed. Therefore, today there is an urgent need for two things: Firstly,
to help Egypt to pass through its transition safely and easily, without blatant
interference, but on the basic principle that the Egyptian people are the most
important. Secondly, there is a need to reconsider how to deal with the coming
phase in our region, both politically and diplomatically, for we are facing
significant changes, and their impact will soon be clear.
Egypt protesters undeterred by crackdown threat
10/02/2011
CAIRO (AFP) – Thousands more Egyptian demonstrators joined a mounting tide of
protest against President Hosni Mubarak's regime on Thursday, despite stark
threats of a government crackdown. The revolt now holds two permanent protest
camps in Cairo, blocking both the parliament building and the city's iconic
Tahrir Square with noisy rallies staged under the watchful gaze of government
troops. Both sides have toughened their rhetoric, with Vice President Omar
Suleiman tacitly threatening to turn to the military to regain control. In
response, the protesters moved to blockade parliament and reinforce Tahrir. "No
to Suleiman. No to American agents. No to Israeli spies. Long live Egypt. Down
with Hosni Mubarak," they chanted in the street outside parliament, now lined
with makeshift shelters and anti-regime posters. Soldiers were deployed to
protect the building but, to the amazement of many activists more used to the
strong-arm tactics of Mubarak's autocratic regime, they made no attempt to
dislodge the growing protest.
"If we don't die here we'll die in prison, I'd prefer to die here," said Attiya
Abuella, 24, an unemployed graduate who said he had been jailed last year for 60
days, often naked and in chains, for taking photographs. The night before,
Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit warned that the army, until now a
mostly neutral force, would intervene if the protests against Mubarak's
30-year-old US-backed rule escalated. "If chaos occurs, the armed forces will
intervene to control the country, a step ... which would lead to a very
dangerous situation," he told Al-Arabiya television, according to a translation
from the state news agency. Abul Gheit also slammed the United States, accusing
it of seeking to force its will on Egypt by demanding immediate reforms. "When
you speak about 'prompt', 'immediate', 'now', as if you are imposing on a great
country like Egypt, a great friend that has always maintained the best of
relationships with the United States, you are imposing your will." Shortly after
his comments, Washington renewed its calls on the Egyptian army to show
restraint.
In Tahrir Square, volunteers have erected portable toilets, indicating the
protesters have no intention of leaving the "liberated" area, now a sprawling
tent city with sound stages, food vendors and a mobile phone charging station.
On Wednesday, unrest gripped the remote oasis of Kharga, where at least five
people were killed and 100 wounded when security forces opened fire on
demonstrators, a security official told AFP.
In the Suez Canal city of Port Said, some 3,000 protesters stormed a government
building, torching office furniture and the governor's car. There were other
protests across the country, and strikes at several firms. Meanwhile, Wael
Ghonim, a Google marketing executive and cyber-activist who has emerged as a
prominent spokesman for the revolt, promised to stay out of politics once the
dissidents' demands are met. The 30-year-old was freed Monday after 12 days in
custody, and was swiftly propelled to the forefront of the uprising, addressing
adoring crowds. "I promise every Egyptian that I will go back to my normal life
& not be involved in any politics once Egyptians fulfill their dreams," he wrote
on his Twitter account.
The 82-year-old Mubarak has charged Suleiman, his long-time intelligence chief,
with drawing selected opposition groups into negotiations on democratic reform
before elections due in September. Some parties have joined the talks, but the
crowds in Tahrir Square insist that Mubarak must go before they will halt their
occupation.
The Muslim Brotherhood, the country's best organised opposition group despite a
half century of illegality, has moved to reassure observers who fear an Islamist
takeover should Mubarak's regime be toppled. "The Muslim Brotherhood does not
seek power. We do not want to participate at the moment," senior leader Mohammed
Mursi told reporters, adding that the movement would not field a presidential
candidate. The United States is watching events in the most populous Arab
country with great concern, hoping the transition to elected rule can take place
without a descent into violence or an Islamist or military takeover.