LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِFebeuary 21/2011

Bible Of The Day
25/31-42: "But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. 25:32 Before him all the nations will be gathered, and he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 25:33 He will set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. 25:34 Then the King will tell those on his right hand, ‘Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 25:35 for I was hungry, and you gave me food to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me drink. I was a stranger, and you took me in. 25:36 I was naked, and you clothed me. I was sick, and you visited me. I was in prison, and you came to me.’ 25:37 “Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, and feed you; or thirsty, and give you a drink? 25:38 When did we see you as a stranger, and take you in; or naked, and clothe you? 25:39 When did we see you sick, or in prison, and come to you?’ 25:40 “The King will answer them, ‘Most certainly I tell you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ 25:41 Then he will say also to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels; 25:42 for I was hungry, and you didn’t give me food to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink; 25:43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t take me in; naked, and you didn’t clothe me; sick, and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’ 25:44 “Then they will also answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and didn’t help you?’
25:45 “Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Most certainly I tell you, inasmuch as you didn’t do it to one of the least of these, you didn’t do it to me.’ 25:46 These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Latest analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases from miscellaneous sources
Egypt is no longer committed to an alliance with Israel against Iran/By Aluf Benn/February 20/11
Egyptian Military opens Tahrir Sq. for Islamic radical to preach jihad/DEBKAfile/February 20/11
Yusuf al-Qaradawi – a ‘man for all seasons’/By OREN KESSLER /J.Post/ February 20/11

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for February 20/11
Egyptian officials: Iran warships to cross Suez Canal on Monday/Haaretz
'Israel views Iran ships crossing Suez with utmost gravity'/J.Post
Sfeir Heads to Rome, Backs Liberation of Land within Lebanon's Natural Boundaries/Naharnet
PA to call urgent UN session over settlement resolution veto/Haaretz
WikiLeaks: Bahrain FM planned to meet Israeli officials in support of peace process/Haaretz
Iranian Naval Ships Sail Through Suez Canal/Fox News
Aoun's obstructive demands preventing Cabinet formation/Ya Libnan
Georgian Jews wary of Hezbollah/Ya Libnan
'Process of democracy in Egypt not dangerous for Israel'/J. Post
March 14 Preconditions Participation on Policy Statement Support for Tribunal, Rejection of Arms/Naharnet
Miqati's Nephew in U.S. Amid Warning of 'Dangerous Consequences' of Hizbullah-led Cabinet/Naharnet
Dim Hopes of Cabinet Formation Soon as Suleiman, Aoun Hold Onto Interior Ministry/Naharnet
March 14 to Hold a Protest to Reject 'Weapons-State Coexistence'/Naharnet
Sleiman says Aoun is attacking him like an enemy, sources say/iloubnan.info
Chinese peacekeepers leave for Lebanon/Xinhua
Franjieh the consensus candidate for Interior Ministry?/Ya Libnan
Soueid: March 14 is studying potential street mobilization/Now Lebanon
MTV: Interior Ministry could go to Franjieh/Now Lebanon
Gemayel: No practical proposals on cabinet formation/Now Lebanon
Harb: Aoun Aiming to Impose his Conditions over Cabinet Formation Opposing President, Premier's Jurisdiction/Naharnet
Safadi: I Voted for Miqati Out of the Country's Interest/Naharnet
Zahra for early parliamentary elections/iloubnan.info
 

Sfeir Heads to Rome, Backs Liberation of Land within Lebanon's Natural Boundaries
Naharnet/Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir on Sunday wished Premier-designate Najib Miqati success in forming the government and stressed support for the liberation of land within Lebanon's natural boundaries. "We wish him (Miqati) success and congratulate anyone who has been tasked with forming the new cabinet," Sfeir said at Rafik Hariri international airport before heading to Rome to participate in the unveiling of the statue of Saint Maroun in Saint Peter's square. He said it was the March 14 alliance's choice whether it wanted to participate in the cabinet or not. Asked if he supported the liberation of the Upper Galilee in case of an Israeli attack on Lebanon, the patriarch said: "We support liberation … within natural boundaries."
Hizbullah's leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah told the party's fighters on Wednesday "to be ready for a day when, if war is imposed on us, your command might ask you to control the Galilee area." The Galilee refers to northern Israel, near the border with Lebanon. In response to another question, Sfeir expected his resignation to be accepted by the Vatican. "We will welcome the new patriarch no matter who he is." Sfeir submitted his resignation to the Vatican late last year, but it remains unknown whether the election of a new patriarch, if Sfeir's resignation is accepted, will take place before or after the election of a number of Maronite bishops to replace those who have reached the retirement age of 75.
The bishops who have reached retirement age could still vote to elect a new patriarch as long as their successors have not been appointed. Beirut, 20 Feb 11,

Miqati's Nephew in U.S. Amid Warning of 'Dangerous Consequences' of Hizbullah-led Cabinet
Naharnet/Premier-designate Najib Miqati's nephew is reportedly in Washington in an attempt to garner the support of the Obama administration for the billionaire businessman's future government. Informed sources told pan-Arab daily al-Hayat in remarks published Sunday that Azmi Taha Miqati is discussing with low-ranking U.S. officials ways to garner support for the new cabinet. The officials told the young businessman that Washington is awaiting deeds not words in order to announce its support for the Miqati government.
Other sources told the newspaper that Azmi Miqati had asked for meetings with high-ranking U.S. officials, but the reply came with the arrangement of talks with lower-ranking Obama administration figures. Al-Hayat said the envoy stressed to the officials Lebanon's commitment to all international resolutions. However, according to An Nahar newspaper, foreign decision-makers have warned a Miqati envoy that a Hizbullah-led government would have "dangerous repercussions on the future of the country." "Such a cabinet wouldn't only have Hizbullah members in it, but would consider Lebanon's international commitments as illegitimate," the decision-makers reportedly said. An Nahar did not say who the envoy was or which decision-making capital made the warning. Beirut, 20 Feb 11, 09:12

March 14 Preconditions Participation on Policy Statement Support for Tribunal, Rejection of Arms
Naharnet/The March 14 forces have reportedly preconditioned their participation in the cabinet on the inclusion in the policy statement of articles stressing Lebanon's commitment to the international tribunal and preserving political life from arms. Informed March 14 forces told An Nahar daily in remarks published Sunday that the coalition is insisting on including two articles that stress the country's "commitment to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and the protection of political life from the predominance of weapons." Such preconditions led Hizbullah to publicly accuse March 14 of rejecting to defend Lebanon. "We appreciate the courage of political leaderships that confronted challenges while under pressure," said MP Nawaf al-Moussawi. "We go ahead along with these leaderships to form a government that salvages Lebanon" from plots. He also slammed the "American-Israeli strife tunnel" which took the tribunal as an excuse to implement its objective. Another Hizbullah MP, Hassan Fadlallah, said the March 14 forces that are relying "on options other than that of the resistance haven't previously cared about protecting the country and the south … and preserving Lebanon and defending it." Meanwhile, pan-Arab daily al-Hayat said March 14's nonparticipation in the government of Premier-designate Najib Miqati is almost settled. A March 14 leader told the newspaper that the alliance's leaders met at Caretaker Premier Saad Hariri's residence on Thursday night and didn't reach a conclusion on their demands for commitment to the tribunal and the Taef accord and finding a solution to the issue of illegitimate arms except for Hizbullah's weapons. Miqati has reportedly suggested giving the coalition 10 ministers in a 30-member cabinet but March 14 is insisting on getting the one-third of government seats allowing it to have veto power. Beirut, 20 Feb 11, 08:21

Dim Hopes of Cabinet Formation Soon as Suleiman, Aoun Hold Onto Interior Ministry
Naharnet/President Michel Suleiman and Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun were still at loggerheads on Sunday over the interior ministry portfolio and the Change and Reform bloc chief's insistence to name most of the Christian ministers.While Premier-designate Najib Miqati stressed he was keen on the constitution and balance of power, there were dim hopes of forming a cabinet soon amid the bickering between Suleiman and Aoun. Miqati's visitors quoted the prime minister-designate as saying he will make every effort to form a government that satisfies the Lebanese but stressed he won't let the time limit set for himself to be open-ended. The visitors told An Nahar daily that Miqati wants to form the cabinet as soon as possible but he is keen on the constitution and is vowing not to encroach on state institutions, the law, balance and diversity. However, pan-Arab daily al-Hayat quoted Suleiman as saying that he is holding onto the interior ministry and his representation in the government. His visitors told the newspaper that Suleiman has vowed not to sign a cabinet decree that "does not respect coexistence and harmony in representation." An Nahar said that Speaker Nabih Berri and Miqati contacted Aoun to wish him a happy birthday on Saturday. Berri reportedly asked Aoun about rumors that he would get the foreign instead of the interior ministry and in return the speaker would get the defense portfolio. The speaker stressed to the FPM leader that the foreign portfolio will remain as part of his share in the new cabinet, the newspaper said ,hinting that Berri is also holding onto the foreign ministry and further complicating the task of Miqati to resolve the interior portfolio's problem. Beirut, 20 Feb 11, 11:27

March 14 to Hold a Protest to Reject 'Weapons-State Coexistence'
Naharnet/March 14 general-secretariat coordinator Fares Soaid said Sunday that the coalition will organize a "peaceful and democratic protest" in support of the international tribunal on the sixth anniversary of the March 14 Cedar Revolution. The protest will take place in all Lebanese regions and will bear the slogan of the protection of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and rejection of coexistence between weapons and the state, Soaid told Voice of Lebanon radio station. The general-secretariat coordinator said Saturday that "the arms have abolished the results of the parliamentary elections and are seeking to impose the cabinet line-up" on the other faction. March 14 will confront with all "peaceful and democratic means possible" the status quo imposed by Hizbullah and its allies, Soaid said. He also said the alliance was mulling to hold a meeting to prepare for the March 14 event and unveil a new political document that stresses the coalition's principles. Beirut, 20 Feb 11, 09:37

Egyptian officials: Iran warships to cross Suez Canal on Monday
By Reuters and Amos Harel /Haaretz/Two Iranian naval ships will sail through the Suez Canal to the Mediterranean on Monday, a Suez Canal official said, in what will be the first passage of Iranian naval ships through the canal since 1979. The official said the vessels would arrive at the southern mouth of the canal in the Red Sea's Gulf of Suez on Sunday. They would enter the canal in the northern convoy on Monday morning and complete the journey to the Mediterranean by evening.
An Egyptian army source said on Friday that the military, which has been running Egypt since President Hosni Mubarak was toppled from power on Feb. 11, had approved Iran's request to send the ships through the canal. Israel is following the movement of the warships closely, although it does not believe the Iranian vessels have hostile intentions toward Israel.
On Wednesday, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman called the warships "another provocation" by Iran against Israel. The vessels, which are apparently not carrying any unconventional cargo, are expected to anchor in the Syrian port of Latakia. Israel believes the Egyptians had no choice but to allow the ships to pass through the Suez Canal, because the treaty to which it is a signatory obliges it to allow free passage through the waterway. However, during recently ousted President Hosni Mubarak's regime, the Iranians did not make such a move, apparently due to clear opposition from Cairo. The Israel Navy is prepared in case the Iranian ships make a move toward the Israeli coastline, though the chances of that happening are at this point believed to be slim.

PA to call urgent UN session over settlement resolution veto
By Barak Ravid, Natasha Mozgovaya, Shlomo Shamir and Avi Issacharoff
Haaretz/The United States used its UN Security Council veto on Friday, for the first time since President Barack Obama took office, to stop passage of a resolution condemning Israeli settlement construction. The resolution was supported by the Security Council's other 14 members.
The veto, which contradicted America's expressed policy on the settlements, and the Arab world's response to it are expected to further deepen the crisis in the peace talks.
Protesters in the West Bank town of Bil’in on Friday, opposing the U.S. veto of an anti-settlement resolution by the UN Security Council.
Following the veto, the Palestinian Authority is to call this week for an emergency session of the UN General Assembly to condemn Israel. That resolution is expected to pass easily.
Meanwhile, at the request of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Shimon Peres on Saturday called PA President Mahmoud Abbas to urge him to return to negotiations. But Abbas rejected the request and subsequently issued a statement saying that while the Palestinians were committed to a two-state solution, construction in the settlements and in East Jerusalem would have to stop before talks could resume.
Sources in the Foreign Ministry said the Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations, Riyad Mansour, is looking into the possibility of invoking General Assembly resolution 377 from 1950. That resolution states that an emergency General Assembly session can be called within 24 hours to circumvent the veto of a Security Council resolution.
Obama spoke with Abbas for 50 minutes on Thursday to urge the Palestinian president not to bring the resolution to a vote. According to the Palestinian daily Al-Ayyam, Obama told Abbas that the resolution could damage U.S. interests in the Middle East and could induce the U.S. Congress to halt aid to the PA.
Obama reportedly suggested that in lieu of bringing the resolution to a vote, Abbas accept an alternative package of benefits, including a presidential statement on the settlements by the Security Council. Such a statement would be nonbinding, but could be couched in harsher terms. The package would also have included a Security Council visit to Ramallah to express support for the PA and denounce the settlements, and a statement by the Quartet of Middle East peacemakers that, for the first time, would call for the boundaries of the Palestinian state to be based on the 1967 lines.
On Friday afternoon, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton phoned Abbas with an even more sharply worded message.
But Abbas told both Obama and Clinton that settlements were the reason for the breakdown in the peace talks, and the Palestinian people would not back down on this matter.
After the phone calls, Abbas called a joint meeting of the Palestine Liberation Organization's executive committee and the leadership of his Fatah party. Mansour told the participants by phone that Arab missions to the UN wanted the resolution to move forward no matter what. They then voted unanimously to bring the resolution to a vote.
Following the vote, U.S. Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice gave a speech in which she attempted to explain the contradiction between the veto and the U.S. administration's clear opposition to construction in the settlements.
"While we agree with our fellow Council members and indeed, with the wider world about the folly and illegitimacy of continued Israeli settlement activity, we think it unwise for this Council to attempt to resolve the core issues that divide Israelis and Palestinians," Rice said. "We therefore regrettably have opposed this draft resolution."
The British ambassador read a joint statement by Britain, France and Germany that said that construction in the settlements, including in East Jerusalem, contravened international law.
Netanyahu released a statement immediately after the Security Council meeting expressing Israel's appreciation for the American veto.
In contrast, anti-American rallies were held yesterday in Bethlehem, Tul Karm and Jenin. Fatah Central Committee member Tawfik Tirawi called for a "day of rage" against the U.S. veto, and Abbas' spokesman, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, said the veto encouraged Israeli construction in the settlements.
The veto garnered praise from pro-Israeli American lawmakers and numerous Jewish groups that had been working energetically over the past few weeks to secure it.
But the Obama administration is reportedly worried that the veto will degrade America's status in the Arab world.
And an Israeli official in New York warned that "the Palestinian initiative was thwarted, but it increased Israel's isolation." Israel's claim that the Palestinians are responsible for the stalled talks falls on deaf ears at the UN, he added.
Abbas' rejection of Obama's request will help him politically, as the Palestinian public will not be able to accuse him of buckling under U.S. pressure, as it did in 2009 when American reservations led the PA to postpone a UN Human Rights Council vote on the Goldstone report on Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza earlier that year. Moreover, given the anti-government protests now sweeping the Arab world, Abbas apparently wanted to demonstrate that it is not afraid of a showdown with the White House.

Military opens Tahrir Sq. for Islamic radical to preach jihad
DEBKAfile Special Report February 19, 2011,In their first week in power, Egypt's new military rulers took two steps that had nothing to do with democratic reform. They allowed Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the radical Sunni preacher exiled by Hosni Mubarak, to return home and lead a victory assembly in Tahrir Square Friday night, Feb. 17 with a call to march on Al Aqsa in Jerusalem. From Qatar, al-Qaradawi repeatedly justified suicide bombings against Israelis. The second was permission for two Iranian war ships to transit the Suez Canal.
Voices from the Obama administration have commented since Mubarak was overthrown that a Muslim Brotherhood taking part in the political transition in Egypt might not be a bad thing. US intelligence officials briefing committees in Congress have not exactly exhibited depth of knowledge about the Brotherhood.
In contrast, Israel's Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has warned that a Muslim role in government would put the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty at risk.
Friday night, events in Cairo and other Egyptian towns - and the light they shed on the military rulers' intentions - made most observers sit up and take a second look at the outcome of the popular revolution.
Thursday, Feb. 17, the Muslim Brotherhood was allowed to take charge of opposition demonstrations in the emblematic Tahrir Square and given permission to build a platform, after the other opposition parties and movements had been refused. Ahead of the big event Friday night, the soldiers withdrew from the square and the Brotherhood's strong-arm brigades move in. Opposition leaders who tried to mount the platform alongside Brotherhood speakers were thrown off and dragged out of the square without the army interfering.
By this means, the military rulers achieved two objectives: Letting Muslim Brotherhood adherents mass in the square diminished the role played by the other opposition factions in the eighteen-day uprising; and, secondly, it flashed a graphic warning to the Obama administration to stop pushing for a rapid transition to democracy because it would only lead to the Muslims taking power in government and parliament.
The sermon preached by Qaradawi, a respected figure in many Sunni circles, had nothing in common with the goals of freedom, rights, reforms, a better life, for which the people demonstrated in Tahriri Square for 18 days. Not only must the Egyptian people go out and conquer Al Aqsa, said Qaradawi, but Cairo must open the Egyptian-Gaza Strip border to "our brothers," the Palestinian Hamas. He hammered home demands that would have taken Egypt beyond even scrapping its 1979 peace treaty with Israel and all the way to jihad.
For this speech, Egypt's military rulers gave the radical preacher a national platform over state television.
debkafile's Middle East sources believe the generals' latitude toward a notorious radical might make sense in regional terms: For three decades, by living in Qatar, Qaradawi gave the ruling Al-Thanis legitimacy in the eyes of Islamist circles. The military regime in Cairo hopes his presence in Egypt will contribute to their acceptance by the Brotherhood.
Tahrir Square Friday was therefore the testing ground for future cooperation. If it continues to work smoothly, Yusuf al-Qaradawi will rise over the heads of the opposition as the most prominent civilian powerbroker in the country with the greatest influence on Supreme Military Council decision-making.
Another external Mubarak policy the generals made a point of reversing in their first week in power concerned Iran. For the first time in three decades, Iranian war ships received permission to transit the Suez Canal on their way to the Mediterranean and Syria, and return to the Red Sea and home base by the same route.
The military rulers must have realized they were giving Tehran a leg up for its expansionist aspirations and strengthening the Iran-led alliance Turkey, Syria, Hizballah and Hamas. Al those allies have ports on the Mediterranean.
Just as Saudi Arabia welcomed those same Iranian war ships at Jeddah to tell the Obama administration that Riyadh was turning its face toward Tehran and away from Washington, so too is the military regime in Cairo signaling Washington and Jerusalem that Mubarak's policy of boycotting Iran and keeping the Shiite revolutionaries of Tehran at a distance from of Egypt, Sinai and the Suez Canal is history.

Gemayel: No practical proposals on cabinet formation
February 19, 2011 /“No practical proposals have been made for us to say yes or no to” in talks with Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati regarding the March 14 coalition’s potential participation in the cabinet, Kataeb Party leader Amin Gemayel said on Saturday night. “We have not received reassurances and guarantees on sovereign issues and the issues of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) and [illegitimate] weapons, in addition to [guarantees on] the way in which our agreements will be applied,” he told MTV. “The problem is not between March 14 and the premier-designate, but rather with the ‘dividing of the cheese’ within March 8, in addition to the existence of a problem between March 8 and the president.” Gemayel also voiced sorrow at “the attempt to marginalize the president’s role.”
Mikati was appointed to the premiership on January 25 with the March 8 coalition’s backing and has called on all parties to join his cabinet. On Monday, outgoing Prime Minister Saad Hariri, Gemayel and Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea all said that March 14 would enter the opposition. However, the Future Movement asked again Wednesday that Mikati clarify his stances on the STL and non-state weapons, and March 14 minister Boutros Harb told As-Safir newspaper’s Thursday edition that talks with Mikati are continuing. Cabinet formation is also reportedly being delayed by a dispute between Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun and President Michel Sleiman over the Interior Ministry portfolio.Aoun’s demand for a large cabinet share including the Interior Ministry is reportedly opposed by other March 8 parties.-NOW Lebanon

MTV: Interior Ministry could go to Franjieh
February 19, 2011 /The most recent cabinet formation proposal involves giving the Interior Ministry to Marada Movement leader MP Sleiman Franjieh, MTV reported on Saturday night.
This would be a “middle solution between [Free Patriotic Movement leader] MP Michel Aoun and President Michel Sleiman, but Franjieh is still hesitant,” the report said, without citing a source.The station also reported that there is an alternate proposal whereby “the same [Interior Ministry] portfolio would go to a personality from the military who enjoys approval from both President Sleiman and MP Aoun.”Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati was appointed to the premiership on January 25 with the Hezbollah-led March 8 coalition’s backing and has called on all parties to join his cabinet. Aoun is reportedly demanding certain ministerial portfolios – in particular the Interior Ministry – while other March 8 parties reportedly oppose this demand.
The portfolio is currently held by Minister Ziad Baroud, who is part of Sleiman’s cabinet bloc. -NOW Lebanon

Soueid: March 14 is studying potential street mobilization
February 19, 2011 /“Study is currently underway regarding the method of descent [to the street] and its goals,” March 14 General Secretariat Coordinator Fares Soueid said on Saturday.
“March 14 forces have moved into clear opposition after the BIEL celebration, and are calling for the commemoration of March 14 [2005] according to its crystallization of main [principles],” Soueid told Al-Markaziya news agency. These principles focus on “illegitimate weapons, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), and laying out the points for whose sake they will take to the street,” he said. “Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati is part of this project, and is not targeted by it. The target is the protection of the STL and making Lebanon a completely weapons-free area.”Holding a meeting at the Bristol Hotel and launching a “new political charter” is one of the ideas being discussed, he added. “The possibility of cohabitation between [illegitimate] weapons and [state] legitimacy is no longer permissible, now that the weapons have annulled the results of parliamentary elections and imposed the formation of a cabinet.” Mikati was appointed to the premiership on January 25 with the March 8 coalition’s backing and has called on all parties to join his cabinet. His appointment followed the January 12 collapse of Saad Hariri’s unity government due to a long-running dispute over the STL. At a BIEL center event on Monday, outgoing PM Hariri, Kataeb Party leader Amin Gemayel and Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea all said that March 14 would enter the opposition. However, the Future Movement asked again Wednesday that Mikati clarify his stances on the STL and non-state weapons, and March 14 minister Boutros Harb told As-Safir newspaper’s Thursday edition that talks with Mikati are continuing. -NOW Lebanon

Harb: Aoun Aiming to Impose his Conditions over Cabinet Formation
Naharnet/Opposing President, Premier's Jurisdiction Caretaker Labor Minister Butros Harb noted on Saturday that the government formation is not only facing obstacles from the March 14 camp, but also "greater ones" from the March 8 camp. He noted after meeting with United Nations Relief and Works Agency Commissioner-General Filippo Grandi: "The greater problem lies between Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati and President Michel Suleiman and between the forces that nominated the premier-designate to his position."
"It appears that the conditions the March 8 forces are trying to impose are hindering the Cabinet formation in that they allowed some sides, meaning FPM leader MP Michel Aoun, to impose his conditions in the distribution of portfolios on the president and PM-designate," he stressed. "This of course opposes the process of government formation and contradicts the jurisdiction of both president and prime minister" and consequently Lebanon's entire democratic system and constitution, he added. Regarding the March 14 camp's position towards Cabinet, the minister said that the forces will not abandon the principals they presented to Miqati in order to participate in Cabinet. Harb said that once Miqati respects and commits to these values, then the March 14 forces may take part in government. Beirut, 19 Feb 11,

Statement by Minister Cannon on Situation in Libya
(No. 72 - February 19, 2011 - 1:40 p.m. ET) The Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today issued the following statement concerning the rapidly deteriorating situation in Libya: “Canada is monitoring events in Libya very closely. We are deeply concerned about reports of extremely violent attacks on and arrests of peaceful protesters. We regret the loss of life in Libya and call on all parties to refrain from violence.  “We call on the Libyan government to respect the rights of freedom of expression and assembly and to engage in peaceful dialogue with its people to address legitimate concerns.”

Statement by Minister Cannon on Protests in Yemen
(No. 71 - February 19, 2011 - 9:40 a.m. ET) The Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today issued the following statement concerning the protests taking place in Yemen: “Canada is watching closely the recent developments in Yemen. We regret the loss of life and call on all parties involved to refrain from violence.
“Canada urges the Government of Yemen to allow peaceful demonstrations and to respect the constitutionally protected right of free expression.”

Egypt is no longer committed to an alliance with Israel against Iran
By Aluf Benn /Haaretz
A year and a half ago, an Israel Navy submarine crossed the Suez Canal on its way from Haifa to the Red Sea, where it conducted an exercise, and back. The unusual voyage reflected the growing strategic cooperation between Israel and Egypt, which aimed a menacing message at Iran. The submarine's crossing of the waterway demonstrated how quickly Israel could deploy its deterrent near Iran's shores, with the tacit support of Egypt.
Once more, the canal is being used to deliver a message of deterrence - but this time the direction is reversed. Egypt is allowing Iranian warships to cross the canal, on their way to Syrian ports. Israel was publicly critical of the passage - arguing that it is a provocative move - but Egypt ignored the pressures and granted the Iranian navy permission to pass, symbolizing the change to the regional balance of power following the fall of President Hosni Mubarak.
Egypt is signaling that it is no longer committed to its strategic alliance with Israel against Iran, and that Cairo is now willing to do business with Tehran. This is precisely what Turkey has done in recent years under Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Since the uprising against Mubarak, the cold peace between Egypt and Israel has cooled even further. The delivery of natural gas to Israel, which was cut off after a terrorist attack on a station in northern Sinai, has still not been resumed.
Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi returned to Cairo after decades in exile and addressed a million strong crowd in Tahrir Square on Friday, calling for the liberation of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the upcoming victory against Israel. In the past, the sheikh had expressed support for suicide attacks against Israelis and two years ago described the Holocaust as "God's punishment of the Jews."
The appearance of the Islamist firebrand in the square has returned hatred for Israel to the center of the public debate over Egypt's future. Until now, the argument was that the revolution concerned domestic matters, not Egypt's relations with the United States or Israel. The Muslim Brotherhood has also been trying to send messages of moderation to the West, but this is hardly comforting.
There is growing concern in Israel that Egypt will become a hostile front, adding to the feeling of international isolation which has only intensified since Benjamin Netanyahu became prime minister. The recent vote at the UN Security Council over the Palestinian resolution to label the settlements as illegal only increased this sense of isolation. With 14 states supporting this measure, Israel needed an American veto to foil it.
The Palestinians may have lost that vote, but the issue demonstrated which side in the conflict enjoys widespread international recognition.
Bolstered with Congressional support, Netanyahu forced U.S. President Barack Obama into the veto - which he had avoided using to date. The Americans argued that internationalization of the conflict cannot replace direct negotiations, and that forced decisions will only result in parties taking up more extreme positions.
It is not yet clear what Obama will try to get from Netanyahu in return: a plan for the establishment of a Palestinian state in the territories, or acceptance of an American peace plan. The U.S. president will argue that Washington needs to bolster its credibility in the Arab world and that Israel must contribute its lot to ensure that the new regimes in the area are friendly.
Now that Labor has been kicked out of the coalition, the government is breaking to the right. In the coming weeks, Netanyahu will have to maneuver between the threats issued by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman and international pressure. Having lost his friend Mubarak, this will be even more difficult than in the past.

WikiLeaks: Bahrain FM planned to meet Israeli officials in support of peace process
By Barak Ravid /Haaretz
Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheikh Khaled bin Ahmed Al Khalifa expressed willingness to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials at the start of the latter's term in order to move the peace process ahead, according to WikiLeaks.
Documents released at the end of the week on the WikiLeaks website show that senior officials from Israel and Bahrain met secretly several times over the years, in Europe or at the United Nations General Assembly.
Evidence of Bahrain's moderate attitude appeared in a cable from October 2007 about a meeting between Khalifa and a delegation from the American Jewish Committee, at which he told them that Palestinian refugees should return to Palestine, not to Israel.
The Bahraini foreign minister was harshly criticized by the Bahraini parliament for meeting with then-Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni in October 2007 during the UN General Assembly.
In an op-ed in The Washington Post on July 16, 2009, Bahrain's crown prince, Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, called for Arab leaders to address the Israeli public directly. That article, too, was sharply criticized, the U.S. ambassador to Bahrain, Adam Ereli, reported.
On July 28, 2009, U.S. envoy to the Middle East George Mitchell met in Manama with the Bahraini crown prince, who stressed that now was the time to address the fears of the Israeli people and that doing so would make Netanyahu's job easier.
WikiLeaks posted a cable from the U.S. Embassy reporting that "Ambassador Saeed Al Faihani, advisor to Foreign Minister Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmad Al Khalifa, told us August 20 that the Foreign Minister was still hoping to follow up on Crown Prince Salman's 'Washington Post' op-ed of July 16."
Faihani, the cable continued, said "that he is in contact with at least one Israeli journalist - from 'Ha'aretz' - and that the Foreign Minister is seeking clearance from Bahrain's leadership to grant an interview. In earlier conversations, the FM has told us that he wishes to address ordinary Israelis directly and help strengthen the constituency for compromise."
However, the Bahrainis ultimately decided against both the interview and the meeting with Netanyahu.

Yusuf al-Qaradawi – a ‘man for all seasons’
By OREN KESSLER /J.Post
02/20/2011 03:06
A disparate mix of Egyptians packed into Cairo’s Tahrir Square for Friday’s prayer service-cum-political rally: young and old, secular and devout, Muslims and Christians.
At least a million people filled the now-emblematic square, but the event was most remarkable for the presence of one man – Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, arguably the most influential Sunni Muslim cleric in the world, making his first public appearance in Egypt in 50 years.
“Don’t fight history,” he urged the assembled crowd, and the millions more watching the televised address live. “You can’t delay the day when it starts. The Arab world has changed.”
As often in the past, Qaradawi spoke of democracy and pluralism. He urged the army officers temporarily ruling Egypt to deliver on their promises of handing power to a civil government founded on principles of pluralism and freedom, and cleanse the cabinet of former Mubarak cronies.
“Don’t let anyone steal this revolution from you – those hypocrites who will put on a new face that suits them,” he said. “The revolution isn’t over. It has just started to build Egypt… guard your revolution.”
Born in 1926 to a devout peasant family in the Nile Delta, Qaradawi had memorized the Koran by age nine and later enrolled at Cairo’s Al-Azhar University, the foremost theological institution in the Sunni world.
By the 1940s and ‘50s, he had fallen afoul of Egypt’s secular rulers, and was imprisoned three times in the country before fleeing for Qatar in 1961.
His professed embrace of progressive values has earned the cleric a reputation as a moderate.
“Qaradawi is very much in the mainstream of Egyptian society. He’s in the religious mainstream, he’s not offering something that’s particularly distinctive or radical in the context of Egypt,” Shadi Hamid, research director at the Brookings Institute’s Doha Center in Qatar, told the Christian Science Monitor on Friday.
“He’s an Islamist and he’s part of the Brotherhood school of thought, but his appeal goes beyond the Islamist spectrum, and in that sense he’s not just an Islamist figure, he’s an Egyptian figure with a national profile.”
Qaradawi is widely seen as a source of intellectual inspiration for the banned Muslim Brotherhood. As a young religious scholar, he was a follower of the movement’s founder, Hassan al- Banna, and has long been a member of the organization.
Twice – in 1976 and 2004 – he turned down offers to lead it.
In 2006 he told the Brotherhood website IkhwanWeb that the Islamist group “asked me to be a chairman, but I preferred to be a spiritual guide for the entire nation.”
Today he is best known in the Arab world for his program Shari’a and Life, broadcast on Al-Jazeera to an estimated audience of 40 million. A 2008 Foreign Policy magazine poll put Qaradawi third on its worldwide list of public intellectuals.
In his 2001 article for the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, “Al- Qaradawi: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” Reuven Paz noted the contradictory nature of the cleric’s statements.
He was one of the first Islamic scholars to have condemned the September 11 attacks – but has supported attacks on US forces in Iraq and suicide bombings against Israelis.
“There is no enmity between Muslims and Jews,” he told rabbis from the radical anti-Zionist sect Neturei Karta visiting Qatar in 2008. “Jews who believe the authentic Torah are very close to Muslims,” he said, adding that “Muslims are against the expansive, oppressive Zionist movement, not the Jews.”
On several other occasions, however, the cleric has made comments critics denounced as anti-Semitic incitement.
“Oh Allah, take this oppressive, Jewish Zionist band of people. Oh Allah, do not spare a single one of them,” he said during the Gaza War in January 2009, in remarks translated by the press monitoring organization MEMRI. “Oh Allah, count their numbers, and kill them, down to the very last one.”
Later that month, he said on his Al-Jazeera program, “Throughout history, Allah has imposed upon the Jews people who would punish them for their corruption.
The last punishment was carried out by Hitler. By means of all the things he did to them – even though they exaggerated this issue – he managed to put them in their place. This was divine punishment for them.
“Allah willing, the next time will be at the hand of the believers.”
In a 2005 BBC interview, Qaradawi said of suicide bombings: “Allah Almighty is just; through his infinite wisdom he has given the weak a weapon the strong do not have, and that is their ability to turn their bodies into bombs, as Palestinians do.” In the same interview, he said, “I consider this type of martyrdom operation as an evidence of God’s justice.”
Qaradawi’s stance on Jewish claims to holy sites in Jerusalem is unambiguous.
In a 2004 statement about the Western Wall on Islam- Online, the website he founded, he wrote: “The Jews’ claim to Al-Buraq Wall [dates back] only to recent times. The longest reign of the Jews lasted for 434 years. Their reign in Palestine dates back to the times of Kings Saul, David and Solomon.
“Solomon’s sons split after his decease: Jude [sic] headed for Jerusalem while the state of Israel was established in Shakim, that is Nablus. The Jewish state in Nablus lasted for 298 years and the former for 434.
This is the longest period that the Jews reigned. So those who claim that they have a long history in Israel are liars.”
Close observers say that, more than anything, the cleric is shrewd.
“Qaradawi’s ability to be ‘the man for all seasons,’” Paz wrote, “should not mislead the West in its efforts to attract Arab states into positive support for the coalition against global jihad.”