LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِMarch 10/2011

Bible Of The Day
Matthew 6/1-3: "Be careful that you don’t do your charitable giving before men, to be seen by them, or else you have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. 6:2 Therefore when you do merciful deeds, don’t sound a trumpet before yourself, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may get glory from men. Most certainly I tell you, they have received their reward. 6:3 But when you do merciful deeds, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand does, 6:4 so that your merciful deeds may be in secret, then your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly".

Latest analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases from miscellaneous sources
What’s next for the March 14 General Secretariat?
/By: Dana Moukhallat/March 09/11
Nine Christians Killed, 150 Injured in Attack By 15,000 Muslims and Egyptian Army/
AINA/March 09/11
Six shot dead' in Egyptian religious clashes
/By Mona Salem/AFP News/March 09/11

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for March 09/11
Egypt officials: 13 killed as Muslims, Christians clash in Cairo/AP/Haaretz

Iran to cooperate with UN nuclear watchdog./By News Agencies
Lebanon Battered by Storm/Naharnet
Maronite Bishops Go Behind Closed Doors to Elect 77th Patriarch/Naharnet

Sfeir Describes as Abnormal Presence of Arms Outside State Control/Naharnet
Williams Warns of Dangers that Could Result from Political Vacuum in Lebanon/Naharnet

World powers call for Iranian cooperation with IAEA/Now Lebanon
President Gemayel calls for mass participation in Sunday’s rally/Now Lebanon

MP Sami Gemayel Files Complaint against Hezbollah's MP, Raad/Naharnet

March 14 is crying over lost power, says Berri/Now Lebanon
Mneinmeh calls for dialogue to resolve disputes/iloubnan.info
12 rights groups in Syria demand end to emergency/AFP
Hezbollah's MP Mohammad Raad : No delay in cabinet formation/Now Lebanon
March 14 Renews Call for Rally on Sunday: Bristol Meeting to Be Held on Thursday/Naharnet
Jumblat: No Ties Bind Me with Rafik Hariri Except his Memory
/Naharnet
Aoun: We're Proud of Arms as They've Preserved our Dignity, Campaign against them Attack on National Principles/Naharnet
Al-Mustaqbal Accuses Aoun of Being a 'Political Adolescent'
/Naharnet
Miqati's Circles Deny PM-Designate Under International Pressure
/Naharnet
Hariri Against Army-People-Resistance Equation if Turned into 'Tool' in Hizbullah's Hands
/Naharnet
Geagea Expects Cedar Revolution II on Sunday: Syria Partner in Coup against Hariri Govt
/Naharnet
Al-Mustaqbal Urges Massive Turnout on Mar 13: We're Not Against Arms Pointed at Israel
/Naharnet

Qaddafi hits rebels with air power, tanks, tribal troops, opens way to Cyrenaica/DEBKAfile

Egypt officials: 13 killed as Muslims, Christians clash in Cairo
By The Associated Press /Haaretz
Thirteen people were killed in violence between Egyptian Christians and Muslims, the health ministry said on Wednesday, as sectarian tensions that appeared to evaporate in the country's revolution resurfaced.The health ministry said 140 people were wounded, state media reported.
The violence in Cairo on Tuesday night was the worst outbreak of sectarian strife since President Hosni Mubarak was swept from power on Feb. 11 by a mass uprising characterized by solidarity between Christians and Muslims. It was not immediately clear how many of the dead were Christian or Muslim. The violence erupted following a protest by Christians over an arson attack on a church in Helwan south of Cairo.  The strife represents another challenge to the military rulers to whom Mubarak handed power, and who made restoring law and order a top priority. Petrol bombs and rocks were thrown, witnesses said. At least one of the dead was a Christian who had been struck in the back by a bullet, but it was unclear who fired it. The army fired into the air at one point to disperse protesters. The health ministry earlier put the death toll at four.
Christians protesting over the attack on the church had blocked a main highway south of Cairo and violence started after Muslims, who wanted to pass through, clashed with the protesters, a security source said. Coptic Christians make up about 10 percent of Egypt's population of 80 million. Islamists on Tuesday protested outside the prime minister's office over the case of two women who they believe are being held against their will in churches after converting to Islam. People demonstrate in front of the Egyptian Television building to protest the torching of a church in the village of Sol on March 7, 2011.  While tensions between Muslims and the Christian minority in Egypt have a history of running high, they came to a head this past New Year's Eve after a bombing near a church in Alexandria. The bomb, which killed at least 17 and wounded 43, targeted worshippers who gathered to mark the New Year. The attack led to an outbreak in violence with Christians taking to the street in protest.

9 Christians Killed, 150 Injured in Attack By 15,000 Muslims and Egyptian Army
3-9-2011
http://www.aina.org/news/20110308211907.htm
Assyrian International News Agency
(AINA) -- According to Father Abram Fahmy, pastor of St. Simon the Tanner Monastery in Mokatam Hills, on the outskirts of Cairo, Copts were killed and injured today in a fresh attack by Muslims. It was reported the Egyptian army fired live ammunition on Copts. The attack has claimed until now the lives of 9 Copts and injured 150, 45 seriously.
Muslims threw fire balls at the Monastery from the top of the hills. Coptic youth have arrested five of them, who are now being held within the Monastery grounds, waiting to be handed over to the authorities.
Eight homes and 20 garbage recycling factories owned by Copts have been torched, as well as 30 garbage collection vehicles.
The incident started when 500 Coptic demonstrators from Manshier Nasr, also known as "Garbage City," which is near the Monastery, were on their way to join the Coptic protest near the Egyptian TV Building, to show their solidarity with the Copts of the village of Soul in Atfif, who were forcibly displaced from their village and their church torched (AINA 3-5-2011). Nearly 15,000 Muslims from the nearby area of Sayeda Aisha and Mokattam, who were armed with weapons including automatic guns, confronted the Copts.
The clashes first started with hurling of stones at the Coptic demonstrators, then Molotov Cocktails. According to eyewitnesses the Copts called the army which arrived at the scene at 15:00 with 10 tanks . At first the military stood by watching, then shot in the air, then at the Coptic side with live ammunition.
"We were at one side and the Muslim on the other, we have hundreds of injured at the Coptic side," said an eyewitness. "The Muslims were also shooting from behind the army tanks."
First-aid was given to the injured in the clinic attached to the Monastery, "But there are only 3 doctors here, not enough to look after all the injured," said the Church custodian. According to one of the doctors all injuries were caused by gun shots. The injured were transported by private persons to various hospitals around Cairo, as ambulances refused to respond to their calls.
It was reported that Muslims stood at the head of the road and any garbage collecting vehicle belonging to Copts from "Garbage City" was confiscated and the owners beaten.
Attorney Wagih Anwar Abou Saad, an eyewitness, told Free Coptic Voice the army has been firing live ammunition on the Copts since 3 PM. "The army is protecting the Muslims, who sought shelter behind the army tanks," he said. There was a media blackout on the incident. There are no reports of any Muslim casualties.
The Coptic sit-in in front of the Egyptian TV building (AINA 3-8-2011) in Cairo has been ongoing since Saturday March 5, as the army has not yet fulfilled its promise to the Copts of handing over the torched church in the village of Soul, under the pretext that Muslim are demonstrating near the church.
By Mary Abdelmassih
Copyright (C) 2011, Assyrian International News Agency.

Six shot dead' in Egyptian religious clashes
By Mona Salem | AFP News Wed, 9 Mar, 2011
At least six Coptic Christians were shot dead and 45 wounded by gunfire in religious clashes with Muslims in the Egyptian capital, a Coptic priest told AFP on Wednesday, updating an earlier toll. "We have at the clinic the bodies of six Copts, all of them shot," local priest Samann Ibrahim told AFP, referring to a medical centre attached to his church.
The clashes between Christians and Muslims erupted in the poor working class district of Moqattam mid-afternoon Tuesday when at least 1,000 Christians gathered there to protest against the burning of a church last week. A hospital official had late Tuesday initially reported one person dead. "We also have 45 people who were injured, all of them, without exception, hit by gunshots. Others who were injured have been taken to other hospitals," said Ibrahim. He said some among the crowd of Muslims had opened fire on the demonstrators, adding that they had also petrol-bombed local houses and workplaces. Several plastic recycling shops and warehouses storing cardboard boxes had been torched. Fighting broke out when dozens of Muslims showed up in Moqattam, inhabited by Copts who work as garbage collectors and who had blocked a main north-south artery in the capital. People threw rocks from both sides and witnesses said soldiers at the scene fired shots into the air in a bid to disperse the crowds. Christians, who make up about 10 percent of Egypt's 80 million population, complain of systematic discrimination and have been the target of several sectarian attacks. Ahead of the clashes in Moqattam, Copts had protested in central Cairo against the burning of a church south of the capital after deadly clashes between Christians and Muslims.The protest outside the radio and television building came a day after at least 2,000 angry Christians demanded that the torched church be re-built, and that those responsible be brought to justice.
The Shahedain (Two Martyrs) church, in the Helwan provincial city of Sol, was set ablaze on Friday after clashes between Coptic Christians and Muslims that left two people dead.
The violence was triggered by a feud between two families, which disapproved of a romantic relationship between a Christian man and a Muslim woman in Sol.
"Problems escalated in the village when a group of Muslims headed to the burned out church and conducted a mass Islamic prayer there," Maged Ibrahim, a Christian resident told Egyptian state television. On Monday, Egypt's ruling military council vowed to have the church rebuilt and to prosecute those behind the arson attack. There is a long history of animosity between Copts and Muslims in Egypt, though there have been recent signs of a rapprochement following a deadly New Years's Day bombing of a church in Alexandria and during the recent popular revolt that unseated long-time president Hosni Mubarak. Twenty-one people died and dozens more were wounded when what was believed to be a suicide bomber blew himself up just after midnight on New Year's Eve as worshippers left a church in Alexandria. No one has yet claimed responsibility for the attack, which came after an Al-Qaeda-linked group said it was behind a deadly October 31 Baghdad church hostage-taking and threatened Coptic Christians as well.


U.S. official: Iran near threshold of nuclear weapons capability
World powers tell Islamic Republic that the 'door remain open' for dialogue, urges Iran to cooperate with UN nuclear watchdog.

By News Agencies /Iran is moving to a point where it will have the ability to produce nuclear weapons, the U.S. State Department's senior adviser for non-proliferation and arms control said on Wednesday. "We believe Iran is moving to the threshold of a nuclear weapons capability," Robert Einhorn said in response to a question at a Washington think-tank event.
Earlier Wednesday, world powers told Iran on Wednesday that "the door remains open" for dialogue on its disputed nuclear program, urging the Islamic Republic to cooperate with the United Nations atomic watchdog to resolve concerns it may have military aims. The six powers issued a rare joint statement at a meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), in a bid to show unity and to step up pressure on Iran after their talks with the Islamic state in December and January failed to make progress.
It was issued after IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano on Monday, the first day of a meeting of the agency's board, said information his office recently received added to concerns about possible military aspects to Iran's atomic activities. Amano voiced growing frustration at what the Vienna-based body sees as Iran's failure to address allegations it may be working to develop a nuclear-armed missile. The statement from the United States, Russia, Britain, France, Germany and China said: "We call on Iran to cooperate fully with the Agency ... Outstanding issues need to be resolved in order to exclude the existence of possible military dimensions to Iran's nuclear program." It was the first joint statement by the big powers at the IAEA since March 2009. Iran denies Western accusations it is seeking nuclear weapons capability, saying its atomic activities are aimed at generating electricity so it can export more of its oil and gas. For several years, the IAEA has been investigating Western intelligence reports indicating Iran has coordinated efforts to process uranium, test explosives at high altitude and revamp a ballistic missile cone so that it can take a nuclear warhead. Iran, one of the world's biggest oil producers, says the allegations are based on forged documents.
The powers' statement said two rounds of talks with Iran in Geneva in December and in Istanbul in January did not reach any substantive result, despite their "constructive spirit" and practical ideas aimed at building confidence. "We expect Iran to demonstrate a pragmatic attitude and to respond positively to our proposals and to our openness toward dialogue and negotiations," the statement, read out by Russian Ambassador Grigory Berdennikov at the closed-door meeting of the IAEA's 35-nation governing board, said. "The door remains open," the statement said. The U.S. envoy to the IAEA, Ambassador Glyn Davies, made a separate statement to the board, about the "increasingly apparent military dimensions to Iran's nuclear program, including efforts by Iran to develop a nuclear warhead".
He urged Amano to report "promptly to the board his best assessment of whether there have been military dimensions to nuclear activities in Iran and, if so, whether he is in a position to verify they have stopped". The UN Security Council has imposed four rounds of sanctions on Tehran since 2006 for refusing to freeze its uranium enrichment program, which can have both civilian and military purposes.


Hezbollah International Airport
Michael Rubin 03.07.2011 - 7:59 AM
http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2011/03/07/hezbollah-international-airport/
After an airport worker opened fire on U.S. airmen at Frankfurt’s airport, killing two, there is once again attention on the vulnerabilities of airlines and their passengers to airport workers who embrace terrorism. While European airports must get their acts in order, they are only the tip of the iceberg. Rafik Hariri International Airport in Beirut may look more like its European counterparts than other Middle Eastern airports, but since 2008 it has been under the control of Hezbollah, a terrorist group.
Hezbollah has long justified its refusal to disarm because it defines itself as a resistance movement. After the United Nations certified Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon complete, Hezbollah manufactured the Shebaa Farms controversy to continue the fiction that its aim was “resistance” rather than power and terror.
In the aftermath of the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war, in which Hezbollah’s unilateral actions saddled Lebanon with a huge cost in terms of infrastructure and lives, the Lebanese government sought to extend its own control over major infrastructure; the cost of letting Hezbollah run rampant was too high.
After the Lebanese government — then dominated by the March 14 movement — sought to assert control over the airport, however, Hezbollah turned its guns on fellow Lebanese, casting aside its fiction of resistance. Beirut’s airport was simply too important for the crates of weaponry and supplies that rolled out of the cargo bays of Iranian airliners.
It was against this backdrop that the Bush administration acquiesced to reward Hezbollah for its bad behavior. By 2008, Bush had surrendered to State Department insurgents and ceased to base policy on principle, instead returning to the moral relativism of the Clinton years. Condoleezza Rice supported the Doha Accords, in which Hezbollah received veto power over Lebanese government policy in exchange for a promise of stability. Having won its battle with the Lebanese government, if not militarily than diplomatically, Hezbollah returned to the Rafik Hariri International Airport, albeit in the uniforms of the Lebanese army.
Today any number of international airlines — British, French, German, and Middle Eastern — fly into Beirut. Airport workers load the planes with bags and cargo that get transferred across the world, including to the United States. They pass through X-ray machines run by Hezbollah operatives or their sympathizers, and they board planes loaded by Hezbollah airport workers. At any time it sees fit, Hezbollah can place a bomb on a plane originating in Beirut rather than simply remove them from the planes landing there. If there is quiet now, it is only because Hezbollah does not want attention over its airport activities in the limelight, for the airport is a key resupply hub.
Two American servicemen dead is a tragedy, and my heart goes out to their families, and those of the wounded. But one day, the West will be facing another Lockerbie-style incident, with a return address this time in Lebanon rather than in Libya. American and European diplomats understand the vulnerabilities of the Beirut airport but live under the fiction that it is secure. Doing nothing and pretending everything is OK is always the path of least resistance. Fictions may make for diplomatic niceties, but ultimately they lead to fatalities.

Lebanon Battered by Storm
Now Lebanon/A snowstorm lashed Lebanon on Wednesday as high winds reached 85 kilometers per hour and heavy rains drenched the Lebanese coast causing bumper-to-bumper traffic in several areas. The Meteorology Department said the snowfall at 1000 meters could reach 800 meters above sea level on Thursday. Temperatures reached 6 degrees on the coast and below zero on mountain tops. The wind damaged the façade of a bank in Maameltein, north of Beirut, according to Voice of Lebanon radio station. There were no reports of other material damages or injuries, it said. The National News Agency said, however, that the rains caused heavy damages to crops in areas near the southern port city of Tyre. Waves reached four-meters high in the city's coast, NNA said. Rains snarled traffic in Beirut and its entrances and heavy snow blocked several roads in the mountains across Lebanon, media reports said. The storm is expected to last till Friday. Beirut, 09 Mar 11, 12:45

Sfeir Describes as Abnormal Presence of Arms Outside State Control

Naharnet/Outgoing Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir reiterated that only Lebanon's armed forces should carry weapons and described as abnormal the presence of arms in the people's hands.In remarks to al-Joumhouriah newspaper published Wednesday, Sfeir said: "We either have a state or we don't. Only the state should own weapons." "This is the general rule" in the world, he said. "Arms should not be in the hands of the people," Sfeir told the daily in reference to Hizbullah. He made his remark as the Maronite Bishops Synod begins meetings on Wednesday to elect a new patriarch. Sfeir warned that interference in Lebanon's political affairs could sometimes serve and at other times harm the country. "The Lebanese should accept each other through love and cooperation because there is still meddling" in the country's affairs, the outgoing patriarch said. Asked if he was remorseful for not visiting Syria, he said: "Never. Why should I regret that?" Sfeir told al-Joumhouriah that he had nothing to say to Syrian President Bashar Assad. During his tenure, Sfeir took positions against Syria's years of interference in the country's affairs. A statement issued by the council of bishops in September 2000 calling for Syria to withdraw its 30,000 troops from the country marked a turning point in Lebanese opposition to Damascus' hegemony. Syrian troops intervening in Lebanon's civil war first entered the country in 1976. They withdrew in 2005 after ex-Premier Rafik Hariri's assassination in February of that year. Beirut, 09 Mar 11, 09:25

Maronite Bishops Go Behind Closed Doors to Elect 77th Patriarch

Naharnet/The Synod of Maronite Bishops goes into retreat on Wednesday to elect the 77th church leader after Pope Benedict XVI accepted the resignation of Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir.
Bkirki's doors will close at 6:00 pm. The bishops will pray and hear lectures until Friday when the actual electoral process begins. Bishop Roland Abu Jawdeh will preside over the electoral rounds. In the first session, a secretary will be elected and starting Friday the bishops will hold two electoral rounds in the morning and two in the afternoon until one of the bishops gets the two-thirds of the votes.An Nahar daily said that 38 or 39 bishops will not attend the synod after John Shedid and Hektor Istfan Dwaihi refused to come to Lebanon from the U.S. over health reasons. The newspaper also quoted church sources as saying that two other bishops, Georges Abu Saber and Youssef Massoud Massoud, could also not participate in the electoral process. The sources said the election process would take several days only. Another source at the Maronite church told As Safir daily that "there is no political influence in the elections."
"The new patriarch will not deviate from Bkirki's national principles. Evidently he would have a different approach than Patriarch Sfeir … but the gist on national issues will remain the same," the source said. Voice of Lebanon said Sfeir will address the Lebanese through the radio station a few hours before the retreat. Beirut, 09 Mar 11, 08:20

Sami Gemayel Files Complaint against Raad: He Violated Parliament, Attributing Positions to it that it Didn't Make

Naharnet/Phalange Party MP Sami Gemayel filed a complaint against the head of the Loyalty to the Resistance bloc MP Mohammad Raad over his latest press conference from parliament during which a poster supporting the March 8 camp's positions was displayed behind him. The complaint was filed to Speaker Nabih Berri on the basis that the "poster tarnished parliament's image by attributing positions to it that it did not make." The MP explained: "The complaint does not address what Raad discussed at the press conference, but we are concerned with preserving parliament's image.""Everyone has the right to wonder whether this poster was at parliament before the conference or that it was hung for the conference," he continued. The poster displayed slogans reflecting the March 8 camp's opposition to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. Gemayel urged Berri to take a position from such a development, saying that he should clarify if any MP is allowed to hang whatever poster he wants at parliament. "Implying that parliament opposes the STL is a violation of the constitution and its slogan is a provocation to all MPs, especially those attached to the constitution," he stressed. Gemayel demanded that Raad be warned over violating parliament's image and that hanging posters and slogans in parliament should be prohibited. Beirut, 09 Mar 11, 14:17

President Gemayel calls for mass participation in Sunday’s rally

March 9, 2011 /Kataeb Party leader Amin Gemayel called in an interview published on Wednesday for mass participation in the March 14 alliance’s Sunday rally.
“What we achieved in 2005 was a great victory, while the [on-the-ground] and political situation did not in fact change. Much of the old reality stayed in place, without change. Our victory in 2005 was more a moral victory than a real one,” he told Al-Mustaqbal newspaper. March 14 has “achieved much, including the Syrian withdrawal, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon [STL], the election of President [Michel Sleiman], and victory in parliamentary elections,” he said.  “However, the Lebanese people wanted to achieve more victories – to achieve the dream of the state.” “We made mistakes in some of the steps we took, and March 14 supporters have the right to ask questions,” he said. The former president said that the time for March 14 to undertake “self-criticism” will come after Sunday’s rally, since such evaluation should be done from a position of popular power.
“The STL is the basic [issue] for the Lebanese people […] we have a chance to do what is right,” the Kataeb leader also said. He added that March 14 wanted to give Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati a chance, but “[March 8 parties] are placing conditions on him.”The March 14 coalition is holding a rally on Sunday “to reaffirm its commitment to the principles of the Cedar Revolution.” Mikati was appointed in January with the March 8 coalition’s backing following the collapse of Saad Hariri’s unity government due to a dispute over the STL’s investigation of former PM Rafik Hariri’s 2005 assassination. March 14 figures have repeatedly said that intimidation from Hezbollah’s weapons helped March 8 secure the parliamentary majority for his nomination.March 14 parties have said that they will not take part in the cabinet Mikati is currently forming, and Saad Hariri vowed last week to fight the use of non-state weapons “peacefully and democratically.”-NOW Lebanon

Williams Warns of Dangers that Could Result from Political Vacuum

Naharnet/U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Michael Williams stressed the importance of forming the cabinet to confront several challenges including the Special Tribunal for Lebanon's upcoming indictment. In an interview published in As Safir newspaper Wednesday, Williams warned of the dangers of a power vacuum if the formation of the cabinet takes more time.
Such dangers could be nonpolitical, he said. Asked if he thought the indictment would lead to civil war in Lebanon, the diplomat said: "I don't think so." Williams told the daily that he discussed with Hizbullah officials Mohammed Fneish and Ammar Moussawi the Shiite party's accusations against the international tribunal. He said he believed the officials have admitted that the court is an international body and that Lebanon cannot confront it.  Williams, who will visit Israel in the next few weeks, said he will discuss with Israeli officials the Jewish state's pullout from the northern part of the border village of Ghajar. He also ruled out an Israeli offensive on Lebanon, saying the country's leadership was busy with coping and assessing the situation in Egypt after the fall of President Hosni Mubarak. Beirut, 09 Mar 11, 09:00

Hundreds in clashes in Cairo's Tahrir Square
March 9, 2011 /Egyptians armed with knives and machetes on Wednesday attacked hundreds of pro-democracy activists in Cairo's Tahrir Square, state TV said, as insecurity raged in the post-revolutionary country. "Hundreds of men carrying knives and swords entered Tahrir," the presenter said, as footage showed rocks being thrown and hundreds being chased away from Tahrir Square, the epicenter of protests that toppled strongman Hosni Mubarak. The clashes took place as the newly appointed cabinet met with the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces to propose a law criminalizing incitement to hatred, which could lead to the death penalty, state TV said. The military rulers were struggling to bring calm on several fronts, as clashes between Coptic Christians and Muslims in the working class area of Moqattam left 10 dead and scores wounded, the health ministry said. Insecurity has been rife after police disappeared from the streets during protests that toppled former president Hosni Mubarak, who had ruled Egypt for 30 years under emergency law. Earlier the Muslim Brotherhood, the country's largest opposition group, blamed diehards of Mubarak's regime for inciting violence- a view widely shared across the country. -AFP/NOW Lebanon

World powers call for Iranian cooperation with IAEA
March 9, 2011 /World powers urged Iran to cooperate with the UN atomic watchdog at a meeting in Vienna on Wednesday, where Tehran once again found itself in the hot seat over its controversial nuclear drive. "We call on Iran to cooperate fully with the [International Atomic Energy] Agency," the so-called P5+1 grouping said in their first joint statement to the IAEA's board of governors in two years. The P5+1 comprises the five permanent members of the UN Security Council -- Britain, China, France, Russia, the United States -- plus Germany.
The group is holding talks with the Islamic republic to allay fears over its nuclear program, which Tehran insists is entirely peaceful but Western states believe masks a covert weapons program. The last time the six powers issued a joint statement to the IAEA's 35-member board of governors was in March 2009.
Since then, the group has held two rounds of talks with Tehran, in Geneva in December and in Istanbul in January, but which produced no concrete breakthrough in the long-running standoff.-AFP/NOW Lebanon

Sleiman meets with Spanish ambassador
March 9, 2011 /President Michel Sleiman on Wednesday met with the Spanish Ambassador to Lebanon Juan Carlos Gafo at the Baabda Presidential Palace.Sleiman and Gafo discussed bilateral relations, according a statement released by Sleiman’s office.However, the statement did not elaborate any further.-NOW Lebanon

March 14 is crying over lost power, says Berri

March 9, 2011 /“March 14 [parties] are crying for power and authority they lost, not justice,” MPs who visited Speaker Nabih Berri on Wednesday quoted him as saying.
“March 14’s campaign transgressed all national principles,” the MPs also quoted Berri as saying, according to NOW Lebanon’s correspondent .“The cabinet should be formed quickly in order to face the upcoming [deadlines] and deal with people’s interests.”The March 14 coalition is holding a rally on Sunday to reaffirm its commitment to the principles of the Cedar Revolution. Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati was appointed in January with the March 8 coalition’s backing, following the collapse of Saad Hariri’s unity government due to a long-running dispute over the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. Mikati is currently holding talks to form his cabinet. March 14 parties have said that they will not take part in his government, and Saad Hariri vowed last week to fight the use of non-state weapons “peacefully and democratically.”-NOW Lebanon

What’s next for the March 14 General Secretariat?
Dana Moukhallati, March 9, 2011
The transfer of March 14 from a majority alliance to the opposition calls for expanding the political framework of the General Secretariat, said Fares Soueid. The March 14 General Secretariat is always in the news, but many people do not actually know what kind of role it plays in Lebanon’s political arena. Its role has changed over the years according to the different stages that the March 14 alliance has gone through. Naturally, since the Hezbollah-controlled March 8 coalition forced the collapse of Saad Hariri’s unity government earlier this year, and with the entrance of the March 14 coalition into the opposition, the General Secretariat’s role should evolve. Some would like to see the body with more powers, while others would like to witness the creation of more political units within the secretariat. “This is exactly what [we] are looking into right now,” head of the March 14 General Secretariat Fares Soueid told NOW Lebanon. The General Secretariat was established in January 2008 to coordinate between March 14 parties and to enhance the political work within the camp, he said. Soueid explained that the secretariat underwent three phases: a political one, an administrative one and a compensatory one.
It organized the first March 14 conference in BIEL in 2008, during which a political statement was brought forward. “It was the first time March 14 presented a comprehensive political statement that all its parties agreed on,” Soueid said.
The General Secretariat’s role then changed from a mechanism to enhance the political work of March 14 to one that facilitates electoral coordination between the parties within the coalition.Soueid said that “its job was more administrative than political” in preparation for the 2009 parliamentary elections, which March 14 won, leading to the nomination of Saad Hariri as the new premier. But when Hariri went to Damascus in December 2010 for the first time since the 2005 assassination of his father, former PM Rafik Hariri – which the coalition blamed on Syria – March 14 entered what Soueid called “a compensatory phase.” While Hariri said during a press conference at the Lebanese Embassy in Damascus that he visited Syria as Lebanon’s premier and not as the leader of March 14’s Future Movement, “There was [a need] for the March 14 General Secretariat to say that even though [Hariri] went to Damascus, March 14 is still committed to its positions [against Syrian tutelage in Lebanon],” Soueid said. Now that March 14 has become the opposition in the government for the first time since the coalition’s founding in 2005, the General Secretariat needs to expand its political framework, Soueid said.  “The secretariat will remain, and its tasks are determined, but we have to create other political projects other than the secretariat,” he said. Youssef Bazzi, a Lebanese journalist at Al-Mustaqbal newspaper, concurred, saying that “the General Secretariat is now more free to expand into a group of institutions affiliated with it.” The General Secretariat’s new role, Bazzi said, is to work on bringing back the spirit of March 14.
“Less politics, more honesty,” he said. Bazzi also said that the more difficult mission of the secretariat is not the formation of a political opposition coalition “but the task of crystallizing an opposition society” in which it must “translate how it is impossible to live in a manner of absolute democracy and absolute logic of illegitimate weapons.”
Hariri said during a February 14 ceremony in BIEL commemorating the murder of his father that March 14 is committed to the Lebanese constitution, the international tribunal investigating the death of Rafik Hariri and others, and protecting the Lebanese from the use of non-state-controlled weapons, a direct reference to Hezbollah’s arsenal, which the party has steadfastly refused to give up.According to Walid Fakhreddine, an activist and professor at the American University of Science and Technology in Lebanon, the General Secretariat needs to become an institution that is not only political but administrative and executive too.
“We want [the secretariat] to have more physical and executive abilities, which is what we’re trying to achieve within a complex political situation,” he said. “It’s not for one man to take a decision, it’s more of a democratic interaction among the different factions,” he added. The March 14 alliance has yet to release a political statement following its emergence as an opposition camp. However, the coalition has made it clear that it will not take part in the next cabinet, which will be headed by Najib Mikati, who was handpicked by the March 8 coalition.
“[March 8] simply wants us to engage in a cabinet that would cancel the UN-backed probe in the Ministerial Statement and ask the Lebanese people to become part of a foreign axis that is not linked to Lebanon or Arabism,” Hariri told a local newspaper last month. According to Ayman Sharrouf, a journalist and activist in March 14, “Today, the mission is much more difficult because we’re facing an internal army, not a foreign one.”

MP Mohammad Raad : No delay in cabinet formation

March 9, 2011 /Loyalty to the Resistance bloc leader MP Mohammad Raad said on Wednsday that the cabinet formation process is being carried out in its “normal manner”, adding that there has not been a delay in forming a cabinet. Following his meeting with former Prime Minister Salim Hoss, Raad called on the Lebanese to commit to political ethics when addressing one another, the National News Agency (NNA) reported. Hoss and Raad discussed latest regional and domestic developments, the report added. Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati was appointed in January with the March 8 coalition’s backing following the collapse of Saad Hariri’s unity government. March 14 figures have repeatedly said that intimidation from Hezbollah’s weapons helped secure the parliamentary majority for his nomination. March 14 parties have said that they will not take part in the cabinet Mikati is currently forming, and Hariri vowed last week to fight the use of non-state weapons “peacefully and democratically.”-NOW Lebanon

Jumblat: No Ties Bind Me with Rafik Hariri Except his Memory

Naharnet/Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat criticized the March 14 camp's conduct, accusing it of increasing the dangerous internal divide in Lebanon that "is targeting an entire sect." He said in an interview with al-Akhbar published on Wednesday: "Failure to form a government is an escalatory measure by the March 14 forces ahead of the March 13 rally without it actually having a key to end the crisis." Caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri is not like his father, former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, he said. The senior Hariri "was a unique and approachable individual. No ties bind me to him except his memory," the MP continued. "He never severed his ties with Hizbullah and Syria," he noted. He also accused former ally MP Marwan Hamadeh of employing the same sectarian incitement, describing his rift with him as "complete and final." He added that the Mustaqbal movement is seeking to turn the Druze against him. Jumblat also rejected allegations that Syria is behind the delay in the government formation, accusing the United States of being behind the current stalemate in Lebanon. "They obstructed the Saudi-Syrian initiative and they are escalating their position through the March 14 forces' campaign of employing the indictment against the Resistance's arms, while in the past we sought hard to eliminate any of the indictment's possible negative repercussions," he noted. "How can the issue of the arms possession be resolved without the least amount of calm in the country? What does Hariri want? Break Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati and the economy and then what?" he asked. Jumblat stressed that Hariri's contacts with Hizbullah and Syria are completely severed, noting that this is the first time that contacts between the Lebanese are totally cut. Furthermore, he revealed that during their visit to Lebanon on February 22, U.S. Senators John McCain and Joseph Lieberman informed him that Hizbullah was behind Rafik Hariri's assassination. The MP listed to them the number of reasons that have cost the Special Tribunal for Lebanon its credibility, saying that the U.S. encourages the equation of Hizbullah's arms against the indictment. Addressing caretaker PM Hariri's latest visit to Saudi Arabia, Jumblat said: "The fact that he returned with renewed drive in his campaign against the party's weapons indicates that March 8 camp claims that the Kingdom is upset with Hariri are inaccurate." "It's not true that Saudi King Abdullah was angry with him after Hariri announced the end of the S-S initiative," he added. Jumblat said that his ties with Saudi Arabia are "severed at the moment," saying that Hariri is turning the Kingdom against him. Beirut, 09 Mar 11, 12:12

UNIFIL Worried about Security Incidents: Lebanon Requests 'Maritime Blue Line,' Israel Mulling Answer

Naharnet/Lebanon has proposed the demarcation of its maritime border with Israel during a tripartite meeting held at the UNIFIL headquarters in Ras al-Naqoura.
"Maintaining peace and stability was the goal of this tripartite meeting and I am happy that we were able to address all the issues in a constructive atmosphere," UNIFIL Commander Maj. Gen. Alberto Asarta Cuevas said Monday after chairing the meeting between the Lebanese and Israeli armies. However, As Safir daily said Tuesday that the Lebanese army representative, Maj. Gen. Abdelrahman Shehaitli, called for the demarcation of the maritime border similar to the U.N.-drawn Blue Line that separates southern Lebanon and northern Israel. Shehaitli asked Asarta to carry the Lebanese request to the U.N. to establish a "maritime Blue Line" that would help Lebanon control any violation of its territorial waters.
As Safir said that the Israeli army representative promised to reply to the Lebanese request during the next tripartite meeting. The Central News Agency quoted a security source as saying that the conferees also discussed the importance of Israel's pullout from the northern part of the border village of Ghajar in compliance with U.N. Security Council resolution 1701. "The UNIFIL representatives stressed during the meeting on the importance of demarcating the Blue Line," the source said. Meanwhile, UNIFIL spokesman Neeraj Singh confirmed on Tuesday that the Lebanese army suggested establishing a maritime Blue Line and that it requested the international forces' assistance in this matter. He added that UNIFIL is worried about the number of security incidents that have taken place at sea and which may increase the tensions between the concerned sides. Furthermore, he revealed that this issue was brought up during the Naqoura meeting, voicing UNIFIL's encouragement to all sides to address the matters of maritime security in order to limit the possibilities of such incidents taking place.
Beirut, 08 Mar 11, 08:31

Hariri Against Army-People-Resistance Equation if Turned into 'Tool' in Hizbullah's Hands

Naharnet/Caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri stressed Tuesday that "there is no alternative to the State and its institutions." "We shall struggle with all our strength for the success of the project of the State whatever the challenges and difficulties might be because there is no alternative to the State and its institutions, and we will spare no effort in this regard," Hariri said during a meeting at the Center House with Mustaqbal Movement delegations and Beiruti families. Hariri hit back at Speaker Nabih Berri over the latter's accusation that the outgoing premier had abandoned the "army-people-resistance equation." "I listened to Speaker Nabih Berri saying that we have abandoned the 'army-people-resistance equation,' and the truth is that there are some who want this equation to be above the will of the State," Hariri said. "We're with the army-people-resistance equation if it remains under the State's authority, but we will reject it when some assume that the army, the people and the State are tools in their hands," he added. Addressing "those who are attacking the political discourse of March 14," Hariri went on to say: "Isn't the campaign against the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and the insistence to disrupt the international justice regarding the murder of Martyr PM Rafik Hariri a direct call for provocation and a violation of the rules of national consensus?" He stressed that any retreat from the "national consensus" on the STL "will not annul it and will not manage to disrupt the course of justice." "Our right to defend this cause is legitimate and will not be subject to intimidation from now on," Hariri vowed. He stressed that his political camp's campaign against the so-called "supremacy of arms" is not aimed at targeting a particular community. "They want to reverse the truth and to portray the campaign as targeting the Shiite community. And I sincerely and frankly say that this is a political lie par excellence because our campaign doesn't target the Shiite community, its role or status," Hariri noted. "It targets all the Lebanese and non-Lebanese parties and organizations which are using weapons as a means for internal blackmail and pressure on the national and political life," he added, noting that "the Shiite community is the first victim of the supremacy of weapons." Beirut, 08 Mar 11, 22:26

Aoun: We're Proud of Arms as They've Preserved our Dignity, Campaign against them Attack on National Principles

Naharnet/Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun criticized on Tuesday attacks against the Resistance's weapons and the base political rhetoric in Lebanon "that is harming the national principles and the mutual respect between the sects." He said after the movement's weekly meeting: "We are proud of the arms because they have preserved our dignity."
"We challenge anyone who says that the Resistance has attacked me" and the government decisions of May 5, 2008 "will never be erased from the minds of the Lebanese," he stated.
Addressing the developments in Lebanon over the past six years, he said: "As Christians, we can deal with Sunnis and Shiites in the same way and our choice was confronting Israel and not opposing Sunnis." "After six years, we have not seen anything positive from the other camp," the MP noted. Aoun also demanded that the media refrain from broadcasting speeches "aimed at weakening the other." Regarding the government formation process, he said: "We are not in a hurry to form the government because it will be established based on new bases and we are not here to maintain the corruption.""We don't mind that Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati is taking his time … The FPM has not proposed names that Miqati would be ashamed or proud of, but we have standards in choosing our ministers," he continued. Aoun rejected claims that he is obstructing the government formation process, demanding that proof of these allegations be presented. Beirut, 08 Mar 11, 18:11

Al-Mustaqbal Urges Massive Turnout on Mar 13: We're Not Against Arms Pointed at Israel
Naharnet/The Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc on Tuesday called for a massive turnout on the "6th anniversary of the Independence Uprising," which will be commemorated on Sunday.
In a statement issued after its weekly meeting in Qoreitem under ex-PM Fouad Saniora, the bloc said that participation in the rally commemorating the March 14 anniversary is "the best democratic means to express opinion in the face of the coup and attempts at imposing hegemony and a one-sided authority." "The Mustaqbal Movement and the March 14 forces have not … called for an end to resistance against Israel, they have rather criticized the weapons that are directed against the domestic arena and the chests of the Lebanese – which are deployed in the streets and alleys of Beirut and Lebanon's towns and villages," the bloc said in its statement. "Weapons directed against the Israeli enemy and operating under the Lebanese State's authority are acceptable and required, while arms pointed at the chests of the Lebanese are totally rejected," the bloc added. Beirut, 08 Mar 11, 21:33

THE USUAL SUSPECTS

By: Khat Ahmar
on Tuesday, March 8, 2011 at
Who killed Rafic Hariri? A pending question and its (so far) elusive answer. Yet armed with common sense, basic knowledge of the security environment at the time, and the modus operandi of any would-be assassins, conclusions can be drawn. While this author lacks the official and legal prerogatives to make direct accusations, the right to express opinions is a “divine” (pun) attribute, protected by our constitution and the human rights charter. Note that I may also argue against some the presumptions of the initial STL findings’ reports. Logic rules.
The first question concerns the motive behind any such crime. With PM Hariri being the victim, numerous reasons come to mind, although latest political efforts and directions far supersede anything else in terms of criticality. His heart, mind, spirit, and… entire mp group focusing on implementing UNSCR 1559, which called for the withdrawal of all foreign forces and the disbanding of all armed militias from Lebanon. Worst of all, Hariri had gathered the national momentum and cross-confessional platform, on top of foreign support, to back up his national ambitions. That settles the motive question, but not (so tightly) the motive answer. All three potential culprits, Israel, Syria, and Hezbollah, may not want to see 1559 get into effect, and a strong Lebanon emerge.
The second question concerns the operational capacity to mount such an operation. To fully grasp the magnitude of the effort required, and the technical, human, financial, logistic, and intelligence requirements, let’s scrutinize the entire operation as it must have happened, in its various stages.
Stage 1: decision making. For reasons highlighted above, the main culprits-in-wait are not many. Whoever they are, one thing is sure, the decision came from the very top in the situations of autocratic Syria (no one would dare the president on such a critical issue) and Iran (for the necessary takleef shar3ee, or religious mission order from supreme leader Khamenei) while in the case of Israel, the top leadership would have to bear responsibility regardless of whether or not (as often happens) it was aware of the plot.
Stage2: initial reconnaissance. Once the target has been selected, a careful study of his habits and routine has to be documented, to include details about all security aspects, to pinpoint breaches in his security bubble. This entails round the clock surveillance of said target for a long duration, (many months as a minimum) to establish with a degree of certainty where his daily routine makes him the most vulnerable. As is often the case, transit almost always is. Yet one thing is sure: said reconnaissance phase requires a minimum of 30-40 hard core individuals who can be entrusted in knowing who the target is, (such operations always employ the “need to know” principle– no one knows more than he should to carry out their job) without risking a security leak. Photos are taken, motorcade and security SOPs scrutinized, transit routes and driving habits plotted, behavior noted (making phone calls, impromptu stops… any divergence from routine) and most importantly: vulnerabilities exposed. The result of this stage: recommending particular modes of attack, at specific location/time coordinates, pending final selection.
Stage 3: mission planning. Once breaches have been found, specific methods of attack have to be planned. A trusted team of professionals is assembled, in order to control the terrain of the target area, secretly set-up the operation, secure the logistics, set-up the hardware and software (technical assets, technical plans) and wait for the Go! Order. In the Hariri assassination case, we are talking about tens of operatives, many operating around the clock, (electronic, optical, and event-logging duties in various “Hariri” dwelling places and transit routes) dozens of unmarked phones, as many unmarked cars, explosives by the tons, (we can assume multiple hit points at various route options) solid computer integrated intelligence management, mission planning and simulation solutions, (to map and plot routes, simulate scenarios…) study blast effect under varying conditions and motorcade positions, and predict the post-incident scene. Amendments are made and redundancies added as the simulations show breaches to its dependability and workability, and various wild cards are introduced.
Stage 4: optional mock trials. A professional terror hit squad may decide to make a couple of dry runs. They can be done on the scene, or, in order not to draw attention, in a remote location, where an exact replica of the attack/ device and the environment (electronic, physical, etc.) is recreated.
Stage 5: the Go! stage. The top of the command chain says the mission is a go, and hands over command to the tactical team commander who has the final decision on when/ if to press the button, based on the field parameters and conditions, and last-second intel. Post-operational teams are also in place for stage 6.
Stage 6: extraction of hit team, crime scene management, media and investigation control and “guidance.” Operators are withdrawn, the scene is cleansed of proof, and ideally, wrong leads are left in place to deceive or distract, or at least dilute the investigation process, and lastly, media instigators prepare for information and psy-cognitive work, which may have started before hand.
The crime. On that dreadful day, and upon leaving the parliament area, Hariri’s motorcade was engulfed in a huge explosion near the St. Georges hotel, in Beirut’s Downtown area. The ex-PM and scores of his companions, as well as innocent bystanders, were killed by the explosion. A visual inspection of the crime scene would give a series of impressions. [1] the device was probably placed underground, as the presence of mangled motorcade cars at the tip of the crater testifies, as well as other significant details, from the pattern of scattered asphalt to blown manholes and sewer pipes at extended distances. [2] many of the victims, including the primary target, died of exposure to fire, and not to blast effect, which is due to either the thermobaric effect of the device, or to the presence of a secondary incendiary charge, (above ground?) which engulfed the blown-up armored cars. [3] the crime scene resembles in every aspect that of General Blanco’s assassination, (assumed successor of Franco, killed by the ETA, in operation Ogro, with an explosive device planted through a tunnel dug under the road, in 1973.) [4] the initiation of the explosion was not clear, but it could have been any of various methods, including mechanical, electronic, and opto-electronic means. [5] this author completely rejects the notion of the suicide bomber in a VBIED. The reason is very simple: the mindset and physiological situation of a suicide bomber may be fine for a soft target, such as a public place, but hitting a one-chance-only and heavily guarded personality of Hariri’s stand, in a fast-moving, armored motorcade of inconsistent timing and path? Not a chance. A suicide operator has unpredictable behavior, tunnel vision, auditory exclusion, no problem-solving or decision-making capacity, no fine motor skills, and I will pass on the lesser aspects… So no, not for a mission of such criticality, with no second-chance options. Besides, the mentioned SVBIED operator, (abu-adsi) didn’t know how to drive!
Now that we know in full what’s involved, let’s check the usual suspects…
Usual suspect #1: Israel. We would ALL want for Israel to be found guilty, despite its incapacity to fill any of the above requirements, even in part. (Of all the arrested Israeli “agents” none had anywhere near such an operational capacity. As a matter of fact, and despite (false) claims of otherwise, none was a “cell” and none had any operational capacity at all.) So why would I want it to be Israel? Because if Israel could mount such an operation at the apex of the Syrian-Hezbollah’s security apparatus’ efficiency, when Hezbollah and Syrian street agents monitored every street dweller, then this is the only conclusion: let’s completely dismantle the Hezbollah and Syrian (in Syria too while we’re at it) security and defense apparatuses. They have absolutely no use.
Usual suspect # 2: Syria. It is common knowledge that Syrian intel services were into every nook and cranny of the Lebanese society, and not just political life, and controlled every event that happened. To pretend otherwise would be an insult to our collective intelligence, and a blatant denial of the environment back then. Yet there is one question: while no one ever made any move (even holding a social event) without the order and consent coming from Syria itself, it is doubtful that Syrian forces on the ground had the required intel integrity to gather such a workforce without risking a leak, especially in light of the fact that the victim had a full and working network of connections within the Syrian structure in Lebanon. They also did not have (proven) technical expertise, having relied on proxies for the last few decades. Although many spontaneously stood to accuse Syria, including General Aoun who on French TV said he was “100% sure it was Syria” we are forced to recognize this fact: Syria must have provided all forms of support, and given the “final” order to...
Usual suspect # 3: Hezbollah. Hezbollah is the only entity capable of assembling an executive kill team of 50 and more (for the various tasks) without risking an intel leak. Hezbollah is the only entity with the capacity to guarantee the proper and reliable conduct of the operation. Hezbollah is the only one with the proven expertise with such high yield devices, their thermobaric effect, secured initiation processes, complex operational requirements, and well-implemented street presence. Hezbollah is the only one with the required presence in the operational environment of the crime scene to unobtrusively perform the various tasks listed above.
Syria has gone to great length into severing the link between its higher command and the executive branch of Hezbollah’s assassination team. (Literally, although I am not so sure about the Hezbo guy, you know, the one who started the Lebanese war all over again in 1983, by blowing up – he likes that, the UN peace-keeping force, forcing the country back into bloody mayhem.) Either way, the biggest miscalculation on the Syrian-Iranian side? They never thought the entire Lebanese nation would rise to the terror-assassination of what they saw as a Sunni leader. Wrong. Dead wrong.
As a conclusion, I would quote my son, who just peaked over my shoulder. Pardon his French. « Pourquoi tu te casses la tete? Tout le monde sait que c'est la Syrie et le Hezbollah. Chou c’est la chine ? »
Has anyone thought of Nassrallah’s rhetorical oxymoron? “If you accuse us of murder, we will kill you.” Well, that’s in their own words.
 

Qaddafi hits rebels with air power, tanks, tribal troops, opens way to Cyrenaica
DEBKAfile Special Report March 8, 2011, Tuesday, March 8, Col. Muammar Qaddafi reached the tipping point of his offensive against rebel forces and his troops are advancing toward Ajdabiya, their first destination in the rebel-held eastern region of Cyrenaica, debkafile's military sources report. Seriously outgunned, the anti-Qaddafi militias appeared to have folded and are no longer able to post a defense line to stop the government advance.
It took Qaddafi three weeks of savage warfare to reverse the tide against him. More and more rebel voices were heard Tuesday appealing desperately for international or Arab aid to rescue them from the oncoming Qaddafi war machine. For now, no help is seen to be on the way. President Barack Obama has not yet reached a decision about US military intervention in Libya and British Prime Minister David Cameron has backed away from his high rhetoric about a British military role in the war against Qaddafi and is now saying the British will go in only if the Americans do. Not a single Arab ruler or government is willing to dip a toe into the Libyan cauldron. In the last few hours, Egypt's military rulers have notified Washington that they have no intention of helping the Libyan opposition, even by sending arms.
Qaddafi's commanders turned the tide of battle in their favor by the following tactic: At the start of the week, they concentrated around the key town of Sirte (Sidra) two armored battalions of T-72 tanks, three battalions of special forces, beefed up by an extra 3,000 tribal fighters flown in from the Sahara, and a fleet of dozens of helicopter gunships.
Our sources report that Qaddafi paid out many millions of petrodollars to the heads of the Saharan tribal federation to hire fighting manpower form the various tribes.
This force was split in two: One column advanced south along the Sidra Gulf coast towards the refinery town of Ras Lanuf and the second struck southeast toward the big oil town of Brega and Ajdabia. Both rolled forward behind a wall of fire of BM-21 Katyusha rockets and helicopters firing missiles and heavy machine guns as T-72 tanks mowed down everything in their path. Against the only rebel position west of Tripoli in the town of Zawiya, dozens of tanks crushed building after building before pulling out and then returning.
At the same time, the reports of Libyan air force bombardments of rebels have been exaggerated. Our military sources report that the fighter jets were used to sow panic in rebel ranks.
The ferocity of the pro-Qaddafi onslaught in the east and the west caught the Libyan opposition forces without the weapons to fight it off. By Tuesday night, they had paid the price with scores of dead and hundreds of injured.