LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
December 15/2011
Bible Quotation for today/A Time for Everything
Ecclesiastes 03/01-15: " Everything that happens in this world happens at
the time God chooses. He sets the time for birth and the time for death, the
time for planting and the time for pulling up, the time for killing and the time
for healing, the time for tearing down and the time for building. He sets the
time for sorrow and the time for joy, the time for mourning and the time for
dancing, the time for making love and the time for not making love, the time for
kissing and the time for not kissing. He sets the time for finding and the time
for losing, the time for saving and the time for throwing away, the time for
tearing and the time for mending, the time for silence and the time for talk. He
sets the time for love and the time for hate, the time for war and the time for
peace. What do we gain from all our work? I know the heavy burdens that
God has laid on us. He has set the right time for everything. He has given us a
desire to know the future, but never gives us the satisfaction of fully
understanding what he does. So I realized that all we can do is be happy and do
the best we can while we are still alive. All of us should eat and drink and
enjoy what we have worked for. It is God's gift. I know that everything God does
will last forever. You can't add anything to it or take anything away from it.
And one thing God does is to make us stand in awe of him. Whatever happens or
can happen has already happened before. God makes the same thing happen again
and again.
Latest analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases from
miscellaneous sources
Sectarian tensions heat up in Saida/By: Mona
Alami/November 14/11
Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for
November 14/11
Iran
propositions Saudis, seeks anti-US pact, offers nuclear cooperation
Gemayel, Moussawi Trade Barbs over Hizbullah’s Telecom
Network in Tarshish
“Verbal brawl” erupts between Hezbollah, Kataeb MPs
UNIFIL Has ‘No Info’ about Shake-up Amid Report French
Official will Visit Lebanon
Miqati Meets Asarta: UNIFIL Attack Aimed at Harming
Lebanese-French Ties
STL: Prosecution Has until Dec. 16 to Submit Report on
Lebanon’s Efforts to Arrest Accused
Lebanese Forces bloc MP Antoine Zahra: Hezbollah must
‘shoulder responsibility’ and prevent chaos
Amal, Hizbullah Slam Attacks on UNIFIL, Express Commitment
to Mission
Hariri commends Rai’s statement on weapons
Development and Liberation bloc MP Michel Moussa:
Kidnapped CEO released by army
2 Shepherds Wounded by Syrian Fire in Arsal
Syndicate Coordination Committee to Go On with Strike as
Miqati Fails to Avert its Decision
Reports: Iran Talks with Saudi about U.S. Plot Claim
Quartet holds separate talks with Israelis, Palestinians
Panetta: U.S. Winning Conflict in Afghanistan
Kuwaiti Emir Swears in New Cabinet
Pakistan President to be Discharged from Dubai Hospital
Thursday
Gemayel, Moussawi Trade Barbs over Hizbullah’s Telecom Network in Tarshish
Naharnet/Phalange lawmaker Sami Gemayel and Hizbullah MP Nawwaf Moussawi clashed
in parliament on Wednesday when the issue of the Shiite group’s attempt to
expand its telecommunications network was discussed.
During a Question and Answer session, the second since the formation of the
cabinet, Gemayel criticized Hizbullah over its “illegal excavation and
installation works in the town of Tarshish.”But Moussawi snapped back saying the
cabinet had given the resistance legitimacy through its ministerial statement.
“We reached the stage of seeking protection against the resistance,” Gemayel
said.
They later traded accusations of being agents. But Speaker Nabih Berri
interfered, telling Moussawi that he “shouldn’t defend the resistance that way.”
He later called for deleting the verbal attacks from the minutes of the session.
In remarks to An Nahar newspaper, Gemayel, a Metn MP, said: “They (Hizbullah)
have admitted to infiltrating our cities, towns and neighborhoods.” “Who are
they and who gave them the right to monitor, accuse, investigate and request to
hand over (people) whom they call agents?” the lawmaker asked. “Where is the
role of the state,” he wondered.
Moussawi said Monday that CIA officers were meeting Lebanese agents in
restaurants and nightclubs in the Metn towns of Dbayeh and Jounieh.
Gemayel’s comments came after An Nahar asked him what he expected from the Q&A
session aimed at inquiring the government about several issues.
Among the questions filed by the MPs, was Gemayel’s inquiry about Hizbullah’s
work in Tarshish.
In October, Tarshish residents thwarted attempts to construct the network after
forcing the telecommunications ministry to interfere and put an end to the
violation.
Other questions in the Q&A session include illegal construction on private and
public property in Beirut’s southern suburbs and southern Lebanon, the legality
of awarding contracts to service providers in the electricity sector and
pollution caused by the Deir Ammar power plant.
But An Nahar said that March 14 opposition MPs are expected to stir the issue of
Berri’s alleged disrespect for the parliament bureau committee’s demands on
putting certain issues on the agenda of discussions and the timing of the Q&A
sessions.
The security situation in southern Lebanon is also expected to be discussed by
the lawmakers when the issue of Hizbullah’s telecom network in Tarshish is
raised, An Nahar added.
2 Shepherds Wounded
by Syrian Fire in Arsal
Naharnet /Two Lebanese shepherds were injured on Wednesday in a Syrian
cross-border fire in the eastern town of Arsal, Voice of Lebanon radio station
(93.3) reported.
It said Mohammed and Khaled Fliti were attending their herds in the area of
Kherbet Daoud when they received gunshot wounds from across the border.
They were taken to Chtaura hospital for treatment, VDL added. The report came
after MTV said that the Syrian troops infiltrated Lebanese territories and
opened fire on the two men.Last month, President Michel Suleiman said that Syria
has apologized to Lebanon over repeated border violations and has vowed to
respect its neighbor’s independence and sovereignty. But in early December,
Syrian troops wounded three people when they opened fire in the northern
Lebanese area of Wadi Khaled.
Miqati Meets Asarta: UNIFIL Attack Aimed at Harming Lebanese-French Ties
Naharnet /Prime Minister Najib Miqati stressed on Wednesday that Lebanon abides
by international law and is committed to its cooperation with the United Nations
Interim Force in Lebanon in order to bolster security and stability.
He said after holding talks with UNIFIL Commander Major General Alberto Asarta:
“The recent attack against the French unit in UNIFIL is aimed at harming
Lebanese-French ties.”France has always stood by Lebanon throughout the
hardships it has endured, he added. “The attack will not deter us from
committing to the international force’s role in supporting Lebanon and its army
in bolstering security,” continued Miqati. He renewed his condemnation of
Friday’s attack against French UNIFIL troops, which took place in the southern
city of Tyre. Seven people were wounded in the assault, including five soldiers.
The unit was attacked through a roadside bomb that was reportedly placed in a
garbage bin. France has accused Syria of being behind the attack, adding that it
employed its ally Hizbullah to carry it out.
Both sides have denied the allegations. Miqati reiterated his call on the
international community and the United Nations to provide logistic support for
the Lebanese army and pressure Israel to halt its ongoing and daily violations
of Lebanon’s sovereignty. For his part, Asarta said that the meeting focused on
the situation in the South and ways to solve the problems in the area.
Iran propositions Saudis, seeks anti-US pact, offers nuclear cooperation
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report/ December 14, 2011/ A large Iranian delegation led by
Intelligence Minister Heidar Moslehi visited Riyadh Monday, Dec. 12 and put a
proposition before Crown Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz: Why not bury the Saudi
royal house's historic feud with the ayatollahs of Tehran and form an anti-US
and anti-Zionist pact for leading the Middle East? The Iranians boasted that
after the seizure of America's top secret drone technology by a successful cyber
attack they must now be accepted as the superpower of the region.
Prince Nayef agreed to receive the delegation following a request from the
office of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Moslehi is one of his
closest advisers and a leading antagonist of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who
was not told about the visit.
debkafile's Iranian sources report that the Iranians pushed hard for a
partnership with the Saudis on such issues as oil, Iraqi, Syria, Afghanistan,
Lebanon and Yemen, on most of which Tehran and Riyadh are in direct collision.
Saudi Arabia spearheads the Persian Gulf emirates' campaign to establish a bloc
of Sunni Arab kings and rulers to fight off Iranian expansion and the influence
of the Shiite Hizballah and Syria.
The visitors to Riyadh pointed out that a Saudi-Iranian axis in the region would
be strong enough to freeze out American and Turkish meddling in the Arab Revolt.
It would draw its strength from the combination of Iranian military,
intelligence and nuclear capabilities on the one hand and Saudi power and wealth
on the other. For the sake of this pact, Moslehi said, Tehran was willing to
share its nuclear program with Riyadh.
The Moslehi delegation represented high-ranking Iranian military and
intelligence chiefs, while Prince Nayef was attended by the heads of Saudi
intelligence services, including Director of General Intelligence Prince Muqrin
bin Abdul Aziz.
The two figures conspicuously absent were the top men orchestrating the Arab
Revolt and Iraq from opposite sides of the table: Saudi National Security
Adviser Prince Bandar bin Sultan and commander of the Iranian Al Qods Brigades,
Gen. Qassem Soleimani.
Bandar heads the apparatus funneling weapons, money and fighters to the Syrian
opposition fighting President Bashar Assad, Tehran's senior ally, while
Soleimani leads the counter-campaign for keeping the Assad regime extant.
Nevertheless, the Iranian visitor is reported by debkafile’s sources as
explaining to his Saudi hosts that an understanding between them had been
reached before and could be reached again. He referred to the May 2008 agreement
on Lebanon known as the "Doha Accord," under which Iran, the Persian Gulf states
and Syria agreed that the Lebanese crisis would end without winners and losers
but with a power-sharing arrangement granting representation to all the
country's adversarial forces, including Hizballah.
Tehran saw no reason why the same principle could not be applied to the Syrian
crisis. The bloodshed and the horrors of civil war could be saved by bringing
the opposition factions into the Damascus government.
In return for these understandings, Moslehi proposed an Iranian-Saudi deal for
the future of Iraq following the American withdrawal. Iran, he said, was willing
to guarantee the rights of Iraq's Sunni community and their participation in
Nouri al-Maliki’s government in Baghdad.
Turning to the nuclear issue, debkafile’s military sources report the Iranian
intelligence minister maintained that Tehran and Riyadh needn’t be rivals or
develop separate nuclear programs, as proposed last week by Saudi Arabia's
former intelligence chief, Prince Turki al-Faisal. Turki said that if Iran
continued with its weapons of mass destruction program, the Persian Gulf states
(including Saudi Arabia) would have no choice but to develop their own. Tehran,
said Moslehi, was ready to open up its nuclear program, like its space program,
to Saudi participation. Our sources report that Crown Prince Nayef promised to
bring the Iranian proposals before the king and senior princes and have an
answer ready soon. But Riyadh was ready sooner than expected with a response.
Before even addressing their overture, Nayef acted to take the Iranians down a
peg or two from their self-appointed military and intelligence superpower
status.
In a broadcast Tuesday, the day after the Iranian visit, the Saudi television
network Al Arabiya attributed the explosion at the Moadarress Iranian missile
base in the Malard region west of Tehran on Saturday, December 10, to an
assassination plot against Ayatollah Khamenei (which was first reported by DEBKA-Net-Weekly
519 on Dec. 2).
Khamenei’s son Mojtaba and senior Revolutionary Guard officers were described in
the broadcast as having been detained and questioned in connection with the
plot.
This TV item informed Tehran exactly how high the Saudis rate Iran's regional
standing and the stability of its government.
“Verbal brawl” erupts between Hezbollah, Kataeb MPs
December 14, 2011 /A verbal fight erupted during Wednesday’s parliament session
in Beirut between a Hezbollah MP and a deputy from the Western-backed March 14
Kataeb party. The clash began when Kataeb MP Sami Gemayel objected to
Hezbollah’s expansion of its telecommunications network on Lebanese soil, OTV
reported.
The television channel said that Hezbollah MP Nawwaf Moussawi interrupted
Gemayel’s speech, saying that “the Resistance is legitimized by the Lebanese
[government].”
Gemayel then responded to Moussawi, telling him, “Let the Resistance protect me
[in this case].”According to the report, the Hezbollah MP lashed out at Gemayel
and said that “the Resistance does not protect agents [of foreign
governments].”“Who are you calling agents? The history [of the Kataeb] should be
an honor [to you]… You are disrespectful,” Gemayel said.Moussawi reportedly
fired back at the Kataeb MP, telling him, “You are the [impolite] one… And my
shoes are more respectful than you.”
OTV said that Speaker Nabih Berri intervened to end the dispute and “gave
Moussawi a warning.”In October, media outlets reported that Hezbollah was
attempting to expand its telecom network in the Baabda town of Tarchich, adding
that the group threatened local residents after the municipality prevented party
members from carrying out the project. -NOW Lebanon
STL: Prosecution Has until Dec. 16 to Submit Report on
Lebanon’s Efforts to Arrest Accused
Naharnet /The Special Tribunal for Lebanon announced through Twitter on
Wednesday that the Prosecution has until December 16 to present a progress
report on Lebanon’s efforts to arrest the four accused in being involved in the
2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. It reiterated the
Prosecution’s call on Lebanon, during the November 11 hearing, for it to
“intensify efforts to arrest the accused.” “It presented Lebanon with ten
Requests for Assistance,” it revealed without giving further details.For its
part, “Lebanon has submitted 425 pages of material in Arabic and a large number
of emails on a CD to the Prosecution,” said the STL.“This is part of the Trial
Chamber's deliberation on whether or not to begin in absentia proceedings,” it
explained.Four Hizbullah members, Salim Ayyash, Mustafa Badreddine, Hussein
Oneissi, and Assad Sabra are wanted for the February 2005 suicide car bomb
attack in Beirut that killed Hariri and 22 others, including the suicide bomber.
Ayyash has been named in the indictment as coordinator of the assassination
team. The court on August 17 unsealed the indictment against the four suspects
and has said Lebanon must try harder to apprehend them.Hizbullah chief Sayyed
Hassan Nasrallah has said he doubted the four indictees will ever be found and
has branded the tribunal a U.S.-Israeli conspiracy aimed at bringing down the
party.
Lebanese Forces bloc MP Antoine Zahra: Hezbollah must
‘shoulder responsibility’ and prevent chaos
December 14, 2011 /Lebanese Forces bloc MP Antoine Zahra said on Wednesday that
Hezbollah must “shoulder responsibility” and prevent chaos from spilling into
Lebanon.
“No one must make Lebanon’s stability dependent upon the fate of regimes in the
Middle East,” Zahra said in a reference to Hezbollah’s alliance with Syrian
President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, which has faced ten months of anti-regime
demonstrations. The MP also told the Voice of Lebanon (93.3) radio station that
Hezbollah “cannot pretend to uncover [US] Central Intelligence Agency operatives
in Lebanon and not know who is behind the [recent] launching of rockets from the
South toward Israel.”
Some media reports said last month that Hezbollah had uncovered several
operatives within the movement working for the CIA. Meanwhile, a rocket launched
on Sunday night in the South landed in the Lebanese border town of Hula.This
attack followed the launch of rockets in late November that landed in Israel.
Amal, Hizbullah Slam Attacks on UNIFIL, Express Commitment
to Mission
Naharnet /The Amal movement and Hizbullah leaderships have slammed what they
called the “evil hands” that have targeted U.N. peacekeepers in the South and
launched a rocket from Lebanese territories.Following a meeting held by their
leaderships at the movement’s offices in the city of Tyre, Amal and Hizbullah
stressed commitment to the role of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon
that supports the Lebanese army in accordance with Security Council resolution
1701.
The statement came days after five French peacekeepers were injured in a
roadside bombing that targeted their vehicle near Tyre. It also came after a
rocket apparently fired towards Israel landed in Lebanese territory, injuring a
woman.
The statement asked security and judicial agencies to speed up their
investigation into the incidents and find the suspects.
Hizbullah on Monday denied French accusations that it was behind the attack on
the French troops and urged Paris to reconsider laying the blame on the group
and its Syrian backers.Wednesday’s statement said the current circumstances are
a sign that “internal unity is an urgent need,” stressing patriotism is about
exerting efforts to remove barriers among the Lebanese and not the other way
around
Syndicate Coordination Committee to Go On with Strike as
Miqati Fails to Avert its Decision
Naharnet/The Syndicate Coordination Committee is going on with its strike set on
Thursday as discussions with Prime Minister Najib Miqati and his envoy failed to
avert its decision.Head of the private schools teachers association Nehme
Mahfoud told Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3) on Wednesday that the Syndicate
regrets “the time spent discussing the cabinet’s approval of the wage hike with
Miqati and his envoy.”
He called on the Lebanese citizens to participate en mass in Thursday’s strike
that will include all schools.
Last week, the cabinet approved a wage hike other than the decree proposed by
Labor Minister Charbel Nahhas, where minimum wage increased by LL100,000 to
LL600,000, salaries under LL1 million by 30% up to a LL200,000 increase, and
salaries above LL1 million by a 20% increase up to LL275,000.
“No cabinet that respects itself accepts that the Shura Council turns down twice
a decree on the wage hike,” Mahfoud stressed.
Miqati’s economic advisor, Samir Daher, informed the Syndicate on Tuesday that
the wage increase decree was referred to the Shura Council without amendments.
The Shura Council turned down the cabinet’s proposal in October to raise the
minimum wage to LL700,000 and give workers earning less than LL1 million a
LL200,000 raise while increasing the wages of employees earning between LL1
million and LL1.8 million a LL300,000 raise.
Head of the Association of Public Secondary School Education Teachers Hanna
Gharib told VDL (93.3) that “Thursday’s protest will kick off at 11:00 am near
UNESCO and will head towards the Grand Serail.”He noted that the Syndicate will
not back down on its decision because the stance taken by Miqati’s economic
advisor has “backed down on all the what (the two parties) had agreed
on.”Meanwhile, the General Labor Confederation has decided to stage a strike
across Lebanon on December 27 to protest the cabinet wage boost as the Syndicate
and the GLC failed to unite their stances over the matter.
UNIFIL Has ‘No Info’ about Shake-up Amid Report French Official will Visit
Lebanon
Naharnet/The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon has no information about
any decision by the countries that have contingents serving with the
peacekeeping mission to downsize their troops, a UNIFIL spokesman, Andrea
Tenenti, said. “There is no information about any changes,” Tenenti told
pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat published on Wednesday. His comments came amid
media reports that France was mulling to downsize its troops after the latest
attack on a French UNIFIL patrol near the southern city of Tyre that left five
peacekeepers injured. An Nahar newspaper quoted diplomats as saying that several
countries are mulling to limit their contribution to the mission. It said French
Ambassador Denis Pietton confirmed the process by saying on Tuesday that a
strategic review of the peacekeeping force’s operations is taking place in New
York.
“We will then see what the results of the review will be,” he said. An Nahar
said that a French official will visit Lebanon soon. It did not give details on
whether the official will inform Lebanese leaders about the French decision. But
Tenenti stressed to Asharq al-Awsat that the review taking place at the U.N.
headquarters is not linked to the recent security incidents in the South. “All
the countries contributing troops to UNIFIL expressed, after the latest
incident, their commitment to the implementation of Security Council resolution
1701,” he said. The review’s main goal is to transfer greater responsibility
from peacekeepers to the Lebanese army.
Kuwaiti Emir Swears in New Cabinet
Naharnet /Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah on Wednesday swore in the
new cabinet with only minor changes to the government that resigned in November
over allegations of corruption.
Sheikh Sabah urged Kuwaiti voters to abandon factional, sectarian and tribal
allegiances while choosing representatives in an upcoming general election which
he said would usher in a new era for the oil-rich Gulf state. Former Prime
Minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammed al-Ahmed al-Sabah resigned on November 28 over
allegations of corruption and after mass rallies demanding his ouster organized
by the opposition. One week later, the emir dissolved parliament for the fourth
time in under six years.
The new cabinet, which includes only minor changes, is headed by former defense
minister Sheikh Jaber Mubarak al-Sabah, and is comprised of just 10 ministers,
all of whom held posts in the previous cabinet. Interior minister Sheikh Ahmed
al-Humoud al-Sabah, a senior member of the ruling family, has been entrusted
with the defense portfolio, while the foreign affairs, oil, finance, electricity
and water ministries remain unchanged.
The newly appointed cabinet is the eighth to be formed in Kuwait since February
2006. All previous cabinets were forced to resign over political disputes.
A decree for the upcoming election -- which must be held within 60 days of the
dissolution of the 50-seat parliament -- was expected to be issued later
Wednesday.
The new compact cabinet will serve for several weeks as stipulated by Kuwaiti
law, which calls on the government to resign after declaring election results.
Kuwait has been rocked by a series of almost non-stop political disputes since
Sheikh Nasser, a nephew of the emir, was appointed premier in February 2006.
Kuwait is OPEC's third largest producer, pumping about 3.0 million barrels of
oil per day. It has a native population of 1.2 million and 2.4 million foreign
residents.
Despite accumulating massive assets exceeding $300 billion from high oil prices,
development projects have been stalled because of the political turmoil.
Source Agence France Presse
Reports: Iran Talks with Saudi about U.S. Plot Claim
Naharnet /Iran held talks with Saudi Arabia to try to convince Riyadh it had
nothing to do with unfounded U.S. claims of a plot to kill the Saudi envoy to
Washington, Tehran said according to media on Wednesday. Iran's intelligence
minister, Heydar Moslehi, travelled to Saudi Arabia on Monday to clear up
"misunderstandings" created by the U.S. allegations, foreign ministry spokesman
Ramin Mehmanparast said in a report by ISNA news agency. "One of the issues
which is of great importance is regional security issues -- plots and schemes
aimed at endangering relations and cooperation between regional states,"
Mehmanparast was quoted as saying. "America has thrown some allegations at Iran
which must be exposed as baseless and unfounded through clear and direct
negotiations and to remove suspicions," he said.
The U.S. claims -- that Iranian officials were involved in using an
Iranian-American car salesman to hire a Mexican drug gang to blow up the Saudi
ambassador -- "targeted the security and interests of both Iran and Saudi
Arabia," he said. "These scenarios seek to ensure the interests of the Zionist
regime (Israel)," Mehmanparast said.
The United States made its allegations in early October and claimed it traced
the supposed plot back to the Quds Force, a special operations unit of Iran's
Revolutionary Guards. Iran has repeatedly denied any involvement in the plot,
which have strained already frayed relations with Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi Press Agency reported that Moslehi met Crown Prince Nayef bin Abdul
Aziz, who is Saudi Arabia's interior minister, and the head of the Saudi
intelligence service, Mogran bin Abdel Aziz. SPA said "questions of common
interest" were discussed, without disclosing details.
Moslehi's trip to Riyadh was the first by a top Iranian official since
Iran-Saudi ties took a dive following Saudi military intervention in Bahrain in
March to back the Sunni regime against Shiite-led democracy protesters.
Relations have further deteriorated with Riyadh accusing Tehran of interfering
in neighboring Arab states and warning that Iran's nuclear program could pose a
threat to regional security.
Source Agence France Presse
Sectarian tensions heat up in Saida
Mona Alami, December 14, 2011
Lebanese soldiers guard one of the entrances into Lebanon's largest Palestinian
refugee camp of Ain al-Helweh, near the southern coastal city of Sidon.
Dark clouds appear to be gathering over the southern capital of Saida. The city
has been the scene of several security incidents, dovetailed by rising sectarian
tensions in two of its populous suburbs, Haret Saida - a predominantly Shia
neighborhood - and the Sunni suburb of Abra.
Sheikh Ahmad al-Assir, a conservative Sunni Muslim, stirred controversy this
month after condemning remarks made by Shia Cleric Mohammad Yazbek, a member of
Hezbollah, about the Prophet Mohammad’s wife, Aisha, during Ashura.
“The main problem was the strong tone I used in my sermon in reaction to the
words of Sheikh Yazbek, who insulted Aisha by [drawing parallels between the
current political situation of Hezbollah versus the West, and Ali, the prophet’s
son-in-law and nephew, versus Aisha]. He insinuated that she [and her
supporters] [somehow back] the ‘American-Zionist agenda.’”
Sitting in his living room, Sheikh Assir, a charismatic man in his forties,
points out that he only wants an apology; something he reiterated in last
Friday’s sermon.
“My message to the Shia sect, which we respect, is that if my style and my
agitated response to the insult of Aisha... annoyed you, then listen to me
carefully: I apologize to all of you without exception,” he said. “But the
sayings of a senior religious authority like Sheikh Mohammad Yazbek have deeply
wounded us.”
On the other end of Haret Saida, local residents criticized Sheikh Assir’s
speech. “If it was not for Hezbollah and Amal’s strict orders to ignore Sheikh
Assir’s provocations, we would have given him a lesson to remember,” says pastry
shop owner Abbas Youssef Serji.
His neighbor, Hussein, who chose not to disclose his full name, emphasized that
Sheikh Assir did not speak for Saida’s larger Sunni community. “Sheikh Assir has
only a few followers from the Salafist community. Political factions are using
him to create tensions in the city,” he points out.
The Salafist movement, which surfaced in Saida in 1987 during the civil war,
currently includes several clerics, such as Sheikh Ahmad Amoura and members of
the charity organization Istijaba as well as Sheikh Mohammad Sari Kadoura, who
has close ties to Palestinian figures. During the interview, Sheikh Assir denied
he was a Salafist, while sources from the community confirmed it.
The cleric underscored, nonetheless, that sectarian tensions are not new to the
southern capital. “The Sunni community has been repeatedly disrespected, during
the May 7 events [in 2008, which resulted in armed fights between the Hezbollah
and Amal factions on the one hand, and members of the Sunni Future Movement on
the other] and in light of multiple accusations of treason voiced against some
of its members. The support some factions have shown for the oppressive Syrian
regime has only made things worse,” he added.
Others in Abra seem to side with Sheikh Assir. “It is time that someone had the
courage to stand up and break through the shroud of silence that has covered the
city since May 7. Sheikh Assir did not do anything wrong, he is a peaceful man
who does a lot of good for his community,” said Ahmad, a restaurant owner in
Abra, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Unfortunately, the city seems to be treading dangerous waters of late, as
continued attempts are made to draw the city into sectarian warfare. In June of
2010, hundreds of fliers were distributed around the southern city, ordering
Christians to evacuate their homes in east Saida for “the well-being of the
[Christian] families, sons and daughters.”
Against the backdrop of the sectarian controversy, the city has also been the
target of vandalism. Cars were set ablaze, for which one Palestinian and one
Lebanese were arrested. Newspapers reported that the men were acting
independently.
“Reports may have pointed to individual incidents; however, the rise in security
[incidents] and political discourse is no coincidence. Political factions are,
for a fact, behind the vandalism in Saida as a means to increase sectarian
tensions,” said a Palestinian military source on condition of anonymity.
Politicians and security officials have tried, nonetheless, to contain the
damage. Saida MP Bahia Hariri, former Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, Imam of Al-Quds
Mosque Sheikh Maher Hammoud, a committee from Dar al-Fatwa in Saida, as well as
General Security Director General Abbas Ibrahim and Brigadier General Ali
Shahrour, the director of the Lebanese Army Intelligence in the South, have
intervened to solve the problem. Siniora also held talks yesterday with Shia
Higher Council Deputy Sheikh Abdel Amir Kabalan.
But the city’s future remains unclear. According to some analysts, sectarian
tensions benefit the Salafist movement, which is gaining popular support in
Saida as the influence of Sunni groups, such as the Future Movement and the
Muslim Brotherhood, wanes.
Quartet holds separate talks with Israelis, Palestinians
December 14, 2011 /Representatives of the international peacemaking Quartet were
holding separate talks with Israeli and Palestinian officials on Wednesday,
diplomats said, with no breakthrough in sight. The envoys, representing the
United Nations, Russia, the United States and the European Union, met the
Palestinian team headed by Mohammed Shtayeh on Wednesday morning at the UN
headquarters in East Jerusalem, they said. They were expected to hold talks with
the Israelis at the same place in the early afternoon. Quartet envoys last met
with Israeli and Palestinian negotiators exactly a month ago, but made no
progress, saying only they had "continued to encourage the parties to resume
direct bilateral negotiations without delay or preconditions." Direct
Israeli-Palestinian talks have been on hold for over a year, grinding to a halt
over the thorny issue of settlement construction shortly after they restarted in
September 2010.Last week, the US State Department said it was sending its Middle
East peace envoy David Hale to Jerusalem as part of its "efforts to get the two
parties to put forward concrete proposals and to agree to come back to the table
together."
The Quartet laid out a proposal in September aimed at reaching a peace agreement
in a year. But there has been no visible sign of progress, with the Palestinians
demanding that Israel halt settlement construction before the talks can be
resumed. On Monday, Israel approved construction of 40 homes in a new settler
enclave near the West Bank town of Bethlehem, effectively expanding a large
settlement bloc there.-AFP/NOW Lebanon
Development and Liberation bloc MP Michel Moussa: Kidnapped CEO released
by army
December 14, 2011 /Development and Liberation bloc MP Michel Moussa said that no
one is covering up for the kidnappers of Liban Lait CEO Ahmad Zeidan, adding
that the latter was freed by the Lebanese army. Moussa told the Free Lebanon
radio station that some of the perpetrators were arrested, adding that
investigations are ongoing to transfer those involved in the abduction to the
relevant judiciary. Zeidan was kidnapped on December 7 in the Bekaa Valley by
five armed and masked men. He was released on Sunday. According to LBC, Speaker
Nabih Berri played “a major role” in the process that led to Zaidan’s release by
“exerting political pressure on certain groups.”
-NOW Lebanon
Hariri commends Rai’s statement on weapons
December 13, 2011 /Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri said Tuesday that Maronite
Patriarch Bechara Boutros al-Rai “took an important stand [by] putting the
essential question of weapons on the table.”“This is Bkirki’s historic
position,” Hariri wrote on the social networking site Twitter, in reference to
the seat of the Maronite Patriarchate. Rai on Sunday called on Lebanese
officials “to make serious efforts” to put weapons in Lebanon under the control
of the “legitimate Lebanese forces.” Hariri commented on recent security
developments in southern Lebanon, writing on Twitter that “the government seems
to be in a coma. [It is either] ignoring what happened, or even hiding the
truth.”A bomb struck a French UN peacekeeping patrol in South Lebanon on Friday,
wounding five soldiers, after which French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said
that Syria was probably behind the bombing. A rocket launched on Sunday night in
the South landed in the Lebanese border town of Hula. This attack followed the
launch of rockets in late November that landed in Israel. Regarding Syrian
President Bashar al-Assad’s recent denial of responsibility for violence in
Syria, Hariri wrote: “[This is the] joke of the century.”
During an interview with ABC network, Assad denied ordering the killing of
thousands of protesters and said "only a crazy person" would target his own
people. Hariri also said that he is not worried by the rise of political Islam
in the Arab world.“No I am not worried, I think with these new democracies if
they don't meet what people need, they will fall,” he wrote on Twitter.
-NOW Lebanon