LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِJUNE
18/2011
Bible Quotation for today
Peter's Second Letter
2/1-10: "But false prophets also arose among the people, as false teachers will
also be among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, denying even
the Master who bought them, bringing on themselves swift destruction. 2:2 Many
will follow their immoral ways, and as a result, the way of the truth will be
maligned. 2:3 In covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words: whose
sentence now from of old doesn’t linger, and their destruction will not slumber.
2:4 For if God didn’t spare angels when they sinned, but cast them down to
Tartarus, and committed them to pits of darkness, to be reserved for judgment;
2:5 and didn’t spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah with seven others, a
preacher of righteousness, when he brought a flood on the world of the ungodly;
2:6 and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to
destruction, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly; 2:7
and delivered righteous Lot, who was very distressed by the lustful life of the
wicked 2:8 (for that righteous man dwelling among them, was tormented in his
righteous soul from day to day with seeing and hearing lawless deeds): 2:9 the
Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation and to keep the
unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment; 2:10 but chiefly those who
walk after the flesh in the lust of defilement, and despise authority. Daring,
self-willed, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries;"
Latest
analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases
from
miscellaneous
sources
Analysis: Syria's Assad loses his grip to hardliners/Reuters/June 17/11
Government Cabinet
of the “Slave of his Masters/By Hassan Haidar.June 17/11”
U.S. Readies More
Sanctions Against Syria and Looks to Turkey for Direct Influence/By: Joyce Karam/17
June/11
Latest News Reports From
Miscellaneous Sources for June 17/11
STL: Release of Indictment Has
Nothing to do with Developments in Lebanon/Naharnet
U.S.: We Will Kill Zawahiri Just
Like Bin Laden/Naharnet
U.S. Says Stepping Up Contacts
with 'Syrians Seeking Change'/Naharnet
Gas explosion
rocks building in Netanya; 4 dead, 50 hurt / J. Post
Turkey to create military 'buffer zone' within Syria for
refugees/Telegraph
Al-Rahi to Rome Sunday: Talks to
Focus on Cabinet Formation, Developments in Syria/Naharnet
Two Dutch diplomats abducted briefly, taken to Syria and released/Daily
Star
What The Arab Spring Means For Israel And Palestine/NPR
After all this bloodshed, there is no going back for Syria/The Guardian
Latest developments in Arab
world's unrest/AP
Mikati says government to serve all/Daily Star
Palestinians no
longer welcome, says Lebanese Mufti/Jerusalem Post
Wahhab: Cabinet that Commits to International Resolutions Will Fail./Daily Star
Omar Karami’s Brother: Our Family
is Not Honored by Being Represented by Faisal/Naharnet
Miqati Swears He Didn’t Receive Any
Call Pressing Him to Announce Cabinet/Naharnet
Dutch Embassy Confirms Two
Diplomats Briefly Kidnapped in Lebanon/Naharnet
STL: Release of Indictment Has
Nothing to do with Developments in Lebanon
Naharnet /Special Tribunal for Lebanon spokesman Marten Youssef stated that
Pre-Trial Judge Daniel Fransen is still studying Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare’s
indictment, stressing that the release of the indictment has nothing to do with
the developments in Lebanon and the region. He told Sada al-Balad in remarks to
be published on Friday that the beginning of the trial proceedings are connected
to the release of the indictment and the amendments that were introduced to it.
In addition, he said that the defense should be given enough time to study the
evidence and indictment before the beginning of the trial.
.U.S. Says Stepping Up Contacts with 'Syrians Seeking
Change
Naharnet /The United States is stepping up contacts inside and outside Syria
with Syrians who are seeking political change, a State Department spokeswoman
said Thursday.
The move appeared to mark a toughening in the administration's stance toward
Damascus as it escalates an internal crackdown on dissent with military sweeps
on towns near the Turkish border. Recalling that U.S. President Barack Obama had
called on his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad to lead change or "get out of
the way," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Assad appeared to
have "made this choice in the negative."Denouncing Assad's crackdown as
"revolting," she said the United States was working at the United Nations and
with allies like Turkey to increase the pressure and isolate the Syrian regime.
"We are also beginning now to increase our own contacts with those brave Syrians
who stand for change and their universal rights, those inside Syria and those
outside Syria," she said. She provided few details, but said the U.S. embassy in
Damascus had contact with "a broad cross section of Syrians. We've also had
contacts with those who are resident outside of Syria." Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton also has become "very focused" on Syria diplomacy, she said,
adding there was growing concern in the region about Damascus' behavior and its
impact on the region. "Rather than playing a positive role, under Assad, Syria
has increasingly become a source of instability in the region," Nuland said.
"The barbaric attacks and the violence have got to stop," Nuland said.Source
Agence France Presse
Wahhab: Cabinet that Commits to International Resolutions
Will Fail
Naharnet /Tawheed Movement leader Wiam Wahhab voiced on Thursday his opposition
to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, stressing that a Lebanese government that
abides by international resolutions will fail. He said during a lecture in
Damascus: “Any government that commits to rejecting the violation of Lebanon’s
sovereignty and dignity will succeed.”
“Some sides are calling for Lebanon to respect these resolutions, but I think it
should first respect commitments to its people before addressing the agreements,
especially the STL, which is aimed at destroying Lebanon,” he added.
Omar Karami’s Brother: Our Family is Not Honored by Being
Represented by Faisal
Naharnet /Maan Karami, the brother of former Prime Minister Omar Karami, stated
on Thursday that the family does not accept “charity” from any side in Lebanon.
He asked his nephew, Youth and Sports Minister Faisal, if he is content that
“AMAL presented a major sacrifice of letting go of a ministerial position.”
Addressing former Premier Karami: “You refused having General Sami Minkara
assume the position of Tourism Minister in 1993 as your representative, so how
can you accept that your son take over the position of Youth and Sports
Minister?” “Is the title of minister just cause to sacrifice the history of his
family, which he bluntly said that he does not represent?” he asked during a
press conference from Tripoli. “We thank him for his statement because the
family is not honored with him,” Karami continued. “He earned the position out
of AMAL’s charity and one of its leaders said that it made a major sacrifice by
abandoning a Shiite position for the Karami family. Does that make him happy?”
he wondered. “Omara has meanwhile carried the family legacy through difficult
times … and he left power with his held up high and his conscience clear because
for him, governing is a means, not an end,” he stressed. “We reject the charity
and we apologize for not being able to accept the sacrifice that they constantly
remind us of,” Maan Karami stated. He declared: “Whoever accepted the sacrifice
must endure its consequences before God and history, which will remember his
grandfather Mufti Abdul Hamid and his slain uncle Rashid. He (Faisal) does not
represent his position, family, or country.” Turning to the residents of
Tripoli, Karami warned: “Beware of strife and those igniting it. We will not be
used to fuel it. Strife is lurking among us and we will refuse charity and
others’ sacrifices and whoever accepts them will be judged by history.”Faisal
Karami was chosen as the seventh Sunni minister in cabinet after Speaker Nabih
Berri’s AMAL party agreed to sacrifice one of the party’s governmental shares
for him.This is the first time that the government includes seven Sunni
ministers and five Shiite ones. In the past, the governmental positions were
divided equally between Lebanon’s three main sects, the Sunnis, Shiites, and
Maronites, with each being given six ministers.
Miqati Swears He Didn’t Receive Any Call Pressing Him to Announce Cabinet
Naharnet /Prime Minister Najib Miqati on Thursday stressed that he was not
pressured into announcing the line-up of his long-awaited cabinet, which saw
light on Monday after around five months of arduous negotiations. “I swear to
God I did not receive any phone call concerning cabinet formation on Sunday and
only six people knew about the cabinet line-up, so I went to the presidential
palace and said I won’t leave without announcing a cabinet line-up and I hope
the Lebanese will support the new government,” Miqati said during an interview
on LBC television.“Some people are saying that I rushed the cabinet formation
process and some are saying that it would’ve been better to remain without a
government, but I say that citizens need a cabinet,” he stressed. Commenting on
the March 14 camp’s criticism of the new government, the premier said he
respects “the opposition and all remarks, but I believe that accusations will
continue.” “The government will only yield to the Lebanese people and I
reiterate that its relations will be excellent with all countries,” Miqati
vowed.
“This government was made in Lebanon and (Syrian) President (Bashar) al-Assad’s
congratulation is normal because Syria is Lebanon’s neighbor. It is normal for
us to have an excellent relation with Syria, but the government is patriotic par
excellence,” the premier noted. Asked whether he would accept to give up a Sunni
portfolio the same as Speaker Nabih Berri gave up a Shiite portfolio to
facilitate the finalization of the cabinet line-up, Miqati said: “Every
situation requires certain steps and Berri’s step contributed to boosting
Islamic unity.”Addressing the controversial issue of Hizbullah’s weapons, the
premier said “resistance (against Israel) is an issue that enjoys Lebanese
consensus and the resistance had liberated the land.”
But he noted that he had opposed the use of arms domestically. “That’s why we
must ask Hizbullah to keep its arms pointed only at Israel,” Miqati added. As to
the thorny issue of the U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon which is
probing the 2005 murder of ex-PM Rafik Hariri, Miqati said: “We have been
hearing a lot about the tribunal and the crime since six years and when the
indictment gets released the cabinet will convene and we will take a decision
concerning this issue.” “I stress that Lebanon is committed to the international
resolutions, but at the same time it will preserve civil peace,” he noted. On a
separate note, the premier said he will raise the issue of renewing the mandate
of Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh “during the first session that will be
held after the cabinet gains parliament’s confidence.”
Analysis: Syria's Assad loses his grip to hardliners
Thu Jun 16, 2011
LONDON (Reuters) - President Bashar al-Assad is losing control to his hardline
relatives, his forces are overstretched, his government is running out of money
and the revolt against his rule is gathering support and funding.
Given all this, analysts and Syrian-based diplomats say the international
community is starting to plan for a Syria without the Assads.
The risks of a slide into sectarian war are significant, most Syria-watchers
nonetheless say, believing Assad will fight to the end, and start to regionalize
the conflict by inciting violence in Lebanon, Turkey and across the borders with
Israel.
"Despite everything they have done over the past few weeks -- killing, torture,
mass arrests and raids -- the protests are continuing," said one Western
diplomat. "This regime will fight to the death, but the only strategy they have
is to kill people, and this is accelerating the crisis."
In its attempt to stamp out protests across the country of 23 million, the
government has withdrawn most security forces from the suburbs of the capital,
Damascus, diplomats say.
Yet each time the authorities go in hard to deal with one center of rebellion,
other towns rise up.
Reliant on two elite units commanded by his brother Maher -- the 4th Armored
Division and the Republican Guard -- as well as secret police and militia from
his minority Alawite sect, President Assad is plainly overstretched.
"Our assessment is that the regime will fall," predicted the Damascus-based
diplomat. "They have three to six months of actual military capabilities to
sustain this, but they cannot keep a prolonged operation going indefinitely."
Najib al-Ghadban, a Syrian academic and activist, said in London there was a
broad consensus on overthrowing the Assad family after 40 years in power.
"We believe strongly that the regime has lost its legitimacy. It has no vision
on how to get the country out of the crisis. The situation is deteriorating,"
Ghadban said. "We are certain this will reach a positive end like Tunisia and
Egypt," he added.
So far more than 1,100 people have been killed, up to 10,000 detained and
thousands have fled since the crackdown began, according to the U.N. High
Commissioner for Human Rights.
The international community, diplomats said, see a post-Assad era ideally
facilitated by a military coup and several governments are encouraging Syrian
generals to mutiny.
"We are isolating him and his family. We're addressing military leaders and
cabinet members to rise up. We're encouraging the generals to rise up," the
diplomat said.
"The key variable is the continuation of the momentum (of the revolt). We really
believe there is no point of return."
FATALLY WEAKEN
He and other analysts also believe that Syria's economic paralysis, amid
insistent reports the government is running out of money and having to call on
its inner circle for emergency funding, will fatally weaken the Assads.
One diplomat said Assad's cousin, the business tycoon Rami Makhlouf who is a
hate figure for protesters, has recently deposited $1 billion at the central
bank to stabilize the Syrian pound.
"When they are no longer capable of paying the salaries of bureaucrats, the
army, the police and their Alawite militia this crisis will balloon and bring
about the collapse of the regime," the diplomat said. "This is a train wreck
waiting to happen."
Signs of stretched resources and fraying loyalties are already apparent.
As protests started to spread, the authorities pulled out contingents of
security and elite forces from the capital, which are now firefighting from
Deraa in the south to Jisr al-Sughour in the north, the scene of heavy reprisals
after the government this month claimed to have lost 120 dead to "armed gangs."
But even so residents say there are demonstrations every weekend in Damascus and
surrounding suburbs.
The bloodshed in Jisr al Shugour was the result of splits in army ranks,
diplomats say, an ominous sign for the Assads.
"Around 50 soldiers and mid ranking officers defected and were supported by
locals and the authorities sent a force to counter them and 120 were killed,"
said another Syria-based diplomat, dismissing government accounts this was the
work of Salafi fundamentalists as propaganda.
He and others point to the growing sophistication of the rebellion, which draws
support from across society.
"After three months this is not a poor man's uprising. There is significant
financing from the Syrian business community and upper class. They give money
for satellite phones, cameras, food, water and medical supplies," the resident
diplomat said.
"This is a broad-based movement that includes not only Syrian youth, but imams
from mosques, businessmen, even former Baath party members."
Analysts are puzzled by Assad's failure to address the nation in a speech since
the revolt started in mid-March. They point out that conciliatory statements by
Assad promising that protesters will not be fired on and the killings that
followed show that he is not in control.
"The big unanswered question concerns the president," said Patrick Seale,
biographer of Bashar's father, Hafez al-Assad.
"The question is: Is he (Bashar) complicit with the killing or has he been
pushed aside? The people running the show are the hardliners, the thugs."
Seale added: "Assad is not in charge. He is showing no leadership. He is depasse.
They have really taken over."
STATE OF FEAR
Residents of Syria describe a state of fear and panic among the Alawite
community, saying there had been revenge attacks against Alawite army officers
and security men. They said Alawite officers in Sunni areas have pulled their
children out of school and sent their families to Alawite villages or abroad.
Syrian activist Ausama Monajed said the international community, which has put
13 Syrian officials on its sanctions list, should add army officers involved in
killing protesters as well as Syrian firms linked to the Assad family. Syrian
oil sales, worth $7-8 million a day and which Monajed says go directly to fund
the military, should be boycotted. Arab states must build a consensus against
Assad by lobbying China and Russia for a Security Council resolution, he said.
All scenarios that anticipate the downfall of Assad, however, depend on the
Sunni-dominated army splitting, while Western military intervention such as in
Libya is unlikely in Syria because of the regional risks.
Analysts say the risks are high that Syria, an ally of Iran and Lebanon's
Shi'ite Hezbollah guerrillas and with a sectarian and ethnic mix of Sunni,
Kurdish, Alawite and Christians, could slip into war. Syria, they add, can make
trouble in the region by trying to incite another war between Hezbollah and
Israel. Recent demonstrations on the Israeli-Syrian frontier, which had been
quiet for 38 years, were encouraged by Syrian authorities in an attempt to
broaden the conflict. "The Syrians have their fingers in many pies. They have
many levers to put pressure on their neighbors and create problems between
Hezbollah and Israel, between Sunni and Shi'ites in Lebanon and the PKK
(Kurdistan Workers Party) and AKP (Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's party) in
Turkey," the diplomat said.
(Editing by Giles Elgood)
'Gas explosion' rocks building in Netanya; 4 dead, 50 hurt
By YAAKOV LAPPIN AND JPOST.COM J. Post
06/17/2011
Police say blast at 4-story building caused by gas tank; MDA paramedics search
for trapped people; report leak may have been caused by thief stealing gas pipes
to sell metal parts, suspect in custody. A suspected gas explosion rocked a
four-story building in Netanya overnight Thursday, leaving four people dead and
at least 50 others injured. The cause of the explosion was initially unknown,
but Police officially announced that the explosion was caused by a gas tank or a
number of tanks. "This is not a terror attack," a Netanya police spokesman said.
A resident close to the scene told Israel Radio he smelled a strong smell of
gas.
Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharnovitch who arrived on the scene, told
Israel Radio, "Our working assumption is that this was caused by a gas tank,
although nothing is certain." He added, "There is a stong smell of gas. What's
important now is to evacuate all the injured from the building. Searches are
still underway...there are probably people on the upper floors that were not
hurt but are trapped. It may take hours to get them out. The rescue services
will go room by room to search for trapped people."
Police arrested a Netanya resident who they suspect may have cut a gas line
causing a leak that led to the explosion, Israel Radio reported. The man was
detained by Police earlier on Thursday and later released for trying to steal
gas pipes which are made of metal that can later be sold, according to the
report. Police were also expected to investigate claims that Amisragas
inspectors who said the gas lines were properly functioning were guilty of
negligence, Israel Radio reported.
MDA Paramedics said that three women and one man were killed in the blast. Two
of the women were in their forties, one woman was in her twenties and the man
was in his fifties.
MDA paramedics were on the scene attending to the wounded at the building,
located in Netanya's Atzmaut Square. Firefighters were also disconnecting the
building from gas pipes and the electricity grid. The injured were evacuated to
the Laniado Medical Center in Netanya, Hillel Yaffe Hospital in Hadera and Meir
Hospital in Kfar Saba by MDA paramedics. Three of the wounded were listed as
moderately injured, and the rest were slightly hurt. A number of buildings
around Atzmaut Square sustained heavy damage as a result of the blast. Police
said there was "widescale destruction" in the blast area. A number of passers-by
were lightly injured. Police sealed off Atzmaut Square. Drivers were asked to
keep away from the area.
Palestinians no longer welcome, says Lebanese Mufti
By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
Jerusalem Post/06/16/2011
"You’re trash, you’ll never be victorious," Sheikh Qabbani tells stunned
Palestinians reps.
The mufti of Lebanon, Sheikh Mohammed Rashid Qabbani, was quoted this week as
saying that Palestinians are no longer welcome in his country. He also condemned
Palestinians as “trash,” and said that he’s not afraid of their weapons. Sheikh
Qabbani’s remarks were made during a meeting he held in his office in Beirut
with a Palestinian delegation, representing refugees and various Palestinian
factions in Lebanon. The furious mufti later kicked the Palestinian
representatives out of his office. More than 400,000 Palestinians live in
Lebanon, most of them in extremely harsh conditions in refugee camps. The
meeting was called to discuss Palestinian “assaults” on state-owned and Islamic
Wakf lands in Lebanon. “We’ve hosted you and no longer want you,” the mufti told
stunned members of the Palestinian delegation. Accusing Palestinians of
“usurping” Wakf lands to build houses, Qabbani told his visitors: “I will defend
Wakf lands – even if that costs me all what I have.” Attempts by the Palestinian
representatives to muzzle the mufti further enraged the top religious official,
who at one point shouted at them: “You are trash. You [Palestinians] will never
be victorious. Nor will your cause. I’m no longer afraid of your weapons.” The
Palestinian delegates said they were extremely shocked by the mufti’s abusive
language and threats. “He called us trash,” one of them said. “He didn’t even
give us time to respond to his allegations.” Samir Abu Afash, Secretary- General
of the PLO in Beirut, said he sent a report to Palestinian Authority President
Mahmoud Abbas about the mufti’s remarks. Abbas instructed the Palestinian
representatives to refrain from a confrontation with Qabbani out of fear that
such a move would escalate tensions between the two sides. Former Lebanese prime
minister Fuad Saniora later phoned Fathi Abu al-Aradat to apologize on behalf of
the mufti. The mufti lost his temper following complaints that Palestinians
living in refuge camps in Lebanon had illegally seized lands belonging to the
state and the Islamic Wakf Trust. Sheikh Tayseer Tamimi, former head of the PA
religious courts, strongly condemned the mufti of Lebanon, saying his statements
were unsuitable for a man of his status. He said Qabbani had a long history of
instigating sectarian strife between various communities in Lebanon, and
demanded that he apologize to all Palestinians.
Rai travels to Rome to attend synod workshops
June 17, 2011/ The Daily Star BEIRUT: Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai will
leave for Rome Sunday on a one week visit to participate in preparatory
workshops for a synod to be held at the Vatican, headed by Pope Benedict XVI.
Rai will discuss with the pope and high ranking church officials the latest
developments in Lebanon, particularly the formation of the new government amid
unrest in Syria, and its repercussions on Lebanon. The patriarch is also
expected to update the Vatican on the reforms he is undertaking to modernize the
Maronite Church.
Mikati says government to serve all
June 17, 2011
By Hussein Dakroub The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Najib Mikati began his tenure as Lebanon’s prime minister at the Grand
Serail Thursday with a promise to give priority to tackling the people’s
socio-economic woes, stressing that his Cabinet members would work as one team
to serve all Lebanese. Mikati arrived at the Grand Serail at 9:30 a.m. for the
first time as prime minister since 2005. Received by Cabinet Secretary General
Suhail Bouji and Serail staff, he reviewed an honor guard before heading to the
prime minister’s office. Mikati served as prime minister for three months
in 2005 following the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, whose
killing threw the country into political turmoil and led to the collapse of the
government of then-Prime Minister Omar Karami. Mikati’s technocrat Cabinet
oversaw parliamentary polls which resulted in a sweeping victory for the Future
Movement led by Saad Hariri, son of the slain leader.
In an interview with LBCI television Thursday night, Mikati denied March 14
parties’ charges that Syria had exerted pressure to hasten the formation of his
Cabinet. He said there had been no interference by any party in the Cabinet’s
formation.
“Why was the Cabinet’s formation tied to any external matter? This [Cabinet’s
formation] was a purely Lebanese issue and [the Cabinet] was made in Lebanon,”
Mikati said. He added that Syrian President Bashar Assad’s phone call to
congratulate President Michel Sleiman shortly after the Cabinet lineup was
announced was normal between the presidents of neighboring countries. “Where are
the Syrian or non-Syrian touches in the formation?” he asked. Mikati swore to
God that he did not receive any contact from Syrian officials on the eve of
Cabinet’s formation. “I formed the Cabinet by myself at 11 p.m. Sunday and I
only told the closest people about it. I went to the president [Monday] telling
him that I will not leave the [Presidential] Palace unless the Cabinet is
formed,” he said. Addressing the Cabinet’s first session Wednesday, President
Michel Sleiman said the new Cabinet was “100 percent Lebanese,” indirectly
rejecting March 14 claims that the government had been formed under Syrian
pressure.
In the interview with LBCI, Mikati also scoffed at the March 14 parties’
accusations that his Cabinet was dominated by Syria and Hezbollah. “I leave it
to the Lebanese people to judge whether this government is a Syrian or Iranian
[dominated] government. Is this a government of Hezbollah which has two
ministers, and it and its allies have 18 ministers [out of 30]?” Mikati asked.
“This government has independent and centrist ministers … This government will
only succumb to the Lebanese people. It is in Lebanon’s interests to be on good
relations with all brotherly and friendly states and to respect U.N.
resolutions.”Asked what his government would do if the U.N.-backed Special
Tribunal for Lebanon’s indictment implicated Hezbollah members in Hariri’s
assassination, Mikati said the Cabinet would meet to take an appropriate
decision. He reiterated his government’s commitment to civil peace and
international obligations. Mikati said that in the first Cabinet meeting after
winning Parliament’s vote of confidence, he would demand the renewal of Central
Bank Governor Riad Salameh’s mandate, which expires at the end of July. Both the
March 8 and March 14 camps support a new six-year term for Salameh. Earlier
Thursday, Mikati chaired a meeting of a ministerial committee tasked with
drafting a policy statement on the basis of which the government would seek
Parliament’s vote of confidence. Headed by Mikati, the committee which includes
12 ministers, was set up during the Cabinet’s first meeting Wednesday.
During a meeting with the Serail staff, Mikati reiterated that the new Cabinet’s
priority is to address people’s needs, stressing that Cabinet members would work
hand-in-hand. “Our priority is to tackle the people’s urgent needs and affairs.
We will work as one task team to serve all the Lebanese. We will work in this
spirit with no malicious or vengeful acts,” Mikati said. He added that the
government would work to translate its motto, “all for the country, all for
work,” into deeds. “There are big objectives and many challenges. We have to do
our duty in order for the Lebanese to feel that the state exists. This matter
constituted the biggest incentive for us to complete the government’s
formation,” Mikati said.
He said he had felt before the Cabinet’s formation that there was a plan aimed
at “undermining constitutional institutions by enhancing the sense that matters
could go on without a government and effective constitutional institutions.”
The Cabinet’s formation has ended a political stalemate that has thrown the
country into a power vacuum for five months. During the meeting of the committee
charged with drafting the policy statement, the ministers drew up the outlines
of the document. In addition to addressing major social and economic issues that
concern the public, the policy statement is expected to outline the government’s
position on thorny issues such as Hezbollah’s arms and the STL, which is
investigating the Hariri assassination. A ministerial source said he expected
the committee to finish the outlines of the policy statement soon. The committee
has begun discussing social and economic issues and postponed until next week
thorny and divisive issues, such as Hezbollah’s arms and the STL, the source
said.
With regard to Hezbollah’s arms, the committee is expected to endorse the
equation of “the people, the army and the resistance” adopted by the previous
Cabinet, the source said. According to the source, the committee would add a
clause in the policy statement saying: “Commitment to international resolutions
in such a way that does not contradict with the principle of internal
sovereignty.” Hezbollah’s Minister of State for Administrative Reform Mohammad
Fneish, a committee member, said the policy statement will address U.N.
resolutions. The committee will hold another meeting Tuesday.
Sources close to Sleiman expected that a draft policy statement would be
finalized “within a maximum of one week,” adding that it would stipulate that
Lebanon’s army, people and resistance have the right to liberate Lebanese
territories occupied by Israel and uphold Lebanon’s commitments to U.N.
resolutions, especially 1701, which ended Israel’s 2006 war against Lebanon, and
to the country’s protocol of cooperation with the STL.
Sleiman had said the Cabinet’s policy statement should be based on national
principles, the Constitution and the Taif Accord, which ended Lebanon’s Civil
War.
Justice Minister Shakib Qortbawi said the policy statement would be concise and
would touch on basic socio-economic issues. He stressed the need for the
Lebanese to carry out “reforms and change.”Asked whether the policy statement
would change Lebanon’s commitments to international obligations, including the
STL, Qortbawi said: “Let’s not jump the gun … Lebanon is a state that is
committed to U.N. resolutions.”
Meanwhile, Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea kept up his blistering campaign
against the government, saying Mikati’s Cabinet would isolate Lebanon from the
international community. “When governments were formed in Lebanon, statements of
support, blessing, satisfaction and desire to help were issued immediately by
the Arab and international communities. Except this time, the formation of a new
government was met with complete Arab silence along with some skepticism, with
the exception of Syria and Iran, which have emerged as the biggest winners from
this formation. This is in addition to complete Western skepticism along with
some strongly worded warnings,” he told supporters at his residence in Maarab.
He cast doubt on what the new government could achieve, when it has been
disavowed since its birth by more than half of the Lebanese people and the
majority of Arab and foreign states did not show readiness to cooperate with it.
“Therefore, it is correct to call this government a government to isolate
Lebanon from its Arab environment and from the international community,” Geagea
said. The Future bloc’s Ammar Houri, a Beirut MP, said he expected the Mikati
government to be short-lived. “The government came to carry out a regional
agenda and serve as a regional spearhead to involve Lebanon in struggles which
we can dispense with,” Houri told the Voice of Lebanon radio station. “A real
coup has taken place.” – With additional reporting by Antoine Ghattas Saab
U.S. Readies More Sanctions Against Syria and Looks to Turkey for Direct
Influence
http://www.daralhayat.com/portalarticlendah/278644
Thu, 16 June 2011Washington - Al Hayat
By: Joyce Karam/With the humanitarian and political situation worsening in
Syria, Washington is considering more unilateral sanctions against the Syrian
government, while increasing coordination with Turkey, the Europeans and the
Arab states to ramp up diplomatic pressure and further isolate the regime.
Washington took a further step away from the Assad regime this week as a senior
US official tells Al-Hayat and a small group of Arab journalists that the
government in Damascus is “responsible for the instability” in the country. The
official dismisses the government's narrative that the protests are “sectarian”
in nature and “are led by terrorist and salafist groups”, emphasizing instead
that “it's a broad based movement of ordinary citizens”
While the official stops short of calling on Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad to
step down, he makes it clear that Washington is considering “series of options”
besides its support for a United Nations Security Council draft resolution
condemning the violence, and in order to increase the pressure on the regime.
One of those options will come in the form of the Obama administration
announcing more designations that target Syrian officials or entities
responsible for the crackdown. The administration took a similar move last month
in sanctions that directly targeted Assad himself. The official who spoke on
condition of anonymity did not go into details about the new names while
confirming that the “U.S. is thinking of making more designations and I expect
the Europeans to take similar actions”.
Additionally, Washington is “looking into” allegations of crimes against
humanity in Syria and possibly referring that to the International Criminal
Court. So far, the death toll has exceeded 1200 Syrians according to independent
human rights groups, and an estimate of 10,000 who have been detained since
March, while more than 8000 refugees have fled to Turkey.
The level of diplomatic communication between Washington and Damascus has also
hit a new low. U.S. Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford “has only been in contact
with the regime through intermediaries, and has not been meeting with either
Syrian Foreign minister Walid Mouallem or his deputy Faisal Mekdad” according to
the official, at the same time Washington has been meeting with members of the
Syrian opposition.
The U.S. is also increasingly talking about an Iranian role in supporting the
regime crackdown and being “manifested behind the scenes” as the official points
out. At the same time, the U.S. Official keeps distance from reports of direct
Iranian involvement on the ground in Syria, making it clear that “the repression
is being executed by the Syrian security forces” while “Iranians in effect are
providing their expertise from repressing their own people” and through
“training and providing equipment in some cases.” He adds that “we have not seen
a role for Hizballah at this point” the Lebanese party backed by Iran and Syria.
Amr Azm, a Syrian historian at Shawnee State University in Ohio, interprets the
cautious escalation in Washington’s tone as a response to the worsening
situation on the ground in Syria. He tells Al-Hayat in a phone interview that
“what changed now is the situation on the ground in terms of having a
humanitarian crisis, and it’s further creating an environment that does not make
it possible for Assad to stay”. The U.S. restraint so far in not telling Assad
to step down is “an attempt from the Obama administration to avoid a complete
break with regime” Azm adds, in part “because they want to make sure before they
commit completely for his departure, that there is a fair chance that he would
go.”
“I think the Americans are practically there, and it’s just a matter of finding
the right formula and opportunity to do that” he adds. One key to this would be
finding “what the Syrian opposition has to offer”.
The US is also leaning heavily on Turkey in pursuing a political transition for
the situation in Syria. The Syrian regime has alienated Ankara, a former close
ally, in the last few weeks through its assault on cities in the North, and by
dismissing its calls for genuine reforms. Azm draws some similarities between
Northern Syria and Eastern Libya pointing that “if we were to see a Benghazi
situation in Syria, it would happen in the North and on the Turkish border” in
part because the government in Ankara has opened its doors for fleeing
civilians, and in contrast with Lebanese and Jordanian governments.
The military assault in the North has been heightening Turkish and American
concerns of a possibility of a civil war in the country. Azm warns that the
regime might benefit from a civil war in Syria “because they know they can win
and it would help them justify the use of brutal force”.
Government
Cabinet of the “Slave of his Master
By: Hassan Haidar?Al Hayat
http://www.daralhayat.com/portalarticlendah/278680
Najib Mikati appears to be the weakest member of his government cabinet. Indeed,
he was equivocally designated to form it, on the basis of Syria’s desire to
exclude Omar Karami, because such a choice did not meet with Damascus’s complete
favor. He then remained waiting about five months until the second nod of the
head came out of Syria for him to form the cabinet, after Nabih Berri took it
upon himself to cancel out the last pretext of “Tripolitan sensitivity” he had.
He was thus forced to give in to the balance of power and to come out with a
lineup for a confrontational government, as revealed by the statements made by
some of its sponsors, like MP Michel Aoun, who started to lecture on morals and
to speak of holding to account and prosecuting heads of state and ministers.
This means that the Prime Minister’s talk of “moderation”, “centrism” and “a
cabinet for all of Lebanon” will soon burst like bubbles of air, because those
who have matters under their control have their own program, connected to the
instructions and orders of the country’s closest neighbor.
But what was Damascus waiting for to form the cabinet? And why did it decide
that it was necessary to announce it at this time in particular, pressuring its
allies to facilitate overcoming the obstacles that had prevented its formation,
even if this was in contradiction with their sectarian structure?
Those well-informed say that the Syrian regime, which had expected the world to
yield to its threats of stability in the region being contingent on its
remaining in power, is no longer able to breathe except from its Lebanese lung,
after its air has become “polluted” internally and after the “pipelines” of
Turkey, Iraq and Jordan have been closed to it. Indeed, the protest movement
being witnessed by Syria is likely to escalate despite the violent security
response it has been confronted with, and there is news of restlessness within
the ranks of the army and security forces amid increasing international
condemnations and pressures. Meanwhile, its relationship with Ankara is at the
threshold of further deterioration after the end of the elections in Turkey and
Erdoğan’s insistence on an end to the repression and on Assad announcing a
timetable for reform, asserting that he cannot remain idle when faced with a
movement of migration from Syria across the border.
As for Baghdad, which received Syria’s Foreign Minister Walid Al-Muallem a few
days ago, it seems powerless to save Damascus, after news have surfaced of
Syrian fundamentalists, for whom their country’s authorities had for years
facilitated moving to Iraq to fight the Americans, beginning to return to their
towns and villages, with Iraq itself being under threat from a new wave of
violence as the US withdrawal draws near. Furthermore, Amman does not depart
from the stance taken in the rest of the region, especially as Jordanian clans
have powerful branches in the Syrian interior, particularly in Daraa, of which
the army has crushed the uprising and humiliated the inhabitants.
Indeed, the Syrian regime, which is still convinced that the current wave of
unrest is merely a “passing cloud” and that it will be able at the end of day to
put an end to it by any means necessary and to restore its stability, has
evidently decided, taking advantage of Russia and China’s obstruction at the
Security Council, to confront the international community and its pressures to
impose reform by retaliating with a move on the Lebanese scene, through
completing the coup d’état led by Hezbollah under it s sponsorship and forming a
government cabinet, about which the least that can be said is that it portends
civil division and unrest, as well as a departure from both the Taif and Doha
agreements, which had saved this country from the vicious circle of its
intermittent civil war.
In Damascus’s view, returning to assert that it holds the strings of the
situation in Lebanon represents the display of a trading card that has shown its
effectiveness in the past – i.e. trading security in Lebanon for security for
its regime, just as opening up to Syria by France, and later the US, was the
price the West had to pay to stop the wave of assassinations that targeted
Lebanese officials and politicians after the withdrawal of Syrian forces. Yet
what was true in the past is no longer possible today, with the tidal wave of
change taking over the Arab World, a wave which the regime in Damascus will not
be able to stand against no matter what it does in Lebanon.
WHY
SYRIA'S REGIME IS LIKELY TO SURVIVE
By Elie Elhadj*
http://em-sender4.com/fb/fb/6B336425FE5B4326AEB83D54B380D1713350B4223C0578FEBFC666276A5D9ABF/show.aspx
Examining the differences between the uprising in Syria and those in Tunisia and
Egypt offers important clues as to why Syria's regime is likely to survive. The
Tunisian and Egyptian armies refused to kill demonstrators and even supported
the revolution. Syria's Alawi-led forces, on the other hand, do not hesitate to
kill, as the Tadmur and Hama massacres show. The Syrian regime has been skillful
at exploiting the conflict with Israel and the patience of Western powers with
the dictatorship. The Syrian government has shown a strong ability to manipulate
Islam for its benefit as well. While these tools do not work as effectively as
they used to, they still give the Syrian government many advantages over its
deposed counterparts in Tunisia and Egypt.
POPULAR UPRISINGS IN TUNISIA AND EGYPT
On December 17, 2010, Muhammad Bouazizi, a 26-year-old vegetable street vendor
from the poor town of Sidi Bouzid, Tunisia (200 miles south of Tunis, the
capital) set himself on fire in front of the governor’s office, igniting a
series of popular protests and clashes with the police that engulfed the
country. Bouazizi had been humiliated by the confiscation of his vendor cart,
and following the municipality’s refusal to see him about the matter, he
self-immolated. He died on January 4, 2010, as a result of his burns. Bouazizi’s
actions sparked widespread protests against President Zine al-Abidine bin Ali’s
non-representative corrupt regime, high unemployment, brutal security forces,
and single political party dictatorship, among other issues. Less than a month
later, on January 14, 2011, bin Ali fled to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, after 23 years
of rule.
The Tunisian uprising was swift, effective, and inspirational to the Arab masses
everywhere. Within days, Bouazizi had motivated men in a number of Arab
countries to self-immolate as a result of desperation over poverty,
unemployment, repression, and corruption. In Egypt, at least five men followed
Bouazizi’s example, with one dead in Alexandria. On January 25, 2011, a few days
after bin Ali’s flight, thousands of anti-government protesters demanding the
end of President Husni Mubarak’s almost 30-year rule clashed with riot police in
Tahrir Square in the center of Cairo. The protests spread to other cities.
During the first week of the demonstrations alone, the violence resulted in some
300 deaths, according to UN estimates.
By February 5, 2011, President Mubarak had announced a series of concessions. He
replaced the cabinet, appointed a vice-president for the first time, and
declared that he would not run for re-election for a sixth term in September
2011. He also replaced the politburo of the ruling party, including his son
Gamal, and pledged dialogue with opposition parties. Earlier, on January 31,
2011, the Egyptian army declared its respect for the legitimate rights of the
people, stating that it would not use force against protesters. Egypt’s new
vice-president, Umar Sulayman, invited all protest groups and opposition parties
for immediate negotiations on constitutional reform. Six groups, including the
banned Muslim Brothers organization, met with the vice president for the first
time on February 6, 2011. The participants agreed to form a joint committee of
judicial and political figures tasked with proposing constitutional amendments.
On February 8, 2011, it was reported that 6 million public sector workers
received a 15 percent pay increase. On February 11, 2011, President Mubarak
resigned, handing over Egypt’s affairs to the high command of the armed forces,
headed by the defense minister.
In an Arab world ruled by dictatorial monarchs and military presidents
who--unless assassinated in a coup d’état--typically remain in power for life,
popular uprisings are alien. What then is the possibility that the Tunisian and
the Egyptian popular uprisings will be copied in other Arab countries? This
article addresses the question as it relates to Syria.
COMPARING SYRIA WITH TUNISIA AND EGYPT
Syrian President Bashar al-Asad, on one hand, and Tunisia’s bin Ali and Egypt’s
Mubarak, on the other, share common characteristics but also differ in many
regards. In all three countries, a politicized military is the kingmaker, the
supreme power. They have in common non-representative, non-participatory
governance; single political party dictatorship; a rubber-stamp parliament;
politicized judiciary; the absence of press freedom; brigades of brutal security
forces infamous for appalling human-rights abuses; and a presidential cult of
personality. They are also alike in the rampant corruption, absence of
transparency or accountability in government finances, high unemployment, and
huge disparities of income--poverty for the great majority of the population and
great wealth for the tiny minority of the ruling elites and their business
associates who violate the law with impunity.
On the other hand, Syria’s Asad differs from bin Ali’s Tunisia and Mubarak’s
Egypt in three respects. It is these differences that make a successful popular
uprising leading to regime change in Damascus unlikely, at least in the
immediate future. First, Syria is ruled by the Asad clan of the minority Alawi
sect, unlike the former Sunni-majority-led government under bin Ali. Second,
Tunisia’s secularism differs greatly from Asad exploitation of Sunni Islam.
Last, the geopolitical environment dictates different domestic and foreign
agendas in Damascus and Tunis, especially regarding the Arab-Israeli conflict.
The Asad regime in Syria also differs from Egypt in three respects. Again,
Syria’s Alawi-minority rule differs from the Sunni majority-led government of
former President Mubarak in Egypt. Second, the Muslim Brotherhood organization
in Syria is relatively weak, unlike the well-organized and forceful Muslim
Brothers organization in Egypt. Third, Syria is in a state of war with Israel,
whereas peaceful relations have existed between Egypt and Israel since March 26,
1979.
Reducing the desire for major revolt in Syria are memories of the hundreds
killed by Hafiz Asad in Tadmur in 1980 and the many thousands killed in Hama in
1982 (see below), and the fear of similar savagery in 2011. Also sobering are
reminders of the civil war in neighboring Lebanon (1975-1990) and the
destruction in Iraq since the 2003 U.S. occupation, with more than a million
Iraqi refugees in Syria. Further, a young Bashar Asad, with a stylish
British/Syrian wife, continues to give some people hope for genuine reforms.
Damascus attributes the Tunisian uprising to bin Ali’s reliance on “fair-weather
foreign allies.” The Ba’th Party’s newspaper also predicted that the uprising
would restore Tunisia to its historical role as a supporter of Arab national
causes, especially the confrontation with Israel. Damascus’ rhetoric on Tunisia
applies to Egypt as well. Asad claims that Syria is insulated from popular
uprisings because he understands the needs of the Syrian people and his policies
fulfill their aspirations. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal on
January 31, 2011, Asad said he was very closely linked to the beliefs of his
people.
Notwithstanding Syria’s government boasting that it does not rely on
fair-weather foreign allies, that it has always supported Arab national causes,
and that Asad is very closely linked to the beliefs of his people, just one week
after bin Ali fled Tunisia, Damascus released S£16 billion (US$360 million) in
fuel subsidies to state employees and retirees, granted S£12 billion (US$270
million) in assistance to more than 400,000 poor families, and rolled back price
increases announced earlier on certain pharmaceuticals. On February 17, 2011,
the government announced it would cut taxes on basic foodstuffs. On May 25,
2011, the price of fuel oil dropped by 25 percent (from S£20 to S£15) per liter.
While these actions may have been in the making for some time--as the government
had stated--the uprising in Tunisia must have accelerated their announcement. In
any event, the sudden generosity failed to buy peace. On March 18, 2011, a
popular uprising erupted in the southern city of Dara’a. The uprising quickly
spread to other cities as well. Tanks rolled into Banyas, Dara’a, Hama, Jabla,
Jisr al-Shughour, and Homs, among others. Within a few weeks...
*Elie Elhadj, born in Syria, is a veteran international banker. He was Chief
Executive Officer of the Arab National Bank in Saudi Arabia during most of the
1990s. After retiring, he received his Ph.D. from London University's School of
Oriental and African Studies.