LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

Bible Quotation for today
The Good News According to John 10/1-21: �Most certainly, I tell you, one who doesn�t enter by the door into the sheep fold, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. 10:2 But one who enters in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 10:3 The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name, and leads them out. 10:4 Whenever he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. 10:5 They will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him; for they don�t know the voice of strangers.� 10:6 Jesus spoke this parable to them, but they didn�t understand what he was telling them. 10:7 Jesus therefore said to them again, �Most certainly, I tell you, I am the sheep�s door. 10:8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep didn�t listen to them. 10:9 I am the door. If anyone enters in by me, he will be saved, and will go in and go out, and will find pasture. 10:10 The thief only comes to steal, kill, and destroy. I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly. 10:11 I am the good shepherd.* The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 10:12 He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who doesn�t own the sheep, sees the wolf coming, leaves the sheep, and flees. The wolf snatches the sheep, and scatters them. 10:13 The hired hand flees because he is a hired hand, and doesn�t care for the sheep. 10:14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own, and I�m known by my own; 10:15 even as the Father knows me, and I know the Father. I lay down my life for the sheep. 10:16 I have other sheep, which are not of this fold.* I must bring them also, and they will hear my voice. They will become one flock with one shepherd. 10:17 Therefore the Father loves me, because I lay down my life,* that I may take it again. 10:18 No one takes it away from me, but I lay it down by myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. I received this commandment from my Father.� 10:19 Therefore a division arose again among the Jews because of these words. 10:20 Many of them said, �He has a demon, and is insane! Why do you listen to him?� 10:21 Others said, �These are not the sayings of one possessed by a demon. It isn�t possible for a demon to open the eyes of the blind, is it?�*

STL �suspects� Hezbollah commander
June 29, 2011
By Patrick Galey The Daily Star
BEIRUT: The U.N.-backed court probing the assassination of statesman Rafik Hariri will finalize its indictment next week, and it will contain the name of a Hezbollah commander among others accused of the crime, diplomatic and judicial sources told The Daily Star Tuesday.
Sources familiar with the investigation said that the Special Tribunal for Lebanon will provide State Prosecutor Saeed Mirza with a sealed indictment at the start of next month, which may come before the new government finalizes a policy statement that could omit direct reference to the court.
�We expect the indictment on either July 3 or 4,� said one source. �Mirza has to do something [with the indictment], but the next stage is difficult.�
It added that the name of a senior Hezbollah military commander who is believed to be residing in Lebanon would be contained in the indictment.
State Prosecutor Saeed Mirza confirmed to The Daily Star that he would announce publicly when an indictment had been received but demurred on what would happen next.
�I cannot say what I will do,� Mirza said. �I do not know [when the indictment will be released]: they have been saying that they will issue it for years.�
Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah has slammed the STL, labeling it an �Israeli project� and warned to �cut the hand� of anyone targeting his organization in relation to Hariri�s murder. Nasrallah acknowledged that the names of individuals belonging to the party would likely feature in an indictment.
The STL has maintained that it will seek to indict individuals, not political entities. But the court�s reported intent to accuse a senior party official of carrying out the assassination is likely to put Lebanon�s judiciary in a bind, particularly if the Cabinet has not formed a coherent policy statement by the time the indictment lands.
�According to the procedures, the STL will inform judicial authorities to arrest and hand in the names listed in the indictment,� a judicial source told The Daily Star.
�However, judicial authorities will not be able to act if the indictment includes individuals from Hezbollah.
�Under the current circumstances and without a Cabinet [policy] statement, judicial authorities will be in some kind of limbo,� the source added.
Lebanon signed an agreement with the U.N. in 2007 to cooperate with the international court, although that commitment has been questioned following the formation of a March 8 government in Beirut. Prime Minister Najib Mikati has said that the new administration would maintain its international commitments on the proviso that they do not destabilize civil peace.
The judicial source said that The Hague was working on a purely legal level and it was therefore unlikely that individuals such as STL Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare and pre-trial Judge Daniel Fransen would consider the fraught condition of Lebanon before finalizing an indictment.
�The situation in Lebanon will not change the stance of the STL. For whatever reason the judicial authorities fail to apprehend the suspects, the STL will consider that Lebanon has failed to implement its duties toward the tribunal,� the source said.
�In case the indictment is issued and Lebanon fails to cooperate with the tribunal, all the named suspects will be tried in absentia.�
The court�s statute dictates that STL President Antonio Cassese must be satisfied that countries receiving the indictment had exerted �sufficient effort� to apprehend accused individuals before going public and naming suspects, should the indictment be handed down in sealed form, as is expected.
Former Prime Minister Hariri was killed in a massive car bomb on Feb. 14, 2005, as his motorcade sped through Downtown Beirut. The act brought about popular demonstrations leading to Syrian withdrawal from Lebanon after nearly three decades. Twenty-two others were killed in the attack.

Iran tests missiles for hitting Israel, US bases, first space monkey in July
DEBKAfile Special Report/June 28, 2011,
Tuesday, June 28, Day Two of the Great Prophet Mohammad War Games 6, Iran made a point of flexing muscle in the direction of the United States and Israel. After simultaneously test-firing 14 2,000-range missiles at a single target, Commander Amir Ali Hajizadeh, head of the Revolutionary Guards' aerospace division, emphasized: "Iranian missiles can target US bases in Afghanistan and any part of Israeli territory."He boasted America had made Iran's task easier: "Their military bases in the region are in a range of 130, 250 and maximum 700 kilometers in Afghanistan which we can hit with these missiles." debkafile's military sources note that this was the first time Tehran had threatened US bases in Afghanistan.
Asked whether Iranian missiles were a threat to Europe, Hajizadeh said that while Iran had the technological capacity to build longer-range missiles, the 2,000-km range had been chosen precisely with Israel and US bases in mind, because "we do not feel a threat from any other country." The Iranian commander clearly aimed at calming European fears of attack, especially Britain, France, Germany and Italy. This statement should be taken with a very large pinch of salt. According to our sources, Iran is working at top speed on at least three new operational ballistic surface missiles with longer ranges. They are Shahab-4, for targets at a distance of 3,200-4,000 kilometers; the Sejjil (2,500 kilometers) and the Ashura-Ghadr 110A (3,000 kilometers). Shahab-4 and Ashura/Ghadr 110A are quite capable of hitting central and western Europe. Iran is furthermore developing intercontinental ballistic missiles - Shahab-5 (5,000 kilometers) and Shahab-6 (10,000 kilometers) - which put North America within range. Iran's missile industry will take another leap forward in July with the planned launch of the Kavoshgar-5 rocket for putting a monkey in space. Iranian media claim that five monkeys, one of which will be chosen for the mission, have completed their training.
debkafile's military sources report that since launching the Omid, which weighed only 27 kilos, in February 2009, the Iranian aerospace industry has made major strides if it can put a monkey, requiring a payload of 330 kilos, into space. This capability means that Iran has reached the capacity to fire a nuclear-armed missile at any point on the planet.
After the Omid's success two and-a-half years ago, US and Israeli missile and intelligence experts warned the Obama administration and the Israeli government that Tehran had achieved a dangerous technological and military breakthrough on the road to a nuclear weapon. Both refrained from addressing the threat then and even now do not seem too interested.

Egyptian Court Dismisses Muslim Case Against Christian Woman
6-29-2011 /Assyrian International News Agency
(AINA) -- The Egyptian administrative court of the State Council dismissed today the lawsuit filed by Muslim lawyers, demanding the disclosure of the whereabouts of Camilia Shehata, the wife of a Coptic priest, who was alleged to have converted to Islam and held against her will by the Coptic Church. In reaching its decision, the court said the Muslim lawyers failed to provide proof to support their claim of the detention of Camilia by the church.
Camilia's attorney, Dr. Naguib Gabriel, said "The only thing the Muslim lawyers delivered as proof for their claims were snippets of newspapers from the Internet."
The case lasted over four months, during which Dr. Gabriel submitted as proof unequivocal documents that Camilia was never detained by the church and she never converted to Islam as alleged. Among the documents was a power of attorney from Camilia for him to represent her at court. "This was issued by the public notary, by a Muslim employee and in which she wrote "Christian" beside her religious affiliation, while she could have easily written Muslim instead." said Gabriel. "If she was really detained by the church, she could have asked for help from the employee when she went to the notary," he added. Also, a certificate from Al-Azhar stating that she never converted to Islam was presented as evidence.
The prosecution also heard the testimony of Bishop Armiya, secretary to Pope Shenouda III, who denied the church had detained her. It also took the testimony of Anba Agapios, Bishop of Deir Mawass, Minya Governorate, who also refuted the charge.
Previously, the court had responded to the Muslim lawyers' demands regarding Camilia's conversion to Islam, saying the issue was the beliefs of people, but whether there was a detainment or not. Also, the Muslim lawyers had demanded Camelia appear in person before the court, which was refused by the court.
"Today's court ruling closes the curtain on one of the most famous and difficult cases in Egypt." said attorney Dr. Gabriel. "Muslims will not be allowed to demonstrate regarding this matter anymore, which they used as a pretext to create sectarian strife between Muslims and Christians."
The story of Camelia Shehata, which became a public issue for the last 11 months, started on July 19, 2010, when after a dispute with her husband, Father Tedaos Samaan, priest at St. Georges Church in Deir Mawas, she left home and went to Cairo to stay with relatives, without telling anyone of her whereabouts. "This was my biggest mistake," said Camilia in an interview with Al-Hayat Christian TV Channel from her hide-out with her husband and 2-year-old son.
Her husband, believing she was abducted by Muslims, like many other cases, came with some 3000 Copts from his congregation to protest her disappearance at St. Mark's Coptic Cathedral in Cairo (AINA 7-23-2010").
State Security found her a few days later and handed her over to her sister who lives in Cairo. She later reconciled with her husband and the family has lived in hiding ever since, as Muslim demonstrations started to take place, demanding the return of "their sister in Islam, Camelia."
Faked photos of Camilia in a Hijab appeared on the internet and over 20 demonstrations were staged by Muslim, accusing the church of abducting new converts (females) to Islam and holding them against their will in churches and monasteries, where they were tortured (AINA 9-18-2010).
Camilia appeared in a video clip from her hideout, taken under utmost security by the independent daily El-Youm7, in which she denied ever converting to Islam (video). The Muslims said it was not Camilia but was her double who appeared, and carried on with their demonstration, the last of which was on April 30, when they encircled the Coptic Cathedral and the Pope's residence vowing that "Camilia must return" (AINA 4-30-2011). Camelia appeared for a second time on May 7, in a one-hour interview on Al-Hayat TV, in which she denied all Muslim claims of ever having met any of them or having been to Al Azhar with them. On both occasions she confirmed her Christian faith.
By Mary Abdelmassih

Dozens of Tanks, Armored Vehicles Enter Syria�s al-Rami Village
Naharnet /Dozens of tanks and other armored vehicles entered the Syrian village of al-Rami, in the province of Idlib, on Tuesday, Rami Abdul Rahman, president of the Syrian Observatory on Human Rights said. Separately, other anti-regime militants said Syrian forces had opened fire there and set off flares, which could be seen from the neighboring village of Irm al-Joz.

Geagea during Ceremony Adopting LF By-Laws: This Cabinet is that of Blatant Hegemony
Naharnet /Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea slammed the new government on Tuesday, describing it as one of blatant hegemony. He asked during a ceremony adopting the LF by-laws: �How can we explain the formation of such a government during the period in which the region is witnessing radical change?� �Lebanon, which has always spearheaded democracy in the Middle East, is now taking several steps back through inexplicable official practices,� he added.
�This is demonstrated through the offensive statements and threats of exile issues by some of its members and other political figures,� he said indirectly referring to Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun�s statements that former Prime Minister Saad Hariri should be given a one-way-ticket and remain abroad in Paris.
�The least that can be said of the government is that it belongs to out-dated Arab regimes,� Geagea noted.
�How can we explain the arrest of refugees fleeing the tragedies of revolution and their forced return to their homeland where they will be met with certain death?� he asked.
�How can we explain Lebanon�s position at the United Nations Security Council, which appears to be approving the bloody suppression of revolts in more than one Arab state?� he continued. �At the height of the out-dated Arab regimes, the Lebanese people never accepted to be humiliated, so do you expect them to agree to it now? No, a thousand times no,� he declared. �It�s touching that we are adding a new component to Lebanon�s democracy at a time when the Arab peoples are revolting in demand of freedom and human dignity,� he added.
�When the LF agreed to the national charter and the construction of the state at the end of the 1980s, not many believed that it would succeed after it laid down its weapons,� he said.
�The adoption of the by-laws is a central point it its ongoing democratic mission,� Geagea stressed.

Aoun: Policy Statement Will Be Finalized this Week, Including STL Clause
Naharnet/ Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun stated on Tuesday that the committee drafting a government policy statement will likely complete its work this week.
He revealed after the Change and Reform�s weekly meeting: �It will be finalized this week and the clause on the Special Tribunal for Lebanon will be the final issue of discussion.�
On some MPs� statements that failing to address the tribunal in the policy statement would be a crime, he responded: �The existence of the March 14 camp was a crime against Lebanon.�
�We will soon inform them of their crimes,� he added. Aoun asked: �Will the STL�s functioning cease if the policy statement did not address it?��The indictment will not affect anything in Lebanon,� he stressed. The ongoing debate over the policy statement has not yet created animosity, as the differences in opinion will only improve the statement, the MP noted. Addressing the developments in Syria, he said that the situation appears to be heading towards a resolution, hoping that this will mark an end to the country�s unrest.

Optimism running high on policy statement
June 29, 2011 By Wassim Mroueh, Hassan Lakkis/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: An agreement between parties in the Cabinet on how to deal with the disputed Special Tribunal for Lebanon appeared close Tuesday, according to ministerial sources.
The sources said that the failure of the groups to reach an agreement over the issue within the next 48 hours could lead to a crisis of the same magnitude as that which accompanied the Cabinet formation process. But the sources ruled out such a development since the atmosphere was more optimistic than any time before.
The same sources said that contacts between Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Speaker Nabih Berri and Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt would be stepped up in a bid to reach a formula which takes into consideration Hezbollah�s concerns over the STL and at the same time Mikati�s keenness not to ignore the international community and to avoid a confrontation with it.
The sources did not rule out the possibility of a decisive meeting between the three officials in the coming hours to discuss the STL clause.
The 12-member ministerial committee tasked with drafting the government�s policy statement held its sixth meeting under Prime Minister Najib Mikati at the Grand Serail Tuesday.
Information Minister Walid Daouk said that committee members have yet to tackle the STL clause, but also discussed education, finance and the issue of the displaced from the Chouf region. �It was decided that discussions will resume tomorrow [Wednesday] at 4 p.m. � there are several clauses which we have yet to tackle, and these include the tribunal clause,� Daouk said.
Daouk said that the committee would finalize the policy statement before the constitutional July 13 deadline.
Asked whether there would be a special session during which the committee would discuss the divisive U.N.-backed court Daouk said that discussing the matter might end �very quickly or might require intensive discussions, that�s why I cannot anticipate things.�
The information minister said ministers had almost finalized clauses related to the Cabinet�s economic policy.
Hezbollah slammed the STL as an �Israeli project� targeting the resistance and designed to foment strife. The party also called upon the Lebanese government to cut its ties with the court.
But the March 14 coalition, led by former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, insists that the STL which was formed to try the assassins of Hariri�s father, former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, is the only means to punish criminals. The coalition has also warned against pushing Lebanon to a confrontation with the international community. In a bid to avoid clashing with the international community, Mikati is trying to find a formula acceptable to all parties participating in the government.
Mikati, who is coming under heavy pressure from the March 14 coalition and the U.S. and other Western countries to uphold the STL, has reiterated Lebanon�s commitment to all its international obligations. Minister of Social Affairs Wael Abu Faour said following the minister�s meeting that deliberations between Hezbollah, MP Jumblat�s bloc, Amal Movement and Sleiman were ongoing even outside the committee�s official meetings in a bid to reach an agreement that would please all sides.
The ministerial sources said that in case an agreement was reached between Amal, Hezbollah and Mikati over a certain formula, Wednesday would see the committee�s final meeting after which the Cabinet would convene Thursday and approve the policy statement. President Michel Sleiman is scheduled to fly to Monaco Friday where he is to attend Prince Albert�s royal wedding and visit former Deputy-Prime Minister Issam Fares.
Separately, the Future bloc warned against the �dangerous ideas� held by some Cabinet officials which contradicted consensus among the Lebanese to bring the killers of Hariri to justice.
�The bloc warns Cabinet officials that falling in the trap of going back on issues of national consensus especially regarding the tribunal and serving justice will move Lebanon from a situation to another,� said a statement by the Future bloc after it held its weekly meeting under former Prime Minister Fouad Siniora at the latter�s office.
�Lebanese experiences always teach us the importance of holding on to issues of national consensus because they constitute the fundamental bases for nations� building and sustainability.�
The Future bloc stressed that the Lebanese people would not give up their right to uncover the truth and hold criminals accountable.
�The Special Tribunal for Lebanon is the qualified side to investigate the crime and uncover its plotters and executors and this tribunal is responsible for presenting evidence and proof for any indictment it announces,� added the statement.
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea said that Lebanon would have to confront the Arab and international communities if the policy statement overlooks the STL.
�If anyone decides to sideline the tribunal, Lebanon would have to confront the international and regional community,� Geagea said during a ceremony Monday evening.
The LF leader highlighted that the STL had been established by national consensus, when the Cabinet, including Hezbollah MPs, voted for it unanimously.
Geagea defended the tribunal against allegations that is politicized, saying: �There are over 30 judges working within the tribunal and any result is destined to be accurate, as these judges come from different countries.�In response to March 14 officials, Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun said avoiding the mention of the STL in the policy statement would have no effect on the court�s functions.�If the policy statement did not include a clause on the tribunal, the STL will not stop functioning and the indictment will be released,� Aoun told reporters.

March 14 MPs� �crimes� to be unveiled shortly, Aoun says
June 28, 2011/Change and Reform bloc leader MP Michel Aoun on Tuesday that the presence of some March 14 MPs was �a crime against Lebanon,� adding that �tomorrow we will tell you the crimes they committed.�The commission probing the accounts of past government has uncovered �a lot of breaches that were committed by the Finance Ministry,� he added following his bloc�s weekly meeting. Aoun also tackled the issue of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), saying its upcoming indictment �will not affect anything.�
�Regarding the drafting of the Ministerial Statement, it is going well. We hope to finalize it this week [and] resolve the part in it that pertains to the STL.�
Aoun also said that the tribunal�s work would not come to a halt if the Ministerial Statement does not recognize the STL. �We addressed the developments taking place in Syria. Regarding the issue, a domestic and international breakthrough is coming up, we hope there will be an end to the events,� he said, adding that Washington will shift its opinion on the matter.
Before the collapse of Saad Hariri�s cabinet in January, Aoun and other MPs from his bloc have accused the Finance Ministry of corruption and called for state expenditures to be accounted for since 1993, during late former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri�s first term as the country�s premier. Aoun last Tuesday said that March 14 members would be issued a one-way ticket to prison.Media outlets have reported that the STL�s indictment for the 2005 assassination of Rafik Hariri will be issued soon. Hezbollah has repeatedly warned against the move.
The newly-formed cabinet is working to draft the Ministerial Statement, and are reportedly in talks on how to tackle the issue of the government�s stance on the tribunal.
-NOW Lebanon

Syria ambassador in London summoned to Foreign Office
BBC
Syria's ambassador in London has been summoned to the Foreign Office after claims a diplomat had been intimidating Syrians living in the UK.The Foreign Office said ambassador Sami Khiyami was called to see its Middle East director Christian Turner The move came after media reports that Syrians who took part in demonstrations received phone calls and home visits.
It is understood police have received no complaints about intimidation in the UK by members of the Syrian embassy. 'Respond swiftly' A Foreign Office spokesman said: "Mr Turner made clear our strong concerns about the media allegations that a diplomat at the Syrian embassy has been intimidating Syrians in Britain. "Any such activity would amount to a clear breach of acceptable behaviour. If such claims were substantiated, the Foreign Office would respond swiftly and appropriately." According to the reports, Syrians who took part in anti-government protests in the UK claim they were photographed by embassy staff before being contacted. Some allege that Syrian secret police visited relatives in their homeland with copies of the photos, warning them to ensure those in the UK stopped taking part in demonstrations.
Peaceful transition
In Syria, dissidents have met publicly for the first time in the capital Damascus to discuss the current crisis in the country. There were calls for an end to the government's brutal crackdown on protesters and for a peaceful transition to democracy. The event took place after Syrian government officials said they would not object. Afterwards, the opposition was invited to joint talks to discuss the framework for a national dialogue conference.

France calls Syrian opposition meeting �positive�
June 28, 2011 /French Foreign Ministry spokesperson Bernard Valero said on Tuesday that the meeting held on Monday by the Syrian opposition in Damascus was positive.
�We hope the meeting will [help] launch a national dialogue that will resolve the Syrian crisis,� Valero was quoted as saying by AFP. He added that �democracy happens through dialogue and not through shooting at people marching in the streets.� �France keeps calling [on the Syrian government] to stop oppressing [protesters].�He also said that �the brutal oppression that was conducted by Syrian security forces in the recent days is very worrying.�About 160 dissidents, several of whom have spent years in jail as political prisoners, gathered Monday in Damascus. The Syrian government is engaged in a deadly crackdown on protesters who since March have been demanding the end of 48 years of rule by the Baath Party, which is controlled by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.-NOW Lebanon

Syrian refugees in Lebanon suffer from poor conditions
June 29, 2011/By Antoine Amrieh The Daily Star
WADI KHALED, Lebanon: Hundreds of Syrians have crossed into Lebanon in the past few days, settling in houses that suffer from overcrowding and shortages of food and medicine.
According to a local resident, between 350 and 400 refugees have fled several Syrian villages and entered neighboring Lebanon via illegal border crossings. They have taken refuge in private houses in the northern border town of Wadi Khaled.
The refugees spoke to The Daily Star about the problems they faced in crossing into Lebanon, as there are Lebanese and Syrian forces guarding both sides of the border. The refugees confirmed that there are more than 200 additional people currently trying to enter Wadi Khaled, and sources believe there will be an increase in the number of refugees in the next few days.
The refugees brought necessities such as food and clothing with them. Many of them live and own businesses in the Syrian city of Homs, but are from Wadi Khaled and own houses and land in the town. The residents of Wadi Khaled helped those without houses to find shelter in nearby homes, and with friends and relatives.
Wadi Khaled is known for preserving its local traditions, especially when it comes to hospitality. Accordingly, Naji Ramadan, the mayor of the Wadi Khaled village of Mashta Hammoud, prompted both prominent figures and average residents of the region to �share their bread with the refugees.�
Ramadan said that �120 refugees were welcomed as honored guests in his family home.� He said that other refugees were trying to reach the villages that make up Wadi Khaled and the surrounding areas through various means, including the unpaved crossings that connect the Lebanese border villages with Syria.
�[The refugees�] psychological and health conditions are extremely bad and need a lot of care and attention,� Ramadan said, calling on both the government and civil society organizations to care for the refugees and offer them food and medical aid. He specifically mentioned the need for blankets and milk for children.
Wadi Khaled shares a seven kilometer border with Syria, and along this stretch there are four illegal crossings. The Syrian and Lebanese authorities are monitoring the border especially closely because of the cross-border links between families.
According to unofficial estimates, more than 5,000 Syrians, most of them women and children, have fled to Lebanon since the start of the popular uprising in Syria. Many have been welcomed by a number of Lebanese families because of the connections formed through cross-border marriages.
But the conditions of the refugees hosted by the area�s residents are very poor, the source from Wadi Khaled said, adding that individual houses are holding more than 50 people each. These houses lack sufficient food, mattresses, and blankets.
These poor conditions are symptomatic of a real crisis, especially if this period of displacement is prolonged, the source continued, adding that the refugees have a range of immediate needs including milk for children and basic food products such as rice, sugar, oil, pasta and fava beans.
According to the source, there is an increasing need for medication to treat chronic illnesses. There is also a shortage of first aid kits, and some children are sick.
Wadi Khaled�s houses will remain open to Syrian refugees, the source said, adding that the residents of North Lebanon will continue to offer aid in addition to that provided by the High Relief Council and UN agencies.
Future Bloc Akkar MP Mouin Merabi called on the Lebanese government and the High Relief Council to send follow-up committees to Wadi Khaled in order to assess to the refugees� conditions and provide the necessary aid.
Merabi also asked those refugees who have health problems to go to area hospitals. He said that he hopes the Health Ministry will offer health care to the refugees.

U.S. sees "progress" after Syria activists meet
By Andrew Quinn
WASHINGTON | Tue Jun 28, 2011
Reuters) - The United States said on Tuesday that Syria's move to allow activists to meet to discuss political change was a positive step but that the government needed to do more to launch real reforms. The fact that opposition members were allowed to meet in Syria for the first time in decades, as I understand it, is progress and is something that is new and is important for the democratic process in Syria that we all want to see," State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland said. "We think this is a move in the right direction, but there is far more to be done. The violence needs to end throughout Syria and a broader public process needs to begin.
"Some of Syria's leading intellectuals used Monday's meeting to call for sweeping political change, and the government announced it would invite opposition figures to July 10 talks to set the framework for a dialogue promised by President Bashar al-Assad.
Assad, facing a three-month old revolt against his rule, has repeatedly held out the prospect of political reforms while his troops have moved to crush demonstrations.
Many opposition figures reject Assad's call for dialogue as insufficient and some activists refused to take part in Monday's conference, saying it could be exploited by authorities while mass killing and arrests continue. Rights groups say 1,300 civilians have been killed since Syria's revolt broke out, while the government says more than 250 soldiers and police have been killed in clashes provoked by militant groups.
The United States has slapped sanctions on Assad and President Barack Obama has said the longtime Syrian ruler must either deliver political reforms or get out of the way.
But Washington has shied away from taking a more assertive stance, as it did with Libya, saying that it lacks leverage with Damascus and is still working to build international consensus on possible next steps. Nuland's comments were more positive than most recent U.S. assessments of Syria. But she also stressed that Washington would keep pressing Damascus to stop the violence and institute democratic changes.
'BREATHING SPACE'
"President Assad knows what has to happen in Syria if that country is going to move in the right direction. Our message to him hasn't changed and won't change," she said.
"We're simply pleased to see that the opposition has been allowed some breathing space. And a key element of Syria moving in the right direction is that that continues to be the case."
Nuland said that U.S. Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford, who had sought unsuccessfully to contact top Syrian officials after the protests began, was now communicating with close Assad advisors and had urged them to allow the activists' meeting to take place.
"Over the last 10 days doors have been more open among the people around Assad," Nuland said. "Ambassador Ford has used those opportunities to state in strongest terms that the United States view is that the opposition ought to be allowed to meet," she said. She declined to name the Syrian officials involved, but said the United States was confident they were in Assad's inner circle. Nuland said the United States had noted "some positive moves" as authorities allow certain political protests to take place unmolested. Nuland confirmed that Congressman Dennis Kucinich -- an anti-war Democrat who has proposed ordering Obama to remove U.S. forces from the Libya conflict -- had met Assad in Damascus on Monday, but said he was not carrying any message from the administration. Kucinich's office issued a statement saying he was on a fact-finding trip and planned to meet democracy activists and nongovernmental organizations along with officials in both Syria and Lebanon. (Editing by Philip Barbara)

Pawlenty�s Incoherence On Syria: �Recall Our Ambassador� But Also Use �Every Diplomatic Channel� To Push Change
By Ben Armbruster on Jun 28, 2011
GOP presidential hopeful Tim Pawlenty has been one of President Obama�s most forceful foreign policy critics. Even though Pawlenty reportedly �doesn�t want to be identified as a neoconservative,� his attacks on the president, particularly on Libya, have had a neoconservative aura.
That pattern didn�t subside this morning in his foreign policy speech at the Council on Foreign Relations this morning. The former Minnesota governor �sought to claim the mantle as his party�s foreign policy hawk� by �accusing President Obama and his GOP rivals of being weak-kneed in their posture toward the Middle East.� Pawlenty wasted no time in attacking the Obama administration on Syria, saying the president has no �moral clarity� in dealing with Syrian President Bashir al-Assad:
PAWLENTY: By contrast, I called for Assad�s departure on March 29; I call for it again today. We should recall our ambassador from Damascus; and I call for that again today.
So Pawlenty wants to withdraw America�s top diplomat in Syria. Later in the speech, he returned to the issue. �We have a clear interest in seeing an end to Assad�s murderous regime,� he said. How should the U.S. accomplish this goal? Diplomacy:
PAWLENTY: To take advantage of this moment, we should press every diplomatic and economic channel to bring the Assad reign of terror to an end.
Perhaps Pawlenty would argue that recalling the U.S. ambassador to Syria is a diplomatic move. But at the same time, not having an ambassador in Syria means we aren�t using �every diplomatic� channel available. This is how White House spokesman Jay Carney recently explained it:
CARNEY: Having an ambassador in Syria has allowed us to be in Syria, basically in the presence of the government, to make our views known directly and not via long distance. So, yes, it has been useful to have our ambassador there, precisely because we can communicate directly what our positions and views are. And so I think that has been a useful avenue for us to pursue in terms of communicating our points of view. Later when taking questions after the speech, Pawlenty said the U.S. should �try to effectuate change within Syria.� So to recap: Pawlenty wants to press �every diplomatic channel,� including using assets �within Syria,� to bring about change. Yet, he also wants to recall America�s number one point of contact that is currently in Syria.

Torture�s lasting effects
Now Lebanon/Amtissal Aboulissan, June 28, 2011
A protester mocks being tortured during a sit-in to mark last year�s International Human Rights Day, outside the United Nations offices in downtown Beirut. (AFP photo/Ramzi Haidar)
�Afraid? I�m not afraid. I�m emotionally drained, and I have nothing else to live for. So no, I�m not afraid to talk.�
Fatima, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, spoke, in tears, about the events that changed her life forever.
The 45-year-old mother of three said she was at work as a school teacher when a group of men from the Syrian army came in and dragged her away. She was blindfolded, her wrists were bound, and she was thrown in a car. She was taken to an unknown location where she was detained and repeatedly beaten and subjected to various forms of torture.
She was put into a tire and forced to sit there in the same position for several hours a day. She was beaten with a car antenna, her nail pulled off and her nose fractured. At times, she spent more than a week without food or water and went months without a shower. Over the five and a half months she was in custody, she was transferred to different locations across Lebanon and eventually ended up in a detention center in Syria. �It�s as if you stop existing,� she said.
This was in 1989. At the time, Fatima had no idea why she was detained, and only found out later that it was because she was working at a school run by an Islamic group that was �at odds� with the Syrian regime, Fatima said. Fatima can now see only 20 percent out of her right eye and has had five operations on it, with more needed. She also takes six different medications and has lost more than 100 pounds as a result of the torture. What happens in torture cells has left victims like Fatima both physically and emotionally scarred. Her husband, also a torture victim, physically abused Fatima and then divorced her. Her children live with him.
Even though the Lebanese civil war and the period of Syrian tutelage have ended, torture is still a real issue. Although Lebanon ratified the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) in October of 2000, few if any of its provisions are actually implemented. Despite being technically bound by Article 7 of the CAT, Lebanon has its own penal code, which does not criminalize torture. Instead, crimes are evaluated according to the consequences on the individual, and the penal code includes just about everything but the term �torture,� according to Human rights lawyer and President of the Lebanese Institution for Democracy and Human Rights Nabil Halabi.
Lebanese officials are convinced of the effectiveness of torture, which is still very much engrained in the system, he explained. �We know that torture is not proven to be effective. In most cases, the victim is telling you what you want to hear and not what they know.�
The other issue is cultural, because there is an acceptance of violence in general, Halabi added. Act for Human Rights (ALEF), which monitors human rights in Lebanon, is trying to change that through a campaign against torture called Azebak mesh raha (Is it really a pleasure to be tortured?), calling for elimination of torture in detention centers. The title of the campaign is a play on a common Lebanese expression, �Azebak raha,� which means �It is a pleasure to be tortured by you.�
ALEF has put up billboards across Lebanon and will launch a media campaign in an effort to raise awareness about detainees� rights, according to Darine el Hage, executive director of ALEF. This comes on the heels of International Day In Support of Victims of Torture which took place this past Sunday June 26.
Torture is widespread throughout the region, something that has come to light with the wave of uprisings sweeping the Middle East. In the countries experiencing revolts, thousands of anti-regime protesters have been detained and often tortured. The most recent high-profile case was in Syria, where the gruesome torture and killing of 13-year-old Hamza al-Khateeb sparked another wave of protests in the country. In Egypt, the brutal murder of Khaled Said by Egyptian police on June 6, 2010 was also a symbolic event for the Egyptian revolution.
For many victims, the idea of their stories being retold is painful. But Fatima has found peace thanks to the Nassim Center, a project of the Lebanese Center for Human Rights (CLDH) which offers rehabilitation to victims of torture. She said she wanted to tell her story so that she can inspire others to do the same. �Many victims think they are alone. They need to know that there are people who want to listen to their story. There are people who care.� �I long for the day where we can all live in harmony,� said Fatima. �There�s no reason we can�t communicate freely through words. Through words and understanding, everything is possible.�

The right to say no
Now Lebanon/June 27, 2011
The spark that ignited the Syrian Arab awakening was arguably the arrest of 15 young boys from Daraa who had been spraying anti-regime graffiti. But a little-known part of this story was reported in the German weekly news magazine Der Spiegel. �Their fathers and the local sheikh went to the provincial intelligence chief, Atif Najib, a cousin of the president, to plead their cases, arguing that those arrested were just children. Forget them, Najib allegedly said, and send me your wives so that I can make more children for you.�
The comment was monstrous for many reasons, but it will particularly offend those who are fighting an archaic attitude still held in many corners of the Arab world that married women have little or no say in what is perceived as a marital obligation to have sex with her husband whenever he wants. Najib�s comments fall into the most hidebound part of this culture � a wife is a slave, period � but across the region many married women do live as sexual slaves to their husbands� cruel demands, victims of marital rape that comes with the full blessing of the religious authorities.
Lebanon being Lebanon, it is not surprising that many women are campaigning for the ratification of a civil personal status law that allows them to seek redress for what is essentially domestic violence outside the religious courts, most of which do not see martial rape as a crime and will back the husband nine and a half times of out ten. Lebanon also being Lebanon, the Administration and Justice Parliamentary Committee has approved a draft law on domestic violence and other issues of personal freedom. But the opposition is massing its troops.
On Thursday Grand Mufti of the Lebanese Republic Sheikh Mohammad Rashid Qabbani chaired a meeting at Dar al-Fatwa after which the participants issued a statement rejecting the bill. Days earlier Hezbollah Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Qassem weighed in with his party�s view on the matter, arguing that to consider forced marital sex as a crime was �a dangerous matter��end of story.
According to Dar al-Fatwa, the proposed law actually harms Muslim women and denies them the rights granted to them by the Islamic judiciary. The participants went further, arguing that should such a law come into being, it would threaten to tear apart the very fabric of Lebanese family life. It was the thin end of a wedge that would see decent Lebanese Muslims descend into the inferno of Western morals and family values. It also lamented the fact that �health and social� institutions would become places of �complaint� rather than treatment. One assumes they mean it is one thing to complain of a bad back, but another to whine about being raped at home.
As they have done for centuries, the religious authorities live in fear of the secular alternative. No doubt they disapprove of civil marriage for the same reasons: that any union not made before God is easier to break, and that if such a union were to become legal, then the country would go to hell in a hand basket.
But just as the Arab awakening has seen the veil of political subjugation lifted from the eyes of millions of Arabs across the region, then surely the time has come for women to break free from the misogynistic attitudes that have at best kept them from fulfilling their potential and exercising their personal freedoms, and at worst have seen them condemned to lives of misery from abusive spouses with no legal recourse except a religious court.
The law is a necessary safety valve for Lebanon�s confessional system, one that from the day a person is born identifies him or her as belonging to a particular religion or sect. It is obscene to assume that everyone will choose to follow the letter of that faith�s law, and it is incumbent upon the state to create legislation to protect those who for whatever reason wish to follow a secular path. Lebanon has always prided itself on its liberal values and forward-thinking attitudes. Now is not the time to duck the issue

Miqati in Contact with 'All Parties' on STL Clause
Naharnet/Prime Minister Najib Miqati is in contact with all parties in an attempt to find a solution that is �acceptable to all those concerned� regarding the clause in the government Policy Statement which deals with the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, a source close to Miqati told Agence France Presse on Tuesday. �PM Miqati�s stance is based on commitment to international legitimacy and he can�t make any step that might expose� Lebanon to the risks of defying international legitimacy, the source added. Two regional Arabic-language dailies have reported the STL would issue its indictments, which are expected to remain confidential, within days. The tribunal has refused to comment on the reports. Lebanon for months has been bracing for the Netherlands-based STL to issue its indictments in the Beirut bombing that killed ex-PM Rafik Hariri and 22 others, with Hizbullah repeatedly warning it would defend itself against any accusations. "Our position against the tribunal is clear," said Hizbullah-appointed State Minister for Administrative Development Mohammed Fneish. "As yet, there have been no talks as to how the government policy will deal with the tribunal," Fneish told AFP on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Social Affairs Minister Wael Abu Faour told AFP on Tuesday that "the tribunal is one thing that many Lebanese, in government as well as the people, refuse to let go of."
"We will not pit Lebanon against the international community nor against international resolutions," he noted.

France's Christine Lagarde Named First Woman International Monetary Fund chief (IMF) Chief
Naharnet France's Christine Lagarde was named Tuesday as the first-ever female chief of the IMF, faced with an immediate crisis as violent Greek protests rocked the stability of the eurozone.The French finance minister, respected for her leadership during the financial crises that have rocked Europe over the past three years, was chosen to replace countryman Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who resigned abruptly on May 18 after being arrested in New York for an alleged sexual assault.
"The results are in: I am honored & delighted that the board has entrusted me with the position of MD of the IMF!" Lagarde said via Twitter minutes after the announcement.
Despite grumblings from emerging economies over Europe's 65-year lock on the IMF's top job, the solid support of the United States and European nations made it virtually impossible for Mexican challenger Agustin Carstens.
Ultimately key emerging nations, including Brazil, China and Russia, also gave Lagarde their backing.
Choosing Lagarde was expected to ease concerns in Europe over the Fund's support for the fragile bailouts of Greece, Portugal and Ireland in the wake of the unexpected departure of Strauss-Kahn.
"The executive board of the International Monetary Fund today selected Christine Lagarde to serve as IMF managing director and madame chairman of the executive board for a five-year term starting on July 5, 2011," the Fund said in a statement. French President Nicolas Sarkozy's office declared it a "victory for France."
Since the race began in late May, 55-year-old Lagarde has been the strong favorite over Carstens, Mexico's central bank chief, despite his formidable resume.
Despite an effort to cobble together a developing world challenge to Europe's lock on the job, key emerging economies were persuaded by Lagarde's lobbying to cast in for her.
And few had expected Washington to break the tacit pact, dating to the founding of the International Monetary Fund and sister institution the World Bank, that an American would run the Bank while a European headed the Fund. The 187-nation Fund, which plays a crucial but often controversial role aiding countries in financial straits, was left reeling after Strauss-Kahn resigned in the middle of tense negotiations over Greece's massive bailout and anxiety over other struggling European economies.
Strauss-Kahn, the IMF chief since 2007, was arrested in New York on allegations that he sexually assaulted a hotel chambermaid. He denies the charges, and remains under house arrest while preparing his defense. With their crisis festering, Europe's powers aggressively put forward Lagarde.
Though not an economist, she has gained wide respect as France's point-woman during its leadership of the G20 as well as in European debt talks.
"The big advantage of Christine Lagarde is representing a continuity in the cooperation between the Fund and the eurozone," said a source close to the IMF.
Nevertheless, Lagarde had to tour the world to convince emerging economic powers like China and India that she would not be too biased to take tough stances on the European bailouts.
"I am not here to represent the interest of any given region of the world, but rather the entire membership," she told the IMF board last week.
Later Tuesday, Lagarde stressed that she will serve the entire membership of the global emergency lender.
"The IMF has served its 187 member countries well during the global economic and financial crisis, transforming itself in many positive ways," she said in a statement.
"I will make it my overriding goal that our institution continues to serve its entire membership with the same focus and the same spirit."
Lagarde's nomination had drawn concerns that she would be overly focused on Europe's deep problems, especially the massive, unstable Greek bailout, and less attentive to the needs of other regions
She said she was "deeply honored" by the IMF executive board's choosing her over Mexico�s Carstens.
"I would like to thank the Fund's global membership warmly for the broad-based support I have received," she said.
"As I have had the opportunity to say to the IMF board during the selection process, the IMF must be relevant, responsive, effective, and legitimate, to achieve stronger and sustainable growth, macroeconomic stability, and a better future for all."
Source Agence France Presse

Syria: Reform or force?
28/03/2011
By Tariq Alhomayed/ Asharq Al-Awsat
There are reports of two different schools of thought in Damascus, fighting with one another regarding how to deal with the current events in Syria, following a wave of protests in several cities. One side believes that the time has come for reform, and that this is an unavoidable fact, whilst the other side believes that further force should be used to crush the protests. Which of the two theories will prevail in Syria?
There is no doubt that further repression would buy the regime more time, any regime for that matter, but it cannot save it. The clearest examples of this are Saddam Hussein's Iraq, and Muammar Gaddafi's Libya. Both exhausted the use of force, and all means of oppression, but the time for change still came, and when it did it was a harsh reality for the rulers.
Can Damascus continue to prosecute a journalist under the accusation of �weakening national morale�, as it has done recently? Can it imprison a child of 15 years of age, accused of threatening national security, as it did a few weeks ago? Such acts are incompatible with the new variables that have come about in the Middle East. Whether the final outcome is positive or negative, there has been a real change in our region.
Whether or not Egypt becomes a real democracy, or if the only achievement of the revolution is limiting the duration of a presidential term, and the same goes for Libya, Tunisia, and other states, will the Syrian regime then be able to remain inactive? Of course not. What happened in Syria tells us a lot: the Syrians have rejected the slogans that the state has long been repeating; such as the country's preoccupation with resistance. These empty slogans have now been replaced with stark warnings, about the dangers of meddling with minority-majority, and sectarian issues. The Syrians, like the Egyptians before them, have publicly declared their rejection for the oldest emergency rule in the region, along with many other issues.
Therefore, the course of events in our region (from which Syria is not excluded) tells us that Damascus has no option other than [introducing] more reforms in a timely manner, so that it does not miss the opportunity to resolve the situation, and the opposition do not raise their demands to impossibilities. The time has come for Damascus to pay more attention to its internal issues, and to seriously work towards providing decisive solutions with regards to political representation, and the democratic transfer of power. The republic will remain a republic, and there is no magic solution to these problems.
Of course, Syria announced the reformative steps it has undertaken, or would take in the future, such as abolishing emergency law, [creating] a new law for the media, dismissing certain members of the government, and so on. These are all important and vital decisions, by Syrian standards. But the real question is: is this enough? Or does reform have to continue, and do more drastic steps have to be taken? I believe that the course of events tells us that reforms are the only solution, and inaction only leads to death. Therefore, Damascus today is facing a critical moment, and must seriously re-evaluate its approach to internal and external [issues]. Today is different to yesterday, and tomorrow may be different once again. The fear barrier has not only been broken in Syria alone, but in the entire Arab region. We all know that violence breeds violence, and as a result there is no 'magic' solution, except introducing further reforms

TRENDING: Pawlenty: Obama administration 'naive' on Syria
By: CNN Political Coverage Manager Steve Brusk
Washington (CNN) - Likely Republican presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty accused the Obama administration of "naivety" on Syria, as he called for the United States to recall its ambassador and toughen sanctions on the country. Pawlenty's comments came in a radio interview on the Hugh Hewitt Show Monday evening, shortly before President Obama addressed the nation on the military operation in Libya.
"Our interests in Syria are at least as strong, if not stronger, than in Libya", Pawlenty said when asked what the United States should do after violent crackdowns on demonstrators in Syria. �Here you have a country (that has) enabled and accommodated people to go into Iraq and kill American soldiers. They house Hamas and allow them to exist in Syria as they continue to be a terrorist organization in Israel and elsewhere. And the list goes on and on about the problems that the Syria, and specifically Bashir Assad, has caused the region and the world and also the United States of America." Pawlenty told Hewitt the U.S. needs a tougher stance on the Syria protests, first calling for President Obama "to speak strongly and clearly to the people of Syria that we hope and believe and support their drive towards freedom and getting rid of Bashir Assad.� The former Minnesota governor, who last week launched an exploratory committee for a White House run, said the administration needs to recall Ambassador Robert Ford from Damascus. President Obama named Ford as Ambassador in 2009, four years after the U.S. withdrew its envoy in protest at the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. �President Obama made the mistake of sending an ambassador to Syria, legitimizing that country and his regime in ways that I don't think are appropriate. Recall the ambassador,� Pawlenty said. In the interview, he also called for the United States to start invoking further sanctions on Damascus, �both economically and otherwise." Palwenty called any belief that Syria and Assad could be peace agents in the region "a complete crock." He said it "shows the naivety of the Obama administration. And to have the secretary of state on a Sunday morning talk show implying that he's a reformer; to have his administration essentially embracing in any manner or degree Bashir Assad and Syria as a peace agent - or an agent for reform and stability in the region - is either ignorant or frighteningly misguided."
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was asked on CBS' �Face the Nation� how the situation in Libya was worse than repression over the years in Syria, including by Assad's father. Clinton said, "There is a different leader in Syria now. Many of the members of Congress of both parties who have gone to Syria in recent months have said they believe he's a reformer. What's been happening there the last few weeks is deeply concerning."

Syria: Young Democracy
Tue, 28 June 2011
By: Husam Itani/Al Hayat
Opponents of the Antalya Conference, and supporters of the Brussels meeting, critics of the Semiramis gathering, and critics of the critics� welcome to the maze of democracy.
None of these meetings took place without opposition, and reservations. No meeting took place without one of the invitees pulling out. The draft discussions were put forward and met with objections and criticisms. The objections and reservations were centered on the impossibility of holding dialogue with the authorities in Syria before the halting of the military-security campaign that the regime has chosen as a response to the peaceful uprising. The opposition fears that any conference inside the country will be a lifeline to President Bashar Assad and those who surround him, who are growing more isolated and frantic. Activists inside the country also warn about any links between the opposition outside the country and foreign parties that have expressed an intention to intervene militarily in Syria.
The reservations and fears are understandable, and all wise. After 48 years of a harshly-imposed state of emergency, suspicion and doubt have become the most prominent elements in the process of creating the "content" of how political interaction should take place in Syria. The �state of emergency� and its ramifications destroyed political and public life in the country and rendered everyone working in the public and political arenas suspect in their patriotism, according to the authorities, and turned them into wanted people. Moreover, the authoritarian system destroyed the cultural and political elite and dried out political practice, preventing the possibility of enhancing it.
If one were to create a list of the names of all of the Syrian political activists, from supporters of these events, and those afraid of them, and those who belong to the wide spectrum of opposition, we would easily notice the following: they all have a history of suffering, arrest, prison and torture at the hands of the regime's security and judicial authorities. The point is that what was suffered by ordinary Syrians, and those involved in public affairs, is frightening enough to sow every type of suspicion and obsession in them when it comes to any type of initiative. The reservations about the Antalya conference are diametrically opposed to those about the Semiramis gathering, in terms of the fear of external exploitation of the opposition versus the fear of falling into the traps of the regime. This is the path the Syrian opposition is treading today.
Let us acknowledge that the frameworks for organizing political, popular and civil forces in Syria have been methodologically suppressed for nearly fifty years, which is no easy matter to dismiss. The confusion, mistakes, suspiciousness, and exaggerations are part of the path of recovery for the illness of dictatorship. If this dictatorship has not thrown down its weapons yet, and has not surrendered, it is waiting for the opportunity to turn against the uprising and crush it.
However, more important is the fact that the Syrian opposition, in its various forms and in the millions of people involved in daily activity in the street, in cities from Qamishli in the northeast to Daraa in the south, and the refugee camps in Turkey and the neighborhoods of Rukn al-Din in Damascus, and despite some of the sharp accusations of betraying the blood of the martyrs and the sacrifices of prisoners, has been able to think aloud about its anxiety about the benefits achieved by the revolution on the path of building a democratic Syria, which will inevitably arrive one day.
It urgently needs to be said that the doubts and contradictory proposals, and the excessive activity, or lethargy by some, are symptoms of what can be called "young democracy" syndrome. However, Syrians, and those who are waiting with them for the objectives of their uprising to be achieved, should not be frightened of this disease. In the worst of cases, it accompanies the growth and spread of democracy from under the rubble of dictatorship.
Yes, being cautious is a duty at these sensitive moments. But at the same time, this is a time of establishing democratic practice, and it must necessarily take some rocky paths. The important thing is for things to move forward, and progress.