LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِNovember 06/2011

Bible Quotation for today/Final Instructions
Romans 16/17-20: "Greet one another with the kiss of peace. All the churches of Christ send you their greetings. I urge you, my friends: watch out for those who cause divisions and upset people's faith and go against the teaching which you have received. Keep away from them! For those who do such things are not serving Christ our Lord, but their own appetites. By their fine words and flattering speech they deceive innocent people. Everyone has heard of your loyalty to the gospel, and for this reason I am happy about you. I want you to be wise about what is good, but innocent in what is evil. And God, our source of peace, will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

Latest analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases from miscellaneous sources
In Syria, time is murder/Shane Farrell and Nadine Elali/November 05/11
All Anxious on the Syrian Front: Damascus' Long Shadow Creeps into Lebanon/By Nicholas Blanford/November 05/11  
When we wish for shameful statements/By: Tariq Aintrazi/November 05/11

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for November 05/11
U.S. military official: We are concerned Israel will not warn us before Iran attack
Peres: I believe Israel, world approaching military option on Iran nuclear threat
UN report to reveal evidence of Iran's nuclear weapons program
Security Council Will Tackle STL Funding if Lebanon Fails to Do So
Sanctions unlikely if Lebanon fails to fund Special Tribunal
Acting Spokesman: Bellemare is ‘Away from STL Seat’ but ‘Work Continues at Full Speed’
Minister of the Displaced Alaeddine Terro says Lebanon must provide STL funding share
March 14 students win NDU elections
Geagea Alarmed by 'Resurfacing' of Pro-Syria Group Saeqa
Lebanon's Arabic press digest - Nov. 5, 2011
Lebanese Forces bloc MP Antoine Zahra says FPM acquiring arms in North Lebanon
Faris Soaid: Opposition Preparing to Topple Government
Berri Says Dialogue Won't Address Hizbullah Arms as Opposition Insists on it
Lebanon: New SLA return law may be a case of too little too late
Lebanese Army clashes with Kataeb supporters
LF, Kataeb  supporters maintain grip on NDU
Kataeb bloc MP Sami Gemayel condemns NDU clashes
PM survives confidence vote, pledges unity Cabinet
Security Forces Continue Campaign of Arrests against Suspects in Dahiyeh
U.S. skeptical of Assad’s amnesty
Hariri tweets live on STL, Syria as well as his future plans
Berri: No real Lebanon without dialogue
Hizbullah Sources: Evidence Linking Israel to Hariri Case Tests STL’s Credibility
Loyalty to the Resistance bloc leader MP Mohammad Raad : Israel will not wage war on Lebanon
PSP elects young new secretary-general  
Snowfall covers Cedars, heavy rainfall causes spell of road accidents including 1 fatality
Arab, international pressure behind Syria’s unconditional acceptance of League plan
Tripoli arrests 2 Libyans in Sadr case: source
Greek PM survives confidence vote, pledges unity Cabinet
US advises Syrians against surrendering to regime
23 Killed as Syria Offers Amnesty for Arms Surrender
Syria Blasts U.S. for 'Blatant Interference'
Israel Navy Intercepts Canadian, Irish Gaza-bound Aid Ships
Iran Celebrates 1979 U.S. Embassy Seizure
Poll: Mitt Romney Romney would edge out Obama if election held now

'US concerned Israel will act alone in Iran'
American military official claims Washington won't necessarily get a heads up before Israel strikes nuclear facilities; says 'first class' Iranian defense system poses serious threat to IAF aircraft
Ynet Published: 11.05.11, 08:22 / Israel News
Washington concerned of unilateral action? An American army official on Friday told CNN network that the United States is concerned over the possibility that Israel will attack Iran's nuclear facilities without notifying it first.
n the past, Washington could be certain that Jerusalem would give it a head noticebefore launching a strike but the American officials claimed that it is not an "Ironclad" guarantee anymore.
Asked whether the Pentagon is worried about a possible strike, the American official said "absolutely," but stressed that the United States has not intention to attack Iran at the moment.
According to the report, Washington believes an Israeli military operation would include fighter jets and ballistic missiles, but the army official warned that Iran's defense systems are "first-class" and pose a serious threat to Israeli Air Force aircraft.
The report further stated that the IAF pilots would have to fly through a third country before reaching Iran, and will most likely need to refuel in the air – at the risk of being detected by regional radars. The use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), the official added, is not possible as it cannot fly the long distance or carry the weapons required to destroy the nuclear facilities.
Pressure on the Islamic Republic is expected to grow with the publication of The United Nations' atomic agency report next week.
The IAEA plans to reveal intelligence suggesting Iran made computer models of a nuclear warhead and other previously undisclosed details on alleged secret work by Tehran on nuclear arms, diplomats told The Associated Press on Friday.
Other new confidential information the International Atomic Energy Agency plans to share with its 35 board members will include satellite imagery of what the IAEA believes is a large steel container used for nuclear arms-related high explosives tests, the diplomats said.

Lebanon's Arabic press digest - Nov. 5, 2011
The Daily Star
Following are summaries of some of the main stories in a selection of Lebanese newspapers Saturday. The Daily Star cannot vouch for the accuracy of these reports.
An-Nahar
Will Berri back down from his initiative?
Will Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri back down from his call for dialogue, especially when the issue of Hezbollah’s arms has become a primary condition for the March 14 forces to join the dialogue?
What Al-Manar quoted Berri Friday as saying has become a source of confusion in terms of his proposal for dialogue, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and decisions made under former Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, decisions that were issued after the withdrawal of Amal Movement ministers over the issue of the tribunal.
Al-Manar quoted Berri as saying: “Those who think the issue of Hezbollah’s weapons is up for discussion are mistaken,” Berri said, insisting on the need for a national defense strategy.
He said: “They should take it from me. [The strategy] is the tripartite formula of ‘the army, the people, and the resistance,’ and they can rearrange [the order] whatever way they want.”
He also made it clear that he did not officially discuss with President Michel Sleiman his proposal for dialogue but that he would contact him soon.
On another note, Berri spoke about his meeting with Siniora where the two, according to Berri, discussed decisions made by Siniora following the resignation of the Amal Movement and Hezbollah ministers during Siniora’s term as prime minister, saying: “These decisions [taken in that Cabinet] are only destined to be cancelled.”
“Discussing the matter of the tribunal comes in different parts, one on whether it is constitutional or not and the other on its establishment. Lebanese democracy ensures that the issue be placed for a vote in Cabinet, or if they want, [it could put to a vote] in Parliament and they are welcome to do that.”
Berri expressed puzzlement with why the West had asked [former] Prime Minister Saad Hariri about Lebanon’s commitment toward the tribunal eight months after the formation of his Cabinet while they have been asking [Prime Minister Najib] Mikati’s Cabinet since its formation. “Why the hurry?” he asked.
As-Safir
The U.S. is entitled to what Lebanon is not
When the U.S. announced it would stop funding UNESCO as a punishment for the organization for granting Palestine full membership, Hezbollah saw this as a gift. Hezbollah MP Hasan Fadlallah said in a statement in Parliament that the U.S. should be facing repercussions because it failed to commit to its international obligations and went against the will of the international community. He said that such an action should prompt international sanctions and isolation of the U.S.
Fadlallah, attempting to demonstrate the double standard that exists within some domestic political parties, urged them to take a stand and work to sanction the U.S.
Yesterday, Siniora urged the Arab League, Arab presidents and Muslim and Western countries to take the initiative and collect and pay the amount that the U.S. and Israel used to pay [to UNESCO]. With this step, according to Siniora, we could easily defeat the Israeli and American ways of extortion, intimidation and pressure to gain dominance.”
Siniora did not hear Fadlallah’s suggestions or maybe he heard it well, so he came up with a position that conflicts with his previous ones: What the U.S. is entitled to, Lebanon is not, meaning, Lebanon’s failure to fund the tribunal could be met with sanctions and international isolation, but America’s failure to fund UNESCO can be replaced with Arab funding.
This single criterion cannot be seen as a solution to deal with the issue of funding the tribunal which was created via a U.N. resolution.
Al-Balad
Eid holiday postpones controversial issues
While the country began its Adha holiday, which extends until the middle of next week, President Michel Sleiman has intensified his efforts aimed at revising the national dialogue committee with the support of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri in a bid to prepare for discussions over the election law proposed by Interior Minister Marwan Charbel before the end of the year. The Cabinet will begin discussing the issue during its Nov. 11 session.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Najib Mikati is using his trip to Britain to gain more international support for hi s government and discuss its relationship with the international community in light of the issue of funding for the tribunal that is required before the end of November.
Funding of the tribunal was a key topic in discussions between former Prime Minister Saad Hariri and Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt when they met in Paris two weeks ago, according to parliamentary sources. They added that the two discussed the tribunal in the presence of Public Works Minister Ghazi Aridi and they agreed on the importance of funding the tribunal and the steps that could be adopted in case the government fails to fund, including the resignation of Jumblatt’s ministers from Mikati’s Cabinet.
Kuwait newspaper Al-Anbaa reported that a meeting between Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Prime Minister Najib Mikati and head of the Future Movement Block Fouad Siniora was the first of its kind since the formation of Mikati’s Cabinet and Siniora’s departure from the Grand Serail. The meeting included various issues such as funding the tribunal.
Al-Joumhouria
Discussing side issues to postpone explosion within the Cabinet
The country began the Eid holiday, which extends into next week, as political activity enters a recession that should pick up after the holiday with consecutive Cabinet sessions, some of which will discuss the draft budget for 2012, others the proposed electoral law.
There is also the issue of the minimum wage after the Shura Council revealed that the Cabinet had violated the labor law in the decree to raise the minimum wage. This comes amid indications that the labor unions might strike if the increase is not approved and while the private sector continues to reject any proposal.
Political and diplomatic sources are carefully observing the measures adopted by Lebanese leaders to postpone matters that are most dangerous and which affect Lebanon’s relationship with the international community and organizations while the country holds a permanent member status at the U.N. Security Council until the end of the year.
These sources noted that [the government] was dealing with side issues, postponing the discussion on the tribunal, which is a standing issue that cannot be hidden, in a bid to postpone an internal explosion following the series of experiences that the Cabinet went through like the electricity bill, military and security promotions and the proposed electoral law.
Meanwhile, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri announced during a televised interview last night that he had not officially discussed reviving dialogue with President Michel Sleiman but that he would do that soon, especially that [Sleiman] is the one who called for it officially. He also spoke about his meeting with [former] Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, saying that he had told Siniora to think before giving any answers.

March 14 students win NDU elections
November 4, 2011
Pro-March 14 partisans on Friday won all thirty-eight seats in the Notre Dame University (NDU) student elections.
The Kataeb Party issued a statement that the elections broke down as follows:
-Faculty of Engineering: March 14 won all nine seats.
-Faculty of Business Administration and Management: March 14 won all 12 seats.
-Faculty of Sciences: March 14 won all three seats;
-Faculty of Nursing: March 14 won the two seats.
-Faculty of Political Science: March 14 won the two seats. -NOW Lebanon

Kataeb bloc MP Sami Gemayel condemns NDU clashes
November 4, 2011 /Daily Star/Kataeb bloc MP Sami Gemayel condemned on Friday the clashes that erupted earlier in the day between Lebanese army soldiers and pro-Kataeb students outside the Notre Dame University (NDU) campus, and described them as “disgusting.”“We are proud of the NDU students who did not cede their rights and did not fear intimidation and oppression,” Gemayel told the Voice of Lebanon (100.5) radio.He also voiced surprise that “in Lebanon some are allowed to have missiles and install their own telecommunications networks, while others are taken to prison if they launch fireworks.”MTV television reported on Friday that a clash erupted between pro-Kataeb students and Lebanese army soldiers who were deployed around the campus of the Notre Dame University (NDU) because of the fireworks that were launched following the victory of March 14 supporters in the university’s student body elections. -NOW Lebanon

Zouk Mosbeh Road Blocked after NDU Reveling Students Arrested
Naharnet /Scores of students belonging to the Phalange Party on Friday blocked the Zouk Mosbeh-Jeita highway to protest the army’s arrest of three of their comrades who were using fireworks to celebrate their victory in student elections at the Notre Dame University - Louaize (NDU), state-run National News Agency reported.
The road was reopened a few hours later after the army released the detained students, NNA said. “Once the results were announced at NDU in Zouk Mosbeh, the triumphant students took to the streets to celebrate, launching fireworks, which prompted army troops in charge of security in the university’s vicinity to try to stop them. Verbal clashes and a stampede ensued, leaving several students injured,” the agency clarified. Media reports said the army called in major reinforcements to Zouk Mosbeh, with its anti-terrorism and anti-riot forces deploying in the area. “It’s a shame that in 2011 some people are allowed to carry rockets and shells and install private telecom networks while other citizens are beaten and arrested when they launch fireworks,” Phalange Party Central Committee Coordinator MP Sami Gemayel told Radio Voice of Lebanon (100.3-100.5). For his part, his bloc colleague MP Elie Marouni said “the scene reminds us of August 7,” referring to the Lebanese authorities’ infamous 2001 crackdown on opposition students. “While Arabs are heading towards freedom, we are seeing how violence is increasing against students and youths,” Marouni added, noting that he made contacts with several security officials and asked them “whether they had noticed how Hizbullah members in the Bekaa celebrate every single occasion by firing RPGs.”

LF, Kataeb supporters maintain grip on NDU
November 05, 2011/By Wassim Mroue/The Daily Star
The NDU said the the elections were held in a calm and peaceful atmosphere.
ZOUK MOSBEH, Lebanon: Student candidates supportive of the Lebanese Forces, the Kataeb (Phalange) Party and their March 14 allies swept student council elections at Notre Dame University Friday, winning 37 of 38 seats to maintain their grip on the campus for the fourth consecutive year.
March 14 students clinched all seats in the Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Faculty of Architecture, Art and Design, Faculty of Engineering, Faculty of Humanities, Faculty of Nursing and Health Sciences and Faculty of Natural and Applied Science.
Competing in the electoral race against the LF and the Kataeb were Michel Aoun’s Free Patriotic Movement, Suleiman Franjieh’s Marada Movement and other March 8 groups.
Oliver Zakhia, an FPM-supported candidate, won one of two seats at the Faculty of Political Science, Public Administration and Diplomacy.
The Progressive Socialist Party took part in the polls, allied with the FPM.
“We have good ties with all parties there and our alliance with the Free Patriotic Movement had no political dimensions, merely academic [ones],” Bassel Aoud, PSP’s official responsible for private universities, told The Daily Star.
In a statement issued following the elections, NDU said that polls were held “in a happy atmosphere, affirming that students enjoy high moral values and a distinguished democratic spirit,” without “commotion, rumors and concerns.”
Tamim Abu Karroum, who supervised the elections on behalf of the Lebanese Association for Democratic Elections, said that the day-long electoral process was “good, calm and saw no brawls.” He also said that the organization of the polls by NDU’s administration was “good.”
But as preliminary results were announced, a scuffle broke out between the Lebanese Army and Kataeb students celebrating victory outside the campus.
The army arrested three students, prompting their angry classmates to protest by blocking the Zouk Mosbeh road, leading to traffic congestion.
Patrick Risha, the head of the Kataeb Youth Department, told The Daily Star that the army assaulted students, leaving several students injured, and arrested three of them after some launched celebratory fireworks. The detainees were later released.
Speaking to The Daily Star shortly before the polls closed, Carl Shayeb, the head of the LF students at NDU, said the electoral process “is good so far.” “We consider this university to be representative of Christian public opinion.”
Shayeb said that FPM students were not sincere about their promises to work on reducing tuition fees.
“In 2009, they rejected our proposal to deal with fees imposed by the university apart from tuition fees,” he said.
“The Maronite Mariamite Order determines the tuition fees every year and we could do nothing in this regard,” he said.
Shayeb boasted the achievements of the student council in the previous three years when it was dominated by the March 14 coalition.
“We bought a bus which cost us triple our budget in order to transport students from the faraway parking lot to protect them from rain and sun,” he said.
The program of the March 14-supported Active Student List promises to boost the financial aid budget. Hitting back, Elie Ghanimeh, an FPM supporter, said that in 2009 the FPM students in the council were a minority that could not block any decision. The FPM-supported Students of Change list vowed to put “an end to the annual increase in tuition fees that has been recurrent in the past three years.”
Ghanimeh noted that not all needy students benefited from financial aid, describing those who receive aid as “only students with connections.”
A number of achievements made by FPM students for the university when they led the student council before 2005, including the introduction of online registration and reducing the engineering internship fee, were outlined in its program.
In the end, students voting for either list cited similar reasons for their support. Johnny, an engineering major, said he voted for the March 8 list because they work for the good of students.
“For instance, thanks to them we have been registering online … since the beginning of the 2000s,” he said.
But another student who refused to give his name said that he voted for the March 14 slate since students from the group “work better for the university and their political background is better.”“Every year they provide needy students with books for free,” said the financial engineering student.
Jessica Hallaq, a senior political science major who was running independently, said that neither of the camps were working sufficiently for the benefit of students. – With additional reporting by Enora Castagné

Kataeb bloc MP Sami Gemayel condemns NDU clashes
November 4, 2011 /Kataeb bloc MP Sami Gemayel condemned on Friday the clashes that erupted earlier in the day between Lebanese army soldiers and pro-Kataeb students outside the Notre Dame University (NDU) campus, and described them as “disgusting.”“We are proud of the NDU students who did not cede their rights and did not fear intimidation and oppression,” Gemayel told the Voice of Lebanon (100.5) radio. He also voiced surprise that “in Lebanon some are allowed to have missiles and install their own telecommunications networks, while others are taken to prison if they launch fireworks.” MTV television reported on Friday that a clash erupted between pro-Kataeb students and Lebanese army soldiers who were deployed around the campus of the Notre Dame University (NDU) because of the fireworks that were launched following the victory of March 14 supporters in the university’s student body elections. -NOW Lebanon

Lebanese Army clashes with Kataeb supporters
November 04, 2011/ By Wassim Mroueh The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Clashes broke out Friday between the Lebanese army and student supporters of the Kataeb (Phalange) Party who were celebrating victory in student elections.
Patrick Risha, the head of the Kataeb youth department, said that party’s students at Notre Dame University campus in Zouk Mosbeh were celebrating their victory in student elections near the campus when the army intervened after students launched fireworks. “Soldiers assaulted our students and arrested three,” said Risha who spoke to The Daily Star from the scene, adding that Kataeb students will keep closing the Zouk Mosbeh highway until the three are released. Chanting support of the Kataeb and the Lebanese Forces could be heard during the telephone conversation.

Security Council Will Tackle STL Funding if Lebanon Fails to Do So
Naharnet /The United Nations Security Council will have to “confront” the issue of the funding of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon if the government fails to do so, reported the daily An Nahar on Saturday. A western diplomatic source told the daily that the Security Council has not reached that point yet. “This issue is a cause for concern at the council,” he added.
He noted that President Michel Suleiman and Prime Minister Najib Miqati had both stated, while they were in New York, that Lebanon will commit to all of its international obligations.
The two officials had traveled to New York when Lebanon headed the U.N. Security Council earlier this year. The source added that the Security Council had “welcomed these pledges with relief.” “We are aware of the hardships Miqati is facing and there is still hope that this issue could be resolved,” he continued. “We will tackle the issue of the funding if Lebanon does not fulfill its duties,” he warned. Lebanon is obligated to fund 49 percent of the STL’s budget. Disputes have arisen in the country between the rival March 8 and 14 camps, with the former refusing to fund it and the latter insisting that Lebanon respect its international commitments or face U.N. sanctions. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman had warned that Lebanon may incur harsh consequences should it fail to fund the tribunal. The Lebanese government should abide by its commitments because it is a member of the U.N. Security Council and because the international tribunal was established by a Council resolution at Lebanon's request, he added to al-Arabiya television

Acting Spokesman: Bellemare is ‘Away from STL Seat’ but ‘Work Continues at Full Speed’
Naharnet /The acting spokesman of Special Tribunal for Lebanon Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare confirmed to Naharnet that the judge is currently away from the STL seat but stressed that he is following up the work of his office. “As a matter of policy we do not discuss details of the health of staff,” Gregory Townsend, the senior legal officer and acting spokesperson of Bellemare’s office, told Naharnet. “We can confirm that the prosecutor has been away from the seat of the STL in Leidschendam, Netherlands, due to health reasons,” he said.
However, Townsend stressed that “Bellemare is in constant contact with his staff and the work of the office of the prosecutor continues at full speed.”The acting spokesperson’s comment came after pan-Arab daily al-Hayat reported that Bellemare is suffering from an advanced stage of diabetes.Bellemare has isolated himself in a room in Canada away from the people’s sight over his “serious illness,” it said.When asked if the prosecutor would attend a hearing at the STL next Friday, Townsend did not comment.Last month, the tribunal announced it would hold a hearing on November 11 to discuss whether to try four Hizbullah members in absentia.Salim Ayyash, Mustafa Badreddine, Hussein Oneissi and Assad Sabra are wanted for the massive February 14, 2005, suicide car bomb attack in Beirut that killed ex-Premier Rafik Hariri and 22 others, including the suicide bomber.

Minister of the Displaced Alaeddine Terro says Lebanon must provide STL funding share
November 5, 2011 /Minister of the Displaced Alaeddine Terro said that he insists that the Lebanese government should provide its annual share of funding to the UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL).“We insist on funding the tribunal and [no longer] discussing the issue through the media,” Terro, who represents MP Walid Jumblatt’s Progressive Socialist Party, told the Voice of Lebanon (100.5) radio station. He added that “everything should be discussed in [possible] national dialogue sessions, except for the STL issue.”
“An agreement was reached by all Lebanese parties in 2006 concerning the tribunal,” the minister said. He also denied reports that Jumblatt has requested to meet with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus. Four Hezbollah members have been indicted by the STL in the 2005 assassination of former Premier Rafik Hariri. However, the Shia group strongly denied the charges and refuses to cooperate with the court. Prime Minister Najib Mikati has repeatedly voiced Lebanon’s commitment to the tribunal. Lebanon contributes 49 percent of the STL’s annual funding.-NOW Lebanon

Sanctions unlikely if Lebanon fails to fund Special Tribunal
November 05, 2011 /By Patrick Galey The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Lebanon is unlikely to be subjected to international sanctions should it fail to meet a looming deadline to fund the United Nations-backed court probing the assassination of Statesman Rafik Hariri, political and diplomatic sources have told The Daily Star. It is anticipated that the cutoff date to provide the Special Tribunal for Lebanon $32 million for its 2011 running costs will be missed and, although the threat of U.N. sanctions has been raised, the government does not believe it will be punished. “The government will not fund the STL … and we don’t expect the Security Council to impose sanctions against Lebanon because of that,” a senior political source close to Hezbollah told The Daily Star.United States Assistant Secretary of State Jeffrey Feltman warned Friday that “harsh decisions” would be taken against Lebanon if it failed to come up with the cash.
“We expect Lebanon to completely implement its international commitments because the STL was established upon Lebanon’s request,” Feltman told Al-Arabiya television.
Several other countries and organizations, including the European Union and the STL itself, have raised the idea of financial penalties in the event that the funding deadline is missed. But what officials are saying publicly differs to their true intentions.
Prime Minister Najib Mikati, who this week told the BBC that he still expected the Cabinet to reach an agreement over funding, visited Washington last month and met with senior U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Hilary Clinton.
According to one March 8 official with knowledge of behind-the-scenes talks, Clinton told Mikati that the United States would not seek to impose sanctions on Lebanon.
The accepted international approach to the issue, according to one senior Western diplomat, is to wield the menace of sanctions without actually going through with them.
“No one wants to use sanctions,” the diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Daily Star. “The threat of sanctions is worse than the sanctions themselves.”
Western governments are said to be uneasy with the idea of financial restraints further destabilizing Lebanon’s security. There is some anxiety over the possibility of sanctions pressuring Mikati’s government into collapse, inadvertently further empowering Hezbollah.
“We don’t think it’s in the interest of the United States and its allies in the region to impose sanctions and risk having the situation deteriorate dramatically in Lebanon, which would lead to the further weakening of their local allies and increase the threat to their interests,” the senior political source said.
Even if some governments championed the idea of penalties against Lebanon, it is thought that Russia and China would veto any Security Council vote.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah, in a recent interview with Al-Manar television, said he was leaving the funding issue to the Cabinet. His party has outright rejected the court, labeling it an “Israeli project” even before four of its members were named as suspects in Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare’s June indictment.
Mikati and Sleiman are known to be keen to force through 2011’s court funding in order to avoid placing Lebanon in conflict with the international community.
Under U.N. Security Council Resolution 1757, Lebanon is obliged to meet 49 percent of the divisive tribunal’s annual running costs. It does not specifically mention the possibility of sanctions. In September, STL President Herman von Hebel set a deadline of 30 working days for Lebanon to provide its share, a date set to pass later this month.
In lieu of Lebanon’s funding, the court has managed its finances through additional provisions from donor nations.
The tribunal said Friday that it expected Lebanon to provide the money, in spite of the prevailing disunity in the Cabinet as the deadline approaches. STL spokesperson Marten Youssef did not rule out any course of action. “Both the Lebanese prime minister and the president have expressed their commitment to funding the tribunal and we expect these words will be translated into action. Our intention is to officially inquire of the Lebanese government what practical steps have been taken to follow through on their verbal commitments and international obligation to fund the tribunal. Based on their response, the STL will decide what action to take next,” Youssef said.

Geagea Alarmed by 'Resurfacing' of Pro-Syria Group Saeqa
Naharnet /Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea on Friday criticized the Lebanese officials for failing to disarm Palestinian groups in Lebanon. Geagea slammed the officials for “not demanding the removal of Palestinian weapons, in line with (the resolutions of) the national dialogue sessions,” noting that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was keen on that more than Lebanon’s officials. The LF leader voiced alarm over the resurfacing of the pro-Syria Palestinian group Saeqa, which was active during Lebanon’s 1975-1990 civil war, warning that “the organization has resumed its activities.” “Where is the government? Where are the security agencies that would prosecute a citizen carrying a pistol in the barren mountains while they turn a blind eye to the entry of weapons to some Palestinian organizations that have been rearming?” Geagea lamented. Speaking to reporters following talks with MP Hadi Hbeish and his father, ex-minister Fawzi Hbeish, Geagea also stressed that “there can be no better living conditions without a real economic cycle, and no real economic cycle without stability and confidence.”  “As long as there are mini-states, as is the case today, let’s not hope to reach a healthy economy,” Geagea added, noting that “we cannot achieve the living conditions we aspire as long as there are arms and a strategic decision outside state control.”On the other hand, Geagea described Speaker Nabih Berri’s recent dialogue call as insincere, adding that the opposition March 14 camp was “unwilling to engage in such a dialogue, unless we sense that the other camp truly intends to engage in a serious dialogue over the only item still pending on the agenda: Hizbullah’s arms.”“We have become convinced that we can have no economy, stability or security amid the presence of these weapons,” Geagea went on to say.

Lebanese Forces bloc MP Antoine Zahra says FPM acquiring arms in North Lebanon
November 5, 2011 /Lebanese Forces bloc MP Antoine Zahra on Saturday said that the Free Patriotic Movement headed by MP Michel Aoun is “acquiring weapons” in the northern Lebanese district of Batroun. He told New TV that officials from the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP) and Hezbollah “sold weapons to the supporters of Aoun in Batroun during a meeting with [FPM] minister Gebran Bassil’s security chief.”“The meeting included SSNP official Tony Mansour, Hezbollah official Raed Abdel Nour and Bassil’s security chief,” Zahra, who represents the Batroun district, said.He added that the meeting, in which the arms’ deal allegedly took place, “was held at ‘Le Marin’ restaurant in Batroun.”“Those parties are the [most] corrupt ones…and everything that I have stated should be [taken into account] by relevant security forces.”-NOW Lebanon

Soaid: Opposition Preparing to Topple Government
Naharnet /The March 14 General Secretariat coordinator Fares Soaid stated that a government that provides cover to a group that is “attached” to the Syrian regime cannot provide the Lebanese people with security. He told the pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat in remarks published on Saturday: “The opposition is preparing to topple the Lebanese government.”
He explained that it is seeking to overthrow it because it is a “main backer of the Syrian regime in Lebanon.”“The government is placing all of its political, diplomatic, and security capabilities in supporting the Syrian regime, which was demonstrated in Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour’s actions before the Arab League and United Nations Security Council,” he noted.
“A new phase in Lebanon where the political, media, parliamentary, and even popular confrontations against the government’s support for Syria must begin,” Soaid declared.
Asked if the opposition would resort to street action to achieve this goal, he replied: “In the past, we had requested that the Lebanese diaspora mobilize due to the sensitive political situation in Lebanon.” “If the regime’s violations increase then will resort to popular action,” he added. He explained that in the previous phase, the opposition had simply voiced its verbal support for the Arab revolts, “but now we are trying to back Syria in action.” The March 14 official stressed however that this action will not turn into meddling into Syrian internal affairs.
“This will take place through demanding the toppling of the Lebanese government, which has no purpose but to support Syria and thwart the funding of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, especially since one side in the government is accused of being involved in assassinations in Lebanon,” Soaid revealed. Mansour had stated before the U.N. Security Council that Lebanon cannot support a decision that condemns the Syrian regime’s crackdown against anti-regime protests. On October 4, Lebanon abstained from voting on a Security Council draft resolution to impose sanctions on Syria.A few months prior to that, it had disassociated itself from a statement that condemned the regime’s crackdown.

Berri Says Dialogue Won't Address Hizbullah Arms as Opposition Insists on it
Naharnet /Speaker Nabih Berri has not coordinated his call for dialogue with the Hizbullah leadership, revealed sources close to the party to the daily An Nahar Saturday.
They noted that it appears that Berri had taken it upon himself to issue the call for dialogue, “which he has the right to, especially since the region is witnessing several important developments.” The daily reported that the speaker is expected to meet with President Michel Suleiman to discuss this matter, but an exact date has not been set for it and it could be delayed until after Eid al-Adha. Berri had told al-Manar television on Friday that Hizbullah’s arms will not be addressed at the national dialogue, while the opposition insists that it should.
He said that the country’s defense strategy lies in the equation of the army, people, and resistance.
Mustaqbal parliamentary sources meanwhile questioned the need to return to the dialogue table given that the agreements of the previous dialogue talks were not implemented.
They told al-Liwaa newspaper in remarks published on Saturday that the March 14 forces are not keen on resuming dialogue if they do not receive confirmations that the talks will be limited to Hizbullah’s weapons, seeing as it is the only pending issue that was not resolved at the national dialogue.
The dialogue had settled the demarcation of the Lebanese-Syrian border and the Palestinian possession of arms outside refugee camps, reported al-Liwaa.
The sources said: “Resuming dialogue is necessary to devise a defense strategy that encompasses all components of the Lebanese society.”
“The opposition will not grant the parliamentary majority any opportunity to procrastinate during the dialogue and take it off its course by proposing issues that have already been resolved, especially the Special Tribunal for Lebanon,” they stressed. “The government’s obligation to fund the tribunal is not up for discussion,” they added.
They noted that even though Prime Minister Najib Miqati had stated that Lebanon will fund the tribunal, he is still stalling in this issue, “which is probably part of a plan with Hizbullah to avoid the funding altogether.” These indications do not encourage the March 14 forces to resume national dialogue, the sources said.
Meanwhile, a prominent source from the majority attributed the opposition’s lack of enthusiasm over the dialogue to its hope that the Syrian regime will be toppled and consequently the government will be toppled as well.They are also waiting what will become of the government should it refuse to fund the tribunal, it added.

Berri: No real Lebanon without dialogue
November 4, 2011 /Now Lebanon/Speaker Nabih Berri on Friday reiterated his call for national dialogue, adding that “the reasons for the dialogue are not internal, but external.”“There will be no real Lebanon without a national dialogue,” Berri told Al-Manar TV.Berri said that “he has not yet discussed the issue of dialogue with President Michel Sleiman, but will soon discuss it.”He also said that “those who think that Hezbollah’s weapons will be talking point of the national dialogue are wrong.” The speaker insisted on debating Lebanon’s defense strategy, which “comprises the ‘resistance, people and army’.”He also noted that “he is not afraid of an Israeli war against Lebanon,” but warned of “the [conflict] between [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu and [Israeli Defense Minister Ehud] Barak.”Berri also said that during his meeting with former Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, he tackled the issue of the “mutilated” decisions of former Prime Minister Fouad Siniora’s government.“The only fate of these decision is their cancellation,” he added. Regarding the matter of funding the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), Berri said that “this is only a part [of the problem], the [bigger] issue is related to the way the STL was founded.” He also said that the Lebanese democratic system stipulates that the vote related to the funding of the UN-backed court has to be cast in the cabinet, adding that “if [the opposition] wants this vote to be cast in the parliament, they can [go ahead with it.]” Four Hezbollah members have been indicted by the UN-backed court in the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. However, the Shia group strongly denied the charges and refuses to cooperate with the court. PM Najib Mikati has repeatedly voiced Lebanon’s commitment to the tribunal. 49 percent of the STL’s annual funding. Asked about the 2006 Israeli war against Lebanon, Berri said that “he [concealed] many facts [related to the war] because he did not want to harm the national unity.” The speaker added that “Siniora is aware of this situation, and in case he has forgotten, he should remember our post-war visit to the [Hezbollah-controlled Beirut Southern suburb of] Dahiyeh.”However, Berri did not further elaborate on this topic. Hezbollah captured Israeli Defense Forces soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev in a July 12 2006 cross-border raid, sparking a 34-day offensive by Israel that killed more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers. -NOW Lebanon

Loyalty to the Resistance bloc leader MP Mohammad Raad : Israel will not wage war on Lebanon
November 4, 2011 /Loyalty to the Resistance bloc leader MP Mohammad Raad said on Friday that “Israel will not wage a war against Lebanon because it cannot guarantee its success.”
He also said that “all the events in the region and in Lebanon target the path of the resistance because it disrupted the enemy’s [Israel] power.” The MP also commended “the Syrian regime’s response to the Arab League’s initiative,” and said that “it shows that the reform agenda will be adopted in Syria.” Raad also condemned the US decision to cut its funding to the UNESCO after a majority of member states defied American and Israeli warnings and voted to allow jubilant Palestinians full membership in the organization. “If the US does not commit to international obligations, let us call for boycotting and imposing sanctions on it,” he said. He also voiced surprise that “the [international community] would impose sanctions on Lebanon if it does not fund the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), [while it cannot do the same with the US].” On October 24, US Ambassador to Lebanon Maura Connelly warned that a failure by Beirut to meets its obligation to the STL could lead to “serious consequences.” Four Hezbollah members have been indicted by the UN-backed court in the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. However, the Shia group strongly denied the charges and refuses to cooperate with the court. PM Najib Mikati has repeatedly voiced Lebanon’s commitment to the tribunal. Lebanon contributes 49 percent of the STL’s annual funding. -NOW Lebanon

Security Forces Continue Campaign of Arrests against Suspects in Dahiyeh
Naharnet /Security forces have launched a campaign of arrests against wanted suspects in Dahiyeh, Beirut’s southern suburbs, a concerned source told As Safir newspaper in remarks published on Saturday. It explained that the campaign, which was launched about a month ago, enjoys the support of Hizbullah, AMAL, and residents of the area.
It added that the campaign would not have been such a success had it not been for the “absolute political support shown by these three sides.”
All concerned political sides confirmed that they will not provide cover to any of the suspects, regardless of their political, party, or family ties.
It added that some suspects’ arrest “became such a necessity due to their complete disregard of all laws and even social norms.”
“The firmness demonstrated by the army in arresting the suspects has led to the arrest of several powerful figures who have tens of arrest warrants issued against them,” the source continued. “This has even forced some individuals, who have committed minor crimes, to hand themselves willingly to the army’s Intelligence Directorate,” it revealed to As Safir.
“A great number of suspects are still at large and the army and security forces will not hesitate in arresting them,” it stressed.

Hezbollah likely to back Aoun on administrative appointments
November 05, 2011/By Hasan Lakkis The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Hezbollah is likely to support Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun when the Cabinet tackles appointments for high-level administrative positions, several sources close to Hezbollah and FPM told The Daily Star. The sources said that Hezbollah has notified President Michel Sleiman, Prime Minister Najib Mikati and other ministers in the Cabinet that it won’t approve any administrative appointments that traditionally go to Christians without the consent of the FPM.
Hezbollah’s recent decision to back the FPM in all disputes in the Cabinet was apparent in the Parliament’s legislative session earlier this week.
Several key draft laws presented by the FPM in the session were fully backed by Hezbollah, allowing the parliamentary majority to adopt them. According to the source, Hezbollah’s backing of the FPM comes on the heels of a visit by a party delegation to Aoun’s residence in Rabieh last week.
The Hezbollah delegation, headed by Nabatieh MP Mohammad Raad, held a two-hour meeting with the FPM leader in Rabieh, and according to sources close to the FPM, the meeting led to agreements between the two parties on key controversial issues that had recently upset Aoun. The sources added that if Hezbollah had to decide between the fall of the Cabinet and appeasing Aoun, the party would choose the latter. “Hezbollah’s decision to fully back the FPM in the Cabinet led to closed-door negotiations among Aoun, Mikati and Sleiman to find a common ground in tackling the appointments related to Christians,” the source said. A source close to the three leaders said that there has been a breakthrough in negotiations in recent days, and positive results of the talks would surface during the upcoming Cabinet session.
“The first result of the negotiations will lead different parties to agree on finalizing the issue of the Higher Judicial Council, the Directorate of Customs and the Social Economic Council,” said the source, adding that these three appointments are by custom allocated to Christians.
During the latest Cabinet session in Baabda Palace, Cabinet parties put off administrative appointments, saying that the issue was not ready for discussion due to major differences in opinion among Cabinet members. A source told The Daily Star that agreement on three key administrative posts in a single Cabinet session would likely generate progress on a large number of other appointments in the bureaucracy. The source also said that parties in the Cabinet have likely reached an agreement on the head of the Higher Judicial Council and have agreed on a candidate who is seen as equally close to Aoun and Sleiman. “The [top post] at the [Higher] Judicial Council will likely go to Judge Tanios Meshleb, especially after the recommendation from Justice Minister Shakib Qortbawi and the fact that he is not a supporter of the FPM,” the source explained. Another candidate for the appointment at the Higher Judicial Council is Judge Alice Chabtini, who is currently in the United States on a personal visit. But Aoun had rejected Chabtini’s appointment and decided to distance her from the Higher Judicial Council because she could have an influence on the appeals process of Retired Brig. Gen. Fayez Karam.
In September, Karam, a senior FPM official, was sentenced to two years in prison with hard labor after being convicted of collaborating with the Israeli Mossad. Karam, who will appear in court on Nov. 24, will request a retrial. According to the source, it is unclear whether Chabtini’s travel to the U.S. and the appointment of an acting Judge Elias Neameh to replace her at Karam’s trial is related to the upcoming appointment for the Higher Judicial Council.

Hizbullah Sources: Evidence Linking Israel to Hariri Case Tests STL’s Credibility
Naharnet /Hizbullah sources denied on Friday that it had received word that the Special Tribunal for Lebanon had received a memorandum from former Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia Marwan Dalal confirming Israel’s involvement in the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. The sources told Akhbar al-Yawm news agency: “This is a new test of the STL’s credibility.” They revealed that the party had presented evidence a long time ago proving Israel’s involvement in the assassination, but they were ignored, which confirms the tribunal’s politicization. They stressed that the STL has political goals, the first of which is destroying the Resistance.
Al-Akhbar newspaper had reported on Thursday that Dalal had presented “damning” evidence of Israel’s culpability in the Hariri assassination to STL Pre-Trial Judge Daniel Fransen.
He said that the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad and its former chief, Meir Dagan, are possibly involved in the crime. The Hizbullah sources revealed that the party is labeling this file as a “sensitive issue” because it is linked to the country’s stability. “From this aspect, we are not worried about the party, but about the repercussions the STL may have on Lebanon,” they stated. Addressing Prime Minister Najib Miqati’s recent statements that Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah had not explicitly stated that the party opposes the tribunal, the sources noted: “We don’t believe the premier’s statements were negative.” The prime minister only said that the issue of the tribunal will be discussed at constitutional institutions and at the appropriate time, they added. “The most important aspect of Miqati’s remarks was his assertion that he will not resign,” they continued. “The tribunal is a contentious issue, but it will not force the government to resign,” the sources stressed. On U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman’s warnings that Lebanon may incur “harsh consequences” if it failed to fund the STL, they remarked: “This eagerness towards justice is an eagerness towards destroying the Resistance and the United States’ enemies.”
Nasrallah stressed during a televised interview on October 24 that his party is against the funding of the STL, adding that cabinet will resolve the issue when the time is right

All Anxious on the Syrian Front: Damascus' Long Shadow Creeps into Lebanon
By Nicholas Blanford / Knaysse Friday, Nov. 04, 2011
TIME
The uncertain future of an Arab League initiative to end eight months of violence in Syria has left residents of Knaysse, a windswept and remote village along Lebanon's northern border, gazing anxiously at a newly constructed Syrian army position. In the past month, Syrian troops have staged several incursions into Lebanese territory, mainly in areas populated by Lebanese Sunnis who sympathize with the opposition protestors against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. "There are many violations by the Syrian soldiers. They shoot across the border at night with machine guns and have damaged our houses. They are frightened that people will attack them in the dark," says Khaled, an elderly resident dressed in a white headdress and thick black wool overcoat.
Knaysse is an impoverished farming village of simple concrete buildings scattered over a barren volcanic plateau some 20 miles west of Homs, Syria's third largest city and a hub of the revolt against the Assad regime. Knaysse is a bleak and inhospitable place on a wet fall day as dark gray clouds scud across the horizon and smother the mountains to the south. Across fields of black soil and basalt boulders lies a Syrian military position, unnervingly close to the first houses of the village. The soldiers are hidden from sight behind bulldozed earth embankments and oil drums filled with rocks or cement and painted in the black, red, green and white stripes of Syria.
Border restrictions traditionally are lax in these remote areas and local Lebanese often cross over to buy cheaper household goods and food in nearby Syrian villages. However, cross-border traffic has all but dried up in the past two weeks since Syrian troops began sowing land mines along the more vulnerable stretches of the border. "We are facing a new problem with the land mines. No one can go to Syria and no one can come from Syria," says Mohammed, a young man with a weather-beaten face and thick black beard who, like all residents interviewed, requested anonymity because of possible reprisals.
Lebanon's border with Israel has been mined for decades and other areas of the country are still blighted by land mines left over from the 1975-1990 civil war. But it is the first time that mines have been planted along the 230-mile Lebanon-Syria border. Syrian officials reportedly have acknowledged that mines have been planted but say that it is a defensive measure to prevent militants and weapons being smuggled into Syria.
Certainly, incidents of arms smuggling have increased in recent months. Black market arms dealers in Lebanon say prices have skyrocketed since mid-March when the unrest in Syria began. But the smuggling remains ad hoc and unorganized with Lebanese dealers selling nothing larger than automatic rifles, shotguns and the odd rocket-propelled grenade to individuals in Syria. A lively commercial smuggling conduit before the uprising broke out in Syria was the stony track cutting through a barren semi-desert landscape east of Arsal village on Lebanon's eastern border with Syria. But all smuggling ground to a halt when Syrian troops sealed off the border and staged several raids last month against isolated Lebanese farmsteads."They have been treating people really badly. Most of the farmers have left. I am still here because I have nowhere else to go," says Hussein Wehbe, who owns a few orchards of almonds and apricots and a flock of sheep at the foot of a mountain range that marks the border.
Lebanon has lived long beneath the shadow of its larger and more powerful neighbor and its political landscape is deeply polarized between supporters and opponents of the Assad regime. The Lebanese government, which is backed by Damascus, has chosen to play down the cross border troop incursions as well as several kidnappings in Lebanon of Syrian opponents of Assad reportedly by Lebanese allies of the Syrian regime. But many Lebanese worry that the border incursions and kidnappings could herald worse things to come if the violence in Syria intensifies.
The prospects of a peaceful resolution to the crisis in Syria look dim. A proposal launched by the 22-member Arab League to end the violence appeared to have foundered less than 24 hours after Damascus agreed to abide by the initiative. The proposal called for a withdrawal of troops from the cities, the release of all detainees imprisoned during the unrest and the launching of talks between the Syrian authorities and the opposition. Despite Syria?s acceptance of the agreement on Wednesday, 20 people were killed on Thursday, most of them in Homs, and dozens arrested. Mass demonstrations erupted across Syria on Friday afternoon as protestors heeded opposition calls to test Assad's intention by staging as many rallies as possible. "We never expected Assad to abide by the agreement. He's playing for time," says Ahmad, a Syrian activist with the opposition Local Coordination Committees who fled to Lebanon in August. He presently lives in hiding in Tripoli in north Lebanon and remains in daily contact with the opposition using Skype to communicate.
Ahmad says that the opposition would only agree to talk to the Syrian leadership once the crackdown has ended and the detainees released. But even then, he says, the only topic for discussion is Assad's peaceful removal from power. "Bashar al-Assad must know that it's all over for him, but he won't quit easily," Ahmad says.
But the Syrian regime still holds the balance of military power and the loyalty — for now at least — of a sizeable percentage of the population. Increasingly, the opposition is resorting to guerrilla warfare tactics, with the Free Syrian Army, composed of deserters, staging hit-and-run attacks and bomb ambushes and claiming a rising number of casualties among regular Syrian forces. The Arab League said on Thursday that it would give Damascus 15 days to implement its proposal. But the continuing anti-regime protests and bloody crackdown by the Syrian security forces suggests that both sides are long past the possibility of dialogue and reconciliation.

Tripoli arrests 2 Libyans in Sadr case: source
November 05, 2011/By Marlin Dick /The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Two Libyans have been arrested by Libyan authorities over their suspected involvement in the 1978 disappearance of Imam Musa Sadr, according to a senior Lebanese political source familiar with the issue. The source told The Daily Star that the Libyan authorities had detained the two men, and were currently searching for a number of other individuals believed to have been involved in the 1978 disappearance of the influential Shiite religious figure while on a visit to the North African country. The Libyan authorities, the source said, made the disclosures when they briefed a Lebanese Foreign Ministry delegation that recently visited Libya on progress on the case. The effort by the Libyans, the source said, inspired “confidence” because of their seriousness in tackling the issue. Lebanese Foreign Ministry officials were informed that a thorough investigation into the case involved a number of complicatio
Bab al-Aziziyah, the compound of the late Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, hid a “number of aziziyahs” underneath, meaning that the process of sifting through records and potential evidence represented a time-consuming task. The above-ground Bab al-Aziziyah was destroyed by Libyan rebels in August when they overran the capital. “There are many, many places that need to be searched” to uncover relevant evidence in the Sadr case, the source continued.
“The Libyans also relayed their shame that Libyan nationals were apparently involved” in the Sadr disappearance, the source added.
Lebanese officials were told by their hosts that the situation in Libya “remains chaotic” but that officials were working hard on uncovering the details behind Sadr’s fate, and were currently looking for an undetermined number of other people wanted in connection to the case.In Beirut, Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour was briefed Friday by Haitham Joumaa, the director general of emigrants, who headed the Lebanese delegation that traveled to Libya last month to discuss the case.Mansour affirmed that the Sadr disappearance was the subject of “daily” follow-up by Libyan officials, and that the Libyans had tasked the country’s Higher Security Committee with pursuing the investigation. He said his ministry was also engaged in contacts to pave the way for an “anchoring of fraternal Lebanese-Libyan relations in all fields.”

New SLA return law may be a case of too little too late
November 05, 2011/By Anna Slemrod /The Daily Star
SLA members and families leave Lebanon in 2000. Daily Star archive
QLAYA, Lebanon: In the early summer of 2000, thousands of Lebanese poured across the Israeli border, close on the heels of the Israeli army. Fleeing through the Naqoura gates were members, families and neighbors of the South Lebanese Army, an Israel-allied militia that operated in southern Lebanon during the Civil War. Fearing retribution for the SLA’s cooperation with Israel during its occupation of the south, some 6,500 Lebanese left for Israel, where they received residency, eventual citizenship, and some financial support. This week, Parliament passed an urgent draft law allowing them to come home. But the new law may not change much. In the parts of the south where the SLA – known as Lahd’s Army after its leader Antoine Lahd – once reigned supreme, locals have been trickling back for years. Exact numbers are tough to find, but it is said that some 2,000 have already returned to the country.
Melissa Hajj was 10 when she left Qlaya for Israel with her parents and two younger brothers. After living in the northern Israeli city of Nahariya and studying at school and university in Hebrew, she decided to come to Lebanon after falling in love with Qlaya resident Johnny Saeed. They met on Facebook, discovered they were once neighbors, and decided to marry.
Seated next to Saeed on his father’s couch, with her diamond ring sparkling through the scant space between the newlyweds, Hajj says, “It was difficult to adapt to life in Israel,” and that although “Lebanon is my home, we moved on with our lives in Israel … we had to live.” Most of her friends were other Lebanese, and she says she “didn’t feel as if we were part of their [the Israeli] community.”
But the choice to come back around five months ago still wasn’t easy to make. “I didn’t know if I would see my parents again. The distance is horrible. It was a one-way ticket.” Hajj tears up when describing her June wedding, saying she “would never forget that my parents weren’t at my wedding, it broke my heart.”
Hajj’s story is fairly typical for those who have already been repatriated. She was a child during the Civil War, and as a woman coming to marry was unlikely to face prosecution. Among those who have not come back, and are unlikely to do so in the future, are the SLA members or collaborators who under the new law will be arrested at the border upon their return and tried.
In the absence of a written law, the state has been allowing returns to take place with the help of international organizations. Hajj, for example, was taken to Naqoura by the Red Cross, which delivered her to General Security. There, she says she spent two nights in custody and was interrogated for three days. Eventually she had to pay a $900 fine. Most rank and file SLA returnees have received sentences of around one or two years, criticized by some, including Hezbollah, as too light.
The mukhtar of Qlaya, Joseph Salameh, says that between 1,200 and 1,300 people have returned to his village. Another 800-900 remain in Israel, he says, including his brother and one of his sisters. Another sister moved to Canada.
He says that the new law gives him “some hope,” but that “the issue of return is very tragic” because of how it has divided families.
Salemeh echoes Hajj’s sentiment that the decision to return, especially for SLA members, is “difficult to make. If someone decides to return, he knows what awaits him: imprisonment. And if he gets out, he will be unemployed.”
Some still see the SLA members as collaborators, and others see them as victims of unfortunate circumstances. Fear of retribution by organizations such as Hezbollah was once high, but the party has said that returnees should be dealt with by the Lebanese justice system. The party did not respond to requests for comment, but its MPs supported the draft law.
Economic woes may also stand in the way of homecoming. “There are no jobs in our area … most of the jobs are in Beirut,” Salameh continues. “If someone who is 20 years old returns from Israel and seeks a job in the government, they will not accept him because he was living in Occupied Palestine and his record is not clean, or because his dad worked for the SLA. They blame him for his father’s deeds.”
Salameh doesn’t think any new arrivals from Israel should be tried. The MPs in government feel differently, and an amendment to the draft law stated that further decrees will specify measures to deal with those who grew up in Israel and are seen as potential security threats. The issue of an SLA amnesty was first raised in 2005, but never came to fruition.
Hajj and her husband welcome the new legislation, but also find it late and lacking. “It will only serve to divide families further,” if adults are still subject to prosecution, Hajj says. Her parents are still too scared to return.
The SLA ran the notorious Khiam prison, where it carried out acts of torture. The return of torturers or those seen to have collaborated with Israel is bound to be a sensitive subject, but Mohammad Safa, head of the Khiam Rehabilitation Center for the Victims of Torture, welcomes the law, “especially for women and children. These are Lebanese people and the government must return them to their country to educate them, to let them into Lebanese society,” he told The Daily Star.
He stresses that it is the government’s responsibility to enforce Lebanese law for those returnees who participated in criminal acts, as well as to prevent potential conflicts that may arise between returnees and those who harbor resentment towards the SLA.“For the collaborators with Israel who tortured the Lebanese people, [who tortured] the detainees in Khiam … of course there will be a court for them,” Safa says. Overall though, he adds, “we are happy [with the law], all the people inside Israel must return … and be happy to return to their villages.”Qlaya resident Antoinette Salameh, known as Umm Fadi, isn’t terribly optimistic about the new law. With two daughters in Lebanon, a son in Germany, and a son and daughter in Israel, she says the current “situation makes you curse the war and how it divided families.” Her children regret leaving, she reports, “and want to come home badly.”She says her kids left fearing a massacre, and she hopes they won’t be tried if they do come home. But now, says Salameh, “parents are growing old here and dying in the village, and their children are in Israel.” When her son left, she laments, “he was crying. I told him don’t worry, two or three days and you’ll come back. No one expected it would take this long.” – With additional reporting by Reem Harb

Israel Navy Intercepts Canadian, Irish Gaza-bound Aid Ships
Naharnet /The Israeli navy on Friday intercepted two international ships carrying pro-Palestinian activists who were trying to break the blockade on Gaza, a military statement said.
"A short while ago, Israel navy soldiers boarded the vessels which were en route to the Gaza Strip, attempting to break the maritime security blockade that is in place in accordance with international law," it said. An Israeli security source told Agence France Presse there were no injuries during the boarding operation.
The 15 activists aboard the Irish Saoirse (Gaelic for Freedom) and the 12 aboard the Canadian Tahrir (Arabic for Liberation), who had set sail from Turkey on Wednesday, were being towed to Ashdod port in southern Israel, it said. Denis Kosseim, a Montreal-based spokesman for the Canadian Boat to Gaza campaign had earlier told Agence France Presse the passengers and crew would not put up a fight if Israel moved to intercept the boards. "Those on board have been instructed not to put up any resistance to the Israeli navy when it tries to intercept them," he said. "Everyone has signed a document in which they pledged not to put up any resistance should they be boarded by Israel," he added.
The move came after the two ships refused to heed calls to change course, prompting Israeli military Chief of Staff Benny Gantz to order their interception.
"The IDF Chief of Staff ordered the navy to board the vessels should they refuse our radio requests," the military unit's spokesman tweeted, using the identifying hashtag "provocatilla."
Moves to board the ship came three hours after the navy had first made radio contact with the two vessels, warning them not to continue into naval territory which was under "a maritime security blockade in accordance with international law."
Dublin-based organizers of the Irish boat said they had been contacted by those on board just before 1:00 pm (1100 GMT) to say they were being "rapidly" approached by two Israeli warships, with first radio contact made some 15 minutes later.
"The Israel navy advised the vessels that they may turn back at any point," the military said, adding: "The activists refused to cooperate."
Shortly afterwards, organizers said they had lost contact with the two boats.
On arrival, those on board would be transferred to the custody of the Israeli police and immigration authorities in the interior ministry, the Israeli army said. Five of those on board the Tahrir are journalists, organizers said.
"The Israel navy soldiers operated as planned, and took every precaution necessary to ensure the safety of the activists on board the vessels as well as themselves," the Israeli military's statement said. Activists had organized a major attempt to break the Israeli blockade in May 2010, when six ships led by the Turkish Mavi Marmara tried to reach Gaza.
Israeli troops stormed the Marmara, killing nine Turkish activists and sparking a diplomatic crisis with Ankara, which expelled the Israeli ambassador and has cut military ties with the Jewish state. Earlier this year, a second flotilla tried to reach Gaza, but several ships were sabotaged -- which activists blamed on Israel. Only the French-flagged yacht, the Dignity, was able to attempt the last leg of the journey but was stopped by the navy and those on board were deported. Israel says its blockade is necessary to prevent weapons from entering the coastal territory, which is run by the Islamist Hamas movement. Two months ago, a U.N. report on the flotilla raid accused the Jewish state of acting with "excessive force" but found that its naval blockade on the coastal territory was "legal." Source Agence France Presse

In Syria, time is murder
Shane Farrell and Nadine Elali,
November 4, 2011
Arab League Secretary General Nabil al-Arabi (L) at an emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers on October 16, 2011 to discuss the crisis in Syria. (AFP photo/Mahmud Hams)
Joseph Stalin once famously remarked, “One death is a tragedy; one million is a statistic.” But he needn’t have gone to that scale. Deaths become statistics once the figure is too large to visualize, too grand to empathize. This is the real tragedy.
When describing events in Syria today, journalists talk of the vast numbers of dead, not of the individuals who were killed. Back in May, the world was shocked by the case of Hamza al-Khatib, the 13-year-old boy who was tortured to death by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the gruesome image of his punctured body plastered across screens and newspapers. Now, according to the Strategic Research and Communication Center, more children (including babies) have been killed—267 more Hamza al-Khatibs.
The Syrian government’s ban on press and human rights watchdogs from entering the country makes determining the total casualty list an extremely difficult task. The opposition group Syrian Revolution placed the figure at 4,207 by Friday morning. The United Nations estimate—which is on the conservative side because of the comprehensive verification process involved—has placed the figure at a minimum of 3,000 as of October 14. The figure is likely to be considerably higher today due to the mounting daily death toll.
But even if at this most conservative estimate (3,000 deaths), an average of 13 people have been killed every single day since protests began on March 15. That is why the Arab League’s decision Wednesday to give the Syrian regime another two weeks to enter into negotiations with the opposition (a similar position was taken on October 15) is, according to many opposition figures, tantamount to tolerating two more weeks of killing.
And looking at what is happening on the street, the skeptics are right to be concerned. The Arab League plan, which calls for the immediate cessation of violence and release of an estimated 70,000 political prisoners, as well as the removal of tanks from the streets and permission for the press to enter, has not yet been heeded to. On the contrary, 25 were killed on Wednesday, 20 more Thursday, and, at the time of writing, at least 18 on Friday, according to activists in Syria. Some prisoners have been released, but not vast numbers.
For those reasons, and the fact that President Assad has a poor track record of following through with promises to reform since the uprisings began, opposition figures are skeptical, believing instead that Assad is taking advantage of the proposed plan.
“It is all a matter of false promises to buy time, time to kill,” said Ahmad, an activist based in Homs who spoke to NOW Lebanon over Skype. Ahmad believes that the regime is using this “bought time” to target Homs, specifically the Bab Amer neighborhood, which many believe is a key focal point of the demonstrations.
Ahmad said Bab Amer was being shelled by the Syrian army as the regime declared its agreement to the league’s initiative, and believes the regime intends to “raze Bab Amer from Homs’ map because it is the heart of the revolution.”
Omar Edelby, a member of the main opposition group, the Syrian National Council, also does not believe Assad will carry out the promised reforms. “The regime will not apply the items in the agreement [because this] will mean that eventually the regime will fall, and the current regime will not agree to its own downfall.”
The head of the SNC, Burhan Ghalioun, agrees. In a public statement issued Friday, Ghalioun said, “It is clear that the Syrian regime is incapable of implementing any plan. It is in a real crisis, and it can neither move forward nor retreat.”
Moreover, Ghalioun called on the Arab League to withdraw “Arab ambassadors [from Syria] and freeze Damascus’ membership in the league.”
This came after a statement published on the Syrian Interior Ministry’s website requesting individuals to hand in their weapons by Saturday, November 12, and promising amnesty to those who comply.
If the plan fails, the Arab League does not appear to have many options left to pressure the Syrian regime to end the bloodshed. And, according to Mohammad al-Shadly, head of Political Affairs at al-Hayat newspaper’s Cairo bureau and expert on Arab League matters, it is reluctant to freeze Syria’s membership.
“If the Arab League takes the decision to suspend Syria… this will mean that any talks between the Arab League and the Syrian government will be suspended,” he said, adding, “This will mean the crisis is taken back to the Security Council… [and] there will no longer be any Arab initiative in solving the crisis.”

US advises Syrians against surrendering to regime
November 4, 2011 /The US State Department on Friday advised Syrians against surrendering to President Bashar al-Assad's regime after Damascus announced an amnesty for those who give up their weapons."I wouldn't advise anybody to turn themselves in to regime authorities at the moment," State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland told reporters amid apparent concerns for the welfare of those who might do so.Nuland, who said the Assad regime has so far failed to live up to a deal struck Wednesday with the Arab League to stop nearly eight months of violence, underlined her skepticism about the amnesty offer."This would be about the fourth amnesty that they've offered since I took this job about five months ago," she told reporters. "So we'll see if it has any more traction than it's had in the past."
The Syrian Interior Ministry announced an amnesty on Friday for people who surrender their weapons between Saturday and November 12 in a concession to mark the Eid al-Adha Muslim feast, state television reported. It invited "those who carry arms, who sold them, distributed them, bought them or financed their purchase and who have not committed any murder to turn themselves in and surrender their weapons to the nearest police station," it said. Those who heed the call "will walk free... and receive an amnesty," it added.
Syrian authorities have used force to crush almost daily anti-regime protests since mid-March, and more than 3,000 people have been killed according to UN estimates.
Assad has twice ordered general amnesties since the conflict erupted, the first time on May 31 for all political prisoners including the banned Muslim Brotherhood.
In June the president issued a second decree "granting a general amnesty for crimes committed before June 20, 2011," the state-run SANA news agency reported at the time.
-AFP/NOW Lebanon

Syria Blasts U.S. for 'Blatant Interference'
Naharnet /Damascus on Saturday strongly condemned Washington after the U.S. State Department advised Syrians against surrendering following an amnesty for those who give up weapons. "The American administration disclosed again its blatant interference in Syria's internal affairs, and its policy which supports killing, in addition to its funding of the terrorist groups in Syria," SANA state news agency said citing a foreign ministry official. Syria's Interior Ministry announced an amnesty on Friday for people who surrender their weapons between Saturday and November 12 in a concession to mark the Eid al-Adha feast, state television reported. The State Department on Friday advised Syrians against surrendering to President Bashar Assad's regime. "I wouldn't advise anybody to turn themselves in to regime authorities at the moment," said spokeswoman Victoria Nuland, adding Assad's regime had so far failed to live up to a deal to end eight months of violence struck on Wednesday. "This would be about the fourth amnesty that they've offered since I took this job about five months ago," she told reporters. "So we'll see if it has any more traction than it's had in the past." SANA, citing the ministry official, said Syria "condemns these irresponsible statements which only aim at inciting sedition, supporting the acts of killing and the terrorism practiced by the armed groups against the Syrian citizens.""The Syrian government calls on the international community to stand against these policies which contradict with the provisions of the international law and the U.N. Security Council's resolutions related to combating terrorism and financing it," added the English-language report. Syrian authorities have used force to crush almost daily anti-regime protests since mid-March, and more than 3,000 people have been killed according to U.N. estimates.
Assad has twice ordered general amnesties since the conflict erupted, the first time on May 31 for all political prisoners including the banned Muslim Brotherhood.
In June, the president issued a second decree "granting a general amnesty for crimes committed before June 20, 2011," SANA reported at the time.
Source Agence France Presse

When we wish for shameful statements
Tariq Aintrazi, /Now Lebanon/November 4, 2011
When Public Works and Transportation Minister Ghazi Aridi said “A man who speaks no other language but Arabic cannot be appointed as chancellor of the Lebanese University”, Former Minister Adnan as-Sayyed Hussein responded, saying that this is shameful talk targeting the university. Therefore, I attempted to define what is shameful and detrimental to the Lebanese University and the Lebanese people following my meeting on the sidelines of the Cannes international TV production exhibition with my friend, former general manager of Future Television Ali Jaber. Following the exhibition, we responded to Ms. Nazek Hariri’s invitation and went to greet her and check on Future TV, which we were honored to manage at various times.
During the 24-hour trip, we talked about nothing and everything, as they say. We remembered our careers spanning over two decades and where we are today in Dubai, the unofficial capital of Arab media and one of the refuges of Lebanese youths fleeing the defects of our politicians and their undermining all that is beautiful in our country, including the environment, economy, tourism and – as of late – electronic media and education.
We talked about broadband based on my experience with Arab telecom companies and about the launch of Emirati telecom company Etisalat. We also talked about the launch by STC of 4G services, known as Long Term Evolution technology. What does 4G technology mean for students and media professionals?
4G technology simply increases connection speeds for internet users from around 20 megabytes to over 150 megabytes. A speed of 150 megabytes technically provides what is known as Seamless Communication or zero download time, a speed that allows users to access any file or material directly.
For instance, users can watch high-quality TV on their personal computers or mobile phones without any delays.
At this point, Ali talked animatedly about the success he had linking the Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Faculty to most US and world universities through a broadband connection of 100 megabytes. Students at this faculty can thus access files at the other end of the world at the same speed as through their personal computers. In other words, all digital libraries across the world are now at the disposal of the Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Faculty students in Dubai.
More importantly, the faculty can now sign contracts with any teacher anywhere in the world and enable him or her to give a lecture to students in Dubai as if she or he were with them in the same room. The teacher can also watch and listen to the students’ reactions as if they were in the same room. Accordingly, the teaching staff at the Mohammad bin Rashid Faculty expanded to include thousands of creative teachers across the world’s best universities with expenses amounting to only a fraction of what would have been paid to sign contracts with them and bring them to Dubai. To put things differently, Ali Jaber – a Shia who sympathizes with those who resisted against Israel and liberated the land of his ancestors – managed within the Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Faculty, thanks to the support of Dubai authorities, to launch the virtual education program and open the doors of world universities to modest Arab students affiliated with the Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Scholarships program for higher education.
Hundreds of creative Lebanese Shia can undoubtedly make a better tomorrow for our youths at the Lebanese University (if the university chancellor has to be Shia). Therefore, with regard to the chancellor’s abovementioned statement, it is really shameful and detrimental to the university that those entrusted with making such an appointment did not think about the future of a whole generation of modest young men and women who will have development prospects as limited as the appointed university chancellor.
It is shameful that the person entrusted with the quality of education provided to thousands of Lebanese students is a person who cannot access over 99% of modern science, which is available online mainly in English. It is shameful that those calling for the preservation of the poor and deprived in this country are contributing to keeping these people poor and deprived by depriving their sons and daughters of a level of education enabling them to be competitive on local, regional and international markets.
It seems that there is an intention to add the media sector to the list of shameful things in Lebanon. A group of internet illiterates has thus declared that it intends to organize digital media outlets. In security jargon, this means censorship. Such a step would make the closing down of MTV look like a mere traffic violation. Indeed, governments and telecom companies in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and all over the civilized world are launching 4G services, digital media and mobile television (i.e. watching TV on mobile phones), whereas official authorities in Lebanon are trying to stifle digital media! It is as though some have not been satisfied by the emigration—or even displacement—of creative figures of the Lebanese press and audiovisual media, hence their intention to do the same with those in digital media outlets. We genuinely don’t know what the boundaries of shameful are anymore. We have been reduced to wishing that this remains limited to mere statements—something to which the Lebanese people are immune—and does not extend to detrimental decisions of which we are ashamed now and in the future.

Poll: Mitt Romney Romney would edge out Obama if election held now
By REUTERS /11/04/2011
WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama's fortunes are improving slightly, although he would face a tough struggle for re-election next year if Mitt Romney were the Republican nominee, a Reuters/Ipsos poll said on Friday. Forty-nine percent of Americans approve of the way Obama is handling his job as president, up from 47 percen
While still low, the percentage of Americans who believe the country is headed in the right direction also increased, to 25 from 21 in the previous survey. The percentage who feel it is on the wrong track slipped to 70 from 74, the survey said. The poll showed Obama would finish just behind Romney if the November 2012 presidential election were held today, with the former Massachusetts governor at 44 percent and Obama at 43 percent among registered voters. It was the first Reuters/Ipsos poll to show Romney ahead, although his slim lead is within the survey's margin of error and technically a dead heat. Obama led Romney by 6 percentage points when the same question was asked in a poll in September.
The Democratic president was ahead of two of the other Republicans vying for the nomination to oppose him next November. He led businessman Herman Cain by 46 percent to 41 percent, and he was ahead of Texas Governor Rick Perry by 47 percent to 41 percent. The poll was taken as news reports about sexual harassment allegations against Cain in the 1990s broke. The poll was conducted from Oct. 31 to Thursday. It interviewed 1,106 adults, of whom 937 were registered voters. The margin of error was plus or minus 2.9 percentage points for all adults, and plus or minus 3.2 percentage points for registered voters.