LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِOctober
25/2011
Bible Quotation
for today/Whom to Fear
Matthew 10/26-31: " So do not be afraid of
people. Whatever is now covered up will be uncovered, and every secret will be
made known. What I am telling you in the dark you must repeat in broad daylight,
and what you have heard in private you must announce from the housetops. Do not
be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather be afraid
of God, who can destroy both body and soul in hell. For only a penny you can buy
two sparrows, yet not one sparrow falls to the ground without your Father's
consent. As for you, even the hairs of your head have all been counted. So
do not be afraid; you are worth much more than many sparrows!
Latest analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases from
miscellaneous sources
The Arab people have
realized that their main enemy is their own tyrants, not Israel/Hanin
Ghaddar/October 24/11
After Gaddafi: What
happens now?/By Mshari al-Zaydi/October
24/11
Hezbollah and CAIR Attacks on
U.S. Jihad Experts are Synchronized/Family Security Matters/October
24/11
The importance of Tunisia
today/By:
Hazem Saghiyeh/October 24/11
Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for October
24/11
Rahi Urges Declaration of Lebanon
as ‘Neutral Country,’ to Visit Iraq in November
U.S. Pulls Ford Out of Syria after
‘Credible Threats’
US and NATO allies vie over "kudos"
for Qaddafi's termination
Zahle MPs Slam Hizbullah Expansion
into Tarshish
Al-Mustaqbal Accuses Syria of Being
Behind Rejection of al-Hassan’s Promotion
Miqati’s Sources Deny Pledge to
Amend STL Cooperation Protocol
MP Chehayeb accuses
Aoun's bloc of faking reforms
Lady of the Mountain Gathering
Rejects 'Bids to Link Christians Fate to Oppressive Regimes'
Proposed Recommendations of the 8th
Retreat of Lady of the Mountain Gathering
Christian gathering calls for
Christian-Muslim partnership
Tarshish mayor: Calm restored
after Hezbollah telecoms incident
Tarshish Violation to Land on
Information Committee Agenda as Residents Warn to Hold Sit-in
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea
asks Sleiman about Tarchich developments
Future bloc MP Hadi Hobeich: Arab
Spring does not threaten Christians
Sami Gemayel: Hezbollah does not
accept people opposing its project
Hezbollah telecoms network,
security promotions to challenge Cabinet
Tarchich mayor: Hezbollah
threatening another May 7
US Senator John McCain raises
prospect of military option in Syria
Muqdad Clan Members Block Dahiyeh
Roads over Lassa Building Violation
Roads blocked in Beirut’s southern
suburb
Kataeb bloc MP Fadi al-Haber:
Non-state weapons weaken confidence in economy
EU threatens to slap more sanctions
on Syria
Hezbollah: Tel Aviv would be 1st
target
Report: Saudis Advised to Stay Away
from Downtown Beirut
Pro- and Anti-Assad Protestors Hold
Demo Outside Syrian Embassy
Lebanese Officials in Libya to
Uncover al-Sadr’s Fate
Progressive Socialist Party MP
Akram Chehayeb: Lebanon needs ‘real reform’
Parliamentary Human Rights
Committee to address Syrians’ abduction, An-Nahar reports
Up to 1,000 Feared Dead after 7.3
Quake Hits Turkey
70% Voter Turnout in Tunisia in 1st
Post-Revolution Polls
NTC Declares Libya Liberated 3 Days
after Gadhafi Killed
Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi Urges Declaration of Lebanon as ‘Neutral
Country,’ to Visit Iraq in November
Naharnet /Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi urged on Monday the United Nations
to declare Lebanon as a neutral country during his visit to the U.S., As Safir
newspaper reported.
The patriarch noted that he means by it “the positive neutrality, whereby
(Lebanon) isn’t subordinate to any country or regional or international axes.”
“However, it also means that we are still committed to the Arab and humanitarian
causes,” a-Rahi said. He described Islam in the region as “moderate.”Al-Rahi
said that he will begin a three-day visit to Iraq on November 1 for the annual
memorial of the attacks that targeted the Our Lady of Salvation Church in 2010,
adding that he will meet with spiritual and official figures to discuss the fate
of Christians there. Militants had stormed the church in central Baghdad,
killing 44 worshippers, two priests and seven security force personnel in an
attack claimed by al-Qaida's local affiliate, the Islamic State of Iraq. The
Patriarch ends a pastoral visit to the U.S. on Monday after Washington cancelled
his meetings with high-ranking officials, including U.S. President Barack Obama,
due to controversial statements by al-Rahi in Paris. He had told the
international community that Syrian President Bashar Assad should have been
given further time to implement reforms, warning that Sunni extremists could
possibly take power if Assad’s regime collapses.Al-Rahi also tied the
disarmament of Hizbullah to the withdrawal of Israel from all Lebanese occupied
territories.
U.S. Pulls Ford Out of Syria after ‘Credible Threats’
Naharnet /The U.S. has pulled its ambassador out of Syria over security
concerns, blaming President Bashar Assad's government for the threats. State
Department spokesman Mark Toner said Monday that Ambassador Robert Ford returned
to Washington this weekend after "credible threats against his personal safety."
Toner couldn't say when Ford might go back to Syria, saying it depended on a
U.S. "assessment of Syrian regime-led incitement and the security situation on
the ground." Ford has enraged Syrian authorities with his forceful defense of
peaceful protests and harsh critique of a government crackdown that has now
killed nearly 3,000 people. Ford particularly angered Assad's regime in July
when he greeted demonstrators in the restive city of Hama. The ambassador has
been the subject of several incidents of intimidation by pro-government thugs,
usually in coordination with pro-Assad media capturing the humiliation. Last
month, Ford and several colleagues from the embassy were pelted with tomatoes
and eggs as they visited an opposition figure. U.S. officials said the assault
was part of a campaign to intimidate diplomats investigating Assad's repression
of pro-reform demonstrators. Other such incidents have occurred after meetings
with dissident groups or individuals.
Although Assad's government has allowed Ford to remain in the country, it has
tried to restrict where he can travel. Earlier this month, the U.S. Senate
unanimously approved Ford's nomination, with Foreign Relations Committee
Chairman John Kerry praising Ford for continuing to visit cities under siege and
"speak truth to power."
He had been in Syria since January after being appointed to the post temporarily
when the Senate was out of session. Kerry said Ford has been steadfast "despite
even being physically attacked and assaulted by the regime's goons." *Source
Associated PressAgence France Presse
Miqati’s
Sources Deny Pledge to Amend STL Cooperation Protocol
Naharnet /Premier Najib Miqati’s sources have denied a TV report that the PM has
agreed to amend the protocol of cooperation signed between the Lebanese
government and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. OTV reported Sunday that Miqati
has held several telephone conversations with Speaker Nabih Berri and has agreed
“in principle” to introduce changes to the protocol.The TV station said the
amendments would be studied and approved by the end of the year, the deadline
for Lebanon’s payment of its share to the STL that is set to try ex-Premier
Rafik Hariri’s suspected assassins. The sources told several newspapers on
Monday that Miqati hasn’t held talks with Berri or any other official about the
issue, stressing that the protocol cannot be amended by only one of the
signatories.The Hizbullah-led March 8 forces have rejected to fund the STL while
Miqati has pledged to the international community to pay Lebanon’s share, a
position shared by President Michel Suleiman and Progressive Socialist Party
chief Walid Jumblat.
US
Senator John McCain raises prospect of military option in Syria
October 23, 2011 /US Senator John McCain raised the prospect Sunday of possible
armed intervention to protect civilians in Syria where a crackdown on
pro-democracy protests has killed more than 3,000 people. "Now that military
operations in Libya are ending, there will be renewed focus on what practical
military operations might be considered to protect civilian lives in Syria,"
McCain told a World Economic Forum meeting in Jordan. McCain, the top Republican
on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's
"regime should not consider that it can get away with mass murder.”Libya's
ousted leader Moammar Qaddafi, who was captured and killed on Thursday, "made
that mistake and it cost him everything," he said. "There are even growing calls
among the opposition for some foreign military intervention. We hear these pleas
for assistance. We are listening to and engaging with the [opposition] National
Council," he added.
The United Nations has said more than 3,000 people, including 187 children, have
been killed in a fierce crackdown on dissent since mid-March.
"The Syrian revolution may now be entering a new phase. The opposition has
formed the Syrian National Council seeking to better organize itself. There are
increasing reports of defections from the army," said McCain. "More Syrians
appear to be taking up arms against the regime."McCain charged that "dark forces
in this region, especially in Iran, are working harder than ever to hijack the
promise of what many are calling the Arab Spring… These concerns are real and
legitimate and merit our vigilance."US-Iran tensions have been running high
since Washington accused Tehran of being behind an alleged plot to assassinate
the Saudi ambassador in Washington. Iran has denied any involvement. McCain held
talks with key US ally King Abdullah II on Middle East issues, Jordan's
state-run Petra news agency reported. The United States and Jordan on Sunday
signed a $250-million agreement under a "small and medium enterprise loan
guarantee program" to support the cash-strapped kingdom's economy.-AFP/NOW
Lebanon
Lady of the Mountain Gathering Rejects 'Bids to Link
Christians Fate to Oppressive Regimes'
Naharnet/A document discussed Sunday by the Christian “Lady of the Mountain
Gathering” rejected “any attempt to link the fate of the Christians to the fate
of the oppressive and tyrannical regimes” in the region. March 14
General-Secretariat coordinator Fares Soaid said the eighth retreat of the
Gathering was aimed at determining the role of the Lebanese in the Arab Spring.
The gathering was held at the Regency Palace Hotel in Adma at 9:30 am Sunday.
Around 500 politicians, intellectuals and civil society activists took part in
the conference.
The document is divided into three main chapters. The first summarizes the
church principles, the second focuses on the rejection to put the Christians in
the position of defense of dictatorships and the third stresses the future steps
to consolidate the role of Christians in Lebanon and the Arab Spring.
Before the meeting, the March 14 General-Secretariat coordinator told Voice of
Lebanon radio station (93.3) that the Lebanese are the basis of the Arab Spring.
The first tremor that targeted the Assad regime in Syria was in Lebanon in 2005
and not Daraa, Soaid said about the mass demonstrations that drove Syrian troops
out of Lebanon in the aftermath of the assassination of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri.
The recommendations will ensure launching a dynamic dialogue between Christians
and all other sects, Soaid said. “There will be a continuous cooperation with
all centers of democratic decision-making in the Arab Spring.” The March 14
official, stressed, however that the recommendations of the retreat will not be
linked to Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi’s controversial remarks on the
situation in Syria. Below is the full text of the document discussed by the
conferees:
“First: what we want to remind of:
1- We want to remind of the church's role in launching the Lebanese Spring which
represented the first sign of the Arab Spring. "The Maronite Bishops' appeal on
September 20, 2000" had put the foundations to end the Syrian tutelage and
restore sovereignty, independence, and free will (...) Lebanon, which had been
an arena for foreign domination, has now become an arena of its citizens'
testimony of freedom, and it became a momentum for the biggest popular uprising
in the modern age. The church, with the participation of most of the Lebanese
people, was able to carve the history of Lebanon with the tools of righteousness
and faith after the long nights of injustice. It managed to save the nation and
restore the state.
After the assassination of (ex-)Prime Minister Rafik Hariri on February 14,
2005, the Independence Uprising was a historical moment which opened the door of
national salvation through an unprecedented unity of the Lebanese people. The
Syrian army's withdrawal from Lebanon on April 26, 2005, after 30 years of
tutelage, was the culmination of the unity of all Lebanese, residents and
emigrants, and a dream come true.
2- We want to remind that the Church has been a pioneer in its call for a civil
state which is modern and democratic, based on -- as it was stated in the
Maronite Patriarchal Synod – the reconciliation between citizenship and
pluralism, and on the "clear discrimination, to the extent of separation,
between religion and state, instead of integrating religion with politics or
basing politics on religious foundations that are of a sacred nature." This
issue today is being strongly discussed in all the countries which have been
liberated from tyrant regimes.
3- We want to stress the role of the Church in elaborating a concept of "living
together" that goes beyond the mere coexistence among different groups or
communities to a distinctive type of life which would give everyone an
opportunity to communicate and to interact with others so that both parties can
enrich their character through mutual learning, without eliminating the
particularisms and the differences that would turn out to be a source of
enrichment for all.
Second- What we reject:
1- We reject positions that put the Christians in confrontation with the Arab
Spring which is based on the values of freedom and justice. These values lie at
the basis of human dignity, away from the logic of ideologies which divide the
world into two camps -- good and evil -- and on which the dictatorial regimes
had based their legitimacy. This Arab Spring is "good news" for Lebanon which
had remained for more than half a century the subject of vigorous attempts to
make it similar to the regimes surrounding it, under the excuse of “Arabizing”
its regime. But today, in its quest to get rid of last century's slaveries and
the historical marginalization, the Arab region is drawing examples from the
meaning of Lebanon in its values of freedom, democracy and pluralism, and its
openness to the world.
2- We reject any attempt to link the fate of the Christians to the fate of the
oppressive and tyrannical regimes which have turned the Arab world into a big
prison and have historically marginalized their citizens, depriving them of
their present and future. This is a moral stance imposed on us by our belief in
the human being and his right to dignity and freedom. We will not accept to be
with the executioners against the victims. This is also a national position.
These oppressive regimes are responsible for a war which had cost us dearly:
144,240 dead, 17,415 missing, and 197,506 wounded, in addition to the
destruction of our cities and villages, the migration of hundreds of thousands
of our children, the fragmentation of our society, confiscation of our
institutions, widespread corruption, and turning the judiciary into a tool to
settle scores …
3- We reject all the schemes that are aimed at undermining the historic
Christian presence in this Orient, and at turning the Christians into a mere
minority seeking protection for itself. The dispute is not, as some have
portrayed it, on whom we entrust with the task of protecting us -- the
protection of foreign states like Syria, Iran, or the West, or an internal
"Shiite" protection to face a "Sunni" threat, or an internal "Sunni" protection
to face a "Shiite" threat. The dispute is over the principle of protection which
turns the Christians into "dhimmis", and makes them lose their role and
presence. This is unacceptable.
4- We condemn the deluge of violence directed against the Arab Spring. It is the
violence of the authoritarian regimes in the face of the legitimate demands of
their people. At the same time, it is the violence of extremist forces which are
still clinging to crumbling ideologies, and trying hard to stop the wheel of
history.
Third: What we want:
1- We want to launch a civil dynamism in the Christian society which is able to
communicate with similar civil dynamisms from other communities and from the
civil society in order to bring the life back to the Lebanese Spring. We also
want to work with the democratic forces which have emerged from the Arab Spring
in order to develop new foundations for a democratic and pluralistic Arab World
that is capable of regaining its role and position in the world after half a
century of enforced absence.
2- We want to recover the historical Christian role in the Middle East and
contribute to the rebirth of a second Arab renaissance which would establish a
new culture -- a culture of living together. Because living together, equal in
rights and duties and different in our various affiliations – due to the
enormous landmark changes introduced by globalization -- has become a serious
challenge not only for the Arab world, but for all mankind.
3- We want to work on ending the decades of a still ongoing cycle of violence,
and to build a peaceful Lebanon in cooperation with all the faithful people.
Today we stand before a fateful moment: Either to bring back Lebanon to what it
was in the past three decades – an arena for violence among regional and
international forces, which responds to the illusions of some who believe that
their future needs further bloodshed, plights and destruction -- or to
restructure Lebanon and turn it into a country enjoying prosperous living
conditions and a state that is capable of performing its duties.
First, Lebanon’s peace requires that lessons be drawn from the civil war, and to
perceive, as stated in the Maronite Patriarchal Synod, that the fate of each and
every one of us is interlinked, and that the salvation of Lebanon will either be
for all of Lebanon or it will not be, as no certain group can find a solution
without the other, or at the expense of the other.
Second, Lebanon’s peace requires that the state regain its sovereignty, which
had been lost since 1969, and to ensure its exclusive right to possessing an
armed force. The presence of two armies in one country is no longer acceptable
or justifiable, where one army is under the command of the legitimate authority,
while the other is under the command of a political party or a foreign state.
Third, Lebanon’s peace requires the liberation of the state from power struggles
among the various communities, and to begin – according to the Taef Accord --
building a civil state, so that these communities’ concerns and fears will not
remain the prime driving force of the Lebanese history.
Fourth, Lebanon’s peace requires an end to the dark era in the history of the
Lebanese-Syrian relations, and support for the forces who are struggling for a
democratic system in Syria. This is a prerequisite for establishing sound
relations between the two countries, which will ensure the interests of the
Lebanese and the Syrian people.
Fifth, Lebanon’s peace requires us to turn the page on the past concerning our
relations with the Palestinians and to support the efforts exerted to establish
an independent Palestinian state which is the condition for a lasting peace in
the region.
Dear friends,
Determining the Christian role in the Arab Spring is not a private Christian
matter, but it also concerns the Muslims, and it is their mutual concern, since
"Christians in the Levant", as stated in the first letter of the Catholic
Patriarchs of the East, are inseparable from the cultural identity of the
Muslims. And the Muslims in the Levant are inseparable from the cultural
identity of the Christians. In that sense, we are responsible for one another
before God and history."
Christian gathering calls for Christian-Muslim partnership
October 23, 2011
The “Our Lady of the Mountain” Christian gathering convened on Sunday and issued
a statement calling for Christian-Muslim partnership in the Arab world.
The statement also sought to calm Christian fears of the Arab Spring and warned
of the dangers of minority alliances that counter the aspirations of the people.
The gathering also called for the adoption of Christian values such as freedom,
democracy and human rights, and to not force the Syrian people to continue to
bear the burden of the Baath Party, in a reference to Syrian President Bashar
al-Assad’s regime.
The gathering also called for a council of Arab revolutionaries so that Lebanon
can share its experience of communal coexistence.
Lebanese expatriates were also called on to support the Arab Spring, according
to the statement.
The Arab Spring, also known as the “Jasmine Revolution,” is a revolutionary wave
of protests that has spread across the Arab world. So far, the Egyptian,
Tunisian and Libyan regimes have fallen, while Bahrain, Libya and Syria have
experienced massive civil unrest.
The United Nations says the Syrian regime’s campaign to clamp down on
anti-regime protests has resulted in more than 3,000 deaths since March.
-NOW Lebanon
Zahle MPs
Slam Hizbullah Expansion into Tarshish
Naharnet /Zahle bloc MPs slammed on Monday Hizbullah’s attempt to expand its
military presence in the town of Tarshish, saying that it has completely
disregarded the state and its constitutional institutions.It also addressed
Syrian army incursions into Lebanon, noting that its “shameful” position on the
matter “demonstrates the extent of its affiliation with Syria that has not
respected agreements between it and Lebanon.”The bloc demanded, after its weekly
meeting, that the government take a “decisive” stand on the affair and order the
deployment of the Lebanese army in the areas that witnessed incursions in order
to reassure the Lebanese residents in those regions. The meeting was attended by
MPs Tony Abu Khater, Assem Araji, Elie Marouni, and Chant Janjanian.Meanwhile,
Tarshish municipal head Gaby Semaan revealed that none of the concerned
ministries on the Tarshish incident contacted the town to clarify the matter,
media reports said on Monday.“Contacts are underway however with security
apparatuses to tackle the affair,” he added. “The residents have unanimously and
clearly rejected Hizbullah’s expansion of its telecommunications network,” he
continued. On Friday, Tarshish residents prevented the party from expanding its
network in the town.
The party attempted to expand the network as internet fiber optic cables
belonging to the Telecommunications Ministry were being installed in the town.
Hizbullah official Hussein Janbey has stressed that the expansion of the network
was only aimed at guaranteeing a “safe contact with our families and friends in
nearby Majdel Tarshish” town, Tarshish Semaan told An Nahar and al-Mustaqbal
newspapers. Telecommunications Minister Nicolas Sehnaoui said in a statement
over the weekend: “No side, whether it is official or unofficial, has the right
to use the ministry’s network for its personal use without first receiving legal
permission from the ministry to do so.”
Tarshish mayor: Calm restored after Hezbollah telecoms
incident
October 23, 2011/By Dana Khraiche The Daily Star /BEIRUT: The mayor of Tarshish
said Sunday tensions in his town had declined after residents last week
prevented Hezbollah members from extending a private telecoms network using
state infrastructure in the town. “Things are becoming calm and we should
resolve this issue in the best way,” Gabi Semaan, mayor of Tarshish, told The
Daily Star. Semaan also said that he had received information from Hezbollah
that the party would not pursue installations at the moment. Media reports
Friday night said residents of Tarshish, Baabda, prevented members of Hezbollah
using the infrastructure set up by the Telecoms Ministry to extend its own
gridlines, a move that sparked an altercation between residents and members from
the party. Later that evening, Telecoms Minister Nicolas Sehnaoui released a
statement saying no side had the right to use state infrastructure for private
use prior to authorization from his ministry. Semaan said that at a town meeting
Saturday residents and members of Hezbollah had discussed the matter but failed
to come to any tangible solutions. “At first, there were some tensions between
the two sides but I do not want to provoke anything and we are with adopting
solutions to calm things down,” Semaan said, adding that the residents were
determined to prevent Hezbollah from installing its network. Semaan said both
the Internal Security Forces and Lebanese Army Intelligence had contacted the
municipality following the incident offering its assisstance to ease tension
between the two sides. “I did not contact any high-ranking official in the
government and no [politician] has actually approached me on this issue,” the
mayor said however. In reaction to the events in Tarshish, Lebanese Forces
leader Samir Geagea telephoned President Michel Sleiman to receive updates on
the incident, an LF statement said Sunday. Sleiman was monitoring the situation
and following it up with Lebanese Army commander Jean Kahwagi, the statement
said, adding that Sleiman had assured Geagea that there were “no repercussions
on the ground.”For his part, Kataeb Party MP Sami Gemayel launched over the
weekend a scathing attack on Hezbollah on the issue, accusing the resistance
group of taking advantage of the Telecoms Ministry's infrastructure to extend
its own network in Tarshish.
Tarshish
Violation to Land on Information Committee Agenda as Residents Warn to Hold
Sit-in
Naharnet /MPs will seek to put the issue of Hizbullah’s attempt to expand its
telecommunications network in Tarshish near the eastern town of Zahle on the
agenda of the information committee on Wednesday as the town’s residents have
warned they would resort to a sit-in if the authorities do not take any action.
An Nahar daily said Sunday that the lawmakers would try to discuss the
controversial issue at the parliamentary information committee meeting that is
set to study the media law. Hizbullah official Hussein Janbey has stressed that
the expansion of the network was only aimed at guaranteeing a “safe contact with
our families and friends in nearby Majdel Tarshish” town, Tarshish Municipal
chief Gaby Semaan told An Nahar and al-Mustaqbal newspapers. Majdel Tarshish is
a mixed Christian-Shiite town. Semaan stressed, however, that Tarshish residents
and party representatives have decided to reject “at any cost” Hizbullah’s
operations. He warned they would resort to holding a sit-in “for the use of
force against them” after Janbey allegedly told them “no matter what you do, we
will expand the network as we have done in other Lebanese regions.” Semaan
thanked Phalange party chief Amin Gemayel and his son MP Sami for supporting
Tarshish residents. The Phalange officials have slammed the government for
standing idle towards Hizbullah’s telecom network that is intertwined with the
network of state institutions.
Hezbollah telecoms network, security promotions to
challenge Cabinet
October 24, 2011/By Hussein Dakroub, Van Meguerditchian The Daily Star
BEIRUT: The installation of Hezbollah’s alleged private telecommunications
network in the Metn town of Tarshish and a long-simmering dispute over
promotions of security officers are likely to dominate the political scene this
week, further adding to challenges facing the government already torn by
differences over how to address topics on its agenda.
Interior Minister Marwan Charbel, who returned from a visit to France Sunday
night, declined to comment on the sensitive issue of security promotions when
contacted by The Daily Star. “I’ve just arrived home. I am still carrying my
suitcase. Give time until tomorrow,” Charbel said. He added that he will talk or
issue a statement about a draft decree concerning the promotion of officers
within the Internal Security Forces Monday. President Michel Sleiman was
reported last week to be withholding his signature from a draft decree to
promote around 400 ISF officers because of reservations over some officers,
namely Col. Wissam al-Hasan, the head of the ISF’s Information Branch. Once the
decree is signed, Hasan would be promoted to brigadier general.
Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, apparently irked by the delay in the signing
of the draft decree, issued a statement urging Sleiman to put an end to what he
called the “blackmail” exercised by some parties over the promotion of
“honorable officers.” He also warned against the failure to issue the promotion
decree.
“The president, along with all the involved officials, are responsible for
tackling this issue and putting an end to blackmail which some here and there
are trying to exercise,” Hariri said in a statement published by Al-Mustaqbal
newspaper last Friday. “On our part, and from our political standing, we will
not keep silent on any injustice that might be inflicted on this group of
officers and military,” Hariri said.
Describing the ISF officers as “honorable,” Hariri said: “Anyone who fails to
reward these [officers] and give them their rights in promotions is a key
partner in stabbing the security and military institutions.”
At the root of the problem over the officers’ promotions is Hasan whose
Information Branch has been at the center of a controversy between rival
political factions.
While March 14 parties have hailed the branch’s role in busting Israeli spy
networks, some March 8 politicians, namely Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel
Aoun, have lashed out at the branch, dismissing it as an “illegitimate” body and
demanded it be dissolved. Aoun has also called on Mikati to dismiss ISF Director
General Ashraf Rifi and Hasan.
Hasan had served as chief of the security team with the slain former Prime
Minister Rafik Hariri. He heads the Information Branch, which has uncovered
Israeli spy networks in the past two years, resulting in the arrest of several
people charged with collaborating with Israel.
The Information Branch was instrumental last year in arresting retired Army
General Fayez Karam, a close aide of Aoun who was sentenced to two years in jail
for hard labor in August for collaborating with Israel.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah’s alleged attempt to install a private telecommunications
network in the Metn town of Tarshish was thwarted over the weekend by residents
and representatives from the town’s municipality.
The Mayor of Tarshish, Gaby Semaan, warned the government against remaining
silent on Hezbollah’s alleged bid to install an “illegal” telecoms network,
vowing not to allow it.
“Even if they try to install the system in a surprise move like they did on
Friday, the residents will confront them again and they will stop them from
installing any new network,” Semaan told The Daily Star.
While Hezbollah has repeatedly affirmed that its telecoms network is vital for
its security connections in times of war with Israel, the party’s telecoms has
been a subject of controversy in the country.
A government attempt to dismantle Hezbollah’s private telecoms network in May
2008 sparked street fighting in Beirut between Hezbollah’s Shiite supporters and
pro-government Sunni groups that left more than 80 people dead.
“[Hezbollah officials] warned us of another May 7 if we stand in their way. But
the people of Tarshish won’t accept this because the network is simply
illegitimate,” said Semaan.
Following Friday’s confrontation between the residents of Tarshish and a
Hezbollah delegation, Hezbollah’s public relations official Hussein Janbeyn held
a meeting with the Municipality of Tarshish. According to sources who attended
the meeting, a Hezbollah official warned of a repeat of May 7 clashes.
However, Telecommunications Minister Nicolas Sehnaoui dubbed illegal all
attempts of installing private telecoms networks.
“It is illegal for any party or a ministry to use the Telecoms Ministry’s
networks as a base for its own private networks,” said Sehnaoui.
Semaan said that Hezbollah attempted to use the government’s recently installed
DSL route in the town as a basis for its private network.
“They tried to install the telecoms network on the DSL networks that were
installed by the Telecommunications Ministry in March,” Semaan added.
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea discussed the Tarshish incident with Sleiman
by telephone. Sleiman assured Geagea that he is following up on the matter with
army commander General Jean Kahwagi.
But Metn MP Sami Gemayel lashed out at Hezbollah, reminding the party that
“there is a state in Lebanon.”
“No one is allowed in the country to have his own private telecoms network
because it is illegal to do so,” Gemayel told a Kataeb rally in the Baalbek-Hermel
district.
Located 50 kilometers east of Beirut, Tarshish stands between Metn’s Dhour
Choueir and Bekaa’s Zahle.
“The installment of the network is aimed to cover four kilometers into Tarshish
where they can connect it to a hill top post in Kefarselouan area,” said Semaan,
adding that Hezbollah wants to have Bekaa connected with other parts of Lebanon
through its private network that cannot be tapped.
Semaan also voiced fear that the government might endorse Hezbollah’s private
telecoms network through a vote. He called on the government to intervene and
put an end to the violations of the law. A Hezbollah official refused to comment
on the matter when contacted by The Daily Star.
Tarchich mayor: Hezbollah threatening another May 7
October 23, 2011 /Tarchich mayor Gaby Semaan said on Sunday that “Hezbollah
threatened another May 7 if the [Baada] town’s residents insist on preventing
the [party from] installing its telecommunications network.” “No competent
ministry was called to follow up on Hezbollah’s attempt to install its
telecommunications network in the town,” he told MTV.
On May 7, 2008 gunmen led by Hezbollah began a military operation and took over
West Beirut following a government decision to shut down the party’s
telecommunications network and replace the security chief at Rafik Hariri
International Airport because of his alleged ties to Hezbollah. MTV reported on
Friday that Hezbollah threatened residents of Tarchich after they prevented
party members from installing a telecommunications network in the town. -NOW
Lebanon
Future bloc MP Hadi Hobeich: Arab Spring does not threaten Christians
October 23, 2011 /Future bloc MP Hadi Hobeich said on Sunday that “no one has
the right to say that the Arab Spring poses a danger the Christians’ presence in
the Middle East.”
“Christians have always stood by the principles on which the Arab Spring is
based,” Hobeich told Future News. He also said that the Christians’ “Our Lady of
the Mountain” gathering “aims at fortifying the position and role of Christians
[in the Middle East].” The Arab Spring, also known as the “Jasmine Revolution,”
is a revolutionary wave of protests that has stormed the Arab world since
December 18, 2010. So far, the Egyptian, Tunisian and Libyan regimes have
fallen, while Bahrain, Yemen and Syria have experienced massive civil unrest
-NOW Lebanon
Sami Gemayel: Hezbollah does not accept people opposing its project
October 23, 2011 /Kataeb bloc MP Sami Gemayel said on Saturday night that
Hezbollah does not accept people opposing its project.
“Hezbollah does not accept the fact that a [Lebanese] state exists or that there
are people who oppose its work and project,” Gemayel said during a dinner
organized by the Baalbek district of the Kataeb Party. He also addressed the
latest developments in the town of Tarchich concerning the expansion of
Hezbollah’s telecommunication network.
“It is Hezbollah’s bad luck that the mayor of Tarchich and the majority of its
residents support the Kataeb Party, which [stopped Hezbollah] from installing
its telecommunications network in the village,” Gemayel added. “The Kataeb’s
refusal [of the network] is not because of the identity of Tarchich but it is
related to the principle of rejecting violations of the law and Hezbollah’s
logic,” he said. “Kataeb supporters favor the state and democracy, and [this is
not a] problem. [However] everything stops when it is about our freedom and
dignity because these matters cannot be [neglected].” MTV station reported on
Friday that Hezbollah threatened residents of Tarchich after they prevented
party members from installing a telecommunications network in the town.-NOW
Lebanon
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea asks Sleiman about
Tarchich developments
October 23, 2011 /Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea on Sunday contacted
President Michel Sleiman to follow up on the latest developments in the Baabda
town of Tarchich following Hezbollah’s reported attempt to install its own
telecommunications network in the town. “Sleiman told Geagea that he is
following up on the issue and reassured him that there will be no
complications,” according to a statement issued by Geagea’s office. MTV reported
on Friday that Hezbollah threatened residents of Tarchich after they prevented
party members from installing a telecommunications network in the town. -NOW
Lebanon
Al-Mustaqbal Accuses Syria of Being Behind Rejection of al-Hassan’s Promotion
Naharnet /The rejection of Hizbullah and the Free Patriotic Movement to promote
head of the Internal Security Forces Information Branch Col. Wissam al-Hassan
came upon pressure from Syria, al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc sources said. The
sources told al-Liwaa daily published Monday that Syria was frustrated at ISF
chief Maj. Gen. Ashraf Rifi’s attempt to link the disappearance of Syrian
opposition members in Lebanon to the Syrian embassy. Rifi has told a
parliamentary human rights committee that the embassy had a hand in the
kidnapping of the four Jassem brothers and drew similarities between their
disappearance and that of Shebli al-Aisamy, a co-founder of Syria's ruling Baath
party who fled his native country in 1966 over political differences. Al-Aisamy,
86, was last seen in May in the eastern region of Aley. The Mustaqbal sources
said that Syria has pressured its allies in Lebanon to reject the promotion of
around 400 security officers, including al-Hassan to brigadier general to avenge
Rifi. President Michel Suleiman withheld his signature from a decree to promote
the police officers at the behest of Hizbullah and FPM leader Michel Aoun. Media
reports have said that the decree has been approved by Interior Minister Marwan
Charbel and Prime Minister Najib Miqati.
Charbel is expected to discuss about the issue with top officials or issue a
statement on Monday. Speaker Nabih Berri backed Suleiman’s decision, telling An
Nahar daily that there was no need to create a tumult on the issue of
promotions. The uproar won’t affect the decision of the president to freeze the
promotions, Berri said.
Roads blocked in Beirut’s southern suburb
October 23, 2011 /The National News Agency reported on Sunday that Moqdad family
members blocked roads in Beirut’s southern suburb of Dahyieh. The report added
that the roads were blocked after security forces removed an illegal
construction project in Jbeil’s town of Lasa and arrested a Moqdad family
member. According to the report, security forces are trying to resolve the
issue. In August, the residents of Lasa - the majority of whose residents
support Hezbollah - obstructed the work of an Internal Security Forces patrol
that was attempting to halt the illegal construction of a house. A Maronite
delegation was also assaulted in Lasa in mid-July after it was prevented from
surveying a piece of land belonging to the Maronite Patriarchate.-NOW Lebanon
EU threatens to slap more sanctions on Syria
October 23, 2011 /European Union leaders are ready to slap more sanctions on
Syria failing a halt in the regime's violence against dissenters, EU President
Herman Van Rompuy said at the close of a summit Sunday. EU leaders "expressed
grave concern over continued brutality against the population in Syria," Van
Rompuy said, adding that if the violence did not stop the bloc "will impose
restrictive measures against the regime." The EU earlier this month expressed
support to Syria's opposition grouping while stopping short of official
recognition.
It has issued several rounds of sanctions against the regime of President Bashar
al-Assad, extending sanctions against members of his inner circle to banks and
the oil sector.
The EU leaders also issued a fresh call to Assad to step aside and allow a
political transition amid more reports of fatalities in a crackdown on dissent
that has left more than 3,000 people dead. The EU "condemns in the strongest
terms the ongoing brutal repression led by the Syrian regime against its
population," leaders said in a statement.
"President Assad must step aside to allow a political transition to take place
in Syria," the statement added.
The EU also reiterated support to Syria's opposition grouping, while stopping
short of official recognition, and urged "all members of the UN Security Council
to assume their responsibilities in relation to the situation in Syria."The
statement said Europe's leadership "welcomes the efforts of the political
opposition to establish a united platform. The creation of the Syrian National
Council is a positive step forward."In an eighth round of sanctions against the
Syrian regime earlier this month, the EU targeted a Syrian commercial bank.
Last month, it banned delivery to Syria's central bank of bank notes and coins
produced in the EU and prohibited European firms from making new investments in
Syria's oil industry.
That measure aimed to bite hard following a ban on imports of Syrian crude to
Europe. The continent buys 95 percent of Syria's oil exports, providing the
regime with one-third of its hard currency earnings.-AFP/NOW Lebanon
Progressive Socialist Party MP Akram Chehayeb: Lebanon needs ‘real reform’
October 23, 2011 /Progressive Socialist Party MP Akram Chehayeb said on Sunday
that Lebanon needs “real reform.”“The country needs real reform in a time where
many people are [faking] reforms while they need change and reform,” the
National News Agency quoted him as saying, in a reference to the Change and
Reform bloc.
An-Nahar newspaper reported on Thursday that arguments took place in Wednesday
night’s cabinet session between Progressive Socialist Party and Free Patriotic
Movement ministers.
This is not the first time that members of the PSP and FPM have quarreled. The
two groups disagreed over the energy plan endorsed by the FPM’s Energy Minister
Gebran Bassil before it was passed by the cabinet and parliament in September.
Chehayeb also reiterated the PSP’s position concerning the funding of the
UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL).
“We confirm the importance of funding the STL. The tribunal is necessary to stop
[political] assassinations,” Chehayeb said.“We hope that this cabinet succeeds
in funding the STL because [refusing to do so] does not stop the cabinet’s work
but will [disable] the state and the government,” he added. The Hezbollah-led
March 8 parties - which currently dominate Lebanon’s cabinet - have opposed a
clause in the Lebanese annual state budget pertaining to the funding of the
UN-backed court, while Prime Minister Najib Mikati has repeatedly voiced
Lebanon’s commitment to the tribunal. Four Hezbollah members have been indicted
by the STL in the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
However, the Shia group strongly denied the charges and refused to cooperate
with the court.-NOW Lebanon
Kataeb bloc MP Fadi al-Haber: Non-state weapons weaken
confidence in economy
October 23, 2011 /Kataeb bloc MP Fadi al-Haber said on Sunday that “non-state
weapons weaken confidence in the [Lebanese] economy,” in reference to
Hezbollah’s arsenal.
“The government does not represent all the Lebanese people,” he told the Voice
of Lebanon (100.5) radio, adding that “it is difficult for it to persist.”Haber
also commented on the reported installation of Hezbollah telecommunications
lines in the Baabda town of Tarchich.“Hezbollah is placing Lebanon under house
arrest and conquering all the services of the state.”MTV reported on Friday that
Hezbollah threatened residents of Tarchich after they prevented party members
from installing a telecommunications network in the town.
After Gaddafi: What happens now?
By Mshari al-Zaydi
Asharq Al Awsat
In the Holy Bible Jesus Christ says: "all those who live by the sword, shall die
by the sword.”
I recalled this quote as the news of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s death reached me,
and as the images of his blood-splattered corpse – bearing the same strange
facial expression that we became used to – were broadcast around the world.
We are not sure who killed him exactly, or even how he was killed precisely. Was
it the Libyan rebels or NATO? Was he executed after his capture or did he die of
his wounds? So far, nobody can be sure.
But this is beside the point, what is important is that Gaddafi has passed
beyond the veil of the living and into the realm of the dead.
Gaddafi, for more than 40 years, pursued a policy of murder, terrorism, and mass
detentions, and he died in the manner that he lived; violently.
Gaddafi was responsible for thousands of deaths, and even his brothers-in-arms
and revolutionary comrades, like Captain Omar al-Meheishy [a member of the
Libyan Revolutionary Command Council] were not safe from him, not to mention
respected guests like Imam Musa al-Sadr. In addition to this, there were the
dozens of Libyan dissidents living abroad – whom Gaddafi dubbed “stray dogs” –
who were assassination, as well as the victims of the infamous Abu Salim prison
massacre.
Gaddafi stayed in power through the sword, and so he died by the sword.
At the time of writing, small pockets of resistance may exist under the
leadership of Colonel Gaddafi’s remaining sons; however it seems clear that the
sun has finally set on the Gaddafi family’s presence in the Libyan skyline, and
they are now nothing more than a part of Libya’s past. What is vitally important
today is to look ahead to Libya’s future.
In Iraq, Saddam Hussein was killed after being captured. However he faced a
controversial trial and was sentenced and executed in a manner that incited
sectarian and pan-Arab passions.
Will Gaddafi's death create divisions in the same manner as Saddam Hussein’s
execution, or are we facing a different scenario? In other words, will Gaddafi's
death serve a catalyst for national unification and rallying to build a new
Libya or not? We must also take into account the fact that Libya does not suffer
from acute sectarian, doctrinal or ethnic divisions [in the same manner as
Iraq], despite the presence of Berber minorities and others.
With his death, the page has been turned on Gaddafi. All that remains to be said
is that he met his deserved end, and this reflects the bloody and brutal
approach that he embraced throughout his life. Now that the page has been turned
on Gaddafi, how will the new Libya manage its affairs and future? The tradition
of dissidents joining forces to face a common enemy is a well-known one. The
enemy’s presence represents the key reason for this unification, but what
happens when the enemy disappears and the underlying differences begin to
surface?
These differences have already begun to emerge in Libya today in the debate
between the liberal Islamist and secular trends. For example, we have seen the
conflict between radical Libyan cleric Sheikh Ali al-Salabi and liberal
politician Mahmoud Jibril, to name but one example.
It is clear, from the footage that we see and the reports that we hear, that the
fighters on the ground in Libya are closer to al-Salabi than Jibril, in the
cultural, social, and ideological sense.
Will Gaddafi's death mark the eruption of the – deferred – differences between
Gaddafi’s enemies, or will it serve to help bridge the gap and build common
grounds between those who joined together to fight the most eccentric dictator
in modern history? By the way, the differences I mentioned above might not just
exist between radicals and those with different ideological interpretations, but
also between different clans and tribes. We sincerely hope that the Libyans will
unite in order to start rebuilding their country. However, this does not detract
from our fears that Gaddafi’s death might loosen the thin ties that bound
together these disparate forces to confront the Libyan tyrant!
Hezbollah: Tel Aviv would be 1st target
October 23, 2011/The leader of Hezbollah said Friday if Israel
starts a war with Lebanon, Tel Aviv would be the militant group’s first target,
a Lebanese newspaper reported.
Al-Akhbar said Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah’s warning came during a meeting with
high-ranking officials in the party, The Daily Star of Lebanon reported.
“Any war that Israel decides to initiate in the future will start in Tel Aviv,
not in the occupied northern areas,” Nasrallah was quoted as saying. “They
(Israelis) will launch a war without having any of the red lines that they have
drawn for themselves in previous wars.”He said “if Israel decides to launch a
war against Lebanon … we will crush” the Israeli army.
Al-Akhbar reported Nasrallah admitted during a meeting of Hezbollah leaders that
the organization had been hurt by information passed to the CIA and the Israeli
intelligence agency Mossad, The Jerusalem Post said.Hezbollah had detained four
of its own members a month ago on charges of spying for Israel and a fifth fled,
the London-based daily Asharq Alawsat reported, the Post said. Asharq Alawsat
quoted Lebanese sources as saying a fifth operative, suspected of collaborating
with Israel, had disappeared from his southern Beirut home last week. He is
reported to have testified before a United Nations tribunal about the 2005
assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri.
MP Chehayeb accuses Aoun’s bloc of faking reforms
October 24, 2011/Progressive Socialist Party MP Akram Chehayeb said on Sunday
that Lebanon needs “real reform” and accused MP Michel Aoun’s Change and Reform
parliamentary bloc of faking reforms.“The country needs real reform at a time
where many people are faking reforms while they need to change and reform,”
National News Agency quoted him as saying, in a reference to the Change and
Reform bloc.Chehayeb also reiterated the PSP’s position concerning the funding
of the UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL).
“We confirm the importance of funding the STL. The tribunal is necessary to stop
[political] assassinations,” Chehayeb said. “We hope that this cabinet succeeds
in funding the STL because [refusing to do so] does not stop the cabinet’s work
but will [disable] the state and the government,” he added. Relations between
PSP and Change and Reform have been increasingly tense . The weekly session of
the Cabinet last Wednesday saw a heated debate over the disputed transfer of
funds from the Telecommunications to the Finance Ministry, as representatives of
the Free Patriotic Movement and the Progressive Socialist Party clashed verbally
over the issue according to An-Nahar newspaper. Telecommunications Minister
Charbel Nahhas, a representative of the FPM, has so far refused to transfer
telecoms revenues to the Finance Ministry. Nahhas’ refusal came under fire from
Public Works and Transportation Minister Ghazi Aridi. Aridi’s criticism of
Nahhas prompted the latter’s colleague in the FPM, Energy Minister Gibran Bassil,
to take up his defense. The lengthy debate, which took place during a session
that lasted for more than six hours, saw Bassil snap back at Aridi and accuse
him of spending funds on infrastructure works, particularly “asphalting roads,”
without the prior approval of the government. This is not the first time that
members of the PSP and FPM have quarreled. The two groups disagreed over the
energy plan endorsed by the FPM’s Energy Minister Gebran Bassil before it was
amended and passed by the cabinet and parliament in September. The Iranian and
Syrian backed Hezbollah-led March 8 alliance which currently dominates Lebanon’s
cabinet – has opposed a clause in the Lebanese annual state budget pertaining to
the funding of the UN-backed court, while Prime Minister Najib Mikati and PSP
leader MP Walid Jumblatt have repeatedly voiced Lebanon’s commitment to the
tribunal. Four Hezbollah members have been indicted by the STL in the 2005
assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. However, the Shiite group
denied the charges and refused to cooperate with the court
Hezbollah and CAIR Attacks on U.S. Jihad Experts are Synchronized
The Editors/FamilySecurityMatters
Al Manar – the official broadcasting arm of the terrorist group Hezbollah – is
again attempting to discredit (and thus silence) respected American national
security experts. And as a means of doing so, they are touting a now-public
letter by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) which refers to
respected foreign policy analyst Dr. Walid Phares as “an associate to war
crimes” and a “conspiracy theorist.” The issue stems from the fact that the Mitt
Romney presidential campaign has named Phares to its team of national security
advisors.
CAIR, which authored the letter and sent it to Romney, doesn’t approve of the
appointment. Neither does Hezbollah.
In a posting on Hezbollah's official TV broadcast arm al Manar, the terrorist
organization (implicated by a UN Tribunal in the 2005 assassination of Rafiq
Hariri of Lebanon) attacked Professor Walid Phares. They cited an article which
was based on a CAIR letter leveling vicious attacks on the Jihadism expert and
author of The Coming Revolution: Struggle for Freedom in the Middle East. The
Hezbollah propaganda arm warned that, by appointing Phares as one of his
advisors on Middle Eastern affairs, Republican hopeful Mitt Romney is echoing
the appointment by the State Department of Heinz Mahoney as deputy ambassador
for the US in Damascus.
Hezbollah charged that Mahoney "is an American spy, married to a Syrian, speaks
Arabic fluently, and is an expert in recruiting agents and spies." On Phares’s
non-related appointment, the Iranian regime’s proxy wrote: "imagine what the
coming days will bear in terms of surprises, accusations and explosions." To
validate its statement, Al Manar cited the above-noted (US-based) Daily Beast
article by McKay Coppins that trashed Professor Walid Phares by referring to the
CAIR letter sent to Romney asking for Phares’s removal. McKay's article was
based on CAIR's letter and Hezbollah used it to attack Phares.
Observers noted that this wasn't the first time CAIR and Hezbollah media
campaigns converged to the point of merging. Last Spring, CAIR, accused by many
to be a front for the terror group Hamas, also sent a letter to Rep. Pete King
demanding the removal of Professor Phares from the list of expert witnesses in
the hearings on Jihadi radicalization. That letter was also picked up and
publicized by the Iranian-backed daily al Akhbar in Lebanon. Writing in as
Siyassa of Kuwait, Hamid Ghuriafi said "the campaign of incitement waged by
Nihad Awad, director of CAIR, against Professor Walid Phares, a Congressional
advisor, is full of lies and misrepresentations. It was executed at the request
of the Iranian regime after Phares appeared in an American movie (“Iranium”)
released two weeks ago. In that film, Phares called on the Obama Administration
and the international community to expedite a regime change in Tehran by
supporting the democratic Green revolution in Tehran, which could lead to the
crumbling of the Khamenei-Ahmedinejad regime." (See: CAIR Director Accused of
Sectarian Incitement Against Congressional Advisor). Many in the Arab world view
CAIR as a force of extremism inside the United States as reported in al Qanat.
Although Hamas is Salafi Islamist and Hezbollah is Khomeinist, they seemingly do
work together as allies of Iran's regime. Since CAIR appears to be a front for
Hamas, it is becoming clear to many in Washington nowadays that CAIR is at the
intersection of the Muslim Brotherhood and of Hamas's influence, thus in the
same camp as Hezbollah. Some argue that the fact that the campaign against
Professor Phares was also fueled by a Hezbollah propagandist - a
California-based university teacher, As'ad Abukhalil, who also viciously
attacked Phares (see: As'ad Abukhalil: America's Hezbollah Propagandist)– it is
becoming obvious that US propaganda operations against US experts must be
coordinated by Hezbollah and Hamas via their propagandists and fronts.
Abukhalil writes in Iran-funded al Akhbar of Beirut. He used to appear on
Hezbollah's broadcast arm al Manar and he attacks the same target that CAIR
attacks. So the circle is closed.
Randall Todd “Ismail” Hoyer, who initiated attacks against Dr. Phares, and was
later jailed for terrorism offenses.
As we widened our research, we discovered that the campaign that’s been leveled
against Steve Emerson and Daniel Pipes since the 1990s was also coordinated by
CAIR. More importantly, the current campaign against Phares was initiated in
1999 by a CAIR official, Randall Todd “Ismail” Royer, in a libel article against
the scholar, published on IViews, an Islamist online media site. Worse, we
learned that Royer was indicted as a leading member in the terror cell indicted
in 2002, known as the Virginia Paintball Jihad cell. CAIR has never been
investigated about Jihadist Royer who served as its officer on "civil rights."
For the time being, observers in the field of national security and defense are
disturbed by the collusion between the Hezbollah propaganda campaign and CAIR's.
"That both groups target the same experts, over and over again, in a
synchronized manner, is ominous. It needs to be thoroughly analyzed" said an
expert who works for the US Government in the field of intelligence.
From our view, there could be no greater testimony to the correctness of Dr.
Phares's appointment to Governor Romney's national security team than the fact
that these nefarious groups are vehemently opposed to this important assignment.
The Editors.
For the
first time, the Arab people have realized that their main enemy is their own
tyrants, not Israel
A new resistance, a new enemy
Hanin Ghaddar, October 24, 2011
http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticleDetails.aspx?ID=325376
The Party of God is in a tight spot. Hezbollah’s message of the past 20 years is
today losing its appeal. The rhetoric the party employed about the importance of
the Resistance and the significance of its arms is being swallowed by the
peaceful message of the Arab Spring, which calls for nonviolent protest to
topple totalitarian regimes.
For the first time, the Arab people have realized that their main enemy is their
own tyrants, not Israel, the long-time enemy of Hezbollah. For the first time,
the Party of God and its “divine” victories and “divine” arms are less
significant than obtaining freedom and dignity. A new vocabulary for these
new-found values is being invented every day on Arab streets.
Instead of trying to learn the new language of the street or at least pretend to
support the people’s aspirations, Hezbollah seems to be fighting back, mostly
when it comes to the uprising against the regime of Syrian President Bashar
al-Assad. The Lebanese are being forced to follow the party’s lead and support
the dictator in Damascus or otherwise stay silent.
As the Arab Spring spreads across the Middle East, with the words “freedom” and
“dignity” gaining new meanings among the people, many Lebanese feel they have
lost both freedom and dignity in the past few months. But this will have grave
repercussions for Hezbollah, because for the first time, the party is on the
defensive.
Despite several attacks on peaceful protesters in front of the Syrian Embassy in
Beirut by pro-Assad thugs, there are still ongoing attempts to voice support for
the Syrian uprising.
A lot of the Lebanese who support the Syrian uprising are not members of the
March 14 coalition. They are leftists who are normally avid supporters of the
Resistance. They worked hand-in-hand with those who attacked them during the
2006 July War between Hezbollah and Israel. They also joined forces to aid the
Palestinian refugees who fled the Nahr al-Bared camp in 2007 during the army’s
fight with the pro-Syrian militant group Fatah al-Islam, and they demonstrated
together against the Israeli blockade on Gaza. They have come together on many
occasions, but apparently for different reasons.
Today most of the leftist, independent and secular activists cannot stomach the
rhetoric of Hezbollah and have taken a clear stand against the brutality of the
Syrian regime.
Are they now against the Resistance? Certainly not. But they have come to the
realization that a resistance movement or party cannot be credible if it
supports dictatorships and stands against those demanding freedom, dignity and
human rights, especially when they are non-violent.
Hezbollah had been for decades lecturing its supporters about the importance of
scarifying one's life for the sake of freedom and dignity. And that’s exactly
what the Syrian revolution is about. Its peaceful methods, however, threw
Hezbollah and the Syrian regime off guard. Everyone knows there are no armed
gangs roaming the streets and assaulting the Syrian security services. The
conspiracy theory is not holding water anymore. But the non-violent methods of
this new resistance do not translate in Hezbollah’s language.
Hezbollah has always portrayed itself to the Lebanese and the Arabs as a
resistance movement that speaks on behalf of the underprivileged. It criticized
unjust governments in Israel, the US and many countries in the Arab world. It
has preached of liberty and dignity for decades, and in the name of these two,
many of us have had to suffer wars, destruction and political unrest. Today,
Hezbollah's mask has fallen completely, not only in Lebanon, but in the
burgeoning Arab consciousness, where a dictator like Assad has no place.
It is very simple: Any ally of a dictator is an enemy of the Arab street.
It has become clear to many supporters of the Resistance that Hezbollah’s main
priority today is its weapons. It is willing to support dictators and criminals
as long as its weapons are protected. This does not mean that Hezbollah has lost
its support base completely. Many in Lebanon still buy the party’s line that
Assad is the only Arab ally of the Resistance and that the uprising in Syria was
started by Western powers. But a big part of the community in the South, mainly
leftists and former Communists, have lost faith in the party, and this might
lead to new street dynamics within the community. The real problem is that
Hezbollah is not only supporting a tyrant but is also acting like one. It has
imposed tight control on people's daily lives in South Lebanon, from alcohol
consumption to social and political activism. A friend of mine from the South
told me, "Before 2000, the Israeli army occupied my village. When Hezbollah
liberated it, we celebrated and were very thankful. Today, I cannot buy a beer
or criticize Assad publically in my village. I do not feel it is liberated. It
is still occupied, but now by Iranian arms. Is there a real difference?"
Hezbollah liberated the land but has since been acting as if it owns it. Power
and popular support made it forget that the people followed it because it
promised them liberty, freedom and dignity. Today, power and control have more
value to the Party of God than its loyal base. This will not end well. These
supporters, who have been listening to the voice of the Arab street for months
now, will find it difficult to tolerate an unsympathetic tyrant in Lebanon.
**Hanin Ghaddar is the managing editor of NOW Lebanon
The importance of Tunisia today
Hazem Saghiyeh, October 24, 2011
The elections in Tunisia are a subject of interest for the Arab world and
peoples as a whole, including—of course—Lebanon, Syria and their respective
peoples.
The Maghreb country, which was the starting point of the Arab wave of uprisings,
has now acquired a special symbolic importance not only in its immediate
environment, but also in the whole world. In this sense, its successful
transition to democratic stability will have a lasting effect on both the
remaining uprisings and despotic regimes. Many voices opposed to change will
undoubtedly rise, especially in Lebanon and Syria, to swell failures
disproportionately and provide exaggerated descriptions of them in an attempt to
exploit this negative image against the change movement in countries where
change has yet to prevail.
Nevertheless, the issue in Tunisia and, by extension, in the Arab world, will be
the following: What role will Islamists, especially the Nahda Movement, play,
and what impact will this role have on the democratic process in general and on
the future of modernism, and women’s rights in particular?
One can say nowadays that the Islamists’ claims of compatibility with democracy
are put to the test more than ever before. But let us not delude ourselves into
thinking that Tunisian society, which was worn out by long-tern tyranny, can
successfully limit on its own the Islamists’ violations of democracy if they do
decide to violate it.
Consequently, the West’s presence—especially in the shape of mutual economic
interests—will be the most potent means to curb such transgressions. This is
added to the coherence of society against a backdrop of the achievements aiming
to shield civil realms against religious dominance and to protect women from the
dominance of men.
In any case, the transition will be a difficult one and will require the use of
all legitimate forces and tools to shorten the transition period and make it as
painless as possible. Crying out about real or potential dangers in order to
question change is tantamount to saying, “Do not walk because you might fall
down, and do not swim because you might drown.”
The Tunisian people have decided to walk and swim, and the remaining Arab
peoples are observing them, wishing they succeed and act as a model for change
much like they were a model for laying foundations and first beginnings. Now
Lebanon
**This article is a translation of the original, which appeared on the NOW
Arabic on Monday, October 24, 2011
US and NATO allies vie over "kudos" for Qaddafi's
termination
DEBKAfile Special Report/ October 24, 2011/Libya's transitional leader Mustafa
Abdul-Jalil was quite clear about his intentions for liberated Libya Sunday,
Oct. 23, when he addressed a crowd of tens of thousands in Benghazi celebrating
Muammar Qaddafi's death: "Libyan laws in future would have Sharia, the Islamic
code, as its basic source," he declared and promised to revoke the Qaddafi code
which outlawed polygamy and restore the Islamic banking laws banning interest on
loans. "Interest creates disease and hatred among people," said Abdul-Jalil.
As he spoke, the Islamic law which requires immediate burial was flouted by
Libyans still queuing up to view the bodies of the dead ruler and his son
Mutassim lying in a Misrata cold meat store - four days after their deaths.
The Misrata Brigade told the interim leaders: "Let all the people see him."
That was one act of defiance.
It was generally believed in Tripoli that the strongmen ruling the capital,
Abdel Hakim Belhaj, ex-al Qaeda, and Ismail and Ali al-Sallabi, heads of the
Libyan Muslim Brotherhood, only granted Abdul-Jalil's wish for a big liberation
rally in Benghazi after he agreed to declare the new Libya a Sharia state.
But after the grand celebration is over, debkafile's sources report, the
transitional leader will be little more than a figurehead. Even now, he is
confined in Benghazi by the three strongmen, who control most parts of the
capital, and have not given him permission to move the seat of the interim
government to Tripoli.
Abdul-Jalil is only allowed to pop over to receiving visiting foreign
dignitaries.
Working through NATO, US President Barack Obama, the UK's David Cameron and
French President Nicolas Sarkozy managed to finish off Qaddafi but are far from
controlling the transition. The regime taking shape could not be further from
the Western ideal of a free democracy.
Behind the grisly images of Muammar Qaddafi's last moments spilling out since
Thursday, Oct. 20, a quiet contest is afoot between the US and at least two NATO
allies, France and Germany, over who deserves the credit for his termination and
therefore for ending the alliance's military role in Libya.
American sources are willing to admit that US drones operated by pilots from Las
Vegas pinpointed the fugitive ruler's hideout in Sirte and kept the building
under surveillance for two weeks, surrounded by US and British forces.
Both therefore had boots on the ground in breach of the UN mandate which limited
NATO military intervention in Libya to air strikes.
Some of the accounts of his last days suggest that he abandoned the precautions
which kept him safe for years and was not afraid to use the satellite and cell
phones which gave his position away - almost as though he courted capture.
Other accounts describe his departure from Sirte Thursday morning in a convoy of
75 vehicles as "a suicidal flight." According to the London Daily Telegraph, his
presence in the convoy was first picked up by the USAF River Joint RC-135V/W
intelligence signals plane, which passed the information to French warplanes
overhead who then carried out the strike on Qaddafi's vehicle.
The German Der Spiegel reported Monday, Oct. 24, that the tip revealing
Qaddafi's last hiding place came from German BND intelligence agents. Although
Chancellor Angela Merkel was dead against German participation in the NATO
operation in Libya, the BND nonetheless played an important role in
intelligence-gathering.
It is increasingly obvious now that without the active intervention of the US,
Britain, France and Germany, the anti-Qaddafi rebels on their own would never
have beaten Qaddafi or been able to end his life.
The way the Libyan episode unfolded up to its ending has two important messages
for the Middle East and North Africa, say debkafile's military and intelligence
sources:
1. The United States and its NATO allies have no compunctions about eradicating
dictatorships one way or another. The opposition in Syria quickly picked up the
message. Shortly after Qaddafi's demise was confirmed, the protesters were out
in the streets flying Libyan flags and warning Bashar Assad that he would soon
share the same fate.
2. A primary objective of the Arab Spring as promoted by the United States and
the Western Alliance is the substitution of those dictatorships by fundamental
Muslim regimes whose leaders quite frankly usher Sharia law in to the liberated
countries.