LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِSeptember
01/2011
Bible Quotation for today.
Sirach Chapter 14/6-11: "6 There is none
worse than he that envieth himself; and this is a recompence of his wickedness.
And if he doeth good, he doeth it unwillingly; and at the last he will declare
his wickedness. The envious man hath a wicked eye; he turneth away his face, and
despiseth men. A covetous man's eye is not satisfied with his portion; and the
iniquity of the wicked drieth up his soul. A wicked eye envieth [his] bread, and
he is a niggard at his table. My son, according to thy ability do good to
thyself, and give the Lord his due offering.
Latest
analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases
from
miscellaneous
sources
Syria’s gamble on Gaddafi fails/By
Osman Mirghani/August 31/11
Obama’s words aren’t enough/By:
Asaf Romirowsky/August 31/11
Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources
for August 31/11
No Egyptian crackdown on Sinai
terrorists. Jihad keeps Israel in suspens
Geagea Says Cabinet Paralyzed,
Dominated by Hizbullah and Syria
Maronite Bishops Urge Officials to
Unify Ranks, Rebuild the State
March 14: Hizbullah is in a State
of Confusion over Syria
Speaker Berri at Rally Marking
Anniversary of Imam Sadr Disappearance
Lebanon to Attend Paris Conference
on Libya
Ghosn Criticizes Verbal Attacks
Against Army
Lebanon’s Grand Shiite Jaafarite
Mufti Sheikh Ahmad Qabalan attacks U.S., Israel over STL, defends Hezbollah
Sheikh Abdul Amir Qabalan urges
Libyan rebels to uncover Sadr fate
One Dead as Dispute Erupts into
Gunfire in Miyyeh-w-Miyyeh
U.S. Concerned Individuals at Risk
after WikiLeaks Dump, Site under Cyberattack
Tehran Says Iran-Saudi Security is
Linked
EU to Lift Libya Oil, Port
Sanctions Friday
Amnesty: Deaths in Syria prisons
have soared during Assad regime's crackdown
Syrian troops raid Hama homes,
residents say
Syrian Security Forces Carry Out
Raids in Homs and Hama
U.N. renews UNIFIL mandate,
condemns attacks
Iran to dispatch submarine, warship
to Red Sea again
Libya commander says 50,000 dead in
anti-Gadhafi uprising
'Libya rebels fear use of Scud
missiles, mustard gas by Gadhafi forces in Sirte'
Israeli Defense Forces (IDF)
beefing up defenses in south after intelligence warnings of terror attack
Israel refuses early payment to
Palestinian Authority, leaving thousands without salaries
Hamas chief heads to Cairo for more
talks on Shalit deal
Zvi Bar'el / Turkey's need for
Israel's UAVs may rehabilitate their relationship
U.S. bill aims to cut funds to
pro-Palestinian UN groups
U.S. Blacklists Muallem, Shaaban, Syrian Envoy to Lebanon
Mansour Says Syria Made Right Step by Rejecting Arab FMs Statement
Suleiman Holds 'Long' Phone Conversation with Assad
U.N. renews UNIFIL mandate, condemns attacks
August 31, 2011/Daily Star
UNITED NATIONS: The UN Security Council on Tuesday strongly condemned attacks on
UN peacekeepers in Lebanon as it renewed the key force's mandate for another
year.
Two roadside bomb attacks have hit the 12,000-strong UNIFIL force in the past
four months while Israeli and Lebanese troops have opened fire at each other on
the unofficial border that the peacekeepers are meant to police. The 15-nation
Security Council condemned "in the strongest terms the terrorist attacks against
UNIFIL" on May 27 and July 26 in which six Italian troops and six French
soldiers were wounded. The council also condemned border incidents on May 15,
when Israeli troops opened fire on protestors killing 10, and on August 1 when
Israeli and Lebanese troops exchanged fire, each blaming the other for the
shooting. UNIFIL was founded in 1978 to oversee a fragile peace along Lebanon's
southern border with Israel and it was strengthened after a brief war between
the two countries in 2006. The ceasefire line, the Blue Line, has never been
fully delineated.
The Security Council, meanwhile, welcomed a "strategic dialogue" started between
UNIFIL and the Lebanese Armed Forces aimed at increasing the capability of the
Lebanese military in the south of the country. A western diplomat, speaking on
condition of anonymity, said: "In adopting this resolution, the council is again
showing its support to UNIFIL, which plays a crucial role in a region going
through unprecedented instability."
U.S.
Blacklists Muallem, Shaaban, Syrian Envoy to Lebanon
Naharnet /The U.S. Treasury Department slapped sanctions on Syria's
foreign minister and two other top officials Tuesday, adding new pressure on the
embattled regime of President Bashar al-Assad.Asset freezes and bans on business
interactions were imposed on Foreign Minister Walid Muallem, top presidential
advisor Buthaina Shaaban, and Syrian ambassador to Lebanon Ali Abdul Karim Ali,
the Treasury said. "Building on our sanctions targeting the entire government of
Syria, we are bringing additional pressure to bear today directly on three
senior Assad regime officials who are principal defenders of the regime's
activities," said Treasury Under Secretary David Cohen. The new sanctions follow
an August 18 order signed by President Barack Obama that froze all Syrian state
assets inside the United States and forbade investment and exports to the
country, due to the Assad government's deadly crackdown on anti-government
protesters. It also banned imports of oil and gas from Syria, aiming to hurt a
key revenue stream for the Assad regime. The attacks on protesters "constitute
an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy and
economy of the United States," the presidential order said. For her part, State
Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland linked the sanctions to "the role that
(the three) play in propagating and advancing the reign of terror that Assad is
exacting on his own people."She charged that Muallem has "continued to beat this
drum of international conspiracy and has attempted to cover up the regime's
horrific activities by making claims that terrorists or others were
responsible."Nuland said "Shaaban has served as the public mouthpiece for the
repression of the regime." She expressed U.S. concern that Ali Abdul Karim Ali
had maintained "close ties" with Syrian intelligence throughout his diplomatic
career and pursued activities in Lebanon that were "not compatible" with his
diplomatic status. "We have been concerned -- and we've conveyed these concerns
to the Lebanese government -- about harassment of Syrians in Lebanon and the
disappearance of some of them," Nuland said.*/Source Agence France Presse
No Egyptian
crackdown on Sinai terrorists. Jihad keeps Israel in suspense
DEBKAfile Special Report August 31, 2011, The Cairo media's highly colored
accounts Monday, Aug. 30 of 1,500 Egyptian commando and tank supposedly raiding
Jihad Islami and al Qaeda cells in Sinai are pure fiction, debkafile's military
sources confirm. Israeli forces along the Gazan and Egyptian borders down to
Eilat have been forced to stand for a week at the highest level of preparedness
since receiving word that a large group of terrorists had left the Gaza Strip
for Sinai on Aug. 24 bent on another attack on southern Israel. The Egyptian
army, for its part, is sitting on is hands as the jihadists take up assault
positions on its side of the Sinai border.
The group set out from Gaza the day after the head of the Jihad Islami missile
and logistics chief Ismail al-Asmar died in a targeted Israeli air strike on the
car he was travelling in Rafah.
Israelwent on high terror alert on Aug. 25. Its leaders have repeatedly warned
since then that Israel is fully prepared to respond swiftly if attacked.
Tuesday night, the IDF's Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz said: “Hamas and
the other terrorist organizationsin Gaza had better realize that if they harm
Israeli citizens we shall hit them hard. Testing our strength would be a
mistake."
Tuesday, Home Front Minister Mattan Vilnai cited information that the at least
10 terrorists were in Sinai getting set to strike southern Israel.
Our sources report he was scolded by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and
Defense Minister Ehud Barak for letting it be known that the coming Palestinian
raid was liable to be bigger than the coordinated highway attacks just north of
Eilat of the Aug. 18, in which gunmen shot eight people dead. Limited Israeli
reprisal then against Gazan terrorist targets brought forth a 150-missile
barrage from Gaza against locations within its constantly expanding range.
For the loss of its logistics chief, the group decided it was not satisfied with
heavy missile assaults and plotted a "quality operation" from Sinai.
debkafile's intelligence and counter-terror sources report that the absence of
Egyptian preventatives and Israel's passivity in the face of an assault known to
be approaching afford the Palestinian terrorist group, which is sponsored and
armed by Iran, extra leverage and strategic leeway in its contest with Israel.
Sunday, Aug. 21, after accepting an Egyptian-brokered truce for halting the
missile blitz from Gaza, Netanyahu commented that Israel had gained the upper
hand: The Palestinians had landed themselves with a new negative equation: Their
attacks from Sinai would henceforth incur retaliation in Gaza.
Jihad Islami is now turning this equation on its head by demonstrating that
Israeli attacks on Palestinian terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip bring forth
Palestinian reprisals from Sinai.
They calculate correctly as it turned out this week that the Egyptian border
offers them no obstacle to cross-border terror, whereas Israeli counteraction is
stopped short.
Held back from its famous preemptive tactics by Israel's leaders out of fear of
further strains on relations with the military rulers in Cairo, the Israeli
army's deterrent strength is progressively sapped and the pro-Iranian
Palestinian terrorists are getting the last laugh even before they strike.
They have wound up holding the initiative in the next round. It is up to them to
decide for how much longer – days or weeks - reinforced Israeli units must stay
on maximum preparedness and Israel's main routes to the south, Highways 10 and
12, stay closed to civilian traffic. They can keep Israel on tenterhooks as long
as they like before deciding to press the trigger
U.S. Concerned Individuals at Risk
after WikiLeaks Dump, Site under Cyberattack
Naharnet /The United States on Tuesday voiced renewed concern over the risks to
individuals after the anti-secrecy site WikiLeaks made public more U.S.
diplomatic cables, many of which contained the names of sensitive sources.State
Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland would not confirm the authenticity of the
latest documents, but said "the United States strongly condemns any illegal
disclosure of classified information.”
"In addition to damaging our diplomatic efforts, it puts individuals' security
at risk, threatens our national security and undermines our effort to work with
countries to solve shared problems," Nuland told reporters."We remain concerned
about these illegal disclosures and about concerns and risks to individuals,"
she said.
"We continue to carefully monitor what becomes public and to take steps to
mitigate the damage to national security and to assist those who may be harmed
by these illegal disclosures to the extent that we can," Nuland said.
Nuland was alluding to a policy that experts said involved U.S. efforts to come
to the aid of sources who ran the risk of being exposed, including possibly
relocating them.
The New York Times reported that the latest dump of 133,887 confidential and
secret documents included many containing the names of sensitive sources who
could be at risk of reprisals if they were known to be talking to U.S.
diplomats.
Australia meanwhile lambasted the whistle-blowing site for what it called an
"incredibly irresponsible" move to publish secret U.S. cables that detailed
Australians with suspected links to Yemeni terrorism.
Australia's Attorney-General Robert McClelland also noted that, contrary to
previous efforts to redact identifying features, this "has not occurred in this
case" of the latest release.
In a Twitter message the anti-secrecy website said it was "totally false that
any WikiLeaks sources have been exposed or will be exposed."
However, in sampling half a dozen cables written between 2003 and 2009 where the
author wrote "protect source," Agence France Presse observed that only one of
them had the name of the source removed.
WikiLeaks meanwhile also said late Tuesday it was fending off a cyberattack
after being lambasted for releasing more supposedly confidential U.S. diplomatic
cables.
"WikiLeaks.org is presently under cyberattack," the organization said in a terse
message on the microblogging service Twitter.
Ever since WikiLeaks obtained around 250,000 cables and released the first batch
of them in November last year, the U.S. State Department has been exposed to
embarrassing revelations about how it viewed foreign government officials.
Diplomats worried the disclosures would make it harder to do their work because
officials, representatives of non-government organizations, activists and others
would hesitate to talk to them privately for fear of being exposed.
However, experts said WikiLeaks was much more careful about editing out the
names of U.S. government sources in the first batch of released documents.
That is not the case in the latest batch, according to Steven Aftergood, a
specialist on government secrecy at the Federation of American Scientists who
reviewed dozens of cables and found only one case where the source was removed.
"It's a worrisome development particularly because a number of the confidential
sources are not public officials but are private contacts, members of NGOs, or
private firms," Aftergood told AFP.
"And in several cases, the cables themselves have specified that the sources
need to be protected," he said.
He said the consequences for the sources range from losing the confidence of the
people they usually deal with to actually losing their jobs. "In some extreme
cases," he added, they may be in "personal jeopardy."
"The point is that they (WikiLeaks) have changed their practice and that the
kinds of information that they were redacting as recently as a few months ago is
now being put out in the open," Aftergood said.
For former State Department spokesman Philip Crowley, the problem with the leaks
was not about embarrassing revelations as much as "about the risk to lives and
careers of individuals" who have helped U.S. diplomats.
Crowley, who now has a prestigious university teaching post in Pennsylvania,
said he does not know if WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is right in saying
that nobody has died from a WikiLeaks disclosure.
"That's not the only measure. There have been people forced to move, people who
have lost their careers, people who simply are much more cautious," he said.
**Source Agence France Presse
Geagea Says Cabinet Paralyzed, Dominated by Hizbullah and Syria
Naharnet /Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea stressed that the Lebanese
government is dominated by Hizbullah and the Syrian regime that were behind the
toppling of the cabinet led by former PM Saad Hariri. “The President (Michel
Suleiman) and the Premier (Najib Miqati) are the ones who supervise the
formation of the government… they had a strong tendency to form a technocrat
cabinet… However, the result was the opposite,” Geagea told al-Ekhbariya Saudi
channel. He said that when Lebanon disavowed itself from voting on the U.N.
Security Council resolution on Syria and from the Arab League FMs closing
statement proves that this cabinet is controlled by Hizbullah and Syria. Asked
if the Syrian-Lebanese relations forced Lebanon to take such decisions, Geagea
said: “It’s true that good relations link Lebanon with Syria, but aren’t the
people protesting in the streets (of Syria) also connected to the Lebanese?” He
ruled out that the Lebanese division over the situation in Syria will lead to
local disputes, saying: “We can’t but respect the people’s will” in Syria.
“The crisis in Syria will end after a democratic free regime rises,” he
remarked.
The LF leader stressed that the March 14-led opposition will escalate its
parliamentary opposition to topple the cabinet.
“The government was paralyzed immediately after it began its tasks… The
confrontations between the officials (in the cabinet) started and they are now
trying to prepare for the Sep. 7 ministerial session,” Geagea told al-Ekhbariya.
He stressed that the March 14 camp began its opposition before the Syrian
people’s uprising, noting that “the developments in Syria will affect the
cabinet’s term.” Geagea slammed accusations made by March 8 forces hinting that
the March 14 forces are linked to an American-Israeli scheme in Lebanon.
He accused Hizbullah of being linked to an Iranian-Syrian axis, stressing that
“the March 14 forces, Arab and International groups currently share this idea.”
Concerning Hizbullah’s rejection to cooperate with the Special Tribunal for
Lebanon probing the assassination of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri, he slammed the
stance denying that it is politicized.
“Hizbullah’s leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah can accuse the (STL) judges of being
friends with Israel, but that doesn’t mean it’s true,” Geagea stressed.
He added: “Leaking the indictment by media outlets doesn’t prove that it (the
STL) is politicized.”
Geagea urged Hizbullah to hand over the four suspects accused in Hariri’s
murder. Salim Ayyash, 47, Mustafa Badreddine, 50, Hussein Onaissi, 37 and Assad
Sabra, 34 are all members of Hizbullah, however, their whereabouts are unknown.
March 14: Hizbullah is in a State of Confusion over Syria
Naharnet /March 14 general-secretariat coordinator Fares Soaid said Wednesday
that Hizbullah is in a crisis and would put itself in a confrontation with the
whole world if it continues to support the Assad regime.“The Syrian regime is
choking,” Soaid told LBC TV network. “The international community is sending
signals that the regime in Syria has collapsed.”
It will not be able to adapt to the next stage, the March 14 official said.
Turning to the Syrian regime’s ally Hizbullah, Soaid told LBC that the Shiite
party is in a state of “confusion and trouble.” “If the party continues to stick
itself fully to the Syrian regime and confront the revolution, it means it has
taken the decision to confront the whole world,” he said.
“Such a move not only puts the party in the circle of accusation but also
Lebanon as a whole,” Soaid added.
Maronite Bishops Urge Officials to Unify Ranks, Rebuild the State
Naharnet /The Council of Maronite Bishops on Wednesday expressed fear over
divisions among Lebanese officials urging them to unify their ranks and rebuild
the state on the foundations of equality and justice. Following their weekly
meeting under Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi in his summer residence of Diman, the
bishops lamented that divisions among politicians were paralyzing government
work and preventing it from carrying out its duties towards the nation and
citizens.
The bishops were referring to a dispute between cabinet ministers on an
electricity draft law that calls for allocating $1.2 billion to Energy Minister
Jebran Bassil.
The council urged the officials to put Lebanon’s interest before personal
interests, “unify ranks and rhetoric and work together to rebuild this state on
the foundations of love, equality and justice and based on the respect of the
country’s constitution and laws.” The bishops also expressed fear on the
“painful developments in some Arab countries.” They called for security and
stability in these countries and hoped that “the people’s demand for freedom,
democracy and justice would be achieved through an understanding and cooperation
among all the citizens of these nations.” Reiterating their rejection of the
naturalization of Palestinians in Lebanon, the bishops hoped that the
international community would recognize the state of Palestine after more than
30 years of struggle. The statement stressed the right of Palestinian refugees
to return to the state that they are expected to announce in accordance with
international resolutions
Jumblat Informs Nasrallah his Stance from Electricity Draft Law is Technical
Naharnet/Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat has reportedly
informed Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah that his stance from an
electricity draft-law is purely technical and has no political motives.
Jumblat told Nasrallah’s assistant Hussein Khalil that his stance is aimed at
improving the conditions of the implementation of the electricity project which
is based on allocating $1.2 billion to Energy Minister Jebran Bassil to generate
700 Megawatts of electricity. Khalil was carrying with him a message from
Nasrallah asking Jumblat if his stance had any political motive. Ministers loyal
to Jumblat refused to allow Bassil to spend the $1.2 billion funds without any
supervision. They suggested the formation of a technical committee.
The meeting between Jumblat and Khalil was held on Monday at his residence in
Clemenceau. Speaker Nabil Berri’s political assistant Minister Ali Hassan Khalil,
Hizbullah official Wafiq Safa and Social Affairs Minister Wael Abou Faour, who
is loyal to Jumblat, also attended the talks.
Ghosn Criticizes Verbal Attacks
Against Army
Naharnet /Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn slammed on Wednesday verbal attacks on
the Lebanese army by certain people he refused to name, stressing that it is the
only institute that is able to safeguard the Lebanese people.“This is the only
institute that will guarantee (the security of) the Lebanese and will safeguard
them,” Ghosn said in an interview with al-Manar channel.
He urged those who are carrying out strong rhetoric against the army to
reconsider their stances. “We are trying to avoid sedition,” Ghosn said. He
wondered how a Lebanese can call on an uprising against the army. Last week,
Mustaqbal bloc MP Khaled al-Daher accused some members of the army of adopting
the same repressive approach as the Syrian security forces in their crackdown
against anti-regime protestors. He cited what he called “hateful and revengeful
practices” against Sunni and Christian areas that support March 14 in the north.
Daher also criticized Army chief Gen. Jean Qahwaji, saying he has failed in his
command of the army because he did not preserve the military’s dignity when
security and military forces came under fire in the town of Lassa and a Maronite
cleric was attacked
EU to Lift Libya Oil, Port Sanctions Friday
Naharnet /The European Union is expected to lift sanctions against Libya's ports
and 22 economic entities including a clutch of oil companies by Friday,
diplomats told Agence France Presse. The EU reached an agreement in principle on
Wednesday to remove the six port authorities from its sanctions list as well as
22 other entities, the diplomats said. Three or four oil companies will be
de-listed, they said. "It was agreed this morning," one diplomat said, adding
that EU governments will formally approve the decision on Thursday and that the
move will come into force when it is published in the 27-nation bloc's Official
Journal on Friday. The EU froze the assets of nearly 50 entities as well as the
six ports to punish the regime of Moammar Gadhafi for its brutal repression of a
revolt. But rebels took control of Tripoli last week, effectively ending
Gadhafi's 42-year iron grip on the country.
The rebel National Transitional Council (NTC) had asked the EU to lift the
sanctions. The opposition also wants the international community to release
billions of dollars in Libyan assets that have been frozen worldwide. The EU
must wait for a green light from the United Nations to remove all the remaining
sanctions against Libya because some were linked to punitive measures imposed by
the world body, one of the European diplomats said. The move to lift the
sanctions coincides with an international conference on Libya, dubbed "Friends
of Libya," a meeting that Paris will host on Thursday with the participation of
top officials from across the world. The U.N. Security Council agreed last week
to unblock $1.5 billion in Libyan assets frozen in U.S. banks. The world body
authorized Britain to release $1.6 dollars on Tuesday to provide humanitarian
aid to Tripoli. France hopes to secure U.N. authorization to release 1.5 billion
euros by the end of the week, the French presidency said Wednesday. French banks
hold 7.6 billion euros in Libyan assets.*Source Agence France Presse
Lebanon’s Grand Shiite Jaafarite Mufti Sheikh Ahmad Qabalan attacks U.S., Israel
over STL, defends Hezbollah
The Daily Star /BEIRUT: Lebanon’s Grand Shiite Jaafarite Mufti Sheikh Ahmad
Qabalan attacked Wednesday the U.S. and Israel over a U.N. court probing the
2005 assassination of statesman Rafik Hariri and defended the “honorable”
Hezbollah suspects indicted by the tribunal.Qabalan also defended Syria,
accusing the U.S. and Israel of being behind the uprisings in the Arab world.
“There is no doubt that accusing honorable resistance [men] by U.S. and Israeli
intelligence is an essential part of political and moral assassination attempts
against the resistance through local, regional and international cells,” Qabalan
said during his sermon on the first day of Eid al-Fitr for Shiites. He also said
media outlets have rallied behind Washington and Tel Aviv in their campaign
against Hezbollah. “But the resistance, which crushed the regional and global
hub during the July war and emerged victorious, is on the lookout again to cut
malicious hands,” Qabalan promised. Turning to the Arab uprisings, Qabalan said:
“We are with the Spring of beautiful and creative people, but not with any
Spring that may turn into a stormy winter taking us to chaos and anarchy.” “We
are not with any spring that may shed innocent blood. We are with dialogue, with
reform, with growth,” he stressed. “We are against any unjust and oppressive
system.”Praising Syrian President Bashar Assad without naming him, Qabalan said:
“Yes, we are with a rejectionist and a resistance Syria because it is the only
country … that still strongly snubs all attempts at subjugation after the size
of the American-Zionist scheme which, in the name of democracy and human rights,
has been determined.”Addressing Arab brethren, Qabalan said: “You are in the
same boat … Be aware of defeating the hellish scheme which not only targets
Syria or the resistance in Lebanon or Hamas in Gaza, but also targets all of
you.”“It targets your systems, your people, your oil and your wealth,” he
warned.
“This American-Zionist plot which Europe is part of … aims to dismantle the
region and turn it into sectarian and denominational territory,” Qabalan said.
Sheikh Abdul Amir Qabalan urges Libyan rebels to uncover Sadr fate
The Daily Star /BEIRUT: Sheikh Abdul Amir Qabalan, vice-president of the Higher
Shiite Islamic Council, called Wednesday on Libyan rebel leaders to uncover the
fate of missing Shiite Imam Musa sadr. “We urge the Libyan leadership and its
people to reveal the fate of missing Imam Musa Sadr and his two companions,"
Qabalan said during Eid al-Fitr sermon.
He said Libyan leader Moamar Gadhafi was toppled “due to his oppression, malice
and selfishness.”“We tell each and every unjust aggressor that your fate is a
hole in the ground [death]. So watch out,” Qabalan said.He called on Arabs and
Muslims around the world to reconsider their work for people's best interests
“and become one hand and stay away from hatred, cruelty and defamation.”
Syria’s gamble on Gaddafi fails
By Osman Mirghani
Asharq Alawsat
Unlike previous years, the annual television drama series were not the greatest
concern for people this Ramadan. The Arab world was engrossed following news of
uprisings and revolutions, especially the details of the scenes in Libya and
Syria, where the confrontation reached its peak between those demanding rights,
freedoms and change, and regimes that have proven that they will go to any
lengths in order to cling to power. If the Libyans were celebrating the Eid
holiday amidst an atmosphere of joy, having achieved important victories
bringing them closer to completing their revolution, then the Syrian's Eid was
joyless, amidst the continuing suppression and abuse, and the regime insisting
on utilizing a single language to confront the protests, namely the language of
bullets and brutality.
The celebratory scenes as the Libyan rebel forces entered Tripoli was spoiled
only by images of the dead, stories of executions carried out by Gaddafi troops
before their defeat, the flight of the remnants of the regime, and the
disappearance of the Colonel. How grotesque and painful were the images
presented by television channels, showing the remains of burnt bodies, as well
as the remains of those shot dead discovered in a building used by Gaddafi's
battalions as a detention center, in a Tripoli neighborhood? This was not an
isolated crime; Human Rights organizations have, so far, documented the murder
of dozens of detainees executed by Gaddafi's battalions shortly before their
retreat, in the face of the Libyan rebels advance into Tripoli.
From the early days of the Libyan revolution, it was clear that the Gaddafi
regime would devote all of its efforts to suppression and abuse, and would not
hesitate to commit the most heinous crimes to confront those rebelling against
it. Gaddafi set the tone in his first speech, in which he called [on his people]
to "crush the rats". Likewise, his son Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, who was aspiring
to inherit his father’s throne, did the same when he threatened the people and
cities of Libya with rivers of blood. He said that "instead of weeping over 84
dead people (meaning the death toll that sparked the initial uprising in
Benghazi), you will weep over hundreds of thousands of dead".
There was no doubt that the Colonel's regime would exercise the utmost degree of
its madness, and commit the worst atrocities, in order to cling onto power that
it has yet to be satisfied with even after 42 years of rule. Early on we saw
features of destruction, sabotage and murder perpetrated by Gaddafi's battalions
when they entered the city of Zawiya. These forces did not hesitate even to
destroy gravestones with bulldozers. Following this, we saw the impact of the
indiscriminate bombing of Misrata, as well as the Gaddafi regime’s use of
snipers to prevent people from moving freely around the city. The regime's
policy was one of revenge against all Libyan cities and people who had rebelled
against it, and thus it repeated the process of besieging cities, bombarding
them, and cutting off water and electricity supply to the residents.
The rebels claim that the Gaddafi forces arrested more than 50,000 people since
the start of the uprising, and that while they have been able to release around
10,000 detainees, the fate of many others remains unknown. Some prisoners
managed to escape from Gaddafi's detention centers as the rebels consolidated
their grip on the regime, yet hundreds of bodies of Libyan detainees have been
found executed by the Gaddafi forces before they withdraw in the face of defeat.
However many remain missing to date, raising fears that more mass graves left by
the regime's forces may be uncovered.
Ironically, those belonging to Gaddafi's battalions who had fallen into the
hands of the rebels told a journalist from the Reuters news agency – who was
able to visit a detention center in a Tripoli neighborhood – that they hoped to
be treated well [in rebel captivity], and that there should be a new Libya which
respects human rights! If those who have attacked, tortured and killed innocent
people remembered that the tables might be turned on them in the future, would
they have committed such atrocities and abuses? Yet power corrupts, and can
blind! Despotic regimes usually produce security and military apparatus
dominated by a culture of suppression, with the main concern being intimidating
and subjugating the people.
The success of the Libyan revolution, and its resilience in the face of all
instruments of force and suppression used by the Colonel's regime, sends a
message to the Damascus regime, especially as there are numerous reports that
the Syrian regime – in the early days of the Libyan uprising – supported the
Colonel Gaddafi regime in its confrontation of its own people. If the Syrian
regime hopes to see a policy of suppression and force succeed in putting an end
to the Libyan revolution, then its hopes have been dashed and perhaps it has
learned its lesson. However, experience would suggest that there is no one [in
Syria] who wants to learn, or wants to understand the message of the people who
are rising up and demanding change.Although it can see the Gaddafi regime
collapsing and reeling, the al-Assad regime continues to bet on the policy of
suppression, oppression and persecution, to end the [Syrian] people's uprising.
The [Syrian] regime was quick to respond to the Arab League’s call for an end to
the bloodshed, the introduction of a ceasefire, and for al-Assad to listen to
the legitimate demands of the people, only this response was an attack on the
Arab position and an announcement that the Arab League’s statement was of no
value and that Damascus would act as if it had never been published. With the
same mentality that deemed the Syrian people's uprising to be a conspiracy, the
Damascus regime described the Arab position as unacceptable interference in its
internal affairs.
Where does this leave the situation in Syria?
It is clear that Syria is facing difficult days ahead, the regime's
intransigence will increase the intensity of its confrontation with the people’s
uprising, and its policy of suppression and abuse will mean more victims and
more arrests, which will only add to the tension and widen the division between
the regime and the people. Following the fall of the Gaddafi regime, the world's
attention will now be focused on Syria, and monitoring the developments there,
especially with regards to the move to tighten international sanctions on the
Damascus regime, in order to suffocate and isolate it. As a result of this
isolation, the regime will find itself in a difficult position, especially as
the Syrian people – who have so far confirmed their intentions to continue the
uprising – will have gained considerable moral support from watching the Libyan
rebels in Tripoli celebrating the fall of another regime that relied on
suppression and force, and which ultimately failed.
Libya Rebels Give Gadhafi Forces Saturday Deadline
Naharnet /Libya's rebels issued a Saturday ultimatum for Moammar Gadhafi's
forces to surrender or face a military onslaught, as NATO said the strongman is
still able to command his troops despite being on the run. National Transitional
Council (NTC) chief Mustafa Abdul Jalil told reporters in the rebel stronghold
Benghazi Tuesday that the respite was offered to mark the three-day Eid al-Fitr
Muslim feast which follows the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. "This
window of opportunity will be closed at the end of Eid al-Fitr (Friday in
Libya)," Abdul Jalil said, adding that talks were under way with officials in
towns including Gadhafi’s birthplace Sirte to arrange their peaceful surrender.
"From Saturday, if no peaceful solution is in sight on the ground, we will
resort to military force," Abdul Jalil warned.
He also warned that Gadhafi still enjoyed support inside Libya and outside the
country.
Gadhafi "is not finished yet," he warned, as NATO said the strongman is still
able to command and control his remaining troops even though he is on the run.
"He is displaying a capability to exercise some level of command and control,"
Colonel Roland Lavoie, military spokesman of the NATO air mission in Libya, told
a news briefing in Brussels."The pro-Gadhafi troops that we see are not in total
disarray, they are retreating in an orderly fashion, conceding ground and going
to the second best position that they could hold to continue their warfare," he
added. Lavoie earlier told reporters that NATO's military mission in Libya was
still necessary and would continue as long as Gadhafi’s forces threatened
civilians.
"Despite the fall of the Gadhafi regime and the gradual return of security ...
NATO's mission is not finished yet," Lavoie he said.
Algeria meanwhile on Tuesday defended its decision to give shelter to Gadhafi’s
wife and three children, as the angry rebels demanded they be returned for
trial.
Algerian foreign ministry spokesman Amar Belani told Agence France Presse the
decision to allow Gadhafi’s wife Safiya, daughter Aisha and sons Mohammed and
Hannibal to cross into the country on Monday was based solely on humanitarian
concerns.
"These people have been admitted to Algeria for strictly humanitarian reasons,"
Belani said, adding that U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon, the Security Council and number
two leader of the rebels' NTC, Mahmoud Jibril, had been informed.
Just hours after crossing over, daughter Aisha gave birth to a girl, Algerian
authorities announced Tuesday.
The NTC, already at odds with Algiers for its refusal to recognize it as the
legitimate authority in Libya, had reacted angrily when news broke Monday that
some of their quarry had fled.
"We'd like those persons to come back," NTC spokesman Mahmoud Shammam said in
Tripoli, adding that Algeria had given the family members "a pass" to enter a
third country.
"Saving Gadhafi’s family is not an act we welcome and understand," Shammam told
a press conference in Tripoli.
"We can assure our neighbors that we want better relations with them ... but we
are determined to arrest and try the Gadhafi family and Gadhafi himself,"
Shammam went on, saying the rebels guaranteed a "fair trial."
So far Algeria has not recognized the NTC and has adopted a stance of strict
neutrality on the Libyan conflict, leading some among the rebels to accuse it of
supporting the Gadhafi regime.
There has been no word on the whereabouts of Gadhafi himself, who went into
hiding when rebel forces overran his Tripoli headquarters a week ago.
Italian news agency ANSA, citing "authoritative Libyan diplomatic sources," said
he and his sons Saadi and Seif al-Islam were holed-up in the town of Bani Walid,
south of the capital Tripoli. The Western alliance earlier said its warplanes
had fired a new barrage of bombs against Gadhafi forces holed up in Sirte, 360
kilometers east of Tripoli.
It said it destroyed 22 vehicles mounted with weapons, four radars, three
command and control nodes, one anti-aircraft missile system and one
surface-to-air missile system in the town's vicinity on Monday. In Tripoli,
Ahmed al-Tharaht, the NTC's official in charge of interior affairs, said rebels
controlling the Libyan capital will be disarmed as quickly as possible.
"We will remove the weapons that are on the streets," and the plan will be
quickly implemented, Tharaht said.
Disarmed rebels will be given the choice of joining the "national army" or the
security forces, he added.
On the ground, rebel reinforcements were arriving on Tuesday at Bin Jawad, 100
kilometers east of Sirte, an AFP reporter said.
Occasional explosions could be heard from near Nofilia, a desert hamlet just
inland from Bin Jawad, while rebel T-55 tanks and armored vehicles rumbled
towards the front line, taking up positions in the sand dunes. Nofilia was
seized by the rebels on Monday, sparking celebrations among the rebels.
"Tomorrow (Tuesday), God willing, we will continue our advance. Their morale is
rock bottom," a rebel commander said of Gadhafi loyalists. Other rebel fighters
had moved to within 30 kilometers of Sirte from the west and were awaiting the
reinforcements, rebel commander Mohammed al-Fortiya, told AFP on Sunday.*Source
Agence France Presse
Libya commander says 50,000 dead in anti-Gadhafi uprising
Figures include those killed in the fighting between Gadhafi's troops and his
foes, and those who have gone missing over the past six months.
By Reuters /Haaretz
An estimated 50,000 people have been killed since the beginning of Libya's
uprising to oust Muammar Gadhafi six months ago, a military commander with the
country's interim ruling council said on Tuesday. "About 50,000 people were
killed since the start of the uprising," Colonel Hisham Buhagiar, commander of
the anti-Gadhafi troops who advanced out of the Western Mountains and took
Tripoli a week ago, told Reuters. "In Misrata and Zlitan between 15,000 and
17,000 were killed and Jebel Nafusa (the Western Mountains) took a lot of
casualties. We liberated about 28,000 prisoners. We presume that all those
missing are dead," he said.
"Then there was Ajdabiyah, Brega. Many people were killed there too," he said,
referring to towns repeatedly fought over in eastern Libya.
The figures included those killed in the fighting between Gadhafi's troops and
his foes, and those who have gone missing over the past six months, he said.
Gadhafi's whereabouts have been unknown since his foes seized his Tripoli
compound on Aug. 23, ending his 42-year rule after a six-month revolt backed by
NATO and some Arab states.
As the hunt for Gadhafi himself goes on, Libyan officials accused neighboring
Algeria of an act of aggression for admitting his fleeing wife and three of his
children.
Algeria's Foreign Ministry said Gadhafi's wife Safia, his daughter Aisha and his
sons Hannibal and Mohammed had entered Algeria on Monday morning, along with
their children.
Gadhafi 'went to Sabha'
Britain's Sky News, citing a young bodyguard of Gadhafi's son Khamis, said the
leader had stayed in Tripoli until Friday when he left for the southern desert
town of Sabha.
It quoted the captured 17-year-old as saying Gadhafi met Khamis, a feared
military commander, at around 1:30 P.M. on Friday in a Tripoli compound that was
under heavy rebel fire. Gadhafi had arrived by car and was soon joined by Aisha.
After a short meeting, they boarded four-wheel drive vehicles and left, the
bodyguard told a Sky reporter, adding that his officer had told him: "They're
going to Sabha."
Along with Sirte, Sabha is one of the main remaining bastions of pro-Gadhafi
forces.
A NATO spokesman said reports of talks over Sirte were encouraging, but said the
alliance, which has kept up a five-month bombing campaign, was targeting the
city's approaches.
"Our main area of attention is a corridor... (leading up) to the eastern edge of
Sirte," Colonel Roland Lavoie said.
Some anti-Gadhafi officers have reported that Khamis Gadhafi and former
intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senussi were both killed in a clash on Saturday.
This has not been confirmed and the NATO spokesman said he had no word on
Khamis's fate.
More NTC forces were heading for Bani Walid, a Gadhafi tribal stronghold 150 km
(95 miles) southeast of Tripoli.
"Three units were sent from Misrata toward Bani Walid this morning ... Our
fighters are now 30 km from Bani Walid," said Mohammed Jamal, a fighter at a
checkpoint on the road to the town. "Hopefully Bani Walid will also be liberated
soon. Right now there are still many Gadhafi supporters there."
Tense relations with Algeria
A spokesman for the National Transitional Council said it would seek to
extradite Gadhafi's relatives from Algeria, which is alone among Libya's
neighbors in not recognizing the NTC.
Nearly 60 countries have acknowledged the NTC as Libya's legitimate authority.
Russia, China, India, South Africa and Brazil are among those which have so far
withheld recognition.
Algeria's acceptance of Gadhafi's wife and offspring angered Libyan leaders, who
want the ousted autocrat and his entourage to face justice for years of
repressive rule.
Abdel Jalil, the NTC chairman, who was once Gadhafi's justice minister, called
on the Algerian government to hand over any of the former leader's sons on its
wanted list. He said he expected the fugitives to move on from Algeria before
long.
Algeria, which previously opposed sanctions and a no-fly zone against Gadhafi,
has an authoritarian government which is anxious about Arab revolts lapping near
its borders.
"I would argue the Algerian regime is making a major blunder, miscalculating
monstrously," Fawaz Gerges, an analyst at the London School of Economics, told
the BBC.
"The Algerian regime itself is not immune from the revolutionary momentum taking
place in the Arab world."
Israeli Defense Forces beefing up defenses in south after intelligence warnings
of terror attack
Members of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Popular Resistance Committees are
cooperating with Egyptian Islamists, planning to avenge killing of fellow
militants during Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip.
By Revital Levy-Stein and Anshel Pfeffer/ Haaretz
Israel is beefing up defenses in the south following intelligence that a number
of Palestinian terror groups are operating from within Sinai.
Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Benny Gantz ordered the reinforcement of
forces all along the border, from the Gaza Strip to the Gulf of Eilat, on Sunday
night, following concrete intelligence that a number of cells of militants had
entered Sinai through tunnels in Rafah, aiming to carry out attacks on Israeli
territory
The terrorists who identify themselves with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and
the Popular Resistance Committees are cooperating with Egyptian Islamists and
are planning to carry attacks to avenge the killing of their members during
Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip over the past two weeks.
The intelligence warnings affect various points along the border and include
different type of attacks, including penetration of the border and attacks
against Israeli vehicles traveling on highways running close to the border.
An attack earlier this month left eight Israelis dead and dozens wounded after
terrorists who had tunneled from Gaza into Egypt attacked buses and cars
traveling near the border north of Eilat. Defense sources fear a repeat attack.
Another possible scenario is the launching of rockets against Eilat and other
Israeli communities from Sinai.
Despite the warnings, the resort town of Eilat does not appear to be showing any
signs of stress. Hotels in the city have not registered any losses and some
5,000 visitors are in town for a Mizrahi song festival. The presence of security
and military forces in the city is noticeable but a military source said that
the real military presence is felt along the border with Egypt.
"One should remember that the length of the border is 200 kilometers and that
the larger concentration of forces is found northwest of Eilat," the source
said.
In addition to the additional troops deployed along the border, the IDF has also
positioned in place various electronic and other intelligence gathering
resources.
Communities near the Egyptian border have received bolstered security, while
Routes 10 and 12, which run along the border, have been closed.
The army is also preparing for any possible sea-borne attack on Eilat with naval
reinforcements along the gulf, including anchoring Israel's two most advanced
missile boats in the port of Eilat. The two missile boats may also be in the
area in anticipation of Iranian naval vessels making their way from the Persian
Gulf to the Red Sea, as was reported yesterday in Tehran.
Calm was kept yesterday all along the border with the Gaza Strip and no rockets
or mortars were fired at Israel. Senior Israeli officials have been leaking
intelligence on what is known about the terrorists's plans, both publicly and
off the record. During a visit to an Elbit plant in Sderot, Minister Matan
Vilnai made reference to the Ramadan ending-holiday yesterday and said "the
Islamic Jihad has been trying for a long time to carry out attacks from Sinai
and Id al-Fitr is a good time for them to do so. The defense establishment has
intelligence about a plans for an attack by a cell of more than 10 militants.
The defense establishment and the IDF are in full readiness in cooperation with
Egypt in order to foil these attempts."
Talks have also been held in recent days at the Defense Ministry on how to
expedite the procurement of Iron Dome missile defense batteries in order to
protect the south against rockets. Discussions are also focused on the
construction of a border fence with Egypt, which according to the current plan
is due to be completed in the end of 2012. Rafael, the main contractor in the
Iron Dome project, and ELTA, which produces the system's radar of the system,
have changed their production priorities in order to provide the air force with
a third Iron Dome battery in two weeks and a fourth by year's end
Obama’s words aren’t enough
Op-ed: Assad’s Syria poses major threat to regional stability, but urging Bashar
to quit hardly adequate
Asaf Romirowsky /Ynetnews
08.31.11
The ongoing turmoil in Syria is stirring a great deal of apprehension in Israel
that is even greater than its hand-wringing over Egypt's recent regime change.
Unlike Israel and Egypt, Israel and Syria have no peace agreement, and Syria,
with a large armory of sophisticated weapons, is one of Israel’s fervent
enemies.
Over the past few weeks President Bashar Assad, like his father Hafez Assad, has
once again shown the world what Syrian brutality is all about. He ordered Syrian
troops backed by tanks to the towns of Talkalakh, Daraa, Baniyas and Homs to
quell anti-regime protests by killing innocent civilians in the streets.
In February 1982, Hafez Assad acted in a similar manner when he sent the Syrian
army into Hama, adopting a scorched-earth policy against the residents of the
town in order to quash a revolt by the Sunni Muslim community against his
regime. The estimate of the dead reached approximately 40,000 according to the
Syrian Human Rights Committee.
Syria has long presented a serious quandary for the Middle East, US foreign
policy and for Israel. With its mix of competing religious and ethnic groups,
radical ideologies and political repression - it is a 72,000-square-mile time
bomb waiting to go off.
This reality has become increasingly self-evident since Bashar Assad took over
in 2000. With no real political aspirations, Bashar was not groomed to be the
next leader. It was only after the death of his brother, Basil, in a car
accident that Bashar was called back to Syria in 1994 from his studies in
London, in order to continue the Assad blood line. He was put on the fast track
to the Syrian throne while learning the art of dictatorship, which in turn
became his playbook for governing.
Syria’s radicalism is unique as it grows out of the regime’s necessity to
validate its own existence. It is a minority dictatorship of a small non-Muslim
minority that offers neither freedoms nor material benefits. It requires
demagoguery, scapegoating of the US and Israel, looting from Lebanon and an Iraq
influx - all of which serving to make up the regime’s raison d'être.
Consequently, Assad is one of the biggest supporters of Islamism in the region
despite running a secular Arab regime. As we have witnessed over the past
months, he tactfully uses this support of Islamism to mobilize animosity towards
the US and Israel, in a bid to divert attention from his internal problems of
corruption, failing economy and lack of civil rights.
Israelis have not forgotten the lessons of 1973 and have no intention of
repeating the mistakes made 38 years ago when it comes to the Syrian threat to
their survival. The Yom Kippur War was Israel’s Pearl Harbor and claimed the
lives of nearly 3,000 IDF soldiers. As such, it is a safe bet that Israel of
2011 would take any steps necessary to ensure her qualitative military edge on
the northern border as illustrated by her attack on Syria's al-Kibar nuclear
facility in 2007.
Moreover, Syria’s ties with Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah validate Israel’s ongoing
concerns on the northern border. In contrast, Bashar believes that it is his
defiance of Washington and disdain for Israel that will strengthen his position
at home in conjunction with closer ties with Iran, Hezbollah and al-Qaeda.
Nonetheless, many sitting and former elected officials in Washington such as
Nancy Pelosi, Arlen Specter and Jimmy Carter have repeatedly gone to pay homage
to Assad, naively believing that their presence will make Assad more open to the
West.
In the final analysis, Syria under Bashar Assad represents a greater threat to
regional instability than it did under Hafez Assad, specifically because it is
so unpredictable. This should indicate to Washington that just saying it’s time
for Bashar Assad to step down will hardly be enough.
*Asaf Romirowsky is a Philadelphia-based Middle East analyst, and an adjunct
scholar at the Middle East Forum