LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

Bible/Faith/Quotation for today/The New Life in Christ
Ephesians 04 /17-32: " In the Lord's name, then, I warn you: do not continue to live like the heathen, whose thoughts are worthless and whose minds are in the dark. They have no part in the life that God gives, for they are completely ignorant and stubborn. They have lost all feeling of shame; they give themselves over to vice and do all sorts of indecent things without restraint.
That was not what you learned about Christ! You certainly heard about him, and as his followers you were taught the truth that is in Jesus. So get rid of your old self, which made you live as you used to—the old self that was being destroyed by its deceitful desires. Your hearts and minds must be made completely new, 24 and you must put on the new self, which is created in God's likeness and reveals itself in the true life that is upright and holy. No more lying, then! Each of you must tell the truth to the other believer, because we are all members together in the body of Christ. If you become angry, do not let your anger lead you into sin, and do not stay angry all day. Don't give the Devil a chance. If you used to rob, you must stop robbing and start working, in order to earn an honest living for yourself and to be able to help the poor. Do not use harmful words, but only helpful words, the kind that build up and provide what is needed, so that what you say will do good to those who hear you. And do not make God's Holy Spirit sad; for the Spirit is God's mark of ownership on you, a guarantee that the Day will come when God will set you free. Get rid of all bitterness, passion, and anger. No more shouting or insults, no more hateful feelings of any sort. Instead, be kind and tender-hearted to one another, and forgive one another, as God has forgiven you through Christ.

Saudi King Abdullah backs Egypt’s military ruler, warns against outside interference

DEBKAfile Exclusive Report August 16, 2013/Facing condemnation at every hand from the West, Egypt’s military rulers received a powerful shot in the arm from Riyadh Friday, Aug. 16, with an unprecedented public assurance from Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdel Aziz that the kingdom supports Egypt in the fight “against terrorism” – the military rulers’ term for Muslim Brotherhood resistance. In a statement broadcast by official Al-Ekhbariya TV, Abdullah said Egypt’s stability is being targeted by “haters” and warned that anyone that interferes in Egypt’s internal affairs seeks to “waken sedition.”
DEBKAfile and DEBKA Weekly have been reporting since last week that Saudi Arabia and the UAR stand firmly behind Egypt’s military strongman Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi.
DEBKAfile reports a weak response to Brotherhood’s call for millions to rally Friday to join in the protest in support of deposed president Mohamed Morsi and against the government crackdown two days ago which left more than 600 dead. No more than tens of thousands of supporters took to the streets across the country Friday. By nightfall, 50 people were reported killed in clashes across the country – in Cairo, Fayoum, Damietta and Ismailia - including 24 security personnel. An officer was killed at one of the checkpoints thrown up to block the demonstrators’ access to Tahrir Square.
The relatively low turnout points to the Muslim Brotherhood’s hard core having decided that avoiding further deadly clashes with the Egyptian military is the better part of valor.
Thursday, Aug. 15, DEBKAfile referred to Saudi support for the Egyptian military ruler in an article captioned: US-Egyptian relations are on the rocks.
When the clashes between Egyptian security forces and pro-Morsi protesters were at their peak in Cairo Wednesday, Aug. 14 – 525 dead and 3,700 wounded to date - President Barack Obama put in a call to Egypt’s strongman, Defense Minister Gen. Abdel-Fattah El-Sissi, DEBKAfile’s intelligence sources report. The US president wanted to give the general a dressing-down much on the lines of the call he made to former president Hosni Mubarak in February 2011 at the high point of the Arab Spring Tahrir Sq demonstrations against his rule, namely: Stop repressing the protesters and firing live ammunition. Step down!
When Mubarak asked for a three or four days’ grace to break up the massed rally, Obama shot back that he has to quit NOW!
And indeed, on Feb. 11, the army announced the president’s resignation.
Realizing what was coming, Gen. El-Sissi decided not to accept President Obama’s call, our sources report. The Egyptian officials who received it informed the US president politely that the right person for him to address was Egypt’s interim president Adly Mansour and they would be glad to transfer the call to him. The White House callers declined.
This anecdote shows that the military strongman is not only determined to avoid the pitfalls which brought Mubarak down but is equally determined to keep the US administration from interfering in his plans for driving the Muslim Brotherhood out of Egyptian politics.
Diplomatic condemnation of those plans is building up inWestern capitals. Wednesday night, the Obama White House issued a statement strongly condemning “the use of violence against protesters in Egypt” and the state of emergency. Egyptian ambassadors in Paris, London and Berlin received denunciations and expressions of concern from their host governments, and Turkey demanded a UN Security Council emergency session on the situation in Egypt. DEBKAfile’s sources report that harsh international condemnation of Gen. El-Sissi’s crackdown will do more harm than good. The backlash will come in three forms:
1. The Muslim Brotherhood will be encouraged to pursue increasingly extreme measures to fight the Egyptian army in the expectation of international applause.
2. The generals will be encouraged to escalate their steps for repressing the Brotherhood.
3. The Saudis and the Gulf Emirates will redouble their support for the Egyptian general and his campaign against the Brotherhood. This will widen the rift between those Arab rulers and the Obama administration.
Our intelligence sources also disclose that, while President Obama was trying to get through to Gen. El-Sissi, the general was on the phone with Prince Bandar, Director of Saudi Intelligence.
On July 31, Bandar arrived in Moscow and was immediately received by President Vladimir Putin for a conversation that lasted four hours. The Saudi prince next received an invitation to visit Washington at his earliest convenience and meet with President Obama.Bandar has still not responded to that invitation.
Clearly, the US president’s problem with the Egyptian situation is a lot more complicated than pulling the army off the Muslim Brotherhood’s backs. He needs to somehow snap the strategic alliance unfolding between Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and the rapport between the Egyptian general and the Saudi prince.

Leadership wanted
The Daily Star
Thursday’s bomb in Beirut’s southern suburbs may have been aimed at Hezbollah, but it is an aggression against all Lebanese. When the situation is as precarious as it is today, any attack in the country must be viewed as no less than a declaration of a war against Lebanon itself.
The Lebanese have been down this road before, and harbor little hope that the attacks will end with this one. While this summer’s attacks – the rockets, bombings in the Bekaa Valley, and now two blasts in the southern suburbs – have so far largely targeted Shiite areas, no area in Lebanon is safe from these attempts to inflame sectarian strife. The target of attacks like these are not Hezbollah – it is Lebanese unity and stability.
We can only hope this will be the attack that prompts politicians to set aside their petty differences and provide the leadership Lebanon desperately needs to right itself. But if in the days to come leaders instead see this as just another chance to grandstand and jostle for position in the endless political machinations that have gotten Lebanon nowhere, then the state is doomed.
Now is the time to act: It is harder to imagine a solution today than it was last month, and tomorrow it will only be harder. The country faces deadly threats from all directions: an enemy on the southern border, brothers on the eastern border intent on drawing Lebanon into their conflict, along with the internal sectarianism and political polarization tearing apart Lebanese society.
The timing and place of this latest attack make it clear it was aimed at hitting the weaknesses of Lebanese society. Lebanon must come together and address these internal weaknesses if it is to have any defense against external threats. The leaders must stand together and find consensus, confront the security threats with vigilance and present a unified stance.
But the burden for unity does not fall on the leaders alone, and the Lebanese would be wise not to entrust them with finding a path out of this morass. For decades, Lebanon’s fate has been shaped by the geopolitical struggles of our leaders’ political patrons. The winds of strife and diplomacy that buffet Beirut all too often begin abroad, whether in Damascus and Tehran, or Riyadh and Washington. It is time for Lebanese to look not to foreign manipulators to guide them, but to find an internal solution to stability and peace.
Unity will require effort from all echelons of society, from the halls of Baabda Palace to the streets of Beirut. These attacks are designed to drive a wedge between Lebanese sects, and the best defense is to draw closer and stand united. Lebanon cannot be the battlefield for the regional Sunni-Shiite conflict.
Lebanon is a small nation, with limited resources and power. In a region roiled by conflict, it cannot afford to remain a pawn in this dangerous game. In the end, the players – friend or foe – will sacrifice Lebanon to reach checkmate.

Jihadists behind attacks on Hezbollah in Lebanon: Nasrallah
August 16, 2013 /By Dana Khraiche, Thomas El-Basha/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah accused Friday Jihadist groups fighting in Syria of being behind a string of attacks against his party in Lebanon and vowed to increase military involvement in the neighboring country in response.
He also warned that further bombings would pose a great threat to the country, saying: "If these bombings continue, Lebanon could be on the verge of the abyss."
“Up to this point, it has been shown, according to available information, that [the people behind recent attacks in Lebanon] belong to a certain Takfiri movement and their names and those behind them are known,” Nasrallah told crowds in the southern village of Aita Shaab, one kilometer from Israel’s border.
“They are, unfortunately, of Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinian nationalities,” he added. Nasrallah was referring to several security incidents in Lebanon believed linked to the crisis in Syria, particularly Nasrallah’s announcement that his party is fighting alongside forces loyal to President Bashar Assad against rebels seeking the ouster of the Syrian leader.
He listed the incidents as the July roadside bombing that targeted a Hezbollah convoy in Hermel, east Lebanon, and several attacks on the southern suburbs of Beirut – the twin rocket attacks on Shiyah of May, the Bir al-Abed car bombing of July and Thursday’s car bombing in Ruwaiss. At least 24 people were killed and over 300 were wounded in the latter incident which also led to extensive material damage.
Nasrallah, whose address was broadcast on a large screen, spoke on the occasion of the seventh anniversary of the July-August 2006 war between Lebanon and Israel. He described the events in Ruwaiss as a “terrorist massacre” and denied that a Hezbollah official or center had been targeted. While he could not confirm if a suicide bomber had been behind the attack, he said the blast resulted from the detonation of “over 100 kilograms” of explosives. Although he eliminated Israel as a prime suspect in the series of attacks in the country, he said U.S. and Israeli intelligence agencies had “undoubtedly” managed to infiltrate the jihadist groups, which he said were now working in the interests of the Jewish state.
He also said his party and Lebanese authorities had prior intelligence of car bombings planned for Beirut’s southern suburbs and “the most likely [suspects] are these groups, based on all available facts.”Hours before Nasrallah’s speech, caretaker Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn revealed that a Syrian suspect was in custody over the Bir al-Abed car bombing.
Ghosn said authorities had also detained a man who confessed to being involved in planning to carry out car bombings in Beirut’s southern suburbs and other parts of the country. Hezbollah has upped its security in its strongholds as “precautionary measures,” Nasrallah said.
“Such measures could reduce the occurrence of attacks and the damage but are not enough,” said Nasrallah, who proposed preventative measures to crackdown on Takfiri groups operating in Lebanon.
“[We should] work on uncovering, besieging, dismantling, arresting, and abolishing these groups and these are merely standard measures practiced in every country,” he said. Nasrallah added that Takfiri groups should not enjoy “political cover, security and political protection.”
“Sectarian and confessional incitement should come to an end and our political conflicts should remain political,” Nasrallah said. The Hezbollah chief urged Lebanese, particularly Shiites, to exert self-restraint and refrain from being dragged into sectarian strife, saying: “This requires awareness, patience, wisdom and tolerance.”
“What we fear is the main goal of these murderers: to evoke fiery, emotional, irresponsible reactions that could lead to strife and the destruction of the country,” he said, adding that the Takfiri groups were ruthless and did not represent the Sunni community.
“Any irresponsible act will lead to dangerous and bloody results,” he said. Addressing the Takfiri groups, which he accused of indiscriminate brutality against the people in Syria, Nasrallah said: “I say to you that if you work for Israel, we know who you are and our hands will reach you if the state neglects [its tasks].”
"We are not an alternative to the state but every time the state fails to shoulder its responsibility, we will shoulder that responsibility,” he added.
The Hezbollah leader, who maintained that his involvement in Syria alongside regime forces was still limited, said attacks against the party would not change the party’s stance in support of President Bashar Assad.
“If you think that by killing our women, children and the innocent people and destroying our neighborhoods we will back down or change our stance then you are mistaken,” he said. “You idiots: read our 30-year experience with Israel well,” Nasrallah said. He said Hezbollah’s retaliation for the attacks in Lebanon would be to increase the party’s involvement in Syria.
“Our response to any [future] bombing will be this: If there are 100 fighters in Syria, they will be 200. If there is 1,000, there will be 2,000 ... you are striking in the wrong place,” Nasrallah warned.
“If the battle with those terrorists requires me and all of Hezbollah to head to Syria, we will, for the sake of Syria, Lebanon, and the Palestinian cause which is the central issue,” he added, vowing that his party would emerge victorious against the jihadists.

Nasrallah signals all-out war on ‘takfiris’
August 17, 2013/By Hussein Dakroub/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah accused jihadists Friday of being behind a string of attacks targeting the party, including a deadly blast the day before in Beirut’s southern suburbs that killed 24 people, and threatened an all-out war against these takfiri groups in Syria. The Hezbollah chief also declared that the takfiri movement, which is currently wreaking havoc in Syria and Iraq, has taken a decision to destroy Lebanon. Nasrallah warned that if bombings continued in Lebanon, they would place the country on the brink of the abyss.
In a fiery speech a day after the deadliest car bombing in nearly three decades struck the southern suburb of Ruwaiss, a Hezbollah stronghold, Nasrallah pledged to double the number of his party’s fighters in Syria aiding forces loyal to President Bashar Assad and to join the battle himself if needed against takfiri groups in the war-ravaged country. Nasrallah’s speech, marking the seventh anniversary of Hezbollah’s 34-day war with Israel, came shortly after caretaker Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn sounded the alarm bell about recent security incidents that have recently rattled the country, saying Lebanon had begun to slip into the “grip of terrorism.”
Nasrallah called the bombing, which also wounded more than 300 people and caused massive damage to buildings, “a big and dangerous terrorist attack.” He said the bomb, weighing over 100 kilograms, was, like the blast in the Bir al-Abed neighborhood on July 9, aimed at killing innocent people.More than 50 people were wounded in last month’s blast.
“According to information and indications, it’s most likely that a takfiri group was behind yesterday’s explosion and their operatives are known. Some of them are Lebanese, Syrians and Palestinians, unfortunately,” Nasrallah said in a televised speech, addressing thousands of supporters assembled in the main square of the southern town of Aita al-Shaab near the border with Israel.
Nasrallah said the explosions in the southern suburbs and a series of bomb attacks that targeted Hezbollah’s convoys near the border with Syria and the cities of Hermel and Baalbek would not deter his staunch support for the Assad regime.“If you think by killing our sons, women and children ... and destroying our cities and neighborhoods, we will retreat from the position we took [on Syria] you are mistaken,” Nasrallah said, adding: “You idiots, read our 30-year experience with Israel.”“You are striking in the wrong place. If we had 100 fighters in Syria, now they will be 200. If we had 1,000, they will be 2,000. If we had 5,000 they will be 10,000,” he said, speaking via a video link on a giant screen. “If the battle with these takfiri terrorists requires that I and all Hezbollah should go to Syria, we will go for the sake of Syria and its people and for the sake of Lebanon and its people,” Nasrallah added, drawing cheers from the crowd.Although he eliminated Israel as a prime suspect in the series of bomb attacks in the country, he said that U.S. and Israeli intelligence agencies had “undoubtedly” managed to infiltrate takfiri groups, which he added were now working to serve Israel’s interests.
Nasrallah vowed to apprehend those responsible for the bomb attacks. “If you are working for Israel, our hands will reach you if the state fails to do so,” he said.
Nasrallah warned that further bombings would pose a great threat to the country and called for cooperation and coordination with security agencies in order to thwart takfiri attempts at destabilization.
“I say to all the Lebanese ... if these bombings continue, Lebanon could be put on the verge of the abyss,” he said. “Whoever believes that these bombings are targeting a certain sect or party, they are mistaken.”
“The one who has decided to destroy the region, has taken a decision today to destroy Lebanon,” Nasrallah said. “These [jihadist] groups want to take Lebanon to destruction and civil war.”
Hours before Nasrallah’s speech, Ghosn revealed that a Syrian suspect was in custody over the Bir al-Abed car bombing. Ghosn said authorities had also detained a man who confessed to being involved in planning to carry out car bombings in Beirut’s southern suburbs and elsewhere.
“Lebanon has started to fall into the grip of terrorism,” said Ghosn, urging national unity and popular support for the Lebanese Army to ward off the threat of strife.
Nasrallah said Hezbollah had beefed up its security in its areas following threats by Syrian rebels to attack the party’s strongholds in the southern suburbs and the Bekaa region in response to its military intervention in Syria.“Such measures could reduce the occurrence of attacks and the damage, but [they] are not enough,” said Nasrallah.“[We should] work on uncovering, besieging, dismantling, arresting and abolishing these groups and these are merely standard measures practiced in every country.”While forensics inspectors sifted through debris, charred cars and damaged buildings at the scene of the blast in search for evidence, authorities were investigating the possibility that the bombing was carried out by a suicide bomber.
“The initial hypothesis is that the blast was the work of a suicide [bomber] due the presence of a car in the middle of the road,” caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel said, adding that CCTV footage would help determine what happened.The other possibility is that the car was detonated remotely, Charbel told the Voice of Lebanon radio station.He said no arrests had been made in the case. A security source, who spoke to The Daily Star on condition of anonymity, confirmed Charbel’s assessment, saying a suicide bomber was the most plausible theory, citing reports the vehicle exploded in the middle of the street and had not been parked at the time of the blast.
A group calling itself the “Brigade of Aisha, the Mother of the Faithful” threatened further attacks against what it called “Iranian colonies” in Lebanon.
Louay Meqdad, a media spokesman for the rebel Free Syrian Army, condemned the bombing as “a coward terrorist act,” saying the FSA had nothing to do with it.

Beirut blast death toll rises, suicide bomber suspected
August 16, 2013/The Daily Star/BEIRUT: Authorities are considering the possibility a suicide bomber may have been behind a car bombing in Beirut’s southern suburb, caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel said Friday, as the death toll from the deadly blast rose to 24.“The initial hypothesis is that the blast was the work of a suicide [bomber] due the presence of a car in the middle of the road,” Charbel said, adding that CCTV footage would help determine what happened. The other possibility, Charbel told Voice of Lebanon, is that the car was detonated remotely. A car bomb ripped through the southern suburb neighborhood of Ruwaiss Thursday evening, causing many casualties and extensive damage in the area. Like a previous car bomb in the southern suburb of Bir al-Abed in July, Thursday’s attack is believed to be linked to the crisis in neighboring Syria.
A security source, who spoke to The Daily Star on condition of anonymity, confirmed Charbel’s assessment, saying a suicide bomber was the most plausible theory, citing reports the vehicle exploded in the middle of the street and had not been parked at the time of the blast. This varied from the July bombing in the Hezbollah stronghold of Bir al-Abed, where the vehicle used was in a stationary position. But the source said there were conflicting witness reports concerning the suspect bomber, with some saying they saw a man blow himself up after exiting the vehicle while others stating the man had been driving the car when it exploded. The source said remains of body parts that have yet to be identified were located at the blast site. According to the source, a black BMW was used in the bombing and contained some 60 kilograms of TNT mixed with C4, a highly flammable plastic explosive.
Lebanese Red Cross official Iyad Munzer told The Daily Star at least 300 people were wounded in the bombing, which ripped through the commercial and residential neighborhood in the evening peak hour.
Deputy Commissioner at the Military Tribunal Judge Sami Sader inspected the site of the explosion and ordered it be sealed off except for forensic teams and bomb experts. Caretaker Justice Minister Shakib Qortbawi said judicial experts are “carefully analyzing” a video posted on YouTube of a previously unknown group that claimed responsibility for the bombing. A group calling itself the “Brigade of Aisha, the Mother of the Faithful” threatened further attacks against what they called “Iranian colonies” in Lebanon. An urgent meeting was convened at Beiteddine, the president’s summer residence, to address the security situation in the country. “The [High Defense] Council discussed the perils resulting from terrorist acts moving from one area to another,” Maj. Gen. Mohammad Kheir, the general-secretary of the Council said following the meeting. Kheir said the participants listened to facts presented by senior security officials regarding the recent car bombings and rocket attacks in Lebanon. Earlier in the day, Charbel said the meeting would look into a plan to protect Beirut’s southern suburbs after the deadly car explosion. Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati announced Friday a day of mourning for the Ruwaiss victims. Seven people remain unaccounted for: Saleh Abbas; his three children, Mohammad, Maryam and Malak; as well as Mohammad Jaber, Jad Ali Jaafar and Mohammad Mhaydelli. Relatives of the missing have been asked to undergo DNA tests to help identify remains found at the crime scene. The interior minister said no arrests have been made in the case.

Pro-Hezbollah group member wounded in s. Lebanon shooting
August 16, 2013/By Mohammed Zaatari/The Daily Star/SIDON, Lebanon: An unidentified gunman shot and wounded Friday a member of the pro-Hezbollah Resistance Brigades in the Sidon suburb of Abra, south Lebanon, a security source said Friday. The source said the gunman targeted Ahmad al-Saadi, a member of the pro-Hezbollah Resistance Brigades, from his car. Saadi was taken to a local Sidon hospital for treatment, the source said. He said the gunman sped off immediately after the shooting around 2 a.m. In June, Abra was the scene of a military crackdown on now fugitive Sheikh Ahmad Assir after supporters of Salafist preacher attacked and killed several soldiers at an Army checkpoint. Assir, who remains at large, is a fierce critic of Hezbollah and accused the Resistance Brigades of spying on him.

Sykes-Picot is more alive than we know
August 15, 2013/By Michael Young/The Daily Star
Since the start of the Arab uprisings in 2011, commentators have reached for their history books to announce that we are witnessing the end of the Middle East as shaped by the Sykes-Picot agreement of 1916. Their point is that the Arab world is breaking apart, and that what may emerge are new states defined by sect or ethnicity to replace those drawn up by the imperial powers almost a century ago.
Arab states, almost by definition, have embodied the failure of integration in the Arab world. Since independence they have been dysfunctional, authoritarian, over-militarized and economically underdeveloped. Unity has been imposed from above, usually brutally, with no tolerance for dissent, whether political or cultural. Leaders who led such countries were viewed with a mixture of distaste and respect for ruthlessly managing the complex dynamics of their societies. One of these was the late Hafez Assad. During the 1980s, I recall one American academic, though no friend of Assad, referring to his rule as a success. But success is ultimately decided by one’s legacy, and the legacy of the late Syrian leader was, first, to ensure that his son would succeed him, and, second, to put in place a system of sectarian repression that is largely responsible for the carnage in Syria today.
At the heart of the Syrian and Iraqi situations most saliently, and perhaps slightly differently the Lebanese situation, is the problem of minorities. When the League of Nations was created after World War I, one of its principal preoccupations was to ensure that minorities would be protected in the new states that had been created after the collapse of the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian empires.
The British and French mandatory authorities did, to an extent, favor minorities in the countries they controlled, principally as instruments of control. Britain ruled Iraq through a pro-Hashemite Sunni elite, while the French promoted minorities in Syria, among them the Alawites, who enrolled in the Troupes Speciales as a means of social advancement. This would lead to minority domination of what would become the Syrian army, and later Alawite control over Syria.
In Lebanon, though the Christians were a slight majority in 1920, France established a “Greater Lebanon” that responded to the demands of a community that was a minority in the region. Within decades the country they had created would have a Muslim majority. Lebanon would endure a 15-year civil war after 1975 that undermined Christian power and that subsequently gave the Sunni and Shiite communities a predominant role in the running of the state. In Syria and Iraq the situation was different as minorities took or retained power and established dictatorial regimes that perpetuated minority rule. Saddam Hussein’s regime collapsed in 2003 after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, and in Syria the Assads’ hegemony broke down in 2011. But in neither Syria nor Iraq has a new social contract been found to accommodate minorities, so that in both countries there is a sense that these tenuous communities aspire to ethnic entities of their own.
This portrayal may be partly true, but it is also problematic. In Syria, Bashar Assad still believes he can retake all of Syria (even if others are dubious, as David Ignatius’ piece on the page shows). Far from falling back on an Alawite statelet, Assad has focused on ensuring safe communications between the coast and Damascus. He realizes that his co-religionists have not spent four decades and more expanding their presence, power, and interests throughout Syria, only to readily return today to their largely marginal areas of origin.
Iraq’s Sunnis, too, despite their sense of alienation from Baghdad, appeared to be in a different mood about their country in 2010, when parliamentary elections were held. The pacification of the Sunni uprising had largely succeeded, Sunnis participated in the elections that year, and the coalition that many of them supported, Al-Iraqiyya, won a majority, even if after months of maneuvering and discord, it was Nouri al-Maliki who again became prime minister. There was no secessionist movement then, and even now the notion of a breakaway Sunni state raises many questions. What would be its resources? What would happen to Sunnis living in Shiite-majority areas and Baghdad? Formal separation is easy to talk about, but when implemented it is traumatic, especially when involving sectarian or ethnic communities, because it usually leads to transfers of population.
To this day the populations transfers between Greece and Turkey in 1923, or between India and Pakistan in 1947, are remembered as dark moments in the history of the countries involved. The impetus to replicate this in the Arab world is not widespread. Even during the Lebanese war, when de facto partition was in place, no effort was made to give the sectarian enclaves a definite legal status.
There is a sense among many in the West, weaned on a diet of anti-imperial historiography, that as Sykes-Picot was an imperial arrangement, its consequences must have no real legitimacy in the Arab world today. But that’s not true. The Arabs guard their imperially created boundaries jealously. Breaking up a state remains a path many hesitate to take. In Arab nationalist ideology, the political destiny of the Arabs is to join together in larger political entities, until a single Arab state is formed. Arab nationalism is a dream of unification, not fragmentation, and it retains an intellectual hold on societies that do not wish to define themselves primarily through a sectarian prism.
Does this mean Arab states will remain unified, at least officially? Political and geographical unity often clash with the reality of sectarian or ethnic division. Arab states are destined to wrestle with this contradiction for some time to come, as a substitute for formal separation. The inheritance of Sykes-Picot may be poisoned and discredited, but it is also far from dead.
**Michael Young is opinion editor of THE DAILY STAR. He tweets @BeirutCalling.

Aoun surrounded by ‘disappointments’
August 17, 2013/By Hasan Lakkis/The Daily Star
Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun is experiencing a cooling-off in ties with several former allies, and his recent meeting with President Michel Sleiman did little to break the ice between the two men, who have been at odds on a range of issues. Aoun appeared in a television interview on his OTV Wednesday, but according to sources close to the FPM, he declined to go into detail about these disputes. The sources said that Aoun was disappointed with developments on a number of domestic fronts, whether these involve dealing with Lebanon’s Syria refugee crisis, or earlier battles over the parliamentary election law, the extension of Parliament’s mandate and the extension of the mandate of Army Commander Gen. Jean Kahwagi. They said he was also unhappy with the way that his ostensible allies in the government had approached draft laws proposed by FPM politicians, especially those dealing with oil and gas exploration. Only Aoun’s Armenian allies remain in his Change and Reform bloc, after ties with Suleiman Franjieh’s Marada Movement took a turn for the worse, the sources said.
However, Aoun has commissioned opinion polls and remains confident because they show that his popularity in Christian areas has not dipped, despite the setbacks.
The sources said Aoun’s visit to Baabda Palace Wednesday for a meeting with the president, at the request of the Maronite patriarch, was equally disappointing. The discussion produced no breakthroughs, but instead reinforced the distance between the two men.
In Aoun’s view, the president did not speak frankly with the FPM leader, or take seriously the various domestic issues put on the table.
The sources said Hezbollah, Amal and the Progressive Socialist Party appeared determined to avoid the taking of any significant decisions when it comes to any divisive issue in Lebanon – as with Parliament and Kahwagi, the solution has been to endorse an extension. But a similar scenario for the presidency, with Sleiman’s term due to end next May, is unlikely, the sources said, due to the current preference by outside powers for Kawhagi to become the next president. This is likely because Christian political forces appear unable to agree on their own candidate, and because Kahwagi, with his military background, will be needed to help Lebanon weather its challenging security situation, the sources predicted.
Aoun remains at odds with many political groups because he insists on giving priority to dealing with pressing domestic issues, while the majority is seeking to delay decisions until a resolution of the war in Syria, the sources complained. Aoun’s meeting last month with the leader of Hezbollah, Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah, also failed to produce the kind of results desired by the FPM leader.
There was the usual affirmation of the strength of the strategic alliance between the resistance party and the FPM, but little agreement on domestic policy issues – Aoun came away with the impression that the Hezbollah leader is preoccupied with the regional front. The sources stressed that Nasrallah was very frank during the meeting, pledging the party’s support for Aoun and its understanding of his stances on issues that he considers important, despite their differences. But Aoun’s relations with Speaker Nabih Berri and Franjieh continue to suffer; FPM sources complain that the speaker continues to obstruct the passage of FPM-authored items of oil and gas draft legislation, while trying to portray caretaker Energy Minister Gebran Bassil, Aoun’s son-in-law, as being primarily responsible for Lebanon’s electricity woes. As for ties between Aoun and Franjieh, huge efforts at mediation are required to engineer a reconciliation between the two men, and there are no signs that a successful resolution is in the offing.

Ban Condemns Dahieh Blast, Urges Lebanese to Rally around State Institutions
Naharnet /United Nations Secretary General Ban Kin-moon strongly condemned the car bomb explosion that targeted the neighborhood of Ruwais in the southern Beirut suburbs on Thursday, his spokesman said in a statement on Friday. It said: “During this period of heightened tensions, the Secretary General urges all Lebanese to remain united, to rally around their state institutions and to focus on safeguarding Lebanon’s security and stability.”
“Such acts of violence are completely unacceptable and only reinforce the determination of the international community to continue supporting Lebanon’s security and stability at a time of severe regional turbulence,” the statement continued. Ban hoped that the perpetrators will be brought to justice as soon as possible, expressing his condolences for those killed and extending his deep sympathies to those injured. At least 18 people were killed and 248 others wounded in a car bombing that rocked Hizbullah's stronghold in Beirut's southern suburbs on Thursday, state-run National News Agency reported. The blast went off on the public road between Bir al-Abed and Ruwais.

Security Council Slams 'Heinous' Dahieh Attack, Calls on All Parties to Commit to Baabda Declaration
Naharnet/The members of the United Nations Security Council strongly condemned the terrorist attack in Beirut's southern suburb of Dahieh on Thursday, they announced in a statement on Friday. It stressed: “The members of the Security Council appealed to all Lebanese people to preserve national unity in the face of attempts to undermine the country’s stability and stressed the importance for all Lebanese parties to respect Lebanon’s policy of disassociation and to refrain from any involvement in the Syrian crisis, consistent with their commitment in the Baabda Declaration.” “The members of the Security Council reaffirmed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security, and that any acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of their motivation, wherever, whenever and by whomsoever committed,” the statement added. “The members of the Security Council reaffirmed the need to combat by all means, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and all obligations under international law, in particular international human rights, refugee and humanitarian law, threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts,” it continued. The members of the Security Council underlined the need to bring the perpetrators to justice. They extended their condolences to the victims and their families and expressed their sympathy to all those injured “in this heinous act and to the people and government of Lebanon.” At least 18 people were killed and 248 others wounded in a car bombing that rocked Hizbullah's stronghold in Beirut's southern suburbs on Thursday, state-run National News Agency reported.The blast went off on the public road between Bir al-Abed and Ruwais. SourceAgence France Presse/Naharnet.

France Calls for Uncovering 'Entire Truth' behind Dahieh Blast
Naharnet/France “firmly” condemned Thursday's explosion in the southern suburb of Beirut, calling for uncovering “the entire truth” behind the incident. "We strongly condemn Dahieh's blast,” the deputy pokesperson of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs Vincent Floréani said on Friday. He added: “It is necessary to uncover the truth behind the explosion and refer those behind it to court.”Floréani stressed on his country's “commitment to Lebanon's stability and to denouncing terrorism.”The Foreign Ministry's spokesperson also pointed out that “France supports President Michel Suleiman's disassociation policy.”"We urge all the Lebanese people to work on safeguarding national unity.”A huge car explosion killed at least 22 people and wounded 325 others in Beirut's Dahieh neighborhood on Thursday afternoon. The state-run National News Agency reported that seven people, including a man and his three children, were missing. A previously unknown group, apparently a Syrian rebel cell, said it carried out Thursday's attack in the densely populated southern suburbs of Beirut, between Bir al-Abed and Rweiss, districts where Hizbullah security is normally tight. The group said the explosion came as a “response to Hizbullah's fighting alongside President Bashar Assad's forces in the neighboring country. United Nations Secretary General Ban Kin-moon "strongly" condemned the explosion, urging all the Lebanese “to remain united, to rally around their state institutions and to focus on safeguarding Lebanon’s security and stability.”
Meanwhile, Suleiman considered on Thursday that the explosion bears the “hallmark of terrorism and of Israel.” SourceAgence France Presse.

Higher Defense Council: Security Agencies Must Apprehend those behind Terrorist Attacks in Lebanon
Naharnet/The Higher Defense Council convened at the Baabda Palace on Friday in order to discuss the blast that took place in Beirut's southern suburbs on Thursday. It said after the meeting, chaired by President Michel Suleiman: “We requested that the security agencies exert all efforts in order to apprehend those behind terrorist attacks in Lebanon.” The council also addressed recent security developments, including last week's Israeli violation of the border in the South, as well as the case of Syrian refugees in Lebanon. The measures taken by the council to tackle the security situation will remain secret. The Higher Defense Council meeting was attended by caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati, caretaker Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour, caretaker Justice Minister Shakib Qortbawi, caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel, caretaker Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn, caretaker Finance Minister Mohammed al-Safadi, caretaker Economy Minister Nicolas Nahhas, and a the heads of security agencies. Suleiman has held separate talks ahead of the meeting with Miqati and head of the Mustaqbal bloc MP Fouad Saniora in an appointment that was scheduled prior to the Dahieh blast. Prior to the Higher Defense Council meeting, Charbel revealed that the gatherers may discuss the possibility of implementing a security plan in Dahieh in order to avert future bomb attacks, reported LBCI television. At least 21 people were killed and 200 wounded in a car bomb attack in Hizbullah's stronghold in Beirut's southern suburbs on Thursday. The blast went off on the public road between Bir al-Abed and Ruwais. Later on Thursday, a group calling itself the Brigades of Aisha Umm al-Moemeneen claimed the bombing in a YouTube video and threatened further attacks over Hizbullah's involvement in the fighting in Syria. On July 9, a booby-trapped car exploded at a parking lot in Bir al-Abed, leaving 53 people wounded and causing extensive material damage. In May, two rockets slammed into the Beirut southern suburb of Shiyyah, wounding four people. Last week, the Lebanese army said that a group of Israeli soldiers crossed the border into the southern area of Labbouneh near Naqoura and were wounded in an explosion which reports have said was caused by a landmine. The communique said the Israeli troops reached as far as 400 meters inside Lebanon. Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah claimed in an interview on Wednesday responsibility for the blast, saying his party "will face" any further border violations by the Jewish state.

Death Toll in Dahieh Blast Reaches 24 as Charbel Urges against Jumping ahead of Investigations
Naharnet/The death toll in the blast that rocked Beirut's southern suburb of Dahieh on Thursday rose to 24, announced the Red Cross on Friday according to Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3). It had state earlier that 248 people were wounded in the blast. Caretaker Health Minister Ali Hassan Khalil had stated later on Friday that the death toll had reached 21. The Army Command meanwhile called in a statement on the relatives of the victims to undergo DNA tests in order to help identify the casualties. MTV later reported that the suicide bomber was riding in a black BMW at the time he detonated the explosive. LBCI television added that 55 to 60 kilograms of TNT were used in the bomb attack. Meanwhile, caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel told VDL that video camera footage is being studied to find attacker and determine whether it was a suicide bomber that carried out Dahieh attack. “We cannot jump ahead of the investigations,” he said. “We must be given some time to find the leads,” he urged. A car bomb attack took place in Hizbullah's stronghold in Beirut's southern suburbs on Thursday, state-run National News Agency reported. The blast went off on the public road between Bir al-Abed and Ruwais. Later on Thursday, a group calling itself the Brigades of Aisha Umm al-Moemeneen claimed the bombing in a YouTube video and threatened further attacks over Hizbullah's involvement in the fighting in Syria. On July 9, a booby-trapped car exploded at a parking lot in Bir al-Abed, leaving 53 people wounded and causing extensive material damage. In May, two rockets slammed into the Beirut southern suburb of Shiyyah, wounding four people.

Berri Sees 'Israeli Hand' in Dahieh Blast, Urges Vigilance
Naharnet /Speaker Nabih Berri on Thursday blamed the deadly bombing that targeted Dahieh earlier in the day on “the hand of organized crime and terrorism,” saying “it is undoubtedly a black Israeli hand.” “This crime only serves the Israeli enemy, which has been plotting to undermine the elements of national unity that were the elements that led to Lebanon's victory in 2006,” Berri said in a statement. “This bloody crime, which aims to stir strife among the Lebanese, requires the Lebanese and their spiritual and political leaders to show vigilance and unity … in order to confront the challenges that have been imposed on our country,” he added. At least 14 people were killed and 212 others wounded in a car bombing that rocked Hizbullah's stronghold in Beirut's southern suburbs on Thursday, according to state-run National News Agency. The blast went off on the public road between Bir al-Abed and Ruwais. Later on Thursday, a group calling itself the Brigades of Aisha Umm al-Moemeneen claimed the bombing in a YouTube video and threatened further attacks.

Ghosn: Car in Bir al-Abed Blast Stolen from Khalde, Suspects Held over Dahieh, Arsal, Hermel Attacks
Naharnet/Caretaker Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn on Friday disclosed details related to several security incidents that have recently taken place in the country, noting that the information is based on investigations conducted by the army's Intelligence Directorate, not on “analysis or speculation.” “Some might wonder why we have decided to disclose the information we have obtained, especially that sensitive intel is usually kept under wraps by security agencies, but I stress that this decision is a result of my conviction of the need to say things as they are, in order to put an end to some of the speculations and hypotheses that aim to deviate attention from the facts and create confusion among the ranks of the Lebanese public opinion,” Ghosn told reporters at a press conference. The minister revealed that “the Intelligence Directorate arrested Hasan Hussein Rayed on July 27, 2013 and he confessed to executing some terrorist operations and preparing booby-trapped cars in collaboration with Omar Ahmed al-Atrash and other culprits.” “On May 28, 2013, Rayed participated together with Omar Ahmed al-Atrash, Sami Ahmed al-Atrash, Obeida Mustafa al-Hujairi, Ahmed Abdul Karim Hmeid, Sameh al-Breidi and four Syrians in the killing of several troops on a Lebanese army checkpoint in the Wadi Hmayd area” in Arsal's outskirts, Ghosn said. He added that Rayed was also involved in the Wadi Rafeq ambush that left four young men dead on June 16 and that Omar and Sami al-Atrash and four Syrians took part in the attack.
In addition, the man confessed to taking part in the preparation and detonation of two roadside bombs on the Hermel road on July 7, which left an officer and several soldiers wounded, according to Ghosn.
Rayed also told his interrogators that the Omar and Sami al-Atrash, Zuheir Hussein Ammoun, Sameh al-Breidi and Ahmed Abdul Karim Hmeid were involved in preparing several booby-trapped cars with the aim of staging attacks in Beirut's southern suburbs and other Lebanese areas, and that Omar al-Atrash is “the mastermind of this group.”Turning to the July 9 Bir al-Abed bombing, Ghosn said that, according to investigations, the Kia car used in the attack was stolen at gun point from the Khalde area on the eve of the blast, revealing that Syrian national Hussam Diab Ghanem Abu Halaq was arrested by the Intelligence Directorate and that he had ties to other individuals suspected of being involved in the bombing. The minister also revealed that the Intelligence Directorate has “strong leads” in the case of the May 26 rocket attack on the Beirut southern suburb of Shiyyah and that it was pursuing one of the suspects. “The directorate has accurate information about the handlers of these individuals, about the mastermind and the involved groups and about their affiliations and nationalities,” Ghosn added, referring to the Shiyyah attack. “I'm sounding the alarm to say that Lebanon has started to fall into the grip of terrorism and that everyone must realize the seriousness of this period,” Ghosn said, urging all Lebanese to “support the military institution and not to harbor these fugitives.”Ghosn's revelations come one day after 24 people were killed and 325 others wounded in a powerful car bombing that went off between the Beirut southern suburbs of Bir al-Abed and Ruwais.

Nasrallah Warns to Double Fighters in Syria in Case of New Attack: Takfiri Groups behind Dahieh Blast
Naharnet /Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said Friday he is ready to fight in Syria against Takfiris, calling on the state to eliminate “these terrorist for the sake of Lebanon.” "I will go myself to Syria if it is necessary in the battle against the Takfiris, Hizbullah and I will go to Syria to fight rebels trying to oust the Damascus regime,” Nasrallah said in a speech broadcast on television in a Hizbullah celebration marking the end of the July 2006 war. He added: “We will fight for the sake of the Syrian people and the country's cause, which is Palestine.” “We are the ones to determine the battle's fate. Just as we won in all our wars against Israel, we will win the battle against terrorism and Takfiris.”A day after a huge explosion rocked Hizbullah's stronghold in the southern suburb of Beirut, Nasrallah accused radical Islamists of responsibility for the bombing. The deadly car explosion killed at least 22 people and wounded 325 others in Beirut's Dahieh neighborhood. A previously unknown group, apparently a Syrian rebel cell, said it carried out Thursday's attack between Bir al-Abed and Rweiss, districts where Hizbullah security is normally tight. The group said the explosion came as a “response to Hizbullah's fighting alongside President Bashar Assad's forces in the neighboring country.
“The strongest probability is that Takfiri groups are behind yesterday's blast and there is no doubt that some of them work for Israel,” Nasrallah announced. He explained: “I tell you that the party that planted the bombs in (the Bekaa's) Hermel is known to us and we have identified the perpetrators. Who planted the bombs in (the Bekaa town of) Majdal Anjar is also known, so is the party behind the rockets launched on the Dahieh and the perpetrators behind last month's explosion in Bir al-Abed neighborhood.” “What was confirmed for now is that they are foreign-backed Takfiri groups. All indicators of yesterday's explosion lead to the same results and we were informed about specific locations where they prepare the bombs. Some of the perpetrators were arrested and among them are Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinian nationals.”
He noted: “Those who believe that this threat is directed towards a specific sect are mistaken. They have a destructive project for the region.” Nasrallah warned that if such explosion persist in the country, Lebanon would be “on the brink,” calling for “cooperation to avoid the destruction of the country.” “You should prevent dragging Lebanon into a civil war and stop sectarian incitement. The conflict should remain politically-oriented and should not be sectarian. There should not be a political cover for these Takfiri groups,” he said addressing Lebanese officials. Nasrallah demanded the state to “dismantle Takfiri groups and eliminate them for the sake of Lebanon.”
The Hizbullah leader assured, however, that killings and explosions will not affect the will-power of the resistance nor will they make it fall into the “strife trap.”He told the “murderers”: “We will get to you if the state does not.” “We are not a substitute for the state in defense or in security but when the state does not assume its responsibility, we will,” he explained. Nasrallah continued: “If you are punishing Hizbullah for its interference in Syria I will tell you that Takfiri groups are worst towards the Syrian people. They blow up mosques and kill children while we have entered specific regions only and avoided killing civilians.”"We did not commit massacres, we only fought against Takfiri groups.” The Shiite leader, however, assured that he will respond to any new blast by “doubling the number of fighters against Takfiris in Syria.” The Hizbullah chief had started his speech on Friday by recalling Israel's “failure, loss and weakness” after the 33 days of war in July 2006. “The July war experience proved that the resistance is able to be a real defensive force at times when the attacked nation does not have military readiness and the adequate technology to face the enemy,” he considered. Nasrallah reiterated his “commitment to the resistance to liberate what is left of the occupied land.”He stated: “Lebanon's best and most precious asset is the golden army-people-resistance formula.” “Through the Labbouneh incident we aim to stress that it is no more allowed for any Israeli soldier to cross into Lebanon. The time of Israeli tourism on the border with Lebanon has ended for good.”The Lebanese army said last week that a group of Israeli soldiers crossed the border into the southern area of Labbouneh near Naqoura and were wounded in an explosion which reports have said was caused by a landmine. Nasrallah on Wednesday claimed the attack, saying his party "will face" any further border violations by the Jewish state.

Hand Grenade Explodes in Tripoli, Sniper Fire Resumes
Naharnet /A 200 g hand grenade exploded in al-Mina roundabout in Tripoli on Thursday, but no casualties were reported, media reports said. “At exactly 9:00 p.m., an explosion was heard in the el-Mina roundabout in Tripoli. An army patrol rushed to the area with a military expert who said that the bomb was handmade and weighs 200g,” the army command said in a statement on Friday reporting no injuries. “The military police took over the investigation into the incident under the supervision of the concerned judiciary,” the statement added. Moreover, and according to Voice of Lebanon radio station (93.3) it said “a passing car threw the bomb and the army cordoned off the area.” “Intermittent sniper fire left one person dead and wounded another,” the station added. Tripoli witnesses recurrent clashes that often erupt between the Sunni-majority neighborhood of Bab al-Tabbaneh and the Alawite neighborhood of Jabal Mohsen. The clashes have become more frequent and deadly since the beginning of the Syrian uprising, which pits the Sunni-led opposition against the regime of President Bashar Assad, who is Alawite. Tripoli police chief Brig. Gen. Bassam al-Ayyoubi announced early August the launching of a crackdown on gunmen in the northern city.

Aoun: Dahieh Blast Should Motivate us to Form National Unity Government
Naharnet/Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun condemned on Friday the blast that took place in Beirut's southern suburb of Ruwais on Thursday, saying it should motivate leaders to form a new government.
He told OTV: “The attack may be a valid excuse to form a national unity cabinet because all powers are being targeted.” He also refuted claims that Hizbullah is “paying the price for its fighting in Syria, because the crisis was ongoing before it got involved in unrest.” “Is the party the only side taking part in the unrest? Isn't Turkey funding the fighting? Aren't Arab countries sending fighters to Syria?” asked the MP. “The Dahieh blast indicates that no one can be immune from such terrorist attacks. Anyone can be reached directly or indirectly,” Aoun remarked. Moreover, he warned: “We have entered the phase of terrorism in Lebanon.”“We are all in agreement that this phase requires the strong rule of government,” he stressed. At least 21 people were killed and 200 wounded in a car bomb attack in Hizbullah's stronghold in Beirut's southern suburbs on Thursday. The blast went off on the public road between Bir al-Abed and Ruwais. Later on Thursday, a group calling itself the Brigades of Aisha Umm al-Moemeneen claimed the bombing in a YouTube video and threatened further attacks over Hizbullah's involvement in the fighting in Syria. On July 9, a booby-trapped car exploded at a parking lot in Bir al-Abed, leaving 53 people wounded and causing extensive material damage. In May, two rockets slammed into the Beirut southern suburb of Shiyyah, wounding four people.

Free Syrian Army Denies Involvement in Dahieh Blast
Naharnet /The mainstream rebel Free Syrian Army condemned the deadly explosion that killed over 20 people in Beirut's southern suburb on Thursday. The FSA military command "condemns this criminal act targeting civilians," Louai Moqdad, the group's political coordinator, told Agence France Presse, adding that the three masked men did not claim to be Syrian rebels. "He who takes part in the murder of the Syrian people alongside the criminal is responsible for this crime," he said. A huge car explosion killed at least 22 people in Beirut's Dahieh neighborhood on Thursday afternoon. A previously unknown group, apparently a Syrian rebel cell, said it carried out Thursday's attack in the densely populated southern suburbs of Beirut, between Bir al-Abed and Rweiss, districts where Hizbullah security is normally tight. Police said the death toll had climbed to at least 22, while the Red Cross said 325 people were wounded. The state-run National News Agency reported that seven people, including a man and his three children, were missing. SourceAgence France Presse.LebanonPolitics.

Report: Administrative, Legal Measures to Be Taken to Further Isolate Qabbani
Naharnet/The Higher Islamic Council is expected to convene at the end of next week in order to follow up on the measures that have been taken in order to isolate Grand Mufti Sheikh Mohammed Rashid Qabbani, reported the Kuwaiti al-Anbaa daily on Friday. It said that the council will take “decisive” steps regarding the Dar al-Fatwa institutions after it was granted control over it by former prime ministers. The premiership general secretariat, at caretaker Premier Najib Miqati and PM-designate Tammam Salam, had ordered that no decision issued by Qabbani would be approved or considered valid at any government institutions. This decision is yet to be published in the official gazette. Sources told the daily that should it be approved, Qabbani would effectively be isolated in the legal and administrative sense. He would be entitled to remain in his post until the end of his tenure on September 14, 2014, but he will not be able to exercise any of his privileges. They added that the failure so far to isolate the mufti can be attributed to the disputes within the electoral body over his successor. Attempts to isolate Qabbani were demonstrated during last week's Eid al-Fitr holiday when a a memo that tasks a cabinet minister to represent Miqati at the Eid prayers was not sent. A minister is traditionally present at the mosque where the mufti performs the Eid prayer. Sources close to Miqati said that not sending the memo was a reflection of the deal reached between the former prime ministers to take measures against the Mufti over financial and legal violations.
Last month, the premiers discussed the Dar al-Fatwa crisis at ex-PM Omar Karami's residence in the northern city of Tripoli. The Higher Islamic Council, which elects the mufti and organizes the affairs of Dar al-Fatwa, has been at the center of controversy after 21 of its members, who are close to ex-Premier Saad Hariri's al-Mustaqbal Movement, extended its term until the end of 2013 despite Qabbani's objection. But the mufti considered the extension illegal and held council elections.

70 Dead in Clashes between Morsi Loyalists, Security Forces
Naharnet/Thousands of Islamists protested Friday across Egypt, sparking violence that killed at least 70 people and turned parts of Cairo into battlefields after police authorized the use of live ammunition.
The clashes came two days after 578 people were killed in Egypt as police cleared two Cairo protest camps set up by loyalists of ousted Islamist president Mohammed Morsi, in the country's bloodiest day in decades.
That crackdown drew strong condemnation from the international community, and EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton called Friday for the bloc to adopt "appropriate measures" in response.
But Egypt's cabinet issued a defiant statement, even as clashes continued in the hour before a night-time curfew began, saying it was confronting a "terrorist plot."
In Jordan, Morocco and the Palestinian territories, meanwhile, hundreds joined demonstrations in support of Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood movement. The Islamist coalition led the Brotherhood had called for "Friday of anger" rallies across Egypt in response to the crackdown on their protest camps. And violence erupted soon after protesters emerged from mosques following Friday prayers, with gunshots ringing out in Cairo and security forces firing tear gas. In the capital, a man leaped off a bridge near a police station to escape shooting as police armored vehicles advanced on protesters, witnesses said. An Agence France Presse correspondent counted at least 19 bodies in one Cairo mosque, while eyewitnesses said more than 20 corpses had been laid out in a second mosque. Security sources and the health ministry reported at least 31 dead, including four in the Suez Canal city of Ismailiya and another eight in northern Damietta. In Cairo, streets were virtually deserted except for demonstrators and security forces, with the army deploying at key points in the city.
But some residents formed their own roadblocks, checking identity papers and searching cars.
The interior ministry, which on Thursday authorized police to use live fire if government buildings came under attack, accused the Brotherhood of attacking police stations, saying it foiled several attempts to storm buildings.
And the cabinet issued a defiant statement accusing the Brotherhood of a "terrorist plot." "The cabinet affirms that the government, the armed forces, the police and the great people of Egypt are united in confronting the malicious terrorist plot by the Muslim Brotherhood," it said. Marches were also reported in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, in Beni Sueif and Fayyum, south of Cairo, and in the Red Sea resort town of Hurghada.
Wednesday's bloody crackdown on the pro-Morsi protest camps has polarized Egypt, splintering the army-installed government and drawing forceful international condemnations. The president of the U.N. Security Council pleaded for "maximum restraint" after an emergency meeting on Wednesday's violence. But Egypt defended the crackdown and announced it was canceling naval exercises with Turkey to protest Ankara's condemnation. Turkey, which backs Morsi, has recalled its ambassador to Cairo over the violence, prompting a tit-for-tat move by Egypt. The EU's foreign policy chief described the violence in Egypt as "shocking."
"I have asked member state representatives to debate and coordinate appropriate measures to be taken by the European Union in response to the situation in Egypt," said Ashton. Germany said it would review ties with Cairo, and joined France in calling for EU talks on the situation, which are expected to take place on Monday. French President Francois Hollande was discussing the crisis with counterparts in London, Berlin and Rome.
On Thursday, the U.N. Security Council held an emergency meeting on Egypt, calling for an end to the violence and "national reconciliation." U.S. President Barack Obama said Washington was canceling a joint U.S.-Egyptian military exercise. "While we want to sustain our relationship with Egypt, our traditional cooperation cannot continue as usual when civilians are being killed in the streets and rights are being rolled back," he said. But despite scrapping the exercise, he stopped short of suspending Washington's annual $1.3 billion in aid. The international response was not uniformly critical, however, with Saudi King Abdullah saying he backed Egypt's fight against "terrorism." Saudi Arabia "stands with its Egyptian brothers against terrorism, deviance and sedition, and against those who try to interfere in Egypt's internal affairs," he said. The unrest troubled markets, with oil prices up on fears that the violence could impact shipments through the Suez Canal or spark further Middle East unrest, analysts said. SourceAgence France Presse.

Egypt Scraps Navy Drill with Ankara after Turkish, Egyptian Ambassadors Recalled
Naharnet/Cairo has cancelled naval exercises with Turkey scheduled to take place in October to protest Ankara's "clear interference" in Egypt's domestic affairs, the foreign ministry said on Friday. The measures were in "protest at the unacceptable Turkish statements and actions which represent a clear interference in Egypt's domestic affairs and stand against the will of the Egyptian people," the ministry said in a statement. Earlier on Friday, Turkey denied it was meddling in Egyptian internal affairs after the two countries pulled out their respective ambassadors in a further deterioration of ties following the bloodbath in Cairo. In tit-for-tat moves Thursday, Ankara and Cairo said they were recalling their envoys after Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned what he called the "massacre" of peaceful protesters. Erdogan, a supporter of former president Mohammed Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood movement, had also infuriated the interim government in Cairo by terming his July ouster a military coup. Turkish President Abdullah Gul rejected criticism that his country was interfering in the affairs of the Arab world's most populous nation, saying Ankara's messages should be seen as "friendly warning." "All that happened is a shame for the Islamic and Arab world," Gul was quoted as saying by the private Dogan News Agency during a visit to Azerbaijan. "(Egypt's) friends feel the pain. I feel the pain for each and every Egyptian who was killed," he added. About 600 people were killed in the violence that erupted on Wednesday when security forces moved in to break up pro-Morsi protest camps, the worst unrest in the country since the 2011 uprising that unseated Hosni Mubarak. Erdogan, who heads the ruling Islamic-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP), had forged a close alliance with Morsi since he was elected in Egypt's first free election in June 2012. The Islamist leader was invited to the AKP's annual congress last September where Erdogan positioned Turkey as a regional standard-bearer and a model for the successful marriage between Islam and democracy. Turkish leaders however hinted that they would not cut ties with the new leadership in Egypt after Morsi's ouster, despite their criticism of the army's action. Analysts, however, said the bloody crackdown on demonstrators was a breaking point for Turkey, which would make it very hard for Erdogan's government to reconcile with the military regime in Egypt.
Turkey invested both politically and financially in Egypt after Morsi's election, aiming to bolster Ankara's influence and show that Turkey was not the only country where Islam and democracy could coexist.
Erdogan said his country served as a "very important reference" to Egypt on why military uprisings must not be tolerated. Turkey's once powerful army, which has long considered itself as the self-appointed guardian of Turkish secularism, has staged four coups in half a century. But during his 11 years in power, Erdogan has sought to clip the wings of the military, with trials of leading generals accused of plotting coups.
This week's unrest in Egypt is expected to hit around 260 Turkish businesses which operate there. Turkish investment in Egypt amounts to nearly $2 billion (1.5 billion euros), mostly in the textile and clothing industries, while over 4,000 Turks are registered as living there. Turkish biscuit manufacturer Yildiz Holding halted production in Egypt after a state of emergency was declared, and media reports said other businesses were likely to follow suit. After arriving back in Turkey on Friday, the ambassador to Cairo Huseyin Avni Botsali said: "There is common will between the two countries so as not to harm trade relations... but everything depends on the situation of stability and security." Botsali advised Turkish citizens in Egypt to refrain from inter-city trips and not to leave their homes or offices on "critical days".SourceAgence France Presse Associated Press.

Saudi King Backs Egypt against 'Terrorism', Jordan Backs Efforts to 'Impose Law'
Naharnet /Saudi King Abdullah pledged his country's support to Egypt's fight on "terrorism," saying it was the military-backed government's "legitimate right," in a speech aired on official al-Ekhbariya television Friday.
Saudi Arabia "has stood and stands with its Egyptian brothers against terrorism, deviance and sedition, and against those who try to interfere in Egypt's internal affairs... and its legitimate rights in deterring those tampering with and misleading" its people, he said. As he made his remarks, with fresh violence erupting across Egypt, the Cairo regime said it was confronting a "malicious terror plot" by the Muslim Brotherhood.
Egypt has faced international condemnation since nearly 600 people were killed in clashes on Wednesday when police broke up protest camps of supporters of ousted president Mohammed Morsi, in Egypt's bloodiest day in decades.King Abdullah urged the Arab and Muslim world to stand "in the face of whoever tries to destabilize" Egypt. "Those who have interfered in its affairs must know that they are causing sedition and backing terrorism, which they claim to fight," said the head of oil-rich conservative kingdom that is a major regional player. Saudi Arabia welcomed Morsi's ouster, and King Abdullah was the first foreign head of state to congratulate Egypt's interim president Adly Mansour hours after his appointment. The kingdom's regional arch foe Iran had condemned what it called Wednesday's "massacre" in Egypt.
Later on Friday, Jordan said it backs Egypt's efforts to "impose rule of law" and "combat terrorism," in its first official reaction to the deadly crackdown. "Jordan stands by Egypt in its serious efforts to impose the rule of law and restore security and stability," Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh said in a statement carried by state-run Petra news agency. "Egypt is seeking to combat terrorism and attempts (by others) to meddle in its affairs," he said.
Judeh hailed remarks by Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah, adding that "all Arabs and Muslims should stand firm against attempts to tamper with Egypt's security and stability."Earlier in the day around 1,000 supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan demonstrated in Amman to protest against the crackdown. "Down with military rule," the demonstrators chanted, in reference to the Egyptian armed forces who deposed Morsi on July 3 after millions clamored for his resignation. The protesters, waving Jordanian and Egyptian flags, also demanded the expulsion of the Egyptian ambassador and called on the government to recall the envoy from Cairo.
Hamzeh Mansour, head of the Islamic Action Front, the political arm of the Brotherhood in Jordan, also sent a letter to Prime Minister Abdullah Nsur demanding the government condemn the crackdown in Egypt.
Arab states of the Gulf -- the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain -- have separately voiced support for the deadly assault on Morsi's supporters, saying it was the state's duty to restore order. They, along with Kuwait, also welcomed the July 3 army coup that ousted Morsi, Egypt's first elected leader since an popular uprising in 2011 toppled long-time president Hosni Mubarak -- a close Saudi ally. Following Morsi's ouster, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Kuwait pledged a combined total of $12 million in aid to support Egypt's faltering economy. Qatar, a key supporter of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, has so far been the only Arab state of the Gulf to strongly condemn Wednesday's crackdown. SourceAgence France Presse.

17 Dead, Hundreds Rescued after Philippine Ships Crash
Naharnet /At least 17 people died while nearly 600 others were rescued after a ferry collided with a cargo ship in the Philippines on Friday, authorities said. The Thomas Aquinas ferry, which was believed to be carrying about 700 passengers, sank quickly after colliding with a freighter near the port of Cebu, the country's second biggest city, coastguard spokesman Commander Armando Balilo said. A rescue mission involving coastguard, navy and local boats was launched immediately after the collision, which occurred about 9:00 pm (1300 GMT) around two kilometers (1.2 miles) from shore. "The Aquinas has sunk and we have sent a navy patrol gunboat to join the coastguard in the search and rescue effort," navy spokesman Lieutenant Commander Gregory Fabic told Agence France Presse. Within about three hours of the accident, rescuers had saved 573 people but 17 people were confirmed killed, Joy Villages, an official at the coastguard's public affairs office headquarters in Manila, told AFP. "Those rescued are with the coastguard and with other vessels who helped in the effort."
However she said it was still unclear how many people were missing. There were 692 people on board, according to the manifest, but ferries in the Philippines are often overcrowded. "We are still checking the manifest as to how many exactly are aboard," Villages said. Rachel Capuno, a security officer for the ferry's owners, told Cebu radio station DYSS that the ship was sailing into port when it collided head-on with the cargo ship.
"The impact was very strong," she said, adding that the ferry sank within 30 minutes of the collision. Cebu coastguard commander Weniel Azcuna told reporters the accident occurred about two kilometers from the Cebu port.
He said the cargo ship, Sulpicio Express 7, had 36 crew members on board, but it did not sink. Ferries are one of the main modes of transport across the archipelago of more than 7,100 islands, particularly for the millions of people too poor to fly. But sea accidents are common, with poor safety standards, lax enforcement and overloading typically to blame. The world's deadliest peacetime maritime disaster occurred near the capital, Manila, in 1987 when a ferry laden with Christmas holidaymakers collided with a small oil tanker, killing more than 4,300 people. In 2008, a huge ferry capsized during a typhoon off the central island of Sibuyan, leaving almost 800 dead.
Source/Agence France Presse.

Canada Condemns Bombing in Southern Beirut
August 15, 2013 - Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird today issued the following statement:
“Canada strongly condemns today’s cowardly attack in southern Beirut. Our thoughts and prayers are with those killed and injured in this senseless attack.
“Canada urges the people of Lebanon to stay united in the face of such abhorrent acts of terrorism and to flatly reject the use of violence. I call on the Lebanese authorities to conduct a thorough investigation into this incident and to bring the perpetrators to justice.“Canada remains extremely concerned about the risk of Lebanon being drawn into the Syrian conflict by terrorist elements from either side. Canada does not want to see Lebanon become a new battleground for sectarian conflict or the settling of Syria’s scores. “Canada remains committed to Lebanon’s stability and security as the country deals with a large influx of refugees from Syria.”

UN Ambassador Samantha Power: Jean Ziegler "Unfit" for UNHRC
GENEVA, Aug. 16 – Newly-appointed U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power, who became famous as a human rights activist, Harvard professor, and genocide expert, entered her first major controversy last night by declaring her opposition to the election of Switzerland’s nominee for the UN Human Rights Council, a contentious ex-politician also being challenged by Swiss MPs on account of his close ties to Moammar Gaddafi and other dictators. Jean Ziegler, 79, is opposed by Swiss MPS from three different parties — Christian Lüscher, Walter Muller, Christa Markwalder, Kathy Riklin, and Andreas Aebi, Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee — who plan to contest the Foreign Ministry decision at a hearing in Bern next week. Forty-five human rights activists oppose Ziegler, who as an avowed “Third Worldist” visited with leaders accused of human rights abuses, including Castro, Hugo Chavez, Saddam Hussein and even North Korea’s Kim Il-Sung. Ziegler was a particularly ardent supporter of Gaddafi. Click here for PDF Report on Ziegler’s Gaddafi ties.
“While Gaddafi was raping countless women and girls across Libya, as confirmed by new revelations, Jean Ziegler was busy promoting the Libyan dictator as a hero of human rights,” said Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch. “We applaud the principled statement of Ambassador Power and urge the U.S. and other nations in the UN’s Western group to actively fight the incomprehensible Swiss nomination.”
Wikileaks revealed that the head of the UN’s World Food Program in 2002 urged UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to remove Ziegler for his "profoundly immoral" and "inflammatory" politics, which "had a negative impact on the lives of the hungry.” In 1989, Ziegler returned to Geneva from a Tripoli meeting to announce the creation of the Moammar Gaddafi International Human Rights Prize. He served as vice-president of the Geneva front group that managed the prize, Nord Sud XXI. At an evening ceremony on September 29, 2002, Ziegler was again in Tripoli where he himself received the Gaddafi Prize, together with convicted French Holocaust denier Roger Garaudy, following a 4-day conference that discussed "space and time, death and eternity, as well as the style, language and the irony in Moammar Gaddafi’s writings."
Despite having announced the prize to the world’s media in 1989, Ziegler now denies any ties to it. However, his claims were examined in detail and found to be completely false by Swiss TV and by the Neue Zurcher Zeitung.
Ziegler joined the council in 2000 as its hunger expert, a position created for him by Cuba’s Fidel Castro government in 2000. In 2008, he moved to the council’s advisory committee. In 2012, his application to stay at the UN was rejected. Now he is trying to return to the advisory committee. The election is slated for September 27.
www.unwatch.org
UN Watch is a Geneva-based human rights organization founded in 1993 to monitor UN compliance with the principles of its Charter. It is accredited as a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) in Special Consultative Status to the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and as an Associate NGO to the UN Department of Public Information (DPI).

Question: "Will more people go to heaven or to hell?"
GotQuestions.org/Answer: The question of whether there are more people in heaven or hell is answered by Jesus Himself in one succinct passage: “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few” (Matthew 7:13-14). This passage tells us that only those who receive Jesus Christ and who believe in Him are given the right to become children of God (John 1:12). As such, the gift of eternal life comes only through Jesus Christ to all those who believe. He said “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). It’s not through Islam, Buddha, or other false gods of man’s making. It’s not for those wanting a cheap and easy way to heaven while continuing to live their own selfish and worldly lives on earth. Jesus only saves those who fully trust in Him as Savior (Acts 4:12). So, what are these two gates in Matthew 7:13-14? They are the entrance to two different “ways.” The wide gate leads to the broad way, or road. The small narrow gate leads to the way that is narrow. The narrow way is the way of the godly, and the broad way is the way of the ungodly. The broad way is the easy way. It is attractive and self-indulgent. It is permissive. It’s the inclusive way of the world, with few rules, few restrictions, and fewer requirements. Tolerance of sin is the norm where God's Word is not studied and His standards not followed. This way requires no spiritual maturity, no moral character, no commitment, and no sacrifice. It is the easy way of salvation following “the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2). It is that broad way that “seems right to a man, but end is the way to death” (Proverbs 14:12).
Those who preach a gospel of inclusiveness where “all ways lead to heaven” preach an utterly different gospel than the one Jesus preached. The gate of self-centeredness, self-absorption, and a proud, holier-than-thou mindset is the wide gate of the world that leads to hell, not the narrow gate which leads to eternal life. As a result, most people spend their lives following the masses who are on the broad road, doing what everyone else does and believing what everyone else believes. The narrow way is the hard way, the demanding way. It is the way of recognizing that you cannot save yourself and must depend on Jesus Christ alone to save you. It’s the way of self-denial and the cross. The fact that few find God’s way implies that it is to be sought diligently. “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13). The point is this that no one will stumble into the kingdom or wander through the narrow gate by accident. Someone asked Jesus: "Lord, will those who are saved be few?” He replied, “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able” (Luke 13:23-24). Many will seek to enter that narrow door, the door of salvation, but “will not be able.” They are unwilling to trust/rely on Jesus alone. They are unwilling to pay the price. It costs too much for them to give up the world. God’s gate is a gate through which one cannot carry the baggage of sin and self-will, nor can one carry the accoutrements of materialism. The way of Christ is the way of the cross, and the way of the cross is the way of self-denial. Jesus said, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it” (Luke 9:23-24). Jesus knows that many will choose the wide gate and the broad way which leads to destruction and hell. Correspondingly, He said that only a few will choose the narrow gate. According to Matthew 7:13-14, there is no doubt that more will go to hell than to heaven. The question for you is, then, on which road are you?
Recommended Resources: Logos Bible Software and Jesus Among Other gGotQuestions.orgods by Ravi Zacharias.

AUDIO) Muslim Brotherhood is a “Partner” Of The @BarackObama White House:

The chaos in Cairo continues and seems to be getting worse. President Obama even temporally interrupted his summer vacation to address the growing crisis. What, if anything, can the Obama Administration do to end the violence and bring stability back to Egypt? Dr. Walid Phares, Fox News Channel Middle East and Terrorism Expert, joined Tom on Thursday’s to discuss the White House’s options. Dr. Phares explained the history behind the current violence and why he thinks the White House isn’t coming out against the Muslim Brotherhood. LISTEN BELOW as he explains why he thinks the Muslim Brotherhood is in a “political partnership” with Barack Obama’s White House: