LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
February 14/2013

Bible Quotation for today/God and Possessions
Matthew 06/24 -31: "You cannot be a slave of two masters; you will hate one and love the other; you will be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. “This is why I tell you: do not be worried about the food and drink you need in order to stay alive, or about clothes for your body. After all, isn't life worth more than food? And isn't the body worth more than clothes? Look at the birds: they do not plant seeds, gather a harvest and put it in barns; yet your Father in heaven takes care of them! Aren't you worth much more than birds? Can any of you live a bit longer by worrying about it? “And why worry about clothes? Look how the wild flowers grow: they do not work or make clothes for themselves. But I tell you that not even King Solomon with all his wealth had clothes as beautiful as one of these flowers. It is God who clothes the wild grass—grass that is here today and gone tomorrow, burned up in the oven. Won't he be all the more sure to clothe you? What little faith you have!
“So do not start worrying: ‘Where will my food come from? or my drink? or my clothes?’ (These are the things the pagans are always concerned about.) Your Father in heaven knows that you need all these things. Instead, be concerned above everything else with the Kingdom of God and with what he requires of you, and he will provide you with all these other things. So do not worry about tomorrow; it will have enough worries of its own. There is no need to add to the troubles each day brings.

Latest analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases from miscellaneous sources
Who Quashed the Coup in Syria/By Ghassan Al-Imam/Asharq Alawsat/February 14/13
An inevitable struggle/By: Fatima al-Samadi/Now Lebanon/February 14/13

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for February 14/13
Geagea Won't Take Part in Hariri Commemoration: There's a War on Sunnis in Lebanon
Saniora Says al-Mustaqbal Wants Polls to be Held on Time to Get Rid of Hizbullah, Syria
Warrants for 2 Arsal Ambush Suspects, Qahwaji Dubs Attackers 'Terrorists'
Syrian Force Abducts Lebanese Man from Masharii al-Qaa
Pope Asks Faithful to 'Keep Praying for Me'
March 14 Reiterates 'Peace Goals' for Lebanon
Youhanna X from Balamand: We'll Keep Seeking Christian Unity, Coexistence with Muslims
Warrants for 2 Arsal Ambush Suspects, Qahwaji Dubs Attackers 'Terrorists'
Criminal Complaint against Saudi Daily over al-Rahi Caricature
Saniora Says al-Mustaqbal Wants Polls to be Held on Time to Get Rid of Hizbullah, Syria
Bakeries Union Warns: No Bread in Lebanon Starting Feb. 20
Warrants for 2 Arsal Ambush Suspects, Qahwaji Dubs Attackers 'Terrorists
Protesters in North Block Syrian Fuel Tankers from Entering Syria
Phalange Party MP Sami Gemayel Proposes New Hybrid Draft-Law at Subcommittee Meeting
Lebanese Cabinet Forms Committee to Establish Electoral Authority
Mysterious life and death of Australian Mossad agent
Iran agrees on “some points” in IAEA nuclear talks
Syrian Rebel Leader Says Regime behind Turkish Border Bombing
SANA Says Arsal 'Refuge for FSA Terrorists': Lebanese Cabinet's Cover Up a Crime
Driver Held for Possession of Drugs, Car Registration Certificate with MP Harb Name
Al-Rahi's Caricature in Saudi Daily Sparks Anger on Social Media
Rebels Seize Most of Army Base in North Syria
Did sickness and scandal lead to Pope Benedict XVI’s retirement?
Canadian Senator Pamela Wallin audited for over $350,000 in travel expenses
Qatar Hands Syria Embassy to Opposition as Russia Reveals Supplying Regime with Arms
Ashton Hopes for Iran 'Flexibility' in Nuclear Talks
UN Security Council Needs Solid Position on Syrian Crisis—Saudi FM

Geagea Won't Take Part in Hariri Commemoration: There's a War on Sunnis in Lebanon
Naharnet/Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea stated on Wednesday that there is “unannounced war on Sunnis in Lebanon”, revealing that he will not take part in the March 14 commemoration of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri's assassination on Thursday.
“There is an attempt to accuse Sunnis of terrorism and of being behind all operations on the military institutions,” Geagea said in an interview with Future TV, accusing the Free Patriotic Movement of taking on the task to attack Sunnis in the “war against the Shiites”.
He explained: “The campaign against the residents of (the Bekaa town of) Arsal aimed at putting Sunnis against the army first, and later against Christians”.
The LF leader said that some parties are exploiting sectarian tensions, advising al-Mustaqbal MPs to calm things down as “sectarianism destroys the country”.
An army patrol was ambushed in Arsal by local gunmen as it was hunting a man wanted for several terrorist acts. The incident left an officer with the rank of captain, Pierre Bashaalani, and Sergeant Ibrahim Zahraman dead, and several military personnel wounded.
Arsal residents claimed that the soldiers were in civilian clothes and hadn't informed the town's authorities that they were planning to carry out a raid.Geagea saluted Speaker Nabih Berri's efforts in playing a constructive role in the debate on the electoral law.
“March 14 is ready to compete in the elections and our opponents' failures and scandals help us in this respect,” he announced, saying that Lebanon's Christians lean towards supporting the alliance against March 8.
He elaborated: “We have tried to reach common grounds with al-Mustaqbal (Movement) concerning the electoral law but we did not succeed in this”.
“Al-Mustaqbal agreed to support the small electoral districts without specifying their number while the Progressive Socialist Party rejected any dialogue on this,” he said, adding that the cabinet's electoral law draft was turned down by all factions.
Geagea said al-Mustaqbal was brave to accept a mixed system: “Its opposition to the 1960's law is stronger than its rejection of the Orthodox Gathering's suggestion”.
"The elections could be postponed for a month at most for technical reasons,” he revealed.
Meanwhile, Geagea expressed that former PM Saad Hariri's proposal requires a long constitutional process: "The electoral law, however, must be approved soon".
He remarked: “The LF's interests is found within the March 14 coalition, on condition the alliance does not try to eliminate the party”.
“Despite the Special Tribunal for Lebanon's efforts, assassinations are ongoing in Lebanon as it is the opponent's method of dealing with issues,” Geagea said while explaining why he will not participate in the March 14 commemoration of Hariri's assassination on Thursday.
He named three incidents that discouraged him from taking part in the event, and which include the legal actions against former Minister Michel Samaha and Hizbullah member Mahmoud al-Hayek and reports about the involvement of party members in the Bulgaria bus explosion.
Bulgaria has given Europol the names of two of the people suspected in a bus bombing that killed five Israeli tourists last year, with hopes that the police agency can trace their movements and uncover how they financed the attack, the country's interior minister said.
The European country also requested that Lebanese authorities arrest and extradite the two suspects, who are allegedly Hizbullah members and believed to be living in Lebanon, an official said.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Military Examining Magistrate Judge Fadi Sawan issued an in absentia arrest warrant for al-Hayek, a Hizbullah member charged with the attempted murder of Batroun MP Butros Harb.
Geagea expressed: “We have to take precautions to safeguard our cause”.
He said of the STL's role: “We are not seeking revenge but we want to deter any future assassination attempts”.
Regarding Syria's ongoing war, Geagea said President Bashar Assad's regime will not last but might not fall soon.
“There is an attempt by the international community to negotiate a deal that involves a trade between the Iranian nuclear program or another regional matter with the Syrian card,” he revealed.
Geagea considered that Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi's visit to Syria does not entail any political motives and he credited Greek Orthodox Metropolitan Elias Audi's decision of not participating in the enthronement of Greek Orthodox Patriarch of the Levant and Antioch Youhanna al-Yaziji.
"The neighboring country's complicated situation lead to surrounding al-Rahi's visit with ambiguity,” he expressed.
Al-Rahi's visit to Syria created a heated debate locally as several officials including President Michel Suleiman called against politicizing it.
The March 14 and 8 alliances are deeply split over the revolt in Syria as the opposition backs the collapse of the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad.
However, sources in the church described the visit as “religious,” and supported by the Vatican.
Commenting on the adoption of civil marriage in Lebanon, Geagea said: “Personally I believe marriage is a religious sacrament not a contract but I cannot impose my opinion on the society”.
"Those opting for a civil union must have the platform to do so,” he added.
The debate on civil marriage in Lebanon took a recent turn when a Lebanese couple, Kholoud Sukkarieh and Nidal Darwish, announced they had wed as a secular couple by having their religious sects legally struck from their family registers under an article dating from the 1936 French mandate.
Suleiman has since lobbied for a civil marriage law as a "very important step in eradicating sectarianism and solidifying national unity."

Saniora Says al-Mustaqbal Wants Polls to be Held on Time to Get Rid of Hizbullah, Syria
Naharnet /Al-Mustaqbal bloc leader Fouad Saniora said Wednesday the parliamentary elections should be held on time to prevent Hizbullah and the Syrian regime from keeping their stranglehold on Lebanon.
In a televised statement on the eve of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri's 8th assassination anniversary, Saniora said: “We insist on holding the elections on time to renew the trust in Lebanon and to achieve democratic change to get rid of this group that is keeping its stranglehold on Lebanon's economy and preventing its development.”
He also said the polls are the only means that would salvage the country from Hizbullah's “arms and its allies beyond Lebanon's border.”
Saniora reiterated his rejection of the so-called Orthodox Gathering proposal, saying it harms the social fabric.
He said al-Mustaqbal is ready to discuss any proposal that guarantees the fair representation of all the Lebanese, a day after the bloc made a new suggestion on a hybrid draft-law that calls for 70 percent of MPs to be elected under the winner-takes-all system and the rest under the proportional representation system.
The toppling of the national unity cabinet of ex-Premier Saad Hariri in January 2011 was the result of the black coup against the public will and the outcome of the last elections in 2009 that had brought March 14 to power, he said. Saniora cited the achievements made when he and Hariri were in power, saying there was good economic progress despite the series of assassinations of March 14 opposition figures since Rafik Hariri's Feb. 2005 murder, the 2006 Israel-Hizbullah war and the obstruction of the government's work by Hizbullah-led parties.
He said the March 14 alliance was able to drive Syrian forces out of the country if the aftermath of Hariri's assassination, it conducted a huge reconstruction operation after the 2006 war through Arab assistance and the army regained its natural role on the international border assisted by U.N. peacekeepers.
March 14 has also held onto the Taef agreement and sovereignty, it won the elections twice and was capable of establishing the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, he said.
“The past days were difficult over the control of the de facto powers. But we hold onto our convictions and hold onto our country and its unity,” he said.
“We will continue to fight in defense of the principles that Hariri was killed for,” Saniora said, adding that the former premier “remains in our minds and souls.”
Four Hizbullah members have been named suspects by the STL in the Beirut truck bombing that killed Hariri whom Saniora described as “the person who contributed to salvaging and reconstructing Lebanon.”
Hizbullah denies the charges and has refused to hand over the suspects.
But Saniora said that the assassins “failed to destroy Hariri's presence” stressing they “will be brought to justice.”
The former prime minister stressed in his statement that March 14 holds onto coexistence, democracy and freedoms, independence, the Taef accord and the sovereignty of state institutions.

March 14 Reiterates 'Peace Goals' for Lebanon
Naharnet /March 14 general secretariat reiterated Wednesday its plans of “peace for all the Lebanese,” voicing hopes that “the fall of the Syrian regime would be an opportunity to restore peace in Lebanon.”Following the alliance's weekly assembly, March 14 forces general-secretariat coordinator Fares Souaid pointed out that the meeting was a preparation before the commemoration ceremony to be held at BIEL on Thursday to mark the 8th assassination anniversary of former PM Rafic Hariri. Souaid stressed that Hariri's martyrdom has unified the Lebanese over a true cause, when justice was accomplished and the Syrian army was ousted from Lebanon. On the electoral draft law suggested by the al-Mustaqbal and rejected by Speaker Nabih Berri, Souaid said “Berri has a pivotal role in drafting a new electoral law. Consensus on a hybrid electoral draft-law could make all parties go in that direction.” Al-Mustaqbal MP Ahmed Fatfat proposed on Tuesday a hybrid draft-law whereby 70 percent of MPs would be elected under the winner-takes-all system and the rest under the proportional representation system out of its keenness on holding the elections on time. Rivaling political parties have so far failed to agree on an electoral law, and the parliamentary subcommittee tasked to solve this thorny issue is expected to hold further meetings for that purpose.

Driver Held for Possession of Drugs, Car Registration Certificate with MP Harb Name
Naharnet/The Anti-Drug Bureau of the Internal Security Forces on Tuesday seized three grams of hashish from a car in the Bekaa region and found a fake vehicle registration certificate carrying the name of MP Butros Harb in the possession of the driver, state-run National News Agency reported. Earlier on Tuesday, OTV said “the Anti-Drug Bureau seized a quantity of drugs from the car of a northern MP."The driver, Rami Tanios, and a male companion were arrested and “investigations showed that the vehicle registration certificate is forged and has nothing to do with MP Harb,” NNA said. “Investigations are underway to unveil the circumstances of the incident and identify those who forged the vehicle registration certificate,” the news agency added, noting that the driver is a former prisoner who was jailed for drug smuggling.

Al-Rahi's Caricature in Saudi Daily Sparks Anger on Social Media
Naharnet/Al-Watan Saudi newspaper published on Tuesday a caricature criticizing Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi's visit to Syria, which sparked popular outrage on social media websites.
Jihad Awrati's caricature replaced al-Rahi's mitre with a rocket and highlighted the common letters between the patriarch and the Syrian president's names in Arabic. The depiction was met with anger and criticism on social media websites. “Political differences are no excuse to depict al-Rahi in this manner,” television personality Bassam Abu Zeid tweeted. Meanwhile, radio Jaras Scoop said it strongly condemns al-Watan's caricature.
Al-Rahi's visit to Syria, through which he aimed at taking part in the inauguration celebration of the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of the Levant and Antioch Youhanna al-Yaziji, created a heated debate locally as several officials including President Michel Suleiman called against politicizing it. The March 14 and 8 alliances are deeply split over the revolt in Syria as the opposition backs the collapse of the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad. However, sources in the church described the visit as “religious,” and supported by the Vatican.

Warrants for 2 Arsal Ambush Suspects, Qahwaji Dubs Attackers 'Terrorists'
Naharnet /Military Examining Magistrate Fadi Sawan issued on Wednesday arrest warrants against two suspects involved in the ambush of a military patrol in the northeastern border town of Arsal. Sawan issued the warrants against Mustafa Ali al-Hujairi and Hassan Mohammed al-Hujairi after questioning them. Sawan was handed the case file on Tuesday, a day after State Commissioner to the Military Court Judge Saqr Saqr charged 34 people and summoned Arsal municipal chief, Ali al-Hujairi, to question him as a witness over the assault. The patrol was ambushed earlier in the month by Arsal gunmen as it was hunting a man wanted for several terrorist acts, leaving two soldiers dead. Since then, the military has set up checkpoints at Arsal's entrances, searching all vehicles entering the town and exiting it. Army chief Gen. Jean Qahwaji said Wednesday “there will not be any compromise with the killers of soldiers or secret deals at the expense of the martyrs' bloods.”“All those who attacked the members of the army are terrorists and will be pursued wherever they are until they are arrested and referred to the judiciary,” he told the family of army officer Pierre Bashaalani, who was killed in the ambush. Also Wednesday, President Michel Suleiman told a cabinet session held at Baabda palace that justice would not be achieved unless all the suspects are arrested.

Syrian Force Abducts Lebanese Man from Masharii al-Qaa
Naharnet /Syrian regime forces on Wednesday stormed a house in the Bekaa border area of Masharii al-Qaa and tried to kidnap Lebanese nationals Omar Youssef Krumbi and Ali Ahmed Zaarour, but one of them managed to escape, MTV reported. The TV network said the security sources declined to give further information but noted that the relevant authorities are conducting contacts in a bid to identify the circumstances of the abduction. In May 2012, Lebanese citizen Mohammed Hassan al-Turkmani was kidnapped from his house in al-Qaa. Also in May, media reports said Syrian troops crossed over into Lebanon and kidnapped Mohammed Mahmoud Ibrahim near the town of al-Abboudiyeh in Akkar. On May 11, members of the rebel Free Syrian Army abducted two Lebanese citizens and a Syrian national. The Lebanese Jaafar clan retaliated by abducting some 50 members of the opposition in the Syrian border towns of Zeita and al-Burhaniyeh. The Syrian army has repeatedly infiltrated Lebanese territory in the North and Bekaa since the eruption of anti-regime protests in Syria in March 2011.
It has kidnapped Lebanese citizens for various undisclosed reasons and taken them to Syria before releasing them. In September, Syrian troops infiltrated the border region of al-Qaa in the northern Bekaa and abducted two citizens, reported Lebanon's National News Agency. The troops searched a number of houses in the area before returning to Syria.
Syria had repeatedly said that it is chasing defectors and gunmen during its incursions into Lebanon. Rockets fired during clashes in Syria have also occasionally landed in Lebanese territory.

Pope Asks Faithful to 'Keep Praying for Me'
Naharnet/Pope Benedict XVI made his first public appearance on Wednesday since his shock resignation announcement, asking thousands of cheering pilgrims at the Vatican to "keep praying for me".
The 85-year-old pontiff was greeted by a standing ovation and chants of "Benedetto", his name in Italian, at his weekly audience in the Paul VI auditorium, with a prominent banner reading "Thank You, Holiness". Benedict, looking drawn and tired but appearing relieved to have put the momentous announcement behind him, said he had made his decision "for the good of the Church" adding: "Keep praying for me, for the Church and for the future pope."Wearing his workaday white cassock and skullcap, the pontiff -- the first to resign voluntarily in 700 years -- said he could feel the faithful's love "almost physically in these difficult days". Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi has said he expects a new pope in place in time for Easter, which falls on March 31 this year, although no date has yet been set for the secret conclave to elect a new leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics.
As rumours fly over front-runners for St. Peter's throne, commentators have said age may be a key factor in selecting a new pope, with 117 cardinals eligible to vote for one of their peers.
Tickets to Wednesday's event were issued well in advance, so those attending experienced the historic moment out of sheer luck just two days after the pope said he would step down on February 28.
The pope will later celebrate Ash Wednesday mass marking the first day of Lent, his last public mass and one of his final engagements as pontiff.
The mass is traditionally held in the Santa Sabina Church on Rome's Aventine Hill, but has been moved to St Peter's Basilica out of respect for the outgoing pontiff and to accommodate the crowd of faithful who will want to mark the end of his eight-year rule -- one of the shortest in the Church's modern history.
The high point of Wednesday's mass, which launches the traditional period of penitence ahead of Easter in the Christian calendar, will see the pope mark the foreheads of the faithful with ashes.
He will be honouring his existing engagements in the final days of his papacy.
On Thursday he will hold his annual meeting with the pastors of Rome. He will also meet the presidents of Guatemala and Romania as scheduled.
Next week will be given over to a spiritual retreat at the Vatican which is sure to be dominated by jockeying among factions within the College of Cardinals over the choice of Benedict's successor.
On the next two Sundays, Benedict will recite the Angelus from his apartment window.
He will hold his final general audience on February 27, this time a farewell event for all in St. Peter's Square, before retiring to a little-known monastery within Vatican walls.
Soon a new pope will be installed in the papal apartments, with his predecessor just a stone's throw away.
But Benedict will spend his time in prayer rather than giving advice, the Vatican says.
Only one other pope has resigned because of an inability to carry on -- Celestine V in 1294 -- a humble hermit who stepped down after just a few months saying he could no longer bear the intrigues of Rome.
While some hope Africa or Asia could yield the next pontiff, others have tipped high-flying European or north American cardinals. The new pope will have to face up to the growing secularism in the West, one of the Church's biggest challenges. Cardinal Peter Appiah Turkson of Ghana, one of two Africans considered a "papabile", or eligible to become pope, has said the world may be ready for an African pontiff.
"Let God's will be done," Turkson told the Rome daily Il Messaggero in an interview published Wednesday.
"The Church has followers everywhere," said the head of the Vatican's peace and justice department, adding: "Africa certainly is an important continent for Catholicism, but so is Asia for example. The Church is synonymous with universality... God's will should be done." The 2,000-year-old Church has had three previous popes from Africa, the last dating from the fifth century when the Roman Empire included the northern part of the continent.
They were Victor I at the end of the second century, Miltiades (311-314) and Gelasius I, a pope of Berber origin who ruled from 492-496.
Source/Agence France Presse

Phalange Party MP Sami Gemayel Proposes New Hybrid Draft-Law at Subcommittee Meeting
Naharnet/Phalange Party MP Sami Gemayel proposed on Wednesday a hybrid electoral draft-law which divides Lebanon to nine districts based on proportional representation and 36 others based on winner-takes-all system.
Gemayel told reporters after the first round of discussions at the electoral subcommittee that his proposal sets the number of parliamentary seats at 134 and not 128, whereby seats would be equally divided between the March 8 and 14 coalitions.
He warned that if rivals failed to reach an agreement “it will be an open political battle” in the country.
The subcommittee's chairman, MP Robert Ghanem, said that the nine members of the subcommittee have agreed on the main principles that would help evaluate all the suggested electoral draft-laws.
“We aim at rectifying the Christians' representation and achieve a political balance in the country,” Ghanem said. The MP pointed out that the members “will continue to exert efforts to reach consensus over a suitable electoral law.”
He hailed the attendees, saying they “are keen to prioritizing the country's best interests.”
Ghanem told reporters that the subcommittee “might reach in the upcoming two days common ground that unites the rival coalitions.”
According to Voice of Lebanon radio (100.5) MP Ghanem telephoned Speaker Nabih Berri to ask him about his stance from the hybrid law that calls for 50% of the seats be based on the majority system and the other half on the proportional system. Later, Berri told lawmakers during Wednesday's weekly meeting that he is exerting efforts to press forward the electoral subcommittee to agree on an electoral draft-law.
Al-Mustaqbal MP Ahmed Fatfat proposed on Tuesday a hybrid draft-law whereby 70 percent of MPs would be elected under the winner-takes-all system and the rest under the proportional representation system out of its keenness on holding the elections on time.
The hybrid proposal was first made by MP Ali Bazzi from Speaker Nabih Berri's parliamentary Liberation and Development bloc to appease Lebanon's different factions that were divided between those supporting the winner-takes-all and proportionality systems.
For his part, Lebanese Forces lawmaker George Adwan said Wednesday that the members agreed on a mechanism to compare the suggested proposals. He revealed that the subcommittee “will refer to the joint parliamentary committees several draft-laws with its recommendations” if it failed to reach a breakthrough by Friday.
A suggestion made on Monday by the Progressive Socialist Party representative, MP Akram Shehayyeb was rejected by the nine-member subcommittee for failing to comply with the five standards of the hybrid draft-law.
The standards include the fair representation of Christians and Muslims, a balance between the March 8 and 14 alliances, the adoption of minimum 26 districts in the winner-takes-all system and 5-10 districts in the proportional system.
Shehayyeb reportedly proposed 64 percent of the seats be based on a majority system.
While Bazzi suggested an equal distribution of seats between the proportional and winner-takes-all systems.

Protesters in North Block Syrian Fuel Tankers from Entering Syria
Naharnet /The residents of northern border towns blocked the roads that lead to Syria on Wednesday to prevent fuel tanker trucks from crossing into the country, the state-run National News Agency reported. NNA said protesters from the town of Arida that has a crossing with Syria blocked the international highway with rocks and barbed wires in the morning over the alleged smuggling of oil and diesel. They reopened it around 2:00 pm after MP Moeen al-Merehbi negotiated with them.
The road of al-Abboudiyeh border crossing was also blocked in both directions, it said. But it was opened later in the day for only trucks carrying food products.
The protest came a day after the energy ministry said the reported smuggling was a fabrication made for political objectives. It denied that the oil and diesel exported to Syria were from the refineries controlled by the ministry in northern and southern Lebanon. “The tankers so far have only been filled by private companies,” it said in a statement.
The ministry said the government is not committed to the international sanctions imposed on Syria.
"The numerous trucks transporting different kinds of goods on the border are a proof that these sanctions are not binding,” it added.

SANA Says Arsal 'Refuge for FSA Terrorists': Lebanese Cabinet's Cover Up a Crime
Naharnet/The Syrian national news agency said on Wednesday that the Bekaa town of Arsal has become a “refuge and a logistic base for the terrorists of the Free Syrian Army”.
“Many media reports have proved that Arsal is a producer of the terrorism targeting the Syrian people on a daily basis,” SANA said, adding that the Lebanese cabinet's “cover up is a crime against both countries”.
It explained: “The latest attack on the Lebanese army has exposed that terrorism is rooted in Arsal and that is has become a platform for operations”.
Army Captain Pierre Bachaalani and Sergeant Ibrahim Zahraman died earlier this month in the Bekaa town and several military personnel were wounded when a patrol was ambushed by gunmen as it was hunting a man wanted for several terrorist acts. Arsal residents claimed that the soldiers were in civilian clothes and hadn't informed the town's authorities that they were planning to carry out a raid. The Syrian news agency revealed that the Lebanese Red Cross transferred on Wednesday four FSA wounded fighters from Arsal to hospitals in the Bekaa and the North, explaining that they had arrived to town through illegal crossings.
It noted: “After several FSA members have been arrested, it has become obvious that terrorists reside in Lebanon”.
SANA urged the Lebanese cabinet to interfere and take decisive measures in this matter, expressing that “covering up for the terrorists is a crime that will be reflected negatively on Lebanon and Syria”.
The National News Agency had announced that FSA Mohammed Khaled al-Ahmed and Ahmed Mohammed Zakaria have been admitted to Dar al-Amal hospital in Baalbek while Hazem Fayad and Mohammed Ahmed al-Wow were transferred to another medical facility in the northern city of Tripoli for treatment.

Lebanese Cabinet Forms Committee to Establish Electoral Authority
Naharnet/The cabinet formed on Wednesday a committee headed by Justice Minister Shakib Qortbawi to study the establishment of the independent authority overseeing the elections.
“The committee includes two judicial figures,” Information Minister Walid al-Daouq told reporters after the session that was held at the Baabda Palace. There are huge differences between cabinet members on the formation of the committee.The Free Patriotic Movement, AMAL and Hizbullah reject its formation for being based on the 1960 law of the winner-takes-all system, while President Michel Suleiman insists on establishing it within the constitutional timeframe. Interior Minister Marwan Charbel said on Monday during a press conference that the formation of the authority is crucial no matter what electoral system the rival parties decided to adopt.
On the Arsal ambush that targeted an army patrol, Suleiman said during Wednesday's session that “procedures are ongoing to detain culprits and prosecute them.”The information minister quoted Suleiman as saying: “The matter will not end before (offenders) are brought to justice.”
The patrol was ambushed earlier in the month by Arsal gunmen as it was hunting a man wanted for several terrorist acts, leaving two soldiers dead. Since then, the military has set up checkpoints at Arsal's entrances, searching all vehicles entering the town and exiting it. The president also tackled the increasing rate in kidnappings recently, considering that the matter “harms Lebanon's image.” Al-Daouq said that Suleiman demanded the competent ministers to implement stricter measures in this regard. Kidnappings increased recently across the country in exchange for ransom.
Prime Minister Najib Miqati called for a session on Tuesday at the Baabda Palace to tackle the new wage scale for public employees during an extraordinary session. The procrastination of the government in finding sources to fund the new scale has deepened the gap with the Syndicate Coordination Committee, a coalition of private and public school teachers and public sector employees, which is accusing the government of negligence over its failure to meet their demands. Concerning the controversy on handing over to security agencies the telecom data, which deepened the gap between Miqati and FPM leader Michel Aoun on Tuesday, al-Daouq said that the cabinet didn't tackle the issue.Aoun lashed out at Miqati, saying he had no authority in the matter, and consider it unconstitutional.
Last week, the cabinet agreed that the matter falls within the jurisdictions of Miqati, which prompted the premier to refer Telecommunications Minister Nicolas Sehnaoui, who is close to Aoun, a decision to hand over to security agencies the necessary telecom data according to law 140 of the wiretapping law, which specifies the protection of communication data.
Miqati slammed Aoun's statements later on Tuesday stating that “Article 9 of law 140 of the wiretapping law stipulates that each of the defense and interior ministers could be granted the right to intercept phone calls through written consent and the prime minister's approval in order to garner information aimed at combating terrorism and crimes against the state.”Lebanon has recently witnessed several security violations after a sharp rift between the March 14 and 8 alliances over the revolt in Syria which began in March 2011.Several areas across the country witnessed clashes between pro- and anti-Syrian President Bashar Assad gunmen, which prompted the security agencies to continuously demand to obtain the telecom data to arrest suspects and maintain stability.

Iran agrees on “some points” in IAEA nuclear talks
Lebanon Now/Iran agreed on "some points" in talks with experts from the UN atomic watchdog in Tehran on Wednesday, its lead negotiator at the meeting said, quoted by local media. "Some differences were resolved and agreement on some issues in the modality was reached," Ali Asghar Soltanieh, Iran's envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), was quoted as saying by ISNA news agency. "New proposals," Soltanieh said, had been put forward at the talks but they would be discussed at "future meetings.” He did not say if a date had been agreed for the resumption of talks with the IAEA, whose chief inspector Herman Nackaerts was leading its delegation to Tehran. Nackaerts had hoped that in the meeting, the third of its kind in the past three months, he would "finalise the structured approach document" which would "facilitate the resolution of the outstanding issues related to the possible military dimension of Iran's nuclear program.” The Vienna-based agency says "overall, credible" evidence exists that until 2003 and possibly since Iran conducted nuclear weapons research.
Iran has consistently rejected the charges, denying the IAEA broader access to sites, scientists and documents involved in these alleged military activities.

Saniora Says al-Mustaqbal Wants Polls to be Held on Time to Get Rid of Hizbullah, Syria
Naharnet/Al-Mustaqbal bloc leader Fouad Saniora said Wednesday the parliamentary elections should be held on time to prevent Hizbullah and the Syrian regime from keeping their stranglehold on Lebanon.
In a televised statement on the eve of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri's 8th assassination anniversary, Saniora said: “We insist on holding the elections on time to renew the trust in Lebanon and to achieve democratic change to get rid of this group that is keeping its stranglehold on Lebanon's economy and preventing its development.”He also said the polls are the only means that would salvage the country from Hizbullah's “arms and its allies beyond Lebanon's border.” Saniora reiterated his rejection of the so-called Orthodox Gathering proposal, saying it harms the social fabric. He said al-Mustaqbal is ready to discuss any proposal that guarantees the fair representation of all the Lebanese, a day after the bloc made a new suggestion on a hybrid draft-law that calls for 70 percent of MPs to be elected under the winner-takes-all system and the rest under the proportional representation system.
The toppling of the national unity cabinet of ex-Premier Saad Hariri in January 2011 was the result of the black coup against the public will and the outcome of the last elections in 2009 that had brought March 14 to power, he said. Saniora cited the achievements made when he and Hariri were in power, saying there was good economic progress despite the series of assassinations of March 14 opposition figures since Rafik Hariri's Feb. 2005 murder, the 2006 Israel-Hizbullah war and the obstruction of the government's work by Hizbullah-led parties. He said the March 14 alliance was able to drive Syrian forces out of the country if the aftermath of Hariri's assassination, it conducted a huge reconstruction operation after the 2006 war through Arab assistance and the army regained its natural role on the international border assisted by U.N. peacekeepers.
March 14 has also held onto the Taef agreement and sovereignty, it won the elections twice and was capable of establishing the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, he said.
“The past days were difficult over the control of the de facto powers. But we hold onto our convictions and hold onto our country and its unity,” he said.
“We will continue to fight in defense of the principles that Hariri was killed for,” Saniora said, adding that the former premier “remains in our minds and souls.”
Four Hizbullah members have been named suspects by the STL in the Beirut truck bombing that killed Hariri whom Saniora described as “the person who contributed to salvaging and reconstructing Lebanon.”
Hizbullah denies the charges and has refused to hand over the suspects. But Saniora said that the assassins “failed to destroy Hariri's presence” stressing they “will be brought to justice.”
The former prime minister stressed in his statement that March 14 holds onto coexistence, democracy and freedoms, independence, the Taef accord and the sovereignty of state institutions.

Warrants for 2 Arsal Ambush Suspects, Qahwaji Dubs Attackers 'Terrorists'
Naharnet/Military Examining Magistrate Fadi Sawan issued on Wednesday arrest warrants against two suspects involved in the ambush of a military patrol in the northeastern border town of Arsal. Sawan issued the warrants against Mustafa Ali al-Hujairi and Hassan Mohammed al-Hujairi after questioning them. Sawan was handed the case file on Tuesday, a day after State Commissioner to the Military Court Judge Saqr Saqr charged 34 people and summoned Arsal municipal chief, Ali al-Hujairi, to question him as a witness over the assault. The patrol was ambushed earlier in the month by Arsal gunmen as it was hunting a man wanted for several terrorist acts, leaving two soldiers dead.
Since then, the military has set up checkpoints at Arsal's entrances, searching all vehicles entering the town and exiting it.
Army chief Gen. Jean Qahwaji said Wednesday “there will not be any compromise with the killers of soldiers or secret deals at the expense of the martyrs' bloods.” “All those who attacked the members of the army are terrorists and will be pursued wherever they are until they are arrested and referred to the judiciary,” he told the family of army officer Pierre Bashaalani, who was killed in the ambush. Also Wednesday, President Michel Suleiman told a cabinet session held at Baabda palace that justice would not be achieved unless all the suspects are arrested.

Youhanna X from Balamand: We'll Keep Seeking Christian Unity, Coexistence with Muslims
Naharnet /Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East Youhanna X al-Yazigi arrived Wednesday at the Our Lady of Balamand Monastery, on the first visit to Lebanon after his enthronement as the new Greek Orthodox leader.The patriarch was welcomed by official and popular delegations. “Patriarch Youhanna X will stay in Lebanon for a week and will preside over a mass at the St. Nicolas Church on Sunday ahead of taking part in a lunch banquet thrown in his honor by Greek Orthodox Archbishop of Beirut Elias Audeh,” LBCI television reported. “I salute His Excellency President Michel Suleiman and salute you all from the Our Lady of Balamand Monastery,” the patriarch said. “We will keep seeking the longed-for unity among Christians and we will work together with our Muslim partners in order to consolidate coexistence with them,” Youhanna X stressed.
He called on all Lebanese to “cooperate in building a country that does not accept diktats from abroad.”“The concerns of the Lebanese citizen will be our concerns because we cannot prosper on our own and our goal is everyone's prosperity,” the patriarch added. Youhanna X met on Monday with Syrian President Bashar Assad, a day after the newly-enthroned leader appealed for dialogue and peace in war-torn Syria. On Sunday, the patriarch voiced hope that "Syria, the government and the people, will find the gate of salvation through dialogue and a peaceful political solution to avert violence and re-establish the stability and peace Syria has always known."
Youhanna X's enthronement took place on Sunday in the Syrian capital Damascus, in a ceremony attended by Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi.

Rebels Seize Most of Army Base in North Syria
Naharnet/Syrian rebels took control of most of a strategic army base in northern Syria after a fierce firefight with President Bashar Assad's forces on Wednesday, a monitoring group said. The military complex, known as Base 80, is tasked with securing the nearby Aleppo international airport as well as the Nayrab military airport. Rebels launched a coordinated assault on both airports on Tuesday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which added that most of Base 80 "has come under insurgent control". Dozens of fighters and troops have been killed in the fighting, the Britain-based Observatory said. Activists have said Aleppo's insurgents shifted their focus from targets in the provincial capital to air bases because they are a source of ammunition and weaponry, and to put out of action warplanes used to bomb rebel bastions. In Aleppo city itself, meanwhile, there was no supply of electricity or water Wednesday for a fourth day in a row, said the anti-regime Aleppo Media Center, warning of a "humanitarian disaster" in what was once Syria's commercial hub. Commenting on the rebels' advance in Aleppo province, Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said the army may be giving up on parts of northern Syria, in order to secure the center. "The army is barely resisting the rebels' advance on bases in the north. Meanwhile, it is resisting with ferocity the insurgents in Daraya (southwest of Damascus) and Homs (central Syria)," Abdel Rahman told Agence France Presse.
"The regime understands it cannot survive a transition without securing some land to bargain with," he added. Despite the advances, regime warplanes carried out several air raids on rebel areas in Aleppo province on Wednesday while army tanks shelled the east Damascus district of Jobar, the Observatory said. At least eight civilians were killed in Jobar, it said. Insurgents have secured enclaves in the eastern and southern suburbs of Damascus, and the army is trying hard to push them out, the watchdog said. On the eastern and western edges of the central city of Homs, rebels clashed with troops on two main highways, a rebel commander said. Arraba Idriss told AFP via Skype that the insurgents are trying to "ease the pressure on people trapped in districts that have been besieged and bombarded" for some eight months by the army. At least 190 people were killed in violence across Syria on Tuesday, said the Observatory, among them 79 troops and 76 rebels, making it an exceptionally bloody day for fighters on both sides. Also among those killed on Tuesday were a pro-regime movement leader Ali Smandar, his two sons and a relative, said the watchdog, adding they were shot dead by unidentified armed men.
SourceAgence France Presse

Did sickness and scandal lead to Pope Benedict XVI’s retirement?
By Matthew Coutts | Daily Brew – Tue, 12 Feb,
It has only been a day since Pope Benedict XVI announced his resignation as the head of the Catholic Church, setting a modern day precedent. Catholics can be forgiven for remaining a little stunned at the sudden announcement. In his official statement, Benedict cited his advanced age and inability to carry out the physical requirements of his duties as his reason for stepping down. The 85-year-old is one year older than his predecessor Pope John Paul II was when he died in 2005. There is no indication that there was more to the story than an old man looking to spend his twilight in peace. He suggested months ago that he would consider stepping down if the physical toll became too much. But slowly, as the shock wears away, questions rise to the surface. First, it appears Pope Benedict XVI may have been in worse shape that previously known. The Vatican told the Associated Press that he has long had a pacemaker and the machine’s battery was replaced in secret a few months ago. His brother, meantime, told the BBC that a doctor had told the pontiff not to take any transatlantic trips due to health concerns. Second, there are ghosts of controversies and scandals surrounding the Vatican, which Benedict’s resignation could help assuage.

Canadian Senator Pamela Wallin audited for over $350,000 in travel expenses
By Andy Radia
Politics Reporter/Canada Politics
Senator Pamela Wallin.Another day, another Senate controversy.
Last week, Senate officials confirmed that they have asked Deloitte to review the primary residency claims of senators Mike Duffy (Con), Patrick Brazeau (Ind) and Mac Harb (Lib).
[ Related: Will the Senate be an election issue in 2015? ]
It looks like we can add Conservative Senator Pamela Wallin to that list.
In an email exchange with CTV News, Wallin admitted that she has also been questioned by Deloitte auditors about her travel expenses. The report notes that Wallin has claimed $321,037 in 'other travel' and $29,423 on flights from Ottawa to her home province of Saskatchewan since September 2010.
"I certainly did willingly meet with a representative from Deloitte to review travel expenses and I answered all questions and have provided all the necessary information regarding claims," she wrote.
"No offer of repayment was made or asked for. I spent 168 days in Saskatchewan last year and most of my travel was to my home province."
Wallin also defended her costs in an op-ed published in the Globe and Mail stating that her primary residence is in Wadena, Saskatchewan which is "a 21/2-hour drive from the airport in either Saskatoon or Regina."
The Senate’s policy [on travel] is not based on dollar amounts – although dollar amounts are what are reported – so senators who live in the West or the North have higher bills than those who commute to Montreal or Toronto. The system is based on annual travel points per senator, so we are all treated equally – we have the same number of flights, regardless of distance. And I have never exceeded my designated points. If I did, I’d be on the hook for any costs.
A source, however, told CTV that 70 per cent of her travel expense were for tickets from Ottawa to Toronto, where Wallin owns a condo.
In an interview with Yahoo! Canada News in November, Wallin said that she does travel a lot within Saskatchewan.
[ Related: Senator Pamela Wallin defends the upper house as Canada’s ‘second pair of eyes and ears’ ]
It's also no secret that senators — of both Conservative and Liberal stripes — sometimes use their senate travel budgets to simply attend party fundraisers.
Could that be the case here?
As a former CTV and CBC media personality, Wallin is a popular choice for Tory events across the country. A quick Internet search shows evidence of that — here and here.
Whatever the case, it seems appropriate that Canadians ask for and receive a detailed accounting of the $350,000 in travel expenses that Senator Wallin 'expensed' in a period of just over 2 years.

Qatar Hands Syria Embassy to Opposition as Russia Reveals Supplying Regime with Arms
Naharnet/Qatar has handed the Syrian embassy building in Doha to the National Coalition, Syria's main opposition group, a statement said on Wednesday. "Qatar has decided to hand over the Syrian embassy building in Doha to Mr Nizar al-Haraki after his appointment as ambassador to Doha for the National Coalition," the Coalition statement said. "Qatar has acted faster than the Friends of Syria coalition," the opposition statement said, in reference to a string of Western and Arab states, along with Turkey, which support the revolt against Syrian President Bashar Assad.
"The flag of the revolution will be raised above the building," the Syrian National Coalition added.
Speaking to Agence France Presse by phone, Haraki said the Qatari authorities had accepted his appointment. "A formal decision has been made to accept my appointment as ambassador," he said.
"I will start work along with two other diplomats," said Haraki. "Depending on whether they support the revolution, we will decide which former embassy staff members we will keep, and who we will lay off."
The National Coalition was formed in the Qatari capital on November 11.
A day later, Qatar and other Gulf countries recognized the group as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people.
And a week after that, the European Union followed suit and recognized the coalition.
The Coalition in November named ambassadors to Paris and London but neither France nor Britain have yet handed over embassy buildings to the opposition. Meanwhile, Russia said Wednesday it was delivering military hardware and light weapons to the Syrian regime. The head of the Rosoboronexport arms exporter said Russian deliveries to the Syrian President Assad included air defense systems but not the advanced Iskander missiles sought by Damascus.
"We are continuing to fulfill our obligations on contracts for the delivery of military hardware," Anatoly Isaikin was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency.
He also rejected reports that Russia was planning to supply advanced MiG29-M fighters to Damascus while confirming it had a deal outstanding for Yak-130 light attack jets.
Isaikin said Syria currently ranked "13th or 14th in terms of volume" on the list of nations receiving Russian arms supplies.
Russia has been repeatedly condemned by Western and Arab nations for keeping ties to the Syrian government despite violence that U.N. estimates show has claimed more than 70,000 lives.
Its shipment this year of repaired attack helicopters to the regime was disclosed by the media and drew a furious response from former U.S. secretary of state Hillary Clinton.
But some Moscow officials counter that Russia's sales are legitimate because Syria's armed opposition has received both covert and open financial and military support from some Arab world governments.
Russia is the world's second-largest arms exporter after the United States and has its biggest contracts with India and China. Isaikin put the value of exports last year at $12.9 billion (9.57 billion euros) with the largest orders going to southern Asian nations. But he added that Russia was also building arms links with strife-torn Mali and other countries in North Africa and the Middle East.
Source/Agence France Presse

An inevitable struggle
Fatima al-Samadi/Now Lebanon
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s government is preparing for the country’s eleventh presidential elections this summer.
The presidency, as an institution, has not confronted the power represented by the Ayatollah, the preserver of the Islamic Revolution, as manifested in Iran today.
Bani-Sadr: The roots of the clash
Abolhassan Bani-Sadr was elected in 1980 as the first president of the Islamic Republic, winning more than 10 million votes out of the 14 million that were cast.
Bani-Sadr later mentioned in his memoirs repeated meddling by Supreme Leader Ruhollah Khomeini in his constitutional prerogatives. This coincided with intensive pressure and hampering by the Shura Council, which was controlled by the Islamic Republic Party (IRP). A trio composed of former presidents Ali Khamenei and Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and former IRP Secretary General Mohammad Beheshti managed to lead an impeachment procedure against the president in the parliament. IRP figure Mohammad Ali Rajaei was put forward as an alternative, and Bani-Sadr was accused of “treason and dereliction of duty” in the Iran-Iraq War.
Despite the divergence of opinions, Khomeini had reservations at the outset with regard to clerics controlling the country’s affairs, but he soon changed his mind. The presidency of Mohammad Ali Rajaei, which was short-lived due to his assassination, was mostly in conformity with the new shape of the Islamic Republic.
Khamenei: The president-leader
In 1981, Ali Khamenei won the presidential elections with 15 million votes out of an estimated turnout of 16 million voters. His victory bolstered the influence of the traditional right-wing religious movement and the Islamic Republic Party. He was president until 1989.
Divergences were on the rise between the presidency as an institution and the Shura Council, in addition to emerging rifts with the Supreme Leader regarding several sensitive issues. During his tenure, Khamenei had to work with Mir-Hossein Mousavi, who was appointed prime minister by Khomeini, a decision to which Khamenei had to yield. This experience had negative repercussions on the relationship between the two men, both of whom were close to Khomeini, and was the reason behind the abolition of the position of prime minister based on a constitutional amendment in 1989.
The end of the war with Iraq coincided with the rise of a more moderate rhetoric in Iran. Likewise, the collapse of Communism helped to bring about the decline of Marxist rhetoric in the country. The end of Khamenei’s rule meant that the leftist wing was losing its greatest protector.
These confrontations also impacted on the crisis that flared in Iran in the wake of the 2009 elections, which were followed by clashes in which Mir-Hossein Mousavi was held as an opposition figure.
Rafsanjani: First the Supreme Leader’s friend, then his foe Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani was president for two consecutive terms (the fifth and the sixth under the Islamic Republic) between 1989 and 1997. He won his first term by a landslide, though by less for his second term.
Rafsanjani played a key role in convincing members of the Assembly of Experts to approve of Ali Khamenei for the position of Supreme Leader upon Imam Khomeini’s death in 1989. This granted him a major impetus during his two successive presidential terms.
Rafsanjani’s presidency coincided with a time of major challenges for Iran following the Iran-Iraq War. He adopted an open economic policy and focused on domestic issues and bringing Iran out of its international isolation.
Rafsanjani clashed with the Shura Council over his economic policy, as the latter insisted it violated the principles of the Revolution. (Paradoxically, the economic reform program implemented by current President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is the same as the one Rafsanjani failed to implement when he was president.)
Despite the close friendship between Rafsanjani and Khamenei, Rafsanjani’s second term started showing signs of rifts between the two men over their respective stances on relations with the West and openness to Western culture. Even after Rafsanjani was no longer president, he and Khamenei clashed, and in 2009, the former threatened street protests if Ahmadinejad were to be reelected, which was effectively the case. This prompted Khamenei to announce that he is more receptive to Ahmadinejad’s vision than to Rafsanjani’s.
Khatami: The hero of the popular epic
Mohammad Khatami became president in 1997 with the support of 20 million voters out of the 29 million who cast ballots. He won a second term in office with 22 million votes.
Khatami’s support of civil society, diversity and intellectual pluralism had a tremendous impact on youths and women, who backed him enthusiastically. This spurred a reform movement that targeted the structures, values and rules controlling the political game.
The ideas of the reformist intellectuals and religious left sparked widespread controversy in Iran. Many started to accuse them of leading the Islamic Republic away from its origins and objectives. Meanwhile, Khatami was trying to slow down this intellectual leap forward and offer a vision of conformity between the Islamic Republic and modern Western values. Despite the obvious conflict between the president and the Supreme Leader, Khatami still refused to take advantage of his position to bring down the regime and undermine the Guardianship of the Jurist. Indeed, he is still calling to this day for preserving the Islamic Republic and for strict adherence to the constitution.
Ahmadinejad: Mehdi vision
A concerted effort by the Iranian right wing and growing dissensions among the “reformist” left wing led to the victory of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the 2005 elections with about 17 million votes out of an estimated 28 million. Ahmadinejad went on to win the 2009 elections with about 24 million votes out of an estimated 39 million. His main contenders, Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi, were put under house arrest and refused to acknowledge the results. The pair, which came to be known as the leaders of the Green Movement, accused the regime of fraud.
During his first term, Ahmadinejad mainly aimed his rhetoric at the poor. His presidency witnessed several controversial clashes, mainly with the extreme right wing, including religious reference figures, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s supporters and leaders of the Revolutionary Guards.
Many believe that Ahmadinejad was merely a tool used by Khamenei to reorganize the political scene according to his wishes and stifle the reformist movement. Yet Ahmadinejad’s second term contradicted this belief, as he clashed with Khamenei directly on several occasions.
He gave the principle of waiting for the Mehdi’s return a central position in his presidency and even voiced this concept in international circles and at the United Nations. During his second term, Ahmadinejad’s rhetoric took a nationalist turn that exalted the contribution of the “Iranian race.” His foes believe that the many transformations in his rhetoric were a result of the influence of his Chief of Staff Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, who has come to be known as the leader of the so-called “deviation movement.”
*This article is a translation of the original Arabic

Mysterious life and death of Australian Mossad agent
DEBKAfile Special Report
February 13, 2013/Ben Zygier, Australian citizen and Mossad agent, was not the first Prisoner X to be held secretly in an Israeli jail. Double agents caught after turning traitor or crossing the lines into crime for personal motives are the exception - but not unknown in most spy agencies. In the 1950s, Israeli agent Mordecai (Mottele) Kedar was secretly incarcerated for many years for betraying his mission.
The Australian ABC went to great lengths to uncover the story of the Israeli-Australian double citizen, aka Ben Alon, who committed suicide on Dec. 15, 2010 at the age of 34 in a top-security cell of Ayalon Prison where he was held in solitary confinement. A former inmate of that cell is said to have been Yitzhak Rabin’s assassin Yigal Amir.
After a longstanding Israeli gag order, his name was finally released for publication Wednesday, Feb. 13.
According to ABC, after his death, his body was flown to Melbourne, Australia, where his family, active in the local Jewish community, buried him one week later. The headstone on his grave bears his name and the dates of his birth and death. The ABC investigation disclosed that an autopsy was conducted by the Israeli Forensic Institute which issued a death certificate listing the cause of death as asphyxiation by hanging in the name of Ben Alon. Also found was a second Australian passport in the name of Ben Allen.
An Israeli organization called ZAKA, religious volunteers known for recovering the remains of Jewish terrorism victims, arranged for the body to be flown to Melbourne.
ABC reporters left no stone unturned to discover the reason for the extraordinary cover-up by the Israeli government. Was this a matter of national security? And what did the Australian authorities know? When Ben Zygier died in that prison what questions were asked by Australian diplomats and what were they told? And, finally, how did he manage to kill himself in a top-security cell under constant surveillance?
A senior Israeli intelligence official, who remained anonymous, told Australian TV that if what Ben Zygier did and knew were made public, it would pose an immediate threat to Israel as a nation state.
International protocols demand that when a foreign national is jailed or dies, their diplomatic mission must be informed. The Australian new investigators assumed that whatever crime or sin Ben Zygier committed, it must have involved espionage, possibly treachery, and very, very sensitive information endangering Israel.
Still, despite their best professional efforts, ABC’s reporters did not find a single lead to the mysterious story of Prisoner X or verify any wild conjectures. One tied him to various episodes in which Israeli Mossad undercover agents were found operating on Australian passports; another, to the Iranian defector, Gen. Ali Ashgari, who disappeared from his hotel in Istanbul with suitcases full of Iranian nuclear secrets.
They were only able to establish that Ben Zygier was a lawyer by profession.
One of the many questions still open is how was he able to commit suicide? Warren Reed, a former Australian secret service agent, disclosed that not only are cameras installed in this type of cell, but sensors which measure the inmate’s heart, respiration and perspiration rates. How did his watchers fail to notice that he had stopped breathing and his heart was no longer beating?
One possible answer is that in the Mossad training courses he underwent, he was taught how to take his own life under the noses of his captors, and used this method to kill himself.
Early Wednesday, the Australian Foreign Ministry spokesman said that the minister, Bob Carr, had ordered a new investigation into Canberra’s conduct in the affair, after it emerged that Israeli authorities had told a diplomat at the Australian Embassy in Tel Aviv about the arrest of Australian citizen Ben Zygier. But the diplomat never relayed the information to Canberra through the conventional channels, he said.
debkafile: “Conventional channels” is a term used in inter-governmental intelligence relations. Its use may indicate that the Tel Aviv embassy passed the Israeli notice to the Australian spy agency – not the “conventional channels” of the foreign ministry.
This comment opens up more suggestive enigmas: Who was Ben Zygier, or Ben Allen, working for? Was it the Israeli Mossad or Australian intelligence - or both?
In any case, the Australian authorities may have had their own reasons for cooperating in the tight information clampdown imposed by Israel on the Ben Zygier affair.

Who Quashed the Coup in Syria?
By Ghassan Al-Imam/Asharq Alawsat
Who said wars of civilisations, cultures, and creeds are impossible? Europe fought a religious war which lasted a hundred years and ended with a cultural fusion between Catholics and Protestants. With its American extension, this melding of civilisations soon produced a secularised civilisation whose advancements have spread across the globe.
Divine religion, with its nobility of character and social virtues, is not necessarily sufficient for establishing states and empires with diverse creeds and ethnicities.
Charlemagne's Roman Catholic empire failed in Europe. The Islamic empire crumbled the reins of power passed from the Arabs to the Mamluks and others. Arabs and Muslims can sense the rise of jihadists who dream of establishing empires, sultanates, and caliphates and of reclaiming past glory. And so the tragedy repeats.
After Soviet Russia lost its political and cultural war, Sunni and Shiite jihadists abandoned traditional political Islam to ignite a pointless war of religions, cultures, and civilisations with the West.
Iran torments itself with its jihadist culture war against the United States. The culture of hostility penetrated into the Levant (Iraq-Syria). Sunni jihadist Islam erupted in Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Levant in a suicidal confrontation against their local communities and the West. Now the Maghreb (Tunisia, Algeria, and Libya) has erupted into similar confrontations with its Arab and West African communities, where Western presence still predominates culturally and politically.
Exhausted from its wars in the Arab and Muslim worlds, the United States balked at further interventions. In the superpower’s conspicuous absence, Sunni jihadist groups such as Al-Nusra Front and al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) were quick to exploit the turmoil in Syria, where they now wage sectarian war against the Alawite regime, who for its part, is allied with the Shiite jihadist Islam of Iran.
The fallout resulting from the Arab uprisings significantly altered the political landscape of the region along with many of its cultural and ideological underpinnings. Foremost among these was revolutionary Syria’s willingness to jettison its anti-Americanism after it became clear that the Iranian and Syrian regimes had failed to either reclaim the Golan Heights or halt Israeli settlement expansion. Nor did it achieve the optimistic goal popularised by the late Ahmad Shukeiri, which was later adopted by Ahmadinejad and Hamas in Gaza, of wiping Israel off the map from the river to the sea.
This willingness on the part of the Syrian people was met in turn with a major strategic error by the Barack Obama administration. It did not seize the chance to indirectly intervene and provide arms to the revolution. Most of the reasons behind its reluctance to engage are well-known, but as for the lesser-known reasons, they include the following:
* The desire of a moderate president to avoid repeating the mistakes of a more reckless president who directly intervened in Iraq and Afghanistan and caused many losses and casualties.
* Clashes between Syrian revolutionaries and many highly-complicated regional factors. Moreover, in the absence of American analytical organisations and research centres, these factors remain clouded.
* Israeli settlers’ material support for the Assad regimes, both father and a son; with the Syrian rulers preferring to pawn off the Golan Heights over exposing their regimes to the perils of clashing with Israel.
* The existence of a strong political movement in American political and media circles which is content to leave the Arabs and Muslims to fight amongst themselves, rather than continuing the clash of civilisations or intervening to stop the fighting.
* On the other hand, there exists a political/military current within the United States which urges decisive intervention in Syria.
The United States’ freedoms of expression and press have revealed some amazing facts lately regarding President Obama’s ability to countermand any plans or endeavours for militarised intervention in Syria. The complexities of the United States’ approach to Syria rival that of the factors at play in the Levant region. I can say that the dispute within the Obama administration ran much deeper than what was reported in the American press; Hillary Clinton’s desire to retire following her illness and her ambitions to run for president played a role in her decision to resign from the post of secretary of state, however so too did the internal dispute over Syria.
From my understanding, the American military establishment sided with Hillary on the Syrian issue. However she adhered to the principles of the political system and deferred to the opinion of the president, who holds authority over such issues.
It is now known that General David Petraeus, former director of the CIA, had developed an intervention plan which went beyond mere training and weapons supplies, rather it contained designs to carry out what I would call a political and military coup in Syria, which would have inflicted a crushing defeat to the current strategies of Iran and Russia.
Last autumn the Arab media paid little attention to the arrival of American civilian and military experts in Turkey and Jordan who were charged with laying the groundwork necessary to effect change in Syria. They built bridges and established contacts with the various forces of the Syrian revolution, but also with military and civilian leaders in Bashar’s regime. This resulted in the partial collapse of the ruling Baath Party, and the deaths and flight of senior Syrian civilian and military officials.
Hillary Clinton had provided political cover for Petraeus’s planned coup. She presented the plan to Defence Secretary Leon Panetta and various generals from the Pentagon. She then won the support of General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and lastly took the proposal to President Obama in the White House.
After a moment of indecision, President Obama took a firm stance. He refused to countenance an intervention in Syria at the height of his election battle. Suddenly and discretely, the plan was shelved. General James Mattis, commander of US Central Command and charged with overseeing military affairs in the Arabian Peninsula and Levant, apologised to the Syrian military leaders who had taken refuge in Turkey and Jordan.
President Obama’s scuppering of the Syrian coup project coincided with post-election cabinet reshuffling. Hillary resigned, Panetta left service, and Petraeus’s political ambitions evaporated following the scandalous revelation of his extra-marital relations with a Lebanese-American woman. The military experts who had gathered in Turkey and Jordan returned home.
I can explain many of the overt and covert happenings in the region in light of Pres. Obama’s coup against the coup. Attempts are under way to repair the relationship between the Gulf States and Jordan. The Syrian regime is being assured that Jordan will not be a springboard for a coup. Turkey is being appeased with the deployment of Patriot missile batteries on its border with Syria to protect it from Syrian missiles. While in Iraq Maliki continues to allow the shipment of supplies from Iran to Syria.
In Lebanon, security officer Wissam al-Hassan, who uncovered Syria’s involvement in the attempt to blow up the convoy of the Maronite Patriarch, was assassinated. The Patriarch went to Damascus to congratulate the new Orthodox Patriarch, and to visit Bashar in peace.
The volatile young people whom Hillary and American organisations had trained to implement proper democratic practices have disappeared from the region. President Mohamed Mursi has secured his position. Tunisian Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali was dealt a heavy blow by his party when it refused to accept his resignation. Islamist extremists took advantage of the Obama awakening, deeming Egyptian opposition leaders infidels and calling for them to be killed, after the assassination of Arab nationalist activist Chokri Belaid.
Does the dovish composition of the new US administration negate the possibility of a coup in Syria? Nothing is impossible. Yes, Obama has granted Iran, Bashar, Hezbollah, and Al-Nusra Front an opportunity to operate without constraints. But the possibility remains. Evidence exists that the weapons shipments which travel through Syria to Hezbollah have been placed under Israeli air and ground observation. Will Bashar and Iran accept this insult?

Syrian Rebel Leader Says Regime behind Turkish Border Bombing
By Caroline Akoum
London/Beirut, Asharq Al-Awsat—Head of the Syrian National Council, George Sabra, accused the Syrian government of trying to assassinate him and his colleagues at a Syrian-Turkish border crossing yesterday.
The Syrian National Council chief, George Sabra, visited northern Syria with a delegation from the organization on Monday. A car bomb exploded at the Cilvegözü-Bab al-Hawa crossing 30 minutes after the party crossed into Syria, concealed in a minibus with Syrian license plates. Over a dozen people, including several Turkish civilians, were killed.
In a telephone interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, Sabra said that his visit to “the liberated areas in northern Syria achieved its objectives in spite of the targeting of the delegation on the last day of the visit by exploding a car bomb on the Turkish border in Bab al-Hawa in the province of Hatay."
Although he acknowledged that the results of the investigation into the bombing were not yet available, he accused the Bashar al-Assad regime of responsibility. Sabra said that this kind of bombing is not new to the Syrian regime and that "this has been the method of the regime since its first day in power. The Lebanese, as well as the Palestinians and Iraqis, have known this style” adding “it is not strange that the Assad regime should go back to it."
Sabra went on to link the car bombing "to the semi-direct threat against Turkey" issued by Syrian Information Minister Imran al-Zubi, in a reference to Al-Zubi's interview with Syrian TV on February 9, in which he said that the Syrian-Turkish borders have become "illusionary."
As for the details of the incident, Muhammad Sarmini, director of the Gaziantep office of the Syrian National Council, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the 13-member delegation started field visits to the Syrian north four days ago in the area of I'zaz. On the following day, the delegation headed for the northern rural area of Aleppo. The third day was supposed to be for field tours in the Idlib countryside through the Bab al-Hawa crossing on the Turkish-Syrian border. Sarmini said: "The bad weather and stopping at a rest house to get gasoline delayed us by around half an hour. In the meantime, we received a call from the crossing, informing us that a car bearing a Syrian license plate exploded at the same time that we were supposed to go through . . . based on that, it is clear that the Syrian National Council leadership was the target of the bombing.”
Sarmini added that the schedule of the visit was not a secret, and was drawn up in cooperation with the command of the Free Syrian Army (FSA). He claimed that the bombing did not dissuade the members of the SNC from entering Syria, saying: "Those who are being shelled inside Syria on a daily basis are not worth less than us, and we are not above those who are being targeted by tanks and missiles."
In a related context, Abdul Basit Sida, former Syrian National Council head, told Asharq Al-Awsat that this visit was aimed at building support and contacts with leaders inside Syria. He stressed the importance of this step after Syrian National Coalition head, Moaz Alkhatib, took the decision to hold dialogue with the regime, which clashes with the charter on which this coalition was established.