LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
July 20/2013

Bible Quotation for today/ Modesty
02 Corinthians 10/17, 18: "But as the scripture says, “Whoever wants to boast must boast about what the Lord has done. For it is when the Lord thinks well of us that we are really approved, and not when we think well of ourselves."

EU Ministers Ready to Blacklist Hizbullah's Military Wing
Naharnet /EU foreign ministers are likely to put the military wing of Hizbullah on their blacklist of "terror groups," EU diplomatic sources said Friday as the cabinet warned against such a step.
"There are still some reservations... but we are moving towards a decision on listing Hizbullah's military wing," a senior EU official said ahead of a meeting of all 28 EU foreign ministers on Monday.
The move was justified by Hizbullah's involvement in an attack against Israeli tourists in Bulgaria last year and its activities in Cyprus, the official said, but would "not impact current EU policy and engagement with Lebanon."
The official, who asked not to be named, also stressed that the military wing alone would be targeted and not Hizbullah's political organization.
On Thursday, Lebanon asked Brussels not to blacklist Hizbullah, saying the party was an "essential component of Lebanese society."
EU sources said Ireland and Malta were still reluctant to blacklist Hizbullah for fear of destabilizing the country, but it appeared likely that any holdouts would go along with the majority on Monday. "We would be surprised if some ministers stood in the way of the EU taking robust action on terrorism," another senior EU official said. "They'll need to think quite carefully before blocking consensus." Asked if Hizbullah's intervention in support of President Bashar Assad against rebel forces seeking his ouster in Syria had changed opinion, the first senior official insisted that was "another issue completely."The decision was "solely driven" by concerns over terrorist actions in Europe, he added. Unanimous backing from the 28 EU states is required to place a group or persons on the bloc's terrorist blacklist, making them subject to an asset freeze and travel ban.
The United States, Canada, Australia, Britain and the Netherlands have all blacklisted Hizbullah as a terror group. Last July 18, five Israeli tourists and the Bulgarian driver of their bus were killed in a bombing at Burgas airport in the deadliest attack on Israelis abroad since 2004. "There are clear links to Hizbullah behind this attack," Bulgaria's Interior Minister Tsvetlin Yovchev said Thursday, citing new information from foreign intelligence services.
SourceAgence France Presse.

Pregnant Woman Injured as 2 Rockets Hit Akkar Border Town
Naharnet/Two rockets from the Syrian side of the border landed at dawn Friday on a town in the northern district of Akkar, injuring a pregnant woman and causing material damage.
The state-run National News Agency said that Dalia Assi was wounded from shrapnel when one of the rockets hit the center of the town of al-Kawashra around 3:00 am.
A car and several houses were also damaged, it said. The agency did not specify where the second rocket landed. But the attack caused panic among residents, it said. Lebanese border towns and villages come under continuous rocket attack and shelling from the other side of the border, the result of fighting between Syrian government troops and rebels seeking to topple President Bashar Assad.

Ghosn Says Army 'Red Line,' Rejects Questioning Military Institution Endeavors
Naharnet /Caretaker Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn stressed on Friday that he rejects any attempts to question the Lebanese army's actions, pointing out that the military institution is a “red line.”“Ghosn will not allow anyone to undermine the authority of the army,” sources close to the caretaker minister said in comments published in al-Joumhouria newspaper.Thursday 's parliamentary defense committee meeting was postponed after Ghosn failed to attend the session set to discuss Hizbullah's involvement in last month's deadly clashes in the southern town of Abra, near the city of Sidon.Sources snubbed al-Mustaqbal MP Samir al-Jisr's threats to debrief the caretaker minister, saying: “the lawmaker has no right to question the minister and take a unilateral decision.”Al-Jisr, who is head of the parliamentary defense committee, stressed that he will contact Ghosn to ask about his failure to attend the meeting. “If he just intended to boycott the meeting then I will resort to the parliament's rules of procedure and call on the minister to attend,” al-Jisr said.
The fighting near Sidon was sparked late last month when Salafist cleric Sheikh Ahmed al-Asir's supporters opened fire on an army checkpoint, leaving around 18 soldiers and more than 20 gunmen dead. The gunbattles concentrated in the area of Bilal Bin Rabah Mosque and nearby buildings in Abra. Asir, a 45-year-old cleric who supports the overwhelmingly Sunni rebels fighting to topple Syrian President Bashar Assad, is no where to be found along with Shaker.Asir teamed up with Shaker, a onetime prominent singer, when around two years ago he began agitating for Hizbullah to disarm.

Mansour Contacts 28 EU Foreign Ministers Asking Not to Blacklist Hizbullah
Naharnet/Caretaker Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour sent on Friday letters to 28 of his European counterparts asking them to “act according to President Michel Suleiman's guidance” regarding placing Hizbullah on the list of "terrorist organizations." "Mansour hoped in the letters that the European Union's ministers would not blacklist Hizbullah,” the state-run National News Agency reported. Mansour explained that the party (Hizbullah) is a “main component of Lebanon's politics and is represented at the parliament and in the cabinet.”He warned: “Blacklisting Hizbullah would have negative consequences on the political scene in the country.”
"But we stress on the importance of the great bilateral relations between Lebanon and the EU and we thank the support of the union's member-states to Lebanon in various fields.”
Meanwhile, the NNA said that Loyalty to Resistance bloc head MP Mohammed Raad telephoned Suleiman, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati and Mansour, thanking them on their efforts that aimed at blocking the blacklisting of Hizbullah. Earlier on Friday, Speaker Nabih Berri contacted the president to thank him for his stances that support Hizbullah against some European and Arab attempts to list it as a terrorist group. He thanked him in a telephone call for asking the European Union to refrain from placing the party on its list of terrorist organizations. He added that the president took this measure “in spite of local and Arab efforts that claim to seek Lebanon's best internal interests.” Berri also thanked some European countries that refused to list Hizbullah as a terrorist group “because they reject pleasing Israel at Lebanon's expense.”The Presidency on Thursday announced that Mansour has been tasked to ask the EU to refrain from putting Hizbullah on its list of terrorist organizations. EU foreign ministers are set to decide Monday whether or not to add the military wing of Hizbullah to its list of terrorist groups. A meeting of EU ambassadors on Thursday broke up with no agreement on adding the powerful group to the list as "a small number of member states" remained opposed, said an EU diplomat speaking on condition of anonymity. "Ministers will discuss the issue on Monday," said the source, referring to scheduled talks in Brussels between the bloc's 28 foreign ministers. Unanimity is required to add the Lebanese group to the dozen people and score of groups currently subject to an EU asset freeze -- including Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas and Colombia's FARC guerrillas.

Geagea blasts Hezbollah's role in Syria
July 19, 2013/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea urged Friday Lebanese to defend what remained of the state of its legitimacy, blasting Hezbollah for dragging Lebanon into the Syrian conflict.
“What is needed today is for the state and what is left of its legitimacy to be defended, regardless of what we think of its performance,” Geagea said in a televised speech during the re-launch of the party’s Al-Maseera magazine.
“For the state to rise, the mini state [of Hezbollah] should go away,” he added. Geagea also reiterated his criticism of Hezbollah’s involvement in the fighting in Syria alongside regime forces, saying: “What is the use of betting on the victory of an oppressive, murderous regime in Syria one day while we are losing our democratic system in Lebanon?” “The situation [in Syria] is fraught with dangers, difficulties, mystery and concern and some are taking Lebanon to the war in Syria not to defend against Israel as they [Hezbollah] had claimed but to protect Iran and the regime of [President Bashar] Assad,” Geagea said.
The LF leader also warned of the repercussions that Hezbollah’s involvement in Syria would have on Lebanon. “This dangerous bet [on the Syrian regime] will inflict death, bankruptcy, destruction rather than change and reform,” he said, taking a jab at his rival and Hezbollah ally MP Michel Aoun, who heads the Change and Reform parliamentary bloc. “They want a Lebanon of wars and endless confrontations: arms result in arms and Jihad results in Jihad; all of this in order to justify their presence, their deals, their arms and hegemony,” Geagea added. He also spoke of recent security incidents in the country, accusing Hezbollah of selling out Lebanon to the Islamic Republic. “Unfortunately, from Sidon, to the bombing of Bir al-Abed and the Masnaa explosion, every day confirms our views; some have traded Lebanon with Iran while others have sold their national conscience and attempted to sell our history for a small share of ministerial and parliamentary seats,” he said. “We only have one Lebanon but if someone regards Lebanon an extension of Syria or Iran then they should go there,” he said, urging his supporters to remain hopeful and predicting that the current situation in the country would soon pass.

Geagea: Those Who Claim to Support the Army Must Lay Down Their Illegitimate Arms
Naharnet/Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea lamented on Friday the weakening of the Lebanese state and its institutions, blaming the spread of illegitimate arms for the deterioration of the state of affairs in the country.
He said: “We are fed up with lies. Those who claim to love the army should lay down their illegitimate weapons.”He made his remarks during the relaunch of the LF-affiliated al-Massira magazine.
“Lebanon is passing through a difficult phase because a party is usurping the role of the state,” Geagea added in reference to Hizbullah. “Some sides are dragging Lebanon towards the war in Syria not for the sake of defending it against Israel as they claim, but in order to defend Iran and the Syrian regime,” he remarked. “This dangerous gamble will bring about death and destruction and not change and reform,” he said in a reference to Hizbullah's ally the Change and Reform bloc of MP Michel Aoun. “Lebanon has become the country of chaos and death instead of the land of democracy, freedoms, tourism, and development,” he continued.
“They want to keep Lebanon in a constant state of war that do not end. They want Lebanon to remain rife with weapons. They want to bring extremists to the country in order to justify their possession of illegitimate arms,” he said. “We have repeatedly warned of these dangers, but who is listening? Some sides have replaced Lebanon with Iran and others are selling our history for a handful of parliamentary and cabinet seats,” noted the LF chief.
“What is the use of these seats when Lebanon itself has been erased?” he wondered. “What is the use of gambling on the victory of the murderous Syrian regime, when we have lost our democratic system in Lebanon?” he asked. “We should not lose Lebanon for a few seats in power after all the sacrifices that have been made over the years,” demanded Geagea.
“Lebanon is being fragmented and we must defend what is left of it because there can be no salvation without an actual state,” he stressed, while demaning an end to the spread of illegitimate arms.

March 14 blasts security cuts, wants reversal
July 19, 2013/By Hussein Dakroub/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: The March 14 coalition Thursday demanded the reversal of an Interior Ministry decision to withdraw “extra” security personnel assigned to protect a number of lawmakers, politicians and judges, saying it contradicted the “dangerous security conditions” in Lebanon.The March 14 coalition urged the Central Security Council to revoke the decision, given the security threats facing the country from the repercussions of the more than 28-month-old civil war in Syria.It held Caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel responsible for any harm to which any March 14 lawmaker or figure might be exposed.
“The Central Security Council’s decision entirely contradicts with the dangerous security conditions in the country which are putting pressure on all Lebanese and which the interior minister himself has personally acknowledged through media outlets,” the March 14 parties said in a statement issued after their meeting to consult on the council’s measure.
“The March 14 parties demand that this decision be revoked immediately and [security] personnel be re-assigned to their posts, or else they hold the Central Security Council with all its apparatuses and also the interior minister personally responsible for any harm to which any March 14 lawmaker or figure might be subjected,” the statement said.
The March 14 leaders, the statement added, asked whether the government was encouraging killers and those plotting assassinations with such a decision.
Charbel said the decision was taken during the most recent meeting of the Central Security Council.
The council reassigned the extra ISF personnel who had been accompanying MPs and politicians because the detachments violated government decree No. 2512, which regulates the personal protection of politicians and other public figures. “We have informed the 128 lawmakers and all political figures that we need the extra security personnel assigned to them to post them in police stations,” Charbel told The Daily Star.
He said that the decision also applied to judges. Each MP is entitled to four State Security personnel as bodyguards. The council tasked the ISF’s acting director-general with preparing a list of politicians who require extra protection, with the matter to be discussed at the council’s next meeting. The extra personnel, the statement said, would undergo retraining and be assigned to police stations while the security needs of politicians could be handled by State Security and not the ISF, as required by law. Beirut MPs Nadim Gemayel and Ammar Houri were among those who said they that they had been informed about the move.
Commenting on the decision, Gemayel said he held Charbel directly responsible for his personal security.

Syrian Regime Frees Several Women Prisoners as Demanded by Kidnappers of Pilgrims
Naharnet/A number of women jailed by the Syrian regime were released on Friday, including several whose names are on a list set by the kidnappers of Lebanese pilgrims in Aazaz. According to the state-run National News agency, the “humanitarian initiative” was to mark the month of Ramadan. The news agency said that General Security chief Abbas Ibrahim is exerting efforts to press Turkish authorities to cooperate further to end the case.
Eleven Lebanese pilgrims were kidnapped in Syria's Aleppo region in May 2012 as they were making their way back by land to Lebanon from pilgrimage in Iran. Two of the captives have since been released, while the rest remain held in Aazaz. The abductors have demanded in May the release of 282 women detainees from Syrian prisons in return for the release of the Lebanese. The families of the pilgrims have mainly held Turkey responsible for their ongoing abduction. The families of the captives have held Turkey mainly responsible for the ongoing abduction of the men, vowing to target Turkish interests in Lebanon in order to pressure Ankara to exert efforts to release the pilgrims.They have held numerous demonstrations near the headquarters of Turkish Airlines in Beirut as part of these actions.

Aoun Reveals Syrian Plan regarding Refugees' Return to Their Country
Naharnet/Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun revealed on Thursday a plan regarding the return of Syrian refugees to their country. "There is a plan concerning the return of refugees to Syria that includes providing them with what they were used to receive before,” Aoun told OTV after meeting with Syrian National Reconciliation Minister Ali Haidar at his residence in al-Metn's Rabieh neighborhood. "Syrian authorities are calling on the refugees to return and are ready to provide them with residence and schooling. There are many regions in the neighboring country where they can reside.” Aoun stated: “Lebanon is not a country where you can take refuge without any price. When we provide them with the option of returning to their country with guarantees, they cannot say no.” The FPM leader hoped concerned authorities “will not reject Haidar's proposal.”“Lebanon needs to be relieved even if to a certain extent only,” he said, warning that the situation is heading towards “an explosion, especially with the presence of gunmen incited by foreign forces.” Meanwhile, Haidar assured the Syrian authorities' readiness to receive the returning refugees."Doors are open in front of them taking into consideration the guarantees they demand, whether legal or international and the conditions they request,” he stressed. Lebanon's ambassador to the United Nations Nawaf Salam warned on Tuesday that the number of Syrian refugees fleeing the war-torn country and coming to Lebanon could surpass one million by the end of 2013, asking the members of the international community to “bear the costs with Lebanese authorities.”Salam said that “pressures are mounting and that the needs of the Syrian refugees surpass the Lebanon's capabilities.” He assured, however, that the country “will not close its border in front of refugees fleeing violence and destruction and we will not stop delivering aid.”

Two Held for Opening Fire on ISF Checkpoint in Corniche al-Mazraa
Naharnet /An exchange of gunfire erupted on Friday between two gunmen and members of an Internal Security Forces checkpoint in the Beirut district of Corniche al-Mazraa, state-run National News Agency reported.
“An ISF checkpoint was stopping cars violating the ban on tinted-glass windows when it asked a violating driver to pull over and started removing the illegal tinting. Another tinted-glass car arrived on the scene and its passengers tried to voice objection before two men arrived on a motorcycle and opened fire on the checkpoint's members,” NNA said. “The checkpoint's members returned fire, wounding Mohammed Ali Abdullah Qameh in his leg while his companion was arrested,” the agency added. Qameh was rushed to hospital, NNA said, adding that the ISF seized the car that sparked the incident. The passengers of the second car, however, managed to flee the scene. Al-Jadeed television said the first car was driven by a woman and that she had telephoned the two men who arrived on the motorcycle.
It quoted a security source as saying that “the shooter belongs to a political party and has a criminal record.” Jaras Scoop FM radio reported earlier that “head of the Mousaitbeh office of AMAL Movement Talal Qameh was hurt in an exchange of gunfire between members of AMAL and the ISF in Corniche al-Mazraa,” adding that “he was rushed to hospital amid tension in the area and an armed deployment by AMAL members.”
But Voice of Lebanon radio (100.5) said Qameh has a criminal record, noting that he had opened fire on the al-Helou ISF barracks in Beirut's Mar Elias in the past. “High-level contacts are underway to prevent any repercussions,” the radio station added. Later on Friday, a security source told Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3) that an armed group tried to storm Beirut Hospital to liberate Qameh.

Hezbollah says ready to resume National Dialogue
July 19, 2013/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah said Friday his party was ready to take part in the stalled National Dialogue sessions in order to resolve outstanding domestic differences with rivals, including the subject of its arms in the context of a national defense strategy.
He also urged that the Army be kept at a distance from political disputes, saying the military’s collapse would deal a heavy blow to stability in the country, rocked by frequent security incidents linked to the crisis in neighboring Syria. “We are always ready for dialogue because we are honest in our efforts to protect the country, its resources and dignity,” Nasrallah said in a televised speech during an annual Iftar banquet hosted by the Resistance Support Committee in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
He added that his party was open to joining the stalled all-party talks at any given time, even prior to the formation of a new Cabinet, and that it was willing to discuss a national defense strategy.
“This is our country and together we should protect it and defend it [because] together we are threatened and we should face such threats,” Nasrallah said.
As for the contentious issue of Hezbollah’s arms which the opposition labels as illegitimate, Nasrallah said one of his party’s founding goals was to contribute to deterring Israeli attacks against the country.
He noted that the Israeli threat still existed and represented a reason to think differently about Hezbollah’s arsenal as an option to defend the country, rather than “indulge in constitutional and legal discussions about the legitimacy or illegitimacy of the presence of this arsenal.”
While noting that he was the first to propose a national defense strategy, Nasrallah said "there was no longer seriousness in discussing the topic because it is becoming clearer day by day that all they care about is disarmament."
In a bid to calm the tense situation in the country, Nasrallah said Hezbollah would extend its hand to all parties, regardless of differences of opinions.
“I declare that Hezbollah, despite differences with some political forces which launch harsh accusations against it, has its hand extended and is willing to join dialogue ... let’s make use of the time we have and calm the situation, particularly the political rhetoric,” he added.
He said differences over the Syria conflict could be set aside in order to discuss Lebanese issues, saying: “This is the reality of the country’s makeup and no one can exclude a party.”
Nasrallah, who devoted Friday’s speech to addressing developments in Lebanon, also spoke about recent criticism of the Lebanese Army after clashes between the military and Salafist gunmen in the south of the country.
“If the Army collapses, or becomes fragmented and divided, there won’t be peace and stability in the country,” he said, adding that the state and its prestige would also vanish in such an event.
“Every Lebanese needs the Army because it is the only [one] capable of controlling the situation and preventing chaos,” Nasrallah added.
Some March 14 parties have accused the Army of misconduct during and after clashes with gunmen loyal to firebrand Sheikh Ahmad Assir, who remains at large. They have also alleged that Hezbollah took part in the clashes. The Army says it fought alone in the June battle.
“Even if we assume that mistakes have occurred, they are being dealt with in their limited context,” Nasrallah said, describing the military as the guarantor of peace and the “resistance’s partner.”
“This is the kind of culture we have adopted since [our foundation],” he said, noting occasions when Hezbollah had not retaliated to acts of aggression by the Army against its supporters.
As for the increasing deterioration in the country at the level of security given the recent bombing in a Beirut neighborhood and the attack on a Hezbollah convoy earlier this week, Nasrallah urged citizens and security forces to remain vigilant and called for more cooperation.
“We have certainly entered a new security situation and we urge all the Lebanese to watch out and be cautious, not only those in places [where Hezbollah maintains a presence] but all the areas, because all the people could be in danger,” he said.
“Caution as well as cooperation is required from everyone ... so we can overcome this difficult stage by easing tensions,” Nasrallah said.
Nasrallah also urged media outlets to refrain from adding tensions to the country by publishing inaccurate news.

Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's Speech at Iftar Held by Islamic Resistance Support Association
Naharnet
Let us be patient in dealing with each other and we have asked our MPs to discuss things in a calm manner. We also call on the Syrians, Palestinians and Egyptians to resort to dialogue, which is the only choice
We do not fear to be eliminated given the country's structure and the balance of power.
The theories of elimination and isolation will lead nowhere and we don't want to eliminate anyone. We are willing to engage in dialogue and to meet with everyone. We can keep the Syrian topic out of the discussions and we can agree on the Lebanese issues. Why should we stop at the points of contention and forget all the points of agreement?
Compared to what's going on in the region, we are still in a very good situation.
We call on people to be cautious and vigilant, not only in the environment of the resistance as those seeking to stir strife might strike anywhere. Everyone must cooperate and security is the responsibility of the state. We must be vigilant and through cooperation we can overcome this difficult period.
There's no doubt that we're going through a new security situation.
We must protect our last guarantee and as long as this (military) institution exists, we can form governments and hold elections.
There is the case of martyr pilot Samer Hanna and we admitted that we made a mistake and handed over the perpetrator to the judiciary and the judiciary dealt with the issue.
The entire world knows that seven civilians were killed in the Mar Mikhail incidents and that no one opened fire on the army.
Our civilians were demonstrating in the light of day in 1993 when the army opened fire on them. Ten people were martyred and 50 others were wounded but the people in Dahieh did not fire a single bullet on the army. A number of brothers and I went to the area and said no one must attack the army because this is our creed.
I am not theorizing. This is our rhetoric and this our culture regarding the army. We are saying that it is the guarantee and the partner of the resistance and one day the army is supposed to defend this country on its own and we would return to our normal life.
: The military institution must be kept outside the political disputes and of course we are calling for strengthening this institution and several times we said that the Islamic Republic of Iran is willing to help, but some Arab and foreign states do not want a strong army in Lebanon.
Should the army be divided, the state and the country will cease to exist, not to mention that the army is a main factor in confronting the Israeli aggressions.
We call on the Lebanese to be extremely cautious in light of the current divisions. If, God forbid, the army was split or weakened, the country would no longer know peace or stability, as in any security incident that happens we are all counting on the army to prevent chaos.
Israel and the entire world know that Lebanon is no longer an easy prey and that no one can impose its conditions on Lebanon.
I spoke of the Galilee in the past and the Israelis took the threat into consideration and today they are dealing with the issue in a more serious manner.
Israel has revised all of its plans, maneuvers and discussions in light of the developments in the last few months and the Israelis know that they are dealing with a real and competent force.
With the same level of faith, action, will and accuracy, we will overcome this stage and be confident that this resistance is competent and capable of overcoming all the current and coming difficulties.
We overcame a lot of plights and conspiracies through people's will, sacrifices, honesty and patience.
When the Lebanese decide that Lebanon and its water, land and sovereignty must remain for its people, when they want to prevent the abduction of its citizens, then this choice has consequences and it requires sacrifices for the sake of an independent and immune country.
The enemy failed to annihilate the resistance in 2006.
Nasrallah: The resistance managed to tip the balance in favor of the resistance movements in the region in the year 2000, while in 2006 it managed to defeat the scheme of the New Middle East and it is normal that it is being targeted.
What is the alternative to the weapons of the resistance? Whoever thinks that we enjoy combat is mistaken ... but when an enemy is threatening you, it is your responsibility to fight, defend and protect.
This is everyone's country and we must all defend it and regardless of debates, there is a real national need to discuss a national defense strategy.
I had proposed a defense strategy but no one tried to discuss it around the dialogue table or even outside national dialogue. No one held a seminar over this strategy because they are not serious in discussing the issue. They only want one thing, which is to remove our weapons.
We are willing to engage in any form of dialogue over a national defense strategy without any preconditions, before or after the formation of the new cabinet, because we are honest in seeking to protect our country.
The resistance is unbreakable and anyone who tries to defeat any faction of the resistance will fail, as the resistance is not an organization, but rather an enormous and firm popular will.
What has the Arab League done regarding our problem with Israel? The big question is who can we count on to protect our country. We must not discuss the sex of angels or whether the weapons are legal or illegal, we must rather ask whether we need this resistance or not. When any of us approaches the issue of the army, the resistance or diplomacy, we must take the dangers, choices and the feasibility of these choices into account.
The expansionist ambitions of Israel know no limits and the energy minister (Bassil) voiced clear remarks that Israel has started to take our oil and gas, but no one stirred a finger. Can anyone claim that Lebanon has become outside the circle of Israeli threats and ambitions? If anyone believes that, then this is a real tragedy. A popular resistance managed through its faith and proper utilization of capabilities to create a balance of terror that is protecting Lebanon from attacks. We don't claim for one moment that we have the same number of troops as the Israeli army or weapons and equipment similar to those possessed by the Israelis, but this is the school of resistance, which does not endorse the classical approach about military, security, demographic and economic balance. Nasrallah: Since its inception, the resistance sought to achieve several objectives: the liberation of the occupied Lebanese land; the liberation of the captives and detainees from the prisons of the enemy and its collaborators; and contributing to protecting the Lebanese territory and people from Israeli attacks and threats, alongside the army and the security forces. Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in a televised address during the annual iftar banquet held by the Islamic Resistance Support Association: The first part of the speech will be about the resistance, which has a clear vision, mission and objectives.

Six men charged for plotting terror acts in Lebanon
July 19, 2013 /The Daily Star/BEIRUT: The military charged six alleged members of the Nusra Front Friday with forming an armed gang in order to conduct terrorist acts in Lebanon, a judicial source told The Daily Star.
The source said that the six men were charged for possessing illegal weapons, ammunition, detonators and explosives. They were also accused of planning crimes against civilians in the country. The source said that the men were of Palestinian, Syrian and Lebanese nationalities and the investigation indicates the six men were affiliated with the Nusra Front, a radical Islamist group fighting against the Syrian regime and designated a terrorist organization by the United States. The six men were referred to the Investigative Military Judge. Earlier this week, two Palestinians from the Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp were investigated in connection with an arms smuggling incident in the Bekaa Valley border town of Arsal. Security bodies are increasingly concerned about Syrian and Islamist fighters carrying out more attacks in Lebanon after some rebel groups have lashed out against Hezbollah's involvement in the Syrian conflict.A number of bombings and ambushes have targeted Hezbollah areas and convoys in recent weeks.

Syria Kurds Fight Jihadists for Their Autonomy
Naharnet/Syria's Kurds are battling jihadist fighters in northern Syria in a bid to protect and even extend the long-sought autonomy they have gained since the country's conflict begin, experts say.
This week alone, at least 29 jihadist and Kurdish fighters have been killed in two days of fighting in the Ras al-Ain area of Hasakeh province in northeastern Syria.
The clashes ended with Kurdish forces pushing fighters from the al-Qaida-affiliated Al-Nusra Front and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) out of Ras al-Ain and the nearby border crossing with Turkey.
Since the beginning of the Syrian uprising, the country's Kurds have walked a fine line, seeking to antagonize neither the regime nor the rebels, focusing instead on building an autonomous region.
"The Kurds are pursuing their own interests, eliminating the obstacles to the establishment of a proto-state entity in the north of Syria," according to Thomas Pierret, an expert on Syria and Islamist movements.
"The jihadists are one of the primary obstacles. "The Kurds are taking advantage of a moment that is proving unfavorable for the jihadists, particularly with the growing hostility towards them on the part of the Free Syrian Army and much of the local population," added Pierret, a lecturer at the University of Edinburgh. For weeks now, residents of towns across rebel-held areas have been protesting against what they see as abuses and heavy-handed behavior by the jihadists. Non-jihadist fighters have also engaged in clashes with members of the two groups in several areas.
But the clashes with the Kurds are tied to that community's specific ambitions and ideology, experts say.Charles Lister, an analyst at IHS Jane's Terrorism and Insurgency Center, pointed out that the fighting in Ras al-Ain came shortly before a July 19 date set by the PYD Kurdish party for a declaration of autonomy over several parts of northern Syria.
The clashes also come around a year after the withdrawal of regime forces from the area, which allowed the PYD and its armed wing, the YPG, to take control of majority Kurdish areas.
The PYD is regarded as the Syrian branch of the Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK), which Turkey and several other nations regard as a "terrorist organisation".
"The recent clashes are a result of competition for territorial control and also a clash over two competing ideologies," Lister told Agence France Presse, pointing to the secular mores espoused by Syria's Kurds.
"An intent to declare Kurdish autonomy in 'liberated' areas of northern Syria will have rung alarm bells in Islamist militants' heads," he said.
Hasakeh "has become more valuable for militants, particularly jihadists who can use its isolated position as a safe haven, and seek to control and benefit from its oilfields," he added.
The growing presence of hardline jihadist groups such as Al-Nusra and ISIS, and their attempts to establish strongholds in northern Syria, jolted the Kurdish community, according to Faruq Haji Mustafa, a Syrian Kurdish writer and analyst. "Statements by Islamists saying they wanted to create a state in the north of Syria terrified the Kurds, which is why they were ready to fight and to protect their oilfields from outsiders," he said.
The Kurds and the jihadists "are ideologically incompatible, cater to different constituencies, and have opposing political goals, so relations are already bad across the board," added Middle East expert Aron Lund. Kurds account for around 15 percent of Syria's population, and are largely concentrated in the north. Like the Kurdish community in Iraq, they have been able to take advantage of the breakdown in the central authority in Syria to exert a long-sought autonomy in areas where they constitute a majority.
It remains to be seen whether the clashes in Hasakeh could spread to other Kurdish regions, including in Aleppo province, and whether non-jihadist rebels might be drawn in.
Mainstream rebel groups are increasingly uncomfortable with their jihadist counterparts, but have also been angered by a lack of explicit Kurdish support for the uprising.
Lund noted that opposition and Free Syrian Army chiefs have sought to distance themselves from the fighting. "They basically deplored the clashes and told FSA fighters to keep out of it... but whether groups on the ground care, that's another matter."Source/Agence France Presse.

Wife of gunned down Assad loyalist denies role in killing
July 19, 2013/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: The wife of a pro-Syrian regime official who was shot dead earlier this week in south Lebanon said Friday she played no role in her husband's death, after a probe revealed a personal dispute may have been the motive behind the crime. “I have been with my husband for over 20 years,” Siham Younes, currently in Syria for her husband’s burial ceremony, told Al-Jadeed television in a telephone interview.
“Whoever did this should be punished, whether it was my brother or my nephew,” she added. Mohammad Jemo, a media figure who was a staunch supporter of Syrian President Bashar Assad, was shot over 20 times by unidentified gunmen at his house in the southern coastal town of Sarafand. The killing was initially linked to the conflict in Syria but the Lebanese Army said Thursday there were no political motives behind the incident.
Ali Younes, a brother of the victim’s widow, and Badih Younes, a nephew of the widow, who were arrested in connection with their alleged role in the murder, indicated that personal and family reasons could have been behind the killing, sources close to the investigation have said. A judicial source, however, told The Daily Star Thursday that "jealousy" could be a possible motive. In her phone conversation with the local channel, Younes said she was interrogated by Lebanese authorities before traveling to Syria to bury her husband. “I was interrogated by the Lebanese authorities but not the Syrian,” she said. Lebanon has asked Syria to arrest Younes, sources told The Daily Star. Asked whether she would return to Lebanon following the burial, Younes said she would leave such a decision up to her in-laws.

Question: "What is the Intelligent Design Theory?"
GotQuestions.org?
Answer: The Intelligent Design Theory says that intelligent causes are necessary to explain the complex, information-rich structures of biology and that these causes are empirically detectable. Certain biological features defy the standard Darwinian random-chance explanation, because they appear to have been designed. Since design logically necessitates an intelligent designer, the appearance of design is cited as evidence for a designer. There are three primary arguments in the Intelligent Design Theory: 1) irreducible complexity, 2) specified complexity, and 3) the anthropic principle.
Irreducible complexity is defined as “...a single system which is composed of several well-matched interacting parts that contribute to the basic function, wherein the removal of any one of the parts causes the system to effectively cease functioning.” Simply put, life is comprised of intertwined parts that rely on each other in order to be useful. Random mutation may account for the development of a new part, but it cannot account for the concurrent development of multiple parts necessary for a functioning system. For example, the human eye is obviously a very useful system. Without the eyeball, the optic nerve, and the visual cortex, a randomly mutated incomplete eye would actually be counterproductive to the survival of a species and would therefore be eliminated through the process of natural selection. An eye is not a useful system unless all its parts are present and functioning properly at the same time.
Specified complexity is the concept that, since specified complex patterns can be found in organisms, some form of guidance must have accounted for their origin. The specified complexity argument states that it is impossible for complex patterns to be developed through random processes. For example, a room filled with 100 monkeys and 100 computers may eventually produce a few words, or maybe even a sentence, but it would never produce a Shakespearean play. And how much more complex is biological life than a Shakespearean play?
The anthropic principle states that the world and universe are “fine-tuned” to allow for life on earth. If the ratio of elements in the air of the earth was altered slightly, many species would very quickly cease to exist. If the earth were significantly closer to or further away from the sun, many species would cease to exist. The existence and development of life on earth requires so many variables to be perfectly in tune that it would be impossible for all the variables to come into being through random, uncoordinated events.
While the Intelligent Design Theory does not presume to identify the source of intelligence (whether it be God or UFOs or something else), the vast majority of Intelligent Design theorists are theists. They see the appearance of design which pervades the biological world as evidence for the existence of God. There are, however, a few atheists who cannot deny the strong evidence for design, but are not willing to acknowledge a Creator God. They tend to interpret the data as evidence that earth was seeded by some sort of master race of extraterrestrial creatures (aliens). Of course, they do not address the origin of the aliens either, so they are back to the original argument with no credible answer. The Intelligent Design Theory is not biblical creationism. There is an important distinction between the two positions. Biblical creationists begin with a conclusion that the biblical account of creation is reliable and correct, that life on Earth was designed by an intelligent agent—God. They then look for evidence from the natural realm to support this conclusion. Intelligent Design theorists begin with the natural realm and reach the conclusion that life on Earth was designed by an intelligent agent (whoever that might be).

The Implicit American Decision to Avoid Confrontation with Iran, Russia, and China
Raghida Dergham/AL Hayat
Friday 19 July 2013
Over the past week, the United Nations witnessed a remarkable four days. First, there was Malala’s historical appearance, with the 16 year old celebrating her birthday, and the mere fact of having survived, from the podium of the UN General Assembly. Malala said of the Taliban, who tried to kill her in order to silence her ambitions on education, that they were the ones who were afraid, “afraid of books and pens,” as she put it. “The power of education frightens them,” Malala continued; “they are afraid of women, and the power of the voice of women frightens them. They thought that the bullets would silence us, but they failed. Nothing changed in my life except this: weakness, fear and hopelessness died. Strength, power, and courage was born”.
Meanwhile, 6,561 Syrian children would have wished they too had survived, instead of falling victim to air raids and ballistic missiles rained down on them by the Syrian regime, according to the UN. Some were also the victims of war crimes committed by both the extremists in the armed opposition and the government in horrendous massacres. UN agencies this week presented harrowing reports about the humanitarian situation in Syria, as well as about the refugees’ conditions and the impact of their displacement on neighboring countries, in a session called by Australia and Luxemburg to address the Syrian issue from a humanitarian perspective. This comes after Russia and China prevented the Security Council from dealing with the political and security facets of the Syrian crisis, despite the fact that it poses a grave threat to regional peace and security.
The third remarkable event of the week was the celebration, at the UN, of an exceptional man who inspired the whole world, and who continues to do so while clinging to life on his deathbed. His friends, such as former President Bill Clinton, celebrated the man and his life, as an inspirational symbol everywhere. The fourth notable event of the week was the move by the Security Council to convene a public session to discuss the international community’s responsibility to protect journalists and hold accountable those who would suppress their freedom, threaten their lives, and murder them with impunity.
But perhaps an important issue that the Security Council should have paused to consider thoroughly, instead of cursorily out of fear of a confrontation with Russia and China, involves Iran’s actions including launching missiles and supplementing weapons and fighters to Syria, both directly and through its proxy Hezbollah. Tehran has once again been left without monitoring or accountability, while it violates a binding Security Council resolution under Chapter VII of the UN Charter.
Another significant development at the UN will be the arrival of the new US Ambassador replacing Susan Rice, who was appointed as National Security Adviser. Samantha Power, who has yet to receive confirmation from Congress, has been a very close adviser to President Barack Obama for many years. She crossed into the world of politics and decision-making because of her powerful stances against genocide in former Yugoslavia, and has put herself forward as the prime defender of human rights and a staunch advocate of prosecuting those who commit such crimes. She was once accused of not siding with Israel, and has thus made sure this time, before she takes her post at the UN, to present herself not just as a defender of Israel, but as one who is angry at the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council for issuing resolutions criticizing Israel.
While appearing before Congress this week, Samantha Power pledged to exert her utmost efforts to lobby for granting Israel a seat at the Security Council. At the same time, she promised that she would strongly oppose any attempt made by the Palestinian Authority to seek recognition for Palestine statehood in UN organs and agencies.
This comes after Samantha Power apologized, and reportedly wept as well, to Jewish American leaders for her past criticism of Israel and its “major human rights violations,” and for previously calling for decisive actions against Israel, even if this were to anger the Jewish community. This time, warmly welcomed by members of the US Senate, Power has proved that she has renounced her past and now views her new position at the United Nations from the perspective of defending her country’s ally Israel and opposing any attempt by the Palestinians to seek recognition for the State of Palestine.
“We need to deter the Palestinians in any way we can – and we need to get their attention,” Power asserted. And when asked about whether she would support Israel’s efforts to be admitted as a representative of the Western European group of countries, which would allow it for the first time in the history of the UN to be nominated for a seat at the Security Council, Power replied “absolutely,” adding that “I commit to you wholeheartedly to go on offense, as well as playing defense on the legitimation of Israel.”
The ambassadors of UN member-states will thus become divided into two camps. The first will view Samantha Power as fickle and unreliable, having turned on her own principles and caring most about her personal interests and political ambitions. The other camp will say that she was forced to take stances that would satisfy US Senate members and Jewish leaders, and that she will adapt once again to the new facts she will face as the representative of the United States at the United Nations. Regardless of the views of this or that camp, Samantha Power coming to the UN will represent a noteworthy event, because she is the mysterious woman who has raised human rights and fighting genocide as an ethical slogan, and yet did not raise this weapon in the face of everything that is happening in Syria and remained silent on this issue.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, stated before the Security Council last week, “We have not seen a refugee outflow escalate at such a frightening rate since the Rwandan genocide almost 20 years ago”. The mere thought of such a comparison is horrifying.
He said that displacement in Syria since the beginning of the year had reached an average rate of 6,000 people a day. This means that two-thirds of refugees from Syria, numbering around 1.8 million people, were displaced since the beginning of the year. This is horrifying not just because of the deterioration it reflects at the military level, but also because of what it implies, in terms of a humanitarian disaster for refugees and of serious threats for the neighboring countries that are hosting those refugees, led by Lebanon and Jordan.
UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Valerie Amos stated that “this is a regional crisis not a crisis in Syria with regional consequences, requiring sustained and comprehensive engagement from the international community,” because “the security, economic, political, social, development and humanitarian consequences of this crisis are extremely grave.” There are 6.8 million Syrians in need of urgent help, in addition to 1.8 million of refugees in neighboring countries. Yet in spite of this, Russia and China are preventing the Security Council from issuing even a mere statement on these horrifying facts.
Five thousand people are killed every month in Syria. This is what UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said. More than 93 thousand is the official total death toll that could be ascertained by the agency – but it is most likely much higher. However, among the 6,561 children who have been killed, 1,729 were under ten years of age – again, horrifying.
Equally horrifying is the fact that massacres are being perpetrated against entire families– mothers and children included. It is horrifying that such massacres are being perpetrated at the hands of the Syrian government and of the extremist armed opposition for confessional reasons. It is horrifying that Pillay’s report would state that “government forces carry on with indiscriminate and disproportionate shelling and aerial bombardments, using among other weapons tactical ballistic missiles, cluster and thermobaric bombs.” It is horrifying that the Security Council would yield to the Russian-Chinese threat of a fourth veto, and would not even dare to move to embarrass them in the policy of “shaming” the Council had previously adopted. It now submits to its own powerlessness and listens to horrifying reports, after which the ambassadors gather their papers and immediately forget the repeated calls by Navi Pillay “to refer the Syrian crisis to the International Criminal Court” because “war crimes, crimes against humanity, and gross human rights violations must not go unpunished”.
Australia’s Ambassador Gary Quinlan and Luxemburg’s Ambassador Sylvie Lucas deserve credit for their successful efforts to hold an exceptional session to listen to those horrifying reports. They were thus able to leap over the wall of forbiddance and obstruction which Moscow and Beijing have made their permanent policy, no matter how much the horrifying numbers continue to rise and multiply.
They both refused to allow the Iran sanctions committee headed by the Australian Ambassador to mention in its report the information confirmed by its team of experts that Iran had launched a Shahab-3 missile “in violation” of Security Council resolutions. They refused to allow the role played by Iran in Syria, directly or through Hezbollah, to be addressed, although the public statements of Hezbollah’s leadership and Iranian officials confirm that Iran is indeed playing such a role and supplying military equipment beyond its borders – which represents a violation of UN Security Council resolutions.
Acting US Ambassador Rosemary DiCarlo, who chairs the Security Council for the current month, and British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant spoke in strong terms and presented the kinds of violations of UN Security Council resolutions Iran had committed. Yet they did not put forward any measures, draft resolutions, or additional steps regarding such serious violations of resolutions issued under Chapter VII of the UN Charter –out of fear of the dual veto, according to Washington and London. This is in itself horrifying because it means that Moscow, Tehran, Beijing, Damascus, and Hezbollah have succeeded at subjecting the United States and Britain and frightening them through the Russian-Chinese veto. To be sure, it is unconvincing for the Obama administration to suffice itself with mere rhetoric, stating, as did DiCarlo, that there was a “steady of flow of Iranian arms, military support, advisors, and training to groups in Syria, Lebanon, Gaza, Yemen, Iraq and beyond” and that “[the Security] Council must tackle with renewed urgency [the issue of such] Iranian military assistance”. Thus, without practical steps to follow such an important discourse, the implicit American decision seems to be to submit to the de facto situation, in order to avoid confrontation with Iran, or with Russia and China.
Nothing about the stances taken by Russia and China will change. Indeed, China has resolved to form a strategic alliance with Russia on the issues of Iran and Syria, and in fact to simply approve of whatever Russia finds appropriate. This is China’s policy at this stage. This is how it has been at varying degrees of superficial shades, while the core of its policy has been this alliance. And this is how Russia and China’s policy will remain, regardless of the accelerating growth of the horrifying numbers coming out of Syria, and regardless of Tehran continuing to blatantly violate UN resolutions. Meanwhile, there is no indication from the United States that it is resolved to stop avoiding confrontation no matter how horrifying and dangerous the violations might be.
So congratulations to the courageous young girl who escaped death miraculously. Congratulations to Malala, who told the world from the podium of the United Nations: “So here I stand, one girl among many. I speak not for myself, but so those without a voice can be heard”. Unfortunately, the children of Syria, faced with their horrifying tragedy, remain without a voice.

Lesser Syria" and "Greater Lebanon"
Walid Choucair/Al Hayat
Syrian President Bashar Assad can be proud, as he was quoted by Reuters one week ago, that “developments in Syria are moving in my favor.”
In terms of his grip on power and remaining the head of state in Syria, the man continues to live in his own world. He pays no attention to the destruction that he has dished out to a centrally-important state, one with a huge impact on the regional situation. He is equally unconcerned with the fact that more than 100,000 people have been killed, and millions displaced, and that refugees in schools inside the country are being bombed, namely in Homs. He is also unconcerned with losing control of around half of Syrian territory, with the ongoing crisis and war in all parts of the country, and with the fact that it is taking on the character of a civil and sectarian war on many occasions. Assad is not anxious about the accusations that he, his forces and his supporters have committed crimes against humanity. Neither is he worried that Kurdish areas are preparing to establish a self-rule administration in the northeast, similar to what took place in Iraq during the 1990s, when they set up autonomous zones.
Assad and his allies Russia, Iran and Hezbollah, which support him with money, weapons, fighters and intelligence information, can be proud that he has managed to remain in power for more than two and a half years following the outbreak of a popular uprising against him.
These allies can rejoice at the fact that Assad’s rivals have fallen into the trap of fighting against each other. This is taking place in clashes pitting units of the rebel Free Syrian Army against fighters from the Nusra Front and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in areas of the Syrian coast and the north of the country, as the armed opposition’s ranks become fragmented and weakened. The United States and western countries are using the growing influence of hard-line Islamists as an excuse to link the provision of qualitative weapons to the FSA and the opposition National Coalition to their doing away with these extremists under the rubric of fighting terror; the regime itself helped promote the existence of these extremists, after it opened the regime’s prisons and let them out, and opened Syria’s borders to facilitate their movement.
Whether or not the regime and its allies are aware that the west is playing its own game, by turning Syria into an arena of conflict, the regime’s reassurance about the developments, believing them to be in its favor, are amazing. The assumption that it has succeeded in making progress in some regions, as is currently taking place, after expelling its opponents from the city of Qusair, and the attempt to control Homs, is nothing more than the securing of communication lines between Damascus and the Syrian coast, to prevent being surrounded and the capital falling, and guaranteeing the survival of communication lines between Syrian regions adjacent to Lebanon and Lebanese territory controlled by Hezbollah. But this will not let the central government regain control over the south, the center and the north of the country. It retains Assad’s control over a "Lesser Syria," with the regime’s authority protected in cooperation with Iran and Hezbollah through open borders with Lebanon in this country’s east and northeast. How can one believe that the formula of a Lesser Syria and a "Greater Lebanon" will become stabilized? Should one believe that the political geography will change to the extent that Lebanon becomes a base for protecting the regime in Syria, which will experience a division of influence over its various regions? This will come after history taught generations of people that a “Greater Syria” (with a regional role) protected its "lesser" neighbor Lebanon” and the regime there, with this influence coming in exchange for not seeing the country divided.
If we assume that the regime’s happiness over achieving progress here and there on the ground serves as a prelude to a regional-international political deal that will be to the regime’s benefit, will this deal – which involves a division of influence in various areas – allow the central state to assert its authority throughout all of the country? Or, is everything happening merely as an attempt to improve the conditions of the regime and establish a new phase of wars over these areas?
If we believe the news about the regime's plan to naturalize some 750,000 people - Iranians, Iraqis and Houthis from Yemen, and those from some Asian countries - as a prelude to bringing about demographic change in Homs and its surrounding areas, and in the province of Swaida, then all of this merely serves as preparation for a phase of coming wars, to change Syria’s demographic map.
This game of demographic distribution in Syria represents an additional reason why a settlement between Assad and his opponents is impossible, after hostility between them has passed the point of no return.

"Improving the Conditions of Failure
Husam Itani/Al Hayat
In a famous saying, playwright Samuel Beckett calls on the loser try again in order to “fail better” next time.
Beckett’s expression (taken from his prose piece Worstward Ho) implicitly excludes the existence of “success” in the face of failure, consequently excluding this association. We are proceeding from one failure to another and our life acquires its meaning from the improvement of the conditions of the next failure, without there being any hope of ending this continuous move from one failure to another, in order to enter a world of success which only exists in the heads of some delusional individuals.
This dark vision can be used while looking at the status of Lebanon and the Lebanese. Indeed, this country failed to seize the opportunity offered to it by the international consensus to end its civil and external wars in 1990. Numerous are the reasons behind this Lebanese failure, from the burden of the Syrian regime’s tutelage which affected the smallest details of the Lebanese people’s lives, to the absence of a vision for the project of a state worthy of that name. A lot was written to describe the crisis which has been sweeping Lebanon since 2005, i.e. the year the international mandate by which Syrian tutelage was imposed on Lebanon was withdrawn. But very little was written or announced about changing the political system in Lebanon and opening it up towards horizons free from the threat of permanent civil war.
And it would not be an exaggeration to say that the Lebanese reached a stage in which they are refusing to even consider the idea of reforming their political system, not out of laziness or insistence on the clinically-dead Taif Accord, but because most of them are deeply aware of the impossibility to discuss the amendment of the sectarian-political relations, in light of the current balance of powers. Hence, the talk about the fact that “weapons are obstructing reform” is met by the accusation that “monopolization is preventing the achievement of justice.” However, those issuing these latent sectarian declarations, both the Sunnis and Shiites, are forgetting that the missing reform and justice will not emerge from the earth’s womb, but rather from a political process in which violence is present as an option and recourse for both sides.
And since the level of Sunni violence is nothing compared to the Shiite one, serious dialogue is deferred until the Sunnis construct the tools of their violence. The issue is not about good intentions, resorting to the state institutions, or the talk about civilized national coexistence. The Lebanese issue today can be summarized by the faulty balance of powers, including the ability to threaten with violence in favor of the Shiite sect. For their part, the Sunnis are pleased about the freezing of political life being practiced by Hezbollah and its supporters to accuse the party of being affiliated with Iran, while the response to that is a similar accusation to the Sunnis of being affiliated with the Gulf states. Hence, politics end at this level and the wait begins.
The biggest example for the above is the phenomenon of Ahmad al-Assir, which led to the building of a Sunni armed force to face the Shiite one and end its dominating impact over the state. However, the major mistake committed by Al-Assir is not his reckless fall in the security-intelligence traps that were set up for him and led him to an open confrontation with the Lebanese army, but his abstinence from using the force he was building to serve a wide project, based on the gradual change of the map of weapons and violence throughout Lebanon. Someone might appear and draw the lessons from Al-Assir’s experience, thus realizing that the threats to use violence are issued based on the laws of Lebanese balance, which are naturally set to the beat of the regional balances.
In other words, it would be difficult to imagine palpable change at the level of the Lebanese political system without seeing the undermining of one sect’s monopolization of the threats to resort to violence to impose its political will. However, tragedy will emerge again, considering that violence will reproduce the state of the sects. The failure to build the state is proceeding hand in hand with the enhancement of the sects’ status, and Beckett’s sentence could be completed by saying that better failure could be deeper failure.

The Regime's Gases and the Revolutionaries' Masks
Zuheir Kseibati/Al Hayat
Thursday 18 July 2013
The West's pragmatism equals the protection of its interests, even if this requires hypocrisy in approaching the Arabs' situation during the Arab spring era, and its tragedies and violent repercussions on the victims of tyranny. However, Iran is also not far behind in the interests race and is practicing a diplomacy featuring a hunt for opportunities and Arab causes, thus allowing the prevalence of unchanged opportunism since the proclamation of the Islamic Republic over the ruins of the regime of the Shah of oppression.
And while Iranian President-elect Hasan Rohani is inaugurating his term by opening his arms to the Syrian regime and supporting it to face the "conspiracies" hand in hand, Tehran is insisting on seeing the oppositionists of President Bashar al-Assad's regime drop their weapons to pave the way before the solution. Hence, it is requesting their surrender before dialogue!
Nothing is changing in pragmatic Iran - neither its fundamentalist rejectionism nor the sponsorship of its alliance - just like nothing has changed at the level of the Western fundamentalist Machiavellianism that encouraged Al-Assad's oppositionists to engage in the battle to topple him until the end, then left them under the space of explosive barrels. And the fall of 5,000 Syrians each month remains less costly for the West than the victories of An-Nusra Front, its control over the conflict inside and on Syria or the announcement of a mini-state affiliated with Al-Qaeda. In the meantime, the United Nations should continue issuing calls for help on behalf of a population that is still threatened with extermination.
And if the West's "fundamentalist" interests were to face some sort of a blow, it would be a temporary one, even when featuring a scandal. The last episode at this level affected British Prime Minister David Cameron yesterday, a few hours after the issuance of urgent orders to secure masks for the revolutionaries in Syria for protecting them against the regime's poisonous gases. Indeed, the shameful shock resided in a report by the British parliament, revealing that during the past years, London sold states – including Syria –substances that could be used to manufacture chemical weapons.
Between the regime's gases and explosive barrels, the ghost of the plans of An-Nusra Front, Al-Qaeda and their sisters, and Iran's full dedication to the defense of a legitimacy in Damascus under the pretext of "conspiracies," the world – along with the Arabs – is watching the Arabs' holocaust.
What fundamentalism could be more horrendous than the extermination of a population in defense of a "secular regime"?! Can the marriage between the Islamic Republic in Iran and the secularism of the Syrian Baath result in anything but failed and handicapped states, if not mini-states whose heroes are pirates trading with religion, killings and blasphemous fatwas?
Hence, the alliance of fundamentalism and disbelief in the sanctity of life, blood and the rights of all the people is complete, but it does not constitute the entire scene of the spring. Indeed, in other corners of the map of the Arab revolutions, a new tyranny is emerging with the spears of those who rebelled against dictatorship. Hence, militiamen closed the Libyan Interior Ministry as though it were a shop belonging to those in control during the post-unique leader stage. Also, armed men occupied a Libyan oil field, rendering it their own until their demands are met and transforming rights into royalties.
And from the democracy of anarchy spread by the armed men around the walls of legitimacy in the capital Tripoli, we head to the democracy of the Jasmine which quickly withered thanks to the "wisdom" of Ennahda, the terrorization of half of society with the restriction of women's rights and the intimidation of educational institutions in the name of the Shari'a.
In the legitimacy of the victorious over dictatorship in the spring of monopoly, we are the new tyrants, thus granting and restricting rights, allotting the states and their institutions in shares and turning nations into war spoils. In addition, we tailor the constitutions to the size of the parties, under the sponsorship of whoever was the first to embrace the revolution, before hijacking it and pillaging the state. On the other hand, whoever opposes us is a collaborator, even if it is the population.
A collaborating population? This is the first time such a miracle occurs in history. It is the fruit of the marriage between fundamentalism and rejectionist secularism in the Arabs' region. As for us, the neo-oppressors, it is fine for us to act as collaborators voluntarily, whenever the calculations of our party or group require us to be in the foreign camp. And if the interests of the sponsor diverge from ours, we can hide behind the Sharia'a slogan.
At this level, we can draw the lesson from the Muslim Brotherhood: "Firstly Morsi has to return to the palace, and then we will please all the sides." This was said by a leader in the group whose mistake – as it discovered – was that it did not give a share of the Egyptian cake, even if a small portion of it, to the Salvation Front at the right time to save the president's legitimacy!
Consequently, the palace appears to be an administration for partisan cooperatives and not for that of the largest Arab state. And while the militiamen in free Libya are turning the ministries into shops to which they hold the keys, the movements of political Islam in Tunisia are insisting on a constitution setting the foundations for a revolution project.
We are the neo-oppressors and we will only oppress with the sword of freedom, considering that it must compensate us for all that was endured by populations throughout decades of oppression. On the other hand, and in regard to the holocaust being committed by fundamentalist secularism, each victor should tend to his own arena while the simple people continue to believe the myth of Sunni-Shiite, Sunni-Alawite and Islamic-Christian conflicts. Indeed, they are mere tools with altering roles in the chapters of the greater holocaust.
Do we still not know the protagonists of oppression and extermination? To each their group.