Bible Quotation for today/We are God's live temple
Paul's Second Letter to the Corinthians 06/12-18/"Our mouth is open to you, Corinthians. Our heart is enlarged. You are not restricted by us, but you are restricted by your own affections.  Now in return, I speak as to my children, you also be open wide. Don’t be unequally yoked with unbelievers, for what fellowship have righteousness and iniquity? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?  What agreement has Christ with Belial? Or what portion has a believer with an unbeliever?  What agreement has a temple of God with idols? For you are a temple of the living God. Even as God said, “I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”* Therefore “‘Come out from among them, and be separate,’ says the Lord. ‘Touch no unclean thing. I will receive you.*  I will be to you a Father. You will be to me sons and daughters,’ says the Lord Almighty.”*

Latest analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases from miscellaneous sources

Lebanese affairs Treaties have gone to hell too/By: Nabil Bou Mounsef/Annahar/September 18/13

The Question that Became an Initiative/Ali Ibrahim/ Asharq Alawsat/September 18/13

Documenting Decapitation in Syria/By: Diana Moukalled/Asharq Alawsat/September 18/13

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources For September 18/13
Lebanese Related News
Future warns against Hezbollah's 'security expansion'
Hezbollah comments spark Lebanese Forces ire
Syrian man killed by bomb in apartment outside Beirut
The human face of Lebanon’s brain drain
Aoun says Siniora approved Hezbollah telecoms grid
Syrian man killed by bomb in apartment outside Beirut
Central bank to provide further stimulus
Lebanese say savings dwindled over past year
Aoun: Expansion of Hizbullah Network in Zahle Must Be Resolved to Avert Another 'May 7'
Syrian 'Intelligence Agent' Killed Setting Up Explosives in Halat
Western Powers to Press Syria Resolution as U.N. Details 'Chilling' Sarin Attack
Jumblat Says he Agrees with Berri on Dialogue, Rejects Boycott
Jund al-Sham, Fatah Supporters Clash in Ain el-Hilweh
Geagea Says Berri's Dialogue Initiative 'Will Not Lead Anywhere'
Hamadeh Hits Back at Aoun, Says His Ministers Hired 'Hizbullah Cronies' at Telecom Ministry
Al-Mustaqbal Calls for Dialogue, Says Talks Must Tackle Hizbullah-Related Issues
Serra Says UNIFIL Focused on its Tasks, Appreciates Commitment to 1701
Suleiman: Formation of New Govt. Won't Change Political Status Quo
Arrest Warrants against 2 Syrians over Attack on Hizbullah
Al-Rahi Hails Suleiman's Stances: Those Adopting Autonomous Security Have No Faith in State
Top Officials to Discuss Refugees Report ahead of New York Support Group Meet
Saniora Holds Onto Stance on Cabinet and Dialogue as Aoun Says he'll be the 1st to Attend
Berri: Baabda Declaration Not Fit to be Policy Statement
Miscellaneous Reports And News
Ban Ki-moon to Press Major Powers on Syria
U.S. Says Russia 'Swimming against Tide' on Syria Chemical Arms
 Egypt: Officials say country making progress on democracy
The Syrian helicopter flight over Turkey fabricated first Assad obstacle to chemical weapons handover
Canada's FM, Baird Comments on UN Chemical Weapons Report
Netanyahu to meet Obama at end of month, says Iran's nuclear plans to top agenda
Russian and French FMs meet on Syria, still divided on sarin gas attack
Iran confirms Rouhani and Obama letter exchange
Report: Iran set to shut down nuclear site in deal with West
Obama to meet Netanyahu, but not Rohani
Ban Ki-moon to Press Major Powers on Syria
Police: Authorities Confident 1 Shooter Only in U.S. Tragedy
Damascus Says West Trying to Impose Will on Syrian People
HRW, Amnesty Urge U.N. to Refer Syria Conflict to ICC
Russia against use of force in Syria resolution
U.S. shooting suspect got honorable discharge despite misconduct record
Egypt Muslim Brotherhood spokesman arrested

Syrian 'Intelligence Agent' Killed Setting Up Explosives in Halat
Naharnet /A Syrian national was killed on Tuesday while setting up an explosive device in the town of Halat, north of Beirut. The State Commissioner to the Military Court inspected the house where the blast took place in the morning. “We are still in the initial stage of the investigation,” Judge Saqr Saqr said after he came out of the house that lies near the coastal town of Jbeil. “There is the smell of gunpowder,” he said, when asked about more details by a reporter at the scene. The Army Command later announced that the blast was caused by the explosion of a 250-gram explosive. The Internal Security Forces Intelligence Branch arrested his brother, in addition to his brother's wife and friend who live with him in the same room, state-run National News Agency said. The NNA identified the dead man as Moussa Mustafa Ibrahim. It said the force of the blast turned his body into shreds. Meanwhile, MTV revealed that Ibrahim is a Syrian army intelligence member. The same source also provided details on the moment the incident took place. "According to the images collected, the man was standing in a squatting position when he was setting up the explosive device," it noted. LBCI television revealed that Ibrahim's wife confirmed that her husband worked with the Syrian intelligence. "He had an official document to prove it,” she added.

U.S. Says Russia 'Swimming against Tide' on Syria Chemical Arms
Naharnet/The United States said Tuesday that Russia is ignoring "the facts" in Syria when it accuses the rebels, rather than the regime, of staging the August 21 chemical weapons attack near Damascus.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday that Moscow believes the August 21 gassing was a "provocation."The sparring comes even after the United States and Russia reached a sweeping weekend agreement designed to rid Syria of chemical weapons by mid 2014. That surprise deal headed off U.S. military strikes that had seemed imminent just two weeks ago as a way to punish Damascus for the chemical attack and prevent another. A U.N. report released Monday says chemical weapons were used in Syria, but it avoided saying by whom. But the United States and its allies are fervent in their belief that the forces of President Bashar Assad used the banned chemical weapons against its own civilians. "He's swimming against the tide of international public opinion, but more importantly, the facts," State Department spokeswoman Jennifer Psaki said, referring to Lavrov.
The U.N. report, "confirms unequivocally that chemical weapons, including the nerve agent sarin, were used in Syria. We all know that. But based on our preliminary view of information contained in the report, several crucial details confirmed the Assad regime's guilt in carrying out this attack," Psaki said.
Source/Agence France Presse.

Geagea Says Berri's Dialogue Initiative 'Will Not Lead Anywhere'
Naharnet /Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea stated on Tuesday that Speaker Nabih Berri's proposal to hold national dialogue sessions is “not helpful” and that it will not be beneficial. "I thank the speaker on coming forward with his initiative although I don't think it will be beneficial,” Geagea said after meeting with a delegation of Berri's Liberation and Development bloc. He elaborated: “National dialogue is one thing, and talks to form a new cabinet is another and I don't think anyone is opposed to discussing the government's formation in a general parliamentary session.” "I think Berri's initiative does not lead anywhere and I have sent with the Liberation and Development delegation a proposal to the speaker. I suggested that the delegation reaches common grounds between all factions they are communicating with instead of holding dialogue sessions.” “Berri is thinking of a way to get out of the current deadlock and we have completely opposing views.”The LF leader said he opposes a ministerial statement that mentions the army-people-resistance formula, adding that this affects the state's powers and people's freedom. “The latest incident in (the Bekaa city of) Zahle is an example of this,” he remarked. Armed Hizbullah members deployed on Sunday along the highway extending between the city's industrial zone to the Mar Charbel church in an attempt to expand party's telecommunications network. Residents of the city protested against its actions and temporarily blocked the road in the area. The army soon intervened and set up checkpoints in the industrial zone and security forces deployed patrols in the city, which led to Hizbullah's withdrawal from the area. "We do not want to support statements that are unclear and that we have no idea where to they would take us,” Geagea explained.  The Christian leader continued: “Dialogue's fate is unclear with a party that keeps repeating its political speech and does not change anything.” "No party in Lebanon is linked to a regional power, to a fixed ideology and to static strategies.”“The Lebanese constitution is usually the basis for any dialogue and this is not the case with Hizbullah.”  In a televised speech he gave in the 35th memory of the disappearance of the spiritual leader Moussa al-Sadr, Berri suggested holding a five-day dialogue retreat to discuss pending issues in the country. “I suggest to Suleiman setting a roadmap that would get the country out of the current crisis and it includes holding a five-day dialogue retreat that would discuss the formation of the cabinet and its policy statement ,” the speaker said on August 31. But on Wednesday, Berri expressed his “annoyance” over the “misinterpretation” of his dialogue proposal, announcing that he will form a delegation tasked with explaining his initiative to different factions in the country. Geagea urged premier-designate Tammam Salam to “assume his responsibilities.” “We are in need to deal with people's problems through forming a cabinet,” he told reporters. Answering questions regarding Free Patriotic Movement leader's relationship with Hizbullah, Geagea said: “I do not agree with (MP Michel) Aoun because his party's stance is clear towards some activities Hizbullah is doing but the FPM has a memorandum of understanding with Hizbullah.”

Hamadeh Hits Back at Aoun, Says His Ministers Hired 'Hizbullah Cronies' at Telecom Ministry
Naharnet /MP Marwan Hamadeh on Tuesday snapped back at Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun over remarks related to Hizbullah's controversial telecom grid in Zahle, accusing ministers loyal to Aoun of employing “Hizbullah cronies” at the Ministry of Telecommunications. Aoun “protected Hizbullah's May 2008 coup against the Lebanese government, which tried back then to prevent Hizbullah from installing its illegal telecom network,” Hamadeh said, noting that the party “invaded the capital Beirut and attacked Mount Lebanon” to thwart the government's efforts.
Hamadeh reminded the FPM leader that former telecom “minister Jebran Bassil was the one who assumed the telecom ministry portfolio after the Doha settlement which followed the May coup, and it was him and the minister who succeeded him (Nicolas Sehnaoui) who brought Hizbullah cronies to the heart of the telecom ministry and technically abolished the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority."
The MP, who served as telecom minister in Fouad Saniora's cabinet, hailed “the residents, MPs and dignitaries of Zahle for their steadfastness” and lauded the municipality and residents of the Bekaa town of Tarshish, where a similar confrontation over Hizbullah's grid had taken place in the past. Hamadeh called on the military and security institutions to “draw lessons from the vigor of the Lebanese public opinion and prevent any May 7-like coup.”
Earlier on Tuesday, Aoun said: “Whoever allowed Hizbullah to expand its telecommunications network in the Bekaa town of Zahle must resolve this issue to prevent unrest similar to that of May 7, 2008.”
“What did former Premier Fouad Saniora and then Ministers Marwan Hamadeh and Elias al-Murr do on May 5 and 7, 2008?” he asked. Gunmen belonging to Hizbullah and its allies swept through Beirut’s neighborhoods on May 7, 2008 after the government of then PM Saniora tried to dismantle the group's telecommunications network, which Hizbullah says is for purely military purposes related to its conflict with Israel. The fighting that left scores dead brought the country to the brink of a new civil war. Tensions were running high in Zahle after members of Hizbullah attempted to expand the party's telecommunications network in the area on Sunday evening. Residents of the city protested the move and temporarily blocked the road in the area.The army soon intervened and set up checkpoints in the industrial zone and security forces deployed patrols in the city, which led to Hizbullah's withdrawal from the area. There was an uproar in October 2011 when Hizbullah allegedly attempted to expand its telecommunications network in the Tarshish region on the outskirts of Zahle. The residents thwarted the attempts and Telecommunications Ministry at the time denied the party was conducting any works in the region.

Al-Mustaqbal Calls for Dialogue, Says Talks Must Tackle Hizbullah-Related Issues
Naharnet /Al-Mustaqbal bloc stressed on Tuesday that national dialogue remains the best mean to reach internal consensus on pending issues in the country, adding that talks must tackle Hizbullah's weaponry.
"We stress on the importance of national dialogue as it is the best mean to reach consensus on pending issues between the country's factions,” a released statement said after the bloc's weekly meeting at the Center House. The statement elaborated: “We support Speaker Nabih Berri's calls for dialogue as we believe in talks and communication, and we will go with the date assigned by President Michel Suleiman to discuss the cabinet's formation.”
The al-Mustaqbal MPs pointed out, however, that dialogue sessions “must be based on issues related to Hizbullah's arms and on the necessity of withdrawing its forces from Syria.”
In a televised speech he gave in the 35th memory of the disappearance of the spiritual leader Moussa al-Sadr, Berri suggested holding a five-day dialogue retreat to discuss pending issues in the country.
“I suggest to Suleiman setting a roadmap that would get the country out of the current crisis and it includes holding a five-day dialogue retreat that would discuss the formation of the cabinet and its policy statement ,” the speaker said on August 31.The al-Mustaqbal conferees called on Suleiman and premier-designate Tammam Salam to “quickly” form a cabinet. They explained: “Vacuum worsens the already existing political and economic problems in the country.”The bloc also tackled Hizbullah's efforts to expand its telecommunications network in the Bekaa city of Zahle, saying that these procedures are a part of the party's adopted autonomous security measures.
“This harms Lebanon and is an indication that the party overlooks the powers of the state's bodies because it considers itself to be above all laws,” the MPs stated.
Armed Hizbullah members deployed on Sunday along the highway extending between the city's industrial zone to the Mar Charbel church in an attempt to expand party's telecommunications network.
Residents of the city protested against its actions and temporarily blocked the road in the area. The army soon intervened and set up checkpoints in the industrial zone and security forces deployed patrols in the city, which led to Hizbullah's withdrawal from the area. The al-Mustaqbal lawmakers continued: “Hizbullah's activities are affecting the Lebanese abroad and this is a threat to thousands of families and harms the country's reputation.”
In a separate matter, the bloc slammed the international community as powerless in what concerns its stance towards the use of chemical weapons in Syria.
"We demand clear answers from the international community on the fate of the criminals that killed their own people,” it said, referring to reports that President Bashar Assad was the party behind the chemical attack against citizens in the Damascus suburb of al-Ghouta on August 21. Al-Mustaqbal noted that the chemical weapons used against the Syrian people “were given up under international pressure to preserve the regime in Syria.”

Al-Rahi Hails Suleiman's Stances: Those Adopting Autonomous Security Have No Faith in State
Naharnet /Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi praised on Tuesday the stances of President Michel Suleiman that seek the interests of Lebanon and its constitutional institutions, criticizing powers that are skeptical of the army and security forces' competency in protecting Lebanon. He said: “We have no need for autonomous security. Those who adopt such measures do not trust the state.” He made his remarks before traveling to Rome on a week-long visit where he is scheduled to meet Pope Francis I. “It is shameful for us to obstruct the role of the state and claim that it is unable to protect us,” al-Rahi added. “We must all strengthen the state and pay the necessary taxes,” he continued. “We must all abide by the law and preserve the state's institutions and security forces,” he remarked. “We must abandon our personal and foreign interests for the sake of Lebanon,” he demanded. Moreover, al-Rahi said that Suleiman needs the support of all sides in order to protect the country. He said: “We must protect Lebanon through the Baabda Declaration.” The patriarch added: “The president is the head of the country and he is calling for the assistance of all sides and we should therefore comply with his demands in order to complete the rest of the Lebanese body.”
“All sides should preserve the country and cooperate for the sake of the state,” al-Rahi stressed. “A strong state protects us all, but a weak one won't be able to protect anyone,” he noted. “We hope that Lebanon will be allowed to play its role as a message of diversity and act as an oasis in the Arab world,” he continued. Hizbullah had set up checkpoints in and around its stronghold of Dahieh in Beirut's southern suburbs in light of a bombing in the Ruwais area. Twenty-seven people were killed and 280 wounded in the bombing that took place on August 15. A number of politicians have since criticized the party for its security measures, but Hizbullah officials have denied that they have adopted autonomous security measures with MP Mohammed Raad saying that the party had repeatedly urged the state's security forces to assume their duties in protecting Dahieh, but these demands were not fulfilled. Caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel had stressed last week that only the state's security agencies are entitled to set up checkpoints.

Suleiman: Formation of New Govt. Won't Change Political Status Quo
Naharnet /President Michel Suleiman stressed on Tuesday that it has become necessary to form a new government that tackles the people's daily concerns, especially in light of the advent of winter and the start of a new academic school year. He said before his visitors: “The formation of a new cabinet will not change the political status quo or the situation around us.”Officials must realize the “sensitivity” of the current phase and drop preconditions over the formation of a government, he demanded. This should lead to the formation of a new cabinet that includes all powers, he added. The government should be able to reinforce political and security stability, said Suleiman. Speaker Nabih Berri had recently proposed the resumption of national dialogue at the Baabda Palace for a period of at least five consecutive days to discuss the form and policy statement of the future cabinet.
He said Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam should attend the all-party talks that bring together the rival March 8 and 14 alliances. Salam has meanwhile said that the formation of a cabinet should be limited to the premier and president.

Serra Says UNIFIL Focused on its Tasks, Appreciates Commitment to 1701
Naharnet/UNIFIL Commander Maj. Gen. Paolo Serra said Tuesday that he thanked President Michel Suleiman for Lebanon's strong commitment to U.N. Security Council resolution 1701 despite many challenges.
Following a meeting with Suleiman at Baabda Palace, Serra said: “ I expressed my appreciation for the strong commitment to resolution 1701 that Lebanon has demonstrated in the face of the multitude of challenges it has been dealing with.”“I assured the President of UNIFIL's keen sensitivity to the prevailing situation that underlines the importance of remaining focused on our mandated tasks so that the regional turbulence does not intrude on south Lebanon,” he said. Serra stressed that UNIFIL troops are determined to stand by Lebanon and shoulder to shoulder with the Lebanese Armed Forces in their joint effort to maintain stability south of the Litani river.
“The continued commitment of both the parties to the cessation of hostilities and their willingness to work with UNIFIL in addressing any emerging concerns is most vital for sustaining the security architecture along the Blue Line that has so far endured very testing times,” he said. Serra added that Suleiman appreciated the critical role UNIFIL is playing in south Lebanon and reiterated his full support for the mission's operations in coordination with the Lebanese Armed Forces.

Jund al-Sham, Fatah Supporters Clash in Ain el-Hilweh
Naharnet/An armed clash took place on Tuesday evening between supporters of the militant group Jund al-Sham and Fatah members in the southern refugee camp of Ain el-Hilweh, the state-run National News Agency reported. "The clash took place after Jund al-Sham supporters attacked a Fatah office in the camp,” the NNA said. It detailed: “Shells and machine guns were used in the fighting.”LBCI television said that one person was wounded in the clash, remarking that the fighting erupted after security cameras were targeted with gunshots. Meanwhile, al-Jadeed television revealed that a number of the Taamir neighborhood residents have fled their houses and took refuge in the Mousalli mosque to avoid the armed clashes. Ain el-Hilweh, the largest Palestinian camp in the country, is home to about 50,000 refugees and is known to harbor extremists and fugitives.
By long-standing convention, the Lebanese army does not enter the country's 12 refugee camps, leaving security inside to the Palestinians themselves

Arrest Warrants against 2 Syrians over Attack on Hizbullah
Naharnet/Military Examining Magistrate Imad al-Zain issued on Tuesday arrest warrants against two Syrians for planting explosives that targeted a Hizbullah convoy in the Bekaa Valley. Al-Zain issued the warrant against Amer Hamdan after interrogating him, said the state-run National News Agency. He issued a similar warrant against another Syrian identified as Mohtasem Hamdan, NNA said. Amer Hamdan is already in custody of authorities, but Mohtasem Hamdan remains at large, a judicial source told Agence France Presse. Amer Hamdan, from Zabadani near Damascus, was arrested on July 23, a week after the latest blast targeting a Hizbullah convoy in the Bekaa valley. One man was killed and three others wounded in the July 16 attack that targeted a convoy belonging to Hizbullah on the Masnaa road. It was the fourth time that a vehicle had been targeted by an explosive device in the Bekaa region, which is a stronghold of Hizbullah.Speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, the source said the two suspects are supporters of the Syrian opposition to President Bashar Assad.

Berri: Baabda Declaration Not Fit to be Policy Statement
Naharnet /Speaker Nabih Berri said Tuesday that the Baabda Declaration cannot become the new government's policy statement and accused several parties of turning it into a Trojan Horse. In remarks to As Safir newspaper, Berri said: “The Baabda Declaration is not fit to be a policy statement...which usually includes a description of the government’s policy in all fields such as electricity, , development, economy and security.” Berri held onto the army-people-resistance formula, saying it should be mentioned in the statement as with the previous governments. “The right of the resistance is enshrined in the Taef accord and in 18 decisions issued by Arab foreign ministers,” he told the daily. “Everybody knows that a large segment of the Lebanese insist on the army-people-resistance formula,” Berri said. The Baabda Declaration should facilitate dialogue and not complicate it, he said, adding that some parties were trying to use it as a Trojan Horse to hit the formula and hinder the work of the national dialogue participants and the policy statement. Berri wondered how al-Mustaqbal movement was rejecting its participation in national dialogue before the resignation of Premier Najib Miqati and now is making a similar boycott until the new government is formed. “We are lost,” he said mockingly. Last month, Berri proposed a resumption of national dialogue at Baabda palace under President Michel Suleiman for a period of at least five consecutive days to discuss the form and policy statement of the future cabinet in the presence of Premier-designate Tammam Salam. He has also called for the revival of talks on a new electoral law, and supporting the military to deal with arms proliferated in several regions, in addition to addressing a national defense strategy, a reference to Hizbullah's arms. But the proposal came under fire from al-Mustaqbal officials, mainly the parliamentary bloc leader MP Fouad Saniora, who on Monday described it as a “waste of time.”
Berri told As Safir that he launched his initiative over the “dangers of the trapped vacuum.” The so-called roadmap is the only solution to lead to dialogue and form the government in the absence of other alternatives, he said.

Aoun: Expansion of Hizbullah Network in Zahle Must Be Resolved to Avert Another 'May 7'
Naharnet/Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun stated on Tuesday that Hizbullah's expansion of its telecommunications network can be attributed to the failure to address this issue back in 2008 when this case first arose. He said after the Change and Reform bloc's weekly meeting: “Whoever allowed Hizbullah to expand its telecommunications network in the Bekaa town of Zahle must resolve this issue to prevent unrest similar to that of May 7, 2008.” “What did former Premier Fouad Saniora and then Ministers Marwan Hamadeh and Elias al-Murr do on May 5 and 7, 2008?” he asked. “We did not allow the establishment of this network and I cannot resolve problems that emerged in the 1990s,” he declared. Asked what the residents of Zahle should do to confront Hizbullah's actions, Aoun replied: “Let them block roads.”Commenting on stalled efforts to exploit Lebanon's offshore oil and gas wealth, he remarked: “It seems that there is a conspiracy to prevent the country from exploiting this wealth. “We all know who is responsible for calling the government to convene,” he added.
“It would be a disaster if we fail to exploit our oil wealth. It would be a shame if this wealth is not exploited due to some official's negligence,” the MP noted.
Gunmen belonging to Hizbullah and its allies swept through Beirut’s neighborhoods on May 7, 2008 after the government of then PM Saniora tried to dismantle the group's telecommunications network.
The fighting that left scores dead brought the country to the brink of a new civil war. Tensions were running high in Zahle after members of Hizbullah attempted to expand the party's telecommunications network in the area on Sunday evening.Residents of the city protested the move and temporarily blocked the road in the area. The army soon intervened and set up checkpoints in the industrial zone and security forces deployed patrols in the city, which led to Hizbullah's withdrawal from the area. There was an uproar in October 2011 when Hizbullah allegedly attempted to expand its telecommunications network in the Tarshish region on the outskirts of Zahle.
The residents thwarted the attempts and Telecommunications Ministry at the time denied any party actions in the region.

Saniora Holds Onto Stance on Cabinet and Dialogue as Aoun Says he'll be the 1st to Attend
Naharnet /Al-Mustaqbal bloc leader MP Fouad Saniora has told members of Speaker Nabih Berri's bloc that the national dialogue is not a constitutional institution during a meeting described as “important.”
An Nahar daily on Tuesday quoted officials close to Saniora as describing the 90-minute meeting with the Development and Liberation bloc as “important.” The talks focused on an initiative made by Berri to resolve the country's political crisis. An Nahar quoted Saniora as telling the delegation that al-Mustaqbal encourages dialogue but insisted on keeping the issue of cabinet formation away from the all-party talks. “The national dialogue should not be turned into a constitutional institution, which it isn't,” Saniora reportedly told the MPs.He reiterated that it was up to President Michel Suleiman and Premier-designate Tammam Salam to form the cabinet after which the head of state would call for a national dialogue session to discuss Hizbullah's arms and the party's participation in the fighting in Syria. Berri's roadmap focuses on a five-day dialogue conclave held by the rival March 8 and March 14 camps at Baabda Palace under Suleiman and with the participation of Salam. His proposal lies in discussing the form and policy statement of the future cabinet, reviving talks on a new electoral law, supporting the military to deal with arms proliferated in several regions, in addition to addressing a national defense strategy, a reference to Hizbullah's arms. Monday's talks between Saniora and the Development and Liberation bloc ended with an agreement to brief Berri on the results of the discussions and continue the dialogue through direct meetings between the speaker and Saniora, An Nahar said. The delegation also met with Change and Reform bloc leader, MP Michel Aoun, on Monday as part of its tour on top officials and parliamentary blocs to brief them on Berri's initiative. The head of the delegation, MP Yassine Jaber, told An Nahar that Aoun “welcomed Berri's initiative and confirmed that he would be the first to attend the dialogue.”Jaber also described the meeting with Saniora and several other al-Mustaqbal lawmakers as “honest,” saying “dialogue with al-Mustaqbal hasn't and wouldn’t end.”

Western Powers to Press Syria Resolution as U.N. Details 'Chilling' Sarin Attack
Naharnet /..Careful not to blame either side for a deadly chemical weapon attack, U.N. inspectors reported Monday that rockets loaded with the nerve agent sarin had been fired from an area where Syria's military has bases, but said the evidence could have been manipulated in the rebel-controlled stricken neighborhoods. The U.S., Britain and France jumped on evidence in the report — especially the type of rockets, the composition of the sarin agent, and trajectory of the missiles — to declare that President Bashar Assad's government was responsible. Russia, Syria's closest ally, called the investigators' findings "deeply disturbing," but said it was too early to draw conclusions. The Syrian government's claims that opposition forces were responsible for the attack "cannot be simply shrugged off," Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin insisted. The conclusions represented the first official confirmation by scientific experts that chemical weapons were used in Syria's civil war, but the inspectors' limited mandate barred them from identifying who was responsible for the Aug. 21 attack. "This is a war crime," U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the Security Council when he presented the report.  Ban said the report prepared by the experts "makes for chilling reading."
"The results are overwhelming and indisputable. The facts speak for themselves."
Ban called it "the most significant confirmed use of chemical weapons against civilians since Saddam Hussein used them" in Halabja, Iraq, in 1988, and "the worst use of weapons of mass destruction in the 21st century."
The deep division between Western backers of rebels seeking to overthrow Assad and Russian and Chinese supporters of the regime has paralyzed the U.N. Security Council since the Syrian conflict began 2 1/2 years ago.
Even though the United States and Russia agreed Saturday on the framework to put Syria's chemical weapons stockpile and precursors under international control for future destruction, their top diplomats were at odds Monday over a new Security Council resolution that would make the deal legally binding — and whether there should be a reference to possible military enforcement if Syria doesn't comply.
After months of negotiations, the U.N. inspectors went to Syria to visit the sites of three alleged chemical attacks earlier this year and were in the capital of Damascus on Aug. 21 when reports and videos began surfacing of a shelling attack in which victims experienced shortness of breath, disorientation, blurred vision, nausea, vomiting, weakness and a loss of consciousness.
They finally gained access to three towns where the Aug. 21 attack occurred, and on one occasion their convoy was hit by sniper fire, but the inspectors were nonetheless able to collect a large amount of material and talk to survivors and witnesses. "The environmental, chemical and medical samples we have collected provide clear and convincing evidence that surface-to-surface rockets containing the nerve agent sarin were used ... in the Ghouta area of Damascus," their report said. "The conclusion is that chemical weapons have been used in the ongoing conflict between the parties in the Syrian Arab Republic, also against civilians, including children, on a relatively large scale," they said. "This result leaves us with the deepest concern."The rebels and their Western and Arab supporters have blamed Assad's regime for the attack in the rebel-controlled area of Ghouta. The Syrian government insists the attack was carried out by rebels. The U.N. report mentions the Ghouta areas of Ein Tarma, Moadamiyeh and Zamalka, all of which were featured in videos of victims that emerged after the attack. The U.N. report did not mention how many people were killed in the Aug. 21 attack. The U.S. says more than 1,400, but other death toll estimates have been far lower.
The report cited the following evidence to support its conclusions:
— Rockets and fragments were found to contain sarin. "Several surface-to-surface rockets capable of delivering significant chemical payloads were identified and recorded at the investigated sites," the investigators said. They said that "of primary interest was the intact rocket motor found coincident to the impact crater" in Moadamiyah. "This rocket motor was noted to have stone and earth debris impacted in the front section of the motor identical to that found in the crater. There was no indication of damage around the crater area having been caused by blast or explosives. This implies that the warhead was not present upon final impact," they said.
— The approximate capacity of liquid in the warhead is "according to the measurements between 56 +/- 6 liters."
— In Zamalka and Ein Tarma, "the two teams worked in parallel and identified the same type of munition at both sites. The munition had features noted as being consistent with that of an unguided rocket."
— Of the five impact sites investigated by the mission, "three do not present physical characteristics allowing a successful study of the trajectories followed by the rockets involved, due to the configuration of the impact places. However, Impact site number 1 (Moadamiyah) and Impact site number 4 (Ein Tarma) provide sufficient evidence to determine, with a sufficient degree of accuracy, the likely trajectory of the projectiles."
— Close to the impact sites, in the area where people were affected, inspectors collected 30 soil and environmental samples — far more than any previous U.N. investigation — and in a majority of the samples, "the environment was found to be contaminated by sarin," its by-products, and "other relevant chemicals, such as stabilizers."
— Blood, urine and hair samples from 34 patients who had signs of poisoning by a chemical compound provided "definitive evidence of exposure to sarin by almost all of the survivors assessed."
— More than 50 interviews with survivors and health care workers "provided ample corroboration of the medical and scientific results."
"The large-scale use of sarin, the direction of the rocket attacks, and kind of rockets used in the attacks all point to use by Assad's forces beyond reasonable doubt," said Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Washington-based Arms Control Association.
"The conclusions reached by the United States and European governments would now appear to have received corroboration by a source the Russians and Syrians will have trouble discrediting," Kimball said.
The inspectors described the rockets used to disperse the sarin as a variant of an M14 artillery rocket, with either an original or an improvised warhead. The report said the rockets that hit two of the suburbs — Zamalka and Ein Tarma — were fired from the northwest, but it didn't say who launched them.
"Based on the orientation of the impact craters, orientation of certain surviving munition components and other damage in the areas, the rockets are believed to have arrived from the northwest," said the report.
The inspectors did not provide a location for the rockets' launch site, but Qassioun Mountain, where the Syrian military is known to have bases, is roughly northwest of both suburbs.
One of the photographs taken by the inspectors appeared to show possible Cyrillic, or Russian, engravings on one of the rocket casings.
"This was no cottage industry use of chemical weapons," Britain's U.N. Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant said.
"To put it in perspective, just on those rocket samples that they were able to examine, they had a payload of a total of 350 liters, which is 35 times the amount that was used in the Tokyo subway" in 1995, he said, adding that the inspectors also confirmed "that the quality of the sarin was superior" both to that used in Tokyo and also to what was used by Iraq against Iran.
U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power noted that chief inspector Ake Sellstrom said the weapons "were professionally made."
"It defies logic that the opposition would have infiltrated the regime-controlled area to fire on opposition-controlled areas," she said. "Only the regime could have carried out this large-scale attack."
But Churkin wondered why there were no reports of casualties among opposition fighters if government forces fired rockets filled with sarin to try to oust opposition groups from the area.
"Is it theoretically possible to fire five or six rockets and miss your opponent?" he asked.
The inspectors cautioned that the five sites they investigated had been "well- traveled by other individuals prior to the arrival of the mission."
"During the time spent at these locations, individuals arrived carrying other suspected munitions indicating that such potential evidence is being moved and possibly manipulated," the report said. The areas were under rebel control, but the report did not elaborate on who the individuals were.
In the report, Sellstrom said the team was issuing the findings on the Ghouta attacks "without prejudice" to its continuing investigation and final report on the alleged use of chemical weapons in three other areas. Ban said he expects the inspectors to return to Syria "as soon as possible" to complete their investigation.
Under an Aug. 13 agreement between the U.N. and the Syrian government, Sellstrom's team was scheduled to investigate an alleged chemical weapons attack on March 19 on the village of Khan al Assal outside Aleppo and alleged attacks on two other sites that were kept secret for security reasons. The inspectors' report for the first time identified the two sites still to be investigated as Sheik Maqsood and Saraqueb.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and his French and British counterparts worked on a two-pronged approach to Syria: They called for enforceable U.N. benchmarks for eradicating the chemical weapons program and an international conference bolstering the moderate opposition.
An agreement reached with the Russians calls for an inventory of Syria's chemical weapons program within one week, with all components of the program out of the country or destroyed by mid-2014.
The next step must be a decision by the executive committee of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, which implements the convention that Syria has agreed to join, to endorse the U.S.-Russian agreement. The OPCW is based in The Hague, Netherlands, and it isn't certain when it will meet, although several diplomats said probably later this week.
Once the OPCW approves the agreement, the Security Council must adopt a resolution endorsing both the U.S.-Russian agreement and the OPCW decision.
"This resolution needs to enshrine the OPCW decision in legally binding form, because the OPCW does not have the ability to impose legally binding obligations," Britain's Lyall Grant said.
France and the U.S. insisted that a military response to the Aug. 21 attack remained on the table, and were pressing for a U.N. resolution reflecting that.
"It has to be strong, it has to be forceful, it has to be real, it has to be accountable, it has to be transparent, it has to be timely. All of those things are critical. And it has to be enforced," Kerry said.
"We will not tolerate avoidance or anything less than full compliance by the Assad regime," he added.
Kerry said the agreement "fully commits the United States and Russia to impose measures under Chapter 7 of the U.N. Charter in the event of non-compliance." Chapter 7 resolutions allow for military enforcement.
Lavrov said Chapter 7 was the subject of "fierce debate" during the talks but stressed that "the final document ... doesn't mention it" and that the Security Council resolution being negotiated will not be under Chapter 7.
He said if Syria fails to cooperate, the Security Council can pass an entirely different resolution "which may employ Chapter 7." Lavrov stressed that ongoing attempts to threaten the use of force against Syria would provoke the opposition and disrupt a chance for peace negotiations in Geneva that the U.S. and Russia have been trying to organize.
The Syrian National Coalition — the main umbrella opposition group — welcomed the inspectors' report and urged the Security Council to hold the Assad regime responsible for the Aug. 21 attack and refer the Syrian government to the International Criminal Court for prosecution.
Gen. Salim Idriss, head of the rebel Free Syrian Army, said in an interview on the PBS NewsHour that the inspectors' report makes "very clear that there's a war crime."
He said the Syrian people "are very frustrated because of what's going on and because the international community is not caring anymore about the victims."

 

Canada's FM, Baird Comments on UN Chemical Weapons Report
September 16, 2013 - Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird today issued the following statement:
“The report submitted by UN inspectors today confirmed to the world the despicable way in which chemical weapons were used against innocent Syrians on August 21, 2013.
“This report provides additional evidence supporting the conclusion that inhumane and indiscriminate chemical weapons were used by the Assad regime.
“The regime must now face an international community that is united against the abhorrent nature of Assad’s attacks against his people.
“The Assad regime will now be held to account by the international community through the U.S.-led framework and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. Anything less than full compliance by Assad is completely unacceptable and should be dealt with in a serious and firm manner.”

Lebanese affairs Treaties have gone to hell too!
Nabil Bou Mounsef/Annahar/
The end of this month will mark 24 years since the birth of the Taif Agreement, while multitudes of articles of the treaty on the ceasing of the Lebanese war are words that are never embodied with acts. This is a thorny path in the history of a Lebanon suffering from the ongoing conflict between the laws stained with a historic cache, obliged by the Constitution, politics, morality, and even ethics. Lebanon keeps on sinking into the quicksand tying its destiny first with foreign commitments, and throwing treaties in the deep drawers of oblivion, bringing Lebanon back to the balance of forces logic, which terrorizes the country on a daily basis and renders it demanding to build a State on solid rock.
From a purely objective point of view, the Baabda Declaration, subject to controversies escalating sharply with the advent of the Taif Agreement 24th commemoration, is neither the first nor the last document on settlement to be overthrown or threatened to be overthrown by Taif, and that shielded itself from an engagement or overthrow because of ties Lebanon has with foreign countries. The outbreak of war in 1975 was the most dramatic consequence of breaking the Cairo agreement that, after placing the Palestinian State as a competitor partner of the Lebanese State, failed to organize the coexistence of Abu Ammar’s State with Lebanon, the sovereignty of which is glazed with words that are never embodied with acts. Bashir Gemayel, the Lebanese resistance hero who stood his ground against the Palestinian State was liquidated because, twenty days after his election, he sowed fear of a neutral Lebanon in the spirit of regional forces, on top of which was Syria.
International, Arab and Lebanese Taif in its original version held its ground only a few weeks – the last weeks of another elected President’s life, René Mouawwad. The latter’s liquidation canceled the Syrian Taif that had no partner. Coexistence between Taif and Hariri’s weighty presence could do nothing in the face of Hariri’s assassination that could have sent the agreement in hell once and for all, weren’t it of the March 14 revolution...
The Doha Agreement in its true perspective incarnated nothing but the organization of a political bond on a gravely tripping balance of forces rhythm, following a part of Hezbollah’s arms inward orientation for the first time – an arrangement which prevented Taif from protecting and reinforcing itself, under the influence of this “forced” balance of forces. Shortly after, the agreement was plunged into a state of unrest, and is being plunged into it still.
With new data influx arising from the Syrian war, we have one last chance to survive. The June 2012 Baabda Declaration was the last chance we could profit from in order to reach a common agreement on neutralizing Lebanon from the Syrian crisis consequences on the country. But, while betting on a settlement of the conflict in Syria, or rather on the impossibility of such a settlement, it may be possible one day to achieve a lot more than just betting on rescuing what we could not rebuild anymore due to the failure of the agreements and treaties of Lebanon.

Future warns against Hezbollah's 'security expansion'

 September 17, 2013/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Hezbollah’s telecoms network is part of the group’s "security expansion" in Lebanon, the Future bloc said Tuesday, warning that such an approach only exacerbated current problems.
The bloc headed by MP Fouad Siniora also criticized the Syrian regime’s compromise over its chemical weapons stockpile for the preservation of President Bashar Assad’s government.
In a statement read by MP Assem Araji, the bloc welcomed Speaker Nabih Berri’s proposal to launch all-party talks, saying the focus topic should be Hezbollah’s arms and its withdrawal from Syria.
“Hezbollah continues to install and expand its own telecommunications network accompanied by self-security measures in various Lebanese areas which represents an additional obstacle for the state in restoring its authority,” Araji said after the bloc’s weekly meeting. The controversy surrounding Hezbollah’s telecommunications network resurfaced this week after residents from the eastern town of Zahle protested the party’s alleged attempt to expand their grid Sunday night.
The bloc pointed to the alleged network in Zahle as further evidence that Hezbollah “is confiscating the sovereignty of the state.”
“Hezbollah's continued security expansion is exacerbating the problems which occur in its security areas,” the statement said, referring to disputes at Hezbollah checkpoints in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
The group of MPs also accused Hezbollah of interfering in the affairs of other countries, which they said threatened the livelihoods of Lebanese expatriates.
“This seriously threatens the source of income for thousands of Lebanese families and taints the reputation which Lebanese have maintained for decades,” it said.
The bloc welcomed Berri’s initiative but maintained that dialogue and the formation of a new Cabinet were issues to be dealt with separately.
“The call by Speaker Nabih Berri compliments our view, which sees dialogue a means to find solutions and [the bloc] is awaiting a date to be set by the president to reconvene the dialogue committee," the statement said, adding that the dialogue session should coincide with the formation of a new government headed by Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam.
It also added that such talks should not override “the prerogative of constitutional institutions.”
Last month, Berri proposed a five-day conclave of dialogue sessions attended by March 8 and March 14 leaders, in addition to Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam, to address divisive issues, including the makeup and policy statement of a new Cabinet, a national defense strategy, means to end Lebanese intervention in Syria and the new electoral law.
Berri who dispatched a delegation to explain his proposal to the main political parties argues that his initiative does not override the prerogative of the president and the PM-designate, whose task was to form a new Cabinet.
“This dialogue should only discuss the remaining item on the agenda and whatever issues related to Hezbollah' arms and the need for the party to withdraw its fighters from Syria and end its involvement in the fighting alongside regime forces which would contribute to removing Lebanon from the situation in Syria,” it said.
The MPs also asked the president and the PM-designate to swiftly form a Cabinet to end the ongoing paralysis in order to stop “the economic and financial downturn.”
The bloc, which has been highly critical of the Syrian regime, said the deal between Russia and the U.S. with respect to Syria’s chemical weapons was a step in the right direction to rid the region from the threat of such weapons.
“The bloc considers the deal between Russia and the U.S., which requires Syria to hand over its chemical weapons as a good first step to rid the Middle East of such weapons including Israel's own stockpile,” it said.
It also criticized the international community's “inability” to take measures against the alleged use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime on its citizens, saying: “The international community, in general, and Russia and the U.S., in particular, are asked to provide clear and honest answers about the fate of the criminals who killed their people."
“The chemical weapons, that the Syrian people were burdened with under the pretext striking a strategic balance against Israel's nuclear arsenal, were surrendered due to international pressure, for the sake of preserving the regime,” the statement said.

Syrian man killed by bomb in apartment outside Beirut

The Daily Star /BEIRUT: A Syrian man was killed Tuesday when a bomb exploded in his rented apartment in Halat, north of Beirut, the Army said. A security source told The Daily Star the man, 28, was a Syrian intelligence officer who had been in Lebanon for six months. Moussa Mustafa Ibrahim Al-Ali was killed as a result of a bomb which the military said contained an estimated 250 grams of explosive material. The military police launched an investigation into the incident which occurred at 11 a.m. Al-Ali’s wife, her friend and his brother who were found inside the man’s apartment when police arrived at the scene, were held for interrogation, the source said.
Military Prosecutor Saqr Saqr examined the site of the explosion at Al-Ali’s apartment and the body. “We are waiting for the bomb expert to confirm the type of incident but we don't have anything tangible,” Saqr told reporters as he stepped out the flat. “There is a smell of gunpowder in the room where the body was found,” he added.

Aoun says Siniora approved Hezbollah telecoms grid

September 17, 2013/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: MP Michel Aoun said Tuesday politicians opposing Hezbollah’s telecommunications network are the ones who helped establish the grid in the first place, adding that a solution should be provided to avoid violence.
“Marwan Hamadeh, Elias Murr and Fouad Siniora were in the government when the network was installed,” Aoun told reporters after the weekly meeting of his Change and Reform bloc.
“Who continued in the government on the basis of keeping the network? Whoever helped install this network is opposing it now,” he said.
The controversy surrounding Hezbollah’s telecommunications network resurfaced this week after residents of the eastern town of Zahle protested the party’s alleged attempt to install a section of the grid Sunday night.
“Those who were in a position of power when the network was installed should provide solutions so we could prevent May 5 and May 7 events,” Aoun said.
In May 2008, street clashes erupted between Hezbollah members and gunmen in parties opposing the party’s telecoms network after the government threatened to stop its construction.
Hezbollah fighters took over parts of West Beirut and the network continued operation.
Aoun also spoke about the rising number of Syrian refugees and said his bloc’s proposal to lessen the crisis fell on deaf ears.
"It's as if we are talking to the dead when we propose issues. Why don't they rent the Grand Serail and its courtyard to build refugee camps then they would actually feel there is a crisis?” he said.
MPs in the Change and Reform bloc proposed a draft law to address the rising number of Syrian refugees that includes limiting border access and deporting some refugees to safe areas in Syria.
During his chat with reporters, Aoun also spoke about his meeting with the newly-appointed U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon David Hale last week.
"We met with the new U.S. ambassador and discussed many issues and it seems that there issues that we could easily agree on such as development and topics on sound governance,” the former general said.
“He had a stance in front of the Foreign Relations Committee that extending Parliament’s term was unconstitutional and so it seems we are facing a new phase and we hope it's a positive one,” he added.
On the new deal between Russia and the U.S. to hand over Syria’s chemical weapons, Aoun said Damascus would surrender its stockpile but with certain conditions.
“I predicted that the crisis in Syria would be resolved in an agreement between the U.S. and Russia and today we are seeing the beginning of such an agreement,” Aoun said.
“They began with the most important point which is handing over the chemical weapons and Syria would surrender its only deterrent weapons but not for free, it has the right to negotiate,” he said.

Egypt: Officials say country making progress on democracy
Government defends state of emergency, say it will be lifted as soon as possible
Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—Egyptian officials have been making efforts to win support for the interim government following criticism abroad, including from the US and Europe, of the way former president Mohamed Mursi was ousted at the beginning of July.
Egyptian government spokesman Ihab Badawi said Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates played an important role in explaining to the world what had actually happened in Egypt following the ouster of Mursi.
Badawi told Asharq Al-Awsat that the country was “making great progress in the fight against terrorism in Sinai.” He added that there were a number of economic projects planned by the government because “there was a link between the economic and security situations,” and that he hoped the tourism industry would be revived as it represented one of the main financial resources for Egypt and employs four million Egyptians.
Badawi said “the road map, or the map to the future, was going ahead and was being implemented according to the specified time frame.”
On international level, Badawi said Egypt was subjected to criticism, especially by the US and Europe, following the ouster of Mursi, widely-described as a “military coup” in those countries.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Hazim El-Beblawi denied yesterday that politically-motivated arrests took place in Egypt. He said the instances of civilians being tried in military courts were isolated incidents, which were related to attacks on the armed forces or on military installations.
Beblawi said the extension of the state of emergency in the country was enforced for security reasons because of the recent “acts of terror and violence” in the country, which included the attempt on the life of the interior minister and the killing of 25 soldiers in Rafah. Beblawi said the government was working hard on restoring security and stability, and would remove the state of emergency as soon as possible.
In the meantime, Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Fehmi said during his visit to Russia—scheduled to end Tuesday—that the security operations in Sinai, especially the demolition of tunnels, aimed at ending smuggling operations.
Egyptian minister of social solidarity, Ahmed El-Bura’i, said he met the US Ambassador to Switzerland during his visit to Geneva last week. He said he noted a change in US position on Egypt, especially following recent comments by EU foreign relations chief, Catherine Ashton, about her intention to visit Cairo and that she supported the on-going democratic change in Egypt.

Documenting Decapitation in Syria
Diana Moukalled/Asharq Alawsat
It’s not easy to look away from them. The snapshots are so clear and professional that they rise to the level of beauty, but in the worst of its manifestations.The features are clear. They don’t resemble features taken by a shivering hand or by a cheap technology. This time, HD technology was used to take photos of a slaughter operation carried out by extremist Islamist factions. Time Magazine published the photos after a Western professional photographer managed to take them in Syria. The muffled scream and bulging veins of the bound young man who lied on the floor as they held his head to sink the knife into his neck resembled festivities of ancient eras. There was blood on the perpetrators’ shoes and pants that a few hours earlier had looked fresh and clean. The atrocity is documented using the most professional photography techniques. A few hours before Time Magazine published these photos, French magazine Paris Match published similar photos.
It seems that the poor-quality photos of slaughter which were leaked to us through YouTube and whose quality decreased the impact of their violence have become the core of professional journalism work. It seems that no one hesitates to publish them anymore. Eleven years ago, the world was startled by the footage of the slaughter of American journalist Daniel Pearl by Al-Qaeda members in Pakistan. Back then, the photos were low quality. They were dark. But they were enough to terrorize anyone who saw them. Everyone avoided publishing them and distributing them, but they were leaked via the internet. The West was in shock.
Al-Qaeda found the game of slaughtering in front the camera pleasant. Taking photos was no longer a religious prohibition, as some extremists claimed. There was a torrent of photos of beheadings from Afghanistan, Iraq and Chechnya. I will never forget the photos wthe Taliban distributed showing a teenager forced to behead someone condemned by the group as a spy.
Al-Qaeda’s most violent terrorist, Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi, was the star of photographed slaughtering operations. This led to pattern of stereotyping Muslims as the Western public opinion eyed almost all Muslims as a bunch of decapitators. The act of beheading in the name of Islam reached the streets of London a few months ago, and it was also documented by photos.
This atrocity was committed between Afghanistan and Iraq. It became a “thing” in Syria less than two years ago. Each slaughtering operation turned the public blind from seeing the thousands of regime victims. The brutality of photographed slaughter exceeded that of murder by explosives or chemicals.
The paradox today is that Western media, which used to avoid publishing these photos and criticized those who did, no longer evades them. Here, it is documenting them and publishing them during the peak of the global controversy over a proposed military strike against Bashar Al-Assad’s regime. Paris Match published the photos of the decapitation to tell the Western public that this is what awaits us if we intervene in Syria.

The Question that Became an Initiative
Ali Ibrahim/Asharq Alawsat
The massive diplomatic wave, which as we can see today is moving from one world capital to another, passing through Syria into Iran, began with a question from a female journalist during a September 9 joint press conference in London between the US Secretary of State and the British Foreign Secretary. The journalist’s question was whether there is anything Bashar Al-Assad could do to avert the military strike that the US President had asked Congress to authorize. In what initially seemed like a slip of the tongue, John Kerry said if Assad were to turn over all his chemical weapons to the international community within the week, he could avert the strike, before adding that Assad would not do this. The US State Department attempted to minimize the impact of Kerry’s remarks by saying that it was a hypothetical answer to a hypothetical question.
However, what initially seemed like a slip of a tongue, or a hypothetical answer to an innocuous question, proved to have more to it than that during the hours and days that followed. Moscow picked up on the brief answer and turned it into an initiative which was—to the astonishment of many, including Washington’s own allies—immediately approved by the Syrian authorities in Damascus. This culminated in marathon negotiations between the US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov over three days in Geneva. These negotiations produced a thorough initiative that has granted all sides vital breathing space—even if it has yet to prove that it can be implemented on the ground—particularly given the fact that the drums of war were beating.
It is hard to believe that this initiative that quickly gathered momentum—something that is unprecedented in international diplomacy—among parties who were on the verge of entering into a confrontation was a mere coincidence triggered by a seemingly innocent question during a press conference. It is also difficult not to link this initiative, which remains the subject of controversy and different interpretations, to the discussions between the US and Russian presidents at the G20 Summit in Russia, or indeed to any previous discussions. This is something that became obvious yesterday following the talks held by Western powers in Paris.
Is the US-Russian agreement a step forward or a step into the unknown? This is something that will only be answered in the coming days, particularly following the forthcoming UN General Assembly session and the second round of US-Russian talks. We don’t yet know whether Washington and Moscow will be able to open the door to Geneva II negotiations on the transition process in Syria.
Hoping that military strikes on the Assad regime forces that have recently made gains on the ground would tip the balance of power in their favor, the Syrian opposition appear to be the biggest losers in this chemical agreement. However, on the other hand, they can benefit from this agreement if they view it as being the first international agreement compelling the Syrian regime, under the threat of force, to take measures that demand the deployment of inspectors and experts on the ground to dismantle Assad’s chemical stockpiles. As a result of this, the Assad regime will not be able to mobilize its forces and continue shelling in light of the practical steps that this agreement entails on the ground.
This prompts us to say that if Geneva II is to take place—whether in Geneva or anywhere else—to discuss the Syrian crisis, the Syrian opposition must not miss the opportunity to participate and put the Assad regime to the test regarding the transfer of power. The Syrian regime’s main allies will not be able to cover Assad’s procrastination, particularly now that the UN report has confirmed that a war crime has been committed in terms of the use of sarin gas against civilians, while the type of weapons used to deploy this gas points the finger at the regime.
The US-Russian agreement to dismantle the Syrian regime’s chemical stockpiles has set Assad a time limit. However, on the other hand, it reflects a growing restlessness on the part of Russia and Iran who have opened the door to the implementation of Chapter VII of the UN charter, allowing the use of force if Syria fails to comply with its obligations.

The Syrian helicopter flight over Turkey fabricated first Assad obstacle to chemical weapons handover

DEBKAfile Special Report September 17, 2013/Syrian Prime Minister Waal al-Khalqi knew what he was talking about when he said Monday, Sept. 16 that the Assad regime had plenty more assets up its sleeve for harming Israel and achieving strategic balance - even after surrendering its chemical weapons to international control. The Russian ships already on their way to Syria loaded with munitions for Bashar Assad’s army demonstrate the justice of his words.
Indeed the Syrian ruler would not have agreed to let go of his chemical arsenal without being certain of two major hindrances and two big rewards:
1. Syria’s chemical arsenal cannot be destroyed in its entirety - only a very small part thereof. Like most of the rhetoric surrounding the issue, the pledge the OPCW chairman Ahmet Uzumcu of Turkey gave the UN Secretary - that “the organization will move swiftly to eliminate Syria’s chemical weapon stockpile” – is more hot air than substance.
The Organization for the Prevention of Chemical Weapons – OPCW – is a small outfit which lacks the manpower and funds for this Herculean task; America alone is competent to perform it. It goes without saying that the Obama administration is not in the business of deploying thousands of US military personnel on the ground – even if Moscow and Damascus were amenable.
Washington might conceivably agree to train international personnel in the dismantling of chemical weapons. But that too would take a year or more. Special Syrian rebel units under US-Jordanian command have been taught how to handle chemical weapons in Jordan, but Assad is hardly likely to let them set foot in the country.
2. The second obstacle was concocted by the Assad regime Monday, by sending an M-17 transport helicopter usable as a gunship against ground targets into Turkish air space. The Turkish Air Force downed the intruder over the southern Malatya region after it failed to heed several warnings, although the helicopter could have been forced to land in Turkey or chased back across the border.
The Turks therefore fell into the trap laid at their feet by Assad. The incident sent border tensions into a violent tailspin, and provided Damascus and Moscow with the pretext for backing out of the chemical weapons deal under the oversight of an international organization, so long as OPCW was headed by a Turkish official, who is moreover, a close friend of Turkey's anti-Assad Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.
2. Before consenting to dismantling his poison gas arsenal, Assad obtained Moscow’s promise in advance, according to debkafile’s intelligence sources, to send his army without delay large consignments of advanced weapons systems.
Those shipments are presented as compensating the Syrian government for the loss of its chemical option against the Syrian rebels. In fact, Assad comes out of the US-Russian deal not only fortified militarily, but holding a long-life guarantee. Part of his chemical stockpile will remain available to his armed forces and at the same time, they hit the jackpot for top-line items in the Russian armory.
3. This long-life guarantee was also cemented by the accord US Secretary of State John Kerry signed with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Geneva Saturday, Sept. 14. The monitoring and destruction of his chemical stockpiles will certainly be protracted. As long as the process drags on, Assad is assured of staying in power, as the only party capable of bringing it to fruition, however slim that prospect is. Without him, the US-Russian accord is dead and buried.
The report published by the UN chemical experts Monday offered nothing new that was not unknown about his regime’s culpability of the Aug. 21, attack. It did not bother Assad one whit.
It is therefore hard to see the point of Israel Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon’s remarks that the US-Russian deal for Syria “proved that a credible threat of force could bring about diplomatic solutions for disarming dangerous rogue regimes of weapons of mass destruction.”
The Geneva accord merely laid the ground for a Western PR campaign under the tutelage of John Kerry to demonstrate a false breakthrough for ending the barbaric Syrian war. However, on the ground, nothing has changed; the war continues with unparalleled savagery and the threats to its neighbors from Syria and the Lebanese Hizballah are still in force.