LCCC ENGLISH
DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
June 20/07
Bible Reading of the day
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 5,43-48. You have heard
that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'But I say
to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be
children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the
good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust. For if you love those
who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors do the
same? And if you greet your brothers only, what is unusual about that? Do not
the pagans do the same? So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Free Opinions
A Lebanese Gaza-By:Zuheir Kseibati-
Dar Al-Hayat.
June 20/07
Go General!-By:Ghassan
Charbel.Dar Al-Hayat. June 20/07
If Lebanon becomes a failed state again, failed leadership will be to
blame-Daily Star. June 20/07
Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources
for June 20/06/07
Homemade Bomb Being Prepared by Militants Blows Up, Killing 2,
Wounding 3.-Naharnet
Landmine Wounds
Zimbabwe Demining Expert in South.-Naharnet
Former U.N. Official
Says Rocketing Israel is 'Contracting Work.-Naharnet
Security Council, Ban
Slam Rocket Attack on Israel.-Naharnet
Syria: No secret peace talks with Israel-Houston
Chronicle
Russia reportedly plans to supply advanced MiG-31 warplanes to Syria.Jewish
Telegraphic Agency
Syria's Poison Pill-Huffington Post
Security Council press statement on Lebanon-ReliefWeb
(press release)
WFP delivers Saudi dates to WFP beneficiaries in Syria-ReliefWeb
(press release)
Fears the Midle East is slipping toward war-Scripps
News
Militant group claims rocket attack on
Israel-Daily Star
Moussa aims to 'reconcile' feuding Lebanese leaders-Daily
Star
Army says its has Fatah al-Islam cornered-Daily
Star
Rizk receives 12 nominees for spots on Hariri
tribunal-Daily Star
Aoun calls on FPM activists to prepare for
by-elections-Daily Star
Philippines trying to keep nationals away-Daily
Star
Jumblatt: Rockets aimed to renew war with Israel-Daily
Star
NGO urges by-elections 'as soon as possible'-Daily
Star
Italy starts four projects to assist displaced-Daily
Star
Czech Republic donates $140,000 to refugees-Daily
Star
Kuwait sends aid to help Palestinians-Daily
Star
Palestinian refugees in Lebanon vow to resist spread
of Gaza infighting-Daily Star
Lebanese Army, UNIFIL on full alert after rocket fire
into Israel-Daily Star
Lebanon plunges in annual index of 'Failed States'-Daily
Star
Lebanon's economic woes don't deter
private equity companies-Daily Star
Security Council, Ban Slam
Rocket Attack on Israel
The U.N. Security Council on Monday strongly condemned a weekend rocket attack
on northern Israel and reaffirmed its support for the Lebanese government.
"The Security Council strongly condemned the rocket attack" on the northern
Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona on Sunday, it said in a statement.
The rocket fire "constitutes a serious breach of the cessation of hostilities
and a flagrant violation of" Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the
34-day war between Israel and Hizbullah last summer. "Council members reaffirmed
their full support to the Lebanese government and army in their efforts to
ensure security and stability throughout Lebanon," added the statement read out
by Belgium's U.N. ambassador, this month's council chair.
The 15-member council again urged all parties concerned "to exercise utmost
restraint."It further urged all parties to respect the U.N.-drawn boundary
between Israel and Lebanon, known as the Blue Line, and to support the U.N.
peacekeeping force that monitors the region.
Earlier Monday, U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon also strongly deplored the rocket attack
which he said aimed "to destabilize the situation in Lebanon" and reiterated the
importance of fully implementing Resolution 1701.Lebanese troops and U.N.
peacekeepers were on full alert Monday in southern Lebanon a day after militants
fired rockets into Israel for the first time in 10 months.A previously unknown
militant Islamic group claimed responsibility for the attack.
The self-proclaimed group, "the Jihadi Badr Brigades – Lebanon branch," also
vowed in a statement faxed to The Associated Press in Beirut to continue attacks
on Israel.(AFP-AP-Naharnet) (AP photo shows Lebanese soldiers standing at a
checkpoint as an Indonesian U.N. armored vehicle patrols the area in the
southern border village of Adaisseh) Beirut, 19 Jun 07, 07:33
U.N. Investigators to Help Probe Eido's Murder
The Security Council has given a green light to U.N. investigators to help probe
last week's assassination of anti-Syrian lawmaker Walid Eido in a massive car
bombing in Beirut's seaside Manara district.Belgium's U.N. Ambassador Johan
Verbeke, who is the current council president, asked Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
in a letter circulated Monday to inform the Lebanese government and the U.N.
commission investigating the assassination of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri of its
approval.
Prime Minister Fouad Saniora sent a letter to Ban last Thursday asking the
International Independent Investigation Commission to provide technical
assistance to the Lebanese investigation into last Wednesday's "heinous
terrorist act" that killed Eido, his son, two bodyguards and six bystanders.
In his letter informing Ban of the council's approval, Verbeke said the Security
Council is "determined to continue to assist the government of Lebanon in the
search for the truth and to bring to justice perpetrators, organizers and
sponsors of that terrorist attacks and assassinations committed in Lebanon since
October 2004."
The Council asked the commission led by Belgian prosecutor Serge Brammertz "to
extend appropriate technical assistance to the Lebanese authorities in the
investigation" of Eido's killing. Last week, U.N. officials announced that Ban
plans to keep Brammertz as head of the U.N. probe into the Hariri murder until
next December. Brammertz on Friday visited the scene of the blast that killed
Eido near Beirut's popular seafront promenade. A team of U.N. experts was
expected in Beirut soon to survey the bombing site. The commission is also
providing technical assistance to Lebanese authorities in 16 other cases,
including the November assassination of Industry Minister Pierre
Gemayel.(AP-Naharnet) Beirut, 19 Jun 07, 07:47
Source:
United Nations Security Council
Date: 18 Jun 2007
SC/9049
The following Security Council press statement on Lebanon was read out today by
Council President Johan Verbeke ( Belgium):
The members of the Security Council strongly condemned the rocket attack
launched against Israel from southern Lebanon on 17 June 2007, which constitutes
a serious breach of the cessation of hostilities and a flagrant violation of
resolution 1710 (2006).
The members of the Security Council noted the condemnation of this attack by the
Government of Lebanon, and commended the determination and commitment of the
Government of Lebanon to bring to justice the perpetrators of this attack.
The members of the Security Council reaffirmed their full support to the
Lebanese Government and army in their efforts to ensure security and stability
throughout Lebanon. They reiterated their call upon all parties concerned to
respect the Blue Line in its entirety and to exercise utmost restraint, and
underlined the need for full implementation of Security Council resolution 1701
(2006), including through the full support to the United Nations Interim Force
in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in carrying out its mandate.
Aoun calls on FPM activists to prepare for by-elections
Daily Star staff
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
BEIRUT: Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun called on party activists
on Monday to prepare "technically" for by-elections in Beirut and Metn and
stressed the need to establish a unity government. "We will respond positively
to the by-elections and to any popular referendum," Aoun said after a regular
weekly meeting of his Reform and Change parliamentary bloc.
"We cannot be against by-elections," he said. "But while preparing to hold those
elections we should work simultaneously on establishing a national unity
government.
"With the formation of a national unity government, the constitutional obstacle
will be overcome and then the by-elections will be legal. A national unity
government is the starting point to conducting any dialogue," Aoun said. Aoun
said hampering the establishment of such a government would mean "dragging the
country into clashes" which, he said, "we have always resisted." "A national
unity government is a great necessity because its absence might create
emptiness," he said.
Aoun added that the French initiative to renew dialogue between Lebanon's
divided political camps was still being discussed. French Foreign Ministry envoy
Jean-Claude Cousseran met with a number of Lebanese political leaders last week
to invite them to attend a roundtable meeting in Paris to rebuild trust between
rival political factions. "We are not the ones trying to impede France's
initiative," Aoun said. Commenting on the two Katyusha rockets fired from South
Lebanon into Israel on Sunday, Aoun said the "launching of rockets is an attempt
to destabilize the country."
"But the current security situation should not prevent us from creating a
national unity government," Aoun said. The two rockets fell on the Israeli town
of Kiryat Shmona and caused no casualties. A third rocket failed to cross the
border. Earlier in the day, Aoun met with US Ambassador Jeffrey Feltman to
discuss the latest developments in the country. Feltman did not comment on the
meeting. -The Daily Star
If Lebanon becomes a failed state again, failed leadership will be to blame
By The Daily Star
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Editorial
This year, a number of independently produced studies and reports have painted a
worrisome picture of the state of affairs in Lebanon, a country that more and
more observers view as increasingly precarious. The most recent of these was a
private survey carried out by analysts for Foreign Policy magazine and the Fund
for Peace that ranked Lebanon among the countries in the world that are most
vulnerable to collapse or conflict. This year's rankings, which were published
on Sunday, saw Lebanon plunge from its spot in the "Warning" category of states
and enter the most troubled tier: the "Alert" zone, a league of conflict-ridden
countries that includes Iraq, Sudan and Somalia. Moreover, Lebanon's slide
downward on the scale toward failure was more pronounced than that of any other
country in the world.
Who or what is to blame for the fact that Lebanon is once again rapidly on its
way to becoming a basket case? Certainly one must acknowledge the role that
Israel's 2006 war against Lebanon played in fueling instability in this country.
Indeed, the report's authors acknowledge that events such as natural and
man-made disasters can cause a state's demise. However, they add that of all the
factors that can cause state failure "few are as decisive or as deadly as bad
leadership."
In this respect, each and every member of Lebanon's political class is to blame
for setting this country on the course toward collapse. Yes, the war with Israel
created problems, but the leaders of Lebanon have compounded those
"difficulties" and transformed them into an utter disaster. This applies equally
to the leaders of the ruling coalition, who have foolishly turned a deaf ear to
the voices of Lebanese who reject their legitimacy, and to the leaders of the
opposition, who have acted as though they have the right to force their agenda
on all the citizenry. Leaders on both sides of the political divide are guilty
of playing solely to their respective supporting audiences and ignoring everyone
else. Not one has risen to the challenge of being a leader for all the Lebanese.
But even though bad leadership has played a central role in contributing to
Lebanon's precarious situation, it is the citizens of this country who are being
made to pay the price of the multiple failures of the political class. It is
they whose businesses are losing money, whose jobs are in jeopardy, whose loan
payments are overdue, and whose children's school fees are looking increasingly
unaffordable. Whatever their personal opinions, few of them could have
adequately accounted for the paralyzing impasse that has been brought on by
their political leaders' shared predilections for hubris and maximalism.
The Fund for Peace report's authors also point out that "effective leadership
can pull a country back from the brink." Since this is self-evidently true, the
next generation of historians will probably look back on this current crossroads
and say that it represented a crucial moment of truth in which the leadership
abilities of the Lebanese political class were tested. Unless our leaders start
showing a sense of responsibility, the historians are likely to conclude that
they failed miserably.
Homemade Bomb Being Prepared
by Militants Blows Up, Killing 2, Wounding 3
An explosion ripped through a tire shop in the southern Palestinian refugee camp
of Ain al-Hilweh as extremist militants of Jund al-Sham tried to prepare a bomb,
killing two people and wounding three. Lebanese security officials said the late
Monday afternoon blast went off as some of Jund al-Sham members were extracting
TNT from a 107 mm shell, apparently to use it in making a bomb. Among those
lightly wounded was a leader of Jund al-Sham, Shehadeh Jawhar, according to
residents and Abu Sharif, the officials said. Residents said the two dead men
were the shop owner -- Jawhar's uncle -- and his nephew.
Also wounded was a Lebanese man named Mohammed Ghuneim, whose brother, Shadi,
has been held for months in Saudi Arabia for suspected links with al-Qaida, the
security officials said. However, Palestinian sources said the two men died when
a bomb hidden in a tire exploded. A number of small, little known Islamic
militant groups proclaiming a jihadist (holy war) ideology have arisen in recent
years in Lebanon's Palestinian refugee camps, which have long been home to
numerous Palestinian militias. Jund al-Sham, which is Arabic for Soldiers of
al-Sham -- an old Arabic word for the region of Syria, Lebanon and Jordan -- is
a splinter group from another Palestinian militant group called Asbat al-Ansar
based in Ain al-Hilweh.
Jund al-Sham's fighters battled Lebanese troops earlier this month, killing two
soldiers, as the army fought Fatah al-Islam terrorists in the northern
Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared. Another group using the name Jund
al-Sham has carried out attacks in Syria, seeking to topple its secular regime,
but it is not known whether it is connected to the Ain al-Hilweh group.(AFP file
photo shows a Palestinian Islamic militant of a joint force of various factions
of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), pro-Syrian groups and Islamist
movements, secures a street in Ain al-Hilweh.) Beirut, 19 Jun 07, 07:23
Former U.N. Official Says
Rocketing Israel is 'Contracting Work'
Timur Goksel, former senior adviser to the U.N. peacekeeping force's commander,
said he believes the rocket attack into northern Israel was a "contracting
work."
"This is one of the local sympathizer groups, somebody paid money. This is sort
of solidarity attack with Fatah al-Islam," said Goksel, who also served with the
U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon for two decades as spokesman. He noted
that attacks with small rockets like Sunday's are difficult to stop. The rockets
can be easily transported and need no launcher. "You need a donkey and two
Katyushas and you can start a conflict in southern Lebanon," he said.
Two rockets fired from Lebanon landed Sunday in northern Israel, causing damage
but no casualties, in the first such incident since last summer's war between
Israel and Hizbullah.(AP-Naharnet) Beirut, 19 Jun 07, 09:25
Landmine Wounds Zimbabwe
Demining Expert in South
A land mine left over from last summer's war between Israel and Hizbullah has
wounded a Zimbabwe demining expert.
The state-run National News Agency on Monday said Mertzi Zouzi, from Zimbabwe,
was working for the U.N. Mine Action Coordination Center near the southern town
of Jezzine, some 35 kilometers from the Israeli border, when a mine he was
attempting to secure went off. It said he suffered serious injuries to a
shoulder and to one eye, and was rushed for treatment at a hospital in the port
city of Sidon. Separately, security officials in Beirut said Lebanese troops
dismantled Monday two unexploded rockets also left over since last summer's war
in the town of Bayada near the southern port city of Tyre. The Lebanese
officials said the two rockets were shoulder-fired anti-tank projectiles that
were found by a villager as he cleared the rubble of a collapsed wall. The
United Nations and human rights groups charge Israel dropped about 4 million
cluster bomblets during the summer fighting. U.N. ordinance clearing experts say
that up to 1 million failed to explode and now endanger civilians in the zone.
Lebanese authorities and the U.N. have also repeatedly called on Israel to hand
over a map of the land mines it planted in southern Lebanon during its previous
occupation of the region, which ended in 2000.(AP-Naharnet) Beirut, 19 Jun 07,
08:37
A Lebanese Gaza
Zuheir Kseibati Al-Hayat - 18/06/07//
Lebanon is at the risk of becoming another Gaza. Although people do not believe
or understand Hamas's vow to adhere to the Mecca Agreement after what this
movement did to bring down the unity government with Fatah, the fate that the
Palestinian Cause has come to because of the Palestinians and their two
legitimacies makes many dark clouds loom on the horizon for the Lebanese people
and their different legitimacies.
In Lebanon, they are doomed to a conflict between two governments, in which case
they had better bid the country's unity farewell. What is terrifying is a
relative comparison between how "easily" the battle in Gaza has been wrapped up
and Hamas took control of the Strip on the one hand and the frightening idea of
any similar scenario starting in Beirut. This scenario would begin with the
formation of another government opposed to the one led by Fouad Siniora, which
President Emile Lahoud no longer considers as legitimate, nor does the
opposition. The latter, for its part, insists on refusing dialogue unless
priority is given to "participation". How will the authorities fragment? And
what does the future hold for the institutions and indeed for the constitution?
How can presidential elections be carried out? More importantly, who can
guarantee that the political division will not turn into street clashes?
"Either kill or get killed," as Walid Jumblatt, President of the Progressive
Socialist Party (PSP), said after the murder of MP Walid Eido. This phrase is
the title of a new stage in Lebanon, where the confrontation is escalating at
the internal level and with regard to the Syrian borders issue.
This confrontation will not be a mere political front to pelt one another with
accusations and deny recognition, as opponents, or at least most of them, will
do to those that will be elected to replace Minister and MP Pierre Gemayel and
MP Eido. These opponents, especially Hezbollah, know that now that any chance of
dialogue has been ruled out, there is enough congestion nationwide to produce
many sparks on the streets whenever any friction is invented to challenge the
by-elections due on August 5. Everyone knows, as well, that the opposition's
attempt to overthrow Siniora's government on the streets, as Hamas did with
President Mahmoud Abbas's authority in Gaza, will push Lebanon toward a chaotic
and nationwide division with the traits of a replicable absurd model.
Meanwhile, no one is calculating the main costs of a big explosion based, as is
the case with Iraq, on resentment along with sectarian and confessional
fragmentation. Whose interests will be served? Who will benefit from this
violent destabilization on the Iraqi-Palestinian-Lebanese front? This is
certainly no coincidence. It is well-known that a decision has been taken to
change the conflict's givens in the region and, therefore, speed up
confrontations. Likewise, one can include this destabilization into a regional
theatre, where pressures on Iran, which is being threatened with more sanctions
and a war, are mounting, and Syria feels it is being targeted even more after
the adoption of the International Tribunal to look into the murder of PM Rafik
al-Hariri.
In Gaza, people are wondering who is behind the attempt to abort the Mecca
Agreement. In Lebanon, on the other hand, the question is: Are these the final
days of the Taif Agreement and Resolution 1701, now that everyone is choosing
either to put an end to the country's unity or oust Siniora from the government
palace after the failure of the battle of disrupting the tribunal? Now, it is no
use discussing who would acknowledge a possible Lahoud-formed government from
abroad. At the same time, making Lebanon's internal affairs more international
(like the loyalists' request for protection through international forces) is not
an option easily within reach. Expectations stem from Hamas's threats against
such internationalization in Gaza, which is turning into an illegitimate entity
for the international community.
These are really dark clouds, while the chances of successfully betting on the
French endeavors to revive the Lebanese dialogue are equal to hoping that all
the parties of the three fronts will learn the lesson. Meanwhile, most of these
parties are expecting the Arab delegation visiting Beirut tomorrow just to
confirm what the efforts of Amr Moussa, Arab League Secretary General, led to.
In other words, it will demonstrate one more time that a miracle is impossible
as long as there is someone who believes that time for miracles has not yet
come.
Certainly, the Lebanese people will not make a miracle. On the other hand,
something similar to that could have been achieved until the post-July war
period by applying what was agreed upon in the dialogue to reduce regional
repercussions without ignoring the fact that some of these are caused by the
Lebanese themselves. The other side of this fact is that Iran and Syria are
still part of the problem and the solution. Accordingly, it may be possible to
explain the "test" of violent destabilization, either as a reaction to what is
now mistrust in the US, which is just setting conditions for Damascus and
Tehran, or a way to escalate the conflict to prove what Iran calls "the failure
of the US project" in the region.
These two countries are part of the solution and also of the problem that causes
confrontations. These are not in favor of the Palestinians, the Iraqis or the
Lebanese, who are still addicted to the game of regional interests and change of
fortunes, even if this ends up bringing down a State and risks ruining a country
Go General!
Ghassan Charbel Al-Hayat - 18/06/07//
The General had a terrible night. They burst into his room without permission.
They sneaked into under his eyelids and then into his dreams. He knows them as
well as he knows his price; they were soldiers who were killed in Nahr el-Bared
and whose camouflaged uniform was stained with their bloods. An officer returned
wrapped in a flag to the soil of his homeland. A mother who had been waiting for
her son to return to wed but he returned borne in a coffin. A wife had been
waiting for her knight in shining armor but he returned laid down in a coffin
with medals hanging on it. There were kids who were playing I front of soldiers
playing the song of death; they were unaware that they had been awarded the
medal of orphanage.
It was a hard night. They came to him without any prior arrangement. Rafik
Hariri was carrying a shrine and a capital, Bassel Fleihan carrying files and
figures, Samir Kassir pens and inkwells, George Hawi a scream and history,
Gebran Tueini daylight and an oath, and Pierre Amin Gemayel was carrying a flag
and a rock. Walid Eido also came; he was carrying his son while his and his
son's livers were bleeding. Among those present also were Marwan Hamadeh, Elias
el-Murr and May Chidiac.
The meeting did not have an agenda; it was a talk from heart to heart. There are
some who say that the visitors agreed on a single point: to accept what had
happened to them on a condition that their blood is not shed in vain. They
consider that keeping Lebanon united, democratic, free and Arab is enough
compensation for the injustice they were done. They repeated in rotation that
there was nothing more important than the homeland and that nothing had a
meaning in absence of it. When they left he had made his mind. He heard a voice
calling deep inside him: leave Mr. General.
A homeland rarely needs a man. When it needs him, it gives him the chance to
join the club of the great saviors, a club endowed with a status higher than the
club of presidents and politicians. It is a club of those whose names are
engraved in the book of history when they are gone. Then they grow in books like
deep-rooted, lofty trees whose shadows protect the generations to come.
Early the next morning, the General summons representatives of the media. His
aides get confused, as he did not tell them about it or share anything with
them. In front of cameras, he read the reporters a brief statement: "Presidency
has no meaning in a country that is desecrated. Republic has no meaning in a
lost country. Now is the time to save the country and the republic. Now is the
time of sacrifice. Because I am a soldier before I am a politician, I declare
that I will not run for presidency. At the same time, I launch the battle to
save the country and the republic from the scenario of desecration and
sectarianism."
A little later, his car moves away. The guards feel confused toward a visitor
without an arranged appointment. He enters the palace and tells Emile Lahoud
frankly: "this is the Palace of the Republic. Its seals belong to the people. By
virtue of what I have of morale credit and popular mandate, I ask you to
consider yourself in an open vacation pending an agreement between the Lebanese
people on a president. I heard that you threaten to recall your conscience, and
I warn you against it."
From far away, his procession moves toward Qoreytem. Saad Hariri interrupts a
meeting to receive the visitor. A few minutes ago, his aides told him about the
details of the press conference and the statement that had a De Gaulle-like
nature. The General tells the chief of Qoreytem: "your father was not martyred
to lose the country. Your father used to say that the country was more important
than its statesmen. The truth will be lost if the country is lost. It will come
too late. What is now required, immediately, is a president who can speak to the
Lebanese people and re-unite them, a president who is not waiting for someone
else to regain the republic and the country."
From Qoreytem to the Southern Suburb; the head of the Resistance receives the
visitor General with embraces. The General says: "the Lebanese people bend in
respect to the sacrifices of the Resistance. They are sacrifices for the
homeland. What will remain of the Resistance and its credit and weapons if a
civil war breaks outor the country is lost? What is required now is a president
who would fight against the winds of sectarianism and protect the country and
the republic."
The General continues his tour toward Moukhtara, Bikfaya, Bzemmar, Ain el-Tinrh,
Bkerke, Dar al-Fatwa and the Higher Shiite Islamic Council.
The General goes in all directions. The country deserves these sacrifices and
risks. The next morning, the opposition withdraws from the Riad al-Solh Square.
General Lahoud gives a farewell speech. Speaker Nabih Berry gets his hammer out
of his pocket. The MPs elect a president who could be entrusted with the palace,
the republic, the country and the people. Consultations begin to form a national
unity government. The General has saved the republic!
That was a dream of one of al-Hayat readers who sent it to me and I published
it. May God forgive him
Lebanon plunges in annual index of 'Failed States'
Divided elites steer country on path toward collapse
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Introduction:
In the third annual "Failed States" index issued on Sunday, analysts for the
Fund for Peace, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to conflict resolution,
and Foreign Policy magazine ranked Lebanon as the world's 28th most failing
state.
The report said that the war in Lebanon last summer helped undo nearly two
decades of economic and political progress. Israeli air strikes drove more than
700,000 Lebanese from their homes and caused an estimated $2.8 billion in damage
to the country's infrastructure. A political crisis has led to deadlock within
the Lebanese government, and the country's economy remains weak.
However, according to the report, Lebanon was already vulnerable to such
backsliding because its political and security structures lacked integrity and
remained tensely divided by factionalized elites. These vulnerabilities not only
helped lead to a regression in the country's development, but they had effects
throughout the region - including Israel, Jordan and Syria. The report again
underscores that a country's problems are never simply its own.
The Failed States Index includes 177 states. According to the Fund for Peace Web
site, "a state that is failing has several attributes," which the report
describes in detail:
"One of the most common is the loss of physical control of its territory or a
monopoly on the legitimate use of force. Other attributes of state failure
include the erosion of legitimate authority to make collective decisions, an
inability to provide reasonable public services, and the inability to interact
with other states as a full member of the international community.
"The 12 indicators cover a wide range of elements of the risk of state failure,
such as extensive corruption and criminal behavior, inability to collect taxes
or otherwise draw on citizen support, large-scale involuntary dislocation of the
population, sharp economic decline, group-based inequality, institutionalized
persecution or discrimination, severe demographic pressures, brain drain, and
environmental decay. States can fail at varying rates through explosion,
implosion, erosion, or invasion over different time periods."
The Daily Star has below published the entire portion of the report relating to
Lebanon.
The Report
Overview
Smaller than the state of Connecticut, Lebanon is located between Israel and
Syria. France granted the area independence in 1943. Lebanon's many religious
sects include Shiite, Sunni, Druze, Ismaili, and Alawite Muslims (roughly 60
percent of the population), and Maronite, Greek Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox,
Syrian Catholic, Armenian Catholic, Syrian Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Chaldean,
Assyrian, Copt, and Protestant Christians (around 40 percent of the population).
Ninety-five percent of Lebanese are Arab, 4 percent are Armenian, and 1 percent
other, although many Christian Lebanese identify themselves as Phoenicians
rather than Arabs. A 15-year sectarian Civil War devastated the country from
1975 until 1991, but Lebanon has made progress toward rebuilding its political
institutions, until the July 2006 war ... [with] Israel exposed the fragility of
the state.
The Taif Accord, a blueprint for national reconciliation, ended the Civil War
but institutionalized sectarian divisions in the government, which means that
Lebanon continues to struggle with the legacy of these problems. The population
is 3.8 million and the GDP per capita is $6,000.
Social Indicators
There are high scores for group grievances because the Civil War and
intermittent violence between Hizbullah and Israel have left many groups with
deep and lingering animosity. Sectarian identity is institutionalized - for
example, religious affiliation is indicated on national identity cards.
Many Shiites believe they are not well represented in the government, especially
given their status as Lebanon's largest constituency. The Islamist militia and
political party, Hizbullah, has broad support amongst the Shiite, who view this
"Party of God" as their major defender in an inequitable political system.
After the assassination of Rafik Hariri in February 2005, Hizbullah strongly
supported Syria's presence and opposed the "Cedar Revolution" that resulted in
Syria's withdrawal. Pro-Syrian terrorist groups are suspected of detonating five
bombs in predominantly Christian suburbs in the run-up to parliamentary
elections in May and April 2005.
There are also over 400,000 Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. Most are unable to
obtain citizenship and are subject to governmental and societal discrimination.
Their presence is controversial, and resisted by large segments of the Christian
population, who argue that they dilute the number of Christians. Many Shiite
Muslims look unfavorably upon the Palestinian presence since refugee camps are
located in their already crowded southern neighborhoods. There are also
non-Palestinian refugees from Iraq, Somalia and Sudan. These groups are
vulnerable to exploitation and expulsion by authorities.
Adding to these problems are over 300,000 internally displaced persons,
primarily from Shiite communities in Southern Lebanon, that have been the focus
of Israeli security operations. Frequent fighting between Israel and Hizbullah,
especially in 2006, in this area adds to the strain on the population and many
Shiite resettled in hastily constructed slums south of Beirut. Many Christians
have fled Lebanon to Europe, Latin America, and the United States.
Economic Indicators
Uneven economic development parallels sectarian identity and contributes to
political tensions. Notably, the Shiites have been neglected and impoverished.
The 1975-91 Civil War seriously damaged Lebanon's economic infrastructure and
ended Lebanon's position as a Middle Eastern economic hub.
Lebanon has rebuilt much of its war-torn physical and financial infrastructure
by borrowing. In an attempt to reduce the swelling national debt, which stands
at nearly 170 percent of GDP, the Rafik Hariri government tried to restrain
government expenditures, increase revenue collection, and privatize state
enterprises. However, after Hariri's assassination, the economy took a downward
turn and has not reversed, and political instability has kept tourism low since
2004.
Political/Military
Indicators
During the Civil War, Syria occupied Lebanon with military troops. The
assassination of Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in February 2005 led to massive
demonstrations against the Syrian presence and culminated in the withdrawal of
Syrian forces in April 2005. The scores for legitimacy of the state improved
with the Syrian withdrawal and fair elections in Spring 2005.
However, Hizbullah operates as a "state within a state." It holds a large
quantity of weapons and controls a lot of territory, and its civilian arm
provides services, such as hospitals and schools, that the government is unable
to offer to poor Shiite areas. Nonetheless, Hizbullah has managed to join the
legitimate government - the party won a number of representatives during the
parliamentary elections of May 2005, but this only made it impossible to disarm
the militia and prevent violent cross-border attacks by Hizbullah against
Israel.
Human rights scores also improved after the Syrian exodus. Previously, Syrian
forces operating in the country carried out illegal searches, arrests and
detentions. Abuses still occurred in Palestinian refugee camps where rival
Palestinian factions such as Fatah and Asbat al-Nur regularly clashed over
territorial control.
The security apparatus also saw high but improved scores after the Syrian
withdrawal. Prior to that, intelligence and security officers working with the
Syrian government engaged in terrorist attacks on pro-democracy politicians and
journalists.
There are high scores for factionalized elites because the political system
imposed during colonialism privileged the Christian population. The small
Maronite community enjoys great political clout, to the consternation of both
Sunni and Shiite Muslims. In addition to the high scores for external influence
due to Syria's continued meddling and support for Hizbullah, the Lebanese
government also claims the Shebaa Farms area of Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
Core Five State
Institutions
Emile Lahoud has been president since November 24, 1998. In 2004, with Syrian
manipulation, Parliament voted for a constitutional amendment extending his term
for three years. This partly triggered the popular support for Syria's
withdrawal. Prime Minister Fouad Siniora was elected in June 2005, in the first
parliamentary elections in 30 years without Syrian interference. The elections
were mostly free and fair, but somewhat flawed because they were carried out
according to the Syrian-influenced 2000 electoral law. Saad Hariri, Rafik
Hariri's son, is the majority leader in the Lebanese Parliament. The
Constitution mandates that the president be a Maronite Christian, the prime
minister a Sunni Muslim, and the speaker of the legislature a Shiite Muslim.
The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) are composed of an army, navy and air force. The
LAF has significantly reduced the role of confessionalism through universal
conscription. The armed forces have been unable or unwilling, however, to disarm
Hizbullah.
Violent abuse of detainees has occurred at police stations where suspects were
interrogated without an attorney, but this is improving, as Syrian security
forces were responsible for the most serious abuse.
Each recognized religious group has its own courts for family law matters, such
as marriage, divorce, child custody, and inheritance. Many family laws
discriminated against women.
Posts in the civil service are also based on sectarianism, and are distributed
among the 18 recognized religious groups.
Prognosis
The situation in Lebanon is precarious. Hizbullah retains its weapons and
Siniora's government remains weak. ... The July 2006 war with Israel likely
increased Hizbullah's strength and popularity. As of early December 2006,
Hizbullah and another major Shiite party left the government in a boycott.
Now there are no Shiite ministers left in the Cabinet, and this is likely to
increase group grievances. Moreover, there is a fear that sectarian violence in
Iraq will spread throughout the region and ignite long-simmering tensions
between Shiite and Sunnis in Lebanon.
The Lebanese government will have to assert its authority over Hizbullah, and
real progress in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will have to be made, before
true stability in Lebanon can be achieved.
Copyright (C) 2007 The Fund for Peace