For Immediate Release Lebanon

LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
November 20/07

Bible Reading of the day
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 18,35-43. Now as he approached Jericho a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging,
and hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what was happening. They told him, "Jesus of Nazareth is passing by." He shouted, "Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!"The people walking in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent, but he kept calling out all the more, "Son of David, have pity on me!" Then Jesus stopped and ordered that he be brought to him; and when he came near, Jesus asked him, What do you want me to do for you? He replied, "Lord, please let me see." Jesus told him, "Have sight; your faith has saved you." He immediately received his sight and followed him, giving glory to God. When they saw this, all the people gave praise to God.

Releases. Reports & Opinions
Eyes on Nasrallah.By: Dr. Imad Salamey.New Statesman. November 19/07
Study: Many of the Country's Sectarian Differences Do Not Run along a Straight Muslim-Christian Fault Line.by Richard Wike, Senior Researcher, Pew Global Attitudes Project.November 20, 2007
The tragedy of Lebanon. By:Trudy Rubin.Dallas Morning News. November 19/07
For once, some Arab leaders are taking the lead on a major global issue.The Daily Star. November 19/07

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for November 19/07
Aoun For Electing a President After Nov. 24.Naharnet
Nine Candidates Touted for Lebanon's Next President.The Media Line
TIMELINE: French-Lebanese relations.Reuters
Lebanese gripped by fear over election tug-of-war.ReliefWeb (press release
Blocked Lebanon deal angers France's Kouchner.Reuters
France in last-ditch effort to press Lebanon deal.Reuters
After Vetoing Names on Sfeir's List, Lebanon Back at Square One.Naharnet
Rice Phones Leaders as International Pressure Mounts on Feuding Sides-Naharnet
Berri Meets Hariri and Gemayel.Naharnet
Lebanon rivals in talks on president, clock ticks.Reuters
Hariri, Berri Meet, Consensus Not Achieved.Naharnet
Lebanese rivals strive to make compromise on presidential candidate.Xinhua
Syria bans 7 human rights activists from travel abroad, group says.International Herald Tribune
Hezbollah Rebuilds South Beirut.The Associated Press
Assad, Abdullah Stress Need to Reach Compromise President-Naharnet
MP Shehayeb: Hizbullah Out to Change the Regime, and We'll Confront this attempt-Naharnet
Hariri, Berri Meet, Consensus Not Achieved-Naharnet
'New Situation" Makes Kouchner 'Less Confident' Over Solving Impasse-Naharnet
Ethiopian Wins Beirut Marathon-Naharnet
Diplomats scramble to push Lebanon deal, clock ticks.Reuters
Kouchner back in Beirut for last-minute mediation-Daily Star
Sfeir urges highest level of consensus-Daily Star
Philippines allows nationals to return to Lebanon.AFP
Fadlallah insists crisis is political, not sectarian-Daily Star
Ramzi Jreij wins Beirut Bar Association vote-Daily Star
Winograd to blame Olmert for Israeli deaths-Daily Star
UNIFIL withdrawal 'would bring Lebanon's downfall'-Daily Star
Security forces bear down on Beirut for presidential election-Daily Star
Two very different takes on Lebanon's love affair with olive oil-Daily Star
Beirut takes a break from high tension to host marathon-Daily Star
Political uncertainty weighs down Beirut Stock Exchange-Daily Star
OPEC leaders takes cautious approach, promise to keep supplies flowing-Daily Star
Iran refuses to rule out oil as weapon-Daily Star
Fire at Saudi gas pipeline kills at least 28 people.AFP
Abdullah makes unannounced trip to Syria.Jerusalem Post

Blocked Lebanon deal angers France's Kouchner
Mon Nov 19, 2007 7:24 AM EST
By Yara Bayoumy
BEIRUT (Reuters) - France's foreign minister blamed unnamed parties on Monday for blocking a deal between rival Lebanese leaders to agree on a consensus nominee for president, two days before the deadline for a parliamentary vote.
France has been pushing the anti-Syrian majority coalition and the opposition, led by pro-Syrian Hezbollah, towards picking a candidate from a list drafted by the patriarch of the Maronite Christian church to which Lebanese presidents must belong.
"Everybody was agreed (on the process). Everybody said they had agreed. Now I'm amazed, France is amazed, that something is stuck, something is blocked, something is derailed, and I would like everyone to assume their responsibilities," a visibly angry Kouchner said after meeting majority leader Saad al-Hariri.
Kouchner, on his second visit to Lebanon in under a week, also met Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, an opposition leader, to try and avert a crisis that could saddle Lebanon with two rival governments and spark bloodshed.
"I would like to know who is not in agreement. I would like to know who has an interest in chaos, who has an interest in the elections not taking place, who has an interest in making it even more complicated for the life of all the Lebanese," Kouchner said.
With pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud's term ending on November 23, parliament is due to elect a successor on Wednesday but rival leaders have yet to agree a compromise candidate, making it increasingly unlikely that a deal will go through on time.
The presidency is the most contentious issue in a year-long political crisis in which the Hezbollah-led opposition has been locked in confrontation with the Western-backed government.
Kouchner said that even the Syrians had agreed on the French-proposed mechanism for choosing the president.
TALKS HIT SNAG
"I want to know who is blocking and who will take responsibility, but I say to you ... that the one who takes responsibility for having blocked this process agreed by everyone, will carry the responsibility for the destabilization of Lebanon and its regional consequences," he said.
Berri has already postponed the presidential election three times because anti-Syrian majority coalition and opposition leaders failed to agree on a candidate acceptable to both sides. Continued ...
© Reuters 2007. All Rights Reserved.

Nine Candidates Touted for Lebanon's Next President
Written by The Media Line Staff
Published Monday, November 19, 2007
Two days ahead of the parliamentary election session, leaders of the Lebanese coalition and opposition are conducting a series of meeting to try to solve the presidential crisis. On the table now is a list of nine possible candidates, which was submitted by the Maronite Patriarch Na'srallah Butrous Sfeir at the request of French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner last week.
The list has been sent to Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and leader of the coalition Sa'ad Al-Hariri, who met during the weekend, the Lebanese Daily Star reported.
The names on the list have yet to be made public, although many reports agree that the following were included: MP Butrous Harb and former MP Nassib Lahoud, both of the coalition, leader of the opposition Free Patriotic Movement MP Michel Aoun, independent MP Robert Ghanem, Banque du Liban Governor Riad Salameh, former central bank chief Michel Khoury, former Minister Michel Edde and the commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces, Gen. Michel Suleiman.
The Saudi daily Al-Watan reported that among the above-mentioned names, Robert Ghanem was referred to by European sources as the favorite candidate to win. Ghanem, 65, is an independent MP allied with the ruling coalition. He has served twice in ministerial positions during the 1990s and has sat in parliament since 1992.
The Lebanese parliament is scheduled to meet on Wednesday for an electoral session, three days before President Emile Lahoud’s term expires.
Foreign diplomatic efforts have intensified in the last few months after a year of fruitless negotiations to find a consensus candidate to replace Lahoud. Kouchner arrived in Beirut on Sunday night for his sixth visit since May, while U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice telephoned political leaders in an attempt to convince the feuding parties to agree on a candidate. Chairman of the Arab League 'Amru Mousa is also expected to arrive today in Beirut.
Meanwhile, Lebanon fears the political crisis could lead to two rival governments and a possible renewal of the civil war which ended in 1990.
Copyright © 2007 The Media Line. All Rights

Rice Phones Leaders as International Pressure Mounts on Feuding Sides
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has telephoned Prime Minister Fouad Saniora, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri, local newspapers said. Rice said the United States "supports electing a president that enjoys the support of all the Lebanese," the state-run National News Agency said. Parliament is due to meet Wednesday to elect a new president to succeed pro-Syrian Emile Lahoud, whose term expires on Friday.
France Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner returned to Beirut Sunday as international pressure mounted on the warring Lebanese factions to agree on a successor to Lahoud and break a deadlock in a yearlong political crisis that has sharply divided the country. Kouchner's arrival came amid intensified local efforts aimed at getting Lebanese MPs to elect a president. Beirut, 19 Nov 07, 11:00

After Vetoing Names on Sfeir's List, Lebanon Back at Square One
After the feuding political sides vetoed names of consensus presidential candidates drawn up by Maronite Patrirach Nasarallah Sfeir, Lebanon seemed to be heading back to square one. The new state of affairs prompted French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner to rush back to Beirut on Sunday for his sixth visit in as many months. There was speculation that Wednesday's parliamentary session to elect a new president may be postponed till Friday, prompting fears of civil unrest and the formation of two rival governments. Kouchner said he was "less confident" about reaching a solution to Lebanon's political crisis after news circulated that the Hizbullah-led opposition vetoed presidential nominees Butros Harb, Nassib Lahoud Robert Ghanem and Michel Khoury.
In turn, leading officials within the ruling March 14 coalition have reportedly vetoed Michel Edde, while favoring Ghanem.
The daily An Nahar said Monday that Speaker Nabih Berri and parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri were each separately expected to discuss the Ghanem-Khoury problem with their allies.
According to An Nahar, information made available to March 14 said that a senior opposition figure had informed an international side that the opposition vetoes Harb, Lahoud Ghanem and Khoury and that the opposition could accept Edde and Lebanon's Central Bank governor Riad Salameh.
It said the emergence of Salameh's name made the opposition demand an amendment to Sfeir's list such as Army Commander Gen. Michel Suleiman be included.
Parliament is to convene on Wednesday to elect a new president to succeed pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud, whose term runs out on Friday.
Three previous attempts have failed because the ruling coalition and the opposition have been unable to agree on a candidate, with the opposition blocking sessions or threatening to deny the legislature a quorum.
Failure to elect a new president could result in a power vacuum and possibly the formation of two rival governments. Under the constitution, the cabinet takes over executive power if the president's post became unfilled.
An Nahar said the "veto battle" has led circles to believe that there was a lack of global and regional understanding of a guarantee mechanism for finding a consensus presidential candidate. Beirut, 19 Nov 07, 08:44
MP Shehayeb: Hizbullah Out to Change the Regime, and We'll Confront this attempt
By Dalia Nehme
MP Akram Shehayeb accused Hizbullah of setting the stage to control Lebanon and change its regime, vowing that the March 14 alliance is committed to confronting such a scheme.
Shehayeb, in an interview with Naharnet at the Phoenicia Hotel Bastion that he labels "The Abu Ghreib Jail," said:
"Hizbullah is for a preemptive war to control state institutions … to torpedo the Taif accord."
Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah, in his latest speech, "wanted to tell all the Lebanese political factions that ' have the veto power as long as I possess all these weapons and all the money and this strong security apparatus' this shows that Hizbullah wants a preemptive war to control state institutions in the future," Shehayeb said.
"That is why we insist on electing a strong and capable president who can prevent this march of autocracy by Nasrallah," Shehayeb added.
He accused Hizbullah of having two presidential candidates, "Their declared candidate is Michel Aoun in addition to an undeclared candidate."
However, he expressed the belief that "another faction of March 8 wants to support consensus, that is if consensus was achieved, or if the Syrian regime facilitated the consensus process."
Shehayeb referred to an "active Arab and foreign diplomatic activity … We hope this would achieve results. The Lebanese people await a settlement."
He reiterated "our support for what Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir decides on."
Shehayeb said Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri is "in fact consulting the Syrian regime over the candidates. And if the Syrian regime hampered presidential elections, it will be held responsible for this move by the international community."
He noted that the Europeans and the Russians are holding talks with Assad's regime to facilitate the presidential election.
Shehayeb recalled that Nasrallah called in his latest address for "respecting U.N. Security Council resolutions, but there is a difference between respecting the resolutions and implementing them, that requires a mechanism adopted by the government, but Nasrallah wants veto powers."
He predicted "tough times, even after the presidential elections. Tension would persist in Lebanon as long as the Syrian regime continues to exist."
Nasrallah's address and threats made by Ahmed Jibril, leader of the Syrian-sponsored Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command mean that "as long as Iran's Nuclear programs is under pressure, Lebanon would continue to be put under pressure," Shehayeb said.
He predicted "more violence, assassinations and explosions. We expect anything from this (Syrian) regime. The problem will not end with the election of a new president, but would persist even after that."
Shehayeb stressed that Hizbullah's main target is to "have a veto power, this means they want to shake the power sharing formula, that is to torpedo the Taif accord."
The Taif accord, which ended Lebanon's civil war, is "the formula that guarantees Lebanon and we should adhere to it. We should protect the Taif accord which is rejected by Hizbullah because it restricts weapons to state institutions," Shehayeb said.
The Taif accord has failed to prevent tension in Lebanon because it was "mis-implemented by the Syrians" when they ruled Lebanon before April, 2005, according to Shehayeb.
He said Hizbullah is "not interested in Lebanon, the state and the people. Hizbullah has its own agenda which is part of a nation sponsored by Iran."
Shehayeb noted that both Hizbullah and Aoun are "against the Taif accord."
He cautioned against the threat posed by Jibril, stressing that the latter is "prepared to block the presidential election."
Shehayeb concluded by stressing that "now we have to elect a president and protect him, as well as some MPs, against death threats" by the Assad regime.
"The nation deserves sacrifices and we have taken this path by our own conviction," he stressed. Beirut, 18 Nov 07, 22:00

Assad, Abdullah Stress Need to Reach Compromise President
Syrian President Bashar Assad met Jordan's King Abdullah II in Damascus where the two leaders stressed the need to reach consensus on a presidential candidate.
Abdullah II arrived in Syria on a previously unannounced trip, his first to the Syrian capital in nearly four years. Jordan's chief government spokesman Nasser Judeh described the visit as "important."
"The trip is part of the monarch's efforts aimed at shoring up Arab unity and coordination among Arab leaders at this juncture," a royal court statement said.
The two leaders discussed the situation in Lebanon underlining their full respect to the sovereignty of Lebanon and denouncing all assassinations committed against the Lebanese people, the official Jordanian news agency, Petra, said.
It said both leaders also rejected all foreign interference in Lebanon's internal affairs.
Petra said Assad and Abdullah underscored the need for Lebanon to reach consensus on the presidential elections within the constitution and in a manner that would guarantee Lebanon's stability and preserve its national interests.
Both leaders, it said, stressed the importance of the positive role that Syria can play to ensure Lebanon's stability and security and build normal relations between Beirut and Damascus based on mutual respect that would serve the interests of both countries and their stability. Beirut, 19 Nov 07, 09:45

Trudy Rubin: The tragedy of Lebanon
In 2005, Lebanon seemed on the verge of a new era, says TRUDY RUBIN. Today, legislators are hunkered down in a hotel, fearing for their lives.
12:00 AM CST on Monday, November 19, 2007
Remember when Lebanon's "Cedar Revolution" was the poster child of President Bush's campaign to democratize the Middle East?
The Associated Press
On March 14, 2005, a million protesters took to the streets after Prime Minister Rafik Hariri's assassination. One million Lebanese took to the streets on March 14, 2005, to protest the assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, which most blamed on Syria. The resulting upheaval forced Syria to withdraw thousands of troops that had been occupying the country for 29 years. The "March 14 movement" won elections and set up a new government, led by Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. Lebanon seemed on the verge of a new era. Flash forward to November 2007. The bulk of the once-hopeful parliamentarians who won in 2005 are hunkered down in the Phoenicia hotel near the Beirut seaside, protected by Interior Ministry security guards. Blankets cover the windows to protect against snipers. Tanks guard nearby intersections.
The Phoenicia – once the symbol of Beirut high-life, smashed to rubble in the 1980s civil war, its glamour resurrected during this decade – is now witnessing the last stand of those who once hoped for greater democracy in Lebanon and the Middle East.
More than 40 legislators are holed up there because they want to stay alive long enough to vote for a new president Wednesday to replace the current pro-Syrian president, Emile Lahoud. Six of them have been assassinated, with these murders also widely attributed to Syria. Their majority in parliament is now razor-thin.
"If they will kill four or five more of us, they will have a majority," I was told by phone by Mesbah Ahdab, a member of parliament from the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli who is heading back to the Phoenicia. By "they," he means pro-Syrian agents. "The deputies are living there because there are real threats of assassination."
The more famous or wealthy deputies can hire their own security forces. But, Mr. Ahdab told me, "all the members who don't have protection are in the Phoenicia. I don't think [pro-Syrian forces] can blow the hotel up, but there is always the possibility."
The tragedy of Lebanon is that it has once more become the field on which other Middle East nations play out their quarrels. Syria will not easily give up its control of Lebanon, and the Syrian regime is eager to block an international tribunal looking into the murder of Mr. Hariri. U.N. investigators have already pointed the finger at Damascus.
Syria's main Lebanese ally, the Shiite Hezbollah movement (which gets Iranian arms via Syria), has besieged Mr. Siniora's office for months, paralyzing the government. Hezbollah is demanding a "consensus" president. That's code language for someone sympathetic to Syria's bidding.
The French, the Saudis (who were close to Mr. Hariri and are furious at Syria), the Italians, the Americans, the Arab League, and God knows who else, are frantically trying to mediate as the clock ticks down to the wire. Hezbollah says it won't recognize any new president voted in without its approval – even one picked by a majority of parliament.
Meanwhile, members of that majority are trying to stay alive until the vote.
Perhaps you wonder why you should care. I will tell you.
Reason 1: What happens in Lebanon reflects and reinforces the dangerous political and sectarian divides now afflicting the region. If no compromise can be reached inside Lebanon, it bodes ill for hopes of calming such tensions elsewhere in the region.
Reason 2: We owe the Siniora government big time. When Israel went to war with Hezbollah in summer 2006 – after Hezbollah kidnapped two Israeli soldiers – the White House supported a massive Israeli bombing campaign that destroyed much of the infrastructure Lebanon had rebuilt after its civil war.
The Siniora team begged Condoleezza Rice to endorse a cease-fire early on, when Lebanese were still furious at Hezbollah for provoking the war. Instead, the White House backed continued bombing, in the vain hope that Israel could defang Hezbollah. Instead, the carnage caused by the bombing turned popular feeling against Israel and us, and undermined Siniora political strength.
In the coming days leading up to the presidential ballot, the West must demonstrate clearly that it won't abandon a government whose parliamentary members are under daily death threat. "If the international community won't support us," Mr. Ahdab told me as he prepared to move back to the Phoenica hotel, "then we will have to leave the country and live elsewhere."
Trudy Rubin is a Philadelphia Inquirer columnist. Her e-mail address is trubin@phillynews.com.

General Aoun and Saad Hariri: The Chance to save Lebanon
Elias Aoun
In a recent interview Mr. Saad Hariri made a reference to the principles of sovereignty, independence, and freedom. All Lebanese believe in those principles. The question is how to preserve them? One aspect is to enhance national unity – at the very least through developing a sense of citizenship and protection of constitutional rights for all citizens.
However, there are measures committed by elements within “March 14” that do not serve the public principles espoused by the group. They include: dismantling the constitutional council, blocking displaced Lebanese from returning to their homes, theft of votes and political representation through an inadequate electoral law and refusal to legally adjudicate eleven contested seats.
If an adequate electoral law was in place to ensure equitable representation and/or if the eleven contested seats were properly adjudicated by the Constitutional Council, then either or both situations would make it obvious that under proper constitutional, electoral, and legitimate means General Aoun would rightfully become the next president. Under proper constitutional channels, and in line with present support, the parliamentary consensus would have been on him.
Every Lebanese citizen has a right to run for president, and no one should be denied the right from doing so or from being considered. However, the presidency must be given to the person who has earned it constitutionally, legitimately, and deservingly. Any attempt to deny that right would amount to another chapter in persecuting the political representatives of the Christians and simultaneously all Lebanese. From past experience, by seeking to “eliminate” the “strongest link”, the perpetrators inevitably intend to “eliminate” all other links. No one knows this lesson more than Samir Geagea – and it is this lesson that will ultimately unify more parliamentarians with General Aoun.
With regard to Hezbollah, Mr. Hariri stated in his interview that “we have nothing against Hezbollah. We need to have dialogue with that party, but according to March 14 principles.” A dialogue has already been formulated in the FPM-Hezbollah Understanding, which – from the beginning – both sides have implied that (1) it is open for all Lebanese to join; and (2) if there is a word, a sentence, a paragraph that requires modification, both sides are open to discussing it. Instead of speaking in general terms against the Understanding, it would be more beneficial for everyone to be more specific. What “principles” does the Understanding contradict, how does it contradict them, and what specific terms are unacceptable in it?
Mr. Hariri probably knows that if he had joined the Understanding since its inception and addressed any concerns he had through amendments, then he and Lebanon would have been in a better position. Today, he is being faced with a similar choice.
If Mr. Hariri, respectfully, wants “to get smart very quickly” – as he was quoted as saying in another past interview – then he must do what he could have done before: join hands with General Aoun to protect sovereignty, independence, and freedom, and to embrace solutions based on Lebanese-Lebanese Understandings. Lebanon would have been better if that was done beforehand, and Lebanon will certainly be better if that is done in the next few hours prior to the presidential election.
Certainly, there are risks in being courageous, “unconventional”, and doing what is right. However, the risks are far less than continuing on a faulty path of endless confrontation that is detrimental to everyone.

Lebanon's Precarious Politics
Many of the Country's Sectarian Differences Do Not Run along a Straight Muslim-Christian Fault Line
by Richard Wike, Senior Researcher, Pew Global Attitudes Project
November 15, 2007
From: To: As the term of Lebanese President Emile Lahoud draws to a close, the country's precarious political balance is once again in jeopardy. Unable to agree on a successor, Lebanon's parliament has delayed the selection of a new president three times this year. Now scheduled to take place next week, the selection process ultimately should produce a Maronite Christian president, in accordance with the country's political system known as "confessionalism." This arrangement allocates the nation's three top political jobs among its three major religious groups resulting in a Christian president, a Sunni Muslim prime minister, and a Shia Muslim speaker of the parliament.
This power sharing arrangement aims to ameliorate the deep sectarian divides in Lebanese society. And, as a recent Pew Global Attitudes survey highlights, large and important differences of opinion do exist among the Christian, Sunni, and Shia communities. However, on a number of major issues, these divisions do not run along a Muslim-Christian fault line. Instead, the sharpest divides are between Shia on the one hand and Christians and Sunnis on the other.
Rating Foreign Powers
For decades, Lebanon has repeatedly fallen victim to power struggles involving larger nations. Today, many observers see this country of roughly four million people as one arena in the regional competition for influence between Iran and the United States. In recent years, Iran has funded and armed Hezbollah, a Lebanese Shia organization that the U.S. government has labeled a terrorist group. Meanwhile, the Lebanese armed forces have received military aid from the U.S., which has been an ally of Prime Minister Fuad Siniora.
The Pew poll, conducted April-May 2007, shows the extent to which Lebanon's three major religious communities differ in their views of these two rival powers. Overwhelmingly, Christians see America in a positive light -- 82% have a favorable opinion of the United States. Shia, on the other hand, are decidedly negative -- only 7% have a favorable view. Sunnis occupy a middle ground, with roughly half (52%) holding a positive view. This is a considerably higher level of support than the United States receives among Lebanon's largely Sunni neighbors -- for instance, only 21% of Egyptians, 20% of Jordanians, 13% of Palestinians, and 9% of Turks hold a positive opinion of the U.S. In fact, the U.S. receives more favorable marks among Lebanese Sunnis than among some of America's closest European allies, including Britain (51% favorable), France (39%), and Germany (30%).
Opinions of Iran follow a markedly different pattern. Positive views of the Islamic Republic are rare in both the Christian (14% favorable) and Sunni communities (8%). However, Lebanese Shia overwhelmingly have favorable attitudes toward Iran (86%), which of course is a largely Shia country. The same pattern characterizes opinions of Iran's controversial president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: 75% of Shia have confidence in Ahmadinejad to do the right thing in world affairs, compared with only 9% of Christians and 5% of Sunnis who share that view. And while roughly three-in-four (76%) Shia approve of Iran acquiring nuclear weapons, only 4% of Christians and 7% of Sunnis support the idea of a nuclear-armed Iran.
Shia Lebanese also stand apart in their views of Iran's closest ally in the region, Syria, which occupied much of Lebanon for nearly three decades, before removing its troops in 2005 under tremendous pressure from abroad as well as from many in Lebanon's Christian and Sunni communities. Today, two-in-three Christians and 52% of Sunnis name Syria as one of the top two countries posing a threat to Lebanon, compared with only 8% of Shia who see Syria as a major threat. In fact, half (51%) of the Shia community names Syria as one of Lebanon's top two allies.
Sharp divisions are also seen in attitudes toward other key international players, especially the European Union and the United Nations. Both organizations are rated favorably by Lebanese Christians and Sunnis. Both are quite unpopular, however, in the Shia community.
Rating National Leaders
Attitudes toward two major Lebanese political figures -- Prime Minister Fuad Siniora and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah -- also vary dramatically along sectarian lines. For several months, these two leaders have been locked in a political standoff, with Hezbollah staging mass protests in the capital, Beirut, calling for the ouster of the Siniora-led, anti-Syrian government. Siniora, a Sunni, is held in high regard by Christians as well as Sunnis; in both communities, more than nine-in-ten people say the prime minister is having a positive impact on the country (95% of Christians, 91% of Sunnis). In contrast, only 20% of Shia think he is having a good effect.
Meanwhile, views of Nasrallah mirror the pattern of opinion regarding his benefactor, Iran. When asked whether they have confidence in Nasrallah to do the right thing in world affairs, 82% of Shia say they have a lot or at least some confidence in the Hezbollah leader, compared with only 5% of Christians and 10% of Sunnis who express such confidence. And views of Nasrallah's organization are very similar -- 85% of Shia have a favorable opinion of Hezbollah, compared with just 7% of Christians and 10% of Sunnis.
Views on Terrorism
The 2007 Global Attitudes Pew survey1 revealed that support for terrorism has declined in much of the Muslim world over the last five years, and the decline among Lebanese Muslims has been particularly dramatic: In 2002, 74% of Lebanese believed that suicide bombing and other forms of violence against civilians could often or sometimes be justified in order to defend Islam from its enemies; today, this number has dropped to 34%.
However, again sharp differences emerge between Sunnis and Shia. In recent years, suicide bombing has often been associated with Sunni organizations, such as the Palestinian group Hamas or al Qaeda in Iraq, but one of the first groups to use the tactic in the Middle East was Hezbollah, which deployed suicide bombers against Israeli, American, and French targets in the 1980s. Currently, support for suicide bombing remains substantial among Lebanese Shia, with a majority (54%) saying suicide attacks can either often or sometimes be justified. In contrast, support for this type of violence is much lower in the Sunni community -- only 19% say these attacks can often or sometimes be justified and about six-in-ten say they can never be justified.
There is at least one issue on which the Sunni, Shia, and Christian communities can agree however: antipathy toward Osama bin Laden. Only 1% of Sunnis, 2% of Shia, and 2% of Christians say they have a lot or some confidence in the al Qaeda leader to do the right thing in international affairs.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes
1 "A Rising Tide Lifts Mood in the Developing World: Sharp Decline in Support for Suicide Bombing in Muslim Countries," Pew Global Attitudes Project Report, July 24, 2007.

Eyes on Nasrallah
Dr. Imad Salamey
Published 19 November 2007
The Hezbollah leader is surprisingly media savvy, using television to exert his global influence from a Beirut hideout.
Shi’a leader and Hezbollah General Secretary Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah is Lebanon’s one of the most popular leaders. Since last summer’s Hezbollah-Israeli confrontation in Southern Lebanon Nasrallah has taken cover in a 'mystical' hideout, believed to be somewhere in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
However, this has not prevented the leader from repeated TV appearances with the aim of reassuring militant followers of his resolve in realising a godly victory over the 'infidels'. Streets in Beirut and elsewhere in the country become deserted as people gather around screens in anticipation of the Sayyed’s live message.
Whether you support or oppose the man you have to listen to him. After all, his televised appearances can swing both national and regional political moods. Hezbollah fighters under his command in the South are ready to unleash rocket attacks against Israeli towns and cities.
Nasrallah has declared in his live messages to be in possession of over 20,000 short and medium range missiles, placing Tel Aviv and even its nuclear facilities in Negev within rocket range.
These proclamations have alarmed Israel, prompting its army to carry out unprecedented military exercises on the Lebanese borders involving over 50,000 soldiers. A possible confrontation with Hezbollah would place approximately 15,000 UNIFIL soldiers positioned on the borders in the line of fire. The situation has disturbed the international community as soldiers from the UNIFIL coalition of European, Asian and African nations continue to be stationed in Hezbollah controlled territories.
In his furious televised speeches Nasrallah has pledged to bring an end to the chronic historical sense of Arab and Islamic humiliation and the “beginning of a victorious epoch”; a slogan displayed on giant banners all over Shi’a strongholds. Such statements have been echoed by Iranian President Mahmood Ahmadinejad, an ally of Nasrallah.
Many believe that a confrontation with Israel, instigated by Hezbollah, would drag Syria and Iran into the conflict. Some observers are suggesting that the prospect of an Iranian-Syrian-Hamas-Hezbollah axis of influence in the region would be so concerning to Egypt, Jordan and other pro-western Sunni Arab regimes that they may even favour an Israeli victory in any future conflict.
It is not only Israelis watching Nasrallah’s defiant televised speeches with apprehension; his Lebanese rivals are also glued to the screens when the Sayyed addresses his audience. Downtown Beirut, rebuilt from rubble after the 1975 Lebanese Civil War and earmarked as a Mecca for tourism and business, has become a deserted ghost town after a year long anti-government public sit-in called for by Nasrallah.
His opponents fear that domestic differences over the country’s presidential elections and Hezbollah’s possession of a vast cache of weapons beyond government control may signal an all out domestic confrontation and the spread of civil unrest.
Everyone awaits the “Nasrallah’s televised password” that sets the public mood of either optimism or pessimism over the country’s future. His messages instigate public reactions with his charged supporters taking to the streets, obstructing traffic with roadblocks, enforcing unofficial curfews, or simply engaging in mass celebrations.
The Hezbollah leader's television audience is global. The sizeable Lebanese diasporic communities who have invested in the country, awaiting permanent or temporary return or concerned over the safety of their relatives, are eager to watch from continents across the world. Sympathizers among the Lebanese-Americans in the U.S. city of Dearborn, Michigan, a Lebanese Shi’a enclave, gather in large groups in homes and local restaurants to listen attentively to the leader's messages.
However, Nasrallah is most closely watched in Syria. Since the assassination of anti-Syrian former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri in February 2005, a plot widely believed to have been orchestrated by the Syrian regime, Nasrallah has managed to undermine the authenticity of both the investigation and the formation of an international tribunal court.
In November 2006 Nasrallah instructed Shi’a government ministers to withdraw from the cabinet in protest of the government's approval of the formation of an international tribunal court, leading the country into one of its deepest national crises since independence.
Syria, fearing international indictment and condemnation, has rushed to Nasrallah’s defence in order to quell suspicions. In turn Nasrallah has poured scorn upon both the investigation and the court, labelling both as part of a U.S.-Zionist ploy against Syria and Lebanon.
He went as far as presupposing that any future allegations against the Syrian regime will only be faced with street confrontation and opposition. For the Syrian regime, Nasrallah has emerged as an important player in rebuffing attacks against Syria and in helping reposition its strategic role in the region while simultaneously strengthening its critical alliance with the Islamic Republic of Iran.
For the time being Nasrallah remains in his hideout, adding suspense to his TV appearances that bring him closer to millions of adherents and rivals around the globe. With many important cards in his hand, Nasrallah has emerged as a master tactician in the political arena. In the mean time, the world watches in anticipation over his next move.