LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
July 09/09
Bible Reading of the day
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ
according to Saint Matthew 10:1-7. Then he summoned his twelve disciples and
gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out and to cure every
disease and every illness. The names of the twelve apostles are these: first,
Simon called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James, the son of Zebedee, and his
brother John; Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew the tax collector;
James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus; Simon the Cananean, and Judas Iscariot
who betrayed him. Jesus sent out these twelve after instructing them thus, "Do
not go into pagan territory or enter a Samaritan town. Go rather to the lost
sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, make this proclamation: 'The kingdom of
heaven is at hand.' -Naharnet
Free Opinions, Releases, letters & Special
Reports
Analysis: Syria's way out of the 'Shi'ite Axis
of Evil'/: By MOSHE MAOZ
Jerusalem Post 08/07/09
Wouldn't the destructive element be the one state 'resisting' Mideast peace?.The
Daily Star
Franjieh on the move may be eyeing
more national role.By: Matt Nash, NOW Staff 08/07/09
Two faces. Now Lebanon 08/07/09
It goes beyond Gad Elmaleh.By:
Hazem Saghiyeh 08/07/09
Latest
News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for July
08/09
Aoun
Says President Can Have Share Based on Parliamentary Representation-Naharnet
March 14 Warns Against Meddling Under 'Assistance' Slogan-Naharnet
Jumblat: Syrian-Saudi Rapprochement Consolidates Taef-Naharnet
Soaid: U.S., Saudi
Rapprochement with Syria Does Not Mean Return of Syrian Tutelage-Naharnet
Ban: Israel, Lebanon cease-fire
fragile-Future News
Clinton: US will call for 'even
stricter' sanctions
against Iran.JPOST
Berri:
We Are Still in Grace Period, Be Optimistic-Naharnet
Lebanese Army Officer Mossad
Suspect Flees to Israel-Naharnet
Bassil:
Government Formation Moving Normally-Naharnet
Egyptian Court considers suspending
ِAlmanar transmission-Future News
Maneuvers counter talks to form
government-Future News
Mubarak: Peace process cannot
handle more failure-Future News
Jumblatt: Some Arab countries
refuse the Saudi-Syrian agreement-Future News
Ajouz denounces the attack on
‘Lebanon First’-Future News
Cabinet
Not on Kouchner's Agenda during his 2-Day Visit to Beirut-Naharnet
Jumblat to Mind his Own Business Regarding Syria-Naharnet
Assad Meets Jamil Sayyed,
Discusses International Tribunal-Naharnet
German FM: I Hope National
Dialogue Would Show Much Progress and Success-Naharnet
Suleiman: Britain Has to
Press Israel to Accept Arab Peace Initiative-Naharnet
Obama says it is important to
pursue dialogue with Iran, North Korea-Future News
Moussa: Opposition will take
position on cabinet after Hariri proposes formula-Future News
Lebanese Authorities Ban
Celebratory Gunfire, Approves Security Plan for Tourist Season-Naharnet
Arslan: We Won't Accept Marginal Role in Cabinet, Syria Not Pressing Opposition-Naharnet
Muallem: Syria Did Not Intervene in Lebanese Election And Will Not Interfere in
Cabinet Formation-Naharnet
Wanted Syrian Jumps from
Justice Palace's Fourth Floor-Naharnet
Franjieh: We Decide Our Shares in Cabinet, Assad Cannot Decide for Opposition-Naharnet
Pope
wants world authority to manage global economy-Daily
Star
Germany FM urges Syria to restrain Hamas and
Hezbollah-Ha'aretz
Israel-Lebanon cessation of hostilities remain
fragile: UN report-Xinhua
Lebanon officer suspected of spying flees to
Israel-Washington Post
France, Syria, insist formation of cabinet Lebanese affair-Daily
Star
Steinmeier voices hope for 'fruitful' cabinet deliberations-Daily
Star
Italian Foreign Affairs Committee team to visit Beirut-Daily
Star
Hizbullah MP says Syrian-Saudi talks stalled-Daily
Star
Sfeir:
Better national security could bring back expats-Daily
Star
Security chiefs discuss safety measures for tourist season-Daily
Star
Aoun
submits lion's share of challenges to election results-Daily
Star
Salameh renews confidence in Lebanese banking sector-Daily
Star
Talks
on Amal-Future meeting still under way-Daily
Star
Wanted man jumps to death from Justice Palace-Daily
Star
Object in southern sky determined to be firework, not Israeli spy device-Daily
Star
Lebanon expects bumper tourism season as visitors pour in-By
Agence France Presse (AFP)
AUB
holds memorial for its 13th president David Dodge-Daily
Star
Journalists of all political colors attend media workshop-Daily
Star
Relatives of Aisha Bakkar victim seek justice-Daily
Star
Syria's way out of the 'Shi'ite
Axis of Evil'
By MOSHE MAOZ
Jerusalem Post 07/07/09
Monday's news that Saudi Arabia will appoint an ambassador to Syria signifies a
gradual effort by the western world and moderate Arab nations to extract Syria
away from the "Shi'ite Axis of Evil" and to strengthen relations with the West
under the aegis of the American administration.
Reports of the appointment come amidst the backdrop of the Syrian-Saudi-Lebanese
summit, set to convene in Damascus next week, and US President Barack Obama's
announcement that the US will also appoint an ambassador to Syria.
The Saudi ambassador appointment and the combined effort of the United States
and other western nations to foster better relations with Syria stem from a
legitimate Iranian threat to the region's interests and oil resources. A nuclear
Iran has the capability not only to threaten Saudi Arabia and other Middle
Eastern nations with war, but also to demand oil concessions in the hope of
dominating the Middle Eastern market.
The Americans hope that their push for better relations with Syria will force
the Syrian government to better patrol the Iraqi border and stop the
infiltration of foreign fighters into Iraq. In addition, the Americans are
likely to demand that Syria reject North Korean military aid. In exchange, it is
possible that the United States will replace North Korea as the major arms
provider to Syria, similar to the Americans' replacement of Soviet aid in Egypt.
Iran's inexorable isolation from the world and its disputed nuclear program
threaten to isolate the much more moderate Syrian regime. If Syria chooses to
sever its relations with Iran and Hizbullah, new doors may open up for a
possible détente with the West and Israel, including the return of the Golan
Heights. In the event of a Syrian-Western alliance, Syria could receive
economic-military aid from the Arab Gulf States and the United States.
Despite the opposition of the Israeli public to returning the Golan, the
political establishment is willing to do such in an agreement that would pass
muster with the Israeli public. This would include a major change in Syria's
relationship with Iran, and a cessation of Syrian support to Hizbullah.
In fact, most Israeli prime ministers, with the exception of Ariel Sharon, have
had no major objections to relinquishing the Golan Heights, captured from Syria
in the 1967 Six Day War, which was never part of the "Greater Israel" vision.
Moreover, Israel would find it much easier to have a satisfied Syria manage a
Palestinian peace agreement, rather than deal directly with Hamas or Fatah.
Syria's relationship with Iran is becoming increasingly onerous and while Syrian
President Bashar Assad wants to maintain his Iranian ties, he cannot afford to
play both cards. In the event that Israel attacks Iran or vice versa, Syria
would be drawn into a regional war, from which it would have nothing to gain. A
conventional army like Syria's, unlike the forces of Hamas or the insurgency in
Iraq, would lose in a military conflict with Israel or the West.
In the case of a future Syrian-Western alliance, Iran and Hizbullah will be more
isolated than they currently find themselves. Hizbullah would lose a major
economic and military supporter, and Iran would lose more ground to the Sunni
Arab alliance. While this may push Hizbullah further into the Lebanese political
arena, the group may also turn to terrorist action against their former
sponsors.
**Moshe Ma'oz is professor emeritus of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies at The
Hebrew University, Jerusalem. He was interviewed by Alex Sorin.
Lebanese Army Officer Mossad Suspect Flees to Israel
Naharnet/A Lebanese army officer suspected of spying for Israel has fled to the
Jewish State, security sources said Wednesday. They said the colonel, identified
only D.J., escaped to Israel last week. The daily al-Akhbar on Wednesday said
the colonel left his parents' home in the southern town of Qlaiaa July 1 and
never came back. He told his mother that he would stay overnight at his house in
Baabda and come back the following morning, according to al-Akhbar. When the
officer failed to show up at the specified time and would not answer his phone,
his sister went to check on him, only to find that his apartment was locked.
After informing the Lebanese army intelligence of her brother's disappearance,
armed forces learned that the officer had left his military phone at his
apartment, while his BMW car remained parked outside the building where he
lived, al-Akhbar went on to say. It said investigators did not find any traces
of violence at his home. Two Lebanese army colonels – Mansour Diab and Shahid
Toumiyeh – were detained respectively in May and June on charges of spying for
Israel. Their arrest has led to the detention of scores of suspects, 20 of whom
have been formally charged. Beirut, 08 Jul 09, 08:01
Berri: We Are Still in Grace Period, Be Optimistic
Naharnet/Speaker Nabih Berri said from Baabda palace on Wednesday that
government formation is still in grace period and urged Lebanese to be
optimistic. "Government formation is in grace period … Let us not forget that
former cabinet formation took 52 days," Berri told reporters after holding his
weekly meeting with President Michel Suleiman. "Perhaps ten days are not
enough," Berri said. "Be optimistic and you will find results."He told reporters
that he agreed with Premier-designate Saad Hariri about the need to keep
consultations to form a new cabinet confidential. Beirut, 08 Jul 09, 12:27
Ammar: ‘White Turbans’ in
‘Dahieh’ soon
Date: July 8th, 2009 Source: Assafir
Ali Ammar of the Loyalty to the Resistance bloc has said the coming days would
witness mutual visits between Hizbullah delegations and Druze spiritual leaders,
As-Safir newspaper reported Wednesday. “Hizbullah delegations will visit Irfan,
Khalwat el-Bayyadah and Rachia spiritual leaders as well as social and cultural
figures in the mountainous villages of Kaifoun, Aramoun, Bshamoun, Chouieifat
and Khaldeh in order to restore the relation between the party and the Druze
sect,” he told the paper. “The southern slums of Beirut will receive a
delegation of ‘White Turbans’ (Druze spiritual leaders) in the coming days,” he
added.
Ajouz denounces the attack on ‘Lebanon First’
Date: July 8th, 2009 Source: Future News
Nassereits Liberals leader Ziad Ajouz denounced the attack on the Lebanon First
slogan, media sources reported on Wednesday. “It is shameful to undermine the
Lebanon First slogan in a way that has nothing to do with the truth,” Ajouz
said. “Lebanon First does not mean isolationism but is a call on all the
Lebanese to unite and deal with the other states out of their belief in and
loyalty to their country,” he added.
'Lebanese army colonel flees to
Israel'
By JPOST.COM STAFF AND AP
Jul 8, 2009 /A Lebanese security source claimed late on Tuesday that a Lebanese
army colonel suspected of spying for Israel fled to the Jewish state last week,
Reuters reported.
A masked police officer shows a small purse containing secret compartments, that
was seized from suspected Israeli agents in Beirut in May. Lebanon has
registered a formal complaint with the United Nations about its findings, saying
the alleged espionage is in breach of the Security Council resolution that put
an end to the 2006 conflict. There has been no official word from Israel. In a
regular report on Lebanon for the United Nations Security Council, issued on
Tuesday, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he was concerned about the
Lebanese allegations of the Israeli spy-ring. The allegations, "if proved, could
endanger the fragile cessation of hostilities that exists between Israel and
Lebanon," Ban wrote. Ban went on to call on Israel and Lebanon to seek a
permanent cease-fire in order to shore up their fragile peace, urging Lebanon to
secure its border with Syria and saying Israel must complete its withdrawal from
all land north of the so-called Blue Line, which separates Israeli and Lebanese
forces. The wave of detentions in Lebanon began in April with the arrest of a
former brigadier general of the General Security directorate. Two other Lebanese
army colonels have been detained in a probe into spying for Israel that has led
to more than 50 arrests. Lebanese authorities have described the arrests as a
major blow to Israel's intelligence-gathering in the country. Hizbullah leader
Hassan Nasrallah has called for the execution of those convicted. Lebanese
security officials have said at least one of the suspects was involved in the
2004 assassination of Hizbullah commander Ghalib Awali. Awali was killed in an
explosion in Beirut's southern suburbs.
Ban: Israel, Lebanon cease-fire fragile
By JPOST.COM STAFF Jul 8, 2009 /
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said late on Tuesday that Israel and Lebanon
must seek a permanent cease-fire in order to shore up their fragile temporary
peace.
Peace is threatened by problems like Lebanon's allegations of Israeli spying and
Lebanese "militias" operating outside state control, Ban said.
The UN chief said Lebanon must also secure its border with Syria and called on
Israel to complete its withdrawal from all land north of the so-called Blue
Line, which separates Israeli and Lebanese forces. He cited Israel giving the UN
data on cluster bombs as a sign of progress made under the 2006 resolution that
halted hostilities between the neighboring nations.
Clinton: US will call for 'even stricter' sanctions against Iran
By JPOST.COM STAFF AND HILARY LEILA KRIEGER Jul 8, 2009 /
The United States will call for "even stricter sanctions on Iran to try to
change the behavior of the regime," US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said
in a TV interview broadcast late Tuesday. Washington remained concerned about
what Clinton called Iran's "pursuit of nuclear weapons," which could "be very
destabilizing in the Middle East and beyond," Clinton told the private
Venezuelan television network Globovision. Earlier Tuesday, Chairman of the
Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen said Iran was "very focused on developing
[nuclear weapons] capability, and I think when they get it, or should they get
it, it will be very destabilizing." Mullen was speaking at the Center for
Strategic and International Studies, in an address on military challenges in the
Middle East, sponsored in connection with the embassy of the United Arab
Emirates. However, Mullen was similarly grim on the prospects that Iran's
nuclear weapons program might be attacked preemptively, saying such an attack on
Iran would be similarly destabilizing, as in both cases, "there are unintended
consequences that are very difficult to predict in a very volatile, highly
volatile part of the world." Earlier on Tuesday, US President Barack Obama told
CNN US has "absolutely not" given Israel a green light for a possible attack on
Iran's nuclear facilities, saying diplomacy is his preferred course of action.
Obama was qualifying comments Vice President Joe Biden had made Sunday that left
the impression the US would not stand in the way of an Israeli action. "We have
said directly to the Israelis that it is important to try and resolve this in an
international setting in a way that does not create major conflict in the Middle
East," said Obama.
Bassil: Government Formation Moving Normally
Naharnet/Telecommunications Minister Jebran Bassil said Cabinet formation was
moving "normally," pointing that both the majority and the opposition are in
favor of a government of national unity. "Experience has taught everybody that
cooperation and partnership are a necessity," Bassil said in remarks published
by the daily An-Nahar on Wednesday. "Neither do (pro-government) loyalists want
to govern alone, nor does the opposition say it wants to stay out of the
government," Bassil said. He said talks between Progressive Socialist Party
leader Walid Jumblat and Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and another
between Nasrallah and Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri have "paved the way
for this positive atmosphere." Hariri on Tuesday met Bassil in his capacity as
envoy of head of the Free Patriotic Movement Gen. Michel Aoun. The two men
discussed the makeup of the new Cabinet. Hariri also held talks with Nasrallah's
political advisor Hajj Hasan Khalil. Bassil declined to give details on whether
he discussed with Hariri portfolio sharing, adding that "we have an interest in
the success of Saad Hariri."On the possibility to hold a second Hariri-Nasrallah
meeting, An Nahar quoted sources close to Hizbullah as saying that the party is
"open to communicating with anyone." It also quoted Hariri sources as saying
that the designated premier "continues to work quietly to establish a new
government." Beirut, 08 Jul 09, 09:08
Assad Meets Jamil Sayyed, Discusses International Tribunal
Naharnet/In the first such move by a freed Lebanese army officer, Gen. Jamil
Sayyed visited Damascus on Tuesday and met Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The
daily Al-Akhbar on Wednesday, which carried the report, said the two men
discussed various political issues as well as the Special Tribunal for Lebanon
set up to try suspects in the 2005 assassination of former-Premier Rafik Hariri.
It said, however, that talks focused on the latest developments in the Hariri
probe and the investigation by a U.N. commission with him.
Beirut, 08 Jul 09, 10:07
Jumblat to Mind his Own Business Regarding Syria
Naharnet/Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat noted that the
"Lebanon first" slogan and calls for neutralizing Lebanon would only lead to
fragmentation of the region.
In an interview with the daily Al-Akhbar published Wednesday, Jumblat called for
an "Arab confrontation of the U.S-Israeli scheme." "Now that relations with
Hizbullah are being normalized and (PM-designate) Saad Hariri will visit Syria,
I will mind my own business regarding Damascus," he stressed. Jumblat said he
would follow up on this issue "without the need for mediators" right after
Hariri's visit to Syria. Beirut, 08 Jul 09, 11:10
German FM: I Hope National Dialogue Would Show Much Progress and Success
Naharnet/Visiting German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier wished
Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri success in his hard work in
forming Lebanon's next cabinet and expressed his support to the country's
national dialogue hoping it would show much progress and success. In a press
conference from Qoreitem on Tuesday the German foreign minister addressed Hariri
saying: " You have begun the process of forming a government and consultations
with the various political forces represented in parliament… we wish you all the
success in achieving your ambitious policy in reforming government
administration and the economy as we hope you would also find the right members
to your cabinet." He went on to add: "we have also spoken with President Michel
Suleiman about the overall Lebanese situation and not just about the [recent]
parliamentary elections. In addition spoke about the process of national
dialogue, and in this field I would like to express my hope that this dialogue
progresses forward leading you to more success." He used the opportunity to urge
Middle Eastern leaders to seize the "window of opportunity" that the new U.S.
administration has opened in the region. U.S. President Barak Obama's initiative
"creates many opportunities that we need to use now," Steinmeier said. "That is
why all the partners must take part constructively in this process and make
their positions clear quickly before the window of opportunity closes."
The Obama administration has repeatedly called for a complete halt to Jewish
settlement activity in the occupied West Bank and has demanded that the Israeli
government sign up to the creation of a Palestinian state.
A press statement from Baabda's presidential palace said President Suleiman
stressed during his meeting with Steinmeier that "Germany and the international
community should press Israel to accept the Arab peace initiative according to
the timetables called for by the last Arab summit in Doha and supported by the
European Union and the United States."
Lebanon's Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri thanked Steinmeier for Germany's role
in helping de-mine the Lebanese south, its stance against cluster bombs as well
as the important role it plays in the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).
Steinmeier, who visited Damascus earlier before heading to Beirut, also voiced
support for the resumption of Syrian-Israeli negotiations to help pave the way
for eventual talks between Israeli and Palestinian leaders.
Dialogue between Syria and Israel was frozen after the Jewish state launched a
massive offensive against the Gaza Strip last December.
Steinmeier expressed concern that the Syrian-backed Lebanese group Hizbullah and
the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas had shown "no interest in the success of
the peace talks."
"In my view, the peace process can only proceed when destructive elements in the
region are reined in," the German foreign minister said in a joint press
conference with his Syrian counterpart Walid Muallem.
Muallem said his country was keen to have further indirect contacts with Israel.
But he added that demands for Damascus to break its longstanding alliance with
Hizbullah and its main foreign sponsor Iran were an issue that went beyond the
peace process set by an international conference in Madrid in 1991 -- the
exchange of land for peace. "As for the issue of our relations with Hizbullah or
Iran, that's a precondition," he said of Israeli demands for a clean break as
part of a normalization of ties under any peace deal with the Jewish state. "We
think a resumption of indirect contacts with Israel through Turkish go-betweens
is the best way of getting to direct negotiations, but first and foremost we
have to be confident that there is a political will in Israel to achieve peace."
Muallem said Syria's demands for the unconditional return of the whole of the
strategic Golan Heights, which Israel seized in the 1967 Middle East war and
annexed in 1981 in a move never recognized by the international community, was
an entirely different matter.
"Yes, we do what to get the Golan back on a silver platter," he said. "Let's
face it -- it's our land and our right to have it back is the most normal thing
in the world."
The last direct peace talks between Israel and Syria, sponsored by the United
States, broke down in 2000 when Israel baulked at handing back the entire Golan
right down to the shores of the Sea of Galilee, Israel's main water source.
Israel's right-leaning government headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
has rejected the idea of exchanging the Golan for peace with Syria.(AFP and
Naharnet) Beirut, 07 Jul 09, 20:59
Pope wants world authority to manage global economy
Wednesday, July 08, 2009/Philip Pullella/Reuters
VATICAN CITY, Italy: Pope Benedict on Tuesday called for a "world political
authority" to manage the global economy and for more government regulation of
national economies to pull the world out of the current crisis and avoid a
repeat. The pope's call for a re-think of the way the world economy is run came
in a new encyclical which touched on a number of social issues but whose main
connecting thread was how the current crisis has affected both rich and poor
nations.
Called "Charity in Truth," parts of the encyclical appeared bound to upset
conservatives because of its underlying rejection of unbridled capitalism and
unregulated market forces, which he said had led to "thoroughly destructive"
abuse of the system. The pope said every economic decision has a moral
consequence and called for "forms of redistribution" of wealth overseen by
governments to help those most affected by crises. Benedict said "there is an
urgent need of a true world political authority" whose task would be "to manage
the global economy; to revive economies hit by the crisis; to avoid any
deterioration of the present crisis and the greater imbalances that would
result."
Such an authority would have to be "regulated by law" and "would need to be
universally recognized and to be vested with the effective power to ensure
security for all, regard for justice, and respect for rights.""Obviously it
would have to have the authority to ensure compliance with its decisions from
all parties, and also with the coordinated measures adopted in various
international forums," he said. The United Nations, economic institutions and
international finance all had to be reformed "even in the midst of a global
recession," he said in the encyclical, a booklet of 141 pages. An encyclical is
the highest form of papal writing and gives the clearest indication to the
world's 1.1 billion Catholics as well as non-Catholics of what the pope and the
Vatican think about specific social and moral issues.
It was addressed to all Catholics as well as "all people of good will" and was
released on the eve of the start of the G8 Summit in Italy and three days before
the pope is due to discuss the global downturn with US President Barack Obama.
In several sections of the encyclical, Benedict made it clear he had great
reservations about a totally free market.
"The conviction that the economy must be autonomous, that it must be shielded
from 'influences' of a moral character, has led man to abuse the economic
process in a thoroughly destructive way," he said. "In the long term, these
convictions have led to economic, social and political systems that trample upon
personal and social freedom, and are therefore unable to deliver the justice
that they promise," he added.
Profit was useful only if it served as a means to a brighter future for all
humanity, he said. "Once profit becomes the exclusive goal, if it is produced by
improper means and without the common good as its ultimate end, it risks
destroying wealth and creating poverty," he said. He said the current economic
crisis was "clear proof" of what he branded as "pernicious effects of sin" in
the economy. "The economy needs ethics in order to function correctly - not any
ethics whatsoever, but an ethics which is people-centered," he said.
"Financiers must rediscover the genuinely ethical foundation of their activity,
right intention, transparency, and the search for positive results are mutually
compatible and must never be detached from one another," he said.
The pope appeared to back government intervention "in correcting errors and
malfunctions" in the economy, saying that "one could foresee an increase in the
new forms of political participation, nationally and internationally." "Today's
international economic scene, marked by grave deviations and failures, requires
a profoundly new way of understanding business enterprise," he said. In other
sections of the encyclical, his first on social issues since his 2005 election,
he addressed topics such as development, migration, union rights, terrorism,
sexual tourism, population issues, the environment and energy. The encyclical's
release was delayed by nearly a year so the pope could address aspects of the
current economic crisis.
Sfeir: Better national security could bring back expats
By Maroun Khoury /Daily Star correspondent
Wednesday, July 08, 2009/BEIRUT: Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir told
reporters at his summer residence in the northern mountainous village of Diman
on Tuesday that political and internal security would enhance Lebanon's economy
and encourage expatriates to return to Lebanon. Sfeir added that the summer's
cultural festivals, such the ones in Beiteddine, Jbeil and Baalbek were not
being held in areas such as Bsharre, Ehden, Denniyeh, Akkar and Tannourine,
which he said "would spread the economic benefits to other regions."
Syria: No peace talks until Israel halts settlement activity
By News Agencies /Syrian President Bashar Assad said on Tuesday that Israel must
halt activity in West Bank settlements before Damascus considers renewing peace
negotiations.
Assad told visiting German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier there is no
real partner in Israel to make peace, repeating remarks he made last week.
Syria has said it is willing to resume indirect peace talks mediated by Turkey
as long as they focus on a complete Israeli withdrawal from the Golan Heights, a
strategic plateau captured by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War. Steinmeier,
meanwhile, declared during the meeting that regional entities must not waste in
laying the groundwork for Middle East peace, adding that none of the sides
involved could afford to push off the process of negotiations for another year.
After meeting Monday with Assad and Foreign Minister Walid Moallem, Steinmeir
called on the leadership in Damascus to do everything in its power to ensure a
quick peace process. Efforts must be made to "keep the region's destructive
might must be kept to a minimum," he told the Syrian leaders, referring by name
to Hezbollah, a Lebanese-based organization that draws support from Syria, as
well as the radical Islamist Palestinian Hamas movement.
During a bilateral meeting with Assad, the two leaders were unable to come to
agreement about the possibility of the resumption of Israeli-Syrian contacts.
Those were suspended after Israel's military assault on the Gaza Strip earlier
this year. Steinmeier said he has doubts whether a Turkish mediator could make
any advances in this area.
Moallem said there was only a limited window of opportunity to achieve Middle
East peace and said Israel was wasting time. At the same time, he said Syria
would not give up its claim to the Golan Heights, captured by Israel in the 1967
Six-Day War. President Simon Peres told Steinmeier on Sunday that Assad must
understand that Israel would not hand the Heights over to Syria on a "silver
platter." In response, Moallem told his German counterpart that Syria did not
want the Golan on a silver platter, but on gold.
Steinmeier also visited Lebanon on Tuesday, where he is supposed to meet with
prime minister-designate Saad Hariri.
Lebanon officer suspected of spying flees to Israel
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
BEIRUT (Reuters) - A Lebanese army colonel suspected of collaborating with
Israel fled to the Jewish state last week, a Lebanese security source said on
Tuesday.
Two other Lebanese army colonels have been detained in a probe into spying for
Israel that has led to more than 50 arrests. Around 20 of those detained have
been formally charged.
The wave of detentions began in April with the arrest of a former brigadier
general of the General Security directorate. Lebanon has described the arrests
as a major blow to Israel's intelligence-gathering in a country where it has
fought several wars in the past 31 years, most recently in 2006 against
Hezbollah guerrillas. Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran and Syria, has called
for the execution of those convicted. At least one of the suspects was involved
in the 2004 assassination of Hezbollah commander Ghalib Awali, security
officials have said. He was killed by a bomb in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
Lebanon has formally complained to the United Nations about its findings, saying
the spying is a breach of a Security Council resolution that halted the 2006
conflict. There has been no official word from Israel. In a regular report on
Lebanon for the Security Council, issued on Tuesday, U.N. Secretary-General Ban
Ki-moon said he was concerned at the Lebanese allegations of spying. The
allegations, "if proved, could endanger the fragile cessation of hostilities
that exists between Israel and Lebanon," Ban wrote. (Additional reporting by
Patrick Worsnip at the United Nations; Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Charles
Dick)
France, Syria, insist formation of cabinet Lebanese affair
By Elias Sakr /Daily Star staff
Wednesday, July 08, 2009
BEIRUT: France and Syria stressed on Tuesday that the formation of Lebanon's
upcoming Cabinet was a domestic affair, and thus the responsibility of Lebanese
politicians. However, Syria's Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem hinted that his
country was looking for the formation of a "real national unity government" to
preserve Lebanon's stability.
Meanwhile, French Foreign Ministry spokesman Erich Chevalier said on Tuesday
that Lebanese political leaders were capable of forming the next government
"away from foreign intervention.""The formation of a national-unity Cabinet is a
strictly Lebanese affair," Chevalier added. Meanwhile, Moallem stressed that his
country will not interfere in the formation process of its small neighbor
state's next Cabinet. He added that Syria hoped the next Cabinet would be
representative and capable of securing Lebanon's stability.
"Syria did not interfere in the June 7 parliamentary elections and will not
interfere in the Cabinet formation," Moallem told reporters.
The Syrian foreign minister also said the upcoming Lebanese Cabinet should
possess a comprehensive "vision" of Lebanon's bilateral relation with Syria
given the two countries' geography and history." Following his meeting with
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Moallem underscored the Western
respect for the constructive role Syria played in Lebanon during the recent
months. In other developments Tuesday, caretaker Telecommunications Minister
Gebran Bassil representing the opposition's Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) met
with Premier-designate Saad Hariri in Qoreitem concerning the formation of the
upcoming national-unity government.
Following the meeting, Bassil told reporters that talks were positive, adding
that Tuesday's discussions "unlocked the door for serious negotiations."
"We reached a stage of extending bridges," he added. While the opposition
insists on being granted one-third of the seats in the Cabinet, the
parliamentary majority seem reluctant about giving them what they dub as "the
blocking third." Meanwhile, Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) leader MP
Walid Jumblatt stressed that a Syrian-Saudi agreement will bolster Lebanon's
stability. In comments to An-Nahar newspaper published on Tuesday, Jumblatt said
any delay in Syrian-Saudi accord will be at the expense of the Taif Accord,
which put an end to Lebanon's bloody 1975-90 Civil War. The PSP leader said
Premier-designate Saad Hariri hoped to conclude deliberations concerning the
formation of the government "by the end of the week," adding that he sensed "a
positive atmosphere." However, Jumblatt announced that talks with Hariri didn't
tackle the details of the cabinet line-up. "Discussions focused on the general
principles," he said. Franjieh's ally, Lebanese Democratic Party leader Talal
Arslan said on Tuesday the opposition rejected the formation of a government
"outside Lebanon." Following talks with Aoun, Arslan stressed that the
opposition's stance concerning participation in the upcoming cabinet was
"unified."
He added that the March 14 coalition would be mistaken if it expected Syria to
pressure the opposition.
Wanted man jumps to death from Justice Palace
Daily Star staff/Wednesday, July 08, 2009
BEIRUT: A wanted man committed suicide after jumping from the Justice Palace's
fourth floor, a security report said on Tuesday. The report said the man,
40-year-old Mohammad al-Mallah, jumped from the office window of Judge Ayham
Shukr, who was questioning him, and fell to the Justice Palace's parking lot.
Security forces immediately arrived to the area and opened an investigation into
the incident. The man is wanted by the state of Kuwait for fraud and bribery,
according to the security report. - The Daily Star
Aoun submits lion's share of challenges to election results
Complaints also expected from Defeated candidates on murr list
By Dalila Mahdawi /Daily Star staff
Wednesday, July 08, 2009
BEIRUT: The Free Patriotic Movement of Christian opposition MP Michel Aoun has
submitted to the Constitutional Council the most challenges regarding Lebanon's
June 7 parliamentary election results, it emerged on Tuesday. As The Daily Star
went to press Tuesday night, Aoun's party had submitted five out of a total of
nine challenges to the Constitutional Council, the Central News Agency (CNA)
reported, citing "well-informed sources" at the Council. The four defeated
candidates of Michel Murr's list in the Metn are also expected to submit their
complaints late Tuesday, a source quoted by the CNA reported. Members of Aoun's
Reform and Change parliamentary bloc will also likely contest the three seats
won by the March 14 list in the Beirut 1 district, the source claimed. Former
Akkar MP Mikhael Daher and Rashid Daher submitted a challenge contesting the
seat of MP Hadi Hobeich on Monday. Defeated Jezzine candidate Ajaj Haddad on
Tuesday submitted a challenge to Ziad Aswad's victory.
In line with a rule that challenges must be submitted within 30 days of the
announcement of the official results, midnight Wednesday is the deadline to
submit an objection to the Constitutional Council over the winners of Lebanon's
June 7 parliamentary elections.
he 10-member Council, established under Article 19 of the Lebanese Constitution,
is the only judicial body with the authority to adjudicate post-election
disputes, and is widely considered to be a guarantor for free and transparent
elections. Article 19 called for the establishment of a government body to
"supervise the constitutionality of laws and to arbitrate conflicts that arise
from parliamentary and presidential elections."
The 1989 Taif Accord, which brought an end to Lebanon's 1975-90 Civil War,
reinvigorated the Council's supervisory mandate, although its powers were
decreased slightly by the Lebanese Parliament in 1990.
Political bickering delayed the appointments of five Council members until two
days before this year's elections.
Five members of the Popular bloc in Zahle - Agriculture Minister Elias Skaff and
former MPs Salim Aoun, Hassan Yaqoub, Fouad Turk and Rida al-Mais - on Tuesday
submitted challenges for seats in the Zahle in Our Heart bloc, challenging the
victories of Nicholas Fattoush, Tourism Minister Elie Marouni, Oqab Saqr, Toni
Abu Khater and Assem Araji respectively. Defeated candidates Georges Casarji and
Kamil Maalouf did not submit complaints, CNA reported. Sunni candidate for the
BEIRUT 2 district, Adnan Arakji, is contesting his defeat by current MP Nouhad
al-Mashnouq, the agency added.
Although March 14 secured a comfortable national victory, independent runner
Murr and Sami Gemayel of the Phalange party were the only candidates from the
alliance to win seats in Metn. The remaining six seats went to Aoun's candidates
or allies.
Any deputy being challenged has the right to full disclosure over the claim
against them and may respond with counter-evidence with 15 days starting
Wednesday. A number of winning MPs visited the Beirut offices of the
Constitutional Council Tuesday to learn why their seats were being contested.
Akkar MP-elect Hobeish Hobeish told reporters he hoped "there were serious
reasons behind the challenges." "We believe in constitutional institutions and
the Constitutional Council is now going through a test by looking into the
so-called free and democratic elections," Yaqoub told reporters after learning
his seat was being challenged. Constitutional Council head Issam Sleiman will
appoint a committee to look into the challenges for a three-month period. The
committee then submits a report to Sleiman, who will call a session to discuss
it. After that, the Council has one month to make a final decision.
Wouldn't the destructive element be the one state 'resisting' Mideast peace?
By The Daily Star /Wednesday, July 08, 2009
Editorial
The foreign minister of Germany is on his 14th trip to the region since assuming
his post in 2005. One might expect Frank-Walter Steinmeier to benefit from this
considerable amount of experience and engage in a bit more statecraft, but his
comments in Damascus on Tuesday were not the kind of rhetoric we need to hear
from officials from influential states like Germany.
As expected, Steinmeier used his visit to Damascus, for talks with Syrian
officials, to deliver the kind of warnings and admonishments we've heard
frequently in the past.
Steinmeier said Syria had an "objective interest" in the success of the Middle
East peace process, adding that there was "no time to lose." He added that "in
my view, the peace process can only proceed when destructive elements in the
region are reined in," and that Hizbullah and Hamas had shown "no interest in
the success of the peace talks."
Peace process? Peace talks? Perhaps the foreign minister is aware of a vigorous,
vital Middle East peace process that is taking place somewhere in the world, but
there is little evidence of it. His comments were disconcerting because they
played into the same old rubric of "Arabs unready for peace."In fact, most
states in the region are clearly ready for peace. They have their views on what
it should look like, but they've been ready for years, if not decades.
The Arab Peace Initiative was endorsed "way back" in 2002, at the Beirut Arab
Summit, which was attended by Syria.
But Steinmeier and others have been largely stymied by Israel, which now has a
government that refuses to relinquish its God-given right to settle occupied
land. It has a prime minister that has to be bullied into even saying the words
"two-state solution." And Israeli opposition leader Tzipi Livni recently said
that Netanyahu simply does not believe in a two-state solution. While Steinmeier
spoke out against "destructive elements" in the region, perhaps he momentarily
forgot that his own government has been instrumental in the past in engaging
Hizbullah, and overseeing successful exchanges of prisoners, detainees and
bodies between the Lebanese and the Israelis.
Hamas has repeatedly indicated its desire to arrange a truce of some kind with
Israel, meaning there are times when this Islamist organization wants to talk,
and do business.
And during the last 12 months, when little to nothing could be gained
politically from engaging the Israelis, Damascus managed to do just that, albeit
through Turkish intermediaries.
As for Steinmeier's ultimatum that reining in destructive elements would be
conducive to a fair and durable peace, all we can say is: a fair and durable
peace would be conducive to reining in the region's "destructive" elements.
Obama says it is important to pursue dialogue with Iran, North Korea
July 8, 2009 /US President Barack Obama said on Wednesday that it is important
to pursue dialogue with Iran and North Korea to dissuade them from acquiring
nuclear weapons.
“It is very important for the world community to speak to countries like Iran
and North Korea and encourage them to take a path that does not result in a
nuclear arms race in places like the Middle East," said Obama following his
meeting with Italian President Giorgio Napolitano.
Obama is currently in Italy to attend the G8 Summit, which will take place on
July 8, 9 and 10. -AFP/NOW Staff
Franjieh on the move may be eyeing more national role
Matt Nash, NOW Staff , July 8, 2009
Marada Movement leader Sleiman Franjieh is apparently moving to Baabda to begin
a “new political activity.”Sleiman Franjieh was not happy with his followers.
The man in the undershirt, clapping vigorously as the Marada boss began his
tirade, excitedly threw open his arms to give his leader a hug.
Franjieh shoved him and proceeded to berate the crowd, screaming, swearing,
angrily shaking his fists and looking every bit the hard strongman his
grandfather, former President Sleiman Franjieh, was notorious for being.
The interaction was caught on video, apparently shot with a mobile phone
somewhere in the Zgharta district shortly before the June 7 polls. Franjieh,
warning his supporters not to fight with long-time rivals, the Lebanese Forces,
before the vote, calls members of the crowd “donkeys” and “dogs” as an
off-camera voice implores God’s blessings upon him.
The elections went smoothly, he reclaimed his seat in parliament, and now
Franjieh, who before 2005 served in every post-war parliament and seven
governments, may be trying to broaden his base of support beyond his family’s
North Lebanon canton.
He’s reportedly trading the clean mountain air and harrowing roads of Zgharta
for the smog and snarling traffic jams of Beirut’s environs, moving to the
Baabda district to work with Christian ally Michel Aoun on “a new political
activity,” according to Al-Akhbar.
Although his press secretary, also named Sleiman Franjieh, declined an interview
request, it is clear that MP Franjieh is leading the March 8 charge in demanding
veto power in the new cabinet. He has publically insisted on this more than any
other politician since the June 7 election, most recently yesterday.
It also seems the seasoned politician and staunch Syrian ally will be focusing
on rapprochement.
“Coexistence can help provide months of stability, but real change is needed to
save Lebanon,” Franjieh said Friday at a Marada party dinner, where he also
welcomed cooperation with “some” in the March 14 alliance. The following day he
met with Kataeb Party Central Committee Coordinator MP Sami Gemayel.
While symbolically important for the fractured Christian community, the
meeting’s only tangible result was an agreement to oppose naturalizing Lebanon’s
Palestinians, a stance both shared prior to their sit-down.
Reconciliation with the Kataeb could be touted as a win by both sides, a bridge
built within a perennially-divided community, but Franjieh’s deepest animosity
is toward Samir Geagea, the LF commander in the North when the forces
slaughtered Franjieh’s parents and infant sister in 1978 in Ehden. Talk of
healing this wound has been common in the past year but has yet to produce any
results.
It also seems unlikely Franjieh will close a deep schism with Maronite Patriarch
Nasrallah Sfeir. The two have long been at odds over their
diametrically-opposing views on support for Syria, as Sfeir is against Damascus’
involvement in Lebanon while Franjieh has continued the family tradition started
by his grandfather of friendly relations with the ruling Assad family.
Anyhow, Franjieh’s comments about cooperation, unlike some of Lebanon’s other
politicians, did not include focusing first on unity among Christians,
suggesting he may play a role in some of the other March 8-March 14 bridge
building that has been ongoing since election day.
It stands to reason that whatever “new political activity” he endeavors on,
Franjieh will want a ministry in the new government. While he sides with Aoun as
part of the Change and Reform bloc, the Marada Movement has four MPs in the new
parliament (three from Zgharta and one from Baalbek-Hermel), and Franjieh, like
Aoun, has called for proportional representation of political parties in the new
cabinet.
His moving nearer to Beirut also suggests he may be trying to take on a more
national role, which could be difficult. His electoral ticket won Zgharta in
2009 by a slimmer margin (fewer than 1,000 votes) than it did in 2005, when
Marada won by over 4,000 votes but lost the larger North Lebanon II
constituency, thus failing to reach parliament.
Marada does enjoy some popularity outside Zgharta – notably in Batroun, Koura
and Jbeil – but obviously it could only win more at the expense of another
leader. The most logical loser in such a scenario would seem to be Aoun, though
the two are staunch allies.
In fact, Franjieh was the only March 8 figure to support Aoun’s failed bid for
the presidency in the period between former President Emile Lahoud’s November
2007 term expiration and President Michel Sleiman’s May 2008 election. The two
seemed odd bedfellows upon Aoun’s 2005 return to Lebanon from exile, but they
forged an alliance for parliamentary elections that year and have been
shoulder-to-shoulder ever since. Blatant attempts to snipe at Aoun’s support
seem unlikely, though the general, 74, seems as far as ever from his goal of
being president.
In the long term, Franjieh’s most probable aim is Lebanon’s highest office.
Before the 2004 extension of Lahoud’s term, he was touted as a shoe-in as
Lebanon’s next president. His strong ties to Syria – his grandfather was the one
who invited Damascus to Lebanon in 1976 for help during the war – and the
regime’s control of Beirut did make Franjieh’s election seem inevitable. With
Syria gone, he may feel he needs to try widening his appeal to grasp that brass
ring in five years’ time.
Two faces
July 7, 2009
Now Lebanon
Residents of Aisha Bakkar burn tires during clashes that killed one and injured
11 at the end of June. (NOW Lebanon)
Amid the political horse trading and shuttle diplomacy that has defined the
formation of a new government, Beirut MP Nohad Mashnouq has called for Beirut to
be designated a “safe” city. By some accounts, he had earlier called for
Lebanon’s capital to be a “gun-free” city, but he no doubt realized that such a
suggestion makes Don Quixote look like a Swiss banker by comparison.
The legions of summer visitors that are threatening to descend on our shores –
if the estimates are to be believed, we should have double last year’s number –
will naturally be reassured to learn that their security will be guaranteed.
They will be able to smoke a quiet nargieleh, free from marauding street gangs,
and shop to their hearts’ content, knowing that there will be no knife-wielding
youths to interrupt their pleasure and relieve them of the keys to their rented
Infiniti.
But Mashnouq must already know – if he doesn’t, someone should tell him pretty
quickly – that Beirut was, and still is, a relatively “safe” city, and that the
only time it becomes unsafe is when resurgent militias like Amal and the SSNP
decide to shoot up the neighborhood. When that happens, innocent bystanders like
Zeina Miri die, and Beirut suddenly becomes very unsafe.
Even the greenest observer of Lebanese politics will have cottoned on to the
fact that Mashnouq, a Future Movement MP, backtracked because he realized that
both sides – March 14 and March 8 – have guns. He would hardly endear himself to
the people who elected him if he asks them to surrender what guns they have,
given the current post-election vacuum and the tensions that exist on the
streets.
This well-intentioned, but ultimately toothless, initiative has once again
highlighted the lack of political courage to address the most fundamental
challenges facing Lebanon today: simply the state’s right to run its own
affairs. As NOW Lebanon has written before on these “pages”, the situation has
deteriorated so much that even the debate over Hezbollah’s weapons, for so long
perceived to be the main obstacle to national progress, is less important than
this most unwelcome plague that has seen gunmen reappear on the streets of
Beirut.
It is a state of affairs that has exposed the shortcomings of state
institutions. The army has been forced to take on the role of a paramilitary
police force, while the real police, long since emasculated, find it hard enough
to simply issue traffic tickets, let alone disarm a neighborhood boiling with
sectarian hatred.
Thus, the summer of 2009 sees an uneasy coexistence on the streets of Beirut
between the two faces of modern Lebanon. The first is that of a vibrant and
potential-filled summer season with a record number of visitors from the GCC and
the diaspora, eager to enjoy Lebanon’s undoubted pleasures. The second is
represented by the callow men who lurk on the side streets, away from the cafés,
restaurants and clubs. Their weapons are not visible, but they are close to
hand, and it is their presence – and appetite for a scrap – that prompted
Mashnouq to make his well-meaning, but unrealistic, call for action.
And yet Lebanon parties on. The bars are filled, and, if the industry is to be
believed, neither love nor money will secure a decent hotel room in the city.
Meanwhile, the many festivals that have once again become one of the defining
aspects of the summer have been able to attract top performers who have been
lured by Lebanon’s enduring international brand equity.
Such a contrast begs, once again, the question: “what is Lebanon”; a thriving
Mediterranean entrepot with an insatiable thirst for life, or a regional
incendiary device, primed with a hair trigger to unleash death and destruction?
Tragically, it may be both.
It goes beyond Gad Elmaleh
Hazem Saghiyeh , July 7, 2009
Now Lebanon
Some of those who have opposed Hezbollah’s campaign against Gad Elmaleh have
fallen into the very trap that Hezbollah set. They have been trying to show that
the Moroccan-French-Jewish artist and comedian has not taken any positive stance
toward Israel nor harbored any sympathy for it.
This is not the issue at all. The issue, rather, is as follows: Is Gad Elmaleh
an artist who deserves to be invited to an art festival, or is he not? Answering
this question is a job for art critics.
That is to say that one’s stance with regard to Israel, indeed his political
stance generally, is an unnecessary prerequisite. Since, if we were to follow
this logic to its conclusion, what would we say in a case where a medical
advancement was achieved at the school of medicine at Tel Aviv University? Would
we seek to benefit from it to treat the sick among us, or would we spurn such
treatment?
One of the most important characteristics of totalitarian culture is that it
ties people into political positions and comes to regard them as mere affiliates
of these positions. This lies in complete contrast to democratic culture, which
would view them according to their numerous crafts and trades and according to
their widely varying and diverse personal characteristics.
As such, if we think of an artist as “with us” or “with Israel” without taking
his art into account, or caring to become acquainted with it or sharing it (see
Firas Zbib in the “Nawafidh” section of Al-Mustaqbal newspaper), then that is
the shortest road toward self-destruction and toward the enduring impoverishment
that we would bring upon ourselves and our society.
To this effect, the late French orientalist Maxime Rodinson responded to those
who attacked orientalism and orientalists with a wonderful line: “What is my
concern with Champollion’s political stances so long as he deciphered [Egyptian]
hieroglyphics?”
That there are those who break the world down into those who are “with us” and
those who are “against us” and are not concerned with the deciphering
hieroglyphics has not come out of nowhere. One of its sources is the farce about
combating normalization of relations with Israel and combating “cultural
invasion.” Here we should keep in mind that this kind of “invasion” is the only
acceptable one and that this terminology is literally derived from Italian
fascism.
However, those who are indifferent to deciphering hieroglyphics only blind us
from the world and hinder our ability to benefit from an enormous amount of
knowledge and experience for the mere reason that some Israeli ghost may haunt
this convention or that!
This is another characteristic of totalitarian regimes: they fear the free flow
of life and confront it with compulsion and force, concocting false images and
“checking up” on anyone bearing a Jewish name, even if it were Karl Marx.
An extremely oppressive cultural power is lurking in our midst. It is, once
again, bringing us to the question that is creating so great a divide among us
and which “patriotism” – the affiliation with one country – will not be enough
to bridge. What kind of Lebanon do we want? That is the question. And in such a
case where Lebanon were to forgo being a country of cultural freedom, of
creative freedom and of the freedom of expression, then that Lebanon can go to
hell!
**This article is a translation of the original, which appeared on the NOW
Arabic site on July 6.
Lebanese press round-up: July 8, 2009
Note: There is no press round-up on Sundays.
July 8, 2009
Press round-up for Wednesday, July 8th from the morning edition of Lebanon’s An-Nahar,
Al-Akhbar, As-Safir, and Ad-Diyar newspapers.
Opening Titles
Hariri meets with Nasrallah’s political advisor, Aoun’s envoy and a delegation
from the General Confederation of Lebanese Workers.
The prime minister-designate launches the total “Lebanonization” of the
[government formation].
Sleiman stresses to Steinmeier [the need to ensure] the Palestinians’ return [to
their homeland].
Local News
Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri met yesterday with General Michel Aoun’s
envoy, Telecommunications Minister Gebran Bassil. Hariri also met with Sayyed
Hassan Nasrallah’s political advisor, Hajj Hussein Khalil, and a delegation from
the General Confederation of Lebanese Workers.
Sources close to Hariri merely told An-Nahar that “he is still working slowly
and without making any statements in order to reach the set objectives in light
of close cooperation with President Michel Sleiman.”
Telecommunications Minister Gebran Bassil told An-Nahar, “We have noticed that
the formation of the government has started to take its natural course.” Bassil
said that “the meetings held between MP Jumblatt and Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, as
well as between Nasrallah and Hariri, paved the way for this positive
environment.”
Sources close to Hezbollah said that the party “is open to any communication or
contact with the prime minister-designate,” adding however that “preparations
for [Hariri’s] meeting with Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah are not yet complete.”
The prime minister-designate has not contacted parliament Speaker Nabih Berri
recently. Berri’s visitors quoted him as saying that “the situation has not
ripened yet to allow the formation of the government, but it is not deadlocked.
Rather, some additional time is needed.”
MP Sleiman Franjieh visited General Michel Aoun, saying after the meeting that
“we insist on [gaining] the guaranteeing third one way or another.” Minister
Talal Arslan also visited Rabieh and said afterwards, “The opposition will not
accept the formation of the government outside Beirut.”
German Foreign Minister Frank -Walter Steinmeier toured the region, visiting
Syria, Israel and Lebanon.
The French Foreign Ministry announced that Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner is
to arrive in Beirut tomorrow on a two-day visit following which he will head to
Damascus on a two-day visit as well.
Opening Titles
Franjieh: We do not recognize any agreement made abroad.
An officer disappears and is suspected of having fled to Israel.
Walid Jumblatt: The return to Karl Marx.
Local News
According to Kataeb sources, former President Amin Gemayel stressed to Prime
Minister-designate Saad Hariri during their meeting the day before last that the
consultations pertaining to the government’s formation should be a Lebanese
business par excellence.
Within the framework of the string of visits to Druze religious authorities, the
delegation of Hezbollah clerics headed by Sheikh Mohammad Yazbeck visited the
Druze Sheikh al-Aql (spiritual leader), Sheikh Naim Hassan.
In a noticeable development last week, Lebanese Armed Forces Lieutenant Colonel
D. G. from the southern town of Qleia disappeared. While military sources
declined to comment, rumor has it that the army officer has fled Lebanon for
fear of being accused of collusion with Israel.
MP Walid Jumblatt said that relations with Hezbollah are being normalized and
that Saad Hariri will visit Syria. “I shall run my case with Damascus following
Hariri’s visit directly with President Bashar Al-Assad and without any
mediators.”
Jumblatt deemed that what is left of the March 14 forces is the broad coalition,
“but we have to consolidate its constant principles in order for this coalition
to last.”
Jumblatt said that “the ‘Lebanon First’ slogan is an emotional, rather than
ideological one. It is similar to the slogans of ‘Egypt First’ – i.e. the Camp
David Accords, ‘Jordan First’ – i.e. the Wadi Araba Accord, ‘Palestine First’ –
i.e. the Oslo Accords, and ‘Syria First’, i.e. restricting the Syrian cause to
the Golan Heights …”
Opening Titles
Al-Mouallem: Syria will not interfere in Lebanon; Steinmeier praises Syria’s
role and calls for normalizing relations with it.
Hariri will not recant [forming the government] “no matter how long it may
take.”
Jumblatt: There are, unfortunately, Arab and Western players who do not want a
Saudi-Syrian axis to emerge.
Local News
MP Walid Jumblatt stressed [the importance of] the Saudi-Syrian equation, saying
to As-Safir, “I cannot give any advice. The most important thing for us is for
the Syrian-Saudi axis to be formed regardless of all obstacles, because some
Arab and Western players do not want this to happen.” This is noticeably the
first time Jumblatt alludes to Egypt’s role in this respect.
In a joint press conference with his German counterpart, Frank-Walter Steinmeier,
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Mouallem said, “We have not interfered and we will
not interfere with the formation of the next Lebanese government.”
Mouallem asserted that “the Syrian-Saudi talks tackled the situation in Lebanon
as well as regional developments and the preparations for the coming period. The
relations between the two countries thus never stopped.”
Diplomatic sources told As-Safir that Steinmeier adopted a different tone in
Syria, “expressing Europe’s acknowledgement of Syria’s positive role so far in
Lebanon.”
MP Ali Ammar told As-Safir that Hezbollah delegations will be visiting during
the coming period the Druze clerics of Al-Arfane, Rashaya and Kalwat al-Bayyada.
Likewise, a delegation of “clerics with white turbans,” a reference to Druze
Sheikhs, will be visiting Dahiyeh in the coming days.
Opening Titles
The meetings held by the prime minister-designate tackle numbers and sizes [of
government make-up] against a positive backdrop.
Sleiman and Hariri do not want a monochromatic government; Jumblatt and Aoun are
expected to meet.
Twelve [electoral] appeals are filed before the Constitutional Council with the
deadline expiring at midnight.
Local News
Sources who participated in the meeting in Rabieh yesterday with General Michel
Aoun said that the meeting between PM-designate Hariri and Telecommunications
Minister Gebran Bassil did not go into details and that Hariri showed readiness
to listen to Aoun’s demands and open up to him.
Sources said that “the opposition may have changed its language from commitment
to the guaranteeing third [vote] to a call for true representation, but the
meaning is that they are committed to veto rights in the Council of Ministers.”
Sources close to Hariri said that some opposition groups have not informed the
PM-designate of any defined formulation for participating in the government,
especially with relation to the obstructing-third vote.
It has been learned that contacts have been renewed off the records between the
Progressive Socialist Party and the Free Patriotic Movement, something which may
result in a meeting held soon between Aoun and PSP head Walid Jumblatt.
Ten appeals were presented to the Constitutional Council yesterday [Tuesday]
before the expiration of the deadline on Wednesday night at midnight. Six member
of the Popular Bloc in Zahle made appeals, while George Kasarji declined to make
any.
Ghassan al-Rahbani made an appeal against the election of Michel al-Murr to
parliament, as did Ghassan al-Achkar against Sami Gemayel. Five appeals are
expected to be made today from Emile Kanaan, Sarkis Sarkis, Eddy Abi al-Lamaa,
Elias Moukheiber and Elie Karameh.