LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
October 27/09

Bible Reading of the day
13:1 On that day Jesus went out of the house, and sat by the seaside. 13:2 Great multitudes gathered to him, so that he entered into a boat, and sat, and all the multitude stood on the beach. 13:3 He spoke to them many things in parables, saying, “Behold, a farmer went out to sow. 13:4 As he sowed, some seeds fell by the roadside, and the birds came and devoured them. 13:5 Others fell on rocky ground, where they didn’t have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of earth. 13:6 When the sun had risen, they were scorched. Because they had no root, they withered away. 13:7 Others fell among thorns. The thorns grew up and choked them. 13:8 Others fell on good soil, and yielded fruit: some one hundred times as much, some sixty, and some thirty. 13:9 He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

Free Opinions, Releases, letters & Special Reports
Israeli Cabinet extends financial aid to SLA families/Ynetnews/26.10.09
Walid Jumblatt/Stances that are chameleon in nature/October 26/09
Cabinet impasse persists /Region faces instability as explosions in Baghdad kill 155 people/Now Lebanon/October 26/09

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for October 26/09
Sfeir: Absence of Cabinet Threatens Lebanese Entity/Naharnet
Saniora: Government Will Be Formed But It Needs Some Time/Naharnet
Reciprocal Vetoes: No Justice Ministry for Aoun and No Telecoms for Geagea/Naharnet
Saudi King Waives Lashing for Female Journalist over LBC's 'Bold Red Line/Naharnet

Israel informs UN it will continue gathering intelligence in Lebanon /Now Lebanon
LAF, UNIFIL conduct joint operations in South /Now Lebanon
Berri voices anger, says cabinet formation can no longer be delayed, As-Safir reports /Now Lebanon
NATO: US military chopper crash kills 10 US nationals /Now Lebanon
Berri, Franjieh Ready to Roll Up Sleeves and Work Toward Cabinet Solution/Naharnet
Reciprocal Vetoes: No Justice Ministry for Aoun and No Telecoms for Geagea/Naharnet

Cabinet formation awaits further Hariri-Aoun talks/Daily Star
US provides LAF marine equpiment to patrol coast/Daily Star
Egypt court postpones hearing for 'Hizbullah cell'/Daily Star
Sfeir: Beirut Minicipality must reflect sectarian balance/Daily Star
Jumblatt: Lebanon needs to revert to 'core of the Arab world Syria/Daily Star
Lebanon fourth largest recipient of IMF technical aid in region/Daily Star
Beirut's International College to close for 6 days over H1N1 cases/Daily Star
Lebanon breaks hummus, tabbouleh Guinness record/Daily Star
Activists don snorkels in climate change protest By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Saudi female journalist to be whipped over TV sex show/Daily Star
Communist party calls for end to confessionalism/Daily Star
Baroud reforms aim to defuse prison problems/Daily Star
Differences between Shiite religious figures/Future News
Gemayel describes impediments as dangerous/Future News

Israeli Cabinet extends financial aid to SLA families
Housing stipends for families of Lebanese soldiers who withdrew with IDF in 2000 guaranteed for coming year, but 'simple soldiers' demand permanent solution, regulation of their status
Hagai Einav Published: 10.25.09, 21:01 / Israel News
The cabinet approved on Sunday a proposal to extend the financial aid granted to former members of the South Lebanon Army (SLA) who currently reside in Israel by one year. According to the bid, which was proposed by Minister Yossi Peled (Likud) and Housing and Construction Minister Ariel Atias (Shas), some 400 SLA families will receive housing aid for the coming year and their monthly stipends will be increased. Of the 600 SLA families who withdrew from Lebanon along with the IDF in 2000, some 200 are being handled by the Defense Ministry, while the Housing Ministry is in charge of the remaining families' welfare.
The aid for the 400 families handled by the Housing Ministry gradually decreased over the past 18 months, and reached a mere NIS 284 ($77) a month per family. The approved proposal calls for allocating NIS 2.8 million ($760,000) towards the families' housing needs, and Minister Peled vowed to find a permanent solution for the SLA community in Israel so that the aid will not have to be approved on a yearly basis.
"Most former SLA members do not have steady work in Israel and their income is very low," Peled said, "Therefore, the housing aid is very significant to them. The government of Israel has been helping these families pay their rent since 2000, and we are currently drafting a comprehensive five-year plan to determine an end date for the State's support of this population." Yusuf, a former SLA soldier, said, "Let's not be naïve; another year of aid is like morphine, its effect will wear off quickly and we'll find ourselves in the same situation. "Senior SLA members were given villas. Instead of finding permanent housing solutions for "simple soldiers" nine years ago, the State continues to waste public money on rent." However, former SLA soldier Abd, who resides in Ma'a lot, lauded Minister Peled's efforts to "solve our problems once and for all. "We hope the government's decision (to approve the aid) will pave the way for regulating our status here after 10 years," he said.

Differences between Shiite religious figures
Date: October 25th, 2009/Future News/Mufti Sayyed Ali Makki, head of the proselytizing committee in the Shiite Higher Council was dispatched by Deputy Head of the council Sheikh Abdulamir Kabalan to hold a meeting with religious figures in the southern towns of Nabatieh and Marjaeoun in response to Sheikh Ahmad Taleb and Sayyed Yasser Ibrahim who held similar meetings in the area, media outlets reported Sunday. “The Shiite Higher Council is the sole reference that serves the interests of the country and that is entitled to assign religious figures to posts,” he said during the meeting. He called on all political figures to “adhere to the institution.” The meeting comes after news spread about a difference on posts between Shiite religious figures in the south. Sheikh Ahmad Taleb has established the “Independent Religious Gathering” which currently includes 20 religious men from the south.
Moreover, Sayyed has established the “Lebanese Religious Gathering” which includes 50 religious men from the South and Bekaa.


Sfeir: Beirut Minicipality must reflect sectarian balance

By Maroun Khoury
Daily Star correspondent
Monday, October 26, 2009
BKIRKI: Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir warned Sunday against making administrative appointments that do not respect the “sectarian balance” in Lebanon. He was referring to appointments expected to be made in the Beirut Municipality. “Any appointment in the Beirut Municipality that does not take into account the sectarian balance has a negative impact on citizens,” Sfeir warned during his Sunday sermon at the Notre Dame Church in Bkirki.

Jumblatt: Lebanon needs to revert to 'core of the Arab world Syria'
PSP leader stresses rejecting normalization of ties with israel at meet with SSnp

By Maher Zeineddine ظDaily Star correspondent
Monday, October 26, 2009
SOFAR: Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblatt stressed on Sunday during a reconciliatory gathering with the Syrian Socialist National Party (SSNP) the need to revert to Syria’s Arabism. Jumblatt’s meeting with the SSNP at the Aley mountainous village of Sawfar village was part of the PSP leader’s efforts to bridge the gap with rival political groups and abolish sectarian tensions that arose following the May 7, 2008, incidents which drove the country to the brink of civil strife.
Bloody clashes between pro-government and opposition supporters broke out on May 7, 2008 after the cabinet’s decision to dismantle Hizbullah’s telecommunication network.
The clashes took place in Beirut’s pre-dominantly Sunni-populated area between supporters of the Future Movement on one side and Hizbullah, Amal Movement and SSNP supporters on the other hand as they later spread to the Chouf mountainous area, a Druze stronghold. Jumblatt had earlier held reconciliatory meeting with Hizbullah’s Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah mediated by Lebanese Democratic Party head MP Talal Arslan and Tawhid Movement head Wi’am Wahhab, both Druze politicians allied with the opposition.
During his meeting with SSNP head Assad Hardane, Jumblatt underscored the past history that tied both parties in their resistance against Israel as he urged the Lebanese to revert to the “core of the Arab world Syria.” The SSNP-PSP reconciliation was attended by Jumblatt’s son, Timur. “I am not making this statement to please the Syrians after Syria’s withdrawal from Lebanon but based on deep political convictions,” Jumblatt said. Syria withdrew its troops from Lebanon in 2005 following the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Jumblatt has accused Syria of plotting the assassination. Jumblatt also stressed the importance of abiding by the truce agreement with Israel and the rejection of normalization of ties as stated in the Taif Accord. “The most important clause of the Taif Accord is that we agreed to a truce with Israel meaning a frozen war,” Jumblatt said, adding that “only [someone who is] delusional or a conspirer would believe in reaching a settlement with Israel.” Jumblatt added that his party, side by side with the SSNP, managed to abolish all attempts to tie Lebanon to the Israeli-Western axis. For his part, Hardane underlined the importance of preserving Mount Lebanon unity as the corner stone of the country’s unity. “The SSNP would pursue its struggle to establish a united nonsectarian state based on the national principles supported by President Michel Sleiman,” Hardane said.

Report: Israel Tells U.N. it Will Continue Spying on Hizbullah
Naharnet/Israel has neither denied nor confirmed that it had placed intelligence-gathering equipment in southern Lebanon, but reportedly informed the U.N. that collecting intelligence in the area will continue as long as the Beirut government is not in full control of its territory. Israeli daily Haaretz quoted a western diplomat as saying on Monday that one of the main issues discussed during a tripartite meeting in Naqoura last Wednesday was the exposure of the listening devices near the southern town of Houla. According to Lebanese security sources, the probe revealed that the equipment was used by Israel to tap Hizbullah's telecom network. During Wednesday's meeting, UNIFIL commander Maj. Gen. Claudio Graziano and the commander of the Lebanese army's liaison unit asked the Israeli representative for details on the listening equipment. The U.N. officers said that the equipment appeared to have been put in place during the 2006 war, but the Lebanese officer insisted the device appeared more up-to-date, according to Haaretz. The western diplomat said the Israeli representative, Brig. Yossi Hayman, did not deny the equipment was Israeli listening devices, and did not provide immediate answers. However, he stressed that Israel will make use of its intelligence gathering capabilities as long as Hizbullah poses a threat to the Jewish state. "Israel will continue to use all means necessary to defend its citizens," Hayman was quoted as saying. He reportedly added that it is not reasonable to expect Israel to sit idle and wait to be attacked. "In view of all this we do not consider this instance (of listening devices) an Israeli violation of (Security Council) Resolution 1701," Hayman reportedly said. Beirut, 26 Oct 09, 11:09

Reciprocal Vetoes: No Justice Ministry for Aoun and No Telecoms for Geagea

Naharnet/PM-designate Saad Hariri will carry on negotiations on a Cabinet lineup amid reports that Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun was no more in favor of holding direct talks with Hariri. According to information obtained by the daily As-Safir on Monday, it said Aoun was "no longer enthusiastic about holding non-productive meetings (with Hariri) in order to avoid a negative impact on public opinion."Aoun, according to the information, prefers to continue talks via envoys and will only meet Hariri after a Cabinet lineup has matured.
As Hariri geared up for a fresh round of talks on Cabinet formation, rival political leaders were negotiating a larger package of conditions and counter-conditions.
Aoun, meanwhile, insisted on getting powerful portfolios in exchange for the telecoms ministry or maintain the old seats (telecoms, energy, social affairs) in addition to either education or justice ministry. An-Nahar daily on Monday said discussions were now focused on the telecoms-justice-public works triangle. The majority March 14 forces did not seem to be willing to grant Aoun or the Opposition the justice ministry. Regarding the public works portfolio, Al-Liwaa newspaper said this seat would have been easily settled if it hadn't been for Druze leader Walid Jumblat who refused to relinquish the public works ministry in return for the telecoms. It said Jumblat, instead, proposed to reclaim the justice ministry from the Lebanese Forces and at the same time vetoed the allocation of the telecoms ministry to the LF. Beirut, 26 Oct 09, 10:04

Berri, Franjieh Ready to Roll Up Sleeves and Work Toward Cabinet Solution

Naharnet/Speaker Nabih Berri and Marada Movement leader Suleiman Franjieh were on Monday ready to roll up their sleeves and begin to work toward a solution to the long-running Cabinet crisis. The daily As-Safir said the countdown begins Monday as the deadline set by Berri for the formation of a new government nears. Berri has set end-of-month deadline for the announcement of a Cabinet lineup. As-Safir said Berri, in coordination and cooperation with President Michel Suleiman, was ready to begin work Monday toward a Cabinet solution.
Al-Nahar newspaper, meanwhile, said Franjieh was also getting ready to play a key role in helping to facilitate the formation of a government, particularly after having received a phone call from Syrian President Bashar al-Assad urging him to encourage make a Cabinet lineup possible. Franjieh was expected to take up an initiative toward Rabiyeh in an effort to persuade Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun to show greater flexibility on ending the government impasse. As-Safir quoted Berri as expressing "disgust and anger" over the Cabinet process "at a time the region around us is boiling and domestic issues no longer afford to wait." Berri believed that Parliament was the "biggest victim" of the delay in government formation and stressed that the present obstacle was "100 percent internal." Beirut, 26 Oct 09, 07:24

Cabinet impasse persists
Region faces instability as explosions in Baghdad kill 155 people

October 26, 2009
The cabinet has yet to be formed despite PM-designate Saad Hariri’s “positive” meeting with FPM leader MP Michel Aoun on Saturday. (NOW Lebanon)
Four months have passed since Future Movement leader MP Saad Hariri’s second designation as prime minister on June 27 and a cabinet has yet to be formed. The government impasse persists as many politicians have been saying that the new cabinet will be formed “within the next few days.”
Seemingly, the current crisis could be overcome by concluding the deliberations over three ministries: the Telecommunications, the Justice and the Public Works and Transport portfolios.
According to An-Nahar newspaper, the fifth meeting between PM-designate Saad Hariri and Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun on Saturday was a “major leap [forward].” It added that the sit-down “broke down” the dispute over the government formation into “one or two major points.”
Aoun no longer wants to hold “unproductive” meetings with Hariri to avoid frustrating the public, As-Safir newspaper reported on Monday. The daily said that the FPM leader prefers to hold cabinet talks through his envoy, Telecommunications Minister Gebran Bassil, so as, once an agreement is reached, he would finally meet with the PM-designate for the final time “to seal the deal.” A majority source told An-Nahar that the latest meeting between Aoun and Hariri touched on issues that were previously considered “off-limits,” referring to the Telecommunications Ministry. As such, Aoun is no longer able to say that he will not give up the Telecom portfolio, just as Hariri has no reason to say he will not give it to the Change and Reform bloc. The source added that this week would be decisive in forming the new government. A Change and Reform bloc source told the daily that progress was made during the Hariri-Aoun meeting, but added that the FPM leader was expecting a call from the PM-designate yesterday in response to a certain question that never came, although he did not elaborate further.
According to An-Nahar, Hariri offered Aoun the Telecom, Energy, Social Affairs and the Displaced, but the latter said he would not accept any ministry of less value than the Public Works, a significant service ministry. An opposition source told the daily there has been new “momentum,” which will bring about results to the efforts made by Speaker Nabih Berri and President Michel Sleiman, indicating that the former will push toward options on the table being expanded.
Berri’s visitors told As-Safir over the weekend that the speaker was angry because “the current cabinet crisis can no longer afford further delay,” especially in light of regional instability. The daily also said that Berri believes the current obstacle facing the government formation is “domestic” and should be resolved by finding alternative cabinet formulas Meanwhile, Jumblatt went beyond discussing the governmental crisis yesterday at a celebration of the reconciliation between the Progressive Socialist Party and the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP), putting the focus on the Taif Accord and the country that represents “the vast depth of [our] Arab [nature], Syria.”At a regional level, Sunday has been a bloody day in Iraq, whereby two explosions, one from a truck bomb and one from a car bomb, caused 147 deaths and more than 700 casualties yesterday. The attacks targeted the Ministry of Justice and Baghdad Province’s government building. Also, in more regional news, the Israeli police raided Al-Aqsa Mosque yesterday as a measure to prevent an “Intifada.” The police fired stun grenades at Palestinians, while the Palestinians took to throwing stones. Nineteen Palestinians and three Israelis were wounded in the clashes.-NOW Lebanon

Walid Jumblatt

October 26, 2009
On August 25, the Lebanese National News Agency (NNA) carried the following report:
Today, the Municipal Palace in Sawfar witnessed a reconciliation meeting between the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) and the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP) in light of massive efforts exerted by the committee combining the leaderships of the two movements following the events which were seen in Sawfar in January of 2007, and which caused the injury of three members in the SSNP.
Following the meeting, the PSP leader MP Walid Jumblatt delivered the following speech.
“This is where the crossing occurred, the crossing toward the liberation in 1983, while followed by the Syrian Arab army which stood fast. This is a history that cannot be erased. The Syrian Arab army stood fast in a heroic way in Ain Zhalta, Al-Safa and Al-Sultan Yaacoub and this cannot be written off.
Each of us crossed toward the liberation and each patriotic, national and Islamic faction had a task. And you, brothers of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party were innovators in the resistance operations in Hamra Street among other areas. The resistance then spread throughout Mount Lebanon, in Saida and in Beirut and the army which was said to be invincible was shouting on speakerphones in the streets of Beirut: ‘Do not shoot, we will withdraw.’ And this army withdrew. Our main task in the PSP was to deter the attack or attacks on this front where thousands among us, among you and among the national fighters and the Palestinians fell, and later on from the Syrian Arab army on the Souk al-Gharib front and in the different regions. The liberation was gradual until all of Lebanon was liberated from the Israeli enemy in 2000, while we were able to topple all the agreements and all the attempts to link Lebanon to the Israeli-Western axis.
We did not stop, like other countries that are much greater than us, before obstacles which acted as traps and entailed the so-called individual agreements that cost these states their historical Arab role, although we still hope that they will return to the [Arab] lap through the Rafah gateway since once this gateway is open, it can alone secure Egypt’s return to its historical Arab depth.
We only stopped at something sacred, i.e. the Taif Accord, and will not settle for anything else. I will not engage in the sterile constitutional details of the Taif Accord and will only say that it features a key point which is the truce agreement, i.e. the frozen war with Israel without settlement, reconciliation, peace or negotiations. Those in the Arab world who believe that settlement, reconciliation, peace or the establishment of a Palestinian state are possible with Israel are delusional, insane or conspirers.
These are our principles. As for those who wish to go to Israel, we have seen their fate and how they ended up in the trash-bin of history. We will head to Syria, the wide depth of the Arab world and from it to the Arab world. I am not saying this in the hope of pleasing Syria, since Syria has left Lebanon and there is no more Aanjar or Beau Rivage. I am saying it is based on my political conviction and political history.
Today, we are meeting to ensure reconciliation and we ought to recollect the massive human and mutual sacrifices in which the PSP and the SSNP lost tens, if not hundreds of martyrs on the different front. I apologize as the head of a party for the absence - from this reconciliation - of the person who carried out the individual operation at the time and I believe that the honorable Al- Ahmadiya family has nothing to do with this idiotic behavior. The reconciliation we want is an individual and not a familial one, since there are not problems between the families. Unfortunately, the concerned person did not come and we completely disown him, and we and Al-Ahmadiya family will not vouch for this irresponsible behavior.
We thank you all for coming and hope we will hold more joint meetings to return to our national and mutual heritage which was baptized with blood in all the regions, starting from Sawfar, the Sawfar of the crossing.”


US provides LAF marine equpiment to patrol coast
Daily Star staffظMonday, October 26, 2009
BEIRUT: The United States provided several significant deliveries of equipment to the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) during the past two weeks, a statement by the US embassy said on Saturday. “Specifically the navy was given eight Rigid Hulled Inflatable Boats which are specially suited for coastal patrolling and counter-smuggling operations,” the statement added. The US also contributed nine Humvee ambulances and 60 Humvee tactical military vehicles. Lastly, according to the embassy statement, the US delivered a fire truck to the LAF to assist in fighting fires on military bases. “The goal of US military assistance to Lebanon is to strengthen the LAF and increase its capacity to defend its borders and sovereignty,” the US embassy’s statement concluded. – The Daily Star

Egypt court postpones hearing for 'Hizbullah cell'

Daily Star staffظMonday, October 26, 2009
BEIRUT: An Egyptian court postponed on Saturday the trial of 26 members of the so-called Hizbullah cell accused of plotting attacks in Egypt till next Wednesday. The court will then start the hearing of witnesses’ testimonies. The Egyptian military general prosecution charged the accused, among them two Lebanese, five Palestinians and 19 Egyptians, of several charges. The charges included spying for a foreign organization with intent of conducting terrorist attacks inside Egypt in the period extending from 2005 until November 25, 2008.
The accused allegedly cooperated with two Hizbullah top officials “to plot terrorist attacks against commercial and military ships passing in the Suez Canal, foreigner tourists and tourist locations.” They also allegedly cooperated in preparing explosives for use in terrorist acts, and in travel facilitation for suspects in legitimate and illegitimate ways enabling military training as well as surveillance and information gathering training. The wife of the Sami Shehab, the Lebanese leader of the cell, told New TV on Saturday that she trusted “the wisdom of the Egyptian judiciary.” According to New TV, Shehab’s wife traveled to Egypt to attend the court hearings for her husband and the other members of the cell. – The Daily Star

Cabinet formation awaits further Hariri-Aoun talks

By Elias Sakr ظDaily Star staff
Monday, October 26, 2009
BEIRUT: Any potential progress on the cabinet front awaits another round of talks between Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri and Free Patriotic Movement head MP Michel Aoun during which the latter is expected to respond to Hariri’s proposed basket of portfolios regarding the Reform and Change bloc’s share in the government. Hariri and Aoun held on Saturday two consecutive meetings at the latter’s residence in Rabieh in an attempt by the premier-designate to break the deadlock governing the distribution of ministerial portfolios particularly the dispute over the Telecommunications Ministry. The two meetings were separated by Hariri’s visit to Parliament Deputy Speaker Farid Makari’s residence in Rabieh. While Aoun made no statements, Hariri described discussions as positive. Meanwhile, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri stressed that the cabinet impasse should not exceed a week otherwise a new approach should be used. Anwar Khalil, MP of the Development and Liberation bloc headed by Berri, said on Sunday that if a government is not formed in a week, the adopted dialogue approach needs to be changed, adding that Lebanon is going through a sensitive and dangerous period.
The daily As-Safir quoted in remarks published on Saturday sources saying that Berri has told President Michel Sleiman during a phone conversation that the upcoming week should be considered as a deadline to reach an agreement over the government formation. The sources said Berri highlighted the need to intervene and find a quick solution to the government crisis, adding that the speaker has “several ideas” which could help to resolve the cabinet impasse. The paper added that Berri said he would cooperate with Sleiman and Hariri before proposing his ideas political parties, adding that he is ready to give up any portfolio only if the principle of rotating ministries is applied to all groups without exception. “If [the majority] wants the Foreign Affairs Ministry, then I do not mind granting the Development and Liberation bloc the Finance Ministry,” said Berri. On Saturday, MP Boutros Harb described the period which Lebanon is passing through as “critical and dangerous.” “Lebanon is facing crossroads where either the state’s regime survives or it collapses together with law and order,” he told Voice of Lebanon radio station on Saturday.
Harb considered that gathering parties in a cabinet without any harmony was not an act of national unity but rather a source for national conflict “given that it congregates contradictions.”
Harb said overlooking the obstacle of appointing elections losers was not merely aimed for the higher interest of Lebanon, “but was rather done to avoid strife and save the country.
“The greatest fear lies in the fact that every time we face a problem we try to solve it through a compromise that may not be in conjunction with our political system and Constitution,” Harb said. Separately, Lebanese Forces bloc MP Georges Adwan said that the share of the Change and Reform bloc in the new government was the only remaining obstacle hampering the cabinet formation since the appointment of defeated candidates as ministers as well as granting a portfolio to Marada Movement leader Sleiman Franjieh was no longer an issue.
Franjieh said last week that he would settle for a state ministry as part of the Reform and Change bloc share in the next government in order to facilitate the process while the nomination of current caretaker Telecommunications Minister Jebran Bassil as minister in the next cabinet was no longer an obstacle. The majority had earlier rejected the nomination of ministers who failed in the June 7 elections but later relinquished its condition as they are expected to nominate, as minister, a March 14 candidate who lost the race to Parliament in response to Bassil’s appointment. Bassil lost the elections in his hometown Batroun to independent MP Boutros Harb and Lebanese Forces MP Antoine Zahra. However, Adwan reiterated that the Telecommunications Ministry would not be part of Aoun’s share. The Telecommunications Ministry has been the subject of much debate between the majority and the opposition, given its significant role in funding the state’s treasury, as well as its pivotal importance with regard to security issues related to monitoring phone calls.

White House calls on Syria to release human rights lawyer

By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Monday, October 26, 2009
WASHINGTON: The United States on Saturday called on Syria to release 78-year-old detained human-rights lawyer Haitham Maleh and end its practice of “arbitrary arrests” of activists. “We join the United Kingdom, France and other concerned international parties in expressing our deep concern regarding the detention of human-rights lawyer Haitham Maleh by Syrian security services” since October 14, the White House said in a statement. “Syria should demonstrate its commitment to international legal norms by releasing Maleh and other Syrian citizens who have been imprisoned solely for seeking to exercise their internationally recognized political freedoms.” President Barack Obama’s office has also condemned Syria’s “two-year crackdown” on lawyers and many civil society activists. “We call on the Syrian government to meet its responsibilities under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and to end its practice of arbitrary arrests,” the White House said. Maleh was held behind bars between 1980 and 1986 along with a large number of trade union and opposition figures for issuing a call for constitutional reforms, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Syria was set to sign a partnership deal with the European Union on October 26, but Damascus has said it wants to study the agreement in detail. The EU and Syria first drew up the draft pact in 2004 but it was never signed by EU nations. The Netherlands had demanded a clause allowing for its suspension in the event of proven rights abuses. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem recently warned in Paris that “political conditions” would be unacceptable under any final accord. – AFP

Lebanon fourth largest recipient of IMF technical aid in region

/Daily Star staff/Monday, October 26, 2009
BEIRUT: The International Monetary Fund’s Middle East Technical Assistance Center (METAC) indicated that Leba­non accounted for 10 percent of its overall allocation of technical assistance delivery during fiscal year 2009, as reported by Lebanon This Week, the Byblos Bank Group’s economic publication. It was the fourth biggest recipient of such aid, ranking behind Syria, Sudan, and the West Bank & Gaza, and came ahead of Yemen, Libya, Jordan, Afghan­istan, Iraq and Egypt. Lebanon received 30.8 person weeks (PWs), or 154 days worth of assistance in 2009, down from 34 person weeks in 2008. Lebanon received 9.8 PWs, or 49 days in public financial management aid, accounting for 31.8 percent of assistance it received and for 17.7 percent of overall such assistance in the region. Such assistance covered the set up of a cash-management unit to develop cash projections for a broader monitoring of budget execution; integration of capital and current budgets, and budget preparation. Support in FY2010 will cover further development of the cash management unit, extending the Treasury Single Account coverage, and budget classification. Lebanon received 7.3 PWs, or 36.5 days in central bank accounting, equivalent to 23.7 percent of its total aid and to 9.8 percent of overall support for central bank accounting in the region. METAC provided a short-term consultant who developed a concept paper, which outlined and proposed an International Bank Account Number format and developed a comprehensive implementation plan with a specific time frame. It also assessed the payment system to improve it.
Lebanon received 6.9 PWs, or 34.5 days in banking supervision assistance, accounting for 22.4 percent of its assistance and 13 percent of total bank supervision activity in the region. Support included training on the assessment of credit risk portfolio and loans impairments in line with the International Accounting Standards and the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision recommendations. Further assistance covered capacity building of the central bank’s staff on different subjects related to banking supervision aimed at improving supervisory practices. Support in FY2010 will cover capacity building on assessment of banks’ strategy and business plan, stress testing techniques, basic credit analysis and asset liability management and consolidated supervision. It also received 3.8 PWs, or 19 days in macroeconomic statistics support, accounting for 12.3 percent of the total assistance it received and for 5.3 percent of overall macroeconomic assistance in the region in FY 2009. – The Daily Star

Lebanon breaks hummus, tabbouleh Guinness record

By Omar Katerji /Special to The Daily Star
Monday, October 26, 2009
BEIRUT: Lebanon successfully made three entries in the Guinness Book of Records over the weekend for the largest plate and the largest plates of hummus and tabbouleh. The “Hummus and Tabbouleh are 100 percent Lebanese” festival took place on Saturday and Sunday at Saifi Market in Downtown Beirut. Thousands attended the two-day event marking Lebanon’s attempt to claim the two dishes. The dishes were prepared un­der the watch of Guinness adjudicator Tallal Omar by 250 sous chefs from the Kafaat catering school. The 50 chefs were led by the famous Lebanese chef and culinary figure Ramzi Choueiri. The first attempt for the largest hummus dish reached an incredible 2056 kilograms, shattering the previous record of 362.8 kilograms set in New York in 2006. The tabbouleh dish weighed in at an even more astonishing 3557 kilograms, which surpasses Israel’s previous record of 2359 kilograms.
Both dishes were prepared in the world’s largest plate designed by Lebanese engineer Joseph Kabalan which was designed to hold over 3 tons The event was organized by the International Fairs and Promotions group (IFP), along with the Association of Lebanese Industrialists (ALI) and the Industry Minister Ghazi Zaiter.
The event was held to affirm the origins of the dishes after the ALI’s claim that the specialties are sold internationally as Greek or Israeli dishes, undermining the cultural originality of the dishes and causing huge losses for the Lebanese economy. At the event, Ghazi Koraytem, president of the Syndicate of Lebanese Food Industries called for the international recognition and registration of the dishes as being Lebanese in origin. The festival, which attracted thousands of people to Saifi Market, was set up to include many stalls from Lebanese caterers and artisans. Famous presenter Michel Azzi acted as the master of ceremonies for the event, keeping the crowd lively and amused throughout the various stages of the record attempts.
At the event Azzi said: “We wish that the Lebanese could share this sense of unity all the time in all endeavors.” At times the security struggled to keep the enthusiastic audience back away from the giant dishes. Mona, from Beirut, said: “This is an important issue to the Lebanese. If Israel attempts to break the record again, we will keep breaking it and prove that these dishes are Lebanese.” The ALI has claimed their case is similar to the European Union court ruling in 2002 that ruled feta cheese to be Greek. Geographical appellation rights exist for sparkling wine from the French Champagne region and Scotch whisky, and according to ALI, Lebanon should be able to patent hummus and tabbouleh dishes.

A Taste of Their Own Medicine
23/10/2009
By Amir Taheri /al Sharq Al Awsat
It is not often that I find myself in agreement with the present rulers of Iran. In the past few days, however, I have caught myself nodding in consent when reading or hearing statements by a string of regime dignitaries, starting with the "Supreme Guide" Ali Khamenei. These statements had a central message: terrorism is a despicable crime that cannot be justified on any grounds.
The trouble is that those who make such statements belong to a regime that has used terror as a tool of internal and external policies for 30 years. The regime's reputation as a Mafia-like outfit is such that some Iranians see the latest terrorist carnage in Baluchistan, in which at least 62 people died, as an "insider job".
Last Sunday's terrorist attack, in the village of Sarbaz, close to the Pakistani frontier, cost the lives of at least several senior commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the regime's ultimate protector. Was it by chance that at least four of them, including General Nur-Ali Shushtari who was in line to become commander of the IRGC, had attracted some attention thanks to their refusal to endorse President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's re-election last June?  Not surprisingly, the first reaction of most Iranians in the face of such incidents is to suspect the regime itself. Internally, the regime is suspected of involvement in scores of assassinations, including the murder of dozens of revolutionary figures in the early phases of the Islamic Republic. The history of the past 30 years is full of mysterious incidents in which mullahs, politicians and military figures were removed through "accidents" or incidents presented as terrorist attacks. Since 1979, when the mullahs seized power, hit squads from Tehran have assassinated 117 Iranian activists in 18 foreign countries, from India to the United States and passing by Britain and France.
Today, 22 Iranians are in prison in eight countries on charges of terrorism. Four top Khomeinist officials, including the "Supreme Guide", and a former President of the Islamic Republic, have been charged with murder by the Berlin Criminal Court in Germany. Twenty-eight senior Khomeinist officials, including the newly appointed Minister of Defence Ahmad Vahidi, are subject to Interpol arrest warrants on terrorism charges.
Tehran is the only capital in the world where virtually all terrorist groups from across the globe maintain offices and "information centres." Every year, from 1 to 11 February, the Islamic Republic hosts a series of special events known as "Ten Days of Dawn" in which terrorist figures from all over the world, including atheist and Marxist groups, come together to coordinate what they describe as their global "armed struggle."
The Islamic Republic has created a special elite force, known as the Quds (Jerusalem) Corps, for the purpose of "exporting revolution" through violence and terror. The Islamic Foreign Ministry also contains a department known as "Office for Exporting Revolution."
Senior Khomeinist officials have often boasted that their regime was the first to introduce suicide attacks in the Middle East. The "Supreme Guide" Ali Khamenei, an amateur poet in his spare time, has even committed a number of odes in praise of Hezbollah suicide-bombers who wreaked havoc in Beirut in the 1980s.
To be sure, the Khomeinist regime claims that there is a difference between groups that it backs and those that attack it inside Iran. The Baluch Jundallah, blamed for the latest carnage in Sarbaz, and the Mujahedin Khalq, who have murdered many Khomeinist officials, are described as terrorist agents of foreign powers.
However, Hezbollah, Hamas, the Islamic Jihad, the Mahdi Army in Iraq, and the Hizb Islami in Afghanistan, are lauded as "resistance movements" because they follow Iran's policies.
Tehran blames a number of countries, including Pakistan, for allegedly harboring terrorists. When it comes to the terrorists that Iran itself harbors, however, we are told that they are "refugees" or "asylum seekers."People in Tehran know that dozens of Taliban, Al Qaeda and Hizb Islami leaders and operatives live in Iran, mostly in a string of villages along the border with Afghanistan in an area sealed by the IRGC. Afghan authorities are aware of an Iranian scheme to arm tens of thousands of Shiite Hazara fighters to seize control of Kabul when and if the Americans run away and leave the newly liberated nation defenceless. It is also an open secret that Iran has been funding at least two armed Baluch groups engaged in a rebellion against the Pakistani government.  Also in Pakistan, Iran has recruited, trained and armed dozens of so-called "self-defence" units attached to the Shiite movement Tehrik Jaafari.
In Turkey, 37 people are in prison on charges of plotting or carrying out terrorist operations on behalf of Tehran. In the former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan, the authorities have uncovered a series of plots orchestrated from Tehran, and shut down dozens of front organizations.
Neighboring Iraq is also a scene of terrorist activities by the Islamic Republic. Since 2005, Iraqi authorities, including Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, have presented Iran with "a mountain of evidence" on the activities of terror groups linked to Tehran.
"Today, Iran is responsible for 80 per cent of terrorism in our country," an Iraqi Cabinet minister tells me on condition of anonymity.
There is also ample evidence showing that the current armed uprising in Yemen, known as the Houthi revolt, enjoys massive Iranian support.
Khomeinist officials and media make no secret of the regime's support for the terror groups mentioned above. In some cases, they even take pride in the tragedies that those groups trigger in so many different countries. According to the old adage, one man's terrorist is another's freedom fighter.
The truth, however, is that one man's terrorist is every man's terrorist.
One cannot divide terrorists into good and bad. For no cause or ideal could ever justify random killing of people in no position to defend themselves.
The killing of IRGC officers is as evil as was the mass murder of American and French soldiers asleep in their barracks in Beirut.
Last Sunday's terror operation gave the Khomeinist regime a taste of its own medicine