LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
September 02/09
Bible Reading of the day
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ
according to Saint Luke 4:31-37. Jesus then went down to Capernaum, a town of
Galilee. He taught them on the sabbath, and they were astonished at his teaching
because he spoke with authority. In the synagogue there was a man with the
spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out in a loud voice, Ha! What have you
to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you
are--the Holy One of God! Jesus rebuked him and said, "Be quiet! Come out of
him!" Then the demon threw the man down in front of them and came out of him
without doing him any harm. They were all amazed and said to one another, "What
is there about his word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean
spirits, and they come out." And news of him spread everywhere in the
surrounding region.
Free Opinions, Releases, letters & Special
Reports
Lockerbie: Compassion for Petrodollars?By
Walid Phares/Counterterrorism
Blog 01/09/09
Sa'ad Hariri should ask Aoun to "Take it or
Leave it"-Ya Libnan 01/09/09
Berri can have legislature produce
solutions, than issue complaints-
The Daily Star 01.09.09
The Copts suffer from their state,
but so do all Egyptians-By
Ghassan Rubeiz 01.09.09
New Opinion: Timing is
everything/Now Lebanon/September 01/09
Jamil as-Sayyed/Now Lebanon/August
31, 2009
Syria Clenches Its Fist/By: Andrew
J. Tabler, Foreign Policy , August 31/09
Latest
News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for September 01/09
Judiciary Calls for Separating
Judicial System from Politics-Naharnet
Solana urges quick formation of Lebanon's new
cabinet-Xinhua
Is something brewing with Syria?Foreign
Policy
Moussa for Arab Dialogue with
Iran after Acknowledging its Meddling in Lebanon Affairs-Naharnet
Papers highlight different
aspects of majority’s Monday meeting/Now Lebanon
Al-Mustaqbal:
Palestinian suspect reveals Fatah al-Islam behind Eido assassination, attacks on
army and UNIIFL/Now
Lebanon
Kataeb: Raad’s speech reveals
intent to control national decisions/Future News
Analysis: Assassinating Ashkenazi would
likely have led to war-Jerusalem
Post
Efforts to form unity government continue-Daily
Star
Parliament discusses Israeli abuse of Lebanese water-Daily
Star
EU
foreign minister arrives as part of Mideast tour-Daily
Star
Ottoman treasure excavation work in Bekaa halted-Daily
Star
Higher Judicial Council to meet over Sayyed attacks-Daily
Star
Israeli Arab accused of spying for Hizbullah-Daily
Star
Syria Cracks Open Its Frail Economy-Wall
Street Journal
Berri
stresses need for 'state of economic emergency-Daily
Star
Civil
Defense bans high-diving along coast-Daily
Star
Palestinian refugees protest Nahr al-Bared delay-Daily
Star
Lebanon to abandon swine flu running tally-Daily
Star
Italian officer takes command of UNIFIL's Maritime Task Force under extended
mandate-Daily Star
Sidon's Khan al-Franj hosts events, concerts throughout Ramadan-Daily
Star
Pair
of bears finally freed from grizzly zoo conditions-Daily
Star
Palestinian refugees march near south Lebanon border-Daily
Star
Green
NGO mulls mascot to fight forest fires-Daily
Star
Assad
slams 'immoral' accusations by Baghdad over deadly bombing-Daily
Star
Solana says new Israeli-Palestinian peace talks possible within a month-Daily
Star
Hariri
says 90 Percent of Cabinet Lineup Achieved, Only Aoun Issue Left-Naharnet
Syria's
Ambassador Hopes for Positive Results from Inter-Arab Ties-Naharnet
Hariri
Proposed to Aoun a Cabinet of Top Leaders, Division of Key Ministries-Naharnet
FPM
Rejects Interference in Cabinet Representation-Naharnet
Higher Judicial Council Mulling
Whether to Prosecute Sayyed or Only Stress Judiciary's Credibility-Naharnet
Judiciary Calls for Separating
Judicial System from Politics
Naharnet/Lebanon's Higher Judicial Council on Tuesday rejected political attacks
against the judicial system and called for keeping politics separate from the
judiciary. A statement issued at the end of the meeting headed by Council
President Judge Ghaleb Ghanem condemned "attacks" against the judicial authority
and its members. It reminded that in a state governed by law "any demand should
go through the appropriate legal institutions to find its way to a
solution."Addressing the various political leaders, the Council urged them to
distance the judicial system from their "political interest." The Council was
expected to adopt a stance on former Lebanese security services director Brig.
Gen. Jamil Sayyed's accusations against the judiciary with some informed sources
saying the HJC is mulling to prosecute the former general. Informed sources told
al-Mustaqbal daily that the Council will adopt a series of procedures and
decisive decisions after Sayyed said during a press conference Sunday that the
"criminal state" keeps among its ranks people like public prosecutor Saeed Mirza.
However, al-Liwaa daily quoted well informed sources as saying that the Council
will only issue a statement in which it will stress its credibility and
seriousness. Sayyed, 58, was freed in April after nearly four years in jail
along with three other generals after the Special Tribunal for Lebanon ordered
their release on grounds there was insufficient evidence to indict them for
ex-Premier Rafik Hariri's 2005 murder. Upon his release, Sayyed said the four
generals were freed but "the only remaining inmate is Rafik Hariri and his
jailer is Lebanon's judicial system." In May, Sayyed said he felt especially
bitter toward Lebanon's judicial system which, he claimed, had allowed itself to
be politically manipulated in the case. At the time the Higher Judicial Council
issued a statement denying the former general's accusations. Judicial sources
told al-Liwaa on Tuesday that the Council will mull prosecuting Sayyed. However,
there is a tendency to transcend the former general's accusations and only issue
a statement. Beirut, 01 Sep 09, 09:18
Moussa for Arab Dialogue with Iran after
Naharnet/Acknowledging its Meddling in Lebanon Affairs
Arab League chief Amr Moussa in comments published on Tuesday accused Iran of
meddling in Arab affairs and called for an Arab dialogue with Tehran to resolve
differences.
"This interference should not take place. This is a very serious situation,"
Moussa told Kuwait's Al-Jarida newspaper in reply to a question over Tehran
meddling in the affairs of Iraq, Lebanon, Yemen and the Palestinians. "We (the
Arab League) have urged Arab countries and Iran to open a dialogue... It is in
our interest to start a common Arab dialogue with Iran to debate controversial
issues... and try to resolve them," the league secretary general said. Moussa
was in Kuwait to attend a meeting of Arab politicians and academics who set up
the Arab Council for Regional and International Affairs with the aim of helping
Arab decision-makers.(AFP-Naharnet) Beirut, 01 Sep 09, 16:15
Lockerbie: Compassion for
Petrodollars?
By Walid Phares -Daily Star
Counterterrorism
Blog/01/09/09
The release by Scottish authorities of convicted Libyan intelligence agent Abdel
Baset al-Megrahi from prison has created one of the most negative emotional
reactions in the United States and other countries. Moved by anger toward the
injustice displayed by Scottish authorities to the families and survivors of the
victims of the terror attack against Pan Am Flight 103, Americans and large
segments of international public opinion are infuriated by the freeing of the
convicted terrorist, even under the described Scottish legal values based on
compassionate release due to terminal illness.
These exceptional stipulations, when applicable, are designed for criminal cases
where one person killed another individual under complex circumstances. A sudden
terminal illness is perceived as enough punishment by nature or the divine to
grant a severely conditioned release to the family, without any affront to
justice and pain to the survivors of the victim.
But that is one thing. Granting freedom to a terrorist who murdered hundreds of
innocents civilians bound on an airplane is something that no Scottish, British,
American, or international legal value permits. The statements made by
Scotland’s minister of justice should not stand in this case. This was no
regular murder. This was a mass murder, and compassionate release can only be
granted by the survivors of the victims, and should have been legally considered
by the national legislatures in Britain and the United States.
The United Kingdom should have superceded Scottish procedures to humanity, not
deployed alleged legal technicalities. Edinburgh was wrong legally, and London
was as wrong morally. But the matter is even more serious than media and
political sensationalism makes it to be. The bigger picture is more ominous. It
relates to the present crumbling of Western strategic behavior. The diplomatic
and political handling of the oppressive Libyan regime is the root cause of the
al-Megrahi’s scandal. Here is why:
Lockerbie victims families
The Libyan regime, not the execution agent of Libyan intelligence, should have
been prosecuted years ago. No loyal Mukhabarat operative would mount such an
operation against civilian targets without orders from a superior. And these
orders cannot be produced outside a strategic order to strike at the United
States by the regime leader himself, Col. Moammar Gadhafi. The initial framing
of the Lockerbie settlement is ridiculous: jailing an agent for a massacre
ordered by the head of a regime. This was an act of terror against international
law and should have been prosecuted by a special international tribunal at The
Hague. Among the first officials to have been summoned should have been the
dictator himself. Milosevic was brought in; Bashir was indicted; so should have
been Gadhafi.
Tripoli’s madman, as Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and many other Arab leaders
have called him, is not new to terrorism. Way before Lockerbie he funded scores
of terror organizations in the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America. He has
incited mass violence from the Philippines to India, let alone adopted extreme
anti-Semitic rhetoric.
In 1978 he lured Lebanese Shia top cleric, Imam Musa al Sadr to Libya and
executed him. He fomented coups in Tunisia and Egypt, and invaded Chad. The list
is too long but memory seems to be very short on both sides of the Atlantic.
Gadhafi’s prisons are tenfold Abu Ghraibs. Hundreds of political prisoners
languish in dark cells.
After repetitive Libyan sponsored acts of terror, including against American
military personnel in Germany, the U.S. responded on April 15, 1986, with an air
raid on the regime’s military installations. Gadhafi most likely ordered the
destruction of an American airliner in December 1988 as revenge, and possibly as
well in conjunction with Iranian incitement. The massacre of Pan Am 103 was a
regime-planned war crime, but was never punished as such.
As the decade came to an end and Mikhail Gorbachev brought about reforms,
followed by the end of the Soviet Union, Gadhafi began a slow behavior change,
his main backer having crumbled. Libya shrunk but didn’t end its involvement in
terrorism and radicalization, particularly in Africa.
But with the crumbling of Saddam Hussein’s regime and his capture, Gadhafi moved
quickly to cut a deal with the U.S. and the West. He let go, for the time being,
of his nuclear ambitions, and accepted to offer financial compensation to the
families of Pan Am 103. Instead of accepting responsibility, the Tripoli regime
considered al-Megrahi as the single operative to be prosecuted and jailed, so
that the case is closed.
For as long as the U.S. was on the offensive against global terrorism, Gadhafi
stayed on the defensive. But as soon as Washington changed direction and opted
for "engagement" with the regimes in the region, particularly the oil-producing
ones, Moammar rushed to consolidate his regime at home and in the region. His
chief goal was to show that he can bring Western Governments to accept his
diktat. In a speech (available in video online) he revealed to his supporters
that according to the arrangements, all the compensation his government paid for
Lockerbie was returned to his coffers by oil companies hurdling back to do
business in Libya.
"What I gave with my right hand, the other hand received back," he said.
And to restore his image of unsanctioned dictator, he cut a deal on Megrahi. He
would be returned to Libya as a hero, even if chanceries in the West will
protest formally. Moammar is enjoying the new era of engagement. They won’t do
anything against us, he told cheering supporters. Indeed, the Lockerbie
compassion seems to be more for oil dollars than so-called local values.
*******
Dr Walid Phares is a senior fellow with the Foundation for Defense of
Democracies and the author of The Confrontation: Winning the war against Future
Jihad.
British Libyan deal possible?
Also expanded on the issue in this interview on Dateline Washington.
http://dateline.radioamerica.org/podpress_trac/web/3457/0/8-31-phares.mp3
August 31, 2009
Jamil as-Sayyed
August 31, 2009
Now Lebanon
On August 30, the Lebanese National News Agency carried the following
report:
On the anniversary of his arrest, Brigadier General Jamil al- Sayyed held a
press conference today at the Coral Beach Hotel in Jnah, attended by his family
members, journalists and concerned figures. Sayyed addressed the assassination
of martyred Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri by saying: “There are three dates
that should not be forgotten by any Lebanese or Arab citizen, and especially not
by his son, Prime Minister-designate Saad al-Hariri and the honorable Sunnis in
Lebanon. The first is February 14, 2005, the day on which Rafik al-Hariri was
assassinated by criminals who are still free thanks to some politicians,
journalists, judges and officers close to Saad al-Hariri, and who since the
first day of the crime misled the investigations and the Lebanese, Arab and
international public opinion with false witnesses and political accusations with
which they filled the television screens, newspapers and public squares at the
time. The second date is August 30, 2005, the day on which Rafik al-Hariri was
assassinated for the second time when the four officers were arrested.
"On that day, he was killed by false witnesses who were taught and sponsored by
politicians, journalists, judges and officers close to Saad al-Hariri, at the
head of whom are figures known by all the Lebanese, namely Marwan Hamadeh,
Johnny Abdu, journalists Hani Hammoud and Fares Khashan, judges Said Mirza and
Sakr Sakr, and officers Wissam al-Hassan and Samir Shehadeh and their aides. As
for the third assassination of Rafik al-Hariri, it was seen on April 29, 2009,
when the international criminal court toppled the conspiracy of the fake
witnesses and their masters and freed the four officers, while Mr. Saad
al-Hariri is until now refusing to hold the [aforementioned] politicians,
journalists, judges and officers accountable for having wasted four years of the
international court’s term, reputation and credibility…
“I am holding this press conference today on the fourth anniversary of the
second assassination of martyred Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri by those who I
mentioned above and who taught, promoted and funded the conspiracy of the fake
witnesses who included Muhammad Zuheir al-Siddiq, Hussam Hussam, Ibrahim Jarjura,
Abdul Basset Bani Aouda and Ahmed Merhi, as well as small officers and general
security elements who were sent by Hassan al-Sabah and others. As for the
brothers Abdul Aal, they were released without being asked one question so that
Jarjura is released with them.
"They released Jarjura, the fake witness, because they were afraid he would
reveal who taught him what to say, i.e. Marwan Hamadeh and Mrs. Bahia al-Hariri,
how they beat him and how they dictated his testimony. This is why they were
released... Now, the question that should be addressed to Prime
Minister-designate Saad al-Hariri is the
following: how do you fell about the public and official position of the
international criminal court toward the false witnesses, at the head of whom is
Muhammad Zuhair al-Siddiq? What was your own position toward those close to you
who convinced you of him, of Hussam Hussam and others? What have you said or
what will you say to your father, Abu Bahaa? Are you not ashamed with all the
pictures of him that you place right and left when receiving your guests?
"I believe you should place Zuhair al-Siddiq’s picture next to your father’s
because you surrendered your father to him? All the Lebanese citizens who see
the picture of Rafik al-Hariri next to Saad al- Hariri should mentally place
Zuhair al-Siddiq’s picture in its place.
“Four years went by, O Saad al-Hariri, while you have not done anything. You are
great because you have billions, but all you will have will be billions of ‘old
shoes’ when you meet God, since billions do not make leaders…
“Where are the rights of the martyred prime minister in all this conspiracy?
Where is the voice of deputy Walid Jumblatt? On the personal level, Jumblatt is
funny, but on the political level we ask him: Where is your voice? Why did you
not pull Marwan Hamadeh’s ear for having implicated you? You promised us you
will hang the nooses of the families of the officers and make them shed tears of
blood. Where did your voice go when you learned that Zuhair al-Siddiq was
lying?… I want to hear it now. If you want to change your positions, change
everything and not just in terms of what you want. I do not believe in such
shifts, and Jumblatt does not enjoy the characteristics of an ally. If he were
to shift in your direction, use him, but never think he is an ally. He knows
what he is doing, and he works to secure his own interests. I am not insulting
him, this truly is his characteristic...
“As for you Mr. President [Michel Sleiman], I respect you. You have been a
brother in arms and a friend with whom I have a thousand things and details in
common. However, you became the president and I visited you twice to tell you a
couple of things which I am repeating now. How can you guarantee that after you
leave the presidency, they will not do to you what they have done to the
officers of President Emile Lahoud? How can you guarantee such a thing if Said
Mirza and his likes were to remain in their positions?…
"I want to hear your voice Mr. President. All around the world, presidents are
elected to rule, while in Lebanon, they brought you to power to rule you. They
have placed you in the Baabda palace as a consensual president. This is why they
elected you. We want you to be a president, as Michel Sleiman, whom I have come
to know in the army’s command, and not as you have been during the year and a
half that have gone by. The current president looks nothing like you and if the
civilian suit will render you the hostage of the Baabda presidential seat, leave
now. It is shameful Mr. President for them to render you a hostage and to place
you between what is right and what is wrong.
"It would be fine for them to amend the Taif Accord for you and to restore the
state. Today however, you do not enjoy the authority to disband the government
or any council... These are not the rights of the Christians but those of the
state. The state is composed of a group of sects and is hijacked by them. They
say that Hezbollah’s arms are hijacking the state. No my dear. In Lebanon, you
do not need arms to hijack the state since each sect has a state. When they
agree, they rob the state and when they disagree, they destroy it. This is why
we want the likes of Wissam al-Hassan, who owns a house in France, and Saad
al-Hariri to be held accountable.
“They praise the security they have instated, but there is no security. Have you
arrested anyone so far? If a man kills another, you arrest him in Roumieh, while
those who have killed hundreds of people became deputies and ministers. As for
the fundamentalists, I have nothing against them in principle, but I disagree
with them at the level of their activities. What is happening is that those who
were put in jail among the latter are being sold to embassies as though to say
there is a fight against terrorism and Al-Qaeda, while these fundamentalists are
being treated well in prison. They are being sold to the Americans on one hand
and being offered food by the Dar al-Fatwa on the other. You should be trying
them in court and not selling them... Your officers and clerics are at the
service of these fundamentalists in prison. You are a criminal, Mirza, and so
are your sponsors. I respect Minister Baroud and the measures he has adopted,
but this is not enough. Many things are happening in the Roumieh prison in terms
of segregation between a prisoner and another…
“Therefore, Prime Minister-designate Saad al-Hariri and President Michel Sleiman
are required to hold those at fault accountable as soon as possible. Many told
us that President Sleiman was a consensual president who could not hold anyone
accountable, and we told them we did not believe that the president would accept
to be considered as such, or else there would be no reason for his presence.
Moreover, many told us that Saad al-Hariri would not hold those close to him
accountable since he was their sponsor, while we refuse to believe that Saad
al-Hariri is one of them... We, among others, are waiting. If Saad al-Hariri
does not act, he would unfortunately be contributing to his father’s second
assassination, and if this is the case, there would be no point in him visiting
his father’s shrine to place a copy of the international court’s formation
document or a copy of the decree to form the coming government...”
Papers highlight different aspects of majority’s Monday meeting
September 1, 2009 /Now Lebanon
Lebanese newspapers on Tuesday reported widely on the majority’s meeting held
Monday in Qoreitem, especially since it was March 14’s first gathering since the
2009 parliamentary elections with Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid
Jumblatt attending. The majority MPs gathered in Qoreitem stressed their full
support for Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri in his quest to form the new
cabinet, saying that dialogue should be the basis of the new government.
As-Safir wrote that Jumblatt forced the participants in the meeting to adopt a
concise formulation of the final statement regarding the majority’s wish “not to
implicate the Special Tribunal for Lebanon in the domestic political dispute.”
An-Nahar reported that MP Nohad Mashnouq noted that the final statement did not
include a special clause regarding the international resolutions and the Special
Tribunal for Lebanon. Jumblatt replied, according to the paper, asking whether
or not Mashnouq was referring to the “international resolutions that spelled our
ruin,” thus prompting Mashnouq to answer, “If you are referring to Resolution
1559, that’s not what I meant; rather, I was referring to Resolution 1701 and
the STL.”
Al-Hayat newspaper wrote that that Hariri did not discuss at the majority
gathering his meeting earlier that day with Free Patriotic Movement leader MP
Michel Aoun in Baabda, and Al-Liwaa reported that Jumblatt stressed on adopting
a policy of “calm and dialogue” throughout the cabinet-formation negotiations
and on avoiding political tension and security breaches.
New Opinion: Timing is everything
September 1, 2009 /Now Lebanon
Former Lebanese security services director Jamil As-Sayyed speaks during a press
conference in Beirut on August 30. (AFP/Anwar Amro)
Timing is everything in this part of the Middle East, and it is no coincidence
that the meeting between Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri and FPM boss
Michel Aoun was held after days of Syrian mischief making.
Spearheading the most recent attack from Damascus was Jamil As-Sayyed, the
disgraced former security chief and one of the “Four Generals” accused of
murdering former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. In what was clearly an attempt to
undermine the integrity of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and slow down the
latest attempts at forming a government, Sayyed poured scorn on Prime
Minister-designate Saad Hariri, accusing him of protecting those who have
perverted the course of justice. He also urged President Sleiman to be his own
man, and advised all honorable opposition politicians – a nod to Aoun – not to
take part in the formation of a government destined to be run by crooks and
bounders.
This coming from a man who made a not-insignificant contribution to Syria’s iron
rule in Lebanon in the latter years of its occupation is, to put it mildly, a
case of the pot calling the proverbial kettle black, and interestingly enough,
none of the March 14 media saw it fitting to give much importance to the rants
of a man who represented one of the less glorious eras in Lebanon’s short
history.
His comments came in the wake of further outbursts from two more of Syria’s
local minions, Nasser Qandil and Wiam Wahhab, and reports that the Syrian
government has assembled a legal team to scrutinize alleged falsified documents
that are part of the tribunal’s ongoing investigation. Syria has not been
accused of anything – for now; and yet it insists on throwing out chaff. The
tribunal should not be a tool to stir up more madness. As far as we know,
international justice has not, and should not, be thrown off course by the rants
of agitators.
The bald truth is that this culture of disinformation and the screaming
accusations have been designed to sap the will of the majority. The results of a
legitimate and credible electoral process clearly show that the March 14 bloc
won the June 7 polls, held under a law the opposition demanded.
And yet because the opposition lost, in the past three months it has sought to
undermine the electoral process – not to mention the constitution – and progress
on the tribunal by making demands that under normal circumstances it would not
be allowed to make.
But, and here’s the rub, the opposition feels it can do what it wants. It has
insisted on a “national-unity government” a “government of consensus”. Call it
what you will, because, for a start, it sounds very touchy-feely. The words
“unity” and “consensus” smack of fairness and moderation when in fact they are
nothing more than a cynical smokescreen hiding the threat of violence,
intimidation and deadlock that has been the calling card of an opposition that
resorts to mayhem when it doesn’t get its way.
This is the culture of an opposition whose slogan is: “you must listen to us or
we will get nasty.” It has been their modus operandi since 2006, and it is being
used to stymie the tribunal and shoehorn Syrian and Iranian influence into a
Lebanon that voted against it.
Syria Clenches Its Fist
Andrew J. Tabler, Foreign Policy , August 31, 2009
Assad to Obama: Thanks but no thanks.
Early last week, nearly seven months to the day after the Barack Obama
administration took office and began its careful, critical engagement with the
regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, rumors swirled in Washington and the
Middle East that the White House was preparing to turn a new page with Damascus.
The first test of this new relationship would be over the issue that caused the
breakdown in U.S.-Syrian relations more than six years ago: the flow of jihadi
militants from Syria to Iraq.
The Obama administration's outreach to Syria had been clear and forthright. It
included six high-level visits by U.S. officials to Syria, Washington's
announcement that it would return an ambassador to Damascus, a reported letter
from President Obama to President Assad, and the facilitation of export licenses
for aircraft parts waived under U.S. sanctions against Syria. A Centcom-led
delegation visited Damascus two weeks ago and concluded a tentative agreement
with Syria on a technical assessment of Iraqi-Syrian border posts. Iraqi Prime
Minister Nouri al-Maliki, miffed at being left out of these promising talks,
visited Damascus last week to seal the tripartite deal. The string of blasts
that greeted him upon his return on Aug. 19 -- the bloodiest in more than 18
months and now claimed by an al Qaeda affiliate -- has led Baghdad to demand
that Syria expel Iraqi Baathists and jihadi militants from its soil and recall
its ambassador. Damascus responded in kind, effectively blowing up Washington's
initiative on the launchpad.
Until last week, talks over Iraq-related regional security issues appeared to be
a glimmer of hope in an otherwise bleak U.S.-Syrian engagement process.
Washington has quietly asked Damascus over the last seven months to use its
influence to promote reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas. Following the most
recent visit to Damascus by U.S. Mideast envoy George Mitchell, Syria, along
with Turkey and Egypt, pressed Hamas to allow Fatah members in Gaza to attend
their party's conference earlier this month -- an important first step in
forming a united Palestinian position. It didn't happen.
Kataeb: Raad’s speech reveals intent to control national decisions
Date: August 31st, 2009
Source: NNA /Kataeb political office denounced MP Mohammad Raad’s talk about the
party’s leader Amine Gemayel who stressed that some regional lose ties must be
indirectly negotiated with Israel.In a statement released Monday, the office
following its weekly meeting pointed that MP Raad, leader of the Loyalty to the
Resistance bloc reveals intent to control national decisions that concern all
the Lebanese. Kataeb called for expediting government formation that manages the
country in collaboration with the President and political parties’ commitment to
constitutional norms.It also rebuffed Hizbullah senior cleric Sayyed Mohammad
Hussein Fadlallah’s talk that Lebanon’s glory was given by the resistance.
Fadlallah’s talk spurred a flurry of denouncements by March 14 which stressed
that Lebanon’s independence wouldn’t have been achieved if it weren’t for the
Maronite Patriarchy.
It slams the return of “old voices that was accustomed to attacking the Special
Tribunal for Lebanon charged with probing the assassination of Premier Martyr
Rafic Hariri, after promoting that it has the capability of causing internal
unrest.”The statement stresses that the international tribunal is ongoing and in
safe hands, pointing that nothing could influence its tasks, as former General
Security chief Jamil Sayyed said in a press conference that the court is
politicized. It should be noted that Sayyed was arrested under suspicion of
involvement in the assassination of Premier Hariri and some 22 others but was
later released.
Ezzedine bankruptcy sees '$1.195 billion' in losses
Daily Star staff/Tuesday, September 01, 2009
BEIRUT: As-Safir newspaper reported on its front page Monday that Lebanese
businessman Salah Ezzedine had gone bankrupt, knowing that thousands of citizens
in Dahiyeh, the south of Lebanon, and the Bekaa had invested huge amounts of
money in his projects. Ezzeddine is the director of Dar al-Hadi for publication,
the owner of Al-Hadi television for children and the supervisor of the peace
campaign for pilgrimage to Mecca, as well as other projects in the fields of oil
and iron. The reasons behind his bankruptcy have not been cleared up yet but
could be a result of the financial crisis, or the expansion in Hadi’s projects
without taking into consideration the risks incurred, as it was reported. Total
investors’ losses resulting from this bankruptcy are estimated at $1.195
billion. Examiners of Ezzedine’s file believe that these losses are going to
affect the lives of a great number of people. As-Safir newspaper was told by a
well-informed source that the case has now been transferred to the judiciary
authorities, which will decide whether Ezzedine’s bankruptcy is fraudulent or of
a technical nature. – The Daily Star
Israeli Arab accused of spying for Hizbullah
Tel Aviv says Sultani passed intel to facilitate Ashkenazi murder plot
Tuesday, September 01, 2009/Matti Friedman
Associated Press
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: Israeli prosecutors have indicted an Israeli Arab for
passing information on the country’s military chief of staff to the Lebanese
group Hizbullah, according to court documents made public Monday. Israeli
defense officials said the information given to Hizbullah by Rawi Sultani, 23,
was meant to facilitate a plot to assassinate Lieutenant General Gabi Ashkenazi
in retaliation for the killing of a top Hizbullah commander last year in a bomb
attack widely attributed to Israel.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized
to speak to the media.
The indictment alleges Sultani, who maintains he is innocent, worked out at the
same health club as Ashkenazi and agreed to give information to a Hizbullah
agent he met at a youth camp in Morocco in August, 2008.
He later met a different agent in the Polish city of Lodz and passed on
information about the health club in the Tel Aviv suburb of Kfar Saba, including
details of access routes and security measures and information on Ashkenazi’s
personal security detail, according to the court documents.
The agent also gave Sultani encoding software to enable secure communications
after the Israeli returned home, the indictment says.
Sultani was arrested on August 10, but his arrest was only made public Monday.
He was represented in a court hearing on Monday by his father, attorney Fouad
Sultani.
While at the camp in Morocco his son “thoughtlessly” mentioned that he worked
out at the same club as Ashkenazi, the attorney said, and wasn’t aware the men
he met were Hizbullah agents. “He sat with people and bragged that he knew the
chief of staff, or sees him, and that’s why someone tried to exploit him,” the
attorney said, calling the actions of the alleged Hizbullah agents a “cynical
exploitation of my son’s naivety. In the end we will prove that this is simply
not what the security officials thought,” he said.
Rawi Sultani is active in the National Democratic Assembly, an Arab political
party represented in the Israeli Parliament. The party’s former leader, Azmi
Bishara, fled Israel in 2007 after police charged him with passing information
to Hizbullah during Israel’s war against the Lebanese militia the previous year.
That case sparked concerns of political persecution among Israel’s one-fifth
Arab minority, and also fueled fears among Israel’s Jewish majority that the
country’s Arab citizens are too closely linked to the country’s enemies. Other
Israeli citizens have been convicted of passing information to Hizbullah,
including a 24-year-old Israeli Arab woman jailed in 2007 for contacts with
Hizbullah agents she met while studying in Amman, Jordan. In 2006, an Arab
colonel in the Israeli army was sentenced to 15 years in prison for giving
information about tank positions, troop deployments and the whereabouts of top
Israeli commanders to Hizbullah in exchange for heroin, hashish, and thousands
of dollars.
In recent months Lebanon has also arrested a string of suspects it accuses of
spying for Israel. Israel has been concerned about a possible revenge attack
since February 2008, when Imad Mughniyeh, a top Hizbullah military commander,
was killed by a bomb that ripped through his Pajero SUV in Damascus, Syria.
Higher Judicial Council to meet over Sayyed attacks
Daily Star staff/Tuesday, September 01, 2009
BEIRUT: The Higher Judicial Council is expected to hold a meeting on Tuesday to
discuss attacks on the judiciary by former head of General Security Jamil al-Sayyed.
The council’s president Judge Ghaleb Ghanem will head Tuesday’s meeting.
Informed sources told the Central News Agency on Monday that the council will
issue a statement following its meeting, “which will stress the integrity and
transparency of the Lebanese judiciary.”
The statement will also highlight the fact that the judiciary was “above all
suspicions and accusations.”
Speaking during a conference at the Coral Beach Hotel on Sunday, Sayyed accused
Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri along with some judges and officers of
falsifying evidence in the assassination case of former Prime Minister Rafik
Hariri.
Sayyed said that the prime minister designate has “no right to claim justice”
from by the United Nations Backed-Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), “when he
approved of people making baseless accusations and falsifying facts for four
consecutive years.”
Sayyed was among four top generals who were released in April after four years
in custody in connection with Hariri’s assassination, none has ever been
formally charged.
The other three are the former head of the Presidential Guard, Mustafa Hamdan,
Internal Security Forces chief Ali Hajj, and military intelligence chief Raymond
Azar.
Sayyed accused a number of prominent figures of misleading the investigation,
including MP Marwan Hamadeh; former head of the Lebanese Armed Forces
Intelligence Branch, Johnny Abdo; current head of the Internal Security Forces
Intelligence department, Wissam al-Hassan; Hariri adviser Hani Hammoud;
journalist Fares Khashan; State Prosecutor Saeed Mirza; and investigative judge
Saqr Saqr. He called on Justice Minister Ibrahim Najjar to imprison Mirza
for “crimes against the state,” as they oversaw the investigation into Rafik
Hariri’s assassination, questioned witnesses and ordered the arrest of the four
generals. Meanwhile, caretaker Justice Minister Ibrahim Najjar told LBC
television on Monday that he will wait for the outcome of the meeting of the
Higher Judicial Council on Tuesday, before responding to allegations made by
Sayyed. Najjar added that it was still “too early” to judge whether the STL was
“a success or a failure.” The minister also stressed the need for the STL to
carry out its role until it “uncovers the whole truth” on the Hariri
assassination. – The Daily Star
Ottoman treasure excavation work in Bekaa halted
Daily Star staff/Tuesday, September 01, 2009
BEIRUT: Excavation works in the Bekaa to uncover an alleged Ottoman treasure
were halted, according to a report carried by the state-run National News Agency
on Monday. Over the weekend, teams from the Finance Ministry started digging for
a presumed treasure dating back to the Ottoman era in Ain Arab, a village
located in the Bekaa district of Rashaya.
The Finance Ministry started searching for the treasure after a Jordanian
archaeologist Ahmad Hassan Mahmoud, presented during a visit to Lebanon a
document allegedly dating back to 1918 and signed by Ottoman Defense and Finance
Minister at the time Ahmad Djemal Pasha. The document mentions that 10 chests,
each containing 1,000 Ottoman gold coins, were all buried under the shrine of
Prophet Khodr in the village of Ain Arab. The document added that the money
belonged to the Ottoman treasury, but that excavation works were not able to
reach the treasure. Excavation works were being carried out in the presence of
representatives of the Department of Islamic Endowments in the Bekaa and the
Lebanese Customs.
“We did not find anything underneath the shrine of Prophet Khodr, no treasure
and no Ottoman gold,” the head of the Department of Islamic Endowments in the
Bekaa Sheikh Mohammad Abdel-Rahman told NNA. “It turned out that all this talk
about a treasure buried in Ain Arab is the imagination of some people,” the
sheikh said. Finance Minister Mohammad Shatah had followed up on excavations. He
has even visited Ain Arab to monitor works. Work was stopped after the dig
reached a depth of 1 meter and diameter of 3 meters. Sheikh Abdel-Rahman said
that Shatah had promised that the shrine of Prophet Khodr, which dates back more
than 600 years, will be restored to its original condition. Lebanon was part of
the Ottoman Empire for over 400 years, until 1918 when the area became a part of
the French Mandate of Syria and Lebnon following World War I. – The Daily Star
Efforts to form unity government continue
By Elias Sakr and Nafez Qawas /Daily Star staff
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
Hariri and Aoun cite difficulties in reaching agreement
BEIRUT: Both Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri and Free Patriotic Movement
(FPM) leader MP Michel Aoun said on Monday that the government formation process
still faced difficulties, while adding that further deliberations were needed to
complete the procedure. Following talks headed by President Michel Sleiman at
Baabda Presidential Palace, both leaders stressed that the meeting was an
opportunity “to break the ice” and thus launch serious discussions to form a
unity cabinet.
Hariri, who thanked Sleiman for sponsoring the meeting, underlined that he would
maintain contacts with Aoun to speed up the formation process.
“The dialogue was honest, clear and the ice was broken like General Aoun
described it,” Hariri told reporters at the Baabda Palace.
For his part, Aoun said the meeting was “an opportunity to initiate dialogue to
form a cabinet”; “nevertheless obstacles are still big,” the former Lebanese
Army chief added.
Aoun told reporters that he would travel “for a few days,” adding that FPM
officials would follow up dialogue with Hariri.
When asked about whether he would visit the premier-designate after he returns
to Beirut, Aoun expressed openness to meet with Hariri at his residence in
Qoreitem.
Aoun had rejected in August an invitation for lunch by Hariri, saying he would
not visit the premier-designate before Future Movement officials stop attacking
him in the media.
During an iftar banquet on Friday, Hariri expressed readiness to meet with Aoun
at Baabda Palace or at the Parliament headquarters and informed Sleiman and
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri of his decision.
“Lebanon’s interests are above any politician personal interests,” Hariri said.
Baabda Palace was regarded by Aoun and Hariri asa neutral location to meet as
the FPM leader accepted Sleiman’s invitation following Hariri’s proposal.
Meanwhile, Aoun’s ally in the opposition, head of Hizbullah’s Loyalty to
Resistance bloc Mohammad Raad, said on Sunday his party welcomed the direct
contact between Hariri and Aoun to reach an agreement on the distribution of
ministerial portfolios. Raad said the formation of a national-unity cabinet
could not take place given an atmosphere of controversial political rhetoric and
fiery speeches. The MP stressed that his party was not a mediator between Aoun
and Hariri, adding that the FPM was entitled to express its demands concerning
the distribution of portfolios and the nomination of candidates. “If no foreign
intervention obstructs the formation process, we believe the domestic
complications would not delay the process,” Raad added. Separately, Hizbullah’s
official in south Lebanon Sheikh Nabil Qaouk said speeding up the formation
process was “less costly than any other alternative,” adding that only the
Israeli enemy benefited from the delay. Speaking during the opening of Imam
Hussein complex in the southern town of Zahrani on Monday, Qaouk said delaying
the formation of a cabinet would not alter the balance of power among Lebanese
groups. “No matter how long it takes, the dialogue would only end in consensus
and Hizbullah wants to speed up the process,” Qaouk said, stressing that no
party could disregard the representational size of the FPM. Also tackling the
cabinet formation process, the Phalange Party stressed on Monday the
premier-designate and the president’s constitutional prerogatives with regard to
the formation process. The party’s statement called for the prompt formation of
a national-unity cabinet while adding that attempts to overthrow the outcome of
the June 7 polls would fail.
Parliamentary majority urges cabinet based on Constitution
Elias Sakr /Daily Star staff
BEIRUT: The parliamentary majority stressed Monday on the need to form a cabinet
in accordance with constitutional laws and voiced “strong” support for Prime
Minister-designate Saad Hariri’s task in shaping one. Lawmakers met at Hariri’s
residence in Qoreitem. Deliberations were attended by 67 MPs including
Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) leader MP Walid Jumblatt and MP Michel Murr.
MPs Robert Fadel and Khodr Habib did not attend the meeting because they were
abroad. Former Prime Minister MP Najib Mikati and MP Ahmad Karami did not make
it to the meeting either. However, the two had issued a statement earlier on
Monday praising Hariri’s effort to form a government.
Speaking during an iftar banquet on Monday, Hariri stressed that Monday’s
meeting of the parliamentary majority “demonstrated that the March 14 Forces are
still unified.”
“The March 14 group remains a unified body despite minor problems faced, which
could be easily solved,” Hariri told his visitors.
Jumblatt’s presence at the meeting eliminated all speculations over the fate of
the parliamentary majority.
In early August, Jumblatt said his alliance with the March 14 Forces “was driven
by necessity and must end.”
However, the PSP leader had reiterated on several occasions his support for
Hariri’s role as the head of cabinet and stressed that his Democratic Gathering
bloc MPs as well as the PSP’s three ministers’ share in the cabinet were part of
the parliamentary majority.
A statement issued after the parliamentary majority’s meeting underlined the
need to commit to the constitutional laws with regard to the cabinet’s formation
rather than “transform exceptional precedents to constitutional texts,” a
reference to the 2008 Doha Accord.
The Doha accord led to the election of President Michel Sleiman and the
formation of a unity cabinet which granted the opposition veto power. The accord
followed two years of political stalemate after Hizbullah and Amal Movement
Shiite ministers withdrew from the cabinet following the summer 2006 war with
Israel.
On May 7, 2008, bloody clashes between pro-government and opposition groups
erupted after a move by the government then headed by current caretaker Premier
Fouad Siniora to dismantle Hizbullah’s private telecommunication network.
“The parliamentary majority will pursue its efforts to form a national-unity
cabinet which guarantees real partnership for all political parties but without
overlooking the outcome of the June 7 polls,” the statement said.
The alliance voiced support for Hariri in his task to form a government and
urged him to pursue his efforts “in accordance with Lebanon’s interests and
democratic regime.”
The parliamentary majority MPs slammed attempts to distort the constitution in
order to make political and sectarian gains.
They added that that the “open-minded” behavior adopted by the parliamentary
majority with regard to the formation of a unity cabinet “is not imposed by the
Constitution but rather emanates from our national [concern] to face future
challenges.”
Over the last week, March 14 figures have reiterated on several occasions that
Hariri’s constitutional prerogatives grant him in cooperation with the president
the final say on cabinet’s make-up.
“The majority’s openness to form a national-unity cabinet does not grant any
political party the right to impose conditions on the president or the
premier-designate since both leaders according to the constitution are entitled
to form the government and issue its decree,” the statement said.
The lawmakers underlined their commitment to the Taif agreement as a guarantee
for coexistence among Lebanon’s sectarian constituents.
“The agreement established the basis to develop a democratic regime and
instituted the equal distribution of powers between Christians and Muslims,” the
statement said.
The parliamentary majority MPs also called on political groups to preserve the
country’s best interests based on its constitution and democratic principles
which secured Lebanon’s stability, freedom and power alternation. Tackling the
Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) in charge with investigating Former Prime
Minister Rafik Hariri’s assassination, the attendants urged the Lebanese to
refrain from exploiting the issue for domestic political purposes. Former head
of General Security Jamil al-Sayyed accused on Sunday the premier-designate
along with some judges and officers of falsifying evidence in the assassination
case. Sayyed said that the prime-minister designate had “no right to claim
justice” from the STL, “when he approved of people making baseless accusations
and falsifying facts for four consecutive years.” Sayyed was among four top
generals who were released in April after four years in custody in connection
with Hariri’s assassination, none has ever been formally charged
Parliament discusses Israeli abuse of Lebanese water
Daily Star staff/Tuesday, September 01, 2009
BEIRUT: Israel’s exploitation of Lebanese water sources was discussed during a
meeting in Parliament on Monday for the Public Works, Transport, Energy, and
Water Committee, headed by Mohammad Qabbani. The meeting was attended by
committee members MPs Antoine Zahra and Nasser Nasrallah as well as the
Follow-up Committee to Ban Israeli Exploitation of Lebanese Water Resources. The
meeting discussed means by which “Israel’s greed for Lebanese waters can be
countered,” according to a statement carried by the state-run National News
Agency (NNA). Speaking following the meeting, Qabbani told reporters that
efforts are now focused on “pinpointing cross-border basins.” –The Daily Star
Parliament discusses Israeli abuse of Lebanese water
Daily Star staff/Tuesday, September 01, 2009
BEIRUT: Israel’s exploitation of Lebanese water sources was discussed during a
meeting in Parliament on Monday for the Public Works, Transport, Energy, and
Water Committee, headed by Mohammad Qabbani. The meeting was attended by
committee members MPs Antoine Zahra and Nasser Nasrallah as well as the
Follow-up Committee to Ban Israeli Exploitation of Lebanese Water Resources. The
meeting discussed means by which “Israel’s greed for Lebanese waters can be
countered,” according to a statement carried by the state-run National News
Agency (NNA). Speaking following the meeting, Qabbani told reporters that
efforts are now focused on “pinpointing cross-border basins.” –The Daily Star
Berri stresses need for 'state of economic emergency'
By Elias Sakr /Daily Star staff
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
BEIRUT: Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri called Monday on the upcoming government
to sort its priorities and declare a “state of economic emergency,” while urging
President Michel Sleiman to include the issues of the rising public debt and the
economic crisis on the agenda of dialogue sessions. Speaking during a rally to
commemorate Imam Moussa al-Sadr’s disappearance, the Amal Movement leader who
refrained from tackling the so-far stalled cabinet-formation process said: “The
last round of dialogue on the cabinet kicked off but I will keep silent.” “I
urge [Sleiman] to adopt methodology in the national dialogue in order to resolve
the repercussions in Lebanon of the global economic crisis and thus lower the
state’s debts,” Berri said. The speaker, who called on the next cabinet to
declare a state of economic emergency, also demanded an increase in health
benefits and lower taxation on groups of the middle and lower economic class so
as to end injustice. Berri explained that Lebanon had not been “gravely
affected” by the global credit crunch due to the country’s solid banking sector
and the flow of remittance by Lebanese expatriates. However, he added that if
“necessary steps” were not undertaken, the country would “eventually fall victim
to the crisis given the persistent pressure.”
“The Amal Movement’s participation in the next government will not be at the
expense of its principles and the movement will continue to support the General
Labor Confederation as well as the social and economic demands of other
syndicates,” Berri said at the Amal rally was held in the Beirut southern suburb
of Mreijeh.
Tackling inter Arab ties, Berri stressed that a Syrian-Saudi rapprochement would
promote Lebanon’s stability. Regarding recent Israeli threats, Berri called for
strengthing the Lebanese Army while warning of Israeli attempts to instigate a
schism between the army and the resistance. The speaker also warned against “an
international consensus” to naturalize Palestinians refugees in Lebanon. “Such
schemes could only be confronted through resistance,” he added. “The resistance
is a Lebanese necessity to guarantee that Israel would not resort to the use of
force against Lebanon and the only means to abort naturalization attempts,”
Berri said. As for the disappearance of Imam Mousa Sadr, Berri slammed the
Libyan regime headed by Moammar Gadhafi as “leading the top criminal
organization.” “I call on human-rights groups to take the Mousa Sadr
disappearance as a human-rights and legal case,” Berri said.
The Copts suffer from their state, but so do all Egyptians
By Ghassan Rubeiz /Commentary by
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
Egypt has the largest and oldest Christian community in the Middle East, the
Coptic community. The status of the Copts affects all other Christian
communities in the region. In the Arab world minorities learn to seek justice
with a broadminded and a long-term perspective. The Copts of Egypt feel
marginalized and face a dilemma: either they can keep quiet or challenge the
system. Minorities in the region often ponder how to deal with their own
specific issues of justice when the entire political system is broken. Nor is it
easy for emigrants who come from minority backgrounds to speak their minds about
their home country from their comfortable positions abroad.
When Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak visited President Barack Obama on August
17, the Voice of the Copts strongly protested with a rally and a press
conference in Washington DC. The Voice, a human rights diaspora organization
that enjoys limited support from the Christians they claim to represent in
Egypt, is charging Mubarak with full complicity in alleged oppression of
Christians and other minorities. The Washington protesters demanded “that
Mubarak take action to stop Muslim extremist violence against Coptic Christians
and others in Egypt.”
“Others” refers to a tiny Bahai Egyptian community, which faces severe rejection
because many Egyptians do not consider Bahaism a valid religion; this is a sad
fact.
The Copts are suffering but they are not oppressed. Are the Copts really
suffering for being Christians, or are they momentarily distanced from political
representation by a regime that wishes to appear more Muslim than it really is?
There are 10-15 million Christians in Egypt, representing 12 to 15 percent of
the population. Today, more than in the past, being a Copt is both a religious
affiliation and an adherence to a different way of life. Prejudice and political
marginalization in the Arab world are not easy to explain; the dynamics of
injustice are commonly misunderstood by outsiders.
Islam and Christianity have coexisted for 14 centuries in the Middle East. Often
the similarities between the two Abrahamic faiths are overlooked and the
differences are exaggerated by narcissistic theologians, manipulative
politicians and co-opted clerics. In increasingly insecure and poorly managed
societies minorities often face disproportional pressures.
The Voice of the Copts assumes that Mubarak is able but unwilling to control
sectarian tension and isolated acts of violence against individual Christians in
remote areas of Egypt. It is asking for the impossible. The suffering of the
Christians is largely a consequence of political chaos that all Egyptians live
under. The most disadvantaged Egyptians are not the Christians; they are the
poor, the women and children, and the political dissidents. Christian citizens
of Egypt, together with their Muslim compatriots, might consider joining the
political struggle against oppression that victimizes all segments of
society.Overall, the Copts are not doing better or worse than the general
Egyptian population. Some are doing better because they tend to have good
education. Most feel politically disadvantaged as minorities; some may feel
uncomfortable merely for being Christian. There are no quotas or strong
political parties to guarantee a minimum of representation for Copts in Egypt.
There are no ways for stopping disgruntled civil servants from abusing the law
against minorities. Copts have many churches and endowed ecclesiastical
facilities throughout the country. Still, legal discrimination for not allowing
churches to be built or repaired without excessively rigorous approval
procedures is a painful fact.
The Copts are not being attacked as a community. Conflict arises from time to
time around local disputes such as mixed-marriage, sexual norms, economic
rivalry and village feuds. Copts are not known to be vindictive or politically
active. Their leaders have turned inward.
Egypt’s government is not threatened by the Christians. The Copts are hard
working and loyal. Rather, the threat to the government is political Islam, and
the government has appeased the Muslim Brotherhood opposition by not making life
easier for the Copts. Social distance is also a factor in sectarian tension.
Because Copts tend to live in their own neighborhoods or villages there has
developed a social line of separation between them and broader Egyptian society.
When the local community is economically comfortable, communal tension is
minimal. When there is widespread poverty and misguided local leadership, inter
communal trouble can be expected. The role of community leaders – the Christian
bishops and the Muslim clerics – is crucial for prevention of tension. The more
open-minded religious leaders are the better the inter-communal relations.
When Copts cry out against the inconveniences they face as a minority, the
majority Muslim community responds negatively. What the larger society is not
saying directly, but should, is that the national priority is changing the
overall political system in order to achieve equality for all. The Muslim
majority would prefer to see the Copts join the larger political struggle to
emancipate Egypt from an environment of autocracy that suffocates all segments
of society. Any attempt to provocatively broadcast local sectarian tension
outside Egypt is counterproductive. The recent Coptic appeal in Washington
merely provoked the Muslim majority and makes discrimination – at least
partially – a self fulfilling prophecy. In their advocacy the expatriate Coptic
organizations are hurting their national image inside Egypt. Inadvertently, they
are doing a disservice to their community.
**Ghassan Michel Rubeiz is an Arab-American commentator. He wrote this
commentary for THE DAILY STAR.
MP Alain Aoun: No progress has been made on cabinet
formation
FPM Site/Change and Reform bloc MP Alain Aoun told the Voice of Lebanon radio
station on Tuesday in a reference to the meeting that was held on Monday between
Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri and Free Patriotic Movement leader MP
Michel Aoun at the Presidential Palace in Baabda under the auspices of President
Michel Sleiman, that "no progress has been made". MP Aoun pointed out that
despite the ongoing deliberations on the cabinet formation, “Hariri did not
present any new proposal; and the demands of the Free Patriotic Movement have
not been met”. “The two leaders only held discussions,” Aoun added... He
stressed that there is not such a problem called “Aoun’s obstacle”; He believed
that the problem is turning around what the “Change & Reform bloc’s rights are,
especially when it comes to representing the Christians ... Aoun wondered why
"the resentment to the bloc’s approach when it comes to forming the cabinet…
after all General Aoun is the leader of the second biggest parliamentary
Christians bloc.". He concluded by saying that both leaders agreed to stop media
campaigns and foster dialogue between them.