LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
November 26/08

Bible Reading of the day.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 21,5-11. While some people were speaking about how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings, he said, All that you see here--the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down. Then they asked him, "Teacher, when will this happen? And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?" He answered, "See that you not be deceived, for many will come in my name, saying, 'I am he,' and 'The time has come.' Do not follow them! When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end." Then he said to them, "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place; and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.

Origen (c.185-253), priest and theologian
Commentary on St John's Gospel, 10,39; PG14, 369f./«Do you not know that you are the temple of God?» (1Cor 3,16)
«Jesus said to the Jews: 'Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up'... But he was speaking about the temple of his body» (Jn 2,19.21)... Certain people think it impossible to apply to Christ's body everything spoken about the Temple; they think his body was called 'temple' because, just as the first Temple was indwelt by God's glory, so the Firstborn of all creation is the image and glory of God (Col 1,15) and therefore it is fitting that his Body, the Church, should be called the temple of God because it contains the divine image... But we have learned from Peter that the Church is the body and house of God, built of living stones, a spiritual house for a holy priesthood (1Pt 2,5). Thus we can consider Solomon, the son of David, who built the Temple, as being a prefiguration of Christ: it was after the war, while peace reigned, that Solomon constructed a temple to the glory of God in the earthly Jerusalem...Just so, when all Christ's enemies have been «put under his feet and the last enemy, death, has been destroyed» (1Cor 15,25-26), then there will be perfect peace, then Christ will be the «Solomon» whose name means «Peacemaker» and in him this prophecy will be fulfilled: «With those who hate peace, I speak of peace» (Ps 120[119], 6-7). Then each of these living stones will become a stone in the temple, according to their merits in this present life: one – apostle or prophet – placed in the foundation, will carry the stones set above it; another, following after those at the foundation and itself carried by the apostles, will carry other, weaker ones with it; one will be a stone completely on the inside, where the ark with the cherubim and the mercy seat is to be found (1Kgs 6,19); another will be the stone of the porch (v.3), and yet another, outside the vestibule for the priests and Levites, will be the altar stone where the grain offerings are made... The overseeing of the construction together with the organization of the ministers will be entrusted to the angels of God, those holy powers prefigured by Solomon's prefects for the work... All these things will be accomplished when peace is perfect, when there reigns a great peace.

Free Opinions, Releases, letters & Special Reports 
You may think you're speaking Lebanese, but some of your words are really Syriac-By Michael Frey 25/11/08

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for November 25/08
Ahmadinejad: Iran Willing to Provide Assistance to Lebanon to Confront Israel-Naharnet
Hizbullah Rules Out Attack on Region, Says Resistance More Ready than Israelis for Battle-Naharnet
Fatah al-Islam Detainee Explains Operations Against Army and UNIFIL-Naharnet
Bishop Rahi: It's Time for Historic Lebanese-Syrian Reconciliation-Naharnet
Jumblat's Visit to Bkirki Focused on Christians' Interests, Cautioned against U.S.-Syrian Re-Engagement-Naharnet
Iran Willing to Strengthen Lebanon Against Israel-Naharnet
Geagea Confident March 14 Will Win Parliamentary Elections-Naharnet
U.N.: Pullout Mechanism is Only Problem to Israeli Withdrawal from Ghajar-Naharnet
Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center-The Intelligence &amp
Lebanon to be ruled by Syria if March 14 loses poll - Jumblatt -(AFP)
Ahmadinejad opens Sleiman visit with praise for Lebanon's resistance feats-(AFP)
Sleiman 'unlikely' to accept arms offer from Iran-Daily Star
Saudi Arabia's turn to be accused of funding Fatah al-Islam-Daily Star
Barak: Hizbullah now three times stronger than in 2006 war-(AFP)
Lines drawn (sort of) ahead of AUB's student elections-Daily Star
Italy stresses 'deep commitment' to Lebanon-Daily Star
Sidon's Khan al-Franj puts spotlight on olives-Daily Star
Film casts spotlight on abusive employers of domestic workers-By Dalila Mahdawi-Daily Star
The General in Damascus... finally-By Sami Moubayed,GulfNews  25/11/08

Ahmadinejad: Iran Willing to Provide Assistance to Lebanon to Confront Israel
Naharnet/Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Tuesday Iran was willing to provide assistance to Lebanon to face up to Israel. "We will stand by Lebanon under any circumstances and we are willing to provide assistance to confront the Israeli enemy and to rebuild Lebanon," Ahmadinejad said at a joint press conference with Lebanese President Michel Suleiman. "We will set up a joint committee that would take appropriate decisions regarding strengthening and widening our relations," he said. Ahmadinejad said he will plan a visit to Lebanon as soon as possible to meet the various political officials. Suleiman, for his part, said he discussed with Ahmadinejad the return of Palestinian refugees and the need to unite in order to counter terrorism as well as other global issues. Suleiman said he invited Ahmadinejad to visit Lebanon as soon as possible.Beirut, 25 Nov 08, 14:58

Egyptian Officials: Lebanon Could Benefit from Taba Experience
Naharnet/Egyptian officials stress in front of their visiting Lebanese officials, party leaders and media that Cairo is not against Lebanon in regaining its occupied territories at Shebaa Farms, Kfar Shouba Hills and the village of Ghajar, adding that Egypt cannot accept for others what it does not accept for itself when it comes to Israeli occupied Arab lands. However, Egypt sees that it is wrong holding up any political, security, economic and development benefits of liberated territories while awaiting the liberation of relatively small and narrow territories that could be subject to border disputes requiring border demarcation or international arbitration to establish its ownership and sovereignty rights. In this regard, Egyptian leaders refer to the example of Taba, following the return of the Sinai Peninsula from Israel. They compare the status of Taba at that time with that of the Shebaa Farms today. They point that Egypt did not link benefiting from the return of the Sinai Peninsula with that of Taba. However, at the same time it did not give up its rights. Egypt moved to the end with international legal procedures, which allowed it to fully regain all of its territories. Egyptian officials believe that Lebanon could benefit from the Egyptian experience, according to the seven-point plan adopted by the Lebanese cabinet in the summer of 2006 in terms of placing Shebaa Farms under the auspices of the United Nations and its Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) following an Israeli withdrawal. The ownership of the Farms is to be decided following a border demarcation process, which will ultimately deliver it to its rightful owners.
It is wrong to keep all of Lebanon with its economy, policy and stability subject to a state of war and confrontation with Israel, with all of the negative implications on its society and institutions that would highly exceed the implications of Israeli occupation of a small portion of territory that could be regained through diplomatic means and international law, Egyptian officials say. Egypt places this comparison regarding Shebaa Farms with all of the Lebanese parties it receives. Naturally, it does not seek to press the Lebanese to adopt this Egyptian model as a solution. On the other hand, Egypt cannot remain silent and be a false witness to the high costs paid by Lebanon and the Lebanese resulting from a policy that could be substituted by a less costly and more beneficial one to regain Shebaa Farms. Beirut, 01 Nov 08, 12:51

Fatah al-Islam Detainee Explains Operations Against Army and UNIFIL
Naharnet/Confessions of a Fatah al-Islam detainee named Hussam Salim Maarouf disclosed complicity of fifty individuals working on forming a gang to carry out terrorist attacks." He explained that al-Qaeda and Fatah al-Islam groups carry out attacks against United Nations Independent Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) as well as firing Katyousha rockets into northern Israel. The daily as-Safir on Tuesday stated that Maarouf," had expressed his willingness to move to Iraq, he was asked to exhibit his "experience" in arms and explosives. He began training elements on making explosives."
A house was used at Ain el-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp as a secret location for this purpose, the paper said.
The daily went on to add that Maarouf played many "military roles" confined to the camp, participating in many military formations against LAF and in support of Jund al-Sham. Maarouf was asked by Osama el-Chahabi to build a rocket and fire it towards northern Israel, to videotape the event and send it to al-Qaeda in Iraq via the Internet. The purpose behind this was," to encourage sending elements to Ain al-Hilweh for rocket building and training, to be exported later to anywhere al-Qaeda wants." As-Safir related that Maarouf had identified an individual named Yussef to have planted an explosive aimed at an Irish force working under UNIFIL last January. The paper pointed that Maarouf had confessed to Lebanese authorities that rockets were being smuggled to Ain el-Hilweh at intervals through two individuals known with their connection to al-Qaeda. The rockets were intended for use against UNIFIL, LAF or northern Israel. Judge Maroun Zakhour issued arrest warrants against Maarouf and 45 others including Abdel Rahman Awad, Osama el-Chehabi. Beirut, 25 Nov 08, 14:04

Bishop Rahi: It's Time for Historic Lebanese-Syrian Reconciliation
Naharnet/Maronite Bishop Beshara al-Rahi said it was "time to achieve a historic reconciliation between Lebanon and Syria."Rahi said in remarks to al-Balad newspaper published Tuesday that the dispute was not one between the Christians and Syria but between Lebanon and Syria. "It is time to turn the historic dispute into a historic reconciliation," Rahi said. He said Lebanon was "totally willing" to achieve this reconciliation. On inter-Christian reconciliation, Rahi believed time is not yet ripe for such a reunion. Beirut, 25 Nov 08, 12:37

Jumblat's Visit to Bkirki Focused on Christians' Interests, Cautioned against U.S.-Syrian Re-Engagement
MP Walid Jumblat's visit to Bkirki on Monday came to focus attention on Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir's role in the upcoming parliamentary elections as well as to caution against the new U.S.' bid to re-engage with Syria. The daily An Nahar on Tuesday said that the ruling March 14 coalition wanted, through Jumblat's visit to Bkirki, to send a message to the Christian people, considering Sfeir on "top of the Cedars' Revolution."An Nahar quoted sources as giving a political dimension to Jumblat's visit. They said the visit also carried significance, particularly since it focused attention on the Christian status ahead of a series of upcoming political events, mainly parliamentary elections. An Nahar said Jumblat was also keen to brief Sfeir on his visit to the United States where he sensed that the new administration wishes to re-engage with the Syrian regime. Beirut, 25 Nov 08, 11:01

Iran Willing to Strengthen Lebanon Against Israel
Naharnet/Iran said it is "ready and willing" to meet Lebanon's demands -- supporting and strengthening its stability and position in confronting Israel "so that the ball would remain in the Lebanese field in this extent."The daily as-Safir on Tuesday quoted Iranian diplomatic sources as saying Tehran stressed "bilateral cooperation between Lebanon and Iran should develop away from any external interventions and pressures, according to the interests of both sides."
Iran reiterated its support to the process of (national) dialogue and reconciliation following the Doha agreement. Meanwhile, the daily al-Liwaa, citing official sources in Lebanon, ruled out the possibility that Iran would provide the Lebanese army with weapons, pointing out that if this was the case, then President Michel Suleiman would have been accompanied by Defense Minister Elias Murr. Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Interior, Industry, Labor, Economy as well as the Miniter of the Displaced accompany Suleiman to Tehran. By the same token, informed sources said Murr is likely to visit Russia soon to begin discussions on armament. During his previous visit to Moscow, al Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc leader Saad Hariri established an understanding with Russian authorities in this regard.
Official sources informed the daily An-Nahar on Tuesday that Suleiman briefed his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on the developments in Lebanon following the Doha agreement. Suleiman hoped that his visit would provide an opportunity to strengthen bilateral relations. He reiterated Lebanon's "appreciation to the government and people of Iran for their support over the past years."The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) quoted Ahmadinejad during his meeting with Suleiman as praising Hizbullah's resistance against Israel. Beirut, 25 Nov 08, 11:19

Geagea Confident March 14 Will Win Parliamentary Elections
Naharnet/Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea said he was confident that the ruling March 14 alliance will win the upcoming parliamentary elections.
"In light of the recent results of Bar Association elections, university elections and Dentist Union elections, I am confident that March 14 Forces will win" in the next polls," Geagea said in remarks published by Ad-Diyar newspaper on Tuesday. Geagea denied reports of disputes among March 14 Forces, particularly between the Lebanese Forces and several political groups, including the Phalange party. Beirut, 25 Nov 08, 11:10

U.N.: Pullout Mechanism is Only Problem to Israeli Withdrawal from Ghajar
U.N. spokeswoman Michele Montas has said the world body expects Israel to withdraw from the northern part of Ghajar the soonest, adding that only a pullout "mechanism" was delaying the move. The world body is still consulting with concerning parties to implement a decision for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Lebanese side of Ghajar, Montas told An Nahar in remarks published Tuesday. She said Israel will withdraw "sooner or later" because it is "obliged under U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701 to pull out of the region." UNIFIL has suggested a mechanism to facilitate Israel's pullout and "discussions are ongoing," she told the newspaper. "The problem is only over a mechanism. We are seeking a solution," she said. Asked about U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon's reaction to the recent threats of Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, Montas said: "The Secretary-General doesn't usually comment on threats."She said the world body was "closely following the situation in south Lebanon." Beirut, 25 Nov 08, 05:47

Suleiman for Integrating Lebanon's Resources in Defense Strategy
Naharnet/President Michel Suleiman said the nation's leaders have joined the conference on national dialogue to work out a plan through which Lebanon's resources would be integrated. "That is why, the issue of disarming should not be approached along the lines of disarming a gang. We have other gangs that should be disarmed," Suleiman was quoted as telling a student delegation that visited him for independence day celebrations. Suleiman said he would not be involved by candidates in the forthcoming parliamentary elections. In answering a question about the possibility of backing a new parliamentary bloc loyal to him, Suleiman said:
"What has been said about the independent parliamentary bloc is not accurate … but so that the country does not remain split among minority and majority I said I do not object to the existence of independent (MPs). Should they be loyal to the president? They asked, and I said no. Should they be friends of the president? They asked and I said no. Who should they be for? They asked, and I said for the homeland … that is why it has been labeled the National Bloc."
Suleiman said the presidency lacks "two or three powers." "Something should be done so that the presidency would be able to establish balance between the legislative and executive authorities," he explained. Beirut, 24 Nov 08, 21:11

Aoun: Taef Not Holy Book
Naharnet/Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun on Monday said the Taef Accord is not a holy book, adding that it suffers from several holes and "there should be no problem in amending it." "We don't want to worship the Taef," Aoun told reporters after a meeting by members of his Change and Reform Bloc at his residence in suburban Rabiyeh. Aoun also asked the Phalange Party for an "official and public apology" for having blamed him for the killing of Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel in 2006. He claimed to possess "correspondence stating that the international investigation committee does not have evidence to justify the apprehension of the four generals" charged with involvement in the 2005 assassination of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri. "I don't think that such ranking security generals can commit a crime," Aoun said. He added that the "Lebanese judiciary should bail them out." He urged MPs to vote for a bill to separate the holding of cabinet posts from seats in the house.
Aoun said his forthcoming visit to Syria would not lead to "opening an investigation into the topic of missing citizens" in Syrian jails "despite my interest in the issue."Beirut, 24 Nov 08, 19:22

Ahmadinejad opens Sleiman visit with praise for Lebanon's resistance feats
'The Lebanese disappointed the enemy forever' in 2006 war
By Agence France Presse (AFP) Compiled by Daily Star staff
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Monday praised Lebanese resistance against Israel, in a meeting with Lebanon's President Michel Sleiman, the official Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported. Ahmadinejad added that the 34-day summer 2006 war with Israel led to "many achievements for the Lebanese people and the region." "The Lebanese disappointed the enemy forever and crushed the myth of the enemies' invincibility," Ahmadinejad told Sleiman, who is on a two-day visit to Tehran accompanied by six ministers.
"The attack two years ago which was intended to destroy this country became a turning point for recovering Lebanon's identity and unity," he said.
Sleiman described relations between Tehran and Beirut as "good" and said his visit was aimed at "meeting senior Iranian officials and strengthening bilateral ties," IRNA reported. "We are grateful that the Islamic Republic of Iran has always stood by the Lebanese people and government," IRNA quoted Sleiman as saying.
Shiite-majority Iran is a staunch supporter of Hizbullah, which is also backed by Syria. However, Tehran has repeatedly denied Western and Israeli charges that it provides military backing to Hizbullah. A Lebanese government official said on Sunday that talks with Iranian officials will include efforts to forge a "national defense strategy" for Lebanon, where Hizbullah's arsenal remains a thorny issue.
The London-based Arab daily Al-Hayat said in its Sunday edition that Tehran was planning on providing the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) with heavy weapons, including missiles."Sleiman's visit to Tehran and the willingness of the regional power to provide Lebanon with 'heavy weapons' and possibly rockets, is within the context of a growing number of countries that have offered to contribute in the arming of the Lebanese Army," said the report in the Saudi daily.
Last week, French Prime Minister Francois Fillon and his defense minister, Herve Morin, discussed the needs of the Lebanese military with Lebanese Defense Minister Elias Murr, while the United States recently offered some of its venerable M-60 tanks to the LAF.
In addition, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin "reaffirmed that Moscow was ready to meet the demands of the Lebanese Army," Al-Hayat said.
On Monday, ministers accompanying Sleiman held talks with their Iranian counterparts, with Foreign Minister Fawzi Salloukh meeting Manouchehr Mottaki, Industry Minister Ghazi Zeaiter meeting Akbar Mahrabian, Labor Minister Mohammad Fneish meeting Mohammad Jahdoumi and Economy Minister Mohammad Safadi meeting Mohammad Jahdoumi. After talks with his counterpart Sadeq Mahsouli, Lebanese Interior Minister Ziyad Baroud said bilateral security cooperation was discussed. "The discussion touched on general issues and we outlined areas of possible cooperation but I will not go into details now," he told Lebanese reporters accompanying Sleiman on his trip to Iran. "In the future, we might reach some kind of agreement concerning a number of issues."
Zeaiter, for his part, said he discussed with Mahrabian means by which industrial cooperation between Lebanon and Iran might be revived.
"A number of agreements were signed in the past but were never executed and we are looking forward to enhancing economic, trade and industrial ties between Lebanon and Iran," he added. - AFP, with additional reporting by Nafez Qawas

Lebanon to be ruled by Syria if March 14 loses poll - Jumblatt
By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
BEIRUT: Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt warned on Monday that a defeat for the March 14 Forces in parliamentary elections slated for next spring would mean a return of Syrian rule to Lebanon. "We are approaching pivotal and decisive elections," Jumblatt, a leader of the anti-Syrian parliamentary majority in Beirut, told reporters after meeting with Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir.
"Now more than ever, the movement for a free, independent and sovereign Lebanon... and a [state] monopoly over weapons and equal relations with Syria are at risk," he said. The thorny issue of Hizbullah's arms remains a major stumbling block for Lebanon's rival leaders, while the Iran-backed Shiite group maintains its weapons are essential to defend the country against Israel. "If this movement for sovereignty fails in the elections, then Rustom Ghazali [the former head of Syrian military intelligence in Lebanon] will run Lebanon from an office in Syria," Jumblatt added.
Damascus maintained an almost three-decade military presence in Lebanon before being forced to withdraw after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in February 2005.While the two neighbors have announced the establishment of diplomatic relations for the first time in history, relations remain tense.
Jumblatt's meeting with Sfeir came after his visit to the United States and on the day Lebanese President Michel Sleiman began a visit to Iran.
"The new [American] administration wants to loosen its disengagement of Syria or return to normal relations with Syria," Jumblatt told reporters. "As the Cedar Revolution, we need to be careful not to allow activity on the Syrian-Israeli track to come at the expense of Lebanon."
Syria and Israel have engaged in indirect talks brokered by Turkey since May. Also Monday, Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) leader MP Michel Aoun told reporters after a weekly meeting of his Reform and Change bloc that the Taif Accord, which ended the 1975-1990 Civil War, was not a "holy book."
Taif called for major amendments to the Lebanese Constitution, but several of the most important changes have never been implemented.
"The Taif is no holy book ... I suffers many deficiencies and there should be no problem in amending it," he said. Aoun also urged MPs to vote for a bill which bans holders of Parliament seats from being selected for Cabinet posts. Speaking on his upcoming visit to Damascus, the FPM chief said that he was interested in uncovering the fate of Lebanese prisoners in Syrian jails, "but my visit will not necessarily lead to particular measures in this regard."
Aoun said recently that the issue of the detainees was in the hands of Sleiman. Meanwhile, a report by the Central News Agency on Monday quoted Sleiman as telling students who met him at Baabda Palace on the eve of Independence Day that he would not support any candidate, nor interfere in any way, in the 2009 parliamentary elections. Sleiman described as "inaccurate" earlier reports saying that he would back the election of a neutral parliamentary bloc.
"I was asked if I would support certain candidates in the upcoming elections ... In response, I was clear on the fact that I will not interfere in the elections," he was quoted as saying. On the security front, Marada Movement supporter Ghassan Kanaan turned himself in to military intelligence in the North on Monday. Kanaan was wanted in the shooting of Hanna Harb, a supporter of March 14 Forces MP Butros Harb.
The victim suffered wounds in his abdomen and legs. - AFP, with The Daily Star

Sleiman 'unlikely' to accept arms offer from Iran
Analysts say Tehran may be seeking to increase its influence by offering Beirut weapons deal
By Michael Bluhm /Daily Star staff
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
BEIRUT: Rumors of an Iranian proposal to visiting Lebanese President Michel Sleiman to help arm Lebanon's military amount to little more than political maneuvering, as a number of factors would likely keep the Lebanese government from approving defense assistance, several analysts told The Daily Star on Monday.
Sleiman began a two-day trip to Iran on Monday, one day after pan-Arab daily Al-Hayat reported that Tehran would offer him heavy weaponry for the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF). Knowing the obstacles to Beirut ratifying such a proposal, Iran is more likely trying to bolster its Lebanese ally Hizbullah by demonstrating that the Islamic Republic's longstanding support for Hizbullah does not overlap with other significant defense roles for the LAF, said Hilal Khashan, chair of the department of political science and public administration at the American University of Beirut.
"They're trying to show that there is no conflict between Hizbullah and the army, [that] the two organizations complement each other," he said. Hizbullah's rivals in the March 14 camp have for years pushed to disarm Hizbullah, saying the LAF alone should handle the country's defense.
An Iranian offer of weaponry "is a trial balloon," Khashan added. "They know in advance that the Lebanese will not accept it."
Tehran would also be seeking to embellish its own image as regional power if it proposed military assistance, said retired General Elias Hanna, who teaches political science at Notre Dame University. Iran wins by looking strong enough to offer heavy weaponry, and in the unlikely event that Lebanon takes the offer, Tehran would benefit from the access to the LAF's inner workings, Hanna added. "It's a win-win situation," he said. "It's like a show of leverage ... that Iran can project power beyond its borders""All of this, it is not a holistic approach" to arming the LAF, Hanna added. "It's a political level only."
In his comments before leaving Beirut, Sleiman spoke only about the political and economic dimensions of his trip and did not mention any military aspects, said Fadia Kiwan, director of the school of political science at St. Joseph University. Defense Minister Elias Murr is not accompanying Sleiman to Tehran, she added.
In addition, the LAF does not have a "tradition" of military cooperation with Iran, she said. In 1982-83 the US overhauled the LAF with training in arms, vehicles and artillery, and military aid from the US - Iran's arch-foe in the Middle East - of more than $400 million since 2006 has made the topic of defense deals with Iran "taboo," Hanna said. Regardless of the friction between Washington and Tehran, combining weaponry from various sources is unadvisable for any armed force, added Hanna. For example, even an organization as large as NATO is moving toward standardization, so that soldiers from French and American units will have interchangeable arms and ammunition, Hanna said.
The LAF, for its part, lacks a coherent doctrine to create a clear definition of the weapons it needs, as well as its requirements for training and equipment, Hanna added. "All of this needs a vision, needs restructuring, needs equipment," he said. "I don't know if they have this kind of vision yet. All they say is, 'We have to be ready to defeat Israel' ... Maybe [LAF commander General Jean Kahwaji] has a vision, but so far we've heard nothing really important from the army."
The muddle surrounding the LAF is only exacerbated by Murr, seen by many as only a stand-in for his father, powerful Metn MP and political chieftain Michel Murr, Hanna said. "It is rare you hear the defense minister say something sensible," Hanna added. Sleiman, who preceded Kahwaji as LAF commander, instead sees his journey to Tehran as another in his series of trips to regional power centers such as Damascus, Cairo and Riyadh, Khashan said. Sleiman, who took office in May after Lebanon spent more than six months without a head of state, wants "to give the impression that he is in control," Khashan added. "He's visiting all the capitals of the Middle East that have a bearing on Lebanon - it would have been incomplete if he had not visited Tehran," Khashan added.
Sleiman wishes to forge an identity as the main partner for any negotiations with Lebanon, superseding the multitude of leaders of the country's various sectarian factions, Hanna said. "Now Sleiman is trying to create a certain umbrella," he said. "He's trying to transcend the daily [cooperation] between the regional countries and the local players."In the end, no one should expect Sleiman's visit to produce any military or political turning points - the president is simply building relationships with the main backers of both of Lebanon's political camps, said Paul Salem, head of the Carnegie Middle East Center.
With the region in an interregnum, awaiting new administrations in the US and Israel, Sleiman is unlikely to strike any deal that would put Lebanon squarely on the side of one of the regional protagonists, Salem added. "It's part of [Sleiman's] job to make the rounds," Salem said. "Lebanon right now is on good terms with both sides of its political divide. Lebanon will not take any major steps toward anyone before the whole situation becomes clearer."

Saudi Arabia's turn to be accused of funding Fatah al-Islam
By Andrew Wander /Daily Star staff
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
BEIRUT: After denials from Damascus and fury from the Future Movement, Saudi Arabia has become the latest powerbroker in Lebanon to find itself accused of funding members of the Fatah al-Islam militant group. An intelligence analysis published by Stratfor, a Texas-based company dubbed the "shadow CIA" by some, claims that Riyadh has been channeling money to Abdul Rahman Awad, a fugitive militant currently thought to be holed up at the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp in Sidon. The Stratfor report says that Fatah al-Islam had "long been sponsored by Syrian military intelligence," but claims Damascus has recently cut its links with the group in an effort to build ties with new President Michel Sleiman. But Syrian support for the group has been replaced, the report says, by that of Saudi Arabia, whose operatives are accused of seeking to stir up anti-Syrian sentiment in Lebanon. The report notes that Riyadh and Damascus are "locked in a battle for influence over Lebanon."Saudi intelligence officials are alleged to have offered support to Fatah al-Islam in the hope that Syria would be accused of being behind any attacks they carried out. "The Saudis developed these contacts with the understanding that any attacks carried out by these groups would be blamed on the Syrians, thereby building support for the anti-Syrian movement in Lebanon," the report says.
Stratfor analysts say they have been told that Awad is "acting prince" of Fatah al-Islam in the absence of Shaker al-Abssi, the group's fugitive leader, who is described as "a Syrian proxy" in the report. The report hints at a schism within Fatah al-Islam, saying that Awad "is believed to have split off from the Syrians and switched to the Saudi side." He is now receiving "ample funding" from the Saudis, the report says.
Awad is believed to be hiding in Ain al-Hilweh but despite Lebanese authorities' making public appeals for his arrest, Palestinian security forces have yet to capture him. There are fears that his continued presence there could trigger a major operation against Islamist militants hiding in the camp. Residents fear a repeat of the bloody battle between militants and security forces which devastated the Nahr al-Bared camp near Tripoli during the summer of 2007.
The report also says that Syria's political aims extend beyond the Levant. Ceasing support for Fatah al-Islam is part of a new agenda for the regime in Damascus, which aims to "open up" to the incoming Obama administration in Washington. According to Stratfor, the Syrians are "laying the groundwork for what they hope will be a political rapprochement" with the US. Britain and France have both made diplomatic overtures to Syria in recent months aimed at ending a period of international isolation for the regime of President Bashar Assad.
But the report warns against reading too much into Syrian change of approach. "Syria continues to sponsor more significant militant groups such as the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, Jund al-Sham, Jund al-Islam and Fatah al-Intifadah" the report says, warning that Damascus can use these groups to "stir up conflict- and potentially justify Syrian intervention [in Lebanon]."
Tracing the financial lineage of militant groups operating in Lebanon is notoriously difficult. For obvious reasons, the groups are very secretive and much of the information made public about them is politically colored. The source of Fatah al-Islam's funding has proven a particularly contentious issue in recent weeks, with Syria accusing parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri's Future Movement of channeling money to the group, something which has been vehemently denied by Future officials. The Hariri family has strong ties to Riyadh
Soon after the Syrian allegations, a newspaper owned by Hariri published the transcripts of intelligence interviews with captured Fatah al-Islam militants which implicated Syrian intelligence officials in orchestrating the group's activities.
The authors of the Stratfor report do not reveal any of their sources and its veracity has been called into question by a Lebanese security source contacted by The Daily Star. The source dismissed Stratfor's analysis of the situation, saying that the allegations that Saudi Arabia was funding Awad were "unfounded."

Rumors swirl around whereabouts of group's fugitive new leader
Mohammed Zaatari/Daily Star staff
SIDON: The whereabouts of the new Fatah al-Islam leader Abdul Rahman Awad remained unconfirmed Monday after an abundance of conflicting reports were circulated in the media over the past couple of days.
Officials from Islamist group Ansarullah at the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp said Monday that Awad left the camp to an unknown destination, "around four or five days ago." The news partly confirms a report on Al-Manar television station on Sunday saying Awad had left for Iraq five days ago.
The Hizbullah-affiliated television station quoted well-informed sources as saying Awad was smuggled out of the Sifsaf area in volatile Ain al-Hilweh to the camp's Taware neighborhood, where he was assisted in the escape. Al-Manar said Awad will soon appear on a videotape that was recorded prior to leaving the camp.
Meanwhile, other reports suggested that Awad was still hiding inside Ain al-Hilweh and refuses to surrender, raising fears of a possible inter-Palestinian confrontation.
Sources inside Ain al-Hilweh told The Daily Star on Monday that efforts were under way to guarantee "a quick but efficient security operation aimed at arresting all wanted people inside Ain al-Hilweh."The sources added that camp officials fear that handing over Awad will lead to the handing over of other wanted people involved in an array of "complex security dossiers," such as the assassination of the four magistrates in Sidon in 1999, clashes between Islamists and the Lebanese Army in the northern region of Dinnieh in the same year, the 2007 attack against Spanish peacekeepers, and other incidents.

The General in Damascus... finally
By Sami Moubayed, Special to Gulf News
Published: November 24, 2008, 23:36
"We have a blood feud with Syria," a prominent media figure from the March 14 Coalition told a friend of mine - a Syrian Christian - who was wrapping up a weekend visit to Beirut. "I have a blood feud with Walid Jumblatt," she snapped back, "because he killed over 150 Greek Orthodox civilians in Mount Lebanon; many being members of my family!" Further enraging her Lebanese counterpart, she added, "Hassan Nasrallah does not have Christian blood on his hands. But Walid Jumblatt does, and so does Samir Geagea!"Christians remember only too well the reply Jumblatt's father, Kamal Jumblatt, gave to then Syrian president Hafez Al Assad at the start of the civil war when asked: "Why are you escalating the fighting? The constitutional document gives you 95 per cent of what you want. What else are you after?"
Jumblatt said he sought to "get rid of the Christians, who have been on top of us for 140 years!"
Christian nationalism is on the rise throughout the region, because of all the persecution the community has been facing in Iraq and the loss of power in Lebanon. The Maronite Patriarch Mar Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir has repeatedly warned against the collective immigration of Christians.
The Maronite Church says that since the Lebanese Civil War started in 1975, some 730,000 Christians have left Lebanon. Nearly 375,000 of them have settled in Canada. Others are dispersed in France, Australia and the United States.
According to the Public Security Department, a total of 280,000 people left Lebanon during the summer of 2006, forty per cent of them Christians.
Many Christians had returned after the comeback of Michel Aoun in May 2005, after 15 years of exile in France. He was hailed as the last standing giant of the Lebanese Christian community.
That explains why many are looking up to Aoun, a former prime minister and army commander, as a saviour of Arab Christians.
Although Aoun himself was involved in inter-Christian fighting during the civil war - and even bombed certain Christian districts during his "war of cancellation" with Samir Geagea - he was never viewed as a sectarian leader in Lebanon.
His alliance with Hasan Nasrallah is testimony to broad ambitions, and a non-sectarian agenda for Lebanon. At 75, Aoun still dreams of becoming president.
There are districts in the country where Nasrallah wields more powerful than the Beirut government. This Lebanon has neighbourhoods that are dotted with mosques and filled with photographs of Ayatollah Khomeini. The Christians of the south are close to Nasrallah and they like him.
Honeymoon
In Mount Lebanon, the base of Maronite power, however, they resent his growing influence and status as kingmaker in Lebanese politics.
For its part, Hezbollah aims at empowering the Shiite community and co-ruling, by proxy, through a Christian heavyweight like Aoun.
Due to changes in Lebanon, and the exodus of Christians during the civil war and in the 1990s, Aoun realises that becoming a Christian leader - like Geagea is trying to be - is not enough to secure him a seat at Baabda Palace. He wants to stand as a pan-Lebanese leader, representing all sects, and this explains his alliance with Druze figures like Talal Arslan, Sunnis like Omar Karameh and Salim Hoss, and Shiites like Nasrallah and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.
A newfound axis that Aoun is creating with both Syria and Iran is also frightening to the March 14 Coalition. Last month, he visited Tehran, marketing himself as the only leader who can protect Hezbollah in Lebanon.
In striking contrast, Geagea was visiting President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo and meeting Lebanese President Michel Suleiman in Riyadh, showing just how polarised Lebanese Christians had become.
Next month Aoun will be making a landmark visit to Syria - the first in over 20 years - to meet with President Bashar Al Assad. He is going to visit Christian neighbourhoods in Damascus, historical churches, convents, and Christian villages in the Syrian countryside.
Thousands are preparing a massive reception for the General, forgetting and forgiving his former anti-Syrian policies during his long exile in France. Aoun after all, lobbied for the passing of the Syrian Accountability Act and UNSCR 1559 and returned to Beirut claiming that it was his efforts.
Some in Lebanon are saying, however, that Aoun is a hypocrite. If he was so anti-Hariri, why then did he visit the tomb of the slain prime minister right after he returned to Lebanon? He had harangued them for years with anti-Syrianism, but today, refuses to blame Syria for any of the wrongs in Lebanon.
In an interview with Middle East Quarterly in 1996, Aoun was asked if he dislikes the United States. He replied: "I have never been against the United States and have always respected Americans, a democratic people who forward their values and peace, as we do."
True, Aoun has changed after 2005. Having said that, it must also be noted that because of his non-sectarian views, Aoun is the man who is preventing a sectarian outburst in Lebanon today, living up to his reputation of being a secular, populist leader.
When Christians are asked to choose between "The General" and "Al Hakim" (Geagea) in the forthcoming parliamentary elections of 2009, the world will see just how powerful, and how much of a phenomenon Michel Aoun really is.
**Sami Moubayed is a Syrian political analyst and editor-in-chief of Forward Magazine in Damascus.

Ayoon Wa Azan (The Buyer was on the Phone)
Jihad El-Khazen Al-Hayat - 24/11/08//
Many things are for sale: apartments, cars, clothes, rice and sugar.
We have a nation, with its countries and its peoples, for sale. But given the high offer and low demand, we are in the sale season, and the discount goes up to 50% and perhaps even more.
With the utmost clarity, what I write today applies to most of the nation, but not to all of it. There are still populations and individuals among us who refuse to be bought and sold, although the majority does not.
I will use Lebanon as an example, as we celebrated Independence Day just yesterday. Indeed, I know Lebanon better than any other Arab country, and I was inspired to write these lines by something that has existed in Lebanon in ancient and modern times, although it may have increased over the past two years. Despite everything that has befallen Lebanon, it still provides a greater measure of freedom than any other Arab country. On my part, I live in London, far away from the yoke of the authorities.
I do not know if I am entering forbidden territory. It does not matters to me as much as it matters to my newspaper, Al-Hayat, for which I work and from which I get my income. As for the others, I tell them that I do not depend on them for my economic survival.
I say that I am always hearing (everyone does although some choose to deny it), in explanations of Lebanese politics, that Iran, which is facing economic problems, popular opposition and protests against its government, is paying more money in Lebanon than high-income Saudi Arabia is.
It does not matter whether such claims are true or false, or whether Qatar or Mauritania is paying more money than Saudi Arabia and Iran combined. What matters is how widespread and accepted such discourse is, as if it was the fate of Lebanon and the Lebanese.
The point here is that this party is stronger because it is receiving more money from its benefactor country, and that the other party is weaker because it has less foreign backing. In other words, there is a side that is stronger in Lebanon because it is buying a larger number of supporters, who are of course willing to switch sides if someone who would pay more were to come along.
After the Doha Agreement, how much money Qatar had paid for the reconciliation between the Lebanese became the talk of the town. I do not know if Qatar has paid a single dollar, or a thousand million dollars, or if it did not pay anything at all. The Lebanese were all talking about the amount that had been paid to this or that party. The figure goes up and down to reflect the power of the party in question, whether it is real or illusory. Once again, the point is that there is agreement, if not acceptance, over the notion that politicians collect the price of their allegiance to another country in their own country, although these politicians represent the entire country. The next point is that those who elected them know this about them, and yet still choose them to be their representatives. Consequently, an honest politician is one who, if you buy him, remains bought.
I insist that I am writing about the majority of the nation and the majority of its people. However, I do know leaders and officials at various levels, some of whom went to Doha, as well as average citizens, who are extremely honest. Since I have chosen Lebanon as an example, based on my knowledge of it, I know for a fact that some of its politicians are honest, kind-hearted, and care about their country. I could mention names but if I did, I would be unfair to others whom I would bypass simply because I do not know them. Thus I choose as an example Dean Raymond Eddé, whom I knew for a period of 40 years and until he passed away. When he was in Paris at the beginning the civil war, I intervened to offer him financial assistance in a deal to buy land he owned near Ammiq and Kfarmishki in the Beqaa at twice the market price, but he rejected the deal every time. He lived and died an honest man, and was a role model for all honest people.
Today we are in the sale season, and the high discounts reflect both the Lebanese political crisis and the international financial crisis. Perhaps we are at an auction similar to the ones I see in London from time to time, where the buyers are in the hall, but where there are always those who buy on the phone, because they do not want to reveal their identity. At such auctions, the seller can set a minimum price for the item being sold (whether an oil painting or a country). If the auction does not reach the required figure, the seller will refuse to sell and wait for a better offer.
At the auction of Lebanese politics, there are no maximum or minimum prices for buying and selling, and honest people stand outside the hall. Going once, going twice, going thrice, congratulations! The buyer was on the phone.