LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
October 07/08

Bible Reading of the day.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 10,25-37. There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test him and said, "Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus said to him, "What is written in the law? How do you read it?"  He said in reply, "You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." He replied to him, "You have answered correctly; do this and you will live." But because he wished to justify himself, he said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" Jesus replied, "A man fell victim to robbers as he went down from Jerusalem to Jericho. They stripped and beat him and went off leaving him half-dead. A priest happened to be going down that road, but when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side. Likewise a Levite came to the place, and when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side. But a Samaritan traveler who came upon him was moved with compassion at the sight. He approached the victim, poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them. Then he lifted him up on his own animal, took him to an inn and cared for him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper with the instruction, 'Take care of him. If you spend more than what I have given you, I shall repay you on my way back.' Which of these three, in your opinion, was neighbor to the robbers' victim?" He answered, "The one who treated him with mercy." Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."


Saint Ambrose (c.340-397), Bishop of Milan and Doctor of the Church
Commentary on Saint Luke's Gospel, 7, 74f. (SC 52, p.34)

"A Samaritan traveler who came upon him was moved with compassion at the sight" A Samaritan came down that road. «Who has come down from heaven except the one who has gone up to heaven, the Son of Man who is in heaven?» (cf. Jn 3,13). Seeing that man half-dead whom nobody before had been able to heal..., he approached him; that is to say, by accepting to suffer with us he became our friend and by taking pity on us he became our neighbour.
«He dressed his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them». This doctor possesses many remedies with which he habitually heals us. His words are a remedy: with one he binds up wounds, with another he pours ointment over them, with another astringent wine... «Then he lifted him up on his own animal». Hear how he sets you there: «It was our infirmities he bore, our sufferings that he endured» (Is 53,4). And the shepherd, too, set the worn out sheep on his shoulders (Lk 15,5)...
«He took him to an inn and cared for him»... But the Samaritan could not long remain on our earth; he must return from whence he descended. So «the next day» – what is this 'next day' if not the day of the Lord's resurrection, of which it is said «This is the day the Lord has made» (Ps 118[117],24)? – «he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper with the instruction: Take care of him». What are these two coins? Perhaps they are the two Covenants, bearing the likeness of the Eternal Father, and at whose cost our wounds are healed... Happy that innkeeper who is able to tend another's wounds! Happy the one to whom Jesus says: «If you spend more than what I have given you, I shall repay you on my way back»... Thus he promises a repayment. When will you return, Lord, if not at the day of judgement? Even though your remain always everywhere, standing in our midst without our recognising you, the day will come when all flesh shall see you coming. And you will repay what you owe. How will you repay, Lord Jesus? To the good you have promised an immense reward in heaven yet you will pay back even more when you say: «Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master's joy» (Mt 25,21).

Free Opinions, Releases, letters & Special Reports
Kudos to Couchepin for daring to tread where others will not-The Daily Star 06/10/08
Syria, Lebanon abuzz over report about militant's arrest-Los Angeles Times 06/10/08
Events in Syria Can Affect Lebanon-Middle East Times  06/10/08
Defining the post-crash era hasn't really begun-By David Ignatius 06/10/08

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for October 06/08
Hezbollah source: A 'big surprise' awaits Israel if it attacks Lebanon-Ha'aretz

Lebanese prime minister alerts US to Syrian terror plot-DEBKA file
Hizbullah-Israel War Likely to Flare Soon, Haaretz-Naharnet

Israel Withdrawing from Ghajar Before End of November?-Naharnet
Olmert to Urge Moscow Not to Arm Israel's Enemies-Naharnet
LEBANON: Israelis say spy chief killed Hezbollah commander Mughniyah-Los Angeles Times
Senior officials: US considering changing its policy towards Syria-Jerusalem Post
Assad to Suleiman: Troop Buildup on Border in Harmony with 170-Naharnet
U.S. Defense Official in Beirut as Hale Stresses No Change in U.S. Policy
-Naharnet
Geagea: March 8 Victory in 2009 Elections Means Return of Syrian Tutelage
-Naharnet
Hariri, Sfeir Stress from Rome the Need to Consolidate National Unity
-Naharnet
'Volatile Situation' in Lebanon Keeps Filipino Workers Away
-Naharnet
Israel Detains Lebanese Near Border
-Naharnet
Gemayel Ready to Take Part in Christian Meeting
-Naharnet
Noah, One of Lebanon's Drug Barons, Fears No One But God
-Naharnet

Sleiman discusses Syrian troop movements with Assad-Daily Star
Efforts to reconcile feuding Christian factions gain steam-Daily Star
Security in Lebanon and Syria is 'interdependent' - Raad-Daily Star
Lebanese military denies plan to purge Beddawi of militants-Daily Star
Aridi touts continuing accord with Jumblatt-Daily Star
Swiss leader takes stock of Lebanon's dilemmas-Daily Star
Greek Catholic patriarch speaks out-Daily Star
Baroud promises fair funding for municipalities-Daily Star
Philippine officials to maintain ban on sending workers to Lebanon-(AFP)
Wanted drug baron says he fears 'no one but God'-(AFP)
 
Israelis say spy chief killed Hezbollah commander Mughniyah
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/2008/10/lebanon-israeli.html
A panel of experts assembled by Israel's most powerful television channel honored Israeli Mossad chief Meir Dagan as the nation's "man of the year" for, among other things, killing Hezbollah commander Imad Mughniyah in the Syrian capital in February, according to a recent report in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
Up until now, Israel has publicly refused to acknowledge any role in the car bomb blast that killed Mughniyah, who was suspected of masterminding attacks on Israeli targets around the world and was believed to have been the brains behind the Hezbollah militia's surprise performance in the 2006 war with Israel.
Many in Syria and Lebanon suspect the Jewish state's security services had a hand in the assassination. But according to Haaretz journalist and frequent government critic Gideon Levy, the Israeli Channel 2 panel last week cited "the killing of senior Hezbollah leader Imad Mughniyeh in Damascus, a few more mysterious and unnecessary killings and, of course, the bombing of the alleged nuclear site in Syria" as accomplishments that made Dagan deserving of 'at least 10 Israel Prizes.'"
The television station aired rare footage of outgoing Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert meeting Dagan in his office telling him, "You did well," according to Levy.
Levy quoted political analyst Emmanuel Rosen praising the selection: [He is] a man who has done only good. [He is] a man who would cut the throats of terrorists with his own hands, using a box-cutter — a man of action with a knife in his teeth.
*Borzou Daragahi in Beirut

Syria, Lebanon abuzz over report about militant's arrest
By Borzou Daragahi, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
October 6, 2008
BEIRUT -- An intriguing item about the mysterious leader of a ferocious militant group floated around the Lebanese and Syrian media over the weekend.
According to a report in the Arab-language Syrian newspaper Al Liwaa, the leader of the Al Qaeda-linked militant group Fatah al Islam was captured two months ago in Syria.The report says that Shaker Abbsi, a former Libyan air force pilot turned Islamist, was caught in the poor Meliha district of south Damascus and hauled off to prison. Abbsi, 53, who is of Palestinian descent, has led a storied life. He piloted MIGs for the Libyan air force in a war against Chad and on a trip to Latin America in the early 1980s, he helped Nicaragua's leftist Sandinistas. But as the years went by, he drifted toward Islamist groups and beliefs. Jordanian officials accused him of playing a role in the 2002 assassination of U.S. diplomat Laurence Foley in Amman, Jordan. Syria imprisoned him the same year, accusing him of plotting against the Damascus government, but released him in 2005. He popped up in Lebanon as leader of Fatah al Islam, a group of well-armed Islamic insurgents who fought the Lebanese army for months last year in a battle around the seaside Nahr el Bared refugee camp that left more than 400 civilians, soldiers and militants dead.Abbsi vanished after the battle. He issued statements this year vowing to take revenge against the Lebanese army, which has been the apparent target of two bombing attacks in the last two months. But according to Al Liwaa's report Saturday, Abbsi was captured when Syrian intelligence operatives carried out a "major house raid" two months ago in Damascus, the capital. The item was quickly picked up by media and websites in Lebanon and Syria.
The report says Abbsi's loyalists were planning to carry out a suicide bombing at a Damascus soccer stadium during a game a month ago to avenge him, but were thwarted by Syrian security. The website of the Lebanese newspaper An Nahar reported last month that Syrian authorities had told French President Nicolas Sarkozy that they had arrested Abbsi. daragahi@latimes.com

Lebanese prime minister alerts US to Syrian terror plot as pretext for invasion
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report
October 6, 2008,
Syrian troop deployment on Lebanese border
Damascus is plotting a large-scale terror attack or the assassination of a Lebanese figure to drum up another pretext for invading northern Lebanon, according to Lebanese prime minister Fouad Siniora. Reporting this, DEBKAfile’s Beirut sources disclose that two senior US officials, deputy secretary of state David Hale and assistant defense secretary Mary Beth Long, were sent post haste to Beirut in response to this warning, arriving on Oct. 5.
Sinora told them that “Syria is turning the Al Kebir River (which marks the Syrian-North Lebanese border) from a Blue Line to a Red Line.”
He was joined by Lebanese president Michel Suleiman in charging that Washington’s efforts to draw Damascus out of the Iranian orbit threatened to throw Lebanon to the wolves and the loss of America’s foothold in Beirut. The prime minister said the tip-off he received uncovered a Syrian conspiracy to stage a major terrorist operation or assassinate a Lebanese figure of equal rank to the former prime minister Rafiq Hariri whose murder in 2005 left Damascus under grave suspicion. This time, Syria might be cunning enough to single out a pro-Syrian Lebanese politician to avoid suspicion. The consequent turmoil in Beirut would be the trigger for the Syrian incursion. Two brigades of the 4th Syrian Mechanized Division, numbering up to 10,000 men, have been poised on the Lebanese border since last month and are now on combat readiness.
(DEBKAfile first disclosed this Syrian troop concentration on Sept. 20 and again on Sept. 27. For the second article,  Damascus has complained to Beirut and Washington that the pro-Western majority leader Saad Hariri (son of the dead politician) has organized 45 extremist Islamic organizations, most Salafi, in northern Lebanon and established similar fronts in Sidon and the Ain Hilwa Palestinian camp in the south. Bashar Assad’s emissaries claim that these fronts were established to threaten Syria’s national security and curb Hizballah’s burgeoning strength. Adding to the rising tension around Lebanon, the UNIFIL commander in south Lebanon has alerted the commanders of the multinational contingents to prepare for Israel to pull out on Nov. 21 from the northern part of Ghajar, the village split in two by the Lebanese-Israeli border.

Events in Syria Can Affect Lebanon
By MIDDLE EAST TIMES
Published: October 06, 2008
Syrian domination of Lebanon would solve both Syria's and Israel's problems, at least as far as terrorism coming from Lebanon is concerned. File photo of a U.S. Patriot anti-aircraft missile system deployed in the central part of Israel. Terrorism in Syria is indeed rare, but in just the last 10 days the country has experienced a number of unexplained explosions associated with terrorist activities. The government in Damascus remains tight-lipped as ever, though statements made by Syrian President Bashar Assad allude to the origins of those attacks emanating from Salafist groups based in northern Lebanon.
Such statements raise red flags in neighboring Lebanon where the Lebanese are starting to worry about Syria's intentions; fears accentuated by the deployment by Damascus of more than 10,000 troops backed by armor and rotary wing aircraft.
There are good reasons for the Lebanese to worry about a new Syrian invasion of their country. The weakness of the Lebanese state and its inability to control its own internal security is making both its neighbors, Syria and Israel, very nervous. The proliferation of Salafist groups, particularly in northern Lebanon, poses a threat to Syria while the presence of a strong Hezbollah in the southern part of the country threatens the security of Israel.
Meanwhile, Washington is too pre-occupied with its worst financial crisis ever and the presidential elections only a month away to devote much time to worry about problems in the Levant. Some analysts fear Washington could decide to "outsource" the Lebanon dossier to Syria.
While the recent meeting in New York between U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem should be welcomed as a sign that the George W. Bush administration is finally changing its inane policy of stonewalling Damascus, some Middle East observers fear it might not augur well for Lebanon. Syrian domination of Lebanon would solve both Syria's and Israel's problems, at least as far as terrorism coming from Lebanon is concerned.
The reason for this is easy to understand. With Syria in charge of Lebanon's security, Israel would have a return address on any terrorist activities coming across its northern border. Damascus would be liable to retaliation and would therefore do everything in its power to ensure that Hezbollah followed the new guidelines.
Whereas with Hezbollah in charge of its own security in south Lebanon, retaliation, as was well demonstrated during the Second Lebanon War two summers ago, is futile. The Lebanese who tend to see conspiracy theories on every street corner have continuously placed the blame for all their ills on everyone else but themselves: Israel, the United States, the CIA, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iran, etc. It is true that all the above do play a role in Lebanese politics, but only insofar as Lebanese politicians allow themselves to be easily manipulated and continue to pledge their loyalty to powers outside their borders.
Magida al-Roumi, one of Lebanon's most famous songstresses, recently berated her country's politicians, holding them responsible for the mayhem that has plagued Lebanon for the greater part of three decades. Speaking at a memorial service commemorating the assassination of Gebran Tueni, editor of An-Nahar, Lebanon's most influential newspaper, Roumi screamed at them: "Thirty years," she lamented. "Thirty years during which time you have been unable to put a stop to this madness."In all likelihood Lebanon will continue to live in chaos and insecurity as long as the Lebanese, regardless of political or religious affiliations, continue to place the interests of Tehran, Damascus, Riyadh, Paris or Washington ahead of their own.

Senior officials: US considering changing its policy towards Syria
By JPOST.COM STAFF
Senior US officials said Washington was considering a possible change of policy towards Syria in the near future, which would entail canceling sanctions against the country but would not include returning the US ambassador to Damascus, Israel Radio reported Sunday. The officials reportedly said discussions were being held over the best way for the US to influence Syria, in light of the improved relations with France and the visit of French Prime Minister Nicholas Sarkozy to the country in September. A US official said there were several encouraging signals on the Syrians' part, including the decision to renew diplomatic ties with Lebanon

Hariri, Sfeir Stress from Rome the Need to Consolidate National Unity

Naharnet/Al-Mustaqbal movement leader Saad Hariri has held talks in Rome with Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir who is participating in the synod of Catholic bishops.Hariri's media advisor Hani Hammoud also attended Sunday's one-hour meeting at the Maronite Institute where the Patriarch is staying. The MP's media office said Hariri and Sfeir discussed the situation in Lebanon and the region and stressed the importance of "consolidating" the country's "national unity" at this "critical stage."Hariri also informed the Patriarch about ongoing efforts to reconcile bickering Lebanese sides, saying such attempts are making progress.
The synod, a three-week gathering of more than 250 bishops from around the world, and whose formal work begins on Monday, will discuss Christian fundamentalism and the relationship between religion and science as well as Judaism. Beirut, 06 Oct 08, 07:08

Israel Withdrawing from Ghajar Before End of November?
Naharnet/The command of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon has reportedly informed Lebanese authorities that Israel is likely to withdraw from the Lebanese side of the border village of Ghajar by November 21. The daily An Nahar, which carried the report, said Monday that the command sent a letter to "Lebanese official sides" a few days ago telling them that U.N. peacekeepers "have information" about a possible Israeli pullout from the village by November 21.
An Nahar said UNIFIL hoped in the letter that Lebanese authorities would try to keep the situation calm in the border region and the areas near Ghajar and Abbasiyeh to prevent any decision by Israel to stop the expected pullout. Last month, Israeli daily Haaretz reported that Israel has told the United States it was ready to withdraw from the northern part of the divided village of Ghajar, which is in Lebanese territory. A government source in Jerusalem told Haaretz the decision was taken after the Lebanese government made written assurances that U.N. peacekeepers in south Lebanon would be given security and civilian control over the northern part of the village. Beirut, 06 Oct 08, 05:54

Hizbullah-Israel War Likely to Flare Soon, Haaretz
Naharnet/Israel believes that war with Hizbullah could soon flare up as a result of a retaliatory attack by the Shiite group to avenge the killing of its top commander Imad Mughniyeh, the Israeli daily Haaretz said. "Flare up of war is a possible scenario," said Haaretz. It said an Israeli raid is likely to take place in retaliation for the smuggling of anti-aircraft guns to Lebanon, a move described by Israel as a "red line." Amos Harel, Haaretz' military correspondent, said both Israel and Hizbullah, however, have no intention of having "another violent confrontation."Meanwhile, Haaretz quoted Giora Eiland, former head of the National Security Council as saying that Israel had failed in its Second Lebanon War against Hizbullah in 2006 and "could fail in the third because it fought the wrong enemy. It fought Hizbullah instead of the state of Lebanon." Eiland saw that "no victory could be achieved against an organization active under the shadow of a state immunized against an Israeli military reaction." Beirut, 06 Oct 08, 12:03

Olmert to Urge Moscow Not to Arm Israel's Enemies
Naharnet/Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, traveling to Russia this week on one of his last diplomatic missions, has said he would urge Moscow not to sell sophisticated weapons to Israel's enemies. Iran is interested in buying anti-aircraft missiles that could cripple any military strike against its nuclear program. Israel is also afraid Moscow would sell Syria the same missile defense system. In an overture before the trip, Israel's Cabinet voted Sunday to recognize Russia's claim to property in downtown Jerusalem. Russia laid claim to the site, named for the son of a Russian czar, on behalf of the Russian Orthodox Church.
Olmert travels to Russia on Monday with little diplomatic clout: Within weeks, he is to step aside, driven from office by multiple corruption allegations. But he told his Cabinet on Sunday that he would use the two-day visit to bring up security issues of long-standing concern in his talks with Russian leaders.
"We will remind them again of matters that trouble us greatly," including "the supply of arms to irresponsible elements whose activities worry us very much," the prime minister said in a televised statement, without elaborating. He also said he would press to keep working to resolve "the Iranian problem, where Russia plays a special role."Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has frequently called for Israel's destruction, and Israel suspects he means to carry out that objective by developing nuclear bombs with the help of a Russian-built nuclear power plant. Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.
Israel hopes international diplomacy will persuade Iran to halt its nuclear program but says "all options are on the table" if diplomacy fails. In 1981, Israeli warplanes destroyed an Iraqi nuclear reactor.The U.N. Security Council has approved three rounds of sanctions on Iran. But Russia, a council member with veto power, opposes tightening the sanctions any further.Iran says it plans to buy from Russia advanced S-300 anti-aircraft missiles that could detect aircraft sent to destroy its nuclear facilities. Syria, which backs Hizbullah fighters who battled Israel in Lebanon in 2006, reportedly has asked to buy them, too.
Russia has not confirmed the reports. But recently, Russia's foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, said his government was prepared to sell Syria arms with a "defensive character."Israel claims Russian missiles sold to Syria made their way into Hizbullah's hands in the 2006 war, though it has not accused Russia of directly arming the guerrilla group. Syria is holding indirect peace negotiations with Israel, but the two enemies remain in a state of war.
After four decades of Cold War animosity, ties between Moscow and Israel improved significantly after the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991. Israel is also home to more than 1 million Soviet émigrés. But Moscow's position on Iran and arms sales to Syria have strained ties, as have Israeli weapons sales to Georgia, which Russia briefly invaded in August in support of pro-Russia secessionists. The Cabinet's decision on Sunday to transfer ownership over "Sergei's Courtyard" in downtown Jerusalem was meant to improve the diplomatic climate before the visit. The site, named for Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, a son of Czar Alexander II, was built in 1890 to accommodate Russians making pilgrimages to the Holy Land. Israel bought other Russian property in the area 45 years ago.(AP) Beirut, 06 Oct 08, 09:38

Geagea-Franjieh Reconciliation Ahead of a Decisive Week
Naharnet/The longtime animosity between Christian rivals Samir Geagea and Suleiman Franjieh may finally be amenable to resolution. Contacts planned for next week, however, will be decisive. While Marada Movement stressed that the "real" path to Christian-Christian reconciliation passes through a meeting that groups, in addition to Franjieh and Geagea, leader of the Free Patriotic Movement Gen. Michel Aoun, LF sources insisted talks should be bilateral. A Marada source said the movement has no problem with Phalange party leader Amin Gemayel taking part in the reunion "as long as the meeting is held in Baabda Palace under the auspices of President Michel Suleiman, and not in Bkirki." "True there is a historical dispute between the Lebanese Forces and us, but we are ready to meet them at any time provided such a meeting does not take place in isolation of the FPM, which is considered the Christians' political authority," one Marada source said.
"The problem with the Lebanese Forces is that it doesn't want to recognize this fact," he added. A Lebanese Forces source, in turn, insisted the Geagea-Franjieh meeting should be bilateral. The source clarified that Aoun's presence would force the LF to cling to its Zghorta ally MP Nayla Moawad "to maintain balance."
The daily An Nahar, meanwhile, said Sunday that Aoun's participation as a Marada condition was not yet determined since the FPM leader does not consider himself "concerned" in this reconciliation. Sources said it was likely that a bilateral meeting between Geagea and Franjieh would take place at Baabda Palace if Aoun showed unwillingness to attend. The Maronite League also stressed that reconciling Geagea and Franjieh is the first step in a move to achieve intra-Christian reconciliation. Beirut, 05 Oct 08, 08:36

Assad to Suleiman: Troop Buildup on Border in Harmony with 1701
Naharnet/Syrian President Bashar al-Assad finds a decision to send more troops to the border to be in "harmony" with U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701.
He conveyed his clarification to Lebanese President Michel Suleiman in a telephone call made by the latter to follow up on the issue of troop buildup and Syrian measures along the Lebanese border. Assad made it clear to Suleiman that the action falls within the framework of measures taken a while ago to prevent smuggling, adding that the move had been agreed on during the latest Syria-Lebanon summit. Beirut, 06 Oct 08, 09:06

U.S. Defense Official in Beirut as Hale Stresses No Change in U.S. Policy
Naharnet/A top official from the U.S. Defense Department has arrived in Beirut and joined Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Hale who is meeting with Lebanese officials. Mary Beth Long, who is assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, arrived Sunday afternoon aboard a military helicopter from Larnaca. She went into talks with Hale ahead of planned meetings with top Lebanese officials starting Monday. Hale met on Sunday with Druze leader Walid Jumblat, MP Boutros Harb and Former legislator Elie Firizli. An Nahar daily said Monday that Long was among the U.S. delegation headed by Hale during his last visit to Beirut a month ago. The newspaper said that the current U.S. delegation's mission is to provide the Lebanese army with military aid and help improve its communications system. Though Hale has refused to make statements to the media, Harb quoted him as saying that the U.S. administration will not change its policies towards the region whoever the next president is. Hale, according to Harb, also stressed U.S. support to Lebanon's sovereignty and rejected the return of any country to Lebanon and any interference in its internal affairs. Firizli also quoted Hale as saying that the Lebanese army should be helped so that it becomes ready to confront all challenges.(An Nahar photo shows Harb and Hale during their meeting) Beirut, 06 Oct 08, 06:33

'Volatile Situation' in Lebanon Keeps Filipino Workers Away
Naharnet/Philippine labor officials said Sunday they were maintaining bans on sending Filipino workers to Lebanon and Jordan despite calls for them to be lifted.
The ban on Lebanon was kept due to continuing concerns over peace and order while that on Jordan was kept in force after employers refused to comply with new conditions for hiring Filipinos. Overseas employment administrator Jennifer Manalili said the department of foreign affairs had recommended the bans be maintained due to the "still volatile situation" in both countries. "We cannot (lift the ban) due to the current peace and order condition," in Lebanon, she added.
However Filipino workers who already had employment contracts would be allowed to return home on holiday and then go back to work in those countries, said Labor Secretary Marianito Roque. The Philippines imposed a ban on deployment of workers to both countries this year due to fighting in Lebanon and increased reports of Filipino domestic workers being abused in Jordan. In July, the Philippines said it would lift the ban on Jordan provided employers agree to pay a minimum salary of 400 dollars. However a senior official, who asked not to be named, said Jordanian employers had widely refused to pay the minimum salary required by the Philippines. Labor office records show that in January alone, as many as 150 Filipino workers were staying at a Philippine center in Amman, Jordan complaining of abuse and maltreatment. Most of them were maids. In January, Jordanian government figures showed there were as many as 15,000 Filipinos working in the country. Private agencies in the Philippines said as many 25,000 Filipinos worked in Lebanon last year. Some eight million Filipinos, or nearly 10 percent of the country's population, work abroad. Remittances they send home are a major pillar of the domestic economy.(AFP) Beirut, 06 Oct 08, 04:32

US Elections and Lebanon: Why I Will No Longer Vote for McCain
Joseph Hitti
October 05, 2008
There is no debate over the fact that George H.W. Bush (father) sold Lebanon to the Syrians in 1989-1990 in exchange for Syria´s joining the coalition against Saddam Hussein in the first Gulf War. This helped defeat the Lebanese Resistance against the Syrians who had, a few years earlier, sponsored Hezbollah's October 23, 1983 attack against the US Marines in Beirut (241 US Marines and servicemen were killed that day) in the first ever truck suicide bombing.
There is no debate either over the fact that President Reagan ran away from the terrorist threat in the aftermath of that 1983 attack against the US Marines in Beirut, and pulled all US forces out of Lebanon and abandoned Lebanon and US national security into the hands of the terrorist regime in Damascus and its proxy Hezbollah. Not to mention the subsequent arms sales to Iran by the Reagan administration in an attempt to rescue the US hostages held by Syria and Hezbollah during much of the 1980s.
In a recent article in Proceedings Magazine, the flagship publication of the U.S. Naval Institute, Colonel (ret.) Timothy J. Geraghty, the commanding officer of the Marine unit devastated by the 1983 Beirut suicide bombing criticized "the Americans' timidity of response" (a mild-mannered choice of words) to the 1983 attack and stated that there was a direct correlation between that timid response to the 1983 attacks and the Islamists' attack on America on September 11, 2001. Col. Geraghty said that "The coordinated dual suicide attacks [58 French paratroopers were also killed in a parallel attack on the same day], supported, planned, organized, and financed by Iran and Syria using Shi'ite proxies, achieved their strategic goal: the withdrawal of the multinational force from Lebanon and a dramatic change in U.S. national policy".
We need to remember that both the Reagan flight in the face of terror and the subsequent George H.W. Bush policy of cavorting to the dictatorial regime in Damascus and Tehran are by Republican administrations. Yet many of us came to believe the act of contrition made by George W. Bush and the transformation of US foreign policy after September 11, 2001. We believed in the Bush Doctrine of, one, no longer bartering fake stability from dictatorial regimes for oil and against real democratic change, and two, pre-emptive strikes against terrorist threats before they occur.
The same John McCain who today says that he will not withdraw from Iraq and that he will defend the US against Islamic radicalism did, in 1983, endorse that cowardly withdrawal by the US before the Syrian-Hezbollah-Iran advance by asking the question, "What is the US interest in Lebanon?" on the floor of the US Senate as he stood in opposition to keeping US peacekeeping forces in Beirut to stem the Syrian-Iranian advance. By so doing, he helped defeat the Lebanese Resistance which for decades had been fighting the Syrians, the Iranians, Hezbollah and the PLO. Perhaps, in comparison to his stance on Iraq today, John McCain has learned some lessons. Well, maybe not.
For today, we are witnessing the collapse and failures of those post-September 11, 2001 policies and doctrines. It didn´t take more than 7 years, and we are back to where we were on September 10, 2001. We see George W. Bush (son) - and John McCain in his footsteps – all but violating those post-September 11 pledges and reverting to policies of cavorting to dictators, traditionalists, corrupt leaderships, former warlords and war criminals and propping them as the best hope for a democratic Lebanon, for the sole and short-sighted purpose of opposing Hezbollah. All of this, in fact, without actually doing anything serious to actually defeat Hezbollah, stem the Syrian continued intervention, or help to strengthen the Lebanese army so it may one day defeat Hezbollah.
We see George W. Bush – and John McCain in his footsteps – having returned to old and stale policies of making deals with corrupt and unrepresentative leaders in order to buy stability from them at the expense of true freedoms, true change, true reforms, true justice and real grassroots, civil society-based democracy.
This is why, then, as a Lebanese-American who once believed in the post-September 11, 2001 lies and the myths propagated by the Republicans, I will not vote for John McCain this November.
I had voted for McCain in previous elections and primaries because I believed in his "maverick" image, in the vision of someone who, while a Republican, had enough of an independent streak to adopt positions strictly on principle, no matter the cost. Someone who could strike that real effective middle ground between ideology and pragmatism, but without dishonoring the principles. But on the issue of Lebanon, John McCain has endorsed wholesale the Bush pack of lies. He is supporting the March 14 traditionalists, corrupt warlords and war criminals who collaborated with the Syrian occupation for decades, and who in a heartbeat will revert back to pan-Arab Islamic radicalism and the rejectionist anti-peace, pro-Syrian, pro-Muslim radical platforms. These are people who for decades supported the PLO terrorism and who to this day speak with both sides of their mouths: They are against Hezbollah´s Iranian ties and Syria´s interference in Lebanon, but they also support Hezbollah's terrorism as "resistance" (as in the current Siniora government platform) and Syria´s "brotherhood" to Lebanon, and reject any direct peace negotiations between Lebanon and the "enemy" Israel leading to a peace treaty that will settle all outstanding issues once and for all and finally shield Lebanon from the corrosive Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
How can anyone believe that Lebanon will know peace without the Lebanese government acquiescing to a negotiated peace between Lebanon and Israel? How can the Republican Party support those same people who refuse a negotiated civilized political solution between Lebanon and Israel, and instead argue for a military confrontation with Israel? How can the US government and the Republicans support the Sleiman-Siniora regime in Lebanon whose government's plan include "endorsing the right of the 'Resistance' [i.e. the terrorist Hezbollah organization] to defend Lebanon" and is working on a "common defense strategy" between the Lebanese state and that terrorist organization whose hands are soaked with the blood of American citizens and soldiers?
For all those reasons, I have come to despise and mistrust the Republicans. And for all those reasons, I will not vote for John McCain this coming November. The treason of the Republicans to the Lebanese Cause is beyond belief because it is a treason that has been ongoing for decades, and which we thought had come to an end in 2001. But it has not. At this critical time in Lebanon´s history, when the future of Lebanon is being forged through assassinations and rising fundamentalism, I cannot trust that a Republican administration – even a McCain administration – will do the right thing for Lebanon, on principle, by making the difficult choices. I have come to the conclusion that, even as I disagree fundamentally with the Democrats on foreign policy principles, I prefer to know who I am dealing with, rather than be stabbed in the back by the so-called Republican friends of Lebanon.
The very next day after the Sunday October 23, 1983 attack against the US Marines compound in Beirut, President Reagan sent US troops to the Caribbean island of Grenada in a big media fanfare to "rescue" a few US medical students trapped by a standoff between two political parties vying for power. That was Reagan´s way of deflecting attention and evading responsibility from the unfolding massacre of US Marines in Beirut. I suspect John McCain would undertake a similarly moronic attempt at avoiding facing up to the real threat. Mission accomplished!



Kudos to Couchepin for daring to tread where others will not
By The Daily Star
Monday, October 06, 2008
Editorial
Swiss President Pascal Couchepin deserves credit for having spoken frankly about the "elephant in the room" that most world leaders tend to ignore: the plight of millions of Palestinian refugees. Although the Palestinians who were driven out of their homeland, along with their descendants, make up one of the world's largest refugee communities, rarely if ever do international leaders champion their cause. Nor do they propose concrete solutions that would afford these refugees their most basic human rights, including citizenship, freedom of movement and access to employment and education.
But Couchepin did exactly that during his visit to Lebanon over the weekend, the first ever by a Swiss president to this country. Acknowledging that the plight of Palestinian refugees is a "complicated" issue, he nonetheless voiced his government's unequivocal commitment to their right as displaced people to return to their towns and villages. He suggested that Israel might not be able to absorb all of those refugees whose places of residence now lie within its borders, but he also acknowledged that neither can countries like Lebanon, where more than 400,000 displaced Palestinians currently reside. But rather than shying away from the problem entirely - as most leaders shamefully tend to do - Couchepin suggested that a workable compromise might be found by, at the very least, offering compensation to those who were driven out of their homes.
Couchepin's remarks warrant follow-up from the United Nations, the permanent members of the Security Council and the Arab League states - all of which have a vested interest in resolving what constitutes one of the most intractable issues in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Moreover, Switzerland can take the lead in this effort by elaborating on what Couchepin said was his government's official policy, not his personal perspective on the matter. Can he, for example, propose a workable solution to the refugee file that would meet not only the needs of Israel, but also of Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and other countries in which displaced Palestinians reside?
Even-handed and responsibile mediation has been sorely lacking in the on-and-off "peace process" that has been brokered by the United States over the last few decades. The end result is that millions of human beings have been living in constant limbo for more than 60 years, many of them in makeshift camps whose conditions most Americans would find unacceptable for their own cats and dogs. But the disgrace of having allowed such a deplorable situation to continue for so long is not solely that of the Americans: It is a stain on the entire international community that has turned a blind eye to the suffering of millions of people