LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
August 24/08

Bible Reading of the day.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 23,1-12. Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples, saying, "The scribes and the Pharisees have taken their seat on the chair of Moses. Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you, but do not follow their example. For they preach but they do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens (hard to carry) and lay them on people's shoulders, but they will not lift a finger to move them. All their works are performed to be seen. They widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels. They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues, greetings in marketplaces, and the salutation 'Rabbi.' As for you, do not be called 'Rabbi.' You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers. Call no one on earth your father; you have but one Father in heaven.  Do not be called 'Master'; you have but one master, the Messiah. The greatest among you must be your servant.  Whoever exalts himself will be humbled; but whoever humbles himself will be exalted.  Saint Paschasius Radbertus (?-849), Benedictine monk

Commentary on St Matthew's Gospel, 10, 23 (copyright Friends of Henry Ashworth)
"You have but one master, the Messiah"
If anyone wants a high office let him want the labor it entails, not the honor it will bring him. He should desire to serve and minister to everyone and not expect everyone to serve and minister to him. For the desire to be served comes from the supercilious attitude of the Pharisees; the desire to serve, from the teaching of Christ. Those who canvass for positions of honor are the ones who exalt themselves; those who delight in serving and caring for others are the ones who humble themselves so as to be exalted by God. Note that it is not those whom the Lord exalts who will be humbled, but those who exalt themselves, and similarly it is those who of their own accord humble themselves who will be exalted by the Lord... After specifically reserving the officeo f teaching to himself, Christ immediately went on to give as the rule of his teaching that whoever wants to be the greatest should be the servant of all. And he gave the same rule in other words when he said: "Learn of me, for I am meek and humble of heart," (Mt 11,29). Anyone, therefore, who wants to be Christ's disciple must hasten to learn the lesson he professes to teach, for a perfect disciple will be like his master. Otherwise, if he refuses to learn his master's lesson, far from being a master himself, he will not even be a dsiciple.

Free Opinions, Releases, letters & Special Reports
Hezbollah snatches Brazilian journalists. By: W. Thomas Smith Jr. 23/08/08
General Aoun's  nightmares. By: Hanin Ghaddar, Now Lebanon 23/08/08
General Aoun: That’s it. We’ve had it!. Now Lebanon Site 23/08/08
The 7 questions I have for your government: By: Farid Ghadry , Reform Party of Syria 23/08/08
'Don't push Lebanon into Hizbullah's arms'Ynetnews 23/08/08
The Green Party is a welcome addition to the political arena in Lebanon- The Daily Star 23/08/08

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for August 23/08
Lebanese cedars under threat-BBC News
Hezbollah TV live in Australia-Media Channel
Violence in Tarik Jedideh Leaves Five People Wounded-Naharnet
Army Command to Alloush: Military Will Never Take Sides-Naharnet
Israeli Force Made Brief Penetration into South Lebanon-Naharnet
FPM Greatly Honored to be in Alliance with Hizbullah-AMAL-Naharnet
US 'very concerned' over planned Russian weapons sale to Syria-AFP
Advancing peace in Damascus-guardian.co.uk
Lebanon inflation rises by 7.2 percent in first 7 months-Daily Star
Siniora complains to Ban over Israeli threats to attack all of Lebanon-Daily Star
Berri: New Election Law Opens Door to New Alliances-Naharnet
Bassil: No for Patriarch's Representation in Government, Army-Naharnet
Aoun in Tehran Soon-Naharnet
Debate on Electoral Divisions Tuesday, Security Appointments Thursday-Naharnet
Saniora: Cabinet Not Split Over Army Commander-Naharnet
Mkhaiber Calls for Disbanding Syrian-Lebanese Higher Council-Naharnet
Chamoun's NLP Wants to Join National Dialogue-Naharnet
Karami: Only Saudi-Syrian Reconciliation Can Help Lebanon-Naharnet
Alloush: Weapons Enter Baal Mohsen Through Army Checkpoints-Naharnet
FPM Greatly Honored to be in Alliance with Hizbullah-Amal-Naharnet
Saniora Complains To Security Council Against Israeli Threats-Naharnet
Aoun to Tour South on Sunday-Naharnet
New Air Defense Systems Supplied to Hizbullah by Russia, Report-Naharnet

Violence in Tarik Jedideh Leaves Five People Wounded
Naharnet/An overnight clash over the seizure of illegal bikes in Beirut's Tarik Jedideh neighborhood left several people wounded, news reports said Saturday.
They said rioters from Tarik Jedideh protested after police and Lebanese army troops set up joint checkpoints late Friday as part of law-enforcement measures to seize illegal motorbikes. Bike owners, protesting the measure, crowded outside Tarik Jedideh's police station after their motorbikes were handed over to the department. Violence, including smashing of cars, soon developed, prompting Lebanese army troops to fire shots in the air to disperse the rioters.
Tear gas was also used to separate the crowd. Unrest soon spread to nearby Qasqas where rioters destroyed cars, also prompting army troops to step in, firing shots in the air. Beirut, 23 Aug 08, 08:06

Army Command to Alloush: Military Will Never Take Sides
Naharnet/The Lebanese army command on Saturday responded to Mustaqbal Movement MP Mustafa Alloush who has claimed that weapons were being allowed to pass through Lebanese army checkpoints into the pro-Hizbullah district of Baal Mohsen in the northern city of Tripoli. was "obtaining weapons through Lebanese Army checkpoints." "The military was not and will never ever take sides in any internal conflict," an army communiqué said. Alloush charged in a TV interview on Friday that Baal Mohsen was "obtaining weapons through Lebanese Army checkpoints." "I don't know if this is being done secretly or by looking to the other direction," he said. Alloush said his remark should be regarded as officially informing the Attorney General's office. The charge made by Alloush, a member of the Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc, is a serious accusation and the first such public comment by a Lebanese official. By force of law, the attorney general's office is obliged to investigate Alloush's charge. Baal Mohsen has been engaged in intermittent clashes with the pro-majority adjacent district of Bab al-Tabbaneh for over two months. Beirut, 23 Aug 08, 12:45

Berri: New Election Law Opens Door to New Alliances
Naharnet/Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said the importance of a decision to adopt the Qadaa-based election law of 1960 lies in the fact that it would "open the door to new alliances." "Adopting electoral divisions would eliminate the law of year 2000," Berri said in remarks published by the daily As Safir on Saturday.
He expressed frustration over tension "be it within the government or concerning the government." Berri called on the various political leaders to devote themselves to tackling economic issues and improving living conditions. Beirut, 23 Aug 08, 11:38

Bassil: No for Patriarch's Representation in Government, Army
Naharnet/Telecommunications Minister Jebran Bassil believed it was "not normal" for Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir to be represented in the government or the Lebanese army. "We don't want anyone jeopardizing our relationship with the spiritual authority – meaning Bkirki and the Patriarch," Bassil said in remarks published by the daily An Nahar on Saturday.  "Yet, we, ministers, want to practice our role and we will not give it to anyone else," Bassil warned. He said that he "does not mind" postponing the appointment of the new army commander for one week if his selection "is not ripe yet." Bassil denied that the Free Patriotic Movement favored any army commander candidate over the other, insisting it was the President's pick for the post. Beirut, 23 Aug 08, 10:56

Aoun in Tehran Soon
Naharnet/Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun has decided to open up to Tehran. A visit by Iranian Charge d'Affaires in Lebanon, Mojtaba Ferdowsi-Pour, to the FPM leader on Friday will likely pave the way for Aoun's Tehran trip. Ferdowsi indicated that preparations were underway for Aoun's visit, hoping it would be "soon in order to upgrade relations between the two countries."Aoun will also visit south Lebanon on Sunday in a bid to improve his "understanding" with Hizbullah. Beirut, 23 Aug 08, 10:01

Debate on Electoral Divisions Tuesday, Security Appointments Thursday
Naharnet/Parliament is to meet next Tuesday in an effort to adopt the Qadaa-based elections law of 1960 while re-considering the policy on the distribution of constituency seats in accordance with the 2005 law. Meanwhile, intensive contacts were underway to reach consensus on Lebanon's new army commander.
Sources from both the ruling March 14 coalition and the Hizbullah-led March 8 Forces said picking the "right man for the job" would likely be finalized in Thursday's Cabinet session. Beirut, 23 Aug 08, 09:42

Israeli Force Made Brief Penetration into South Lebanon
Naharnet/An Israeli force made of eight soldiers has made a brief penetration into south Lebanon in violation of U.N. resolutions, media reports said Saturday.
Citing security sources, they said the force on Friday penetrated 100 meters into Mais al-Jabal in the Marjayoun province before pulling out. Lebanese army patrolmen and Nepalese troops from the U.N. peacekeeping force headed to the area to monitor the movement. The sources said the Israeli force pulled out about 15 minutes later. Beirut, 23 Aug 08, 08:53

Saniora: Cabinet Not Split Over Army Commander
Naharnet/Premier Fouad Saniora on Friday denied reports that members of his cabinet are split over nominating a new commander for the army.
Saniora, talking to reporters at the Grand Serail, said the topic of choosing a new commander for the army has not been discussed during cabinet meetings.
"The issue is still subject to consultation," Saniora added, indicating that leaders of the various political factions have not reached consensus on the new commander.
He said the various differences could be settled only through the "constitution."Beirut, 22 Aug 08, 16:59

Don't push Lebanon into Hizbullah's arms'
By: Yitzhak Benhorin
Published: 08.23.08, 01:02 / Israel News
'Israel will not defeat Hizbullah by adopting failed strategies that force Lebanese society into embracing the militant group as its only viable means of defense,' prominent Lebanese speaker writes in Jewish-American publication
WASHINGTON - Hizbullah's opposition in Lebanon is urging Israel to refrain from executing policies that do not differentiate between the terror organization and democratically elected Lebanese institutions. Doing so, they say, will push the Lebanese people straight into Hizbullah's waiting arms.
In an opinion article written for the New York-based Jewish publication 'Forward,' one such prominent Lebanese speaker, Firas Maksad, warns Israel directly of adopting such an outlook.
Maksad works as the Washington director of the 'Lebanon Renaissance Foundation,' which was founded by Lebanese businessmen to advance the cause of Lebanese independence from Syria. He declined an interview with Ynet as it would be illegal under Lebanese law.
Maksad asserts that the settlement agreed upon in Lebanon following the Second Lebanon War essentially sanctions Hizbullah's military autonomy. "These compromises allowing Hizbullah to retain arms independent of the Lebanese state are unwelcome to many Lebanese — not only to Israel and others. Yet they hardly constitute a conclusive victory for the militant group, and they certainly do not justify the radical and sweeping policy shift Israel has undertaken," he writes.
" What Israel’s latest decision on Lebanon demonstrates is its lack of regard toward Lebanese moderates who have repeatedly confronted Hizbullah in the hope of building a sovereign, liberal and peaceful Lebanon."
Maksad emphasizes that Hizbullah does not have a majority in the street, and that millions of Lebanese citizens oppose it. "These Lebanese have not vanished. They are still there, and they number in the millions. They need to be spared the wrath of collective punishment and misguided policies, which only serve to undercut them."
Whether intentional or not, says Maksad, Israel is pushing the Lebanese into Hizbullah's arms.
"Israel will not defeat Hizbullah by adopting failed strategies that force Lebanese society into embracing the militant group as its only viable means of defense. By lumping all of Lebanese society into the same category with Hizbullah and threatening collective punishment, this is exactly what Israel’s latest Cabinet decision will do.
"It will leave the Lebanese with no choice but to grudgingly stand behind Hizbullah, just as they were forced to do last month when Israel repatriated Samir Kuntar and other Lebanese prisoners to the militant group instead of to the Lebanese state."

7 Questions for Israel
Syrian opposition leader Farid Ghadry has seven questions for Israeli government
Farid Ghadry Published: 08.21.08, 09:24 / Israel Opinion
In the Middle East, we are reminded every day of the danger lurking behind indecisiveness. And none is more important when it comes to Israeli action, or sometimes lack of it. I recall when your Israeli Air Force buzzed Assad's summer palace in June of 2006 after Hizbullah kidnapped Israeli soldiers and prior to the war of 2006. Some within the Bush administration were saying that your actions at that time against Assad lacked the determination necessary to persuade a typical violent dictator, something that I personally agree with.
1. If Israel had taken a more decisive action in 2006 against the Assad regime rather than disturb his sweet dreams, would Assad be today heading to Moscow to acquire the kinds of arms that would, for certainty, remove the edge and the much touted deterrent Israel needs for its security?
2. If your government had not stood in the way of regime change in Syria, or not listened to its allies, would Assad today be enjoying the glory of his ties to Iran, Hizbullah, Hamas, and now Russia at the expense of the Israeli society?
3. If the Syrian regime was internationally forced to morph into a friendlier environment, shared by secularists and Islamists, would Israel be better or worse off today?
4. If the minority Syrian Islamists shared power in Syria, as they do in Jordan, would Israel be threatened more so than under an Assad regime whose violence is a certainty and whose character flaws outweigh his admirable minority status?
5. If the government of Israel knows that the Ba'ath Party was born in the belly of Nazism, why would they tolerate the Ba'athists in Damascus until they have grown powerful enough to finish what the Nazis have started?
6. If Israel is a country of skeptical people, why does your government believe Assad when he says that Islamists will rule Syria after him?
7. If all indications are that Assad is uncooperative and his relations with countries wishing harm for Israel keep getting stronger, why is Israel still against regime change for Syria?
What I am afraid of is that the government of Israel is not learning fast enough from the lessons of its past mistakes. Thanks to Israeli peaceniks, peace overtures and action to cease Assad's isolation have emboldened him to the point of allowing a Russian Armada with nuclear weapons at Israel's doorsteps.
In 2005, the world was capable of helping change Syria forever but in the Middle East indecisiveness is much more dangerous than erroneous decisions. Even today, it is still a possibility, with much less costs to both the Syrian and Israeli societies, if the Israeli government does not interfere in the Syrian opposition efforts to build a democratic, free, and a peaceful Syria.
**Farid Ghadry , Reform Party of Syria (http://www.reformsyria.org )

The Green Party is a welcome addition to the political arena in Lebanon
By The Daily Star
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Editorial
One of the most unfortunate consequences of Lebanon's sectarian political system has been the relegation of important national issues like the environment to the bottom of the public agenda. In other countries, candidates compete with one another during elections on the basis of their stances on a wide variety of issues, including health care and foreign, economic and environmental policy. Here in Lebanon, politicians are more likely to rely on communal loyalties or sectarian fears to get re-elected to posts they inherited from their fathers and grandfathers. That is precisely what makes one of Lebanon's newest parties, the Green Party, such a welcome addition to the political arena.
"Green issues" rarely get the attention they deserve here, despite the fact that the environment is arguably the country's greatest natural resource. Lebanon's tourism industry, which forms a key part of the backbone of the economy, relies heavily on the green spaces and woodlands that set this country apart from so many others in the region. But as the new leaders of the Green Party pointed out during a news conference this week, the nation's forested area has decreased since 1960 from 35 percent of the country to a mere 13 percent. If we continue at this rate, warned the party's newly elected president, Philippe Skaff, the country's forests "will have totally disappeared by 2030." Perhaps even more alarming are some of the other facts the party brought to the public's attention during the conference, including that 90 percent of the country's 22,000 industrial factories dump their waste into the sea and that a recent test suggested that 40 percent of the country's drinking water is polluted.
There is no doubt that these are issues of major concern to the public, as they relate directly to our wellbeing and our future. But it highly unlikely that the conventional sectarian parties will highlight any of these problems and propose solutions in their election platforms. Indeed, some parties will probably not even bother to publish a platform at all, and will instead rely on the reflexive habits of voters who will cast their ballots for their sect's leading politicians, regardless of what they say.
At least with the addition of the Green Party, the country has an opportunity to hear important environmental issues discussed in the public arena ahead of the upcoming elections. Even if all of the party's members fail to get elected, they will have at least succeeded in temporarily elevating the level of national debate.

That’s it. We’ve had it!
Now Lebanon Site
August 23, 2008
The current dispute over the prerogatives of the deputy prime minister, which the Aounist bloc has provoked, is really a case of going too far. We agree with Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea that Lebanon has enough problems today not to have to add new and very subsidiary ones to the boiling pot.
What’s happening is quite simple to understand. The Aounist Issam Abu Jamra is deputy prime minister. Michel Aoun, who never sought to clarify the duties of the deputy prime minister before his old army mate Abu Jamra took over the position, is now insisting that this be done. Why? Because Aoun wants, once again, to claim that he is protecting Christian interests against the interests of the Sunni prime minister.
Is this a priority today? No, but Aoun, the tireless, tiresome demagogue wants to raise the issue because he probably fears he is becoming less relevant to his Christian electorate. So pick a fight, polarize sectarian opinion, and cash in on that politically.
Of course the Aounists will disagree. They will describe their silly little skirmish as the final defense of Christian civilization. They will use this to scrape up some support among the Greek Orthodox, who traditionally fill the deputy prime minister’s seat. How odd that Aoun’s followers are so keen to specify the deputy prime minister role today, so keen to impose institutional clarity, when they spent months undermining the crystalline, unequivocal clauses of the constitution on electing a new president. Remember how Aoun proposed a bizarre deal to Saad Hariri where they would “select” a president and prime minister respectively?
We think it’s time to say, Enough! If Michel Aoun’s strategy is to forever create new problems in the pursuit of personal power, then we’re not buying anymore. We grimaced but still looked the other way when he showed remarkable hypocrisy in naming his own son-in-law as minister of telecommunications. All around him, Aoun is behaving no better than the other oligarchs he denounces on a daily basis. That’s the demagogue in him again: playing on people’s feelings, then doing what those he condemns do.
Here’s a prediction. The deputy prime minister row will soon be extinguished, because frankly most Lebanese don’t care whether the deputy prime minister is allowed to do this, that, or the other. But in the meantime we would have wasted valuable time, and much-needed good faith, to help make this government work. We’re not optimistic, but we really cannot understand what Aoun hopes to gain by being so petty and divisive. Some parliamentary seats more come next year? Forgive us if we consider the country’s future more important than Aoun’s future.
General, you helped immobilize the country for six months because you wanted to be president. You failed. You’re no president. There really is no reason to make our lives miserable again. Just let the government do its job, and at election time let the people express themselves on whether you still speak for them.

The General’s nightmares
With the president’s reputation growing, Aoun, still defending Hezbollah’s weapons, finds himself facing a downfall.
Hanin Ghaddar,
NOW Staff , August 23, 2008
As the 2009 parliamentary elections loom on the horizon, it seems that every political statement or event is designed to deliver an electoral message. In this bewildering and cut-throat milieu, Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) leader, former army commander and current MP Michel Aoun is once again trying to reinvent himself as the Christian leader, but it appears he might be running out of options.
Part of his campaign groundwork – aside from a bizarre crusade to get Deputy Prime Minister Issam Abu Jamra an office in the Grand Serail – will be to distance himself from the bloodshed unleashed in early May by his allies in Hezbollah, a task made all the more difficult by Hezbollah’s recent flirtation with the Salafists. Not only was the same term – wathiqat al-tafahum – used for the abortive memorandum of understanding with the radical Islamists, tarring Aoun with the two brushes of Islamist conservatism, but the fact that the Salafists then backed off only shows that even the so-called hard-line Sunnis had considered the implications of sectarian division, one to which Aoun appears to have given little thought.
Add to the mix the rising popularity and credibility of President Michel Sleiman among the population, the Christians in particular, and Aoun might end up not only losing his representation among Lebanese Christians, but also his standing with the pro-Syrian fractions in Lebanon, who must be asking if it is worth tweaking their own agenda to maintain Aoun’s electability.
Election vibes
Aoun is expected to visit the border villages of South Lebanon this Sunday, part of his campaign to strengthen his alliances with the non-Christian electorate. He needs to; Aoun’s biggest nightmare must be the prospect of losing seats in parliament as the Christian street is gearing up for a heavyweight election battle, especially in Kesrouan, Metn and Jbeil, where Aoun will face the lists of an increasingly popular President Sleiman. While many pundits predict that Sleiman will probably maintain his neutral position vis-à-vis the elections, in order to maintain his image as a consensus president, this eagerness to name ministers in the new government shows that he is not averse to creating his own bloc in parliament.
If this were the case and Sleiman entered the electoral fray with a “third” list (neither March 8 nor March 14) that presented itself as an alternative force for the Christians, he would probably win, such is his personal popularity, which is backed up by the authority of the office he holds. Sleiman would then be able to reinforce his position as president, this time with a substantial parliamentary bloc, which would further strengthen his hand within the Christian community.
And let us not forget, talking of Christian alliances, that Michel Murr’s withdrawal from Aoun’s Change and Reform bloc was seen by analysts as a direct result of his early support of Sleiman for the presidency. Further robust backing from Murr and the Armenian community, which has historically “given” its vote to the president, would probably lead to Aoun’s desertion.
Aoun now appears to be fighting on two fronts – the other being his battle with Prime Minister Fouad Siniora to undermine Sunni authority in Lebanon – and the last thing he needs is a credible Christian contender in the shape of a president, who seems to be accepted wherever he goes, even in Damascus, and who is forging close professional and personal ties with the prime minister.
Allying with the devil
Aoun began clutching at straws after the Doha Agreement and the election of Michel Sleiman as president. Instead of recognizing and playing to the fear and anger felt by many Lebanese, especially the Christians, over the sudden and bloody takeover in early May, he did not condemn Hezbollah’s actions. In fact, he praised their Iranian patrons: “I have a message of friendship and brotherhood for Iranians, and I see them as Lebanon lovers,” he said in an interview with the Mehr News Agency in Beirut on June 1 in which he lauded Tehran for its “positive and constructive role” in helping resolve the May crisis.
What else could he do? Aoun has always expressed pride over his memorandum of understanding with Hezbollah, which he claims has saved Lebanon from Muslim-Christian strife. What he forgets is that it has actually ignited an internal Christian conflict, one that has served Hezbollah magnificently and one to which Aoun is either blind or indifferent. His argument is that his infamous MOU with Hezbollah protected the Christian street and that the Christians should back Hezbollah unconditionally lest they expose themselves to a well-drilled culture of violence. This is hardly a partnership based on trust.
To show the extent to which the MOU must be seen as a tool for personal ambition, one need only look at the similar but ultimately abortive MOU Hezbollah signed with Sheikh Hassan Chahhal’s Salafist Belief and Justice Movement last week. Sheikh Dai al-Islam al-Chahhal, the founder of the Salafist Movement in Lebanon, and other Sunni parties, including the Future Movement, urged Sheikh Hassan Chahhal to freeze the MOU to preserve Sunni unity.
Although the incident revealed a level of discord among Lebanon’s Sunnis, the fact that they chose sectarian unity over political gain, and that that even the Salafists, considered by many Lebanese to be on dark side of the fundamentalist moon, are concerned about the unity of their community, shows to what depths Aoun is prepared to stoop to advance up the political ladder.
So now Aoun, sensing the Christian street might finally ditch him, has opened up a new mini-front, this time as a defender of Greek Orthodox interests, by launching a campaign against the prime minister and demanding an office for his man inside the Serail. Issam Abu Jamra’s demands are obviously channeled to boost his boss electorally, but it is odd that Aoun, who has been obstructing state institutions for three years, is suddenly worried about the where the deputy prime minister puts his desk.
Aoun is looking increasingly like a man on the margins. It might just herald an orange sunset.

Hezbollah snatches Brazilian journalists
By: W. Thomas Smith Jr.
22 Aug 2008
According to Brazilian media earlier in the week, a team of Brazilian journalists in Lebanon were snatched by Hezbollah in a restaurant in Dahiyeh (Beirut’s southern suburbs -- Hezbollah’s stronghold).
I was aware of this story (via personal sources) as early as Monday, but have seen very little about it covered in the Western press, which is amazing when one considers just how bizarre this story really is.
Brazil's TV Globo stated, the journalists were videotaping in a restaurant (cafeteria) they had discovered had a theme of "terror." The restaurant served "sandwiches with names of weapons, and dishes inspired by terrorist acts ... all prepared by a chef dressed as a soldier." The establishment was "decorated with mock weapons."
While the journalists where in the restaurant, armed Hezbollah men appeared, arrested them, and drove them away in cars with curtained windows. The journalists were questioned, and their cell phones, documents, and a video camera were seized.
Five hours later, the journalists were released, but ordered out of the country.
Their phones were returned sans memory cards, and the camera returned without the tape. However, Hezbollah removed the wrong tape because the journalists allegedly switched tapes before the camera was confiscated.
According to TV Globo, the Brazilian Consulate in Beirut "lodged a formal complaint against the abuses suffered by the team. The government admitted that Lebanon against Hezbollah, can do little or nothing."
Bizarre, but not at all surprising. Though Hezbollah's apologists and sympathizers would lead us all to believe that anyone can just freely stroll, jog, drive, dine, take pictures, whatever, in Hezbollah-controlled security squares like Dahiyeh.

Hezbollah TV live in Australia
By News.com.
THE federal government must consider “creative” ways to tackle an anti-semitic satellite television station’s broadcasts being beamed into Australia, a leading Jewish figure says.
Hezbollah’s Al-Manar television channel is broadcast into Australia from Indonesian company Indosat and carries talk shows and documentaries dedicated to anti-Israeli, anti-western and pro-militancy ideas.
It also carries children’s programs and music videos along with calls for viewers to donate.
Asked if the government should consider outlawing the viewing of Al-Manar in Australia, Australia-Israel and Jewish Affairs Council executive director Colin Rubenstein said he was open to the idea.
“The Attorney-General (Robert McClelland) needs to look at some of the loose ends implicit in this case,'’ Mr Rubenstein said.
“It’s illegal to download pedophile material so I think there’s some scope for creative legislation here. Al-Manar recruits terrorists and effectively advertises for donations.'’
Al-Manar has been shut down twice before and Communications Minister Stephen Conroy tonight said the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) was looking at its recent broadcasts.
“ACMA is analysing current broadcasts by Al-Manar and will report to government on whether any of its broadcasts offend the Counter-Terrorism Standards,'’ Senator Conroy said.
The Anti-Terrorism Standards were created in 2006 and govern both free to air and pay TV channels.
“The government will await the report by ACMA before determining any further action,'’ he said.
Stations are banned from directly recruiting viewers to join terrorist organisations and fundraising for the groups. peACMA can slap an order on Indosat telling it to stop broadcasting Al-Manar.
But when pressed about what it could do if Indosat ignored the order, the authority refused to comment.
The B’nai B’rith’s Anti-Defamation Commission said Al-Manar should be banned under existing codes banning the incitement of racial hatred.
“Al-Manar is renowned for inciting violence and hatred,'’ the commission said in a statement.
“In this respect it appears to have breached the relevant broadcasting code of practice in inciting racial hatred.'’
– By Peter Veness