LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS
BULLETIN
July 21/08
Bible Reading of the day.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 13,24-43.
He proposed another parable to them. "The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a
man who sowed good seed in his field.
While everyone was asleep his enemy came and sowed weeds all through the wheat,
and then went off.
When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well.
The slaves of the householder came to him and said, 'Master, did you not sow
good seed in your field? Where have the weeds come from?'
He answered, 'An enemy has done this.' His slaves said to him, 'Do you want us
to go and pull them up?'
He replied, 'No, if you pull up the weeds you might uproot the wheat along with
them.
Let them grow together until harvest; then at harvest time I will say to the
harvesters, "First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning; but
gather the wheat into my barn."'"
Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for July
20/08
Qassem Reiterates
Hizbullah Openness to Arms Talks-Naharnet
Why Edde Quit March 14?-Naharnet
Skaff: Tentative Agreement on Policy Statement-Naharnet
Syrian FM to visit Beirut in move to establish ties-AFP
MI chief: Hezbollah may be readying to attack-Ha'aretz
Canadian soldier James Hayward Arnal killed by roadside bomb in Afghanistan-The
Canadian Press
Sfeir
Criticizes Hizbullah-Naharnet
Jund
al-Sham Ranking Official Killed-Naharnet
The Cooking of a Policy Statement as Syria's Muallem
Visits Beirut-Naharnet
MP
Kairouz: Elections Put Lebanon at Crossroads-Naharnet
Fadlallah Criticizes
International Criminal Court-Naharnet
Najjar: Tribunal Faces No
Challenges-Naharnet
Israel Didn't Know of
Cluster Bomb Use During 2006 War?-Naharnet
Abou Faour: National Unity
Badly Cracked-Naharnet
Policy Statement Won't
Settle Weapons Controversy-Naharnet
Bitter exchange-Calgary Herald
Official says two killed in Lebanon Palestinian refugee camp-AFP
How our negotiator played Nasrallah-Ha'aretz
Israel Decries UN Troops After Peacekeepers Salute Dead Hezbollah ...FOXNews
Ashkenazi off to US for talks on Iran and Syria-Jerusalem Post
The talk of the town-Ha'aretz
Canadian soldier James Hayward Arnal killed by
roadside bomb in Afghanistan
Sat Jul 19, 9:20 PM
By Alexander Panetta, The Canadian Press
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - A Canadian soldier was killed by a roadside explosion,
the military announced on a violent day that also saw a suicide bomber blow
himself up just outside the gate of the main Canadian base in Kandahar.
The suicide attack outside Kandahar Airfield occurred just moments before the
Canadian Forces held a solemn news conference there to announce the death of
Cpl. James Hayward Arnal.
Maj. Michael Wright, the commanding officer of the Second Battalion of the
Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, said Cpl. Arnal couldn't wait to
get back to Afghanistan for a second tour of duty.
"He had already served with distinction in Kandahar province from August 2006 to
February 2007," said Maj. Wright. "During that tour he was involved in a massive
firefight with the Taliban and participated in September 2006's Operation
Medusa.
"As soon as he returned to Canada he was looking for ways to go back, and this
past February he got his wish."
Maj. Wright said Cpl. Arnal brought experience and passion to his job.
"His loss is a blow to his fellow soldiers in Bravo Company and to the entire
Battle Group.
"Our condolences go out to his family in Winnipeg and we now make a solemn vow
to ensure his final voyage home is conducted with the dignity befitting a hero."
In a separate attack in Kandahar province, a roadside blast killed four Afghan
police officers. Afghan troops also announced Saturday that they killed nine
Taliban militants in Zabul province.
On this blood-soaked day, the Canadian military bluntly described the Afghan
mission as a long-term challenge.
Canada's top soldier in Afghanistan lauded Arnal as a fearless fighter who had
left a lucrative career in information technology to join the army.
He was on his second tour of Afghanistan and had already volunteered for a
third.
Arnal was struck by an explosion Friday night during a foot patrol in Panjwaii
district near Kandahar city.
"Clearly, he was a dedicated soldier with a very promising career ahead of him,"
said Brig.-Gen. Denis Thompson, Canada's commander in Afghanistan.
And that's exactly how Arnal had wished all soldiers who lost their lives in
Afghanistan would be remembered.
In a November 2006 interview with The Canadian Press Arnal, who was fighting on
the front lines in the Panjwaii district in Afghanistan, said he believed
soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice should be respected.
"We're here so that these people can have the same opportunities we have back
home ... and not have dictatorships such as the Taliban telling them what to
do," the then-23-year-old private told the reporter.
"I hope they'll be remembered as brave people who stood up for things that other
people can't or are too afraid to defend," he said.
The Shilo, Man.-based Arnal was the 88th Canadian soldier killed in the Afghan
mission, and the first to die in two weeks.
After paying tribute to his fallen corporal, Thompson addressed suggestions that
the Canadian government and military have been sugar-coating the difficult
realities of the Afghan mission.
The U.S. and British governments have been casting the violence in Afghanistan
in increasingly dire terms that Canada's politicians and military brass have
largely eschewed.
But on Saturday, Thompson readily described Afghanistan as a long-term project.
"Of course, soldiers are also not afraid to talk about the challenges faced here
in Afghanistan," Thompson said.
"Let there be no doubt - we do have our work cut out for us."
"This insurgency is not going to be defeated in the short term, which is why our
focus is on winning the trust of the Afghan people, and building up local
government and security institutions."
Thompson said the military is determined to carry on with the mission and is
convinced it will succeed.
In a statement on Arnal's death, Prime Minister Stephen Harper also lauded the
soldier's bravery and described the Afghan mission as a "challenging" one.
Another Canadian soldier sustained injuries in the blast but was said to be in
good condition and expected to return to duty.
Canada's Kandahar-based mission began in late-2005 and has been extended until
2011.
Suicide attacks, roadside bombs and coalition casualties have seen significant
increases in each of the last three years.
But the number of Afghan children going to school and the national economy have
also grown.
In a stark reminder of the security risk Saturday, a suicide bomber blew himself
up just several hundred metres away from the main coalition base in Kandahar.
The bomber was spotted by an Afghan policeman on the main road to Kandahar
Airfield. He tried running toward the base through a police checkpoint, drew
police gunfire as he fled, and finally detonated himself with nobody close by.
One policeman and one 13-year-old boy were injured in the blast, while the
bomber's body was ripped to pieces by the force of the explosion.
In a statement from Ottawa, the prime minister paid tribute to Arnal's bravery
and to the goals of the Afghan mission. He also underlined its difficulty.
"It is with much pride that we stand by our Canadian Forces members," Harper
said.
"This United Nations-mandated mission is a challenging one, but we remain
steadfast in our resolve to help the people of Afghanistan."
Southern Afghanistan is the centre of the country's Taliban-led insurgency.
More than 2,500 people - mostly militants - have died in insurgency-related
violence this year in Afghanistan, according to an Associated Press tally of
official figures.
On Saturday, a blast struck a police patrol in Kandahar's Maywand district,
killing four officers and wounding another.
Meanwhile, Afghan troops clashed with Taliban insurgents attacking a supply
convoy for NATO troops, killing nine militants.
They were killed after they attacked a supply convoy for NATO-led troops in
Zabul province, said provincial police official Jalali Khan.
The insurgents also fought amongst themselves.
In northwestern Pakistan, at least 10 Taliban died in fierce clashes between two
rival militant groups, a government official and Taliban spokesman said
Saturday.
Hundreds of supporters of top Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud clashed
Friday with a breakaway faction of the group in Mohmand tribal region, said
local administrator Syed Ali.
He said both sides used rocket-propelled grenades and other weapons in the
fighting, which lasted for several hours. Between 10 and 15 men died, he said.
Bitter exchange
Calgary Herald
Published: Sunday, July 20, 2008
No words can express the revulsion the civilized world feels for the hero's
welcome given Samir Kuntar by Hezbollah upon his exchange for two Israeli
soldiers killed in Israel's 2006 war with Lebanon. Kuntar spent 29 years in jail
for a stomach-churning crime he committed in 1979 in Nahariya, Israel, as a
member of the Palestinian Liberation Front.
During a raid on the town, Kuntar forced Danny Haran and his daughter, Einat, 4,
to march to the nearby beach. After shooting Haran in the head, Kuntar bashed
Einat's skull with his rifle butt. Haran's other daughter, Yael, 2, also died --
accidentally suffocated by her mother, Smadar, who was trying to keep her quiet
as they hid during the attack. Smadar told the Washington Post in 2003 she would
never forget "the joy and the hatred in their voices as they swaggered about
hunting for us, firing their guns and throwing grenades." When Kuntar was
offered for exchange in 1984 for Israeli POWs in Lebanon, Smadar convinced then-defence
minister Yitzhak Rabin not to do it, declaring, "the blood of my family was as
red as the POWs." She said the exchange should involve a terrorist who was not
as cruel as Kuntar. That should have been the rule this time, too. Sadly, it
wasn't. Even sadder was Lebanon's declaration of a national holiday to celebrate
Kuntar's return, along with his speech thanking God for his release. Not only is
the blood of Smadar's family as red -- it has stained Lebanon's international
image in the aftermath of such a shameful celebration
Sfeir Criticizes Hizbullah
Naharnet/Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir has criticized
parties that are "stronger than the state." Sfeir, on a visit to Australia, told
the daily al-Mustaqbal Hizbullah's "force contradicts with authority of the
state and its duty to spread its sovereignty." Sfeir said "all factions claim to
work for the nation's interest, but they look at Lebanon's interest through
their own interests." "Some factions head to Syria and Iran and get weapons and
funds, others head to other states," he added. "All factions should owe
allegiance to Lebanon," Sfeir stressed. He said the international tribunal
"should proceed with its path and it shouldn't be hampered in its quest to
expose those who had committed the crimes and punish them." President Michel
Suleiman, according to Sfeir, is a good person who wants the best for his
homeland."
The Cooking of a Policy Statement as Syria's Muallem Visits
Beirut
Naharnet/Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem visits Beirut
Monday as a ministerial committee holds it fourth meeting to work out a policy
statement for the new cabinet based on a reconciliatory approach to tackle
controversial issues. Muallem is to deliver an invitation from his leader Bashar
Assad to Lebanese President Michel Suleiman to visit Damascus. Presidential
sources told An-Nahar daily that Suleiman would accept the invitation and embark
on a visit to Damascus in no later than 10 days to tackle such major topics as
bilateral relations, establishing diplomatic ties and border demarcation.
Meanwhile, the ministerial committee headed by Premier Fouad Saniora is to hold
its fourth meeting aimed at working out a blue print for the new cabinet's
policy statement after it succeeded in achieving "major progress" in its third
session on Saturday. The committee's meeting on Monday would tackle the most
sensitive issue that has split the Lebanese, which is the "resistance" and try
to work out some sort of a joint interim approach to tackle the issue, pending a
final stand on it during national dialogue that would be launched by Suleiman at
a later date. The pan-Arab daily al-Hayat said the committee tackled on Saturday
the sensitive topic of Palestinian bases outside refugee camps and reached
tentative agreement on it based on commitment by all factions to implement a
pledge to eliminate such structures. As for the resistance issue, it said
Saniora is preparing a clause that deals with the topic in line with the Taif
and Doha Accords as well as President Suleiman's oath address. Beirut, 20 Jul
08, 09:54
MP Kairouz: Elections Put Lebanon at Crossroads
Naharnet/MP Elie Kairouz said the 2009 parliamentary elections
would put Lebanon at a "crossroads." "Two agendas and two strategies would
compete in the elections," he said. "We have hopes in you and, with you, we hope
to win the elections," Kairouz told Lebanese Forces partisans at a dinner in the
northern town of Diman. "Hope sparked by the uprising of freedom requires
further sacrifices to become a reality," he added. "Strong Christian
representation gives Christian forces of sovereignty better chances in the
elections," he added. Beirut, 20 Jul 08, 13:48
Fadlallah Criticizes International Criminal Court
Naharnet/Naharnet/Ranking Shiite Religious Authority Mohammed
Hussein Fadlallah on Sunday criticized the International Criminal Court's
prosecutor for seeking to arrest Sudan's President Omar al-Beshir. Fadlallah
said the ICC's recent decision "against Sudan and its president can only be
assessed in line with political aims."
He said an alleged plot aims at controlling sources of the Nile River in Sudan,
which would also threaten Egypt. Beirut, 20 Jul 08, 13:31
Najjar: Tribunal Faces No Challenges
Naharnet/Justice Minister Ibrahim Najjar said the international
tribunal does not face any challenges and would not be subject to "any barter
deal."
Najjar, in a radio interview, said the tribunal that would try suspects in the
2005 assassination of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri and related crimes "has been
launched and it has a certain path (in coordination) between the Lebanese state
and the United Nations." "The tribunal is not in danger, but the pace of
implementation is not clear for reasons that I am not aware of," he added.
Nevertheless, "I confirm that there is no barter," he stressed. "The tribunal
should not be politicized and we shouldn't make accusations in every direction,"
Najjar said. Beirut, 20 Jul 08, 12:25
Jund al-Sham Ranking Official Killed
Naharnet/Three Palestinian militants were killed in a clash with
the mainstream Fatah guerrilla group in the southern refugee camp of Ain al-Hilweh,
Palestinian sources reported Sunday. The sources said the three were members of
Islamist factions the Ansar League and Jund al-Sham. One source, speaking on
condition of anonymity, said Shadeh Johar, a ranking Jund al-Sham official,
passed away at dawn Sunday from wounds he suffered during the clash with
fighters of President Mahmoud Abbas' mainline Fatah faction. The second Jund
al-Sham fatality was identified as Abdul Nasser Dawali. A member of the Ansar
League, identified as Walid Salloum also was killed when he got caught by the
cross-fire, the source said. The clash, which lasted for nearly 30 minutes on
Saturday evening, also wounded a 70-year old Palestinian man. Beirut, 20 Jul 08,
11:18
Israel Didn't Know of Cluster Bomb Use During 2006 War?
Naharnet/A former Israeli defense official has said the Israeli
military used cluster bombs for two weeks during the 2006 offensive on Lebanon
without telling the Israeli government. Hagai Alon, an adviser to then-Defense
Minister Amir Peretz, told Israel Radio on Saturday that the government only
learned of the cluster bomb use when European countries raised the issue after
the war. The military said in response that it updated the government on all
issues throughout the war. Cluster bombs open in flight and scatter dozens of
bomblets over wide areas. U.N. experts say that of millions dropped over
Lebanon, up to 1 million failed to explode.An Israeli war inquiry had raised
questions about the army's use of the weapons, noting a lack of "operational
discipline, oversight and control."(AP) Beirut, 20 Jul 08, 06:48
Abou Faour: National Unity Badly Cracked
Naharnet/Cabinet Minister Wael Abou Faour said Saturday the
nation's unity has been "badly cracked" and the cabinet's main mission is to
"renovate" it.
He said the biggest mistake that the cabinet could make is to adopt a policy
statement that includes "obscure phrases, that each side would clarify in line
with its interests."He said Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat's
remarks during the Abey rally "should not be misinterpreted.""He welcomed
cabinet minister Fneish on behalf of the independence uprising and martyr Hariri
and Fneish responded in a wise and responsible manner," Abu Faour said. Beirut,
19 Jul 08, 13:41
Policy Statement Won't Settle Weapons Controversy
Naharnet/Cabinet Minister Jean Oghassabian said Saturday the
issue of Hizbullah weapons would not be settled by the cabinet's policy
statement.
"When Hizbullah pointed its weapons at the domestic arena we said this
resistance is no more a resistance movement. It has become a militia."
"The topic should be discussed with the related parties with the aim of working
out a clear concept that is not obscure," he added in a radio interview.
Lebanon, he added, is going through a "transition. In light of the Doha Accord,
both sides are prepared to discuss all differences on Lebanon and the future."
The topic of Hizbullah weapons "should be settled through national dialogue
sponsored by President Michel Suleiman," Oghassabian added.
"No strong state can be built in the presence of Hizbullah's mini state," he
concluded. Beirut, 19 Jul 08, 13:25