LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS
BULLETIN
June 09/08
Bible Reading of the day.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ
according to Saint Matthew 9,9-13. As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man
named Matthew sitting at the customs post. He said to him, "Follow me." And he
got up and followed him. While he was at table in his house, many tax collectors
and sinners came and sat with Jesus and his disciples. The Pharisees saw this
and said to his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and
sinners?"He heard this and said, "Those who are well do not need a physician, but the
sick do. Go and learn the meaning of the words, 'I desire mercy, not
sacrifice.' I did not come to call the righteous but sinners."
Free
Opinions, Releases, letters & Special Reports
The Valley of honey, hashish and Hezbollah-By: Brian Self-Cyprus
Observer 08/06/08
Why did
Nasrallah unexpectedly decide to return body parts of IDF soldiers? By: Ariela
Ringel-Hoffm 08/06/08
Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for June
08/08
German foreign minister discusses Lebanon with Syrian counterpart-PR-Inside.com
(Pressemitteilung)
Suleiman at Bkirki:
Forming the Cabinet Faces No Difficulties-Naharnet
Security Plan for Beirut Tested, Sunnis Want Hizbullah Apology-Naharnet
Hariri to Resume Talks
on Cabinet Line-Up-Naharnet
France Dispatching Envoys to Syria as Ties
Thaw-Naharnet
Maronite Bishops Hail Suleiman Election-Naharnet
Jumblat: Any Political Delay in Tribunal
Means U.N. Cutting Deal with Syria-Naharnet
Italian FM: No Government, No Army in
Lebanon-Naharnet
Bush Looking Forward to Meeting Suleiman
at the White House-Naharnet
Sfeir for Forgiveness that Leads to Stability-Naharnet
Bush Looking Forward to
Meeting Suleiman at the White House-Naharnet
Report: Syria foiled attempted coup by Assad's brother-in-law-Ha'aretz
France set to renew Syria diplomatic ties-GulfNews
One brown casket-Ynetnews
Suleiman at Bkirki: Forming the
Cabinet Faces No Difficulties
Naharnet/President Michel Suleiman on Sunday paid a
"non-political" visit to Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir at the Maronite Church's seat
in Bkirki and announced that forming the new cabinet is not facing difficulties.
Suleiman, talking to reporters after the visit, paid tribute to the recent
statement by Maronite Bishops saying it reflected a feeling of "national
responsibility." He noted that the Bishops had called for "real partnership in
managing the nation." Suleiman held a 15-minute meeting with Sfeir behind closed
doors. Sfeir described the meeting as "positive." Beirut, 08 Jun 08, 11:59
Security Plan for Beirut Tested, Sunnis Want Hizbullah
Apology
Naharnet/Army and police patrols toured contested areas of West
Beirut Sunday in an effort to defuse tension that had dominated the city and
hampered efforts to form a new cabinet. Helmeted troops manning armored
personnel carriers were seen at key intersections in the districts of Ras al-Nabaa,
Tarik Jedideh, and Aisha Bakkar that had been the theater for clashes between
Hizbullah-led elements and partisans of the Mustaqbal Movement.
The security dragnet is to spread to include the Corniche Mazraa and Mar Elias
commercial thoroughfare as well as other residential districts of west Beirut,
in line with a plan adopted by the Central Security Council. The move coincided
with a call by Mustaqbal Movement leader Saad Hariri to his partisans to return
to their apartments and businesses that they deserted since a Hizbullah assault
on West Beirut on May 8. However, a security source said no such return has been
observed. A senior security source told Naharnet that displaced families are
apparently waiting for the new cabinet to be formed and for the security plan to
be applied prior to returning to their homes. "They are adopting a wait and see
attitude. They want to make sure the security plan is being effectively applied.
The more confident they are, the more they would start returning to their homes
and businesses," said the source who asked not to be identified. Meanwhile, the
Higher Sharia Islamic Council, in a statement, asked Hizbullah to apologize for
having used weapons against Lebanese citizens. The apology, as outlined by the
highest Sunni spiritual authority, is the necessary condition set by the
community for accepting a national reconciliation in line with the Doha Accord.
Beirut, 08 Jun 08, 09:26
Hariri to Resume Talks on Cabinet Line-Up
Naharnet/Mustaqbal Movement leader Saad Hariri said Saturday he would resume
talks on the new cabinet make-up after the Lebanese army has intensified
measures to better safeguard citizens. "There is no dispute and there will be
consultations on the government make-up," Hariri told reporters. "We hope the
new cabinet will be formed soon." "After the meeting of the Central Security
Council … the (Lebanese) army intensified measures to protect Beirut and
safeguard Beirut citizens and this was our main concern," Hariri said. The
Central Security Council meeting came after Hariri announced he would suspend
cabinet line-up talks in protest over an attempt by assailants wearing
Parliament police uniforms to assassinate Beirut citizen Imad Zaghloul. Beirut,
07 Jun 08, 15:36
France Dispatching Envoys to Syria as Ties Thaw
Naharnet/French President Nicolas Sarkozy is to send two senior
envoys to Syria, as ties suspended last year over Lebanon's political crisis
start to thaw, a source close to his office said on Saturday. "Mr. Sarkozy is in
the coming days to send two envoys to Damascus" -- his advisor Jean-David
Levitte and Claude Gueant, the office's secretary general -- the source,
declining to be named, told reporters in Beirut. Sarkozy, who was on a visit to
the Lebanese capital, has said in Beirut newspapers that Damascus and Paris
could be turning "a new page" in relations. "Everything depends on how things
develop, whether at the level of a Syrian embassy being opened in Beirut or
respect for civil peace in Lebanon," the source said. In an interview published
on Friday by several Beirut dailies, Sarkozy said France "would resume contacts
with Syria only when positive, concrete developments occurred in Lebanon with a
view to getting out of the crisis.
"One has to concede that the Doha accord, the election of President (Michel)
Suleiman and the return of Fouad Saniora as prime minister are such
developments," said the French president. "I have drawn the conclusions and I
have called (Syrian President Bashar) Assad to tell him of my desire to see the
implementation of the accord continue," he said. After sectarian violence left
65 people dead last month, rival factions clinched a deal in Qatar on May 21
that led to the election of then army chief and consensus candidate Suleiman
after a six-month vacuum in the presidency. France and the United States have
accused Syria, through its supporters in the Lebanese opposition, of meddling in
Beirut's political life, a charge denied by Damascus.(AFP) Beirut, 07 Jun 08,
16:13
Maronite Bishops Hail Suleiman Election
Naharnet/Maronite bishops on Saturday welcomed the election of
President Michel Suleiman and saw good governance program in his inaugural
speech. "Lebanon's supreme national interests are being ensured and the
constitution respected after the election of Suleiman," the bishops' statement
said. The statement came at the end of the bishops' annual assembly under the
chairmanship of Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir. The bishops also praised
Suleiman's inaugural speech, saying they see in it a "good national and
objective governance program." "Suleiman's speech sets the stage for true
partnership in the decision-making process," said the statement, adding that it
also "consolidates Lebanon's sovereignty and independence." The bishops
expressed hope that the Lebanese will "preserve the Doha agreement and support
President Suleiman." The statement also called for national unity in order to
settle economic, social and political issues. Beirut, 07 Jun 08, 16:42
Jumblat: Any Political Delay in Tribunal Means U.N. Cutting
Deal with Syria
Naharnet/Druze leader Walid Jumblat said that any political delay
in the international tribunal "means that the United Nations or one of its teams
is cutting a deal with the Syrian regime at the expense of Rafik Hariri's blood
and that of the Lebanese." Jumblat also rejected a visit by Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad to Lebanon in the midst of internal divisions in Lebanon. "If
this visit is inevitable, let President Michel Suleiman meet Assad at the
Lebanese-Syrian border," Jumblat told Euronews channel, adding that "this will
be the first step toward Syria's recognition of Lebanon." Jumblat reiterated
accusations against the Syrian regime over political assassinations in Lebanon
"because it only targeted those who objected to the renewal of former President
Emile Lahoud's term, and those calling for the independence of Lebanon." Beirut,
07 Jun 08, 12:04
Bush Looking Forward to Meeting Suleiman at the White House
Naharnet/U.S. President George Bush has told Lebanon's ambassador
Antoine Shedid that he was "looking forward" to meeting with Lebanese President
Michel Suleiman in Washington, An Nahar daily reported Saturday. U.S. National
security spokesman Gordon Johndroe said last month that Bush invited Suleiman to
Washington "so the two leaders can meet to discuss issues of strategic
importance to both the United States and Lebanon." Bush also told Shedid, who
presented his credentials to the U.S. President Friday, that he will discuss the
situation in Lebanon with European leaders during his June 10-16 tour. Bush said
that he was proud of supporting the Lebanese government in the formation of the
international tribunal that would try suspects in ex-Premier Rafik Hariri's
assassination and related crimes. Beirut, 07 Jun 08, 05:06
Sfeir for Forgiveness that
Leads to Stability
Naharnet/Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir said Sunday that
competing on grabbing power seats and harvesting gains pushed the nation away
from the right track. Sfeir made the remark in his Sunday sermon at Bkirki, seat
of the Maronite church north of Beirut. He was obviously referring the ongoing
competition between the rival factions on holding portfolios in the forthcoming
cabinet that is supposed to lead the nation towards unity.Sfeir urged the
community to adopt the Bible's concept of Christian ethics based on forgiveness
that leads to stability. Beirut, 08 Jun 08, 11:42
Report: Syria foiled attempted coup by Assad's
brother-in-law
By Haaretz Service
The Syrian government has foiled an attempted coup some four months ago, the
German daily newspaper Die Welt reported on Saturday.
The paper reported that Assef Shawkat, President Bashar Assad's brother-in-law
and head of Syria's military intelligence had tried, assisted by hundreds of
officers, to drive the president from power. It emerges that Hezbollah official
Imad Mughniyah, who was assassinated in Damascus a few days after the botched
coup, brought the conspiracy to the president's knowledge. After a governmental
investigation, Shawkat and his associates were arrested in connection with
Mughniyah's killing. Shawkat was immediately removed from his prominent position
after his arrest, but has not been indicted since, apparently due to Assad's
desire to save his sister, who is married to Shawkat, from harm. Syria has
blamed Israel for Mughniya's assassination, but it now emerges that Shawkat and
his co-conspirators may be behind it. The Syrian Embassy in Berlin declined the
report. A Damascus source said that "coups d'etat are behind the times. Syria is
a stable country, playing a central role in securing stability and peace in the
Middle East." "Little wonder, then, that some people will try to undermine
Syria's devotion to this mission," the source added.
France set to renew Syria diplomatic ties
By Sami Moubayed, Correspondent
Gulf News
Published: June 08, 2008, 00:06
Damascus: President Nicolas Sarkozy stressed France's support for newly elected
Lebanese President Michel Sulaiman and for Lebanese reconciliation through
dialogue on Saturday as sources said his country was poised to open a new
chapter in Franco-Syrian relations by posting two senior diplomats in Damascus.
During a brief visit to Beirut on Saturday, Sarkozy said Sulaiman had "a great
responsibility to drive this national reconciliation forward".
Sources close to Sarkozy's office told reporters in Beirut that Sarkozy will be
sending two envoys to Damascus: Jean-David Levitte, a presidential adviser, and
Claude Gueant, the office secretary-general. The source added, "Everything
depends on how things develop, whether at the level of a Syrian embassy being
opened in Beirut or in respect of civil peace in Lebanon." A senior French
source in Beirut, however, seemed to contradict what Sarkozy was saying,
claiming that the "situation in Lebanon remains fragile" and adding that Paris
should wait a few weeks "until a new cabinet is formed [in Beirut] before
normalising with Syria".
The Valley of honey, hashish and Hezbollah
By: Brian Self
06.06.2008
http://www.observercyprus.com/observer/NewsDetails.aspx?id=2915
The road to Baalbek is as straight as the Bekaa valley is flat. Wedged in
between the Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon mountain ranges, the Mediterranean climate
and two rivers make it Lebanon’s most important farming region. Rome called it
the empire’s breadbasket; wheat is still the largest crop. Almost half of the
families who live in the valley run small farms; most of the traffic passing us
consisted of open trucks carrying potatoes, tomatoes and cucumbers to the
markets in Beirut. On this fine May morning vines growing like small trees
stretched into the distance with monotonous regularity. A mantle of greyish snow
covered the long crest of the Anti-Lebanon, the crest itself largely forming the
border between Lebanon and Syria. On the other side sat Damascus in a dusty
plateau, further to the north the mountains reach to the city of Homs before
dying out. Syrian Homs is where a gap occurs in the coastal mountain range, a
city placed strategically on the natural north-south corridor and the access
route from the Syrian desert to the coast. Aphamea, Palmyra and Baalbek form a
triangle with Homs directly at its centre. The valley seemed a good place for a
student of the Middle East under Rome to better understand the Imperial power’s
communications network, its defensive considerations and relationship with the
local population. My thoughts however were elsewhere; I was certain the rest of
the group, spread comfortably throughout our big bus were not preoccupied with
recent and not quite recent events in the Bekaa valley.
We stopped at Chtaura, a town of ice cream parlours and banks, a halfway stop
between Beirut and Damascus where bus drivers ate and drank quickly and tour
guides joked between themselves for the benefit of their tourists. We were the
only foreigners that morning in the large and simple building, where from behind
a counter at the rear a woman rolled flatbread filled with white cheese and
served Laban, the local yoghourt drink. On some shelves were local products,
rose water, honey, almond syrup and reputedly the best labneh and soured cream
in Lebanon. From a raised till the unshaven and tired looking owner was willing
to take dollars and give back Lebanese pounds. Next door a small shop sold
Lebanese sweet specialities with an assortment of satin covered boxes to present
them in, and stuffed cuddly animals – the universal Levant currency intended to
pacify small children expected to sit with their parents until the hour is late.
Even Syria has similar shops in the city centre, but not in small market towns
like Chtaura. Driving down the main street past pizza bars, more banks, gun
shops and tractor showrooms the town had a settled, comfortable feel to it;
everybody knew each other and no one was going hungry. My impression was
deceptively simple: I knew that.
Flag souvenir
At the southern entrance to the modern town of Baalbek is a quarry and a
souvenir shop whose owner immediately handed out small plastic cups of hot,
black, cardamom flecked coffee. The quarry’s fame rests on a half excavated
block of perfectly hewn stone weighing an estimated 1,000 tons. This monolith
and others built into the ancient temple complex has taxed engineers more than
historians, who puzzle over the gruesome cult rites dedicated to a myriad of
gods; how the stones were moved and set in place has found no answers. From the
shop it was possible to see the nearby massive wall enclosing the temples, to
one side a turquoise dome and two tall minarets shimmered in the growing heat;
Iranian money has long flowed into the Hezbollah stronghold of Baalbek. I was
not in the mood for souvenirs, every time I looked into the glass vitrine filled
with supposedly authentic antique objects the owner tried to nail me down with
explanations. At the back a young bearded man was rearranging t-shirts, banners
and flags stamped with the symbol of the Party of God. He smiled and nodded when
I asked if he was Shiite; the smile broadened on enquiring whether he was a
Hezbollah supporter. I wanted one of their yellow flags decorated with green
letters spelling Hezbollah. The Arabic letter “I” in the word extends up to form
a fist clutching a machine gun. The gun’s bullet clip rests on a globe of the
world. The slogan underneath reads ‘The Guardian of Islam in Lebanon’, and
sometimes ‘Our Blood is the Defence’.
Hezbollah’s presence in Baalbek had caused the Israeli air force to bombard it
as recently as 2006. Putting the folded flag into a plastic bag with what seemed
reverence he asked if I spoke French before rushing off elsewhere to return with
a cigarette lighter. In the darkest shelf he could find he projected a circular
photo of Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah; the other end of the lighter contained a
normal flint and flame. It was the last one and I bought it without
contemplating on the unusual proximity of liquid gas and a small battery. It was
made in China. Our bus dropped us off near the entrance to what are rightly
acknowledged as the largest, noblest and best preserved temples of the Roman
world. Only two miles away from the town is the village of Ras al-Ein, source of
an ancient spring, site of a Roman shrine and the remains of a Mameluke mosque
from 1277. I will never know whether these fragments of history could have let
me persuade our guide to make the small detour; it was only the village that I
wanted to see.
Cannabis grows well
I imagined Ras al-Ein as seedy and brown, still decorated with posters of
martyrs and large billboards celebrating bloodshed and sacrifice. Until ‘the
events’ of 14 February 2005 – the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik
Hariri, which led to the withdrawal of Syrian forces - Ras al-Ein, had been
under the overlapping control of the Syrian Army, the Iranian Revolutionary
Guards Corp (IRGC) and Hezbollah. The IRGC had used the surrounding countryside
to train Hezbollah militias. During the civil war cannabis production and trade
in opium was the major source of income in the Bekaa valley, a trade worth US$6
billion to Lebanon and in Western cities having an estimated street value of
US$150 billion. In remarks to the US Congress on 27 July 1990 Congressman Robert
Dornan revealed some of the murky connections between tribal war lords, drug
barons and the Syrian government, and unholy alliances between the IRA and the
PLO. At the height of the growing season Baalbek resembled a vast wholesale drug
supermarket with trucks piled high with ‘Lebanese Gold’ and processed opium on
its way to the country’s ports. In the early 1990s under pressure from the US
the Syrian army ploughed up a few cannabis fields and sprayed them with poison,
an action which Congressman Dornan described as ‘cosmetic’. While the Lebanese
Army continues to uproot crops, the political uncertainty since Israel’s
invasion in 2006 and the Syrian’s departure in 2005 has led to a revival of drug
cultivation. It might be a fraction of production during the civil war period,
but more than one source spoke of “significant increase,” especially north of
Baalbek where the rule of tribal law protecting armed families is still present.
When the same quantity of cannabis brings more than ten times the same quantity
of wheat, hashish is a fast way out of poverty.
US tourists return
We were not alone visiting the temples of Jupiter, Venus and Bacchus; a slightly
larger group of Americans had crossed for the day from Syria, showing that in
less than twenty-five years other things had changed and kidnapping Americans
had ceased to be another business in Bekaa. Many of those abducted were held in
Ras al-Ein, where they were kept blindfolded, chained to beds and radiators. In
1985 the Beirut station chief of the CIA William Buckley was kidnapped by masked
gunmen on his way to work, and probably held in Ras al-Ein for 15 months before
being killed by Hezbollah. Standing on the enormous raised plaza built by the
Romans over earlier ruins, Hezbollah’s notoriety was eclipsed by the thought
that Rome’s purpose here had not been spiritual, but political. They were trying
to integrate the peoples of the Middle East by appearing to favour local gods;
the more impressive the temples were the more the strength of Rome’s political
rule and civilisation overwhelmed. Carvings of grapes and poppies on the stone
door frame of the temple of Bacchus showed that at least two commodities had a
very long tradition in the Bekaa valley. Baalbek became Heliopolis, City of the
Sun, Baal became Jupiter, Astarte became Venus then Aphrodite. We could not know
that in less than fifteen days the Lebanese would start to write another chapter
in their long history, or that one of the first acts of the new President would
be to demand the removal of all posters, banners slogans and provocative signs
throughout the country. Is it wise to chase out local gods? Only history will
tell. Rome wanted to freeze pagan worship in time, but Rome has gone.
Reconcile Lebanon!
Gulf News
http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=219708&Sn=WORL&IssueID=31080
BEIRUT: French President Nicolas Sarkozy yesterday urged Lebanese leaders to
seal reconciliation through dialogue and commitment to an agreement that has
pulled the country back from the brink of civil war. Sarkozy, heading a large
delegation, visited Beirut for five hours to become the first Western leader to
visit Beirut since the election of President Michel Suleiman last month. A
source close to the French leader's office said two senior envoys would soon
visit Syria, as ties which Paris suspended last year during a protracted
political crisis in Beirut start to thaw between the two countries. Sarkozy said
the former army chief had "a great responsibility to drive this national
reconciliation forward." "It is essential that all Lebanese political forces
display their commitment to dialogue," he added at a luncheon at the
presidential palace with Suleiman, Prime Minister Fuad Siniora, parliament
speaker Nabih Berri and representatives of all major Lebanese political
factions. His office said France would provide training to the army as part of
its economic assistance. In an interview with Lebanese dailies, Sarkozy recalled
Paris had said it "would resume contacts with Syria only when positive, concrete
developments occurred in Lebanon with a view to getting out of the crisis." The
president expressed his commitment to an international tribunal to try those
eventually accused of Hariri's assassination. Sarkozy faced a rally by dozens of
Lebanese on the main road from Beirut airport for the release of George Ibrahim
Abdullah, a Lebanese jailed for life in France.
One brown casket
Why did Nasrallah unexpectedly decide to return body parts of IDF soldiers?
Ariela Ringel-Hoffman
Published: 06.03.08, 11:16 / Israel Opinion
There was also one well-sealed brown casket there, and a Red Cross
representative who was running around from one side to the other and ended up
facing the cameras with an embarrassed smile. We didn’t know about the casket,
she explained, and in any case we didn’t expect it, and now everyone is waiting
for the bomb squad to take a look – the same thing the bomb squad does every
time we get such casket.
They were also waiting for the IDF Northern Command rabbi, whose face could be
seen through the car window a short time later, not really comprehending what’s
going on and why he was called up all of a sudden. That was the final act of
this delusional show. Another small trick by Nasrallah, another loose end of
that war that will soon mark its two-year anniversary, and ended in a way that
did not allow the victors collect all the body parts of their dead soldiers. The
same body parts that Nasrallah presented several months ago, seeking a suitable
offer from Israel.
This is a story that has no end and converges into several surrealistic images
from the border crossing on the Lebanon border for the sake of television
networks worldwide. Why did Nasrallah do it? What was going through his head, we
wish to know. Is it possible that in the framework of the mediation efforts, one
small detail was forgotten or disappeared on the way from side A to side B?
That’s not impossible, according to professionals well familiar with such
processes. Things like that happened before, they say.
Maybe it’s a signal?
Could it also be a last-moment Hizbullah initiative meant to portray the
expulsion of convicted spy Nissim Nasser to Lebanon as part of some kind of
deal? A Hizbullah effort to earn a little glory: There, in exchange for a few
body parts we got back this brave spy. That’s also possible.
But perhaps something has changed within Nasrallah, a small change within that
body parts trader whose offer was rejected here with disgust? It’s hard to know.
Based on past experience, says an intelligence Advertisement
officer, it’s hard to believe. Very hard even.
So perhaps it’s a signal, like the optimists wish to believe, a sign of the
seriousness of his intentions with respect to the large deal being formulated?
And meanwhile, the brown casket was opened, examined, and taken to the Forensic
Institute in Abu Kabir, for DNA testing - and for some families of the dead,
this was again just the beginning.