LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِApril
24/2010
Bible Of the
Day
John 6/48-59: "I am the bread of life. 6:49 Your fathers ate the manna in the
wilderness, and they died. 6:50 This is the bread which comes down out of
heaven, that anyone may eat of it and not die. 6:51 I am the living bread which
came down out of heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever.
Yes, the bread which I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” 6:52
The Jews therefore contended with one another, saying, “How can this man give us
his flesh to eat?” 6:53 Jesus therefore said to them, “Most certainly I tell
you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you don’t
have life in yourselves. 6:54 He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has
eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 6:55 For my flesh is food
indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. 6:56 He who eats my flesh and drinks my
blood lives in me, and I in him. 6:57 As the living Father sent me, and I live
because of the Father; so he who feeds on me, he will also live because of me.
6:58 This is the bread which came down out of heaven—not as our fathers ate the
manna, and died. He who eats this bread will live forever.” 6:59 He said these
things in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum.
Free Opinions, Releases, letters, Interviews & Special Reports
The Scuds saga continues/Michael
Young/April
23/10
Missiles or Messages?/Ghassan Charbel/April
23/10
Private-sector efforts key to deliverance/Daily Star/April
23/10
Lebanon needs change two decades after its war/By
Fadia Kiwan/April 23/10
No to
Iran on the Human Rights Council!/By
Ali Akbar Mousavi/April 23/10
Not the real issue/Now
Lebanon/April 22, 10
Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for April 23/10
'Al-Hayat': Russia Supplied Syria With S-300 Missiles/MEMRI
(blog)
Ban
Names Committee Members Who Would Select STL Judges/Naharnet
Netanyahu Accuses Iran of Trying to
Ignite Israel-Syria War/Naharnet
U.S.
Doesn't Believe Scuds Moved to Lebanon/Naharnet
Abul
Geith in Beirut Saturday to Discuss Scud Uproar/Naharnet
Lebanon
Complains to U.N. about Israeli Monument Near Shebaa/Naharnet
Qassem:
Any Israeli War on Iran Will Set Entire Region on Fire/Naharnet
Israeli-Palestinian peace isn't the Mideast's magic
cure/Haaretz
No Sign Scuds Moved to Lebanon - US Officials/New
York Times
Saudis not to behead Lebanese psychic/The
Associated Press
Tribute to Armenian Genocide martyrs” exhibition
opened in Lebanon/Information-Analytic
Agency NEWS.am
Sleiman
meets Brazilian counterpart, Lebanese community/Daily
Star
Sfeir
heads to Vatican for Middle East Synod/Daily
Star
New
ministerial committee to tackle reforms in education sector/Daily
Star
Baroud
regrets reform delay, but insists on timely polls/Daily
Star
MP warns
TV channels still airing misleading ads/Daily
Star
Thousands to join Laique Pride march in name of secularism/Daily
Star
Jumblat
Attacks Geagea: He's Walking in Bashir Gemayel's Footsteps/Naharnet
Berri
on Sfeir's Call to End Sectarianism: We've Reached a Common Starting Point/Naharnet
Alliot-Marie Arrives in
Beirut: France Condemns Israeli Violations in Lebanon/Naharnet
Baabdat Reaches Consensus
on Alliance/Naharnet
Consensus Possible in Metn,
Election Battles Likely in Sin el-Fil, Fanar/Naharnet
Suleiman: Lebanon Still
Needs International Support to Implement 1701/Naharnet
Cabinet Forms Committee to
Prepare Projects to Develop Educational Sector/Naharnet
Hand Grenade Shakes Bab
al-Tebbaneh/Naharnet
Hashem: Israel files complaint
following recent demonstrations in the South/Now Lebanon
Torsarkissian objects to consensus
over municipal election lists/Now Lebanon
The Scuds saga continues
Michael Young, April 23, 2010
The saga of the Syrian Scuds sent to Hezbollah, or perhaps not sent, continues,
though for now mainly in the corridors of Washington.
The latest on the matter has come from Senator Dianne Feinstein, the chair of
the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. She pointed out, in a statement to
AFP on Wednesday, “I believe there is a likelihood that there are Scuds that
Hezbollah has in Lebanon. A high likelihood.” Feinstein added that “[t]he
rockets and missiles in Lebanon are substantially increased and better
technologically than they were, and this is a real point of danger for Israel.”
Meanwhile, Jeffrey Feltman, the assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern
affairs, told the House Foreign Affairs Committee, also on Wednesday, that the
Obama administration would have “really, really serious” concerns if Syria
transferred Scuds to Hezbollah. Feltman also brought the subject of the weapons
up in conversations with the Syrian foreign minister, Walid al-Mouallem, and
with Mohammad Chatah, a political advisor to Prime Minister Saad Hariri.
“If these reports turn out to be true,” Feltman said, “we’re going to have to
review the full range of tools that are available for us in order to make Syria
reverse what would be an incendiary, provocative action.”
Feltman’s call to Chatah had more than a little hint of warning in it. Hariri
declared recently in Italy that the Scud allegations against Syria and Hezbollah
were similar to the false claims that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction
before the US invasion of 2003. That did not go down well in Washington. Feltman
has indicated that Lebanon’s only real protection against Israel is UN Security
Council Resolution 1701, and the Americans must have interpreted the prime
minister’s remarks as covering for two of the parties undermining the
resolution.
The problem is that Washington is of several minds over what to do about Syria.
Feltman’s warning was sharp, and the State Department has taken a tougher
position on Syria than others in the US capital. Earlier this week, for
instance, Syria’s deputy chief of mission was called in to discuss the arms
transfers to Hezbollah. However, Feltman, who honed his distrust of Syrian ways
as ambassador to Lebanon after the assassination of Rafik Hariri, is also
convinced that the United States gains by sending an ambassador back to
Damascus.
The mood in Congress is mixed as well. There are those like John Kerry, the
chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who support engagement of
Syria. But there are others, in both the Senate and House, who want to take a
harder line with the Assad regime. Some advocate tightening sanctions and
delaying sending Robert Ford, the new US ambassador in Damascus, to his posting.
Not for the first time when the Middle East is involved, the debate has become
mainly an insular one. It’s about Washington and who can impose the Syria agenda
(and by extension other related agendas affecting Iran and Hezbollah). That’s
not to say that someone like Feltman doesn’t mean it when he says that the
consequences of Syrian actions may be dire; but ultimately the foreign policy
bureaucracy has less of a say on high-profile topics than those calculating in
strictly political terms, whether at the White House or on Capitol Hill.
For a variety of reasons, domestic dynamics seem to be gaining ground in the
American outlook on the Middle East. President Barack Obama is more vulnerable
than ever since taking office, principally for two reasons: domestically, he has
not fulfilled his promise of being a consensual president, and the discord over
the health care bill embodied this shortcoming. Obama may have made history, but
Democrats are bracing for the backlash next November. They also realize that
polling is showing increasing public displeasure with big government, a mainstay
of Obama’s political program.
In foreign affairs, the president has also come up short. His high hopes for
success in the Middle East have been dashed. Many Arabs welcome the tension in
US-Israeli relations, but the net effect is that Palestinian-Israeli
negotiations remain stalled. Engagement of Syria and Iran has failed, while the
administration is still unsure about how to deny Iran nuclear weapons. In
Afghanistan the US faces an uphill struggle, with its main ally, President Hamid
Karzai, regarded by many American officials as part of the problem. The
withdrawal from Iraq is going forward, but Iraq is no longer high in American
preoccupations, offering Obama diminishing marginal election returns.
Everyone is calculating in the shadow of these dynamics, and how they will
affect Obama’s power. But because there is no broad accord, and because the
president has not provided clear guidance on resolving Mideastern problems,
there is confusion in Washington. And where there is confusion there is policy
bedlam, with everyone trying to fill the vacuum. That explains why the Syrians
feel they can relax for now, and why the Iranians see no reason yet to fear an
American riposte.
Lebanon should be worried about American uncertainty. When there is doubt in
Washington, it usually means the Israelis have wide latitude to do what they see
fit here. With much of the Lebanese political class openly or objectively siding
with Hezbollah, rather than shaping an American approach to Lebanon that might
reinforce its sovereignty, we can guess the calamitous effect of that
abdication.
**Michael Young is opinion editor of the Daily Star newspaper in Beirut. His
book, The Ghosts of Martyrs Square: An Eyewitness Account of Lebanon’s Life
Struggle (Simon & Schuster), has just been published.
Ban Names Committee Members Who Would Select STL Judges
Naharnet/U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon has announced his intent to appoint a committee
tasked with selecting magistrates for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. Ban has
informed the Security Council of his intent to appoint Egyptian Judge Mohammed
Amin al-Mehdi and his Norwegian colleague Eric Moss to the Committee tasked with
selecting magistrates who will be in charge of the trial of the murderers of
former PM Rafik Hariri. Ban has also informed the Security Council that the
Committee will soon hold its first meeting.
Netanyahu Accuses Iran of Trying to Ignite Israel-Syria War
Naharnet/Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reiterated charges that
Syria and Iran were arming Hizbullah and accused arch-foe Tehran of trying to
ignite war between Israel and Syria. "In my estimate, there is Iranian
agitation, both direct and indirect, via Hizbullah," Netanyahu said in an
interview with Israel's Channel 2 TV. "With this agitation, Iran is trying to
convince Syria that an Israeli attack is imminent," he added. "This is a lie,"
he complained, adding that when a lie is repeated enough times "even good people
and good leaders repeat the mistake." "Israel wants peace. Israel does not want
war," Netanyahu claimed. Tensions have been high recently between Israel and
Syria with both sides trading threats. Last week Israel accused Syria of
smuggling powerful Scud missiles to Hizbullah, a charge Syria. Netanyahu also
called on the U.S. to impose sanctions to block Iran's nuclear program.
Lebanon Complains to U.N. about Israeli Monument Near Shebaa
Naharnet/Lebanon has sent a letter of complaint to the U.N. Security Council
after Israel unveiled a monument in occupied Lebanese territories, Beirut media
reported Friday.
They said the Lebanese foreign ministry sent the letter through its mission in
New York complaining the monument was in an area near al-Bakkar pond southwest
of the Lebanese town of Shebaa. Lebanon considered the Israeli step "a clear
violation of international law, international humanitarian law and (Security
Council) resolution 1701."In the letter, Foreign Minister Ali al-Shami urged the
U.N. to ask Israel to remove the monument and withdraw its troops beyond the
international border.
Clinton Defends Syria Outreach
Despite Row Over Scuds
Naharnet/U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has defended Washington's
policy of engagement with Damascus despite the alleged transfer of Scud missiles
to Hizbullah.
Speaking in the Estonian capital ahead of a NATO meeting on Thursday, Clinton
said: "We have expressed directly to the Syrian government … our concerns about
these stories that do suggest there has been some transfer of weapons technology
into Syria with the potential purpose of then later transferring it to Hizbullah."
Clinton argued that it was in the U.S. interest to have an ambassador in
Damascus. "We believe it is important to continue the process to return an
ambassador. This is not some kind of reward for the Syrians and the actions that
they take, which are deeply disturbing not only to the United States and not
just to Israel but to others in the region," Clinton told a joint news
conference with Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Paet. "It's a tool that we
believe can give us extra leverage, added insight, analysis, information with
respect to Syria's actions and intentions," she said. The Secretary of State
reiterated that Damascus should not interfere in Lebanon's internal affairs. "We
would like to see Syria refrain from interfering in and potentially
destabilizing the government of Lebanon," she said.
U.S. Doesn't Believe Scuds Moved to Lebanon
Naharnet/U.S. officials have said there were no signs that Scud missiles were
transferred to Hizbullah from Syria. They said they do not think that Scuds "of
any shape or size" have been moved to Lebanon, the officials said. The officials
said Damascus is not always known for making the "right political calculations."
But in this case, surely they realize that transferring this kind of weapons
system to Hizbullah … could lead to serious consequences."
Jumblat Attacks Geagea: He's Walking in Bashir Gemayel's Footsteps
Naharnet/Druze leader Walid Jumblat criticized one-time friend Samir Geagea,
blaming him for not learning from his past mistakes. "Geagea's statements remind
us of the years 1982 and 1983 when Palestinian weapons and what they used to
call 'International Left' were created as a pretext," Jumblat said. "Their
pretext today is Resistance arms," Jumblat complained. "I wish they understand
the significance of these weapons and the importance of establishing a defense
strategy where Resistance arms are part of it," Jumblat said in an interview
published Friday by the daily Al-Akhbar. "Today, they are attacking Resistance
weapons and tomorrow they will attack the Lebanese Army's Arab combat doctrine.
Then they will attack the Armistice Agreement in a bid to push Lebanon into
sealing a peace treaty with Israel," Jumblat added. "They want the army without
an Arab combat doctrine so as to become an army of mercenaries just like the
U.S. army," he protested. "All that this worries me." "This guy, Geagea, I don't
know what he wants. I cannot understand him. At the dialogue table, he said he
wants to send 4,000 trained Lebanese troops to confront Israel. True, we can
resist Israel, but this would result in lost lives. We will lose all 4,000
soldiers," Jumblat stated. Geagea, Jumblat argued, was "speaking the same
language today as (ex-President) Bashir Gemayel and the Lebanese Right which is
not only Christian."He said the LF leader "exposes himself day after day and
uses worrying words." "He (Geagea) does not want to learn from his past
experience. If I were him I would have remained silent.
Berri on Sfeir's Call to End Sectarianism:
We've Reached a Common Starting Point
Naharnet/Speaker Nabih Berri said on Friday that there should be no obstacles in
abolishing political sectarianism and sectarianism in Lebanon as a whole. His
statement came in response to Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir's recent
remarks on the subject. Berri added: "We have reached a common starting point."
The speaker also called for setting up the National Commission for the
Abolishment of Political Sectarianism according to what is stated in the
Constitution. He concluded that the necessary measures need to be taken to
eliminate political and non-political sectarianism. Earlier today, Berri
informed Prime Minister Saad Hariri of his consensus approval on Beirut
municipal elections "because it is the heart of the nation."
The daily An-Nahar on Friday said AMAL movement has kept its current member in
the Beirut municipality Fadi Shahrour.
Abul Geith in Beirut Saturday to Discuss Scud Uproar
Naharnet/Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Geith is due to arrive in Beirut
Saturday on a several hours' visit to discuss Arab support for Prime Minister
Saad Hariri's government as well as Israeli threats and the uproar about Scud
missiles. Official sources told the daily An-Nahar in remarks published Friday
that the hullaballoo over the alleged transfer of Scud missiles from Syria to
Hizbullah would be high priority on talks. Abul Geith is scheduled to meet with
Hariri, Speaker Nabih Berri and Foreign Minister Ali al-Shami. An-Nahar did not
rule out a meeting between the Egyptian FM and Hizbullah officials.
Alliot-Marie Arrives in Beirut: France
Condemns Israeli Violations in Lebanon
Naharnet/French Justice Minister Michele Alliot-Marie arrived Friday in Beirut
on a two-day visit during which she will meet with a number of officials. On the
eve of her visit, Alliot-Marie said that it is "imperative" that the Special
Tribunal for Lebanon "fulfills its mission." She stressed in an interview
published Friday by the daily An-Nahar that France condemns Israeli violations
in Lebanon. "France denounces all violations of Resolution 1701, including
Israeli overflights over Lebanese territory and the supply of arms to Hizbullah,"
Alliot-Marie said.
Suleiman: Lebanon Still Needs International Support to Implement 1701
Naharnet/Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has told his Lebanese
counterpart Michel Suleiman that Brazil "wants to contribute to building a new
Lebanon."
During talks with Suleiman in Brasilia on Thursday, Lula called for a "true
partnership between Lebanon and Brazil" and considered the Lebanese president's
visit a "step that can't be spared of."The Brazilian head of state unveiled that
he would visit the Middle East to play a mediatory role between the U.S. and
Iran "because dialogue is the only solution."
In his turn, Suleiman said: "Lebanon still needs the support of Brazil and the
international community to confront the dangers that are threatening it and to
return or liberate what's left of occupied territories." The Lebanese president
added that support is needed to compel Israel into implementing U.N. Security
Council resolution 1701 and stopping its daily violations of Lebanese
sovereignty. During the first day of its visit to Brazil, the Lebanese
delegation accompanying Suleiman signed several memorandums of understanding in
the social, sports and cultural fields. Sources accompanying the delegation told
An Nahar daily that discussions dealt with bilateral ties and regional and
international issues of common interest.
The two sides also discussed ways to consolidate cooperation between the two
countries, the sources said. The two parties stressed the importance of ties
that link Lebanon with Brazil and the role of Lebanese expatriates and
Brazilians of Lebanese origin in bringing the two countries closer. During an
honoring ceremony, Suleiman received the Gran Cruz Cruzeiro do Sul medal of
honor from Lula at Itamaraty palace in Brasilia.Suleiman, in his turn, handed
over to Brazil's president the Gilded Heraldry.
Not the real issue
April 22, 2010
Now Lebanon/
Scud missiles like the ones Syria allegedly supplied to Hezbollah. (AFP photo)
Do they have them or don’t they? No one seems to be entirely certain if Syria
has supplied Hezbollah with Scud missiles. Nonetheless, Washington is in a
lather because, while it cannot tolerate the flow of arms to Hezbollah, it is
reluctant to break off channels of dialogue it has built up with the Syrian
regime. Ambiguity and indecision – should the United States isolate a regime
that has shown it cannot entirely be trusted or play realpolitik and engage a
Damascus that might be able to deliver on Iraq and Iran? – on the matter has
exposed American weakness and also threatens to plunge Lebanon further into
instability.
Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri has questioned the intelligence that places
the Scuds on Lebanese soil, comparing the claims to those the US made as an
excuse to enter Iraq, but at the end of the day the Scuds are not the real
issue.
Five years after nearly 1 million Lebanese took to the streets to demand Syria
remove its military and intelligence apparatuses from Lebanese soil, the country
risks being dragged into a regional conflagration in which Damascus is once
again one of the main protagonists.
That Lebanon may have lost its way, due in some part to its inability to seize
the day back in 2005 and rid the country of all vestiges of Syria’s 29-ayear
presence here, is probably true, but the international community in general, and
the US in particular, must also recognize that they "dropped" Lebanon when she
was at her most vulnerable. Lebanon’s make up has ensured that it always feels
the impact of, rather than shapes, regional policy, but this also means that it
is more often than not the epicenter of any crisis, as is the case with the
Syrian missile crisis.
If the international community had helped Lebanon move forward on its border
demarcation with Syria and address the issue of the illegal and Syrian-sponsored
militant training camps, the chances are that this country, which at one point
had the world’s admiration for its democratic aspirations, would not be in such
a precarious situation, one that United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon
said recently had the potential to “lead to another conflict.”
This gravity of the “situation” has been further highlighted by Progressive
Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt and Tawhid boss Wiam Wahhab, both of whom
are selling the idea of the Resistance as an Arab entity. Jumblatt, who opposed
Hezbollah for nigh on four years, told the pan-Arab daily As-Sharq al-Awsat in
an interview published Thursday that he felt the Resistance should take its
place in the greater Arab struggle against Israel. Wahhab for his part, assured
a conference in the Syrian city of Tartus that the Resistance would retaliate if
Israel were to attack either Lebanon or Syria.
There are echoes of 1969 and the disastrous Cairo Accord that gave the PLO carte
blanche to launch attacks on Israel from Lebanon. Certainly, as Lebanese Forces
leader Samir Geagea told AFP on Tuesday, it is Hezbollah, rather than the
government, that currently decides Lebanon’s defense policy. In short, Lebanon
is in danger of losing control of its own affairs in a region that is up to its
neck in brinkmanship, with Washington warning Syria that “all options” are on
the table.
Maybe we should leave the last word to Dan Burton, a Republican congressman from
Indiana, who summed up the situation best. Burton the United States should not
“reward [Syria] when they’re kicking us in the teeth or spitting in our eye.”
“I’ve talked to the Syrian ambassador here, and he seems like a nice guy and
he’s got a lovely wife, and I’d like to see us have a positive relationship with
Syria,” Burton said. “But I don’t see how in the world we can take steps in that
direction if this kind of crap is going on.”
Well said.
Ziad Baroud
April 23, 2010
On April 22, the Lebanese National News Agency carried the following report:
Minister of Interior and Municipalities Ziad Baroud held a press conference at 3
p.m. this afternoon to announce the measures adopted by the Ministry for the
municipal elections which will start on May 2. Minister Baroud stated: “We were
in this hall less than ten months ago working on the parliamentary elections
which were immediately followed by municipal elections. The Interior Ministry is
operating with 30% of its capacity, since there is a lack of human elements [at
a rate of] 70% in all the directorates. As for the remaining 30%, they are
employees who are working hard and making sacrifices while enjoying few
resources.
"Despite all of that, they are operating. The Interior Ministry was forced to
respect the legal deadlines while it was trying to ensure political reforms over
the core of the electoral system. However, these reforms were limited to the
electoral stipulations in the municipal laws and did not affect the law in a
deep fashion for two main reasons: Firstly, because had we introduced an overall
amendment, we would not have completed the task within a few months. Moreover,
this issue is tightly linked to administrative decentralization. As for the
second reason, it is that there is nothing preventing us to work on the
amendment of the municipalities law and administrative decentralization starting
the second day of the elections because the new stipulations will be implemented
on the newly-elected even if they are ratified after the elections. The Interior
Ministry chose to conduct the elections under the current law so that it does
not break the law. At the same time, I would like to register my deep regret
toward the non-ratification of the reforms on time...
“The term of the municipal councils is six years and the elections will be held
gradually between May 2 and May 30. In the absence of any other law, the
Interior Ministry was obligated to implement the one in place... As for the
parliament, it is the side entitled to issue legislation and is its own master.
Therefore, no one can force the different parliamentary blocs to approve the
same things that were ratified by the Cabinet with its ministerial blocs if they
can be referred to as such. We defended the reforms within the Cabinet after
they were ratified and transferred to the parliament. In the end, these reforms
were not written off, but unfortunately, were also not applied to the May 2010
elections... As for proportionality, it is not a preference. It is recognized on
the international level as being the best and most just way to manage plurality.
There are three countries around the world which have not yet adopted
pre-printed ballots and Lebanon is one of them.
“As for the women’s quota, its adoption was inevitable, and the committee to
supervise the electoral campaign was a great accomplishment which we should not
waste and we should ensure its continuation. All of these things have become
part of our electoral dictionary and we are all responsible for their defense
and ratification whether in the municipal or the parliamentary elections...
“The setting of the date of the elections on May 2 in Mount Lebanon, May 9 in
Beirut and the Bekaa, May 23 in the South and Nabatiyeh and May 30 in the North
was due to the fact that the 2004 elections were held based on this formula and
that the end of the term of the municipal councils follows this order.
“Therefore, we adopted it without showing any preference to one region over the
other. The dates were not arbitrary and came in line with the short timetables
imposed on us by the law. This issue must be addressed later on when we start
debating the amendment of the law...
“3,311,000 voters will be casting their votes and there are 963 municipalities
throughout Lebanon, 57 of which were newly-created. The voters will be electing
around 2,753 mukhtars and 5,649 municipal council members. As for the head of
the municipality, he will be named by the elected members. On the other hand,
14,000 employees will participate in the organization of the voting process,
including 4,000 new employees who will be assuming their tasks for the first
time. The latter will undergo fast training sessions... The overall number of
municipalities in Mount Lebanon [as published, presumably just Lebanon] is 313
featuring 3,528 municipal seats over which 7,507 candidates will be competing.
As for the number of mukhtar posts in all the districts of Mount Lebanon, they
are of 735 posts over which 1,710 candidates will be competing.
“However, there are only 921 candidates running for 1,377 mukhtar council seats.
Thus, the number of candidates running in Mount Lebanon amounts to 10,138
candidates divided between 9,568 men and 570 women. This is unfortunate and
corroborates the necessity to adopt the quota since this figure is very low at
the level of the candidacy, let alone at the level of the voting which is yet to
be seen...
“The security situation in the country is not only related to the elections. It
is a daily task. However, during the electoral period, there is an additional
need for harsher and stricter security measures. The army and the security
forces have started the arrangements weeks ago in order to uphold the calm
during the elections…
“We put the final touches on the security plan which is a comprehensive one. We
also tackled the smallest details to ensure the safety of the electoral process
which will require a large number of security elements. In… Lebanon, we will
need between 15,000 and 20,000 elements for 530 posts. There will be 7,500
elements from the internal security forces on the doors of the voting centers
while all the area outside of the main door will be handled by the army...”
Missiles or Messages?
Ghassan Charbel
Drum beating does not necessarily imply going to war. Sometimes drums are beaten
in order to avoid a military conflict; as a chapter of diplomatic and political
pressures; and perhaps for crises that are external to the direct arena which is
at the center of all interests. We cannot separate the keenness to intensify the
“missile crisis” from two files – the first being the open crisis with Iran,
whose stance is a source of embarrassment to Russia and China; and the second
being that we are still living in the aftermath of the July 2006 War in Lebanon,
which introduced some change on the game rules in the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Israel was obliged to stop its destructive war in 2006 without being able to
deprive Hezbollah from its ability to shower its very heart with missiles. It
considered U.N. SC Resolution 1701 as some kind of sanction against Hezbollah,
as it is kept away from the border with Lebanon. It was probably thinking of the
coming round, and more specifically of missiles. Consequently, it hastily
developed anti-missile methods. However, it is widely believed that anti-missile
operations are costly and still lack precision. Since that day, Israel has
wondered about its ability to coexist with an arsenal at its border, one that is
controlled by a party that dreams of uprooting it – a dream that President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad makes no secret of.
During that war, Hezbollah registered a precedent that Arab armies which
confronted Israel failed to achieve. In parallel to this success, the Party of
God lost its ability to shift the front in South Lebanon. A great change was
brought about on the condition of the Resistance. Hezbollah became obliged to
use its arsenal if Israel retaliated for any operation realized at the border
area by attacking the heart of Lebanon. In other words, any shift at the front
carried henceforth the danger of launching war.
It is evident for Hezbollah to consider the 2006 war to be a battle in a
prolonged conflict, due to the fact that part of the Lebanese territory is still
occupied. The Party of God’s program goes beyond the Lebanese soil and
encompasses its uncompromising commitments towards the Palestinian cause and the
feeling of common path and fate with the Islamic Republic in Iran. In practice,
Hezbollah entered into an armament race in which resistance movements usually do
not take part. It had to start behaving as a quasi-state. The more Israel
develops weapons, the more Hezbollah strives to obtain what would confront them
or decrease their gravity. This implies seeking weapons that obstruct the
control of Israeli fighter planes on the Lebanese air space, and developing the
range and precision of the other missiles. This also implies threatening Tel
Aviv, Dimona, and other locations, whose mere capacity to be targeted was
considered by Israel as a reason to launch a war.
Shimon Perez accused Syria of providing Scud missiles to Hezbollah. These
allegations were accompanied by threats to return Syria to the “Stone Age”,
without any evidence being submitted. When U.S. administration entered into the
crisis, it summoned, advised, warned, and didn’t offer any evidence that would
justify the current “missile crisis”.
The current crisis prompts any observer to ask a variety of questions: Should
the allegations be considered a response to the tripartite summit that was held
in Damascus last February between Assad, Ahmadinejad, and Nasrallah? Does Israel
hence mean to obstruct the return of the U.S. ambassador to Damascus and divert
attention from its conflict with the Obama administration on the way to
seriously stir the peace issue? Do the Israeli declarations, which consider
Hezbollah to be a troop of the Syrian army, aim at holding Damascus responsible
for the continued ceasefire in South Lebanon and any violation of this ceasefire
that could occur? Does this also mean that the region will face an Israeli war
against both Syria and Lebanon if Hezbollah tries to retrieve its ability to
shift the front or take revenge for Imad Moghnieh? Or does the “missile crisis”
aim at offering pretexts for the scenario which considers that “cutting off
Iran’s arms is less costly than attacking it on its territory”?
Drum beating does not necessarily imply going to war. However, it is a very
dangerous game in the absence of a reasonable and acceptable U.S. role and in
light of the paralyzed Turkish role after Erdogan’s stardom led to the breakdown
of Ahmed Davutoglu’s plane.
*Published in the London-based AL_HAYAT on Apr. 22, 2010.
Sfeir heads to Vatican for Middle East Synod
By The /Daily Star
Friday, April 23, 2010
BEIRUT: Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir discussed local affairs
including the Oyoun Orghosh incident before heading to the Vatican on Thursday
to participate in preparations for the Middle East Synod.
A news conference was held by Sfeir at the Rafik Hariri International Airport in
Beirut before boarding the private plane that was offered by former Deputy
Premier, Issam Fares, on his way to the Vatican. He was asked about the current
local situation, including his thoughts on the recent Oyoun Orghosh security
incident.
Earlier this month, gunshots were fired into the air and rocket-propelled
grenades were launched in Oyoun Orghosh, the Bekaa, leading army commando forces
to raid several houses in the region and arrest four suspects. The army also
seized a number of illegal firearms and 1 ton of hashish.
The incident sparked a political controversy after fingers were pointed at the
Christian Lebanese Forces party. Commenting on the situation, Sfeir said
everyone should defend Lebanese territories.
Asked whether it was possible to defend Lebanon in Oyoun Orghosh, Sfeir said:
“Defending Lebanon includes defending all its territories – whether in Oyoun
Orghosh or in the south.”
Concerning the precarious situation in south Lebanon, Sfeir said Israeli threats
were constant and should be addressed through coordination between all Lebanese
forces. He also tackled the weaponry of the Hizbullah-led resistance, saying he
supported Lebanon and all its forces but that the Shiite group had to abide by
limits set by the government and its citizens.
Sfeir also discussed abolishing political sectarianism. “We hear talks about
abolishing political sectarianism, so let us erase sectarianism in one go,”
Sfeir said. “Why include politics and why differentiate? If everyone agrees to
this then we will not get in the way.”
In the Vatican, the patriarch is scheduled to participate in preparations for
the synod, which will be held from October 10 to 24. He will also meet with Pope
Benedict XVI to discuss the situation in Lebanon. When asked whether or not he
would address the issue of Imam Musa Sadr’s disappearance during his meeting
with the pope, Sfeir said the case has long been a matter of discussion. Sadr,
an Iranian-born Lebanese Shiite cleric, went missing in Libya 32 years ago.
Sfeir was asked why he was absent from the recent gathering held by the Syrian
Embassy to celebrate its national day. Sfeir said he received an invitation but
was unable to delegate someone to attend. He said he would “look into” visiting
Syria if he was asked to visit.
Sfeir added that he hoped the upcoming municipal elections would be held
peacefully, adding that conflicts within villages were more difficult to resolve
than conflicts in elections. – The Daily Star