LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِAugust
31/2010
Bible Of
the Day
John 8:32/And you
will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.
Today's Inspiring Thought: Truth Will Set You Free
Spiritual freedom is found in knowing the
truth, and truth is essentially a person—Jesus Christ. As we get to know Jesus,
we begin to know truth, and he sets us free ... from slavery to sin, from
deception, from legalism, from dead religion and ritual, from guilt, from works,
from the lies of the enemy, and ultimately, from the power of death and hell! (about.com)
Free Opinions, Releases,
letters, Interviews & Special Reports
The price of brotherly love/Now
Lebanon/August 30/10
Beirut and weapons/By: Hazem
Saghiyeh/August 30/10
Hezbollah's Deputy Secretary
General Sheikh Naim Qassem Last Statement/August 30/10
Latest News
Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for August 30/10
Assad Calls for Calm,
Hariri Says Visit of Syrian and Saudi Leaders Stress Keenness to Support
Lebanese Unity/Naharnet
Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir receives warm welcome on visit to
Bqarqasha/Daily Star
Nasrallah, Qaraqira Vow to Help Army Probe and Agree to Compensate Victims/Naharnet
Despite Israeli protests, Russia won't halt arms sale to
Syria/Haaretz
Report: Israel Plans to Strike in
Syria/Arutz Sheva
Ahmadinejad: Iran,
Lebanon can stand up to 'enemies of humanity'/Haaretz
Syrian president urges
Lebanon
to support Hizbullah/Jerusalem Post
Lebanon arrests 10 over deadly clash/AFP
Distinguish between STL indictment
and its work in general, Jumblatt advises/Now Lebanon
Syria army, Hizbullah reach "field understandings" over next war with
Israel/Al-Bawaba
Baroud: Ministerial Committee
Should Clarify Thin Line between Resistance, Uncontrolled Arms/Naharnet
Houri: Making Beirut an Arms-Free City Cannot Take Place without Hizbullah's
Approval/Naharnet
Hizbullah, Syria to cooperate on
conflicts with Israel/Jerusalem Post
Houri:
Making Beirut an Arms-Free City Cannot Take Place without Hizbullah's Approval/Naharnet
Fadlallah: The Government is the One Firing at National Unity and Civil Peace/Naharnet
Israel Announces Leviathan
Gas Field in Mediterranean Contains 3 Billion Barrels of Oil/Naharnet
2 Killed, 2 Injured in
Traffic Accident on Barbara-Monsef Highway/Naharnet
Hizbullah: Hariri Didn't Deal with Borj Abi Haidar Incidents as a Statesman/Naharnet
Qahwaji Says Army Doused Strife Fire in Borj Abi Haidar, 10 Arrested So Far/Naharnet
Hariri: Law is Above
Everyone, Only State is Responsible of Managing Public Affairs/Naharnet
Suleiman, Jumblat Discuss
Latest Developments in Family Meeting in Mukhtara/Naharnet
Geagea: Marada Fired 250 Rounds into the Air as Convoy Passed by Bsharri/Naharnet
Berri Received Reports of Mobilization of Several Non-Ahbash Groups in Beirut/Naharnet
Israel Plans to Strike in Syria
by Elad Benari/Arutz Sheva
The Alrai daily newspaper in Kuwait reported on Saturday that Israel is planning
to attack Hizbullah weapons storage and production facilities in Syria.
According to unnamed Western sources who were quoted in the report, the IDF has
strengthened its troop presence in the Golan Heights and Galilee panhandle.
European sources told the paper that Israel had sent unmanned aerial vehicles
over Syria and Lebanon, which they see as a sign that a military operation in
the area is in the works. In September of 2007, Israel attacked and destroyed a
nuclear reactor in Syria. The site of the bombing was an installation meant to
produce plutonium, and was partially funded by North Korea. The CIA had said
that Israel bombed the reactor before it attained its planned capacity to
manufacture plutonium for nuclear weapons. Syria did not respond to the 2007
Israeli attack. However, Alrai also cited sources who said that this time Syria
would respond forcefully and quickly should it be attacked by Israel. The paper
reported that the Syrian Army has deployed anti-aircraft missiles along the
Israeli border and in other key strategic areas in the country, and is ready to
respond to an attack. Meanwhile, the Lebanese army claimed on Friday that Israel
has begun to use hot air balloons above Lebanon’s skies. The balloons, said the
Lebanese army, are equipped with camera and transmission capabilities. Arab
media reported that these hot air balloons had been spotted on Thursday over
Baalbek, the villages of Nahla and Younin and the east Lebanon mountain ridge.
The Lebanese army said in a statement that Israel’s use of these balloons is “a
new violation of Lebanese sovereignty.” The reports regarding Syria and Lebanon
come during a relatively tense time. On August 3, Lebanese soldiers opened fire
on IDF soldiers while they were carrying out routine maintenance near the
Israeli border with Lebanon. Lt.-Col. (res.) Dov Harari was killed during the
exchange of fire.The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), who
conducted an investigation into the incident, said that the attack by the
Lebanese soldiers was unprovoked by the IDF. UNIFIL said that although Lebanon
has claimed that the Israeli soldiers had crossed the border into Lebanese
territory, evidence found that the IDF troops had remained on the Israeli side
of the international “blue line” border set by the United Nations.
Syria army, Hizbullah reach
"field understandings" over next war with Israel
30.08.19/Al-Bawaba/Kuwait's al Rai newspaper reported on Monday that Hizbullah
concluded "field understandings" with the Syrian army, during which both sides
will cooperate at the military level, including "combat cooperation" in the
event of an outbreak of a war with Israel. The understandings include
intelligence cooperation. Both sides agreed to exchange data on the "bank of
Israeli targets" and dividing responsibility to bomb these targets between
Hizbullah and Syria. The two sides agreed to establish a joint "operation room"
which will be occupied by Hizbullah and Syria officers. .This room is intended
to fill all the intelligence gaps that can emerge in the battlefield, the report
said. The newspaper added that via this cooperation the Syrian army makes
available all the intelligence its units gather regarding the Israeli air force
and its flights. The idea is that Hizbullah will be bombing of the Israeli
airports before the flights. According to the report, the most important thing
in this cooperation it is to damage the Israeli Air Force and reduce its
capabilities.
Sfeir receives warm welcome on
visit to Bqarqasha
By Antoine Amrieh /Daily Star correspondent
Monday, August 30, 2010 /BSHARRI: The Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir celebrated mass in the
village of Bqarqasha on Sunday, to mark the occasion of 150th jubilee of the
Foundation of the Immaculate Conception. The mass was attended by Bsharri MP
Strida Geagea and the head of the Union of Bsharri municipalities, Elie Makhlouf.
Sfeir was welcomed in Bqarqasha by a large gathering of the village’s residents,
who held banners praising the patriarch and showered him with rice. The
patriarch took part in a ceremony organized by the town’s mayor, Salim Abi
Tamer, who handed Sfeir the key to the town. Separately, the nearby parish of
Hasroun will be home to the relics of Saints Mansour de Paul and Louis De
Marillac for a one-week period as part of the religious, cultural and folkloric
activities hosted by the town during its annual September summer festival.
Residents of Hasroun gathered at the village’s entrance on Saturday evening to
welcome the relics, as believers chanted prayers and rang the bells of St.
Anna’s church. The relics were escorted in a convoy to St. Anna’s church hall
where they were laid on the altar for believers to receive blessings. Prayers
were followed by mass celebrated by Father Tony Jbara, who urged the town’s
residents to “benefit from the relics’ presence to strengthen their belief and
follow the path of saints to face life’s challenges.” The mass was later
followed by a traditional rural dinner. The one-month festival will also feature
cultural conferences and seminars to raise awareness on the importance of
preserving the environment as well as educational programs on health care and
agricultural practices.
Brotherly dispute ends in gunfire in Bekaa town
By The Daily Star /Monday, August 30, 2010 /BEIRUT: A dispute between brothers
turned to gunfire in the Bekaa town of Majdal Anjar, the state-run National News
Agency reported on Sunday. Ramez Hasan, 32, intervened to settle a quarrel
between his brothers Bahjat, 45 and Louay, 34, when the latter opened fire at
him, hitting his car. Louay fled the scene and is being sought by police. – The
Daily Star
Assad
Calls for Calm, Hariri Says Visit of Syrian and Saudi Leaders Stress Keenness to
Support Lebanese Unity
Naharnet/Prime Minister Saad Hariri said during talks with Syrian President
Bashar Assad that the historic visit of the Syrian leader and the Saudi King to
Lebanon last month stressed keenness of Damascus and Riyadh to support the
country's national unity, Syria's state-run news agency, SANA reported. Assad
discussed with Hariri in Damascus on Sunday night Syrian-Lebanese ties and
prospects for "consolidating coordination between the two countries in all
fields," SANA said. The two leaders expressed keenness to follow up on
agreements reached between Lebanon and Syria on bilateral cooperation and
stressed on willingness to continue coordination, according to the agency. The
Syrian president also "called for calm and dialogue to solve pending problems"
in Lebanon and stressed "the importance of consolidating national unity and
supporting the resistance" against foreign threats. Assad then invited Hariri
for a Suhoor banquet. The prime minister was accompanied by his office manager
Ahmed Hariri. Beirut, 30 Aug 10, 08:40
Baroud: Ministerial Committee Should Clarify Thin Line between Resistance,
Uncontrolled Arms
Naharnet/Interior Minister Ziad Baroud stressed that efforts to make Beirut
weapons free do not target Hizbullah and said the ministerial committee tasked
with recommending measures against arms should clarify the thin line between the
resistance and uncontrolled weapons. In remarks to As Safir newspaper on Monday,
Baroud said: "We are not asked to discuss the disarming of the resistance not
even in Beirut." Baroud was referring to the first meeting of the committee that
will be held at the Grand Serail on Monday under Premier Saad Hariri upon his
return from Damascus. The meeting "should take certain measures, discuss the
organization of licenses to carry arms and suppress armed gangs," the minister
said.
"We could agree with the resistance on a formula about the particularity of its
weapons in Beirut," he added. Beirut, 30 Aug 10, 08:10
Nasrallah, Qaraqira Vow to Help Army Probe and Agree to Compensate Victims
Naharnet/Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and al-Ahbash leader Sheikh
Hussam Qaraqira stressed they would make efforts to help the investigation
carried out by the Lebanese army into the Borj Abi Haidar clashes. Hizbullah's
media office said in a statement that the two leaders also stressed during a
meeting the importance of the army's role in safeguarding security. They
rejected verbal attacks against it. The statement said that Nasrallah and
Qaraqira confirmed the clashes last week between Hizbullah and al-Ahbash gunmen
in Borj Abi Haidar "had no political background and were not sectarian."The two
sides agreed to take all measures necessary to prevent the recurrence of similar
deadly incidents and decided to form a joint committee to compensate for those
who sustained damages during the clashes. Beirut, 30 Aug 10, 09:12
Fadlallah: The Government is the One Firing at National
Unity and Civil Peace
Naharnet/Loyalty to the Resistance bloc MP Hasan Fadlallah criticized the
government on Monday saying that it failed in its first test of tackling unrest
in the streets of Beirut.
He said: "They had an opportunity to be up to the task they are charged with as
they represent a national unity government." The MP explained that a national
unity government is expected to bolster cooperation between the political powers
that comprise it. "What happened however was a firing from within the government
at national unity, civil peace, and the calm that was instilled after the
tripartite meeting in Beirut," stated Fadlallah. The Borj Abi Haidar clash was
an individual incident, but there are some political powers aiming to exploit it
politically, he added. Beirut, 30 Aug 10, 13:36
Houri: Making Beirut an Arms-Free City Cannot Take Place
without Hizbullah's Approval
Naharnet/Mustaqbal bloc MP Ammar Houri renewed on Monday his call for making
Beirut an arms-free city, stressing that the state's only armed presence should
be in the army and security forces. Removing the weapons will not take place
without Hizbullah's approval, "but the time has come for the party to realize
that what we are saying is in its interest and everybody else's," he said. He
noted that the party suffered several losses in the Borj Abi Haidar clash and
the repetition of such unrest will lead to more losses for all the Lebanese,
especially Hizbullah. Beirut, 30 Aug 10, 13:52
Israel Announces Leviathan Gas Field in Mediterranean Contains 3 Billion Barrels
of Oil
Naharnet/Israel announced on Sunday that the Leviathan gas field along the
Lebanese and Israeli coasts contains nearly three billion barrels of oil.
American and Israeli companies contracted with drilling in the field also
confirmed the existence of three billion barrels of oil beneath the gas field.
They added however that the chances of extracting the oil may reach 17 percent,
noting that they will begin drilling in October. Beirut, 30 Aug 10, 14:22
2 Killed, 2 Injured in Traffic Accident on Barbara-Monsef Highway
Naharnet/Two people were killed and two soldiers were wounded when a military
vehicle and a Mercedes collided on the Barbara-Monsef highway on Monday. Voice
of Lebanon radio station identified the dead as Joseph Toufiq Younen, 70, and
72-year-old Riyad Issa. The crash caused bumper-to-bumper traffic on the highway
and security forces intervened to solve the problem. In an other incident, three
vehicles collided on the Saloumi-Jdeideh highway, also causing traffic. No
injuries or deaths were reported. Beirut, 30 Aug 10, 12:59
Hizbullah: Hariri Didn't Deal with Borj Abi Haidar
Incidents as a Statesman
Nahatnert/Hizbullah's decision to launch a counter attack against Prime Minister
Saad Hariri was not spontaneous and the party's officials will continue to
criticize the Mustaqbal movement leader in the next few days, As Safir daily
said Monday. On Sunday, Hizbullah MP Mohammad Raad slammed those who he said are
exploiting the Borj Abi Haidar incident to promote sectarian strife in Beirut.
"Some people are insisting on making statements with slogans and incitement that
only serve to fuel the fire of division and strife. These voices are not keen to
protect society, the people or the state, irrespective of (the call to) protect
society and build the state," Raad said about Hariri without naming him. "Tours
of the areas where the clashes took place in Borj Abi Haidar aim to deepen
division," Raad added, in reference to visits by Hariri and Grand Mufti Sheikh
Mohammad Qabbani to Borj Abi Haidar. As Safir quoted Hizbullah leadership
sources as saying that in the first days of the clashes, the party tried to
contain the negative stances against it. However, it realized that there was an
organized campaign against it through the speeches and statements of March 14
officials, the sources said. They told As Safir that Hariri did not deal with
the incidents as a statesman rather than as the Mustaqbal movement leader and
the chief of a certain faction. The speeches that Hariri made during Iftar
banquets in the past few days contradict with his own calls for calm, the
sources said. . Beirut, 30 Aug 10, 08:25
Qahwaji Says Army Doused Strife Fire in Borj Abi Haidar, 10 Arrested So Far
Naharnet/Army chief Gen. Jean Qahwaji rejected accusations of slackness by the
military in dealing with the Borj Abi Haidar clashes between Hizbullah and al-Ahbash
gunmen saying the army doused the fire of strife during the incidents. The army
"carried out all its responsibilities and intervened in the first minutes of the
clashes," Qahwaji told As Safir daily in remarks published Monday. "My
instructions to officers were clear that any gunman who does not comply should
be shot at," the army chief said. He told As Safir that the military was able to
prevent the flow of gunmen to Borj Abi Haidar and "contain the tension scene."
The army and not meetings among politicians ended the battles, Qahwaji stressed.
He urged all sides not to ignite the fire and then ask the army to douse it.
"The army through its measures and confrontation of the gunmen was able to douse
strife." Qahwaji also said the military was still pursuing those involved in the
clashes, adding that the number of people arrested has so far reached 10.
Beirut, 30 Aug 10, 08:25
Hariri: Law is Above Everyone, Only State is Responsible of
Managing Public Affairs
Naharnet/Ahead of his trip to Damascus and following verbal attacks by Hizbullah
against him, Prime Minister Saad Hariri stressed that the law is above everyone.
"The law is above everyone and only the state is responsible of managing the
public affairs," Hariri said during an iftar he hosted at the Grand Serail in
honor of political, diplomatic and religious personalities.
"National security should be top priority for the state and its military and
security institutions," he said. Hariri reiterated rejection of any form of
tampering with the security of the country and the people. "Lebanon will not be
a field of confrontation among its people," the premier said. Beirut, 30 Aug 10,
07:42
Geagea: Marada Fired 250 Rounds into the Air as Convoy Passed by Bsharri
Naharnet/MP Strida Geagea said Sunday that Marada Movement members fired about
250 shots into as a 30-car convoy waving Marada flags passed by Bsharri,
triggering panic among residents. A statement from Geagea's press office said
Defense MP Strida contacted Defense Minister Elias Murr who pledged to deal with
the issue. Beirut, 30 Aug 10, 09:02
Suleiman, Jumblat Discuss Latest Developments in Family
Meeting in Mukhtara
Naharnet/President Michel Suleiman paid a family visit to Druze leader Walid
Jumblat in Mukhtara on Sunday and both sides discussed latest developments.
First lady Wafaa, her son Dr. Charbel, her daughter Rima and her husband Wissam
Baroudi accompanied Suleiman. Jumblat's wife Noura, his son Taymour and his wife
Diana and his other son Aslan were present at the gathering. Beirut, 30 Aug 10,
12:04
Nasrallah, Qaraqira Vow to Help Army Probe and Agree to Compensate Victims
Naharnet/Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and al-Ahbash leader Sheikh
Hussam Qaraqira stressed they would make efforts to help the investigation
carried out by the Lebanese army into the Borj Abi Haidar clashes. Hizbullah's
media office said in a statement that the two leaders also stressed during a
meeting the importance of the army's role in safeguarding security. They
rejected verbal attacks against it. The statement said that Nasrallah and
Qaraqira confirmed the clashes last week between Hizbullah and al-Ahbash gunmen
in Borj Abi Haidar "had no political background and were not sectarian." The two
sides agreed to take all measures necessary to prevent the recurrence of similar
deadly incidents and decided to form a joint committee to compensate for those
who sustained damages during the clashes. Beirut, 30 Aug 10, 09:12
Netanyahu: Recognition of Jewish Homeland Essential for Peace Deal
Naharnet/Just ahead of renewed talks with the Palestinians, Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday restated what he said were essential
components of a peace agreement, chief among them recognition of Israel as the
Jewish homeland. Netanyahu is to meet Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas in
Washington on Thursday for the first direct negotiations since the Palestinians
broke off talks in December 2008, when Israel staged a bloody offensive into the
Gaza Strip. Speaking to reporters at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting,
Netanyahu said an agreement would have to be based "first of all on recognition
of Israel as the national state of the Jewish people, an end to the conflict and
an end to further demands on Israel."
The Palestinians object to endorsing Israel as essentially Jewish, as that would
imply they were dropping their claim that refugees who fled or were expelled
when Israel was created in 1948, and their descendants, should be able to
reclaim former homes now within Israel. Netanyahu said he would also be seeking
"real security arrangements on the ground" that would prevent a recurrence in
the West Bank of events that took place in the Gaza Strip after Israel pulled
out in 2005 and in south Lebanon after the Israeli withdrawal in 2000.
The Islamist Hamas seized control in Gaza and used the coastal strip as a
launching pad for attacks into Israel. Lebanon's Shiite Hezbollah fought a
bloody war with the Jewish state in 2006.
Netanyahu plans to personally lead the talks and hopes to meet the Palestinian
leader Abbas every two weeks, a senior Israeli official said on Friday.
Key to the discussions will be the future of a partial Israeli moratorium on
settlement construction in the occupied West Bank, which is due to end on
September 26.
Netanyahu faces strong pressure at home not to renew the freeze on new
construction permits, while Abbas has warned that "if Israel resumes settlement
activities, including in east Jerusalem, we cannot continue with negotiations."
The international community considers settlements in the West Bank, including
Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, to be illegal. They are home to about 500,000
Israelis. Jordan's King Abdullah II and Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak met
in Amman on Sunday for talks ahead of the Washington summit, the royal palace
and Barak's office said. Jordan and Egypt, both of which have peace treaties
with Israel and share borders with it, have been invited to attend the formal
launch of the Washington talks.
A statement from Barak's office quoted him as telling Abdullah that Jordan had a
central role to play in regional peace efforts.(AFP) Beirut, 29 Aug 10, 16:04
Berri Received Reports of Mobilization of Several Non-Ahbash Groups in Beirut
Naharnet/Speaker Nabih Berri on Sunday was reportedly upset over the bloody
street battles earlier this week between the two supposedly allies -- Hizbullah
and Al-Ahbash.
An-Nahar newspaper quoted Berri visitors as saying that the Speaker has received
information that several non-Ahbash organizations have mobilized and deployed
forces in more than one district of Beirut during Tuesday's gunbattles in Borj
Abi Haidar. They said these sides do "not" meet the same Ahbash doctrine. Berri
was quoted as saying that after less than an hour of the battles Sunnis sided
with Sunnis and Shiites sides with Shiites "a scene I will always reject and
fight." "This is what we have learned from Moussa Sadr's school," Berri
insisted. A Hizbullah official and his bodyguard were killed in Tuesday
evening's clashes which broke out in Borj Abi Haidar and quickly spread to
nearby Basta and Nweiri – only few blocks from downtown Beirut. An Ahbash
partisan was also killed in the battles with machine gun fire and
rocket-propelled grenades. Beirut, 29 Aug 10, 09:32
The price of brotherly love
August 30, 2010
Now Lebanon/The Lebanese army deployed during the Bourj Abi Haidar clashes
between members of Hezbollah and Al-Ahbash. The Party of God wants to keep its
weapons deployed across Lebanon. (AFP photo)
Loyalty to the Resistance bloc MP Ali Moqdad told OTV on Friday that Hezbollah’s
arms are “legitimate and necessary to prevent treason in Lebanon.” While we
should all applaud any initiative that seeks to curb activities that undermine
the state, no one told us that Hezbollah had extended its remit to include
fighting subversion. The last time we looked, Hezbollah’s weapons existed to
protect Lebanon from the ever-present Israeli threat, a 24/7 deterrent to thwart
the stated expansionist ambitions of the Zionist state. This it has done with a
degree of success, despite the misery and destruction Lebanon has suffered in
the process.
That said, it is no secret that since 2005 the party’s already dubious raison
d’être has worked itself loose from its moorings. Hezbollah’s ability to deploy
an unopposed armed presence, or the threat of such a deployment, has given it
carte blanche to impose its own agenda on a helpless nation. At the end of 2006,
we endured what would be an 18-month sit-in bang in the middle of Beirut (who
was going to seriously move on Hezbollah?). Then, in May 2008, it tried to bring
down the government of Fouad Siniora and took its fighters into the mountains.
Most recently, we witnessed its role in last Tuesday’s deadly nighttime skirmish
in the Beirut district of Bourj Abi Haidar with members of the pro-Syrian Al-Ahbash.
The incident was in all probability the first shots fired in the power struggle
between Hezbollah and the Syrian military intelligence to determine who runs
Lebanon, but on the street level it was straightforward Shia-Sunni rivalry, a
situation that rests on a permanent and potentially explosive hair trigger.
But then again, Moqdad represents a Hezbollah on the offensive. When asked about
calls made by several political figures to make Beirut an arms-free city,
Moqdad’s response was as worrying as it was insulting to the notion of statehood
and self-determination: “Hezbollah’s arms are only directed at Israel,” he said,
adding, “but they must be maintained across the Lebanese territory.”
Surely we are entering into uncharted (let alone Lebanese) territory with such a
declaration. It is clearly not enough for Hezbollah’s secretary general, Hassan
Nasrallah, to suggest that Lebanon consider embarking upon a nuclear power
program, an unfeasible proposal that only served to plant the idea that Iran is
Lebanon’s natural ally in the minds of those who still believe, despite its
track record, that Hezbollah is a force for good. Now it appears the country
should accept the party as a paramilitary force similar to the Iranian
Revolutionary Guard. What is the use of Hezbollah’s weapons in Tripoli or
Chtoura or even in Bourj Abi Haidar? Will they be deployed along all Lebanon’s
borders, including the highly porous sections of the Syrian frontier? It is
highly unlikely.
The truth of the matter is that Hezbollah is seeking to reshuffle the deck. It
wants to alter perceptions and plant seeds of doubt in a nation where doubt
grows like weeds, and where paranoia is the default setting. Hezbollah has,
after all, had a busy summer trying to convince the Lebanese public that Lebanon
is awash with Israeli spies and has been for years (and this despite its
supposed unparalleled monitoring of Israeli intelligence activities) in a bid to
discredit the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, the court formed to find those
behind the killing of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and subsequent
assassinations. It then upped the ante by telling us all that it had evidence
that would convince us of Israel’s involvement in the Hariri assassination. It
had none, but did enough to permanently shift the popular debate.
As long as our leaders dismiss the Bourj Abi Haidar fighting as a mere dispute
with no political or sectarian implications (or, as Parliament Speaker Nabih
Berri recently called it, “a clash among brothers”) the problem of non-state
arms will mushroom as the street becomes more polarized than it already is.
Until a national defense policy is agreed upon (and we are not holding our
breath) Hezbollah’s martial ambitions must be restricted to defending Lebanon’s
southern border. It must also, along with all those present at the Doha
Conference, re-commit to the notion of a weapons-free capital. Finally, it must
recognize that, despite the illusions under which Moqdad appears to be laboring,
Hezbollah should not have a role in our internal security.
We can only afford so many brotherly clashes.
Distinguish between STL indictment and its work in general, Jumblatt advises
August 30, 2010 /Now Lebanon/In his weekly article to be published Tuesday in
Al-Anbaa newspaper, Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblatt said
that people should distinguish between the STL’s pending indictment, which may
aim to cause domestic strife, and its work in general, which all Lebanese agree
on.
Continual attacks on the STL increase tensions and “are not beneficial,” he
added. Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said in July that the
STL is an “Israeli project” aiming to incite domestic strife and will indict
some of his party’s members. Jumblatt also said that Tuesday’s fighting in the
Beirut neighborhood of Bourj Abi Haidar between Hezbollah and Al-Ahbash
supporters, in which three people died, was an individual incident. The matter
is finished now that the Lebanese army has turned over the perpetrators to the
judiciary, he added. The Lebanese army announced Monday that it had detained ten
people involved in the Bourj Abi Haidar violence. Such local incidents should
not be made a topic for the national dialogue, and are better addressed by
forming neighborhood committees, which would address social and livelihood
issues and provide communication channels that reduce tension, he also said.
Lebanon First bloc MP Nohad al-Mashnouq said Monday that Beirut’s security
should be made a topic for the national dialogue. -NOW Lebanon
Naim Qassem
August 30, 2010
On August 29, the Lebanese National News Agency carried the following report:
Hezbollah Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Qassem said during an Iftar
organized by the Islamic Action Front and Hezbollah, that the “incident which
occurred in Bourj Abi Haidar between party members and members of the
Association of Islamic Charitable Projects was an individual incident which was
not planned in advance neither by the party nor by the Association. There were
no underlying goals and the incident occurred and evolved in an unfortunate, sad
and painful way to the point of clashes between the two sides. We did not expect
things to reach this level and worked since the first moments of the individual
friction on handling it so that it does not expand and allow the infiltrators
and instigators of strife to affect the course of events.
“To all those who sought a gap through which they could affect the relationship
between the party and the association, I tell them that our relationship is one
of unity and may blindness afflict the eyes looking forward to our division. The
coming nights will prove that in a proper way and will corroborate the
one-trench status between these two sides. Based on that, we intervened to
handle the situation and exerted all possible efforts to secure calm, although
everyone knows that when the issue involves the youth it becomes more
complicated… But thanks to Allah, the dispute ended that same night, the two
leaderships met and a joint statement was issued. The file was thus closed
before it expanded and before seeing the emergence of non-objective analyses...
“We are not justifying what happened but are saying that everything must be
placed in the right context. The incident was not planned. It just happened and
was handled so that it does not leave any unhandled effects. At this point, the
army intervened and followed the incident with the help and support of the party
and the association. We accepted that because it is normal and because we
believe that the Lebanese army is responsible for security in all of Lebanon and
not only in Beirut… In this context, we would like to salute the army because it
acted wisely although some wanted it to become a party and to enter the arena of
the conflict. For our part, we want it to remain in this honorable position,
that of the Adaisseh resistance and the control of internal security. These
tasks are up to the Lebanese army and go in line with the army, people,
Resistance equation...
“Some tried to introduce the ghost of sectarian strife between the Sunnis and
the Shia and wanted to target the Resistance with its headline and specificity
although it stressed ‘except for the Resistance.’ This exception does not work
in these cases and this organized campaign against the Resistance aims at
further protecting the false witnesses and at distancing Israel from the
accusations by shifting the attention toward other issues far away from the
exposure of the truth and the relief of our arena from the catastrophes of
Israel, the agents of Israel and the false witnesses affiliated with Israel… The
party is the most concerned about civil peace, not only in Beirut but throughout
Lebanon. We in Hezbollah support the provision of security for all the people in
all of Lebanon and consequently support the provision of all the right
circumstances for the Lebanese to control the security situation and allow the
people to live in peace and stability...
“We want to reach the truth and this is now closely linked to two major issues:
the exposure of the false witnesses and those behind them and the accusation of
Israel based on the clues put forward by the secretary general [Sayyed Hassan
Nasrallah]... If we find out what the latter fabricators of false witnesses
wanted, we could expose the murderer or at least the reasons, the motives and
the sides which controlled these individuals on the international, regional and
local levels, thus harming the country and misleading the investigation.
“The clues presented by the secretary general are now in the hands of the
Lebanese judiciary. He did not say that Hezbollah had complete evidence
sufficient to close this file. Hezbollah said it had clues and that the relevant
judicial authorities should use these clues to dig deeper… This would require
the summoning of Israeli officials at a certain stage to testify or to draw up
steps that would help use the clues whether in a positive or a negative way. In
any case, we are waiting to see what this follow up will reach and the horizon
which will lead to the accusation of Israel so that the people know the truth.
“We offered that the army be armed through the donations of the Arab and Islamic
countries and suggested the formation of a ministerial committee or any other
committee as chosen by the Cabinet to communicate with the different states,
convey the army’s requirements and get aid from the arms stocked in these
countries’ warehouses, knowing that they do not need almost three quarters of
them. We wanted them to give us what the Lebanese army needs, but with the
additional dosage provided by the secretary general when he offered to speak to
the officials in the Islamic Republic to get arms for the Lebanese army based on
Lebanon’s request…, we saw the emergence of statements discussing the Iranian
contribution, its conditions, consequences, motives and justifications, to the
point where we were facing a branched out topic and forgot the Arab countries.
“I have doubts and I believe that the debate over the armament from Iran mainly
aims at shifting the attention away from the armament from the Arab countries. I
thus propose that the absolute priority now becomes getting arms from the Arab
states. So, let us form ministerial committees which would head to the Arab
countries and listen to the responses of 22 states, propose them to the Cabinet
and present them to the Lebanese army. Then let them see what is missing and
make a request from Iran or from the Arab countries if they wish to start with
them and get weapons without any conditions as they say, knowing that we do not
accept conditional weapons neither from the Arab or Islamic countries, nor from
America or Europe. We want arms for the Lebanese army without any restraints or
conditions. We want arms to allow the Lebanese army to confront Israel in
Adaisseh and elsewhere…”
Beirut and weapons
Hazem Saghiyeh, August 30, 2010
Now Lebanon/Disarmament, by and large, is a precondition to the preservation of
life, species and civilization, and this is all the more true in cities. Indeed,
a city is a diverse and pluralistic place where development and education play a
central role. Hence, it is the opposite of weapons, which do nothing but destroy
it.
Looking back to ancient and modern history, one realizes that violence is the
primary reason behind the destruction of cities and their transformation back to
villages or deserts. Suffice it to say that the intermingling that enriches
cities in principles transforms, when weapons are involved, into a source of
conflict. One side’s victory over another thus destroys the city and transforms
life in it into hell.
Beirut may be one of the key cities where this principle proves correct. Indeed,
the greatness of the Lebanese capital, which is characteristic of the Middle
East, lies precisely in that peaceful coexistence between universities,
hospitals, bars, hotels, banks, newspapers, publishers, places of worship and
entertainment facilities on the one hand and, on the other, minor confessional
and sectarian identities that are able to coexist and fight among one another
under a unifying national identity. This holds true on condition that these
identities do not take to settling their contradictions by having recourse to
violence. It is only in such an atmosphere that the state can control and
sponsor civil peace in order to preserve people’s lives and secure their
development and prosperity.
In this respect, we can assert that the times during which weapons ruled in
Beirut were, regardless of the pretexts invoked by those carrying them, times of
decadence during which the state was no more, law vanished and everyone was
everyone else’s enemy. Legitimate employment opportunities dwindled, living
standards plummeted and everywhere, primitive and obscurantist thoughts took
precedence over enlightened and progressive ones.
Those who lived in Beirut over the past few decades are acquainted with the
bitter meaning of weapons, the capacities of which are often displayed in
small-scale wars between “brothers” and those “living in the same trenches” and
fighting “for the same cause,” as is often said. Ultimately, so-called causes –
which could only be expressed through weapons – undermined the only cause worth
its name: that of building a city loved by its inhabitants, a city they take
pride in, one they want to be a model for the whole nation and for the region as
well.
It would be no exaggeration to say that those writing the history of Beirut over
those past few decades have been writing a history of the constant struggle that
goes on to this day between two trends: building the capital city based on a
minimum of controversial issues or causing it to sink under those controversial
issues that are settled only through weapons and destruction.
Unfortunately, it seems that we are walking down this path until further notice
…
**This article is a translation of the original, which appeared on the NOW
Arabic site on Monday August 30, 2010