Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for September 10/12
Canandian Prime Minister Stephen Harper says nothing Iran does in wake of embassy closing would surprise him
Iran's parliamentary speaker cancels trip after Canada cuts diplomatic relations
Iran expects more embassy closures
'New Yorker' reveals details of Syria reactor strike
Israeli Official: Clinton's comments may put Iran at ease
'Iran in talks with Egypt to unload oil stockpiles'
Israeli Defence Minister, Barak: War – only as a last resort
Lebanon army says prevented abduction of Syrian refugees
Hamas delegation fails to restore its credibility in Tehran
Ban urges lift of Gaza blockade to ease 'suffering'
Pope calls for dialogue, peace ahead of Lebanon visit
Report: Alleged Hizbullah Member Arrested in Mexico
Israeli attack on Iran may rely less on surprise, more on force
Geagea: Lebanon must be part of Arab Spring
Sleiman won’t change stance on terror plot, Hariri slams dissociation policy on Syria
Chances of UNIFIL deploying in north Lebanon remote
Lebanese Army to keep up raids in southern suburbs until five hostages freed
Patriarch Rai, Jumblatt pledge continued reconciliation
Lebanon: Agriculture plan draws fire from farmers
Mufti Qabbani: Turkey isn't a Kidnapper, It is Exerting Efforts to Release Lebanese Held in Syria
Progressive Socialist Party sweeps Druze council elections as rivals boycott
Lebanese Army Arrests Gang that Kidnaps Syrians as Meqdad's Brother Criticizes 'Terrifying Raid'
Israeli PM: Discussions underway with US on red lines for Iran
Romney: Obama hasn't stopped Iran's nuke course
Romney slams Obama over failure on Iran issue
McCain: Iran situation a 'train wreck'
Obama statement could bridge US-Israeli gap on Iran
Op-ed:Not the same Obama 
US' ambiguous attitude flusters Israel
McCain wants Bill Clinton for Mideast role
IAF strikes Gaza targets in retaliation to rockets
Egypt: Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya to dissolve alliance with Muslim Brotherhood

Israeli Defence Minister, Barak: War – only as a last resort
Neri Brenner/09.10.12/Ynetnews/Defense minister continues to pursue moderate tone on possible strike on Iran's nuclear facilities; says government must exhaust all other options before launching a military campaign Defense Minister Ehud Barak once again took a more moderate approach over the possibility of a military strike against Iran. Speaking at a ceremony to mark the upcoming New Year at the Tel Nof base Barak told the soldiers: "The political echelons see it as their responsibility to ensure that if wars can be postponed we will do so, we will make sure that if we go to war it is after all other options have been exhausted." Barak added: "We do not live in Western Europe or North America, this is a tough environment…and hostile forces surround us."
"The State of Israel in general and the air force in particular…need and must be prepared at all times; sharp, determined and accurate so that if we are forced to act, we will do so successfully. We, me included, as well as senior commanders and Israeli civilians put out trust in you knowing that if the need to act arises, you will act and obtain victory."
Barak's statements follow additional moderate statements which he has recently made vis-à-vis Iran. Last Thursday Barak commended the US preparedness in the Persian Gulf saying: "We cannot ignore the Americans' impressive readiness for dealing with the Iranian challenge," noting that the US is deploying forces in the Persian Gulf, a measure of "utmost importance."
IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz also attended the ceremony during which he said: "We will not hesitate to act and do the work we are required to do, be it Gaza…or any other field."

Iran's parliamentary speaker cancels trip after Canada cuts diplomatic relations
By Nasser Karimi, The Associated Press | The Canadian Press –Iran - Iran's parliamentary speaker cancelled on Saturday a visit to Canada to protest Ottawa's decision to cut diplomatic relations, and Tehran's foreign ministry called "unwise" a five-day deadline set by Canada for Iranian diplomats to leave the country.
Canada shut its embassy in Tehran on Friday accusing the Islamic Republic of being the most significant threat to world peace. The surprise action reinforces the Conservative government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's close ties with Tehran's arch foe Israel.
To protest the cutting of ties, Iran's parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani decided not to attend a meeting of legislators from different countries scheduled for late October, Fars news agency said.
Tehran's Foreign Ministry meanwhile said that Ottawa's five-day deadline for its diplomats to leave was "unwise." It said Canada cut relations in an "unprofessional, unconventional, and unjustifiable manner while resorting to misusing international law."The U.S. and its allies are at loggerheads with Iran over its nuclear program, which the West says is aimed at developing weapons technology. Iran denies the charge, saying its nuclear activities are aimed at peaceful purposes like power generation and cancer treatment.
Washington has not had diplomatic ties with Iran since the aftermath of that country's 1979 Islamic revolution. Canada's break with Iran removes another channel for the United States to get first-hand diplomatic assessments of Iranian affairs. Canada and Britain had been main conduits of information for the U.S., but Britain downgraded its diplomatic relations with Iran after a crowd attacked its embassy in Tehran in November.
Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird gave a long list of reasons for Ottawa's decision, including Tehran's support for Syria's embattled President Bashar Assad in that country's civil war.
Iran's Foreign Ministry statement countered that Canada violated the human rights of Canadian First Nations. Some Iranian analysts said that Tehran is unlikely to push its feud with Ottawa too far, as Canada is a major place of residence for Iranian expatriates. "Iran has a humanitarian concern in this case," said Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, a professor of politics in Tehran's Allameh University.
The government's move generated criticism in Canada Friday as well.
New Democrat Foreign Affairs critic Paul Dewer called the move bizarre and irresponsible. He said the decision has removed Canada as a potential player in soothing tensions in the Middle East.
Dewer said it might be good rhetoric but it is not good diplomacy.
Canadian-Iranian relations have been dicey since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The Canadian embassy was closed for eight years after Canadians spirited American diplomats out of Tehran in 1980 during the U.S. hostage crisis.
The two countries gradually resumed normal relations, but the thaw ended in 2003 after Zahra Kazemi, a freelance photographer with dual Canadian-Iranian citizenship, was killed in Iranian custody.
Canada described the killing state-sanctioned murder and recalled its ambassador.
_ With files from The Canadian Press

Canandian Prime Minister Stephen Harper says nothing Iran does in wake of embassy closing would surprise him
By Mike Blanchfield, The Canadian Press | The Canadian Press
VLADIVOSTOCK, Russia - With Iran branding his government a hostile stooge of Israel and Britain, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Sunday that nothing Iran does in response to Canada's severing of diplomatic ties would surprise him.
Harper also pledged that Canada will work through its allies to help three of its citizens still in Iranian prisons. Questions surrounding their fate have become a live issue following Canada's abrupt decision to close its Tehran embassy and expel Iranian diplomats from Canada.
An Iranian lawmaker said his government would have a firm response, while a foreign ministry spokesman called the Harper government hostile and racist, and accused it of doing the bidding of Israel and Britain, according to Iran's Mehr news agency.
Harper said Canadian diplomats were recalled because of Iran's "capacity for increasingly bad behaviour."
"So, nothing would surprise me. But that is all the more reason why it's essential that our Canadian personnel no longer be present," Harper told reporters on the final day of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation summit.
"Do I anticipate specific actions? No, not necessarily, but as I say, we should all know by now that this is a regime that does not stop at anything. So that's just the reality of the situation."
The Conservative government announced the Tehran pullout just hours after Harper arrived Friday in Russia's Pacific port city of Vladivostok for the APEC leaders' summit.
The West's continuing standoff with Iran was one of several global security issues to rear its head at the 21-nation meeting, along with the crisis in Syria, and regional tension in the South and East China Seas.
Harper came to APEC to advance his government's pro-Asia trade agenda. And he said the security issues didn't distract his fellow leaders from the economic focus of the summit.
But Harper still talked about global security in his meeting Sunday with Chinese President Hu Jintao. China's proposed take over of an Alberta oil and gas company wasn't mentioned in the 30-minute discussion because it is under review by his government, Harper said.
Canada's surprise embassy closure sent ripples across the globe — it topped the websites of two Iranian news agencies — as the West grapples with trying to curb Iran's nuclear ambitions.
Iran's Fars news agency said the country's parliamentary speaker, Ali Larijani, cancelled a planned visit to Canada to protest the embassy closure.
Tehran's foreign ministry spokesman accused the Harper government of "extremist" views and said it was "unwise" for Canada to have set a five-day deadline for Iranian diplomats to leave the country.
The Iranian foreign ministry also said the embassy closure was "unprofessional, unconventional, and unjustifiable."
The Foreign Affairs Department has warned Canadians against travelling to Iran, singling out dual Canadian-Iranians as especially vulnerable because Tehran does not recognize their new citizenship.
The heated rhetoric has raised questions about the fate of Canadians in Iranian prisons, including two on death row.
"We will continue both from Ottawa, through our partners and allies to continue to advocate on behalf of Canadians who have those kinds of difficult consular situations, legal situations in Iran," Harper said. Iranian-Canadian blogger Hossen Derakhsan, 35, was sentenced to 19 years in prison for his writings, which inspired other Iranian reform bloggers.Toronto's Ghassemi-Shall, 43, who emigrated to Canada after Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution, faces a death sentence after being charged with espionage when he returned to visit family four years ago.
His wife, Antonella Mega, said she had been seeking the embassy's help to clarify reports her husband's death sentence has been suspended, and is unsure how effective the government's promise to make appeals through its allies will be.
"I'm not sure how you instill a dialogue when you just cut off the dialogue," she said.
"Canada needs to be present. It can't do it by proxy entirely," Mega added.
Saeed Malekpour, a web programmer from Richmond Hill, Ont. is on death row after being charged with promoting pornographic websites. He says he was tortured into confessing to crimes.
They are awaiting their fate in Tehran's notorious Evin prison, where Zahra Kazemi, a freelance photographer with dual Canadian-Iranian citizenship, was tortured and killed in 2003. Canada later recalled its ambassador, calling Kazemi's killing a state-sanctioned murder.
Until Friday, the Kazemi incident marked a new low in Canadian-Iranian relations since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The Canadian embassy was closed for eight years after Canadians spirited America diplomats out of Tehran in 1980 during the U.S. hostage crisis.
NDP foreign Affairs critic Paul Dewar has called the latest embassy closure bizarre and irresponsible, saying it has removed Canada as a potential player in the Middle East.
But the Harper government should have pulled its diplomats out of Tehran long ago, said Fen Hampson, head of the global security program at the Waterloo, Ont.-based Centre for International Governance Innovation.
"Iran has consistently shunned and snubbed us and showed flagrant disregard for the basic rights of Canadians since the brutal murder of Zahra Kazemi," Hampson told The Canadian Press Sunday.
"Those who argue we need to maintain consular services ignore the fact our diplomats have been ineffective in defending the interests and rights of Iranian Canadians when they have gone home and run afoul of the regime."
Earlier Sunday, Harper held talks with Hu, and the two leaders presided over the signing of the Canada-China Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement, which was announced during Harper's visit to China in February.
The agreement is designed to protect Canadian investors doing business in China.
Meeting Hu was considered the centrepiece of the prime minister's trip to the APEC summit because of his government's focus on Asia, which includes boosting trade and investment with the booming continent's largest economy.
Harper wants to narrow Canada's trade deficit with China. Canada's annual exports to China are just shy of $17 billion, but its imports total $48 billion.
China invested a record $11 billion in Canada last year, but Canada's investments in China totalled only $4.6 billion.
"Mr. prime minister, we attach great importance to the China-Canada relationship," Hu told Harper, as the two leaders faced each other opposite a long table, flanked by officials.
"I look forward today to discussing with you a range of issues and finding ways to further strengthen our relationship," Harper replied.
Harper said he raised concerns with Hu about the imbalances of trade between the two countries, as well as concerns about China's human rights record.
But Harper said there was no discussion of Industry Canada's ongoing review of the China National Offshore Oil Co.'s $15.1-billion deal to buy Calgary-based Nexen Inc. (TSX:NXY.TO - News). China has already invested heavily in Canada's natural resources sector, but the Nexen bid has sparked concern because CNOOC is a state-owned entity.
The Hu meeting was one of four that Harper held over two days with fellow APEC leaders. He also held talks with the leaders of Japan and Peru on Sunday.
Harper met Saturday with his host, Russian President Vladimir Putin. They too pledged to deepen trade and investment links, but they had a spirited disagreement on the West's insistence that Syria's Bashar Assad should be forced to step down.
_With files from Will Campbell in Toronto


Report: 3 Alleged Hizbullah Members Arrested in Mexico
Naharnet /10 September 2012/An alleged Hizbullah member has been arrested in Mexico and handed over to U.S. authorities, Mexican media reported Sunday. Reforma newspaper identified the detained man as Rafik Mohammed Labboun Allaboun, a U.S. national, who was wanted by the U.S. government. Allaboun was arrested in the city of Merida late Saturday as part of an operation conducted by Mexican immigration agents and local police, the report said. Two other suspected Hizbullah members -- George Abdalah Elders and Justin Yasser Safa of Belize -- were arrested along with Allaboun, according to the paper. Since U.S. law enforcement authorities had put out an international alert on Allaboun, he was sent to Houston, Texas, on Sunday, the report said. The fate of the other two remains unclear. Agence France Presse.

Pope calls for dialogue, peace ahead of Lebanon visit
September 10, 2012/Daily Star
CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy: Pope Benedict XVI Sunday called for dialogue and reconciliation in the Middle East as he prepared to visit Lebanon, the neighbor of war-torn Syria.
“My apostolic trip to Lebanon, and by extension to the whole of the Middle East, is taking place under the sign of peace,” the pope said after delivering the Angelus blessing from his summer residence at Castel Gandolfo outside of Rome. “The commitment to dialogue and reconciliation must be the priority for all parties involved,” he said, calling for the international community to support such efforts. “Even if it seems difficult to find solutions to the different problems, we cannot resign ourselves to violence and the exacerbation of tensions,” the 85-year-old German pontiff said.
The pope is due to arrive in Lebanon Friday for a three-day visit, during which he will sign the Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation of the Special Assembly for the Middle East of the Synod of Bishops. Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi described the pope’s upcoming visit over the weekend as “an act of great courage and hope worldwide.”
He said the Arab Spring and the Syrian situation make the church’s engagement with the region’s Christians even “more urgent.”

Israeli PM: Discussions underway with US on red lines for Iran
By HERB KEINON 09/10/2012'/J.Post
German FM says there is still time for diplomacy over Iranian nuclear issue; Israeli officials: J’lem plays into regime’s hands by over-embracing Canadian move to cut ties with Tehran. Photo: Reuters
Israel is discussing with the US what kind of “red lines” need to be drawn to keep Iran from pursuing nuclear weapons, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said on Sunday.
Netanyahu, in a anadian Broadcasting Corporation interview, said this could be “a clear delineation of a line which Iran cannot cross in its pursuit of the development of nuclear weapons capability. If Iran saw that, there is a chance, I won’t say it’s guaranteed, but there’s a chance they might pause before they cross that line.”
Just before the interview was taped, diplomatic officials expressed reservations to The Jerusalem Post about Israeli leaders giving the Canadians a too crushing “bear hug” following this decision, saying this only strengthened Iran’s line that Ottawa was doing Israel’s bidding.
“It would be better to just quietly thank the Canadians, without the bear hug,” one official said, adding that the Canadian decision was not coordinated with Israel and caught Jerusalem by surprise.
Netanyahu, in his interview, said he never discussed the move with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. But maybe, he said, Harper “saw what I see: That last week 120 nations went to Tehran [for the Non-Aligned Movement conference] in the face of all this aggression, all this fanaticism, 120 nations were there and they stood silent.”
Netanyahu said Harper sent a message to the world that said, “We can’t stand for this as civilized nations. We have to build a wall, not of silence, but a wall of condemnation and resolve.
Canada just put a very big brick in that wall that is necessary for the peace of the world.”
The prime minister likened Canada’s move to “standing up to the arsonist and not being neutral between the arsonist and the firefighter. I certainly hope and encourage other countries to take heed.”
Netanyahu, at Sunday’s weekly cabinet meeting, said this step constituted the type of “red line” that the world needed to set down for the Islamic Republic. He said the move sent a “principled message to the world that it is forbidden for the dark regime in Iran to get nuclear weapons.”
He called on the entire international community, “or at least its responsible members,” to follow Canada’s “determined example and set moral and practical red lines in front of the Iranians, lines that will stop the Iranian race to obtain nuclear weapons.”
President Shimon Peres issued a similar statement on Saturday, saying he hoped other countries would emulate Canada’s move.
Diplomatic officials said on Sunday, however, that there was no Israeli diplomatic campaign to get countries to cut ties with Tehran, and third-country requests for other countries to sever diplomatic ties were not something that was generally accepted.
Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird announced the severing of ties on Friday, saying, “The Iranian regime is providing increasing military assistance to the Assad regime; it refuses to comply with UN resolutions pertaining to its nuclear program; it routinely threatens the existence of Israel and engages in racist anti-Semitic rhetoric and incitement to genocide; it is among the world’s worst violators of human rights; and it shelters and materially supports terrorist groups.”
The Iranians angrily denounced the move as an example of Canada “obeying British-Zionist dictated policies.”
The semi-official Fars news agency with ties to the government quoted Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehman-Parast as saying “The hostile attitude of the incumbent racist Canadian government, in fact, happens in compliance with the policies that are dictated by the Zionists and the British government.”
Fars also quoted Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani on Sunday as saying, “The cheap behavior of the Canadian government which was shown in an inexperienced manner indicates that they are in a state of confusion after seeing a gathering of a majority of the world states in Tehran [during the Non-Aligned Movement summit in late August].”
According to the report, Fars said the Canadians “were making desperate and fruitless attempts to change the positive political atmosphere created by the NAM summit in Tehran through reactionary and passive moves.”
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, during a visit to Israel, said before a meeting with Netanyahu on Sunday that a nuclear-armed Iran was unacceptable to the Federal Republic.
“Nuclear arms in the hands of the Iranian government is not an option and we will not accept this,” Westerwelle said.
Earlier in the day, before meeting with Defense Minister Ehud Barak, he said Germany shared Israel’s concerns and believed that a nuclear-armed Iran would pose a threat to the stability of the entire region. But, he added, there was still room for diplomacy.
“We will keep up sanctions and diplomatic pressure on Iran,” he said. “We urgently call on Iran to enter into substantial negotiations.”
Barak said before meeting Westerwelle, who coincidentally arrived just one day shy of the anniversary of the Israeli-German Reparations Agreement in 1952 that strongly divided Israel at the time, that the security cooperation between the two countries was “very good,” as could be seen by the recent signing of an agreement for Israel to buy a sixth German submarine.
“Our relationship with Germany is long, and based on belief in democracy, common values and memory,” Barak said. “We greatly appreciate this relationship.”
Westerwelle, following his meeting with Barak, held a press briefing with German reporters where he was asked about reports in the Egyptian media that Germany had agreed to sell two submarines to Egypt. The German press reported last week that Israel protested this move, amid increasing concern in Jerusalem about various arms sales to the Arab world.
Though Westerwelle told the reporters he did not want to go into specific details about the Egyptian deal, he said that “in all decisions, Israel’s security needs are being taken into account.”

Israeli attack on Iran may rely less on surprise, more on force
September 10, 2012 /By Dan Williams/Daily Star
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cancellation of a security Cabinet session on Iran following a media leak last week laid bare a conundrum long troubling Israeli strategists: Could they count on any element of surprise in a war on their arch-foe? Possibly not. Years of public speculation, much of it stoked by official statements in Israel and abroad, about the likelihood and timing of such a conflict have afforded the Iranians plenty of notice to fortify their threatened nuclear facilities and prepare retaliation.
Given the difficulties Israel’s jets would face in reaching and returning from distant Iran, losing the option of mounting sneak attacks may seem to have put paid to the very idea of an attack launched without its ally the U.S.
Yet experts are not rushing to rule that out. Some believe Israel is still capable of achieving a modicum of surprise, and that in any case it might hope a combination of stealth, blunt force and, perhaps, hitherto untested innovations can deliver victory.
Israel, whose technologically advanced military has a history of successful derring-do, might place less importance on catching Iran completely off-guard and instead strike openly and with combined forces, causing disarray among the defenders in hope of delivering enough damage to a select number of targets.
“The probability of achieving surprise is low, but I think the Israelis will count on their technical competence in defense suppression to allow them in,” said Walter Boyne, an ex-U.S. air force officer and a writer on aviation history.
He predicted the Israelis would mesh air raids with a swarm of strikes by ground and naval units, a view echoed by Lynette Nusbacher, senior lecturer in war studies at Britain’s Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. She suggested Israel could also incorporate cyber-attacks to blind Iran as an assault began.
“There is no question that Israel can achieve tactical surprise if required,” Nusbacher said, differentiating the short-term shock from Iran’s long readiness for an attack.
Israel and its Western allies believe Iran is covertly seeking means to build nuclear weapons, a claim Iran denies. U.S. President Barack Obama says he hopes sanctions and diplomacy will deflect Iranian policy. But Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders have made clear they might soon resort to force.
Nusbacher indicated that pinpoint intelligence and planning might also help Israel overcome Iran’s anticipation and counter-measures.
Israeli military planners chafe at their civilian compatriots’ freewheeling and jittery discourse about a possible confrontation, worried that the Iranians could glean key warnings.
If they do contemplate a solo surprise attack, they may also be concerned that the United States could also be tipped off about a strike early enough to insist its Israeli ally stand down.
There were no such problems in 1981, when a squadron of Israeli fighter-bombers took off from the then-occupied Sinai desert to destroy Iraq’s atomic reactor, nor in 2007, when Israel launched a similar sortie against Syria out of the blue.
By contrast, experts think Israel would need to dispatch many scores of jets and support aircraft against Iran, and possibly fire ballistic missiles, all difficult to hide from the public.
Though a media blackout would be allowed under Israeli emergency laws, such sudden and sweeping censorship would be so unprecedented as to telegraph what was meant to go unpublished – and in any event may prove impracticable in today’s wired world.
Nonetheless, some other measures could limit exposure, such as choice of timing. The war on Palestinians in the Gaza Strip was launched on Dec. 27, 2008, deep in the Western holiday season and on a Saturday morning, the Jewish sabbath, when Israel’s own media pare coverage to a minimum and newsrooms are barely staffed.
Israel is also trying to restrict the circle of those in the know. The number of those privy to the details of Iran planning in the military and government has been kept very small, a depth of secrecy akin to that surrounding Israel’s own nuclear program, which is assumed to include the region’s only atomic arms.
Netanyahu would be legally required to gain security Cabinet approval for an attack on Iran. But after a newspaper reported Wednesday that ministers on the panel had been presented with conflicting intelligence assessments about Iran, a leak that angered Netanyahu, at least one senior leader, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, called for the 14-member security Cabinet to be shrunk to ensure more discretion.
Israel may even go so far as to temporarily misdirect its own populace, away from talk of imminent attack.
Days before the Gaza blitz, Defense Minister Ehud Barak made an unannounced live appearance on a top-rated TV satire show, where he took a roasting with good humor and made sure to give every impression that starting a war could not be further from his mind.
In another deliberate feint intended to wrongfoot the gossips, Israeli generals summoned officers from garrisons around Gaza to a weekend retreat, with their families, at a countryside spa. All but the most senior of those invited commanders were then surprised to be woken up, that Saturday morning, and sent back to base for combat within hours.
A senior Israeli official told Reuters such ruses were a legitimate tactic for military planners dealing with a democratic society. “Such things are kosher,” he said, “when you have a free press and free speech.”
And while certainly not advocating the kind of extensive public discussion seen lately in Israel on the prospects for a conflict, the same official saw a counter-intuitive benefit in that such perpetual talk might erode Iran’s level of alertness. “The more you brace to defend yourself, the more tired you get – or you make the mistake of writing off the threat as a bluff,” he said.

Army to keep up raids in southern suburbs until five hostages freed
September 10, 2012/By Hussein Dakroub/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: The Lebanese Army will continue its house raids in Beirut’s southern suburbs until a Turkish hostage and four Syrians held by the Meqdad clan have been freed, a senior military official said Sunday. Meanwhile, the Army arrested a gang accused of kidnapping Syrian opposition activists in north Lebanon to hand them over to the regime. “The Army operation in the southern suburbs will go on until the kidnapped people have been released. This will operation will not stop,” the official told The Daily Star. Speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case, the official said that in addition to the predominantly Shiite southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold, troops were also raiding houses and hideouts in other areas in search of the kidnap victims and their captors.
He added that a number of people had been arrested during the Army dragnet on suspicions of their involvement in the kidnappings targeting Syrians and a Turkish national last month.
Al-Jadeed TV also quoted a military source as saying that the Army would take “unprecedented strict measures” aimed at freeing the hostages. “The Army is carrying out raids in the southern suburbs and no areas are off limits to it,” the source said.
On orders from President Michel Sleiman and Army commander Gen. Jean Kahwagi, the military launched a massive manhunt in the southern suburbs Friday night, namely in the Rways neighborhood where the Meqdad clan lives, in an attempt to apprehend a number of people blamed for the abductions. The Meqdad clan’s “military wing” has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of Turkish businessman Aydin Tekin and more than 20 Syrians in retaliation for the kidnapping by Syrian rebels of a family member, Hassan Meqdad. The clan has since released all but four Syrians and Tekin to use them as a bargaining chip for Meqdad’s release.
Sleiman praised the Army dragnet in the southern suburbs in search of the kidnappers of the Syrians and the Turkish businessman. He said he had ordered the Army operation publicly and in his meetings with the Army commander and Defense Minister Fayez Ghosn. “I affirm that the Army will continue to pursue them [kidnappers]. I hope the judiciary will accompany the Army with its work to ensure punishment for the kidnappers and secure the freedom of the kidnapped,” Sleiman said. Maher al-Meqdad, the spokesman of the clan, said his tribe had lost contacts with the party holding Tekin and the four Syrians following the Army operation, but maintained that the hostages were still held by the clan’s “military wing.”
“The clan has lost contacts with the party holding the guests [hostages]. Some 50 young men from the Meqdad family are providing protection for the five men,” he told The Daily Star. He said there were rumors in the southern suburbs that the captors had whisked the hostages to the Bekaa region.
The spokesman added that that the Army had raided the houses of Meqdad family and their friends in search of Tekin. He said that even his house had been raided Friday night while he was sleeping and that his wife had opened the door for masked soldiers searching for the Turkish businessman.Meqdad linked the Army raids in the southern suburbs to what he called “a Turkish-Lebanese deal” sponsored by Sleiman. “The deal calls for the release of the 10 remaining Lebanese hostages in Syria in exchange for Tekin’s freedom,” he said, adding that the deal excluded their kinsman, Hassan.
But the clan’s spokesman was firm that his cousin should be part of the deal. “The Meqdad family’s position is Tekin for Hassan. If Hassan dies, Tekin will face the same fate,” Meqdad said.
He added that the “heavy Army deployment” in the southern suburbs, including the positioning of snipers on rooftops of buildings, had created tension and panic among residents and brought businesses to a standstill in the teeming area. The spokesman said his clan had no problem with the Lebanese Army. “We don’t want to enter into a confrontation with the Army. We will not fire a single bullet at the Army,” he said. “Our problem is with the Free Syrian Army and Turkey, which is providing the FSA with a safe haven.” He said troops even raided the house of the abducted Meqdad.
Speaking to Al-Jadeed TV Sunday night, Hassan Meqdad’s wife, Iman Harfoushe, said she and her 7-year-old daughter, Hiba, had been scared to death when masked soldiers raided her house. “They put the rifle at my daughter’s head while she was sleeping. They searched the house, even the bathroom. It was a horrible raid,” she said.
The Army has said the raids in the Rways and other neighborhoods in the southern suburbs were designed to execute arrest warrants against individuals linked to kidnappings and recent incidents, including the blocking of the Beirut airport road by burning tires.
The Army said it had arrested a number of wanted people, including Hasan al-Meqdad, brother of Maher, the clan’s spokesman.Soldiers also seized Saturday a jeepload of light arms, ammunition, explosives and military equipment in Rways, according to an Army statement. Meanwhile, Lebanese Army intelligence agents arrested Sunday a gang accused of kidnapping Syrian activists in northern Lebanon, the state-run National News Agency reported. “Members of a network operating between Tripoli and Akkar [bordering Syria] and accused of planning and carrying out the kidnapping of Syrian opposition figures and delivering them to the regime” were arrested, a security official told AFP.
The official, who declined to be identified, said “at least one Syrian kidnapped by the network has been released in the Akkar region,” and later added that three Lebanese suspects had been detained.
Meanwhile, Grand Mufti Mohammad Rashid Qabbani said that Turkey was not responsible for the abduction of Lebanese in Syria, and slammed the retaliatory kidnapping of Turkish citizens in Lebanon.
“Turkey is not a country that kidnaps and it has nothing to do with the abduction of the 10 Lebanese in Syria,” Qabbani said after his meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Ankara. He added that Turkey was making efforts to secure the release of the Lebanese hostages in Syria.The mufti was in Turkey where he attended a conference on Muslim-Christian relations in the Arab Spring.

Rai, Jumblatt pledge continued reconciliation
September 10, 2012/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai met with Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt in Mukhtara Sunday to highlight efforts to reconcile the Chouf’s Christians and Druze and facilitate the return of Lebanese who were displaced during the Civil War. The visit was aimed as cementing the historic reconciliation between Bkirki and the Druze leadership 11 years ago.“Reconciliation is part of our [Christian] message and is also a Druze message and both our cultures urge us to uphold these efforts to complete this reconciliation,” Rai told reporters and a number of religious delegations taking part in the meeting at Mukhtara Palace Sunday. The Maronite patriarch was welcomed by dozens of scouts and local well-wishers at his stop in Mukhtara during his weekend visit to the Chouf.
Before a joint news conference Rai and Jumblatt held for the religious delegations, they had a closed-door meeting. Both Jumblatt and Rai hailed the historic reconciliation when Rai’s predecessor, Cardinal Nasrallah Sfeir, visited Jumblatt.
Sfeir’s 2001 visit to the Chouf was dubbed “the Reconciliation of the Mountain.” While many of the displaced have yet to return to their hometowns in Chouf, the visit marked a turning point in Christian-Druze relations after the two communities fought bloody battles against each other in the 1980s. The battles forced many Christians to flee their towns.
Rai reiterated that in order to complete the reconciliation that began in 2001, all displaced should return to their hometowns without exception.
“A complete reconciliation should include the right of all displaced people to return to their homes and such reconciliation is a national responsibility for both communities,” the patriarch added. For his part, Jumblatt praised Rai’s visit and said that some of those who returned to their hometowns, as well as some of those who stayed, had not worked sincerely toward a complete reconciliation between the two communities in the Chouf. Jumblatt stressed reconciliation between Christians and Druze instead of settling of land disputes. He called for removing structures built on lands that had been left by those who fled during the war.
“Reconciliation of humans is more important than of stones ... The houses that have been built on other people’s land should be removed,” Jumblatt said.
Rai also said that he supports a new electoral law that would allow both Lebanese expatriates and residents to democratically choose their representatives.
“We are looking forward to an electoral law that ensures the rights of both residents and expatriates in electing their representatives and holding them accountable,” he added.
Earlier Sunday, Rai celebrated a mass marking the inauguration of St. Antonius Church in the Chouf town of Fawwara. The mass was also attended by Culture Minister Gaby Layyoun, Minister of the Displaced Alaaeddine Terro, Lebanese Forces MP George Adwan and several former ministers. During his sermon, Rai urged the Lebanese to welcome Pope Benedict XVI on his three-day visit to Lebanon starting Sept. 14. The pope will deliver the Apostolic Exhortation of the Synod of Bishops for the Middle East. “[The Synod] should lead us to a Christian Spring which should in turn contribute to a true Arab Spring, bringing back the Arab world’s unity and solidarity, so that it becomes part of modernity and globalization and achieves unity through diversity,” Rai said, during the inauguration of the church. Speaking to a local radio station, Aley MP Akram Shehayeb said Rai’s visit to the Chouf comes to affirm coexistence in Lebanon during a difficult phase. “The visit is a continuation of the historic reconciliation launched by former [Maronite] Patriarch Mar Nasrallah Butros Sfeir in 2001 in the mountain.”

Progressive Socialist Party sweeps Druze council elections as rivals boycott
September 10, 2012/By Wassim Mroueh The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Druze Spiritual Council elections ran smoothly as expected Sunday, with candidates supported by Walid Jumblatt’s Progressive Socialist Party winning the majority of seats as members of the rival Lebanese Democratic Party followed their leadership’s decision to boycott the polls. The National News Agency reported that the voting turnout had been around 30 percent. The turnout among physicians, engineers and lawyers who elect their representatives was lower than that among holders of other university degrees, the agency said. Rami Rayyes, the PSP’s media commissioner, told The Daily Star the turnout was much higher than 30 percent in some areas. “The elections were quiet, democratic and good in general,” said Rayyes, who won one of the seats.
He explained that the PSP did not prepare lists for the race, but that party members and others supported by the party joined the race.
The council, whose members were elected to new six-year-terms, is comprised of around 70 members, including religious figures and representatives of self-employed professionals, other university degree holders and districts. Druze MPs and ministers automatically become council members. The body administers the sect’s religious and non-religious, social and financial affairs.
LDP leader Talal Arslan boycotted the polls after talks with the PSP to reach consensus on the distribution of seats hit a dead end over a dispute on the status of Sheikh Nasreddine al-Gharib, whom Arslan supporters have proclaimed the Druze spiritual leader.
Members of the council, and its head, Druze spiritual leader Naim Hasan, were elected in 2006 according to a law organizing the affairs of the Druze sect which was passed a few months ahead of the polls.
Arslan, whose supporters also boycotted the polls in 2006, proclaimed Gharib as Druze spiritual leader, while Jumblatt’s supporters contend that Hasan is the spiritual leader.
Salim Hamade, Arslan’s media adviser, emphasized that no LDP members took part in the elections.
“It did not happen at all ... we have party members and we have supporters, maybe the supporters did that,” he said. “Maybe one or two.”
Media reports said some supporters of Arslan took part in the elections in violation of his decision to boycott. Former Minister Wi’am Wahhab, the head of the Arab Tawhid Party and also a rival of Jumblatt, said he had a number of supporters running for council positions. Speaking to Al-Jadeed TV Sunday morning, Wahhab said it would “not be a problem” if candidates supporting the PSP won a majority of seats. Wahhab called on all members of the Druze sect, including Arslan, to participate in the polls. “He has to get used to polls; it is unacceptable to wait for the other to give us something.”
Wahhab said he formed a “good” list in Chouf. “Members of this list engaged in a serious battle and it could be a democratic experience.”
But a source familiar with the polls told The Daily Star Wahhab had not been supporting any candidates, except one from the Abu Diab family. “It was a battle in the media,” the source said.

McCain: Iran situation a 'train wreck'
Associated Press Published: 09.08.12,
Republican senator blames Obama for inaction while situation in Middle East 'cries for American leadership'
US Senator John McCain says he is disappointed with his party's presidential candidate for sidestepping world affairs in his campaign for the White House but reserves his most scathing words for the current dweller, blaming Barack Obama for inaction while the situation in Syria and elsewhere "cries out for American leadership."
In an interview with The Associated Press in Italy on Saturday, the 2008 Republican presidential candidate criticized the man who won that election for not aiding rebels in Syria, abandoning Iraq and Afghanistan, and delaying tough decisions on Iran's nuclear program.
"In a way it's almost like watching a train wreck," he said of the apparent failure to stem Iran's nuclear efforts. What does the senator from Arizona make of the notable absence of such talk at last month's Republican National Convention that nominated Mitt Romney and focused mostly on the economy? The famous straight-talker was cautiously bipartisan.
"Yup, it was" absent, he said. "The election is about jobs and the economy, but a failed ... national security policy over time is going to lead to significant domestic problems."
"It's the job of presidents and candidates to lead and articulate their vision for America's role in the world.
The world is a more dangerous place than it's been since the end of the Cold War, and so I think the president should lead and I think candidates for the presidency should lead and talk about it, and I'm disappointed that there hasn't been more."
'Sanctions almost never work'
McCain is visiting Italy's Ambrosetti Forum, an annual gathering of political and business leaders, together with two fellow senators - Connecticut independent Joe Lieberman and South Carolina Republican Lindsay Graham - following a tour that took them through the Middle East. On Friday, addressing the plenum, the trio of self-styled mavericks won European fans by criticizing the dysfunction in American politics, then challenged their audience with a call for far greater US activism in the Middle East - particularly aiding Syria's rebels and on Iran.
McCain said sanctions almost never work, Lieberman said the "red line" should be weapons capability and not the actual creation of a weapons, and Graham said the United States should make it clear that if Iran pressed on it faced a "massive attack" from the United States and not Israel, a scenario which he said Iran's leaders know they could not survive.
McCain cut a somewhat wistful figure at the proceedings - disarmingly accessible yet gravely ominous, a smiling, hard-headed reminder of what might have been.
In the interview he was happy to detail how he would have done things differently, criticized Obama for pulling troops out of Iraq and telegraphing an intention of ending military operations in Afghanistan by 2014. "I would have left a residual force of some 20,000 troops in Iraq," he said. "Things are unraveling" in a way that threatens to yield a "fractured state" divided among Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish regions, under the sway of al-Qaida, and out of the US orbit - "all the things we predicted would happen if we pulled out completely."
He was equally dire on Afghanistan, where NATO headquarters in the capital, Kabul, was struck Saturday by a suicide bombing that killed six and was claimed by the Taliban.
"I know that the Afghan people strongly disapprove of a Taliban (return), but I think it's pretty obvious they know the Americans are leaving and they have to adjust to the post-American involvement environment and that means accommodating the certain forces that they otherwise wouldn't." On Afghanistan "I've not heard (Obama) talk about success."
'If we led - we could' McCain said that Obama should also sidestep a paralyzed United Nations and reluctant NATO to cobble together a coalition of European and Mideast nations willing to lend a hand - arming the rebels and backing them in establishing a safe zone in the north.
"If we led, we could," he said. "It cries out for American leadership. American leadership is not there."He also called for a resolute stance on Iran. "Here's the conundrum. The president of the United States has repeatedly stated that Iranian nuclear weapons (are) unacceptable. Now we watch as they move inexorably down that path... Right now I don't see any exit sign. That doesn't mean I'm predicting that there will be this conflict, but at the same time I don't know a way out." "One thing I'm pretty confident of is that that decision would not be made by the president of the United States before the November election," he added.

Romney slams Obama over failure on Iran issue
Yitzhak Benhorin Published: 09.09.12/ynetnews
In 'Meet the Press' interview, Republican presidential candidate says Obama's policy of engagement hasn't worked 'and we’re closer to a nuclear weapon as a result of that' ASHINGTON - Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is criticizing US President Barack Obama for his failure to handle the Iranian nuclear issue.In an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press," Romney said that Obama has had “some successes and he's had some failures” in the field of foreign policy. The president hasn’t drawn us any further away from a nuclear Iran,” Romney said. “That’s his greatest (foreign policy) failure.”President Obama had a policy of engagement with Ahmadinejad. That policy has not worked, and we’re closer to a nuclear weapon as a result of that. I will have a very different approach with regards to Iran. "And it’s an approach which, by the way, the president’s finally getting closer to. It begins with crippling sanctions. That should have been put in place long ago.”
Asked about his own red line in connection to Iran's nuclear program, he said that the US must use any resource at its disposal to derail the program, but stressed that the military option should not be put off the table. President Obama has a slight edge over Romney following last week's Democratic National Convention. Sources close to Romney said that the "swing states" will determine the election. “Their map has many more routes to victory,” said a top Republican off

Geagea: Lebanon must be part of Arab Spring
September 10, 2012 /The Daily Star /MAARAB, Lebanon: Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea said over the weekend that Lebanon cannot remain on the sidelines of the Arab Spring if it wants to be part of history. Speaking during a workshop on “Lebanon’s role in the renaissance of the new Arab world,” Geagea said changes “will have a large impact on the region’s future. We cannot under any pretext stand on the sidelines ... otherwise we will remain outside of history.” He added that everyone has a responsibility to preserve the Arab Spring since any event that tarnishes it “will destroy any hope for freedom, democracy, and a state of law in the Middle East.”

Sleiman won’t change stance on terror plot, Hariri slams dissociation policy on Syria
September 10, 2012/By Hussein Dakroub/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: President Michel Sleiman has said he will not back off from his firm stance on the case of explosives linked to former Minister Michel Samaha, who along with two senior Syrian officials has been charged with a terror plot to destabilize Lebanon.Meanwhile, former Prime Minister Saad Hariri lashed out at Lebanon’s dissociation policy on the 18-month turmoil in Syria. He described it as “shameful,” saying it exposed Lebanon to attacks by its neighboring country.
Sleiman said he had discussed the issue of explosives seized by Lebanese authorities during a meeting with Syrian Prime Minister Wael Nader al-Halqi and Foreign Minister Affairs Minister Walid al-Moallem in Tehran on the sidelines of the Non-Aligned Movement summit held in Iran last month.
Sleiman expressed hope that there was no relation between Syrian government officials and the seized explosives.
Responding to critics who accused him of holding a behind-the-scene meeting with the two Syrian officials, Sleiman said at a ceremony in his hometown of Amsheet, north of Beirut, Saturday: “There was no secret meeting in Iran, and I am not accustomed to holding secret meetings. The meeting was held in public but there were no reporters in the hall at the time.”
He added that it was the Syrian premier and foreign minister who approached him to shake hands.
“We discussed the situation. What I told them was the same as what I said on the first day the explosives were seized,” Sleiman said.
Samaha, a close ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad, was arrested last month and then later charged by the Military Tribunal with plotting terror attacks in Lebanon.
Samaha, Syrian National Security Bureau head Ali Mamlouk and a Syrian army officer identified as Brig. Gen. Adnan were also accused of planning to incite sectarian clashes through terrorist attacks with explosives that Samaha transported to Lebanon and stored after taking possession of them from Mamlouk and Adnan.
In the days following the discovery of the explosives, the president described reports of the possible terrorist plots in the country as frightening, but praised security agencies’ work in foiling such plans.
In Saturday’s speech, Sleiman said he thanked God that the explosives had been seized, saying he would not retract his praise of the Internal Security Forces for their efforts in uncovering the terror plot.
“I want to congratulate the Internal Security Forces and [Interior] Minister Marwan Charbel, who is the head of these forces, particularly for their seizure of these explosives which, had they exploded, could have resulted in the death of hundreds of victims in Lebanon,” he said. “I will never retract this congratulation.
“I stress that we will not resort to accusations. This case is in the hands of the judiciary on which I call to do its job and judge with justice.”
Meanwhile, Hariri said the Lebanese government’s policy to dissociate Lebanon from the developments in Syria left the country exposed to attacks from the Assad regime.
“The official Lebanese [dissociation] stance regarding these issues is shameful and should not continue,” Hariri said in an interview published Saturday in the pan-Arab newspaper Al-Hayat.
The leader of the Future Movement said that not having a stance on the developments in Syria, where fighting between government troops and armed rebel groups has claimed the lives of up to 26,000 since March 2011 according to opposition monitors, did not serve Lebanon’s interest.
“Some say that self-distancing is in Lebanon’s interest, but not having a position is not in the interest of protecting Lebanon,” Hariri said.
“Protecting Lebanon is [achieved] by preventing the Syrian regime from interfering in Lebanese affairs and exposing Lebanese territories and citizens to military actions carried out by the Syrian forces in Akkar and the Bekaa,” Hariri added.
He said the government’s dissociation policy left Lebanon exposed to attacks by Syria. “The self-distancing policy allows the Syrian regime to shell Lebanese villages,” Hariri said, referring to several incidents when Syrian forces have fired artillery across the border at villages they claim are harboring armed anti-regime groups.
Hariri praised Sleiman for his stance on Syria’s repeated violations of the Lebanese border which he described as “advanced” compared to the government’s “ambiguous positions.”
Hariri, the head of the opposition March 14 coalition, said one means of responding to violations of Lebanon’s sovereignty would be for Lebanon to bring the matter up with the Security Council, expel the Syrian ambassador to Lebanon and “protect our borders with all possible means, including the call for the deployment of international forces along the northern and eastern borders.”
In a memo to Sleiman last week, the March 14 coalition called for the deployment of U.N. peacekeepers along the northern border with Syria in response to Damascus’ repeated violations of Lebanon’s sovereignty.
Hariri, one of Assad’s staunchest critics in Lebanon, also told Al-Hayat that the fall of the Syrian regime would shed new light on the 2005 assassination of his father, former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. “Look at what happened in Libya. Many things emerged after the fall of the regime, in terms of aircraft bombings like the Lockerbie case or the case of Imam Musa Sadr. These things were impossible to reach and now they are public.”
Imam Musa Sadr, an influential figure in Lebanese politics and founder of the Amal movement, his companions Sheikh Mohammad Yaacoub and journalist Abbas Badreddine vanished during an official visit to Libya on Aug. 31, 1978.
Probes into the Sadr case were at a standstill under Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi’s reign, but have gained momentum following his fall.
Hariri said as in the case of Libya, “the fall of the Syrian regime will reveal who assassinated Rafik Hariri and what was the role of this murderous regime, which, we have always said, is linked somewhere to the assassination of Rafik Hariri, and this will be revealed.”
Meanwhile, Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea hit back at Hezbollah MP Mohammad Raad for slamming the March 14 coalition’s memo to Sleiman on Syria’s violations of Lebanese territory.
At a news conference Friday, Raad said the March 14 memo was aimed covering up the opposition group’s “involvement and participation in the aggression against Syria through money, arms and fighters.”
“Raad’s party is using the Palestine cause as a pretext and an excuse for every detail,” Geagea said during a dialogue session on “Lebanon’s role in the new Arab world renaissance” held at his residence in Maarab, north of Beirut, Friday night. He added that Palestine was “not a genuine issue for Hezbollah, except in specific times and depending on circumstances.”

UN peace envoy in Cairo amid Russia-US split
Now Lebanon/September 10, 2012
International peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi arrived in Cairo Sunday on his first trip to the region as Moscow and Washington aired their differences over Syria and violence there claimed yet more lives.
Troops shelled several districts of the northern city of Aleppo and clashed with rebels as other regions were bombarded in a new day of violence that killed at least 88 people, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported. Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said the overall death toll from 18 months of violence in Syria has now risen to more than 27,000.
Seventeen people were also killed and more than 40 wounded in a "terrorist attack" in the stadium area of Aleppo, the official SANA news agency reported.
A bomb targeting a bus carrying civilians and soldiers killed four people and wounded dozens in central Syria, the Observatory said, as the opposition announced that a vocal anti-regime film-maker had been killed in Aleppo. Brahimi, who has said he was "scared" of the task ahead, arrived in Cairo ahead of talks on Monday with Arab League officials, Egypt's President Mohamed Morsi and other leaders as he finalises plans for a visit to Damascus. His spokesman Ahmad Fawzi said the date of Brahimi's visit to Syria will be fixed once the final details of his program are set. The veteran troubleshooter, who succeeds ex-UN and Arab League envoy Kofi Annan who quit in frustration at UN Security Council divisions on the conflict, has described the bloodshed as "staggering" and called the destruction "catastrophic."
Brahimi wants guarantees he will get a proper meeting with President Bashar al-Assad before he goes to Damascus, diplomats said, but with no signs of the violence ending, expectations are low he will have any more success than Annan.
Iran's Mehr news agency quoted an official as saying Brahimi was also contemplating visiting Tehran—Syria's diehard ally—after Damascus. Annan also visited the Islamic republic in an effort to get it involved in resolving the conflict, but Washington has accused Tehran of playing a "nefarious" role in Syria. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Sunday that a new Security Council resolution on Syria would be pointless if it had "no teeth," because Assad would just ignore it.
Speaking in Russia, Clinton said she was willing to work with Moscow on a new resolution, but warned Washington would step up support to end Assad's regime if the measure did not carry consequences.
"There is no point to passing a resolution with no teeth because we've seen time and time again that Assad will ignore it and keep attacking his own people," she said.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Saturday after meeting Clinton that he hoped to seek Security Council approval for a peace plan agreed in June in Geneva that called for a ceasefire and political transition. Clinton said she hoped for progress but was "realistic" over US differences with Russia on Syria.
If those differences persist, "then we will work with like-minded states to support a Syrian opposition to hasten the day when Assad falls," she said.
Washington has said it is providing non-lethal assistance to the opposition in Syria, whose regime has been a Moscow ally since the Cold War.
On the ground, troops and rebels fought pitched battles in Aleppo as each side tried to gain more territory in Syria's battered economic hub, activists and the Observatory said.
The watchdog said at least two people were killed when mortar rounds struck a residential building as fighting raged in Hanano district, where troops on Saturday repelled an offensive by rebels seeking control of an army barracks.
Fierce clashes also shook the outskirts of Midan, as rebels entrenched in the nearby Bustan al-Basha stronghold tried to seize the neighborhood controlled by regime forces.
"The bombardment of Bustan al-Basha has stopped but could start up again any time," one resident told AFP.
A main water pipe was destroyed, either by air strikes or the fighting, and residents reported water shortages.
SANA on Sunday reported: "A terrorist attack in the municipal stadium district near Al-Haya hospital and Aleppo central hospital killed 17 people and wounded 40, according to a preliminary toll."
In the central province of Homs, a bomb attack on a bus carrying civilians and soldiers killed at least four people, reports said.
"Four people were killed and others wounded in an explosion by a bomb which was planted by a terrorist group in a bus on the route from Homs to Messyaf," state television said.
The Observatory said there were two explosions. "We know for sure that four people were killed but we don't know if they were civilians or military," Abdel Rahman told AFP.
"It was a large bus and there are dozens of casualties."In Damascus, troops bombarded the southeastern district of Tadamun and nearby Al-Hajar al-Aswad, with clashes also reported at the Yarmuk Palestinian camp, the Observatory said.
Late on Sunday the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian refugees said one of its staffers was killed by a bullet to his chest in the Yarmuk area.
The opposition Syrian National Council also announced the death of film-maker and journalist Tamer al-Awam, 34, on the front lines of Aleppo "by the bullets of the murderous and treacherous regime."
A Syrian website, Syrian Documents, said Awam was killed on Saturday while shooting a film for the rebel Free Syrian Army.
-AFP

Egypt: Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya to dissolve alliance with Muslim Brotherhood
10/09/2012/By Ahmed Imbabi
Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat - On Saturday, Egypt's al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya revealed it may dissolve its alliance with the Freedom and Justice Party, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood group, because the Brotherhood overlooked al-Gama'a’s leadership when it came to President Mohammed Mursi appointing his advisers and nominating provincial governors.
Dr Safwat Abdel-Ghani, the head of the political bureau of al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya’s Construction and Development Party, told Asharq Al-Awsat that his party would now be compelled to enter the upcoming parliamentary elections as a separate entity. His statement came a day after Essam Dirbalah, the head of the al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya Shura Council, intensified his criticism of the Brotherhood group. However, through the statements of Dr. Farid Ismail, a member of the Freedom and Justice Party’s executive bureau, the Brotherhood has played down the significance of this dispute.
Over the past few days the Egyptian President has ratified the nominations of the Shura Council (the second chamber in the Egyptian parliament) for the memberships of a number of national councils, and for a partial reshuffle of provincial governors. The President had earlier appointed a team of advisers that did not contain any leaders of al-Gama'a.
Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya, a grouping of Muslim leaders who adopted violence at one stage during the 1990s, has accused the Brotherhood and its political party of adopting a policy of exclusion. Dr Abdel-Ghani said his party will enter the upcoming parliamentary elections – expected at the end of the current year – as a separate entity because of the way it has been ignored by the Freedom and Justice Party during the recent period.
In statements to Asharq al-Awsat, Abdel-Ghani added that al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya has recently felt that its leadership has been undermined by the Muslim Brotherhood’s party. As evidence, he cited "the fact that no elements from al-Gama'a were included in President Mursi's advisory team or in the governor reshuffle, even though al-Gama'a had proposed its candidates to the President."
Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya established its political party, the Construction and Development Party, after the January 25th revolution. Observers claim it has adopted stances that are more revolutionary than those of the Muslim Brotherhood, especially concerning its relationship with the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), which administered the country's affairs over the past 18 months. Nevertheless the Construction and Development Party supported the Brotherhood’s candidate, Mohammed Mursi, in the runoff round of the presidential elections against General Ahmed Shafik, the last Prime Minister under Mubarak's reign.
Abdel-Ghani revealed that al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya is most incensed by the way in which it was ignored during the formation of the National Council for Human Rights. He claimed that al-Gama’a had specifically asked to be represented in that council "being the faction that was most persecuted by the former regime. 30,000 of its members were arrested, 200 of whom died in prison due to torture and disease." Abdel-Ghani insisted that al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya "does not want any form of duality in its dealings, and rejects the concept of any faction controlling or securing a hegemony over power in the state. There must be genuine participation, considering that this was one of the major objectives of the January 25th revolution."
Essam Dirbalah has lately intensified his criticisms of the Brotherhood group. During a public rally in the southern province of Asyut last Friday, he declared that al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya will stand against "the Brotherhoodization of the state", and will not allow the Brotherhood to control power.
Meanwhile, leaders within the Muslim Brotherhood have sought to play down the significance of the differences with al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya. Dr. Farid Ismail said that the issue "was much simpler than is being portrayed", and that this current crisis should not be dwelled upon.

Hamas delegation fails to restore its credibility in Tehran
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report September 10, 2012/
Gone are the days when Mahmoud A-Zahar, Gaza’s Hamas strongman, received a royal welcome in Tehran. When he arrived in the Iranian capital Sunday, Sept. 9 he found a chilly reception, although he brought with him in secret a large Hamas military delegation headed by Deputy Military Commander Marwan Issa, debkafile’s exclusive military and intelligence sources report.
Their mission was to persuade Iran’s leaders that Hamas was entirely to be trusted to pull its weight in collective retaliation for a potential Israeli strike against Iran’s nuclear program. The Hamas delegation met Sunday, Sept. 9, with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani, and National Security Council Chairman Saeed Jalili, capping the talks begun in Beirut Saturday with Hizballah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
A-Zahar kept a close eye on the military chiefs throughout those meetings to make sure they did not step out of the “party line.”
He tried explaining, according to our sources, that the divisions among Hamas leaders over their orientation between factions urging gradual disengagement from Iran and Syria in favor of closer ties with Gulf governments opposed to Tehran and Damascus, and the pro-Tehran faction led by A-Zahar which also seeks better relations with Cairo, are no more than subtle nuances and far from resolution. The important thing, the Palestinian extremists explained, was that Iran, Hizballah and Hamas stood fast together as the Islamic “resistance forces” ranged against Israel – especially now that the Middle East was on the threshold of war.
A-Zahar hoped to wipe off the slate Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh’s criticism of the Assad regime’s brutal suppression of the Syrian revolt and convince Iranian and Hizballah leaders that Hamas is as staunch as ever in its determination to fight Israel.
He pushed Issa, Deputy Commander of Hamas’s military wing Ezz a-Din al-Qassam, forward as the man in charge of coordinating joint military operations that would prove to Iran that Hamas had not gone soft on collaborating with Syria and Hizballah when the time came to hit Israel back for attacking Iran – as many Western and Arab circles were freely claiming.
However, according to our Iranian sources, the Hamas leaders’ welcome in Iran was cool and their explanations and assurances received with skepticism.
The failure of their mission confronts the Palestinian rulers of the Gaza Strip with three tough problems:
1. Iran and Hizballah have severed most of their ties with Hamas, except for providing its combatants with training at facilities outside Tehran and at Hizballah bases in the Lebanese Beqaa Valley. But no more weapons supplies or Iranian military advisers for guidance in developing new and advanced fighting units.
2. The lion’s share of Iranian-Hizballah military investment in Palestinian extremist organizations has been diverted from Hamas to the Jihad Islami of the Gaza Strip. That organization has been built up to three battalions and labeled “The Storm Brigades.” The missiles formerly assigned to Hamas are allocated to Jihad.
Heads of the Hamas military wing are concerned that the Jihad is outstripping them in numbers, training and equipment.
3. Tehran has stopped funding to the Hamas government, which finds itself in financial straits as severe as the rival Palestinian Authority in Ramallah. The $200 million which Qatar recently gifted the Gazan government is a drop in the ocean. No succor can be sought from bankrupt Egypt.

Al-Assad: Kill or be killed
By Emad El Din Adeeb/Asharq Alawsat
I asked my dear friend, [Lebanese] MP Nihad Al-Mashnouq, an extremely naïve question, however his answer was so realistic that it might shock some people!
I asked Nihad, a well-informed expert on Syrian affairs, "Do you think it is hypothetically possible that the idea of stepping down from power has not crossed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's mind?"
Nihad’s answer, which will be broadcast soon and came during a televised interview, was “Never…this man adopts the principle of kill or be killed”
He added “all the delusions and leaks that talk about a peaceful or diplomatic settlement along the lines of the Yemeni transition of power are nonsense.”If my friend’s views are true then we are facing a bill that is impossible to pay. In my own view, this is true because it is what we have learnt from the al-Assad family's record of crisis management and also because this viewpoint is being put forward by somebody who is perfectly aware of what he is talking about.
The al-Assad regime’s logic of continuous denial and refutation, transforming what is known to be false into the truth and portraying reality however it sees fit means that any anticipation of a quick settlement to the Syrian crisis is nothing more than wishful thinking.
Following Nihad’s words, I began to feel sorry for UN and Arab envoy to Syria Lakhdar Brahimi and his mission, as well as any chance of him achieving success in this regard.
Despite our attitude towards him, Henry Kissinger, one of the most skilful masters of negotiation laid down the ultimate set of principles regarding how to reach a successful settlement. This can be summarized as follows:
Firstly, the two sides must have an overwhelming desire for serious negotiation and must believe that negotiation is the only means of protecting their interests.
Secondly, each party must realize that the cost of the negotiations failing and not reaching a peaceful solution will be more prohibitive than the cost of the concessions that they must make.
Thirdly, those fighting must be exhausted and certain that the fighting will ultimately not produce a victor or loser.
If we were to apply these principles to the political mind-set of Bashar al-Assad, we would discover the following:
- That the Syrian president, according to his interview with Addounia TV, believes that the situation has improved and that he and his regime are on the verge of victory.
- That he sees no point of reaching a settlement, particularly if the price of this is the ouster of him and his regime.
In this case, we are facing a complete contravention of Kissinger’s rules for reaching a successful settlement, and these are principles that he created based on his profound study of the European Metternich system. This all takes us back to Nihad Al-Mashnouq’s words, namely that “we are facing a situation of kill or be killed”, and so as is commonly expressed in the Levantine folk songs, “woe unto us”.

Regression in the name of progress
By Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed/Asharq Alawsat
Can you imagine that the people of Riyadh – this extremely conservative city – were the most tolerant! Three decades ago, there were theatres in Riyadh’s schools, and cinema’s in their sports’ clubs, whilst military bands could be heard playing music in the city’s streets. Its holidays were marked by popular celebrations and cultural exhibitions and artistic showcases could be seen on television.
The same can be said about Cairo in the 1960s and 70s, with regards to its theatres, arts and institutes…and this is being said more and more about Kuwait. Whilst there are pictures of the Baghdad of yesteryear that the Baghdad of today would not believe; al-Rasheed Street and its role in the arts, culture and worship. I have a picture of the MGM offices in 1940s Baghdad, so who can believe what is happening today?
We become more shocked when we hear about the conflict in Tunis and its suburbs, and the prosecution of artists in Cairo, which is something that nobody is paying attention to today! Whilst what happened in Alexandria was even worse; as bulldozers destroyed the famous Al-Nabi Daniel Street book market on Friday morning.
All societies are moving forward and hoping for the best, however it seems that we are moving towards the setting sun, and nobody knows when this will rise. Egypt is facing the greatest example of this phenomenon, as what has happened there represents a frightening beginning against the arts, creativity and two centuries of development. This is important because Egypt is the greatest and last citadel for the arts and creativity in the region and its end will mark the descent of the region into darkness. Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi rushed to meet with a group of artists in an attempt to calm the community and end the war between the artists and the extremists; this has given rise to hopes that Mursi is not from the ranks of the radicals. Everybody who emerged from this meeting was smiling and appeared optimistic, thanking the president for his initiative and position. Perhaps they are right, not because Mursi does not mean what he says, and I believe that he truly does mean this, in terms of support and commitment to protect the arts and culture. However the question that must be asked here is: is Mursi the president stronger than the Brotherhood Mursi?
Who will prevent the attack on the pillars of culture and the role of arts by extremist groups that believe that they brought Mursi to power, not the other way round?
The problem in their reasoning is that political victory and electoral majority means a cultural victory over other cultures, and this victory is therefore a green light against others. A partisan victory and large electorate grants the right of political administration, but it does not eliminate others; this is something that is at the heart of individual rights and freedoms.
Our society is full of loud discussions, and the political and social talk ignores the most important issue – which represents the first step – and this is that rights and freedoms are fixed, no matter if we are talking about the rights of those on the margin or in the minority. They have the right of coexistence, tolerance and the acceptance of others.
What is puzzling is that our Arab world is full of ideas and desires for change and calls for reform; however those who raise the banners of “rights” and “freedoms” do not care to define this to themselves and their followers. What does “rights” truly mean? Who does this apply to? What are “freedoms” and what are their limits?
What is certain is that when the political or religious conservatives raise the slogans of “rights” and “freedoms”, or get involved in democratic work, this means that society has reached its peak maturity, however we have now seen them fall at the first hurdle! In other words, we are facing the culture of retreating in the name of progress, rejecting one form of injustice in order to impose another form of this. In Tunisia, the Ben Ali regime would deprive its opponents of their rights and freedoms, whilst today certain groups within the government are behaving worse than the police did during the Ben Ali era. Following this less-than-ideal introduction of the new era, can we be optimistic for the future? I believe so, because we are in the early stages of a social conflict, rather than a conflict with a regime, and the people will not accept their rights being deprived under any name!

Love, bankruptcy and buffoonery in our region
By Tariq Alhomayed/Asharq Al-Awsat,
The Iranian President told his Palestinian counterpart that he loves the Palestinians, prompting Abbas to reply: “For God’s sake, love us all”, i.e. not just Hamas. But it is hard for Ahmadinejad to do that, for Iran and its adherers will not be satisfied with the Palestinians until they are a game in their hands, like Hamas, Hezbollah and al-Assad.
It’s a shame that the Palestinian Authority (PA) has declared bankruptcy while Hamas - a party that does not suffer from financial hardship due to the Iranian support it receives - is preparing to create a new generation of diplomats from Gaza. This will only consecrate the Palestinian division that originally resulted from the Hamas coup. It is shameful that Abbas has announced the PA’s inability to provide salaries in the West Bank, while in Egypt it has been reported that Islamic terrorist groups in the Sinai have drone aircraft and advanced weaponry in order to carry out strikes on the Egyptian army. So how can terrorists be financed to strike Egyptian security, while we cannot find anyone to fund the PA, which is searching for a peaceful solution to the Palestinian cause! Likewise it is shameful that Abbas is begging for money while al-Assad gets all he wants from Iran and its adherers, in order to kill the Syrian people! Yes it is shameful that Abbas is declaring bankruptcy at a time when the symbols of destruction and division in our region are enjoying the funding and facilities of Tehran. As for some Arab regimes – and the Gaza government is one of these – who claim to be fighting Iran’s agent in Syria, they only want to destroy the authorities there to reinforce the power of the Muslim Brotherhood in our region. This is a contradiction that could only happen in our region, which is full of inconsistencies and political buffoonery.
While we are on the subject of political buffoonery, let us consider the call from the Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti to his European counterparts, urging the need to hold a conference to counter the danger of populists, demagogues or deceivers - call them what you will, i.e. those who seek to mislead the public. Monti claimed that these figures are threatening the future of Europe and its unity by taking advantage of the current financial crisis. The Italian Prime Minister called on the Europeans to address these populist currents by saying that: “It is paradoxical and sad that in a phase in which one was hoping to complete the integration, instead there is forming a dangerous counter-phenomenon that aims at the disintegration”. This is the case with our own region today, unfortunately, where there is no louder voice than the populists and deceivers. How else can we explain Abbas’ cry that the PA is bankrupt, while Hamas and Hezbollah are not suffering from financial hardship with the support of Iran and some of the revolutionaries in our region? How else can we understand Michel Aoun, a Hezbollah ally, defending al-Assad by saying that the alternatives to the tyrant of Damascus would be mere reactionists? Has Aoun forgotten that he was an ally of Saddam Hussein before al-Assad? Is there anything more reactionary than that?
This is both puzzling and depressing; what future do we want for our children and our region? Do we want Hamas, Hezbollah and others of their ilk, or do we want to consolidate the concept of the state that upholds human values, encourages knowledge and respects laws, all according to the principles of God’s religion and a homeland for all?
This is what we must always remember, but for the Palestinians to implore Ahmadinejad, saying “For God’s sake, love us all”, this is a pipe dream!

Arabs must not repeat Iran’s errors
By Ahmad Ahrar/Asharq Alawsat
In the space of a single century, Iran experienced two revolutions. The first revolution, in the first decade of the 20th century, took Iran forward. The second , in the 1970s, put the clock back.
I witnessed the second revolution as a journalist while I have studied the first revolution as historian and, over the years, met and conversed with some of its actors.
As the waves triggered by the Arab Spring continue to affect so many countries, I wish to share with our Arab neighbors some observations regarding Iran’s experience.
The first Iranian upheaval, known as the Constitutional Revolution, took place in 1906 at a time that Iran was an economically underdeveloped and poverty-stricken nation. Iran was also suffering from centuries of social and cultural decline to the point that a majority knew nothing of the nation’s brilliant history and civilization.
Many of those who helped foment the Constitutional Revolution were intellectuals and/or politicians who had studied in the West or spent years there on trade or diplomatic missions. During their stay they had witnessed Europe’s historic ascendancy and wondered about circumstances that had made it possible.
They had reached a consensus that it was thanks to pluralist government and the rule of law that Europe had succeeded in emerging from the Dark Ages to build a modern civilization. Their aim was to sow the seeds of new ideas in Iran, hoping that, given time and opportunity, this would produce similar results.Without support from religious leaders at the time, Iran’s small intelligentsia might not have been able to tackle the task of changing the course of history.
Our intellectuals succeeded in winning the support of a substantial chunk of the clergy, and persuaded the Shah, Muzaffar ad-Din, to issue edicts establishing a parliament and a modern judiciary.
However, once Muzaffar had passed away, his son and successor, Muhammad-Ali Shah, tried to cancel the new constitution and ordered the bombardment of the parliament building.
To justify his anti-constitutional stance, Muhammad-Ali persuaded and bribed some clerics into launching a new ideology of rule-by-shari’ah (mashrouyah) against rule by consent (mashruteh).
Their argument was that an Islamic society did not need a constitution, especially one inspired by Western models. The clergy were fully capable of meeting the needs of society and guaranteeing equity and justice.
Very quickly, however, the attempt to restore despotic rule in the name of religion failed.
A good part of a divided clergy sided with the people in demanding the restoration of constitutional government. Muhammad-Ali was forced into exile. Thus, Iran was able to start a new journey towards modernization and the rule of law. Within six decades, Iran was transformed from a lethargic society stuck in historic hiatus to a dynamic one with a buoyant economy and a creative culture.
The second revolution, in 1979, was to change all that. This time, we witnessed the reverse of the alliance that had ended Muhammad-Ali Shah’s brief despotism. A substantial section of our Westernized intelligentsia put itself under the leadership of reactionary mullahs who wished to destroy he very concept of constitutional rule in the name of mashrouyah.
Unlike the 1900s, this time Iran was a powerful state with a developing economy and an impressive record of cultural, financial and industrial progress. Also, our intelligentsia was wider and more deeply rooted in society. Thus, it would have been able to assume the leadership of the second revolution, as had been the case in the first one. In assuming leadership, the intelligentsia could have attracted support from large segments of society.
Sadly, our intelligentsia missed the historic opportunity and, beset by divisions, failed to offer a clear alternative to rule by the clergy. Like nature, society abhors a void. Someone had to fill the void created by the fall of the Shah. A small group of reactionary but firmly united clerics were able to impose their rule by filling the void. Once they had consolidated their hold on power, they left no space for the intelligentsia, establishing a new despotism, in the name of religion.
The rest, as the saying goes, is history. Over three decades, the so-called Islamic Revolution has arrested Iran’s historic progress by creating a despotic regime with a religious façade. It has led our nation into costly adventures that have harmed both Iran and the region.
As change sweeps through the region, the Arab intelligentsia should ponder Iran’s experience which, I believe, is more of a warning than a model to emulate.