LCCC ENGLISH
DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
November 10/07
Bible Reading of the day
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 2,13-22. Since the
Passover of the Jews was near, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. He found in the
temple area those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves, as well as the money-changers
seated there. He made a whip out of cords and drove them all out of the temple
area, with the sheep and oxen, and spilled the coins of the money-changers and
overturned their tables, and to those who sold doves he said, "Take these out of
here, and stop making my Father's house a marketplace." His disciples recalled
the words of scripture, "Zeal for your house will consume me." At this the Jews
answered and said to him, "What sign can you show us for doing this?" Jesus
answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise
it up." The Jews said, "This temple has been under construction for forty-six
years, and you will raise it up in three days?" But he was speaking about the
temple of his body. Therefore, when he was raised from the dead, his disciples
remembered that he had said this, and they came to believe the scripture and the
word Jesus had spoken.
Releases.
Reports & Opinions
Hezbollah Financing Through Criminal Activity.By Matthew
Levitt. Counterterrorism Blog.November 9/07
Can Hizbullah Reject Syria's Orders?
Naharnet. November 9/07
Flexing muscles.Al-Ahram
Weekly. November 9/07
Latest
News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for November 9/07
French FM back to Lebanon to help break deadlock.AFP
U.S. Warns Syria Against Intimidation in Lebanon Elections-Naharnet
Aoun-Geagea Meeting: A Blow in the Wind-Naharnet
Italy, France in Fresh Effort to End Lebanon Crisis-Naharnet
All for Wars in Lebanon!-Naharnet
US worried pro-Syrians might resort to Lebanon election
violence.Jerusalem Post
Security Fears Plague Lebanon.The
Associated Press
US: Syria May Interfere in Lebanon Vote.The
Associated Press
Rivals must co-operate over Lebanon.Financial
Times
Italy tends to Lebanon deadlock.The
Times
'Lebanon, Israel should end war'.Jerusalem
Post
US pledges 'all means' for free Beirut vote-Daily
Star
Sfeir voices fears that
Lebanon crisis will end in armed conflict-Daily
Star
Analysts divided over prospects for consensus-Daily
Star
US donates $400,000 to LAU scholarship fund-Daily
Star
Qassem warns of
'measures' if president elected by simple majority-Daily
Star
National Bloc protests Bishops Council's
criticism of rival camps-Daily
Star
Palestinians displaced from Nahr al-Bared demand asylum
in Europe.AFP
Nasrallah calls
maneuvers 'message' to Israel-Daily
Star
Committee quietly tackles issue of Hizbullah's
arms-Daily
Star
Lebanon launches interactive mapping Web site-Daily
Star
Security forces find two coffins with headless
skeletons in Sidon dump-Daily
Star
UNIFIL head
'determined' to see Resolution 1701 carried out-Daily
Star
Lebanese banks record hefty profits, asset
growth-Daily
Star
Italy in fresh bid to break political deadlock-Daily
Star
Saudi king urges Iran to avoid escalating
tensions with West-Daily
Star
Egyptian mufti says dead migrants 'not martyrs'.AFP
Interpol vote on arrest warrants pleases Israel, angers
Iran.AFP
Announcement of Candidacy for the Presidency
In the midst of the ongoing political bazaar regarding the presidential
election, and in light of the deep divisions within the Lebanese political
leaderships in general, and the Maronite in particular, and with the feverish
attempts by candidates to please the parties to the conflict in order to satisfy
their own opportunistic greed for the top seat in the country, and as mediators
seek a colorless, tasteless, odorless compromise candidate to manage the crisis
instead of resolving it;
In the absence of exceptional candidates who bring salvation programs to move
the country from a state of despair, decay, corruption and slow death to a state
of hope, invigoration, reform and prosperity;
We have decided to fight the presidential election battle on the basis of the
following program:
1 – Declare the neutrality of Lebanon and distance it permanently from the
politics of regional axes, and work with the United Nations for an international
consolidation of that neutrality.
2 – Declare faith in the Lebanese Nation based on its existence as a complete,
eternal and final nation endowed with all the attributes, characteristics and
properties that this entails, and recuperate Lebanon’s unique Lebanese identity
to the exclusion of all foreign qualifiers.
3 – Separate Religion from the State and work to adopt and establish the secular
State.
4 – Fully implement all international resolutions pertaining to Lebanon,
particularly resolutions 1559 and 1701, and support the establishment of the
International Tribunal and facilitate its work and abide by its decisions.
5 – Eliminate and disarm the private mini-states and protectorates, both
Lebanese and non-Lebanese, dismantle their infrastructures and subject them to
the authority of the Lebanese Army and the Internal Security Forces.
6 – Join in the international campaign for combating terrorism, hunt down the
terrorist organizations that operate in Lebanon, and eradicate their active and
sleeper cells in completion of the Army’s work in Nahr El-Bared.
7 – Adopt a peer-to-peer policy in dealing with neighboring states, particularly
with the Syrian State, and tightly control the borders between them and Lebanon
by seeking the assistance of the international forces to the Lebanese Army in
performing this task.
8 – Join in the endeavor of reforming the State and modernize its institutions,
dismiss the excessive bureaucracy and adopt the principle of employment on the
basis of merit and competence rather than on the basis of nepotism and cronyism.
9 – Abolish the permits of political parties with a non-Lebanese allegiance,
especially those parties with links to terrorist regimes, and deny them
operating from Lebanese territory.
10 – Stand up to the practice of the wholesale selling of Lebanese real estate
to foreigners. Recover all real estate purchased in suspicious schemes or for
the objectives of sectarian partition, changing Lebanon’s demographic
composition or harming Lebanon’s national and social fabric.
11 – Bring an end to all collective naturalizations, withdraw Lebanese
citizenship from newly naturalized but unmeritorious recipients, and grant
citizenship only to qualified individuals who have given outstanding services to
Lebanon.
12 – Prevent the permanent settlement of the Palestinian refugees by seriously
and persistently seeking their return to their homes or expatriating them to
countries that are able to absorb them.
13 – Grant the opportunity for Lebanese nationals residing in the broader
Lebanese expatriate Diaspora to participate in the legislative elections by
voting and running as candidates.
14 – Support the military institution and the security forces will all necessary
material, financial and moral support to enable it to fully discharge its
national obligations.
15 – Amend the Taif Agreement so as to reinstate the authority and prerogatives
to the Presidency of the Republic, regardless of the sectarian denomination of
the President.
We reiterate our oft-held position that to continue treating Lebanon’s
metastasizing cancers with potions and medicines is futile, and saving the
country with traditional and patch-up remedies based on mutual conceit,
deception, bootlicking and cowardliness will not work. Salvation can only come
from courage, candor, confrontation and a vision of the future, as well as the
adoption of radical solutions before it is too late.
Therefore, and in order to implement this program in all its clauses, and in
order for a Third Republic to rise on the ruins of this transient, worthless and
lame republic,
And on behalf of the Lebanese people who are dissatisfied, desperate, angry and
fed up with politics and politicians, and who are the vast majority today;
On behalf of the poor, the needy and the destitute families, and many are they;
On behalf of the oppressed, enslaved, marginalized, and the missing in the
dungeons of Syria’s prisons;
On behalf of the young who have emigrated in disgust and those who are looking
to emigrate;
On behalf of the emigrants who yearn to return to a country they can be proud
of;
On behalf of those who dream of a country of giants and not of dwarfs;
On behalf of the martyrs and the handicapped, so that their sacrifices do not go
in vain;
I have decided to declare my candidacy to the Presidency of the Republic, with
this statement serving as official notice to the official competent authorities.
Lebanon, at your service
Etienne Sacre – Abu Arz
President of the Guardians of the Cedars Party – Movement for Lebanese
Nationalism
November 9, 2007
U.S.
Warns Syria Against Intimidation in Lebanon Elections
The United States warned Syria against intimidation in the presidential
elections and pledged to use "all means" available to allow for an open and fair
vote.
"Interference or intimidation in the electoral process is unacceptable to the
United States and to the international community," said U.S. assistance
secretary of state David Welch at a hearing of the Senate Middle East
subcommittee Thursday. Syria cannot hope to improve relations with the United
States or play an influential role in the region unless it heeds that warning,
Welch said in a statement and in testimony at the hearing. "This is a moment of
truth for Lebanon," he said. "We will not exhaust any means to support those who
want to have a decent fair open election according to their constitution."
Welch said the U.S. would welcome a new Lebanese "president who represents the
country of Lebanon much more ably than President (Emile) Lahoud's regrettable
tenure."
"I think that Lebanese will settle for nothing less," he said. Careful about
what he was willing to disclose openly, Welch said, "My sense is that there is a
high risk of something to signal the parliament" of Syria's interest in the
outcome of presidential elections. Pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud's term
expires Nov. 24.
As parliament prepares to choose a successor to Lahoud by Monday, several
legislators who say they fear for their lives are housed in a Beirut hotel
protected by security guards. The Bush administration has been expanding its
diplomatic contact cautiously with Syria, including meetings between Secretary
of State Condoleezza Rice and Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem last spring
and again at a conference on Iraq Nov. 3 in Turkey.
At the meeting in Istanbul, Rice said she had made "quite clear" that she
expected Syria not to interfere in Lebanon's constitutional process. Syria has
pulled its troops from Lebanon under U.N. pressure but maintains a strong
interest in the country through pro-Syrian politicians and, according to U.S.
officials, intermittent shipment of Iranian weapons to Hizbullah, which the
State Department designates as a terrorist organization. "This is a government
that strives to undermine Lebanon's sovereignty and security through pro-Syrian
proxies and partners, a government that continues to harbor and support
terrorists and terrorist organizations," Welch said.
"It is time," he said, "for the Syrian government to show it is willing to be a
responsible member in the community of nations." Speaking about Lebanon's
projected elections, Welch said: "We are very concerned that in the next few
weeks Syria or its supporters will attempt to manipulate the outcome through
violence, intimidation or an obstinate refusal to participate in the electoral
process. These concerns are not unfounded." On several occasions, Welch said,
Syrian officials "promised to act against the flow of foreign fighters into
Iraq, to end their interference in Lebanon, to expel from Damascus Palestinian
terrorist leaders and to end Syrian state sponsorship of terrorism."
Unfortunately, he said, "the Syrian regime has yet to demonstrate the necessary
willingness to reorient its behavior back toward international norms."
In a statement, meanwhile, Republican Sen. Dick Lugar recommended "meaningful
and regular discussions" between the United States and Syria.
Continued refusal to do so, he said, "freezes in place a dangerous status
quo."(AP-AFP-Naharnet) Beirut, 09 Nov 07, 08:08
No War Between Israel and
Hizbullah to Avoid Mutual Defeat
Al-Moustaqbal newspaper reported Friday that war between Hizbullah and Israel is
unlikely as both sides are keen on avoiding a predicted defeat.
Radwan al-Sayyed, under the headline "wars of the region and their
repercussions," wrote that no one "is capable of leading a bloody conflict that
would persist for a month or two.""The two sides would not doom themselves to
defeat, that is why the July (2006) war example would not be repeated," he
wrote.
He noted that reports predict the possibility of blocking Lebanon's presidential
election "due to the outbreak of an armed conflict between Israel and Hizbullah
or between Israel and Syria that could spill over to Lebanon or start in
southeast Lebanon.""I believe such an option is unlikely, either by Israel,
Hizbullah or Syria. None of the three parties wants to be the starter of a war
in the next two weeks," al-Sayed stressed. "Israel and Hizbullah realize that
there is no interest in any military procedure that could target the
international force (UNFIL) and could force it, or some of its major components,
to withdraw, he added. Such a confrontation, according to al-Sayyed, "could
develop into a thorough conflict that results in un-predicted new facts and
realities.""That is why there will be no war in the region now although
the sources of an armed conflict would persist," he concluded. Beirut, 09 Nov
07, 13:19
All for Wars in Lebanon!
The pan-Arab daily al-Hayat reported Thursday that all regional, international
and domestic players seek war in the Middle East to shake the complex situation
that has been prevailing over the region for more than a year. But where would
the war take place?
"Israel wants war because it believes that it did not achieve its goals" in the
2006 war with Hizbullah "that maintained its structure and arsenal intact,"
Hassaan Haidar wrote under the headline: "All for war."Israel also wants war
"because it wants to regain its deterrence power lost in Lebanon and Gaza,
because it seeks to scare off Iran against possessing nuclear weapons and
because Israeli governments cannot afford to keep their northern settlements
under missile threat" from Hizbullah in Lebanon, he noted.
In Lebanon, Haidar wrote, "Hizbullah wants war as an exit from the alley ways of
domestic politics … and to counter Israel's deterrence capability and to inform
Israel that any aggression against Iran would not be a picnic.""Hizbullah also
wants war to regain backing of the Arab Peoples that have become suspicious
about its Iranian links and are about to consider Hizbullah a Mere tool for Iran
and Syria," he added.
Iran, according to the article, "also wants war because it continues uranium
enrichment activities in defiance of the international community … and continues
its intervention in Iraq by providing the insurgency with fighters and weapons,
because it regards its ally in Lebanon (Hizbullah) a means to impose its say in
regional issues and to confirm to the Arabs that it is a regional super power
prepared to fill in any vacuum.""Syria also wants war, though on the land of
others, because war can break its isolation … and could enable it to regain its
role in Lebanon and somewhere else," Haidar wrote. Syria, he noted, also wants
war because it believes the confrontation would in fact "call off possible
sanctions if Damascus blocked Lebanese presidential election … and might
eradicate the effect of the international tribunal due to the resulting vacuum
and divisions.""The United States wants war because it can salvage its
collapsing reputation in Iraq … because it is keen on Israel's security and
safety that shouldn't be threatened either by Iran or by Hizbullah and Hamas,"
Haidar wrote. The United States seeks war also "because its republican
president, cornered by defeats, scandals and debts, wants to polish his image,"
according to Haidar. "Finally some hot-headed small generals in Lebanon want war
too, that is why they are arming and training to storm the Grand Serail," Haidar
concluded. Beirut, 08 Nov 07, 13:48
Bush's Envisaged Victory: Two
States and Democratic Lebanon
The daily newspaper an-Nahar reported Thursday two European viewpoints regarding
the forthcoming presidential election in Lebanon, one of them stresses that
Syria has been put under enough pressure and would facilitate the poll. Rosana
Bou Munsef headlined its article: "the Europeans stress that a chance is
available and encourage discussion of names (candidates)."Some European
officials expected in Lebanon in the next couple of days "believe that pressure
exerted on Syria could bear fruit and that a real chance is available to elect a
new president, and the Lebanese should not miss this opportunity," Bou Munsef
wrote.
"Other European ministers appear less decisive … though they stress that enough
pressure (on Syria) offers the Lebanese a margin to grab the opportunity," she
added.
If the Lebanese are "serious in salvaging their country and practicing their
wisdom they should elect a president quickly and seek to meet the international
pressure in trying to provide the appropriate circumstances by actually heading
to elections," Bou Musef quoted the European sources as advising.
She noted that Europeans believe that Lebanese presidential elections are so
important to the level of linking success of the Annapolis conference on Middle
East peace to success of the Lebanese in electing a head of state, she added.
The election of a president for Lebanon has become "a strictly regional process
… Lebanon anew is an arena for a regional-international confrontation" between
Syria and Iran, according to the article. The U.S. Administration of President
George Bush is keen on achieving success in putting together a "plan" for a
two-state solution between the Palestinians and Israel in addition to helping
Lebanon safeguard its "democracy," Bou Munsef concluded. Beirut, 08 Nov 07,
12:15
Aoun-Geagea Meeting: A Blow
in the Wind
Free Patriotic Movement leader Gen. Michel Aoun said after reports of an
impending meeting with Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea that he had no plans
to meet with his arch foe. Geagea, however, had said earlier that he would meet
with Aoun very soon."Under the current circumstances … such a meeting is
normal," Geagea said. No explanation for this discrepancy was available. "World
leaders from the East and West are meeting to discuss the presidential
election," Geagea pointed out. "Therefore, it is normal for the two biggest
Christian entities to meet and discuss this issue."He said that FPM and Lebanese
Forces representatives have already met to set up the meeting. "We are still
waiting for the final details," Geagea said. He said that the chances of
reaching an agreement over the presidential crisis were "between 15 and 25
percent."Aoun, on the other hand, deny that plans for a meeting were underway.
""I haven't been informed of anything in this regard. Maybe it's only Geagea's
wish," Aoun told reporters Thursday after presiding over an unscheduled meeting
of his Change and Reform parliamentary bloc. Aoun also made a surprising
announcement indicating that he does not regard himself the sole candidate for
the presidential office. "We are not saying it is us or nobody, but rather we
are for consensus on anybody," Aoun said. He stressed that "we don't seek to
eliminate anyone, but we would not allow anybody to eliminate us."Aoun expressed
doubt that a parliamentary session scheduled for Monday to elect a new president
would be held
He refused to answer questions about his stand on Hizbullah's reported maneuvers
south of the Litani River, telling reporters: "I would have loved to hear a
comment on maneuvers carried out by Israel" close to Lebanon's southern borders.
Beirut, 09 Nov 07, 09:13
Italy, France in Fresh Effort
to End Lebanon Crisis
Italy's foreign minister, part of an EU troika seeking to end Lebanon's
political deadlock, will return to Beirut next week when parliament meets to
elect a new president, his envoy said. "Mr. Massimo d'Alema will come to Lebanon
next week," Cesare Ragaglini told a news conference at the Italian embassy after
a week-long visit to Lebanon. Diplomatic sources told AFP there was a strong
possibility that French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner would also return to
push for a smooth end to the long-running crisis over the presidency. On October
21, the foreign ministers of France, Italy and Spain visited Beirut but failed
in their bid to break the deadlock that continues to prevent the election of a
new president to succeed pro-Syrian incumbent Emile Lahoud. Ragaglini said he
met Prime Minister Fouad Saniora and many officials from both the March 14
ruling coalition and the opposition, which is supported by Syria and Iran. "The
leaders are really aware that if they do not elect a president, or that if they
did not elect with consensus, there might be problems," Ragaglini said. "In the
state of cooperation which characterizes the democracy in Lebanon, the election
of the president is very important," he added.(AFP) Beirut, 09 Nov 07, 08:37
Hezbollah Financing Through
Criminal Activity
By Matthew Levitt
A two-year counterterrorism and drug investigation culminated earlier this week
with the arrest of a dozen individuals in Los Angeles. Authorities reportedly
seized 30 kilograms of cocaine and counterfeit merchandise valued at hundreds of
thousands of dollars. According to the LA Times, at least one of the suspects is
tied to Hezbollah and was referenced - though not by name - in 2005
congressional testimony by an official with the LA County Sheriff’s Department.
I testified at that hearing as well. As I noted then, Hezbollah depends on a
wide variety of criminal enterprises, ranging from smuggling to fraud to drug
trade to diamond trade in regions across the world, including North America,
South America, and the Middle East, to raise money to support Hezbollah
activities.
In the United States, law enforcement officials are investigating a variety of
criminal enterprises suspected of funding Middle Eastern terrorist groups,
including the stealing and reselling of baby formula, food stamp fraud, and
scams involving grocery coupons, welfare claims, credit cards, and even
unlicensed t-shirts sales. U.S. officials believe "a substantial portion" of the
estimated millions of dollars raised by Middle Eastern terrorist groups comes
from the $20 million to $30 million annually brought in by the illicit scam
industry in America. A senior U.S. law enforcement official concluded, "There is
a significant amount of money moved out of the United States attributed to fraud
that goes to terrorism."
Hezbollah and other terrorist groups also traffic narcotics in North America to
fund their activities back in the Middle East. A Drug Enforcement Administration
(DEA) investigation into a pseudoephedrine smuggling scam in the American
Midwest led investigators as far as Jordan, Yemen, Lebanon, and other Middle
Eastern countries, including bank accounts tied to Hezbollah and Hamas. DEA
chief Asa Hutchinson confirmed, "a significant portion of some of the sales are
sent to the Middle East to benefit terrorist organizations."Long before al Qaeda
was suspected of converting cash into easily transportable commodities like
diamonds, Hezbollah learned to raise significant funds by dealing in so-called
'conflict diamonds' in Sierra Leone, Liberia , and Congo.. November 8, 2007
05:04 PM Print
Can Hizbullah Reject Syria's
Orders?
A former U.S. Public officer told the daily newspaper an-Nahar that Iran is a
key factor in facilitating the election of a new president because it is capable
of controlling its ally Hizbullah to reject Syria's orders aimed at
destabilizing Lebanon.
Under the headline: "Would Hizbullah reject Syria's orders?" columnist Sarkis
Naaoum quoted the unidentified U.S. Source as saying:
"Iran says it would pressure Syria into facilitating the election of a president
for Lebanon only if Saudi Arabia improved its relations with Syria, and Saudi
Arabia rejects that. "The question, however, remains: Is Iran capable of
exerting pressure on Syria? And would Hizbullah reject Syria's orders?" the
source asked.
"The answer, in light of credible information, is that Hizbullah would reject
Syria's orders only if Iran backs such a move," the source answered.
He recalled that such an Iranian-backed rejection by Hizbullah of Syria's orders
prevented the break out of Sunni-Shiite conflict in Beirut on Jan. 25 and helped
contain a quarrel that developed at the Arab University of Beirut. "dialogue
with Iran to settle its disputes with the United States and the international
community could be necessary," the U.S. source advised. He said the United
States and Israel also "should decide, once again, what is it that they want
from the Syrian regime and to specify ways of achieving what they want and
determine whether the Syrian regime is capable of achieving what they want."The
United States and Israel, the source added, "should know whether the Syrian
regime has become a threat and a tool in the hands of Islamist Iran, their
common enemy.""If such a study proved that Syria has become part of the strategy
of Iran and terrorism, then they should stop protecting its regime," the source
stressed. "I don't mean by that occupying Syria militarily. There are many ways
to achieve this target, he noted. Beirut, 09 Nov 07, 11:29
Can Hizbullah Reject Syria's Orders?
A former U.S. Public officer told the daily newspaper an-Nahar that Iran is a
key factor in facilitating the election of a new president because it is capable
of controlling its ally Hizbullah to reject Syria's orders aimed at
destabilizing Lebanon. Under the headline: "Would Hizbullah reject Syria's
orders?" columnist Sarkis Naaoum quoted the unidentified U.S. Source as saying:
"Iran says it would pressure Syria into facilitating the election of a president
for Lebanon only if Saudi Arabia improved its relations with Syria, and Saudi
Arabia rejects that. "The question, however, remains: Is Iran capable of
exerting pressure on Syria? And would Hizbullah reject Syria's orders?" the
source asked. "The answer, in light of credible information, is that Hizbullah
would reject Syria's orders only if Iran backs such a move," the source
answered. He recalled that such an Iranian-backed rejection by Hizbullah of
Syria's orders prevented the break out of Sunni-Shiite conflict in Beirut on
Jan. 25 and helped contain a quarrel that developed at the Arab University of
Beirut. "dialogue with Iran to settle its disputes with the United States and
the international community could be necessary," the U.S. source advised. He
said the United States and Israel also "should decide, once again, what is it
that they want from the Syrian regime and to specify ways of achieving what they
want and determine whether the Syrian regime is capable of achieving what they
want."
The United States and Israel, the source added, "should know whether the Syrian
regime has become a threat and a tool in the hands of Islamist Iran, their
common enemy." "If such a study proved that Syria has become part of the
strategy of Iran and terrorism, then they should stop protecting its regime,"
the source stressed.
"I don't mean by that occupying Syria militarily. There are many ways to achieve
this target, he noted.
Beirut, 09 Nov 07, 11:29
The World Council of the Cedars Revolution
Representing the hopes and aspirations of many millions of Lebanese in Lebanon
and throughout the Diaspora
2300 M Street, NW, Suite 800, Washington, DC, USA 20037
Phone + 1 202 416 1819, Fax + 1 202 293 3083
www.cedarsrevolution.org
cedarsrevolution@gmail.com
November 8, 2007
Via facsimile (202) 225-1589; 2 Pages
Congressman Gary Ackerman
2243 Rayburn House Office Building
House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515
RE: Statement on Lebanon to Foreign Affairs Committee on November 8, 2007
Dear Congressman Ackerman:
Thank you for your strong words of support for Lebanon's sovereignty made to the
Foreign Affairs Committee Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia's
hearing today on Lebanon. Lebanon is truly "on the brink" and your strong words
of support and the actions you prescribe are just what's needed to preserve
Lebanon in the camp of freedom fighting against terrorism.
I only hope the Secretary Welch takes immediate action to do all that can be
done on behalf of the administration to follow up on the leadership that you and
your colleagues in the House have shown to move without equivocation before time
runs out.
Congressman Ackerman, no self serving statements are needed to convey to you the
gravity of the situation as you understand the facts and consequences all too
well. As I said before in my letter to you on October 25, Lebanon and the
Lebanese both inside Lebanon and in the Diaspora count you as a true friend.
On behalf of the World Council of the Cedars Revolution, I hope that President
Bush, Secretary Rice and Secretary Welch heed your advice before it is too late.
Sincerely,
John Hajjar, National Director