LCCC ENGLISH NEWS BULLETIN
September 30/06
Biblical Reading For today
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 1,47-51.
Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, "Here is a true Israelite. There is no duplicity in him."Nathanael said to him, "How do you know me?" Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree."Nathanael answered him, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel."Jesus answered and said to him, "Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this."And he said to him, "Amen, amen, I say to you, you will see the sky opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."
New Opinions
Analysis: Is Assad serious about peace?United Press International
Saying goodbye to your grandfather's Arab world -By Rami G. Khouri
Decline in support for Hamas a symptom of Palestinians' deepening misery-Daily Star
Syria has little room to maneuver in Tehran's shadow -By Iason Athanasiadis
Latest New from the Daily Star for September 30/06
Bush calls for Iran move 'sooner rather than later'
Rice to meet top Arab officials in Cairo in bid to revive peace talks
Brammertz asks for UN members' help in advancing Hariri probe
UNIFIL wields authority to challenge gunmen, but Israelis off-limits
Siniora: Bickering making Lebanon a battlefield for regional conflicts
Palestinians demand help with tuition fees
Siniora says Jezzini-Fatfat rift 'resolved'
Tohmeh: Problem of displaced is financial
Francophone Summit calls for return to calm in Lebanon
Christians feel marginalized in shadow of growing Shiite influence
Fadlallah urges Lebanese to resist sectarian strifePlans for telecom sale move ahead
Lebanon's children: the true victims of the civilized world's disregard during Israel's attacks
What comes next? Cluster bombs and prosthetic limbs
Rainbow Warrior returns to track environmental damage
Swiss team tours country to assess needsAnalysis: Is Assad serious about peace?United Press International
Latest New from Miscellaneous sources for September 29/06
Rice to Visit Middle East Next WeekVoice of America
Rice sees moderates as key to Mideast
Washington Times Hizb'allah still threatens Israel and US-Jerusalem Newswire
Report: Israel has abandoned efforts to kill Nasrallah-International Herald Tribune
Harper blocks Lebanon resolution-National Post
Israeli intelligence: Syria thinks seriously of war-Journal of Turkish Weekly
Olmert wipes out hope for Syria talks-United Press International
Israel's security concerns delay pullout from Lebanon-Ha'aretz
US Affairs: Damascus be damned-Jerusalem Post
Syria defies US threat and backs Hamas, Hezbollah-Gulf Times
Canada sorry for deportation-News24Toronto man facing deportation to Lebanon takes case to media-ChronicleHerald.ca
Sounds of silence-World Magazine - USA
Israel violated the UN-drawn border with Lebanon, UN peacekeeping -International Herald Tribune
First friction between UN peacekeepers, Israeli troops in Lebanon-Monsters and Critics.com
American-Arab Summit Will Focus on Israel, Iran-New York Sun, NY
Hizballah Rearming & Rebuilding Underground Bunkers Near Israel-Zionist Organization of America
The Israel-Hezbollah conflict and the Church-Catholic Insight, Canada
Bush Praises Afghani, Pakistani Leaders-Los Angeles Times
French-speaking countries express solidarity with Lebanon war victims
The Associated Press
Published: September 29, 2006
BUCHAREST, Romania Leaders of countries with cultural ties to France pledged Friday during a summit in the Romanian capital to promote the use of new technologies in education and promote the French language at international gatherings.
Participants, including 22 heads of state, 11 prime ministers and 36 foreign ministers, also adopted a statement recognizing the civilian victims of the Hezbollah-Israeli conflict in Lebanon, Romanian Deputy Foreign Minister Cristian Preda said.
The leaders, including French President Jacques Chirac and Canadian Premier Stephen Harper, also wrangled over wording, with Canada objecting to initial language proposed by Egypt, which specified that the victims were Lebanese.
"We can't recognize victims only on one side, of Lebanon, and not mention the victims from Israel," Harper said at a news conference.
The final declaration, proposed by France, expressed solidarity with all civilian victims of the conflict.
Lebanon was represented by its Culture Minister Tarek Mitri. Romania did not invite the Lebanese President Emil Lahoud, who is seen as having been imposed on Lebanon by Syrian influence. Romania instead extended an invitation to Prime Minister Fuad Saniora.
The leaders also discussed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Ivory Coast, the Darfur crisis, and problems in the Western Balkans and the Moldovan breakaway republic of Trans-Dniester.
Also Friday, Senegal's former President Abdou Diouf was unanimously re-elected Friday as secretary-general of the 63-member Organization of Francophone Countries, or Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie.
Diouf, 71, has headed the organization since 2002. After serving as a politician in his native country for more than 40 years, he replaced the retiring Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt. A former chairman of the Organization of African States, Diouf lives in France.
He said member countries were not seeking to defend French against English, but that "anyone should be able to speak his native tongue and at least one language of world circulation such as French or English."
The francophone organization also backed a UNESCO convention aiming to promote cultural diversity, but opposed by the United States for fear it could be used to enact trade barriers against its cultural exports, such as movies or music.
Chirac said France would begin proceedings to ratify the convention before the end of the year, at the same time with the European Union. He also welcomed an EU report calling for Romania and Bulgaria, two members of the Francophone Organization, to join the EU in 2007. "It's an emotional moment. ... France always supported Romania's EU bid," he said, noting that with Romania and Bulgaria, more EU members would be using French.
Leaders also decided that the next summit will be held in Quebec, Canada in 2008.
Most of the organization's members are former French colonies in Africa and the Caribbean, though the organization has expanded in recent years to countries in Eastern Europe that have traditional or cultural ties to France.
Romania, where 88 percent of children study French in school, has pledged to set up a Francophone University for Central and Eastern Europe. BUCHAREST, Romania Leaders of countries with cultural ties to France pledged Friday during a summit in the Romanian capital to promote the use of new technologies in education and promote the French language at international gatherings.
Participants, including 22 heads of state, 11 prime ministers and 36 foreign ministers, also adopted a statement recognizing the civilian victims of the Hezbollah-Israeli conflict in Lebanon, Romanian Deputy Foreign Minister Cristian Preda said.
The leaders, including French President Jacques Chirac and Canadian Premier Stephen Harper, also wrangled over wording, with Canada objecting to initial language proposed by Egypt, which specified that the victims were Lebanese.
"We can't recognize victims only on one side, of Lebanon, and not mention the victims from Israel," Harper said at a news conference.
The final declaration, proposed by France, expressed solidarity with all civilian victims of the conflict.
Lebanon was represented by its Culture Minister Tarek Mitri. Romania did not invite the Lebanese President Emil Lahoud, who is seen as having been imposed on Lebanon by Syrian influence. Romania instead extended an invitation to Prime Minister Fuad Saniora.
The leaders also discussed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Ivory Coast, the Darfur crisis, and problems in the Western Balkans and the Moldovan breakaway republic of Trans-Dniester.
Also Friday, Senegal's former President Abdou Diouf was unanimously re-elected Friday as secretary-general of the 63-member Organization of Francophone Countries, or Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie.
Diouf, 71, has headed the organization since 2002. After serving as a politician in his native country for more than 40 years, he replaced the retiring Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt. A former chairman of the Organization of African States, Diouf lives in France.
He said member countries were not seeking to defend French against English, but that "anyone should be able to speak his native tongue and at least one language of world circulation such as French or English."
The francophone organization also backed a UNESCO convention aiming to promote cultural diversity, but opposed by the United States for fear it could be used to enact trade barriers against its cultural exports, such as movies or music.
Chirac said France would begin proceedings to ratify the convention before the end of the year, at the same time with the European Union.He also welcomed an EU report calling for Romania and Bulgaria, two members of the Francophone Organization, to join the EU in 2007. "It's an emotional moment. ... France always supported Romania's EU bid," he said, noting that with Romania and Bulgaria, more EU members would be using French.
Leaders also decided that the next summit will be held in Quebec, Canada in 2008.
Most of the organization's members are former French colonies in Africa and the Caribbean, though the organization has expanded in recent years to countries in Eastern Europe that have traditional or cultural ties to France.
Romania, where 88 percent of children study French in school, has pledged to set up a Francophone University for Central and Eastern Europe.
Harper blocks Lebanon resolution
Allan Woods, CanWest News Service
Published: Friday, September 29, 2006
BUCHAREST - Prime Minister Stephen Harper wanted to leave his mark on the world stage at this week’s Francophonie summit, and Friday morning he did just that.
Harper angered Lebanon and an assortment of other Arab, Muslim and French-speaking states in a meeting to draft a political declaration on this summer’s war between Israel and Hezbollah. Canada’s rookie prime minister vetoed an amendment to a statement that said the 53-member organization “deplored” the effect of the month-long conflict on the Lebanese civilians it endangered. The amendment was brought forward by the Egyptian delegation and backed by “a majority” of countries at the table, according to French President Jacques Chirac.
“The amendment wants to recognize and deplore the war and recognize the victims of Lebanon. We are able to deplore the war, we are able to recognize the victims, but on both sides,” Harper said at what was supposed to be a closing news conference. “The Francophonie cannot recognize victims according to their nationality. Recognize the victims of Lebanon and the victims of Israel.”The issue has now forced leaders to extend the meeting into the day in an attempt to get past the political stalemate.Lebanon’s culture minister, Tarek Mitri, seemed stunned by how the incident unfolded. He said in an exclusive interview with CanWest News Service that he had put forward a middle ground solution that would have seen the Francophonie deplore the suffering of all civilians. “We suggested that they add the suffering of civilian populations, but your prime minister was opposed to the idea of modifying the text, which is something I don’t understand,” Mitri said.Asked if Harper had caused a major diplomatic problem by standing up for Israel in the debate, he said, “I hope it’s not a major incident.”“I don’t think it’s good for the (Francophonie),” he said. “It’s too bad the Bucharest summit didn’t finish on a more constructive note.”Harper was seated beside Quebec Premier Jean Charest at the news conference, but Charest seemed cool to his federal counterpart. Harper, French President Jacques Chirac, Romanian President Traian Basescu and Francophonie Secretary-General Abdou Diouf all entered the news conference together, but Charest followed about three minutes later.And in his statement before reporter’s began asking questions, Charest pointed out his province’s strong links with Lebanon and the fact that the province took in 15,000 refugees from Lebanon this summer. About 7,000 of those have since returned to the Middle Eastern country. awoods@cns.canwest.com
Rice to Visit Middle East Next Week
By David Gollust -State Department
28 September 2006
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice visits the Middle East next week to explore possible ways to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts. It will be her first visit to the region since the Lebanon conflict in July. Secretary Rice heard from many fellow foreign ministers at the United Nations last week that reviving the Israeli-Palestinian peace process is fundamental to easing broader tensions in the region. But the job will hardly be easy, with some Israeli troops still in Lebanon and the Palestinians failing to come up with a unity government that will meet international terms for peace talks.
Accordingly, officials here are making clear that expectations for the Rice mission are limited. Announcing the trip, State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack said the Secretary, as tasked by President Bush in his U.N. speech last week, will be sounding out moderate regional leaders about a possible way forward: "The task from the President was to consult and to see what the possibilities are," said Sean McCormack. "And that is how I would frame this trip. This is a trip about consultation, continuing discussions, to see what the possibilities are. So this is a trip designed to lay the foundations, potentially, for moving the process forward. There aren't any guarantees in that regard."
McCormack noted the positive tone of a special U.N. Security Council meeting last Thursday on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in which Secretary Rice took part. Israel attended the meeting, which was called by the Arab League and was notably free of harsh rhetoric.
A day earlier, Rice also joined in a ministerial level meeting of the international Middle East "Quartet" - the United States, European Union, Russia and the United Nations. The four partners welcomed efforts by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to form a unity government with the militant Hamas movement that would recognize Israel's right to exist and renounce terror, and thus open the way to renewed outside aid for the Palestinian Authority.
The Palestinian dialogue has since stalled, and it is unclear whether Rice will be able to hold a joint meeting with Mr. Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert while in the region.The Secretary of State is to leave Washington Sunday on the trip, which will take her to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Israel, and to Ramallah in the West Bank where Mr. Abbas has his offices.Officials do not rule out additional stops on the trip, which is due to end on Friday of next week.
Rice sees moderates as key to Mideast
By Nicholas Kralev-THE WASHINGTON TIMES
September 29, 2006
U.S. officials see the struggle between moderates and extremists -- not the Israeli-Palestinian conflict -- as the defining issue in the Middle East, the State Department said yesterday in announcing that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will visit the region next week.
Although Miss Rice attaches critical importance to the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and will explore ways to revitalize it, her more ambitious task will be to urge moderates in the region to unite against extremists, said department spokesman Sean McCormack.
"This is a trip designed to lay the foundations potentially for moving the [peace] process forward," Mr. McCormack told reporters. "There seems to be a genuine desire among leaders in the region -- you start to see some of those emerge in Saudi Arabia, in Egypt, as well as others -- to try to move that process forward." He acknowledged that "some people subscribe" to a view of "the Palestinian-Israeli dispute being at the heart of all disputes in the Middle East" but said he does not agree. "I would just look at the issue a little bit differently," he said. "It will be a frame" for Miss Rice's conversations during her trip. He said the secretary will visit Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Israel -- countries that are "on the side of moderation" -- because they "have an interest in a more stable, peaceful, prosperous Middle East." In Egypt, Mr. McCormack said, Miss Rice will discuss with President Hosni Mubarak "the importance of continuing the democratic reform process." Asked about Egypt's mixed record on promoting democracy, he contrasted that country with "forces for extremism and violence" such as Iran, Syria and Hamas, the militant group that controls the Palestinian parliament and government. Miss Rice plans to meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, head of the Fatah party, but "we are not going to talk to a Hamas-led government, and we are certainly not going to advocate others, including the Israelis, talking to a Hamas-led government," Mr. McCormack said.
It will be the secretary's first visit to the region since July during Israel's border war with Hezbollah. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said yesterday that he hoped to meet with Mr. Abbas soon, but Mr. McCormack said there were no plans for a three-way meeting involving Miss Rice.
Middle East analysts were doubtful that Miss Rice's trip would produce significant results. "I don't see what is achievable at this moment," said Danielle Pletka, vice president of the American Enterprise Institute. "Islamists are riding high, dictators are feeling comfortable, and the United States seems at best confused about how to deal with both Iran and Iraq. ... "If democracy is the centerpiece [of Miss Rice?s trip], that's terrific, because the solution of most problems in the Middle East is broadening the democratic base," she said. "That seems to have been put on the back burner."
David Schenker, senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said the only benefit from Miss Rice's visit would be the show of high-level attention to the region at a time when the administration stands accused of lacking interest in Arab-Israeli affairs.
"This is also a critical time for Lebanon, and lending her support to [Prime Minister Fuad] Siniora's government ... is very important," Mr. Schenker said. Mr. McCormack, asked whether Miss Rice might go to Beirut, said he had no additional stops to announce.
Israeli intelligence: Syria thinks seriously of war Print
Friday , 29 September 2006
Bethlehem - Ma'an - The Israeli newspaper Maariv has stated that the Israeli intelligence services have recently started regarding the possibility of going to war with Syria with a greater degree of probability. The paper stated that a major change has occurred within the expectations of the military intelligence in Israel, who now believe that the choice for a military confrontation has become more real for the Syrians, who they believe to be weighing the matter seriously. The head of the Israeli Knesset, Dalia Itzik, has called on the Israelis "not to miss the historical opportunity implied in the Syrian gestures for peace. She said, "Syria has been sending gestures of peace all the time and we are not so extravagant to lose such opportunities"
Ma'an News Agency- September 28, 2006
Olmert wipes out hope for Syria talks
TEL AVIV, Israel, Sept. 28 (UPI) -- Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert launched a scathing attack on Syria, blasting any possible hopes of reviving the deadlocked peace track. He also played down the possibility that Lebanon's Shiite Hezbollah guerilla organization would provoke another war with Israel in the near future. Speaking in an interview with Army Radio Thursday, Olmert said Damascus is the "capital of terrorism" against Israel and any talk about negotiations with Syria is "illogical." "We belong to the world that fights terrorism and does not compromise with it," Olmert said.
The Israeli premier reiterated he will not return the occupied Golan Heights to Syria, stressing they are "an indivisible part of Israel."
Commenting on Syrian President Bashar Assad's declaration that Syria is ready to make peace with Israel, Olmert said, "Assad says something and does the contrary." "We have to stop listening to all kinds of illusions and tricks. The Syrians supported Hezbollah and provided no less backing than Iran," he said, adding that "claiming that this man (Assad) intends to achieve peace with Israel is not serious."
He also stressed that the possibility of a new confrontation with Hezbollah is "very low," saying the recent war "changed the situation in south Lebanon" in Israel's favor. Meanwhile, the Israeli military intelligence department said Assad was seriously considering the possibility of waging war against Israel. The Maariv daily reported the Israeli army increased the possibility of a war with Syria from a "low level to a higher one."
It said over the past decades, military intelligence assessments were steady in the sense that Syria had no real military choice against Israel.
But a "basic change" occurred in that regard for the Israeli intelligence, "which now considers that the military option has become a realistic choice for Damascus and the Syrian military command is studying it seriously," Maariv said.
Report: Israel has abandoned efforts to kill Nasrallah for now
The Associated Press
Published: September 29, 2006
JERUSALEM Israel has quietly backed off from its plan to assassinate Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah because of the international condemnation that his killing would create, the Israeli daily Maariv reported Friday.
During the 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah that ended Aug. 14, Israel had targeted the Hezbollah leader for assassination, security officials said, according to Maariv. In a successful effort to evade assassination, Nasrallah went underground, though he repeatedly recorded videos from his hiding place that were broadcast on Lebanese television. When the war ended, the army recommended that the efforts to kill Nasrallah be called off because his assassination would lead to mass international criticism of Israel and would ignite an even more violent war, Maariv reported. However, the government declined to call off the hunt, the newspaper reported. Nasrallah emerged from hiding on Sept. 22 to address a massive rally in Lebanon celebrating Hezbollah's fight against Israel. Israel army officials determined they could assassinate him with an airstrike during the rally, but dozens of bystanders would also be killed, Maariv reported. The government decided an airstrike was not worth the risk, and accepted the army's recommendation that it should abandon efforts to kill Nasrallah for the time being, the newspaper reported. However, the government did not make a formal decision regarding Nasrallah. Israeli government spokesman Miri Eisin declined to confirm whether Nasrallah had been a target or if he no longer was being pursued. "We've always said that any terrorist should feel that his activities put him under our eye," she said.
JERUSALEM Israel has quietly backed off from its plan to assassinate Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah because of the international condemnation that his killing would create, the Israeli daily Maariv reported Friday.
During the 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah that ended Aug. 14, Israel had targeted the Hezbollah leader for assassination, security officials said, according to Maariv. In a successful effort to evade assassination, Nasrallah went underground, though he repeatedly recorded videos from his hiding place that were broadcast on Lebanese television. When the war ended, the army recommended that the efforts to kill Nasrallah be called off because his assassination would lead to mass international criticism of Israel and would ignite an even more violent war, Maariv reported. However, the government declined to call off the hunt, the newspaper reported. Nasrallah emerged from hiding on Sept. 22 to address a massive rally in Lebanon celebrating Hezbollah's fight against Israel. Israel army officials determined they could assassinate him with an airstrike during the rally, but dozens of bystanders would also be killed, Maariv reported. The government decided an airstrike was not worth the risk, and accepted the army's recommendation that it should abandon efforts to kill Nasrallah for the time being, the newspaper reported. However, the government did not make a formal decision regarding Nasrallah. Israeli government spokesman Miri Eisin declined to confirm whether Nasrallah had been a target or if he no longer was being pursued. "We've always said that any terrorist should feel that his activities put him under our eye," she said.
Hizb'allah still threatens Israel and US
Source: Voice of America-September 29, 2006
Top US counter-terrorism experts told a congressional committee Thursday that Hizb'allah remains a most potent threat to both Israel and America. The testimony countered claims by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert that the war he conducted against Hizb'allah this summer had neutralized the group as a fighting force. A senior FBI official said Hizb'allah remains one of the world's most capable terrorist organizations, with the ability not only to bombard Israel, but also to strike at American interests anywhere in the world.
Syria defies US threat and backs Hamas, HezbollahPublished: Friday, 29 September, 2006,
DAMASCUS: Syria will keep supporting Hamas and Hezbollah despite US threats to impose more sanctions on it, a government newspaper said yesterday. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice threatened this week to toughen sanctions Washington imposed on Syria in 2004, mainly because of its support for the two movements, which Washington regards as "terrorist organisations". "Syria is more determined to stand by the resistance until the land is liberated and Israel is defeated," an editorial in the newspaper Baath said. Both Hezbollah and Hamas refuse to recognise Israel.
"If the US administration is serious about combating terrorism then it should play a constructive role in pushing forward the peace process on the basis of UN resolutions 242 and 338," the newspaper said. The UN resolutions, passed decades ago, emphasise the inadmissibility of acquiring territory through war, call on Israel to withdraw from Arab land it has occupied since 1967 and call for negotiations to reach a "just and durable peace" in the Middle East. "Absolute US support for Israel is one of the main causes behind regional instability. The US has helped Israel in the UN stand against any proposal for a comprehensive settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict," the newspaper said. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem told the UN General Assembly this week that the world pays the price when the US government thinks it knows what Arabs want better than the Arabs themselves. Diplomats in Damascus say Washington was also angered by the Syrian response to an attack carried out by Muslim militants on the US embassy in Damascus on September 12. Syrian security forces foiled the attack, but Syrian officials later said US policies in the region and US support for Israel were to blame because they had provoked the four Syrians who carried out the attack. – Reuters
The Israel-Hezbollah conflict and the Church
By Father Alphonse de Valk, C.S.B.
Issue: September, 2006
The current conflict between the Israeli-USA coalition on the one hand and the Hamas-Lebanon-Hezbollah-Islam connection on the other has many people baffled: which side to defend, which one to condemn? The parties themselves have no doubts.
Hamas, elected as government of Palestine in January, refuses to recognize present-day Israel. Hezbollah has been lobbing rockets into Israel with the same message, while Iran has provided the weapons. Worst of all, Islam has blessed the violence, including that of suicide bombers. This has introduced an element of inhuman fanaticism.
The Israeli-American alliance presents the conflict as one between terrorism and democracy. In this view, Israel is the frontline of Western civilization. The United States provides it with the weapons and the diplomatic clout to hold opponents at bay. After the small—but most violent—Muslim group al Qaeda destroyed the World Trade Center in New York on September 11, 2001, the United States declared war on terrorism everywhere, leading to the invasions of Afghanistan, and in 2003, that of Iraq, both still theatres of ongoing war. Meanwhile, in the minds of many people in the West the entire Muslim world has now morphed into one vast camp of terrorists.
Nothing inflames the spirit more than war. In time of war, wrote the historian Christopher Dawson in 1937, “rational thought is practically suspended and passion becomes a virtue. The remotest suggestion that there is anything to be said on the other side, or that the enemy is capable of the smallest degree of human behaviour, is regarded as a kind of immoral madness” (Tablet, Mar. 13). We seem to be coming to this state of affairs again.
In Canada, the Jewish-owned National Post represents Israel. It holds that the war started when Lebanon’s-Hezbollah killed three Israeli soldiers and abducted two on July 12, 2006. This act, in turn justified everything that followed, including the killing and wounding of thousands, and the economic and structural obliteration of Lebanon as a functioning state. The newspaper supports the American position that the Israelis should be given more time to eradicate Hezbollah, so as to prepare for Condoleeza Rice’s “new lasting order in the Middle East.”
Language is deteriorating. One of the Post writers speaks of Hezbollah as “cockroaches” to be crushed and exterminated (C. Black, Aug. 5). Another states: “Anyone arguing that the West should remain neutral looks either a fool or a scoundrel” (Fulford, Aug. 5). The Toronto Star thinks the Catholic Church is “neutral” (July 29); the Church, therefore, would fall under Mr. Fulford’s condemnation.
The Catholic Church is not neutral. She never is. But she does have a different perspective from the warring parties, as demonstrated in the past as well as today. She looks at the world “sub aeternitatis.” The Christian view of history goes beyond the events of the moment to dwell on good and evil, the mystery of faith, the reality of Jesus Christ, and the divine direction of God.
The Church looks upon terrorism with horror because it is an extreme form of violence. But all violence, beginning with the murder of Abel (Genesis 4), is the consequence of sin, whether of injustice or injury to human dignity. Hence, Pope Benedict throughout July, week after week, called for prayer and an “immediate cessation” of the fighting, to the discomfort of Israel and the United States which called for more time for more war.
While acknowledging Israel’s right to defend itself, the Church does not see the conflict in terms of terrorism versus democracy but, rather, as between an Islamic religion deformed by hatred and Western nation states such as Israel and the United States burdened with their own misconceptions. Christianity continues to emphasize friendship and dialogue as the only true way to peace and reconciliation.
Popes, too, are doubtful about states claiming to create a “new order.” In 1939, Pius XII noted, “To hope for a decisive change exclusively from the shock of war and its issue is idle, as experience shows” (Summa pontificatus, October 1939).
The Church’s stand always annoys the partisans. On August 5, Conrad Black wrote in the National Post: “Pope Benedict XVI is a good deal less woolly about Islam… than John Paul II, but he still has one Pradaclad foot in the pail of moral relativism” (“Cockroaches of the Middle East”). On August 9, the same paper gave as examples of the 1938 “spirit of appeasement the “fantasies of Chamberlain, Daladier and Pope Pius.” The references to Benedict and Pius are untrue, indeed worthless.
FBI: Hizbullah still a threat
US counterterror experts testify that group continues to threaten Lebanese government, Israel and has ability to launch an attack on the US as well. FBI official: Hizbullah sympathizers in US raise money through money laundering, drug trafficking and fraud
Ynet and AP Latest Update: 09.28.06, 21:47
US Counterterrorism officials on Thursday testified that Hizbullah's capable, well-trained fighters continue to threaten the survival of Lebanon's government, Israel and US interests around the world. Frank Urbancic, a State Department counterterrorism official, told the House of Representatives International Relations Committee that Hizbullah enjoys a symbiotic relationship with Iran and Syria , receiving money, arms and training. Army chief makes it clear that if terror group members continue to demonstrate and hurl stones at vehicles near fence, IDF will not hesitate to open fire at them. He also tells ministers IDF issued warning to Lebanese army that any use of military equipment, including intelligence means, will constitute violation of ceasefire Counterterrorism official with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, John Kavanagh, called Hizbullah one of the world's most capable terrorist groupsA well-trained guerrilla force that is proficient in military tactics and weaponry. Hizbullah's leader Hassan Nasrallah recently told thousands of supporters that the group still has 20,000 rockets.
Threat to US?
Kavanagh said that although Hizbullah has the ability to launch an attack on the United States, it has not done so since the 1996 attack on the Khobar Towers dormitory in Saudi Arabia that killed 19 US military personnel. Hizbullah sympathizers in the United States, Kavanagh said, have laundered money, trafficked drugs and engaged in bank and credit card fraud.
Hizbullah has acted as a willing partner in Iran's long-standing efforts to combat US interests it perceives as at odds with its own, Urbancic said. That relationship, he testified, remained firm throughout the 34 days of fighting between Israel and Hizbullah that ended with a cease-fire last month.
We believe that Hizbullah's decision to exacerbate the conflict with indiscriminate rocket attacks into Israel targeting Israeli civilians could not have happened without at least the tacit support of Tehran, Urbancic said. Hizbullah's military profile has recently dipped in the south, he said, although it was unclear to officials if that was because of political concerns or losses suffered in the war. He said that Hizbullah has deep roots and broad support, noting its quick reconstruction and humanitarian work after the fighting with Israel ended, Well in advance of international donor efforts. A US indictment alleges that a smuggling ring in the state of Michigan dealt in contraband cigarettes and other items, steering some of the profits to Hizbullah guerrillas. Last May sources told the New York Post that Hizbullah may be planning to activate sleeper cells in New York and other big cities to stage an attack as the nuclear showdown with Iran heats up. No information pointing to imminent attack The FBI and Justice Department have launched urgent new probes in New York and other cities targeting members of the Lebanese terror group, the Post said. Law-enforcement and intelligence officials told The Post that about a dozen hard-core supporters of Hizbullah have been identified in recent weeks as operating in the New York area. The nationwide effort to neutralize Hizbullah sleepers in the United States, headed by the FBI and the Justice Department's counterterrorism divisions, was launched in January in response to reports that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad met with leaders of Hizbullah and other terror groups during a visit to Syria. Among those attending the meetings, according to reports, was Hizbullah’s chief operational planner, Imad Mugniyah, who is responsible for the bombings of the 1983 US Marine barracks in Beirut and who, more recently, provided Iraqi guerrillas with sophisticated explosive devices. The Post reported that US officials stressed there is no intelligence information pointing to an imminent attack by Hizbullah. However, officials did say that they have detected increased activity by Hizbullah operatives - including more heated rhetoric by its leaders and in internet chat rooms as the US-Iran showdown heats up.
First Published: 09.28.06, 20:03
Radical Islamist extradited from Lebanon
: 9/29/2006-Source ::: AFP
SYDNEY • A radical Australian Islamist who had been jailed in Lebanon has gone on hunger strike after being extradited to face charges of shooting up a Sydney police station, his lawyer said yesterday. Wanted fugitive Saleh Jamal, 31, is protesting Australia’s political system after arriving back in the country that he has warned he would try to harm if he was forced to return here, said defence attorney Adam Houda. “He’s not happy about the political situation (in Australia). I don’t want to go into it,” Houda said, adding that Jamal had been on hunger strike since he was arrested in Lebanon. Jamal, accused of opening fire on a Sydney police station in November 1998 and later shooting and wounding a man in a separate incident, appeared in court after arriving at Sydney airport accompanied by detectives. He left Australia in March 2004 while on bail on the two shooting charges but was jailed in Beirut in February after being caught with a false passport. News reports here said he was sentenced by a Lebanese military court to five years in jail for possessing weapons and explosives, forging the Australian passport, forming a group and planning acts that endangered state security.
But his lawyer angrily rejected claims that Jamal was a convicted terrorist. “That’s not true. He served time in a Lebanese jail for falsifying documents — no terror-related offence,” he told reporters. “All he wants now is to be afforded his due process as per his rights as an Australian citizen.” The suspect reportedly discovered radical Islam while in jail in Australia and warned in an prison interview with an Australian paper last week he would attempt to harm the country, which he said should be put under Islamic law.
Toronto man facing deportation to Lebanon takes case to media
By LAUREN LA ROSE The Canadian Press
TORONTO — Rawad Reda fought back tears before supporters and students at his former high school Thursday, as the young man facing deportation to war-ravaged Lebanon pleaded his case to remain in Canada. Reda, who has lived in Canada for six years, received a letter from immigration officials Aug. 29, informing him that he was denied extension of his study permit and was required to leave Canada immediately.The notice came just days before he was to start a three-year aviation program at Georgian College in Barrie, Ont., north of Toronto, and as a result he may have to forfeit his year. Reda’s lawyer, Chantal Desloges, said no reasons were listed for the decision in the letter.
"How do they expect me to go back to Lebanon and survive when I have no chance to get my education, no chance to get a job?" Reda said to a hushed crowd of about 150 people gathered in the foyer of Toronto’s Jarvis Collegiate. Reda’s hometown of Aitaa al-Chaab, a southern Lebanese border village, was hit hard in bombings this summer during the Lebanese-Israeli conflict. Due to conflicts between his parents, Reda moved in with his aunt and uncle in Mississauga, Ont., who became his legal guardians. He applied for permanent residence on humanitarian and compassionate grounds in November 2004, and is still awaiting response on that application.
An application to extend his temporary status was rejected in June, and while filing a second application, the conflict broke out in Lebanon.
A package of additional submissions was filed with the immigration department proving that Rawad’s village was devastated by the war, but the second application was rejected in August.Responses to a judicial review filed with the Federal Court stated that they were not satisfied Reda is a bona fide student, and that he was no longer in danger to return Lebanon because of the ceasefire in effect, Desloges said.
The responses are "a stunning example of the triumph of bureaucracy over plain, common sense," Desloges said.
"His native country is in significant turmoil and difficulty," she said. "What purpose is served by asking this young man to leave Canada immediately?"
Desloges drafted a request for intervention to Immigration Minister Monte Solberg earlier this month, which was submitted by Mississauga Liberal MPs Omar Alghabra and Paul Szabo.Alghabra, Szabo, interim Liberal Leader Bill Graham and New Democrat MP Olivia Chow have all written to Solberg concerning the case, and a website, www.letrawadstay.com, has been set up to allow supporters to write messages to Solberg on Reda’s behalf.Reda’s aunt, Louise Hamade, said her nephew faces a life on the streets if he is forced to return to Lebanon and that family members in Beirut are already facing hardship."Their homes were destroyed — they have a hard time feeding their own children."
Reda is the not the first foreign-born Toronto youth to face deportation in recent months. Another Jarvis student, Matthew Nguyen, faced deportation this past summer after family members illegally brought the 18-year-old and his two sisters to Canada from France eight years ago after their mother died. The Ministry of Immigration gave Nguyen a temporary resident’s permit July 20, allowing him to stay in Canada for a period of three years.
A spokeswoman for Solberg, Lesley Harmer, said Thursday privacy regulations prevent the minister from commenting on any individual cases.
Reda said that while he’s "stuck in limbo," uncertain of his fate, he’s trying his best to cope. "It’s very disappointing, and I just can’t help worrying about my future," Reda said, sniffling and choking back tears.