Suleiman from the South: Lebanon is not a Platform for Launching Rockets

Lebanese President Michel Suleiman said everyone must respect Lebanon and its sovereignty and not to turn it into a platform for launching rockets.
The president stressed that this can no longer be tolerated following the deployment of the Lebanese armed forces and United Nations International Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL) that are working on implementing UNSCR 1701.

During an inspection visit to the south of Lebanon on Saturday accompanied by Defense Minister Elias el-Murr and Chief of Armed Forces Gen. Jean Qahwaji, Suleiman said: “Lebanon is an oasis of understanding and not an arena for conflicts and for settling scores.”

“Lebanon continues to support the righteous Palestinian cause, and in particular the Palestinian right of return to their homes, meaning a rejection for settling them in Lebanon,” Suleiman said.

He pointed to continued Israeli violations against Lebanon’s sovereignty, violation of UNSCR 1701 and occupation of Lebanese territories.

“This is an aggression against Lebanese security and stability, it threatens our economy and the livelihood of Lebanese,” Suleiman explained.

He called on Israel to respect its international commitments in implementing international resolutions and law.

The president pointed to the importance of the Lebanese military institution adding it must remain far removed from any political polarizations, stressing that the military must present a transparent image of their institution as should all state institutions do. He stressed that the state reverence must not be shaken in particular at the upcoming spring elections.

Suleiman rejected the saying that the military could easily be divided.

“The army contrary to what was being said in the past cannot be divided. This is the rule today; this has been achieved with the sacrifices made by the military to maintain the country and allow state institutions to function properly,” president said.

UNIFIL Commander Major General Claudio Graziano and other high leading officers received Suleiman at Naqoura. The president placed a wreath at the UNIFIL memorial in south Lebanon.

Major General Graziano briefed the president on the investigations concerning the adduction of two Lebanese farmers by Israeli forces (the farmers were later returned to Lebanon) and the discovery of Katyousha rockets placed close to the Lebanese-Israeli border.

The UNIFIL Commander stated that 5 of the posted rockets were 122- mm caliber and two of 105-mm. Caliber.

From Naqoura Suleiman headed to Qana, he was received by MP Ali Khraeis and a number of municipality heads. He placed a wreath at the Qana memorial.

The president moved to the military barracks at Sour (Tyre) he addressed the military saying: “UNSCR 1701 has not been implemented, there are daily and many Israeli violations by Israel. There is also the Ghajar village that remains occupied. There is not border dispute there, there are the Shebaa farms and that Kfar Shouba hills…Israel must implement its international commitments, the international community is responsible for following up the implementation of these commitments.”

“We also have to pay attention to fighting terrorism. We shall do so with our full will. If we have the will we would conquer terrorism. What is important is that terrorists feel that we are strongly capable, that we are not afraid that we won’t run away,” Suleiman said.

Russian Threat to American Hegemony Persists with Jets to Lebanon

More people, sending more weapons to the Middle East — marvelous.

Despite announcing plans to increase military support to Lebanon’s army, the U.S. has stalled, prompting Russia to step in. Ten new fighter jets are to be sent to strengthen Lebanon’s weak Air Force as Russia continues to challenge American supremacy and shift the balance of power.

The move, announced by Lebanese Defense Minister Elias Murr, who met with Russia’s military director Mikhail Dimitriev in Beirut recently, capitalizes on weakened American prestige and foreshadows a sign of strengthening ties between the two countries. Moscow is not selling the powerful MIG-29 fighter-bombers (which usually go for $30 million a piece) to Lebanon, they are giving it to them for free. The bombers, built to challenge the American F-16 fighter jets, are precisely the caliber of weapons Lebanese have been looking forward to and the U.S. was reluctant to give to Israel’s politically unstable neighbor.

Since Lebanon emerged from Syria’s shadow several years ago, the U.S. has played a leading role in arming the Lebanese Armed Forces, though they have hesitated to offer advanced weaponry to appease Israeli fears that the weapons could end up in the hands of Hezbollah.

Hezbollah’s assimilation into the Lebanese government and the prospect of renewed political power following the parliamentary elections next spring makes the possibility a plausibility, if not, probability.

After suffering serious losses during the 2006 summer war with Israel, Hezbollah reportedly increased its weapons arsenal three-fold, though they should have disarmed. Yet as they argued quite convincingly in the last war, they are the only group able to fend off a possible attack from Israel. Even though many tanks remain stationed at Beirut’s intersections (with an especially large presence around the downtown Solider area), everyone in Lebanon knows the antiquated equipment of the Lebanese Armed Forces hardly matches Hezbollah’s replenishing arsenal.

Russia is playing a perilous game. In challenging America, the world’s second-largest exporter of conventional arms after the U.S., it has pursued selling arms to a list of buyers (Syria, Iran and Venezuela) that are in-coincidentally America and Israel’s biggest foes. A move, as provocative as it is precarious.

But Russia isn’t only focused on using weapons and American enemies, they are also using natural resources and American friends. America is conveniently the world’s largest consumer of natural gas. Russia, Iran and Qatar control 60% of the world’s gas reserves, providing nearly a third of world natural gas exports. In partnering with Iran, America’s biggest foe in the Middle East, and Qatar, America’s biggest ally, Russia is looking to gain global political clout.

The eventual increase in oil prices will likely prompt businesses and governments to explore cleaner-burning natural gas. While the new gas cartel will not be nearly as influential as OPEC, since gas markets have not yet formed a proper global market, they could still heavily influence prices.

Two days before Christmas, Russia and 15 other gas exporters, including Algeria, Egypt, Libya, and Venezuela, are expected to officially launch the creation of the organization.

Russia has already began flexing its muscles. It has tightened the supply of natural gas that reached the European Union, which relies on Russia for almost half of its imports and previously stopped the flow of gas to Belarus after the country refused to pay doubled rates per Gazprom’s request.

Just today, a spokesman for Russia’s Gazprom said it intended to cut off natural gas supplies to Ukraine it if failed to pay $2 billion in gas debt.

Back in November, when Barack Obama was chosen to lead America, Russia’s leader, Demitri Medvedev announced the end of American hegemony and the deployment of missiles near it’s border with Poland in a noticeably hostile address given within hours of Obama’s victory speech.

“The world cannot be ruled from one capital,” he said. “Those who do not want to understand this will only create new problems for themselves.”

Since then, Russia has canceled past plans to withdraw intercontinental ballistic missile regiments from its borders with Europe and announced a series of arms deal.

While the terms of the Lebanese deal have yet to be finalized, it is expected to include training for Lebanese military servicemen in Russia and eventually may lead to the possible sale of Russian armor.

Ever since invading Georgia this past summer, Russia’s has set to establish closer ties with many U.S. enemies. President Hugo Chavez, a loud critic of America, recently signed an arms deals worth $4.4 billion with Russia. Next came news that Russia sent two long-range bombers and warships to Libertador Air Base in Venezuela for military exercises.

Sure, this is all just a classic case of saber-rattling, but how often does a country spend about $300 million dollars to send fighter jets to a country without another agenda?

The motto of Lebanon’s Armed Forces is “Honor, Sacrifice and Loyalty,” but their loyalties may start to shift from America elsewhere particularly if Russia continues to offer what the U.S. cannot.

At a famous fish restaurant on Beirut’s corniche a waiter overheard me speaking English on the phone and asked me where I lived. I told him I had arrived in Beirut from New York, to which he replied, “Ah, America. I’ve been to Venezuela. You know Chavez? He is very, very good.”

Russia ‘to give’ Lebanon war jets

Moscow is to give 10 MiG-29 fighter jets to Lebanon free of charge, says Russia’s state news agency Interfax.

The head of the Russia’s defence cooperation body, Mikhail Dmitriyev, said the consignment was “a form of military and technical assistance”.

“We view the Lebanese army as the main guarantor of this nation’s stability, therefore the armed forces of this country must be strengthened,” he said.

Delivery of the jets to Lebanon will also be paid for by the Russians.

Mr Dmitriyev said the jets would be fully repaired and upgraded before being delivered.

He added that the two countries were also discussing a possible sale of Russian armour to Beirut, reported Reuters. Hr said this was possible because of Lebanon’s recent stability.

Lebanon’s military capability is greatly outweighed by Arab neighbour Syria, with which is has a history of sometimes strained relations, and the Jewish state Israel which lies to the south.

Lebanon and Israel have never signed a peace treaty and Israeli fighter jets continually violate Lebanese airspace in what the Israeli military describes as reconnaissance missions, but which are condemned by the United Nations.

A lesson for Lebanon from its ancient Phoenician past

MAAMELTEIN: “If you don’t go back to the past, you can’t live now,” says Oussama Rahbani, the musical talent behind “The Return of the Phoenix,” a play steeped in the history of Lebanon that is making an encore run through December 21 at the Casino du Liban after debuting at the Byblos International Festival this past summer.

The play, written by Mansour Rahbani and directed by Marwan Rahbani, follows last year’s historical production by the Rahbani brothers, “Zenobia,” an epic centered around the ancient queen of Palmyra. However, while the past often serves as inspiration for the renowned Lebanese dramatists, “The Return of the Phoenix” is the first time that their own country’s history formed the basis for a production.

“Like any civilization, the Phoenicians had good points and bad points,” Oussama Rahbani told The Daily Star in an interview. “They were dealing in commerce, in trading, they were traveling a lot. However, they didn’t build a united culture, they were more individualistic.”

“The Phoenicians focused on the city-state. But doing in this, you are alone. Saida alone, Beirut alone, Tripoli alone. Then when Alexander the Great invaded, it was one-on-one,” Rahbani noted.

“The Return of the Phoenix” ponders the shortcomings of Lebanon’s past inhabitants in order to prod the country’s current residents into improving their collective lot. While it takes place in the northern coastal city of Jbeil, or Byblos, some 3,000 years ago, the political dynamics are instantly recognizable to those familiar with today’s Lebanon.

The king of Jbeil, played by Antoine Kerbaj, and other Lebanese city-state rulers have entered into an uneasy alliance with the kingdom of Egypt. However, these ties don’t sit well with some sections of the population, as the Egyptians are seeking to control the country’s natural resources – the Phoenicians’ lucrative ports and imposing cedar forests.

Majdo, the play’s underprivileged protagonist played by Ghassan Saliba, has had enough of the alliance and wants to spark a revolution to liberate Jbeil and the rest of Lebanon. As in present-day politics, however, there are those who do not wish to rock the Phoenicians’ boats. They admonish Majdo early in the play for his independent aspirations: “You revolutionaries are just making things worse.”

The production’s female lead, played by newcomer Hiba Tawji as the king of Jbeil’s daughter Roxanne, falls somewhere in the middle on the political spectrum, not entirely eager for foreign entanglements, but too pragmatic for Majdo’s all-or-nothing politics. In probing her father’s inaction after the Egyptians seize the city’s priest, she teases out from him the underlying reason for the alliance: “The Egyptians are nothing compared to the Hessiyeen.”

A rival empire to the east, the Hessiyeen have their eye on Lebanon’s natural wealth and launch a plot to be the country’s new overlords. With a bag of tricks familiar to observers of current domestic and regional politics, the Hessiyeen manage to crawl into bed with Lebanon’s rulers, including ones newly installed by themselves.

The ruling class tries to solicit help from their allies, but greased palms ensure that “the silence of the desert has fallen on the kings of Egypt.”

The king and Roxanne flee to Beirut as Jbeil comes under attack by the Hessiyeen while Majdo and his band of revolutionaries regroup in a village in the countryside.

A budding romance develops between Majdo and the deposed king’s daughter as Roxanne pleads with the would-be liberator not to fight everyone at once. She eventually wins him over, persuading him of the necessity of maintaining the Egyptian alliance.

The rightful king of Jbeil thus returns to his throne, after killing his traitor brother who was on the Hessiyeen’s payroll, with aid from Majdo’s followers.

Majdo calls on the kings of other Phoenician cities to unite in order to “pool our resources and become strong” for an offensive aimed at ridding the country of its “protectors.”

However, a force led by Majdo and the king of Jbeil returns after three days, defeated. The king has been killed, and the invaders are hot on their trail. But as the Hessiyeen surround the city, Roxanne forbids a maritime escape, declaring that she prefers “an honorable death” to flight, shortly before the city is burned.

While “The Return of the Phoenix” is in many ways a commentary on the Lebanese situation, to focus entirely on its not-so-subtle political message would be missing the forest for the trees. The play’s musical score is rich in a variety of melodies ranging from lamentful songs of regret to confident, striding tunes, a charm surpassed only by the singing talent of the cast. Hiba Tawji steals the show, her confident, clear voice pleasurably traversing the formidable obstacle course thrown up by the play’s demanding score.

The choreography is also of note, with dancers from Studio Arabesque filling out the stage with novel movements that capture the emotion of the moment, from dreamlike, pensive sequences to riled townspeople looking for revenge.

Perhaps the nicest touch to an already well-shaped production lies in its ending. Seeing the aspirations and efforts of the familiar characters amount, in the end, to failure, renders them very human and sympathetic. However, the dream of a strong, united Lebanon does not go up in flames with the city, the play’s narrator tells the audience. From the ashes this same aspiration will rise again. Whether they will succeed in the end or not is unknown, but the audience leaves assured that the Phoenix will return.

Syria and Lebanon to boost border, anti-terror controls

DAMASCUS (AFP) — Syria and Lebanon decided on Monday to boost border controls and anti-terrorism coordination, as the two neighbours took a new step to strengthen ties since diplomatic relations were established.

The decision came during the first visit to Damascus by a Lebanese interior minister since the 2005 assassination of Lebanon’s five-time former premier Rafiq Hariri.

Syrian Interior Minister Bassam Abdul Majid in talks with his Lebanese counterpart Ziad Baroud agreed to set up a commission “to put into place the basis of coordination in the fight against terrorism and crime.”

According to a statement read out to reporters after the meeting, the commission would also be tasked with establishing a joint mechanism to police the border.

Baroud was accompanied by Lebanese security chiefs Wafiq Jizzini and Ashraf Rifi.

In Beirut, Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, a leading anti-Syrian figure, criticised the decision to form a joint security commission.

It could lead to “renewed Syrian interference in the affairs of Lebanon,” he warned in an editorial due to appear on Tuesday of his Progressive Socialist Party’s weekly newspaper.

The visit comes almost three months after Lebanese President Michel Sleiman made a landmark visit to Damascus and less than a month after Syria and Lebanon decided to establish diplomatic relations for the first time.

Cross-border smuggling figured high on the agenda of Baroud’s talks, after Syria deployed reinforcements along its border with Lebanon in what it terms an anti-smuggling operation.

Abdul Majid and Baroud discussed means to boost links between their ministries and the two countries’ security services.

The two ministers also reviewed the “confessions” broadcast by Syrian state television last week by alleged Fatah al-Islam militants for a deadly September 27 car bombing in Damascus.

In the broadcast, the suspects said that Fatah al-Islam, an Al-Qaeda-linked group which battled the Lebanese army last year, had links to the anti-Syrian bloc of Saad Hariri, the parliamentary majority leader in Beirut.

Baroud became the first Lebanese interior minister to visit Damascus since Syrian troops pulled out of Lebanon in April 2005 after a 29-year deployment, following charges of Syrian involvement in the murder of Rafiq Hariri.

Damascus has repeatedly denied the charge.