I WANT TO GO HOME

what did happen in Jisr Il Shoughour - Syria ?

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 11:04:00 +0000

Taken from Syria Comment Blog :
http://www.joshualandis.com/blog/?p=10202

What happened at Jisr al-Shagour?
Monday, June 13th, 2011

What happened in the initial attack on Jisr al-Shagour? Many of the stories that were reported by both sides seem to have been filled with falsehoods and exaggeration. The real story is not the fake Gay Girl in Damascus – a juicy distraction that has dominated the airwaves for the last two days – but the way so many journalists cannot check their stories before deadlines because they are not permitted into Syria and don’t understand Arabic. The Syrian government doesn’t even try to add English subtitles to its version of events and Youtube recordings, making them useless to the thousands of foreign reporters who cannot understand Arabic. The result is bad reporting that often relies on one side of the story.

There is little evidence of wide-scale mutiny of Syrian soldiers. No solid evidence that they shot at each other, and some evidence that the young men of Jisr set a trap for Syrian soldiers with simple weapons and dynamite. Individual soldiers do seem to have deserted. Some turned up in Turkey. They seem to have been instructed to exaggerate the defections and to follow a common narrative of soldiers shooting each other in a large conflagration at Jisr. This story is hard to verify, making it seem dubious.

Contrary to the claims of Syrian authorities, 120 Syria soldiers do not seem to have been killed. A single mass grave turned up 10 dead soldiers. Four had their heads cut off. This would seem to have been done by the militia of Jisr, which had some success in fighting the soldiers initially sent to pacify them.

On the question of a scorched earth policy, both sides are claiming that the other is burning crops and threatening innocent civilians with retribution and the destruction of their farms if they side with the enemy. The Syrian government issued these interviews with people from Jisr. My last few posts have linked to accounts from refugees in Turkey that insist that the Syrian authorities are burning crops to punish local inhabitants of Idlib province from giving assistance to the assistance.

The refugees in Turkey told stories of revolt, mutiny and mayhem. Government stories that 120 members of the police and military were killed were explained by the opposition as security forces shooting themselves. The Syrian government then published tapped phone calls of activists in Jisr that it collected on the eve of the initial combat. If they can be taken at face value, the activists establish a plan to send all the women and children of the city to Turkey. They were instructed to tell foreigners that Syrian military personnel shot each other. When enlisted men refused to shoot on unarmed demonstrators, their Alawi officers mowed them down – that was the story to be told to the Western press.

Meanwhile, the men of Jisr organized an ambush. One phone call between two activists goes over how to bury the dead; they discuss whether to bury them in a one grave or divide them up an bury them two by two, so as to better conceal the fact that the opposition had abandoned passive resistance in order to take up arms. They discuss how not to be photoed during prayers so as not to give the regime a pretext to claim that they were Salafists. They wonder how to combat tanks with dynamite. Above all they are anxious to get their story out to the West in the most favorable light so as not to reveal they they have established an armed insurgency and to blame any killings on the Syrian army.

The Syrian army has exaggerated the number of its dead in order to justify ever harsher repression of the inhabitants of Jisr and Idlib province. The governent is thrashing about in a failed effort to stop the demonstrations from spreading. Syrian authorities have utterly failed to get out their version of events and have lost the media contest to demonstrate that they stand for anything good. The West is entirely convinced that “the people” stand with the opposition and favor revolution. Government attempts to explain to Western authorities that they stand with the people and are serving anything other than bloody-mindedness with the repression of the revolt, have been such a failure that Rim Haddad, the head of the government’s media effort has been fired.

Ausama Monajed, A leading Activist resident in London, writes (9 June 2011):

Despite all talk of army defections, we really have to remember that, until recently at least, they remained minor and would not pose a serious threat to the regime. In the few instances when the number of defectors amounted to few dozens, defectors simply tried to play a protective role of the local population rather than going on the offensive. We don’t know what’s happening in Jisr Ashoughour at this stage. The eyewitnesses we contacted don’t seem to support the theory that a major defection has taken place. In this light, the troops-buildup in the northern region could be construed as theatrics meant for domestic consumption. The more tension, the great the fear, the less likely that people will take to the streets in Damascus and Aleppo.

See the excellent article – “Syria on the Boil, US Warship in Black Sea” by Amb. M K Bhadrakumar in the Asia Times, excerpted below.

NEWS ROUND UP (End on my comments)

Turkish PM Backs Pressure on Syria
By Andrew Woodcock,2011-06-13

June 13 (Press Association) — The newly re-elected prime minister of Turkey has given his support to a British-backed effort to put pressure on neighbouring Syria through a resolution at the United Nations Security Council, it was

revealed today. Recep Tayyip Erdogan assured David Cameron of his backing for the move in a phone call last night, in which the Prime Minister congratulated him on securing a third successive election victory for his Justice and Development Party. More than 5,000 Syrians have fled across the border intoTurkey from the town of Jisr al-Shughour as the Damascus regime cracked down on unrest which it claims cost the lives of 120 members of the security forces last week.

Elite Syrian troops backed by helicopters and tanks seized control of the town yesterday in the most significant use of force since protests began in mid-March. Townspeople who reached the Turkish border said that elements of the security forces had mutinied against the Government forces in Jisr al-Shughour on June 3 rather than obey orders to turn their guns against unarmed civilians….

Army uncovers mass grave in northern Syria: witnesses
2011-06-12

DAMASCUS, Jun 12, 2011 (Xinhua via COMTEX) — Syrian army troops uncovered Sunday a mass grave near a security detachment in the violence-hit area of Jisr al-Shughour in northern Syria, local witness said.

According to the witness, the mass grave is believed to contain the remains of 120 police and security men, who were allegedly killed by armed groups in the northern area.

He said more than seven decomposed and decapitated bodies had been exhumed from the mass grave in which marks of torture and distortion were seen. He added that security agents got a confession from Ahmad Rafa, a detainee who has admitted that he, along with another 25 armed men, attacked security and army forces and caused the massacre.

Earlier in the day, Syria’s official SANA news agency said that army units have entered the area of Jisr al-Shughour and began cleansing the national hospital of the elements of armed groups. SANA said the army units have entered the area after dismantling explosives planted by gunmen on roads and bridges, adding that “severe” clashes broke out between the army units and gunmen inside Jisr al-Shughour and its surroundings. It added the army arrested a large number of gunmen and confiscated machine guns from them.

Witnesses in the scene said the army entered under heavy gunfire by armed groups, adding that the army has arrested a large number of gunmen and many others fled the area. They said the hospital has been damaged from inside with smashed windows, adding that the gunmen have set up their own sand barricades and tired to guard against the entry of the army that has been surrounding nearby villages since Friday. A torched ambulance is seen in front of the hospital.

Syrian Troops Find Headless Bodies in Mass Grave
By Andrew Osborn, 2011-06-12

June 12 (Telegraph) — A MASS grave containing the bodies of at least 10 soldiers was discovered by Syrian troops last night in a town stormed by government forces in the north of the country. At least four of the corpses in the grave, found outside the military police headquarters in the town of Jisr al-Shughour, near the Turkish border, had been decapitated or struck on the head by an axe, according to those present. The government claimed the bodies, all still in uniform, were evidence of an attack by “armed gangs” on security forces, which it said claimed 120 lives last week. But residents and some defecting soldiers who have fled over the border claimed the dead were local recruits shot by officers for refusing to open fire on peaceful protesters.

U.N. Says Assad Not Taking Ban Ki-Moon’s Calls: Al Jazeera Link, 2011-06-10

US Calls For Stepped Up Pressure On Syria’s Assad, 2011-06-10

WASHINGTON (AFP)–The United States and its allies are looking to increase pressure on Syrian President Bashar al Assad to step down or allow for a peaceful transition, a State Department spokesman said Friday. “[Assad] has refused to reform, refused even to make any gesture towards reform other than empty rhetoric,” Mark Toner said, as Syria expanded its military crackdown on pro-democracy protests, killing at least 22 people. “We will continue to look at ways we can up the pressure on him. What’s important here is that we make it clear to him that there’s growing pressure against his actions,” he told reporters.

Iran’s Press TV

“Political analysts in Middle East affairs have accused Ankara of playing a double game — claiming to support the Damascus government in order to have greater influence in the Middle East, while at the same time supporting and providing a safe haven for armed gangs seeking to incite revolt in Syria.

Iranian analyst Hadi Mohammadi says that the United States has now formed operational headquarters in southern Turkey close to the border with Syria to direct the riots in the Arab country after its attempts to cause unrest in southern Syria were unsuccessful.

Mohammadi said that the United States has assigned Turkey to carry out its anti-Syria plan. It has hence provided aid to the Turkish Army to assist Syrian dissidents in crossing into Turkey and settle in tent villages set up in Turkey’s Hatay Province. “

Syria on the Boil, US Warship in Black Sea
Amb. M K Bhadrakumar, Asia Times, June 13, 2011

…..The US is stepping up pressure on Russia’s Black Sea fleet. The US’s provocation is taking place against the backdrop of the turmoil in Syria. Russia is stubbornly blocking US attempts to drum up case for Libya-style intervention in Syria. Moscow understands that a major reason for the US to push for regime change in Syria is to get the Russian naval base in that country wound up.

The Syrian base is the only toehold Russia has in the Mediterranean region. The Black Sea Fleet counts on the Syrian base for sustaining any effective Mediterranean presence by the Russian navy. With the establishment of US military bases in Romania and the appearance of the US warship in the Black Sea region, the arc of encirclement is tightening. It is a cat-and-mouse game, where the US is gaining the upper hand.

Ostensibly, the regime headed by Bashar al-Assad is repressive since almost everyday reports are coming out that more bloodshed has taken place. But the Western reports are completely silent as to the assistance that the Syrian opposition is getting from outside. No one is interested in probing or questioning, for instance, the circumstances in which 120 Syrian security personnel could have been shot and killed in one “incident”.

The Western, Saudi, Israeli and Turkish involvement in Syria’s unrest is almost crystal clear but that is beyond the zone of discussion when we speak of “Syria on the boil”. In short, Russia has lost the information war over Syria. Henceforth, its dilemma will be that it will be seen as being obstructionist and illogical when a laudable democratization process is unfolding in Syria and the “Arab Spring” is straining to make an appearance.

Moscow has made it clear that it will not brook a resolution at the United Nations Security Council over Syria, no matter its wording or contents. It also voted against the Western move at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) last week to open a Syria nuclear file – similar to the Iran file – at the UN Security Council.

Moscow’s dilemma is that it cannot openly explain its side of the US’s geopolitical agenda toward Syria. Any such explanation will expose the hollowness of the US-Russia reset, which the Kremlin under President Dmitry Medvedev assiduously worked for. But Washington is not going to let Russia off the hook either. It is certain to tighten the noose around Assad’s neck.

Put simply, the US wants Russia to leave Syria alone for the West to tackle. But Russia knows what follows will be that the Russian naval base there would get shut down by a pro-Western successor regime in Damascus that succeeds Assad.

The stakes are very high. Last year, the deputy head of Russian military intelligence was killed in mysterious circumstances while on an inspection tour of the naval base in Syria. His body was found floating on the Mediterranean off the Turkish coast. To be sure, many intelligence agencies are deeply embroiled in the Syrian broth.

First and foremost, a regime change in Syria has become absolutely critical for breaking Israel’s regional isolation. The US-Israeli hope is that the back of the Hezbollah can be broken only if the regime of Assad is overthrown in Damascus and the Syrian-Iranian alliance is ended. Again, a regime change in Syria will force the Hamas leadership to vacate Damascus. Hamas chief Khalid Meshaal has been living in Damascus under Assad’s protection for several years.

Roland Dumas:

En rejoignant l’Alliance atlantique, Nicolas Sarkozy a déclenché une mécanique meurtrière en Libye qui est en train de tourner à une veillée guerrière incompréhensible à l’encontre de la Syrie. Cette façon de prendre fait et cause pour cette croisade moderne est contraire aux intérêts de la France.

…… Laissons les peuples arabes développer leur « printemps ». Et faisons attention, au nom de la protection des populations civiles, à ne pas instrumentaliser l’ONU pour choisir tel peuple, tel interlocuteur qui nous plaît. Ce n’est pas à nous d’imposer notre vision de la démocratie aux peuples arabes. C’est à eux de la faire émerger.Roland Dumas :

Sen. Graham: Military Force Against Syria Should Be On Table
2011-06-12

Out of the Shadow of Fear
A rare inside look at Syria, a land where the regime rules with a murderous impunity.
Newsweek

The Fall of the House of Assad – By Robin Yassin-Kassab | Foreign Policy

As Islamists Flex Muscle, Egypt’s Christians Despair
BY YAROSLAV TROFIMOV, JUNE 11, 2011 Wall Street Journal

QENA, Egypt—Five weeks after the fall of the Egyptian regime, Ayman Anwar Mitri’s apartment was torched. When he showed up to investigate, he was bundled inside by bearded Islamists.

Mr. Mitri is a member of the Christian Coptic minority that accounts for one-tenth of the country’s 83 million people. The Islamists accused him of having rented the apartment—by then unoccupied—to loose Muslim women.

Inside the burnt apartment, they beat him with the charred remains of his furniture. Then, one of them produced a box cutter and performed what he considered an appropriate punishment under Islam: He amputated Mr. Mitri’s right …

Syrians, not Westerners, will topple Assad The regime is mortally wounded — but British military force cannot finish it off
Malcolm Rifkind, 13 June 2011, thetimes.co.uk

One of my least pleasant experiences as Foreign Secretary was meeting President Hafez al-Assad in Damascus in September 1995. The father of Syria’s current dictator was a cold, ruthless despot. He occasionally smiled with his lips but never with his eyes. He had much blood on his hands. The Hama massacre of 1982 resulted in an estimated 20,000 deaths and has been described as the single deadliest act by any Arab government against its own people in the modern Middle East.

His son, Bashar al-Assad, is not yet in that league but soon may be. The current army assault on Jisr al-Shughour, a town of 50,000 people only 12 miles from the Turkish border, is merely the latest brutal attack by the Syrian military on its own people since the popular uprising began in March.

The Syrian Government is doing what Gaddafi would like to do. We are witnessing the worst killing and repression since the Arab Spring began and, in Syria, it is likely to get much worse. Libya is calm, if only in comparison. Why then does the world seem silent as peaceful Syrian civilians are mown down? Where are the Nato planes? Why does the UN Security Council not act?

The case for diplomatic pressure and economic sanctions against the regime is unanswerable. If the Security Council cannot agree, Britain, the US and the EU should act unilaterally with all the sanctions at their disposal, such as freezing assets and banning the regime’s leaders from travelling.

A military response, however, as is happening in Libya, is not possible, nor would it be sensible. The Arab League would be hostile, the Russians and Chinese would veto it and military strikes by the United States or Britain, without the legitimacy conferred by the UN Security Council are impossible since the ill-conceived Iraq war.

In any event, a no-fly zone and air strikes similar to those being used in Libya would be pointless in Syria. Libya is very unusual in having a vast territory but with a small population living, almost exclusively, close to the main highway running from Tripoli to Benghazi along the northern coast. It is all desert; there are few mountains or valleys. There is no hiding place for Gaddafi’s tanks or artillery on the road between the main towns and cities.

Syria, in contrast, has a large population of around 22 million throughout a country of largely hilly terrain. The Syrian Army is well over 200,000 strong and Nato air power would have little impact except as part of an all-out war.

There is also the not insignificant fact that with operations ongoing in Afghanistan and Libya, neither Britain nor France has the aircraft or the munitions that would be required to be involved in a third conflict in the region.

While these considerations will bring some comfort to the regime in Damascus it is difficult to see how it can survive in the longer term…….

‘A Gay Girl in Damascus,’ Comes Clean
By Melissa Bell and Elizabeth Flock, 2011-06-12

June 12 (Washington Post) — In recent days, the world has followed closely the saga of Amina Araff, the blogger who presented herself online as “A Gay Girl in Damascus” and who drew attention with her passionate writings about the Syrian government’s crackdown on Arab Spring protesters. Those writings stopped suddenly last Tuesday, and a posting to the blog, ostensibly written by a cousin, said she had been hauled away by government security agents. News of her disappearance became an Internet and media sensation. The U.S. State Department started an investigation. But almost immediately skeptics began asking: Has anyone ever actually met Amina? Two days after her disappearance, images presented on her blog as being of Amina were revealed to have been taken from the Facebook page of a London woman. And on Sunday, the truth spilled out: The gay girl in Damascus confessed to being a 40-year-old American man from Georgia……

Britta Froelicher, wife of ‘A Gay Girl in Damascus,’ talks about being caught in her husband’s ‘hurricane’
By Melissa Bell

Man Behind Syrian Blogger Hoax: Something ‘Innocent … Got Out Of …

Jun 13, 2011 … Tom MacMaster said he created an online character and suddenly he didn’t know how to end it. In an interview with NPR, he said that if his … Got Out Of Hand’

Nikolaos van Dam: Tragically, a bloodbath may now be inevitable
Saturday, 11 June 2011, Telegraph

The latest actions of the Syrian regime yesterday indicate that all this is bound to lead to further bloody confrontation. The leadership knows that it is in danger, but it simply will not give up peacefully.

After all, it has seen what happened in Egypt, where Hosni Mubarak faces jail or perhaps even the death penalty.

So who is controlling the situation? It is clear that Bashar al-Assad doesn’t have his own army and security people under control, and indeed, maybe never did. Bashar was parachuted on to the top of the regime to prevent disunity among the officers and ensure continuity, taking over from his father, Hafez, but that doesn’t mean he has much power. He is not the one who issues the orders to shoot and kill; it is those who for tens of years have got used to acting with violence and intimidation. It was telling that a few weeks ago, the President’s spokeswoman said Assad had ordered that there should be no more shooting, but it simply went on. He was apparently not in charge. But that does not mean that as president he is not fully responsible.

The situation is very different to Egypt, where the military is, more or less, still in place after the downfall of Mubarak. In Syria, the military is much more closely linked to the president. If he goes, his inner circle goes, albeit not without bloody confrontation. The leadership faces a major dilemma: reform could end this conflict, but they realise that any real reform will in the end lead to the disappearance of the present regime and the monopoly of the Baath Party.

The Syrian government is trying to start a national dialogue but I haven’t seen any signs yet to suggest that the opposition wants to talk, unless certain preconditions are being met. The regime, after all, started this violence, and now it seems to be receiving it back. The regime reported that 120 of its forces died in Jisr al-Shughour at the hands of armed gangs, while some witnesses have suggested that it was in fact fighting between the military and its own defectors. If the violence at Jisr al-Shughour was because of defections then the regime really is in trouble.

The biggest danger to the regime is from within the armed forces. There will be some in the military who simply completely disagree with the atrocities which are taking place. Events may encourage them to plot against the regime and that could lead to the bloodiest confrontation yet.

Nikolaos van Dam is a former Dutch ambassador and has written extensively about Syria. The fourth edition of his book ‘The Struggle for Power in Syria’ has just been released.

CFR.org: After Assad, Democracy In Syria?
by Elliott Abrams, 2011-06-10

Posted on Friday, June 10, 2011 by Elliott Abrams The bloody war that the Assad regime is waging against the people of Syria will end in the downfall of the regime. Whether that will take months or years is impossible to say; how many peaceful …

Belfer Center: “Syria Can Prove that Sanctions Do Work”, 2011-06-10

“Syria Can Prove that Sanctions Do Work” Op-Ed, Financial Times June 9, 2011 Author: Joseph S. Nye, Harvard University…..

Sanctions’ sceptics trot out a familiar litany, from the failure of a trade embargo to topple Fidel Castro in Cuba to the failure of sanctions to remove Saddam Hussein in Iraq. But evidence suggests such measures can be effective. A careful study by the Peterson Institute of 115 uses of economic sanctions by major countries between 1950 and 1990 concluded that, in about a third of cases, they helped those wielding them achieve their goals. The research shows they were most likely to be successful when this objective was modest and clear, the target was in a weakened position, economic links were significant, sanctions were heavy, and the duration was limited — conditions which partly apply in Syria today.

Even such positive statistics miss the more important question, namely what the alternative might be. The probability of success via sanctions may be relatively low — as is probably the case in Syria — but the relevant issue is whether it is higher than any alternative. Military power is sometimes effective, but its costs are also often high too, particularly in regions such as the Middle East.

Analysis: In Syria, army will be the key
By JONATHAN SPYER, 06/14/2011 01:59

If the opposition can split the military, the prize will be control over the republic and the result will be impossible to predict.

In the aftermath of the taking of Jisr al-Shughour by the Syrian army, it has become clear that the direction of events in Syria depends largely on the cohesiveness of Bashar Assad’s security forces.

If the army remains largely united behind the leadership of the dictator, the brutal repression of the protests looks set to continue.

Erdogan victory speech: A middle eastern leader – hurriyet

…In his victory speech, which has come to be nicknamed the “balcony speech,” as he addressed his followers from his party headquarters’ balcony, the prime minister did not mention even once Europe, the European Union or the West.

Well aware that he will be watched by international audiences, he preferred to address the world as a Middle Eastern leader, rather than a European or Western leader.

He started his speech by saluting “all friendly and brotherly nations from Baghdad, Damascus, Beirut, Cairo, Sarajevo, Baku and Nicosia.”

Later on he said, “The hopes of the victims and the oppressed have won,” and, “Beirut has won as much as İzmir. West Bank, Gaza, Ramallah, Jerusalem have won as much as Diyarbakır. The Middle East, the Caucasus and the Balkans have won, just as Turkey has won.”

Ankara revisits Syrian policy

Now that elections are over, Turkey must evaluate if it will stay on the side of Bashar al Assad or move in a confrontation that may undermine turkish investments in Syria and may also antagonize other arab countries (like Egypt) who sees with annoyance that Erdogan is seeing himself as leader of the region.

Le Monde:

“Erdogan se voit comme le leader de la Turquie, mais aussi de toute la région”

My opinion is that he will back off from criticizing the Syrian government, he has too much to loose.

Why Syria will get away with it
By Gideon Rachman

As Syrian tanks prepared to advance on Jisr al-Shughour late last week, Robert Gates, the US defence secretary, launched an offensive of his own. In a speech in Brussels, he dismissed most of America’s European allies as a useless bunch of timewasters. I paraphrase – but not much.

Mr Gates pointed out that while all Nato countries had voted to intervene in Libya, most had chosen not to participate in the actual fighting. Even those European countries that are taking part began to run short of munitions just 11 weeks into the fighting – forcing an exasperated America to step into the breach. More broadly, a situation in which the US accounts for 75 per cent of the military spending in Nato was “unacceptable” and unsustainable. If it is not rectified, Mr Gates predicted, Nato faces a “dismal” future.

The conjunction of the Gates speech and the Syrian civil war is very telling. It explains why a 20-year experiment with the idea that western military force can put the world to rights is coming to a close.

Just a few weeks ago, that would have seemed a surprising conclusion. Supporters of “liberal interventionism” hailed the decision to bomb Colonel Gaddafi’s forces in Libya as evidence of a longed-for new era, in which dictators can no longer feel free to massacre their own people.

However a western failure to intervene, as the Syrian army brutalises and kills its own citizens, is likely to be a more accurate guide to the future than the Libyan campaign…

Money is not the only problem, however. Over the past 20 years it has become apparent that swiftly agreed-upon military actions can lead to entanglements that last for many years. There is still a Nato mission in Kosovo and an EU military mission in Bosnia, more than a decade after the fighting ended in both places.
As for Afghanistan – that conflict has now lasted almost twice as long as the second world war. Western governments are also only beginning to come to terms with what may soon be required in Libya. Against this background, there are very few takers for yet another military venture – this time in Syria.

Syria Ya Syria

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 10:55:00 +0000

I kept on saying to myself , it is too late to get into the whole arabspring now after all this time. But het , it is never too late to blog again ... i have been active on the net since the start of the so called arabspring in tunisia , been tweeting and publishing on all social media platforms, but i missed my blog...

i will try to re-update news that i am following... and hope i can pick this blog back on track after a long silence...

peace

The Daily Star - Politics - Israel plays down talk of attacking Lebanon

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 14:18:00 +0000

ooooo now it is a virtual tactics ...all just a psycho fuck up basically...
2010 will be witness to that conflicting statements from all sides...
i hope it does not happen , but i fear the worst ... no trust ...

The Daily Star - Politics - Israel plays down talk of attacking Lebanon

Pro-Palestinian hackers target Web site of top British Jewish newspaper - Haaretz - Israel News

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 12:33:00 +0000

Pro-Palestinian hackers target Web site of top British Jewish newspaper - Haaretz - Israel News

American Chronicle | Extinguish Lebanon's Inferno before it Burns You

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 12:29:00 +0000

should we start worrying again about a new war ?
I hope 2010 does not see another war in Lebanon otherwise this one will be painful...

American Chronicle | Extinguish Lebanon's Inferno before it Burns You

2men, 1war, 33years on...

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 12:06:00 +0000

24 hours have passed and our beautiful 2 men, 1 war , 33 years on… short film made by Eric Trometer was shown on Christiane Amanpour’s show on CNN, and today Eric was invited to a panel dicussion on the BBC Arabic News Bulletin to talk about his experience on the ground as a filmmaker touching on the issue of sectarianism and what politicians need to really focus on is the people first… Very interesting interview, hope all conflicts around the world get solved through forgiveness & love to plant the seeds for a better future for our children

Having fought on opposing sides during the brutal Lebanese civil war, two men reconcile openly with their violent history to find forgiveness.

Eric Trometer has been a cinematographer for the last 8 years, he then started directing short films, music videos and founded Tarmak Films in London and been producing and directing various documentaries for independent and broadcast markets.

slaps

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Sat, 17 May 2008 17:27:00 +0000

MAJOR EVENTS UNTIL FEB 14th 2008

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:56:00 +0000

Major Lebanon Events since Hariri Assassination
Key events and attacks in Lebanon since former premier Rafik Hariri was assassinated on Valentine's Day three years ago:
2005

- Feb 14: Hariri and 22 others are killed in a car bombing on Beirut's seafront. Anti-Syrian politicians accuse Syria of involvement but Damascus denies.

- Feb 28: The pro-Syrian cabinet of Omar Karami resigns.

- March 8: More than 400,000 demonstrate in support of Syria, responding to calls Hizbullah and Amal.

- March 14: More than a million demonstrate against Syrian influence.

- April 26: The last Syrian soldiers leave Lebanon after three decades of presence.

- May 7: Return of Christian Gen. Michel Aoun after 15 years in exile. A year later he allies himself with Hizbullah.

- May 29-June 19: The anti-Syrian opposition gains an absolute majority in legislative elections.

- July 19: Hariri ally Fouad Saniora forms a government including Hizbullah.

- Aug 30: Four pro-Syrian officers, including the head of the Lebanese presidential guard, arrested as part of Hariri assassination probe.

- Oct 12: Syria says its former intelligence chief in Lebanon, Ghazi Kanaan, who has been questioned by U.N. investigators, has killed himself.

- Oct 20: An initial U.N. probe into Hariri's assassination implicates Syrian intelligence officials and former pro-Syrian Lebanese authorities.

- Dec 12: Assassination of anti-Syrian MP Gebran Tueni. The Saniora cabinet calls for an international tribunal to try Hariri's assassins.
Shiite ministers quit the government but return three months later.

- Dec 30: Former Syrian deputy premier, Abdel Halim Khaddam, accuses President Bashar al-Assad of having threatened Hariri.

2006

- Jan 23: Belgian Serge Brammertz takes over as head of the U.N. probe into Hariri's assassination.

- July 12-August 14: Israel and Hizbullah go to war after the capture of two Israeli soldiers by Hizbullah. Nearly 1,400 people are killed.

- Aug 11, U.N. resolution 1701 calls for the end of fighting and provides for the deployment of a strengthened peacekeeping force, the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

- Oct 1: Israel withdraws its troops from southern Lebanon as UN force reaches 5,000 soldiers. The Lebanese army deploys at the border for the first time in decades.

- Nov 11: Failure of talks aimed at forming a government of national unity. First of six pro-Syrian ministers resign.

- Nov 21: Anti-Syrian industry minister Pierre Gemayel shot dead.

- Dec 1: Start of an open-ended demonstration by the opposition who set up tents in downtown Beirut near the prime minister's office.

2007

- Jan 23-25, 2007: Seven dead in clashes between pro-government and anti-government supporters.

- May 20: Start of clashes between the army and Islamist group Fatah al-Islam the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared in north Lebanon. The army takes the camp in early September. More than 400 are killed, including 168 soldiers.

- June 10: A controversial U.N. resolution setting up an international tribunal for the Hariri killing comes into force.

- June 13: MP Walid Eido among 10 dead in an attack.

- June 24: Six killed in an attack on Spanish U.N. peacekeepers.

- Sept 19: Antoine Ghanem becomes the fourth anti-Syrian MP assassinated since the May 2005 elections.

- Nov 23: The mandate of President Emile Lahoud expires. The post remains vacant, the majority and opposition having failed to elect his successor.

- Dec 12: A car bomb kills Gen. Francois El Hajj and a bodyguard near Beirut. Hajj had been tipped to replace army commander Gen. Michel Suleiman, the frontrunner to become president.

2008

- Jan 16: U.S. President George Bush, visiting the Middle East, calls for an end to "Syrian interference" in Lebanon.

- Jan 25: Four killed, including top anti-terrorism officer Captain Wissam Eid, in a bomb blast targeting a security convoy in a Christian suburb of Beirut.

- Jan 27: Seven die in clashes between army and demonstrators in Beirut.

- Feb 9: Failure of Arab mediation effort. Failure at the 14th attempt to elect a president for Lebanon.

- Feb 13: Hizbullah announces the murder the previous day in Damascus of top commander Imad Mughnieh in a car bombing.

- Feb 14: Hundreds of thousands of government supporters rally in Beirut to mark the third anniversary of Hariri's death as Hizbullah holds a mass funeral ceremony for Mughniyeh.(AFP)

Beirut, 14 Feb 08, 13:41

UNDER THE BOMBS - PHILIPPE ARACTINGI IN LONDON

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 14:43:00 +0000

Artificial Eye presents
Under The Bombs (cert TBC)
(SOUS LES BOMBES)
A film by PHILIPPE ARACTINGI
WINNER Premio EIUC Human Rights Film Award & ARCA Cinemagiovani Award
(ARCA Prize for Youths) - Venice Film Festival 2007
WINNER Gold Muhr Award - Dubai International Film Festival 2007

Starring
Nada Abou Farhat, Georges Khabbaz & Rawya El Chab
France, Lebanon, UK, Belgium / 2007 / 98 Mins / In Arabic with English Subtitles / Colour / 1.85
UK RELEASE DATE: 21 MARCH 2008 TBC

Opening at selected West End Venues
and selected cinemas nationwide
An Artificial Eye Release
Images are available on image.net

For further information please contact: press@artificial-eye.com
Artificial Eye Film Company, 20 - 22 Stukeley Street London WC2B 5LR

The 2006 war in Lebanon comes to the cinema. UNDER THE BOMBS, which won the Premio EIUC Human Rights Film Award and ARCA Cinemagiovani Award at the 64th Venice Film Festival, is not only a film on the war but also a film inside the war. Shot during the Israeli bombing of the south of the country, the film by Philippe Aractingi is a documentary, a love story, a work of civil commitment and is the first testimony of the latest Lebanese conflict to be taken to the big screen. The film is almost an experiment; it was started without producers, without a script, only with some scenes shot in the summer of 2006, and has become a documentary of 90 minutes where fiction melds with reality.
Zeina is a Lebanese woman in the middle of a divorce. In order to spare her son, Karim, she sends him to stay with her sister in a little village in the South of Lebanon. One week later, the war breaks out in Lebanon. Terribly worried, she goes to Lebanon to find them, but only one taxi-driver, Toni, agrees to drive her to the South. Zeina and Toni are far from sharing the same political views - he is Christian and she is a Shiite,
but they drive south together, into a landscape devastated by bombs. When they finally reach the house of Zeina’s sister, they realize they are too late: it has been hit, and only a pile of rubble remains. Zeina’s sister is dead. Ali, a kid from the village, comes forward to tell them that her son Karim is safe but has left the village. So begins Zeina and Tony’s search for her son with devastating results….
"In the beginning we shot only material on the war, then we found producers and then we wrote a script with the actors working together with ordinary people whom they met on the streets while we were filming
"The entire work on the film, from the search for producers to post production, lasted only one year…I was so angry about the umpteenth conflict which brought destruction and death to my country that I shot the entire material from an instinct which was pushing me to say something in a hurry.
"I wanted to make a film about the war and the only way for me to do that was to use reality "
• Philippe Aractingi.

Of Franco-Lebanese origin, Philippe Aractingi was born in 1964 in Beirut where he grew up. He has made more than 40 films, around the world, ranging from reports and documentaries to more personal films. Self taught and a humanist, Philippe Aractingi spent 12 years in France before returning to his native Lebanon to make BOSTA, the country’s first post war musical. BOSTA, a huge success in Lebanon and all over the Arab world, has been released in over twenty countries. It was selected to represent Lebanon at the 2006 Oscars Academy Award. In July 2006, as war once again ravaged his country, Philippe Aractingi reacted, in the heat of the moment, by shooting his second feature film: UNDER THE BOMBS.

Bloody Lebanon recap

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 12:00:00 +0000

can anyone make any sense out of this ?
---------------------------------------------------------
Dec 12 - Car bomb kills Brigadier General Francois al-Hajj, the army's head of operations, and a bodyguard in a Christian town east of Beirut. He had been tipped to become the next army chief.

Jan 15, 2008 - A car bomb attack in a Christian area of Beirut kills at least three people and wounds 16, in an explosion that damaged a U.S. embassy car and destroyed others.

Jan 25 - Wisam Eid, a captain in a Lebanese police intelligence unit, is killed in a bomb explosion in mainly Christian east Beirut. At least five other people die in the attack. (Writing by David Cutler, London Editorial Reference Unit)

June 13 (Reuters) - Lebanese anti-Syrian parliamentarian Walid Eido was killed with at least seven other people on Wednesday by a blast on Beirut's seafront, security sources said. Here is a chronology of some of the main events in Lebanon since former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri was killed, along with 22 other people,

on Feb. 14, 2005. Feb. 16, 2005 - At least 150,000 Lebanese turn Hariri's funeral into outpouring of anger against Syria.

Feb. 28 - Pro-Syrian Prime Minister Omar Karami resigns.

March 5 - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad tells his parliament Syrian troops will start phased pullout from Lebanon.

April 26 - Last Syrian soldiers leave Lebanon.

June 2 - Samir Kassir, journalist opposed to Syria's role in Lebanon, is killed in Beirut by a bomb in his car.

June 16 - U.N. investigation into Hariri's killing starts.

June 19 - Lebanese parliamentary elections end in victory for anti-Syrian alliance led by Hariri's son Saad al-Hariri.

June 21 - Former Communist Party leader and critic of Syria George Hawi is killed in Beirut by a bomb in his car.

Oct. 20 - U.N. investigators say high-ranking Syrian officials and their Lebanese allies were involved in Hariri's killing, in report to U.N. Security Council. Syria denies it.

Dec. 12 - Gebran Tueni, anti-Syrian member of parliament and Lebanese newspaper magnate, is killed by a car bomb near Beirut.

July 12, 2006 - Hezbollah captures two Israeli soldiers in cross-border raid, setting off 34-day war in which about 1,200 people in Lebanon and 158 Israelis are killed.

Nov. 11 - Five pro-Syrian Shi'ite Muslim ministers from Hezbollah and its ally, the Amal movement, resign after collapse of all-party talks on giving their camp more say in government.

Nov. 21 - Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel is killed by gunmen. U.N. Security Council approves plans for tribunal to try suspects in assassination of Hariri and subsequent attacks.

Dec. 1 - Hezbollah, Amal and supporters of Christian leader Michel Aoun camp outside Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's office in central Beirut in open-ended campaign to topple government.

Jan. 25, 2007 - Aid conference in Paris pledges more than $7.6 billion to help Lebanon with its mountain of debt and to recover from the war.

Feb. 13 - Three people are killed in two bomb blasts near a Christian village northeast of Beirut. Lebanon says in March four Syrians confessed to the bombings and were members of Fatah al-Islam, a small Palestinian group linked to Syrian intelligence. The group deny involvement.

March 8/9 - Talks between Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, also leader of the opposition Amal movement, and majority leader Saad al-Hariri to solve the four-month-old power struggle end without agreement.

May 17 - The United States, France and Britain circulate a draft U.N. resolution that would unilaterally establish a tribunal to try suspects in the 2005 Hariri murder.

May 20 - Lebanese troops battle Sunni Islamist militants based in the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp killing at least 50 people.

June 12 - Heavy fighting continues to rage at the Nahr al-Bared camp during which at least 136 people, including 60 soldiers, have been killed since the battles started.

June 13 - Anti-Syrian parliamentarian Walid Eido is killed with at least seven other people in a blast on Beirut's seafont.

AlertNet news is provided by

Lebanon postpones vote yet again

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 09:19:00 +0000

Lebanon postpones vote yet again

Lebanese members of parliament have postponed for an eighth time their vote to elect a new president, with 17 December called as the new date.

The pro-West ruling bloc and pro-Syrian opposition have agreed on army chief Gen Michel Suleiman, but are divided on the make-up of the new government.

There is also said to be a dispute over how to amend the constitution to allow a senior civil servant to be elected.

The deadlock meant Emile Lahoud stepped down last month without a successor.

Under Article 49 of the current constitution, senior civil servants like Gen Suleiman are barred from becoming president within two years of stepping down.

Deadlock

Under Lebanon's sectarian power-sharing system, the country's president must be from the Maronite Christian minority, while the prime minister must be a Sunni Muslim and the president of parliament a Shia.

Gen Suleiman, who is a Maronite, left a meeting with the Maronite Patriarch, Cardinal Nasrallah Sfeir, on Monday without making any comment.

The deadlock over the president is Lebanon's worst political crisis since the country's long civil war ended in 1990.

The economy and parliament have been crippled, and the opposition have refused to recognise the government.

Correspondents say Gen Suleiman has remained neutral amid feuding between the government and opposition, and has repeatedly called for the army to be kept out of politics.

The governing coalition needs a two-thirds majority to elect the president, or 86 of the 128 MPs, but holds only 68 seats

Published: 2007/12/10 23:57:28 GMT

© BBC MMVII

Kouchner Back In Beirut to Help Settle Presidential Crisis

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 10:04:00 +0000

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner returned to Beirut Tuesday in a fresh bid to spur feuding political leaders into electing a new president and ending a year-long political crisis.
Kouchner held talks talks with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri for one hour and left without making any statement to reporters. He also discussed with al-Moustaqbal Movement leader Saad Hariri "efforts exerted to hold the presidemtial elections," according to a statement released by the Hariri Press office.

The French official also met Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun in Rabye, according to the National News agency.

Kouchner's visit comes ahead of a parliament session on Friday for lawmakers to elect a new head of state to replace Emile Lahoud, the former pro-Syrian president who stepped down at midnight on November 23 at the end of his term.

But there was wide speculation that the session -- the seventh since September -- would once again be delayed amid lingering disputes between the ruling majority and the pro-Syrian opposition.

France, Lebanon's former colonial power, has been leading international efforts to end a political crisis that emerged a year ago when six opposition ministers quit Saniora's government, plunging the country into disarray.

Kouchner's visit is the seventh by the French official to Lebanon in six months and comes as negotiations among Beirut's feuding politicians have homed in on the army chief, General Michel Suleiman, to succeed Lahoud.

The general was formally endorsed by the ruling majority on Sunday while the Aoun-led opposition has not made a firm commitment.

Aoun, himself a former army chief, said he would back Suleiman for the top job only if he held the office until legislative election in 2009, instead of the full six-year term stipulated by the constitution.

In any case, Suleiman's election requires a change to the constitution as Article 49 bars public servants from assuming the presidency within two years of stepping down from their posts.

Six sessions in parliament to elect a successor to Lahoud have already been postponed because of the bickering between the parties.

"Friday's presidential election is at the mercy of the political bazaar," the French-language L'Orient Le Jour, which is close to the ruling majority, said in a banner headline on Tuesday.

The pro-opposition daily Al-Akhbar also expected Friday's vote to be postponed. "The presidential election is once again facing complications despite the agreement between the opposition and majority on Suleiman," the daily said.(Naharnet-AFP)

Beirut, 04 Dec 07, 18:13

"a viewpoint that remains personal"

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 09:55:00 +0000

Hizbullah's Mohammed Raad: No to a Constitutional Amendment by Saniora Government
By Dalia Nehme
The head of Hizbullah's parliamentary bloc MP Mohammed Raad said Wednesday Prime Minister Fouad Saniora's majority government does not have the authority to propose a constitutional amendment allowing the election of Army Commander Gen. Michel Suleiman president.

Noting that he is voicing "a viewpoint that remains personal," Raad told Naharnet: "To me, at the personal level, I believe a constitutional amendment in parliament is possible after resignation of Fouad Saniora from the government which is neither constitutional nor legitimate."

"Parliament cannot meet with a non-constitutional government. I am not making a proposal, but expressing a view point that remains personal."

However, Raad stressed that "we will not block any consensus possibility if the intro to it is a constitutional amendment, provided that all opposition factions have agreed on it."

In answering a question as to whether the Hizbullah parliamentary bloc will attend a session to amend the constitution, Raad said: "We believe that any constitutional amendment will be fabrication based on tacit approval by both the pro-government factions and the opposition due to an extraordinary and very important matter."

"This issue should be discussed in detail by the opposition," he added.

What would your stand be if amending the constitution to elect Gen. Suleiman is the only salvation solution? Raad was asked.

He replied: "In fact, this issue needs to be judged to realize its seriousness in the candidate-proposing formula, and to know if the other side considers it the salvation solution."

He recalled that Saniora had "pledged to chop off his hand before signing a constitutional amendment decree. If he is ready now to chop off his hand lets discuss this issue," Raad added.

"We see no seriousness in tackling this issue, some (factions) are trying to maneuver by throwing the ball into the other side's court."

Raad said Gen. Suleiman "knows well our stand regarding him, we explained our stand to him in details a long time ago. And when nominating him is proposed seriously we'll discuss the topic."

He asked "why wasn't (suleiman's nomination) in the basked on candidates. Is constitutional amendment possible now, from a constitutional point of view? And who amends the constitution now? A non-constitutional government, and a parliament that doesn't meet with this non-constitutional government? This issue requires a discussion."

In answering a question as to whether nominating Gen. Suleiman could be proposed as a salvation exit out of the ongoing political crisis, Raad replied:

"If the opposition adopted this view point, then why not. But the opposition might not adopt this view point … This issue requires a decision. But this government is neither legal nor constitutional, how can it be entrusted with a constitutional amendment … in the first place it does not exist as far as we are concerned. Amending the constitution requires a two-thirds vote by a legal government so that a decree can be referred to parliament.

"Parliament does not accept illegitimate decrees by the illegitimate government."

Raad concluded by asking: "does the extraordinary situation prevailing over the country require us to surmount all these issues and the constitutional mechanism to amend the constitution?"

"I don't know, though I find it to be difficult," he replied.

Raad said Hizbullah's presidential candidate is Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun "or whoever is chosen by Gen. Aoun."

"It will be difficult to agree on any candidate of whom Gen. Aoun is not convinced," Raad added, stressing that Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri "realizes this."

He said "pressure cards" of the majority have "faded away and collapsed. The pro-government team would find itself obliged to seriously accept a compromise."

Raad said any protest organized by Aoun would be coordinated with all the opposition factions, noting that the people are "suffering from economic hardships and the increase in prices of basic commodities."

"This requires serious and thorough handling that can only be available through intact rule," Raad added.

He accused the United States of aborting a French initiative to elect a consensus president before Nov. 23 when former President Emile Lahoud's extended term in office expired.

Syria, he said, "played a positive role and did not interfere in naming candidates and supported consensus on a candidate."

Raad warned that electing a president by simple majority, an option that the majority had pledged to resort to, "would open the door to chaos in the country."

The majority, Raad added, "can maintain this option for as long as they want, but can they practice it?"

Hizbullah, he said, wants a president who enjoys "Christian popularity and who strongly believes in Lebanon's strength and would be ready to maintain the national balance."

Raad said the peace conference hosted by U.S. President George Bush at Annapolis gave nothing to the Palestinians and the Arabs, while Israel was labeled a Jewish state and the Israelis did not make a commitment to halt the building of settlements or the "wall of isolation."

Israel, he said, "insisted on dealing with the Palestinian Authority through the road map, the starting phase of which insists on starting a Palestinian civil war through what the Israelis term ending terrorist operations."

The Arabs who took part in the meeting went to Annapolis "empty handed and proposed the Arab (peace) initiative that the Israeli enemy did not even accept to discuss."

Beirut, 28 Nov 07, 17:28

Iraqis 'left to rot' in Lebanon

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 09:53:00 +0000

A human rights watchdog has sharply criticised Lebanon's attitude to Iraqi refugees who do not have valid visas.

New York-based Human Rights Watch says hundreds of Iraqi refugees face the prospect of "rotting in jail" unless they agree to return home.

About 50,000 Iraqis are thought to have fled violence and instability in Iraq to the relative safety of Lebanon.

HRW says at least 500 Iraqi refugees are in jail in Lebanon and 150 were expelled in the first half of 2007.

Its report Rot Here or Die There: Bleak Choices for Iraqi Refugees in Lebanon urges the authorities to ease restrictions on Iraqis and grant them temporary legal status.

"By giving Iraqi refugees no option but to stay in jail indefinitely or return to Iraq, Lebanon is violating the bedrock principle of international law," said HRW refugee policy director Bill Frelick.

A Lebanese official quoted by AFP said the country did not offer special treatment for Iraqis, but did offer residency to anyone who qualified for it.

Lebanon never signed the 1951 UN convention on refugees. For decades its politics has been dominated by finely balanced sectarianism, which analysts say makes it hyper-sensitive to demographic changes caused by influxes of refugees.

More than 2.5 million Iraqis are refugees, most of them in neighbouring Syria and Jordan and at least 2 million more are internally displaced.

Story from BBC NEWS

Lebanon president deadline looms

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 08:22:00 +0000

President Lahoud wants to appoint an army chief as his successor

Lebanese MPs are facing a deadline of midnight to appoint a new president.

However, mediators fear rival camps will fail to reach a deal, plunging the country into a deeper political crisis.

Repeated attempts to elect a new president over the past two months have been scuppered by rivalry between Western-backed and pro-Syrian factions.

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, who has been trying to broker a solution, said despite complications "a miracle is still possible".

But his Italian counterpart, Massimo D'Alema, was pessimistic on the eve of Friday's deadline.

"Tomorrow, I don't believe there will be an election and this will create difficult conditions," he said.

The French, Italian and Spanish foreign ministers have spent several days in Lebanon, meeting rival groups in an attempt to break the deadlock.

A vote in parliament has been scheduled for 1300 (1100 GMT), 11 hours before current President Emile Lahoud's term expires.

No compromise

The election of a president requires a two-thirds majority, which means that the anti-Syrian ruling bloc - with its slim majority - cannot force its preferred candidate through parliament. A deal with the opposition is therefore required.

The rival factions cannot agree on a compromise candidate, however.

LEADING CANDIDATES

Nassib Lahoud: Government candidate. Former US ambassador. Leading industrialist

Michel Aoun: Opposition candidate. Former army commander who fought Syria during civil war. Returned from exile in 2005. Vocal opponent of government

Michel Suleiman: Army commander since 1998. Electing him requires constitutional amendment

Riad Salameh: Central bank governor since 1993. Widely respected at home and abroad. Election requires constitutional amendment

Boutrous Harb: Pro-government candidate. MP and former minister

Jean Obeid: Possible consensus candidate. Foreign minister 2003-2004

Views from Beirut

And the opposition has warned it may boycott Friday's session, thus ensuring the quorum will not be reached and any vote will be invalid.

According to Article 62 of the Lebanese constitution, if no candidate is elected before Mr Lahoud's mandate expires, his powers are automatically transferred to the anti-Syrian government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora.

However, President Lahoud has vowed not to hand over power to Mr Siniora, and said he would name army chief General Michel Suleiman as his provisional successor instead.

Opposition leader Michel Aoun proposed a compromise on Thursday, whereby an interim president would be selected to fill the office until parliamentary elections were held in 2009.

This was dismissed by the ruling majority, however, which said the plan was unconstitutional.

The political deadlock has already led to the vote being postponed four times since 25 September.

The BBC's Kim Ghattas in Beirut says the failure to find a compromise has raised fears of civil strife, including the possibility that the opposition could create a rival administration, as happened during the civil war.

International efforts

Our correspondent says the issue is turning into a regional and international affair.

The US, Russia, Syria and Iran are all intensely involved and there has been a lot of diplomatic shuttling between Damascus, Moscow, Tehran and Paris.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice telephoned several of the country's top leaders on Monday.

Fears are growing that failure to elect a president will bring more turmoil to Lebanon.

The army has increased its presence on the streets of Beirut and set up checkpoints, some schools have cancelled classes until Monday, and the ministry of interior has suspended all firearm permits until further notice.

I want my son and my husband to become lebos!!

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Sun, 18 Nov 2007 12:46:00 +0000

About the Campaign

Women’s right to equal citizenship is guaranteed by the majority of Arab constitutions, as well as by international law. Yet across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and the Gulf, women are denied their right to nationality – a crucial component of citizenship.

In almost every country in the MENA and Gulf regions, women who marry men of other nationalities cannot confer their original nationality to their husbands or children. Only fathers, not mothers, can confer their nationality to their children.

Discriminatory laws denying women equal nationality rights undermine women’s status as equal citizens in their home countries. Such laws send the message that women do not enjoy a direct relationship with the state, but must access their citizenship rights through mediation of a male family member, such as a father or a husband. Until women in the MENA and Gulf regions are recognized as full nationals and citizens, they cannot participate fully in public life, nor claim the other rights to which they are entitled as equal members of their societies.

The denial of women’s nationality rights also created real suffering for dual nationality families living in the woman’s home country. Children and spouses are treated as foreigners and must obtain costly residence permits. Children are often excluded from social services such as social security, healthcare and subsidized or free access to education. In many countries, spouses and children have limited employment opportunities and are unable to own property. In terms of psychological impact, many women feel isolated and guilty because they feel responsible for the difficulties faced by their families, while children suffer from low self-esteem because of their second-class status.
Goals of the Campaign

The Women’s Learning Partnership joins with regional partners in the Middle East, North Africa and the Gulf to call for:

* Legal reform enabling women to confer their nationality to their husbands and children without condition
* Full implementation of reformed nationality laws and equal access to these laws for all women
* Recognition of women as equal citizens in all areas of life

المطالبة بالمساواة في حق المواطنة

حملة من أجل المطالبة بحق النساء العربيات في نقل الجنسية

تعريف عن الحملة

لقد أقرت معظم الدساتير العربية والقوانين الدولية حق النساء في مواطنة متساوية. إلا أن النساء في بلدان المشرق والمغرب العربيين وفي منطقة الخليج العربي، لايزلن محرومات من حقهن في منح جنسيتهن إلى عائلاتهن (الزوج والأولاد) في حال تزوجن من جنسية أخرى، هذا الحق الذي يشكل عنصرا حاسما من عناصر المواطنة.

ففي معظم دول المشرق والمغرب العربيين، لا يحق للنساء اللاتي يتزوجن من رجال من غير جنسيتهن أن يمنحن جنسيتهن إلى الزوج والأولاد، حيث يقتصر هذا الحق على الرجال دون سواهم.

وبالتالي فإن القوانين التمييزية التي تحول دون حق النساء بمنح جنسيتهن إلى الزوج والأولاد، تؤثر سلباً على تمتنع النساء بمواطنة كاملة وفاعلة. هذا النوع من التمييز القانوني يحرم النساء كمواطنات من تمتعهن بعلاقة مباشرة بالدولة، إذ لابد من وجود وسيط ذكر، لكي تحصل على مستحقاتها وحقوقها. وعليه، فإن النساء في دول المشرق والمغرب العربيين، وفي دول الخليج العربي، لن يشاركن في بصورة كاملة وفاعلة في مرافق الحياة العامة، ولن يتمكن من الولوج إلى المستحقات الإجتماعية إلا إذا تمتعن بمواطنة كاملة.

ومن جهة أخرى، فإن حرمان المرأة من ممارسة حقها بالمواطنة الكاملة عبر قدرتها على منح الجنسية، يسبب معاناة حقيقية لأفراد أسرها الذين يعيشون في وطن والدتهم/هن، ويحملون جنسية مخالفة، حيث يعامل الأطفال والأزواج كأجانب وبالتالي يتوجب عليهم/هن دفع مصاريف مكلفة للحصول على تصاريح الإقامة. هذا فضلاً عن حرمان الأطفال وعدم تمتعهم/هن بالخدمات الاجتماعية، مثل الرعاية الصحية والضمان الاجتماعي والإعانات و الحصول على التعليم المجاني. كما يعاني الأزواج والأبناء في عدد كبير من هذه البلدان من محدودية فرص العمل وغياب الحق في الملكية.

أما بالنسبة لتبعات ذلك النفسية، فإن الكثير من النساء يشعرن بالعزلة ويتملكهن الشعور بالذنب كونهم يعتبرن أنفسهن مسؤولات على الصعوبات التي تواجهها أفراد أسرهن، في حين يعاني الأطفال من تدني احترام الذات بسبب وضعهم القانوني الذي يجعل منهم مواطنين من الدرجة الثانية.

أهداف الحملة

ينضم “التضامن النسائي للتعلم من أجل الحقوق و التنمية و السلام” / Women’s Learning Partnership (WLP) إلى الجمعيات الجهوية الشريكة له في بلدان الشرق الأوسط و شمال إفريقيا و منطقة الخليج للمطالبة ب :

• إصلاح قانوني يعطي المرأة حق نقل جنسيتها لزوجها وأطفالها دون شروط،

• تنفيذ كامل للإصلاحات التي تم تعديلها في قوانين الجنسية والحق لجميع النساء بالتمتع بهذه القوانين،

• الاعتراف بالنساء كمواطنات على قدم المساواة مع غيرهن من المواطنين في كافة مجالات الحياة.

حملة منظمة من طرف “التضامن النسائي للتعلم من أجل الحقوق و التنمية و السلام ” بمشاركة مع “مركز الإعلام و التوثيق لحقوق الطفل و المرأة” (الجزائر ،(CIDEF/
” جمعية النساء البحرينيات” (البحرين ،(BWS/
” منتدى النساء من أجل التنمية” (مصر ،(FWID/
” المعهد الدولي لتضامن النساء” (الأردن ،(SIGI/J/
“ مجموعة الأبحاث و التدريب للعمل التنموي” (لبنان ،(CRTD-A/
و الجمعية الديمقراطية لنساء المغرب (المغرب (ADFM/
Take Action

* Sign the Petition
* Tell a Friend
* Action Survey #2

Khalass

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 09:04:00 +0000

حملة "خلص!" مبادرة مستقلّة أطلقها المجتمع المدني، في كافة أطرافه ومكوّناته من أفراد ونقابات وجمعيات ومؤسسات غير حكومية ومؤسسات خاصة. نسعى من خلال هذه الحملة الى التشديد على خطورة الأزمة الراهنة التي يتخبّط فيها لبنان، والضغط على الأطراف السياسية من أجل انهاء الجمود السلبي الذي وصلت إليه، مصمّمين على ضرورة تخطّي هذه المرحلة المصيرية.

Khalass! campaign is an independent initiative led by the Lebanese civil society in all its components: syndicates, associations, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector. We seek through this campaign to emphasize the gravity of the current political crisis in Lebanon and to exert pressure on the leaders of political ends in order to overcome today’s deadlock. Getting through this vital period is crucial to ascertain our will to live together.

Khalass ! est une campagne indépendante initiée par la société civile libanaise dans ses différentes composantes (individus, syndicats, associations, organisations non gouvernementales, entreprises privées). Khalass ! un cri de conscience face à la gravité de la conjoncture actuelle ; un appel lancé aux responsables politiques pour les exhorter à dépasser cette impasse étatique neutralisante. En surmontant la crise, nous affirmons la volonté des libanais de continuer à vivre ensemble.

lebanese films' cocktail

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 11:36:00 +0000

interesting blog about lebanese films

Falafel By Michel Kammoun

Caramel by Nadine Labaki

Kili4Lebanon

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 11:30:00 +0000

presents KILI FOR LEBANON

Mission: To climb to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro in September 2007

To plant the Lebanese flag on the highest peak in Africa. At an altitude of nearly 6,000 meters, the team will set a record for the first ever financial transaction on the Lebanese Stock Exchange from this height on earth.

The team preparing for Kili in Snowdon in May 07

Why? To raise £200,000 for educational projects in Lebanon

Following the summer conflict of 2006 and years of neglect and under-investment, the schools in Lebanon are not suitable to provide high quality education.

As a first step to addressing this problem, we intend to raise £200k, which will secure a further £1.25 million from UNICEF, to improve the quality of education in 25 schools in rural Lebanon. Moreover, IMC UK will also commit a further £120k to this project, which will take the total amount raised to £1.57 million.

The team preparing for Kili in Scafell Pike in June 07

Who? Lebanon United and IMC UK in conjunction with UNICEF

Five young Lebanese bankers will be climbing Kilimanjaro for Lebanon United to raise money for an IMC UK (International Medical Corps) project supported by UNICEF International.

For more information on this project, please contact kili@lebunited.org
For website related queries please contact bassem@eltibi.com

Under the bombs

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 10:32:00 +0000

Philippe Aractingi: 'I wanted to present war differently'

Last Updated: 12:01am BST 24/08/2007

Philippe Aractingi tells David Gritten how he shot 'Under the Bombs' in the middle of a real conflict

The next few months are shaping up as a cinematic season of war, with a batch of heavyweight Hollywood films dealing with events in the Middle East. But none was made under more treacherous, life-threatening conditions than Under the Bombs, a part-British production that has its world première at the Venice Film Festival next week.


	Jolting: Under the Bombs

Its background is the Israeli bombing of Lebanon last summer - and, remarkably, its Lebanese director, Philippe Aractingi, shot part of the film while the war still raged.

"I decided to shoot in several stages," he says on a recent visit to London. "I was torn between a need to act quickly before the dust of the bombing had settled, and a necessity to remain objective, so as to avoid making a mere partisan pamphlet."

He and screenwriter Michel Léviant had only a broad idea for a script: Zeina, a Lebanese woman, arrives in Beirut searching for her son, who had been staying with her sister in southern Lebanon. At the airport, she looks in vain for a taxi, but only Toni, a driver from the south, will agree to take her. Their search for the boy is the central story.

Aractingi began shooting in Lebanon 10 days after the war began last summer. His wife is French, so the French army repatriated them and their children for their own safety. But three days after a ceasefire was announced, he returned on a military ship to resume filming.

"Lebanon was then burying its dead," he says, "and UN forces were landing on the shores of a land still under the shock of bombing." His two lead actors - Nada Abou Farhat (Zeina) and Georges Khabbaz (Toni) - improvised scenes with Lebanese citizens, refugees whose homes had been destroyed by bombs, and international journalists covering the war.

In one scene, Farhat is shown asking journalists at a real UN press conference if they know the whereabouts of the fictional boy. Real refugees tell her and Khabbaz about the devastation of their homes and lives. All these scenes show the rubble of a country reeling from aerial bombing attacks; they are almost painfully authentic.

"The reality was infinitely more dramatic than any tragedy I could have invented," Aractingi says. "So I decided to simply capture it as it was." Armed with this arresting footage, he left Lebanon and devised a script with Léviant, incorporating the scenes already shot. These jolting scenes would be used to lure potential investors.

Last October, Léviant went to the Dinard Film Festival, where he met the British film producer Paul Raphael (Anita and Me), who was so enthused by hearing how the war scenes in Under the Bombs were shot that he called around to raise funds. By December, there was enough money for Aractingi to return to Lebanon to shoot the fictional part of the story.

Now Under the Bombs is ready to be unveiled in Venice. As Aractingi points out, it has been just a year from its conception to its completion: "I wanted to present war differently," he says now. "I didn't want to show dead people. But they were there, crushed under stones and rubble. And it's for them that I made this film."

Information appearing on telegraph.co.uk is the copyright of Telegraph Media Group Limited and must not be reproduced in any medium without licence. For the full copyright statement see Copyright

naffa'o (-1)

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 23:40:00 +0000

Spanish Soldier Returns to South to Wed Lebanese
A Lebanese woman and a former Spanish peacekeeper got married in south Lebanon, the first wedding between a Lebanese and a U.N. soldier since UNIFIL's reinforcement.
An Nahar daily said that Juan Antonio Cerrano Alvarez and Dunia Atallah tied the knot at Saint Peter's Cathedral in Jdeidet-Marjayoun on Sunday.

It said the couple met at a military apparel store where Atallah worked as the soldier was serving with the Spanish contingent in the south between October 2006 and February 2007.

Alvarez returned to Spain after the end of his mission but decided to come back to Lebanon to marry the woman he described as "special."

As Safir daily said Sunday's wedding was the first between a Lebanese woman and a UNIFIL soldier since the peacekeeping mission was beefed up following last summer's July-August Israeli offensive.

It reported around 60 cases of marriage between peacekeepers and young Lebanese women prior to the war.

Beirut, 23 Jul 07, 10:48

1 year on :( ....

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 17:29:00 +0000

"Living with Cluster Bombs"

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 22:20:00 +0000

A deadly legacy remains in Lebanon as a result of last year's war. It is estimated that four million cluster bombs were dropped in the last three days of the war, a quarter of which did not explode on impact. To date, clearance organisations have disposed of a total of 118,000 bombs, leaving over 880,000 yet to be cleared. By June of this year 239 people, many of them children, were injured or killed by unexploded ordnance. Kristian Buus, a Danish photojournalist, visited Lebanon recently to make a film on the legacy of the cluster bombs left by Israel. You can view the short and long versions of "Living with Cluster Bombs" here: www.kristianbuus.com.

In the film you meet Rashad Siblini from Tyre, a 26 year old who is clearing cluster bombs from affected areas, and Housam Sh'adi who is 34 and doing the same. They are helping people like Ali Salami, whose land in Tyre is littered with bomblets - Ali found 536 bomblets on his small patch of land before the UN even began their clearance operations. We are also introduced to Muhammed Nahle, a Lebanese Civil Defence volunteer whose leg was amputated as a result of a cluster bomb injury which took place on the last day of the war. His ability to remain optimistic in the light of such an injury is inspiring. These people are the heroes whose daily lives continue to be affected by the effects of last year's war. They are the faces and the living stories behind the statistics we hear. (lebanon united source)

NO car bombs please... choukran

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 11:59:00 +0000

A Message of Peace and Love to ALL my fellow Lebanese everywhere in the world!

danatrometer@mac.com (Eric Trometer) — Sat, 09 Jun 2007 09:35:00 +0000

Dear Lebanese,

I would like this message to be a wake-up call to all Lebanese everywhere; whatever our political beliefs, religion or sect!

Please hear this plea:

Lebanon is going through a very difficult period on many different levels but most importantly on a street level.
I URGE everyone to try your best to calm the people around you. Now is not the time to 'talk' or to inflame friends and neighbours.
Please practice restraints!

If we allow them, the political crisis our politicians are putting us through will soon spill onto our streets!
If WE, as sovereign and independent Lebanese citizens , do nothing to stop it we will have a civil war on our hands again!
We have to use our rational and our common sense and not be manipulated into hatred of one another and street expressions!

None of us want to see our children fighting and killing each other on the streets again!
None of us want to witness a new wave of death, hate, destruction and humiliation again!
None of us want to be manipulated and treated like sheep without any will or conscious again!
None of us want to live in fear of sending our children to their universities and schools where students are being bullied and bitten for expressing an opinion again!

Please talk to your children and friends and convince them:
Not to rise to provocation
Not to allow anyone to push their buttons
Not to be source of provocation
Not to inflame other's political and/or religious loyalties
Not to get into a war of words with others over politics or religion
Not to get into fist-fights or feuds with others over politics or religion
Not to destroy or assist in the destruction of another's properties/cars over politics or religion
Not to be influenced into expressing their opinions in our streets !
NOT TO SPREAD ON THE INTERNET political messages, pictures and caricatures that can be provocative to anyone
If you love our Lebanon, please forward this message to as many Lebanese as you possibly can so that we can help calm and defuse a highly explosive situation and maybe avert a crisis!
Our country's survival and the lives of our children depend on our collective efforts !

Peace be upon us all!
A Patriotic Lebanese
On behalf of all Lebanese
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