February 12, 2008

Calls Intensify For Gaza Invasion

Angry Israelis are pressing for retaliation against Palestinian militants in Gaza, even as the repercussions of the humiliating 2006 war with Hezbollah are still being felt.

Dozens of residents from Sderot, an Israeli town that sees a near-daily barrage of rocket attacks from Gaza, traveled to Jerusalem over the weekend to protest perceived government inaction. Israeli Cabinet members, including Defense Minister Ehud Barak, have joined the cries for harsher tactics against Gaza militants, particularly after two brothers, ages 8 and 19, were seriously injured while fleeing rocket fire with their family.

Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit advised the military to give one Gaza neighborhood a day to empty out, and then to destroy it, BBC News reports. The Israeli army has yet to make a significant military incursion into Gaza, despite its nearly complete isolation from the friendlier regime in the West Bank and the world community.

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Posted at 11:01 AM
Posted to: Fatah, Hamas, Israel, Lebanon, Middle East, Palestinians
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January 15, 2008

U.S. Embassy Targeted In Beirut Blast

An explosion targeting a U.S. Embassy vehicle has killed four Lebanese bystanders in the capital city of Beirut.

The two passengers of the vehicle, neither of whom were Americans, were not seriously hurt, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said. CNN is reporting that an American, an Iraqi and three Lebanese were among the 20 or so people wounded.

Lebanon is in the midst of a political crisis. Pro-Syrian and pro-Western forces are butting heads over pending parliamentary elections, which have been postponed 11 times. The country has been without a president since November, when former President Emile Lahoud stepped down.

Political asassinations are increasingly commonplace in Lebanon. In September, a car bomb killed a prominent anti-Syrian Christian leader in a Beirut suburb.

Posted at 11:59 AM
Posted to: Lebanon, Middle East, Syria
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December 20, 2007

President Bush's Passive-Aggressive Holiday Greeting

Speaking at his final White House press conference of the year, President Bush congratulated Congress on its 11th-hour legislative achievements while making sure to backhand lawmakers for taking so long to get there.

"I thank the members of both parties for their hard work," Bush said, cheering the passage this week of the alternative minimum tax (AMT) patch, a lending crisis fix, an energy efficiency package and new defense spending. "I am pleased we are able to end this year on a high note."

Returning later to the AMT bill, the president added, "Unfortunately, Congress passed this legislation after a lengthy delay. It is going to add to the time it takes to process tens of billions in refunds. We will work hard to minimize the impact of congressional delay."

And after thanking Congress for sending him new spending for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan before the New Year, Bush noted that it was "approved at the last minute, nearly three months after the end of the fiscal year." He continued, "When Congress wastes so much time and leaves its work until the final days before Christmas, it is not a responsible way to run the government."

The president later denied that his relationship with the Democratic-led Congress was truly "antagonistic," but his annual pre-holiday address to the press corps encapsulated the testy and wearying push-pull the two branches have been engaged in all year.

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Posted at 12:18 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, CIA, Campaigns, Congress, Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Iraq, Lebanon, Middle East, Military, President Bush, Russia, Syria, Vladimir Putin, WH 2008
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November 27, 2007

Mideast Summit: 'We Are Ready'

UPDATED.

Reading a joint statement issued by the international participants of the Annapolis conference on Israeli-Palestinian relations, President Bush heralded what is widely seen as a last-ditch attempt to broker a lasting peace between the two Mideast parties.

"We express our determination to bring an end to bloodshed, suffering and decades of conflict between our peoples; to usher in a new era of peace, based on freedom, security, justice, dignity, respect and mutual recognition; to propagate a culture of peace and nonviolence; to confront terrorism and incitement, whether committed by Palestinians or Israelis," Bush said before representatives of the U.N., EU, G-8 and nearly every major Arab League nation. "In furtherance of the goal of two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security, we agree to immediately launch good-faith bilateral negotiations in order to conclude a peace treaty, resolving all outstanding issues, including all core issues without exception."

Seated on stage to the president's side were Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, the two leaders who will do the heavy lifting in the negotiations. The joint statement was, as expected, a declaration of support from the world community of the two-state solution advocated by both parties as well as the United States. The statement also included a recommitment to the 2003 road map established by the Quartet -- the U.S., EU, U.N. and Russia -- shepherding the peace process.

But Bush also clarified the role the U.S. will play during the coming stretch of talks. While Washington won't exactly be in the thick of negotiations, it will be overseeing and assessing Israel's and the PLO's progress on the road map requirements. Exactly how much of a taskmaster the U.S. is in the process will probably be determined by the depth of involvement by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the mastermind behind the new push for a two-state solution.

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Posted at 3:03 PM
Posted to: Bush Administration, Condoleezza Rice, Fatah, Hamas, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Lebanon, Middle East, Palestinians, President Bush, Saudi Arabia, Syria
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November 14, 2007

Lebanese National Convicted Of Stealing FBI Secrets

A new window into problems at the nation's intelligence agencies popped up recently: Nada Nadim Prouty, a Lebanese woman who used a fake marriage to obtain citizenship and got jobs at the CIA and the FBI. She used her positions to access classified information about an investigation of Hezbollah, a Lebanon-based militant Islamic group the U.S. has designated a terrorist organization.

Prouty also used her position to find information about her brother-in-law Talal Chahine, who fled to Lebanon more than two years ago to avoid prosecution for tax evasion connected to his La Shish restaurant chain. Prouty's sister was convicted in May on charges of helping Chahine and is serving an 18-month prison term.

In a Detroit courtroom yesterday, Prouty pleaded guilty to charges of illegally using the FBI's computer system, naturalization fraud and conspiring to obtain U.S. citizenship. As part of her sentence, she will give up her citizenship and may face fines and jail time.

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Posted at 9:01 AM
Posted to: Hezbollah, Lebanon, Middle East
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September 19, 2007

Car Bomb Kills Anti-Syrian Pol In Beirut

UPDATED.

A car bomb in a Christian suburb of Beirut killed a prominent anti-Syrian lawmaker today, in what is now regarded as an assassination.

Antoine Ghanem, a member of the Christian Phalange party, died in the attack along with several others. BBC News and AP have confirmed at least six deaths in addition to Ghanem, and at least 20 people were wounded by the powerful car bomb. News footage showed several vehicles ripped apart and burning. Damage to nearby buildings extended to the top floors.

Ghanem's death marks the eighth assassination of an anti-Syrian political figure since 2005, and comes six days before a divisive presidential vote in the Parliament, AP reports. The BBC News reports that Ghanem "was a member of the governing 14 March Movement and his death has reduced the bloc's majority in the Lebanese Chamber of Deputies to just two." It is believed that pro-Syrian forces have been picking off political foes in that body to reduce the ruling party's majority.

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Posted at 2:12 PM
Posted to: Lebanon, Middle East, Syria, Terrorism
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June 13, 2007

Lebanon Blast Kills Anti-Syrian Lawmaker

UPDATED.

Walid Eido, a prominent member of Lebanon's parliament, was killed today in an explosion in Beirut, CNN reports. Eido was an outspoken opponent of Syria, and his death appears to have been an assassination.

Ten people were killed in the blast outside a military sports club, including Eido's son and two bodyguards. The 65-year-old leader is the seventh opponent of Syria to be killed in recent years, and Lebanon has been hit with multiple explosions in the last few years.

The violence comes amid fresh concerns about Lebanon's border with Syria. The U.N. Security Council backed the Lebanese army yesterday, saying its envoy was alarmed at new reports of arms and fighters coming from Syria into Lebanon.

Posted at 2:06 PM
Posted to: Lebanon, Middle East, Syria
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June 01, 2007

Lebanese Army Hits Refugee Camp

At least nineteen people, including three Lebanese soldiers, died today when the army struck at the Nahr al-Bared camp in southern Lebanon. Militants loyal to al-Qaida have dug into the Palestinian camp in recent weeks, defending their positions and forcing the Lebanese army to battle them for control of the area.

Troops rolled closer to the camp in tanks today and fired on the Fatah al-Islam militants. A source from the group told Reuters that some positions had been ceded and that there was "widescale destruction in civilian areas."

The Lebanese army cannot legally enter any refugee camp according to the terms of a 1969 Arab agreement; today's fighting took place just outside the camp's borders. About 400,000 Palestinian refugees live in Lebanon's 12 camps.

A temporary truce prompted last week's exodus of nearly half the camp's population to refugee camps in other parts of the country, but violence resumed in earnest this week. More than 80 people have already been killed in Lebanon's bloodiest internal fighting since the 15-year civil war that ended in 1990.

Posted at 4:00 PM
Posted to: Al-Qaida, Lebanon, Terrorism
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May 23, 2007

Thousands Flee Lebanon Camp

A truce declared last night has held long enough for Palestinian refugees to evacuate the Nahr el-Bared camp in northern Lebanon today.

Camp residents with cars managed to escape to another nearby camp, which is provisioned by the United Nations and other relief agencies. National Public Radio reports that about 15,000 camp residents, about half the total population, left late last night and another 1,000 left today. A U.N. convoy trying to deliver supplies to the remaining people in the camp was attacked earlier in the day.

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Posted at 3:19 PM
Posted to: Lebanon, Middle East
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May 22, 2007

Lebanon Enters Third Day Of Fighting

Another day in Lebanon opened with heavy fire exchanged between the Lebanese army and a Palestinian militant group in a refugee camp in the northern part of the country, where clashes have been ongoing for a few days. But violence also spread to the south today, with new fighting at a refugee camp there and a bomb attack injuring six people in Beirut. More than 50 people have already been killed.

It's not clear whether the other incidents are linked to the continued fighting in the north, but a spokesman for Fatah al Islam threatened increased violence if the army didn't stop its efforts at the refugee camp.

Bloomberg News quotes analysts suggesting that the continued violence could be driven by Syria in an attempt to pressure Lebanon's government.

The two countries have a long history of tension, but new sparks have ignited in recent days over a proposal to put Syrian officials on trial for multiple assassinations in Lebanon, including the 2005 killing of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. The United States and France both support the tribunal proposal; Syria and its allies, including Hezbollah, oppose it.

The Gate has more background on the conflict.

Posted at 7:37 AM
Posted to: Lebanon, Middle East
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May 21, 2007

Violence In Lebanon: Breaking Down The Parts

The fighting that is raging in northern Lebanon is, by most accounts, an isolated incident involving a small band of militants. But in some ways, the two-day clashes are part of a larger battle for the soul of the Middle East.

The group at the center of the violence, Fatah al-Islam, is less than a year old, having splintered off from the Syrian-backed Fatah al-Intifada last November. Its leader, Shakir al-Abssi, is a Palestinian who was sentenced to death in absentia by a Jordanian court for the 2002 assassination of an American diplomat. While not formally affiliated with al-Qaida, al-Abssi has expressed solidarity with the terror network's calls for jihad against the West, and has dedicated his group's efforts to sowing calls for jihad among the tens of thousands of impoverished Palestinian refugees living in camps in Lebanon.

The New York Times profiled al-Abssi in March. "The only way to achieve our rights is by force," he said in an interview. "This is the way America deals with us. So when the Americans feel that their lives and their economy are threatened, they will know that they should leave."

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Posted at 1:40 PM
Posted to: Lebanon, Palestinians, Syria
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May 08, 2007

Rice Challenges Lebanon's Syria Backers

Just days after extending the hand of diplomacy to the Syrian foreign minister, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice again called for an international tribunal on the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Many in the region and the West suspect Syria of involvement in the 2005 Valentine's Day explosion that claimed his life.

The Lebanese government has hesitated to sign on to an international criminal tribunal to investigate Hariri's death because of pressure from pro-Syrian elements. But in an editorial that appeared on the front page of An-Nahar, a major Lebanese newspaper, Rice warned that the United Nations would proceed with its own investigation, regardless of whether Beirut signed on to an international probe.

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Posted at 3:28 PM
Posted to: Lebanon, Syria
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