Lebanese spiritual leaders condemn terrorism, violence, domestic weapon-use; Stick to Taif accord

Donors pledge $120 million to reconstruct Nahr al-Bared camp

Siniora: Camp reconstruction doesn't mean re-settling Palestinians

Grand Mufti of Lebanon blames those who can’t see Saudi kingdom's noble role in Lebanon

Military, security forces impose order in fighting posts in Tripoli

President Michel Sleiman and Lebanese spiritual leaders sent a message of peace after several days of violence in the country. Leaders of Lebanon's religious groups met at the Presidential Palace to try to boost national reconciliation after dozens died in sectarian fighting last month and fresh clashes this week.

"You are meeting here to tell everybody that this nation is based on peace," Sleiman told Muslim and Christian dignitaries at Baabda Palace.

"We all have to worry because Lebanon is under threat of losing its message in the world ... Lebanese politicians must be encouraged to become messengers of peace," he said.

"I hope this summit will lay down the basis of a national dialogue aimed at consolidating the unity of the country," the president added.

Fierce clashes in Beirut and other parts of the country in May that killed 65 people raised fears of all-out conflict in Lebanon.

Sleiman, who organized the meeting, told delegates that "differences between Lebanese have led them to the brink of suicide" and called for dialogue "before it is too late

." This week in the Northern city of Tripoli, sectarian fighting killed eight people and wounded 45, threatening to derail an accord to end a protracted political crisis in Lebanon

. The agreement, reached in Qatar in May, led to Sleiman's election as president, ending a six-month period when the country had no head of state

. The accord also called for the formation of a unity government to end 18 months of political paralysis.

This, however, has been delayed because of squabbles in sharing out ministries between the parliamentary majority and the opposition.

The conference which convenes at the request of the Lebanese government was also attended by Arab League chief Amr Moussa, EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner and Austrian Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik. Sleiman said the country's political and religious leaders must not turn a blind eye to the problem but instead find a starting point to solve the crisis and heal the wounds.

"Politicians must assume their national responsibility in this critical period which the country is going through, even if that demands sacrifices and concessions," he added.

Those attending the meeting represented most of Lebanon's 18 religious communities

. The meeting's final statement condemned the violence which rocked the country and stressed the need to adhere to the Doha accord, which "prohibits recourse to weapons to achieve political objectives and encourages the rival parties to settle their differences within the constitutional institutions of the Lebanese state."

"All parties should settle their disputes through dialogue, keeping in mind that national interests should take priority to all other secondary interests

." The statement highlighted the role of the military and other security forces in preserving security and stability in the country, adding that there cannot be any economic progress in the absence of stability.

The statement also stressed the importance of preserving civil peace and enhancing the state's authority and sovereignty over all Lebanese territories.

"Diversity is Lebanon's special trait and should be respected by all parties," it said.

The statement called on all parties to cooperate with Sleiman to help him unify national ranks and emphasized the roles of the Parliament and the potential government, adding that any delay in forming the unity government would slow down the pace of the new mandate.

The statement also called on all media "to stay away from all forms of sectarian incitement, which contradicts religious and ethical values."

"Like the media, politicians should also abide to ethical principles in their rhetoric," it said.

The spiritual leaders thanked all friendly states that stood by Lebanon during its recent political crisis and praised the different parties engaged in the efforts that paved the way for the Doha accord on May 21.

Even though the Vienna donor conference to raise funds for the reconstruction of the war-ravaged Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp was completed, the crucial phase is beginning to extract pledges from the donor community, a number of officials involved in the rebuilding plans.

Premier Fouad Siniora said after the conference that Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait would put up half of the estimated $445 million to rebuild the camp and six surrounding Lebanese communities, but those nations have yet to announce concrete figures. The four Gulf countries should meet in Saudi Arabia to hash out their pledges during a previously scheduled bi-annual meeting, said Mohammad Chatah, senior adviser to Siniora.

"We're not there yet to talk about a firm pledge, but the total amount has been specified by Prime Minister Siniora, and they were receptive to playing an important part in this," Chatah added. "We're quite confident, but I can't speak of a pledge as such. I wouldn't use that term to describe their contribution yet."

The head of the UN agency in Lebanon directing the reconstruction said he had yet to hear from any of the four nations about a donation, as their contribution had only been made public by Siniora at a news conference. During the summit, donors pledged about $122 million for the rebuilding project, which will last at least until July 2011.

"I'm not sure that the Gulf states said they would fund half of it," said Richard Cook, the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) director for Lebanon. "I haven't heard that from any of the [four] Gulf states."

However, he added that he was certain the talks in Riyadh would produce money for the rebuilding. "I'm confident we will see something come out of that meeting."

Siniora came up with the plan for the four Arab nations to pick up half the reconstruction tab, as a way to share the costs with non-Arab international donors, said Chatah.

"It's an arrangement that the prime minister himself proposed," Chatah told The Daily Star. "He felt that the burden of the costs of reconstruction should be borne equally by Arab and Western donors. The [four states] were very positive in their response."

In talks between European and Arab diplomats leading up to the conference, proposals had been bandied about for the four Gulf countries either to match other donors' pledges or double them, said a senior European official with knowledge of the negotiations. One or two European diplomats had expressed displeasure with the choice of Vienna for the conference, saying the rebuilding of the camp was purely an Arab issue, said a Lebanese official involved in the preparations for the conference.

In addition to the $445 million figure given to the media, donors were also asked for another $43 million in "relief and early recovery" funding, mostly to provide basic needs from September 1 through the end of 2009 to Palestinians displaced by the fighting in Nahr al-Bared, Cook said. Most of the camp was destroyed in more than three months of fighting between the Lebanese Armed Forces and Fatah al-Islam militants in mid-2007.

This $43 million in humanitarian aid also includes $8.3 million for the removal of rubble from the old camp, the area of the camp closest to the Mediterranean and also hardest hit by the 15 weeks of conflict, Cook added. This separate appeal for funds should succeed the $55 million in similar emergency relief aid requested at a donor conference last September in Beirut, Cook added. The final price tag for the Nahr al-Bared will almost certainly also include money for another similar humanitarian package once the $43 million runs out at the end of 2009, Cook said.

"It's almost inevitable that we will have to have another one after that," he added.

With many donors seeing for the first the documents detailing the plans for reconstruction and recovery aid, UNRWA and others managing the rebuilding project will now begin pressing donors to make pledges, Cook said.

"The important time is the days and weeks to come," he said. "What is important now is that we follow up with donors, and we just don't leave it for a period of time. This [conference] is just the first step. Many donors did not have the chance to look at what we proposed. The important thing is that we started the ball rolling."

Cook did not rule out holding another donor meeting later this year or early next year, as Monday's conference came in the middle of a budget year for many donors, who had already allocated the bulk of the giving.

"There's a fiscal year that limited the amount we could pledge," said the senior European official, who added that European nations would definitely give more rounds of contributions in 2009 and 2010.

For many of the Nahr al-Bared residents, however, Monday's pledges and promises still have not convinced them that the camp will ever be rebuilt, said Yasser Dawoud, head of the Lebanese non-governmental organization Development Action without Borders.

"They are afraid that the in-hand [pledges] will not be enough to rebuild," he said.

After refugee camps such as Beirut's Tall al-Zaatar were razed during the Civil War and never rebuilt, many Palestinians continue not to trust the Lebanese state, Dawoud added.

"It's something that is stuck in the people's minds," he said. "They still think that it's just a promise. They think most of the money will be used for the surrounding [Lebanese] villages."

With this lack of trust between Lebanese and Palestinians, many Nahr al-Bared inhabitants want the donors to track how the state makes use of their pledges, Dawoud said.

"They want the international community to monitor how this project is used," he said. "It will be really appreciated if the international community and the donor community really monitor the usage of this budget."

Cook and Chatah said they would stress that contributions were directed toward investments in rebuilding the economic livelihoods of the Palestinian and Lebanese residents of the area, as a strategy to give the locals confidence in their futures and extinguish the appeal of the kind of militant extremism that fueled the emergence of Fatah al-Islam and similar groups throughout the country's 12 refugee camps.

"The incidents in Nahr al-Bared camp confirm that the basic pillar for resolving issues of extremism and terrorism at the regional and international level requires an urgent and just resolution to the Palestinian question," Palestinian Premier Salam Fayad said.

The focus continues to be the formation of the cabinet by Prime Minister - Designate Fouad Siniora and the distribution of the sovereign ministries. The Hezbollah-led opposition reportedly gave Prime Minister-designate Fouad Saniora 48 hours to form a new cabinet.

Siniora rejected the deadline as unconstitutional, claiming he has the support of the majority to form the cabinet

General Aoun supported by Hezbollah is still insisting on having a sovereign ministry and at the same time is questioning the neutrality of minister Elias Murr, whom the president seems to trust the most for the ministry of defense.

Speaker Berri has been trying to help facilitate the formation of the government. In order to please General Aoun he suggested a third basket of ministers and doubled the number of sovereign ministries from 4 to 8 in his new proposal .As far as Berri is concerned there is no such thing as a sovereign ministry after the Taif accord

The other focal point is the Shebaa Farms and Hezbollah arms. Hezbollah is insisting that regardless what happens to Shebaa they are going to hold onto their arms and will refuse to disarm. Hezbollah is being accused by Lebanese leaders of showing no interest in Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.

The Grand Mufti of Lebanon Sheikh Mohammed Qabbani said that the hostility towards Saudi Arabia by some parties shows that they are unable to see "the noble role the Saudi Kingdom plays in Lebanon."

He defended the kingdom by saying "the anti-Saudi smear campaigns are aimed at assassinating the kingdom's role in helping to unify Lebanon."

"The kingdom is always the first among countries assisting Lebanon," Sheikh Qabbani added

"The kingdom's friendly and wise policies toward all Arab brothers, especially Lebanon, are discomforting to all those who want to do the Saudis, Arabs and Lebanese harm," Sheikh Qabbani said.

Qabbani concluded in his statement: "Saudi Arabia is above conspiracies and misguidance."

Heavy armed clashes between pro- and anti-government supporters raged in the northern city of Tripoli despite stepped up efforts to end the fighting which killed four people and wounded 40 others.

News reports said a mortar shell fell in the heart of Tripoli, hitting the Grand Mansouri Mosque.

Intensified meetings that lasted well at the residence of Tripoli's Sunni Mufti Sheikh Malek al-Shaar failed to put an end to the fighting which broke out earlier in the day.

Fighting erupted two hours after unidentified assailants in the pro-opposition stronghold of Baal Mohsen hurled hand grenades at Tabbaneh, a predominantly Sunni Muslim district that backs MP Saad Hariri's Mustaqbal Movement.

Prime Minister-designate Fouad Siniora said in an interview published in leading Austrian daily Der Standard that he had high hopes for the donor conference for the reconstruction of the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp held in Vienna.

"The Vienna conference will give us the chance to put the spotlight on the problems the Lebanese people and Palestinian refugees have been facing ever since 1948, when Israel threw out the Palestinians from their homeland," Siniora said in the interview.

About 400,000 Palestinian refugees reside in Lebanon, most of them living in miserable conditions. More than any other country, Lebanon had to carry a burden that went beyond its capacities.

As for the Nahr al-Bared conflict, the Palestinian refugee camp fell into the hands of Fatah al-Islam, which attacked the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and "slaughtered Lebanese soldiers," Siniora added.

"After the beginning of the clashes, we called on the different Palestinian factions within the camp to condemn the murders perpetrated by this terrorist organization and convince its members to surrender, while we promised that those who did would receive good treatment," said the premier.

However, the militants ignored the call, and the LAF had to confront the organization, following the government's instructions, which led to the massive destruction.

When asked about the political complications that were slowing down the reconstruction process, Siniora said that since 1969 the refugee camps in Lebanon have not been under the Lebanese government's control, which means that they do not abide by Lebanese law.

He insisted on the importance of the Lebanese treating the refugees like their brothers, and of Palestinians behaving just like any Lebanese citizen and abiding by Lebanese laws. He added that Palestinians were the victims of Israeli aggression, as they were expelled from their homeland and had to live in miserable conditions ever since.

Siniora also stressed the importance of allowing the Palestinians to work in Lebanon and get paid so that they do not end up being "easy prey for terrorist groups to recruit."

As for the resettlement issue, Siniora said that it was not up for discussion, as the country could not bear it first for demographic issues, as well as because the naturalization would be an unconstitutional act.

The premier also said that for the Palestinian issue in Lebanon to be solved, people should go back to the issue's origins and try to understand the problem's sources.

About the Shebaa Farms issue, which Israel and the UN consider Syrian territory, Siniora said - adding that Syria agrees with his view - that this was Lebanese territory but was not considered so because there has never been a border demarcation between Lebanon and Syria due to the circumstances of the countries' creations.

"When the Israelis progressively took full control of this land, they knew that it was part of Lebanon, but the UN decided then that this was Syrian territory," he said.

Because of the complications related to this land, Lebanon has suggested putting the farms under the UN's control, although Siniora stressed the fact that Israel did not impose this decision upon the Lebanese government.

"After the Israeli withdrawal, we could hold negotiations with Syria, have the borders demarcated and send the new maps over to the UN," said Siniora.

As for Hezbollah, Siniora reiterated the fact that it was a Lebanese party, represented in Parliament. He also said that during the national dialogue held between March and June 2006, Hezbollah and the government overcame a number of obstacles by agreeing on important subjects such as the UN tribunal to try suspects in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, Lebanese-Syrian relations and the arms question within the Palestinian camps.

About the Arab-Israeli conflict, Siniora said that Lebanon would abide by the Arab peace initiative, adding that, because of unique Lebanese characteristics, there could never be bilateral talks with Israel, even if it withdrew from Shebaa.

As for Syria, that country's government has the capacity to hold talks with Israel, he said. However, Lebanon remains very careful.

Asked about US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's recent visit, Siniora said the government had continuous contacts with the US and all of Lebanon's "international friends."

As for the Special Tribunal, it is no longer in the hands of the Lebanese government, but rather the responsibility of the UN, he said.

"The tribunal will not be imposed on the Lebanese, because they have already approved it, and it can operate without us having to interfere," he added.

Siniora thanked all the countries that supported Lebanon and the LAF, and he also thanked Austria and its president for hosting this conference.