January 20, 2006

PRESIDENT CHIRAC REVIEWS WITH SAAD AL-HARIRI THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS IN LEBANON. PRIME MINISTER AL-SINIORA HOLDS A MEETING WITH PRESIDENT MUBARAK AND URGES ALL PARTIES TO STOP POLITICAL CAMPAIGNS. THE LEBANESE MINISTER OF INFORMATION THANKS THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA FOR THE ROLE IT IS PLAYING TO PROTECT LEBANON. THE EU PRESIDENCY RENEWS ITS SUPPORT TO LEBANON. INQUIRIES START IN LEBANON WITH A GROUP OF DETAINEES LINKED TO AL-QAEDA. The Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora urged all sides to end their provocative media campaigns to rescue the country from perils at this sensitive crossroads. He stressed that such clashes would only invite the enemy to become stronger and secure his own interests. However, sources close to the Prime Minister told al Mustakbal daily that he said he was sure the conflicting parties were heading towards conciliation because, in Siniora's words, they had demonstrated willingness to ease the tension. He added his main concern was to win back the Shiite colleagues inside cabinet to tackle the challenges facing the country. The premier also stressed that regional conflicts should not drag Lebanon into an inferno, which would jeopardize the country's great potential. In reference to the pro Syrian riot that took place before the Serail, Siniora reiterated that every one had the right to demonstrate, but pointed out that freedom of expression should be manifested within legal norms, not through violent means, emphasizing that protestors on Saturday used stones, sticks, tomatoes and eggs to convey their message. Meantime the Head of the Future bloc in Parliament MP Saad Rafiq Hariri conveyed US, French, and Saudi commitment to the United Nations probe underway into last year's assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, after meeting French President Jacques Chirac in Paris. MP Hariri said the US, France and Saudi Arabia confirmed to him that there is "no deal at the expense" of the international investigation, and stressed that President Chirac reiterated the need to implement United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1595, 1636, and 1644, which require cooperation with the investigation. MP Hariri, who was warmly received by the French President for a meeting that last an hour and a half, thanked Mr. Chirac for his support of Lebanon, and told journalists that discussions focused on developments in the probe and the security in Lebanon. He said that President Chirac was very "tough" in pressuring Syria to collaborate in this case, and that France is among countries pressuring Syria to collaborate with the UN investigators. He urged cooperation with the international investigation into the February car bombing in Beirut that killed Premier Hariri. Asked about Syrian President Bashar Assad's decision not to meet UN investigators, as part of the probe, he said while it is up to Syria, it will have to shoulder the consequences of its decisions. He made clear that cooperation is in the interest of Lebanon, Syria and the entire region, and that the issue will be referred to the UN Security Council if there is no cooperation. Mr. Hariri added that Syria has no choice but to cooperate. In response to a question about his own feelings towards those who murdered his late father, MP Hariri said he regretted that a previously friendly regime killed Prime Minister Hariri. Asked if Amal and Hizbollah ministers, who recently walked out from Cabinet, will return, MP Hariri reiterated calls for a unified government and for consensus among Cabinet ministers. He made clear that no faction should feel frustrated, but that at the same time Lebanon's interest must be upheld. Meantime President Hosni Mubarak pursued his consultations and contacts to solve the Lebanese-Syrian crisis. The President received Lebanon's Prime Minister Fouad Siniora in the Red Sea resort of Sharm El-Sheikh. Their talks focused on developments on the Lebanese arena in light of the latest developments in the Syrian-Lebanese file and the results of prespective regional and international contacts by Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, at his press conference after talks with President Hosni Mubarak, said Lebanon is keen on maintaining good relations with Syria. Answering a question on Egyptian and Saudi good offices to improve Lebanese-Syrian relations, Siniora said such improvement requires settling some bones of contention between Syria and Lebanon. He underlined on this score the necessity that Syria should stop supporting Palestinian armed men outside their refugee camps (in Lebanon). Siniora said he sensed an identification in many views in his talks with President Mubarak mainly continuity in revealing truth behind assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Al-Hariri. Siniora added that he agreed with President Mubarak to go on making consultations in this issue, and he expressed hope that Syria cooperates with the UN investigation commission, pointing out that Lebanon didn't intervene in the commission's mission although there were reports that Syria was sluggish in cooperation with the commission. The Lebanese Prime Minister said the Arabs have an interest in Syria's cooperation with the commission. Answering a question if he was posted to the Egyptian-Saudi consultations with Syria, he replied that he was posted to these consultations, expressing that he has confidence in the commission's objectivity. Siniora said his country is keen to have good relations with Syria which would be better if it cooperates with the commission. Answering a question on the UN commission's request to question Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad and impact of this move on Syria's sovereignty, Siniora said Lebanon doesn't intervene in the commission's job and believes in its integrity." Information Minister Ghazi Aridi, a member of MP Walid Jumblatt's Democratic Gathering, returned from Saudi Arabia where he held a meeting with Hariri. Aridi said that there is an attempt to make certain proposals to gain time. The Minister was speaking following a meeting with the head of the Lebanese Forces, Samir Geagea. He avoided touching on the outcome of his visit to the kingdom of Saudi Arabia and thanked Kind Abdullah for the role he is playing to protect Lebanon. For his part Geagea said he encourages any Arab initiative, on condition that its basic factors agree with the requirements of sovereignty and independence. Meanwhile, the Lebanese Parliamentary Committee, emanating from the majority bloc, thanked Arab efforts to solve the Lebanese governmental crisis. During a meeting held at MP Butros Harb's residence, the committee asked Arab states to continue offering assistance to prevent the general situation in Lebanon from retreating. They said that any initiative with Lebanon not being a part of it is a Syrian initiative. Lebanon's top politicians agreed on the need to hold an extraordinary parliamentary session soon to address the country's current political crisis. Talking after a meeting with President Emile Lahoud, Premier Fouad Siniora said that Lahoud will later meet with Speaker Nabih Berri to decide on the agenda of the session, which the country's political majority has been calling for over the past couple of days. "We will have a clear picture of the issues that would be addressed by Parliament's extraordinary session in the coming two days," Siniora said. An extraordinary session had been called for by politicians from March 14 Forces as well as by Berri since several pending issues are awaiting discussion in Parliament, including passing the country's overdue national budget and initiating a national dialogue. The follow-up committee of March 14 Forces initiated a parliamentary petition calling for the holding of an extraordinary parliamentary session to initiate a national dialogue between different political forces represented in Parliament, which most of the country's politicians had been calling for over the last month. According to Article 33 of the Constitution, extraordinary sessions are held in response to a request by the president of the republic after consulting with the premier, or through the demand of a majority of MPs in Parliament. The same article also stipulates that the extraordinary session is held following the issuance of a decree by the president "specifying the dates of the opening and closing of the extraordinary session as well as the agenda." Even though the Cabinet session will take place Thursday as scheduled, Siniora said work is still under way to end the boycott by the country's Shiite ministers, and secure their return to the government. "The only choice we have to hand is to reach an agreement with the [Shiite ministers]. There is no other alternative," he said. Replying to a question on a suggestion by Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun to form a new national unity Cabinet, a suggestion which has already been welcomed by Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, to diffuse the present Cabinet crisis, Siniora said: "The first move is to hold a dialogue among parliamentary parties. MPs would then decide on the next move and on whether to include parties from outside Parliament." Siniora also said Syria "can help resolve" the issue of armed Palestinian factions outside refugee camps. "Syria can play an essential role to solve this problem," he said, and added such a role would "help in defusing tensions with Syria. We are committed to establishing good and healthy relations with Syria ... the presence of armed Palestinians outside the camps, and the continued smuggling of arms to Lebanon and the illegal influx of Palestinian fighters to Lebanon would only increase tensions. This is certainly not a good way to improve relations with Syria." Meanwhile Brammertz is taking over responsibility for the inquiry from German prosecutor Detlev Mehlis, who released two reports last year stating the decision to kill Hariri "could not have been taken without the approval of top-ranked Syrian security officials." The Syrian daily Al-Thawra said Syria was ready for "full cooperation" with the commission, but called on Brammertz to sign an agreement defining "the concept of cooperation." "Talking about the future requires the avoidance of previous mistakes in assessing cooperation," paper said. "Syria is committed to its independence and sovereignty," Syrian Information Minister Mehdi Dakhlallah told Egyptian Radio on 12 January. "This [interrogation of al-Assad] is a red line that cannot be crossed." The UN request to question al-Assad followed statements by former Syrian Vice President Abdel-Halim Khaddam, currently in exile in Paris. He said that the Syrian president had threatened Hariri on a number of occasions in advance of last February's assassination. Syria's President Bashar al-Assad might meet an international investigation team if that helps find the truth about the assassination of Rafiq al-Hariri, a source said. "The meeting is possible only if it falls within the framework of fact-finding and defining ways for help," the well-informed source, who requested anonymity, told United Press International. "The meeting with President al-Assad within that context is a natural matter, but any attempt by the inquiry to interrogate him is impossible in view of the immunity that he enjoys as president of the republic and because we cannot accept the violation of national sovereignty," the source added. The panel investigating the Feb. 14 assassination of the former Lebanese prime minister wants to interview al-Assad and Foreign Minister Farouq al-Sharaa. The source said four Syrian security officials who were already interviewed by the committee, which named them as suspects, were interviewed again in Vienna, accompanied by their lawyers. They included Rustom Ghazaleh, the former military intelligence chief in Lebanon, Zafer Youssef, a technician in charge of communications and computerization, Abdel Karim Ismail, an aide of Ghazaleh, and Samih Kashami, a retired officer. The source said the officials were interviewed again because the inquiry was taken over by a new chief investigator, Belgian Judge Serge Brammertz who succeeded German prosecutor Detlev Mehlis. "The re-interviewing of the Syrian officials occurred due to the new presidency of the investigation committee and is aimed to re-assess the brittle facts and testimonies made by certain witnesses," the source added. On the other hand the EU has issued the following statement: Declaration by the Presidency on behalf of the European Union on Lebanon, corrected version The European Union is deeply committed to the stability, sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Lebanon. The European Union welcomes the appointment of Mr Serge Brammertz to head the International Investigation Commission into the assassination of Rafiq Hariri. It commends the exemplary work accomplished by Mr Detlev Mehlis as head of the Investigation Commission and thanks him for his action in seeking out justice and truth. The European Union reiterates the need for Security Council resolutions 1595, 1636 and 1644 to be implemented and, pursuant to those resolutions, for Syria to cooperate fully and unconditionally with the Investigation Commission. It expresses its deep concern at the murders of innocent citizens carried out in Lebanon. It hopes that light will be shed upon these crimes and issues a solumn warning to the perpetrators and their backers. The European Union reaffirms its full support for the government of Mr Fouad Siniora. It calls on all the political forces of Lebanon to play their part in ensuring that the government loses no time in implementing the reforms necessary for the progress of the democratic Lebanon that emerged from the elections of June 2005. The European Union reiterates the importance it attaches to the Lebanese government extending its authority to the entire national territory and encourages it to continue the dialogue begun, in accordance with resolution 1559, with a view to the disarmament of Lebanese and non-Lebanese militias. It fully supports the Lebanese government's intention to enter into negotiations with Syria with a view to demarcating the entire border separating the two countries. It considers that complete recognition of Lebanon's sovereignty and independence must be sanctioned by the establishment of full diplomatic relations between Syria and Lebanon. The European Union reaffirms its support for the plan to hold an international conference in Beirut in 2006 on reconstruction and the introduction of the necessary reforms in Lebanon. The aim of the conference will be to mobilise regional and international support for the Lebanese Government's programme of economic restructuring and political reforms. In Lebanon Military Prosecutor Rashid Mizher issued arrest warrants against 13 suspected Qaida militants for planning to carry out terror attacks in Lebanon following several hours of questioning. They were charged with establishing a gang to carry out terrorist acts, forging official and private documents and possessing unlicensed arms. The 13, identified as seven Syrians, three Lebanese, a Saudi, a Jordanian and a Palestinian, were detained earlier this month by Lebanese security forces. The Qaida terrorist group in Iraq claimed last month that it fired a number of rockets from Lebanon into northern Israel on December 27th, provoking a retaliation of Israeli air strikes on the base of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command in Naameh in Southern Lebanon. Al Qaeda has rarely launched attacks in Lebanon, although it has used allied factions to recruit scores of volunteers among Lebanese and Palestinian refugees who went to Iraq to fight.