December 15, 2006

A MESSAGE FROM CROWN PRINCE SULTAN BIN ABDUL AZIZ TO THE COMMANDER OF THE LEBANESE ARMY. PRINCE NAIF BIN ABDUL AZIZ: EFFORTS WILL CONTINUE FOR THE RETURN OF THE REMAINING SAUDIS IN GUANTANAMO. AMRE MOUSSA LEAVES LEBANON FOR FEW DAYS AS MORE WORK NEEDS TO BE ACHIEVED TO REACH A SOLUTION. THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS ON THE PALESTINIAN ARENA. Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General has sent a message to the Commander of the Lebanese Army, General Michel Suleiman, the content of the message was not declared. The message, was delivered by the Saudi Military Attache Brigadier General Mohammad Bin Ibrahim Al Hajaj, who visited the Commander of the army in his office in Yazreh. On the other hand Prince Naif bin Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Interior said in a statement that the ongoing efforts of the official Saudi authorities, with the directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz, has resulted in releasing and bringing back 16 Saudi citizens who were detained in Guantanamo Bay. Prince Naif said they arrived by a private Saudi airplane, adding that their relatives have been informed of their arrival. "Moreover, security authorities in the Ministry of the Interior have been instructed to provide all the necessary facilities to meet their families." Prince Naif affirmed that the commitment of the detainees released earlier from Guantanamo Bay to the regulations and instructions, had a positive role in supporting the efforts of Saudi Arabia on this issue, pointing out that the returnees will be subjected to regulations of the Kingdom. In concluding his statement, Prince Naif expressed his appreciation for the cooperation of the US authorities, pointing out the continuing efforts to bring back the last of the Saudi detainees in the near future, God willing. Sixteen more Saudi nationals detained at Guantanamo prison have been released. They landed in Riyadh said Interior Minster Prince Naif. Hours earlier at a press conference held following an inauguration of the Second Islamic Conference of Environment Ministers, Prince Naif ruled out the possibility of the sectarian strife in Lebanon and Iraq spilling into the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah during the Hajj. "We have taken every security precaution to contain any eventuality," said Prince Naif. The third group of Saud detainees from Guantanamo arrived in Riyadh after five years as "enemy non-combatants," a term the White House created to skirt rules on the treatment of prisoners of war under the Geneva Conventions. The official security spokesman at the Ministry of Interior, explained in a statement to the Saudi Press Agency that the names of the Saudi nationals who returned home from Guantanamo Bay are as follows: 1- Mohammad Ayah Moshin Al-Zayali 2- Salim Salman Awadh Allah Al-Harbi 3- Yousuf Abdullah Saleh Al-Rubaesh 4- Suleiman Saad Mohammad Al-Oush 5- Jaber Jabran ali Al-fayfee 6- Ibrahim Suleiman Mohammad Al-Rubaesh 7- Abdullah Mohammad Al-Oudaini Al-Yamani 8- Anwar Hamdan Mohammad Al-Nour 9- Hajee Hajaj Awadh al-Sulaimi 10- Abdul Aziz Mohammad Ibrahim Al-Nasir 11- Ziyad Saeed Faraj Al-Jahdali 12 - Majed Hamad Abdul Rahman Al-Fareij 13- Bassam Mohammad Saleh Al-Dubakhee 14- Saed Ali Al-Farha Al-Ghamdi 15- Sultan Sari Sayel Al-Onaizi 16- Abdul Rahman Mohammad Hussein Khouraan The Spokesman noted that whoever is related to these persons and needed information about them, can call telephone number 4034375. To date, 51 Saudis have been released from Guantanamo. Seventy-four still remain at the prison. Mohammed Salman, brother of Sulaim Salman Al-Harbi, one of the 16 detainees released, said in a telephone conversation with Arab News from Makkah that the family was informed this morning. "We are getting ready as we speak to head to Riyadh," he said, adding that the ministry is allowing family members to meet with the prisoners for 24 hours. Afterward, they will be investigated in an attempt to determine if they pose a threat to Saudi national security. Officials have said that returning Saudi detainees are also treated for any post traumatic stress disorder they may have after undergoing their years-long detention and legal limbo. Prince Naif Bin Abdul Aziz has said that Saudi detainees will be held for any Saudi laws they may have violated. The United States sent 29 Saudis home earlier this year. Prince Naif affirmed that the commitment to regulations and instructions of previously repatriated Guantanamo detainees played a vital role in supporting the Kingdom's efforts. The Interior Minister conveyed his appreciation to US authorities for their cooperation. He added that efforts are ongoing to repatriate the remaining Saudi's detainees in the near future. While replying to a question about the names of 139 suspects arrested in Saudi Arabia in recent weeks in security operations, Prince Naif said at the press conference that things would be done in a transparent and comprehensive manner considering all aspects of the issue. On the other hand Arab League Secretary General Amre Moussa wrapped up a three-day mission to Lebanon on Thursday without a deal, saying that more work was required to settle the political crisis between the Saniora administration and the Hezbollah led coalition. The head of the Arab League said the government and the opposition have agreed on a national unity government in which major decisions could be made only by consensus, a major progress toward ending the country's political standoff. A new cabinet is the key demand of the Hezbollah-led opposition, whose thousands of supporters have been camping outside government headquarters in downtown Beirut since Dec. 1 to force Saniora to step down. Moussa said the rival parties had agreed on a formula that would give the pro-government camp less than two-thirds of the cabinet and leave the Hezbollah alliance short of its demand for just over one-third. A neutral cabinet minister would hold the balance. Moussa told reporters at a joint press conference with Arab League Sudanese envoy Mustafa Ismail at the Grand Serail that his mediation reflects "Arab Dynamics aimed at achieving a no conqueror-no vanquished settlement" to the crisis. "We want a win-win situation," Moussa said, adding that more talks are required to conclude the deal. Ismail indicated the outstanding point of contention is over who will be the neutral minister. "The contacts will decide who he will be," said Ismail, whose country holds the chairmanship of the Arab Summit. He added there were "difficulties and obstacles" in the path of a final agreement. Moussa called on all the parties to defuse the tension and expressed hope that the remaining issues could be resolved in the next two weeks. "Progress is clear and consensus is rising. Please be patient a bit longer," he said. "We hope to finish in the next two weeks or at the end of the month." While Ismail did not expect an escalation in street protests, he raised doubt that the Hezbollah-led protests paralyzing downtown Beirut would end soon. Arab League Secretary General Amre Moussa reported progress in his mediation efforts Thursday to end a standoff between the government and opposition, but said more talks were needed. Moussa told a news conference that he would return to the capital "in a few days" to continue meetings with Lebanese leaders on a package deal to resolve the political deadlock. "There was progress, and there is good ground for understanding, but matters demand more efforts which could require me to return," Moussa told reporters on the third day of his mediation efforts. He said the principals had agreed on a unity government, but added that various parties were looking for "guarantees." Moussa has proposed expanding the Cabinet of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora to 30 ministers from 24. The anti-Syrian coalition would be given 19 ministers, while the opposition would receive 10, short of their demand for veto power, or one third of the body. A "neutral" minister would hold the balance. Moussa, who arrived in Beirut on Tuesday, held talks with Lebanon's leading politicians, including Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, Speaker Nabih Berri, President Emile Lahoud, Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and MP Michel Aoun. He also met with parliamentary majority leader MP Saad Hariri, Druze leader MP Walid Jumblatt, Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir and former President Amin Gemayel. Moussa said he hoped there would be a cooling-off period that would include an end to street protests, and that the remaining issues could be resolved in the next two weeks. Ismail said two-week-old opposition demonstrations in Beirut would continue but that there should be no escalation. The opposition mobilized hundreds of thousands of supporters last Sunday in Downtown Beirut in what army sources called the largest demonstration in the history of Lebanon. Amre Moussa proposed creating a joint committee of six members to look into the draft of the international tribunal. The committee would include two neutral judges, two representatives of the majority and two representatives of the opposition and would submit its report to the unity government. Lebanese President Emile Lahoud met the Secretary General of the Arab League Amr Moussa, who is currently on a visit to Lebanon. The Secretary General affirmed that the presidential elections are part of the solution of the Lebanese issue. Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora received the Secretary General of the Arab League, Amr Moussa, in the presence of Sudanese envoy Mustafa Osman Ismail. During the meeting, they discussed the results of his talks with officials in Lebanon. Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa said following talks with leaders from both camps that there is a great hope of reaching an agreement once compromises are made. "In my estimation, there is great hope that we will reach something on the various issues," Moussa told reporters after talks with Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, whom he met twice last Wednesday. "There can be no progress without all sides agreeing on a common ground that has gains and maybe some concessions. What is important is the Lebanese principle of 'no victor and no vanquished,'" said Moussa. "When I speak of progress, it is progress in the whole package," he added, saying his talks with various Lebanese leaders focused on a number of controversial issues, not just the government crisis. Moussa was speaking after two days of negotiations with key leaders including Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and his opposition ally MP Michel Aoun, who heads the Free Patriotic Movement. Moussa also met Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir, Druze leader MP Walid Jumblatt, and former President Amin Gemayel, whose son, Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel, was assassinated last month. Speaking after meeting with Sfeir, Moussa said that he had briefed the prelate on the talks and that Sfeir "supported and blessed my initiatives and the efforts I am making." Moussa added that the Council of Maronite Bishops' "declaration of principles" put forward by Sfeir earlier this month, which stipulates a consensus Cabinet and early presidential and parliamentary polls, is "being taken into consideration." Senior Moussa aide Hesham Youssef told the Reuters news agency on Wednesday the mediators had an "extremely positive" meeting on Tuesday with Nasrallah. A source close to Moussa told Agence France Press that Nasrallah said he "was open to certain ideas put forward by the Arab League secretary general and that encouraged Moussa to pursue mediation." Moussa and Sudanese presidential envoy Mustafa Othman Ismail have also held talks with President Emile Lahoud, Speaker Nabih Berri and the parliamentary majority leader, MP Saad Hariri. "Responses are so far encouraging," said Youssef, "but we haven't reached a conclusive outcome as of yet." The Arab League is pushing for a deal that includes a number of debatable issues, namely the shape of a national unity government, early presidential and parliamentary elections, and plans to set up an international court to try assassins in the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri. "We are awaiting responses from key political forces," Youssef said. "We're hopeful that it will be a quick process because the situation is extremely tense. I am hopeful." Siniora told a delegation from the Bekaa who came to support his government last Wednesday that he welcomes "any local or Arab initiative to end the crisis." Jumblatt said Moussa's Arab solution constituted a reaffirmation of the importance of the Taif Accord, which ended the Civil War. "When Moussa offers an Arab solution to Lebanon that means that in a way he is reaffirming the importance of the Taif Accord and the Taif is the base and start point," the legislator said. Following a meeting with Grand Mufti Mohammad Rashid Qabbani, Mustafa Othman Ismail said he had proposed several ideas to overcome the crisis and was waiting for reactions from all parties concerned. The Sudanese envoy said he was building on a proposal made last week by the Maronite Church to form a new unity government and hold early elections. Ismail said the proposal consists of discussing four issues: the formation of a national unity government; an international court to try those suspected of the assassination of a former premier; early presidential elections and a planned international donor's conference to assist Lebanon's reconstruction process. The envoy said that all issues will be discussed simultaneously and, once approved by all parties, will form a new national pact. As part of the efforts to solve the situation Speaker of Lebanese Parliament Nabih Berri received Saudi ambassador to Lebanon Dr. Abdul Aziz bin Mohieddin Khoja. During the meeting, they discussed the latest developments in the Lebanese arena and ways of enhancing the bilateral relations between the two brotherly countries. Also the foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates also shuttled between Lebanese leaders last Thursday. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan held meetings with Lahoud, Berri, Siniora and Gemayel. In comments after his talks with Siniora, Abdullah said: "Efforts in Lebanon are being deployed by all Arab parties and I believe that Lebanon has had more than its share of internal disputes." Moussa was cooperating with all Arab delegations visiting Lebanon, he added. "All sides have big responsibilities in standing by Lebanon and taking care of its constitutional and legitimate institutions, and the premiership is an important part in this equation," Abdullah said. The UAE official suggested that Lebanon and relevant Arab countries should "encourage" the holding of an international donor conference on January 25 to help Lebanon rebuild after the July-August war with Israel. "It is necessary for Lebanon to adhere to the international legitimacy which is the basis for stability in the country and the Middle East," he said. Meanwhile, Siniora left Thursday for Moscow. The premier had been invited to visit the Russian capital by President Vladimir Putin. Siniora's office said the visit was aimed at "consolidating bilateral relations and discussing developments in Lebanon and the region, since Russia is a permanent member of the Security Council." The prime minister was accompanied by acting Foreign Minister Tarek Mitri, Justice Minister Charles Rizk and Information Minister Ghazi Aridi. Prime Minister Fouad Saniora who arrived in Moscow late Thursday for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, said Moussa will return to Lebanon on Monday and hoped for support in his dealings with Syria. "We are for the regularization of relations with Syria. I think Russia can exert some pressure in this direction," Saniora told reporters on Thursday evening in Moscow. Head of the Future Bloc in Parliament MP Saad Hariri said Hezbollah has been blockading the Government Palace based on instructions from Iran, and revealed that he had transmitted a message to the Iranian authorities through Iran's Ambassador warning that Tehran is playing a dangerous role by causing divisions among Muslims. MP Hariri also called for a return to the negotiating table to resolve the country's problems. In an interview with Algerian Television, Head of the Future Bloc made clear that no Lebanese group can claim victory over the others, citing coexistence among the country's 19 sects, as well as the Lebanese pillars of moderation, democracy, freedom and the respect of diverse opinions. He stressed that Lebanon can only be ruled by law, the Constitution, the Taif Accord, and dialogue. Mr. Hariri said Hezbollah has been leading the opposition to serve regional goals. He held the opposition responsible for high tensions in the country, citing street demonstrations, which do not lead to a solution. Head of the Future Bloc said solutions are needed for the Presidency, the issue of a government of national unity, the creation of an international tribunal to try the suspects in Prime Minister Rafic Hariri's assassination, the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, and convening the Paris III international economic conference. Head of the Future Bloc reaffirmed that a new President should be elected, because the current one was imposed through a campaign of terrorism and threats. He added, a new government can also be formed to satisfy the opposition, and the tribunal should be created to prevent further assassinations and terrorism in the country. Regarding the opposition's demand to control one-third of the government, MP Hariri questioned the motive behind this, citing Hezbollah's monopoly over deciding to go to war with Israel this summer, which he described as a dangerous act, which led to destruction in Lebanon. He told Algerian TV that he is committed to the resistance, but said Hezbollah should also commit to Lebanon. He raised doubts over the opposition's plan for the country, saying the only one they have is that of strategic defense, at a time when the economy, development, and education need to be bolstered. Mr. Hariri said Lebanon is a place to 'live and not die', and that investors should again be attracted to the country. He added, Hezbollah receives its instructions from abroad and executes them in Lebanon. MP Hariri called for a return to the negotiating table, and said all problems can be resolved through dialogue, based on Arab mediation efforts, and the Maronite Church's recent proposals to overcome the political impasse. He emphasized the need to be "realistic" since Lebanon is a democracy where the Constitution should be respected and everyone lives under the Lebanese flag, away from any foreign alliances. On the Palestinian arena Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniya returned to the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing point late Thursday, but was forced to leave behind an estimated $35 million he had collected abroad, Palestinian eyewitnesses and security sources reported. Israel had prevented Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh returning to Gaza from a trip abroad to stop him bringing in money donated by Muslim states. Palestinian officials and Western diplomats said Haniyeh, a leader of the governing Hamas movement, was planning to enter the impoverished Gaza Strip from Egypt through the Rafah border crossing with $35 million of cash in suitcases. Some 2,000 Hamas supporters, including men firing in the air, stormed into the Rafah border terminal after Israel ordered it shut, witnesses said. A Hamas police force and a contingent loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas also shot in the air in a bid to clear the terminal, but the rival security groups then began shooting at each other, and at least six people were wounded, the witnesses said. Israeli security sources said Defense Minister Amir Peretz had given the order to close Rafah after receiving information that Haniyeh was trying to bring in money after his two-week fund-raising tour. Haniyeh has visited countries including Qatar, Iran and Sudan to raise money for his government, which has struggled to function due to international sanctions including financial restrictions imposed after Hamas' election win in January. Hamas says it uses funds from sympathetic states to pay government salaries and keep essential public services running. Israel says it believes the money goes to Hamas fighters. Israel, the United States and the European Union imposed sanctions after Hamas rejected their demands to recognize the Jewish state, renounce violence and accept existing interim peace accords. In Cairo it was announced that President Mubarak will receive on Saturday British Prime Minister Tony Blair for talks on pushing the Middle East peace process forward. Britain greatly appreciates the important role being played by Egypt to serve the Palestinian-Israeli peace process, British Foreign Office Spokesman told MENA on Thursday. He said that London really puts in high esteem all efforts made by Egypt to propel the peace march and alleviate sufferings of the Palestinians. The spokesman said that Prime Minister Tony Blair, is looking forward to the visit he would be paying to Egypt December 16. The spokesman said that Blair's talks in Egypt, which would be visiting as part of a tour that will involve as well as Israel and the Palestinian territories, would concentrate on the latest developments in the Palestinian-Israeli peace dossier and Egypt's ideas about the best ways possible too push the peace march forward. He said that Blair would not be carrying with him a specifically new European initiative to resolve the Middle East problem. According to him the main aim of Blair's tour would be consult with official concerned in Egypt, Israel and the Palestinian lands on re-launching the long stymied peace talks. He asserted the keenness of Britain and all the other European countries to do their utmost to help reach breakthrough that can bring the Palestinians and Israelis back to the negotiating table. Meanwhile President Hosni Mubarak told visiting US Senator John Kerry, the former presidential candidate that the path to alleviate tension in the Middle East passes via Jerusalem. The President received last Thursday Kerry, who arrived in Cairo earlier in the day. The meeting was attended by US Ambassador in Cairo Francis Ricciardone. Kerry, the head of the Senate's Committee on Foreign Relations, is on a one-day visit to Egypt to probe with the Egyptian officials the latest developments in the region. Presidential Spokesman Suleiman Awwad told reporters that Kerry was keen to listen to President Mubarak's view point on the volatile current situation in the Middle East. Awwad added that the meeting tackled the latest developments in the Iraqi and Lebanese arenas, Iran's nuclear file, Darfur and the status quo in the gulf area. Emerging from the meeting with President Mubarak, the US Senator said talks with the president were positive. Kerry said he was always keen on listening to the views of President Mubarak on the Middle East issues. Iraq, Lebanon, Darfur and the Middle East peace process ranked high on the agenda of the talks, he told reporters. Responding to a question on the US administration becoming more convinced of the need to settle the Middle East issue, Kerry said he, as well as his Democratic Party, believed the peace process in the Middle East was the core of the conflict. It is vital for the US to bring the peace process to the centre stage of its attention. This issue did not receive enough US attention over the past period, he admitted saying he was keen on meeting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. On the other hand Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice expressed support for the Lebanese government and said the United States will not compromise the future of Lebanon for its other interests in the Middle East. In an interview with Agence France Presse, Rice said the Bush administration understands "who Lebanon's enemies are," and who is seeking to bring down the democratically elected government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, and who is acting against the interests of those who demonstrated in 2005 against the murder of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri. "[W]e are committed to standing by those Lebanese democrats who have risked everything in favor of Lebanese democracy and who have faced assassinations and who stood in the streets of Lebanon to get Syrian forces out," she said, adding "there is no way that the United States or the international community could ever countenance a reassertion of Syrian authority in Lebanon." The "struggling democratic forces need to understand that we are fully and completely, along with the international community, in support of them and their goals and their legitimacy in Lebanon," Rice said. Rice accused Syria and Iran of working to undermine the Siniora government, and said despite calls for the United States to engage both countries in discussions over neighboring Iraq, Washington will not negotiate Lebanon's future with anybody. "In no way is the United States going to get into a situation where it is even a conceivable notion on the part of Syria or Iran that the future of Lebanon would somehow be compromised for other interests of the United States. We're simply not going to get into that situation," she said. She said the tribunal authorized by the U.N. Security Council to try individuals suspected of involvement in the February 14, 2005, murder of Prime Minister Hariri "has got to go forward," saying it is "a matter of justice," as well as a means to demonstrate that "people who assassinate leaders can't do so with impunity." Rice said Syria has shown no cooperation with the international community's efforts to establish the tribunal, and speculated that Syria's support of extremist forces in Lebanon seeking to bring down the Siniora government has been driven by its opposition to the tribunal. She called for an end to the ongoing Hezbollah demonstrations against the government and for compromise among the Lebanese. "There has to be a Lebanese solution to this problem and I think we have to let the Lebanese deal with it," she said.