Elias Bejjani's Blog

Lebanon's Saniora Government & and the Israeli Complex

22 February, 2008

By: Elias Bejjani

("News Agencies (Naharnet) Beirut, 19 Feb 08: Syrian Border Guards Kill Lebanese Child/Syrian border guards on Tuesday opened fire at a Lebanese child killing him, the state-run National News Agency reported. The short report said Abbas Abbas, 16, was shot and seriously wounded by Syrian border guards at the Grand River borderline in north Lebanon. He died later at hospital. The development is the second of its kind in about a week. Lebanon has been demanding demarcation of its borders with Syria in an effort to control illegal activities in both directions".)

During his two years in office, Lebanon's PM, Mr. Fouad Saniora has proved time after time, and without any shed of doubt that psychologically he is like many other "day dreaming Arabs", still possessed by the obsolete rhetoric of the "Nasser phenomenon", that was founded by the late Egyptian President Jamal Abdel Nasser. In the fifties and sixties Nasser promised his fellow Arabs a strong, unified Arab nation, and advocated for throwing the State of Israel into the sea. In the end, he caused the Arabs more and more divisions and led them in the six days war with Israel in 1967, to the worst humiliating defeat in their history.

Mr. Saniora, despite all of the serious difficulties, obstacles, hardships, and setbacks that the Syrian-Iranian-Hezbollah Axis of Evil and their puppet Lebanese machineries continue to inflict on his government, including tagging its members with treason, often falls prey to the rhetoric of this axis and issues impulsive statements or declares stances that are not in the interest of the Lebanese people, and merely motivated by the "Nasser phenomenon." Such statements and stances are usually void of any logic, common sense or gratitude for the Western countries that strongly support his government against the Axis of Evil's overt scheme to overthrow the whole Lebanese regime and erect on its ruins a Shiite (Welaet Al Fakeh) Islamic state, a replicate of the Iranian Mullahs Islamic Khomaini Republic.

One of the most devastating symptoms of the "Nasser phenomena" is an unconscious inclination to overlook all logic, reason, fairness, laws, international agreements, UN resolutions, national interests, etc. whenever Israel is the issue. This phenomenon comes to the surface with anything and everything that has to do with Israel, with no thought of what is right or wrong.

It might be very helpful to inject Mr. Saniora and all those Arabs who are hit by the "Nasser Phenomenon" with a big dose of reality, and remind them that Egypt, Jordan and all the Arab countries, including Syria and the Palestinians themselves have already and for many years officially recognized the State of Israel, either covertly or overtly. Many of these countries exchange full diplomatic relations with Israel and receive the Israeli officials openly and publically. Yet, all these countries with no exception forbid to Lebanon and the Lebanese what they legalize and okay for themselves.

These Arab countries want to fight Israel from Lebanon and through the Lebanese people, while they enjoy peace and stability in their own countries and forge peaceful agreements with Israel, directly or indirectly. They, the Arabs and the Iranian Mullahs have been and are still using Lebanon as an arena for their wars. Hezbollah, the Iranian armed Shiite fundamentalist militia has been since 1982 the spearhead for this heresy rhetoric.

We have surprisingly heard, Mr. Saniora several times fiercely criticize and reprimanded the United States for providing Israel with weapons and other aid, although Washington is his government's strongest ally, and its staunch supporter in the face of the of Axis of Evil's bloody scheme against Lebanon. That scheme aims to erect through Hezbollah, the terrorist militia, an Islamic Shiite republic in Lebanon, a replica of that which the Mullahs run in Iran.

We have witnessed a trend of repeated frenetic Saniora reactions to extremely minor incidents on the Lebanese-Israeli border. He called many times for filing official Lebanese complaints against Israel at the Security Council for trivial reasons, e.g. Lebanese shepherds being arrested by the Israeli troops when they get lost and cross the border between the two countries. He often overlooks the obliging requirements of the Armistice agreement with Israel, the UN resolutions 425, 426, 242, 383, 1559 and 1701 as well as the "Taef Accord". All these call among many other things, for controlling the borders with Israel, disarmament of all militias, especially Hezbollah, and the enforcement of security, law and order all over the Lebanese territories through the legitimate Lebanese armed forces. Unfortunately, Saniora loses both track and vision whenever Israeli is the issue. Here he falls into the Axis of Evil rhetoric trap, and the "Nasser Phenomena" surfaces.

Sadly, Saniora's government reaction and official stance in addressing the cold blood killing of a Lebanese child on February 19/08 by the Syrian border guards was so shy, extremely pathetic, shameful, inappropriate and disproportional. This blatant double standard that the Saniora government exercises regarding Syria is not acceptable and lacks credibility.

We call on the Lebanese government to file immediately an official complaint against Syria at the UN Security Council and demand that the Syrian regime be fully accountable on all levels for this savage, heinous and cowardly crime.

We also demand that the Saniora government, as well as many members in the Lebanese majority coalition of 4th March, put an end once and for all to their camouflaging and dhimmitude rhetoric regarding the false and fabricated role that Hezbollah alleges to have played in 2000 in forcing Israel to withdraw its troops from South Lebanon.

The blunt reality is that Israel withdrew its troops in accordance with the UN resolution 425, and the whole matter had nothing to do with Hezbollah. The Israeli decision for withdrawal that was regretted later was based completely on domestic strategies. Hezbollah did not liberate South Lebanon in 2000; in fact Syria and Iran, through Hezbollah, were the reason the Israelis delayed their troops' withdrawal for 14 years.

Meanwhile PM Saniora and many other Lebanese politicians and officials ought to stop their monotonous, dull and empty statement and say: Lebanon will be the last Arabic country to sign a peace treaty with Israel. In fact, all these Lebanese dignitaries should wake up and admit the fact that all the Arab countries including Syria and the Palestinians themselves have already recognized the State of Israel covertly or overtly. Only Lebanon is left as an open arena for Arab-Iranian, Israeli fights and an outlet for inter-Arab fights and conflicts.

Enough is enough. Lebanon and the Lebanese people deserve to enjoy peace with their neighbors, Syria and Israel alike.

The Lebanese leaders and politicians have an obligation to our people, to give priority to Lebanon's interests and only to Lebanon.

Elias Bejjani
Chairman for the Canadian Lebanese Coordinating Council (LCCC)
Human Rights activist, journalist & political commentator.
Spokesman for the Canadian Lebanese Human Rights Federation (CLHRF)
E.Mail phoenicia@hotmail.com
LCCC Web Site http://www.10452lccc.com
CLHRF Website http://www.clhrf.com

Posted by bejjani 16:24 | General | Comment(0) | Permalink

General Aoun in his new Iranian, Syrian, and Godly Attire

17 February, 2008

By: Elias Bejjani/LCCC Chairman

I am duty-bound to congratulate Lebanon's MP, General Michel Aoun on his tremendous successes and accomplishments in the area of domesticating and Lebanising the Syrian Baathist policies, especially after his official appointment recently by Syrian Foreign minister Walid Moallem as representative for the Axis of Evil (Syria and Iran), its spokesman, and negotiator on behalf of its groupings in Lebanon. How blessed are we the Lebanese people in both Lebanon and Diaspora that the Syrian/Iranian oppressing conditions for allowing us to elect the president are now in the general’s pocket. (Aoun stated that these conditions are in his pocket). How fortunate we are that Syria has recognized "Rabieh", (Aoun's Residential city) instead of the Baabda palace (Lebanese official Presidential Palace). So what else do we want beyond this great victory that General Aoun spearheaded?

Those Lebanese citizens who unfortunately still blindly support the platform of this derailed and narcissist politician ought to carefully consider where his sickening delusions are dragging the country!! Must we also praise the fundamental change in the general Aoun's military and political precepts which have been transformed magically from academic, scientific, and factual, to Godly and Illusions? Must we at the same time praise the “herd-like” loyalty for those sovereign and free Lebanese who still support the general despite all the “Godly” reversals and changes that inflicted his policies, his speeches, practices, slogans, and approach in the nationalist, religious, and value domains?.

Congratulation to the allegedly stubborn Lebanese people that still blindly support this “errant” leader in his new attire, the self claimed political Christian Maronite patriarch that betrayed all the history, culture, civilization, and values of the Maronites. This newly crowned fundamentalist Christian extremist. This preacher of wooden slogans. The Godly general, and the self claimed Lebanese Napoleon!!

It astonishes me how this newly transformed general has deserted all that he learned in the military academies and now boasts of Hezbollah's godly victory in the July 2006 war, thus overturning all military principles and measures.

Follows is a verbatim declaration by the general on 12/31/2007 from the “Natinal News Agency”:
General Michel Aoun speaking to a delegation from the city of Byblos: “We still live the conditions of the July/06 war. For the first time, Israel was defeated in a small country called Lebanon in front of a small fighting force as measured to the its size. And the Lebanese people by its solidarity and the proper execution of the resistance has broken Israel’s power which scared the whole world. We must be punished for this great sin which we have committed. Haven’t you felt that when Abrams and David Welch (Two high rang US officials visited Lebanon last month) came to Lebanon, their visit resembled the days of the war? They were visiting a portion of the Lebanese supporters of the war. The Lebanese people were resisting politically and morally while the military front was resisting in the south. We succeeded in maintain the unity of the country and did not let it splinter under the pressure of the air force (Israeli air raids in July/06 Israeli-Hezbollah war). The party that fought was the opposition (Hezbollah and the Syrian-Iranian mercenaries in Lebanon). While the other side has supported the aggression. Today the issue of moving the war from the southern border to the interior continues. They attempted to revive it when we started the strikes and sit-ins. They started roaming troubles, internal which we were able to contain. Today, if they fail to elect a president, it means the continuation of this war because they will not accept any president. I do not want to name which nations that are trying to reverse this wonderful picture of Lebanon after the year 2006. The Lebanese people triumphed. This small people that they wished to muddy and claim it has no coexistence and wish to strike at its union. They want us to confront each others in an escalating path so that we lose the immunity that we gained from openness and understanding”.

Since it is so hard for any leader or politician regardless of his status to continue to mock the intelligence and memory of the Lebanese, we shall let General Aoun himself explain this great contradiction in his stands regarding his newly acquired beliefs in Hezbollah’s “resistance” and its godly victories, he who officially and publicly declared that the resistance of this party occurs in collusion with Israel and at the expense of our people in the South. General Aoun declared in the year 2000 after Israel’s withdrawal from South Lebanon that, “Hezbollah did not liberate the south, rather it has delayed its liberation 14 years". He also said: "If actually Hezbollah has liberated the south, it has liberated it from its own people and sent them into exile in all nations of the world, and specially to Israel."

The general’s self-reply was published in the “Lebanese Communiqué” (Al Nachra Al Lubnania) on Friday 8/15/1997 under the title “The April Understanding, a security agreement and co-agreed resistance ”. We leave the judgment on the honesty of the general's newly adopted pro Syrian-Iranian evil stances to the Lebanese citizen themselves and definitely to their intelligence and knowledge.

We leave it to the reader to judge the content of the below article, that the general himself wrote meticulously and with deep thought and scientific and logical analysis, a year after the singing of the “April Understanding“ between Hezbollah and Israel with Arab, Iranian, and International mediation and sponsorship.
Click here to read the "April Understanding" in both Arabic and English
http://www.clhrf.com/unresagreements/aprilunderstanding.htm
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The April Understanding and Resistance With Compliance
By: General Michel Aoun
(Translated from Arabic by: Elias Bejjani)
August 15/1997

( Resisting occupation is a legitimate right and a patriotic obligation for each and every citizen struggling to free both his occupied land and his confiscated freedom from the occupiers. Resistance based on these two golden principles is fully legitimate; but with the same token it loses this legitimacy if allowed to deviate from its aims and objectives. Resistance in its essence is the struggle of the weak against the strong, and the striving of man against machine. Resistance requires a great deal of sacrifices to pave the way for acceptable and balanced negotiations between any parties in conflict.
After the Israeli "Grapes of Wrath" campaign against Lebanon in April 1996, the United States, France, Lebanon, Syria, Israel and Iran, with the compliance of Hezbollah, reached a ceasefire agreement known as the "April Understanding." This agreement speaks about the safety of the Lebanese residents but does not provide any guarantees for those residents. This agreement has made the Lebanese soil an arena for military operations, thus endangering the lives of all Lebanese residents, whether in their homes or on the roads.

Lebanese men, women and children in South Lebanon leave their homes every morning heading to their fields, work places and schools. Many of them never succeed to make it back. These innocent victims are killed on the roads, their deaths a result of roadside bombs, explosions, rockets, and bullets. Arguments focusing on the "national identity" of these South Lebanese residents and whether they are nationalists, collaborators or resistant elements, is in fact a futile argument. It only escalates the levels of anxiety and confusion, and increases the emptiness in both domiciles and minds.

We do not care which countries or powers have participated in reaching the April Understanding. Why? Because it remains the sole concern of both the Lebanese and the Israelis. Accordingly, one urgent question jumps to our minds: Why has the resistance negotiated with the enemy and accepted his conditions rendering its resistance.... resistance with compliance, giving the occupier comprehensive peace and security on his soil, while turning its own into a killing field?

Northern Israel is progressing, growing and blooming, while South Lebanon is losing its original residents and becoming poorer and poorer! Who does the conspiracy target? Who are its heroes? And for whose interests does the war continue and flare?)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It is worth mentioning that the drastic changes in the General's platforms are merely motivated by his sickening and delusional lust with the presidency post. He dreams day and night to be Lebanon's president at any cost and by any means, even by selling himself to the Axis of evil scheme against his own country and people. The man has betrayed all his 18 years patriotic stances, backed on his own promises and licked his own words. What a waste, and What a shame. What good could be expected from this man who boldly declared few days ago that he is close to the Syrian Baathist regime than he is to the USA!!!.

**Elias Bejjani
Chairman for the Canadian Lebanese Coordinating Council (LCCC)
Human Rights activist, journalist & political commentator.
Spokesman for the Canadian Lebanese Human Rights Federation (CLHRF)
E.Mail phoenicia@hotmail.com
LCCC Web Site http://www.10452lccc.com
CLHRF Website http://www.clhrf.com

Posted by bejjani 17:56 | General | Comment(0) | Permalink

Graces to Pursue for the New Year: Faith and Hope

17 February, 2008

By: Elias Bejjani/LCCC Chairman

"Be on guard, then because you do not know what day your lord will come. If the owner of the house knew the time when the thief would come, you can be sure that he would stay awake and not let the thief break into his house. so then, you also must always be ready, because the Son of Man will come an hour when you are not expecting him". Matthew 24,/42-44

Therefore, stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come. Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour of night when the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and not let his house be broken into. So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come

Almighty God does not put us in any kind of difficulties, temptations or hardships that we cannot cope with and overcome. He always provides an outlet for each and every deadlocked situation we encounter. Only those who have faith and hope can see and pursue the outlet.

With the New Year I call on my beloved people of Lebanon to fill their hearts with love, forgiveness, modesty, transparency and courage.

I call on them to witness for the truth and train themselves to always consecrate their lives for Almighty God and fulfill his teachings through serving the just cause of their beloved Lebanon; the cause of freedom, independence, sovereignty and rights.

I call on them all to solidify and strengthen their faith and never ever fall prey to despair, lose hope or support any Lebanese leader, group or party that advocate for venomous schemes against the free state of Lebanon and its democratic regime.

There is no doubt that he who immunizes himself with faith will never be defeated, and no trouble or toil can ever vanquish him. The graces of the Lord fill his spirit and his mind with hope. But he who has no faith and hope will be frustrated with despair and hopelessness because he places no trust in the future and the everlasting life.

The Lord said that he who has faith as small as a grain of mustard can move mountains, and he scolded his disciples for the weakness of their faith when they feared the storm winds on their boat, "He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, ‘Quiet! Be still!’ Then the wind died down and it was completely calm…He said to his disciples, ‘Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?’" Mark 4:39-40.

The law of the Nazarene teaches us that men of little faith have no sense of perfection, cannot be trusted, and nothing good can come out of them on this perishable earth. The testimonials of the disciples teach us that he who has faith in God and abides by his laws will walk the paths of life and its turns and tumbles with courage and constancy, and will keep his head high without fear or hesitation. But he who has no faith will accept shame and insult without resistance, and becomes an obedient beast to the will and whims of the devils of the earth.

Our Lebanese heroes who gave their lives on the altars of the nation also taught us that he who has faith in the nation, in liberty, and in the rights of its citizens will defend them with absolute vigor and most honorable dedication, and will not fear the threat of oppression, the loss of position or property, or the disappearance of fortune.

So did our good forefathers teach us that the faithful man who believes in the sanctity, obligations, and the commitment to family and community, will work hard to meet his family members’ needs and safety and convey to them creed and values.

From the sacrifices of our mothers we learn how they take the Virgin Mary as an example in their life to give without complaint or reluctance, and to fight back selfishness and egotism with faith.

Indeed, there is no room for egotism in the Law of Faith. He who loves will give himself for the sake of others. The lives of the saints and the free tell us that the faithful is never defeated by difficulties and is not crushed by toils.

Saint Paul said: “Being therefore justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ; through whom we also have our access by faith into this grace in which we stand. We rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only this, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering works perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope: and hope doesn’t disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. For while we were yet weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man. Yet perhaps for a righteous person someone would even dare to die. But God commends his own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:1-8.

Saint Paul teaches us that he who has no faith makes himself a slave to his greed and desires. “What then? Shall we sin, because we are not under law, but under grace? May it never be! Don’t you know that to whom you present yourselves as servants to obedience, his servants you are whom you obey; whether of sin to death, or of obedience to righteousness? But thanks be to God, that, whereas you were bondservants of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching whereunto you were delivered. Being made free from sin, you became bondservants of righteousness.” Romans 15: 16-18.

Those of little faith and the hopeless forget that our Lebanese people during their six thousand years deeply rooted history never gave in to the will of the devil, and they have always been armed with faith, self confidence and honesty. All foreign invaders and occupiers were forced to withdraw from Lebanon with shame and humiliation. History is our witness to this glorious fact.

We remind those of little faith among our people that the citizens of Sidon (Lebanese city on the Mediterranean sea) burned their city on themselves in 350 B.C. after resisting valiantly against the Persian invader Artaxerxes, preferring death in dignity than life in humiliation and surrender.

Again, Tyre (Lebanese city on the Mediterranean sea) resisted Alexander the Great for seven months in 332 B.C., never surrendering or giving in, which led the Macedonian to crucify many of its people after he took the city and sell two thousand of them as slaves.

And how about our first Maronite Patriarchs? Our best example is Maronite Patriarch Gabriel Hjoula whose faith made him choose death by burning in 1367 in the city of Tripoli in front of the Omari Mosque, refusing to abandon his suffering and humiliated people at the hands of the murderous and oppressive Mameluks. And before him Patriarch Daniel Hadshiti suffered the same fate in 1282 in an unknown location.

Almighty God is mercy, love and consolation for all of us, especially when we are in pain, anguish and encountering hardships. Let us always remember that He shall never abandon any of his children. "Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for your selves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light." Matthew 11,28-30.

Our call on the New Year to the defeatists, the vanquished in their hearts, those of little faith and poor hope, is that they should heed the words of our Lord: “If you continue in my word, then you are my disciples indeed; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free”. (John, 8:32)

Whoever has ears ought to hear because by the end of the day, every one of us is accountable for his acts, his choices, his conduct and most importantly for the kind of political, ethical, social and human rights' causes that we advocate for or adopt. Still our accountability is not only while we are on this earth, but most importantly on the eternal Judgment Day. On that Day the sinners shall be ousted in the darkness where they will cry and grind their teeth in the eternal fire which has been prepared for the Devil and his angles.

"Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption; but he who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. (Gal 6:7-8 RSV)

*Elias Bejjani
Chairman for the Canadian Lebanese Coordinating Council (LCCC)
Human Rights activist, journalist & political commentator.
Spokesman for the Canadian Lebanese Human Rights Federation (CLHRF)
E.Mail phoenicia@hotmail.com
LCCC Web Site http://www.10452lccc.com
CLHRF Website http://www.clhrf.com

Posted by bejjani 17:56 | General | Comment(0) | Permalink

Graces to Pursue for the New Year: Faith and Hope

17 February, 2008

By: Elias Bejjani/LCCC Chairman

Posted by bejjani 17:56 | General | Comment(0) | Permalink

Free World: Rescue Lebanon before it is too late

17 February, 2008

By: Elias Bejjani

A Lebanese top anti-terrorism investigator was murdered along with his escort and three other civilians in a powerful car bombing that ripped through a neighborhood of Beirut on Friday January 25/08. Maj. Wissam Eid and Aspirant Officer Ousama Mireeb, of the Internal Security Forces (ISF), were killed along with three civilians, and forty two other people were wounded. Eid was a key member of the ISF and was involved in many investigations related to terrorist bombings in Lebanon in recent years. He was involved in sensitive probes and this is a major loss for Lebanon. Eid was on his way back from a meeting of the UN commission investigating the 2005 assassination of former premier Rafiq Hariri when he was killed. Those who decided to murder Eid obviously feared that he had information linking them to one, if not all nine, other assassinations of members of the anti-Syrian movement. Eid had already provided the international enquiry into Hariri’s murder with valuable information and this was not the first attempt on his life; two years ago a grenade was thrown at his house.

From The Lebanese Canadian Coordination Council (LCCC), we extend our warmest heartfelt condolences to the victims' families and friends who lost their
beloved ones in Lebanon on Friday, January 25/08, in the "Chevrolet heinous crime" that led to the death of Maj. Wissam Eid and Aspirant Officer Ousama Mireeb and three innocent civilians pedestrians: Joe Sarkis, Elie Fares and Alan Sandouk.

We ask Almighty God to grant all those bereaved families the needed faith, patience and solace.
We pray that the souls of all the new innocent victims rest in peace in heaven alongside with the saints and the righteous.

The identity of the perpetrators who executed this new crime against the Lebanese people, (the "Axis of Evil") is well known, as well as their destructive goals. Syrian and Iranian officials alongside with their Lebanese mercenaries, fundamentalists, militias, and Mafiosi rudely announce their venomous intentions and threats on a daily basis. Meanwhile the role of the local Lebanese tools spearheaded by "Hezbollah" in targeting Lebanese pro freedom leaders and supporters of the "Cedars Revolution", ministers, members of Parliament, clergymen, journalists and intellectuals, is exposed and extremely prominent.

Eid was targeted by the "Axis of Evil", because he played major roles in analyzing mobile telephone and e-mail contacts related to the assassinations of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri in 2005, the twin bus bombings of Ein Alaq in 2007, and the assassination of Gen. Francois Hajj, the army's chief of military operations, on Jan. 12, 2007. His work, according to ranking security officials, also managed to detect "established links" between Fatah al-Islam terrorists and Syria's intelligence apparatus. Such evidences compiled by the late Eid could help implicate Syria in the serial killings that have targeted Lebanon since Oct. 1, 2004, when Minister of Communications Marwan Hamadeh suffered serious wounds in a car bomb assassination attempt.

Many Lebanese citizens and dignitaries believe that Hezbollah is playing a major role in executing most of the assassination crimes. The Sunni Muslim Mufti of
Mount Lebanon, Sheikh Mohammed Ali Jouzou, on Saturday January 26/08, blamed the Hezbollah-led opposition for "every drop of blood that has been shed." in Lebanon. Jouzou said in a statement: "The opposition is considered responsible for every drop of blood shed on the land of Lebanon. The opposition is responsible for the victims of serial assassinations. The opposition is responsible for bombing crimes here and there." Since March 8 (2005) and the declaration of loyalty to the Syrian regime, the opposition indirectly said it approves the assassination of martyr ex-premier Rafik Hariri," Jouzou added. He noted that "March 14 leaders have been targeted, one after the other, and the threats were made from here and there by spokesmen for Hezbollah and the opposition, only to be followed by implementation, implementation of the death sentence by blowing off March 14 men. "Jouzou said attacks targeting the Army and Internal Security Forces are "sort of terror that accompanies efforts to foil all international, Arab and Lebanese initiatives and the opposition is considered responsible for them." Should we charge the opposition with high treason?" he asked. Addressing the opposition, Jouzou said: "You are conspiring against the homeland under the slogan of partnership, consensus and dialogue. You don't want partnership, you do not want consensus, you do not want dialogue." He added: "You want to kill Lebanon and you want to destroy Lebanon … for the sake of the Syrian Regime." (Naharnet/January 25/08)

The irony in Lebanon lies in the sad fact and in the bizarre status quo: Hezbollah has its mini-state and cantons inside the state of Lebanon, with its own army
which has thirty thousand missiles, its finances, jails, institutions, etc. Syria is still in control of three military bases under the Palestinian disguise, one near the capital Beirut and two others in the Bekaa Valley, adjacent to its border with Lebanon. In addition, there are 13 Palestinian refugee camps scattered all over Lebanon. These are 13 cantons and mini-states over which the Lebanese authorities have no control.

Below are two verbatim quotes from the testimony of ex Prime Minister General Michel Aoun before the US House Subcommittee on International Relations/September 18/2003. They describe exactly the ongoing Syrian destructive, criminal and terrorist role in Lebanon.

1-"Following a Syrian withdrawal (from Lebanon), it is quite conceivable that the Syrian regime will leave behind many of its instruments of terror and destruction as well as its paramilitary/intelligence apparatus. Therefore, it is imperative that a Syrian withdrawal be accompanied by a complete disarmament of all armed elements. Only the legitimate armed forces of Lebanon can be entrusted with providing security to the Lebanese people. They are certainly capable of doing so when provided with a strong political leadership duly elected by the Lebanese themselves, rather than appointed by an occupying power as is the case today. Equally important, Lebanon will need certified tribunals to investigate and bring to justice all criminals who committed war atrocities and crimes against humanity."

2-Under Syrian occupation the human rights of the Lebanese people have been systematically violated. An exhaustive description of the crimes committed by the
Syrian Regime and its goons in Lebanon would take thousands of pages and dozens of hearings. Two Lebanese presidents - both of whom can be accurately
described as unwilling to take their orders from the Syrian intimidators - were assassinated immediately upon their elections. Ambassadors, elite journalists, and political and religious figures from all denominations who dared to oppose Syria were kidnapped, tortured, imprisoned, and/or assassinated. And this is in addition to the tens of thousands of Lebanese who perished in countless massacres, in months upon months of random Syrian artillery shelling of civilian areas, and in countless booby-trapped and bombed cars.

N.B: It so sad to learn that Aoun, who is now an MP and after his return to Lebanon from exile in 2005, has negated all his patriotic and pro Lebanese stances, and joined the Syrian-Iranian, Hezbollah axis of Evil.

Who stands behind all the crimes that Lebanon has been encountering for the last three years? With no shred of doubt, and without any kind of hesitation, one can freely say: Syria, Iran, Hezbollah and their Lebanese-Palestinian local armed tools-instruments are fully accountable for each and every assassination crime that took place in Lebanon since 2005.

We strongly believe that the Lebanese Government, Lebanon's security bodies, judicial authorities and all its other institutions are currently unable to either deter or abort the Axis of Evil's serial organized and systematic killings of Lebanese patriotic leaders, nor to put an end to its destructive scheme targeting the country's
institutions, freedoms, democracy, stability and peace.

The government's failure lies in the fact that Hezbollah and the other Lebanese-Palestinian armed mercenaries of Iran and Syria are hindering all local, regional and international peaceful initiatives, endeavors and civilized plans.

In the face of this organized and intentional evil deadlock that Lebanon and its people are facing alone, we call on the Free World democratic countries, the moderate Arab countries, the United Nations and the Arab League to step in militarily under a UN Security Council Chapter Seven mandate and take over Lebanon for a rehabilitation interval as was the situation in Afghanistan, East Timor, Kosovo and some African countries. It will be even more effective and deterrent if NATO forces can assume this mission and not the UN.

Meanwhile an international probe and court needs to be set as soon as possible to put on trial all countries, especially Syria and Iran, as well as Lebanese individuals and groups that are hindering through crime and murder the Lebanese government and the Lebanese people from reclaiming their peace, independence, security and sovereignty.

The whole world ought to be cautioned that letting Lebanon be an easy prey for the "Axis of Evil" and its armed tools to devour, simply means an astounding
defeat for all principles of freedom, democracy, human rights, peace and stability, not only in the Middle East, but all over the globe. We call on the
Free World to step in and rescue Lebanon and the Lebanese before it is too late.

Posted by bejjani 17:55 | General | Comment(0) | Permalink

St. Maroun & His followers the Maronites

17 February, 2008

By: Elias Bejjani

Every year, on the ninth of February, more than ten million Maronites from all over the world celebrates St. Maroun’s day. On this day, they pay their respect to the great founder of the Maronite Church, Maroun the priest, the hermit, the father, the leader and the Saint. They remember what they have been exposed to, since the 4^th century, both good and bad times. They reminisce through the past, examine the present and contemplate the future. They pray for peace, democracy and freedom in Lebanon, their home land, and all over the world.

Who was this Saint, how did he establish his church, where did he live, and who are his people, the Maronites? Saint Maroun, (according to the great Lebanese late philosopher and historian Fouad Afram Al-Bustani), was raised in the city of Kouroch. This City is located northeast of Antioch, (presently in Turkey), and to the northwest of Herapolos (Manbieg), the capital of the third Syria (Al-Furatia). Kouroch is still in existence at our time in Turkey, it is located fifteen kilometers to the northwest of Kalas City, and about seventy kilometers to the north of the Syrian City, Aleppo.

As stated by both historians, Father Boutrous Daou, and Fouad Fram Bustani, Maroun chose a very high location at the Semaan Mountain (called in the past, Nabo Mountain, after the pagan god, Nabo). Geographically, the Semaan Mountain is located between Antioch and Aleppo. People had abandoned the mountain for years, and the area was completely deserted.

The ruins of a historic pagan temple that existed on the mountain attracted Maroun. Boustani, stated that St. Maroun moved to this mountain and decided to follow the life of a hermit. He made the ruined temple his residence after excoriating it from devils, but used it only for masses and offerings of the holy Eucharist. He used to spend all his time in the open air, praying, fasting and depriving his body from all means of comfort. He became very famous in the whole area for his faith, holiness and power of curing. Thousands of believers came to him seeking help and advice.

St. Maroun, was an excellent knowledgeable preacher and a very stubborn believer in Christ and in Christianity. He was a mystic who started a new ascetic-spiritual method that attracted many people from all over the Antiochian Empire. He was a zealous missionary with a passion to spread the message of Christ by preaching it to others. He sought not only to cure the physical ailments that people suffered, but had a great quest for nurturing and healing the "lost souls" of both pagans and Christians of his time. Maroun’s holiness and countless miracles drew attention throughout the Antiochian Empire. St John of Chrysostom sent him a letter around 405 AD expressing his great love and respect asking St Maroun to pray for him.

St Maroun's way was deeply monastic with emphasis on the spiritual and ascetic aspects of living. For him, all was connected to God and God was connected to all. He did not separate the physical and spiritual world and actually used the physical world to deepen his faith and spiritual experience with God. St. Maroun embraced the quiet solitude of the Semaan mountain life. He lived in the open air exposed to the forces of nature such as sun, rain, hail and snow. His extraordinary desire to come to know Gods presence in all things allowed him to transcend such forces, and discover an intimate union with God. He was able to free himself from the physical world by his passion and eagerness for prayer and enter into a mystical relationship of love with the creator.

St. Maroun attracted hundreds of monks and priests who came to live with him and become his disciples and loyal Christian followers. Maroun’s disciples preached the Bible in the Antiochan Empire (known at the present time as Syria, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq, Jordan and Palestine), They built hundreds of Churches and abbeys as well as schools and were known for their faith, devotion and perseverance.

At the age of seventy, in year 410 AD, and after completing his holy mission, St. Maroun died peacefully while surrounded by his disciples and followers. His will was to be buried in the same grave with his beloved teacher, the great monk, Zabena, at the town of Kena, next to Kouroch City, where a temple was built in Zabena’s name. St. Maroun’s will, was not fulfilled, because the residents of a nearby town were able to take his body and bury him in their town and build a huge church on his grave. This Church was a shrine for Christians for hundreds of years, and its ruins are still apparent in that town.

After Maroun’s death, his disciples built a huge monastery in honor of his name, adjacent the ornate spring, (Naher Al-Assi, located at the Syrian-Lebanese border). The monastery served for hundreds of years as a pillar for faith, education, martyrhood and holiness. It was destroyed at the beginning of the tenth century that witnessed the worst Christian persecution era. During the savage attack on the monastery more than three hundred Maronite priests were killed. The surviving priests moved to the Mountains of Lebanon where with the Marada people and the native Lebanese were successful in establishing the Maronite nation. They converted the Lebanese Mountain to a forte of faith and a symbol for martyrhood, endurance and perseverance.

Initially the Maronite movement reached Lebanon when St. Maroun's first disciple Abraham of Cyrrhus, who was called the Apostle of Lebanon, realized that paganism was thriving in Lebanon, so he set out to convert the pagans to Christianity by introducing them to the way of St Maroun. St Maroun is considered the Father of the spiritual and monastic movement now called the Maronite Church. This movement had a profound influence on Northern Syria, Lebanon, Cyprus and on many other countries all over the world where the Maronites currently live. The biggest Maronite community at the present time lives in Brazil. More than six million Lebanese descendents made Brazil their home after the massive immigration that took place from Lebanon in the beginning of this century.

The Maronites made Lebanon their homeland since the 4^th century after converting its native inhabitants to Christianity. They were identified by it, and it was identified by them, they were and still are one entity. The Maronite people were always hopeful, faithful and strong believers in the Christian Catholic doctrine. They made victories of defeats, joy of sorrow and hope of despair. The Maronites successfully created with hard work and a great deal of faith and sacrifices, the Maronite nation by fulfilling its four basic pillars, a land, a people, a civilization and a political independent entity. They constantly fight for what was theirs, and never ever surrendered to despair.

Fouad Afram Boustani described the Maronite denomination as, a Faith of intelligence, an identify of life, a solid believe in Catholicism, a love for others, an ongoing strive for righteousness, a mentality of openness on the whole world, and on its different civilizations, and a vehicle for martyrdom. The Maronites established the State of Lebanon and made it an oasis for the persecuted in the area. They believed and practiced, multi-culturalism and pluralism. They created with the help of other minorities in the Middle East the unique nation of Lebanon.
God Bless Lebanon

Posted by bejjani 17:54 | General | Comment(0) | Permalink

Syria Killed Imad Mughniyah!!

17 February, 2008

By: Elias Bejjani

"The world is a better place without this man in it. He was a cold-blooded killer, a mass murderer and a terrorist responsible for countless innocent lives lost," said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack. "One way or another, he was brought to justice.")

(News Agencies: Wednesday, February 13, 2008: "Imad Mughniyah, a senior but shadowy Hezbollah commander accused by the United States and Israel of masterminding suicide bombings, hijackings and hostage-takings that spanned 25 years, was killed by a car bomb in the Syrian capital of Damascus, the Shiite Muslim group and other officials said Wednesday. Hezbollah accused Israel of carrying out the attack on Mughniyah, a charge that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's office denied. A USA State Department spokesman welcomed the news of Mughniyah's death, but said he did not know who was responsible for it.

Who is Imad Mughniyah and what kind of murders did he commit. Below are some of these notorious crimes:

*April 1983: suicide bomber rams van packed with explosives into the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, killing 63 people, including 17 Americans.

*October 1983: suicide attackers carry out near simultaneous truck bombings against barracks of French and U.S. peacekeeping forces in Beirut, killing 241 American Marines and 58 French paratroopers.

*March 1984: Lt. Col. William F. Buckley, CIA station chief in Beirut, kidnapped and eventually killed in the beginning of a spate of kidnappings linked to Hezbollah.

*March 1985: Associated Press chief Mideast correspondent Terry Anderson kidnapped and then held for more than six years.

*June 1985: Lebanese Shiite militants hijack TWA Flight 847 heading from Athens to Rome, flying it back and forth between Beirut and Algiers. At Beirut's airport, the hijackers shoot U.S. Navy diver Robert Stetham, a passenger on the plane, and dump his body on the runway. Most of the 150 passengers were freed during the three day hijacking; some were held for two weeks. The United States indicted Mughniyah for his role in the hijacking, and he was put on FBI's most wanted list with a $5 million bounty for information leading to his capture.

*March 1992: A pickup truck packed with explosives smashes into the Israeli Embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina, killing 29 people.

*July 1994: A van packed with explosives levels a seven-story Jewish center in Buenos Aires, killing 85 people. Argentina issues an arrest warrant for Mughniyah in 1999.

When I learned about the assassination of Imad Mughniyah, the most prominent Hezbollah (Party of God) Military notorious terrorist, the name of one world-wide criminal perpetrator, and only one, hit my mind, and spontaneously and unconsciously, I said to myself, Syria is behind this well executed deadly car explosion. I am sure many Lebanese citizen who are unbiased, well informed and has been following thoroughly the unfolding events in their oppressed Lebanon since 1975, share with me this hunch and gut feeling.

Why is Syria behind this assassination? simply because its intelligence bureau's criminal tactics, patterns, and styles have become over the years a trade mark, and always carried its patent when ever, and where ever, a crime of this category occurred either in Lebanon or Syria. For the past thirty years the Syrian Baathist dictatorship has been exercising this style of ruthless execution and elimination against many individuals all over the Middle East, and specially in Lebanon, with very high professionalism, advanced technology and precision in hitting its designated preys and targets.

These Syrian tactics have been used with numerous well reputed fundamentalists and terrorists, political leaders and national symbols, especially in Lebanon. Meanwhile, Syria has been breeding in its incubators new brands terrorists, and harboring tens and tens of terrorists and fundamentalists, as well as Mafioso and criminal organizations of the same cut.

The Syrian intelligence bureau's personnel were trained in the communist USSR Russia by the KGB. Accordingly they adopted all of the bloody Stalinist, repressive and totalitarian mentality, styles, spirit, and criminality patterns.

The Syrian regime is well known in breeding and granting asylum to regional and world wide terrorists and fundamentalists. It uses and abuses them in its dirty and bloody atrocities of murder, assassination, bombing, defamation and sedition, and always under false and fraudulent religious and nationalism tags. It exploits them in execution of these criminal missions in Syria itself, in neighboring Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Turkey, Israel, as well as in numerous Arab states, Europe, USA and other countries all over the world and as needed. Syria's criminal record in this domain is well known to the whole world.

After they have been used and exposed, these terrorists and fundamentalists become a heavy burden on the Syrian dictator and on its intelligence bodies, so Syrian security leadership tends to either eliminate them so all secrets are buried with their coffins, or exhibits them for trade and sale in the world-wide secret intelligence bodies, mutual services and barter. This manner of Syrian unethical, slavery and unlawful intelligence trade has been going on actively for the last thirty years with many countries including the USA, Canada, Europe, numerous Arab countries and many others.

Syria hosted, financed and supported the Kurdish Abdullah Ojlan, leader of the Kurdistani Workers' Party, and even erected a military camp for his men in the Lebanese Bekaa valley (Syria at that time was occupying Lebanon), Then it traded him with Turkey and was handed over in a very mean and tricky manner to the Turkish intelligence.

The same pattern was followed with the well known terrorist, Ilich Ramirez Sanchez, commonly known as "Carlos the Jackal,", who after using him was handed over to France through Sudan and again in a conspiracy style.

Some Japanese Red Army members (The terrorists who committed the deadliest attack on May 30, 1972 at Israel's international airport at Lod when three Japanese Red Army members carried out a machine gun and grenade attack in the arrivals terminal that killed 25 people--most of them Christian pilgrims--and injured another 1980.) were given by Syria secretive asylum in Lebanon for a while and then Syria handed over to Japan, and the list goes on and on.

In Lebanon the Syrian record in this kind of venomous conduct is full of leaders, politicians and intelligence names, among which is its Christian ally, Elie Hbaika, who was assassinated in car explosion that was typical to Imad Mughniyah's killing style.

Since it was forced to withdraw its occupational army from Lebanon in 2005, the Syrian regime has assassinated many Lebanese politicians, MP's, Army and security high rank officers and intellectuals in the same Mughniyah's pattern. With cold blood Syria, blatantly has committed almost all the organized crimes of assassination that targeted Lebanese opposition figures since 1965 (who opposed the Syrian tutelage over Lebanon from all walks of live and religious denominations).

The Irony lies in the fact that Mughniyah was assassinated in the Syrian capital, Damascus, in a highly rated Syrian Security suburb that hosts intelligence headquarters, an iranian school and other governmental official offices. A reality that leaves many unanswered suspicious questions all revolving around the Syrian asseted role in the assassination scheme. One wonder, who can execute such a sophisticated military mission in such a suburb except the Syrian regime itself? The majority of unbiased observers strongly emphasize that the Syrian intelligence is behind the assassination.

Why Syria killed Mughniyah in Damascus and not in Lebanon? Is it because President Assad did not want to take any risks and wanted him dead no matter what due to the fact that he knew too much that made him a real threat to the Syrian regime, or did Syria eliminate him in accordance to secret deal with one of the many countries that have been chasing the man for years to put him on trial for terrorism acts? Some suggest that Syria killed him to help solidify the power of a pro Syrian Hezbollah leadership wing against an Iranian on!!

Some have even suggested that Syria through this assassination intended to tell the Hezbollah leadership that they are reachable targets in case they refrain from continuing to be fully subservient and submissive to the Syrian decision making Intelligence process.!!

Those who know the Syrian regime and are well knowledgeable with its criminal record as well as with its fascist tactics cannot exclude any of the above scenarios and assert that No one can move that freely in Damascus to commit such a magnitude military mission except the Syrian secret intelligence itself.

We strongly believe strongly that the whole free world has an ethical, strategic, peace and safety obligation to topple the Syrian axis of evil regime and by military means and dismantle the terrorist Hezbollah as soon as possible. The more the free world postpones this costly mission, the more the Syrian regime and Hezbollah will continue to spread terrorism and fundamentalism not only in Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan and Gaza, but all over the world.

Before he sold himself to the Syrian-Iranian-Hezbollah axis of evil and betrayed his own people, Lebanese MP, General Michael Aoun advised the USA on means of dealing with the Syrian regime. I can not but reiterate what he said. Below is a verbatim excerpt from Aoun's TESTIMONY in front of the USA HOUSE SUBCOMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS on September 18/2003

"Terrorist organizations do not stand on their own in terms of identity; instead, they are proxies to regimes that provide them with financial means and an operational framework for their terrorist activities. The suggestion heard in some circles that these regimes can be charged with the task of dismantling terrorist organizations is the height of naiveté and folly. Furthermore, let's not forget that the clandestine nature of these regimes and organizations would allow them to quickly and easily restructure and reemerge under completely new aliases, ready to resume operations in full capacity. Any perceived cooperation in the war on terrorism does not represent a strategic choice on the part of the Syrian regime to combat terrorism; it is only a tactical and temporary ploy to dodge responsibility for the central role that Syria has had in sponsoring terrorism during the last three decades. Let us not forget that Syria's proxies in Lebanon were responsible for attacks against the American embassy and the Marine compound costing hundreds of Lebanese and American lives. Second, Syria's occupation has turned Lebanon -- a nation that once enjoyed democracy and freedom -- into a puppet-regime subservient to a dictatorship"

Posted by bejjani 17:52 | General | Comment(0) | Permalink