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Unity or Solidarity in Lebanon?

Marcy Newman Beirut 23 November 2006


It was 4:30 PM when my students’ cell phones began receiving SMS messages. We had fifteen minutes left of class. They told me that Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel had been assassinated. One of my students fled the room in tears. I could hear students amassing outside in front of the AUB student union building just outside our window. The mood was tense. Students began with their theories of who was responsible: Mossad, Syria, the CIA. The usual suspects. The story was, of course, confirmed as I listened to the news reports in the office. Just a few hours before in front of AUB’s student union there was a display of national unity as people celebrated Lebanon’s Flag Day. 

Israel issues last permits to foreigners, splitting families

22 November 2006


All foreign passports of spouses and children of Palestinian ID-holders who had applied for visa extensions were marked recently as “last permit” by the Israeli authorities. 105 passport holders are required to exit from Israeli controlled entry/exit points before the end of the year. The Israeli Ministry of Interior (MoI) office at Beit El began returning the passports on November 19 after a six-week strike by Israeli MoI employees. Those who overstay their allotted time will be considered “illegal” and are subject to immediate deportation from the Israeli occupied Palestinian territory (oPt). 

Media Beat: BBC scientists announce Mariana Trench of Irony is filled with salty, reptillian, American, clusterbomber tears

22 November 2006


A team of scientists, working in the BBC’s Children’s Science Unit, who recently completed an exhaustive week-long undersea geological survey of the Mariana Trench of Irony, the deepest known submarine trench in the world, announced today that the water tested seemed to be primarily composed of salty, reptillian, American, clusterbomber tears. In related front page news… 

Media Beat: New York Times' Startling Revelation Broadens World's Understanding Of Long-Running Conflict Over Land

22 November 2006


The New York Times, considered America’s “newspaper of record” and one of the most highly-respected newspapers in the world, yesterday published a previously-unknown and startling revelation about the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, the longest-running dispute over land in the modern world. With no less force than as if a giant asteroid had struck the earth, the Times’ unparalleled editorial team, in both print and web editions, offered its readers around the globe a commendably timely gift of knowledge, with the front page headline…. 

Fighting for the Next Generation

Danny Felsteiner the Netherlands 22 November 2006


Only a few hours after my fiancee, a 24-year-old Dutch musician and I, a 29-year-old Israeli musician and writer, arrived to Israel for the summer vacation, the war in Lebanon broke out. At first, no one dared to call it by the W-word; the media described it as a swift military operation to retrieve the kidnapped soldiers while teaching Hezbollah a bitter lesson. Everyone agreed with an across-the-board solidarity that it was a noble and imperative cause. The Israeli flag was brandished on balconies, cars and T-shirts, left and right-wing politicians were sharing spoons to stir their afternoon teas, and graffitists sprayed the walls with jingoistic ‘Go Israel!’ or ‘Let the IDF win!’. 

Lebanese Waters Still Stained Black

Meena S. Janardhan 22 November 2006


Squally winter weather in the eastern Mediterranean poses a fresh threat to marine ecology from Lebanon to Turkey this year, due to the remnants of the oil slick caused in July when Israeli forces bombed a power plant south of Beirut. Between 10,000 and 15,000 tonnes of crude leaked from the crippled power plant of Jiyeh, 30 km from the Lebanese capital, Jul. 13-15. The spill seriously contaminated the waters along the Lebanese and Syrian coast. Environmental damage to neighbouring Cyprus, Greece and Turkey was somewhat reduced by operations to mop up the floating oil. But the danger persists. 

Don't let one family's latest tragedy become that of a whole country

22 November 2006


There is no such thing as a routine political killing, but Tuesday’s assassination of Lebanese Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel threatens repercussions - and signals intentions - that are nothing short of extraordinary. With the Lebanese political climate already fouled by soaring tensions, the timing alone indicates that the people who orchestrated the attack are both ruthless and reckless. The assailants’ identities and immediate demands are unknown, but their message is clear: They will bring the country to - and possibly beyond - the brink of disaster to get their way. 

The Ugly Israeli

Rima Merriman 22 November 2006


The phrase “Ugly America” which epitomized American arrogance, corruption and tragic blunders in South East Asia in the early sixties is no longer in vogue in that region. But “Ugly Israeli” is alive and well in the Middle East, wherever there is an agreement of any kind between Israel and an Arab partner. There are two essential rules to follow for anyone attempting in good faith to “normalize” relations with Israel: Avoid ambiguity in any transaction and make sure that working procedures as well as processes of arbitration and enforcement are firmly in place. 

Under-Secretary-General, briefing Security Council, describes 'alarming escalation of violence' between Israelis, Palestinians

21 November 2006


With an alarming escalation of violence, the tragic events of November had once again highlighted the fact that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict could not be resolved through force, the United Nations senior political official told the Security Council this morning. “We have seen another month of violence in the Middle East –- one that for the tragedy of Beit Hanoun will almost certainly be remembered as a dark hour in this very long conflict”, Ibrahim Gambari, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs said. The Security Council met this morning to consider the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question. 

In Gaza Strip, UN human rights chief decries ‘massive’ violations against civilians

20 November 2006


The top United Nations human rights official said today that “massive” violations against civilians had taken place in the Gaza Strip as she began a five-day tour of the region following Israel’s deadly assault on the occupied Palestinian territory earlier this month. Louise Arbour, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, toured the northern Gazan town of Beit Hanoun, where 19 Palestinians were killed and some 60 others injured earlier this month when the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) shelled a residential area. Arbour told journalists that an independent, credible and thorough inquiry was needed to determine where responsibility lies for the deaths in Beit Hanoun.