The Lebanese press said today that calming down tension will be the dominant situation in the first session for electing the Lebanese president. The available information said house speaker Berri’s visit to Bkerki yesterday aimed at getting guarantees from Patriarch Sfeir that no one will do anything to obstruct the initiative.
Other press circles said Saudi Arabia offered such guarantees due to its fear from the collapse of the situation in Lebanon, while diplomatic sources considered that this is the first fruit of the Qatari mediation between Riyadh and Damascus.
An Event and a Regional Trend
An Arab diplomatic source expressed its surprise concerning the similarity between the French and European stand towards the area’s issues and the US policy saying that some of these states move against Syria in accordance with US instructions and this is one of the comedies of the Arab official time for the governments that submit to the US domination. But what is shocking is that big states can not do anything without Washington’s instructions, the source said.
The source quoted an informed official in an active Arab capital as saying that he believes that all the stands of Arab and foreign sides that negotiate with Syria at this stage are mere variations to the US stand. All the foreign ministers and the delegates who visit Syria or call it convey messages and explore the stands in accordance with a US authorization and every one of them has its share in the list of the US missions. The example that the source offers on this is Washington’s pushing of the French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner to utter provocative statements against Syria a few hours before announcing a new US stand represented in inviting Syria to attend the autumn conference. The source added that the Americans prevent Arab states’ communication with Syria and that Syria, in its option which rejects the US-Israeli domination, was able to preserve its steadfastness, and when the US will be obliged to make a deal with it, this will mean that the US recognizes Syria as a big regional state in an area of states that submit to the US-Israeli will. This will make this compromise difficult.
An Event and a Lebanese Trend
Available information in Beirut stressed that quick interventions delayed an escalating plan to appoint the former representative Nassib Lahoud as a president by the loyal representatives who will attend today the parliamentary session which will be chaired by the deputy house speaker Fareed Makkari.
Informed Lebanese sources called the European states to make precise calculations about the danger of anarchy in Lebanon if confrontation takes place between the opposition and the loyal on the occasion of the presidential merit.
The sources said that some US and Israeli circles claim that the confusion will result in Hezbollah’s control of Lebanon and by this they try to provoke Lebanese factions against the resistance which is led by Hezbollah and embraced by many Lebanese sides as the last summer war proved.
What the Israelis and the Americans hide is that they fear the loyal team’ loss of all its positions which may open the way, not for Hezbollah and the opposition, but for Al-Qaeda and the extremist organizations that the events in Nahr Al-Bared camp, the Beka and the Suth showed that they can develop.
If some Arab states wish to absorb their extremist groups through exporting them to another arena, as Naher Al-Bared events showed, Syria is a a country that has an experience in protecting its internal security from danger and can prevent the transference of dangers to its lands by borders preparations and internal measures.
On its part, Hezbollah’s experience showed his ability to be flexible and concentrate on the struggle with Israel and contain the sectarian schism.
The confusion will lead to the collapse of the loyalists’ political structure, and especially the structure of the Future Trend for the benefit of Al-Qaeda and its network. Therefore, the Europeans should make their own calculations because the quickest results will be the movement of the contagion to the European sphere, as the previous experiences showed. The European should pay attention that their vital interest lies in preventing the rolling of the confusion which may seduce the neocons in Bush’s administration to tear Lebanon apart despite the high costs of this in order to exhaust the resistance.
The sources added that preventing anarchy requires a Lebanese agreement on a president who can enhance the idea of the state and the citizenship instead of choosing one of the adventurers who adopt the plans of reusing the extremist groups which were made by the US intelligence, despite the disastrous consequences of this option in Iraq.
Arab and International Press
The Syrian press said the Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert talked about alertness on the borders with Syria but he added the tension will be diffused in a short period.
For his part Syrian information minister Mohsen plan denied an alleged operation by an Israeli commando unit that seized nuclear equipments inside Syria.
International Press Agencies said Iran will welcome the visit of the French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner so he can clarify his provocative statements.
International Press Agencies said the international quartet announced its strong support to Bush’s conference on peace in the Middle East.
The New York Times quoted the French president Nicolas Sarkozy as saying that he rules out resorting to force against Iran but sanctions should be tightened.
Jim Hoagland said in an article published in he Washington Post that Iraq diverts the US officials’ attention from any part in the world.
Lebanese Press
As-Safir said that the summit meeting between prince of Qatar and the Saudi king in Jeddah focused on the file of the Syrian-Saudi relations.
Al-Akhbar said Beirut’s heart is trembling due to September 25 session, pointing out that patriarch Sfeir avoided presidential names in his meeting with Nabih Berri.
An-Nahar said today’s session takes place under the cloak of Berri and Sfeir.
Arab Satellite Stations’ News
Al-Jazeera
Program : The Day’s Harvest
The US president George Bush said that Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and Ehud Olmert want to reach a peaceful coexistence based on a two-state solution.
Television Stations’ News in Lebanon
Al-Manar said the house speaker calmed down the Lebanese people by announcing that the sides will reach a conciliatory president before November 24.
The NTV said Lebanon entered today the two months deadline to elect the president and no solution appears in the horizon.
The NBN said the meeting between the house speaker Berri and the patriarch Sfeir can be considered in these circumstances as a political-spiritual meeting.
The OTV said September 25 session reveals that there is no new president in accordance with the constitution. For its part, the LBC wondered if the loyal representatives will continue their voluntary captivity in Venetia hotel.
The Future said the cabinet held an important meeting that lasted seven hours.
Television Stations’ Interviews in Lebanon
Al-Manar
_Program: Between Two Brackets
Representative Ali Hasan Khalil said the meeting between house speaker Nabih Berri and the patriarch Sfei enhanced the opportunity for reaching a compromise.
He added that if the loyalists elect a president with the half plus one quorum they will destroy Lebanon.
Tendencies is a daily political watch newsletter about the Near East, issued by New Orient News agency in Beirut, Lebanon. It is available on Voltairenet.org in Arabic, English and French languages. Also worth a read is Indicators, the daily Near East economic watch newsletter, available in Arabic and English.
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