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Italy ready to help Lebanon, prisoner swap with Israel

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October 12, 2006

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BEIRUT (AFP) - Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi has pledged to help enforce stability in Lebanon, including efforts to secure a prisoners' swap with Israel. Prodi, whose country will soon be the leading contributor of troops to the UN peacekeeping force in south Lebanon, said Rome was eager to help boost Lebanon's political stability and reconstruction.

"Not only Italy, but all of the European Union, is willing to make an effort to stabilise the country and stabilise the area," he said during a media conference with his Lebanese counterpart, Fuad Siniora.Asked about potential Italian help to secure a prisoner exchange, Prodi said: "We discussed this issue... and I said that helping to resolve this issue will help restore peace.

"But I cannot say more," he added Wednesday.The Lebanese Shiite militant group Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers on July 12 in a bid to secure a prisoner swap. Israel responded with a massive month-long offensive on Lebanon.The war ended on August 14 under the terms of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which called for Israel's pullout from south Lebanon and the dispatch of Lebanese army troops in tandem with a deployment of a boosted UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

Lebanese government under pressure to resign

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October 12, 2006

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Clancy Chassay in Beirut, The Guardian, The Lebanese government is facing heavy pressure to resign over its handling of the war with Israel and the ensuing reconstruction effort, with almost seven out of 10 voters calling for early elections, according to a poll published today. The results come just over a week after Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah called for the dissolution of the government and the formation of a national unity government, to the cheers of hundreds of thousands of Lebanese at a rally in Beirut's southern suburbs.

The poll, published by the Beirut Centre for Research and Information, indicates that more than 70% of the country supports the formation of a new national unity government with 68% calling for early elections. The director of the centre, Abdo Saad, says the calls for a national unity government reflect a popular desire to bridge the polarisation that has existed in the country since the Syrian withdrawal from Lebanon in March this year. "The results suggest people feel a national unity government would be the best way of bridging the divisions in the country and stabilising the situation here," he said. According to Paul Salem, director of the newly established Carnegie Middle East Centre in Beirut, the credibility of prime minister Fouad Siniora's government was dealt a heavy blow by what was commonly perceived as an American sanctioned war.

poll shows 84% of Lebanese agree

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October 12, 2006

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AMMAN (JT)

Lebanon counts the cost of conflict

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October 12, 2006

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By Noor Akl for (CNN) -- With 220 kilometers of Mediterranean coastline and 300 days of sun per year, Lebanon's beaches are one of the country's main assets and millions of dollars have been invested in the past few years to develop dozens of resorts along the coast.But these same resorts are now counting the losses inflicted by Israeli strikes and ensuing oil spills which have turned the Big Blue into a Big Black.

The month-long war between Hezbollah and Israel and an eight-week sea and air blockade have increased Lebanon's public debt to $41 billion from the $38.6 billion estimated at the start of 2006.The conflict caused extensive damage to the country's infrastructure leaving 15,000 houses and apartments leveled, 78 bridges and 630 km of road destroyed and an economy in tatters. But the most harshly hit sector was perhaps the tourism industry which lost an estimated $2.5 billion in expected revenues. The wellbeing of Lebanon's economy depends greatly on the travel and tourism industry which contributes 11% of the GDP thanks to the country's sandy beaches, snowy peaks and vibrant nightlife.