Daily star BEIRUT: As municipality and Sukleen workers removed the remaining concrete barriers and swept the streets in Beirut Central District (BCD), restaurant and shop owners in this fancy commercial area slowly opened their business Thursday. The opposition decision to end the 18-month sit-in near the Grand Serail brought a near immediate boost to the private sector. Stocks in the Beirut bourse climbed to record levels for the second day in a row on Thursday. Tour operators said they already expected Arab tourists to flock Lebanon in big numbers this summer. But for many business owners in the BCD, the problems have just started. "Don’t expect all restaurants to resume operations any time soon. Many of these restaurant owners cannot afford to open their doors for customers," Paul Aryss, the head of the Restaurant Owners Association, told The Daily Star. Aryss said around 30 to 40 restaurants have apparently decided to stay closed this summer because the financial losses they incurred during the 18-month sit-in have been quite heavy. There are a little more than 100 restaurants in the BCD.

"Most of the businesses in the BCD have to pay taxes and municipality fees that accumulated over the past two years. In addition, Solidere will ask the restaurants, shops and offices located in this area to pay all outstanding rents since the opposition pitched their camps," Aryss said. Restaurant rents in the commercial district ranges between $150,000 to $200,000 a year. "These rents are piling up and of course Solidere is going to ask for their money now that the sit-in is over," Aryss said.  The government of outgoing Premier Fouad Siniora promised last year to offer relief to businesses in the BCD affected by the long sit-in. Among the promised measures were tax and municipality-fee exemptions to businesses in the BCD.

JERUSALEM (CNN)  21 may 2008– Israeli and Syrian officials confirmed Wednesday they are indirectly negotiating a possible peace deal under Turkish mediation.

At a speech in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday night, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said the disclosure of the talks was the end of a phase that had been going on for over a year.

He also said that he has no illusions and that the negotiations will be difficult, lengthy and will require difficult concessions.

Earlier, Olmert’s office issued a statement saying: "The two sides stated their intention to conduct these talks in good faith and with an open mind."

It was the first official confirmation of the indirect talks between Israel and Syria. Turkish and Syrian officials also confirmed the talks.

Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria during the 1967 Six Day War, and the area has been a source of contention since.

The last round of peace negotiations between the two countries broke down in 2000, after Syria demanded a full return of the Golan.

For its part, Israel wants Syria to abandon its support of Palestinian and Lebanese militant groups as part of any peace agreement.

The United States has been informed about the indirect talks, according to Assistant Secretary of State David Welch, who praised Turkey for playing "a good and useful role."

Welch noted that the United States is not playing any role in those talks, adding that President Bush is focused on getting an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal by the end of this year.

"The expansion of the circle of peace would be a good thing and it would be helpful if that includes an agreement with Syria," Welch said.

Wednesday’s announcement comes about a month after Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad admitted his country has been indirectly negotiating with Israel for about a year under the auspices of Turkey.

His admission last month, in an interview with a leading Arabic language newspaper, confirmed long-standing rumors that the two countries were discussing the Golan Heights.

A week after the interview, senior Israeli officials met with their Turkish counterparts and agreed to publicly announce the year-long talks.

الاتحاد المسيحي الديمقراطي اللبناني                _______        علـم وخبـر 262 / أ.د.         ت 20/9/1988             إستقبل النائب نعمة الله أبي نصر رئيس الإتحاد المسيحي الديمقراطي اللبناني في مكتبه السفيرين ؛ غابريال كيكيا سفير إيطاليا وميغيل بنزو سفير إسبانيا بحضور الأمين العام للإتحاد الدكتور عبده جرجس ، تأتي زيارة السفيرين ضمن جولاتهما على بعض الأحزاب والفعاليات المسيحية […]

مع شكرنا لكلّ الدول التي سعت وساهمت في إنجاح اجتماعات الدوحة وبصورة خاصة دولة قطر بشخص أميرها ؛ يمكننا أن نستخلص العبر التالية :       أثبتت التجارب أننا عاجزون عن الإجتماع والحوار وإستنباط الحلول بدون وسيط أو رقيب أو وصي ؛ إن أسوء ما وصلنا إليه اليوم هو اعتراف اللبنانيين وعلى رأسهم السياسيِّين بعجزهم وتسليمهم بمقولة […]

Beirut – Lebanon’s  army commander Michel Suleiman will be Lebanon’s ‘unity president’ after rival Lebanese political factions agreed, after talks in Qatar, to end their differences in a deal to resolve the 18-month crisis that has kept the country without a president since November.  Suleiman will be Lebanon’s 12th president since the country gained its independence in 1943 and the third after the Saudi-brokered taef-accord. General Suleiman, 59, has held his post as commander since 1998. He is seen as a neutra and strong unifyingl figure in the country. He is credited with keeping the military together in the political upheaval and tensions that Lebanon was affected.  The head of Lebanon’s army has been credited with keeping the army on the sidelines.  He has called on the 56,000-strong army to ignore politics and "listen to the call of duty".  Until relatively recently, Gen Suleiman kept a low public profile.  His apparent neutrality has earned him the respect of both the opposition and ruling coalition.

Lebanon’s parliament has failed 19 times to elect a president for the country since the former president Emile Lahoud stepped down at the end of his mandate November 23rd 2007.

Lebanon has given itself a chance to end a miserable, murderous cycle (daily star)

For over 18 months, international efforts to find a solution to Lebanon’s harrowing political crisis seemed a lot like searching for a needle in a haystack. Various teams of Arab and international mediators had tried to prod feuding Lebanese leaders toward compromise, but none of these efforts brought about concrete results. It was only after the crisis escalated to the verge of renewed civil war – and after Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani thankfully intervened – that the leaders of rival Lebanese factions managed to secure what once seemed like a permanently elusive deal.  The brilliance of the Doha accord is that it has resurrected the Lebanese agenda on Lebanese terrain. For far too long that agenda had been both strangled by local players and dictated to the Lebanese in the form of unrealistic demands from foreign capitals. But the Qatari emir successfully brokered an accord that makes Lebanon the priority, and resolves all outstanding political issues, while incorporating mechanisms for strengthening the Lebanese state. The responsibility for ensuring the full success of the Doha initiative now rests with Lebanese leaders – every one of them, from Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah to Lebanese Forces boss Samir Geagea.  Over the past few days we have witnessed the transformation of the sentiment on the streets from one of tribulation – when Lebanese leaders pushed this nation to the brink – to one of jubilation – when Lebanon’s executioners were summoned away to the dialogue in Doha. The prevailing sense of joy has increased exponentially now that an agreement has been reached and the Lebanese can for the first time in over three years begin to envision new and boundless horizons for their homeland. The possibilities that the resolution of the political crisis allow for are infinite. One can easily imagine how it can pave the way toward economic development and political reform, as well as rapprochement with Damascus, and even an eventual peace deal with Israel if that country is willing to be reasonable (a possibility that is even easier to envision in light of the Turkish-brokered talks between Syria and Israel). The return of a Lebanese state that is at peace with its own citizens will also enable Lebanon to return to its role as an incubator of talent and creative energy that benefits, rather than destabilizes, the entire region. 

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Suleiman joined the Lebanese Military Academy as a student officer in 1976. He graduated from the Military Academy as 2nd Lieutenant in 1970.  He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political and Administrative Sciences from the Lebanese University. He also holds a Masters in English and French. In the early-to-mid 1990s, he commanded an infantry brigade which engaged in violent confrontations with the Israeli army in southern Lebanon.  He was appointed as army commander on December 21, 1998, succeeding Emile Lahoud after he was elected president.   Gen Suleiman also oversaw the army’s deployment near the border with Israel after Hezbollah fought a war with Israel in 2006. Since then, however, he has distanced himself from Islamist militants. In 2005, he won praise for keeping the army on the sidelines during the political upheaval following the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.  He refused to crush the massive anti-Syrian protests that gripped Beirut during the spring of 2005, helping to force the Syrian military out of Lebanon.  Two years later, Gen Suleiman rose to national prominence after the army battled and defeated al-Qaeda-inspired militants in the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in the north of the country. At the end of the operation, pictures of a victorious Gen Suleiman graced roadside billboards, with the words: "At your command."  The broad backing for the army and its leader helped Gen Suleiman’s emergence as a candidate for the presidency. Gen Suleiman has long argued that the army’s role is to maintain the country’s peace and stability – and not"get muddled in politics".  In a recent tour of troop positions in the south of the country, Gen Suleiman stressed his belief that "involving the army in internal clashes only serves the interests of Israel".

 One of his major quotes is that ‘the state exists because the army is the guardian of the structure of this state.’  He is married to Wafaa Suleiman and has three children. Amshit, 40 kilometres north of Beirut, where Suleiman is from, was getting prepared Wednesday for festivities connected to the election.  Amsheet Mayor Antoin Issa told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa, that pictures were being put up ‘of the new leader of the country Michel Suleiman and the son of Amsheet.’  Posters reading ‘the real leader of Lebanon’ were erected across Beirut and some people were already distributing sweets to celeberate the election and the end of the political crisis.

DOHA – Rival Lebanese leaders signed a deal on Wednesday to end 18 months of political conflict that had pushed their country to the brink of a new civil war. The deal, concluded after six days of Arab-mediated talks in Qatar, paved the way for parliament to elect army chief General Michel Suleiman as president, filling a post vacant since November because of the political deadlock. Lebanese Parliament speaker Nabih Berri said Suleiman would be elected president this week most likely on Sunday May 25th. The deal between the ruling coalition and the  opposition resolved a dispute over a parliamentary election law and met the opposition’s long-standing demand  to obtain 11 Cabinet seats under the deal.  In fact lin a ate night meeting on Tuesday of a six-member committee to discuss the electoral law finally achieved a breakthrough. Following a short session, opposition MP Ali Hassan Khalil told NBN television that a settlement was in the offing.  The feuding parties have finally managed to agree on dividing Beirut into three balanced constituencies. The first constituency is a Christian one with five seats, the second is a mixed one with four seats, and the third is a Sunni-dominated one with 10 seats.  On the other hand, Reform and Change bloc leader Michel Aoun will have to fight to win the five seats in the Christian district as the Armenian vote will be a deciding factor in the mixed constituency. Up until the last minute, Aoun was reportedly fighting to put six seats in the Christian district, but ended up accepting the 10-5-4 formula. The current ruling coalition will get 16 seats. The remaining seats will be distributed by the incoming president, in the 30-member cabinet.   Under the deal, the two sides also agreed on an electoral law, which divides the Mediterranean Sea country into smaller-sized political districts. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri also will call parliament to session to elect army chief, Gen. Michel Suleiman, as the country new president in the next 24 hours, the Qatari prime minister said.

"The parties agreed that the speaker of parliament will call within 24 hours for the election of General Michel Suleiman as president of the republic," Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani said, reading from the agreement at the signing ceremony in Doha.  A few bursts of celebratory gunfire broke out in Beirut’s after the announcement. Lebanese television stations showed Lebanese politicians and their Arab hosts congratulating and hugging one another.

Speaking in Doha at the ceremony, Berri said opposition supporters would also dismantle their "tent city" protest camp.which the opposition has started immediately. The opposition has been camped out for more than a year in downtown Beirut across from the prime minister’s office. Berri said this would be a "gift" from the opposition, hailing the Doha agreement. Saniora, also addressing the ceremony, called on the Lebanese to reject violence and asked Arab states to help support Lebanon’s army, which kept a neutral role during the latest clashes. "We must … pledge never to resort to arms to resolve our political differences," Saniora said. "We should accept each other and hold dialogue to solve the problems. We want to live together and we will continue that. We have no other choice." The Doha-based negotiations came after the Arab League mediated a deal to end the week of deadly violence that paralyzed parts of the country. The Qatar negotiations hit snags from the very start, with neither side willing to give concessions.  The agreement was reached after host Qatar stepped up the pressure Tuesday with Qatari Emir Sheik Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani personally intervening.  "There are no losers," said Lebanese Telecommunications Minister Marwan Hamadeh, "Lebanon is the winner."

Daily star: Lebanese lawmakers are set to elect the commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces, General Michel Suleiman, as president on Sunday after rival political leaders clinched a deal in Doha on Wednesday to end an 18-month feud that exploded into deadly sectarian fighting and threatened to plunge the nation into all-out civil war.  The deal that was reached at Doha after four days of intensive talks will lead to electing Suleiman, forming a national unity cabinet, and drafting a new electoral law for the 2009 parliamentary elections.  The agreement was announced by Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani at noon Wednesday as the rival leaders gathered at a roundtable.  "Some of you took to the streets asking your leaders not to return to Lebanon without reaching an agreement … I would like to tell you that your leaders have finally agreed and they will shortly be on their way back," Sheikh Hamad said, addressing the Lebanese people.  The rival leaders officially signed the agreement shortly after it was announced.  They arrived in Beirut later in the day.  As the good news reached Beirut, people in the capital and in different areas of the country could not help but show their content and relief.  The feeling of relief was followed by instant action as opposition supporters began to remove tents at the site of their 18-month sit-in in Downtown Beirut after Speaker Nabih Berri declared an end to the protest.  Berri said that ending the sit-in was a gift from the opposition to the Doha agreement.    The speaker also thanked Qatari and Arab mediators for their role in helping Lebanese parties reach an agreement.  The long-awaited deal addressed two key issues of contention between the opposition and ruling majority.  As far as forming a national unity government is concerned, the opposition has managed to get its long-demanded veto power.  The new cabinet will be made up of 16 ministers for the parliamentary majority, 11 for the opposition, and three for the elected president. The 11 ministers (one third plus one of the 30-member cabinet) are all that it takes for the opposition to block any government decision to which its is opposed.  However, the next cabinet is not due to last long as it will resign by default when the parliamentary elections are due next spring.  Meanwhile, the most important deal of all was the agreement reached on drafting a new electoral law for the 2009 parliamentary elections.  The issue of the electoral law was the major hurdle to the success of the Doha talks after the rival sides, which approved adopting the qada (smaller district) as an electoral constituency, appeared at odds over how to divide seats in Beirut.  As the Doha talks were moving close to failure, a late night meeting on Tuesday of a six-member committee to discuss the electoral law finally achieved a breakthrough. Following a short session, opposition MP Ali Hassan Khalil told NBN television that a settlement was in the offing.  The feuding parties have finally managed to agree on dividing Beirut into three balanced constituencies. The first constituency is a Christian one with five seats, the second is a mixed one with four seats, and the third is a Sunni-dominated one with 10 seats.  The formula is likely to secure for parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri at least 10 out of Beirut’s 19 seats.  On the other hand, Reform and Change bloc leader Michel Aoun will have to fight to win the five seats in the Christian district as the Armenian vote will be a deciding factor in the mixed constituency. Up until the last minute, Aoun was reportedly fighting to put six seats in the Christian district, but ended up accepting the 10-5-4 formula.  As for other parts of the country, the two sides agreed on adopting the divisions of the 1960 electoral law.  Prime Minister Fouad Siniora described the agreement as a "great achievement in … the history of Lebanon."  Speaking shortly after the Qatari emir announced the agreement, Siniora called on all Lebanese parties to condemn violence and pledge not to use arms to settle political disputes.  The Doha agreement has committed all parties not to use violence and stated that security was the exclusive responsibility of the Lebanese state.   Under the agreement, a dialogue is set to begin in Beirut to address the issue of the state’s relations with political groups in the country. Such dialogue is to be held under the auspices of the new president.  The issue of Hizbullah’s possession of arms was not discussed at the Doha talks or mentioned in the agreement as the Arab committee decided to make do with banning the use of violence, a clear reference to the recent clashes in Lebanon between opposition and pro-government militants.  The clashes left up to 65 dead and 250 wounded.  Hariri also praised the deal.  "Today, we are opening a new page in Lebanon’s history," he said

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DOHA  – Arab mediators gave Lebanon’s  opposition a Wednesday deadline to respond to proposals aimed at resolving a political crisis which brought the country to the brink of civil war. Delegates said the proposals called  for the immediate election of a president, a cabinet in which the opposition had veto powers, a pledge to avoid violence […]

Rival leaders appeared back at square one on the fourth day of intense bargaining in Doha but mediators managed to get the talks going and maintained hope that a deal could still be reached to pull Lebanon back from the brink of a civil strife. Government and opposition leaders have been in Qatar for several days […]