BKIRKI: The Council of Maronite Bishops extended support  on Wednesday to the Lebanese Army in its fight against Fatah al-Islam militants at the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp, near Tripoli. "The national cohesion and courage displayed by the Lebanese Army during indispensable fights deserves acknowledgment from all the Lebanese, especially since the army has shown a strong sense of patriotism," Monsignor Youssef Tawk, secretary to the Maronite Patriarchate, said. Tawk was reading the minutes of the bishops’ monthly meeting held in Bkirki and headed by Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir.

Tawk urged the Lebanese to "despise" all attempts aiming to incite conflicts and reinforcing"blind sectarianism." "Lebanon is characterized by its sectarian diversity, manifested by the 18 Christian as well as Muslim sects cohabiting in an atmosphere of cultural as well as religious freedom, which makes this country a true model for coexistence; thus all attempts to expose such atmosphere are totally unacceptable," he said. Tawk hoped the Lebanese would be able to enjoy their summer vacation "away from the sounds of shells and gunfire and the smell of gunpowder." The council expressed fears that the cancelling of the contest for recruiting new staff at the Internal Security Forces (ISF) "put the performance and standing of this institution at risk."

NAHR AL BARED, Lebanon July 4th 2007 —  Three Islamist fighters were killed as the Lebanese army repulsed an attack inside a Palestinian camp in northern Lebanon, security sources said Wednesday.
A correspondent at the scene, meanwhile, reported renewed exchanges of gunfire between the army and Fatah Al Islam fighters around Nahr Al Bared refugee camp, amid bursts of shells fired by the military.
The sources said that the bodies of three militants were evacuated by civil defense workers after the attack on the army late Tuesday in Nahr Al Bared, the scene of a six-week standoff between troops and Al Qaeda-inspired extremists.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) warned anew of the deteriorating humanitarian situation inside the camp. An ICRC spokeswoman, Virginia de la Guardia, said that relief workers had not been able to deliver food and water supplies to the camp since June 20, with trapped residents running out of supplies. "Discussions are continuing with the army" for access, she said.  The last food rations that entered the camp amounted to 760 kilograms (1,670 pounds), enough for just over 100 people for two weeks, said the delegate of the ICRC, which has been coordinating relief.

الباحث والمحلل السياسي اللبناني يرى أن ما تقوم به عصابة شاكر العبسي تنفيذ لتوجيهات سورية

سجعان القزي لـ "السياسة": كل المخيمات الفلسطينية في لبنان "نهر بارد"

جريدة السياسة الكويتية : الخميس، 21 – يونيو – 2

بيروت ـ من صبحي الدبيسي:

المقدمة

اعتبر الباحث والمحلل السياسي سجعان القزي أن التوطين أصبح واقعاً في لبنان منذ توقيع اتفاق القاهرة سنة، 1969 لاسيما مع تمدد الوجود الفلسطيني بشرياً وعسكرياً في كل لبنان وتحوله في نفس الوقت إلى مشروع دولة محل الدولة اللبنانية، لكنه لفت إلى أن هذا المشروع سقط مع مقاومة اللبنانيين له في حرب نيسان/ ابريل، 1975 وظن اللبنانيون سنة 1982 أن المخيمات الفلسطينية عادت مخيمات، فإذا بهم بتفاجاؤن بأنها أصبحت مجدداً معسكرات ودويلات داخل الدولة اللبنانية. وكل مخيم فلسطيني في لبنان بات دولة فلسطينية على غرار الدولة الفلسطينية المنشأة في الأراضي الفلسطينية المستعادة.

وفي موضوع التوطين الفلسطيني رأى القزي أنه ليس بحاجة إلى حرب "نهر البارد" لكي ينفذ، فهو قائم بحكم الوجود الفلسطيني داخل المخيمات وخارجها، بحكم عدم وجود سلطة الدولة في هذه المخيمات، وخاصة بحكم عدم وجود أفق حل لا للقضية الفلسطينية فحسب، وإنما للانتشار الفلسطيني خارج الأراضي الفلسطينية المحتلة أيضاً، مشدداً على أن الوضع الفلسطيني في لبنان لا يمكن أن يبقى بعد معركة "نهر البارد"، مثلما كان قبلها.

كلام قزي جاء في سياق حوار أجرته معه "السياسة"، تناول فيه أبعاد حرب مخيم "نهر البارد"، وخطر توطين الفلسطينيين في لبنان، ومسببات تفشي الأصوليتين الشيعية والسنية فيه، معدداً ثلاثة عوامل ساهمت بإعادة تسلح الفلسطينيين في المخيمات من بينها الصراع الخفي بين منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية وركنها الأساسي "فتح" من جهة، والمنظمات الفلسطينية الأصولية بركنيها الأساسيين "حماس" و"الجهاد الإسلامي" من جهة أخرى، ويضاف إليها الحالة الأصولية المنتشرة خارج لبنان والتي قررت أن تنشئ لها قواعد انطلاقاً من المخيمات في لبنان

BEIRUT Daily star: A hotel owner called on all tourist establishments in Beirut to abide by a two day strike on Monday to protest the government’s negligence of the tourism sector. Amin Khayat,  also president of the Tourist Institutions in Beirut, warned the strike is just the beginning. "We may resort to other means in the next 15 days if the government and the concerned parties refrained from assisting the tourism sector," Khayat told a press conference. "The government promised us to secure a special fund to help the tourism sector. But none of their promises were fulfilled." He said that hotels will stop receiving visitors for two days.

Khayat wants a special electricity bill for all tourist establishments, as is the case for industrialists, and a resetting of taxes and VAT. But most hotel and restaurant owners are unlikely to comply with the strike call although they all sympathize with Khayat’s demands. "We fully sympathize with Khayat’s demands but I don’t think most of the establishments will close their businesses for two days," Paul Aryss, the president of the Restaurant Owners Association, told the paper.

BEIRUT – Former ministers who figure on a list of Syrian and Lebanese personalities banned from entering the United States said on Saturday they felt