Bomb found near Lebanese Army base in Tripoli
A bomb was found Wednesday near a Lebanese Army base in the the northern city of Tripoli, a security source said.
Tuesday, 13 January 2015
Nasrallah warns Israel: Hezbollah has weapons of all types
Nasrallah warns Israel: Hezbollah has weapons of all types
Hezbollah has every weapon Israel can think of, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah warned in an interview with pan-Arab...
Rep. André Carson To Become First Muslim On House Committee On Intelligence
Democratic Congressman André Carson of Indiana says he converted to Islam as a teenager after witnessing Muslims "pushing back on crime" in his neighborhood. courtesy of André Carson hide caption
itoggle caption courtesy of André Carson
Democratic Congressman André Carson of Indiana says he converted to Islam as a teenager after witnessing Muslims "pushing back on crime" in his neighborhood.
courtesy of André Carson
Representative André Carson of Indiana's 7th district will soon become the first Muslim lawmaker to serve on the House intelligence committee, according to Politico.
The report says Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif, made the announcement in a closed-door meeting today. Neither Pelosi's nor Carson's office would comment.
Carson was raised Baptist but converted to Islam as a teenager. He has said he was first attracted by Muslims "pushing back on crime" in his neighborhood.
In an 2014 interview with the Huffington Post, he recalled an incident in which he'd been arrested at age 17 "because police officers tried to go into a mosque without probable cause." He said that arrest inspired him to become a police officer. He moved on to work in the anti-terrorism unit of the Indiana Department of Homeland Security. "What I learned is that in the U.S., as in the U.K., it is impossible to fight the threat of global terror without help from Muslims."
Carson is one of only two Muslims serving in Congress. The other is Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., who became the first Muslim elected to Congress in 2006. Carson won his seat in early 2008, and during that campaign the Indianapolis Star criticized his Republican opponent, Marvin Scott, as attacking Carson's Muslim religion.
Marijuana Industry Jobs Are Everywhere, With No Signs of Disappearing
Looking for a job with a nearly unlimited upside? Check out the marijuana industry.
According to a report to be released Thursday by WeedHire, a headhunting/job placement firm specializing in jobs for the marijuana industry, pot is the most promising new field in America. Factoring in flower and concentrate sales and ancillary products—everything from bongs to vape pens to edibles—experts say that the market is expected to reach $47 billion in total revenue by 2016. According to an industry report published by The ArcView Group, a marijuana research and investment firm in San Francisco, the legal cannabis market in the United States is expected to grow 700 percent over the next five years.
Weedhire was founded by Bernstein and Vlad Stelmak. The New Jersey-based partners launched the site in May after seeing news footage of people waiting for hours to get into a marijuana job fair in Colorado. (There is also a mobile app.) The company charges employers to post jobs, as well as to access users’ résumés and to conduct background checks on potential job candidates.
The organization's Q4 Cannabis Jobs report, to be issued January 15, shows demand for jobs in the weed industry growing like, well, weeds. Demand for sales jobs were up 56 percent as companies struggled to get products on shelves. Demand for dispensary workers was up 90 percent as new storefronts were opened. According to a report from the Brookings Institution, the starting salary for inexperienced dispensary workers in Colorado was $10 dollars an hour, $2 dollars greater than Colorado’s minimum wage. WeedHire’s stats show that over 148 million Americans now live in pro-medical marijuana states, or states that are currently in the process of passing laws. That’s nearly half of the entire population. Jobs are jobs, no?
WeedHire has already seen job postings with salaries of over $100,000 a year, primarily from state governments. The most common salary bracket is from $30,000-$50,000 annually, accounting for roughly half of the positions. Most of the retail jobs are within dispensaries at an average hourly wage of $10-12 per hour.
The site has also seen rapid growth in the sales and administrative fields, making up 63.3 percent of all open positions. This includes receptionists, sales representatives, accountants, customer service workers, general managers and marketers. Companies are looking for employees with prior experience in “straight” businesses—the jobs are the same, it’s just the product that’s different. New job titles have also been created. “Budtenders” are retail clerks at dispensaries who wait on clients and recommend and sell various strains and edibles.
Other jobs are not so dinky. Recently, the Minnesota Department of Health announced the hiring of Dr. Thomas Arneson, who holds a degree from Harvard University. He will provide medical research, leadership and expertise for the new Office of Medical Cannabis Program. The State of Massachusetts named Karen van Unen as Director of the State’s Medical Marijuana Program. Van Unen spent the previous year consulting for the Tufts University School of Public Health. Weedhire has placed about 200 people in jobs since June, according to Bernstein.
Jobs that have been advertised include a medical marijuana-friendly rabbi in San Jose for administrative and consulting work ($5,000 per year) and a $90k job with the Washington State Liquor Control Board as the director of the Licensing & Regulations Division.
Other jobs advertised are more open-ended: A Denver-based operation called mmjmenu is looing for “talented, motivated and smart people to join the mmjmenu team. It doesn't matter what your area of expertise is, if you think you can bring something valuable to the mmjmenu team, we want to hear from you…Please include some code you've written, projects you've worked on, and any other skills that you think you bring to the table.”
Bernstein said that some of the jobs that have been filled include:
-A Radiological control technician that monitored and surveyed radioactive material is now representing a hemp lifestyle company with a focus on nutritional wellness.
-A sales strategy consultant from Accenture is now the CEO of a business incubator dedicated to accelerating products, people, and policy fueling cannabis innovation.
-An insurance broker is now a sales manager for a medical hemp oil manufacturer.
-A sales manager for Konica Minolta is now director of sales for a large vaporizer manufacturer.
“The fundamentals of starting and running a business are the same no matter what industry,” Bernstein says. “Surrounding yourself with good people is the key. Why wouldn’t people jump to get in to the sector?”
Style Over Substance: How Clothes Work Can For and Against Us
New York City first lady, Chirlane McCray, attended the funeral of Wenjian Liu, the slain NYPD officer on Sunday. Julio Cortez/AP hide caption
itoggle caption Julio Cortez/AP
New York City first lady, Chirlane McCray, attended the funeral of Wenjian Liu, the slain NYPD officer on Sunday.
Julio Cortez/AP
New York city's first lady, Chirlane McCray, is being publicly dressed down for not dressing up enough when she attended the funeral of Wenjian Liu, the slain NYPD officer on Sunday. McCray, who is married to Mayor Bill DeBlasio, came to the ceremony in a nubby, French blue coat that stopped just above the knee, and wearing black boots. It was what showed between the coat hem and the boots that riled a lot of the rank and file: blue patterned pants that bunched at the knee and above the ankle — and that looked like denim.
"NOTHING SAYS DISRESPECT LIKE ROCKING JEANS AT A FUNERAL" blasted a poster on Twitter over a photo of McCray and DeBlasio after the services.
Several DeBlasio critics hammered McCray in tweets for what they consider as inappropriate casual wear. The pants turned out not to be jeans but part of a pantsuit by local designer Annie Kuan in what the New York Times' Vanessa Friedman called a degradé pattern. In other words, it looked like distressed denim.
The outrage was relentless: "My kids know what to wear at funerals," tweeted @jsls315. "No excuse for her. Sorry. My kids knew this at 8 yo."
Many posts were not as civil.
Teri Agins is a fashion writer for Wall Street Journal and gives fashion advice on the popular . Agins is a McCray admirer, but feels the first lady's funeral attire was unfortunate, "especially given the current relationship between the mayor and the police department."
"The police, many of them, feel they're not respected by her husband's administration," she says. In response to the backlash, McCray wrote an essay on Essence, in which she expresses support for the police and the dangerous job they do.
Agins says McCray's ensemble was particularly jarring because of the people around her.
"The mayor wore a dark suit," Agins explains. "So did Police Commissioner (Bill) Bratton. And here are all those police, in their dress uniforms, with white gloves."
New York City first lady, Chirlane McCray, has battled public attacks on her appearance including her hair texture and skin color. Richard Drew/AP hide caption
itoggle caption Richard Drew/AP
New York City first lady, Chirlane McCray, has battled public attacks on her appearance including her hair texture and skin color.
Richard Drew/AP
Against that sea of somber formality, McCray's choice stood out.
What puzzled some observers is why McCray, who is of West Indian ancestry and grew up in a New England family, would make such a mistake in the first place. For decades, black families in this country dressed to the hilt for funerals to give their loved ones a proper send-off.
Karla F.C. Holloway, who wrote Passed On, a landmark study of African-American funeral and death traditions, says that in the past, people did dress more formally for funerals.
"That began to change when funerals began to change from weekend to weekday," she points out, "and when the ceremonies began to change to the graveside or funeral home, rather than the church."
Some people would take time out of their workday to attend services, and the nature of their work would dictate how formally they dressed.
As both Holloway and Agins note, life has gotten much more casual, even for this significant, final event. Casual Fridays have for many become casual every day. According to Agins, even morticians began to feel the effect.
"Some talked about the trend of relatives requesting to see their loved ones in the casket in their favorite track suit," she explained. "They thought that was more like their everyday image."
Agins says she's noticed that many people no longer wear black at funerals, but a spectrum of dark neutrals, and sometimes even prints. At her mother's service, Agins chose to wear "a very loud black and white graffiti print, because I wanted to celebrate her life."
During a scheduled vacation in 2009, critics called out first lady Michelle Obama for sporting above-the-knee cargo shorts while on Air Force One. Dana Felthauser/AP hide caption
itoggle caption Dana Felthauser/AP
During a scheduled vacation in 2009, critics called out first lady Michelle Obama for sporting above-the-knee cargo shorts while on Air Force One.
Dana Felthauser/AP
Others might wear bright hues for the same reason, or choose to honor a loved one by wearing his or her favorite color. That's the mourning family's choice. But when representing an entire city, as New York's first lady does, attire has more meaning — and is given less latitude.
Holloway says McCray has been the frequent target of vicious, often racist remarks from the outset.
"Her normative posture has got to be defensive," Holloway says. "Every time she steps out, there's been withering public scrutiny that I think has been, most of the time, repulsive."
Holloway says the offensive remarks focus on "her hair, her color, her marriage [and] her children — but these are the politics a black woman encounters every day, especially in public."
Certainly some of the comments — then and in the current controversy — are fueled by race. And some of them have roots in the fact that McCray is strong, smart and powerful, which has gotten other prominent women in trouble.
Just ask Michelle Obama, who is fashion's darling now, but received reams of criticism for wearing shorts on Air Force One to visit the Grand Canyon in 2009 while on vacation in 102 degree heat. It was a rare misstep. In an interview, she later told BET she regretted it because her shorts caused a "big stink."
Or ask Hillary Clinton, who eventually settled on the pantsuit as her go-to uniform. She's the only first lady to ever wear a pants suit in her official White House portrait.
Not that anyone is carping about their husbands' choices.
"Is it fair?" Agins asked. "No. Guys throw on a suit or tuxedo and they're covered."
Women don't have that luxury. As John Kennedy once quipped, "life is unfair."
Agins' advice for Chirlane McCray: get a sharp black coat, tall boots in polished leather (low or flat heels are fine) and a dress in a non-wrinkle fabric in black or navy. They come in all price points and allow you to dress up or down. And it removes the distraction factor.
Is it a shame that any of this has to come into consideration? On the one hand, sure, Holloway says. On the other, she says that "you always want to control the narrative, even if it means giving in to a standard that you feel is none of anyone's business."
In responses to media inquiries, DeBlasio's office says those focusing on the first lady's outfit were being "petty," when they should have been considering her substance instead. But the style she chooses can affect how her substance is perceived.
Clothes matter, Agins says, because even when you say nothing, they telegraph a message — or people believe that they do.
Holloway says that's especially important for people of color, for whom there is often a double standard.
"Clothing has such a political value — especially when attached to black and brown bodies — whether you're wearing a hoodie or a hijab."
Fears of terror attacks rise after raid
BEIRUT: Fears of terror attacks swept the country Tuesday, a day after security forces dealt a heavy blow to Islamist militants by dismantling their operations room at the notorious Roumieh Prison.
Such fears were corroborated by the Lebanese Army’s arrest in Tripoli of a Lebanese man suspected of plotting a suicide attack, days after a deadly twin suicide bombing targeted a crowded cafe in the northern city.
Bassam Houssam Naboosh was arrested in Tripoli’s Mankoubine neighborhood over suspicions of preparing to blow himself up, the Army said in a statement.
The terse statement did not say whether Naboosh was wearing an explosives belt at the time of arrest.
The suspect hails from the same neighborhood as the two suicide bombers who carried out Saturday’s attack on the Jabal Mohsen neighborhood that killed at least nine people and wounded more than 30 others. The incident, the most serious breach of a government security plan that restored law and order to Tripoli, has raised fears of a return to the wave of suicide bombings that rocked the country last year as a fallout of the war in Syria.
The Army also announced the arrest of Ziad Hujeiri, a Lebanese, and Khaled Abdullah Badran, a Syrian, at the military checkpoint in Wadi Hmayed on the outskirts of the northeastern town of Arsal.
The two men, who were driving a Kia vehicle with a Syrian license plate without legal ownership papers, attempted to flee after soldiers manning the checkpoint ordered them to stop, the statement said.
A senior military official said the crackdown on Islamist militants at the Roumieh Prison would pave the way for the government to implement a security plan in the northern Bekaa region, long plagued by kidnappings for ransom, killings, vendettas, drug smuggling and car thefts.
“The Roumieh Prison operation has dealt a crushing blow to terrorist groups,” he told The Daily Star.
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri praised the security clampdown at Roumieh Prison, saying it boosted state authority.
“The Roumieh Prison operation is one of the effects of the dialogue between the Future Movement and Hezbollah and has proved that the state really exists,” Berri was quoted by Ain al-Tineh visitors as saying.
He said the operation was carried out once a political decision had been secured. “The best thing about this operation is that it was implemented with secrecy. But the repercussions will continue through the security plan in the Bekaa,” Berri said. He added that not a single drop of blood was shed during the raid despite the prisoners’ claims to the contrary.
Earlier Tuesday, Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk toured Roumieh Prison’s notorious Block B, which accommodated Islamist militants, in his first official visit to the facility after the raid.
“I am here to see the building and how it can go back to being a humanitarian prison that meets minimum standards in the quickest time possible,” he told Al-Jadeed TV.
“The visit serves to identify what measures should be taken to improve the prison.”
Machnouk said that plans to rehabilitate the building would be finalized in approximately three months, making way for prisoners to return to Block B.
Walking past the entrance of the building, Machnouk said the raid had made entering the prison simple.
“Had it not been for the operation it wouldn’t have been so easy to get in,” he added.
Machnouk’s visit came a day after the Internal Security Forces’ Information Branch and its elite unit stormed Roumieh Prison, emptying out its Block B after intercepting calls between Islamist prisoners and members of the cell behind the suicide bombings in Tripoli. They transferred all 900 Islamists to Block D in an unprecedented nine-hour operation.
Bloc B is well-known for holding many suspected and convicted Islamist militants who manage to operate with relative impunity from inside the prison. The operation’s goal was first to separate prisoners in well-monitored cells and to end the previous chaos, characterized by inmates’ illicit access to cellphones and Internet.Television footage of the prison showed Roumieh in tatters: Graffiti was scribbled on the walls of the facility while black bags, plastic and glass bottles, rags and dirt littered the floors.
The floors of prisoners’ cells were covered by piles of clothing, overturned mattresses and broken refrigerators and microwaves.
Footage from the second floor of the building showed an inmate barber shop fully equipped with razors, scissors, electric trimmers and hats.
Inmates even had a small coffee shop with a stand displaying Nescafe packets and a small stove.
When asked about contraband seized during the raid, Machnouk said no weapons were found during the inspection.
After concluding the tour, Machnouk thanked all those who contributed to a fund set up for rehabilitating the facility. “We are a state that governs the people through the judiciary and puts them in a humanitarian prison to get their punishment,” he said.
A security source told The Daily Star that a large number of files that were seized during and after the operation revealed that inmates were connected to many terrorist attacks that have targeted Lebanon in the past.
Documents also revealed that some of the inmates were preparing for new attacks to be carried on Lebanese territory.
Also Tuesday, Machnouk chaired a meeting for the Central Security Council to discuss the implementation of the security plan in northeast Lebanon.
The decision to storm Roumieh Prison was widely praised by officials from across the political spectrum. Berri and top religious leaders telephoned Machnouk to congratulate him for the operation.
“The Roumieh Prison operation has confirmed that the Lebanese state is strong despite all the difficulties” Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblatt tweeted.
Praising the efforts of Machnouk and the ISF, Jumblatt said the raid was “another achievement for Lebanese security forces in countering terrorism.”
A senior Hezbollah official praised the dismantling of the militant operations room at Roumieh Prison. “The qualitative operation that happened at Roumieh Prison in dismantling the takfiri emirate is an achievement for the entire country and a severe blow to terrorist and takfiri dens,” Sheikh Nabil Qaouk, deputy head of Hezbollah’s Executive Council, told a student graduation ceremony in the southern city of Tyre.
Naameh residents in uproar following delay of landfill closure
NAAMEH, Lebanon: The local government and residents of Naameh and surrounding municipalities were outraged Tuesday following Cabinet’s decision to delay the closure of the landfill by three months. “Extending the landfill beyond the 17th of this month will not be allowed, and we have begun preparations for a huge protest at the landfill’s doors,” former Naameh Mayor Khalil Matar told Voice of Lebanon 100.3. “We will not back down.”
The current mayor of Naameh, Amin Fakhreddine, held an emergency meeting with the union of the municipalities of Al-Gharb al-Aala and Chahar as well as other concerned parties on how to respond to the Cabinet’s decision.
“We discussed the reasons and implications of the mysterious decision that was taken [Monday] night by the Cabinet,” Fakhreddine said after the meeting.
“We are committed to closing the Naameh landfill on Jan. 17.”
He added that they would be meeting with Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt, Environment Minister Mohammad Machnouk and several other ministers Wednesday to discuss their next actions.
Several residents blasted the PSP, which has strong influence in the region, for agreeing to the deal after promising last year that the landfill would not remain open beyond Jan. 17, 2015.
Residents of Aramoun, where the Naameh landfill is located, mocked a PSP banner from last year’s protest that read, ‘No bargaining on the closing date of the Naameh landfill on Jan. 17, 2015.’
“Garbage will still be thrown here as long as Lebanon remains run by warlords and leaders of sects,” lamented resident Khalil Khoury.
After prolonged discussions over several months, Cabinet Monday finally passed the Environment Ministry’s national plan for the treatment of solid waste.
The plan aims to decentralize Lebanon’s waste management and divide it into six blocks: Beirut and its suburbs; the north and Akkar; the south and Nabatieh; the Bekaa Valley and Baalbek-Hermel; Baabda, Chouf, Aley and Jbeil; Metn and Kesrouan.
The Naameh landfill was originally supposed to be closed on Jan. 17 but under the new plan the deadline has been extended by three months and could be pushed back by another three if no alternative is found.
Residents blocked the landfill in protest last year and demanded the government shut it down, leaving the city of Beirut overflowing with waste. Protests were dismantled when Jumblatt convinced protesters that the landfill would be closed no later than Jan. 17, 2015.
Residents were upset by the decision and believed securing an alternative site could be a lengthy process.
“We are aware that the landfill will not be closed in the time set,” local resident Mohammad Fak told The Daily Star. “We will have to wait for the construction of factories for sorting waste which is years and years from now and everybody has to be held responsible.”
The Kataeb Party was initially the main opponent to the Environment Ministry’s proposed plan. Its point of contention was not the closing date of the Naameh landfill, but rather the manner in which the tender for firms to bid on the waste management contracts had been drafted.
The ministers feared that – in their original form – the tenders would stifle competition, place too much control in the company’s hands, and subject the contracts to influence from specific party leaders.
After intense discussions, their problems were seemingly addressed as the Kataeb Party leader Amine Gemmayel hailed the proposal in its amended form, paving the way for the bill to pass in the Cabinet.
“There was a specialized committee from the party’s political bureau that cooperated with civil society to give all suggestions,” Gemayel said at a news conference Monday. “We made great achievements in this concern that ensure the highest possible extent of competition between different companies.”
Sources close to the talks say that the Environment Ministry is planning to divert the waste being taken to the Naameh landfill to another location – either another landfill or an incineration plant – but a new location has yet to be decided upon.
A month ago, residents of Barja in the mountainous Chouf area protested a proposal to set up a new landfill there to replace Naameh.
The Naameh landfill was originally opened in 1997 to serve the Beirut and Mount Lebanon region. It was intended to close after six years but remains open 17 years later. The landfill now receives 2,850 tons of waste a day, five times its intended capacity.
Geagea ‘sets conditions’ for backing Aoun for president
BEIRUT: Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea is said to have set conditions to accept Free Patriotic Movement head MP Michel Aoun as a candidate for the presidency, sources familiar with the ongoing contacts to arrange a rare meeting between the two rival Maronite leaders said Tuesday.
However, it was not known whether Aoun would be able to meet these conditions which have not yet been made public, the sources said.
Meanwhile, Speaker Nabih Berri told his visitors that the third round of dialogue between Hezbollah and the Future Movement will take place Friday. As for the agenda of the upcoming session, the speaker said that it would be determined by dialogue participants.
Berri said that Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Awad Asiri visited him Tuesday to reiterate his country’s support for the Future-Hezbollah dialogue and that the two discussed preparations for a possible meeting between Aoun and Geagea.
Berri hoped during the meeting with Asiri that the Hezbollah-Future dialogue and talks between Aoun and Geagea would enhance stability and lead to the election of a president.
As the presidential vacuum has entered its eighth month with no solution in sight, local attention has been focused in the past few weeks on the shuttle visits to Aoun’s residence in Rabieh and Geagea’s residence in Maarab, by MP Ibrahim Kanaan, secretary of the FPM, and Melhem Riyashi, head of the LF’s media and communication section, the sources said.
They added that the Kanaan-Riyashi talks were designed to set the stage and prepare the agenda for the meeting between Aoun and Geagea to resolve the presidential election dilemma.
While Aoun is supported by Hezbollah and its March 8 allies for the presidency, Geagea has been named by the March 14 coalition as its candidate for the country’s top Christian post.
Following several rounds of talks between Kanaan and Riyashi, the sources said a meeting between Aoun and Geagea is imminent, though neither side risked setting a final date for it or its venue.
According to the sources, the outcome of the ongoing contacts between the two Christian parties has shown that both Aoun and Geagea are convinced of the need to meet to discuss well-known matters relating to the presidential election according to the 1989 Taif Accord, including the flaws in Christian representation.
“The big achievement that has so far been made is that the nature of contacts and letters [between the two sides] suggested that Geagea has become convinced of Aoun’s right to this post [presidency], but he has conditions and demands before announcing this stance,” the sources said. They added that it was not clear if Aoun was ready to meet these conditions.
However, the sources cautioned that any deal between Aoun and Geagea over the presidential election is bound to encounter opposition from the other Christian parties.
“If a meeting takes place between Geagea and Aoun and if it proves to be successful – that’s if the two leaders agreed on a road map that could bring Aoun to the Baabda Palace – new difficulties lie ahead: Convincing the other Christian parties, particularly the Kataeb Party, independents and all Christian political groups that are part of the March 14 coalition, to accept any agreement that might be reached between the FPM and LF leaders, including the adoption of Aoun’s candidacy to the presidency,” the sources said.
Aoun’s supporters contend that the FPM leader is the only politician or the sole presidential candidate who can extract any concessions from Hezbollah, especially concerning domestic issues, including the divisive issue of the party’s arsenal.
The sources recalled that it was Geagea who took the initiative, inspired by regional powers with an international consent, to offer to meet Aoun who immediately accepted it and decided to be positive toward it.
As part of the ongoing indirect contacts between them, Geagea presented some questions to Aoun who responded with a list of own questions, without giving any specific reply to the LF chief’s questions, the sources said.
In addition to the presidential election deadlock, other items on the agenda of talks between Aoun and Geagea are a new electoral law to ensure true Christian representation in Parliament, financial and administrative reforms, the Syrian refugee crisis along with its adverse effects on the security and socioeconomic conditions, Hezbollah’s intervention in the Syrian war, and the repercussions of the Syrian conflict on Lebanon’s stability, the sources added.
Meanwhile, Aoun’s parliamentary Change and Reform bloc welcomed the ongoing dialogue between the Future Movement and Hezbollah as well as the ongoing talks between the FPM and the LF.
“The bloc encourages the ongoing dialogue between Hezbollah and the Future Movement and the other dialogue in which it is involved, the dialogue between the FPM and the LF,” the bloc said in a statement after its weekly meeting chaired by Aoun at his residence in Rabieh.
“Positive results have emerged from the two dialogues. We of course hope to benefit from these positive results. The logic of dialogue must prevail in a country living a suffocating crisis,” it added.
Kataeb MP Sami Gemayel also welcomed attempts to bring about a rapprochement between rival Christian parties.
Speaking to reporters after meeting U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon David Hale, Gemayel said an inter-Christian rapprochement would leave its impact on a number of outstanding issues, particularly the presidential election.
Snow obscures minefields in south
BINT JBEIL: A blanket of snow has covered signs on roads in south Lebanon that warn of minefields and unexploded ordnance left behind by the Israeli army, creating a dangerous situation for residents. After last week’s storm left much of the south covered in snow, southerners have ventured out to enjoy the frosty scene at touristic areas in the villages of Nabatieh, Bint Jbeil and Maroun al-Ras, near the border with Palestine.
Scouts and members of Hezbollah’s health committee were spread across the region to warn visitors about likely locations of active minefields and unexploded munitions.
Vast minefields and countless cluster bombs laid by the Israeli army before it retreated from south Lebanon in 2000 and during the 2006 war still plague the south. The Lebanon Mine Action Center, part of the Lebanese Armed Forces, has cleared more than 1,600 minefields in south Lebanon to date. But hundreds more still require demining.
Many people avoided snowfields altogether, fearing that warning signs indicating the presence of unexploded munitions had been hidden beneath the blanket of snow.
Near the village of Yaroun in Bint Jbeil, Hussein Hammoud watched as his three children played near a marked minefield. Luckily, the snow snow has not obscured warning signs in this village.
“We know that these fields have bombs,” he said. “Thank God the signs here were not covered with snow or people would have entered these white fields and a disaster could have happened.”
Shepherds have been forced to move their flocks to new pastures as they are no longer able to determine which meadows are safe for grazing.
Areas around the border with Israel, frequented by sheepherders for centuries, have become particularly treacherous. The Blue Line, a set of markers which demarcates the border between the two countries, had practically disappeared in some places beneath a blanket of white.
“We have to avoid getting close to this area,” said Ali Ahmad, a shepherd. “We do not know if there are bombs in this area or not.
“I’m afraid to go with my flock and have bombs explode.”
The Lebanese Army has been monitoring people’s movements in the south and has prevented people from accessing certain areas for their own safety.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon has been working with the Army and municipal authorities to ensure the safety of citizens in the south. In recent days, UNIFIL forces helped clear roads to improve mobility and access to the region.
“We are just here to assist the Lebanese Army and the population to ensure that the situation in some of the areas goes back to normal through this period,” said UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti.
Even in fair weather UNIFIL has been working to educate communities in the south about the dangers of mines and unexploded cluster munitions. Many units are spreading awareness about the issue by showing informative videos to students in the region.
According to the Lebanon Mine Action Center, 100,000 mines and other unexploded ordnance were strewn across south Lebanon by the Israeli Army during their occupation of the territory. When Israelis withdrew in 2000 after 12 years of occupation, they left approximately 500,000 anti-personnel and anti-tank mines across the south and the Western Bekaa. During the 2006 war, Israel scattered more than 4 million cluster munitions in Lebanon, affecting more than 1 million Lebanese people, primarily in the south.
Snow obscures minefields in south
BINT JBEIL: A blanket of snow has covered signs on roads in south Lebanon that warn of minefields and unexploded ordnance left behind by the Israeli army, creating a dangerous situation for residents. After last week’s storm left much of the south covered in snow, southerners have ventured out to enjoy the frosty scene at touristic areas in the villages of Nabatieh, Bint Jbeil and Maroun al-Ras, near the border with Palestine.
Scouts and members of Hezbollah’s health committee were spread across the region to warn visitors about likely locations of active minefields and unexploded munitions.
Vast minefields and countless cluster bombs laid by the Israeli army before it retreated from south Lebanon in 2000 and during the 2006 war still plague the south. The Lebanon Mine Action Center, part of the Lebanese Armed Forces, has cleared more than 1,600 minefields in south Lebanon to date. But hundreds more still require demining.
Many people avoided snowfields altogether, fearing that warning signs indicating the presence of unexploded munitions had been hidden beneath the blanket of snow.
Near the village of Yaroun in Bint Jbeil, Hussein Hammoud watched as his three children played near a marked minefield. Luckily, the snow snow has not obscured warning signs in this village.
“We know that these fields have bombs,” he said. “Thank God the signs here were not covered with snow or people would have entered these white fields and a disaster could have happened.”
Shepherds have been forced to move their flocks to new pastures as they are no longer able to determine which meadows are safe for grazing.
Areas around the border with Israel, frequented by sheepherders for centuries, have become particularly treacherous. The Blue Line, a set of markers which demarcates the border between the two countries, had practically disappeared in some places beneath a blanket of white.
“We have to avoid getting close to this area,” said Ali Ahmad, a shepherd. “We do not know if there are bombs in this area or not.
“I’m afraid to go with my flock and have bombs explode.”
The Lebanese Army has been monitoring people’s movements in the south and has prevented people from accessing certain areas for their own safety.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon has been working with the Army and municipal authorities to ensure the safety of citizens in the south. In recent days, UNIFIL forces helped clear roads to improve mobility and access to the region.
“We are just here to assist the Lebanese Army and the population to ensure that the situation in some of the areas goes back to normal through this period,” said UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti.
Even in fair weather UNIFIL has been working to educate communities in the south about the dangers of mines and unexploded cluster munitions. Many units are spreading awareness about the issue by showing informative videos to students in the region.
According to the Lebanon Mine Action Center, 100,000 mines and other unexploded ordnance were strewn across south Lebanon by the Israeli Army during their occupation of the territory. When Israelis withdrew in 2000 after 12 years of occupation, they left approximately 500,000 anti-personnel and anti-tank mines across the south and the Western Bekaa. During the 2006 war, Israel scattered more than 4 million cluster munitions in Lebanon, affecting more than 1 million Lebanese people, primarily in the south.
Lebanese brave cold to show solidarity with refugees
AL-MARJ, Lebanon: As the minibus pulled inside Hamdanieh refugee camp in the snow covered Bekaa Valley town of Al-Marj, the passengers fell silent. One woman whispered under her breath, “So this is how they live.” Most had never seen a refugee camp before, let alone one in the aftermath of a brutal winter storm. The passengers were part of a group of volunteers – some expats and the rest locals – gathered by Lebanese4Refugees, a civil campaign set up by journalist and activist Carol Maalouf in December 2013.
Although the ostensible aim of the trip was to allow volunteers to see the camps and aid distribution process firsthand, there was also a clear desire to show solidarity with the refugees amid anti-Syrian sentiment that has snowballed as the humanitarian crisis nears its fifth year.
“Most Lebanese people are caring, and they feel compassion about this issue,” said Mona Ayoub, social media coordinator for the Lebanese4Refugees. “These people are not like those who say that we don’t want refugees in Lebanon.”
She pointed to the success of the winter items collection drive, which was held Saturday in Hamra, as an example of how much most people wanted to help.
“We are trying to melt the ice between Lebanese and refugees and I think we have succeeded, because the amount of donations we have got is huge,” she said as she stamped her feet on the snowy ground to keep warm. “We had to extend the collections campaign by two days, which we didn’t expect.”
Inside Hamdanieh, boxes made of concrete, tarpaulin and corrugated iron serve as homes for around 750 people, of which some 400 are aged under 15. The pipes of the water pumps are frozen, and a thick layer of snow has coated everything, but the refugees here at least have proper walls to lend some protection from the cold, unlike many of the 1.5 million Syrians estimated to be in Lebanon now.
They pay for it too – one 2-meter-square room costs $200 a month, payable to the private Lebanese land owner who leases the plots.
The volunteers quickly busied themselves with handing out donations from the back of a van. The first attempt led to chaos: people scrambling over each other to snatch what they could, kids being knocked to the ground in the scrum and items being tossed around by the gathered crowd.
The second attempt was calmer and saw volunteers go from house to house to hand out much-needed thick blankets, baby clothes and so on. “It’s a learning experience,” Ayoub commented later that day. “This is how it works in the field.”
Meanwhile, children – relishing the attention of strangers – posed for photos, engaged in riotous snowball fights and stomped through icy puddles in nothing but sandals, seemingly oblivious of the biting cold. Beckoning from the doors of their homes, the older women invited people in for a coffee and a chat.
“Winter has been very hard this year, much harder than last year,” said Nour, a mother of four from Eastern Ghouta, as she cradled her 1-month-old baby in a green wrap.
“The worst thing has been is that we can’t afford to pay the rent money since three months because my husband is in Syria. I am taking responsibility for everything now.”
For those volunteering, the experience was a humbling and reaffirming one.
“It was my first time seeing a refugee camp,” said Iman Shatila, a middle-aged secretary at a court that handles divorces. “This amazing crush of people in tents, they have nothing to eat, nothing to keep warm. It was a surprise.”
When asked why she wanted to help with this distribution, Shatila replied: “It’s human to want to help. I wish all the people could see what we saw there, maybe their hearts would be touched too and they would understand and want to help too.”
For some, however, the experience was a difficult one, a reminder of how much there was to do to affect real change for those who have lost everything in fleeing the brutal Syrian civil war.
“I wanted to see,” said Jessica Karam, who had recently returned from traveling in South America. “We live in such a bubble ... And when you arrive, there are all these houses made of plastic, of nothing, and then you look up and there’s this huge villa meters away. It’s so depressing; the inequality.”
“I feel more engaged by seeing it face to face,” she mused, before shaking her head and adding, “but it’s such a little thing. Little things are useful, but that’s not what’s going to change stuff. I would like to go deeper to the root than just distributing clothes.”
But her friend, aid worker Sima al-Najjar, disagreed.
“One person is small but they can do a lot of things. Even if it’s a tiny point, it’s something,” she said, tugging at her coat as the sun began to set. “What’s happening in Syria and here because of that crisis, it hurts me a lot, it means a lot to me.”
“I like to help people. I can’t see people living like that and ignore it,” she said. “During the storm I thought if I am shivering in my bed and listening to the rain, what about the refugees? It’s a satisfaction at the end, a satisfaction with what we are doing for those in our country: Lebanese, Palestinian, Syrian, whoever.”
Mitt Romney, Jeb Bush Could Split Republican Loyalties
Melissa Block speaks with Patrick O'Connor, political reporter for the Wall Street Journal about Mitt Romney telling donors he wants to run again for president in 2016. O'Connor says Romney and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush have the advantage of not being in office and have the ability to raise more money via superPACs before they declare their candidacy.
Five Years After 'Citizens United,' SuperPACs Continue To Grow
Just in time for the 5th anniversary of the Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and his allies have created a pre-presidential campaign organization that would've been impossible before Citizens United. A new political committee will pay for Bush's pre-announcement politicking and he can help a new superPAC raise unlimited money to promote him and his issues.
Copyright © 2015 NPR. For personal, noncommercial use only. See Terms of Use. For other uses, prior permission required.
Copyright © 2015 NPR. All rights reserved. No quotes from the materials contained herein may be used in any media without attribution to NPR. This transcript is provided for personal, noncommercial use only, pursuant to our Terms of Use. Any other use requires NPR's prior permission. Visit our permissions page for further information.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by a contractor for NPR, and accuracy and availability may vary. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Please be aware that the authoritative record of NPR's programming is the audio.
Ted Cruz Gets Key NASA Committee Appointment
Texas Senator Ted Cruz will chair the Senate subcommittee with oversight over NASA's activities.
Cruz, a Republican, will chair the Senate's subcommittee on Space, Science, and Competitiveness, which oversees the space agency.
In past actions and speeches Cruz has expressed a desire the cut the agency's funding for climate change research, but his views on human spaceflight are less clear.
Cruz favors cutting government spending, but at the same time Texas is home to Johnson Space Center, with an annual budget of about $4.5 billion and nearly 12,000 civil servants and contractors.
The appointment is expected to be confirmed later this month.
Originally published by The Houston Chronicle.
Army arrests suspected suicide bomber
Army arrests suspected suicide bomber
The Lebanese Army arrested in Tripoli Tuesday a Lebanese national suspected of planning a suicide attack, days after a...
The Faces of Health Care: Maria V.
"Thank you so very, very much for giving people like me, who have a pre-existing condition, Obamacare!"
An Education Law that Ensures Opportunity for All Students
Nearly 50 years ago, President Johnson signed the first major piece of legislation to support disadvantaged students in America’s public schools: the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). The passage of that law was significant in that it focused, in President Johnson’s words, on both the “quality and equality in schooling that we offer our young people.” For 50 years, the law has persistently focused on expanding and protecting educational opportunity.
As Congress readies itself to rewrite that law -- which is today the No Child Left Behind Act -- it is critical to ensure that this landmark education law maintains its core mandates of quality and equality, while taking on new challenges facing America’s students. Earlier this week, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan put forward a set of principles for this law’s reauthorization that celebrate the progress we have made as a country while recognizing that we have room for further improvement.
A Delta Flight Carried Just 2 Passengers From Cleveland to New York
Chris O’Leary got to live the dream. Almost. Yesterday the Brooklyn man found himself, ever so briefly, the only passenger on a Delta flight from Cleveland to LaGuardia.
O’Leary ended up on the plane after a series of delays led to him rebooking from a 7:15 a.m. flight to a 9:39 a.m. plane, which then experienced further delays. As these delays added up, O’Leary chose to stay put at his hotel, getting the notifications on his phone. By the time he meandered to the airport, the other 9:39 a.m. passengers had been rebooked on other flights, leaving just him on the original trip.
A Tweet from his personal account showed him on the plane at 1:03 p.m., living all of our best dreams in near isolation. O’Leary even got his own demonstration of the safety features of his aircraft and a debrief from the captain. The plane reconnected to the jetway to pick up one more passenger, but the two-passenger flight then proceeded on its journey to New York.
No word at press time whether or not the flight attendants let O’Leary have the whole can of Diet Coke instead of just the small cup’s worth.
Via ABC News.
This article originally appeared at Popular Mechanics
Snow blocks off vital Mount Lebanon highway
Damascus Highway open for cars, not trucks
The snow on Dahr al-Baidar’s main road has melted enough to allow the passing of cars, while trucks remain barred from...
Lebanon to cut transport fees as oil prices drop
BEIRUT: Lebanon will likely reduce land transportation fees after a dramatic drop in the price of gasoline and diesel, the head of the transportation sector union announced Tuesday.
“We are heading toward a reduction of fees, and this will be accompanied by a many decisions and measures to protect both the driver and the citizen,” Bassam Tleis said after meeting with Public Works and Transportation Minister Ghazi Zeaiter.
Tlais stressed that transportation fees were determined by Zeaiter, but that the latter had called for a meeting to listen to the unions’ point of view.
“We have agreed to form a committee with the Director General of Land Transportation,” he added, saying the committee would hold its first meeting in the next 48 hours to make a decision concerning fees.
Tlais also highlighted the need to prevent competition from non-Lebanese drivers in the transportation market.
He said a meeting would soon be held with Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk to discuss the measures to be taken to regulate the market.
“All the final decisions will be announced Monday, after all the meetings take place,” Tlais said.
The transportation sector in Lebanon is loosely regulated and the country lacks a public transportation network. The cost of taking a shared taxi, called “service,” is now at L.L. 2000, while bus fees depend on drivers and distance.
Lebanon has witnessed a sharp decrease in fuel prices over the past month as Brent crude hit a five-and-a-half-year low of less than $50 a barrel. The price of 20L of Gasoline in Lebanon has reached as low as LL22,400 and LL23,000, for the 95-octane and 98-octane respectively.
President Obama Honors the 2014 NBA Champion San Antonio Spurs
Yesterday afternoon, President Obama welcomed the San Antonio Spurs to the White House in honor of their 2014 NBA championship win, their fifth title in the past 15 seasons.
"This is an organization that has been marked by excellence -- one of the best in professional sports," the President said.
Qatari aid distributed to refugees in Akkar
End in sight for Zina’s deadly rampage
The storm “Zina” will start to ease Thursday after battering the country for two days, with many areas buried in snow,...
Lebanon interior minister tours newly emptied notorious prison block
BEIRUT: Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk arrived Tuesday at the newly emptied, notorious Block B of Roumieh Prison, hours after it was revealed that documents seized in the cells proved many inmates’ terrorist activities.
Media reports said Machnouk arrived to tour in the highly damaged building, where Islamist prisoners, many of whom are classified as terrorist by the state, had been staying with relative impunity.
Security forces stormed Block B Monday, moving all 900 Islamists to Block D, in an unprecedented nine-hour operation.
The move came after the security forces found out that the twin suicide bombing in the northern city of Tripoli, which left nine people killed and at least 30 wounded, were planned from inside the prison’s walls.
Earlier Tuesday, a security source told The Daily Star that a large number files that was seized during and after the operation revealed that inmates had roles in many terrorist attacks that have targeted Lebanon in the past.
Documents also revealed that some of the inmates were preparing for new attacks to be carried on Lebanese soil.
Also Tuesday, Machnouk headed a meeting for the Lebanese Central Security Council to discuss the implementation of the security plan in northeast Lebanon.
The minister’s decision to storm the infamous prison block was widely praised by politicians from all over the political spectrum.
He was also called by Speaker Nabih Berri, Grand Mufti Abul-Latif Derian, and prominent Shiite religious figure Abdel-Amir Qabalan, who all saluted his efforts to ensure Lebanon's security.
Islamic group calls for Dar al-Fatwa donations
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul-Latif Derain Tuesday received a delegation from The Forum for Islamic Dialogue, who called for donations for reforms targeting the highest Sunni religious institution in the country.
According to a statement issued by the group, Fouad Makhzoumi, who led the delegation, called on Sunni patrons to set up a fund for rehabilitation projects targeting Dar al-Fatwa.
Makhzoumi said that the money would go to a new Dar al-Fatwa center that would be built in Verdun and would include training centers and conference rooms. The state of the-art facility should also be modern, the delegation head added.
Makhzoumi also mentioned the salaries of Dar al-Fatwa sheikhs, stressing the need to improve religious figure’s living conditions in an effort to curb their vulnerability to “external pressures.”
After his meeting with Derian Tuesday, Makhzoumi quoted the grand mufti as saying that the road to reform at Dar al-Fatwa was “long and arduous.”
Comments
Your feedback is important to us!
We invite all our readers to share with us their views and comments about this article.
Disclaimer: Comments submitted by third parties on this site are the sole responsibility of the individual(s) whose content is submitted. The Daily Star accepts no responsibility for the content of comment(s), including, without limitation, any error, omission or inaccuracy therein. Please note that your email address will NOT appear on the site.
Alert: If you are facing problems with posting comments, please note that you must verify your email with Disqus prior to posting a comment. follow this link to make sure your account meets the requirements. (http://bit.ly/vDisqus)
Minister: Lebanon's new strategy will boost rural tourism
BEIRUT: Lebanon can increase the value of its rural tourism by a factor of four if the newly adopted strategy is implemented properly, Tourism Minister Michel Pharaon said Tuesday.
“We assure that in five years, rural tourism will become worth 15 to 20 percent, while it currently does not constitute more than 5 percent of the overall tourism in Lebanon,” Pharaon said at the first meeting of the National Committee for the Activation of Rural Tourism in Lebanon, a new workgroup formed to apply a new strategy for this purpose.
“Rural tourism will create job opportunities and will safe-guard the heritage sites in all areas,” he said.
The meeting was attended by MP Serge Torsarkissian and representatives of numerous governmental and private organizations.
Pharaon explained that the sector is “vast,” and includes natural, religious, agricultural and other types of tourism.
“It shines the light on areas outside Beirut, where we have found a potential to develop tourism,” he explained, saying citizens and consumers must be made aware of these locations through better marketing and awareness campaigns.
Director General of the Agriculture Ministry Luis Lahhoud suggested renovating walking paths inside nature reserves and organizing trips for locals and tourists.
He also mentioned “agricultural harvest tourism,” where yearly festivals would be organized in rural villages or towns around the harvest of seasonal fruits and vegetables.
The strategy was announced last August, and comes as the fruit of a project funded by the U.S Agency for International Development.
The initiative comes as Lebanon is suffering a tourism slump, with regional strife and domestic security incidents scaring off many foreign tourists.
Politicians laud Roumieh operation
Lebanon signs MOU to protect birds of prey
Lebanon’s Environment Minister Mohammad Machnouk signs a memorandum of understanding to protect migratory birds,...
Salam invited to Egypt economic summit
Salam invited to Egypt economic summit
Prime Minister Tammam Salam Tuesday received an invitation to attend the Egypt economic conference, scheduled in Sharm...
Energy minister, oil companies discuss price drop
Lebanon's fuel prices keep dropping
Global slide in oil prices brought another decrease in fuel prices in Lebanon Wednesday, with a drop of LL 700 in the...
Obama To Host White House Meeting With Congressional Leaders
White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest says President Obama plans to talk about possible areas of agreement: tax changes, trade and infrastructure.
Copyright © 2015 NPR. For personal, noncommercial use only. See Terms of Use. For other uses, prior permission required.
Copyright © 2015 NPR. All rights reserved. No quotes from the materials contained herein may be used in any media without attribution to NPR. This transcript is provided for personal, noncommercial use only, pursuant to our Terms of Use. Any other use requires NPR's prior permission. Visit our permissions page for further information.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by a contractor for NPR, and accuracy and availability may vary. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Please be aware that the authoritative record of NPR's programming is the audio.
Lebanon signs MOU to protect birds of prey
UAE bans Exodus: Gods and Kings
The UAE said Tuesday that it will not allow screening of Hollywood’s Biblical epic “Exodus: Gods and Kings,” echoing...
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)