At last, some hope! أخيراً، قليل من الأمل

Those people have set an example to be followed:
أعطانا أهل الضبية مثالاً يُقتدى به

http://www.syria-news.com/readnews.php?sy_seq=69714

16 September 1982. 6:00 p.m. The massacre begins...

Sabra and Shatila.
Twenty five years already.
Nobody was prosecuted.
Nobody received compensation.
The Lebanese "justice" does not want justice.

I will not forget.

Dellllicious: In 1994, D. Cheney said that invading Iraq would make it "a quagmire"

Let's hear it from the American Vice President's mouth:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BEsZMvrq-I

In the Aftermath of the Presidential Poll in Syria

لا

A Word about the Upcoming Presidential Poll in Syria

لا

To Those Who Accuse "Syria" - Who Are Fatah Al-Islam?

Far be it from me to defend a regime which, I believe, should go, but the accusations already thrown at "Syria" (meaning the Syrian regime, I suppose) call for a reminder that while fighting for a cause - democracy in Syria, in that case - we should keep in mind that not every accusation can be used in support of that cause. Unfounded finger-pointing is not only counterproductive, it is morally unacceptable.

I re-read Seymour Hersh's "The Redirection", published on 5 March in the New Yorker:
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/03/05/070305fa_fact_hersh
Here's an excerpt from it which should be sobering:

Alastair Crooke, who spent nearly thirty years in MI6, the British intelligence service, and now works for Conflicts Forum, a think tank in Beirut, told me, “The Lebanese government is opening space for these people to come in. It could be very dangerous.” Crooke said that one Sunni extremist group, Fatah al-Islam, had splintered from its pro-Syrian parent group, Fatah al-Intifada, in the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp, in northern Lebanon. Its membership at the time was less than two hundred. “I was told that within twenty-four hours they were being offered weapons and money by people presenting themselves as representatives of the Lebanese government’s interests—presumably to take on Hezbollah,” Crooke said.

The largest of the groups, Asbat al-Ansar, is situated in the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp. Asbat al-Ansar has received arms and supplies from Lebanese internal-security forces and militias associated with the Siniora government.

In 2005, according to a report by the U.S.-based International Crisis Group, Saad Hariri, the Sunni majority leader of the Lebanese parliament and the son of the slain former Prime Minister—Saad inherited more than four billion dollars after his father’s assassination—paid forty-eight thousand dollars in bail for four members of an Islamic militant group from Dinniyeh. The men had been arrested while trying to establish an Islamic mini-state in northern Lebanon. The Crisis Group noted that many of the militants “had trained in al-Qaeda camps in Afghanistan.”

According to the Crisis Group report, Saad Hariri later used his parliamentary majority to obtain amnesty for twenty-two of the Dinniyeh Islamists, as well as for seven militants suspected of plotting to bomb the Italian and Ukrainian embassies in Beirut, the previous year. (He also arranged a pardon for Samir Geagea, a Maronite Christian militia leader, who had been convicted of four political murders, including the assassination, in 1987, of Prime Minister Rashid Karami.) Hariri described his actions to reporters as humanitarian.

In an interview in Beirut, a senior official in the Siniora government acknowledged that there were Sunni jihadists operating inside Lebanon. “We have a liberal attitude that allows Al Qaeda types to have a presence here,” he said. He related this to concerns that Iran or Syria might decide to turn Lebanon into a “theatre of conflict.”

Should Syrian Women Vote?!!!

I just read this interesting article: http://www.syria-news.com/readnews.php?sy_seq=54123

Here is the situation as I understand it:

• You are a Syrian woman.
• Your husband is a foreigner.
• You have children.

As a result:

• Your children are not considered Syrian by the Powers that be. Some Syrian law says so (but not the Syrian constitution which bans such discrimination.)
• Your children will need a visa whenever you decide to go back to Syria to see the family.

Isn't that strage? The law considers you a second class citizen, but you will still be encouraged, not to say required, to vote for the only candidate out there. He had seven full years to restore some dignity to you but did not do so.

Should you vote?
No one but you can answer.

Arméniens - Portrait d'un peuple

Hratch Arbach, jeune artiste syrien d'origine arménienne, mélange peinture, photograhie, installations et jeu d'acteur dans un parcours qui raconte l'Arménie sans discours et sans prétention.

De passage à Paris récemment, j'ai pu moi-même me rendre compte comment cette exposition qui défie la catégorisation atteint nos sentiments tout droit.

Si vous êtes à Paris avant le 26 mai, une simple recommandation: allez-y !
Pour en savoir plus, cliquez sur l'affiche.


Remarque : C'était une publicité gratuite, et j'en ferai d'autres dans l'avenir. Quand une oeuvre ou une manifestation artistique nous touche, pourquoi ne pas en parler ?

The US Military Copies the Syrian Regime

All of us who thought that the Syrian regime was "backwardly" should recognise that it is in fact far ahead of its time. Its qualities and methods are recognised by none other than the US Department of Defense!

Just read this: "Military puts MySpace, other sites off limits".

One day, they will even learn the verb حجب , i.e. "to veil" or "to screen off". The English language is so poor that it has to struggle with no less than four words - "to put off limits" - to express this ultimate Baathist cyberconcept.

What the Hell is That?!!!

Yes, do click on the picture to see the damage more in detail:

- A beautiful, unique house is collapsing.
- Wires all over the place.
- Utter neglect.

While the Municipality of the City of Damascus and the Ministy of Culture were taking a leave from their responsibilities by approving what came to be known as the King Faisal Street Project (or the KFSP), the city itself kept rotting more each day.

The KFSP seems to be halted for the moment. Isn't it time for the Municipality, the Ministry and "Maktab Anbar" to suggest a plan to save the old city instead of building malls in the air for imaginary tourists and investors?

For the record, I took this picture in January 2007. This house is in the "Street Called Straight". I don't know to whom it belonged or belongs and what is going to become of it. What I do know, however, is that it should be renovated.

What can we do? Any suggestions?

More pictures of damage soon. I look forward to being able to post pictures of houses in a better shape..

Armenian Genocide Rememberance Day

An estimated 250 Armenians were arrested on the night of 24 April, 1915, then came executions, expulsion, starvation and mass murder.

To this day, humanity has not found a cure for mass murder. The least we can do is commemorate and try to understand.

Save Old Damascus

I am aware that a petition has a limited range of action, but isn't that better than no action at all?

Big plans for Damascus are underway. By "big", I mean: expropriations, demolition of houses and markets without regard for historical value or beauty, loss of jobs, and another big scar added to the face of Damascus.

Here are a couple of links on the subject, providing you can read Arabic:

http://www.syria-news.com/readnews.php?sy_seq=49301

http://www.syria-news.com/readnews.php?sy_seq=49690

Don't let that happen! The city needs care, not a commercial project built over a dead body.
Please sign this petition. It may not be comprehensive enough or accurate enough, but it is a first step in the righ direction, in my opinion:

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/damascus/index.html

Unknown Syrian - Part 4: At Last, His Name

The Unknown Syrian is Moussa Abadi (1910 - 1997), native of the Jewish quarter of Damascus.

Helped by his French friend and future wife, Odette Rosenstock, he founded a network in the region of Nice, known as the "réseau Marcel", which saved 527 Jewish children from being deported by the Nazis. The network benefited from the protection and the help given by the Bishop of Nice, Paul Rémond.


There is quite a lot about Moussa Abadi on the Web. Why don't we share that information?

Here are a couple of links:

http://www.sjpc.org/kinology/julengel.htm
http://www.allbookstores.com/author/Moussa_Abadi.html
http://www.imec-archives.com/fonds/fiche.php?ind=ABA
http://moise.sefarad.org/livre.php/id/112/


P.S.: Omar, Patrick and Tsedek found Abadi's identity. Did I forget anyone?

السّوريّون يرفضون الصّمت

محمود عيسى
ميشيل كيلو
خليل حسن
أنور البنّي
سليمان الشمري
علي عبد الله
محمّد علي عبد الله
كمال اللبواني
فاتح جاموس
حبيب صالح
عارف دليلة

معتقلون لأنّهم مجرمون
مجرمون لأنّهم ظنّوا بسذاجة أنّهم في بلد يمكن لمواطنيه أن يعبّروا عن رأيهم بحرّيّة
أحرار إذا رفضنا الصّمت
معتقلون إلى أن نرفض الصّمت

لننضمّ جميعاً إلى الحملة المطالبة بتحريرهم
http://freesyria.wordpress.com/2006/09/13/syrians-refuse-to-be-silenced/

Media Gems - Arabs and Muslims One and the Same?

CNN shows it ignorance of the basic definitions again!
You can find the whole jewel here:
http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/08/09/haifa.warning.ap/index.html

Excerpts:

The title says: "Hezbollah warns Muslims to flee Haifa"

The secondary title says: "Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah on Wednesday warned all Israeli Arabs to leave the port city of Haifa so the militant group could step up attacks without fear of shedding the blood of fellow Muslims."

The text of the news item quotes Hassan Nasrallah as saying: "I have a special message to the Arabs of Haifa, to your martyrs and to your wounded: I call on you to leave this city. I hope you do this. ... Please leave so we don't shed your blood, which is our blood."

My comment:

The quite accurate translation of Nasrallah's speech does not make any difference between Muslims and Christians (or Jews for that matter!) He is addressing the "Arabs of Haifa", so why did the secondary title talk about "the blood of fellow Muslims"? Why did the title talk about "warning Muslims"? Does CNN know the difference between Arab and Muslim? Note that the orignial AP wire, by Joseph Panossian, was titled "Nasrallah urges Arabs to Leave Haifa". It can be found here ( http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/MIDEAST_FIGHTING_NASRALLAH?SITE=MAQUI&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT ) but may join the archives soon and become inaccessible. The first paragraph of that wire, though, still mentions the "blood of fellow Muslims" which does not belong to Nasrallah's speech.

Conclusion: CNN seems to have changed the title deliberately. Is it to blur the picture a little further for its readers?

Media Gems - Anderson Cooper Moving from Journalism to Propaganda

CNN, "Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees", aired on 3 August 2006. Two instances of shameless media bias. You can find them both in the transcript at:

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0608/03/acd.01.html


Gem 1: Cooper goes chemical

Excerpt:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. JOHN ABIZAID, COMMANDER, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: It should not be lost on us, for example, that Hezbollah fields greater and longer range weapons than most regional armed forces. If left unchecked it is possible to imagine chemical, biological or even nuclear weapons being transferred to militias or terrorist organizations by a state actor.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: Chemical, biological or nuclear being transferred to a group like Hezbollah. Certainly a terrifying scenario for many. For more on Hezbollah, the fighting and peace keeping mission. I spoke earlier to retired Brigadier General David Grange, who's also a CNN military analyst. And I began by asking him about General Abizaid's belief that Hezbollah wants nuclear weapons.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: What do you the likelihood of that really is?

My comment:

Cooper takes what "is possible to imagine" and turns it into a near-certainty by moving from the general statement about "militias or terrorist organizations" to "Chemical, biological or nuclear being transferred to a group like Hezbollah." Let's keep in mind that General Abizaid represents an army which was not even able to find such weapons in Iraq! Well, not only do such claims remain phony because there has never been evidence to Hezbollah's desire to acquire such weapons, but there have been reports about Israel using phosphorus bombs in Lebanon during the current conflict. They should be investigated.


Gem 2: Cooper becomes more Gillermanish than Gillerman himself

Excerpt:

COOPER: When you really listen to these speeches that Nasrallah has given in the past, I mean, it's a speech that an Adolph Hitler could have given, I mean essentially these guys are Islamic fascists. And then you hear the president of Iran talking about essentially a final solution against the state of Israel and you compare that to suddenly seeing Hezbollah flags in Trafalgar Square and demonstrations. Do you feel like the world understands what Hezbollah is really all about?

GILLERMAN: I certainly hope the world understands because this war is not just about the safety of Israel or the freedom of Lebanon, it is about preserving civilization as we know it. When...

My comment:

Adolf Hitler, no less? For all I know, Nasrallah's speech was neither agressive nor anti-Jewish/anti-semitic. He was firm, indeed, but he was clear as to his intention of stopping the shelling of Israel as soon as Israel stops shelling the Lebanese. His threat of shelling Tel Aviv was conditional, i.e. he would do it only if Israel pursued the shelling of Beirut. And where did the term "Islamic fascists" come from? Anderson is borrowing this from neocon litterature, isn't he? Does he know the definition of the word "fascism"? Does he know the difference between "Islamic" and "Islamist"? Hezbollah's flags in London bother him? But isn't that freedom of expression? Finally, would Anderson Cooper say, for instance, that Olmert is a "Zionist fascist" because Beirut is being shelled and Lebanese civilians are being murdered by the hundreds?


What is clear is that Anderson Cooper is no more an anchor than I am a sports champion. He has just transformed himself into an instrument for Israeli propaganda.

Syrian Bloggers: "Today, We Are All Lebanese"

May be I don't know how to be Lebanese or anything. You can't be in someone else's shoes. However, you can try.

I urge you to read the Syrian Bloggers' statement.

I agree with it completely. Lebanon is targeted today, and we cannot let this happen.

New Series: Adopt a UN Resolution

On the menu of most news outlets, cynicism seems to be the "day's special" during this season of war on Gaza and Lebanon. Israeli and US cynicism, in particular, is served in think slices, king-size chunks, and generous heaps. Just watch the Israeli Ambassador to the UN when he mentions UN Security Council Resolution 1559, or listen to George Bush Junior as he, among all people, talks about the need to comply with that famous Resolution.

Since we are on the subject of UN resolutions, why stop at 1559? Why not go back to 242? 338? 476? Why not examine UN General Assembly resolutions which, although non-binding, clarify the legal framework of the conflict? After all, it was a UN General Assembly resolution that gave Israel its international legitimacy.

If I were a UN resolution on the Middle East, I would really feel abandoned, out in the cold, and in search of somebody to mention me and to love me.
If I were a UN resolution on the Middle East, I would need to be understood.
If I were a UN resolution on the Middle East, I would need to be listened to.
If I were a UN resolution on the Middle East, I would need a hug!

That is why Gottfried Stutz is launching a series of posts entitled "Adopt a UN Resolution".

Unknown Syrian - Part 3: The lives he saved

First, here is another photograph of the man and his wife, Odette. The picture was taken in Nice, France, in 1947.

Now, what about the children whose lives were saved by them?

It is estimated that 527 Jewish children survived the Third Reich's occupation of Nice thanks to "Monsieur Marcel" and "Sylvie", the nicknames used by the "unknown Syrian" and the woman who became his wife later. "Marcel" and "Sylvie" found French families who hosted the children between 1942 and 1944 away from the eyes of the Gestapo.

More soon...

رَحَلَ الماغُوط و تَبقى كلماتُه

لقد أعطونا الساعات وأخذوا الزمن
أعطونا الأحذية واخذوا الطرقات
أعطونا البرلمانات وأخذوا الحرية
أعطونا العطر والخواتم وأخذوا الحب
أعطونا الأراجيح وأخذوا الأعياد
أعطونا الحليب المجفف واخذوا الطفولة
أعطونا السماد الكيماوي واخذوا الربيع
أعطونا الجوامع والكنائس وأخذوا الإيمان
أعطونا الحراس والأقفال وأخذوا الأمان
أعطونا الثوار وأخذوا الثورة

محمَّد الماغوط