CNNI: Lebanese Cabinet Minister and Christian leader Gemayel has been assassinated

[maddezmom]

will look for link, so far only the banner on CNN;

Christian Lebanese Parliament member Pierre Gemayel shot and injured in Beirut, officials say.
http://edition.cnn.com/

Christian Lebanese Parliament member Pierre Gemayel was attacked by gunmen in Beirut, senior Lebanese government officials said. Reuters and Arab news agencies reported that Gemayel died from his wounds.

Lebanese Christian leader shot
BEIRUT, Lebanon (AP) -- Lebanese Cabinet minister and Christian leader Pierre Gemayel was shot on a street in a Christian suburb of Beirut on Tuesday, Christian TV and radio stations reported.

The shooting -- at a time when Lebanese political and sectarian tensions already are at fever pitch -- seemed certain to intensify the tensions, regardless of who was responsible.

The Christian TV station reported that Gemayel was seriously wounded.

He was rushed to a nearby hospital, the Lebanese Broadcasting Corp. and Voice of Lebanon, the Phalange Party mouthpiece reported. The extent of injuries were not immediately known.

more:http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/11/21/lebanon.shooting.ap/

[Eugene]

1. Reuters: Lebanese minister assassinated in attack on convoy

Lebanese minister assassinated in attack on convoy
21 Nov 2006 14:22:58 GMT
Source: Reuters

BEIRUT, Nov 21 (Reuters) - Lebanon's Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel was
assassinated near Beirut on Tuesday, security sources said.

They said gunmen opened fire as his convoy drove through the Christian Sin
el-Fil neighbourhood. Gemayel was rushed to hospital where he later died
of his wounds.

Lebanon is in the throes of a political storm pitting the anti-Syrian ruling
majority against the pro-Damascus opposition. The political tension threatens
to spill into street confrontations.

-snip-

Full article: http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L21814193.htm

[saigon68]

73. His bullet proof glass

Wasn't bullet proof

[sabbat hunter]

2. beginning of civil war

I cant help but think that syria was behind this assasination.

will civil war now break out again between the lebanese Christians and muslims?

[4dsc]

5. The civil war was between the have-nots and haves

I spoke with a Lebonese man many years ago about the civil war. I ask him if the war was between Muslim and Christian and he clearly stated it was not!! He claimed it was a war of the have-nots and the have's. If am not mistaken, Muslim also fought Muslim and christian also fought christian, only the corporate press didn't present it that way..

This killing cannot be a good thing..

[endarkenment]

9. Because of course nobody else has a motive to destabilize

the situation in Lebanon. Nobody. And Syria of course would benefit greatly from destabilization of Lebanon because?

[Ms. Clio]

23. because they are part of the axis of evil?

aren't they? Sometimes I lose track.

[Igel]

31. Because the last time Syria went in as savior.

Create instability--anathema to most people--and then go in to solve the instability.

At the same time, the group with the biggest guns (Hezbollah) is likely to finish in a better position, and gain power. Syria's ally. But also Iran's; not that Nasrallah's been moaning he has the biggest dick and should be in charge, and Khamenei (who apparently can testify to Nasrallah's attributes) is thoroughly in support of Shi'a power and having Allah's own personal hizb in charge. Khamenei's called for undoing the Taif accords and revising the communal system in Lebanon. I.e., he's calling for Islamist supremacy in the only country in the area where it's pretty much outlawed by the Constitution, not by whoever's in charge.

The only wrinkle would be if Gemayel is in Aoun's group (something I don't know, either way ... I doubt Gemayel's with Aoun). Aoun's a Christian Hizb ally. Christians were pro-Syrian until recently, but that unanimity was fractured last year.

[PartTimeSatanist]

61. Christians are doomed either way.

They have been reduced to a semi-harmless minority. Christian Phalangists stand no chance this time around. With Israeli/US assistance, or without. That much should be obvious.

[frankieT]

69. Shia are seriously underrepresented under Taif

They have few legal powers regarding the fact they are the majority in the country. It was always unfair for Shia, the rich Christians and Sunnis shared the power with foreigners: arabs from Gulf States (SA,QA,...), Westerners, Israelis, Syrians (before all becoming pro-democracy and anti-syrian all the sudden) and left the vast majority on their own, that's why Hezbollah kept his weapons under taif (no political power for shias but military power in the south) and had so much success among Shia and even Sunnis and Christians.
Hezbollah and Nasrallah has no intention of turning Lebanon into an islamic state he repeatedly said it, Igil you know this is blatant israeli propaganda. His main ally is the very respected General Aoun of the Christian movement Amal, by far mor representative than the extremist family Gemayyel: the father of the slain minister was Israel's puppet president in the 80's. Nassrallah and Aoun are certainly the most honest politicians in Lebanon and the less corrupted.

[Nimrod2005]

16. NO, it would be all Lebanese against the pro Syrian Shia Lebanese, otherwise known

as Hizbollah...

[PartTimeSatanist]

63. Wishful thinking to the max.

Kind of like...

DICK CHENEY: My belief is we will, in fact, be greeted as liberators.

[maddezmom]

3. AP and CNN have 2 different pic up

Lebanese Cabinet minister and Christian leader Pierre Gemayel is seen in Beirut in this June 20, 2002 file photo. Gemayel was shot and killed on a street in a Beirut suburb Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2006 his Phalange Party Voice of Lebanon radio station reported. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Tawil, FILE)


Pierre Gemayel was a supporter of the anti-Syrian parliamentary majority.


I think CNN's is correct.

[Eugene]

6. The first picture is Amine Gemayel. n/t

[maddezmom]

7. thank you n/t

[Nimrod2005]

17. Top one if the father, the son below is the one who got killed today...

Very very sad...

[maddezmom]

25. CNNI just had his father on for comments

Very sad day for Lebanon :(

[still_one]

4. here is another link

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061121/ap_on_re_mi_ea/lebanon_minister_shot

[ECH1969]

8. Syria is going to regain control of Lebanon

and there is nothing Bush or Isreal can do about it.

[Howardx]

12. syria wouldnt be my first choice of suspects

n/t

[ECH1969]

14. No

Hezbollah and Syria are planning their return to power in Lebanon from Syria as we speak

[Igel]

32. Let's not forget Khamenei.

Possibly not the top suspect, but certainly near the top.

[teryang]

51. Nor mine

The old hands are trying to consolidate their position in DC. They got rid of Rumsfeld and have isolated Cheney. Creating uncontrollable instability in the middle east is the only way to prevent a crack developing in neo-con/Cheney/Israel front. The evidence against Syria with regard to the Hariri assassination is extremely flimsly, the proverbial slender reed. One might even make the case that it was completely fabricated. The Hariri uproar facilitated the Syrian pullout which enabled the Israeli invasion which was a complete failure.

I think they are trying to salvage their balkanization plan for the mideast before cooler heads prevail in Washington.

[Duke Newcombe]

64. Hopefully if we just dialog with them

...we'll see this was just a big misunderstanding. What, with Syria being such an honest broker in the region and all...;(

Duke

[Nimrod2005]

19. I hope you are wrong...

[Kellyiswise]

10. Assassination has become a new form of state warfare. It is so tragic.

Whether state-sponsored assassination (as in the case of Israel) or insurgent or militant assassinations as in the case of Hebollah, these acts bespeak the tragedy of the evil that has befallen humankind. To condone or turn a blind eye to one form while condemning another kind of this form of terrorism makes us all a party to this human tragedy. All of it should be soundly condemned and unless the US begins to practice what it preaches in those UN vetoes and votes, we are no better than the others we criticize as being terrorists.

[Joanne98]

22. I'd rather they assassinate each other than drag the rest of us

into it. The truth is that factions of the world elite are fighting and it's their fight not ours. The people suffer in every country so I think a change is in order. Let the WEALTHY SUFFER FOR A CHANGE! I've always thought it suspious, that OBL banned assassinations. I makes be think they are working together against us. It's time for a straight class warfare attitude. I wouldn't mind having "rulers" if they weren't so damed greedy.

[smirkymonkey]

34. Best post I've read all day.

Why are we fighting each other instead of the people who are causing all the problems in the first place.

[maddezmom]

11. CHRONOLOGY-Recent political violence in Lebanon

Nov 21 (Reuters) - Lebanon's Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel was killed by gunmen near Beirut on Tuesday, security sources said.

Here is a chronology of political killings and attacks since Rafik al-Hariri's death in February 2005.

Feb. 14 - Former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri and 22 others are killed by truck bomb in Beirut. Top aide former economy minister and legislator Basil Fuleihan badly burnt in attack and dies in hospital two months later.

June 2 - Samir Kassir, journalist opposed to Syria's role in Lebanon, is killed in Beirut by bomb in his car.

June 21 - Former Communist Party leader and critic of Syria George Hawi is killed in Beirut by bomb in his car.

July 12 - Car bomb wounds caretaker Defence Minister Elias al-Murr and kills one person in Christian area north of Beirut.

Sept. 25 - May Chidiac, a Christian television journalist critical of Syria, is seriously wounded by bomb in her car. Dec. 12 - Gebran Tueni, staunchly anti-Syrian member of parliament and Lebanese newspaper magnate is killed by a car bomb in Beirut. An unknown group, "Strugglers for the Unity and Freedom of the Levant", claims responsibility.

more:http://today.reuters.com/News/CrisesArticle.aspx?storyId=B816173

[sabra]

13. more: US says Lebanese minister's death is act of terror

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/WAT006610.htm

US says Lebanese minister's death is act of terror

WASHINGTON, Nov 21 (Reuters) - The United States views the assassination of Lebanese Christian minister Pierre Gemayel as an "act of terrorism," a senior U.S. official said on Tuesday.

"This is a very sad day for Lebanon. We were shocked by this assassination. We view it as an act of terrorism and we also view it as an act of intimidation," U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns said of the assassination.

[Chulanowa]

35. Well duh.

Of course it's an "Act of terror". Now my followup question to the US terror officials - Why isn't it an act of terror when it's a Muslim politician that gets assassinated?

[INDIA]

36. Care to give an example?

The most famous Muslim politician ever assasinated was probably Nasser of Egypt, and everybody agrees that was a terrorist attack.

Which Muslim politician has been assasinated and the US declined to call it an act of terror?

[bornskeptic]

38. Nasser wasn't assassinated.

You probably mean Sadat.

[INDIA]

39. You're right, my bad. n/t

[The Stranger]

68. If the U.S. doesn't like the assassination, then it is "terrorism."

If the U.S. is behind the assassination, then it is "spreading democracy throughout the world."

Come on, this is an easy one.

[ButterflyBlood]

52. That happened a year ago in Lebanon with Hariri

and that was also condemned as an act of terror. Your point?

[Chulanowa]

72. Was it?

I kept hearing about how much he deserved it. And currently, Israel targeting Palestinain leaders seems to be perfectly acceptable. Hell, I would settle for the use of the term "assassination", if the folks beating the crap out of Sikhs for wearing turbans and playing funny music think "terrorism" is a bit too "out there".

Why oh why is obliterating civilian infrastructure an acceptable military proceedure, but throwing rocks and shooting handguns at tanks rolling over your source of livelihood an act of terror? I'm just asking for an even keel in this "terrorism" businsess. Sort of like how Islamic Jihad has always been terrorists, but the Contras were "my kind of guys" and the IRA were called "paramilitary" so much...

[ButterflyBlood]

76. What the hell were you listening to?

Hariri was a pro-Western, annti-Syrian leader. Can you point me to any links saying he deserved it? I can't think of a single government that didn't condemn that. This is one thing I can't buy.

As far as Israel targeting Palestinean leaders, that's quite different as those are leaders of terrorist groups. Of course I hardly support all of Israel's actions and attacks on civilian infrastructure, but there's a huge difference between targetting simply politicians and Hamas leaders.

[Chulanowa]

79. They are accused, and so deserve death

Are you willing to apply this process in your own country? The political leaders announce someone is a murderer. The police go in and murder him. And anyone associated with him at the moment. Maybe he was a murderer. Maybe he was the worst sort. Maybe he wasn't, though. Is this a decision you want in the hands of the GOP and their pocket police? I doubt it. So why so keen to force another nation to live under the same conditions?

Assassination is murder. Murder is not justified. If these men are criminals, capture them and bring them to trial. Prove their guilt indisputably. So far we have been blindly believing the Israeli - and now our own - military that everyone ever killed was a dastardly terrorist hell-bent on total massacre of innocents.

Are the leaders of Hamas nice guys? I wouldn't say so. Are they all terrorists? Maybe some are, sure. Do they all deserve a missile up the ass? You think so.

Would you support Hamas launching rocket fire at Israli politicians in turn, I wonder? As I've just stated, "terrorist" is subjective. If all terrorists deserve to be killed on the accusation of terrorism, surely this should apply fairly to anyone that anyone else considers a terrorist?

You're rather proving my point here. "Oh, they don't count, because they're not us."

[maddezmom]

15. 'Hand of Syria' behind Gemayel killing -Hariri

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N21207278.htm

[sabra]

18. I fear where this may lead to...

[maddezmom]

20. as do I

:hug:

[Nimrod2005]

21. Jumblat recently visited Washington, I am sure they knew the threat

was and is THIS serious...I hope he got support form whoever he spoke to.

[PartTimeSatanist]

58. Saad al-Hariri is nothing but a Chalabi wannabe.

Simple as that.

[Haole Girl]

24. This is terrible

It's one thing to gain power through elections, it's another to do it via assassinations. He was so young, too. :cry:

[javelina]

26. Pray

For him, his family, and his country. This may be ugly, but it might also be necessary to wipe out the evil of Hizballah once and for all. I only hope for a peaceful solution to all of this.

[MrPrax]

27. Lebanese Christian leader killed

Lebanese Christian leader killed

Pierre Gemayel, a leading anti-Syrian Lebanese minister and Maronite Christian leader, has been killed in the capital, Beirut.

Mr Gemayel, 34, was shot in his car in a Christian suburb and rushed to hospital, where he died.

His death comes amid a political crisis in Lebanon, following the resignation of six pro-Syrian cabinet members.

Mr Gemayel was a member of the Phalange Party and the son of former President Amin Gemayel. Gunmen opened fire on Mr Gemayel's convoy as it travelled through the Jdaideh neighbourhood.

BBC

[LA lady]

28. Very Bad News

I am from Lebanon and this will set things back even further.

The Gemayel family was highly respected.

[David__77]

29. This was an openly fascist politician.

I cry no tears. The Phalange is fascist through and through.

[MrPrax]

30. No kidding...

Love the spin motives -- must be Syria!!

Oh...the fact that this guy and his faction was cheerleading the Israeli killing of southern shi'ites or the fact that these factions are vowed enemies stemming from a vicious civil war...no no...it must be Syria! Nope simple payback is out of the question. No...the internal dynamics of Lebanese politics would take too long to explain. Syria, like Putin, control every aspect of the world's events!!

No other explanation...no other foreign interests involved...nope...never happens...just Syria (or perhaps Putin)

[sabra]

33. Bush just blamed Iran too...

[Strelnikov_]

41. Yep, Chimp Has Already Blamed Iran And Syria. Guess Option 2 Is Off

the table.

[Zhade]

54. Consider their handiwork against their own people with Sharon's help.

Yes, no tears here - and no stupid mimicry of half-informed PNAC 'Syria' conspiracies from me either.

[PartTimeSatanist]

59. Yeah, this guy was not liked outside the right-wing Christian community.

But then again, I would bet everything I own this was the work of a western power. It is in nobody's interest to start up another civil war over there, with exception of demoralized US of A and humiliated Israelis. Both of em would have no issues with another Lebanese civil war, even though it would probably mean the end of any kind of native Christian presence in that nation. (Anyone who thinks Christian Phalangists stand any chance this time around is seriously deluded.)

[brentspeak]

81. "I would bet everything I own this was the work of a western power"

Congratulations. You win Stupid Post Of The Day.

[angryxyouth]

37. I find the timing curious.

Iran, Syria and the Saudis all showed interest in helping with the Iraq situation. There may be a vulcanizing of the arab states yet. Take Lebanon and Jordan and it is a straight walk through the Gaza strip to Israel. King George is not going to like this. :hide:

[Scurrilous]

42. ANALYSIS: The accusations against Syria are all too routine

<snip>

"The accusation leveled at the Syrians by Saad Hariri, son of assassinated former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri, the hints by Prime Minister Fuad Siniora urging the establishment of an international tribunal to try Hariri's killers, and statements by anti-Syrian elements in Lebanon, put Syria at the top of the list of suspects in Tuesday's assassination of Lebanese Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel.

However pure political and diplomatic logic makes it difficult to see Damascus behind the assassination. The day Gemayel was killed, Syria chalked up one of its most significant diplomatic achievements since its defeat in Lebanon in April 2005: the renewal of full diplomatic relations with Iraq.

Syria is also on the way to achieving a semi-official stamp of approval from Washington as able to calm things down in Iraq. Syria could have been on the verge of an important political success in Lebanon - the possible fall of Fuad Siniora's government, which would mean Syria could increase the power of its supporters in the government by means of the Hezbollah ultimatum. If that came about, the international tribunal on the murder of Rafik Hariri would be delayed, or at least be of a sort convenient for the Syrians.

With three such achievements, the last thing Damascus needed was a new accusation of a political murder in Lebanon."


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/790892.html

[iverglas]

40. "Christian", "anti-Syrian" Phalange ... how about FASCIST Phalange?

The US media spin it, and few people have any knowledge of world history by which to assess the spin.


It's an opinion piece, but I'm in a bit of a rush:

http://vancouver.indymedia.org/?q=node/2352

The Big Lie About 'Islamic Fascism'
by Eric Margolis

... None of the many Muslim groups opposing US-British control of the Mideast fit Paxton’s definitive analysis. The only truly fascist group ever to emerge in the Mideast was Lebanon’s Maronite Christian Phalange Party in the 1930’s which, ironically, became an ally of Israel’s rightwing in the 1980’s. ...

http://countrystudies.us/lebanon/85.htm

Formed in 1936 as a Maronite paramilitary youth organization by Pierre Jumayyil (who modeled it on the fascist organizations he had observed while in Berlin as an Olympic athlete), the Phalange, or Phalanxes (Kataib in Arabic), was authoritarian and very centralized, and its leader was all powerful. It quickly grew into a major political force in Mount Lebanon. After at first allying itself with the French Mandate authorities, the Phalange sided with those calling for independence; as a result, the party was dissolved in 1942 by the French high commissioner (it was restored after The French left Lebanon). Despite this early dispute, over the years the Phalange has been closely associated with France in particular and the West in general. In fact, for many years the party newspaper, Al Amal, was printed in Arabic and French.

Consistent with its authoritarian beginnings, Phalangist ideology has been on the right of the political spectrum. Although it has embraced the need to "modernize," it has always favored the preservation of the sectarian status quo. The Phalange Party motto is "God, the Fatherland, and the Family," and its doctrine emphasizes a free economy and private initiative. Phalangist ideology focuses on the primacy of preserving the Lebanese nation, but with a "Phoenician" identity, distinct from its Arab, Muslim neighbors. Party policies have been uniformly anticommunist and anti-Palestinian and have allowed no place for pan-Arab ideals.

A nasty right-wing party run by a family dynasty. Surely my USAmerican neighbours can relate to that.

[PartTimeSatanist]

57. True. Christian Phalangists are hardcore right-wingers.

Look at the history of Christian Phalangists party. Interestingly enough, Israelis had no problem cooperating with these types during the 1982 invasion of Lebanon. Seems Israelis have no beef with racist fascists as long as they are killing Muslims and other undesirables (Jews excluded, of course). But then again, that's always been the case with Israelis. (How about the relationship between Israel and apartheid era South Africa?)

[Zhade]

43. Israel is partly to blame for this - their rampant indiscriminate attacks...

...further divided this already-divided nation.

Just as happened when they occupied, before they were driven out.

[Behind the Aegis]

53. Of course, you'd find the anti-Israeli angle.

Did it ever occur to you that this was all part of a plan by Syria? But no, instead of focusing on what is happening, you must go for the anti-Israeli angle...how unexpected.

[Zhade]

55. It's the anti-indiscriminate bombing angle.

The Israeli government that I oppose (I do not oppose the Israeli people) are responsible for inflaming the discord, not me for pointing it out.

[Vidar]

60. Sad but true.

[Behind the Aegis]

62. Which wouldn't have happened...

...had the Syrian-backed Hizb'allah not struck. This whole mess starts with that group and ends with that group, the puppet of the Assad Regime, trying to reclaim what it lost.

[bj40761]

44. How do we know Syria did this. Oh that's right Bush says so!

[goforit]

80. bingo!! A little mihop for "THE" new war

[Wetzelbill]

45. Key Lebanese politician assassinated

Key Lebanese politician assassinated

By ZEINA KARAM and SAM F. GHATTAS, Associated Press Writers
49 minutes ago



BEIRUT, Lebanon - Pierre Gemayel, scion of Lebanon's most prominent Christian family and a leading opponent of Syria, was gunned down Tuesday in a brazen daytime hit. The assassination threatened to intensify Lebanon's power struggle between the U.S.-allied government and the Syrian-backed Hezbollah.

Gemayel, 34, was leaving church when he fell into a well-coordinated attack: One vehicle cut off his car from the front, another rammed him from behind, then gunmen burst out and sprayed a dozen bullets into his passenger-side window.

The killing sent tensions spiraling at a time when Lebanon was already facing a worsening political crisis. The Shiite Muslim guerrilla group Hezbollah and its pro-Syrian allies have threatened massive protests — as early as Thursday — aimed at bringing down Prime Minister Fuad Saniora's government unless it gives them greater power.

President Bush condemned the assassination and accused Syria and Iran of seeking to undermine Saniora's government. Bush stopped short of specifically blaming them for Gemayel's death, though the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, John R. Bolton, raised the possibility.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061122/ap_on_re_mi_ea/lebanon_minister_shot

[Wetzelbill]

46. another link to augment the OP

Lebanese Christian minister is assassinated
Bush, others point to Syria after politician Pierre Gemayel shot, killed

BEIRUT, Lebanon - Pierre Gemayel, an anti-Syrian politician and scion of Lebanon’s most prominent Christian family, was gunned down Tuesday in a carefully orchestrated assassination that heightened tensions between the U.S.-backed government and the militant Hezbollah.

Anti-Syrian politicians quickly accused Damascus, as they have in previous assassinations of Lebanese opponents of its larger neighbor. Gemayel, 34, an outspoken opponent of the Syrian-allied Hezbollah, was the fifth anti-Syrian figure killed in the past two years and the first member of the government of Prime Minister Fuad Saniora to be slain.

The assassination, in Gemayel’s mainly Christian constituency of Jdeideh, threatens further instability in Lebanon at a time when Hezbollah and other parties allied with Syria are planning street protests unless Saniora gives them more power.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15829846/

[aquart]

47. Again? Is this an annual event?

[WestHoustonDem]

48. this is a dupe

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=2624976&mesg_id=2624976

[NVMojo]

49. good lord!

[plasticsundance]

50. Whatta a freaking saint ....

Israel promised the Americans not to enter West-Beirut. The Palestinian camps (Sabra, Shatila, Borj El-Barajneh) are in West-Beirut, and the civilian refugees there were without protection: the Palestinian guerrillas had left. The Lebanese Christian Phalange militia, a militia allied to, trained and financed by Israel, was the fiercest enemy of the Palestinians. This militia had to be kept out of West-Beirut to safeguard the camps.

On September 15th 1982, Bashir Gemayel, the Christian Lebanese president-elect and leader of the Phalange, was assassinated. Sharon, then Israeli defence minister, sent the Israeli army into West-Beirut to "restore order". He also sent a few hundred Phalange fighters into the Sabra and Shatila camps, because, according to Sharon, 2000 Palestinians guerrillas (Sharon called them "terrorists") were still there.

When Morris Draper, the United States envoy to the Middle East, heard of those plans, he was horrified. The Phalange already had murdered hundreds of surrendering Palestinians in the Tel Al-Zaatar camp in 1976, and Palestinians had slaughtered Lebanese Christians in the village of Damour. Anyone could predict what could happen when the Phalange would enter the camps. And nobody believed that 2000 Palestinian guerrillas were still there.

There were no Palestinian guerrillas in the camps. Under the eyes of Israeli soldiers, who could see the camps from their positions, the Phalange started to torture and kill the Palestinian refugees. They started killing in the early morning of September 16, and didn't stop until 10.00 AM September 18, although the Israelis already knew what was going on, and Sharon was informed of the situation.

more ...

[Name removed]

56. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[allemand]

65. Lebanese Press: Syria's Supporters Wrongfooted by Assassination

There was broad condemnation in the Lebanese press Wednesday of the assassination of anti-Syrian minister Pierre Gemayel and most papers agreed that it had wrongfooted Syria's local supporters.
Hizbullah and its allies had planned to take to the streets to demand the toppling of Prime Minister Fouad Saniora's government and its replacement with a government of national unity.

But after Gemayel's murder, it was the anti-Syrian parties which were calling out their supporters for a mass funeral for the slain Christian politician, an outspoken opponent of Damascus.

"The mass funeral on Thursday will allow the ruling majority to return to the streets and the opposition has been left in disarray," said the pro-Syrian Al-Akhbar daily.

"The opposition camp, which had been preparing for a showdown with the ruling majority, has been wrongfooted, and the crime has opened the door for complicated internal tensions," it said.

http://www.naharnet.com/domino/tn/Newsdesk.nsf/Lebanon/C787F597D0876C99C225722E0036429B?OpenDocument

[vssmith]

66. I hope this is not a false flag operation

by those who feel an advantage could be gained by Syria being blamed!

[PartTimeSatanist]

67. Lebanese Christians call for a crusade. (Chicago Tribune)

Slaying inflames Lebanon November 21, 2006,
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/custom/newsroom/chi-061121lebanon,1,4429119.story?coll=chi-news-hed

Quotes from Christian demonstrators from the streets:

"Christianity in the Middle East is in danger, and I appeal to the Christian world to send us military help, military forces. We need a crusade."

"We are Christians, and I know as Christians we should forgive but I don't think we are able to," said law student Elie Maalouf, 21. "Now is a moment for grief, for prayer, not for action. But action will come soon, it is inevitable.


-------------------------------------------

They want a crusade? You know, Iraqi Christians said the same things back in 2002-2003, and now they are an endangered species, thanks to western intervention, and by 2050 there won't be such a thing as Iraqi Christian, or Christians in Iraq for that matter.

[Eugene]

70. BBC: UN agrees to probe Lebanon murder

Last Updated: Thursday, 23 November 2006, 02:24 GMT

UN agrees to probe Lebanon murder

The UN Security Council has agreed to a request from Lebanon to help
investigate the murder of leading anti-Syrian politician Pierre Gemayel.

The council's current president said the decision was taken quickly and
needed no discussion.

The UN commission already looking into the murder of ex-Lebanese PM
Rafik Hariri in 2005 will take on the probe.

Many in Lebanon accuse Syria of involvement in Mr Gemayel's death but
Damascus rejects the claims.

-snip-

Full article: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6175270.stm

[Name removed]

71. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[ButterflyBlood]

77. Gee, it's not like Hezbollah hasn't been trying to collapse this government

They've promised massive demonstrations until the government resigns or has new elections. Destabalizing it is exactly their goal. How do they have nothing to gain? And what the hell do the US and Israel have to gain?

[still_one]

82. obviously, it ain't you who knows anything about middle east politics

Syria has always wanted Lebanon to be part of it. Since 1920, most Syrians never accepted Lebanon as a sovereign and independent state, and when the Lebanese Civil War broke out in 1975, that is when Syria took the opportunity to occupy 2/3 of Lebanon, saying they were doing it on behalf of the Lebanese Christians, though by 1978 they switched sides and supported the Druze and Muslims

Don't give me this crap that it is "Israel" that has something to gain, the Syrians, have been RESPONSIBLE for multiple assasinations in Lebanon against those politicians who were CRITICAL OF HER.

If it was an attack again Hizballah, then you speculation would have more credibility, but since it was an assasination against an anti-Syrian Christian you credibility is lost in your bias

[bigriver]

83. Blames the Jews!

Why don't you change your tune once in a while.

[oblivious]

74. BBC: "Press accuses as Gemayel buried"

Thursday, 23 November 2006, 12:57 GMT

As Lebanon buries leading anti-Syrian politician Pierre Gemayel, the region's press considers who stands to gain from his killing. Several papers suggest that it is foreign powers that benefit from upheaval in Lebanon and the region, with some pointing the finger at Israel.

PAN-ARAB AL-QUDS AL-ARABI
Those who planned and carried out this assassination were targeting Syria as much as they were targeting Lebanon. Indeed, they were also targeting the entire Arab region. Syria is the one that is most harmed by this repugnant crime. The destruction of Lebanon is in the interests of Israel, which would like to see the Lebanese resistance busy with internal wars and Syria exhausted.

COMMENTARY IN SYRIA'S AL-BA'TH
The new Middle East is a US-Israeli project, the product of US aggression and the Israeli war on Lebanon. Political assassinations are near at hand and criminal practices and killings pave the way for sedition. This sedition leads to chaos and it is chaos which allows the realisation of the project.

EGYPT'S AL-JUMHURIYAH
The wave of mysterious crimes sweeping Lebanon since the assassination of its former prime minister is clearly aimed at immersing the country, or indeed the entire region, in a crisis that will allow foreign powers to interfere - especially given that they have already been acting in the Lebanese arena.

IRAN'S JOMHURI-YE ESLAMI
...Undoubtedly this assassination was planned and carried out by the Zionist regime because the Zionists stand to gain the most from it.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6175778.stm

[stepnw1f]

75. "Can We Now Please Have another War?"

- George Bush and friends.

[alfredo]

78. Wasn't he part of the right wing Christian Falanges?

If that is the case then it could be Palestinians or others who were getting payback for the massacre at Sabra and Shatila, which is payback for the massacre at Damour, which was payback for................