LebaneseForces.com: Fighting for Freedom

Lebanese Prisoner Dies in Syrian Jail then Buried Hush-Hush

A detained Lebanese cab driver has died in jail after an 11-year imprisonment in Syria. His body was delivered hush-hush to his family in Zahleh last Wednesday and was also buried hush-hush at midnight the same day, the human rights organization Solid reported.

In a statement carried by An Nahar on Monday, Solid identified the dead prisoner as Joseph Emile Howayyes, whose body was handed over to family in Zahle last Wednesday, six days after his death in a Syrian jail.

Howayyes, whose age was not reported, was arrested in June 1992 after a traffic accident involving his taxicab and a military Jeep attached to the 62nd brigade of the Syrian army on the Dhour Shweir-Bolognia road east of Beirut, the Solid statement said.

"He was taken to Syria in contravention with Lebanese and international laws, where a Syrian military court tried him in Damascus along the same lines that happened to Joseph Zoghaib, Aden Azouri and Radwan Ibrahim before him," according to the statement.

It did not clearly spell out whether the three other Lebanese detainees –Zoghaib, Azouri and Ibrahim--had died in prison. It said Howayyes died of acute migraine in the central prison of Damascus and his body was delivered to his family in a sealed coffin.

Solid deplored the media blackout clamped by the Lebanese and Syrian authorities on Howayyess' death, delivery of the corpse and the surreptitious burial "as if each of the events was a smuggling operation." The statement said dozens of other Lebanese prisoners in Syria run the risk of a similar death "as if their death is the only solution to fold their dossier." It called for an international intervention to save the Lebanese from Syrian jails before it was too late.

Taken from Naharnet
For more information on Syrian Prisons click here

Posted by 40-Tactical on Monday, June 30, 2003 | Permalink

Books To Read

Thanks to LF-AUB a new section was created under the LF Media heading called Books To Read. This section currently contains 5 books that are important to read. We will have a summary and some pages scanned for each of the books either by tomorrow. At the moment we only have the summary and scanned pages from Al Jabal.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Saturday, June 28, 2003 | Permalink

The Taef Agreement

Just added The Taef Agreement in the Special Features section.
Click here to view it.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Thursday, June 26, 2003 | Permalink

MTV case moves into 4th appeal

MTV owner Gabriel Murr and one of his lawyers, Shakib Qortbawi, told The Daily Star they are not expecting their fourth appeal against a court’s decision to shut down the station to lead to any positive developments. But Murr said the station will try every possible legal avenue open to it: “We still believe in this country, and we still believe in the judiciary,” he said.

Qortbawi, a former head of the Bar Association, said that from his point of view the appeal was like a memo informing the court its decision included procedural errors. He said the appeal asked the Court of Cassation to revoke its decision of April 23 and regard the decision as if it had never been made.

Qortbawi said the main mistake was that one of the judges, Afif Shamseddine, who was supposed to make a decision on whether MTV’s appeal was presented within the legal period, recommended the decision be adopted by another court and never said whether he agreed with it. So the decision was made by two judges and not three as should have been the case, and that, said Qortbawi, made the court’s decision illegal. “But we are not hopeful about anything more. If the laws were being respected the station would have been opened a long time ago,” he said. “But we are doing our duties; we didn’t despair and we will not,” he added.Qortbawi said he knew of four cases where decisions made by the Court of Cassation were revoked.“So there is a precedent, we are not asking for any new laws,” he said. He said that, in the past, MTV’s defense presented 20 pages of remarks about court procedures, to which the public prosecutor’s office replied with 10 pages, but the court never responded. He said the law compelled the court to answer any point that either the defendant or the public prosecutors raised. He added that he hopes this time the court will respond to the appeal. Qortbawi said a political decision to reopen MTV would help, but said he is unaware such a political decision is possible. “But we still believe in the law and in the legal system, and we still believe that any solution for the MTV case will come from the judiciary,” he added.

The Publications Court shut down MTV in October last year after finding the station guilty of carrying out electoral propaganda for Murr in by-elections in Metn a few weeks earlier. Three appeals by the station against the ruling were thrown out. At least 400 employees at the station found themselves jobless and have since formed a committee that keeps complaining to government officials and religious leaders.

Taken from DailyStar

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, June 25, 2003 | Permalink

Les derniers événements au coeur des préoccupations du Conseil Politique des F.L.

Le Conseil Politique des Forces Libanaises a approuvé les résolutions prises lors du Synode Patriarcal Maronite et s’est félicité des réflexions faites.

D’un autre côté, il s’est montré indigne de l’attitude de l’état libanais quant à la persécution et les arrestations des militants pacifiques des Forces Libanaises. En mémoire de Faouzi el Rassi, tué en prison au Ministère de la Défense, le Conseil Politique des Forces Libanaises a rappelé les organisations humanitaires de la gravité de la situation et le besoin d’une intervention urgente de leur part.

Pour en savoir plus, veuillez lire le document PDF ci-joint.

Posted by Zahi on Tuesday, June 24, 2003 | Permalink

Plan to Assassinate de Gaulle During Beirut Visit Unveiled

Parisian weekly L'Express has unveiled an attempt to assassinate France's late Gen. Charles de Gaulle during a visit he intended to make to Beirut in the late 1960s, citing an unnamed Czech spy for the report, An Nahar reported on Tuesday. "The assassination attempt was to be staged in coordination with certain Palestinian factions and a high-ranking Lebanese official at the time," the French magazine said, without identifying the Lebanese official or the Palestinian groups involved.

'The plan was designed to mislead an investigation into the conspiracy by framing the CIA. But the attempt was never actually executed because de Gaulle canceled the Beirut visit," the publication said.

Taken from Naharnet

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, June 24, 2003 | Permalink

La censure du nom du Dr Geagea parmi la liste des prisonniers politiques

Le Conseil Politique des Forces Libanaises fait remarquer que l'omission ou la censure quant à la citation du nom de Dr Geagea parmi les prisonniers politiques lors du congrès régional des droits de l'homme est une abérration. Le Conseil Politique rappelle que le Dr Geagea est un prisonnier d'opinion depuis 1994.

Pour en savoir plus, veuillez lire le fichier PDF ci-joint.

Posted by Zahi on Monday, June 23, 2003 | Permalink

Bush Expected to Publicly Ask Syria to Leave Lebanon Soon

President Bush is expected to publicly demand from Syria soon to withdraw from Lebanon as his administration is increasingly clamoring for all-out war against President Bashar Assad's regime, the Israeli media said in reports highlighted by An Nahar and other Beirut newspapers on Saturday. The Tel Aviv daily Maarev said an official U.S. warning would shortly be delivered to President Assad, demanding harsher measures against Palestinian militant factions active in Damascus on the grounds that what has been done so far by Syria was noting convincing to Washington.

It implied that the warning would be delivered during a visit to Damascus that may be added to the itinerary of U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell's current visit in the Middle East or during a trip to the region next week by Bush's National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice. Another Tel Aviv newspaper, Haaretz, said the Pentagon strategists have been debating the idea of a military offensive against Syria following intelligence reports that the perpetrators of the recent guerrilla attacks against American troops in Iraq had been "trained by terrorist organizations in Syria."

These reports, the paper claimed, also charged that activists had crossed the Syrian border into Iraq to stage suicide bombing attacks against U.S. troops there. Powell said after separate meetings in Jerusalem and Jericho with the prime ministers of Israel and Palestine that Syria's efforts to curtail militant Palestinian factions were "totally inadequate." Syria had not stopped backing the Palestinian and Lebanese groups as demanded by the Bush administration, he said, obviously referring to Hamas and Hizbullah.

The Syrians, Powell said, "took some limited steps. Those limited steps are totally inadequate. We have gone back to the Syrians to let them know that we find their actions inadequate.

Taken from Naharnet

Posted by 40-Tactical on Saturday, June 21, 2003 | Permalink

LF AUB Achievements this Year

This year has been the busiest for the LF-AUB and loads of successful activities took place. This is a small resume of the activities that took place this year.

-The Lebanese Student League won three places in the AUB elections. Although the number is small, this was a historical victory for the Christians at AUB which were mainly represented by the Lebanese Forces but also by the grouping of a number of pro-LFers and pro-Christians.

-A Lecture organized by the Back To Roots club about "Secularism and Pluralism in the Lebanese political life " was given by Dr. Sa3oud el Mawla. The lecture room was full and the event was a success. An article on the lecture were published in Outlook and in Al Massira.

-The petition asking to free Dr. Samir Geagea was launched in AUB. The Back To Roots club, given the approval by the Dean of Student Affairs, placed a stand for signing the petition demanding the release of Dr. Samir Geagea. Banners and Flyers were placed all over the Campus and more than 500 students signed the petition in only 2 days time. AUB was the only university who managed to place a stand and officially sign the petition on campus.

-Outlook published a full article on the petition to Free Dr. Geagea and also on his inhumane prison conditions. This was a major achievement since it was the first time our leader's case was raised at AUB. Al Massira magazine also posted an article about this.

-The LF-AUB participated actively in the Solidarity week with Dr. Geagea organized by the LF students which was ended by a Massira from Bkerke to Harissa.

-A bayen was distributed after the arrest of two students to show support to all freedom seekers. The bayen received very positive feedback from all the political parties.

-Finally, the peak of their work this year was the lecture about "Achieving National Reconciliation”, by Edmond Rizk, Georges Nassif and Sou3oud Bou Chebel. The lecture room with a capacity of 100 people, had more than 130 in it. The event was a major success. LBCI showed video of the event in the news, Al Massira magazine posted a full article about it, and both Annahar and Daily Star mentioned it too.

One more note worth mentioning, the Back To Roots Club held its yearly elections and the Lebanese Student League List resisted the attempts of few individuals, and won the elections to secure all 5 seats for another year hopefully as successful as this year.

All these events were mentioned on both the LebaneseForces.com and the official Lebanese-Forces.org site. A special section for the LF-AUB activities was also opened on Lebanese-Forces.org. You can visit the LF.org activity section by clicking here.

We want to thank all those who contributed in making these activities possible and successful ones. We have made a major change in 3 years time, but still there are lots of things that still need to be done. Till then, have a great summer and be ready for next year.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Friday, June 20, 2003 | Permalink

New Links

Links to two publications have been added to the links page. The links added are Chahadatouna and Al Massira magazine.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Friday, June 20, 2003 | Permalink

BachirGemayel.org Redesigned

BachirGemayel.org has been redesigned. The site loads a lot faster and is visually clearer then before. The guys were working hard all week to implement the new design and they just finished so check it out.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, June 18, 2003 | Permalink

Lebanese Forces Complain of New Intimidation Campaign

Jean Aziz, the Lebanese Forces representative to the Qornet Shahwan opposition group, has complained that citizens of Bsharri and neighboring villages were being systematically summoned for interrogation because of their political beliefs.

He said in a statement published Wednesday in An Nahar that the alleged intimidation campaign began in early May and was continuing. He accused the authorities of denying these citizens their human rights.

Aziz listed more than a score of youths who have recently been questioned, many of them from the Geagea and Tawq families.

Samir Geagea, former commander of the dismantled Lebanese Forces, is serving three life sentences for assassinating rivals during the civil war. He is a native of Bsharri. His wife, Sitrida, is from the Tawq clan, also from the north Lebanon town.

Taken from Naharnet

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, June 18, 2003 | Permalink

Libertés: Interpellations en série à Bécharré, affirme Jean Aziz

M. Jean Aziz, représentant des Forces libanaises au sein du Rassemblement de Kornet Chehwane, a affirmé hier que les services de sécurité avaient interpellé plusieurs habitants de la région de Bécharré depuis le début du mois de mai, en raison de leur affiliation et de leurs convictions politiques.
Les personnes interpellées ont été conduites à des centres sécuritaires à Bécharré, Tripoli et Beyrouth, où elles ont été soumises à des interrogatoires de jour comme de nuit, a indiqué M. Aziz, qui a dénoncé ces mesures arbitraires qui portent atteinte aux droits fondamentaux de la personne humaine et aux principes du droit et de la justice. Il a appelé à une réaction immédiate des diverses instances morales et nationales du pays.
M. Aziz a par ailleurs publié une liste non exhaustive des noms d’une trentaine de personnes interpellées, pour la plupart des étudiants.

Taken from Lorientlejour

linabka

Posted by Naji on Wednesday, June 18, 2003 | Permalink

United Colors of Benetton

Just made some minor color modifications to the site. Brought back the green background for the sides of the site. There might be some more minor modifications but other then those the site is nearly complete.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, June 17, 2003 | Permalink

Translation Service

The LebaneseForces.com translation service is back again. The site can now be translated to French or Arabic using one of the links on the top of this site.

Please keep in mind that we do NOT do the translations. The translations are done automatically using translation software. The translation will most of the time sound child-like or contain grammatical errors. But for those of you who have problems with English, any translation is better then no translation at all.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Monday, June 16, 2003 | Permalink

Mailing List

Enter your email address below to subscribe or unsubscribe to the LebaneseForces.com newsletter

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Posted by 40-Tactical on Monday, June 16, 2003 | Permalink

C.H.L Mass at Ghabit el Chahid , Tabria

The C.H.L newly established (Rabitat el mou3awakeen el Lebnaniyyeen) organized a mass at Tabriyyah bi ghebit el chahid (Marty's cedars forest) as its first event. This forest was established more than 10 years ago regrouping more than 100 martyrs with a cedar tree planted for each martyr with his name below it .

Disabled fighters of the Lebanese Forces were present there, headed by "Bob", the president of the C.H.L. Also present were LF students, some important LF figures and Sheikh Nadim Gemayel.

Many Lebanese Forces members and members of Rabitat Eleige prepared for this event from Saturday till the early morning of Sunday.

The mass started at 11am. The priest saluted our martyrs, starting by Sheikh Bashir Gemayel and ending with our living martyrs who are still paying the price of their sacrifices. They gave away their most precious belongings defending our cause, our regions and mainly the 10452 Lebanon. He ended by a special salute to the detainees and prisoners, mainly to Dr. Samir Geagea our great leader. When the priest was done three members of the C.H.L spoke followed by a speech from Bob who explained the aim of the association and the right for each disabled to work actively in his society and for his country.

No banners or flyers of flags were allowed, the event was very well organized and a successfull one. Mabrouk for our brothers and sisters in the C.H.L and we wish you the best of success in ur work.

Click here for pictures of the event

Posted by AL_ on Sunday, June 15, 2003 | Permalink

Site updates that happened this week

Historical Section
The Assassination of Bashir Gemayel
The Assassination of Tony Franjieh
The Assassination of Dany Chamoun
The Assassination of Rene Moawad
Lebanese Forces Coup
The Attack on Achrafieh
Tal al-Zaatar

Special Features
Our Martyrs: How does a country manage to forget its past?
The Cause

LF Information
Fadi Frem
Fouad Abou Nader
Weapons Section [major update]

Samir Geagea
Geagea's Solution: Cantonization

Other Sections
Pysical Training

Posted by 40-Tactical on Sunday, June 15, 2003 | Permalink

Mass at Ghabat el Chahid organized by LF handicaps

LF handicaps, or Rabitat el Mou3awakeen is organizing as its first event, a mass on Sunday the 15th of June at 11am in Tabria. Everyone is invited, but no banners or flyers will be allowed during the mass.

An Nanssa Lan Nanssa.

Posted by AL_ on Thursday, June 12, 2003 | Permalink

Warning Sounded of Potential Lebanese Mass Graves in Syria

Three human rights organizations have appealed from Beirut for an international endeavor to rescue many Lebanese allegedly held in Syrian jails, warning of family fears of potential mass graves in Syria similar to those recently discovered in post-Saddam Hussein Iraq. The plea was issued by The Lebanese Human Rights Organization, Solida-France and Solid for the Support of Imprisoned and Banished Lebanese at a news conference in the Lebanese capital Wednesday, An Nahar reported on Thursday.

They said in a joint communiqué that Syrian authorities were still denying the presence of any Lebanese prisoners in Syria although several international organizations have established that many Lebanese were still held in Syrian prisons.

"We fear that the Lebanese detainees in Syria would share the same fate of thousands Iraqis during the Baathist regime," the three organizations said, deploring "efforts to transform the cause of the missing Lebanese into one of ghosts."

Representatives from the three human rights groups had lately visited Damascus, seeking meetings with Syrian government officials to determine the fate of imprisoned Lebanese. But they were denied access to President Assad or any other Syrian official, the communiqué said.

Taken from Naharnet
Click here for more info on Lebanese detained in Syrian prisons

Posted by 40-Tactical on Thursday, June 12, 2003 | Permalink

LF leadership repeats call for Syrian pullout

The Lebanese Forces’ politburo has reiterated its call for the withdrawal of Syrian troops in accordance with the Taif Accord, to rectify Lebanese-Syrian ties and form a government that would achieve national reconciliation.
The body held its annual meeting in Washington from May 29-June 4, a statement by the banned group said Wednesday.
The meeting was presided over by Joseph Jbeily and attended by several members, including Ghassan Touma, who was sentenced to death in absentia by the Lebanese judiciary on charges of masterminding the assassination of Dani Chamoun, then-president of the National Liberal Party.
A statement released Tuesday said participants called for deploying the army on the Israeli border, dissolving and disarming Lebanese and Palestinian militias, and increasing state control over refugee camps.
The statement urged both Christians and Muslims to cooperate to create a “real democratic system” that would eradicate the causes of conflict and prevent fundamentalism.

Taken from the DailyStar

Posted by 40-Tactical on Thursday, June 12, 2003 | Permalink

Pierre Gemayel wants state to solve mystery of ‘missing’

Metn MP Pierre Gemayel on Wednesday called for an end to the issue of Lebanese reported missing in Lebanese and Syrian jails.
Gemayel said that the question should be put to the government, to get more information about the fact-finding committee’s report on the issue. He added that the decision to submit such a question was made after conferring with two of his colleagues, Kesrouan MPs Mansour Bone and Fares Soueid.
He accused the government of ignoring the suffering of Lebanese people by failing to raise this issue with the Syrian authorities.

Taken from the DailyStar

Posted by 40-Tactical on Thursday, June 12, 2003 | Permalink

Hacked By CyberHackTeam

This site was hacked awhile ago by the CyberHackTeam. You can check the hacked main page by clicking here

Here is a link to a list of recent defacements by the CyberHackTeam. As you can see LebaneseForces.com is there.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, June 11, 2003 | Permalink

Defense Attorneys: Geagea's Prison Conditions Still Miserable

Samir Geagea's defense attorneys have denied recent media reports that his prison conditions in nine years of solitary confinement at the defense ministry compound in Yarze had improved.
"There has been no change whatsoever in his prison condition at his defense ministry cell despite all efforts exerted to ease his plight," the Defense lawyers said in a statement published by An Nahar Wednesday.

The leader of the Lebanese Forces, the Christian militia that changed into a political party after the 1975-1990 civil war, is serving a total of 120 years in jail under court verdicts that found him guilty of assassinating political rivals and scheming to partition Lebanon into sectarian mini-states.

The LF as well as Patriarch Nsrallah Sfeir have long contended that charges brought against Geagea since 1994 were all politically motivated because he had adamantly refused to serve in any of the Syrian-backed governments formed in Beirut after the civil war.

Taken from Naharnet

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, June 11, 2003 | Permalink

Pierre Gemayel urges inquiry into ‘new residents’

Metn MP Pierre Gemayel complained Monday of an alleged large number of new residents being transferred to some towns and villages. “We have received information, backed up by evidence, about a large-scale illegal transfer of residents into some Metn towns and villages,” Gemayel said in a statement, adding that the transfers were preceded by an “intimidation policy” against mukhtars and public notaries.
It is aimed at preparing the ground for next year’s parliamentary and municipal elections, the statement added. Gemayel also said the majority of the new residents were newly naturalized citizens who were being used to “fuel the authorities’ battles against the public.” The MP called on authorities to investigate.

Taken from DailyStar

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, June 10, 2003 | Permalink

Les étudiants des F.L. en France: une activité soutenue

Dernièrement, les étudiants des Forces Libanaises en France ont organisé une conférence sur le multiculturalisme au Liban. Cette conférence a été animée par des spécialistes du dialogue des cultures au sein de l'UNESCO. 200 étudiants français et libanais ont participé au débat.

Une journée particulière
D'un autre côté, les étudiants des Forces LIbanaises en France organisent une journée culturelle / sportive bientôt. Pour toute information complémentaire, veuillez envoyer un email à fljeunes@hotmail.com

Click here to read the full official release

Posted by Zahi on Tuesday, June 10, 2003 | Permalink

Samir Geagea in Kuwait

In an interview with Al-Rai Al-Aam, a daily Kuwaiti newspaper, issue #13138 Tuesday, June 10, 2003, Mr Jean Aziz talks about Dr. Geagea's condition in jail and the chances of being released soon. Al-Rai Al-Aam is the #1 daily newspaper in Kuwait. The article in the paper took up half a page and included a medium sized picture of Samir Geagea.
Click here to read the full interview at Al-Rai Al-Aam
Click here to see an image of the article in the paper

Posted by Maroun on Tuesday, June 10, 2003 | Permalink

Open Letter to our Comrade Elie Hajje

Please click on the link below to read an open letter from our comrade Toni Aad, published in Al Masira issue # 918 - Monday June 9 2003 - in response to Annahar article written by our comrade Elie Hajje.

Click here for the letter in Arabic.
If your browser doesn't support Arabic, check the image of the letter.
Links provided by lebanese-forces.org

Posted by Maroun on Monday, June 09, 2003 | Permalink

Lebanese Forces win at AUT - Halat Campus

The LF list was composed of 11 members and they are now all the Student Council.

chairperson : Pierre Kairouz
vice chairperson : Georges Abou Rjeily
treasury affairs : Charbel Bou Nader
internal affairs : Marwan Habchi
campus matters : Farid Zeidan
public relation : Rozaline Hanna
external affairs : Roy Abi Zeid
sports affairs : Nabih Abi Sarkis
spokes person : Jessica Ibrahim
secret affairs : Assad Ayoub
and Sarah Bassil

Posted by 40-Tactical on Sunday, June 08, 2003 | Permalink

Ya Rife2

ya rife2 el dawleh ma badda te2tini3 enno nehna manna bi hajé la ay jaysh gharib 3a ardna ma badda te2tini3 enno wala dawleh rah t2adim jaysha la ymout dife3an 3anna henne 3an el jouleyn wou ma defa3o baddoun ydef3o 3an ardna???? wou eza defa3o 3anna rah yeje nhar yotolbo rad el jmil 3an hall dife3 wou se3eta baddo yethawal hall jaysh men sadi2 la 3adouw ...wel misslim el lebnene ba3do la halla2 bi shed dahro bel gharib abel ma yshed dahro bi shriko el lebnene baddak te2tini3 enno hall balad balena ma byemshe wou eza ma hateyt idak bi idna ma rah te2dar testamer bi hall balad

Posted by sooby on Sunday, June 08, 2003 | Permalink

Basketball Championship Degenerates into Tragedy

With Sporting perceived as Prime Minister Hariri's team and La Sagesse reputed to be affiliated to imprisoned commander of the Lebanese Forces, the Christians' main militia in the 1975-1990 civil war, the row quickly acquired political dimensions.

Sporting fans unleashed a barrage of "Syria, Syria," and "Bashar, Bashar" slogans to express support for Syrian President Bashar Assad, as La Sagesse's supporters cried "U.S.A., U.S.A." and "Hakim, Hakim," Samir Geagea's nickname.
Click here to read the full news story at naharnet

Posted by 40-Tactical on Saturday, June 07, 2003 | Permalink

Lebanese Forces LA Chapter Fathers Day Event

Dear Comrades, friends and family,
The Lebanese Forces " LA Chapter ", is pleased to invite you all on this special father's day event. It's a special time to come all together in one and be a true united family under God and the Cause.

This event will take place JUNE 14th at Our Lady of Mount Lebanon Hall at 7 pm There will be a fee of : $10.00 per adult and $5.00 per child. This will include FOOD + SOFT DRINKS + MUSIC.

Join us all in this warm family gathering Your presence can always make a difference toward a better Lebanese Forces Family. Bring all your friends and families.

N.B: For all the hard Liquor lovers, u can bring your own....

Linabka wa Nastamerr

Posted by 40-Tactical on Thursday, June 05, 2003 | Permalink

RSS Feed

Sorry again but there is a new link for the RSS feed. Copy paste this link in your reader. The RSS Feed

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, June 04, 2003 | Permalink

Bad Grapes

The time will come when Geagea will be back to prune us all. He is the faithful keeper of the vine of perseverance and truth. All those untrue to our cause will be uprooted and cast out like dead leaves. And those true to our struggles will prosper and grow in the light of his long awaited guidance and leadership… just like Christ prunes us every day and tests our faith… he takes away the bad grapes from the vine to allow room for new growth. Be ready for the harvest season. It is near.

Posted by shereen on Tuesday, June 03, 2003 | Permalink

Historical Fact: Mustafa Geha

I found the following biography of Mustafa Geha at the LF Forum. It was written by "Peter Pan"

Mustapha Geha was born is Tyre, from a Muslim Shia family, and lived in Badaro - Beirut. Married with 5 children, the eldest being Ali Geha, a devoted and fierce LF comabatant who held the post the MP chief for a while. Mustapha was a journalist and a political writer by excellence; he opposed the “Arabisation” and “Islamisation” of Lebanon and attacked the Khomeni regime in Iran, bringing a bounty on his life from Hizbullah. Mustapha was an active Kataeb member and was the heart and soul of their newspaper “Al 3amal” during the war years. His book titled “The Intellectual Crisis in Islam” (mi7nat el 3akl fil Islam) was a prophetic prelude to the events that we are witnessing post September 11. Mustapha believed the following the strict guides of Islam can only be at the detriment of the Intellectual faculties of human beings.

Mustapha was gunned down Jan. 5, 1992 while driving in East Beirut. The Hizbullah assassinated him.

Mustafa Geha is one of the great martyrs of our Lebanese cause, the cause that gave so many martyrs that singling some would be unfair to the plethora of others that died without fanfare, graves or acknowledgment.

May their souls rest in peace and lest we forget

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, June 03, 2003 | Permalink

Whats playing on my ipod

Song currently playing: Ardak el Karameh
[Right click on the song and then Save Target As]

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, June 03, 2003 | Permalink

Reply to president Elias Hrawi interview

Lebanese-Forces.org has posted a reply from Amanat al Fikr As-Siyasi to president Elias Hrawis interview published in Annahar newspaper issue date May 27th, 2003.
Click here to read the reply

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, June 03, 2003 | Permalink

Short Story: The Airport Sniper

The American attendance in Lebanon in the 80s was affected by the success of their intervention in 1958, when about 14.000 American soldiers could calm down civil disturbances.

Lebanon in 1982 however was totally different from Lebanon in the fifties, the PLO was defeated, there was an Israeli and a Syrian army in the country, there were dozens of armed militias, and last but not least the Hezbollah was coming. Lebanon in the eighties was hell on earth.

On October 23, just after dawn 241 Marines died when a truck loaded with TNT blew up a Marine barracks at the International Airport. At almost the same time another truck blew up the French barracks a few kilometers away, killing 56 French troops.

But the incident I will tell you about took place before the 23rd. The Marine battalion, was billeted in a four-story, reinforced concrete building that had earlier served as Israeli headquarters. The building provided limited protection against sniper and indirect fire, but even less protection against any direct fire or car bombs. An extensive perimeter defense was intended to keep car bombers and others away from the building. Armed sentries were posted at regular intervals. There was, however, a limit to the amount of protection that was possible in the middle of a working airport. There were busy roads on both sides of the Marines headquarters building and a parking lot in front of the building.

“TAKE COVER !!! … SNIPER FIRE !!!” those words shattered the morning silence. A civilian was on the ground his head blown to bits by sniper fire. No one knew where it came from or who the sniper was. The days following were marked by death and inuries, one everyday. The sniper was firing only 1 shot a day and either killing or injuring his target. There was a lot of confusion and after 7 deaths and 12 wounded they were able to guess the approximate location of the sniper. It was identified that the shots were coming from the Haret Hrek, Berj el Barajne areas, over 2KM away! That day one of the best Marine Snipers in that battalion requested a high caliber 14.5mm DShK (Russian anti-aircraft/light armored vehicle machine gun) –works great on infantry too-. The following day was marked by one confirmed death, that of another civilian and an unconfirmed one that of the “enemy” sniper. It was in the afternoon when the screams were heard and then a loud “BANG!!!” sent a shiver down the backs of all those present. The Marine Sniper who had requested the high caliber weapon had laid there lifeless for over 6 hours lurking, waiting for the sniper to take his shot. The marine sniper raised his head, then stood up and waved to the other Marines down on the tarmac, confirming he had fired towards the sniper.

Confirmation was finally received but not the way you would expect it. The second day everyone awaited in anticipation, waiting for someone to drop dead or wounded… but that did not happen, the Airport Sniper was never to heard of again.

Posted by Goat on Monday, June 02, 2003 | Permalink

Samir Geagea: L'heure de la liberté a peut-être sonné

L'heure de la liberté a-t-elle sonné pour Samir Geagea, emprisonné au ministère de la Défense, depuis 1994? C'est ce qu'assurent certaines sources loyalistes et que tendent à confirmer les milieux concernés. Selon ces milieux, il est désormais sérieusement question de réviser le statut de prisonnier de M. Geagea et d'envisager sa remise en liberté, sans qu'une date puisse être fixée à cette libération.
Lire le reste de l'article de Magazine de cette semaine

Posted by Naji on Sunday, June 01, 2003 | Permalink