LebaneseForces.com: Fighting for Freedom

Samir Geagea Speaks to LF Sweden

On Sunday the 28th of August, Samir Geagea spoke to the LF in Sweden over the phone. Click here to listen to his speech.
(Thank you EDI)

Posted by 40-Tactical on Monday, August 29, 2005 | Permalink

LF Australia BBQ

The LF Members in Melbourne Australia held a B.B.Q. Dinner at Dandenong City on sunday the 28th of August to celebrate the freedom of Dr Geagea. The Dinner was attended by Lebanese Forces Members and Friends. Click here to see the pictures.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Monday, August 29, 2005 | Permalink

Hakim Poster

From 3agib: "I was in Kadisha Valley (Annoubin) near Bcharreh yesterday on a walk with my friends when before getting to the oldest Maronite monastery (Annoubin Monastery) I found this great poster hanging between two large trees. It took me around 3 hours to get there walking and it looks like it must have been really difficult to put up that poster. I don't know how these guys did it."
Click here to see the poster.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Monday, August 29, 2005 | Permalink

Letter from Girgis Khoury

This hand written letter came to us from Girgis Khoury who wanted to share it with the LF community. Click here to view it. [Thank you Bob]

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, August 24, 2005 | Permalink

Geagea urges participation in LF memorial

Lebanese Forces (LF) leader Samir Geagea urged his supporters to take part in the annual memorial service commemorating those LF members killed during the Civil War, in what is seen as another move to revive the LF spirit and reinstate its political role after 11 years of dormancy.

"Martyrdom has become an integral part of the spirit, the mind and the memory of the Lebanese Forces, and it motivated us to persevere in the face of all forms of persecution," said Samir Geagea in a statement released via the LF Beirut office.

The LF martyrs day is celebrated each year on September 11 at the Lady of Lebanon Cathedral in Harissa north of Beirut, where over 10,000 names of LF members are prayed for, that were killed during clashes with Palestinian refuges and later with Syrian forces during the 15-year Civil War.

"You have maintained the tradition of celebrating our martyrs' day, turning the martyrs into guardian angels that will watch over us from heaven. I was with you in spirit as I prayed along with you from behind the walls of my prison," said Geagea.

Geagea is currently in Paris recuperating after his release last month from 11 years of imprisonment at the Defense Ministry, and is not expected back until October.

"For reasons that you know, I can not be with you in body but I will be with you in sprit and praying alongside you for the martyrs that died for Lebanon and so that we could remain," said Geagea in his speech.

The celebration is being viewed by the party as an important step toward the revival of a party "silenced" for over 11 years.

"The LF is regaining its spirit again, now its members and supporters can meet publicly without fearing prosecution or suppression," said LF spokesperson Antoinette Geagea.

Since Geagea's release, the LF has been undergoing a makeover and expansion, with the opening of a new office designated for international relations and another focusing on local interests.

"Precision and punctuality are things the LF aspire to as a group and have maintained even while its leader was jailed. So we are just building on what we already had but kept undercover during the past 11 years," said Geagea.

The revival of traditions is to be expected, said LF MP Edmond Naim, as the LF is turning into a "real political party."

"They are now in the process of writing and establishing a clear-cut agenda outlining what they stand for and what they intend to work towards, with the general drive toward defending Lebanon as this is why the LF was originally founded," said Naim in a phone interview with The Daily Star.

Naim has been in contact with Samir Geagea on a regular basis, and had a conversation with him last week in which Geagea sounded "healthy and determined," and dismissed reports he will be back in Lebanon next month for the event.

"While nothing is finalized until Geagea actually comes back, one of the first steps will revolve around unification of Lebanon's voices and reaching an agreement with the various political parties," said Naim.

"It is expected that some conflicts and clashes of opinions will occur, but that is part of any political environment and in the end the resolution will be reflective of the majority and will be for the good of Lebanon," added Naim.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, August 24, 2005 | Permalink

Explosion in Zalka

Explosion in Lebanon near Hotel Promenade and Starbucks in Zalka. Reports have stated that a 20KG bomb was placed at the entrance of Moussa Center. Five people were wounded with extensive material damage. Pictures available here.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, August 23, 2005 | Permalink

Bachir Gemayel Banner

For Bachir, and with Bachir always. It has been almost 23 years now since he was elected president and then assassinated, but to those who love him, Bachir is still alive in them, with them, for them always. In the reminiscence of the day Cheikh Bachir Gemayel was elected president, August 23rd 1982, a giant poster will be hung at Sessine square in Achrafieh on the 23rd of August 2005, at 5:30 P.M. Once the poster is hung in Sessine, the crowd will proceed to the Kataeb house in Achrafieh where Cheikh Bachir was assassinated, to pray for his soul. [From BachirGemayel.org]

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, August 23, 2005 | Permalink

The Official Lebanese Forces Website

For the latest Lebanese Forces related news and news related to Lebanon, then visit the official Lebanese Forces website located at Lebanese-Forces.org.

For LF pictures, visit LFpics.com.
For articles and information related to Samir Geagea, visit SamirGeagea.com

Posted by 40-Tactical on Sunday, August 21, 2005 | Permalink

Old Samir Geagea Speech

Dedicated emailed me an old speech that was given by Samir Geagea during the war. I have the actual video of this speech and I might put it online soon but for now you can download the audio file. Its 12MB, around an hour long and it deals a lot with General Aoun. [MP3 12MB]

Posted by 40-Tactical on Thursday, August 18, 2005 | Permalink

Samir Geagea in Perfect Health

The medical tests Samir Geagea has undergone in Paris show him in perfect health, the press office of the Lebanese Forces commander in the French capital said in a statement carried by the Beirut daily Al Balad.

The statement said Geagea, 53, had resumed normal life, beginning his day by reading newspapers at 8 in the morning and then taking long walks.

He is in constant touch by internet with senior aides in Beirut, who keep him posted on all events at home minute-by-minute, the statement added.

LF parliament member George Adwan is currently visiting with Geagea in Paris, according to the statement.

Reports making the rounds in Beirut say Geagea plans to go, or has already gone, to Belgium from France and would travel with his wife Sitrida Geagea to the United States from Brussels.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, August 17, 2005 | Permalink

Hazihi Chahadati & Al Jabal

The books Hazihi Chahadati and AL Jabal - 7akika la Tar7am by Paul Andari are now freely available at most bookshops in Lebanon. Each book is priced at $10. For large orders a discount will be given, contact us for more information.

Update: Please do not contact us if you only want one copy of the book. Also, if you live outside of Lebanon unless you want a large quantity we can't help you.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, August 10, 2005 | Permalink

Lebanese Forces Now Legal

The Lebanese government has set up a half-Christian, half-Muslim national commission of 12 members to write a new Lebanese electoral law under the chairmanship of prestigious elder statesman Fouad Butros, the Beirut media reported on Tuesday.

The Butros commission is made up of seasoned jurists and non-partisan legal experts. The government has drawn the mechanism of the commission's work and defined its mission as "proposing the best methods to reform the electoral system…to ensure true and fair representation."

The commission members are: Ghaleb Mahmasani, Michel Tabet, Abdul Salam Sheib, Ziad Baroud, Zohair Shokor, Nawaf Salam, Paul Salem, Fayez Hajj Shahine, Khaldoun Naja, Ghassan Abu Alwan and Mrs. Arwa Akmaji.

The cabinet also decided in a regular session under Premier Seniora at the Grand Serail to 'liberate' the formation of political parties, canceling requirement of advance approval by the Council of Ministers and returning to the 1908 Ottoman Code that had negated the prior approval provision, according to An Nahar.

Telecommunications Minister Marwan Hamadeh said Samir Geagea's Lebanese Forces would automatically benefit from the new law, legally canceling a 1994 government resolution that outlawed the LF.

Saad Hariri's Tayyar Al Mustaqbal and Gen. Aoun's Free Patriotic Movement will also become political parties once they post a notice with the interior ministry. Ex-Premier Salim Hoss, however, was the first to post such a notice for his National Action Forum.

The cabinet session lasted 5 1/2 hours. It was the first to be held at the Grand Serail within the framework of an understanding between President Lahoud and Premier Seniora to rotate the sessions between the Baabda Palace and the Grand Serail, scrapping the mid-city headquarters for cabinet meetings.

[via]

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, August 09, 2005 | Permalink

Pictures from Around the World (updated)

Posted by 40-Tactical on Thursday, August 04, 2005 | Permalink

Efforts Underway to Reopen MTV

Legislator Butros Harb has asked Speaker Berri to speed up the process of convening a plenary session of parliament to vote on a bill to reopen the Murr-Television station that was closed in 2002.

The MTV was opposed to President Lahoud's Syrian-backed regime when it was closed by a court verdict that found the station guilty of "agitation designed to sabotage Lebanon's relations with a sister country."

The network's owner, Gabrielle Murr, was elected to parliament in by-elections in 2002 on an anti-Syria platform, but his victory at the polls was later annulled by the nation's Higher Constitutional Council in what was seen at the time as a Syrian-inspired vendetta.

The MTV closure, the first in a country that prides itself of having the freest media in the Arab World, sparked mass protest demonstrations on the streets of Beirut, which went in vain.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Thursday, August 04, 2005 | Permalink

Media Files from the Day of Geagea's Release

Pictures of Samir Geagea and celebrations
Short video of Samir Geagea giving Speech [6.8MB] Local Mirror
Video of Samir Geagea full speech low quality [18MB Quicktime]
Video of Samir Geagea full speech medium quality [40MB Mpeg]
Video of Samir Geagea full speech high quality [214MB Mpeg]
Audio of Samir Geagea's Speech [3MB]
Read Samir Geagea's Speech in Arabic
Read Samir Geagea's Speech in English

Credits: Audio file by Codewarrior. Pictures taken from Reuters and AP. Medium quality video from Johnian. Short video and high quality video taken from Forces-Libanaises.com. Speech text located on Lebanese-Forces.org.

Note: Problems playing the Mpeg video? click here.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, August 03, 2005 | Permalink