“War in the region has never been due to a decision taken by Lebanon. Any war is a direct result of inaction on the part of the international community and the failure to move seriously on the peace process,” the 39-year-old son of assassinated Lebanese Premier Rafik Hariri said in Beirut, ahead of a three-day visit to Germany starting Sunday.

Israel and Lebanon have traded threats in recent months over the apparent build-up of forces by Hezbollah along the border between the two states. In 2006 Israel invaded southern Lebanon and bombed Beirut in response to what it saw as the Hezbollah threat.

Hezbollah and Lebanon’s other political factions have returned to the so-called National Dialogue despite tensions over the fact that Hezbollah — now a part of the government — refuses to concede that it having its own heavily armed militia is at odds with democratic politics.

Hariri brushes over the arms issue.

“This is not the first time that Hezbollah has been part of the government. This goes to show how the Israelis are always looking for pretexts. Hezbollah is represented in Parliament as a result of democratic elections.”

The group, which has vowed to keep its arsenal to defend the southern border has 13 members in Parliament and two ministers in Hariri’s government.

Hariri said he will travel on Sunday to Berlin to “discuss the regional situation and how to protect Lebanon from regional conflicts.”

Berlin has been active in Middle East peace moves this year, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak have all held talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel.

“All wars with Israel, in which Lebanon has been the victim of, have been launched by Israel, not by us, and Lebanon is the one who paid a very high price, in human lives, displaced people and destroyed infrastructure,” Hariri said.

“The problem is that we live in a volatile region. It all boils down to what got us to be in this situation of regional instability, and the answer to that is failure to do anything on the peace process, particularly for the Palestinians and their rights,” he said.

Hariri said his talks in Berlin will tackle ways to boost cooperation with Germany which contributes to the United Nations peacekeeping force that monitors Lebanon’s borders with Israel.

Lebanon’s National Dialogue has the aim of putting in place a defense strategy for the country. Some parties have objected to Hezbollah’s military activities and called for its disarmament.

“Lebanon is a democracy. And any democracy has its differences. Is there unity among the Lebanese on absolutely every single issue? Frankly, no, because in reality this is simply impossible. But there is definitely unity among the Lebanese on dialogue, on managing our differences, and on providing safety and civic rights to our citizens,” he said.

Hariri warned of growing political extremism given the failure to date of the Mideast peace process.

“Today fighting extremism is not the responsibility of one country alone, it is the responsibility of the whole world. In our region, for instance, extremists are unfortunately gaining audience, at the expense of moderates, by simply asking one simple question: Show us one achievement in the domain of Palestinians rights to a state, a capital, a right of return, any domain of their rights, after 62 years of plight, of which almost four decades of attempts at a negotiated settlement,” he said.

Lebanon has suffered a series of terror attacks over the last five years, including the massive bombing that killed Rafik Hariri in 2005. Many have blamed the wave of killings on Syria, which denied the accusations but was then forced to end 29 years of military occupation in Lebanon.

Saad Hariri as prime minister, has attempted to rebuild relations with Damascus.

“Our relations with Syria are on the right track. We are approaching them in a very positive attitude, and we are met with a very positive attitude by Damascus. We are two neighbors, united by Arab identity, and we have common interests in economy, in trade, in security, in culture, and on a regional level, we are facing the same challenges as a result of the absence of progress on peace.”

Hariri said he will be visiting Damascus again “in the coming weeks for more in-depth discussions on all these issues.”

However Hariri awaits progress on the troubled Hague tribunal that has attempted to solve his father’s murder — with a former UN investigator, Detlev Mehlis, saying recently it may never be cleared up.

“I have complete faith in the Tribunal. Whatever the results from it, I will accept.

“This has always been my position, and it will remain the same,” he said. DPA

Jumblatt “called on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to turn the page on the past, admitting that he had in a moment of anger said inappropriate things.

The remarks by Jumblatt, once one of Syria’s fiercest critics, came amid reports of an expected visit by him to Damascus for talks with al-Assad.

“In order to consolidate Lebanon-Syria relations, between the two peoples and two states and between the Druze of Lebanon and Syria, can we now overlook this moment and open a new page?” he asked .

Jumblatt was referring to a speech he made on February 14, 2007, the second anniversary of the murder in Beirut by a massive car bomb of Lebanon’s former PM Rafik Hariri.

In his 2007 speech, Jumblatt branded Assad “the dictator of Damascus… a monkey, snake and a butcher, a liar… and a criminal.”

On Saturday he said his remarks were “unworthy and unusual, unsuited to the ethics of politics even during a quarrel.”

Following the assassination of Hariri in 2005 Jumblatt accused Syria of killing both Hariri ( PM Saad Hariri’s father) and his own father Kamal in 1977.
Syria denies killing Hariri. A special court has yet to indict anyone for the killing.

He said he would not personally go on March 16 to the tomb of his father for the anniversary of his assassination, in order to “turn this personal page for a new future.”

Outrage in Lebanon over the assassination and international pressure forced Syria to withdraw its troops from Lebanon in April 2005, ending three decades of military presence in its smaller neighbor.

The Druze leader has come under fire since defecting last August from the Arab and western backed March14 coalition he helped create in order to move closer to the Hezbollah-led opposition supported by Syria and Iran.

The Druze are an offshoot of Islam, comprising less than 10 percent of Lebanon’s population. They have traditionally punched above their weight, leading a major revolt against French mandate rule in the 1920s.

Jumblatt said his U-turn was necessary to preserve the peace and spare Lebanon a civil war

“I am willing to sacrifice everything for the civil peace even if my decisions are not popular,” he said. “One must at times swim against the current.”

Asked on Saturday if his comments were aimed at preparing the ground for a Damascus visit, Jumblatt said: “If Syria’s leaders can consign this incident to history, they may decide on that. If I receive an invitation, I would have no objections.”

The troops were driving in the area of Rashaya al-Fukhar and three other peacekeepers were wounded, said Col. Diego Fulco, a spokesman for the force, known as UNIFIL.

France’s Defense Ministry said those killed were both French and that the vehicle fell into a ravine during a reconnaissance mission.

The peacekeeping mission has about 12,100 military personnel from 30 countries. AP

“I am surprised by continued references in the Syrian letters to the Cairo agreement as if it still regulates Lebanese-Palestinian ties. Lebanon annulled the Cairo agreement more than 25 years ago,” Salam said.

Syria’s ambassador Bashar al-Jaafari snapped back saying that Ban’s report on the implementation of resolution 1701 should focus on Israeli violations of Lebanese sovereignty rather than including Syria in it.

“Any condition linked to Lebanese sovereignty is an internal Lebanese issue in which Syria does not interfere,” he said.

When asked to answer a question on Lebanon’s abolishment of the Cairo agreement, Jaafari said: “Lebanese-Palestinian contacts are a Lebanese-Palestinian issue.”

“The situation of Palestinians in Lebanon is governed by agreements” between the two sides, the Syrian ambassador added.

“Things on issues related to Lebanon are now different,” Salam told An Nahar newspaper. “We are now interfering in all issues related to us. This without any doubt influences the nature of discussions in the Council.”

Police say Saturday’s attacker was in a rickshaw when he blew himself up at a security checkpoint in the town of Saidu Sharif. Officials say two soldiers and at least two policemen were among the dead.

On Friday, back-to-back suicide attacks killed at least 55 people in the eastern city of Lahore. Witnesses say the blasts targeted a convoy of military vehicles. At least 10 of the dead were soldiers.

Five smaller explosions were reported in Lahore following the attack, causing panic but no deaths.

On Monday, another suicide bombing in Lahore killed 13 people and wounded more than 80 others.

Taliban militants have claimed responsibility for the violence.

A spokesman for the group is reported as saying that more attacks will be carried out unless Pakistan’s army stops operations against Taliban fighters in the country’s tribal regions bordering Afghanistan.

The military action triggered a wave of deadly suicide and other attacks late last year, killing hundreds of people across the country. But the violence had significantly declined since the beginning of the new year. vOA

Israeli soldiers have used tear gas against Palestinian women protesting at the Qalandiya crossing in the occupied West Bank near Jerusalem.

Scuffles broke out on Saturday when dozens of women tried to push through one of the crossing’s gates.

The women had gathered at the crossing chanting “Jerusalem is Arab, our eternal capital”, briefly planting a Palestinian flag on one of its gates.

Israel has imposed a 48-hour closure of the West Bank, not letting anyone in or out before Sunday dawn.

The Israeli military said four protesters were detained but no one was injured.

‘Raising tensions’

Al Jazeera’s Nour Odeh, reporting from Ramallah, said the risk of skirmishes is increasing when Palestinians see more Israeli soldiers on the ground, as they do during the 48-hour lock-down.

“What this closure does is raise tensions and so we’ve seen clashes at the Qalandiya checkpoint as well as in the village of Beit Ummar close to Hebron,” she said.

The clashes had been limited and had not resulted in many injuries, said our correspondent said.

Israeli imposed the closure amid reports of possible protests by Palestinians around the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem after Friday prayers.

Tension was high in East Jerusalem on Friday.

Some Palestinians threw rocks at Israeli troops. After men under the age of 50 were denied entry to the al-Aqsa mosque, hundreds of men prayed at the gates of the Old City.

Clashes erupted last week after Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, announced plans to include two sites in the West Bank on a list of Israeli heritage sites.

An announcement from the interior ministry that plans to build 1,600 new Jewish homes in East Jerusalem had been approved also contributed to the tensions.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem after the 1967 war with the Arabs and built settlements that are considered illegal under international law. Al Jazeera

“No state in the world could co-exist with a revolution,” Geagea said.

Geagea said weapons outside the control of the state either in Palestinian camps or in bases outside the shantytowns or with Hezbollah are a sign of abnormality.

Geagea said the national dialogue is meant to discuss all weapons outside of the state’s control, whether it be the Palestinian’s or Hezbollah’s arms.He added : “It would be better to continue with dialogue even if practical results were not achieved.”

March 14 alliance:
In response to the recent concerted attacks by members of March 8 alliance , Geagea said

“Critics attempting to isolate the LF are also targeting the March 14 alliance”,

Geagea said the annual March 14 alliance meeting set to take place at the Bristol Hotel on Sunday is a routine meeting that the coalition has held since 2005. Earlier in the week, General Secretariat Coordinator Fares Soueid said the March 14 alliance would re-launch a unified political vision during the conference.

Christian community

Geagea said that there have been various attempts throughout history to isolate the Christian church, but they have failed. He added that the Bkirki initiative undertaken by Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir in 2007 to reach a consensus among Christians on a candidate to replace former President Emile Lahoud – did not fail, because the Christians are united by the national dialogue.

There are no personal conflicts among Christian parties, according to the LF leader. They just have different points of view , he said.