Examiner Staff

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 News

Kahwaji says freeing hostages is a top priority

jean-kahwaji-army(ARSAL, LEBANON) — Army Commander General Jean Kahwaji assured Lebanese families that the military command in Arsal will spare no effort to secure the quick release of missing soldiers believed to be held by Syrian militants.

“The issue of the captured personnel is the Army’s top priority at this time. The command will not bargain over the blood of its martyrs and wounded or the freedom of its missing soldiers,” Kahwaji said. “The Army is ready for all possibilities in order to secure the safety of its missing personnel, and to bring them back to their families and their institution.”

Earlier Tuesday the Army command confirmed the death of a soldier who was killed in the fighting against jihadist militants in Arsal over a week ago. He was among 19 other military casualties.

In the meantime, Kahwaji said the Lebanese Army saved Lebanon from jihadist before they could declare their own state.

“The Army saved Lebanon from killer ‘sectarian strife-seekers’ by the Arsal battle,” Kahwagi told local newspaper As-Safir in remarks published Monday.

“Had the Army lost, (jihadists) would have entered Akkar, and from there they would have reached the sea and declared their own state.”

At least 60 militants were killed, in addition to 19 troops and over 15 civilians in five days of clashes triggered by the arrest of a Syrian militant, Imad Ahmad Jomaa, on August 2nd.

Over 20 security personnel, including 10 troops, are still missing, believed to be held hostage by the militants who retreated into rugged territory to the east of Arsal under an agreement brokered by the Muslim Scholars Committee.

Families of missing soldiers and security forces Tuesday protested against their kidnapping, while expressing full solidarity with the Army in its fight against terrorism.

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 Business

Delays in offshore gas licensing bad news for Lebanon

lebanon-offshore-drilling(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — The decision to delay gas-licensing for another six months has raised concern that Lebanon may miss a chance to tap potential gas weather in the Mediterranean sea in the near future.

The London-based Economist Intelligence Unit said that delays reflected the government’s failure to ratify two decrees that would outline terms of exploration and production.

It also said the committee in charge of reviewing decrees was not meeting regularly and was struggling to find consensus.

The EIU went on to caution Lebanon that these delays will erode confidence in the Lebanese government’s abilities to maintain international oil interests.

It pointed out that major international oil companies had little clarity on contractual terms for the country’s offshore reserves, as well as on the number of blocks that would be auctioned.

The EIU says that Lebanon was lagging behind other neighboring countries in the Levant Basin in this process, and Israel was already reaching the phase of monetizing its gas reserves.

It added that Lebanon could have started the drilling work by late next year if the government had approved the decrees and if authorities had completed the auction by mid-August of this year.

The EIU warned that these delays meant the economy would not benefit from hydrocarbon proceeds any time soon, especially since there was no certainty that the country was sitting on commercially viable oil and gas deposits.

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 Entertainment

Assi Helani reschedules TV interview due to “instability”

(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — Lebanese singer Assi Helani postponed an interview with Lebanese TV host Paula Ya’qoubian of Future TV due to “instability” in Lebanon, according to Helani’s media office.

Ya’qoubian, who hosts the show “With Paula”, was scheduled to air the interview on August 6.

Helani cancelled the interview due to unstable security conditions and the unfortunate conditions faced by the Lebanese army, referring to the ongoing clashes in Arsal.

The media release said Helani would reschedule the interview at a later time.

On August 4, Helani launched a new song titled “Leil El Watan” on his YouTube channel.

Watch below:

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 Entertainment, News

Alamuddin turns down UN offer to investigate Gaza war crimes

(GENEVA, SWITZERLAND) — George Clooney’s fiancee Amal Alamuddin has turned down an offer to join human rights experts in probing Israel’s Gaza offensive and investigating alleged human rights violations and war crimes in Gaza.

The United Nations offered the position as one of three top experts appointed to a commission by the UN Human Rights Council, which ordered the investigation last month.

“I am honored to have received the offer, but given existing commitments – including eight ongoing cases – unfortunately could not accept this role,” said Alamuddin. ‘I wish my colleagues who will serve on the commission courage and strength in their endeavors.”

Alamuddin went on to say she was horrified by the situation in the occupied Gaza Strip, particularly the civilian casualties that have been caused.

“I strongly believe that there should be an independent investigation and accountability for crimes that have been committed,” she said.

Alamuddin has previously worked with the international tribunal examining the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri and assisted ex-UN head Kofi Annan in efforts to make peace in Syria.

She is reportedly due to wed Clooney in September.

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 Business, News

Beirut’s only handicap-friendly taxi could close

(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — Disabled Lebanese citizens took another hit on Monday as Beirut’s wheelchair users faced the closure of the only taxi company that caters to their needs.

The London Taxi company, which advertises itself as the “sole provider” of wheelchair-friendly taxis, is facing financial trouble that could force it to shut down as early as this year.

London Taxi vehicles are equipped with a ramp suitable for electronic and manual wheelchair users.

The company is facing financial distress as a result of low tourist numbers, an ongoing security crisis, and vehicle gas consumption.

The Daily Star also reports that the company says “people have an impression that our prices are more expensive than other taxi companies.”

Although prices are similar to other Beirut taxi companies, London Taxi’s handicapped-accessible vehicles consume twice the amount of gas as regular taxi cars.

London Taxi works exclusively with the Lebanese Physical Handicapped Union, which makes the closure particularly difficult for the hundreds of disabled Lebanese they cater to.

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 Photos

PHOTOS: United Cedars Foundation host Lebanese-Hawaiian Picnic

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IMG_1673(SHELBY TOWNSHIP, MI) — 300 people attended the United Cedars Foundation (UCF) Annual Summer Picnic at Stony Creek Metropark in Shelby Township on Sunday.

Read the full article here.

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 City Beat, Detroit

United Cedars Foundation host Lebanese-Hawaiian Picnic

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(SHELBY TOWNSHIP, MI) — 300 people attended the United Cedars Foundation (UCF) Annual Summer Picnic at Stony Creek Metropark in Shelby Township on Sunday.

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The group hosted what they called the “Lebanese Hawaiian Picnic for Charity.”

“We took the opportunity to do something a little different in the Lebanese community,” said Walid Korkmaz, president of the United Cedars Foundation.

Tom Sokol and his family wore Hawaiian attire to the picnic, something he said his kids “(looked) forward to.”

“They make it fun. They make it different. How many times do you see Lebanese in Hawaiian outfits?”

Sokol says he feels welcomed at UCF fundraisers and events because “political sects,” which often divide Lebanese communities, are “left out of the group.”

“I belong to many organizations in Metro Detroit and I feel that this is the first organization to represent all Lebanese — from Zahle to Tebnine, Zgharta to Achrafieh. I really feel this club encompasses everybody and focuses on what’s important — charity,” said Sokol.

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 City Beat, Detroit, News

Local Palestinians mourn Gazan death toll at St. Sharbel

IMG_1659-001(WARREN, MI) — Nearly 50 Palestinian-American Christians from the Taybeh American Youth Association (TAYA) attended St. Sharbel Maronite Catholic Church on Sunday, to pray for the victims of the Palestinian-Israeli clashes over the last few weeks, which have claimed the lives of hundreds of Gazans.

TAYA is a nonprofit cultural organization that was created to reconnect Palestinian-Americans from Taybeh, Palestine to their cultural roots. Taybeh is a Palestinian village in the West Bank, 15 kilometers northeast of Jerusalem.

The memorial mass recognized one of Taybeh’s residents, Jalila Khourieh, who was killed by Israeli aggression, according to thIMG_1663-001e group.

“(Khourieh) is the first Christian woman that was martyred in Gaza. Her son lost both legs and her husband is in a coma at this time,” said TAYA president August Awwad.

Awwad, who was born in Jersualem, says he visited Gaza in recent years and called it “one of the poorest cities on earth.” He also called the ongoing clashes “very sad.”

“We wanted to have special services for all the innocent children that were slaughtered by the Israeli army and their savage way of indiscriminate killing,” he told Lebanese Examiner following the mass.

Juliette Boutros brought her family to pray for Gazan victims. They, like many other Palestinian-American parishioners, wore the trademark Palestinian keffiyeh around their necks.

“I want to get the word out that there are innocent human beings being killed and people are only seeing one side of the story,” Boutros said. “These are innocent people caught in this war and they’ve lost everything — no food, no water, no clothes on their backs, dead children, dead women.”

Boutros called on other ethnic communities to join in united prayer.

“We have to come together as a community — Lebanese, Palestinian, Chaldean — and pray, not only for the Gazans, for the Lebanese, and for the Iraqi Christians,” she said.

Awwad remains hopeful that unity between cultures and religions will help Gazans move forward. In one particular case, Awwad said the Archbishop in Gaza told the Muslim Imam that if their mosque is bombed, they could use the church as a place of worship.

“This shows you that in Palestine, as well as in Lebanon, there is no difference between Muslims and Christians,” he said. “This is something that people are trying to use in order to make people believe that this is a religious war rather than an occupation. This is an occupation that has been going on for 60 years.”

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 City Beat, Detroit, Lifestyle

Report: Dearborn second on terrorist watch list

(DEARBORN, MI) — The Detroit suburb of Dearborn, with a population of 96,000 people, has more residents on the federal government’s terrorist watch list than any city in the United States other than New York, according to a report released Tuesday.

The Intercept, an online news site that investigates national security issues, reported Dearborn’s standing based on leaked intelligence documents. The Associated Press reported on the same documents last week, but did not include the Dearborn information.

The Intercept reports Dearborn’s large Muslim population likely accounts for the city’s high number of residents on the terrorist watch list. The Top 5 cities on the list, according to the leaked documents, include:

1. New York City
2. Dearborn 
3. Houston 
4. San Diego 
5. Chicago

“Given that there has not been a Dearborn resident who has ever committed an act of terrorism in the homeland, nor any significant pattern of residents being involved in international terrorism, we have serious concerns that federal law enforcement views Dearborn as a suspect community primarily based on its Arab and Muslim demographics,” said CAIR-MI Executive Director Dawud Walid.

“Such a disparity suggests that the Arab-American community has been disproportionality and unfairly targeted for inclusion on terrorist watch lists,” the Arab Civil Rights League said in a statement.

Local Arab American leaders are now calling for a Congressional investigation into the reports.

Read “The Intercept” article here.

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 News

Report: Hariri to donate $15 million to Arsal residents

lebanon-saad-hariri-arsal(ARSAL, LEBANON) — Former Lebanese Prime Minister and head of the Mustaqbal Movement Saad Hariri informed current Prime Minister Tammam Salam of his intention to make a personal donation to aid the residents of Arsal, Lebanon, who were affected by the army’s clashes with Islamists early this week.

Hariri will supposedly donate 15 million dollars to the northeastern town.

According to the report, the funds will go to reconstructing damaged houses and restoring infrastructure in the region.

Clashes broke out between the army and Islamists on August 2 following the military’s arrest of prominent al-Nusra Front member Imad Jomaa.

Many soldiers were killed and wounded in the unrest and heavy damage was reported in Arsal.

Saudi Arabia announced later during the week that a billion dollar grant to the army will be given to help combat terrorism.

Hariri made his surprise return to Lebanon on Friday in order to manage the spending of the Saudi grant. The former premier had repeatedly claimed that his three-year absence in Lebanon was due to security reasons.

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