Archives for July 2006

Haifa Rocket attack Wounds 5 Israeli Civilians Israel Bombs Numerous Lebanese Towns Again Wave of Protests in Muslim, Western Capitals A wave of protests swept the Middle East and Europe on Friday against the Israeli war on Lebanon. Thousands rallied in Sanaa in Yemen; in Amman, Jordan; in Cairo, Egypt; in Tripoli, Libya; and in […]

Grand Ayatollah Sistani Condemns Israel The Arabic original of Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani’s fatwa condemning the Israeli attack on Lebanon is here. Someone sent me an English translation by email. I think the fatwa should be read as a sign that Sistani is extremely anxious that the Lebanon war will send Shiite Iraq spinning out […]

Evacuation of Westerners from Lebanon Why are We the Story? Patrick McGreevy writes from Beirut: ‘ Why Are We the Story? We woke up this morning to a crowded sea. From our Beirut balcony, we could see a steady parade of warships, ferries, cruise ships, helicopter ships, and one aircraft carrier. Helicopters ferried evacuees to […]

Israelis Bomb Beirut, Baalbak Again Tank Incursion in South Massive Displacements, Humanitarian Crisis “Israel’s disproportionate use of force and collective punishment must stop.” – UN Secretary General Kofi Annan [Red herring alert:Someone on the Web is questioning this quote or complaining that I didn’t mention that Kofi also condemned Hizbullah. Oh for heaven’s sakes. I […]

Sistani Issues Impassioned Plea 48 Dead in Civil War Violence Thursday Two bombings, in Baghdad and north of Beiji, killed 10 persons on Thursday. In addition, 38 corpses showed up on the streets of Baghdad, victims of faith-based reprisal killings. Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani issued his strongest plea yet for Iraqis to cease their faith-based […]

Parsi Guest Editorial: Action Against Iran a Mistake ‘ July 20, 2006 Statement from Dr. Trita Parsi, Phd, author of Treacherous Triangle-The Secret Dealings of Iran, Israel and the United States (Yale University Press, 2007) It would be a serious mistake to follow the advice of Neo-con commentators who are now agitating for US military […]

“No More Infrastructure to Destroy” Patrick McGreevy writes from Beirut: ‘ Beirut is tense. Some people are expressing worries that things could get very difficult. The worse-case scenarios are on people’s minds, but so far there is no sign of social disorder among Lebanese citizens. AUB’s foreign faculty and staff are slowly being evacuated. The […]

2 Arab-Israeli Boys Killed by Hezbollah in Nazareth Chemical Stores Moved from Haifa Hizbullah fired many katyusha rockets into Israel again on Wednesday, killing two Arab-Israeli boys in Nazareth and lightly wounding 9 others with shrapnel. Hizbullah’s katyushas are extremely imprecise, so that in firing them at Israel the fighters are engaging in indiscriminate fire […]

Israel Kills 57 in Lebanon Arbour Warns War Crimes are Prosecutable The Daily Star reports, ‘ Israeli fighter-bombers also destroyed nearly 20 residential homes and buildings in Lebanon in the early morning hours of Wednesday and continued air raids in the South, the Bekaa and Beirut’s southern suburbs. At least 12 Lebanese, including children, were […]