Free Republic

A Lebanese journalist detained on suspicion he participated in the 1985 hijacking of TWA Flight 847 is back home in Beirut after authorities determined they had the wrong man.

Here’s John Kerry having a good time with Nabih Berri, the head of the Amal Movement, and speaker of the Hezbollah dominated Lebanese parliament. What better way to follow up the Taliban deal than to meet with another terrorist hijacker. Back in 1985, Amal and Hezbollah terrorists used the hijacking of TWA Flight 847 to demand the release of imprisoned terrorists. A TWA airliner, Flight 847 en route from Athens to Rome, was hijacked by Shia terrorists of the Hizballah organization who demanded the release of Shia prisoners held in Kuwait, Israel, and Spain. The airliner was forced to fly...

Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad arrived in Lebanon on Wednesday to a hero's welcome and blaze of fanfare that belied the country's rising intercommunal tensions and Western misgivings about his visit. Shouts of "khosh amadi" ("welcome" in Persian) and showers of rice, sweets and petals greeted the Iranian leader as he waved to crowds from an open-topped car after arriving in Beirut at the beginning of a two-day trip. It's Ahmadinejad's first visit to Lebanon, where Iran has cultivated close relationship with Hezbollah, the Shi'ite Islamist group that fought a bitter five-week conflict with Israel in 2006. He was expected to...

Excerpt - WASHINGTON, March 1 (UPI) -- Lebanon's charismatic Druze leader Walid Jumblatt was in Washington this week seeking support from the Bush administration for the pro-democracy March 14 Movement and for the beleaguered Lebanese government led by Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. The leader of the Lebanese Progressive Socialist Party who in the past tended to gravitate more towards the Soviet Union -- at least from a philosophical perspective -- thanked President George W. Bush and French President Jacques Chirac for their help and support in getting the Syrians out of Lebanon. At the same time, Jumblatt raised a worrying...

Beirut - The assassination of Pierre Gemayel means that two more ministers need to resign or be killed in order to bring down the anti-Syrian government. As if one assassination were not enough bloodshed for one day, the murderers proceeded to target another anti-Syrian Member of Parliament - Michel Pharaon. Syria's allies in Lebanon are planning to take the streets on Thursday to demand the government resign. The pro-Syrian allies in Lebanon include Hezbollah, Michel Aoun's political party and Nabih Berri's Amal movement. Syria behind violent overthrow? As documented in the U.N. investigation, Syria has openly threatened Lebanese politicians...

Excerpt - BEIRUT, Lebanon -- Lebanon's prime minister called Israel's blockade of the country illegal on Saturday and the parliament speaker urged Arab nations to break the siege. The calls, however, were not expected to make Israel relent in its refusal of European and U.N. requests to end its blockade of Lebanon's air and seaports. But the effort heightens tension that could further upset the already shaky cease-fire. ~ snip ~ Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said the parliament plans to send a letter to Arab governments to "ask and insist that all Arab planes and ships break the blockade without...

The relations between Russia and the Shiite's religious leadership in Lebanon started to develop in the beginning of the seventies. The spiritual leader of the Lebanese Shia community, Imam Moussa Al-Sadr, visited Moscow in 1972 and asked Soviet authorities to issue humanitarian aid to his people. At the same time cooperation between the Marxist factions of the PLO that were active in Lebanon and Soviet military intelligence – GRU, intensified greatly. Several soviet officers (speaking fluent Arabic) even visited Palestinian terrorist training camps in the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon between 1972-1975. Using their connections in PLO they managed to establish...

In assessing the current phase of events in the Middle East, it is essential to link events in Syria with events in Iran. These, in turn, must be linked to the state of the war in Iraq and conditions in the Arabian Peninsula. The region is of one fabric, to say the least, and it is impossible to understand unfolding events -- the pressure against Syria involving the murder of a former Lebanese prime minister; feints and thrusts with Iran and talk of direct political engagement with the United States; the emergence of a new government in Baghdad, or obstacles...

Oct. 14, 2003 Lebanon won't let Palestinians buy land By JPOST.COM STAFF A bill which would have allowed Palestinians to buy property in Lebanon has been withdrawn, prompting accusations of racism and discrimination, the Arabic Aljazeera network reported. An estimated 390,000 Palestinians live in Lebanon, half of whom live in camps. On Monday any hopes of ever owning their own property were dashed when Lebanese Parliament speaker Nabih Berri withdrew draft legislation which would have lifted a ban on Palestinian refugees from owning property in Lebanon. The current legislation forbids the acquisition of real estate by all non-Lebanese persons "who...