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1. Ahmad Abu Adass In 2005, the last year of his life, Ahmad Abu Adass was 22 and still living with his parents in Beirut, Lebanon. He was kind and liked people, his friends later told investigators, but none of them thought he was very sophisticated. The best way to describe him was simple, one said. He was generous and a little naïve. He was very weak, physically. A Sunni Muslim of Palestinian descent, Adass had become interested in religion and now spent many hours at the Arab University Mosque near his home. It was there, after a prayer session,...

EXCLUSIVE - Lebanese Official Claims To Breitbart: NATO 'Okayed' Turkey's Downing Of Russian Jet. [ Full title ]. Turkey could only have shot down a Russian Su-24 military jet after securing permission from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), charged Lebanon's Druze leader Walid Jumblatt in an exclusive interview with Breitbart. The Turks cannot afford to shoot down a Russian plane, being a member of NATO, without asking the permission of NATO. They have to ask NATO. It's NATO, said Jumblatt, a member of parliament and leader of Lebanon's Progressive Socialist Party. Jumblatt is considered the leader of Lebanon's historic...

Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt said he wished that countries still supporting the Syrian regime would draw lessons from the "civilized event" in Egypt and allow their own people to practice democracy. "Egypt and the Arab world have lived extraordinary historic moments in the past two days with President Mohammad Mursi taking the presidency, ushering in a new era and a new stage," Jumblatt said in his weekly article to be published by the PSP's weekly newspaper Al-Anbaa. "If a lesson is to be drawn from this it is that injustice cannot last indefinitely. I wish that some states...

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblatt said the issue of Hezbollah's arms can only be resolved via the National Dialogue and without resorting to sectarian partisanship, in remarks published Saturday. Commenting on the Sidon sit-in demanding the demilitarization of the resistance party, Jumblatt told An-Nahar: "The defense strategy should be formulated in a stable atmosphere away from tensions and sectarian partisanship." "This issue [Hezbollah's arms] cannot be resolved by blocking roads and disrupting people's lives in Sidon, the south and other areas," he added. On Wednesday, Sheikh Ahmad Assir, a Sidon-based Islamist and critic of Hezbollah's arsenal, blocked the...

Another grenade exploded Saturday in the Tripoli wheat market of Bab al-Tabbaneh neighborhood in the northern Lebanon city of Tripoli , according to local reports... This is the second such incident in the same district within 2 days. Nobody was reportedly injured, but some property was damaged. A grenade exploded outside a Sunni Muslim cemetery in the same impoverished district on Friday evening, without causing any casualties or damage. Some reports pointed to Hezbollah as being behind a terror campaign to assume power in Lebanon. Hezbollah reportedly is exerting pressure on the Tripoli MPs to support its candidate for the...

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...

BEIRUT: Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt called over the weekend for a ban on flights from Iran to Beirut's airport, accusing Hizbullah of flying in arms from the Islamic Republic. At a news conference on Saturday, the outspoken MP also called for the expulsion of Iranian Ambassador Mohammad Reza Shibani and the sacking of the head of security at the airport, General Ayman Shoucair, over his alleged links to Hizbullah During the press conference at his residence in Mukhtara, Jumblatt showed reporters what he said was an exchange of mail between Defense Minister Elias Murr and army intelligence...

The Talk Shows Sunday, October 21st, 2007 Guests to be interviewed today on major television talk shows: FOX NEWS SUNDAY (Fox Network): Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and former Gov. Mike Huckabee, R-Ark., presidential candidates.MEET THE PRESS (NBC): Comedian Stephen Colbert; Doris Kearns Goodwin, presidential historian; Sally Bedell Smith, author of "For Love of Politics: Bill and Hillary Clinton: The White House Years."FACE THE NATION (CBS): Former Gov. Mitt Romney, R-Mass., presidential candidate.THIS WEEK (ABC): Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., presidential candidate.LATE EDITION (CNN) : Reps. Jane Harman, D-Calif., and Peter Hoekstra, R-Mich.; World Bank President Robert Zoellick; Walid Jumblatt, Lebanese parliamentarian;...

Hundreds of Lebanese mourners pressed on Wednesday to touch the coffin of minister Pierre Gemayel whose assassination, blamed by his allies on Syria, stoked fears of more killings and a surge in factional violence.Fear and anger gripped the country as it prepared to bury Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel, a Christian, who was gunned down as he drove through a Beirut suburb on Tuesday. He was the sixth anti-Syrian politician to be killed in nearly two years.Several prominent anti-Syrian leaders said the killing was the work of Damascus and they expected the murders of more politicians who had spearheaded protests that...

BEIRUT, Lebanon - Hundreds of thousands of Lebanese turned the funeral Thursday for a slain Christian government minister into a massive demonstration of anger against Syria and its allies. The sprawling funeral for Pierre Gemayel reinvigorated suporters of the U.S.-backed government in a power struggle with Syrian-backed Hezbollah and its allies threatening to split this small Mideast nations along sectarian lines. Police estimated some 800,000 people participated in the rally and funeral. "The second independence uprising was launched today for change and it will not stop," Gemayel's father, former President Amin Gemayel, told the crowd in downtown Beirut, speaking from...

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...

Druze leader Walid Jumblat has warned that Lebanon was on the verge of a coup d'état as Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah urged his followers to prepare for mass street protests to topple the anti-Syrian government. "We are on the verge of a coup … through gradual street protests and possible collective resignations from (public) sections and from parliament … then riots and civil disobedience," Jumblat warned in a speech published by Lebanese newspapers on Monday. His remarks came shortly before a speech by Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah was broadcast Sunday afternoon. Nasrallah, who did not set a...

Jumblatt: Syrian regime responsible for assassination Druze leader in Lebanon fears Damascus will carry out more killings, warns US Iraqi withdrawal will cause 'chaos' Aaron Klein, WND Published:  11.22.06, 18:20 P{margin:0;} UL{margin-bottom:0;margin-top:0;margin-right: 16; padding-right:0;} OL{margin-bottom:0;margin-top:0;margin-right: 32; padding-right:0;} P.pHeader {margin-bottom:3px;COLOR: #192862;font-size: 16px;font-weight: bold;} The Syrian government was responsible for the assassination  Tuesday of Lebanon's Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel and will likely attempt more killings with the goal of destabilizing Lebanon, the country's Druze Leader Walid Jumblatt told WorldNetDaily in an interview today. Jumblatt is head of Lebanon's Progressive Socialist Party and is widely considered the most prominent anti-Syrian Lebanese politician.   "The...

Beirut: The leader of the anti-Syrian Druze’s in Lebanon has blamed Damascus for the assassination of Pierre Gemayel. Walid Jumblatt also said he expected more killings which he claims are aimed at undermining the parliament’s small ruling majority. Speaking on Wednesday, he said: "It seems the Syrian regime will continue with the assassinations. I expect more assassinations but no matter what they do, we are here and we will be victorious.” Jumblatt said Syria was trying to derail an international court to try suspects in the killing of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. He also reiterated his accusation that Syrian...

ALARM - Lebanon: the opposition announces the "insurrection for independence " BEIRUT - the Lebanese opposition antisyrienne, joined together at a plenary sitting, announced Friday evening the "insurrection for independence "and claimed a" government of transition "to supervise the Syrian withdrawal. MORE...

Lebanon Faces Political Crisis in Aftermath of War: Tensions Escalate Between 'March 14 Forces' and Hizbullah, Pro-Syrian Camp Introduction In the aftermath of the July-August 2006 war, political tension between Hizbullah and the "March 14 Forces" [1] is increasing - to the point that street clashes may break out by November 13. Once the war ended, Hizbullah, together with other pro-Syria elements in Lebanon such as General Michel Aoun, launched a scathing campaign against the current Lebanese government under Prime Minister Fuad Al-Siniora, and particularly against the majority in the Lebanese parliament, that is, the March 14 Forces. On October...

25 September, 2006 LEBANON Lebanese Forces and Druze say no to Hezbollah’s demands Geagea and Jumblatt say a national unity government cannot be created as long as Hezbollah’s is aligned on Syria’s positions. Patriarch Sfeir slams those who place their own partisan interests above those of the nation. Beirut (AsiaNews) – The Samir Geagea and his Maronite-dominated Lebanese Forces’ and Walid Jumblatt and his predominantly Druze Progressive Socialist Party have said no to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s “victory over Israel” speech in which he demanded a national unity government that would give his party a greater place.For Samir Geagea,...

Syria on the Move in Lebanon and Iraq 20:11 Nov 19, '06 / 28 Cheshvan 5767 by Ezra HaLevi Syrian-backed Hizbullah may be poised to stage a revolution in Lebanon as back-room negotiations between the US and Syria may result in Israel being pressured to give up the Golan Heights. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem began a visit to Iraq on Sunday. The visit will include meetings with US officials in Iraq at which Moallem will relay Syria’s demand that Israel retreat from the Golan Heights in return for Syrian cooperation in Iraq. The insurgents that have plagued US troops...

July 26, 2006 No.1213 Lebanese Druze Leader Walid Jumblatt on Al-Arabiya TV: Do Lebanese Really Agree That the Battle of the [Islamic] Nation Should Be Launched From Lebanon?; I Was First to Warn of the Iranian-Syrian Alliance; I Have the Right to Challenge Nasrallah's Heroism The following are excerpts from an interview with Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, which aired on Al-Arabiya TV on July 20, 2006 [1]. TO VIEW THIS CLIP, VISIT: http://www.memritv.org/search.asp?ACT=S9&P1=1201. Walid Jumblatt: "Hassan Nasrallah made the decision to go to war without consulting anyone." [...] "Today, the Lebanese state has become a kind of Red...

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...