Daily Infos

Wael Kfoury's NEW SONG!

2009-03-23T01:16:00.003-04:00

Boy prostitution in Tripoli

2009-03-22T18:40:00.002-04:00

An Adolescent sex worker tells his story

Article by Souhaib Ayyoub

The poorest neighborhoods of Tripoli have become famous for all the wrong reasons. Car bombs and sectarian violence have scarred the area. For Tripoli’s young people, one consequence of the poverty and danger is life in a religious, repressive environment which allows child prostitution to flourish. Among drug and alcohol abuse, with many members of the community in prison, boys are growing up on the streets and being preyed on by men who head sex rings. NOW Lebanon met one of these street boys and heard an extraordinary story where teenage pursuits like Emo music and friends are mixed too much, too young with knives, sex and money.

The boy’s story is a sad one. And, at first sight, a fairly straightforward one.

His father died, and his mother raised him and his four brothers on her own in Khan al-Aaskar, a poverty-stricken quarter in the Tripoli neighborhood of al-Zahiriyah.

“It’s like a stable, a place where over 30 families live in appalling, nasty conditions.”

The buildings look like stacks of matchboxes stacked and are built so close together they overlap, he says, noting that this density means neighbors know everything about each other. Most of the inhabitants of his neighborhood are “poor, crushed families,” he says, “whose origins are unknown, especially Bedouins or nawar…or families fleeing the law.”

“Everyone I know in the neighborhood I grew up in is a hashish trafficker or the son of a prison.”

But despite the ubiquity of illicit activity, what seems to upset him most is the predominantly religious character of the neighborhood. Hypocrites, he says.

“It is the hardliners.”

“Whether it is the lack of male-female mingling, or adherence to religious tradition and compliance with what the clerics request, or popular beliefs, the least of which is belief in witchcraft.”

The boy and his friends did not go to school, preferring instead to wreak havoc in al-Zahiriyah and the adjacent neighborhood of Bab al-Tabbaneh. They would steal car parts to buy cigarettes, he remembers.

The one school they did go to was the girls’ school.

“Every day we would go there with our catcalls and jokes.”

His mother, a seamstress, then found him a job with one of her client’s husbands who dealt in car parts.

“The man had a beard and forced me to perform religious obligations. I would tell him I was going to pray, but I would go meet my friends, who worked with mechanics nearby, and hang out in the alleys. We spent a lot of our time starting fights. At night, we would go down to the corniche with bottles of cheap beer.”

“I stayed with the man for two years, until he accused me of a theft I did not commit. At that time, I began to hate bearded ultra-religious men and I still consider them swindlers.”

The boy found consolation in “Moussa,” the name he gave to the knife he carried around with him.

“I would bring Moussa with me to protect myself on my way back from work in the narrow alleys. Once, somebody started cursing my sister and I stabbed him, and that was the reason I went into prison again. Since then, I made repeated visits to jail for many reasons, including theft. I was once arrested for the theft of Mercedes car parts.”
“I entered a rehabilitation center for the first time when I was 10 for stabbing a boy in al-Zahiriyah, left after a short period of time, and since then have left school and decided to stand on equal footing with the other children and work for money that was not enough to meet our needs,” he says.

He turned to drugs at an early age, sniffing turpentine, the only high he could afford.

“I admit that the real motive was a deep desire to get out of the state of torment which I lived.”
It also led him back to prison.

The boy is no longer welcome among his townsfolk, not that he seems to miss it much.

“The community likes to exaggerate things, and I became the frenzied talk of the town and an outcast.”

“I hated my life and where I lived.”

Then things took a turn. One day, when he was not yet 18, the boy made friends with a coffee-seller who parked his van in the seaside Mina quarter.

“He was the gang leader, who we called the Chief, a common title for someone who traffics gay prostitutes in Tripoli. He introduced me to a number of young gay men and had asked me to spend time alone with them and get paid.”

“The boys who were paid for their services were called 'workshop boys.’”

“I would get to keep half of what I was paid in the workshop and the other half went to the Chief. I did it because it was profitable and inexpensive.”

“The Chief started to take me to his parties in clubs frequented by gay men in Beirut, and there I was introduced to a new life and new people who understood my thirst for freedom. My desire to use also increased and I started Ecstasy.”

“Back in the khan, we were forbidden to mix with girls … We were trying to discover sex, boys with one other, and would watch pornographic films in movie theaters, where we would pay 5,000 LL to fondle each other in the showroom.”

“It was not difficult to accept. We used to fondle each other free of charge in the khan, and so I did not reject the fondling of a gay adult paying me. Plus, they made me feel comfortable.”

“Some clients in the clubs bought me some new clothes for a more modern look, and some of them bought me a mobile phone took over recharging it every month. Some of them give me a monthly allowance, and now I live at their expense and give them what they want without having to work and suffer.”

“In Beirut, I changed my style of clothing, which made the people of Tripoli reject me even more. I mingled with the Emo crowd I met at City Mall [in Dora].”

“I started to imitate their clothes and hairstyle, and was the first to transfer the style to Tripoli, where I became the focus of even more ridicule.”

But ridicule only led to increased interest in the boy, now a black sheep in the northern port city, and he gained a small group of local followers.

“People would point their fingers and call out, ‘the Emo’s!’ I am pleased because this is something I feel I promoted in Tripoli and for which I deserve praise.”

The new Emo crowd in Tripoli - formed by the boy and his friends - hangs out in City Complex, a small, modest version of the Beirut City Mall, where they play trance and dance, dance, dance.

“For a long time, we hung out in a cafe on Riad al-Solh Street by the Mina area, where we would dance to trance music. People said we were ridiculous, but we did not pay them any heed and became increasingly insistent on who and what we are.”

After the police threw them out of the café, they transferred to the ground floor of City Complex.

“We are in line with the fashion of these times, in dark colors or black, or strange and confusing patterns. Our society does not like surprises, and I call Tripoli the capital of ‘social repression.'” “Everyone in Tripoli considers us delinquents. After I was arrested a few months ago on charges of drug abuse, the police made it their priority to interrogate everyone who hung out with me. Many of them are still teenagers and look up to us an example of liberation from the shackles of the repression of their families.”

Parents warn their children to steer clear of the boy with the straight black waxed hair and strange clothes, he says.

“I think I have grown bored of Tripoli… I decided to move to Beirut, where I am studying hairdressing at a women's beauty parlors. I work in a parlor because I really want to live in stability and away from the harassment I suffered in Tripoli, the talk, the humiliation.”

“I moved on to discover a life I deserve, a life young people like me want to live, a new type of life.”

How To Minimize Windows Media Player To Taskbar

2009-03-16T03:34:00.001-04:00

I have seen my friends minimizing windows media player to run in the taskbar. Before that, I didn’t know how it was done. I looked through the options menu franticly for a way to do it. I gave up after a while thinking that it must have been a feature on a newer version of the software.

Then I realize how simple it was. To run windows media player in your taskbar, you will need to follow the steps below. This is how it looks like at first, when you minimize it before doing any changes.

Right click on the taskbar, select Toolbars and then Windows Media Player.

That is it. Minimize your windows media player now and you will see the player running in your taskbar as shown in the image below.

Enjoy your music

An easier ride

2009-03-16T03:14:00.003-04:00

A fleet of women-only taxis hits the ground running.

“In Lebanon, they have the idea of women driving crazy or of not being able to drive,” says Christine Abiobbid, a driver with the all-female “Taxi Banat” or “Girl Taxi” company that was launched in Lebanon to much fanfare on Tuesday.

A new fleet of pink Peugeots taxis, and their immaculately dressed female drivers, is looking to provide a transport alternative geared toward women – and change an age-old stereotype of female drivers.

Though the concept of women-only taxis has proved relatively popular in more conservative and segregated societies in the region, the opening of Taxi Banat has prompted a debate over the necessity or sustainability of the service in Lebanon – a country in which women have more rights and are more publicly visible than in the rest of the Middle East, but where harassment in taxis is a reality.

Pretty in pink

The new female-only taxis offer a much-needed service, says company owner Nawal Yaghi Fakhri, “because some of the women do not like to go with a man taxi driver, or at night she will be afraid to use [male-driven] taxis.”

She hopes her new company – the first of its kind in Lebanon – will “allow women to use the taxis day and night without any fear.”

On Wednesday, the company’s first full day of operations, Fakhri said the organization received many phone calls from prospective local and international clients wanting to use the taxis around town or to be picked up from the airport.

Currently Taxi Banat has three to four female drivers, with many applications pouring in. “It is a nice idea, the car is very good looking, it is stylish, it is a good experience,” she says, for drivers and passengers alike.

Abiobbid, a driver, sees the initiative as a means to help ensure greater equality between the sexes, because she feels driving should be a profession that is more open to women.

She was also grateful for the chance to apply for the position because, “before, I was at home doing nothing.”

While her family initially thought a job driving a taxi was a “weird idea,” they are now fully supportive of Abiobbid’s work.

Abiobbid said her first clients were very happy with the service – particularly as all trips on the first day were free – but also because they felt safe and were pleased to be driven by another woman. Female passengers and their families are welcome to ride, but, as Fakhri emphasized, “Not only men.”

Supporting the service

While Taxi Banat is an independent Lebanese company, the concept of women-only taxis has also emerged with considerable success in Iran and the UAE. These locations, in which sexual segregation is significantly more common (and often enforced) than it is in Lebanon, have made the service a popular alternative for women wanting to travel freely in a safe and comfortable environment.

The company has received support from Lebanon’s Tourism Ministry, which is eager to cater to the large numbers of visitors from conservative Muslim countries, particularly those seeking a culturally familiar escape from soaring Gulf temperatures during the humid summer months.

Visitors from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, for example, account for 16% of airport arrivals. They also make up the largest segment of Lebanon’s total Arab visitors, and many own summer homes in the country. The idea of women-only taxis would seemingly be welcomed by these more conservative tourists.

But is a female-only taxi service necessary in comparatively free-wheeling Lebanon?

“I actually think that the company is a really good idea,” said Rebecca Saade of Lebanon’s Feminist Collective. “If there was no need for it, then it wouldn’t exist.”

There are currently very few female taxi drivers in Lebanon. “I have seen it once,” says Saade. She feels it is an interesting phenomenon to have women eager to take part in a field where they are currently so under-represented, and also hopes it may help foster a “sense of community for women.”

But despite the advantages, Saade doubts that the system would make any significant change in the level of harassment experienced by the country’s most vulnerable women when travelling in cabs.

“Women from privileged environments don’t have that problem,” as they can afford to utilize the services of the private company. “The women who really suffer from harassment on the streets are not rich or privileged enough to be able to take a taxi.”

She notes that there are other taxi companies in Lebanon that are quite safe for women, but accepts that it may make women more relaxed and comfortable to have a female driver.

“But, will it make radical change against harassment? I doubt that,” Saade says.

Marie Rose Zalzal, a lawyer and women’s rights activist, is more skeptical of the idea. “A taxi for women is a bit haram,” she says, in reference to traditional female spheres that are forbidden to men and that symbolize sexual segregation, the kind found in some other Arab countries.

“It is in the same trend of not mixing women and men – this is not a good thing,” she says.

Zalzal also does not see the system as an antidote to harassment or discrimination. “When there is harassment, women should be able to go to the police,” she says. Women should not have to resort to such a solution, involving the segregation of the sexes, as “they are citizens and so they should not be subject to discrimination.”

Whatever the arguments, Taxi Banat may have found a niche market for women looking for something safe and just a little bit different. Only time will tell how well women respond.

بيحقلّك وطنك دينك

2009-03-11T17:01:00.002-04:00

Hiba Al Toujy

2009-03-11T11:51:00.002-04:00

Hiba Al Toujy - Metl El Reeh.mp3

Sex, censorship and videotape

2009-03-11T10:06:00.004-04:00

HELP! was pasted all over Beirut in February on bright blue posters advertising the new Lebanese film addressing sex, prostitution, drugs and homelessness. But anticipation for the movie, which cost over $200,000 to make, came to nothing. The film's directors told NOW that the Censorship Department in the General Security withdrew permission for a planned screening on February 16.

Legislation for film-making here is notoriously difficult, with directors having to submit an outline of the film to censors before beginning shooting, and then submit the finished product to the censors again. The directors of Help, however, say that they had jumped through all the bureaucratic hoops and were granted in July last year a license for screenings in February by General Security’s Supervisory Department.

So why was the film banned? Writer and director Mark Abi Rached said, “the product has not changed,” but the officer in charge of censorship has. Producer Bacchus Elwan told Al-Arabiya that, “the movie was banned because the officer in charge of censorship was replaced and he didn’t like it…he hasn’t seen the movie though.” And the organization Skeyes, the Center for Defending Media and Cultural Freedoms founded in memory of assassinated journalist Samir Kassir, suggested that a Catholic organization influenced the decision to ban the film.

The case highlights once more Lebanon’s rigid rules on politics, sex and religion in the media, which figures like Interior Minister Ziad Baroud and Culture Minister Tammam Salam have worked to reduce.

Scenes of a sexual nature

In this particular case, the film has been censored because of its sexually explicit content. The plot centers around a prostitute who lives with a gay friend, and features nudity, sex scenes and strong language. It addresses homelessness and crime in Lebanon.

Interest was piqued by the fact that Joanna Andraus, daughter of MP Antoine Andraus, stars in the film and appears nude. She denied, however, that her father had any objections to the role, and the producer said that the film “addresses the problems of homeless teenagers who end up as sexual delinquents or criminals and draws attention to the necessity of helping them.”

Amr Saed, a spokesman for Skeyes, told NOW that he was disappointed that the film was censored, but “not surprised because…every year there are films and books that are censored.” He suggested that General Security did not act alone in censoring films. “It is religious institutions,” he said, “different sectarian groups. In this [case], it was the Catholic media centre that asked for censorship.” There is, he said, “partnership” between religious institutions and censorship authorities, adding that, “of course sectarian religious institutions have too much power,” over censorship.

A 2008 report by Skeyes highlights other instances of censorship, including the banning last March of the film Persepolis and the fact that the, “Beirut Docu-Days film festival were postponed last October, as their opening film Simon El Haber’s Sema’an Bel Day’a was still unapproved by the General Security, and then the film Ers El Dib by the Tunisian director Jilani El-Sa’adi was postponed...in addition, the law regulating printed media still requires the censorship of newspapers, books and publications published outside of Lebanon.”

General Security in control

The report also complained that, “decisions made to ban movies are often made haphazardly, where the movies are censored according to moral, religious or political standards as Skeyes has been told by a cinema theatre administrator.” In the past, interventions by ministers including former Culture Minister Tarek Mitri have enabled films including Persepolis to be shown. But as Mitri explained to NOW Lebanon, responsibility for such issues lies with the security forces rather than the parts of parliament devoted to culture. The law, said Mitri, “which I don’t like, and which no one likes, gives General Security the right to censor films, theater plays, books, DVDs and other things.”

While in office, Mitri saw himself as an “advocate of freedom,” seeking to overturn a number of censorship rulings. Now, Interior Minister Ziad Baroud and Culture Minister Tammam Salam have both taken anti-censorship stances. The director, Abi Rached, told NOW that Baroud’s office has expressed support for the film, and that the Ministry of Culture is “100% behind the movie.” But as long as General Security operates censorship policies independently, the role of ministers is of polite intervention without official authority. Late last year, Mitri described the banning of Israeli film Waltz With Bashir as ridiculous, but the ban remained.

Hania Mroueh, of Beirut’s only arthouse cinema, Metropolis, has participated in an ongoing workshop on censorship in Lebanon and condemned the, “too complicated,” legislation around film censorship in Lebanon. While reluctant to comment on the specific case of Help, she said that she would not be surprised if there were evidence that religious groups had influenced the decision to censor the film. “This is the way everything works in Lebanon,” she told NOW, and said that there was no need for any such censorship. People are adults, she said, who can make up their own minds and take responsibility for their actions. The ratings system, which forbids people under a certain age from seeing controversial films, was adequate regulation, she said.

Help in the future?

Whether Help will be shown in Beirut is still unclear. According to Skeyes, it is illegal for General Security to censor a film that has been permitted, as Help's directors claim it was, except with the permission of the Interior Minister, so legal action would be an option for the film’s producers. However, Abi Rached told NOW that he was relying on press coverage to influence the authorities. He was prepared, he suggested, to compromise with the censors and agree on a rating for the film that meant it could only be seen by people over 21.

“I am surprised at the way this has turned out,” he said. “I am neither angry, nor upset, nor depressed, I’m just surprised. Before, I was thanking the censorship in each interview for their open-mindedness, and their understanding, and then,” he said sadly, “I went back to earth.

MP Saad says Assad’s remarks on Lebanon are preemptive warning

2009-03-11T00:57:00.003-04:00

Democratic Gathering bloc MP Antoine Saad said on Tuesday that the latest remarks of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad on Lebanon “are a preemptive warning that the security situation in Lebanon could explode before the upcoming parliamentary elections.”

Saad said, “Assad’s remarks were clearly a threat to the principles of democracy and the parliamentary majority,” in Lebanon.

He added that the elections would take place on time, and that the Lebanese would be voting for one of two projects. “One of the projects is integrating Lebanon in to the Iranian nuclear file and permitting Syrian greediness in Lebanon, or the other project is for the restoration of the Lebanese state and its institutions’ powers, building up the military and securing the independence of the judicial system.”

Saad said he found “the March 8 coalition’s criticism of the judicial appointments, which were unanimously approved by the Higher Judicial Council, suspicious.”

Assad: Lebanon will pay price if tribunal politicized

2009-03-11T00:51:00.002-04:00

In more judicial news, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told the United Arab Emirates newspaper Al-Khaleej on Monday that Lebanon would be the first one to pay the price if the Special Tribunal on the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was politicized.

He said he hoped the tribunal would not be politicized but openly said there were “no guarantees.”

“The UN and Security Council are not carrying out their duties properly. How are we supposed to expect a UN-affiliated organization to be objective?” he asked.

He also said that the situation in Lebanon would deteriorate in the absence of a consensus, rather than the absence of the upcoming parliamentary elections, “because only consensus could ensure stability” in Lebanon.

On the tribunal

2009-03-11T00:46:00.002-04:00

The Lebanese “of the opposition” have left nothing unsaid with regard to the Special Tribunal.

They have exhausted all possible accusations over the last few years, and, having warned of the danger of the tribunal’s politicization, which targets the “Syrian rejectionist regime,” they went on to talk about a Syrian-European deal on the heels of negotiations with Tel Aviv that would undermine the tribunal and lead, according to them, to the normalization of relations between the US and the “rejectionist leadership,” thus sparing the latter from swallowing a bitter pill.

All these claims by the opposition were backed by a profusion of comparisons and attempts to equate the “hypothetical” tribunal with every bad and dangerous event and possibility, whether real or not. And, once again, someone has stooped to the lowest of lows by deeming the tribunal as worthless as his shoe…

Then the tribunal was established.

The tribunal’s launch ushers in a new era, and it will be impossible to disregard its significance and consequence. Indeed, doing so would be tantamount to sticking our heads in the sand or ignoring the reality of the tribunal with its judges, investigators, prosecutors, translators, guards, buildings, halls, files, depositions, witnesses and laws… and prison cells. It has all become a reality we will get used to in the coming months, as some of its terms will become part of our daily lives, tumult and new consciousness.

This is the first time that those of us born in this region will see a tribunal holding accountable the assassins whose victims we have grown used to mourning, but whose actions have never been exposed so openly. We have never seen the killers deprived of the same freedom they stole from those they killed.

Those of us born here will become witnesses to a new period starting March 1, a period which will turn the page on the de facto coexistence between political assassinations and those who commit them with impunity.

Establishing the tribunal, however, does not mean the end of the struggle for Lebanon’s independence and stability. The Lebanese have many stops ahead and a long wait before they can lead a somewhat normal life free of violence and constant fear of the near and not-so-near future.

But the tribunal is also the culmination of a long journey. It is an affirmation of the willpower and steadfastness of the hundreds of thousands of people who worked month after month, year after year, despite assassinations, threats, intimidation and accusations of treason. This willpower and steadfastness were essential in convincing the world to sponsor and support the slogans brandished in a small country. They prove that tangible achievements are possible and that sacrifices are not always in vain.

After ending Syrian hegemony over Lebanon in 2005, resisting its counterattacks over the last three years and exposing it to the pressure of the Special Tribunal, which became operational in 2009, we must continue with this same will, steadfastness and perseverance in order to protect what has already been achieved and to face up to the forthcoming events, including the parliamentary elections and the need to preserve civil peace.

Then, perhaps, we can have some rest, and look to strive for new goals within the framework of a state and its laws.

By Ziad Majed

Saniora: Lebanon to Import Natural Gas from Egypt

2009-03-11T00:34:00.002-04:00

Prime Minister Fouad Saniora told the daily Al Ahram in an interview published Tuesday that Lebanon will sign a treaty to import natural gas from Egypt. Saniora described as "very good" Lebanese-Egyptian relations, adding that Cairo supports Lebanon in the political, economic, military and cultural sectors.

He also said Lebanon was looking forward to establish good relations with Syria based on mutual respect.

Briefly, Who is Guevara?

2009-03-06T20:00:00.005-05:00

Ernesto Rafael Guevara de la Serna, (May 14, 1928—October 9, 1967), commonly known as Che Guevara, was an Argentine-born Marxist revolutionary and Cuban guerrilla leader. Guevara was a member of Fidel Castro's "26th of July Movement," which seized power in Cuba in 1959. After serving various important posts in the new government, Guevara left Cuba in 1966 with the hope of fomenting revolutions in other countries, first in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and later in Bolivia, where he was captured in a CIA-organized military operation and executed.

Download, Marcel Khalifeh - At The Border

2009-03-06T00:55:00.004-05:00

Marcel Khalifeh - Ya Beirut.mp3
Marcel Khalifeh - Toot Toot.mp3
Marcel Khalifeh - Tefel W Tayara.mp3
Marcel Khalifeh - Sarkha (instrumental).mp3
Marcel Khalifeh - Qamr Al Mraye.mp3
Marcel Khalifeh - Nami Nami Ya Sghery.mp3
Marcel Khalifeh - Deema.mp3
Marcel Khalifeh - El Wlad Wel Deeb.mp3
Marcel Khalifeh - Asfour.mp3
Marcel Khalifeh - Aal Hdoud.mp3
Marcel Khalifeh - 01 Strike (instrumental).mp3

Walid Jounblat clearing the blockade himself

2009-03-05T00:30:00.006-05:00

الحكمة يستفيد من جراح الرياضي ويعزز وضعه

2009-03-04T23:29:00.003-05:00

The Recent March

2009-03-04T21:22:00.003-05:00

Rotaract, Anti-Smoking

2009-03-04T15:19:00.002-05:00

About Rotaract

Rotaract is an international organization of service clubs for men and women aged 18 – 30 that fosters leadership and responsible citizenship, encourages high ethical standards in business and promotes international understanding and peace.

Rotaract is a program of Rotary International. Rotaract Clubs work under the guidance of their local Rotary Club, and take their name from a combination of the words Rotary and action. The first officially chartered Rotaract Club was in North Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1968, but clubs of young people associated in service with local Rotary Clubs had existed for several years in India and Europe. Nowadays the Rotaract program has grown into a strong, international network of 7,300 clubs in more than 150 countries and geographical areas. The Clubs draw members from the community or are organized as an extracurricular activity for college students.

Rotaract Clubs conduct formal meetings, usually every two weeks, which feature speakers, tours of local businesses, cultural activities, discussions, and visits to other clubs. Rotaractors utilize weekends for service project work, social events, and professional and leadership development workshops.

Every Rotaract Club is part of a district Rotaract organization, run by elected representatives with support from sponsoring Rotarians. The district organization plans regional conferences, develops regional projects, holds club leadership training programs, and sponsors special events to strengthen the bond among clubs.

Rotaract functions internationally through a committee of Rotaractors and Rotarians. This committee works with Rotary International to plan an annual two days-long forum held prior to the Rotary international convention. This event offers Rotaractors from all over the world the chance to meet, discuss issues of mutual interest, and develop friendships based on international goodwill and understanding. Every three years Rotaractors conduct another international meeting called Interota, named from the words international and Rotaract.

صوت الشعب على المنارا

2009-03-04T10:56:00.005-05:00

زياد صعب والبحر

2009-03-03T22:49:00.004-05:00

العلاقة بين زياد صعب والبحر وثيقة. يرى فيه الفسحة الوحيدة للفقراء في بيروت، هذه المدينة التي لا مساحات خضراء فيها. أكثر جزء من شاطئ بيروت عزيز على قلبه هو كورنيش عين المريسة، للكثير من الأسباب. فقد اختبأ في منزل لأحد معارفه قرب الـ Hard Rock cafe عند عين المريسة يوم دخل الجيش الاسرائيلي إلى بيروت، وطلب من كلّ الشباب بين سن الخامسة عشرة والخامسة والأربعين التجمّع عند الكورنيش. عندها «شعرت بالذنب تجاه هذه العائلة». فسأل صاحب المنزل عمّا يجب فعله، هل يترك المنزل أو يبقى؟ رفض الرجل أن يترك المنزل وأخذ مسدساً من زياد الذي كان يحمل رشاشاً ومسدساً، من أجل مواجهة جيش الاحتلال إذا دهم الشقة، «ومن هناك راقبنا كيف بقي الناس واقفين طوال النهار». من حسن الحظ أن القوات الاسرائيلية لم تدخل المنزل خلال عملية التفتيش.
كما أن تلك النقطة، كانت نقطة التقاء بين المقاومين في بيروت، «حيث كنّا نتموّه بشكل صيّادين».
يذكّره البحر بالشهيد محمود المعوش (جلال). «إذ إن الستة أشهر التي سبقت اغتياله أمضيناها معاً وكنّا ننزل بشكل يومي إلى البحر». المعوش لم يكن يتقن السباحة، لكنه كان يحب الصيد، فكان ينزل بثيابه العسكرية، يتمشى على البحر وزياد يسبح ويصطاد السمك.
ينزل باستمرار إلى البحر، «لكن أحبّه أكثر في فصل الخريف». وعند سؤاله إذا كان ينزل مع زوجته إلى الشاطئ أجاب ممازحاً: «عندما تتزوّج لا تعود تنزل مع زوجتك».
يرى أن أهمية هذا الشاطئ ازدادت مع الوقت بسبب ازدياد عدد الفقراء، ونقص مساحة الشاطئ بسبب التعديات على الأملاك البحرية التي شوّهت الشاطئ وغيّرت بعض معالمه.

Download, Omeima Khalil - Asfour.mp3

2009-03-03T21:25:00.006-05:00

Omeima Khalil - Asfour.mp3

إن كان وليد بك كما يقول الفريق الآخر حرباية، فما يكون الجنرال عون؟

2009-03-03T19:13:00.005-05:00

الجواب هنا

سقطت ورقة البرتقال العونية الأخيرة وبان الوجه الحقيقي لجنرال المسامير والسكاكين والشوك .
جنرال حروب التدمير والتهجير متربعاً على كرسي الدم والإرهاب البعثي مرتاحاً ومبتسماً.
يجول ويكزدر ويلحس البوظة الشامية ويحيي الجماهير المسحوبة من بيوتها لتستقبله رافعة أعلام حزب الله.
جنرال الهريبة يلقى ترحيباً من سيّده الذي ينعته بالخصم الشجاع .....شجاع نعم شجاع لا تسألوا كيف ولماذا.
جنرال حروب الإلغاء التي تسببت بدمار المناطق الحرة وإضعاف وتقسيم وتهجير المسيحيين ، يطالب اللبنانيين بالإعتذار له
....نعم له ولا تسألوا كيف ولماذا.
جنرال العمالة المقنّعة بشعارات مزيّفة مضلّلة في أواخر الثمانينات وحتى عودته حيث إنكشفت عمالته وأي انكشاف ، يحاضر في الجامعات البعثية عن العفّة والشفافية والوطنية والأخلاقيات السياسية.
جنرال الخيانة وتشويه وتزوير وتحوير الوقائع والحقائق ومحو الذاكرة لما قام به الإحتلال البعثي في لبنان يُكرّم في أحضان سيّده الذي يتشتشه ويلفلفه بعباءة العمالة المذهّبة .
كنّا نتمنى يا جنرال لو زرت أسيراً لبنانياً واحداً في معتقلات البعث بدل التنزه في سوق الحميدية.
كنّا نتمنى لو أكلت مما يأكل منه المعتقلون في سجون الموت البعثية من قذارات بدل ان تلحس البوظة الشامية بشهية.
كنّا نتمنى لو زرت غرف التعذيب حيث مُزّقت أجساد اللبنانيين المعتقلين وعُصرت دماؤهم بدل زيارة الأماكن الأثرية.
كنّا نتمنى لو صلّيت مع الأسرى اللبنانيين على نيّة تحريرهم من الجحيم البعثي بدل الإندهاش بالجامع الأموي والكنائس.
كنّا نتمنى لو جلست مع الأسرى اللبنانيين ولو لدقائق مستمعاً الى معاناتهم بدل الإستماع الى دليلك البعثي في سياحتك الميمونة.
كنّا نتمنى لو مشيت مع الأسرى المدفونين في أقبية الظلم والظلام ولو لدقائق تحت أشعة الشمس بدل التباهي بالسير على خطى بولس الرسول.
كنّا نتمنى لو عقدت مؤتمرك الصحافي في قبو أو قبر وحاورت وتلقيت الأسئلة من الأسرى اللبنانيين المنتظرين منذ زمن بعيد أن يعودوا الى أهلهم وأحبائهم ووطنهم.
كنّا نتمنى أن تبكي أو تذرف دمعة متأثراً بما عاناه ويعانيه الأسرى اللبنانيون في دهاليز الإجرام البعثي بدل القهقهة والتأتأة على منابر العهر البعثي.
كنّا نتمى ولو على الأقل زرت أسرى 13 تشرين ، من حاربوا تحت أمرتك وفررت تاركاً إياهم تحت رحمة الجزّار البعثي.

كنّا نتمنى وكم تمنينا ولكن.....خجلنا لأننا للحظات ظننّا أن هنالك بارقة أمل وفرج للمعتقلين اللبنانيين في سوريا ولكن
حين رأينا السجاد الأحمر والقبلات الحارّة والمعانقات الحميمة والعباءة الذهبية ورأيناك متربعاً على كرسي الرئاسة البعثية ،
التفتنا الى عيون الأمهات فرأينا دموعهن دماً وكأن أبنائهن أسروا أو أعدموا مرتين ، مرة على يد الجزار البعثي ومرة لا بل مرّات على يد السائح العزيز جنرال لحس البوظة وقباقيب سوق الحميدية

Will the Canadian get his man?

2009-03-03T01:15:00.005-05:00

When former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri was murdered in 2005, Daniel Bellemare was in the twilight of a long career in Canada's justice system. He was just over two years away from retirement and the opportunity to finally spend his days enjoying the fruits of a long and distinguished career.

For Bellemare, the Hariri assassination was just a news story-a remote event that happened very far away from Ottawa, where he lived at the time.

For Lebanon, however, that assassination on a picturesque road along Beirut's seafront was transformative and almost inconceivable.

Though not everyone liked him, nor his approach to peacemaking, Hariri was, in many respects, Lebanon's healer, its post-civil war talisman.

What's more, the multibillionaire had the best protection money could buy. Yet somehow, someone managed to kill him using 1,800 kilograms of TNT. Hariri's seemingly invincible convoy was left a charred wreck. Twenty-three people died and the course of an entire nation's history was abruptly altered.

I had just arrived in Lebanon a few months earlier. My own apartment, my first in Lebanon, was caught up in the explosion and badly damaged. It was an abrupt introduction to Lebanon's violent underbelly.

Over the coming years, both Lebanon and I would be shaped by the events of that dark day. And though he didn't know it at the time, so would Bellemare.

By Nahlah Ayed, CBC News

الحزب الشيوعي انتخب لجنة مركزية جديدة وجدد لحدادة بالتزكية

2009-03-02T18:27:00.004-05:00

أنهى المؤتمر العاشر للحزب الشيوعي اللبناني، أعماله التي استمرت على مدى أربعة أيام، ناقش خلالها الوثائق السياسية والتنظيمية والجماهيرية، وأقرها بالاجماع، وكلف اللجنة المركزية التي انتخبها إصدار الوثائق بعد إعادة صياغتها في ضوء نقاشات المندوبين

Did we forget? Bride of The South

2009-03-01T22:03:00.009-05:00

:وصية سناء محيدلي متلفزة

وفي مساء اليوم الذي نفذت فيه سناء محيدلي عمليتها الاستشهادية اطلت على اللبنانيين عبر شاشة تلفزيون لبنان القناة 7 لتعلن وصيتها بنفسها والتي قالت فيها: " انا الشهيدة سناء يوسف محيدلي، عمري 17 سنة من الجنوب، جنوب لبنان الجنوب المحتل المقهور، من الجنوب المقاوم الثائر"، "انا من جنوب الشهداء، من جنوب الشيخ الجليل راغب حرب، جنوب عبدالله الجيزي، حسن درويش، نزيه القبرصلي، من جنوب بلال فحص، واخيرا وليس الاخير جنوب الشهيد البطل وجدي الصايغ ".

أما في وصيتها التي كتبتها بخط يدها فجاء حرفيا:
(( أحبائي إن الحياة وقفة عز فقط)) أنا لم أمت بل حية بينكم أتنقل .. اغني .. ارقص .. احقق كل آمالي .. كم أنا سعيدة وفرحة بهذه الشهادة البطلة التي قدمتها.
أرجوكم أقبل اياديكم فرداً فرداً لا تبكوني .. لا تحزنوا علي، بل افرحوا اضحكوا للدنيا طالما فيها أبطال .. طالما فيها آمال بالتحرير .. إنني بتلك الصواعق التي طيرت لحومهم وقذارتهم بطلة.
أنا الآن مزروعة في تراب الجنوب اسقيها من دمي وحبي لها .. آه لو تعرفون إلى أي حد وصلت سعادتي ليتكم تعرفون لكنتم شجعتم كل الذين ساروا على خط التحرير من الصهاينة الإرهابيين.
مهما كانوا أقوياء إرهابيين قذرين, هم ليسوا مثلنا .. إنهم جبناء يطعنون من الخلف ويغدرون، يتلفون شمالاً ويمينا هربا من الموت.
التحرير يريد أبطالاً يضحون بأنفسهم غير مبالين بما حولهم، ينفذون، هكذا تكون ألأبطال. إنني ذاهبة إلى أكبر مستقبل، إلى سعادة لا توصف، لا تبكوا عليّ من هذه الشهادة الجريئة، لا، لحمي الذي تناثر على الأرض سيلتحم في السماء.
آه ((أمي)) كم أنا سعيدة عندما سيتناثر عظمي عن اللحم، ودمي يهدر في تراب الجنوب. من اجل أن أقتل هؤلاء الأعداء الصهاينة والكتائب نسوا بأنهم صلبوا مسيحهم .. أنا لم أمت هذه واحدة والثانية ستأتي اكبر وستليها ثالثة ورابعة ومئات العمليات الجريئة.
فضلت الموت من أن يغرني انفجار أو قذيفة أو يد عميل قذر، هكذا أفضل واشرف أليس كذلك. ردوا على أسئلتي سأسمع بالرغم من أنني لست معكم، سأسمع لان صوتكم وضحككم الجريء سيصل إلى كل حبة تراب سقيتها بدمي. وسأكون صاغية هادئة لكل حركة، لكل كلمة تلفظونها.
اجل هذا ما أريد ولا تغضبوا علي لأني خرجت من البيت دون إعلامكم .. أنا لم أذهب لكي أتزوج و لا لكي أعيش مع أي شخص بل ذهبت للشهادة الشريفة الباسلة السعيدة.

وصيتي هي تسميتي (( عروس الجنوب ))

هانحن نقترب من الذكرى ال احدى وعشرون لاستشهاد البطلة
9/4/1985 الى 9/4/2005 ونيسان هو شهر الشهداء
نامل ان تكون الايام القادمة افضل رغم ان كل شيء حولنا لايبشر بذلك
المجد للشهداء
المجد للامة

Prime Minister of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan, A Hero?

2009-03-01T19:46:00.007-05:00

A funny thing happened at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland last week, Prime Minister of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan stormed off the stage after a verbal scuffle with Israeli President Shimon Peres. The initial incident stemmed from Prime Minister Erdogan not being allowed enough time to respond to Peres' comments on the current war in Gaza. Reactions from the Turkish blogosphere have been varied: some gave the Prime Minister a “hero's welcome” when he returned to the country, some wonder how this will effect Turkey's foreign and domestic policies, and some just think that it was bad behavior.

A Hero's Welcome
Many Turkish bloggers posted photos of Turkish citizens celebrating the reaction of Prime Minister Erdogan at the Davos Forum, and crowds of people went to the airport to herald the his return. Erkan's Field Diary notes the euphoria best:

As of tonight, Erdoğan becomes a political legend….
Whatever the diplomatic consequences of Erdoğan's reaction (or whether it is right or wrong) in the Davos panel, he becomes a legend for masses.
Thousands are driving to Atatürk Airport to welcome PM Erdoğan's arrival at the moment…. Now I hear that subway services are extended to 3 am so that people can go to airport…
Apart from hard core anti-AKP citizens, and retired diplomats whose minds belong to Cold War era, who immediately reacted negatively, we try to understand the situation.
* at one level, it is a matter of pride. Turkey's PM stood against disrespect.

This Is The Secret That A Lot Of People Don't Know About

2009-03-01T18:54:00.001-05:00

Internet marketing is perhaps one of the most effective and comprehensive ways of generating substantial wealth from home... Or anywhere! At least for me, Money has always come easy through my techniques outlined in this post.

We have all seen those big banners on the highways or city streets, advertisements and commercials on television, and even flyers and ad placements in newspapers. Many big business use these ways of advertising to spread word about their businesses or new products, but they are missing one very genius way of advertising... the internet.

Oh yes, internet marketing account for over $10 billion a year world wide. Wouldn't you like a share of that? Of course you do. Ill show you how.

Think of is this way, many companies or online business want people to come to their websites to buy products, or simply to increase traffic, and they do this through INTERNET MARKETING. Basically what happens is, a company will place their advertisements on your website using a program called Google Adsense .

Companies place ads with Google in an "Ad Bank" where Google distributes these ads to internet publishers (people who have websites). All the publisher has to do is create a website, with very good content, or something that everyone is eager to see or read about, and simply drive traffic to their own website where people click on these advertisement, and you get paid!

Let me give you an example.

Ron, an internet marketer, has a website, say this one. He places content (text or images) that people are interested in. People world wide visit his website to read. While reading, they see various banners and text ads in blue links around the site. Each of these advertisements has a description that might interest a reader.

So John visits Ron's website to read about making money (like you are now) and notices and advertisement on the left side of this article that interests him. He proceeds to click on it and is directed to another site. Due to this simple principle technique, Ron has now made money from his traffic visitors.

Get it? Let me explain further.

Google is a middle man between Advertisers and publishers (like me). Companies give Google their advertisements and pay Google 25cents a click. Google then distributes these advertisements and pays YOU 10 cents per click. This way, Google has profited 15 cents and you've profited 10 cents. Now these numbers are only examples. Some websites (highly desirable and famous ones) make over a dollar a click.

So why drive traffic? Why can't I click my own?

Well, firstly, it is against Google contracts to click your own ads. Secondly, the more traffic you create, the larger the number of people that will click on your ads.

Say Ron has 1000 unique (new) visitors a day. If only 25% of them click on ad advertisement, Ron can make anywhere between $1000 to over $300. That's great, but it's not limited.

If Ron can bring in 10,000 visitors a day and just 20% click on advertisements, that's about $300 to $600 a day.

So as you can see, the income potential is unlimited. However, Google advertisements is only one way of making online money, maybe the best.

One key rule is to diversify. The more streams of income you have from one site, the better. This means don't use only Google Ads. Use other affiliate programs.

Affiliate programs are programs that use advertisements on your site, but you only get paid per SALE (not click). This can be especially profitable for large, high traffic websites. There are millions of people sitting at a computer with their credit cards ready to buy something.

For starters, i suggest using GOOGLE ADSENSE.

Aside from visual ads, Google offers TEXT LINKS. These are links you can place within your content. These kinds of ads are place as TEXT in your articles and increase the chances that people will click on them (earning you money).

If you would like to try affiliate marketing, visit Commission Junction and Click Bank. These are the two best programs, but there are many, many others. Signup as a PUBLISHER. You must have your own website or blog. A free way to have your own blog is using Blogger. To use blogger you must have a Google or Gmail Account.

Procedures:

1) Make a Google Account.

2) Sign in with your google password to Blogger.

3) Sign up for Google Adsense. (Before you sign up, make sure you have created a simple blog. Blogger makes this VERY VERY easy and FREE!)

4) Sign up with C.J. and CLICK BANK.

5) Wait for approval and begin to drive traffic to your blog. Tell everyone about it, and slowly it will grow, but surely.

You MUST follow these instructions in ORDER as the step before the next one is needed before proceeding. Applying to each program only takes a few minutes and creating a Blog is extremely easy, try it out! If you have any questions, just make a post underneath this article and I will answer it within 24 hours!

***THIS IS MY ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR 2008***YOU CAN ALSO DO IT!***

Any of the links below will show you exactly how make LOTS of money, just like I did.