Age of modernism

Andre Trad on the impact of modernism on Beirut's skyline:

Modern architecture appeared in Lebanon with the appearance of new building techniques and materials, which revolutionized the conception of building, and namely with the introduction of concrete in the1920's, which was first imported, then locally produced, after 1930.

The course of modernism in Lebanon thus appears to gradually take off in the late 1930's, with some delay compared to European modernism, with the adaptation of new technologies and spatial concepts in design.

The period of its golden age, where many constructions that exhibit a mature modernist spirit begin to appear was during the 1950's, after Independence, when the new nation and its new capital, began to capitalize on the new social, political and economic dynamics which turned Beirut into the avant-garde capital of the Arab world.

This golden age would continue in the 1960's with a new generation of local architects and engineers who further developed and consolidated the appropriation of modern architecture.

Picture: Abdallah Kahil's exhibition Ceci n'est pas Beyrouth

Economic blow

The San Francisco Chronicle reports on the economic impact of the destruction of Nahr al-Bared Palestinian camp in north Lebanon:

The past several months have been Lebanon's coldest winter in 25 years, and Hanin Rafae is struggling to keep her family warm. Since her home has no fireplace, she and her five sons and six daughters huddle nightly around a fire on the patio overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.

Yet even more foreboding than the bitter winter cold, Rafae says, is the nation's declining economy, which worsened here after a three-month conflict between the Lebanese military and a group of al Qaeda-linked militants holed up in a Palestinian refugee camp down the hill.

"I try to save money by shopping less," said the 60-year-old Rafae as she warmed her hands over a charcoal pit.

In Bibneen and other surrounding villages in northern Lebanon, Palestinian stores had been a safety valve during times of inflation. Since Palestinians are excluded from paying sales tax, they offered cheaper products, and camp merchants had used the sizable Palestinian diaspora in neighboring Arab states as a de facto trading network.

Many goods sold at Nahr al Bared were smuggled across the porous Syrian border, eliminating import duties.

Rafae would regularly walk down the hill and purchase a loaf of bread for half price, 5 kilos of cooking oil for $4.50 instead of $7 and a carton of cigarettes for $4 instead of $6.

But those days are over. "Many Lebanese were killed, so we won't buy there," said Rafae. "I prefer to buy from the Lebanese now - not from Palestinians."

But with the camp's cheap products gone, the reality of rising inflation and a 10 percent sales tax has forced many to rethink their opposition to Palestinians coming back to the camp.

Bibneen resident Abdal Qader Saad says his family's monthly food bill has increased from $200 to $330 since the Palestinians left. "My wife had to go to take a job to help make ends meet," he said.

As a result, Talawi says most residents want the Palestinians to return as soon as possible.

Saida's stink

The UN news agency reports on the toxic stink generated by Saida's mountain of rubbish:

Established in 1975 as a temporary municipal tip, the rubbish mountain has grown over three decades of civil war, invasion and government neglect to become an open air dump for hundreds of thousands of tonnes of refuse from homes, factories, hospitals and slaughter houses, as well as debris from buildings destroyed in the 1982 Israeli invasion.

The mountain has repeatedly caught fire and at least three times partially collapsed into the sea, prompting complaints from Cyprus, Syria and Turkey after currents swept rubbish onto their beaches.

A collapse last month, following strong winds and an earthquake, sent about 150 tonnes of rubbish into the sea, snaring fishing lines and choking sea turtles which, environmentalists say, mistake the white plastic bags for jellyfish, their favourite food.

Air pollution from the mountain, located near schools, hospitals and apartment blocks in Lebanon's third biggest city, has meant Sidon's children suffer more from asthma than children anywhere else in Lebanon, which doctors say is directly linked to the dump.

Organically rich effluent leaching from the mountain into the soil and the sea has destroyed marine life across a radius of 500 metres out to sea.

Hariri's new crime

Dr. Joseph Hitti is furious at the demolition of the last Jewish homes near the wonderful Magen-Abraham Synagogue in the Wadi Abu-Jamil distirct of Beirut—on the orders of Saad Hariri.

Hariri has committed a great crime. These buildings survived the ravages of civil war, Israeli bombings and the elements.

The Synagogue was used as a first aid station during the civil war, and despite all the anger and hatred, was treated with some respect.

Myself and a Jewish friend were shown round the building a few years ago by activists from the Communist Students. We were both taken aback when we found the Star of Davids untouched.

I would like to take this opportunity to appologise on behalf of the country for this act of vandalism and spite.

What a shame they have gone. These were not just buildings, but a symbol of Lebanon's history, and future reconciliation.

Here are Hitti's words:

"Saad Hariri, the much flaunted US ally in the Lebanese corrupt political and financial establishment, has finally laid his hands on the last architectural gems of pre-war Beirut. Not to preserve them, turn them into a Museum, and definitely not to return them to their rightful owners.

"But to demolish them and turn them into yet another disgusting skyscraper in which to house more corrupt businesses beholden to the Hariri empire and its company Solidere.

"In one of the most egregious crimes against Beirut's historic legacy, Saad Hariri just tore down the last three standing Jewish buildings in Beirut's old Wadi Abu-Jmil district, gems of Beirut's 19th century architecture."

Picture is of the Synagogue

Growing poverty

DPA news agency reports:

Street children are becoming a common sight in Beirut, some begging at traffic intersections, others wiping off dirty car windows, and others just hanging around with searching eyes that clearly show the kind of life they are living.

Zeina, 10, is one of the unfortunate ones, who due to family circumstances are forced to try to sell some chewing gum before nightfall so she can return home with something to feed her sister, brother and sick mother.

Zeina, with her green eyes, taps on a car window wither dirty little hands, begging to sell her chewing gum before nightfall. "So please buy one, I have to sell them all in order to buy bread for my family," Zeina pleads, with tears in her eyes.

The little blonde girl said she has mainly lived on the streets since she was eight to help her family survive.

"I have been begging, selling roses, chewing gum, or washing windows since I was eight," she said. "My father left us because my mother got sick."

Zeina is only one of thousands of children who try to eke out a living on the streets of Lebanon's cities these days. A few of the street children are forced to beg by their parents, while the rest are victims of some notorious gangs who push them towards flesh trades and slavery.

Cine Club

Syrian labourers

The AFP news agency runs a profile on problems faced by Syrian labourers in Lebanon:

As dawn breaks each day, Joseph heads to a busy Beirut intersection where he waits for up to eight hours in the hope that someone will need him for a job.

Joseph, who is in his early 40s, is a Syrian migrant worker in Lebanon.

He has been here for years and remains although life has become tough, economically and even politically.

There are tens of thousands of Syrian workers like Joseph in Lebanon, but no official figures are available on their exact number.

Most Syrian migrant workers don't know if they will make ends meet on a given day. The arduous morning wait might be fruitless or someone might come by and pick them up for 12 to 14 hours working on a construction site or in agriculture.

But the boss at the end of the day might decide not to pay them their daily wage and there is no one to turn to for help.

"There is no one to protect your rights. Sometimes the employers don't pay us or just kick us out after days of work, but we have no choice. We have to work in order to survive," says Joseph, who has a degree and once taught Arabic in a school in the Syrian city of Aleppo.

"We leave our families behind to come here, because with wages as they are, it is too expensive to live back home."

Since 2005, life here has become more difficult. Whereas before you could save two thirds of your salary, now you can barely make ends meet," said Joseph who usually earns 20,000 Lebanese lira (about 13 dollars) a day.

Enough of security forces, already

The latest issue of Al-Manshour, Lebanon's leading left wing magazine, is available online (in Arabic).

Summary of expectations for 2008: more poverty, more repression, more security ...

Zina Kiwan reveals that:
According to Lebanon's 1946 labour law
Article 44: the minimum wage must be sufficient to satisfy the necessary needs of the employee and his family.
Article 46: re-examined to determine the minimum wage whenever economic conditions change.

In fact in 2008:
Approximately 60 percent of people live below the poverty line
A family nedds $800 per month to cover basic needs
Estimated inflation: 30-40 percent
The government trheatens to increase the value added tax (TVA) to 18 percent

Bush gone Geagea

Franklin Lamb writes in Counterpunch on the love-in between George Bush and Samir Geagea, the madman who leads the ultra-right Lebanese Forces:

Following successful visits by Druze leader Walid Jumblatt over the winter, the Bush administration is currently hosting and vetting long-shot candidate for president Dr. Samir Farid Geagea.

He is the leader of the Lebanese Forces (the successor to Bashir Gemayel's Kataib Phalange Militia founded by warlord Pierre Gemayel following his Berlin 'fascist epiphany' and declaration that "Lebanon needs some order like in Germany.")

[US official in charge of Lebanon] David Welch, who met with Geagea on March 12, and other administration officials, have reportedly given up on Lebanese army chief Michel Suleiman, not due so much to the now 16th postponement of his presidential election but because Suleiman is becoming 'shop worn' plus an increasing 'buyers remorse'.

The Welch Club (a number of US neocons, Cheney, Saudi Arabia, Jordan) has lost confidence in him, according to Hill sources, and they no longer trust the general to do their bidding.

Among Geagea's crimes [excluding those against ordinary people]:

• the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister, Mr. Rachid Karami
• assassination of a former leading figure in the Lebanese Forces militia, Elias Zayek
• assassination of Christian leader Dany Chamoun with his wife and two young children (ages 5 and 7)
• assassination attempt against Deputy Prime Minister/Minister of the Interior Michel Murr

Young workers

The BBC's Mike Sergeant reports on young workers in Tripoli:

Stroll down some of the inner city streets in Tripoli and you can see young boys sawing, painting, hammering and welding.

Mahmoud, 14, lives in a world of machines, tools and dirt and spends his days cutting wood and making furniture. He puts in 12-hour shifts for couple of dollars a day.

Most of the children work unsupervised. Some wield potentially lethal tools and machines with no protective clothing at all.

"Yes it's dangerous," says Mohammed, 12, who breaks up car parts for a living, "If I don't do it properly I can easily get injured."

US rattles its sabre

Naharnet reports that recent electronic mail leaked by Egypt unveils US readiness to launch wide-scale military offensive against Syria if the Assad regime sticks to its policy towards Lebanon.

"The American hegemony is cracking," said Hezbollah's Nawaf Moussawi. "This is why the US sent its warships."

Revolutionary bloggers

3arabawi is organising a network of revolutionary bloggers. Go to his site for the growing list.

My pick is US blog Power To The People. It has some much needed up-to-date reports from Africa.

30,000 rockets and millions of people

The AP news agency reports that: "Israel has said Hezbollah is rearming and has an arsenal that includes 10,000 long-range rockets and 20,000 short-range rockets in southern Lebanon."

Meanwhile the resistance organisation was showing off its biggest and most important weapon, picture above, along the border with Israel.

Turkey's war on PKK

Cem Uzun reports from Istanbul.

Turkey's invasion of Iraq is continuing, and PKK militants and Turkish soldiers, the sons of poor Turkish families, continue to die. The death toll is 150 and rising at the time of writing.

The fighting is in appalling conditions and scores of Turkish soldiers have been hospitalised with frostbite. No-one can know how many fighters and civilians have suffered the same fate on the “other” side.

Turkish media are filled with nationalistic propaganda. The familiar “precision strike” videos are accompanied by the funerals of the Turkish soldiers who have died, under headings like “Ibrahim was sent to heaven”.

US secretary of defense Robert Gates visited Ankara this week and asked, as did George Bush, that the invasion should be “short”.

The reply from Turkey's chief of the general staff, Buyukanit was, “Short is a relative term, it could mean a day and it could mean a year. We will withdraw when our job is done. How long have you been in Afghanistan?” At the time of writing some troops are returning from Iraq, but it does not look likely that the invasion is over.

Turkey's operations are being supported by instant satellite and electronic intelligence from the US. However, Turkey's invasion threatens to destabilise Northern Iraq into civil war, damaging US interests. The US is threatening to cut off the flow of intelligence if Turkey prolongs the invasion.

However, if the US does cut off intelligence, the Turkish Army will have an excuse for extending their stay to “complete their job”, claiming that without intelligence it will take longer. In this game of chess, people continue to die.

Meanwhile opposition is growing to the invasion inside Turkey. Turkey's Kurds have been protesting since day one. Parents of dead soldiers have started to question why their children have died, questioning army officers who turn up to the funerals about where the officers' own sons did their military service.

A significant turning point came on a live television game program called “Popstar Alaturka”. As part of the nationalistic propaganda campaign the program started with a minute's silence for the “martyrs”, as they are called, of the invasion.

At the end of the minute's silence, jury member and superstar singer (and transsexual) Bulent Ersoy, took the microphone and said, “I am not a mother, and I can never be a mother, but if I were a mother, I would not send my son to fight in someone else's war.”

There has been an instant lynch campaign against Bulent Ersoy and a mainstream media blackout on her replies to criticisms. The public prosecutor has taken out charges against her for “turning the people against the army”.

In a press conference the day after her television appearance, she defended her words, saying, (about the Kurdish problem) “If asking for a solution, rather than death, is a crime, then let them come and hang me right now.”

Now thousands of signatures are pouring into the “No to the military operations” campaign web site in support of Bulent Ersoy and calling for the prosecution of Ersoy to be stopped. The Turkish Human Rights Association and Turkey's Peace Parliament have also come out in support of Bulent Ersoy.

US sends the big guns

It seems the US have decided to send a battleship to sit off the Lebanese coast. The USS Cole, the ship that was almost sunk by Al-Qaeda, will support "democracy" by firing volleys of ballot boxes at Beirut.

Picture is of a big hole in the side of the USS Cole

Abbas: al-Qaeda in Gaza

According to The Times, al-Hayat, and other pro-Israeli rags, Al-Qaeda has set up shop in the Gaza Strip with the help of Hamas. Now call me an old cynic, but does this sound like the desperate ravings of a loser?

Here's The Times report:

Al-Qaeda militants have infiltrated the Palestinian territories with help from Hamas, according to Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian President.

The charges are the most serious yet in the war of words between Mr Abbas, who controls the West Bank, and Hamas, whose Islamist guerrillas expelled his Fatah-dominated security force from the Gaza Strip last summer.

“Al-Qaeda is present in Gaza and I’m convinced that they [Hamas] are their allies,” said Mr Abbas in an interview with al-Hayat, a London-based Arabic newspaper. “I can say without doubt that al-Qaeda is present in the Palestinian territories and that this presence, especially in Gaza, is facilitated by Hamas.”

Bloodsuckers—number 768

"The US has been building defense hardware for two very different scenarios. One is regular warfare, with huge fleets of aircraft combating huge fleets of enemy aircraft, major tank battles, and navies fighting over all of the oceans.

"We are building equipment like the CVNs, nuclear submarines, the DDX destroyers, LCS ships for littoral warfare, a whole new Army designed around the concept of Future Combat Systems (FSC), the F-22 and the JSF for the Air Force.

"However, we are not fighting that kind of war at this time. What we are fighting now is irregular warfare, like the war in Iraq and the war Israel just recently fought in Lebanon. Snipers, IEDs, booby traps, and house-to-house fighting with an often unidentified enemy are the hallmarks of irregular warfare.

"To fight this kind of war effectively you need unmanned airborne vehicles (UAVs), robots, IED countermeasures, sensors, and networking of communications."

Myron Levy, cahirman of Herley Industries, addressing stockholders at the company's annual stockholders' meeting.

"And the innocent pay the price"

A clip from Al-Jazeera's documentary of the civil war shows the fickle nature of the Lebanese political class. They describe the battle of the mountains in the early 1980s.

Elias Attallah (the leftwing military commander, now an M14 coalition MP), Walid Jumblat (then appealing for Syrian intevention in his battle with the Lebanese Forces‚ now an ally of the LF) and the former head of the Communist Party, George Hawi, (a key pro Syrian figure during the war, who was then assassinated by Syria).

The only consistant element to all of this is the final statement, "And the innocent pay the price".