1. Hezbollah denies Der Spiegel’s report of cocaine smuggling
BEIRUT, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) — Lebanese Shiite armed group Hezbollah denied here on Tuesday the German magazine Der Spiegel’s report on the Shiite party’s alleged cocaine trafficking as “fabrications,” aimed at “distorting” the group’s image, the country’s state-run National News Agency reported.
2. one of Lebanon’s biggest drug dealers arrested
Judicial police arrested Monday one of Lebanon’s biggest drug dealers, Ali Hasan Abu Mohsen Tleis. State-run National News Agency said Tleis, in his 40s, was arrested in Douriss near Baalbek before midday Monday. It said Tleis is wanted on robbery charges and for shooting at policemen. He is also wanted on 1190 outstanding warrants.
3. Lebanese army questions Fatah suspects
The Lebanese army intelligence questioned a Fatah al-Islam terrorist suspected of involvement in the Bahsas and Banks Street bombings in the northern port city of Tripoli. Mounir Mezyan, who is better known as Abi al-Walid, was arrested last week during a raid on an apartment in Beirut’s Zaydaniyeh neighborhood. Also Monday, two Fatah al-Islam members were taken from Roumieh prison to the army intelligence headquarters in Yarze to hear their testimonies on information provided to investigators by Mezyan.
4. Asia Times: opposition struggles for control of Tripoli
In recent months, the world of Lebanese politics has shown growing signs of stability. Following the elections of June 2009, won by the pro-Western March 14 coalition, the government led by Saad Hariri has shown noticeable (if not grudging) willingness to accommodate opposition demands and has been careful not to alienate the powerful Hezbollah movement, which commands an armed force that is markedly stronger than any the Lebanese state could muster.
But the politics of accommodation that seem to be holding sway in Beirut - at least for now - do not extend to Tripoli, Lebanon’s second-biggest city and home to the country’s Sunni Muslims, who comprise just under one-third of the country’s total population. Here, the Future Movement led by Hariri is continuously taking steps to thwart the opposition and maintain its tenuous dominance of the city’s factionalized politics.
5. US to store more weapons, ammo in Israel
WASHINGTON - The US military plans to expand its stockpiles of weapons in Israel under a recent agreement with Tel Aviv, a Pentagon spokesman said Monday. The deal will double the value of military equipment kept on Israeli soil from 400 million to 800 million dollars, Major Shawn Turner said. Tensions with Iran over its nuclear program were not an impetus for the agreement, he said, noting that the US Congress initially authorized the expansion in 2007. “This is not in any way related to Iran or the current situation as the authorization was from 2007,” he said. But US-Israeli tensions with Iran existed before 2007.
Israel could have access to the weaponry and ammunition in an emergency but only with US approval, said a defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The agreement was first reported in Defense News. The stockpile in Israel, which dates back to the 1990s, includes missiles, armored vehicles and artillery ammunition. The US military stores weapons in allied countries, including Israel, Gulf states and South Korea, as a precaution for possible operations. Both the US and Israel had previously threatened Iran with military strikes.
