News Bits

February 2005

So many things changed during our 11 months of interruption.

Former premier and business tycoon Rafik Hariri was assassinated. While investigations were still underway at the time these lines were written, all accusations pointed at pro-government factions who might have executed their act with some regional inspiration. Whether Syria was behind this regional inspiration, the murder provoked the Lebanese pupulation to demand that Syrian troops withdraw from Lebanon.

Yasser Arafat died in November at 75. With his death, a chapter of Palestinian struggle for a sovereign state is over, according to some. According to others, his death marked the end of more than three decades of violence and terror, and gives way for peaceful negotiations between the Palestinians and Israelis.

While Palestinians and Israelis, both exhausted of their seemingly vicious cycle of violence try to come to terms, Iraqis prepare to become the third Arab nation to embark on elections that are more democratically credible than the usual average theatrical Arab elections.

After the Lebanese and the Palestinians, the Iraqis have become the third Arab nation to elect their representatives to the National Assembly that should in turn draft a constitution, put it to popular vote, and hold parliamentary elections afterward.

Meanwhile, Lebanon prepares to face major regional and international challenges after the issuance of UN 1559 and the ensuing Americo-French pressure on Syria to withdraw its troops from Lebanon and disband Palestinian and Lebanese militias.

Add to these major happenings the re-election of US President George Bush for another four-year term. This issue of Alternative will try to deal with all of these major concerns hoping to contribute to the intellectual debate on these issues and more.