DAILY SCOPE: Lebanon is not A Saudi Emirate!

Local Editor

NEWSPAPERS' HEADLINES:

AL-AKHBAR:

Tel Aviv Helping against Hizbullah: "Israeli" Delegation in Riyadh

Saudis Plan to Exhaust Hizbullah...Hariri Worried, Washington Doesn't Mind... Under Conditions

AS-SAFIR:

Salam Reassured over Government's Survival... Jumblatt Worried about Conflict in Lebanon

Hizbullah-Future: "Urgent Dialogue" Continues

AL-JOMHOURIA:

Paris Insists on Saudi Aid... Playing with "Street" Red Line

AL-BINAA:

Media Escalation against the Lebanese and Lebanon...Targeting the Prime Minister?

Lebanese newspapers on Monday dealt with the different regional and domestic issues, most outstanding of which is the security situation in Lebanon and the continuation of dialogue among the different parties in the country.

Also, the dailies discussed the impact of the blunt Saudi attempts of causing instability in Lebanon, neglecting the interest of its allies in the country, and tackled the ongoing garbage crisis, which lingers without a solution yet.

AS-SAFIR: Lebanon Is Not A Saudi Emirate!

Starting with As-Safir daily, the newspaper said on Monday that "the general atmosphere in Lebanon is seen to be heavily impacted by concentrated political pressure; which has raised the "temperatures" of the streets and pulpits across the country, and threatened of igniting an internal "fire"".

The newspaper highlighted that Lebanon, and during the previous phase succeeded in disassociating itself from problems and conflicts, and that is due to a foreign decision as well as domestic reasons that Lebanon still maintains its stability amid a broiling regional atmosphere.

Lebanon Is Not A Saudi Emirate...

More onto the broiling regional events, As-Safir's Nasri al-Sayegh wrote that "Saudi Arabia has been punishing Lebanon by preventing the Royal "aid" that was allocated to help the Lebanese army, only because Lebanon refused to pay allegiance to the Saudi Kingdom.

"Saudi Arabia did wrong in terms of dealing with Lebanon; it should have known that Lebanon is not an "emirate" it owns...Lebanon has its own ambitions, maybe more than it can handle. Lebanon aims to be the East and the West; it desires to be a crossing bridge, a desert and a sea simultaneously..."

The writer went on to say "Saudi Arabia knows pretty well that Lebanon is for the Lebanese and that Lebanon is a not part of Saudi territory, authority or government. Saudi Arabia deals with Lebanon through its political lackeys who benefit from its donations, aids, and political giving. Yet, there are also those who dislike the kingdom, and see it as a combination of oil, money, Wahhabism, backwardness, and a maker of extremism."

"[Saudi Arabia] wants Hizbullah to withdraw from the Syrian war, but in return, it is a clear example of intervention in all shapes and forms. It is engaged in all its wars in Yemen, Bahrain, Iraq, Syria and elsewhere. Its wars are not a source of consensus among the Arabs; in fact it rarely needs their consensus on something. It was the "depot" which sent fighters to Afghanistan also without an Arab or international permission. It was the foundation on which al-Qaeda was established; Isil as well. It was in row with Algeria for supporting extremist "Islamists". It also supported extremist "Islamists" in Sudan, Tunisia, and other groups who led the countries to destruction. Saudi Arabia is not the best example to follow..."

AL-AKHBAR: Saudi Allies in Lebanon Express Worries

The Lebanese newspaper said that the Saudi regime has its eyes on a new target in Lebanon, which is "exhausting Hizbullah".

According to the paper, "Saudi Arabia wants by any means possible [even if that causes harm to the economic benefits of the Lebanese including its allies], to fulfill its aim."

The forces [considered to be Saudi allies in Lebanon] have been expressing worries on the Kingdom's attitude. In the case of the Future party Chief Saad Hariri, these [worries] were not publically declared...but Walid Jumblatt, for instance, chose to bluntly express his fears, warning that [such an attitude] is aimed at collapsing Lebanon.

On the role of the US in the Saudi attitude, the newspaper questioned "What is Washington doing?" to quickly answer that "Wshington does not mind at all having supporters who stand in face of the resistance forces in the region, but at the same time it warns from acts that affect Lebanon's stability."

Meanwhile, the paper noted that "As for Hizbullah, it maintains its calmness, expressing reassurance in its potentials and its whereabouts in the region and the world."

The author added "The train of Saudi madness has not stopped yet. The ruling regime in the Arabian Peninsula [and according to the words of Western diplomats in Lebanon] intends to start a series of procedures to sanction the Lebanese on both; the political and economic levels."

AL-JOMHOURIA: Dialogue to Continue Despite Tensions

Lebanese House Speaker Nabih Berri said that the dialogue between the two rival parties in Lebanon, the Future party and Hizbullah will continue, despite an ambiance of tensions as a result of the Saudi attitude, said al-Jomhouria newspaper on Monday.

According to the paper, Berri told his visitors that there is no other alternative to dialogue between the two sides. The last dialogue session that they held under Berri's sponsorship in Ain el-Tineh was on Wednesday night.

Dialogue between the two parties had kicked off on December 23, 2014. Following the third session on January 16, the conferees declared that they had made "clear progress" that might lead to results that can help "consolidate national stability."

Both sides have repeatedly voiced their support for dialogue between rival factions in an attempt to cope with Lebanon's political and security challenges. Yet, the latest Saudi stances of fury against Lebanon caused an upheaval inside Lebanon.

AN-NAHAR: Salam Will "Turn Tables" if Trash Crisis Sees No Progress

Ministerial sources told An-Nahar newspaper on Monday that Prime Minister Tammam Salam has censured the slow progress during the long previous months in the waste management crisis, and stated that he will "turn tables" if the issue sees no progress before the coming session is held.

Salam is willing to suspend the cabinet meetings if the controversial file is not solved, the daily quoted sources as saying.

The waste management crisis erupted on July 17 following the closure of the Naameh landfill south of Beirut, which had been receiving trash from the capital and Mount Lebanon since 1997. The landfill was meant to operate for only a few years until a comprehensive solution was devised. But the government has so far failed to resolve the issue.

Source: al-Ahed News