person:jean kahwaji

Christians clash with Lebanese security forces - Jean Aziz
►http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2015/07/lebanon-president-vacuum-protests-beirut-aoun-future-salam.html

This was what happened on the ground. Yet, there are some other political reasons that contributed to the incident. The disagreement within the government actually started weeks ago, as Aoun’s camp demanded the appointment of a new commander of the Lebanese army. From a legal point of view, current Commander-in-Chief Jean Kahwaji reached the age of retirement — 60 — on Sept. 30, 2013.

Back then, the government that was headed by Najib Mikati had resigned and was limited to managing day-to-day state affairs. Thus, it did not have full constitutional powers and was not authorized to appoint a new commander in chief. On July 30, 2013, the minister of defense took an exceptional decision to postpone the dismissal of the army commander.

Since the formation of the new government headed by Salam on Feb. 15, Aoun has been duly calling for appointing a new commander in chief, demanding that the issue be a top priority in the government sessions. Aoun’s ministers refused to discuss any other matter before the appointment of a new commander, which consequently led to the altercation July 9.

As per the Lebanese custom laws, the army commander in chief ought to be Maronite, which automatically makes the current head of the army a semi-permanent candidate for the presidential seat, which is also traditionally allocated to Maronites. Electing army commanders as presidents was not unconstitutional before the amendments on the Taif Agreement in 1990. Afterward, Article 49 of the Constitution expressly stipulated that the candidates for the presidency have to be retired for two years before being entitled to run in the elections. This article was modified in 1998 for one exceptional time, which allowed the election of Emile Lahoud as president at the time. Afterward, the two-year retirement stipulation was completely disregarded when Michel Suleiman was elected in 2008, under the pretext that the presidential seat was vacant.

In fact, three commanders in chief have served as presidents throughout the history of Lebanon. First, there was Fouad Chehab, who was elected Sept. 23, 1958, following the end of the civil war that took place during the summer of the same year. Emile Lahoud was the second army commander to be elected president Oct. 15, 1998. For his part, Michel Suleiman came to office May 25, 2008, after a presidential vacuum since Nov. 24, 2007, until his election.

Aoun’s opponents, the Future Movement, consider that he’s seeking to appoint a new army commander to ward off any potential presidential rival, while his supporters deny such claims.

Aoun’s supporters, however, believe that the Sunni camp is trying to control the Christian role in the government and in managing the state’s affairs. Sunnis rejected the election of a president who represents the majority of Christians in Lebanon. This is not to mention their rejection of the electoral law, which allows Christians full power to elect their MPs. Currently, Christians are being denied the right to full participation in the running of government affairs in the absence of a president.

Endorsing Frangieh : March 14′s New Maneuver ?
▻http://moulahazat.com/2014/11/14/endorsing-frangieh-march-14s-new-maneuver

If the FM allows and even supports the election of Frangieh, it would have given Hezbollah its golden candidate. It would have also looked like it would have won the elections, since it was the one who proposed Frangieh’s name first. The only problem here is that for Hezbollah, it would mean abandoning its now declared candidacy of Aoun. It would also mean that Nabih Berri’s opinion would be marginalized, and that the FPM would probably exit the March 8 alliance (and perhaps join a common Christian Front with the LF/Kaaeb who should also be in theory pissed because of the Frangieh election). In other words, Hezbollah would have won the presidency, but would’ve lost the integrity of the March 8 coalition. What’s the point of having a 100% loyal president if you can’t even influence 15% of the MPs when you want to form the government or vote for laws?

Hezbollah had a plan: Support Aoun till the end, and eventually settle – with Aoun’s blessing – on a non “Maronite Four” consensual candidate that has a friendly attitude towards Hezbollah, such as LAF commander Jean Kahwaji. Kahwaji’s election would have also been part of a bigger deal that should have been even more rewarding to the M8 alliance.

If the FM – according to MP Shab’s hints – are seriously considering Frangieh’s candidacy, it would make Hezbollah look like a hypocrite in case they insist on Aoun or a consensual candidate, and it would create problems between the Marada and the FPM and between M8′s Christians and M8′s Muslims. A Frangieh presidency might seem like a March 8 victory, but on the long run, it will probably lead to the downfall of that alliance.

Such a maneuver from M14 would kill two candidacies with one stone: Aoun’s candidacy and Kahwaji’s candidacy. And in the process, it would kill the M8 alliance.

Aoun aims to replace Kahwaji, fears he could be next president
▻http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/aoun-aims-replace-kahwaji-fears-he-could-be-next-president

http://english.al-akhbar.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/4cols/leading_images/Tahtah-%286%29.jpg

MP #Michel_Aoun. (Photo: Marwan Tahtah) MP Michel Aoun. (Photo: Marwan Tahtah)

For three years, the army has remained #Lebanon’s only functioning institution. To some extent, it managed to withstand all the political campaigns and armed attacks that targeted it, including the recent spate of suicide bombings. And unlike 1975’s events, the regional and interior strife stemming from the crisis in Syria hasn’t segmented the Lebanese military institution.

Hiyam Kossayfi

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#Articles #Chamel_Roukoz #Hezbollah #Jean_Kahwaji #lebanese_army #Lebanese_presidential_elections #Lebaon #Michel_Sleiman #Nabih_Berri #Samir_Geagea #Tammam_Salam

Yes, They Are Takfiris
▻http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/yes-they-are-takfiris

Part of the problem is that nobody listened to the statements by the commander of the armed forces General Jean Kahwaji a few days ago. He said that military intelligence has been pursuing terrorist cells planning to bomb places with various sectarian, confessional, and political loyalties for some time, aiming to ignite deadly sectarian strife. Continued neglect of these statements will mean that the bloodshed will not stop.

Measures need to be taken the day before tomorrow, not only to track and prosecute the murderers and attempt to deter them, but also to disable their main catalyst, which is sectarian incitement and agitation rampant among the sides of the conflict in Lebanon. This is an extremely important factor and could be bigger than finding explosives warehouses. Security forces should aim to stop, kill, or blow up all arms traders in Lebanon, regardless of nationality or sect. Public opinion will thank all those who will eliminate this category, which sells death day and night.

Lebanon defense minister extends army chief’s term
▻http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/07/31/3533615/lebanon-defense-minister-extends.html

Lebanon’s defense minister has extended the term of the army commander, the latest sign of growing political turmoil and paralysis in a country consumed by the war in neighboring Syria.

Defense minister Fayez Ghosn signed a decree Wednesday that would keep the country’s army chief, Gen. Jean Kahwaji, in the post for two more years after politicians failed to agree on whether the parliament should meet to extend his mandate.

The prime minister is expected to sign the decree later Wednesday to make the extension official.