From Beirut to the Beltway

On Monday, the guy who was interior minister when the country went to crap, Suleiman Franjieh Jr, said that "they" will "have a stand" if the Mehlis report "points political accusation or analysis, without being supported with evidence."

"We want facts and not only speculation as the Fitzgerald report provided," he said, referring to the initial UN investigation into the Hariri assassination led by Irish Commissioner Peter Fitzgerald earlier this year. "Saying that Syria killed Hariri because it had differences with him is not enough; we want evidence," he added. Franjieh further demanded evidence to support accusations made by defected Syrian soldier Mohammad Siddiq, who told the UN probe that top Syrian and Lebanese security chiefs were behind the assassination.

I will ignore his ignorance of the difference between Fitzgerald's FACT FINDING mission and Mehlis' international mandate to ASSIST THE LEBANESE INVESTIGATION. Instead, I will post the reaction of someone very dear to me, my wife, who is not Lebanese.

He's acting like Lebanese politicians (like himself) are honest and forthcoming while the UN team is out to finger Syria because they don't like Syria. Mehlis has been whoring around Beirut, eating, and drinking, while the Lebanese politicians have been earnestly investigating who committed this horrible crime, sleepless nights researching, interviewing, etc.

I just think it's funny that Lebanese politicians have the audacity to doubt someone's work ethic (Mehlis and the UN team) and investigative skills when they have been sitting around, quoting from their ass every other day for the newspapers--I mean, 20 people were blown up, and they have NOT once, said they would get justice for the victims. Not even Jumblatt mentioned he wanted justice for the OTHER victims.

Can you imagine if there was a Lebanese politician who was spending sleepless nights trying to find out who the murderers are, putting his/her life in danger, concerning themselves with the safety of the Lebanese people?

(Kais interjects: Actually, Lebanese politicians are seen resorting to an old Shia strategy: occultation. Thank God for Saad's temporal representative-and-more, Fouad Siniora.)

I could not have said it better.