Israel's crimes against Lebanon

Oil spill...

2006-08-16T01:47:00.000-07:00

Some more pictures from the massive oil spill in Lebanon that resulted from Israeli air raids on Fuel reservoirs in Jiyyeh.

15,000 tons od fuel-oil. 150 kms of coastline affected. European and mediterranean states have offered their expertise and equipment. Kuwait too has offered equipment. But don't shout for victory yet. They started "testing" the equipment in the port of Byblos, to make sure it is right for this type of oil.

[I noticed a lot of visitors like to see before/after comparisons. It's sad. But I obey to popular demand.]

Before, summer 2005... (my pictures from a lazy weekday at Edde Sands)

After, summer 2006... (pictures taken from here)

Zein, 12 years old, killed in Tyre, Lebanon

2006-08-14T02:49:00.000-07:00

Her name was Zein. She was 12 years old. She was found killed yesterday under the rubble of the building where she lived in Tyre. She was holding her mother's hand so tight that the rescuers had trouble separating them. Her two brothers, aged 10 and 13 are still under the rubble, as rescuers were interrupted by Israeli bombing close by and had to abandon the digging.

She is one of 350 children under 12 who were killed during 4 weeks of war on Lebanon.

(picture from AlBalad)

More civilians killed as Israel "widens offensive", Marjeyoun, Akkar, Rachaf

2006-08-12T14:57:00.000-07:00

- After capturing the (non-resisting christian) town of Marjeyoun in Southern Lebanon, the Israeli army allowed a convoy of 1300 cars (carrying 4,000 people) to leave the town escorted by UNIFIL personnel and Red Cross staff. The convoy was later hit by 4 Israeli missiles in Kefraya: 7 were killed and 40 injured. (source: L'ORIENT-LEJOUR)

- An air strike on a bridge in Akkar (extreme North) killed 11 civilians and injured 15. (source: An-Nahar)

- TWO Red Cross volunteers were killed by Israeli strikes since the beginning of this war. (AlBalad, caricature by Stavro)

- An air raid on the southern town of Rachaf killed 15 civilians. (source: Guardian, "Israel widens attack despite UN resolution")

- On the Israeli side, and on the first day of the "wide offensive" to reach the Litani river, the Army lost 1 helicopter, several Merkava tanks (mainly in Wadi el Hujair); 15 24 soldiers were killed and 84 85 injured. (source: ynetnews.com)

Drafted Art

2006-08-12T14:06:00.000-07:00

Please check out this group of Israeli artists.

"Soldier, Officer! don't take part in war crimes" by Lahav Halevy

"Stop Bombing Lebanon and Nancy Ajram" by Nimrod Kamer

Update on the oil spill in Lebanon

2006-08-12T03:26:00.000-07:00

The oil spill caused by the July 14 and 15 Israeli attacks on the Jiyyeh powerplant's fuel-oil reservoirs has reached the coast of Syria (total of 140 km contaminated) and is threatening the marine life, including endangered species of sea turtles that lay eggs on Lebanese sands during the spring.

The time it will take to clean up is one year, the cost 150 Million US dollars, and the time for the negative impact to disappear at least 5 years.

Source: L'ORIENT-LEJOUR quoting the Lebanese Minister of the Environment

Here are some pictures and satellite images showing the extent of the oil spill: (larger than the Prestige spill in 2002, comparable to the Erika spill in 1999 and the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989) (source)

More on some of the species found in the palm islands nature preserve (off the coast of Tripoli and currently covered by oil), can be found on the Lebanese ministry of tourism website.

More on the Shiyyah tragedy

2006-08-10T00:36:00.000-07:00

**** SENSITIVE PICTURES **** IMAGES SENSIBLES ****

More sad pictures from the aftermath of the Israeli airstrike on two (packed) residential buildings in Shiyyah / Chiyah, where 30 civilians were killed, more than 75 were injured, thanks to Israel's "precision bombings" (source: L'ORIENT-LEJOUR):

This baby girl's name was "Waad", which means "promise":

And pictures from the mass funeral:

New Israeli attacks: Shiyyah and southern villages, Lebanon

2006-08-08T14:09:00.000-07:00

**** SENSITIVE PICTURES **** IMAGES SENSIBLES ****

Yesterday, dozens of civilians were killed by airstrikes. Did Israel want revenge for the death of 12 SOLDIERS that were lining up in whats-that-kibbutz-called on the border to invade Lebanon?..

Here is a part of yesterday's civilian death count, according to the RED CROSS:

Shiyyah / Chiyah suburb of Beirut : 29 civilians killed, 75 injured (2 Israeli bombs, 2 residential buildings destroyed)
Village of Brital in Bekaa / Beqaa : 10 civilians killed, 23 injured
Village of Ghaziyyeh near Sidon : 6 civilians killed in one strike, 28 injured. 14 bodies retrieved from under rubble.
Village of Ghassaniyyeh in South: 7 civilians killed burried under their own house.
Village of Houla in South: 5 civilians killed, 60 retrieved ALIVE from shelter.
Village of El-Kfour : 1 mother and her 3-year-old child killed by an Israeli airstrike on their house.
Village of Kfar Tebnit in South : 4 civilians killed, 4 injured.

------
Today, the death toll kept growing. 13 civilians were killed in another airstrike on Ghaziyyeh, at the same time that the villagers were burrying those killed yesterday..

The strikes hit the Shia town of Ghaziyeh while mourners were holding a funeral procession for 15 people killed in air strikes yesterday, sending around 1,500 people running through the streets in panic.

The population of the town, which lies south of the port city of Sidon, has recently swelled to 23,000 as refugees from the fighting elsewhere in southern Lebanon have poured in.

(from a Guardian article)

(picture of the funeral before the strike, banner reads "this is America and Israel's democracy: massacres and destruction")(source: An-Nahar)

(caricature by Armand Homsi from An-Nahar, http://www.annaharonline.com)

------
The following are pictures from Shiyyah / Chiyah (journalists no longer have easy access to villages in South Lebanon, just like Humanitarian aid trucks):

How you can help - Donations

2006-08-07T17:03:00.000-07:00

More than 100,000 displaced inside Lebanon are in urgent need of food, shelter, water, and basic medical supplies.

The following NGO's are non-partisan, working hard in refugee camps, shelters, schools, public parks.. Your help is much needed.
(Click on corresponding links or email me for more info)

DONATE ONLINE to the UNICEF's Emergency Relief Efforts in Lebanon.

DONATE ONLINE to Save The Children - UK - The INDEPENDENT Appeal for the Middle East Crisis.

DONATE to the Lebanese Red Cross / Red Crescent:
AUDI BANK, BAB IDRISS
Acct#: 841500
SWIFT: AUDBLBBX

DONATE ONLINE to the International Committee of the Red Cross -Lebanon Emergency

DON EN LIGNE à la Croix Rouge Française -Crise Humanitaire au Proche-Orient

DONATE ONLINE to the Canadian Red Cross -Lebanon Crisis

DONATE ONLINE to the American Red Cross -Lebanon Relief
OR send a check to:
American Red Cross
PO Box 470934
Cleveland, Ohio 44147
* at bottom left of check write: "For Lebanese Red Cross"

DONATE to Caritas-Liban (blog)

DONATE ONLINE to the Mercy Corps -Lebanon Crisis

DONATE ONLINE to the UNHCR (UN Refugee Agency) -Lebanon Emergency

DONATE ONLINE to World Vision -Lebanon Emergency Relief

DONATE to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul - LIBAN:

DONATE ONLINE to the Society of St. Vincent De Paul
*under Tribute, write: "Lebanese St. Vincent de Paul"

DONATE to the YMCA of Lebanon

DONATE to the Women's Humanitarian Organization

DONATE to Mowatinun

DONATE to Samidoun Relief Center

DONATE to the United Lebanon Foundation

Also visit:
Lebanon Under Siege .gov.lb
Sode Leb .org
Relief Lebanon .org
Save Leb .org

(Please read the Disclaimer on the left sidebar)
(I will keep this post up-to-date; you can always access it from the sidebar)

Israel attacks 33 farmers in Al Qaa, Eastern Lebanon

2006-08-05T02:16:00.000-07:00

**** SENSITIVE PICTURES ****

More killing of civilians in Israeli attacks..

Excerpts from a Guardian article:

Israeli aircraft struck deep into Lebanon yesterday, killing at least 33 Syrian Kurdish farm workers and destroying four bridges on a key aid route leading north from Beirut.

The attack on the farm workers, who were loading peaches and plums on to trucks at Qaa in the north of the Beka'a valley, was one of the single deadliest strikes of the war.

Most of the farmers were Syrian nationals of Kurdish ethnicity. Other than the 33 killed, another 30 were injured and transported to hospitals in Syria.

This map shows how far Al Qaa is from the Israeli border...

the Socialist Worker cover

2006-08-04T02:17:00.000-07:00

The Socialist Worker weekly from the UK.

"Some Israeli Attacks Amount to War Crimes" - Human Rights Watch on Lebanese casualties

2006-08-03T00:51:00.000-07:00

From the latest HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH report:

Israeli forces have systematically failed to distinguish between combatants and civilians in their military campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon, Human Rights Watch said in report released today. The pattern of attacks in more than 20 cases investigated by Human Rights Watch researchers in Lebanon indicates that the failures cannot be dismissed as mere accidents and cannot be blamed on wrongful Hezbollah practices. In some cases, these attacks constitute war crimes.

Hezbollah fighters must not hide behind civilians – that's an absolute – but the image that Israel has promoted of such shielding as the cause of so high a civilian death toll is wrong. In the many cases of civilian deaths examined by Human Rights Watch, the location of Hezbollah troops and arms had nothing to do with the deaths because there was no Hezbollah around.

To keep up with Israeli operations, you have to read their (tightly censored) newspapers. Or even better, watch CNN.

Today the Israelis claimed that their "classic commando operation" (cute terminology for "deadly assault in a civilian area") on the Hospital in Baalbeck was "successful". They successfully managed to capture 5 men (time will tell they have nothing to do with Hezbollah) and kill 14 other defenceless civilians, including women and children (source: L'ORIENT-LEJOUR). Of course they were all labeled as "Hezbollah terrorists" by the Israeli press (Ynetnews.com).

These are some pictures of the "terrorists" killed in Baalbeck:

(pictures ~~stolen~~ from www.albaladonline.com)

Destruction in southern Beirut suburbs (Dahyeh), Haret Hreik, Lebanon

2006-08-02T04:10:00.000-07:00

A satellite view of he southern residential suburbs of Beirut (Dahyeh), after the recent Israeli air and naval strikes..

Before July 12..

After.. On July 22 click on image for larger view

After.. On July 31 click on image for larger view

A closer view at the damage.. (click here for larger image)

More sad pictures from Qana/Cana, Lebanon

2006-08-01T03:15:00.000-07:00

**** SENSITIVE PICTURES **** IMAGES SENSIBLES ****

More pictures of the Qana massacre of more than FIFTY (50) Lebanese civilians in, or 'the Qana massacre II' (all the casualties are from two families: Chalhoub and Hachem)

(see the Qana massacre in 1996)

(see more pictures in previous post on the recent Qana massacre)

49 bodies removed from rubble in Srifa and other villages in South Lebanon

2006-07-31T15:25:00.000-07:00

Israel annouced a 48-hour suspension of air raids (that they broke a few times) to conduct an investigation into the Qana massacre, the second (previous post).

Undoubtably the result of the probe will be as follows: "Hundreds of Khizbulla rockets were fired from the basement of that building, and all lights were off. Plus, we had warned all residents of South Lebanon to leave because we decided it was a warzone."

1- Qana/Cana is 13 kms away from the border. Katyusha rockets can reach 20 kms. There is apparently no reason for rockets to be lauched from Qana. (Human Rights organizations confirmed this fact a few days later)
2- Many Southern residents are extremely poor and could not afford to travel.
3- Many of those who tried to leave their homes were hit by Israeli planes and missile boats (remember Marwahin).
4- You can not tell everyone to leave and feel free to burn the shit out of the place! How about the entire population of Israel leaves their country because Hezbollah and Hamas decide it is a warzone?

Anyway, the 48-hour suspension of air strikes allowed the Red Cross and civil defense to reach more villages and roads where people were missing.

FOURTY-NINE (49) bodies were recovered on Monday alone. TWENTY-SIX (26) of them under the rubble of their homes in Srifa/Sreefa (previous post), NINE (9) in Zibqeen, FOUR (4) in Qleileh, and at least EIGHT (8) in their cars hit by Israeli missiles.

The death toll in Qana/Cana -so far- is: FIFTY-FOUR (54) civilians dead, at least THIRTY-SEVEN (37) of them children. (source: L'ORIENT-LEJOUR)

Here are a few independent French and UK newspapers cover (others like the NY Times and LA Times focused on "Israel suspending air raids")...

2006 MASSACRE IN QANA, LEBANON

2006-07-30T00:05:00.000-07:00

**** SENSITIVE PICTURES **** IMAGES SENSIBLES ****
>> NEW PICTURES >>

(July 30th 2006, 1AM)

I am watching arabic TV online. Live broadcast. Bodies are being taken out of the rubble. Babies. Children. One man lost all his cousins, all children. A Red Cross worker is trying hard not to faint. His voice has faded. He's saying there was a strong smell of a chemical substance from the bombs.

(I just found a picture of him)

(All information from al-arabiya tv)

Israeli airplanes dropped missiles on a 3-storey building housing dozens of refugees in Qana*. Qana is strictly civilian and people have taken refuge here.

57 people have been hiding in the basement for several days, among them around 40 children (including 10 disabled), all aged between 7 months and 10 years, and the rest being women and elderly.

8 people survived. The rest is either dead or stuck under the rubble. Civil defense and trucks are not being able to get to the village, most roads and bridges having been destroyed earlier by Israeli raids.

Locations on the map are villages that have witnessed a large death toll among civilians after Israeli strikes.

Srifa: dozens of people (21?, 75?) are still under the rubble of their homes. (soure, the Guardian, tayyar.org)
Ter Harfa: 23 women and children from Marwahin killed in 2 pick-up trucks. (remember?)
Tyre: dozens of families killed in several airstrikes on downtown neighborhoods.
*Qana: today's massacre. (also witnessed massacre of 106 refugees in 1996, by an Israeli raid on a UN shelter, the 1996 massacre, sensitive pictures)

I will post more pictures when available.

"Smart bombs": the journey from the US to Lebanon

2006-07-29T05:02:00.000-07:00

[Nice words used by countries that manufacture weapons and make wars:]
Smart bombs. Collateral damage. Pinpoint incursions. Legitimate weapons.

[Actual translation used in targetted countries:]
Deadly bombs. Killing civilians. Slow invasion. Highly destructive weapons.

(poster taken from this blog)

Bush's press conference - - commented

2006-07-29T00:37:00.000-07:00

Excerpts of Bush's recent joint press conference with Bliar: -- Pure lies and cheap propaganda. And speech handicap.

It's an interesting period because, instead of having foreign policies based upon trying to create a sense of stability, we have a foreign policy that addresses the root causes of violence and instability. -- Yes, Bush's foreign policy is war.

For a while, American foreign policy was just, Let's hope everything is calm — kind of, managed calm. But beneath the surface brewed a lot of resentment and anger that was manifested on September the 11th. -- Propaganda... Putting everyone in the same basket. Hezbollah, Lebanon, Syria, Iran, Iraq have nothing to do with 9/11. Although that anger against the US is being justified by their unconditional support for Israel's military actions in Palestine and now in Lebanon.

In the long term, to defeat this ideology — and they're bound by an ideology — you defeat it with a more hopeful ideology called freedom. -- What? An ideology called freedom?? Freedom is a word. Not an ideology. And let's not get into the freeing of Iraq.

For example, you know, the notion of democracy beginning to emerge scares the ideologues, the totalitarians, those who want to impose their vision. It just frightens them. -- OK, he's talking about democracy in Lebanon and Palestine. Ideologues in Israel. He's right on this one.

And so they respond. They've always been violent. -- Right again, Israel.

Boy and his mother after being hit by Israeli airstrikes on their car in Tyre.

There's this kind of almost — kind of a weird kind of elitism that says well maybe — maybe certain people in certain parts of the world shouldn't be free; maybe it's best just to let them sit in these tyrannical societies. -- I'm sure Iraqis would agree on that one. Not only the elitists, but all Iraq.

They just got a different tool to use than we do: They kill innocent lives to achieve objectives. That's what they do. And they're good. They get on the TV screens and they get people to ask questions about, well, you know, this, that or the other. I mean, they're able to kind of say to people: Don't come and bother us, because we will kill you. -- I think he's still talking about Israel. Wow, he's getting smarter by the minute.

We share the same urgency of trying to stop the violence. That's why Condi Rice went out there very quickly. Her job is to — first and foremost, was to make it clear to the Lebanese people that we wanted to send aid and help, and help work on the corridors necessary to get the aid to the Lebanese people. -- By sending 2.5 billion dollars of military and economic aid to Israel every year, vetoing every UN resolution criticizing Israel, and sending tons of F-16 fuel and new bombs for Israel to continue its war on Lebanon??

(injured girl in a hospital in Tyre)

More lies here.

Also read this. (Thanks Lilla for this one)

Ain Ebel, Rmeich, completely isolated by Israel's operations, South Lebanon

2006-07-27T23:56:00.000-07:00

****WARNING**** No pictures in this post, just read and imagine the scene...

While Condie Rice is playing the piano in Kuala Lumpur, and while a Pet association in the US is campaigning to pressure the US navy to evacuate pets from Lebanon (only pets belonging to Americans, of course), families in southern Lebanon are still being killed and burried under their own houses by Israeli strikes, or what they call "surgical attacks on strategic Hezbollah positions"... Which is also true, given that Hezbollah's strategic advantage in this conflict is the moral and political support from Lebanese southerners...

The map below shows you just how bad this war has been. The South of Lebanon has been turned into a pile of rubble (and human flesh)...

But there's even more...

In a strategy to divide the Lebanese and trick non-chiites into a virtual alliance with them, the Israelis are being careful not to (massively) hit non-chiite villages. Two such villages are the predominantly christian villages of Ain Ebel and Rmeich.

Ain Ebel. Population: 6,000. Incoming "refugees": 10,000.
Rmeich. Population: 8,000. Incoming "refugees": 17,000.

Both villages have been completely cut-out from the world; all roads were destroyed; there is no more water, no food, no medicine, no gas... People are drinking water from (dirty) ponds, and skin diseases are spreading. (source: bbc, tayyar.org)

They have been calling from cell phones asking for help. But nothing can be done, since the world is more worried about some Israelis being "treated for shock", or more surprised by cyclist champions being tested positive for doping (duh! old news, get over it).

(the most recent map showing locations and intensity of attacks at this blog: samidoun)

Here, go have some fun.. The invasion of Lebanon is not entertaining anymore anyway... Some sources:
Rice to play piano piece at ASEAN dinner
U.S. Abandons Animals in Lebanon Chaos
Floyd Landis contrôlé positif

Oil spill from Israeli attack on Jiyyeh pollutes 80 kms of beaches, Lebanon

2006-07-27T01:29:00.000-07:00

The Israeli bombing of the fuel-oil tanks at the Jiyeh power plant south of Beirut resulted in a catastrophic damage to the environment. Cleaning the beaches (whenever permitted by the Israeli military) will cost 10 to 30 million dollars. Kuwait is said to have sent equipment that is still stuck in Syria on its way to Lebanon.

A map showing the extent of the oil spill..

The popular "White Sand" beach in Beirut..

The ancient port of Jbeil/Byblos..

Red Cross ambulances hit by Israeli missiles, Qana, Lebanon

2006-07-26T03:20:00.000-07:00

Two Red Cross ambulances (carrying 3 injured civilians) were hit by Israeli missiles near Qana.

All 6 Red Cross staff were injured. Images of the hit ambulances suggest that it was not a mistake, but a deliberate attack by Israeli planes.

Qana is believed to be the same as the biblical village of Cana where Jesus performed his first miracle turning water into wine. Qana also witnessed a deadly Israeli airstrike on a UN shleter where 106 civilians were killed in 1996.

Israeli raids: 4 UN peacekeepers KILLED, South Lebanon

2006-07-25T16:19:00.000-07:00

According to media reports, more houses have been destroyed by Israeli strikes, and more civilian cars targeted, ...

Layal Najib, a free-lance photographer, was killed in her car by Israeli strikes. (source: albalad)

Israeli airplanes started hitting the southern suburbs of Beirut again, as soon as Condie Rice left Beirut. (source: agencies)

Finally (?), Israeli shelling destroyed a UN post in Khyam, burrying 4 peacekeepers under the rubble. IMO, the apparent aim of the "deliberate targetting" of the post is to scare the UN mission away and force them to leave South Lebanon. This would leave more room for the Israelis to act freely and "clean the area", as Israeli officials like top put it. Excerpt from a bbc article:

It said the four, from Austria, Canada, China and Finland, had taken shelter in a bunker under the post after it was earlier shelled 14 times by Israeli artillery.

A rescue team was also shelled as it tried to clear the rubble.

"I am shocked and deeply distressed by the apparently deliberate targeting by Israeli Defence Forces of a UN Observer post in southern Lebanon," Mr Annan said in a statement from Rome.

(--Kofi Annan does not usually speak irresponsibly... His words are always cautious and his accusations measured..)

Injured kids in a Hospital in the city of Tyre:

The photographer killed by an Israeli airstrike on her car:

Images from Beirut's southern residential suburbs:

The Israeli strike on the UN post in Khyam:

More civilian deaths in Lebanon, Tyre, Srifa

2006-07-23T13:55:00.000-07:00

****WARNING**** SOME SENSITIVE PICTURES

****ATTENTION**** CERTAINES IMAGES SENSIBLES

One hospital in Tyre saw its morgue overwhelmed with dozens of bodies (do we need to mention they were all civilians, including dozens of children?), and had to quickly burry 74 bodies in a common grave. (source: albalad newspaper)

After the death of civilians in Marwahin, Ter Harfa, Tyre, others went unnoticed in the international media. In Srifa, a small village in southern Lebanon, 10 houses were destroyed in a series of Israeli strikes, burrying their inhabitants under the rubble. At least 21 are still under the rubble, the Israeli army forbidding anyone from getting close even to give the dead a decent burrial. (source: tayyar.org)

Entire residential neighborhoods in the cities of Nabatiye, Tyre, Baalbeck, and the Southern suburbs of Beirut have been destroyed completely.

Other southern villages are completely isolated from the rest of the world. Most roads and bridges were destroyed, electricity and landlines cut off, and food, medicine and water are running out. One such village is Ain Ebel. Noone there dares to leave, fearing airstrikes on anything that moves, and no ambulance nor humanitarian mission dares to get close. (source: tayyar.org)

Even the UN "observation mission" in southern Lebanon has chickened out. Two of their posts have been hit by Israeli misiles, and some of their staff were injured. Not to mention their indirect responsibility in the death of civilians in Marwahin (previous post), which makes them want to keep a low profile.

Click to see how Israeli warplanes and helicopters are bombing anything that moves (source: bbc).

Is Israel using banned weapons in Lebanon? July 17th 2006

2006-07-18T22:59:00.000-07:00

****WARNING**** SENSITIVE PICTURES

****ATTENTION**** IMAGES SENSIBLES

Has the Israeli Air Force dropped phosphorus bombs (see incendiary bombs) on civilians in the town of Rmeileh on the Lebanese coast? Phosphorus bombs were internationally banned from targetting civilians, in 1980.

x Excerpt from a DemocracyNow.org article:

Lebanon's Information Minister Ghazi Aridi has accused Israel of using banned weapons in violation of international law. Reports in the Lebanese media have claimed that Israel has used phosphorus incendiary bombs and vacuum bombs that suck up air and facilitate building collapses. The use of incendiary weapons against civilians has been banned since 1980. The U.S. military used similar phosphorous weapons during the siege of Fallujuah in Iraq.

x Excerpt from an Expatica article:

The Israeli military is using chemical weapons during its bombing of Lebanon, a Belgian-Lebanese professor claimed during a press conference in Brussels on Thursday. The Belgian professor of Lebanese origin, Bachir Cham, is the head of a hospital in Lebanon.

"The bodies don't look like they normally do. After an explosion there were no traces of blood loss or subcutaneous haemorrhages [bruises]," Cham said via mobile phone direct from Beirut.

Eight mummy-like bodies were taken to the hospital on Monday and photos taken of the corpses. Two children's bodies showed no indication of wounds resulting from an explosion.

"I have the impression that a poisonous product penetrated the body via the skin. Death follows with almost 100 percent certainty," the professor said.

x Excerpt from a Daily Star article:

Even as Lebanon struggles to deal with the increasingly heavy onslaught from Israel's military, another deadly threat might have surfaced. There were Lebanese media reports, which could not be confirmed, that Israel had used phosphorus incendiary bombs. The smoke from white phosphorus causes nasal and eye irritation, and breathing in a great deal of the smoke can be very hazardous and even potentially fatal.

"I've heard they're using phosphoric bombs in the South of the country," said Dr. Carl. "They've been telling people to use wet napkins as makeshift masks, and that would help reduce the absorption of phosphorus into the lungs."

x Excerpt from a WayneMadsenReport.com article (July 20, 2006):

According to a former U.S. weapons expert who served in Iraq, the artillery shell in a photo taken in Lebanon is a chemical weapon delivery device.

It is not known what type of chemical is in the chemical canister, however, gas dropped by the Israelis in villages in southern Lebanon has resulted in severe vomiting among the civilian population.

Israeli air force also hit an Emirati convoy of trucks carrying medical goods on the Damascus-Beirut highway. A milk factory and more residential neighborhoods were hit in Tyre, Baalbeck and south Lebanon villages.

A Greek-Orthodox Church was also hit.

The number of displaced that have been forced to evacuate has reached HALF A MILLION (for a total population of 4 millions). They have been fleeing to the "safe regions", sleeping in public parks, schools, mosques and churches. The UNICEF is warning of a Humanitarian Disaster. I think it is already there.

Women and Children killed in Israeli strikes, July 15th and 16th 2006, Beirut suburb and South Lebanon

2006-07-17T15:33:00.000-07:00

****WARNING**** SENSITIVE PICTURES

****ATTENTION**** IMAGES SENSIBLES

EXCERPTS FROM A BBC article:

In Israeli strikes on Monday, at least 10 Lebanese people died when their vehicles were hit on a bridge in the south of the country, reports said. [...] The bodies of nine people, including six children, were reportedly found in the rubble of a building in Tyre hit by Israeli missiles on Sunday. One report said they had been trying to shelter in the basement.

Up to 200 Lebanese people have died in six days of Israeli bombardment.

The killing of innocent civilians is ONGOING at this very moment on roads and in villages in South Lebanon.

Lebanese families killed by Israeli strikes, July 15th 2006, South Lebanon

2006-07-15T19:36:00.000-07:00

****WARNING**** SENSITIVE PICTURES

****ATTENTION**** IMAGES SENSIBLES

EXCERPTS FROM A BBC article:

Families in the village of Marwahin are said to have been told by the Israeli army at around 0800 local time that they had just two hours to leave.

Some 100 residents evacuated and headed for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) base to seek shelter, but were refused entry after officials were unable to confirm the warning by Israel.

Israeli aircraft raided the vehicles (two pick-up trucks). "The Israeli forces attacked them on the Shamma road and their bodies litter the road".

Medical sources have said around half the passengers were children or teenagers.

>> 23 were killed, all of them civilians, at least 9 of them were children...

Israel bombs Lebanon, destroys bridges, July 14th 2006

2006-07-14T14:14:00.000-07:00

All bridges in South Lebanon were destroyed

Medical help crosses rivers by foot

90 civilians killed, 250 injured after 4 days of strikes by F-16 jets,
helicopters, missile boats, and heavy artillery

"dude", the clueless worm

2006-07-10T15:20:00.000-07:00

the diet coke & mentos experiments

2006-06-22T00:29:00.000-07:00

a home-made Bellagio fountain.. with what?
diet coke and mentos?? check it out..

-- video removed

videos and info about how they do it at www.eepybird.com.

la fête de la musique

2006-06-20T17:04:00.000-07:00

le 21 juin, c'est la fête de la musique..

tous les évènements dans le monde sont relayés sur www.21juin2006.net le site officiel de la fête de la musique en photos et audio, avec un mix de 1 heure de zeid hamdan (soap kills) préparé pour l'occasion (cliquez sur le moyen-orient sur la carte du monde)..

et si vous avez une idéee comment je peux "saver" le file, faites moi signe..

a tulsan's guide to drinking

2006-06-17T03:46:00.000-07:00

if you happen to be partying this weekend and are sick and tired of the regular vodka-orange or black-label-on-the-rocks, here is an outlook of how true tulsans drink their way through the weekend..

first, and to understand what's on the average tulsan's alcoholic menu, you must know that, in oklahoma, beer is restricted to a 3% alcohol content, which gets the taste of beer even closer to human pee..

add to that the fact that local white zinfandel tastes more like rasberry juice than wine, you see the extent to which the average billy-bob craves good booze..

for starters, true tulsans like to light up the evening with some sambucca.. and i mean litterally.. here's how you do it: pour a shot of white sambucca into your mouth. do not swallow yet. reach for a lighter. preferably a strong one. pull your head back and open your mouth, as if asking the great architect for forgiveness before you commit sin. light up the sambuca in your mouth. observe the pure blue flame. close your mouth to turn it off, preferably before your flesh goes up in smoke. swallow. impress your friends.

ok, now that you got the party started, you can move on to the serious stuff: have a few shots of illegally home-distilled whiskey.. they call it moonshine (because they make it at night far from any house) and you can read about it here.. now that is garanteed to give you a hint of happiness. and a nauseating after taste of sbirto..

last but not least, the 'car bomb' at your local irish pub (paddy's if you're a tulsan billy-bob).. here's how it's done:
Pour Guinness (irish beer) into a pint glass. Float Bailey's (irish cream) on top of Jameson (irish whiskey) in a shot glass. Drop the shot glass, carefully, into the beer. Drink quickly before it curdles.

now if you're not irish, you're probably wondering what the f#$% 'curdles' means.. if you're of the faster type, you probably already looked it up on google and found out that beer, whiskey and irish cream will curdle when mixed, just like blood will clot on a wound, egg whites will coagulate when heated and gravy will congeale when refrigerated..

Drink quickly before it curdles.. you may not know it yet, but curdling is said to occur within a few seconds.. which gives you just as much time to swallow the whole 'car bomb' pint..

BAAOUM!

have a great weekend

tulsa.. saturday: skiatook

2006-06-14T20:15:00.000-07:00

weekend on the lake.. skiatook side.. pronounce 'sky-took'..

earth..

air..

fire..

water..

phil_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

tulsa.. friday: p & a wedding

2006-06-13T13:16:00.000-07:00

congrats to the happy couple!
who would've said p would be the first to get wed..

opening the moët bottle on the boat.. notice the cork (le bouchon) floating in the sky..

phil_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

tulsa.. thursday: country (night)club

2006-06-12T02:08:00.000-07:00

the 'caravan' nightclub is where all tulsa rednecks gather every thursday night.. beer, cowgirls, cowboy hats, disco balls, and boot scootin' boogiiiie..

"They got whiskey, women, music and smoke
It's where all the country folk go to boot scootin' boogie"

phil_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

8 juin

2006-06-08T00:13:00.000-07:00

tulsa, here i come

2006-06-07T01:58:00.000-07:00

ever heard of Tulsa, Oklahoma?
ever wondered where it was exactly?? or what it looks like?

here is where Tulsa is supposed to be on the US map.. i'm pretty sure anyone who is not from Tulsa, has no idea where it is.. or why..

anyway, i hear there is lots of partying going on there though.. especially during wedding season.. so Tulsa, here i come baby..

beach towels

2006-06-06T02:21:00.000-07:00

summer is already here, in the northern hemisphere that is, and if you're planning to spend the weekend on the beach, well.. towelie says: don't forget to bring a towel..

phil_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

chicago, 25 degrés.. cheveux: impeccables

2006-06-01T22:16:00.000-07:00

... taft, toujours.

quelques photos de la Crown Fountain, downtown Chicago..

phil_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

weekend in L.A. - part III

2006-05-31T14:48:00.000-07:00

part III: lundi, a walk with e in the neighborhood.. Koreatown

a sample of commercial stores..

a carnival mask? or a monster coming out of an egg?

a peaceful meditation center..

the simple life carved on a flower pot..

an effed-up mailbox..

wires, poles, a korean church, downtown.. click for high resolution 1024x768

old house lifted up and ready to be moved..

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

weekend in L.A. - part II

2006-05-30T17:53:00.000-07:00

part II: dimanche, chill à venice & barbecue chez t, downtown

venice: allongé sur le dos..

venice beach..

barbecue au 14e étage: vue sur les gratte-ciel..

sunset over downtown..

offices lighting up (at 7pm on a holiday)..

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

weekend in L.A. - part I

2006-05-29T20:33:00.000-07:00

part I: samedi, East Downtown

le bar circulaire du Broadway..

artistes à l'oeuvre au Cannibal Flower

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

a walk on the dog trail

2006-05-23T17:02:00.000-07:00

some people like to walk their dogs.. i walk my camera..

nigel and his homies..

dull seagulls in the lagoon..

the coaster..

as if seagulls needed preservation..

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

daft punk concert videos

2006-05-21T00:46:00.000-07:00

i finally figured out how to post videos..
so here it is.. after the pictures from coachella, here are some videos..

(55 sec)

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

(21 sec)

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

more daft punk? here is a 2003 interview about their collaboration with japanese director leiji matsumoto for the animations of 'discovery'.. pour ceux qui ne comprennent pas l'anglais, c'est sous-titré en japonais.. (12 min)

ziiz guyz aghe neutts..

remodel

2006-05-20T03:22:00.000-07:00

a wider blog for wider pictures and a wider view..

plus, i fixed some presentation issues with internet explorer.. there are still some left.. so if you're still using internet explorer, spare me the extra work, do yourself a favor and GET FIREFOX!

it's cleaner, faster, much safer, open-source, extendable, and free.. oh and it's developed by a non-profit organization..

and, most importantly.. this blog looks better in firefox..

my shrimp just had a facelift

2006-05-19T01:25:00.000-07:00

let's start from the beginning..

last year my parents got me this 'ecosphere' gadget for xmas.. the concept? a micro-ecosystem consisting of a completely closed glass sphere, filled to the 3/4 with water, the rest being air.. in the water, bacteria that feed on organic waste, and algae that provide oxygen and delicious organic matter to the stars of the ecosphere: 4 tiny shrimps, better know under the nickname 'the beatles'.. mainly because of their british accent..

see how it works, looks, and sells.. here

it's been 17 months, and, unfortunately, two of the beatles went dead last summer (we believe one of them was murdered).. but ringo and paul now have plenty of food and oxygen for their own and are living happily ever after..

i took this picture yesterday.. one of the shrimps has recently moulted ("mué" in french).. considering that it's at least 17 months old, and its lifespan will not exceed two years, we can conservatively call the process by its name.. a facelift..

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

los angeles en soirée

2006-05-17T01:58:00.000-07:00

world café à santa monica

le standard

m nous invite à diner au cliff's edge // downtown

projection de 'the birds' au cimetière 'hollywood forever'...

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

ashes and snow

2006-05-15T21:24:00.000-07:00

http://ashesandsnow.org

"In the beginning of time, the skies were filled with flying elephants. Too heavy for their wings, they sometimes crashed through the trees and frightened other animals.
All the flying gray elephants migrated to the source of the Ganges. They agreed to renounce their wings and settle on the earth. When they molted millions of wings fell to the earth, the snow covered them, and the Himalayas were born.
The blue elephants landed in the sea and their wings became fins. They are whales, the trunkless elephants of the oceans. Their cousins are the manatees, the trunkless elephants of the rivers.
The chameleon elephants kept their wings but agreed never again to land on the earth. When they go to sleep, the elephants always lie down in the same place in the sky and dream with one eye open. The stars you see at night are the unblinking eyes of sleeping elephants, who sleep with one eye open to best keep watch over us."
- taken from "Ashes and Snow: A Novel in Letters" by Gregory Colbert

Une expo de photos et videos de Gregory Colbert, racontées par Laurence Fishburne (morpheus!), au Nomadic Museum construit pour l'occasion par Shigeru Ban au Santa Monica pier..

Surréel.. le site web est aussi bon http://ashesandsnow.org

le musée temporaire sur la plage..

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

koreatown

2006-05-14T22:36:00.000-07:00

today i had lunch with n at the korean place on vermont/olympic..

reminder that westmoreland is on the edge of koreatown

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

graduation

2006-05-13T11:34:00.000-07:00

standard hotel, downtown

2006-05-11T01:43:00.000-07:00

le Roof du Standard Hotel, bar, musique, piscine et lits d'eau...

coin chill au 14e étage en plein downtown los angeles...

the water-beds...

la vue sur les gratte-ciel...

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

venice beach and drum circle

2006-05-08T11:08:00.000-07:00

back to my old los angelan habits: the sunday ritual in Venice Beach... a busy "world culture" promenade with all kinds of people selling all kinds of stuff; a sandy beach and giant palm trees stretching in the mist; a bunch of people playing drums and dancing in worship of the Sun...

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

los angeles

2006-05-07T01:29:00.000-07:00

J'aime ce pays

2006-05-06T02:07:00.000-07:00

<< J'aime ce pays, et j'aime y vivre parce que j'y ai mes racines, ces profondes et délicates racines, qui attachent un homme à la terre où sont nés et morts ses aïeux, qui l'attachent à ce que l'on pense et à ce qu'on mange, aux usages comme aux nourritures, aux locutions locales, aux intonations des paysans, aux odeurs du sol, des villages et de l'air lui-même. >>

Le Horla, Guy de Maupassant

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

Pictures from Coachella!!

2006-04-30T23:34:00.000-07:00

Les moyens: Une nuit, 3 heures de sommeil, 20 minutes en taxi, 2 heures de train, 10 minutes de metro, location d'une voiture, 3 heures de route, et 100 dollars. Et au retour, 1 heure d'attente pour fuir les lieux, 1 heure d'attente au drive-thru du McDo, et 2 heures de route pour rentrer à LA...

L'objectif: La série de Samedi (29 avril) des concerts de Coachella à Indio.
Total: 8 heures d'affilée de concerts.
L'impression: A refaire.

See the videos here..

Le comptre-rendu en photos:

Un aperçu du terrain... un espace immense, 5 scènes dont une scène centrale énorme, 60,000 presonnes, 97 degrés F, du gazon, et du bronzage...

Kanye West, vu du 'beer garden'...

Imogen Heap, "Hide and Seek"...

Damian Marley, "Exodus"...

Franz Ferdinand...

Depeche Mode enflaming the crowd with their futuristic spaceship-themed stage set...

... here singing "Personal Jesus"

Finally, la cerise sur le gateau, DAFT PUNK taking worshippers on a surreal voyage into digital sounds and visual music, here mixing "Around The World" with "Television Rules The Nation".........

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

Midnight Grunions

2006-04-29T00:45:00.000-07:00

Once a year, grunions come to the Southern Californian shore to lay eggs on the sand... Here are a few shots of this year's (my first) grunion adventure...

Walking along the beach with flash lights

A bunch of grunions fighting over a promising spot

To give you an idea of their size

Blue-lined fishie waiting anxiously for a wave to pick her up

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

Coachella

2006-04-28T21:12:00.000-07:00

Coachella is a yearly woodstock type of concert in Indio, California (in the desert, 2 hours East of LA).

Click to see my tentative schedule for tomorrow.

Philishave

2006-04-27T17:23:00.000-07:00

Retrait syrien

2006-04-26T02:40:00.000-07:00

26 Avril 2005
Retrait total des troupes syriennes du Liban après 29 ans d'occupation, opression, massacres, attentats, meurtres et tentative d'effacer l'identité Libanaise.

my 2006 so far

2006-04-25T02:31:00.000-07:00

Why the US and Iran should not go to war.

2006-04-24T00:05:00.000-07:00

Or why we celebrate birthdays.

Info on birthdays from Wikipedia:

It is thought that the large-scale celebration of birthdays in Europe began with the Iranian cult of Mithraism in the Roman Empire. [...]
Birthday celebrations were rare during the Middle Ages, but saw a resurgence with the advent of the Reformation. During this period, they were seen as a good way to transfer customs from the saint's days to other dates not linked to the newly repudiated veneration of saints.

In other words, if it wasn't for the Iranians and the Protestants, we wouldn't have this ridiculous cult of having to remember people's birthdays and getting them upset if we don't.

If this is not common grounds...

L'Apocalypse, ou comment un conte de fées attise les passions (Part I)

2006-04-22T02:04:00.000-07:00

Lisez mon post sur dupes.blogspot.com.

One year ago, Vegas

2006-04-21T16:30:00.000-07:00

Exactly one year ago, I escaped with my better half to what is known as Sin City.

Hours away from any form of civilization, with no natural resource justifying its location, no natural water, a soil as dry as a bone, a population as bitter as turkish coffee, and a visiting population as stranger to itself as it is to the locals, here it stands and expands, Las Vegas, an oasis of sin in a desert of morality.

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

Spring in Suburbia

2006-04-19T17:21:00.000-07:00

Welcome to my personal blog: Lebanize...

Why blog? It is a simple way to keep friends and family (and the world) informed about my whereabouts and state of mind, without having to invade their mailboxes with collective emails...

Why "Lebanize"? We, Lebanese, eventually "Lebanize" everything we experience, sense, or make. It is a word that ought to be in dictionaries, for its wide use in the media (not always in a good sense) and in... blogs. Contribute in spreading it.

Why in English? Although it is not my language of predilection, nor many of my entourage's, it has become, whether we like it or not, a universal language, accessible to everyone.

My current mission? Blogging about my American experience... Cities and suburbs... Sights and thoughts.

Blogito, ergo sum - Je blogue, donc je suis

lebnene_b'amerca -all rights reserved-

The Right Religion?

2006-04-18T16:13:00.000-07:00

Here is how I did on the "Which religion is right for you?" test, not that I was surprised by the results. Although, I must say I am deeply frustrated by the missing 29%... Does it mean that I have some belief in the Supreme Being, hidden deep inside my subconscious??

You scored as atheism. You are... an atheist, though you probably already knew this. Also, you probably have several people praying daily for your soul.

Instead of simply being "nonreligious," atheists strongly believe in the lack of existence of a higher being, or God.

agnosticism

71%

atheism

71%

Paganism

63%

Islam

54%

Buddhism

46%

Satanism

33%

Judaism

29%

Christianity

29%

Hinduism

Try it here: Which religion is the right one for you?

And thanks to all of you out there praying for my soul. I would've been doing the same, but... my test score says otherwise.

Railroad Crossing

2006-04-18T00:53:00.000-07:00

New York under attack

2006-04-17T04:30:00.000-07:00