Thursday, June 18, 2009 WASHINGTON: Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Wednesday reiterated the Jewish state's refusal to freeze settlements, after his first talks with US counterpart Hillary Clinton exposed gaps on Middle East peace. Lieberman, standing next to Secretary of State Clinton after the pair had more than one hour of talks, told reporters that Israel did not have "any intention to change the demographic balance" of the West Bank. "But we think that as in any place, babies are born, people get married, some pass away and we cannot accept this vision about an absolutely complete freezing of settlements," said Lieberman. "I think that we must keep the natural growth," he said after the two held their first official meeting since the right-leaning government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took office in late March. "This approach is very clear and also we had some understandings with the previous administration (of George W. Bush) and we try to keep this direction," he said. The Israelis say they received commitments from the Bush administration permitting some growth in existing settlements. They say the US position was laid out in a 2004 letter from Bush to then Israeli premier Ariel Sharon. Lieberman, head of the ultranationalist Yisrael Beitenu party, reiterated that the Netanyahu government is ready "immediate direct talks with the Palestinians."Clinton stuck by early statements that President Barack Obama's administration opposes any kind of settlement activity in line with a 2003 roadmap agreed to by Israel.
BEIRUT: Thousands of people converged Saturday on central Beirut to mark the fourth anniversary of the assassination of Lebanese former premier Rafiq Hariri.Waving Lebanese flags and carrying pictures of the slain leader, men, women and children gathered under sunny skies in Martyr's Square where members of the parliamentary majority were to address the crowd. The rally comes as final preparations are underway in The Hague for the launch of the international tribunal set up to bring Hariri's killers to justice. It also comes as the country prepares for legislative elections in June that will pit Western-backed political parties against a Hezbollah-led alliance backed by Syria and Iran.Hariri died in a massive car bombing on February 14, 2005 that also killed 22 others. The assassination was widely blamed on then Lebanese power-broker Syria, which has denied any involvement. The attack on the Beirut seafront was one of the worst acts of political violence to rock Lebanon since t...
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