colonels have been detained between May and June on charges of spying for Israel.
The army colonel that fled was identified as D.J. and two the other detained Lebanese army colonels were identified as Mansour Diab and Shahid Toumiyeh.
The probe into spying for Israel that has led to more than 50 arrests so far and 20 of those detained have been formally charged.
Lebanon has described the arrests as a major blow to Israel's intelligence-gathering
Lebanon has formally complained to the United Nations about its findings, accusing Israel of breaching UNSCR 1701 and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Tuesday that he was concerned at the Lebanese allegations of spying.
"The allegations, if proved, could endanger the fragile cessation of hostilities that exists between Israel and Lebanon," Ban said in his report .
Hezbollah, which is the primary target of the Israeli spying activity has called for the execution of those convicted. Apparently one of the suspects was involved in the 2004 assassination of Hezbollah commander Ghalib Awali, security officials have said. Awali was killed by a bomb in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
According to Johnny Haddad, a military analyst , "Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran and Syria has been for years intimidating and demoralizing the Lebanese army and this has helped Israel in recruiting army members for its spying activity."
This is of course no excuses for spying for an aggressive, expansionist and vicious enemy like Israel , but that is what happens when an army finds itself intimidated by a militant group within its own borders and whose objectives may not be in Lebanon's best interests. Hezbollah, which claims to be a resistance force with the sole objective of liberating occupied Lebanese land and defending the Lebanese territories has used during the past 3 years its weapons against the Lebanese citizens: May 7 2008 occupation of west Beirut and the unsuccessful attempt to occupy mount Lebanon are witnesses to Hezbollah's use of its arms against the citizens of this country.
Wednesday
10:10 pm Israel arrested the Lebanese citizen who had infiltrated the heavily guarded border between the two countries and taken for interrogation, the army said.
09:30pm French President Nicolas Sarkozy said at the opening of the G8 Summit in Italy that Syrian president Bashar Assad "kept the commitments" that he had promised France concerning Lebanon
08:50pm STL General Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare will receive treatment for an undisclosed illness while on vacation in Canada.
05:15 AP : A widespread computer attack that began July 4 knocked out the Web sites of the US Treasury Department, the Secret Service and other US agencies, and South Korean government sites also came under assault. North Korea is suspected of being behind the attacks
5:10pm Aoun: I want a proportional government which will guarantee real representation and enforce national unity.
04:25pm Soueid told AFP: Syria offered through its current contacts to sponsor a Lebanese - Lebanese conference in order to pretend that it is interested in inter Lebanese reconciliations
3:45pm The Constitutional Council has so far received a total of 11 contests to the outcome of the elections.
03:11 pm EU ambassador Patrick Laurent said after meeting with Geagea: lets hope the government will be formed very soon , because Lebanon is in need of many projects to help alleviate the suffering of the Lebanese people
02 :50 Fortune Magazine : After filing for bankruptcy, GM unveiled the PUMA, a two-seat vehicle being developed with Segway . The vehicle is capable of going 35 mph and traveling 35 miles between charges
02:33pm The Lebanese army and UNIFIL are at high alert following the fleeing of a 35 year old Lebanese citizen via Abbad border point in South Lebanon. Lebanon has detained during the past 3 months several suspects accused of spying for Israel
02:30 pm CNN: Google Inc. is planning to hit Microsoft Corp. where it really hurts by challenging the software giant's dominance in the world of computer operating systems. Google announced that it will begin offering its own operating system, called Chrome, in the second half of 2010.
2:25pm The March 14 general secretariat warned against efforts to interfere in Lebanon’s internal affairs under the slogan of “assistance.”
02 :25 pm : President Obama’s Moscow speech on Tuesday, billed as his third major foreign policy address after speeches in Cairo and Prague, was not shown live on any of the major Russian channels, to the White House’s disappointment. The Kremlin tightly controls Russian television, and it was not clear why officials chose to disregard the speech.
02:20 pm Obama: “It is very important for the world community to speak to countries like Iran and North Korea and encourage them to take a path that does not result in a nuclear arms race in places like the Middle East." He said following his meeting with Italian President Giorgio Napolitano.
02:15pm Patriarch Sfeir stressed to his visitors the importance of real reconciliation among Lebanese in order to defend their interests.
02:10pm MP Michel Moussa told OTV that deliberations over the government formation are ongoing and that the PM-designate is making significant efforts to discuss possible cabinet formulas with all Lebanese parties.
02:08 MTV : Eddy Abillamaa, Elie Karami, Elias Mukhaiber and Sarkis Sarkis will submit their sixth protest against the election results and so will Ghassan al Ashkar and Ghasan al Rahbani submit their protests against Sami Gemayel and Michel Murr
1:55 pm Reuters : Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono headed for victory in elections as results poured in on Wednesday, pointing the way to a five-year term of quickening economic reform.
1:52 pm CNN: Pope Benedict XVI, on the eve of the G8 global economic summit, lashed out at modern capitalism for being shortsighted and short on ethics.
1:50 pm NY Times: President Hu Jintao of China cut short a trip to Italy on Wednesday to fly home after the deadly ethnic clashes in the northwestern Xinjiang region, abandoning plans to attend the G8 summit meeting as news reports spoke of continued unrest
1:48pm Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat said after meeting with Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir at his summer residence in Diman that the Syrian-Saudi rapprochement consolidates the Taef accord.
1:30 pm UPI Israel is developing a new "smart" glide bomb, a weapon that had its origins as far as back as World War I. It is likely to wind up in the Israel armory for operations against Gaza's Hamas and Lebanon's Hezbollah. The bomb was on display at the recent Paris Air Show and was described as a "precision weapon for precision attacks or close air support against various types of targets such as buildings, small bunkers, time-critical targets and moving targets"
1:18pm President of the Italian chamber of deputies’ foreign affairs committee, Stefano Stefani, arrived in Beirut on the head of a delegation. He will visit Italian troops serving with UNIFIL today and will hold talks with Lebanese officials Thursday.
12:48pm Aoun is chairing the weekly meeting of the "change and reform bloc" in Rabiyah
12:39pm Jumblatt held a private meeting with Patriarch Sfeir in Diman
12:28 Geagea is meeting in Muarab EU ambassador Patrick Laurent
12:15pm Arrest warrants were issued against 2 collaborators with Israel and the army intelligence is trying to identify the identity of two others
12:15pm Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak and US Middle East envoy George Mitchell have reached a deal allowing the Jewish state to continue to work on about 700 buildings already under construction on the occupied Palestinian territory, or about 2,500 units Israeli newspaper Maariv reported on Wednesday. The deal if confirmed would go counter to repeated demands by US President Barack Obama for Israel to stop all activity in the settlements, which the international community considers illegal.
12:10pm Speaker Berri from Baabda palace: the timing for government formation is still in the grace period. Be optimistic and you will find results.
12:00pm MP Mohammed al-Hajjar speaks told OTV: Syria will not make any concessions without a price in return and we reject granting the opposition the obstructing-third vote in the new cabinet.
11:30 President Michel Suleiman is discussing with Speaker Nabih Berri efforts to form a new cabinet and the situation in the region amid continuous Israeli threats to Lebanon.
11:09 Hezbollah's MP Ali Fayyad told LBC: The opposition wants partnership in decision-making. Restoring ties with Syria should not be through pressure on Damascus to convince its allies in Lebanon to drop demands for veto power in the cabinet.
11:00 President Michel Suleiman discussed with Information Minister Tareq Mitri latest developments and ministry issues.
08:30 Telecommunication Minister Gebran Basil said today : “We will facilitate Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri’s mission to ensure its success,” He added : “The meetings held between Progressive Socialist Party MP Walid Jumblatt and Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and the recent Nasrallah-Hariri meeting paved the way for fostering a positive atmosphere,”
8:30 Phalange leader Gemayel told VOL: Cabinet formation won’t take long. The problem is how the opposition will participate in the government. Veto power doesn’t serve the country although it is the majority that needs guarantees and not the opposition.
7:40 A Lebanese army officer suspected of spying for Israel has fled to the Jewish State, security sources said Wednesday.
7:30 MP Michel Moussa told VOL: We are still within the normal timeframe for cabinet formation. We are on the right track and Lebanon is benefiting from Arab rapprochement.
Tuesday
5:45pm German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier meets with PM-designate Saad Hariri in Qoreitem.
5:15pm Sports Minister Talal Arslan following his meeting with ‘Change and Reform’ parliamentary bloc leader MP Michel Aoun: We won’t accept a cabinet formation outside Beirut. The parliamentary opposition's stance is united.
5:00pm An Italian parliamentary delegation to visit Lebanon July 8 and 9, to meet officials and visit UNIFIL Italian brigade.
04:30pm President Suleiman is meeting with German FM Steinmeier at the Baabda Palace
3:05pm Telecommunications Minister Gebran Bassil to LBC TV: The meeting with PM-designate Hariri was good; talks were positive and an excellent opening for serious negotiations and discussions. We are at the stage of extending bridges.
03:00 pm German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said that Hezbollah and Hamas have shown "no interest in the success of the peace talks" . He encouraged Syria on Tuesday to help ensure the success of Middle East peace efforts, saying "destructive elements" in the region need to be reined in.
02:40 pm After meeting with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Tuesday, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Mouallem said that Damascus will not interfere in the formation of the Lebanese cabinet.
2:10pm A wanted man from the Mallah family committed suicide after jumping from the Justice Palace’s fourth floor.
