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December
11, 2006
VOL.
44, NO. 22Oakland,
CA
Step up efforts
for peace
in Lebanon, bishop urges Rice
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The United States and the U.N. Security
Council must step up efforts to resolve problems in Lebanon that threaten
a tenuous peace agreement, said a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza
Rice from Bishop Thomas G. Wenski of Orlando, Fla., chairman of the U.S.
bishops’ international policy committee.
In the Dec. 1 letter Bishop Wenski said the Nov. 21 assassination of Industry
Minister Pierre Gemayel was a sign of the deepening crisis and instability
in Lebanon. He urged a concerted effort by the United States and the international
community to ensure the sovereignty and stability of Lebanon.
On Dec. 3 there were violent clashes between rival Muslim groups in Beirut,
causing one death from gunshot wounds and injuries to 21 others, according
to an Associated Press story.
Meanwhile, as protesters blared revolutionary and nationalist songs outside,
a memorial Mass was said for Gemayel in the office of Prime Minister Fouad
Siniora, who has supporters among the country’s Sunni Muslims.
At the same time, a second Mass organized by Michel Aoun, a Christian
leader with ties to a Shiite organization, took place at St. George Cathedral,
a short distance away.
Bishop Wenski said in his letter that the brief war this summer between
Lebanon and Israel “not only devastated civilian communities, but
it also weakened the forces of moderation and democracy and emboldened
radicals.”
He said resolving the crisis will require disarming militias, negotiating
a permanent cease-fire and an eventual peace agreement with Israel, and
providing reconstruction assistance to Lebanon.
“All nations in the region will need to play constructive roles
in helping the Lebanese people resolve their own internal political crisis
and refrain from actions that could further destabilize the situation,”
he wrote.
The United States should also team up with other nations to provide humanitarian
and reconstruction assistance to rebuild the civilian infrastructure and
devastated communities, the bishop said.
“We must replace the despair that feeds radicalism with a hope for
a brighter future for the long-suffering people of Lebanon,” he
wrote.
