Alfa Spy Makes Headlines: Telecoms under Israeli Control?!

Almanar

29/06/2010 For the second consecutive day, the discovery of the dangerous 'Alfa spy' made the headlines in Lebanon…

Everyone in Lebanon believes the catch is hefty. They even believe is the very most precious treasure in terms of services and data the detainee has been providing Israel for more than 14 years.

Investigations with the spy are ongoing after confessions made by him showed the seriousness of the work he did for the Israelis over the past 14 years in his capacity as both an Alfa employee and communications ministry staffer.

According to Lebanese daily As-Safir, the Telecoms spy confessed that he had planted software and chips made available to him by Israel across Alfa's broadcasting stations, making the possibility of manipulating the data in any contact lines much easier for Israeli communications experts.

Meanwhile, President Michel Sleiman lauded the Lebanese army for arresting an employee with a mobile network operator accused of spying for Israel. Sleiman said in a statement that the seizure of Alfa's Charbel Qazzi was part of a series of arrests that the army made in uncovering cells spying for Israel's Mossad.

For his part, Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji hailed the achievements made by the military's intelligence bureau that led to the arrest of the Alfa spy. He called for military vigilance "to prevent enemy penetration of Lebanese civilians, thus, threatening national security."

Yet, the most remarkable comment was made by the head of the Democratic Gathering MP Walid Jumblatt who joined Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah in calling for hanging Israeli spies in Lebanon.

"Spy networks are planted everywhere. Security in Lebanon is exposed and fear mounts of new assassinations that could lead the country to a disaster," Jumblatt told Lebanese daily As-Safir on Tuesday.

"These networks necessitate that we be on full-scale alert at all levels," he stressed. "It is time to strike with an iron fist all the way to the execution of spies," he warned.

FADLALLAH WARNS: ISRAEL CONTROLS TELECOMS SECTOR!

The head of the Information and Telecoms parliamentary committee MP Hasan Fadlallah, meanwhile, warned that Israel took control over Lebanon's telecommunications sector after the Alfa employee was arrested on suspicion of spying for the Israeli Mossad.

In a press conference he held at the Parliament, Fadlallah said that the Israeli enemy has managed to seize technical control of the telecommunications network and to harm national security thanks to information provided by the collaborator over past years.

"This is an Israeli collaborator who has been active since 1996 and who for 14 years has been giving the enemy vital information on Lebanese communications and security," Fadlallah said.

Fadlallah, who's also a member of the Loyalty to the Resistance parliamentary bloc, said the suspect helped provide Israeli intelligence with unrestrained access to all phone calls on the Alfa network. He urged the government to take "immediate action to assess the damage and take necessary action" to ensure the security of Lebanon's telecommunications sector against any further Israeli interference.

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