Samah sent me this (he permitted his identification by name): "After we finished the press conference at Baddawi, we went to the southern entrance to Nahr Al Bared where journalists stand or sit under a big tree. We carried a big banner against killing civilians, as well as 19 boards or so carrying the names of civilian victims together with their ages in both Arabic and English (you know some media would like to portray it as if only soldiers and fath al-islam gangsters were killed). We did our die-in and many interviews (we were around 2o Lebanese, Palestinians, and Internationals, plus women from Nahr al-Bared currently taking refuge in Badawi). As I finished my interview with NTV, and as I was moving to the car located 5 minutes away from te entrance, 4 Lebanese soldiers approached me and asked what I was carrying. I showed them the board that has the name of a civilian who was killed and his age. They also saw pictures of dead bodies from the camp. One soldier (high rank it seems) asked me if I was Lebanese. I give him my ID. He asked what do I do. Samah Idriss, Dr. Samah Idriss, editor of Al-Adab, replied. He said that I can't be Lebanese nor a doctoooor (I actually enjoyed his sarcasm, knowing how much I myself hate most intellectuals here), otherwise I would side up with my army. He then said he, in turn, was a doctor (no extra vowels)... in law (!). I said great, and added that as a citizen and a Lebanese I think it is my duty to see that no civilians are dead and that all guns should be pointed out to the Israeli army in the south. He asked me what to do then with those "motherfuckers" ('akaareet) who aren't leaving. I answered that not much time was granted the factions and the popular committees inside the camp to hand in those who attacked the army 15 days ago, and that a soldier, a national soldier, should not kill civilians of his own country for the sake of "an isolated group that all agree has no popular stand." (I almost told him what Rania had told me that morning: That had the "gang" been entrenched in Ashrafiyyeh, the chic quarter in East Beirut, the Lebanese soldiers would not have used the same logic, thus implying some form of, well, racism against the Palestinians). I also told him that if he were an American citizen, should he expect himself to side up with Bush in killing Iraqi civilians? He said that we are in Lebanon not "Amerka," but I insisted that the same logic holds here as well. He then noticed an Irish comrade using her phone; he thought she was recording his national speech; he took it and scolded her for doing so (maybe he wasn't very comfortable with what he was saying?). He went on to tell me about the motherfuckers; I interrupted; the soldier next to him (of low rank) asked me to shut up when the commander speaks. The commander asked HIM to shut up when HE speaks (that was the funniest part). He called someone and I heard him mentioning my name, and then I heard him say: "No sir, he's Lebanese, yes, Lebanese" (so I WAS Lebanese after all, I thought), "ok. Maashi, sir." He came back to me. Then a Mukhabarat guy (civilian with a North accent) came up to me and asked me to step aside (a usual tactic used, I suspect, to give the other activists the impression that a "deal" ws being struck with me behind their backs). He said I was giving the wrong message to the world, that the Leb Army is killing civilians. I said that they were by insisting on shelling the camp. I said that I would like to see all Lebanese and Palestinains shoot at the Israelis, that the Attackers should be guaranteed fair trail, etc... By then the old soldier came close. The Mukhabarat said that he knows that I had good intentions. I quickly asked him if I was Lebanese and "national." He said of course. I then told him that his "colleague" had told me otherwise. He smiled and asked me to "cool it down" (by then my voice was heard all over the place). The old soldier gave me back my comrade's cell phone after vowing to "deal with her later (hisabi ma'ah) and to break her legs for recording him" (he still insisted on that though there was no evidence as to the recording). I asked him for my "Lebanese ID" (I liked insisting on the word Lebaneeeese). He reached his pocket and said that "by law he could arrest me." I replied that I'm sure he knows the law (since he is a doctor in law--but I didn't say that) and therefore he should definitely know that he cannot arrest me just because I'm against shelling the civilians! He gave me the ID with some hesistance. I asked for his name. He said "soldier." I said that he knew my name and I wish to know his, in case one day we need each other's help fighting the Israelis (that was silly of me). He didn't say it. I asked the mukhabarat guy to mention his own name. He declined. The mukhabarat guy hoped that we won't repeat it, to which I assured him that we (our campaign) will make sure to do what we feel is in the best interest of justice and our nation."