STATEMENT

New England Americans for Lebanon

Boston, Massachusetts

Tel: 617-817-0674   www.neal-us.org         Founded 2000

June 18, 2006

Boston - Massachusetts

Effective today, the New England Americans for Lebanon (NEAL) organization has severed its ties with the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), otherwise known by its Arabic name of the Tayyar Watani Horr, and should no longer be seen as representing, morally or otherwise, that Lebanese organization.

The primary reasons include the desire by NEAL to have a greater freedom of opinion and action, and to distance itself from the political alliances that the Tayyar Watani Horr is striking with forces on the ground in Lebanon that many of us here in the US see as hostile and inimical to the independence of Lebanon on one hand, and to American interests on the other. As American citizens, we have to abide by US law, which classifies some of those groups in Lebanon as terrorist organizations. NEAL is first and foremost an American organization that wishes to retain its independence and freedom of action in order to influence US policy and opinion on matters of substance and principle that promote the long-term welfare of Lebanon. We do not wish to be subjected to the whims of short-term – and in our opinion, short-sighted - political maneuvering taking place 10,000 miles away.

In the near future, we will be implementing changes to our web site www.neal-us.org to reflect this re-orientation.

Some of our long-time supporters have already decided to resign from NEAL and retain their association with the Tayyar.  Therefore this statement is also a call for those supporters who wish to become more active in NEAL, now that it is free from allegiance to the Tayyar or any other political organizations, to contact us and re-confirm their association with us, as this re-organization gets under way. We will be making announcements on our web site www.neal-us.org to keep you updated on those changes in the NEAL organizational structure. Several opinions and related news will be slowly posted on the web site over the next few weeks.

In the spirit of friendship and open-mindedness, this separation should in no way be construed as a hostile act. We remain friends with many of those who have decided to go their own way and who have worked with us for many years. We wish them well. This is rather an expected adjustment within the ranks of the Lebanese American community with the end of the Syrian occupation and the evolving political situation in Lebanon since February 2005. Other political organizations and Lebanese emigrant geographies are witnessing similar adjustments as a result of the re-alignment of priorities and focus, as well as the divergence that is taking place between stated objectives prior to the end of the Syrian occupation, and implementation on the ground after the end of that occupation.

Joseph Hitti

President

New England Americans for Lebanon

Sole Contact Information:

Tel. 617-817-0674

E-mail: joehittimass@yahoo.com