LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِNovember 05/2010

Bible Of The Day
Spiritual Gifts/Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians 12/1-11: "Now concerning spiritual things, brothers, I don’t want you to be ignorant. 12:2 You know that when you were heathen, you were led away to those mute idols, however you might be led. 12:3 Therefore I make known to you that no man speaking by God’s Spirit says, “Jesus is accursed.” No one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” but by the Holy Spirit. 12:4 Now there are various kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. 12:5 There are various kinds of service, and the same Lord. 12:6 There are various kinds of workings, but the same God, who works all things in all. 12:7 But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the profit of all. 12:8 For to one is given through the Spirit the word of wisdom, and to another the word of knowledge, according to the same Spirit; 12:9 to another faith, by the same Spirit; and to another gifts of healings, by the same Spirit; 12:10 and to another workings of miracles; and to another prophecy; and to another discerning of spirits; to another different kinds of languages; and to another the interpretation of languages. 12:11 But the one and the same Spirit works all of these, distributing to each one separately as he desires."

Free Opinions, Releases, letters, Interviews & Special Reports
The Lebanese need action, not rhetoric/Daily Star/November 04/10
Lebanon's Hezbollah, allies boycott national talks over tensions surrounding/The Canadian Press/November 04/10
Not just another warning/Ynetnews/November 04/10
Rafik Hariri murder probe hinders progress on Lebanon-Syria ties/By: By Nicholas Blanford/November 04/10
Al-Hariri's ghost/Al-Ahram Weekly/November 04/10

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for November 04/10
Priest Killed in Fire at Maronite Diocese/Naharnet
Dialogue Held Without Opposition Leaders, Agreement to Reconvene Before Nov. 22/Naharnet
Former UN Investigators Warn of New Wave of Assassinations in Lebanon/Naharnet Special Report
Opposition Dialogue Boycott a 'Message' to Suleiman/Naharnet
Hariri after Meeting Suleiman: It's Unfortunate that Some Sides were Absent from Dialogue/Naharnet
Hariri: We Will be Firm in Facing Anyone Who Targets a Lebanese Christian/Naharnet
Fearful Iraqi Christians face fresh Al-Qaeda threats/AFP
Maronite Bishops decry 'criminal' attack on Iraqi Christians/Daily Star
Syria, Saudi Arabia and Iran favor inter-Lebanese accord/Daily Star and AFP
Resistance slams Ban's report on implementation of Resolution 1701/Daily Star
US pledges 10 million for UN-backed Lebanon tribunal/Haaretz
Security Council mulls special session to discuss Tribunal/Daily Star
Cassese hopes for prompt indictment/Daily Star
Sayyed: Cassese and Bellemare's Statements Reflect STL's State of Confusion/Naharnet
Former UN Investigators Warn of New Wave of Assassinations in Lebanon/Naharnet
Kouchner to Lebanon amid Crisis over Hariri Tribunal/Naharnet
Qanso Warns: Next Confrontation Bigger than May 7, Maarab Won't Last 2 Hours/Naharnet
Assiri: We Support Dialogue in Order to Protect Lebanon from Any Surprise/Naharnet
Qassem to Pietton: We Cannot Remain in a Government Headed by Someone Who Accuses Us of Killing his Father/Naharnet
Awkar Confirms Naharnet Report: US Announces $10 Million Transfer to STL/Naharnet
Hizbullah Slams Ban Report on 1701: Extremely Biased in Favor of Israel/Naharnet
Hariri in Morocco/Naharnet
Maronite Bishops Urge Lebanese Leaders to Quit 'Challenging Methods'/Naharnet
March 14: Lebanon Cannot be Taken over So Easily, Hizbullah Should Return to the State/Naharnet

Priest Killed in Fire at Maronite Diocese
Naharnet/A fire engulfed the entire Maronite Diocese building in Sarba, leaving one priest killed.He was identified as father Pierre Khweiri. While Voice of Lebanon said an investigation into the fire ruled out any act of sabotage, the Voice of Free Lebanon said "friction" caused the Sarba blaze. Beirut, 04 Nov 10, 10:03

Dialogue Held Without Opposition Leaders, Agreement to Reconvene Before Nov. 22
Naharnet/President Michel Suleiman convened national talks Thursday in the absence of Opposition leaders from the March 8 coalition who decided to boycott dialogue after PM Saad Hariri postponed a Cabinet session set to discuss the false witnesses' issue.
But Speaker Nabih Berri, a key figure in March 8 and a Hizbullah ally, attended the brief dialogue session held at the presidential palace in Baabda.
He told reporters, however, that he took part in the talks aimed at discussing a national strategy for the country in his capacity as Parliament Speaker.
The meeting ended with a decision to reconvene before Independence Day on Nov.22. A tripartite meeting between Suleiman, Berri and Prime Minister Saad Hariri preceded the dialogue. Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea said in response to a question regarding the absence of Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun from the meeting: "Aoun is relying on me."
Former MP Mario Aoun said that Aoun's absence session is not meant to hurt Suleiman. "Suleiman, however, has a big responsibility. He must not allow postponement of the false witnesses' issue," Mario Aoun said. Hariri believed that "those who failed to show up (today) are losers." Bilateral talks between Suleiman and Berri also followed the dialogue meeting.
As he left Baabda Palace, Hariri told reporters that he regretted the absence of party leaders "from talks to discuss a defense strategy and Israeli threats." Beirut, 04 Nov 10, 14:10

Lebanon's Hezbollah, allies boycott national talks over tensions surrounding Hariri tribunal
By Zeina Karam (CP)
BEIRUT — Hezbollah and its allies boycotted the latest round of Lebanon's national dialogue on Thursday because of tensions surrounding a U.N. tribunal's investigation of the 2005 assassination of a former prime minister.
Many fear there could be violence in coming months if the U.N. court probing the truck bombing that killed Rafik Hariri and 22 others indicts members of the militant Hezbollah, a Shiite force that accuses the tribunal of bias.
Hezbollah's ally Michel Aoun said the boycott was to protest the government's refusal to tackle the issue of witnesses accused of giving false information to mislead the investigation.
Seven out of 19 leaders were absent from Thursday's talks, which are part of a series of regular meetings held by Lebanon's political factions.
Hezbollah shares power in a fragile unity government with a Western-backed coalition led by Prime Minister Saad Hariri — the son of the slain former leader.
The bombing that killed Rafik Hariri along Beirut's Mediterranean waterfront on Feb. 14, 2005 was one of the most dramatic political assassinations the Mideast has seen. A billionaire businessman, Hariri was Lebanon's most prominent politician after the 15-year civil war ended in 1990.
The tribunal has not yet indicted anyone in the assassination, but Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah says he expects members of his movement to be named. That has raised fears of violence between the heavily armed Shiite guerrilla force and Hariri's mainly Sunni allies.
Nasrallah also has called on the Lebanese to boycott the tribunal, claiming that all information gathered by it was being sent to archenemy Israel.
Tensions in Lebanon have been high recently. Last week, a crowd of women attacked two U.N. investigators and a Lebanese interpreter as they gathered evidence at a private gynecology clinic in Beirut. The women scuffled with investigators and stole several items from them after the team arrived to go through phone records at the clinic.
Hariri was a five-time prime minister who had close ties with Western leaders as well as Syria and was credited with helping rebuild Lebanon's capital after the country's 1975-1990 civil war. In the last few months before his assassination, however, he had tried to limit Syria's influence over Lebanon.
Many Lebanese blamed Damascus for the killing, but Syria has denied having anything to do with the assassination. Hezbollah, which is backed by Syria and Iran, also denies any role.
A wave of anti-Syrian protests after Hariri's killing led to the withdrawal of Syrian troops, ending almost three decades of Syrian domination of Lebanon.
Copyright © 2010 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Rafik Hariri murder probe hinders progress on Lebanon-Syria ties
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2010/1104/Rafik-Hariri-murder-probe-hinders-progress-on-Lebanon-Syria-ties
By Nicholas Blanford, Correspondent / November 4, 2010
Christian Science Monitor
Beirut
A five-year murder probe into the killing of Rafik Hariri by an international tribunal is complicating a Lebanese push to build a new, more amicable relationship with Syria, its powerful larger neighbor
Since taking office a year ago, Saad Hariri, the Lebanese prime minister, has reached out to Syria in an attempt to mend several years of strained relations between the two countries following the assassination of his father, Rafik, a former premier, in a truck bomb blast in February 2005.
“Today, I am the prime minister of Lebanon and we wanted to open a new page with Syria and we have entered a new era of relations with Syria, on a state-to
state level,” said Saad Hariri.
Hariri’s overtures toward Syria in recent months include several meetings with President Bashar al-Assad and a number of statements absolving the Syrian leadership of responsibility for his father’s death. But his efforts at rapprochement have met with mixed signals from Syria. Several bilateral agreements have been signed and Mr. Assad last week told the Arabic Al-Hayat daily that he had “no problem” with Hariri and that the doors of Damascus were always open to the Lebanese premier.
But a Syrian court recently issued indictments against 33 of Hariri’s political allies and advisers and Lebanon’s top police chief. Mohammed Naji al-Otari, the Syrian prime minister, recently described the political coalition to which Hariri belongs as made from “cardboard," a comment that drew angry reactions in Lebanon.
The United States has repeatedly accused Syria of transferring advanced weapons systems to Hezbollah in Lebanon, a claim that Damascus denies.
Indictments coming?
Overshadowing efforts to forge a new bilateral relationship is the ongoing investigation into the Hariri murder, which could see the issuing of the first indictments by a United Nations-mandated tribunal before the end of the year.
Syria, which dominated Lebanon politically at the time of the assassination, was widely blamed for Hariri’s murder. Syria has always denied the charge. Speculation shifted dramatically last year, however, amid reports that the investigation was focusing on members of the militant Shiite Hezbollah, an ally of Damascus.
Hezbollah’s leadership has denied any involvement in Hariri’s murder. In recent months, the group has mounted a campaign to discredit the tribunal, which it says is serving US and Israeli interests.
Last week, a group of women mobbed two tribunal investigators who allegedly were seeking telephone records in a gynecology clinic in the Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs of Beirut. Hezbollah’s leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah declared the presence of the investigators an insult and demanded a boycott of the tribunal.
A dangerous situation
Last week, a senior UN official warned that Lebanon was in a “hyper-dangerous” situation.
Despite the focus on Hezbollah, Syria remains within the circle of suspicion for the murder of Hariri, as well as other prominent anti-Syrian figures, and would like to see an end to the tribunal, analysts say.
Only Saad Hariri as prime minister and the son of Rafik Hariri has the political and moral authority to publicly disassociate Lebanon from the Netherlands-based tribunal, which is why both Syria and Hezbollah support him continuing as premier and are pressuring him to
reject the tribunal, analysts say. Nonetheless, the tribunal operates under a UN mandate and would continue functioning even if the Lebanese government ceased all cooperation with it.
So far Hariri insists on supporting the tribunal and says dialogue is the key to maintaining stability in the country. He also has rejected calls from some of his allies to step down from the premiership, a decision that could hasten a deterioration in security.
“It is impossible for him to resign as it would mean an invitation to take matters to the street,” says Sateh Noureddine, a columnist with Lebanon’s As-Safir daily. “It would be a declaration of a new civil war in Lebanon and I don’t think Saudi Arabia or Hariri or any other of his allies believe they can protect themselves and be a winner of such a civil war.”
Iran's reach
The potential fallout from the tribunal reverberates far beyond Lebanon’s borders. Hariri’s advances to Damascus compliment Saudi Arabia’s efforts to wean Syria away from its long-standing alliance with Iran, the principal backer of Hezbollah in Lebanon. On Tuesday the Saudi, Syrian, and Iranian ambassadors to Lebanon held a rare meeting in Beirut to discuss means of diminishing tension over the tribunal.
“The meeting aimed to support every effort for the sake of a healthy Lebanon immune against all forms of inciting discord and division with emphasis on justice and truth,” Ali Abdul Karim Ali, the Syrian ambassador to Beirut, told As-Safir Wednesday.
The US has embarked upon a process of cautious engagement with Syria, focused mainly on reviving the Israeli-Syria leg of the Middle East peace process. But there are signs recently that the US may be toughening its attitude toward Damascus.
“Rather than playing a positive role, recent Syrian behavior and rhetoric has had a destabilizing effect on Lebanon and the region, and has contributed to these recent tensions,” says Jake Walles, deputy assistant secretary of state for Near East affairs, citing the transfer of weapons from Syria to Hezbollah and the indictments against 33 Lebanese figures. “These types of activities directly undermine Lebanon’s sovereignty and directly undermine Syria’s stated commitments to Lebanon’s sovereignty and independence.”
Andrew Tabler, a Syria expert at the Washington Institute of Near East Policy, says that the US may adopt more of a balanced “hybrid policy” with Syria than outright engagement in the coming months.
“By now most policy makers expected there would be daylight between Syria and Hezbollah, but the arrest warrants forced everyone to go back to the drawing board,” he says.

Al-Hariri's ghost
The crisis over the investigation into Rafik Al-Hariri's assassination has once more made Syria a foe in Washington, writes
By: Graham Usher
In a week when Barack Obama lost much of Congress the main preoccupation of his foreign policy officials was not Afghanistan or Yemen or even the corpse-like Middle East "peace process". It was Lebanon. "The most critical issue of international peace and security today," said United Nations Special Envoy to the country, Terje Rod-Larsen, on 28 October.
He had just addressed a closed UN Security Council (UNSC) session on the crisis caused by its investigation into the 2005 murder of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Al-Hariri. Late this year or early next, the UN's Special Tribunal on Lebanon (STL) is expected to indict members of Hizbullah, the Lebanese resistance movement.
Hizbullah has cast the STL as an "American and Israeli plot". On 28 October its chief, Hassan Nasrallah, moved the sights closer to home: any Lebanese collaboration with the STL would be "equal to an attack on the resistance", he said.
The UNSC set up the STL in 2007 with the support of the current Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri. His government -- with majority parliamentary support -- has pledged to defray half its costs and enforce its judgements. The US says it's "vitally important" for Lebanon's future.
The battle lines could not be clearer. Yet it wasn't only Hizbullah or even its patron Iran that the US denounced at the UNSC for once more bringing Lebanon to the edge.
"Syria especially has displayed flagrant disregard for the sovereignty, territorial integrity, unity and political independence of Lebanon," said US UN Ambassador Susan Rice. It "continues to provide increasingly sophisticated weapons to Lebanese militias, including Hizbullah... the most significant and heavily armed Lebanese militia".
Syria denies the charge. Hizbullah weaves a web of "strategic ambiguity" over its arsenal, and says nothing. And Lebanese government officials admit only the "possibility" that arms are smuggled across the "porous" Syria-Lebanon border. But whatever the provenance, Lebanon is becoming re-armed, said Larsen, and "these weapons are not coming from the moon."
Rice's demarche seems to draw a close on Barack Obama's tentative "engagement" with Damascus. Pursued ostensibly to woo back Syria to a "comprehensive" peace process with Israel, it was more about prying Syria away from Iran as well as from Hizbullah and Hamas, deemed Iranian proxies by Washington.
For 18 months Obama dispatched emissaries to President Bashar Al-Assad. He promised a new US ambassador in Damascus after the exit of the last one in 2005 amid charges that Syria was behind Al-Hariri's assassination.
And, on 30 July, he blessed a trip to Lebanon by Al-Assad and Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah to staunch the growing crisis over the STL. The trade-off was clear: renewed acceptance of Syria's dominant role in Lebanon so long as it checked Hizbullah on the tribunal and kept Iran out of Lebanon's domestic politics.
Syria did neither. It endorsed Hizbullah's claim that the STL was an Israel front, arguing that it should be replaced by a Lebanese court. In October, a Syrian judge issued 33 arrest warrants against Lebanese and other officials for giving "false testimony" to the UN probe, including close allies of Saad Al-Hariri. The 33 had reportedly implicated Syria in his father's murder.
Finally, Syria gave the nod to last month's trip to Lebanon by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, an act that graphically showed the depth of Iranian influence in Lebanon, particularly among its majority Shia sect. The message was lost on no one.
"The lesson we should learn from Ahmadinejad's visit is that Iran is on the northern border of Israel," said Israel's National Infrastructure Minister Uzi Landau. Washington called the visit a "provocation", and drew the same conclusion.
In Beirut, Ahmadinejad echoed Hizbullah and Syria that Israel was behind Al-Hariri's assassination, saying "friends are being framed" for the murder of "a friend and patriotic man".
What is behind this assault on the STL? Many observers believe Hizbullah are asking Saad Al-Hariri to do the impossible. He has already recanted an earlier charge that the Syrian regime killed his father. He reportedly offered a deal to Nasrallah where, although Hizbullah members would be indicted by the STL, they would be tagged "rogue elements" with no move against them or smear on the movement.
But Al-Hariri cannot disavow an international investigation into his father's killers that he himself called for, that most of his Sunni community wants and with which his government has vowed to comply. For Hizbullah, Syria and Iran to demand that Al-Hariri disown the STL is to demand that he and his bloc leave the government.
This at least is how it is read from Washington. "We understand that certain actors within and outside Lebanon -- including Syria, Hizbullah and Iran -- may believe that escalating sectarian tensions will help them assert their own authority over Lebanon. However, these actors serve only to destabilise Lebanon and the region," warned Rice.
The message is pretty clear: Washington will not accept any ousting of Al-Hariri's National Unity government, nor any tinkering with an "independent" STL. For Israel any replacement by the Hariri government with an avowedly pro-Syrian one would be another step towards war.
Is there an exit? In theory, having established the STL, the UNSC could dissolve it. But given the importance Washington now attaches to the probe few think that will happen.
Others look again to Syria and Saudi Arabia to broker a compromise. Still others hope a tribunal endlessly delayed can mean a judgement denied. But Hizbullah and Syria's insistence on disavowal suggests their fear that, without closure of some sort, Al-Hariri's ghost will continue to haunt them and Lebanon.
Old Lebanese hands say their country only stops being at war as long as no one party seeks to be victor or vanquished. Hizbullah, Syria and Iran seem to seek both.
© Copyright Al-Ahram Weekly. All rights reserved

Bellemare Greatest Absentee from STL Media Forum, His Office Distributed Report on Foreign Witnesses
Naharnet Special Report – Leidschendam:
Special Tribunal for Lebanon Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare has been the most prominent absentee from the first and second international media forums in The Hague, the second of which is currently underway, even though some of his "angels" assisting him in the investigation are present.
His absence has been attributed to the fact that the media and the public have shifted their attention to the indictment, while the STL is focusing on its image, role, and functioning mechanism.
Bellemare's office which Naharnet had asked a series of questions to confirm whether Bellemare had delayed his scheduled visit to the U.N. headquarters in New York City to follow up on the repercussions of the recent attack against the international investigators in Beirut simply replied: "The prosecutor's office's media policy dictates that his visits, movements, and schedule are not disclosed." It appears that Bellemare is feeling the extent of the "media disappointment" at his distance from the media and the severing of the "hotlines" with his office, especially in light of the absence of a media official in his office responsible for coordinating matters with the media given the resignation of the previous official, Radia Ashouri.
The prosecutor attempted to relieve the "media resentment" against him through a written statement on the false witnesses file being discussed in Lebanon, which was distributed to the attendees at the second media forum. He considered that the term "false witnesses" is legally inaccurate in addition to being misleading because a witness cannot be proven to have truly lied until the total assessment of evidence is complete at the end of the legal procedure. Bellemare pointed out that the four generals, Jamil Sayyed, Raymond Azar, Ali al-Hajj, and Mustapha Hamdan, were released in April 2009 because of a lack of reliable evidence that would allow for their continued imprisonment.
He added that he had repeatedly stressed that assessing the reliability of the evidence, and the potential witnesses in particular, is part of a much greater ongoing investigative effort to help the STL reach the truth. The statement said that the prosecutor had previously clarified that the court's accusation will be based on reliable and credible evidence, pointing out that questioning the credibility of the witnesses will not be possible before the tribunal says its final word. The prosecutor's office stressed in the statement that Bellemare does not possess the legal ground that allows him to investigate with or prosecute so-called false witnesses, adding that the STL does not have the jurisdiction to judge witnesses who may have misled the investigation before article 134 of the tribunal's Rules of Procedure and Evidence that took effect in October 2009. Beirut, 04 Nov 10, 16:24

Former UN Investigators Warn of New Wave of Assassinations in Lebanon
Naharnet Special Report – The Hague:
Prominent international judiciary sources in The Hague have warned of the seriousness of the current period in Lebanon, expressing real concerns over a possible return of assassinations "as a tool in the ongoing political conflict regarding the Special Tribunal for Lebanon."
A former official with the international investigation commission -- who was part of investigations into the murder of ex-PM Rafik Hariri and his companions and the other assassination crimes, assassination attempts and bombings that had followed, before assuming another judicial post in The Hague – has noted that the current period reminds him of the stage that witnessed the assassination of late MP Gebran Tueni.
He noted that the murder had taken place hundreds of meters away from the HQ of the international investigation commission in the Monteverde area, "as a double message simultaneously addressed to the international investigation commission and Tueni's political camp."
In an interview with Naharnet in The Hague, the U.N. official added that he fears new assassinations would target individuals directly related to the U.N. probe and the content of the anticipated indictment, such as witnesses, suspects and security personnel involved in analyzing telecom data, wiretapping and collecting evidences and information.
However, he ruled out any "serious" targeting of Lebanese politicians or STL staff.
The U.N. official noted that, according to indications, the speculations about a possible issuance of an indictment next month might turn out to be true, which requires taking serious security measures to prevent any breaches that may allow the return of assassinations.
He stressed that any security mishaps "will not affect the tribunal's course and its work," noting that repercussions would affect Lebanon's stability and security, without those upset by the STL being able to put an end to its work.
The former Hariri probe employee noted that the Serbian authorities' boycott of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in the nineties of last century -- in addition to the committed massacres, the fought wars and the political and ethnical turmoil the former Yugoslav nations had witnessed – had not led to halting the mission of the Yugoslavia tribunal.
"On the contrary, those who had obstructed its work ended up in its (Yugoslavia tribunal's) detention places and then appeared before its judges prior to being convicted and sent to prisons in European countries with which the tribunal had signed agreements in this regard," the U.N. official added. Beirut, 03 Nov 10, 22:31

Qassem to Pietton: We Cannot Remain in a Government Headed by Someone Who Accuses Us of Killing his Father
Naharnet/Hizbullah Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Qassem had informed French Ambassador to Lebanon Denis Pietton that the party cannot remain in a government whose prime minister accuses it of assassinating his father, revealed the daily Al-Akhbar on Thursday. Qassem's statements came during a meeting with Pietton last month during which the French official asked him whether the opposition seeks to topple Prime Minister Saad Hariri's government. He had also asked him about how Hizbullah intends on dealing with the indictment in the investigation into the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, to which Qassem replied that the party does not reveal its future plans. The daily added that Qassem stated that no harm can reach the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon as long as it respected its rules of engagement. Beirut, 04 Nov 10, 13:53

March 14: Lebanon Cannot be Taken over So Easily, Hizbullah Should Return to the State
Naharnet/The March 14 Secretariat General condemned on Wednesday the "intimidation campaign against the Lebanese that called them to boycott the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and the international investigators."It said in a statement after its weekly meeting: "Those behind this campaign believe they can force the Lebanese to back down from their principles and surrender to Hizbullah's conditions, which is the side leading this campaign." "They are wrong in their belief as no one has the power to turn back the hands of time and eliminate the national achievements accomplished by the independence intifada," it added. "Despite all this, the March 14 forces will not end its call to this team to return to the state, reminding it that Lebanon is not a target it can take over so easily," it stated. It noted that Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun has become an instrument "in the foreign agenda's plan to eliminate the STL and basis of the Lebanese state." "It is no secret to the Lebanese that Aoun is using his 'change' motto to reach certain goals, as for 'reform', he should first demonstrate his credibility before implementing it," it said. The March 14 forces called on the MP to lift bank secrecy off his accounts since the 1980s until today. Beirut, 03 Nov 10, 14:30

Fearful Iraqi Christians face fresh Al-Qaeda threats
By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Thursday, November 04, 2010
Anwar Faruqi
BAGHDAD: Iraqi Christians faced threats of more violence Wednesday after Al-Qaeda said Christians everywhere are “legitimate targets,” in the wake of a bloodbath at a Baghdad church the foreign minister called “barbaric.”“All Christian centers, organizations and institutions, leaders and followers, are legitimate targets for the mujahideen [holy warriors] wherever they can reach them,” said a statement by the self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), the local branch of Osama bin Laden’s jihadist network.
The group had already said its gunmen were behind a hostage-taking at a Baghdad cathedral Sunday that ended in the deaths of 46 worshippers, including two priests.Baghdad’s Chaldean bishop, Shlimoune Wardouni, said the threat “is very negative; it is very bad for our people [Christians].”
“They could be harmed. It could also force them to leave the country,” said Wardouni. “But we must be strong, and ready for everything.”
Security was reinforced around Baghdad churches, with more policemen and armored Humvees stationed outside two churches in Karrada, the same district where the hostage drama had unfolded.However, Christians have not been the only targets in Baghdad in recent days.
About a dozen coordinated bombings targeted Shiite districts across the capital Tuesday night, and Health Minister Saleh al-Hasnawi said 64 people were killed and 360 wounded. Estimates by some news agencies based on reports from police and hospital officials were as high as 91 people killed.
Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari called the attack on the church a “barbaric act,” blaming Tuesday’s violence on the continuing failure of Iraq’s politicians to form a government after inconclusive March 7 elections.“The attacks and explosions yesterday are due to the constitutional and political vacuum and the delay in the formation of the government, which gave the terrorists the opportunity to attack civilians,” he said. But in a development that could break a months-long political deadlock and lead to Nuri al-Maliki’s re-appointment as premier, Iraq’s Parliament will meet Monday to elect a speaker, the chamber said Wednesday,
In a sign that some in Iraqiya – the party of Maliki’s main rival for the position of premier, former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi – no longer believe it can form a government, one of its lawmakers said a group of up to 30 of its parliamentarians intend to back a government led by Maliki. “We are with whoever wins 50 percent plus one and he is the only one who has, so he has the right [to form a government],” said the lawmaker Ahmad al-Ureibi, who belongs to a mainly Sunni group of Iraqiya politicians from around the country.
No group has so far claimed responsibility for Tuesday’s carnage, but the bombings bore the hallmarks of Al-Qaeda, whose militants have been waging a war against US forces and Iraq’s weak government.
ISI said in a statement posted on the web its threat to target Christians was justified by the refusal of Egypt’s Coptic Church to clarify the status of women claimed to be held captive in Egyptian monasteries, US monitoring group SITE reported.
It also demanded that Christians “show to the mujahideen their seriousness to pressure this belligerent church to release the captive women from the prisons of their monasteries.”
Camilia Shehata and Wafa Constantine are the wives of Coptic priests in Egypt whom Islamists have said were forcibly detained by the Coptic Church after they had willingly converted to Islam. The church has denied that either woman had become Muslim.
Hazen Girgis, a Mosul University professor, acknowledged being nervous. “We are scared as Christians because of the campaign targeting our people,” he said. “All this is because of the delay in forming a government and not enforcing the law.”
However, Christian MP Unadem Kana shrugged off the latest Al-Qaeda threat, saying “everyone is a target for Al-Qaeda. This communiqué is not something new.”
Before the US-led invasion of 2003, around 800,000 Christians lived in Iraq but that number has since shrunk to around a half-million in the face of repeated attacks against the community and its places of worship. Since the invasion, Baghdad’s Christians have dwindled to 150,000, a third of their former population. The 14 Chaldean churches still in use are half the number that existed seven years ago.

Maronite Bishops decry 'criminal' attack on Iraqi Christians
By The Daily Star
Thursday, November 04, 2010
BEIRUT: The Council of Maronite Bishops described Wednesday a recent attack on Iraqi Christians as a “useless criminal act” and urged Lebanese parties to exercise wisdom and refrain from mistrusting one other.
“We condemn this criminal and useless act along with intimidations targeting Christians in more than one country and we call upon authorities tasked with maintaining security in Iraq to provide effective protection for targeted innocents from all sects,” said Bishop Youssef Tawq who read the statement that was issued following the council’s monthly meeting.
The meeting, held in Bkirki, was chaired by Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir.
At least 52 hostages and police were killed when Iraqi security forces stormed the Our Lady of Salvation Church for Syriac Catholics in Baghdad to release over 100 Catholics held by Al-Qaeda-linked gunmen.
Iraqi Christians have been the victims of numerous attacks since the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq.
“We pay our condolences … to his Eminence Patriarch Ignatius Joseph III Younan and the sister Syriac Church,” added Tawq, who also paid respects to families of victims.
The bishops urged Lebanon’s political leaders to refrain from “challenging and mistrusting each other” and called on them to “exercise wisdom and to strengthen ties between citizens and come up with political, economic and social solutions” for the benefit of the Lebanese.
Rival Lebanese factions are deadlocked over the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), a UN-backed tribunal probing the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
The Hizbullah-led March 8 coalition has slammed the court as an “Israeli project,” saying that it was designed to spark civil strife in Lebanon.
March 14 parties, on the other hand, have said that the STL represents the only opportunity to punish criminals.
Fears of an acute political crisis or civil strife in the country have escalated with expectations that an impending indictment by the STL will target members of Hizbullah.
The Maronite bishops urged Christian citizens and orders to adhere to the proposals made by the Synod conference which convened recently in Rome under the title of “ The Christian Presence in the Orient: Partnership and Testimony,” which saw the participation of Lebanese Maronite bishops as well.
These proposals included “sticking to our Christian identity and message in the Levant, enhancing partnership between churches along with fulfilling the spiritual, social and developmental obligations of Christianity in our societies.”
The conference, which brought together bishops from around the world, tackled the situation of Christians in the Middle East.
Awaiting the final recommendations of the conference to be made by Pope Benedict XVI, the Maronite bishops called on “priests, monks and nuns, along with [parishioners], to observe the founding texts of the synod and adhere to its content.”Tawq said the synod represented an occasion “for us to reiterate our trust in coexistence in all our countries.”
“Despite some painful incidents taking place here and there, we and our Muslim brothers commit to living together with everyone in our region and believe in the dialogue of religions which represents a civilized message to the entire world.” – The Daily Star

Syria, Saudi Arabia and Iran favor inter-Lebanese accord
By The Daily Star and Agence France Presse (AFP)
Thursday, November 04, 2010 BEIRUT: Syrian Ambassador Ali Abdel-Karim Ali said Wednesday his country and Saudi Arabia blessed any inter-Lebanese accord.
“Syria and Saudi Arabia bless any inter-Lebanese accord and are making sure that matters reach a happy ending,” Ali told reporters following a meeting with Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun at the latter’s residence in Rabieh. The ambassadors of Iran, Saudi Arabia and Syria met over lunch Tuesday in a bid to contain rising tensions over the fate of a UN-backed probe into the murder of Lebanese former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. “This luncheon was blown out of proportion [by the media],” said Ali. “We renewed our support to inter-Lebanese dialogue so as to counter Israeli threats aiming at sowing strife and divisions among the people of this dear country.” The Syrian ambassador described the talks at the luncheon as positive, adding that their opinions overlapped.
“We informed [General Aoun] about the talks and we made sure to listen to him,” said Ali. Tensions have been high in Beirut as the UN-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon is said to be preparing to issue an indictment in the 2005 bombing that killed Hariri and 22 others. The tribunal has not confirmed reports that it will accuse Hizbullah members in the killing, but the group’s leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has repeatedly said he is ready for such an outcome and has warned of the repercussions.
Iran’s Ambassador Ghazanfar Roknabadi said Saudi Arabia, Syria and Iran shared the same goal of preserving Lebanon’s unity. “We felt that Syria and Saudi Arabia hold the same position,” Roknabadi told LBC television Tuesday after a luncheon hosted at the Syrian envoy’s residence which was not open to the press. “We hope that the positive effect of these talks and efforts will begin to surface in Lebanon soon,” Roknabadi said. – The Daily Star, with AFP

Resistance slams Ban's report on implementation of Resolution 1701
By Simona Sikimic and Wassim Mroueh
Daily Star staff
Thursday, November 04, 2010
BEIRUT: Hizbullah lashed out Wednesday at a new report by United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, accusing him of “taking the side of the executioner against the victim” and adopting a “completely bias[ed]” assessment.
Ban issued the preliminary version of the 14th Report of the Secretary General on the implementation of UN Resolution 1701 late Monday, in which he discussed the operations of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and various political developments in the country.
The security situation south of the Litani River has seen a “deterioration” since the publication of the last report in July, Ban said.
“Political tension [in Lebanon] increased markedly during the reporting period, fueled by speculation and public pronouncements over potential indictments to be issued by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL),” he said. “The situation continues to be volatile and more work remains to be done by the parties to advance the full implementation of Resolution 1701.”
The report condemns all violations of the resolution, including various affronts to the freedom of movement of UNIFIL troops and the border clashes on August 3 which “illustrated the fragility of the security environment across the Blue Line and raised the specter of a serious escalation between the parties.”
Two Lebanese soldiers, a journalist and an Israeli officer
were killed in the incident, which was the first deadly exchange of fire along the Blue Line since 2006. Subsequent UNIFIL investigations into the fighting, fully endorsed by Ban, blamed the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) for firing the first shots at Israeli forces reportedly trimming a tree south of the UN-demarked border.
“Hizbullah believes that this decision was written by an American hand using Israeli ink which was not surprising and which makes the UN an unreliable organization after it came to be in the hands of sides with a project against our people and nation,” the group said in a statement.
In his report Ban urged Israel to withdraw forces from the northern part of the village of Al-Ghajar “without further delay” and vowed to fight near-daily Israeli breaches of Lebanese sovereignty over its airspace, which were discrediting the army and UN forces.
Flights by unmanned aircraft and fighter jets over Lebanon have increased in recent months, with Israel justifying the incursions on security grounds. Ban said the Israeli government has reported that Hizbullah has amassed more than 55,000 increasingly sophisticated missiles and continues to build up arms – with the help of Syria and Iran – in violation of Resolution 1701. He added that the UN was “not in a position to independently”confirm this information.
“The presence of armed groups in Lebanon operating outside the control of the state poses a challenge to the ability of the state to exercise its full sovereignty and control over its territory, and violates Resolution 1701,” said Ban. “I continue to believe that the disarmament of armed groups [which remains a long-term objective] should be carried out through a Lebanese-led political process that would result in bringing all arms under the control of the state.” While steps have been made by Lebanese authorities to bulk up operations along the Lebanese-Syria border, thought to be the epicenter for arms transfers, little progress has been made, Ban said.
Warming relations between Lebanon and Syria, however, were a cause for optimism and the July rapprochement and the signing of several economic agreements may pave the way for improvement of border-monitoring provision, he said.
This could additionally speed up the disarmament of Palestinian factions which are stationed along the Lebanon-Syria border and harboring weapons outside of the 12 refugee camps in violation of the Taif Accords, Ban said.
The historic summit between President Michel Suleiman, Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdel-Aziz and the Syrian President Bashar Assad held in Beirut in July also lowered tensions, although these have “unfortunately … resurfaced in recent weeks.”

'Weeping' Virgin Mary statue draws hundreds of worshippers to Windsor residence
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/02112010/79/central-weeping-virgin-mary-statue-draws-hundreds-worshippers-windsor-residence.html
Tue Nov 2, 10:51 PM
By Frances Willick
WINDSOR, Ont. -- A statue of the Virgin Mary said to weep tears of healing oil is attracting the worship of hundreds of Catholics, raising the ire of neighbours and drawing the attention of city bureaucrats.
Located in the front yard of a Garvey Crescent home, the statue is said to smile during the day and weep tears of oil at night. Homeowner Fadia Ibrahim calls the supposed happenings a "miracle," and believes the statue is delivering a message. "I think it's a work of God and she wants the people to go back to church," said Ibrahim, 48.
For the past three months, Catholics who have heard of the statue's supposed powers have been gathering at the home nightly to pray. The grass on the front lawn has been trampled into the soil by worshippers, and the street -- located in a normally quiet area -- is constantly lined with cars that have stopped, slowed or parked so residents can catch a glimpse of the Madonna.
Janet Mendez, 37, took her two young children to take a look. "We're a very faith-filled family, so we thought we would come over and look at what is taking place this evening, just for our own eyes."
She said she wasn't disappointed. "Seeing is believing, and definitely we do see her weeping -- weeping for the world, weeping because there's no love left in this world."
Pam Martin, 43, said she was in awe of the statue. "This is just incredible," she said. "I watch the news and I can't help but be saddened by what I see, but how much more for this woman? This is a woman who watched her own son die on a cross. Now she's weeping for us because we're killing this world."
Ibrahim's son, Shady, said while the statue normally seems serene or happy during the day, the statue was "weeping" all day Monday. Worshippers say "tears" are visible on the face and hands of the statue, and can often be seen dripping from the Virgin Mary's chin.
Shady speculated that the statue had begun to weep during the day Monday because worshippers hadn't gathered the previous evening -- Halloween night -- to pray at her feet.
On Monday evening, a crowd of more than 100 congregated on the front lawn of the house to say the rosary.
But, while believers are calling it a miracle, neighbours are calling it a nuisance.
One neighbour who was upset with the congestion on the street reported his concern to the city. The municipality's building department has now issued an order to the homeowners to remove the statue by Nov. 19, citing building code violations and a lack of a building permit.
The 1.5-metre statue is encased in an addition to the front of the house, complete with shingles on the roof of the enclosure and a flower garden along the base.
Ibrahim said if the city doesn't reverse its decision, she will comply with the order. "I don't have a choice but to remove the statue." If she is forced to remove the addition to her house, she said, she'd consider moving the statue of the Madonna to a church.
Ibrahim said she began receiving messages from the Virgin Mary about two years ago. She said she was at a nearby church when a cross and the letter M appeared in blood on her leg during mass. She said the Virgin has since inscribed other messages on her body and has even spoken to her, telling her that people must invigorate their faith and go to church.
After news of her supposed communication with the Virgin Mary spread in the Catholic community, supporters in Detroit donated the statue -- believed to have come from Los Angeles -- as well as the money to construct the enclosure.
While Ibrahim recounted her story in front of a handful of worshippers Monday, some in the small crowd began to gasp and point at Ibrahim's left hand, which was glistening with moisture that appeared oily. Ibrahim said her hands often secrete the healing oil, especially when she is speaking about the Virgin Mary.
As Ibrahim moved around the circle, marking a cross on the forehead of each spectator, several in the crowd began to weep. "When she touched me, I just felt overwhelmed and everything seemed to come out," said Rosanne Paquette. "I felt this warmth, and it was unbelievable."
Carmela Montilla, who prays in front of the statue every night, credits its healing powers with curing her 17-year-old granddaughter's leukemia. Montilla said after Ibrahim anointed the sick woman with oil, her blood counts immediately returned to a normal level and the girl was able to go to school again. "She just put the oil on her, prayed for her.... The doctor said her blood, everything was normal."
Worshippers said it would be "outrageous" if the Ibrahim family were forced to remove the statue. "We come, we pray, and we say goodnight everybody, and that's it. We go home," said Maria Desimini. "We're not disturbing nobody."
Montilla said the statue's supposed powers are a blessing for Windsor. "That's the best thing that can happen to Windsor," she said. "It's a miracle. We need this."

Security Council mulls special session to discuss Tribunal
Lebanese urge members to hold off on talks pending local accord
By The Daily Star
Thursday, November 04, 2010
BEIRUT: The Security Council is considering convening a special session to discuss the issue of the UN-backed court probing the murder of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
While the US and France are pushing the Security Council to hold a session to discuss last week’s attack in Beirut’s southern suburbs on two international investigators, the Lebanese mission at the UN has called upon Security Council members to delay talks on the issue pending an accord, several media reports quoted diplomatic sources as saying Tuesday.
“Some member countries have objected to holding a session on the issue for fear that it might lead to further tensions in Lebanon,” the United Kingdom’s permanent representative Mark Lyall, who’s country currently heads the UN Security Council, told Lebanon’s As-Safir newspaper. “We take all factors into consideration.”
Tensions have mounted in Lebanon over the indictment to be issued by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL).
Hizbullah had announced over the summer that the tribunal was moving toward indicting “rogue” members from the group and slammed the STL as an “Israeli project.”
The party’s leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said his group rejected such an accusation and warned of the repercussions of such an indictment.
Many fear that if Hizbullah is indicted violence might spill in the streets of Beirut and drag the country into a civil war.
Following a Cabinet decision in 2008 to dismantle Hizbullah’s private telecommunications network, violence erupted in the streets of Beirut and many fear the occurrence of a similar scenario.
Lyall told As-Safir that STL’s Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare cancelled a visit to New York to submit his report on the work of the STL “to closely follow-up” on the situation in Lebanon.
The British diplomat said he did not receive any information that Lebanon’s government had withdrawn support of the STL.
Rafik Hariri’s son, Prime Minister Saad Hariri, reaffirmed during talks in London this week his government’s intention to honor its commitments toward the STL.
Two STL investigators and their interpreter came under attack by dozens of angry women at a gynecology clinic in Beirut’s southern suburbs last week. The briefcase of one of the investigators was snatched.
In a televised speech commenting on the incident, Nasrallah called on Lebanese to boycott the STL, saying all the information gathered by the court’s investigators was passed on to Israel.
But the STL said the incident would not deter it from performing its mission. The incident also gathered a wave of condemnations from the international community.
A diplomatic source told As-Safir if a session to discuss the Dahiyeh incident was decided, United Nations Undersecretary for Legal Affairs Patricia O’Brien would submit a report on the attack to the UNSC.
Quoting diplomatic sources, An-Nahar newspaper said extensive contacts had been undertaken to hold a session to discuss the issue of the STL.
“However,” according to An-Nahar, “Lebanon’s representative at the Security Council Ambassador Nawwaf Salam convinced parties at the UN to postpone talks on the issue in order to give a chance to discussions taking place in Beirut.” – The Daily Star

Cassese hopes for prompt indictment
Tribunal president says issue should not lead to civil war
By Michael Bluhm
Daily Star staff
Thursday, November 04, 2010
THE HAGUE: The president of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), Italian Judge Antonio Cassese, warned Lebanon Wednesday not to overreact to the prosecutor’s indictment, which should be filed in the near future.
Cassese said that an indictment of suspects in the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was not the same thing at all as a verdict of guilt. Political tensions have soared in Lebanon as politicians argue zealously over tribunal issues such as the “false witnesses” and Lebanon’s share of the court’s funding. Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah last Thursday called for all Lebanese to boycott any cooperation with the court, one day after dozens of mostly Hizbullah supporters attacked STL investigators collecting evidence in the Hizbullah stronghold of Beirut’s Dahiyeh suburb.
“The indictment as such should not trigger a civil war in Lebanon,” Cassese said to the International Media Forum at the tribunal headquarters near The Hague in the Netherlands. “It would be a huge mistake. That’s why we have trials – to verify whether the prosecutor is right or wrong.
“We are strongly against justice at the cost of peace.”
Contrary to a burst of local media reports early Wednesday, Cassese said at the forum that he did not have any idea when Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare would file his indictment with the pre-trial judge, who can then confirm or reject the charge sheet.
Asked whether Bellemare would be able to file the indictment before the end of this year, Cassese said that he hoped so, in order to get proceedings moving quickly.
“I don’t know what the prosecutor is doing,” Cassese said. “I do hope that by December we will have an indictment. That is just a hope – we have no certainty,” he added.
Ekkehard Withopf, senior trial counsel in Bellemare’s office, said that Bellemare would submit the indictment in “the not-too-far-away future.” The prosecutor has made significant progress in the last month and is confident that his evidence is strong enough to establish the culprits’ guilt beyond a shadow of a doubt, Withopf added.
Bellemare is still reviewing evidence provided by Hizbullah of alleged Israeli satellite images of the Beirut seafront site where Hariri was killed, images supposedly taken before the February 14, 2005, assassination, Withopf said.
Commenting on the blizzard of rumors in Lebanon about whom Bellemare will propose to indict, Cassese said that he had yet to hear anything about the individuals to be accused. “I envy those people [who know the identity of those to be accused], because they know more than I do,” Cassese said.
The STL president added the he was pushing Bellemare to submit the indictment as soon as possible. “Each time I meet [Bellemare] down in the coffee shop, I say, ‘What about the indictment?’” Cassese said, although he did not add anything about the prosecutor’s response to the question.
Cassese spoke repeatedly about his support for the principle that any international tribunal must dispense justice without unnecessary delay. He made sure to include provisions in the STL’s rules of procedure and evidence that could speed up the court’s proceedings, he added. “I very much believe in quick justice,” Cassese said. “Justice must be expeditious.”
Bellemare’s filing of the indictment will not be slowed by the attack on the investigators and the theft of some of their evidence in Dahiyeh last week, said Withopf. “This incident will not have an impact on the date of the issuance of the indictment,” added the senior trial counsel.
Cassese will move along the tribunal’s work Friday, when he will issue his ruling on two petitions by former General Jamil as-Sayyed, one for the disqualification of Lebanese judges Ralph Riachi and Afif Shamseddine from handling Sayyed’s case, and the other petition regarding the jurisdiction of the tribunal to address Sayyed’s request to see the prosecutor’s evidence against him.
The court’s Appeals Chamber should then issue its final verdict on the jurisdiction question next week, Cassese added.
The STL president said Sayyed could serve as an example to Hizbullah and its allies who have called the tribunal an Israeli and US tool to weaken Hizbullah. Sayyed is pursuing his opposition to the tribunal through his proceedings against the court to test its quality, a model that Cassese said he encouraged other tribunal skeptics to follow.
Sayyed “behaved very well,” Cassese said. “He’s thrilled that we have jurisdiction. He has shown that he wants to take part in the proceedings.”
“I know that there are segments of the population in Beirut that are against our tribunal,” Cassese added. “Even if you don’t like our tribunal, even if you think I’m the director of Mossad … do take part.”
Cassese also stated repeatedly that no countries or political forces had told him how to direct the tribunal’s proceedings.
“I’m under no political pressure,” he said. “I doubt that even the prosecutor is under political pressure.
“If I were under political pressure, I would resign. I would never accept any political pressure.”
In the end, the trials at the STL should serve to inculcate two values of justice among the Lebanese – accountability for criminals and the impartiality of the judiciary – Cassese said. Not all judges must be corrupt or slaves to a political agenda, he added. “Justice can be impartial,” Cassese said.
“Let us stop with this current situation where the political discourse ends up in killing,” he added. “Let us instead set up a culture of accountability.”

The Lebanese need action, not rhetoric
Thursday, November 04, 2010
Editorial/Daily Star
A quick journey through the country’s media on any given day is enough to provide us with a picture of our politicians as they encourage us to head for the nearest travel agency, and book a one-way ticket out of Lebanon.
Our media is filled with accusations and threats, as well as statements of cynicism and pessimism, about the state of affairs we face today.
Our politicians are world-class experts at outlining our dismal situation; since many of them actually hold public office, it’s depressing to hear them go on and on about our problems without offering a set of workable solutions.
Instead, we hear absurd or abstract ultimatums – the Lebanese must do X before there can be any progress – and in the end we are drawn further into despair and resignation. We become convinced that we’re living in a failed state, and in such a situation, looking for a visa and a way out become the only logical options.
If not for the perseverance of the Lebanese, and their built-up immunity to such negative rhetoric, most people would have left the country already. There are some bright spots in our political class, but they truly stand out as exceptions.
There are a handful of ministers and other officials who take their jobs seriously. Some of them appear to be so exhausted by their official duties, tackling “non-political” matters, that they have little time to contribute to our daily political circus.
Some officials are actually traveling around the world, to both defend Lebanon’s interests, while working to counter its appalling reputation abroad as a non-performer.
Despite these efforts, we are now moving from our unofficial status as a failed state to the prospect of becoming officially labeled a rogue state.
This will affect everybody in the country, irrespective of class or sect. It’s a time for the utmost level of teamwork in our Cabinet, and our political class as a whole. The country will go nowhere if one group of people does everything it can to pull the cart one way, while another group is determined to pull it in another direction.
We face a critical situation and our politicians and officials simply must exhibit the kind of professionalism and creativity that help us see our way through. Cynical rhetoric, defeatist assessments, bombastic threats and counter-threats will get us nowhere.
Politicians must give Lebanese what they need to confront the situation, and avoid the media storm unless they put forward something positive and feasible. This is what the person in the street needs from our politicians, and not their punditry on the latest rumor and polemic.

Assyrians Should Be Granted Indigenous Group Status and Rights in Iraq
GMT 11-3-2010 19:52:19
Assyrian International News Agency
To unsubscribe or set email news digest options, visit http://www.aina.org/mailinglist.html
(AINA) -- The Assyrian American National Coalition is pressing President Obama and Congress to preserve Iraq's indigenous Assyrian population from continued terrorist attacks designed to destroy Assyrian communities by prompting mass flight, which is a form of ethnic cleansing. The most recent siege by the Islamic State of Iraq on Our Lady of Deliverance Syriac Catholic Church in Baghdad claimed 52 lives of Syriac Catholics, and panicked thousands (AINA 11-2-2010), leading to an accelerated exodus of Assyrians (also known as Chaldeans and Syriacs).
There was a resolution (see below) within the US Congress that passed in February 2010 calling for the Secretary of State to protect Christians and other religious minorities in Iraq, but nothing was done and it is up to the new Congress, including Senator-elect Mark Kirk of Illinois, to urge the State Department to divert its massive resources to deal with this situation. The State Department is spending $1.715 billion in Iraq this year, can it not do more to prevent large-scale massacres? When will it turn its attention to practical steps to halt and reverse the extinction of entire local populations of religious minorities, from the (Assyrians) to the Mandaeans of Baghdad and southern Iraq to the Yezidis of Ninewa province? After the head of the Islamic State of Iraq was arrested in 2009, he confessed that his army has been funded by Syria, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, as well as by extortions or contributions from Iraqi government employees' salaries. Where were American diplomats?
There is a history of both congressional and State Department inaction and indifference when it comes to the mass slaughter of Iraq's religious minorities. Despite showering billions of dollars on armed Arab and Kurdish groups like the Dawa Party and the Kurdistan Democratic Party, the State Department dragged its feet in distributing the paltry $10 million that Congress designated for the relief of Assyrians and other religious minorities, such as the Mandaeans and Yezidis. The Refugee Crisis in Iraq Act passed by Congress in 2007 failed to provide similar priority status for persecuted religious or minority communities who lacked family members in the United States that it offered to Iraqis who were employed in Iraq by the U.S. government, a U.S. media company or NGO.
Activists for democracy in Iraq, including not only Assyrians but many Arabs and Kurds, placed themselves at extreme risk in expressing support for an end to the Ba'athist dictatorship imposed on Iraq by Western powers starting in 1963. Most notably, Assyrians participated along with Arabs, Kurds, and Turkomans in the Future of Iraq Project (AINA 10-31-2002), whose detailed plan for a relatively secular and forward-looking democratic government. After dozens of Assyrians were (massacred and dozens of churches bombed between 2003 and 2006 Assyrians, the State Department continued to thwart efforts to implement indigenous autonomy and policing (AINA 6-24-2006), as prevails on Native American reservations since at least the nineteenth century. The time has come to implement the right of the Assyrian people, as the remnant of the indigenous population of Iraq, to cultural, political, and religious autonomy. Congresspersons Anna Eshoo, Mark Kirk, Ron Klein, Sheila Jackson-Lee, Michael McMahon, Ileana Ros-Lehtinian, Janice Schakowsky, and Frank Wolf deserve the thanks of all Assyrians for making a start.

U.S. House Resolution on Assyrians of Iraq
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives on religious minorities in Iraq
Mr. McMAHON.
Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 944) expressing the sense of the House of Representatives on religious minorities in Iraq, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the resolution. *H676
The text of the resolution is as follows:
H. RES. 944
Whereas threats against members of even the smallest religious and ethnic minority communities in Iraq could jeopardize the future of Iraq as a diverse, pluralistic, and free society;
Whereas according to the Department of State's International Religious Freedom Report, violent acts continue to pose a significant threat to members of the country's vulnerable non-Muslim religious minority communities, including documented attacks against Chaldeans, Syriacs, Assyrians, and other Christians, Sabean Mandeans, and Yazidis, and "very few of the perpetrators of violence committed against Christians and other religious minorities in the country have been punished";
Whereas according to the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, there are grave threats to religious freedom in Iraq, particularly for members of the smallest, most vulnerable religious minority communities in Iraq, including Chaldeans, Syriacs, Assyrians, and other Christians, Sabean Mandeans, and Yazidis;
Whereas the February 2009 Country Report on Human Rights Practices issued by the Department of State identifies on-going "misappropriation of official authority by sectarian, criminal, and extremist groups" as among the significant and continuing human rights problems in Iraq;
Whereas in recent years, there have been alarming numbers of religiously motivated killings, abductions, beatings, rapes, threats, intimidation, forced conversions, marriages, and displacement from homes and businesses, and attacks on religious leaders, pilgrims, and holy sites, in Iraq, with the smallest, non-Muslim religious minorities in Iraq having been among the most vulnerable, although Iraqis from many religious communities, Muslim and non-Muslim alike, have suffered in this violence;
Whereas the Assyrian International News Agency reports that 59 churches were bombed in Iraq between June 2004 and July 2009;
Whereas persecution and violence in Iraq have extended to church leaders as well, such as the March 2008 kidnap for ransom and killing of 65-year-old Chaldean Catholic Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho;
Whereas many members of non-Muslim religious minority communities in Iraq reportedly do not receive adequate official protection, and are legally, politically, and economically marginalized;
Whereas control of several ethnically and religiously mixed areas, including the Nineveh and Tamim (Kirkuk) governorates, is disputed between the Kurdistan regional government and the Government of Iraq, and Chaldeans, Syriacs, Assyrians, and other Christians, Sabean Mandeans, Yazidis, and Muslim ethnic minorities Shabak and Turkomans are caught in the middle of this struggle for control and have been targeted for abuses and discrimination as a result;
Whereas many members of vulnerable non-Muslim religious minority communities in Iraq have fled to other areas in Iraq or to other countries;
Whereas the flight of such refugees has substantially diminished their numbers in Iraq;
Whereas approximately 1,400,000 Christians were estimated to have lived in Iraq as of 2003, including Chaldean Catholics, Assyrian Orthodox, Assyrian Church of the East, Syriac Catholics, Syriac Orthodox, Armenians (Catholic and Orthodox), Protestants, Evangelicals, and others;
Whereas it is widely reported that only 500,000 to 700,000 indigenous Christians remained in Iraq as of 2009;
Whereas since 2003, the Sabean Mandean community has found itself targeted by both Sunni and Shia Islamic extremists, and by criminal gangs who use religion to justify their attacks;
Whereas the Sabean Mandean community in Iraq reports that almost 90 percent of the members of that community either fled Iraq or have been killed, leaving only about 3,500 to 5,000 Mandeans in Iraq as of 2009;
Whereas in August 2007 a series of bombings targeted the Yazidi community of Iraq resulting in an estimated 200 deaths and more than 200 injuries;
Whereas at least 20 people were killed and 30 wounded in a double suicide bombing in August 2009 which targeted the Yazidi minority in northern Iraq;
Whereas the Yazidi community in Iraq reportedly now numbers about 500,000, a decrease from about 700,000 in 2005;
Whereas the Baha'i faith, estimated to have only 2,000 adherents in Iraq, remains prohibited in Iraq under a 1970 law;
Whereas the ancient and once-large Jewish community in Iraq now numbers fewer than 10, and they essentially live in hiding;
Whereas in 2008, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that approximately 221,000 Iraqis returned to their areas of origin in Iraq, the vast majority of whom settled into neighborhoods or governorates controlled by members of their own religious community;
Whereas many of these returnees reported returning because of difficult economic conditions in their countries of asylum, principally Syria, Jordan, Egypt, and Lebanon; and
Whereas many members of vulnerable religious and ethnic minority communities are not believed to be represented in more than negligible numbers among these returnees: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that
the United States remains deeply concerned about the plight of members of the vulnerable religious and ethnic minority communities of Iraq;
the Secretary of State should develop and report to Congress on a comprehensive strategy to encourage the protection of the rights of members of vulnerable religious and ethnic minority communities in Iraq;
the United States Government should urge the Government of Iraq to enhance security at places of worship in Iraq, particularly where members of vulnerable religious minority communities are known to be at risk;
the United States Government should continue to work with the Government of Iraq to integrate religious and ethnic minorities into the government in general, and the Iraqi Security Forces, in particular, with the goal of ensuring that members of such communities-
suffer no discrimination in recruitment, employment, or advancement in government positions, in general, and the Iraqi police and security forces, in particular; and
while employed in the Iraqi police and security forces, be initially assigned, in reasonable numbers, to their locations of origin, rather than being transferred to other areas;
the Government of Iraq should, with the assistance of the United States Government-
ensure that the upcoming national elections in Iraq are safe, fair, and free of intimidation and violence so that all Iraqis, including members of vulnerable religious and ethnic minority communities, can participate in the elections; and
permit and facilitate election monitoring by experts from local and international nongovernmental organizations, the international community, and the United Nations, particularly in ethnic and religious minority areas;
the United States Government should encourage the Government of Iraq to work with members of vulnerable religious and ethnic minority communities to develop and implement tangible, effective measures to protect their rights and measures to reverse the legal, political, and economic marginalization of religious minorities in Iraq;
in providing assistance to Iraq, the United States Government should continue to take into account the needs of vulnerable members of religious and ethnic minority communities and expand upon efforts to work with local organizations that serve those communities;
the United States Government should continue to fund capacity-building programs for the Iraqi Ministry of Human Rights, the independent national Human Rights Commission, and the newly-created independent minorities committee whose membership is selected by members of vulnerable religious and ethnic minority communities of Iraq;
the United States Government should strongly encourage the Government of Iraq to direct the Iraqi Ministry of Human Rights to investigate and issue a public report on abuses against and the marginalization of members of vulnerable religious and ethnic minority communities in Iraq and make recommendations to address such abuses; and
the Government of Iraq should, with the assistance of the United States Government and international organizations, help ensure that displaced Iraqis considering return to Iraq have the proper information needed to make informed decisions regarding such return.
The SPEAKER pro tempore.
Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New York (Mr. McMahon) and the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York.
GENERAL LEAVE
Mr. McMAHON.
Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore.
Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from New York?
There was no objection.
Mr. McMAHON. I rise in strong support of this resolution, and I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, H. Res. 944 expresses the sense of the House of Representatives on the status of religious minorities in Iraq.
When the Iraq war began in 2003, little thought was given to the impact on Iraq's religious minorities. Only 3 percent of the population in Iraq is non-Muslim. These populations include Christians, Yazidis, Sabian-Mandaeans, Baha'is, Shabaks, Kaka'is, and a very small number of Jews.
Although the new Iraqi Constitution recognizes Islam as the official religion of Iraq, it also states that no law may be enacted that contradicts principles of democracy or the rights and basic *H677 freedoms stipulated in the constitution. The constitution also guarantees freedom of thought, conscience, and religious belief and practice for both Muslims and non-Muslims.
Although the Iraqi Government generally respects these rights, ongoing violence restricts the free exercise of religion, and this violence poses a significant threat to the country's vulnerable religious minorities. These minorities continue to suffer at the hands of terrorists, extremists, criminal gangs, and even at the hands of unsavory elements within the Iraqi Government. Sectarian violence, including attacks on religious leaders and religious places of worship, continues to hamper their ability to practice religion freely.
Many experts consider the situation for Iraqi Christians as especially dire. According to Chaldean Catholic Auxiliary Bishop Andreos Abouna of Baghdad, the number of Christians in Iraq may have been cut in half since 2003. As documented by the State Department, Christians have been threatened with violence if they do not leave their homes. They have been accosted on the streets and have even been assassinated. Their churches have been bombed and destroyed.
Reports indicate that other religious minorities face similarly treacherous situations. The Yazidis, who are considered heretical by many Muslims because of their beliefs, have suffered under a tremendous onslaught of violence. Another targeted group, the Sabian-Mandaeans, numbered about 60,000 in 2003. Today, only about 5,000 Sabian-Mandaeans remain in Iraq, meaning that more than 90 percent have left the country or have been killed.
That is why we are considering House Resolution 944 today, and that is why I am proud to say that I am an original cosponsor of that resolution.
This resolution urges the Government of Iraq to enhance security in places of worship in Iraq, particularly where religious minorities are known to be at risk. The resolution calls for the urgent training of an appropriate number of security forces to protect religious minorities. It also urges the Iraqi Government to take affirmative measures to reverse the legal, political and economic marginalization of religious minorities in Iraq. In addition, it asks the United States to consider implementing programs for religious minorities as part of its overall economic assistance to Iraq.
2:45 p.m.
Madam Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this resolution in an effort to make certain that all religions survive and have a chance to prosper in the new Iraq.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN.
Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I also rise in support of House Resolution 944, and I want to thank the gentleman from Michigan (Mr.Peters) and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf) for bringing this important human rights issue before us today.
The protection of members of vulnerable religious and ethnic minorities, including the smallest minority groups, is integral to the future of Iraq as a free and stable country. Iraq is home to ancient and diverse Catholic, Orthodox, and other Christian groups, including Chaldean, Assyrian, Syriac, and Armenian Christians, among many others. They have been targeted for kidnapping and murder by radical Islamic extremists. Various credible sources estimate that more than half of Iraq's Christians have already fled the country during the last several years.
However, these dangers are certainly not confined to Christians. The Baha'i faith remains prohibited in Iraq, and Iraq's ancient and once-flourishing Jewish community has reportedly dwindled to fewer than a dozen people.
All of us understand that Iraq's young democracy faces many challenges, including its own threats from insurgents and other extremists. But the marginalization, the displacement, the violence that threatens Iraq's minority communities also endanger the vitality and the inclusiveness of Iraqi society as a whole.
We must strive to ensure that the work that we and our allies do helps to build Iraq's capacity and commitment to protect its minority citizens, and we must encourage the Government of Iraq to ensure that its forthcoming elections are an opportunity to reinforce the growth of democracy and freedom in that country. Those elections should be safe, should be fair, should be transparent so that all Iraqis, including members of these vulnerable religious and ethnic minority communities, can participate. And we must not let members of those minorities under siege think that they are alone or that they are forgotten.
For these reasons, Madam Speaker, I am grateful for this resolution, which deserves our unanimous support.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr.McMAHON.
Madam Speaker, at this time I yield 3 minutes to the prime sponsor of this resolution, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Peters).
Mr. PETERS.
Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York for yielding the time.
While the majority of Iraqis are Muslim, there are many communities of religious and ethnic minorities whose history in Iraq goes back thousands of years. This includes Chaldeans, Syriacs, Assyrians, and other Christians, as well as Sabian Mandeans and Yazidis.
Since 2003, approximately 21/2 million refugees and asylum seekers have fled Iraq, and millions more have become displaced, forced to flee their homes and neighborhoods because of sectarian violence. In fact, there were approximately 11/2 million Christians in Iraq in 2003, and today there is less than half of that amount.
Many of these Iraqis would like nothing more than to return home. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, in 2008, approximately 221,000 Iraqis returned to their home village or neighborhood in Iraq and the vast majority settled into areas where members of their own religious community controlled the neighborhood or local government.
Unfortunately, Iraqi religious minorities do not have militia or tribal structures to defend themselves, and they do not receive adequate protection from the police or security forces. Not only does this make the possibility of return nearly impossible for Iraqi religious minorities, it also leaves them particularly vulnerable to violence.
Iraqi Christians and other religious minorities are often specifically targeted in gruesome and random acts of violence such as murder, rape, and abductions. This includes the Chaldean community, who this week is mourning the kidnapping and murder of Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho on February 29, 2008.
Archbishop Rahho spent almost his entire life living in Mosul and serving its Christian communities which are among the oldest and largest in Iraq. For years, the archbishop was threatened with violence because he spoke out against discrimination against Christians by Muslim extremists. Sadly, the archbishop was murdered because he refused to lend the support of his church to terrorists in their fight against U.S. forces in Iraq.
These stories continue to be tragically common, and more must be done by the United States Government and by the Government of Iraq to protect religious minorities.
This resolution calls upon the United States and the Iraqi Government to protect religious minorities by encouraging free and fair elections, training Iraqi security forces, and providing safe places to worship. It also seeks an investigation into human rights violations and calls for an end to the abuse of Iraqi religious minorities. Finally, the resolution calls for the United States to work with the Iraqi Government to ensure the physical and economic safety of those wishing to return to Iraq.
I would like to thank my colleagues, Mr. Wolf and Ms. Eshoo, who, as co-Chairs of the Religious Minorities in the Middle East Caucus, have shown great leadership on this issue and for their support of this resolution. I would also like to thank Chairman
Berman and Ranking Member
Ros-Lehtinen for their support and for their staffs' work in helping me bring this resolution forward today.
It is no longer possible to stand by and watch as millions of religious minorities are subject to torture, abuse, and discrimination, which is why I ask my colleagues to support this important resolution. *H678
Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN.
Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf), the co-Chair of the Tom Lantos Congressional Human Rights Commission and the coauthor of this important measure.
(Mr. WOLF asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)
Mr. WOLF.
I thank the gentlewoman for yielding the time.
I want to support the comments that have been made by Members of both sides and let Members think about it for a moment. With the exception of Israel, the Bible, the Bible contains more references to the cities, the regions, and the nations of ancient Iraq than any other country. The patriarch Abraham came from the city of Ur. I actually visited the site, when the war began, of the location of Abraham's house. Isaac's bride, Rebekah, came from northwest Iraq. Jacob spent 20 years in Iraq, and his sons, the 12 tribes of Israel, were born in northwest Iraq. A remarkable spiritual revival as told in the Book of Jonah occurred in Nineveh. The events of the Book of Esther took place in Iraq, as did the account of Daniel in the lion's den.
So all of these religious things have taken place, and yet people have almost forgotten about Iraq. And the previous speaker in his comments has said the Christian community in these areas has been going through tremendous pressure.
I have appreciated Ambassador Chris Hill's commitment to this issue. In recent correspondence, he indicated that the security of the Christian community remains one of his paramount concerns, especially in light of attacks directed at Christian churches in Baghdad and Mosul over the past 5 months.
But there needs to be leadership from the highest levels within the State Department as well. We've long advocated both during the previous administration and the current one that the U.S. needs to adopt a comprehensive policy to address the unique situation of these defenseless minorities. This resolution, and I thank both sides for bringing it up, urges the Secretary of State to develop such a strategy.
In closing, let me just say it is time for this administration to start taking religious freedom seriously. The position of U.S. Ambassador for International Religious Freedom has been vacant, has been vacant for over a year. Did anyone hear? There is no ambassador for religious freedom that has been appointed by this administration. The position has been vacant, vacant for 1 year. Yet we see the persecution of the Coptic Christians in Egypt, the Assyrian Christians in Iraq, the Catholic Church in China, the Catholic Church in Vietnam, on and on. So we want to see this administration have an ambassador who can advocate, as the resolution calls for, to help Chris Hill and helps others to speak out and advocate. But the very fact that there has been no ambassador appointed for over 13 months kind of tells the story. Personnel, personnel is policy, and if there's no personnel, it's not a good policy.
Let me just end. I want to thank the gentlemen on both sides and the gentlewoman for speaking. And I hope there's a rollcall vote on this. I hope we have to vote up and down so we can send a message to the Assyrian Christians and those who are going through tremendous persecution wondering whether anybody in the West cares.
Mr. McMAHON.
Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN.
Madam Speaker, I do have an additional speaker in case the gentleman would like to reserve his time.
Mr. McMAHON.
Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to reclaim the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore.
Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from New York?
There was no objection.
Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN.
Madam Speaker, I now would like to yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Duncan), a member of the Natural Resources, Oversight, and Transportation Committees, for his insight and the insight of his constituent who's very concerned about religious minorities in Iraq.
Mr. DUNCAN.
I thank the gentlewoman from Florida for yielding me this time.
I also want to thank all of the previous speakers: the gentleman from Michigan, the original author of the resolution; the gentleman from New York; and especially the gentleman from Virginia, Congressman
Wolf, who has been such a leader on these issues for many years now.
I rise in strong support of H. Res. 944, expressing the sense of the House of Representatives on religious minorities in Iraq.
While this bill calls attention to various religious minorities in Iraq that are victims of acts of violence and religious persecution, one group that is extremely vulnerable, especially vulnerable, is the Iraqi Christians. In the most recent series of attacks in Iraq's northern city of Mosul, five Iraqi Christians were attacked and killed just last week in various acts of violence. According to a February 17, 2010, article from Reuters, "Bombings and shootings are recorded almost daily in the violent northern city of Mosul, where the situation has been described by one Christian priest as 'miserable.' Iraqi Christians are forced to hide in their homes in fear of being the next victim of what is being called a 'systematic campaign of violence against minorities.' And Sunni Islamist insurgent groups have labeled Christians and other Iraqi minorities as devil worshipers and infidels."
There is growing concern, Madam Speaker, of even more violence and killings in the wake of the upcoming elections in March. These attacks are being used as a means of intimidation to discourage Iraqi Christians from voting in the upcoming elections. There have also been threats of violence using military means to prevent the elections from happening at all.
I first spoke out about the violence against Christians in Iraq that last year when one of my constituents and a native of Iraq, Susan Dakak, brought to my attention the escalation of violence against this particular religious group. I also met recently, a few weeks ago, with a member of the Iraqi Parliament, Yonadom Kanna, recently to discuss the ongoing persecution of Iraqi Christians.
The horrendous human rights violations and acts against religious minorities must end. The United States should do as much as possible to help stop the discrimination against and persecution of the Christian community in Iraq, and this resolution will be a meaningful step in that direction.
I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.
Ms. JACKSON LEE of Texas.
Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 944-"Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives on religious minorities in Iraq." As a cosponsor of this resolution, I join my colleagues in expressing my concern about the plight of vulnerable religious and ethnic minorities of Iraq, and we are particularly concerned for the Chaldeans, Syriacs, Assyrians, and other Christians, Sabean Mandeans, Yazidis, Baha'is, Jews, and Muslim ethnic minorities, the Shabak and Turkomen, and other religious and ethnic minorities of Iraq.
Political and religious freedom in Iraq is a vital concern with regards to the nation and region. When we envision the long-term peace and security of Iraq, we envision a country with a strong, functioning democracy that respects the rights of all citizens. That vision is not a product of the imperialism of Western ideas; the tradition of religious plurality has roots in the history and religious beliefs of the Iraqi people. But, although Iraq has a strong history of multiculturalism, it must not rest on this reputation. The rights of minorities in Iraq are not fully protected, and the Iraqi government can and must do more to protect the rights of its minorities.
The degree to which Iraq protects those rights is a reflection on our country. Because of the United States' unfortunate detour from our struggle against terrorism into Iraq, the actions of the new government of Iraq directly reflect upon us. So far, I believe that the actions of the government of Iraq with respect to political and religious freedoms are problematic.
In no case is the Iraqi government's treatment of minorities more troubling than their treatment of the residents of Camp Ashraf. Although Camp Ashraf is halfway around the world, the conditions there affect Americans, including in my own district and throughout the state of Texas where some of my constituents have family members in Camp Ashraf. For example, my constituent, Mitra Sohrabi, has a brother who is currently detained in Camp Ashraf, and worries about his health on a daily *H679 basis. I also know many people in Houston and throughout the state of Texas who were affected directly by the July 2009 raid on Camp Ashraf.
Late last year, three months after U.S. forces turned over control of Camp Ashraf, Iraqi Security Forces violated the human rights of the People's Mujahideen of Iran (PMOI). Camp Ashraf detains over 3,400 exiled Iranian political dissidents, who are members of the PMOI, including over 1,000 women. The PMOI opposes the current Iranian regime, and for their political beliefs they have been exiled from Iran and sequestered in Camp Ashraf. Several women detained at Camp Ashraf have reported acts of intimidation and threats of physical and sexual violence by members of the Iraqi security forces.
On July 28, 2009, Iraqi Security Forces conducted a raid on the detainees at Camp Ashraf. The raid occurred fewer than three months after the U.S. passed control of Camp Ashraf to the government of Iraq. The raid began on Tuesday, July 28th when Iraqi armored vehicles began attacks against the Iranian prisoners. The attacks continued for two full days and resulted in the death of 11 exiles and the injury of over 400 more. As a result of the raid on Camp Ashraf, 36 men were arrested under allegations of violent behavior. The 36 arrested Camp Ashraf residents have since been freed, but the United States has a continuing interest in ensuring that the events of July 28th never occur again.
Although most of the residents of Camp Ashraf were not religious minorities, the Iraqi government's treatment of the camp's residents sets a dangerous example. In recent years, there have been alarming numbers of religiously motivated killings, abductions, beatings, rapes, threats, intimidation, forced conversions, marriages, and displacement from homes and businesses, and attacks on religious leaders, pilgrims, and holy sites, in Iraq, with the smallest religious minorities in Iraq having been among the most vulnerable, although Iraqis from many religious communities, Muslim and non-Muslim alike, have suffered in this violence. In summary, members of small religious minority communities in Iraq do not have militia or tribal structures to defend them, do not receive adequate official protection, and are legally, politically, and economically marginalized.
This resolution will remind the Iraqi government that minorities of any type-be it race, religion, political affiliation, or difference of thought-are integral components of a robust civil society and a true democracy. I have faith that Iraq can and will achieve such a democracy, but we must remember that building democracy requires more than a constitution-it requires a commitment to democratic principles.
Ms. SCHAKOWSKY.
Madam Speaker. I rise tonight in support of H. Res. 44, a resolution expressing concern about the situation facing religious minorities in Iraq. I'd like to thank my colleague, Congressman
Peters, for introducing this resolution, and for being a persistent champion on this important issue.
I am proud to cosponsor this resolution, which encourages the United States government, the Iraqi government, and the international community to take positive steps to protect Iraqi religious minorities.
Nearly seven years after the U.S.-led invasion, Iraq faces one of the largest displacement crises in the world. The country's religious minorities face a particularly desperate situation. Iraqi ethno-religious minorities, including Iraqi Jews as well as Assyrians, Chaldeans, and Syriac Christians, continue to face targeted killings, sexual assaults, abductions, and other forms of threats and violence. They comprise a disproportionately large percentage of the over 4 million Iraqis who have been displaced by the ongoing violence and instability.
Those who flee Iraq often encounter a life of crippling poverty. Many have great difficulty finding work in their new countries and often cannot support their families. They may bear physical and emotional scars as a result of years of trauma, tragedy, and abuse. Those who stay in Iraq, on the other hand, face a life of constant fear, intimidation, and outright violence.
I have a longstanding concern for Iraq's ethno-religious minorities. In particular, I have worked closely with Chicago's vibrant Assyrian community on efforts to protect Iraqi religious minorities and provide opportunities for refugees. In August of last year I wrote to Secretary Clinton, urging her to develop a comprehensive plan for protecting these groups. This critical issue is crying out for the attention it deserves.
That's why this resolution is so important. The protection of ethno-religious minorities must be a component of our overall strategy in Iraq, and the United States government must do more in partnership with the Iraqi government and the rest of the international community to ensure that all Iraqis, regardless of religious affiliation, can live free of fear and intimidation.
Ms. ESHOO.
Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 944. I commend Representative
Peters for his valuable work with the Caucus on Religious Minorities in the Middle East, which, together with my colleague Representative
Frank Wolf, I am proud to co-chair. The second anniversary of the kidnapping and brutal murder of the Chaldean Archbishop of Mosul is a fitting time to remember our responsibility to these vulnerable groups both during and in the aftermath of the war.
As an Assyrian American, I am deeply disturbed by the ongoing struggle Iraq's minorities face each day. There have been dozens of church burnings, kidnappings, and random acts of violence against Assyrians, Chaldeans, Syriacs, and numerous other minority groups and this Resolution calls on the Iraqi government to take meaningful action to address their plight.
Last year, we took an important step by appropriating $10 million to assist Iraq's minorities in the Nineveh Plains region. I'm pleased that today's Resolution calls on the Iraqi government to protect the people in that area. Madam Speaker, for the sake of a free and pluralistic Iraq, I urge a "yes" vote on today's Resolution.
3:00 p.m.
Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN.
I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. McMAHON.
Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the remainder of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore.
The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from New York (Mr. McMahon) that the House suspend the rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 944, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore.
In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. McMAHON.
Madam Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.
The SPEAKER pro tempore.
Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.
156 Cong. Rec. H675-01
Congressional Record --- Extension of Remarks
Proceedings and Debates of the 111st Congress, Second Session
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Material in Extension of Remarks was not spoken by a Member on the floor.
In the House of Representatives
*E219 EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ON RELIGIOUS MINORITIES IN IRAQ
SPEECH OF
HON. FRANK R. WOLF OF VIRGINIA
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Mr. WOLF.
Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 944 and thank the Chair and Ranking Member for their efforts to bring this to the floor for consideration at such a pivotal time in Iraq.
A February 6 ABC News story opened with the following observation: "Across the Middle East, where Christianity was born and its followers once made up a sizable portion of the population, Christians are now tiny minorities."
This is perhaps no more true than in Iraq. With the exception of Israel, the Bible contains more references to the cities, regions and nations of ancient Iraq than any other country. The patriarch Abraham came from a city in Iraq called Ur. Isaac's bride, Rebekah, came from northwest Iraq. Jacob spent 20 years in Iraq and his sons (the 12 tribes of Israel) were born in northwest Iraq. A remarkable spiritual revival as told in the book of Jonah occurred in Nineveh. The events of the book of Esther took place in Iraq as did the account of Daniel in the Lion's Den.
Tragically Iraq's ancient Christian community is facing extinction. The U.N. High Commission for Refugees estimates that some 250,000 to 500,000 Christians have left the country since 2003, or about half the Christian population. According to the bipartisan U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), "while Christians and other religious minorities represented only approximately 3 percent of the pre-2003 Iraqi population, they constitute approximately 15 and 20 percent of registered Iraqi refugees in Jordan and Syria, respectively, and Christians account for 35 and 64 percent, respectively, of all registered Iraqi refugees in Lebanon and Turkey."
It is critical to note, as the figures above indicate, that the violence and intimidation that Iraq's Christians and other vulnerable ethno-religious communities have faced is targeted. In July 2008, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Migration & Refugee Services said this about the minority religious communities: "These groups, whose home has been what is now Iraq for many centuries, are literally being obliterated-not because they are fleeing generalized violence but because they are being specifically and viciously victimized by Islamic extremists and, in some cases, common criminals."
Reports indicate that since 2003, more than 200 Christians have been killed in Iraq, and since June 2004, 65 churches have been attacked or bombed. The situation facing these minority communities is not improving. In fact there has been a recent uptick in violence in the lead up to the elections in Iraq. A Reuters story last week reported that, "With Iraq's March 7 parliamentary vote looming, a spike in attacks against Christians could be a sign of voter intimidation by factions in the bitter Kurd-Arab dispute, or another attempt by al Qaeda to derail the election."
I have appreciated Ambassador Chris Hill's commitment to this issue. In recent correspondence he indicated that "the security of the Christian community remains one of my paramount concerns, especially in light of attacks directed at Christian churches in Baghdad and Mosul over the past five months."
But there needs to be leadership from the highest levels within the State Department as well. I have long advocated, both during the previous administration and in the current administration, that the U.S. needs to adopt a comprehensive policy to address the unique situation of these defenseless minorities. This resolution includes language urging the Secretary of State to develop just such a strategy.It is time for this administration to start taking religious freedom seriously. The position of U.S. ambassador for International Religious Freedom has been vacant for more than a year while other more junior posts have been filled. There's a saying in Washington that personnel is policy. When there isn't personnel, the policy inevitably suffers.
The ancient faith communities of Iraq and others enduring religious persecution worldwide deserve a voice. This resolution is a step in the right direction.
156 Cong. Rec. E219-03
By Hannibal Travis
Hannibal Travis is an Associate Professor of Law and Interim Associate Dean for Information Resources, Florida International University - College of Law.
This item is available as: html
Copyright (C) 2010, Assyrian International News Agency. All Rights Reserved. Terms of Use.