LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِMay 22/2011

Biblical Event Of The Day
Paul's Letter to the Ephesians 5/1-4: "Be therefore imitators of God, as beloved children. 5:2 Walk in love, even as Christ also loved you, and gave himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling fragrance. 5:3 But sexual immorality, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not even be mentioned among you, as becomes saints; 5:4 nor filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not appropriate; but rather giving of thanks."
 

Latest analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases from miscellaneous sources
Coptic Christians Need Protection -- Will the U.S. Help Them?/By Penny Nance/May 21/11
No Going Back for Egypt's Converted Copts/By Angela Shanahan/May 21/11

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for May 21/11
Court Filings Assert Iran Had Link to 9/11 Attacks/New York Times
Appeals court upholds $413 million lawsuit against Syria/CNN
Authorities kill 44 in Syria: activist/SMH
Syria Does Not Believe in Barack Obama/TIME
Lebanon: Stop Detaining Syrian Refugees/Human Rights Watch
UN to assist Syrians fleeing into Lebanon as crackdown intensifies/Daily Star
Harper considers imposing sanctions on Syria/CBC
Dozens of Assyrians Arrested in Syria/AINA
Obama Administration Officials Cite 'Progress' in Syria Not Getting Seat on UN /ABC
Hezbollah Supportive of Egyptian, Tunisian Uprisings But Not Syria's/VOA
Feltman conveys new American policy/Daily Star
Feltman discusses Cabinet formation, Lebanon-Syria border security/Daily Star
Religion – the overlooked motive behind Syria's uprising/J.Post
Robert Fisk: Uneasy times in Lebanon as Syrian revolt simmers/The Independent
The Lede: Video of the 'Nakba Day' Protest in Lebanon/NYT
Berri: My Busy Schedule Prevented Me from Meeting Feltman/Naharnet
Miqati Meets Shebani, Stresses Importance of Implementing Agreements between Lebanon and Iran/Naharnet
Nasrallah Meets Shebani, to Issue Clear Positions on Syria during Wednesday's Speech/Naharnet
Jumblat Calls for Fortifying Lebanon, Speeding up Cabinet Formation/Naharnet
Hariri Doesn't Recognize Miqati's Right to Head Government/Naharnet
Hizbullah Accused of Aiding al-Qaida in September 11 Attacks/Naharnet
U.S. Embassy: Lebanon is Still a Priority, No U.S. Pressure on Miqati/Naharnet
Human Rights Watch: Lebanon Must Offer Syrians Asylum, Not Detention/Naharnet
Lebanese Army Says Repatriated Syrian Troops Didn't Have Refugee Status/Naharnet
UNHCR: 1,400 Fled to Lebanon to Escape Syrian Unrest in Week/Naharnet
Fatah: Nakba Day Action Will Continue at Maroun al-Ras on Liberation Day/Naharnet
Abducted Estonians Plead for Help in New Video: Our Govt Has Left Us/Naharnet
Ali after Meeting Berri: Feltman is Not New to Lebanon, Syria is More Fortified than Before/Naharnet

44 Killed in Friday Anti-Regime Protests in Syria
Naharnet/Security forces killed 44 people during anti-regime protests which swept Syria on Friday, with most of the casualties in the western province of Idlib and the central city of Homs, a human right activist told Agence France Presse on Saturday. "Syrian authorities are continuing to use excessive force and live ammunition to face popular protests in various regions throughout the country," said Ammar Qurabi, head of the National Organization for Human Rights, who was reached by telephone. Qurabi said 26 people were killed in the province of Idlib and 13 in Homs. Two people were also killed in the eastern town of Deir Ezzor, one in Daraya, a suburb of the capital Damascus, one in the coastal city of Latakia and one in central Hama. The authoritarian government has responded to the protests that have swept Syria since March 15 with a brutal crackdown that has left at least 850 people dead and hundreds injured, according to rights groups. Thousands have been arrested.(AFP) Beirut, 21 May 11, 11:50/

Hizbullah Accused of Aiding al-Qaida in September 11 Attacks
Naharnet/The families of victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks have filed a lawsuit against Hizbullah and Iran, accusing them of assisting al-Qaida in conducting the attacks, reported the New York Times on Friday. The lawsuit included testimonies of defectors from Iranian intelligence, whose identities have not been revealed. They said that Iranian officials had prior knowledge of the attacks, while one claimed that Tehran was involved in the planning process. "Iran and Hizbullah helped al-Qaida in planning the attack and facilitated the training and transportation of the hijackers," stated the lawsuit. Hizbullah and Iran also provided safe haven to al-Qaida operatives in the Islamic Republic after the attacks, it added.
Prominent Hizbullah military official Imad Mughnieh, who was assassinated in Damascus in 2008, was described of having prepared for the attacks, it continued.
The lawsuit included names of Iranian officials and ministries, as well as members of Hizbullah and al-Qaida. The lawyers of the families of the September 11 victims demanded that verdicts be issued against the suspects in absentia, adding that they are seeking compensations from Iran for allegedly directly helping and harboring several terrorist attacks in the United States.
Meanwhile, a report on the New York attacks of 2001 stated that there is "strong evidence" that Iran facilitated the escape of several al-Qaida members from Afghanistan before the attacks took place. It also revealed that in 2000, prominent Hizbullah officials had closely monitored the travels of some of the hijackers who took over the planes that flew into the World Trade Centers in the September 2001 attack. The report acknowledged however that no concrete evidence has been found to implicate Iran in having prior knowledge of the attacks, adding that more investigations were needed. Beirut, 21 May 11, 11:01

Feltman Ends Beirut Visit Leaving behind him Conflicting Reports on Whether he Addressed Government Formation
Naharnet/U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman ended his visit to Lebanon on Saturday after holding talks with a number of Lebanese officials on the government formation process, including President Michel Suleiman and Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati. A U.S. Embassy statement said on Friday that he reiterated the U.S.'s view that the international community will assess its relationship with any new government of Lebanon based on the make-up of the next cabinet, its ministerial statement and the actions it takes in regard to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon and Lebanon's other international obligations. A source from Suleiman and Miqati told the daily An Nahar in remarks published on Saturday that Feltman explained the American policy in the region and its interest in the changes and reforms, especially those taking place in Syria.
Suleiman's circles told al-Mustaqbal daily on Saturday however that the U.S. official did not discuss the government formation process or any other internal Lebanese affair with the president. They said that Suleiman had stressed the need for stability and reform in the region, echoing the United States' demands and noting that practical steps are necessary for such aims.
Feltman's visit coincided with that of Iranian deputy Foreign Minister Mohammed Reza Shebani who also held talks with Suleiman. Baabda palace circles revealed that his talks with the president focused on the situation in Syria and attempts to create Sunni-Alawite strife there, as well as attempts to create Sunni-Shiite strife in the region. Shebani stressed that Iran is keen on averting such disputes because it will have negative repercussions on all sides.
Feltman visited Lebanon on Friday to deliver a message that the United States views the revolutions in the Middle East and North Africa as an historic opportunity to meet the aspirations of the people of the region, building a stronger foundation for prosperity, and showing people the fruits of democratic change, said the U.S. Embassy statement on Friday.
He also held talks with former Prime Minister Fouad Saniora and Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat. Echoing the message of President Barack Obama's speech on the Middle East on Thursday, Feltman outlined the U.S.'s position on the democratic changes sweeping across the region through clear and unwavering support for a set of core principles: opposition to the use of violence and repression; protection for universal rights including free speech, peaceful assembly, freedom of religion, equality for men and women; and support for political and economic change in the Middle East and North Africa that can meet the legitimate aspirations of people throughout the region.
He reconfirmed that the United States considers the make-up of Lebanon's government to be a strictly Lebanese decision and called on all parties in Lebanon to protect the government formation process from any external interference. He expressed the United States' serious concern about the ongoing violence in Syria, condemning the Syrian government's continued use of violence and intimidation against the Syrian people. Furthermore, he called upon the Syrian regime and its supporters to refrain from further acts of violence and other human rights abuses against Syrian citizens seeking to express their political aspirations. Feltman conveyed the United States' concern about reports of Syrian civilians being forced to flee to safe haven inside Lebanon and called on the Lebanese government to work with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees and other international organizations, including the International Committee of the Red Cross to fulfill its obligations under international law to provide protection to Syrian citizens fleeing the violence in Syria. He also noted the United States' concern about events on Lebanon's southern border on May 15, emphasizing the importance of maintaining strong border security on all of Lebanon's borders in order to prevent incidents that increase tensions that can lead to casualties and negatively impact the security of the region. Beirut, 21 May 11, 11:59

US. Embassy: Lebanon is Still a Priority, No U.S. Pressure on Miqati
Naharnet/It's official! Lebanon is still a priority for the U.S. although President Barack Obama did not address the situation in the country in his "historic" speech on Thursday.
"The democratic changes in the region started in Lebanon in 2005," U.S. embassy spokesman Ryan Gliha said about the Cedar Revolution that drove Syrian troops out of Lebanon in the aftermath of the assassination of former Premier Rafik Hariri. Gliha was speaking to Naharnet and other media outlets during roundtable discussions at the embassy compound in Awkar about what he called Obama's "historic" speech on the Middle East and North Africa. The speech came on the eve of a visit to Lebanon by Jeffrey Feltman, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for near eastern affairs, which according to Gliha was a "coincidence." But Feltman is carrying a message to top Lebanese officials. The message includes explanation on how the U.S. is changing its policies in the region after the Arab Spring, said Gliha. When asked about reports that the U.S. was meddling in the consultations aimed at forming the new government, the diplomat confirmed Premier-designate Najib Miqati's remarks to An Nahar daily on Friday that Washington wasn't interfering in his tasks.
"We deny any U.S. pressure on any side in Lebanon," Gliha stressed. "U.S. involvement has no definition in Lebanon," he quipped.
The spokesman reiterated that the Obama administration would deal with the upcoming government on the basis of its makeup, policy statement and its actions including its commitment to international resolutions. "Lebanon is in need for a cabinet capable of implementing programs in the interest of its people," said Gliha. He stressed, however, that "it's normal that a change in any government would affect relations with the U.S." On alleged meddling in revolutions in the Arab world, he said the U.S. doesn't have a "direct role" in the uprisings against the region's dictatorships. "That's the role of the people." The U.S. has a role in backing democratic change, which is the aim of Obama's speech, he told the journalists. "Every time things change on the street, we should change our approach." However, changes in the street haven't yet pushed the Obama administration into adopting air strikes as means to end the use of force by the Syrian regime against demonstrators. "We interfered in Libya to end the carnage there," said Gliha. "In Syria, we don't have the same pressure point and there isn't consensus among Arabs and within the U.N." on adopting such an approach. "So we adopted another approach by imposing sanctions on Syrian officials including President Bashar Assad," he added. "We will see," he mocked when told that Damascus claims that it won't be affected by the sanctions. Gliha said, however, that Washington hasn't yet decided on the next step if Assad fails to comply with Obama's call to lead a transition to democracy "or get out of the way." Beirut, 20 May 11, 13:51

Nasrallah Meets Shebani, to Issue Clear Positions on Syria during Wednesday's Speech
Naharnet/Hizbullah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah held talks with visiting Iranian deputy Foreign Minister Mohammed Reza Shebani and his accompanying delegation that included Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Ghazanfar Rokn-Abadi. The Hizbullah chief is scheduled to make a television appearance on the occasion of Liberation Day on Wednesday during which he will issue "clear positions" on Syria, informed Lebanese sources told the Saudi Okaz newspaper in remarks published on Saturday. Nasrallah is likely to voice the party's "absolute support for the Syrian regime and present any possible aid requested by the Syrian authorities," they added. Beirut, 21 May 11, 14:44

Shebani Delivers Message of Support from Ahmedinejad to Suleiman, Meets Aoun
Naharnet/Visiting deputy Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Reza Shebani delivered a message of support from Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad to his Lebanese counterpart Michel Suleiman, reported al-Jumhuriya newspaper on Friday. The message includes the Islamic Republic's position on regional issues, while asserting its ongoing support to Lebanon.
Suleiman was also presented with an invitation to attend an anti-terrorism conference held in Tehran on June 25 and 26. The meeting addressed regional developments, with Shebani renewing Iran's support for Lebanon and hope that a Lebanese government would be formed soon in order for it to follow up on the developments in the region.
The Iranian president also backed Lebanon's confrontation of Israeli plans against the country. Shebani is later expected to hold talks with former President Emile Lahoud, Marada Movement leader MP Suleiman Franjieh, Speaker Nabih Berri, the Vice President of the Higher Islamic Shiite Council Abdul Amir Qabalan, Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati and other officials on Saturday. Shebani later held talks with Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun on local and regional development, after which the Iranian official said: "We are certain that the future of the area will witness the end of foreign meddling." "The people will be the main victor from these changes, while the United States and Israel will be defeated," he added. "The United States is working on limiting the losses that we hope it will incur and it will try to set obstacles before the popular movements," he continued.
"It is keen on stirring sectarian sentiments aimed at targeting the sides that harbor resistance movements in the region," Shebani said. "I believe that my tour of Lebanon is an opportunity to explain the reality of Iran's position towards the region," he stressed. Beirut, 20 May 11, 13:15

Human Rights Watch: Lebanon Must Offer Syrians Asylum, Not Detention
Naharnet/Lebanon should grant immediate asylum to Syrians fleeing violence in their country instead of detaining them, Human Rights Watch said Friday. "Lebanon's security forces should stop detaining Syrian refugees who cross the border into Lebanon to escape violence and persecution in their country," the New York-based rights group said. At least 5,000 refugees have arrived in northern Lebanon since the end of April as Syrian security forces crack down on protesters demanding the end of President Bashar al-Assad's regime. The rights group called on Lebanon to provide Syrian refugees "with at least temporary asylum, and above all refrain from deporting them back" to their country. "Syria welcomed many Lebanese fleeing the war (between Israel and Hizbullah) back in 2006," said Nadim Houry, director of HRW's Beirut office. "Now it's time to return the favor. HRW said it documented the detention by Lebanon's security forces of nine Syrian men and one child since May 15, allegedly for crossing illegally into Lebanon. Syria's violence spilled into Lebanon on Sunday when a woman, among dozens fleeing Tall Kalakh, was shot dead and six other people were wounded.
Meanwhile, the Lebanese army confirmed reports that it has handed over three Syrian border guards and the body of a fourth soldier to Damascus, noting that the four troops fled to Lebanon "after their post came under gunfire by armed men and two of them were seriously wounded." "One of them died of his wounds while crossing the border," the army said in a statement issued by its Orientation Directorate. On Tuesday, human rights activist Nabil Halabi had said two Syrian soldiers had escaped across the border and were being held by the Lebanese army along with the body of a third. Several rights group, including Halabi's Lebanese Institute for Democracy and Human Rights, called on the Lebanese army not to hand the defectors back to Syrian authorities for fear of reprisals. Deporting asylum seekers and refugees, Houry said, would "make Lebanon complicit with any harm they suffer at the hand of Syria's security services upon their return." But the army in its statement said it handed the soldiers back to Syria in line with a decision by Lebanon's judicial authorities because they were not considered refugees or deserters.(AFP-naharnet) Beirut, 20 May 11, 22:53

Berri: My Busy Schedule Prevented Me from Meeting Feltman
Naharnet/Speaker Nabih Berri stated on Saturday that his busy schedule prevented him from meeting with U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman on Friday. He explained to reporters: "I was in the South and it helped me see the clear picture when he visited various officials, whom we all trust." Addressing U.S. President Barack Obama's latest speech on the region, he said that the Israeli response to Obama's statements on the Palestinian cause is not a blow to his efforts, but they reflect the reality that the American administration is "bound to Israel's will." The ongoing Israeli settlement expansion and Sunday's Nakba Day clashes at Maroun al-Ras, the Golan Heights, and Palestinian territories "only cements our conviction that the United States constantly addresses the Middle East through Israeli eyes," he said. Beirut, 21 May 11, 15:43

Miqati Insists that Blocs Nominate 3 Candidates for Every Portfolio
Naharnet/remier-designate Najib Miqati is holding on to his constitutional rights in forming the new cabinet, al-Akhbar newspaper reported on Saturday. "If I began my governmental career by abandoning the constitution, what will I be left with?" his visitors quoted him as asking. He also renewed his insistence on the suggestion that every parliamentary bloc provide him with the portfolios they want and three possible candidates for those positions. Miqati will then select which of the candidates is most appropriate for the position. The premier-designate revealed that Speaker Nabih Berri was the one who had proposed this solution. Beirut, 21 May 11, 10:04

False Witness in Hariri Assassination Returns to Syria from Roumieh Prison
Naharnet/Akram Shakib Murad, a Syrian false witness in the investigation into the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, has been handed over to the Syrian judicial authorities after his sentence in Roumieh prison ended, reported As Safir newspaper on Saturday. It added that the procedures for his return were conducted quickly, "which reflected a Syrian interest in returning a wanted citizen who had issued a testimony before the international investigation looking into the Hariri assassination." Murad was imprisoned on drug charges.
Beirut, 21 May 11, 10:10

Jumblat Calls for Fortifying Lebanon, Speeding up Cabinet Formation
Naharnet/Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat stressed to An Nahar daily on Saturday that the new cabinet should be formed soon "in order to fortify Lebanon on the security and economic levels". He noted that the region is passing through a difficult period "that has many positive outcomes and some negative ones". The daily remarked that the separate meetings held between Jumblat and the Iranian deputy Foreign Minister Mohammed Reza Shebani and U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman on Friday addressed "sensitive" issues in the region, including the situation in the Palestinian territories, Syria, and the Arab Gulf. The MP's circles refused to reveal the exact contents of the talks.
Meanwhile, As Safir newspaper added that the meeting between the MP and Feltman focused on the developments in Syria. "Jumblat and Feltman had contradictory positions on the Syrian issue," the newspaper said. Jumblat recently visited France, on what he described as a "sensitive" visit, but he refused to add any more details about his trip. He stressed however: "We are keen on Syria and its stability and future." Beirut, 21 May 11, 09:52

Fatah: Nakba Day Action Will Continue at Maroun al-Ras on Liberation Day
Naharnet/Head of Fatah's press office Issam al-Halabi announced on Friday that the action as part of the Palestinians' right to their homeland that were launched on the Nakba Day on Sunday will continue with a festival at Maroun al-Ras on Liberation Day on Wednesday. He told the Central News Agency that preparations for the event are underway in cooperation with various Lebanese parties. He revealed a comprehensive plan being studied by youth groups, organizations, clubs, and Palestinian factions to take part in Wednesday's festival.
In addition, he said that youths have also been invited to a rally on June 7 to demand the right to return to the homeland. Halabi said that this rally will take place on land and water fronts, adding that the opportunity has become available to maintain such actions to demand their right to return to Palestine after the May 15 clashes. Eleven Palestinians were killed and 112 were wounded at clashes at Maroun al-Ras and the Golan Heights when Israeli troops opened fire at demonstrators demanding the right to return to their homeland. Beirut, 20 May 11, 19:02

Hariri Doesn't Recognize Miqati's Right to Head Government
Naharnet/Caretaker Prime minister Saad Hariri still does not recognize Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati's right to head a government, a former diplomat told the daily An Nahar in remarks published on Saturday. "If he were in Miqati's place, he would have formed a government that would force all sides to accept the status quo," he added. The former diplomat added: "Miqati is too cautious to make such a bold move." A politician close to Hariri and who was also close to his late father, told An Nahar: "Miqati was wrong in his calculations from the start when he thought he could ease the demands of various blocs." "He soon found out that because of the internal and external complications, he would not be able to please his new allies and his constant ally, which is his pocket," he said. "In the end, Miqati wants to form a government that the Americans would not have any reservations over and that the March 8 camp would be pleased with at the same time, which is very difficult to achieve," he noted. Beirut, 21 May 11, 11:26

Abducted Estonians Plead for Help in New Video: Our Govt Has Left Us
Naharnet/Seven Estonian tourists kidnapped in Lebanon two months ago pleaded for help in a video released Friday, criticizing their government for abandoning them and saying they were in "great danger". "We are very tired and in great danger. We ask our families and all who know us to help us," one of the seven men, Kalev Kaosaar, says in the video, a link to which was published by the Estonian foreign ministry. "We have been imprisoned for 54 days by now and it has been a very hard time for us." He said he was speaking on Monday. "We ask the Estonian government to help us as the Estonian government has left us and is not willing to help us any more," he added, surrounded by his six companions. The men's physical condition appeared little different from a video released on April 20. "We got a link to the video by email late Thursday but we do not know yet where the video was uploaded," foreign ministry spokeswoman Minna-Liina Lind told Agence France Presse. It was purportedly uploaded by a user who marked "Syria" as his location. The link only functioned briefly on Friday.
"The kidnappers have not presented any requests to us via any channel yet," Lind said.
She declined to comment immediately on the claim that the government was failing to help the men. In a statement, the ministry underlined that Estonia was continuing to work with Lebanon "and other partners" to win their release. Estonia, a former Soviet-ruled republic of 1.3 million which joined the European Union in 2004, does not have a permanent diplomatic presence in Lebanon. "The important information is that our citizens are alive and that the tactic of the kidnappers is to keep contact," Foreign Minister Urmas Paet told the Estonian daily Postimees.
The men, all in their 30s, were kidnapped on March 23 shortly after entering Lebanon on a bicycle tour from neighboring Syria.
The case remains shrouded in mystery with little information gleaned on their whereabouts or those behind the abduction.
Lebanese authorities initially appeared confident that the case would quickly be resolved after recovering a mini-van and car used in the kidnapping and arresting several people.
But the trail appears to have gone cold, with no clear evidence as to who ordered the kidnapping. Four of those arrested and charged in the case are Sunni Muslim fundamentalists, according to authorities who believe they were hired to execute the abduction but did not mastermind it. A previously unheard of group, Haraket al-Nahda Wal-Islah (Movement for Renewal and Reform), has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping and demanded an unspecified ransom to free the seven Estonians in two emails sent to a Lebanese website. The April 20 video showed the Estonians begging Lebanese, Saudi, Jordanian and French leaders to secure their release. Sources said that while investigators had been unable to track down the origin of the two emails, they determined that the April video was uploaded in the Syrian capital Damascus.(AFP) Beirut, 20 May 11, 17:05

Le Figaro: France Provided Info to Bellemare Confirming Syrian Involvement in Hariri Murder
Naharnet/Special Tribunal for Lebanon Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare's amended indictment includes names of Syrian officials involved in ex-Premier Rafik Hariri's Feb. 2005 assassination, said the French daily Le Figaro. According to the article written by George Malbrunot, French intelligence agencies provided the STL with information about Syria's involvement in the murder. Earlier this month, Bellemare filed the amended indictment based on further evidence in the probe into the killing of Hariri. The indictment, which is being kept confidential, has to be examined by pre-trial judge Daniel Fransen, who has the responsibility of confirming it before arrest warrants or summonses are issued.
The prosecutor informed a high-ranking French diplomat that he is convinced the instigator is in Syria, said Le Figaro. The newspaper quoted the diplomat as saying that Bellemare told him several months ago that he would accuse members of Hizbullah but knows that the instigators are in Damascus. "I will reach the ringleader if you provide me with the means to continue with my investigation," the STL prosecutor reportedly told the diplomat. "I will reach the ringleader." "If we help him, he will definitely be able to make accusations against Syria," the French official told Le Figaro. If any Syrian official was accused of involvement in Hariri's murder, it would be easy to impose U.N. Security Council sanctions against Syria, he said. The names of some suspects could most probably be among the 13-member list that the European Union has sanctioned. "It will be clear within weeks whether the information provided by the French intelligence would lead Bellemare to Damascus in his search for Hariri's killers," said Malbrunot. Beirut, 20 May 11, 09:10

Netanyahu Slams Obama's Speech: Israel Opposes Withdrawal to 1967 Borders
Naharnet/Israel should not be asked to withdraw to the borders that existed before the 1967 Six Day War, Israel's prime minister said Thursday, after U.S. President Barack Obama's Middle East policy speech. In a statement issued after the speech, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office called on Washington to confirm it would adhere to "assurances" given to Israel by former president George W. Bush in 2004. "Among other things, those commitments relate to Israel not having to withdraw to the 1967 lines, which are both indefensible and which would leave major Israeli population centers in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank) beyond those lines," the statement said. Obama's address, which came shortly before Netanyahu is to fly to Washington for talks at the White House, included a call for a negotiated solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to be based on the 1967 borders.
"The borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps, so that secure and recognized borders are established for both states," Obama said.
"The full and phased withdrawal of Israeli military forces should be coordinated with the assumption of Palestinian security responsibility in a sovereign, non-militarized state."
But Netanyahu, who will meet with Obama on Friday and address a joint session of Congress next week, rejected the U.S. leader's call, and urged Washington to endorse a 2004 letter authored by Bush. The letter acknowledged "new realities on the ground," and said a "full and complete return" to the 1967 borders would be "unrealistic." "Prime Minister Netanyahu expects to hear a reaffirmation from President Obama of U.S. commitments made to Israel in 2004, which were overwhelmingly supported by both Houses of Congress," Netanyahu's statement said.(AFP) Beirut, 20 May 11, 07:55

Syria Says Obama's Speech Offered 'Nothing New'
Naharnet/A keynote speech by President Barack Obama on U.S. Middle East policy offered nothing new but simply reaffirmed Washington's staunch support for Israel, Syria's official SANA news agency said on Friday. "The U.S. president's speech on the Middle East had nothing new as far as his country's policies on the peace process, the situation in Iraq or security or regional stability are concerned," the news agency said. It added that Obama's speech, carried live on Syrian television, and "reaffirmed the deep-rooted and unwavering support for Israel's security." The government newspaper al-Thawra criticized Obama saying: "He speaks under the banner of democracy without knowing the meaning of the word."
It accused the U.S. president of "arrogance" in calling for Syrian President Bashar Assad to embrace democracy or step down. "He (Obama) didn't forget his arrogance in telling a sovereign country what to do ... and threatening to isolate this country if it fails to do as it is told." The ruling party's al-Baath newspaper said the long-awaited speech was "disappointing" and had failed to deliver on expectations. Washington and its European allies imposed sanctions on Assad and his top aides this week in a bid to pressure his authoritarian regime to stop a brutal crackdown on pro-democracy protests roiling the country for two months. "President Assad now has a choice," Obama said in his speech on Thursday. "He can lead that transition or get out of the way. "The Syrian government must stop shooting demonstrators and allow peaceful protests." SANA said Obama's appeal was not aimed at easing tensions in Syria but rather at sowing discord. "He is inciting violence when he says that Assad and his regime will face challenges from the inside and will be isolated on the outside if he fails to adopt democratic reforms," the news agency said. More than 850 people have been killed and thousands arrested since the protests began in mid-March, according to human rights groups and the United Nations.
Assad's government has blamed the violence on "armed terrorist gangs" backed by Islamists and foreign agitators.(AFP) Beirut, 20 May 11, 12:06

Dozens of Assyrians Arrested in Syria
GMT 5-20-2011 19:37:59
Assyrian International News Agency
(AINA) -- The Assyrian Democratic Organization (ADO), an Assyrian political party based in Syria, is reporting that Syrian security forces raided its headquarters in Qamishly today and arrested dozens of Assyrians. After the initial raid, the security forces returned and made more arrests. The arrests occurred after the peaceful anti-government protests in Qamishly.
According to ADO the majority of the individuals who were arrested did not participate in the protests today.
ADO released the names of some of the Assyrians taken into custody:
Dr. Malak Jacob
Dr. Samir Abraham
Karam Dawle
Gabriel Romanos
Barsom Joseph
Ghandi Safar
Jacob Gharib

Court Filings Assert Iran Had Link to 9/11 Attacks
By BENJAMIN WEISER and SCOTT SHANE/New York Times
 May 19, 2011
Two defectors from Iran’s intelligence service have testified that Iranian officials had “foreknowledge of the 9/11 attacks,” according to a court filing Thursday in a federal lawsuit in Manhattan that seeks damages for Iran’s “direct support for, and sponsorship of, the most deadly act of terrorism in American history.”
 (May 20, 2011) One of the defectors also claimed that Iran was involved in planning the attacks, the filing said. The defectors’ identities and testimony were not revealed in the filing but were being submitted to a judge under seal, said lawyers who brought the original suit against Iran on behalf of families of dozens of 9/11 victims.
The suit’s allegation that Iran had foreknowledge of the attacks is hard to assess fully, given that the defectors’ testimony is being filed under seal.
The suit contends that Iran and Hezbollah, the Lebanese militant organization with close ties to Tehran, helped Al Qaeda in planning the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, and in facilitating the hijackers’ training and travel. After the attacks, the suit contends, Iran and Hezbollah helped Qaeda operatives escape, providing some with a safe haven in Iran.
The question of an Iranian connection to 9/11 was raised by the national 9/11 commission and has long been debated. Al Qaeda, which adheres to a radical Sunni theology, routinely denounces the Shiite sect that holds power in Iran, and the terrorist network’s branch in Iraq has often made Shiites targets of bombings. But intelligence officials have long believed there has been limited, wary cooperation between Al Qaeda and Iran against the United States as a common enemy.
The lawsuit also names as defendants Iranian officials and ministries, Hezbollah and Al Qaeda, among others. The families’ lawyers have asked for a default judgment against the defendants, which have not mounted a defense. Even if there were such a judgment, legal experts say it would not be easy to collect monetary damages.
In their court papers, the lawyers assert that Imad Mugniyah, as the military chief of Hezbollah, was a terrorist agent for Iran, and that he traveled to Saudi Arabia in 2000 to help with preparations for the 9/11 attacks.
Mr. Mugniyah, who was killed in 2008, had been accused by American officials of planning a series of major terrorist attacks and kidnappings, including the 1983 bombings of the United States Embassy and Marine barracks in Beirut, Lebanon.
The 9/11 commission report said there was “strong evidence that Iran facilitated the transit of Al Qaeda members into and out of Afghanistan before 9/11, and that some of these were future 9/11 hijackers.” The report also said there was circumstantial evidence that senior Hezbollah operatives were closely tracking the travel of some of the hijackers into Iran in November 2000. But the commission said that it had “found no evidence that Iran or Hezbollah was aware of the planning for what later became the 9/11 attack,” and that the “topic requires further investigation by the U.S. government.” Thomas E. Mellon Jr., a lawyer for the families, said the suit, first brought in Washington in 2002 and later moved to Manhattan, sought to do that investigation. Ellen Saracini, whose husband, the United Airlines pilot Victor J. Saracini, was killed when his plane was hijacked and flown into the World Trade Center, said she became involved with the suit because she wanted answers. “We now know,” she said, “who assisted Al Qaeda — Iran did — and we want our American justice system to find Iran accountable.”
The lawyers’ filing included reports of 10 specialists on Iran and terrorism, including former 9/11 commission staff members and ex-C.I.A. officers. “These experts make it clear that 9/11 depended upon Iranian assistance to Al Qaeda in acquiring clean passports and visas to enter the United States,” Mr. Mellon said.
But the expert reports do not in most cases seem to go as far as the defectors in contending Iran had foreknowledge of the attacks.
The filing says the defectors worked in Iran’s Ministry of Information and Security “in positions that gave them access to sensitive information regarding Iran’s state sponsorship of terrorism.” It says they have reason to fear for the safety of themselves and their families “should their identities and the content of their testimony be revealed publicly.”
Benjamin Weiser reported from New York, and Scott Shane from Washington.

Lebanon: Stop Detaining Syrian Refugees
At Least 10 Fleeing Violence Detained, Fear of Forced Return
May 20, 2011
Beirut) - Lebanon's security forces should stop detaining Syrian refugees who cross the border into Lebanon to escape violence and persecution in their country, Human Rights Watch said today. Lebanese authorities should instead provide them with at least temporary asylum, and above all refrain from deporting them back to Syria, Human Rights Watch said.
Human Rights Watch documented the detention by Lebanon's security forces of nine Syrian men and one child since May 15, 2011, allegedly for crossing illegally into Lebanon. Relatives and friends of the 10 told Human Rights Watch that the detained Syrians had fled out of fear of being arrested or shot at by Syria's army and border police. At least seven of them are currently in the custody of General Security, Lebanon's security agency responsible for foreigners, according to relatives and friends. The men have committed no recognizable crimes in Syria that would justify their detention or repatriation, to Human Rights Watch's knowledge.
"Syria welcomed many Lebanese fleeing war back in 2006," said Nadim Houry, Beirut director at Human Rights Watch. "Now it's time to return the favor. Lebanon should be offering immediate refuge to Syrians fleeing death or torture in their country."
Sending asylum seekers and refugees back to Syria is refoulement, Houry added, and would make Lebanon complicit with any harm suffered at the hands of Syria's security services.
Syrians fleeing the towns of Tal Kalakh and Arida started arriving to Lebanon in early May but their numbers have increased since May 14, when Syria's army and security forces intensified their attack on Tal Kalakh. Lebanese mukhtars, locally elected officials, in the border area known as Wadi Khaled estimate that 3,500 Syrians refugees are currently present in their communities.
On May 15, the Lebanese army detained Khaled Shuwaity and his son Muhammad, two Syrian nationals, at a checkpoint near the coastal town of Deir Ammar, a friend of theirs told Human Rights Watch . "They had women and children relatives with them, but the military only detained the two men," he said, basing his information on what the family members had told him. According to the source, the military at the checkpoint transferred the two detainees to the Military Intelligence center near Tripoli, which in turn referred them to the Military Police in Qubba. The Military Police later transferred them to the Taatour Police station in Baddawi, where one the detained men's friend was able to visit them. They remain in detention.
On May 16, the Lebanese Army detained six Syrian nationals in the village of Buqay`a, in Wadi Khaled. The six are Mahmud al-Yusef, Ahmad al-Yusef, Shehadeh al-Yusef (who is, sources tell Human Rights Watch, a 13-year old child), Khaled al-Yusef, Muhammad al-Ali, and Ahmad Sulayman. According to a Lebanese with whom they had stayed in Buqay`a the six had escaped Tal Kalakh on May 14. The army detained with them at least four Lebanese nationals who were released on May 18 without charge. One of the released Lebanese told Human Rights Watch that the Lebanese army had transferred the Syrians to General Security on May 18. He described the arrests:
At around 11 p.m. at night, the army came and entered a number of homes in Buqay`a. I don't know what prompted the house raids. They arrested the six Syrians and four Lebanese. They released all of us Lebanese on May 18 but transferred the Syrians to General Security. I worry that they will deport them back to Syria.
On May 17 the Lebanese police in Halba, a large town near Lebanon's border, detained `Ala' Jihad al-Omar, a young man from Tal Kalakh, at the Yusef Medical Center where he was getting treatment for a bullet wound to one of his feet that he had suffered in Syria. Al-Omar had crossed into Lebanon illegally on May 14, a relative told Human Rights Watch. He said:
The Lebanese police came for him specifically. I sent someone to see him at the Tripoli General Security yesterday [May 17], but they did not allow anyone to see him. The General Security called me this morning [May 18] and asked me to bring them `Ala's ID. When I asked why, they said because they wanted to deliver him to Syria.
Lebanon is party to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Convention against Torture) and is bound under Article 3 of that instrument not to return or expel any persons to states where they would be in danger of being tortured. Human Rights Watch has documented rampant torture by Syria's security services of detained males from towns that have seen large anti-government protests, such as Tal Kalakh.
Lebanon is not a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention or its 1967 Protocol, but is nevertheless bound by customary international law not to return refugees to a place where their lives or freedom would be threatened. The Refugee Convention also establishes the principle that refugees who come directly from a territory where their lives or freedom are threatened should not be penalized for their illegal entry or presence.
On May 19 at 7 a.m. the Lebanese army raided a house in the border village of Debabiya, near the Syrian border, an eyewitness who was just outside the house told Human Rights Watch. The witness said the army arrested Hael Hamed, a Syrian from the neighboring village of Halat. When asked by bystanders about the reason for the arrest, the army reportedly responded that it was because he had crossed the border illegally.
"Lebanon's authorities have international obligations towards these refugees. And these obligations cannot be trumped by bilateral security ties between Lebanon and Syria's security forces," Houry said.

Obama Administration Officials Cite 'Progress' in Syria Not Getting Seat on UN Human Rights Council
Power, pop, and probings from ABC News Senior White House Correspondent Jake Tapper
Syria was not elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council Friday, a move that officials with the U.S. mission to the UN called a sign of progress -- and a confirmation that the Obama administration’s decision to try to change the council from within was bearing fruit.
The Bush administration refused to join the Human Rights Council because, officials said, it has a deep bias against Israel and has counted horrific human rights abusers such as the governments of Sudan and Libya among its members in the past.
“The Obama administration does not disagree,” an administration official told ABC News. “But in 2009 we made the decision to run for a seat on the council to fix it from within.”
Last year, the U.S. and allies successfully lobbied to deny a seat to Iran, officials said. This year, it did the same with the government of Syria.
A spokesman for the US mission to the United Nations, Mark Kornblau, tweeted earlier today: “#UN just elected new members of Human Rights Council. 10 days ago #Syria was a shoe-in, today they are not even on the ballot. #progress"
Fifteen countries today were elected today to three-year terms on the 47-member Human Rights Council: Austria, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Republic of Congo, Chile, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Kuwait, India, Indonesia, Italy, Peru, Philippines, and Romania.
Originally, the block of Asian countries -- which include Middle East countries -- selected Syria as one of four countries from its block that members would support getting a seat on the UN HRC. (The other three are India, Indonesia and the Philippines.)
But the US Ambassador, Dr. Susan Rice, and others successfully lobbied other Asian countries to replace Syria with Kuwait.
Kuwait, of course, has its own issues, but its government isn’t massacring its own people in the streets as in Syria.
Last week the Syrian Ambassador to the UN, Bashar Ja’afari, announced that his country was withdrawing its candidacy and “reprioritizing its candidacies in the UN organization in light of the number of reform measures that the government has started to implement.”
-- Jake Tapper

US hints at subtle but vital shift
Obama not only sanctioned Al Assad but made it clear: democratise or get out
By Borzou Daragahi, Los Angeles Times
Published: 00:00 May 21, 2011
Beirut: Tucked into President Barack Obama's speech on Arab world policy on Thursday were indications of a subtle but important shift regarding the repressive rule of President Bashar Al Assad in Syria, a linchpin state in the Middle East that has long been considered a bulwark of stability.
For years, diplomats and scholars worried that the departure of the Al Assad clan would plunge Syria into the kind of civil strife that engulfed neighbouring Lebanon and Iraq or the former Yugoslavia. But increasingly they believe that the biggest factor in Syria's potential instability is the regime's attempts to exploit the nation's sectarian tensions, not the inherent divisions in the country.
"Divisions of tribe, ethnicity and religious sect were manipulated as a means of holding on to power, or taking it away from somebody else," Obama said of the region, words that could describe the tactics used by Al Assad as well as Yemen's Ali Abdullah Saleh and Libya's Muammar Gaddafi.
"But the events of the past six months show us that strategies of repression and strategies of diversion will not work anymore .... Societies held together by fear and repression may offer the illusion of stability for a time, but they are built upon fault lines that will eventually tear asunder."
New philosophy
After the uprisings this year in Tunisia and Egypt, the scenario of post-revolutionary Arab countries becoming echoes of Iraq or Iran is being increasingly dismissed. "Obama was really talking about a new foreign policy philosophy," said Ammar Abdul Hamid, a Syrian democracy activist in Washington.
"From an old pragmatism based on security to a new pragmatism based on managing the transition to democracy and erring on the side of the people."
Syria's record of supporting groups opposed to Israel, its alliance with Iran and its interference in Lebanon have earned it special scrutiny in Washington, but the secular Al Assad regime nonetheless was considered predictable and secure. "There was a long policy of the US supporting a regime no matter what for the sake of keeping stability, especially on the borders of Israel," said Riad Khawhaji of the Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis, a think tank.
The mood appears to have shifted. "It is difficult to imagine any conceivable successor to Al Assad who would pursue more problematic or troublesome policies," said a report published on Thursday by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and written by retired Israeli Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin, a former intelligence chief, and Robert Satloff, the generally neo-conservative think tank's executive director.
"The president not only sanctioned Al Assad but articulated an issue, which is: Democratise or get out, beginning the clock ticking toward calling on Al Assad to leave," Satloff said.
"The idea that this regime in Syria is going to meet any reasonable standard of reform is unconceivable." In Syria, Sunnis, ethnic Kurds, the Druze and various Shiites and Christian sects make up a mosaic of 22 million people.

Question: "How can I recognize a false teacher / false prophet?"
GotQuestions.org
Answer: Jesus warned us that “false Christs and false prophets” will come and will attempt to deceive even God’s elect (Matthew 24:23-27; see also 2 Peter 3:3 and Jude 17-18). The best way to guard yourself against falsehood and false teachers is to know the truth. To spot a counterfeit, study the real thing. Any believer who “correctly handles the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15) and who makes a careful study of the Bible can identify false doctrine. For example, a believer who has read the activities of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in Matthew 3:16-17 will immediately question any doctrine that denies the Trinity. Therefore, step one is to study the Bible and judge all teaching by what the Scripture says.
Jesus said “a tree is recognized by its fruit” (Matthew 12:33). When looking for “fruit,” here are three specific tests to apply to any teacher to determine the accuracy of his or her teaching:
1) What does this teacher say about Jesus? In Matthew 16:15-16, Jesus asks, “Who do you say I am?” Peter answers, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,” and for this answer Peter is called “blessed.” In 2 John 9, we read, “Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.” In other words, Jesus Christ and His work of redemption is of utmost importance; beware of anyone who denies that Jesus is equal with God, who downplays Jesus’ sacrificial death, or who rejects Jesus’ humanity. First John 2:22 says, “Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist—he denies the Father and the Son.”
2) Does this teacher preach the gospel? The gospel is defined as the good news concerning Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, according to the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:1-4). As nice as they sound, the statements “God loves you,” “God wants us to feed the hungry,” and “God wants you to be wealthy” are not the complete message of the gospel. As Paul warns in Galatians 1:7, “Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ.” No one, not even a great preacher, has the right to change the message that God gave us. “If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned!” (Galatians 1:9).
3) Does this teacher exhibit character qualities that glorify the Lord? Speaking of false teachers, Jude 11 says, “They have taken the way of Cain; they have rushed for profit into Balaam’s error; they have been destroyed in Korah’s rebellion.” In other words, a false teacher can be known by his pride (Cain’s rejection of God’s plan), greed (Balaam’s prophesying for money), and rebellion (Korah’s promotion of himself over Moses). Jesus said to beware of such people and that we would know them by their fruits (Matthew 7:15-20).
For further study, review those books of the Bible that were written specifically to combat false teaching within the church: Galatians, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, and Jude. It is often difficult to spot a false teacher/false prophet. Satan masquerades as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14), and his ministers masquerade as servants of righteousness (2 Corinthians 11:15). Only by being thoroughly familiar with the truth will we be able to recognize a counterfeit.

Coptic Christians Need Protection -- Will the U.S. Help Them?
By Penny Nance/Fox News
Posted GMT 5-20-2011 20:25:59
As the Coliseum in Rome deteriorates with every passing day, the thoughts of Christian martyrdom and persecution that happened there also seem ages away.
But as surprising as it may sound, it still happens. Instead of Christians being eaten by lions, they are being bombed during protests. Instead of being burned at the stake, their churches are being set on fire.
Coptic Christians in Egypt, the largest contingent of Christians in the country, are under severe attack -- so much so that the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom announced just recently that Egypt made the list of "Countries of Particular Concern."
That's not really a list anyone wants to be on: countries put on this list are some of the worst violators of religious freedom. But it's not enough. Calling a country out will not necessarily force them to change their behavior. A bully doesn't work like that.
Leonard Leo, chairman of the Commission, told reporters that the final straw was the massacre on the day Coptic Christians celebrated their Christmas Eve services. Since January of this year, 400 Christians have been murdered, hundreds more injured, and multiple churches have been burned, including a massacre on New Year's Day, where a bomb at a church in Alexandria killed 20 Christians.
The Coptic Christians have been begging for protection from the new Egyptian government without any results. Last Saturday, while Christians were being attacked with gasoline bombs and rocks in Cairo, riot police did not immediately respond; and when they did respond, they looked on for a full hour and did nothing. Soldiers had to be brought in to contain the violence.
The U.S. has directed its own military to help provide protection and apparently has attempted to put diplomatic pressure on the new government for protection. But more has to be done. The Egyptian government is filled with cowards bent on letting Christians suffer at the hands of the majority religion of Islam.
There are 10 million Coptic Christians in the Middle East, where they are overshadowed predominately by the Muslim culture and Islam, President Obama's fabled "religion of peace." In fact, it is the radicals, who call themselves Muslim, who are using rape, violence, and church-burnings to persecute this minority religion of Christianity in Egypt.
Persecution is nothing new for Christians (at Concerned Women for America we recently interviewed some local Coptic Christians for an upcoming event on Sharia Law, and the stories they told were stark). The Coptic Christians in Egypt aren't backing down, nor are they intimidated, but they do want protection.
When is enough violence enough? Maybe much hasn't changed since centuries ago when early Christians were persecuted and martyred.
Bottom line: If we don't work with the new Egyptian government to ask them to protect this minority, we could see significant religious cleansing in Egypt. And if that happens, then shame on us.
By Penny Nance
Fox News
Penny Nance is CEO of Concerned Women for America.
© 2011, Assyrian International News Agency. All Rights Reserved. Terms of Use.

No Going Back for Egypt's Converted Copts
By Angela Shanahan
www.theaustralian.com.au
5-20-2011
Amid the upheavals in Egypt since January, reports have begun to emerge of a surge in disappearances of Coptic girls.
One priest in Cairo estimates that at least 21 young girls, many as young as 14, have disappeared from his parish alone.
In most cases, when a Christian girl who disappears is found by her family, she has been converted to Islam and married. The Coptic authorities, have even set up a series of refuges in monasteries to handle the growing numbers of girls who wish to return to their families, many of whom are not accepted by their family of origin.
But a worse problem for these women is that their conversion to Islam is irreversible.
Religion is stated on Egyptian ID documents and even though secular law provides for reversions, under the growth of sharia they are very difficult, except for those affording legal advocacy.
This situation is not unique to Egypt. There have been consistent reports of girls being coerced into Islamic conversion and marriage in India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
That many of these girls are initially runaways is not in doubt. However, there is also evidence that a huge number are converted and married against their will.
The situation was documented in a controversial report published in 2009 on conversion and forced marriage of Coptic women by Washington DC-based Christian Solidarity International. The authors are Washington academic Michele Clark and Egyptian Coptic broadcast journalist Nadia Ghaly, based in Melbourne.
Between 2005 and 2008 they interviewed and documented 50 Egyptian women, mostly aged between 14 and 25, who had decided to return to their families. All claim to have been tricked, coerced or raped, converted to Islam and married. Most of the interviewees were trying to reconvert to their Christian identity, with limited or no success. The report's conclusions were printed in several major publications, including Forbes magazine.
Since the so-called Arab Spring, and the ensuing riots at Christian churches, the authors are trying to bring the subject of forced conversion and marriage to greater prominence.
Both groups live extremely closed, highly traditional separate lives and the norms surrounding marriage and sex are almost medieval, says Ghaly.
So, for example, it is not unheard of for a young Christian girl from a poor family to run away from an arranged marriage. Yet a high proportion of these women claim coercion, even rape, despite the shame that such a claim will cause if the girl wishes to return.
Many claim they were kept as virtual slaves. Others who were able to leave could not bring their children. Ghaly claims this is more than overt religious oppression, and amounts to "a form of cultural genocide".
She cites a document published by Human Rights Watch in November 2007, which says that even if Coptic women can obtain a divorce from their Muslim husband, those who wish to return to Christianity "meet with refusal and harassment from the Civil Status Department of the Ministry of Interior".
Under sharia law, reconversion is considered apostasy punishable by death.
www.theaustralian.com.au
© 2011, Assyrian International News Agency. All Rights Reserved. Terms of Use.

Netanyahu is one of 12 Mid East leaders saying no to Obama
DEBKAfile Exclusive Analysis May 20, 2011
By rejecting US President Barack Obama's proposal for Israel and its troops to pull back from the West Bank to behind the indefensible 1967 lines, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu lands in the company of eleven Middle East and North African rulers who spurned Washington's Middle East policy in the six months of the unfolding Arab uprising. Egypt's Hosni Mubarak was the only one to keep faith with Obama and he was pushed out for his pains.
Barack Obama's presentation of his Middle East vision Thursday, May 19 had three immediate results:
1. Every surviving regional leader was confirmed in his determination to keep his distance from US administration policies;
2. Another nail was driven in the coffin of the stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace process;
3. The fuel that was poured on regional tensions increased the prospects of an Israel-Palestinian or an Israeli-Arab war this year.
No Israeli politician can afford to back away from the demand that Israel retain a security presence and defensible borders along its eastern boundary and, even more so, on the West Bank in any future peace accord. This fundamental principle was not denied by opposition leaders Tzipi Livni and Shaul Mofaz even as they poured boiling oil on the prime minister's head for getting into an argument with the US president.
But this repudiation is exactly what Obama wants.
The notion that Israel can achieve security through peace talks is a pipe dream because no Palestinian negotiator will think of seeking fewer concessions from Israel than the ones laid down by the US president. He will simply use the speech as a starting-point for the biggest squeeze Israel has ever faced.
Obama saw this maxim played out in his first two years in office: First, he said Netanyahu must freeze West Bank settlement construction. The Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, when he first heard about it, found the demand absurd – it had never been put to any former prime minister either by Washington or the Palestinians. But after Obama led the way, Abbas could demand no less. So he shrugged and turned this demand into a useful pretext in his maneuvers for wriggling out of talking to Israel.
The Israeli Prime Minister after practically begging the Palestinians to sit down and talk for two years has now put his foot down against the new Obama proposals. If he stands by this refusal, he leaves the vast region stretching across the Middle East, the Persian Gulf and North Africa without a single political, military or royal ruler willing to accept Obama's new policy principles. The only possible exception may be Turkish Prime Minster Tayyip Erdogan.
The regional anti-Obama opposition falls into two camps:
The largest consists of eight former American allies, some of them ex-strategic partners, which is headed by the Saudi royal family.
A leading Saudi spokesman Nawaf Obaid brought the Riyadh-Washington rupture out in the open for the first time on May 16 in the form of a Washington Post op-ed.
"In some issues, such as counterterrorism and efforts to fight money laundering, the Saudis will continue to be a strong US partner," he wrote. "In areas in which Saudi national security or strategic interests are at stake, the kingdom will pursue its own agenda. The oil for security formula is history… The special relationship may never be the same…”
Saudi King Abdullah has already swept the half a dozen GCC (Cooperation Council of the Arab States of the Gulf) behind the separate security and strategic policies he is pursuing independently of the US and often diametrically opposed to Obama's course. He has invited Jordan, Morocco and Yemen to join the group.
The suggestion put by Jordanian monarch Abdullah II to Obama this week that the US transfer its sponsorship of the Israel-Palestinian issue to the GCC underscored the rising power of the new Gulf grouping and was firmly rejected.
The second camp consists of four anti-US Arab rulers, Syria's Bashar Assad, the Libyan Muammar Qaddaf, President Ali Abdullah Saleh of Yemen and King Hamad bin Isa al Khalifa of Bahrain, who have resorted to armed violence to suppress the pro-democracy movements sponsored by President Obama.
Saudi Arabia is propping the Bahraini and Yemen regimes up with cash, arms, military assistance and intelligence. All four are determined to do whatever it takes to avoid the fate that befell Hosni Mubarak.
The only leaders who until Thursday, May 19, stood out against joining both those camps were the military council ruling Egypt and the Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas.
The generals in Cairo nod obediently when faced with demands from Washington and do nothing.
The Palestinian leader called the Obama speech "disappointing" in that no timeline or diplomatic mechanisms were offered. The US President poured scorn on Abbas' plan to seek unilateral UN recognition of Palestinian statehood in September, hoping to shut the door on yet another ploy for avoiding peace talks with Israel. The Palestinian leader may well defy him.
Abbas, even after losing his key patron Mubarak, is still juggling several balls in the hope of pushing Israel into a corner. Netanyahu, for his part, having stayed passive in the face of the new currents blowing in from Washington and the Arab revolt, has reached crunch time with the US president without strong cards.
A falling-out between the White House and the Israeli prime minister will also box Abbas into a choice of which anti-Obama Arab camp to jump into – the group led by Saudi Arabia or the Syrian group which also includes Hamas with whom he has just signed a unity pact.
In the long run, that pact may have saddled him with undesirable options.