LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِSeptember 30/2011

Bible Quotation for today/Adultery & Divorce
Matthew 05/27- 32: "You have heard that it was said, Do not commit adultery. But now I tell you: anyone who looks at a woman and wants to possess her is guilty of committing adultery with her in his heart. So if your right eye causes you to sin, take it out and throw it away! It is much better for you to lose a part of your body than to have your whole body thrown into hell. If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away! It is much better for you to lose one of your limbs than to have your whole body go off to hell. It was also said, Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a written notice of divorce. But now I tell you: if a man divorces his wife for any cause other than her unfaithfulness, then he is guilty of making her commit adultery if she marries again; and the man who marries her commits adultery also.

Latest analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases from miscellaneous sources
The uncomfortable reality in Syria/Tony Badran/September 29/11
Comparing Erdogan and Ahmadinejad/By Tariq Alhomayed/September 29/11
The Syrian intifada, a grim update/By Michael Young/September 29/11  

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for September 29/11
Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird Deplores Possible Death Sentence for Apostasy in Iran
U.S. Man Charged in Aerial Bomb Plot on Washington
Canada to strip Lebanese of citizenships gained through fraud
No deal in UN on Syria resolution
Assad supporters throw stones at U.S. ambassador to Syria, besiege Damascus building
Syrians Target U.S. Envoy as Regime Slams Washington
Damascus mufti lauds Rai support
Report: Syrian Army Deserters have killed 80 Syria military personnel
Palestinian FM: Eight UN Security Council members support statehood bid
Clinton meets Egyptian FM to discuss relations with Israel, peace process
Palestinian statehood bid to be reviewed by UN committee
Turkey joins international criticism of Israeli construction in Jerusalem
Saudi king revokes woman's lashing sentence
Mikati denies business ties with Syrian officials
Karami meets Assad, says Syria can overcome crisis
Syria accuses U.S. of inciting violence against army
Sleiman says Israeli settler homes blow to Mideast peace
Hezbollah denounces Bahrain’s ‘repressive measures’
Lebanese Army confiscates illegal shipments headed to Syria
Syrian troops cross Lebanon border, briefly kidnap 2
Lebanon's Arabic press digest - Sept. 29, 2011/The Daily Star
Bkirki: Syrian Delegation’s Visit Aimed at Bridging Gap between Sects
President Amin Gemayel: Yesterday's Maronite Bishops Proclamation Cannot Be Compared with Those of the Past
Dr. Samir Geagea: Govt. Seems to Have Forgotten that There are Three Other Borders to Demarcate
Lebanese Aramy Chief Qahwaji Meets U.S. Military Official
Report: Jumblat, Hariri to Meet in Paris
MP Ahmad Fatfat submits to cabinet inquiry on passports with fake names
Future bloc MP Mohammad Hajjar: Patriarch’s meeting with Syrian delegation was ‘suspicious’
Kataeb bloc MP Elie Marouni : Media ‘exaggerated’ Syrian delegation’s visit to Rai

Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird Deplores Possible Death Sentence for Apostasy in Iran
http://www.international.gc.ca/media/aff/news-communiques/2011/277.aspx
(No. 277 – September 28, 2011 – 10:30 ET) Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird today expressed concern over reports that Iran may soon execute an Iranian Christian, Youcef Nadarkhani, for apostasy:
“Canada deeply deplores reports that an Iranian Christian pastor, Youcef Nadarkhani, could be imminently executed for refusing an order by Iran's courts to recant his faith.
“We continue to call upon Iran to uphold its obligations under international human rights law, including the right to freedom of religion or belief.
“This is a universal human right that Canada continues to champion, including most recently at the United Nations General Assembly.
“Iran consistently violates the human rights of minorities, including Christians and Bahá’í.
“Our government is committed to establishing an Office of Religious Freedom to promote and protect these rights around the world, ensuring that this type of persecution does not go unchecked.”
For further information, media representatives may contact:
Foreign Affairs Media Relations Office

Prayer Alert: Iranian Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani Facing Execution in Next 24 Hours
We are asking for your urgent prayer for Youcef Nadarkhani, an Iranian pastor who may be executed within the next 24 hours if he continues to refuse to recant his faith in court.
Youcef is the pastor of a house church in Rasht, Iran, and was arrested in October 2009 for opposing the education practice that forces non-Muslim students to read the Quran in school. Youcef had argued that the Iranian constitution permits children to be raised in their parents' faith; however, for defying Iranian authorities, Youcef was charged with apostasy.
Iranian officials used pressure tactics during Youcef's imprisonment as an attempt to coerce him to renounce his Christian beliefs, which included arresting his wife and threatening to seize his children. Still, Youcef remained firm in his faith, refusing to deny the name of his Savior Jesus Christ.
On September 22, 2010, Youcef was issued the death sentence for his conversion to Christianity and for encouraging the conversions of other Muslims. Youcef appealed the decision to the Supreme Court of Iran, claiming he had never been a Muslim and therefore could not be found guilty of apostasy. However, a written verdict upholding the death penalty and ordering an investigation was handed down on June 12. A reexamination of the case to determine whether Nadarkhani will live or die began on Sunday and has continued for the past two days. Early this morning, Youcef refused to deny his faith for the fourth time in court. Technically, he must only be granted three opportunities to return to Islam before he can be executed for apostasy.
Throughout his imprisonment, Youcef has trusted in the Lord and has been a bold witness of the redeeming work of Christ in his life. Remember, Jesus did not merely warn His followers that they might be persecuted; He promised it, saying, "If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you... If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you," (John 15:18-20).
Youcef has learned to delight in hardships and persecution for Christ's sake (2 Cor. 12:10). "Many attempt to flee from their spiritual tests... [but] no one will be victorious by escaping from them, but with patience and humility he will be able to overcome all the tests and gain victory," he wrote from Lakan Prison last June. "Although heaven and earth will fade, His word will still remain."
Sincerely in Christ,
Jeff King
President, ICC
International Christian Concern
www.persecution.org
2020 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, District of Columbia 20006


Syrian troops cross Lebanon border, briefly kidnap 2
September 29, 2011/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Two Lebanese citizens from the town of Akroum in north Lebanon were briefly kidnapped by members of the Syrian Army, a security source said Thursday.
After six members of the Syrian Army infiltrated the border town, the two Lebanese men – cousins from the Daher family – were taken at gunpoint to the Syrian border village of Heet at dawn Wednesday, the source told The Daily Star on condition of anonymity. The Dahers had worked at relatives in Heet before the outbreak of the uprising in Syria in March, the source added. The two men were released later Wednesday after pressure from Heet residents, who besieged the Syrian Army military base the Dahers were being held in. The source said members of the Internal Security Forces have questioned the Dahers on the incident. Separately, the security source said two wounded Syrian army soldiers who crossed into Lebanon Wednesday were transported to a hospital in north Lebanon for treatment. The soldiers were wounded in the Syrian town of al-Qusair, southwest of Homs, Syria, the source said.

Mikati denies business ties with Syrian officials
September 29, 2011/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Prime Minister Najib Mikati denied having any business ties with Syrian officials, and said there is no trade partnership between his family and Syrian President Bashar Assad’s cousin, Rami Makhlouf, in remarks published Thursday by the pan-Arab newspaper Al-Hayat. "There is no relationship whatsoever [between my family and Makhlouf],” the prime minister was quoted as saying. Mikati also said that there were no business ties between him and any other Syrian officials and that the “Americans are aware that there is no such link.”
Al-Rai newspaper reported last month that the U.S. was looking into business links between Mikati and the Assad government.The prime minister also denied reports that he had received a warning from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the event that his government did not take international resolutions seriously. “No warning was issued and we don’t need any warnings,” Mikati said, adding that “no one is concerned about Lebanon’s interests more than us; and Lebanon maintains its interest in international legitimacy and U.N. resolutions.” Mikati stressed that the protocol of cooperation between Lebanon and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon "is in effect." Regarding Hezbollah’s and MP Michel Aoun’s opposition to the STL, Mikati emphasized that U.N. resolutions and funding the STL “both lie in Lebanon’s interest.”

Canada to strip Lebanese of citizenships gained through fraud
September 29, 2011/By Van Meguerditchian/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: The Canadian government is due to revoke the citizenship of some Lebanese, who have obtained their citizenship in fraudulent ways and have intentionally misrepresented their residence in the country, a government official said Wednesday. “The Government of Canada is in the process of revoking the citizenship of approximately 2,000 citizens including some Lebanese,” Jack Branswell, an officer at the Citizenship and Immigration Department of Canada told The Daily Star. According to Branswell, the Canadian government is taking steps to revoke citizenship from those who have obtained it fraudulently by misrepresenting their residence in Canada while continuing to live abroad most of the time. The Canadian official also said that the full strength of Canadian law will be applied on those individuals, stressing that “the Canadian citizenship is not for sale.”
Several media reports in Ottawa have said that after a lengthy investigation by police and the department of Citizenship and Immigration, letters have been sent to hundreds of Canadians telling them that the government intends to revoke their citizenship. However, Branswell refused to elaborate on the number of the Lebanese nationals whose citizenship is due to be revoked by the government. “The Department of Citizenship and Immigration is significantly ramping up its revocation efforts after reallocating resources to work on citizenship investigation and revocation,” said Branswell, adding that the government will now issue about 40 notices of intent to revoke citizenship each month. There are around 160,000 Canadians of Lebanese origin in Canada, with most of them living in the Eastern provinces of Ontario and Quebec.
But according to official statistics made by the Canadian government, almost half of the Lebanese Canadians were born outside Canada. Among the 2,000 Canadians whose citizenship is about to be revoked, some of them are believed to have used special consultants who helped them submit fraudulent applications for citizenship without being qualified for it.
In July, Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said that the government would work to end the immigration fraud.
“For those who simply touch down and try to get a Canadian passport as a … passport of convenience, who don’t pay our taxes but who do consume our social benefits, I think that dishonorable,” Kenney told reporters. But several other media reports said that the Canadian government’s investigation on immigration fraud by Lebanese advanced greatly following its evacuation of thousands of Lebanese Canadians during the July 2006 war. Almost 13,000 Canadians were evacuated onboard marine ships from Lebanon at the height of the war.
However, Branswell denied that the issue was linked to the evacuations and to its economic costs on the Canadian government at the time.

Damascus mufti lauds Rai support
September 29, 2011 /The Daily Star
BEIRUT: An official Syrian delegation visited the head of Lebanon’s influential Maronite Church Wednesday in a show of appreciation for Patriarch Beshara Rai’s recent stances on Syria amid increasing international pressure to topple President Bashar Assad’s regime. Damascus’ Mufti Sheikh Adnan Afyouni, who was accompanied by Syrian Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Abdel-Karim Ali, led the delegation that held a one-hour meeting with Rai. Afyouni told reporters that “the visit was successful as we elaborated on the honorable statements by the patriarch.”
Rai told President Nicholas Sarkozy during a recent visit to France that Assad should have been given more time by the international community to carry out his promised reform program.
When asked whether he had extended an invitation to Rai to visit Syria, Afyouni said there would be high-level coordination between the two on the matter.
International pressure has intensified on Syria over what rights groups say is a brutal crackdown by Damascus on protests calling for the departure of Assad’s regime. According to the United Nations some 2,700 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in unrest that began in mid-March. Earlier in the day, Rai headed a monthly meeting of Maronite Bishops, urging Lebanese political leaders to use dialogue to resolve disputes. “Let us all return to our noble origin as Lebanese and join hands. Let us sit at the dialogue table and discuss our concerns and doubts and renew our confidence in one another so that we can be strong,” the Maronite Bishops Council said in a statement.
The statement steered clear of divisive political issues between Lebanon’s rival March 14 and 8 camps, failing to mention Hezbollah’s weapons or Syria, two issues that Rai recently raised in the media, drawing criticism from March 14 parties. In their statement, the bishops voiced support for Rai’s positions in France without going into controversial details. During his visit to France, Rai warned that a possible rise to power of the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria would pose a serious threat to the Christians of the Levant, and linked Hezbollah’s possession of weapons to the end of Israel’s occupation of Lebanese territories. “We have asked for France’s help in removing the pretexts that justify the presence of [Hezbollah’s arms] and to help in strengthening the [Lebanese] army. Only then can we tell Hezbollah that there is no need to keep its arms,” Rai said again Tuesday during an Islamic-Christian summit. “The patriarch’s first visit to France was an occasion to courageously bear witness to the truth and call on the international community to assume its responsibilities to promote justice and equality and eliminate the injustice [inflicted] on the people by ensuring the implementation of Security Council resolutions,” the bishops said.
Tuesday’s was the second Christian-Muslim spiritual summit to be held in four months. A similar summit was hosted by Rai at the Maronite patriarchate in Bkirki in May with the aim of defusing political and sectarian tension in the country.
The bishops highlighted the importance of Muslim-Christian dialogue, saying the Christian presence in the Middle East “cannot continue without openness to other religions on the spiritual and cultural levels.”“The patriarchate has become a key partner in the structure of the Lebanese homeland, and has been working to consolidate and re-energize this historical role, not only bearing the concerns of the nation and its people, but also those of the Levant, which is linked to Lebanon’s fate,” the statement added. – The Daily Star

The Syrian intifada, a grim update
September 29, 2011
By Michael Young/ The Daily Star
Six months into its uprising, Syria is facing ruinous stalemate. President Bashar Assad can thank his late father, Hafez, for having first installed the magnificent engine of repression that guarantees his political survival. And yet Syria’s system is incapable of gradual amelioration, which is at the heart of the Assads’ dilemma.
Syria today is like the picture of Dorian Gray. For many years the Assad regime was sought after by numerous Arab and Western governments, even by prominent nongovernmental organizations, for being regarded as an essential key to resolving regional problems. The evidence suggested otherwise, but few apparently seemed to care. Today the picture is out in full view. What the world sees is the sordidness and depravity behind the ersatz façade.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is correct in saying that Assad will not triumph over the Syrian intifada. But the mad band ruling Syria can hold out for a while, and will do its utmost to transform the crisis in a way that ensures it has a fighting chance of staying in power. If that doesn’t happen, a plausible alternative would be for it to fall back on the Alawite heartland, whose access points the regime put a lock on months ago – from Jisr al-Shoughour in the north to the area of Tell Kalakh along Lebanon’s border.
This week two news items revealed Assad’s mounting difficulties. The Financial Times reported that the Syrian authorities had instructed foreign companies to sharply cut back their oil production. Syria has been unable to bypass the European Union embargo on its exports of crude, so that the country’s oil storage capacity is filling up. Despite claims by Syrian officials that the embargo would fail, the newspaper noted “not a single cargo of Syrian crude has left the nation’s main export oil ports this month, according to shipping data.”
And Monday, the Syrian government adopted a budget for next year that will increase spending by 58 percent when compared to 2011. A Syrian economist, Nabil Sukkar, expressed his astonishment to Abu Dhabi’s The National newspaper. “Where are they going to get the money from to pay for this? That’s the big question,” Sukkar asked. He warned: “Our concern is that they are going to start printing money to meet their expenditure, which will lead to serious inflation.” This is precisely what European diplomats based in Damascus had predicted would happen in a report early this year.
As the regime’s revenues decline, its patronage and influence network will shrink. Resources will be concentrated on crushing the revolt. At the same time, economic hardship will hit the Syrian population, which has been exhausted by months of upheaval. Yet here is the danger. As the situation worsens, it is improbable that the Assads will gain the upper hand in a decisive way. What is more likely to happen is a radicalization of the conflict, something that may already be inevitable in the face of the utter savagery displayed by the Syrian army, security services, and predominantly Alawite armed gangs.
All future options may be bad for Syria. If the army falls apart, then we will move squarely toward armed resistance and civil war; and if the army remains relatively united and the largely peaceful protests continue, then we could see open-ended carnage. Both situations have a better than even chance of ceding the initiative to those wanting to pick up weapons. That may be the Assads’ wager. They feel that such a development would favor Sunni Islamists. An armed Islamist rebellion would polarize Syria, rally many inside Syria and out to the regime’s side, and justify a policy of eradication, as in Algeria during the 1990s, against an enemy the Assads essentially created.
Some observers believe the Assads are hoping to impose a somewhat less cynical solution: to contain the demonstrations until fatigue sets in, after which the regime will introduce cosmetic reforms that divide the Syrian opposition while simultaneously silencing the international community. If that’s indeed the regime’s aspiration, it relies on a particularly optimistic reading of the dynamics in Syria. Something is fundamentally broken in the country. That Assad can take his people back to where they were seven months ago is fanciful.
That said, the Syrian president has room to maneuver, with outside pressure on him still bearable for now, despite the ominous pinch of European sanctions. The Arab League has been catatonic on Syria, it’s so-called plan to resolve the Syrian emergency having little momentum. The United Nations Security Council for weeks has been debating a resolution on Syria, yet one reportedly that will not punish Damascus. The United States has ratcheted up the rhetoric against the Assads, but has otherwise done virtually nothing to bring the different parties together behind a consensual transition plan. And Turkey has officially separated from Damascus, but is restrained by anxiety that a Syrian collapse will lead to a confrontation between Ankara and Syria’s Kurds, which will have domestic repercussions.
A leitmotif adopted by the Arab League, but also the ventriloquist dummies of the Assad regime and even some opposition members, is that there must be no outside involvement in Syrian affairs. The reality is that Bashar Assad and his clique will only be ousted through a combination of domestic and international efforts, hopefully short of military action. The Assads thrive on conflict. Everything must be done to deny them the oxygen of violence.
**Michael Young is opinion editor of THE DAILY STAR and author of “The Ghosts of Martyrs Square: An Eyewitness Account of Lebanon’s Life Struggle” (Simon & Schuster). He tweets @BeirutCalling.

Lebanon's Arabic press digest - Sept. 29, 2011 The Daily Star
Following are summaries of some of the main stories in a selection of Lebanese newspapers Thursday. The Daily Star cannot vouch for the accuracy of these reports.
Al-Akhbar
[Government] moving forward on payments; No fear about paying salaries
There is no fear over the isue of paying salaries as the government spending plan is moving forward and will soon be referred to Parliament.
However, some have begun to look on with suspicion at the sanctions on the banking sector in Lebanon.
As news spread that the government would not be able to pay salaries for October unless the spending draft law was passed, some public employees, contractors and retirees panicked.
But sources ruled out Wednesday this occurring and confirmed that government spending would move forward and therefore there was no need for concern on the issue of paying salaries.
This issue is no longer on the table after the successful mediation by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, who managed to come up with a solution to the problem.
Al-Anwar
March 14 considers Mikati’s STL pledge just words and demands explicit Cabinet agreement
With the end of a visit by Prime Minister Najib Mikati to the United Nations, issues regarding public appointments and gas exploration are expected to pick up momentum.
Meanwhile, the March 14 coalition considered remarks made by Prime Minister Najib Mikati on funding for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon as a “merely verbal commitment” and called for an “explicit Cabinet agreement.”
“The government, headed by Mikati, includes ministers from Hezbollah, which is accused of assassinations that took place in Lebanon,” the March 14 coalition said following its weekly meeting Wednesday.
“It would be useful if Mikati would also commit to handing the [Hezbollah] suspects over to the international justice,” the March 14 alliance added.
Separately, news spread that as of Friday morning the road to ESCWA headquarters in Downtown Beirut would be closed to traffic and all intersections around the building would be barricaded for a week or so for security reasons.
According to information made available to Al-Anwar, The special representative to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon [U.N. Special Coordinator to Lebanon Michael Williams] urged the Mikati government to take extraordinary security measures around the U.N. headquarters in Bir Hasan and Downtown Beirut, citing security reports suggesting the possibility of targeting the U.N. similar to recent attacks against the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon in the south.
Ad-Diyar
Aoun hit Sfeir once and Geagea cursed Rai today without naming him
They talk about Christian spiritual values while they are involved in the killing of innocent Christians
One night the heroic Michel Aoun sent his men to hit Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir in Bkirki. Not even during the Ottoman Empire could the mamalik (kings) hit the patriarch. But Aoun did it and sent his men to nail the patriarch. Now comes the champion Samir Geagea, who attacked Patriarch Beshara Rai, citing fundamental Christian principles while forgetting that he was involved in the killings of innocent people. Where were these Christian principles when he killed them? Geagea goes on to criticize Rai without naming him.
Aoun sent people to hit Patriarch Sfeir because he was a daring hero; and Geagea -- who doesn’t have a clean record having killed innocent people and who, like criminal Walid Jumblatt, displaced Christians from the mountains -- attacked Patriarch Rai.
Al-Mustaqbal
Hariri asks Mikati about his jurisdiction over ‘visas to Iranians’
No one has stripped Prime Minister Najib Mikati from his powers to approve the “exemption of Iranians coming to Lebanon from entry visas” since everyone knows that Mikati has been struggling to pay off the debt to Hezbollah which named him head of the government.
However, surprisingly Mikati sought to “evade” the truth that his government was actually the one that agreed on this issue, claiming that Saad Hariri’s government was responsible for the decision.
Although Hariri’s office issued a statement Wednesday clarifying this issue, Mikati insisted that the decision was taken by Hariri’s government.
However, for the sake of truth, Hariri’s office issued a new statement saying that Mikati’s “response proves that he is deliberately shunning the truth,” reiterating that the decision on visa exemption for Iranians was taken by the current government after Hariri had refused to include it on Cabinet’s agenda.

Bkirki: Syrian Delegation’s Visit Aimed at Bridging Gap between Sects
Naharnet /Bkirki spokesman Walid Ghayyad said on Thursday that the media exaggerated the Syrian delegation’s visit to the seat of the Maronite church, noting that the visit was set after Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi was elected. He told Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3) that the developments in Syria “postponed the visit,” stressing that the discussions “focused on religion to bring sects closer.” Damascus Mufti Sheikh Adnan al-Afyouni had visited the patriarch at Bkirki at the head of a Syrian delegation that included the Syrian Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Abdul Karim Ali. “The meeting didn’t tackle the political affairs,” Ghayyad told pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat. Asked if this visit will increase the local rift over the Patriarch’s stances from Hizbullah’s arms and the situation in Syria, Ghayyad wondered if “it’s forbidden that people meet and hold talks.” He stressed that al-Rahi is “open to everyone and his door is open to all people, in harmony with his slogan (collaboration and love).” Sources told As Safir newspaper published on Thursday that the meeting was positive and focused on the importance of stimulating dialogue between religions. Ambassador Ali told the daily that the delegation lauded al-Rahi’s latest stances. He noted that the delegation warned against sectarian sedition, stressing that Syria is beginning to resolve the local crisis. Ali denied that Syria Grand Mufti Sheikh Ahmed Badreddine Hassoun didn’t visit along with the delegation to avoid meeting with Grand Mufti Sheikh Mohammed Rashid Qabbani, saying that “the Mufti had to meet with a foreign delegation that is visiting Syria.”He added: “Al-Rahi will not visit Syria soon since he is heading to the U.S.”

Report: Jumblat, Hariri to Meet in Paris
Naharnet /Former Premier Saad Hariri could meet with Progressive Socialist Party chief Walid Jumblat as part of meetings between Lebanese officials, informed political sources said.
The sources told An Nahar daily on Thursday that meetings between Lebanese leaders and politicians could take place on the sidelines of a social occasion in Paris.
They did not give further details but did not rule out talks between Hariri and Jumblat. The Central News Agency said on Wednesday that Jumblat has been holding talks with a number of high-ranking March 14 officials.It quoted sources as saying that the PSP chief informed his former allies that he agreed with their viewpoints.

Saudi King 'Revokes' Woman Driver's Lashing Sentence
Naharnet /Saudi King Abdullah has revoked a sentence of 10 lashes imposed on a woman for breaking the ban on women driving in the conservative kingdom, a Saudi princess said Wednesday on her Twitter account. "Thank God, the lashing of Sheima is cancelled. Thanks to our beloved King. I'm sure all Saudi women will be so happy, I know I am," said Princess Amira al-Taweel, wife of billionaire Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal. "In tough times we stand together; in good times we celebrate together," the princess said. "I'm proud to be Saudi. To all Active Saudi women thank you for your efforts." Sheima Jastaniah was sentenced on Monday by a court in the Red Sea city of Jeddah, where she was caught driving in July, a rights activist said. "We were shocked yesterday (Monday) that she was sentenced to 10 lashes," the activist said, adding Jastaniah would appeal the verdict.
The sentence came a day after the king announced women would be allowed to vote and to run in municipal polls, and to join the all-appointed Shura (consultative) Council, a first in a country that imposes many restrictions on women. Amnesty International condemned the sentence, saying it demonstrated the "scale of discrimination against women in the kingdom."
"Flogging is a cruel punishment in all circumstances but it beggars belief that the authorities in Saudi Arabia have imposed lashes on a woman apparently for merely driving a car," said Amnesty's Philip Luther.
"Belatedly allowing women to vote in council elections is all well and good, but if they are still going to face being flogged for trying to exercise their right to freedom of movement then the king's much-trumpeted 'reforms' actually amount to very little," he said.
"Saudi Arabia needs to go much further. The whole system of women's subordination to men in Saudi Arabia needs to be dismantled," added Luther.
Also on Tuesday, women rights activist Madiha al-Ajrush was detained briefly in Riyadh after she was caught driving around the capital with a French freelance journalist who was working on a video documentary on women.
The journalist said she herself was set free after her consulate intervened, while Ajrush was later released according to posts by the Women2Drive campaign on the group's Twitter page.
Women2Drive said police requested a male guardian to sign a pledge that Ajrush would not drive, but when no one was reached, she was told to sign herself and leave.
A group of defiant Saudi women got behind the wheels of their cars on June 17 in response to calls for nationwide action to break the ban.
The call spread through Facebook and Twitter was the largest mass action since November 1990, when 47 Saudi women were arrested and severely punished after demonstrating in cars.
There is no law banning women from driving. But the minister of interior formally banned women from driving following the protest staged in 1990. Ajrush was one of the women who took part in the protest. In a February 2009 interview, Princes Amira said she was frustrated that she was not allowed to drive in her own country. She told the Al-Watan newspaper she was ready to get behind the wheel as soon as the government in Riyadh gives women the right to do so. "I am certainly ready to drive. I have an international driving license and I drive in every country of the world that I travel to," she told the paper. "I would like to drive here with my sister or my friend next to me instead of a driver."
Prince Alwaleed, a nephew of the king, has been outspoken in promoting more freedoms for women in Saudi Arabia, where strict Islamic rules also prevent them from going out on their own without a male guardian. *Source Agence France Presse

Gemayel: Yesterday's Maronite Bishops Proclamation Cannot Be Compared with Those of the Past
Naharnet /Phalange Party leader Amin Gemayel stated on Thursday that the Maronite patriarch has adopted a different approach than his predecessors. He told Akhbar al-Yawm news agency: “Wednesday’s Maronite bishops proclamation cannot be compared with those of the past.” The bishops are not adopting a new approach, but the patriarch is, he explained.
Addressing the March 14 camp’s line of action in the upcoming phase in Lebanon, Gemayel said: “Its members are the most honest people in the country.” “Our principles and agendas are as clear as day, which is not something we can say about the other camp,” he added. Furthermore, he revealed that a number of measures have been agreed upon, and they will be announced in due time. The Council of Maronite Bishops on Wednesday appealed to Maronites to support the patriarch and urged the Lebanese to join hands and sit at the dialogue table to renew trust in each other. Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi believes that “unity is force,” an appeal issued by the bishops following their monthly meeting said. “He calls everyone for dialogue and understanding and rejects the logic of war.” “Let us all return to our roots as Lebanese, join hands and sit at a friendly, honest and transparent dialogue table … to renew our trust in each other,” they said.

Karami and son visit Assad
September 29, 2011 /Lebanon’s former Prime Minister Omar Karami and his son, Youth and Sports Minister Faisal Karami, met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Thursday, SANA news agency reported. The meeting addressed the situation in Lebanon as well as the developments in Syria and “the attempts targeting its security and stability.”
Karami said that “he believes the Syrian people and leadership will overcome these circumstances,” calling for “being aware of attempts to divide the region and to cause strife.”
According to the United Nations, President Bashar al-Assad’s crackdown on anti-regime protests that erupted in mid-March has killed more than 2,700 people.  Lebanon's political scene is split between supporters of Assad’s regime, led by Hezbollah, and a pro-Western camp headed by former Prime Minister Saad Hariri.-NOW Lebanon

Future bloc MP Mohammad Hajjar: Patriarch’s meeting with Syrian delegation was ‘suspicious’
September 29, 2011 /Future bloc MP Mohammad Hajjar said on Thursday that the recent visit of Syrian Mufti Sheikh Adnan Afyouni, along with Syrian Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Abdel Karim Ali, to Patriarch Bechara Boutros al-Rai “comes at a suspicious time.” He told MTV the visit came amid “the oppression and massacres that are being committed” in Syria.
According to the United Nations, President Bashar al-Assad’s crackdown on anti-regime protests that erupted in mid-March has killed more than 2,700 people.
He also said that the statement released following the Christian-Muslim summit on Tuesday “was different than that of the previous spiritual summit held in Bkirki [on May 12],” adding that the recent statement addressed political issues that were not supposed to be mentioned. A Christian-Muslim summit was held on Tuesday at Dar al-Fatwa and its participants stressed “national coexistence” and the Christians’ “key role in the Middle East.”-NOW Lebanon

Geagea calls for demarcating Lebanon’s border with all neighboring countries
September 29, 2011 /LF leader Samir Geagea holds a press conference following his meeting with Zahle bloc MPs. (Aldo Ayoub)
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea called on the Lebanese government to speed up the process of demarcating the country’s maritime border, according to a statement released by his office on Thursday. “The government is putting all its effort to [demarcate] the Lebanese-Israeli maritime border, but it seems it has forgotten that Lebanon [shares] a border with three countries; and not only Israel but Cyprus and Syria with which the borders need to be demarcated,” said the LF leader following his meeting with Zahle bloc MPs.
“The Lebanese government has to demarcate the border with all neighboring countries,” he added. In July, Israel's cabinet approved a map of the Jewish state's proposed maritime borders with Lebanon, which is to be submitted to the United Nations. Following Israel’s approval of the map, Energy Minister Gebran Bassil countered that Lebanon will not give up its maritime rights. Lebanon and Israel differ on their interpretation of the maritime border. The Lebanese Parliament in August 2010 passed an oil exploration bill, which calls for the establishment of a treasury and a committee to oversee exploration and drilling off of Lebanon. -NOW Lebanon

Kataeb bloc MP Elie Marouni : Media ‘exaggerated’ Syrian delegation’s visit to Rai
September 29, 2011 /Kataeb bloc MP Elie Marouni commented on Thursday on the Syrian delegation’s Wednesday visit to Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros al-Rai.
The MP told Future News television that the media has “exaggerated” the matter of the Syrian officials’ visit, and voiced hope that Rai was informed by the delegation on the matter of Lebanese detainees in Syrian prisons. He also voiced hope that Rai discussed the matter of demarcating Syrian-Lebanese borders with the delegation which was headed by Damascus Mufti Adnan Afyouni. Marouni also commented on paying Lebanon’s share of funding for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) probing the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. “Prime Minister [Najib Mikati] announces a certain position toward the STL… while others, [represented] in the cabinet, announce an opposing position,” he added.
During his speech before the UN Security Council on Tuesday, Mikati reiterated Lebanon’s commitment to international resolutions.
The UN-backed tribunal is funded by an assortment of donor countries from around the world as well as Lebanon. However, Hezbollah and other March 8 parties and figures have spoken out against Lebanon’s ties and funding for the tribunal and called it a tool to incite sectarian strife in Lebanon.
Lebanon contributes 49 percent of the STL’s annual funding. Four Hezbollah members have been indicted by the STL. However, the Shia group strongly denied the charges and refuses to cooperate with the court.-NOW Lebanon

No deal in UN on Syria resolution
September 29, 2011
The UN Security Council concluded talks on Syria Wednesday without an agreement on a new resolution, after Russia slammed Europe's effort to threaten sanctions against Damascus.
The 15-member Council discussed rival draft resolutions on the Syrian crisis drawn up by France, Britain, Germany and Portugal on one side and Russia on the other.
The Europeans have proposed a new resolution in which they drop demands for immediate sanctions but want to threaten President Bashar al-Assad with action if he does not end his deadly crackdown on opposition protests.
Russia opposes any hint of sanctions and the latest version of its draft resolution seeks to condemn violence by all sides in Syria.
Germany's UN envoy, Peter Wittig, said after the talks that all sides were still committed to delivering a "strong and unified message" to Assad's regime.
"The discussion was a good one," Wittig told reporters.
"We still hope that... we can get a strong and unified message of the council that the Syrian regime has to stop violence and engage in dialogue," he said.
"We aspire to an early vote because the situation is urgent," he said, adding that discussions would continue on Thursday.
Russia's UN ambassador Vitaly Churkin called the European proposal "a continuation of the Libya policy of regime change."
Russia and China have accused NATO of using UN resolutions on Libya to force out Moammar Qaddafi and say they fear new military action in Syria.
"Let's face it, we have heard statements in various capitals describing what is legitimate and what is not, and we think that this line of thinking and speaking is encouraging violence in Syria," Churkin told reporters.
He said the Russian resolution "is something which if adopted by the council will encourage the political process in Syria and will help stop violence."
China's UN ambassador, Li Baodong, said the final resolution must be "promoting a peaceful solution, promoting dialogue."
The European version, which has US backing, would strongly condemn "the continued grave and systematic human rights violations by the Syrian authorities" and demand "an immediate end to all violence," according to a copy of the draft resolution obtained by AFP.
The UN body "expresses its determination, in the event that Syria has not complied with this resolution, to adopt targeted measures, including sanctions," the draft adds.
The resolution stresses the need for a "Syrian-led political process" to end the crisis and regrets Assad's failure to follow through on promised reforms. It would call for the naming of a special UN envoy on Syria.
European diplomats say they want to speed up the debate on the international response to Assad's clampdown, which the UN says has cost more than 2,700 lives.
Russia and China have threatened to veto any sanctions resolution brought to the 15-nation council, which has so far only agreed on one statement on the crackdown since mid-March. Brazil, India and South Africa have also expressed opposition.
US officials said US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton discussed the action with China's Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi in New York on Monday.
In Washington, Clinton's spokesperson Victoria Nuland said the United States was working with its EU partners on the resolution, which she said should have "consequences" for the Syrian regime without actually mentioning sanctions.
"We want a resolution with teeth. We want a resolution that makes it absolutely clear to the Assad regime that the violence needs to end," Nuland told reporters.
When asked if her calls for "consequences" meant sanctions, Nuland replied: "tightening... the economic and political noose on the Syrian regime."
-AFP/NOW Lebanon

MP Ahmad Fatfat submits to cabinet inquiry on passports with fake names
September 29, 2011
Future bloc MP Ahmad Fatfat submitted a request to the cabinet for an inquiry regarding passports issued by the Lebanese General Security with incorrect names, the National News Agency reported on Thursday. “Some Lebanese people were interrogated in foreign countries to check the authenticity of their passports especially after many were arrested carrying authentic Lebanese passports but with incorrect names,” the MP said. Fatfat also said that the Egyptian authorities arrested a Lebanese citizen “smuggling arms from Sudan to Egypt and [then] to Hamas,” adding that the man’s real name is Mohammad Mansour and that he had a Lebanese passport saying his family name was al-Chehab.
“Detaining Mansour in Cairo revealed that other people entered many Arab countries, particularly gulf ones, using authentic Lebanese passports with incorrect names in order to carry out security and espionage tasks,” he added. The Future bloc MP also said that Bahrain detained Lebanese citizens carrying authentic Lebanese passports with incorrect names, adding that “this may aim to contribute to the unrest Bahrain has witnessed.” Authorities in Bahrain have said that 24 people were killed in the repression of popular protests, between mid-February and mid-March. The opposition puts the death toll at 30. “Discovering Lebanese official passports with incorrect names is a crime against the Lebanese people’s interests,” Fatfat added.
-NOW Lebanon

The uncomfortable reality in Syria
Tony Badran, September 29, 2011
The Obama administration is slowly coming to grips with the uncomfortable reality that its preferred scenario of a peaceful transition in Syria is looking less likely. As much as it had hoped to avoid it, the administration finds itself having to develop contingency plans as signs of armed resistance to Bashar al-Assad’s regime are becoming increasingly visible.
Commenting on this development in the Syrian uprising, State Department spokesman Mark Toner remarked on Monday that “the longer the regime continues to repress, kill and jail these peaceful activists, the more likely that this peaceful movement’s going to become violent.” It’s a matter of self-defense, Toner explained; “It’s not surprising.”
This belated recognition comes as more reports are emerging of pushback from army defectors, especially in the provinces of Homs and Idlib, but also in Daraa and Deir al-Zour. In the town of Rastan, hometown of former Defense Minister Mustafa Tlass, the regime has had to bring in artillery, armored units, attack helicopters and reportedly even fighter jets in a bid to quash the resistance put up by soldiers who decided to protect the protesters. Assad’s forces have been shelling it relentlessly for days, but one Western diplomat told Reuters it was “highly possible” that the defectors were holding their ground.
It remains uncertain how large a force these defectors constitute, with one US official placing their number at around 10,000. Arabic news reports have claimed that in recent days, Rastan witnessed a large defection in an engineering battalion. However, without a concerted effort to provide them with material assistance, it is not clear how long these defectors can hold on. For this reason and more, calls by the protesters and the opposition for some form of international protection, such as safe havens and no-go zones, have recently intensified.
This foreseeable development throws into sharp relief critical flaws in the Obama administration’s Syria policy. Eager to avoid any semblance of intervention or a repeat of Iraq’s turmoil, the administration put all its hope in a peaceful transition. Though it never really explained the mechanism that would bring about this transition, the idea was to raise the economic pressure on the regime, urge the opposition to unite and present a platform all Syrians could endorse, and hope for cracks inside the regime and a shift among its pillars of support in society.
Still, how that was supposed to translate into Assad’s overthrow was not straightforward. Essentially, it seems that the administration held out hope for a coup by Assad’s generals (preferably Alawites, which would have the added benefit of avoiding a sectarian coloring).
In reality, the coup scenario was unlikely to ever be peaceful. What this hope did mask, however, was an eagerness to avoid having to deal with a more complicated course of events. The US administration has not made a secret of its antipathy for the option of intervention in Syria. And yet it now finds itself having to deal with what it wished to avoid.
But without a fallback plan, Washington is only reacting to the unfolding events. The New York Times recently reported that, “In coordination with Turkey, the United States has been exploring how to deal with the possibility of a civil war” in Syria. What that means, however, is far from clear. Perhaps Turkey’s announcement that it would block any arms shipments headed to Syria is part of this effort, but far more is needed. Harnessing the resources of regional allies is important. But this must be under US leadership, as only Washington can balance the competing interests and agendas of these regional players while channeling them toward an endgame in line with US interests.
However, the Obama administration continues to be reluctant to lead. As the Times reported, “The administration does not want to look as if the United States is trying to orchestrate the outcome in Syria.” The justification a US official gave the Times for the disinclination to lead was that the administration does not want to give the Iranians “an excuse to intervene.” But such reasoning does not hold water. Tehran has been involved unambiguously on Assad’s side from day one, and will continue to be engaged in what it rightly perceives as a battle for its position in the Eastern Mediterranean.
And in the end, it is here that the administration’s policy has been most lacking, as it has yet to properly articulate the strategic stakes in the Syrian uprising. Aside from upholding US values of freedom and democracy, the strategic framework in which the Syrian revolution must be situated is that of an opportunity to break the Iranian alliance system. At a moment of great upheaval in the region, it is an opportunity that cannot be squandered.
As the Syrian revolution enters this new phase, Washington is faced with tough decisions. Deferring these decisions by once again subcontracting policy to regional players with differing agendas is likely to result in failure. The administration cannot shy away from leadership, nor can it lose sight of its strategic objective: ensuring the demise of the Assad regime.
*Tony Badran is a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. He tweets @AcrossTheBay.

Comparing Erdogan and Ahmadinejad
By Tariq Alhomayed/Asharq Al-Awsat
I am not one of those who are overawed by the Turkish Prime Minister, but for a moment let’s compare Mr. Erdogan’s recent visits to the region- after the Arab political earthquake- and the maneuvers of Iranian President Ahmadinejad. This is not to compare between Erdogan and Ahmadinejad, but rather to know where Iran stands today in comparison with Turkey, and the implications of this.
In a simple comparison we would find that Recep Tayyip Erdogan traveled to Egypt and received a hero’s welcome, an unusual scene in Egypt, a state with a tendency of leadership and national unity. Erdogan took with him an army of Turkish businesspeople. Then while in Egypt, he said what even Field Marshal Tantawi himself couldn’t say to the Egyptians; he advised the Muslim Brotherhood that the best option for them was for Egypt to be secular after Mubarak, and not a religious state. Erdogan did not stop there; after leaving Egypt he made his way to Tunisia, the starting point of the Arab Spring – as some call it, or the Arab earthquake – as I call it for accuracy, and he repeated the same words about the need for a secular state in Tunisia. Accompanying him again was the same army of Turkish businesspeople. Prior to Erdogan’s visits, the Turkish Foreign Minister was one of the first officials in the region to travel to Benghazi after the fall of Muammar Gaddafi’s authoritarian regime, so what about the Iranian president?
It is noteworthy that after the Arab earthquake Ahmadinejad did not visit one Arab country that had been affected, so much so that any observer would have almost forgotten the name of Tehran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, due to his lack of statements and movements, both regionally and abroad. When Ahmadinejad left Tehran to participate in the United Nations General Assembly in New York, he did not visit any influential Arab country, but rather opted to visit the recently partitioned Sudan. The irony here is that the Sudanese President, who is the subject of an international arrest warrant, is the one who defends Ahmadinejad and Iran, and not vice versa. Ahmadinejad also visited Mauritania, a country which does not impose any political influence upon the surrounding region, and the Middle East! What is the meaning of all this?
The simple and short answer is that Iran is in a state of international and regional isolation, whilst Erdogan’s Turkey is currently spreading its influence and strengthening its position, specifically in areas affected by the Arab earthquake. It is noteworthy that reliable sources indicate that Iranian financing has become a contentious issue in Egypt today, although whether it is true or not is another story. However, the reality today dictates that Turkey will fill the current vacuum in the region, whilst it seems that Iran will become more isolated, not only in the region, but also in other parts of the world. Even Venezuela has made an excuse for not receiving President Ahmadinejad in Caracas, where the Venezuelan Foreign Minister announced the postponement by saying: “We will wait until President Chavez has fully recovered”.
However, it is important to note that Ahmadinejad’s visits to both Sudan and Mauritania have negative implications, especially if we consider the geographical location of Khartoum and Nouakchott, and their proximity to Egypt, Libya and Tunisia. It is clear that Iran wants to escape from its isolation by maneuvering in geographical areas close to the Arab states currently feeling their way towards rebuilding their political regimes. Meanwhile, Turkey is seizing the initiative and expanding in the region, to fill a clear Arab vacuum that is waiting to be filled.