LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
January 15/2013

Bible Quotation for today/A Prayer for Help
Isaiah 33 : "01-09/Our enemies are doomed! They have robbed and betrayed, although no one has robbed them or betrayed them. But their time to rob and betray will end, and they themselves will become victims of robbery and treachery . Lord, have mercy on us. We have put our hope in you. Protect us day by day and save us in times of trouble. When you fight for us, nations run away from the noise of battle. Their belongings are pounced upon and taken as loot. How great the Lord is! He rules over everything. He will fill Jerusalem with justice and integrity and give stability to the nation. He always protects his people and gives them wisdom and knowledge. Their greatest treasure is their reverence for the Lord. The brave are calling for help. The ambassadors who tried to bring about peace are crying bitterly. The highways are so dangerous that no one travels on them. Treaties are broken and agreements are violated. No one is respected any more.  The land lies idle and deserted. The forests of Lebanon have withered, the fertile valley of Sharon is like a desert, and in Bashan and on Mount Carmel the leaves are falling from the trees.

Latest analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases from miscellaneous sources
 Orthodox proposal splits Christian opinion/By: Justin Salhani/Now Lebanon/January 12/13
Hate Crime Stats Deflate 'Islamophobia' Myth/By David J. Rusin/January 15/13

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for January 15/13
 Despite US efforts, no Egypt-Israel “hot line.” Cairo hosts Gen. Soleimani
 US report: Iran running listening station in Golan
Vatican criticizes gay adoption, topless women protest

 French FM: No EU consensus on Hezbollah ban

Lebanon sets date for questioning of Syria’s Mamlouk
Wanted man killed in clash with Lebanese Army
 Christian leaders in Lebanon object to 1960 law
 Syria gunfire erupts along border with Lebanon
Malaysian Female Peacekeepers Head to Lebanon
 Daryl Mundis Appointed as STL Deputy Registrar
Berri Mum on Next Step if MPs Fail to Find Common Electoral Ground
Support of Christians for Orthodox Proposal Likely to Put them at Loggerheads with al-Mustaqbal
Jumblat Blasts Iran over Prisoner Swap, Warns of 'Disastrous Results' of 'Sectarian Electoral' Law
 Kataeb Party, LF agree on rejecting current electoral law, MP says
NLP leader: Orthodox law could herald Lebanon Middle Ages
Bkirki electoral proposal better for Christians, FPM MP says
Lebanon interior minister to meet Qatar security officials
Lebanon asks the arb countries for help
Berri, Siniora to try to break law deadlock
Assir’s protests resume across Sidon
Charbel to visit Qatar for help in hostages case
 Lavrov says removal of Assad impossible
HRW Says Syria Using Rockets to Spread Cluster Bombs
 Rape 'Significant' Factor in Syria Conflict
 France pounds Islamist strongholds in Mali
Mali Islamists counter attack, promise France long war
Saudi King Appoints New Governor for Shiite-Populated East

Vatican criticizes gay adoption, topless women protest
By Catherine Hornby | Reuters/VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The Vatican underlined its opposition to gay adoption on Sunday as same-sex marriage supporters staged a topless protest in front of the pope in St. Peter's Square.
The Vatican paper L'Osservatore Romano published a response to an Italian court's rejection of an appeal by a father who feared his son would not have a balanced upbringing if he lived with his mother and her female partner.
The Court of Cassation ruled it was "mere prejudice" to assume that living with a homosexual couple could be detrimental for a child's development.
While gay rights group Arcigay called it a "historic ruling" for Italy, where it is illegal for gay couples to adopt, Catholic leaders were quick to defend the traditional family unit.
L'Osservatore Romano, the 151-year-old mouthpiece of the Holy See, ran an editorial that sought to play down the court ruling, saying that children often grow up in difficult circumstances without a mother or father.
"But no one believes that these situations should be created just because in some cases they don't cause damage," wrote Adriano Pessina, director of bioethics at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart. "The human is the masculine and the feminine ... the monogamous family is the ideal place to learn the meaning of human relations and is the environment where the best form of growth is possible," he wrote. He reaffirmed the Vatican's view that no one has the "right" to children that he said gay couples who want to adopt are claiming.
In Paris, hundreds of thousands of people protested against President Francois Hollande's planned legalization of same-sex marriage.
The Vatican has become increasingly vocal against homosexual marriage in recent months. Pope Benedict strongly reaffirmed the Church's opposition to it in December, saying heterosexual marriage had an indispensable role in society. While the pope was giving his weekly address on Sunday, four women from the Ukrainian Femen group who were in the crowd, pulled off their T-shirts to reveal the slogan "In Gay we Trust" painted over their bodies.
Screaming "Homophobes shut up" as the pope started his Angelus blessing, they provoked angry reactions from pilgrims in St. Peter's Square. One woman in the crowd started hitting the activists with an umbrella, calling them "diabolical". Italian police grabbed the protesters and pulled them away from the crowd.
(Additional reporting by Carmelo Camilli; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)

Austrian capital ‘filled with Iranian spies’
 http://www.jpost.com/IranianThreat/News/Article.aspx?id=299483
By BENJAMIN WEINTHAL, JERUSALEM POST CORRESPONDENT 01/14/2013/ US report finds the Islamic Republic’s agents are working in Vienna to secure nuclear technology and suppress dissentز BERLIN – The Austrian capital is a main European hub for Tehran’s spy network, the US-based Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress concluded in December in a comprehensive report on Iranian intelligence activities.
The report was conducted with the Combating Terrorism Technical Support Office’s Irregular Warfare Support Program and unleashed a flurry of reports in the Austrian media last week.
According to the US study, “Vienna... is allegedly full of MOIS [Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security] agents. It is because of the continuous good relationship between Iran and Austria since the Revolution – after the US hostage crisis – which resulted in condemnation of the Islamic Republic by many countries and secluded Iran in many ways. Austria was one of the few countries that was not concerned.”
“It appears that Iran takes advantage of this relationship by deploying its intelligence officers in Austria. It has been reported that MOIS agents identify anti–Islamic Republic political activists and threaten to silence them,” the report said.
The MOIS is responsible for suppressing dissent in the Islamic Republic among opposition groups and among the large diaspora Iranian community, according to Iranian dissidents and experts. Iranian reform groups consider the MOIS a ruthless apparatus of Iran’s government.
In response to a query from The Jerusalem Post on Sunday, Karl-Heinz Grundböck, a spokesman for Austria’s Interior Ministry, wrote via email that the domestic intelligence agency Verfassungsschutz cannot issue a comment beyond the information contained in the agency’s report, and referred the Post to the agency’s intelligence analysisز According to the most recent report, “In the period under review, concrete proliferation [and] relevant activities were observed in connection with North Korea and Iran. Some of these activities ended in convictions.”
The report further noted that, “it can be assumed that these developments will continue in 2012 and that the conflict with the Islamic Republic of Iran will intensify.”
Iranian dissident groups and experts say the Austrian authorities permit Iran’s intelligence agents wide movement in Vienna, including the ability to operate money laundering operations and acquire technology for Tehran’s nuclear weapons program.
Iranian agent Hamid Reza Amirinia, a senior departmental director from Iran’s Center for Innovation and Technology Cooperation, was the subject of media reports last year because of his alleged money laundering in Vienna. The US Treasury Department has sanctioned both the agent and the Iranian center for illicit nuclear proliferation activity.
In an interview with the Post, Dr. Wahied Wahdat- Hagh, a prominent German- Iranian scholar in the Federal Republic, questioned “why Europe’s intelligence agencies do not actively take action against the deadly spies of Iran’s dictator.”Wahdat-Hagh, a senior fellow with the Brussels-based European Foundation for Democracy, said Iran’s spies threaten opposition groups in exile and plan potential murder operations targeting Iranian dissidents in Europe. “The Iranian espionage activities are so powerful because they know that the European countries tolerate them,” commented Wahdat-Hagh

French FM: No EU consensus on Hezbollah ban
http://www.jpost.com/International/Article.aspx?id=299382
By BENJAMIN WEINTHAL, JERUSALEM POST CORRESPONDENT 01/13/2013/ Foreign Ministry in Paris says consensus between members "not currently met;" Nasrallah attacks US, Israel for pushing sanctions. BERLIN - The EU has not reached a consensus among its 27 members to include Lebanon-based Hezbollah in its list of terrorist organizations, a spokesman for the French Foreign Ministry in Paris said on Wednesday.
“The designation of a terrorist organization by the European Union implies that precise legal conditions are met,” spokesman Philippe Lalliot said, according to the translated answer obtained by The Jerusalem Post.
“Under the common position of the Council of the European Union of 27 from December 2001 on the application of specific measures to fight against terrorism, any application on the list of terrorist organizations in the EU particularly is subject to a consensus among Member States. This consensus is not currently met,” he said.
A reporter at the Foreign Ministry briefing asked Lalliot about a January Israeli newspaper report detailing Israel’s new efforts to convince Europe to outlaw Hezbollah because of the group’s terrorist activities. The reporter cited Ma’ariv saying that “this failure is particularly the position of France, which would be opposed to such an initiative.”
There has been a swirl of activity over the last few weeks in connection with an EU ban of Hezbollah and the suicide bombing of an Israeli tour bus in July 2012. According to American and Israeli intelligence officials, a joint Iran-Hezbollah operation blew up the bus, resulting in the deaths of five Israelis and a Bulgarian bus driver.
It is unclear if the Bulgarians have completed their investigation. The Bulgarian prosecutor’s office sacked a prosecutor earlier this week for allegedly leaking results to the media about the identities of suspects.
Israeli counterterrorism officials have redoubled their efforts to persuade Europe to ban Hezbollah based on the militia’s support of Bashar Assad’s regime in Syria, kidnapping of Israelis, and the group’s involvement in the narcotics trade. The Saudi paper Al-Watan wrote that 5,000 Hezbollah fighters in December left for Syria to bolster Assad’s attacks on opposition groups.
According to commentators and news reports in Israel, France is going to great lengths to block any designation of Hezbollah as a terror entity because it want to preserve its diplomatic leverage in Lebanon. France is also concerned about Hezbollah retaliation. The Beirut-based Daily Star reported Hezbollah’s secretary- general Hasan Nasrallah attacked the US and Israel for pushing sanctions against his organization. Nasrallah termed 2013 a “very dangerous phase.”According to the paper, “In the coming year, we will be facing many challenges as a resistance as the Americans and Israelis are working to besiege us with efforts to place Hezbollah on the European Union’s terrorist list, restricting the group’s movement in Latin America and so on.”

Lebanon sets date for questioning of Syria’s Mamlouk
January 14, 2013/The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Investigative Judge Riad Abu Ghayda set Feb. 4 as the questioning date for Syrian official Ali Mamlouk for his alleged role in a plot to carry out terrorist attacks in Lebanon, judicial sources said Monday.
The sources told The Daily Star that a notice with Abu Ghayda’s decision was posted at the entrance to Beirut’s military court after the judge considered Mamlouk’s place of residence as “unknown.”
They said Abu Ghayda also set Jan. 28 as a hearing date for police informer Milad Kfouri.
Kfouri will serve as a witness in the terror case allegedly spearheaded by former Information Minister Michel Samaha, the sources added.
Kfouri, who is reportedly out of the country for security reasons, coordinated with the Internal Security Forces Information Branch to secretly record Samaha’s statements about terror plots he was hatching to carry out in north Lebanon. Samaha, who is close to the Syrian government, has been charged with plotting to carry out terrorist attacks in the country, as well as assassinate religious and political figures.
Similar charges were handed down to Mamlouk, head of Syria’s Intelligence.
Samaha was also charged with transporting explosives from Syria into Lebanon.

Syria gunfire erupts along border with Lebanon
Now Lebanon/Gunfire from Syria on Sunday evening hit areas near the northern Lebanese border towns of Al-Noura and Al-Dababiyeh, the National News Agency reported. However, the agency added that nobody was injured by the shooting. Lebanon’s border regions with Syria have experienced regular border violations, including shelling and gunfire as well as limited incursions by Syrian troops. More than 60,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed since the outbreak of Syria's anti-regime revolt in March 2011, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Lebanon interior minister to meet Qatar security officials
Now Lebanon/Lebanon’s Interior Minister Marwan Charbel said on Sunday that he will meet three security officials during his upcoming visit to Qatar to discuss the situation of the abducted Shiite pilgrims in Syria’s Aazaz.
“I first limited my attention to the Turks regarding the issue of the Lebanese abductees in Aazaz but… I found that I must consult the Qataris,” Charbel told Al-Manar television. The Lebanese interior minister had announced on Saturday that he and General Security Director General Abbas Ibrahim will head to Qatar on Tuesday to consult with Qatari officials on the issue of the Shiite pilgrims who were abducted in Syria’s Aleppo in May while returning from a pilgrimage in Iran. Later in the month, a previously unknown armed group calling itself the "Syrian Revolutionaries—Aleppo Province" said that it was holding the group, while the Free Syrian Army had repeatedly denied its involvement in the abduction. Two of the kidnapped pilgrims – Awad Ibrahim and Hussein Ali Omar – were later released. On the issue of Lebanon’s upcoming parliamentary elections, Charbel said that “the Fouad Boutros electoral law, even though very good, is a bit complicated and needs at least a year to be applied.” The Fouad Boutros law stipulates that half of the deputies within a single district would be elected by proportional representation and the other half by majority representation. The interior minister suggested that “a law can be found that joins the Orthodox proposal and [the 1960 electoral law] and the elections can then be held on time, but in two phases.” Members of the parliamentary sub-committee began on Tuesday their discussions of different draft laws in order to choose a proposal to replace the 1960 electoral law, with the country’s political circles divided over which law to adopt despite the cabinet’s approval in September 2012 of a draft law based on proportionality and 13 electoral districts.
The Orthodox law proposes citizens vote in one electoral district along proportional lines for candidates of their own sect.

Wanted man killed in clash with Lebanese Army
January 14, 2013/The Daily Star
BEKAA VALLEY, Lebanon: A clash between the Lebanese Army and wanted individuals Monday led to the death of one man and the wounding of another in east Lebanon, security sources told The Daily Star. The sources identified the casualty of the shooting in Brital, east Lebanon, as Qassem Tlais. His brother, Mohammad, was also wounded in the Army raid, they added.
They said a third wanted man was arrested in the raid. An army statement issued later in the day said the third wanted individual who was arrested in the raid was a Syrian national.
Security sources said the Army enhanced its presence in the Bekaa Valley following the shooting and launched patrols in search of gunmen.
In October the Lebanese military launched a security crackdown in the east of the country. The Army plan came after a spree of kidnappings in the area raised regional and local concerns.

Jumblat Blasts Iran over Prisoner Swap, Warns of 'Disastrous Results' of 'Sectarian Electoral' Law
Naharnet/Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat criticized Iran on Monday for failing to seek the release of nine Lebanese pilgrims held hostage by rebels in Syria since last May.
He said in his editorial in the PSP-affiliated al-Anbaa that Tehran could have included the Lebanese abductees in the negotiation process that led to the release of 48 Iranians last week.
The Iranians held hostage by rebels for more than five months in Syria were freed in a prisoner exchange after the rebels agreed to swap them for more than 2,000 detainees held by the Syrian regime.
The swap was arranged through mediation by Turkey and Qatar, according to several sources.
Eleven Lebanese pilgrims were seized by rebels in the northern province of Aleppo on their way back home from pilgrimage in Iran last May. Two have so far been released but the other nine remain kidnapped in the Aleppo town of Aaazaz. “This incident is proof to the Lebanese parties that states only care for their direct interests,” Jumblat said.
He advised the major political parties in Lebanon “not to fall in the trap of commitment with foreign sides because they simply care about their private plans even if they come at the expense of the Lebanese and their freedom.”
Turning to the latest controversy on an electoral draft-law ahead of this year's parliamentary polls, Jumblat reiterated his call for the adoption of a law that unites the Lebanese rather than causes more sectarian divisions among them. “Why don't we create a positive shock and make a leap towards a unique Lebanese Electoral Spring that liberates the parliament from sectarian representation?” the PSP chief asked.
He called for the formation of a senate that would have the authority to deal with major national issues.
“It is about time for the Lebanese to have an electoral law that unites them and finds common ground among them rather than adopting suggestions that cause sectarian divisions and take them centuries backwards,” he wrote.
Jumblat believed that the “Lebanese are capable of overcoming fake confessional barriers if they had the right political and electoral foundations.”
“Any proposal that comes outside this framework would only lead to dangerous and disastrous consequences in the short and long term,” he warned.
His remarks were a clear hint of his rejection of the so-called Orthodox Gathering proposal which has also been criticized by President Michel Suleiman, al-Mustaqbal movement and several March 14 independent Christian officials. The proposal divides Lebanon into a single district and allows each sect to elect its own MPs based on a proportional representation system.

Support of Christians for Orthodox Proposal Likely to Put them at Loggerheads with al-Mustaqbal
Naharnet /Lebanon's top Christian parties from both the majority and opposition camps confirmed on Monday their support for the so-called Orthodox Gathering proposal, a move that is likely to put them at loggerheads with the opposition’s al-Mustaqbal movement on an electoral draft-law.
In remarks to As Safir daily, Phalange party leader Amin Gemayel, who is a Christian leader in the opposition March 14 alliance, said: “We care for achieving the right representation for Christians.”
Gemayel said that a draft-law proposed by Christian opposition MPs, which divides Lebanon into 50 districts based on a winner-takes-all system, guarantees the minimum acceptable level of representation.
“But it hasn't received enough support similar to the Orthodox Gathering proposal which guaranteed a parliamentary majority,” he told As Safir.
Despite his backing of the 50 district draft-law, Gemayel held onto the Orthodox proposal that considers Lebanon a single district for winning the majority support.
Asked about his ties with al-Mustaqbal movement leader Saad Hariri, the former president said he was keen on the alliance among the March 14 opposition parties.
He also hoped that a solution would be reached to preserve the alliance.
Al-Mustaqbal is among several parties that have announced their rejection to the Orthodox proposal, saying it deepens sectarian divisions.
In similar remarks to As Safir, Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun, from the March 8 majority alliance, reiterated that there was no alternative to the Orthodox proposal.
“It is the best and there isn't any more convenient”proposal for “achieving a true representation for Christians,” he said.
Asked about the stance of the Phalange party and the Lebanese Forces, another Christian opposition party, Aoun said: “I don't want to judge their intentions but what we've seen so far is that they are not backing off from the proposal.” Change and Reform bloc MP Alain Aoun, a member of the subcommittee that discussed suggested draft-laws, echoed similar remarks, telling An Nahar that the Orthodox proposal should be referred to the joint parliamentary committees for discussion after it received the majority's support. “Six out of nine members of the subcommittee backed it,” he said.
Another member of the subcommittee, Lebanese Forces MP George Adwan, reiterated that his party backs alternative proposals that guarantee a balanced representation.
“But if there was no consensus on that, then the alternative would be the Orthodox” proposal, he told An Nahar.
Al-Mustaqbal bloc MP Ahmed Fatfat snapped back, however, telling Voice of Lebanon radio (100.5) that the proposal would not be approved.

Berri Mum on Next Step if MPs Fail to Find Common Electoral Ground
Naharnet/Speaker Nabih Berri shied away on Monday from revealing what steps he would take if a parliamentary subcommittee failed to agree on common ground on an electoral draft-law.
In remarks to local newspapers, Berri said he will study the minutes of the meetings of the subcommittee which is scheduled to convene on Monday afternoon.
“If I find common ground that could be built on and achieve a consensual draft-law then I will ask the members of the committee to hold more consultations and agree with the rest of parties” on an electoral draft-law, he said.
Asked what steps he would take if there wasn't enough consensus, Berri said: “The electoral draft-law will be referred to the joint parliamentary committees to study it. But if I don't find any common ground then I know what to do and how to behave.”The speaker did not give further details but said the meetings of the subcommittee that kicked off last Tuesday haven't made any progress.
He called however for “patience,” saying “it is never too late to reach consensus.”
The Orthodox Gathering proposal, which calls for a single electoral district and allows each sect to vote for its own lawmakers under a system of proportional representation, has garnered the support of six out of nine members of the subcommittee. The subcommittee finalized on Friday the discussion on a new electoral law to govern this year's parliamentary elections, its chairman MP Robert Ghanem said.
But it will meet on Monday in an attempt to find common ground among the different political parties, he said.
He warned however that lawmakers haven't yet reached consensus on any proposal but they discussed the prospects of increasing the number of lawmakers which currently stands at 128.
In addition to the Orthodox proposal, the MPs studied a March 14 draft-law that calls for dividing Lebanon into 50 districts based on a winner-takes-all system and a government bill referred to parliament which projects Lebanon as 13 districts in a proportional representation system.

Kataeb Party, LF agree on rejecting current electoral law, MP says
Now Lebanon/Kataeb Party MP Sami Gemayel said his party was determined, alongside the Lebanese Forces, to reject the current parliamentary electoral law. “The Kataeb Party is, alongside the Lebanese Forces, attached to its refusal to return to the 1960 law at all costs,” Gemayel said in remarks published by An-Nahar newspaper on Saturday. “We also back the Orthodox Gathering law proposal if no other alternatives are found that would create the appropriate circumstances for the right representation of the Christians and the division of power.”He also criticized the independent March 14 lawmakers who came out against the Orthodox law, which proposes citizens vote for candidates of their own sects.“Where were the independent figures when Christian representation was being undermined?” Gemayel inquired. Members of a parliamentary sub-committee began on Tuesday their discussions on different draft laws in order to choose a proposal to replace the 1960 electoral law, with the country’s political circles divided over which law to adopt despite the cabinet’s approval in September 2012 of a draft law based on proportionality and 13 electoral districts. On Friday, Lebanese Christian political leaders met at the seat of the Maronite Patriarchate in Bkirki under the auspices of Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Beshara Boutros al-Rai to further discuss the electoral law for the upcoming parliamentary elections, after they had reportedly agreed in a previous meeting to back the Orthodox law, which the Future Movement rejects

NLP leader: Orthodox law could herald Lebanon Middle Ages
Now Lebanon/National Liberal Party leader MP Dori Shamoun said that the Orthodox law - which proposes for citizens to vote for candidates of their own sect - would “take Lebanon back to the Middle Ages.”
“The Orthodox Gathering law proposal is [dangerous] and would take Lebanon back to the Middle Ages and prepare the ground for a new war between the Lebanese,” Shamoun said in remarks published by Kuwaiti daily As-Seyassah on Saturday. “There is a core illness in Lebanon called sectarianism, and we should all work on extirpating it, otherwise we will be drowning in its mud and [destroy] our own country.”
Members of a parliamentary sub-committee began on Tuesday their discussions on different draft laws in order to choose a proposal to replace the 1960 electoral law, with the country’s political circles divided over which law to adopt despite the cabinet’s approval in September 2012 of a draft law based on proportionality and 13 electoral districts. On Friday, Lebanese Christian political leaders met at the seat of the Maronite Patriarchate in Bkirki to further discuss the electoral law for the upcoming parliamentary elections, after they had reportedly agreed in a previous meeting to back the Orthodox law, which the Future Movement rejects.

Bkirki electoral proposal better for Christians, FPM MP says
Now Lebanon/Change and Reform bloc MP Ibrahim Kanaan said that the electoral proposal decided on at the meeting Christian leaders held at Bkirki ensures better Christian representation in the parliament.
“With all due respect to the [Thursday] meeting [MP Boutros] Harb held in his home, when [Christian] parties meet [at the seat of the Maronite Patriarchate in] Bkirki, that is the representation of the Christians in its majority,” Kanaan told the Manar TV channel on Saturday. On Friday, Lebanese Christian political leaders met at the seat of the Maronite Patriarchate in Bkirki to further discuss the electoral law issue. Friday’s meeting evidently voids the decision reached at a previous meeting to back the Orthodox Gathering proposal, which the Future Movement rejects. “In case there is no [other] law that ensures just representation, the [Orthodox proposal will be adopted]. However, there is a party that does not want this law,” the Free Patriotic Movement official added. The Orthodox law proposes citizens vote for candidates of their own sects.
Members of a parliamentary sub-committee began on Tuesday their discussions on different draft laws in order to choose a proposal to replace the 1960 electoral law, with the country’s political circles divided over which law to adopt despite the cabinet’s approval in September 2012 of a draft law based on proportionality and 13 electoral districts.

Orthodox proposal splits Christian opinion
Justin Salhani/Now Lebanon
With parliament working to decide on an appropriate electoral law to use in elections later this year, an old proposal has reemerged from the dustbin to take headlines this past week. The Orthodox Gathering’s proposed draft law gained attention when the four major Christian parties agreed to back it in a meeting last Monday. While members of Christian parties support the draft law, other figures have directed criticism in its direction.
“This is not an ideal law,” said Dr. Sami Nader, political analyst and professor at Universite Saint Joseph. “This defies the principles of citizenship and modernity in terms of building a modern state.” Nader added however that the issue of “Christian frustration” must be dealt with. “Christians have 50 percent of the [parliament seats] but practically they have less than a third,” he said, referring to districts like south Lebanon or the Bekaa, where small Christian communities’ votes are drowned out due to much larger Muslim communities.
The Orthodox Gathering proposal would turn Lebanon into one large electoral district where each citizen votes only for members of their respective sect.
The draft law proposal, which was widely disregarded by Lebanese politicians in late 2011, was immediately rejected by President Michel Suleiman and drew criticism from the Future Movement and Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt. However, non-dismissive statements from Hezbollah and Amal leader Nabih Berri have ensured it is still up for discussion.
“We are in a country where there’s no separation between state and religion,” said Kesrouan MP Naamtallah Abi Nasr of the Free Patriotic Movement. “Therefore, we either have to separate between state and religion and consider the state to be secular or respect the current distribution [of seats] as stipulated by the Taif Accord,” he said, adding that he thought the proposal was the most convenient choice.
Zahle MP Joseph Maalouf of the Lebanese Forces said that his party acknowledged the law came with “possibilities of negative effects on segregation” between sects but maintained that Lebanon would be better off with the Orthodox Gathering proposal over the current 1960s law that was amended in Doha in 2008. Under the current law, Lebanon is divided into 28 districts where citizens vote based on which district they come from. Maalouf added that the proposed law for 50 smaller districts was the favored law for both the LF and Kataeb.
While Nader agrees that the current electoral law is flawed he believes that the Orthodox Gathering proposal could also be harmful for the country. “The law will widen the divide and cut bridges between communities,” he said. Nader added that former MP Elie Ferzli’s involvement in re-introducing the law seemed suspicious.
“When a traditional Syrian ally who is known for being anything but an advocate of Christian rights throws this into public debate, I have all the reason to believe he’s backed by the Syrian regime,” said Nader. Maalouf however said that Nabih Berri has “created a fallback position” over the last couple days by not showing unconditional support to the proposal.
Antoine Haddad of the Democratic Renewal Movement told NOW that the Orthodox Gathering proposal “entails a change in the whole political system.” He added that the proposal “increases extremist ideas and sectarian polarization, takes Lebanon decades backwards and threatens coexistence.”
According to Haddad, if passed into law, it would make minorities more paranoid and weaken citizens’ ability to hold their representatives accountable.
“It creates a strong inequality among voters today, whereby - according to one’s sect - a voter can send 34 MPs to parliament, while another can’t elect more than one,” Haddad said, adding that independents, cross-sectarian and reform-oriented parties would be at a disadvantage to sectarian parties since they would have to submit a full list of candidates for each sect.
In fact, Thursday saw a press conference at the residence of Batroun MP Butros Harb, an independent Christian in the March 14 political bloc, to denounce the Orthodox Gathering proposal.
Harb told reporters that the law would “destroy Lebanon’s unity” and “divide Christians into rival sectarian statelets.”
Future Movement released a statement on Tuesday also rejecting the proposed law. On Thursday, March 14 MPs' refusal to allow parliament to vote on the law led Baabda MP Alain Aoun of the FPM to suspend his participation in parliament’s electoral committee. With opposition from independents, Future and the PSP, the law is currently predicted as an unlikely candidate to be adopted for elections later this year.
According to Nader, Christian leaders in Lebanon only supported this proposal due to “frustration” in the Christian community. “If they refuse it they will pay the price in terms of popularity within their community,” he said.
Follow the author on Twitter @JustinSalhani.

Arab League to assess refugees plight after Lebanon plea for help
January 14, 2013/ By Dana Khraiche The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Arab League foreign ministers agreed to send a team to assess the status of those fleeing violence in war-ravaged Syria, after Lebanon appealed to Arab states to fund assistance for refugees Sunday.
Describing the rapid increase in the number of refugees in Lebanon as a “dangerous humanitarian situation,” Lebanese ministers urged the Arab League to support the government’s plan to address the massive Syrian presence in the country.
Speaking to Arab League officials during an extraordinary session in Cairo, Social Affairs Minister Wael Abu Faour described the current situation of refugees as “worrisome,” asking Arab countries to help Lebanon cope.
“The situation has become worrisome and stressful on a large scale, especially as the government’s plan was designed based on the presence of 200,000 refugees while the number, I think, has surpassed 200,000,” the social affairs minister told the regional organization during a session called for by Lebanon to discuss the situation of Syrian refugees.
He added that Lebanon’s plan involves an annual budget of $180 million to pay for health, social and education services, including the current enrollment of 30,000 Syrian children in public schools.
Abu Faour also said that the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees expects the number of refugees in Lebanon to reach 425,000 by June of this year. “The numbers are expected to rise, throwing a heavy burden on the Lebanese state in terms of economic pressure ... and increasing tensions between host communities who are already poor, given that most of the refugees live with families in their homes,” the Lebanese minister said.
Jordan and Turkey, which the UNHCR says host 176,600 and 153,000 refugees respectively, have set up camps for refugees.
The number of those fleeing violence in Syria to neighboring countries and North Africa has jumped more than 100,000 in the past month to over 600,000 according to the UNHCR’s latest report.
UNHCR counted 69,300 refugees in Egypt, 69,000 in Iraq, 13,000 in Egypt and over 5,000 in North Africa.
The U.N. has said it expects the number of Syrian refugees in neighboring countries to reach 1.1 million by next June if the war continues.
Abu Faour said that the Cabinet’s plan, which is also designed to assist the more than 10,000 Palestinians who have fled Syria, includes $183 million for food, shelter and aid to international organizations working with the refugees who he said are scattered in more than 700 locations and municipalities.
Fending off allegations that Lebanon discriminates against refugees based on political affiliation, Abu Faour affirmed that his country is committed to “relief, shelter and the protection of those who have come to Lebanon to escape the situation in Syria.”
“I stress the word ‘protect’ to avoid all ambiguities or other issues that have been said about Lebanon in the past [with regards to its treatment to refugees],” said Abu Faour.
Abu Faour appealed to Arab states to help Lebanon meet the demands of the refugees, echoing the words of Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour during the extraordinary session.
“Lebanon has a plan and hopes the Arab brethren who have always supported Lebanon will stand by it again in the presence of this crisis ... Lebanon will not abandon or run away from the refugees but Lebanon needs those who can help it overcome the Syrian crisis,” Abu Faour said.
Mansour, who said the number of refugees created a “dangerous humanitarian situation,” spoke about Lebanon’s patchy infrastructure and the country’s inability to cope with the health demands of the refugees.
“There is an increasing difficulty in hospitals to cover for incurable illnesses and urgent cases as well as a lack of readiness in hospitals and medical centers in terms of infrastructure,” said Mansour, who chaired the session. He also said there is a growing need to equip refugee centers along with hospitals.
Also Sunday, the Arab League decided to send a delegation to visit Syria’s neighboring countries before a Jan. 30 donor conference in Kuwait.
A team will visit Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq to “assess the situation of Syrian refugees on the ground,” the Arab League said.

Hate Crime Stats Deflate 'Islamophobia' Myth
by David J. Rusin/National Review Online
January 11, 2013
http://www.meforum.org/3430/hate-crimes-islamophobia
A detailed analysis of FBI statistics covering ten full calendar years since the 9/11 terrorist attacks reveals that, on a per capita basis, American Muslims, contrary to spin, have been subjected to hate crimes less often than other prominent minorities. From 2002 to 2011, Muslims are estimated to have suffered hate crimes at a frequency of 6.0 incidents per 100,000 per year — 10 percent lower than blacks (6.7), 48 percent lower than homosexuals and bisexuals (11.5), and 59 percent lower than Jews (14.8). Americans should keep these numbers in mind whenever Islamists attempt to silence critics by invoking Muslim victimhood.
The federal government defines a hate crime as a "criminal offense against a person or property motivated in whole or in part by an offender's bias against a race, religion, disability, ethnic origin, or sexual orientation." Though statutes mandating harsher punishments for hatred-inspired acts raise the specter of thought crimes, emphasize group identity over the individual, and seemingly favor certain victims over others, the FBI's tracking of such deeds shines important light on the state of the nation. Annual reports assembled from local law enforcement data are accessible on the website of the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting Program. Especially useful is Table 1 of each compilation, which summarizes the number of incidents, offenses, victims, and known offenders for hate crimes committed against members of different groups.
No class of hate crimes has seen more fluctuation than anti-Muslim ones. The norm was a few dozen incidents per year in the late 1990s, but the number jumped from 28 in 2000 to 481 in 2001, a spike attributed to post-9/11 backlash. However, it dropped to 155 in 2002 and held remarkably steady through 2006, before falling again to 115 in 2007, 105 in 2008, and 107 in 2009.
Anti-Muslim incidents rose to 160 in 2010, an increase that Islamists and their mouthpieces eagerly blamed on rampant "Islamophobia," particularly opposition to a proposed giant mosque near Ground Zero. Based on freshly released FBI data, there was little change in 2011, with 157 incidents, 175 offenses, 185 victims, and 138 known offenders. Mark Potok of the reliably leftist Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), which puts foes of radical Islam in the same category as Klansmen and neo-Nazis, has declared that "hate crimes against perceived Muslims … remained at relatively high levels" as a result of "Islam-bashing propaganda," anti-Shari'a legislation, and ongoing resistance to new mosques, relaying that "several were attacked by apparent Islamophobes." Note the key word: "several" in a country with at least 2,106 mosques, a few million Muslims, and 300 million–plus non-Muslims.
As hinted above, the dark portrait of America as a nation of violent bigots uniquely hostile to Muslims does not withstand quantitative scrutiny. To smooth out year-to-year variations, consider the past decade (2002–11) of FBI-recorded hate crimes. There were 1,388 incidents against Muslims during this span, compared with 25,130 against blacks; 12,030 against homosexuals and bisexuals; 9,198 against Jews; and 5,057 against Hispanics. Even majority whites endured 7,185 incidents, while Christians (Protestants and Catholics combined) were targeted in 1,126 incidents. Adherents of "other religions" faced 1,335, very close to the anti-Muslim tally.
Due to the different sizes of minority groups, however, raw numbers cannot tell the complete tale. More insightful are per capita rates. Some back-of-the-envelope calculations follow.
The U.S. Census Bureau derived the total, Hispanic, and black populations for 2000 and 2010 from direct counts. Approximating their evolution with linear models, one can obtain estimates for any non-census year and, most important, the 2002–11 averages: total (299.2 million), Hispanic (45.2 million), and black (37.4 million). Surveys indicate that around 3.5 percent of American adults identify as homosexual or bisexual; applying this percentage to the total population gives a 2002–11 average of 10.5 million. Two studies have pegged the number of American Jews at about 6.5 million in 2010. Figures for 2000 vary (5.3–6.2 million), so for simplicity we set the average Jewish population between 2002 and 2011 at 6.2 million to account for moderate growth. As for Muslims, whose population estimates have a convoluted history, reputable recent numbers have been provided by the Pew Research Center (2.75 million in 2011) and the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies (2.6 million in 2010; full data extractable here), which agree on the current size and growth rate (around 100,000 per year). The 2002–11 average is roughly 2.3 million Muslims.
Adding the FBI data yields per capita frequencies of hate crimes for the past decade. Of the five main minority groups discussed above, Jews were most likely to experience hate crimes, with 14.8 incidents per 100,000 Jews annually. Homosexuals and bisexuals (combined) came next (11.5), followed by blacks (6.7), Muslims (6.0), and Hispanics (1.1). Rates for majority whites and Christians were much smaller.
With hate crimes befalling Muslims far less often than they do Jews or homosexuals and bisexuals and slightly less often than they befall blacks, it is clear that anti-Muslim incidents are disproportionate to those targeting other minorities only in terms of the hype generated on their behalf. A closer look reinforces this conclusion.
First, despite claims about a surge of prejudice, anti-Muslim hate crimes in 2010 and 2011 merely returned to the typical post-9/11 (2002–06) pace of 150–160 incidents per year. Further, a similar number of hate crimes in 2002 and 2011 implies a lower per capita rate in 2011 because of strong population growth.
Second, what of the Muslim population estimate? In hopes of inflating their presumed clout, Islamist groups routinely assert the existence of around 7 million American Muslims, three times as many as the more objective measurements. Note, however, that this Islamist-promoted figure actually would weaken their narrative of anti-Muslim hate crimes, because a higher population reduces the per capita frequency, thus painting them as even less significant in a statistical sense.
Third, though 2001, whose rash of hate crimes against Muslims was an outlier tied to a unique event, has been excluded from the above analysis, the 2001–11 rate for Muslims was just 7.4 incidents per 100,000 per year, still far short of that applying to Jews or homosexuals and bisexuals. Self-pitying Islamists also want us to forget that in spite of 9/11-related anger, anti-Jewish hate crimes outnumbered anti-Muslim hate crimes that year by more than two to one.
Fourth, could incomplete data affect the finding that Muslims are victimized less often than many non-Muslim minorities? Theoretically, yes, but evidence for this is scant. SPLC talking heads regularly cite a 2005 Justice Department study, using surveys of victims' perceptions of whether prejudice had motivated crimes against them, to argue that the FBI underestimates overall hate crimes by an order of magnitude. Yet even if those claims are valid, nothing suggests that anti-Muslim crimes are more or less likely to be ignored than others, which would be necessary to alter the relative frequencies of hate crimes against different groups. Another source of incompleteness is that not all local law enforcement agencies take part in the FBI's tabulation, but once again there is no obvious bias here that would preferentially diminish hate crimes against Muslims. Also note that the percentage of participating agencies (see the FBI's Table 12) is large and slowly climbing, covering 86 percent of the U.S. population in 2002 and 92 percent in 2011, meaning that improved reporting could have helped elevate the number of FBI-recorded hate crimes in later years. Although this impact is probably small, it further chips away at the meme of rising hate.
Fifth, consider hate crimes with the worst possible outcome: death. The subject has been in the headlines after a deranged woman suspected of murdering a Hindu man, Sunando Sen, by pushing him from a New York subway platform on December 27 told police that she "hate[s] Hindus and Muslims," whom she collectively blames for 9/11, and that she believed Sen to be Muslim. Following the initial rush to label Sen's murder a hate crime, journalists have learned that the alleged murderer had a long history of severe mental illness, had received only intermittent treatment despite numerous pleas for help and warnings from the family, and had repeatedly gone off her medication.
As the usual voices fault "our oversaturated Islamophobic environment" and "growing anti-Muslim hate," they neglect to mention how rare it is for an actual or perceived Muslim to die in a hate crime. By the FBI's count, 74 people were killed in hate crimes ("murder and nonnegligent manslaughter" in Table 4) from 2002 to 2011, but not a single one in an anti-Muslim incident. Indeed, the FBI lists no anti-Muslim fatalities since 1995, corresponding to the earliest report available.
Why do Islamists obfuscate? The false picture of an epidemic of physical assaults on Muslims distracts Americans from Islamist hatred and enshrines Muslims as the country's leading victim class, a strategy intended to intimidate citizens into remaining quiet about Islamic supremacism and lay the groundwork for granting Muslims special privileges and protections at the expense of others. In short, anti-Muslim hate crimes are a powerful Islamist weapon.
At its extreme, the desire to achieve victim status in this manner has fueled the phenomenon of fake hate crimes, through staging, blatant misrepresentation, or both. An illustrative example is the March 2012 murder of Shaima Alawadi, a hijab-wearing California woman found beaten to death at home with a note calling her a terrorist beside her body. Islamists and their credulous media allies pounced at the opportunity to condemn the supposed tidal wave of "Islamophobia," even as marital problems emerged as a potential motive. In November, police arrested Alawadi's husband.
Genuine hate crimes committed against any group are deplorable, but they must be placed in the proper context. First, hate crimes are uncommon across the board. Second, despite hyperbole about "anti-Muslim violence spiralling out of control in America" and producing "one of the most hostile moments that the Muslim American community has ever experienced," the real story is the amazing tolerance and restraint of the American people. Imported Muslim fanatics murdered thousands on 9/11, the threat of homegrown jihad has crystallized, and Islamists abroad continue to slaughter innocents daily. Though Americans could find no lack of excuses to strike out at their Muslim neighbors, almost nobody does — and thankfully so. As such, the annual victims of anti-Muslim hate crimes average between three and four per U.S. state and would have trouble filling a decent-sized jetliner.
Many Americans take a critical view of Islam, but virtually all restrict their negative sentiments to the domain of words and ideas, as civilized human beings should. People are free to have opinions, including anti-Islamic ones, regardless of how Islamists long to muzzle them. Islamists, in turn, are entitled to their own opinions about life in America. But they are not entitled to their own facts.
**David J. Rusin is a research fellow at Islamist Watch, a project of the Middle East Forum.

Despite US efforts, no Egypt-Israel “hot line.” Cairo hosts Gen. Soleimani
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report January 14, 2013/The Israel Defense Forces announced last week the closure to Israeli civilian traffic of a 182-kilometer long strip, 300 meters deep, along the Israeli-Egyptian border, carving out Israel’s first security zone in its sovereign territory. The step was taken as a direct result, debkafile reports, of the Obama administration’s failed effort to breathe life into the US-Egyptian-Israeli partnership for combating terror, when US Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence Michael Vickers visited Cairo earlier this month.
The three-way collaboration was concluded last November for ending the Gaza conflict and persuading Israel to refrain from a ground incursion into the Strip. Reconnecting the “hot line,” between the presidential palace in Cairo and Israel’s defense center in Tel Aviv was to have been part of the deal. Maintained by the Mubarak regime and military rule which followed, the line was cut off when the Muslim Brotherhood came to power last July.
However, according to our sources, Vickers’ mission to reactivate the Libyan and Sinai fronts against Islamist terror ran into a spirit of non-collaboration in Cairo. He found Egyptian leaders immersed in a process of rapprochement with Tehran brokered by Qatar, and was told that fighting the terrorist networks rampant in Sinai was not exactly convenient at that moment.
Instead, they were busy entertaining distinguished Iranian guests. debkafile’s intelligence sources report the first was Revolutionary Guards Al Qods Brigades commander, Gen. Qassem Soleimani, who paid a secret visit to Cairo last month, followed last Wednesday, Jan. 11, by Iran’s Foreign Minister Ali Akhbar Salehi.
It seems that President Mohamed Morsi has become a fan of Gen. Soleimani. He was deeply impressed by the feat he masterminded of keeping Syrian ruler Bashar Assad in power against all odds. The Iranian general was invited to Cairo to give Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood expert advice on keeping their regime safe from internal and external conspiracies.
Washington was disturbed most of all to discover that Qatar was the live wire which egged Cairo on to open up to friendship with Tehran. The Qataris oiled the works by promising cash-strapped Egypt a long-term loan of $2 billion on top of the first like amount extended last year. Both Washington and Jerusalem are baffled by Qatar’s inconsistency – on the one hand, robustly supporting the Syrian rebellion for the overthrow of Bashar Assad, Tehran’s closest ally, while furthering Iran’s drive to win over Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood and expand its influence in the Arab world, on the other. How does this square with the new pro-US Sunni Muslim axis including Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, which American diplomats negotiated along with the Gaza ceasefire deal in November? Could Qatar be playing a double game by building a second bloc along with Egypt and Iran?
Qatar’s motivations are vitally important to Israel because its rulers are already spreading tentacles smoothed by heavy cash infusions deep into the Palestinian power centers of Gaza and the West Bank.
By working for détente with Iran, Egypt and Qatar could end up opening the Palestinian back door for Tehran to walk through in both territories. This prospect was behind Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s recent warnings that Hamas could land with both feet in the West Bank in a matter of days.
On Aug. 24, 2011, Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz, announced the IDF was no longer treating the Egyptian frontier as a border of peace in view of new perils. His words marked the end of the decades of calm Israel and Egypt enjoyed after signing their 1979 peace treaty.
On Dec. 26 2012, the IDF inaugurated the new Eilat Division, set up for defending southern Israel against the terrorist forces making free of Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.
On Jan. 2, the Prime Minister marked the completion of a new security fence built along the former peace border at a cost of NIS1.8 billion. However, Israeli strategists have concluded that a defensive border fence would not provide enough security against the teeming Islamist terrorists and al Qaeda networks occupying Sinai. Hence, the new security strip which closes Route 10, the main highway linking northern and southern Israel, to civilian traffic.
Prime Minister Netanyahu’s primary strategy for combating the menaces besetting Israel is defensive. However, fences may alleviate local threats for a time but cannot affect the big strategic changes overtaking Cairo, Damascus and out-of-control Sinai on Israel’s doorstep.

US report: Iran running listening station in Golan
By JPOST.COM STAFF 01/14/2013 09:12
Congressional report suggests Revolutionary Guards has operated an intelligence base near Israel since 2006.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has been operating a signals intelligence (SIGINT) listening station in the Golan Heights, providing intelligence for Lebanon's Hezbollah since 2006, a US congressional report published last week suggests.
While the report, prepared by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress, alleges Iranian intelligence activities in the Golan, it also painted a picture of limited capabilities that have fallen short of their goals."Iranians reportedly planned to create two additional SIGINT stations in northern Syria, which were expected to be in operation by January 2007, but no information indicates that they are currently operating," the report stated.
"The technology at the two established SIGNIT stations indicates that Iran’s capabilities are still limited, with little scope for high-level strategic intelligence gathering," it added. On Sunday, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu visited the Golan Heights, where he received a briefing from senior IDF officials who told him Syrian rebel forces have taken up positions along the border with Israel, with the exception of the Quinetra enclave which is still in the hands of the Syrian army.
“The big question is when the big Syrian flag in Quinetra will be changed,” one IDF officer told Netanyahu, who spent the afternoon in the North and was briefed on the advances the Islamists and Salafists were making in Syria.
Discussing Syrian chemical weapons, Netanyahu said “This is not only an Israeli matter, we are in close contact with the US on this matter; it is a strategic interest of both countries.”
**Herb Keinon contributed to this report.