By Kenya Sinclair (CALIFORNIA NETWORK)

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) – Father Jacques Mourad is a Syrian priest who was captured in May. He believed he would die for his faith and told Italian TV 2000 "This is the miracle the Good Lord gave me: while I was a prisoner I was waiting for the day I would die, but with a great inner peace. I had no problem dying for the name of Our Lord; I wouldn’t be the first or the last, just one of the thousands of the martyrs for Christ"
He was one of two men captured on May 21 when militants entered the Monastery of Mar Elian in Al Qaryatayn. Mourad described his captivity, saying, "The first four days we were in the mountains, locked up in the monastery’s car we were captured in. On Aug. 11 we were taken to near Palmyra, where there are 250 other Christian prisoners from the city of Al Qaryatayn."

Catholic Herald – catholicherald.co.uk A church dedicated to Christians who were murdered by militants allied to ISIS  is to be built in Egypt.Twenty-one martyrs were beheaded on a beach in Libya in February. Work began on the foundations of the new church in the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Samalout earlier this year.

Bishop Paphnutius of Samalout said: “We are extremely proud of our martyrs. Although they were forced to kneel before their executioners, they were the stronger. Their murderers were the weaker, despite their weapons. Why would they have concealed their faces otherwise? It could only have been because they were afraid. Our sons by contrast were very strong and called on our Lord until their very last breath.”

Eleanor Goldberg

huffington post

Syrian children are at risk of becoming the “lost generation,” an issue that’s of particular concern among girls who are being forced to wed at staggering rates.

In Lebanon, 24 percent of Syrian refugee girls are getting married before they turn 18, according to a study by the University of St. Joseph in Lebanon. Impoverished parents there often see no choice but to find husbands for their daughters, even though resorting to such measures puts the girls at serious health risks, in addition to denying them education and economic opportunities.

TEHRAN, Oct. 17 (MNA) – Lebanon’s prime minister has praised Iran’s nuclear deal and deemed it as an opportunity for expansion of bilateral ties.

The Prime Minister of Lebanon Tammam Salam received Iran’s Chairman of Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Alaeddin Boroujerdi and his accompanying delegation on Friday. 

Noting Iran’s vital role in the region, he asserted “due to its superior position in the region and interest in in stability and security in Lebanon, we call for Iran’s help in election of our new president.”

By Joseph A. Kechichian,Senior Writer – Gulf news

Boston,USA: Immersed in narrow outlooks, Lebanese politicians scrambled for relevance as regional and global actors increased their involvements in Syria, where heightened tensions endangered the relative internal stability of this vulnerable country. As confrontations increased in frequency and violence, elites huddled around national dialogue round-tables that, for lack of a better term, required seriousness or meaningful objectives. After months during which politicians engaged in conversations, shared viewpoints, and otherwise pretended to place the interests of the nation ahead of narrow goals, they failed to settle on the principal roadblock, namely the election of a head-of-state. Instead, each and everyone concentrated on peripheral issues that skirted fundamentals, further distancing the body politic from citizens.

Interview by Emily Mathieson

The Guardian: Beirut has a mix of beauty, history and anarchy that can be deeply inspiring. The element of the unexpected, even chaos, leaves a lot of space for creative expression. The reason I live in Beirut is because of the inspiration it gives me as an artist and film-maker. It challenges me and makes me feel connected. I feel that I am living in history as it happens. Here, I feel I can leave a mark and make a difference.

Beirut is next to the sea. I can see the Med from my dining room window. It’s great to stroll along the Corniche [promenade], especially early in the morning, when the city is fresh and clean, but the sunset is nice, too. It’s the place to see all walks of society: fishermen, joggers, children on their bikes, people drinking coffee or playing backgammon. There are veiled women walking hand in hand with girls in mini skirts, as well as musicians and street artists.

hrw.org (Beirut) – Lebanese military authorities should immediately and unconditionally release a women arrested after she alleged being raped in military custody in 2013. The Lebanese army referred the case of Layal al-Kayaje, who was arrested on September 21, 2015, to the military prosecutor to investigate her for allegedly harming the military’s reputation by making false accusations.

 Both the criminal prosecution of a civilian before a military court and a prosecution for allegedly defaming the army or other state institutions contravene Lebanon’s obligations under international law. The Lebanese judiciary should open an independent and impartial investigation into al-Kayaje’s allegations of rape by members of the military and hold anyone involved criminally responsible, Human Rights Watch said.

HAVANA, Cuba, Oct 15 (acn) Cuban Foreign Trade and Investment Minister Rodrigo Malmierca analyzes on Thursday bilateral relations with Lebanese Foreign Minister (FM) Gebran Bassil, after arriving in Beirut heading a business delegation, Prensa Latina reported.
Malmierca was accompanied by Orlando Hernandez, president of the island’s Chamber of Commerce, to participate in the second bi-national economic forum with the Lebanese-Cuban Council of Businessmen, headed by Ali Kazma.

Reuters,

The families of the 25 Lebanese servicemen held hostage by Islamist militants on the northeastern border pleaded Thursday for Qatar’s emir to help resolve the 14-month-old crisis.

“This is a humanitarian crisis, not a political or sectarian one … Please help bring our sons back before winter,” a spokesperson for the families said during a press conference after a delegation of the families met with Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk.

The families also called on Prime Minister Tammam Salam and Speaker Nabih Berri to resolve the issue “as they promised.”