Im still in a state of shock. For example, I had to explain that sexual intercourse was not, as many people might think, only penetration of the vagina of a woman by the penis of a man, but extended to penetration of any part of the body of a person by any part of the body of another. RELATED: Manhunt under way after shooting in Sydney suburb. The evidence of the two girls was given in closed court hearings but I permitted the press to have access to the transcripts of the evidence on the basis that the names of the two girls were not revealed and no photographs were taken of them. Stephen Gibbs for Daily Mail Australia On that day Bilal Skaf, Belal Hajeid and Mohammed Ghanem sat behind bullet-proof glass in the dock of a court room within Sydney's Downing Centre complex. They wanted wide publicity. My views on sentence were not those of the judges of the Court of Criminal Appeal, but their sentences prevail. That group, which became known as the 'Skaf gang' after their leader, Bilal Skaf, went on a 20-day rampage in which four young women were violated in three pack rapes shortly before the 2000 Olympics. The second trial had two accused only, Bilal Skaf and Mohammed Skaf, his younger brother. The Ryan-inspired OCR had just six crimes. There were a series of instances of forced oral intercourse by each of the accused men and H, as well as Y and the men in the red van. Ghanem was convicted of various offences at this trial but was later acquitted by direction of the Court of Criminal Appeal, which ruled that certain evidence tendered by the Crown, and allowed by me to be given in the trial, should not have been admitted. France I like Middle Eastern people. I was the judge who dealt with these trials. Crime families exchange gunfire and trade narcotics with apparent immunity; arrestees in Bankstown are 60 times more likely to use heroin than those in other parts in Australia. From the outset, the City of Bankstown in south-western Sydneys sprawling migrant belt is a picture of multiculturalism. When he gave evidence, Bilal Skaf was cocky in his manner and almost contemptuous of the Crown prosecutor. The available evidence suggests that Australians of Lebanese ethnicity who were born in Lebanon reportedly have higher rates of cardiovascular disease-related and type 2 diabetes-related complications when compared with the wider Australian population. 2. I considered that I should say these words because it was important that the jury and anyone listening to the trial, including the accused, have a full realisation that a woman has to do nothing more than refuse consent. The . Id punch any Aussie kid who even looked at me., (MORE:Circle Sentencing: Alternative Justice in Australia). She was also raped vaginally by another man who also forced oral sex on her. The crime was comparable to Lebanese gang rapes in Sydney. Some people believe that Melbourne gangs are behind the new wave of crimes, but the numbers tell us that most unique offenders are Australia-born youths between the ages of 15 to 25. investment If the value is 0, it means it is perceived as very low, and if the value is 100, it means it is perceived as very high. All except Bilal Skaf are now out of jail. These are questions that will probably never be answered. Within these neighbourhoods lies the ravaged home of award-winning Lebanese-Australian journalist Rania Abouzeid. With all of us getting used to working on Zoom and Slack, its become easier to work with people from different cities.. The main center of Arab organized crime is Sydney, with a significant community of 120,000, followed by Melbourne. Each of them also denied agreeing at any time, in the van or in the park, to oral sex with these men and the men in the red van. Deputy Commissioner for Investigations and Counter Terrorism Dave Hudson.Daniel Munoz Worldwide pandemic lockdowns have only made it easier for Lebanese expats to coordinate. Lebanese move to west Africa, escaping the crisis at home A new wave of migrants has come looking for jobs Jun 10th 2021 W HEN BANKS started to fail and protesters began filling the streets in. Frequently, whilst sitting in the dock, he clicked his fingers towards his counsel, summoning him over. The protests inspired Lebanese abroad to get involved, prompting would-be activists to connect virtually and volunteer. While Lebanese settled all over Australia, the majority have consistently settled in NSW and particularly in Sydney. None generated anything like the public attention these trials drew. None of the accused or the victims had been drinking alcohol and none had been taking drugs, even though having marijuana was an inducement offered to the two girls. I said to myself, I cant see this anymore, theres nothing I can do here, Im just going to go to the hospital to give blood and see how I can help.. Ive been a journalist for 20 years and Ive covered some really tough stories, Im no stranger to these sorts of violent upheavals, but this one feels different, Abouzeid says. At first they resisted, but we made them believe that respect is something every child deserves, but that they needed to take action to earn that respect, he says. Its just a mess. Abouzeid was in Melbourne at the time of the blast, relying on relatives to send photos of the destruction. By this time she was hysterical. She was reading a book of English literature, when a group of men led by Mohammed Skaf surrounded her and commenced to assault her indecently. To the streets, thats where., Australian-Lebanese filmmaker George Basha agrees. sport The Lebanese-born population of Australia stood at 70,325 persons in the 1996 census. He later pleaded guilty to some of the offences and when he did, I directed that he not be identified by his name. The three of them lived with their parents in houses in the suburbs surrounding Bankstown. He agreed that his client showed no remorse and no contrition. The Beqaa Valley, a fertile valley in east Lebanon and one of the country's most important farming regions, is also known for being one of the most important cannabis cultivating regions in the Middle East. The jury considered this very carefully and were out considering their verdicts for a number of days but, when they came back, they convicted the three accused on all charges. 'These were not random attacks and, in my view, they were aimed at creating terror in the community. Then it was reported from the police, that its investigators were trying to find a driver, who they believe transported the appellant from Brunswick, where the crime was committed, to the Carlton North area, where she was arrested, and said that he was wearing a dark-colored jacket with boxes in the back seat of his car, in addition to a breathing tube. I hope that those who have been released do rehabilitate or, at the very least, that they do not re-offend. It was about 9pm at this stage. The same trial process occurred as happened in the first trial and during my summing up I made the same remarks about the entitlement of a woman to say no. The main difference is that Greeks & Italians want to live in Australia under Australian laws and love our way of life, they mix with Australian's, they want their kids to and they great people. 'I reject this complaint as well,' he writes. Whatever they might have done in those centuries, the law is now perfectly clear - any woman is entitled to refuse consent to sexual intercourse at any time. New South Wales (NSW) state police have arrested 31 people, including three teenagers, after a turf war between two prominent drug gangs [File: David Gray/Reuters] By Ian Lloyd Neubauer. Lebanese families across generations in both rural and urban areas, including changes over time in occupations, education, religion, community activities and family values. That sentence was modified several times upon appeal. Luckily, a man came around the corner, saw her plight and approached her. 5 Brian Lipscomb new However, these crimes were of secondary importance. ASIAN ORGANISED CRIME IN AUSTRALIA A Discussion Paper by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on the National Crime Authority February 1995 (return to table of contents) 5. The young girl was subjected to extensive questioning by counsel for each of the accused and repeatedly it was suggested to her that she had consented to everything and/or was exaggerating or lying. The aim of this study is to compare . The Lebanese got a bad reputation after the 2000 Sydney gang rapes where 9 Lebanese-Australian youths gang raped several Anglo-Australian women in multiple attacks over the course of 2 months. The girls in the car were very concerned at this point, but too scared to get out and run away. Yet, the new gangland war fails to capture the imagination. Stars: Travis Fimmel, Jemmason Power, Talijah Blackman-Corowa, Eden Cassady Votes: 2,921 3. Learn how your comment data is processed. I have no intention of attempting to justify my sentences. And you, have you seen the conjunction of Venus and Jupiter in the sky of Barn? I remanded all of them in custody. Breaking news Life cannot. By All the windows were broken, the doors blown up, she says. The worst part was that these filthy criminals were in prison and the rapes kept happening. 'I do not think it is correct. The victim managed to break free and run across the park to a telephone box. The identities of the men in the red van on 10 August have never been established. In analogy with Australia, Arab organized crime also came to Germany following the Lebanese Civil War. The evidence showed Mohammed Skaf to be a treacherous bully who betrayed the trust of the victim and made her, a sixteen-year old school girl, available to his brother and ten or eleven other men. Social media has been very important pages connected to diaspora networks create a ripple effect, which helps spread the word and mobilise the Lebanese diaspora across cities and continents.. The girls had no idea where they were and were obviously terrified. Lebanese organized crime is active in the country of Lebanon itself, as well as in countries and areas with a large Arab community, most notably United Kingdom, Australia, Germany and Canada also in the Triple Frontier in South America. Home News Video- A crime shocked the Lebanese in Australia.. New facts about the murder of Abboud Yazbek. Mohammed Skaf was charged, like his brother Bilal, with two counts of sexual intercourse without consent because he had arranged for the girl to be made available to his brother and others to have sexual intercourse with the victim. Murder was not in his mind; terrifying people generally was.'. Skaf, through his counsel, suggested the two girls consented to everything that happened but that, of course, had difficulties since he not only sexually assaulted these girls, but those in the gang, including him, assaulted them and robbed them of their jewellery, their watches, their mobile phones and their money. 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