Launching ceremony for awareness videos on combating human trafficking

Under the patronage of the Director General of the Internal Security Forces, Major General Imad Othman, represented by the Acting Commander of the Internal Security Forces Institute, Administrative Brigadier Bilal Al-Hajjar, and within the framework of the project “Strengthening Community Policing in Lebanon” funded by the European Union, and with the support of Caritas, it was launched on 12/14/2023. At the Internal Security Forces Institute - Aramoun / Barracks of Martyr Major Wissam Eid, a series of awareness videos on combating human trafficking. The ceremony was attended by the Philippine Ambassador to Lebanon, representatives of the embassies of the European Union, the United States of America, Bangladesh, a delegation from Caritas and another from the Community Police Strengthening Project, in addition to a number of representatives of civil society bodies in Lebanon, local and international associations and organizations, and events. Interested people, and officers from the Internal Security Forces. On the occasion, I delivered several speeches, which were summarized as follows: Speech by Major General Othman’s representative, Brigadier General Al-Hajjar: Dear audience, what brings us together today at the Internal Security Forces Institute, the mother institute for security institutions, is an absolute faith in confronting one of the most complex crimes. The crime of trafficking in persons is not an ordinary, traditional crime, but rather it affects a person's humanity and the human dignity inherent in him and legislated by all heavenly and earthly laws. Given the seriousness of this crime, the Internal Security Forces, since before the issuance of Law 164/2011 (Punishment of the Crime of Trafficking in Persons), introduced this concept within the legal, civil, and academic community, where our officers had the initial initiative and effective participation in producing several papers and documents related to the definition of the crime and its indicators. And the necessary strategies to combat it and respond to its repercussions. The necessary training curricula have also been prepared for our members. Various ranks. Since the legal and security response alone is not sufficient, networking has been done with local and international civil society in order to ensure a multi-sectoral response so that we can provide shelter, health and psychological services to the victims of this crime. Caritas was one of the first partners in this field because of its long experience and high standards in providing shelter and providing various services to marginalized groups, especially migrant domestic workers. Our partnership with this ancient organization began more than a decade ago and included joint training in addition to technical committees that laid the foundations of the response applicable in our society. This long and strong partnership has increased in roots and successes recently, especially through the project to strengthen community policing, which was gratefully funded by the European Union, which included several activities related to training and raising awareness, leading to the production of awareness films, the subject of our meeting. The Internal Security Forces are not alone in the first line of contact to detect and identify the victims of this crime, and they are not alone in the battlefield and confrontation. Rather, the combined efforts of all sectors will inevitably lead to revealing every problem that society suffers from. Therefore, we call on everyone to join this battle to achieve a safer society. Speech of the representative of the European Union Embassy: The campaign, which we are launching through a collaborative partnership with Caritas and the Internal Security Forces, aims to raise community awareness to prevent human trafficking. The European Union is proud to support this project, which falls within a larger initiative to strengthen the rights-based approach in the Internal Security Forces to provide protection to victims of child labour, forced prostitution and other forms of violations in Lebanon. Speech by the representative of the Community Policing Strengthening Project: Laia Castells: The peculiarity of this campaign is that, following the community policing model, Caritas and the Internal Security Forces worked together in its design, establishing a collaborative partnership that will last beyond the duration of the project. In addition, the campaign will help improve public confidence in police work, by further highlighting the security forces' commitment to promoting human rights and providing protection services to victims of child labour, forced prostitution and other forms of exploitation, and human trafficking. Speech by Father Michel Abboud, President of Caritas: Father Abboud began his speech with a famous saying of one of the thinkers, stating that “it is not only the evil ones who destroy the world, but rather it is those who stand by and watch that the world is destroyed,” stressing “the importance of citizens applying the campaign’s slogan, not turning a blind eye to any indicators or signs of human trafficking, and reporting The concerned authorities, led by the Internal Security Forces, will contribute to supporting the fight against this crime, thus protecting the victims and holding the perpetrators accountable.” Pointing out that “what the Lebanese need most today is security and peace, in light of their loss of social, health and even food security,” he stressed that “all people working in the field, from the Internal Security Forces and all the forces in Lebanon and even Caritas, must They enjoy economic protection, so that they can perform their role and protect citizens in the best possible way. Hence the importance of the continuity of projects that are not available in our country, which constitutes a guarantee of the continuity of the work of our employees, workers and volunteers with high ethics in accordance with international standards.”

Independence Day 2023

On the occasion of the 80th Independence Day, on Thursday afternoon, November 23, 2023, students from the Department of History and International Relations at the Faculty of Arts and Humanities at Saint Joseph University (USJ) visited, accompanied by the Head of the Department, Dr. Christian Tuttle, and the Head of the Public Relations Division of the Internal Security Forces, Brigadier General Joseph Musallam, a number of members of the Internal Security Forces, where the tour began with a meeting with the Beirut Police Commander, Brigadier General Ahmed Abla. Dr. Tuttle began the meeting by conveying the greetings and appreciation of the University President, Father Professor Salim Dakkash, to Major General Othman. Then Brigadier General Abla explained to the students the major security tasks and responsibilities in the capital. By answering their questions. They then went to the operations room, the analysis room, and the monitoring and control room, and learned about the operation of the emergency number 112 and how to respond to citizens’ calls, the importance of forensic analysis to prevent the occurrence of crimes and quickly detect them, and the importance of the supervisory role played by the Beirut Police in maintaining security and pursuing criminals. They then moved to the Scientific Investigations Department in the Judicial Police Unit, and the officers, heads of the criminal laboratories, identity verification, central accidents, explosives, equipment, and supplies offices, explained to them the role of this department and how to detect crimes by adopting advanced scientific methods in removing evidence from crime scenes. The tour was completed with a visit to the 1st Beirut Regional Model Company, where the company commander briefed them on the principles of community policing under which it operates, and explained to them these principles, which are based on cooperation and partnership with the local community with the aim of maintaining security and enhancing stability, based on the shared responsibility with the community to implement the vision of Strategic Internal Security Forces “Together...towards a safer society.” At the conclusion of the visit, the students expressed their admiration for the scientific development achieved by the Internal Security Forces in several fields, and their pride in the professionalism of the officers and members, male and female, and the commitment and sacrifices they make in these difficult circumstances. They felt that there are professional people protecting them and watchful eyes looking after them. A national security institution has the right to have the support of people and society. We hope that this experience will be generalized to all universities in Lebanon, as it strengthens patriotism and belonging among Lebanese youth.

Major Claude Al Watar gave an awareness lecture

Major Claude Al Watar, one of the officers of the Information Division, gave an awareness lecture in front of a number of students in the eighth primary and first secondary grades at Fatat Lebanon High School - Beit Hbaq/Jbeil on the subject of cybersecurity and educating children about the dangers of the Internet.