Rabih Dagher

You have previously heard about the documentary exposing Lebanese faking their Canadian permanent residency, and this one just adds to it.

Quebec’s healthcare system RAMQ (Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec) is trying to recuperate around $500,000 caused by the illegal use of the system, which made it the largest fraud in RAMQ’s history in relation to illegal use of the medical card. And guess what, the majority of this is caused by Lebanese.

RAMQ has investigated in the recent months around 1,700 immigrants. More than two-third of them, the majority Lebanese, have simulated their presence in Quebec with the help of a fraudulent Lebanese immigration lawyer, the famous now Nizar Zakka. They have obtained a medical card and used it for healthcare services totaling $500,000. RAMQ was only able to recuperate around $42,000 since most of the immigrants do not live in Quebec. The control of this fraudulent activity will not be easy until RAMQ implements its new barcode card.

You can read the investigation report on RAMQ’s official website here.

Quebec's healthcare system (RAMQ) medical card

Lebanon was once home to a thriving Jewish community, but its estimated that there are now fewer than a hundred Jews left in the country. So it came as a surprise when the tiny Jewish community announced the rebuilding of one of Beirut’s historic synagogues.

Natalia Antelava from BBC reports on the Beirut synagogue in the video below:

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One by one, Lebanese designers are conquering catwalks across Europe. While many designers in Europe have faced problems due to the economic downturn, Lebanon’s fashion designers have had no shortage of work. They are thriving as the country profits from a year of political stability.

BBC correspondent Natalie Antelava reports below from Beirut on Lebanon’s bid to become the capital of the Middle East fashion world:

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Rami, hats off to you.

‘The man in the Cube’ is a project organized by The League of Independent Activists – IndyACT aiming to raise global urgency on the critical dangers of global warming and to urge world leaders to take fast and effective action against climate change in Copenhagen this year.

‘The man in the cube’ (Rami Eid) represents “the last man on earth” enduring a fierce struggle for survival against climate change effects. He will be living in a transparent 4 meter square cube on Ein El-Mreyseh in Beirut, Lebanon, for 3 days starting October 16th, 2009.

The ‘last man’ simulates the possibility of a dim future for mankind where we failed to act against climate change when we had the chance.

Follow the man in the cube on twitter and his personal blog.

Rami Eid, the man in the cube - themaninthecube.wordpress.com

via IndyACT blog

Update (October 25th, 2009): Congratulations to the Lebanese again! We broke the third record for the largest tabbouleh ever made weighing 3557 kilograms!

Update (October 24th, 2009): Congratulations to the Lebanese people! We broke the two records for the largest plate to hold food and the largest hummus plate weighing 2056 kilograms! One more to go!

As part of a campaign to claim the ownership of the traditional dishes from Israel that currently holds those two records, the Lebanese Industrialists Association (LIA) is arranging a special public ceremony to break Israeli records in downtown Beirut on October 24 and 25. The hummus plate will be prepared on the first day, and the tabbouleh the following day. In addition to that, they are trying to break a third record, which is the largest plate itself.

Renowned Lebanese chef Ramzi Choueiri, manager of Al Kafaàt catering school, will be supervising the work of his 250 students at the cooking school in setting the new record of a 5-metre diameter bowl of hummus. The targeted bowl of tabbouleh should exceed 2 tonnes.

Stay tuned for the results!

2009 Largest Hummus Guinnes Record in Lebanon - twitpic.com/photos/arzleb

tipped via Jad Aoun’s Blog

“This is the party capital of the world”. That’s how Snoop Dogg described Beirut when he performed in the capital last August. He meant it when he said that, and the proof is that Beirut is featured in the official video clip of his new song That’s Tha Homie, which is from his new album Malice N Wonderland that is set to be released on December 8th, 2009.

Beirut and SkyBar got quite a bite of that video. Watch it below:

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Beirut, I Love You (I Love You Not) is a short film by “An Orange Dog Productions” about (fleeting) love & the little pleasures in life, all set and in relation with the very inspiring city of Beirut. It is a Beirut-ish tribute to Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Amelie Poulain.

The movie was written, directed, and cast by Mounia Akl & Cyril Aris, both from Lebanese origin. In addition to Naim Jeanbart, from Syrian/Canadian origin, they formed the amateur film crew Orange Dog Productions. In addition to this one, their list of movies consists of Wife For Sale, I’ll Be Stalkin’ You, and Seducing Lola.

Check it out in the video below:

And you wonder why the term Lebanese is not very appreciated in the Western world.

It is a shame (at least for me) to bring you this. Last week, a documentary appearing on Radio Canada’s show Enquête exposed the Lebanese faking their Canadian Permanent Residency to seek the Canadian Citizenship. Here is the documentary split into four parts for those who didn’t have the chance to see it:

Part 1:
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Part 2:
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Part 3:
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Part 4:
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An American University of Beirut (AUB) medical team successfully performed the first “artificial heart” implant in Lebanon, thus saving the life of a 37-year-old man suffering from terminal heart failure, the AUB said in a statement issued on Thursday.

It said the six-hour operation led by two AUB doctors took place at the American University of Beirut Medical Center Aug. 28. AUB deemed the operation “successful” as the patient survived the first critical 72 hours, showing improvements in all his vital signs.

The “artificial heart” implant operation involves the insertion of a device called a Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) that takes over the functions of the left ventricle of the heart, the dominant chamber which is responsible for pumping oxygenated blood via the aorta to the rest of the body. The LVAD used in this surgery is called Heartmate II. It is manufactured by the U.S. medical technology company, Thoratec.

The two AUB doctors, Dr. Pierre Sfeir and Dr. Hadi Skouri, were assisted by a multidisciplinary medical team, including the leading expert on LVAD operations, Dr. Latif Arusoglu, a German surgeon, as well as a clinical specialist, both dispatched by Thoratec.

Lebanon's first artifical heart implant performed at AUB - Naharnet

On Saturday August 29th, the Lebanese village of Ehden entered the Guinness World Book of Records for cooking the world’s largest plate of Kibbeh, which is a traditional dish for which Ehden is famous. Kibbeh is a Levantine Arab/Assyrian dish made of burghul and chopped meat.

Twenty five women participated in cooking the Kibbe plate, which had an area of 20 square meters and weighed 233 kilograms. They used 120 kilos of mince, 80 litres of olive oil, 80 kilos of cracked wheat, five kilos of salt and a mere kilo of pepper. The event was attended by the Guinness records’ regional representative, Talal Omar, who presented the certificate to Rima Franjieh, the head of the Maydan Institute which organized the festival.

Lebanese Kibbeh in Guinness Book - Joseph Barrak

Update (June 21st 2009): The Lebanese broke the record!!! The new Guinness Book Record is 4475! Congrats.

Take part in making history! Come help Tollab - the Lebanese students’ federation in Montreal - in one of the biggest record breaking events of 2009!

It is within the framework of the annual Lebanese festival in Montreal (held on June 19th, 20th and 21st 2009) that Tollab, in collaboration with MAESTRO travel, aims at setting up a new record for the longest dabke chain ever assembled; an accomplishment that will enter the famous Guinness book of records after being approved by its official representative.

The Federation’s goal is to gather 3500 people at the Marcelin-Wilson Park on the 20th of June, and invite them to dance the Dabke for at least 5 minutes. This event will provide Montreal an international exposure that will highlight its multicultural face, hence uniting all Lebanese and Montrealers of all colors, religions, names or cultures.

The event will take place at 7:30 pm on June 20th 2009 at the Marcelin-Wilson Park, which is located on 11301 boul. de l`Acadie in Montreal, Quebec.

If you would like to participate, there’s no registration beforehand, so you only need to show up for the event.
For more information, you can visit the event’s official facebook page here, or contact Tollab at communication@tollab.ca.

Tollab's 2009 Dabke record in Guinness Book flyer

We all pass by phases or experiences in our life that get carved into our memory, and tend to stay with us most of our lives. One of such experiences for me is the Lebanese C.S. Sagesse (Club Sportif La Sagesse) club, also known as Hekmeh, which I played football (soccer) with during my adolescent years. I have played with them for almost two years when I was around 15 years old, but the sweet memories of this short period of time still linger in my head.

For a Lebanese, I don’t think Sagesse needs an introduction. For an outsider, it is a Lebanese sporting club based in Beirut which takes part in football and basketball. Hekmeh is arabic for “Wisdom”. C.S. Sagesse was founded in 1943, under the patronage of the late father Boulos Kik, supported by his excellency late Mgr. Jean Maroun. The club started as a football team, then in 1992 basketball became part of it. The basketball team is more popular than the football team. In football, the team competes in the Lebanese Premier League. The team usually plays their home matches in Fouad Shehab Stadium which can hold up to 5,000 supporters. In basketball, it is known to be the Lebanese Club that had won the most in championships such as 8 Lebanese Leagues, 3 Lebanese Cups, 2 Arab Clubs, and 3 Asian Cups.

The picture below was shot in Ain Saadeh at the time I used to play with them. There used to be our training field, and it was actually one of the best football fields in the country, and only 5 min away from where I lived. I still wonder why they didn’t make it an official football stadium. In the middle of the picture (in dark green) you can see the legendary Emile Rustom. For those of you who do not know him, he is a prominent Lebanese football coach and manager. He was the head coach of Sagesse until 2005, when he joined Lebanon’s national team. He is currently the coach of the Lebanese National Football Team. Emile Rustom is the father of Paul Rustom, a rising star and current football player of the team Nijmeh. Paul used to train and play with us, but he does not appear in the picture.

Can you spot me in the picture? (Click on it to enlarge)

C.S. Sagesse Lebanon football (soccer) team picture

Not a single Lebanese have not seen, heard of, or tasted the three-sided pyramid juice Bonjus. This exquisite beverage has become part of the Lebanese culture, and will likely to stay for the many generations to come. But guess what, now not only you can drink it, but also you can wear it! Sarah’s Bag has added a new nostalgic item to its astonishing and fabulous collection of bags: the Bonjus bag.

I have previously introduced Sarah’s Bag in my other post (Sarah’s Bag: Lebanon’s fashionable bags and accessories), but this post is dedicated specifically to this bag since I believe it is an impressive piece of work. Who could have imagined that one day girls would be wearing a Bonjus bag?! In an article published by the daily L’Orient-Le Jour, Sarah’s Bag affirmed that its bag does not contain any liquid, is not explosible, does not come with a straw, but on the other side, it can last for a period more than just a childhood.

If I were a girl, I would have definitely bought this bag.

Bonjus Bag by Sarah's Bag

This post is an exclusive scoop.

If you’re Lebanese and a raver, then you have definitely heard of Gunther & Stamina. They are two brilliant Lebanese DJs who are famous for their long sets (sometimes up to eight hours) every Saturday at b018, Beirut, Lebanon where they hold a residency every week Thursday, Friday & Saturday as main act. And guess what? They are coming to Montreal on May 29th 2009 to play in club Karma!

Gunther teamed up with Stamina (Elias Merheb) in 2005, and since then they became well known in the Lebanese rave scene. Their long sets are blended with the latest underground music from ambient minimal to deep House, progressive, tribal, tech-house and techno. They hold as well a week-end star residency on MixFM, the official number one station in the middle-east, every Friday from 20:00 till 21:00 (Underground sessions is the name of the show).

Update (May 29th 2009): Quoting unconfirmed sources, the Canadian visa was given late to Gunther & Stamina and the show has been postponed to a later notice.

Contact Address of Karma Club:
4467 boulevard Saint-Laurent
Montréal, QC H2W 1Z8, Canada
(514) 658-5761

Gunther & Stamina - taken from their facebook page

I first heard of this through Carla from Out of Lebanon blog, and thought that it would be interesting to introduce it to my entourage, even though I’m late on this and many of you must have already known about it. It is called Sarah’s Bag. It is distinctive, vivacious, and elegant with a touch of retro glamour and a street-wise sensibility. It is stylishly aware and socially responsible.

Sarah’s Bag is a Lebanese line of handcrafted, custom-made women’s fashion accessories. It started out in the year 2000 as a collection of handbags, but soon after it has expanded to include beach totes, evening bags, clutches, and satchels, along with shoes, scarves, sashes, belts, bangles, and beaded necklaces. What makes them unique is that they are made by female prisoners and former inmates, and each piece requires 10 to 15 days of meticulous embroidering, beading, crocheting, and hand-stitching to produce. Sarah’s Bag is fast becoming a worldwide brand after many celebrities embraced its line of work, among them are French actress Catherine Deneuve and Queen Rania of Jordan.

The story of Sarah’s Bag began when Sarah Beydoun, a Beirut-based Lebanese sociology student at the time, was writing her master’s thesis on female prostitution and women prisoners in Lebanon at the Université Saint Joseph (USJ). She realized she could combine her interest in improving underprivileged women’s lives with her love for fashion. Sarah decided to set up her company as part of a rehabilitation program, whereby women at risk from economic depravation or the stigma of having served time in prison would learn valuable skills in return for a reliable income and a stable source of pride, dignity, and empowerment. As the company expanded, Sarah teamed up with her friend Sarah Nahhouli.

Sarah’s Bag showroom is located in the neighborhood of Gemmayzeh, a five-minute walk from Downtown Beirut. Other selling points could be found worldwide such as in the Gulf, Africa, and USA. Even though there isn’t any selling point yet in Montreal, I believe this will happen soon due to the company’s fast worldwide takeoff.

For more information on Sarah’s Bag, its showroom and selling points addresses, collection, and press releases, you can visit its website at www.SarahsBag.com.
For pictures of its line of bags, you can visit its Official Facebook Page.

Sarah's Bag Lebanon showroom - SarahsBag.com

If you are a Lebanese expatriate and wish to watch MTV Lebanon channel live, you can now do that on my website at www.rabihdagher.com/iptv .

MTV Lebanon (Murr Television) logo

Good news for the Lebanese wishing to apply for immigration in Canada. Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced a couple of days ago that as of March 31st 2009, Lebanese nationals applying to immigrate to Canada may select the visa office in Beirut, Lebanon, as their main point of service.

The prelude of these enhanced services started with last year’s announcement which gave immigration applicants from Lebanon the option to have their interviews conducted in Lebanon rather than Syria. But now, applicants have the choice submit their applications to the Canadian embassy in Beirut, and have their files processed there.

But, Federal Skilled Worker applicants will need to submit their application elsewhere – to the Case Processing Centre in Sydney, Nova Scotia, which is the process for all applicants in this class. Canadian citizens and permanent residents sponsoring their family will continue to send their applications to the Case Processing Centre in Mississauga, Ontario. On their application form, they will be able to select the office in Beirut as their primary point of service.

Check the press release on the Citizenship and Immigration Canada website.
For a list of FAQ on these enhanced services at Beirut visa office, Click Here.
Visit the embassy website at www.international.gc.ca/missions/lebanon-liban .

Contact Address of the Canadian Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon:
First Floor, Coolrite Building, 43 Jal El Dib Highway
P.O. Box 60163
Jal El Dib, Lebanon
Tel.: (011 961 4) 71 39 00
Fax: (011 961 4) 71 05 95 or (011 961 4) 71 05 93
Email: berut@international.gc.ca

Lebanese waiting in front of Canadian embassy - Associated Press

Who has controlled the Middle East over the course of history? Pretty much everyone. Egyptians, Turks, Jews, Romans, Arabs, Persians, Europeans etc… the list goes on. Who will control the Middle East today? That is a much bigger question.

Click on the ‘Play’ button in the video below from MapsOfWar.com :

Note: the events shown in the video are only till 2006.

“With a recent (though perhaps tenuous) détente keeping the violence in check, the capital of Lebanon is poised to reclaim its title as the Paris of the Middle East”. That’s how The New York Times described Beirut which was chosen as number one place to go in 2009.

Its luxurious hotels, exquisite culinary scene, and crazy nightlife made it appear under the Luxury, Foodie, and Party categories.

Check the complete list at The New York Times travel website.

Downtown Beirut - Norbert Schiller for The New York Times