LBCI’s Nharkom Said tackles the case of Roula Yaacoub and other...

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Member of the Change and Reform bloc MP Michel Helo said on Monday that the parliamentary sub-committee has completed discussions regarding the draft law to protect women against domestic violence, noting that the joint committees still have to discuss it before referring it to the general authority session for ratification.

Helo told LBCI’s Nharkom Said that the draft law was discussed in a serious manner given the accuracy of its items, pointing out that the religious factor related to the law topped the sub-committee’s deliberations.

He added that the violence used against women results mainly from a mentality of male superiority, stressing that the committee left the case in the hands of the Personal Status Court to proceed according to its jurisdiction.

Attorney Layla Awada

For her part, attorney Layla Awada, a Kafa organization activist, stressed that nothing justifies the use of violence against women. “We do not live under the law of the jungle,” she added.

Awada noted that a number of deputies defended the spiritual Sharia Courts and suggested to expand their powers.

Bouchra Khoury: Roula Yaacoub’s neighbor

In this context, Mrs. Bouchra Khoury, one of the neighbors of Roula Yaacoub who was killed after being violently beaten by her husband, explained that Roula had always been beaten by her husband but remained silent to protect her five children, noting that Roula informed her husband’s family of her situation.

Khoury revealed that a physician at the hospital’s emergency where Roula was admitted stressed that the latter was heavily beaten on the head, while the forensic doctors denied such statements.

Mrs. Khoury added that Roula’s mother has been receiving threats from her daughter’s in-laws of depriving her from her grandchildren in case they followed up with the lawsuit against the husband.

Zeinab Awada

In turn, Zeinab Awada who is a victim of domestic violence said that she had been beaten by her husband for eight years, pointing out that as a result, she had to undergo several surgeries.

She added that her daughter suffered from a difficult psychological crisis, revealing that she was also beaten by her husband’s children.

It is worth noting that her husband is 23 years Zainab's senior and had children from his previous marriage.

Rim Zakkariah

Furthermore, Rim Zakkariah, another victim of domestic violence said that she had been physically abused by her husband for eight years, stating that she had married her cousin according to her parents’ decision and she had to bear the situation because of her father’s refusal of a divorce.