English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For November 10/2022
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news

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Bible Quotations For today
The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 17/20-26/:’‘I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. ‘Righteous Father, the world does not know you, but I know you; and these know that you have sent me. I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.’”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on November 09-10/2022
Iran says 'fuel truck' heading to Lebanon hit by US drones in east Syria
USAID head announces 22 new solar-powered projects in Lebanon
EU supports Lebanon's cholera preparedness and response
ISF busts 8 IS cells that were plotting attacks
Berri files complaint with Oueidat over Ghada Aoun's WikiLeaks tweet
Berri meets Parliamentary Secretary to Canada's Foreign Minister, Japanese Ambassador
Mikati meets UN Coordinator for Middle East Peace, Canadian official, Japanese Ambassador
Mikati broaches cultural affairs with Caretaker Minister of Culture
Bou Habib broaches current developments with Canada’s Oliphant
18 prisoners flee Amyoun penitentiary in Koura
Lebanon: Caretaker Minister Says 8 Terror Cells Seized in 2022
After Israel, Lebanon eyes sea border talks with Syria
“Strong Lebanon” bloc meets under chairmanship of MP Gebran Bassil

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on November 09-10/2022
Top US Republican says 'clear we are going to take the House back'
Strikes in Syria hit fuel convoy from Iraq; Iranians killed
Israel president meets parties as Netanyahu set to form government
Iran Charges Two Women Journalists with Anti-state Propaganda
Iran cities strike in solidarity with Zahedan dead
Iran Revolutionary Guards Arrest Top Lawyer
Iran executes two men convicted over 2016 police killings
Iran's army issues warning to 'rioters' as security forces struggle to suppress unrest
Lapid, Gantz Refuse Proposal to Join Netanyahu’s Govt
In a first, Israeli general opens up about use of armed drones
Russia abandons Ukrainian city of Kherson in major retreat
Armed Militia Announces Responsibility for Death of US Citizen in Iraq

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on November 09-10/2022
Close All China Consulates, Slash Embassy Staff/Gordon G. Chang/Gatestone Institute./November 9, 2022
Turkey Using Chemical Weapons Against the Kurds?/Uzay Bulut/Gatestone Institute/November 09/2022
How Iran Has Been Attempting to Suppress the Great Hijab Rebellion/Lawrence A. Franklin/Gatestone Institute/November 09/2022
Iran: 80/20/Tariq Al-Homayed/Asharq Al-Awsat/November 09/2022
Syria in the Narratives of its Invaders/Hazem Saghieh/Asharq Al-Awsat/November 09/2022
Who Is Responsible for Protecting the Climate?/Salman Al-Dossary/Asharq Al-Awsat/November 09/2022
Qatar Tells Muslim Migrants to Despise Their Western Host Nations/Raymond Ibrahim/November 09/2022
In 2022 Polls, Views on U.S. Relations On Par with Other World Powers in the Middle East/Frances McDonough/The Washington Institute/November 09/2022
Iran’s Oil Exports Are Vulnerable to Sanctions/Henry Rome/The Washington Institute/November 09/2022

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on November 09-10/2022
Iran says 'fuel truck' heading to Lebanon hit by US drones in east Syria
Agence France Presse/Associated Press/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
A strike on a pro-Iran militia convoy in eastern Syria near the Iraqi border killed at least 14 people overnight, a war monitor said Wednesday, without specifying who carried it out. An official of the Iraqi border guard said the trucks were transporting fuel from Iran to Lebanon overland through Iraq and Syria. He said the convoy consisted of 22 tanker trucks, of which 10 were hit after entering Syrian territory through the Al-Qaim - Albu Kamal border crossing. Four trucks were "completely burnt", he added. According to two paramilitary officers in Iraq, some of those killed in the attack were Iranian nationals.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the attack hit a convoy of "fuel tankers and trucks loaded with weapons," in the the Albu Kamal area of the border. It said at least 14 people were killed in the strike and a nearby militia position was also hit. Iranian state television’s English-language service, Press TV, early on Wednesday cited unnamed sources claiming there was an attack on a fuel truck convoy crossing from Iraq into Syria at the al-Qaim border crossing. Press TV claimed the convoy was carrying Iranian oil to Lebanon through Syria. Iranian officials offered no casualty details.
Iran's state TV claimed the convoy attack was carried out by U.S. drones and helicopters, offering no evidence for the claim. It said the convoy included 22 tanker trucks, adding that the attack took place after eight of the trucks crossed into Syria. The U.S.-led coalition told reporters in Iraq that it had no involvement in the raid. Contacted by AFP, a spokeswoman for the U.S.-led coalition fighting the remnants of the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria said that the strike was not carried out by the United States or any other coalition country. Pro-Iran militias have a major presence around the Iraq-Syria border and are heavily deployed south and west of the Euphrates in Syria's Deir Ezzor province.
- Israel says 'no comment' -
A spokesman for the Israeli military told AFP: "We do not comment on foreign press reports."Israel rarely comments on its military actions in Syria, save for operations in direct response to what the army considers immediate threats.But Israel has acknowledged carrying out hundreds of air and missile strikes in Syria, targeting both government positions and Iran-backed forces, since civil war broke out in the country in 2011. Israel has said repeatedly it will not allow its archfoe Iran to gain a new foothold on its northern border. In recent months, it has carried out multiple unconfirmed strikes in Syria, including one which killed five government troops in the capital Damascus and two that caused significant damage to the airport in the second city Aleppo. Shiite militia groups close to Iran have a significant military presence across Syria and have been a key support to President Bashar al-Assad's forces. Pro-Iran militias have a major presence around the Iraq-Syria border and are heavily deployed south and west of the Euphrates in Syria's Deir Ezzor province. In September last year, attack drones operated by an unidentified military struck a convoy belonging to Iraq's Hashed al-Shaabi, a paramilitary force made up mainly pro-Iran militias, in the Albu Kamal border area, killing at least three people.

USAID head announces 22 new solar-powered projects in Lebanon
Naharnet/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
Samantha Power, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), on Wednesday announced $8.5 million in funding for Lebanon that will support 22 new solar-powered water pumping projects in Lebanon. These projects, which will be completed over the next two years, will serve more than 150 towns and villages and benefit over half a million Lebanese citizens and refugees by providing reliable access to water and decreasing operating costs and dependence on fuel to those who desperately need it. "USAID has supported 41 solar energy projects to date benefiting 460,000 residents in 70 Lebanese towns and villages. In addition to providing a much-needed source of electricity, solar-powered water pumping projects also refurbish the stations’ chlorination equipment. Pumping chlorinated water to towns is particularly critical as the country addresses an unprecedented cholera outbreak," the U.S. Embassy said in a statement. Administrator Power made the announcement while touring a solar-powered water pumping site in West Bekaa, which provides energy to a water pump that supplies water to 19,000 residents, including 12,350 Lebanese residents and 6,650 refugees from neighboring countries. USAID will employ local firms for engineering design and construction of the new sites, ensuring the employment opportunities of these projects benefit the local economy and strengthen job security. "USAID is committed to helping the Lebanese people in this time of economic crisis and will continue to support their work to combat corruption and advance economic growth and stability," the statement said.

EU supports Lebanon's cholera preparedness and response
Naharnet/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
In response to the cholera outbreak in Lebanon, the EU is allocating €800,000 towards community-based water, sanitation and hygiene interventions in areas with a concentration of cholera cases, the EU Delegation to Lebanon said. "Ongoing EU humanitarian programs are also redirecting efforts to address this new emergency," the Delegation added in a statement. European Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarčič, said: “We are seeing the situation in Lebanon go from bad to worse, with almost 80% of the population living in poverty. Cholera is an indication of this deteriorating situation and could not have come at a worse time. The EU funding will allow our humanitarian partners to deploy rapid response teams and ensure affected communities consume water that is safe.”Potentially deadly if left untreated, cholera is transmitted through unclean water. People in poor housing and in refugee settlements lack access to safe water and often live in unsanitary conditions which help fuel the spread of the disease. Lebanon is experiencing a deepening crisis since 2019. With sanitation and health systems seriously impacted and an increasingly vulnerable population, there is concern about containing the outbreak. The country is facing major disruptions in the delivery of water and a lack of fuel to operate wastewater treatment plants. Last month, the EU also committed additional funding for the fight against cholera epidemics in Syria (€700,000), Haiti (€1 million) and Ethiopia (€100,000) in addition to mobilizing EU humanitarian partners on the ground for cholera preparedness and response.

ISF busts 8 IS cells that were plotting attacks
Naharnet/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
The Internal Security Forces on Wednesday announced that its Intelligence Branch had dismantled in summer eight Islamic State-linked cells that had been plotting terrorist attacks in Lebanon. In a statement, the ISF said the arrests were made between July and October in the Bekaa, Beirut, the North, the South and Mount Lebanon."After they were interrogated, it turned out that they had been plotting to target military and security centers and various religious and civilian gatherings," the ISF added. It noted that most of the 30 detainees are Lebanese citizens while the others are Syrians and Palestinians and one Egyptian. The ISF also pointed out that the arrests were not made public in the summer in order not to "negatively affect the tourism season." "These achievements are a clear evidence of the readiness of this institution and the other security agencies for combating terrorist operations and all forms of crime, despite all the difficult circumstances that the country is going through,” the ISF went on to say.

Berri files complaint with Oueidat over Ghada Aoun's WikiLeaks tweet
Naharnet/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri filed on Wednesday a complaint to Public Prosecutor Ghassan Oueidat, following a tweet by Mount Lebanon Prosecutor Judge Ghada Aoun. Aoun had earlier today published a list of names of Lebanese officials who have frozen accounts in Switzerland, citing WikiLeaks as a source. She captioned the list with a call for the mentioned politicians to lift secrecy off their accounts, "for the sake of transparency.""I do not know how true this information is, but why don't they disclose their accounts in the Swiss banks," Aoun said. The name of Berri comes fourth in the list with $6.4 billion, in addition to an account for his wife Randa Berri worth $5.7 billion and another for his son Abdallah Berri worth $2 billion. Berri's lawyer Ali Rahhal filed a complaint before Oueidat for "prosecution, investigation and for taking the necessary legal measures."The list also respectively includes the names of ex-Prime Minister Fouad Saniora, caretaker PM Najib Mikati, Mikati's brother and business partner Taha Mikati, ex-Deputy PM Michel Murr, ex-PM Saad Hariri, Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh, Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat, ex-Minister Elias Murr, MP Neemat Frem, former President Michel Suleiman, ex-MP Nicholas Fattoush, MP Fouad Makhzoumi, Zahle politician Myriam Skaff and Change MP Paula Yacoubian.

Berri meets Parliamentary Secretary to Canada's Foreign Minister, Japanese Ambassador
NNA/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
House Speaker Nabih Berri received, at his Ain-el-Tineh residence on Wednesday, Parliamentary Secretary to Canada's Foreign Minister, Robert Oliphant, on top of a delegation. Talks reportedly touched on the current general situation and the bilateral relations between Lebanon and Canada.
Berri later met with Japanese Ambassador to Lebanon, Takeshi Okubo, who came to Ain-el-Tineh on a farewell visit upon the end of his diplomatic mission in Beirut.

Mikati meets UN Coordinator for Middle East Peace, Canadian official, Japanese Ambassador
NNA/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
Prime Minister Najib Mikati met on Wednesday at the Grand Serail with UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland. Talks touched on the process of peace in the region, with the UN envoy stressing the necessity of multiplying efforts to secure regional stability. Mikati later met with Parliamentary Secretary to Canada's Foreign Minister, Robert Oliphant, in the presence of Canadian Ambassador to Lebanon, Stefanie McCollum. Conferees reportedly discussed the bilateral relations between the two countries and the condition of the Lebanese diaspora in Canada. Oliphant tackled the current political situation in Lebanon, and highlighted the necessity of electing a president of the republic and forming a new government. Mikati also received today Japanese Ambassador to Lebanon, Takeshi Okubo, who came to Ain-el-Tineh on a farewell visit upon the end of his diplomatic mission in Beirut.
Among the Grand Serail itinerants had also been Telecom Minister Johnny Corm, MP Najat Saliba, MPs Walid Baarini and Ahmad Kheir, and former lawmaker Bahiya Hariri.

Mikati broaches cultural affairs with Caretaker Minister of Culture
NNA/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
Caretaker Prime Minister, Najib Mikati, on Wednesday met at the Grand Serail, with Caretaker Minister of Culture, Judge Mohammad Wissam Mortada. Speaking following the meeting, Caretaker Minister Mortada said: “We discussed the construction of a new opera house in downtown Beirut with funding from the Sultanate of Oman, and I briefed the Premier on the latest developments and deliberations with the Omani ambassador in this regard, who confirmed that they, as a donor side, are still fully ready to provide the necessary funding for this. I agreed with the Premier on the mechanism that we will adopt to achieve the Omani request. Very soon, we will start building the Opera House, which will be up to Beirut’s standards and Lebanon's leading cultural role, on a plot of land in Beirut that was previously allocated for this project.”Minister Mortada also indicated that discussions with Premier Mikati also touched on the Beirut Museum project in downtown Beirut, and the issue of heritage buildings in all Lebanon, specifically in the city of Tripoli.

Bou Habib broaches current developments with Canada’s Oliphant
NNA/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
Caretaker Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants, Dr. Abdullah Bou Habib, on Wednesday welcomed Canada’s Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Robert Oliphant, with whom he discussed the importance of electing a new Lebanese President of the Republic, as well as forming a new government, carrying out reforms, and reaching an agreement with the International Monetary Fund.  Moreover, the Canadian delegation welcomed the border demarcation agreement and affirmed Canada's relentless support for Lebanon, stressing "the importance of reaching final verdicts on Beirut Port explosion file."

18 prisoners flee Amyoun penitentiary in Koura
NNA/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
18 prisoners have escaped from Amyoun penitentiary in Koura on Wednesday after they cut the barbed wire surrounding the prison courtyard. Six of them have been rearrested throughout the region. Meanwhile, the security forces have intensified their efforts in search for the others. They’ve also set up security checkpoints in the region.

Lebanon: Caretaker Minister Says 8 Terror Cells Seized in 2022
Asharq Al-Awsat/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
Lebanon’s caretaker Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi said on Tuesday that the security forces have managed to arrest eight terror cells in 2022, assuring that the country’s security is under control. “The Intelligence Directorate was capable of arresting eight terror cells in 2022. We adhere to the secrecy of our investigations knowing that we only disclose information that appeases the Lebanese. Security forces are on the watch to ensure their safety,” said Mawlawi during the Central Security Council meeting. He said the security situation is “acceptable” compared to the current circumstances that the country is going through. “The crime rate is not growing comparable to the crime rate in 2021,” he said, adding that the problematic security situation in Lebanon’s city of Tripoli has been brought under control. On the attempts to smuggle narcotics, he said the security and military forces are exerting serious efforts to stop that, “our efforts will continue,” he stressed. “The fact that more attempts to smuggle drugs abroad are being stopped indicates how serious the security and military forces are in carrying out their duties,” said Mawlawi. On the situation in the Syrian encampments of refugees, he said that despite the “exceptional circumstances” that the crisis-hit country is going through, the security and military apparatuses are carrying out their duties.

After Israel, Lebanon eyes sea border talks with Syria
AFP/November 09, 2022
BEIRUT: Lebanon wants talks to demarcate its maritime border with Syria, so that it can begin offshore gas extraction after reaching a similar agreement with Israel, its top negotiator said. Last month — despite the countries technically remaining in a state of war — Israel and Lebanon struck a US-brokered sea border agreement that will potentially open up lucrative offshore gas fields. Beirut now wishes to define its maritime borders with Syria, to the north, and Cyprus, to the west, to consolidate its offshore rights. “The Lebanese government must engage directly and publicly with the Syrian government... and publicly demarcate our sea borders,” Elias Bou Saab told AFP in an interview Tuesday. “Any future government must undertake this task and put Lebanon’s interest first,” he insisted, while “leaving regional political conflicts out of this matter.” Syria, which once had a controlling hand in Lebanon’s affairs, has repeatedly refused to delimit land and sea borders with its neighbor. According to Bou Saab, the disputed maritime area between Lebanon and Syria is “perhaps more than 800 square kilometers (310 square miles).” It could be “larger than the disputed area with Israel,” he added. Lebanon cannot begin gas exploration in the northern part of the waters off its Mediterraean coast without first resolving its border dispute with Syria, Bou Saab said. And Lebanon also needs an agreement with Syria to be able to trace its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) with Cyprus. The Lebanese presidency announced in late October that a delegation would travel to Damascus to discuss the issue, but the trip did not take place. Syria’s ambassador to Beirut, Ali Abdel Karim Ali, spoke of “confusion” around the date. But Bou Saab, the deputy speaker of parliament and close to outgoing President Michel Aoun, said Syria had “demands and reservations.”Lebanese security officials and politicians have made several visits to Syria in recent years, but almost exclusively in their personal capacity or on behalf of political parties that support President Bashar Assad, including the powerful Hezbollah movement, supported by the Iran. The Shiite movement’s military wing has been fighting alongside Assad’s forces since the early stages of the conflict. Lebanese officials are betting on the potential revenues from the country’s offshore energy reserves to try to revive its devastated economy, which has been mired in crisis since 2019. But Lebanon has been without a president since the beginning of the month, with lawmakers unable to agree on a successor.

“Strong Lebanon” bloc meets under chairmanship of MP Gebran Bassil
NNA/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
The “Strong Lebanon” bloc met under the chairmanship of MP Gebran Bassil and following the discussion of its agenda, issued the following press release:
1 – The Bloc stresses the need for the interim government to comply fully with the Constitution, in regard to the limitation of its prerogatives to the dispatch of day-to-day business only, while refraining from holding meetings of the government or take any other unconstitutional action.
The bloc warns against any tendency to consider the functioning of the state possible in the absence of a President of the Republic, which will be seen as a kind of normalization of abnormality and extension of the vacuum of the first constitutional post. Therefore, the bloc reiterates its total rejection of any attempt to grant the interim government the powers of the President of the Republic. The bloc asserts that, in its last legislative session, the parliament confirmed that the interim government will not exercise by proxy the powers of the President of the Republic, with a commitment to this effect from the interim Prime Minister during the same session. 2 - The bloc considers that the attack which targeted young people and students of the Free Patriotic Movement on the set of MTV, followed by a multitude of aberrant media reactions emanating from the latter and not very innocent political positions, clearly reflects a blatant intention to renew the campaign of defamation programmed against the party, by demonizing it and exposing it as being an armed militia while it constitutes the party of the people who are under to the law, the legitimacy as well as the state of the institutions. The bloc warns the people in question that those who have resisted in the face of the most difficult circumstances will not succumb to blackmail or threats. Moreover, reviving the circumstances of October 17 is unacceptable in terms of targeting a sovereign party, guardian of a project and a long path traced by President General Michel Aoun. Consequently, the Bloc calls on the parties working to pit it against the Lebanese army to refrain from doing so, since any confrontation between the army and the party, born from the bowels of this institution, is impossible and will never take place; the army is and will remain the pillar of the nation and the guarantor of its unity, independence and sovereignty.
In any case, the Bloc asks the TV station to broadcast as soon as possible the recording tapes which show the facts as they are without hiding behind futile pretexts to try to make them disappear. The bloc awaits the outcome of the case, currently in the hands of the Public Prosecutor of Cassation, and asks him to carry out all the necessary investigations, to define the responsibilities and to indict the ones deemed responsible. Under no circumstances will we agree to cover up the affair, which will only increase our suspicions of a conspiracy by certain parties against the party.
3 - The bloc considers that it is doing everything necessary to facilitate the election of a President of the Republic in application of constitutional norms, even if the fact of looking for the right candidate for this period requires dialogue and communication and a serious discussion between the different parties, however the bloc is by no means ready to participate in any attempt to waste time in order to serve the interests of any other party for populist ends. The bloc reiterates that the sole purpose of the blank vote was and still is to make room for consensus and not to perpetuate failures. Also, the block will not get into the game of presenting names in an anarchic way. Thus, the parliamentary blocs are invited to meet us halfway and respond to the paper of presidential priorities that we have drawn up for them in order to nominate candidates capable of having, by their person, their righteousness and their history, the expected profile that will occupy the first position at the head of the state.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on November 09-10/2022
Top US Republican says 'clear we are going to take the House back'
Agence France Presse/November 09, 2022
The top Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives voiced confidence that his party will seize the lower chamber of Congress from President Joe Biden's Democrats after Tuesday's midterm elections. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, speaking to an election watch party in the early hours of Wednesday, struck a cautiously upbeat note as results showed Republicans were poised to flip the seats necessary to win control, albeit most likely with a smaller majority than experts had forecast. "It is clear that we are going to take the House back," McCarthy said to raucous cheers.  "When you wake up tomorrow, we will be in the majority, and Nancy Pelosi will be in the minority," the lawmaker from California said, referring to the 82-year-old current speaker of the House who has been one of the most powerful leaders of the chamber in decades. "The American people are ready for a majority that will offer a new direction, that will put America back on track," McCarthy said. "Republicans are ready to deliver it."McCarthy and other conservatives had boasted of a likely "red wave" in the midterms that would topple Democratic control in both the House and Senate. While control on Capitol Hill technically still hangs in the balance, early results suggested Republicans indeed were on track to take the 435-member House -- but only by a handful of seats, a far cry from their predictions. The Senate remains a tossup. A CBS News estimate overnight showed Republicans projected to win at least 202 seats and Democrats at least 188. A minimum of 218 seats is needed to win the majority. McCarthy is the frontrunner to become the new speaker, a position he has coveted for years, particularly since his pathway to the speaker's gavel was derailed in 2015 when Paul Ryan won the top job instead. He has said he believes his bid for speaker would have the support of former president Donald Trump. McCarthy, 57, said in a CNN interview broadcast Monday that a Republican-led House would launch sweeping investigations of the Biden administration including on the US pullout from Afghanistan and the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic. He also left the door open to an eventual impeachment effort, a move which has been advocated by some of the more extreme right-wing members of the party.

Strikes in Syria hit fuel convoy from Iraq; Iranians killed
AP/November 09, 2022
BAGHDAD: Late night airstrikes in eastern Syria along the border with Iraq targeted Iran-backed militiamen, inflicting casualties, Syrian opposition activists said Wednesday. According to two paramilitary officers in Iraq, some of those killed in the attack were Iranian nationals. It was not immediately clear who was behind the strikes. The US military has carried out such strikes in the past. The attack, shortly before midnight Tuesday, hit tanker trucks carrying fuel and other trucks carrying weapons for the militias in Syria’s eastern province of Deir Ezzor, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor. It added that at least 14 people, most of them militiamen, were killed in the strike. The Deir Ezzor 24, an activist collective, reported three airstrikes targeting Iran-backed militias in the Syrian border town of Boukamal and nearby areas. It had no immediate word on casualties. Earlier, members of Iraqi paramilitary groups operating in the area said an airstrike on a convoy carrying fuel across the Iraqi border into Syria killed at least 10 people late Tuesday. The strike hit a convoy of about 15 trucks that had crossed into Syria near the town of Al-Qaim, two paramilitary officers told The Associated Press. It was unclear where the convoy was coming from, but the officers said some of those killed were Iranian nationals. The officers spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the strikes with reporters. Iranian state television’s English-language service, Press TV, early on Wednesday cited unnamed sources claiming there was an attack on a fuel truck convoy crossing from Iraq into Syria at the Al-Qaim border crossing. Press TV claimed the convoy was carrying Iranian oil to Lebanon through Syria. Iranian officials offered no casualty details. Iran’s state TV claimed the convoy attack was warried out by US drones and helicopters. It said the convoy included 22 tanker trucks, adding that the attack took place after eight of the trucks crossed into Syria. Iran is a main backer of Syrian President Bashar Assad and has sent thousands of Iran-backed fighters to help Syrian troops during the country’s 11-year civil war. Both Tehran and Assad’s government are also allied with the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which has fought alongside Assad’s forces in the war. In August, the US military carried out airstrikes in Deir Ezzor targeting Iran-backed militiamen. The Pentagon said the strikes were a message to Iran and Tehran-backed militias that targeted American troops earlier that month and several other times over the past year. At the time, the Observatory and Deir Ezzor 24 said the US airstrikes targeted the Ayash Camp, run by the Fatimiyoun group made up of Shiite fighters from Afghanistan. The Observatory reported that at least six Syrian and foreign militants were killed, while Deir Ezzor 24 reported 10 deaths.

Israel president meets parties as Netanyahu set to form government
Associated Press/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
Israel's president held talks with party leaders Wednesday on the new governing coalition to be headed by Benjamin Netanyahu after receiving the official results of the November 1 general election won by the veteran right-winger. Such presidential consultations had been a source of intrigue after Israel's four previous elections, as it was not immediately clear which leader would get the first shot at forming a coalition, or whether they would be successful. But this month's election delivered a clear win for Netanyahu, who has served as prime minister longer than anyone else in Israel's 74-year history. His right-wing Likud and its allies -- two ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties and the extreme-right Religious Zionism bloc -- won 64 of the 120 seats in parliament. After a period of unprecedented political gridlock, that result has given Netanyahu the majority to form a stable governing coalition which may also be the most right-wing in Israeli history. President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday denied reports that he was working to bring Netanyahu's rivals -- outgoing centrist prime minister Yair Lapid and defense minister Benny Gantz -- into a unity government that would sideline the controversial Jewish Power party leader, anti-Arab agitator Itamar Ben-Gvir. "I have not worked, nor am I working, to push for the establishment of any particular government, and I am not involved in its composition or size," Herzog said. "I leave that task to the political system, and to it alone."Herzog, who assumed Israel's largely ceremonial presidency last year, was meeting first with envoys of Netanyhu's Likud, the largest bloc in the new parliament, which will be sworn in next week. His party consultations will continue until sundown Friday. His office said the president "will assign the task of forming a government this coming Sunday". Netanyahu will likely have to juggle demands from his extreme-right allies for policy commitments and cabinet posts but is not expected to face insurmountable challenges during the coalition negotiations. The ex-premier, who led Israel from 1996 to 1999 and then through a record 2009 to 2021 tenure, has already held preliminary talks with his expected coalition partners.

Iran Charges Two Women Journalists with Anti-state Propaganda
Asharq Al-Awsat/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
Iran has charged two women journalists with propaganda against the state, the judiciary said Tuesday, as it presses a crackdown on protests sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini. The clerical state has been rocked by a protest movement that erupted on September 16 when Amini, 22, died after her arrest for allegedly breaking Iran's strict hijab dress rules for women, said AFP. Niloufar Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi, who have both already spent more than a month in detention, "have been remanded in custody for propaganda against the system and conspiring against national security," judiciary spokesman Massoud Setayeshi told a weekly briefing in Tehran. Hamedi, 30, a journalist for the reformist Shargh newspaper, was arrested on September 20, after she visited the hospital where Amini spent three days in her coma before her death. Mohammadi, 35, a reporter for the Ham Mihan newspaper, was arrested on September 29 after she travelled to Amini's hometown of Saqez in Kurdistan province to cover her funeral. The reformist newspaper Sazandegi reported late last month that more than 20 journalists remained in custody for their reporting of Amini's death or the subsequent unrest. It said several others had been summoned by the authorities. On October 30, more than 300 journalists issued a joint statement criticizing the detention of their colleagues and the denial of their rights, including access to a lawyer. Dozens of people, most of them demonstrators, have been killed in the protests over Amini's death. Hundreds more have been arrested. "People, even among those protesting, are demanding the judiciary deal firmly with the few people who have caused trouble and committed crimes, of course with full respect for Muslim law and legal norms, and the judicial system will act on this basis," said Setayeshi. Since the start of the protests, more than 2,000 people have been charged, half of them in Tehran, according to the judiciary.

Iran cities strike in solidarity with Zahedan dead
AFP/November 09, 2022
PARIS: Cities in western Iran went on strike Wednesday in solidarity with mourners marking 40 days since security forces killed dozens in a crackdown on protests in the country’s strife-torn southeast, a rights group said. Security forces opened fire on protests that erupted on September 30 after weekly prayers in Zahedan, capital of the flashpoint province of Sistan-Baluchistan on Iran’s southeastern border with Pakistan. It came two weeks after demonstrations broke out across Iran over the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian of Kurdish origin, following her arrest in Tehran for allegedly flouting the country’s strict dress code for women. Widespread strikes were underway Wednesday in the Kurdish western cities of Baneh, Kermanshah, Marivan, Sanandaj and Amini’s hometown of Saqez, the Norway-based Hengaw human rights group said. The stoppages were being observed “in solidarity with the fatalities in Zahedan on their 40th day death ceremonies,” Hengaw, which monitors abuses in Kurdish areas, said on Twitter. The trigger for the violence that erupted in Zahedan on September 30 was the alleged rape in custody of a 15-year-old-girl by a police commander in the province’s port city of Chabahar. Security forces opened fire on men who took to the streets after emerging from mosques following weekly prayers, killing dozens in a massacre that became known as “Bloody Friday.” “What happened that Friday... in Zahedan, based on international law, is a clear instance of mass murder of civilians,” Hengaw said. “This mass murder must be recognized by international organizations and Western governments,” it tweeted. Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights says that since then at least 118 people have been killed in Sistan-Baluchistan province. The Iranian authorities say at least six security personnel have been killed. Zahedan is one of the few Sunni-majority cities in predominantly Shiite Iran. Poverty-stricken Sistan-Baluchistan province is a flashpoint for clashes with drug smuggling gangs as well as rebels from the Baluchi minority and Sunni extremist groups. Activists have long complained the region has been the victim of discrimination by Iran’s Shiite clerical leadership, with disproportionate numbers of Baluch killed in clashes every year and also hanged in executions. The latest executions were announced on Wednesday. The judiciary’s Mizan Online website said two men, Rashid Baluch and Eshaq Askani, were put to death on Tuesday after being convicted of killing four police officers in 2016. It said they were members of the Jaish Al-Adl (Army of Justice) terrorist group.

Iran Revolutionary Guards Arrest Top Lawyer
Asharq Al-Awsat/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
Iran's Revolutionary Guards have arrested prominent lawyer Mostafa Nili, one of more than a dozen rounded up amid a crackdown on protests sparked by Mahsa Amini's death, his sister said. Guards intelligence agents detained Nili at Tehran's Mehrabad international airport on Monday night before raiding his mother's house and taking him into custody, Fatemeh Nili tweeted. Another prominent lawyer, Saeid Dehghan, who is believed to be abroad, confirmed his arrest in a post on Twitter, AFP reported. Nili was one of the "few hopes for citizens against a political system that is the enemy of lawyers" as well as against the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps who "consider themselves the law", Dehghan said. Security forces have waged a campaign of mass arrests that has netted artists, dissidents, journalists and lawyers since protests broke out over Amini's death on September 16. Amini, 22, died three days after falling into a coma when she was arrested by the notorious morality police in Tehran for allegedly flouting Iran's strict dress code for women based on Islamic sharia law. Security forces, including the Guards, have killed at least 186 people during the crackdown on the women-led protest movement, the Norway-based group Iran Human Rights says. At least another 118 people have lost their lives in distinct protests since September 30 in Sistan-Baluchistan, a mainly Sunni Muslim province on Iran's southeastern border with Pakistan. Thousands of people have been arrested in the crackdown, including more than a dozen lawyers who had been working to defend those taken in before being detained themselves. Turkey Using Chemical Weapons Against the Kurds? "I have examined the images and obviously, one of the toxic gasses, poisonous gasses, chemical gasses that directly affect the nervous system has been used." — Şebnem Korur Fincancı, professor of forensic medicine, and president of the Turkish Medical Association, and the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey, interview with Medya Haber TV, October 2022.

Iran executes two men convicted over 2016 police killings
AFP/November 09, 2022
TEHRAN: Iran has executed two men convicted of killing four police officers in 2016 in a region hit by a wave of violence in September, the judiciary said Wednesday. "Two members of the Jaish al-Adl (Army of Justice) terrorist group, Rashid Baluch and Eshaq Askani, were executed yesterday in Zahedan prison," the judiciary's Mizan Online website reported. Jaish al-Adl was formed in 2012 by former members of an extremist Sunni Muslim organisation that led a bloody rebellion in Sistan-Baluchistan, on Iran's border with Pakistan. The two men were found guilty of killing four police border guards and wounding several officers in 2016 in the impoverished southeastern province, Mizan Online said. Dozens of people, including six members of the security forces, were killed in clashes that broke out in Zahedan after Friday prayers on September 30, the authorities said. Iranian media outlets reported at the time that Jaish al-Adl claimed responsibility for an attack on a police station during the violence. But an influential leader of Sistan-Baluchistan's Sunni minority, cleric Molavi Abdol Hamid, rejected the involvement of Jaish al-Adl or any other group in the violence. After an investigation at the request of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, authorities dismissed two senior security officials in the region, including Zahedan's police chief. The bloodshed in Zahedan came two weeks after nationwide unrest erupted over the death of Mahsa Amini, 22, following her arrest by the morality police in Tehran for allegedly violating Iran's strict dress code for women. According to London-based rights group Amnesty International, Iran is second only to China in its use of the death penalty, with at least 314 people executed in 2021.

Iran's army issues warning to 'rioters' as security forces struggle to suppress unrest
DUBAI (Reuters)/Wed, November 9, 2022
Iran's Army Ground Forces Commander said on Wednesday that "rioters" would have no place in the Islamic Republic if the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered a tougher crackdown on nationwide protests, the semi-official Mehr news agency reported. " ... should he decide to deal with them, rioters will no longer have a place in the country," Brigadier General Kiumars Heydari said. Anti-government demonstrations erupted in September after the death of a Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, who had been detained by morality police for allegedly flouting the Islamic Republic's strict dress code imposed on women. The protests quickly turned into a popular revolt, with people ranging from students to doctors to lawyers to workers to athletes taking part. Heydari was speaking 40 days after bloodshed in the mostly Sunni town of Zahedan, which has become a flashpoint in the protests.
Amnesty International said security forces killed at least 66 people there on Sept. 30. Authorities in Zahedan sacked the police chief and the head of a police station near where the killings took place.
ETHNIC UNREST
Iran has executed two Baluch militants convicted of "terrorism" charges dating back to about 2016, the semi-official news agency ILNA reported on Wednesday, in a move that may raise tensions further in volatile Sistan-Baluchistan province, where Zahedan is located.
The Baluch minority, estimated to number up to 2 million people, has faced discrimination and repression for decades, according to human rights groups. Some of the worst unrest has been in areas home to minority ethnic groups with long-standing grievances against the state, including Sistan-Baluchistan and Kurdish regions. On Wednesday, shopkeepers in some Kurdish cities went on strike to show their respect to the people who were killed in Zahedan, Kurdish rights group Hengaw said. Shopkeepers in the market town of Valiasr, in Tehran province, also closed their businesses to mark the 40th day since the killings took place, according to HRANA news agency. The Basij militia and other security forces have taken tough measures hoping to suppress the unrest but the fury has not eased. While past demonstrations have focused on election results or economic hardships, the current protesters seem determined to secure an entirely new political order in a country where the clerical establishment has ruled since the 1979 revolution. In an ongoing act of resistance, videos posted on Twitter under the hashtag of #TurbanTossing show Iranians sneaking up behind clerics and knocking turbans off their heads. According to the Iranian human rights group Hengaw, schoolgirls in city of Qorveh in northwest Iran, poured into the streets with slogans and asked other Iranians to join them.

Lapid, Gantz Refuse Proposal to Join Netanyahu’s Govt
Tel Aviv - Nazir Magally/Asharq Al-Awsat/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
Israel’s Prime Minister Yair Lapid and Defense Minister Benny Gantz announced their rejection of forming a national unity government led by Benjamin Netanyahu.
Informed sources said that forming a unity government is the best way out for Israel from having a far-right government, which will inevitably involve it in clashes with western countries and with the American Democratic Party and US President Joe Biden’s administration.
Netanyahu's allies from the far-right, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich are imposing conditions on the government that could cause a major shift in the political and security situation. Among their proposals are canceling the separation plan in the northern West Bank, rebuilding four abandoned settlements, and expanding the settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, as well as enacting a law that prevents the judiciary and the Supreme Court from repealing laws. They also call for adopting a stricter policy in dealing with the Arab citizens of Israel, canceling the privileges agreed upon with the Palestinian prisoners, and imposing Israeli sovereignty over the settlements and others. The sources said that Netanyahu had expected his allies to practice political blackmail before forming the government, but he was surprised by the extent of these demands. He told the press that he “does not rule out forming a government with the Liberals and even with the United Arab List, led by MK Mansour Abbas.”The sources noted that the proposal would be a kind of threat and intimidation to these allies. Meanwhile, several media outlets reported Tuesday that President Isaac Herzog has spoken with incoming prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Lapid and Gantz to encourage them to form a broad national unity government. Sources told Ynet that Herzog met with Lapid and Gantz to urge them to join Netanyahu's next government and prevent the participation of far-right lawmakers. But Herzog’s office denied the reports, saying that there had not been any such contact with party leaders. “The president did not approach or suggest to the party chiefs that they join this or that government,” his office said. Lapid and Gantz also said there had been no such contact from the president. “The government I am leading has lost the elections. Whoever believes in Israeli democracy when he wins, must also believe in it when he loses,” Lapid said, stressing that there is no way he or Gantz would join the incoming government. Gantz’s National Unity, for its part, affirmed that Gantz will join the opposition. “Israel is facing many challenges, including dealing with a new government, which is reliant on far-right Knesset members,” the statement read. “We have decided to continue to solidify the National Unity camp as a meaningful movement in the center of Israel's politics. We respect the decision of voters and once a new government is sworn in, we will serve in the opposition in a responsible manner.”Netanyahu had expressed his delight over the phone call by Biden, who congratulated him on his election victory. After the call, Netanyahu wrote on Twitter that he told Biden they can “achieve more peace agreements and deal with the threat of Iranian aggression.” “President Biden called me and congratulated me on winning the elections. He affirmed that the alliance between Israel and the United States is stronger than ever. And I thanked him for his personal friendship that extended for 40 years and his commitment to the State of Israel.” According to the Likud party, Biden told Netanyahu during the 8-minute call that his commitment to Israel is “unquestionable.”

Israeli forces shoot dead Palestinian teen near Nablus
NNA/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
A Palestinian teen was early Wednesday shot dead by Israeli gunfire during an Israeli military raid into the area of Joseph's Tomb, east of the occupied West Bank city of Nablus, security sources confirmed. The sources told WAFA that Mahdi Hashash, 17, was killed after he was shot by Israeli soldiers during a raid by the forces and settlers into the aforementioned area. Ahmad Jibril, the head of the Emergency and Ambulance Department at the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS), said that 57 Palestinians suffered from suffocation due to inhaling tear gas bombs fired towards them by the soldiers.
He added that a Palestinian was shot with a live bullet, while three others were shot with rubber-coated steel bullets. Jibril noted that the casualties were taken to a hospital for treatment.--WAFA

In a first, Israeli general opens up about use of armed drones
Reuters/November 09, 2022
TEL AVIV: Israel on Wednesday described what has been an open secret for two decades — that it has used drones not just for surveillance but also in strikes within the country, against Palestinian militants in Gaza, and possibly targets as far away as Iran or Sudan. Israeli censors in July permitted publication of information about the armed drones and the chief of Israel’s artillery corps — which runs the drones together with the air force — used his speech at an industry forum to give what he described as a first public account of the armed versions of the pilot-less planes. Whereas previously he could only offer hints, “today I can speak of this openly,” Brig.-General Neri Horowitz told the annual UVID DroneTech conference hosted by Israel Defense magazine in Tel Aviv. He said the armed drones not only provide Israel with additional firepower, but also allow, in a single platform, for both the speedy detection and attack against targets, such as Gaza rocket crews before they can carry out a launch. He disclosed that when jihadi insurgents from Egypt burst across the border into southern Israel in a hijacked armored vehicle in May 2012, they were destroyed in a drone strike. Showing footage of Ukrainian forces using drones to guide shelling of invading Russian troops, he said: “We have the same application here.” Israel is expanding its drone forces, whose personnel are 30 percent female, Horowitz said, adding that the artillery corps was replacing its cannon insignia with concentric circles representing the incorporation of the aerial platforms. At the same conference, Brig.-General Omri Dor, commander of Palmachin air base, said drones now accounted for 80 percent of the Israeli military’s operational flight hours. However manufacturers of armed drones remain barred from advertising them and none of them were among the models on display at the conference. “There are information security concerns,” explained a sales representative for one of the companies, Elbit. In a separate speech, Economy Minister Orna Barbivai said drone exports were popular abroad, including among Arab countries that have drawn closer to Israel since 2020. She did not specify if such exports included armed drones.

Russia abandons Ukrainian city of Kherson in major retreat
Reuters/November 09, 2022
LONDON: Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on Wednesday ordered his troops to withdraw from the occupied Ukrainian city of Kherson and take up defensive lines on the opposite bank of the River Dnipro. The announcement marked one of Russia’s most significant retreats and a potential turning point in the war, now nearing the end of its ninth month. In televised comments, General Sergei Surovikin, in overall command of the war, said it was no longer possible to keep Kherson city supplied. “We will save the lives of our soldiers and fighting capacity of our units. Keeping them on the right (western) bank is futile. Some of them can be used on other fronts,” Surovikin said. The news followed weeks of Ukrainian advances toward the city and a race by Russia to relocate tens of thousands of its residents. Shoigu responded: “I agree with your conclusions and proposals. Proceed with the withdrawal of troops and take all measures to transfer forces across the river.” The announcement had been anticipated by Russia’s influential war bloggers, who described it as a bitter blow. “Apparently we will leave the city, no matter how painful it is to write about it now,” said the War Gonzo blog, which has more than 1.3 million subscribers on Telegram. “In simple terms, Kherson can’t be held with bare hands,” it said. “Yes, this is a black page in the history of the Russian army. Of the Russian state. A tragic page.”

Armed Militia Announces Responsibility for Death of US Citizen in Iraq
Asharq Al-Awsat/Wednesday, 9 November, 2022
An armed militia calling itself Ashab al-Kahf claimed responsibility for killing the US citizen, Stephen Troll, in Baghdad on Monday evening. The group announced in a statement that Troll was killed in retaliation for the killing of the Quds Force commander, Qasem Soleimani, and the commander of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis. However, the investigation committee did not publish the results of its probe into the incident to determine whether it was a criminal or a terrorist attack carried out by an armed group. Unnamed sources said that if investigations revealed it was a terrorist attack, it would signal the beginning of a dispute with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani, mainly that Washington has shown full support to his government.The Media Cell of the Joint Operations Command said that the Prime Minister had directed the Minister of Interior, Abdul Amir al-Shammari, to form a committee of specialized agencies to investigate the incident.
-Washington is watching
Local media reported that gunmen had shot the US citizen while driving through the Karrada neighborhood and that he died in Zayed Hospital. Reuters news agency quoted a source in the Iraqi police as saying: "Our initial investigation and eyewitnesses showed that armed men were trying to kidnap the American citizen.” He said the victim was carrying an identity card that showed he worked as an English language teacher, while sources said that he worked in an aid agency. The US State Department confirmed that a US citizen has died in Baghdad, one day after police in Iraq said an American was killed in a failed kidnapping attempt. On Tuesday, one day after Iraqi police announced the death of Troll, the US State Department confirmed without elaborating that Stephen Troll died in Baghdad. "We are closely monitoring the investigations of local authorities into the cause of the death,” they said.
Later, the US ambassador to Iraq, Alina Romanowski, announced that her country was looking forward to a more significant partnership with the government of Sudani. Romanowski was then received by Iraqi Minister of Finance Taif Sami. She emphasized the US support for Iraq and its peoples, and the need to strengthen cooperation between the two countries. For her part, Sami praised the bilateral relations between the two friendly countries.
-Real Estate in the Green Zone
Meanwhile, sources said that Sudani seems confident of the steps he is taking or intends to take against corruption. Observers fear that his steps could diverge from the political forces supporting him if he tries to counter their influence or limit their financial or political control.
Sudani hinted at addressing the issue of state real estate in the fortified Green Zone, which includes the government palace, parliament, and many state institutions and embassies, namely the US embassy.
- Ashab al-Kahf
The armed group "Ashab al-Kahf" remained mysterious since it first appeared in 2019, and although it is a front for one of the influential Shiite factions, analysts indicate that it is a "soldier" that implements the agenda of all "resistance" parties in the country. Ashab al-Kahf claimed responsibility for several violent attacks with explosive devices on convoys since March 2020 and at least one missile attack on the US Embassy. The factions have generally intensified their attacks since the assassination of Soleimani and al-Muhandis, but most of the attacks focus on the logistical support convoys of the US forces.
Washington Institute for Studies claimed there was evidence connecting the group to Asaib Ahl al-Haq, based on an analysis of social media posts and accounts promoting its activities. Ashab al-Kahf's attacks declined after September 2020, when the group announced on Twitter and Telegram that it "has been betrayed" and felt very let down by the rest of the factions.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on November 09-10/2022
Close All China Consulates, Slash Embassy Staff
Gordon G. Chang/Gatestone Institute./November 9, 2022
Beijing reportedly has... used the station to track Chinese individuals of interest to the regime and, short-circuiting legal procedures, to persuade those Chinese to voluntarily return to China.
"[T]hey are very bold because they know they can do as they like and the State Department won't do a damn thing." — Maura Moynihan, author, to Gatestone, October 2022.
Prior to the recent indictments, the U.S. government often let off Chinese agents with only a warning, sometimes because of intervention by the State Department.
Law enforcement is essential, but it is hardly an answer to China's massive campaigns against the United States.
One solution is to deny Chinese wrongdoers the safe havens they enjoy in America. China's principal safe havens are its embassy and consulates.
[T]he U.S. should also be closing China's non-diplomatic presences — primarily banks and companies — to even out the situation.
China uses every point of contact to try to bring down America, and American institutions are now being overwhelmed by the onslaught. It may sound drastic to some, but the survival of freedom and democracy in America critically depends on getting the Chinese regime out of the U.S.
The best way to do that is to expel the military officers, spies, agents, provocateurs and criminals finding protection in China's diplomatic presences in the United States. Nothing else would better communicate resolve to Beijing than getting dangerous Chinese actors off American soil.
The Biden administration should of course be shutting down the Chinatown police station, as well.
China's regime has established a police station in Manhattan, and reportedly has used it to track Chinese individuals of interest to the regime and, short-circuiting legal procedures, to persuade them to voluntarily return to China. One solution is to deny Chinese wrongdoers the safe havens they enjoy in America. China's principal safe havens are its embassy and consulates. Pictured: China's consulate in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)
Americans in recent weeks have been outraged by reports that China's regime has established a police station on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, in Chinatown.
The New York Post last month reported that the IRS-blacklisted ChangLe Association NY Inc., which had failed to file required reports for three consecutive years and thereby lost tax-exempt status in May, still owns and operates a "service station" at 107 East Broadway.
The location houses the Fuzhou Police Overseas Chinese Affairs bureau. The bureau's stated purpose is to help China's nationals with Chinese-government identification cards and drivers' licenses.
Beijing reportedly has also used the station to track Chinese individuals of interest to the regime and, short-circuiting legal procedures, to persuade those Chinese to voluntarily return to China.
Whether handling routine services or hunting down individuals, the bureau has been engaged in activities violating American sovereignty. The U.S. and China do not have an extradition treaty.
"This is a disgrace," said Beau Dietl, the celebrity retired NYPD detective, to the Daily Caller News Foundation. "How in God's name could they openly have these communist police stations in our country?"
Unfortunately, there is no mystery as to why the Chinese regime felt it could get away with this on American soil.
China's boldness is the result of Presidents Obama, Trump and Biden — and perhaps those before them — knowing about improper and illegal activities in America of Chinese consular officials and Ministry of State Security agents but choosing not to expel or punish the perpetrators.
America's highest elected leaders, in short, have failed to enforce American law against China.
We begin on the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party. During the afternoon of July 1 of last year, an armed security guard attached to the Chinese consulate in New York City caused facial injuries to Jane Stein, a Manhattan resident, as she was photographing a protest on the sidewalk outside the Chinese diplomatic outpost.
The incident — the guard shoved Stein's heavy camera into her face, causing swelling above her left eye — occurred on the sidewalk just outside the consulate, on the north side of 42nd Street.
The consulate guard, in short, was interfering with Americans, on sovereign U.S. territory, exercising First Amendment rights.
Although the FBI interviewed Stein about the assault, the Biden administration does not appear to have taken any action against either the guard or China's New York consulate.
The guard who assaulted Stein is seen in the photo below. The guard's gun is clearly visible in this image. Stein is the woman with the camera.
"For years we have held protests at the consulate and they just ignored us," said Maura Moynihan, the daughter of the late US Senator Daniel Moynihan, to Gatestone. "But now they are very bold because they know they can do as they like and the State Department won't do a damn thing."
American attitudes are, fortunately, stiffening, albeit late. For instance, on October 20, the Justice Department unsealed indictments of Quanzhong An, his daughter, and five other Chinese nationals for surveilling and harassing a U.S. resident and his son. Those charged were allegedly a part of Beijing's notorious Operation Fox Hunt, a long-running effort to force individuals back to China. Prior to the recent indictments, the U.S. government often let off Chinese agents with only a warning, sometimes because of intervention by the State Department. This has not been reported but is known among China-watchers.
Law enforcement is essential, but it is hardly an answer to China's massive campaigns against the United States. For instance, only two of the defendants indicted last month were apprehended. The remaining five are believed to be in China. There, they will likely remain beyond the reach of American justice.
One solution is to deny Chinese wrongdoers the safe havens they enjoy in America. China's principal safe havens are its embassy and consulates.
In July 2020, Mike Pompeo's State Department closed China's Houston consulate. According to then-spokesperson Morgan Ortagus, State ordered the closure of the facility "in order to protect American intellectual property and Americans' private information." Those reasons, of course, could be used to close all China's consulates and its embassy as well. China in fact used the Houston location to house a People's Liberation Army intelligence unit that was fomenting violent Antifa and Black Lives Matter protests, in other words, working to overthrow the U.S. government.
It is now time to close the remaining consulates — in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco — and send home almost all the Washington, D.C. embassy staff.
China will retaliate by ordering reciprocal closures of America's four consulates in China — in Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenyang, and Wuhan — and embassy staff reductions.
Such actions will deny services to Americans and American businesses. Denial of consular services will be in America's interest, however. For personal safety, business, strategic, national security, and moral reasons, Americans should not be in China at this time. The end of such services will encourage Americans to do something they should be doing on their own: Leaving China.
One can argue that, as China's President Xi Jinping closes off Chinese society from the world, the U.S. needs its embassy and consulates in China more than China needs its diplomatic outposts in America. There is a measure of truth in that argument, but the U.S. should also be closing China's non-diplomatic presences — primarily banks and companies — to even out the situation.
China uses every point of contact to try to bring down America, and American institutions are now being overwhelmed by the onslaught. It may sound drastic to some, but the survival of freedom and democracy in America critically depends on getting the Chinese regime out of the U.S.
The best way to do that is to expel the military officers, spies, agents, provocateurs and criminals finding protection in China's diplomatic sites in the United States. Nothing else would better communicate resolve to Beijing than getting dangerous Chinese actors off American soil.
The Biden administration should of course be shutting down the Chinatown police station, as well.
Gordon G. Chang is the author of The Coming Collapse of China, a Gatestone Institute distinguished senior fellow, and a member of its Advisory Board.
© 2022 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.

Turkey Using Chemical Weapons Against the Kurds?
Uzay Bulut/Gatestone Institute/November 09/2022
"I have examined the images and obviously, one of the toxic gasses, poisonous gasses, chemical gasses that directly affect the nervous system has been used." — Şebnem Korur Fincancı, professor of forensic medicine, and president of the Turkish Medical Association, and the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey, interview with Medya Haber TV, October 2022.
The question is: If the Turkish army does not use any chemical weapons, why does the Turkish government not allow an independent committee to investigate the claims?
Turkish prosecutors have not initiated any investigation to find out whether the Turkish military used chemical weapons -- but they have taken legal action against those who have called for an investigation. A lawyer, Aryen Turan, currently being investigated by prosecutors over the speech she delivered on October 22 at an Izmir Bar Association Meeting. "Allegations," she had said, "that the Turkish Armed Forces used chemical weapons against the PKK should be investigated".
The government of Turkey, which is legally obliged to serve and protect Kurds the same as its other citizens, uses every tool to silence and oppress them and to destroy their political will. Yet, they are the ones accused of being "terrorists" and "criminals".
The tyrannical political environment in Turkey does not allow any dissenting persons -- particularly Kurds -- to breathe freely. The international organizations and governments urgently need to cease ignoring the Kurds and investigate the allegations regarding the Turkey's use of chemical weapons.
Şebnem Korur Fincancı, a professor of forensic medicine who is also president of the Turkish Medical Association and the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey, said this month that allegations of the recent use of prohibited chemical weapons by the Turkish military should be examined by independent committees in accordance with the principles of the UN's Minnesota Protocol. In response, on October 26, Fincanci was arrested on charges of "making propaganda for a terrorist organization" and "insulting the Turkish nation, the State of the Republic of Turkey, state institutions and organs." Pictured: Fincancı speaks to journalists on July 17, 2019 in front of Istanbul's courthouse, after the court acquitted her on charges of "making propaganda for a terrorist organization." (Photo by Ozan Kose/AFP via Getty Images)
The Kurdish Firat News Agency (ANF) released on October 18 a video showing, according to the ANF, two PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) members suffering from exposure to prohibited chemical weapons being used by the Turkish military. The two individuals were allegedly caught in a Turkish chemical weapons attack in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq; they eventually died. "It is seen that the chemical weapon paralyzes the nervous and respiratory systems and causes memory loss," the ANF reported.
The People's Defence Forces (HPG), the military wing of the PKK, claimed that 17 PKK members were killed by Turkey's chemical weapons.
Citing a PKK statement, the ANF report stated that the Turkish Army has used banned bombs and chemical weapons at least 2,476 times within the last six months of its military operation against the Kurdish group.
The PKK, which was established in 1978 for the purpose of seeking Kurdish independence, has long accused Turkey of using chemical weapons.
Şebnem Korur Fincancı, a professor of forensic medicine who is also president of the Turkish Medical Association (TTB) and the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey (TIHV), stated in an interview with Medya Haber TV that such allegations should be examined by independent committees in accordance with the principles of the UN's Minnesota Protocol.
"I have examined the images and obviously, one of the toxic gasses, poisonous gasses, chemical gasses that directly affect the nervous system has been used," Fincanci said.
After this interview, Ankara's Chief Public Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation against Fincancı on charges of "making propaganda for a terrorist organization" and "insulting the Turkish nation, the State of the Republic of Turkey, state institutions and organs".
On October 26, Fincanci was arrested in a house raid by anti-terror branch police officers.
The members of the Central Council of the TTB who wanted to follow the process of taking testimony were not allowed to enter courthouse and were battered by police. The next day, the police once again attacked the representatives of labor and professional organizations who went to the courthouse, and detained five people.
Prior to Fincanci's arrest, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan targeted her and the Turkish Medical Association, saying: "The judiciary has taken action regarding the President of the Turkish Medical Association. Steps will be taken against both this person and this institution. I believe that the fact that such a person is the head of an institution whose name starts with 'Turkish' disturbs all members of our nation."
Erdogan added that he has "instructed the ministers that the legislative work towards the transition to a new structure in professional organizations, particularly in the Turkish Medical Association, should be accelerated. If necessary, we will ensure that this name is changed [that Fincancı will be replaced by someone else] by legal regulation."
The head of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), Devlet Bahçeli, who is Erdogan's political ally, demanded that the Turkish Medical Association be closed and Fincancı stripped of her Turkish citizenship.
The footage of Fincanci's house raid was broadcast with music on the government-funded TRT channel, which alleged that "a terror organizational book and bullets were found in Fincanci's house."
The footage once again reignited the question as to whether the Turkish army has used prohibited chemical weapons in its military operations against the PKK in the north of Iraq. Many Kurdish activists across Europe took to the streets to protest the Turkish government.
Meanwhile, international experts have agreed with Fincanci. The Scientific Advisory Board Member of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW), Dr. Jan Van Aken, visited the Federal Kurdistan Region of Iraq to investigate the alleged use of chemical weapons by Turkey. "There is a lot of evidence that a chemical attack took place, and an investigation needs to be started," he told Mesopotamia News Agency.
According to the Customary International Humanitarian Law (IHL) Database of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC),
"The use of chemical weapons is prohibited in international armed conflicts in a series of treaties, including the Hague Declaration concerning Asphyxiating Gasses, the Geneva Gas Protocol, the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Statute of the International Criminal Court."
After the news reports, Kurdish members of parliament called on prosecutors to start an investigation.
The pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) released a written statement, calling on the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and the United Nations to examine the claims:
"Since 2021, [Turkey's] use of chemicals has been in the news periodically. It is claimed that Turkey acts in violation of the international conventions, to which it is a party. These developments cause concern among the peoples of the region and lead the way to possible massacres. We emphasize once again that the use of chemicals is against the Geneva Convention, is a war crime and is clearly a crime against humanity."
The former HDP co-chair Selahattin Demirtaş (who has been jailed since 2016), said on Twitter that an independent, international delegation should travel to the region to study the claim:
"No one should forget for a moment that the use of chemical weapons is a crime against humanity and there is no statute of limitations for crimes against humanity. Those who commit such a crime will definitely be held accountable before an independent judiciary."
Meral Danış-Beştaş and Saruhan Oluç, deputy chairs of the HDP, submitted a parliamentary question to Minister of Defense Hulusi Akar:
" Did the Turkish armed forces or some unconventional forces acting together with them use non-official weapons or ammunition in northern Syria and within the borders of Iraq?
"Considering the fact that the use of chemical weapons and/or weapons or tools of mass destruction and vehicles is regarded by laws and international conventions as war crimes and crimes against humanity, do you as the Minister of National Defense plan to invite international delegations to the operation areas to investigate the allegations?"
Sezgin Tanrıkulu, an MP for the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) also called for an investigation on Twitter and submitted a motion to parliament.
Turkey's government authorities including the Ministry of National Defense rejected the allegations in a written statement:
"The allegations that 'chemical weapons' are used by the Turkish Armed Forces, which are periodically brought up by circles who want to tarnish the fight against terrorism... and to cast a shadow on the success of the Turkish Armed Forces, are completely baseless and unrealistic," the statement said.
The Turkish Armed Forces do not use ammunition "prohibited by international law and agreements," and do not have such ammunition in its inventory, according to the ministry.
The question is: If the Turkish army does not use any chemical weapons, why does the Turkish government not allow an independent committee to investigate the claims?
Turkish prosecutors have not initiated any investigation to find out whether the Turkish military used chemical weapons -- but they have taken legal action against those who have called for an investigation. One is lawyer Aryen Turan, currently being investigated by prosecutors over the speech she delivered on October 22 at an Izmir Bar Association Meeting. "Allegations," she had said, "that the Turkish Armed Forces used chemical weapons against the PKK should be investigated".
Meanwhile, detentions of those who demand answers from the government are ongoing. On October 20, Turkish police detained several HDP members, including its Istanbul co-chair Ferhat Encü, who had attempted to hold a press conference regarding the allegations.
"The press statement we wanted to hold in (Istanbul's) Şirinevler district regarding the use of chemical weapons was faced with efforts to prevent it by the blockade of thousands of police. Dozens of our friends, including our co-chair Ferhat Encü, were detained. This aggression is an attempt to cover up chemical weapons, which are crimes against humanity," HDP Istanbul Branch announced.
On October 26, 11 journalists working for Kurdish media outlets were arrested by police in simultaneous house raids. According to reports, police tortured at least one of them, Öznur Değer, in reverse handcuffs, and dragged her on the ground while in detention.
On the same day, the police prevented Kurds and other pro-democracy activists in Kadıköy, Istanbul from making a statement to the press and protesting the detention of Fincancı. Police also stopped journalists from taking pictures or videos and removed them from the area. Dozens of protesters were detained.
Here is a summary of the Kurdish issue in Turkey: Kurds are traumatized by images that reportedly show their compatriots dying from banned chemical weapons. Their political leaders are arbitrarily arrested and jailed. Their journalists are violently targeted and put behind bars. Their language and ethnic identity are still not officially recognized. With every word they utter that might challenge a government narrative, they face the risk of arrest, torture and even death. The government of Turkey, which is legally obliged to serve and protect Kurds the same as its other citizens, uses every tool to silence and oppress them and to destroy their political will. Yet, they are the ones accused of being "terrorists" and "criminals".
The tyrannical political environment in Turkey does not allow any dissenting persons -- particularly Kurds -- to breathe freely. The international organizations and governments urgently need to cease ignoring the Kurds and investigate the allegations regarding the Turkey's use of chemical weapons.
Uzay Bulut, a Turkish journalist, is a Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Gatestone Institute.
© 2022 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19058/turkey-chemical-weapons-kurds

How Iran Has Been Attempting to Suppress the Great Hijab Rebellion
Lawrence A. Franklin/Gatestone Institute/November 09/2022
Regime leadership shrewdly did not attempt to suppress the women-led protests in Iran with massive deployments of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and shoot-to-kill orders. Such a response might have run the risk of galvanizing even more Iranian men to join the protests.
Instead, Tehran dispatched local police units and specially trained civilian, paramilitary Basij units -- the regime's civilian-clad regime protection forces, to engage the protestors. While the Basij are authorized to shoot-to-kill... Basijis also infiltrate the crowds of protestors to identify the ringleaders.
President Ebrahim Raisi on October 8... was greeted with chants of "Get lost!" Simultaneously the regime was energizing pro-regime members of the student Basij forces to bully students and report on anti-regime campus leaders.
The tyrannical theocracy's judicial institutions are killing and arresting dissidents, which was filmed at several sites. Many anti-regime activists will most likely be tried in special revolutionary court sham trials, at least 1,000 of which will reportedly be public.... Presumably everyone under arrest will be "found" guilty.
If the demonstrations gather momentum or spring up in areas once apparently pacified, the regime might finally deploy massive and deadly force to extinguish their unimaginably courageous citizens -- whose "crime" is to be fighting for their freedom from a brutal, tyrannical dictatorship.
Where are the strong, powerful actions backing up the protestors from the US, President Biden and his apparently pro-Russia, pro-China and pro-despot administration?
Iran's tyrannical theocratic regime is killing and arresting dissidents. Many anti-regime activists will most likely be tried in special revolutionary court sham trials. Where are the strong, powerful actions backing up the protestors from the Biden administration? Pictured: Iranian policemen chase anti-regime protestors and beat them with batons in Tehran, on September 19, 2022. (Photo by AFP via Getty Images)
Iran's security forces have skillfully been trying to prevent the latest series of anti-regime protests from spinning out of control. After decades of suppressing challenges to regime stability, the regime's militias and law enforcement agencies are doubtless hoping to have perfected their strategy and tactics against opposition movements.
After the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman, opposition demonstrations exploded across Iran. The "Morals Police" had ostensibly arrested Amini for failing to cover her hair adequately – or "bad hijab."
Women, especially professional women, have long expressed their contempt for the hair-covering mandate ever since the start of the Islamic Revolution in 1979, when tens of thousands of them marched in Tehran to denounce the ruling by the newly installed "mullahcracy."
What began as public protest -- with women burning their hijabs to protest Amini's death in a hospital on September 16 -- quickly evolved into massive street clashes across the country.
The demonstrations have continued for two months. Several commentators remarked that that this time the anti-regime protests are different, implying that the regime might not survive. After decades of anti-regime demonstrations, the security forces perhaps believe they have learned how and when to apply the right amount of force.
As usual, pro-regime mouthpieces labeled the protestors as being in league with foreign espionage agencies, with Saudi Arabia, Israel and the US as the primary culprits. Iran's shelling of Kurdish regional government sites in Iraq appeared designed to lend authenticity to Tehran's charge that the US and Israel were helping Iraqi Kurds to fan anti-regime protests by Iranian Kurds. Iran also accused Arab Gulf states, particularly Saudi Arabia, of exploiting the rebellion among Iran's Sunni minority. Iranian military and religious leaders have threatened the US, Israel and Saudi Arabia with retaliation.
Regime leadership shrewdly did not attempt to suppress the women-led protests in Iran with massive deployments of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and shoot-to-kill orders. Such a response might have run the risk of galvanizing even more Iranian men to join the protests. Instead, Tehran dispatched local police units and specially trained civilian, paramilitary Basij units -- the regime's civilian-clad regime protection forces, to engage the protestors. While the Basij are authorized to shoot-to-kill, protestors are mostly chased by ordinary Basij forces wielding batons and chains, and tossing tear gas canisters. Basijis also infiltrate the crowds of protestors to identify the ringleaders.
Iranian authorities concentrated their initial internal suppression operations in non-Persian minority provinces such as Kurdistan, Lorestan (land of the Luri people), Khuzestan (Arab-Iranians), and Sistan and Baluchistan (Baluchi people and Sunni Muslims). The authorities appeared to be more brutal in their use of force against ethnic minorities in these more isolated regime dominions. Tehran also deployed regular military units in ethnic Azeri areas of Iran, across its northern border with the nation-state of Azerbaijan.
The pockets of resistance where anti-regime activity remains most pronounced are in university campuses in Iran's largest cities, especially in Tehran. The regime dispatched dignitaries such as such as President Ebrahim Raisi on October 8 to address the all-female Al-Zahra University; he was greeted with chants of "Get lost!" Simultaneously the regime was energizing pro-regime members of the student Basij forces to bully students and report on anti-regime campus leaders.
The tyrannical theocracy's judicial institutions are killing and arresting dissidents, which was filmed at several sites. Many anti-regime activists will most likely be tried in special revolutionary court sham trials, at least 1,000 of which will reportedly be public. As Tehran claims that the CIA is behind the protests, state prosecutors will most likely charge some of the dissidents with working for foreign spy networks. Presumably everyone under arrest will be "found" guilty.
If the demonstrations gather momentum or spring up in areas once apparently pacified, the regime might finally deploy massive and deadly force to extinguish their unimaginably courageous citizens -- whose "crime" is to be fighting for their freedom from a brutal, tyrannical dictatorship.
Where are the strong, powerful actions backing up the protestors from the US, President Joe Biden and his apparently pro-Russia, pro-China and pro-despot administration?
*Dr. Lawrence A. Franklin was the Iran Desk Officer for Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld. He also served on active duty with the U.S. Army and as a Colonel in the Air Force Reserve.
© 2022 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19099/iran-hijab-rebellion
https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/3977321/iran-disregards-ongoing-protests-expects-riot-subside#:~:text=Iran%20Disregards%20Ongoing,manner%2C%22%20Setayeshi%20said.

Iran: 80/20
Tariq Al-Homayed/Asharq Al-Awsat/November 09/2022
The question now is: how do we understand Iran? What impact will its protests have? What is the difference between them and what came to be known as the ‘Green Revolution' in 2009, which former US President Barack Obama, for electoral reasons, has finally apologized for not supporting?
When and how will we know that Iran has reached a point from which there is no going back? When can we say that the cup has overflowed?
I posed all of these questions to a figure who knows Iran well, both because of his background and his life, and who plays an influential role in assessing the situation in Iran internationally.
My informed source told me that a prominent figure inside Iran familiar with the inner workings of the regime had informed him that the supporters of the mullah regime could be split 80/20.
My source tells me that the well-informed Iranian has told him that “20 percent of Iranians believe in the regime ideologically. And 80 percent support the regime out of pure self-interest.”
An Arab diplomat watching the situation in Iran closely has told me that “this is true for all the ideological regimes in the region, like the Baath regime that had ruled Iraq during the era of Saddam Hussein, the Baath regime in Syria, and the Muslim Brotherhood’s time in power in Egypt.
“The same is true for Sudan when it was led by the Muslim Brotherhood and the Muslim Brotherhood’s (through Hamas) rule over Gaza,” he continues, explaining that ideology has inherently low horizons. “Love makes you blind,” as they say, and this is the total opposite of political pragmatism.
My well-informed source adds that to understand Iran and whether the protests there, which have been ongoing for nearly two months, are genuine or not, we should note two things and keep in mind that what is happening today is very different from what we had seen in 2009.
My source tells me that in 2009, political protests over the rules of the game broke out. The protests were against the manipulation of the election results. “What happened to my vote,” was the rallying cry. It had an obvious leadership, and repressing it repressed the entire ‘Green Revolution.’ Today, we are seeing something totally different, a socio-political protest movement that is inherently diverse.
It is impossible, for example, to erase the image of the Iranian woman in her eighties cutting her hair in solidarity with the women of Iran.
It is also impossible to overlook the image of another Iranian woman letting her hair down in the streets of Tehran and lifting her fist in a salute to the men and women around her as she gave out candy. In one video, she appears to salute an Iranian soldier in uniform with her fist.
In the latter video, the soldier replies with a smile, and she offers him a piece of candy, which he takes without a second thought. We could not have imagined seeing the videos that are now circulating of Iranian women taking “turbans” off the heads of Iranian clerics in the streets.
Alright, when will we know that Iran has reached a point of no return? The source tells me: there are two things to look out for. First, whether the protests are bottom-up, and they are. Second, whether there are splits within the top brass of the regime; once we see this, we will know that the winds of change are coming. Let us wait and see.

Syria in the Narratives of its Invaders
Hazem Saghieh/Asharq Al-Awsat/November 09/2022
With the revolt that recently erupted in Iran, Syria came to feature in the rhetoric of the Iranian regime and its followers. It was mentioned in the following terms: they- Western powers, enemies, spies and their subordinates- want to destroy Iran like they tried to destroy Syria.
Before that, with the Russian war on Ukraine, the Russian narrative, which is being echoed by a growing number of people, mentions Syria in this manner: evil shall be defeated in Ukraine as it had been defeated in Syria.
Both narratives, at the end of the day, are a single narrative of two chapters: The Iranian chapter describes the problem: the conspiracy. The Russian chapter describes the solution: Holy Fire. Scorched earth. A purifying cleanse after the defilement.
This is how the murderer tells the story of the murdered and the robber tells the story of the robbed; from it, he deduces the appropriate “lessons”.
Naturally, there is a savior in the background of both narratives: in the Iranian one, it is the slain general Qassem Soleimani. In Russia’s narrative, it is the ‘butcher of Syria’, General Aleksandr Vladimirovich Dvornikov, whose expertise has been sought in the hope of putting an end to the setbacks suffered in the war on Ukraine.
Syria is, in both cases, a silent being. Her invaders represent her and her experience; only they speak on her behalf. They are especially keen on doing so when they are faced with their own ordeals, for which the silence imposed on Syria is used to demonstrate that they, like the heroes of epics, are destined to be targeted constantly.
Of course, both Russia and Iran allow for the emergence of alternative narratives about Syria only to the extent that they allow alternative narratives about any other matter!
In these proliferating mendacious recollections about Syria, we see a blend that combines the criminal’s tendency to revisit his crime, establish a place where the lies are tested, in parallel to testing weapons, and reassure himself that victory has been attained and that the Syrian corpse has been killed and will never be heard of after today.
Such a coarse narrative resembles only the coarse actions it “narrates” at a time many describe as the “age of information.”
And the fact is that calling the actions of Russia and Iran “colonial” or “imperial” does not say much. It could even be a little bit misleading:
When those to whom colonialism is attributed review their colonial history, we find the overwhelming majority and the mainstream use apologetic language, which totally contrasts with the triumphalist rhetoric of the Iranians and Russians. While we see increasing numbers of attempts, at least in democratic countries, to revive ancient cultures and identities that had almost been erased by early colonialists, such concerns are nonexistent in the dominant Russo-Iranian political cultures. Repeatedly denying the existence of a Ukrainian nation and presenting Ukrainians as mere “neo-Nazis” are only the most recent and most revealing expressions of this tendency.
Moreover, the crimes committed by older colonialism targeted communal identities and repressed them harshly, perhaps depriving them of opportunities that some say their history had been moving towards realizing. As for the Russo-Iranian crimes committed in Syria, they targeted a national identity of a country that had supposedly gained its independence more than three-quarters of a century ago.
Furthermore, the crimes of European colonialism, with all of its viciousness and patronization of the native inhabitants, came with major advancements, both material and cultural, institutional and political. No one can deny this progress, even if they were vehemently opposed to imperialism, especially when these advancements are compared to the absolute destruction that Russia and Iran leave behind them.
According to the commonly accepted figures, the human costs of the major standoffs between the Syrian people and the French occupation, which went on for 26 years, led to the deaths of 150 in the Battle of Maysaloun (1920), 4,213 during the suppression of the ‘Great Syrian Revolt’ in 1925-7, and 600 during the bombardment of Damascus in 1945. These figures would not have satisfied General Soleimani as a quick breakfast in between his journeys from one military front to another, and the same is true of General Dvornikov’s appetite.
In 2003, London witnessed the biggest protest in its history in opposition to the Iraq War of that year. The great nineteen-sixties protest movement against the Vietnam war, which rocked the United States and the Western world, is also still in the memory. Were protests of any scale, even microscopic, against Iran and Russia’s destruction of Syria allowed anywhere in Tehran or Moscow?
With such qualities, the Russo-Iranian narrative about Syria is a story of pure barbarism about acts that can only be called pure barbarism.
As for retaliating to these actions, it is not in anyone’s hands, not in the foreseeable future at least. However, the response to the narrative begins with developing a Syrian one that comes from the narratives of individuals and groups, as well as continuing to unravel the history and reality of Syria as they are and they had been, without sugarcoating anything or making any false claims.
In the meantime, the Iranian- Russian cooperation that was founded in its most extreme form in Syria continues. The Iranian drones gifted to the Russians for use in Ukraine tell us that the barbaric battle they are fighting is one and the same: the two collaborating parties also claim they are fighting imperialism and accuse the Syrians and the Ukrainians of being imperialist stooges!
Syria’s narrative about itself would be better off saving itself from this trap, just as Ukraine’s narrative had saved itself from the same trap.

Who Is Responsible for Protecting the Climate?
Salman Al-Dossary/Asharq Al-Awsat/November 09/2022
Climate challenges have long occupied a large segment of world leaders’ agendas. Although some leaders view the matter from a scope of political goals, a few others deal with this issue as a duty of moral responsibility. Today, this space may not be an opportunity to review the two previous points of view. But it is sufficient for any observer to track the statements of the first party and the second party’s initiatives to feel the problem’s current reality and its dimensions. They can also sense each party’s intentions in dealing with the situation. Those who believe that the responsibility for confronting climate challenges rests solely with the oil-producing countries are mistaken. As I indicated in a previous article on August 15, titled “Oil, A Boogeyman,” the West imposes taxes on Gulf oil under the pretext of protecting the environment while subsidizing coal, which is the most significant pollutant among the energy sources that exist today. This constitutes a stark and incomprehensible contradiction that isn’t commensurate with human reasoning.
Despite all this, Saudi Arabia has taken it upon itself to adopt many initiatives during the past few years, some national, some regional, and some global.
Its Green Middle East Initiative and the circular carbon economy approach, adopted by the G20 at the summit level, are but a small part of the initiatives presented by Riyadh to the region and the world, with the aim of energy sustainability and reducing carbon emissions.
Is facing climate challenges an individual or a collective responsibility? What initiatives are required from all countries to save the planet? Is protecting the earth a monopoly on countries with rich energy sources? Is it reasonable to focus on specific energy sources, such as petroleum, while ignoring others, such as coal? Any human effort’s success stems from a principle of “collective partnership” in addressing crises. From this standpoint, Saudi Arabia has taken it upon itself to lead the region’s countries to contribute to achieving global climate goals. Under the patronage of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the second edition of the Green Middle East Initiative Summit was held in Egypt in tandem with the Conference of the Parties to the Climate Change Agreement (COP27).
It was convened under a joint Saudi-Egyptian presidency, which clearly communicated the importance of collective action in the face of climate challenges. I will quickly review some of the numbers and targets mentioned by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in his speech at the opening of the Green Middle East Initiative Summit. These numbers demonstrate the seriousness of this ambitious initiative, which requires continued regional cooperation to implement the commitments of the region’s countries at a faster pace. With concerted regional efforts, the initiative seeks to remove more than 670 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, which amounts to 10 % of global contributions.
The initiative also aims to plant 50 billion trees across the Middle East and restore an area equivalent to 200 million hectares of degraded land. The initiative will reduce global carbon levels by 2.5%. On the national level, Saudi Arabia launched the Saudi Green Initiative (SGI), which aims to reduce carbon emissions by 278 mtpa by 2030 by implementing a Carbon Circular Economy (CCE) approach. Moreover, the Kingdom launched an international collaboration platform to implement the CCE approach, a regional investment fund dedicated to financing CCE solutions, and a Clean Fuel Solutions Initiative for Food Savings. Riyadh also plans to rely on renewables for 50% of its electricity generation by 2030, removing 44 million tons of carbon emissions by 2035. What caught my attention at the second edition of the Green Middle East Initiative Summit was the announcement by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) aims to reach zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 through the CCE approach. This will make PIF among the world’s first sovereign wealth funds and the first in the Middle East to reach carbon neutrality. It will also challenge the world’s wealth funds to eliminate their old investment thinking and enter a fierce competition that will benefit future generations.

Qatar Tells Muslim Migrants to Despise Their Western Host Nations
Raymond Ibrahim/November 09/2022
The following was written by Selwyn Duke for The New American:
“Don’t bite the hand that feeds you” goes the age-old sage advice. This counsel is lost on U.S. “ally” Qatar, however, as it’s counseling Muslims living in non-Islamic nations to despise their “infidel” benefactors.
Thus reports Raymond Ibrahim, an author, scholar, and senior fellow at the Gatestone Institute who is fluent in Arabic.
The anti-“infidel” directive is found at widely read Islamweb.net, which Ibrahim says is funded and directed by Persian Gulf emirate Qatar. The directive states that “any Muslim who lives in a non-Muslim nation is obligated to hate his adopted nation and its ‘infidel’ citizens (even while receiving benefits from them),” writes Ibrahim.
The injunction “comes in the form of a fatwa (an Islamic sanctioned decree) titled ‘Conditions that Legitimize Residing in Infidel Nations’ (all translations in this article my own),” Ibrahim informs. “Along with ‘preserving and upholding his Islam,’ the ‘first condition’ for any Muslim who lives among non-Muslims is that he have ‘enmity and hatred for the infidels,’” the writer quotes the fatwa as stating.
“This, incidentally, applies to those millions of Muslim migrants voluntarily immigrating into and flooding Western Europe,” Ibrahim continues. “If they take their Islam seriously, they are duty-bound to hate and be disloyal to those nations welcoming them and providing them with free food, shelter, and health care.”
Islamweb.net justifies its prescription for ingratitude by citing the Koran. “You will never find a people that truly believes in Allah and the Last Day loyal to those who defy Allah and His Messenger — even if they be their parents, children, siblings, or extended family [Koran 58:22],” Ibrahim also related, providing the Koranic reference.
“Oh you who believe! Do not take the Jews and the Christians for friends and allies, for they are friends and allies of each other; and whoever among you befriends them is from among them,” goes the second passage. “Allah does not guide the unjust people [Koran 5:51].”
Ibrahim further tells us that after “quoting Muhammad in a sahih (authentic) hadith, saying, ‘Whoever loves a people is from among them,’ the fatwa concludes by saying, ‘Loving the enemies of Allah is among the greatest dangers for a Muslim, for loving them necessitates cooperating with and following them, or at least not rejecting them — hence why the prophet said, ‘Whoever loves a people is from among them.’”
What this means, asserts Ibrahim, is that one is an enemy of Allah just by virtue of being non-Muslim.
The scholar additionally points out that far from being a fringe notion, this teaching is actually mainstream in Islam. Notable here is that Qatar isn’t some camel-herding backwater, but boasts the globe’s third-highest per-capita GDP and the Arab world’s third-highest Human Development Index.
The teaching also is nothing new. Islamic thought divides the world into two zones, the first being Dar al-Islam; it’s where Muslims dominate and is considered a “territory of peace.” The other is Dar al-Harb, or non-Muslim lands — they’re classified as “territories of war or chaos.”
Getting an object lesson in this mentality was the early United States, which, like other non-Muslim nations in Dar al-Islam’s orbit, was being menaced by the Barbary pirates of North Africa. Just consider, for example, the answer Tripoli’s envoy to London, Ambassador Sidi Haji Abdrahaman, gave when asked in 1785 why his people would “make war upon nations who had done them no injury.”
As Thomas Jefferson related at the time, “The Ambassador answered us that it was founded on the Laws of their Prophet, that it was written in their Koran, that all nations who should not have acknowledged their authority were sinners, that it was their right and duty to make war upon them wherever they could be found, and to make slaves of all they could take as Prisoners.”
So what we’re seeing here is the difference between marketing and ingredients label. It’s unlikely you heard the Qatar story reported by mainstream media, which give us a skewed view of reality (“Muslims are innocent victims of Western imperialism!”). But honest Arabs fluent in Arabic who translate what Mideastern Muslim sources actually say paint a different picture.
Aside from Ibrahim, another good example is Dr. Mudar Zahran, a Jordanian Opposition Coalition leader living as an asylee in the United Kingdom. Warning in 2015 that the massive Muslim migration into Europe is the “soft Islamic conquest of the West,” he said, “I have to be honest: you read Arab magazines and Arab newspapers [and] they are talking about, ‘Good job! Now we’re going to conque[r] Europe.’”
Really, though, it’s easy conquering a foe with a penchant for suicide. To use a play on an old saying, a fool and his civilization will soon be parted.

In 2022 Polls, Views on U.S. Relations On Par with Other World Powers in the Middle East
Frances McDonough/The Washington Institute/November 09/2022
Regional polls from March and August reveal shifting power dynamics, as economic conditions and relations with Israel continue to weigh on citizens’ minds.
In the two rounds of 2022 public opinion polling commissioned by the Washington Institute and conducted by a regional commercial survey firm across seven countries—Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE—popular support for relations with the United States remained relatively stable while the importance of relations with other world powers such as Russia and China increased.
Although the majority of Arab publics polled strongly opposed Russian military actions in Ukraine in both March—in the direct aftermath of the invasion—and again in August after several months of war, more citizens in Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE appear to value relations with Russia by August. Support for relations with China showed a similar jump in countries like Egypt and Bahrain, while U.S. involvement in the region, including Biden’s July visit and the two-year old Abraham Accords, garnered little approval.
Regional Reliance on the United States is Waning, Views on Importance of Ties with the United States Remain Split
Of the seven countries polled in March 2022, even the strongest display of popular support for ties with the United States—57% in Egypt—was split, at best. Lebanon rated the importance of American ties lowest of all, with only 37% saying good relations with the United States were at least “somewhat important.” Not far ahead in their approval of the United States were Saudi citizens (41%) and Bahrainis (42%).
Open imageiconM2022_US Relations
When asked the same question several months later, views in Bahrain warmed slightly, increasing four points to 46%. Nevertheless, the perceived importance of relations with the United States still remained split across the board. In fact, Saudi respondents were entirely unchanged in their opinions, with only 41% saying “somewhat” or “very important.” In the same poll, Saudi citizens ranked the highest among the four countries polled in their disapproval of President Joe Biden’s August visit to the region, with 70% saying the trip was “somewhat” or “very negative.”
Open imageiconA2022 US Relations
While regional opinions on U.S. relations remained average in March and August, reliance on the United States seems to be on the decline. In March, over half of respondents in Bahrain, Kuwait, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE agreed at least “somewhat” with the following statement: “We cannot count on the United States these days, so we should look more to Russia and China as partners.”
Moreover, more citizens in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the UAE seemed to agree with this view when asked again only five months later. In August, polls in Saudi Arabia and Egypt showed a four-point increase in those who agreed with the pointed assertion.
Open imageiconM2022 US Reliability
As Economic Conditions Worsen, Support for China and Russia Grows
Reinforcing the idea that the Middle East is increasingly looking toward Russia and China as partners, 2022 polling showed that modest majorities in all seven countries valued “good relations with China” as either “somewhat” or “very important.” Notably, Lebanon showed the highest proportion of support for ties with China at 68% in March.
Open imageiconM2022 China Relations
When asked to rate China again in August, citizens in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Egypt held steady. This valuing of ties—especially when compared to the percentages valuing ties with the United States—may reflect the deepening economic ties China has pursued in the region.
In Egypt, for instance, China reaffirmed in June that it will “align” its Belt and Road Initiative with Egypt’s “Vision 2030” economic development strategy. In early August, China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) signed an energy agreement with Saudi Aramco in a similar effort to coordinate long term economic ties, with the Belt and Road Initiative and Saudi’s “Vision 2030” in mind.
Open imageiconA2022 China Relations
Regarding the importance of good relations with Russia, opinions were more mixed. In March 2022, a similar proportion of respondents rated relations with Russia as important relative to the United States. In Jordan, only 41% viewed ties with Russia as at least “somewhat important,” but in Lebanon, 54% said the same. In five out of the seven countries polled in March—Bahrain, Kuwait, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE—more respondents expressed that the importance of good relations with Russia was at least “somewhat important” compared those that said the same for the United States.
Open imageiconM2022 Russia Relations
Just a few months later, the number of respondents who valued relations with Russia marginally increased—four points in Bahrain, three in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and two in the UAE, though the latter three come within the margin of error. The sustained support of about half of each country’s publics comes in spite of the disapproval expressed by the majority in both March and August polls of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Open imageiconA2022 Russia Relations
Moreover, the majority in each country agreed in March and August that “the Russian military actions in Ukraine are to blame for the recent rise in food prices here.” These incongruent results emphasize that a lack of popularity for Russia’s military movements have done little to weaken the popular value of relations with Russia—an attitude likewise pursued by many of these countries’ governments.
Relations with Israel Get Mixed Reviews
When given the statement “People who want to have business or sports contacts with Israelis should be allowed to do so,” nearly half of respondents in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE agreed at least “somewhat” in March. When compared to the large majority of respondents in Lebanon, Kuwait, Jordan, and Egypt who “somewhat” or “strongly” disagreed, these numbers stand out as noteworthy elements in the ongoing Arab-Israeli conversation. In August, the number of respondents in Saudi Arabia who at least “somewhat” agreed with the assertion actually increased four points, from 38% to 42%.
Open imageiconM2022 Relations with Israelis
However, citizens throughout the Middle East continued to express hesitance on the U.S.-led Abraham Accords, reinforcing mixed reviews on the United States as a whole. In March, overwhelming majorities in all seven countries said they viewed the accords as “somewhat negative” or “very negative.” Even in countries signed onto the accords—namely Bahrain and the UAE—support has dwindled from larger minorities in the initial period after the accords were signed.
Open imageiconM2022 Abraham Accords
Although the Emirates had the most respondents with a positive outlook in August on normalization with Israel—with Bahrain closely behind—this nevertheless represented only a quarter of respondents who viewed the accords as “somewhat” or “very positive.”
Open imageiconA2022 Abraham Accords
Methodological Note
These findings are from personal interview surveys, conducted in March and July/August 2022, among nationally representative samples of 1,000 citizens from each country, randomly selected according to standard geographic probability procedures. They were conducted by highly reputable and experienced independent, regional commercial firms, with strict quality controls and assurances of confidentiality. The estimated statistical margin of error for samples of this size and nature is plus or minus 3 percentage points. Additional methodological information, including full questionnaire and data tables, is readily available on the new interactive polling data platform on Fikra Forum.

Iran’s Oil Exports Are Vulnerable to Sanctions
Henry Rome/The Washington Institute/November 09/2022
Iran continues to export significant volumes of oil, providing a key source of revenue for the regime—and a potential target for increased economic pressure.
In recent months, Iran has increasingly engaged in violations of UN resolutions and international norms, from sending weapons to Russia for use against Ukraine, to brutally suppressing mass protests at home, to advancing its nuclear program in irreversible ways. Although Western governments have responded to these actions by imposing limited new sanctions and attempting to isolate Tehran diplomatically, they have not significantly upped the pressure so far.
One potential area in which to do so is the energy sector, where concerted pressure could cut into a key source of government income. The Biden administration has kept its predecessor’s “maximum pressure” sanctions in place but has not rigorously enforced them, allowing Iran to increase its energy exports over the past two years. While the Treasury Department sanctions issued on November 3 are a step in the right direction, they fall short of a systematic campaign. Taking a stronger approach could impose greater costs on Tehran for its nuclear, regional, and domestic policies.
The Oil Lifeline
Over the past three months, Iran’s oil exports averaged between 810,000 and 1.2 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude and condensate (a light liquid hydrocarbon), according to estimates from TankerTrackers, Vortexa, Kpler, and United Against Nuclear Iran. Most of this flow went to companies in China, with entities in Syria, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela receiving some as well (the oil sent to the UAE is likely reexported to Asia).
These numbers are far below the roughly 2.7 million bpd Iran was exporting in early 2018, before the Trump administration withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and reimposed secondary sanctions. But they are much higher than at the peak of Trump’s maximum pressure campaign, when oil import waivers expired in May 2019 and Iranian exports fell to 500,000 bpd or less.
As negotiations to revive the JCPOA began last year, the Biden administration decided not to aggressively enforce maximal sanctions in word or deed, seemingly concluding that this would dampen diplomatic prospects and was ultimately unnecessary because the nuclear deal would be revived quickly. Although officials reportedly prioritized private diplomatic efforts to encourage China to curtail its purchases, the United States did not issue any energy-related sanctions on Iran until June 2021 and imposed only two other batches the rest of the year (in August and September).
Enforcement measures picked up in 2022—in all, Biden’s Treasury Department has issued ten rounds of sanctions tied to Iranian energy sales. Yet these efforts have been intermittent rather than part of a wider campaign, and they have not had a noticeable impact on Iranian export numbers or the regime’s decisionmaking. The policy of limited enforcement may also have reduced Tehran’s urgency to revive the nuclear deal by giving it valuable economic support and eroding the potential benefits of formalized sanctions relief. Overall, the signal to oil markets was clear: the risk of handling Iranian oil had declined.
Follow the Money
The above export numbers tell only part of the story because they do not account for how much Iran actually earns from its exports. The gap between how much the regime should earn and how much it reportedly does earn demonstrates how costly it is to trade oil clandestinely—and U.S. policymakers should seek to widen this gap.
Oil plays a major role in the Islamic Republic’s ability to generate revenue and access hard currency. In the current fiscal year (March 2022-March 2023), the country expected to export 1.4 million bpd at $70 per barrel, accounting for about one-third of its total revenue. Yet the government does not keep all of the money from these sales—40 percent is owed to the National Development Fund (NDF) and 14.5 percent to the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC). The government gets the remainder (45.5 percent), with a small portion earmarked for projects in less-developed parts of the country. (Though if the government does not reach its expected targets, it is permitted to dip into the NDF to cover the gap.)
Iran’s budget sets aside a portion of oil revenue to fund imports of basic goods at a subsidized exchange rate. Yet President Ebrahim Raisi and his predecessor steadily winnowed down the list of goods eligible for this discount; Raisi did away with the system almost entirely this year, causing market turbulence and inflationary pressure. Some oil revenue is also funneled directly to military organizations, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Although the government only releases budget data periodically, the available information allows for some estimation of what it actually earns from oil revenue. From April to July 2022, it reported earnings of 650 trillion rials from oil sales. When accounting for the oil conversion rate (230,000 rials to the dollar) and allocations to the NDF and NIOC, the government received about $6.2 billion—but should have earned much more.
Because of U.S. restrictions, Iran does not receive “sticker price” for the oil it sells. A number of factors slice into its revenue: the regime must sell at a discount to encourage risk-averse buyers, engage in costly clandestine efforts to conceal the oil’s origin, and navigate banking restrictions that limit its access to the resultant revenue. Moreover, the IRGC helps smuggle this oil and siphons off some of the sale money to support its activities and fund its foreign militia proxies.
According to various tracking firms, Iranian oil exports during this April-July period averaged 620,000-980,000 bpd (including Iranian exports of condensate, but excluding exports to Venezuela and Syria, since the government may not be paid directly for these sales). When one multiplies these volumes by the average Brent price of $113 and subtracts the allocations discussed above, the government should have earned between $8.6 and $13.5 billion from those sales. In other words, it lost as much as half of its oil revenue to discounts, transaction costs, lack of accessibility, and other impediments.
Policy Options
To widen the gap between the regime’s potential and actual earnings from oil sales, the United States should take steps that force Tehran to adopt even more costly and complex black market strategies—mainly by increasing the risk perceptions of companies, banks, and governments that engage in or permit this trade. Specifically, Washington should:
Pressure countries to increase their domestic enforcement efforts by pointing out that every barrel sold by Iran funds the regime’s support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, its domestic repression, and its malign regional activities. In particular, U.S. officials should elevate the importance of this issue in bilateral conversations with China, India, Malaysia, Singapore, and the UAE.
Escalate the tempo of energy-related sanctions designations to create a climate of uncertainty and anxiety among individuals, companies, and countries involved in shipping or purchasing Iranian energy products.
Issue updated guidance from the Treasury and State Departments and the Coast Guard regarding the techniques that oil smugglers use to evade maritime sanctions, including details about common locations for ship-to-ship transfers.
Increase the State Department reward for information on illicit IRGC financial networks, launching a public outreach effort in Persian to raise the program’s profile.
All of these measures could be implemented quickly—though continued uncertainty about the implementation of a price cap on Russian oil may argue for some caution in the coming weeks. As for concerns that increased U.S. pressure could result in a major drop-off in Iranian oil exports and thereby raise global prices even higher, Saudi Arabia likely has sufficient spare capacity to compensate for this risk. Despite their recent turmoil on oil policy, Washington and Riyadh are aligned in their desire to constrain Iran, which should foster cooperation on this issue; the kingdom also has an interest in keeping oil prices from surging past a sustainable level.
Finally, Washington will need to deter the Iranians from retaliating militarily against any substantial increase in U.S. pressure, as they did in summer 2019. Potential deterrent steps include strengthening U.S. defensive deployments in the region as well as intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities. Such efforts could have the added benefit of giving Washington another platform for encouraging the Abraham Accords countries and Saudi Arabia to cooperate on information sharing and defending against mutual threats.
*Henry Rome is a senior fellow at The Washington Institute.