LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
April 02/2019

Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

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Bible Quotations For today
False prophets appeared in the past among the people, and in the same way false teachers will appear among you
02 Peter 02 /01-22: “False prophets appeared in the past among the people, and in the same way false teachers will appear among you. They will bring in destructive, untrue doctrines, and will deny the Master who redeemed them, and so they will bring upon themselves sudden destruction. Even so, many will follow their immoral ways; and because of what they do, others will speak evil of the Way of truth. In their greed these false teachers will make a profit out of telling you made-up stories. For a long time now their Judge has been ready, and their Destroyer has been wide awake! God did not spare the angels who sinned, but threw them into hell, where they are kept chained in darkness, waiting for the Day of Judgment. God did not spare the ancient world, but brought the flood on the world of godless people; the only ones he saved were Noah, who preached righteousness, and seven other people. God condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, destroying them with fire, and made them an example of what will happen to the godless. He rescued Lot, a good man, who was distressed by the immoral conduct of lawless people. That good man lived among them, and day after day he suffered agony as he saw and heard their evil actions. And so the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their trials and how to keep the wicked under punishment for the Day of Judgment, especially those who follow their filthy bodily lusts and despise God’s authority. These false teachers are bold and arrogant, and show no respect for the glorious beings above; instead, they insult them. Even the angels, who are so much stronger and mightier than these false teachers, do not accuse them with insults in the presence of the Lord. But these people act by instinct, like wild animals born to be captured and killed; they attack with insults anything they do not understand. They will be destroyed like wild animals, and they will be paid with suffering for the suffering they have caused. Pleasure for them is to do anything in broad daylight that will satisfy their bodily appetites; they are a shame and a disgrace as they join you in your meals, all the while enjoying their deceitful ways! They want to look for nothing but the chance to commit adultery; their appetite for sin is never satisfied. They lead weak people into a trap. Their hearts are trained to be greedy. They are under God’s curse! They have left the straight path and have lost their way; they have followed the path taken by Balaam son of Beor, who loved the money he would get for doing wrong and was rebuked for his sin. His donkey spoke with a human voice and stopped the prophet’s insane action. These people are like dried-up springs, like clouds blown along by a storm; God has reserved a place for them in the deepest darkness. They make proud and stupid statements, and use immoral bodily lusts to trap those who are just beginning to escape from among people who live in error. They promise them freedom while they themselves are slaves of destructive habits—for we are slaves of anything that has conquered us. If people have escaped from the corrupting forces of the world through their knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and then are again caught and conquered by them, such people are in worse condition at the end than they were at the beginning. It would have been much better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than to know it and then turn away from the sacred command that was given them. What happened to them shows that the proverbs are true: “A dog goes back to what it has vomited” and “A pig that has been washed goes back to roll in the mud.”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on April 01-02/19
Praying For Others And The Healing Miracle of the Paralyzed Miracle
Report: Hariri Determined to Give New Impetus to Govt. Action
Report: Hariri to Visit Tripoli In Show of Support before By-elections
Berri: Lebanon Facing Major Economic Crisis, Iraq Could Mediate Saudi-Iran Reconciliation
Hariri Chairs 'Very, Very Positive' Meeting on Electricity
Franjieh: People Have Right to 24Hr Electricity without Theft
Jumblat Meets Hariri at the Grand Serail
Jumblat: Some Don't Want to Learn from the Past
Lebanon’s PM Says ‘Difficult’ Economic Decisions Ahead
Lebanon to Receive Venezuela FM With Assurances of Neutrality
Hariri: No Corruption-Free Political Parties in Lebanon
Samy Gemayel Meets with Justice Minister
Hankache Criticizes Government's Unproductivity Amid Critical Phase
Jarrah after electricity committee meeting: Very positive atmosphere and will continue tomorrow
Lebanon’s Anti-Graft Drive Is Entirely Fake as Political Groups Fight Hezbollah over the Scraps

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on April 01-02/19
Arab Summit Rejects Israeli Sovereignty over Golan, Slams Iranian ‘Hostility’
Netanyahu Cancels Cabinet Meeting over Fears of Truce Deal Sabotage
Israel Expands Gaza Fishing Zone by Record Range
Brazil President Visits Western Wall with Netanyahu in First
UAE Rejects Report by HRC Experts on Yemen
Libya Will Have ‘One Government,’ Haftar Says of ‘Imminent Breakthrough’
Erdogan Party Suffers Defeat in Ankara and Istanbul
Intel: How Turkey's local elections mark a rebuke for Erdogan's one-man rule
Algerian Prosecutors Ban Corruption Suspects from Leaving Country
No Joke: Comedian Zelensky Sets Course for Ukraine Presidency
Egypt’s Israeli-Hamas deal further shakes Jordan’s Hashemite throne

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on April 01-02/19
Praying For Others And The Healing Miracle of the Paralyzed Miracle/Elias Bejjani/March 31/19
Lebanon’s Anti-Graft Drive Is Entirely Fake as Political Groups Fight Hezbollah over the Scraps/Martin Jay/Strategic Culture Foundation/April 01/19
Intel: How Turkey's local elections mark a rebuke for Erdogan's one-man rule/Al-Monitor Staff /March 31, 2019
Egypt’s Israeli-Hamas deal further shakes Jordan’s Hashemite throne/Debka File/April 01/19
Why Palestinians are Fleeing Lebanon/Khaled Abu Toameh/Gatestone Institute/April 01/19
Turkey Mourns Christchurch Massacre, Ignores Attacks on Non-Muslims/Uzay Bulut/Gatestone Institute/April 01/19
Qatari Press Praises Armed Palestinian Resistance, Self-Sacrifice For Palestine/MEMRI/April 01/19
The Tunis Summit: Responsibility and Struggles/Ghassan Charbel/Asharq Al Awsat/April 01/19
America Isn’t as Divided as It Looks/Tyler Cowen/Bloomberg View/April 01/19
What Comes After a Chaotic Week in Brexit?/Therese Raphael/Bloomberg View/April 01/19
Qaradawi and Qatar: the hate preacher who became Doha’s spiritual guide/Siraj Wahab/Arab News/April 01/1

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on April 01-02/19
Praying For Others And The Healing Miracle of the Paralyzed Miracle
Elias Bejjani/March 31/19
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/73457/elias-bejjani-praying-for-others-and-the-healing-miracle-of-the-paralyzed-miracle/
On the fifth Lenten Sunday the Catholic Maronites cite and recall with great reverence the Gospel of Saint Mark ( 02/1-12): “The Healing Miracle of the Paralytic”: “When he entered again into Capernaum after some days, it was heard that he was in the house. Immediately many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even around the door; and he spoke the word to them. Four people came, carrying a paralytic to him. When they could not come near to him for the crowd, they removed the roof where he was. When they had broken it up, they let down the mat that the paralytic was lying on. Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” But there were some of the scribes sitting there, and reasoning in their hearts, “Why does this man speak blasphemies like that? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” Immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you reason these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to tell the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven;’ or to say, ‘Arise, and take up your bed, and walk?’ But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”— He said to the paralytic— “I tell you, arise, take up your mat, and go to your house.” He arose, and immediately took up the mat, and went out in front of them all; so that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”
This great miracle in its theological essence and core demonstrates beyond doubt that intercessions, prayers and supplications for the benefit of others are acceptable faith rituals that Almighty God attentively hears and definitely answers.
It is interesting to learn that the paralytic man as stated in the Gospel of St. Mark, didn’t personally call on Jesus to cure him, nor he asked Him for forgiveness, mercy or help, although as many theologians believe Jesus used to visit Capernaum, where the man lives, and preach in its Synagogue frequently. Apparently this crippled man was lacking faith, hope, distancing himself from God and total ignoring the Gospel’s teaching. He did not believe that the Lord can cure him.
What also makes this miracle remarkable and distinguishable lies in the fact that the paralytic’s relatives and friends, or perhaps some of Jesus’ disciples were adamant that the Lord is able to heal this sick man who has been totally crippled for 38 years if He just touches him. This strong faith and hope made four of them carry the paralytic on his mat and rush to the house where Jesus was preaching. When they could not break through the crowd to inter the house they climbed with the paralytic to the roof, made a hole in it and let down the mat that the paralytic was lying on in front of Jesus and begged for his cure. Jesus was taken by their strong faith and fulfilled their request.
Jesus forgave the paralytic his sins first (“Son, your sins are forgiven you) and after that cured his body: “Arise, and take up your bed, and walk”. Like the scribes many nowadays still question the reason and rationale that made Jesus give priority to the man’s sins. Jesus’ wisdom illustrates that sin is the actual death and the cause for eternal anguish in Hell. He absolved his sins first because sin cripples those who fall in its traps, annihilates their hopes, faith, morals and values, kills their human feelings, inflicts numbness on their consciences and keeps them far away from Almighty God. Jesus wanted to save the man’s soul before He cures his earthy body. “For what does it profit a man, to gain the whole world, and forfeit his life?” (Mark 08:/36 & 37).
Our Gracious God does not disappoint any person when he seek His help with faith and confidence. With great interest and parental love, He listens to worshipers’ prayers and requests and definitely respond to them in His own way, wisdom, time and manner. “Ask, and it will be given you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives. He who seeks finds. To him who knocks it will be opened”. (Matthew 07/07 &08)
Is any among you suffering? Let him pray. Is any cheerful? Let him sing praises. Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the assembly, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith will heal him who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up”. (James 05:15)
In this loving and forgiving context, prayers for others, alive or dead, loved ones or enemies, relatives or strangers, are religiously desirable. God hears and responds because He never abandons His children no matter what they do or say, provided that they turn to Him with faith and repentance and ask for His mercy and forgiveness either for themselves or for others. “
There are numerous biblical parables and miracles in which Almighty God shows clearly that He accepts and responds to prayers for the sake of others.
Jesus cured the centurion’s servant on the request of the Centurion and not the servant himself. (Matthew 08/05-33 )
Jesus revived and brought back to life Lazarus on the request of his sisters Mary and Martha. (John 11/01-44)
Praying for others whether they are parents, relatives, strangers, acquaintances, enemies, or friends, and for countries, is an act that exhibits the faith, caring, love, and hope of those who offer the prayers. Almighty God, Who is a loving, forgiving, passionate, and merciful Father listens to these prayers and always answers them in His own wisdom and mercy that mostly we are unable to grasp because of our limited human understanding. “All things, whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.” (Matthew 21/22)
In conclusion: Almighty God is always waiting for us, we, His Children to come to Him and ask for His help and mercy either for ourselves or for others. He never leaves us alone. Meanwhile it is a Godly faith obligation to extend our hand and pull up those who are falling and unable to pray for themselves especially the mentally sick, the unconscious, and the paralyzed. In this realm of faith, love and care for others comes our prayers to Virgin Mary and to all Saints whom we do not worship, but ask for their intercessions and blessings.
O, Lord, endow us with graces of faith, hope, wisdom, and patience. Help us to be loving, caring, humble and meek. Show us the just paths. Help us to be on your right with the righteous on the Judgment Day.
God sees and hears us all the time, let us all fear Him in all what we think, do and say.

Report: Hariri Determined to Give New Impetus to Govt. Action
Naharnet/April 01/19/Prime Minister Saad Hariri is “determined” to give new impetus for governmental action as he resumes work following a heart stent procedure he underwent last week, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Monday. Sources close to Hariri told the daily that the Premier is determined to reactivate the governmental work in the coming stage, noting that he has resumed his tasks starting Monday after he returned from treatment in Paris. “Hariri plans to increase the level of government productivity and address vital files that no longer bear waiting,” the sources told the daily. In remarks he made to well-wishers who visited him Sunday at the Center House, Hariri said: “The challenges around us are great and very tough, and there are difficult decisions in terms of budget and reforms that everyone has to take responsibility for.”“We have to take decisions for the benefit of the Lebanese citizen, whether regarding CEDRE or the reforms that we must undertake. I am sure that all the political parties want the interest of the country. This must happen as soon as possible. We will start with electricity, the budget and everything related to the reforms,” he added.

Report: Hariri to Visit Tripoli In Show of Support before By-elections
Naharnet/April 01/19/Prime Minister Saad Hariri is expected to visit Tripoli days before parliamentary by-elections begin in the northern town, in a support move for the campaign led by Secretary-General of al-Mustaqbal Movement Ahmad Hariri and candidate Dima Jamali, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Monday. According to reports, Hariri will reportedly focus on motivating voters to hit the ballots, added the daily. On Sunday, Ahmed Hariri, ex-minister Ashraf Rifi and Mustaqbal’s candidate, Jamali have called on voters to turn out heavily in Tripoli’s upcoming April 14 by-election. The joint call was voiced during a tour of the city by Hariri and Jamali during which they met with Rifi. Hariri called on voters to confront those “who want the turnout to be weak after their withdrawal from the by-election,” in reference to MP Faisal Karami, al-Ahbash and their March 8 allies. According to the Interior Ministry, eight candidates have registered to run in said elections: Yehya Kamel Mawloud, Dima Mohammed Rachid Jamali, Samer Tarek Kabbara, Talal Mohammed Ali Kabbara, Omar Khaled al-Sayyed, Hamed Omar Amcha, Mahmoud Ibrahim al-Samadi, Mohammed Mosbah Aouni Ahdab.

Berri: Lebanon Facing Major Economic Crisis, Iraq Could Mediate Saudi-Iran Reconciliation
Naharnet/April 01/19/Speaker Nabih Berri held a meeting on Monday in Iraq with the Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi in the presence of various political, religious and ethnic groups, media reports said. Berri, who arrived in Baghdad on Sunday on an official visit, highlighted Israel’s violations of Lebanon’s land and maritime border, the “difficult” economic situation in the country and highlighted Iraq’s ability to mediate a reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and Iran. “The Israeli enemy has greed for our waters, but we will not give up one cup of it. That’s what I told the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. We were able to triumph over Israel because of our unity, and we were also capable of triumphing over Daesh and terrorism. Victory would have been very difficult if it was not for our unity,” Berri told the gatherers. On the situation in Lebanon, he said: “The security situation is doing well. But the bigger problem today is the economic situation. Regardless of Lebanon’s sound monetary sector, the economic situation in the country is dangerous. We must find a way to reduce the public deficit, otherwise Lebanon will face negative consequences.” On Iraq’s role in the region, the Speaker said: “One of the most important reasons for my visit to Iraq is that it is a national and religious duty, but it is also meant to say that Iraq can play a major and more effective role at the regional level. “It can strengthen its opening-up policy, and play a bigger role in reconciliation even between Saudi Arabia and Iran, thus strengthening its internal front and its external role,” he said. Berri arrived Sunday in Baghdad at the invitation of his Iraqi counterpart Mohammed al-Halbousi, who cut short a foreign trip in order to receive him. Berri is scheduled to meet with the country’s top officials and with Shiite spiritual leader Ayatollah Ali Sistani.

Hariri Chairs 'Very, Very Positive' Meeting on Electricity
Naharnet/April 01/19/Prime Minister Saad Hariri on Monday presided over a meeting for a ministerial panel tasked with studying a plan to solve the country's chronic electricity problem. The meeting was attended by Deputy PM Ghassan Hasbani, the ministers Ali Hassan Khalil, Jamal al-Jarrah, Akram Shehayyeb, Mohammed Fneish, Youssef Fenianos, Camille Abu Suleiman, Nada al-Bustani and Adel Afiouni, Cabinet secretary-general Mahmoud Makkiyeh, World Bank representatives and a number of advisers. “I want to reassure you that the atmosphere was very, very positive in this session and a huge progress has been made in agreeing in principle on some key points in the plan and in the electricity policy,” Information Minister Jamal al-Jarrah said after the meeting. “A session will be held tomorrow between 4:00 and 6:00 pm to complete the discussion of these points, with the same positivity and spirit that engulfed today's meeting,” Jarrah added. “Tomorrow we will finalize them and therefore we would go to Cabinet on Thursday with an agreement on the electricity plan's essential and key points,” the minister went on to say. Asked whether the Lebanese Forces has submitted its own study on the file, Jarrah said the study was presented at the end of the session and that it would be examined overnight and discussed on Tuesday. OTV meanwhile reported that the LF has "backed down from a number of its reservations after Energcy Minister Nada Bustani explained the electricity plan."The LF held onto the demand of putting an end to technical electricity wastage before agreeing a contract with any side," OTV added. "In tomorrow's session, the ministerial panel will discuss which authority will carry out the tendering process after Bustani said her team is open to all options," the TV network said.

Franjieh: People Have Right to 24Hr Electricity without Theft
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/April 01/19/Marada Movement leader ex-MP Suleiman Franjieh announced Monday that citizens have the right to get uninterrupted power supply. “Thirty years ago, it was the war's fault, and after 1990 power supply hit the 24hr mark but afterwards the blame fell on people, collection, power lines and the grid,” Franjieh tweeted. “As we enter the 20th year, we have a lot of offers from several countries, so we should not play the blame game,” he added. “The people have the right to have 24hr electricity and without theft,” Franjieh went on to say, expressing suspicion that some politicians are seeking financial gains from the proposed electricity plans.

Jumblat Meets Hariri at the Grand Serail
Naharnet/April 01/19/Progressive Socialist Party leader ex-MP Walid Jumblat held talks Monday at the Grand Serail with Prime Minister Saad Hariri, who has resumed his official functions after undergoing a heart stent procedure in Paris. Jumblat was accompanied by his son MP Taymour Jumblat and Industry Minister Wael Abu Faour. Hariri's office said the visit was aimed at “inquiring about the premier's health” and involved “a discussion of the political developments and general situations.”MTV meanwhile reported that the meeting might have tackled the issue of appointments, noting that Jumblat is seeking to name a deputy central bank governor from the Druze community.

Jumblat: Some Don't Want to Learn from the Past
Naharnet/April 01/19/Progressive Socialist Party chief ex-MP Walid Jumblat lamented Monday that “it seems that some do not want to learn from the lessons and experiences of the past which resulted in tragedies.”“We have returned to the theory of protecting minorities instead of focusing on the importance of being citizens,” Jumblat tweeted, while stressing the importance of “the March 1, 2017 al-Azhar declaration between Pope Francis and al-Azhar's imam.”Jumblat's remarks appear to be targeted against President Michel Aoun's recent statement in Russia. During a meeting in Moscow, Aoun thanked Russian President Vladimir Putin for “defending the Christian minorities in the Levant.”“We hope you will continue this help,” Aoun added, addressing Putin.

 Lebanon’s PM Says ‘Difficult’ Economic Decisions Ahead
Beirut - Mohamed Choucair/Asharq Al Awsat/April 01/19/Prime Minister Saad Hariri said Sunday all political parties have a responsibility in solving the crises facing Lebanon, and that no side should blame the other for all the country's problems because they “have been accumulating for some time.”“We must take certain decisions, especially on the economic level, and we should not hold each other responsible for the problems in the country,” the PM said at the Center House, addressing officials as well as supporters, who came to congratulate him on the success of the cardiac procedure he underwent last week. Hariri said his government would resume work on Monday because the country faces many difficulties and needs serious work. “We have to take decisions for the benefit of the Lebanese citizen, whether regarding CEDRE or the reforms that we must undertake,” he said. The PM spoke about a plan that political parties agreed on in the ministerial statement with regard to the budget, the nature of the CEDRE Conference - that was held in Paris last April - and its reforms, and ways to fight corruption and waste of public funds. According to Hariri, “everyone,” mainly the Lebanese administration, will bear the brunt of reforms introduced by his government. But citizens “will be the least affected.” “We have to fight corruption and squander and implement electricity projects as we have promised citizens,” he said. “There is no political party in Lebanon that doesn’t have corrupt people in its ranks,” he said, adding that these individuals should stand before the judiciary. Ministerial sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that Hariri is about to finalize a comprehensive vision on resolving the country’s crises. It includes a package of administrative and financial reforms, the electricity plan, this year’s draft budget and the investment program for the CEDRE conference, which includes in its first phase the implementation of 150 projects. “All parties should responsively deal with Hariri’s roadmap, on condition they don’t seek to implement it in stages,” the sources said. They said Hariri would launch this week talks with all parties represented in his government to discuss his vision.

Lebanon to Receive Venezuela FM With Assurances of Neutrality
Beirut- khalil Fleihan/Asharq Al Awsat/April 01/19/Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza will visit Beirut on Tuesday, where he will hold official meetings and talks with political forces including Hezbollah. Sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the presidential palace has not yet set a date for the Venezuelan minister’s meeting with President Michel Aoun due to the latter’s commitments abroad last week, starting with his visit to Moscow and his participation in the Arab Summit in Tunis. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, for his part, apologized for not being able to welcome the minister due to a prescheduled foreign visit. As for a meeting with Prime Minister Saad Hariri, no date has been set so far as the latter had just returned from Paris where he underwent medical treatment. The Foreign Ministry is yet to schedule an encounter between Arreaza and Minister Gebran Bassil, who was also on a foreign tour last week and has moved from Moscow to three Eastern European countries. Sources close to the matter told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Venezuelan minister is expected to brief the Lebanese officials on the troubled situation in his country “because of external interference” and the resulting divisions over the term of President Nicolas Maduro, who is strongly opposed by the United States. They added that the two-day visit might include meetings with partisan groups that support Venezuela, including Hezbollah, according to the sources. They explained that Arreaza “will be informed of Lebanon’s official position that is neutrality and self-distancing; because it does not interfere in the internal affairs of any state, nor in the American-Venezuelan conflict; and therefore cannot be classified in favor of neither Maduro nor his rival.”

Hariri: No Corruption-Free Political Parties in Lebanon
Kataeb.org/Monday 01st April 2019/Prime Minister Saad Hariri on Sunday said it is the responsibility of all political parties to make a change in Lebanon, calling on local factions to stop trading blame over corruption. "Enough selfishness and populism. The solution and the plan of action are clear and this government will work to boost the economy," Hariri told well-wishers who visited him at the Center House following his return from Paris where he underwent a heart procedure last week. "This is the logic that we must adopt, and we must realize that the challenges surrounding us are great and harsh," he added. “The country is facing many difficulties and this requires serious work."Hariri urged political forces to put their own interests aside and seek the welfare of the country and the people, adding that futile debates and bickering will lead nowhere. “There is no political party in Lebanon that doesn’t have corrupt people in its ranks. Even if there are corrupt people in the Future Movement, then let them be prosecuted," he stated, stressing that the judiciary is at the heart of the fight against corruption.

Samy Gemayel Meets with Justice Minister
Kataeb.org/Monday 01st April 2019/Kataeb leader Samy Gemayel on Monday held talks with Justice Minister Albert Serhan. The meeting, held at the Justice Ministry, focused on the latest developments in the country.

Hankache Criticizes Government's Unproductivity Amid Critical Phase
Kataeb.org/Monday 01st April 2019/Kataeb MP Elias Hankache on Monday criticized the government's unproductivity amid the growing challenges facing Lebanon, saying that it hasn't so far convened as much as needed to deal with those problems. "In any normal country that is on the brink of economic collapse, the government would stay on alert and hold open-ended meetings to manage the crisis and protect what is left of the people's interests," Hankache wrote on Twitter. "However, in Lebanon, the government whose motto is 'to work' has only convened five times in six weeks," he pointed out. "You can tell a book by its cover."

Jarrah after electricity committee meeting: Very positive atmosphere and will continue tomorrow
Mon 01 Apr 2019/NNA - The President of the Council of Ministers Saad Hariri chaired this afternoon at the Grand Serail a meeting of the ministerial committee in charge of studying the electricity plan. Deputy Prime Minister Ghassan Hasbani, Ministers Ali Hassan Khalil, Jamal Jarrah, Akram Chehayeb Muhammad Fneish, Youssef Fenianos, Camille Abousleiman, Nada Boustani and Adel Afiouni, the Secretary General of the Council of Ministers Mahmoud Makkieh, representatives of the World Bank and a number of advisors attended. After the meeting, Jarrah said: “I would like to reassure you that the atmosphere was very positive. A great progress has been achieved on some of the key points of the plan and the electricity policy. A meeting will be held tomorrow from 4 to 6 pm to complete these points in the same positive atmosphere that prevailed today. There is an agreement on the basic points of the plan. There have been positive approaches and we will finalize them tomorrow. We will go to the Council of Ministers on Thursday with an agreement on the basic and important items in the electricity plan”.
Asked if the ongoing discussion can lead to amendments to the plan, Jarrah said: “There are amendments and there are clarifications. Some of the items under discussion are being clarified and they become very clear to the members of the committee and there is positivity in approving them. On the other hand, some other discussions lead to minor amendments. Some points seem vague to some members and they become clear after the discussion”. About tenders, he explained that there are two opinions that will be discussed tomorrow. Asked if the Lebanese Forces Party presented its study on the electricity file, he said: “The Lebanese Forces has a study that it submitted to the committee at the end of the meeting and we will review it tonight and discuss it tomorrow.”He said that tariffs would not be raised before the improvement of the supply.
Regarding the book of conditions, Jarrah explained that it needs the approval of the Council of Ministers, and the World Bank is helping in preparing it. Asked about the temporary solution, he said that it will provide 1450 Megawatt, and could be either separate or part of the permanent solution, adding: “It starts with an open cycle and then will reach a combined cycle”.

Lebanon’s Anti-Graft Drive Is Entirely Fake as Political Groups Fight Hezbollah over the Scraps
Martin Jay/Strategic Culture Foundation/April 01/19
There’s a great deal of fake goods in Lebanon’s malls leaving many preferring to buy their designer label clothes when they travel overseas. But fake Lebanon goes beyond Levi jeans or Gucci handbags. In this tiny country ‘fake’ is often services, entire companies and even doctors, care workers, economists. Then there is the fake economy run by a network of companies willing and ready to support a market exploited by the corrupt elite anxious to get their hands on international development cash.
And when you’ve got your head around this fake world, then there is the biggest drain on Lebanon: fake governance.
Fake governance is politicians and MPs pretending to do their jobs when in reality all they are doing is using their position to divert cash into their own overseas bank accounts via a system which has simply got out of hand. Corruption is a hungry pike which has swallowed up a pond full of small fry players who play by the rules. It’s just too late now to hope for a miracle.
And this, in case you were wondering, is what is happening now in Lebanon when we read articles about a new anti-corruption drive brought about by an imploding economy. In January, the national debt reached $85.32 billion — nearly 150% of the gross domestic product — an increase of $4.93 billion compared to January 2018. This debt forced an international conference in Paris called ‘the CEDRE conference’ which in April 2018, international donors committed $11.8 billion to revitalize the economy, while the Lebanese government pledged in return to combat corruption and reform the public sector.
Or at least that’s what written on the side of the tin.
True, the Paris conference has driven a momentum in Lebanon to tackle corruption, but it’s largely for all the wrong reasons and, mostly, entirely fake.
But who to target in such a campaign, in a country which has a built in protection against those carrying out the industrial scale graft?
Public employees are the only viable group as Parliamentarians have a de facto immunity under Lebanese law, while nailing presidents, prime ministers and ministers (former or present) requires the consent of the Supreme Council for the Trial of Presidents and Ministers, which includes eight of the most senior national judges and seven deputies selected by the parliament. That’s a tad complicated given that judges are considered to be a big part of the problem.
Or at least that’s what Hezbollah believes, hence its own farcical war cry against this group – former leaders and judges – to counter the other groups’ own farcical campaigns against public servants.
Yet neither is expected to really do anything. The non-Hezbollah camp, led my Saad Hariri who can hardly be called candida when it comes to feeding from the trough wants to create a pantomime for international donors so that they can get their hands on a big part of the 11bn dollars pledged (90% of which is in loans) , with rumours in Beirut about the environment ministry embezzling a couple of billion dollars abound. Of course, these sort of rumours barely stir the Lebanese who resort to humour to face the reality that faces them, like parodying the new minister in the same ministry who is a real estate tycoon who can’t even keep the plant in his office alive; this is in a country, after all, where each government minister has his own business empire – even the former anti-corruption minister who made his pile in tyres and who’s entire office amounts of three staff and a fax machine – and which has a tourism minister who is so stupid, that he is actually driving droves of tourists away with his one man campaign of idiocy. Add to that a central bank governor who, wait for it, actually knows a thing or two about banking but is not even exempt from rumours of plundering billions. And let’s not even get on the news this week that the central bank in Beirut lost 20bn dollars, which is probably fake news. Apparently.
The real corruption is not with public servants in Lebanon but with the Key Stone Cops who get the jobs of government ministerial posts, for really only one purpose which is to embezzle funds assiduously as possible for their own warlords who installed them there for that express purpose.
The system is corrupt and until there is a momentum of debate in Lebanon about how to wipe the slate clean and go for a new system entirely – probably one which does away with the confessional one – corruption will always run and control every single dime which is in circulation. It’s not only that an economy is held back from developing – as it frightens away foreign investors who would truly love to tap into the high level of education and location - but even security, law and order, the environment and public health are horrendously compromised as a result. The elite are fervently committed to allowing the ‘wasta’ (corruption by kinship) system prevail and law and order remain as a fanciful notion most Lebanese watch on American TV as it is a tacit deal between them and the masses which support them. Deeply unpopular moves, like, say installing law and order on the roads to curtain the daily carnage, would be deeply unpopular and be seen as a drain on people’s strained purses. Corruption works both ways.
Hezbollah’s anti-corruption drum beat though is driven by US sanctions against Iran, forcing the Lebanese Shiite group to be more creative in how it extracts valuable dollars from the system. They will either get the scalps they crave, or cash as a good substitute. All we are seeing with these anti-corruption drives is groups scrapping over bones, like stray dogs on a rubbish dump of what many might call a smouldering failed state. But fake Lebanon is producing the fake news, by the fake politicians who are faking their anti-graft drive. If most Lebanese taxi drivers know this, why is international media giving it such credibility? Is international media also fake?
 

Latest LCCC English Miscellaneous Reports & News published on April 01-02/19
Arab Summit Rejects Israeli Sovereignty over Golan, Slams Iranian ‘Hostility’
Asharq Al-Awsat/Asharq Al Awsat/April 01/19/Arab leaders meeting in Tunisia rejected on Sunday the United States’ decision to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Syrian Golan Heights. “The US move is null and void and reflects a violation of international law,” said the gatherers at the conclusion of the Arab Summit in Tunisia. “The Golan Heights is occupied Syrian territory,” they added. They also condemned Israeli violations against Jerusalem and the al-Aqsa Mosque compound. They called for the need to implement all United Nations Security Council resolutions on Jerusalem, while rejecting all Israeli measures that are aimed at altering the holy city’s Arab identity. They also urged countries throughout the world against relocating their embassies in Israel to Jerusalem. “The Palestinian cause will remain a priority for the entire Arab nation,” the gatherers added, while noting that the 2002 Arab initiative, which was approved during an Arab summit in Beirut, remains the best option to reach peace in the region. Turning to Iran, the Arab leaders in Tunis slammed its “hostile” attempts that are aimed at destabilizing and stoking sectarian tensions in the Arab world. This includes its support and arming of terrorism militias in several Arab countries in violation of principles of good neighborliness, international law and the UN Charter. They therefore, called on Tehran to withdraw its militias and armed elements from all Arab countries. They stressed that they are keen on establishing relations with other countries based on “mutual respect and positive cooperation” that will help support the principles of peace, security and stability and push forward development. On Syria, the Arab leaders stressed the need to reach a political solution that would end its crisis, “protect its sovereignty and independence” and achieve the aspirations of its people. The solution must also “put an end to the presence of all foreign forces and terrorist sectarian groups” in Syria based on the Geneva 1 talks and relevant Security Council resolutions. “There can be no way to ending the bloodshed in Syria except through a peaceful settlement,” they stated. On Lebanon, the Arab leaders voiced their keenness on its stability and sovereignty against repeated Israeli violations. They also expressed their support to the country as its struggles to shoulder the burden of Syrian refugees. They also expressed their support for the stability and security of each of Iraq and Libya in their battle against terrorism. The Arab leaders voiced their commitment to combating terrorism through military and ideological means, saying they will continue the battle to eliminate the sources of this phenomenon and its backers and funders from within and outside of the Middle East and North Africa region. “We hope that the free world will support us so that we could all enjoy peace and security,” they declared.

Netanyahu Cancels Cabinet Meeting over Fears of Truce Deal Sabotage
Tel Aviv – Nazir Magally/Asharq Al Awsat/April 01/19/The truce reached between the Israeli government and Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip has become a central issue in the electoral race. Mediated by an Egyptian intelligence delegation, the truce was severely criticized by leaders of the far right, with one party threatening to refrain from entering the next government coalition. Education Minister Naftali Bennett called for holding an immediate private cabinet session, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused his request. Instead, Netanyahu decided to cancel the regular cabinet meeting scheduled for Wednesday and take his Likud members to the occupied Syrian Golan Heights to celebrate the US recognition of its annexation to Israel. But an infuriated Bennett, requested Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit to pressure Netanyahu to immediately convene the cabinet in an attempt to stop the implementation of the truce agreement with Hamas, re-close the border crossings opened earlier between the Gaza Strip and Israel, and prevent the transfer of the monthly Qatari funds to the movement, which have almost tripled (from 15 to 40 million dollars). “We have to deter and weaken Hamas not strengthen it,” Bennett stressed. “It makes no sense for the prime minister to manage the events in Gaza while excluding the cabinet ministers,” he wrote in his letter to Mandelblit. He said he had in vain approached the premier’s military secretary and the head of the National Security Council to convene the cabinet meeting. “It is inconceivable that the management of such security events is carried out solely by the prime minister and defense establishment without including cabinet ministers, who bare the responsibility under the law to manage such matters,” Bennett explained. His electoral campaign has mainly focused on the situation in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. He has also been exploiting opinion polls, showing that 64 percent of Israelis say Netanyahu failed to manage the conflict with Hamas in the recent round of conflict. Bennett, who demanded the post of defense minister in the next government, has been an outspoken critic of Netanyahu’s handling of the security threat from Gaza.“Only I can deter Hamas,” he stressed.

Israel Expands Gaza Fishing Zone by Record Range
Gaza- Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 1 April, 2019/Israel loosened restrictions on fishermen off the blockaded Gaza Strip on Monday by allowing them to travel up to 15 nautical miles into the Mediterranean, the largest distance in years. he decision comes after Hamas, the Islamist movement that rules Gaza, said it had been engaged in Egyptian-brokered talks with Israel on easing parts of the blockade in return for calm. Israel has not commented on the negotiations. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is widely seen as wanting to avoid a severe escalation in the Gaza Strip ahead of April 9 Israeli elections. "The fishing zone in the Gaza Strip has been expanded to a maximum of 15 nautical miles (28 kilometers)," said COGAT, the Israeli defense ministry unit that oversees such regulations. It did not say in which areas the zone would extend to 15 nautical miles. Israel has in the past extended the distance in certain areas but not others. The distance is the largest allowed in years by Israel, which has fought three wars with Hamas in the enclave and has blockaded it for more than a decade, said Miriam Marmur, spokeswoman for Gisha, an NGO that monitors restrictions on Gaza. She, however, noted that it remains short of the 20 nautical miles agreed to under the Oslo accords of the 1990s. The distance has fluctuated in recent years from between three nautical miles up to 12 in certain areas. In late February, Israel extended part of the zone to 12 nautical miles while other areas remained at six. On Sunday, Israel reopened its goods and people crossings with the Gaza Strip after having kept them closed for nearly a week following a rare long-distance rocket strike from the Palestinian enclave. Restrictions had also been placed on the fishing zone after the rocket. The rocket fire wounded seven Israelis and led to Israeli retaliatory strikes across the Gaza Strip, another serious flare-up between the two sides. The reopening of the crossings came after tens of thousands of Palestinians protested along the Gaza border with Israel on Saturday, marking the one-year anniversary since demonstrations and clashes erupted there. Four Palestinians were killed on Saturday during protests and clashes, but unrest was limited and fears of mass bloodshed were averted after Egyptian-led negotiations.

Brazil President Visits Western Wall with Netanyahu in First
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/April 01/19/Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro visited the Western Wall alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, becoming the first head of state to do so with an Israeli premier. The site, one of the holiest in Judaism, is located in east Jerusalem, occupied by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed in a move never recognized by the international community. Such visits can be seen as granting tacit approval to Israeli sovereignty over the site. An Israeli foreign ministry spokesman said it was the first time a sitting head of state had visited there with an Israeli prime minister. The two men approached the wall and placed their hands on its stones during the brief visit in rainy weather. Bolsonaro's visit follows a similar one by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on March 21, when he became the first high-ranking American official to visit the Western Wall with an Israeli prime minister. Bolsonaro has expressed his strong support for Israel and spoke of being moved by a Christian pilgrimage to the Jordan River he undertook a couple of years ago. He has also pledged to follow in U.S. President Donald Trump's footsteps and move Brazil's Israel embassy to Jerusalem, but that is on hold for now. Trump became the first sitting American president to visit the wall, the holiest site where Jews are allowed to pray, in May 2017, but he was not accompanied by any Israeli leaders. Monday's visit and the one by Pompeo come ahead of Israel's April 9 elections in which Netanyahu is facing a tough challenge from centrist former military chief Benny Gantz. The visits have provided him with an opportunity to further his argument that he is Israel's irreplaceable statesman, a key part of his campaign.

UAE Rejects Report by HRC Experts on Yemen
Abu Dhabi- Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 1 April, 2019/The UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Dr. Anwar Gargash, has expressed his categorical rejection of a report by the Group of Eminent International and Regional Experts on Yemen. He urged the Human Rights Council (HRC) to instead refocus on providing support to the Yemeni government to be able to establish institutions aimed at protecting human rights in the country. “The Group’s mistakes, misjudgments, and methodology are too numerous and serious to be ignored,” Gargash explained in a letter addressed to UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet. For this reason, he said, the UAE along with many other HRC members have decided last year not to support renewing the Group’s mandate. Attached to the letter was a detailed assessment of the Group of Experts’ report published in 2018, according to WAM. This assessment took several months to be prepared and was based on a thorough study of the report and its methodology in addition to relevant principles of international law. It found that the Group has surpassed its mandate in several means while failing to fulfill important aspects. It failed to convey an accurate image of the conflict in Yemen and didn’t apply it to its monitoring and reporting functions, and its methodological approach was flawed. The Group also misinterpreted and misapplied international law and presented incorrect claims against the UAE. Gargash said his country believes that asking the Group to prepare another report won’t achieve its shared objective to boost protection and promotion of human rights for Yemenis. “The UAE firmly believes the people of Yemen would be better served if the HRC refocuses on providing support, capacity building and technical assistance of which the Yemeni government has consistently requested.” “This would serve as an important step in rebuilding institutions that will be essential in laying the foundation for a more hopeful future for all Yemenis,” Gargash noted. He reiterated the UAE’s support for Bachelet’s mandate and her role in consistently working with member states and other relevant parties to address human rights challenges around the world, including in Yemen. The conflict in Yemen and the humanitarian suffering in many parts of the country is due to the illegal and violent coup by Houthi militias against the legitimate government in 2014, he explained. Gargash added that the UAE’s actions, as part of the Saudi-led coalition, are undertaken at the request of the legitimate government and in full accordance with international law.

Libya Will Have ‘One Government,’ Haftar Says of ‘Imminent Breakthrough’
Cairo - Khalid Mahmoud/Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 1 April, 2019/Libyan National Army (LNA) commander Khalifa Haftar has revealed that Libya’s political crisis will be resolved this month through a deal on a single government. “Within the coming weeks, Libya will witness a breakthrough in its political crisis,” local media quoted Haftar as saying. “Libyans will have a single cabinet this month.”Haftar made his remarks on Saturday at the first forum on the future of Libyan youth in Benghazi, where he stressed the importance of empowering youths and giving them pioneering roles. United Nations chief Antonio Guterres has said Haftar and the head of the Government of National Accord (GNA), Fayez al-Sarraj, are closer to finding a power-sharing agreement that would break the political deadlock in the country. “What is new is that we see signs that an understanding is possible exactly to overcome the contradiction you raised,” Guterres said in response to a reporter’s question on the dispute over civilian oversight of the military. The UN seeks to reach a power-sharing deal between Haftar and Sarraj, in which the main obstacle is whether Haftar is capable of leading a Libyan army under a civilian oversight that would be part of the new national government. Moreover, the African Union will host a reconciliation conference in July aimed at uniting Libya’s political rivals, said African Union Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki. “It’s an opportunity for the Libyans,” Faki said during a press conference. The announcement of the July talks in Addis Ababa followed a meeting on Libya.“It’s high time that the political actors discuss the fate of their country,” Faki added. Further, the Central Committee for Municipal Elections (CCMCE) called on the people to vote en masse in the municipal elections, after the first stage of voting was concluded in nine municipalities. CCMCE extended gratitude to international and local partners, revealing that there was a 33 percent turnout, according to its official website. But Salem bin Tahia, head of the Central Committee, said there was a 38 percent turnout. Local elections will be held every Saturday until 33 councils hold their elections, then work will resume after Ramadan, he added.

Erdogan Party Suffers Defeat in Ankara and Istanbul
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/April 01/19/Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's ruling party suffered a major upset on Monday after local election results showed it lost the capital Ankara and Istanbul after a decade and half in power. Losing the country's two major cities would be a stunning defeat for Erdogan, a former Istanbul mayor himself, whose ability to win at the ballot box has been unparalleled in Turkish history. Erdogan campaigned hard, portraying Sunday's vote for mayors and district councils as a fight for the nation's survival, but the election became a test for his Justice and Development Party (AKP) after Turkey slipped into a recession for the first time in a decade. The opposition CHP party candidate for Istanbul mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, was leading by nearly 28,000 votes with most ballot boxes counted, Supreme Election Board (YSK) chairman Sadi Guven said. Imamoglu won almost 4.16 million votes while the AKP candidate, former premier Binali Yildirim, won 4.13 million. Both claimed victory in the early hours following a tight race for the country's largest city after results showing them in a dead heat.
"We want to start working as soon as possible to serve people," Imamoglu told reporters on Monday. "We want to cooperate with all institutions of Turkey to quickly meet the needs of Istanbul."
'Dirty politics has lost'
In Ankara, opposition mayoral candidate Mansur Yavas had 50.89 percent of votes ahead of the AKP's Mehmet Ozhaseki on 47.06 percent, Anadolu state agency reported, with 99 percent of ballot boxes counted. "Ankara has won. The loser in Ankara is Ozhaseki, dirty politics has lost," Yavas told supporters who were waving Turkish flags and setting off fireworks at a celebratory rally. But in a sign of possible turmoil ahead, AKP officials said they would challenge the alleged invalidation of tens of thousands of votes in both cities. AKP secretary general Fatoih Sahin said the party will appeal in Ankara, saying the gap between the candidates "will narrow down and I believe it will eventually turn into a positive result for us." Speaking to supporters in Ankara after Sunday's polls closed, Erdogan had said the election was a victory for the AKP, which along with its coalition partner, the rightwing Nationalist Movement Party, won more than 50 percent of votes overall.
'Istanbul is his heart'
The loss in Istanbul, analysts said, would be especially sensitive for Erdogan, who grew up in the city's working-class Kasimpasa neighborhood, and liked to tell AKP rank-and-file that victory in the city was like winning all of Turkey. "Istanbul is his heart, it's really important for him, it is the first place they (AKP) started winning," said Ayse Ayata, political science professor at Middle East Technical University in Ankara. "They have retained their 51 percent majority in total, which is very important. Had they not, this would lead into a questioning of their legitimacy."For his supporters, Erdogan remains the strong leader they believe Turkey needs and they tout the country's economic development over the years he and the AKP have been in power. Rallying his base among more religiously conservative Turks, Erdogan had presented his opponents as enemies of the state, tarnishing them as tied to Kurdish militants of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) who have fought a decades-long insurgency. Rights activists and Turkey's Western allies say that democracy has been eroded under Erdogan's leadership, particularly after a failed 2016 coup that led to tens of thousands of people being arrested. The AKP built its ballot box success on Erdogan's perceived economic prowess, but before the vote, the Turkish lira was sliding again, provoking memories of a 2018 crisis that saw the currency fall 30 percent and badly hurt Turkish households. How he manages the economy will be key for the party's success before the next presidential and general election in 2023. Turkey has increasingly come under scrutiny as markets have grown wary of Erdogan's policies. Inflation is in double digits, and foreign currency debt payments are high. The Turkish leader told supporters on Monday that economic reforms will be a focus. His finance minister has already said economic reforms will be announced next week. "Most probably he will emphasize guaranteeing a certain level of economic growth until the next general elections," said Emre Erdogan, a professor at Istanbul Bilgi University and no relation to the president. "Most probably the residents of both metropolitan cities suffered from the economic decline and it has been reflected in the polls."

Intel: How Turkey's local elections mark a rebuke for Erdogan's one-man rule
Al-Monitor Staff /March 31, 2019
Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) appears to have lost control of city hall in Ankara and is neck and neck with the opposition in Istanbul, according to preliminary results from Sunday's municipal elections. In the capital, Mansur Yavas, candidate of an alliance led by the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), has taken the lead. Meanwhile in Istanbul, Turkey's largest city and its commercial hub, opposition candidate Ekrem Imamoglu reportedly leads former Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, according to the latest data provided by Turkey’s official Supreme Election Board. Why it matters: These elections are the first since President Recep Tayyip Erdogan assumed sweeping executive powers last year. As such, they are widely seen as a vote of confidence in his single-handed rule. The results have no direct bearing on the central government, but are widely viewed as a rebuke to the government, especially over a bruising economic downturn marked by soaring prices and an unemployment rate heading to its highest level in three decades. The nationwide turnout was below 83%, down from 87.5% in the June 24 elections, Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency reported. The decline is believed to have been triggered mainly by disgruntled AKP supporters shunning the polls.Symbolic meaning of Istanbul: The fall of Istanbul in particular would be a watershed event for the AKP. Erdogan’s ascent to the helm of power began in Istanbul in 1994, when he was elected mayor of the city. Beyond its symbolic significance, the loss of Istanbul — a metropolis of more than 15 million people and Turkey’s industrial and commercial hub — would deprive the AKP of abundant economic resources, which have been instrumental in currying favor with voters and expanding the party’s base.
Today’s outcome is also a snub of Erdogan’s polarizing stance and unprecedented attacks on the opposition as part of a narrative that framed the local polls as a “matter of survival” for the nation against foreign conspirators and their collaborators within. Erdogan even accused the CHP of cooperating with “terrorists,” equating the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). The HDP supported CHP-led alliances in major cities, including Ankara and Istanbul. Election surprises: One of today’s many surprising outcomes came from Turkey’s mainly Kurdish southeastern region, where the HDP lost several of its former strongholds, including Bingol, Bitlis and Sirnak. “Some of these are conservative cities [where] there is already a general inclination toward the AKP’s conservatism,” Irfan Aktan, a prominent journalist who has covered Kurdish politics for more than a decade, told Al-Monitor. However, in Diyarbakir, the largest city in the mainly Kurdish southeast, the pro-Kurdish party scored a significant victory. What's next: With the elections over, Turkey’s economic crisis stands out as the primary challenge for the government. Free from electoral pressure, Ankara is expected to adopt austerity measures and may seek to reduce tensions with the United States and other Western powers to restore the confidence of foreign investors. How Erdogan handles the opposition’s wins will be critical in this regard. Should he make good on his threats to oust opposition mayors, he could stir political tensions that could scare away investors and undermine the economy. In any case, opposition mayors face an uneasy coexistence with the government. Erdogan has warned that “those who are not in harmony” with Ankara will “tomorrow declare bankruptcy.” Know more: Kadri Gursel details the fear-mongering that has characterized the electoral campaign. To see what awaits Turkish economy after the elections check our economy writer Mustafa Sonmez’s latest piece.

Algerian Prosecutors Ban Corruption Suspects from Leaving Country
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/April 01/19/Algerian state prosecutors on Monday said they had banned corruption suspects from leaving the country after launching probes into graft and illegal money transfers abroad targeting unnamed individuals. The moves come amid nationwide protests against President Abdelaziz Bouteflika and follow the arrest of one of the incumbent's key backers, business tycoon Ali Haddad. Haddad, who Forbes magazine describes as one of Algeria's wealthiest entrepreneurs, was detained overnight Saturday to Sunday at a border post with neighboring Tunisia, a security source said, without giving a reason for the arrest. On Sunday, the Algerian authorities also banned all private aircraft from taking off and landing until the end of the month. The North African state has been rocked by weeks of mammoth protests sparked by Bouteflika's decision in February to seek a fifth term in office. The veteran leader, who has rarely been seen in public since suffering a stroke in 2013, said last month he would pull out of the race but postponed elections which were due in April. The concession has done little to halt public ire and hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets of the capital Algiers on Friday demanding the president and his entourage go. Faced with the persistent anger, a succession of veteran Bouteflika loyalists have sought to distance themselves from the president in recent days. On Tuesday, armed forces chief of staff Ahmed Gaid Salah called for him to step down or be declared medically unfit.

No Joke: Comedian Zelensky Sets Course for Ukraine Presidency
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/April 01/19/Comedian Volodymyr Zelensky is favorite to become Ukraine's president after results Monday showed him dominating a first-round vote despite many initially dismissing his candidacy as a joke. The 41-year-old's political experience had been limited to playing the president in a TV show but he leapfrogged establishment candidates amid public frustration over corruption and a stalling economy. Results published on April Fools' Day -- an irony not lost on Ukrainians on social media -- showed Zelensky taking 30 percent in Sunday's first round, almost double the 16-percent vote share of incumbent Petro Poroshenko. The two will meet in a run-off vote on April 21 after the 80 percent of counted ballots showed ex-prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko and dozens of other candidates falling out of the race. If Zelensky wins the leadership, as polls and analysts suggest, he will take the reins of one of the poorest countries in Europe -- a nation of 45 million people fighting Russian-backed separatists in its industrial east. "I want to thank all the Ukrainians who came out and voted in seriousness," the high-spirited actor told supporters after exit polls showed a better-than-expected result late Sunday.
- 'Harsh lesson' for Poroshenko -
Zelensky had topped opinion polls for weeks and the main question going into the weekend vote was who between Tymoshenko and Poroshenko would meet him in the second round. But the size of his lead came as a surprise. Poroshenko said the result was a "harsh lesson" for him personally and for the authorities as a whole. Tymoshenko, who came to international prominence as a face of the 2004 Orange Revolution and was taking her third tilt at the presidency, said the exit polls were "dishonest" and asked supporters to wait for final results. A monitoring mission by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe said Monday the vote had been in general "well-organized, smooth, transparent and efficient". "Observers noted a few procedural errors and very few serious violations during the vote count," it said in a statement.
- 'Call for new faces' -
Political analyst Anatoliy Oktysyuk of Kiev's Democracy House think tank said it would be "difficult" for Poroshenko to knock the actor off course in the head-to-head round. "He (Poroshenko) has no room for growth. He has played all his cards," Oktysyuk told AFP. "This is a protest against the old elites and a call for new faces."Oktysyuk suggested Poroshenko would try to frame the contest as part of a wider confrontation between Moscow and the West -- presenting himself as the only candidate who could stand up to Russia's Vladimir Putin. Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on the first-round result but said Moscow hoped the Ukrainian polls would not bring to power a "party of war" -- a thinly-veiled reference to Poroshenko. Commentators said it was too early to predict the result of the second round despite the comedian's commanding lead. Poroshenko came to power in 2014 after a revolution forced his Kremlin-backed predecessor Viktor Yanukovych out of office. The uprising was followed by Russia's annexation of Crimea and the separatist conflict in eastern Ukraine. The 53-year-old leader -- a chocolate magnate who was one of the country's richest men when he took office -- said he would shut down the fighting, tackle graft and align the country with the West. But five years on, the ongoing conflict has claimed some 13,000 lives and many feel Poroshenko has failed to live up to the promise of the revolution. Despite concerns about Zelensky's vague platform, supporters insist only a total outsider can clean up Ukraine's murky politics. "A real democracy is when the result of the vote is a surprise. Congratulations -- Ukraine is not Russia, Ukraine is Europe," Kiev businessman and lecturer Valery Pekar wrote on Facebook following the result. Some accuse Zelensky of acting as a front for the interests of oligarch Igor Kolomoysky, who owns the channel that broadcasts the entertainer's shows, but the actor denies any political links. He eschewed traditional rallies and interviews in favour of playing gigs with his comedy troupe up to the final days of campaigning. The political comedy "Servant of the People" he stars in returned for its third season last week.

Egypt’s Israeli-Hamas deal further shakes Jordan’s Hashemite throne
Debka File/April 01/19
The Hamas activists who spearhead radical Muslim Brotherhood opposition to Jordan’s King Abdullah were encouraged by Israel’s consent to the deal with Gaza’s Hamas rulers that was brokered by Egypt. They concluded from Israel’s avoidance of a large-scale military operation that their Gazan brothers’ terrorist tactics had bested the IDF’s renowned military and intelligence capabilities. They are contemplating borrowing those tactics to give the already shaky Hashemite throne in Amman a final push.
On the throne for 20 years, the 57-year old monarch’s low spirits raised alarm in Western circles during his visit to Washington in early March. King Abdullah turned down every Middle East project put before him, especially President Donald Trump’s Israel-Palestinian peace plan, when they were presented by Vice President Mike Pence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the president’s special advisers Jared Kushner and Jason Greenblatt. The gloomy Jordanian King told them all not to count on him for any kind of cooperation in implementing US policies in the region.
On March 29, when Gaza was on the brink of tipping over into a major clash, the Muslim Brotherhood quietly scored a victory by pushing through the Jordanian parliament for the first time a motion voiding the natural gas contract signed with Israel by the Jordanian electricity company. In an attempt to save the deal, the royal court referred the issue to the Jordanian constitutional court for a final ruling. The Gazan Hamas’ long arm had clearly reached the Brotherhood in Jordan and succeeded in inflicting a disastrous blow to the kingdom’s economy.
King Abdullah has been trying to ward of the extremists’ threats by distancing Amman from Washington and Jerusalem. He has publicly slammed the Trump administration’s policies in the region and taken the lead in the campaign against Israel over Temple Mount and Jerusalem.
For many years, King Abdullah counted heavily on military, intelligence and economic support to keep his kingdom afloat and stable. But now, when he is more in need of a helping hand than ever before, he is separating himself from his champions.
Two big perils are becoming uncomfortably acute:
The deepening economic crisis and attendant shortages have made the population as a whole restive and antagonized the middle class which was one of the throne’s main props. Bedouin tribes, another important prop, have turned against the throne and are joining opposition protests against the king.
The evolving pact between Iran and two of Jordan’s neighbors, Iraq and Syria, is bringing large Iraqi militias under Iran’s Revolutionary Guards’ command to Jordan’s back door. Abdullah has no doubt that his throne is seen as a major obstacle in the path of Iran’s expansionist drive and is therefore dispensable. As matters stand, he is running out of defenders for his kingdom against this oncoming storm after turning away from Washington and Jerusalem.

Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on April 01-02/19
Why Palestinians are Fleeing Lebanon
Khaled Abu Toameh/Gatestone Institute/April 01/19
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/13983/palestinians-fleeing-lebanon
International journalists based in the Middle East seem to care precious little about the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in Lebanon, who, for several decades now, have been protesting the apartheid and discrimination practiced by an Arab country.
As a result of these laws, the conditions of Palestinians in Lebanon have worsened to a point where 65% of them live below the poverty line, according to a report by Al-Jazeera.
The Arab and Western silence towards the plight of the Palestinians in Lebanon achieves one thing alone: aggravating Palestinian agony. Yet the only evil the Arab leaders and the international community see is the supposed evil that they link to Israel.
Palestinians appear finally fed up with the apartheid and discriminatory laws they have been subjected to in Lebanon. Al-Jazeera recently reported that 1,500 Palestinians left Lebanon in less than three months. Pictured: The Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in Tripoli, Lebanon. (Photo by Salah Malkawi/Getty Images)
Palestinians appear finally fed up with the apartheid and discriminatory laws they have been subjected to in Lebanon in the past few decades. They appear fed up with the ongoing apathy towards their plight in the international community and media. They also appear fed up with the international media's obsession with Israel and the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The only Palestinians the international media reports about are those whose "problems" are directly linked to Israel.
For the past year, dozens of international journalists based in the Middle East have been covering the weekly protests along the Gaza-Israel border. These journalists, however, seem to care precious little about the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in Lebanon, who, for several decades now, have been protesting the apartheid and discrimination practiced by an Arab country. In an attempt to draw the international community to their grievances, the Palestinians of Lebanon have launched a campaign called "Hakki" ("My Right") to demand equality and an end to discrimination. The campaign was launched on the 18th anniversary of a law prohibiting non-Lebanese nationals, including Palestinians, from owning property in Lebanon.
Palestinians say that this law and similar ones passed by the Lebanese parliament in the past few decades deny them basic rights and the ability to live in dignity. As a result of these laws, they say, the conditions of Palestinians in Lebanon have worsened to a point where 65% of them live below the poverty line.
"The social and humanitarian crises facing the Palestinians in Lebanon because of these laws have directly impacted other aspects of their lives, including education and health," the Palestinians argue. "In addition, the laws have caused psychological tensions that are reflected in various aspects of their lives. This requires immediate action."
The "Hakki" campaign is aimed at "affirming that the demands of the Palestinian refugees [in Lebanon] are a humanitarian right in accordance with humanitarian conventions that the Lebanese government has signed on to," the organizers of the campaign explained.
The campaign coincides with reports that a growing number of Palestinians have begun leaving Lebanon. In February 2019, the Qatari-owned Al-Jazeera network reported that 1,500 Palestinians have left Lebanon in less than three months. Titled "The Silent Asylum," the report quoted Palestinian sources as saying that the exodus of the Palestinians was in the context of a US scheme to "liquidate the right of return" for Palestinian refugees and their descendants to Israel.
The report revealed that a travel agency in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, has secured entry visas for the Palestinians to Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Ethiopia and Bolivia. On their way back from these countries, the Palestinians stop in European countries where they file requests for asylum. The report also revealed that the Lebanese authorities were not blocking the Palestinians from leaving their country.
"A Palestinian refugee in Lebanon who is registered with UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees) and holds a Lebanese travel document has the right to leave the country any time he or she wishes," said newspaper editor Munir Al-Akiki. The Lebanese authorities, he added, cannot prevent any Palestinian living in Lebanon from leaving the country as long as they leave in accordance with the law.
The man behind the "Hakki" campaign, journalist Ahmed Al-Haj, said that Palestinians in Lebanon are "deprived of almost everything, and that's why we have many demands, including the right to work and own property." The campaign that his friends and he launched also calls for easing security restrictions imposed on Palestinian refugee camps, Al-Haj said.
"The campaign is aimed at drawing the attention of the Lebanese authorities to the need to amend the unfair laws against Palestinians," he explained. "Hakki is designed to highlight the suffering of the Palestinians in Lebanon and explaining the dangerous repercussions of these laws."
The organizers of the "Hakki" campaign say that their goal is also to win the support of the Lebanese people and international human rights organizations for the plight of Palestinians in Lebanon. As part of their efforts, the organizers are also planning to hold meetings with Lebanese politicians and media personalities to gain their support for changing the laws that discriminate against Palestinians.
According to a report published by the US Department of State:
"Palestinian refugees [in Lebanon] were prohibited from accessing public health and education services or owning land and were barred from employment in many fields... A 2010 labor law revision expanded employment rights and removed some restrictions on Palestinian refugees; however, this law was not fully implemented, and Palestinians remained barred from working in most skilled professions... The law considers UNRWA-registered Palestinian refugees to be foreigners, and in several instances they experienced worse treatment than other foreign nationals."
According to an Associated Press report:
"... Palestinians in Lebanon suffer discrimination in nearly every aspect of daily life, feeding a desperation that is tearing their community apart.
"Many live in settlements officially recognized as refugee camps, but better described as concrete ghettos ringed by checkpoints and, in some cases, blast walls and barbed wire...
"Palestinians are prohibited from working in most professions, from medicine to transportation. Because of restrictions on ownership, what little property they have is bought under Lebanese names, leaving them vulnerable to embezzlement and expropriation."
The organizers of the "Hakki" campaign are naïve if they believe that after more than 70 years of discrimination, Lebanon will suddenly change its policies and laws against the Palestinians. They are naïve if they assume that the Arab leaders, who held another summit in Tunisia this week, would pay attention to the plight of Palestinians in Lebanon or any other Arab country. They are also naïve if they believe that the international media and human rights organizations would endorse noticing what the Palestinians are experiencing in Lebanon.
The Lebanese are happy to see the Palestinians leave Lebanon, and most of Arab countries do not give a damn if the Palestinians move away -- to Europe or Brazil or Argentina, it makes no difference to them.
Addressing the Arab League summit in Tunisia on March 31, Lebanese President Michel Aoun had nothing to say about the discrimination and apartheid Palestinians face in his country. Instead, he chose to express concern over the recent US decision to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights. Aoun also suggested that Syria, where hundreds of thousands of people have been killed since the beginning of the civil war there in 2011, be allowed back into the Arab League. Syria's membership was suspended in 2011 over its brutal crackdown on Syrians protesting the Syrian dictator Bashar Assad.
The Arab and Western silence towards the plight of the Palestinians in Lebanon achieves one thing alone: aggravating Palestinian agony. Yet the only evil the Arab leaders and the international community see is the supposed evil that they link to Israel. Thus, the Hamas-sponsored violence on the border with Israel is trumpeted in the media and human rights organizations as "peaceful protests" while Palestinians in Lebanon suffer in media silence, awaiting permission to live in dignity in an Arab country.
*Khaled Abu Toameh, an award-winning journalist based in Jerusalem, is a Shillman Journalism Fellow at Gatestone Institute.
© 2019 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 Mourns Christchurch Massacre, Ignores Attacks on Non-Muslims
Uzay Bulut/Gatestone Institute/April 01/19
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/13955/turkey-christchurch-new-zealand
The more critical problem is the discrepancy between the way the government and the people of Turkey have been treating the Christchurch attacks, as opposed to the way they have been responding to the murder of non-Muslims in their own country.
While Muslim worshippers were being murdered in New Zealand -- and Turkey was among the nations condemning the anti-Muslim slaughter and voicing outrage over "Islamophobia" -- they were paying little or no attention to the Christians in Nigeria, Congo, Ethiopia, Uganda, Pakistan and elsewhere who were being violated, abducted or massacred by extremist Muslim perpetrators. Where is the reciprocity?
Until Turks and others are as vocal in their condemnation of religious-based violence and hate crimes against non-Muslims as they are about those against Muslims, it is hard to take what Ataklı referred to as their "talk of tolerance" seriously.
Since the March 15 massacre of dozens of Muslims at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, Turkey has joined the rest of the world in condemning the murders, praying for the victims and commemorating the event by laying wreaths at the sites of the slaughter.
This is a fitting response to a mass shooting of innocent people, but there seem to be some problems with it where Turkey is concerned.
The first is the way in which President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been making cynical use of video footage from the deadly attacks to bolster his candidates' standing ahead of the March 31 municipal elections -- by blaming "global Islamophobia" for the carnage.
The second, and more critical problem, is the discrepancy between the way the government and the people of Turkey have been treating the Christchurch attacks, as opposed to the way they have been responding to the murder of non-Muslims in their own country.
As the Turkish journalist Can Ataklı stressed on his regular TV program "Gün Başlıyor" ("The Day's Beginning"), the people of New Zealand, a predominantly secular Christian country, have been coming out in droves to denounce the murders of Muslim worshippers and to rail against anti-Muslim violence -- imams have even been reciting the Koran in parliament -- while the Turks did nothing even slightly similar following the deadly al Qaeda bombing attacks on the Neve Shalom and Beth Israel synagogues in Istanbul in 2003. "Did the people of Istanbul visit the synagogues?" Ataklı asked rhetorically. "Did they pray there according to Jewish traditions [to convey the message that] 'I am one of you?' No."
Ataklı went on: "Can you imagine portions of the New Testament or the Torah being recited in Turkey's parliament? The 'tolerance' [that Turks speak of] is just hot air. It is simply a lie. There is no such thing [in Turkey or Islamic scriptures]..."
The same lack of empathy was exhibited by Turks in 1986, when Palestinian suicide-terrorists associated with Abu Nidal targeted the Neve Shalom synagogue; and in 1992, when the same Jewish house of worship was attacked by Turkish Hizballah.
More recently, in 2017 -- when Turkish nationalist Islamists affiliated with the organization "Alperen Hearths" threw rocks at the synagogue and kicked its doors in an attempt to break in -- Muslims in Istanbul also showed little support for or solidarity with the Jewish victims and their families.
Turkish Muslims have also been either active participants in -- or apathetic to -- the ongoing persecution of Christians and converts to Christianity, and the vandalizing of Christian churches, monasteries, schools and cemeteries in the country.
The systematic persecution of two other non-Muslim communities -- the Yazidis, who are now virtually extinct in Turkey, and the Alevis -- also has elicited little or no outrage from the Turkish Muslim public.
While Muslim worshippers were being murdered in New Zealand -- and Turkey was among the nations condemning the anti-Muslim slaughter and voicing outrage over "Islamophobia" -- little attention was paid to the Christians in Nigeria, Congo, Ethiopia, Uganda, Pakistan and elsewhere who were being violated, abducted or massacred by extremist Muslim perpetrators. Where is the reciprocity?
Until Turks and other Muslims are as vocal in their condemnation of religious-based violence and hate crimes against non-Muslims as they are about those against Muslims, it is hard to take what Ataklı referred to as their "talk of tolerance" seriously.
*Uzay Bulut, a Turkish journalist, is a Distinguished Senior Fellow at Gatestone Institute.
© 2019 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.

Qatari Press Praises Armed Palestinian Resistance, Self-Sacrifice For Palestine
MEMRI/April 01/19
Following the March 17, 2019 terror attack near the town of Salfit in the West Bank, in which two Israelis were killed, the Qatari press lavished praise on the attacker, 'Omar Abu Laila, who was later killed in a shootout with Israeli forces that came to arrest him. Calling him "a legendary hero" and "a teacher for the future generations," the articles expressed support for terror and armed operations as means of struggle against Israel. They also praised Abu Laila's willingness to sacrifice his life, stressing that martyrdom for the sake of Palestine is a commendable act.
The following are excerpts from some of the articles:
Cartoon in Qatari Al-Arab daily: Israeli soldier terrified by the "Salfit operation"
Qatari Journalist: Self-Sacrifice For The Sake Of Palestine Is A Noble Act
In a March 25 article in the Qatari Al-Sharq daily, titled "Abu Laila Is an Emblem of Martyrdom," journalist Ahmad Al-Maghawri wrote that Palestine and Jerusalem are not to be bargained over or bartered as part of the "Deal of the Century," and that self-sacrifice for the sake of Palestine is a commendable measure that the Palestinians are willing to take. He wrote: "Palestine is not just a homeland, but a belief that lives in the hearts of its [people], men like 'Omar Abu Laila who have never and will never abandon it as the cowardly agents [i.e., Arab countries that are normalizing relations with Israel] have done.
"Allah said [in Quran 6:89]: '[Those are the ones to whom We gave the Scripture and authority and prophethood], if the disbelievers deny it, then We have entrusted it to a people who are not therein disbelievers.' The sacrifice of life and wealth for the sake of justice is a small [price to pay], for justice requires [even] more than that. [Palestine] – the land of the prophets, the gate of heaven and the place of [Muhammad's] Night Journey – is Muslim waqf land, not a single grain of which can be relinquished... The land of Palestine is planted in the heart of the [Muslim] nation... and Jerusalem, like all of Palestine, is not to be sold, bargained over or bartered as part of some degrading deal, the Deal of the Century. If it is put up for sale, the men of the nation will be willing to pay with their lives and their blood [to prevent this]. Therefore we have scheduled a meeting with a different deal, a dear and noble one, a meeting with Allah, who said [in Quran 9:111]: 'Allah has purchased from the believers their lives and their properties [in exchange] for that they will have Paradise.' This is the meeting called 'martyrdom, courage and self-sacrifice.' The young man Abu Laila... who carried out the stabbing and shooting attack near the town of Salfit south of Nablus, and who has been dubbed 'the Rambo of Palestine,' is the hero of the Salfit operation... He won the highest badge of honor, because he met martyrdom...
"It may be an exaggeration to say that if you go back to the time of the Prophet's Companions and their jihad, and place it next to [our own] time and place... you will find [that today's] men [also] thirst for martyrdom as we thirst for water and air. Their souls are in heaven... There is no home in Palestine that has not sacrificed a child or a young man, a woman or an elder, a doctor, engineer, teacher or sheikh, from the jihad-fighting sheikh, [Hamas leader] Ahmad Yasin to [Hamas founder] Dr. ['Abd Al-'Aziz] Al-Rantisi; the 'Engineer of the Resistance' Yahya 'Ayyash [a founder of Hamas's military wing, the 'Izz Al-Din Al-Qassam Brigades]; the martyr [Ibrahim] Al-Maqadma [an Al-Qassam commander]; [Hamas official Mahmoud] Al-Mabhouh; [Hamas official] Sheikh Nizar Riyan, and Sa'id Sayyam, a commander [of Hamas's security apparatuses]. And the last but not least of them is that young man, 'OmarAmin Abu Laila..."[1]
"The Salfit operation confounds the Zionist occupation..." (Al-Quds Al-Arabi, London, March 18, 2019)
Qatari Columnist: Armed Resistance Is The Only Way To Fight Israel
In a two-part article in the Qatari daily Al-Watan, columnist Hussein 'Atwi praised the courage and abilities of 'Omar Abu Laila, and the attack he carried out. Such attacks, he said, reflect the willingness of young Palestinians to continue the armed struggle and are the only effective way to fight Israel, after the strategy of negotiations has proved to be fruitless. 'Atwi wrote: "The operation carried out by the martyred Arab resistance fighter 'Omar Abu Laila in Salfit in the occupied West Bank rocked the Zionist entity [to the core], while encouraging the Arab public in the Arab homeland of occupied Palestine. This operation, [so] successful from a military and security [perspective], reflected the ability, courage and daring of the young martyr 'Omar Abu Laila, who carried out a complicated self-sacrifice attack against the occupation's soldiers and settlers... In carrying out this self-sacrifice operation, the martyr demonstrated unmatched ability, so much so that the Zionist settlers were forced to acknowledge his immense courage on social media, dubbing him Rambo... It has again been proved that the operations carried out by the young men of the resistance are continuing, and have not ceased... This means that the armed operations of the uprising continue, alongside the popular resistance, [namely] the Marches of Return in Gaza and the popular outbursts in the West Bank and in occupied Jerusalem, [intended to] defend the Arab identity of the land and of the holy places against [the attempts to] Judaize [them]..."[2]
In the second part of the article, 'Atwi wrote: "The large popular attendance at the funeral of the martyr [Abu Laila] reflected the extent of the Palestinian public's support for the option of resistance against the occupation... This is especially because [his] attack proved once again that resistance and uprising are the way to thwart the plots and plans of the occupation, which persists in its aggression, its terror and its usurping of Palestinian land. As for the option of negotiation and truce, which has been adopted since the signing of the wretched Oslo [Accords], it has produced nothing and has only encouraged the enemy to maintain the occupation, the settlements and the Judaization of the Palestinian lands, while creating a rift and schism among the Palestinians – a schism that the occupation has taken pains to encourage so as to achieve its goals. This proves that the only way to fight the occupation's plans to eliminate the Palestinian cause is to escalate the resistance and the uprising against it. Experience shows [that the occupation] understands only the language of force and will retreat in the face of armed popular resistance, as happened in South Lebanon and in the Gaza Strip, where the occupation was defeated by unceasing blows of resistance that turned [its life] into a hell that it could no longer endure."[3]
Qatari Columnist: Abu Laila Carried Out His Heroic Action Knowing He Would Be Martyred; He Is A Teacher For The Future Generations
Palestinian journalist Samir Al-Barghouti, a columnist for Qatar's Al-Watan daily who frequently writes in favor of armed struggle against Israel,[4] published several articles in praise of Abu Laila, saying that he had acted while knowing he would be martyred and therefore serves as a role model for the future Palestinian generations. In a March 20 article he wrote: "This is the legendary young man who sacrificed his life, 'Omar Abu Laila, whose heroism was reported [even] by the Zionist media outlets, that were terrified by what they saw... after he carried out his high-quality operation. The 19-year-old 'Omar Abu Laila defied the world's fourth-strongest military force [armed] with [nothing but] a fruit knife and intense faith... This hero knew that his fate may be martyrdom, and carried out the operation [anyway,] out of belief in his [Palestinian] cause, with courage only few can muster..."[5]
In a March 21 article Al-Barghouti wrote: "In Qatar, Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt and the Maghreb, birds flew in the air tweeting ''Omar has been martyred'... His mother chose his name so that he would become a martyr like his ancestor, [the second caliph] 'Omar bin Al-Khattab. I have never seen a martyr celebrated by the [Muslim] nation like this 18-year-old martyr, for he rocked Israel from north to south with a heroic operation that was documented by the Zionists' cameras and satellites. The settlers saw him and called him 'the Palestinian Rambo.' He thus became a new Palestinian engineer and a teacher for the [future] generations... Yes, 'Omar, you are the foremost teacher of the [future] generations, [following] the path of [Fatah founder and Arafat's deputy] Abu Jihad, [Fatah official and Black September organization head] Abu Iyyad, Sheikh Yasin, Al-Rantisi, 'Abdallah Al-Barghouti [a founder of Hamas's military wing, who is imprisoned in Israel] and [imprisoned Fatah official] Marwan Al-Barghouti, on the path of your ancestors... This young man carried out his operation knowing he would sacrifice his life... But it was a message to Israel: 'You will have no peace in the homeland you usurped. We will not let you sleep in peace or live in peace in our land, as long as there is a baby in the womb of a [single] Palestinian woman [anywhere in the world, even] in Chile or New Zealand..."[6]
[1] Al-Sharq (Qatar), March 25, 2019.
[2] Al-Watan (Qatar), March 23, 2019.
[3] Al-Watan (Qatar), March 24, 2019.
[4] See MEMRI Special Dispatch No. 7742, Palestinian Columnist In Qatari Daily Calls For Armed Struggle Against Israel, November 1, 2018.
[5] Al-Watan (Qatar), March 20, 2019.
[6] Al-Watan (Qatar), March 21, 2019.

The Tunis Summit: Responsibility and Struggles
Ghassan Charbel/Asharq Al Awsat/April 01/19
It is so hard to be an Arab journalist and that Arab summits be among your interests. It is so hard to chase them from one capital to another, and to analyze the hugs and the grudges to return with some conclusions. Experience tells you that while you ask for information, you often get only wishes, despite the speechmakers’ knowledge that you are not a newcomer to cover the Arab encounters.
Writing about the summit itself is harder than covering its events… Writing about its new developments and its impact on the region and the world. The journalist commits a serious mistake if he asks questions like, is the Arab world better today than it was a year ago? Is it better today than it was a decade ago? It is wise to avoid memories, for they are painful… and to avoid numbers, for they are disastrous.
I was preparing to write this article when I read a news headline from nearby Libya. A Libyan citizen has acquired the famous tent of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and was waiting for the highest bidder to sell it. I remembered hearing from the members of Gaddafi’s narrow circle, including the director of protocol, Nuri al-Mesmari, a lot of amazing stories about this tent, from which the master controlled the affairs of the country.
Gaddafi deliberately intended the entrance to the tent to be low to force the visitor to bend as he entered. On foreign trips, the tent was a mobile problem and Vladimir Putin had to personally intervene to solve the issue in order to prevent the Colonel’s anger and the failure of his visit. An incident that shows how he dealt with the world.
In one of the corridors of the Kremlin, the protocol was that Muammar Gaddafi and Leonid Brezhnev should go halfway to shake hands. Gaddafi intentionally delayed his appearance to show the viewers and the Libyans that it was the Soviet leader who sought to shake hands with him. It is the management of relations with the world out of the obsession of the image at home. Gaddafi was not the only one to do so.
The colonel’s tent reminded me that the Arab summit often resembled a tent set above Arab pains and disputes… And that the transfer of the Arab patient to the summit hospital was already overdue. And that the Committee of physicians was not able to compensate for the lost time when treatment was still possible should first aid was delivered to the patient in his own capital.
I am not saying that the summit should not be held. Our wounds should not be crowned by the loss of the ability to meet under one roof, despite all the holes, gaps and violations that have afflicted the body of Arab solidarity. The ability to meet keeps hope alive, by at least providing painkillers if treatment was not possible. What matters most is what the Arab states do in the period between two summits. The summit is the outcome of the scenes in Arab capitals. It is clear that Arab countries are dealing at different speeds with Arab, regional and international struggles. First, we must admit that old remedies have expired and that governance through security services is no longer possible. We must admit that we live in another era, and that every Arab has his own platform, through social media, newspapers, forums and radios, that does not require a license or permission. The Arab patient cannot be treated with old drugs, by delay or intimidation. At the summit in Tunis, it became clear that the Arab world had suffered a decline in recent years after the spring swallows turned into explosive belts. The consecutive collapses and bloodshed revealed the Arab world’s lack of institutions that could guarantee, monitor, protect and represent safety valves. Building such institutions is what protects the state from hiding in a tent threatened by external infiltration or internal civil war. This is the first challenge facing every Arab country. It is the challenge of building a modern state and real institutions capable of getting people engaged in development plans to create jobs, modernize education, consolidate civil peace and connect with the rapidly changing era.
Once Arab countries make a reasonable move on this path, the summit will be different so will be its regional and international significance.
The second challenge is that of regional interference. Just pay attention to the maps. Regional powers are seeking to guarantee their security and roles and launch their wars on Arab soil. In the Arab part alone, the immunity of the international borders has been degraded by ISIS, and we have seen multiple forms and colors of mobile militias and small armies acting with non-Arab wills.
The Syrian model is a blatant example. Iran establishes its military structure on Syrian soil. Israel targets this structure on Syrian territory. Turkey is hunting Kurds inside Syria. The Arab world could not be a player like others, but became a playground for their game. The persistence of this reality threatens to change equations and identities.
The third challenge is represented by the vague and difficult international situation. This foggy transitional phase has led politicians and analysts to say that the international order born out of World War II was disintegrating, and that what we are witnessing today is the painful and long labor of an alternative order.
On the impact of these Arab, regional and international struggles, the Tunis Summit was held. It was important to give the open Libyan wound special attention and to stress the conditions for any just and lasting peace and the rejection of US decisions on Jerusalem and the Golan Heights. The same is true regarding the refusal of Iran’s role in jeopardizing the region’s stability through its missiles at the disposal of the Houthi militias, in addition to the rejection of Turkey’s role, which is present in Syria with a Russian passport.
It is not surprising that Arabs suffer from the decline of their international weight. Europe itself complains of its shrinking power and the marginalization of its role. The game has changed, so did the power criteria. The Tunis summit has ended. The problem is not at the top. It is first and foremost inside the wounded capitals. Any serious treatment starts from there. It is so hard to be an Arab journalist and that Arab summits be among your interests. It is so difficult to write an article about a new summit that does not resemble the same old articles you wrote while covering previous Arab high-level encounters.

America Isn’t as Divided as It Looks
Tyler Cowen/Bloomberg View/April 01/19
If I had to describe 2019 so far, I would characterize it as The Year Political Polarization Started to Erode. I know that sounds counterintuitive — aren’t partisans at each other’s throats on social media all the time? — but bear with me.
There is some data to support my point. A recent poll about regulating the tech industry, an issue which could prove to be one of the most important of our time, asked: “Do you agree or disagree that tech companies have too much power and should be more regulated?” Some 16 percent of Republicans said they “strongly agree,” while 13 percent of Democrats did. And combining those who “strongly agree” and “somewhat agree” gives an identical figure for both parties — 46 percent. This is the near-opposite of polarization.
More generally, both parties also seem to have converged in thinking that fiscal deficits are fine and more government spending is a good thing.
How about foreign policy? Consider the trade negotiations between the US and China. Right after the 2016 election, President Donald Trump was considered a China hawk. Now he is a relatively dovish voice, pushing for a deal. Has Trump moderated over time? Yes, but it’s not just that. The Democrats have become more hawkish on foreign trade, and in late 2018 Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and his fellow Democrats urged Trump not to back down in his dealings on China. Another significant foreign policy issue this year, although it did not command ongoing headlines in the US media, was the altercation between India and Pakistan. The US has been active in behind-the-scenes negotiations, but those activities have not led to major partisan disputes.
Beyond the US, there are some signs of the decline of polarization. You might think Brexit is a clear example of political polarization taking over a country. But the leaders of the two major parties — Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn — both seem to favor it, albeit in complex and halting ways. The British public seems to have “Brexit fatigue,” just wanting the issue to be over with. That’s probably bad, but it’s not evidence of polarization — in fact, it may be the opposite.
As I am writing this, no one seems to know what will happen with Brexit. But it’s clearly not a question of one side against another. Rather, there are so many moving parts and complex positions, including the May deal, something called “Norway plus,” hard Brexit, postponement and reassessment, and a second referendum (I’m not even counting the many views on the Irish backstop). If Brexit were a simple, polarized, two-way battle, it probably would have been settled long ago, with one side or the other proving its strength.
To be sure, there are areas and issues where polarization has risen: your opinion of Trump, for example, or Justice Brett Kavanaugh, or more generally the debates surrounding political correctness and the culture wars. But there’s an important lesson in here — namely, that there’s only so much polarization to go around. Some issues are becoming increasingly polarized, others less so. Perhaps those two trends are related.
If this is true, what might be the explanation? In many ways political views serve as focal points for alliances. Political movements — whether progressive, conservative, Trumpist or libertarian — “stick together” to some extent because they have common bonds intellectually, ideologically and, often, practically.
But there are litmus tests, of varying importance, for who counts as a member of a group. The tighter some intellectual bonds become, the more others can be allowed to loosen. Maybe abortion and the #MeToo movement really matter to you, and you meet someone who agrees with you about those issues but happens to differ on the optimal rate of tariff protection. You probably have enough in common to form an alliance.
The internet has probably pushed us to organize around the issues that we feel most intensely about. But that same realignment has freed up a lot of space for dissension and creative rethinking (not always for the better) along both ideological and policy dimensions.
The more extreme and ugly polarization gets on some issues, the more room there is for political evolution and even bipartisan compromise elsewhere. It’s a kind of partial collapse of polarization — exactly how you’d expect things to look when profound change is afoot.

What Comes After a Chaotic Week in Brexit?
Therese Raphael/Bloomberg View/April 01/19
Friday was meant to be the day that Britain officially left the European Union. It was instead the day lawmakers rejected Theresa May’s exit deal for a third time, plunging the country deeper into crisis.
It marked the ninth consecutive “no” vote this week, after MPs rejected eight ways forward on Wednesday. In the end, May summed it up best: “We are reaching the limits of this process in this House.”
There are now only two ways Britain can leave the EU without crashing out amid chaos: by agreeing to a different plan, or electing a different parliament. Increasingly, the latter seems the more likely.
May had until Friday to get parliamentary backing for her deal in return for the EU extending Britain’s departure deadline until May 22. Now the UK has until April 12 to let the EU know what it plans to do. Legally, the default is that the country leaves without a deal if it doesn’t choose another course.
Britain could seek a further extension, but it would have to participate in elections to the European parliament, something bound to be contentious on both sides of the English Channel. The UK would also have to explain to Brussels how it would use the extra time.
The European Commission now says a no-deal exit is a “likely scenario” for which it is now fully prepared. Does that seem overly dramatic? I don’t think so. Given this parliament’s record of indecision, and the fact that the leadership of both major parties have taken positions that put electoral advantage ahead of finding common cause, it would be foolish to rule out a no-deal exit just because nobody wants one.
If that is what happens, the Labour Party won’t be able to avoid a great share of the blame. Brexiters sowed the seeds of the current crisis and pushed the government to complete dysfunction. But the opposition party’s position has lacked coherence. Labour says it wants assurances that the future trade relationship will feature close ties with the EU, but those require acceptance of May’s Withdrawal Agreement – which Labour MPs rejected again on Friday. It was partisanship masquerading as principle.
The EU has called an emergency summit for April 10. It has also set out the conditions under which it would reopen negotiations after a no-deal exit. They look strikingly similar to the terms of the divorce deal that parliament keeps rejecting – including a guarantee that keeps the Irish border open, payments into the EU budget, and guarantees of EU citizens’ rights.
There is always irony in these Brexit milestones. Friday’s was that May’s exit plan now has won more votes than any of the other options. It’s hard to see how she will manage to bring her deal back a fourth time – but she could try.
Parliament will weigh the other options on Monday. In Wednesday’s indicative voting, the least unpopular choice was a “confirmatory referendum” on an (unspecified) deal. Since Labour supports the referendum and most Tories oppose it, it’s not clear how that option can win much additional support.
Then there’s the option of remaining in a customs union. That may have the best chance of getting enough cross-party support to garner a majority.
Whatever plan is chosen, the future trading relationship between Britain and the EU would have to be negotiated by a future leader and supported by parliament. Theresa May, if we know anything about her, hasn’t finished yet. But if there is any chance of her deal, or some version of it, being resurrected, it would need to be with Labour support and a promise of new elections. The alternative would be a no confidence vote that would end up in the same place.
Meantime, May clings to office, and parliament is deadlocked. Three years after the British electorate went to the polls in the EU referendum, it looks increasingly likely it will be asked back to find a way to resolve the mess that vote created.

Qaradawi and Qatar: the hate preacher who became Doha’s spiritual guide
سيراج وهاب: القرضاوي وقطر..المبشر بالكرهية الذي أصبح مرشد قطر الروحي
Siraj Wahab/Arab News/April 01/19
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/73486/siraj-wahab-qaradawi-and-qatar-the-hate-preacher-who-became-dohas-spiritual-guide%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%AC-%D9%88%D9%87%D8%A7%D8%A8-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D8%B1%D8%B6%D8%A7%D9%88%D9%8A/
JEDDAH: Yusuf Al-Qaradawi is next in our series “Preachers of Hate.” He is one of the fountainheads of the Muslim Brotherhood, the religious-political organization that has been sanctioned and proscribed by Gulf states and many Western countries.
The Brotherhood’s followers are accused of fanning religious hatred and promoting a cult of violence in order to achieve political power.
In a recent tweet, Al-Qaradawi claims that he is not a preacher of hate and that he spent 25 years promoting moderate thought.
“I stood against extremism and extremists for approximately a quarter of a century. I saw its threat to deen and dunya (religion and the temporal world), on the individual and society, and I have reinforced my pen, tongue and thought (to support) the call for moderation and reject exaggeration and negligence, either in the field of fiqh and fatwa (Islamic jurisprudence and legal pronouncement in Islam) or in the field of tableegh and da’wah (guidance and preaching),” he tweeted.
But his track record reveals exactly the opposite. He has justified suicide bombings, especially in Palestine, has repeatedly spoken out against Jews as a community, and has issued fatwas (religious edicts) that demean women.
In a fatwa on his website, he states that martyrdom is a higher form of jihad. In a 2005 interview on the BBC’s “Newsnight” program, he praised suicide bombings in Israeli-occupied Palestine as martyrdom in the name of God. “I supported martyrdom operations, and I am not the only one,” he said.
He encourages Muslims who are unable to fight to financially support mujahideen (those engaged in jihad) everywhere in foreign lands.
This can hardly be described, according to what he says in his tweet, as a stand against terrorism.
Al-Qaradawi has issued fatwas authorizing attacks on all Jews. On Al Jazeera Arabic in January 2009, he said: “Oh God, take Your enemies, the enemies of Islam … Oh God, take the treacherous Jewish aggressors … Oh God, count their numbers, slay them one by one and spare none.” He has a similar disdain and a deep-seated hatred of Europeans.
On his TV show in 2013, broadcast from Doha to millions worldwide, Al-Qaradawi lambasted Muslim countries as weak, and called on citizens to overthrow their governments and launch a war against all who oppose the Brotherhood, describing them as “khawarij” (enemies of Islam).
A revolt against then-Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, who hailed from the Brotherhood, began on June 30, 2013.
That Al-Qaradawi is an Islamic supremacist, and has total disdain for Europe and its culture, can be gauged from one of his lectures on Qatar TV in 2007. “I think that Islam will conquer Europe without resorting to the sword or fighting. Europe is miserable with materialism, with the philosophy of promiscuity and with the immoral considerations that rule the world — considerations of self-interest and self-indulgence,” he said. “It’s high time (Europe) woke up and found a way out from this, and it won’t find a lifesaver or a lifeboat other than Islam.”
Observers in the Middle East are perplexed by Qatar’s support and granting of citizenship to an incendiary ideologue such as Al-Qaradawi, especially since Doha claims that it is fighting terrorism.
One of the major reasons for the Anti-Terror Quartet — comprising Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain — boycotting Qatar is Doha’s promotion of terrorism and its active support to terrorists.
When the late Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden became a menace to world peace, and when he unleashed terrorism in different parts of the world, Riyadh took the logical step of stripping him of his Saudi citizenship.
Political observers feel that Qatar should have done something similar in Al-Qaradawi’s case. He is a renegade cleric who was accused of ordering the assassination of political figures in his home country Egypt, and who was sentenced to death in absentia.
Qatar should have handed him over to Egypt, but it did not. Instead, it granted him citizenship.
In a 2017 exclusive interview with Arab News on the sidelines of the Doha Forum, Qatar’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani was asked why his country continued to support Al-Qaradawi. His answer was instructive. “He is a Qatari citizen who carries Qatari nationality, and an elderly individual, and thus we cannot tell him to depart Qatar,” Al-Thani said. “The Qatari constitution does not allow for the submission of any Qatari citizen to foreign judiciary, be it in an Arab or non-Arab country.”
Salman Al-Ansari, founder of the Saudi American Public Relation Affairs Committee, refers to the Law of Political Asylum, promulgated by Qatar.
He said this grants terrorists and extremists certain privileges under the pretext of asylum, “the most important of which is escape from legal pursuits.”
To all intents and purposes, he added, the law gives terrorists the right to residency and Qatari citizenship, and the ability to move freely between states using false names and nationalities.