LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
August 23/2019
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
http://data.eliasbejjaninews.com/eliasnews19/english.august23.19.htm

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Bible Quotations For today
‘Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 10/13-16:”‘Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the deeds of power done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But at the judgement it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades.‘Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.’”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on August 22-23/2019
Your Lebanon Is A Holy, Defend Its Sovereignty & Independence
Jarrah following Cabinet session: Majority of agenda items approved
Cabinet decides to appoint defense attorneys for Lebanon in US
Cabinet Names Constitutional Council Members amid LF, Marada Objections
Loyalty to Resistance: For sustained dialogue to resolve contentions
Berri Expects ‘Positive Indicators’ on Lebanon’s Sovereign Credit Rating
Khalil calls for responsible approach to Lebanon's rating
Report: U.S. Asked Hariri to 'Revive March 14', Play Role in Gas Dispute
Leftover Israeli Bomblet Kills Man in South
Turkish Foreign Minister to Visit Lebanon Friday
Lebanese Tourists Stranded Abroad after Travel Agency Scam
Lebanon’s Bassil Calls for Christian Meeting on Sectarian Quota in Hiring State Employees
Cash terror: Hezbollah's money smuggling mechanism revealed

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 22-23/2019
Rouhani Says 'Talks Are Useless' in Dealing With Washington
Iran Unveils Home-Grown Missile Defense System
Iran Says Prepared to Work on French Nuclear Deal Proposals
Israel Strikes Hamas Naval Base after Gaza Rocket Fire
Syrian Regime Opens Humanitarian Corridor in Idlib
US to Hold Syria’s Regime Accountable for Chemical Weapons Uses
Damascus to Let Civilians Flee Rebel-Held Idlib
PMF Leaders Divided over Blaming US for Arms Deport Blasts
Institutional Corruption Cost Sudan $18 bln
Israeli Official: We Will Confront Trump if Peace Plan Calls for Vacating Settlements
Macron Expected to Rebuff Johnson during Brexit Talks in Paris

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on August 22-23/2019
Your Lebanon Is A Holy, Defend Its Sovereignty & Independence/ Elias Bejjani/August 22/2019
Cash terror: Hezbollah's money smuggling mechanism revealed/Yoav Limor/Israel Hayom/August 22/2019
Your Lebanon Is A Holy, Defend Its Sovereignty & Independence/ Elias Bejjani/August 22/2019
Cash terror: Hezbollah's money smuggling mechanism revealed/Yoav Limor/Israel Hayom/August 22/2019
Iran's Mullahs: Loving the Democrats' Presidential Debates/Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/August 22/2019
The Widespread Desecration of Christian Graves/Raymond Ibrahim/Gatestone Institute/August 22/2019
We Must Work Tirelessly to Confront Terrorism/Andrew Murrison/Asharq Al Awsat/August 22/2019
Desperate Iran boosts ties with Russian military/Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Arab News/August 22/2019
G7 splits likely to resurface at Biarritz summit/Andrew Hammond/Arab News/August 22/2019
Future of PMU complicates Iraqi politics/Talmiz Ahmad/Arab News/August 22/2019

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 22-23/2019
Your Lebanon Is A Holy, Defend Its Sovereignty & Independence
 Elias Bejjani/August 22/2019
 http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/77734/elias-bejjani/
 History teaches us that almost none of the world's greatest nations have ever been defeated by their rivals. All of them were first weakened and destroyed from within, before their enemies were able to bring them to their knees. Even medicine teaches us that when the body loses immunity it becomes vulnerable to disease. Perhaps the best examples of this can be seen in the fall of the Ottoman and Roman empires.
 These historical and medical realities are a good example of what personifies the pathetic situations of some of our people in both occupied Lebanon and in Diaspora. These people are destroying the Lebanese communities from within, through their shameless collaboration and subservience to the Iranian occupation.
 "Everyone who sins is a slave of sin" (John 8-34), and every Lebanese who betrays his people to advocate for Iranian occupation is also a sinner too.
 These mercenaries and Pharisees, are void of any kind of dignity or national honor. Unfortunately they come from all walks of life and from all religious backgrounds and regions.
 They have sold themselves to the devil in a bid to increase their riches and solidify their power. They steal, cheat, embezzle, betray, and change their skin for personal interests, all at the expense of the people and the country.
 They ignore Lebanon's deeply rooted history, distinguishable identity and they have no respect for the sacrifices of the many thousands of Lebanese who offered themselves on the nation's altar to enable us to be proud, prosperous and independent.
 These antagonists are thirsty for power and blood; They sold their souls and honor for thirty pieces of silver. They have no respect for Lebanon's 7000 years of civilization, culture and its glorious history. They are masters in defeatism, ignorance, cowardice and faithlessness. Their wicked camouflage, sweet words and lies are well known to all those who are witnesses to the truth. They have missed the fact that Lebanon's people have never, ever knelt and hung their heads before any tyrant, invader, occupier or conqueror.
 All foreign invaders with their armies were forced to leave Lebanon in defeat, humiliation and a fractured dignity. The only memory of these invaders are the primitive carvings on the "Nahr Al-Kaleb" rocks, near the city of Beirut. These carvings should foretell to the Iranian occupiers their fate in Lebanon and that they definitely are not going to any better than those who like them deluded themselves and falsely believed they can destroy Lebanon and subdue its people. They have all left while Lebanon and its people still stand as proud and patriotic as they were 7000 years ago!
 We remind the Pharisees and Trojans, who apparently suffer of an advanced selective amnesia that the people of Sidon in the year 350 BC, chose to burn themselves and their city after their prolonged heroic resistance failed to safeguard their city against he Persian invader Artechtahta. They preferred to die with dignity rather than live with humiliation.
 The people of Tyre followed this same pattern in 332 BC. They resisted Alexander the Great's mighty army for seven months refusing to surrender or kneel. Alexander, after capturing the city crucified many of the brave Tyrians, while enslaving others in a bid to revenge his huge loss and demeaning humiliation.
 The Maronite Patriarch Gabriel Hgola choose to be burned (1367 AD) in Tripoli in front of the Omari mosque in a bid to save his people from the Mamlouk's humiliation and torture. The same sacrifice was taken by Patriarch Daniel Al-Amshiti in the same place 1282 for almost the same reasons and for the same cause.
 In principle, a man is considered defeated when winning the whole universe, if he lacks the courage needed to witness the truth and defend God's word. By the same token, the brave man who honors human values and dignity, remains victorious even when imprisoned and chained in shackles.
 We remind those who are afraid to takes clear stances in life, change their skin to suit their opportunistic interests, and lack the courage to witness the truth, that by doing so, they are committing the worst mortal crime. Imam Ali says in this regard: "He who accepts acts of others is considered their partner. He who is involved in evil acts commits two sins, that of performing the act and that of its acceptance."
 Some of our people in Diaspora have lately failed the test of patriotism. All of their previous posing, bragging and alleged heroism has proven to be a mere illusion. They backed off at the first patriotic cross road and apostatized abandoning their comrades to face the evil people alone.
 Dear comrades, strengthen your faith, repent for your cowardice behavior and be witness for the truth. Do not fall into the trap of individual interests and do not be deceived by the golden garments and illustrious schemes of those who have been assigned to divide our nation and communities, and spread hatred and conflicts among its members. These so-called shepherds, "God has blinded their eyes and closed their minds, so that their eyes would not see, and their minds would not understand, and they would not turn to me, says God, for me to help them". (John 12-39).
 The coward is a blind man in both sight and discretion whose conscience has turned numb. Shame on our people who live in democratic countries like Canada, where freedom of expression is sacred, yet they are still afraid to be witness for the truth and do not support their Lebanese sacred cause. Shame on every Lebanese who keeps a blind eye towards their people imprisoned arbitrarily in the Syrian jails. Shame on every Lebanese who does not support human rights, does not advocate for Lebanon's liberation.
 Shame on all these Lebanese who are scared to oppose the occupation of their country, so as not to be expelled from the heaven of opportunistic interests and privileges provided by the occupier or in fear of his reprisal. They have chosen the track of sin rather than that of righteousness.
 These Pharisees are destroying the country which is our holy temple. They should be dealt with in the same way Jesus did over 2000 years ago:
 "It was almost time for the Passover festival, so Jesus went to Jerusalem. There in the temple he found men selling cattle, sheep and pigeons, and also the money changers sitting at their tables. So He made a whip from the cords and drove all the animals out of the temple, both the sheep and the cattle; he overturned the tables of the moneychangers and scattered their coins; and he ordered the men who sold the pigeons: Take them out of here, stop making my Fathers House a marketplace. John 3-13
 We call on those who have accepted slavery and to those who are afraid to be witnesses for the truth and feel defeated inside themselves; We call on those who have deviated from the righteous track, camouflaging, cheating and betraying Lebanon; We call on them to wake up and start thoroughly reviewing their dangerous acts! Forgiveness is always there and Lebanon's open loving arms will embrace them once they repent.
 "If you obey my teaching, you are really my disciples, you know the truth, and the truth will set you free". (John 8-13)
 N.B: Click here to read the above piece in its Arabic version

Jarrah following Cabinet session: Majority of agenda items approved
NNA - Thu 22 Aug 2019
Minister of Information, Jamal Jarrah, indicated that the Cabinet approved the majority of items included on its agenda, following a session held under the chairmanship of President Michel Aoun in Beiteddine palace. Speaking to reporters, Jarrah indicated that the rest of items had been postponed to the next session on forthcoming Tuesday. On the Palestinian issue, the Minister said that the Cabinet formed a committee presided by Prime Minister Saad Hariri, to study this dossier. On Lebanon's credit rating, Jarrah said: "The climate is positive and Lebanon's rating will remain the same.""The government is taking the necessary measures to protect the economic and financial situation," he added. On a different note, Jarrah indicated that the Cabinet agreed to appropriate a territory in Hwakir to establish a landfill that would serve the northern districts.

Cabinet decides to appoint defense attorneys for Lebanon in US
NNA - Thu 22 Aug 2019
The Cabinet decided to appoint defense attorneys to represent the Lebanese state in the US, during its session held Thursday at Beiteddine palace under the chairmanship of president Michel Aoun. The lawyers will be assigned by the Ministry of finance and Lebanon's central bank. Also, the Cabinet approved of Lebanon's symbolic participation in the peacekeeping mission upon the request of the Ministry of Defense. Moreover, the Cabinet endorsed appointments inside the Constitutional Council.

Cabinet Names Constitutional Council Members amid LF, Marada Objections
Naharnet/August 22/2019
The Cabinet on Thursday appointed five new members on the country’s Constitutional Council, amid the objections of the ministers of the Lebanese Forces and the Marada Movement. The LF objected after the Cabinet did not endorse its candidate, Saeed Malek. “We are against what happened and the names were not raised in advance with us regarding the Constitutional Council,” Social Affairs Minister Rochard Kouyoumjian of the LF said, lamenting what he called “the absence of ethics in politics.”Information Minister Jamal al-Jarrah meanwhile announced that the agenda was largely approved except for a few items, identifying the candidates named as Constitutional Council members as Omar Hamzeh, Fawzat Khalil Farhat, Elias Bou Eid, Elias Mashraqani and Abdullah al-Shami. As for the report that will be issued Friday by Standard & Poor’s, the minister confirmed that the agency will keep Lebanon’s credit rating at its current level of B-, noting that the government will take measures to preserve the economic and financial situations. The government also agreed to appropriate a land lot in the Dinniyeh town of al-Hawakir in order to set up a garbage landfill for the North district. It also decided to form a ministerial panel headed by Prime Minister Saad Hariri to study the situations of the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon following the latest controversy over work permits. President Michel Aoun and Hariri had discussed the developments in a closed-door meeting before the session. The session had 46 items on its agenda in addition to emergency items.

Loyalty to Resistance: For sustained dialogue to resolve contentions
NNA - Thu 22 Aug 2019
The Loyalty to the Resistance parliamentary bloc on Thursday highlighted the importance of a sustained dialogue to resolve all contentions on the local scene. "Sustained dialogue at the domestic level, through various frames and forms, aims to solve contentious matters, especially among the sides partaking in the government," the bloc said in a statement issued following its weekly meeting, held under the chairmanship of MP Mohammad Raad. Also, the bloc extolled the efforts and meetings that resulted into the reactivation of the political life in the country and that warded off fears of chaos and instability. Moreover, the bloc reminded all political parties of the necessity to avoid irresponsible actions that would cause the waste of public funds. Accordingly, it maintained that it would propose the formation of a parliamentary investigation committee to look into the dossiers related to the telecom sector amid claims of corruption.
Furthermore, the bloc renewed rejection of the US interference in Lebanon's affairs.

Berri Expects ‘Positive Indicators’ on Lebanon’s Sovereign Credit Rating
Beirut - Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 22 August, 2019
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has struck a positive note over the expected announcement by Standard & Poor’s, an international financial institutions, on Lebanon’s sovereign credit rating. “All expectations regarding the ranking by international financial institutions can carry positive indicators, and this might give Lebanon a chance to fix the course that it is taking,” Berri said Wednesday in his weekly meeting with lawmakers. Parliamentary sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that S&P would not downgrade Lebanon’s rating to give the government a further chance in working on reforms and implementing projects in electricity and trash management and others. It was “only natural” for the economic crisis to be the top priority for all Lebanese citizens, Berri said. During the meeting with MPs, he also weighed in on Lebanon's political atmosphere, saying a reconciliation meeting between rival political parties earlier this month should help “reactivate the government’s work, so that it can work on issues that matter to the Lebanese.”The speaker was referring to the August 9 meeting that was held between Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Joumblatt and Lebanese Democratic Party chief MP Talal Arslan at the presidential palace in Baabda. The meeting came after a dispute over the June 30 deadly shooting in Aley that paralyzed the government for weeks.

Khalil calls for responsible approach to Lebanon's rating
NNA - Thu 22 Aug 2019
Minister of Finance, Ali Hassan Khalil, on Thursday highlighted the necessity to deal responsibly with the downgrade of Lebanon's credit rating.
"Lebanon's rating issue is related to the interest of the state," he said, calling for a responsible approach to this matter. Khalil made these remarks from the summer presidential residence of Beiteddine, where a Cabinet is meeting under the chairmanship of President Michel Aoun.

Report: U.S. Asked Hariri to 'Revive March 14', Play Role in Gas Dispute
Naharnet/August 22/2019
The U.S. has pressured the Standard & Poor’s agency into keeping Lebanon’s credit rating at the B- level in return for a “political price” from Prime Minister Saad Hariri, who visited Washington in recent days, a media report said. According to al-Akhbar daily, which quoted sources close to Hariri, the premier was asked to “revive” the March 14 political coalition, to become “a partner with Speaker Nabih Berri in the negotiations over the demarcation of the border of the gas-containing areas that are disputed with Israel, and to secure the win of General Electric in the electricity tenders.”
The newspaper and several other dailies have reported that Lebanese officials have been informed that Standard & Poor’s will not downgrade Lebanon’s credit rating from B- to CCC+ in the report that it will issue on Friday.

Leftover Israeli Bomblet Kills Man in South
Naharnet/August 22/2019
Lebanese citizen Ali Nehme Hamzeh was killed Thursday when a bomblet from an Israeli cluster bomb fired during the 2006 war exploded under his bulldozer in the southern town of Majdel Selm, Lebanon’s National News Agency reported. NNA said Hamzeh succumbed to his wounds at the Tebnin Hospital. During the war, Israel dropped more than four million cluster bombs on south Lebanon in violation of international humanitarian law. Since 2006, hundreds of civilians mostly minors have been killed by the delayed detonation of these weapons. Dozens more have been handicapped.
At least 70% of bomb-infested land has been cleared but other bombs are still scattered throughout villages in the South. If they do not explode immediately the munitions contained in cluster bombs can still kill and mutilate long after they have been dropped. Israel is not a signatory to the 2010 Convention on Cluster Munitions, which bans the development and use of these bombs.

Turkish Foreign Minister to Visit Lebanon Friday
Naharnet/August 22/2019
Lebanon is readying to host Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, who will arrive in Beirut on Friday, media reports said. “In his two-day visit, Cavusoglu will discuss with Lebanese officials a number of issues of common interest,” al-Liwaa newspaper reported on Thursday. The Turkish minister’s talks with also touch on “the developments in the Syrian region of Idlib,” the daily added.

Lebanese Tourists Stranded Abroad after Travel Agency Scam
Naharnet/August 22/2019
Dozens of Lebanese tourists are stranded in Turkey and Georgia after falling victim to a scam pulled off by an unlicensed Lebanese travel agency, Lebanese TV networks reported on Thursday. “After we booked travel tickets and hotel rooms via the New Plaza Tours agency, we realized after arriving in Marmaris that the return tickets and hotel reservations were fake,” four of the victims, who are also lawyers, told MTV. “The aforementioned agency did not book them rooms in the hotel they arrived to, which forced them to spend their first night sleeping on the floor,” MTV said. Relatives of the Lebanese travelers meanwhile gathered outside the empty offices of the agency in Beirut after the owner fled abroad, TV networks said. A relative of one of the victims said he has contacted the Lebanese Tourism Ministry to complain and seek help, lamenting that ministry officials responded by blaming the tourists for trusting an “unlicensed agency.” The man also suggested that the agency enjoyed political protection.

Lebanon’s Bassil Calls for Christian Meeting on Sectarian Quota in Hiring State Employees
Beirut - Youssef Diab/Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 22 August, 2019
President Michel Aoun’s letter to Speaker Nabih Berri to clarify Article 95 of the Constitution on the sectarian quota system in public institutions has sparked debate in Lebanon. Paragraph B of Article 95 stipulates the creation of a national committee to eliminate sectarianism in state institutions, including the judiciary, military and security institutions, expect for Grade One posts, which shall be distributed equally between Christians and Muslims without reserving any particular job for any sectarian group. Hiring should be based on competence and experience. The stances of Aoun’s son-in-law and head of the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil, contradict with the stipulations of the article. The minister is demanding that the sectarian quota system be applied in all public positions “in order to preserve diversity”. Moreover, Bassil announced last month the need to delete Article 80 of the State Budget. The article calls for the employment of applicants for state positions, who have passed the Civil Service Board exams, but were not yet hired due to political disputes over sectarian imbalance. The dispute on the sectarian quota system in public institutions emerged in wake of a decision to freeze the employment of candidates due to the imbalance between Christian and Muslim applicants. Berri has scheduled a parliament session for October 17 to discuss Aoun’s letter. Bassil, meanwhile, called for a meeting of Christian leaders at the Maronite Patriarchate in Bkirki to garner as much support as possible for his explanation of the article before the parliament session. Christian rivals of the FPM expressed concern over Bassil’s move. March 14 General Secretariat coordinator Fares Souaid said the minister was rallying Christians to support his interpretation of Article 95. The only Christian meeting that should be held must assess Aoun’s tenure as president “before it is too late,” he tweeted. Meanwhile, a source from Bassil’s Strong Lebanon parliamentary bloc told Asharq Al-Awsat that the minister called for the Bkirki meeting at Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi’s request. Rahi had held talks on Article 95 with Aoun at his Beiteddine summer residence on Wednesday. Souaid told Asharq Al-Awsat that Christians in Lebanon are not seeking a political or non-political dispute with other parties. “They do not need to create problems to compensate for losses. Bassil’s actions will not lead to any results,” he said. “Any attempt to interpret Article 95 will lead to an open confrontation and severe divide between Muslims and Christians.”

Cash terror: Hezbollah's money smuggling mechanism revealed
Yoav Limor/Israel Hayom/August 22/2019
Israel Hayom examines Tehran's sophisticated mechanism for funding the Lebanese Shiite terrorist organization while bypassing Western sanctions. "Hezbollah's entire financial apparatus presently rests on the Lebanese banking system, which no one wants to touch," says Uzi Shaya, a former Israeli intelligence official. The photo could easily be mistaken as an advertisement for "Narcos," the popular television series about Central American drug cartels: A man, sitting on piles of cash, cigar in his hand and a look of content on his face. This is no television series, however; it's the reality in the Middle East.
The man in the photo is Amar Shweiki, a Syrian businessman who functions as one of the central conduits for moving money across the Middle East, helping Iran bypass economic sanctions and fund Hezbollah. In an article that will appear in full on Friday, Israel Hayom exposes Tehran's sophisticated mechanism for funding the Lebanese Shiite terrorist organization and terrorist activity across the region, and Western efforts to cut off its monetary supply. Over the past year, Hezbollah has been mired in a severe financial crisis, and Iran has been forced to adopt unorthodox methods to fund the organization under US sanctions. Consequently, cash is used in a large portion of this financial activity. The US administration recently released a comprehensive document detailing Iran's efforts to circumvent sanctions. The aim of the document, earmarked for use by foreign governments, is to sever the numerous cash pipelines used by Tehran. These counter-efforts have forced Iran to put increasing faith in cash. For example, Iran's foreign ministry delivers some $100 million in cash to Hezbollah annually: Iranian diplomats arrive in Beirut via commercial flights carrying suitcases stuffed with dollars and hand them over to Hezbollah officials. The money itself is categorized as diplomatic mail, while the couriers themselves exploit the immunity provided by their diplomatic passports. Although the identities of those involved and the transfer dates are known to Western agencies, the channel is still active.
It appears that the economic campaign against Hezbollah won't succeed if Lebanon remains out of bounds. "Hezbollah's entire financial apparatus presently rests on the Lebanese banking system, which no one wants to touch," says Uzi Shaya, a former Israeli intelligence official and the person who led the campaign to shut down Lebanese Canadian Bank – which had been one of Hezbollah's main sources of funds. "An organization the size of Hezbollah cannot be sustained with suitcases of cash," Shaya adds.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 22-23/2019
Rouhani Says 'Talks Are Useless' in Dealing With Washington
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 22 August, 2019
Iran's President Hassan Rouhani criticized dealings with US on Thursday saying the talks with Washington are "useless." His comment came in a speech in Tehran during the unveiling of the Bavar-373, a long-range surface-to-air missile system that he said was an improvement to the Russian S-300."Now that our enemies do not accept logic, we cannot respond with logic," Rouhani noted in the televised speech. "When the enemy launches a missile against us, we cannot give a speech and say: 'Mr. Rocket, please do not hit our country and our innocent people. Rocket-launching sir, if you can please hit a button and self-destroy the missile in the air,' Rouhani said. On Wednesday, Iran's state TV reported that the Bavar-373 is able to recognize up to 100 targets at a same time and confront them with six different weapons. "With this long-range air defence system, we can detect ... targets or planes at more than 300 km (190 miles), lock it at about 250 km, and destroy it at 200 km," Defence Minister Amir Hatami told the state television. Since 1992, Iran has developed a homegrown defense industry that has produced light and heavy weapons ranging from mortars and torpedoes to tanks and submarines, the Associated Press reported. US sanctions were imposed again on Iran after Washington's administration pulled out of the nuclear deal over concerns about Iran's missile program and regional influence. President Donald Trump argued that the accord did not limit Iran's ballistic missile program.

Iran Unveils Home-Grown Missile Defense System
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 22/2019
Iran unveiled its new home-grown air defense system on Thursday at a time of increased tensions with the United States. Iranian officials have previously called Bavar-373 the Islamic republic's first domestically produced long-range missile defense system. Tehran began making Bavar -- which means "believe" -- after the purchase of Russia's S-300 system was suspended in 2010 due to international sanctions. President Hassan Rouhani attended the unveiling ceremony for the mobile surface-to-air system and ordered it to be added to Iran's missile defense network, state news agency IRNA reported. "The long-range Bavar-373 missile system is suited to Iran's geography with a range of more than 200 kilometers (124 miles) ... and competes with Russian and American systems such as S-300 and Patriot," IRNA said. The system is "better than S-300 and close to S-400", Rouhani said in televised remarks after the ceremony, held on Iran's "national defense industry day". Pictures released by his office showed the system mounted on the back of military trucks in Tehran. Iran installed the S-300 system in March 2016 following several years of delays, after a nuclear agreement reached with world powers the previous year allowed the lifting of international sanctions. Thursday's unveiling takes place against a backdrop of rising tensions with Washington since President Donald Trump last year withdrew the United States from the nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions. Iran shot down a U.S. Global Hawk drone with a surface-to-air missile in June for allegedly violating its airspace, which the United States denies.

Iran Says Prepared to Work on French Nuclear Deal Proposals
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 22 August, 2019
Iran is prepared to work on French proposals to salvage the international nuclear deal that Tehran signed with world powers in 2015, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Thursday. "There are proposals on the table... and we are going to work on those proposals," he said at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs in Oslo. French President Emmanuel Macron offered on Wednesday to either soften sanctions on Iran or provide "a compensation mechanism to enable the Iranian people to live better" in return for full compliance with the pact, which the United States quit last year. "I'm looking forward to having a serious conversation with President Macron about possibilities to move forward," said Zarif. He had said on Monday he would meet Macron and Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian in Paris on Friday. Zarif also stressed at the seminar at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs that Iran will not start a war in the Gulf but it will defend itself. "Will there be a war in the ... Gulf? I can tell you that we will not start the war... but we will defend ourselves," he said. Tensions continue to rise in the Gulf since President Donald Trump last year unilaterally pulled the US out of the nuclear deal signed by Iran and other world powers. In recent weeks, oil tankers in the region have been the subject of attacks and seizures, dragging among others London and Tehran into a bitter diplomatic row.

Israel Strikes Hamas Naval Base after Gaza Rocket Fire
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 22 August, 2019
Israeli aircraft bombed Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip overnight in retaliation for rocket attacks from the territory, the military said Thursday.
Hamas launched two rockets at Israel late Wednesday -- bringing to six the number of strikes from Gaza in less than a week -- the army said, adding that they caused no casualties or damage. In retaliation, the army said it "struck "a number of military targets in a Hamas naval facility in the northern Gaza Strip. A Palestinian security source told AFP a naval base west of Gaza City had been "targeted several times" by Israeli aircraft. The source said aircraft had also targeted "three sites in the central Gaza Strip and in Khan Yunis" in the south. He reported no casualties. There have been a series of deadly incidents along the Gaza border since the start of the month. The tit-for-tat exchange has shattered weeks of a tense calm along the volatile border. Regular mass protests began along the border in March last year demanding the easing of Israel's more than decade-old blockade of the territory and the right for Palestinian refugees to return to their ancestral homes in what is now Israel. At least 305 Palestinians have since been killed by Israeli fire, the majority during demonstrations. Seven Israelis have been killed in Gaza-related violence over the same period. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is widely seen as wanting to avoid an escalation in the Gaza Strip before a September 17 general elections, but he faces heavy political pressure to respond firmly.

Syrian Regime Opens Humanitarian Corridor in Idlib
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 22 August, 2019
The Syrian regime opened on Thursday a humanitarian corridor in the northwestern Idlib region. Damascus "announces the opening of a humanitarian corridor in the (town) of Soran," reported the SANA state news agency citing a foreign ministry source. It said the corridor would allow civilians to leave the southern part of Idlib province and the north of Hama, where the regime has advanced against opposition factions with fierce air and ground attacks. Regime forces also opened fire on a Turkish observation post in northwest Syria, two Turkish officials told Reuters on Thursday, but there were no Turkish casualties. The incident came after an airstrike halted a Turkish military convoy and killed three civilians on Monday as the convoy headed south towards another observation post. Turkey has 12 observation posts in northwest Syria, set up under an agreement with Russia and Iran. On Wednesday, Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said all of Turkey's observation posts will remain in place, and support to the posts will continue. The regime took full control Wednesday of Khan Sheikoun, a key town in Idlib, surrounding opposition-backing Turkish forces at a nearby observation post, a war monitor said. The advance on the town comes after months of airstrikes on the area by the regime and its Russian ally. "Regime forces took full control of the town of Khan Sheikhoun and are currently clearing it of mines," said Syrian Observatory for Human Rights chief Rami Abdel Rahman. Pro-regime fighters have now "surrounded an area stretching from the south of Khan Sheikhoun into northern Hama province, cutting off all roads out" for Turkish troops in the nearby town of Morek, he said. The Observatory said 21 anti-regime fighters including 18 extremists were killed in Wednesday's clashes, along with 10 regime or loyalist fighters.The takeover came after days of heavy fighting against opposition and extremist factions that control the Idlib region, which sits on the Turkish border and is the last major stronghold of opposition to the Russia-backed regime of Bashar Assad. It has been administered since January by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham alliance, which is led by extremists from Syria's former al-Qaeda affiliate. The region of some three million people was supposed to be protected by a buffer zone deal signed last September by Moscow and Ankara, but regime and Russian forces have subjected it to heavy bombardment since late April. Around 890 civilians have been killed since then, according to the Britain-based Observatory. More than 400,000 people have been displaced by the fighting over the same period, the United Nations says. The war in Syria has killed more than 370,000 people since it started with the brutal repression of anti-regime protests in 2011.

US to Hold Syria’s Regime Accountable for Chemical Weapons Uses
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 22 August, 2019
The United States on Wednesday denounced the repeated use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime and vowed “to prevent further use of these deadly weapons and to hold it accountable for these heinous crimes.”The Assad regime's “barbaric history of using chemical weapons against its own people cannot and will not be forgotten or tolerated,” the State Department said in a statement commemorating the one-year anniversary of the “horrific” chemical attack with the nerve agent sarin on the Ghouta district in Damascus that killed more than 1,400 Syrians. “Assad and others in his regime who believe they can continue using chemical weapons with impunity are mistaken," the department wrote. It also said that Washington remains determined to "hold the Assad regime accountable for these heinous acts and will continue to pursue all efforts alongside partner countries to ensure that those involved in chemical attacks face serious consequences.” “We condemn in the strongest possible terms the use of chemical weapons anywhere, by anyone, under any circumstances,” the department stressed.

Damascus to Let Civilians Flee Rebel-Held Idlib
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 22/2019
Damascus said Thursday it is opening a corridor for civilians to leave the rebel-held northwestern region of Idlib, where government bombardment has killed hundreds since late April, state media said. The announcement came a day after government forces captured the key Idlib province town of Khan Sheikhun from jihadists and allied rebels. Damascus has opened such corridors out of other rebel bastions in the past as a prelude to retaking them either by force or through negotiated surrenders. The Idlib region, which sits on the Turkish border, is now the last major stronghold of opposition to the Russia-backed government of President Bashar al-Assad. Wednesday's advance saw government forces cutting of a pocket of territory stretching from the south of Idlib province into neighboring Hama, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said. "The Syrian government announces the opening of a humanitarian corridor in Souran in the northern countryside of Hama province," state news agency SANA quoted a foreign ministry source as saying Thursday.  The corridor will be used to evacuate "civilians who want to leave areas controlled by terrorists in northern Hama and the southern countryside of Idlib. The Idlib region has been ruled since January by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham alliance, which is led by jihadists from Syria's former al-Qaida affiliate. The government refers to all rebel groups in Idlib as "terrorists."The region of some three million people was supposed to be protected by a proposed buffer zone agreed by Moscow and rebel backer Ankara last September.But the jihadists of HTS failed to pull back from the zone as agreed and in April government and Russian forces resumed intense bombardment of the region. Around 890 civilians have been killed, according to the Britain-based Observatory. More than 400,000 more have led their homes, the United Nations says. The entry of government forces into Khan Sheikhun raises the stakes between Damascus and Ankara, which has troops deployed in the nearby town of Morek, that is now cut off. The war in Syria has killed more than 370,000 people since it started with the brutal suppression of anti-government protests in 2011.

PMF Leaders Divided over Blaming US for Arms Deport Blasts
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 22 August, 2019
Head of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces Faleh al-Fayyadh appeared on Thursday to renege on statements made by his deputy in blaming Israeli drones and the US for a series of attacks on bases run by the militia. Fayyadh said the statement by his deputy, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, did not represent the view of the PMF or that of the Iraqi government. He instead alleged that the attacks on the bases over the past weeks "were the result of an act organized by a foreign side," without naming that side. The statement highlights divisions within thePMF, which is mostly run by the deputy, Muhandis, a military commander known for his anti-American sentiments. In laying blame on the US, Muhandis said Wednesday: “We announce that the first and last entity responsible for what happened are American forces, and we will hold them responsible for whatever happens from today onwards.”The PMF said it had carried out its own investigation and pointed the finger at the US military. It claimed it had information that the US brought four Israeli drones from Azerbaijan to Iraq "as part of the US fleet" to carry out reconnaissance and targeting of militia positions. Four bases used by the PMF have been hit by mysterious explosions over the past month, but there have been no claims of responsibility or media access to the facilities. The most recent of the explosions came Tuesday night, at a munitions depot north of Baghdad. The deadliest, a July 19 blast, was blamed on a drone that hit a base in Amirli, northern Iraq, killing two Iranians and causing a huge fire. A massive explosion on August 12 at the al-Saqr military base near Baghdad shook the capital, destroyed several homes, killed one civilian and wounded 28 others. The base housed a weapons depot for the Iraqi federal police and the PMF. A panel created by the government to investigate that blast ruled out earlier suggestions that it was caused by an electrical short circuit or faulty storage of munitions. Instead, it said it was caused by a drone strike, according to a copy of the panel's report obtained by The Associated Press. The report did not say who the drone belonged to. Following a national security meeting last week to discuss the string of attacks, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi ordered a ban on all military flights throughout the country — including by members of the US-led coalition in Iraq — unless specifically authorized by the Defense Ministry. The US military's Central Command quickly said it would comply with that order as its forces are "guests within Iraq's sovereign borders." An estimated 5,200 US troops are in bases across Iraq in training and advisory roles.

Institutional Corruption Cost Sudan $18 bln
Khartoum - Ahmad Khalil/Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 22 August, 2019
Institutional corruption and extra-budgetary squandering has cost Sudan some $18 billion according to the Zero Corruption Organization (ZCO), a body tasked with reviewing state agencies to reach the North African country’s zero corruption goals. The Anti-Corruption and Illegal Gain Prosecution committee, in a presser held in Khartoum on Tuesday, demanded revoking all privileges granted to government-owned companies, they criticized the telecommunications sector for hoarding a “cash glut” outside the country’s main banking system. The sum of money held by the sector is said to be larger than Central Bank of Sudan (CBOS) reserves and is kept in the form of electronic currencies that recharge mobile lines. According to the Chairman of the Sudanese Transparency Organization, Dr. Al-Tayeb Mukhtar, the Sudanese economy will not recover and the Sudanese pound will recuperate unless the telecommunications sector is rearranged. Mukhtar, in an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, warned against the seriousness of corruption, saying that its roots run deep and were further emboldened by previous dictatorships. Noting that Sudan's new transitional government is also corrupt, Mukhtar blasted its failure to protect citizens who are willing to come forward with exposing corruption-tied documents. Meanwhile, expert Ahmed Rajab, warned that institutional corruption is one of the most serious forms of corruption. He also demanded that the transitional government forces the telecommunications sector to make a balancing deposit at CBOS. ZCO, for its part, called on civil society organizations to find the necessary solutions and to work for protecting consumers. “ZCO’s main mission is to bring the corrupt to justice, and return funds to the state treasury…as a voluntary system, it also works to educate citizens on their rights, and fill the gaps in current mechanisms and modalities for fighting corruption, build a state of law, and reduce the rate of corruption in the country,” Professor Nader Al Badawi told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Israeli Official: We Will Confront Trump if Peace Plan Calls for Vacating Settlements
Ramallah - Kifah Zboun/Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 22 August, 2019
A senior Israeli official said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is more than prepared to stand up to US President Donald Trump on his peace initiative, dubbed “Deal of the Century”, should it contain demands rejected by the Israeli government. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said that Netanyahu has long proven his ability to stand up to US presidents and that he is willing to do so to Trump should it be needed. According to the official, who appears to be shoring up Netanyahu ahead of upcoming Israeli elections, the PM has already informed Trump about the policies he will reject. They include demolishing homes in West Bank settlements, dividing Jerusalem or allowing Palestinian refugees and their descendants to return to homes from which they fled or were evicted following Israel's establishment in 1948. Netanyahu also stressed that Israel should retain full control over all areas west of the Jordan River, the senior official added. The PM has repeatedly spoken out on Israel’s refusal to give up territory west of the Jordan River and that it wants to retain military control over those areas, even after the signing of a peace agreement. Palestinians, for their part, rejected any Israeli military presence on their land after the creation of a Palestinian state. Remarks made by the Israeli official come only days after Trump announced his administration would be revealing the long-awaited peace plan after Israel's elections. But the US president also revealed that Washington could be publishing parts of the deal ahead of the polls. The 2019 Knesset election is slated for September 17. The Trump administration is expected to give Israel a couple of weeks to form a government before releasing the terms of the peace plan. Netanyahu urged Israelis to elect him for office again, saying that he should spearhead peace negotiations.

Macron Expected to Rebuff Johnson during Brexit Talks in Paris
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 22/2019
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson heads to Paris on Thursday for talks with French President Emmanuel Macron who is expected to rebuff his last-ditch efforts to renegotiate the UK's withdrawal from the European Union.  Macron, who has said previously he is happy to be the "bad guy" on Brexit, roundly rejected Johnson's calls to scrap a key plank of a deal negotiated between the EU and former British premier Theresa May. "Renegotiation on the terms currently proposed by the British is not an option that exists, and that has always been made clear by (EU) President Tusk," Macron told reporters on Wednesday evening. At stake is the so-called "backstop", an arrangement guaranteeing that border checks will not return between EU member Ireland and Northern Ireland which is part of Britain. Johnson considers the backstop to be "anti-democratic" and an affront to British sovereignty because it will require London to keep its regulations aligned with the EU during a transition exit period. The EU argues this is necessary to avoid the re-emergence of border checkpoints which could lead to a return of fighting on the divided island where anti-British violence has claimed thousands of lives.
Glimmer of hope?
The Paris visit is the second leg of Johnson's first foreign trip since he became prime minister a month ago. On Wednesday, he told German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin that the backstop has "grave defects for a sovereign, democratic country like the UK" and insisted the provision "has to go."
Merkel appeared to offer a glimmer of hope by saying Britain should try to find a breakthrough to the issue over the next month. In the search for a solution, "we have said we would probably find it in the next two years, but maybe we can do it in the next 30 days, why not? Then we are one step further in the right direction," she said. Johnson told Merkel he welcomed the "very blistering timetable of 30 days," adding that "I'm more than happy with that". The remarks fit a pattern in which Merkel has often been more conciliatory in public about Brexit than Macron, whose abrasive remarks have sometimes caused anger in London.
"There is not the width of cigarette paper between Paris and Berlin on these issues," a Macron aide said on Wednesday on condition of anonymity. Macron risked further irritating Johnson, whom he described in 2017 as having "no strategic vision", with a series of bruising remarks during his lengthy press conference on Wednesday evening. He said the 2016 Brexit referendum had posed a question to the British people about EU membership "perhaps in a simplistic fashion" and without telling voters how the withdrawal would be achieved. "Many lied about how it would be done," he added in another attack on Brexit campaigners, of which Johnson was the most high profile.
Blame game
Johnson, who has deployed his French language skills to charm diplomats in Paris before, has staked his leadership on withdrawing Britain from the EU by the current deadline of October 31 -- "do or die". His tough stance is seen by the French as making a "no deal" Brexit the most likely scenario and Paris has briefed journalists that it would be prepared to see Britain crash out of the EU rather than yield to Johnson's demands. Some analysts see a risk of relations between Macron and Johnson becoming stormy in public, which could lead to a blame game about a "no deal" Brexit that is expected to wreak major economic damage on Britain and the EU. Johnson reportedly once called the French "turds" over their stance on Brexit during his time as foreign secretary -- remarks he later said he could not recall. But Macron pre-empted any attempt to deflect blame onto the European side. "It will be the responsibility of the British government, always, because firstly it was the British people that decided Brexit, and the British government has the possibility up to the last second to revoke Article 50," he said. Article 50 is the legal mechanism used by EU members states to withdraw from the bloc which was triggered by Britain in March 2017. At the weekend, Macron, Merkel and Johnson will meet US President Donald Trump, a vocal supporter of both Brexit and Johnson, and the leaders of Canada, Italy and Japan at a G7 summit in the French seaside resort of Biarritz.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on August 22-23/2019
Iran's Mullahs: Loving the Democrats' Presidential Debates
د.مجيد رافيزادا/معهد كايتستون: ملالي إيران يعشقون المناظرات الرئاسية التي يجريها الحزب الديموقراطي
Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/August 22/2019
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/77739/%d8%af-%d9%85%d8%ac%d9%8a%d8%af-%d8%b1%d8%a7%d9%81%d9%8a%d8%b2%d8%a7%d8%af%d8%a7-%d9%85%d8%b9%d9%87%d8%af-%d9%83%d8%a7%d9%8a%d8%aa%d8%b3%d8%aa%d9%88%d9%86-%d9%85%d9%84%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%8a-%d8%a5%d9%8a/
"As long as Iran has money, we will have money...." — Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, Secretary General of the Lebanese paramilitary party; CNSnews.com.
"Iran Executed 110 In Six Months, Including Minors" — Radio Farda, July 5, 2019.
It is not hard to track Iran's aggression and quest for regional dominance in the Middle East.
What should come as a surprise, is that the Democratic presidential candidates have apparently not learned a thing from the damage their nuclear deal inflicted -- in Iran, in the region and even as far as Venezuela -- under the leadership of their former president.
The Democratic Party's presidential campaign is receiving massive interest in Iran. Pictured: A Democratic Party presidential debate on June 26, 2019 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
The ruling mullahs of Iran, whose undue influence and bullying in the region have been significantly restrained by America in times past, have, as expected, been championing hate and dissent against Washington. They have been monitoring events in the United States with keen attention; a vivid example is the massive interest the Democratic Party's presidential campaign is receiving from the Islamic Republic of Iran. The mullahs seem to enjoy a cordial relationship with the Democratic Party -- why not? The former administration of President Barack Obama was most generous and sympathetic to their cause: being able to create a nuclear-weapons capability.
As of now, nine or ten out of twenty candidates of the Democratic Party have been qualified to participate in the third round of presidential debate and Iran has been closely monitoring the situation examining the willingness and determination of each of the candidates to return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), commonly known as Iran nuclear deal.
Iran's state-controlled newspapers have, in fact, been filled with headlines from statements by the democratic candidates about Iran. Updates on the debate have become the staple everyone is chewing on in Iran as we speak. Etela'at (Intelligence), Iran's leading hardline newspaper, saluted Senator Bernie Sanders: its front page headline read, "Sanders: I'll Return to JCPOA on First Day of Presidency!" The Jomhori Islami newspaper boasted that "US Representatives Urge Return to JCPOA". Iran's Vice President responded, according to Iran's Ebtekar newspaper, by stating that "Iran's Return to JCPOA is Very Easy".
We all know that the Iranians are not friends of democratic norms and principles, so possibly there might be something in it for them to be so interested in America's political scene?
First of all, the return to the Iran nuclear deal, cancelled by President Donald J. Trump, would ensure that billions of dollars would be flowing again into the treasury of the theocratic establishment; there is a precedent to it.
President Obama during his tenure made significant concessions to the Islamic Republic. He transferred cash and $1.7 billion to Tehran; showered the ruling mullahs with $150 billion in lifted sanctions, and struck secret agreements under the nuclear deal, such as paving the way for Iranian leaders to advance their nuclear capabilities at a higher level and reducing the nuclear break-out timeline from one year to six months before the nuclear agreement was to end.
What did the Iranian government do with this gift from President Obama? It was deployed to fan the embers of unrest in the Middle East. It funneled some of the money into the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to expand the government's influence and military stranglehold across the Middle East, including in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who was on the verge of losing his stranglehold on power, received a boost of adrenaline as Iran ramped up its "investment" in Syria by spending between $6 and $35 billion a year to keep its staunchest regional ally in power. Iran succeeded in so doing.
The other major beneficiaries of the nuclear deal were Iran's militias and terror groups: they were able to strengthen their Shiite armies and their proxies, such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen. A conglomerate of roughly 40 Iraqi Shiite groups under the banner of the Popular Mobilization Forces also gained significant power.
The militias were empowered and emboldened to such an extent that they began admitting and boasting about receiving money from Iran. Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, pointed out, "We are open about the fact that Hezbollah's budget, its income, its expenses, everything it eats and drinks, its weapons and rockets, are from the Islamic Republic of Iran".
"As long as Iran has money," he added, "we have money... Just as we receive the rockets that we use to threaten Israel, we are receiving our money. No law will prevent us from receiving it".
"Iran Executed 110 In Six Months, Including Minors, Radio Farda noted in July.
"Iran executes more people per capita than any other country, and carries out more total executions than any nation but China (whose population is over 17 times the size of Iran's).... Capital punishment can be—and often is—carried out against juvenile offenders and for nonviolent crimes," United Against Nuclear Iran reports.
"The Iranian authorities have flogged and secretly executed two boys under the age of 18... displaying an utter disdain for international law and the rights of children," Amnesty International reported in April.
It is not hard to track Iran's aggression and quest for regional dominance in the Middle East.
It should therefore not come as a surprise that the Iranian government is excited about Democratic presidential debates and the prospects of returning to the nuclear deal.
What should come as a surprise, is that the Democratic presidential candidates have apparently not learned a thing from the damage their nuclear deal inflicted -- in Iran, in the region and even as far as Venezuela -- under the leadership of Barack Obama.
*Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a business strategist and advisor, Harvard-educated scholar, political scientist, board member of Harvard International Review, and president of the International American Council on the Middle East. He has authored several books on Islam and US foreign policy. He can be reached at Dr.Rafizadeh@Post.Harvard.Edu
© 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.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14727/iran-democrat-presidential-debates

The Widespread Desecration of Christian Graves
ريموند إبراهيم/معهد كايتستون: حقيقة اتساع نطاق تدنيس المدافن المسيحية
Raymond Ibrahim/Gatestone Institute/August 22/2019
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/77742/%d8%b1%d9%8a%d9%85%d9%88%d9%86%d8%af-%d8%a5%d8%a8%d8%b1%d8%a7%d9%87%d9%8a%d9%85-%d9%85%d8%b9%d9%87%d8%af-%d9%83%d8%a7%d9%8a%d8%aa%d8%b3%d8%aa%d9%88%d9%86-%d8%ad%d9%82%d9%8a%d9%82%d8%a9-%d8%a7%d8%aa/
While the persecution of a Christian can be motivated by particular circumstances -- conflicts, sexual attraction, convenience, gain, and so on -- attacks on inanimate symbols would seem to reflect a hatred for Christianity and its followers that needs no "reason" and seemingly gains nothing.
From one end of the Middle Eastern world to the other -- and in Arab, African and Asian nations, and increasingly in the West -- this sort of hate has become a regular occurrence, seemingly "normalized."
Although so-called "mainstream media" reported some of the desecrations -- probably mostly because the Islamic State had already publicized them -- they rarely report that "everyday" extremists also engage in this macabre practice.
Sadly, despite the Western establishment's insistence that religiously-inspired terror is a product of anything and everything but teachings, doctrines and text, the widespread appearance of people desecrating Christian graves and their crosses speaks of something else.
Although the persecution by members of some religions of live human beings, such as Jews and Christians, is certainly more monstrous, attacks on inanimate religious symbols possibly give an even clearer indication of a deadly hate borne for the "other."
Consider, for instance, extremists desecrating and destroying Christian cemeteries and their crosses. While the act itself is largely "symbolic" -- in that no living person gets hurt -- it is also reflective of a committed hatred that transcends, say, responding to a physical threat. While the persecution of a Christian can be motivated by particular circumstances -- conflicts, sexual attraction, convenience, gain, and so on -- attacks on inanimate symbols would seem to reflect a hatred for Christianity and its followers that needs no "reason" and seemingly gains nothing.
From one end of the Middle Eastern world to the other -- and in Arab, African and Asian nations, and increasingly in the West -- this sort of hate has become a regular occurrence, seemingly "normalized." A brief list follows, ordered by desecrations committed by formal terrorists, such as ISIS, al-Qaeda and similar organizations; informal terrorists, such as religious mobs; and theocratic governments.
Libya: In March 2012, a video of an extremist mob attacking a Commonwealth cemetery near Benghazi, where WWII British officers were buried, appeared on the Internet. As the vandals kick down and destroy headstones with crosses on them, the man videotaping them urges them to "Break the cross of the dogs!" while he and others cry "Allahu Akbar!" At one point, while he tells an overly zealous desecrater to "calm down," he chuckles. When another member of the mob complains that he is unable to kick down a particular stone, and wonders if it is because "this soldier must have been good to his parents," the man doing the videotaping replies, "Come on, they are all dogs, who cares?" Finally the mob congregates around the huge Cross of Sacrifice, the cemetery's cenotaph monument, and starts hammering at it, to more cries of "Allahu Akbar."
A similar incident occurred in Libya on June 3, 2015: People described by witnesses as extremists destroyed crosses and tombstones and dug up graves in the old Christian section of Tripoli.
Iraq: In April 2015, a group of men affiliated with ISIS desecrated Mosul's oldest Christian cemetery, dedicated to St. Thomas the Apostle. ISIS published pictures of its followers using sledgehammers to destroy gravestones and efface the crosses carved on them as documentary evidence of their campaign to "eradicate mushrik [pagan] symbols."
In November, 2016, a human rights group published photos from the Christian cemetery of Qarqoosh, which was also vandalized by ISIS-supporters. The desecraters also opened coffins and despoiled the dead; one picture shows the snapped off skull of a corpse, who had presumably formerly been resting-in-peace, with crosses hurled around it on the ground.
Syria: The Islamic State released an online video on May 16, 2016, showing an ISIS fighter desecrating Christian graves at the Deir ez-Zor cemetery.
Although so-called "mainstream media" reported some of the desecrations above -- probably mostly because the Islamic State had already publicized them -- they rarely report that "everyday" extremists also engage in this macabre practice. A few examples follow:
Indonesia: In April 2019, there was "a rash of desecrations directed at Christian graves in the city of Yogyakarta, a spree some local residents believe was a targeted act of intolerance rather than random vandalism." A few months earlier, a number of crosses and gravestones were damaged, apparently by a hammer, in what has long been touted as the world's most "moderate" nation.
Pakistan: In May 2019, near Lahore, "38 Christians graves were desecrated... In addition to desecrating the graves, the unknown assailants also defaced several crosses fixed to the graves." A local Christian said the incident "shows that some religious fanatics have their roots in the neighborhood and want to seed religious hatred in the mindsets of the young generation which is alarming."
Algeria: In September, 2018, over 30 Christian graves were desecrated at La Reunion War Cemetery, one of the few Christian cemeteries remaining in the Muslim nation:
"The graves were ransacked and tombstones smashed. Investigators believe that religious motives are at play. While the government is pursuing an investigation, the desecration of these graves come [sic] at a time when the Algerian authorities have increasingly harassed the church. During the past year, a number of churches have closed by authorities ..."
Malaysia: In February, 2014, a Christian cemetery was desecrated in the middle of the night.
"Local witnesses said that some gravestones were completely smashed, and some crosses were broken... Flowerpots and other stone markers were also broken. It seems that perpetrators used a heavy tool to do the damage."
Senegal: In October 2012, more than 160 Christian graves were desecrated.
"Crucifixes and other stone objects were taken away from their graves in the Christian cemeteries of Saint Lazarus of Bethany and Bel Air, by individuals who have not yet been identified."
Along with professional and unprofessional terrorists, governments join the ranks of desecraters of Christian cemeteries:
Iran: In April 2012, "a 200-year old Christian cemetery in Kerman province was completely demolished" by authorities in their bid "to destroy historical Christian monuments [and] to totally wipe the Christian heritage from the face of Iran."
A few months earlier, in February 2012, the historical graveyard of English Christians in Bushehr, which was also used by the Armenian community, was reported as being in complete disarray -- "all the crosses on graves are broken," according to the report, which added:
"For a long time, the graveyard has been intentionally overlooked by state authorities of Bushehr, because it houses the bodies of English veterans. This disregard continued to the extent that in 2003, the tourism organization of Iran built a stone wall around the graveyard and prevented visitors from entering."
Pakistan: An August 2016 report noted that "Local Christians claim the[ir] graveyard is undergoing wear while the local authorities are overlooking the situation." A few months later, in October 2016, authorities in another district were said to have allowed the only Christian graveyard to deteriorate over the past thirty years and to have taken no restorative measures despite repeated Christian pleas.
Tunisia: In May 2012, after the Russian ambassador in Tunis requested that the nation's Ministry of Interior "protect" the Orthodox Church of Tunis -- the cross of which had recently been targeted by Salafi Muslims -- both the Christian cemetery located behind the church and the Russian school were vandalized. The cemetery's crosses were destroyed, while the walls of the school and religious frescoes were smeared with fecal matter (as took place recently in France).
As the number of newcomers in Western nations grows, the same practices that occur in the nations from which they came -- such as the desecration of Christian cemeteries -- grow with them.
Consider France. In April 2015, 215 Christian gravestones and crosses in the cemetery of Saint-Roch de Castres (Tarn) were damaged and desecrated (pictures here). According to the case prosecutor, the accused was seen dressed in traditional Middle Eastern attire; he repeats "prayers over and over, drools and cannot be communicated with: his condition has been declared incompatible with preliminary detention." He was hospitalized on the assumption that he is "mentally unbalanced."
Sometimes minorities in the West express their animosity in less direct ways. After newcomers in Germany were granted their own section at a cemetery, and after being allowed to conduct their religious ceremonies, they began demanding that Christian symbols and crosses in the rest of the cemetery be removed or covered up while their funerals were taking place.
Recently, European nations are taking preemptive measures to forestall potential anger emanating from religion. From Italy, it was reported in April 2019, "crosses on graves in an Italian cemetery in Pieve di Cento have been covered with black cloth so as not to offend those who may come from another religion." The report adds:
"The cemetery, which is located in Bologna in a town of around 7,000 people, has also installed motorized blackout curtains in a local chapel following renovations to hide Roman Catholic symbols during ceremonies involving other denominations."
Sadly, despite the Western establishment's insistence that religiously-inspired terror is a product of anything and everything but teachings, doctrines and text, the widespread appearance of people desecrating Christian graves and their crosses speaks of something else.
*Raymond Ibrahim, author of the new book, Sword and Scimitar, Fourteen Centuries of War between Islam and the West, is a Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Gatestone Institute, a Shillman Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center, and a Judith Rosen Friedman Fellow at the Middle East Forum.
© 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.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14728/desecration-christian-graves

We Must Work Tirelessly to Confront Terrorism
Andrew Murrison/Asharq Al Awsat/August 22/2019
Acts of terrorism stay with us. After the sickening and senseless attacks perpetrated by extremists who seek to impose their twisted ideology on others through force, we must make time to commemorate those we have lost. Today the world marks the International Day of Remembrance and of Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism. We remember the innocent Muslims leaving a mosque in Finsbury Park, attacked for their worship; Lee Rigby, targeted simply for having served his country; Ignacio Echeverria, killed trying to stop the London Bridge attackers armed only with a skateboard; the young people in Manchester, struck down while enjoying a concert. We will remember all those who have been affected by terror attacks in the UK in recent years. These personal tragedies are of course repeated across the world, from Westminster Bridge and Paris to Kabul, from Benghazi to Christchurch.
The greatest global terror threat of recent years, Daesh, has been responsible for unimaginable suffering. Daesh’s appalling brutality in Iraq and Syria has left innumerable dead, and many more with lasting wounds, both physical and mental. It tore apart communities, enslaved thousands of people and orphaned children. Due to the efforts of the UK and international partners through the Global Coalition Against Daesh, and the sacrifices of the Iraqi Security Forces and Syrian Democratic Forces on the ground, in March of this year, Daesh was denied the last of the once vast territory it occupied.
But the suffering it caused isn’t over and the poisonous ideology of Daesh lives on. Today in liberated areas of northeast Syria there are 1.6 million people in need of support, and in Iraq nearly 5% of the population remains displaced. Explosive devices left behind by Daesh continue to take innocent lives and slow down the important work of rebuilding hospitals, schools, and other vital services. The remnants of Daesh have now reverted to insurgency-type tactics across Iraq and Syria, and from there, they threaten more attacks across the world.
The threat of terrorism doesn’t just lie with Islamist extremists. We have seen terror attacks around the world this year carried out by far-right extremists and Islamist extremists alike. We all watched as terrorists espousing these different ideologies carried out the same acts of senseless violence in Christchurch, Sri Lanka, and El Paso. The attackers were begging to be remembered, memorialized in infamy. But as people around the world gathered in solemn solidarity after the attacks, we instead chose to remember the innocent victims.
On this day of commemoration, we must remember that we are not helpless in the face of terror. As governments, the greatest tribute we can pay those who have suffered at the hands of extremists is to work tirelessly to prevent future victims, to help their families rebuild their lives, and to help communities to heal and reject the ideologies that fuel extremism. Today 400 British soldiers are training Iraqi Security Forces, and more than 94,000 Iraqi troops have already been trained, ready to defend their fellow citizens. UK aid has helped clear explosive hazards from 663 locations, which can now become schools, businesses, hospitals, homes and community centers. The UK is supporting UN accountability mechanisms to gather evidence of Daesh’s crimes, to help bring those responsible to justice. We’re also leading international efforts to reduce the ability of Daesh to use its propaganda to recruit supporters and incite further attacks. And we mustn’t forget the victims of Daesh, forced to flee their homes and their livelihoods, whom we can still support. Through UK Aid we have given food and shelter kits to hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, provided four million Iraqis with healthcare, and two million access to safe drinking water, toilet, and shower facilities.
On this Day of Remembrance and of Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism, we remember those lives senselessly cut short. We also look ahead to the continued threat we face, no matter where we are in the world. We remind ourselves that we are resilient. From our collective grief, we can rebuild our societies to become stronger and more cohesive. Today of all days, we make the pledge that the UK will continue to do all we can to collaborate with partners and the international system to keep all of our communities safe from terror.

Desperate Iran boosts ties with Russian military
د. مجيد رافيزادا: إيران اليائسة تعزز علاقاتها مع الجيش الروسي
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Arab News/August 22/2019
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Iran’s state-controlled news outlets have this week dedicated significant coverage to the latest rapprochement between Tehran and Moscow. Military cooperation between the Iranian regime and Russia has increased to levels that have not been seen since the establishment of the Islamic Republic in 1979.
Heading a military delegation, the commander of the Iranian navy, Rear Adm. Hossein Khanzadi, this month paid a three-day visit to Russia and held talks with Russian commanders. It seems that Iran is seeking Moscow’s assistance and this has led to an agreement between its armed forces and Russia’s Ministry of Defense. The agreement is the first of its kind when it comes to boosting military cooperation between the two countries. Parts of it have remained secret, with the Iranian commander pointing out that: “Some articles of this agreement are classified but, overall, it is aimed at expanding military cooperation between the two countries.”
The two countries have also reached an agreement on holding joint drills in the Indian Ocean, the Strait of Hormuz, the Makran waters, and in the Gulf during the next few months. It is considered a turning point between the two countries, as Iran has plans to allowRussia to dispatch its naval fleet to the south of Iran, near the cities of Bandar Bushehr and Chabahar.
It seems that Iran is moving toward a path that would ultimately allow Russia to have a base in the Gulf. In fact, there are already reports that Tehran has agreed to permit Russia to station its forces and weaponry at Iranian ports.
If Iran proceeds with such an agreement, the move would be extremely controversial not only in the region, but also inside Iran for two major reasons. First of all, it would be very unpopular with the Iranian population as Iranians have historically opposed allowing foreign powers to exert influence over their country.
In fact, the Iranian leaders would be violatingtwo articles of the country’s constitution if they allowed Russia to have military bases in the Strait of Hormuz. Article 152 stipulatesthat: “The foreign policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran is based upon the rejection of all forms of domination, both the exertion of it and submission to it, the preservation of the independence of the country in all respects and its territorial integrity, the defense of the rights of all Muslims, non-alignment with respect to the hegemonic superpowers, and the maintenance of mutually peaceful relations with all non-belligerent States.” Article 153 adds: “Any form of agreement resulting in foreign control over the natural resources, economy, army, or culture of the country, as well as other aspects of the national life, is forbidden.”
It seems that Iran is moving toward a path that would ultimately allow Russia to have a base in the Gulf.
Secondly, since it came to power, the theocratic establishment has boastedabout being an independent government and bragged about pursuing foreign and domestic policies that are self-reliant. One of the major criticisms of the last shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, was that he appeared to be acting on behalf of the West, particularly the US. In fact, two of the most important slogansof the ruling clerics translate as “neither the East, nor the West, (but only) the Islamic Republic,” and “independence, freedom, and the Islamic Republic.”
But the Iranian regime appears to be willing to ignore its own constitution due to the fact that it is in a desperate situation both geopolitically and strategically. The Trump administration has been imposing a considerable amount of pressure on Tehran with its military buildup in the Gulf, which includesthe deployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln and a Patriot missile battery, and the bolstering of the US military presence with an additional 1,500 troops.
Iran has been viewing the US-led maritime security mission in the Gulf as a major threat to its national security. The threat has been magnified as several countries, including the UK and Israel, have agreed to join the US-led coalition. Khanzadi lashedout by saying: “Nothing has happened in the region… and the show that arrogant countries, most importantly the US and the UK, put on is only a big bluff and a dishonest act aimed to create the impression that the region is unsafe.”
President Hassan Rouhani also issued a warningin a live televised speech: “A strait for a strait. It can’t be that the Strait of Hormuz is free for you and the Strait of Gibraltar is not free for us.”
The Israeli presence in the Strait of Hormuz will be the greatest blow to the Iranian leaders due to the deep hostility between these two countries. That is why Hossein Kanani-Moghaddam, who served as an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander during the eight-year Iran-Iraq War, statedthat, if Israel builds bases in the Gulf, they would be “struck by our missiles without any advanced notice. If the Israeli forces enter the Gulf, they will be targeted along with those countries who help them.”
In summary, Iran is desperately seeking Russia’s assistance in the Gulf. Tehran’s move to allow Moscow to exert influence over the country’s waters is unprecedented and likely to be extremely unpopular with the Iranian population.
*Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a Harvard-educated Iranian-American political scientist. He is a leading expert on Iran and US foreign policy, a businessman and president of the International American Council. Twitter: @Dr_Rafizadeh

G7 splits likely to resurface at Biarritz summit
Andrew Hammond/Arab News/August 22/2019
The G7 presidents and prime ministers meet in Biarritz, France, this weekend and it may not just be the weather that proves to be hot. On a range of issues, further disagreements are likely between the Western powers, with US President Donald Trump expected to raise the diplomatic temperature.
The context for this weekend’s session is last year’s Canadian meet, which saw an unprecedented failure to agree an end-of-summit communique. And this was given added spice by some remarkably undiplomatic language, including Trump’s characterization of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as “so indignant,” while the latter called the US president’s trade tariffs “laughable.”
The personal animosity on display between Trump, who left early to visit Kim Jong Un in Singapore, and the other leaders set the scene for wider policy splits. Trump, for instance, called for Russia to be allowed to rejoin the group (as the G8), which he renewed on Tuesday.
But other G7 leaders called for a “rapid and unified” response to malign international interference, including by Moscow, such as cyber and chemical weapon attacks like the one last year in Salisbury, England. Despite the US president’s desire for warmer ties with Vladimir Putin, there is little sign that Russia will be invited back to the club any time soon.
Amidst continuing divisions, from trade to climate change, which gave rise to talk last year of a “G6 plus 1,” there may be cause for a positive surprise this year given the changing dynamics of the leadership. For instance, new UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson joins the meeting for the first time and it is possible he could act as a bridge between Trump and the other G7 leaders.
Leadership transitions are underway not just in the UK, but also the EU and Italy too, with Jean-Claude Juncker, Donald Tusk and Giuseppe Conte stepping down. Potentially, in the next 12 months, this could also be the case in Canada, with an election scheduled for the autumn, and Germany, with Angela Merkel’s long reign in its twilight.
Looking further out to the second half of 2020, much may also depend on whether Trump is returned to power. While the fissures within the G7 did not begin with his election, they have been exacerbated by it.
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, there have been a series of intra-Western disagreements over issues from the Middle East, including the Iraq War, which was opposed in 2003 by France and Germany, through to the rise of China, with some European powers and the US having disagreements over the best way to engage the rising superpower.
While the fissures within the G7 did not begin with Trump’s election, they have been exacerbated by it.
Despite occasional discord, key Western nations generally continued to agree on a broad range of issues, such as international trade, backing for a Middle Eastern peace process between Israel and Palestine along Oslo principles, and strong support for the international rules-based system and the supranational organizations that make this work. But more of these key principles are now being disrupted, if not outright undermined, by Trump’s agenda.
Take the example of international trade, which saw Trump isolated last year following the “unanimous concern and disappointment” of Canada, the UK, Japan, France, Germany and Italy. Trade will again be an undercurrent of tension in Biarritz, with Washington considering imposing new tariffs on European car imports.
To paper over these cracks, it is therefore possible that significant emphasis could this weekend be put on finding greater G7 consensus on a range of security and geopolitical issues. Potential examples here could include North Korea and the continuing clampdown against terrorism.
There is also the possibility of a further G7 statement outlining its concerns over Venezuela. Western leaders remain worried about the destabilizing political effects of that situation for the wider region, including the bordering states of Brazil and Colombia.
This would, yet again, highlight the group’s often underappreciated importance as an international security linchpin — despite the fact that it was originally conceived in the 1970s to monitor developments in the world economy and assess macroeconomic policies. The 2017 G7 summit, for instance, was dominated by the development of a new terrorism action plan.
The G7’s involvement in this multitude of geopolitical dialogues is not without controversy, given its original macroeconomic mandate. For instance, China strongly objected to the discussion of maritime security in Asia at the 2016 Japan-hosted summit.
It is sometimes asserted, especially by developing countries, that the G7 lacks the legitimacy of the UN, or even the G20, to engage in these international security issues; or that it is a historical artefact given the rise of new powers, including China and India. However, it is not the case that the international security role of the G7 is new. An early example of the function the body has played here was in the 1970s and 1980s, when it helped coordinate Western strategy toward the then-Soviet Union.
Taken overall, Biarritz will again see splits, including on Russia and trade, but Johnson’s stance toward Trump may be significantly warmer than other leaders. While some Western fissures pre-date the latter’s presidency, his agenda has grown these gaps and next year’s US election is by far the most important of the potential G7 leadership transitions in 2019 and 2020.
*Andrew Hammond is an Associate at LSE IDEAS at the London School of Economics

Future of PMU complicates Iraqi politics
Talmiz Ahmad/Arab News/August 22/2019
Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi on July 1 issued a decree ordering all the groups that make up the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) to be absorbed into the national army and police forces within a month. This order replaced an earlier one of his predecessor, Haider Abadi, which had retained the separate character of the PMU and brought it directly under the prime minister rather than the Ministry of Defense.
But, three weeks later, after a quick visit to Tehran, Abdul-Mahdi revised his earlier instruction. He clarified that the PMU would remain a separate entity “under government control.” He also admitted that the integration of the various units of the PMU would take a “long time.”
Venerated during the battles against Daesh, the PMU — with the sectarian zeal of some of its cohorts, its lethal firepower, and its robust finances from dubious sources — is today viewed with concern by most of the country’s political leaders. The PMU acquired its present pre-eminence by leading the fight after Daesh forces took Mosul in 2014, which prompted Grand Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani to call on Iraqis to defend their country, particularly its holy sites. US commentator Michael Knights estimates that the militants responding to this call numbered about 60,000 in 2014. Several factions emerged from across the country to fight Daesh, coming together under the umbrella of the PMU.
It is believed that the PMU is now made up of 45 units and numbers about 130,000. About half of these are believed to be pro-Iran and close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The most powerful group in the PMU is Kata’ib Hezbollah, headed by Abu Mahdi Al-Mohandis, who is also the deputy leader of the PMU under Faleh Al-Fayyadh. The PMU is represented in the Abdul-Mahdi government through its political wing, the Fatah coalition.
As US-Iran ties have deteriorated over the last year, PMU militants have attacked US targets in Iraq. These have included rocket attacks on the US consulate in Basra in September last year, several rocket attacks on US diplomatic premises in Baghdad, and a roadside bombing in July this year that blew up a convoy carrying supplies to the US embassy.
While the prime minister has been under considerable US pressure to curb the independence and violence of the PMU, the US has also taken some direct action. On July 18, it sanctioned four Iraqis, who are close to Iran and have links with the PMU. Also in July, there were two drone attacks on PMU military facilities, followed this month by an explosion at a PMU weapons storage depot in southern Baghdad. The US has denied involvement in these attacks, but there is widespread suspicion that they are instead the handiwork of Israel, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stridently stating his commitment to attack Iranian targets in Syria, Iraq and even Iran itself, partly to boost his prospects in the September elections.
Iraq, which is making a slow and painful recovery after several decades of conflict, dreads being caught in the US-Iran crossfire, particularly when the PMU’s actions could instigate harsh retaliatory attacks from the US and its allies. Toward the end of July, Abdul-Mahdi painted a positive picture about the implementation of his decree: He said that PMU bases had been removed from residential areas. Backing the prime minister, PMU leader Al-Fayyadh said he had directed all PMU units to close their economic offices across the country, and that this had been complied with. There is skepticism in Iraq about both accomplishments.
Meanwhile, Iraq’s fractious politicians have kept up their quarrels and feuds. Former PM Abadi, still bitter about his ouster, has criticized his successor for his failure to bring the PMU under state control. During his tenure, Abadi said he had insisted that PMU members leave the militia before running for elections.
As US-Iran ties have deteriorated over the last year, PMU militants have attacked US targets in Iraq.
He blamed factionalism within the PMU as the reason for some groups describing him as “pro-US” — a stigma for any Iraqi politician. This was only meant to discredit him and jeopardize his political aspirations. He described his position as “constructive opposition.”
Another disgruntled former prime minister is Nouri Al-Maliki. He got himself re-elected as secretary-general of the Da’awa party, in a move described as a “coup” by Abadi, as Al-Maliki had apparently assured in writing that he would not seek this post. His supporters say he will resurrect the party and prepare it for victory in the 2022 elections.
Ammar Al-Hakim, head of the National Wisdom Movement, called out his followers for anti-government protests across the country on July 19. And, while he did not get the numbers he had hoped for, he did project his party in important Sunni areas to obtain a national profile.
None of these maneuvers have much to do with national interest. Commentator Renad Mansour of Chatham House has pointed out that Abdul-Mahdi has continued the Iraqi political tradition of accommodating diverse interests by distributing the national largesse among them, while social and economic conditions worsen, along with the regional security situation.
It promises to be a long, hot summer in Iraq.
*Talmiz Ahmad is an author and former Indian ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Oman and the UAE. He holds the Ram Sathe Chair for International Studies, Symbiosis International University, Pune, India.