LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
August 24/2019
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
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Bible Quotations For today
The Parable of the Samaritan who extended his hand and helped the Robbers Victim
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 10/29-37/:”But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbour?’Jesus replied, ‘A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while travelling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, “Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.” Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?’He said, ‘The one who showed him mercy.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do likewise.’”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on August 23-24/2019
Your Lebanon Is A Holy, Defend Its Sovereignty & Independence
President Aoun: To preserve reconciliation, popularize right to difference of opinion
Aoun to new members of Constitutional Council: Be honestly, impartially, and sincerely faithful to your oath
Turkish Foreign Minister Meets Aoun, Berri and Hariri
Hariri receives Cavusoglu
Turkish Foreign Minister visits Berri
Bassil, Turkish counterpart hold press conference, stress need to cooperate to secure safe refugee return to Syria
Bassil receives US Senate’s Olson
Army Commander tackles developments with US Senate delegation
Hariri Meets with U.S. Ambassador
Report: Fitch to Downgrade Lebanon's Credit Rating
Lebanon: People of the South Rule Out New War with Israel
Berri Says 'Others' Betrayed LF, Center House Says Hariri Wasn't Part of Agreement
Khalil: We're Not a Bankrupt Country
Samy Gemayel Pledges on Bachir's Election Anniversary to Always Tell the Truth
Hankache Hails Martyr President Bachir Gemayel's Reign

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 23-24/2019
Netanyahu Admits Hitting Iranian Targets in Iraq
US officials Confirm Israeli Strike on Iranian Arms Depot in Iraq
Zarif Praises Macron Nuclear Crisis Suggestions
Turkey Vows Not to Quit Army Post Surrounded in Syria
Syrian Regime Forces Surround Turkish Army Post
Sudan Sovereign Council Member: We Haven’t Yet Reached State of Emergency Stage
LNA Accuses Qatar of Being 'Terrorism Base'
UN's Guterres Urges World to Stamp out Religious Persecution
G7 Leaders Vow 'Concrete Measures' over Amazon Fires
Trump Says U.S. Companies 'Ordered' to Find Alternative to Production in China

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
Biarritz Summit: Bright Moment in Silly Season/Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat/August 23/2019
Back to the 2nd Intifada and Palestinian remote-control bombs. No leads to killer-terrorists/DEBKAfile/August 23/2019
We ignore the continued Daesh threat at our peril/Michael Kugelman/Arab News/August 23/2019
Modi close to seeing India turn a crucial corner/Amulya Ganguli/Arab News/August 23/2019
What America would gain if it bought Greenland/Dr. Theodore Karasik/Arab News/August 23/2019

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

President Aoun: To preserve reconciliation, popularize right to difference of opinion
NNA - Fri 23 Aug 2019
President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, on Friday reiterated the need to maintain reconciliation in the mountain. “Reconciliation should not be adversely affected by any difference in political views," the President told visiting delegations at his Beiteddine summer residence. Aoun also pointed to the need to generalize the culture of “right to difference of opinion, which is at the heart of the democratic system."President Aoun received today a Kataeb Party delegation of the Chouf province, headed by Abdo Karam. "The most important thing about my move to the summer residence is to spread reassurance among all, because there are always those who hesitate to return,” the President told his visitors. In the presence of MP Cesar Abi Khalil, President Aoun also welcomed a delegation from the town of Ain Dara headed by retired Mayor, Maroun Badr, who delivered a speech in which he welcomed President Aoun in the mountainous region and gave him a briefing on the sufferings of the town's environment and security. President Aoun then responded by welcoming members of the delegation, stressing his daily follow-up on the situation in Ain Dara and the repercussions that have resulted due to recent incidents. He also pointed out that the guideline plan for quarries and crushers would be studied in the cabinet soon. Separately, Aoun welcomed a delegation of the “Sons of the Mountain” and said: "Amidst all the harsh conditions that the mountain has endured, we’ve been suffering with it as well. We contributed to the first reconciliation and our duty is to preserve it.”“Our effort today is to improve the situation in the mountain. There are still some traces of fear or neglect from those concerned, who despite the renovation of their homes, have not settled here yet,” Aoun concluded.

Aoun to new members of Constitutional Council: Be honestly, impartially, and sincerely faithful to your oath
NNA - Fri 23 Aug 2019
President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, on Friday called on the new members of the Constitutional Council to be loyal to the oath they had taken, especially in terms of working honestly, impartially and sincerely. He stressed the need to abide by the Constitution’s provisions and to keep deliberations confidential. Aoun told members of the council, “By wishing you success in your new mission, I highlight the great responsibility you are to assume, especially after swearing in your oath of office. The tasks of the Constitutional Council are delicate, sensitive, and require great responsibility.” Members of the Constitutional Council were sworn in by President Aoun at Beiteddine Palace at 2 pm this afternoon, in the following order:
- Elected members of the Parliament Judges: Tannous Meshalab, Awni Ramadan, Akram Baasiri, Antoine Braidi and Riad Abu Ghida.
- Appointed members of the Council of Ministers: Judge Omar Hamza, Dr. Fawzat Farhat, Mr. Abdullah Al-Shami, Mr. Youssef Bouaid and Mr. Elias Mashreqani.
Each member took the following oath: "I swear by God Almighty to do my job in the Constitutional Council with all honesty, impartiality, and sincerity, adhering to the provisions of the Constitution, and to ensure the secrecy of the study with absolute care."
Decree No. 5496 dated 23 August 2019 had been issued before noon today, appointing the five members of the Council of Ministers yesterday.

Turkish Foreign Minister Meets Aoun, Berri and Hariri
Naharnet/August 23/2019
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Friday held separate meetings with President Michel Aoun, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Saad Hariri. The National News Agency said Aoun told Cavusoglu that "the international community's continued disregard for the need to repatriate Syrian refugees to their country raises several question marks about the reasons." "Those who have returned from Lebanon to Syria under the supervision of the Lebanese General Security were not subjected to any harassment and the repatriation operations will take place regularly," Aoun added. Cavusoglu for his part stressed the importance that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pins on the Lebanese-Turkish relations and his "appreciation of the role of the President (Aoun) in addressing the events and the developments in the region." He also emphasized "the importance of Lebanon's role in preserving regional security and stability."Cavusoglu held talks later in the day with Speaker Berri. "The visit was an occasion to discuss the general situations in the region, starting by Palestine and the need to hold onto the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people to the importance of finding a political solution in Syria that would preserve its unity and sovereignty," the National News Agency said. Cavusoglu also met Friday with Prime Minister Saad Hariri and Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil. Al-Liwaa newspaper reported Thursday that the minister’s talks will touch on “the developments in the Syrian region of Idlib,” where regime forces are pressing an assault on the last rebel and jihadist bastion in the country.

Hariri receives Cavusoglu
NNA - Fri 23 Aug 2019
The President of the Council of Ministers Saad Hariri received this afternoon at the Grand Serail the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and the accompanying delegation in the presence of the Turkish Ambassador to Lebanon Hakan Cakil and former Minister Ghattas Khoury.
During the meeting, Hariri praised the role played by the Turkish contingent operating within UNIFIL in southern Lebanon. Hariri informed Cavusoglu that he signed yesterday the decree lifting the ban on the importation of some Turkish products to Lebanon. For his part, Cavusoglu expressed his country's support for Lebanon and its constitutional institutions, especially the Lebanese army, and conveyed to Hariri the interest of Turkish companies to invest in Lebanon, especially in the CEDRE infrastructure projects. They agreed to activate the free trade agreement signed between the two countries and hold a meeting soon for the Lebanese-Turkish Higher Ministerial Committee. Hariri later received the World Bank's Regional Director Saroj Kumar Jha and theInternational Finance Corporation’s Global Director for Public-Private Partnerships Emmanuel Nyirinkindi, in the presence of the Minister of Public Works and Transport Youssef Fenianos and Hariri’s advisors Nadim Mounla, Ghazi Youssef and Hazar Caracalla. The meeting focused on the implemented phases of the Rafic Hariri Airport expansion project, the means of implementing the CEDRE projects, which rely on the partnership between the public and private sectors and the role that the bank can play in the development of financial, technical and legal studies to facilitate this matter.

Turkish Foreign Minister visits Berri
NNA -Fri 23 Aug 2019
Speaker of the House, Nabih Berri, on Friday welcomed visiting Turkish Foreign Minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, at the former’s Ein al-Teeneh residence, accompanied by Turkish Ambassador to Lebanon, Hakan Cakil. The meeting reportedly focused on the regional situation, particularly in Palestine, and the need to tackle on the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people. The pair also stressed the importance of a political solution in Syria while guaranteeing the country’s unity, sovereignty, and the return of refugees to their homes. Separately, Berri welcomed President of the Supreme Judicial Council, Jean Fahd.

Bassil, Turkish counterpart hold press conference, stress need to cooperate to secure safe refugee return to Syria
NNA -Fri 23 Aug 2019
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants, Gebran Bassil, on Friday received his Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu, and broached with him the existing Lebanese-Turkish ties, as well as the most recent developments in the region, especially the simmering Syrian refugee crisis.
In the wake of the meeting, both men held a joint press conference. “Today, Lebanese-Turkish relations are at their best, and the leaderships of both countries enjoy mutual respect for one another,” Bassil said. "Politically, we look forward to greater coordination over basic issues, and we thank Turkey for standing by Lebanon in the face of Israeli aggressions, as well as for its participation in UNIFIL,” Bassil added. “Today, we both endure many common challenges, the most important of which is the Syrian crisis, which caused the two countries to suffer the pain of security repercussions, especially with the infiltration of terrorism,” Bassil maintained. The Minister also pointed to the refugee crisis, which has burdened Lebanon the most “not only on the regional level, but on the international level as a whole.”"Today, we consider that it is high time for Syrian citizens to return to their homeland in a dignified and safe way. We must cooperate and coordinate with Turkey, Jordan, and neighboring countries surrounding Syria, to secure conditions conducive to this return,” Bassil explained.  "As for the Syrian turmoil, we support a political solution and support the right of the Syrian people to decide their own fate, along with our support to Astana, in which Lebanon participates as an observer,” Bassil added, thanking Turkey for inviting Lebanon to be part of it. “We also support the Geneva Conference and all international resolutions on Syria.”
Touching on the Palestinian issue, Bassil pointed to what has recently been associated with “Bahrain Conference” and the “deal of the century”. “Lebanon's position is principled in terms of refusing to buy the historical rights of the Palestinian people in Lebanon,” he stressed.
The Minister also noted that talks with his counterpart had touched on the economic relations between the two countries and the need to strengthen and follow up on them. "Trade exchange has reached approximately $1.2 billion US dollars. Turkey is a main tourist destination for the Lebanese (...). We hope that Turkey will encourage Turkish tourists to visit Lebanon as well,” Bassil said. In turn, Cavusoglu said that he was delighted to visit Lebanon. "I am very pleased to have met all the Lebanese politicians representing all the Lebanese communities,” he said.  "We view Lebanon as a neighboring and sister country; its stability and growth are very important for us, and we will continue to support its development via cooperation between the two countries. We also care about the economic development in Lebanon, so we’ve discussed with Minister Bassil the best means to bolster and support the Lebanese economy,” the Turkish Minister said. “We know that Turkish companies want to invest in the Lebanese markets, so we support this for the development of its economy,” he added.  He noted that Turkish companies would also like to invest in energy in Lebanon, and thanked the Lebanese state for its support and confidence in Turkey in this field. “We look forward to Lebanon's approval of the free trade agreement signed back in 2010, and we expect the Lebanese state to sign it for the integration of a trade cooperation in the region among all,” Cavusoglu said. "As for the region’s policies, we never disagree with Minister Bassil; we share the same opinion on issues related to the region. We want a political solution to the Syrian crisis in the region, and wish of Lebanon to join the Astana talks, thus we’ve invited Lebanon as an observer state,” he explained, adding that Iraq will also participate in these talks. As for the Palestinian issue, the Turkish Minister said that his country would continue to defend Palestinian rights. “We want to inform the whole world, especially the United States, that Palestinian rights are neither sold nor bought. We are against the Israeli aggressions on Lebanese and Palestinian territories, as well as on Syrian territories in the Golan. We support all Lebanese efforts to confront the Israeli enemy,” Cavusoglu affirmed.

Bassil receives US Senate’s Olson
NNA - Fri 23 Aug 2019
Foreign Minister, Gebran Bassil, on Friday welcomed Deputy Director of the US Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee, Andy Olson, in presence of US Ambassador to Lebanon Elizabeth Richard. Discussions featured high on the ongoing developments in Lebanon and the region.

Army Commander tackles developments with US Senate delegation
NNA -Fri 23 Aug 2019
Lebanese Army commander-in-chief, General Joseph Aoun, on Friday welcomed at his Yarzeh office a delegation of the US Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, accompanied by US Ambassador to Lebanon, Elizabeth Richard. Discussions reportedly touched on the situation in Lebanon and the region, as well as on cooperation ties.

Hariri Meets with U.S. Ambassador
Naharnet/August 23/2019
Prime Minister Saad Hariri met Friday afternoon at the Center House with the U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Elizabeth Richard. The meeting was held in the presence of Hariri’s adviser ex-minister Ghattas Khoury. A terse statement issued by Hariri’s office said the meeting focused on “the latest developments in Lebanon and the region and the bilateral relations.”Hariri’s visit to the United States in recent days had stirred political controversy in Lebanon.

Report: Fitch to Downgrade Lebanon's Credit Rating
Naharnet/August 23/2019
Fitch Ratings, one of the "Big Three” credit rating agencies in the world, has decided to downgrade Lebanon’s rating from B- to CCC, a media report said. “Lebanese sides have been informed that the Fitch agency has finalized its report and downgraded Lebanon’s rating to the level of CCC,” al-Joumhouria newspaper reported on Friday. “This means that international financial institutions will deal with Lebanon on the basis of the CCC rating, seeing as the Moody’s agency has already given Lebanon this rating,” the daily added. In an anticipated report that will be released on Friday, the third rating agency, Standard & Poor’s, is expected to keep Lebanon’s rating at B-, according to a Lebanese official and media reports. Al-Joumhouria noted that a country’s overall rating is based on two out of three ratings by the big three rating agencies, which might render Standard & Poor’s rating that will be issued on Friday as of no value.

Lebanon: People of the South Rule Out New War with Israel
Beirut - Sanaa el-Jack/Asharq Al Awsat/August 23/2019
In his latest speech, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said that in the next war with Israel, the people will “see a live broadcast of the destruction of Israeli brigades.”Hezbollah has grown “500 times stronger” since the 2006 war with Israel, Nasrallah said in a televised speech as the movement marked the anniversary of what it called its military "victory" in Bint Jbeil in southern Lebanon near the Israeli border. But in cities and towns bordering Israel, residents ruled out another war with the country. Hussein Qataya, a Hezbollah rival who has announced his candidacy for by-elections in Tyre district, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the party’s “popularity has been dwindling.”He said that Nasrallah has only resorted to the war rhetoric to hit on the people’s nerves ahead of the elections. Hussein Ezzedine, another southerner, said that the people of south Lebanon will not allow Hezbollah to fire missiles by using civilians as human shields to prevent a scenario similar to the 2006 war when Israel carried out airstrikes on civilian infrastructure and displaced thousands. As for a woman, who only wanted to be identified by her first name as Faten, she ruled out war. “The party has the capabilities to confront Israel, but ... it will not do so because it knows that the people of the south are already economically dead,” said the woman, who hails from the city of Tyre. A man called Youssef, the owner of a restaurant, said he would return to France if there was another war with Israel. “We have already been burdened by an economic war,” he told Asharq Al-Awsat. Israel and Hezbollah have avoided major conflict across the Lebanese-Israeli border since 2006, though Israel has mounted attacks in Syria targeting what it said were advanced weapon deliveries to the group.

Berri Says 'Others' Betrayed LF, Center House Says Hariri Wasn't Part of Agreement
Naharnet/August 23/2019
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Friday distanced himself from the controversy over the exclusion of the Lebanese Forces from the membership of the Constitutional Council, blaming “others” for failing to honor an agreement reached in parliament. “As for what some newspapers reported regarding Speaker Berri’s stance on the appointment in Cabinet of the Constitutional Council members, Speaker Berri would like to clarify what follows: An agreement was indeed reached in parliament during the election of the first batch of the Council’s members,” Berri said in a statement. “The second Maronite (member) was supposed to be named by the LF (in Cabinet), and before the latest Cabinet session I tried to implement this general agreement but I failed after the others renounced it, so I asked the LF to choose another Christian, something that did not happen in Cabinet” during the session that was held on Thursday, the Speaker added. Center House sources meanwhile categorically denied that Hariri had given the LF a “promise” in this regard. “The issue was exclusively between the parliament speaker and the LF, which told Hariri during the election of the Constitutional Council members (in parliament) that it had decided to withdraw its Maronite candidate,” the sources told Nidaa al-Watan daily in remarks published Friday. Asharq al-Awsat newspaper meanwhile reported that the controversy has “revived the dispute” between Hariri and the LF, with LF sources describing what happened as a “coup.”
Social Affairs Minister Richard Kouyoumjian of the LF had on Thursday lamented the death of “political ethics and credibility in Lebanon.” In remarks to Asharq al-Awsat, the minister said Berri and Hariri have failed to honor the agreement reached in parliament. “Their ministers voted in favor of the Free Patriotic Movement candidate, implementing FPM chief Jebran Bassil’s desire in this regard,” the daily quoted the minister as saying. Media reports said Hariri and Bassil had agreed on excluding the LF’s candidate in a meeting held on the eve of the Cabinet session.FPM sources meanwhile argued in remarks to several dailies that the FPM’s Maronite candidate was more qualified and eligible to win the seat and that the LF refused to name a candidate from another Christian sect.

Khalil: We're Not a Bankrupt Country
Naharnet/August 23/2019
Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil on Friday stressed that Lebanon is not a “bankrupt country,” hours before the release of a key financial report by the Standard and Poor’s international credit rating agency. “We are not a bankrupt country and we have the ability to overcome difficulties and get out of our crises, regardless of rating headlines or foreign stances,” Khalil said at a financial seminar in Sidon. “It is true that Lebanon is facing the junctures of the announcements of the credit rating agencies, but I can confirm that we possess the ability to overcome the crisis,” the minister added.
Media reports and a Lebanese official have said that Standard & Poor’s will not downgrade Lebanon’s rating and will keep it at its current level of B-.

Samy Gemayel Pledges on Bachir's Election Anniversary to Always Tell the Truth
Kataeb.org/August 23/2019
Kataeb leader Samy Gemayel on Friday stressed unwavering commitment to always tell the truth to build the state that martyr President Bachir Gemayel had long aspired to.“We will continue to speak up the truth no matter how difficult the task,” Gemayel tweeted on the anniversary of the election of Martyr President Bachir Gemayel on the 23rd of August 1982.

Hankache Hails Martyr President Bachir Gemayel's Reign
Kataeb.org/August 23/2019
Kataeb MP Elias Hankache on Friday hailed the strong state that existed when Martyr President Bachir Gemayel was in power.“During your reign, power was not a mere slogan; it was manifested in deeds,” Hankache tweeted on the anniversary of the election of Martyr President Bachir Gemayel.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 22-23/2019
Netanyahu Admits Hitting Iranian Targets in Iraq
Baghdad - Hamza Mustafa/Asharq Al Awsat/August 23/2019
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu admitted on Thursday of hitting Iranian-linked targets in Iraq, following several weeks of silence. In an interview with Russian-language Channel 9, Netanyahu was asked whether Israel would operate against Iranian targets in Iraq if needed. His response was: “I don’t grant Iran immunity anywhere. Iran is a state, a power, that has sworn to annihilate Israel. It’s trying to establish bases against us everywhere. In Iran itself, in Lebanon, in Syria, in Iraq, in Yemen.” A series of blasts in the past few weeks have hit weapons depots and bases belonging to the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) in Iraq that are backed by Israel’s regional foe Iran. An Iraqi presidential statement said the president, parliament speaker and prime minister discussed the country’s security situation on Thursday. "President Barham Salih, Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi and Speaker of the House of Representatives Mohammed al-Halbousi held extensive discussions on Thursday at the Peace Palace in Baghdad on the security situation in the country, especially the bombings on weapons depots during the past few days,” the statement said. The three officials emphasized the need to investigate and study all the data and information obtained by the national authorities with regard to the recent exposure to weapons stores. "Iraq continues to adhere to the document of unified national policy on regional security developments, and the importance of strengthening internal political cohesion and consistency on the principle of respect for the sovereignty, security and independence of Iraq,” the statement said, rejecting the principle of proxy war, and the attempt of any regional or international party to drag Iraq into conflicts. The three officials also agreed to await the results of the ongoing investigation by the competent national authorities to come up with a unified position that preserves the rights of Iraq and enhances its security, independence and sovereignty on its national soil. The presidential statement came hours after the Popular Mobilization Forces issued conflicting positions on the recent bombings in Iraq.
PMF chairman Faleh al-Fayyad said that investigations are ongoing on the series of attacks on its bases. Fayyadh said a statement by his deputy, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, did not represent the view of the PMF. 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.”

US officials Confirm Israeli Strike on Iranian Arms Depot in Iraq
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 23 August, 2019
US officials have confirmed Israel was responsible for the bombing of an Iranian weapons depot in Iraq last month.The confirmation comes as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu strongly hinted his country was behind recent airstrikes in Iraq. "I don't give Iran immunity anywhere,” Netanyahu said in an interview Thursday. Asked whether that means Israel is operating in Iraq, he said: "We act in many arenas against a country that desires to annihilate us. Of course I gave the security forces a free hand and the instruction to do what is needed to thwart these plans of Iran." According to the Associated Press, two American officials said Israel carried out a July attack on a weapons depot - used by the Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) - that also killed two Iranian military commanders. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to discuss the matter with reporters. Early Friday, the New York Times, citing Israeli and US officials, reported Israel bombed an Iranian weapons depot in Iraq last month. A senior Middle Eastern intelligence official said Israel bombed a base north of Baghdad last month, while two American officials said Israel carried out multiple strikes in Iraq in recent days, the Times reported. PMF’s deputy commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis has been unequivocal in blaming Washington for the blasts. But Faleh al-Fayyad, the official head of the PMF, has walked back the accusations, saying investigations were ongoing."Preliminary investigations" found the incidents were "an external, premeditated act," he said. "The investigations will continue until the responsible entities are accurately identified to be able to take the appropriate stances."

Zarif Praises Macron Nuclear Crisis Suggestions
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 23/2019
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Friday that suggestions by French President Emmanuel Macron about defusing the crisis over Iran's nuclear drive went in the right direction, but more work needed to be done. "President Macron made some suggestions last week to President (Hassan) Rouhani and we believe they are moving in the right direction, although we are not definitely there yet," Zarif told Agence France-Presse (AFP) in an interview after meeting Macron for rare talks in Paris. "We had a good discussion today," Zarif said.
"We discussed possibilities. He (Macron) is now going to discuss with European partners and other partners to see where we can go from here," Zarif added. The talks came one day before Macron begins hosting world leaders, including US President Donald Trump, for the three-day Group of Seven summit in Biarritz, with the Iranian nuclear program set to be a central issue. Tensions over Iran's nuclear program have spiraled in the last months after Tehran ramped up its atomic activities in response to the abrupt US pullout from the 2015 nuclear deal and re-imposed broad trade sanctions.
Iran wants to see greater relief from the sanctions that are increasingly biting its economy, and, according to Zarif, are causing the Iranian people "tremendous stress."
- 'U.S. doesn't hold all cards' -
Zarif reaffirmed that if Tehran believed Europe could begin to fulfill its side of the bargain on the nuclear deal, Iran could then reverse the measures it took to ramp up the nuclear program. "Once Europe starts implementing its commitments, Iran will also be prepared to reverse the steps that it has taken," Zarif said. Pressed on what the suggestions involved, Zarif did not give specifics but said Europe needed to find ways to ease the situation for Iran even with the U.S. no longer part of the deal. "We are searching for ways Europe can in fact implement its commitments so that we can reverse the steps we have taken," he said. "For us, what is important is to be able to continue to conduct business with the European Union," he said. What is being discussed is how this can be done "with or without the US", he added. In a message to Europe, Zarif said that it was possible to solve the issue even without the involvement of the United States in the nuclear deal. "I do not think the US holds all the cards. If Europe and the international community decide to do so, they can in fact take measures required to sustain the deal," he said. The 2015 nuclear deal was seen as a signature foreign policy achievement of president Barack Obama and a landmark moment in ties between United States and Iran, after relations were severed in the wake of the 1979 Islamic revolution that ousted the pro-West Shah. But Trump never hid his dislike of the deal and walked out of it in 2015, to the dismay of Washington's European allies.

Turkey Vows Not to Quit Army Post Surrounded in Syria
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 23/2019
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Friday that Turkish troops will not quit a military observation post in northwestern Syria where they are surrounded by government forces. "We are there, not because we can't leave but because we don't want to leave," he told a news conference in Lebanon, denying that Turkish troops had been "cut off" by a government advance into the jihadist-ruled Idlib region. Earlier, Syrian regime forces overran a string of towns and villages in the north of Hama province, including the town of Morek, where the Turkish observation post is located, Syria's state news agency SANA said.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that "regime forces have surrounded the Turkish observation post in Morek" after the advance. Cavusoglu acknowledged that "there are clashes in the Idlib region." "Regime forces are conducting activities around our observation post," he said , adding that the issue was being discussed with Damascus allies Russia and Iran. But "our observation point there is not cut-off and nobody can isolate our forces and our soldiers," he added. Rebel-backer Turkey has carried out two cross-border offensives into Syria, where its forces have been deployed for nearly two years.  The observation post in Morek is one of 12 the Turkish army set up along the front line between government forces and the jihadists and their rebel allies last year. The troops' mission was to oversee the establishment of a buffer zone agreed by Ankara and Moscow in September.
But the jihadists failed to pull back from the zone as agreed and in April, government and Russian forces resumed intense bombardment of the region. "The regime's forces have deployed in Morek and throughout the northern part of Hama province, without attacking the observation post," Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP. "For the (Turkish) soldiers there is no way out" except through territories now held by the regime and its Russian ally, according to the Observatory. The Idlib region, which sits on the Turkish border, is the last major stronghold of opposition to the Russia-backed Syrian government. It has been under government assault since late April. Around 900 civilians have been killed, according to the Observatory. More than 400,000 people have been displaced, says the United Nations. The war in Syria has killed more than 370,000 people since it started with the brutal suppression of anti-government protests in 2011.

Syrian Regime Forces Surround Turkish Army Post
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 23 August, 2019
Regime forces surrounded a Turkish military observation post on Friday after overrunning nearby villages following their capture of the key northwestern town of Khan Sheikhoun from opposition fighters, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The town of Morek, where the Turkish troops have been cut off, lies in the north of Hama province, part of the opposition-ruled region centered on neighboring Idlib province that has been under regime assault since late April. "Regime forces have surrounded the Turkish observation post in Morek after capturing other towns and villages in this pocket," the Observatory said. Opposition fighters had withdrawn from the area ahead of the army's entry into Idlib province’s Khan Sheikhoun on Wednesday. Government forces overran the rest of the pocket, including the town of Kafr Zita without resistance. The observation post in Morek is one of 12 the Turkish army set up along the front line between government forces and the opposition fighters last year. Ankara vowed on Tuesday that it would not abandon any of the posts and warned Damascus "not to play with fire". "We will do whatever is necessary to ensure the security of our soldiers and observation posts," Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told reporters in Ankara. The troops' mission was to oversee the establishment of a buffer zone agreed by Ankara and Moscow in September. But the fighters failed to pull back from the zone as agreed and in April, government and Russian forces resumed intense bombardment of the region.

Sudan Sovereign Council Member: We Haven’t Yet Reached State of Emergency Stage
Khartoum – Mohammed Amin Yassin/Asharq Al Awsat/August 23/2019
Mohamed Alfaki Suleiman, a member of Sudan’s newly-formed Sovereign Council, revealed it was too son to announce a state of emergency over heavy rainfall that has caused floods across the country. In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, Alfaki said that during a meeting held between the Council and Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, discussions focused on ways to confronting urgent matters, such as floods and torrential rains, and a conflict in the city of Port Sudan. Alfaki warned that there could be more floods in the coming days because of persistent rainfall but denied that the situation has reached a point of announcing a state of emergency. The 11-member Sovereign Council and the prime minister were sworn in this week. And a government is expected to be formed soon, said Alfaki. Asked about the members of the government, he said the prime minister has stressed that he would not accept any candidate who is incompetent and not up to the revolution’s standards. On measures to boost the economy, he revealed that the issue will be discussed by the prime minister and finance minister. The Sovereign Council’s main focus at the current stage is “improving the economic situation and the war on corruption,” he told Asharq Al-Awsat. “If we were able to fight corruption and achieve peace, we would stop the huge waste in public funds,” said Alfaki. The civilian-majority Sovereign Council, which was sworn in Wednesday, replaces the Transitional Military Council (TMC) that took charge after months of deadly street protests brought down president Omar al-Bashir in April. General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who already headed the TMC, was sworn in as the new ruling council's chairman. Alfaki ruled out any possible tension among the Sovereign Council’s civilian and military members, saying “the two sides have a common fate.”The country’s problems “could not be resolved in the absence of a unified political stance.” “As representatives of the people, we should work together to overcome this stage,” he added. Alfaki also expressed optimism on dialogue and possible agreements with Sudan’s armed movements. “Their presence in the transitional phase is important to achieve peace,” he said.

LNA Accuses Qatar of Being 'Terrorism Base'
Cairo- Khalid Mahmoud/Asharq Al Awsat/August 23/2019
The Libyan National Army (LNA) – commanded by Chief Marshal Khalifa Haftar – accused Qatar again of becoming a base for terrorism in Libya. LNA spokesman Ahmed Mesmari described Qatar as the base for terrorism in Libya and other countries that witnessed terrorist attacks.
During a press conference on Wednesday in Benghazi, Mesmari said that the battle of the army is huge because it counters terrorism and countries standing behind it. Further, Head of Libya's Government of National Accord Fayez al-Sarraj chaired a meeting in Tripoli on Wednesday to discuss the oil topic. During the meeting, which was attended by government officials, Sarraj was briefed on the battle updates. The meeting also discussed security conditions in Murzuq‎, and tackling the issue of refugees there as well as aid delivery to them. Moreover, UN envoy to Libya Ghassan Salame and Foreign Minister Carmelo Abela stressed during a meeting on Wednesday the necessity of resuming the political process as a sole solution for ending the Libyan crisis. The UN mission revealed that the meeting tackled the latest developments in Libya and the UN efforts on immigration.
On the field, clashes renewed between the LNA and the Sarraj-pro forces in the area of Ramla near Tripoli International Airport where militias seek to open a route to restore control over the airport, cut supplies of the army, and besiege it through seizing Espiaa. Sarraj forces revealed that they achieved military progress in Espiaa, that is some 40 km south of the capital. "Our forces have won ground... and have successfully retaken important positions, including the air force academy," said Mustafa al-Mejii, a spokesman for forces loyal to GNA, told AFP. However, LNA said that it foiled the attack, revealing indicators that the defense and military systems of militias and terrorist organizations have collapsed in the battle of Tripoli.

UN's Guterres Urges World to Stamp out Religious Persecution
Geneva- Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 23 August, 2019
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged the world on the first international day to remember the victims of religious persecution to "step up to stamp out anti-Semitism, anti-Muslim hatred, the persecution of Christians and other religious groups."The UN chief on Thursday cited a rise in attacks against individuals and groups around the world, saying: "Jews have been murdered in synagogues, their gravestones defaced with swastikas; Muslims gunned down in mosques, their religious sites vandalized; Christians killed at prayer, their churches torched." Guterres said the first International Day Commemorating the Victims of Acts of Violence Based on Religion and Belief was an opportunity to show support by doing "all in our power to prevent such attacks and demanding that those responsible are held accountable." He urged people everywhere to resist and reject those who "falsely and maliciously invoke religion to build misconceptions, fuel division, and spread fear and hatred."Fifteen UN human rights experts marked the day with a call on all countries to ensure that religions and beliefs are not used to violate human rights - and to combat religious extremism. The independent experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council said in a joint statement that "the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief is misunderstood as protecting religions and belief instead of the people with the beliefs and those without."
The experts, on issues ranging from freedom of religion to minorities to violence against women, emphasized the words of the General Assembly resolution sponsored by Poland and adopted in June that established the international day on Aug. 22. It said that "terrorism and violent extremism in all its forms and manifestations cannot and should not be associated with any religion, nationality, civilization or ethnic group." At an informal UN Security Council meeting marking the day, UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet said by video from Geneva that "despite much progress, I am deeply alarmed by the worldwide rise of xenophobia, racism, religious intolerance that is menacing to our lives" as well as to democracy, social instability, and peace.
"If we can't accept diversity ... there shall be no peace in the world," she said. Bachelet said a key to trying to combat religious persecution is to look for "early warning signs" like discrimination and words of intolerance and take early action. Samuel Brownback, the US ambassador at large for religious freedom, told the council that according to the Pew Forum, "83% of the global community live in countries with high or very high restrictions on the free practice of faith - and it's getting worse, not better." He pointed to "the horrific actions of violence and ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims" in Myanmar, persecution of religious minorities in Pakistan "either at the hands of non-state actors or through discriminatory laws and policies," Boko Haram's attacks on mosques and churches in Nigeria, and the ISIS extremist group's targeting of Iraq's Yazidis, Christians and Shiite Turkmen "for atrocity crimes."
Brownback said the United States is "deeply concerned" about China's "escalating, widespread and undue restrictions" on religious groups, including Uighurs, Kazakhs and other Muslims, Tibetan Buddhists, Catholics, Protestants, and Falun Gong."We call on the Chinese government to end its war on faith and to  respect religious freedom for all," he said. The United States also strongly opposes Iran's "severe violations and abuses of religious freedom," including the death penalty for blasphemy, apostasy from Islam and proselytizing Muslims, and discrimination and harassment of unrecognized minorities such as the Bahai'is and Christian converts. British Minister of State Lord Tariq Ahmad, a special envoy on religious freedom, said religious minorities face challenges ranging from discrimination to armed conflicts, mass murders, and violent assaults. "The heinous attacks this year on places of worship from the Philippines to Burkino Faso, New Zealand to Sri Lanka, have reminded us all that the fundamental human right of freedom of religion or belief is increasingly under threat," he told the council. "As we commemorate the victims of such acts of violence, we demonstrate our commitment to supporting research to change people's lives and help build a world free of religious intolerance and hatred."

G7 Leaders Vow 'Concrete Measures' over Amazon Fires
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 23/2019
G7 leaders gathering in France this weekend plan to hammer out "concrete measures" in response to the wildfires raging in the Amazon rainforest, putting them on a collision course with Brazil's rightwing leader. French President Emmanuel Macron, who is hosting the G7 summit in the resort town of Biarritz, went so far on Friday as to accuse his Brazilian counterpart of lying on pledges in June to help fight global warming June. "Given the attitude of Brazil over the last weeks, the president can only conclude that President Bolsonaro lied to him at the Osaka (G20) summit," a French presidential official said.
France said it will oppose an ambitious trade deal between the EU and South America's Mercosur nations, which would effectively kill any chance of ratification. Macron had already drawn Bolsonaro's ire by saying the Amazon fires would be a priority on the G7 agenda, a stance that was backed Friday by German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Britain's new Prime Minister Boris Johnson is also "extremely concerned by the fires," a spokeswoman said, as demonstrations were held across Europe calling for Brazil to step up actions to quench the blazes. Bolsonaro blasted the move to make the fires as topic for G7 leaders without any participation by Brazil, saying it reflected a "colonialist mentality."The latest official figures show 76,720 forest fires were recorded in Brazil so far this year -- the highest number for any year since 2013. More than half are in the Amazon.
- Iran standoff -
The leaders of France, the US, Canada, Britain, Germany, Italy and Japan already face a litany of thorny issues at their meeting in the post Atlantic beach town of Biarritz, which is on a security lockdown for the weekend meeting. Macron met Iran's foreign minister earlier Friday for last-minute talks trying to soothe tensions between Tehran and Washington. "We're at a critical moment," Macron had warned on Wednesday, acknowledging that Iran is "laying out a strategy for exiting the JCPOA," the name of the 2015 accord reining in the country's nuclear ambitions. The nuclear deal has all but collapsed after US President Donald Trump pulled the US out unilaterally in May 2018 and reimposed sanctions that have wreaked havoc on the Iranian economy. But Macron had pledged to "try to propose things" in Friday's talks with Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.
"President Macron made some suggestions last week to President (Hassan) Rouhani and we believe they are moving in the right direction, although we are not definitely there yet," Zarif told AFP in an interview after the talks.
- UK backs Iran deal -
Macron's diplomacy is a delicate task, with France seeking a rollback on some of the U.S. measures imposed on Iran as part of Trump's "maximum pressure" policy towards the Islamic republic, which says its nuclear program is peaceful. French diplomats have raised the idea of US waivers on sanctions affecting Iranian oil exports to India and China, or a new credit line for Tehran that could help the struggling economy. That prompted Trump to accuse Macron of sending Tehran "mixed signals" in his attempt to broker fresh talks between the longtime adversaries. But Trump appears to be the outlier among America's G7 partners on Iran, despite speculation that Johnson, who claims a close personal rapport with the US leader, might be more amenable to endorsing his stance. On Friday, a British diplomatic source said the UK would continue to back the 2015 nuclear deal, which it helped broker, as the "best way" of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
- Low ambitions? -
Iran is just one of a host of issues where G7 members France, the United States, Canada, Britain, Germany, Italy and Japan find themselves at loggerheads, upending what used to be a cosy club of rich nations. Trump is set to arrive in the glitzy beachside resort of Biarritz on Saturday already riled by a new French law that will increase taxes on U.S. internet giants such as Google and Facebook. He is also threatening tariffs on the European automobile sector, while the climate change skeptic is not expected to contribute to Macron's official agenda of fighting global warming. And just before the summit, China fired the latest salvo in its trade war the US, announcing new tariffs on $75 billion of American imports. But in a sign of the summit's lowered ambitions, French officials have already scrapped any joint declaration at the end of the summit, breaking a longstanding G7 tradition.

Trump Says U.S. Companies 'Ordered' to Find Alternative to Production in China
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 23/2019
U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday pledged a quick response to China's decision to slap a new round of tariffs on U.S. goods, and told American firms to find an "alternative" to making their products in China. In a series of blistering tweets, Trump did not hint at what his response to Beijing would be. He "ordered" U.S. companies to change their production strategies, but did not say how he would enforce such an order. "I will be responding to China's Tariffs this afternoon," Trump said. "The vast amounts of money made and stolen by China from the United States, year after year, for decades, will and must STOP," he added. "Our great American companies are hereby ordered to immediately start looking for an alternative to China, including bringing your companies HOME and making your products in the USA."

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on August 22-23/2019
Biarritz Summit: Bright Moment in Silly Season
Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat/August 23/2019
Journalists across the globe have always regarded this time of the year, the heart of the summer, as the silly season in which nothing of much interest happens, at least on the political front. The silly season is filled with news of the birth of double-headed sheep in New Zealand, the discovery of the remains of Atlantis, the lost continent, in the Algerian Sahara or, to add a bit of spice, the suicide of a pedophile billionaire in a high security prison in America.
Thus, one might say that the G7 summit in the French resort town of Biarritz, starting Saturday, is an exception to the silly season rule. Or is it?
The summit was the brainchild of French President Valery Giscard d’Estaing who first hosted it as a G6 in 1975 with Britain, Italy, Japan, West Germany, and the US attending.
The original idea was to focus on global economic issues in the aftermath of the recession triggered by the oil shocks of 1971 and 1973. Within a year or two, however, the summit, now also including Canada and the European Economic Community, the future European Union, had expanded its remit to include major political issues. By 1978, when the group met in Guadeloupe, G7 had morphed into an international politburo pretending to set the tune for the whole world.
In one of those delicious ironies that add flavor to history, as the group, which ended up including Russia after the fall of the USSR, saw its real power to affect global trends decline while its ambitions to rule the world spiraled. The group could do nothing about the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the disintegration of the USSR, the collapse of the Warsaw Pact, the seizure of power by the mullahs in Iran, China shifting gears towards a capitalist system, the wars triggered by Saddam Hussein and the rise of international terrorism in the name of religion. More importantly, perhaps, the “global politburo” had no role in the dramatic technological changes that dragged the world into something bigger than the Industrial Revolution.
By the mid-1990s the G8 summit, as it was before Russia was kicked out, had morphed into a talking shop and a photo-op for political leaders in search of relevance in a new world they could no longer control. In one of the summits, hosted in Lyon by France, the participants made “decisions” on almost everything under the sun, knowing all along that they had neither the intention nor the power to act on any of them.
Well, how relevant is the G7 today?
The short answer is: not very much. That became clear in last year’s summit hosted by Canada when Germany’s Angela Merkel and France’s Emmanuel Macron tried to “educate” US President Donald Trump on the facts of political life as they saw it only to provoke the American into counter-attacking with one of is typical ripostes. The whole thing ended up as a farce when Canada’s youthful and inexperienced Premier Justine Trudeau tried one of his shenanigans by interpreting the final communique in a distinctly mischievous manner.
Hearing of this, Trump, then aboard his presidential aircraft, tweeted his rejection of the whole communique. In normal circumstances that should have meant the end of a charade that started almost half a century ago. That it did not is due to the notorious tenacity of bureaucracies that, once given life, refuse to die.
This weekend’s summit is supposed to focus on three issues. The first is the quest for some kind of international law and order in the digital world that transcends both the nation-state and groupings such as the European Union. As things stand, it is unlikely that anything that is said or “decided” in Biarritz would create the kind of control that bureaucrats in major capitals dream of.
The second issue is the perennial one of combating terrorism. The Lyon summit in 1996 enacted 45 measures that, apart from having to take off our shoes at checkpoints in airports, none was implemented. Terrorist groups are today as alive, if not more, as they were in those days when President Jacques Chirac boasted he would wipe them off in a year or two.
The third issue is what to do about an increasingly shaky but still aggressive Islamic Republic that still controls Iran. The Europeans, perhaps minus Britain under Boris Johnson, but plus Canada and possibly Japan, wish to continue paying lip service to the dead “nuke deal” inherited from President Barack Obama in the hope of avoiding a major crisis in the Middle East. Plagued by economic slowdown and Brexit, the EU is pressing for a pause in pushing the mullahs across the precipice. At the same time, however, the EU lacks the courage to throw a buoy to the drowning Khomeinist cabal in Tehran.
The Trump administration, or rather Trump himself, however, need do nothing more as the sanction snap-back begins to make a real impression on the Khomeinist regime.
The fourth issue is that of the so-called trade war between China and the US. There, too, there is almost nothing that G7 can do to affect the course of events, let alone their outcome. Economic reality is beginning to set the contours of Trump’s strategy of tariff warfare against China, which, when all is said and done, is, in fact, subsidizing the American consumer both through lower prices for its goods and the massive purchase of US treasury bonds.
The Biarritz summit may end with the fixing of the date and place for another summit next year. It may also provide an opportunity for Britain’s new Premier Johnson to get to know Trump better while also lobbying Merkel and Macron for help to extricate the UK from the tangled web of Brexit it has woven over the past three years.
Even if Trump demands that Russia and China be invited to join the group, it is unlikely that the event will regain whatever relevance it once had.
In the meantime, deprived of significant news, reporters can enjoy one of the world’s best cuisines in the resort city’s top hotel. Count it as a bright moment in the silly season.

Back to the 2nd Intifada and Palestinian remote-control bombs. No leads to killer-terrorists
DEBKAfile/August 23/2019
It was an improvised explosive device set off remotely by Palestinian terrorists which caused the death of 17-year old Rina Shnerb and injured her father, Rabbi Eytan, 46 and brother, Dvir, 19. It blew up on the path they were taking on Friday morning, Aug. 23, down to the popular Danny Spring nature reserve outside Dolev in Binyamin. The first stages of the investigation into the attack reveal that a squad of two or three terrorists took the time to plant the bomb expertly on the path in the early hours of the morning. They then withdrew to the terraced olive-grove slopes overlooking the spring and watched for trippers to arrive. When the three Shnerbs started along the path, they detonated the bomb and made for their escape car. This squad is still at large.
Rina out front took the main force of the blast and shrapnel. Rabbi Eytan, although hurt, called for help and tried first aid to save his daughter and then to staunch the bleeding from his son’s serious injuries. Paramedics who were soon on the scene toiled to save Rina but were forced to confirm her death. Her father and brother were flown by helicopter to hospital in Jerusalem. Rina’s funeral at their hometown of Lod was attended by her mother, nine other siblings and hundreds of mourners.
The initial stages of the investigation already lead to seven, say DEBKAfile’s counterterrorism sources:
1-This was no lone-wolf attack but the work of a terrorist team.
2-This sort of terrorist operation requires forward planning and intelligence for determining the bomb’s location and the distance from which it is to be detonated.
3-An escape route was laid on for the perpetrators by car with a driver or driven by the perpetrators.
4-Palestinian terror operatives are becoming more audacious. In recent attacks – the stabbing murder of Dvir Sorek on Aug. 8 outside Migdal Oz in Gush Etzion, the car ramming attack on an Israeli brother and sister a week ago outside Elazar and the latest atrocity – all show they are not afraid to strike near fortified Israeli communities, undeterred even by security cameras. It is becoming evident that the security setup provided Israeli communities in Yehuda and Samaria no longer serves its purpose.
5-This murderous attack this Friday was clearly neither a one-time nor a copycat operation, but part of an organized series orchestrated by a central hand.
6-That these deadly attacks continue shows that the Shin Bet security service – as well as the Palestinian Authority’s security agencies cooperating with Israel – has not found leads to the responsible party or parties.
7-There is a real possibly that disaffected elements of rival Palestinian terrorist movements, such as the Fatah-Tanzim, Hamas and Islamic Jihad, dissatisfied with leaders’ inconclusive Israel policies, have taken their own initiative for launching a radical anti-Israel campaign.
Remote-controlled IEDs (notoriously used against US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan) were the weapon of choice for the Palestinian Fatah-Tanzim squads against the Jews of Judea and Samaria in the years 2001-2004, after which their intifada was suppressed. In recent years, Palestinian terrorists turned mostly to shooting, stabbing or car-ramming tactics. The return of roadside bombs represents a dangerous escalation and poses a major danger to the traffic using the roads and highways of this region.

We ignore the continued Daesh threat at our peril
Michael Kugelman/Arab News/August 23/2019
Last weekend’s attack on a wedding hall in Kabul, which killed 80 people and wounded nearly 200, is a tragic reminder of the threat posed by Daesh in Afghanistan — and the broader region.
It wasn’t the first mass-casualty attack carried out by the group in Afghanistan, and it won’t be the last. Since the Daesh central leadership formally announced the presence of a new affiliate in Afghanistan in early 2015, the group has authored many bloody assaults. Many are sectarian in nature and target Afghanistan’s Shiite Muslim minority, while others — such as an attack on a Kabul military hospital in 2017 — target the state.
What is particularly concerning about Daesh in Afghanistan is its resilience. Despite many constraints — including an unfriendly militant environment dominated by groups aligned with Daesh’s Al-Qaeda rival; an inability to seize large amounts of territory; and a relentless campaign of US-Afghan airstrikes that target it practically every day — the group has retained the ability to strike in spectacular fashion.
But Daesh is not only a challenge to a nation buffeted by an 18-year-long US-led war. It is also a challenge to the peace that Washington is fervently pursuing through negotiations with the Taliban.
Unsurprisingly, Daesh is not involved in any of the current peace negotiations. It is much more hard-line than the Taliban. It is irreconcilable to the core, and it would never agree to participate in a reconciliation process in Afghanistan. If the Taliban agreed to a troop withdrawal deal with Washington, and even if it agreed to a comprehensive peace settlement with Kabul, Daesh would just keep on terrorizing Afghanistan.
Additionally, a Taliban peace accord would strengthen Daesh. Many hard-line Taliban members, unhappy about a peace deal that they oppose, would throw their allegiances to Daesh. It has already attracted several splinter factions of other terrorist organizations — from the Pakistani Taliban to the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan — to its cause. A fresh supply of ex-Taliban recruits would help it in a big way, because they would presumably be Afghans and therefore familiar with the country’s terrain.
While Daesh is a rival of the region’s major terror groups, it has proven adept at forming opportunistic partnerships.
The Daesh wedding hall attack is also a reminder of the dangers that the group poses to broader South Asia. This wasn’t the first time it had carried out a mass-casualty attack on a soft target in the region. Only a few months ago, the group claimed a series of attacks on churches in Sri Lanka. A few years earlier, Daesh was involved in a deadly assault on a popular bakery in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
This isn’t to overstate the threat posed by Daesh in South Asia. It confronts the same constraints in the region that it does in Afghanistan: A militant environment dominated by terror groups that are its rivals, not friends; an inability to capture territory; and the reality of constantly being in the cross hairs of state security forces. Indeed, Bangladeshi officials cracked down hard on Daesh after the Dhaka bakery attack and the group has since staged fewer major attacks in Bangladesh.
Still, several factors ensure that Daesh will remain a threat in South Asia.
First, while it is a rival of the region’s major terror groups, it has proven adept at forming opportunistic partnerships. In Pakistan, for example, it has carried out several attacks with a faction of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, a group that, like Daesh, tends to be sectarian in its targeting. Additionally, it has found local enablers willing to help it carry out attacks. Daesh staged the Dhaka bakery attack with the assistance of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh, a potent terror group. Similarly, it worked with local extremists in Sri Lanka to pull off the church bombings.
Second, now that Daesh has lost its “caliphate” in Iraq and Syria and is on the defensive, it is looking for ways to demonstrate its continued clout and relevance. Blowing things up — which generates extensive media coverage and terrifies local communities — is a useful tactic in this regard. The group has willing facilitators at its disposal in the form of all the South Asian nationals who went to fight for Daesh in Iraq and Syria and are now returning home. The number of returning fighters from South Asia is not huge, but it is not inconsequential. The Soufan Group has estimated, in separate 2015and 2017appraisals, that there have been more than 30 fighters who traveled to the Middle East from Sri Lanka, 60 from India, 200 from the Maldives, and 650 from Pakistan.
A key recent lesson to emerge from international security is that one should never declare the demise of a potent international terrorist syndicate. The death of Al-Qaeda was proclaimed too soon. So let’s not assume that, just because Daesh is down, it must be out. Its bloody footprint in Afghanistan and broader South Asia reinforces just how potent it continues to be.
*Michael Kugelman is deputy director of the Asia Program and senior associate for South Asia at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. Twitter: @michaelkugelman

Modi close to seeing India turn a crucial corner
Amulya Ganguli/Arab News/August 23/2019
Narendra Modi is known to be a man who plays for high stakes. His decision on demonetization in 2016, which made 85 percent of Indian currency vanish into thin air, was one example.
Now, he has abrogated the article of the Indian constitution that conferred a special status on Kashmir to the applause of a vast section of people, including several opposition parties and prominent individuals who have likened it to the cutting of the Gordian knot, which others were too timid to do.
Although the Kashmiris themselves are believed to be distressed — their views cannot be known because of the prevailing censorship in the valley — Modi’s popularity can be said to now be even higher in the rest of the country than when his party won the highest ever number of seats in Parliament in May.
Internationally, too, his standing is high, with virtually every country barring Pakistan and its all-weather friend China supporting India, even on the “explosive” situation in Kashmir, to use US President Donald Trump’s word.
Although there is no question of India accepting Trump’s renewed offer of mediation on Kashmir — as New Delhi sees the issue as a bilateral one between India and Pakistan — there is little doubt that India’s relations with the US will continue to be strong, if only because Washington needs New Delhi as a counterweight to China in the Asia-Pacific region.
Any little pinpricks between India and the US over American visas for Indian information technologists will not in any way trouble a durable partnership between the world’s oldest and largest democracies.
Similarly, India’s relations with an overwhelming majority of countries are cordial and deemed mutually beneficial. Even China is seemingly willing to ensure that its border problems with India, which led to a limited war in 1962, are resolved in a mutually satisfactory manner.
The only flaw in this near-perfect scenario for India is the tense ties with Pakistan, whose roots lie in the latter’s quest for revenge for its loss of its eastern wing, which is now Bangladesh, because of India’s intervention in 1971-72. Pakistan also wants to grab Kashmir, the missing “K” in its name.
It goes without saying that Islamabad sees the tightening of New Delhi’s grip on Kashmir as a blow to its twin unfulfilled objectives. But it must be aware that India’s strong international position makes it invulnerable to threatening words and deeds.
A major reason for India’s virtually unassailable position is Pakistan’s use of terror tactics, which has made it a kind of pariah with its inclusion on the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force for failing to act against terrorism and money laundering.
New Delhi had earlier maintained that it was ready to talk with Pakistan if the latter called off its “proxy war” against India. But the cutting of the Gordian knot has changed the situation. Now, as India’s Defense Minister Rajnath Singh has said, the only talks with Pakistan will be over the future of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, which India obviously intends to be integrated with the newly constituted Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Since this will hardly be acceptable to Pakistan, the scene has become “complicated,” to use another of Trump’s words on the subject. But, no matter how “explosive” or “complicated” the situation is in one of the most beautiful parts of India, and perhaps the world, New Delhi currently has the political and military clout to fend off any challenges.
However, any serious conflict is unlikely. Given China’s investments in the Belt and Road Initiative projects in Pakistan, it will insist on the avoidance of a military confrontation. But neither China nor Pakistan will have any control over the “lone wolf” terrorists who will see in the unsettled conditions in Kashmir an opportunity to indulge in their militant operations.
Pakistan must be aware that India’s strong international position makes it invulnerable to threatening words and deeds.
India would have been even better placed vis-a-vis Pakistan if its economy had been on a sound footing, but the ongoing slowdown has had a dampening effect on consumer confidence and investments. Hence Modi’s call for reviving the “animal spirits” of the private sector and making India the world’s investment destination.
If the economy shows any renewed signs of life and if there is peace and stability in Kashmir following the lifting of the restrictions on telecommunications and vehicular movements, then India will have turned the corner in a critical period.
The resultant political benefits for Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party will be enormous, much to the chagrin of the opposition parties, which are in the doldrums at present. But the realization of the two “ifs” — economic recovery and tranquility in Kashmir — is vital. In their absence, the scene will indeed be extremely complicated.
*Amulya Ganguli is a New Delhi-based writer on current affairs.

What America would gain if it bought Greenland
Dr. Theodore Karasik/Arab News/August 23/2019
When US President Donald Trump suggested that his country wanted to buy Greenland from Denmark, eyebrows certainly went up. But, for a moment, entertain the idea. In an age of security and bending the rules of sovereignty, combined with climate change and the opening up of the Arctic to international shipping to one day challenge the Suez Canal, the Greenland acquisition idea is strategically sound for America. And it is not new.
The island of Greenland is critical to US national security and is going to play an important geographical role as Washington, Russia, and China compete in the circumpolar region of the Arctic. Greenland has for decades hosted the important Thule Air Base, 1,200 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle. In 1940, the US occupied Greenland after Denmark fell to the Nazis. President Harry Truman tried to buy the island for $100 million in 1946 in the wake of the Second World War and the start of the Cold War. America’s presence at the base has been ongoing since the early 1950s. Thule provides the key early warning system for ballistic missile defense. This real estate is important for US security interests.
The US-Danish security agreement gives the American military broad authority to operate out of Thule Air Base. America’s US Air Force Space Command, the North American Aerospace Defense Command, and rotating Air National Guard units all use it. The Coast Guard also maintains a regular presence in Greenland. Thule Air Base is the site of the northernmost deep-water port in the world, which may become of strategic importance as Arctic ice melts. Several hundred Danes are co-located at Thule Air Base as part of Denmark’s deployment strategy related to Arctic security.
Climate change is creating new security challenges around the Arctic. Melting ice is opening up Arctic sea lanes and energy mineral reserves previously unavailable for extraction. Russia, whose territory covers up to half of the Arctic, is staking claims based on seabed acquisition and is building bases, ports and supply-chain support to these new Arctic waterways. In the summer of 2007, Russian explorers planted their flag on the underwater Lomonosov Ridge, deep in the Arctic and far beyond their country’s exclusive economic zone. Moscow claims this underwater ridge by historic right. The Russians are claiming Arctic waters as their own, attempting to define sovereignty over seabeds in international waters. This coming struggle is one that will emerge more as the ice melts.
Arctic security requirements are seen as critical by the US. In 2018, NATO forces held a military exercise, known as Trident Juncture, near Norway, with 50,000 participants. The US Marine Corps also rotate forces in and out of Norway, where Marines are pre-positioning ammunition, vehicles and weapons in massive caves, with plans for future growth of infrastructure and presence. The US knows that Russia is way ahead in planning and preparing for the Arctic’s future. The head of the US Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command Air Force, Gen. Terrence O’Shaughnessy, said: “The Arctic is the first line of defense.”
Denmark, however, has its own plans. Melting ice also affords an opportunity to mine Greenland. About a dozen permits have been issued and progress is slow, but Greenland is about long-term investment from not only the security perspective but also in minerals. Greenland’s importance in terms of energy is growing with the discovery of natural gas deposits, and Denmark is to search for more gas while increasing its military presence. Copenhagen claims the North Pole itself and seeks a growing naval presence. In 2009, the Danes established an Arctic military command as other circumpolar countries increased their security presence around the North Pole.
It is the site of the northernmost deep-water port in the world, which may become of strategic importance as Arctic ice melts.
The Russian Federation’s prioritization of the Arctic will be a primary driving factor in security strategy. The Russian economy derives nearly 20 percent of its gross domestic product from activities in the Arctic. Russia has defended this investment by increasing its military commitments. Until this year, the US did not even have an articulated policy on the Arctic. But, as the region takes on new importance, US strategy is emerging. Greenland may be part of that strategy, providing a unique opportunity to further protect America while advancing its interests in the Arctic from a heightened position of strength in terms of geographical presence. That fact matters in the increasingly warm Arctic.
Trump’s suggestion about buying Greenland has value. Naturally, there are many questions about such a move, where there is a balance between security requirements and perceptions of American expansionism. It is important to remember that the historical Greenland, Iceland, United Kingdom (GIUK) gap forms the principal choke point between Russia’s strategic interests in the North Atlantic and all points south. It also contains pipelines, communications cables and economic exclusion zones that require revised protection as Russia and China bend the concept of sovereignty regarding seabeds in international waters. An American island of Greenland would offer an interesting possibility in our new climate change-affected geopolitical order, which challenges concepts of sovereignty and strategic projection.
*Dr. Theodore Karasik is a senior adviser to Gulf State Analytics in Washington, D.C. He is a former RAND Corporation Senior Political Scientist who lived in the UAE for 10 years, focusing on security issues. Twitter: @tkarasik