English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For June 07/2020
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

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Bible Quotations For today
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit
Matthew 28/16-20: “The eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. When they saw him, they worshipped him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on June 06-07/2020
Health Ministry: 8 new corona infection cases
Red Cross: 11 injured persons transferred to hospitals, 26 treated in place
Troops use tear gas as violent clashes rock Beirut
Protesters Flock into Martyr’s Square as Demos Gain Momentum
Clashes, Tear Gas in Beirut as Protests Turn to Riots
'Insults to Prophet's Wife' Spark Sunni-Shiite Unrest in Lebanon
Army Contains Shiyyah-al-Rummaneh Standoff
Scores injured as Lebanese protesters clash with police, Hezbollah supporters in Beirut
Splinters in Lebanon protests emerge as some call for Hezbollah disarmament
Lebanon protesters stand off with Hezbollah, Amal supporters
Lebanon protests: Two injured after Hezbollah, Amal gunfire in Beirut neighborhoods
Lebanese looters ransack furniture shop in central Beirut
Lebanese President Blames Crises on Past 30-Year Policies
Lebanese Judge Ghada Aoun Summoned for Questioning
Nadim Gemayel: No reform or revolution before addressing the root cause of the problem
Sami Gemayel: Liberals' determination remains sturdier, more conscious
Geagea says the goals moving the people are reformist, daily living goals
FPM calls on citizens to demonstrate under the roof of the Constitution
US dollar exchange rate: Buying price at LBP 3890, selling price at LBP 3940
Hoballah rejects any increase in diesel oil prices
Abdel Samad delivers Lebanon’s word at high level international meeting, highlights impact of women leaders in fight against COVID-19 Pandemic
Report: Beirut’s Airport to Resume Services 'July 1 at the Most’

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on June 06-07/2020
Iran says black boxes of downed Ukraine plane of ‘no help’
Syrians Recruited to 'Protect Libyan Oil Facilities'
Air, Land Bridge to Transport Syrian Fighters from Turkey to Libya
Italy Expels Tunisian Tied to Berlin Christmas Market Attack
Rouhani Blames Iranian Wedding Party for Fueling New COVID-19 Surge
Afghans Condemn Iranian Police after Refugees Killed in Car Blaze
Russia Calls on Israel to Drop Annexation Plans
Turkish Army Preparing for Military Operation in Idlib
Air, Land Bridge to Transport Syrian Fighters from Turkey to Libya
Syrian Fighter to Asharq Al-Awsat: Yes, I am a Mercenary and I Fought in Libya
Al-Qaeda’s North Africa Commander Killed in Mali, Says France
Iranians call out Khamenei’s hypocrisy after speech on US protests
Israelis protest against occupied West Bank annexation plan

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on June 06-07/2020
A Reminder that the Qatar Crisis Has Entered its 4th Year/Salman Al-Dossary/Asharq Al-Awsat/June 06/ 2020
Killing Free Speech in Switzerland/Judith Bergman/Gatestone Institute/June 06/2020
The US is stronger with allies than without/Cornelia Meyer/Arab News/June 06/ 2020
Make no mistake, the Taliban are still in bed with Al-Qaeda/Michael Kugelman/Arab News/June 06/ 2020

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on June 06-07/2020
Health Ministry: 8 new corona infection cases
NNA/June 06/ 2020
The Ministry of Public Health announced this evening that 8 new cases of coronavirus infections were registered today; thus, raising the cumulative number of confirmed cases to-date to: 1320.

Red Cross: 11 injured persons transferred to hospitals, 26 treated in place
NNA/June 06/ 2020
The Lebanese Red Cross announced, in a statement this evening, a new outcome of injuries during the Beirut demonstration today, indicating that 11 wounded persons have been transferred to nearby hospitals till now, while 26 other injured people were treated on the spot.

Troops use tear gas as violent clashes rock Beirut
Najla Houssari/Arab News/June 06/ 2020
Divisions among protesters over the goals of the demonstration quickly became apparent as groups of protesters faced off
35 hurt after chanting protesters call for Hezbollah to disarm
BEIRUT: Violent clashes between supporters of Iran-backed Hezbollah and rival protesters left more than 35 people injured as anti-government demonstrations returned to Lebanon’s capital on Saturday. Hundreds of protesters filled the streets around Martyrs Square, blaming a lack of reforms for the country’s worst economic turmoil in decades amid rising unemployment worsened by a lockdown to stop the spread of coronavirus. But the protest turned violent as supporters of Hezbollah clashed with demonstrators demanding that the Tehran-backed Shiite group disarm. Protesters threw stones and chanted sectarian insults as troops formed a human chain to keep the rival groups apart.“No to Hezbollah, no to its weapons,” said a sign held up by a female protester. Panic erupted after troops used gunfire to halt the confrontation.
The Lebanese Red Cross said that 35 people were hurt in clashes, with many treated at the scene. Protesters came from around Lebanon to join renewed demonstrations in the capital, with many waving flags and others carrying banners demanding Hezbollah disarm. One protester told Arab News: “We are rebels and free to raise demands of our choice, whether it is related to the economy or to disarming Hezbollah.”
Another said: “I am from Akkar. The government has done nothing. Hundreds of people have lost their jobs, and I know families that have nothing to eat.”
A third said that Arab and foreign countries had broken ties with Lebanon because of Hezbollah. “No one wants to help us out of our financial crisis. That is why we want Hezbollah to disarm,” he said.
Interior Minister Mohamed Fahmy and Defense Minister Zeina Akar followed security operations in Martyrs Square from an operation room in Emile Helou police station. Fahmy warned protesters against attacking public or private property, saying that security forces ” will intervene the moment riots occur.”
However MP Samy Gemayel, head of the Phalanges party, accused authorities of “trying to cause discord among protesters, labeling them traitors, and spreading rumors to intimidate them.”
The Phalanges Party was among parties calling for early parliamentary elections during the protests. “The mood of the people has changed, and the goal of the political authority is to cause divisions in order to postpone the next elections,” Gemayel said. Former justice minister Maj. Gen. Ashraf Rifi, whose supporters traveled from Tripoli to join the protests, accused Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah of being “an Iranian agent.”
He said: “The revolution rejuvenates itself for a new start, and differences among protesters is a healthy phenomenon. No one dares to intimidate us by threatening to put one segment of society against the other.”
Rifi said that Hezbollah’s illegal arms supply was a threat to “Lebanese sovereignty and national unity.” “We are partners in one country and we should establish a sovereign state, not a state within the state. You have a regional power that supplies weapons to you, but another regional power could supply weapons to another party, which would lead to the destruction of the country,” he said.'

Protesters Flock into Martyr’s Square as Demos Gain Momentum
Associated Press/Naharnet/June 06/2020
Hundreds of protesters from the south to the north of Lebanon joined the main demo in Martyr’s Square in Beirut on Saturday against the country’s political elite, corruption and a crumbling economy as the result of decades of mismanagement.
Protesters hope to reboot nationwide anti-government protests that began late last year amid an unprecedented economic and financial crisis. Beirut’s central public square that saw the launch of the October 17 uprising, saw different groups of protesters with many different demands.
Some groups will call for early parliamentary elections, others will protest against the country’s dire economic conditions that pushed many into poverty and others against the illegal arms of Hizbullah, demanding implementation of UN Resolution 1559. However, some believe the timing is suspicious to call for Hizbullah's disarmament, noting that it aims to foil the main goal of the protests. Hizbullah supporters and allies believe the protests aim to topple the ruling authority. Scattered groups of protesters arrived in the capital's downtown area, only some of them wearing masks and face shields to protect against the spread of the coronavirus, in response to calls for a centralized protest to press for demands. But tensions and divisions among protesters were clear. Security forces deployed in various regions to maintain stability. Crowds started flocking into Martyr’s Square. Face masks were distributed to protesters as the demos kicked off in light of the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak. Lebanese rose up against their political leaders in nationwide mass protests on Oct. 17 amid a spiraling economic crisis, blaming them for decades of corruption and mismanagement. The protests, which further deepened the slump, eventually lost some momentum and later were put on hold after the outbreak of the pandemic. The unprecedented economic crisis, nationwide protests and pandemic pose the biggest threat to stability since the end of the country's civil war in 1990, and there are fears of a new slide into violence.
In recent weeks, the Lebanese pound, pegged to the dollar for more than two decades, has lost 60% of its value against the dollar and prices of basic goods soared. Unemployment has risen to 35% and an estimated 45% of the country’s population is now below the poverty line.
The government has gradually begun easing a lockdown aimed at curbing the virus, and protesters have returned to the streets in small numbers in recent days. Saturday's protest was called for by grassroots organizations and civil society groups as well as several political parties, including some groups who have introduced demands for the militant group Hezbollah to disarm. The participation of political groups and anti-Hezbollah slogans have upset some activists and protesters who say the focus should remain on addressing the country's economic crisis and calling for early elections.
Hundreds of Lebanese soldiers and riot policemen were deployed on major roads in the capital and its suburbs ahead of the protest. They later stood between various groups amid minor scuffles and stone-throwing incidents.

Clashes, Tear Gas in Beirut as Protests Turn to Riots
Associated Press/Naharnet/June 06/2020
Lebanese riot police fired tear gas at protesters in central Beirut on Saturday, after a planned anti-government demonstration quickly degenerated into rioting and stone-throwing confrontations between opposing camps.
A few thousand demonstrators had gathered in Martyrs' Square hoping to reboot nationwide protests that began late last year amid an unprecedented economic and financial crisis. But tensions and divisions among protesters over the goals of the demonstration quickly became apparent as groups of protesters faced off, with the army standing between them. Scattered groups of protesters arrived in the capital's downtown area, only some of them wearing masks and face shields to protect against the spread of the coronavirus, in response to calls for a centralized protest to press for demands.
Lebanese rose up against their political leaders in nationwide mass protests on Oct. 17 amid a spiraling economic crisis, blaming them for decades of corruption and mismanagement. The protests, which further deepened the slump, eventually lost some momentum and later were put on hold after the outbreak of the pandemic. The government has gradually begun easing a lockdown aimed at curbing the virus, and protesters have returned to the streets in small numbers in recent days. Saturday's protest was called for by grassroots organizations and civil society groups as well as several political parties, including some groups who have introduced for the first time demands for Hizbullah to disarm. The participation of political groups and anti-Hizbullah slogans have upset some activists and protesters who say the focus should remain on addressing the country's economic crisis and calling for early elections.
Hundreds of Lebanese soldiers and riot police were deployed on major roads in the capital and its suburbs ahead of the protest. They later stood between supporters of Hizbullah and its allied Shiite Amal movement on one side and protesters on the other, some of whom shouted insults aimed at the Hizbullah leader, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. The pro-Hizbullah side, some carrying yellow Hizbullah flags, chanted "Shia, Shia, Shia!"Near the parliament building, a group of young men hurled rocks over cement barriers erected to seal off the area. Young men vandalized several storefronts, including a luxury French designer furniture company and a nearby hotel. Police responded with heavy tear gas. The unprecedented economic crisis, nationwide protests and pandemic pose the biggest threat to stability since the end of the country's civil war in 1990, and there are fears of a new slide into violence.
In recent weeks, the Lebanese pound, pegged to the dollar for more than two decades, has lost 60% of its value against the dollar and prices of basic goods soared. Unemployment has risen to 35% and an estimated 45% of the country's population is now below the poverty line.

'Insults to Prophet's Wife' Spark Sunni-Shiite Unrest in Lebanon
Naharnet/June 06/2020
Sunni and Shiite leaderships and parties called for calm late Saturday after insults against Prophet Mohammed's wife Aisha by young counter-demonstrators sparked angry protests and Sunni-Shiite tensions. Protesters blocked roads in Beirut's Corniche al-Mazraa and Qasqas areas, in the cities of Sidon and Tripoli and on the coastal highway that links Beirut to the South. Heavy gunfire was also heard in Beirut's Tariq al-Jedideh area as videos of gunmen shooting in the air circulated on social media. The National News Agency said two people were wounded in the area -- one lightly and one in the eye.
The insults were condemned by Sunni and Shiite religious leaderships as well as political parties. Dar al-Fatwa, the country's highest Sunni religious authority, warned all Muslims against "falling into the trap of sectarian strife." "The cursing of Sayyida Aisha can only come from an ignorant person who should be enlightened," Dar al-Fatwa said in a statement. The head of the Higher Islamic Shiite Council Sheikh Abdul Amir Qabalan for his part warned of "suspicious attempts to stir sectarian strife" and condemned the insults against the Prophet's wife. Shiite mufti Sheikh Ahmed Qabalan meanwhile urged authorities to protect the country and its people and slammed those whom he called "mercenaries and agents" who are trying to "ignite national and sectarian strife."Hizbullah, the AMAL Movement, al-Mustaqbal Movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri, ex-PM Najib Miqati and the Jamaa Islamiya also warned against sectarian strife and comdemned the insults. "The insults and chants that were voiced by some individuals are rejected and condemned and do not at all reflect the moral and religious values of the faithful Muslims," Hizbullah said in a statement. It also strongly cautioned against "those who stir strife, those who benefit from it and all those promoting it and calling for it." Hariri for his part urged supporters and residents to heed Dar al-Fatwa's warning against sectarian strife and noted that Shiite religious and political leaders have also condemned the insults against the Prophet's wife. The insults were reportedly hurled during or after the confrontations in downtown Beirut on Saturday between protesters and counter-demonstrators.

Army Contains Shiyyah-al-Rummaneh Standoff
Naharnet/June 06/2020
A stone-throwing clash erupted Saturday evening between young men from the Beirut suburbs of Shiyyah and Ain el-Rummameh, amid tensions in the country linked to an anti-government protest that was organized in the center of the capital. "A large force from the army and General Security separated between the two sides and restored calm," the National News Agency said. LBCI TV said no injuries were recorded, noting that gatherings were still present in the area despite the return of calm. Military sources meanwhile denied to al-Jadeed TV reports claiming that the army had fired in the air to contain the situation. There is historic rivalry between the two neighborhoods, which had witnessed the first incidents of the 1975-1990 civil war. The downtown Beirut demo had witnessed clashes between protesters and young men who came from the Khandaq al-Ghamiq area. The situation later developed into clashes between protesters and riot police. The clashes had been preceded by days of mobilization and polarization on social media and through media outlets, after it became known that the controversial issue of Hizbullah's arms would be tackled by the protesters. Some groups and activists of the October 17 uprising opted not to take part in the demo over perceived politicization. Some political parties such as Kataeb, the Lebanese Forces and ex-minister Ashraf Rifi had openly voiced support for the demo. The Sabaa Party and reportedly supporters of Bahaa Hariri also participated in the protest.

Scores injured as Lebanese protesters clash with police, Hezbollah supporters in Beirut
The New Arab Staff & Agencies/June 06/2020
Protesters poured into the streets of the Lebanese capital on Saturday to decry the collapse of the economy, as clashes erupted between them and supporters of the Iran-backed Shia group Hezbollah. Hundreds filled the streets in and around the protest hub of Martyrs Square in the centre of Beirut, with skirmishes also between protesters and security forces, who fired tear gas. Forty-eight people were wounded in the violence, 11 of whom were hospitalised, while the rest were treated at the scene, the Lebanese Red Cross said. It was the first major anti-government rally attracting demonstrators from across the country since authorities relaxed a lockdown imposed in mid-March to fight the spread of the coronavirus. "We came on the streets to demand our rights, call for medical care, education, jobs and the basic rights that human beings need to stay alive," said 21-year-old student Christina. Many protesters wore face-masks as part of hygiene measures imposed to fight the pandemic, which has severely exacerbated an economic crisis, the worst since the debt burdened country's 1975-1990 civil war.But Saturday's protest turned violent as supporters of Hezbollah clashed with some demonstrators who were demanding that the group disarm. Hezbollah is the only group to have kept its weapons since the end of the Lebanese civil war, deeply dividing Lebanon along political lines. No to Hezbollah, no to its weapons," said a sign held up by Sana, a female protester from Nabatiyeh, a city in southern Lebanese, a Hezbollah stronghold.
"Weapons should be only in the hands of the army," said the 57-year-old. Protesters and Hebzollah supporters threw stones at each other prompting the army to intervene by forming a human chain to separate them, an AFP photographer said.
Hezbollah supporters were also heard chanting sectarian slogans.
‘Eliminate corruption’
Security forces fired tear gas near a street leading into the parliament building behind Martyrs Square, after some demonstrators pelted them with stones and ransacked shops in the area. Some protesters set fire to garbage bins as anti-riot police advanced towards them.
Lebanon has been rocked by a series of political crises in recent years, before an economic crunch helped trigger unprecedented cross-sectarian mass protests in October. The demonstrations forced the government to resign and a new one headed by Prime Minister Hassan Diab was approved by parliament in February, tasked with launching reforms and combatting corruption. But many Lebanese say the new administration has failed to find solutions to the country's manifold problems, including a grinding recession and spiralling inflation. The local currency has lost more than half of its value on the black market in recent months, falling from the official rate of 1,507 to more than 4,000 pounds to the dollar. Banks have gradually stopped all dollar withdrawals. A sign held aloft by protesters on Saturday called for "a government that eliminates corruption, not one that protects corruption".
More than 35 percent of Lebanese are unemployed, while poverty has soared to engulf more than 45 percent of the population, according to official estimates. Lebanon is also one of the world's most indebted countries with a debt equivalent to more than 170 percent of its GDP. The country defaulted on its external borrowing for the first time in March. Diab's government adopted an economic recovery plan in April and has begun negotiations with the International Monetary Fund, in a bid to unlock billions of dollars in aid.

Splinters in Lebanon protests emerge as some call for Hezbollah disarmament
Abby Sewell, Al Arabiya English/Saturday 06 June 2020
Splinters in Lebanon’s protest movement emerged around a mass demonstration in Beirut called on Saturday with the stated purpose of renewing the energy of the anti-government uprising that started October 17, 2019.
But along with calls for early elections, anti-corruption and economic justice measures, and an end to sectarianism, some of the protest organizers decided to call for the disarmament of Hezbollah, an issue that had been largely avoided in the earlier days of the protests.
In October, protesters of different sects and political affiliations took up the slogan “all of them means all of them,” calling for all of the government leaders to step down, and the organizers were careful not to single out any specific political party.
After the resignation of Prime Minister Saad Hariri, from the Sunni Future Movement party, the March 14 parties aligned with Hariri withdrew from government, and the new government was selected by the Hezbollah-aligned March 8 coalition.

Lebanon protesters stand off with Hezbollah, Amal supporters
AFP, Beirut/Saturday 06 June 2020
Hundreds of Lebanese demonstrators gathered in central Beirut on Saturday, hoping to reboot nationwide anti-government protests that began late last year amid an unprecedented economic and financial crisis. Scattered groups of protesters arrived in the capital's downtown area, only some of them wearing masks and face shields to protect against the spread of the coronavirus, in response to calls for a centralized protest to press for demands. But tensions and divisions among protesters were clear. Lebanese rose up against their political leaders in nationwide mass protests on October 17 amid a spiraling economic crisis, blaming them for decades of corruption and mismanagement. The protests, which further deepened the slump, eventually lost some momentum and later were put on hold after the outbreak of the pandemic. The unprecedented economic crisis, nationwide protests and pandemic pose the biggest threat to stability since the end of the country's civil war in 1990, and there are fears of a new slide into violence. In recent weeks, the Lebanese pound, pegged to the dollar for more than two decades, has lost 60 percent of its value against the dollar and prices of basic goods soared. Unemployment has risen to 35 percent and an estimated 45 percent of the country’s population is now below the poverty line.
Demands for Hezbollah to disarm
The government has gradually begun easing a lockdown aimed at curbing the virus, and protesters have returned to the streets in small numbers in recent days. Saturday's protest was called for by grassroots organizations and civil society groups as well as several political parties, including some groups who have introduced demands for the militant group Hezbollah to disarm. The participation of political groups and anti-Hezbollah slogans have upset some activists and protesters who say the focus should remain on addressing the country's economic crisis and calling for early elections.
Hundreds of Lebanese soldiers and riot policemen were deployed on major roads in the capital and its suburbs ahead of the protest. They later stood between various groups amid minor scuffles and stone-throwing incidents.

Lebanon protests: Two injured after Hezbollah, Amal gunfire in Beirut neighborhoods
Ismaeel Naar, Al Arabiya English/Sunday 07 June 2020
At least two people have been confirmed injured after Iran-backed Hezbollah and Amal Movement supporters opened near the Tariq al-Jdideh and Barbour neighborhoods of Beirut, Lebanon. “Live bullets in Beirut are now firing on protesters, and reports of injuries. Hezbollah has never been concerned with Lebanon's security and safety and will not care about it now. The important thing is to implement the Iranian agenda in the region,” read a tweet by Maryame Mohammed, a Lebanese journalist. Mohammed’s tweet accompanied a video in which a woman could be heard screaming “God may not bless you, Hassan Nasrallah,” and repeating the date “May 7.” The date refers to fierce clashes in the same Beirut neighborhoods on May 7, 2008, when sporadic gun battles erupted between Hezbollah supporters and pro-government loyalists at the time. The incident came early Sunday morning after mass demonstrations in Beirut the previous day were held by hundreds of Lebanese protesters demanding calls for early elections, anti-corruption and economic justice measures. Clashes erupted late on Saturday between protesters and counter-protesters affiliated with Hezbollah and the Amal Movement, another Shia party allied with Hezbollah. Earlier in the day, a small group of protesters stood in the middle of Martyr’s Square with signs reading, “No weapons but legal weapons. 1559, make it happen,” referring to a UN Security Council resolution adopted in 2004, calling for the disarmament of all militias and the extension of government control over all Lebanese territory.
*Al Arabiya English’s Abby Sewell contributed to this report.

Lebanese looters ransack furniture shop in central Beirut
Reuters/Sunday 07 June 2020
Several Lebanese protesters burned dumpsters and ransacked a furniture shop in Beirut’s upscale shopping district, smashing its storefront and removing a couch before police dispersed them. Hundreds of Lebanese protesters took to the streets on Saturday to voice outrage over the government’s handling of a deep economic crisis, with security forces firing tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse rock-throwing demonstrators. The first major protests since the government rolled back coronavirus lockdown measures come as Beirut negotiates an International Monetary Fund package it hopes will secure billions of dollars in support for its collapsing economy. Other protesters waved banners demanding better living conditions and called for early parliamentary elections, tougher measures to fight corruption and the disarming of the Shiaite paramilitary group Hezbollah.
Lebanon’s economic woes have reached new depths in recent months. The pound currency has lost more than half of its value, prices have soared, and companies dealing with the double blow of the coronavirus have axed jobs.

Lebanese President Blames Crises on Past 30-Year Policies
Beirut - Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 6 June, 2020
Lebanese President Michel Aoun reiterated on Friday that political parties that have been in power for the past 30 years were responsible for the country’s economic crisis. “What is happening today is the outcome of certain policies adopted for almost 30 years,” he said. During a meeting with the Lebanese Rescue Committee, which proposed to him a plan to resolve the current financial and economic crisis, Aoun said, “Despite my presence outside Lebanon most of that time, I am held today responsible for the crisis.” Aoun was referring to his exile in France. “Accusations should be directed at those responsible for the deterioration of the situation in Lebanon,” he said.
The President said he was against the slogan “All means all” raised by protesters during anti-government demonstrations that erupted last October.
He said people should look at all the positive things that were accomplished in the past three years and not only focus on the negative issues.
Aoun was elected President three years ago. Lebanon has been gripped by huge anti-government rallies that began last October after the government proposed a charge on Internet calls and a hike in value-added tax. Protesters raised the slogan “All means all” during their rallies and marches, calling on all political parties to go. Aoun said Friday that he had always called for dialogue with demonstrators to consensus. “Unfortunately, nobody heeded my invitation. Instead, people decided to go to the streets, causing chaos that worsened the economic crisis,” he said.

Lebanese Judge Ghada Aoun Summoned for Questioning
Beirut - Youssef Diab/Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 6 June, 2020
Public Prosecutor Judge Ghassan Oweidat set next Monday a date to question Judge Ghada Aoun for insulting the Supreme Judicial Council, in addition to other cases, a judicial source told Asharq Al-Awsat. Her summoning by Owaidat shocked the judiciary because the judge is backed by President Michel Aoun and the Free Patriotic Movement that is led by the president’s son-in-law Gebran Bassil. Judge Aoun will also be questioned on the cases filed by deputy Hadi Hobeich against her for defamation. Oweidat has commissioned Judge Ghassan al-Khoury to interrogate her and to inform him of the results in order to take the appropriate legal action. Judge Aoun has posted on her WhatsApp harsh remarks on the Supreme Judicial Council, accusing it of trying to keep mouths shut after she gave her opinion about appointments in the judiciary. The source said Judge Aoun “was called in for investigation before President of the Supreme Judicial Council, Judge Imad Kabalan, last Thursday, but she rejected.”
He said that Khoury then contacted Judge Aoun, and informed her that it is necessary that she heads to his office at the Justice Palace in Beirut before noon next Monday. Sources close to Aoun considered her summoning a political campaign against her. Hobeich welcomed Friday the summoning of the judge.
“I have never threatened Judge Aoun, but only raised my voice against the violations she committed against me and many other lawyers,” Hobeich told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Nadim Gemayel: No reform or revolution before addressing the root cause of the problem
NNA/Saturday, 6 June, 2020
MP Nadim Gemayel considered Saturday that there can be no reform nor revolution unless the root of the problem is solved, saying via Twitter: "Revolution...(i) To topple the government? Hezbollah will impose a government like the government of Diab; (ii) Due to the economic situation and the US dollar exchange rate? Hezbollah is smuggling dollars to Syria; (iii) Due to the illegal border crossings that harm the economy and stability? Hezbollah protects and benefits from the crossings! There can be no reform nor revolution before the root cause of the problem is solved, the hegemony of weapons!"

Sami Gemayel: Liberals' determination remains sturdier, more conscious
NNA/Sunday 07 June 2020
Kataeb Party Chief, Sami Gemayel, criticized on Saturday the attempts to thwart the people's uprising, saying via Twitter: "They did not leave out any piece of news, rumor or an Intelligence fabrication, in an attempt to thwart today's movement...attempts of intimidation, treason and separation, in order to prevent the return of the pulse of change to the street...But the will of the free people is always more sensible, aware and stronger!"

Geagea says the goals moving the people are reformist, daily living goals
NNA/Sunday 07 June 2020
"The goals that move Lebanon's entire citizens, from the north to the south, and from the coast to the internal plains, are reformist, daily living goals. Therefore, it is very important to adhere to these goals in order to achieve them, and not to disperse efforts in different directions that could lead to the failure of the people's movement," cautioned Lebanese Forces Party Chief, Samir Geagea, via his Twitter account on Saturday.

FPM calls on citizens to demonstrate under the roof of the Constitution
NNA/Sunday 07 June 2020
Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) Head, MP Gibran Bassil, held on Saturday an online meeting by the FPM's Political Council.
Following the meeting, the Political Council said in a statement that "the people's cry is legitimate in light of a serious crisis that has impoverished most Lebanese," calling on demonstrators to remain under the roof of the constitution and laws in a way that preserves civil peace. The Council hoped that "the pressure of the street would bring about the required changes in political performance, the fight against corruption, as well as in the economic, financial and social policies pursued for decades." It also called on the Lebanese to strengthen their unity and formulate a national position in the face of a serious internal crisis on the financial and economic levels, and the volatility of the global situation evident in what has afflicted the major countries due to the Corona epidemic and the crises that resulted from it.
The Council also expressed its fear that "the difficult international financial situation would deprive Lebanon of the opportunity to obtain financial support, which requires taking measures to fortify the internal situation, especially in terms of stimulating tourism and services, activating the agricultural sector, possible industries to cover national needs and seeking export to obtain hard currency."
Finally, the FPM Council called on the government to accelerate financial appointments.

US dollar exchange rate: Buying price at LBP 3890, selling price at LBP 3940
NNA/Sunday 07 June 2020
The Money Changers Syndicate announced in a statement addressed to money changing companies and institutions, Saturday’s pricing of the USD exchange rate against the Lebanese pound as follows:
Buying price at a minimum of LBP 3890
Selling price at a maximum of LBP 3940

Hoballah rejects any increase in diesel oil prices
NNA/June 06/2020
Minister of Industry Imad Hoballah rejected via his Twitter account on Saturday, any increase in diesel oil prices. "Despite all the negative effects of the financial, monetary, livelihood and economic crisis, some sectors of the industry have begun to regain their competitive drive, and therefore, no to any increase in diesel oil prices due to its negative impact on the industry," Hoballah said.

Abdel Samad delivers Lebanon’s word at high level international meeting, highlights impact of women leaders in fight against COVID-19 Pandemic
NNA/June 06/2020
Minister of Information, Manal Abdel Samad Najd, on Saturday delivered Lebanon’s speech at a high-level electronic meeting with UN delegation representatives and with dignitaries from Qatar, Nigeria, Kenya, Costa Rica, Sweden, the African Union, Italy, the IMF, and Lebanon, on "The Impact Women Leaders Are Having in the Fight Against the COVID-19 Pandemic".
The following is Her Excellency’s full speech:
“Thank you, and I would like to thank all their excellencies for their efforts to highlight the positive and strong role that women play to change this world for the best. As well, I would like to share a heartfelt thank you to Her Excellency Ambassador Alya Al-Thani, the Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations and all those who made today’s event possible.
The global outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic continues to have a massive negative impact on all of humanity and not only when it comes to health, but also to the livelihood of people. The world economy has lost trillions of dollars; hundreds of millions of persons have lost their jobs; And as the pandemic continues to claim lives, there are families out there who have lost loved ones, their bread winner, or dear friends.
For the first time in a long time, humanity is united against one enemy, and in that sense I see a silver lining where we can create a long-lasting impact by joining hands (even if virtually) to create positive initiatives to help the most vulnerable, especially women and children, and to lead by example as officials and as women in our respective societies.
Lebanon was among the first nations to take swift action within the first week of our very first recorded case of Covid-19. Five months have passed; and though the number of cases recorded remain among the lowest worldwide, yet every case is considered a challenge to my country and every loss of life is a tragedy. At our ministry, we launched as well as helped promote government initiatives to raise awareness against the pandemic, support education via TVs and tablets, and engage in dialogue with professionals, citizens and NGos to better understand how we can help; What does not help is the continued spread of disinformation and fake news tied to the pandemic. causing further panic, and serious health risks.
For us at the Ministry of Information, combatting fake news is crucial because it can harm people’s physical and mental health, and possibly lead to loss of lives.
And as part of our work to ensure clear and responsible communication and counter the growing scourge of fake news, we held a partnership with WHO, UNICEF and UNDP. This partnership includes three phases:
1- An integrated campaign to fight the most-shared rumors carried through TVs and digital media, and includes animated videos displaying rumors vs facts.
2- A rumor log that allows us to record details of the rumors, classify them and keep a note of any subsequent actions taken.
3- And a dedicated website will be also available to allow people to report and to fact-check any news they’ve heard of.
Your excellencies, throughout the past five months, we have noticed a steady rise in cases related to violence and domestic abuse against women and children globally, regionally and on a local level here in Lebanon. The home confinement and curfew taken as measures to curb the spread of the virus have had a negative impact in terms of the increased number of domestic violence and abuse of women.
There has been a reported surge in the number of gender-based violence recorded during the first five months of the year as opposed to the same period a year before according to official numbers obtained from the Ministry of Interior, UN partners and NGOs. Women and girls reportedly say they feel less safe since the COVID-19 lockdown in Lebanon.
The 1745 Internal Security Firces hotline dedicated for domestic violence against women, showed that received calls nearly doubled between March 2020 and May 2020. 97 calls were recorded in March vs 161 calls in May.
The first four days of June have seen 11 calls so far.
KAFA, an active NGO in Lebanon, reportedly saw an increase in calls to their hotline during the month of May to 938; that is twice the number of calls received in April, and four times in March, the beginning of COVID-19 confinement measures. As a member of the National Commission for Lebanese Women, I would like to highlight the Commission’s efforts on the matter, including holding partnerships with the Internal Security forces and the UN to combat and raise awareness against violence against women, especially domestic violence…
While at the Ministry of Information level and as a minister, we have supported and continue to support and spread the Commission’s initiatives and campaigns launched by the aforementioned parties.
Your Excellencies, we have a major role to play as women leaders, wherever we are. As a mother, and a female minister, I am under constant pressure to lead by example not only for my daughter, but also to the millions of girls in my nation and the hundreds of millions of girls and women in my region and beyond. This is especially true because the spotlight is always on female leaders not only to record their achievements, but also to see when will they fail.
It is a harder task when being a female leader in patriarchal societies as not everyone is lucky to be born into an understanding and loving family.
Your Excellencies, thank you for allowing me the time to share our efforts in Lebanon with you and for lending me your ears.
Stay strong, continue to lead and God bless.”

Report: Beirut’s Airport to Resume Services 'July 1 at the Most’
Naharnet/June 06/2020
Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International airport is likely going to resume its operations starting "July 1 at the most,” VDL (93.3) radio station said on Saturday.
Prominent sources at RHIA, told VDL that civil aviation will begin at the beginning of July to countries that have opened their airports and started receiving flights from abroad. Earlier, the Cabinet had reportedly taken an “initial” decision to open the airport on June 28. Lebanon was faster than most other countries to decide on a lockdown as part of measures to stem the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. By the end of February, schools were closed, and the airport and most bars and restaurants soon followed suit.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on June 06-07/2020
Iran says black boxes of downed Ukraine plane of ‘no help’
AFP/June 07/2020
TEHRAN: The black boxes of a Ukrainian plane mistakenly downed near Tehran airport will be of “no help” in any investigation, but Iran is ready to transfer them abroad, state media said Saturday.
Flight 752, an Ukraine International Airlines jetliner, was struck by a missile and crashed shortly after taking off from the Tehran airport on January 8. “Even though the investigation is nearly complete and the contents of the boxes will be of no help for the investigation, we are ready to give them to a third country or to a (foreign) company,” Mohsen Baharvand, deputy foreign affairs minister, was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency. In the immediate aftermath of the crash, Iranian civilian authorities insisted it was likely caused by a technical malfunction, vehemently denying claims the plane was shot down. But in the early hours of January 11, the Iranian military admitted that the plane was shot down due to “human error,” killing 176 people, mainly Iranians and Canadians, including many dual nationals. Ottawa has demanded for several months that Iran, which does not have the technical means to decode the black boxes, send the items abroad so that their content can be analyzed. After Tehran said in March it was ready to transfer the black boxes to France or Ukraine, Canada’s foreign minister Francois-Philippe Champagne guardedly welcomed a “step in the right direction,” while noting that he would judge Iranian authorities on “their actions and not just their words.”In his interview with IRNA, Baharvand implied that Iran had certain conditions for transferring the black boxes abroad, but did not elaborate.

Syrians Recruited to 'Protect Libyan Oil Facilities'
Deir Ezzour – Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 6 June, 2020
Russian forces in Syria have ordered military officials in Deir Ezzour to recruit residents to fight alongside its forces in Libya. The Deir Ezzour 24 network said Russia was seeking to send the recruits to fight alongside the forces of the Libyan National Army, commanded by Khalifa Haftar. Sources told the network that Firas al-Jiham, also known as Firas al-Iraqiya, the leader of the pro-regime National Defense Forces in Deir Ezzour has been tasked with recruiting locals. A leader in the Albou Saraya clan, Mhanna al-Fayyad, has also been tasked with this mission.
These officials have met with several locals and attempted to persuade them that once in Libya, they will be charged with protecting oil installations, not fighting. They were promised a monthly salary of over 2,000 dollars.
Volunteers are transported from Deir Ezzour airport to Russia’s Hmeimim airbase in Latakia where they are registered. A Russian general oversees the process with the assistance of militia leaders and local officials, reported Deir Ezzour 24.

Air, Land Bridge to Transport Syrian Fighters from Turkey to Libya
Ankara - Saeed Abdulrazek/Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 6 June, 2020
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan confirmed for the first time in February that Ankara has sent allied Syrian fighters to Libya alongside its own training teams to bolster the militias backing the Government of National Accord in Tripoli.
"Turkey is there with a training force. There are also people from the Syrian National Army," Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul.
A security and military Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the GNA and Turkey in November last year includes bilateral cooperation in the military and security fields. It includes clauses on military training, counter-terrorism and illegal migration.
Italy’s Itamilradar, which specializes in monitoring military aircraft movements over Italy and the Mediterranean Sea, has tracked warplanes and ships heading from Turkey to Libya. Its coordinates have shown that Ankara has secured an “air bridge” to transport weapons and fighters to Tripoli and Misrata.
In the past two weeks alone, 11 military cargo planes were detected heading from Istanbul and Konya to both cities in Libya and returning back to Turkey.
The Turkish Defense Ministry in late February claimed carrying out maneuvers in the Mediterranean Sea after reports about the transfer of weapons and fighters to Libya in military and commercial warships backed by Turkey.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has also repeatedly said that more than 10,000 Syrian mercenaries have arrived in Libya to fight alongside the GNA’s forces. Although Turkey claims that its forces are only providing consultations to the GNA, Erdogan has used the excuse of foreign fighters backing the Libyan the National Army (LNA) to send Syrian mercenaries to Libya.
In February, he accused Russia of sending 2,500 mercenaries from the Kremlin-linked Wagner group. There are an additional 15,000 fighters from Sudan, Chad and other countries, said Erdogan.

Italy Expels Tunisian Tied to Berlin Christmas Market Attack
Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 6 June, 2020
Italy's interior ministry said on Saturday it had expelled a Tunisian national linked to the man who carried out a deadly 2016 attack on a Berlin Christmas market.
Montassar Yaakoubi, described by the ministry as "an associate of the Tunisian terrorist Anis Amri," was flown to Tunisia on a special flight, the ministry said in a statement, without specifying when. It was Italy's first such expulsion of a foreign national on state security grounds since such repatriations were suspended due to the coronavirus emergency, AFP quoted it as saying. Yaakoubi hosted Amri in Italy before the latter's move to Germany in 2015, the ministry said. On December 19, 2016, Amri -- a rejected asylum seeker from Tunisia and known radical militant -- hijacked a truck, ploughing into a crowded Christmas market in central Berlin and killing 12 people. Amri, 24, managed to flee Germany after the attack but was shot in Milan by police four days later. In the past five years, Italy has expelled 482 foreign nationals on security grounds, including 21 in 2020.

Rouhani Blames Iranian Wedding Party for Fueling New COVID-19 Surge
Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 6 June, 2020
A wedding party contributed to a new surge in coronavirus infections in Iran, President Hassan Rouhani said on Saturday but insisted the country had no option but to keep its economy open despite warnings of a second wave of the epidemic.
“At one location, we witnessed a peak in this epidemic, the source of which was a wedding that caused problems for the people, health workers and losses to the economy and the country’s health system,” he said on state TV. He did not say when or where the wedding took place.
Iran, which has been gradually relaxing its lockdown since mid-April, has reported a sharp rise of new daily infections in recent days. Thursday’s toll of 3,574 new cases was the highest since February, when the outbreak was first reported.
New cases dipped to 2,886 on Friday, bringing Iran’s total cases to more than 167,000, with over 8,000 deaths. Health officials have been warning of a second wave of the outbreak, but say a reason for the surge in new cases could be wider testing. One official said about 70 percent of the new cases in Tehran were among those who had traveled outside the capital in recent days. Iran has been struggling to curb the spread of COVID-19 but authorities are concerned that measures to limit public and economic life to contain the virus could wreck an already economy already reeling under international sanctions.
“In these circumstances, we have no other choice - that is, there is no second option,” Rouhani added. “We have to work, our factories have to be active, our shops have to be open, and there has to be movement in the country as far as it is necessary.”Iranian universities reopened on Saturday after being closed for more than three and a half months, state media reported. Nurseries will reopen in a week’s time, when Quran and languages classes will also resume, Rouhani said.

Afghans Condemn Iranian Police after Refugees Killed in Car Blaze
Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 6 June, 2020
Afghans have taken to social media to denounce Iranian police after a video of a car carrying with Afghan refugees set ablaze in Iran went viral, arousing new anger weeks after Afghan officials accused Iranian border guards of drowning migrants.
Afghanistan’s foreign ministry said in a statement on Friday three Afghans were killed and four injured in Iran’s central Yazd province after their vehicle was shot at by Iranian police, triggering the fire.
Video footage posted on social media showed a boy escaping from the blazing car with burns on parts of his body and begging for water. The ministry said the video was genuine and Afghans in Iran were trying to identify the victims.
The boy’s plea of “give me some water, I am burning” was widely circulated on social media and taken up by rights group demanding justice.
“Iran has no right to kill Afghan refugees, they can seal their borders, expel all Afghans but not kill them,” said Ali Noori, a lawyer and rights activist said on Facebook. Afghans have for decades sought refuge in Iran from war and poverty in their homeland. Iran says about 2.5 million Afghan migrants, both legal and undocumented, live there. Facing its own economic problems worsened by international sanctions, Iran has at times tried to send Afghans home. Last month, Afghan officials said Iranian border guards killed 45 Afghan migrant workers by forcing them at gunpoint into a mountain torrent on the border. At the time, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi issued a statement saying only that the incident in question had taken place on Afghan soil. Iranian embassy officials in Afghan capital, Kabul were not immediately available for comment on the latest incident.

Russia Calls on Israel to Drop Annexation Plans
Tel Aviv - Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 6 June, 2020
Russia has joined other friends of Israel in calling on it to go back on its plans to annex parts of the West Bank.
First secretary at the Russian embassy in Tel Aviv said the unilateral plans worry Moscow because they contradict with international law.
“Moscow has informed Israeli officials during several meetings held in recent weeks that the annexation will make Palestinian regions unlivable” in an independent state according to the 1976 borders, he added.
The United States’ so-called Deal of the Century peace proposal cannot eliminate the United Nations resolutions that designates the framework of the peace process, he stressed. He described Israeli-Russian relations as “excellent”, adding that dialogue between the two parties was ongoing at the highest levels.
Diplomatic sources in Tel Aviv had revealed that friends of Israel in the European Union who had stood against taking punitive measures against it should it go ahead with annexation, said they have advised the Israeli government to halt its plans because they threaten to escalate tensions in Mediterranean and southern European nations. They revealed that they have so far succeeded in thwarting efforts by Ireland, Luxembourg and others to impose economic sanctions against Israel. Sanctions must be the last resort, they explained.
Israeli media reported that four European leaders had recently warned Tel Aviv against annexation. They are French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.
Macron was reported as advising Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against taking “unilateral decisions,” warning that such moves would destabilize the Middle East. Dialogue lies with the Palestinians alone and the fair and balanced solution will grant Israelis peace, security and stability.
The annexation is creating deep divisions within Israel itself as Netanyahu has been vague about his plans. His new Defense Minister Benny Gantz has reportedly complained of his actions.
Political sources have wondered about what the PM’s annexation entails, is it the entire West Bank or just part of it? Does it include the Jordan Valley? What about the Israeli settlements? Will he coordinate with the Palestinians as Gantz has been demanding? Gantz had gone so far as to meet with US Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, to inquire about the plans.

Turkish Army Preparing for Military Operation in Idlib
Ankara - Saeed Abdulrazek/Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 6 June, 2020
Turkey is reportedly preparing to launch a military attack in the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib, at a time when Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and senior Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) officers inspected the military units operating near the Syrian border. Akar arrived in the southeastern province of Sanliurfa, accompanied by Chief of Staff Gen. Yasar Guler, Commander of Land Forces Gen. Umit Dundar, Chief of Air Staff Gen. Hasan Kucukaktuz and Commander of Naval Forces Admiral Adnan Ozbal. The Turkish officers inspected the military units along the Syrian border, and they also held online and face-to-face meetings with the commanders of the units. The Yeni Safak newspaper, which is close to the Turkish government, said Friday that Turkish forces continue to enhance their positions in Idlib as part of Operation Spring Shield, which started last February following the killing of 33 Turkish soldiers in airstrikes launched by the Syrian regime.
It said that while the Turkish Defense Ministry has not issued any official statement to announce the end of the Operation, Turkish forces were seen deploying in Idlib their most sophisticated air defense systems.
Late last month, the Turkish army deployed US-made medium-range surface-to-air MIM-23 Hawk missiles in al-Mastoumah camp, which is located five kilometers south of Idlib city. The newspaper said the Turkish forces are in full alert and ready to confront any attack launched by the regime of Bashar Assad.
“The Turkish army is enhancing its military positions north of the Aleppo-Latakia highway (M4) and the Aleppo-Damascus highway (M5),” the newspaper said.
It quoted military expert Turan Oguz as saying that since a ceasefire was agreed in Idlib on March 6, Turkey has sent 4,000 military vehicles and more than 10,000 soldiers to the area. “This is a large number and it shows that Ankara continues to enhance its positions and does not rely on the ceasefire agreement, reached with Moscow last March,” Oguz said. He said the defense system that Turkey sent to Idlib should deter the Syrian regime against a possible attack.

Air, Land Bridge to Transport Syrian Fighters from Turkey to Libya
Ankara - Saeed Abdulrazek/Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 6 June, 2020
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan confirmed for the first time in February that Ankara has sent allied Syrian fighters to Libya alongside its own training teams to bolster the militias backing the Government of National Accord in Tripoli.
"Turkey is there with a training force. There are also people from the Syrian National Army," Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul.
A security and military Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the GNA and Turkey in November last year includes bilateral cooperation in the military and security fields.
It includes clauses on military training, counter-terrorism and illegal migration.
Italy’s Itamilradar, which specializes in monitoring military aircraft movements over Italy and the Mediterranean Sea, has tracked warplanes and ships heading from Turkey to Libya. Its coordinates have shown that Ankara has secured an “air bridge” to transport weapons and fighters to Tripoli and Misrata.
In the past two weeks alone, 11 military cargo planes were detected heading from Istanbul and Konya to both cities in Libya and returning back to Turkey.
The Turkish Defense Ministry in late February claimed carrying out maneuvers in the Mediterranean Sea after reports about the transfer of weapons and fighters to Libya in military and commercial warships backed by Turkey.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has also repeatedly said that more than 10,000 Syrian mercenaries have arrived in Libya to fight alongside the GNA’s forces. Although Turkey claims that its forces are only providing consultations to the GNA, Erdogan has used the excuse of foreign fighters backing the Libyan the National Army (LNA) to send Syrian mercenaries to Libya. In February, he accused Russia of sending 2,500 mercenaries from the Kremlin-linked Wagner group. There are an additional 15,000 fighters from Sudan, Chad and other countries, said Erdogan.

Syrian Fighter to Asharq Al-Awsat: Yes, I am a Mercenary and I Fought in Libya
Gaziantep – Kamal Sheikho/ Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 6 June, 2020
“Yes, I am a mercenary in every meaning of the world. Whoever says otherwise is lying to himself.” This is how a prominent military official, who fought among the ranks of Syrian fighters in Libya, chose to describe himself.
A native of the Aleppo countryside in northwestern Syria, he identified himself as A.M. He recalled how he was just a regular vegetable vendor when the Syrian conflict erupted in 2011. When the unrest spread to his hometown in late 2012, he joined a military faction of the Free Syrian Army and fought against regime forces in several battles in Idlib and Aleppo cities and their countrysides.
When the fighting stopped, so did the fighters’ income. “A fighter earned only 100 Turkish liras. We lived in poverty and could barely afford food,” he said. A telephone call in February, however, would change his life. His close friend revealed to him that registration was open for fighting in Libya. A.M. promptly headed to Syria’s Afrin, had his personal details registered and was transferred within days, earning a salary of 2,000 dollars.
A.M., who is in his 40s, was among the first batch of Syrian fighters who were transported to Libya. They initially amounted to 150 and were overseen by the Turkish military. They were transferred by land from Afrin to Turkey’s Gaziantep and then by air to Istanbul airport where they boarded a Libyan Airlines plane and were flown to Misrata city, which is held by the Government of National Accord.
There, the Syrians were transferred to the frontlines, but kept separate from the pro-GNA forces. A.M. said that he fought for a month before being promoted. He was asked to recruit more Syrians. He returned to Syria about a month ago and began promoting fighting in Libya. Throughout his interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, he kept on receiving messages via WhatsApp from Syrians wanting to fight.
“Every week, two flights, carrying 60 fighters each, travel to Libya,” he revealed, saying that most of the fighters have past battle experience. “The door for recruitment is open.”
A regular fighter earns a salary of 2,000 dollars, while the commander of a unit earns 4,000 dollars. Rising up the ranks, fighters can get paid as much as 30,000 dollars. The families of those killed in battle receive 60,000 dollars in compensation.
“These are unofficial numbers as there are no contracts to verify them,” said A.M. “The fighter has to assume responsibility for his decision and everyone knows that he is a mercenary and will be drafted to proxy wars.”
Some 100 Syrian mercenaries have been captured by the Libyan National Army, commanded by Khalifa Haftar, that is fighting the GNA. Some 300 Syrians have been killed in the conflict.
Asharq Al-Awsat contacted through WhatsApp the relatives of fighters who were killed in Libya. The majority hail from the provinces of Idlib and Homs and Ghouta near Damascus.
S.H. is a widow of mercenary who was killed in Libya some two weeks ago. All that remains of his memory is a family photo that she shot before he traveled. He left behind three children.
The widow, in her 30s, recalled how three months ago her husband, 37, telephoned her late at night to inform her that he was traveling to Libya to fight. He had picked up arms during the beginning of the Syrian conflict and remained a fighter until his death. She struggled with her anger as she recalled the telephone call that informed her of his death: “I told him don’t go. We have children who deserve to live a dignified life. Leave this dirty war.”

Al-Qaeda’s North Africa Commander Killed in Mali, Says France
Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 6 June, 2020
Paris announced on Friday that Abdelmalek Droukdel, the leader of al-Qaeda’s North Africa affiliate, was killed in northern Mali by French forces and their partners. There was no immediate confirmation of his death from al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, known as AQIM, which has made millions of dollars abducting foreigners for ransom over the years and made large swaths of West Africa too dangerous for aid groups to access.
French Defense Minister Florence Parly tweeted that Droukdel and several of his allies were killed Wednesday, in what would be a major victory for France after years of battling extremists in the Sahel.
Droukdel was not immediately clear how his identity was confirmed by the French.
His reported death comes after French President Emmanuel Macron and the leaders of the G5 Sahel group -- Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad -- launched a new plan in January to fight extremists in the area. France deployed 600 additional soldiers to its Barkhane force, raising the number of troops there to 5,100. In a March video released by the extremist monitoring group SITE, Droukdel urged governments of the Sahel region to try to end the French military presence, calling the troops “armies of occupation.”
It was not clear how long Droukdel had been in Mali, Algeria’s southern neighbor. For years he was thought to be holed up in the Kabyle region east of the capital of his native Algeria. He was widely seen as the symbolic leader of al-Qaeda’s North African branch, whose operational center for attacks shifted to northern Mali over the past decade. That led to the French military invasion of the region in 2013 seeking to counter extremist designs on southern Mali and the capital, Bamako.
Droukdel made his reputation as a feared extremist leader in Algeria, which beginning in the early 1990s was convulsed by violence in what the nation now calls the “black decade.” He was sentenced to death in Algeria in 2013 for his involvement in the bombings of a government building and offices of the UN's refugee committee in Algiers that killed 26 people and wounded 177.
According to the UN, Droukdel was an explosives expert and manufactured devices that killed hundreds of civilians in attacks on public places.
A source told AFP that some 500 extremist fighters had been killed or captured by French troops in the region in recent months, among them several leading figures including commanders and recruiters.
Droukdel's death is a symbolic coup for the French, a military source said.
He had remained a threat in the region, capable of financing extremist movements, even though his leadership had been contested, the source added.
His death, and that of other al-Qaeda figures, could leave the group disorganized in the Sahel. Born in 1971 in a poor neighborhood of Algiers, Droukdel took part in the founding in Algeria of the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC).
Abdelaziz Bouteflika, elected Algerian president in 1999, managed to convince most of the armed groups in the country to lay down their weapons.
The GSPC, however, refused to do so and Droukdel decided to approach al-Qaeda. Parly identified him as a member of al-Qaeda’s “management committee.” Related anti-terrorist operations in the region also led to the arrest May 19 of a major figure in the ISIS in the Greater Sahara, Mohamed el Mrabat, she said. She said the operations dealt a “severe blow” to terrorist groups in the region that have been operating for years despite the presence of thousands of French, UN and other African troops.

Iranians call out Khamenei’s hypocrisy after speech on US protests
Yaghoub Fazeli, Al Arabiya English/Saturday 06 June 2020
Iranians have launched a hashtag in recent days against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after he attacked the US government for the police killing of George Floyd, reminding him of the Iranians killed under the current regime over the years.
“In dealing with its people, the US government has behaved in the worst manner,” Khamenei said in a televised speech on Wednesday, marking the 31st anniversary of the death of former supreme leader and founder of the Islamic Republic Ayatollah Rouhollah Khomeini.
The manner in which Floyd was killed “is nothing new … it is the nature of the US system,” he said. “They kill people, yet they are long-tongued.” Iranians have been using this same quote as a hashtag in recent days against Khamenei to call out what they consider his “hypocrisy,” and remind him of the Iranians killed over the past four decades under the current regime. Thousands of Iranian users on Twitter and Instagram have been posting the images and names of victims from Iran’s 2019, 2017 and 2009 protests, as well as the victims of the mass executions of political prisoners in the late 1980s, the serial killings of dissidents in the 1990s, and the victims of the Ukrainian passenger plane shot down by the Iranian military over Tehran in January.They argue that Khamenei is not in a position to speak against state violence in other countries given the regime’s track record of violence against its own citizens.
“Sina Ghanbari and dozens of others in 2017, Ebrahim Ketabdar and 1,500 others in 2019. They kill the defenseless people yet they are long-tongued,” tweeted one user. 2/2 killed ~1500 protesters in Nov 2019 and downed a commercial plane with 176 passengers & crew in Jan 2020. “The leader of the biggest pro-terrorism regime says, ‘they kill people, yet they are long-tongued.’ He has a point. Like him, you should kill people and then act like a bully. Like him, you should shoot down a passenger plane and then demand ransom from the world. You should kill 1,500 people over three days. Like him, you should be shameless,” tweeted another user. Reuters reported in December that Khamenei personally ordered the crackdown on protesters last November, resulting in about 1,500 deaths during less than two weeks of unrest that started on November 15. Mohammad Agha-soltan, the brother of Neda Agha-soltan, a young Iranian woman who was shot dead by security forces during the 2009 election protests, also tweeted an image of his slain sister, using Khamenei’s quote as a caption. Agha-soltan is one of the symbols of Iran’s 2009 protests.
Families of regime victims in Iran are often threatened to stay silent, and the perpetrators are never punished.

Israelis protest against occupied West Bank annexation plan
AFP/Saturday 06 June 2020
Thousands of Israelis rallied in Tel Aviv Saturday night against the government’s plans to annex parts of the occupied West Bank, an AFP reporter said. Demonstrators waved Israeli and Palestinians flags and held placards against the occupation of the West Bank and the possible annexation of parts of it, in a rally organized by leftwing NGOs and political parties. US President Donald Trump’s controversial Middle East plan, unveiled early this year, gives Israel the green light to annex Jewish settlements and other strategic territory in the West Bank. As part of a recent agreement to form a coalition government with Benny Gantz, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can submit the Trump plan to his cabinet and to parliament as early as July 1, for possible endorsement. The plan also envisions the creation of a Palestinian state, but on reduced territory and without meeting the key Palestinian demand of having its capital in east Jerusalem. The Palestinians have rejected the plan outright. One demonstrator called for more solidarity between Palestinians and Israelis. “We have done so much damage to each other, the Palestinians and the Jewish” people, Anat Schrieber told AFP. “We are brothers -- we belong here, both of us, we can do so much more together than separately.”Another rally attendee, identifying herself as Eden, called for “justice to Palestinians and peace to both people, Israelis and Palestinians.” “In an apartheid reality there cannot be peace for us or them, nor can there be justice.”An annexation of the territories would violate international law and likely inflame tensions in the volatile region. “I am afraid of the annexation plan,” Eden said. “I think it will lead to riots and even war.” The plan “will not achieve anything... (and) has no connection to peace,” she contended.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on June 06-07/2020
A Reminder that the Qatar Crisis Has Entered its 4th Year
Salman Al-Dossary/Asharq Al-Awsat/June 06/ 2020
In its first year, the Qatar crisis used to be measured in months. During its second year, it began to be measured in years. Now, after three years of boycott, the years go by and no one blinks an eye – except of course, the boycotted country, whose crisis grows worse the longer it goes on.
Whose airspace has been shut? Qatar. Who does not enjoy land borders? Qatar. Who searched the globe for solutions? Qatar. Who is desperately searching for one mediation after another? Qatar. Whose media has nothing else to report but on its rivals? Qatar. Who allied itself with the worst allies in the world, Iran and Turkey? Also, Qatar.
Today, the Qatar crisis enters is fourth year. It has been largely forgotten except by the side that is worst affected by the boycott, which has threatened its deceptions and isolated it from its surroundings. Every year and every month and every hour, Qatar claims that has become stronger than it was before June 5, 2017. Its diplomatic and media strategies are based on this policy, which it has been largely promoting internally and externally, while at the same time desperately searching for regional and international mediations to return matters back on course.
Therein lies the contradiction, for whoever has grown stronger after the boycott cannot go back to the time when it was “weaker.” How can someone who is committed to the “independence of its political decision-making in confronting hegemony” surrender to Ankara and Tehran and allow them to manipulate it as they choose? How can someone who rejected dictates on its foreign policy and meddling in its internal affairs deign for his country to become an open arena for Turkish soldiers?
The boycott revealed a bitter truth, which Doha knew before everyone else: Qatar was blessed by having such neighbors and used to make its decisions independently. But now, it has come under the political hegemony of its new allies.
What saddens Qatar is not the isolation it has been enduring for three years, but its inability to practice its old reliable policies of exploiting its special relations with its neighbors to support terrorist groups and their efforts to destabilize the region. It does still play this role to an extent, but it has lost the golden link that tied Doha to Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, Cairo and Manama. Qatar can no more go back to being a normal state for itself and its neighbors than it can adjust to its new status as an isolated state that is being controlled by the Turks and Persians. It is Qatar’s extremist creed that has landed it in this major crisis that grows bigger the longer its isolation persists. The emergence of new recordings of its former Emir and prime minister offer new evidence of the hostile policy adopted by the Doha regime for several years.
Day after day, the decision to boycott Qatar appears to not only be the right move, but actually one that had should have been taken sooner given that it was the consequence of years of Qatari conspiracies and meddling that targeted the destabilization of neighbors and provided support to their enemies. Doha had gone so far as to attempt a coup against the legitimate rule in Bahrain.
Three years of the boycott against Qatar passed by normally in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE and Bahrain, but they seemed like a lifetime for Doha. Qatar’s arrogance has not helped it, but it has only led to more political, economic and social losses. It confirmed its suffering itself with its desperate pursuit of mediations. Its sole obsession throughout the 1,096 days of the boycott has been ending its isolation. Is that a sign that it has grown stronger?!

Killing Free Speech in Switzerland
Judith Bergman/Gatestone Institute/June 06/2020
ECRI's monitoring of Switzerland, since its first report about the country was published in 1998, is an illustrative example of the organization's persistent efforts -- and considerable success -- over the past two decades in limiting free speech in Europe.
Already in its first report on Switzerland, in 1998, ECRI -- despite admitting that "a decrease in manifestations of racism and intolerance has been noted over the last 2-3 years" and that "overt manifestations of [racial prejudices and xenophobia] are rather rare," told the Swiss media to promote specific narratives...
"ECRI is concerned that a climate of intolerance or xenophobia towards non-citizens and those who are different from the native Swiss population appears to persist". No substantial documentation was offered as basis for the allegation -- ECRI even criticized in the same report that "little information is systematically collected in Switzerland regarding the extent of racism and discrimination" -- but none seemed to be needed, as ECRI's motivation appeared to be political...
Throughout the years, ECRI has stressed the media's central role in promoting specific, politicized agendas.
The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) recently published its sixth monitoring report on Switzerland.
ECRI is the human rights monitoring body of the Council of Europe -- not to be confused with the European Union. The Council of Europe calls itself the "continent's leading human rights organization."
ECRI was founded in 1994 by the heads of state of the Council of Europe with the mandate, among other things, to "review member States' legislation, policies and other measures to combat racism, xenophobia, antisemitism and intolerance, and their effectiveness".
The organization is composed of "members designated by their governments... on the basis of their in-depth knowledge in the field of combating intolerance". They should have ... expertise in dealing with racism... and intolerance. ECRI's members are nominated in their personal capacity and act as independent members".
ECRI's monitoring of Switzerland, since its first report about the country was published in 1998, is an illustrative example of the organization's persistent efforts -- and considerable success -- over the past two decades in limiting free speech in Europe. Already in its first report, in 1998, ECRI, despite admitting that "a decrease in manifestations of racism and intolerance has been noted over the last 2-3 years" and that "overt manifestations of [racial prejudice and xenophobia] are rather rare," told the Swiss media to promote specific narratives:
"It would seem necessary to make the mass media in Switzerland aware of their responsibilities concerning the problems of racism and intolerance ...initiatives for combating racism and intolerance by the mass media (eg by presenting some positive cases of a fruitful co-existence between different groups)... are to be encouraged....Codes of conduct in the various media professions, whereby the media practices self-regulation, would seem most desirable".
Two years later, in its second report on the country, the organization still conceded that, "open manifestations of racism are quite rare in Switzerland." Nevertheless, ECRI was "concerned that a climate of intolerance or xenophobia towards non-citizens and those who are different from the native Swiss population appears to persist". No substantial documentation was offered as basis for the allegation -- ECRI even criticized in the same report that "little information is systematically collected in Switzerland regarding the extent of racism and discrimination" -- but none seemed to be needed, as ECRI's motivation appeared to be political:
"There still seems to lack [sic] an acceptance of Switzerland as a truly multi-cultural society whose members may feel a sense of Swiss identity alongside another cultural or ethnic identity".
Throughout the years, ECRI has stressed the media's central role in promoting specific, politicized agendas. In 2009, in its fourth report, the organization called for the introduction of what is by now a prevalent European practice, especially in Sweden, of not mentioning the ethnic origins of criminals:
"A widespread and recurring problem in the Swiss media is the practice of mentioning the origin of a person suspected or convicted of a criminal offence even when this information is irrelevant. With a concern for transparency, the police admittedly give the media 'objective' information on suspects, including their age and nationality, which the media pass on without always questioning its relevance. In some cases, however, this approach seems much harder to justify..."
By 2014, the concept of "hate speech" had found its way into ECRI's fifth country report on Switzerland:
"Muslims, Black people, the Yenish and the Roma perceive a considerable deterioration of their situation and of the political climate. Refugees, cross-border workers and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) persons are also the targets of hate speech. In particular, the Democratic Union of the Centre (UDC) party, which remains the largest at federal level (scoring 26.6% of the vote in 2011), has continued to use extremely intolerant images and language..."
In the same report, the organization also addressed what it saw as insufficient judicial crackdowns on hate speech:
"ECRI considers that the authorities, in particular the prosecution services, should adopt a zero tolerance attitude in respect of all racist statements by politicians... The more freedom politicians are given to make racist statements with impunity, the fewer scruples members of the general public will have about making racist comments..."
Once again, ECRI focused on the media:
"ECRI recommends that the Swiss authorities develop an action plan in close cooperation with media representatives...to tackle the established routines ... that can lead media coverage... to have a stigmatising effect on vulnerable groups, in particular Roma and people of colour..."
The organization, however, noted with satisfaction that its earlier recommendations had been followed:
"ECRI is pleased to note that a number of online newspapers have adopted self-regulatory measures, such as more systematic moderation of comments, abolition of anonymity for posters and the automatic closure of the accounts of persons who resort to racist discourse".
On the other hand, ECRI was unhappy that "the follow-up given by the authorities to complaints concerning racist comments on the Internet was still inadequate". It recommended that "the Swiss authorities give one or more police units... responsibility for actively combating hate speech on the Internet..."
ECRI's curious battle to limit free speech, especially that of the media, continues. In its sixth and most recent country report on Switzerland, ECRI berated the media for focusing too much on news items such as the construction of minarets or radicalization, deeming it "intolerant discourse against Muslims":
"ECRI... notes a sharp rise in intolerant discourse against Muslims particularly in the media. This is believed to be linked to legislation or legislative proposals that affect Muslims in particular... a study which was carried out by the University of Zurich from 2014-2017 on the quality of media coverage of Swiss Muslims in 18 print media outlets... noted that 25% of articles concerned religious symbols in the public space (such as the construction of minarets or wearing the headscarf or Burqa) and 21% concerned radicalisation, while only 2% reported on the daily life of Muslims and 2% covered successful integration... The reporting predominantly condemned a lack of will to integrate and a tendency to radicalisation among Muslims and called for more controls and sanctions. Another study ...showed that 85% of Muslim respondents experienced the representation of Islam in the media as rather or very negative. Further, 88% were particularly clear on the responsibility of the media for the deteriorated attitude of non-Muslims towards Muslims".
The organization said that:
"... states should raise awareness of the dangers posed by hate speech... by combating misinformation, negative stereotyping and stigmatisation; developing educational programmes for children and youth, public officials and the general public; supporting NGOs and equality bodies working to combat hate speech; and encouraging speedy reactions by public figures to hate speech".
The organization emphasized self-regulation as the "appropriate" approach to "tackling hate speech" especially through the application of "codes of conduct", and even regulation in some cases, which they believe should apply to both politicians and the media:
"ECRI considers that the use of self-regulation can be an appropriate and effective approach to tackling hate speech.... parliaments, political parties, business organisations, cultural and sport associations... should make it clear that the use of hate speech...is unacceptable and take action to prevent and sanction such use. ECRI specifically stresses the importance of codes of conduct in self-regulatory schemes...political leaders and members of parliament should... adopt relevant codes of conduct. Regarding the media and Internet, where the vast majority of hate speech is generated... ECRI recommends both regulation and self-regulation...
ECRI noted that Swiss journalists already have a code in place that states that they "must avoid any allusion by text, image or sound to a person's ethnic or national origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation as well as to any illness or physical or mental handicap that could be discriminatory in character."
As for the Internet, ECRI noted that Swiss authorities had informed the organization that they were "seeking cooperation with relevant Internet service providers to improve the identification of authors of hate speech and to have such content removed as quickly as possible..."
ECRI has done a good job helping Europeans kill free speech.
*Judith Bergman, a columnist, lawyer and political analyst, is a Distinguished Senior Fellow at Gatestone Institute.
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The US is stronger with allies than without
Cornelia Meyer/Arab News/June 06/ 2020
Amid the coronavirus pandemic and the George Floyd protests spreading from Minnesota to the world, a significant move by Donald Trump last week went almost unnoticed. The president ordered the Pentagon to withdraw 9,500 US troops from Germany, reducing the number to 25,000.
Germany is one of the most significant and loyal US allies. It is home to the US airbase in Ramstein and the US army hospital at Landstuhl, both important in the battle against Daesh in Iraq and Syria and US operations in Afghanistan.
While the troop withdrawal must be approved by the Department of Defense, it has been a long time coming. Trump wants NATO member countries to spend 4 percent of GDP on defense. NATO agreements ask for 2 percent by 2024. Current US spending is about 3.4 percent. The UK, Greece, Poland, Romania, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania already meet the 2 percent benchmark. Others are laggards. France spends 1.84 percent, Canada 1.55 percent and Germany only 1.38 percent.
Germany has raised its defense spending significantly, but it also aims for a balanced budget; Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer has committed Berlin to spending 1.5 percent of GDP by 2024, and to reach the 2 percent mark only by 2031 —significantly short of its NATO requirement.
The coronavirus pandemic has put a strain on budgets in all countries, and many will fall behind in their NATO obligations. To Germany’s credit, last week’s 130 billion euro stimulus package contains 10 billion euros for investment in digital, security and defense projects.
It is significant when the US withdraws more than a quarter of its troops from the soil of one of its oldest allies, apparently without bothering to consult Chancellor Angela Merkel, but Trump’s issues with NATO are nothing new. He is skeptical of all multilateral frameworks, and withdrew from the Paris accord on climate change and the World Health Organization, to name only two. He had harsh things to say about NATO when he first came into office, but changed his tune before the alliance’s 70th anniversary, stepping to its defense when French President Emmanuel Macron called NATO brain dead.
On this occasion, Trump may have been displeased with Merkel’s rejection of his invitation to attend the G7 summit at Camp David in June (now postponed to September), to which he intends inviting other countries including Russia.
It is significant when the US withdraws more than a quarter of its troops from the soil of one of its oldest allies, apparently without bothering to consult Chancellor Angela Merkel, but Trump’s issues with NATO are nothing new.
Many NATO allies will be wary of that wish, because they fear the Kremlin’s increasingly belligerent posture toward Europe. They also do not want to be drawn into the growing tensions between the US and China. China is an important trading partner for Europe — especially Germany. Italy even became a formal partner in Beijing’s Belt and Road” initiative. The UK, admittedly, shows signs of taking a tougher line with China, because of Beijing’s controversial new security law for the former British colony of Hong Kong.
What made the US strong in the world was its economic and military might, but what differentiated it from other superpowers was the strength of its alliances and its soft power. The US led not just because it was a rich and powerful country; Washington also derived legitimacy because it was a reliable ally with a mostly consultative approach, open to discussions within reason.
There is a new sheriff in town in Washington, and his modus operandi is different. However, as the US founding father Benjamin Franklin observed, you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. That may be something for the US to contemplate when dealing with allies, since it is so much stronger and powerful with them than without them.
*Cornelia Meyer is a business consultant, macro-economist and energy expert. Twitter: @MeyerResources

Make no mistake, the Taliban are still in bed with Al-Qaeda
Michael Kugelman/Arab News/June 06/ 2020
One of the major findings of a new UN report on militant groups in Afghanistan is that the Taliban and Al-Qaeda are cooperating closely.
This is no surprise; the Taliban once sheltered Osama bin Laden and other top Al-Qaeda figures, and has long been close to the group. Since 2001, the Taliban leadership has conferred often with Al-Qaeda officials, for example on joint operations against NATO troops in Afghanistan. A West Point study in 2011 said the Haqqani network, a particularly powerful and brutal faction of the Taliban, functioned with Al-Qaeda “as an interdependent system.”
However, what makes the UN report significant is that the US government signed an agreement with the Taliban inFebruary that obliges the militants to deny space to international terror groups. Al-Qaeda, in fact, is the only terror group the agreement mentions by name. The Taliban, the agreement reads, will “prevent any group or individual, including Al-Qaeda, from using the soil of Afghanistan to threaten the security of the US and its allies.”
Under the agreement, the Taliban must tell its members not to cooperate with such groups, and prevent them from “recruiting, training, and fundraising.” More broadly, the agreement says the Taliban will not host such groups.
Nevertheless, the UN report concludes that Al-Qaeda has up to 600 fighters active across a dozen provinces and manages training camps in eastern Afghanistan. It also chronicles recent communications between Taliban and Al-Qaeda officials— including a meeting between Taliban representatives and Ayman Al-Zawahiri, the leader of Al-Qaeda, a few days before the Taliban signed its deal with America. But perhaps the most damaging revelation in the study is that the Taliban regularly consulted Al-Qaeda during its talks with America and “offered guarantees that it would honor their historical ties.” The Taliban, according to the report, has also promised a continued haven to Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan.
One of the major findings of a new UN report on militant groups in Afghanistan is that the Taliban and Al-Qaeda are cooperating closely.
In effect, the UN’s findings strongly suggest that the Taliban is violating its agreement with America. All the more troubling is that the agreement doesn’t ask much of them; it requires the insurgents to begin a dialogue with the Afghan state, which the Taliban has pledged to do once the Afghan government has concluded a prisoner release arrangement. The other stipulation is the one on counterterrorism. Once the Taliban has demonstrated it is addressing these two demands, the US will withdraw its remaining troops by the end of April 2021.
Theoretically, the UN report could jeopardize a US-Taliban deal that was meant to pave the way for long-awaited peace talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government. Washington badly wants these talks to start as it accelerates its troop withdrawals.
Not surprisingly, US officials — especially when there is fresh momentum for peace talks after the Eid cease-fire — have offered little public reaction to the report. Zalmay Khalilzad, the US special envoy for Afghanistan reconciliation, noted that the study relied on data collected until March 15, only two weeks after the deal was signed. And yet the report offers little reason to believe that Taliban/Al-Qaeda cooperation has abruptly ended in the weeks since then.
Additionally, the US-Taliban agreement has secret annexes that may well offer additional information on the Taliban’s counterterrorism obligations — and any such obligations may well be more lenient than those in the agreement’s public document. With the Trump administration moving full speed ahead toward the exits in Afghanistan — the president wants to have all troops home by election day in November — it is unrealistic to expect Washington to halt its troop withdrawals simply because of a single UN report.
However, at the very least, Washington owes it to the Afghan people — and to the US soldiers who first went toAfghanistan nearly two decades ago to eliminate Al-Qaeda — to redouble efforts to get the Taliban to abide by the counterterrorism commitments stipulated in the agreement. To that end, the US government should advise Kabul to hold off on completing its release of Taliban prisoners until the insurgents have clearly demonstrated that they are scaling back their ties to Al-Qaeda. In reality, America is destined to leave Afghanistan no matter what the Taliban/Al-Qaeda relationship looks like. But this doesn’t mean Washington should simply ignore what appears to be the Taliban’s blatant violation of its agreement with the US.
*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