LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
June 19/2019
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
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Bible Quotations For today
See that none of you repays evil for evil,
but always seek to do good to one another and to all
First Letter to the Thessalonians 05/12-28:”But we appeal to you, brothers and
sisters, to respect those who labour among you, and have charge of you in the
Lord and admonish you; esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be
at peace among yourselves. And we urge you, beloved, to admonish the idlers,
encourage the faint-hearted, help the weak, be patient with all of them. See
that none of you repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another
and to all. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all
circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not
quench the Spirit. Do not despise the words of prophets, but test everything;
hold fast to what is good; abstain from every form of evil. May the God of peace
himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept
sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls
you is faithful, and he will do this. Beloved, pray for us. Greet all the
brothers and sisters with a holy kiss. I solemnly command you by the Lord that
this letter be read to all of them. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with
you.”
Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese
& Lebanese Related News published on June 18-19/2019
Putin’s Special Envoy in Beirut to ‘Inspect’ Return of Syrian Refugees
Russia's Syria Envoy in Lebanon for Talks with Top Officials
Berri, Russian envoy discuss Syrian crisis, refugees issue
Aoun: Lebanon Advancing at a Turtle’s Pace Due to 'Political Game'
U.N. Special Coordinator Visits Army Regiments in Bekaa
Hariri Presses for Ministerial Solidarity in Parliament during Budget Discussion
Bassil Says Settlement with Hariri is 'Safety Net for Country, People'
Delegation of Saudi Shura Council arrives in Beirut
Cabinet: Hariri wants budget and McKenzie plan approved by July
Hariri receives Italian and Egyptian ambassadors
Geagea chairs meeting of 'Strong Republic' bloc
Rahi, interlocutors tackle overall situation
Jreissati after bloc meeting: We are committed to reforms, corrective path
Chidiac talks administrative affairs with Sayegh
Kataeb after politburo meeting: Mount Lebanon reconciliation is firmly rooted in
the hearts of the Lebanese
Kataeb after politburo meeting: Mount Lebanon reconciliation is firmly rooted in
the hearts of the Lebanese
Geagea Meets Hariri, Urges Aoun to 'Rein in' Bassil
Khalil Lauds 'Full Govt. Solidarity' as Fneish Hails 'Excellent Session'
Retired Servicemen to Block Key Facilities Wednesday, Vow 3-Day Escalation
Zakka Heads to US After Release
Syrian Arrested in S. Lebanon for Plotting Attacks on Religious Sites
Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports
And News published on June 18-19/2019
‘Hypocrite’ Rouhani rejects war as Iran’s drones target Saudi civilians
Rouhani: Iran will not wage war against any nation
Netanyahu: Israel-Russia-U.S. meeting in Jerusalem crucial for regional Security
Palestinians Seek Broader Rejection of US Peace Plan
Islamic Movement in Jordan Unveils Political Credentials
Palestinian Finances near Collapse as Cuts Deepen, Says Monetary Chief
Russia, China Concerned with US Deployment of More Troops to Middle East
Cyprus Optimistic EU to Deliver Tougher Stance against Turkey in Offshore Gas
Spat
Egypt, Belarus Discuss Combating Terrorism,Cooperation
Qatar, Turkey Offer Condolences over Morsi’s Death
Iraq: 'Migration' Season Towards the Opposition
US Committed to Restoring Legitimacy in Yemen
Algeria: Army Chief Vows to Fiercely Punish Corrupt Officials
Egypt's Former President Morsi Quietly Buried in Cairo
Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous
sources published
on June 18-19/2019
Venezuela: “A Mafia State”/Jiri Valenta and
Leni Friedman Valenta//Gatestone Institute/June 18/2019
China: The Perfect High-Tech Totalitarian State/Judith Bergman/Gatestone
Institute/June 18/2019
A growing number of Canadian victims of overseas terrorism, but little support
for them/Stewart Bell/Global News/June 18/2019
President Macron, Strip The Internet Companies Of Their Ill-Gotten Judicial
Immunity; Don't Sell Out For Empty Concessions/Yigal Carmon/MEMRI/June 18/2019
Saudi Twitter Poll Finds 33% In Favor Of Relations With Israel, Versus 47%
Against/MEMRI/June 18/2019
How the US Can Keep the Strait of Hormuz Open/James Stavridis/Bloomberg/June
18/2019
Analysis/Pushing Limits of Nuke Deal, Iran Willfully Plays With Fire to Score
Diplomatic Points/Zvi Bar'el/Haaretz/June 18/2019
IRGC has a different priority to Tehran government/Osama Al-Sharif Arab
News/June 18/2019
Opinion/Israeli Support for Trump Clash With Iran Willfully Ignores Danger of
Devastating Hezbollah Missile Attack/Chemi Shalev/Haaretz/June 18/2019
The Latest English LCCC Lebanese &
Lebanese Related News published on June 18-19/2019
Putin’s Special Envoy in Beirut to ‘Inspect’ Return of Syrian Refugees
Beirut - Asharq Al-Awsat/June 18/2019
A Russian delegation, headed by Alexander Lavrentiev, President Vladimir Putin's
special envoy for Syria, is expected on Tuesday to begin an official visit to
the Lebanese capital to follow up on the latest developments related to the
return of Syrian refugees to their homeland. Lavrentiev is also expected to hand
Lebanon, and later Jordan and Iraq, an invitation to participate as observers in
the upcoming round of Astana talks set for July. He is scheduled to meet with
President Michel Aoun, Speaker Nabih Berri, Prime Minister Saad Hariri and
Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil. The Russian official is set to head to Syria
after his stop in Beirut. Informed sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that Lavrentiev
will “inspect” the issue of returning refugees to Syria given that the factors
to ensure the success of the Russian initiative for their return are “not
available yet.” His visit coincides with political escalation against the
displaced and government measures to activate the labor law that has affected
Syrians working in Lebanon. Bassil’s Free Patriotic Movement has been
championing these efforts. Political sources that reject the aggressive rhetoric
against the refugees told Asharq Al-Awsat: “No party in Lebanon links the return
of refugees to the political solution in Syria. We all agree that Syrian
refugees need to return before the achievement of a political solution.”
However, the sources said that those calling for the “immediate” return of
refugees fail to take into consideration the fact that the Syrian regime has not
yet officially called on the refugees to return to their homeland. “Some
Lebanese ministers who regularly visit Damascus did not hear such a call,” the
sources added. Lebanese political sources said the Russian initiative is until
now “frozen”, pending an international push that will take shape with the
upcoming meeting between US President Donald Trump and Putin during the G20
summit in Japan later this month. Last week, Russia’s defense ministry announced
that some 900 Syrian refugees had returned to their homes from Jordan and
Lebanon in 24 hours.
Russia's Syria Envoy in Lebanon for Talks with Top
Officials
Naharnet/June 18/2019
The Russian president's special envoy for Syria Alexander Lavrentiev on Tuesday
met with Speaker Nabih Berri in Ain el-Tineh at the beginning of a two-day
official visit to Lebanon. Lavrentiev is accompanied by Russian Deputy Foreign
Minister Sergei Vershinin and a diplomatic delegation.
The National News Agency said the envoy's talks with Berri tackled “the current
developments in Lebanon and the region, especially in Syria and the issue of
refugees.”“We came today to discuss with the Speaker and with the Lebanese
leaders the situation in Syria and we can resolve this crisis, as well as its
repercussions on Lebanon and what Russia can do to alleviate the suffering of
the Syrian people,” Lavrentiev said after the talks. “The discussions with
Speaker Berri were fruitful and we tackled the issue of the displaced Syrians in
Lebanon and the need to intensify communication between Beirut and Damascus to
resolve this problem as soon as possible. We will also discuss these topics with
the President and the Premier,” the envoy added. Russian Ambassador to Lebanon
Alexander Zasypkin told NNA that Lavrentiev's visit is part of a tour of the
region involving Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria. “Of course he will tackle the
various issues pertaining to Syrian refugees, in terms of the humanitarian,
security and logistic aspects, especially that the security circumstances have
improved. The envoy is also expected to address an invitation to Lebanon to
attend the Astana III conference slated for July,” Zasypkin added. The envoy
will meet Wednesday with President Michel Aoun, Prime Minister Saad Hariri and
Foreign Minister Jebran Bassi
Berri, Russian envoy discuss Syrian crisis, refugees issue
Tue 18 Jun 2019/NNA
Speaker of the House Nabih Berri on Thursday met with the Special Envoy of the
Russian President, Alexander Lavrentiev, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, Sergey
Vershinin, and Russian Ambassador Alexander Zasypkin, with whom he discussed the
latest developments in Lebanon and the region, particularly in Syria. The
Russian presidential envoy said after the meeting "we are here today to discuss
with his Excellence and with the Lebanese leaderships the situation in Syria and
the means to resolve this crisis. We are also discussing its impacts on Lebanon
and what Russia can do to alleviate the suffering of the Syrian people."Deeming
the meeting fruitful, the Russian envoy said "we also tackled the issue of
Syrian refugees in Lebanon and the need to intensify contacts between Beirut and
Damascus to solve this problem as soon as possible." Earlier this morning, Berri
welcomed Deputy Speaker of the Hungarian House of Representatives, Istvan
Hiller, and an accompanying delegation. Talks touched on the latest
developments, bilateral relations and parliamentary cooperation between the two
countries. On a different note, Berri met the World Bank's Regional Director,
Saroj Kumar, and tackled with him the World Bank projects which have not yet
taken their course, influenced by the conditions of the Lebanese administration,
which adversely affect investment and the World Bank's contributions to Lebanon.
Separately, Berri called on the Parliament to convene in session at 11:00 am on
Wednesday, June 26.
Aoun: Lebanon Advancing at a Turtle’s Pace Due to 'Political Game'
Beirut - Thaer Abbas/Asharq Al-Awsat/June 18/2019
President Michel Aoun said the current situation in Lebanon was similar to the
Titanic, which was slowly sinking, while its passengers were dancing in its
ballrooms, unaware of the danger, until the disaster occurred. Visitors of the
Baabda Palace quoted Aoun as saying on Monday that the financial situation was
delicate, but not hopeless. “The State is suffering, not the employees,” he
said, expressing his surprise at “the amount of uproar on this subject, while
the salaries of the staff were never delayed”. Aoun questioned how - in parallel
with calls for austerity and warnings of the economic deterioration - some
voices were rising in the official sectors to demand increases in salaries and
contributions. The president also emphasized that time did not allow for the
“luxury of disputes”, underlining the need for political parties to actively
engage in the process of saving the situation. “Yes we are advancing, but our
advancement is as slow as a turtle,” he affirmed. “Much time is wasted on
marginal issues, while things would go faster if we moved to work instead of
criticizing and launching positions.” The president said he hoped the situation
would improve, but added: “This requires hard work and a clear intention to
advance.”He stressed that political blocs should refrain from inadequate
criticism and political games, saying that the Council of Ministers had the duty
to manage the country’s affairs and Parliament’s role was to issue legislations.
“The two institutions are not a place for political bickering,” he noted. As for
the wave of attacks against Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, his son-in-law and
head of the Free Patriotic Movement, the Lebanese president considered that
Bassil “was subjected to an organized campaign based on words he did not say or
which got distorted.” While Aoun expressed his hope for a promising summer
season, anticipating the arrival of many Arab tourists, he said he expected the
next phase to witness better government activity after the adoption of the 2019
state budget. “Government’s action will go in two directions; the first, the
economic plan, which should stem from the approved economic vision; and the
second, the environmental plan. They both need validation by the Council of
Ministers and the development of the relevant executive plans and would
contribute to strengthening the economic situation and improving the quality of
life of the Lebanese,” Aoun told his visitors.
U.N. Special Coordinator Visits Army Regiments in Bekaa
Naharnet/June 18/2019
U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jan Kubis on Tuesday visited the 6th
Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) Intervention Regiment and the Central Training
Center for Border Management in Riyaq in eastern Lebanon as well as a watchtower
of the 3rd Land Border Regiment and a LAF monitoring post at the eastern border.
“The visit falls in line with the follow up to the Rome II conference of March
2018 on the strengthening of Lebanese security institutions and the commitment
of the international community to supporting the build-up of capacities and
capabilities of the LAF and other security institutions,” Kubis' office said in
a statement. On the “remarkable progress on consolidation of the LAF deployment
along the Eastern border,” the Special Coordinator noted that, “with sacrifices
and determination, the LAF has been taking important strides in enhancing border
control.”“LAF achievements were demonstrated to me today by its work in
protecting and securing the eastern border, a strong marker of the extension of
the Lebanese State authority,” Kubis said. At the 6th Intervention Regiment
outpost in Suweiri, the Special Coordinator commended the “tremendous efforts”
of the Lebanese army in responding to the challenges at the border, including
smuggling activities and illegal entries of persons from Syria. “While highly
acknowledging the humanitarian approach of the LAF in handling cases of people
smuggled into Lebanon, the Special Coordinator also noted their professionalism
and firmness when dealing with illegal entries to Lebanon,” his office said. At
the Riyaq Central Training Center for Border Management, the Special Coordinator
was briefed on the different trainings taking place with a view to strengthening
security agencies’ capabilities and enhancing coordination among them in line
with the Integrated Border Management Strategy. Noting the “impressive
achievements” of the LAF so far, the Special Coordinator underlined the
importance and need of the continued and increased support both by Lebanon and
by its international partners to help the country in further strengthening its
border control and management.
Hariri Presses for Ministerial Solidarity in Parliament
during Budget Discussion
Naharnet/June 18/2019
Prime Minister Saad Hariri chaired a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday where he
highlighted Lebanon’s economic and financial concerns, urging the ministers to
show solidarity and adhesion to the decisions they agreed to in the government's
policy statement and the draft state budget. “You have all followed on the
economic and financial developments in the country which all indicate a serious
concern by the markets and investors at home and abroad. This compels us to
accelerate the pace of our decisions agreed upon in the ministerial statement,
to give indications of our seriousness and credibility in addressing this
concern and the economic and financial situation,” said Hariri. The PM warned
saying: “We can no longer walk at the same pace. We have held 19 Cabinet
sessions and detailed discussions of each item of the draft 2019 state budget. I
believe that ministerial solidarity compels us all to defend in the parliament
the decisions we have collectively taken. I do not mean that there should be no
debate in the parliament, but we must be responsible and unified with each
other,” he added. Hariri stressed the need for “accelerated” government action
to “approve the first phase of the national investment program” which secured
its $11 billion dollars funding at the CEDRE conference.”“It is imperative for
the economy to react with the launch of the program,” added the PM. “We must
then proceed directly to the preparation of the draft 2020 budget within the
constitutional deadline.”The Finance and Budget parliamentary committee held
several meetings where it discussed and reviewed the draft of the state budget
and introduced amendments to some of the articles. Hariri also said the 2019
state budget and the McKenzie economic plan should be approved by July at the
latest.
Bassil Says Settlement with Hariri is 'Safety Net for
Country, People'
Naharnet/June 18/2019
Free Patriotic Movement chief MP Jebran Bassil on Tuesday described his
movement's understanding with Prime Minister Saad Hariri and al-Mustaqbal
Movement as a “safety new for the country and the people,” in the wake of his
Monday meeting with the premier. Bassil “stressed the firmness of the
understanding with al-Mustaqbal Movement and PM Saad Hariri, because it is the
basis of the country's stability in the political, security, economic and
financial fields,” the Strong Lebanon bloc said in a statement issued after its
weekly meeting. “This understanding, like the rest of understandings, is a
safety net for the country and the people,” the bloc quoted Bassil as saying.
Strong Lebanon also underscored its commitment to “the reforms and the deficit
level included in the draft state budget.”
Delegation of Saudi Shura Council arrives in Beirut
Tue 18 Jun 2019/NNA
A delegation of the Saudi Shura Council, Saudi Arabia's Consultative Assembly,
arrived this evening at Beirut's Rafic Hariri International Airport, on a
first-time visit to Lebanon. The delegation is chaired by Saleh bin Manea Al-Khalewi.
Greeting the delegation at Beirut's Airport VIP lounge had been Head of the
Lebanese-Saudi Parliamentary Friendship Committee, Tammam Salam, and Saudi
Ambassador to Lebanon, Walid Bukhari. The Saudi delegation will meet with
President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, House Speaker, Nabih Berri,
Prime Minister Saad Hariri and Grand Mufti of the Lebanese Republic Sheikh Abdel
Latif Derian. The delagtion will also hold a meeting with Head of the
Lebanese-Saudi Parliamentary Friendship Committee, Tammam Salam.
Cabinet: Hariri wants budget and McKenzie plan approved by
July
Tue 18 Jun 2019/NNA
At the end of the meeting of the Council of Ministers this afternoon, Acting
Information Minister Mohammed Choucair read the following official information:
"The Council of Ministers held today a meeting chaired by the President of the
Council of Ministers Saad Hariri who called at the beginning of the session to
accelerate the pace of the economic and financial decisions included in the
ministerial statement to send positive signs of our seriousness and credibility
in addressing the concerns caused by the delay in implementing these
resolutions. He pointed out that we can no longer continue at the same slow pace
because we are all responsible of accelerating the pace and activating the
economic cycle.
Premier Hariri also called for ministerial solidarity in discussing the budget
in the Parliament and to abide by the decisions taken by the government during
the budget discussions in the 19 sessions held by the government. He pointed out
the necessity of approving the first phase of the Capital investment program for
which we insured a financing of $11 billion at the CEDRE conference. He said
that it is necessary for the economy to react to the launching of this program
and the expected positive effects.
The cabinet then discussed a number of items listed on its agenda and took the
appropriate decisions, most importantly:
-The request by the Prime Minister to the Minister of Economy to re-examine the
qualitative fee because there were many objections from traders, and the most
important thing is to preserve our industry and enterprises. The Minister of
Economy promised to do a study in consultation with the economic bodies in order
to submit it to the Council of Ministers as soon as possible.
- It was agreed that the 2020 draft budget would not include any increase in
spending, to stay committed to what was agreed upon in the 2019 draft budget,
and if can reduce the 2020 budget we will definitely do that and there is an
agreement not to increase spending. Premier Hariri insisted that by July the
draft budget and the McKenzie plan should have been approved.
The Council of Ministers also addressed the issue of the Lebanese University
strike, which concerns everyone. The Minister of Education informed us that
there was a progress in the negotiations and announced that Thursday will be a
normal study day at all branches of the Lebanese University because thousands of
students are graduating.
- One of the most important decisions taken by the Council of Ministers is that
no municipality can make any consensual contract starting 1-1-2020. The Council
of Ministers will reject any consensual contract after this period and set a
period of six months to take the necessary measures and prepare the books of
condition".
Question: When will the appointments be placed on the agenda of the Council of
Ministers? Why isn't there a session this week?
Choucair: We did not say that there won't be a session. Today we will know if
there will be a session on Thursday or not.
Question: Will the appointments be on its agenda?
Choucair: I have no idea.
Question: Did you discuss Lebanon's participation in Dubai 2020 exhibition?
Choucair: A decision was taken in this regard and the Lebanese government will
pay the specified amount. We allowed our Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates
to accept any grants coming from the Lebanese community.
Question: Is Lebanon going to participate?
Choucair: Lebanon will participate. It is important to participate because we
know that the Lebanese community is large and important. The United Arab
Emirates are important to us and we should be there. We will have a remarkable
presence in the exhibition.
Question: But Israel will participate
Choucair: We did not talk about this issue and I have no idea.
Question: Have you approved the issue of giving data to the security services?
Choucair: We did not reach this issue.
Hariri receives Italian and Egyptian ambassadors
Tue 18 Jun 2019/NNA
The President of the Council of Ministers Saad Hariri received this afternoon at
the Grand Serail the Italian Ambassador to Lebanon Massimo Marotti and discussed
with him the bilateral relations and the implementation of the Rome II
Conference resolutions. Hariri later met with the Egyptian Ambassador to Lebanon
Nazih Naggari, who said after the meeting: “I followed up with Prime Minister
Hariri the results of the Egyptian-Lebanese Joint Committee meetings that were
held in Beirut last May. We hope to see concrete results soon, in the framework
of the bilateral relations between the two countries especially on the economic
level.”He added: “We also discussed the regional developments and the situation
in Lebanon.”
Rahi, interlocutors tackle overall situation
Tue 18 Jun 2019/NNA
Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Bechara Boutors Rahi on Tuesday welcomed in Bkerke
the US Ambassador to Lebanon, Elizabeth Richard, where they exchanged views on a
number of issues related to Lebanon and the region. Ambassador Richard also
offered condolences on the passing away of the late former Patriarch Nasrallah
Boutros Sfeir. On the other hand, Patriarch Rahi met with former minister
Charles Rizk, with whom he discussed the overall situation. Rizk referred to the
simmering economic situation in the country, calling on the Lebanese officials
to seek solutions that will extricate the country out of this crisis. Rahi later
met with MP Farid Al Khazen with talks reportedly touching on the current
economic situation. MP Khazen hoped that the Parliament would come out with a
budget that would advance the Lebanese economy. The Lawmaker also underlined the
importance of dialogue among all sides to spare the region further tensions.
Jreissati after bloc meeting: We are committed to reforms, corrective path
Tue 18 Jun 2019/NNA
Minister Salim Jreissati announced "the commitment of the bloc to reforms and to
the corrective path in the budget, while respecting the principle of separation
of powers, as we know that the budget is a legislative instrument par
excellence."Jreissati's words came after the weekly meeting of the "Strong
Lebanon" parliamentary bloc, whereby he stressed that "the bloc values the work
of the Committee on Finance and Budget, which will not adopt populism, as
confirmed by its president." The minister pointed out that "the economic and
financial situation is difficult and we do not have the luxury of adventure. All
of us must shoulder the responsibility of rescuing the country." "The head of
the bloc, Gebran Bassil, has stressed the strength of understanding with the
Future Movement and Prime Minister Saad Hariri, because it is the basis for the
country's political, security, economic and financial stability," he added.
Chidiac talks administrative affairs with Sayegh
Tue 18 Jun 2019/NNA
Minister of State for Administrative Development Affairs, Dr. May Chidiac, on
Tuesday welcomed in her office at the Ministry head of the Civil Service Board
Judge Fatima Al-Sayegh.
Discussions reportedly touched on joint projects between both sides and a range
of administrative matters related to the file of category 1 appointments in
state institutions. Job description and public institutions' restructuring
dossiers also featured high on their talks. Both sides also took up the issue of
civil servants' performance evaluation currently implemented by Minister
Chidiac's Office.
Kataeb after politburo meeting: Mount Lebanon reconciliation is firmly rooted in
the hearts of the Lebanese
Tue 18 Jun 2019/NNA
Kataeb Party's politburo on Tuesday held its periodic meeting at the Saifi
House, under the chairmanship of Party chief MP Sami Gemayel, to broach most
recent political developments on the local arena. The meeting touched on the
outcome of the recent visit by Kataeb Party chief, Sami Gemayel, on top of a
delegation, to the Chouf district, where they met with head of the "Democratic
Gathering" MP Teymour Jumblatt and Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) leadership.
In a statement issued in the wake of the Kataeb Politburo meeting, it said the
Chouf visit aimed at strengthening the space of dialogue, stressing that
reconciliations should not be solely confined to leaders and officials, but also
to be a true and genuine act of faith in national coexistence amongst all the
Lebanese. The Phalange Party underlined the importance of Mount Lebanon
reconciliation, saying "it is firmly rooted in the hearts of the Lebanese and
constitutes the red line and the backbone of Lebanon, the modern, and the
aspiration towards a promising future for building a civilized nation, with all
its sons enjoying equal rights and duties." On the imminent visit of the Russian
delegation to Beirut to launch talks on the Syrian refugee dossier, Kataeb
called on the Lebanese government to unite its approach towards this dossier and
to devise a clear plan for a speedy return of the displaced Syrians to their
country. Kataeb Party also deprecated the current political class for being
engaged in a sharp conflict with sectarian headlines to make use of
appointments, while the country is enduring the worst economic, financial and
social crisis.
Geagea Meets Hariri, Urges Aoun to 'Rein in' Bassil
Naharnet/June 18/2019
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea held talks Tuesday evening with Prime
Minister Saad Hariri at the Center House. "We discussed the issue of the state
budget and we are coordinating our stances with al-Mustaqbal Movement to the
fullest extent," Geagea said after the meeting. "A long relation binds us with
Hariri and preserving national sovereignty is among our constant principles," he
added. Geagea had earlier in the day said that the government is “partially
paralyzed because one of its main partners is acting arbitrarily, absurdly and
without any limits,” in an apparent reference at Free Patriotic Movement chief
and Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil. “It is no longer possible to rescue the
situation without direct intervention from General (Michel) Aoun,” Geagea added.
Referring to the recent tensions between Hariri and Bassil, the LF leader noted
that the standoff was related to the administrative appointments. “The political
tension that we witnessed over the past weeks between two components of this
political majority who are at the core of the settlement was not related to
differences over creeds, principles or the way that should be endorsed to rescue
Lebanon, but rather to appointments, because once again a party of the
settlement parties is insisting to have all the Christian appointments,
disregarding the presence of other parties,” Geagea explained. “We are not
raising this issue because the LF wants a share, seeing as we consider that we
will get our share when the state approves a mechanism for appointments,” he
added.
Khalil Lauds 'Full Govt. Solidarity' as Fneish Hails
'Excellent Session'
Naharnet/June 18/2019
Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil on Tuesday lauded the government's
“solidarity” during the first Cabinet session after the Eid al-Fitr holiday..
“There was full governmental solidarity today,” Khalil, who represents the AMAL
Movement, said after the session. Sport and Youth Minister Mohammed Fneish of
Hizbullah meanwhile described the session as “excellent.”“The debate was good
and the government has resumed its activity,” he said. “The debate inside
Cabinet is positive and what's needed is to rein in the rhetoric outside
Cabinet,” Fneish added.
Retired Servicemen to Block Key Facilities Wednesday, Vow
3-Day Escalation
Naharnet/June 18/2019
A grouping of retired servicemen on Tuesday vowed a fresh round of escalation in
protest at proposed salary cuts in the 2019 draft state budget. “We are hearing
conflicting remarks from the ministers: one of them promises something before
another torpedoes the promise, which is creating a totally uncomfortable
atmosphere,” retired Brig. Gen. George Nader told MTV. “The protests will return
strongly to the streets in the coming hours and will continue for three days,”
Nader added, announcing that “Lebanon will witness the closure of public
facilities as of 6:00 am Wednesday.” He also revealed that the retirees have
lately rejected a proposal on “dropping the income tax and keeping the 3%
deduction from salary” for medical care.
Zakka Heads to US After Release
Beirut- Asharq Al-Awsat/Tuesday, 18 June, 2019/A Lebanese man and
permanent US resident released by Tehran after years in an Iranian prison has
left Lebanon for the United States, where his three sons reside. Nizar Zakka’s
office says the 52-year old information technology expert is traveling to the US
on Tuesday. Zakka was released last week and flew to his native Lebanon after
nearly four years in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison. He said Monday after a
meeting with Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil that he attributed his release “to
the Lebanese state, which has proved to be a really strong one that preserves
the rights of every Lebanese person.”Zakka was detained in Iran in September
2015 while trying to fly out of the country and subsequently sentenced to 10
years in prison on accusation of spying for the US. He vigorously rejected the
charges.
Syrian Arrested in S. Lebanon for Plotting Attacks on
Religious Sites
Beirut - Asharq Al-Awsat/Tuesday, 18 June, 2019/The Lebanese Internal Security
Forces Intelligence Bureau arrested a Syrian citizen accused of plotting
terrorist attacks targeting Christian and Shiite places of worship. In a
statement on Monday, the ISF said that Z.M., a 29-year-old Syrian living in the
southern town of Yater, had been actively promoting terrorist ideology through
social media and managed to recruit another Syrian, identified as S.B. Both were
planning to carry out attacks on religious sites in the South. Security sources
told Asharq Al-Awsat that Z.M. "had been closely monitored". Security forces
documented his contacts and movements and noted his increased enthusiasm for
terrorist acts following the attacks that rocked Sri Lanka in April. He was
arrested in early June. The investigation revealed that the man was active on
social media in spreading ISIS ideology and promoting it through the
establishment of a large number of networks and groups on a number of apps. He
was also associated with people outside Lebanon and had collaborated with them
to set up online groups that are active in spreading and promoting terrorist
ideology.
The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on June 18-19/2019
‘Hypocrite’ Rouhani rejects war as Iran’s drones target Saudi civilians
Arab News/June 18/2019
JEDDAH: Iran “will not wage war against any nation,” President Hassan Rouhani
said on Tuesday — hours after two drones launched by Iran-backed Houthi militias
in Yemen targeted civilians in southern Saudi Arabia. Rouhani's statement
sounded a note of restraint after the United States announced more troop
deployments to the Middle East. “Iran will not wage war against any nation,” he
said in a speech broadcast live on state TV. “Despite all of the Americans’
efforts in the region and their desire to cut off our ties with all of the world
and their desire to keep Iran secluded, they have been unsuccessful.” But he was
also contradicted by the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC),
Gen. Hossein Salami, who said Iran’s ballistic missile technology had changed
the balance of power in the Middle East. “These missiles can hit, with great
precision, carriers in the sea ... they are domestically produced and are
difficult to intercept and hit with other missiles,” Salami said. He said Iran's
ballistic missile technology had changed the balance of power in the Middle
East.
Rouhani: Iran will not wage war against any nation
Reuters/June 18/2019
GENEVA - Iran will not wage war against any nation, President Hassan Rouhani
said on Tuesday, a day after the United States announced the deployment of more
troops to the Middle East amid rising tensions between Tehran and Washington.
Fears of a confrontation between Iran and the United States have mounted since
attacks on two oil tankers at the entrance to the Gulf on Thursday, which
Washington has blamed on Tehran.
"Iran will not wage war against any nation," Rouhani said in a speech broadcast
live on state TV. "Those facing us are a group of politicians with little
experience." He added, "Despite all of the Americans' efforts in the region and
their desire to cut off our ties with all of the world and their desire to keep
Iran secluded, they have been unsuccessful."Acting US Defense Secretary Patrick
Shanahan announced on Monday the deployment of about 1,000 more troops to the
Middle East for what he said were defensive purposes citing concerns about a
threat from Iran.
Netanyahu: Israel-Russia-U.S. meeting in Jerusalem crucial for regional Security
Je4rusalem Post/June 18/2019
Netanyahu first proposed the idea at the Kremlin in February, during a meeting
with Russian President Vladimir Putin that dealt primarily with Iran’s presence
in Syria. Next week's meeting in Jerusalem between the national security
advisors of Israel, the US and Russia is “very important for the stability of
the Middle East during these turbulent times,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
said on Tuesday. Netanyahu, speaking at a memorial ceremony for the
victims of the Altalena, said that this tripartite meeting testifies strongly to
Israel's standing today among the nations. US National Security Adviser John
Bolton and his Russian counterpart, Nikolai Patrushev, are scheduled to arrive
early next week for talks – alongside with their Israeli counterpart Meir
Ben-Shabbat – expected to focus on Iran’s presence in Syria. A White House
statement earlier this month about the unprecedented trilateral meeting said
that the three men will “discuss regional security issues.” Iran Says It Refuses
To Wage War As U.S. Deploys More Troops To Middle East Netanyahu first proposed
the idea at the Kremlin in February, during a meeting with Russian President
Vladimir Putin that dealt primarily with Iran’s presence in Syria. At the
Altalena memorial ceremony, Netanyahu also that both openly and in secret Israel
is in contact with many leaders around the Arab world, and that “there are
extensive ties” between Israel and most of the Arab states. Sixteen Irgun
fighters and three IDF soldiers were killed when David Ben-Gurion gave the order
to fire on the Altalena Irgun arms ship in June 1948 in what has since widely
been viewed as a watershed moment in placing all the country’s weaponry under
one authority. To prevent civil war, Menachem Begin – then commander of the
Irgun – ordered his men not to retaliate.
Palestinians Seek Broader Rejection of US Peace Plan
Ramallah - Kifah Ziboun/Asharq Al-Awsat/June 18/2019
A member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization
(PLO), Saleh Raafat, said that the Palestinian leadership was working to form a
broad international and Arab front to reject the the US peace plan known as the
deal of the century.
“We have called upon all Arab countries not to meet the call of the United
States to participate in the economic workshop in Bahrain,” Raafat said in
remarks broadcast by the official Palestinian news agency. He said that efforts
also included continuous contacts with Russia and China, which have taken the
decision not to join the workshop, in addition to a number of Arab countries
that refused to participate, including Lebanon and Iraq. Raafat stressed that
contacts were underway with the People's Republic of China, Russia, South
Africa, the European Union and many other major powers and countries in order to
continue working towards a real international conference that would put in place
mechanisms for settling the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in accordance with the
resolutions of international legitimacy and international law. The US intends to
present the economic aspect of its peace plan during the two-day economic
workshop hosted by Bahrain on June 25-26. The Palestinians refused to
participate in this workshop because of their rejection of the American deal as
a whole. They said the plan was aimed at eliminating the Palestinian issue by
resolving the most delicate files, namely Jerusalem, the refugees and the
borders, in favor of the Israeli interests. They accused the United States of
supporting an Israeli plan to annex the West Bank as well.
Islamic Movement in Jordan Unveils Political Credentials
Amman - Mohammed Kheir al-Rawashida/Asharq Al-Awsat/Tuesday, 18 June, 2019
The Islamic Movement in Jordan announced on Monday its political credentials
that included moderate positions that, unlike previous stands, did not criticize
the authority of King Abdullah II. Represented by the unlicensed Muslim
Brotherhood and its political wing, the Islamic Action Front (IAF), the Movement
had in the past adopted stances that stoked tensions and crises with the state.
However, on Monday, the movement’s new document included more flexible stances
in dealing with internal reform. It also shied away from previous demands for
constitutional amendments that tackle the authority of King Abdullah. Asharq Al-Awsat
learned that the Islamic Movement had asked the Change Movement, headed by
former Prime Minister Ahmad Obeidat, to adopt the document’s ideology and to
join the group. Its request was, however, left unheeded and it decided to
release its document away from the opposition stances declared by Obeidat. On
Monday, in its reference document, the Islamic Movement departed from its
previous extremist approaches and instead, asked for securing the religious,
political, social and media freedoms of all citizens. The Movement also took a
clear position from terrorism and extremism, something it avoided in the past,
by calling on its members to adopt a moderate approach in their thoughts and
practices. “Extremism and radicalization are rejected and are condemned at the
moral and human levels,” the document said. The Islamic Movement also said it
considered the Jordanian constitution as a “very important and advanced”
document, which should be respected by everyone.
Palestinian Finances near Collapse as Cuts Deepen, Says Monetary Chief
Asharq Al-Awsat/Tuesday, 18 June, 2019
Palestinian finances are on the brink of ruin after the suspension of hundreds
of millions of dollars of US aid, the head of the Palestine Monetary Authority (PMA)
said on Tuesday. The mounting financial pressures on the Palestinians'
self-ruling entity have sent its debt soaring to $3 billion, and led to a severe
contraction in its estimated $13 billion GDP economy for the first time in
years, Azzam Shawwa told Reuters. "We are now going through a critical point,"
Shawwa said with respect to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Authority,
which exercises limited self-government in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
"What's next, we don't know. How we are going to pay salaries next month? How
are we going to finance our obligations? How will daily life continue without
liquidity in the hands of people?" said the head of the PMA, the Palestinians'
equivalent of a central bank. "I don't know where we are heading. This
uncertainty makes it difficult to plan for tomorrow," Shawwa said during a visit
to neighboring Jordan. The steep cuts in US aid over the past year were widely
seen as an attempt to pressure the Palestinian Authority (PA) back to the
negotiating table after it cut off political dealings with the Trump
administration in 2017. That move followed President Donald Trump's decision to
recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and to move the American embassy
to the city despite its internationally disputed status, reversing decades of US
policy and practice. The White House is eager for Palestinians to engage with a
long-delayed Middle East peace plan drawn up by Trump's son-in-law Jared
Kushner. The plan's economic component is due to be unveiled at a conference in
Bahrain next week, which the Palestinians are boycotting, citing pro-Israel bias
by Washington. Worsening the Palestinian Authority's plight, Shawwa said, Arab
countries had failed to honor their donor pledges, providing just $40 million a
month, which barely dented the PA's financing gap. Half of that sum came from
Saudi Arabia. The Palestinian Authority has had to increase borrowing from 14
banks to weather the crisis, Shawwa said. "Without that (borrowing) there would
have been a financial collapse. I have worries for the first time over financial
stability," Shawwa said. The once flourishing West Bank economy, which saw 3.3
percent average growth in recent years, has now gone into the red, Shawwa said.
The sudden layoff of thousands of people once dependent on US-financed projects
worsened government finances through lower tax collections and resulted in
higher defaults on bank loans from troubled firms, he added. "We are being
fought by the most important power in the world," Shawwa said, alluding to the
Trump administration. The only thing staving off a major economic crisis was
cash earned by the over 100,000 Palestinians who work in Israel, and remittances
from Palestinians working abroad. Shawwa, who has been invited to attend the
Bahrain conference, said it was difficult to see how any plan would go ahead
without willing Palestinian partners. "Is it in the interest of America to break
the Palestinian economy?" he said.
Russia, China Concerned with US Deployment of More Troops
to Middle East
Asharq Al-Awsat/Tuesday, 18 June, 2019
Russia and China expressed on Tuesday their concern with the United States’
plans to deploy more troops to the Middle East amid heightened tensions with
Iran. Russia told the United States on Tuesday to drop what it called
provocative plans to deploy more forces. Acting US Defense Secretary Patrick
Shanahan on Monday said Washington planned to send around 1,000 more troops to
the Middle East for defensive purposes. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov
told reporters that Moscow had repeatedly warned Washington and its regional
allies about what he called the “unthinking and reckless pumping up of tensions
in an explosive region.”“Now what we see are unending and sustained US attempts
to crank up political, psychological, economic and yes military pressure on Iran
in quite a provocative way. They (these actions) cannot be assessed as anything
but a conscious course to provoke war,” he was cited as saying. President Hassan
Rouhani said on Tuesday that Iran would not wage war against any nation and the
Kremlin called for restraint from all sides. China’s top diplomat warned Tuesday
that the world should not open a “Pandora’s Box” in the Middle East, while
calling on Tehran not to drop out of the 2015 nuclear deal. Speaking in Beijing,
Chinese State Councilor Wang Yi told reporters that Beijing was “of course, very
concerned” about the situation in the Gulf and with Iran, and called on all
sides to ease tension and not head towards a clash. “We call on all sides to
remain rational and exercise restraint, and not take any escalatory actions that
irritate regional tensions, and not open a Pandora’s box,” Wang said. “In
particular, the US side should alter its extreme pressure methods,” Wang said.
“Any unilateral behavior has no basis in international law. Not only will it not
resolve the problem, it will only create an even greater crisis.” Wang also said
that the Iran nuclear deal was the only feasible way to resolve its nuclear
issue, and he urged Iran to be prudent. “We understand that relevant parties may
have different concerns but first of all the comprehensive nuclear deal should
be properly implemented,” he added. “We hope that Iran is cautious with its
decision-making and not lightly abandon this agreement.” Fears of a
confrontation between Iran and the United States have mounted since last
Thursday when two oil tankers were attacked in the Gulf of Oman. The United
States blamed Iran for the attacks, more than a year after President Donald
Trump withdrew from the nuclear deal. Iran denied involvement in the tanker
attacks and said on Monday it would soon breach limits on how much enriched
uranium it can stockpile under the deal, which had sought to limit its nuclear
capabilities.
Cyprus Optimistic EU to Deliver Tougher Stance against
Turkey in Offshore Gas Spat
Asharq Al-Awsat/Tuesday, 18 June, 2019
Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades expressed on Tuesday his confidence that
the European Union would adopt a tougher stance against Turkey in an escalating
dispute over offshore oil and gas, which is also jeopardizing EU enlargement
talks. “I’m optimistic ... that the European Union will deliver stronger
messages from what they have until today, and that is our objective,”
Anastasiades told reporters in Nicosia. EU member Cyprus on Monday threatened to
block any agreement to admit new members to the European Union unless Brussels
toughens its line toward Turkey over offshore drilling in the eastern
Mediterranean. The Greek Cypriot government says the drilling violates Cyprus’s
exclusive commercial area. A Turkish drill ship has been docked west of Cyprus
since early May, effectively staking a claim to an area also claimed by Cyprus.
Cyprus and Greece say the vessel is encroaching into Cyprus's exclusive economic
zone (EEZ). Turkey says the area is on its continental shelf. Later this week, a
second Turkish vessel is due to set off for a location to the east of the
island. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said on Tuesday the European Council
should “'unreservedly condemn Turkey’s illegal actions.” Tsipras spoke by phone
with European Council President Donald Tusk on Tuesday. "The Prime Minister
stressed that the European Council should examine specific measures against
those involved in these illegal activities, if Turkey insists on violating
international law," a statement from Tsipras's office said. On Sunday, the
premier said Greece and Cyprus will push their EU partners to penalize Turkey,
including the possible option of sanctions, if Ankara is verified to have
started drilling for gas west of Cyprus. Greece is a close ally of the
government in Nicosia and also has its own decades-old disputes with neighboring
Turkey on issues relating to airspace in the Aegean Sea, and mineral rights in
the same region. Turkey and the internationally recognized Cypriot government
have overlapping claims of jurisdiction over areas around Cyprus, a region
thought to be rich in natural gas. Cyprus first discovered offshore gas reserves
in 2011, which led to other discoveries. Turkey says any natural resources
around the ethnically-split island also belong to Turkish Cypriots. They
proclaimed their own independent state in 1983, but were founding partners of
the Cypriot republic established after independence from Britain in 1960. The
east Mediterranean island was split in a Turkish invasion in 1974 triggered by a
brief coup orchestrated by the military junta then ruling Greece. Relations
between the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities have festered since 1963, when
a power-sharing agreement crumbled amid violence.
Egypt, Belarus Discuss Combating Terrorism,Cooperation
Cairo- Asharq Al-Awsat/Tuesday, 18 June, 2019
President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi kickstarted a three-day European tour which has
legs in each of Belarus and Romania. The presidential visits aim to boost
economic and commercial ties, not to mention exchange viewpoints on regional and
international topics of common concern, especially counter-terrorism efforts. In
his first destination, Sisi met with Belarus’s Prime Minister Siarhiej Rumas as
part of his official visit to Minsk and discussed bilateral ties and expanding
investment cooperation. The volume of trade exchange between the two countries
amounted to $108.7 million dollars in 2018, compared to $97 million dollars in
2017, according to data released by Egyptian authorities. Sisi is scheduled to
hold a bilateral summit with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko,
who is both the President and Speaker of Parliament. It is worth noting that
Sisi’s visit is the first of its kind and that the countries’ two foreign
ministries held five rounds of political consultations at the level of deputy
foreign ministers. According to Egyptian authorities, Sisi’s tour will include
the signing of a number of agreements in various fields of bilateral
cooperation, especially those focused on economic and investment sectors.
The Egyptian president is also slated to meet with representatives of the
Belarusian business moguls and heads of major companies to review prospects of
bilateral economic cooperation and investment opportunities available in Cairo.
The second leg of Sisi’s European tour will be Bucharest where he will meet with
the Romanian President Klaus Iohannis and heads of the two houses of the
parliament. “The president will discuss ways to enhance political and economic
relations between the two countries,” Egypt’s Presidency Spokesperson Bassam
Rady stressed.
Qatar, Turkey Offer Condolences over Morsi’s Death
Asharq Al-Awsat/Tuesday, 18 June, 2019
Qatar and Turkey offered on Monday their condolences over the death of ousted
Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi.
Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, a backer of Morsi and his Muslim
Brotherhood, tweeted his condolences to Morsi’s family “and to the brotherly
Egyptian people.”Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan mourned his fellow
Islamist as a “martyr”. “Putting doubts aside, he has become a martyr today with
the fulfilment of God’s order. ... Our prayers are with him,” Erdogan said.
“Condolences to all my brothers who walked the same path as he did. Condolences
to the people of Egypt. Condolences to his family and those close to him.” The
Palestinian movement Hamas said Morsi had “served Egypt and the (Muslim) nation
and the Palestinian cause.”Morsi died on Monday from a heart attack after
collapsing in a Cairo court while on trial on espionage charges, authorities and
a medical source said. He has since been buried in Cairo, said his son Ahmed in
a Facebook post. The 67-year-old Morsi, a top figure in the now-banned Muslim
Brotherhood, had been in jail since being toppled in 2013 after barely a year in
power, following mass protests against his rule. The public prosecutor said
Morsi had collapsed in a defendants’ cage in the courtroom shortly after
addressing the court, and was pronounced dead in hospital at 4:50 pm (1450 GMT).
It said initial checks had shown no signs of recent injury on his body. A
medical source said Morsi died of a heart attack, reported Reuters. The source
said Morsi, who was diabetic and suffered from high blood pressure, had received
medical treatment at a private hospital and at the police hospital in Cairo,
denying that he was deprived from medical attention. Morsi had been in court for
a hearing on charges of espionage emanating from suspected contacts with Hamas,
which had close ties to the Brotherhood. He was serving a 20-year prison
sentence for a conviction arising from the killing of protesters during
demonstrations in 2012 and a life sentence for espionage in a case related to
Qatar. He had denied the charges. Morsi was also accused of plotting terrorist
acts. He was sentenced to death in May 2015 for his role in jailbreaks during
the uprising that ousted his predecessor, Hosni Mubarak.
Iraq: 'Migration' Season Towards the Opposition
Baghdad- Fadhel al-Nashmi/Asharq Al-Awsat/Tuesday, 18 June, 2019
Iraq’s National Wisdom Movement led by Ammar al-Hakim officially became a member
of the political opposition in an effort to assess government performance. The
Movement, with 17 deputies in parliament, said in a statement that its political
bureau held a meeting to discuss the country's current situation in general and
the level of service and concerns of the Iraqi people in particular. The
statement announced the National Wisdom Movement’s adoption of the political,
constitutional, national, and constructive opposition and its full commitment to
its requirements and performance at the national level. On Monday, the Movement
sent a formal notice to the Iraqi Speaker asking to legally consider the
parliamentary bloc as an opposition bloc. Nasr Coalition, led by the former
Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi welcomed the Wisdom Movement’s choice, adding
that the Coalition adopted the opposition of the government three days prior to
the Movement’s announcement. It noted that the opposition needs a broad,
responsible, and effective political front. The Coalition stressed that it does
not aim to overthrow the government just for political competition, rather wants
to build a successful state. The Coalition did not explicitly announce in its
statement joining the opposing National Wisdom Movement, however, Coalition
member Khalil Mohammed Said revealed that parties may be leaning towards forming
a parliamentary opposition of at least six blocs. With that, observers believe
“migration season of political blocs to the opposition has begun, as a result of
their desire to jump off the government’s ship” after the various crises in the
country. qi Center for Political Thought Ihsan al-Shammari said that the recent
statement of Religious Reference in Najaf, which strongly criticized the
political blocs, led to the Wisdom Movement’s decision, and to a certain extent
Nasr Coalition’s. He explained that they wanted to distance themselves from the
government because it was associated with failures. Shammari told Asharq Al-Awsat
that the political opposition adopted by Wisdom Movement and Nasr Coalition was
compatible with the democratic parliamentary system in Iraq, and made a new area
for political action. For his part, member of Wisdom Movement Mohammed Housam
al-Hosseini confirmed that the adoption of the political opposition approach did
not mean leaving the administrative posts in the Iraqi state. “We are supporters
of the state and opponents of the government,” Hosseini stressed, adding that
the eight forces of the Reform Coalition welcomed and supported the idea. He
explained that the Movement was waiting for the situation to crystallize before
submitting formal requests to join the opposition. It is noteworthy that broad
Iraqi popular sectors accuse the political forces of often fighting over
official and key positions in the government and Iraqi state, while publicly
criticizing the government and blaming it alone for failure.
US Committed to Restoring Legitimacy in Yemen
Riyadh - Abdulhadi Habtor/Asharq Al-Awsat/Tuesday, 18 June, 2019
The United States and Yemen have affirmed their commitment to restoring
legitimate state institutions in the war-torn country through supporting the
peace process spearhead by the UN and according to the three references. Prime
Minister Moeen Abdulmalik said Yemen and the US enjoy a partnership and alliance
in various political, economic and military fields, as well as in combating
terrorism. He also lauded Washington’s support of Yemen’s unity, sovereignty,
territorial integrity and stability. He made his remarks during a ceremony held
in Riyadh by the newly appointed US Ambassador to Yemen, Christopher Henzel.
Abdulmalik expressed delight to see an ambassador of such diplomatic
capabilities and expertise, which would enhance Yemeni-US ties. He stressed that
the Yemeni government is committed to cooperation in order to guarantee the
success of the ambassador’s mission and to accomplish the mutual interests of
both countries. He added that since 2011, the US has backed the transition of
power to build a civil democratic state and it has supported the legitimacy
against the coup by Iran-backed Houthi militias. For his part, Henzel pledged
that guaranteeing the success of peace efforts would be his top priority. The US
is supporting Yemeni peace efforts and seeks to pave the way for a better future
for the people, he added. Henzel expressed support to the UN and its special
envoy in their mission to achieve a political reconciliation to end the
conflict. On the humanitarian level, the ambassador revealed that his country
was among Yemen’s top donors, saying that as of October 2017, it has provided
USD721 million aid that benefited around 10 million people in Yemen.
Algeria: Army Chief Vows to Fiercely Punish Corrupt
Officials
Algiers - Boualem Goumrassa/Asharq Al-Awsat/Tuesday, 18 June, 2019
Algerian army chief General Ahmed Gaid Salah vowed to cleanse the country of
anyone trying to disturb the lives of the Algerian people through corrupt
practices.
Speaking at a military facility southwest of Algeria, Salah said that the main
reason for the country's economic crisis has now become apparent, with some
officials spending the country’s funds as they please without supervision or
discipline and without any regard of the responsibility they bear. According to
observers, Salah was referring to senior officials of former President Abdelaziz
Bouteflika’s regime who are on trial over corruption cases, namely former prime
ministers Ahmed Ouyahia, Abdelmalek Sellal and former Trade Minister Amara
Benyounes. Saleh asserted that the cases in the court show that the defendants
exploited their positions to violate the law. He explained that following
illegal methods, they created useless projects that cost a lot and do not
benefit the Algerian economy. “These corrupt practices were in complete
contradiction to the content of the hypocritical speeches they used to make.”
The Chief noted that it is time to purge the country of those corrupt officials
who killed every hope in the country and instilled fear and despair among
Algerians. Regarding the presidential elections, Salah said they must be held as
soon as possible, asserting that transparency and credibility are essential
elements for a true democracy, “which unfortunately some do not believe in and
consider elections to be an option, not a necessity.” Salah's statement was in
reference to the opposition parties and activists of the popular movement who
refuse to organize the elections under the authority of Algeria's interim
president Abdelkader Bensalah. The Army Chief asserted there is no limit to the
fight corruption and the military institution will ensure this approach is
adopted to rid Algeria of such misconduct and corrupts before the upcoming
presidential elections.
Egypt's Former President Morsi Quietly Buried in Cairo
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/June 18/2019
Egypt's first democratically elected president Mohamed Morsi was buried Tuesday
as calls mounted for an independent investigation into the causes of his death
after he collapsed in a Cairo courtroom. The Islamist leader, who was overthrown
in 2013 after a year of divisive rule and later charged with espionage, was
buried at a cemetery in eastern Cairo's Medinat Nasr, one of his lawyers said.
Abdel Moneim Abdel Maksoud said family members had washed Morsi's body and
prayed the last rites early Tuesday morning at the Leeman Tora Hospital. That
lies near the prison where Egypt's first civilian president, a prominent Muslim
Brotherhood member, had been held for six years in solitary confinement and
deteriorating health. The prosecutor general's office said the 67-year-old
leader had collapsed and "died as he attended a hearing" in a retrial hearing
Monday over alleged collaboration with foreign powers and militant groups. Abdel
Maksoud told AFP only around 10 family members and close Morsi confidants were
present, including himself. An AFP reporter saw a handful of mourners entering
the cemetery complex, accompanied by police officers, but journalists were
prevented from entering the site.
The graveyard is in the same suburb as the largest massacre in Egypt's modern
history, the August 2013 crackdown on an Islamist sit-in at Rabaa Square, weeks
after Morsi's ouster by the military. Over 800 people were killed in a single
day as security forces moved against protesters calling for Morsi's
reinstatement. The attorney general's office said Morsi, who appeared
"animated", had addressed the court Monday for five minutes before falling to
the ground inside the defendants' cage. Another of Morsi's lawyers, Osama El
Helw, said other defendants had started banging loudly on the glass, "screaming
loudly that Morsi had died". The attorney general said he had been "transported
immediately to the hospital", where medics pronounced him dead, a version of
events confirmed by a judicial source.
- 'Killing him slowly' -
Since Morsi's overthrow on July 3, 2013, his former defence minister, now
President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, has waged an ongoing crackdown that has seen
thousands of Muslim Brotherhood supporters jailed and hundreds facing death
sentences. Rights groups have called for an independent probe into Morsi's
detention conditions and death. The Brotherhood's political wing -- the Freedom
and Justice Party -- accused Egyptian authorities of "deliberately killing him
slowly" in solitary confinement. "They withheld medication and gave him
disgusting food," it said in a statement. "They did not grant him the most basic
human rights."The Egyptian government has not officially commented on his death,
but private television channels slammed the Brotherhood as a "terrorist group"
and played a looping tagline: "The Brothers are liars". His death barely rated a
mention in local press, which referred to him by his full name but not his
position as former president. Morsi last saw his family in September 2018. A
month later, one of his sons, Abdallah, was arrested. Abdel Maksoud was the last
member of his defence team to see him, in November 2017. Rights group Amnesty
International urged Egyptian authorities to open "an impartial, thorough and
transparent investigation" into his death. Human Rights Watch echoed that
demand, saying Morsi had suffered years of "insufficient access to medical
care". "The United Nations Human Rights Council... should establish an
investigation into ongoing gross violations of human rights in Egypt, including
widespread ill-treatment in prisons and Morsi's death," it said.
'Premature death'
A group of British parliamentarians in March 2018 warned that his detention
conditions had not met international standards and could lead to his "premature
death". Other Brotherhood leaders have also died in custody. Allies such as
Qatar and Turkey paid tribute to Morsi, while Iran's Foreign Ministry called his
death "sad and unfortunate". Internationally he received some support, but in
his homeland, Morsi has a chequered legacy. He spent just one turbulent year in
office after the 2011 uprising, before being toppled by the military after
millions took to the streets demanding his resignation. He has been in prison
since his ouster, on trial on charges including for spying for Iran, Qatar and
militant groups such as Hamas. Morsi was also accused of plotting terrorist
acts. He was sentenced to death in May 2015 for his role in jailbreaks during
the uprising that ousted his predecessor, longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak.
Morsi's turbulent rule was marked by widening schisms in Egyptian society, a
crippling economic crisis and often-deadly opposition protests. His death comes
days before Egypt hosts the Africa Cup of Nations football tournament, starting
Friday. Authorities have been on high alert, announcing on Facebook Monday that
thousands of forces would be deployed to secure venues.
The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources
published
on June 18-19/2019
Venezuela: “A Mafia State”
/جيري فالنتا ولني فريدمان/معهد كايتستون: فنزويلا هي دولة مافيات
حزب الله يعتمد بشكل اساسي في تمويله على التهريب وتبيض اموله من وعبر فنزويلا
Jiri Valenta and Leni Friedman Valenta//Gatestone Institute/June 18/2019
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/75925/75925/
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14407/venezuela-mafia-state
To make matters worse, many of Maduro's 2,000 generals are also
heavily involved in the drug trade, aiding the very networks they are supposed
to be battling.... Meanwhile, much of the country is also controlled by "pranes,"
crime lords who run gangs from within the country's prisons.
"Illicit narco trafficking through Venezuela is up some 40 percent." — Navy
Admiral Craig Faller, head of U.S. Southern Command, The Hill, May 23, 2019.
"The administration's strategy seeks to force the estimated 15,000 Cuban
military and security personnel out of Venezuela. '[O]nce the rocks start
rolling downhill, the regime itself is unsustainable,' Bolton said." — U.S.
National Security Adviser John R. Bolton, as reported by Bill Gertz in the
Washington Free Beacon, June 17, 2019.
In addition to its armed forces, Venezuela's regime operates a parallel security
structure -- the "colectivos" trained by the Cubans and modeled on Fidel
Castro's Committee for the Defense of the Revolution. Some members of the
colectivos operate as armed motorcycle gangs that have been terrorizing and even
killing anti-Maduro protesters.
In an op-ed in the New York Times on June 11, Abraham F. Lowenthal and David
Smilde propose a humanistic vision for the current Oslo negotiations between
representatives of the regime of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and the
democratic opposition, led by Juan Guaidó -- recognized by more than 50
countries as Venezuela's interim president.
According to Lowenthal and Smilde, "The divisions within Maduro's coalition laid
bare during the failed April 30 uprising, coupled with Juan Guaidó's
unsuccessful call for the support of the armed forces, may have finally
persuaded key people on both sides that the only viable way forward is a
negotiated transition."
To support this argument, the authors provide examples of previous "negotiated
transitions" -- such as Chile in 1988 and Poland in 1989. Neither case can be
applied to Maduro's Venezuela, however, which is neither a military
dictatorship, like that of Augusto Pinochet, nor a classical Communist regime.
Venezuela -- as described in an interview with The Hill in May by Navy Admiral
Craig Faller, head of U.S. Southern Command -- is "a mafia... an illicit
business that [Maduro is] running with his 2,000 corrupt generals. It's ruining
the country. And the effects of that are compounding every other security
problem in our neighborhood. Every security problem is made worse by Venezuela."
In his interview, Faller pointed to Venezuela's gold and drug trades, which are
helping to fund the remnants of Colombia's FARC communist guerrillas. "The data
and statistics show that their numbers have increased because of what they can
gain in terms of freedom of maneuver and the economic opportunity that they get
from illicit trafficking and partnering with the Maduro regime," Faller said.
"Illicit narco trafficking through Venezuela is up some 40 percent."
In addition, according to a May 1 report in the Miami Herald:
"Worried by signs of dissatisfaction in the barracks, the Nicolás Maduro regime
is trying to buy the loyalty of Venezuela's armed forces by increasing their
access to loans and other benefits and giving them control of enterprises,
according to internal documents and military sources.
"The initiative, which builds on a practice started by the late Hugo Chávez, was
adopted amid a generalized mistrust between Maduro and the National Bolivarian
Armed Forces (NBAF) and a wave of arrests of military officers early this
year...
"Maduro increased the participation of military officers in his government in
July of 2017 and it now stands even higher than during the Chávez era. Ten of
the 30 ministries are in the hands of armed forces officers, and Defense
Minister Vladimir Padrino López controls the critical food distribution sector.
"Other key government posts in the hands of officers are the Foreign Ministry,
headed by National Guard Gen. Néstor Reverol; the National Bolivarian
Intelligence Service, headed by Gen. Gustavo González; the Ministry of
Agricultural Production and Lands, headed by Wilmer Castro Soteldo; and the
Ministry of Electric Energy, headed by Gen. Luis Motta Dominguez..."
To make matters worse, many of Maduro's 2,000 generals are also heavily involved
in the drug trade, aiding the very networks they are supposed to be battling.
These military men/drug traffickers have become known as the "Cartel del los
Soles" ("Cartel of the Suns"), due to "the golden stars that generals in the
Venezuelan National Guard (Guardia Nacional Bolivariana – GNB) wear on their
epaulettes."
Meanwhile, much of the country is also controlled by "pranes," crime lords who
run gangs from within the country's prisons.
The Venezuelan security forces, which crack down heavily on dissidents, have
been aided for years by Cuba, whose own "socialist" regime was created with the
aid of the Leninist Soviet Union in the 1960s. In May 2014, General Raúl Baduel,
Venezuelan Defense Minister under Hugo Chávez, who was later held in custody at
the Ramo Verde military prison, told The Guardian how the Cubans "...have
modernized the intelligence services... set up a special unit to protect the
head of state and... computerized Venezuela's public records, giving them
control over the issue of identity papers and voter registration. They have
representatives in the ports and airports, as well as supervising foreign
nationals."
While most U.S. military studies of Venezuela focus on its armed forces, there
is a parallel security structure on which Maduro relies -- the "colectivos"
trained by the Cubans and modeled on Fidel Castro's original 1960 Committee for
the Defense of the Revolution. Some members of the colectivos operate as armed
motorcycle gangs that have been terrorizing and even killing anti-Maduro
protesters.
Where dangerous outside influence is concerned, in testimony before the House
Armed Services Committee on May 1, 2019, Admiral Faller said:
"Iran is also looking to re-energize its outreach after reducing its efforts in
Latin America and the Caribbean in recent years. It has deepened its anti-U.S.
influence campaign in Spanish language media, and its proxy Lebanese Hezbollah
maintains facilitation networks throughout the region that cache weapons and
raise funds, often via drug trafficking and money laundering."
As Lebanese author and American University of Beirut history professor, Dr.
Makram Rabah, explained in 7Dnews in February:
"Hezbollah's survival is heavily dependent on the current Venezuelan regime
which helps the group launder its money [and] benefits from drug trafficking
networks not only to launder money, but to also procure intelligence data
collected by international crime organizations."
In April, Mayhan Air, a private Iranian airline sanctioned by the United States
for providing support to the terrorist Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC),
initiated flights between Tehran and Caracas.
Such burgeoning ties between Venezuela and Iran, the world's largest state
sponsor of terrorism, should not be treated by the U.S. as secondary to the
crisis in the Persian Gulf; nor will the Oslo process bear fruit, because a
"mafia state" such as Maduro's cannot be negotiated with. Mafia thugs do not
tend to cede power and unfathomable profit out of respect for the civilized
world.
According to U.S. National Security Adviser John R. Bolton, as reported in the
Washington Free Beacon by Bill Gertz:
"The administration's strategy seeks to force the estimated 15,000 Cuban
military and security personnel out of Venezuela. The administration recently
tightened sanctions against travel to Cuba in a bid to pressure Havana.
"'If by magic we could make them disappear and go back to Cuba immediately it
would be a very short period of time before Maduro fell,' Bolton said. 'And
that's what's so ironic here. You've got an imperial power, Cuba, in effect
ruling Venezuela. And what's the benefit, what's the reason Cuba does this? They
get their oil at substantially below global market prices from Venezuela.'
"The people of Venezuela, by contrast, receive no benefit from the Cubans, he
said.
"The administration is studying several other additional measures aimed at
pressuring Cuba.
"'There are additional designations of individuals in Venezuela and Cuba,' he
said. 'We're going to do more to prevent the transfer of oil from Venezuela to
Cuba. Obviously, every time we put sanctions in place, the Maduro regime tries
to evade them, so we're looking at new ways to prevent that.'
"Bolton said that while it has become clear that the Maduro regime will
eventually be ousted, it is possible another player in that regime could take
over. 'But once the rocks start rolling downhill, the regime itself is
unsustainable,' he said."
In his zealous effort to push through the unworkable Oslo negotiations for
Venezuela, Mr. Lowenthal does not have to rely only on the conclusions of John
Bolton and Admiral Faller. He evidently did not review the findings of Steven
Dudley's and Jeremy McDermott's formidable researchers at Insight Crime, the
investigative foundation supported by George Soros. Its revelations of the
monumental drug problem in Venezuela is catastrophic. Lowenthal, an adviser to
today's Democratic Party, might recall that decades ago, the Democratic Party
was led by tough and patriotic leaders such as Harry Truman. As Truman put it,
"... America was not built on fear. America was built on courage, on imagination
and an unbeatable determination to do the job at hand."
Former Democratic Party official Leni Friedman Valenta, a playwriting graduate
of the Yale School of Drama, is senior editor of the Valentas' website, jvlv.net.
She has written articles for the Middle East Quarterly, The National Interest,
The Aspen East Central Review, Miami Herald, and the Kyiv Post, among others.
Dr. Jiri Valenta served for a decade as a tenured professor and Coordinator of
Soviet and East European Studies for the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School,
Monterrey, CA. He is presently a non-resident, senior research associate with
the BESA Center for Strategic Studies in Tel Aviv, and is a long-standing member
of the U.S. Council on Foreign Relations. A recipient of several distinguished
fellowships: Brookings, Rockefeller, Wilson Center and Peace Institute, he is
the author and editor of several books on the Russo-U.S. worldwide rivalry. and
a distinguished expert in strategic studies, specializing in Russian and U.S.
military interventions, terrorism and Israel's relations with central European
countries.
© 2019 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do
not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No
part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied
or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.
China: The Perfect High-Tech Totalitarian State
Judith Bergman/Gatestone Institute/June 18/2019
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14365/china-totalitarian-technology
In China, censorship, now largely automated, has reached
"unprecedented levels of accuracy, aided by machine learning and voice and image
recognition." — Cate Cadell, Reuters, May 26, 2019.
As in other Communist regimes, such as that of the former Soviet Union, the
Communist ideology does not tolerate any competing narratives. "Religion is a
source of authority, and an object of fidelity, that is greater than the
state... This characteristic of religion has always been anathema to history's
totalitarian despots..." — Thomas F. Farr, President of the Religious Freedom
Institute, in testimony before the Congressional-Executive Commission on China,
November 28, 2018.
In 2018, China had an estimated 200 million surveillance cameras, with plans for
626 million surveillance cameras by 2020. China's aim is apparently an
"Integrated Joint Operations Platform" which will integrate and coordinate data
from surveillance cameras with facial recognition technology, citizen ID card
numbers, biometric data, license plate numbers and information about vehicle
ownership, health, family planning, banking, and legal records, "unusual
activity", and any other relevant data that can be gathered about citizens, such
as religious practice, travels abroad, and so on, according to reports of local
officials and police.
At the moment, China is in the process of fulfilling what Stalin, Hitler and Mao
could only dream about: The flawless totalitarian state, powered by digital
technology, where the individual has nowhere to flee from the all-seeing eye of
the Communist state.
The 30th anniversary on June 4 of the Chinese regime's 1989 massacre of
pro-democracy protesters in Tiananmen Square served to highlight the extreme
censorship in China under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)
and President Xi Jinping.
The Tiananmen anniversary is referred to euphemistically in mainland China, as
'the June Fourth Incident'. The regime there evidently fears that any talk, let
alone public commemoration, of that historical event will stir up anti-regime
unrest, which could endanger the Chinese Communist Party's absolute power.
The internet in China is under control of the Chinese Communist Party,
especially through the rigorous censorship practiced by the party's top internet
censor, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), established in 2014. In
May 2017, according to a Reuters report, the CAC introduced strict guidelines
requiring all internet platforms that produce or distribute news "to be managed
by party-sanctioned editorial staff" who have been "approved by the national or
local government internet and information offices, while their workers must get
training and reporting credentials from the central government".
Freedom House, in "Freedom on the Net 2018," its 2018 assessment of freedom on
the internet in 65 countries, placed China dead last. Reporters without Borders,
in its 2019 worldwide index of press freedom, ranked China 177 out of 180
countries, surpassed only by Eritrea, North Korea and Turkmenistan. The
Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), at the time of its 2018 prison census,
counted at least 47 journalists jailed in China, but according to the CPJ, the
number could be much higher: "authorities are deliberately preventing
information from getting out". In March 2019, the CPJ was investigating at least
a dozen additional cases, including the arrests in December 2018 of 45
contributors to the human rights and religious-liberty magazine, Bitter Winter,
which China targets as a "foreign hostile website".
On 'sensitive' occasions such as the Tiananmen anniversary, entire websites are
blocked. Since April, ahead of the Tiananmen anniversary, Wikipedia had been
blocked in all languages. Wikipedia's Chinese-language site has been blocked by
China since 2015. Websites such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and
other websites have also long been blocked in China.
Search terms are also blocked on such 'sensitive' occasions. In the past, even
common, innocuous words such as 'today' or 'tomorrow' have been blocked.
For the anniversary of Tiananmen, the Chinese Communist Party reportedly began
its crackdown in January 2019: On January 3, the Cyberspace Administration of
China announced on its website that it had launched a new campaign against
"negative and harmful information" on the internet. The campaign was to last for
six months -- coinciding with Tiananmen's June 4 anniversary. The definition of
"negative and harmful information" was all-inclusive: Any content that was
"pornographic, vulgar, violent, horrific, fraudulent, superstitious, abusive,
threatening, inflammatory, rumor, and sensational," or related to "gambling," or
spreading "bad lifestyles and bad culture" had to be removed from every
conceivable internet platform. The CAC added, "Those who let illegal behavior go
free will not be tolerated but be severely punished".
In China, censorship, now largely automated, has reached "unprecedented levels
of accuracy, aided by machine learning and voice and image recognition",
according to a recent Reuters report. It quotes Chinese censors as commenting:
"We sometimes say that the artificial intelligence is a scalpel, and a human is
a machete... When I first began this kind of work four years ago there was
opportunity to remove the images of Tiananmen, but now the artificial
intelligence is very accurate".
China's severe censorship runs parallel to its severe suppression of religious
freedom. The President of the Religious Freedom Institute, Thomas F. Farr, at a
November 2018 hearing at the Congressional-Executive Commission on China,
described China's religious suppression as "the most systematic and brutal
attempt to control Chinese religious communities since the Cultural Revolution".
As in other Communist regimes, such as that of the former Soviet Union, the
Communist ideology does not tolerate any competing narratives.
"Religion is a source of authority, and an object of fidelity, that is greater
than the state," Farr wrote. "This characteristic of religion has always been
anathema to history's totalitarian despots, such as Stalin, Hitler, and Mao..."
The brutal religious and cultural oppression of Tibetans in China has been
ongoing for nearly 70 years, but China has not only sought to destroy the
Tibetan religion. Christianity, for instance, was seen from the beginning as a
threat to the People's Republic of China when it was established in 1949. "This
was especially true at the height of the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976), when
places of worship were demolished, closed, or reappropriated and religious
practices were banned", according to the Council on Foreign Relations. Some
Christian clerics have been imprisoned for nearly 30 years. In recent years,
oppression of Christians in China has apparently surged. Since the late 1990s,
the Chinese regime has also targeted the Falun Gong.
China has been shutting down churches and removing crosses. They have been
replaced with the national flag, and images of Jesus have been replaced with
pictures of President Xi Jinping. Children, future bearers of the Communist
ideology, have been banned from attending church. In September 2018, China shut
down one of the largest underground churches, Beijing's Zion Church. In December
2018, the pastor of the underground Early Rain Church, Wang Yi, and his wife
were arrested and charged with 'inciting subversion', a crime punishable by up
to 15 years in prison. Along with the pastor and his wife, more than 100 church
members were also arrested. In April 2019, Chinese authorities forcibly took
away an underground Catholic priest, Father Peter Zhang Guangjun, just after he
celebrated Palm Sunday Mass. He was reportedly the third Catholic priest to be
taken by the authorities in one month.
According to a confidential document obtained by Bitter Winter, China is
currently also getting ready for a clampdown on Christian churches with ties
with foreign religious communities.
The government has also been sending Uighurs, a populace that includes around 11
million people, mostly Muslim, in the western Xinjian province of China, to
internment camps for 'political reeducation'. China has said that the camps are
vocational education training centers aimed at stemming the threat of Islamic
extremism. Uighurs have launched several terror attacks in China, according to
one 2017 report, "Uighur Foreign Fighters: An Underexamined Jihadist Challenge"
by the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism in The Hague. The report also
states:
"Uighurs consider themselves separate and distinct in ethnicity, culture, and
religion from the Han Chinese majority that governs them. These distinctions
form the basis of the Uighurs' religious ethno-nationalist identity, leading
some of them to engage in violent activities aimed at establishing their own
state, East Turkestan...
"... the appeal of radical Islamic ideology outside of China has attracted many
Uighurs to participate in violent jihadism as part of their religious identity
and as a way to further their struggle against the Chinese authorities."
"The [Chinese] are using the security forces for mass imprisonment of Chinese
Muslims in concentration camps," Randall Schriver, Assistant Secretary of
Defense for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs recently said. "[G]iven what we
understand to be the magnitude of the detention, at least a million but likely
closer to three million citizens out of a population of about 10 million" could
be imprisoned in the detention centers.
According to The Epoch Times, in the Chinese detention camps, Uighurs have been
drugged, tortured, beaten and killed by injection. "I still remember the words
of the Chinese authorities when I asked what my crime was," said Mihrigul Tursun,
a woman who escaped to the United States with two of her children. "They said,
'You being a Uyghur is a crime'".
Physically persecuting religious minorities, however, does not suffice for the
Chinese Communist Party. It also seems to have campaigned against Christianity
in schools throughout the country. It has, for instance, forced students to
swear an oath to resist religious belief. Teachers were also indoctrinated to
"ensure that education and teaching adhere to the correct political direction."
Classics taught in schools have been censored: In Daniel Defoe's Robinson
Crusoe, references to the Bible were deleted, and references to Sunday service
or God in stories by Anton Chekhov and Hans Christian Andersen were expunged.
Additionally, the use of 'sensitive' words related to religion, such as
'prayer', are not allowed in the classroom.
In both the oppression of religion, as in the censorship of free speech, the
Chinese Communist Party is utilizing high-tech means to achieve its goals. There
are reports that Xinjiang is being used as a testing ground for surveillance
technology: Uighurs in Xinjiang, according to a report published in the
Guardian, are "closely monitored, with surveillance cameras mounted over
villages, street corners, mosques and schools. Commuters must go through
security checkpoints between all towns and villages, where they undergo face
scans and phone checks". China uses facial recognition technology that matches
faces from surveillance camera footage to a watch-list of suspects.
In 2018, China had an estimated 200 million surveillance cameras, with plans for
626 million surveillance cameras by 2020. China's aim is apparently an
"Integrated Joint Operations Platform," which will integrate and coordinate data
from surveillance cameras with facial recognition technology, citizen ID card
numbers, biometric data, license plate numbers and information about vehicle
ownership, health, family planning, banking, and legal records, "unusual
activity", and any other relevant data that can be gathered about citizens, such
as religious practice and travels abroad.
At the moment, China is in the process of fulfilling what Stalin, Hitler and Mao
could only dream about: The flawless totalitarian state, powered by digital
technology, where the individual has nowhere to flee from the all-seeing eye of
the Communist state.
*Judith Bergman, a columnist, lawyer and political analyst, is a Distinguished
Senior Fellow at Gatestone Institute.
© 2019 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do
not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No
part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied
or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.
A growing number of Canadian victims of overseas terrorism, but little support
for them
ستيورد بل/كلوبل نيوز: المزيد من ضحايا
الإرهاب الكنديين في بلدان متعددة في حين أن الدعم الكندي الرسمي لهم متواضع جداً
ومحدود/18 حزيران/2019
By Stewart Bell/Global News/June 18/2019
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/75920/%d8%b3%d8%aa%d9%8a%d9%88%d8%b1%d8%af-%d8%a8%d9%84-%d9%83%d9%84%d9%88%d8%a8%d9%84-%d9%86%d9%8a%d9%88%d8%b2-%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%85%d8%b2%d9%8a%d8%af-%d9%85%d9%86-%d8%b6%d8%ad%d8%a7%d9%8a%d8%a7-%d8%a7%d9%84/
Fiona Wilson was at work when she heard someone had careened a van down
Barcelona’s La Rambla strip, striking dozens of pedestrians.
Her parents had landed in Barcelona that morning, and they were staying right on
La Rambla, so she was concerned.
From Vancouver, she worked the phones but information was scarce, and then late
that night, she saw them on the TV news.
They were lying on the street, side by side.
The Aug. 22, 2017 ISIS-inspired attack threw Wilson into the chaotic aftermath
of terrorism.
She had to get to Spain and navigate an unfamiliar country where she didn’t
speak the language or understand the bureaucracy. She needed to know what was
going on.
But Wilson didn’t find the government of Canada that helpful.
“I felt like the Canadian government was disorganized,” she said.
The number of Canadians killed in overseas terrorist attacks has grown in recent
years, but according to victims, their families and victim advocates, the
federal government is ill-prepared to help them.
Between 2013 and 2016, six Canadians were killed in three overseas terrorist
attacks in Kabul and Nairobi. Since then, 19 more died in a dozen terrorism
incidents in nine countries, according to a database compiled by Global News.
Several others were injured and another four died in the 2017 mass shooting at
an outdoor concert in Las Vegas, for which no motive has been found.
The 25 terrorist killings of Canadians were mostly the work of members and
supporters of Al Qaeda affiliates and ISIS, while one was killed by a right-wing
extremist.
Canadians are hardly the only targets of today’s terrorists, but they lack the
government support available to citizens of other western countries, victims and
advocates said.
In Europe and the United States, governments have recognized that terrorism
victims face unique challenges and need help, both immediately after attacks and
over the long haul.
But in interviews with Global News, Canadian victims and their families spoke
about receiving little government assistance following overseas terrorism
incidents.
They described Canada’s response as unco-ordinated and inadequate. Several felt
betrayed and abandoned by their government.
“A terror attack is an attack on society. It’s politically motivated,” said
Maureen Basnicki, whose husband was killed by Al Qaeda. “And what does it say
when society turns its back on their victims? And here in Canada, that’s what
happens.”
Relatives of Air India bombing victims gather around the sundial marking 8:13
a.m., the time of the crash, at the memorial in Ahakista on the Sheep’s Head
peninsula, West Cork, Ireland.
Relatives of Air India bombing victims gather around the sundial marking 8:13
a.m., the time of the crash, at the memorial in Ahakista on the Sheep’s Head
peninsula, West Cork, Ireland.
Canada has a long, difficult history with victims of terrorism.
Almost a decade ago, the commission of inquiry into the 1985 Air India bombings
took the Canadian government to task for its treatment of the victims’ families,
who were misled, kept in the dark and told to apply for welfare if they were
struggling financially.
On Sunday, June 23, the anniversary of the attack will be marked with solemn
ceremonies and a statement from the prime minister, but when it comes to the
treatment of terror victims, the government of Canada lags far behind, said
Susheel Gupta.
“I don’t think Canada’s learned since 1985,” he said.
Gupta was 12 when his mother died aboard Air India Flight 182, which crashed
into the sea off the coast of Ireland. Most of the 329 victims were Canadians.
The bomb was planted in Canada by Sikh extremists.
Thirty-four years later, Canadian terrorism victims still lack basic social,
psychological, financial and informational support, Gupta said.
“None of that exists in Canada.”
Canadian victims of overseas terrorism fall into a gap. Victim services are
provided by the provinces. But terrorism victims said those programs did not
have the mandate to help Canadians victimized outside their provincial borders.
Even the Canadian Victims Bill of Rights, enacted in 2015, applies only to
victims of crimes committed within Canada, omitting those killed or harmed while
they are abroad.
The Department of Justice said victim services was a provincial responsibility
but that Canadians could apply to a federal victims fund for reimbursement for
counselling and medical expenses.
Additional assistance is available to help Canadian victims return home
following attacks and travel to testify at trials stemming from incidents, an
official said.
But the fund for Canadian victims of overseas crimes provides a maximum of
$10,000, and one victim said it took a year to get a response.
By contrast, outside of Canada there is growing acceptance that terrorism is
unlike other crimes.
Terrorism strives to be devastating. Terrorists seek mass casualties. Their
targets are often chosen to increase the chances of killing an international
cohort.
Victims are attacked not as individuals but as symbols of the state and society.
Terrorism is a spectacle and a message. Attacks are followed by gloating
propaganda. And terrorists are not always brought to justice.
All that can make it harder for victims and their families.
The lack of information is the first obstacle they face, and with overseas
attacks, the challenge can be complicated by language and cultural barriers,
which add to the shock and confusion.
“There is just so much going on there in the time of crisis, while you’re
dealing with trauma,” said Gupta, who spent a month in Ireland with his father
following the Air India attack, seeing through the identification of his mother.
Post-traumatic stress disorder is common among terror victims and their
families. There are financial matters to contend with: travel expenses, funeral
expenses, foreign medical bills, lost wages and psychological treatment.
One Canadian recalled how the death of her father in the Air India bombing
precipitated her brother’s struggle with addiction, the loss of the family home
and her decision to move to the United States to find work in her field.
“Nobody’s listening, nobody cares,” she said.
The United States takes a different approach, with an Office of Justice for
Victims of Overseas Terrorism, which guides victims and families through foreign
legal systems and refers them to service providers. Americans can also turn to
the International Terrorism Victim Expense Reimbursement Program.
In the European Union, a 2017 directive called on member states to “adopt
measures of protection, support and assistance responding to the specific needs
of victims of terrorism.” Compensation regimes are in place, and the EU is
setting up a Centre of Expertise for Victims of Terrorism.
Gupta would like Canada to adopt similar policies.
“There needs to be a centralized office established within government that is
accountable to provide leadership to support victims when they are victimized
overseas as a result of terrorism,” he said.
“The U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Britain, many other nations have offices that
provide support to their citizens when they’re victimized anywhere in the world.
“There is no office in Canada that’s taking leadership or accountability on any
of these issues,” he said. “There is no office that provides that support that
Canadians, I would say, deserve.”
As the number of Canadian terrorism victims has continued to grow, advocates
have been trying to convince the federal government to better support them.
In 2016, the Federal Ombudsman for Victims of Crime called for a national
security strategy that addressed the “needs, concerns and rights” of victims.
The Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime, a charitable organization,
asked in 2017 for a “federal office or national program to assist/support
Canadians harmed by terrorism (both domestic and abroad) and other violent
crimes abroad.”
A letter the group sent to Jody Wilson-Raybould, then the minister of justice,
said the families of victims of terrorism and mass violence had “complex needs,
which are not quickly resolved.”
It explained how France dealt with the issue with a legislated compensation
package for victims of terrorist acts committed in France, as well as for French
victims of attacks outside France.
“Will Justice Canada consider similar comprehensive legislation for victims of
terrorism since our provincial compensation programs for victims of violent
crimes do not cover crime outside their borders?” the letter read.
The letter was written by Heidi Illingworth, who was then the group’s executive
director. She has since been appointed the federal victims of crime ombudsman
and said she would be raising the issue of terror victims once again with the
government.
“It would make sense to have an office at the federal level that looks at
Canadians who are victimized abroad,” Illingworth said in an interview.
“These incidents are long-term impacts on folks, and I don’t think there’s a
good enough understanding of that.”
Tax collectors came after her husband was killed on 9/11
Basnicki understands. Every time an attack occurs, she feels it. Most recently,
it was the New Zealand mosque shootings. That’s what terrorists do: they
terrorize. And all too often, victims feel they suffer alone.
Basnicki’s husband, Ken, was at the World Trade Center on the morning of Sept.
11, 2001 when Al Qaeda terrorists rammed it with hijacked planes. He was one of
two dozen Canadians killed that day.
A flight attendant, she couldn’t bring herself to go back to work. Then, just as
she received the first shipment of body parts, the Canada Revenue Agency
threatened to seize her assets for taxes they said her husband owed.
She became an advocate for victims and led the campaign for the Justice for
Victims of Terrorism Act, which allows victims to sue state sponsors of
terrorism, like Iran. She helped make Sept. 11 the Canadian National Day of
Service.
But Canada has a long way to go, she said.
To attend the court proceedings of the 9/11 mastermind, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed,
she had to get herself to Washington, D.C., at her own expense. The U.S. then
flew her to Guantanamo Bay. Canada contributed nothing, she said.
The Justice Department recently agreed to pay her airfare and two hotel nights
for a 9/11 victims’ event in Florida. But that was done “at our discretion,” an
official told her in an email, adding she didn’t qualify for the Canadians
Victimized Abroad Fund because her husband was killed before it came into effect
in 2007.
Victims shouldn’t have to rely on the discretion of bureaucrats or internet
fundraising campaigns, she said.
“Governments are abdicating their responsibility. GoFundMe accounts lack
transparency. They’re open to fraud. They lack fairness. They take a long time.”
The government could help by forgiving the income tax liabilities of those
killed in terrorist attacks, she said. Although the U.S. did so after the 9/11
attacks, Ottawa would not extend the same assistance to Canadians.
In a letter to the government about the issue, Basnicki’s lawyer, Barry
Campbell, called Canada’s conduct insensitive and said it was embarrassing it
had offered no aid to victims’ families.
“We’re one of the few countries that doesn’t take care of our victims in an
adequate way when they’ve been victimized outside our borders,” Basnicki said.
Government took a year to respond to request for help
When he was kidnapped, Frank Poccia was working in southwestern Libya,
refurbishing navigational aids at an airport, living the “world needs more
Canada” slogan that officials and politicians insert into their speeches.
The masked gunmen who pulled over his truck on Sept. 19, 2016 are believed to be
from Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. They fired into the air as they abducted
him along with two Italian co-workers.
“They drove us a bit further into the desert where nobody could see us and they
put us on the ground. They asked us what nationality we were,” he said. “They
tied us up, threw us in the back of a pickup truck.”
Blindfolded and concealed under a tarp, the hostages jostled in the truck bed
until dark. For the next six days, they were moved from place to place until
reaching their destination.
They had been held 47 days when they were blindfolded and put into an SUV that
took them out into the desert.
“We weren’t sure if they were going to kill us,” Poccia said.
They were told to sit in the sand.
It was dark.
A vehicle appeared, and they were told they were free.
A private jet was waiting to fly them to Rome. Poccia said he doesn’t know if a
ransom was paid.
The telecom engineer got home to Montreal in November 2016, but he wasn’t ready
to go back to work. He had a concussion, the result of banging around in trucks
while being moved by the kidnappers.
His company paid him to stay home until January 2017. Although he still didn’t
feel ready to work and was continuing to undergo concussion treatment, he needed
to pay the bills so he managed to work 20 to 25 hours a week.
“I keep saying to myself that I’m OK, but you know, my wife tells me that I do
have nightmares. I don’t remember them so maybe that’s a good thing. I get up
sweating during the night,” he said.
He contacted the Quebec Crime Victims Assistance Centre (CAVAC) for help and was
told he was not eligible because the incident had occurred outside the province.
CAVAC referred him to the federal Justice Department.
It took a year to get a response, he said.
“They did apologize, saying that it’s not normal, it must have fallen through
the cracks or something,” Poccia said. “We were entitled to some medical
expenses, but that’s about it.”
He eventually got about $5,000 for visits to a psychologist, but nobody helped
him find one qualified to deal with what he’d experienced. He said the
government should have provided a list of specialists with the right expertise.
There was no compensation for the wages he lost.
“There’s not much out there,” he said.
The ordeal was probably hardest on his wife, who waited by the phone, not
knowing, he said. The government should have had someone there from the outset,
ready to help his family, not after he had returned, filled out an application
form and waited for the government to respond.
“It’s gotta come immediately.”
‘$10,000 really doesn’t go very far’
The family of John Ridsdel also said psychological support should come right
away.
For seven months, the Ridsdels went through hell while Abu Sayyaf militants
released videos showing the kidnapped Canadian held by gunmen in the southern
Philippines.
Abu Sayyaf wanted a ransom, which Trudeau publicly refused to pay. Ridsdel and
fellow Canadian Robert Hall were eventually executed.
Only after Ridsdel’s death on April 25, 2016 did Canada’s Department of Justice
offer to pay for counselling for family members through its victims fund, she
said. The government gave them no help finding a specialist.
“It would have been helpful for us to be able to receive some of that support
during the incident,” one of Ridsdel’s daughters said in an interview.
The federal funding for counselling stopped at $10,000. Aside from footing the
bill to repatriate his body and for some travel, that was the total compensation
the Ridsdel family received from Ottawa, she said.
“I don’t necessarily think that the government should give me a salary for life
because my dad was a victim of something horrible. But definitely the
psychosocial assistance, it was really helpful, but the $10,000 really doesn’t
go very far.”
There have been a few promising signs.
The Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police recently formed a working group “to
expand Canada’s capabilities to respond to mass casualty incidents, and mass
victimization or terrorist incidents.”
A gathering of senior national security officials from Canada, the U.K., New
Zealand, Australia and the U.S. that took place in Toronto in early May included
a panel on incorporating victims’ issues into counter-terrorism.
But Sue O’Sullivan, a former Ottawa police deputy chief and Canada’s former
crime victims’ ombudsman, urged the government to do more to ensure that victims
“have the information and support they need.”
Now the chair of the International Network Supporting Victims of Terrorism and
Mass Violence, she called the U.S. office for victims of overseas terrorism “an
excellent example of the type of office Canada should implement.”
The aftermath of the van attack in Barcelona, in which an ISIS supporter rammed
dozens of pedestrians, Aug. 17, 2017.
The aftermath of the van attack in Barcelona, in which an ISIS supporter rammed
dozens of pedestrians, Aug. 17, 2017.
‘My experience with the Canadian government, it was really frustrating’
The almost two years since the Barcelona van attack have been frustrating for
Wilson.
Her parents had visited Edinburgh, where her father, Ian Moore Wilson, was born.
They then flew to Barcelona to watch her son play soccer. They were carrying
their groceries when the attack began.
“I think what happened was my dad looked up and saw this van coming towards them
and he kind of wrapped himself around my mom,” Wilson said.
They both fell to the ground. Her father had a deep cut on his neck and died
quickly. Her mother suffered broken bones, likely caused by the fall, but
survived. Wilson said people at the scene risked their lives to help them.
“My experience with the Canadian government, it was really frustrating in the
beginning because it was a full 24 hours before we actually got the official
word that my father had died, which was agonizing,” she said.
By that time, a British reporter had already let her know. After seeing a photo
of her parents on the television news, she reached out to the reporter, and he
sent her another picture, this one showing her father in a body bag.
When Wilson arrived in Spain, an officer from the Canadian consulate was
assigned to assist her and her mother. She “was lovely,” Wilson said.
“But she did not have a lot of practical understanding about the processes that
would be put in place or the paperwork that needed to be done,” she said. “I
really felt like we had to figure that out on our own.
“And I think, from the Canadian government’s perspective, being more
co-ordinated at the outset to support families in that first 24 to 48 hours,
that would have been really helpful for us.”
Ian Moore Wilson, left, of White Rock, B.C., was killed in a 2017 terrorist
attack in Barcelona.
Ian Moore Wilson, left, of White Rock, B.C., was killed in a 2017 terrorist
attack in Barcelona. Vancouver Police Department / Facebook
The Spanish government compensated her mother, who recalls nothing of the
attack. The Canadian government also reimbursed the family for some expenses
within the $10,000 limit.
But Wilson got little help from Canada getting answers to a most basic question:
how, exactly, did her father die?
A Vancouver Police Department officer, Wilson had seen her share of traffic
accidents, but she didn’t believe her father’s injuries were consistent with
having been mowed down by a van.
She spoke to witnesses and visited the scene. She pressed Spanish authorities
for information. She did so on her own, with no assistance from Ottawa, she
said.
“If the tables were turned and any one of us had been killed or in this
situation that he was killed in, he would have wanted to know exactly what
happened,” Wilson said. “And I really, really want to know.”
She returned to Spain this spring and tracked down the coroner, who finally gave
her the answer: he had died of massive trauma that was consistent with having
been struck by the van’s side mirror.
Wilson is upset it took so long. The coroner said she would have shared the
cause of death long ago if she’d known the family wanted to know.
“Interestingly, none of the answers or disclosure I’ve received was facilitated
by the Canadian government,” Wilson said.
“From the time I was told by a U.K. reporter that my father was dead to the
conversation with the coroner last week — all of the information we’ve received
has been a result of us returning to Barcelona, working with Spanish lawyers,
engaging the media and repeatedly asking questions of the Spanish authorities.”
Stewart.Bell@globalnews.ca
President Macron, Strip The Internet Companies Of Their
Ill-Gotten Judicial Immunity; Don't Sell Out For Empty Concessions
By: Yigal Carmon/MEMRI/June 18/2019
After years of protesting that it could not be done, YouTube is pledging the
wholesale removal of hate and atrocity videos, even though doing so will cut
down its traffic stream and its profit stream.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is now on the side of the angels, following the
Christchurch Appeal.[1] The president of the Sovereign Republic of Facebook told
his colleague, president of la République française Emmanuel Macron, that he was
elated to have France regulate his company and would be only too happy to cough
up $5 billion per annum plus a tax on global corporate revenues, and to allow
French regulators to freely enter Facebook corporate inner sancta in Dublin and
Silicon Valley to carry out their supervisory function.
Google, which greedily placed ads next to neo-Nazi and jihadi videos – thus
assuring a cash flow for the videos' creators – has also announced steps to
foster increased accountability and provide protection for web users.
Even the elusive AI that will power the algorithms for removing hate speech and
incitement is, Big Data happily informs us, now on the verge of being
discovered.
In 1997, the Internet-infatuated U.S. Supreme Court Justices, conservatives and
liberals alike, produced the greatest disaster in Internet history and public
safety when they granted Internet companies a status that was above the laws of
democracies and their justice systems, giving them license to publish criminal
content with immunity. This status, set out in Section 230 of the Communications
Decency Act of 1996, read: "No provider or user of an interactive computer
service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided
by another information content provider." This privileged the companies over
print and broadcast media. The justices failed to realize that, like nuclear
energy, the Internet harbored dangers to life and therefore required regulation.
Thus freed from liability, the companies could now enrich themselves from a
mighty stream of criminal content: pedophilia, pornography, jihad, antisemitism,
Holocaust denial, racism, white supremacism, and Nazism.
Only last year was this legal abomination partially rectified, in the form of
the Fighting Online Sex Trafficking Act (FOSTA). It lifted the protection of
Section 230 for pornographic and pedophilic content online. But all other
criminal content remained for the Internet companies to exploit with
impunity.[2] The companies did not fight for the right to profit from
pornography and pedophilia; they felt that they were no longer the darlings of
the politicians and the public. They are now trying to pacify their persecutors
with concessions that will have no serious impact on their bottom line.
Ahead of the June 2019 summit between Macron and New Zealand Prime Minister
Jacinda Ardern, Zuckerberg praised Macron's approach and welcomed the French
regulators: "If more countries can follow the lead of what your government has
done here, that will likely end up being a more positive outcome for the world
in my view than some of the alternatives."[3] Zuckerberg is worried about one
specific possibility: Facebook, along with others, may lose its precious and
unwarranted immunity under Section 230, putting it on equal footing with other
media.
For years, Facebook and others have hidden behind the ACLU and other useful
idiots, who bought into the story that Big Data's immunity was designed to
protect dissidents, not corporate dividends. Zuckerberg and his fellow social
media barons have allowed white supremacists, racists, jihadis, antisemites, and
hatemongers to help them reap a bonanza from ad revenues on Holocaust denial,
apologetics for Hitler, beheading, racial incitement, and jihad recruitment.
Shame on them, and shame on governments prepared to make deals that will
preserve their immunity.
President Macron, you may welcome $5 billion of hush money for France's
deficit-ridden budget, and the creation of new regulatory agencies providing
jobs for the boys. But this will only make you an accomplice of Facebook.
The only effective policy is to remove the Internet companies' immunity shield –
thus granting payback, in both senses of the word, for the victims of their
rapacious policy. Level the media playing field. Do not sell out for $5 billion;
just strip the companies of their ill-gotten immunity.
*Yigal Carmon is President of MEMRI.
[1] New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's initiative aimed at preventing
online incitement, which has been recognized as a contributing factor in the
March 15, 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings.
[2] The companies called off their lobbyists because they realized that public
and legislative sentiment turned against them and they were therefore willing to
sacrifice this most lucrative area that they had milked for years.
[3] Newshub.co.nz, May 11, 2019.
Saudi Twitter Poll Finds 33% In Favor Of Relations With
Israel, Versus 47% Against
MEMRI/June 18/2019
The issue of normalizing relations with Israel is occasionally debated in the
Saudi media, especially in light of the threat posed to both countries by Iran.
Recently, this debate resurfaced on Twitter, after Saudi journalist Sukina Al-Meshekhis
set up a poll on her page asking her followers whether they supported the Gulf
states maintaining good relations with Israel.[1] The poll was answered by
thousands, with 33% answering "yes", 47% answering "no", and 20% choosing a
third, noncommittal, option. Many users, especially in Saudi Arabia, also
commented on the question posed by the poll, expressing positions for and
against rapprochement with Israel. Those in favor argued that Israel's existence
is a fact, that it is interested in peace, that the Palestinian themselves
coexist with it and that Saudis should visit it. Some also stated that Israel,
unlike Arab countries, actually fights Iran. Those against maintaining good
relations with Israel wrote that its crime of occupying Palestinian lands and
its expansionist aspirations cannot be tolerated.
It should be noted that, in the recent years, the Saudi media has published no
few expressions of support for Israel and calls to establish relations with it,
alongside articles that opposed this and harshly attacked Israel and its
policies.[2]
The following are details about the Twitter poll, and a sampling of the
responses it evoked.
Sukina Al-Meshekhis's Twitter Poll
The poll set up by Saudi journalist Sukina Al-Meshekhis, who resides in the
Emirati city of Dubai and writes a column in the Saudi daily Al-Yawm, asked: "Do
you support Gulf countries maintaining good relations with Israel and treating
it as [just another] country in the Middle East?" Despite being active for only
24 hours, it elicited 5,342 responses, with 33% voting in favor of relations
with Israel, 47% voting against, and 20% choosing to "wait for the results [of
the poll]." The poll set up by Sukina Meshikhes on her Twitter page
Al-Meshekhis herself has expressed support for Saudi Arabia normalizing its
relations with Israel. In a July 2018 column in the government daily Al-Yawm,
she called on the Arab states to take courageous steps and make concessions in
order to advance the goal of peace with Israel. She argued that the Arab
collective interest "requires rapprochement and understandings with Israel" and
that the Arabs must be more pragmatic.[3]
In a June 2, 2019 column, Al-Meshekhis criticized the Palestinians for their
stubborn rejection of various peace initiatives over the years, adding that the
Arabs are entitled to outline a peace settlement with Israel, because this issue
concerns them as well. She wrote: "If the [Palestinian] issue concerns all
Arabs, then the Arabs have a right to outline the peace [plan] with Israel
rather than leave everything to the Palestinian leadership – for [this
leadership] is not sufficiently qualified to achieve peace and to seriously
consider the necessary conditions for [attaining] the peace to which the
Palestinians and Arabs aspire. Had these [Palestinian] leaders had the courage
of [the late Egyptian president Anwar] Sadat, they would have taken a wise and
serious step towards peace at every opportunity from [the signing of the] Camp
David [Accords] until today."[4]
Responses In Favor Of Normalization: Israel Is A Fact; The Israeli People Want
Peace
As noted, 33% of the respondents voted in favor of good relations with Israel.
Many also commented, stressing that Israel wants peace and calling to cooperate
with it. Some also noted that Iran and Qatar have done Saudi Arabia much more
harm than Israel. Among these respondents was Saudi intellectual and researcher
'Abd Al-Hamid Al-Hakim, the former director of the Middle East Center for
Strategic and Legal Studies in Jeddah, who frequently writes in support of
Israel and has even visited it.[5] He commented: "[I am] certainly [in favor of
relations with Israel], since peace between the Gulf states and Israel is a
humane objective and a political necessity. In order to achieve peace between
the peoples, which will lead to peace between the states, visits to Israel must
be possible, and then Gulf citizens who visit Israel will comprehend the truth
about Israeli society [and discover] that it is peace loving. I sensed this
myself when I visited Israel.[6]
Saudi user Muhammad Sa'ud, likewise a known supporter of Israel, who writes his
user name in both Arabic and Hebrew, expressed firm support for ties with
Israel, stating: "Yes, I am in favor, and strongly so. Our hopes for prosperity,
progress and thriving depend on openness to the other. Coexistence with the
other is an important objective. Yes to peace, yes to coexistence, yes to
cooperation with Israel. [7]
Saudi user Sultan Aal Swelem, tweeting from Riyadh, explained that he supports
establishing ties with Israel because this country, unlike Qatar and Iran, does
not harm Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States. He wrote: "Yes [to relations],
because Israel has not harmed Saudi Arabia and the Gulf like Iran and Qatar have
done! Israel's goals are out in the open and it conceals nothing, whereas Qatar
and Iran are more evil than evil! Our sole problem with Israel is its occupation
of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Although Saudi Arabia feels solidarity with Palestine,
the Saudi state and nation have been spared no abuse and invective [by the
Palestinians]".[8] Saudi user Bandar Al-Moghtarib, who supports the Saudi regime
and the reforms of Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Sultan in his posts, tweeted:
"Israel is a fact of life that should be accepted. It is a country that seeks
peace with the Gulf states and invites us to visit the Al-Aqsa Mosque and tour
Israel in general."[9]
Saudi user Raneem, likewise a supporter of the Saudi regime, was in favor of
establishing relations with Israel, tweeting: "If the Palestinians themselves
coexist with Israel and with its advanced society, so should we..."[10]
User Ziyad, who tweets from Riyadh and frequently comments on issues on the
Saudi political and social agenda, qualified his support for relations with
Israel, saying that this decision is up to the Saudi state: "For some time now I
have been more open than ever [to the idea] of rapprochement [with Israel.
However,] this requires the consent of the state. If it normalizes [relations
with Israel], I will do the same, and if does not, I will be unable to do
so."[11]
Qatari user 'Aisha noted the substantial shift in Gulf public opinion on the
issue of normalizing relations with Israel, tweeting: "Only a few years ago, 99%
would have voted against normalization, [but] now look how many people are in
favor. Many are sick and tired of the [Palestinian] cause and of the spouting of
slogans in its name."[12]
Saudis Against Normalization: No To Acceptance Of The Occupation; Israel's
Expansionist Ambitions Reach All The Way To Mecca
However, the majority of respondents (47%) objected to establishing ties with
Israel, mainly on the grounds of its policy vis-à-vis the Palestinians. Saudi
writer and poet Fahad Bin 'Abd Al-'Aziz Bin Jumah expressed concern that
normalization would imply acceptance of the occupation of Palestinian land, and
would encourage other countries to follow suit. He tweeted: "I think Israel
stole an Arab country, namely Palestine, which we all love and hold dear.
Accepting relations with it means accepting the occupation. This [may encourage]
other countries to do the same.[13]
User Jojo, from the city of Abha in southwestern Saudi Arabia, likewise objected
to accepting the occupation and voiced concern about Israeli expansionism. She
tweeted: "No. Israel remains a criminal entity that occupies Arab land and
Muslim holy sites... Normalization [with this entity] means recognizing it as a
state and accepting its crime. The land is Palestinian and Arab, and will remain
so. Israel has expansionist ambitions [that reach] all the way to Mecca, and
they have a book that speaks of this, titled Return to Mecca. Anyone who
respects... his homeland and holy places will not support [normalization with
Israel]."[14]
Another Saudi user, tweeting from France, also ascribed expansionist ambitions
to Israel, and called it a cancerous entity, tweeting: "Ms. Sukina, do you think
Israel's dreams stop at normalization? Israel is a country that has never
curbed, and will never curb, its expansionist plans... This entity is a cancer
that must be stopped before it reaches you."[15] User 'Ammar wrote from Riyadh:
"I do not yearn [for normalization with Israel], and with Allah's help this will
never happen. Nobody believes a thief, no matter how much he protests his
innocence."[16]
Ammar's tweet
Sudanese user Abu-Muhammad, who frequently tweets against the Saudi regime,
emphasized his hostility to the Jews and anyone seeking their friendship, while
quoting an antisemitic hadith. He commented: "May Allah curse the Jews and all
those who love them. The Arab rulers are useless, and have no opinion. We await
the Muslim army, and will kill the [Jews] on the day when stones and trees shall
speak.[17] Until then we renounce before Allah all those who draw close to them
and love them."[18]
[1] Twitter.com/sukinameshekhis, June 8, 2019.
[2] For prominent examples of pro-Israel articles in the Saudi press, see MEMRI
reports: Inquiry & Analysis No. 1398, Shift In Saudi Media's Attitude To Israel
– Part I: Saudi Writers, Intellectuals: Iran Is More Dangerous Than Israel;
Peace With It Is Vital In Order To Repel Iranian Threat, May 29, 2018; See MEMRI
Inquiry & Analysis No.1399, Shift In Saudi Media's Attitude To Israel – Part II:
Saudi Writer Who Visited Israel: We Want An Israeli Embassy In Riyadh; We Should
Make Peace With Israel, Uproot Culture Of Hatred For Jews, May 29, 2018; Special
Dispatch No. 7573, Saudi Journalist: We Must Advance Peace With Israel, Even If
We Have To Make Concessions, July 18, 2018; Special Dispatch No. 6951, Saudi
Columnist: Iran Is The Real Enemy, Not Israel, June 6, 2017; Special Dispatch
No.6574, Articles In Saudi Press: End The Antisemitic Discourse, Learn From The
Jews' Success, August 13, 2016. For prominent anti-Israel expressions recently
published in the Saudi press, see e.g., Special Dispatch No. 8091, Saudi
Writers: Israel Is Destined To Disappear; Accepting It Is Treason Against
Ourselves, May 28, 2019.
[3] See Special Dispatch No. 7573, Saudi Journalist: We Must Advance Peace With
Israel, Even If We Have To Make Concessions, July 18, 2018.
[4] Al-Yawm (Saudi Arabia), June 2, 2019.
[5] See MEMRI Inquiry & Analysis No.1399, Shift In Saudi Media's Attitude To
Israel – Part II: Saudi Writer Who Visited Israel: We Want An Israeli Embassy In
Riyadh; We Should Make Peace With Israel, Uproot Culture Of Hatred For Jews, May
29, 2018;
[6] Twitter.com/hakeem970, June 9, 2019.
[7] Twitter.com/mohsaud08, June 8, 2019.
[8] Twitter.com/sultanalswelem, June 9, 2019.
[9] Twitter.com/iijjt, June 8, 2019.
[10] Twitter.com/Raneem11111, June 8, 2019.
[11] Twitter.com/izyad_9, June 8, 2019.
[12] Twitter.com/Ayse36623869, June 8, 2019.
[13] Twitter.com/fahadbinjumah1, June 8, 2019.
[14] Twitter.com/W_8a8, June 8, 2019.
[15] Twitter.com/alraqi_ksa, June 8, 2019.
[16] Twitter.com/ammar1415, June 8, 2019.
[17] The reference is to Judgment Day, according to the well-known hadith that
says: "Judgment Day will not come until the Muslims fight the Jews and kill
them. The Jews will hide behind stones and trees, and the stones and trees will
call: O Muslim, o servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him
- except for the gharqad tree, which is the tree of the Jews."
[18] Twitter.com/mou4sms, June 9, 2019
How the US Can Keep the Strait of Hormuz Open
James Stavridis/Bloomberg/June 18/2019
The summers are long and hot in the Arabian Gulf. I deployed to those waters
half a dozen times during a long Navy career, and have sat on the bridge of US
warships watching Iranian gunboats warily too many times to count.
Sometimes the Iranians are very professional, and follow the standard rules of
the nautical road. At other times, they can be the worst and most dangerous of
mariners, swerving close at high speed, hurling insults in broken English over
the bridge-to-bridge radio, turning on their fire control radars. And the
behavior always seemed to turn worse as the roasting summer days – with
sea-surface temperatures over 110 degrees Fahrenheit – dragged on. Now, given
the geopolitical climate, it’s not surprising to be faced with a very ugly
summer in the Arabian Gulf.
On one deployment as a destroyer captain, I directed fire of a 50-caliber-weapon
in front of a cluster of Iranian gunboats, causing them, eventually, to turn
away. On another, my cruiser provided air-control information to planes that
fired air-to-air missiles at approaching Iranian fighters.
The Iranians are generally bellicose and somewhat unpredictable, and we should
not underestimate their ability to conduct serious combat operations – both
overtly and covertly. Above all, to them this is the “Persian Gulf,” a bow to
the ancient empire on which modern-day Iran is built.
All of which brings us to the crisis of the moment: strikes on merchant ships in
May and two much more serious attacks this week. The US government says they
were almost certainly conducted by the Iranians, and it is hard to see anyone
else benefiting from these actions.
We are now at one of the most dangerous points in the long, tortured
relationship of the US and Iran since the Iranian Revolution of 1979 and the
hostage crisis that followed. The Iranians are deeply frustrated by the Donald
Trump administration’s decision to withdraw from the 2015 deal over their
nuclear program, and the re-imposition of crippling sanctions. As the Iranian
economy and currency continue to tumble, the mullahs who run the country realize
that the people they rule will become increasingly restive. With a population of
more than 80 million, half of whom are under 35 years old, this is a dynamic
moment for the Iranian regime. You can feel the desperation setting into the
politics of Tehran.
As a result, the Iranians seem to be taking a page out of the book of North
Korean dictator Kim Jung Un: Get the attention of the West through bad behavior.
Much as Kim uses long-range ballistic missile launches over US allies such as
Japan, and nuclear detonations to publicize his capabilities, the Iranians seem
to feel they can use tanker attacks and closure of the Strait of Hormuz to
obtain some concessions.
The message is simple: If you don’t relieve some of the pressure on us, we will
utterly disrupt shipping throughout the region and therefore the global oil
supply. No one knows better than the Iranians that more than 30 percent of the
world’s oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz – which they can (at least
temporarily) close with a combination of mines, small boat attacks and,
possibly, sinking ships in the narrow waterway.
Recognizing that the US needs another war in the Middle East like we need
(professional diplomatic term alert) a hole in the head, the Iranians seem to
think Washington will back down in the face of these attacks. But it is far too
soon to default to a purely military solution. The US still has cards to play,
and should hit the brakes on an escalation before a conflict develops an
unstoppable momentum.
First and most importantly, Washington needs to move beyond just a
US-versus-Iran confrontation and make it a world-versus-Iran scenario. There is
no global support for attacks on unarmed merchant ships, especially
environmentally sensitive supertankers. Attacks on the supply chain for oil and
petrochemicals will antagonize everyone.
Second, the US should try to rebuild the anti-Iran coalition to include, most
importantly, our European partners and Japan, many of whom dropped support when
the Trump administration left the nuclear pact. Confronting Iran must be a team
sport.
The US should also use its full interagency power to pressure Iran. Sanctions
are good and useful at this point, but Washington can add more to the equation
by bringing offensive cyber-capability from the National Security Agency and
Cyber Command. The intelligence community can partner with other regional
players – notably Saudi Arabia – to unwind Iranian intentions and plots.
A third key element to counter an Iranian strategy that targets tankers is to
work with the private sector, including the big shipping companies (disclosure:
I am on the board of Onassis, the Greek shipping company). The industry must
work with the navies in the Gulf to provide security for these vessels,
including protected convoy operations, on-board security details, and early
warnings to mariners. The United Nations International Maritime Organization has
skills in these areas, having been a key part of solving the piracy problems off
the coast of West Africa a few years ago. The IMO should also be part of a full
investigation of all attacks, and decide if they can be more fully attributed to
Iran.
Finally, while the US should work hard for a diplomatic solution, it needs to
recognize that the Iranian mullahs are implacable and driven by religious
beliefs. They are not inclined to compromise, nor can they be “bought” purely
through economic incentives of the sort that appeal to Kim Jong Un. That means
being ready for unconventional attacks not only in the Arabian Gulf but anywhere
in the world that the extensive Iranian terror network (headlined by the
Lebanese group Hezbollah) can reach.
As the peak temperatures arrive in the Gulf, young destroyer captains will be
spending a lot of time in the captain’s chair on the bridge, watching Iranian
gunboats. We should wish them good luck, and hope they have a keen sense of
judgement as the guns of August draw near.
Analysis/Pushing Limits of Nuke Deal, Iran Willfully Plays
With Fire to Score Diplomatic Points
زفي برئيل/الهآرتس: بتخطي إيران الإرداي لحدود الإتفاق النووي هي تلعب بالنار
لتسجيل نقاط دبلوماسية
Zvi Bar'el/Haaretz/June 18/2019
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While the U.S. has no real plan ahead, Tehran's announcement on increased
uranium enrichment shows it intends to force the EU to convince it to stay in
2015 agreement.
Behrouz Kamalvandi, the spokesman of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran,
announced on Monday that in 10 days, Iran will surpass the amount of enriched
uranium it’s allowed to possess under the 2015 nuclear agreement.
The deal limits Iran to 300 kilograms of uranium enriched to a level of 3.67
percent, plus 130 tons of heavy water. Germany, the United Kingdom and France
warned Iran not to violate the deal. Washington termed the announcement “nuclear
extortion.”
Tensions between American and Iran are already high because of attacks on two
oil tankers off the coast of Oman. Those attacks have sparked a diplomatic
dispute between the European Union and the United States.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said Iran is definitely behind the
attacks, as has Israel. But this certainty has run into a wall of European
skepticism.
The Europeans want decisive proof, and they don’t consider pictures of a mine
apparently being removed from the side of a ship by Iranian forces sufficient.
Evidently, however, neither U.S. nor Israeli intelligence has unequivocal proof;
if they did, they would presumably be shouting it from the rooftops.
The lack of proof puts the U.S. government in the embarrassing position of
having to persuade its allies and enemies alike to believe its intelligence
services. Those intelligence services have repeatedly declared Iran fully
compliant with the nuclear deal.
Iran added another significant threat to the diplomatic bonfire by announcing
its intent to increase the amount of enriched uranium and heavy water it
produces. Kamalvandi even said Iran could enrich uranium to a level of 20
percent, which would bring it much closer to the 90 percent enrichment needed
for a nuclear weapon.
Iran knows that doing so would be considered a significant violation of the
nuclear deal, one that would force even Europe, Russia and China to treat it as
a violator, with all the attendant negative implications. At the same time, Iran
has refrained from saying it intends to quit the deal. Its public announcement
of its planned violation indicates that for now, it’s mainly trying to force the
European Union to take steps to persuade Tehran to remain in the deal.
Over the past year, Iran has conducted intensive negotiations with European
leaders, but it considers the results unsatisfactory. France, the U.K. and
Germany did propose a financial mechanism to circumvent U.S. sanctions. But
major corporations have withdrawn from the Iranian market; big oil importers
like Japan, South Korea and Turkey have stopped buying Iranian oil; and China,
Tehran’s largest customer, reduced the amount of oil it bought last month.
This week, the EU agreed on an informal timetable for implementing the financial
mechanism, which won’t require the use of dollars. But the details, including
what kind of products it can be used for, in what quantities and how they will
be paid for, haven’t yet been resolved.
Now, Iran has tightened the screws by announcing that in another 10 days, it
will start enriching more uranium. The question is whether EU countries can
finalize the new trade mechanism within this timeframe, and whether the final
product will satisfy Iran’s demands.
America has no real plan of action for how to respond if Iran violates the deal.
Washington apparently exhausted all its diplomatic options when it withdrew from
the agreement, imposed suffocating sanctions on Iran and canceled all the
waivers it gave to oil-importing countries (except Iraq).
U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent statements about his willingness to hold
direct negotiations with Iran, like the message he sent via Japanese Prime
Minister Shinzo Abe, who visited Tehran on the day a Japanese tanker was
attacked, have been rejected by Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei.
If Iran carries out its threat, the next diplomatic effort may be in the UN
Security Council, where Washington would likely encounter Russian and Chinese
vetoes. European countries also seem unlikely to support an aggressive
resolution against Iran, since America violated the agreement first, by
withdrawing from it in May 2018.
Trump and Israel had hoped a massive dose of sanctions would force Iran to fold.
Now, they’re likely to find themselves in an international bind. If America opts
for military action against Iran, it will do so alone, with no international
coalition. Even Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has said Riyadh doesn’t
want a war in the Gulf.
Iran has thus impaled Washington on the horns of a dilemma, thereby exposing the
nakedness of Trump’s decision to quit the nuclear deal. This time, the issue
isn’t a secret Iranian plot to enrich uranium and develop a nuclear bomb, but a
public diplomatic move based on a signed agreement that has legal legitimacy.
This requires the international community, and especially the United States, to
formulate an effective, determined, practicable policy to tighten implementation
of a deal that was blown open by America itself.
The public nature of Iran’s policy was also evident in a statement by Mohammad
Bagheri, its military chief of staff. On Monday, Bagheri said that if Iran had
wanted to prevent traffic through the Gulf and the Straits of Hormuz, it would
have done so in broad daylight and not hidden behind anonymous attacks.
This announcement wasn’t meant solely to deny responsibility for the attacks
Washington has blamed on it, but also to make clear that Tehran, despite
previous statements, still doesn’t see blocking the Straits of Hormuz as a
feasible way of achieving its goals. Nevertheless, the possibility of such an
action isn’t off the table.
The main question is whether Iran wants to not just leave the nuclear deal, but
also to resume its military nuclear program. This is a question intelligence
agencies worldwide have grappled with for more than two decades, and it’s what
ultimately led to the signing of the nuclear agreement.
In the pessimists’ view, Iran agreed to postpone its nuclear program for about
15 years so it could resume it when the agreement expires. In the optimists’
view, Iran signed the deal because the agreement gave it most of what it wanted.
Not only did the deal create a potential for economic development that would
provide a stable basis for the regime’s continued existence, but Iran’s status
as a legitimate and trustworthy partner for international agreements has soared
to a level unseen for decades. Iran is now engaged in a delicate game to
preserve this status by making threats. And those threats have already gained it
a supportive coalition comprised of Europe, Russia and China.
IRGC has a different priority to Tehran government
Osama Al-Sharif /Arab News/June 18/2019
Iran stands accused of carrying out last week’s twin attacks on oil tankers in
the Gulf of Oman, with more countries pointing the finger at Tehran. US
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday that “there’s no doubt” Iran was
behind these attacks and others. Washington has since announced it is sending
another 1,000 troops to the Gulf as a result.
Also on Sunday, British Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt said the UK is “almost
certain” Iran was behind the attacks on the oil tankers. “We don’t believe
anyone else could have done this,” he said.
Iran has rejected these accusations, but its position is weak as circumstantial
evidence piles up against it. There is one main suspect whose threats in the
past resonate in the wake of the serious incidents in the Gulf of Oman. The
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has the means and capabilities to carry
out Iran’s threats to disrupt the flow of oil through the Arabian Gulf, the
Strait of Hormuz and the Arabian Sea. It is also the main suspect in last
month’s attacks against tankers off Fujairah port.
The circumstances surrounding these attacks raise questions about who is really
in charge in Tehran. The attacks took place as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo
Abe was meeting with Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei during his historic
visit. Abe was reportedly carrying a message from US President Donald Trump, to
which Khamenei refused to respond. The IRGC answers directly to Khamenei and
runs its own maritime force independently of the Iranian navy. Neither the
Iranian president nor the minister of defense has authority over the IRGC.
US Central Command provided a surveillance video and photos that showed an IRGC
patrol boat removing an unexploded limpet mine from the hull of one of the
damaged tankers. Another account by the same source noted that “a US aircraft
observed an IRGC Hendijan-class patrol boat and multiple IRGC fast attack
craft/fast inshore attack craft in the vicinity of the Front Altair (one of the
damaged tankers).”
This is not the first time that such patrol boats had harassed vessels passing
through the Strait of Hormuz. The IRGC carries out regular naval exercises in
the waters of the Gulf to show its capabilities and flex its muscles.
The latest incidents come at a time of escalating tensions between Iran, on the
one hand, and its Arab neighbors, especially Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and the
US on the other. The Trump administration had imposed additional sanctions on
Tehran recently, effectively stopping it from exporting its oil. These sanctions
had tightened the grip on the struggling Iranian economy. Even though both sides
say they want to avoid war, attempts to find a diplomatic path to renegotiate
the Iran nuclear deal have stalled. The US, now joined by a number of Gulf and
European countries, wants the deal to include limitations on Iran’s ballistic
missile program and the curtailment of its meddling in the region’s affairs.
It is possible that last week’s attacks were carried out directly by the IRGC
without the government’s knowledge
But, as the Iranian government seeks to salvage the 2015 nuclear deal, even as
it announced that it will breach the limit on its stockpile of enriched uranium
by June 27, the IRGC has a different priority. Since it was created to be part
of the country’s armed forces in the wake of the Iranian revolution of 1979, the
IRGC has expanded and diversified its activities inside and outside Iran. It has
access to ground, naval and air forces and is comprised of 120,000 members, in
addition to 90,000 volunteers in the paramilitary Basij militia. Today, it is a
multibillion-dollar network that controls businesses in the automotive, energy,
telecommunications, real estate, and construction sectors, as well as smuggling
and other enterprises. It is also active, through the notorious Quds Force, in
Iraq, Syria and Yemen.
It stands to lose its clout in these countries, as well as inside Iran, if the
biting sanctions continue. Making things worse is Trump’s decision in April to
designate the IRGC as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), making it the
first designated FTO that is part of another country’s government. This
designation means that the IRGC’s financial activities will be under heavy
scrutiny.
The IRGC is a state within a state and it is the backbone of the rule of the
ayatollahs. Without it, their ironclad control of Iranian affairs would not be
possible.
It is highly unlikely that President Hassan Rouhani has any influence over the
activities of the IRGC. And it is possible that last week’s attacks were carried
out directly by the IRGC without the government’s knowledge. These are
disturbing conclusions, but they help explain Iran’s erratic and contradictory
behavior.
The US is right to demand that a new deal with Tehran includes the curtailment
of its long-range ballistic missile program and its incriminating regional
activities. Europe should also step in and a future deal, if reached, must be
expanded to guarantee the maritime safety of the strategically important Gulf
region.
• Osama Al-Sharif is a journalist and political commentator based in Amman.
Twitter: @plato010
Opinion/Israeli Support for Trump Clash With Iran Willfully Ignores Danger of
Devastating Hezbollah Missile Attack
كمي شالف/الهآرتس: دعم إسرائيل لترامب في اشتباكه مع إيران يهمل طوعاً خطر هجوم
صواريح حزب الله المدمرة
Chemi Shalev/Haaretz/June 18/2019
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Netanyahu puts country’s trust and fate in hands of impulsive president with
little experience and no achievements.
The prize for most ludicrous statement this week goes to authoritative Israeli
officials who briefed reporters that as far as the looming clash between Iran
and the U.S. is concerned, Israel “will stay out of the picture.” For most
people and governments around the world, Israel is the picture itself. Against
the world’s better judgment, Benjamin Netanyahu pressed Donald Trump to abandon
the nuclear deal with Iran, thus putting Washington and Tehran on an inevitable
collision course. Even now, Netanyahu and his ministers have to exert themselves
to hide their drooling over the prospect of seeing Tehran down on its knees –
because of the threat of war, or because it was carried out.
The prime minister’s former national security adviser, Yaakov Amidror, who is
not bound by the gag order imposed by Netanyahu on his ministers, advocates a
powerful preemptive strike by the U.S. against Iranian installations, including,
presumably, its nuclear infrastructure. “In two hours, it will all be over,” he
said in a radio interview last week. Even though the rule is that predictions of
quick victory are notoriously short-lived, especially in the Middle East,
Amidror and the many Israeli officials who agree with him privately may be an
exception – provided they have received ironclad guarantees that a devastating
U.S. strike won’t induce Tehran to unleash its doomsday weapon – thousands of
Hezbollah missiles – against America’s number one ally, Israel, the root of all
evil.
Netanyahu and his colleagues have understandably shied away from preparing the
public for the possibility that the campaign against Iran could entail
retaliation by Hezbollah – such an eventuality might mar Netanyahu’s reputation
as the grandest schemer of all time. The lack of any other public discussion of
the threat, however, is puzzling. Whether it derives from a false sense of
security that the missiles from the first set won’t fire in the third; or relies
on expert analyses that Hezbollah wouldn’t dare risk its privileged status in
Lebanon, never mind its very existence; or stems from trust in Israel’s power of
deterrence or from blind faith in Netanyahu’s diplomatic acumen, the lack of
debate reflects a willful blindness toward a clear strategic and increasingly
present danger to Israel’s future. In the aftermath of the Yom Kippur War, such
collective myopia was dubbed “konceptzia.”
If Hassan Nasrallah fails to disobey an order from Tehran to “die with the
Philistines,” as Samson said before bringing the house down on himself and his
enemies, Hezbollah could impose a harsh military campaign on Israel. In a
worst-case but nonetheless plausible scenario, Hezbollah could fire thousands
and thousands of guided and unguided rockets and missiles on Israeli strategic
targets and civilian population centers. Many of these missiles carry a
500-kilogram or 750-pound explosive device, capable of flattening a city street
and killing anyone within a 100-meter range. The thought of the destruction and
loss that could be wrought by one such rocket – never mind hundreds – makes
Hamas rocket attacks in the south seem like child’s play.
Out of a healthy respect for the organization’s potential to wreak havoc,
Netanyahu and the heads of Israel’s security services have traditionally walked
a fine line with Hezbollah, careful not to push the Shi’ite paramilitary group
into a corner of desperation. In the present confrontation with Iran, however,
Israel isn’t calling the shots. It has put its fate and trust in the hands of a
capricious U.S. president whose foreign policy achievements so far include
volunteering to serve as Kim Jong Un’s stateside PR manager while he continues
his country’s nuclear drive, as well as the ambitious “ultimate peace plan”
which so far has only yielded the debacle in Bahrain, to which, it seems, Israel
is not invited.
Trump is entering the fray like a lone ranger, devoid of allies, with a sense of
self-confidence that is in inverse proportion to his experience and diplomatic
talents. He is engaged in a complex game of brinkmanship with people long
considered masters of the art. For now, however, Israeli public opinion, guided
and encouraged by its leaders, is giving Trump standing ovations.
There may come a day of reckoning, in which Netanyahu is asked to account for
his string of decisions on Iran – from confronting Barack Obama to goading his
successor Trump, from advocating the abandonment of a flawed but workable
nuclear agreement in favor of a risky and complex clash with Iran, managed by an
impulsive novice.
But such a accounting will take place only after the rubble has been cleared,
the dead are buried, Netanyahu explains there was no other choice and promises
that the goal of stopping a nuclear Iran is clear-cut and close at hand, if only
the world would listen.