LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
March 22/2020
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

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Bible Quotations For today
The Healing Miracle of the Paralytic
Saint Mark ( 02/1-12): “The Healing Miracle of the Paralytic”: “When he entered again into Capernaum after some days, it was heard that he was in the house. Immediately many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even around the door; and he spoke the word to them. Four people came, carrying a paralytic to him. When they could not come near to him for the crowd, they removed the roof where he was. When they had broken it up, they let down the mat that the paralytic was lying on. Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” But there were some of the scribes sitting there, and reasoning in their hearts, “Why does this man speak blasphemies like that? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” Immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you reason these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to tell the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven;’ or to say, ‘Arise, and take up your bed, and walk?’ But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”— He said to the paralytic— “I tell you, arise, take up your mat, and go to your house.” He arose, and immediately took up the mat, and went out in front of them all; so that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on March 21-22/2020
The Healing Miracle of the Paralyzed Miracle & The Significance Of Praying For Others/Elias Bejjani/March 22/2020
The old Hezbollah era of intimidation and threats is over/Entrapping US citizens in Lebanon is not acceptable/Dr.Walid Phasres/Face Book/March 21/2020
Lebanon's Health Ministry: Coronavirus Cases Rise to 206
Haroun: Time Factor is Crucial to Fight Coronavirus
Coronavirus: Lebanon calls in army to enforce lockdown
Araji: Lebanese Not Abiding by Quarantine, State of Emergency Must Be Declared
Jumblat: Lebanon Could Lose Control over Coronavirus
Diab to the Lebanese: I call on you to impose a self-curfew as we are in great danger, our victory can solely be through “state, society & citizen” integration
Diab Says Army, Security Forces to Take Measures to Enforce Lockdown
Lebanon’s PM Diab orders security forces to enforce coronavirus curfew/Najia Houssari//Arab News/March 22/2020
Rahi calls for full compliance with official health instructions
Bassil: To tighten measures up to imposing curfew
Hariri appeals to the Lebanese to respect the confinement
MP Sami Gemayel: To prevent unnecessary mobility
Musharrafieh: It is solely through cooperation and solidarity that we can overcome this stage
First Lady on Mother's Day: Let your children stay at home
Abdel Samad on Mother's Day: Stay home for their sake!
COVID-19 cases rise to 206, Lebanon now in virus outbreak phase/Sandra Abdelbaki /Annahar/March 21/ 2020
Just when Lebanon thought it had suffered enough/Hafed Al-Ghwell/Arab News/March 22/2020
Iran/Hizballah forces relocate HQ from Damascus to Aleppo/DEBKAflle/Mar 21, 2020

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on March 21-22/2020
Rejected by Shiites, Iraqi Prime Minister-Designate Holds Extensive Talks
Turkey Says Deployment in Idlib Continues as per Moscow’s Deal
5,000 Terrorists Detained In One of The Toughest Prisons Worldwide
Kremlin Stresses Strong Relations With Saudi Arabia, no Oil Price War
Sudan's Unionist Alliance: Authority Figures Are Obstructing Dismantlement of Former Regime
Syrian Former Defense Minister Passes Away
Iran reports 123 more virus deaths, toll rises to 1,556
Iran president expects coronavirus restrictions to ease 'within three weeks'
Iran 'frees French researcher' in apparent prisoner swap
Worldwide Virus Lockdowns as WHO Warns Young People 'Not Invincible'
China Reports No New Local Virus Cases for Third Day Running

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on March 20-21/2020
How to Defeat the Coronavirus/Elie Aoun/March 21/2020
European Union: The End?/Judith Bergman/Gatestone Institute/March 21/2020
Coronavirus and the Return to the 'Cave'/Rajeh Khoury/Asharq Al-Awsat/March 21/2020
Syria and the Pandemic… Between Denial and Conspiracy Theories/Akram Bunni/Asharq Al-Awsat/March 21/2020
The Coronavirus: Death of Globalization or a Rebirth?/Amir Taheri/Asharq Al-Awsat/March 21/2020
Boris the gambler is making his riskiest bet so far/Andrew Hammond/Arab News/March 22/2020
A virus dilemma for the faithful/Peter Welby/Arab News/March 22/2020
Five keys to building a post-pandemic Mideast industrial powerhouse/Tarek Ayntrazi/Arab News/March 22, 2020
Deprived of means, Syrian refugees face mounting virus threat/Walid Saleh/Laila Bassam/The Arab Weekly/March 22/2020

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on March 20-21/2020
The Healing Miracle of the Paralyzed Miracle & The Significance Of Praying For Others
Elias Bejjani/March 22/2020
الياس بجاني: عجيبة شفاء المخلع وأهمية الصلاة من أجل الآخرين
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/73457/elias-bejjani-praying-for-others-and-the-healing-miracle-of-the-paralyzed-miracle/
On the fifth Lenten Sunday the Catholic Maronites cite and recall with great reverence the Gospel of Saint Mark ( 02/1-12): “The Healing Miracle of the Paralytic”
This great miracle in its theological essence and core demonstrates beyond doubt that intercessions, prayers and supplications for the benefit of others are acceptable faith rituals that Almighty God attentively hears and definitely answers.
It is interesting to learn that the paralytic man as stated in the Gospel of St. Mark, didn’t personally call on Jesus to cure him, nor he asked Him for forgiveness, mercy or help, although as many theologians believe Jesus used to visit Capernaum, where the man lives, and preach in its Synagogue frequently.
Apparently this crippled man was lacking faith, hope, distancing himself from God and total ignoring the Gospel’s teaching. He did not believe that the Lord can cure him.
What also makes this miracle remarkable and distinguishable lies in the fact that the paralytic’s relatives and friends, or perhaps some of Jesus’ disciples were adamant that the Lord is able to heal this sick man who has been totally crippled for 38 years if He just touches him.
This strong faith and hope made four of them carry the paralytic on his mat and rush to the house where Jesus was preaching.
When they could not break through the crowd to inter the house they climbed with the paralytic to the roof, made a hole in it and let down the mat that the paralytic was lying on in front of Jesus and begged for his cure.
Jesus was taken by their strong faith and fulfilled their request.
Jesus forgave the paralytic his sins first (“Son, your sins are forgiven), and after that cured his body: “Arise, and take up your bed, and walk”.
Like the scribes many nowadays still question the reason and rationale that made Jesus give priority to the man’s sins.
Jesus’ wisdom illustrates that sin is the actual death and the cause for eternal anguish in Hell.
He absolved his sins first because sin cripples those who fall in its traps, annihilates their hopes, faith, morals and values, kills their human feelings, inflicts numbness on their consciences and keeps them far away from Almighty God.
Jesus wanted to save the man’s soul before He cures his earthy body. “For what does it profit a man, to gain the whole world, and forfeit his life?” (Mark 08:/36 & 37).
Our Gracious God does not disappoint any person when he seek His help with faith and confidence.
With great interest and parental love, He listens to worshipers’ prayers and requests and definitely respond to them in His own way, wisdom, time and manner.
“Ask, and it will be given you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives. He who seeks finds. To him who knocks it will be opened”. (Matthew 07/07 &08)
Is any among you suffering? Let him pray. Is any cheerful? Let him sing praises. Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the assembly, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith will heal him who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up”. (James 05:15)
In this loving and forgiving context, prayers for others, alive or dead, loved ones or enemies, relatives or strangers, are religiously desirable.
God hears and responds because He never abandons His children no matter what they do or say, provided that they turn to Him with faith and repentance and ask for His mercy and forgiveness either for themselves or for others. “
There are numerous biblical parables and miracles in which Almighty God shows clearly that He accepts and responds to prayers for the sake of others.
Jesus cured the centurion’s servant on the request of the Centurion and not the servant himself. (Matthew 08/05-33 )
Jesus revived and brought back to life Lazarus on the request of his sisters Mary and Martha. (John 11/01-44)
Praying for others whether they are parents, relatives, strangers, acquaintances, enemies, or friends, and for countries, is an act that exhibits the faith, caring, love, and hope of those who offer the prayers.
Almighty God, Who is a loving, forgiving, passionate, and merciful Father listens to these prayers and always answers them in His own wisdom and mercy that mostly we are unable to grasp because of our limited human understanding.
“All things, whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.” (Matthew 21/22)
Almighty God is always waiting for us, we, His Children to come to Him and ask for His help and mercy either for ourselves or for others.
He never leaves us alone. Meanwhile it is a Godly faith obligation to extend our hand and pull up those who are falling and unable to pray for themselves especially the mentally sick, the unconscious, and the paralyzed.
In this realm of faith, love and care for others comes our prayers to Virgin Mary and to all Saints whom we do not worship, but ask for their intercessions and blessings.
O, Lord, endow us with graces of faith, hope, wisdom, and patience.
Help us to be loving, caring, humble and meek. Show us the just paths.
Help us to be on your right with the righteous on the Judgment Day.
God sees and hears us all the time, let us all fear Him in all what we think, do and say.
N.B: The above piece was first published in 2012/It Is Republished with minor changes

The old Hezbollah era of intimidation and threats is over/Entrapping US citizens in Lebanon is not acceptable
Dr.Walid Phasres/Face Book/March 21/2020
The political games Hezbollah and its allies are playing, their statements, the brouhaha his allies are creating, and the attempts to intimidate the majority of Lebanese, in the wake of the repatriation of US citizen Amer Fakoury, do not impress Lebanese Americans or the US Administration and Congress. This organization is listed on US terror lists, is under several batches of sanctions, and will have to answer justice for the many acts perpetrated against US and Lebanese citizens over the past 40 years.
Hezbollah's wars in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, in Lebanon or with Israel, have no consequences on US laws and regulations, except being on terror list and being a suspect at the International Tribunal for the assassination of PM Hariri.
Hezbollah naming individuals as "agents." "traitors," or "enemies" doesn't impress the US or the Lebanese Diaspora, or a majority of Arab countries. Any aggression against, mistreatment of or threat against US citizens, as we saw in Iraq this year will draw an appropriate US response.
The old Hezbollah era of intimidation and threats is over.
************
Glad to see, vis social media, that Lebanon's civil society is acting with a very professional culture to mitigate the corona virus as much as possible, with the minimum capabilities. At least, the medical culture of many citizens has shown a high level education in the protection of the elderly and practice of social distancing. Some of the measures and statements I see via Facebook are of the levels we see in the US. It was unfortunate that militia reckless behavior at the Airport for weeks have caused breaches for the disease to spread. Happy to see brave citizens trying to save what can be saved after such irresponsible acts at the earlier stage.
*************
Entrapping US citizens in Lebanon is not acceptable
The United States extracted its own citizen from Lebanon, as it would do it for any other of its citizens and as it did for thousands of US citizens from all communities, including from south Lebanon and the Bekaa, during the 2006 war.
Hassan Nasrallah need to understand that Amer Fakhoury, in the eyes of the US Congress and the White House is an American citizen, regardless of Hezbollah's endless wars and unending hatred for its fellow Lebanese. Amer Fakhoury entered the Lebanese Republic as a US citizens and that's how he was repatriated six months later. If the Lebanese Government didn't want him to enter Lebanon with his US passport at the International Airport, they could have refused entry, period. Once admitted, all protections are applicable.
The United States will not accept that terror organizations or institutions collaborating with terror organizations, would entrap its citizens and "prosecute them" for wars that have ended twenty years ago, (and against the stipulations of Lebanese and international law,) when they were Lebanese citizens.
The Beirut airport should not be used to settle old ideological and political scores.

Lebanon's Health Ministry: Coronavirus Cases Rise to 206
Naharnet/March 21/2020
The Health Ministry said in its daily report on Saturday that 24 new people have contracted the new COVID-19 virus raising the number of total infected to 206. "From February 21 till March 21, 2020, the total number of laboratory-confirmed cases has reached 206, including those diagnosed at private hospitals and at the Rafik Hariri University Hospital and those reported by other university hospitals accredited by the Ministry,” said the report. The Ministry said it continues to run tests on samples taken from people suspected to have contracted the virus, while identifying and monitoring their contacts, and carefully watching all arrivals from countries experiencing a spread of the virus.

Haroun: Time Factor is Crucial to Fight Coronavirus
Naharnet/March 21/2020
Head of the Syndicate of Private Hospitals in Lebanon Sleiman Haroun said the time factor is very important in fighting the spread of coronavirus as he urged Lebanese citizens to stay at home. “Private hospitals receive no support from the state, we are working with our own resources,” said Haroun in remarks to LBCI. “Because of their engineering, only large hospitals are able to receive patients infected with coronavirus. At the present time 15 of the large hospitals have completed the preparations,” to begin receiving patients infected with the virus, “the time factor is very important.”Haroun voiced calls on citizens to stay at home in order to prevent the spread of the virus. Lebanon has so far confirmed 163 COVID-19 coronavirus cases among them four deaths. The state's Rafik Hariri University hospital was the only hospital receiving coronavirus cases.
On Sunday, the government declared a two-week state of “general mobilization,” closing the country’s air, land and sea ports of entry and ordering the closure of all non-essential public and private institutions.
Citizens and residents were meanwhile asked to stay home unless it is extremely necessary to go out. President Michel Aoun and the army on Friday called on citizens and residents to respect the lockdown and stay home.

Coronavirus: Lebanon calls in army to enforce lockdown
AP/The National/March 21/2020
Lebanon on Saturday called in the army to ensure people stay at home to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus that has killed four people in the country. In a televised address, Prime Minister Hassan Diab said the number of cases had risen to 230 in the country despite a call almost a week ago for all to remain at home. Warning of a further spike to epidemic levels if people continued to flout social-distancing rules, he said the government was calling in the army and security forces. His administration had decided to "task the army, Internal Security, General Security and State Security to... implement the order for citizens not to leave their homes, except out of extreme necessity, and prevent gatherings contravening" the order, Mr Diab said. This would take the form of patrols and road blocks, and those found disobeying would be pursued. Mr Diab again called on all Lebanese to observe a curfew, "as the state cannot face this creeping epidemic on its own". Last Sunday, the government ordered all people to stay at home and all non-essential businesses to close. The airport has been shut since Wednesday. The Covid-19 pandemic is the latest crisis to hit the country, already reeling from a financial meltdown and months of widespread public discontent. Officials fear the local health system would struggle to cope if cases dramatically increase. Earlier on Saturday, police patrolled several areas of the capital Beirut, using loudspeakers to call bystanders to go home. On the seafront, they pursued and flagged down joggers, pleading with them to head back indoors. An estimated 900 million people are now confined to their homes in 35 countries around the world -- two thirds by government lockdown orders, according to an AFP tally.

Araji: Lebanese Not Abiding by Quarantine, State of Emergency Must Be Declared
NaharnetNaharnet/March 21/2020
MP Assem Araji of the Parliamentary Health Committee called on the government on Saturday to declare a state of emergency over coronavirus because the "Lebanese are not abiding by the terms of home quarantine." Araji voiced his calls in a contact with LBCI TV station after the health ministry declared a rise in the number of people infected with the virus. The Health Ministry said in its Saturday report that 24 new cases of coronavirus were registered raising the number to 187. On Friday, heavy traffic and pedestrian movement was witnessed in some impoverished areas of the northern city of Tripoli despite the government’s lockdown order over the coronavirus crisis. The agency said the majority of people on the streets were not wearing masks or gloves. On Sunday, the government declared a two-week state of “general mobilization,” closing the country’s air, land and sea ports of entry and ordering the closure of all non-essential public and private institutions. Citizens and residents were meanwhile asked to stay home unless it is extremely necessary to go out.

Jumblat: Lebanon Could Lose Control over Coronavirus
Naharnet/March 21/2020
Progressive Socialist Party leader ex-MP Walid Jumblat on Saturday said Lebanon "could lose control" over the spread of COVID-19 virus if a state of emergency is not declared in light of a “quick” rise in the number of cases. “According to information the virus is spreading quickly recording 24 new cases today as the result of people not staying at home as demanded,” said Jumblat in a tweet. “A state of emergency must be declared as other countries are doing. People must be banned from going out at any price otherwise we could lose control,” added Jumblat. The Health Ministry said in its Saturday report that 24 new cases of coronavirus were registered. On Friday, heavy traffic and pedestrian movement was witnessed in some impoverished areas of the northern city of Tripoli despite the government’s lockdown order over the coronavirus crisis. The agency said the majority of people on the streets were not wearing masks or gloves. On Sunday, the government declared a two-week state of “general mobilization,” closing the country’s air, land and sea ports of entry and ordering the closure of all non-essential public and private institutions.
Citizens and residents were meanwhile asked to stay home unless it is extremely necessary to go out.

Diab to the Lebanese: I call on you to impose a self-curfew as we are in great danger, our victory can solely be through “state, society & citizen” integration
NNA /March 21/2020
Addressing the Lebanese citizens this evening, in wake of the rapid pace in which the novel Corona COVID-19 virus is spreading, Prime Minister Hassan Diab urged all citizens to impose a “self-curfew” due to the great risk the country is facing as it enters the outbreak phase of the disease.
“The increase of infected cases recorded in the last two days, namely since yesterday, is accompanied by imminent danger threatening our society as a result of this increase, which will usher us into the epidemic phase, as the Ministry of Public Health recorded 67 new cases, thus raising the number of cases to 230, or an increase of 29% at once,” the Prime Minister said.
He indicated that citizens’ lack of compliance with the adopted measures, and their lack of acknowledgment of the risks at hand, has led the government “to confirm the adoption of stricter measures to the Command of the Army, the General Directorate of Internal Security, the General Directorate of General Security, the General Directorate of State Security, and all municipalities and unions of municipalities.”
“Additional measures will be taken in all regions in the scope of citizens’ obligation to remain home, to refrain from leaving their homes except for matters of extreme necessity, as well as banning all kinds of gatherings in public and private spaces alike, and prosecuting any offenders before judiciary authorities,” Diab underscored.
“Today, I am calling upon you to implement an individual restriction to circulation, as the government is unable to face the sprawl of this epidemic alone. This responsibility is an individual, collective, and official responsibility all at once,” Diab reiterated to citizens.
In his detailed speech, PM Diab said:
“Fellow Lebanese,
A month ago, Coronavirus arrived in Lebanon, and the Lebanese Government had taken preventive measures in advance to fight the spread of the virus in Lebanon.
During an entire month, the government’s measures gradually progressed in correspondence with the developments relating to the spread of the disease in the world, as well as in Lebanon.
These measures were successful in decelerating the spread of this virus within our communities.
Six days ago, the Government declared the state of public conscription, adopting strict measures on all levels, of which closing down the airport, seaports, and land borders, in addition to closing down all gathering points.
Nevertheless, compliance with the gathering ban was unfortunately limited and varied between different regions and sectors.
Over the course of the last six days, the number of infected cases increased, as expected, while the rate gradually rose. However, the increase of infected cases recorded in the last two days, namely since yesterday is accompanied by imminent danger threatening our society as a result of this increase which will usher us into the epidemic phase, as the Ministry of Public Health recorded 67 new cases, thus raising the number of cases to 230, or an increase of 29% at once.
The citizens’ lack of compliance with the adopted measures, which was illustrated in many a region, and confirmed through images circulating on social media platforms, thus indicating a lack of acknowledgment of the risks, has thus led us to confirm the adoption of stricter measures to the Command of the Army, the General Directorate of Internal Security, the General Directorate of General Security, the General Directorate of State Security, and all municipalities and unions of municipalities. Additional measures will be taken in all regions in the scope of citizens’ obligation to remain home, to refrain from leaving their homes except for matters of extreme necessity, as well as banning all kinds of gatherings in public and private spaces alike, and prosecuting any offenders before judiciary authorities.
The Ministry of Interior, the Army Command, and all security services will announce the mandatory enforcement plans to protect the health and lives of the Lebanese people. These plans include implementing security patrols and checkpoints on side-roads, main roads, and international roads, as well as imposing compliance with the adopted measures.
My fellow Lebanese,
Coronavirus is waiting on every house’s doorstep, and dealing with this danger should be undertaken with the highest level of awareness and in a conduct that protects our parents and children alike.
My fellow Lebanese,
Today, I am calling upon you to implement an individual restriction to circulation, as the government is unable to face the sprawl of this epidemic alone. This responsibility is an individual, collective, and official responsibility all at once.
My fellow Lebanese,
We are in grave danger, and know that our victory over this danger may only be achieved in the complementarily and collaboration of the efforts between the government, society, and citizens.
Therefore, and after consulting His Excellency the President of the Republic, I have issued the following decision, comprising:
1- Mandating the military and security authorities, and setting forth an additional immediate strategy to enforce the decision of citizens’ home confinement with the possibility to exit their homes in cases of extreme necessity only.
2-Increasing surveillance on all things relating to manufacturing, importing, storing, exporting, and distributing items and equipment relative to personal, health, and preventive care and treatment against Corona, as well as preparing a complete itinerary of the available items.
3- Identifying the needs of healthcare institutions whether public or private, and the needs of citizens in material, equipment, and items relative to the prevention and treatment of Corona, as well as regulating the prices thereof.
Mothers of Lebanon… If joy is missing on your day of celebration, know that the celebration is in protecting the family, and protecting the health of mothers, grandparents, parents, and children.
My fellow Lebanese,
We are facing very difficult and trying times, so let us cut our losses.
God Almighty says: “And we will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth, lives and fruits, but give good tidings to the patient”.
Let us be patient!”
{PM Hassan Diab's Press Office}

Diab Says Army, Security Forces to Take Measures to Enforce Lockdown
Naharnet/March 21/2020
Prime Minister Hassan Diab on Sunday called on the Army Command and the rest of security forces to take strict measures to ensure citizens are staying in their homes unless it is extremely necessary, following major breaches of the government’s “general mobilization” order over the past days. “The plans include staging patrols and erecting checkpoints on roads to enforce commitment to the taken measures,” Diab said in an address to the nation dedicated to the coronavirus crisis.
“The Army Command and the security forces will announce the needed steps,” he added.
Warning that “coronavirus is waiting at doorsteps,” the premier said dealing with the threat “must be at the level that protects our people.”
“We are in great danger and triumphing over coronavirus can only happen through cooperation between the state, the society and the citizen,” Diab urged. Cautioning that the Health Ministry recorded 67 coronavirus cases over the past two days, the prime minister warned that violators of the lockdown and general mobilization measures will be prosecuted by the relevant judicial authorities. “I call on the Lebanese to observe a self-imposed curfew,” he urged. The Health Ministry said in its daily report on Saturday that 24 more people have contracted the virus, raising the country’s tally to 206. "From February 21 till March 21, 2020, the total number of laboratory-confirmed cases has reached 206, including those diagnosed at private hospitals and at the Rafik Hariri University Hospital,” said the report. The Ministry said RHUH continues to run tests on samples taken from people suspected to have contracted the virus, while identifying and monitoring their contacts and carefully watching all arrivals from countries experiencing a spread of the virus.
Last Sunday, the government declared a two-week state of “general mobilization,” closing the country’s air, land and sea ports of entry and ordering the closure of all non-essential public and private institutions.
Citizens and residents were meanwhile asked to stay home unless it is extremely necessary to go out, but major breaches of the instructions were recorded over the past few days, especially in Tripoli, Beirut's Tariq al-Jedideh area and Beirut's southern suburbs.

Lebanon’s PM Diab orders security forces to enforce coronavirus curfew
Najia Houssari//Arab News/March 22/2020
BEIRUT: Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab asked the security forces on Saturday to enforce stricter measures to keep people indoors and prevent gatherings to curb a coronavirus outbreak. In a speech, Diab said this would include patrols and checkpoints, calling on the Lebanese to stay home and only go out if “absolutely necessary.”  Lebanese officials called for tougher emergency measures, including curfews, after the number of coronavirus cases in the country surged to 230 on Saturday, with four victims believed to be in a critical condition.
The Ministry of Health urged people to “adhere to complete domestic quarantine,” and warned that those who ignore repeated government warnings could face criminal prosecution.
Dr. Assem Araji, head of the Parliamentary Health Committee, demanded that emergency measures be stepped up “because people have not adhered to the domestic quarantine.” As the number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases in Lebanon continued to climb, it was revealed that a former minister, Mohammed Safadi, had also contracted the virus. “The result of the laboratory examination is positive. He is now in good health and will soon join the list of those recovering from COVID-19,” said his wife, former minister Violet Safadi.
Meanwhile, local police issued warnings to people breaching home quarantine and raids were carried out on businesses ignoring the ruling. Penalties were imposed on shop owners defying the government measures.
Municipalities used loudspeakers to warn residents against renting out homes to Lebanese or Syrian families from outside towns and villages “for fear of spreading the virus and to maintain health security.” Syrian residents were also told to refuse visits by relatives or acquaintances.
The warning reached the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, which closed their entry and exit points. “We are worried about the lack of medical facilities to treat the disease,” an official at Ain Al-Hilweh, the largest Palestinian camp in Lebanon, told Arab News.
Medical and health teams with the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, together with Palestinian security forces, began checking people entering or leaving the camp, and disinfecting vehicles and other machinery. About 4,000 Lebanese Red Cross volunteers are helping to transport those infected with the virus to hospital.
George Kettana, director-general of the Lebanese Red Cross, said: “We receive many calls from all regions and we respond to every possible case.” Kettana called on people to “be honest and frank so that we do not expose volunteers to danger.”
Some supplies, including protective clothing, had started to run out and international aid organizations are ready to help, he said.
President of the Syndicate of Private Hospitals, Suleiman Haroun, warned that “trying to reduce the number of daily cases is important because it is a race against time. “If the number of daily cases reaches hundreds, we will not be able to receive all cases. Hospitals capacity is limited and hospitals were not initially prepared to face such a pandemic,” he said. Former prime minister Saad Hariri said: “The pandemic is a treacherous enemy. Please stay in your homes. The quarantine is the only safety line.”
Walid Jumblatt, head of the Progressive Socialist Party, said: “The disease is spreading rapidly because people refuse to stay in their homes.”
“People should be forbidden at any cost from wandering around,” he said.
Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian called for a “general amnesty for prisoners, so that we will not face a tragedy in light of the outbreak of the coronavirus, despite all the precautionary measures.”

Rahi calls for full compliance with official health instructions
NNA/March 21/ 2020
Maronite Patriarch, Cardinal Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, stressed Saturday on the need for full compliance with the official health instructions, in an issued circular marking the “Holy Week”.
“Based on the recent developments of the spread of the Coronavirus, and the new instructions issued by the local governments to prevent this epidemic, we pray that God will have mercy on us and guide everyone to rationality and good behavior, and strengthen all health cadres in providing their services, and heal all infected people in the world,” the Patriarch said. “We continue our prayers, fasting, and acts of repentance to God, so we would have His mercy on us and all of humanity, heal those afflicted by the emerging Corona virus diseease, protect the survivors, and inspire researchers and doctors to find an effective medicine to eliminate this epidemic and put an end to it,” al-Rahi said in his raised prayers to the Lord Almighty. “Let this cruel blow be a call that leads to the birth of a new individual and a new world, in alignment with the Lord’s heart…With my love, my prayers, and my apostolic blessings…Christ has Risen!"

Bassil: To tighten measures up to imposing curfew
NNA/March 21/ 2020
Free Patriotic Movement Chief, MP Gebran Bassil, issued a statement on Saturday, indicating that “medical statistics and available data confirm that Lebanon is entering at a predictable rapid pace into the dangerous upward phase of the Corona epidemic outbreak, which necessitates taking exceptional and deterrent measures to limit the speed of the growing risk.”“Therefore, we call on the government and its concerned bodies, especially the security forces, to seriously consider tightening procedures and isolating some areas, up to imposing curfew except in cases that are allowed by permits, and issuing fines against those violating instructions and endangering themselves and others, pursuant to Article 604 of the Penal Code,” Bassil said. He appealed to all citizens "to stay in their homes”, urging supporters, affiliates and friends of the Free Patriotic Movement “to fully adhere to home quarantine, except for those who undertake volunteer missions in the Corona Prevention Response Team.” “We call upon all to deal responsibly and not to slide into any sectarian or regional language regarding the subject of the spread of Corona. We are all in one nation, and there is no safety for one more than the other except through our mutual solidarity to protect each other,” Bassil corroborated. He also called on the Lebanese Central Bank, and all banks, to accord absolute priority to opening the necessary credits for medical imports, and urged the Health Ministry to facilitate their quick entry and distribution where needed.
"Lebanon, as other countries, will pass through a critical health phase that we can overcome if we show individual and collective awareness and prove, as usual, that we are a people who do not fear difficulties; yet this time by not challenging but preventing them...Let us prove once again the ability of the Lebanese to bear and adapt to any circumstances, even if through home quarantine this time,” Bassil concluded.

Hariri appeals to the Lebanese to respect the confinement
NNA/March 21/ 2020
Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri appealed to all citizens, “to the fathers, mothers and young men and women all over Lebanon, to stay at home and deal with home confinement as the only safety line and the necessary medicine.” He said on Twitter: “The coronavirus epidemic is a treacherous enemy that infiltrates families through mixing with others and not abiding by health guidelines. I appeal to you to remain home and deal with home confinement as the only safety line and the necessary medicine.
Hariri: “Medical examinations reveal a new wave of casualties every day. This means that the epidemic danger is expanding from one region to the other, and this requires strict measures that end the recklessness of many and put an end to the non-respect of the general mobilization decision.”
He continued: “Responsibility is shared between the country’s official authorities concerned with determining the scientific steps to confront the epidemic, and the citizens who are required to protect themselves and stop endangering the safety of others.”Hariri concluded: “The occasion calls on us to unite all efforts and support the medical teams responsible for the safety of people, primarily the medical and nursing teams at the Rafic Hariri Hospital and the Lebanese Red Cross teams deployed all over the Lebanese territory.” {Former PM Hariri's Press Office}

MP Sami Gemayel: To prevent unnecessary mobility
NNA/March 21/ 2020
MP Sami Gemayel tweeted Saturday on the developments of the Corona virus, saying: “With the daily number of infected cases increasing and after receiving a call that sounded the alarm signal from the Lebanese Red Cross President, Dr. Antoine al-Zoghbi, we reiterate our demand for strictness in preventing unnecessary wandering, and we urge those concerned to adopt the proposals we made to avoid the worst.”

Musharrafieh: It is solely through cooperation and solidarity that we can overcome this stage
NNA/March 21/ 2020
Minister of Social Affairs and Tourism, Ramzi Musharafieh, tweeted Saturday saying: “Until the announcement of the comprehensive plan that the Ministries of Social Affairs and Tourism are preparing with the various ministries within the government, the legislative body, and the concerned authorities locally and internationally, to help citizens affected economically and financially by the catastrophe that befell our homeland, I urge public institutions (such as the National Social Security Fund, EDL, the Water and Phone Companies, Traffic Management Authority, municipalities, credit companies, employers, property owners, banks, etc...) to bear part of the loss with citizens, workers and tenants….It is only through cooperation and solidarity that we can cross this stage!"

First Lady on Mother's Day: Let your children stay at home
NNA/March 21/ 2020
“Ask your children, regardless of their age, to stay at home, so that they help reduce the risk [of the spread of the Coronavirus] and keep it away from your families and loved ones,”" First Lady Nadia Chami Aoun, called on the Lebanese Mothers, via Twitter, on the occasion of Mother's Day. She added: "With our solidarity and commitment, we can limit losses and help overcome Corona."

Abdel Samad on Mother's Day: Stay home for their sake!
NNA/March 21/ 2020
“On Mother’s Day, I greet all the mothers of Lebanon. They are life, the first nurses, the source of strength and doctors for the life of any child," Dr. Manal Abdel Samad Najd said via her Twitter account.
She added: "Because health is not a joke, stay at home for your mother and for everyone's sake.

COVID-19 cases rise to 206, Lebanon now in virus outbreak phase
Sandra Abdelbaki /Annahar/March 21/ 2020
BEIRUT: Lebanon stepped into the COVID-19 outbreak phase after the total number of coronavirus cases reached 206 on Saturday, according to the Ministry of Public Health. “In addition to the previous report and after receiving the laboratory results of the new private hospitals that have recently joined the list of accredited university hospital laboratories and whose results were not previously sent when the statement was issued, the final total number of cases confirmed as of 21/03/2020 is 206 cases," a statement issued by the Ministry of Public Health read.
The ministry stressed on the importance of abiding by the preventive measures and in-home quarantine, which has become an individual and societal moral responsibility.
In accordance with the fast outbreak of the virus, Prime Minister Hassan Diab addressed the nation on Saturday night to further discuss the latest coronavirus updates.Failure to adhere to the measures indicates lack of awareness of the risks' magnitude, which leads us to call on the army and security forces to strictly take the necessary measures to keep the Lebanese at home,” Diab stated in his address.
Diab also asked the Lebanese to implement “self-curfew” and take responsibility for their actions because the government can’t face this virus alone.Diab concluded his address with issuing the following decisions:
1-Assigning the army command, the General Directorate of Internal Security Forces, the General Directorate of General Security and the General Directorate of State Security responsible on making sure individuals abide by in-home quarantine and to prevent gatherings of all kinds.
2- Implementing stricter surveillance on manufacturing, importing, storing, exporting and distributing all materials, equipment and devices concerned with personal health protection, prevention and treatment of the coronavirus.
3-Determining the needs of public and private health institutions, and the needs of the Lebanese from equipment and devices concerned with the prevention and treatment of Coronavirus, in addition to controlling their prices.

Just when Lebanon thought it had suffered enough …
Hafed Al-Ghwell/Arab News/March 22/2020
Lebanon, with its $90 billion dollars in debt equivalent to about 170 per cent of its gross domestic product, has defaulted on a $1.2 billion eurobond. Its dollar bonds are now trading at 16 cents on the dollar and its credit rating is now in junk territory.
Negotiations with creditors to restructure the debt will probably not have any resolution for at least nine months, and probably longer considering the oil price plunge and the current havoc in the financial markets. The country’s options are severely limited.
The repercussions, of course, are massive as Lebanon faces pressure from all sides in an increasingly bleak global economic reality, with little in the way of foreign exchange reserves, and an import-dependent economy. Any planned reforms that Lebanon announced so far will now have to be paused until at least $90 billion is restructured to give Beirut room to breathe. That is no easy feat, given the global economic picture and Lebanon’s fragile political state.
As the limited options become clearer and desperation sets in, Lebanon has very few paths it can explore. One of the most important is of course seeking the help of the International Monetary Fund; the second is an aggressive campaign to slash government spending, raise taxes and seek aid from other countries willing to spare some cash in this very tight global financial environment and the enormous strains on governments everywhere in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. The final option is to take the risky route of Argentina and lock any bondholders’ funds in the country.
The problem with the first option is that some powerful political forces inside Lebanon, namely Hezbollah, are resisting the idea of seeking help from the IMF. However, even if that option were open, the IMF would need a credible economic plan that will demand some serious sacrifices, as in the case of Greece’s debt crises, and which in the already fragile Lebanese context could trigger even more political and social upheaval in a very unstable region and with a weak international order.
The second option has been termed “Beg, steal and borrow” — to beg for help from the outside, for example the Gulf states, which are now in no position to be as generous as before, given the collapse in the oil markets, their own high fiscal debts and obligations, and their need to allocate substantial funds to reduce the economic impact of the pandemic on their own economies.
The real issue here is the Lebanese people, who are already suffering and were forced to come out on to the streets over the past few months demanding change in an unprecedented anti-establishment revolution that brought in a new government — only to find itself in this total mess.
Credit rating agency Fitch has said the Lebanese government may even raid the deposits and savings held in the country’s banks, as Cyprus did at the height of its crisis, though the government is saying that won’t happen. That means, in effect stealing and canalizing its people’s savings.
To follow the example of Argentina and try to force a settlement on its bondholders, the government would risk dragging the country into an endless legal battle for years, and being locked out of the international debt market, as happened with Argentina.
This bleak picture extends, of course, to some major investment houses outside Lebanon. The Financial Times reported that London-based Ashmore held 25 percent of Lebanon’s bonds. Financial analysts expect that long and hard negotiations between Lebanon and creditors may result in the best of circumstances being 30 to 35 cents on the dollar.
Beyond all these numbers and fancy speculations, the real issue here is the Lebanese people, who are already suffering and were forced to come out on to the streets over the past few months demanding change in an unprecedented anti-establishment revolution that brought in a new government — only to find itself in this total mess. Citizens are already facing severe restrictions on their bank accounts, with tough limits on withdraws and transfers; now they are also facing the real possibility that some of their account balances will be frozen and raided by their government in a desperate move to pay its bills.
This economic crisis is one the worst Lebanon has faced since its independence in 1943. The economy has lost more than 200,000 jobs since last October, its worst drop since the civil war. Importers of critical products such as food and medicines are having a tough time finding hard currency, and many have shut down. Other businesses have also been forced to reduce or stop their activities since banks are no longer willing to cash checks, make transfers and allow large withdrawals. Many consumer venues have now also been ordered to shut down because of the pandemic.
Shops, companies, food and medical importers, hotels, services are all being forced to shut down because of lack of hard currency in a country that depends heavily on imports and is dependent on a global supply chain. On top of all that, the COVID-19 pandemic has just added salt to Lebanon’s wounds. It is a “perfect storm” that has hit the country from all sides.
The only way out, painful as it will be, is for Lebanon to seek help from the IMF and accept its stringent requirements — and for the Lebanese people, who have sacrificed so much in their history, to sadly accept pain and even more sacrifices again.
*Hafed Al-Ghwell is a non-resident senior fellow with the Foreign Policy Institute at the John Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He is also senior adviser at the international economic consultancy Maxwell Stamp and at the geopolitical risk advisory firm Oxford Analytica, a member of the Strategic Advisory Solutions International Group in Washington DC and a former adviser to the board of the World Bank Group. Twitter: @HafedAlGhwell

القوات الإيرانية وحزب الله نقلوا مقرهم الرئيس من دمشق إلى حلب
موقع دبيكا/21 آذار/2020
Iran/Hizballah forces relocate HQ from Damascus to Aleppo
DEBKAflle/Mar 21, 2020
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/84384/%d9%85%d9%88%d9%82%d8%b9-%d8%af%d8%a8%d9%8a%d9%83%d8%a7-%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%82%d9%88%d8%a7%d8%aa-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%a5%d9%8a%d8%b1%d8%a7%d9%86%d9%8a%d8%a9-%d9%88%d8%ad%d8%b2%d8%a8-%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%84%d9%87/
القوات الإيرانية وحزب الله نقلوا مقرهم الرئيس من دمشق إلى حلب
موقع دبيكا/21 آذار/2020
في تقرير نشره موقع دبيكا اليوم أُفيد بأن الحرس الثوري الإيراني وحزب الله قد نقلوا مؤخراً مقرهم الرئيس من دمشق إلى محافظة حلب الشمالية وذلك حسبما كشفت مصادر عسكرية واستخباراتية للموقع. المقر الرئيسي في دمشق أفرغ ونقلت كل محتوياته إلى المقر الجديد الكائن في مدينة حلب.
المقر هذا هو أكاديمية الأسد العسكرية الكبيرة حيث بالإمكان استيعاب 7000 رجل مسلح.
المقر الجديد محمي بالمدفعية الإيرانية المضادة للطائرات وقد أوكل الإيراني أمر حراسة الأكاديمية لمليشيا لحزب الله.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards and Hizballah recently relocated their Syrian HQ from Damascus to the northern province of Aleppo, DEBKAflle’s military and intelligence sources reveal.They emptied out the “Glass Hours” center near Damascus and established a new command center at the Al-Assad Military Academy some 7km southwest of Aleppo center. This compound can accommodate 2,000 or so armed men.
The Guards’ Al Qods Brigade has transformed the compound into an Iranian enclave in every sense. It is secured with Iranian mobile Bavar-373 anti-air batteries which have an operational range of 200km. Hizballah forces are entrusted with the task of securing the new headquarters and its approach routes.
Our sources stress that an Iranian military redeployment on this scale could not have taken place with the Russian nod. They also reveal that the purpose of the unannounced visit to Syria last week by the new IRGC commander Brig. Gen. Esmail Ghaani was to oversee the move. Although this was his first trip to Syria since the assassination of his predecessor Qassem Soleimani, Ghaani was not received in Damascus or by any Syrian dignitary. His sole destination was Aleppo, clearly to supervise the installation of the important new command center whose facilities are to operate under his authority.
Hizballah’s key role in the transfer is an integral component of the Lebanese Shiite organization’s boosted redeployment in Syria and Lebanon, Damascus has handed over full control of a 20-km deep area along its western border with Lebanon to Hizballah forces, excepting only the Allawi regions of the north.
And in the east, iran and Hizballah won another major asset for strengthening their grip on Syria from the evacuation this week of US forces from their Al Qaim base in western Iraq near the crossing into Syria. US CENTCOM has decided to abandon its small bases in the country and gather in all its troops at the larger facilities for protection against pro-Iranian militia rocket attacks. With the US presence gone from Al Qaim, the crossing lays open for Iran to push a fresh surge of Iraqi Shiite militias into Syria undisturbed.
In a cruelly ironic sidebar to the new, unopposed ramping up of the Iranian and pro-Iranian military presence into Syria, Damascus this week banned the entry of “foreigners arriving from many countries hit by coronavirus.” Iran and its soaring pandemic clearly do not count as such. The Assad regime denies any confirmed infections in the country at all, while nonetheless widening measures to combat its spread by closing schools, parks, restaurants and public institutions. Hospitals and medical facilities in the embattled province of Idlib meanwhile cry out for help to cope with millions of distressed people, including many refugees.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on March 20-21/2020
Rejected by Shiites, Iraqi Prime Minister-Designate Holds Extensive Talks
Baghdad - Hamza Mustafa/Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 21 March, 2020
Hours after Iraqi President Barham Salih announced assigning former governor of Najaf Adnan al-Zurfi to form a government, several Shiite leaders called for an urgent meeting to reject his mandate. A campaign was launched before the meeting to disseminate information that Zurfi, MP of Nasr Coalition, is rejected by the four religious references in Najaf, however, no official statement was issued to confirm the claims.The meeting was attended by Nuri al-Maliki, Hadi al-Amiri, Ammar al-Hakim, Haider al-Abadi who is also a member of Nasr, Faleh al-Fayyad, representatives of League of the Righteous led by Qais al-Khazali, and Nassar al-Rubai as representative of Sadrist movement. Reports also indicated that Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani refused to meet the PM before he received full support from the Shiite component. But, neither Zurfi nor Barzani’s office confirmed or denied the reports.
The leaders did not issue a clear statement on rejecting Zurfi because they didn't agree on another candidate to present to the President. The meeting aimed to push Zurfi to withdraw his candidacy to nominate another figure, however, the Prime Minister-designate did not respond.
Zurfi kicked off consultations with political forces including Sunni and Kurdish blocs. He also seemed to provoke his opponents by holding three meetings with international figures. He met with Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General (SRSG) Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert who stressed the importance of forming an Iraqi government, which means Zurfi had received international support. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also affirmed Washington's support of Zurfi in a tweet. The PM met with both the Egyptian and Kuwaiti ambassadors, and according to two statements issued by his office, Zurfi received Arab support. Zurfi's office said in a statement that the meeting with the Kuwaiti ambassador stressed that the stability of Iraq is in the interest of neighboring and friendly countries. During the meeting, Zurfi reiterated the importance of Iraq assuming its position in the Arab and surrounding regions. The Kuwaiti Ambassador affirmed his country’s readiness to further cooperate over common issues between the two brotherly countries. Meanwhile, Iranian Ambassador, Mousa Alizadeh Tabatabaei, announced that his country's policy is based on non-interference in Iraq's internal affairs. “Iran's policy regarding Iraq is noninterference in its domestic affairs and respecting the choices the nation makes which are based on consensus and national understanding and within the framework of the country's Constitution and regulations,” Tabataei was quoted by IRNA news agency. Tabatabaei wished success for the Iraqi politicians in their efforts for the country's construction, stability, and security. Head of the Political Thinking Center, Ihsan al-Shammari, believes that Zurfi was only rejected by the State of Law bloc led by Nuri Maliki, and al-Fatah Coalition led by Hadi al-Amiri. He told Asharq Al-Awsat that Zurfi was strongly accepted among other Shiite blocs, welcomed by Sunnis, and cautiously accepted by the Kurdistan Alliance. Shammari added that the meeting held at Hakim’s house was not to reject him as a candidate as much as an attempt to reach a common ground and unify positions in preparation for the next stage. He indicated that some parties within the meeting tried to reach a consensus between Shiite forces that rejected Zurfi. Shammari said that they agreed to accept the mandate constitutionally. Zurfi is set to hold further talks with political forces during the constitutional period, and there remain disagreements on what he can present to these political forces, as the Shiite component wants guarantees regarding the next government, according to Shammari. He indicated that Zurfi must pledge to many demands such as his position from the armed forces and relation with Iran, given that Zurfi is believed to have a positive stance towards the US presence in Iraq.

Turkey Says Deployment in Idlib Continues as per Moscow’s Deal
Ankara- Saeed Abdulrazek/ Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 21 March, 2020
Planned deployment and distribution of troops in Idlib de-escalation zone of northwestern Syria is continuing, and there are no withdrawals of troops from the region, Turkish National Defense Ministry announced on Friday. To stop the bloodshed and humanitarian crisis, and ensure security of troops as well as safe return of civilians to their homes, all decisions taken under the Moscow deal are being implemented with utmost care, read the ministry's statement. It further noted: "The Turkish Armed Forces is continuing planned deployment and distribution of troops in the Idlib de-escalation zone of northwestern Syria, in line with the ceasefire of March 6. Reports by some media organizations about withdrawals of our troops from the region do not reflect the truth."Following their meeting in Moscow on March 5, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a ceasefire in Idlib starting from the 6th of March. In a joint statement, they said that a secure corridor would stretch 6km to the north and 6km to the south of the Aleppo-Latakia M4 highway, and they also agreed to hold joint patrols on it. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said that since Moscow's ceasefire deal, thousands of soldiers and 1,400 military vehicles entered Syrian territories. From February 2 to date, SOHR activists monitored the entry of more than 4,800 Turkish trucks and military vehicles, including tanks, personnel carriers, armored vehicles, mobile bulletproof guard booths, and military radars. Meanwhile, the number of Turkish soldiers who were deployed during the same period in Idlib and Aleppo exceeded 9,650. This followed the Turkish defense ministry announcing Thursday that a rocket attack by "radical groups" killed two Turkish soldiers and injured one more in Syria's Idlib province, prompting Turkish retaliatory fire in the direction of the rockets. The correspondent took place in the countryside of Idlib along the M4 highway during a surveillance mission for the Turkish Armed Forces. Meanwhile, some Idlib residents placed sand barriers at the M4 highway to express rejection for Turkish-Russian understandings.

5,000 Terrorists Detained In One of The Toughest Prisons Worldwide
Al-Hasakah: Kamal Shaykho/ Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 21 March, 2020
In al-Hasakah, the United States and the international alliance against ISIS have established the largest prison in the world for extremists, holding around 5 thousand inmates. These are men who fought alongside ISIS until its final days in Baghuz last spring before turning themselves in and ending up in this place. Before entering, the guards verify the visitor’s identity and put them through complicated security checks, out of fear that pro-ISIS sleeper cells may slip in. At the main gate, tens of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) personnel stand in full uniform and fully armed. Visitors are asked not to discuss field news, including the death of ISIS’s leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and the Turkish attack on East Euphrates. These are the ISIS members who struck fear with their extremist rules, barbaric sentences and their crimes committed between 2014 and 2019. During its peak, ISIS issued its own religious system and currency and taxed around 7 million people. It also removed borders between areas under its control in Syria and Iraq before its geographic and military control were eradicated last March at the hands of several parties that operated under the umbrella of the Arab-Kurdish SDF supported by the international alliance led by the US. Al-Hasakah facility is one of 7 prisons in Northeast Syria and is under the control of the SDF. Its expenses reach thousands of dollars in food, healthcare, and wages. This is an expensive bill paid by the US and the United Kingdom after most western and Arab governments refused to repatriate their citizens and subject them to a trial. Al-Hasakah is under divided control. The SDF controls the areas south, east and north of the prison, and US forces have established a military base a few meters away from the prison. The Syrian government’s forces supported by Russian fighter aircraft are only 5 kilometers away to the west and control a security square in the center. According to the prison administration, inmates are subject to interrogations or are tried before a court and they are disconnected from the world outside and the developments on the field that the area has witnessed in the last year.
The Asharq Al-Awsat delegate watched a videotape that was recorded months ago by surveillance cameras in the prison showing tens of inmates rebelling and taking a guard captive by tricking him that one of them was sick. The SDF rapidly intervened and resolved the matter without any victims falling. The prison administration said that the SDF used rubber bullets and teargas to restore order. It was able to control the situation and liberate the hostages, pointing out that the facility lacks a lot of equipment and surveillance systems as it is still under renovation.
Kurdish authorities and the SDF are worried that in case Turkey attacks the remaining areas under SDF control, which harbor many prisoners and detention centers, these extremists may escape. The concerns come as extremists remain detained in buildings that are not entirely secured. Incidents of assaults and chaos have taken place, such as the one that took place in al-Hawl camp in eastern Syria, one of the largest camps where thousands of women and children of ISIS fighters live.

Kremlin Stresses Strong Relations With Saudi Arabia, no Oil Price War
Moscow- Taha Abdulwahed/ Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 21 March, 2020
The Kremlin's spokesperson has suggested that no one should interfere in Russia and Saudi Arabia relations as an oil price dispute continues roiling global markets. Dmitry Peskov told reporters Friday that relations between Moscow and Riyadh remain strong despite the disagreement, which he claimed was not a price war. "There are no price wars between Russia and Saudi Arabia," Peskov said, according to Russian state news agency Tass. "There is a very unfavorable pricing environment for many countries," he added. Russia’s Central Bank held its benchmark rate at 6 percent. “In February-March, the situation has been developing with a significant deviation from the Bank of Russia’s forecast under the baseline scenario. This is related to worsening global growth prospects amid the spreading coronavirus as well as to a rapid deterioration of dynamics in global commodity and financial markets,” the Central Bank said in a statement. Fitch Ratings on Thursday lowered its forecast for Russia’s 2020 gross domestic product (GDP) growth to 1 percent from 2 percent in December, citing a global economic slump, the collapse in oil prices and a weaker rouble. It said subdued external demand and the weaker rouble had reduced investment. Peskov also commented on US President Donald Trump statements on his intention to discuss at the right time the debate between Russia and Saudi Arabia. He said the two nations still enjoy "good relations, a partnership."Responding to Fedun’s estimations that the drop of oil prices to less than USD25 per barrel would be catastrophic for the Russian economy, Peskov said "Certainly, the price situation is unpleasant... But we can't agree that this is a disaster for Russia in the medium term because our government has a solid safety cushion which for several years could provide an opportunity to fulfill all social obligations, development plans, and so on." He added: "You know that the Russian budget is calculated at USD42 per barrel. Of course, this price is unfavorable for us, but we have a safety cushion, which we'll use when it is necessary. Both in the short and medium term nothing bad is going to happen."

Sudan's Unionist Alliance: Authority Figures Are Obstructing Dismantlement of Former Regime
Khartoum - Mohammed Amin Yassin/ Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 21 March, 2020
Sudan’s Unionist Alliance accused members of the military component of the Transitional Sovereign Council, and other influential figures, of trying to terminate the goals of the revolution, establishing settlements with Islamists, and providing protection to figures of the former regime. The Alliance, which is one of the factions of the Forces for the Declaration of Freedom and Change (FFC), issued a statement saying it is monitoring some forces in the country that are trying to obstruct the ongoing steps to dismantle the former regime. The statement noted that these parties took very dangerous decisions without consulting the FFC, the political reference for the transitional government in Sudan. They also aim to gain the support of some of the revolution’s components which will lead to a new coalition that includes loyalists of the former regime and the forces against the revolution, warned the Alliance. The statement noted that the deliberate inaction towards fighting corruption enabled remnants of the former regime to regroup and organize themselves, which obstructs the transition process. They also mobilized the public against the revolutionary government, through the ‘Green March’ adopted by the former regime. The statement pointed out that the ousted regime is calling for a protest on Sunday, noting that it will stand against any rapprochement with the former regime. Also, well-informed sources, who requested to remain anonymous, told Asharq Al-Awsat that there are influential figures trying to reach a political settlement between the government and Islamist currents of the former regime.

Syrian Former Defense Minister Passes Away
London- Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 21 March, 2020
Syrian Former Defense Minister Ali Habib passed away Friday morning at the Al Assad University Hospital in Damascus at the age of 81. His body was returned to his hometown near the city of Tartus, the official statement said. Born in 1939, Habib graduated from the military academy in 1962. During the 2nd Gulf War, he served as Chief of General Staff of Syrian armed forces 1990-1991. Then in 1993, he became the commander of the Special Forces. Prior to his retirement, Mahmoud served as the Chief-of-Staff of the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) from 2004 to 2009 and Syrian Minister of Defense from 2009 to 2011. Rumors say that he tried to resist the decision to use the army to crush Syrian protesters. His name was proposed several times as a prominent figure in shaping the political transition in the country.
Notably, Habib commanded the Battle of Sultan Yacoub in Lebanese Bekaa against Israeli forces in 1982.

Iran reports 123 more virus deaths, toll rises to 1,556
Arab News/March 22/2020
TEHRAN, Iran: Iran has announced another 123 deaths from the new coronavirus, bringing its overall toll to 1,556 amid 20,610 confirmed cases.
The Health Ministry announced the latest figures Saturday. Iran is struggling to combat the worst outbreak in the Middle East, and has faced widespread criticism for its slow response.

Iran president expects coronavirus restrictions to ease 'within three weeks'
The New Arab & agencies/March 22/2020
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Saturday that restrictions to fight the coronavirus outbreak will be imposed for only two to three weeks, by which time he expects the crisis to be under control.
Iran "has to do everything necessary to return economic production to normal," he said in comments broadcast on state TV and shared by Reuters. Rouhani also accused "counter-revolutionaries" of plotting to adversely affect Iran's economic production. Iran's economy has been under strain since US President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear accord and imposed harsh new sanctions.
Iran is battling the worst outbreak in the Middle East, with nearly 20,000 confirmed cases, and has been widely criticised for its slow response.
Iran's leaders shared upbeat messages marking the Persian New Year on Friday, vowing to overcome the coronavirus outbreak even as the Health Ministry announced 149 more fatalities, bringing the country's death toll to 1,433. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has final say on all state matters, called the new year "the year of leaps in production" in Iran's economy. President Rouhani also marked the new year, known as Nowruz, by promising a better economy. "We will put the coronavirus behind us soon with unity, with hard work and with cooperation," he said.
Most people who come down with the COVID-19 illness caused by the virus experience only minor symptoms and recover within weeks.
But the virus is highly contagious and can be spread by people showing no symptoms. It can cause severe illness, including pneumonia, particularly in sick or elderly patients.
More than 240,000 people have been infected worldwide. More than 10,000 have died, while more than 85,000 have recovered.
Rouhani has defended his government's response to the pandemic in the face of widespread criticism that officials acted too slowly and may have even covered up initial cases before infections spread rapidly across the country. He also sought to highlight what he viewed as the achievements of the past year, including the downing of a sophisticated US drone and missile strikes on US bases in Iraq in retaliation for the killing of Iran's top general in Baghdad.Rouhani assured Iranians his administration will prioritise health in the coming year and said it had stockpiled basic supplies.
Nowruz is a major holiday in Iran, when shoppers typically pack local markets and take extended vacations. Most shops are closed this year, and those merchants who are still working can be seen warily accepting cash or debit cards from customers in face masks.
Khamenei issued a religious edict this week prohibiting all unnecessary travel and authorities have restricted travel between cities. After weeks of heavy criticism, authorities finally closed two major religious shrines in recent days. Other countries in the region have imposed far stricter measures to contain the virus, including cancelling flights, sealing borders and forcing nonessential businesses to close.
Meanwhile, Iran released French academic Roland Marchal in an apparent swap. Marchal, who has been imprisoned since 2019, is due to arrive in France on Saturday. French Prime Minister Emmanual Macron urged Iran to also release French academic Fariba Adelkhah.
Ahead of Iran's celebration of the Persian New Year starting Friday, authorities had released a number of international prisoners.

Iran 'frees French researcher' in apparent prisoner swap
The New Arab & agencies/March 22/2020
A French researcher detained in Tehran for over eight months on charges of conspiring against national security has been released from prison, a French presidency official said on Saturday.
According to Iranian media reports, Roland Marchal was freed in exchange for an Iranian prisoner, Jalal Rohullahnejad, held in Paris for allegedly violating US-imposed sanctions. Marchal was turned over to the French Embassy in Tehran, hours after French authorities released Jalal Ruhollahnejad, Iranian judiciary's news agency Mizan Online reported, with an undated photo of Ruhollahnejad, allegedly showing him on board an aircraft. After a year-long stint in French prisons for ''circumventing American sanctions against Iran'', the French government overturned a court decision to extradite Rohallahnejad to the US, according to the report. "Taking into account the cooperation of the (Iranian) judicial system's intention to release a French detainee through reducing sentences, the French government" freed the Iranian engineer "in an act of mutual cooperation", the report added. Marchal, a specialist on East Africa, was arrested in June after he went to Iran to visit fellow researcher Fariba Adelkhah, a dual French-Iranian national who is a prominent anthropologist and expert on Shiite Islam, and often travelled to Iran for research on post-revolutionary Iranian society. Adelkhah was arrested on charges of spreading "propaganda against the system" and "colluding to commit acts against national security", according to the pair’s lawyer, Said Dehghan.
Marchal stood accused of the same national security charge.
The French Foreign Ministry and the French university Marchal was associated with did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Friday.In February, the two researchers, both in their 60s, petitioned prison authorities to allow them to get married.
While their lawyer said they had been partners for 38 years in France, it was unclear if their request had been granted. At the time, Dehghan also expressed concern for his client's deteriorating health, amid a hunger strike Adelkhah had been on since December.
Adding to concern of the welfare of prisoners, Iran is currently battling the worst outbreak of the new coronavirus in the Middle East, with the death toll at 1,433 as of Friday, according to the country's Health Ministry.
Iran announced Thursday that 10,000 prisoners - among them an unknown number of inmates whose cases are political and related to activism or speech - would be granted amnesty on the Persian New Year, called Nowruz. The country had already released 85,000 prisoners on temporary leave to curb the spread of the new coronavirus inside its prisons.

Worldwide Virus Lockdowns as WHO Warns Young People 'Not Invincible'
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 21/2020
Hundreds of millions of people worldwide kicked off the weekend under a coronavirus lockdown, as the global death toll accelerated sharply and the World Health Organization warned the young they were "not invincible".
The pandemic has completely upended lives across the planet, sharply restricting the movement of huge populations, shutting down schools and businesses, and forcing millions to work from home -- while many have lost their livelihoods entirely. While President Donald Trump insisted the United States was "winning" the war against the virus, individual states dramatically ramped up restrictions, with New York and Illinois joining California in ordering residents to stay home. The virus death toll surged past 11,000 worldwide, with 4,000 alone in worst-hit Italy where the daily number of fatalities has shot up relentlessly over the past week.
While the elderly and those with pre-existing medical conditions are the hardest hit by the virus, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that young people were also vulnerable. "Today I have a message for young people: you are not invincible. This virus could put you in hospital for weeks -- or even kill you," Tedros said. "Even if you don't get sick, the choices you make about where you go could be the difference between life and death for someone else." China on Saturday reported no new local infections for a third straight day, and the WHO said the central Chinese city of Wuhan, where the virus emerged late last year, offered a glimmer of "hope for the rest of the world". But there are growing concerns of a new wave of "imported" infections in the region, with Hong Kong reporting 48 suspected cases on Friday –- its biggest daily jump since the crisis began. Many of them have a recent history of travel to or from Europe. Across Europe, governments continued to rigorously enforce lockdown measures as the continent's most celebrated boulevards and squares remained silent and empty even as warmer spring weather arrived. Italy reported its worst single day, adding another 627 fatalities and taking its reported total to 4,032 despite efforts to stem the spread. The nation of 60 million now accounts for 36 percent of the world's coronavirus deaths and its death rate of 8.6 percent among confirmed infections is significantly higher than in most other countries. France, Italy, Spain and other European countries have told people to stay at home, threatening fines in some cases, while Bavaria became the first region in Germany to order a lockdown. Britain, falling in line with its neighbours in the European Union, also announced tougher restrictions, telling pubs, restaurants and theatres to close and promising to help cover the wages of affected workers.
US 'hotbeds'
With virus fears gripping the United States, its largest state California -- with over 1,000 cases and 19 deaths -- told its 40 million residents to stay at home. New York state, which has reported over 7,000 cases and 39 deaths, followed suit on Friday, ordering its nearly 20 million residents to do the same from Sunday evening. Trump applauded the New York and California decisions, but said he did not think a nationwide lockdown was needed. "Those are really two hotbeds," he said. "I don't think we'll ever find (a US-wide lockdown) necessary."Shortly after the president spoke, the governor of Illinois ordered residents of the midwestern state to stay at home and the Connecticut governor did the same. The restrictions so far imposed in seven states cover around 100 million people, with the country's three most populous cities -- New York, Los Angeles and Chicago -- under lockdown. Trump also announced Friday that the US and Mexico have agreed to restrict non-essential travel across their border beginning on Saturday. Meanwhile a staffer in the office of US Vice President Mike Pence, the pointman for Washington's response to the outbreak, tested positive for the coronavirus. The family of country music legend Kenny Rogers, who died aged 81, said Friday they would hold a small private service "out of concern" for the virus emergency.
'Idiots'
France said more than 4,000 people were fined on the first day of confinement and ministers described those breaking the rules as "idiots".
The strict measures follow the template set by China, as a lockdown imposed in Hubei province, of which Wuhan is the capital, appeared to have paid off. Europe now accounts for more than half of the world's fatalities linked to COVID-19. Accurate figures are difficult to come by, however, as many of those who die suffer from other illnesses and infection rates are uncertain because of a lack of testing in many countries. The shadow of the virus is lengthening across Africa and the Middle East too. Gabon confirmed sub-Saharan Africa's second known death, with reported cases across Africa standing at more than 900 and rising fast. In Iran, both supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Hassan Rouhani promised the country would overcome the outbreak -- but still refused to join the rest of the world in imposing heavy restrictions.
In Latin America, Cuba and Bolivia both announced they were closing their borders, and Colombia said it would begin mandatory isolation from Tuesday. The pandemic has sparked fears of a global recession, battering the world's stock markets and prompting governments to push huge spending plans to limit the damage. Rio de Janeiro's beaches will be off-limits to sunseekers from Saturday, leaving street vendors worried how they will survive with limited government support. "As long as I can, I will continue to come here and try to sell cocktails. I still have not thought about what I will do when it is no longer possible," said Jorge Martins on Ipanema beach.

China Reports No New Local Virus Cases for Third Day Running
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 21/2020
China reported no new local cases of the deadly coronavirus for a third consecutive day Saturday, but confirmed the highest yet increase in infections from abroad. The rate of infection has been slowing for weeks in China, while the rest of the world steps up measures to try and battle the raging pandemic. The World Health Organization on Friday praised China's success in controlling the outbreak in the central city of Wuhan, where the virus first emerged late last year. "Wuhan provides hope for the rest of the world that even the most severe situation can be turned around," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a virtual news conference in Geneva. Some 56 million people in Wuhan and surrounding Hubei province were locked down in late January, but authorities are progressively easing the travel curbs as cases have dwindled. However, China has stepped up controls to tackle infections brought in from other countries, with another 41 cases reported Saturday -- the highest one-day tally yet. In total, 269 cases have now been brought into China from abroad. Beijing and other regions are forcing international arrivals to go into a 14-day quarantine, while the civil aviation ministry said this week it would limit passenger numbers on inbound international flights. There have been over 81,000 cases in China, but the health commission said only 6,013 were still ill with the disease. The number of deaths has also slowed dramatically, with seven new fatalities reported Saturday, all in Hubei province. As the crisis shifts from Asia to Europe, China's death toll -- now at 3,255 -- was overtaken this week by Italy, where more than 4,000 people have now died. The outbreak has infected more than 250,000 people around the world with more than 11,000 worldwide fatalities.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on March 20-21/2020
How to Defeat the Coronavirus
ايلي عون: طرق التغلب على فيروس الكورونا
Elie Aoun/March 21/2020
There is a cure for everything, including the Coronavirus, but the cures are being ignored.
The foundation of a healthy living includes (1) detoxifying the body from impurities and then (2) providing the body with adequate nutrients to heal itself. Both steps can be accomplished through safe means, some of which are explained herein.
PROVIDE THE BODY WITH ADEQUATE TOOLS
The risk with the coronavirus is that it is pleomorphic, able to assume different forms. You need something that kills it no matter what forms it takes. That would be the “Structured Silver Water” which destroys the coronavirus in the human body. Take few teaspoons every day as a preventive measure.
Structured silver water is NOT the same as colloidal silver. Although “Colloidal Silver” can destroy viruses, colloidal silver is not recommended because of certain negative side effects and because it cannot be properly absorbed by the body to get to where the virus is.
Silver kills every known pathogen or virus.
PARASITE CLEANSE
Detoxifying the body of parasites is an essential element of preventive medicine, or to heal from a certain disease. Anyone could research “natural ways to cleanse parasites” and will find safe means of doing so.
One method can be accomplished using mebendazole which belongs to the class of medications called anthelminthics. It is used to treat infections of several types of parasitic worms that live in the digestive system. Mebendazole prevents the worms from absorbing sugars, and by doing so, prevents the parasite from getting the energy needed for survival. Gradually, the worms die off, getting rid of the infection.
Two cleansing products are VERMOX (Mebendazole) and ZENTEL (Albendazole) manufactured by Glaxosmithkline (GSK). You may ask your doctor or nutritional consultant about a cleansing method, or if you can take Mebendazole and how it can be taken.
DESTROY THE CORONAVIRUS USING O3
“Ozone therapy” can heal patients by making them breathe ozone (O3), which is a three oxygen electrons. One of which is a free radical, negatively charged, wanting to leave the orbit and attack a positively charged organism – in this case, it would attach itself to the positively-charged coronavirus and burns it. The virus has no reparative enzyme. Unable to repair itself after being attacked by the electron, it gets destroyed.
The “medical grade ozone generator” converts pure oxygen O2 (from tanks, not ambient air) into ozone O3.
The oxygen from the tanks go through the ozonator, creating the ozone depending on the strength required (called gamma). Due to its burning sensation, O3 is not safe to inhale directly. As a result, the generator is hooked-up through a certain apparatus whereas the O3 would bubble through extra virgin olive oil to make it safe to breathe it. As the O3 goes through the sinuses and the lungs, the moment it impacts or reaches the coronavirus, it kills it on the spot.
The other healing method is to use O3 in a sauna environment, with your head sticking out of the sauna. Some saunas are manufactured to allow for that. Hook-up the hose from the ozonator into a port in the sauna. As the ozone goes into your system through the pores of the skin warmed by the sauna, it will destroy every coronavirus and any other virus that it hits. Then follow with a hot shower to wash off all the impurities coming out of the body.
DESTROY THE CORONAVIRUS USING ULTRAVIOLET BLOOD IRRADIATION
The Ultraviolet Blood Irradiation (UBI) is a safe and natural therapy using light as a natural antibiotic.
UBI is a procedure that exposes the blood to light to heighten the body’s immune response and to kill infections. With exposure to UV light, bacteria and viruses in your bloodstream absorb five times as much photonic energy as do your red and white blood cells.
This means the fragments of the killed infecting agents create a safe, autogenous vaccination-like response. This further activates and directs your immune system to the specific infections your body is attempting to overcome. The net result is the induction of a secondary kill of these infecting agents throughout the entire body. Treating only 35 cc of blood with UBI induces a beneficial systemic response.
The amount of treatment needed is determined by variables such as the state of health of the patient’s immune system, length of time the patient has been ill, and the severity of the disease being treated. UBI can be used clinically as both a SPECIFIC (i.e. psoriasis, lymph cancer) and NON-SPECIFIC (chronic infections, chronic fatigue, auto-immune diseases, etc.) immune modulating therapy.
One book to read on the subject is “Into the Light: Tomorrow’s Medicine Today” by William Campbell Douglass.
CONCLUSION
For many good reasons, I personally do not trust governments and international organizations. There are thousands of people who die every day from hunger. Do not governments and international organizations have a cure for that? Don’t they know how to deliver food, or do they need someone to tell them?
In my opinion, those who died from the coronavirus, died unnecessarily due to the unwillingness of their governments and health ministries to provide them with adequate knowledge and treatment.
The World Health Organization (WHO) is complicit in the murder of people for focusing on meaningless advice – without providing any real treatment. WHO collected more than $100 million in donations to tell people to wash their hands. In this article, I provided far more meaningful advice for free.
In my opinion, the governments and international organizations do not want what is best for us, or are incompetent to do the job properly, and we have to assume responsibility for our own health through adequate knowledge and responsible conduct.

European Union: The End?
Judith Bergman/Gatestone Institute/March 21/2020
When an entire continent is in the midst of a highly contagious virus epidemic, solidarity becomes a more complex issue. Every state inevitably considers whether it can afford to send facemasks and protective equipment that might be needed for its own citizens. In other words, every state considers its own national interest first. In the case of Italy's appeal for help, EU member states made their own interests their highest priority. This is classic state behavior and would not have caused any outrage prior to the establishment of the European Union.
While such revelations may not spell the immediate end of the European Union, they certainly raise questions about the point of an organization that pledges solidarity as a founding principle, but abandons that principle the moment it is most called for.
The current crisis on the Greek-Turkish border has shown the EU not only as unhelpful, but an actual liability: The EU has left an already overwhelmed Greece to deal with the migrant crisis -- manufactured by Turkish President Erdogan for political gain -- on its own... On top of Europe's attempts to deal with the coronavirus outbreak, the EU Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, ordered that Greece must allow the migrants that Erdogan transported to the border to apply for asylum.
If the EU were to approve visa-free travel for Turks – or anyone who had the means to buy a Turkish passport – millions of Turks would be able to enter the EU legally and potentially "disappear" there. Already at breaking point, the EU would arguably become a very different kind of "European" Union with Turkey, a country of 80 million people, literally invited to enter Europe.
All Erdogan needs to do now it sit back and wait for the EU, with Merkel at the helm, to meet his demands.
When Italy appealed to the EU for supplies of medical equipment at the beginning of its coronavirus crisis, it received exactly nothing. In addition, Germany and France even imposed bans or limitations on the export of facemasks and protective equipment. Pictured: Cleaning personnel in protective gear work in a tent of a new field hospital in Cremona, Italy on March 20, 2020. The field hospital is financed by the American evangelical Christian NGO Samaritan's Purse.
Since the outbreak of coronavirus in Italy, Italians have learned that other European Union member states do not always practice the beautiful words that they like to preach -- especially solidarity.
Solidarity is supposedly a fundamental principle of the European Union. It is enshrined in the EU treaties and the EU refers to it as one of its goals. According to article 222 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, one of the two principal treaties of the European Union:
"The Union and its Member States shall act jointly in a spirit of solidarity if a Member State is... the victim of a natural or man-made disaster. The Union shall mobilise all the instruments at its disposal... to assist a Member State in its territory, at the request of its political authorities, in the event of a natural or man-made disaster".
The EU has invoked the solidarity principle when it comes to receiving migrants: During the 2015 migrant crisis, the EU assigned each EU country a fixed quota of migrants and refugees to accept. In 2017, the EU took Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) over their refusal to take migrants. In late October 2019, the Advocate General, legal advisor to the Court, said that EU law must be followed and that the EU's principle of solidarity "necessarily sometimes implies accepting burden-sharing". The Court has yet to issue a ruling on the issue, but it usually follows the advice of the Advocate General.
The EU even has a specific unit, the Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC), which operates under the EU's Civil Protection Mechanism, which helps both EU and certain non-EU states with crisis management, in accordance with the solidarity principle. This is where Italy appealed for help at the beginning of its coronavirus crisis -- and received in return exactly nothing. "We asked for supplies of medical equipment, and the European Commission forwarded the appeal to the member states," Italy's permanent representative to the EU, Maurizio Massari, told Foreign Policy. "But it didn't work."
In addition, Germany and France, leading EU member states, even imposed bans or limitations on the export of facemasks and protective equipment. This drew mild criticism from European Union officials, such as Stella Kyriakides, the EU's Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, who had to remind member states, fruitlessly, that, "Solidarity is key."
In the past, EU member states have shown solidarity. According to its website, since its inception in 2001, the EU Civil Protection Mechanism has responded to more than 330 requests for assistance inside and outside the EU. In July 2018, for instance, when Sweden was facing widespread wildfires, primarily forest fires, EU member states sent firefighting assistance.
The coronavirus outbreak, however, is different from geographically isolated crises, such as forest fires in a member state that can be managed by pooling firefighting or other resources. When an entire continent is in the midst of a highly contagious virus epidemic, solidarity becomes a more complex issue. Every state inevitably considers whether it can afford to send facemasks and protective equipment that might be needed for its own citizens. In other words, every state considers its own national interest first. In the case of Italy's appeal for help, EU member states made their own interests their highest priority. This is classic state behavior and would not have caused any outrage prior to the establishment of the European Union.
What the coronavirus crisis reveals is that the member states of the European Union will revert to national interests when extreme circumstances call for it. While such revelations may not spell the immediate end of the European Union, they certainly raise questions about the point of an organization that pledges solidarity as a founding principle, but abandons that principle the moment it is most called for.
Coronavirus, however, is not the only recent issue to put into question the viability of the European Union.
The current crisis on the Greek-Turkish border has shown the EU not only as unhelpful, but an actual liability: The EU left an already overwhelmed Greece to deal with the migrant crisis -- manufactured by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for political gain -- on its own, despite the apparent rhetorical support by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who called Greece Europe's "shield".
On top of Europe's attempts to deal with the coronavirus outbreak, the EU Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, ordered that Greece must allow the migrants that Erdogan transported to the border to apply for asylum. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis had announced earlier that Greece was suspending all asylum applications based on article 78 (3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, which states:
"In the event of one or more Member States being confronted by an emergency situation characterised by a sudden inflow of nationals of third countries, the Council, on a proposal from the Commission, may adopt provisional measures for the benefit of the Member State(s) concerned".
Ylva Johansson, however, said that the commission would not propose suspending the right to asylum:
"Individuals in the European Union have the right to apply for asylum. This is in the treaty, this is in international law. This we can't suspend."
Suspending all common sense, however, is apparently something of which the EU is fully capable. As Johansson was making her irrational demands to Greece at a time when Europe was at a breaking point grappling with the coronavirus outbreak, German Chancellor Angela Merkel appeared to show signs that she might submit to Erdogan's migrant blackmail. Less than two weeks after Erdogan had thousands of migrants transported to the border with Greece, Merkel said, according to a report by Die Welt, that she would work "with all her strength" to "take the EU-Turkey agreement to a new level".
The agreement to which Merkel was referring is the 2016 deal between the EU and Turkey, to hold migrants in Turkey in exchange for six billion euros. Up until now, the EU had focused less on Turkey's other demands, also written in the 2016 deal, but Merkel's recent statement brought the issues back into focus: Visa-free travel for Turks in the EU, duty-free movement of Turkish goods within the EU, the setting up of a "safe zone" in northern Syria, and the resumption of regular meetings between Turkey and the EU.
If the EU were to approve visa-free travel for Turks -- or whoever has the means to buy a Turkish passport -- millions of Turks would be able to enter the EU legally and potentially "disappear" there. Already at breaking point, the EU would arguably become a very different kind of "European" Union with Turkey, a country of 80 million people, literally invited to enter Europe.
Germany also pledged more money for Turkey. According to Deutsche Welle, Merkel told Erdogan that she was willing to increase EU funds for "the care of refugees in Turkey in return for Ankara stopping thousands of refugees attempting to cross the Turkish-Greek border".
Turkey's migrant blackmail worked surprisingly well and surprisingly fast. "We must not allow refugees to be turned into pawns for geopolitical interests," announced German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas at the beginning of the Greek border crisis. "No matter who tries, they must reckon with our resistance." Germany, and the EU with it, has been exposed as a house of cards. As the house folded, the world was left in little doubt that Erdogan was running the show.
Consequently, on March 18, Erdogan announced that the migrant crisis that he had orchestrated was officially over: Turkey was closing its borders with Greece and Bulgaria, ostensibly due to the coronavirus. The Telegraph cited reports from Turkish news website Medyascope that around 150 buses had been readied to collect migrants from the border and ferry them back to Istanbul and refugee camps. Erdogan got what he wanted.
All Erdogan needs to do now it sit back and wait for the EU, with Merkel at the helm, to meet his demands.
*Judith Bergman, a columnist, lawyer and political analyst, is a Distinguished Senior Fellow at Gatestone Institute.
© 2020 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.

Coronavirus and the Return to the 'Cave'
Rajeh Khoury/Asharq Al-Awsat/March 21/2020
In less than two weeks, humankind and the planet began to seem weaker than the cobwebs of an anonymous spider that cannot be seen by the naked eye. It is the Coronavirus epidemic, which seems that it will likely change the rules governing relationships between both states and people and between nature and people! The numbers so far are not frightening when compared to the long history of past epidemics, which have killed far more people than wars at the time of writing. The WHO figures point to two hundred thousand cases, ten thousand deaths and nine thousand recoveries, but we are in a different world within terms of the progress of technology and civilization. We are not in the year 430 BC, when the Plague of Athens killed around one hundred thousand people, nor are we in 1350, when the Black Plague killed a third of Europe’s inhabitants in what was called the “great mortality” and later reached Asia and the far east. Nor are we in the time of the Spanish flu (H1N1) which infected 500 million people and killed between 50 and 100 million people after World War I, twice the number of deaths caused by the war.
Two months ago, NASA was proud of having discovered that there may be water on Mars, implying an ambition to reach Mars in the future and ruin it after we ruined earth. Fifty years ago, we sent Neil Armstrong to land on the moon, and as the Chinese were preparing for a similar trip two months ago, but then earth told them, and the rest of us: hold on, the challenge now is to find a cure for an invisible virus that cannot be seen with the naked eye; the coronavirus. Strangely the name is derived from “korōnè”, meaning crown!
A mere small virus stopped everything and covered earth’s face with a mask. It closed the borders between the world’s countries, something no world war had ever done. It closed the world’s airports, preventing half a million passengers from commuting daily according to Google. After 50 million people were quarantined in the Chinese city of Wuhan, today coronavirus is putting almost the whole world in quarantine. We used to take pride in having turned the world into the size of a small room. No, sir, the small anonymous virus is invading the earth and placing everyone in isolation. What is the difference between isolation in a home, a room, or the caves which our ancestors inhabited, terrified of monsters? This little monster, coronavirus, can infiltrate all of us, and in it lies a time bomb that can make death widespread.
The director of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, labeled the coronavirus an “enemy of humanity” last Wednesday, but also said that it presented us with an unprecedented opportunity to mobilize against a common enemy, and enemy of humanity. However, the features and traces of humanity were not seen in China and Milan. For I saw, like everyone else, utterly horrific scenes of Chinese and Italian doctors drowning in tears and grief because they had to play the role of executioners and make the decisions of gravediggers, deciding whom among the hopeless cases would be sent to their deaths so that the hospitals could receive those have a chance of surviving.
The horror! It is as though the progress of the past three centuries is collapsing as distraught family members wail the outside hospital entrances that had no room for new patients. What a truly harrowing way to die, at the doors of a hospital. The doctors in Wuhan, according to some outlets, wore diapers under their heavy protective clothes because they did not have time to go to the restroom!
What should be done in a country like Lebanon for example, which is now languishing under heavy debts as a result of political looting? For treating coronavirus cases requires money. Yesterday, I read that we do have no more than 300 respirators in our hospitals that have been crying out for two years because the state still has not paid its dues. However, Lebanon is part of the global carnival of misery, and is a victim like other victims, waiting for divine intervention.
I had never seen, like I did on 5th Street in New York at five o’clock in the evening, the time when employees leave, a human stream stretching as far as my eye could see. I considered yesterday a big day during which this stream’s water had totally dried up. Did you see the emptiness of Beijing’s streets and that of the squares of the world's major cities?! Where did the millions go? Where did the billions whom it was said the earth could barely fit go? It was also said that we needed a planet and a half to satisfy our limitless hunger. The centuries of progress, science, civilization, innovation, and talent, but we are like a weak and incapable person at the start of a new journey.
Nature has changed, and humans are changing. Let us remember the massive voids everywhere, the stadiums and their chants, cinemas, theatres, banks, restaurants and train stations. Let us remember that in caves there was nothing but caution and selfishness. Today, however, our selfishness is manifested in the avoidance of handshakes, hugs, and kisses.
What are you doing to us coronavirus?! 850 million are hindered from studying, meaning that the general level of human knowledge will decline, despite classes being broadcast on the television. It also means that thousands of students’ friendships will be weakened. It could mean children being treated with an austerity stemming from the pressure of being in quarantine by mothers and fathers. It is not a joke that fear and quarantine have increased divorce rates, as everyone is anxious and about to explode. In the city of Danshui in the Chinese province of Sichuan, the director of the marriage registry revealed that 300 couples filed for divorce after two weeks of quarantine, and in Fujian, China, 14 divorce requests are sent per day!
Until now, the pandemic has reached 160 countries, but the economy is wavering just like people are. The New York Times mentioned that around 50 million jobs will be lost. Coronavirus is putting the global economy in front of a real challenge, and the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and ESCWA are saying that the Arab world may lose 1.7 million jobs and 42 billion US dollars.
President Trump said that his country is working on an experimental vaccine that is being tried on human subjects in Seattle last Tuesday. The New York Times has revealed a meeting in the White House between Trump, his deputy Mike Pence and the CEO of CureVac, where it was mentioned that a vaccine may be developed in a few months.
What is interesting is the race towards investing in a vaccine. German newspaper Die Welt wrote that Trump is trying to put his hand on the German lab CureVac and is trying to attract German scientists to work on the vaccine. Among these is Daniel Menichella, CEO of CureVac, whom Trump appears to have been able to attract through lucrative offers. Perhaps we will remain in a world that says: The misery of one nation is the glory of another! In any case, there are more than 25 companies racing to find a vaccine that removes the mask off the face of the earth where a lot has changed after coronavirus.

Syria and the Pandemic… Between Denial and Conspiracy Theories
Akram Bunni/Asharq Al-Awsat/March 21/2020
It is not strange that the Syrian regime dealt with the coronavirus pandemic as it deals with its other crises, especially the Syrian revolution, which celebrated its ninth anniversary a few days ago. It swung between, on the one hand, denying an irrefutable reality, blaming the things it must admit on a foreign enemy that stalks it in order to break its determination and alter its alliance with the axis of resistance. One the other hand, it abrogates itself from any responsibility and refuses to admit society’s aggravating crises, using various methods of repression, killing and terror to keep things under control and people humiliated and obedient. In other words, it is not strange for a tyrannical regime that trivialized the reasons for the Syrian revolution and denied the injustice, prejudice and deprivation that they suffered from... a regime that belittled a peaceful movement of millions of protesters and considered them to be a small insignificant minority, tools of foreign agendas… a regime that denied the existence of detainees and even the use of torture they were subjected to in its prisons, claiming that the leaked pictures of thousands of detainees by "Caesar" are fabricated photographs that are from the remnants of World War II.
A regime that never blinked. At first, it killed hundreds of young men and peaceful children with its troops’ bullets. Then it reeked violence, persecution and destruction, without a care for the suffering of the people, the shedding of blood, or the accumulating number of people it had victimized, disfigured, detained, handicapped, and displaced. It is not strange for such a regime to turn a blind eye to the increasing number of victims who are dying as a result of infection from the coronavirus, claiming that the country is completely free of this pandemic and devoting its tools of repression to shut mouths that expose the spread of the disease or even suggest its existence, as happened with the head of a hospital in Damascus, who was arrested, terrorized, and forced to change his statement confirming the presence of a coronavirus patient at the hospital, claiming that it had been a mere suspicion!
The same happens with everyone who reveals the names of Syrian victims who have died of the coronavirus on social media. The authorities track them and punish them under the pretext that they had fabricated lies to undermine the state.
The regime's efforts to hide the truth about the victims has led to their numbers increasing quickly and to a delay to the implementation of the measures needed to curtail its spread, like social distancing, and closing borders and stopping air travel.
Even these measures are mere tragic and ridiculous posturing so long as they are not accompanied by preventive measures and medical tests that would limit the spread between cities and regions, and as tens of thousands of Iranian, Pakistani, Lebanese and Afghani soldiers continue to arrive and move around freely throughout the country, for dozens of them are infected.
How then, will things progress given the limitations of the country’s medical capabilities after the regime itself destroyed the most important health institutions, keeping in mind the massive number of doctors and medical experts who have been killed or displaced? There is also the problem of the deterioration of people’s living conditions and their limited ability to meet the costs of their basic needs, not the least their medical needs.
We must point to the reasons for this regime’s hopelessness and inability to do anything useful to limit the spread of the coronavirus compared to other countries with better capabilities, and the latter are still struggling to contain the virus.
Making matters even more hopeless is the statement given by the health minister. He not only bragged that there were no cases of coronavirus in Syria, he also considered that the measures he had outlined were purely preventive, meant to protect the country from a global pandemic that “conspiring enemies are trying to bring to us”, copying his ally Iran’s accusations that the United States is responsible for spreading COVID-19. Even worse, he praises the “Syrian army” for decontaminating the country from the virus as it had decontaminated it from all kinds of germs!
The approach stems from the essence of this regime, employing its media and propaganda, with every crisis or calamity that befalls us, to associate what is happening with an organized conspiracy of hostile powers. Thus, conspiracies are behind backwardness we suffer from and the failure of development projects. The exhausting corruption, backwardness and poverty we suffer are also the result of foreign conspiracies. Those in power do not see anything wrong with using religious figures to help them evade their responsibilities further. They claim that everything happening because of the coronavirus is divine will that cannot be responded to, instead of seeking to curtail the causes of the disease and treat its symptoms.
Maybe it’s true to say that the implicit aspect of the Syrians’ revolution was to save their society from the pain that the regime's policies inflicted and continue to inflict, counting on the latter’s acceptance of the real reasons for the chronic problems and its work on limiting them, and avoiding the worst. However, the latter was determined, as usual, to continue to deny and to refuse to accept bitter truths or the primacy of fixing them, even if that meant burning the country and putting Syria and all Syrians in the furnace of a bloody civil war that spares none. The state crumbled and the nation's social fabric disintegrated and was tainted with sectarianism as a result. It allowed Syria’s fate to be tampered with by gangs of religious extremists and foreign interventions and, today, to all kinds of viruses and illnesses.
Indeed, a regime that refuses to admit its peoples’ crises and fails to solve them is a regime that disregards the responsibilities that are naturally assigned to it, protecting people’s lives, rights and needs. This is clearly illustrated with the tyrannical policies it has chosen to adopt in its confrontation of the coronavirus and what preceded it. We are faced with a regime that refuses to accept its failure and inability to govern the country and protect its people. Rather, it emphasizes its approach of exacerbating terror and suffering, deluded into thinking that its method for solving problems can allow it to stay in power forever and face any obstacle.
In times of disaster, a study of the reasons and motives is usually conducted in order to set a plan that would allow for its traversal. In Syria, however, despite the tragedy and bitterness of what it has suffered and continues to suffer after years of killing, abuse and destruction, the people in power remain insistent on confronting the pandemic with reckless disregard and resort to conspiracy theories that blame the other for everything. Even worse, it is counting on violent repression to solve a problem that it is impossible for repression and violence to deal with!

The Coronavirus: Death of Globalization or a Rebirth?
Amir Taheri/Asharq Al-Awsat/March 21/2020
Is this the end of globalization? This is the question that we were supposed to debate at a colloquium in Paris this week before we were all ordered by the government to “confine” ourselves to our dwellings at least for the next 15 days. The concept of globalization attained wide circulation when cheap goods made by cheap labor in China started to flood world markets from Tokyo to Timbuktu. Thus, if globalization is to end it is only fair that it should also come to a close with a Chinese fanfare in the form of the coronavirus.
Before globalization whatever happened in China reached the rest of the world as a distant echo. The Opium Wars, the black series of famines, the atrocities committed by various foreign occupiers, the civil war, the Korean War, the annexation of Tibet and East Turkestan, the deaths of millions of people under Mao Zedong were all perceived as exotic events in a remote fantasyland that affected the rest of the world only incidentally.
Both fascinating and frightening, China was the stuff of many dreams about Oriental wisdom and many and many phobias expressed in Kaiser Wilhelm’s “Yellow Peril” warning.
Less than three decades after the start of globalization China has been included into our day-to-day world and banalized as just another as a major economic power in search for access to resources and a growing share of markets.
At the start of globalization, the Chinese economy represented three percent of the global gross domestic product. Today, China’s share has risen to around 20 percent. Establishing itself as the world’s major manufacturing center, China has contributed to almost two decades of low inflation and economic growth that has lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty in all continents. At the same time China has started to develop an appetite for playing big power.
So far, the model China has chosen is closer to that of Holland during its empire-building period, that is to say focusing on business and trade and steering clear of involvement in politics, local or international, in contrast with British and French colonial strategies that put political domination top of the agenda.
There are, however, signs that China may be developing a new strategy in which tighter political control at home is combined with a higher big power profile abroad. Is China going the way that the European colonial powers went after the Berlin Conference?
The best answer is that even if China did adopt such a strategy it would not be able to implement it. The European colonial powers of the Berlin Conference combined their quest for security abroad with democratization at home. In China today, we witness a different configuration. Regarding almost all its neighbors, with the possible exception of Pakistan, as unreliable if not hostile, China is, in fact, fomenting insecurity through its aggressive power projection. This aggressive option is highlighted with ambitious plans for developing a 19th century style blue-water naval power capable of challenging the United States in the Pacific and the Indian Ocean.
China’s feeling of insecurity abroad is combined with President Xi Jinping’s increasingly authoritarian style at home. Chinese friends who had welcomed Xi’s rise to power as a promise of liberalization now regret what they call “our childish illusions”. To be sure, Xi’s China is certainly not as repressive as that of Chairman Mao in its heyday. Apart from the Uighurs and the Tibetans who are subjected to tighter control, most Chinese still enjoy freedoms that they could not dream of before Deng Xiaoping put the country on a different course. Even in Hong Kong which is bubbling with protests, Beijing has not yet taken its gloves off. Nevertheless, the optimism that we noted in our latest trip to the People’s Republic in 2014 now seems a distant dream.
Is the cursed coronavirus the latest result of China’s turn towards greater secrecy and tighter control? There is no doubt that the big boys in Beijing knew of the outbreak of the epidemic weeks before they officially admitted it. It is also possible that face-saving considerations and attempts at hiding things contributed to delays in taking decisions needed to prevent the epidemic from becoming a global pandemic.
As always, fear and insecurity foment petty nationalisms that regard globalization as arch-enemy. Last Sunday’s local elections in France, the first test of the public mood in a major democracy after the coronavirus, gave petty nationalist candidates a major boost against rivals cast as defenders of globalization. The closing of frontiers all over the world is inspired more by a desire to reassure the people that “virus-bearing foreigners” are kept out than by any proven scientific model for coping with a pandemic.
However, it is increasingly clear that a global pandemic cannot be dealt with local efforts alone. If anything, a greater pooling of resources is needed to rescue the more defenseless societies from total catastrophe. Global cooperation is also needed to speed up the development of a vaccine, making it available to the rich and the poor alike.
And that is not to mention the need for global cooperation to cope with the economic consequences of what may turn out to be the gravest crisis since the 1920s that pushed the world to the edge of abyss.
Far from calling for a burial of globalization as a concept we may have to work for its rebirth in a broader concept that goes beyond business, trade and economic issues to include moral, cultural and political domains as well. To be sure, this does not mean that we should all conform to a single model of existence, something that human nature, if such a thing exists, would shun under most circumstances. But a rule-based global system could also mean a measure of transparency, popular participation in decision-making, free flow of information and a systemic sharing of scientific and technological resources to deal with global emergencies. The warlike situation that the coronavirus has imposed on almost all of us, rich and poor, must remind us that we live in a single global reality in which the flapping of a butterfly’s wings in the Amazons could affect the whole world.

Boris the gambler is making his riskiest bet so far
Andrew Hammond/Arab News/March 22/2020
Voters appear for now to approve of Johnson’s handling of the outbreak — 49 percent think the government is tackling the crisis well compared with 35 percent who believe it is handling it badly, and the prime minister personally is given the benefit of the doubt by 47 percent to 38 percent.
Public opinion aside, the big advantage Johnson has now is the significant House of Commons majority he won in December. The timing of that election was fortuitous for the prime minister, since it could have easily been postponed until this year, when Johnson would have been in a far tighter political spot running a minority government in what may yet turn out to be the nation’s biggest crisis since 1945, including a potentially deep recession.
Within the cabinet, too, Johnson is in the ascendant after his most recent reshuffle, and may now enjoy greater power as prime minister than any of his predecessors since Margaret Thatcher. Unlike Tony Blair, for instance, there is no obvious big counterweight to him in government, a Gordon Brown figure, so he dominates the political scene.
This means that emergency coronavirus legislation will soon be approved by Parliament, despite concern over the sweeping nature of the new powers, and their intended duration for two years despite Johnson’s insistence that the peak of the crisis will be in three months — a timeframe that the Chief Science Officer and Chief Medical Officer have refused to endorse. Yet while Johnson may be at the peak of his political powers, the risky, outlying approach he is taking to this crisis could yet backfire. The UK’s strategy, designed to spread the outbreak over a longer period and reduce stress on the National Health Service, is out of kilter with countries that imposed restrictive measures much faster.
While Boris Johnson may be at the peak of his political powers, the risky, outlying approach he is taking to this crisis could yet backfire. The danger for Johnson is that while there may be short-term advantages for the economy, the number of cases may surge anyway in coming weeks, overwhelming the NHS. If so, support for his approach and his leadership could erode fast. This strategy, which the prime minister insists is based on scientific advice, also underlines what appears to be a strong risk-taking streak in his style of political leadership. Whether one thinks he is a political genius or a clown, his period in office has been notable for a remarkable series of political gambles, of which this is only the latest.
These range from his “scorched earth” approach to Brexit, including a high-stakes decision last autumn to prorogue parliament that was over-ruled by the Supreme Court; and his push for a pre-Christmas election, the first in December for a century, at a time of extraordinary political volatility.
So far his gambles have generally paid off, including his big win in December, but the coronavirus may be his toughest opponent yet in the highest stakes battle of them all — life and death itself.
While the outcome of this latest risk-taking may not be known for months, what is already clear is that it will have a displacement effect upon his wider political agenda for 2020. The next phase of Brexit could become the most high-profile political casualty. While London and Brussels have begun negotiations on an EU-UK trade deal, talks have been halted by the virus crisis (indeed the EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier is infected and his UK counterpart Martin Frost is in self-isolation). Even before the outbreak began, the 10-month period from March to December was not likely to be nearly long enough to reach more than what Barnier has called a “bare bones” UK-EU trade agreement, and not the extensive deal promised by some Brexiteers in 2016. But Johnson refuses to countenance a transition period extension.
This threatens what even Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage has called the likelihood of a new crisis by the summer, when both sides need to decide if there will be an extended transition into 2021. So there is growing pressure on Johnson, especially with the probability of a UK recession this year, to avoid the threat of a new cliff edge in negotiations and the threat of a no-deal Brexit raising its head again in the second half of 2020.  This all underlines how much the coronavirus outbreak has the potential to reshape UK politics. While Johnson is at peak power, he could yet come crashing back down to earth with a resurgence of political and economic uncertainty.
*Andrew Hammond is an Associate at LSE IDEAS at the London School of Economics

A virus dilemma for the faithful
Peter Welby/Arab News/March 22/2020
The challenge to religious leaders around the world is that religious gatherings, congregational prayer and worship, are not regarded as leisure, but rather as a duty of human beings toward their creator. Some forms of worship are even mandated in scripture.
Saudi Arabia’s rapid response has rightly won praise; suspending Umrah, deep cleaning the Grand Mosque in Makkah, and most recently closing all mosques apart from the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah. These decisive actions are perhaps made slightly easier by the Islamic jurisprudential tradition and the governmental authority that is granted to certain scholars, something that is replicated in many Muslim-majority countries. The Fatwa Council of the UAE released a fatwa on March 3 explaining the jurisprudential and scriptural authority for the government to prevent people from attending prayers to prevent infection. Other countries have done likewise.
Nevertheless, with Ramadan rapidly approaching, Muslims around the world will be seeking guidance about how to conduct the fast. There will need to be clear instructions on exemptions for those who need to maintain their strength, and restrictions on iftar gatherings.
In Christianity the challenge is different. There is no jurisprudence to draw on, and many denominations of churches do not even have a central authority with power to issue instructions. Much of Christian worship revolves around the Eucharist (the sharing together of bread and wine in memory of Christ’s crucifixion), which often involves a common cup; another common feature is the “sign of peace” (a representation of fraternity with fellow Christians), which often involves a handshake, hug or kiss. Both practices are obviously problematic during an epidemic of this sort.
The longer this crisis goes on, the more creative religious leaders are going to have to become in how to maintain the integrity of worship when worshippers can’t congregate. In the meantime, if it leads to an increase in regular personal prayer, acts of charity and community spirit, they will all be written down as one good outcome from a terrible situation.
The hierarchical churches (such as the Church of England in the UK, or the Roman Catholic or Orthodox churches) have reacted differently. In the UK, as the epidemic grows more severe, the Church of England announced that churches would be closed to regular public worship (apparently for the first time since 1258), although funerals and weddings may still be permitted in limited form. In Jerusalem, all the leaders of the recognised Christian denominations called on their followers across the political jurisdictions in which they serve to obey the civic authorities in response to the crisis. In practice, this has meant not attending church.
Elsewhere, though, there has been some difficulty. The Greek Prime Minister called on the Greek Orthodox church in the country to follow the science, in response to a media furore that followed a church statement that the Eucharist “certainly cannot be a cause of disease transmission.” In response, the Church has suspended daily services, and is discouraging its worshippers from attending on Sundays.
It has often been religious groups who have stepped into the breach in times of crisis in the past, when political leadership has fled. Christian responses to plagues in the second and third centuries in the Roman Empire — staying and caring for the sick, both Christian and pagan, at great risk to their own health —accelerated the spread of Christianity across the Roman world. The point has always been that for those who believe in the salvation that their faith offers, there should be no fear of death; but likewise those who share in that faith have a duty to care for the living.
That lesson from early Christianity has been cited by various Christian leaders and theologians in the past few weeks. But there is a challenge too. COVID-19 is highly contagious, and those infected do not experience symptoms for some time after contracting it — but they can spread it to others. So visiting the sick and the dying (whether of this disease or not) alongside health workers, as Pope Francis encouraged Catholic priests to do, may pose a risk not only to those doing it, but also to everyone else they visit subsequently. This poses a huge dilemma to priests in all churches, for whom tending to the sick and the dying is a key part of their ministry.
So how is it that religious groups care for the living? The statement of church leaders in Jerusalem called on believers to use the opportunity to “intensify personal prayer, fasting and alms-giving.” In the UK, Churches Together, a body that most of the church denominations belong to, called for a “national day of prayer and action” this Sunday, in which, in addition to prayer, Christians were called upon to collect groceries for those who can’t go out, make donations to a food bank, and make contact with those who are in isolation.
The Islamic responses have drawn on the jurisprudential principle that “avoiding harm takes precedence over acquiring benefit,” but many of these responses have also looked at what good can be done despite the restrictions. The British Board of Scholars and Imams suggests expanded private prayer and recitation of scripture, “tending to the unwell in appropriate ways,” and an increase in “charitable works.” The UAE’s fatwa called upon “all groups and individuals to extend help and support to one another in whatever capacity they are able to do so.”
The longer this crisis goes on, the more creative religious leaders are going to have to become in how to maintain the integrity of worship when worshippers can’t congregate. In the meantime, if it leads to an increase in regular personal prayer, acts of charity and community spirit, they will all be written down as one good outcome from a terrible situation.
• Peter Welby is a consultant on religion and global affairs, specializing in the Arab world. Previously he was the managing editor of a think tank on religious extremism, the Centre on Religion & Geopolitics, and worked in public affairs in the Arabian Gulf. He is based in London, and has lived in Egypt and Yemen. Twitter: @pdcwelby.

Five keys to building a post-pandemic Mideast industrial powerhouse
Tarek Ayntrazi/Arab News/March 22, 2020
In the past two months, the world has passed through two diametrically opposite phases of dealing with the coronavirus challenge. The first phase was denial as the world thought of it as a Chinese problem, and ignored any serious measures to cope with the threat. The second phase is panic and over-reaction, which is what we are currently facing.
The current stage of complete economic and border shutdown will end as soon as humanity finds a medical defense against the virus. Another sounding bell for ending the current stage is when the economic cost of the shutdown becomes unaffordable for governments and unbearable for ordinary people living on weekly or monthly incomes.
No economic modeling has been done for such a situation. Economists and policymakers, as well as industry and business leaders, are all in uncharted waters.
Amid this virus madness, the new post-crisis economic realities and lessons for the 21st century are slowly emerging from think tanks in the West. As in every crisis, economies and businesses that are not paralyzed by fear, and which move fast enough to capture opportunities, will emerge as the winners for the coming economic cycle that may last for decades.
The major headline is that diversifying supply away from China is no longer a luxury but an urgent necessity. Total dependency on China (as on any other source) as the de facto global factory is simply not sustainable and proved to be a hugely overlooked risk.
One of the first rules I learned in business was not to allow any client to represent more than 10 percent of income simply because losing the business will swing the operation from profit to loss in one go.
The same applies to supply chains. A supply/manufacturing disruption such as the current pandemic is a wake-up call for businesses and governments. China produces 100 percent of face masks and 95 percent of ventilators. Up to 95 percent of antibiotics imported to the US are made in China, as well as iPhones, and the list goes on. Hence, new manufacturing centers must be established.
The region has five strategic pillars that allows us to capture a significant share of the global manufacturing base.
1. Labor: We enjoy one of the youngest and fairly educated populations in the world. Nothing prevents a young Saudi, Egyptian, Tunisian or Lebanese from competing with the manufacturing engineers of China Vietnam, Thailand, or Taiwan. With some education planning and vocational training, we can within two or three years years create a formidable workforce capable of offering the world high quality products at extremely competitive prices.
2. Power: We can benefit from cheap power generation and more importantly the possibility of leading the world in solar based renewable energy usage. We have 330 days of sunshine plus the possibility of the cheapest oil and petrochemical products in the world. KSA and UAE investments in solar energy are exemplary in this domain and must be expedited
3. Location: The region sits at the heart of the world, at the doorsteps of Europe and not too far from North America. Equally important, we have world-class infrastructure in JAFZA, KIZAD and Jubail, and easily upgradable facilities in other Middle Eastern markets such as Egypt and Lebanon.
4. Reliability: Oil has proved that Saudi Arabia, the UAE and other members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in the region are reliable economic partners with the rest of the world. Middle East and North African countries (except those under the Iranian spell) are on good terms with global partners. With the exception of Libya, Syria and Iraq, the Arab world is stable, with leadership focused on the long-term wellbeing of their people.
5. Access to capital: The region is capital rich and there are hundreds of billions of dollars available for deployment in industrial projects. The logistics, tourism and real estate industries are all strong. However, job creation and sustainable economic growth require a diversified economy founded on solid industrial base.
In sum, this crisis will pass as others have. The most important thing is to realize the opportunity it represents. Our business and economic leaders must start planning to emerge from it stronger and better equipped to propel our people and economies to join the global economic elites.
Creating 30 million industry-related jobs will transform the region into an economic powerhouse and add a trillion dollars to regional economies. We could simply double regional gross domestic product in one decade and rid future generations from unemployment and poverty and all the malaise associated with them.
• Tarek Ayntrazi is founder and CEO of Generation C.

Deprived of means, Syrian refugees face mounting virus threat
Walid Saleh/Laila Bassam/The Arab Weekly/March 22/2020
AKFAR, SYRIA--Syrian refugee Mohamed al-Bakhas is trying to protect his family from coronavirus infection by keeping their camp as clean as he can but, without enough soap or the money to buy sanitiser or face masks, there is only so much he can do. "They gave us an awareness session and one bar of soap each but this is not enough," said Bakhas, 40, referring to aid workers who visited his camp in northern Lebanon in mid-March.
"We ask for disinfectants, sanitisers for the camp. We are a big group," said Bakhas, who fled to Lebanon from Homs in Syria eight years ago and lives with his wife and child. Lebanon has recorded 149 cases of coronavirus and at least four people have died from the virus. No cases have been officially recorded yet among Syrian refugees, who number approximately 1 million of Lebanon's population of 6 million. As Lebanon's public health system struggles with the outbreak, the government is worried about the virus spreading to camps holding Syrian and Palestinian refugees.
Lebanese Health Minister Hamad Hasan said refugee health care was a responsibility shared by the state and UN agencies but he said the international community has been slow to react to the crisis.
"The international community with its UN agencies is a bit late in putting plans, thinking about establishing a field hospital or supporting the Health Ministry so that it can carry out its obligations towards its people, Lebanese society in addition to the Palestinian and Syrian brothers," Hassan said.
The UN refugee agency UNHCR said efforts to fight the spread of coronavirus to refugee communities had started early on. Awareness campaigns and the distribution of hygiene materials were under way and preparations were being made for additional hospitalisation capacity that may be needed. "We are all working around the clock," said Lisa Abou Khaled, communications officer at UNHCR in Lebanon. Given the high population density of the camps, Hassan noted the difficulties of maintaining personal hygiene and said the spread of coronavirus was a real danger. Field hospitals would allow for the isolation and treatment of the infected. "The international community and UN institutions must without delay prepare the ground to save these communities in case the virus spreads among them," he said. Lebanon was grappling with a financial and economic crisis before coronavirus hit. The government is appealing for foreign aid for its public health system. Coronavirus poses a host of new difficulties to refugees who have been struggling in poverty for years in Lebanon.
With water mostly trucked to their camps, refugees do not have enough for regular handwashing, relief workers said. As it stands, accessing health care can also be a problem. If refugees need to go to hospital, they cannot afford the journey or pay for treatment.
"We are exploring all options including setting up additional facilities in existing hospitals or separate field hospitals. It’s likely that a combination of both will be needed," Abou Khaled said.

Picture Enclosed: A Lebanese Martyr's Mother praying at his grave. May Almighty God Bless The Souls Of Our Heroic Martyrs who happily and courageously offered themselves on Lebanon's Alter to Safeguard the Holy Lebanon & Its people.