LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
March 30/2019

Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
http://data.eliasbejjaninews.com/eliasnews19/english.march30.19.htm

News Bulletin Achieves Since 2006
Click Here to enter the LCCC Arabic/English news bulletins Achieves since 2006

Bible Quotations For today
I appeal to all of you, my friends, to agree in what you say, so that there will be no divisions among you. Be completely united, with only one thought and one purpose.
01 Corinthians 01/10-17: “By the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ I appeal to all of you, my friends, to agree in what you say, so that there will be no divisions among you. Be completely united, with only one thought and one purpose. For some people from Chloe’s family have told me quite plainly, my friends, that there are quarrels among you. Let me put it this way: each one of you says something different. One says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Peter”; and another, “I follow Christ.” Christ has been divided into groups! Was it Paul who died on the cross for you? Were you baptized as Paul’s disciples? I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius. No one can say, then, that you were baptized as my disciples. Oh yes, I also baptized Stephanas and his family; but I can’t remember whether I baptized anyone else.) Christ did not send me to baptize. He sent me to tell the Good News, and to tell it without using the language of human wisdom, in order to make sure that Christ’s death on the cross is not robbed of its power..

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on March 29-30/2019
In Lebanon, Daylight Saving Time to Begin Midnight Saturday/Sunday
Bassil Says Shebaa Farms, Kfarshouba Hills are 'Lebanese Land'
Bassil holds talks with Bulgarian President, Parliament Speaker, Foreign Minister
Concerns in Beirut over Shebaa Farms Following Trump’s Golan Decision
Report: U.S. Golan Move Raises Lebanese ‘Concerns’ over Shebaa Farms
Bustani: Committee to Re-discuss Electricity Plan Next Week
'Let Them Compete against Windmills' Says Karami as Naji Pulls Out of Race
In Tripoli, Rampling Inaugurates Renovated Shops, Announces More Funding to NGO
Lebanon's Public Debt Surging by $12,500 per Minute
Finance Minister Says He's Ready to Submit Draft Budget to Government
Kubis: Deep Reforms Needed in Lebanon
Mrad: Bulgaria visit opened cooperation doors with Lebanon
Lebanon of value to US but countering Iran takes priority
UK support for Lebanon unwavering despite Hezbollah terrorist designation
China eyes Lebanese port to launch investments in Syria, region

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on March 29-30/2019
Foreign ministers meet for Arab Summit in Tunis
British MPs Reject Brexit Deal for Third Time
Huge Rallies in Algiers despite Loyalist Calls for President to Quit
Democrats Push for Early Release of Mueller Report on Russia
Arab Summit in Tunisia to Expose Rifts, Also Unity on Golan
U.N. Tells Tunisia to Release U.N. Libya Sanctions Expert
Tunisia Presidential Poll Delayed a Week for Muslim Holiday
A 'Tragic Life' for the Displaced in Syria's Al-Hol Camp
Trump to Host Egypt's Sisi on April 9
Canada condemns Maduro regime’s actions against interim president Juan Guaidó
UAE official urges Arab openness to Israel
IDF at peak readiness in Gaza sector, adds reinforcements after failed Egyptian truce bid

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on March 29-30/2019
Lebanon of value to US but countering Iran takes priority/Elias Sakr/Annahar/March 29/19
UK support for Lebanon unwavering despite Hezbollah terrorist designation/Georgi Azar/Annahar/March 29/19
China eyes Lebanese port to launch investments in Syria, region/Roshan De Stone/David L. Suber/Al-Monitor/ March 29/19
UAE official urges Arab openness to Israel/Ynetnews/Reuters/March 29/19
Brexit’s Message to European Union/Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat/March 29/19The West's Crimes against Persecuted Minorities in the Middle East/Judith Bergman/Gatestone Institute/March 29/2019
Syria’s future far from certain despite Daesh’s defeat/Talmiz Ahmad/Arab News/March 28/19
Nuclear inspectors must visit Iran’s military site at Parchin/Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Arab News/March 28/19
Russian Moves in the Gulf and Africa Have a Common Goal/Anna Borshchevskaya/The Washington Institute/March 29/19

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on March 29-30/2019
In Lebanon, Daylight Saving Time to Begin Midnight Saturday/Sunday
Naharnet/March 29/19/Daylight-saving time will begin in Lebanon at midnight Saturday/Sunday and clocks should be set an hour ahead as per a 1998 decree issued by the Council of Ministers, Prime Minister Saad Hariri's office reminded on Friday. The move will put Beirut 3 hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).Clocks will have to be turned back to wintertime at midnight on the last Saturday in October.

Bassil Says Shebaa Farms, Kfarshouba Hills are 'Lebanese Land'
Naharnet/March 29/19/Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil stressed Friday that the Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms and Kfarshouba Hills are “Lebanese land,” during a visit to Bulgaria. “This land is Lebanese and our people have proved their ability to preserve their rights. Occupation will not have a place on our soil,” Bassil said, responding to a reporter's question on the fate of the Shebaa Farms and the Kfarshouba Hills in the wake of the U.S. recognition of Israel's sovereignty over Syria's Golan Heights. Asked whether he intends to visit Syria, Bassil said: “It will happen at the right time and according to Lebanon's interests, in a manner that would lead to opening lifelines through Syria for the Lebanese economy.”According to the National News Agency, Bassil held talks in Sofia with Bulgaria's president, parliament speaker and foreign minister.
“The meetings focused on the political and economic files between Europe, Lebanon and the Middle East in general, in addition to the bilateral ties with their economic, political and cultural aspects, on the eve of the Bulgarian president's visit to Lebanon,” NNA said. “As for the Syrian refugee file, it was the most discussed topic in Bassil's talks with Bulgaria's top officials,” the agency added, noting that Bassil's Bulgarian counterpart informed him of her support for “the Lebanese stance that calls for resolving the refugee crisis through securing a safe and dignified return for them to their country.”

Bassil holds talks with Bulgarian President, Parliament Speaker, Foreign Minister
Fri 29 Mar 2019/NNA - Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gebran Bassil, held talks Friday in Sofia with Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, Speaker of the Bulgarian National Assembly Tsveta Karayancheva, and his counterpart Ekaterina Spasova Gecheva-Zakharieva. The meetings focused on the political and economic dossiers between Europe, Lebanon and the Middle East, in addition to the bilateral political, economic and cultural ties between Bulgaria and Lebanon. The Syrian refugee issue also topped Bassil's talks with the Bulgarian senior officials. Accordingly, the Minister devoted a meeting with his Bulgarian counterpart, who expressed support for the Lebanese position calling for the safe and decent repatriation of refugees. On the bilateral trade exchange between Lebanon and Bulgaria, it had been agreed to form a joint committee to develop ties in the fields of commerce, agriculture, industry and technology. Moreover, Bassil and the Bulgarian officials agreed to establish a permanent and direct airline between Beirut and Sofia. Asked about the fate of Shebaa and Kfarshouba following the U.S. recognition of Golan Heights as Israeli territory, Bassil said: "Shebaa and Kfarshouba are Lebanese lands. Our people proved ability to clinch their rights and occupation shall have no room on our soil."In response to a question about visiting Syria, he indicated that the trip would take place on the suitable time and according to the interests of Lebanon. For his part, Bulgaria President described Lebanon's role in the Middle East as a factor of stability, and extolled the "constructive diplomacy" Lebanon is undertaking. Furthermore, Radev strongly backed Bassil's stance on the refugee issue, criticizing Europe's remissness in that respect. For her part, the National Assembly's Speaker broached cooperation at the parliamentary level, expressing her wish to visit Lebanon and activate the bilateral parliamentary friendship committee. It is to note that Bassil is scheduled to hold talks with Bulgaria's commerce chambers, in addition to a meeting with the Lebanese Diaspora.

Concerns in Beirut over Shebaa Farms Following Trump’s Golan Decision
Beirut - Paula Astih/Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 29 March, 2019/The recent move of US President Donald Trump to recognize Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights has caused concern among Lebanese officials that Washington’s decision would mean recognizing the occupied Shebaa Farms as Israeli territory. Lebanon says the zone is Lebanese territory while Israel considers it part of the Golan. The United Nations has long held the area was inside Syrian territory occupied by Israeli forces in the 1967 Middle East war. But Beirut says Israel should have withdrawn from the zone when it pulled its forces out of south Lebanon in 2000. Damascus also stressed that the zone is Lebanese territory. “Our occupied lands were never part of the Golan Heights,” a Lebanese official told Asharq Al-Awsat. However, Riad Kahwaji, founder and chief executive of the Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis in Dubai, said that as long as Israel considers the Shebaa Farms, the Kfarshouba hills and the northern part of Ghajar Village as parts of the Golan Heights, then the latest US decision obviously includes Israel’s sovereignty on territories annexed to the Golan. In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Kahwaji explained that Lebanon possesses maps proving that the Shebaa Farms were occupied by Syria in the 1950s. "The world is witnessing a black day," Lebanese President Michel Aoun said on Twitter this week following Trump’s decision. For his part, Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah declared “resistance” as the only way to take back occupied lands in Syria, Lebanon and Palestine.

Report: U.S. Golan Move Raises Lebanese ‘Concerns’ over Shebaa Farms
Naharnet/March 29/19/Lebanon’s position on the US decision to recognize Israel's sovereignty over the occupied Syrian Golan Heights was not limited to resentment, but also raised fears that this decision would include the Lebanese occupied territories of Shebaa Farms, which Israel considers as part of Golan, Asharq al-Awsat newspaper reported Friday. Shebaa Farms are located on the border between Lebanon and the occupied part of Golan. It has a strategic geographical location as it links northern Israeli settlements and occupied Golan. Lebanese concerns stem from the fact that when Lebanon claimed its right to get back Shebaa Farms and Kfar Shuba following the Israeli army’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon in 2000, the United Nations replied that it was a land linked to Golan, reported the daily.
Israel occupied these farms in 1967. But prior to 2000, there was a Lebanese-Syrian dispute over whether the farms belonged to Lebanon or Syria due to overlapping land and lack of official delineation between the two countries. But after the liberation of southern Lebanon and the Israeli withdrawal, Syria declared without formal documentation that Shebaa Farms belongs to Lebanon. President Bashar al-Assad said in January 2006 that Shebaa Farms were Lebanese, but stressed that "the demarcation of the border will be after Israel withdraws from this area.”
After Trump’s recognition of Israel's sovereignty over the Golan, Lebanese officials issued a series of opposing positions, most notably President Michel Aoun who described the day when the US decided to give Israel that right as the "Black Day.”.However, Lebanese officials did not see any reason to consider the recent US decision to include Lebanon’s occupied territory, said the daily. A Lebanese official told Asharq al-Awsat on condition of anonymity: "No one mentioned our land to declare its annexation to Israel. Therefore, the official Lebanese positions were limited to criticizing the move because it affects Syria and its lands. Our occupied territories were never part of Golan.”On the other hand, Head of Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis -Inegma Riad Kahwaji told Asharq al-Awsat: “As long as Shebaa Farms, the Kfar Shuba Hills and the village of Ghajar are for Israel a territory belonging to Golan, most of which were occupied in 1967, the American recognition of its sovereignty over Golan automatically means its sovereignty over its territories including occupied Lebanese territories.”
Kahwaji added: “What makes things worse is the absence of clear documents and maps that determine where Golan begins and where it ends. The Syrians have always wanted to keep things ambiguous. There was an oral position by Assad that Shebaa Farms and Kfar Shuba Hills are Lebanese territory, but the Syrian government refused to submit anything in writing accompanied by maps and documents.”He told the daily that “Lebanese maps prove that Shebaa Farms are Lebanese lands occupied by the Syrians in the 1950s, and when Israel occupied the Golan Heights and that part of land the file turned into a Syrian-Israeli file and Israel is dealing with these territories as occupied Syria.”Kahwaji did not rule out the possibility of a military reaction, saying: “If they decide to open the Golan front, there will be a great Israeli reaction. We do not rule out the fact that the American-Israeli move was meant to drive this reaction as a prelude to a military action," he said "Let us wait and see how things develop."

Bustani: Committee to Re-discuss Electricity Plan Next Week
Naharnet/March 29/19/In light of controversy following an electricity plan suggested by Energy Minister Nada al-Bustani, the latter said on Friday the Ministry is “open to any new suggestions,” noting that the plan will be re-discussed next week. “We extend a hand and are willing to listen to every meaningful observation and constructive criticism,” said Boustani, of the Free Patriotic Movement. “The ministerial committee will re-discuss the electricity plan next week,” she added. Last week, Bustani presented an electricity plan to the Cabinet which focuses on building new power plants in Batroun’s Selaata and Nabatieh’s Zahrani, in addition to leasing power generating vessels. The plan was sharply criticized by the Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea who accused the FPM of failing to address Lebanon’s electricity crisis for the last ten years, referring to the fact that the FPM has controlled the Energy Ministry since 2009. A ministerial committee formed last week and headed by Prime Minister Saad Hariri was tasked to discuss and study the plan within a week. But due to a heart procedure that Hariri has undergone in Paris, the committee has postponed its meeting.

'Let Them Compete against Windmills' Says Karami as Naji Pulls Out of Race
Naharnet/March 29/19/Al-Ahbash candidate Taha Naji announced Friday that he will not run in Tripoli's upcoming parliamentary by-election, as MP Faisal Karami lashed out at the Constitutional Council and al-Mustaqbal Movement. “I will not nominate myself for Tripoli's by-election and you know that what prevents me is not their numbers or union but rather the stance of a freeman who won in the calculation of votes before being declared a loser by those who have influence and those who signed this unjust ruling,” Naji said at a joint press conference with Karami, referring to a Constitutional Council ruling that revoked Dima Jamali's membership of parliament without declaring him the winner of the fifth Sunni seat in Tripoli. Karami for his part reiterated that the Constitutional Council has committed “an unprecedented legal heresy.”“We are witnessing a political theft of a parliamentary seat at the hands of al-Mustaqbal Movement and the ruling authority that is represented by this Movement,” Karami lamented. He also noted that Naji has taken the right decision by withdrawing from the race and “refusing to give this vote any legitimacy.”“Let them compete against windmills and their lies,” Karami added, noting that the National Dignity list will “boycott this by-election” and “will not recognize its results.”

In Tripoli, Rampling Inaugurates Renovated Shops, Announces More Funding to NGO
Naharnet/March 29/19/Visiting North of Lebanon for the second time in three months, British Ambassador to Lebanon Chris Rampling met Friday with officials from the Chamber of Commerce, the Tripoli Special Economic Zone, and Adviser to PM for Northern Affairs Abdul Ghani Kabbara, the British embassy said. Rampling paid condolences to ex-PM Najib Miqati and met with former minister Mohammed Safadi at the Safadi foundation.During his visit, the Ambassador inaugurated local shops, which had been renovated by young men and women from Bab al-Tabbaneh and Jabal Mohsen, in Bab al-Dehab, a former demarcation line in the city. Rampling announced over £800,000 to MARCH NGO for community projects across Beirut and Tripoli that focus on tolerance and peace building. The inauguration, which included speeches from Tripoli officials and testimonials from young people, was attended by Philippe Lazarini -- Deputy UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon – parliamentary candidate Dima Jamali, the MPs Nicolas Nahhas and Ali Darwish and ex-MPs Mosbah al-Ahdab and Ahmed Fatfat. At the end of his visit, Rampling said: “The northern winds beckon and I find myself coming back again to Tripoli – [my second visit in three months]. Renowned for its historic landscapes, the smell of orange trees and the unmistakable flavor of its famous sweets, Tripoli is also an example for coexistence and peace building among its various communities. There is much more to do, but what you have delivered so far inspires us on.”“My message today, which comes at an important political and economic time for Lebanon, is that our work goes on. Your work to build bridges of peace and understanding, to reduce tension and to turn lives around. Our work in support of you, to help build and transform the security agencies, to provide the opportunity of education for all, strengthen service delivery in municipalities, and provide humanitarian assistance to highly vulnerable Lebanese and Syrian families. This continues. And where we can, it will grow,” he added. He stated: “While here, I have seen hundreds of (330) war-torn shops and former demarcation lines which have been refurbished with the support of other donors, and which now employ over 250 young men and women. This is what makes Tripoli unique: the young people that come together, breaking down barriers and building new and lasting relationships. You are now Ambassadors for tolerance and hope in your communities. This – and you – are the future. This is why I am so pleased to announce today that we will continue supporting great initiatives such as MARCH. The UK will provide over £800,000 (over$ 1 million) to MARCH for more community projects, just like this one, across Beirut and Tripoli.”

Lebanon's Public Debt Surging by $12,500 per Minute
Kataeb.org/Friday 29th March 2019/Information International founder and managing partner, Jawad Adra, revealed on Friday that Lebanon's public debt is now surging by $12,500 per minute. "It might reach approximately $21,000 per minute in 2020 if things do not worsen even more,” Adra pointed out.
“Enough accusations, enough insults, and enough swaggering by political leaders and self-proclaimed rescuers. What is required is will and determination,” Adra wrote on Twitter. Information International is a Beirut-based research consultancy firm founded in 1995.

Finance Minister Says He's Ready to Submit Draft Budget to Government
Kataeb.org/Friday 29th March 2019/Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil assured that he is ready to submit the 2019 draft state budget to the government, saying that he was waiting for PM Saad Hariri's return to agree on a date to launch discussions. "This is expected to take place next week," Khalil told Al-Joumhouria newspaper. Hariri returned to Lebanon on Thursday evening after he had undergone a heart procedure in Paris. “There can definitely be a reduction of expenses if the political will is made available,” Khalil noted.

Kubis: Deep Reforms Needed in Lebanon
Kataeb.org/Friday 29th March 2019/UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jan Kubis, on Wednesday said that deep reforms are needed for the benefit of Lebanon and its people given the economic challenges facing the country, hoping that the government would soon endorse a new budget. "Hopefully soon the Government will adopt the budget and the budget that hopefully will send a very strong signal that it is a reform budget," Kubis told reporters following UN Security Council consultations on Resolution 1701. Kubis said that he had briefed the council on all the discussions and disputes over the Syrian refugees' return issue, adding that there is a national consensus among the major Lebanese political parties in favour of their return back home. "There is another big discussion about how to do it, if there is room to do it, how to cooperate and there is another topic about how to shape relations between Lebanon and Syria as such. And this is a divisive topic. There is basic unity that refugees must return," he pointed out. "We cannot in any way but to stress the principles of safe, voluntary and dignified return. You cannot expect from the UN to do and think in any other different way."

Mrad: Bulgaria visit opened cooperation doors with Lebanon
Fri 29 Mar 2019/NNA - State Minister for Foreign Trade Affairs, Hassan Mrad, said in a tweet on Friday that his fresh visit to Bulgaria has opened the doors to serious and fruitful cooperation with Lebanon. "This visit is only the first step towards enhancing the economic presence of Lebanon abroad," he tweeted.

Lebanon of value to US but countering Iran takes priority
Elias Sakr/Annahar/March 29/19
Will the US punish Lebanon for its rapprochement with Russia and for failing to take a stand when it comes to Hezbollah?
BEIRUT: 40 years of investing in Lebanon since the withdrawal of Israel in 1982. 16 years of investing in Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003 and eight years of significant investments in Syria since the outbreak of the peaceful-turned bloody uprising against Bashar Assad's regime in 2011.
That's how long it took Iran to secure its land corridor to the Mediterranean. Expecting the Islamic Republic to liquidate its investments without a fight - one which the regime likely believes is tied to its survival - is foolish. If Iran's post-Islamic Revolution track record is anything to go by, Iran would go on the offensive rather than just defend and protect its investments. For instance, Iran maintained funding for its proxies across the region in the wake of US sanctions that preceded the now-defunct nuclear deal and even stepped up its financing to Hezbollah and other groups during negotiations and afterward, according to numerous reports.
I'm not suggesting that Iran will continue funneling funds at the same rate mainly due to its own economic woes. In fact, Tehran is cutting back on spending, according to a New York Times article. But Iran’s offensive takes various other forms.
In Syria, the Islamic Republic is providing aid, education, and jobs to encourage Sunnis to convert to Shiism and join the ranks of its militias, according to a recent Wall Street Journal report. In Lebanon, the Iranian-backed Hezbollah has pursued a greater role in government, a shift from its previous strategy of prioritizing its military endeavors. The party has secured three portfolios in the latest Cabinet including the Health Ministry, which is allocated the fourth largest budget. Hezbollah has also secured an ally in the presidency, and enjoys along with its allies a majority in both Parliament and the cabinet chaired by a weakened Western-backed Prime Minister. And while Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Lebanon to warn against the growing influence of Hezbollah, another round of clashes broke out between Hamas, an ally of Tehran, and Israel.
Meanwhile, Pompeo was urging the Lebanese to take a stand or risk losing the country to Iran, which would entail severe consequences, the US diplomat warned. A few days following his departure, President Michel Aoun arrived in Moscow where he discussed promoting bilateral relations with Russia, in a move that is likely to further anger Washington. So, will the US punish Lebanon for its rapprochement with Russia and for failing to take a stand when it comes to Hezbollah? But isn't Hezbollah too powerful to isolate? And what if some choose to take a stand, wouldn't they risk another conflict breaking out in Lebanon? Will the US nevertheless expand its sanctions and risk accelerating an imminent Lebanese economic collapse and financial meltdown? Wouldn't a collapse, though not of the making of the US alone but also of the Lebanese as a result of corruption and failure to prioritize national interests, further erode state institutions and leave Hezbollah more empowered? Probably yes, but it will also turn many ordinary Lebanese against Hezbollah who will likely be blamed for the country's financial woes. How the US proceeds depends on what matters more to Washington: Lebanon's stability, or containing Iran and Hezbollah to protect Israel at all cost. The answer lies in President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to acknowledge Israeli sovereignty over the Syrian Golan Heights.

UK support for Lebanon unwavering despite Hezbollah terrorist designation
Georgi Azar/Annahar/March 29/19
Rampling, who assumed his post as Ambassador almost seven months ago, was adamant that this move would not impact the broader relationship between both countries.
BEIRUT: The UK’s support for Lebanon will “not only continue but strengthen” despite the designation of Hezbollah in its entirety as a terrorist organization, British Ambassador Chris Rampling told Annahar.
Rampling, who assumed his post in Beirut almost seven months ago, was adamant that this move would not impact the broader relationship between both countries. “We’ve been really clear from the British Prime Minister down that our support for the state of Lebanon and its people continues,” he said.
The decision to ban Hezbollah’s political wing, which the UK parliament passed unanimously last month, had cast doubt on the prosperity of the bilateral relationship between Britain and Lebanon. The UK has been one of the most active donors in Lebanon, contributing significant sums of money to prop up its security services, mainly the Lebanese Armed Forces, while also providing humanitarian and economic aid. In 2017, days after the Lebanese army - along with Hezbollah fighters - managed to uproot ISIS-affiliated militants from a mountainous pocket of the Syria-Lebanon border, the UK agreed to help fund the construction of over 30 border watchtowers and 20 forward operating bases.
At a cost of around £62 million, the program, which initially kicked off in 2012, seeks to train the Lebanese military to better secure the 230-mile border and ward off a possible Daesh recurrence. “This program will continue,” he said, reaffirming his commitment to the Armed Forces which was most visible “during the visit of HMS Dragon,” a Royal Navy Type 45 destroyer which docked at Beirut’s port earlier this week for a three-day visit. The destroyer’s visit marked the near-total defeat of Daesh in Syria and Iraq, who saw its territory practically vanish in the past couple of weeks to the rejoice of Lebanese soldiers who encountered the militants first hand at the height of the onslaught in 2014. “This week the world hailed the liberation of the last territory held by Daesh in Syria. I would like to pay tribute to the contribution and courage of all in the Global Coalition against Daesh as we mark the territorial defeat of the Caliphate – including that from Lebanon,” he said. “Our positive changes to the travel advice and the visit this week by HMS Dragon only demonstrates that Lebanon’s security has improved thanks to the diligence of its Armed Forces across various institutions,” Rampling told Annahar, vowing to continue “working closely together in defeating this poisonous ideology.”
The designation had come as a surprise across Lebanese quarters after the UK had differentiated between the Iranian backed Hezbollah’s military and political wings since 2008. The shift also brought about concerns of a possible shock to Lebanon’s already fragile economy, its banking sector and the ability of officials to secure the much coveted CEDRE IV donations. Yet Rampling maintained that Lebanon should first seek to implement “economic reforms envisaged in the ministerial statement” to strengthen the fundamentals of its economy. Lebanon’s newly elected government had agreed to curb Lebanon's budget deficit, which has ballooned to over 11 percent of GDP, by reducing it by one percent each year over the next five years. It also agreed to decrease government expenditures and subsidies while cracking down on corruption. “It is important that these reforms are implemented quickly and urgently,” he said, highlighting the need for the small Mediterranean country to revamp its ailing infrastructure and electricity sector in line with the capital investment program agreed upon in Paris last year.
The UK’s move also raised questions as to whether it was the product of pressure coming from Washington to veer away from the EU with whom it’s entangled with in a nasty divorce. While the EU has been wary of following in their footsteps to preserve some form of engagement with Hezbollah, the US, meanwhile, has designated the group as a terrorist organization since the late 1990s. Yet Rampling maintained that this doesn’t “indicate a shift towards or a shift away from anyone in particular,” pointing to a bevy of other areas of cooperation between the UK and EU vis-a-vis Lebanon and the Middle East.
“And even as we leave the EU, we will still continue to work very closely with our European partners on the full range of international issues, including here in Lebanon,” he said. While the U.S has continuously warned of a new batch of sanctions on Hezbollah if it uses its Health Ministry to funnel money for its military activities, Rampling revealed that his government is not currently exploring new lines of punishment. “We have no plans at this stage for additional sanctions on Hezbollah,” he said.
Touching on the Golan Heights, which US President Donald Trump recognized last week as Israeli territory, Rampling maintained that his position on the issue remained untouched, labeling it “illegal under international law.” Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in a 1967 war before annexing it in 1981, in a move the UN Security Council deemed unlawful. “We did not recognize Israel’s annexation in 1981 and have no plans to change our position,” he said. The US decision drew the ire of Syria, a number of Gulf states, and Hezbollah’s main backer Iran, raising concerns over possible retaliation from the “Party of God.”“We are hoping that there will always be stability along the southern border,” Rampling said while expressing hope that the UN Security Council Resolution 1701 - which intended to resolve the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict - be upheld. In respect to the ongoing Syrian refugee crisis, which has taken its toll on Lebanon and its institutions, Rampling reiterated that “ultimately the future of Syrians is back in Syria,” yet stopped short from signaling possible cooperation with the Russian initiative. “It is important that it happens in a way that is voluntary, safe and verified by the UN, he said. Russia, a close ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad, has seemingly led the charge to repatriate refugees, setting up centers while attempting to alleviate security concerns held by the international community. “If there are initiatives that fulfill that in those ways, then we are always happy to support and engage with them,” he said.

China eyes Lebanese port to launch investments in Syria, region
Roshan De Stone/David L. Suber/Al-Monitor/ March 29/19
ARTICLE SUMMARY
As China looks to play an active role in the reconstruction of Syria, Tripoli, Lebanon’s second largest port, is preparing for major investments.
As the war in Syria draws to a close, international investors have come knocking, looking to guarantee a tender in the reconstruction of the war-torn country. “War is a lucrative business. First weapons are sold to destroy a country, then materials are sold to build it up again,” said Ahmad Tamer, director of the Port of Tripoli, in an interview with Al-Monitor.
Last December, the Chinese state-owned COSCO shipping company docked in Tripoli, inaugurating a new maritime route connecting China to the Mediterranean Sea. Located less than 30 kilometers (18 miles) from the Syrian border, Tripoli benefits from a key strategic position in the eyes of investors looking for fast access to Syria’s war-damaged cities.
“China is testing Tripoli as a potential location for investment,” Tamer added. Having secured an $86 million loan from the Islamic Development Bank, the port is preparing for large-scale investment. “The Chinese won’t look at anything under half a billion,” Tamer told Al-Monitor. “If they invest in the port, it’s because of their interest in the whole region.”
Keeping its embassy in Damascus open throughout the conflict, Beijing has provided steady diplomatic support to Bashar al-Assad’s regime, vetoing most resolutions against Damascus at the UN Security Council.
But diplomacy is not the only advantage China holds in the race to rebuild Syria. While they are fighting on the side of the regime, Russia and Iran have been burdened with years of economic sanctions and war. And with Europe, the United States and countries in the Gulf withholding any financial support for reconstruction until a political settlement is reached, China is the only country with the economic capability and political influence for such a massive foreign investment.
With Beijing having already committed $2 billion toward the reconstruction of Syria’s industries in 2017, more than 200 Chinese companies attended the 60th Damascus International Trade Fair in September 2018, showing that China is getting ready to sign public-private partnerships supervised directly from Beijing.
Eliana Ibrahim, president of the China-Arab Association for Promoting Cultural and Commercial Exchange in Beirut, voiced her optimism about China’s involvement in the region. “China is currently considering large-scale investments both in Syria and in Lebanon, waiting for the situation to stabilize a little so as to be sure of a return in its investments,” she told Al-Monitor. Estimations by the UN calculate the reconstruction of Syria will cost upward of $250 billion.
Aware of China’s interest, authorities in Tripoli are getting ready for what they hope to be a wholistic financial engagement, one that in the words of Hassan Dennaoui, director of the Tripoli Special Economic Zone (TSEZ), “might change the region as a whole.”
Initiated in 2009 by Finance Minister Raya al-Hassan, who is now interior minister, the TSEZ aims to provide the infrastructural and logistical hub investors will need to facilitate commerce and transportation to Syria. “The TSEZ was initially conceived to enhance the development of Lebanon’s poorer regions in the north,” Dennaoui told Al-Monitor. “But the war in Syria has brought with it a whole set of opportunities for Lebanon.”
Burdened by a soaring public debt, Lebanon’s newly formed cabinet feels a sense of urgency about the economic and social costs of the Syrian refugee crisis in Lebanon. Just a few weeks ago, on Feb. 18, Lebanon’s new Minister for Refugee Affairs Saleh Gharib visited Damascus, signaling a possible shift in Lebanese policy toward Syria in order to address the topic of refugees.
Despite the sharp divisions over relations with the Syrian regime within the ranks of the Lebanese government, the refugee crisis and potential reconstruction opportunities are very much on the minds of Lebanese politicians across the political spectrum. As for China, its “investment in Tripoli is not for the sake of the reconstruction of Syria alone, but comes as part of a bigger project for the whole region,” Dennaoui concluded.
Importing more than half of its crude oil from the Middle East, China has a strategic interest in the region as a key access point into Africa and Europe. In 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinping launched the Belt and Road Initiative, a plan to invest in transportation infrastructure that would connect China to over 65 countries via both sea and land.
Tripoli, set on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean, could become a logistical hub for land trade routes connecting the Mediterranean to Central Asia, a corridor Beijing needs to reduce transport times and avoid having to transit through the Suez Canal.
“China aims to gain influence in the region with the power of economic investment rather than military intervention,” said Christina Lin, a research fellow at the Center for Global Peace and Conflict Studies at the University of California.
But despite the speculation, Dennaoui advises caution: “Learning from the past, we know it is not wise to be too optimistic. Money needs stability, and stability is hard to find in this part of the world.”
Economics aside, China has its own reasons for wanting stability in Syria. The reported presence of Uighur fighters from the Xinjiang region joining radical Islamist militias in Syria sounded warnings in Beijing. “China does not want Syria to become a failed state like Afghanistan, providing a safe haven for Chinese separatist militants to attack Chinese citizens and interests,” Lin explained to Al-Monitor.
While the IMF estimates Syria's reconstruction will take more than 20 years, China’s wealth and soft-power strategy might make it one of the forerunners in the race to profit from the rebuilding from the ashes of war.
However, if China invests in reconstruction before a political settlement is found, long-term stability may be hard to find, as the unresolved grievances that started the war in the first place may soon return to haunt everyone.
Found in:FOREIGN INVESTORS, FOREIGN INVESTMENT, SYRIAN CIVIL WAR, CHINA, SYRIAN RECONSTRUCTION, TRIPOLI
*Roshan De Stone is journalist and illustrator. Based in north Lebanon, she has been published in Al Araby, Al Jadaliyya, SalonSyria and MEMO. She is also an full time editor at Brush&Bow.
*David L. Suber is a political researcher, journalist and consultant. He directed the documentary Scirocco, which is about deportations from Europe. Suber currently lives in Lebanon, where he works in refugee camps. He is a full-time contributor to Brush&Bow.

Latest LCCC English Miscellaneous Reports & News published on March 29-30/2019
Foreign ministers meet for Arab Summit in Tunis
Arab News/March 28/19/Saudi Foreign Minister Ibrahim Al-Assaf opened the meeting, attended by foreign ministers from other Arab countries.
“Iran's ballistic missiles pose a threat to regional and international security… We hold Iran fully responsible for what is happening in Yemen,” Al-Assaf said.
TUNIS: Arab leaders convened in the Tunisian capital on Sunday for the Arab League summit, which tackled a number of regional issues – from the conflict in Yemen to Iran’s behavior in the region.
Saudi Foreign Minister Ibrahim Al-Assaf opened the meeting, attended by foreign ministers from other Arab countries, and spoke of a number of issues including the widely-criticized US move to recognize Israeli control over the Golan Heights. “We reject President Trump's declaration on the occupied Golan, which is a Syrian Arab land,” Al-Assaf said. “We reject any measures that affect the historical status of Jerusalem,” he added – a sentiment later echoed by his Tunisian counterpart Khemaies Jhinaoui and Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit, who also had their own speeches at the meeting. Al-Assaf said the kingdom supports Syria's territorial integrity and a political solution based on dialogue between the opposition and government. The Saudi foreign minister went on to speak about the “interference of Iran and its militias” in the Arab world. “Iran's ballistic missiles pose a threat to regional and international security… We hold Iran fully responsible for what is happening in Yemen,” he said. He then praised the efforts of the United Nations in Yemen, Syria, and Libya. For his part, Jhinaoui brought up issues concerning Palestine and Libya, expressing support for both countries. “We support the establishment of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital based on international resolutions,” he said. On Libya, Jhinaoui stated: “We call upon our brothers in Libya to unite and give the country's interest to reach a comprehensive solution.”He then assured of the Arab League’s role in addressing regional problems “to serve the common causes.”“The threat of terrorism exists and remains the greatest challenge for our countries,” he said. Before closing the session, Aboul Gheit reiterated the organization’s position on the issues previously discussed by the two foreign ministers, and praised “Saudi Arabia's leadership of the last summit was successful by all standards.”

British MPs Reject Brexit Deal for Third Time
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 29/19/British MPs on Friday rejected Prime Minister Theresa May's EU divorce deal for a third time, opening the way for a long delay to Brexit -- or a chaotic "no deal" withdrawal in two weeks. The pound sank as lawmakers defied May's plea to end the deadlock that has plunged Britain into a deep political crisis, defeating her withdrawal agreement by 344 votes to 286. It is yet another blow to a prime minister who has all but lost control of her government and the Brexit process -- particularly after she offered to quit if MPs backed the deal. Britain had been due to leave the EU on Friday, the long-heralded March 29 "Independence Day", but faced with deadlock in parliament, May asked European leaders last week for a little more time. She now faces having to return in the coming days to explain what happens next, after EU Council President Donald Tusk immediately called a Brussels summit for April 10. The EU has set a deadline for April 12 for a decision, with two likely options: Britain leaves with no deal at all, or agrees a lengthy extension to allow time for a new approach.
'Grave' implications
May has said it would be "unacceptable" to ask voters to take part in forthcoming European Parliament elections, three years after they voted in a 2016 referendum to leave the EU, a decision that has sharply divided the country. "No deal" remains the default legal option, and the European Commission said after the vote that this remained the "likely scenario."However, MPs have repeatedly voted against this, fearing catastrophe if Britain severs ties with its closest trading partner with no plan in place."I fear we are reaching the limits of this process in this House," May said after the vote, which she described as a "matter of profound regret.""The implications of the House’s decision are grave," she said, adding: "This government will continue to press the case for the orderly Brexit that the result of the referendum demands."
DUP holdouts
The failure by parliament to agree the terms of its exit from European Union has left Britain in limbo, with business leaders and trade unions warning of a "national emergency". Voters are divided, many of them anxious and angry, and May blames MPs -- but they in turn accuse her of refusing to countenance any alternative to her unpopular deal. "It is clear that this House does not support the deal. This deal now has to change. There has to be an alternative found," opposition Labor leader Jeremy Corbyn said. "And if the prime minister can't accept that then she must go, not at an indeterminate date in the future but now." Tired of waiting, MPs this week gave themselves unprecedented powers to vote on a range of options for Britain's future relationship with the EU.
A proposal for a new customs union got close to passing in a first round, as did a plan for a referendum on May's deal, with more voting planned next Monday and Wednesday. The risk that MPs decide to agree closer ties to the EU, or even stop the departure process altogether, focused the minds of some Brexit supporters, who reluctantly agreed to back May's deal. Her offer on Wednesday to quit if it passed also helped persuade some of her staunchest critics, including former foreign minister Boris Johnson. But 34 of the 314 Conservative MPs voted against the deal, as did the 10 MPs in May's Northern Irish allies, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). The party says planned arrangements to keep open the Irish border after Brexit -- the hated "backstop" plan -- is unacceptable."We are not prepared to see our constitutional position altered by Brussels in a fit of pique for daring to leave the EU," said MP Sammy Wilson, the DUP's Brexit spokesman.
Snap election?
May's offer to quit fired the starting gun on an informal race for the leadership of her Conservative party. Her resignation was dependent on getting the divorce deal passed -- and she might try one last time to get her deal through.
Even so, her days are numbered, as increasing numbers of Conservative MPs are openly talking about when, not if, she will step down. Getting another vote on a deal would be tricky, as parliament speaker John Bercow has already warned he will not let her bring the same deal back again and again. Under an agreement struck with EU leaders last week, Britain would have left on May 22 if MPs approved the deal this week. Officials believe there is still a chance that, if she can get it through before April 12, this date is still possible. However, speculation is also growing that the only way out of the impasse is a snap election.

Huge Rallies in Algiers despite Loyalist Calls for President to Quit
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 29/19/Anti-government protesters thronged the streets of Algeria's capital and other cities on Friday, saying moves by top loyalists to abandon ailing President Abdelaziz Bouteflika were not enough. While there were no official figures, security sources said hundreds of thousands turned out in Algiers and that marches were held in at least 36 of the North African country's 48 provinces. For a sixth successive Friday, the huge numbers turned out despite a string of loyalists deserting the president and calling for him to step down and make way for a government-led change of leadership. Activists angrily rejected those moves as desperate bids by key figures in Bouteflika's entourage to salvage their own grip on power and demanded that they too quit. "Bouteflika you go, take Gaid Salah with you," and "FLN out" protesters in the capital shouted, referring to the armed forces chief of staff and the president's party. Crowds of demonstrators, many of them young but also including army veterans of Algeria's 1990s civil war, packed the square outside the main post office, which has become the epicenter of protests. "We're fed up with those in power," the demonstrators chanted. "We want a new government". Some waved the green, white and red Algerian flag or draped it over their shoulders, while others held banners with slogans and cartoons. Some made lengthy journeys to take part in the protest. "We're here to issue a final appeal to those in power: 'Take your bags and go'," said Amin, a 45-year-old who traveled to the capital from the port of Bejaia, nearly 200 kilometers (125 miles) away. Earlier this month, 82-year-old Bouteflika, who uses a wheelchair and has rarely been seen in public since suffering a stroke in 2013, said he would not stand for re-election -- but also postponed the April vote. His move angered Algerians who saw it as a ploy by those around him to extend his two decades in power. Tens of thousands again took to the streets demanding his immediate ouster.
Allies distance themselves
Faced with persistent public anger, a succession of veteran Bouteflika loyalists deserted the president this week. On Tuesday, chief of staff General Ahmed Gaid Salah, who was appointed by Bouteflika in 2004, called for him to step down or be declared medically unfit. The chief of staff cited Article 102 of the constitution, under which a president can be removed if found unfit to rule. Long a faithful Bouteflika supporter, Gaid Salah said on television it was "imperative" to find a way out of the crisis "which responds to the legitimate demands" of the people in line with the constitution. Article 102 puts the onus on the president either to resign or be declared unfit to govern by a vote of parliament due to a "serious and durable illness."Since then, other voices have emerged from Bouteflika's own camp seeking his ouster. On Wednesday, Bouteflika's longtime coalition partner, the National Rally for Democracy (RND) of former prime minister Ahmed Ouyahia, also called for him to step down. The RND said it "recommends the resignation of the president... with the aim of smoothing the period of transition," in a statement signed by its leader Ouyahia. A longtime supporter of the veteran president, the unpopular Ouyahia served as Bouteflika's prime minister three times since 2003 before being sacrificed on March 11 in a vain bid to calm the intensifying protests.
'All of you go'
The head of the powerful General Union of Algerian Workers (UGTA), Abdelmadjid Sidi Said, also welcomed the army chief's call on Wednesday. Applying Article 102 would constitute "the legal framework capable of overcoming the political crisis facing our country," he said. Thursday saw the resignation of the president of Algeria's Business Leaders Forum, Ali Hadad, widely seen as a political tool of Bouteflika who had come under harsh criticism from protesters. But the idea of Bouteflika's inner circle retaining their grip on power through a substitute leader drew short shrift from Friday's protesters. Some chose humor to convey their rejection of the call for a government-led transition under Article 102. "102 -- that number is out of service," said one placard held up by the crowd outside the main post office and telephone exchange. "Please call the people." Others raised a banner saying: "We demand the implementation of Article 2019: All of you go."

Democrats Push for Early Release of Mueller Report on Russia
Associated Press/Naharnet/March 29/Democrats intensified their demands for Robert Mueller's full report after learning the special counsel's findings from his Trump-Russia investigation run to more than 300 pages, while President Donald Trump boasted of total exoneration based on a four-page summary by his attorney general. House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler was told by Attorney General William Barr that there's no intention of giving the confidential report to Congress immediately as he redacts grand jury testimony and other elements. Democrats say they may subpoena the report if it's not forthcoming by their Tuesday deadline, which Barr has said will not be met. Through the day, tempers were rising on Capitol Hill. Shaking her fist for emphasis, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Barr's summary, which cleared Trump of campaign collusion with Russia and criminal obstruction of Mueller's federal probe, was "condescending" and "arrogant." "Mr. Attorney General," she said, "show us the report and we'll come to our own conclusions." She asked what Trump and the Republicans were afraid of and mocked them as "scaredy-cats." Trump himself headed to Grand Rapids, Michigan, for a Thursday campaign rally, where he deemed the probe "the greatest hoax in the history of our country" and warned that those behind it "would be held accountable." "After three years of lies and smears and slander, the Russia hoax is dead," Trump told a packed house of roaring supporters. "This was nothing more than a sinister effort to undermine our historic election victory and to sabotage the will of the American people."The length of Mueller's still-confidential report makes clear that there are substantially more details that he and his team have documented in their investigation than Barr disclosed to Congress and the public. The volume of pages was described Thursday by a Justice Department official and another person familiar with the document.
The Justice Department official said Barr discussed the length of the report during a phone call Wednesday with Nadler, who would only indicate it was less than 1,000 pages. Both the department official and the other person spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the document.
Barr would not commit to providing the full report with its underlying evidence, according to a House Democratic aide granted anonymity Thursday to brief reporters. The attorney general has been going through the report amid Democratic concerns that what has been made public so far was tilted in Trump's favor. It's unclear whether whatever Barr might release next will be Mueller's own words or another summary. Nadler offered to join Barr to seek a judge's approval to unseal grand jury testimony, the aide said.
Barr has said he'll provide Congress with at least a partial version in April and told Nadler he would agree to testify before his committee. As that battle brews, House Democrats barreled ahead with their own investigation of the Trump administration, and Trump resumed his attack on Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., just as the chairman of the intelligence committee was about to gavel his panel into session.
"Congressman Adam Schiff, who spent two years knowingly and unlawfully lying and leaking, should be forced to resign from Congress!" Trump tweeted early Thursday. Republicans picking up on Trump's complaints formalized their demand that Schiff resign as chairman of the intelligence panel over his comments that there was significant evidence the president and his associates conspired with Russia. "We have no faith in your ability to discharge your responsibilities" in line with the Constitution, the Republicans wrote to Schiff in a missive they read aloud at the hearing. Republicans pointed to Barr's synopsis, released Sunday, that said Mueller's probe didn't find that Trump's campaign "conspired or coordinated" with the Russian government to influence the 2016 presidential election. Schiff stood by his remarks, listing the meetings that people in Trump's circle had with Russians. He noted Trump's pursuit of a deal to build a Trump Tower in Moscow. "There is a different word for that than collusion, and it's called compromise," Schiff said, as he opened the session. The hearing was called to provide an overview on how Russia in the past has blackmailed Americans. Since Barr's findings were released, Schiff this week has repeated his assertion that evidence of collusion is in "plain sight." He says Mueller's failure to find a criminal conspiracy with Russia does not absolve the Trump campaign.
Pelosi stood by Schiff, saying she was proud of him and taunting Republicans — including Trump — for fearing the chairman, whom she called a "patriotic leader.""What is the president afraid of, Is he afraid of the truth?" she said. "They're just scaredy-cats."Democrats complain that Barr overstepped by making the determination, with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, that Trump did not obstruct the investigation. While Barr's summary Sunday said Mueller did not find that the Trump campaign "conspired or coordinated" with the Russian government to influence the 2016 presidential election, it also said Mueller reached no conclusion on whether Trump obstructed the federal investigation, instead setting out "evidence on both sides" of the question.
"I would hope the attorney general would not be acting as a political operative for the president," said Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., a member of the Judiciary Committee. "The Department of Justice should not be involved in a cover-up of what's actually in the report."Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., chairman of the House Oversight Committee, said Wednesday he was disappointed Barr would take weeks, not days, to release the report. "The president has now an opportunity for weeks, it sounds like, to do these victory laps," said Cummings, noting that Trump's lawyer, Michael Cohen, is among those headed to jail as a result of the probe. "Cohen goes to jail, the president runs a victory lap."Barr told the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., that he's combing through Mueller's report and removing classified, grand jury and other information in hopes of releasing the rest to Congress. Trump has said he's fine with releasing the findings. "The president said, 'Just let it go,' and that's what's going to happen," Graham said.

Arab Summit in Tunisia to Expose Rifts, Also Unity on Golan
Associated Press/Naharnet/March 29/Arab leaders meeting in Tunisia on Sunday hope to project unified opposition to the Trump administration's acceptance of Israeli control over the Golan Heights and Jerusalem, but as with past Arab League summits, the gathering is likely to expose their own bitter rivalries. Gulf states, especially Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, are likely to tone down any statement of condemnation, eager to maintain good relations with the White House as it cranks up pressure on their main rival, Iran. Affirming the international consensus that the Golan is occupied Syrian land would only further highlight Syria's absence from the Arab League, from which it was expelled in the early days of the uprising against President Bashar Assad. Some Arab leaders think Syria — a founding member — should be readmitted. Others, like Saudi Arabia and Qatar, have spent years supporting the insurgency. Arab League summits are nearly always marred by no-shows. This year, Algeria's ailing President Abdelaziz Bouteflika and Sudan's Omar al-Bashir will skip the meeting as they contend with weekly mass protests against their long reigns. Those expected to attend, meanwhile, are still split over the wars in Yemen and Syria, and the nearly two-year boycott of Qatar by fellow Arab League members.
GOLAN LITE
Israel seized the Golan Heights in the 1967 Mideast war after Syria had for years used the strategic plateau to shell northern Israel. Arab states have long demanded its return, and condemned U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Israeli sovereignty over it earlier this week. Arab League spokesman Mahmoud Afifi said the 22-member bloc would aim to issue a proclamation on the Golan, but experts expect little more than a standard denunciation. "It will be just a very strong, theatrical, nice, maybe strong statement," said Ahmed Abd Rabou, a visiting professor of international affairs at the University of Denver. "But I doubt that this will have a true political effect."Arab leaders responded similarly to the even more inflammatory U.S. decision last year to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital — with statements condemning the move but little else. Many Gulf states view the U.S. as a vital ally against Iran, welcoming Trump's decision to withdraw from the 2015 nuclear agreement and restore crippling sanctions. Other Arab states are preoccupied with their own troubles, with Yemen and Libya riven by internal conflicts and Iraq looking for international support as it struggles to rebuild after the war against the Islamic State group.
READMITTING SYRIA
Many Arab states have softened their opposition to Assad as he has largely defeated the uprising with the help of Russia and Iran. They are concerned about inroads made by non-Arab Turkey and Iran, and may also be eyeing lucrative reconstruction projects in areas devastated by war. The United Arab Emirates reopened its embassy in Damascus in December, and other Arab nations are expected to follow . Khemaies Jhinaoui, the foreign minister of summit-host Tunisia, said earlier this year that Syria's "natural place" is within the Arab League. But Mahmoud Khemiri, a spokesman for the summit, said Assad's reintegration "isn't foreseeable at the current time."Trump's Golan proclamation puts Arab leaders in the awkward position of standing up for a nation they have shunned, which could accelerate reconciliation efforts.
"It certainly gives Assad an opening to get himself readmitted. mainly because now he can play the aggrieved party in an issue about which the Arab world is totally united," said Fred Hof, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council's Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East.
EMBATTLED LEADERS
Eight years after Arab Spring protests swept the region, threatening the future of the political order long upheld by the Arab League, protesters are again taking to the streets in Algeria and Sudan, calling for the resignation of two of the longest-serving Arab leaders. Bouteflika, in office since 1999, canceled the April 18 presidential election and withdrew his bid for a fifth term, but announced a transition process that opponents fear could keep him in power indefinitely. The 82-year-old has rarely been seen in public and has not addressed the nation in person since a 2013 stroke. Earlier this week, Algeria's top general called for initiating a constitutional process to declare Bouteflika unfit to serve, in a bid to address the mass protests held since Feb. 22. But opposition parties denounced the idea, fearing it would leave the secretive elite in power. In Sudan, protests sparked by an economic crisis in December quickly morphed into calls for the resignation of al-Bashir, who seized power in an Islamist-backed military coup in 1989. He has shown no sign of stepping down, and authorities have launched a crackdown that has killed dozens of people. The Arab League, dominated by monarchs and autocrats, is unlikely to side with the protesters in either country.
INTERNAL DIVISIONS
Since its founding more than 70 years ago, the Arab League has struggled — largely unsuccessfully — for unity, with the perennial focus on the Palestinian cause eliding the many issues on which Arab leaders are deeply divided.
Libya, which slid into chaos after an Arab Spring uprising in 2011, is split between rival authorities in the east and west, each backed by an array of armed groups, some supported by other Arab states. In Yemen, the Saudi-led coalition battling the Iran-aligned Houthi rebels has struggled with internal discord, with militias allied with the United Arab Emirates clashing with forces loyal to the internationally recognized government. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain have been boycotting Qatar since June 2017 over its support for Islamist groups and its close ties to both Iran and Turkey. Qatar's emir and the leaders of the boycotting nations are expected to attend the summit and might even sit at the same sprawling table. Whether they will be able to set their dispute aside, even for one day, remains to be seen.

U.N. Tells Tunisia to Release U.N. Libya Sanctions Expert
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 29/19/The United Nations has urged Tunisia to release a U.N. expert charged with investigating sanctions violations in Libya following his arrest on suspicion of spying, a spokesman said Friday. Moncef Kartas, a Tunisian national and member of the UN panel of experts for Libya, is entitled to diplomatic immunity, said UN spokesman Farhan Haq. Kartas was arrested on his arrival in Tunis on Tuesday along with a second Tunisian national on suspicion of "spying for foreign parties," Tunisian authorities said. "Confidential documents containing sensitive detailed data capable of harming national security were seized, along with technical equipment for jamming and intercepting communications that is banned in our country," the interior ministry said in a statement. Asked if the United Nations had asked Tunis to release Kartas, Haq said: "We have informed the authorities that his actions are covered by the conventions on privileges and immunities, so yes, we have made that point clear." "Experts on mission for the United Nations, as Mister Kartas is, are covered by the convention on the privileges and immunities of the United Nations," he added. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is due to arrive in Tunis to attend an Arab summit at the weekend, with the conflict in Libya high on the agenda. The spokesman declined to say whether Guterres would raise Kartas's case directly with Tunisian leaders. "We are in touch with the Tunisian authorities to ascertain the reasons for his arrest and detention, as well as the conditions under which he is being held," said Haq. Kartas was appointed to the panel of experts in 2016, tasked with investigating violations of the arms embargo on Libya. The panel reports to the U.N. sanctions committee on Libya and details its findings in an annual report. An interim report is due in June. Previous reports by the panel have found that arms and ammunition continued to be delivered to the warring parties in Libya in violation of the U.N. embargo, with the involvement of member states.

Tunisia Presidential Poll Delayed a Week for Muslim Holiday
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 29/19/Tunisia's presidential poll has been postponed a week to November 17 to avoid a clash with a Muslim holiday for the Prophet Mohammed's birthday, the electoral commission said Friday. The commission has set the new date for November 17, rather than November 10 as originally scheduled, "to ensure a good turnout", its spokeswoman Hasna Ben Slimane told AFP. If a presidential candidate does not win outright in the first round, a second round is to follow within two weeks. Parliamentary elections have been scheduled for October 6. Tunisia, whose 2011 revolt toppled longtime dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and sparked the Arab Spring uprisings, has been hailed as a model of democratization in the Arab world but has faced economic woes and jihadist attacks. Previous polls held in 2014 brought to power Beji Caid Essebsi, the country's first democratically elected president.

A 'Tragic Life' for the Displaced in Syria's Al-Hol Camp
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 29/19/Malnourished children struck down by chronic diarrhea, mothers too weak to breastfeed -- in northeastern Syria's Al-Hol camp, a humanitarian emergency is unfolding. Arabic, French, German and English voices fill the air in the muddy alleyways, as foreign women who married into the Islamic State group and civilians displaced by the fighting against jihadists seek out assistance. But while much divides the two groups, one thing unites them; they despair over the camp's lack of food and medical care. "It is a tragic life," said Najwa Ali Jolane, a young Syrian mother who has lived at Al-Hol for three and a half months. "We lack everything," the 20-year-old said. Flapping in the springtime breeze, white tents embossed with the U.N. refugee agency's acronym UNHCR stretch as far as the eye can see. But the threadbare structures cannot cope with the flood of women and children who in recent months have fled a string flattened villages in eastern Syria, including Baghouz, where IS' so-called caliphate was declared defeated on Saturday. The most fortunate families in Al-Hol have their own tents, while the unlucky ones shelter with dozens of others in warehouses. "There are 10,000 people living in large communal tents which lack privacy," said Paul Donohoe, from the International Rescue Committee. An extra 5,000 tents are needed to house people, he said.
The flood of arrivals in Al-Hol has transformed the camp into a chaotic town.  It now brims with more than 70,000 people, but was only designed to accommodate a seventh of that number. Kurdish authorities have raised the alarm and called on the international community to step up and help. In front of a World Food Program warehouse, huge lines of women -- all dressed in the full black niqab -- stand in the mud, awaiting rations that the U.N. agency says are enough for a month.
Conditions ‘extremely critical’
Some in the line refuse to speak to journalists, but others -- Jolane included -- take the opportunity to rail against their misfortune. "On days when it rains, our tent is flooded with water, so we have to move to a neighbours' tents," said the former resident of Hajin, a village near Baghouz that was flattened by fighting in December. Jolane's son, just a few months old, is dressed in dusty and muddy clothes, his feet exposed. WFP's Syria spokesperson Marwa Awad acknowledges that "humanitarian conditions in Al-Hol camp are extremely critical". "What is lacking is proper space for the continuous influx of people as well as proper health facilities to treat injuries and diseases," she said. A Syrian woman, who did not want to give her name, said her three-year-old daughter "has been sick since she arrived here" around one month ago. "She is vomiting and has persistent diarrhea," she said angrily. "We were brought here in uncovered vehicles. The children fell sick (and) many died on the way," she added. At least 140 people, mainly children, have died en route to Al-Hol or shortly after arriving since December, according to the IRC. Cordoned off from the main camp and deemed a security threat, the foreign women who joined IS complain that their money and cell phones have been confiscated. Many fear chronic diarrhea could weaken their children beyond the point of no return. They told AFP they have been unable to get hold of Flagyl, a drug commonly used to treat persistent cases. According to Save the Children, some 30 per cent of children under the age of five screened at the camp since the start of February suffer acute malnutrition and WFP says it has tracked several cases of "dehydration and diarrhea.".
‘When can we go home?’
The future of the 9,000 women and children held in the foreigners' section of Al-Hol is a constant headache for Kurdish authorities, who want to get rid of them, but Western capitals are reluctant or outright refuse to bring them home. The foreign women are monitored closely and Kurdish guards escort them when they go to market in the main part of the camp. "We cannot stay here, we have no food, no money," said Romina Scheer, a young German woman. "We want to go home." She said she travelled to Syria in December 2014 to join IS, where she married a fellow German IS member. "I cannot breastfeed because I did not have enough to eat," said Scheer. Her children include a three-month-old baby boy and an eight-year-old daughter whose blonde pigtails and earring mark a stark contrast with her mother's austere attire. "My children -- every day they ask: 'Mummy when are we going to go home?'" said Scheer. "And I say: 'it depends on our country, (and) if they take us back.'"

Trump to Host Egypt's Sisi on April 9
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 29/19/U.S. President Donald Trump will host his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi at the White House on April 9 to discuss military, economic and counterterrorism cooperation between their countries. The pair "will discuss strengthening the strategic partnership between the United States and Egypt and building on our robust military, economic and counterterrorism cooperation," the White House said in a statement. "The two leaders will also discuss developments and shared priorities in the region, including enhancing regional economic integration and addressing ongoing conflicts, and Egypt's longstanding role as a lynchpin of regional stability."One of Washington's biggest allies in the Middle East, Cairo has received $40 billion in US military aid and $30 billion in economic aid since 1980. Trump hosted Sisi at the White House almost exactly two years ago. Turning a page on Barack Obama's approach -- Trump's predecessor was critical of the Egyptian leader's crackdown on dissent and refused to invite Sisi to the White House -- Trump praised the Egyptian leader, saying, "He's done a fantastic job in a very difficult situation." The White House at the time applauded Sisi's "courageous efforts" to promote what it said was a moderate brand of Islam. Egypt carries considerable influence in several of the regional crises in which the United States has a stake, above all the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As the Egyptian army chief in 2013, Sisi came to power amid mass demonstrations against his Islamist predecessor Mohamed Morsi. Sisi then suspended the country's constitution. Since then, he has clamped down on dissent, banning protests and jailing both Islamists and liberal and secular activists.

Canada condemns Maduro regime’s actions against interim president Juan Guaidó
March 28, 2019 - New York City, New York - Global Affairs Canada
The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today issued the following statement:
“Canada strongly condemns the illegitimate Maduro regime’s decision to strip interim president Juan Guaidó of the right to hold public office for 15 years.
“Such efforts to sideline the widely and internationally recognized interim president of Venezuela further demonstrate Maduro’s contempt for democracy and the constitutional rights of Venezuelans. Given the regime’s illegitimacy, such an arbitrary decision has no basis in law and Canada does not recognize this declaration by the Maduro regime.
“Canada will keep working with the Lima Group and our international partners as we continue to call for an urgent and peaceful resolution to the crisis in Venezuela.”

UAE official urges Arab openness to Israel
Ynetnews/Reuters/March 29/19
UAE foreign minister calls the decision to ban contact with Israel 'very, very wrong,' expects increased contact between Arab world and Jewish state; 'in 15 years' time, discussions will revolve around equal rights in one state,' he says of Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Relations between Arab states and Israel need to shift to help progress towards peace with the Palestinians, a senior United Arab Emirates official was quoted on Thursday as saying. The decision by many Arab countries not to talk with Israel has complicated finding a solution over the decades, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash said, according to Abu Dhabi-based daily The National. "Many, many years ago, when there was an Arab decision not to have contact with Israel, that was a very, very wrong decision, looking back," Gargash said, in unusually candid remarks."Because clearly, you have to really dissect and divide between having a political issue and keeping your lines of communication open."His comments came after the UAE and other Gulf states criticized U.S. President Donald Trump's recognition this week of Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights, a strategic plateau captured from Syria in a 1967 war. They also followed a visit last month by Trump's senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner to Gulf Arab states to seek support for the economic portion of a long-awaited U.S. proposal for Israeli-Palestinian peace. Gulf Arab states host U.S. troops and are important for Washington's regional defense policy.
"Strategic Shift"
Israel has formal diplomatic relations with only two Arab states, neighboring Egypt and Jordan. But an Israeli cabinet minister visited Abu Dhabi's Grand Mosque last year and fellow Gulf state Oman hosted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on a surprise trip, the first time an Israeli leader had visited the Sultanate in 22 years. Israel sees Arab states as its natural allies against regional powerhouse Iran. But many in the Arab world resist following Jordan's and Egypt's lead as long as the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory continues.
Minister of State for Foreign Affairs for the United Arab Emirates, Anwar Gargash, speaks at an event at Chatham House in London, Britain July 17, Gargash said he expected increased contact between Arab countries and Israel through small bilateral deals and visits by politicians and athletic delegations. Israeli athletes won gold in an Abu Dhabi judo competition in October, and its national anthem was played. "The strategic shift needs actually for us to progress on the peace front," Gargash said. "What we are facing, if we continue on the current trajectory, I think the conversation in 15 years' time will really be about equal rights in one state," he added, alluding to a possible fusion of the Israeli and Palestinian polities in place of the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.
He said this conversation was currently on the margins but this would change. "A two-state solution will no longer be feasible because a sort of reduced rump (Palestinian) state will no longer be practical," Gargash added.

IDF at peak readiness in Gaza sector, adds reinforcements after failed Egyptian truce bid
DEBKAfile/March 29/19/Israel’s armed forces around Gaza are at peak readiness for Hamas’ “March of the Million” on Friday and Saturday, March 30-31. On Thursday, the IDF further ramped up the force piling up on the Gaza border with additional ground troops and artillery units. DEBKAfile’s military sources report that the Egyptian intelligence officers shuttling between Tel Aviv and Gaza City for days failed to broker an agreement for an Israeli-Hamas truce. Neither party was willing to make commitments as to its response should the “March of the Million” rage out of control. Hamas adamantly refused to guarantee that the mass demonstration would be peaceful, or to rein in attacks on Israeli troops like those which have plagued southern Israel in the past year. Neither would the Palestinian terrorist group ruling the Gaza Strip agree to halt its incendiary balloon assaults on Israeli civilian locations or even rocket fire. Israel’s answer was to refuse to make any promises about how the IDF would respond if Hamas’ and allied groups’ violent conduct continued.

Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on March 29-30/2019
Brexit’s Message to European Union
Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat/March 29/19
With the Brexit saga’s denouement still uncertain, the European Union would do well to re-examine its performance as a daring experience in socio-political engineering on a grand scale. Even if, as expected, the United Kingdom somehow manages to fudge Brexit and remain tied to the EU, the fact remains that millions of Brits and other Europeans are unhappy with aspects of the experience.
The first problem with the EU is that, though it is called a union, it isn’t really one. To be sure it has a flag, an anthem, a parliament, a council of ministers, and even pseudo-embassies in many countries, but despite such trappings of a state, the EU is essentially an economic club; not a state.
Even then, the EU is basically concerned with two branches of the economy: industry and agriculture, sectors that represent around 32 percent of the combined gross domestic products (GDP) of the 28 member states. In the case of Britain, which is primarily a service-based economy, industry and agriculture account for around 25 percent of the GDP.
The EU’s annual budget accounts for around one percent of the total GDP of its 28 members. However, on average, the state in the 28 member countries controls the expenditure of around 50 percent of the GDP.
Key aspects of the economy, including taxation, interest rates and, apart from members of the Eurozone, national currencies are not within the EU’s remit.
The EU’s member states represent many different historical memories and experiences. The British are shaped by two centuries of colonial experience, followed by a brief flirtation with social-democracy morphing into the Thatcherite version of capitalism caricaturized in a single word: greed. The EU’s Nordic members emerge from seven decades of social democracy with “welfare” as the key concept.
Germany and Austria pride themselves in their “social market” economic model, which is regarded with deep suspicion in other European countries. Italy, and to a lesser extent Greece, Spain and Portugal have a “black-and-white” model in which the un-official or black economy is almost as big as the official one. The Benelux three, Belgium, Holland, and Luxembourg have lived with what they call “social capitalism” - a system in which the principal role of the state is redistributing the wealth created.
France, depending on the party in power at any given time, has vacillated between the German-Austrian and the Benelux models.
The Central and Eastern European members were all parts of the Warsaw Pact and the Soviet-dominated Comecon and used to expecting the state and the party in control, to take all decisions and cater for all needs.
The 28 member states also have different political systems, ranging from traditional monarchies to republics with a revolutionary background and nations emerging from the debris of empires.
They also have long histories of enmities with one another. Leaving aside a long history of wars, some lasting over 100 years, little love is lost between the French and the Germans or the British for that matter. For the Hungarians, the number-one hated people in the world are the Romanians who still rule over four million “captive Hungarians” whose territory they annexed in 1919.
The Irish love the Brits as much as the Dutch love the Germans, that is to say not very much. Italians still remember oppression under the Austrians and the Spanish haven’t forgotten their struggle against Napoleon.
It is a wonder that the EU has managed to bring together so many nations in a region that has the longest and most intense history of national rivalries and enmities compared to any other region in the world. Part of that success was due to fears fomented by the Cold War and hopes risen after the fall of the Soviet Empire. The Western European nations felt they needed to set aside old enmities to face up to the Communist “beast from the East”. In the post-Soviet era, the Central and Eastern European nations hurried to join the EU and NATO to put as much blue water possible between themselves and their former Russian oppressors. Needless to say, the United States encouraged the formation of the original Common market and supported its morphing into the EU as part of a grand strategy to contain the USSR. In that context, the EU played a major role in ensuring peace and stability in a continent that has witnessed most of the wars that humanity has seen in its history.
The EU has also done a great job with the so-called “mise-a niveau” (bringing up to standard) policy of helping new members achieve some measure of parity with the founding members in key fields of the rule of law, democratic values, economic regulations, and international behavior.
Brexit has highlighted the key challenges that the EU faces. The first challenge concerns a widespread overestimation of the EU’s role. This is due to its perception as a supra-national state which it certainly is not. Local politicians in many member states like to blame the EU for their own failings even in domains that do not concern the union.
The EU is also facing the challenge posed by the return of the nation-state as the most popular model of socio-political organization across the globe. Right now all supra-national and/or international organizations, from the United Nations to NATO, are regarded with suspicion, if not outright hostility, not only in Europe but also throughout the world.
EU leaders and those who support it would do well to offer a more modest and realistic image of the union as an economic club concerned with just certain aspects of its members’ economies and not as a putative “United States of Europe.”
The EU has been pretending to be a machine trying to impose uniformity on nations that have always prided themselves in their specificity. It may survive and even prosper if it works for unity in diversity.
Even if it never actually happens, the message of Brexit to EU is: Pull down thy vanity!

The West's Crimes against Persecuted Minorities in the Middle East
Judith Bergman/Gatestone Institute/March 29/2019
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/13969/crimes-minorities-middle-east
The only comment that keeps being repeated is the right of the ISIS terrorists to return to the West because they happen to be in possession of Western citizenship. The real victims were the many people whom ISIS terrorists had happily volunteered to rape, torture, behead, drown, burn alive, crucify and shoot to death for sport. Yet, the horror of these victims -- Yazidis, Christians, Druze and the 'wrong kind' of Muslims -- is barely mentioned in public debates about returning ISIS fighters.
The problem is that these same representatives of the political establishments have not shown remotely similar concern -- if any at all -- for the real victims of the ISIS terrorists; they appear to have been completely forgotten.
Across the Western world, the political and media classes put on a daily show of pretending to care about human rights, while letting down persecuted minorities -- including many Muslim women. It is long overdue for everyone to start calling out this posturing for the moral narcissism it is and to demand from their politicians and the establishment media, who seemingly never tire of proclaiming their commitment to human rights, to begin providing some to the countless real victims waiting to be helped.
Nadia Murad, the Yazidi human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, who was one of thousands of Yazidi women taken prisoner by ISIS and held as a slave until she managed to escape, recently wrote, "My greatest fear is that if the world still fails to act, my community – the Yazidi community – will cease to exist". (Photo by Erik Valestrand/Getty Images)
The debate in Western Europe about the rights of returning Islamic State (ISIS) terrorists reflects a disturbing sentiment: There appears to be tremendous concern for the well-being of people who decided to leave their native or adopted countries to pledge allegiance to ISIS, the followers of which perpetrated some of the most gruesome crimes committed in this or any century.
Now that the US-supported forces in Syria have taken the last ISIS stronghold in Syria, Baghouz, and ISIS in Iraq and Syria has been defeated, its terrorists and their brides apparently long for the West again.
Few people in the West seem concerned that the reason for this longing might not be Western comforts alone, but also an ISIS command. One ISIS spokesmen, Abu al-Hassan al-Muhajer, recently "issued a recording calling on organization operatives in all ISIS's provinces to continue the path of jihad and expand their activities against the 'infidel nations,' particularly the United States..."
Swedish officials issued concern about returning ISIS perpetrators in curious statements. One, for instance, by Klas Friberg, the head of the Swedish Security Service (Säpo), in January, described returning ISIS fighters as "broken people who have been traumatized by their experiences" and said that Swedish society has to "play a big role in re-integrating them".[1]
There were also questionable statements about an ISIS bride, Shamima Begum, attempting to return to Britain. In a recent interview from Syria, Begum readily admitted that she had no problem with beheadings and other atrocities committed by ISIS, because, "Islamically that is all allowed." Despite this, Richard Barret, a former director of global counter-terrorism at the UK's MI6 intelligence agency, said Begum should be "given a chance" and allowed to come home, despite her lack of remorse. He then lamented that the British government, at the initiative of Home Secretary Sajid Javid, in stripping Begum of her citizenship and not allowing her to come back to the UK, had shown "a complete lack of concern for her plight". British MP Diane Abbott said that making Begum "stateless" was "callous and inhumane".
The problem is that these same representatives of the political establishment have not shown remotely similar concern -- if any at all -- for the real victims of the ISIS terrorists; they appear to have been completely forgotten.
The real victims were the many people whom ISIS terrorists had happily volunteered to rape, torture, behead, drown, burn alive, crucify and shoot to death for sport. Yet, the horror of these victims -- Yazidis, Christians, Druze and the "wrong kind" of Muslims -- is barely mentioned in public debates about returning ISIS fighters. It is as if those victims had never existed. The only comment that keeps being repeated is the right of the perpetrators to return because they happen to be in possession of Western citizenship. One wonders, if such compassion would also have been extended today to, say, Nazis, if they had run off to kill victims abroad and then, after being defeated, asked to come back.
The West, by this disregard of ISIS's victims, is committing a double crime against them: First, by failing to speak out for and help rescue the victims at the time they were being devastated; second, by their sentimental concern for these terrorists after their hard-won defeat.
Recently, fifty Yazidi women were found to have been beheaded in the city of Baghouz. That discovery, however, did not seem to propel Western leaders to help find those thousands of Yazidis who are still missing, including many children. According to one report, 3000 women are still being held by ISIS as slaves and their likely fate is to be held in sexual slavery for the rest of their lives, unless someone rescues them. Nadia Murad, the Yazidi human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, who was one of thousands of Yazidi women taken prisoner by ISIS and held as a slave until she managed to escape, recently wrote, "My greatest fear is that if the world still fails to act, my community – the Yazidi community – will cease to exist".
Unfortunately, the world has stood by passively for nearly five years, since August 2014, when the Yazidi genocide by ISIS went into in full swing. Some of these terrorists are already back in the West or on their way there. One Yazidi teenage girl, who had been sold into slavery by ISIS, managed to escape to Germany, where she was horrified to discover that her former captor, who had beaten and raped her, was also living in Germany:
"I know you, he said. And where you live and who you live with. He knew everything about my life in Germany... The last thing I expected was to meet my IS captor and that he would know everything about me."
It appears to be dawning on some of the mainstream media outlets, at least in the UK, that Britain's inaction on behalf of the persecuted Middle Eastern minorities makes its government look horrendous. The Sunday Times recently wrote of the UK government:
"The Home Office has repeatedly failed to give sanctuary in Britain to a fair proportion of Christians, Yazidis and Druze, according to figures obtained under freedom of information laws by Barnabas Fund, which helps persecuted Christians overseas.
"The finding that it appears to discriminate in favour of Muslisms [sic] risks embarrassing the government which has begun a review, ordered by the foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, into the global persecution of Christians.
"When he announced the review on Boxing Day, Hunt cited estimates of about 215m [million] Christians suffering persecution around the world and suggested Britain had not been generous enough."
That is putting it mildly. According to the Sunday Times, of the 4,850 Syrians accepted in 2017 by the Home Office, 4,572 were Sunni Muslims; only 11 were Christians. According to figures for the second quarter of 2018, of the 1,197 Syrians accepted into the UK, 1,047 were Sunnis and 10 were Christians. There was no mention at all of Yazidis, despite the genocide committed against them in 2014, when ISIS terrorists stormed the predominantly Yazidi city of Sinjar in northern Iraq and proceeded to destroy Yezidi shrines and murder, abduct and rape the Yazidis. 200,000 people fled Sinjar and around 50,000 took refuge on Mount Sinjar. To this day, Yazidi refugees are still living there in tents and in unimaginable poverty, waiting for help from a world that has completely forgotten them.
Unfortunately, the rot at the core of Britain's Home Office seems so deep, it is doubtful that it can be shamed into anything. According to The Times, the Home Office recently refused asylum to an Iranian who converted from Islam to Christianity on the grounds that Christianity is supposedly not a peaceful religion:
"Immigration officials wrote to the man citing violent passages from the Bible to prove their point. They said that the Book of Revelation was 'filled with imagery of revenge, destruction, death and violence'. The Church of England condemned the 'lack of religious literacy' shown by the immigration officials, after the man warned he might now face persecution in Iran for his faith".
Across the Western world, the political and media classes put on a daily show of pretending to care about human rights, while letting down persecuted minorities -- including many Muslim women. As Asra Nomani wrote:
"One of our greatest challenges here in America is that progressives don't always stand with the progressive Muslims because in the interest of freedom of religion and civil liberties and political correctness, they don't want to offend cultural choices by Muslims. I know that people have gone to these interfaith sessions at different mosques and they see that the women end up in the basement, but they don't want to challenge anyone because they think, 'Oh, well this is your way.'"
It is long overdue for everyone to start calling out this posturing for the moral narcissism it is and to demand from their politicians and the establishment media, who seemingly never tire of proclaiming their commitment to human rights, to begin providing some to the countless real victims waiting to be helped.
*Judith Bergman, a columnist, lawyer and political analyst, is a Distinguished Senior Fellow at Gatestone Institute.
[1] Integrating former ISIS fighters in Sweden is not going very well. In a recent study of 29 male returned ISIS fighters, 13 were suspected of or had been convicted of committing crimes in Sweden after their return. The crimes included committing severe physical abuse, money laundering, dealing in stolen goods, extortion, theft and drug offenses.
© 2019 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.

Syria’s future far from certain despite Daesh’s defeat
Talmiz Ahmad/Arab News/March 28/19
The month of March has seen a number of developments that will have a lasting impact on Syrian affairs.
Early in the month, Russia and Turkey entered into a new agreement on the Idlib situation to update their accord from September last year to remove extremists controlling that town. Two weeks later, on March 17, Damascus hosted two generals — the chiefs of staff of Iran and Iraq. Their meeting in Damascus discussed the challenges for Syria and the region following the demise of Daesh.
Daesh’s last holdout at Baghouz finally fell on March 22 into the hands of the largely Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which are allied with the US in Syria. Though several thousand extremist fighters and family members have left Baghouz, the SDF still has in its custody a number of foreign militants whose countries have disowned them.
There are fears that a large number of Arabs have melted back to their homes, particularly in Iraq, and could reignite domestic violence. There is also dark talk that the extremists’ custodians might deliberately relocate militants to sensitive areas in order to challenge Iran’s regional outreach.
At the heart of the convoluted regional scenario is Turkey. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is anxious to move his forces east of the Euphrates and decimate the SDF, which he sees as partners of the outlawed dissident Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). But he enjoys no support: The US still maintains a small detachment of its troops to deter him, while the SDF has promised Syria’s “second great war” in case the Turks attack. Turkey’s allies — Russia and Iran — also oppose this move. Both are committed to Syria’s unity and would like to address Ankara’s security concerns by encouraging the Kurds to engage with the Assad government and negotiate for themselves an autonomy package enshrined in a new constitution.
On the other hand, Turkey remains reluctant to address the matter of Idlib. In September, it agreed to separate the extremists from Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) from the “moderate” opposition, so that this last bastion of rebel control would go back to the Damascus government. Instead, in January, the HTS overwhelmed Turkey-backed moderates and took control of the town.
Turkey’s game-plan appears to be to get HTS declared a “moderate” group and integrate it into the National Liberation Front (NLF) that it has put together to fight the SDF and to maintain its presence in northern Syria. So far, HTS has resisted Turkey’s blandishments.
With the new agreement, an exasperated Russia has injected itself into the Idlib cauldron through patrolling by its troops and airstrikes on HTS targets. This has created fresh problems for Turkey, as its various allies are threatening to leave the Turkey-sponsored coalition and take up arms against it and the Assad government.
An exasperated Russia has injected itself into the Idlib cauldron through patrolling by its troops and airstrikes
If the situation deteriorates, there are concerns that the Astana peace process might come apart. This would lead to a fresh round of fighting across Syria, reminiscent of the early days of the conflict, and could even involve Syrian troops confronting the SDF if the latter fails to rejoin the national mainstream.
Over the last year or so, Turkey has sustained its interests in Syria by being a partner in the Astana process and also repeatedly obtaining US support by holding out on the prospect of deeper political and military ties with Russia. This era of brinkmanship could be ending.
The Donald Trump-Erdogan arrangement in December, under which all US troops in Syria would be withdrawn and Turkey would police the north of the country, including the Kurdish-held territories, seems to have fallen through, with the US showing no signs of early withdrawal. Again, the US has warned that the Turkish purchase of the S-400 missile system from Russia would mean its exclusion from the development of the F-35 jet aircraft and the denial of the Patriot missile system.
As if the situation were not complicated enough already, US President Trump announced last week that the US recognized Israeli “sovereignty” over the occupied Golan Heights. This has elicited strong words from Erdogan, thus becoming one more issue that divides the NATO partners.
The US policy on Syria has gone through numerous contortions over the last year, swinging from aggressive long-term deployment to hasty withdrawal. As of now, the US remains sensitive to Turkey’s concerns in Syria. US envoy James Jeffrey said recently that the US would back a “safe zone” in SDF-occupied territory along the Syria-Turkey border, which would be patrolled by Turkish troops and those of its NLF allies. The SDF has declared this “unacceptable.” Again, the SDF is aware that the mere 1,000 US troops that might ultimately be deployed in northeast Syria could hardly protect their interests across one-third of Syrian territory that both the Turks and Assad might attack.
Not surprisingly, SDF leaders have now started talking of their core “Syrian” identity, the absence of any animosity for the Assad government, their limited trust in the US, and their interest in an autonomous multi-ethnic enclave in northeast Syria guaranteed by Russia.
Clearly, Daesh’s demise has brought Syria no clarity about its future.
• Talmiz Ahmad is an author and former Indian ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Oman and the UAE. He holds the Ram Sathe Chair for International Studies, Symbiosis International University, Pune, India.

Nuclear inspectors must visit Iran’s military site at Parchin
د. ماجد رافي زاده : يجب على المفتشين النوويين زيارة موقع إيران العسكري النووي في بارشين
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Arab News/March 28/19
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/73427/dr-majid-rafizadeh-nuclear-inspectors-must-visit-irans-military-site-at-parchin-%d8%af-%d9%85%d8%a7%d8%ac%d8%af-%d8%b1%d8%a7%d9%81%d9%8a-%d8%b2%d8%a7%d8%af%d9%87-%d9%8a%d8%ac%d8%a8/
The latest report by the International Atomic Energy Agency shows that the Islamic Republic is complying with the nuclear deal. (Reuters)
The proponents of Iran’s nuclear deal are criticizing the new sanctions imposed on Iran’s nuclear program by the US last week. The Treasury and State Department unveiled measures against 14 individuals and 17 entities that are linked to the Iranian Ministry of Defense. These entities are reportedly associated with Iran’s attempts to build nuclear weapons.
The opponents of these sanctions argue that Tehran has curtailed its nuclear weapon ambitions thanks to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which was agreed by six world powers and the Islamic Republic in July 2015. The argument is anchored in the notion that the latest report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) shows that the Islamic Republic is complying with the nuclear deal.
However, this argument is fallacious for several reasons. First of all, the IAEA has repeatedly failed to comprehensively report on Iran’s nuclear activities. It should be recalled that it was not this organization that exposed Iran’s major clandestine activities and undeclared nuclear sites in the cities of Arak and Natanz in 2002. Rather, it was the Iranian oppositional group, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), that revealed Tehran was secretly working on uranium enrichment at a facility in Natanz and producing heavy water in Arak.
Even before the revelations regarding these critical and clandestine facilities, the international community was warned about Iran’s secret nuclear activities. But the IAEA, which reports to the UN, failed to take those intelligence reports seriously.
Ultimately, when the Iranian leaders were caught red-handed for not declaring the existence of nuclear facilities and for violating the terms of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, they immediately claimed that their nuclear facilities and activities were solely designed for “peaceful” purposes.
Currently, the IAEA, as well as those who oppose the newly imposed sanctions, seem to be repeating the same mistake by ignoring reports and revelations surrounding Iran’s nuclear activities. One of these credible reports is linked to Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, which in 2016 revealed that the Iranian government had been pursuing a “clandestine” path to obtaining nuclear technology and equipment from German companies “at what is, even by international standards, a quantitatively high level.”
The following year, the NCRI again made new revelations, stating that a location at the highly protected Parchin military base in Iran is being secretly used to continue the nuclear weapons project. It said: “The unit responsible for conducting research and building a trigger for a nuclear weapon is called the Center for Research and Expansion of Technologies for Explosion and Impact, known by its Farsi acronym as METFAZ.”
The IAEA seems to be repeating its mistake by ignoring reports and revelations surrounding Iran’s nuclear activities
METFAZ and the Parchin facility are part of Iran’s umbrella engineering unit for the nuclear weapons program, the Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research, known as the SPND. This unit comprises seven subdivisions. The SPND has several secret centers, and possibly some that have not been detected yet. But the IAEA has not taken any action to inspect Iran’s military site at Parchin.
The NCRI warned the international community that “the ‘nerve center’ of the Iranian regime’s nuclear weapons project, responsible for designing the bomb, has been continuing its work.” It added: “Following the establishment of the JCPOA in 2015, not only has the unit remained in place and its activities have not subsided, but it is now clear that in some fields its activities have even expanded.”
This is why the Iranian regime has not allowed the IAEA to inspect or monitor many of its nuclear-related sites, including the SPND centers. During the nuclear talks, Iran was determined that Parchin must be beyond the reach of IAEA inspectors. Iran has also frequently boasted that the IAEA is not permitted to inspect many locations, including Parchin.
The Iranian regime has become skilled at disguising the true nature of its nuclear centers by using tactics such as labeling them as military sites or conventional research centers.
Even the Iranian leaders are declaring that they have not scaled back their nuclear activities since the JCPOA was reached. For example, in an interview with Iran’s Channel 2 last week, Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, stated that the nation’s nuclear program has advanced in comparison to 2015. He said: “If we have to go back and withdraw from the nuclear deal, we certainly do not go back to where we were before. We will be standing in a much, much higher position.”
Iran’s clandestine nuclear activities are most likely carried out at the country’s military sites. The IAEA ought to thoroughly inspect the Parchin military site and all SPND centers in order to accurately report on Iran’s compliance with international rules and agreements. In addition, the IAEA must conduct interviews with the nuclear program’s lead figures, scientists and researchers.
• Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a Harvard-educated Iranian-American political scientist. He is a leading expert on Iran and US foreign policy, a businessman and president of the International American Council. Twitter: @Dr_Rafizadeh

Russian Moves in the Gulf and Africa Have a Common Goal
Anna Borshchevskaya/The Washington Institute/March 29/19
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/73435/anna-borshchevskaya-russian-moves-in-the-gulf-and-africa-have-a-common-goal%D8%A2%D9%86%D8%A7-%D8%A8%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%B4%D9%81%D8%B3%D9%83%D8%A7%D9%8A%D8%A7-%D9%85%D8%B9%D9%87%D8%AF-%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%B4/
A recent spate of high-level regional visits may pave the way for Moscow to entrench itself from the East Mediterranean to the Gulf of Aden, with help from the Gulf states.
Russia has long courted the Persian Gulf states, and in recent years has expanded its presence in the Horn of Africa as well. But now a common thread is emerging between these seemingly disconnected activities: Moscow’s quest for influence and access in the Red Sea region, with the goal of furthering its great-power ambitions at the West’s expense.
In early March, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov toured the Gulf states, meeting with senior officials in the capitals of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates. The discussions touched on everything from trade and football to Syria, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and regional security. Russian daily Kommersant suggested that the trip was a prelude to a potential Gulf tour by President Vladimir Putin later this year.
Days after Lavrov’s trip, Moscow dispatched its special presidential envoy for the Middle East and North Africa, Mikhail Bogdanov, to meet with Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir, a wanted war criminal in the West. Once there, Bogdanov invited Bashir to participate in the upcoming Russia-Africa summit—the first of its kind, slated for October. The envoy then headed to the neighboring Central African Republic to confirm Moscow’s support on security issues and enhanced bilateral ties.
Bogdanov and Lavrov’s tours sandwiched the Red Sea, whose importance cannot be overstated. Because the region lies at multiple maritime crossroads, wielding influence there allows power projection into the Middle East, Africa, and the East Mediterranean—and therefore NATO’s southern flank. Over time, this may entail expanded Russian activities in the Suez Canal, Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea, and Indian Ocean.
This month’s diplomatic tours were only the latest instance of Moscow seeking to engage and connect the Horn of Africa and the Gulf states. Last September, the Kremlin announced plans to build a logistics center in Eritrea, and the United Arab Emirates helped facilitate this move by playing an important role in a peace deal between Ethiopia and Eritrea, effectively ending the latter’s decade-long isolation. Not coincidentally, Eritrea’s two main ports, Assab and Massawa, are located at strategic points on the Red Sea. The logistics center move came on the heels of Moscow’s announcement that it had signed a military cooperation agreement with the Central African Republic.
As for Sudan, Russia began warming its ties with the troubled country in late 2017 (if not earlier), with Bashir reaching out to Putin for “protection” from the United States and expressing support for Moscow’s efforts in Syria. Russian sources now suggest that the Kremlin is working to obtain a base in Sudan.
Meanwhile, against the backdrop of Russia pushing regional governments to restore relations with the Syrian regime, Sudan’s president visited Bashar al-Assad in December, making him the first Arab leader to do so. The meeting fulfilled both Assad’s need for recognition and Bashir’s own aspirations for support from the Gulf states, building on his 2017 trips to Abu Dhabi and Riyadh.
For their part, the Gulf states have asserted themselves across the Horn of Africa in the past few years, establishing military and commercial outposts across the region. In the UAE’s case, many of these commercial opportunities have occurred in areas of especial interest to Russia. Although some might wonder if this means the Gulf states are competing with Russia for local influence, cooperation prevails instead. Moscow has expanded its own presence in Africa over the same period and signed a strategic partnership agreement with Abu Dhabi last June. Putin built momentum toward such accords over the course of many years, ever since he visited Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE in 2007—an unprecedented move for a Russian head of state.
His keen interest in cultivating formal and informal ties with the region stems in part from a need to secure Gulf investment and thereby salvage Russia’s stumbling economy. This includes getting Gulf leaders more interested in Russian weaponry, encouraging sovereign wealth fund agreements that further Moscow’s agenda, and organizing business councils and traveling exhibits that create forums for Russian-Arab commercial deals.
Ironically, Putin’s Syria intervention has earned him grudging respect among Gulf leaders as well—despite their initially vociferous opposition to the Assad regime’s war effort, and despite the fact that Russia has essentially aligned itself with the Iran-Shia axis that they fear so much. While the West wavered for years in Syria, Putin stuck to its guns and kept Assad in power. Now that the United States has seemingly accelerated its withdrawal from the region, the Gulf states seem to believe they have no choice but to deal with Assad and Putin. Indeed, the UAE and Bahrain have already reopened their embassies in Damascus, and leaders are watching Moscow’s activities in Syria with an eye toward cooperation rather than confrontation.
Unlike the Levant, the Red Sea region is still crowded with great powers, so Russia’s ascent there is by no means inevitable. For example, Djibouti hosts American, Chinese, French, Italian, and Japanese military outposts; Moscow is not guaranteed a base there despite recent talks toward that end. Even so, its position in Syria has served as a springboard for widening its regional activities, from collecting intelligence and running general interference to launching specific initiatives such as last August’s counterpiracy training exercises in the Gulf of Aden. It is no accident that the shadowy Russian mercenary group Wagner reportedly appeared in the Central African Republic in late 2017 after previously operating in Syria.
Washington’s pattern of disengagement from the region is only making it easier for Putin to step in. Continuing this approach is especially risky today, since Bogdanov and Lavrov’s March trips may usher in the next stage of Russia’s regional ambitions: namely, entrenching its position from the East Mediterranean down to the Gulf of Aden and creating a pathway deeper into Africa, with help from the Gulf.
*Anna Borshchevskaya is a senior fellow at The Washington Institute and coauthor of its recent study “Russia’s Arabic Propaganda: What It Is, Why It Matters.”