English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For May 22-23/2020
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

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Bible Quotations For today

In my Father’s house there are many dwelling-places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 14/01-06:”‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house there are many dwelling-places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way to the place where I am going.’ Thomas said to him, ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on May 21-22-23/2020
Coronavirus: Lebanon sees highest single-day jump in COVID-19 cases
Mazboud Municipality Declares State of Emergency over Coronavirus
Hasan: Corona Numbers Shocking but No Community Spread
Lebanon: Signs of Rift between FPM, Hezbollah Begin to Emerge
Banker, Top Money Changers Released on Bail
Lebanon's economic rescue plan ‘good starting point:’ IMF spokesperson
Nasrallah: Israel Deterred but Betting on Economic Situation in Lebanon
Berri Cautions against 'Federalism,' Calls for Liberation of Judiciary and Politics
‘Time for action, not words,’ Lebanon’s Berri tells government
Lebanese PM: We Inherited an Empty Treasury but we Achieved a Lot
Lebanese Judiciary Orders Seizure of MP’s Assets
Lebanon Central Bank to Give Dollars for Food Imports
Lebanese Judiciary Orders Seizure of MP’s Assets
Lebanon PM Warns of Major Food Crisis
Lebanon in Hope for ‘Last Chance’ Reform
Japan Seeks Extradition of Ghosn Accomplices Held in US
An Israeli-Turkish love affair over Hezbollah?
Iran Establishes itself in Syria as Nasrallah Stay the Course Set by Soleimani/Riad Kahwaji/INEGMA/May 21/2020
Lebanese Writer: French Ambassador To Lebanon Serves Iran, Hizbullah – Undermining The Interests Of Lebanon, France/MEMRI/May 22/2020

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on May 21-22-23/2020
EU chief condemns in ‘strongest possible terms’ Iran threat to Israel
Iran’s Khamenei on Quds Day: Israel will be eradicated
Iran picks cyber fight with Israel as both sides target critical infrastructure
US Sanctions Iranian Interior Minister for Human Rights Abuses
Iran: New US Sanctions are ‘Fruitless’
Venezuela: Iranian Tankers Will Get Armed Escort
Iranian Health Officials Call On People to Avoid Traveling During Eid Holiday
Shtayyeh Instructs Cabinet to Implement Decisions on Terminating Agreements
Syrian Regime Orders Seizure of Rami Makhlouf’s Shares in 12 Banks
Abbas's Withdrawal from Agreements with Israel is Challenged by Complex Mechanisms
More than 5 Million Coronavirus Infections Registered Worldwide
Ghannouchi Congratulates Libya’s Sarraj on Recapture of Watiya Airbase
Iraq: Shell Temporarily Evacuates Foreign Staff From Basra Gas Project
Joint Statement by Canada, Australia and United Kingdom on Hong Kong national security legislation
Iranian FM defends call for 'Final Solution' against Israel
Benny Gantz responds to Ali Khamenei: 'Don't test us'
Trump deems houses of worship 'essential' and threatens to override governors
Trump Urges Governors to Let Places of Worship Reopen 'Right Now'
WHO Says S. America 'a New Epicenter' of COVID-19
Large study links drug Trump touted to greater risk of death
Pakistan Airlines flight crashes in Karachi

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on May 21-22-23/2020
Question: "What is the mark of the beast?"/GotQuestions.org?/May 22/2020
Iranian Regime Marks Qods Day 2020 With Antisemitism, Blood Libels, And Calls For Destruction Of Israel/A. Savyon, M. Manzour/MEMRI/May 22/2020
Erdogan’s Fourth Attempt to Take Over Turkey’s Largest Private Bank/Aykan Erdemir/FDD/May 22/2020
China Is Asked to Pay the Coronavirus Bill/Dr. Jebril Elabidi/Asharq Al Awsat/May 22/2020
The Supreme Leader’s New Tom and Jerry Sequence/Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat/May 22/2020

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on May 21-22-23/2020
Coronavirus: Lebanon sees highest single-day jump in COVID-19 cases
Reuters/Thursday 21 May 2020
Lebanon’s Health Ministry reported 63 new cases of the coronavirus on Thursday, the largest single-day increase since the outbreak of the pandemic. Lebanon has seen an increase in cases in recent weeks after it began easing lockdown measures as part of a gradual re-opening of its crisis-hit economy. Many of the new cases are the result of Lebanese expatriates returning home, Information Minister Manal Abdel Samad. The country of about 6 million has recorded 1,024 cases and26 deaths, according to the Health Ministry. Abdel Samad said that lockdown restrictions would remain in place until at least June 7 as part of the gradual re-opening of the economy. For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app. Lebanon’s Prime Minister Hassan Diab said that the country is at risk of a major food crisis and many Lebanese may soon find it hard to afford bread because of an acute financial crunch and the fall-out of COVID-19, the prime minister warned. Writing in the Washington Post, Diab also warned of a global food security emergency triggered by the pandemic.

Mazboud Municipality Declares State of Emergency over Coronavirus
Naharnet/May 22/2020
The municipality of Mazboud in Iqlim al-Kharroub declared a state of emergency on Friday over an increase in the number of coronavirus infections, the National News Agency reported. The municipality said that PCR tests taken for several residents on Tuesday have shown six positive cases, adding to fifteen recorded earlier on Thursday, reported NNA. On Thursday, regional governors ordered the isolation of Mazboud.The municipality imposed a total lockdown. People were not allowed to leave their homes unless it was for very serious reasons. All shops and institutions were closed. Only medical centers, pharmacies, gas stations, and food supply stores were allowed to open under strict safety regulations. Lebanon on Thursday witnessed its biggest daily spike yet since the first case was confirmed on February 21. Thursday's cases include 27 infections among repatriated Lebanese expats and 19 among resident Bangladeshi workers.

Hasan: Corona Numbers Shocking but No Community Spread
Naharnet/May 22/2020
Health Minister Hamad Hasan on Friday described the major spike in Lebanon's coronavirus cases over the past 48 hours as "shocking" but he reassured that there is no virus "community spread" in the country. "The numbers of corona infections over the past two days were shocking and they sounded the alarm," Hasan said. "If we don't show a high level of responsibility, the issue of corona will certainly be disastrous," the minister warned. He cautioned that crowdliness and mixing could lead to a quick spread of the infection "as happened with the Bangladeshi expat community."Hasan, however, emphasized that Lebanon "will not surrender" and "will win the corona battle." "We won't witness a second wave if we show awareness and responsibility," the minister added. He also pointed out that the objective behind the so-called state of general mobilization is to "transit smoothly to normal life." "So far, the PCR tests do not indicate the presence of community spread and therefore there is societal immunity," Hasan went on to say. Lebanon confirmed 125 coronavirus cases over the past 48 hours, most of them in the towns of Majdal Anjar and Mazboud and in two buildings inhabited by foreign workers in Beirut's Ras al-Nabaa area.
Thirty out of 125 infected individuals are repatriated Lebanese expats.

Lebanon: Signs of Rift between FPM, Hezbollah Begin to Emerge
Beirut - Mohammed Shuqair/Asharq Al Awsat/May 22/2020
The Mar Mkhayel understanding, which was reached between now President Michel Aoun and Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah in February 2006, is losing its impetus as a result of a dispute between head of the Free Patriotic Movement, former foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, and the party’s leadership. The circumstances that made the two sides reach this understanding, following the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, have started to change. Each group now has its own popular orientations that are no longer in line with the political purpose of the understanding. FPM MP Ziad Aswad made the dispute public, when he announced, during a television interview on Thursday, that it was impossible to combine “the gun and hunger,” in a clean reference to Hezbollah’s arms. During a long interview on the FPM-owned OTV channel, his colleague in the FPM, Naji Hayek, promoted the need to support political federalism.According to observers, the dispute between the two sides reflected diverging views that are no longer in harmony with the Aoun-Nasrallah understanding. They affirmed that the transformation is a result of success political developments, specifically between Hezbollah and Bassil, “the legitimate heir of Aoun”, who has begun to “prepare for the presidency battle.” This is why Bassil, who is also Aoun’s son-inlaw, is working away from the spotlight to normalize his relations with the United States. He has made clear steps in this regard, by reportedly securing the travel of former collaborator with Israel, Amer Fakhoury, to Washington. The move sparked Hezbollah’s outrage. Moreover, Bassil decided to strike a truce with Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh. After waging a campaign for his removal, he is now soliciting offers to normalize his relationship with the Future Movement, because he needs to restore his position as a candidate for the presidency. On the other hand, Hezbollah is currently watching the accruing flaws in the relations with the FPM. Observers noted that Aswad’s remarks would not go unnoticed because they directly target the party and were welcomed by forces in the opposition. Aswad perhaps wanted to send a message towards the international powers that oppose Hezbollah and Iran.

Banker, Top Money Changers Released on Bail
Naharnet/May 22/2020
Acting Beirut First Investigative Judge Charbel Abu Samra on Friday interrogated the deputy head of the money changers union, Elie S., nine top money changers and a bank manager in the case of currency manipulation. He then released them on bails ranging in value from LBP 10 million to LBP 100 million. The eleven individuals are accused of "breaching the money exchange law, laundering money and harming the state's financial standing." The Financial Prosecution meanwhile appealed the decision before the Beirut accusatory commission. Lebanon has detained dozens of foreign exchange office employees in recent weeks over the fast depreciating pound, including the head of the money changers' union Mahmoud Mrad at the start of the month. The investigation has also seen the first charges against a senior central bank employee in the case. On Monday, the director of monetary operations at the central bank, Mazen Hamdan, was charged with "manipulating the national currency and breaching the pound's stability through directly buying dollars from money changers," a judicial source said. Late last week, the central bank issued a statement denying it was behind "any manipulation in the money changing market."

Lebanon's economic rescue plan ‘good starting point:’ IMF spokesperson
Lauren Holtmeier, Al Arabiya English/Thursday 21 May 2020
Talks between Lebanon and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have been constructive, and the country’s economic plan is a “good starting point,” IMF Spokesperson Gerry Rice said on Thursday via his Twitter account. Lebanon is in the midst of an unprecedented economic crisis and has begun talks with the IMF to restructure its debt after defaulting on its $1.2 billion Eurobond payment in March.“As I said before, we would characterize the Lebanese government’s plan as a good starting point for these discussions. It diagnoses the many economic issues facing Lebanon and proposes comprehensive set of policies to address them, so the discussions are ongoing,” Rice said. The Lebanese government approved a financial economic reform plan at the tail end of April and on May 1 officially approached the IMF for assistance, asking for $10 billion. The government is hoping to cash in on around $11 billion in soft loans pledged at the 2018 Paris CEDRE conference on the condition of reform. Estimates suggest the country will require as much between $15-25 billion to recapitalize local banks and pay off foreign currency debt, Lebanese think tank Triangle wrote. However, the IMF may be unwilling to give Lebanon more than $5 billion, analysis from Carnegie Middle East Center suggested. While an IMF package may be necessary to pull the country back from the brink in the long run, many fear the toll such a package will have on the middle and lower classes that are already hurting – given it will undoubtedly come with costly stipulations. The IMF is likely to ask Lebanon to fix its ailing electricity sector, a request also voiced at CEDRE. Today, the sector runs an annual deficit of $1.2 to $1.8 billion, and the country still suffers from daily power cuts. The country is currently facing multiple crises as the economy continues to sink and inflation is on the rise. Coronavirus has recently dealt yet another blow to the country's worsening situation. Food prices and hunger are increasing, as well as unemployment. Protests that began in October 2019 against corruption, chronic mismanagement of public funds, and a lack of transparency from a government riddled with sectarian loyalties saw hundreds of thousands of protesters throng the streets against the ruling elite. In recent weeks, protesters returned to the streets setting fire to banks, as financial institutions have become a symbol of discontent in a country that faces a dollar shortage. Dollars, needed to pay for imports, have been drying up, and banks – in a bid to keep dollars in the country – have imposed informal and illegal capital controls on depositors, making it difficult to impossible to access funds in their bank accounts or transfer funds abroad.
Lebanon's public debt stands at around $89.5 billion, of which 37 percent is in foreign currency.

Nasrallah: Israel Deterred but Betting on Economic Situation in Lebanon
Naharnet/May 22/2020
Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah announced Friday that Israel is “cautious and worried about Lebanon” and “fears going to war.”“Some might say that thee is mutual deterrence but mutual deterrence is a victory for Lebanon,” Nasrallah noted in a televised speech marking Quds Day.
“Israel should not bet that Hizbullah might be preoccupied with domestic situations,” he said. Nasrallah noted that Israel is now “betting on the economic situation in Lebanon in order to instigate the community of the resistance against it through sanctions.”“Calm on the border is thanks to the growth of the resistance's capabilities, despite all the airstrikes in Syria,” Hizbullah's leader said. He added that domestically, the Lebanese “can be strong and can preserve their sovereignty and recover their territorial waters without dying of hunger.”“The nations that have surrendered are living in a state of hunger and no one has assisted them. Through our solidarity we can preserve our sovereignty and we can be strong. We can deter our enemy and drill oil and gas wells and we can be a country that does not suffer hunger,” Nasrallah went on to say.

Berri Cautions against 'Federalism,' Calls for Liberation of Judiciary and Politics
Naharnet/May 22/2020
Speaker Nabih Berri made a rare televised speech on Friday calling on the crisis-hit Lebanon’s government to “make deeds not words,” and face the multiple crises crippling the country. The Speaker also cautioned against advocates of “federalism,” noting that Lebanon’s judiciary and politics must be “liberated.” “The government must not keep waiting for the outcome of negotiations with the IMF but must start action instead of words,” said Berri in his speech marking Liberation Day, Quds Day and Eid el-Fitr. “We warn against the voices of dissonance that began to rise in Lebanon calling for federalism as a solution to the crises,” cautioned the Speaker. “Lebanon must generate a new political life through a new electoral system outside sectarian restrictions, one electoral constituency, and the establishment of a Senate and the liberation of the judiciary,” he stressed.
On Lebanon’s problematic electricity sector costing its treasury billions of dollars, Berri said the sector must be “liberated from mentalities of sectarian and federal quotas, and a new board of directors must be appointed, including a regulatory body.” “We have to stop firing accusations at each other and instead start shouldering responsibilities,” he stressed. On the money of Lebanese at banks, the Speaker emphasized that they are “sacred and a right for their owners.”On the Palestinian cause and the “deal of teh century,” Berri said:” We support the Palestinian people and their righteous rejection for the deal of the century.”

‘Time for action, not words,’ Lebanon’s Berri tells government
Reuters/BeirutFriday 22 May 2020
Lebanon’s powerful parliament speaker said on Friday it was time for government action to help citizens grappling with an economic crisis and this could not wait for the outcome of International Monetary Fund negotiations.
Speaker Nabih Berri, head of the Shi’ite Amal Movement, said the Lebanese citizen was worried about “his livelihood, his fate and everything to do with his life and the life of the nation,” which is facing the worst crisis since the 1975-90 civil war. “It is time for the government to launch fieldwork away from plans and programs on paper. What is required is actions more than words,” he said. The currency has lost more than half its value since October amid a liquidity shortage that has largely frozen savers out of their deposits. Inflation and unemployment are soaring. Prime Minister Hassan Diab has said there is the risk of a major food crisis and many Lebanese may soon find it hard to afford bread. The government is negotiating with the IMF, aiming to unlock aid based on a recovery plan that details vast losses in the financial system. Lebanon defaulted on its sovereign debt in March for the first time. Berri, who seldom gives public addresses, was speaking to mark the anniversary of the Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon and al-Quds Day, a commemoration initiated by Iran in 1979 that falls on the last Friday of Ramadan. Diab took office in January with support from Berri, the Iran-backed Shi’ite group Hezbollah, and President Michel Aoun, the Maronite Christian head of state. Sunni politician Saad al-Hariri, Druze leader Walid Jumblatt and Aoun’s Maronite rival Samir Geagea stayed out of his cabinet. The central bank has said it will start providing dollars for food imports as part of “necessary measures” to defend the currency.

Lebanese PM: We Inherited an Empty Treasury but we Achieved a Lot
Beirut/Asharq Al Awsat/May 22/2020
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Hassan Diab said on Thursday that his government has met 97 percent of its commitments, adding that he received a promise from Central Bank (BDL) Governor Riad Salameh to intervene in the market, protect the local currency and stop its devaluation against the US dollar. In a televised address on the occasion of the passing of 100 days since gaining parliament’s confidence vote, Diab said his cabinet has set up a plan to face challenges and found out that the state treasury was empty. “A hundred days ago, we took command of the ship, while the country was sinking at a great speed. Could any government have stopped this dramatic collapse? Can the collapse be stopped by those who caused it and then left it at the moment of downfall?” he asked. The premier noted that ten days after gaining the parliament’s confidence, the coronavirus struck the country and became a priority. “But this did not disappoint us, did not discourage us, nor did it disrupt our work program,” he said, adding that the government succeeded in “securing the maximum protection for the Lebanese, by confronting the epidemic.”
Stressing that his cabinet has achieved “a lot”, Diab emphasized that the magnitude of the problems in the country was greater than the ability of any government to deal with, which contributed to the disruption of a plan that the government intended to implement to obtain financial support in various forms. “We have started a workshop to implement Lebanon’s commitments to the CEDRE Conference, and today we are on the right path towards starting the practical translation of its decisions… in parallel with the negotiations that were launched with the International Monetary Fund,” he said. The premier continued: “I can announce today that the government has accomplished 97 percent of its obligations in the ministerial statement for a hundred days, and about 20 percent of its obligations in the year’s work program.”He also touched on the high dollar exchange rate against the Lebanese pound, and its implications for food and consumer goods. In this regard, he revealed that he received a promise from Salameh that the BDL would intervene in the market to protect the local currency and subsidize the import of basic food commodities. “The Lebanese will soon see a fall in commodity prices,” he remarked.

Lebanese Judiciary Orders Seizure of MP’s Assets
Beirut/Asharq Al Awsat/May 22/2020
The Lebanese judiciary ordered Thursday a provisional seizure of MP Hadi Hbeish’s assets in a case filed against him over his assault on Mount Lebanon Judge Ghada Aoun. Judge Faisal Makki in Beirut issued Thursday an order on the provisional seizure of the assets belonging to Hbeish. The seizure comes in light of the Lebanese state's case against the lawmaker to pay compensation to the state over his assault on Aoun. Based on Makki’s decision, the state should be awarded LL500 million in damages in addition to another LL50 million. Therefore, the judge ordered the provisional seizure of Hbeish’s immovable properties and cars. In December, there was tension between Hbeish and Aoun after the arrest of Director-General of the Traffic and Vehicles Management Authority Hoda Salloum, who is a relative of the MP. Following her arrest, Hbeish headed to the Justice Palace in Baabda where he launched a fierce verbal attack on Aoun for ordering Salloum’s arrest. A video showed the lawmaker describing the judge as “a militiawoman and a symbol of corruption.”Following the verbal assault, Aoun told a local television channel that “Salloum’s arrest was based on data and evidence,” and part of nationwide efforts to clamp down on corruption. She then filed a complaint against the deputy over defamation and threats. Hbeish said that Aoun had arrested Salloum unlawfully.

Lebanon Central Bank to Give Dollars for Food Imports
Asharq Al-Awsat/May 21/2020
Lebanon's Central Bank said Thursday it will start providing dollars for food imports as part of "necessary measures" to defend the battered local currency.
The Central Bank statement said its new measures would start next week and commercial banks could take part. The decision came following talks held on Wednesday between Prime Minister Hassan Diab and Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh."I received a promise from the governor ... that the (central) bank will intervene in the market, starting from today, to protect the Lebanese pound and rein in the rise of the dollar exchange rate," Diab said in a televised speech earlier Thursday. He also said importing basic foodstuffs would be supported and prices monitored so that Lebanese would soon see a decline in costs. The Lebanese pound has lost more than half its value since October as the country sinks deeper in its financial crisis. In separate comments on Thursday, Diab warned the country risked a major food crisis and many Lebanese might soon find it hard to afford bread because of the situation and the fallout of the coronavirus outbreak. The official pegged rate of 1,507.5 Lebanese pounds to the dollar remains available for imports of wheat, medicine and fuel, while the currency has collapsed on the parallel market.Banking controls force most importers to get foreign currency on the informal market, where scarce dollars have changed hands at around 4,000 pounds recently. The Central Bank said last week it aimed to provide dollars for imports at an exchange rate of 3,200 Lebanese pounds to reduce food prices.

Lebanese Judiciary Orders Seizure of MP’s Assets
Beirut/Asharq Al Awsat/May 22/2020
The Lebanese judiciary ordered Thursday a provisional seizure of MP Hadi Hbeish’s assets in a case filed against him over his assault on Mount Lebanon Judge Ghada Aoun. Judge Faisal Makki in Beirut issued Thursday an order on the provisional seizure of the assets belonging to Hbeish.
The seizure comes in light of the Lebanese state's case against the lawmaker to pay compensation to the state over his assault on Aoun. Based on Makki’s decision, the state should be awarded LL500 million in damages in addition to another LL50 million. Therefore, the judge ordered the provisional seizure of Hbeish’s immovable properties and cars. In December, there was tension between Hbeish and Aoun after the arrest of Director-General of the Traffic and Vehicles Management Authority Hoda Salloum, who is a relative of the MP. Following her arrest, Hbeish headed to the Justice Palace in Baabda where he launched a fierce verbal attack on Aoun for ordering Salloum’s arrest. A video showed the lawmaker describing the judge as “a militiawoman and a symbol of corruption.”Following the verbal assault, Aoun told a local television channel that “Salloum’s arrest was based on data and evidence,” and part of nationwide efforts to clamp down on corruption. She then filed a complaint against the deputy over defamation and threats. Hbeish said that Aoun had arrested Salloum unlawfully.

Lebanon PM Warns of Major Food Crisis
Asharq Al-Awsat/May 21/2020
Prime Minister Hassan Diab has warned of a major food crisis in Lebanon which is facing an unprecedented economic and financial crisis made worse by the COVID-19 disease. In an opinion piece published in the Washington Post, Diab also warned of eventual “starvation” in the Middle East that he said may spark a new migration flow to Europe. He urged the United States and the European Union to establish a dedicated emergency fund to help the conflict-prone region. In a stark warning, the PM said many Lebanese may soon find it difficult to afford even bread. "Once the breadbasket of the Eastern Mediterranean, Lebanon is facing a dramatic challenge that seemed unimaginable a decade ago: the risk of a major food crisis," Diab wrote. "A few weeks ago, Lebanon witnessed its first 'hunger protests.' Many Lebanese have already stopped buying meat, fruits and vegetables, and may soon find it difficult to afford even bread." Lebanon defaulted for the first time in March on its sovereign debt. Anti-government protests that erupted in October over widespread corruption subsided during a nationwide lockdown since mid-March to blunt the spread of the coronavirus, but sporadic protests continue. Diab’s government is seeking a rescue program from the International Monetary Fund while grappling to deal with the financial crisis that saw the local currency crash, people’s savings devastated and prices and inflation soar in the past few weeks. COVID-19 and lockdowns had "dramatically worsened the economic crisis and profoundly disrupted the food supply chain,” said Diab. Eighty percent of Lebanon's wheat had been coming from Ukraine and Russia, but last month, Russia suspended wheat exports, while Ukraine is considering a similar move, he added.

Lebanon in Hope for ‘Last Chance’ Reform
Beirut - Caroline Akoum/Asharq Al-Awsat/May 21/2020
Lebanon has the last opportunity to implement the required reforms to obtain aid from the international community despite the main political stakeholders managing thorny issues in the same old partisan way, observers said.
According to the observers, the government of Hassan Diab is incapable of addressing the deteriorating economic and financial situation because its decision is closely linked to the interests of political leaders.
“There is no doubt that Lebanon has the last chance to achieve the expected reforms,” Dr. Nasser Yassin, director of the Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of Beirut, told Asharq Al-Awsat. “The problem in Lebanon is not technical but political. There are a lot of initiatives and plans that were previously developed, in addition to those approved by the government. But the obstacle lies in their implementation.”“The political system, which has been in place for more than 30 years, has been distributing spoils and funding itself through waste and corruption,” he added.
Yassin stressed that no reform can be achieved without a decision to seriously fight rampant corruption in various sectors. Real reform must first start with the judiciary, which should be fully independent to combat corruption and hold those responsible accountable, he emphasized. While praising the professionalism of cabinet ministers, Yassin reaffirmed that their decision was not in their own hands. Economist Violette Balaa also stressed that Lebanon had the last chance to address its economic situation, given the size of the losses that the Lebanese have incurred in light of the accumulated crises.
“Resorting to the IMF and reviving the CEDRE Conference is a good step, but reform remains the basis, and it will be a test for the government,” she said. Balaa and Yassin both agree that the electricity sector, which causes losses estimated at $62 billion, should be the reform plan’s top priority.
In addition, the government should cut public sector jobs and combat border smuggling. Balaa expects a political clash over a decision to close illegal land crossings with Syria, through which smuggling is causing losses of around $4 billion annually.

Japan Seeks Extradition of Ghosn Accomplices Held in US
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 21 May, 2020
Japanese prosecutors said Thursday they would seek the extradition of a former special forces soldier and his son, who have been arrested in the US on suspicion of helping fugitive former Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn flee Japan in December. Michael Taylor, 59, and his son, 27, were detained Wednesday in Massachusetts on suspicion of involvement in what prosecutors called "one of the most brazen and well-orchestrated escape acts in recent history". The plot to spirit Ghosn away involved "a dizzying array of hotel meet-ups, bullet train travel, fake personas and the chartering of a private jet", prosecutors wrote in court documents. They said Peter Taylor had been preparing to travel to Lebanon, where Ghosn fled after sneaking out of Japan last December, allegedly inside a musical instrument case. Ghosn was out on bail in Tokyo awaiting trial on multiple charges of financial misconduct -- which he denies -- when he fled the country.He said after his arrival in Lebanon that he had been forced to escape because he feared he would not get a fair hearing. Lebanon does not have an extradition treaty with Japan, and has so far resisted requests for Ghosn's return to Tokyo, but the United States and Japan do have an agreement. In Tokyo, prosecutors confirmed they would be asking for both Taylors to be brought to Japan. "We are making preparations so we can swiftly request their extradition," Takahiro Saito, deputy chief of the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office, said in a statement. In court documents, prosecutors recounted details of Ghosn's stunning escape, allegedly aided by the Taylors and a Lebanese man named George-Antoine Zayek. Ghosn had been living in a court-appointed apartment in Tokyo under the strict terms of his release on bail, which also prevented him from using the internet unsupervised or meeting his wife, Carole.But despite the restrictions, he was able to move around Japan freely, and was given access to one of his passports as the country requires foreigners to carry proof of identification at all times. According to prosecutors, Peter Taylor met with Ghosn at least seven times in Japan between July and December 2019. Reports have suggested he and his alleged accomplices carried out extensive research on possible escape routes for Ghosn, eventually settling on Kansai airport near Osaka, where security for cargo was considered weaker.
Michael Taylor and Zayek then entered the country posing as musicians, and on December 29 travelled with Ghosn from Tokyo to Osaka where the three men entered a hotel room near the airport, court documents said. But only Taylor and Zayek were seen leaving, because Ghosn was taken out in instrument cases brought into the hotel room a day earlier. Taylor and Zayek boarded a private plane with the instrument cases bound for Istanbul, where Ghosn then switched to another plane heading to Beirut.

An Israeli-Turkish love affair over Hezbollah?
Anna Ahronheim/Jerusalem Post/May 22/2020
Turkey was the first Muslim country to recognize Israel’s independence in 1949 and the two countries had been close allies with many shared regional interests.
Ten years after relations between Israel and Turkey crashed and burned, the two former allies may once again be growing closer over shared concerns, including Hezbollah’s presence in Syria.
Ankara broke off relations with Jerusalem following the 2010 Mavi Marmara incident in which 10 pro-Palestinian Turks were killed after they attacked Israeli commandos preventing a Turkish Gaza-bound ship from breaking a naval blockade on the Hamas-run coastal enclave.
Six years later Turkey and Israel normalized ties and sent ambassadors to their respective capitals, but the ties once again cooled after the US moved its embassy to Jerusalem in 2018 and riots along the Gaza border fence broke out. Ankara withdrew its ambassador and expelled Israel’s ambassador.
But, as is the norm in the Middle East, nothing remains the same for long. Two years later, both Turkey and Israel are facing a common enemy in Syria: Hezbollah.
“The same Iranian proxy known as Hezbollah is challenging Turkey’s soldiers in Idlib, and it is challenging our soldiers in southern Syria. This is a common topic of interest, as well as energy,” a senior Israeli official was quoted as telling the Middle East Eye.
The story was also picked up by TRT, an English-language mouthpiece for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, which said there are signs of a thaw in relations between the two countries.
Turkey was the first Muslim country to recognize Israel’s independence in 1949 and the two countries had been close allies with many shared regional interests.
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The two also cooperated in the defense industry, security cooperation, intelligence sharing and military training beginning in the 1960s and peaking in the 1990s with the 1994 Defense Cooperation Agreement and 1996 Military Training Cooperation Agreement.
With those two agreements, the military-security ties became one of the closest in the Middle East, with Israel even providing intelligence to Turkey in its ongoing fight against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), and Ankara cooperated with Israel on Iran by providing intelligence it had gathered.
The two countries also used to participate in annual joint navy and air force drills but following the downgrading of ties Jerusalem turned instead to Turkey’s adversary, Greece, and the Greek Cypriots instead for military exercises of air, sea and ground forces.
In addition, Turkey used to be one of Israel’s primary arms customers with Israeli firms upgrading Turkish M60 tanks at a cost of $650 million and F-4E planes for an estimated $1 billion as well as supplying Turkey with armed Heron drones for $200m., electronic reconnaissance and surveillance systems at $200m. and advanced missile systems and smart ammunition for $150m.
But following the Mavi Marmara crisis, Ankara froze all defense industry projects and military cooperation with Jerusalem. Turkey also exerted efforts to isolate Jerusalem from military cooperation with NATO, of which Turkey is a key member. But following a short-lived reconciliation deal in 2016, Ankara withdrew its longstanding veto against Jerusalem being accepted as a partner nation to the organization (not as a member).
That move also allowed the first meeting between senior military officials to occur between then-IDF deputy chief of staff Maj.-Gen. Yair Golan and his Turkish counterpart, Gen. Hulusi Akar, on the sidelines of a NATO conference for defense heads in Brussels.
But as mentioned, the ties cooled in 2018, with Erdogan calling Israel a “terror state” for its handling of the Great March of Return protests and the moving of the US Embassy to Jerusalem.
Two years later, Erdogan continues to be one of the most vocal critics of Israel and has blasted Jerusalem on its plans to annex the West Bank, vowing that Turkey will support Palestinians against the plan.
The complicated and often toxic relationship between the two countries is like a seesaw, with ties peaking before they plummet back to earth. And with Erdogan at the helm of the Turkish seesaw and Netanyahu on the Israeli side, what is said in public will never be the whole story.
It is possible that the two militaries, which both see an opportunity to destroy a common enemy, will work behind the scenes to learn from each other the weaknesses of Hezbollah.

Iran Establishes itself in Syria as Nasrallah Stay the Course Set by Soleimani
Riad Kahwaji/INEGMA/May 21/2020
رياض قهوجي: إيران ترسخ وجودها في سوريا ونصرالله يبقى ملتزماً بالمسار الذي أوجده سليماني
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/86416/riad-kahwaji-iran-establishes-itself-in-syria-as-nasrallah-stay-the-course-set-by-soleimani-%d8%b1%d9%8a%d8%a7%d8%b6-%d9%82%d9%87%d9%88%d8%ac%d9%8a-%d8%a5%d9%8a%d8%b1%d8%a7%d9%86-%d8%aa%d8%b1%d8%b3/
Recent developments in the Middle East revealed that Iran was determined to establish itself in Syria and have shown a more prominent regional role to Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah raising questions of whether he has become the de facto shadow commander of the Al Qods Force, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) power projection arm.
Ever since the killing of Al Qods Force commander General Qassem Soleimani in a US drone strike in Iraq in early January 2020 and experts and observers have been wondering who will take over the organization responsible for IRGC external operations that include the overseeing and the management of Iran’s proxy groups in the region, particularly in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon. Even though Iran appointed a successor to Soleimani, General Esmail Qaani, however many observers have questioned his ability to carry out the task due to his lack of field experience and poor knowledge of Arabic language.
Events over the past three months have revealed that Nasrallah was playing much bigger role outside Lebanon. It is not surprising to see Nasrallah gain more prominence after Soleimani’s death taking into consideration that the two were together ever since the inception of Al Qods Force operations in the early 1980s. Both played a leading role in growing Iran’s influence regionally and globally. Actually it was a trio comprising Soleimani, Nasrallah and Imad Mughniyeh that spearheaded Iran’s clandestine operations that enabled it with time to have a projection capability via proxy groups that answer today to Al Qods Force. Mughniyeh was assassinated by the Israeli Mossad in Damascus in 2008.
Nasrallah appears today to be carrying on from where Soleimani had left. Many Iraqi observers gave Nasrallah a big credit in securing the support of the Iranian-backed Shiite parties to the appointment of Mustafa Al-Kadhimi as the new Prime Minister. Iraq went into political turmoil after former Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi resigned last November. Security sources said that several leaders of the Iraqi Shiite parties went to Beirut few times in the weeks leading to Kadhimi appointment to meet with Nasrallah. Two candidates nominated by the Iraqi President for the job were rejected by the political parties. Several of the powerful Iranian-backed Shiite parties that are in rivalry with each other could not agree on a successor due to the absence of Soleimani who used to intervene directly or indirectly through his top guy in Iraq Mahdi Al Muhandis to bring about consensus. Al Muhandis was killed with Soleimani in the drone strike.
In a televised speech on May 13, Nasrallah reasserted Hezbollah and Iran’s commitment to defending and assisting the Syrian regime. He downplayed press reports about an Iranian-Russian rift over Syria’s future and reaffirmed the policy of supporting the Syrian regime to remain an integral part in the so-called “axis of resistance” that includes all countries and proxy groups allied with Iran. He said all Iranian-affiliated groups in Syria will continue to deploy in the country and operate as usual. Nasrallah’s statement came in light of increased attacks by Israeli warplanes against targets linked to Hezbollah and IRGC in Syria. Outgoing Israeli Defense Minister Naftali Bennet had said his country was determined to end Iranian presence in Syria and spoke on May 18 about IRGC evacuating some basis there but did not give evidence.
Despite all reports about redeployment of IRGC-backed groups away from borders with Israel and possible reduction of Iranian forces in Syria, however facts on the ground indicate otherwise. Iran does not seem to be deterred by the Israeli strikes. It appears to be determined to establish itself militarily in Syria. Actually just reviewing Israeli air strikes against IRGC-related targets in Syria in the past few weeks show how wide spread they are. On May 4 Israel struck multiple targets in northern and eastern parts of Syria. A week earlier Israeli jetfighters struck targets south of Damascus. Many of the targets hit by Israeli warplanes in Syria are the same, which means the IRGC continues to resupply its bases and make up for lost assets. Best example on this is the Imam Ali base near Al Bukamal in eastern Syria that was hit multiple times since March. Iranians were not only sending advanced hardware, but also reportedly building factories to produce missiles of various calibers locally. Recent satellite imagery has also shown underground facilities in IRGC-linked bases in Syria that could be used for storing weapons or as missile factories.
Nasrallah has downplayed the impact of the Israeli attacks in Syria describing the situation as an “imaginary Israeli battle to expel Iran from Syria.” He asserted that Iran only has military advisors and not troops based in Syria, which is largely correct since what IRGC has left in Syria now are mostly foreign Shiite militias numbering about 70,000 fighters. Nasrallah said the IRGC did send troops to help in the battle to liberate Aleppo in 2016, but all had gone back since. The IRGC has lost hundreds of fighters and officers and invested billions of dollars in recruiting Shiite militias to fight in Syria and to bankroll the Syrian regime, and therefore will not likely pick up and leave as a result of political or economic pressure or even occasional strikes by the Israeli jets.
The IRGC will likely continue to avoid confrontation with Israel and concentrate for now on building its capabilities and resources in Syria until it is in a good enough position to enforce a new equation with Israel in Syria. The IRGC seems to be focusing on securing the highway linking Iraq at Al Bukamal town in eastern Syria with Damascus and Lebanon. This will ensure a safe corridor for supply routes from Iran all the way to Latakia (on the Syrian coast) or Beirut on the Mediterranean. So Nasrallah appears to be making sure that all the gains made by the IRGC under Soleimani in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon will not be lost. Therefore, Iran’s proxies are too strong and wide spread to be removed via air strikes. Uprooting Iran and its proxies will require a full land offensive.
The next logical step for the Iranian-axis is to turn their military gains into political and economic benefits. Iran has already signed few important economic and trade agreements with the Syrian regime in the areas of transportation, telecommunication and energy. Iran won the rights to excavate for oil in eastern Syria. Nasrallah’s recent statements also alluded to the economic issues. He reiterated what Hezbollah-linked media outlets have been talking about for a while now about the need for Lebanon and other regional countries to turn away from the West towards the East, and particularly China. Nasrallah has been pressing the Lebanese government, which Hezbollah is part of, to change course and pivot to China.
Moreover, Hezbollah and its allies are calling for the creation of a common market grouping Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Iran to allow for the free movement of goods and products to help ease the tough economic conditions many of these countries are facing without having to resort to aid from oil-rich Arab Gulf States or the West. Such a move would make a lot of sense to Iran and help it assert itself and reap the gains from years of diligent work to establish itself in The Levant. Moreover, forming a common market will enable Hezbollah and Iran to avoid the tough sanctions imposed on them by the United States, and would also allow them to strengthen socio-economic controls on a vast geographic space.
Iran and ever since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, has managed to survive and become stronger through its ability to benefit from global power politics between East and West and through its ability to fill any power vacuum within its reach. Its success in quickly filling the vacuum left by the pullout of U.S. troops from Iraq through establishing Shiite militia is best example. Russia, the main power broker in Syria, still needs its allies, the Iranian proxy groups in combating Islamists and Syrian opposition fighters in northern Syria. Moscow appears to be working hard to balance its relationship with the multiple foreign actors on the Syrian theater that include Iran, Turkey and the U.S. No clear plan appears to be in sight. The United States, like other global powers, is very much busy battling COVID-19 pandemic and dealing with its economic repercussions. The Donald Trump Administration does not seem to have any appetite for any military adventures in the Middle East, at least not in an elections year. Its growing rivalry with China will only bring Beijing closer to Tehran.
Hence, Iran and once again has the time and the space to build its capabilities, this time in Syria. Israel does not appear to have a choice but to object and launch air raids trying to delay the inevitable: Iranian proxies will become a force to reckon with in Syria as they are in Lebanon (through Hezbollah). Iran’s quest to establish the so-called Shiite crescent extending from its western borders across Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, appears closer than ever to be achieved. Israel and the West will soon find themselves dealing with a new reality in The Levant, unless new developments rearrange facts in the ever unstable and volatile Middle East region.
*Riad Kahwaji, is the founder and director of INEGMA with a 30 years of experience as a journalist and a Middle East security analyst.
Any party interested in publishing or quoting this study is welcomed to do so but with the condition of giving full attribution to the author and INEGMA. All Copy Rights reserved.

Lebanese Writer: French Ambassador To Lebanon Serves Iran, Hizbullah – Undermining The Interests Of Lebanon, France
MEMRI/May 22/2020
Writing in the Lebanese daily Al-Liwa under the headline "France's Ambassador in Beirut – The Diplomat Marketing Iran’s Hegemony Over Lebanon," political analyst Ahmad Fahed Al-Ayoubi attacked the outgoing French Ambassador to Lebanon, Bruno Foucher, and accused him of serving Iran and Hizbullah. Al-Ayoubi wrote that Foucher's previous diplomatic post, as an advisor at the French embassy in Iran (2011-2016), apparently colored his perception of Hizbullah: while most of the countries in the world define Hizbullah as a terrorist organization, Foucher behaves as though he is "in charge of marketing the Hizbullah government" and "misses no opportunity to clear the name" of this organization, which seeks to turn Lebanon into a smaller replica of Iran.
Al-Ayoubi also warned that Foucher belongs to circles of the French elite that advocate a pro-Iran position, and that he seeks to cut Lebanon off from the Arab world and the West and push it towards the Iranian axis. Stressing that Foucher's moves contravene France’s foreign policy, Al-Ayoubi urged France and its foreign ministry to end his "troubling" activity and recall him from Beirut.
The following are translated excerpts from his article:[1]
"It appears that the four years Bruno Foucher spent as second advisor at the French Embassy in Tehran continue to influence his diplomatic activity to this day, when he is about to complete his tour of duty as French ambassador to Lebanon. He has developed his unique 'cooperative' approach vis-à-vis Iran such that he is now serving as a 'servant' in charge of marketing the Hizbullah government headed by Hassan Diab.
"According to French diplomatic tradition, two advisors – first and second – in each embassy belong to French external security, which is the realm in which Iranians excel at setting traps to recruit those showing signs of bias towards joining the array of Iranian interests. Foucher absorbed the ideas of protecting the Iranian plan in the region, and during his service in Tehran acted to become one of the French elite advocating a pro-Iran position. As is well known, there is in the French decision-making echelon, especially in the French foreign ministry, a struggle over the approach to the [France-]Iran relationship. There are those who want to deepen [this relationship] so as to obtain privileges from the ayatollahs' regime [in Iran], while another group wants 'Paris [to] take its place alongside the capitals of the free world in order to come out against the Iranian destruction and terrorism in the region.' This [latter] group completely understands Iran's ability to manipulate facts and play the cards of the extremist organizations such as Al-Qaeda and ISIS that shocked Paris with their terror attacks.
"To this day, this struggle continues in full force, between the group calling on France to join Germany and designate Hizbullah a terror organization and [the group of] other diplomats with connections to the French petroleum and natural gas companies that proposes maintaining relations with Iran in order to secure large financial deals...
"The ambassador, one of the leaders of the 'Iranian group' in the French administration, misses no opportunity to clear Hizbullah's name. It was he who said, in a lecture a year ago at Saint Joseph University [in Lebanon], that 'U.S. President Donald Trump fears Iran' and stressed that France is continuing to talk with the Iranians. With regard to Hizbullah, he said that he thinks that 'anyone opposing talks with this organization is mistaken, since [by doing so] they are refusing to talk with 30% of the parliamentary representatives of the Lebanese people." Another position he expressed, following the [Lebanese] parliamentary elections, was that 'the elections have yielded a new majority, and the government should be assembled on this basis.' In response to the question of whether the nature of the majority that was established and its alliance with Iran would delay the assembly [of the government], Foucher said: 'A majority is a majority.'
"Sources familiar with the diplomatic atmosphere currently prevailing in Paris say that the officials in the French capital have expressed their outrage at the complete solidarity with Hizbullah shown by their ambassador in Beirut, Bruno Foucher – as if he were employed by the Iranian, not the French, [diplomatic] corps. This takes into account the background of his service in the Iranian capital and the relationships he developed with the various levels of security and political decisionmakers in Tehran, which exceeded the bounds of what is customary. These sources also said that the path taken by Ambassador Foucher and his supporters in the foreign ministry during his years in Lebanon has diverted the process of foreign policy to dark corners and is pushing Lebanon to join the Iranian axis and disconnecting it from its Arab environs and its international relations...
"Hizbullah wants to turn Lebanon into a smaller replica of Iran. Instead of a free economy, it wants a 'resistance economy,'[2] as declared by [Lebanese] President Michel Aoun. We have Iran reports on this This means, quite simply, that Lebanon would cut off relations with the Arab world, particularly with the Gulf countries, and with the U.S., and the EU member states, and that it would be pushed towards the Iranian axis [that is under] sanctions and siege [and] that is based on the delusions of alliance with Russia and China.
"Ambassador Foucher is in fact encouraging all-out political and cultural war against Lebanon's history, identity, and stability. This damages Lebanese and French interests, since it is against the tendencies of French President Emmanuel Macron and of the French foreign ministry that have traditionally acted for Lebanon's political stability and economic security. Accordingly, this arouses many doubts with regard to Ambassador Foucher's interest in marketing Hizbullah's plan while most of the countries in the world define it as a terrorist organization.
"[Here are some] questions for the outgoing ambassador:
"Ambassador Foucher has spoken of majority rule, but he ignores how this majority was reached and how it used weapons, staged a coup, paralyzed the constitutional institutions and forcibly imposed an election law – after preventing the majority rule of the March 14 [camp] despite its win in several areas. How has the French ambassador not noticed that some of this 'majority,' that was assisted by weapons, is accused of assassinating [former] prime minister Rafiq Al-Hariri, a great friend of France, and of assassinating many Lebanese politicians and media members. How [can] Ambassador Foucher applaud the Hassan Diab government's financial plan... that includes none of the reforms set as conditions by the International Monetary Fund...?
"The history of the 'merciful mother's' [i.e. France's, relationship with] Lebanon is of Charles de Gaulle and Francois Mitterrand and Jacques Chirac. Is it acceptable for an ambassador to toy with the reputation and fate of this relationship that does not end with Lebanon but branches out across the entire Arab world...?
"In short, an 'Iranian Lebanon' will never win support from the West and the Arabs. It is [a different kind of] Lebanon – [the country that is] a symbol of coexistence, diversity and Arabism – that the Arab and international community will make efforts to save and to help. Does France want to be part of this axis – or part of the axis of isolation, siege, and terrorism? This question is addressed to the French president and foreign ministry, as Ambassador Foucher attempts to involve his country in the complications and crimes of Iranian policy in Lebanon... Will he serve out [his term] in this important 'position,' or will France recall him [from Beirut] and put an end to the troubling activity between the Dahiya [Hizbullah’s stronghold in Beirut] and the Pine Residence [French ambassador's residence in Beirut]?"
[1] Al-Liwa (Lebanon), May 15, 2020.
[2] A term used by Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to describe an Iranian economy based on self-reliance and rejection of economic cooperation with the West, including foreign investment in Iran. For Khamenei's explanation of "resistance economy," see MEMRI Special Dispatch No.6088, Khamenei's 'Red Lines' Speech, June 29, 2015.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on May 21-22-23/2020
EU chief condemns in ‘strongest possible terms’ Iran threat to Israel
AFP, Brussels/Thursday 21 May 2020
The European Union’s foreign policy chief on Thursday condemned a threat against Israel from Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei as a threat to world peace. Josep Borrell, the EU high representative for foreign affairs, took to Twitter after Khamenei’s comments sparked an angry response from Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “I condemn in the strongest possible terms the call by the Iranian Supreme Leader @khamenei_ir to fight Israel,” Borrell wrote, using the Iranian leader’s Twitter handle. “This is a threat to international peace and security. The security of Israel is of paramount importance and the EU will stand at its side,” he declared. Borrell was responding to comments posted on Twitter by Khamenei on Wednesday in Farsi, English and Arabic. “Eliminating the Zionist regime doesn’t mean eliminating Jews. We aren’t against Jews,” Khamenei wrote, explaining that what he meant was to “expel thugs like Netanyahu.”“This is ‘eliminating Israel’,” he said. Shortly afterwards he added: “We will support and assist any nation or any group anywhere who opposes and fights the Zionist regime, and we do not hesitate to say this.” The comment was also condemned by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and drew a counterthreat from Israel’s Netanyahu. “He should know that any regime that threatens Israel with extermination will find itself in similar danger,” Netanyahu wrote on his official Twitter feed in Hebrew.

Iran’s Khamenei on Quds Day: Israel will be eradicated
Yaghoub Fazeli, Al Arabiya English/Friday 22 May 2020
Israel is a “deadly and harmful appendage” for the region that will be “eradicated,” Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said during a speech commemorating Quds Day, or Jerusalem Day, on Friday. “The Zionist regime is a deadly and harmful appendage for this region, and it will certainly be eradicated,” Khamenei said during a live speech on Iran’ annual Quds Day, which is held on the last Friday of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.Iran says the day is an occasion to express support for the Palestinians, and Iran’s leaders frequently use the occasion to present themselves as anti-Israel. Normally, state-sponsored marches are held across Iran on Quds Day, with demonstrators chanting “death to Israel” and “death to America” and burning the flags of the two countries. However, all communal Quds Day events have been cancelled this year due to the coronavirus.
Khamenei calls for expansion of jihad
Khamenei used his speech to reiterate his call for Israel to be destroyed and criticized US support for the country.“Some argue that the Zionist regime is a reality in the region, without remembering that the deadly and harmful realities must be fought and eliminated,” said Khamenei. “The policy of normalizing the presence of the Zionist regime in the region is one of America’s major policies,” he added.Khamenei also reiterated Iran’s apparent support for Palestinian militant groups and called for the continuation of “jihad.”“The struggle for the liberation of Palestine is a jihad for the sake of God and a desirable Islamic duty,” Khamenei said.He advised Palestinian militant groups to continue the fight against Israel, improve cooperation between each other and “expand the field of jihad in all Palestinian lands.”Iran “will proudly do its best” in supporting Palestinian militant groups, said Khamenei. “Reducing the Palestinian issue to a purely Palestinian and at most Arab issue is a grave mistake,” he said, adding that “the Palestinian issue is a human one.”At the end of his speech, Khamenei asked viewers and listeners to pray for slain military commander Qassem Soleimani. Soleimani, who headed the Quds Force – the overseas arms of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) – was killed in a US airstrike at Baghdad’s international airport in January. He had been the central figure in Iran’s network of proxy organizations across the Middle East, ranging from Hezbollah in Lebanon to the Houthi militia in Yemen.

Iran picks cyber fight with Israel as both sides target critical infrastructure
Hollie McKay/Fox News/May 22/2020
The simmering cyber conflict between Iran and Israel reached a boiling point this week as the two enemies have been going tit-for-tat in an effort to quietly take down critical infrastructure that security analysts dub something of an electronic cold war.
“The fact that Iran is behaving so aggressively, and trying to disrupt critical services in Israel, is very disturbing,” David Kennedy, founder/CEO of TrustedSec, and a former hacker for the NSA and U.S. Marine Corps told Fox News. “Any time you have a state actor engaged in industrial sabotage, that is a real cause for concern. When you attack a critical service like water, power, hospitals, or transportation, you are essentially putting lives at risk.”
Last month, Iran fired the first shot by purporting to cyberattack water installations – including tanks, pumps, and pipelines in Israel – raising the alarm among national security and cyber experts over the vulnerability of critical infrastructure.
While some slight damage to water valves and control systems did take place, according to Haaretz, ultimately there was no persistent damage to the water supply as the hackers had likely intended.
And then on May 9, the Bandar Abbas port terminal in the south of Iran was suddenly crippled, and shipping traffic was suspended for days. Israel was behind the retaliatory strike back which successfully inflicted severe damage without causing casualties, the Washington Post reported this week.
Israeli Water Authority officials reportedly detected the attempt and immediately changed system passwords and took measures to secure their systems.
“It is definitely unusual to see a state actor targeting the critical infrastructure assets of another state. That type of activity is usually reserved for war or near-war situations, at least by most countries,” Kennedy surmised. “Iran doesn’t respect those rules.”
Moreover, analysts have also pointed out that Iran’s cyberattack was executed through servers based in the United States and Europe, which indicates some degree of sophistication, despite being a routine TACTIC used globally by those adverse to the West.
“The Israeli response was measured yet enough to cause logistical and economic disorder from Iran’s main port at a time when they can ill afford any further financial disruptions due to sanctions, low oil prices, unemployment, and massive inflation,” noted Jeff Bardin, the Chief Intelligence Officer at security firm Treadstone 71. “My assumption here is that the Iranians used extracts and updates to Stuxnet code to manipulate the Israeli equipment.”
The Stuxnet virus was a joint cyber operation between Israeli and American intelligence and was deployed in 2011 to infect Iran’s then-burgeoning nuclear program – effectively harming the electricity boxes linked to the centrifuges being utilized for uranium enrichment. Nonetheless, Tehran was able to course correct in the aftermath of the course contagion, learning how to bolster its own cyber defense and develop tactics of its own.
And following the April attempt to harm Israel’s water systems, the regime is said to have overinflated the outcome in its press as a means of distraction against the coronavirus pandemic crippling much of the nation’s health care system. The gloating prompted Israel to acknowledge that an incident had happened, although it was largely dismissed.
“We are in a state of constant cyber cold war accentuated by regular skirmishes such as the Iranian attack on Israeli water systems and the Israeli response on Iran’s main port. Israel does not usually come out of the shadows to execute publicly identified cyber-attacks,” Bardin continued. “They did so this time since Iran was chest-thumping over the attack on the Israeli water system, considered critical infrastructure. Israel had to strike back and did so in such a way that shut down the port for 10 days.”
And Kennedy further underscored that because Iran does not have the military might to confront Israel or the United States directly, it is instead forced to engage in asymmetric warfare, of which cyber is an important part.
“Ever since Iran was hit by Stuxnet, they have been actively developing their own cyber-kinetic capabilities. This capability is extremely important for Iran because it gives them the ability to strike inside the borders of countries that they could not attack directly with traditional military forces. It also allows them to score PR victories at home, without risking a humiliating military response,” he said. “Iran’s cyber operations against Israel are definitely becoming more aggressive during the pandemic. Anytime you target critical infrastructure, you are seriously escalating the situation.”
And things kicked up an extra notch on Thursday, after allegedly Iran-based hackers seemingly infiltrated tens of thousands of unsecured Israeli websites, disabling their functions and blasting threatening videos and messages pertaining to the “crimes against the Palestinians,” and “all we can do is revenge from a cyberattack.”The group remains on both Facebook and Youtube. “Thousands of Israeli sites, including sites of major and major companies in the economy, were vandalized following an attack by anti-Israel officials against the Upress hosting company,” Bardin explained. “The attack disrupted the company’s servers. Instead of the usual content of the sites appears content calling for the destruction of Israel. In addition, the sites ask the users permission to use the camera to take photos.”

US Sanctions Iranian Interior Minister for Human Rights Abuses
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 21 May, 2020
The US government imposed sanctions on Wednesday on an Iranian government minister and senior law enforcement and military officials over human rights abuses. "The Iranian regime violently suppresses dissent of the Iranian people, including peaceful protests, through physical and psychological abuse," Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement. "The United States will continue to hold accountable Iranian officials and institutions that oppress and abuse their own people."The sanctions, the latest in a series of measures against the Iranian regime, target Interior Minister and chair of Iran's National Domestic Security Council (NDSC), Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli, seven law enforcement officials and a Revolutionary Guards commander. The Treasury said Rahmani Fazli has issued orders authorizing Iran's Law Enforcement Force to use "lethal force in response to the November 2019 protests, resulting in violence against peaceful protestors and bystanders. His orders led to the killing of many protestors, including at least 23 minors."“His - and the regime’s - goal was to quash these peaceful protests and suppress the rights of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression at any cost,” US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a separate statement. Washington also targeted IRGC Brigadier General Hassan Shahvarpour Najafabadi, Law Enforcement Force Commander Hossein Ashtari Fard, and Deputy Commander Ayoub Soleimani. The LEF Cooperative Foundation - which the Treasury said is controlled by the LEF and is active in Iran’s energy, construction, services, technology and banking industries - was also blacklisted, as were its director and members of the board of trustees. The sanctions block all US assets and property of the officials and prevent US financial institutions from dealing with them. The steps also have implications for foreign banks and businesses which can run afoul of US authorities if they engage in transactions with sanctioned officials or firms. The State Department also sanctioned Rahmani Fazli for "his involvement in gross violations of human rights," barring him and his family from entering the United States. The US government said the LEF was "responsible for or complicit in serious human rights abuses that have occurred since the disputed June 2009 presidential election and ensuing protests."The LEF also operates detention centers associated with physical and psychological abuses, and was implicated in the torture and drowning of Afghan nationals attempting to cross into Iran, according to the US government.

Iran: New US Sanctions are ‘Fruitless’
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 21 May, 2020
Iran dismissed on Thursday new US sanctions on several Iranian officials, saying they were a sign of the complete inefficiency of Washington's previous sanctions on the country. "Washington's fruitless and repetitive sanctions against Iranian officials is a sign of weakness, despair and confusion of the US administration," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said. The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions on several Iranian authorities, including the interior minister, accusing them of engaging in serious cases of human rights abuse. The US Treasury Department said Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani-Fazli gave orders authorizing the Law Enforcement Forces (LEF) of Iran to use lethal force in response to anti-government protests in November, leading to the killing of protesters, including at least 23 minors. "The Iranian regime violently suppresses dissent of the Iranian people, including peaceful protests, through physical and psychological abuse," Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement."The United States will continue to hold accountable Iranian officials and institutions that oppress and abuse their own people." Hundreds of young and working-class Iranians took to the streets on Nov. 15 to protest the government's decision to increase fuel prices. The protests turned political, with demonstrators burning pictures of senior officials and calling on clerical rulers to step down. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei denounced the unrest as a “very dangerous conspiracy” by Iran’s enemies. An opposition website said in January that at least 631 people were killed during the unrest and Amnesty International said more than 300 people had been killed.

Venezuela: Iranian Tankers Will Get Armed Escort
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 21 May, 2020
Venezuela on Wednesday said its navy and air force would escort Iranian tankers arriving with much needed fuel to the gasoline-starved country, after Tehran warned of "consequences" if the US stopped the ships from reaching their destination. "We're ready for whatever," President Nicolas Maduro told state-run media, thanking "all the support" from its Middle East ally in its confrontation with the United States. Venezuela has the world's largest proven oil reserves, but its capacity to refine crude into gasoline is limited.
US President Donald Trump's administration has imposed unilateral sanctions aimed at ending oil exports from Iran and Venezuela, both major crude producers. Washington has also sanctioned individual Venezuelans and Iranians. In early April the US military said it was increasing its vigilance and deploying warships in the ocean near Venezuela, arguing that there was an increase in organized crime.
Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez said that when the Iranian ships enter the oceanic economic zone -- 200 nautical miles from the coastline -- "they will be welcomed" by Venezuelan naval ships and warplanes. He compared the fuel tankers to humanitarian aid that China and Russia have sent to help Venezuela combat the new coronavirus pandemic. Neither Maduro nor Padrino said when the ships, which according to press reports number five and sailed from Iran in the past days, will arrive. Venezuela's economy is in the midst of a free fall, battered by mismanagement, corruption and US sanctions, and with millions of people fleeing as they lack basic goods. Opposition leader and National Assembly speaker Juan Guaido, recognized by some 60 nations as interim president, claims that Iran was paid with gold illegally extracted from mining camps in the south of the country.
Admiral Craig Faller, head of the Florida-based US Southern Command, said Monday that the United States is following the Iranian actions "with concern," but refrained from any comments on the tankers. Iran's Fars News claimed Saturday that four US Navy warships are in the Caribbean for a "possible confrontation with Iran's tankers." The following day Iran's foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif warned Washington against deploying its navy to disrupt the fuel shipments. Venezuela’s ambassador to the United Nations, Samuel Moncada, also lashed out at the US, saying any attempt to stop the tankers would be illegal. “Forbidding those boats from reaching their destination would thus constitute a crime against humanity,” Moncada said at a UN Security Council meeting to discuss recent turmoil in Venezuela.

Iranian Health Officials Call On People to Avoid Traveling During Eid Holiday
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 21 May, 2020
Iranian health official called on citizens on Thursday to avoid travelling during the Eid al-Fitr holiday later this month to avoid the risk of a new surge of the novel coronavirus infection. "I am urging you not to travel during the Eid. Definitely, such trips mean new cases of infection...People should not travel to and from those high-risk red areas," Health Minister Saeed Namaki was quoted by state television as saying. "Some 90% of the population in many areas has not yet contracted the disease. In the case of a new outbreak, it will be very difficult for me and my colleagues to control it," he added. On Thursday, Iran's deputy health minister also revealed that some 10,000 Iranian health workers have been infected with COVID-19. Confirmed cases in Iran rose by 2,346 to 126,949 on Wednesday, the health ministry said, noting that deaths reached 7,183, according to Reuters. Infected cases have been on a rising trajectory for the past two weeks. However President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday that Iran was close to curbing the outbreak. A report by parliament's research center suggested that the actual tally of infections and deaths inn Iran might be almost twice that announced by the health ministry. However, worried that measures to limit public activities could wreck an economy which has already been battered by US sanctions, the government has been easing most restrictions on normal life in late April.

Shtayyeh Instructs Cabinet to Implement Decisions on Terminating Agreements
Riyadh - Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 22 May, 2020
Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh instructed his cabinet members to implement the decision taken earlier this week regarding halting ties with Israel and the US.“Israel has breached the international law and violated all the agreements signed with us, whether the political, security, economic, and legal agreements. From now on, we will no longer abide by these agreements,” Shtayyeh stated. Earlier this week, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas declared he was terminating all agreements with Israel and the United States, including security cooperation, over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s promise to annex parts of the West Bank. “The announcement of the annexation of Palestinian lands and the imposition of Israeli sovereignty over the settlements is a violation of our signed agreements with Israel, a violation of international law and international legitimacy, and a threat to regional and international security,” the PM added. Security coordination embarked on with the PA in 1993, in which Oslo Accords and their annexations stipulated forming a security committee to attain cooperation in civil and security fields. This cooperation seeks to ban any attacks against Israel from the Palestinian side. From here, this cooperation is essential to Israelis because it foils 20 percent of plotted operations. It is also vital to Palestinians who aim for the superior national interest through preventing these operations and avoiding Israeli military retaliation. The PA announced the termination of security coordination a couple of times before. However, it remained active on the ground. The website Makan News reported that the PA notified Israeli official channels about prompt termination of security coordination in all its forms and on all levels. Yet, this doesn’t permit violent practices in the West Bank, the PA affirmed. Israeli media stated that the message was delivered by PA Minister of Civil Affairs Hussein al-Sheik accompanied by other Palestinian officials to the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories.

Syrian Regime Orders Seizure of Rami Makhlouf’s Shares in 12 Banks
London - Ibrahim Hamidi/Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 21 May, 2020
The Damascus Securities Exchange (DSE) ordered on Wednesday the seizure of shares owned by Rami Makhlouf, the cousin of Syria’s president and one of the country’s richest tycoons, in 12 foreign banks with local branches. The decision affected his shares in Lebanon’s Audi Bank, Byblos Bank and Fransabank, the Jordan-based Arab Bank and others. This is the latest in a string of measures taken against the tycoon. The DSE decision, which Asharq Al-Awsat obtained a copy of, is based on a "precautionary seizure" of the assets of the businessman signed by Syrian Finance Minister Mamoun Hamdan. The government-ordered seizure of assets of Makhlouf and his family is to guarantee the payment of what is owed to the state by his company Syriatel. In addition to the seizure, the regime has also reportedly banned Makhlouf from bidding on government contracts for five years. The Syrian Telecommunication Regulatory Authority has demanded that Makhlouf pays around $185 million back in taxes before May 5. Since then, a pressure campaign that targeted senior employees in Makhlouf’s companies and networks had been launched. The Syrian regime has stripped Makhlouf of his privileges, such as security detail which protected him and his palace. From his palace in the Yafour suburb near Damascus, Makhlouf has been leading negotiations with the Syrian government. On Monday, he was informed that he would have to give up Syriatel to the country’s “Martyr’s Fund” and that he needs to bring back home billions of dollars from foreign banks to contribute in solving the national economic crisis. On the other hand, Makhlouf showed "unprecedented obstinacy" and the use of "religious discourse", while accepting to pay the required dues from Syriatel to the government in installments.

Abbas's Withdrawal from Agreements with Israel is Challenged by Complex Mechanisms
Ramallah - Kifah Zaboun/Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 21 May, 2020
It is will be complicated for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to carry out his threats to withdraw from all signed agreements with Israel. Although Palestinian officials from the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) said that the implementation occurred on the spot, but no quick changes are expected to take place on the ground. The Palestinian authority seems to be mobilizing an international campaign to inform world countries about the reasons behind its decision to step out of all agreements before implementing it. This is kind of a "final warning." Abbas held a phone call Wednesday with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and briefed him on the authority’s decision to withdraw from all agreements signed with the occupation force. The Palestinian president bureau said that he will intensify contacts on all levels with the Arab, international and UN leaders to mobilize an international stance against the annexation. PLO Secretary-General Saeb Erekat also called German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and Vatican Secretary for Relations with States Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher and they discussed Palestinian matters. Also, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh contacted Norwegian Foreign Minister Ine Marie Eriksen Soreide. Reliable sources told Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that this decision will be followed by detailed meetings to discuss possible means to implement it. This will occur gradually. The Palestinian PM held an urgent meeting Wednesday to discuss ways to abolish the agreements. He is also set to meet Palestinian security bodies to discuss security deals. Shtayyeh announced that given that Israel expressed on several occasions its intention to annex parts of the West Bank, then this abolishes all signed agreements and ends the two-state solution.

More than 5 Million Coronavirus Infections Registered Worldwide
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 21 May, 2020
Global infections from the novel coronavirus topped five million on Thursday while China eager to declare a victory, Europe tentatively emerging from its shell and deaths still rising in hotspots in Latin America. The grim milestone is still only a fraction of the true number of infections from a virus that has claimed more than 328,000 lives in its whirl around the globe, according to AFP tally of official sources. US President Donald Trump has promoted the use of anti-malaria drugs against the virus despite studies showing they have no benefit and could have dangerous side effects. Trump, for his part, insists the US is "Transitioning back to Greatness" as states reopen at different paces. While daily death tolls are no longer on a steady rise, the losses are still punishing with more than 1,500 additional fatalities reported in 24 hours on Wednesday, bringing to the total number in the US to more than 93,400.
Beijing tells a different story, with President Xi Jinping determined to project a success story over the outbreak that started on his country's soil late last year before wreaking havoc around the globe. In a new sign of normalisation, on Thursday China opened its biggest political event of the year -- the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) -- after months of delay over coronavirus fears. Analysts say the gathering will be a chance for the party to reaffirm its narrative of beating the virus and coming to the aid of other countries with masks and other medical shipments.
It "will likely be an occasion for Xi Jinping to declare complete victory in the 'people's war' over the virus," Diana Fu, a professor of political science at the University of Toronto, told AFP.
- Vaccine race -
As governments pray for an end to the economic strangulation from shutdowns, the race to develop a vaccine has been buoyed by experiments on monkeys that offered hope that humans can develop immunity to the virus. Researchers reported progress from one study that looked at a prototype vaccine, and another on whether infection with COVID-19 confers protection against re-exposure. And the US pumped an additional $1 billion (0.9 billion euros) into the British pharmaceuticals group AstraZeneca to help fund the production of a vaccine. While a full return to normal life will be pegged to the development of a treatment or vaccine, many countries are testing ways to live with the dangers in the meantime. Once the epicentre of the pandemic, much of Europe is now gradually rolling back its restrictions on public life after the number of new cases and deaths has been on a steady decline.
The eurozone's economic slump caused by lockdowns has "likely bottomed out", with the rate of decline now easing as economies creak open, a closely watched survey by IHS Markit said.

Ghannouchi Congratulates Libya’s Sarraj on Recapture of Watiya Airbase
Tunis - Mongi Saidani/Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 21 May, 2020
Leader of Tunisia’s Islamist Ennahda movement Rached Ghannouchi has congratulated Fayez al-Sarraj, the head of Libya’s Government of National Accord, on GNA’s recapture of al-Watiya airbase from the Libyan National Army of Khalifa Haftar. Ghannouchi, who is the speaker of Tunisia’s parliament, extended his congratulations to Sarraj in a phone call on Tuesday evening. His move has raised doubts about Tunisia’s allegedly neutral stance on developments in Libya. Libyan sources said that Ghannouchi breathed a sigh of relief as the LNA withdrew from the strategic al-Watiya airbase near the Tunisian border last Monday. The Tunisian politician also asserted that there is no military answer to the raging conflict in Libya and that it is important to return to the political course. Sarraj, for his part, voiced his gratitude for the feelings of brotherhood expressed by Ghannouchi and praised the deep relations shared with Tunisia.According to a press release, Sarraj praised Tunisia’s keenness on the security and stability of Libya, saying he is looking forward to boost cooperation between the two countries. Observers believe that Ghannouchi’s move to congratulate the GNA would fuel ideological conflicts between a number of Tunisian parties. The move follows reassurances given by Tunisian authorities, on more than one occasion, that the country will remain impartial to the conflict in Libya. Tunisian President Kais Saied had previously acknowledged his support for the GNA, which means that the Tunisian position is clearly in favor of Sarraj. Tunisia’s opposition political parties called for transparency in political affairs, demanding that Ghannouchi announces his diplomatic and political initiatives to the public. The speaker’s phone call to Sarraj was not made public, prompting opposition parties to doubt whether hiding the information from the public was intentional.

Iraq: Shell Temporarily Evacuates Foreign Staff From Basra Gas Project
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 21 May, 2020
Shell temporarily evacuated foreign staff from Iraq’s Basra Gas Company for security reasons, officials and company executives said on Thursday. The employees who are up to 60 flew out of the country, however, production was not halted, according to the officials.
“Shell’s evacuation is a precautionary and temporary measure and its foreign staff will provide advice and perform their duties remotely for now,” a senior Basra Gas Company official said. This took place on Wednesday after laid off workers staged a protest in the headquarters of Basra Gas Company, a venture between state-owned South Gas Company, Shell and Mitsubishi, officials said.The protest was also close to a Shell company compound, Reuters reported. Operations at the gas project were not affected by the evacuation and work was continuing normally, overseen by Iraqi engineers, Iraqi officials said.
Iraqi security officials providing security at the Basra Gas Company said Wednesday’s protest was limited and did not pose a threat, adding that the situation was secured.

Joint Statement by Canada, Australia and United Kingdom on Hong Kong national security legislation
May 22, 2020 - Ottawa, Ontario - Global Affairs Canada
The Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Dominic Raab, the United Kingdom’s First Secretary of State and Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs; and Marise Payne, Australia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Women, today issued the following statement: “We are deeply concerned at proposals for introducing legislation related to national security in Hong Kong.
“The legally binding Joint Declaration, signed by China and the United Kingdom, sets out that Hong Kong will have a high degree of autonomy. It also provides that rights and freedoms, including those of the person, of the press, of assembly, of association and others, will be ensured by law in Hong Kong, and that the provisions of the two UN covenants on human rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, shall remain in force.
“Making such a law on Hong Kong’s behalf without the direct participation of its people, legislature or judiciary would clearly undermine the ‘one country, two systems’ principle under which Hong Kong is guaranteed a high degree of autonomy.”

Iranian FM defends call for 'Final Solution' against Israel
Elad Benari/Arutz Sheva/May 22/2020
Mohammad Javad Zarif responds to Germany's criticism of Khamenei: Palestinians should not have to pay for your crimes.
Iran’s Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, on Thursday defended Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s use of a poster evoking Nazi Germany’s “Final Solution” to destroy Israel.
“Disgusting that those whose civilization found a ‘Final Solution’ in gas chambers attack those who seek a real solution at the ballot box, through a REFERENDUM,” Zarif wrote on Twitter after Germany denounced Khamenei.“Why are US and West so afraid of democracy? Palestinians should not have to pay for your crimes, or for your guilt,” he added.Khamenei’s use of the poster was condemned by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who said, "Khamenei's threats to implement the ‘Final Solution’ against Israel are reminiscent of the Nazi ‘Final Solution’ plan for the destruction of the Jewish people. He must know that any regime that threatens Israel with extermination will find itself in similar danger.”US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also commented on the Iranian Supreme Leader's threat, saying, "Khamenei's crazy and anti-Semitic rhetoric does not represent the tolerance of the Iranian people."
"The United States condemns the disgusting and hateful statements of Supreme Leader Khamenei. They have no place on Twitter or any other social media platform," Pompeo said. On Thursday, European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell condemned Khamenei as well.
"I condemn in the strongest possible terms the call by the Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei to fight Israel. This is a threat to international peace and security. The security of Israel is of paramount importance and the EU will stand at its side," said Borrell. Following condemnations by Israel and the US, Khamenei claimed that he had not referred to all Jews but only to the State of Israel in calling for a “final solution.”“The Zionist regime has proven it won’t abide by any treaty & understands no logic except force. The nature of the Zionist regime is incompatible with peace, because the Zionists seek to expand their territories & will certainly not be limited to what they have already occupied,” he wrote. “Eliminating the Zionist regime doesn’t mean eliminating Jews. We aren’t against Jews. It means abolishing the imposed regime & Muslim, Christian & Jewish Palestinians choose their own govt & expel thugs like Netanyahu. This is ‘Eliminating Israel’ & it will happen,” Khamene claimed.

Benny Gantz responds to Ali Khamenei: 'Don't test us'
Arutz Sheva/May 22/2020
Ali Khamenei's statements 'prove his weakness,' MK Benny Gantz says. 'I don't suggest anyone test us.'
Defense Minister Benny Gantz (Blue and White) on Friday published a Facebook post warning Iran not to test Israel. In his post, Gantz wrote that his new position is "very natural for me, I feel at home." "You have who to rely on," he added, noting that on Thursday, he met with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and the two spoke about various topics regarding the government, including security issues and the management of the coronavirus outbreak and its effects. "The State of Israel has many huge challenges in a variety of arenas," he wrote. "The statement made by [Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali] Khamenei that Israel is a 'cancerous growth,' shows this more than anything.""As someone who is very familiar with the Iranian issue, and as someone who prepared the IDF's capabilities for this issue, I don't suggest anyone test us. The State of Israel and the Zionist dream are facts on the ground, unlike the Iranian satellites which try to establish themselves and harm regional stability - an attempt which we will not allow. "From my experience, the arrogant words of our enemy prove its weakness. In any case, we know to prepare for all threats, using any means."

Trump deems houses of worship 'essential' and threatens to override governors
CNN/May 22/2020
President Donald Trump announced Friday that his administration is issuing guidance deeming places of worship "essential" operations during the coronavirus pandemic, threatening to "override" governors if their states did not follow the new federal recommendations.

Trump Urges Governors to Let Places of Worship Reopen 'Right Now'
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/May 22/2020
President Donald Trump on Friday urged U.S. state governors to allow places of worship to reopen immediately, as the country moves gradually towards a lifting of COVID-19 lockdown measures. "Today I am identifying houses of worship -- churches, synagogues and mosques -- as essential places that provide essential services," Trump told a news conference at the White House. "The governors need to do the right thing and allow these very important essential places of faith to open right now, for this weekend," he said.
"If they don't do it, I will override the governors. In America, we need more prayer, not less."

WHO Says S. America 'a New Epicenter' of COVID-19
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/May 22/2020
South America has become "a new epicenter" of the deadly coronavirus pandemic, the World Health Organization said Friday, following a surge in the number of COVID-19 infections. "In a sense, South America has become a new epicenter for the disease. We have seen many South American countries with increasing numbers of cases," WHO emergencies director Mike Ryan told a virtual news conference. "Clearly there is a concern across many of those countries, but clearly the most affected is Brazil at this point."The novel coronavirus death toll in Brazil surpassed 20,000 on Thursday, after a record number of fatalities in a 24-hour period, the health ministry said. The country's highest one-day toll of 1,188 pushed the overall death tally to 20,047. Brazil has now recorded more than 310,000 cases, with experts saying a lack of testing means the real figures are probably much higher.
With its curve of infections and deaths rising sharply, the country of 210 million ranks third in the world in terms of total cases, behind the United States and Russia. The death toll -- the sixth highest in the world -- has doubled in just 11 days, according to ministry data. "The majority of the cases are from the Sao Paulo region," said Ryan. "But in terms of attack rates, the highest attack rates are actually in Amazonas: about 490 persons infected per 100,000 population, which is quite high," he said of Brazil's vast northwestern state. Brazil's health ministry has recommended using the anti-malaria drugs chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine to treat even mild cases of COVID-19 -- treatments President Jair Bolsonaro has pushed for despite the lack of conclusive evidence of their effectiveness. U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday made the surprise announcement that he is taking hydroxychloroquine, despite his own government experts saying it is not suitable for fighting coronavirus. Ryan stressed that neither hydroxychloroquine nor chloroquine have been proven to be effective in the treatment of COVID-19 -- or in prophylaxis against the disease. The two drugs are among a handful involved in WHO-coordinated clinical trials to find effective treatments for the disease. Some 3,000 patients are taking part in the trials in 320 hospitals across 17 countries. "Our current clinical and systematic reviews carried out by the Pan American Health Organization, and the current clinical evidence, does not support the widespread use of hydroxychloroquine for the treatment of COVID-19 -- not until the trials are completed and we have clear results," said Ryan.

Large study links drug Trump touted to greater risk of death
CNN/May 22/2020
Seriously ill Covid-19 patients who were treated with hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine were more likely to die or develop dangerous heart arrhythmias, according to a large observational study published Friday in the medical journal The Lancet. Hydroxychloroquine has been around for decades but was thrust into the spotlight this spring when Trump began mentioning its name dozens of times during coronavirus briefings. While it had not been approved for this use, and still hasn't, he urged Americans to "try it."

Pakistan Airlines flight crashes in Karachi
CNN/May 22/2020
A Pakistan Airlines flight with more than 100 people on board has crashed in the Pakistani city of Karachi, an airline spokesman said Friday.
Pakistan's Aviation Ministry said the flight was carrying 99 passengers and 8 crew members. Flight PK8303 took off from Lahore and was due to land at 2:30 p.m. local time in Karachi but went missing from the radar, Pakistan Airlines spokesman Abdullah Khan told CNN.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on May 21-22-23/2020
Question: "What is the mark of the beast?"
GotQuestions.org?/May 22/2020
Answer: The upcoming COVID-19 vaccine and the potentially “mandatory” nature of it has led many people to ask if it could be the mark of the beast. With that in mind, we thought a reminder of what the Bible says about the mark of the beast would be in order.
The main passage in the Bible that mentions the “mark of the beast” is Revelation 13:15-18. Other references can be found in Revelation 14:9, 11, 15:2, 16:2, 19:20, and 20:4. This mark acts as a seal for the followers of Antichrist and the false prophet (the spokesperson for the Antichrist). The false prophet (the second beast) is the one who causes people to take this mark. The mark is literally placed in the hand or forehead and is not simply a card someone carries.
The recent breakthroughs in medical implant chip and RFID technologies have increased interest in the mark of the beast spoken of in Revelation chapter 13. It is possible that the technology we are seeing today represents the beginning stages of what may eventually be used as the mark of the beast. It is important to realize that a medical implant chip is not the mark of the beast. The mark of the beast will be something given only to those who worship the Antichrist. Having a medical or financial microchip inserted into your right hand or forehead is not the mark of the beast. The mark of the beast will be an end-times identification required by the Antichrist in order to buy or sell, and it will be given only to those who worship the Antichrist.
Many good expositors of Revelation differ widely as to the exact nature of the mark of the beast. Besides the implanted chip view, other speculations include an ID card, a microchip, a barcode that is tattooed into the skin, or simply a mark that identifies someone as being faithful to the Antichrist’s kingdom. This last view requires the least speculation, since it does not add any more information to what the Bible gives us. In other words, any of these things are possible, but at the same time they are all speculations. We should not spend a lot of time speculating on the precise details.
The meaning of 666 is a mystery as well. Some speculated that there was a connection to June 6, 2006—06/06/06. However, in Revelation chapter 13, the number 666 identifies a person, not a date. Revelation 13:18 tells us, “This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man’s number. His number is 666.” Somehow, the number 666 will identify the Antichrist. For centuries Bible interpreters have been trying to identify certain individuals with 666. Nothing is conclusive. That is why Revelation 13:18 says the number requires wisdom. When the Antichrist is revealed (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4), it will be clear who he is and how the number 666 identifies him.

Iranian Regime Marks Qods Day 2020 With Antisemitism, Blood Libels, And Calls For Destruction Of Israel
A. Savyon, M. Manzour/MEMRI/May 22/2020
Introduction
As it does every year, the Iranian regime is marking Qods Day – Jerusalem Day – on the last Friday of Ramadan, which in 2020 falls on May 22. This year as well, the call for destroying Israel features prominently in statements by regime officials, who announced that the due to the coronavirus Qods Day marches would be presented via the media and there would be no parades in the streets. Also clearly evident again are expressions of antisemitism in statements by regime officials and spokesmen. This report will present several examples of regime calls for the destruction of Israel as the Jewish state that include antisemitism. These examples include a Qods Day poster signed and shared by Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei featuring the Nazi term for eliminating European Jewry – the Final Solution – as well as tweets by him calling for the destruction of Israel as a Jewish state, whether by armed resistance or "democratically" via referendum.
Another example is an article by the Iranian regime mouthpiece Kayhan setting out the regime doctrine regarding Zionism and Israel that used the blood libel against Zionists. Its main thrust was the custom of ritual murder. Like Nazi racial doctrine that instilled the notion that the Jews are the enemy of mankind who have taken control of politics, the economy, and culture with their money and stratagems with the aim of running the world, the Iranian regime attributes the same intentions to the Zionists. It depicts the Zionists and the Zionist movement as a racist cult that used Jewish money and force of arms to take over Jerusalem and the Palestinian lands, whose Zionist followers have practiced ritual murder since the dawn of history. It states that "blood flows everywhere they prostrate themselves, and their altar reeks of blood." The article uses the concepts of "Jew" and "Zionist" interchangeably, and claims that the Zionists are not true Jews – a claim originating in Iran's Islamic ideology which is based on religion and rejects the concept of nationality. It accuses the Jews and the Zionists of crucifying Jesus and of currently waging a crusade against Christianity by taking over the political power centers in the West in order to impose their demands and silence Christianity. Adding that they also seek to take over the Islamic lands in the Arabian Peninsula by recruiting the Arab monarchical dynasties in the Gulf to their side against Iran and its Islamic vision, it says that they also fan the flames of war among Muslims, for example in the war in Yemen. The article also says that it was Iran's Islamic Revolution that stopped the "Zionist machine" and that will be the one to liberate humanity from Zionism/the Jews, and calls for continuing the fight against Israel until Jerusalem is liberated, which is imminent.
An additional Kayhan article and Iranian Foreign Ministry announcements via Twitter feature a #Covid1948 hashtag, meaning that the establishment of the state of Zionist Israel means the spread of a global pandemic similar to the coronavirus.
Special Dispatch No. 7682, Israel's Eradication – An Ideological And Practical Goal Of Iran's Islamic Revolution Regime, September 25, 2018.
Special Dispatch No. 7914, Antisemitism In Iran – Part I: Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif Denies That Iran Is Antisemitic, February 26, 2019
Inquiry & Analysis No. 1499, Antisemitism In Iran – Part II: Supreme Leader Associate Mehdi Taeb In Lecture Series On The Jews: Your Greatest Sworn Enemy The Jews; If The Spearhead Is Aimed At The Jews, The World Will Be Freed, January 27, 2020.
Supreme Leader Khamenei: The Final Solution For The Zionists And Israel
On May 19, 2020, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei published on his website a Qods Day poster, in three languages. It stated: "Palestine Will Be Free – The Final Solution: Resistance Until Referendum." It depicts Palestinian soldiers on the Temple Mount waving Palestinian and Hizbullah flags, and showing figures symbolizing the resistance and the Islamic revolution: Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, founder of the Islamic Revolution in Iran; Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei; and IRGC Qods Force commander Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in January 2020 by the U.S.
These motifs of the destruction of Israel interwoven with antisemitism appear regularly in Khamenei's statements; here they include the Nazi "Final Solution" reference. In Khamenei's perception, the aim is to eliminate Israel. He states that until a "democratic" referendum is held for the total destruction of Israel, the armed resistance should continue. See, for example, his May 20 tweets about about the destruction of the State of Israel either through resistance or through a "democratic" referendum held by the "true" residents of Palestine who, he says are the Muslims, Christians, and Jews residing in Palestine for at least 100 years prior to the establishment of the State of Israel in May 1948.
Khamenei also stresses that his statements on eliminating the Zionist regime and its officials do not refer to eliminating the Jews. However, as seen below in this report, concepts of "Jew" and "Zionist" are used interchangeably by the Iranian regime and its officials despite their claim that they do not recognize Zionists as Jews.
Twitter.com/khamenei_ir/status/1263178742622490624, May 20, 2020.
Twitter.com/khamenei_ir/status/1263169292931158019, May 20, 2020.
Twitter.com/khamenei_ir/status/1263165539167371267, May 20, 2020.
Kayhan: "Zionism Is A Cult Of Worship Based On Race And Blood, [Which] Writes History In Blood... Iran's Islamic Revolution Has Stopped The Zionist Machine... The Zionist Project Is Over"
The following are translated excerpts from the May 13, 2020 Kayhan article by a member of the daily's editorial board, Sadollah Zarei, who is close to IRGC circles. The article lays out the regime's doctrine on Zionism and Israel, while promoting a blood libel according to which the Zionists commit ritual murder.
"'Qods' [Jerusalem] is not just a tomb. It is a land with a deep connection to the divine prophets and the Abrahamic religions [Judaism, Christianity, and Islam]. The divine religions have seen it as their 'source' and their 'destination' for millennia, and for that reason, it has been targeted by demon Satans and men for millennia.[1] From the earliest history of religions, the liberation and capture of Jerusalem have gone hand in hand, and Jerusalem was sometimes free and sometimes held captive...
"Jerusalem invites mankind to call for liberty, and religious people are the primary audience for its wounded cry. Jerusalem calls upon us to break free, and invites us to [share in] its freedom. [But] before we liberate Jerusalem we must liberate ourselves: [We must be] free of fear, free of bondage to human demons, free of heresy and pharaohs [i.e. tyrants]... Indeed, Jerusalem wants us to be free, [and] as the Abraham of our times [Iranian regime founder Ayatollah] Khomeini said, 'Qods Day is a day of liberation for all Muslims and all the oppressed.'
"Contrary to appearances, however, Jews and Judaism are not synonymous with what came to Jerusalem [i.e. Zionism]. [Their] Judaism is a racist faith that does not recognize the Jews, and for this reason the Jews do not regard Zionism as a religion. The Zionists regard the customs of Moses as superstition and reject everything called 'God. Hence, Jerusalem is their captive; it is not a place of worship for them. Zionism does not honor Jerusalem, and we indeed saw how [the late Israeli prime minister] Ariel Sharon entered Jerusalem and the Dome of the Rock with his boots and his sword, spilled blood there, and shattered the peace of the rituals at the Dome of the Rock and in Jerusalem.
"Fifty-two years ago, the Zionists also set fire to the Al-Aqsa mosque, and traces of smoke can still be seen on its ceiling, walls, pulpit and altar.[2] For years, the Zionists have dreamed of destroying that sacred dome by tunneling under Al-Qods. In the name of 'the body of David,' they wish to destroy the legacy of Abraham [that is, prioritizing Israeli nationality over Abraham who is shared by the monotheistic religions], just as they replaced the ritual of Al-Khalil [i.e. Hebron in Arabic] with the hollow ritual of [the Hebrew] 'Hebron.' The division of Hebron was the division of man and of mankind, for there is no reason to create barriers among the followers of the Abrahamic religions.
"Zionism is not a religion, nor does it follow any religion. Zionism is a 'cult' (a political group), whose establishment was declared in Basel, Switzerland,[3] and which is of course rooted in the plutocracies of the 15th and 16th centuries and of the Middle Ages. The Rothschild and Rockefeller families are racists who stole [other people's] treasures, and are heirs to the darkness of medieval Europe. Zionism is trying to write a new history of mankind – a history dominated by blood, in which the most bloodthirsty are capable of ruling.
"They [the Zionists] begin their worship with blood. Blood flows everywhere they prostrate themselves, and their altar reeks of blood. Blood for the Zionists is first and foremost the story of mankind, and it is their clearest mark of Cain. The claws of Zionism take the form of extinguished torches, highlighting a cross at the center, commemorating their predecessors' efforts to kill Jesus. Today they ride the Christian centers of power and do not hesitate to proudly recount the story of the murder of Jesus the Messiah whom God rescued from their net.
"According to the Zionist leaders, the story of Judas [Iscariot] and the Messiah is not yet over, and every Christian must be scarred by the claws of the Zionists as part of the struggle against the descendants of Judas. [Although] Zionism has turned its back on the murder and destruction of Christianity and of every Christian, it has today taken control, drunk [with power], of the Elysee Palace, of Buckingham Palace, and of the White [House]. But [the Zionists] are not content with that, and will never rest until they extinguish the spiritual message of the churches.
"Zionism is a cult of worship based on race and blood. It writes history in blood and was born of blood. Although Zionism is not Jewish, it wishes to return, in the name of the Jews, to Khaybar [a Jewish oasis in the Arabian Peninsula taken by Muhammad, who killed all its residents], and to give the Muslims' land to the Bani Qurayza [a Jewish tribe killed off by Muhammad], Bani Mustaliq [an Arab tribe that conquered an area on the Red Sea coast] and Bani Qaynuqa [a Jewish tribe near Medina expelled by Muhammad]. [But] since Zionism knows that nothing of these Arab tribes remains [today], it seeks slaves in the palaces of Hijaz [Saudi Arabia], Abu Dhabi [the UAE], Kuwait, Muscat [Oman], and Doha [Qatar] to spread the message [of the Zionists] in the name of the Banu Qurayza in the Land of the Revelation [of Islam, i.e., the Arabian Peninsula and Gulf regions].
"Here too Zionism began in blood and writes history in blood. [The Zionists] encourage the war in Yemen, the hatred among the Arabs and Muslims in the [Arabian] Peninsula, and the spread of hostility between the Arabs and the Iranians. This time they have brought together Bani Sufiyan [Meccan trader of the Quraysh tribe who led the Meccans' struggle against Muhammad], Bani Jahl [a Meccan leader who opposed Muhammad and plotted to keep him from praying] and Bani Akrame [son of Jahl] into an [anti-Iran] coalition.
"But that is [only] one side of the Jerusalem coin. On the other side is etched a divine destiny: the victory [of Abraham, the father of monotheism] over Nimrod; the victory of Moses over Pharaoh; the victory of Jesus over Haman and over Judas and the plotters of the Sanhedrin [the supreme Jewish legal body in Jesus's day]; the victory of Muhammad over the [Jews of] Khaybar and over Khagan [ruler of Central Asia and the Caucasus]; the victory of Ali over the sons of Abu Sufyan [in the Shi'ite-Sunni struggle of the succession wars of early Islam]; and the victory of Jerusalem over Zionism.
"The story of the this Abrahamic dynasty is not one of land, materialism, dominance ,and power, or of choosing weapons over peace. The story of this dynasty is one of freedom. In this story, Jerusalem is the symbol of freedom, of human liberty, of the freedom of religion, the prophets and God, of human worship free of all shackles, and of man unbound by any [master], spreading flowers with every greeting, for it is said, 'You shall be a slave to none, and God created you free.'
"Zionism came on the scene with weapons, to disrupt peace among the believers and shackle mankind in the name of peace. But today the weapons and the peace of Zionism have waned, and peace prevails among God's creatures. Forty years ago, Iran's Islamic Revolution turned Zionism from reality to an 'illusion' and stopped the Zionist machine. After that, Zionism began to beg for handouts in [U.S.-brokered Israel-Arab peace talks at] Camp David and Annapolis and so on. Zionism, once the besieger, is now itself besieged by the offspring of Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad. Lebanon's Hizbullah, Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Ansar-Allah in Yemen, the Iraqi Hashd [Al-Sha'bi, aka PMU], the Syrian resistance, and dozens of the[se groups'] branches are everywhere in the region, and Israel is trying to survive in the maelstrom.
"The government in Tel Aviv has lost its color. [It is] holding round after round of elections but is marching in place. The 'Judaization of Palestine' is a nonsensical [motto], and the Deal of the Century cannot revive it. The Judaization of Palestine machine has been mired in the mud for 70 years, and Zionism will go nowhere in the time that remains to it. The courts of the royalty and the Abd Al-'Azizes [derogatory term for the Saudis] can no longer pave the way for the Judaization [of Palestine] by signing papers. The Salmanis [i.e. Saudis], the Zayidis [UAE], and the rest of the [Arab] monarchs cannot [save Israel].
"Instead of clinging to the two blue lines of its flag, Zionism is now examining walls for defending itself against the hate-filled Palestinian gaze. Zionism from the Nile to the Euphrates has now become a government in Tel Aviv [which is] on its deathbed. [Zionism, that engraves on its flag] from the Nile to the Euphrates and everywhere, now [stretches only] from Tel Aviv to western Jerusalem. Zionism is today carrying out military exercises on the northern borders of occupied Palestine so that it will perhaps have access to the tunnels from which a Hizbullah attack may come at any time. At [Israel's] southern borders, it is thought that there are tunnels from which there is a fear that at any moment Palestinian troops from Sinai, Gaza, and the [West] Bank may attack].
"Zionism is now looking to the windows of Washington and AIPAC, but it gazes in despair at the fate of the American troops in Iraq and Syria, as Ayatollah Khamenei considered the expulsion of America from the region as retribution for the blood of Gen. [Qassem] Soleimani. The bloodthirsty Zionism knows that the traditional contacts with the palaces of Elysee and Buckingham, and the White [House], are no longer creating miracles, and the time of the flourishing of Western culture and politics is about to end.
"Zionism knows that the West, historically for the past 72 years [its] main refuge, is now dealing with many events and cannot help prolong Zionism's life. So today we are hearing whispers of the end of Israel, in Tel Aviv's homes and [military] bases.
"The Zionist project has ended... but at the same time, Zionism is still shedding blood, still bombing, still assassinating, still invading the skies of Lebanon and Syria, still scheming [against] and bombing the besieged Palestinians in Gaza, still buying Arab slaves cheaply, still looking to the palaces of the region [in Arab countries]. This means that the cries [against it] must be heard as roars, blows must be landed, and the steps taken against it must remain strong on the march to Jerusalem. Jerusalem remains [but] a few steps from liberation, and this road must be trod to the end."[4]
Kayhan: "The World Will Forever Be Saved From The Zionists' Covid 1948 Contamination; The World's Body Will Experience Life Without The Zionist Cancer"
Kayhan's March 21 editorial devoted to Qods Day, headlined "Qods Day – The Octopus's [i.e. Israel's] Nightmare," also stressed the vision of Iran's Islamic revolutionary regime regarding the elimination of the State of Israel, this time by military means – not by Iranian military force but by its spiritual and ideological weapons – that is, its export of its Islamic revolution, carried out via armed resistance by Hizbullah, an extension of the Iranian regime. It also noted, like the message tweeted by the Iranian Foreign Ministry (see below) in the spirit of Nazi propaganda, that Israel and Zionism are a virus threatening the entire world. The following are translated excerpts from the editorial:
"During these 40 years [since the establishment of Iran's Islamic Revolution], the shoots of the revolution have grown more than they did in the centuries [that preceded it], and [as of] today they have grown and spread throughout the Islamic world. The export of the Islamic revolution today is no longer under the enemies' control, and the free men and heroes of the world have come to the conclusion that the Zionist regime that massacres children is terrified on the eve of Qods Day, and the [Israeli] octopus sees the nightmare of death.
"If at one time America led [the world], and Israel was a problem for the Arabs of the region, today the hands of the IRGC are wrapped around the neck of this leader, and for Israel to disappear there is no longer any need for Shihab-3, Fajr, or Amad [missiles], or for the water-bucket strategy [i.e. drowning Israel]. Israel's ears are being twisted by Hizbullah in Lebanon, and a minor struggle by [Hizbullah] will bring about its death two decades earlier than promised several years ago [by Khamenei, that in] 25 years [Israel would no longer exist] and the world will forever be saved from the Zionists' Covid 1948 contamination. The world's body will experience life without the Zionist cancer."[5]
Also in the spirit of Nazi propaganda casting the Jews as spreaders of disease and a danger to humanity, on May 20 Iran's Foreign Ministry tweeted two messages about the "Zionist regime" spreading a global pandemic like the coronavirus, with the hashtag #Covid1948.
Twitter.com/IRIMFA_EN/status/1262948109895819265, Twitter.com/IRIMFA_EN/status/1262948624788598790, May 20, 2020.
*A. Savyon is director of the MEMRI Iran Studies Project; M. Manzour Is a Research Fellow at MEMRI.
[1] In Islamic and Iranian folklore, there are two categories of sentient beings in the world: ins (humans) and jinn (demons). See also
Special Dispatch No. 8658, IRGC Cyber Division Confirms Supreme Leader Khamenei's Assertion That 'Demons Are Assisting The Enemies' With Statements That 'The Israeli Mossad Is... Using Demons' And 'The Jews Are Experts At Sorcery And At Creating Relationships With Demons, March 26, 2020.
[2] The reference is apparently to the August 1969 attempt by Denis Michael Rohan, a Christian from Australia, to set fire to the pulpit of the Al-Aqsa mosque. For Iranian President Rouhani's statements attributing the arson to the "Zionist regime," see MEMRI Special Dispatch No. 6140, Iranian President Rohani: 'We Will Not Forget The Bitter Memory Of The Arson At The Muslims' First Direction Of Prayer [i.e. Al-Aqsa]'; Israel Continues 'To Kill And Rape,' August 25, 2015.
[3] A reference to the Basel Program, the first manifesto of the Zionist movement, adopted at the First Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland, in August 1897. The manifesto set out the goal of the Zionist movement: to secure for the Jewish people a publicly recognized, legally assured homeland in Palestine.
[4] Kayhan (Iran), May 13, 2020.
[5] Kayhan (Iran), May 21, 2020.

Erdogan’s Fourth Attempt to Take Over Turkey’s Largest Private Bank
Aykan Erdemir/FDD/May 22/2020
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on May 12 asked the central executive committee of his Justice and Development Party to speed up plans for the government to take over a 28 percent stake in Isbank, the country’s largest publicly listed lender. Erdogan is scrambling for resources amidst Turkey’s COVID-19-induced economic downturn, which has depleted the country’s net international reserves, excluding swap lines. Yet this effort is likely to further erode investor confidence and exacerbate Turkey’s economic woes.
This is not the first time that the Turkish president has set his sights on Turkey’s leading bank. In October 2018, Erdogan first floated the idea of transferring Isbank shares to the treasury, a threat he repeated in February 2019 and February 2020. All three of Erdogan’s previous attempts led to a significant drop in the bank’s shares and a public outcry, preventing him from going forward. It is not clear whether the Turkish president is testing the waters with his fourth call or simply trying to divert public attention away from economic mismanagement by his son-in-law, Minister of Finance and Treasury Berat Albayrak.
The Turkish president’s motivations for targeting Isbank are as much ideological as economic. Turkey’s pro-secular main opposition, the Republican People’s Party (CHP), appoints four of the bank’s board members. This has been the policy since Mustafa Kemal Ataturk – the founder of the Turkish Republic, the CHP, and Isbank – bequeathed his shares to the party upon his death in 1938. The CHP acts as the trustee of the dividends allocated to the Turkish Linguistic Society and the Turkish Historical Society, two institutions central to Ataturk’s secular vision for the country.
Reportedly, Erdogan’s aides disagree about whether the treasury can legally take over the bank’s shares by annulling Ataturk’s will.
Historically, there were two short-lived attempts to take over the bank, first by a government led by CHP’s rivals in 1953 and then by a military junta in 1981. Both failed, as Turkish courts ultimately overturned these partisan expropriation attempts. Nevertheless, challenging Isbank and the CHP remains a goal of Turkey’s Islamists, including Erdogan. It represents a struggle for the very soul of the country, as the Islamists seek to undermine the legacy of Turkey’s founding father and his secularizing institutions and reforms.
Isbank, 32 percent of which is publicly traded, with another 40 percent owned by the lender’s pension fund, continues to be a beacon of good governance. This stands in stark contrast to Turkey’s public banks, which burned through $32 billion of foreign currency during the first four months of 2020. As The Economist observed, these lenders mounted an “unwise and ineffective” defense of the Turkish lira on behalf of the central bank.
Turkey’s banking sector is already under significant scrutiny. The country’s second-largest public lender, Halkbank, faces criminal charges in a Manhattan court for helping Iran illicitly transfer tens of billions of dollars in one of the biggest sanctions-evasion schemes in history. Notably, Isbank stood out as a financial institution that Reza Zarrab, the scheme’s Iranian-Turkish ringleader, avoided in his transactions.
Erdogan hopes to manipulate the Turkish news cycle for a few more weeks, thereby distracting from embarrassing reports of Turkey’s cratering economy. But his plan is not likely to succeed. The CHP leadership has already decided not to respond to his threats, effectively killing the debate before it begins. Washington should now urge Erdogan to focus his energies on much-needed economic reforms rather than financial chicanery involving banks already under great strain.
*Aykan Erdemir is a former member of the Turkish parliament and the senior director of the Turkey Program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), where he also contributes to FDD’s Center on Economic and Financial Power (CEFP). For more analysis from Aykan and CEFP, please subscribe HERE. Follow Aykan on Twitter @aykan_erdemir. Follow FDD on Twitter @FDD and @FDD_CEFP. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.

China Is Asked to Pay the Coronavirus Bill
Dr. Jebril Elabidi/Asharq Al Awsat/May 22/2020
China was accused of distorting and hiding important and sensitive information about the COVID-19 pandemic by not being attentive to the dangers of the virus from the start, and being late to announce, or perhaps delaying the announcement of the pandemic. This has had grave consequences on world health and economy, causing thousands of deaths and millions of infections around the world while also causing damage to the world economy. US President Donald Trump even considered it worse than the 9/11 attacks and the Pearl Harbor incident.
With the return of mutual accusations between China and the US: Was the virus a result of negligence in labs of the Chinese city of Wuhan, after leaks and news surfaced in the German magazine Der Spiegel showing that the World Health Organization (WHO) was complicit with the Chinese President’s request to delay issuing the warning against the new coronavirus?
The WHO is also accused of being complicit with China in delaying the announcement of the magnitude of danger that the virus posed. Der Spiegel mentioned that the Chinese president asked the Director-General of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to conceal information regarding the human-to-human transmission of the virus and delaying the announcement of the pandemic; the WHO described these claims as “baseless accusations”.
In light of the prosecution of the Chinese authorities, particularly the Communist Party, the Attorney General of the US State of Missouri, Eric Schmitt, filed a lawsuit against the Chinese government on the COVID-19 pandemic, accusing China of “lying to the world”. Schmitt mentioned in his lawsuit that “these procedures led to irreparable damage in many countries around the world, the loss of lives, and economic damage”.
“China could have saved hundreds of thousands around the world and could have spared the world a descent into global economic malaise had they dealt with it transparently”, said US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. He added, “There is a significant amount of evidence that this emerged from a lab”.
Will the WHO be the scapegoat that China will use to make it pay trillions of dollars in compensation for the expensive coronavirus bill that would not have existed had China not been six weeks late to announce the pandemic as the number of cases would have been substantially lower. China also spread misinformation to the WHO about the virus not undergoing human-to-human transmission and that masks were not important, which led to the death of hundreds of physicians and healthcare workers.
The question remains: Is the world able to prove that the virus was developed and exported from a Chinese facility? And that negligence is the reason? Will the world be able to force China to pay the 3.9 trillion US dollars required in compensation, while the United Kingdom has also requested that China pays 351 billion pounds in compensation for the losses incurred as a result of the pandemic, as The Daily Mail mentioned.
China neither cares for these accusations nor for the demands to pay this massive bill, instead, it is aiming to re-evaluate its trade agreement with the US. At the same time, Trump said: “I do not care about that at all” which confirms that there is a large economic struggle coming between major countries and a phase of new alliances and axes. The coronavirus bill is due, sooner or later, and China is the most likely to pay. This reminds me of Libya paying the Lockerbie incident bill without any conclusive evidence of it being involved.
Are we facing a new Lockerbie scenario but with a different balance of powers, as China is not in the same position Libya was in at the time?
The next days will carry many surprises, and the world will not go back to what it was before the coronavirus.

The Supreme Leader’s New Tom and Jerry Sequence
Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat/May 22/2020
Is a military clash between the United States and Iran inevitable? Since last January, when the Americans assassinated Tehran’s top general, Qassem Soleimani, policy circles in major capitals have grappled with the question without reaching a consensus.
At the time of this writing, the question is bouncing back as Iranian tankers carrying oil to Venezuela risk running into an American cordon designed to keep them away.
The mullahs have threatened “dire consequences” if the US does try to stop the tankers. Since the Islamic Republic lacks the naval power to escort the tankers right down to Venezuelan ports, the “dire consequences” would not come in the form of a naval battle in the Caribbean. Instead, as the daily Kayhan, expressing “Supreme Guide” Ali Khamenei’s views, said in an editorial Monday, retaliation may come in the form of a seizure of one or more US oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. Another option is targeting all oil tankers in the waterway for a fixed period as Iran did in 1988.
Heshmat-Allah Falahat Pisheh, a former chairman of the National Security Committee in the Islamic Majlis, Iran’s ersatz parliament, argues that a clash is inevitable because the conflict between Tehran and Washington is “of a unique nature” that leaves no space for retreat by either side or an attempt at mediation by a third party. Thus, when tension reaches a certain point, the only way to relieve it is blowing up the top of the kettle.
Iranian sociologist Sa’id Mo’ayedfar advances a similar argument from a different angle. He claims the Khomeinist regime is aware that it is approaching its sell-by date and would do anything to delay the inevitable a bit longer. And that “anything” could include a short and sharp military clash with the US that could arouse Iranian patriotic feelings but leave the regime in place with a new veneer of legitimacy.
An analysis in FARS, a news-site of the Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) also evokes the possibility of a clash by claiming that the US is too weak and too affected by the coronavirus crisis to look for a long war with the Islamic Republic. It quotes Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the US House of Representatives, as saying that “people are starving all over America” and, thus, unwilling to be dragged into a foreign war. The site also quotes Barbara Slavin, described by Iranian media as a “leading American intellectual”, saying that Tehran has already defeated President Trump’s “maximum pressure” policy and thus, need not offer any concessions for fear of a military clash.
For weeks Tehran media have thrown hints about an “October surprise” to derail Trump’s second term election bid.
Despite all that, guess is that, barring an accident, there is going to be no military clash, not forgetting that Tehran’s military, as shown with the downing of a Ukrainian passenger jet with three missiles, and the recent “friendly fire” tragedy in the Gulf of Oman, is accident prone.
There are three reasons for this. The first is that the highest concern of the Khomeinist system, like other ideological regimes, is self-preservation.
No normal government would have signed the Brest-Litovsk treaty that Lenin ordered Trotsky to sign with the Germans giving up almost all of Russia’s European “possessions.” Mao’s Communist China swallowed the bitter pill of “normalization” with the American paper tiger” after a drabbing at the hands of the Russians in the Wusuli River battle in 1969. Eight months later, Beijing started secret talks with Washington, with Iran and Pakistan as intermediaries. In 1991, fear of being targeted next forced Syria’s President Hafez al-Assad to join the US-led invasion of Iraq.
Lenin’s advice to his team in April 1918 about “hanging on for another 100 days no matter how” has been heard by many ideologues who may not be familiar with his story.
The second reason the mullahs will shy away from a military clash is that their regime is now at its weakest position in four decades. They may weather the economic storm triggered by the re-imposition of sanctions by freezing all development projects, raising prices of state-owned utilities, and selling the family silver at fire sale prices. What they cannot cope with is a serious loss of legitimacy and the continued erosion of their support base.
The third reason why, the recent huffing and puffing notwithstanding, the mullahs may play their trump card, no pun intended, once again is that “Supreme Guide” Ali Khamenei now controls all levers of power as never before.
The trump card in question consists of the mullahs’ tradition of surrendering at five minutes to midnight. Ayatollah Ruhallah Khomeini, the man who set up the regime, played the card every time his back was to the wall in 1980 and 1988.
Khamenei calls this “heroic flexibility” and has written extensively to give the tactic some theological mooring with references to Imam Hassan Ibn Ali.
Today, Khamenei no longer fears that his rivals within the ruling establishment may use normalization with the outside world, which cannot happen without some normalization with the US, as a weapon to their own advantage. Having carried out an extensive purge of the military he has consolidated his position as the military’s political face. On the clerical front, the mullahs who might have challenged him are either dead or too young to take him on openly. He has appointed his handpicked men to key positions of power and since the last Majlis election also has full control of an ersatz parliament which contained some unruly elements in the past.
Last week, the ayatollah called for the formation of a “young Hezbollahi government”, serving notice that President Hassan Rouhani and his “New York Boys”, now old and not Hezbollahi enough, are moving towards the exit.
Khamenei has compared his struggle with the American “Great Satan” with the Tom and Jerry conflicts in the word of Hollywood cartoons. On many occasions viewers think that the playful mouse is done for, only for him to dodge the cat and bounce back with a new trick.
Four decades of Tom & Jerry Iranian-style was made possible by the gullibility and impatience of Americans who always wanted quick results, took their wishes for reality, and allowed the mischievous/playful mouse to live another day for another adventure.
Will history repeat itself?