English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For August 03/2020
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
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Bible Quotations For today
Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these
Luke 12/22-31: “Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? If then you are not able to do so small a thing as that, why do you worry about the rest? Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you you of little faith! And do not keep striving for what you are to eat and what you are to drink, and do not keep worrying. For it is the nations of the world that strive after all these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, strive for his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on August 02-03/2021
France, UN target $357 mln for Lebanon in aid conference
Miqati Warns from Baabda: Formation Timeframe Not Open-Ended
Lebanon’s PM-designate Mikati says he hoped for faster pace toward government
Report: Imminent Progress Unlikely in Govt. Formation Process
Lebanese army detains man after deadly Hezbollah funeral attack
Qahwaji Distances Himself from Lawyer Remarks on Hizbullah, Nitrates
Bassil Calls on Berri to Hold a Session to Lift Immunities on August 4
Obstruction to Beirut Blast Probe 'Shameless' Says Amnesty
Tourist Establishments to Close on August 4
One Year On, Political Interference Besets Beirut Blast Probe
Lebanon Timeline: One Year since Beirut Blast
Memorial sculpture at Beirut port blast site draws mixed reviews in Lebanon
Lebanon’s post-explosion economy, one year on: Chief economist weighs in
Lebanon: One year on from devastating Beirut explosion, authorities shamelessly obstruct justice/Amnesty International web site/August 02/2021

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 02-03/2021
Iran Warns against Any Action over Tanker Attack
Text of statement by Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken regarding the attack on Mercer Street vessel
Two More Tunisia MPs Critical of President Arrested
Israel's Top Court Meets on Sheikh Jarrah Evictions
U.S., UK Join Israel in Accusing Iran of Deadly Tanker Attack
Ismail Haniyeh Re-elected as Leader of Palestinian Islamist Group Hamas
Timeline: Taliban's Sweeping Offensive
U.S. to Take in Thousands More Afghan Refugees
UAE’s Hope Probe captures crystal-clear image of Mars’ surface

Titles For The Latest The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on August 02-03/2021
Turkey Continues to Harbor and Sponsor Extremists/Thomas Joscelyn/The Dispatch/August 02/2021
After Six-Month Wait, Biden Administration Imposes First Syria Sanctions/David Adesnik/Policy Brief/FDD/August 02/2021
Tunisia: Restoring democracy through undemocratic means is a political tightrope/Nedra Cherif/Al Arabiya/02 August ,2021

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on August 02-03/2021
France, UN target $357 mln for Lebanon in aid conference
AFP/02 August ,2021
France said on Monday a forthcoming conference on Lebanon needs to gather $357 million in aid to meet the most urgent needs of the battered country’s population. The conference on Wednesday, co-hosted by President Emmanuel Macron and United Nations chief Antonio Guterres, coincides with the first anniversary of the blast that disfigured Beirut and killed more than 200 people. US President Joe Biden is going to provide pre-recorded remarks at the conference at the conference, a US official told Al Arabiya English. Former colonial power France has spearheaded international efforts to lift Lebanon out of crisis. A first conference in the immediate aftermath of the blast collected 280 million euros ($332 million at current rates).“The situation has worsened,” Macron’s office said on Monday. Citing a UN estimate, his office said Lebanon’s new needs amounted to $357 million and concerned food security, education, health and clean water supply. World powers have made much of their help conditional on Lebanon installing a government capable of tackling corruption. A local probe into the catastrophe has yet to yield significant arrests or even identify a culprit, with politicians widely accused of stalling progress. In the past year, Lebanon has plunged into political and financial crisis and on Monday newly designated prime minister Najib Mikati said there was no chance of a cabinet lineup by mid-week to coincide with the anniversary. The institutional vacuum is holding up a potential financial rescue plan for Lebanon, which defaulted on its debt last year and has since sunk into what the World Bank has described as one of the world’s worst crises since the mid-19th century.Wednesday’s conference is to tackle emergency needs only and will not be concerned with structural financial assistance, Macron’s office said.

Miqati Warns from Baabda: Formation Timeframe Not Open-Ended
Naharnet/August 02/2021
Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati warned Monday after meeting President Michel Aoun in Baabda that the timeframe for the cabinet's formation is “not open-ended.”“I was honestly hoping for a faster pace in the cabinet formation process and I was hoping for a government before the August 4 anniversary,” Miqati said after the talks.Noting that he wants to preserve the “same confessional distribution of portfolios” that was followed in Hassan Diab’s government, in order to avoid further complications, the PM-designate said he agreed with Aoun to meet again on Thursday.

Lebanon’s PM-designate Mikati says he hoped for faster pace toward government
Reuters/02 August ,2021
Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati said on Monday he had hoped for a quicker pace toward the formation of a new government and that his efforts would not be open-ended. His comments after a meeting with President Michel Aoun underlined the challenge of forming a new government for Lebanon, where fractious politicians have been unable to agree even as the country falls deeper into economic crisis. “I had hoped for a pace that was faster than this in the government formation. It is a bit slow,” said Mikati, who was designated prime minister last month after Saad Hariri abandoned his effort to form the new cabinet. The Lebanese pound, which has lost more than 90 percent of its value in less than two years, weakened. Dollars were changing hands at a rate of around 20,000 pounds after Mikati spoke, compared to 19,200/19,300 before his comments, a dealer said. Mikati, a wealthy businessman, said he would meet Aoun again on Thursday. Asked if he had a deadline for his efforts, he said: “As far as I am concerned, the timeframe is not open. Let he who wishes to understand, understand.” The prime minister must be a Sunni Muslim in Lebanon’s sectarian power-sharing system. Abandoning his effort last month, Hariri said he could not agree with Aoun, the Maronite Christian head of state. The last government led by Prime Minister Hassan Diab resigned after the Beirut port explosion on Aug. 4 last year. It stays on in a caretaker capacity until a new one is formed.

Report: Imminent Progress Unlikely in Govt. Formation Process
Naharnet/August 02/2021
Circles close to PM-designate Najib Miqati have ruled out chances of “progress” in the government formation process between President Michel Aoun and Miqati, according to media reports. The sources told the PSP's al-Anbaa news portal, in remarks published Monday, that the Free Patriotic Movement’s intentions are not “right,” otherwise the government would have been formed since the first meeting between Aoun and Miqati. They revealed that Aoun is still demanding the interior and the justice portfolios, and that having the interior portfolio is for him “a matter of life or death.”The sources added that Aoun is demanding the Interior portfolio “to ensure (FPM chief) Jebran Bassil's victory in the upcoming elections” that the new government will be supervising. The circles revealed that "Miqati is trying to assign the Interior portfolio to a neutral, independent and reliable person” and that “it makes no difference to him whether this person is Sunni or Christian.”They added that Aoun refused Miqati’s approach and that Miqati will give himself “a period of ten days to form a government or step back.”The circles linked Miqati's success in forming the government to “the ambiance of the expected Baabda meeting,” which can be “optimistic” and might lead towards government formation “or not.”

Lebanese army detains man after deadly Hezbollah funeral attack
Reuters, Beirut/02 August ,2021
The Lebanese army said on Monday it had detained a man wanted over an attack on mourners at a funeral where three people were killed, after the extremist group Hezbollah demanded the perpetrators be detained. The shooting in Khaldeh, a town south of Beirut where tensions between Shia and Sunni Muslims have long simmered, has prompted leaders to warn against an escalation as Lebanon grapples with political and financial crises. The attack targeted the funeral of Hezbollah member Ali Shibli who was shot dead on Saturday during a wedding. Sunni Arab tribes claimed responsibility for that shooting, saying they had taken revenge for the killing of one of their members last year in Khaldeh. Army intelligence stormed the homes of several wanted people and detained a man who was involved in the funeral attack, the army said. Hezbollah, an armed group backed by Iran, has said it is seeking to maintain calm but said the attackers must be handed over. The group has called it a planned ambush. “You don’t want strife, then come and surrender those killers to the state,” Hassan Fadlallah, a Hezbollah MP, said in an interview with al-Jadeed TV late on Sunday. People were “boiling”, and the group could not control them all, he said. Shibli’s coffin was draped in a Hezbollah flag at his funeral in the town of Kunin in southern Lebanon. Clerics prayed over the casket and Hezbollah fighters wearing camouflage and red berets were in attendance, footage broadcast by Hezbollah’s al-Manar TV showed. “What happened in Khaldeh confirms the blatant absence of the logic of the state and that the language of uncontrolled and illegitimate arms is the one prevailing,” Fouad Makhzoumi, an independent Sunni MP, wrote on Twitter. “We are afraid of the country being dragged to strife.” Lebanon’s financial and economic meltdown marks the biggest crisis since the 1975-90 civil war. “Strife awakens on the eve of Aug. 4,” declared the front-page headline of an-Nahar newspaper, referring to the first anniversary of the Beirut port explosion that devastated swathes of the capital and killed more than 200 people.

Qahwaji Distances Himself from Lawyer Remarks on Hizbullah, Nitrates
Naharnet/August 02/2021
Former army chief Jean Qahwaji has distanced himself from remarks voiced by his lawyer about the ammonium nitrate shipment that exploded at Beirut’s port.
“The remarks of my lawyer Antoine Toubia, in which he accused Hizbullah of covering up for the smuggling of ammonium nitrates to Syria, do not represent me and they were a personal analysis by him,” Qahwaji said in a TV interview. Toubia had earlier said that “no party or human in Lebanon can steal this material, and accordingly the quantity that was stolen went to a sisterly state on our border that had a war raging.”“We know the Syrian status in Lebanon and that they can do what they want. These things do not require a cover,” Toubia added. Asked whether Hizbullah had provided the Syrians with a cover, the lawyer said: “Say what you want.”Toubia also noted that “Syria could not place the nitrates on its soil while facing the possibility of bombardment at any moment,” adding that “the investigative judge has major and comprehensive jurisdiction and can rely on it to turn toward Syria.”

Bassil Calls on Berri to Hold a Session to Lift Immunities on August 4
Naharnet/August 02/2021
Head of the Free Patriotic Movement Jebran Bassil called on Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri to hold a session to lift immunities on August 4. Bassil said in a press conference held Monday In Sin el-Fil that the Beirut port blast is a "security-related act" and is not limited to workplace negligence. It outlines “the negligence, the corruption and the chaos in the country."He affirmed that deputies “should give full authority to the judiciary that has to prove correctness and impartiality."He added that the judicial investigator must prove his “fairness and transparency” and he called on him to issue the necessary report to the insurance companies and to guarantee “that no one will be arrested without testifying." Bassil considered that President Michel Aoun has “set an example” when he expressed his willingness to testify before the judicial investigator. He also said that he believes that the Lebanese, from all groups and sects, are “mature” and that “the strife theory” is being used to “pass political deals," in reference to Sunday's deadly clashes in Khalde.

Obstruction to Beirut Blast Probe 'Shameless' Says Amnesty
Agence France Presse/August 02/2021
Amnesty International on Monday accused the Lebanese authorities of "shamelessly" obstructing the investigation into last year's monster Beirut port blast, as victims' families set a deadline for action. A year after the August 4 explosion that killed more than 200 people and levelled entire neighborhoods of the city, no official has been brought to justice.The blast, considered one of the biggest non-nuclear explosions in history, was caused by hundreds of tons of ammonium nitrate stored in a dockside warehouse. How the fertilizer got there, why it was so poorly stored for years, and what started the fire that blew it up are questions that the Lebanese probe has yet to answer. "Lebanese authorities have spent the past year shamelessly obstructing victims' quest for truth and justice," Amnesty International said in a statement. The explosion was widely seen by victims' families and the broader public as the result of incompetence and corruption on the part of the ruling class. Authorities dismissed the first judge who was tasked with investigating the case, after he summoned top officials for questioning. His replacement has also faced obstruction from leading political figures when he also tried to bring in senior politicians and security officials for questioning. "Given the scale of this tragedy, it is astounding to see how far the Lebanese authorities are prepared to go to shield themselves from scrutiny," Amnesty's deputy regional director Lynn Maalouf said. The lack of accountability is blocking compensation and insurance payments to the victims, and has further discredited an already reviled political elite. Relatives of some of the explosion's victims are planning marches on Wednesday to honor their loved ones, on the first anniversary of the tragedy, and to demand that the parliamentary immunity of some of the chief suspects be lifted.
In a press conference on Monday, they called on authorities to lift immunity within three days, warning that they are willing to "break bones" in upcoming protests unless action is taken. "We are done with routine and peaceful demonstrations... beware our anger," said Ibrahim Hoteit, a spokesperson for victims' families. "You have 30 hours to sort out the issue of immunities."

Tourist Establishments to Close on August 4
Naharnet/August 02/2021
The Syndicate of Owners of Restaurants, Cafes, Nightclubs and Patisseries announced Monday in a statement that it recommends the tourist establishments to close on the first anniversary of the Beirut port explosion on August 4. The syndicate stressed its solidarity with “the martyrs and the injured and their families” and also “with the tourism sector” affected by the Beirut port blast. They mentioned that the tourism sector has lost “victims from its employees and clients, in addition to heavy material damages.”"We hope that justice will be served soon” and that “all those involved in this unforgivable crime will be held accountable," the statement concluded. Wednesday, August 4, has been declared a national mourning day in commemoration of those injured and killed by the Beirut port blast.

One Year On, Political Interference Besets Beirut Blast Probe
Naharnet/August 02/2021
In the year since a monster explosion disfigured Beirut, a local probe has yet to yield significant arrests or even identify a culprit, with politicians widely accused of stalling progress. The August 4, 2020 explosion at the Beirut port killed more than 200 people and destroyed swathes of the capital. It devastated its dockside harbor, where the initial fire had broken out, and was felt as far as Cyprus. Authorities said 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate fertilizer haphazardly stocked in a port warehouse since 2014 had caught fire, causing one of history's largest non-nuclear explosions. Political leaders have repeatedly refused an international investigation, although France has launched its own probe over the death of some French citizens in the blast. The domestic investigation has yet to determine what triggered the blast, where the chemicals originated from or why they were left unattended for six years. In a country where even high-profile assassinations and bombings go unpunished, many fear that a Lebanon-led blast probe will also fail to hold anyone to account.
Officials in government, parliament and the country's top security agencies have so far dodged questioning by referencing so-called "immunity" clauses in the constitution.
"They are simply trying to evade justice," said lawyer Youssef Lahoud, who represents hundreds of blast victims. Despite such obstacles, Tarek Bitar, the judge leading the investigation, has completed more than 75 percent of the case, said a judicial source familiar with the probe. "He almost has a full picture of what happened," the source said, adding that Bitar hoped to unveil his findings by the end of the year.
The investigator has so far identified who is responsible for shipping the ammonium nitrate to Beirut and who decided to unload it and store it at the port, according to Lahoud.
"But there are key questions that we still don't have answers to, most notably, what sparked the explosion and are there any hidden links regarding who brought the shipment into Lebanon?"
The shipment
The ammonium nitrate is widely understood to have arrived in Beirut in 2013 onboard the Rhosus, a Moldovan-flagged ship sailing from Georgia to Mozambique.
The vessel was seized by authorities after a company filed a lawsuit against its owner over a debt dispute. In 2014, port authorities unloaded the shipment and stored it in a derelict warehouse with cracked walls. A Mozambican factory -- Fabrica de Explosivos de Mocambique -- confirmed it had ordered and never received the ammonium nitrate.
Bitar has identified key protagonists like the owner of the company that shipped the ammonium nitrate and a bank in Mozambique that funded the shipment, Lahoud said.
"But the investigation has not concluded yet if there are other parties" behind the shipment, Lahoud added. The head of Savaro Ltd –- an intermediary company that is believed to have procured the ammonium nitrate in 2013 -– refused to disclose the real owners' identity, he said. The investigation is also looking into reports alleging that three Syrian businessmen holding Russian citizenship had a hand in purchasing the chemicals.
The cause
According to Lahoud, the "weak point" of the investigation is that it has not yet determined what triggered the blast. He said that the investigation "has confirmed so far that the ammonium nitrate had been stored near explosive material". Security sources initially suggested that welding work could have started the fire, but experts have since dismissed that theory as unlikely and an attempt to shift the blame for high-level failings. Bitar is planning a simulation to zero in on the origin of the blaze. In recent months, he has issued requests for assistance from more than 10 countries asking for satellite imagery. According to the judicial source, only France responded, saying it had no satellite trained on Lebanon at the time of the blast. Without satellite images, "it's difficult for investigators to determine whether ammonium nitrate was smuggled from the port warehouse", Lahoud said. Some experts believe that the quantity of ammonium nitrate that blew up last year was substantially less than 2,750 tones, leading many to suspect that large quantities had been stolen prior to the incident.
Lahoud has not ruled out an attack but French and American experts assisting with the probe downplayed the scenario of a missile attack after testing water and soil samples from the blast site.
Obstruction
Port authorities, security officials and political leaders, including then-premier Hassan Diab and President Michel Aoun, knew the chemicals were being stored at the port.
In a report seen by AFP, the State Security agency -- quoting a chemistry expert -- had warned that the ammonium nitrate would cause a huge explosion that could level the port.
After the blast, the State Security agency confirmed it had alerted authorities.
Fadi Sawan, the first judge tasked with investigating the blast, issued charges of negligence against Diab and three former ministers in December. He was removed for his trouble.
Bitar picked up where Sawan left off by summoning Diab and demanding parliament lift the immunity of ex-finance minister Ali Hasan Khalil, former public works minister Ghazi Zaiter and ex-interior minister Nohad Machnouk. Bitar has also asked for permission to investigate State Security chief Tony Saliba and the head of the General Security agency, Abbas Ibrahim.
He also brought charges against several former high-ranking military officials, including ex-army chief Jean Kahwaji. Documents and witness testimony suggest they were "all aware of the ammonium nitrate shipment and its dangers," the judicial source said.
But the country's reviled political class has closed ranks to stall the investigation.
"Every time the lead investigator tries to summon or investigate one of them, they turn to immunity for cover," Karlen Hitti Karam told AFP. The young woman's husband, brother and cousin were among the firefighters killed in the blast. "It's like Lebanon is Ali Baba's cave, and not an actual state," she said.

Lebanon Timeline: One Year since Beirut Blast
Agence France Presse/August 02/2021
As Lebanon marks a year since the devastating Beirut port blast, here is a timeline of its 12 months of crisis:
Devastation
On August 4, 2020, one of the world's biggest-ever, non-nuclear explosions destroys much of Beirut's port and devastates swathes of the capital.
The blast was caused by a fire in a warehouse which Lebanese authorities admit held a vast stockpile of ammonium nitrate for six years.
The huge explosion leaves more than 200 dead, and injures over 6,500.
The tragedy strikes as Lebanon is mired in its worst economic crisis in decades, with its currency plummeting, massive layoffs and drastic banking restrictions.
'Apocalyptic'
Beirut is in a state of shock, with residents looking for the missing and searching gutted buildings for the injured and for their pets and belongings. It is an "apocalyptic situation", says Beirut governor Marwan Abboud the next day. International aid begins to arrive.
Macron weighs in
On August 6, French President Emmanuel Macron visits Beirut and walks through the devastated Gemmayzeh neighborhood.
His visit is praised by many Lebanese angry at their own leaders, whom they accuse of corruption and incompetence.
Macron calls for "deep changes" that the Lebanese population has been demanding for months.
The next day, President Michel Aoun rejects any international probe into the disaster.
International aid -
On August 8, thousands demonstrate, angry at their leaders over the explosion. Clashes with security forces erupt.
The next day, the international community pledges around $300 million in emergency aid.
It promises to stand by Lebanon but demands the aid be directly distributed to the population, and a transparent probe into the blast be carried out.
PM resigns
On August 10, prime minister Hassan Diab announces his government's resignation.
Demonstrators again take to the streets of Beirut and clash with security forces.
At the end of the month, diplomat Mustapha Adib is named as Lebanon's new premier.
Macron lands in Beirut hours later, extracting a promise from all political sides to help Adib form an independent crisis government.
On September 26, after weeks of deadlock, Adib bows out.
Macron says he is "ashamed" of Lebanese leaders, who he claims have "betrayed" their people.
Hariri back
On October 22, three-time prime minister Saad Hariri is nominated again, promising a government of experts to stop the economic collapse.
Diab continues as caretaker PM while Hariri tries to form an administration.
On December 2, at a second aid conference, Macron urges Lebanese politicians to form a government. Two days later, international donors lay out a $2.5-billion blast response plan over 18 months, but urge "credible progress on reforms".
Diab charged
On December 10, the lead investigator into the explosion charges Diab and three ex-ministers with negligence. But a week later, the probe is suspended, and a court removes the lead investigator in February. In June, rights groups including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch call for a UN investigation into the blast in light of the stalled domestic probe.
'Immunity'
In early July, the new judge investigating the blast says he has summoned Diab and taken steps towards indicting former ministers and security officials. Parliament says it needs more evidence before it waives immunity for three former ministers who are also lawmakers, a position that the lead investigator rejects. On July 15, Hariri steps down, saying he is unable to form a government.Later in the month, former premier Najib Mikati becomes Lebanon's third prime minister-designate since the blast.

Memorial sculpture at Beirut port blast site draws mixed reviews in Lebanon
Reuters/02 August ,2021
A sculpture of a giant angular figure made from the wreckage of last summer’s Beirut port blast was unveiled at the site on Monday, drawing support from some but also stoking anger among other Lebanese who believe justice should come before memorials.
The artwork dubbed “The Gesture” is the creation of Lebanese architect Nadim Karam, a Beirut resident and artist who says he wanted to pay tribute to the families of the victims of the explosion. It was funded by a number of private companies.
“You have a giant made of ashes, the scars of the city, and the scars of the people that did not yet heal,” Karam said, adding he hoped the families of those who lost their lives would look at the work positively. The Beirut port blast left more than 200 dead, thousands injured, and large swathes of the city destroyed. One year afterwards, no top officials have been held accountable as a local investigation stalls. Some relatives of victims attended the event on Monday, saying Karam was trying to claim part of the city for the public.
“When you have independent companies supporting the project and building such a project for seven or eight months ... definitely I will support,” said 46-year-old Joseph Chartouni, an architect who lost his mother to the blast. “For me the fact that it is made of steel from the site it is already a statement.”But others were angry at the project, saying there should be no commemoration without justice being served. A social media campaign denouncing Karam and accusing him of collaborating with the government spread a week prior to the unveiling.
Rawan Nassif, a 37-year-old filmmaker, is one of many Lebanese offended by the structure, saying the blast shouldn’t be treated as a memory yet. “The killers have complete impunity and we are already pretending something is in the past and we are trying to transcend it through art,” Nassif said. “I feel this is a crime scene that can’t be touched yet, and it has to be investigated, you can’t come and do an event from a crime scene.”But Karam defended his work. “All our intentions are positive and we have no affiliation to any political party nor to any politicians,” Karam said, adding that claims about him being associated with top officials were false. “The statue reflects Beirut in its sadness and its scars.”

Lebanon’s post-explosion economy, one year on: Chief economist weighs in
Tala Michel Issa, Al Arabiya English/02 August ,2021
The Beirut Port explosion on August 4 last year not only caused the Lebanese capital’s port to go up in smoke, but it reverberated across the capital and surrounding areas, causing immense widespread physical, mental and economic damage. On Wednesday, Lebanon marks a year since the blast, the country’s worst-ever peacetime disaster. The Beirut blast, which killed 214 people, was equivalent to a 3.3 to 4.5 magnitude earthquake.
It was one of the world’s biggest non-nuclear explosions to ever be recorded. Stored in a warehouse for six years, the large amounts of ammonium nitrate exploded and injured 6,500 people. It left the Lebanese capital in shambles, with over 300,000 people homeless and 70,000 jobless. It also left 73,000 apartments, 9,200 buildings, 163 schools and education centers, 106 healthcare facilities damaged. Prior to the blast, the country was already grappling with an out-of-control pandemic and instability, years of corruption and national debt brought on by the ruling elite. Al Arabiya English spoke with Chief Economist and head of Research at Bank Audi Marwan Barakat to better understand the state of the country now and how the blast worsened matters. “The explosion actually further worsened the country’s economic conditions, bearing in mind that Lebanon was already caught under an unprecedented macros crisis [before the blast] that drove it into real sector depression, monetary drift and huge socio-economic pressures at large,” said Barakat.
“The World Bank Group, in cooperation with the United Nations and the European Union launched a Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA) immediately after the explosion, to estimate the impact on the population, physical assets, infrastructure and service delivery in Beirut, utilizing ground data and cutting-edge remote tools and technology. The estimate of the damages and losses to the economy stands at an upper bound of circa $8 billion, very significant when compared to the size of the Lebanese economy,” he added.
United Kingdom-based charity Save the Children has said that hundreds of children in Lebanon are going to bed hungry as their parents fail to make ends meet at the end of every month. The devaluation of the country’s currency has left parents unable to pay for basic needs such as electricity, food and medicine. “Our children are craving food- as simple and tragic as that. My children (16 and 13 years old) lost weight significantly and the entire situation has affected not only their physical but also mental health,” Najwa, a single mother grappling with the economic crisis in Lebanon, told Save the Children.
“Both my parents are elderly with chronic illnesses. My father has cancer and, due to the situation, we missed a couple of months of treatment. Medication was either unavailable or too expensive. I don’t know how long we’ll be able to survive the situation. For months, we kept waiting and hoping things would get better but all we’re witnessing is a free fall into the abyss,” she added.
Beirut explosion, COVID-19 led to highest spike in food prices
The Beirut blast’s impact on the economy, coupled with that of the COVID-19 pandemic, have led to the highest spike in food prices in the world, meaning that families are having to resort to desperate measures such as buying food on credit, selling furniture, eating less and consuming poorer quality food. According to Barakat, there is room for the economic crisis to worsen even further. “In the absence of a credible Cabinet formation, the crisis can get worse in Lebanon,” he said. “As time goes by, the remaining reserves of the Central Bank are getting depleted on a daily basis. If no solution is reached within an acceptable horizon, the full depletion of BDL reserves can cause the macro situation to worsen, leading to a hyperinflation similar to a Venezuelan-like scenario and generating intense socio-economic pressures on Lebanese households,” added Barakat.
He believes that “…the mild margin of maneuver within the context of a wide confidence crisis and a lack of available tangible financing” would make any measure of support “prove to be of limited impact amid the massive current and upcoming socioeconomic pressures.”
Undoing the damage: What can be done?
“The government of Lebanon and the international community need to start treating the situation in Lebanon for what it is- a full-fledged humanitarian crisis driven by an economy in total collapse. This crisis is entirely man-made, so it can also be man-unmade. If that doesn’t happen, children can die of hunger any day,” Save the Children’s country director for Lebanon Jennifer Moorehead was quoted as saying in a report released by the charity group on Thursday. “The intense political bickering around Cabinet formation for the past year adds to the political cloudiness, increases monetary fears and accentuates black market volatility and fuels inflationary pressures,” says Barakat. “What is needed in this political volatility period is to have concerted efforts between government, parliamentary and monetary authorities to try to lessen, as much as possible, the burden of political uncertainty on the Lebanese population.”
Barakat believes that sitting back and doing nothing whilst relying on the status-quo would only lead to “total chaos”, but instead, he suggested that an orderly “restructuring” based on the International Monetary Fund’s disbursement of $860 million to Lebanon in relation to its Special Drawing Rights (SDR), an international reserve asset created by the group in 1969 to supplement its member countries’ official reserves. He suggested that the restructuring take place with strict fiscal and structural reforms in place, by a credible cabinet, which newly elected prime minister-designate Najib Mikati is set to announce in the coming weeks. “It ought to be based on the restructuring of the public sector to reduce its borrowing needs, the creation of a sovereign fund with state assets for circa $30 billion which will serve directly or indirectly to bridge the prevailing FX (Foreign Exchange) gap, the injection of liquidity into the local banking sector via a loan linked to gold reserves, floating the local currency which reduces the local debt stock and negotiating a discount on Eurobonds investors.”

Lebanon: One year on from devastating Beirut explosion, authorities shamelessly obstruct justice
Amnesty International web site/August 02/2021
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/101068/%d8%a8%d9%8a%d8%a7%d9%86-%d9%85%d9%86%d8%b8%d9%85%d8%a9-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%b9%d9%81%d9%88-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%af%d9%88%d9%84%d9%8a%d8%a9-%d8%a8%d9%85%d9%86%d8%a7%d8%b3%d8%a8%d8%a9-%d9%85%d8%b1%d9%88%d8%b1/
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2021/08/lebanon-one-year-on-from-beirut-explosion-authorities-shamelessly-obstruct-justice/
Lebanese authorities have spent the past year shamelessly obstructing victims’ quest for truth and justice following the catastrophic port explosion in Beirut, said Amnesty International ahead of the one-year anniversary of the blast.
More than 217 people were killed and 7,000 injured when 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate exploded in Beirut’s port on 4 August 2020. The blast displaced 300,000 people and caused widespread destruction and devastation, damaging buildings up to 20km away.
Lebanese authorities promised a swift investigation; instead they have brazenly blocked and stalled justice at every turn
Lynn Maalouf, Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa
Throughout the year, the Lebanese authorities’ relentless efforts to shield officials from scrutiny have repeatedly hampered the course of the investigation. Authorities dismissed the first judge appointed to the investigation after he summoned political figures for questioning, and have so far rejected the new investigative judge’s requests to lift MPs’ immunity and to question senior members of the security forces in connection with the tragedy.
“The Beirut blast, one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history, inflicted widespread devastation and caused immense suffering. Lebanese authorities promised a swift investigation; instead they have brazenly blocked and stalled justice at every turn, despite a tireless campaign for justice and criminal accountability by survivors and families of victims,” said Lynn Maalouf, Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International.
“The Lebanese government tragically failed to protect the lives of its people, just as it has failed for so long to protect basic socio-economic rights. In blocking the judge’s attempts to summon political officials, the authorities have struck yet another blow to the people of Lebanon. Given the scale of this tragedy, it is astounding to see how far the Lebanese authorities are prepared to go to shield themselves from scrutiny.”
As the first anniversary of the blast approaches, deeply traumatized residents of Beirut are still reeling from its catastrophic impact.
Mireille Khoury, whose 15-year-old son Elias died of injuries sustained in the explosion, described the horrific events of that day to Amnesty International:
“The day of 4 August seemed like the end of the world. We thought it was just a fire… I passed out and then woke up to find my house in ruins. My daughter asked me what happened. She was injured and I was injured too. I rushed outside and found my son on the staircase injured and covered with blood… On that day, they ruined our lives,” she said
“If Lebanese authorities allow this crime to pass without accountability, they will go down in history in the most horrendous manner,” she said, adding that she believes an international investigation is the only means to deliver justice.
Leaked official documents indicate that Lebanese customs, military and security authorities, as well as the judiciary, had warned successive governments of the dangerous stockpile of explosive chemicals at the port on at least 10 occasions in the past six years, yet no action was taken. The President also stated that he had knowledge of the danger but had “left it to the port authorities to address.”
Despite this, MPs and officials have been claiming their right to immunity throughout the investigation. This tactic has been used repeatedly in a decades-long context of post-conflict amnesty in Lebanon, effectively shielding suspected perpetrators of serious crimes under international law, and denying thousands of victims any form of acknowledgment, let alone justice.
Obstruction of justice
On 10 December 2020, Judge Fadi Sawan, the first investigative judge appointed, charged former Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil, former Public Works ministers Youssef Fenianos and Ghazi Zeaiter, and caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab, with criminal “negligence.” All refused to appear before the judge. Hassan Diab decried the decision as a violation of the constitution. Ghazi Zeaiter and Ali Hassan Khalil filed a lawsuit with the Court of Cassation to remove Judge Sawan from the investigation, citing immunity for MPs from criminal prosecution.
In response, Judge Sawan suspended the investigation on 17 December 2020 for nearly two months. Shortly afterwards on 18 February 2021, Lebanon’s Court of Cassation dismissed Judge Sawan. The decision to remove Judge Sawan was received with great anger by the families of victims, who took to the streets condemning political interference in the probe.
On 2 July 2021, the new judge assigned to the case, Judge Tarek Bitar, submitted a request to parliament to lift parliamentary immunity for MPs Ali Hasan Khalil, Ghazi Zeaiter and Nouhad Machnouk, along with several other high-ranking officials.
In response, 26 MPs from the blocs of Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri, Amal Movement, Hezbollah, and Future Movement, signed a petition requesting the launch of a parallel proceedings in an attempt to avoid interrogation by Judge Bitar. Six MPs later withdrew their signatures, following the outcry on social media from victims’ families and civil society activists.
In a separate move, the Minister of Interior rejected a request by Judge Bitar to question the head of General Security, Abbas Ibrahim, one of the country’s top generals. The judge is appealing the decision. In recent more positive moves, both the Beirut and Tripoli bar associations have lifted immunities from officials who are also lawyers – but parliamentary immunities, to date, remain in place.
The weeks of protests by survivors and families of victims are a stark reminder of what is at stake. Their pain and anger have been exacerbated as, time and time again, authorities obstruct their right to truth and justice
Lynn Maalouf
Granting immunity to political officials directly contradicts Lebanon’s obligations under the UN 2016 Minnesota Protocol which aims to protect the right to life and advance justice, accountability for unlawful deaths. The protocol identifies a potentially unlawful death as occurring “where the State may have failed to meet its obligations to protect life”. In such cases, states have a duty to hold perpetrators accountable, and impunity stemming from “political interference” or “blanket amnesties” directly contradicts that duty.
Amnesty International stands with families of victims in calling on Lebanese authorities to immediately lift all immunities granted to officials, regardless of their role or position.
In June, Amnesty International wrote to the UN Human Rights Council with a coalition of over 50 Lebanese and international organizations, calling for an international investigative mission, such as a one-year fact-finding mission, into the Beirut blast. The letter highlighted the procedural and systemic flaws which prevent Lebanon from meeting its international obligations to provide redress to victims.
“The weeks of protests by survivors and families of victims are a stark reminder of what is at stake. Their pain and anger have been exacerbated as, time and time again, authorities obstruct their right to truth and justice,” said Lynn Maalouf.
“The UN Human Rights Council must heed their call and urgently set up an investigative mechanism to identify whether conduct by the state caused or contributed to the unlawful deaths, and what steps need to be taken to ensure an effective remedy to victims."

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 02-03/2021
Iran Warns against Any Action over Tanker Attack
Agence France Presse/August 02/2021
Iran on Monday vowed to respond to any "adventurism", its foreign ministry said, after the U.S. and Britain joined Israel in blaming Tehran for a deadly tanker attack, claims it denies. The MT Mercer Street, managed by prominent Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer, was attacked on Thursday off Oman. A British security guard and a Romanian crew member were killed in what the United States, Britain and the vessel's operator Zodiac Maritime said appeared to be a drone strike. Israel blamed Iran for the attack, accusations rejected by Tehran. Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said Sunday that Israel "must stop such baseless accusations."The US and Britain on Sunday also then blamed Iran for the attack, with Washington vowing an "appropriate response."Iran "will not hesitate to protect its security and national interests, and will immediately and decisively respond to any possible adventurism," ministry spokesman Khatibzadeh said in a statement. He dismissed US and Britain's statements as "contradictory", and said "if they have any evidence to support their baseless claims they should provide them". Khatibzadeh also accused them of effectively supporting "terrorist attacks against and sabotage of Iran's commercial ships" through their "silence." There have been several recent reported attacks on Iranian ships that Tehran has linked to Israel. In March, Iran said it was "considering all options" after an attack on a cargo ship in the Mediterranean, that it blamed on Israel. In April, Tehran said its freighter Saviz was hit by an "explosion" in the Red Sea, after media reports said Israel had targeted the ship. The New York Times reported at the time that this was an Israeli "retaliatory" attack, after "Iran's earlier strikes on Israeli ships." Iran has also accused Israel of sabotaging its nuclear sites and killing a number of its scientists.

Text of statement by Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken regarding the attack on Mercer Street vessel
US.Department Of State/Press Release/August 01/2021
We join our partners and allies in our strong condemnation of the attack against the Mercer Street, a commercial ship that was peacefully transiting through the north Arabian Sea in international waters. Upon review of the available information, we are confident that Iran conducted this attack, which killed two innocent people, using one-way explosive UAVs, a lethal capability it is increasingly employing throughout the region. There is no justification for this attack, which follows a pattern of attacks and other belligerent behavior. These actions threaten freedom of navigation through this crucial waterway, international shipping and commerce, and the lives of those on the vessels involved. We are working with our partners to consider our next steps and consulting with governments inside the region and beyond on an appropriate response, which will be forthcoming. We once again offer our condolences to the families of the victims.

Two More Tunisia MPs Critical of President Arrested
Agence France Presse/August 02/2021
Tunisian security forces have arrested two MPs from an Islamist party opposed to a power grab by President Kais Saied, their party said. Maher Zid and Mohamed Affes of Al-Karama have been placed in provisional detention in connection with a military investigation, party head Seifeddine Makhlouf wrote on Facebook. Al-Karama is allied to the Islamist-inspired Ennahdha party, the main opponent of the president. Their arrest late Saturday came a day after the detention of an independent MP, Yassine Ayari. Ayari was arrested after branding Saied's decision last Sunday to suspend parliament and sack the prime minister and other top officials a "military coup."Tunisia's military court said he was arrested pursuant to a two-month prison sentence passed in late 2018 for criticizing the army. Rights groups including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have expressed concern over his arrest. Affes is a former ultra-conservative cleric and Zid is a former journalist and blogger sentenced to two years in jail for insulting late president Beji Caid Essebsi. Makhlouf, a lawyer critical of the president, said he himself, Zid and Affes were wanted for having allegedly insulted police officers in March who prevented a woman from boarding a plane at Tunis airport. The prosecutor's office was not immediately available for comment, and the military court has not provided details. The arrests came as the United States called on Tunisia to return swiftly to its "democratic path."A week after his shock move, Saied has yet to name a new prime minister. He has dismissed accusations he staged a "coup" and said he acted within the constitution, which allows the head of state to take unspecified exceptional measures in the event of an "imminent threat." He has also declared a crackdown on corruption, accusing 460 businessmen of embezzlement. On Friday, he stressed he "hates dictatorship" and that there was "nothing to fear" concerning freedoms and rights in Tunisia. But political commentator Slaheddine Jourchi said the recent arrests were "a strategic mistake" and "not consistent with the president's statements.""Everyone expected him to begin with the dangerous corruption cases and with waging a direct battle against known parties, but these first arrests were of opponents," he told AFP. The Harak party of former president and activist Moncef Marzouki expressed its "deep concern" and criticized what it said was a "slide towards a settling of political scores and repression of freedoms, contrary to the assurances provided by the head of state". Harak is not a parliamentary ally of Ennahdha.

Israel's Top Court Meets on Sheikh Jarrah Evictions
Agence France Presse/August 02/2021
Israel's supreme court was holding a hearing Monday on the case of Palestinian families facing expulsion by Israeli settlers in annexed east Jerusalem, an issue that sparked conflict in May. Dozens of people protested outside the court in Jerusalem in support of the Palestinians from the city's Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood and against "Israeli settlement," an AFP reporter said. Violent clashes in May over the possible Sheikh Jarrah evictions spread to Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound, sparking a crackdown by Israeli security forces. That triggered an 11-day war between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip, which ended in a tense ceasefire. Four Palestinian families in Sheikh Jarrah have requested that the supreme court hear an appeal on their case, after the magistrate and district courts both ruled their homes belong to Jewish settlers. The Israeli court system normally allows only one appeal after a ruling. Since the Palestinians had already appealed the magistrate court ruling, the supreme court must decide whether to make an exception in this case. "The court could enable us to appeal," Sami Irshaid, the lawyer representing the families told AFP. Irshaid said it was "unlikely" that a verdict will be reached on Monday. Two lower courts had ruled that, under Israeli property law, the homes in question belonged to Jewish owners, who purchased the plots prior to the 1948 war that led to the creation of Israel. In 1956, when east Jerusalem was under Jordanian control, Amman leased plots of land to families in Sheikh Jarrah, and the UN agency for Palestinian refugees built homes for them. Amman promised to register them in their name, but never gave them full property rights. But in 1967, Israel occupied east Jerusalem, then annexed it in a move never recognized by the international community.
In 1970, Israel enacted a law under which Jews could reclaim land in east Jerusalem they lost in 1948, even if Palestinians by then already lived on it. No such option exists for Palestinians who lost homes or land. Israeli anti-settlement group Ir Amim says that over 1,000 Palestinians are at risk of losing their homes to Jewish settler groups and individuals in Sheikh Jarrah and the neighboring Silwan neighborhood.

U.S., UK Join Israel in Accusing Iran of Deadly Tanker Attack
Agence France Presse/August 02/2021
Israel's key allies the United States and Britain joined it Sunday in blaming Iran for a deadly tanker attack off Oman, despite Tehran's denials, and Washington vowed an "appropriate response". The U.S. and British statements came after Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said there was "evidence" linking Iran to the attack after the Islamic republic rejected its arch-foe's "baseless accusations". The MT Mercer Street, managed by prominent Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer, was attacked Thursday off Oman. A British security guard and a Romanian crew member were killed in what the U.S., Britain and the vessel's operator Zodiac Maritime said appeared to be a drone strike. Israel had blamed Iran, with Foreign Minister Yair Lapid saying Friday he had ordered its diplomats to push for U.N. action against "Iranian terrorism". On Sunday, Iran denied involvement, and foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said Israel "must stop such baseless accusations". "Iran will not hesitate for a moment to defend its... interests and national security," he told journalists. Shortly afterwards, Bennett accused Iran of "trying to evade responsibility for the event" in a "cowardly manner". "I determine, with absolute certainty, that Iran carried out the attack against the ship," Bennett said. "The intelligence evidence for this exists and we expect the international community will make it clear to the Iranian regime that they have made a serious mistake," he said. "In any case, we know how to send a message to Iran in our own way."
'Appropriate response' forthcoming
British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said London believed the attack was "deliberate, targeted, and a clear violation of international law by Iran", and "UK assessments" showed Iran used "one or more UAVs" (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) to target the tanker. "Iran must end such attacks, and vessels must be allowed to navigate freely in accordance with international law," Raab said in a statement. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington was "confident that Iran conducted this attack," and vowed that an "appropriate response" was forthcoming. Later Sunday, Lapid noted he had spoken with Blinken and Raab in recent days, and that he was "pleased" both countries "condemned these terrorist acts". "Israel will continue to hold conversations with our allies around the world and work together to formulate the necessary steps to combat ongoing Iranian terror," Lapid said in a statement. Israel's chief of staff has spoken to his British counterpart about "recent events in the region and common challenges faced by both countries", a statement said. Retired general Yossi Kuperwasser told military radio Israel would probably follow two tacks -- create global pressure against Iran and retain its ability to act "beyond the diplomatic realm".
Tit-for-tat strikes
Maritime analysts Dryad Global said Thursday's attack was the fifth against a ship connected to Israel since February. The tanker was travelling from Dar es Salaam in Tanzania to Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates with no cargo aboard when it was hit, Zodiac Maritime said. There have been several recent reported attacks on Iranian ships that Tehran has linked to Israel. In March, Iran said it was "considering all options" after an attack on a cargo ship in the Mediterranean that it blamed on Israel. And in April, Tehran said its freighter Saviz was hit by an "explosion" in the Red Sea, after media reports said Israel had targeted the ship. The New York Times reported at the time this was an Israeli "retaliatory" attack after "Iran's earlier strikes on Israeli ships". In a March report that cited U.S. and Middle East officials, the Wall Street Journal said Israel has targeted at least a dozen vessels bound for Syria, mostly carrying Iranian oil, since late 2019. Iran has also accused Israel of sabotaging its nuclear sites and killing a number of its scientists. Tehran and world powers are engaged in talks in Vienna in an effort to return Washington to a 2015 nuclear deal and lift sanctions, and bring Iran back in compliance with nuclear commitments it waived in retaliation for sanctions. The accord was strained when in 2018 former president Donald Trump withdrew the U.S. from it unilaterally and re-imposed sanctions.

Ismail Haniyeh Re-elected as Leader of Palestinian Islamist Group Hamas
Agence France Presse/August 02/2021
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh has been re-elected unopposed, officials confirmed Monday, furthering his grip over the Palestinian Islamist group that controls the Gaza Strip after recent clashes with Israel. In a statement, Hamas said that its electoral process had concluded with his reappointment as political chief after "tens of thousands" of members took part in the internal poll. The contest included no known opponent to Haniyeh. Considered a pragmatist, Haniyeh has been head of Hamas' political bureau since 2017, though he lives in exile, splitting his time between Turkey and Qatar. He was recently involved in talks aimed at bolstering the Cairo-brokered ceasefire that ended the latest deadly violence between the Jewish state and Hamas. The 11-day conflict in May killed 13 Israelis and 260 Palestinians, including some fighters. Hamas won the last legislative elections in Gaza, an impoverished Palestinian enclave of nearly two million, in 2006, delivering a surprise defeat to rivals Fatah. A virtual civil war the following year led to the division of Palestine, with Fatah dominating the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and Hamas ruling the Gaza Strip. Israel has blockaded Gaza since then, citing repeated attacks, while Hamas has been internationally shunned and declared a terrorist group by the European Union and the United States. Haniyeh's victory finalizes a poll process that began last March with the re-election of Hamas' local Gaza chief Yahya Shinwar. Further voting was postponed due to May's clashes with Israel.

Timeline: Taliban's Sweeping Offensive
Agence France Presse/August 02/2021
With the exit of U.S.-led foreign forces in Afghanistan near completion, the Taliban has ramped up its offensive, capturing half the country's districts and border crossings and encircling several provincial capitals.
A recap since the sweeping offensive began in May:
Fierce fighting
At the start of May, NATO begins a concurrent withdrawal of its mission in Afghanistan involving 9,600 soldiers, 2,500 of which are American. Intense fighting breaks out between the Taliban and government forces in the southern Helmand province and the insurgents capture Burka in northern Baghlan province. A bomb blast outside a girls' school on May 8 in Kabul kills 85 mostly girl students in an attack, the deadliest in a year, that is not claimed by any group but blamed on the Taliban. Mid-May, U.S. forces withdraw from the air base in Kandahar, one of the largest in the country.
Taliban advances
The insurgents seize districts in Wardak province, 40 km (25 miles) from Kabul, and take control of districts in restive Ghazni, a key province between two roads connecting Kabul to Kandahar, the second-largest city.
In mid-June, the Taliban claim to have captured several districts in the northern provinces of Faryab, Takhar and Badakhshan, forcing military leaders to strategically retreat from a number of areas.
Key borders
The Taliban takes control of the main Shir Khan Bandar border crossing with Tajikistan, prompting the country on June 22 to check the combat readiness of its armed forces.
The insurgents seize other routes to Tajikistan too, as well as the districts leading to Kunduz, capital of the province of the same name, about 50 kilometers from the Tajik border in northern Afghanistan.
U.S. leaves Bagram
Officials on July 2 announce the departure of all U.S. and NATO troops from Bagram, Afghanistan's biggest air base, which served as the linchpin for U.S.-led operations in the country for the past two decades. Two days later, the Taliban seize the key district of Panjwai in Kandahar, their birthplace and former bastion.
Key port
The Taliban announce on July 9 they have captured Afghanistan's biggest border crossing with Iran, Islam Qala, one of the major ports through which Kabul conducts most of its official trade with the Islamic Republic.
- Airport -
Afghan authorities say on July 11 they have installed an anti-missile system at Kabul airport to counter incoming rockets. Days later on July 14, the insurgents took control of Spin Boldak border crossing with Pakistan, also a key trade route between the two neighboring countries.
On July 22, the insurgents claim they now control 90 percent of Afghanistan's borders. Earlier in the month, they said they controlled 85 percent of the country's territory, figures disputed by the government and impossible to independently verify.
Three days later U.S. General Kenneth McKenzie, head of the U.S. Army Central Command, says the U.S. military will carry out more air strikes in support of Afghan forces and to stem the Taliban offensive.
Urban centers
In a sharp escalation over the weekend, the Taliban offensive focuses on urban centers. Overnight the insurgents assault at least three provincial capitals -- Lashkar Gah, Kandahar and Herat. On Monday, the government announces the deployment of hundreds of commandos to the area of Lashkar Gah in a bid to stop a first major city from falling to the Taliban. The capture of any major city would take the Taliban's offensive to another level and fuel concerns about the ability of the Afghan military.

U.S. to Take in Thousands More Afghan Refugees
Agence France Presse/August 02/2021
The United States said Monday it will take in thousands more Afghan refugees, fearing for the safety of people with U.S. associations as America ends its longest war. The State Department said it will expand the eligibility of refugee admissions beyond the roughly 20,000 Afghans who have already applied -- with some being evacuated out -- under a program for interpreters who assisted U.S. forces. "In light of increased levels of Taliban violence, the U.S. government is working to provide certain Afghans, including those who worked with the United States, the opportunity for refugee resettlement to the United States," the State Department said in a statement. "This designation expands the opportunity to permanently resettle in the United States to many thousands of Afghans and their immediate family members who may be at risk due to their U.S. affiliation," it said. The State Department said that the expanded eligibility will include Afghans who worked with U.S.-based media organizations or non-governmental organizations or on projects backed by U.S. funding. The State Department will also let in more Afghans who served as interpreters or in other support roles to forces of the U.S.-led coalition but did not meet earlier requirements on time served. The State Department is designating Afghan refugees with U.S. affiliations under so-called Priority 2, the same level given to persecuted minorities from a number of countries. President Joe Biden has ordered a withdrawal of remaining U.S. troops by the end of the month, ending the longest war in U.S. history. With the Taliban going on the offensive, the Biden administration acknowledges fears for the stability of the internationally backed government. But it insists that the United States has done all that it can and has accomplished its priority mission of eliminating al-Qaeda extremists who carried out the September 11, 2001 attacks.

UAE’s Hope Probe captures crystal-clear image of Mars’ surface
Tala Michel Issa, Al Arabiya English/02 August ,2021
The United Arab Emirates’ Hope probe mission captured a striking image of Mars, taken from an altitude of around 1,325 kilometers above the red planet’s surface. The image, which was obtained on March 15 this year, was shared on the Hope Mars Mission’s official Twitter account on Sunday and has since racked up hundreds of likes and retweets. The shot highlights the Elysium Planitia volcanic region of the planet, which the mission team began to orbit earlier in the year on February 9. The Hope Probe’s mission is to provide vital insights into the planet itself by examining the make-up of different layers of the red planet’s atmosphere using a combination of visible-light, infrared and ultraviolet cameras. It also aims to measure the depth of surface ice, carbon monoxide and oxygen levels in its atmosphere, as well as the distribution of dust, ice clouds, temperatures, water vapor in the lower atmosphere. It left Earth from Japan’s Tanegashima island on July 20, 2020 and reached the planet’s orbit almost seven months later.The UAE made history with its Hope probe, becoming the Arab world’s first nation and the fifth in the world to send a probe to Mars. The country has also set an ambitious goal to build a human colony on Mars by 2117.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials published on August 02-03/2021
Turkey Continues to Harbor and Sponsor Extremists
Thomas Joscelyn/The Dispatch/August 02/2021
New sanctions on Turkey remind us of the country's unsavory connections to the terrorist underworld.
On Wednesday, the U.S. Treasury and State Departments announced a series of designations and sanctions targeting multiple bad actors in the Syrian war. The financial restrictions are intended to restrict the flow of cash to those parties responsible for committing atrocities in a war that is now nearly a decade old.
No actor has killed and imprisoned more Syrians than Bashar al-Assad’s regime. And the U.S. government sanctioned multiple Syrian officials who are responsible for overseeing Assad’s mass murder and torture machine. “More than 14,000 detainees have reportedly died after being tortured at the hands of the Assad regime, according to the Syrian Network for Human Rights, while 130,000 Syrians are reportedly still missing or detained,” the State Department pointed out. And these prisoners are held in a network of facilities run by the Assad regime’s intelligence arms, which were targeted in the most recent measures.
However, the U.S. government’s financial sanctions don’t just target Bashar al-Assad’s henchmen. Others are intended to limit the resources of extremists and jihadists backed by Turkey, a NATO ally that has developed a web of unsavory connections in the terrorist underworld.
Consider the case of Ahrar al-Sharqiya, an extremist group that has played a key role in Turkey’s military incursions into northern Syria.
Ahrar al-Sharqiya was sanctioned by the U.S. for engaging “in abductions, torture, and seizures of private property from civilians,” while also “barring displaced Syrians from returning to their homes.” The group “controls a large prison complex outside of Aleppo where hundreds have been executed since 2018.” And it has also planned a string of kidnappings for ransoms, “targeting prominent business and opposition figures from the provinces of Idlib and Aleppo.” Among Ahrar al-Sharqiya’s victims is Hevrin Khalaf, a Kurdish political figure who was assassinated in October 2019.
Turkey’s sponsorship of Ahrar al-Sharqiya has long been known. As has a troubling fact about the group: It became a refuge for former Islamic State (ISIS) fighters after the so-called caliphate crumbled.
Ahrar al-Sharqiya has “integrated former ISIS members into its ranks,” the U.S. Treasury Department notes. Ahmad Ihsan Fayyad al-Hayes (a.k.a. “Abu Hatem Shaqra”), the leader of the group, has overseen their integration. A “number of former ISIS officials” swore allegiance to al-Hayes and then worked on his “ransom and extortion efforts.”
Still other former ISIS goons serve Raed Jassim al-Hayes, Ahrar al-Sharqiya’s military commander. Among his fighters is a former member of an ISIS unit “known for frequent torture of civilians.”
Ahrar al-Sharqiya isn’t ISIS. But its Islamist agenda is obviously close enough to the former caliphate’s that ISIS cadres quickly found a new home inside the group.
Ahrar al-Sharqiya is hardly the only extremist group to garner Turkey’s favor. In a separate designation, the U.S. Treasury Department identified Hasan Al-Shaban as an al-Qaeda bag man. While working on Turkish soil, Al-Shaban has overseen a financial network that moves “money from associates across North Africa, Western Europe, and North America.” This al-Qaeda financing is transferred through accounts in Turkey to support the “mujahideen” in Syria.
Another money man based in Turkey, Farrukh Furkatovitch Fayzimatov, works for the al-Qaeda offshoot Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). He is allowed to recruit and “solicit donations” for HTS inside Turkey, even though the U.S., U.N. and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s own government has designated HTS as a terrorist organization.
The truth is that none of this is surprising. Branches of the U.S. government have been documenting Turkey’s permissive attitude towards both al-Qaeda and ISIS figures for years.
In January, for instance, the Treasury Department reported that ISIS continues to rely on “logistical hubs” in Turkey. These hubs in Turkey connect ISIS’s financial network in Iraq and Syria to other points around the globe.
In November 2019, the Treasury Department designated two brothers—Ismail and Ahmet Bayaltun—for their roles as “procurement agents” for the Islamic State. The brothers are based in Turkey and own businesses along the Syrian border. These businesses allegedly act as fronts for ISIS to move money and secure supplies.
Earlier in 2019, the U.S. government designated members of the Rawi Network operating in Turkey. The Rawi Network originally helped Saddam Hussein’s regime evade sanctions, but became a core financial apparatus for the Islamic State.
In 2017, the Treasury Department said that another jihadist, Salim Mustafa Muhammad al-Mansur, had relocated to Turkey after serving as the Islamic State’s “finance emir” in Mosul, Iraq. Other facilitators in Turkey have been officially sanctioned as well.
Erdoğan’s security forces often announce raids on jihadist cells. But more often than not, it appears that Turkey is a safe haven for terrorists.
In April 2016, for example, the U.S. killed a well-known, al-Qaeda-linked terrorist named Rifai Ahmed Taha Musa in Syria. Musa had worked with Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri since the 1980s. He had been tied to a number of international terrorist plots. U.S. intelligence closely tracked Musa as he crossed the border from Turkey into Syria’s Idlib province. As it turned out, Musa’s decision to leave Turkey proved to be a costly one, as he was quickly struck down after stepping foot on Syrian soil.
Had Musa stayed in Turkey, he’d likely still be alive today. Before his death, photos of Musa with his longtime comrade-in-arms, Mohammed Islambouli, circulated on social media. The two were pictured in shopping areas with Turkey. Islambouli is the brother of the assassin who killed Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in 1981. Islambouli is also a well-known al-Qaeda leader. Before relocating to Turkey, he spent years living inside Iran. At one point, Islambouli even maintained a Facebook page that documented his trips to various civilian spots within Turkey. Unlike Musa, Islambouli is likely still alive today.
As the examples above demonstrate, Turkey is a deeply problematic ally for the U.S. and Europe. Some have likened it to Pakistan, another nation nominally allied with the West that also harbors extremists. And just like Pakistan, the challenges posed by Turkey’s duplicity are not going away anytime soon.
**Thomas Joscelyn is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Senior Editor for FDD’s Long War Journal. Follow Tom on Twitter @thomasjoscelyn. FDD is a nonpartisan think tank focused on foreign policy and national security issues.

After Six-Month Wait, Biden Administration Imposes First Syria Sanctions
David Adesnik/Policy Brief/FDD/August 02/2021
The departments of State and Treasury announced on Wednesday the imposition of sanctions on eight Syrian prisons and five officials in charge of them as part of the administration’s efforts to protect human rights and advance the objectives of the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019. The new sanctions target a set of entities and individuals responsible for numerous atrocities, but the designations are unlikely to deprive the Bashar al-Assad regime of the resources necessary to sustain its calamitous war effort.
Caesar is the pseudonym of a Syrian military photographer who collected tens of thousands of digital images of tortured corpses, which he made public after defecting from the regime and sought asylum abroad. The law bearing Caesar’s name authorized new categories of sanctions to intensify pressure on the Assad regime. State and Treasury both emphasized that Caesar’s images documented abuse at many of the designated prisons.
The administration also imposed human rights sanctions on both Saraya al-Areen, a militia associated with the Syrian army, and Ahrar al-Sharqiya, an armed opposition group responsible for abusing Syrian Kurds. In a separate action on the same day, Treasury imposed sanctions on Farrukh Fayzimatov, a fundraiser for the Syrian jihadi terrorist organization Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.
The Caesar Act passed with overwhelming bipartisan support in December 2019. The previous administration issued its first designations the day the law went into effect the following June, then sanctioned additional targets each month for the remainder of 2020. In total, the previous administration designated 113 targets, including key figures in regime-controlled business enterprises, such as Khodr Ali Taher and Yasser Ibrahim.
The sanctions prescribed by the Caesar Act are mandatory, so the Biden administration has an obligation to designate all those engaged in sanctionable activity. The enforcement pause that began after President Joe Biden took office led to questions about whether the administration was looking for a pretext to suspend the law’s implementation. On multiple occasions, the State Department denied that was the case. A senior official told journalists in May, “The Caesar Act was passed by an overwhelming majority of the American Congress. So the administration is going to implement the law.”
This week’s sanctions leave open the question of whether the administration wants to exert maximal pressure on the Assad regime or simply prefers to satisfy the letter of the law by designating targets with little or no economic significance. If the administration is committed to escalating economic pressure, it should focus on three areas: narco-trafficking, illicit crude oil imports from Iran, and the regime’s expropriation of much of the humanitarian aid paid for by Western governments and distributed by UN agencies.
An in-depth report by the Center for Operational Analysis and Research on the Assad regime’s narco-trafficking found that in 2020, the regime exported synthetic stimulants, mainly Captagon, with a street value of nearly $3.5 billion. In comparison, the Syrian government’s proposed budget for 2021 entailed only $2.7 billion of spending (although much of what the government spends is likely off the books). Since the beginning of the war in 2011, the regime’s financial survival has also depended on crude oil deliveries from Iran. A single Suezmax tanker can deliver 1 million barrels of crude, with a current market value of about $75 per barrel.
Finally, the regime has found numerous ways to divert humanitarian assistance to its own coffers. For example, official procurement data show that UN agencies spent $70.1 million at the regime-controlled Four Seasons Damascus from 2014 through 2020.
This week’s sanctions may represent a first step toward meaningful enforcement of the Caesar Act. The pace of future designations and the economic significance of the targets will determine whether the administration is fully committed to its goal, as Secretary of State Antony Blinken put it on Wednesday, of “taking action to promote accountability for entities and individuals that have perpetuated the suffering of the Syrian people.”
*David Adesnik is research director and a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), where he contributes to FDD’s Center on Economic and Financial Power (CEFP). For more analysis from David and CEFP, please subscribe HERE. Follow David on Twitter @adesnik. Follow FDD on Twitter @FDD and @FDD_CEFP. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.

Tunisia: Restoring democracy through undemocratic means is a political tightrope
Nedra Cherif/Al Arabiya/02 August ,2021
Since Tunisian President Kais Saied announced a series of exceptional measures on July 25, external observers’ main concerns have been to determine whether the President’s move could be termed a “coup”, and whether the sacrosanct democracy for which Tunisia has been applauded for a decade was now under threat.Eager to keep regarding Tunisia as the sole success story of the Arab Spring in a region where most countries have either returned to some form of authoritarianism or slipped into civil war, these observers, concerned to see collapse what, in their own definition, was still a democracy, failed to grasp the actual situation on the ground. Instead, they confined themselves to a narrow and overly procedural conception of democracy, regrettably neglecting the human dimension of the whole situation, and giving little consideration to Tunisians’ own views and feelings about the last events. As such, they largely missed the ills that have afflicted Tunisians for years and the even more blatant deficiencies of a system that has remained democratic in nothing but name.
A political elite doing the work
Democracy in Tunisia has not been put at threat by President Saied’s latest decisions. It has been subverted for years by a self-interested political elite that has systematically undermined all state institutions, and that has brought an already rampant corruption under the Ben Ali regime to levels never before achieved. These political elites have distorted the very nature of parliamentary work, first by preventing the emergence of a constructive opposition under the cover of a needed consensus and, later, by turning the institution into a circus shaped by incessant disputes and violence.
Elected representatives’ immunity has become a synonym for impunity, allowing them to absolve responsibility rather than be held accountable to their constituencies. Politicians have weaponized cabinet formation and reshuffles into political horse-trading, aimed at satisfying egos and silencing opponents, while public service positions are sold to the highest bidder or distributed based on partisan allegiance.
For six years, these elites have prevented the establishment of a constitutional court whose absence they now deplore, and for 10 years they have failed to meet the revolutionary demands of dignity and social justice. Instead, the Tunisian people have seen widening social gaps and deepening inequalities, depriving a whole generation of hopes and future prospects in their own country. Now, these same politicians claim to understand and respect the “legitimate demands” of a people that they have at best ignored, at worst despised.
Is this the democracy that everyone is now so concerned to protect?
This is certainly not the democracy that Tunisians had hoped for or aimed at when they overthrew Ben Ali’s regime 10 years ago. Today, Tunisians are not aspiring to a return to authoritarianism as has been stated elsewhere, but to restore a process that has deviated from its path and has been jeopardized for the interests of a minority. They wish to rebuild a functional democracy able to deliver the most basic services to its people, to ensure them a decent life, to respect their dignity, and above all to treat everyone on an equal footing.
To reach this objective, a majority of Tunisians are now ready to accept a radical change, even if triggered by disputable means, including measures deemed by some as undemocratic or unconstitutional. How many times did the political elite use undemocratic means to safeguard or advance their selfish interests? How many times did the international community tacitly approve and openly endorse undemocratic means to enable political processes to move forward? Political scientists themselves have argued that, in some circumstances, resorting to undemocratic means could help (re)build democracy. Today, sacrificing some democratic procedures appears to Tunisians as a small price to pay to restore the true meaning of democracy, i.e. a government representing the will of the people, serving the people and being accountable to the people.
However, this does not mean that Tunisians are giving President Saied a blank check. They are willing to trust him, but not to accept anything and especially not to make concessions on the revolution’s gains, in particular their hardly achieved rights and freedoms. Truly, the president has now concentrated significant power in his sole hands, and the absence of checks and balances can be a source of concern.
In these exceptional circumstances, Tunisians must and will be more vigilant than ever, and constitute the first bulwark against any backsliding into authoritarianism. They will closely monitor every step of the process and speak out against any abuse. President Saied has claimed to be acting in the name of the people and for the sake of the people. It is now time for him to deliver on his promises and to help rebuild a genuine democracy, for and with the people.
Maybe Tunisia’s democracy is not at threat today, but rather on the way to its revival.