English LCCC Newsbulletin For Le

English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For May 17/2020
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news

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http://data.eliasbejjaninews.com/eliasnews21/english.may17.21.htm

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Bible Quotations For today
Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 12/20-28/:”Among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, ‘Sir, we wish to see Jesus.’Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. Jesus answered them, ‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life.Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honour. ‘Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say “Father, save me from this hour”? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.’ Then a voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.’””

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on May 16- 17/2021
Taef Agreement Is A problem, A trap And Not A Solution/Any International Conference For Lebanon Whose Sole Goal Is To implement This Agreement Is A Definite Recipe For Failure/Elias Bejjani/May 16/2021
Health Ministry: 307 new Corona cases, 18 deaths
UNIFIL: Our officers are coordinating with both sides to ensure the situation remains stable
Lebanese demonstrations voice backing for Palestinian cause/Najia Houssari/Arab News/May 17/2021
Rahi presides over Mass service in Bkirki
Al-Rahi Urges Authorities to Control Lebanese Border with Israel
Israeli forces shoot at Palestinian demonstrators as they climb over border concrete wall in Adeisseh
Hamas Official Says No Need for 'Rockets from South Lebanon'
Israel Carries Out Repair Works on Lebanon Border after Protests
Future Movement & Bloc organize solidarity stand with Palestine at the southern borders in Marwahin
Berri, Qalibaf review latest developments
Burning of Israeli, American flags at Sidon’s 'Elia Intersection'
Hariri: God rest the soul of Martyr Mufti Khaled, symbol of patriotism, moderation
Arrival of fourteenth shipment of Pfizer vaccine

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on May 16- 17/2021
Israel-Gaza fighting enters its second week amid mounting ceasefire calls
Israel envoy tells UNSC conflict was ‘premeditated’ by Hamas
Israeli forces kill at least 21 Palestinians in West Bank, 33 in Gaza
Two dead, dozens hurt in Israeli synagogue accident: Ambulance service
Israel military says attack on Gaza tunnels caused civilian houses to collapse
UN chief Guterres says hostilities in Gaza, Israel ‘utterly appalling’
US says ready to help Israel, Palestinians if they seek a ceasefire to end violence
Israel Strikes House of Hamas Political Chief in Gaza
Biden Expresses 'Grave Concern' to Netanyahu, Tells Abbas Rocket Fire Must 'Cease'
Qatar FM Meets Hamas Leader, Demands End to Israel's Gaza Attacks
Jordan’s king says diplomacy under way to halt Israel’s military campaign
Saudi foreign minister discusses latest Palestine developments with US counterpart
Saudi Arabia, Muslim countries condemn Israel’s actions against Palestinians
Israel’s ‘bombardment’ in Gaza preventing medics from helping civilians: Red Cross
UK Jews should not have to face ‘shameful racism,’ says PM after London incident
Iran guards reaffirm support for Palestinians facing Israeli ‘crimes’

Titles For The Latest The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on May 16- 17/2021
Trumpets and Tank Engines: A Turning Point in Gaza?/Richard Kemp/Gatestone Institute/May 16/2021
Biden and Iran: Temptation to Save the Zombie/Amir Taheri/ Asharq al-Awsat/May 16/2021
How to handle the Western media bias leveled against Gulf Arabs/Omar Al-Ubaydli/Al Arabiya/16 May/2021

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on May 16- 17/2021
Taef Agreement Is A problem, A trap And Not A Solution.
Any International Conference For Lebanon Whose Sole Goal Is To implement This Agreement Is A Definite Recipe For Failure
Elias Bejjani/May 15, 2021
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/98875/elias-bejjani-taif-agreement-is-a-problem-a-trap-and-not-a-solution-any-international-conference-for-lebanon-whose-sole-goal-is-to-implement-this-accord-is-a-definite/
The Taef Agreement that came into existence in 1989 during the bloody and Stalinist Syrian occupation era of Lebanon has been from day one extremely ambiguous, inapplicable, a trap and a malice recipe for ongoing governance crises.
This Agreement was not implemented, and will never ever be because its main purpose is division and not unity or a stable formula of governance.
That is why a serious, genuine and fruitful review of this inapplicable
Agreement that has become an integrated part of the Lebanese constitution is a must by all Lebanese communities after the liberation of the country, and not while it is still under the Iranian terrorist Hezbollah’s. occupation
Therefore, any international conference for Lebanon whose sole goal is to implement the Taef Agreement is a national disaster and a mere recipe for total failure.
In this context, it is a national, sovereign and moral duty and patriotic obligation for all free, sovereign and sincere Lebanese people, either in Lebanon or Diaspora not to fall in the vicious trap of all those politicians, activists, parties and officials who are malevolently advocating for restricting and limiting the agenda of any International Conference for Lebanon on the heresy of the implementation of this tricky, ambiguous and self defeating Agreement.
Practically, all those leading this inconsistent and wrong headed advocacy, are either blind to the Agreement’s incoherencies, or harboring anti-Lebanese agendas aimed at aborting the efforts aimed at liberating occupied Lebanon and reclaiming its self determination, confiscated independence, sovereignty, freedoms and free decision making process.
In conclusion, any international conference that is held for Lebanon must not be based on the implementation of the inapplicable Taef Agreement, but aim on the full implementation of the UN Resolutions addressing Lebanon’s occupation and its National Security concerns, which are, the Armistice Agreement with Israel, 1559, 1701 and 1680.
In summary, once Lebanon is again an independent, free. sovereign and democratic country, and after all the UN resolutions are fully implemented, than and only than representatives of all Lebanese communities and under the auspices and umbrella of the UN shall revive the Taef Agreement.

Health Ministry: 307 new Corona cases, 18 deaths
NNA/May 16, 2021
The Ministry of Public Health announced, on Sunday, the registration of 307 new Corona infections, thus bringing the cumulative number of confirmed cases to-date to 535,753.
It added that 18 deaths were also recorded during the past 24 hours.

UNIFIL: Our officers are coordinating with both sides to ensure the situation remains stable
NNA/May 16, 2021
The UNIFIL command announced, in a statement this afternoon, that “UNIFIL peacekeepers are on the ground and working in close coordination with our strategic partners, the Lebanese Armed Forces, who have been working around the clock to provide security in the area since the beginning of the demonstrations, and we are together on ground to ease tension and to prevent the situation from escalating further.”"Our UNIFIL liaison and coordination mechanisms are being fully used. Our liaison officers are coordinating with both sides to avoid any misunderstanding and to ensure the situation remains stable," the statement maintained. “For his part, UNIFIL Chief Commander, Major General Stefano Del Col, is in direct contact with both the Lebanese army and the Israeli army," it affirmed.“We have opened an investigation into the latest incidents along the Blue Line, and we continue to urge everyone to exercise restraint," the UNIFIL statement concluded.

Lebanese demonstrations voice backing for Palestinian cause
Najia Houssari/Arab News/May 17/2021
BEIRUT: Demonstrations in solidarity with the Palestinians were held for the third day at the southern Lebanon border on Sunday as political and civil figures continued to call for Lebanon not to be involved in the developments in the region. The Israeli soldiers across the border in the town of Abbasiya have been on high alert during the demonstrations and removed Palestinian flags that were raised on the barbed wire in the village of Adaisseh village on Saturday. The Lebanese army also remained on alert on the Lebanese side, conducting patrols along the border.
A number of Lebanese Future Movement supporters went to the border town of Marwahin to declare their solidarity with the Palestinians. MP Walid Al-Baarini said they had the support of the prime minister-designate, Saad Hariri. A Lebanese youth was shot dead by Israeli soldiers as a group of young men stormed the barbed wire fence on Friday, carrying the flags of Palestine and Hezbollah. Rockets were fired from Lebanese territory toward Israeli settlements on Thursday night, but no party claimed responsibility for the incident. Former MP Marwan Hamadeh said on Sunday: “It shows that Hezbollah is not in a hurry to abandon its cards, and Lebanon has become hostage to a decision that comes from Tehran.”In his Sunday sermon, the Maronite Patriarch Bechara Al-Rahi called on “the authorities in Lebanon to control the southern Lebanese border and prevent the use of Lebanese lands as a missile launch pad.”
Al-Rahi said: “Be careful not to have some people involved directly or through auxiliary parties in what is happening, as this would expose Lebanon to new wars. These uncontrolled conflicts have cost all the Lebanese people enough. The Lebanese people are not ready to destroy their country again more than it has already been destroyed. There are peaceful ways to show solidarity with the Palestinian people without getting involved on a military level. Lebanon is committed to supporting the rights of the Palestinian people.”He said that “what is happening between Israel and the steadfast Palestinian people is a dangerous qualitative shift in the course of the struggle over land and identity.“We call on Israel to seriously and explicitly acknowledge that there are rights for the Palestinian people and that it is impossible for it to live in peace without accepting a viable Palestinian state. There is no peace without justice, and no justice without rights.” Hamas official Ali Baraka said in a statement on Sunday that Hamas “does not need to launch rockets from southern Lebanon.”“We call on everyone to stand with us, but we do not ask anyone to open fronts and expose their country to danger,” he added.

Rahi presides over Mass service in Bkirki
NNA/May 16, 2021
Maronite Patriarch, Cardinal Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, presided over Sunday Mass service in Bkirki this morning. In his sermon, Rahi refused to tamper with the central bank's reserves, saying: "We do not accept any damage to the central bank's reserves so that the depositors' money is not affected." Rahi also commented in his sermon on cutting off electricity supply to the Lebanese, saying that "corruption in energy and electricity cannot continue, and therefore Lebanon enters the age of darkness."Commenting on the government formation process, the Patriarch called on Lebanese officials to reactivate negotiations to form the government, stressing that the prevailing stalemate situation is unacceptable and has become a crime against the nation and the people. Turning to the current events in occupied Palestine, he called on Israel to seriously and explicitly recognize the existence of the rights of the Palestinian people, and the impossibility of living in peace without recognizing a viable Palestinian state. Finally, al-Rahi appealed to the Lebanese authorities to control the borders and prevent the use of Lebanese territory as a launching platform for missiles.

Al-Rahi Urges Authorities to Control Lebanese Border with Israel
Naharnet/May 16, 2021
Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi on Sunday called on Lebanese authorities to “control the Lebanese-Israeli border” and “prevent the use of Lebanese territory as a launchpad for rockets,” after three rockets were fired recently from Lebanon at the sea off Israel amid a major Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “Beware that some become implicated in the events, directly or through proxies, which would subject Lebanon to new wars,” al-Rahi warned in his Sunday Mass sermon. He noted that all Lebanese “have paid enough in such uncontrolled conflicts.”“The Lebanese people are not ready to see their country destroyed once again more than it is already destroyed,” al-Rahi went on to say.

Israeli forces shoot at Palestinian demonstrators as they climb over border concrete wall in Adeisseh
Agencies/May 16, 2021
The Israeli forces opened fire at Palestinian demonstrators a short while ago, as they climbed the concrete wall separating Lebanon and occupied Palestine in the southern town of Adeisseh and uprooted the spy cameras installed on the iron tower above the wall, NNA correspondent in Marjayoun reported. The enemy forces also launched a "drone" over the concrete wall at the “Panorama” point in the aforementioned town.

Hamas Official Says No Need for 'Rockets from South Lebanon'
Naharnet/May 16, 2021
A senior Hamas official has said that the Palestinian movement is not encouraging anyone to fire rockets at Israel from south Lebanon. “The resistance in Gaza has rockets that can reach entire Palestine and we don’t need the firing of rockets from south Lebanon,” the official, Ali Barakeh, said in a TV interview. “The Lebanese youths’ move to go to the border (and stage protests) is a very important step and we welcome it, in addition to the stances of the (Lebanese) president, caretaker PM and parliament speaker in support of Palestine,” Barakeh added. “We call on everyone to stand by us but we are not asking anyone to open fronts and subject their countries to danger,” the Palestinian official added. He also noted that “coordination with Hizbullah is excellent” and that there are “meetings, consultations and cooperation” between the two movements. Barakeh's remarks come after three rockets were fired from south Lebanon at northern Israel. The Israeli army said the rockets landed in the sea without causing any damage. Three rockets have also been fired from Syria at Israel, two of which landed in an open area and the third inside Syrian territory, the Israeli army said.

Israel Carries Out Repair Works on Lebanon Border after Protests
Naharnet/May 16, 2021
Israeli maintenance crews were on Sunday carrying out repair works on Lebanon’s border after days of skirmishes with Lebanese and Palestinian protesters. Lebanon’s National News Agency said the Israeli crews were fixing the barbed wire and the security cameras that were smashed by protesters opposite the Lebanese town of Kfarkila. The Israelis also removed Palestinian flags that had been erected on the barbed wire, amid a heavy deployment by the Lebanese Army and UNIFIL peacekeepers. A Lebanese protester has been killed and several others have been injured since the demos first erupted in solidarity with the Palestinians on Friday. On Saturday, dozens of pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered along the southern frontier to commemorate the Nakba and denounce Israeli violence in Gaza and Jerusalem. Brandishing flags and wearing checkered Palestinian scarves, the Palestinian and Lebanese protesters gathered at several locations including the Lebanese border towns of Maroun Al-Ras and Adaisseh. They were surrounded by Lebanese soldiers who had erected checkpoints and blocked roads leading up to the frontier to avoid any escalation. Lebanon's National News Agency said Palestinian protesters had clashed with security forces blocking their way to the border in the Marjayoun area. Protesters in the Kfarkila district near the border climbed a separation wall and hung a Hizbullah and a Palestinian flag from a watchtower. They also threw rocks at the wall as gunfire erupted from the Israeli side. Ahead of Saturday's protest, an Israeli army spokesperson had warned Lebanon against allowing "rioters" to approach the frontier. His statement came as the Israeli army claimed it foiled an overnight attempt by a group of Lebanese infiltrators to cross the border near the settlement of Metulla. The army said the infiltrators had planted objects believed to be explosives before fleeing back into Lebanon under Israeli fire. Israel occupied much of southern Lebanon from its 1982 invasion until its withdrawal in 2000 following military operations spearheaded by Hizbullah.

Future Movement & Bloc organize solidarity stand with Palestine at the southern borders in Marwahin
NNA/May 16, 2021
The Future Movement and Future Parliamentary Bloc organized, under the directives of PM-designate Saad Hariri, a stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people at the border strip with occupied Palestine in the town of Marwahin in Tyre district this afternoon. Palestinian and Lebanese flags were raised by the Movement’s participating delegations from different regions. At the forefront of participants was Head of the Bloc, MP Bahiya Hariri, and MPs Walid al-Baarini, Mohammad Sleiman, Assem Araji, Mohammad al-Qaraawi and Tarek al-Merehbi, as well as Future Movement Secretary-General Ahmed Hariri, General Coordinator in Sidon and the South Mazen Hashishou, and a number of political and executive bureau members and religious dignitaries in the region. In a word on behalf of the Future Bloc and Movement, MP Hariri said: “We condemn and denounce in the strongest terms the destruction, killing and brutal assault that our people in Gaza are exposed to, and we also condemn the new attempts to transfer our people in Palestine within the 48 borders and in Al-Quds Al-Sharif and Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, and we call on the international community and the Security Council to oblige the Israeli enemy to immediately stop these practices.”She added: “We also call for affirming the right of the Palestinian people to establish their state on their land, with holy Jerusalem as its capital.”Hariri hailed the steadfastness of the Palestinian people in the face of Israeli racist practices in Jerusalem, the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, and the cities and villages within the borders of 1948. “We wanted today to be here with our people in southern Lebanon, who have faced aggression and occupation for decades, and still do,” Hariri maintained, adding, “We stand here to raise our voice loudly and say to our people in beloved Palestine that we are proud of your steadfastness and your confrontation against the barbaric racist attack that has revived the conscience of all the free people of the world, and that with your steadfastness and resistance you have renewed your just cause in the minds of the emerging generations in the Arab world and the world at large.”

Berri, Qalibaf review latest developments
NNA/May 16, 2021
House Speaker, Nabih Berri, received a call today from Iranian Islamic Shura Council Head, Muhammad Baqir Qalibaf, with discussions touching on the general prevailing conditions and the latest developments in Lebanon and the region, particularly in light of the Israeli enemy’s continued aggression against the Palestinian people in the occupied Palestinian geographic area.

Burning of Israeli, American flags at Sidon’s 'Elia Intersection'
NNA /May 16, 2021
The “Elia Intersection” in Sidon witnessed the burning of the Israeli and American flags by a number of young men this afternoon, in the context of the movements taking place in the city in support of Palestine, Jerusalem and the people in the Gaza Strip, amidst chants and slogans denouncing "the Israeli Zionist attacks and the targeting of unarmed civilians in the Gaza Strip."

Hariri: God rest the soul of Martyr Mufti Khaled, symbol of patriotism, moderation
NNA/May 16, 2021
Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri tweeted today in memory of Martyr Mufti Hassan Khaled, saying: "May the Almighty Lord rest the soul of Martyr Mufti Hassan Khaled, a symbol of patriotism and moderation."
Hariri’s tweet was accompanied by the hashtag: "32nd_Commemoration_Martyr_Mufti."

Arrival of fourteenth shipment of Pfizer vaccine
NNA/May 16, 2021
The Ministry of Public Health announced this morning the arrival of the fourteenth shipment of Pfizer vaccine to Lebanon, containing 46,800 vaccines. Lebanon has so far received 545,220 vaccines from Pfizer, the Ministry said. MoPH also reminded that the detailed number of those who have received the vaccine is published daily in its updated report on Coronavirus.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on May 16- 17/2021
Israel-Gaza fighting enters its second week amid mounting ceasefire calls
Reuters/17 May ,2021
Israel and Gaza’s ruling Hamas militant group faced mounting international calls for a ceasefire in hostilities that entered their second week on Monday with no end in sight. World concern deepened with an Israeli airstrike in Gaza that destroyed several homes on Sunday and which Palestinian health officials said killed 42 people, including 10 children, and persistent rocket attacks on Israeli towns. Injecting more urgency into Washington’s calls for calm, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrote on Twitter, “All parties need to deescalate tensions - the violence must end immediately,” after he spoke with Egypt’s foreign minister about the ongoing violence in Israel, Gaza and the occupied West Bank. At a meeting on Sunday of the UN Security Council, the United States said it has made clear to Israel, the Palestinians, and others that it is ready to offer support “should the parties seek a ceasefire.”Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel’s campaign in Gaza was continuing at “full force,” and that deterrence had to be achieved to prevent future conflict with Hamas. “We are acting now, for as long as necessary, to restore calm and quiet to you, Israel’s citizens. It will take time,” Netanyahu said in a televised address after his security cabinet met on Sunday. Just past midnight on Monday, militants launched rockets at the southern Israeli cities of Beersheba and Ashkelon. Witnesses said Israeli planes launched dozens of airstrikes. The Israeli military said a Hamas intelligence complex was among the targets. The Gaza Health ministry put the death toll in the densely populated enclave of two million Palestinians at 197, including 58 children and 34 women. Ten people have been killed in Israel, including two children, Israeli authorities say. Hamas began its rocket assault last Monday after weeks of tensions over a court case to evict several Palestinian families in East Jerusalem, and in retaliation for Israeli police clashes with Palestinians near the city’s Al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam’s third holiest site, during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan

Israel envoy tells UNSC conflict was ‘premeditated’ by Hamas
AFP/16 May ,2021
Israel on Sunday told the UN Security Council that the recent deadly violence was premeditated by Hamas, urging condemnation of the militants during a session on the crisis. “It was completely premeditated by Hamas in order to gain political power,” said Israel’s ambassador to the world body, Gilad Erdan.
Erdan said that Hamas escalated tensions due to internal Palestinian political maneuvering after the Palestinian Authority president, Mahmud Abbas, delayed long-awaited elections. Hamas said its rocket fire into Israel was in response to Israeli forces’ entry into the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem, amid high tensions over moves to evict Palestinian families in the city. “Do you really believe that this property dispute is what caused Hamas to launch these large-scale attacks on the people of Israel?” Erdan said. He thanked the United States, which had delayed the UN session, and he called on the world body to condemn Hamas. “Hamas targets civilians; Israel targets terrorists,” Erdan said. Israel makes every effort to avoid civilian casualties; Hamas makes every effort to increase civilian casualties.”At least 55 children are among the 190 people who have been killed in Gaza since Monday, with 10 dead in Israel, according to authorities on the two sides.

Israeli forces kill at least 21 Palestinians in West Bank, 33 in Gaza
Tamara Abueish, Al Arabiya English/16 May ,2021
Israeli forces have killed at least 21 Palestinians in the West Bank, an Al Arabiya correspondent said on Sunday. This comes as Israel shells the northern Gaza strip, according to the correspondent. At least 33 people were killed in overnight raids in the blockaded city, several news agencies reported citing Palestinian officials. The death toll of overnight Israeli airstrikes on Gaza continues to rise as medics dig through the rubble of several damaged buildings in the city. At least 181 people were killed, including 50 children, in the raids, according to the Palestinian health ministry. Israel’s “bombardment” in Gaza is preventing the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and other organizations from helping civilians injured or affected by the airstrikes, the ICRC said in a statement on Sunday. “For people in Gaza, access to hospitals and other vital infrastructure has become very complicated because of the incessant airstrikes and major damage to roads and buildings,” Robert Mardini, ICRC’s director-general, said.

Two dead, dozens hurt in Israeli synagogue accident: Ambulance service
Reuters/16 May ,2021
At least two worshippers were killed and more than 100 injured on Sunday when a grandstand collapsed in a synagogue under construction in a Jewish settlement in the occupied West Bank, Israel’s national ambulance service said. The accident in Givat Zeev, just north of Jerusalem, raised more questions about safety measures at large ultra-Orthodox events, two weeks after 45 pilgrims were crushed to death in a stampede at the burial site of a Jewish sage in northern Israel. A police spokesman said 650 worshippers were at the Givat worship site for the start of the Jewish holiday of Shavuot. The event was held in a partially constructed synagogue. The local mayor and senior fire brigade and police officers said it had gone ahead despite the lack of a permit and official warnings that the building zone was unsafe. A spokesman for the Magen David Adom ambulance service said at least two people were killed. Ambulances and military helicopters ferried the injured to hospitals. Security footage broadcast on Channel 12 TV showed a crowded grandstand collapsing and worshippers falling on top of each other.“We were called again to another event where there was negligence and a lack of responsibility. There will be arrests,” Jerusalem District police chief Doron Turgeman said from the scene, on live TV.

Israel military says attack on Gaza tunnels caused civilian houses to collapse
Reuters/16 May ,2021
The Israeli military said that an attack on a militant tunnel system in Gaza on Sunday had caused civilian houses to collapse, causing unintended civilian casualties. Aircraft struck at a tunnel system used by the Islamist militant group Hamas under a road in Gaza City, the military said in a statement. “The underground military facility collapsed causing the foundation of the civilian houses above them to collapse as well, leading to unintended casualties,” it said.The military said it “aspires to avoid civilian casualties as far as possible. But Hamas bears responsibility for intentionally locating its military infrastructure under civilian houses, thus exposing civilians to danger.”

UN chief Guterres says hostilities in Gaza, Israel ‘utterly appalling’
AFP, United Nations/16 May ,2021
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday pleaded for an immediate end to deadly Israeli-Palestinian violence, warning a Security Council meeting that the fighting could plunge the region into an “uncontainable” crisis. “Fighting must stop. It must stop immediately,” Guterres said as he opened a Security Council session delayed by Israel’s ally the United States, calling the violence that has killed nearly 200 people over the past week “utterly appalling.” “It has the potential to unleash an uncontainable security and humanitarian crisis and to further foster extremism, not only in the occupied Palestinian territory and Israel, but in the region as a whole,” he said. Guterres condemned the fresh violence on Sunday which killed 40 Palestinians, the worst death toll since the unrest broke out. “This senseless cycle of bloodshed, terror and destruction must stop immediately,” Guterres said. He also renewed criticism of an Israeli strike on Saturday that destroyed the Gaza offices of two major news outlets, Al-Jazeera and the Associated Press. “Journalists must be allowed to work free of fear and harassment. The destruction of media offices in Gaza is extremely concerning,” Guterres said. Israel launched its air offensive after Hamas, the Islamist militant movement that controls Gaza, began firing rockets in response to the Jewish state’s moves in Jerusalem. “Rockets and mortars on one side and aerial and artillery bombardments on the other must stop. I appeal to all parties to heed this call,” Guterres said. He also voiced alarm at the rise of extremist Jewish movements whose push to expel Palestinians out of Jerusalem helped trigger the crisis. “In Israel, violence by vigilante-style groups and mobs has added a further horrendous dimension to an already deteriorating crisis,” Guterres said. “Leaders on all sides have a responsibility to curb inflammatory rhetoric and calm the rising tensions.”

US says ready to help Israel, Palestinians if they seek a ceasefire to end violence
Reuters/16 May ,2021
The United States told the United Nations Security Council on Sunday it has made clear to Israel, the Palestinians and others that it is ready to offer support “should the parties seek a ceasefire” to end the worsening violence between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza. “The United States has been working tirelessly through diplomatic channels to try to bring an end to this conflict,” US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the 15-member council. “Because we believe Israelis and Palestinians equally have a right to live in safety and security.”
As the Security Council held its first public meeting - after two private briefings last week - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel’s campaign in Hamas Islamist-run Gaza was continuing at “full force.”Washington - a strong ally of Israel - has been isolated at the United Nations over its objection to a public statement by the Security Council on the worst violence between Israel and the Palestinians in years because it worries it could harm behind-the-scenes diplomacy. “We call upon the US to shoulder its responsibilities, take a just position, and together with most of the international community support the Security Council in easing the situation,” said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who chaired Sunday’s meeting because China is president for May. China said on Sunday it would again push the council to try and agree a statement. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the United Nations is “actively engaging all sides toward an immediate ceasefire” and called on them “to allow mediation efforts to intensify and succeed.”
Arab push for more US engagement
The truce efforts by Egypt, Qatar and the United Nations have so far offered no sign of progress. The United States sent an envoy to the region and President Joe Biden spoke with Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday. “In all these engagements with Israeli officials, the Palestinian Authority, and all regional partners, the United States has made clear that we are prepared to lend our support and good offices should the parties seek a ceasefire,” Thomas-Greenfield said. The death toll in Gaza jumped to 188 overnight, including 55 children, amid an intensive Israeli air and artillery barrage since the fighting erupted last Monday. Ten people have been killed in Israel, including two children, in thousands of rocket attacks by Hamas and other militant groups. “Each time Israel hears a foreign leader speak of its right to defend itself it is further emboldened to continue murdering entire families in their sleep,” Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Malki told the Security Council. Israel’s UN Ambassador Gilad Erdan said Israel’s response to indiscriminate attacks by Hamas strictly adhered to international law and that the country was taking “unparalleled steps to prevent civilian casualties.”
“Israel uses its missiles to protect its children. Hamas uses children to protect its missiles,” Erdan said. Beyond the current flare up in the conflict, the 22-member Cairo-based Arab League called on Biden’s administration “to engage in a more active and influential and deeper way in the Middle East peace process,” Arab League UN envoy Maged Abdelfattah Abdelaziz told the Security Council. He said they wanted to see “an engagement that would dispel delusions created by the past US administration that Israel would get everything while Palestinians would get nothing,” referring to former US President Donald Trump. The Palestinians want a state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip with east Jerusalem as its capital, all territory captured by Israel in 1967. However, under a failed peace proposal by Trump, Washington would have recognized Jewish settlements in occupied territory as part of Israel.

Israel Strikes House of Hamas Political Chief in Gaza
Agence France Presse/May 16, 2021
Israeli air strikes hit the home of Yahya Sinwar, head of Hamas' political wing in the Gaza Strip, the army said Sunday, but without saying if he was killed. "Among the targets struck are the residences of Yahya Sinwar, Chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau in Gaza, as well as of his brother, Muhammad Sinwar, Head of Logistics and Manpower for Hamas," Israel's army said in a statement, releasing a video showing plumes of smoke and intense damage. "Both residences served as military infrastructure for the Hamas terror organization." Witnesses confirmed to AFP a strike had hit Sinwar's house. Sinwar, a former commander of Hamas's military branch, served more than two decades in an Israeli jail before he was released in 2011 as a part of a prisoner exchange. First elected as the head of Hamas's political wing in Gaza in 2017, he was re-elected in March, extending his tenure as the Islamist movement's de facto leader in the Israeli-blockaded Palestinian enclave. Hamas overall chief Ismail Haniyeh is currently based in Qatar. The army said it had also carried out strikes targeting Hamas tunnel systems. As of 07:00 am (0400 GMT) Sunday, Israel's army said that Palestinian militants in Gaza had fired some 2,900 rockets towards Israel. The army said 450 rockets fell short inside Gaza, while Israel's Iron Dome air defense system has intercepted approximately 1,150 rockets.

Biden Expresses 'Grave Concern' to Netanyahu, Tells Abbas Rocket Fire Must 'Cease'
Agence France Presse/May 16, 2021
U.S. President Joe Biden has expressed his "grave concern" over violence in Israel and Gaza in a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu while separately telling Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas that Hamas must "cease firing rockets." Speaking on the sixth day of a paroxysm of Israeli-Palestinian violence that has left scores dead or wounded, Biden expressed his "strong support" for Israel's right to defend itself against rocket attacks by "Hamas and other terrorist groups," in his call with Netanyahu, while also emphasizing his clear concern over the deadly flare-up and casualties on both sides. "He condemned these indiscriminate attacks against towns and cities across Israel," the White House statement said. But Biden also raised concerns about the safety of journalists after Israeli air strikes on Saturday flattened a building in Gaza housing The Associated Press and other international media outlets. In a phone call with AP president and CEO Gary Pruitt, Secretary of State Antony Blinken offered "unwavering support for independent journalists and media organizations around the world," noting the "indispensability" of reporting in conflict zones, according to State Department spokesman Ned Price. Biden, who up to now has said little publicly about the heightened violence, voiced U.S. support for a negotiated two-state solution to the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He made the same point in a separate phone call with president Abbas of the Palestinian Authority, the White House said, highlighting "strong commitment to a negotiated two-state solution as the best path to reach a just and lasting resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict." The U.S. leader, in his first call with Abbas since taking office, also "stressed the need for Hamas to cease firing rockets into Israel." Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin "reaffirmed Israel's right to defend itself," in a phone call with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Gantz, according to a readout. Austin "strongly condemned the continued onslaught of attacks by Hamas and other terrorists groups targeting Israeli civilians," it said, adding that the secretary had "shared his view on the need to restore calm." Israel pummeled the Gaza Strip with air strikes on Saturday, killing 10 members of an extended family, as Palestinian militants fired back barrages of rockets.
Clashes also swept the occupied West Bank.

Qatar FM Meets Hamas Leader, Demands End to Israel's Gaza Attacks
Agence France Presse/May 16, 2021
Qatar's foreign minister has met with the political chief of Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas and called for an end to Israel's bombardment of Gaza, state media said. "The international community must act urgently to put an end to Israel's brutal and repeated attacks against civilians in Gaza and (Jerusalem's) Al-Aqsa mosque," Qatar's Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said in a statement carried by the official QNA news agency. He also assured Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh of Qatar's support for its "Palestinian brothers". Their meeting came amid days of Israeli air strikes on Gaza, the group's stronghold, in response to rocket fire by Palestinian militants in the coastal strip. The violence was sparked by clashes between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli forces at the flashpoint Al-Aqsa mosque compound, one of the holiest sites in Islam. Hamas issued an ultimatum for Israel to remove its forces, then started firing rockets into the Jewish state. "We warned that the blessed Al-Aqsa mosque was a red line and we told Netanyahu: 'don't play with fire'," Haniyeh, who lives in exile, told hundreds of supporters at a pro-Palestinian demonstration in Doha.
He was speaking hours after an Israeli air strike flattened a building housing international media outlets including Qatar-based Al Jazeera. Qatar, a key Hamas backer, has used its vast natural gas riches to provide aid and loans to Israeli-blockaded Gaza as well as mediating with Israel.

Jordan’s king says diplomacy under way to halt Israel’s military campaign
Reuters/16 May ,2021
Jordan’s King Abdullah said on Sunday that his kingdom was involved in intensive diplomacy to halt what he characterized as Israeli military escalation in the worst Israeli-Palestinian violence in years. The monarch, whose ruling family has custodianship of Muslim and Christian sites in Jerusalem, did not elaborate on the diplomacy, which was communicated via a news flash on state media. Jordanian government officials have told Reuters the pro-Western kingdom is leading a diplomatic campaign with its European and US allies to put pressure on Israel to end its air and artillery barrage on Gaza since fighting erupted last Monday. The Israeli military says that Hamas, a group regarded by much of the international community as a terrorist movement, and other armed factions have fired more than 2,800 rockets from Gaza over the past week. Earlier on Sunday, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said Israel’s actions were pushing the region towards a wider conflict. “Israel carries as the existing occupation force responsibility for the dangerous situation in occupied Palestinian land and what it is causing in violence, killings, destruction and suffering,” Safadi said. Thousands of Jordanians, most of them of Palestinian origin, took to the streets of the capital Amman on Sunday, calling on the kingdom scrap its peace deal with Israel.

Saudi foreign minister discusses latest Palestine developments with US counterpart
Ismaeel Naar, Al Arabiya English/16 May ,2021
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan has spoken with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to discuss the regional issues, including the latest developments in Palestine. “His Highness, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, conducts a phone call with the US Secretary of State during which they reviewed the strategic relations between the Kingdom and the United States of America and ways to enhance them in all fields, in addition to the most prominent developments, foremost of which are developments in Palestine, and developments in the region,” the Saudi Press Agency said in a tweet. The US State Department said on Sunday that the two discussed “the ongoing efforts to calm tensions in Israel and the West Bank and Gaza and bring the current violence to an end.”“The Secretary lamented the loss of Palestinian and Israeli lives and urged engagement to prevent a deepening of the crisis. He also expressed his belief that Palestinians and Israelis deserve equal measures of freedom, dignity, security, and prosperity,” the State Department added. They also discussed bolstering Saudi defenses, achieving a comprehensive ceasefire and transition to a political process in Yemen, and continued progress on human rights, the State Department said. Earlier in the day, Saudi Arabia condemned Israel’s violations against Palestinian rights, Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan said at the start of a meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) the Kingdom hosted.
“The occupation authorities’ forcible seizure of homes and lands of the citizens of Jerusalem (Al-Quds) represents, as you all know, a form of forced displacement, which is strongly rejected and condemned by all international laws, including the relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions, especially Resolution No. 2234, which affirms that East Jerusalem (Al-Quds) is a Palestinian land that cannot be infringed upon,” Prince Faisal said. “The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, from the platform of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which was established on the basis of a historical legacy based on the service of the holy Jerusalem (al-Quds al-Sharif) and the Palestinian cause as they are the main pillars of its tasks which are of great interest to it, calls on the international community and all international human rights organizations and bodies to shoulder their responsibilities towards this dangerous escalation that violates all international norms and covenants,” he added. (With Reuters)

Saudi Arabia, Muslim countries condemn Israel’s actions against Palestinians
Tamara Abueish, Al Arabiya English/16 May ,2021
Talks between the foreign ministers of member countries of the Organization of Islamic kicked off on Sunday, after Saudi Arabia called for an urgent meeting. Saudi Arabia condemns Israel’s violations against Palestinian rights, Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan said at the start of the meeting. The Kingdom calls for an immediate end to Israeli escalation in Palestine, he added. Palestinians carry an injured man to safety, after Israeli security forces launch Saudi Arabia also condemns the “forcible” evictions of Palestinian civilians from their homes in East Jerusalem, Prince Faisal said. The minister said that Saudi Arabia calls on the international community to shoulder its responsibility “in the face of Israeli violations,” adding that they must intervene to end Israel’s actions. The Kingdom renews its support for the Arab Peace Initiative, which guarantees Palestinians’ right to a state with East Jerusalem as its capital, Prince Faisal added. For his part, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki said that “Israel’s practices are an assault on Arabs, Muslims and international norms.”Al-Maliki stressed that “the Palestinian people are subjected to an Israeli apartheid ... and they are being uprooted from their lands and rights.”“Israeli settlers are storming Palestinian homes in the West Bank and Jerusalem,” he added. During the meeting, Jordanian foreign minister Ayman Safadi said Israel was pushing the region into further conflict and threatening peace. Jordan expresses its support for the Palestinian cause and condemns Israel’s forced eviction of Palestinians from their homes in East Jerusalem, saying it consitutes as a “war crime.” For his part, Kuwaiti foreign minister Sheikh Ahmed Nasser al-Sabah said Israel’s crimes in East Jerusalem were a violation of all international humanitarian laws. Israeli escalation threatens the security and stability of the region, he added.

Israel’s ‘bombardment’ in Gaza preventing medics from helping civilians: Red Cross
Tamara Abueish, Al Arabiya English/16 May ,2021
Israel’s “bombardment” in Gaza is preventing the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and other organizations from helping civilians injured or affected by the airstrikes, the ICRC said in a statement on Sunday. “For people in Gaza, access to hospitals and other vital infrastructure has become very complicated because of the incessant airstrikes and major damage to roads and buildings,” Robert Mardini, ICRC’s director-general, said. Residents and journalists early on Sunday reported that several buildings and main roads leading to one of the largest hospitals in Gaza had been destroyed. The Shifa hospital has been instrumental in treating dozens of civilians who were hurt during Israeli raids on the blockaded city. “Actors on the ground must stop this cycle of violence. The rules are crystal clear: Civilians must be protected at all times. Sadly, that is not the case today,” Mardini said in the statement. “The steady stream of bombardments is also preventing the ICRC and other humanitarian organizations from being able to help those affected and in need in Gaza,” the statement added. At least 23 people, including children, were killed in overnight Israeli airstrikes, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
The total number of deaths in Gaza since the violence escalated on Monday has risen to 181, with the number expected to go up as rescuers continue to dig through rubble from destroyed buildings. The ICRC said it was closely monitoring the humanitarian impact of the fighting and is communicating with both sides about the need to adhere to their obligations under international humanitarian law.The ICRC has donated stretchers, hospital beds, and medical equipment to treat 150 seriously injured patients in Gaza, and is supporting the Palestine Red Crescent Society, according to the statement.

UK Jews should not have to face ‘shameful racism,’ says PM after London incident
Reuters/16 May ,2021
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Sunday there was no place for anti-Semitism in society and that British Jews should not have to endure “shameful racism”. Johnson was responding in part to a video posted online earlier on Sunday showing a convoy of cars bearing Palestinian flags driving through a Jewish community in north London and broadcasting anti-Semitic messages from a megaphone. “There is no place for anti-Semitism in our society,” Johnson said on Twitter. “Ahead of Shavuot, I stand with Britain’s Jews who should not have to endure the type of shameful racism we have seen today.”His comments also referred to other incidents of anti-Semitism over the weekend, an aide said. Israeli-Palestinian violence has reached its worst level in years over the last week. “Whatever your view of the conflict in Israel and Gaza, there is no justification for inciting anti-Jewish or anti-Muslim hatred,” communities minister Robert Jenrick said in a statement. Britain’s Metropolitan police said: “We are aware of a video appearing to show anti-Semitic language being shouted from a convoy of cars in the St John’s Wood area this afternoon. “Officers are carrying out urgent enquiries to identify those responsible. This sort of behavior will not be tolerated.” The Community Security Trust, a charity that monitors the security of the Jewish community, said the convoy had traveled from Bradford, in northern England.

Iran guards reaffirm support for Palestinians facing Israeli ‘crimes’
AFP, Tehran/16 May ,2021
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Quds Force commander stressed Tehran’s support for Palestinians facing Israeli “crimes” in Jerusalem and Gaza in phone calls with some factions’ officials, state media reported Sunday. The calls comes during the heaviest fighting since 2014 between Israel and militant group Hamas, which has claimed 181 lives in the crowded coastal enclave of Gaza and killed 10 people in Israel since Monday. Brigadier General Ismail Qaani talked to the head of Hamas’ political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, and the secretary-general of the extremist group, Ziyad al-Nakhalah, said state new agency IRNA. Qaani told Haniyeh that Iran “stands alongside the nation of Palestine” and condemned Israel for acting “against all international laws and conventions,” IRNA reported. In a separate call, Qaani told al-Nakhalah that Tehran supports “the Palestinians’ right to confront the aggression and crimes of the Zionist enemy”. He also “praised the development of Palestinian resistance and its capabilities in defending the people of Palestine”.The Quds (Jerusalem) Force is the foreign operations arm of the elite Revolutionary Guards, formerly led by Qasem Soleimani, who was killed in a US airstrike in Baghdad in January last year.
The Islamic republic does not recognize the State of Israel, and supporting the Palestinian cause has been a pillar of Iran’s foreign policy since the 1979 revolution. Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei this month called Israel “not a country, but a terrorist base” and said that “fighting this despotic regime is fighting oppression and terrorism, and (doing so) is everyone’s duty”.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on May 16- 17/2021
Trumpets and Tank Engines: A Turning Point in Gaza?
Richard Kemp/Gatestone Institute/May 16/2021
Hamas is no match for the IDF and could be quickly and much more cheaply defeated by blunt and crushing military force were it not for one thing — the Israeli need to minimise loss of civilian life. Hamas know that.
Over many years of conflict in Gaza, the majority of the world's media have enthusiastically reported the deaths of Palestinian civilians as though they were the deliberate object of Israel's callous and uncaring way of war. This blatantly false propaganda has been taken up by Hamas supporters and "useful idiots" in the West.... Human rights groups around the world have been doing the same.
The wilful ignorance combined with malice has always been breathtaking. Every commission of inquiry determined Israel's guilt before it even met for the first time.
Every debate and vote has overwhelmingly and of course falsely affirmed Israel's supposed war crimes and crimes against humanity. Meanwhile Hamas's actual multiple war crimes have been brushed aside.
[T]he IDF did all they could to ensure minimum loss of civilian life by selecting targets where the lowest levels of innocents would be harmed.... As in previous conflicts in Gaza the IDF has made radio broadcasts in Arabic, sent SMS messages and even phoned civilians inside the strip to warn them of impending strikes.... Gazans have given interviews confirming this.
Many in the media, human rights groups and international bodies have rushed to characterise all civilian casualties (other than those inflicted by Hamas of course) as war crimes. But the Geneva Conventions disagree. Inflicting civilian casualties is not illegal provided a military operation is necessary for the prosecution of a war, they are not disproportionate to the planned military gain and that combatant commanders do not intentionally target civilians while doing all they can to avoid hitting them.
The media takes reports from the Gaza health ministry as authoritative and objective. That is disingenuous and they know it. The health ministry is controlled by Hamas and follows their every order.
Despite all of this, as the media unceasingly show us, the real victims in this campaign have indeed been Gaza civilians. But they usually get the cause wrong. Every one is due to Hamas's unprovoked aggression against Israel. None would have occurred without it.
If Western governments, international bodies and human rights groups are genuinely interested in avoiding suffering in Gaza, they should start now, striving to end Hamas's reign of terror rather than support it by parroting their baleful narrative.
Every civilian casualty is due to Hamas's unprovoked aggression against Israel. None would have occurred without it. Hamas's entire strategy is to attack Israeli population centres using rockets, kamikaze drones and tunnels, aimed at luring IDF counter attacks that will kill their own civilians in order to vilify and isolate Israel around the world. Pictured: Missiles, launched by Hamas from within densely-populated residential neighborhoods in Gaza, streak towards Israeli towns and cities on May 16, 2021. (Photo by Mohammed Abed/AFP via Getty Images)
During an operation in Gaza last week, the Israel Defence Forces attacked a Hamas tunnel complex with 12 squadrons of 160 combat planes striking over 150 targets with hundreds of bunker-busting JDAMs [Joint Direct Attack Munitions] in less than an hour. Although the battle damage assessment is still underway, the raid destroyed perhaps the most critical element of Hamas infrastructure, wiping out vast stocks of munitions and likely killing dozens if not hundreds of fighters. This was a hammer blow to Hamas and may prove to be a turning point in the conflict. It also sent a powerful message to Iran and Hizballah, foretelling the consequences of an assault on Israel with their arsenal of tens of thousands of missiles in southern Lebanon.
The IDF operation was a carefully coordinated combination of intelligence, surveillance, knowledge of enemy tactics, deception, surprise and precisely targeted, overwhelming force. Of all these, deception and surprise were key. Surprise is a principle of war in the American, British and many other forces, defined in the US Army Field Manual as "striking the enemy at a time or place or in a manner for which he is unprepared." The manual goes on to say: "Deception can aid the probability of achieving surprise". Throughout the history of warfare, surprise achieved through deception has led to many stunning military victories — often against the odds.
The IDF's deception operation was reminiscent of the biblical Israelite leader Gideon's famous stratagem against the Midianites. He had his men blow trumpets, light torches and yell battle cries, simulating a much larger force and causing the vastly superior enemy army to flee the field.
Last Thursday, the IDF massed tanks, artillery and infantry combat vehicles on the Gaza border, engines roaring like Gideon's trumpets. The build-up was observed by Hamas and widely reported in international media as an imminent ground invasion. Like the Midianites, hundreds of Hamas fighters rushed to take shelter inside the "metro" tunnel network. Built by Hamas after the 2014 conflict to house command facilities, store weapons and facilitate protected movement, these tunnels covered dozens of kilometres beneath the Gaza Strip. There the fighters were trapped as JDAM after JDAM thundered in from above. Emerging to fight the invasion that never came, the surviving anti-tank teams and mortar squads were then also hit from the air.
This masterpiece of tactical synchronisation, with all its complex elements, symbolises the IDF's precision attacks during this campaign, Operation Guardian of the Walls, which have already inflicted damage from which Hamas will not recover for years. The IDF learnt many lessons from previous engagements in Gaza and since 2014 have vigorously collected intelligence and worked to develop battle plans and technological solutions to deal with Hamas and their Palestinian Islamic Jihad bedfellows.
Hamas is no match for the IDF and could be quickly and much more cheaply defeated by blunt and crushing military force were it not for one thing — the Israeli need to minimise loss of civilian life. Hamas know that. They know they cannot prevail over the IDF and have no intention of trying. Their entire strategy is to attack Israeli population centres using rockets, kamikaze drones and tunnels, aimed at luring IDF counter attacks that will kill their own civilians in order to vilify and isolate Israel around the world and gain international support for their cause. With human shields as the fundamental element of every operation, Hamas are the first "army" in history to use the lives of their own civilian population as weapons of war.
Their strategy has been woefully successful. Over many years of conflict in Gaza, the majority of the world's media have enthusiastically reported the deaths of Palestinian civilians as though they were the deliberate object of Israel's callous and uncaring way of war. This blatantly false propaganda has been taken up by Hamas supporters and "useful idiots" in the West. In the US, Britain and Europe, last week we have seen hundreds of anti-Israel demonstrators brandishing Palestinian banners, burning Israeli flags, spitting out their hate for the Jewish state and screaming about IDF baby-killers. Hamas's calumny is a prime motivator among Israel-loathing academics in Western universities and high schools who have mined their false allegations as rich seams of material to indoctrinate generations of students.
Human rights groups around the world have been doing the same. There have been dozens of anti-Israel resolutions at the UN, often drawing on Hamas's narrative, twisting every aspect of the conflicts in Gaza. The prize has been the International Criminal Court's decision this year to launch a full investigation with the hope of dragging Israeli soldiers, officials and politicians into the dock at The Hague.
I have taken part in every UN Human Rights Council evidence session and emergency debate on Gaza conflicts in the last 15 years. The wilful ignorance combined with malice has always been breathtaking. Every commission of inquiry determined Israel's guilt before it even met for the first time. Every debate and vote has overwhelmingly and of course falsely affirmed Israel's supposed war crimes and crimes against humanity. Meanwhile Hamas's actual multiple war crimes have been brushed aside.
The reality is very different from the lies emanating from these modern-day Towers of Babel. The IDF attack on the "metro" tunnels this week depended on lightning action and the coordination of 160 planes attacking a small area in a very short space of time. Alongside these awesome complexities, the IDF did all they could to ensure minimum loss of civilian life by selecting targets where the lowest levels of innocents would be harmed, such as empty roadways under which tunnels ran, and maintaining close surveillance to confirm a bus load of civilians didn't suddenly appear. The IDF have so far destroyed several high-rise buildings containing critical Hamas military infrastructure as well as civilian offices and apartments. Remarkably all of these have been smashed down without any reported civilian casualties.
As in previous conflicts in Gaza the IDF has made radio broadcasts in Arabic, sent SMS messages and even phoned civilians inside the Strip to warn them of impending strikes, where to go for their own safety and which routes to take. Gazans have given interviews confirming this.
When civilians do not leave an intended target building, the IDF sometimes drop specially designed low-power munitions ("knock on the roof") to encourage them to get out. With careful surveillance of target areas, the Israeli air force frequently aborts planned sorties if there is a risk of civilian casualties.
In a conflict designed by Hamas to maximise civilian deaths, some are inevitable. It is too early to accurately assess casualty figures or ratios of civilians to fighters killed, but current assessments suggest the IDF have been even more successful in minimising civilian casualties during this campaign than in previous engagements in Gaza. Many in the media, human rights groups and international bodies have rushed to characterise all civilian casualties (other than those inflicted by Hamas, of course) as war crimes. But the Geneva Conventions disagree. Inflicting civilian casualties is not illegal provided a military operation is necessary for the prosecution of a war, they are not disproportionate to the planned military gain and that combatant commanders do not intentionally target civilians while doing all they can to avoid hitting them.
The media takes reports from the Gaza health ministry as authoritative and objective. That is disingenuous and they know it. The health ministry is controlled by Hamas and follows their every order. For example, of around 2,000 rockets fired so far by Hamas during this conflict, approximately 400 have fallen short, landing inside Gaza. Some of these have killed civilians and the health ministry has attributed all of them to IDF action.
Counterintuitively, the most effective means of saving Gazan civilian lives has been Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system. Despite Hamas efforts to overwhelm it, Iron Dome has had a 90% success rate in preventing missiles from Gaza hitting their targets. Not only has this saved the lives of countless Israeli civilians but it has also meant the IDF campaign can be more deliberate, discriminating and precise. If hundreds of Israelis were dying under Hamas rockets, the IDF would have no choice other than to strike Gaza with much greater ferocity and ground forces would already have entered the Gaza Strip, unavoidably inflicting vastly more civilian casualties than we have seen so far.
Despite all of this, as the media unceasingly show us, the real victims in this campaign have indeed been Gaza civilians. But they usually get the cause wrong. Every one is due to Hamas's unprovoked aggression against Israel. None would have occurred without it. Once this round of fighting is over, Hamas will work to build back better for next time — that is, to regenerate their military capability rather than civilian infrastructure. If Western governments, international bodies and human rights groups are genuinely interested in avoiding suffering in Gaza, they should start now, striving to end Hamas's reign of terror rather than support it by parroting their baleful narrative.
*Colonel Richard Kemp is a former British Army Commander. He was also head of the international terrorism team in the U.K. Cabinet Office and is now a writer and speaker on international and military affairs. He is a Shillman Journalism Fellow at Gatestone Institute.

Biden and Iran: Temptation to Save the Zombie
Amir Taheri/ Asharq al-Awsat/May 16/2021
[S]ensing that the American side is keen on producing the fudge, the Iranian side is raising the stakes.
On Monday "Supreme Guide" Ali Khamenei said that "liberating Palestine" is the "number one goal of the Islamic ummah", making it clear that even if the "nuclear deal" is revived, the clash of two visions on the future of the Middle East will not come to a close.
The Iranian side is also trying to have over 1,000 sanctions imposed on the Islamic Republic for issues not related to the "nuclear deal" lifted without offering any concessions in return.
Rouhani's spokesman dropped another bombshell: whatever deal is made by officials representing the formal government of Iran in Vienna would have to be approved by "higher-up" in Tehran. In other words Khamenei would have a veto that he could exercise anytime he deems propitious.
Once the sham election is over [Khamenei] could revert to the "retreat-then-cheat" tactic that he describes as "heroic flexibility". The tactic has been used in numerous cases besides the hare-brained scheme concocted by former President Barack Obama, including a variety of deals Tehran made with the European Union, China and Russia.
Today, none of those factors [of 40 years ago] are in play. The Cold War has ended, Iran has been knocked out of the oil market and Arabs are moving towards normalization with Israel for reasons of their own.
Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif estimates that the zombie regime in Tehran needs a minimum of $60 billion a year to stay erect and do the mischief it needs to do to survive.
The Vienna talks may end up providing the extra cash Tehran needs to stay in the game. The question Biden needs to ask is this: would such an outcome serve the interests of the US, not to mention that of the Iranian people, who are now thirsty for a change of direction?
On Monday "Supreme Guide" Ali Khamenei said that "liberating Palestine" is the "number one goal of the Islamic ummah", making it clear that even if the "nuclear deal" is revived, the clash of two visions on the future of the Middle East will not come to a close. Pictured: Khamenei meets with Hassan Nasrallah, head of Lebanon's Hezbollah terrorist organization. (Image source: khamenei.ir
Judging by what Iranian and US diplomats involved in the current talks to revive the moribund "nuclear deal" say, the widow of opportunity opened by Joe Biden's victory in last year's presidential election is likely to shut within the next few weeks.
The Iranian side claims that only an agreement reached while President Hassan Rouhani's team is still in charge, at least nominally, would have a real chance of being pushed through the hurdles set against any international accord by the Islamic Republic. For the US side, however, the problem is that while President Biden is keen to clinch a deal in the hope of normalization with the Khomeinist regime, he cannot be sure that the Iranian team in Vienna would be able to deliver on any promises it makes.
It is clear that both sides are working to whip up a mountain of fudge to bury their deep-rooted differences under a simulacrum of a deal on what is a fake issue. Tehran would promise to dismantle a number of centrifuges that it has set in motion to enrich uranium for a bomb it says it never wanted and would never seek. That promise would enable Biden to claim a diplomatic victory and brag about having prevented a nuclear arms race in what is the most unstable region in the world. In exchange, the US will help the mullahs alleviate their cash-flow problem and secure enough money to pay their security forces at home and their "jihadis" abroad.
The problem is that conjuring such a trick may not be that easy.
To start with, sensing that the American side is keen on producing the fudge, the Iranian side is raising the stakes.
On Monday "Supreme Guide" Ali Khamenei said that "liberating Palestine" is the "number one goal of the Islamic ummah", making it clear that even if the "nuclear deal" is revived, the clash of two visions on the future of the Middle East will not come to a close. The following day, Rouhani's spokesman Ali Rabi'i said Iran intended to raise the Palestine issue and "rebuilding the region" at the Vienna negotiations. The Iranian side is also trying to have over 1,000 sanctions imposed on the Islamic Republic for issues not related to the "nuclear deal" lifted without offering any concessions in return.
Rouhani's spokesman dropped another bombshell: whatever deal is made by officials representing the formal government of Iran in Vienna would have to be approved by "higher-up" in Tehran. In other words, Khamenei would have a veto that he could exercise anytime he deems propitious. That would enable Khamenei to use the putative deal as a "feel-good" prop to persuade more Iranians to take part in the forthcoming presidential elections which he is marketing as a referendum on his regime's legitimacy. Once the sham election is over he could revert to the "retreat-then-cheat" tactic that he describes as "heroic flexibility". The tactic has been used in numerous cases besides the hare-brained scheme concocted by former President Barack Obama, including a variety of deals Tehran made with the European Union, China and Russia.
The zeal with which the American side is chasing a deal in Vienna is rooted in an old illusion that Biden has harbored about the Iranian Revolution since 1979. For reasons that I am unable to fathom, even a young Senator Biden had a soft spot for the Khomeinist revolution that toppled the Shah's regime.
In 2004 in Davos, Switzerland, Biden had a long meeting with Kamal Kharrazi then the mullahs' foreign minister, expressing the hope that a future Democrat administration would continue President Bill Clinton's initial opening to Tehran, supposedly halted under President George W Bush.
What Biden didn't know, or chose to ignore was that Kharazzi was, in the words of European Union's foreign policy coordinator Chris Patten, "an actor playing foreign minister."
Biden didn't know another thing: the entire Khomeinist project is erected on a mystico-ideological anti-Americanism without which the mullahs' regime would feel vulnerable.
Young Biden's fascination with the Khomeinist revolution may have been understandable 40 or so years ago. The Shah had been vilified by a good chunk of the American media, academic and political elites for decades. Time magazine called Ayatollah Khomeini "The Gandhi of Islam" and put him on its cover. Henry Precht, the diplomat in charge of Iran policy in President Jimmy Carter's administration, reminded everyone that, after all, the US came into being with a "revolution against a king". It is also an established fact that Americans are often more forgiving of their foes than they are of their friends.
In more concrete terms, Iran was far more important 40 years ago than it is today. Covering the Soviet Union's second-longest border it was a valuable asset in the context of the Cold War. Carter's National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski mused about an Islamic "green lasso" thrown against the Soviet Empire. At the time, the US also needed the Middle East's oil while it could use a perceived Iranian threat against Arabs as a means of easing their pressure on Israel.
Today, none of those factors are in play. The Cold War has ended, Iran has been knocked out of the oil market and Arabs are moving towards normalization with Israel for reasons of their own.
Thus there is no urgency in rescuing the Khomeinist regime from the purgatory it has created for itself. The Islamic Republic today is a pale shadow of what it was 40 years ago when it seduced Biden. Moving towards the edge of what might become systemic collapse, Ayatollah Khamenei looks like a clueless captain in a wayward ship in a perfect storm.
Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif estimates that the zombie regime in Tehran needs a minimum of $60 billion a year to stay erect and do the mischief it needs to do to survive.
The Vienna talks may end up providing the extra cash Tehran needs to stay in the game. The question Biden needs to ask is this: would such an outcome serve the interests of the US, not to mention that of the Iranian people, who are now thirsty for a change of direction?
Amir Taheri was the executive editor-in-chief of the daily Kayhan in Iran from 1972 to 1979. He has worked at or written for innumerable publications, published eleven books, and has been a columnist for Asharq Al-Awsat since 1987.

How to handle the Western media bias leveled against Gulf Arabs
Omar Al-Ubaydli/Al Arabiya/16 May/2021
Gulf nationals are convinced that western media has a bias against them. There is an ideological bias – western journalists find several aspects of the Gulf highly distasteful and this distorts their coverage. However, the bias is considerably smaller than Gulf nationals imagine, because Gulf nationals have deep misconceptions about media. In western countries, journalists lean left politically, and there are three things that lefties generally dislike: monarchies, inherited income, and religion. The Gulf countries are monarchies. Moreover, western journalists perceive the Gulf’s hydrocarbon reserves as “inherited income,” analogous to the unearned land rents accruing to an aristocrat. They believe that Gulf countries don’t have to graft to earn a living, unlike countries that are poor in natural resources which have to toil, reinforcing their distaste of Gulf countries. This widespread view reflects economic ignorance. While natural resources help, the experiences of many countries confirm that natural resources can just as easily lead to violence and destruction. Moreover, it is generally the socialist governments that have squandered natural resources, not the capitalist ones in the Gulf, a fact left-leaning journalists prefer to sweep under the carpet. Historically, the importance of religion to political and social policy in Saudi Arabia has ensured that it is uniquely despised by western journalists. This is reflected in various hysterical pieces published in leading newspapers. The theories of Saudi-led oil conspiracies advanced by western journalists are particularly laughable. However, while the bias certainly exists, it is wildly exaggerated by Gulf nationals, for two reasons. First, generally speaking, Gulf nationals only read what western papers write about the Gulf countries. For many, there is a considerable language barrier, and so they only read the ones that are translated into Arabic and circulated via WhatsApp, which are invariably the ones covering Gulf issues. While these articles are almost always negative in tone, the Gulf readers assume that the coverage of other countries is neutral on average and that the Gulf countries are therefore being singled out. This assumption is erroneous: western newspapers are full of negative analysis of every country, and the country that usually secures the most negative coverage is usually the newspaper’s home state. This is because it is a newspaper’s job to criticize, as part of its broader mission to hold people in power accountable. Moreover, negative news sells, even if it is depressing to read. Readers are inherently more attracted to a headline exposing a scandal or uncovering corruption than they are a generic slap on the back for a government official. To illustrate this, as I am writing this article, I am looking at the top 10 most read articles in an established western newspaper.
The top nine are negative coverage of various countries due to war or Covid-19, except for the sixth, which is about a bloodless coup in a small country. Only the tenth escapes the negativity, as it is a selection of pictures of Muslims celebrating Eid al-Fitr across the world.
Therefore, if Gulf nationals took the time to read a more representative selection of western articles, and not just those about the Gulf, their perceptions of anti-Gulf bias would be attenuated.
The second reason is that the domestic media in the Gulf gives residents a highly distorted image of what media looks like in other countries. Unlike western media, Gulf media do contain lots of positive articles. Many pieces published daily are essentially press releases from a ministry’s communications department describing a government success story. This fuels the erroneous assumption held by many Gulf nationals that western newspapers publish neutral or positive articles on average and that the ones that are about the Gulf countries are outliers due to their excessive negativity. The truth is that western newspapers enjoy criticizing their governments even when they are doing a good job. If people in the Gulf read more widely, they would discover the unique character of their media, and correct some of the inaccurate views they have about foreign journalists. While western media is certainly biased against the Gulf due to the journalists’ ideological proclivities, the bias is nowhere near as strong as people in the Gulf believe it to be.