LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
July 21/2018
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

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Syria’s encrypted messages to Jordan
Shehab Al-Makahleh/Al Arabiya/July 20/18
Regional geopolitical requirements, along with internal political and security concerns, have been the main pillars of Jordanian policy vis-à-vis the Syrian crisis. The management of security concerns associated with the growing terrorism on its northern border had become the main objective of Jordan’s foreign policy. Thus, many Jordanians are upbeat that bilateral relations will be back to normalcy in light of new realities in Syria in the field in pursuance of the tone of the Syrian officials towards Jordan. Since the outbreak of the conflict in 2011, Jordanian diplomacy has been characterized by much mistrust and caution regarding the Syrian conflict unlike other neighbors of Syria. Thus, Jordan has been deeply concerned by instability and violence spreading to its territory. Naturally, it has been Amman’s priority to adapt to the crisis on its northern border, not the issue of the survival or demise of the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as Jordan has consistently sought a political agreement to end the conflict.
Fresh start
Jordanian politicians and people believe that it is the time to let bygones be bygones and to start afresh as Jordan and Syria should have close ties at all levels regardless of pressure Jordan is undergoing from regional and international powers. When Jordan kept its embassy open in Damascus that was a positive signal to the Syrian regime that the kingdom keeps the minimum level of communication, which has been a wise and prudent policy at that time due to regional and international pressure. There is no doubt that Jordan’s concern about the growing extremism on its northern border has been a severe blow for the armed opposition factions at a time the kingdom maintained close contact with the Kremlin even before Russia launched its air campaign end of September 2015. This has helped Jordan pursue political realism through its rapprochement with Moscow, which led to the demise and decline of armed opposition forces. As Moscow plays the role of “decision maker” in Syria, things seem to be heading towards restoring the regime control over crossings points between Jordan and Syria not only Naseeb-Jaber but also Ramtha-Dera’a with Russian help.
Terms to open borders
After the liberation of Naseeb crossing, Jordanian politicians close to the Syrian government had been informed by Damascus that the border point will not be opened before a comprehensive strategic understanding with Jordan is reached, not only for economic purposes but also for strategic and security considerations. This entails that Syrian and Jordanian officials would be paying mutual visits in the coming era, a gesture to start or restore official relations. Despite Jordan’s official statements that Amman’s relations with Damascus are ongoing at military and diplomatic levels with the Syrian side, the Syrian regime’s intention in the aftermath of recovering Nasseb crossing to have full relations with Jordan reflect otherwise. This entails the exchange of ambassadors first before any talk about economic, security and political ties.
In May 2018, Amman received many positive messages from Damascus to re-establish contacts related to border arrangements between the two countries. Such Syrian messages have been decrypted by Jordan, some of which demonstrated the Syrian government’s willingness to overcome the old political differences to start economic activities in the reconstruction process of Syria with the Jordanian private sector.
This explains the visit of the chairman of Jordanian Chambers of Industry to Syria last May, accompanied by a number of businessmen. Some of these messages have also included assurances that the Syrian government understands Jordan’s atmospherics and pressure exerted on the country since 2011. However, communications through Jordanian security and military channels have been active, and political and diplomatic channels remained open. Before March 2011, Jordan and Syria have largely formulated their economic and political affairs based on a sprouting sequence of strategic partnerships.
A breakthrough? When Jordan’s King Abdullah II said in an interview with Jordan News Agency, Petra, that he is “deeply concerned” about the situation in southern Syria and that his country’s border with Syria would only reopen “when the right security conditions materialize on the ground,” this is the condition that Jordan has for the Syrian government. And with the recovery of the borders with Jordan, this condition is met and Jordan is looking forward to reopening the crossing point to jump-start trade activities. However, this is not what Syria wants at present.
In spite of all differences that marred Jordanian-Syrian ties for eight years, bilateral relations are moving in an increasingly positive direction. The coming months may prove to be pivotal ones in their relations, bringing temperature to their pre-2011 era. Since August 2017, al-Assad has been sending positive messages to Jordan.
The remarks of the Syrian president and his interviews with foreign TV channels reveal that Damascus does not attach great importance to the opening of the border with Jordan soon, but attaches importance to a comprehensive security, political, military and economic deal that will help reach a kind of rapprochement and a détente between both governments. It is a full package deal or nothing. Damascus has been sending messages to Jordan through Germany which is deemed an honest broker and a source of confidence for the Syrian government. These messages focused on the readiness of the Syrian regime to trade the Iranian presence on the Jordanian border with disarming the opposition and the Free Syrian Army factions. The Naseeb crossing is one of the Middle East’s busiest trade routes as it connects Europe to the Middle East. Before the closure of borders, Jordan’s customs handled $1.5 billion-worth of goods a year. Now that amount is zero. Before the Syrian uprising in 2011, more than 5,000 trucks used to cross the border each month.

‘Resurrection’ of Safar al-Hawali
Mashari Althaydi/Al Arabiya/July 20/18
Dr. Safar al-Hawali’s name is back in the spotlight following the “campaign” which accompanied the “huge” book attributed to him – Muslims and western civilization – which is over 3,000 pages. What’s strange is that Hawali has suffered a stroke in 2005 and it has affected him just like it would affect anyone who suffers from such a hardship. So how could he be so lengthy in addressing Arab transformations in general and specifically Saudi transformations and put them under the Sahawist x-ray of political Islam groups’ laboratories with their Sururist-Qutbist version?
Anyway, according to the few parts reviewed, this type of thinking and analysis harmonizes with Safar al-Hawali’s own intellectual and political history. It’s very possible that he resorted to the help of a team of assistant researchers, especially given his experience of writing via a team like the case was with explaining the book A Muslim theologian’s response to Christianity by Ibn Taymiyyah. Back then, i.e. before he got sick, he carried out his work through a research center and a group of researchers. There’s nothing new in al-Hawali’s large volumes but a modern recollection of what he wrote, lectured and preached at his mosque in Jeddah or residence in Mecca and a recollection of his famous lectures at Umm al-Hamam Mosque in Riyadh during the peak of war which the country fought against Saddam’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990.
Safar al-Hawli represented the theoretical spearhead of the Saudi Sururist Movement, and was a close student of Muhammad Qutb, the brother of Sayyid Qutb. He tried to localize Sayyid Qutb’s theories in the local Salafist environment by explaining the book Al-Aqidah al-Tahawiyyah and via other attempts.
Political Islam
I remember that during Sadam’s invasion of Kuwait, protests erupted. Some of these protests erupted on an Arabist “nationalist” basis and some on a leftist basis but most of them – and this is what’s important – erupted on the basis of political Islam. Symbols of the so-called Sahwa in Saudi Arabia were the leaders of the scene. Figures like Dr. Safar al-Hawali and others warned and intimidated of the international alliance and of its real intentions. Circumstances were critical and sensitive.  What we recall well – and plenty of it can be found on the internet – is Hawali’s approach to the crisis as he chose to address a huge political event via religion and the sacred so he chose some texts from a massive heritage collection to project it on this specific event, i.e. Saddam’s invasion of Kuwait, and made it an introduction to the end of time and the talk of the end of time epics. Back then, Hawali based his analysis on talking about al-Rum (the Orthodox). According to him, al-Rum are the entire of Europe and America and perhaps Australia and New Zealand, regardless of the specific historical meaning of the word, “the Byzantines.” Nothing of what Sheikh Safar and all Sahawist movements warned of happened. Their failure at making expectations did not even make them review themselves and their approach for one second! They rather moved on and got preoccupied with other events using the same analytical mechanism and approaches. It’s like nothing happened! Today, Qatar’s channels, the Brotherhood’s global platforms and their friends from the left have been added to Safar’s audience.
History is repeating itself.

Punish ignorant people who promote sectarianism
Mohammed Al Shaikh/Al Arabiya/July 20/18
It is said that once a Sunni Palestinian and a Shiite Iraqi were debating in London over Husayn ibn Ali and Muawiyah and who was better among the two. The heated debate escalated into a fight so the police intervened, arrested both and referred them to the judiciary. The British judge obviously asked them who Husayn and Muawiyah are and where they live. He was shocked to know that the scuffle was over a historical dispute going back 14 centuries so he sent both to a psychiatric institution. I am not sure how true this story is, but it exemplifies the effect of history on the mentality of most Muslims – a mentality which often produces bloodshed. I have no doubt that this conveys sheer ignorance and backwardness. There are also lecturers or who are recently dubbed as preachers who have made a lot of money by milking these issues, both among the Sunni and the Shiite. They tend to insult whoever objects to these trivialities and superstitions. I definitely believe that inciting sectarian arguments is like a virus which if it attacks national unity, it leads to strife, unrest and destroys security and stability. We have a clear example of this happening in Iraq due to the sectarian conflict among its national components. However, this situation would never stabilize unless sectarian fanaticism is renounced. If nostalgia and engaging in arguments about the past stir up sedition, then logically and out of Islamic perspective such issues should not be discussed. The evidence is in the Quran: “That is a nation which has passed on. It will have [the consequence of] what it earned, and you will have what you have earned. And you will not be asked about what they used to do.” Raking up sectarian issues despite Quranic prohibition is because some people benefit from it.
Preachers have made a lot of money by milking sectarian issues, both among the Sunni and the Shiite
Stoking instability
In addition to preachers, there are foreign parties that try to stoke instability and crisis in the community. Without realizing, the members of this community become slaves of the foreign party and serve its interests. Their stupidity is thus exploited to achieve foreign parties’ mean goals. On top are proponents of Vilayat-e Faqih republic. We never witnessed such disputes before Khomeini took power in Iran, though there were traces of these problems in some heritage books. Once Khomeini’s revolution succeeded, he raised contentious doctrines and stoked rivalry, which ensued in widespread hatred. He hired agents to revive the disputes of the past. Although the clerics of Iran claim that they support the unity of the Islamic nation, and that they transcend sectarian differences but their policies in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and Bahrain invalidate their claims especially that they have found the means to achieve their goals in these countries.
I do not hold the Persian clerics as being solely responsible for this problem. There are many Sunni and other preachers as well as some naive and ignorant people in the community who help them achieve their goals and promote sectarian divisions without knowing it.
Thus, I call for the enactment of strict and deterrent policies to stop these ignorant people and purify our nation and more importantly our educational curricula from everything that may break up the national bond.