LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
November 27/18
Compiled &
Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
The Bulletin's Link on the
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Bible Quotations For today
But many who are first will be last, and the
last will be first.
Mark 10/28-31: "Peter began to say to Jesus, ‘Look, we have left everything and
followed you.’Jesus said, ‘Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house
or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake
and for the sake of the good news, who will not receive a hundredfold now in
this age houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with
persecutions and in the age to come eternal life. But many who are first will be
last, and the last will be first."
Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis &
editorials from miscellaneous sources published on November 26-27/18
Chad President seeks Israeli intervention in Africa’s wars
on ISIS, Al Qaeda/DEBKAfile/November 26/18
Israel works to establish diplomatic relations with Bahrain/Itamar
Eichner/Ynetnews/November 26/18
A New Phase In Israel- Gulf Relations/Jerusalem Post/November 26/18
Report: Syrian Regime Grants Citizenship To Iranians, Hezbollah
Fighters/Jerusalem Post/November 26/18
Dictionaries, Rockets and Towers/Ghassan Charbel/Asharq Al Awsat/November 26/18
A Thelma and Louise Brexit/Therese Raphael//Bloomberg View/November 26/18
China and US: Competition on Quality/The Sectarian Significance of Bahrain’s
Elections
Simon Henderson/The Washington Institute./November 26, 2018
The Sectarian Significance of Bahrain’s Elections/Simon Henderson/The Washington
Institute./November 26, 2018
Thus, Mohammed bin Rashid spoke/Mashari Althaydi/Al Arabiya/November 26/18
Khashoggi and the war between Trump and the media/Mamdouh AlMuhaini/Al
Arabiya/November 26/18
Canada's Treacherous "Faustian Bargain"/Salim Mansur/Gatestone
Institute/November 26/18
Qatar: Time to Shape Up/Debalina Ghoshal/Gatestone Institute/November 26/18
Titles For Latest LCCC Lebanese Related News published on
November 26-27/18
Aoun holds talks with Belgian House Speaker at Baabda
paalce
Bracke visits Hariri: We hope the government will be formed very soon because
Lebanon is key player in promoting regional stability
Hariri discusses missing Lebanese and return of displaced Syrians with ICRC head
of delegation
Berri, Belgian counterpart ink parliamentary partnership protocol
Hezbollah Not Enthusiastic about Lebanon’s Defense Strategy
In Beirut Play, Audience Relives Stories of Rape Survivors
Lebanon Demands UN Condemnation of Israel’s Sinking of Ship in 1982
Berri Warns No Time to Waste in Government Formation
Geagea Tells Aoun, Hariri to Form Govt. without Hizbullah
Mashnouq: Govt. Vacuum Will Eventually End
Independent Sunni MPs Give Hariri '48-hr Deadline' to Meetup
Nadim Gemayel Walks Out of Kataeb Meeting over SSNP Pharmacists Alliance
Rampling Visits Arsal and Second Land Border Regiment
Ibrahim: To Confront Terrorism and Cut Supply Routes
Israeli mock raids in Nabatiyeh, Iqlim Tuffah
Alain Aoun visits Japan's Ambassador: We demand fair, transparent trial for
Carlos Ghosn
Samy Gemayel Hails Amendments to Improve Domestic Violence Law
Samy Gemayel: Hezbollah Cannot Subdue the Lebanese People
Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports
And News published on November 26-27/18
Chad President seeks Israeli intervention in Africa’s wars
on ISIS, Al Qaeda
Israel works to establish diplomatic relations with Bahrain
ASLMA Calls for Confronting Iran’s Regional, European Terror Threat
Israel Approves Appointment of New Army Chief of Staff
Israel Celebrates Visit of Chadian President
Syrian opposition leader: Iranian militias behind chemical attack on Aleppo
Al Shabaab gunmen kill cleric, 9 others at religious center in Somalia
Palestinian shot dead after allegedly injuring Israeli soldiers in car-ramming
Egypt’s Dar al-Ifta Condemns Expulsion of Idlib’s Christians From Their Homes
Mitsubishi Sacks Ghosn as Chairman, Follows Nissan's Footsteps
Jordan Army Kills Four Smugglers Crossing Border From Syria
Alleged Syria Chemical Attack: Is the Idlib Deal in Peril?
With Border Open, Jordanians Visit Syria for First Time in Years
Israel Postpones Vote on 'Loyalty' in Culture Bill
Israel Rearrests Palestinian Jerusalem Governor
Russian Airstrikes Hit Syria ‘Buffer Zone’ after Chemical Attack
Egypt Upholds 9 Death Sentences over Prosecutor's Assassination
UK's May Comes under Fire over EU Exit Deal
Russia-Ukraine Tensions Soar after Confrontation at Sea
Saudi Crown Prince Arrives in Cairo on Regional Tour
Latest Lebanese Related News published on November 26-27.18
Aoun holds talks with Belgian House Speaker at Baabda paalce
Mon 26 Nov 2018/NNA -
President of the Republic, Michel Aoun, on Monday stressed that the best
solution to the Syrian refugees' crisis lies in their return to safe areas in
their country. President Aoun's fresh words came during his meeting at the
Baabda palace with President of the Belgian House of Representatives, Siegfried
Bracke, in the presence of his accompanying parliamentary delegation. Attending
the meeting had also been MP Yassine Jaber and Belgian Ambassador to Lebanon,
Hubert Cooreman. Aoun said linking the Syrian refugees' return to their homeland
to reaching a political solution in Syria raises doubts regarding their stay in
their host countries, citing the example of the Palestinian people's 70 year
pending cause. Aoun informed Bracke that Lebanon has asked of the international
community and the international organizations affiliated to the United Nations
to provide assistance to the displaced Syrians after their return, for they are
contributing to the reconstruction of their country. In reply to questions by
the Belgian parliamentary delegation, Aoun said Lebanon has regained and
consecrated its stability two years ago after the Lebanese army and the security
forces have defeated the terrorist groups in the Bekaa Valley and eliminated
dormant terror cells. However, the President added, Lebanon is enduring an
economic crisis due to the accumulations of the past years and the impact of the
international crisis and the influx of displaced Syrians and refugees. In reply
to a question, Aoun expressed surprise regarding the international positions
that ignore the need for the return of the displaced Syrians, pointing out that
Lebanon calls for separating the political solution of the Syrian crisis from
the issue of the return of the displaced. The head of state said that the
Lebanese constitution prohibits Palestinian settlement in Lebanon, deploring the
continued Israeli assaults against the Palestinian people and the city of Quds.
The President affirmed that the policy adopted by Israel does not help in
achieving peace but rather it keeps wars ongoing in different forms. In response
to a question, Aoun said that the next government will accord priority to
reforms, in order to keep up with the results of the CEDRE conference, and to
implement the already devised national economic plan- pending approval by the
new government to be put into effect. Bracke, for his part, expressed his
delight to be visiting Lebanon along with his accompanying delegation, focusing
on "the importance of Lebanon for the European countries, in general, and
Belgium, in particular, which wants to further its relations with Lebanon." The
Belgian senior official said his Country shall become a member of the Security
Council as of next January, and shall contribute to supporting Lebanon's causes
in the international podiums.
Bracke visits Hariri: We hope the government
will be formed very soon because Lebanon is key player in promoting regional
stability
Mon 26 Nov 2018éNNA - Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri held talks this
evening at the Center House with the President of the Belgian Chamber of
Representatives Siegfried Bracke in the presence of MP Yassine Jaber, the
Belgian Ambassador to Lebanon Hubert Cooreman and the accompanying delegation.
After the meeting Bracke said: “We had a very interesting talk with the Prime
Minister, just as we had interesting talks in the course of the day with other
key players within your political life. The talks with the President of the
Republic, the Speaker of Parliament and the Prime Minister were very
interesting, and still they were different. It told us about the diversity and
complexity within the Lebanese political life. To be very concrete, what we
talked about is the refugee problem. We hope that your government will be formed
very soon because we need stability within the region, and Lebanon is the key
player in promoting that stability.”He added: “We told the Prime Minister that
we are willing to help the Lebanese government in dealing with the refugee
problem and we hope that the Lebanese government will be there soon and that it
will get very soon the reforms necessary by the Paris agreement and we will help
as much as possible.”
Hariri discusses missing Lebanese and return of
displaced Syrians with ICRC head of delegation
Mon 26 Nov 2018/NNA - Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri received today at the
Center House the Head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
delegation in Beirut Christophe Martin. After the meeting, Martin said: “I just
came out of a meeting with the Prime Minister, an extremely interesting exchange
taking stock of the year 2018 and looking forward into 2019 of what the ICRC’s
operations are about and how much we have benefitted from the support of the
Prime Minister’s office, specifically on the issue of the missing Lebanese and
the passing of the law a few weeks back with a strong support from the Prime
Minister’s office and his political party. We also talked about what we are
expecting in the future, because that’s one part of the work and now it has to
be formulized in different manners with the creation of the national commission.
We were able to tackle the issue of the Syrian refugees and their return to
Syria. The ICRC strongly supports the idea of people returning to Syria,
provided a set number of conditions are met: that the return takes place in a
dignified manner, that people are informed, that the security is guaranteed and
that the principle of non-refoulement is respected. We also tackled the issue of
the ICRC’s operation in Lebanon with the focus on our medical activities and the
work that we are currently undertaking in the Rafic Hariri University hospital,
in close collaboration with Dr. Abyad, the CEO of the hospital as well as the
Ministry of Public Health, and the strong support that the Prime Minister’s
office and the Prime Minister in person have demonstrated vis-à-vis this
project.”Earlier, Hariri received former MP Khaled Daher and his son Abdul
Rahman. After the meeting, Daher said: “Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri
informed us about the general situation and he expressed his optimism, his
constant attachment to the national interest and his commitment to the
constitution. He offered all the possible sacrifices and showed all keenness to
protect the country that needs him now, as shown by the parliamentary consensus
and the Arab and international embrace around him, to start the advancement and
development process in Lebanon and emerge from the economic and social
crisis.”He added: “We hear dissonant voices and bad mouthing on Premier Hariri
regarding the naming of one of the six March 8 Sunni MPs as a minister in the
government. We emphasize that Premier Hariri adheres to the constitution and the
interest of the country and there is a consensus from the religious figures,
economic bodies and political leaderships that the he should continue the
political path by forming the government. Premier Hariri made a lot of
sacrifices and he can’t offer more than he already did. He prepared the
government formula and what remains is for Hezbollah to name its ministers in
order to start work.”He concluded: “We also discussed the development projects
in Akkar, some of which are currently underway, while the other part needs the
launch of CEDRE conference. I also raised with Premier Hariri the topic of the
Islamist prisoners and he is interested in it on the humanitarian level and we
hope to reach good results. A meeting will be held between Premier Hariri and
the families of the detainees.”
Berri, Belgian counterpart ink parliamentary
partnership protocol
Mon 26 Nov 2018/NNA - Speaker of the House, Nabih Berri, and President of the
Belgian House of Representatives, Siegfried Baracke, on Monday highlighted the
paramount importance of strengthening bilateral relations and parliamentary
cooperation between Lebanon and Belgium. In this vein, the pair inked today a
partnership protocol between the two countries that expires in the year 2021.
The partnership protocol serves parliamentary cooperation, as well as the
exchange of expertise and information on matters of mutual interest, including
those involving legislation and supervision, as well as the exchange of visits
at the parliamentary level. Berri held a meeting with his visiting Belgian
delegation during which the protocol agreement between the two countries was
signed. The meeting was followed by a joint press conference initiated by
President Berri, who welcomed his guests and said: "We stressed the need to
strengthen economic cooperation between Lebanon and Belgium; we expect it to be
more strengthened, especially after the formation of the awaited government.”
Berri seized the opportunity to thank Belgium for its contributions to Lebanon,
including those within the framework of UNIFIL. The House Speaker also
congratulated Belgium for it will become a member of the UN Security Council as
of the beginning of next year. He thanked as well his Belgian counterpart for
having personally supported issues involving Palestinians and UNRWA, and for his
support of a just solution to the Palestinian issue. In turn, the Belgian House
Speaker said, “I have been very delighted to meet with the Speaker of the
Lebanese House of Parliament. We had met three years ago, and I still remember
the useful talks we had about the future of Lebanon, Belgium, and the European
Union.” “We have exchanged very useful views on the future because we, in
Belgium, are aware of the many complexities of finding sound and non-bloodshed
solutions. This is the most important thing for us. Of course, the assessment of
the situation in each country depends on the events and developments inside and
outside each country,” the Belgian Speaker said. “We are aware that Speaker
Berri is capable of solving all problems, no matter what their complexity, in an
optimistic manner and away from violence — in a positive and political way that
suits all the Lebanese,” he added. “I would like to say that I am very pleased
to have signed with Berri a partnership agreement between the Lebanese and
Belgian parliaments, and I want to point out that some of the agreements signed
are not practically applicable, but this agreement has been implemented the
first minute it was signed. We look forward to continuing these efforts within
the next three years,” Baracke concluded.
Hezbollah Not Enthusiastic about Lebanon’s Defense Strategy
Beirut - Paula Astih/Asharq
Al-Awsat/Monday, 26 November, 2018/ Lebanon’s defense strategy, which should
decide on the fate of Hezbollah’s arms, has returned to the table of
negotiations. President Michel Aoun promised last March to discuss the matter
following the parliamentary elections held across the country six months ago.
Discussions should pave the way for the potential integration of Hezbollah’s
arsenal within the framework of a national defense strategy. However, the Shiite
party does not seem enthusiastic about returning to the negotiating table where
rival parties should engage in dialogue to safeguard the country’s stability and
advance its national interest. Military experts said current local and regional
conditions may not be ripe to place the defense strategy back on the negotiation
table. They believe that no solutions are possible in the near future, mainly
due to Hezbollah turning into a “regional military force.” Member of Strong
Lebanon parliamentary bloc MP Shamel Roukoz told Asharq Al-Awsat that there
should be an effective government capable of knowing the risks facing Lebanon
and coming up with measures to counter them. “There are two principle threats
... the first is the Israeli enemy and the second is terrorism,” he said.
Dialogue on the defense strategy was halted at the end of the term of former
President Michel Suleiman in 2014. The country’s leaders have failed in national
dialogue sessions held over the span of eight years to agree on the fate of
Hezbollah’s arms. In September 2012, Suleiman presented his vision of a national
strategy for the defense of Lebanon, stating that the appropriate frameworks and
mechanisms should be agreed upon to use Hezbollah’s weapons and to place them
under the army’s mandate. Lebanese leaders discussed this strategy without
reaching a conclusion. But decision-makers adopted the-called “Baabda
Declaration”. Article 12 of the Declaration calls for “dissociating Lebanon from
the policy of regional and international axes and conflicts, and avoiding the
negative repercussions of regional tensions and crises.” However, with
Hezbollah’s decision to send its fighters to Syria to participate in the war,
the party has bluntly violated the Declaration. Head of Hezbollah’s
parliamentary bloc MP Mohammed Raad has said that the Declaration was “born dead
and is mere ink on paper.” Lebanese Forces deputy Wehbe Qatisha told Asharq Al-Awsat
that defense strategy discussions should not be linked to the government crisis.
“A national dialogue can be launched to discuss the defense strategy
immediately,” he said, adding that the LF party has a clear vision concerning
the issue. The MP said claims of Hezbollah becoming a regional military force
should not make it difficult for Lebanese parties to discuss the fate of its
arms. “A proposal stipulating that Hezbollah be merged with the Lebanese army is
impossible and unacceptable,” he added.
In Beirut Play, Audience Relives Stories of Rape
Survivors
Beirut- Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 26 November, 2018/As a child, Riham would wake
up at night to her half-brother molesting her. Now she is one of seven women
recounting their suffering in a play about sexual violence in Lebanon.
Recordings of the women's voices ring out as the audience moves from room to
room in a house in Beirut. Women's rights group ABAAD put on the play entitled
"Shame on who?" this weekend. In one room, a girl in white tries to stand up but
keeps falling. In another, a woman talks to her mother but gets no response. "I
chose the idea of a house because most of these incidents happen from someone
very close to the (victims)," said Sahar Assaf, who conceived and directed the
play. "Supposedly, the safest place for a woman should be her house." Riham, 35,
recalls how she told her mother that her half-brother had abused her for 20
years since she was eight. "She said that I was a liar and that I should never
speak of such a thing."ABAAD head Ghida Anani said the play sought to empower
survivors and encourage victims to report assaults. The audience relives Ward's
story from the husband's perspective as an actor paces in a bedroom. "We got
married...but she started getting bothered because I used to like sleeping with
her by force. from behind," he says. "Once I gave her sleeping pills and tied
her up...She couldn't do anything." Lebanon passed a long-awaited law in 2014
against domestic violence. But rights groups were outraged that authorities
watered it down so much it fell short of criminalizing marital rape. Child
marriage also remains legal. The United Nations says a third of women worldwide
have suffered sexual or physical violence. A 2017 national ABAAD study found
that one in four women have been raped in Lebanon. Less than a quarter of those
who faced sexual assault reported it, the survey said. "I felt that he was an
animal eating my flesh," Hoda, whose neighbor raped her at 14, recalls in a
recording in the play. "If I could turn back time the first thing I would do is
go to a forensic physician to get evidence," she says. "I would refuse to be the
victim. He would pay for what he did."
Lebanon Demands UN Condemnation of Israel’s Sinking of Ship in 1982
Beirut - Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 26 November, 2018/Lebanon called on Sunday the
United Nations Security Council to condemn Israel and issuing the relevant
resolutions after it admitted to the sinking of a refugee ship off the Lebanese
coast in 1982 during the country’s 1975-90 civil war. The submarine attack, off
the coast of the northern city of Tripoli, left 25 out of 56 people on board
dead. Israel had invaded Lebanon in 1982 and imposed a naval blockade. Israel’s
Channel 10 said on Thursday that the submarine torpedoed the ship after it
believed it was transporting Palestinian fighters. The ship was in fact
transporting refugees to safety in Cyprus.Israel only carried out an
investigation into the incident ten years after it happened and it kept the
findings a secret up until recently. The probe acknowledged that the submarine
had fired at the ship believing Palestinians were on board. The investigation
found that while the captain had made a mistake, he had been acting within his
operational orders. It noted that he had not fired on several other ships
believed to be carrying Palestinian fighters due to suspicions there were
innocent civilians on board. “It was not a war crime and there was no
misconduct, there is no place for legal action,” the report found, according to
Channel 10. The Lebanese foreign ministry slammed Israel for its admission,
adding that Tel Aviv has a long history in killing civilians and attacking
civilian infrastructure. Moreover, it rejected the findings of the
investigation, demanding that the UN deem the attack a war crime and that those
responsible be held accountable.
Berri Warns No Time to Waste in Government Formation
Naharnet/November 26/18/Parliament
Speaker Nabih Berri on Monday warned against further delay in the cabinet
formation process. “I will repeat what the President (Michel Aoun) has said: we
no longer have the luxury of time at all. The government should have been formed
yesterday rather than today,” Berri said after talks in Beirut with his Belgian
counterpart. Asked whether there will be a breakthrough, Berri said: “We can
only be optimistic and as I said before we have to plead to God.”The new
government was on the verge of formation on October 29 after the Lebanese Forces
accepted the portfolios that were assigned to it but a last-minute hurdle over
the representation of pro-Hizbullah Sunni MPs surfaced. Hizbullah has insisted
that the six Sunni MPs should be given a seat in the government, refraining from
providing Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri with the names of its three
Shiite ministers in a bid to press him. Hariri has rejected the demand,
announcing that he’d rather step down than give the aforementioned lawmakers a
seat from his own share in the government.
Geagea Tells Aoun, Hariri to Form Govt. without Hizbullah
Naharnet/November 26/18/Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea has called on
President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri to form a
government without Hizbullah should the party continue refusing to hand the
PM-designate the names of its three Shiite ministers. “Any political party has
the right to have a viewpoint about the formation process, but that should not
be more than a mere viewpoint. President Aoun and PM-designate Hariri have the
right to endorse or reject this viewpoint. The party concerned can also grant or
withhold its confidence from the formed government. This is the constitution and
this is democracy,” Geagea said in an interview with the Central News Agency.
“But no party can say, ‘You either do what we want or there won’t be a
government,’ and this is what Hizbullah is doing today,” the LF leader added.
Warning that the economic and social situations “cannot withstand further
confusion,” Geagea said Aoun and Hariri “must take a decision” in light of their
“constitutional responsibility.” “They must tell Hizbullah, ‘We want you in the
government, give us the names of your ministers, and you have the right to voice
your opinion on the issue of representing the independent Sunnis with a
minister’… or else they should form a de facto government should the party
refuse to hand the names,” Geagea added. The new government was on the verge of
formation on October 29 after the Lebanese Forces accepted the portfolios that
were assigned to it but a last-minute hurdle over the representation of
pro-Hizbullah Sunni MPs surfaced. Hizbullah has insisted that the six Sunni MPs
should be given a seat in the government, refraining from providing Hariri with
the names of its three Shiite ministers in a bid to press him. Hariri has
rejected the demand, announcing that he’d rather step down than give the
aforementioned lawmakers a seat from his own share in the government.
Mashnouq: Govt. Vacuum Will Eventually End
Naharnet/November 26/18/Caretaker Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq said that
Lebanon’s government vacuum will eventually end, as he lauded the military’s
achievements in overcoming terrorism, highlighting the importance of national
unity in that regard. “Lebanon is enjoying unmatched stability. We live a
success story at the security and social levels,” said Mashnouq in remarks he
made at the opening of the General Security Conference on defeating terrorism
and its impact on the African continent. President Michel Aoun highly “believes
in the necessity to confront terrorism through national unity, reason, politics
and security and military institutions," said Mashnouq in remarks representing
Aoun at the conference. “Lebanon could not defeat terrorism if it weren’t for
national unity,” he said, pointing out that "the government vacuum must
eventually end and the Lebanese experience has toppled all illusions that some
have tried to lay on a certain sect," he added.
Independent Sunni MPs Give Hariri '48-hr Deadline' to Meetup
Naharnet/November 26/18/Pro-Hizbullah Sunni MPs said they are giving Prime
Minister-designate Saad Hariri 48 hours to set a date to meet with them,
adamantly stressing their right to be represented in the government,
al-Joumhouria daily reported on Monday. “We are giving Hariri 48 hours to set a
date and meet us. Any meeting after that deadline is meaningless,” one of the
six so-called Independent Sunni MPs told the daily without being named. However
he said “nothing new has emerged regarding their demands for representation in
the government.”After holding separate parliamentary consultations with Hariri,
each as part of his own bloc, the six MPs decided to form a separate bloc. The
MPs are: MP Abdel-Rahim Mrad, Adnan Traboulsi, Qassem Hashem (Amal Movement
parliamentary bloc) Walid Sukkarieh (Hizbullah parliamentary bloc), Jihad
al-Samad and Faisal Karami belong to a bloc that includes the Marada Movement.
The new government was on the verge of formation on October 29 after the
Lebanese Forces accepted the portfolios that were assigned to it but a
last-minute hurdle over the representation of the pro-Hizbullah Sunni MPs
surfaced. Hizbullah has insisted that the six Sunni MPs should be given a seat
in the government, refraining from providing Hariri with the names of its three
Shiite ministers in a bid to press him. Hariri has rejected the demand,
announcing that he’d rather step down than give the aforementioned lawmakers a
seat from his own share in the government.
Nadim Gemayel Walks Out of Kataeb Meeting over SSNP Pharmacists Alliance
Naharnet/November 26/18/MP Nadim Gemayel on Monday walked out of a meeting for
Kataeb Party’s political bureau in protest at his party’s alliance with the
Syrian Social Nationalist Party in the Order of Pharmacists elections that were
held on Sunday. Media reports said Kataeb and SSNP “backed the same list” in the
elections. “Gemayel will announce a stance in the coming hours,” MTV said.
Sunday’s vote was won by a list led by Ghassan al-Amin and backed by Kataeb,
SSNP, Hizbullah, the AMAL Movement, the Tashnag Party, the Progressive Socialist
Party and suspended members of the Free Patriotic Movement.Two SSNP members have
been convicted of assassinating President-elect Bashir Gemayel -- Nadim’s father
-- in 1982.
Rampling Visits Arsal and Second Land Border Regiment
Naharnet/November 26/18/British Ambassador to Lebanon Chris Rampling has visited
the town of Arsal in the Bekaa and neighboring areas for the first time, to see
first-hand how the communities living near the border are “benefiting from the
UK’s security and development partnership with Lebanon,” the British embassy
said on Monday. Rampling met Arsal municipal chief Bassel al-Hujeiri with
members of the Municipal Council, and heard about the needs of the town, and how
the UK funded flood-control system is “helping residents to manage water damages
to homes, crops and businesses for the first time,” the embassy said. The UK is
working with the Ministry of Social Affairs and UNDP through the Lebanese Host
Communities Support Program (LHSP) to deliver projects for the host community in
Arsal, following the end of the Lebanese Army’s Operation Fajr al-Jouroud last
summer.
After his meetings, Ambassador Rampling visited the Second Land Border Regiment
in Ras Baalbek and the 9th Brigade of the Lebanese Army, who are overseeing the
border with Syria, including the rough terrain in Arsal. “It was an opportunity
to hear from the LAF how the success of Fajr al-Jouroud operation last year
enabled the Army move its border posts forward onto reclaimed territory, putting
the Lebanese flag back on the farthest reaches of Lebanese territory, thanks to
British support and funding,” the embassy said. “The visit was also an
opportunity to see the newly refurbished office of the Lebanon Mine Action
Center (LMAC), the section of the Lebanese Army that execute and coordinate the
Lebanese National Mine Action Program. This is one component of a £194,000 UK
funded project through UNDP and Mine Action Group (MAG) to help Lebanon better
coordinate its clearance response to contaminated land, and provide Mine Risk
Education to local residents,” the embassy added. “Landmines continue to pose a
daily threat to the people of Lebanon, blocking access to farmland, which is
essential to people’s livelihoods. UK support to demining has reached over £2
million across Lebanon, including in South Lebanon and border areas in the North
East,” the embassy said. After his visit, Ambassador Rampling said: "It gives me
great pleasure to be visiting the town Arsal for the first time since arriving
in Lebanon three months ago. This has been a great opportunity to see how the UK
can support the Lebanese state to reinforce security, deliver economic
opportunities, and alleviate humanitarian suffering.”“While here, I met senior
officers from the Second Land Border Regiment, who played an important role in
repelling terrorist acts against Lebanon. The UK is delighted that the Lebanese
Army has now control of its border with Syria for the first time – this is work
that we will continue to support,” the envoy added. He said that it was also
important to hear directly from the Mayor of Arsal about the challenges facing
the communities there, and how the UK can support further.“Flooding had plagued
the city and its citizens for many years, destroying homes, businesses and
crops. But I am really pleased that, for the first time in the town's history,
there has been no flooding this year -- this is in part thanks to the
3,482-meter-long storm water drainage canal provided by the UK,” he went on to
say. Rampling added: “Another important aspect of my visit was visiting the
newly refurbished and equipped offices of Lebanon Mine Action Centre (LMAC). The
UK is working closely with the Lebanese army, UNDP and Mine Action Group (MAG),
to prioritize mine clearance efforts in areas along the border with Syria. Our
contribution of over £2 million supports clearance of many kilometers of Cluster
Munitions in the South, Mount Lebanon, and the Bekaa valley. This, and our other
support, will continue and develop further.”
Ibrahim: To Confront Terrorism and Cut Supply Routes
Naharnet/November 26/18/General Security Chief Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim said it
was time to step into a new stage in the war against terrorism, calling for
cutting terrorists' supply routes, the National News Agency reported on Monday.
"We must move forward to the stage of attacking terrorism; what is required is
to prevent terrorists' transport, in addition to cutting their supply routes and
chase them relentlessly," Ibrahim said at the inauguration of the General
Security conference.He also highlighted the necessity to adopt a unified system
to exchange information and to stop investing in terrorism.
Israeli mock raids in Nabatiyeh, Iqlim Tuffah
Mon 26 Nov 2018/NNA - Israeli enemy warplanes have been effectuating
low-altitude mock raids above the localities of Nabatieh, Iqlim al-Tuffah,
Litani River banks, Shkeef Castle, Yuhmour, and eastern Zawtar, NNA field
reporter said.
Alain Aoun visits Japan's Ambassador: We demand fair, transparent trial for
Carlos Ghosn
Mon 26 Nov 2018 /NNA - “Strong Lebanon” parliamentary bloc MP, Alain Aoun, and
in his capacity as Head of the Japanese - Lebanese Friendship Parliamentary
Committee, visited on Monday Japanese Ambassador to Lebanon, Matahiro Yamaguchi,
for a briefing on the latest concerning the arrest of Lebanese businessman,
Carlos Ghosn. MP Aoun relayed to the Japanese diplomat many of the concerns and
questions of the Lebanese public concerning the arrest of Carlos Ghosn. “Lebanon
respects the independence and sovereignty of Japan’s judiciary, and does not
allow itself to interfere in the course of Japan’s justice, yet it also believes
that Carlos Ghosn should undergo a fair and transparent trail with full respect
for his right to defend himself, away from the prejudices that have been
deliberated through the media,” MP Aoun said. “Carlos Ghosn has always been a
source of pride for the Lebanese thanks to his professionalism, successes, and
brilliance across the world, thus everyone is waiting for this matter to be
cleared,” the lawmaker added. In turn, Ambassador Yamaguchi confirmed Japan's
keenness on the of best relations with Lebanon. “This issue is going through a
judicial process that is completely independent from politics. Carlos Ghosn will
get a fair trial like other Japanese citizens and will enjoy the full means of
defense that he needs."
Samy Gemayel Hails Amendments to Improve
Domestic Violence Law
Kataeb.org/Monday 26th November 2018/Kataeb leader Samy Gemayel on Monday hailed
a draft law that has been submitted jointly by several parliamentary blocs to
improve the application of a law to protect women and family members from
domestic violence four years after it had been ratified by the Parliament,
noting that the bill passed in April 2014 proved to be including loopholes that
prevent women from being fully protected. "This draft law was ready a while ago,
but we waited for this day, which marks the International Day for the
Elimination of Violence against Women, to submit it," Gemayel told reporters at
the Parliament. "We merged a set of proposals into one draft law that was
approved by all parliamentary blocs in order to rectify the gaps and correct the
mistakes that the initial law contains, and to improve its implementation in a
way that makes it more effective."
"One cause is uniting us regardless of our political affiliations; one that aims
at enhancing conditions of women's protection in Lebanon following the extensive
progress witnessed at this level during the past five years," Gemayel stressed.
“There’s almost full unanimity over this draft law, which means that 80% of the
work has been achieved towards approving it," he added. “Nothing can be
accomplished overnight, but we are heading towards the right path,” he said,
noting that “the battle was launched in 2011 when we succeeded in abolishing the
honor crime.""We hope that it goes on to reach the approval of the female quota
which would alter the political landscape and boost the woman's national role in
Lebanon," Gemayel concluded.
Samy Gemayel: Hezbollah Cannot Subdue the Lebanese People
Kataeb.org/Monday 26th November 2018/Kataeb leader Samy Gemayel on Saturday
called on both President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister-Designate Saad Hariri to
revolt against the current political performance, urging them to be similar to
the statesmen who ruled Lebanon during the 1943 independence era, and take a
firm decision to become the protagonists of the third Republic."It is time to
stop the way that the country's political life is being managed and to sit
together to build a new Lebanon," he said in an interview on MTV. On the
occasion of the Kataeb party's 82nd foundation anniversary, Gemayel stressed
that the history of the party has been closely tied to that of Lebanon,
outlining the significant importance that this correlation encloses."Just like
the Kataeb revolted against the French mandate in 1943, as well as against the
Palestinian and Syrian tutelages afterwards, the party is today revolting
against the reality that we are living and the constant deferral of the
establishment of a state," he stressed. "Our goal is to build a state that the
Lebanese would be proud of."Gemayel stressed the need for structural changes in
the political life in Lebanon, arguing that the same crises will re-emerge again
if no drastic changes are introduced. Gemayel called on Hezbollah to draw a
lesson from the Kataeb party's past in terms of being a large and powerful
military group, advising it to realize that no one can overtake the country.
"Hezbollah can subdue the ruling political class, but it cannot subdue the
Lebanese people," he affirmed. "Hezbollah may be now the one that holds the
reins, but this will not last forever," he added, urging Hezbollah to make a
bold step and work hand in hand with the other local factions to build a free,
sovereign, independent and stable country.
Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports
And News published on November 26-27/18
Chad President seeks Israeli intervention in Africa’s wars on ISIS,
Al Qaeda/الرئيس التشادي في إسرائيل سعياً لتدخلها في الحرب الإفريقية ضد داعش
والقاعدة
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/69216/israel-works-to-establish-diplomatic-relations-with-bahrain-%D8%AA%D8%B9%D9%85%D9%84-%D8%A5%D8%B3%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%8A%D9%84-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%89-%D8%A7%D9%82%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%A9-%D8%B9%D9%84%D8%A7/
DEBKAfile/November 26/18
Chad President Idriss Deby arrived in Israel on Sunday, Nov. 25, for a
down-to-earth mission. To enlist Israel’s participation in the fierce wars
against Al Qaeda and ISIS that are raging across the African continent, and in
which the US and France are also involved. This is reported by DEBKAfile.
So while Israel celebrated the diplomatic breakthrough marked by the first visit
by a Chad president and the burgeoning diplomatic ties Prime Minister Binyamin
Netanyahu is developing with the Muslim world, Jerusalem is on the horns of a
dilemma on whether to accede to the visitor’s bid. Deby will spend most of his
two-day visit in an attempt to convince Israel to lend a hand in the bitter wars
African regimes are waging to fend off the inroads the ISIS and al-Qaeda groups
are making in their countries, And if Israel agrees, on what scale?
Chad and its 250,00-strong army are at the forefront of this war, DEBKAfile’s
military and counter-terrorism sources report. They are battling Islamist
takeovers on three fronts:
1-Southern Libya, mainly in the oil-rich Fasen region from which a network of
pipelines carries Libyan oil to its Mediterranean export ports.
2-As the backbone of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), through which
Nigeria, Chad, the Central African Republic and others are fighting Boko Haram.
On this front, Chad troops have US military backing.
3-The Chad army is also part of another organization dedicated to combating
Islamist incursions: The Joint Force of the G5 Sahel (Force Conjointe du G5
Sahel) J5S, which is battling Al Qaeda in the Maghreb (AQIM) in the Sahel
desert.
According to our sources, Washington is in favor of Israel assisting Chad in its
counter-Islamist wars, but France, which is deeply immersed in Chad and the
Francophone African countries politically and militarily, was not averse to
President Deby’s visit to Jerusalem, but looks askance at its possible military
intervention in the wars on Islamist terror. Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta,
in contrast, would be glad to see this happen. Israel is already assisting Kenya
in its counter-terror war against al-Shabaab in Somalia.
The historic visit by Chad’s president, 66, who has been in power since 1990,
will center on hard talk on whether the Netanyahu government is ready to extend
aid to his campaign against Islamist terror, and in what form: military,
logistical or intelligence – on all three battlefronts, or only on a part.
Israel works to establish diplomatic relations with Bahrain
تعمل إسرائيل على اقامة علاقات دبلوماسية مع البحرين/
Itamar Eichner/Ynetnews/November
26/18
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/69216/israel-works-to-establish-diplomatic-relations-with-bahrain-%D8%AA%D8%B9%D9%85%D9%84-%D8%A5%D8%B3%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%8A%D9%84-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%89-%D8%A7%D9%82%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%A9-%D8%B9%D9%84%D8%A7/
After PM Netanyahu's visit to Oman
and Chadian President Deby's visit to Israel, the Jewish State is expected to
continue promoting its ties with the Arab world; 'There will be more such visits
in Arab countries very soon,' Netanyahu implies during a joint press conference
with Deby on Sunday.
Itamar Eichner|Published: 11.26.18 , 09:33
Israel is working to establish diplomatic ties with the Gulf State of Bahrain,
which are expected to be announced soon.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted at contacts being held with the Muslim
country during his joint press conference with Chadian President Idriss Deby on
Sunday.
"A few minutes ago, we discussed in my office the great changes that are taking
place in the Arab world in its relations with Israel. And this was manifested in
my recent visit in Oman with Sultan Qaboos. And there will be more such visits
in Arab countries very soon," Netanyahu said.
The Persian Gulf State, which has a population of 1.4 million, does not have
diplomatic relations with Israel. Bahrain has a small Jewish community of 40
people, and it is the only state in the Persian Gulf with a synagogue.
Several Bahraini Jews hold key positions in the country. Huda Ezra Ibrahim Nunu,
a Bahraini Jewish woman, served as Bahrain's ambassador to the US between the
years 2008-2013. Attorney Nancy Dina Kadouri is of Jewish descent, and serves as
one of the members of the upper house of the National Assembly in Bahrain, whose
members are appointed by the king.
After Netanyahu returned from Oman last month, officials in Jerusalem said the
next Arab country to host Netanyahu would be Bahrain.
As with Bahrain, Israel and Oman do not have diplomatic relations. The meeting
was the first between the leaders of the two countries since 1996. In 2000, with
the outbreak of the second intifada, Oman severed its ties with Israel.
Over the past several years, the media has reported on secret communications
between Israel and Oman, with one report indicating that Israel was about to
open a secret consulate in the port city of Muscat.
As part of the US administration's efforts to set in motion a political process
between the two countries, the Americans worked to convince Oman to normalize
its relations with Israel.
In the past, the Sultanate announced it would resume diplomatic relations with
the Jewish State, if the latter agrees to freeze construction in the
settlements.
ASLMA Calls for Confronting Iran’s Regional, European
Terror Threat
Copenhagen -
Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 26 November, 2018/An Ahwaz conference shed light on Iran’s terrorism, at the international and
regional levels, and the forms of oppression and persecution carried out by the
Iranian regime against Ahwazian and non-Persian people, said head of the Arab
Struggle Movement for Liberation of Ahwaz (ASLMA) Habib Jaber. He made his
remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat on the sidelines of the “With Ahwaz in the Face of
the Iranian Terrorism” conference in Copenhagen, Denmark over the weekend held
on the 19th anniversary of the movement's founding. Jaber stressed that the
conference urged European countries to support the Danish position in regards to
Iran’s terrorism and human rights in Iran. Last month, Danish authorities
announced that they had foiled an assassination attempt against a group of
political activists opposed to the Iranian regime, headed by Jaber and two of
his companions. Jaber said the measures taken by Danish authorities following
the disclosure of the Iranian intelligence apparatus’s plot were “courageous and
strict.”He pointed out that holding the conference “in light of the continuation
of the Iranian regime threats, poses the most important challenge to the Danish
security authorities,” adding that it is a chance to introduce the Danish and
European public to the Iranian regime’s terrorism. Denmark took strict security
measures to protect the conference. On European interest in following the
activities of the conference, Jaber said that “this helps us uncover the reality
of Iranian terrorism, not only in the Middle East, but also in Europe.”
This is one of the necessary steps that will worsen the relationship between
Iran and the European Union, he remarked. “Iranian terrorist threats against us
or movements opposed to it do not affect our work, especially since everyone is
aware that this regime will fall in the near future.”The conference’s closing
statement pointed to very complicated international and regional circumstances
that were escalated due to the regime’s terrorist activities. The conference
kicked off Saturday with a speech by Jaber, who gave an overview of the history
of ASLMA and “the Iranian occupation of Ahwaz.”
Israel Approves Appointment of New Army Chief of Staff
Tel Aviv- Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 26 November, 2018/Israel's cabinet on Sunday
approved the appointment of Aviv Kochavi, a former military intelligence head,
as the army's new chief of staff, a government source said. Kochavi will take up
his new position at the start of 2019, succeeding General Gadi Eisenkot. He was
selected for the job by now-former defense minister Avigdor Lieberman in
October. Kochavi has served as head of the army's northern command and as
military intelligence chief during the 2014 war against the Palestinian Islamist
movement Hamas in Gaza.
He was also deputy chief of staff since 2017. Kochavi, 54, is a graduate of the
universities of Harvard and John Hopkins in the United States and holds a degree
in international relations. Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu had welcomed the choice of Kochavi after his selection by Lieberman in
October, saying he was "the most worthy candidate" to become the next chief of
staff. “Kochavi is full of wisdom and I am sure he
will raise the Israeli army to new heights,” he added.
And Eisenkot had also congratulated him at the time and described him as "a
distinguished officer with extensive combat experience from multiple combat
theatres".
Israel Celebrates Visit of Chadian President
Tel Aviv- Nazir Majli/Asharq Al Awsat/November 26/18/Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday received Chadian President Idriss Deby, and
described at a friendly dinner party the president’s surprise visit as
“historic”. Netanyahu thanked the Chairman of the National Security Council,
Meir Ben Shabbat, and the Mossad chief for their contribution in arranging the
visit. Praising himself for this “achievement”, the Israeli premier said: “This
visit reflects Israel’s rising status in the world. I repeat this again that we
see that our vision is realized on the ground, thanks to our economic and
technological strength as well as our security and intelligence forces. This
combination of factors creates a political and diplomatic force that is
accumulating on the ground day by day.”“Today we open a new chapter in our
relations with Chad and I tell you that there will be other countries in the
near future,” he added. Political sources with knowledge of the matter said that
the visit came “to enhance security and economic cooperation between the two
countries, as Chad needs Israel’s advice and expertise to combat terrorism since
it is surrounded by unstable countries, especially Libya.” Deby arrived in Tel
Aviv on Sunday for a first official visit by a senior Chadian official to the
country in 46 years. An Israeli official said on Sunday that the mediation in
the resumption of relations with Chad was conducted by a former senior official
of the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet). The official undertook his mission
through the son of the Chadian President, who was presented to him by a French
Jewish businessman Philippe Solomon and Rabbi Avraham Moyal.
Israel’s Channel 10 said the country had an interest in renewing
relations with Chad, the largest African Muslim country, which was willing to
conclude arms deals and security technologies with Tel Aviv. According to the
channel, Deby had asked Tel Aviv to appoint his son as head of his country’s
diplomatic mission in Israel. A source in the Israeli foreign ministry revealed
ongoing efforts to revive relations with other countries, including Nigeria and
Mali.
Syrian opposition leader: Iranian militias behind chemical
attack on Aleppo
Staff writer, Al
Arabiya EnglishMonday, 26 November 2018/Iran’s militias were behind the chemical
attack targeting Aleppo, and they seek to abort the Sochi deal in Idlib, the
head of the High Negotiations Committee, Naser al-Hariri, told al-Hadath news
channel. The High Negotiations Committee is an umbrella body which was created
to represent the Syrian opposition in the planned Geneva peace talks in 2016.
This comes after government shelling killed nine people on Saturday in Syria’s
rebel-held Idlib, while state media said insurgent shells wounded dozens in
Aleppo causing breathing problems. The deal to create the demilitarized zone
staved off an army offensive against the Idlib region, including nearby parts of
Aleppo and Hama provinces. Earlier this month, Moscow accused insurgents of
trying to wreck the deal, while rebels accused the Syrian army and its allies of
attacking the region. Abdul-Salam Abdul-Razzaq, the military commander of the
National Liberation Front (FNL), said that the opposition had no chemical gases
or capabilities to launch them. “This is a lie, the revolutionaries do not have
a chemical weapon or laboratories to equip it, and they do not have most of the
means of use,” he said in a tweet. "The Iranian presence in Syria and in the
south in particular is unprecedented. Iran has recently established many
military sites, headquarters, training centers and others," said Hariri, who was
recently re-elected as head of the negotiations committee.
He added that Tehran is “part of the problem and not part of the solution
to the Syrian cause, and any role, decision or attempt to trim or weaken Iran
militarily, politically or economically, will have a positive impact on the
Syrian file, but these actions alone are not enough.”
Al Shabaab gunmen kill cleric, 9 others at religious center in Somalia
Reuters, Mogadishu/Monday, 26 November 2018/Al Shabaab gunmen and a suicide car
bomber struck a religious center in central Somalia on Monday, killing a cleric
and at least nine of his followers, a police officer said. “The militants killed
ten people including the cleric, teenagers and women who lived inside the camp,”
Police Major Abdirahman Abdullahi told Reuters by phone from the central city of
Galkayo. “Fighting between security forces and al Shabaab still goes in the
center, the toll may rise,” he added. Al Shabaab, an extremist group fighting to
topple the Somali government, told Reuters they were responsible for the attack.
“A car bomb rammed into the center of the man who insulted the prophet. Our
militants are now inside and fighting goes on,” Al Shabaab spokesman Abdiasis
Abu Musab told Reuters. Residents of Galkayo and a regional official said
Abdiweli may have also been targeted because his center hosts mostly youths who
play music and dance. Al Shabaab said last year the cleric had referred to
himself as the Prophet, an accusation denied at the time by Abdiweli. “We cannot
know the figure of casualties right now. Al Shabaab had threatened him many
times,” Abdirashid Hashi, the governor of Mudug region, told Reuters. Al Shabaab
is fighting to establish its own rule based on its harsh interpretation of
Islamic law. The group controls small sections on Mudug region, but it does not
include Galkayo. “Galkayo north has been very peaceful and the question is how
armed militants with a suicide car bomb entered the town,” Police Captain Nur
Mohamed told Reuters from Galkayo.
Palestinian shot dead after allegedly injuring
Israeli soldiers in car-ramming
Reuters/Monday, 26 November 2018/A Palestinian was shot dead while allegedly
attempting to carry out a car-ramming attack on Monday that injured three
Israeli soldiers in the occupied West Bank, the Israeli military said. The
military said one of the soldiers sustained moderate injuries and the other two
were slightly hurt when the Palestinian allegedly crashed his vehicle into them
along a West Bank road north of the city of Hebron. Another soldier then shot
and killed the assailant, the military said. There was no claim of
responsibility for Monday’s incident, which drew praise from the Hamas militant
group as “a response to crimes carried out by the occupation”, a term it uses to
refer to Israel. Israel captured the West Bank in a 1967 Middle East war.
Palestinians seek to establish a state there and in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip,
with East Jerusalem as its capital. Israeli-Palestinian peace talks collapsed in
2014.
Egypt’s Dar al-Ifta Condemns Expulsion of Idlib’s Christians From Their Homes
Cairo- Waleed Abdurrahman/Asharq Al Awsat/November 26/18/Egypt’s Dar al-Ifta
condemned Sunday reports that Hayat Tahrir al-Sham had sent notices to Christian
property owners in Idlib to hand over their properties by the end of November. A
copy of one of these reports, which was issued by an official in the movement’s
Bureau of Studies, was circulated on social media and entitled "Attendance
Note." It requested the recipients to review the office within three days. The
note called on the people who receive it to review the so-called “Office of Real
Estate and Booty” in a move that comes within the framework of what it calls
“Christians' property.”The statement issued by Dar al-Ifta pointed out that
targeting Christians is one of the constants of extremists and terrorists, who
have always killed Christians under different pretexts. In Egypt, the statement
explained, extremists say they Christians are "warriors" and "spearhead of the
crusade," and in Syria they are seen as "war booties."In all cases, these crimes
are usually carried out for sectarian motifs, and it is certain that targeting
part of the national fabric based on its religious belief is the gateway to
spread toxins of sectarian strife and ethnic conflicts. An index for Dar al-Ifta
revealed that 60 percent of the fatwas against Christians worldwide were issued
by unofficial sources and figures, and 95 percent of the fatwas incited
turbulence because they were issued by inept parties. The index also pointed out
that the expiation fatwas represent 90 percent of those issued against
Christians, indicating the imbalance in the mentality of those issuing fatwas
and their lack of understanding of the Sharia texts, their misrepresentation of
the facts, and their erroneous application of the jurisprudential rules.
Mitsubishi Sacks Ghosn as Chairman, Follows
Nissan's Footsteps
Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 26 November, 2018/Executives at Mitsubishi Motors Corp
said on Monday that they decided to remove Carlos Ghosn from his role as
chairman, following his arrest and ouster from alliance partner Nissan Motor Co
last week for alleged financial misconduct.
The ouster of Brazilian national Ghosn, who has Lebanese roots, marks the end of
his chairmanship of Japanese automakers, just two years after he was praised for
bringing a steadying hand to Mitsubishi Motors following a cheating scandal in
2016. The automaker said its current CEO, Osamu Masuko, will serve as both
acting chairman and CEO pending a general shareholders meeting. The move comes
amid discontent over French partner Renault SA's role in the 19-year alliance of
which the once-revered tycoon was the driving force. Sealed in 1999 when Nissan
was rescued from near-bankruptcy, it was enlarged in 2016 to include Mitsubishi
and enabled the members to jointly develop products and control costs. The
alliance vies with Volkswagen AG and Toyota Motor Corp for the ranking of the
world's biggest automaker. Even as Nissan has recovered and grown rapidly, it
remains a junior partner in the shareholding structure. Renault owns 43 percent
of Nissan and the Japanese automaker holds a 15 percent non-voting stake in the
French firm. And Nissan is almost 60 percent bigger than Renault by sales. Top
alliance executives are meeting this week in Amsterdam, aiming to shield their
joint operations from the fallout of the arrest of Ghosn, who was born in Brazil
and is also French citizen, as a power struggle between Nissan and Renault
looms. Renault has refrained from firing him as chairman and CEO. Nissan CEO
Hiroto Saikawa told staff on Monday that power was too concentrated with Ghosn
and that in future better communication between alliance board members and
executives would help preserve independence and generate synergies among the
automakers, a Nissan spokesman said. Ghosn was pushing for a deeper tie-up,
including potentially a full merger between Renault and Nissan at the French
government's urging, despite strong reservations at the Japanese firm. Nissan
removed Ghosn at a high stakes board meeting on Thursday after allegations of
understating his income and using company money for personal use. Ghosn has
denied the allegations, public broadcaster NHK reported on Sunday. Nissan holds
a controlling 34 percent stake in Mitsubishi Motors and has two executives on
the board. Alliances often benefit automakers because they share technology,
auto parts, and supplier and sales networks. Sales volume tends to lower costs.
Jordan Army Kills Four Smugglers Crossing Border
From Syria
Amman- Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 26 November, 2018/Jordanian border guards on
Sunday killed four smugglers seeking to cross into the kingdom from Syria’s
southeastern desert border area, an army source said, adding that it had also
foiled two bids to smuggle drugs. The source told Reuters two others were
arrested in what was a large drug smuggling operation into the kingdom from the
lawless eastern Syrian desert. "An infiltration operation was foiled after
watching six people attempt to cross the Jordanian (border)," an unnamed
military official said in a statement. "The rules of engagement were implemented
leading to the death of four and the wounding of two others who were transported
to the relevant authorities." Separately, the army said "two bids to smuggle a
large quantity of drugs" had been thwarted. In the first operation, border
guards confiscated 362,000 tablets of Captagon, a popular amphetamine, and
50,000 tablets of Tramadol, a powerful opiate-based painkiller. In the second,
they seized 28 bricks of hashish and 72,000 Captagon tablets. The statement did
not specify which neighboring country the smugglers or the infiltrators were
coming from. Jordan's army regularly announces that it has foiled attempts to
infiltrate or smuggle drugs into the kingdom from neighboring Syria. Some
650,000 Syrian refugees have registered with the United Nations in Jordan since
fleeing their country's seven-year war, which started with anti-government
protests in 2011. Amman estimates the true number of refugees is closer to 1.3
million. Jordanian authorities have arrested and imprisoned dozens of militants
trying to sneak across the border to fight in Syria. Captagon is one of the most
commonly used drugs among fighters in the Syrian war. But dozens of drug
traffickers have also been detained by Jordanian authorities. In October, the
Eastern Military Zone, in close coordination with the Anti-Narcotics Department
and Military Security, thwarted the smuggling of large quantities of narcotics
in the area separating the Jordanian-Syrian borders. Jordan's interior ministry
estimates 85 percent of the drugs it seizes has been earmarked for smuggling
outside the kingdom.
Alleged Syria Chemical Attack: Is the Idlib Deal
in Peril?
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/November 26/18/A 10-week-old truce deal in
northern Syria looked as precarious as ever Monday after an alleged chemical
attack, which has already drawn retaliatory raids despite its origins being
unclear. The exact circumstances of the purported attack on three districts of
the government-held city of Aleppo Saturday are murky and bitterly disputed. In
little doubt, however, is the strain the incident will put on an already fragile
agreement reached in mid-September to fend off a fully-fledged assault on Idlib.
What happened on Saturday?
Syrian state media accused "terrorists" of carrying out a "toxic gas" attack in
Aleppo late Saturday, using a term that it uses to mean both rebels and
jihadists. State news agency SANA said 107 people were hospitalized with
breathing difficulties, after what health official Ziad Hajj Taha said it was a
"probable" chlorine attack. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights put the
number of people affected slightly lower at 94, and said over half had been
discharged by the next morning. The Britain-based monitor, which says it gathers
its information from people inside Syria, said its sources reported "the smell
of chlorine". An AFP reporter saw dozens of civilians carried or helped into a
hospital, appearing to be dizzy and breathing with difficulty. Staff gave them
oxygen masks. The regime has been blamed for the most deadly chemical weapon
attacks in Syria's seven-year war, but official media has recently accused
fighters in Idlib of planning a chemical attack.
What's the context?
Aleppo city lies just east of the country's last major rebel bastion of Idlib,
which a Russian-Turkey deal has protected from a massive regime offensive since
September. More than half of that region is controlled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham
(HTS), a powerful alliance led by the jihadists of Syria's former al-Qida
affiliate, who have not commented on the Aleppo attack. But the National
Liberation Front (NLF), a coalition of Turkish-backed rebels who hold most of
the rest of the region, have denied any involvement. The Islamic State group and
the al-Qaida-linked Hurras al-Deen organization are also present in the area. In
September, regime ally Moscow and rebel backer Ankara agreed to set up a
U-shaped buffer zone around Idlib to keep pro-government forces outside the
region of some three million. But implementation has stalled since jihadists
refused to leave the planned demilitarized zone by a mid-October deadline, and
sporadic clashes and bombardment have since rocked the area. Jihadists including
HTS control around 70 percent of the planned buffer, according to the
Observatory. On Sunday, Russia said "terrorist groups" inside a part the planned
demilitarized area held by HTS had shelled Aleppo. It said its war planes
carried out air strikes against those groups, the first such raids on the
planned buffer since the Russian-Turkish deal more than two months ago.
What's the outcome?
Sunday's air strikes have piled additional strain on the Idlib deal. "The attack
and then the Russian bombardment clearly demonstrates the weakness of the Idlib
agreement," said Aaron Stein, a fellow at the Atlantic Council. "The Russian
response clearly shows that they will not be restrained by the ceasefire with
Turkey when its interests are threatened," he said. Regime forces control around
two-thirds of the country, after winning back large parts of it with Russian
support since 2015. Damascus has repeatedly said the Idlib agreement was only a
temporary measure until the northwestern region on the Turkish border reverted
to government control. Analyst Julien Theron, from Sciences Po university in
Paris, pointed to several possible outcomes. "This affair could be used by the
regime, with tacit support or military support from its ally Russia, to retake
the whole of Idlib," he said. "But Idlib is a very complex region to retake and
the risks are high," he warned. Instead, Russia may seek to keep the agreement
alive by "forcing Turkey to intervene" against HTS, he said. "But that would
imply Ankara eventually being in control on the ground," he said, a scenario
likely not to please Damascus. Nawar Oliver, an analyst with the Omran Center,
said he did not expect a Russia-backed regime ground assault. "They don't have
the luxury to launch a ground attack because they simply don't have the ground
forces," he said.
With Border Open, Jordanians Visit Syria for
First Time in Years
Damascus- Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 26 November, 2018/Jordanians are flocking to
the Syrian capital Damascus for the first time in years for tourism and trade
after the reopening of a border crossing that had been closed through years of
war. The border opened to people and goods on Oct. 15, restoring a route that
had carried billions of dollars in trade for the region. “The first day that
Syria opened up, I came. This is my second time since then,” said Mahmoud Nassar,
62, a flight engineer from Jordan’s northern city of Ramtha. “This is a visit of
tourism and of yearning for (Damascus),” said Nassar, who drove in with his
father and son. “The road is safe and there were no problems.”Syrian government
forces retook the border region with Jordan from rebels in July during a
Russian-backed offensive. The crossing had been closed since rebels captured it
in 2015, though many are making the trip for the first time since 2011, when the
Syrian conflict first erupted. The Jordanian side of the frontier was jammed
with vehicles waiting to cross on Friday. “What we see is the situation is good,
things are fine,” said Razzan al-Hattab, a Jordanian waiting to cross. “I love
Sham (Damascus), so I wanted to be one of the first to try going in a tourist
group.” The closure of the border has hit both the Syrian and Jordanian
economies. “Before the border closed, our work was great,” said Jawad al-Zoubi,
waiting to cross. But for “the last seven years, we’ve not been able to pay
school fees”, he said. Bahjat Rizik, in Damascus with his wife and son, said the
last time he made the three-hour drive from Amman was before the war began. He
used to bring office furniture to sell in Syria and owned a gallery in the
Yarmouk district near Damascus. “I will visit every week,” said Rizik, carrying
bags of children’s clothes and spices with his family.
“God willing, we can get back to work.”Bilal Bashi, who runs a company selling
abayas in Damascus, said he had seen more Jordanian tourists and shoppers since
the crossing opened. “No doubt there will be an economic (boost). It will have a
positive effect,” he said at the historic Souk al-Hamidieh market in the Old
City of Damascus. Still, Raed Maseh, another Syrian trader, said the increase in
Jordanian visitors had not had a real impact yet and hoped more people would
come. The Syrian war further added to the strain on an already difficult
relationship between Damascus and Amman. US-allied Jordan provided support to
some of the rebels fighting President Bashar al-Assad. But diplomatic ties were
not severed entirely and Syria’s relations with Jordan never turned as hostile
as they did with some other regional states, notably Turkey which remains a
major backer of the opposition. Intisar Murshid, the head of a Damascus hotel,
said she received some 14 Jordanian guests on the first day the crossing opened.
They came to shop, work, or visit relatives. “For eight years we did not see
Jordanians, very rarely.”
Israel Postpones Vote on 'Loyalty' in Culture Bill
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/November 26/18/A vote on a controversial law that
would cut government subsidies to cultural institutions deemed disloyal to
Israel was Monday postponed indefinitely, Israel's culture minister said. The
bill, submitted by Culture Minister Miri Regev, would give the finance and
culture ministries the power to slash subsidies to institutions backing films or
plays that do not show "loyalty" to the state. Such institutions would include
those which deny Israel's existence as a "democratic and Jewish state," or those
inciting violence, racism or "terrorism."Any organization that marks Israel's
independence day as a national day of mourning, or present artistic work that
attacks the national flag or other state symbols would also be denied funding.
For Palestinians, the anniversary of Israel's 1948 independence marks the Nakba,
or "catastrophe", when more than 700,000 fled or were expelled during the war
surrounding Israel's creation. A ministerial committee had voted to advance the
bill in October but it needed two more parliamentary readings before becoming
law. Monday's vote was postponed indefinitely because of a lack of a majority,
said Regev, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's rightwing Likud
bloc.The ruling coalition has been left with a narrow majority of one vote in
the 120-seat Knesset, or parliament, after Avigdor Lieberman resigned as defense
minister earlier this month.
Israel Rearrests Palestinian Jerusalem Governor
Ramallah- Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 26 November, 2018/Israeli police arrested the
Palestinian governor of Jerusalem for the second time in as many months on
Sunday after an investigation related to a land sale. Adnan Gheith was arrested
in east Jerusalem overnight, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said in a
statement, without providing further details. Jerusalem magistrate's court
extended his remand until Thursday at noon. Judge Chavi Toker was presented with
secret evidence and said the reason for his arrest was unlawful collaboration
with Palestinian Authority (PA) security forces, which Israel says violates the
Oslo accords. Palestinian lawyer Rami Othman announced that he will appeal the
extended detention of Gheith, saying that an appeal will be submitted at the
Jerusalem District Court on Monday morning. Gheith's arrest comes in the context
of Israel’s effort to prevent the PA from carrying out political and
security-related activities within the area of Israel, including east Jerusalem.
A 1995 law passed by the Knesset bans the PA from carrying out such activities
within the area of Israel. On October 20, Gheith was detained for two days of
questioning before being released, with Israel's Shin Bet domestic security
agency saying it was over "illegal activity by the (PA) in Jerusalem". He was
also taken for questioning a number of times in recent weeks and his office was
raided on November 4. The PA's Jerusalem affairs minister, Adnan al-Husseini,
has also been given a three-month travel ban by Israeli authorities, according
to Palestinian officials.Israeli media have reported that authorities have been
investigating the governor following the PA's arrest of a man in October accused
of being involved in selling property in east Jerusalem to a Jewish buyer. Such
sales are considered treasonous among Palestinians concerned with Israeli
settlers buying property in east Jerusalem. But among Israelis, there have been
calls for authorities to free the man arrested by the PA over the sale. Israeli
newspaper Haaretz has reported that the man is a Palestinian with US
citizenship. Fuad Hallaq, a senior advisor to the Palestine Liberation
Organisation in Jerusalem, told AFP that he believed the latest arrest was part
of Israeli efforts to pressure the Palestinian leadership to release the man.
The judge said in court Sunday that the arrest of the governor was connected to
the land sale investigation, but that there were new allegations which she did
not publicly detail. A lawyer for Gheith said that the governor had committed no
crimes, adding that "the feeling is that the police are trying to prevent the
defendant from functioning in his position". Israel occupied east Jerusalem in
the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed it in a move never recognized by the
international community. It considers the entire city its capital, while the
Palestinians see the eastern sector as the capital of their future state. PA
activities are barred from Jerusalem by Israel. As a result, the PA has a
minister for Jerusalem affairs and a Jerusalem governor located in Al-Ram, just
on the other side of Israel's separation wall from Jerusalem in the occupied
West Bank.
Russian Airstrikes Hit Syria ‘Buffer Zone’ after
Chemical Attack
Beirut - Nazeer Rida/Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 26 November, 2018/Russian warplanes
attacked on Sunday opposition-held areas in the countryside of the northern
Syrian city of Aleppo for the first time since a truce deal was reached two
months ago between Ankara and Moscow in north Syria. Moscow said Sunday the
raids came as a response to the suspected poison gas attack in the north of the
city a day earlier. “The planes of Russia’s Aerospace Defense Forces carried out
strikes on the detected artillery positions of terrorists in the area, from
where the shelling of Aleppo civilians with chemical munitions was conducted,”
Russian military spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov told reporters in
Moscow. Syria said Sunday more than 100 people were treated at hospitals for the
suspected poison gas attack in Aleppo, blaming “terrorist groups,” without
naming any. The Syrian regime called on the United Nations to denounce the
attack. "The Syrian government demands the UN Security Council immediately and
harshly condemn these terrorist crimes," the foreign ministry said. In comments
to Asharq Al-Awsat on Sunday, informed Syrian opposition sources denied
responsibility, accusing Qaeda-linked extremist groups of standing behind the
chemical attack. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based
monitor, said a total of 94 people were hospitalized after "the smell of
chlorine" was reported in the city, but most were discharged.On Saturday, an AFP
photographer saw dozens of civilians, including women and children, stream into
an Aleppo hospital, some on stretchers or carried in by their relatives.
Separately, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar discussed with his Russian
counterpart by telephone on Sunday the latest developments in Syria’s Idlib,
Turkish broadcaster CNN Turk reported. No further details were immediately
available. Russian news agencies cited Konashenkov as saying that the Russian
strikes had destroyed all of their targets and that Moscow had warned Turkey of
the bombing raid in advance via a telephone hotline.
Egypt Upholds 9 Death Sentences over
Prosecutor's Assassination
Cairo - Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 26 November, 2018/Egypt's highest appellate
court upheld the death sentences handed to nine defendants over the 2015
assassination of the country's state prosecutor Hisham Barakat, who was killed
in a car blast in northeastern Cairo. In July 2017, death sentences were handed
down against 28 defendants, while 38 others were sentenced to jail. Some of the
suspects had appealed their sentences. Prosecutor General Nabil Sadek referred
the defendants to the criminal court after they were charged with having links
to members of the Palestinian Hamas movement and fugitive leaders from the
Muslim Brotherhood. They were accused of plotting to target some Egyptian state
figures “to spur chaos and instability in the country in order to overthrow the
state.”The investigations revealed that the suspects formed groups, some of
which were specialized in mental preparation for these acts, while others
received fighting training in Hamas camps abroad. They were trained on building
explosives and carrying out surveillance against important figures. After the
training was complete, they illegally returned to Egypt to commit their crime.
Investigations concluded that the defendants relayed their training to the
groups and built the explosives that targeted Barakat. After carrying out the
necessary surveillance, they planted the explosives in a car in an area that
they knew Barakat’s convoy would pass through. He, along with some of his guards
and pedestrians, were killed in the attack. In another context, the Cairo
Criminal Court sentenced eight suspects to five years in jail in the retrial in
the arson at Al-Azhar University in 2013.
UK's May Comes under Fire over EU Exit Deal
Agence France
Presse/Naharnet/November 26/18/British Prime Minister Theresa May faced
parliamentary fury on Monday as she set off on the tricky task of convincing
mutinous lawmakers to back her divorce deal with the EU. The British leader
crowned nearly two years of painful talks with Brussels that threatened to fall
apart many times by sealing Brexit arrangements on Sunday with the 27 EU heads
of state. But this difficult chapter was always going to be the easy part. May
must now navigate the deal through a divided chamber in which she holds the
slimmest working majority -- and where lawmakers oppose it on all sides. She
announced the vote on the deal will be on December 11. The beleaguered leader
got a taste of just how tough her job will be as she briefed lawmakers on the
outcome of her Brussels visit. Opposition Labor Party chief Jeremy Corbyn called
the withdrawal deal and accompanying political declaration on future relations
"an act of national self-harm.""For the good of the nation, the House has very
little choice but to reject this deal," he said. Yet May might be more
disconcerted by the seemingly growing and clearly more vocal chorus of
resentment from her own Conservative Party. Conservative MP Mark Francois told
May her deal was "as dead as a Dodo."Former May loyalist Michael Fallon said the
government was asking parliament to "take a huge gamble" and "surrendering our
(EU) vote and our veto without any firm commitment to frictionless trade".More
than an hour passed before the first member of her own party stood up to voice
her support for the prime minister.
'Get on with it'
The current vote counts conducted by British media are not stacking up in May's
favor. Many expect the deal to fail the first time around and for May to call a
second vote on more or less the same set of arrangements before the chamber
breaks for the winter holidays. Britain would be entering unchartered waters --
and quite possibly new elections -- if the deal fails a second time around.
Brexit enters into force on March 29 and May's government is also making
"no-deal" preparations just in case. May argued on Monday that voters were
simply exhausted with Brexit and just wanted their leaders to get things
resolved once and for all. "The British people want us to get on with a deal
that honors the referendum and allows us to come together again as a country,
whichever way we voted," May said. "This is that deal. A deal that delivers for
the British people." EU foes in her Conservative Party accuse May of ceding too
much to Brussels while the Labor opposition argues that it will devastate the
British economy. But both Brussels and May said the deal now on the table is
final -- and the best one Britain can get. "We don't want to give the wrong
impression to people, whether they are passionate Remainers or passionate
Brexiteers, that there is another agreement that can command the support of 28
member states. There isn't," Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said.
Poorer Britons?
May will now embark on an intensive nationwide campaign to promote the deal with
voters across the country and lawmakers in London. The government was to hold a
special briefing on the Brexit deal for Labor MPs -- an unusual but not
unprecedented move. May will also meet over 100 big business leaders to seek
their support. But Corbyn on Monday cited a fresh economic study showing the
British growth slowing sharply under the plan prepared by May's government. The
independent National Institute of Economic and Social Research found that trade
with the EU -- especially in services -- was likely to be more costly after
Brexit and have an adverse effect on living standards. "GDP in the longer term
will be around four percent lower than it would have been had the UK stayed in
the EU," the report said. It estimated that the loss equaled around £1,000
($1,300, 1,150 euros) per year per person.
Russia-Ukraine Tensions Soar after Confrontation at Sea
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/November 26/18/Kiev and Moscow faced their worst
crisis in years on Monday as Ukraine and its Western allies demanded the release
of three ships fired on and seized by Russia near Crimea. Russian forces boarded
and captured the ships on Sunday, with Moscow accusing the vessels of illegally
entering Russian waters off the coast of Crimea in the Sea of Azov. Ukraine's
military was on high alert and parliament was meeting to vote on a request to
impose martial law from President Petro Poroshenko who accused Moscow of a "new
phase of aggression."
The incident has raised fears of a wider military escalation. The U.N. Security
Council met in an emergency session, where U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley warned
Russia against "outlaw actions." The confrontation is a dangerous development in
the conflict pitting Ukraine against Moscow and Russian-backed rebels in the
east of the country. More than 10,000 people have been killed since the
Moscow-backed insurgency broke out in April 2014 following Russia's annexation
of Crimea from Ukraine. The United States and EU have already imposed sanctions
on Russia over the conflict and on Monday European capitals rallied behind Kiev.
Ukraine's Western allies accused Russia of using force without justification in
the naval confrontation, while Kiev urged its partners to impose further
sanctions on Moscow. "These were planned acts of aggression by the Russian
Federation against Ukraine," Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin told reporters in
Kiev. "We will demand (at the Security Council) the immediate release of our
sailors and the liberation of our ships."
'New phase' of conflict
In a televised address to the nation, Poroshenko accused Russia of taking the
two countries' long-running conflict to another level. "(Russia) entered a new
phase of aggression," Poroshenko said, adding that the incident showed "the
arrogant and open participation of regular units of Russian troops" after Moscow
always insisted its forces were not directly involved in Ukraine. Moscow blamed
Kiev for the incident, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying: "The Russian
side acted strictly within both domestic and international law." The crisis
unfolded as two small Ukrainian warships and a tugboat were heading through the
Kerch Strait, a waterway that gives access to the Sea of Azov from the Black Sea
and which is used by both Ukraine and Russia. Ukraine said a Russian border
guard vessel rammed the tugboat and then fired on the ships, immobilizing all
three. It said the Kerch Strait was blocked by a tanker and that Russian
military aircraft were flying over the area. Russia's FSB security service,
which oversees border forces, confirmed weapons had been fired and the vessels
seized, accusing the Ukrainian ships of "violating the Russian border."
Ukraine's interior minister released a video on Twitter apparently from aboard
one of the Russian ships, showing the tugboat being chased down and the
collision, interspersed with commands and swearing in Russian. Russian
television networks showed a similar video, but with the voices removed and
without the moment of collision. Ukraine said six of its servicemen were injured
in the incident, two seriously. The FSB said only three had suffered non-life
threatening injuries and were given medical treatment. Russian officials said 24
Ukrainian servicemen had been detained and Peskov said a criminal investigation
had been opened.
Europe rallies behind Kiev
"I condemn Russian use of force in Azov Sea. Russian authorities must return
Ukrainian sailors, vessels & refrain from further provocations," EU President
Donald Tusk tweeted. France also called on Russia to release the sailors and
ships, with the foreign ministry saying "nothing appears to justify the use of
force" by Russia. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said any Russian "blockade"
of the Sea of Azov was "unacceptable" and proposed French-German mediation to
resolve the crisis. Tensions have been building over the Kerch Strait, where
Russia has built a new bridge that gives it a land connection to Crimea, annexed
by Moscow in 2014. Kiev has accused Moscow of blocking access for Ukrainian
ships though the strait, the only way in and out of the Sea of Azov to the Black
Sea. In recent months both sides had deployed more naval and border vessels to
the area."The incident marks a significant escalation of the conflict between
Russia and Ukraine," research firm Eurasia Group said. "Western governments will
side with Ukraine against Russia over the incident... making new sanctions
against Russia likely." Protesters gathered in several Ukrainian cities to
denounce Russia's actions, with several hundred far-right activists marching to
parliament in Kiev and setting off flares.
Saudi Crown Prince Arrives in Cairo on Regional
Tour
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/November 26/18/Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin
Salman arrived in Cairo on Monday, the latest leg of his first foreign tour
since the killing of critic Jamal Khashoggi sparked a global outcry. The
kingdom's de facto ruler was met on arrival by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, a
source at the airport said. Prince Mohammed began his regional tour on Thursday,
travelling to close ally the United Arab Emirates before arriving in Bahrain on
Sunday. In Egypt, the royal's talks with Sisi are expected to focus on
"reinforcing bilateral relations and on regional issues of common interest,"
presidency spokesman Bassam Radi told AFP. After an overnight stay in Cairo, the
crown prince is due to travel to Tunisia where protests against the visit have
been organized by student bodies for Tuesday. Around 100 people joined an
initial demonstration on Monday in the capital Tunis, which had been called by
the journalists' union and several NGOs and civil society organizations. Prince
Mohammed's tour comes weeks after the murder of journalist Khashoggi in Saudi
Arabia's consulate in Istanbul. Riyadh initially claimed Khashoggi left the
consulate unharmed on October 2, before ultimately admitting he was murdered in
what officials said was a "rogue" operation. Saudi Arabia has been put under
intense international pressure over the killing and has brought charges over a
number of suspects, while denying the country's powerful crown prince was
involved.
Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from
miscellaneous sources published on November
26-27/18
A New Phase In Israel- Gulf Relations
Jerusalem Post/November 26/18
The visits represent a significant breakthrough in connections between Israel
the Gulf states. Since the 1990s, when Israel signed the Oslo Accords and made
peace with Jordan, there were increasing ties to several Gulf countries. This
included the opening of trade offices. However, relations became frozen during
the Second Intifada (2000-2005).
In the last decade, a thaw has taken place. Katz said during his visit that his
trip and others were “part of a wider trend of strengthening ties between Israel
and the Gulf countries based on common interests and a mutual recognition of the
potential benefits for both sides, both in terms of contending with common
challenges and threats, as well as opportunities.” The transportation minister’s
visit to Oman coincided with his discussions about a rail link or “tracks of
regional peace” that could one day foresee linking Israel with the rest of the
Arab region. He discussed the plan at the IRU Congress that met in Muscat from
November 6 to 8.
Currently, Israel has relations with Jordan and Egypt. Jordan has been seeking
to expand its very limited rail network; the Gulf states and Saudi Arabia are
all laying plans for major infrastructure projects involving rail and
transportation. In the United Arab Emirates, Etihad Rail is planning a 1,200-km.
line that will eventually reach the Saudi Arabian border and Oman. A 2,400-km.
line would link Riyadh to Al-Haditha on the Jordanian border. It would give
Saudi Arabia around 3,900 km. of track. OMAN, where Katz traveled, has been
increasing its rail network in recent years. In 2015, Sultan Qaboos bin Said al
Said signed off on two more phases of a multi-phase rail network. The first
phase links Al Buraimi on the UAE border with the port of Sohar. A second phase
would stretch down to Ibri and another phase would go down to the port of Al
Duqm. Eventually, it could be 2,135 km. long. With Jordan as a regional
transportation hub, Israel could be hooked up to a powerful network of regional
states. This would also aid the Palestinian economy. “It will create an
additional trade route in the region, which is shorter, faster and cheaper,”
Katz said.
With Saudi Arabia pioneering major economic reforms, called Vision 2030, the
region is on the verge of an economic revolution after years of stagnation.
Saudi Arabia is one of the largest economies in the region, but it wants to
diversify and is laying plans for nuclear energy, investments in desalination
and other projects. Israel and the UAE are perfectly positioned, with roughly
the same GDP, to benefit and contribute to this regional awakening.
Eight years since the Arab Spring began at the end of 2010, the Middle East is
still recovering from the instability and terrorism that became the dark side of
the spring. Out of the chaos and instability came the extremism of Islamic
State. The defeat of ISIS has now led to a new struggle by Iran and its
adversaries for regional hegemony. All of this has overshadowed Israel’s
important role in regional security and relationships. Katz’s visit shows that
attitudes are changing. “This is the first time an Israeli minister has been
formally invited to participate in an international conference in Oman,” his
office noted. He described Qaboos as an experienced and impressive leader. “I
was moved to receive such a warm welcome in Oman as an Israeli minister and take
part in Oman’s traditional sword dance.”
It is a sign of Israel’s growing strength.
TODAY, the Middle East faces a series of slow-burning conflicts that do not
appear to have a clear end in sight. In Syria, the remnants of ISIS are still a
threat along the Euphrates. The US-led coalition and its Syrian Democratic
Forces partners are fighting ISIS, but the progress is slow going. It has been
more than a year since Raqqa was liberated and the city is in need of major
investment. Slowly, the US and other countries, such as Saudi Arabia, have begun
to invest in eastern Syria. However, a large question mark remains over what the
final result will be there.
Turkey, which opposed the US embassy move to Jerusalem, has also been upset with
Washington’s role working with the People’s Protection Units (YPG) in eastern
Syria, which Ankara sees as terrorists connected to the Kurdistan Workers Party
(PKK). Meanwhile, Turkey is playing an important role in northern Syria with the
Free Syrian Army and has signed an agreement with Russia in Idlib. This means
that the Syrian conflict has gone from a hot war to a more frozen conflict. At
any time, especially with the malfeasance of Iran, Syria could become a conflict
zone again.
At the same time, there is a brutal conflict being waged in Yemen between
Iranian-backed Houthi rebels and a Saudi-led alliance. In Iraq, ISIS remains a
threat and there are disputes between the Iranian-backed Shi’ite militias and
the US and Western allies. In Libya, a conflict continues and extremists are
putting down roots. This means that we have a region that is still divided
between stable countries and those where extremism is part of an arc of threats
that stretch from the Sahel to Afghanistan.
Katz’s vision of a network of rail links may take decades to come to fruition,
but it is an important symbol of the way the region may trend towards stability.
A stable Middle East, as has been illustrated by the last decades of conflict,
is essential for global stability.
جيروزاليم بوست: نظام الأسد يمنح المواطنة للمقاتلين من
الإيرانيين وحزب الله
Report: Syrian Regime Grants Citizenship To
Iranians, Hezbollah Fighters
Jerusalem Post/November 26/18
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/69214/%d8%ac%d9%8a%d8%b1%d9%88%d8%b2%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%8a%d9%85-%d8%a8%d9%88%d8%b3%d8%aa-%d9%86%d8%b8%d8%a7%d9%85-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%a3%d8%b3%d8%af-%d9%8a%d9%85%d9%86%d8%ad-%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%85%d9%88%d8%a7%d8%b7/
Concealing the presence of Iranian and Hezbollah fighters in southern Syria
could be seen as contravening understandings reached between Israel and Russia.
he Syrian regime naturalized thousands or even tens of thousands of Iranians,
including members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and
Iran-backed militias like Hezbollah that are deployed in southern Syria along
the border with Israel, according to a report by the Middle East Media Research
Institute (MEMRI). The report explained that “systematic action by the regime to
settle [them] throughout Syria” served two purposes: concealing the fighter’s
presence and changing the country’s demography.
Concealing the presence of Iranian and Hezbollah fighters in southern Syria
could be seen as contravening understandings reached between Israel and Russia
to keep such groups away from the Jewish state’s northern border. In late
October, Moscow agreed to expand a buffer zone along the Golan Heights. Russia
had refused the Israeli request for a 40-kilometer (25 mile) buffer zone, but
expressed willingness to enforce an off-limits zone of 10-15 km. As the war in
Syria seems to be winding down in Assad’s favor, Israel fears that Iran will
help Hezbollah produce accurate precision-guided missiles and aid the group and
other Shi’ite militias to strengthen their foothold in the Golan Heights.
Israeli officials have repeatedly voiced concerns over the growing Iranian
presence on its borders and the smuggling of sophisticated weaponry to Hezbollah
from Tehran to Lebanon via Syria, stressing that both are red lines for the
Jewish state. The issuance of Syrian identity cards to Iranian and Hezbollah
fighters may be aimed at enabling them to stay there, ostensibly without
violating the understandings.
In addition, expelling Sunnis – deemed to be a potential threat to the regime –
and resettling areas by bringing in large Shi’ite populations would consolidate
Assad’s position and add a considerable number of forces to fight alongside the
Syrian Army.
Hinting at such a policy, Assad reportedly said in a July 2015 speech, “The
homeland does not belong to those who live there, nor to those who hold a
passport or are citizens. The homeland belongs to those who protect and guard
it,” according to MEMRI.
Syrians who fled Damascus and other areas during the seven years of civil war
have long complained of demographic changes and their areas being taken over,
either by the government or by outsiders.
In 2013, it was reported that Hazara Shi’ite migrants from Afghanistan – some of
the many refugees trying to make their way from parts of Asia to Europe – had
come to settle around the famous Sayyida Zainab Mosque.
SOME OF the refugees also came with the Fatemiyoun Brigade, Afghan Shi’ite
fighters recruited by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to help
Assad. Some stayed in Syria when their service was over.
A Syrian refugee and writer named Mohammed Ruzgar wrote in 2015 that the regime
in Damascus had bulldozed neighborhoods under the pretext of rebuilding them.
“We estimate that some 200,000 Sunni Muslims have left because of this ‘project’
while the regime is giving houses to members of the Shi’ite militias fighting
alongside it,” he wrote. Sunni areas of Damascus, he claimed, had become a
“Shi’ite canton.”
In January 2017, Martin Chulov at The Guardian reported about a “vanguard” of
foreigners coming to Syria to “repopulate the area with Shia Muslims, not just
from elsewhere in Syria but also from Lebanon and Iraq.” The article examined
“population swaps” during deals on the ground between rebels and government
forces.
“Iran and the regime don’t want any Sunnis between Damascus and Homs and the
Lebanese border,” a Lebanese official told Chulov. “This represents a historic
shift in populations.”
In March of this year, Ruzgar again warned of “demographic” change in the
capital. Other regional media picked up this story, including Turkey’s Hurriyet
newspaper.
In addition, a new law allowing the government to “redevelop areas devastated by
war,” caused concern. It “could make it difficult for refugees to prove property
ownership,” Asharq Al-Aswat reported in May.
European Union member states and Lebanese officials warned about the
ramifications of the law. With around five million refugees and six million
people displaced by the war, the warnings of demographic change have caught on
in many circles, particularly among Sunni Arabs who make up the majority of
Syria.
The war had fallen hardest on many Sunni areas because they formed the backbone
of the rebellion. As such, the destruction of their areas tends to be seen as a
plot by Assad and the Iranian regime to keep former residents from returning.
Rumors of Iraqis or foreigners settling in these areas have sparked fears that
this is a growing trend.
The evidence is less clear. Al-Jazeera reported in January 2017 that Afghans who
fought for the IRGC were told their families would receive citizenship in Iran,
not Syria, if they died in battle.
There are also allegations of Hezbollah recruiting or paying people to support
the regime in Syria. This would indicate that local Syrians, primarily Sunnis
who once lived in rebel areas, are joining units affiliated with the regime.
These are not Hezbollah members settling in Syria, but recruits from the local
population. Hezbollah needs its Shi’ite population to stay in Lebanon as part of
its own demographic game to control Lebanon. Exporting its members to Syria may
not be in its interest.
Iran also has falling birthrates, which means it does not have a lot of young
men who might want to move to a place like Syria.
It would appear difficult to dramatically change the demographics of Syria by
importing people from a country like Iran, where there are few young people who
might be enticed to come.
*Anna Ahronheim contributed to this report.
Dictionaries, Rockets and Towers
Ghassan Charbel/Asharq Al Awsat/November 26/18
Belonging to an era is not like going to the movies. It’s not enough to buy a
ticket to book a seat. The issue is more complex and difficult to circumvent.
You have no choice but to stand boldly in front of the mirror, to get rid of
some of your illusions and old ideas and to put your dictionary on the table and
examine the vocabulary and concepts that you think are difficult to change. You
must open the door to an internal war within your thoughts and perceptions… your
relationship with time… your community… the others… and the world.
You will not head to the future if you decide that the past is better. I don’t
claim that the task is easy… that overcoming the burdens of the past is simple.
But the Arab people are now at the turning point and they have to make a
decision. The issue is very serious. It is whether you sleep in your ancestors’
bed and hide in their dictionary or contribute to building a world worthy of
your grandchildren.
Century after century, we slept on the pillow of similarity and considered time
as just accumulating stones. Many circumstances did not make our region the
arena for promising events. Nothing like the French Revolution, the Industrial
Revolution or the Renaissance. But now the era has confronted us and dragged us
to face the test. Feel the phone inside your pocket. It is the greatest
traveler, the smartest spy and unyielding reporter. The world is in your pocket
with all the images and sounds, with information and questions. You have to
choose. The poison has leaked into your dictionary. You shall not look into your
grandfather’s drawers for a cure.
There is no choice but to contact the era; no matter how much effort and
rehabilitation you may require. You cannot be a journalist today in the way you
were ten years ago. You cannot be a minister today as you were ten years ago.
The same is true for the officer, the university professor, the engineer, the
governor and the government. Our separation from the era has cost us nations,
cities and seas of human and financial losses… breaking with facts and the
concept of the State and institutions.
This is what came to my mind when a friend from Libya contacted me to comment on
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s interview with Asharq Al-Awsat. He
recalled how Colonel Mmammar al-Gaddafi called Sheikh Mohammad and expressed his
desire for Tripoli to become “a new Dubai” and Africa’s economic hub. He said
that the construction of a modern city that could accommodate many nationalities
and where people lived under the rule of law required a mentality that did not
exist in the colonel’s system, and institutions that were not present during his
time.
“Some of our countries have fallen into the hands of men who have a World War II
mentality, if not older,” said the man who knows both the regime and the
colonel. “These are selfish men, who don’t know the world and their real war is
that of retaining power. They didn’t reflect on the deep meaning of the collapse
of the Soviet Union – that of never catching up with the era and failing to
improve the people’s living conditions.”
He went on to say: “These regimes were busy with security and intelligence, not
with universities and education. They preferred to buy and stock missiles
instead of getting engaged in rehabilitating the infrastructure, promoting
investments and building towers. They believed that the citizen could provide
his bread and income under the cloak of the regime and its revolutionary
committees.”
He noted that Arab governments are increasingly aware of the importance of
building intra-Arab relations on the basis of mutual interests. The same
strategy has enabled the Europeans to remove the specter of war and transformed
the ancient continent into a prominent player in international politics and
economy. He expected that the process of reform and modernization witnessed by
Saudi Arabia within the framework of Vision 2030 launched by Crown Prince
Mohammed bin Salman would have a major impact in the Arab and Islamic world. He
emphasized serious and difficult measures applied by the Egyptian government to
put the economy on the path towards recovery, and the same for Jordan.
He said that if Gaddafi had managed to build Dubai in Tripoli, both Libya and
its leader would not have suffered their current fates. Had Saddam Hussein built
something like Dubai in Baghdad, neither the Iraqi leader nor his country would
have been exposed to such calamities. But you cannot build a modern city with an
old and outdated dictionary. Tripoli could have now been a city teeming with
tourists and investors and enjoying all the necessary resources. This is also
true for Baghdad. Abandon the old dictionary... The dictionary of fear and
domination…
It is clear that our region must engage in two battles simultaneously: the
battle of stability and the quest for prosperity.
The battle of stability aims to restore some balance in the region, which would
allow the preservation of the Arabs’ role and interests, and enable their
countries to take a breath and fight for reform and modernization. The battle of
prosperity must start by adopting a new dictionary in dealing with the world,
the era and the people’s needs and aspirations.
The success of the two battles depends on the ability to exit the cycle of old
fears to enter the circle of strategic partnerships and the exchange of benefits
and expertise.
It is no secret that we need to get out of the old dictionaries. We need
education that awakens the capabilities of Arab students and enables them to
belong to the world of transformation, competition and innovation. We need an
actual developmental effort that positively changes the conditions of people’s
lives, stops the waves of despair that attract young people and push them on
suicidal routes or incite them to abandon home. We
must remember that countries, which have modernized their dictionaries, have
preceded those that adhered to the past; and that countries that have
accumulated developmental achievements are today stronger than those that
stocked rockets. The states that built towers are today more prosperous than
countries that have wasted their time digging trenches.
A Thelma and Louise Brexit?
Therese Raphael//Bloomberg View/November 26/18
Committed Brexiters, including former Brexit secretary Dominic Raab, have
arrived at the conclusion that the deal Prime Minister Theresa May has
negotiated is not just bad; it’s worse than remaining in the European Union.
That’s axiomatic. But what’s their plan? It’s not to cancel Brexit. And it’s not
to hold a new public vote. Their preference appears to
be for what they call a “managed” no-deal Brexit. The pitch is that this isn’t
the catastrophic crash-out business fears, but a brisk exit to World Trade
Organization rules, with key risks mitigated through a series of
mini-agreements.
You can see the political appeal. Brexiters could claim the referendum result
was being honored in spirit, not just in name. Britain could immediately start
negotiating trade deals with other countries. There would be no lengthy
transition and no “blind Brexit,” where the country makes financial commitments
with little idea of the terms of any future trade deal with the EU.
If only. A managed no-deal introduces big problems that WTO membership can’t
address, and EU crisis negotiations are unlikely to. It suffers from the very
same flaw as May’s deal before parliament: being dependent on the EU’s goodwill.
It’s true that under the WTO’s most favored nation terms, British exports would
be subjected to the same tariffs as the EU’s other trading partners. The auto
and dairy industries would be subjected to higher EU tariffs, but most exports
would face only low tariff rates. And as a net exporter to the UK, the EU would
face the bulk of those costs, according to Civitas, a think tank.
That’s not much comfort, though, because the common tariff rate wouldn’t be the
main barrier. The friction introduced by EU regulations, quotas and other
non-tariff barriers would be the major economic drag.
Regulatory divergence will come at a price — and even if the UK managed, as
Brexiters hope, to strike some trade deals with other countries, they would be
unlikely to make up for lost business from the EU for a long time.
WTO rules have nothing to say about pilot certification or the licensing of
truck drivers, or how data is transferred and held, notes the Institute for
Government’s Alex Stojanovic. The suggestion that WTO rules could protect UK
food and agriculture trade from EU regulatory barriers reads far too much into
the regulations’ vague requirement for consultations.
That’s where the “managed” part of the no-deal plan comes in. The argument is
that the EU would feel pressured by the chaos of such an exit to minimize the
damage. It has interests too, after all. The EU would be asked to extend Article
50’s two-year negotiation period, which ends on March 29, so mitigation measures
can be agreed. That’s a high-stakes game with an even more uncertain outcome
than anything May has agreed to so far. The EU isn’t
reckless; it will allow derivatives trades, flights and some commercial traffic
to proceed. But the European Commission has made clear in its no-deal planning
notices that any contingency measures shouldn’t replicate the benefits of EU
membership and mustn’t be allowed to extend beyond the end of 2019. More
importantly, the EU has made clear that such measures would be unilateral, taken
in its own interest, and could be revoked at any time.
Then there’s the Irish backstop. The EU has predicated any discussion of the
future trade relationship on a legally binding assurance from the UK that the
Irish border will be kept free from barriers of any kind. This is what Brexiters
find unacceptable about May’s deal. It could lock the UK into the EU customs
union. There has been much heated debate lately about whether customs checks
would be required and where, but it’s clear that a managed no-deal wouldn’t
address the border issue at all to the satisfaction of the EU.
China and US: Competition on Quality
Michael Schuman/Bloomberg View/November 26/18
Prospects for a trade deal between US President Donald Trump and Chinese
President Xi Jinping at the upcoming Group of 20 meeting in Argentina are quite
likely to founder on the question of China’s industrial strategies: While
Beijing may be willing to buy more American goods to mollify Trump, it almost
certainly won’t stop supporting sectors it sees as key to China’s technological
and economic progress.
In fact, China would be much wiser to scale back its industrial policies now.
They could well turn into a bigger headache for China’s own economy than for the
rest of the world.
On the surface, US officials appear to have good reason to fret. The “Made in
China 2025” program aims to lavish advanced sectors — such as new-energy
vehicles and robotics — with subsidies and other support to create national
champions capable of dominating global markets. Fearing a deluge of state-backed
high-tech exports that would swamp American companies, the Trump administration
has demanded Beijing cease such aid as a condition for lifting tariffs slapped
on Chinese goods.
China’s billions will certainly have an impact within the country’s domestic
market, where the government holds tremendous sway over corporate decisions and
consumer choice. Because the state owns so many major corporations, their
managers can be compelled to buy domestic rather than foreign wares, whatever
their price or quality. China can also make the case that buying local is a
matter of national security, given the threat of boycotts or export curbs that
could cut off the supply of foreign-made technology.
Outside of China, the task will be much more challenging. First of all, there’s
no guarantee that pouring money into favored industries will nurture
competitive, innovative companies. The historical record on such programs is
mixed at best. China’s current efforts are off to a shaky start. Heavy state
subsidization of electric-car batteries has created a lot of companies and
factories, but few truly technologically competitive firms.
Out in the real world, stripped of their bureaucratic protection, Chinese
companies will have to compete on quality, brand, price, technology and service
against established and trusted players — something their insular managers have
little experience or success in doing. A reputation for shoddiness won’t help.
BYD Co. Ltd. has already hit potholes by selling problem-plagued electric buses
in Los Angeles. How likely are consumers in the US and Europe to drive their
kids to school in one of the company’s plug-in cars, given alternatives?
That leaves Chinese companies competing on price. They’ll have trouble there,
too. The level of state support for some of these industries — whether given
directly or indirectly through the state-run banking system — is so large that
foreign governments are almost certain to protect their own firms from Chinese
competition. A new study from the Center for Strategic and International
Studies, for instance, figures that China’s national and local governments spent
nearly $59 billion on the electric-vehicle industry between 2009 and 2017, a
good chunk of it subsidizing consumers.
Previous Chinese policies that favored other industries — such as steel and
solar panels — created massive production capacity and led to a flood of cheap
exports that hammered competitors around the world. There are already
indications that “Made in China 2025” is spawning similar excess in sectors such
as electric vehicles. Foreign leaders are unlikely to sit by idly while wasteful
Chinese investment wrecks their own industries. (The Trump administration has
already aimed some of its tariffs at products related to “Made in China 2025.”)
On top of that, foreign governments are likely to block some high-tech Chinese
products on national-security grounds. The US Congress recently banned video
surveillance gear made by two Chinese firms from government facilities due to
security worries. US and European companies will think twice before using
Chinese-made microchips — another industry receiving ample state aid — in
sensitive electronics.
China’s industrial support could chase foreign companies out of its home market
in key sectors. But domestic demand won’t be enough to sustain industries
bloated by government aid, increasing the already-burdensome costs of such
policies on the Chinese economy. No longer able to dump its excess on the world,
China will find it harder to keep all these new factories in business. That
spells more zombie companies and bad loans for Chinese banks.
All of this should be incentive Xi to strike a deal in Argentina that scales
back “Made in China 2025” and other industrial policies. Not only would that
ease tensions with the US and other trading partners — keeping important foreign
markets open to new Chinese products — it could help promote innovation at home
as well. The vibrant Chinese private sector is fully capable of developing
cutting-edge products on its own. Flooding industries with cheap credit and
subsidies only helps weaker entrants stay afloat, crowding out the truly
competitive firms that could succeed on the world stage. Xi should appease Trump
now. He might thank the US president later.
The Sectarian Significance of Bahrain’s Elections
Simon Henderson/The Washington Institute./November 26, 2018
The imminent polls will not alter the power structure of the strategically
positioned Gulf state, but they could affect its simmering Shia unrest and wider
regional politics.
On November 24, Bahraini men and women will go to the polls to choose who will
represent them in the forty-seat National Assembly for the next four years.
Nearly 366,000 of the country’s 1.3 million citizens are eligible to take
part—only a fraction of the more than 2 million residents who call the island
home, a figure that includes expatriate workers as well as 10,000 U.S. service
personnel at the Fifth Fleet headquarters in Manama.
But the most crucial statistic at the moment is the proportion of Shia to Sunni
citizens. Shia compose an estimated 65 percent of the population, though the
Sunni-ruled government would probably dispute this. Its own published figures
for religious groups include the category “Islam” without any further breakdown
(Bahrain also has a significant Christian community and a small number of Jews,
among other denominations). Likewise, the most crucial context lies just across
the Persian Gulf in Shia Iran, which once claimed the island as a province and
now serves as both a refuge for Bahraini Shia dissidents and a training camp for
disaffected Bahraini militants.
The country’s main Shia political group boycotted the previous elections in
2014; it has since been shut down, and its leaders are banned from participating
in the next round. Thus, while the government trumpets its record on giving
citizens the right to vote (nearly a century old) and extending participation to
women (since 1951), many analysts will be concentrating on turnout.
According to Manama, at least 67 percent of eligible voters cast ballots in
2010, resulting in the main Shia political society, al-Wefaq, winning a
plurality of eighteen seats. Following the turmoil of Arab Spring-inspired riots
that began in 2011, al-Wefaq boycotted the 2014 polls, and turnout dropped to 52
percent. With al-Wefaq banned this year, turnout may fall below 50 percent,
though the government will likely try to stave off this embarrassment by
highlighting independent Shia candidates who manage to win seats.
In any case, the reality of Bahrain’s power structure will remain the same:
continuing dominance by the Sunni al-Khalifa ruling family. King Hamad sees
himself as a constitutional monarch comparable to Britain’s Queen Elizabeth,
though their systems of government are very different. The king reigns, but his
uncle—Sheikh Khalifa, who has been prime minister for the past four
decades—rules. Other key family members serve as deputy prime minister, finance
minister, foreign minister, interior minister, justice minister, military chief,
and ambassador to Washington.
Helping Bahrain navigate its internal and external tensions is an ongoing
challenge for the United States as well as Britain, the former imperial power
that recently reestablished a naval base on the island, albeit much smaller than
the U.S. presence. Both countries welcomed the June verdict acquitting al-Wefaq
leader Ali Salman of collaborating with Qatar, the neighboring Gulf state that
Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates have been locked in a
diplomatic showdown with since mid-2017. And both were shocked when the
government appealed that verdict and imposed a life sentence on Salman earlier
this month.
The latter move may have stemmed from pressure by Riyadh and Abu Dhabi, which
recently partnered with Kuwait to offer Bahrain a badly needed financial rescue
package. In response, a State Department spokesman pointedly noted that the
United States “will continue to engage regularly with the government of Bahrain
on a range of shared interests, including the importance of safeguarding
fundamental freedoms and human rights.” London echoed this sentiment in its own
statement on the matter.
For now, the country’s simmering sectarian unrest still generates occasional
clashes between Shia youths and security forces. A map on the U.S. embassy
website shows large swaths of the island (mainly Shia villages in and around
Manama) as off-limits to U.S. personnel. Today, the embassy issued an alert
warning of the “potential for demonstrations to occur at election polling
stations throughout the country, including in public areas such as shopping
malls.” In addition to framing the future of the island’s politics, this
weekend’s vote may also determine whether such violence flares up or peters out.
*Simon Henderson is the Baker Fellow and director of the Bernstein Program on
Gulf and Energy Policy at The Washington Institute.
Thus, Mohammed bin Rashid spoke
Mashari Althaydi/Al Arabiya/November 26/18
When the owner of an experience, which is one of the best in terms of modern-day
wise Arab governance, has an opinion, listening is a must. This is how you feel
as you read excerpts from Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum’s interview, the
maker of the Dubai miracle and the man who inspires the UAE and Arabs.In an
interview carried out by Ashraq Al-Awsat’s Editor-in-Chief Ghassan Charbel,
Sheikh Mohammed contemplated and eloquently spoke in Arabic about the disease
and the cure in the Arab world.
Asked if the Middle East can develop and attract investments with the permanence
of destructive conflicts, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, who has been acquainted
with these conflicts for decades, said: “Tensions in our region is nothing new.
It is practically a constant that has existed for 40 years.” It’s a frank
description to which he added from his perspective as a visionary and statesman:
“Moreover, investors know that countries have strong memories and that effective
investment is marked by sustainability and they are not simply swayed by moments
of tension or a passing development.”According to this successful Arab leader,
the real Arab spring is in heading towards the future and making a productive
and creative generation that loves life. This is spring, and not the autumn of
anger, wars and strife
Here, the statement is clear differentiating between opportunists and the
permanent strategic investor and the state differentiates between these two,
because it’s aware and it has a vigilant rich memory!
How can we expect the Saudi state, for instance, to deal with whoever jumped off
the boat, the boat of the vision, with the occurrence of the first “passing”
development, as Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid described it? Tensions, “passing”
developments and conflicts are part of the region’s nature, and we hope this
changes but it will not change unless an alternative reality is created, whose
essence is being oriented towards development and modernization, instead of
towards religious, sectarian and ethnic wars, and where the logic of the state
predominates the logic of the militias.
The wise Mohammed bin Rashid, the man of administration and development, further
explains this saying: “I believe that conflicts offer further motivation to
adopt modernization and development.. Can old circumstances, methods and ways of
thinking produce anything else than the products that they had yielded
before?”These are the words of a wise man with a “realistic” optimistic soul, to
see promising opportunities in crises. Commenting on his experience over the
years, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid concludes saying: “For over 20 years I have
warned of the severity of the situation and the need for change and
modernization.”According to this successful Arab leader, the real Arab spring is
in heading towards the future and making a productive and creative generation
that loves life. This is spring, and not the autumn of anger, wars and strife.
This opinion from the successful statesman is worthy of acceptance and
appreciation.
Khashoggi and the war between Trump and the media
Mamdouh AlMuhaini/Al Arabiya/November 26/18
The CIA’s report on Khashoggi which the Washington Post leaked was employed in
such a clear and obvious way in the context of the internal American war between
the famous daily and President Trump. The daily wanted to embarrass the
president and provide live ammunition to his rivals to shoot him in the foot. It
also, via its fierce attack on his strong administration’s alliance with Riyadh,
wanted to damage his foreign policy. However, it
wasn’t long until we realized that the newspaper made grave mistakes and used
twisted ways to push the report towards one inevitable result. The daily said
there is a strong reason that supports the CIA conclusion, which is a call by
the Saudi Ambassador to Washington Khalid bin Salman to journalist Khashoggi
before his murder, proposing to Khashoggi that he travels to Istanbul. We now
know that this is an entirely different story, but it’s also much more. The
CIA’s anonymous source leaked this information to the daily’s editor considering
it as conclusive evidence that the crime was planned by the highest ranks. It’s
clear that the editor is hungry for any piece of information that convicts the
Saudi leadership, and the anonymous source who does not know anything put it in
his mouth. Despite this grave mistake, which greatly harms the credibility of
the report, the daily continued to affirm that this is the final conclusion but
in the end it was a mere analysis by anonymous sources based on false
information.The premises of this war between the media and Trump are purely and
rooted ideological ones and any case can be employed to weaken the other party’s
stance ideologically. This is why the Khashoggi case was invested in and taken
out of its context to shake the relation between Trump’s Washington and Riyadh
No backing down
However, will the newspaper back down and reevaluate its vision after the
American president himself, the first insider to actually know the real content
of the report, said that what media outlets reported is inaccurate and after he
confirmed the Saudi global role in fighting Iran and terrorism? US Secretary of
State Mike Pompeo also made similar statements. The president and his senior
administration officials cannot just appear and deliver false statements to the
American public opinion. Despite that, it’s unlikely that the Washington Post
will take a reformative stance because it has positioned itself as a party in
the case, hence it’s difficult for it to convey other perspectives, and it’s
difficult for it to swallow the other facts which undermine its original story.
There have been clear mistakes, twisted ways and anonymous sources and
they’ve ignored other facts and held on to their preferred story although
stories which oppose it emerged. These are frequent characteristics of
ideological organizations and not media outlets, which pride themselves in the
values of neutrality and professional justice. Above all that, we’ve seen some
scenes that are bitterly ironic.
Due to the surge in the attack on Saudi Arabia and the American administration,
Turkey, the country that imprisons and oppresses journalists the most in the
world, turned into a country that defends freedoms and Turkish anonymous sources
became the sources of the angry media outlets. The other strange scene was the
article by Mohammed al-Houthi who lectured about the freedom of the press when
he has caused the murder and disappearance of dozens of journalists. We cannot
recall a phase when the standards of the American press fell as low as today.
The term “intelligence reports” must be cautiously dealt with for several
reasons such as that the conveyed data may be entirely wrong, or the source is
deceitful and he does not have any credible information, or he’s talkative with
lots of suspicions and perhaps wishes. Another reason is related to complete
bias when this anonymous source speaks to support his point of view and not to
confirm the truth like what happened with the Khashoggi case. There are more
suspicions when we know the stance of former intelligence senior officials
towards Trump, such as the stance of former CIA Director John Brennan who never
calls Trump “President” but “Mr.”, i.e. he does not acknowledge him as
president.
Targeting Trump and his allies
It cannot be denied that in certain institutions, there is an atmosphere that is
hostile to the American administration and everything it represents and everyone
it’s allied with, hence they issue fabricated news that aim to harm Trump and
his allies. A while back, I watched an interview with Michael Morell, the former
CIA deputy director, who hates everything President Trump does. Morell attacked
the president because he withdrew from the Paris climate agreement, and one of
his justifications for this anger is that climate change will in the future lead
to wars between countries. It’s an exaggeration that cannot be digested; to make
the future of the humans’ climate and the eruption of a barbaric war in search
of water and pastures the responsibility of only one man. I mention this example
by a senior at the CIA to confirm that big and important names can say the
silliest things that are quickly turned into media reports that are put out as
beyond doubt.
Another reason is the major dispute between Trump and media outlets regarding
foreign policy. He is against the Iranian nuclear deal while they are with it,
and he is with supporting the strategic alliance with Saudi Arabia, which
maintained regional stability for more than 70 years despite all the storms, and
they are against it. They agree with the opinion of the former American
administration in undermining this alliance or weakening it or replacing it with
a new regional system where Tehran has a big role. The Trump administration is
against political Islam and sees it as the source of extremist ideology
(National Security Advisor John Bolton says the Brotherhood is terrorism’s
smiling face) and these media figures believe that political Islam is the
alternative to extremist Islam.
There is a radical change on the level of ideas and policies and on almost all
fronts. Hence, the premises of this war between the media and Trump are purely
and rooted ideological ones and any case can be employed to weaken the other
party’s stance ideologically. This is why the Khashoggi case was invested in and
taken out of its context to shake the relation between Trump’s Washington and
Riyadh. In his last address, Trump directed his speech to his supporters and not
to the press as he’s aware of its stance that will not change, and he clearly
emphasized that a single incident will not harm this relationship that is
important for the world.
Those surprised by the stance of media outlets that oppose Trump and that
convict based on analyses and articles have not been following up on this battle
that’s been ongoing between the two parties for more than two years,
particularly since Trump became the Republican presidential candidate who would
compete with the Democrats’ presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Most media
outlets announced that they strongly oppose that a figure like Trump becomes a
president and said they will do anything to defeat him.
Trump won and became president but the battle became fiercer, and ever since,
we’ve seen hundreds of reports that accuse him of treason, collusion with the
Russians, personal enrichment and others. All these were presented in the form
of facts and based on well-informed intelligence sources, just like the
Khashoggi case was handled, but none of them led to real convictions that led to
toppling him. In many cases, we’ve seen breaking news and main headlines that
rely on anonymous sources and that confirm beyond any doubt that Trump’s days
are numbered, but they are mere wishes and dreams that evaporated into thin air.
Just like the Khashoggi case was handled, facts do not matter in this
context as what is important is creating a story, complementing it and feeding
it with unreliable information and rumors and ignoring what the other party is
saying in order to tarnish the image of the rival. Therefore, we might see Saudi
Arabia as convicted in Khashoggi’s murder and Trump as complicit with the
Russians, regardless of the truth.
Canada's Treacherous "Faustian Bargain"
سليم منصور: صفقة كندا الغادرة والشريرة
Salim Mansur/Gatestone Institute/November 26/18
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, it seems, adheres to the principle of
globalism, according to which the world is borderless, and the idea of sovereign
nation-states is both reactionary and obsolete. In this borderless world, the
governing body is the unelected, untransparent, unaccountable and deeply corrupt
United Nations and its agencies, which possess the authority to legislate
international law that is then enforced by member states.
The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration is a document
detailing the requirements for UN member-states to adopt as policy that amounts
to unfettered global migration. Trudeau has bought into this UN agenda and has
decided to impose it on the Canadian people without their prior knowledge or
consent.
The Global Compact requires the media outlets of member-states to adhere to the
objectives and refrain from any critical discussions of these objectives that
would be deemed as not "ethical" and against UN norms or standards consistent
with the ideology of globalism.
This helps to explain the Trudeau government's generous handout to the Canadian
media. In this light, the $600 million can be viewed as a form of secretive soft
control and censorship, ensuring that the Canadian press abides by the
requirements of the Global Compact.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau seems to adhere to the principle of
globalism, according to which the idea of sovereign nation-states is both
reactionary and obsolete. In this borderless world, the governing body is the
unelected, untransparent, unaccountable and deeply corrupt United Nations and
its agencies, which possess the authority to legislate international law that is
then enforced by member states. Pictured: Trudeau holds a press briefing at the
United Nations headquarters in New York City, September 21, 2017. (Photo by Drew
Angerer/Getty Images)
The Canadian government's recent announcement that it will be providing more
than CDN $600 million (USD $455 million) over the next five years to bail out
the country's financially strapped media outlets -- as part of the fall fiscal
update about the federal budget ahead of the 2019 federal election -- is not as
innocent as it may seem.
In response to the announcement, the heads of Canada's media organizations
promptly popped open the proverbial champagne and raised their glasses to Prime
Minister Justin Trudeau. Unifor, a national union that represents Canadian
journalists, was even more jubilant. It felt vindicated that its slogan of
"Resistance" -- which it touts as Conservative Party opposition leader Andrew
Scheer's "worst nightmare" -- had so swiftly resulted in opening the
government's wallet, and handing out taxpayers' money, to an industry that
should actually be fighting to remain steadfastly independent of any form of
government backing.
This is what a "free press" is presumably all about, after all; not as in
countries with totalitarian regimes, such as the once-Czarist Russia-turned
communist Soviet Union-turned Putinist Russia, or Maoist China, or the Kingdom
of Saudi Arabia, or the Islamic Republic of Iran, or Castroist Cuba and many
third-world states in which the press is simply a propaganda tool of the
government, subjected to the dictates and whim of its leader.
The recipients of Trudeau's "gift" will argue that their editorial independence
could not possibly be hindered -- heaven forfend! -- in such a liberal democracy
as Canada. Their irreproachable backs will go up at the mere suggestion that
their journalistic integrity might be compromised by entering into a financial
deal with the powers-that-be.
No matter how much ink they spill or bytes they waste defending their virtue,
however, they will not be able to fool the public about the nature of this
Faustian bargain, which is tantamount to being bought by Trudeau's Liberal Party
in exchange for favorable press ahead of the next federal election.
Canadians ought to recoil from this "slippery slope" to some version of a
state-controlled society that this deal has created. How ironic that the
announcement of the media bailout came less than a week after the 100th
anniversary of the First World War armistice and Remembrance Day, during which
Canadians honored the memory of countrymen killed and maimed in wars fought for
freedom against the advance of tyranny.
Perhaps this deal should not have come as a surprise, however, considering
Trudeau's stated position that Canada is a post-national state with no core
identity. In other words, in Trudeau's Canada there is no tradition to revere,
no sacred values to defend and no identity to preserve.
Trudeau, it seems, adheres to the principle of globalism, according to which the
world is borderless, and the idea of sovereign nation-states is both reactionary
and obsolete. In this borderless world, the governing body is the unelected,
untransparent, unaccountable, corrupt United Nations and its agencies, which
possess the authority to legislate international law that is then enforced by
member states.
Trudeau appears determined to turn Canada into a laboratory of the globalist
agenda. This is probably why he is rushing to embrace the UN-proposed Global
Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, to be adopted at the
Intergovernmental Conference in Marrakech, Morocco, on December 10-11, 2018.
Most Canadians are unaware of the content of the Global Compact, which their
government has committed to sign. Yet it is in the context of this agreement
that various decisions taken by the Trudeau government can be explained --
decisions on issues such as immigration, climate change, "Islamophobia" and the
$600 million media bailout.
The Global Compact is a document detailing the requirements for member-states to
adopt as policy that amounts to unfettered global migration. Trudeau has bought
into this UN agenda and has decided to impose it on the Canadian people without
their prior knowledge or consent.
Objective 17 of the Global Compact states:
"We commit to eliminate all forms of discrimination, condemn and counter
expressions, acts and manifestations of racism, racial discrimination, violence,
xenophobia and related intolerance against all migrants in conformity with
international human rights law. We further commit to promote an open and
evidence-based public discourse on migration and migrants in partnership with
all parts of society, that generates a more realistic, humane and constructive
perception in this regard. We also commit to protect freedom of expression in
accordance with international law, recognizing that an open and free debate
contributes to a comprehensive understanding of all aspects of migration."
[Emphasis added.]
In pursuance of the above, member-states are required, therefore, to:
"Promote independent, objective and quality reporting of media outlets,
including internet-based information, including by sensitizing and educating
media professionals on migration-related issues and terminology, investing in
ethical reporting standards and advertising, and stopping allocation of public
funding or material support to media outlets that systematically promote
intolerance, xenophobia, racism and other forms of discrimination towards
migrants in full respect for the freedom of the media." [Emphases added.]
Translated from UN-speak, this means that media outlets of member-states are
required to adhere to the objectives adopted in the Global Compact, and refrain
from any critical discussions of these objectives that would be deemed as not
"ethical" and against UN norms or standards consistent with the ideology of
globalism. This helps to explain the Trudeau government's generous handout to
the Canadian media. In this light, the $600 million can be viewed as a form of
secretive soft control and censorship, ensuring that the Canadian press abides
by the requirements of the Global Compact.
In accepting the money, the Canadian media as a whole becomes no different from
the national public broadcaster CBC, all of whose news and opinion are slanted
to the center-left, espousing the Liberal Party's political, economic and
cultural positions – with an occasional token and highly controlled conservative
view in the mix for the purpose of maintaining the façade of free speech.
The gradual elimination of free speech is characteristic of the Trudeau
government, which last year adopted parliamentary motion M-103, condemning any
critical discussion of Islam and Muslims as "Islamophobia." "Islamophobia," in
UN-speak, is bigotry and racism, and could be subject to censorship or liable to
criminal prosecution under the "hate speech" provision of the human rights
commissions in Canada. This is consistent with the recent ruling by the European
Court of Human Rights, that criticism of the Prophet of Islam is tantamount to
inciting hatred and is not, therefore, protected free speech. It is also
consistent with the effort of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation -– the
largest bloc of 57 member-states in the UN -- to declare any criticism or insult
of the founder of Islam and the religion itself as blasphemy in accordance with
Islamic shariah law.
There is a pattern emerging that indicates the sort of country that Trudeau and
his Liberal Party are trying to create: a borderless Canada where UN-devised
international law will take precedence over legislation enacted by elected
representatives of the Canadian people who go against it.
If this process is not reversed, Canadians -- inundated by mass-migration --
will become citizens of the world; and Canada will become a multicultural North
American protectorate of an emergent 21st century, UN-administered borderless
world. In such a world, there is no room for freedom of speech or a free press.
The Canadian media should think long and hard before selling its soul to
Trudeau.
Salim Mansur is a Distinguished Senior Fellow at Gatestone Institute. He teaches
in the department of political science at Western University in London, Ontario,
and is the author of "The Qur'an Problem and Islamism"; "Islam's Predicament:
Perspectives of a Dissident Muslim"; and "Delectable Lie: A Liberal Repudiation
of Multiculturalism."
© 2018 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do
not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No
part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied
or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/13349/canada-government-media
Faustian bargain
WRITTEN BY: The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
See Article History
Faustian bargain, a pact whereby a person trades something of supreme moral or
spiritual importance, such as personal values or the soul, for some worldly or
material benefit, such as knowledge, power, or riches. The term refers to the
legend of Faust (or Faustus, or Doctor Faustus), a character in German folklore
and literature, who agrees to surrender his soul to an evil spirit (in some
treatments, Mephistopheles, or Mephisto, a representative of Satan) after a
certain period of time in exchange for otherwise unattainable knowledge and
magical powers that give him access to all the world’s pleasures. A Faustian
bargain is made with a power that the bargainer recognizes as evil or amoral.
Faustian bargains are by their nature tragic or self-defeating for the person
who makes them, because what is surrendered is ultimately far more valuable than
what is obtained, whether or not the bargainer appreciates that fact.
Qatar: Time to Shape Up
Debalina Ghoshal/Gatestone Institute/November 26/18
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/13345/qatar-time-to-shape-up
"We need a united anti-Iran front, and Qatar needs to come closer to its friends
on the peninsula, us, the U.S., and Israel on that point. And in the meantime,
let's help Qatar along here. Why doesn't the United States get on with the
business of declaring the Muslim Brotherhood a foreign terrorist organization?
And then that gives Qatar the excuse to go ahead and do it too, so we can cut
off everyone's funding for them, whether it's in Egypt, the United States, or
anywhere else in the world." — Ambassador John R. Bolton, July 12, 2017.
The time is not only ripe for Washington to take this step; it is essential.
Qatar is in talks to purchase Russia's S-400 air-defense system. Despite Saudi
Arabia's reported opposition to the deal, Russia says it is moving forward
anyway. Pictured: Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with the Emir of Qatar,
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, in Moscow on July 15, 2018. (Image source:
kremlin.ru)
Since 2017, when five countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) severed
diplomatic and trade ties with Qatar for siding with the Muslim Brotherhood and
other terrorist groups, Doha has been forging new alliances, particularly with
Russia and China.
During a military parade in December 2017, Qatar's armed forces showcased new
Chinese guided ballistic-missile systems that have a range -- up to 400 km --
that encompasses Qatar's neighboring Gulf States. In September 2018, PetroChina
struck a long-term deal with Qatargas to purchase 3.4 million tons per year of
liquid natural gas.
Defense and economic ties with Qatar are crucial to China's plans to extend its
influence in the Middle East through the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). China
is aware that for the BRI to be successful, the GCC must be reunited. Given its
own cordial relations with the GCC, Beijing sees engagement with Doha as an
opportunity to become a key mediator in the Qatar-GCC crisis.
Qatar is also in talks to purchase Russia's S-400 air-defense system. Despite
Saudi Arabia's reported opposition to the deal, Russia says it is moving forward
anyway.
With Russia under U.S. sanctions, and Qatar under a GCC blockade, defense and
trade ties between Moscow and Doha are mutually beneficial. In 2016, for
example, Qatar purchased a huge stake in Russia's state-controlled oil company,
Rosneft.
This strengthening of ties is taking place in spite of the fact that Moscow and
Doha are on opposite sides of the Syrian civil war, with Russia backing the
Assad regime and Qatar supporting the rebel forces. Qatar is likely seeking
Russian mediation to resolve its crisis with the GCC.
Qatar's interest in Chinese and Russian weapons systems probably has less to do
with deterring Saudi Arabia's more powerful military than it does with forging
alliances beyond those it has with the U.S., in the event that Washington ends
up backing the blockade against Qatar. Qatar may also be apprehensive about
reports of U.S. plans to move from Qatar to Saudi Arabia its Central Command
(CENTCOM) forward headquarters and its military deployment at Al-Udeid airbase,
due to Doha's burgeoning relations with Iran, China and Russia.
CENTCOM, however, called these reports "false and without merit." In addition,
the U.S. recently announced new sales to Qatar of Advanced Precision Kill Weapon
Systems.
In other words, while enhancing its ties with Russia and China to survive the
GCC blockade, Qatar has not forfeited its relations with the U.S., which it
possibly sees as another potential mediator in the Gulf crisis. Meanwhile, Qatar
is doubtless aware that both Russia and China -- not just the U.S. -- have good
relations with Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
From a U.S. perspective, maintaining good relations with -- and diplomatic
leverage on -- Qatar is crucial to resolving the Gulf crisis and preventing Doha
from further strengthening its ties to Tehran, Beijing and Moscow.
In a July 2017 interview -- several months before becoming U.S. President Donald
Trump's National Security Advisor -- John Bolton said:
"We need a united anti-Iran front, and Qatar needs to come closer to its friends
on the peninsula, us, the U.S., and Israel on that point. And in the meantime,
let's help Qatar along here. Why doesn't the United States get on with the
business of declaring the Muslim Brotherhood a foreign terrorist organization?
And then that gives Qatar the excuse to go ahead and do it too, so we can cut
off everyone's funding for them, whether it's in Egypt, the United States, or
anywhere else in the world."
The time is not only ripe for Washington to take this step; it is essential.
*Debalina Ghoshal, an independent consultant specializing in nuclear and missile
issues, is based in India.
© 2018 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do
not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No
part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied
or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.