English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For April 19/2022
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news

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http://eliasbejjaninews.com/aaaanewsfor2021/english.april19.22.htm

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Bible Quotations For today
The Third Time That Jesus Appeared To The Disciples After His Resurrection
John/21/01-14/ Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”“No,” they answered. He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish. Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on April 18-19/2022
Resurrection: Life, Faith And Death…Halleluiah, Jesus has risen! Indeed He has risen./Elias Bejjani/ِApril 17/2021
Health Ministry: 72 new Corona cases, 3 deaths
Foreign Ministry: Interior Ministry in process of publishing electronic link allowing non-resident voters to know their serial number, polling station
Foreign Affairs Ministry: Lebanon’s Consulate in Sydney implemented our instructions, dividing voters geographically according to their postal codes
Al-Makari from Dinniyeh: Do not be affected by electoral money, but vote for the historical relation between Zgharta and Dinniyeh through which we are fortified in confronting all challenges
“With a parliamentary majority, we impose our word, but will they kill us?” wonders Jumblatt, says, “Aoun and Bassil are doing everything to please the American and the Israeli”
Jumblat says facing 'Syrian-Iranian axis' in elections, won't endorse Bassil or Franjieh
Lebanese celebrate Easter amid election campaign
From Meshaal to Nasrallah/Tariq Al-Homayed/Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper/April 18/2022

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on April 18-19/2022
Iran Warns Israel on Making 'Tiniest Move' Against it
Iran blames US for delays to revive nuclear deal
Russia Hits Hundreds of Targets across Ukraine, Fighters Cling on in Mariupol
Iraqi Officials: No Proof of Mossad Base in Erbil
Turkey says its warplanes hit Kurdish militant targets in northern Iraq
Houthis sign action plan with UN to end use of children in conflict
UN Security Council to meet Tuesday on Jerusalem unrest: diplomatic

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on April 18-19/2022
Lifting sanctions will only convey Western weakness to Tehran/Dr. Majid/Rafizadeh/Arab News
Tackling the Iranian Regime’s Nuclear Threat/Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Arab News/April 18, 2022
Tactical Nuclear Weapons: A Russian Threat and an American Warning/Raghida Dergham/The National/April 18/2022
Deterring China: U.S. Should Arm Taiwan to the Hilt – Now/Gordon G. Chang/ Gatestone Institute/April 18, 2022
War in Ukraine, Refugees, Elections and Shifts in Political Landscape/Omer Onhon/Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper/April 18/2022
ISIS Is Recovering in Syria, But Stability Is Vitally Needed/Charles Lister/Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper/April 18/2022

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on April 18-19/2022
Resurrection: Life, Faith And Death…Halleluiah, Jesus has risen! Indeed He has risen.
Elias Bejjani/ِApril 17/2021
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/38553/elias-bejjani-resurrection-life-faith-and-death/
Don’t be amazed. You seek Jesus, the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen. He is not here (Mark 16/05)
Do not be afraid, “Don’t be amazed”, with these reassuring and soothing words The Angel spoke to Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome. They had came to the tomb on Sunday morning to mummify and anoint Jesus’ Body as the Jewish tradition required. They thought death had defeated Jesus and ended His life as it does to every human being. On their way, they were sadly thinking and wondering who will roll for them the stone away from the tomb’s entrance so they can get in and perform the mummifying and anointing process. While halfway from the tomb, they saw that the enormous stone had been rolled away. When they entered the tomb they found that Jesus’ body was not there. They found only the shrouds that His body was wrapped with on His burial after the crucifixion.
Saint Mark’s (16/01-13) Gospel describes thoroughly what has happened with these three loyal and faithful women: “When the Sabbath was, past Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices, that they might come and anoint him. 16:2 Very early on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. They were saying among themselves, “Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?” for it was very big. Looking up, they saw that the stone was rolled back. Entering into the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were amazed. He said to them, “Don’t be amazed. You seek Jesus, the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen. He is not here. Behold, the place where they laid him! But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He goes before you into Galilee. There you will see him, as he said to you.’” They went out, and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had come on them. They said nothing to anyone; for they were afraid. Now when he had risen early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. She went and told those who had been with him, as they mourned and wept. When they heard that he was alive, and had been seen by her, they disbelieved. After these things he was revealed in another form to two of them, as they walked, on their way into the country. They went away and told it to the rest. They didn’t believe them, either.”
Lord Jesus who died on the cross, had risen from the dead on the third day just as He has said while proclaiming His message. He triumphed over death, defeated the forces of darkness, overcame pain, abolished anguish and brought despair to an end. He rose from the tomb to be constantly with those faithful to Him throughout their lives, and to never abandon them. He shall empower forever those who believe in His message and observe His commandments with the spirit of truth, knowledge, wisdom and solidarity with His Father, Almighty God.
Christ is the Way, Christ is the Truth, and Christ is the actual eternal life that we long for. We strongly believe with full conviction that Christ dwells in His Holy Church, and exists in its Mysteries (Sacraments). He is always present in the Holy Eucharist that we receive during every mass. Christ at all times is ready, willing and delighted to help us in our burdens when we call on Him and ask for His mercy. “Come to me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest. 11:29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart; and you will find rest for your souls. 11:30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew11:28)
The miracle of resurrection is the cornerstone of our Christian faith. This pivotal liturgical fact was strongly stressed by Saint Paul in his First Letter to the Corinthians, (15/12-26): ” Now if Christ is preached, that he has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, neither has Christ been raised. If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain, and your faith also is in vain. Yes, we are found false witnesses of God, because we testified about God that he raised up Christ, whom he didn’t raise up, if it is so that the dead are not raised. For if the dead aren’t raised, neither has Christ been raised. If Christ has not been raised, your faith is vain; you are still in your sins. Then they also who are fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have only hoped in Christ in this life, we are of all men most pitiable. But now Christ has been raised from the dead. He became the first fruits of those who are asleep. For since death came by man, the resurrection of the dead also came by man. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then those who are Christ’s, at his coming. Then the end comes, when he will deliver up the Kingdom to God, even the Father; when he will have abolished all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy that will be abolished is death”.
Through Crucifixion and resurrection, Christ has overcome death, broke its thorn, and granted us His eternal forgiveness from the original sin. With His death and resurrection, death in its traditional earthly human concept has been abolished forever and Sin since then has become the actual death that leads the sinners to Gahanna into the unquenchable fire.
When our bodies die, we sleep in the hope of resurrection. On Jesus’ return on the Day of Judgment, the dead will be the first to rise and escort Him. “Behold, I tell you a mystery. We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed”, (Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians 15 / 51-52).
Easter Sunday is a holy feast of love, humility, forgiveness, brotherhood, tolerance and repentance. Religiously we are not to participate in any of these feast prayers or make any offerings or receive the Holy Communion unless we replace hatred with love, grudges with forgiveness, rejection of others with tolerance, arrogance with humility, greed with contentment, deception with transparency, and evil with righteousness.
If we do not learn how to tame our selfishness, anger, hatred and forgive others for whatever evil deeds they commit against us and reconcile with them, than we do not qualify to be called Jesus’ followers. Our prayers will not be heard or responded to, if we do not practice the grace of forgiveness as did He who was crucified for our salvation.
“If therefore you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift”. (Matthew 5/23-24).
Meanwhile our true faith in Jesus and in His Sacrifices won’t be complete unless we adopt in our thinking, deeds and language the pure components of sacrifice, honesty, truth, self respect, meekness and decency. “Let no corrupt speech proceed out of your mouth, but such as is good for building up as the need may be, that it may give grace to those who hear. Don’t grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, outcry, and slander, be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving each other, just as God also in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4/29-32)
For our prayers to be looked upon and heard by Almighty God, we are required to reconcile with ourselves and with all others on whom we have inflicted pain and injustice, and treated with an evil manner. To please the Lord we are required to genuinely, heartily and overtly perform all required acts of repentance for all our mischievous conducts and wrongdoings. Mark 11/24-26: “Therefore I tell you, all things whatever you pray and ask for, believe that you have received them, and you shall have them. Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone; so that your Father, who is in heaven, may also forgive you your transgressions. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your transgressions”
Almighty God has endowed us with His love talent, (minas) and expects us to faithfully invest it in helping others who are in need. He expect us to observe all the teaching of His Bible so that He will reward us on the Day of Judgment and put us on His Right Side.
On this Holy Day of Resurrection, we must be aware that Jesus’ Holy blood was shed on the Cross for our sake. Remembrance of His death and resurrection is a Godly consignment that we are entrusted with. It’s up to us either to honour this trust or betray it. In regards to what is committed to us, Saint Paul conveyed to his disciple Timothy the following advice (6/20-21): “Timothy, guard that which is committed to you, turning away from the empty chatter and oppositions of the knowledge which is falsely so called; which some professing have erred concerning the faith”.
Halleluiah! Jesus has risen! Indeed He has risen.

Health Ministry: 72 new Corona cases, 3 deaths
NNA/18 April/2022 
In its daily report on COVID-19 developments, the Ministry of Public Health announced on Monday the registration of 72 new Corona virus inflections, which raised the cumulative number of confirmed cases to-date to 1,095,685.
The report added that 3 deaths were recorded during the past 24 hours.

Foreign Ministry: Interior Ministry in process of publishing electronic link allowing non-resident voters to know their serial number, polling station
NNA/18 April/2022 
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants has been informed that, "in light of the inquiries of some non-resident voters presented to Lebanon’s missions abroad over knowing the specific polling station for each voter, the Interior and Municipalities Ministry, which is legally entrusted with this matter, is in the process of publishing an electronic link that allows voters residing outside Lebanon to know their serial number and in which polling station they will vote.”

Foreign Affairs Ministry: Lebanon’s Consulate in Sydney implemented our instructions, dividing voters geographically according to their postal codes
NNA/18 April/2022 
The Foreign Affairs and Emigrants Ministry issued today a clarification statement over the recent confusion regarding the Consul General in Sydney Charbel Macaroun's distribution of expatriate voters across polling stations in the Australian capital. In this context, the Ministry explained that “the Consulate General in Sydney implemented the Ministry's instructions regarding the Lebanese expatriates’ elections, whereby it divided the voters geographically according to the postal codes used in Australia, and as stated in the forms for those who registered to vote abroad.”It added: “The electoral machines located in and around the city of Sydney for the various Lebanese parties had assisted their supporters and partisans residing there, and wishing to cast their votes, to fill out the required registration forms. Consequently, if a voter provides a residential address and zip code other than his/her actual place of residence, this does not hold the Consulate General responsible whatsoever.”The Foreign Ministry continued to indicate that “the Consulate General in Sydney divided about 17,000 voters into 9 polling stations and 47 polling booths, according to what the voter or the electoral machine provided as a postal code in the registration form. As the Consulate cannot verify the authenticity of the voter's real place of residence, hence providing the correct postal code and place of residence remains the sole responsibility of the registered voter.”“Subsequently, when members of the same family register according to different residential addresses and postal codes, it is normal for them to vote in different polling stations,” the statement underlined. "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants, represented by the Lebanese missions abroad, works to assist voters to cast their votes, and encourages them to communicate and interact with these missions to ensure the success and smooth running of the electoral process," the statement concluded.

Al-Makari from Dinniyeh: Do not be affected by electoral money, but vote for the historical relation between Zgharta and Dinniyeh through which we are fortified in confronting all challenges
NNA/18 April/2022 
Information Minister Ziad Al-Makari, underlined today the "deep historical ties linking both Zgharta and Dinniyeh together," and called on citizens of these regions to “vote for this historical relation through which we are fortified in the face of challenges.”He added that "the Ministry of Information's priority is safeguarding public freedoms," and urged voters to "exercise their democratic right and turn out massively at the ballot boxes” during the upcoming parliamentary elections. The Information Minister’s words came during a Ramadan Iftar held in his honor by Attorney Ahmad Shandab, alongside MP Jihad Al-Samad, at his home in the town of Bkarsona in Dinniyeh, which was attended by the head of the Union of Municipalities of Dinniyeh, Mohammad Saadieh, and various mayors and dignitaries from the region. In a brief word during the Iftar, Minister Al-Makari expressed his appreciation for the warm gathering held in his honor and his joy to be amongst his people in Dinniyeh, saying: “Dinniyeh has a special place in my heart, as it includes family, friends and loved ones. It is the beloved neighbor of Zgharta, and a symbol of coexistence and national brotherhood.”He added: "From Dinniyeh, I began my political career, and ran for parliamentary elections…Although it was not with Zgharta in one electoral district, yet we have always worked as if they were one electoral district. We remained in constant contact despite everything, for our homes and yours remained open and integrated."Referring to the upcoming parliamentary elections’ preparations, Al-Makari indicated that he is meeting almost weekly with various media outlet representatives, including representatives of television stations, newspapers, radio stations and news websites. “Our goal is to maintain a tranquil atmosphere, especially as we are going through a difficult stage in the country’s history, and the upcoming elections are amongst the hardest," he said. Al-Makari stressed "the necessity of approaching the elections in a democratic manner, not just out of competition, in order to lay the foundation for a new country, especially that the state is absent after it has been looted and robbed.”
"After May 15, Lebanon will move to a new stage, perhaps to a new government and new politicians,” he said. Also within the context of the anticipated elections, Al-Makari asserted that his Ministry’s priority is to “protect liberties, particularly since freedom of expression is most precious in Lebanon.”He added: “We always stress the importance of responsible freedom, freedom that is harmless, but based on morals and respect for the other under the rooftop of democracy.” He criticized “electoral money,” and called for "democratic competition," encouraging citizens to “exercise this right freely."
"The voters should exercise their democratic right and national duty and express their opinions freely, within their conviction that whoever they elect will contribute to developing the country," the Information Minister underscored.

“With a parliamentary majority, we impose our word, but will they kill us?” wonders Jumblatt, says, “Aoun and Bassil are doing everything to please the American and the Israeli”
NNA/18 April/2022 
Progressive Socialist Party Chief, Walid Jumblatt, considered that "with the parliamentary majority, we can impose our word,” but questioned, “Will they kill us?"Referring to the maritime border demarcation negotiations, he believed that "everything that MP Gebran Bassil and President Michel Aoun are doing is aimed at lifting the sanctions off Bassil, and for this reason they initially insisted on line 29 and now 23, and are doing all that satisfies the Israelis and the Americans."Speaking about the Gulf States, Jumblatt said: “After the clouds resulting from the random and arbitrary statements of Hezbollah and the Free Patriotic Movement group on Saudi Arabia and the Gulf, which almost destroyed our relationship with the Gulf and our presence in the Gulf as Lebanese, we hope that the Kuwaiti and Saudi ambassadors will return to the Gulf and carry out a movement of political and economic balance for Lebanon, lest we remain hostage and under Iranian and Syrian control.”Touching on the agreement with the International Monetary Fund, Jumblatt considered it as Lebanon’s “last chance”. He added: “It seems that the crisis is a bit long; it may be long with known limits, and it may be long and open to all possibilities, but the whole matter is dependent upon the seriousness of the government’s work in approving the protocol with the IMF, bearing in mind that the initial agreement is not sufficient if it is not practically translated into endorsement by the current Parliament, in order for the IMF to provide Lebanon with the aid they announced…”
“However, the Lebanese state is supposed to first carry out reforms through reforming the electricity sector and restructuring the banking sector and the administrative apparatus,” he said. Jumblatt’s words came in a talk with Lebanese expatriates, published by “Al-Anbaa” Newspaper, during which he valued the role of the Diaspora members in supporting their fellow Lebanese back home especially during the challenging times of the COVID pandemic. He called for “staying united with the Lebanese expatriates in the upcoming elections and other junctures,” adding, “We did a great job during the past two or three years in terms of supporting our institutions, confronting and mitigating the outbreak of the Coronavirus, and providing hospitals with equipment and medicines, in addition to the fact that the world has advanced and then came the blessing of the vaccine that allowed us to pass this difficult ordeal, taking into account how many friends, relatives and loved ones have fallen victim to this disease.”Jumblatt encouraged an expanded number of contributors amongst the Lebanese Diaspora, noting that “we need a joint effort on our part and on the part of expatriates in the Gulf countries and others, alongside the remarkable expatriates’ work and through the ‘You Help’ Foundation and this unique quality that has extended valued assistance.”

Jumblat says facing 'Syrian-Iranian axis' in elections, won't endorse Bassil or Franjieh
Naharnet/18 April/2022
Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat has said that “the Syrian-Iranian axis and the Free Patriotic Movement” will be running in the parliamentary elections against “what’s left of an independent national decision in Mukhtara and in areas other than Mukhtara.” “The entire Democratic Gathering is targeted and this is not Taymour Jumblat’s battle but rather the battle of the sovereign, independent national-Arab decision,” he added. Commenting on the recent return of the Saudi and Kuwaiti ambassadors to Lebanon, Jumblat hoped the Gulf will seek “political and economic balance in Lebanon so that we do not remain a hostage and under the control of the Iranians and Syrians.”As for Hizbullah, Jumblat said: “We haven’t given up the idea of disarming Hizbullah… but I won’t endorse the theory of some political parties, like Fares Soaid, that these weapons should be removed by force.”
“This is impossible and it would implicate us in a civil war that we’re better off without,” the PSP leader added. Noting that there should be dialogue over weapons, Jumblat said “we must know that the existing weapons are Iranian weapons.”“They are a party, group and regime who do not believe in dialogue, and we’ve seen this, from Rafik Hariri to Lokman Slim, but we must have a very calm approach and we must confront,” the PSP leader added. As for his his good ties with Speaker Nabih Berri, Jumblat said: “We cannot forget that Berri is an essential and major representative of Shiites and that he does not always approve of Hizbullah’s policy, but remember the pressures that he is facing from Iran and Syria, and remember that he has not visited Syria since the beginning of the Syrian war.”“When there are some decisions to be taken, he does not always agree with Hizbullah, but the confrontation against the Iranians and Syrians is not an easy thing,” the PSP leader went on to say.Asked about the presidential elections and whether he prefers the election of Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil or Marada Movement leader Suleiman Franjieh, Jumblat said: “Neither Jebran Bassil nor Suleiman Franjieh. We’re done with this. Last time we went along with (ex-PM Saad) Hariri and we both paid the price. May God forgive him.”Jumblat also noted that President Michel Aoun “was not elected through the force of arms but rather through the force of alliances.”“Hariri endorsed Franjieh and (Lebanese Forces chief Samir) Geagea reconciled with Aoun, which led to the election of the latter through votes,” the PSP leader pointed out.

Lebanese celebrate Easter amid election campaign
Najia Houssari/18 April/2022
BEIRUT: Lebanese President Michel Aoun has assured the Lebanese that parliamentary elections will be held and that all the arrangements are ready, as people celebrated Easter. He took part in the Easter Mass, which was led by Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai in Bkerke. Aoun said he hoped for “the resurrection” of Lebanon. “We are living through a difficult tragedy in which problems have accumulated. I am experiencing the same situation you are and what befell you, befell me also.”The president met Al-Rai before the Mass and then told the media: “We want better relations with Arab countries, and the return of ambassadors to Beirut is an important step in this direction.”
BACKGROUND
Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rahi urged people to vote in the upcoming elections because Lebanon ‘needs a national, sovereign and independent parliamentary majority.’He hoped that the staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund would “positively affect” the situation in Lebanon and, speaking about the papal visit to Lebanon in June, wished “it would bring hope” to the country. "Today, we live in the hope of the resurrection. As long as we are alive, we will not allow despair to get the best of us.”Aoun also addressed the Shiite duo - the Amal movement and Hezbollah without naming them - and accused them once again of obstructing the work of the judicial investigation into the Beirut Port explosion. “They are the same parties obstructing the Cabinet’s work, and you know who they are. The families of the martyrs should address their demands to them.”
The ministers of Hezbollah and the Amal movement boycotted Cabinet sessions last October amid their demands to dismiss the investigator into the explosion, Judge Tarek Bitar.
In mid-January, after paralyzing Bitar’s work and bombarding him with lawsuits, they started attending sessions again. During his Easter sermon on Sunday, Al-Rai urged people to vote in the upcoming elections because Lebanon needed a “national, sovereign, independent” parliamentary majority that believed in a legitimate state, constitutional institutions, and the Lebanese army as a single reference for arms and security, as well as the unity of political and military decisions.
“If the people do not realize the seriousness of the situation and choose the forces capable of defending Lebanon's entity and identity, and restoring Lebanon's Arab and international relations, then the people, not the political system, will bear the responsibility for the great collapse. Lebanon is lucky that change can still be achieved democratically. The results of the elections depend on the Lebanese votes. There are no previously determined losers or winners.
“The greatest danger is misleading the people so that they elect a parliamentary majority that does not resemble them or meet their ambitions. The people, as they choose their representatives, should realize that they are also choosing the next president, and indeed the next republic. The fate of Lebanon depends on the quality of the parliamentary majority in the new parliament.”He also addressed Aoun: “The determination to hold the parliamentary elections, despite attempts to overthrow them, goes in line with securing the election of your successor. Everyone appreciates your efforts aimed at approving the general budget and agreeing on the recovery plan. “The Lebanese do not want an alternative to the state, and they do not want a partner in the state. They yearn for the moment when foreign hands are lifted off of Lebanon. They yearn for the national interest to prevail over all personal and electoral interests. They yearn to have only one republic, one legitimacy, one weapon, one decision, and a comprehensive Lebanese identity.
“It is not permissible to change the identity of Lebanon’s economic system, which is not subject to any constitutional settlement or political bargaining. “Reforms need to be combined with extending the state's authority over its entire territory and unifying arms, per UN Security Council resolutions. It is imperative to respect the sovereignty of brotherly countries and stop campaigning against them.”Election campaigns intensified during the Easter holiday and the Shiite duo is seeking to win not only the entire Shiite share in the new parliament but secure a majority through candidates from other sects allied to them.
On Saturday, individuals affiliated with Hezbollah and the Amal movement attacked members of the Together for Change electoral list in one of the southern constituencies supported by the Communist Party, independents, and the civil movement in Tyre. They tried to prevent the members from reaching a restaurant in Sarafand to announce their list's electoral program.
Candidate Dr. Hisham Hayek said: “We tried to be in a democratic race and it turned out that there was no democracy. We went to Sarafand, protected by the security forces, but we were surprised by organized gangs of young men who blocked the road and shot at us. How is this a fair competition? Does the announcement of an electoral program constitute a threat to civil peace?” Candidate Ali Khalifeh said: “The message they wanted to send through violence is well received. They will not be tolerant of others’ opinions, ideas, and programs that are committed to confronting the corrupt authority.”
The Amal movement was quick to deny its connection to the attack, as did its parliamentary bloc, which condemned what happened and stressed the movement’s keenness to achieve the electoral process in an “atmosphere of freedom and democratic competition.”
The electoral list of Hezbollah and the Amal movement in the Baalbek-Hermel constituency tried to announce its electoral program in a ceremony in the heart of the historic Baalbek Citadel. But civil society movements pressured the Minister of Culture Mohammed Mortada to stop this event due to its violation of the electoral law. Article 77 states: “Public spaces, governmental departments, universities, faculties, institutes, public schools, and places of worship are not allowed to be used to hold electoral meetings or promotion.”

From Meshaal to Nasrallah…
Tariq Al-Homayed/Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper/April 18/2022
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/108017/%d8%b7%d8%a7%d8%b1%d9%82-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%ad%d9%85%d9%8a%d8%af-%d9%8a%d8%b9%d8%b1%d9%8a-%d9%86%d9%81%d8%a7%d9%82-%d9%88%d8%af%d8%ac%d9%84-%d9%83%d8%b0%d8%a8%d8%a9-%d9%85%d9%82%d8%a7%d9%88%d9%85%d8%a9/
The saying goes: “If you wait by the river long enough, the bodies of your enemies will float by.” In our region, we could change it to: If you use your head, you will see lies exposed before you, an abundance of them, and the most prominent of them is that there is an axis “resisting” and “confronting” Israel.
We saw this hypocrisy of those claiming to “resist” and “confront” Israel manifest itself in two major stories last Wednesday because we had been waiting in the river for a long time. The first came from this newspaper, and the other from the TV show Al-Ikhtiyar 3 (Choosing), and the two complete each other.
This newspaper reported on the recently published book by the American diplomat and envoy, Frederic C. Hof, “Reaching for the Heights: The Inside Story of a Secret Attempt to Reach a Syrian-Israeli Peace”, in which he discusses the secret talks between Damascus and Tel Aviv that began in 2009 and ended in 2011.Hof recounts the details of a meeting with Bashar al-Assad aimed at ending Syria’s activities and relations that pose a threat to Israel’s security. It was held in Damascus on February 28, 2011, and they went as far as discussing “specific security measures.”
At the meeting, Assad told Hof that everyone would be surprised by how swiftly Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah would comply with the new rules once Syria and Israel declared that they had reached a deal. He then went further, adding that a peace deal would render Nassrallah’s status as the leader of the “resistance” untenable.
The second story from last Wednesday is the leaked clip, which is a form of audio and video documentation, from the TV show Al-Ikhtiyar 3 that exposed the Muslim Brotherhood’s ties with Israel. The clip reveals how the Muslim Brotherhood’s Guidance Office managed governance in Egypt during Morsi’s time in office through Khairat el-Shater, who gave dictates to Khaled Meshaal, the head of the Hamas Politburo, willy nilly. In the clip, el-Shater, who appears to be talking to a Westerner, tells his interlocutor that the eruption of a “hunger revolution” would undermine his interests and the Israeli project. Today, he goes on, when the people said they wanted to flock to the border with Israel. “We stood up and said no.” In the end, he explained, “we have spoken to Khaled Meshaal” and told him to release a press statement saying that Hamas does not want to see Egyptians head to the border… “We don’t want the country to collapse, nor do we want chaos or seek to undermine their interests… We are not at war with anyone.”
All right then, Bashar al-Assad, in 2011, said that if he were to sign a deal with Israel, everyone would be surprised by how swiftly Nasrallah, would comply with the new rules and render Nasrallah’s status as “resistance” leader untenable… And in 2012, el-Shater said the “Israeli project” was under threat when he warned that the people wanted to flock to the border with Israel and “we stood up and said no.” In the end, he explained, “we have spoken to Khaled Meshal” and told him to release a press statement saying that Hamas does not want to see Egyptians head to the border… “We are not at war with anyone.”
What does this all mean? What is certain, as well as being evident for a long time, is that “confronting” and “resisting” Israel is a big lie. The goal for the Brotherhood is to reach power, and for Assad, it is stabilizing his regime. Those who have not woken up to this have no excuse. The same is true for Iran, which is also fighting to the last Palestinian. The Palestinian cause does not genuinely concern either of them in the slightest. Khaled Meshaal and Hassan Nasrallah, like ISIS, al-Qaeda, and others like them, are mere pawns, nothing more and nothing less.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on April 18-19/2022
Iran Warns Israel on Making 'Tiniest Move' Against it
Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 18 April, 2022
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi Monday warned that Israel will be targeted by his country's armed forces if it makes “the tiniest move” against Iran. He spoke as talks stalled in Vienna over a deal to rein in Iran's nuclear capabilities, which Tehran says are used for peaceful purposes. Israel opposes a deal, saying it does not do enough to curb Iran’s nuclear program or its military activities across the region. Israeli officials have said they will unilaterally do what’s necessary to protect their country. Raisi addressed Israel directly during a speech at an annual parade of Iran's armed forces, The Associated Press reported. “If the tiniest move by you happens against nation of Iran, center of the Zionist regime will be destination of our armed forces,” Raisi said, referring to Tel Aviv. Raisi did not elaborate but said Iran watches any move by Israel “closely.”

Iran blames US for delays to revive nuclear deal
AFP/April 18, 2022 11:05
TEHRAN: Iran on Monday said an agreement with world powers to revive the 2015 nuclear deal was still not in sight, blaming the United States for the delay. “More than one issue is still pending between Iran and the United States,” Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said. “Messages (from Washington) sent through (European Union coordinator Enrique) Mora these past weeks ... are far from providing solutions that could lead to an accord,” he told reporters. Iran has been engaged in efforts to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia directly, and the United States indirectly since April 2021. Mora, who coordinates the indirect US-Iran talks, visited Tehran last month for talks with Iranian officials, and later went to Washington. At the time, Mora said he hoped to close the gaps remaining in the arduous negotiations. The agreement fell apart in 2018, when then-president Donald Trump withdrew the United States and reimposed crippling economic sanctions. Iran, in response, began rolling back on most of its commitments under the accord. Khatibzadeh on Monday blamed Washington for delays to restore the nuclear deal. “The United States are responsible for these delays, because they are taking their time to give replies” that would be suitable for Iran, he said. Earlier this month, Khatibzadeh’s counterpart in the State Department Ned Price said it was Tehran that was not giving way to make a deal possible, but that Washington still believed there was “opportunity to overcome our remaining differences. ”Key among unresolved issues is a demand by Tehran that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the ideological arm of Iran’s military, be removed from a US terror blacklist.Washington has resisted the move.

Russia Hits Hundreds of Targets across Ukraine, Fighters Cling on in Mariupol
Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 18 April, 2022
Russia said on Monday it had hit hundreds of military targets in Ukraine overnight, destroying command posts with air-launched missiles, while authorities in the western city of Lviv, which has escaped heavy bombardment, said a missile attack killed six. The Russian defense ministry said in a statement it had destroyed 16 Ukrainian military facilities in the Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk regions and in the port of Mykolayiv, in the south and east of the country. It added that the Russian air force had launched strikes against 108 areas where Ukrainian forces were concentrated and Russian artillery struck 315 Ukrainian military targets overnight. Driven back by Ukrainian resistance in the north, the Russian military has refocused its ground offensive in the two eastern provinces known as the Donbas, while launching long-distance strikes at other targets, including the capital, Kyiv. It is now trying to take full control of the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, which has been besieged for weeks and which would be a huge strategic prize, linking territory held by pro-Russian separatists in the east with the Crimea region Moscow annexed in 2014. Ukrainian authorities said missiles struck military facilities and a car tire service point in Lviv, which is just 60 km (40 miles) from the Polish border. Lviv mayor Andriy Sadoviy said seven people were killed and 11 were wounded. The blast shattered windows of a hotel housing Ukrainians evacuated from elsewhere in the country, he added.
Russia denies targeting civilians and rejects what Ukraine says is evidence of atrocities, saying Ukraine has staged them to undermine peace talks. Moscow calls its action, launched almost two months ago, a special military operation to demilitarize Ukraine and eradicate what it calls dangerous nationalists.
Western capitals and Kyiv accuse Russian President Vladimir Putin of unprovoked aggression.
Battle for Mariupol
Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said troops in the pulverized port of Mariupol were still fighting on Sunday, despite a Russian demand to surrender. "The city still has not fallen," he told ABC's This Week program, adding that Ukrainian soldiers continued to control some parts of the southeastern city.
Russia said on Saturday it had control of urban areas, though some Ukrainian fighters remained in the Azovstal steelworks, one of Europe's biggest metallurgical plants, which cover more than 11 sq km (4.25 sq miles) and overlook the Sea of Azov. On the eve of the war, Mariupol was the biggest city still held by Ukrainian authorities in the Donbas, which Moscow has demanded that Ukraine cede to pro-Russian separatists. Taking Mariupol would unite Russian forces on two of the main axes of the invasion, and free them up to join an expected new offensive against the main Ukrainian force in the east.
On the streets of Mariupol, small groups of bodies were lined up under colorful blankets, surrounded by shredded trees and scorched buildings. Residents, some pushing bicycles, picked their way around destroyed tanks and civilian vehicles while Russian soldiers checked the documents of motorists.
One resident, Irina, was evacuating with a niece wounded in the shelling. "I hope they will rebuild (Mariupol). The most important thing is utility systems. Summer will pass fast and in winter it will be hard," she said. Serhiy Gaidai, the governor of the Luhansk region, said street fighting had begun between Ukrainian and Russian troops and he repeated a plea for people to evacuate. Russian forces advanced overnight and taken Kreminna, he said in a television speech, adding that authorities could no longer take people out of the town. He said four civilians were shot dead while trying to flee by car from Kreminna. Reuters could not independently verify the information. Ukraine and Russia have failed to agree about humanitarian convoys for the evacuation of civilians from war-affected areas for the second day, Ukraine's deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said. "For security reasons, it was decided not to open humanitarian corridors today," Vereshchuk said on Telegram app. About 4 million Ukrainians have fled the country, cities have been shattered and thousands have died since the start of the invasion on Feb. 24. The economic damage is significant. Shmyhal said Ukraine's budget deficit was about $5 billion a month and urged Western governments for more financial aid.

Iraqi Officials: No Proof of Mossad Base in Erbil
Baghdad - Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 18 April, 2022
No evidence has been found that supports Tehran's claims that Israel's foreign intelligence agency, the Mossad, operated a permanent spy station in the Kurdish city of Erbil in northern Iraq, two Iraqi officials told Asharq al-Awsat on Monday, discussing the country's investigation into a March 13 missile attack by Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards. The Iraqi officials noted that prior to the attack, Iran had conveyed its anger to the governments in Baghdad and Erbil, the capital of the Kurdish autonomous region, over the presence of Iranian opposition elements in Kurdistan, and only mentioned the Mossad after the attack on a villa belonging to a Kurdish businessman in the city that Tehran alleged also functioned as a Mossad training facility. As a reminder, Iran said it attacked the structure in response to an airstrike near Damascus, attributed to Israel, in which two high-ranking Revolutionary Guard officers were killed.
“There had been two recent meetings between Israeli and US energy officials and specialists at the villa to discuss shipping Kurdistan gas to Turkey via a new pipeline,” an Iraqi security official said. One of the Iraqi officials told Asharq al-Awsat that “Iraq asked the Iranian side to back up its claims regarding the Israeli Mossad, but it failed to do so despite Iraq's efforts.”The other official, who the report said was familiar with the details of the investigation, noted that the Iranian claim about the presence of a Mossad station was insufficient in proving its existence in the area. The same official, an independent member of parliament, also said that Iran's shift from citing opposition elements to citing the Mossad as their target led the Iraqis to suspect the attack was part of an Iranian "distraction" operation in light of the Iraqi election results at the time. According to the Iraqi officials, the investigation also ruled out the existence of a permanent Mossad station but did indicate espionage efforts on the part of individuals with European passports operating under the guise of security contractors. The investigation also pointed to similar espionage operations in cities in central and southern Iraq, as well as in Mosul.
The officials said the alleged spies had been detained and that some of them were awaiting trial.

Turkey says its warplanes hit Kurdish militant targets in northern Iraq
AP/April 18, 2022
ANKARA, Turkey: Turkey has launched a new ground and air cross-border offensive against Kurdish militants in northern Iraq, Turkey’s defense minister announced early Monday. Turkish jets and artillery struck targets belonging to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, and commando troops — supported by helicopters and drones — then crossed into the region by land or were airlifted by helicopters, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said in a video posted on the ministry’s website. Akar said the jets successfully struck shelters, bunkers, caves, tunnels, ammunition depots and headquarters belonging to the PKK. The group maintains bases in northern Iraq and has used the territory for attacks on Turkey. Turkey has conducted numerous cross-border aerial and ground operations against the PKK over the past decades. The latest offensive was centered in northern Iraq’s Metina, Zap and Avashin-Basyan regions, Akar said. “Our operation is continuing successfully, as planned. The targets that were set for the first phase have been achieved,” Akar said. There was no information on the number of troops and jets involved in the latest incursion. “We are determined to save our noble nation from the terror misfortune that has plagued our country for 40 years,” Akar said. “Our struggle will continue until the last terrorist is neutralized.” The Defense Ministry said later that the offensive, named “Operation Claw Lock,” was launched after it was determined that the militants were regrouping and preparing for a “large-scale attack.”
The offensive was carried out in coordination with Turkey’s “friends and allies,” the ministry added, but did not elaborate. Last week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met with Masrour Barzani, the prime minister of Iraq’s autonomous Kurdish region which controls the areas that were attacked.
The Turkish minister said the incursion was targeting “terrorists” and that “maximum sensitivity” was being shown to avoid damage to civilians and cultural and religious structures. There was no immediate statement from the Kurdish militant group.Tens of thousands of people have been killed since the PKK, which is designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. and the European Union, began an insurgency in Turkey’s majority Kurdish southeast region in 1984.

Houthis sign action plan with UN to end use of children in conflict
Arab News/April 18, 2022 20:05
NEW YORK: The Houthi militia signed on Monday an action plan with the United Nations to end and prevent the recruitment and use of children in armed conflict, secretary-general spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

UN Security Council to meet Tuesday on Jerusalem unrest: diplomatic
AFP/April 18, 2022 19:20
UNITED NATIONS: The UN Security Council will meet on Tuesday over violence around a flashpoint Jerusalem holy site that wounded 170 people at the weekend, diplomatic sources told AFP. The meeting, called by China, France, the United Arab Emirates, Norway and Ireland, will be held behind closed doors, and comes after days of violence in and around Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, sacred to both Muslims and Jews. The clashes — at a tense time when the Jewish Passover festival coincides with the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan — also follow deadly violence in Israel and the occupied West Bank starting in late March, in which 36 people have been killed. Jews are allowed to visit the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, known to Jews as the Temple Mount, but not to pray at the site, the holiest place in Judaism and third-holiest in Islam. King Abdullah II of Jordan on Sunday called on Israel to “stop all illegal and provocative measures” that drive “further aggravation.” The kingdom serves as custodian of holy places in east Jerusalem, which Israel captured in 1967 and later annexed in a move not recognized by most of the international community. Weeks of mounting tensions have seen two recent deadly attacks by Palestinians in or near the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv, alongside mass arrests by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on April 18-19/2022
د. ماجد رفي زاده: رفع العقوبات عن إيران سيفهمه الملالي على أنه ضعف غربي
Lifting sanctions will only convey Western weakness to Tehran/Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Arab News
د.ماجد رفي زاده /معالجة التهديد النووي للنظام الإيراني
Tackling the Iranian Regime’s Nuclear Threat/Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Arab News/April 18, 2022
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/108009/dr-majid-rafizadeh-lifting-sanctions-will-only-convey-western-weakness-to-tehran-tackling-the-iranian-regimes-nuclear-threat-%d8%af-%d9%85%d8%a7%d8%ac%d8%af-%d8%b1%d9%81%d9%8a-%d8%b2%d8%a7%d8%af/

Tactical Nuclear Weapons: A Russian Threat and an American Warning
Raghida Dergham/The National/April 18/2022
The omens of nuclear war reared their head this week in statements from the Russian Security Council and former President Dmitry Medvedev, and warnings issued by CIA chief William Burns.
“An empty shot in the air” is how Medvedev described the news that Sweden and Finland are considering joining NATO. Medvedev stressed that Russia intended to respond in the Baltics, especially out of the Kaliningrad exclave, where Russia maintains nuclear weapons.
For his part, Burns warned that President Putin may deploy tactical nukes because of Russia’s military ‘setbacks’ in Ukraine and the ‘desperation’ of Russian commanders. He said: “None of us can take lightly the threat posed by a potential resort to tactical nuclear weapons or low yield nuclear weapons”, hinting that in this scenario “NATO would intervene militarily on the ground in Ukraine in the course of this conflict”. He continued: “We're obviously very concerned. I know President Biden is deeply concerned about avoiding a third world war, about avoiding a threshold in which, you know, nuclear conflict becomes possible”.
The main potential spark for a nuclear third world war is the expansion of NATO membership, which has prompted Russia into its blunder of invading Ukraine thinking it would prevent Ukraine from joining the Western alliance led by the US and that Moscow believes is working to encircle Russia.
Putin had demanded written guarantees – when he issued his famous ultimatum in mid-December – that Ukraine would not seek NATO membership, and that the later would not be expanded. NATO dismissed Putin’s demands and ultimatums, triggering his invasion of Ukraine in a major Russian strategic miscalculation that then rallied the Americans and Europeans to close NATO’s ranks. Today, NATO is likely to expand to include 32 countries if Finland and Sweden accede and is likely to deploy further troops along its eastern flank.
Finland, which has a 1340 km long border with Russia, will study the option of joining NATO next week when its parliament receives an intelligence briefing on membership. According to its prime minister Sanna Marin, Finland intends to make a decision by mid-Summer.
Stockholm may not advance towards NATO membership in sync with Helsinki, but Sweden appears ready to join the Western alliance as a consequence of Russia’s actions in Ukraine. Their fear is concentrated on Kaliningrad, which lies 500 km from Stockholm and is Russia’s most militarized region, armed with nuclear missiles, both strategic and tactical. Poland, which lies an equal distance from Kaliningrad, has also now said it is thinking of allowing the United States to deploy nuclear weapons on its soil, prompting a Russian warning it would respond with nuclear measures to any nuclear measure. Europe is thus trembling with fear from what lies in Kaliningrad, the focal point of the next hot confrontation between NATO and Russia.
In their statements, spokespersons for the Russian and US governments have made clear the diametrical contradiction of their countries’ assessments of the expansion of NATO membership and its consequences. While the Americans see it as helping stability and peace in Europe, the Russians see it as destabilizing and provocative, aimed at fostering conflict.
Upon the collapse of the USSR, the former president of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev had not asked for written guarantees against expanding NATO. In Russian circles, especially by Putin, this is seen as a failure, which explains the Russian president’s insistence on obtaining formal guarantees from NATO before the war in Ukraine. Gorbachev has maintained, however, that NATO expansion contradicts the reassurances the latter’s leaders had given Moscow in 1990 but has admitted that there were no official promises or written guarantees on the table. In other words, he has confessed to his grave error of not having asked for guarantees with the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact in 1991, the military alliance that had included the Soviet Union and its Eastern European satellite states before its demise with the collapse of the USSR, 36 years after its establishment – the Warsaw Pact was created in 1955 in response to West Germany joining the US and Western allies in NATO.
Former President Medvedev, who is close to Putin, raised the level of the nuclear threat in response to the prospect of Finland and Sweden joining NATO. He said that Russia would not accept talking about a nuclear-free Baltic. The three Baltic states – Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia – are NATO and EU members – Kaliningrad is only four hours away from Lithuania. And as if the Russian threat was not clear, Medvedev said Russia would shore up its land forces, air defences, and naval forces significantly in the Gulf of Finland and added that there would not be any "nuclear-free status of the Baltic" and that Russia would seek to restore balance, saying Moscow would even have the right to deploy nuclear weapons in the region. Medvedev said that Finland and Sweden joining NATO would make the world a more dangerous place, and addressing the public opinion in the two countries, added: “Nuclear-armed ships [would] literally be at arm's length from their own homes”.
In the meantime, the military situation in Ukraine is getting more dangerous, and is set to escalate further as more advanced weapons arrive from the West to Ukraine, which Russia could intercept and destroy. Amid the lack of progress in negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, and increased Ukrainian military self-confidence, Putin is set to become more anxious, and dangerous. It is possible here to see escalation in Kyiv again, not just in Donbas, which would require more Russian troops and a strategic ability to regain the initiative.
In the meantime, the Biden administration continues to mobilize sanctions against Russia and to block any support for Putin anywhere and everywhere. The administration is determined to exclude Russia – not just Putin – from the G20 summit scheduled this fall in Indonesia. Washington is pressuring the host nation to disinvite Russia. Some parties are trying to persuade the Biden administration to make the distinction between excluding Russia and excluding Putin from the G20 summit, to avoid further antagonizing the Russian people. But so far, it is not clear whether Washington would accept a compromise, inviting Russia but not Putin, who would not go in this case to the summit.
The US president has completely blocked any hope of restoring US-Russian relations to a normal course even if Putin were to stop the war in Ukraine. Joe Biden has escalated gradually, and this is not an improvisation as it had appeared two weeks ago when he described Putin as a thug, butcher, and war criminal, considering the Russian army’s actions in Ukraine ‘genocide’.
With such language, US-Russian relations have been severed, with no ‘red phone’ in operation to protect the world from nuclear war.
Indeed, a ‘genocide’ would require states to intervene directly to put an end to it. So, is the United States readying itself to intervene directly in the Ukraine war against Russia? Has the Biden administration decided on this course and is awaiting a justification – through Putin’s provocations which the US is not shying from inviting and stoking in turn?
The Biden administration’s engagement of states outside the Russian-European neighbourhoods, meanwhile, has important implications for both the Russian and Chinese dimensions. Especially so with the US engagement of India and Pakistan – nuclear powers that have multi-layered disputes, from Kashmir to relations with China and Russia.
The virtual talks held this week between Biden and India’s premier Narendra Modi, and between the two countries’ defence and foreign ministers, focused on addressing the disparities in their positions over Russia and their convergence on China. India has resisted US pressures to join the international boycott and sanctions against Russia due to its invasion of Ukraine, and to stop importing oil from Moscow. However, the talks with the US made considerable progress on Pakistan, defence cooperation, and energy.
The talks reinforced the two sides keenness to maintain their strategic relationship and alliance to confront China in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. The two powers agreed to enhance naval defence cooperation and take advantage of India’s shipbuilding infrastructure. They also agreed on selling American weapons to India, to start a process of weaning India off Russian – and French – military hardware, according to informed sources. This is in addition to US promises to help India to compensate for Russian oil imports without fully replacing them – which New Delhi for now rejects because it still wants good relations with Russia. The Biden administration has been forced to coexist with this, because India is crucial for the US strategy against China, but also because Washington respects decisiveness especially if coupled with hints to pursue other options, such as further Indian rapprochement with Russia.
For its part, Pakistan has also entered the US-Russian equation. Former Prime Minister Imran Khan has alleged there is a US conspiracy to depose him with the help of the Pakistani army, citing a visit he made to Moscow on the first day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Regardless of the veracity of this allegation, one must look for China in this crisis, not just Russia. Indeed, Pakistan, in the view of the Biden administration, has gone too far in its ‘services’ to China, which has spared no occasion to leverage its alliance with Pakistan on every and all levels.
Who will win strategically in these geopolitical games? Who will shape the new rules of engagement and accords as the old ones erode? These are the fateful questions in an era where talk of nuclear conflicts and a third world war is no longer farfetched, yet which one hopes will never happen.

Deterring China: U.S. Should Arm Taiwan to the Hilt – Now
Gordon G. Chang/ Gatestone Institute/April 18, 2022
Whether or not China plans to invade Taiwan now, it is time for the United States to ditch decades of misguided policy. Among other things, Washington should, on an emergency basis, begin arming the island with the weapons it urgently needs.
Unfortunately, Xi Jinping, the extraordinarily ambitious and bold Chinese ruler, may feel encouraged by recent events in Eastern Europe. As Wang Dan, a Tiananmen Square-era student leader, wrote late last month, "We should not expect rational decision-making from dictators and totalitarian regimes."
Moreover, the sanctions placed on Moscow after the invasion were not comprehensive, and they are, incredibly, still not comprehensive. Xi, therefore, could believe that no nation would dare impose meaningful costs on his magnificent state.
China's leaders give the impression they have been emboldened by recent events... "It cannot win a war anymore." — Global Times, Chinese newspaper, referring to America, August 16, 2021.
[N]owhere is deterrence now more important than in the Taiwan Strait. Taiwan, after the fall of Afghanistan and invasion of Ukraine, is considered around the world as the test of American credibility.
To prevent a Chinese invasion, President Biden should publicly declare that America will defend Taiwan. In addition, the U.S. should work with allies Japan and Australia and offer a multilateral defense treaty to Taipei.
Moreover, as former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo proposed last month while visiting Taipei, the U.S. should recognize Taiwan for what it is: a sovereign state. To make sure the resolution of Taiwan's status is peaceful, the Biden administration should start shipping weapons to Taiwan, especially long-range missiles that can hold China's regime hostage.
Moreover, America and friends, to back up their words, should base forces on the island.
Deterrence is the best guarantee of peace.
The United States did not send sufficient weapons to Ukraine before the February 24 invasion, thereby failing to maintain deterrence in Eastern Europe.
By openly bolstering Taiwan's defenses, Washington would be declaring that America was no longer afraid of offending Beijing. That is transmitting the "right signal" for Chinese leaders to ponder.
Whether or not China plans to invade Taiwan now, it is time for the United States to ditch decades of misguided policy. Among other things, Washington should, on an emergency basis, begin arming the island with the weapons it urgently needs. Pictured: Taiwan Air Force pilots stand next to Mirage fighter jets at Hsinchu Air Base on January 16, 2019.
"Wrong signals."
That is what the Eastern Theater Command of China's People's Liberation Army said on April 15, referring to Washington's encouragement of Taiwan. That day, the Chinese military sent fighter and bomber aircraft as well as frigates near the island republic.
China's exercises, said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian, were "a countermeasure to the U.S. negative actions recently, including the lawmakers' visit to Taiwan." Beijing, he said, would "continue to take strong measures to resolutely safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity."
As he spoke, six American lawmakers, led by Senator Lindsey Graham, the South Carolina Republican, and Robert Menendez, the New Jersey Democrat chairing the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, met with Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen and other senior officials of the self-governing island. They arrived on a U.S. Air Force plane, a not-so-subtle signal to Beijing. The two-day visit was unannounced, "sneaky" in the words of China's Defense Ministry.
The Global Times, a tabloid controlled by China's official People's Daily, was even more direct. It said the drills were not only a "warning" to other lawmakers planning to visit the island but also went "beyond deterrence by preparing for potential, real actions that would resolve the Taiwan question once and for all when necessary."
"Real actions"? Whether or not China plans to invade Taiwan now, it is time for the United States to ditch decades of misguided policy. Among other things, Washington should, on an emergency basis, begin arming the island with the weapons it urgently needs.
The People's Republic of China reserves for itself the right to use force to annex the Republic of China, Taiwan's formal name. "Taiwan is a sacred and inalienable part of Chinese territory," the Eastern Theater Command declared in a statement. "There is no room for any foreign interference on the Taiwan issue."
Many analysts have surmised that the heroic Ukrainian resistance to Russian invaders has made China's invasion of Taiwan less likely. For various reasons, few if any outsiders know how the Chinese leadership in fact views the situation.
Unfortunately, Xi Jinping, the extraordinarily ambitious and bold Chinese ruler, may feel encouraged by recent events in Eastern Europe. As Wang Dan, a Tiananmen Square-era student leader, wrote late last month, "We should not expect rational decision-making from dictators and totalitarian regimes."
Xi could very well decide that the Ukraine war shows he now has a green light to invade Taiwan. After all, the United States, the 27 nations of the European Union, and Great Britain — combined, these 29 states had an economy more than 25 times larger than Russia's last year — could not exercise their power to deter Vladimir Putin, so Xi may feel they will similarly fail with regard to China.
Moreover, the sanctions placed on Moscow after the invasion were not comprehensive, and they are, incredibly, still not comprehensive. Xi, therefore, could believe that no nation would dare impose meaningful costs on his magnificent state.
Finally, Xi might think that Vladimir Putin's invasion has created enough chaos and distraction that others would be in no position to oppose his acts of aggression.
China's leaders give the impression they have been emboldened by recent events. As Kabul was falling last year, for instance, Beijing was pushing the point that the U.S. was incapable. The Global Times asked how America could stand up to mighty China when it could not even deal with the Taliban. The semi-official tabloid also stated this, referring to America: "It cannot win a war anymore."
Moreover, Communist Party propaganda talked about Taiwan as Kabul fell. In an editorial in August, the Global Times declared that once a war breaks out in the Taiwan Strait, the island's defense will collapse in hours and the U.S. military won't come to help.
None of this is to say China will invade— there are many reasons why it will not — but nowhere is deterrence now more important than in the Taiwan Strait. Taiwan, after the fall of Afghanistan and invasion of Ukraine, is considered around the world as the test of American credibility.
The United States for decades has had a policy of "strategic ambiguity," not telling either China or Taiwan what it would do in the case of imminent conflict.
Ambiguity worked in a benign period, but, especially after the Ukraine invasion, the world is no longer in a benign period. Chinese leaders say America no longer deters them. Washington has to take them at their word, which means the U.S. must now adopt measures once considered extreme. As American policymakers consider what to do, they must remember that three decades of misguided Taiwan policy have left them with no risk-free options.
To prevent a Chinese invasion, President Biden should publicly declare that America will defend Taiwan. In addition, the U.S. should work with allies Japan and Australia and offer a multilateral defense treaty to Taipei.
Moreover, as former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo proposed last month while visiting Taipei, the U.S. should recognize Taiwan for what it is: a sovereign state.
Recognition of Taiwan would require a change in America's One-China Policy. Pursuant to that policy—often confused with Beijing's One-China Principle — the U.S. recognizes Beijing as the legitimate government of China. In other words, Washington has pronounced the Communist Party the winner of the Chinese Civil War. Nonetheless, America does not, like China's One-China Principle, accept Beijing's position that Taiwan is part of the People's Republic. The U.S. merely acknowledges that Beijing makes that claim.
The U.S. instead takes the position that Taiwan's status remains unresolved and that the resolution of the status must be peaceful, in other words, with the consent of Taiwan's people.
To make sure the resolution of Taiwan's status is peaceful, the Biden administration should start shipping weapons to Taiwan, especially long-range missiles that can hold China's regime hostage.
Moreover, America and friends, to back up their words, should base forces on the island.
Deterrence is the best guarantee of peace.
The United States did not send sufficient weapons to Ukraine before the February 24 invasion, thereby failing to maintain deterrence in Eastern Europe.
By openly bolstering Taiwan's defenses, Washington would be declaring that America was no longer afraid of offending Beijing. That is transmitting the "right signal" for Chinese leaders to ponder.
*Gordon G. Chang is the author of The Coming Collapse of China, a Gatestone Institute distinguished senior fellow, and a member of its Advisory Board.
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War in Ukraine, Refugees, Elections and Shifts in Political Landscape
Omer Onhon/Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper/April 18/2022
It is now clear that Russia has failed to inflict a speedy and crushing defeat on Ukraine. It has suffered too many casualties including loss of top generals. The Russian General, who was in charge in Syria, has now assumed command in Ukraine. His reputation leads to concern that things on the ground could get worse, as if it was not bad enough.
President Putin’s speech on April 12 reiterated that Russia wants eastern Ukraine. Now, first and foremost, the fight is about capturing Mariupol and the Donbas region and connect them with Crimea.
One of Putin’s justifications for his war in Ukraine was threat emanating from NATO. The irony is, his war has either led to or facilitated so many things which Russia aimed either to achieve or prevent. Just a few examples: NATO is unified; it seems to be on its way for a new wave of expansion with Sweden and Finland; fears of central European and Baltic allies who have been calling Russia a big threat and many other things have been proven right.
Diplomacy is not as visible as it was in the immediate aftermath of the Istanbul meeting. That is mainly because of the outrage caused by atrocities in Bucha and other places. In any event, the warring sides are said to continue to negotiate (online). Hopefully, when the time comes, there will be at least something on the table. Ukrainian refugees and an overall look at the refugee issue:
According to UNHCR figures, 4.8 million Ukrainians have fled and become refugees since Russia’s invasion. As is the case in all similar situations, neighboring countries bear the burden.
Based on UNHCR data (as of 13 April), number of Ukrainian refugees in neighboring countries are as follows: Poland 2,694,090, Romania 716,797, Hungary 440,387 and Slovakia 326,244.
There is a very positive environment for fleeing Ukrainians.
In Poland they passed a law which gives refugee access to the labor market, health care and social benefits.Hungary opened its borders. Ukrainians from Transcarpathia with ethnic ties may be one of the reasons, but still Hungary is receiving and hosting Ukrainian refugees. The EU activated the Temporary Protection Directive which was developed after the war in former Yugoslavia, but never put in use. The EU is offering temporary protection for Ukrainian nationals and nationals of third countries who can prove that they were legally residing in Ukraine before 24 February 2022. The EU package for Ukrainians includes three-year residency permits, with access to all necessary facilities. The passion and sympathy, assistance mechanisms and smoothness of conduct are in sharp contrast to what we witnessed in the case of Syrian refugees. Then, the EU was divided as to how to respond. Poland and Hungary led the anti-Syrian refugee camp. EU policy was to keep refugees outside of “Europe” and Turkey was the place to keep them. Largely due to Chancellor Merkel’s efforts, some steps were taken. Germany took in around one million Syrians and agreements of 2015 and 2016 with Turkey were concluded. But central European members of the EU did not comply with these agreements or intra EU arrangements.
Whose problem are refugees?
Every crisis befalls firstly on neighbors. With Syria, it was Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq. With Ukraine, it is Poland, Hungary and others. There are so many crises in the world and so many people are fleeing. If most of them are coming in your direction, the concern is understandable. No matter how wealthy and healthy, every country has a limit to its resources. But then there is the other side of the coin. Some people view the issue from the point of identity, color, race, religion. Politicians carry the matter to the masses and try to turn it into votes. Things take a different shape. Prime Minister Orban said in an interview with Germany’s Bild: “We do not see these people as Muslim refugees, we see them as Muslim invaders”. This was in direct reference to people from Syria, and other Middle Eastern and Asian countries. In another interview in March, Orban drew a clear difference between migrants and refugees. He said that Hungarian border guards are able to tell the difference between who is a migrant (meaning Middle Eastern/Asian with a darker complexion) and who is a refugee (meaning caucasian, light complexion). “Migrants are stopped and refugees can get all the help,” he said.
Leaders of European far-right, including Viktor Orban and Marine Le Pen, met in Madrid in January. The host of the meeting, Santiago Abascal of Spain’s Vox party, said at his closing statement that they (participants of the conference) were the ones who defend Europe and will not allow “the flag of the hammer and sickle to be raised here, nor the crescent flag, nor the dark flag of the globalization elites.”
Far-right anti-immigration and xenophobia was dipped into the sauce of populism. At first, they were few in numbers, then many groups emerged, they turned into political movements, political parties and in some cases, governments. In Poland and Hungary, the ruling right wing, populist parties and leaders owe their success to a large extent to refugee issues or issues related to it. Now, all eyes are on France. In the first round of elections, Macron and Le Pen were the frontrunners and they are going to contest in the second round on April 24. The two had faced each other in the 2017 presidentials and Macron had won with 66 percent. This time, Le Pen is said to be as close to winning as never before. At her campaign, Le Pen focused on economic issues but there was always an anti immigrant connection.
What these and other elections in Europe have demonstrated is that center parties struggle to remain at the center of politics, but it is the either ends of the political spectrum which are getting more and more dominant in the political landscape.
What next for refugees?
In principle, refugees should be everyone’s problem. No one country can cope with it alone. Burden sharing and common responsibility are necessary. But this is not always how things work and every case is treated differently.
The general definition of conditions for return of refugees are “safe, voluntary and dignified returns”. In case of Syria, this is out of question. This is a problem for Turkey for instance. Elections are closing in and the issue is definitely on the agenda. As to Ukrainian refugees, it remains to be seen whether the warm reception is temporary or not. If the conflict in Ukraine prolongs and returns are delayed beyond normal, or if refugees turn into asylum seekers and immigrants, hosts may not be as receptive. Time will show.

ISIS Is Recovering in Syria, But Stability Is Vitally Needed
Charles Lister/Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper/April 18/2022
When ISIS’s territorial “state” was defeated in Syria more than three years ago, the world celebrated a historic achievement. For five years, a coalition of more than 80 countries had combined resources to roll back ISIS in Syria and Iraq and counter the terrorist group’s presence on the Internet, as well as its financial networks and newfound affiliates around the world. Within months of ISIS’s last pocket of land falling in March 2019, the group’s leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was killed by US special forces in October. More recently, his successor, Abu Ibrahim al-Qurashi was killed in February 2022.
Despite some domestic political concerns, American troops remain deployed in Syria alongside the Syrian Democratic Forces and a recent visit by the newly appointed commander of US Central Command, Major General Kurilla, to the region made that continued commitment clear. On the surface therefore, the multinational effort to defeat ISIS appears to know only successes in Syria – and also in Iraq, where security forces have demonstrated a far superior capacity to counter the group than prior to 2014.
However, the reality is far more complex, and concerning. Three months ago, at least 100 ISIS militants launched the group’s biggest attack in years by assaulting the al-Sina Prison in Hasakeh. The operation, coordinated by senior ISIS commander Abu Miqdad al-Iraqi killed at least 140 SDF personnel and freed dozens if not several hundred members, including long-imprisoned and experienced commanders, like Abu Dujana al-Iraqi and Abu Hamza al-Sharqiyeh.
According to local sources, ISIS’s escapees were transported south in a pre-planned evacuation towards the desert region north of Baghouz and east of al-Busayrah, along the Iraqi border. This is an area that has become a de facto ISIS stronghold over the past 12 months, where the group maintains a regular system of taxation of local civilians and small businesses and receives local recruits and repentance from local SDF personnel. More widely throughout Syria’s central Badiya desert, ISIS runs a network of safehouses, desert encampments, and small desert training camps.
It is from these small and mobile positions that ISIS has sustained a regular campaign of insurgent attacks, targeting the SDF and Syrian regime forces. In the months since the al-Sina Prison attack, ISIS’s attacks have also become increasingly brazen and in some cases, more sophisticated. A series of coordinated, simultaneous attacks in rural Homs and southern Raqqa in March temporarily captured a number of pro-regime military positions and populated territory.
Assuming increased risk suggests ISIS is likely to retain more resources than before and the fact that it maintains such open control in areas east of the Euphrates implies it is unconcerned about any localized challenge to its influence. ISIS also appears to be purposefully underclaiming responsibility for a majority of its operations in Syria in a strategy that can only be aimed at instilling a false sense of confidence within the international community. In fact, ISIS militants have been behind more than 50 attacks in the Badiya desert since mid-November 2021, but have claimed responsibility for none of them.
Beyond ISIS activities and the continued vulnerability of the SDF’s network of makeshift detention facilities holding thousands of battle-hardened ISIS prisoners, the international community should also be acutely concerned by the worsening situation in camps like al-Hol. At least 60,000 women and children remain within these internment camps, where living conditions are appalling and insecurity continues to rise. Until their host governments are willing to have them repatriated, camps like al-Hol will remain valuable recruitment props for ISIS, and festering humanitarian crises that are a stain on the world.
With Syria’s economy and currency continuing to spiral, a food crisis around the corner, and much of Syria’s northeast still damaged from hostilities with ISIS, the extremist group will continue to exploit economic suffering and desperation. At the end of the day, the United States and its allies within the global coalition must acknowledge the vital importance of long-term, non-military strategic tools in the fight against ISIS. The counter-ISIS coalition needs to surge stabilization assistance and targeted rebuilding throughout the former-ISIS region, working to create a more promising and sustainable alternative to renewed conflict and instability. Far too little of this recovery work has been pursued since 2019.
With the war in Ukraine set to distract international attention for the time being, ISIS will likely continue its slow but methodical strategy of recovery, knowing well that conditions that could fuel that recovery are likely only to improve with time. The group remains a shadow of its former self, but it has time on its side and has a track record of patience. The world must wake up to the need to invest more seriously in all aspects of stabilization, before it is too late.