English LCCC Newsbulletin For
Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For August 26/2022
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news
The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/aaaanewsfor2021/english.august26.22.htm
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Bible Quotations For today
To what should I compare the kingdom
of God? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of
flour until all of it was leavened
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint
Luke 13/18-21/:”He said therefore, ‘What is the kingdom of God like? And to what
should I compare it? It is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in
the garden; it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in
its branches.’ And again he said, ‘To what should I compare the kingdom of God?
It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour
until all of it was leavened.’
Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese &
Lebanese Related News & Editorials published
on August 25-26/2022
Aoun denies reports about 'staying in Baabda'
Aoun tackles developments with President of Maronite League, receives invitation
to partake in Sadr’s commemoration
Presidency “surprised” at PM Mikati’s response to what head of Maronite League
stated today
Berri calls House committees to hold joint session Tuesday
No progress in government formation talks
Lebanon: Aoun, Mikati Hold Unfruitful Meeting amid Disagreement over Govt Lineup
Qaouq: Hezbollah contributing to ongoing efforts to form govt.
Bassil says 'judges of negligence' will be 'held accountable'
Israeli nonprofit think tank files petition, says Lebanon deal requires
referendum
Touch and Alfa employees begin open-ended strike
Lebanon to investigate recording threatening Saudi embassy
Lebanon’s Private Schools Violate the Law, Impose Fees in Dollars
UNICEF report: Deprived of the basics, robbed of their dreams, children in
Lebanon lose trust in their parents
What’s Behind the Rising Tensions in Northern Israel/Yochanan Visser/Israel
Today/August 25/2022
We Need President Who Resembles and Represents the Lebanese/Hanna Saleh/Asharq
Al Awsat/August 25/2022
Titles For The Latest English LCCC
Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on August 25-26/2022
Report: Israeli F-35s Breached Iranian Airspace, Repeatedly, During
Recent Exercise
Lapid Calls Out Biden’s Duplicity Over Iran Nuclear Deal
Lapid: Nuclear Deal to Give Tehran $100Bln to Destabilize Region
Hundreds Protest Lack of Water In Iran's Drought-hit West
Netanyahu: US Failed Itself By Negotiating ‘Bad’ Deal with Iran
Biden administration responds to Iran's offer on nuke deal
US says airstrikes in Syria intended to send message to Iran
US Military: Soldier Lightly Wounded in New Syria Attack
Putin signs decree to increase size of Russian armed forces
A Putin orders Russian military to find 137,000 new troops to join the ranks as
his war in Ukraine takes a heavy toll
Israel indicts Islamic Jihad leader whose arrest triggered Gaza violence
US-Iran tensions in Syria amid Iran deal talks - analysis
Iran steps up persecution of Baha’i faith: Amnesty International
Macron arrives in Algeria on visit aimed at fixing ties
Titles For The
Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published
on August 25-26/2022
Congress Holds the Key to the Balance
of Airpower between Turkey and Greece/Burak Bekdil/Gatestone Institute./August
25/ 2022
Violent Crime Rocks Sweden Ahead of Elections/Peder Jensen/ Gatestone
Institute./August 25/2022
Will Anyone Punish Iran for Its Murderous Campaign?/Bret Stephens/The New York
Times/August 25/2022
Confronting the roots of violence in religious discourse/Hassan Al-Mustafa/Arab
News/August 25/2022
Father Blinds Daughter So She Can “Stop Seeing Churches Forever”: Muslim
Persecution of Christians, June 2022/Raymond Ibrahim/Gatestone Institute/August
25/2022
Biden’s Indifference Has Given Iran the Upper Hand in Iraq/David Schenker/Foreign
policy and Washington Institute/August 25/2022
The Latest English LCCC Lebanese &
Lebanese Related News & Editorials published
on August 25-26/2022
Aoun denies reports about 'staying in Baabda'
Naharnet/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
President Michel Aoun on Thursday dismissed media reports claiming that he
intends to stay in the presidential palace until the election of a new president
even if his own term expires. “The president stressed the need to form a new
government as soon as possible,” Maronite League chief Khalil Karam said after
meeting Aoun in Baabda. “His Excellency considers that the caretaker cabinet
will not be able to practice its responsibilities in a full manner should there
be failure to elect a new president for any reason,” Karam added. “Contrary to
what is being rumored, President Aoun will commit to the constitution’s
stipulations regarding the date of the end of his term, but at the same time he
does not believe that (a government) that lacks the full standards as well as
parliament’s confidence can fill vacuum at the level of the head of the state,”
Karam went on to say. He added: “Accordingly, Mr. President believes that the
formation of a new government should remain among the priorities, and he will
continue to work for achieving that while relying on the constitution and
seeking to preserve national partnership and balance among authorities.”
Aoun tackles developments with President of Maronite
League, receives invitation to partake in Sadr’s commemoration
NNA/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, stressed the need to form a new
government as soon as possible, pointing out that it is not permissible to
continue to obstruct this entitlement, "Especially since the supreme national
interest requires that the regularity in the constitutional institutions be
secured and the national partnership is safeguarded in terms of forming the new
government or the election of a new president of the republic, especially since
the caretaker government will not be able to fully exercise its responsibilities
in the event that it is not possible to elect a new president of the republic
for any reason”.
President Aoun also emphasized that "It does not seem normal that the vacuum at
the level of the executive authority, which is incomplete in specifications and
does not have the confidence of the House of Representatives, can fill a vacuum
at the level of the Presidency of the Republic”.
President Aoun’s positions were conveyed by the head of the Maronite League,
Ambassador Khalil Karam, who visited Baabda Palace this morning.
Ambassador Karam had presented with the President the general situation and
recent government developments, and a number of current affairs, in addition to
the issue of empowering the diaspora who wish to regain their Lebanese
citizenship and benefit from the law that organized the restoration process.
Statement:
After the meeting, Ambassador Karam made the following statement:
“Today I visited His Excellency the President and discussed with him a number of
current topics, especially those related to the upcoming constitutional
elections, and conveyed to His Excellency the concern of all the Lebanese,
especially the members of the Maronite League, about the developments taking
place that coincide with the economic conditions that are deteriorating day by
day.
I felt that these are the same concerns of His Excellency with the approaching
end of his constitutional term on October 31.
From here, His Excellency focused on the need to form a new government as soon
as possible, and the inadmissibility of continuing to obstruct this entitlement,
especially since the supreme national interest requires that constitutional
institutions be secured, and the national partnership be safeguarded, both in
terms of forming the new government, or in terms of electing a new president of
the republic.
His Excellency believes that the caretaker government will not be able to fully
exercise its responsibilities if it is not possible to elect a new president of
the republic for any reason. It was because President Aoun, contrary to what is
rumored, abides by the provisions of the constitution regarding the date of
expiry of his term, but at the same time he sees that the vacuum at the level of
the incomplete executive authority is a problem.
A cabinet which does not have the confidence of the House of Representatives,
can’t fill a void at the level of the presidency.
Hence, His Excellency the President believes that forming the new government
should remain a priority, and he will continue to work to achieve this based on
the constitution and in order to preserve the national partnership and the
balance between authorities.
I also discussed with His Excellency the President the issue of enabling the
Lebanese in the world of diaspora who wish to regain their nationality, to
obtain it in accordance with the law approved by Parliament years ago.
I understood from His Excellency that there are decrees that have been issued
and others that have not been issued yet, that restore their nationality to a
group of spreaders.
Therefore, it may be appropriate to issue these decrees in implementation of the
law and in the realization of the right.
On the occasion, I wished His Excellency that the deadline for implementing the
law issued in 2015, could be extended for an additional period of time to enable
those interested to prepare their identification papers and the required
documents after this was not possible during the past two years due to the
measures adopted to prevent the Corona epidemic, and the closure in official
institutions and departments through the past months as a result of strikes and
economic distress.
The discussion also dealt with the issue of Syrian displacement, which is
witnessing more complexity after the obstacles facing the Lebanese state in
returning the displaced to their country.
I understood from His Excellency the President that Lebanon's position is one in
this regard, which is the necessity for the Syrian refugees to return to their
country and receive international aid there, because Lebanon is no longer able
to bear more material, social, educational and health burdens, in addition to
the security incidents caused by some of the displaced, which raised the level
of crime in Lebanon.
His Excellency pointed out that his last message to the judges, on August 16,
aimed at inviting them to assume their responsibilities and not succumb to
campaigns of intimidation and enticement, and to move forward in achieving
justice, especially in the outstanding financial issues, or the crime of bombing
the port of Beirut, in order to hold each responsible accountable for what
happened.
Despite the difficult circumstances in the country, I found His Excellency every
readiness to work in the remainder of his mandate, to address as many important
outstanding issues as possible, provided that he receive the required
cooperation from the executive and legislative authorities, because the presence
of will and determination by His Excellency is important, but it is not
sufficient without the presence of this will with other officials”.
Minister Hajj Hassan:
The President met the Agriculture Minister, Dr. Abbas Hajj Hassan.
Minister Hassan handed the President an invitation to attend the central mass
festival organized by the "Amal" movement on the occasion of the forty-fourth
anniversary of the disappearance of Imam Musa al-Sadr and his two companions
Sheikh Muhammad Yaqoub and Abbas Badr al-Din.
The memorial will be held in Al-Qassam Square at half past five in the afternoon
on Wednesday, August 31.
Former MP Hussein:
President Aoun met former MP Mustafa Hussein and Hassan Mustafa Hussein, and
discussed with them governmental affairs and the possibility of representing the
Alawite sect in the new government by increasing members.
The meeting also tackled development needs of the Akkar region and the suffering
experienced by its people as a result of declining economic conditions and
chronic deprivation of development projects.—Presidency press office
Presidency “surprised” at PM Mikati’s response to what head
of Maronite League stated today
NNA/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
The Presidency Press Office issued the following statement:
“Referring to the statement issued by the media office of Prime Minister
Najib Mikati regarding the positions of the head of the Maronite League,
Ambassador Khalil Karam, this morning at Baabda Palace. The Presidency Press
Office is surprised at what was stated in the Prime Minister’s comment. We ask
the Premier about any words in the statement that caused his “astonishment”. As
for the statement using the presidency’s platform, “which is supposed to be
above sectarian considerations,” it is also a “surprising” statement, because
the presidency was never for one Lebanese party without the other, but rather
defended the rights of all Lebanese without exception, at a time when sectarian
reactions were emanating from websites other official sides. Perhaps the
positions of President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, on the issue of
forming a government reflect this trend that always calls for achieving national
partnership and preserving the charter”.--Presidency Press Office
Berri calls House committees to hold joint session Tuesday
NNA/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
House Speaker Nabih Berri has called the committees of Finance, Administration,
and Economy to meet in a joint session at 10:30 am next Tuesday, to continue the
discussion of the controls on the cash withdrawals and bank transfers.
No progress in government formation talks
Naharnet/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
No progress has been made in the government formation talks and PM-designate
Najib Mikati is “not serious” in his efforts, sources close to Baabda told al-Akhbar
newspaper in remarks published Thursday. The daily added that the standoff over
portfolios and shares has transformed into a dispute over who would manage the
vacuum period should there be no election of a new president. Sources informed
on the meeting that was held Wednesday between President Michel Aoun and Mikati
meanwhile told Asharq al-Awsat newspaper that “the disagreements are still
unchanged and are revolving over who would name two replacement ministers and
also over the format and the number of ministers. “Mikati prefers a 24-minister
format with changing Minister of the Displaced Issam Sharafeddine and Economy
Minister Amin Salam, while Aoun is pushing for adding six state ministers to
form an enlarged government of 30 ministers should there be a presidential
vacuum,” the sources said. OTV for its part said that in their meeting, Aoun and
Mikati demonstrated the positivities and negativities of each proposal and there
was an agreement to hold further consultations and another meeting soon. Sources
meanwhile told al-Liwaa daily that several parties, specifically Hezbollah, are
mediating with Aoun and Mikati to help overcome the disagreements, while also
expecting Speaker Nabih Berri to intervene on his part in order to achieve this
goal.
Lebanon: Aoun, Mikati Hold Unfruitful Meeting amid
Disagreement over Govt Lineup
Beirut - Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
A meeting on Wednesday between President Michel Aoun and Prime
Minister-designate Najib Mikati failed to advance the talks over the formation
of a new government. Well-informed sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the two
officials disagreed over the government lineup and the number of ministers.
The sources noted that Mikati preferred to maintain a government of 24
ministers, and replace the minister of the Displaced, Issam Sharafeddine, and
Economy Minister Amin Salam, while Aoun was pushing for adding six ministers of
state to the lineup, in order to form a political cover for the government, in
the event of a presidential vacuum. In remarks following the meeting, the prime
minister-designate said that discussions would be continued later. The
Presidency, for its part, noted Aoun and Mikati “tackled the various details
pertaining to the formation process and would continue consultations at a later
time.”While some politicians were still relying on external and internal
pressures to form a government, indirect disputes and exchange of accusations
continued between the political blocs supporting Mikati on the one hand, and the
Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) headed by MP Gebran Bassil – Aoun’s son-in-law, on
the other. FPM MP Salim Aoun spoke about “some parties’ attempt to impose their
conditions on the movement, while the Lebanon 24 website, which is affiliated
with Mikati, launched an attack on Bassil, accusing him of obstructing the
formation of the government. In a radio interview, Aoun said that the Baabda
meeting on Wednesday was the result of external and internal opinions that are
pushing for a breakthrough in the ongoing efforts to form a government in order
to avoid a vacuum.”On the other hand, MP Michel Moussa, member of the
Development and Liberation bloc headed by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri,
underlined the need for a new government that would handle pressing files,
including the demarcation of the maritime borders and the ongoing negotiations
with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). “Concessions from all sides are
required today to facilitate the formation of a government…” he said in a radio
conversation.
Qaouq: Hezbollah contributing to ongoing efforts to form
govt.
Naharnet/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
A senior Hezbollah official on Thursday confirmed that his party is pushing for
the formation of a new government. There is “a need to form a fully functional
government that would work to alleviate people’s suffering,” Hezbollah central
council member Sheikh Nabil Qaouq said. “Hezbollah is backing the exerted
efforts to form the government and is contributing to securing their success,”
Qaouq added.
Bassil says 'judges of negligence' will be 'held
accountable'
Naharnet/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil on Thursday lashed out at the
“judges of negligence” over the Riad Salameh and Badri Daher cases, warning
judges to “beware” because they “will be held accountable.”“The judges have
begged the central bank governor to hike their salaries, whereas he is supposed
to be put on trial by them over several crimes that he has committed, the least
of which is that he gave a commission to his brother’s firm for treasury bonds
issued by the central bank for the benefit of the Lebanese state,” Bassil said
in a video posted on social media. “Judges are throwing to each other the paper
containing the request to file a lawsuit against him. One has made the excuse
that a Shiite should not prosecute a Maronite, another has said that a Sunni
should not prosecute a Maronite and a third has made an excuse that a Greek
Orthodox should not prosecute a Maronite,” Bassil lamented. “Beware, judges of
negligence, this time you will not enforce accountability, this time you are the
ones who will be held accountable,” the FPM chief warned.
Israeli nonprofit think tank files petition, says
Lebanon deal requires referendum
Naharnet/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
A conservative non-profit think tank has filed a petition to the Israeli High
Court of Justice after the government said it would not submit a maritime border
deal with Lebanon to a public vote. The Times of Israel, an English-language
online newspaper, said that "the Kohelet Policy Forum has filed the petition to
prevent the cabinet from unilaterally approving an accord, claiming that the
government would be in violation of Israel’s Basic Laws — which have special
constitutional status — if it did not submit the question of ceding maritime
territory to Lebanon as part of an agreement to a public vote." "This is a
dramatic decision from every perspective — security, economic, and policy. It is
very problematic that the (caretaker) government without a Knesset would accept
it in a period such as this contrary to the Basic Law: Referendum," Kohelet
posted in a tweet. In June, Israel moved a production vessel into a disputed gas
field, parts of which are claimed by Lebanon. The move forced the Lebanese
government to call for the resumption of U.S.-mediated negotiations, and U.S.
mediator Amos Hochstein answered the request and visited Beirut, while Hezbollah
threatened Israel against proceeding with extraction. Lebanon is now waiting for
a response from Israel after having relayed its maritime border position to
Hochstein.
Touch and Alfa
employees begin open-ended strike
Naharnet/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
The employees of Lebanon’s two state-owned mobile network operators, touch and
Alfa, on Thursday began an open-ended strike to demand a wage hike, after their
negotiations with the two firms’ administrations collapsed. “All of Alfa and
touch’s branches and selling points closed at the companies’ headquarters and in
the various regions, as the sale of lines and recharge cards and customer
services stopped and all maintenance works were suspended,” the National News
Agency said. The employees’ syndicate had declared the strike overnight as it
welcomed “any efforts that contribute to finding a solution that would preserve
employees’ full rights.”The employees are demanding the wage hike in light of
the recent increase in the fees collected by the two companies.
Lebanon to investigate recording threatening Saudi
embassy
Agence France Presse/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
Lebanese authorities will investigate an audio recording shared online
threatening to attack the Saudi Arabian embassy in Beirut, the interior ministry
said in a statement. "Following the spread of an audio recording... threatening
the Embassy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Beirut with an act of terrorism,"
the interior minister ordered an investigation, the ministry said. The minister
also ordered the arrest of those found responsible for the threats, it added.
The ministry said Ali bin Hashem bin Salman Al-Haji, a Saudi national wanted by
Riyadh for "terrorist crimes", was the likely author of the recording. Al-Haji
has been residing in Lebanon for years, a security source told AFP. He
participated in events organized by Saudi opposition groups and attended by high
officials from Hezbollah, the source said. He is currently on a visit to Syria,
the source added. Beirut's ties to Riyadh -- formerly a major investor in
cash-strapped Lebanon -- have taken a blow in past years as Hezbollah's
influence has grown. The latest incident comes months after Riyadh announced the
return of its ambassador to Beirut, following a diplomatic crisis last year
between Lebanon and Gulf Arab states. Riyadh also suspended fruit and vegetable
imports from Lebanon in April last year, saying shipments were being used for
drug smuggling and accusing Beirut of inaction. Last month, a Saudi dissident
living in the Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs of Beirut was killed and two
of his brothers arrested over the incident. The police identified the man only
by his initials, but a security source told AFP it was dissident Maneh al-Yami.
Saudi Arabia and Iran, the Middle East's two main power brokers, back opposing
sides in various conflicts in the region. Hezbollah has a military arsenal that
rivals that of the Lebanese state. The Shiite group has also been the dominant
force in Lebanon's parliament in recent years.
Lebanon’s Private Schools Violate the Law, Impose Fees in Dollars
Beirut - Paula Astih/Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
Many families in Lebanon are looking to transfer their children from high-end
private schools to other schools that are less expensive. The anticipated shift
comes after private school administrations nationwide having informed parents
they will be raising tuition nine folds. Administrations justified the
astronomical hike by saying they had to raise the salaries of teachers and
secure school operating expenses. Schools are trying to survive a great economic
and financial crisis that has been sweeping the Levantine country for three
years now. “We used to pay an amount of 8 million and 250,000 pounds per child,
and today they are asking us to pay 20 million pounds and $1,500, or about 71
million pounds,” a young mother, who preferred remaining anonymous, told Asharq
Al-Awsat. “I would understand an increase of 10, 20, or even 30 million per
student, but for the increase to be this big is something I can't comprehend,”
she added. Lebanese laws prohibit pricing school tuition in dollars. The law
requires that the school budget be presented in the national currency. However,
in a clear violation of the laws, many educational and other institutions are
deliberately pricing in dollars on the pretext that they will not be able to
continue if they stick to pricing in pounds as a result of the continuous jumps
in the exchange rate. Exchange rates for the Lebanese pound had touched 34,000
to the dollar. Since the middle of last year, most schools have informed parents
that they are going to impose specific dollar payments in the next academic
year.
More than three months ago, schools distributed circulars of the new
installments, which were divided between amounts that administrations would
receive in US dollars and amounts in Lebanese pounds. The Minister of Education
in the caretaker government, Abbas Al-Halabi, on Wednesday announced approval
for establishing a fund to cover the operational costs of private schools.
Halabi said that the ministry rejects allowing any school to suspend any of its
students over the parents’ inability to pay tuition in US dollars.
UNICEF report: Deprived of the basics, robbed of their
dreams, children in Lebanon lose trust in their parents
NNA/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
Three years of devastating crisis in Lebanon have plunged children into poverty,
affecting their health, welfare and education, shattering their hopes and
breaking down family relationships.
A UNICEF report shows that much of the progress towards achieving children’s
basic rights – including the right to health, education, protection, play and
recreation – has been eroded by the economic crisis and the impact of the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Soaring prices and widespread unemployment have plunged thousands of families
into multidimensional poverty – a concept that considers a wide range of
deprivations – severely affecting their ability to provide for their children’s
basic needs.
The report, based on a UNICEF study on child poverty and a child-focused rapid
assessment (CFRA), shows that children are keenly aware of the effect the crisis
is having on their lives and on the country. Many no longer dream of a better
future in Lebanon and believe emigration is their only hope.
The combination of multiple deprivations, prolonged exposure to the harsh impact
of the economic crisis and the loss of hope is severely affecting the mental
health of children, who, in most cases, cannot access the care they need.
At the same time, children are feeling let down and losing trust in their
parents for being unable to meet their basic needs, which in turn increases
tensions in the household. As children are increasingly sent out to work in
Lebanon, and adults become unemployed, the traditional parent-child relationship
is being destroyed.
Rising tensions – further fueled by polarization between and within communities
– have led to an increase in violence, including in homes and schools. This
means that many streets and neighborhoods are no longer safe, further limiting
children’s right to play. Girls are the most affected, being increasingly
restricted from leaving their homes for fear they will be harassed.
“The crisis is affecting every aspect of children’s lives. Children are growing
up without enough food, without proper access to healthcare, and, in some cases,
working to support their families,” said Edouard Beigbeder, UNICEF
Representative in Lebanon. “Critical reforms are needed to safeguard children’s
future. The Government should implement urgent social protection measures,
ensure access to quality education for every child and strengthen primary health
care and child protection services.”
Some of the findings from the CFRA indicate that:
-84 per cent of households did not have enough money to cover the necessities;
-38 per cent of households reduced expenses on education, as compared with 26
per cent in April 2021;
-60 per cent cut spending on health treatment, up from 42 per cent in April
2021.
-70 per cent of households have to borrow money for food or buy food on credit.
-36 per cent of caregivers felt less tolerant with their children and treated
them more harshly.
“Multidimensional child poverty requires a multidimensional response grounded in
a major strengthening of Lebanon’s social protection system that will ensure the
fundamental rights of vulnerable children are protected, “said Edouard Beigbeder,
UNICEF Representative in Lebanon. “This means increasing access to social
services, scaling up social assistance and providing social grants for the most
vulnerable families.”—UNICEF
What’s Behind the Rising Tensions in Northern Israel
Yochanan Visser/Israel Today/August 25/2022
Israel Air Force (IAF) flew over Iran as part of a massive drill as region-wide
war seems more likely, Saudi media reported.
Tensions between Israel and the Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah have been
rising again in recent weeks after Hezbollah announced that it rejects a
possible agreement between Israel and Lebanon on the demarcation of the economic
maritime zones between the two countries, and threatened to attack Israeli
vessels that are soon expected to drill for gas in the Karish gas field located
off the coast of northern Israel.
The escalating tensions with Hezbollah are directly related to the internal
situation in Lebanon and Iran’s strategy toward Israel, as well as the state of
affairs in the nuclear negotiations between the US and Iran over renewal of the
2015 nuclear agreement with the Islamic Republic, as we shall see.
Let’s start with the growing tensions between Hezbollah and Israel.
Under the leadership of the American mediator Amos Hochstein, talks have been
going on for more than six months to reach an agreement that will definitively
define the economic maritime borders between Lebanon and Israel.
Those talks now appear to have entered a decisive phase, and in Lebanon some
government officials are now optimistic about the chances of reaching an
agreement. Hezbollah, however, has refused to agree to any deal with arch-enemy
Israel, and has threatened to start a war if the government in Jerusalem
implements its intention to start drilling for gas in the Karish gas field by
September 1.
This gas field is located in the waters off the coast of northern Israel, and
Hezbollah claims it is partially located in the Lebanese economic maritime zone.
However, Israel has shown through satellite photos that Hezbollah’s claims are
nonsense, and has now put its military (IDF) in a state of heightened readiness.
Hezbollah’s stance is not only related to the fact that it is part of the
Iranian axis that is increasingly active against Israel. More on that later.
Internal situation in Lebanon
The internal situation in Lebanon also plays a significant role in Hezbollah’s
opposition to an agreement with Israel. With Lebanon now really on the brink of
economic and social collapse, the Shiite terror movement is rapidly losing
popularity. Any solution to the huge economic crisis in Lebanon is being
thwarted by Hezbollah because of political considerations.
Aid from, for example, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States is flatly rejected by
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah because it would weaken the Iranian axis’ hold
on Lebanon. The people of Lebanon, however, are aware of this and are
increasingly turning against the unhealthy ties between their country and the
regime in Tehran. To give you an idea of what the World Bank calls “a deliberate
economic depression,” inflation in Lebanon has risen to 890 percent, while more
than 80 percent of the Lebanese population now lives in poverty.
People are no longer able to purchase basic needs and are also dealing with the
total collapse of the health system in Lebanon, where most medicines are no
longer available. The country’s currency, the Lebanese pound, has furthermore
lost 90 percent of its value against the euro and the dollar since October 2019,
while local banks now restrict cash withdrawals of foreign currency accounts.
Then there is the worst energy crisis in the history of Lebanon, where on an
average only one hour of electricity is available, while there is also a huge
shortage of fuel so that the generators that companies and hospitals possess are
no longer useable. To make matters worse, there’s currently also a serious
shortage of grain, and this is not only due to the war between Russia and
Ukraine.
The grain silos in the port of Beirut had already been severely damaged by the
huge explosion that took place in another silo in the summer of 2018, making
storing of grain imports almost impossible. This summer, however, large fires
broke out in the grain silos that proved to be inextinguishable and led to the
collapse of most of the warehouses.
Rising tensions
For Lebanon, an agreement with Israel on the maritime economic zones would mean
significant and badly needed revenues from gas extraction for the devastated
economy, but that didn’t cause any change in Hezbollah’s opposition against the
deal. Nasrallah recently moderated his rhetoric a bit after issuing almost daily
threats against Israel, but this could also be seen as the calm before the
storm.
https://www.israeltoday.co.il/read/analysis-whats-behind-the-rising-tensions-in-northern-israel/?utm_source=acfs&utm_medium=email&utm_term=all&utm_campaign=newsletter-en-2022-08-25
We Need President Who Resembles and Represents the Lebanese
Hanna Saleh/Asharq Al Awsat/August 25/2022
A week from now, the Lebanese parliament will turn into an electoral body that
should elect a new president by the thirty-first of October to replace Michel
Aoun, whose term ends that day. Legally, legislation is suspended until a new
president is voted in. However, realistically, the political climate does not
suggest that finishing the process before the deadline is possible. In fact,
this prospect is seen as almost inevitable, a tradition of the ruling alliance
imposing its control over the Lebanese.
There is a political consensus around leaving a presidential vacuum in Lebanon
because all of the candidates and their supporters have no regard for what has
happened to the country, which was defrauded for three decades and whose people
were humiliated, as the World Bank sees it. They ignored the demands of the
October 17 revolution that sought to retrieve the kidnapped state, reinstate the
constitution, and bring a president to office who resembles the citizens and
could save the country.
Describing his political party, Gebran Bassil called them “guardians of rights,
the republic, and the presidency.” Since when does the president need guardians?
He should embody the unity of the country, be its moral compass, and be at the
forefront of safeguarding their rights and interests. Beyond a shadow of a
doubt, this surreal proposition was not put forward in a vacuum. Rather, he was
hinting at what Aoun had said about the “hope” of the Lebanese that a “president
who continues his journey” is elected… totally disregarding the fact that his
term will go down in history as the one in which the country collapsed,
institutions were crushed, the constitution was sidelined, the Lebanese were
sent to hell, and the cover was given to Hezbollah, allowing it to turn Lebanon
into a rocket launching platform defending the Islamic Republic of Iran.
While we cannot predict the final outcome the president’s team is pursuing,
those putting these Don Quixote propositions are obsessed with convincing us of
the illusion that they cannot be overlooked. Aoun spoke publicly of his refusal
to form a government and his intention to undermine the presidential election.
“I hope the presidential elections will have the same fate as that of the
formation of a new government. The names put forward were not up to standard and
would not have been able to meet its current or future responsibilities.”
Meanwhile, Bassil’s statements also strongly indicate that an insurrection is
imminent as he hinted at Aoun not leaving the presidential palace under the
pretext that he refuses to hand over the powers of the presidency to a caretaker
government!
This begs the question: What are the powers of a president whose term has ended?
What power does he have to hand over? Will he not be a former president on
October 31st? What does the constitution have to say on this matter? What
precedent is he relying on? Let us assume that he succeeds in a palace coup;
what text will he use to justify that coup globally and domestically, and to the
country’s political and security institutions? What power will he have once only
the Syrian and Iranian ambassadors answer his calls?
Aoun’s arrival at the presidential palace on October 31, 2016, cannot be
compared with his occupation of that palace by force in late 1988, the day Amin
Gemayel headed a transitional military government whose primary task had been
holding presidential elections. Does anyone believe that the preparations to
mobilize followers and have them march to the palace could legitimize such a
coup and allow for the constitution and the overwhelming popular opposition to
be bypassed?! This story was a farce in 1989, and repeating it today would be a
tragedy. It would pose an additional threat to the country as a political
entity, and it will exacerbate the state’s lack of legitimacy and deepen the
paralysis of its civil, military, and security institutions!
“Elect a president now or prepare for the worst, some say! Remarkably, however,
no faction has demanded the formation of a government at this pivotal stage in
Lebanese history, one that could help us avoid the worst-case scenario through
workable steps that safeguard the country and its people, as well as mitigate
the ramifications of the collapse. Instead, everyone is behaving as though they
have all the time in the world. The head of the caretaker government, Najib
Mikati, is not too concerned with forming a government because he is comfortable
with his current post and the chair of the presidency until further notice!
Meanwhile, Aoun-Bassil’s insistence on making any formation impossible is part
of their plan for an insurrection!
Overall, things would not have taken this course if Aoun’s camp could not count
on Hezbollah’s “protection,” which it can later exploit to threaten others.
Either you go along with our candidate for the presidency, or there will be no
president! Their strategy is to invest in the devastation and starvation that
have devastated the country after the mafia alliance left its people scavenging
for bread and medicine, shifted Lebanon’s loyalties to the Axis of Resistance,
and strengthened Iran’s hegemony. Here, we should recall Naim Qassem’s words:
“Those who are not satisfied should seek another solution for themselves!” But
the elections, which left Hezbollah incapable of imposing its will, compelled
the party to bet on exacerbating the crises facing the election of the president
and the formation of a government so it can impose a candidate presented as a
moderate who would go along with its agenda- a president that safeguards the
interests and gains of the political class and is happy to be merely nominally
in charge of managing the crisis!
Meanwhile, the deputies of the revolution announced their intention to put
forward a comprehensive “constitutional, principled initiative to rally
political and popular support for the election of a president who would help set
the country on the course to recovery.” They set the first of September as the
date for it. Their real bet is to manage to invigorate the people so that
popular representation is not disregarded in the election of a new president.
The hope is that this initiative will allow for the implementation of a program
to save the country, restore the sovereignty of the republic so that the
president serves as a compass that guides Lebanon and the Lebanese, protects the
judiciary’s independence, and ensures that all are questioned and held
accountable.
Here, to be precise, we have to mention that since the end of the civil war, the
president’s office has been vacant. The threat of a vacancy is merely an
extortion tactic. In general, the criteria for selecting presidents have
demonstrated how low the political class has sunk politically and ethically.
They relied on an illegitimate armed force to protect them as they turned their
backs on the people and their rights and undermined the status and interests of
the country.
While there is no hope of these tyrants suddenly developing a conscience, the
lessons of the elections of years past demonstrate that reversing course is
difficult but not impossible. Moreover, the support of the Lebanese first, and
their having voted to punish this class second, can be built upon. The October
forces have a responsibility to lay this path, though that does not imply
demanding miracles from the deputies of the revolution.
The ABCs of imposing change tell us that those hoping to do so need to take the
initiative and organize or form inclusive political bodies that put pressure on
the totalitarian and sectarian personalized political parties currently
dominating the political scene. Undertaking this task is essential for
synergizing the efforts of those who are hurting and striving to realize change
as part of a cross-regional and cross-sectarian “historic bloc” that can serve
as a home for all sensibilities, prominent regional figures, and syndicates. It
is undoubtedly that the absence of such a “historic bloc” enabled the murderous
looters to remain in power.
The Latest English LCCC
Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on August 25-26/2022
Report: Israeli F-35s Breached Iranian Airspace, Repeatedly, During
Recent Exercise
JNS/August 25/2022
Israel and America simulated air raids on Iran and the seizure of Iranian
warships in the Persian Gulf, according to an Arabic website.
(JNS) A London-based Saudi news site reports that fighter jets, drones and
mid-air refueling planes participated in recent drills while evading detection
by Russian and Iranian radar. Israel and America simulated air raids on Iran and
the seizure of Iranian warships in the Persian Gulf, according to the Arabic
website Elaph. It also said Israel had flown aircraft in Iranian airspace in
recent months. The report, citing unnamed sources, also claimed that Israeli
submarines surveil Iranian vessels. It also said that the United States and
Israel are preparing to strike Iran if the talks with world powers fail to
revive the 2015 nuclear deal. Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid said on
Wednesday that Israel is “not prepared to live with a nuclear threat above our
heads from an extremist, violent Islamist regime. This will not happen. Because
we will not let it happen.”
Lapid Calls Out Biden’s Duplicity Over Iran Nuclear Deal
Ryan Jones/Israel Today/August 25/2022
“This deal doesn’t meet Biden’s own stated standards,” complains Lapid;
Netanyahu says US is “paving with gold” Iran’s path to the bomb. As
diplomatically as possible, Israel Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Wednesday noted
the disparity between US President Joe Biden’s so-called “red lines” and the
terms of the nuclear agreement he is about to sign with Iran. In a briefing with
foreign press representatives, Lapid noted that a week ago the European Union
presented to Iran what was supposed to be its “final offer” for returning to a
nuclear deal that would ease sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
Lapid said it came as no surprise to Israel that this “final offer” wasn’t
really final at all. “The Iranians, as always, did not say no. They said, ‘yes,
but,’ and then they sent a draft of their own, with more changes and demands.
“Since then, there have been more discussions about this. The Iranians are
making demands again. The negotiators are ready to make concessions, again. This
is not the first time this has happened. The countries of the West draw a red
line, the Iranians ignore it, and the red line moves. “If the Iranians didn’t
‘take it,’ why didn’t the world ‘leave it?'”
Surely, Lapid continued, the West is aware that nuclear weapons is only one
problem, and that pumping $100 billion annually into the regime of the
ayatollahs will only serve to “undermine stability in the Middle East and spread
terror around the globe.”The Israeli leader stressed that his country is “not
against any agreement. We are against this agreement, because it is a bad one.”
This is nothing new. What is a little shocking to Israel is watching Biden
effectively go back on what he said just a month ago while visiting the Jewish
state. As the looks poised to sign on to the deal, Lapid noted: “In our eyes,
[this agreement] does not meet the standards set by President Biden himself:
preventing Iran from becoming a nuclear state.”This week Lapid called the
leaders of Germany and France to urge them to walk away from the Iran talks
after the Islamic Republic failed to accept their “final offer.”He then phoned
Washington to request the same of Biden. But Biden wouldn’t take his call,
according to Israeli media reports. The White House reportedly told Lapid that
Biden was “on vacation,” and would talk to him in a few days. Former Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was even less forgiving in his reaction to the Biden
administration’s behavior vis-a-vis Iran. Appearing Wednesday on the television
news program “Fox & Friends,” Bibi stressed that the deal about to be signed
“paves with gold” Iran’s path to an atomic bomb, while failing entirely to curb
the Islamic Republic’s other destabilizing activities in the region. “If you do
not have a credible military threat against Iran, you essentially have nothing,”
Netanyahu insisted, and at present few believe America is presenting any kind of
military threat at all.
Lapid: Nuclear Deal to Give Tehran $100Bln to
Destabilize Region
Tel Aviv - Nazir Magally/Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
A new nuclear deal between world powers and Iran would allow other nations to
avoid sanctions and give Tehran $100 billion a year to destabilize the Middle
East, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid said on Wednesday. “On the table right
now is a bad deal. It would give Iran a hundred billion dollars a year ... that
will be used to undermine stability in the Middle East and spread terror around
the globe,” Lapid said. Iran denies fomenting terrorism. He said this money will
fund the Revolutionary Guards and the Basij who oppress the Iranian people. It
will fund more attacks on American bases in the Middle East and will be used to
strengthen the Lebanese Hezbollah, Hamas Movement, and the Islamic Jihad. Lapid
stressed that Israel is not against any agreement. “We are against this
agreement because it is a bad one. Because it cannot be accepted as it is
written right now,” he said in a briefing with foreign correspondents in Israel.
The Premier affirmed that Israel has an open dialogue with the American
administration on all matters of disagreement. “I appreciate their willingness
to listen and work together. The United States is and will remain our closest
ally, and President Joe Biden is one of the best friends Israel has ever known,”
he affirmed. An emerging deal, Lapid said, “does not meet the standards set by
Biden himself, preventing Iran from becoming a nuclear state.”He was careful not
to openly criticize the United States and slammed Iran and the West directly.
He said that the European Union presented last week its "final" proposal to
revive the deal and asked for Iran’s response. Tehran, as usual, did not reject
this proposal, Lapid stressed, but it sent a draft including some amendments and
other demands. He said he had spoken in recent days with the leadership of
Britain, France and Germany, to reaffirm his country's opposition. “I told them
these negotiations have reached the point where they must stop and say
‘enough’,” he said. A senior Israeli official at the prime minister's briefing
said the draft text does not stipulate the destruction of centrifuges used to
enrich uranium, allowing Iran to "restart" them at any time. Israel is
dispatching Defense Minister Benny Gantz on Thursday to Washington, where his
team said Iran would be on the agenda of bilateral talks. According to senior
officials in Tel Aviv, Gantz will try to persuade the US administration not to
sign the new deal.However, they pointed out that he realizes his weak influence
and must consider long-term actions. Gantz will discuss with US officials the
post-deal period, the possibility of adding some articles to the agreement,
annexing it or any other way to ensure it does not retract from the agreement or
violate it, the sources explained. The Minister will join Israel’s national
security adviser, Eyal Hulata, who arrived in Washington earlier this week for
talks with Biden administration officials. They will both hold talks with US
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
Hundreds Protest Lack of Water In Iran's Drought-hit
West
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
Hundreds of protesters have taken to the streets in western Iran over a lack of
drinking water and the inability of officials to solve the problem, state media
said Thursday. Iran, a largely arid country, has for years suffered chronic dry
spells and heat waves that are expected to worsen with climate change.
In the past few months, thousands of people angry over the drying up of rivers
have been driven to protest, particularly in central and southwestern Iran, AFP
reported. Around 200 people gathered in front of the governor's office in
Hamadan on Wednesday evening "to protest against the interruption of the urban
water network", the state news agency IRNA said. They were later joined by
"several hundred people" in what was a second successive night of protests over
water shortages in the western city, IRNA reported. The demonstrators "held
empty water bottles in their hands", shouted "slogans against the officials" and
"demanded urgent action to provide drinking water to the city", it added. Dozens
of people, including women, could be seen calling on fellow citizens to "show
their courage" and take part in the demonstration, according to a video
published Thursday by Hamshahri newspaper. Parts of Hamadan had been
"experiencing water cuts for eight days", leading to demands from the protesters
for the resignation of the governor and "incompetent officials", the daily
added. In mid-July, police arrested several suspects for disturbing security
after they demonstrated against the drying up of Lake Urmia, in Iran's
northwestern mountains. Over the past decade, Iran has also endured regular
floods, a phenomenon made worse when torrential rain falls on sun-baked earth.
At the end of July, the lives of 96 people were lost in more than a week of
flooding in several regions of Iran, including dozens near Tehran, according to
authorities.
Netanyahu: US Failed Itself By Negotiating ‘Bad’ Deal with
Iran
London/Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
Israel’s ex-prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu slammed US President Joe Biden
administration’s attempts to revive the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran. He warned
that Iran is developing nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missiles
capable of reaching the US territory. In an interview with Al-Arabiya Channel on
Wednesday, Netanyahu said he is disappointed with the US administration's
efforts to revive the deal, which his ally, former President Donald Trump,
pulled the US out of in 2018. Washington did not only fail itself but also
failed Israel by negotiating with Tehran indirectly to restore the “bad” deal
for short-term gains, Netanyahu lamented. He warned that the Iranian regime will
not adhere to any agreement even if it was good. The current pact with Iran
affects all parties negatively, Netanyahu said, stressing that Israel will not
allow Tehran to acquire a nuclear weapon. He went even further by warning that
Iran, with its missiles and nuclear weapons, is capable of striking American
cities. The Biden administration has recently sought to reassure Israel that it
hasn’t agreed to new concessions with Iran and a nuclear deal isn’t imminent.
Earlier this week, Axios news website reported that if a nuclear deal is
announced ahead of the November elections, it could give political ammunition to
opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu to use against Prime Minister Yair Lapid.
Biden administration responds to Iran's offer on nuke
deal
Associated Press/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
The Biden administration has responded to Iran's latest offer to resume its
compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal, but neither side is offering a definitive
path to revive the agreement, which has been on life-support since former
President Donald Trump withdrew from it in 2018.
State Department spokesman Ned Price confirmed that the administration completed
its review of Iran's comments on a European proposal. Price did not detail the
administration's response.
"As you know, we received Iran's comments on the EU's proposed final text
through the EU," Price said. "Our review of those comments has now concluded. We
have responded to the EU today."
There is now expected to be another exchange of technical details followed by a
meeting of the joint commission that oversees the deal. The new developments,
including stepped-up public messaging campaigns by both Tehran and Washington,
suggest that an agreement could be near.
Despite the forward movement, numerous hurdles remain. And key sticking points
could still unravel efforts to bring back the 2015 deal under which Iran
received billions of dollars in sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its
nuclear program intended to prevent it from developing an atomic weapon.
Even U.S. supporters of an agreement are no longer referring to the "longer and
stronger" deal that they had initially set out to win when indirect negotiations
with Iran began last spring. And, on the Iranian side, demands for greater U.S.
sanctions relief than the administration appears willing or able to promise
could undercut the push to revive the agreement. In Washington, the Biden
administration faces considerable political opposition to returning to the 2015
deal from both Democrats and Republicans in Congress who remain unconvinced that
it is in U.S. national security interests.
"I intend to systematically fight the implementation of this catastrophic deal,
and will work with my colleagues to ensure that it is blocked and eventually
reversed in January 2025," said Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas.
The recent indictment of an Iranian for plotting to murder Trump's former
national security adviser John Bolton and the attack by an apparent Iran
sympathizer on the author Salman Rushdie have further contributed to doubts that
Iran can be trusted.
The latest EU proposal does not include Tehran's demand that the U.S. lift the
terrorism designation of Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps, and Iran has stepped
back from a demand that the International Atomic Energy Agency close its
investigation into unexplained traces of uranium at three undeclared sites,
according to a senior administration official who requested anonymity to discuss
ongoing efforts to resurrect the deal.
But, rescinding the terrorism designation imposed by Trump was never a realistic
demand. Not only does it fall outside the scope of the nuclear deal, it was made
virtually impossible since the Bolton plot indictment, ongoing Iranian threats
to other former U.S. officials, and the Rushdie attack.
And, while Iran may have agreed to a mechanism to eventually return to the deal
without the IAEA investigation being closed up front, it has said that its
actual compliance with an agreement remains contingent on getting a clean bill
of health from the agency.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby declined to
characterize the administration's response to the EU, but noted "we are closer
now than we were even just a couple of weeks ago because Iran made a decision to
make some concessions."
"We're not there yet," Kirby. "And because we're not there yet, I think we're
just going to be relatively careful here about how much detail we put out
there."
And, Iranian officials on Tuesday bristled at the suggestion that they've
stepped back from their demands to re-enter the deal.
Seyed Mohammad Marandi, an Iranian adviser to the indirect talks in Vienna, took
to Twitter on Tuesday to assert that removing the IRGC from the State
Department's foreign terrorism list was never a precondition and insisted that
"no deal will be implemented before the IAEA Board of Directors PERMANENTLY
closes the false accusations file."Meanwhile, America's top ally in the Middle
East, Israel, has become increasingly alarmed at the apparent movement toward a
deal. Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Wednesday urged Biden and Western
powers to call off an emerging nuclear deal with Iran, saying that negotiators
are letting Tehran manipulate the talks. "The countries of the West draw a red
line, the Iranians ignore it, and the red line moves," Lapid told reporters at a
press conference in Jerusalem.
Israeli alternate prime minster Naftali Bennett on Tuesday noted that Israel is
not party to the 2015 agreement signed by the five permanent members of the
United Nations Security — the U.S., the United Kingdom, Russia, France, and
China as well as Germany — but that Israel would be directly affected and
reserved all rights to its self-defense.
Israel's national security adviser Eyal Hulata is in Washington this week for
talks with Biden administration officials, including a Tuesday meeting with
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan. Hulata is scheduled to meet
with Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman later Wednesday.
National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said Sullivan underscored
Biden's steadfast "commitment to ensure Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon"
during his conversation with Hulata.
The White House insists that the terms under discussion include the key
underpinnings of the 2015 deal. The U.S. would lift hundreds of sanctions the
Trump administration re-imposed when it withdrew from the deal in 2018. And Iran
would roll back its nuclear program to the limits set by the original nuclear
deal, including caps on enrichment, how much material it can stockpile and the
operation of advanced centrifuges needed to enrich. However, it remains unclear
what exactly would happen to Iran's current stockpile of highly enriched uranium
and what it would be required to do with the advanced centrifuges it has been
spinning. The White House has said both would be "removed" but has not offered
details. As of the last public count, Iran has a stockpile of some 3,800
kilograms (8,370 pounds) of enriched uranium. Under the deal, Tehran could
enrich uranium to 3.67% purity, while maintaining a stockpile of uranium of 300
kilograms (660 pounds) under constant scrutiny of surveillance cameras and
international inspectors. In terms of sanctions relief, Iran has been demanding
that the administration pledge that a future president not be allowed to
re-impose the lifted penalties as Trump did and promise that Congress will
repeal statutory sanctions legislation passed initially to force Iran back to
the negotiating table. The administration is in no position to guarantee either.
US says airstrikes in Syria intended to send message to
Iran
Associated Press/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
U.S. military airstrikes in eastern Syria were a message to Iran and
Tehran-backed militias that targeted American troops this month and several
other times over the past year, the Pentagon said.
Colin Kahl, the undersecretary of defense for policy, told reporters on
Wednesday that the U.S. airstrikes overnight on facilities used by militias
backed by Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard demonstrated that "the United
States will not hesitate to defend itself against Iranian and Iran-backed
aggression when it occurs."He said the U.S. decision to launch the strikes was
based on both the nature of the militia attacks on Aug. 15 at the al-Tanf
Garrison, where U.S. troops are based in the south, and the fact that, based on
recovered drone parts, "we believe we have Iran dead to rights on attribution."
Hours after the U.S. strikes, two U.S. military locations in northeastern Syria
near large oil and gas fields were hit with rocket fire. According to U.S.
Central Command, the rockets hit near Green Village and the Conoco gas field in
Deir el-Zour. One U.S. service member was treated for a minor injury and has
been returned to duty, and two others were under evaluation for minor injuries.
CENTCOM said U.S. forces responded by destroying three vehicles and equipment
used to launch some of the rockets, killing "two or three suspected Iran-backed
militants."The opposition war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights
and Deir Ezzor 24 said the U.S. airstrikes targeted the Ayash Camp run by the
Fatimiyoun group made up of Shiite fighters from Afghanistan. The war monitor
reported that at least six Syrian and foreign militants were killed in the
airstrikes, while Deir Ezzor 24 reported 10 deaths.
Deir el-Zour is a strategic province that borders Iraq and contains oil fields.
Iran-backed militia groups and Syrian forces control the area and have often
been the target of Israeli war planes in previous strikes.
In Iran, Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani issued a statement condemning
the American strike "against the people and infrastructure of Syria." He denied
Iran had any link to those targeted. Iran routinely denies arming militia groups
that target U.S. forces in the region, despite weaponry linking back to them.
Kahl said the U.S. strikes underscore that while the U.S. continues to pursue
negotiations with Iran to resume its compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal,
those talks are not connected at all to America's willingness to take against
when attacked. "The threats that they engage in against our people in the region
or elsewhere, are not linked to wherever we end up on the nuclear deal," said
Kahl. "It actually has nothing to do with our willingness and resolve to defend
ourselves. And I think the strike last night was a pretty clear communication to
the Iranians that these things are are all on different tracks."
CENTCOM said the U.S. strikes "took proportionate, deliberate action intended to
limit the risk of escalation and minimize the risk of casualties." It did not
identify the targets or offer any casualty figures from the strikes, which the
military said came at the orders of President Joe Biden.
"Today's strikes were necessary to protect and defend U.S. personnel," Central
Command spokesman Col. Joe Buccino said in a statement. Kahl said the militia's
coordinated attack on two U.S. facilities at al-Tanf at the same time this month
fueled concerns that "Iran intends to do more of this and we wanted to disabuse
them of any sense that that was a good idea." He said the U.S. initially
identified 11 bunker targets at the site and ended up striking nine because
there was evidence there may be people near two of the locations and the goal
was not to cause casualties.
The U.S. Treasury said the Fatimiyoun group has fought numerous battles in
Syria, and is led by Iran's elite Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guard. "The
Ayash warehouse is a very important one for Iran's militias," Deir Ezzor 24 CEO
Omar Abu Layla told The Associated Press. "We expect that Iran will respond,
either in al-Tanf or possibly in Iraq." In the Aug. 15 attack, drones allegedly
launched by Iranian-backed militias targeted the al-Tanf Garrison used by
American forces. Central Command described the assault as causing "zero
casualties and no damage" at the time.
There was no immediate acknowledgment by Syria's state-run media of the strikes
hitting Deir el-Zour. U.S. forces entered Syria in 2015, backing allied forces
in their fight against the Islamic State group.
US Military: Soldier Lightly Wounded in New Syria Attack
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 25 August, 2022
One US military service member suffered a minor injury and two others are being
evaluated for minor injuries following rocket attacks in Syria on Wednesday by
suspected Iran-backed militants, the US military said. The US military's Central
Command, which oversees American forces in the Middle East, said militants
staged rocket attacks at two sites in Syria. That triggered a US response from
helicopters that, according to initial assessments, killed two or three
militants conducting one of the attacks, it said, Reuters reported. The exchange
of fire in Syria on Wednesday is just the latest flare-up in Syria, where some
900 American troops are based, and followed US air strikes in the country on
Tuesday. Those US strikes targeted facilities used by Iran-aligned groups, in
what was an attempt to deter further attacks against US personnel after an Aug.
15 attack by drones that Washington believes were manufactured in Iran.
Putin signs decree to increase size of Russian armed forces
Reuters/August 25/2022
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Thursday to increase the
size of Russia's armed forces from 1.9 million to 2.04 million as the war in
Ukraine enters its seventh month. Moscow has not revealed any losses in the
conflict since its first weeks, but Western officials and the Kyiv government
say they number in the thousands. The increase includes a 137,000 boost in the
number of combat personnel to 1.15 million. It comes into effect on Jan 1,
according to the decree published on the government's legislative portal. The
last time Putin fixed the size of the Russian army was in November 2017, when
the number of combat personnel was set at 1.01 million from a total armed forces
headcount, including non-combatants, of 1.9 million. Russia has not said how
many casualties it has suffered in Ukraine since the first weeks of the
campaign, when it said 1,351 of its soldiers had been killed. Western estimates
say the actual number could be at least 10 times that, while Ukraine says it has
killed or wounded at least 45,000 Russian troops since the conlfict - which
Moscow calls a special military operation - started on Feb. 24. Kyiv has also
been reluctant to publish information on how many of its soldiers have died in
the war, but on Monday the head of Ukraine's armed forces said almost 9,000
service personnel had been killed in a rare update. Putin's decree did not say
how the increase in headcount was to be achieved but instructed the government
to assign the corresponding budget. According to an authoritative annual report
by the International Institute for Strategic Studies, Russia had 900,000 active
service personnel at the start of this year, and reserves of 2 million people
with service within the past five years.
A Putin orders Russian military to find 137,000 new
troops to join the ranks as his war in Ukraine takes a heavy toll
Jake Epstein/Business Insider/August 25/2022
Vladimir Putin has ordered the expansion of the Russian military to by 137,000
troops starting in 2023. Putin did not detail how this would be achieved in the
new decree signed Thursday. Russian forces have sustained heavy casualties in
Ukraine, according to Pentagon estimates. Russian President Vladimir Putin
ordered Thursday an increase in the size of his country's military by 137,000
troops. The move comes as his forces continue to struggle on the battlefield in
Ukraine. The new order calls for boosting the number of Russia's available
combat personnel from 1.01 million to 1.15 million and is set to go into effect
on January 1, 2023, according to a decree shared on a government website and
translated by media outlets. According to Reuters, the decree did not specify
how the troop increase would be achieved. Russia could, for instance, pursue a
larger draft of conscripts or look for ways to increase volunteer service.
Russia's military generally maintains around 900,000 active-duty service
personnel, a significant force but one much smaller than the Soviet Union's 3.5
million during the Cold War. Putin's decree comes one day after his unprovoked
war in Ukraine hit its six-month mark on Wednesday. So far, his forces have
little to show for their efforts and have sustained heavy losses as the war
continues to drag out in a slow-moving and bloody campaign in eastern and
southern Ukraine. Prior to Russia's late-February invasion, over 150,000 troops
had gathered along the Ukrainian border, and there were expectations that
Russian forces would be able to topple Kyiv and achieve a quick victory. That
didn't happen though, and Russia has instead found itself fighting a tough war
of attrition. Russia has been reluctant to elaborate on the war's progress or on
how many losses its forces have suffered, and when it has, assessments have
appeared inconsistent with realities on the ground. Recent estimates from the
Pentagon said that Russian forces have endured as many as 80,000 casualties —
meaning killed or wounded — throughout the war. Its forces have also lost quite
a few generals and senior officers in combat, and thousands of Russia's armored
vehicles, among other warfighting equipment, have been damaged or destroyed in
battle. Ukraine's top general, meanwhile, said the country has lost an estimated
9,000 troops since the war began, though it is possible that number could be
higher given the murky nature of casualty reporting.
Israel indicts Islamic Jihad leader whose arrest triggered
Gaza violence
Arab News/August 25/2022
OFER PRISON, West Bank: Israel on Thursday indicted a senior leader of the
Iran-backed Islamic Jihad movement whose arrest led to a brief conflict in Gaza
earlier this month and whose detention is likely to fuel tensions. The charges
against Bassam Al-Saadi, who was arrested on Aug. 1 during a raid in the
occupied West Bank city of Jenin, include serving in an illegal organization and
incitement, according to a statement from the Israeli military. Anticipating
retaliation to Al-Saadi’s arrest, Israel launched what it called pre-emptive
strikes against his group in the Gaza Strip, where it is based, leading to three
days of Israeli air strikes and Palestinian rockets. He has been held in an
Israeli military prison. Al-Saadi, according to the military, is an “influential
senior official” in Islamic Jihad who it said worked on “core terrorist
activities” that include receiving funds from Gaza. An Islamic Jihad spokesman,
Dawood Shehab, said Israel was fabricating charges based on “misleading and
unfounded accusations.”Shehab said the group would ask Egypt and the United
Nations to intervene, and issued a veiled threat that it could respond with
violence if Al-Saadi was not released. “Reaching a dead end would give us the
full right to use other tracks and other options,” said Shehab. The Israeli
military prosecutor asked to keep Al-Saadi in custody for the remainder of the
legal process, the army said. Gaza is ruled by Hamas, an Islamist group much
larger than Islamic Jihad, which stayed out of the cross-border fighting at the
start of the month.
US-Iran tensions in Syria amid Iran deal talks -
analysis
Seth J. FrantzmanJerusalem Post/August 25/2022
The US carried out two airstrikes this week after US bases were targeted by
pro-Iranian groups in Iraq and Syria for the past ten months.
The US carried out airstrikes twice this week against Iranian-affiliated
elements in Syria after US bases and forces were targeted by pro-Iranian groups
in Iraq and Syria over the past ten months.
This is important because it illustrates that the US is willing to name Iran and
its affiliates as a threat, and because it comes amid rumors that the US and
Iran could revive the Iran nuclear deal of 2015.
It is not known how devastating the US attacks were, but reports have said that
some militants were killed. “The United States will not hesitate to defend
itself against Iranian and Iran-backed aggression when it occurs,”
Undersecretary of Defense Colin Kahl said.
“At President Biden’s direction, US military forces conducted precision
airstrikes in Deir ez-Zor Syria today. These precision strikes are intended to
defend and protect US forces from attacks like the ones on August 15 against US
personnel by Iran-backed groups,” the statement said.
The US has carried out retaliatory airstrikes against pro-Iranian groups in the
past, usually for attacks in Iraq. The reason the US has chosen to respond in
Syria in the past was because there is more freedom of action in Syria.
The US is a guest of the Iraqi government and US forces are in Iraq to fight
ISIS, not Iran. Pro-Iran militias in Iraq are often affiliated with Iraqi
Shi’ite political parties and even receive government salaries as
paramilitaries.
In Syria, the Iranian groups are linked to Iran or the Syrian regime, but the US
doesn’t need to ask the Syrian regime for permission. This means the US can
carry out retaliatory strikes on Iran in Syria with impunity. Similarly, Iran
operates in Syria with impunity, from where it threatens US forces and Israel.
What does Iran think?
IRAN TRANSFERS weapons to Syria and through Syria to Lebanon. In the past year
pro-Iranian militias in Syria, concentrated near the Euphrates river valley,
have increased attacks on US forces. The fact that the US carried out two rounds
of strikes is also unique. However, whether the Iranian units and their
affiliates suffered any casualties or whether the attacks resulted in much
damage, is unclear. The nature of “precision” strikes is usually that they are
so specific and small that they don’t really result in material setbacks or
decisive victories or even deterrence. Blowing up a truck used to transport
munitions, or striking a rocket launcher isn’t a game changer. Does Iran now
think it should be more careful in Syria as a result of the strikes? Iran views
its militias as cannon fodder. But Iran doesn’t view its IRGC members and
officers as cannon fodder, which is why Iran only sends a few IRGC members from
Iran to Syria in comparison with the militias it seeks to use on the ground.
Overall Iranian forces in Syria may include a thousand Iranian IRGC members and
many tens of thousands of militiamen. As such, a strike on a warehouse, a truck,
or launcher or a car may not be a big deal from Iran’s perspective.
That the nuclear talks continue and it appears the US is pushing for a return to
a deal is important. The US knows that regardless of a deal Iran will continue
its threatening and destabilizing behavior in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen.
Iranian media isn’t shouting about the US attacks in Syria because Iran appears
to want to downplay the attacks, for now. But Iran will continue to use its
proxies in Iraq and Syria to threaten the US. In addition Iran will continue to
use Hezbollah and Palestinian Islamic Jihad to stir up tension with Israel. This
is the larger context and a few airstrikes won’t likely change the overall
Iranian gameplan for the region .
Iran steps up persecution of Baha’i faith: Amnesty
International
Arab News/August 25/2022
LONDON: Iran has expanded its persecution of members of the Baha’i faith in the
country, with an uptick in arrests, raids and land seizures, according to
Amnesty International. The human rights group said Iranian officials had
arrested at least 30 members of the community since July 31, and confiscated
dozens of properties, in what it called a “land grab.”It added that many Baha’i
members had been subjected to interrogations and forced to wear electronic ankle
tags, and called on people around the world to speak out against the repression
of the group. The Baha’i are Iran’s largest non-Muslim religious sect, and
regularly suffer persecution. Since 1991, following a decision by the Supreme
Revolutionary Cultural Council, it has been the official policy of the Iranian
state to actively block their social, political and economic development, adding
that “they must be expelled from universities” and “denied employment if they
identify as Baha’is.” The Baha’i International Community said the arrests meant
there are now at least 68 people imprisoned in Iran for practicing the faith. On
Aug. 1, the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence said it had arrested “core members
of Baha’i espionage party” who “propagated Baha’i teachings” and “sought to
infiltrate various levels of the educational sector across the country,
especially kindergartens.”The UN says over 1,000 Baha’i members currently face
detention in Iran, with 26 imminently set to be imprisoned in the city of
Shiraz, Fars province, following their conviction in June of various crimes
supposedly threatening national security. On June 25, a court upheld a decision
to seize 18 Baha’i-owned properties in Semnan province on grounds that their
owners “engage in illegal activities and espionage to the advantage of
foreigners,” with the court calling them members of a “perverse sect.”On Aug. 2,
meanwhile, three people told Amnesty that as many as 200 Iranian security
personnel, including riot police and judicial officials, had taken part in the
appropriation of 20 hectares of land belonging to Baha’is, and bulldozed six
houses in the village of Roshankouh, Mazandaran province. Residents, who said
authorities had been attempting to seize Baha’i property in the area since 2016,
added that mobile phones had been confiscated, bullets fired into the air to
disperse crowds, and that several locals had been beaten, pepper-sprayed or
detained. The Iranian government claims that the properties in Roshankouh
encroach on protected land, but locals believe the appropriations are to deprive
Baha’is of their farms and means of income. Semnan, meanwhile, has seen at least
20 businesses owned by Baha’is closed, and the lands and equipment of a number
of Baha’i-owned farms seized. Heba Morayef, Amnesty International’s regional
director for the Middle East and North Africa, said in a statement: “The
despicable onslaught against the Baha’i religious minority is yet another
manifestation of the Iranian authorities’ decades long persecution of this
peaceful community. “Baha’is in Iran cannot feel safe in their homes or while
exercising their faith because they are at risk of persecution. “The authorities
must immediately and unconditionally release all the Baha’i individuals who were
recently detained as well as anyone in prison from before solely for the
peaceful exercise of their right to freedom of religion. All convictions and
sentences imposed on this basis must be immediately quashed. Morayef added: “The
Iranian authorities have brazenly imposed a system of discrimination and
oppression against the Bahai’s. Iranian authorities must immediately abolish all
discriminatory laws, policies, and institutional practices which have been
adopted to expel and dispossess Baha’is of their land and property, and deprive
them of their human rights, and ensure that Baha’i people can exist and practise
their faith freely and openly.”
Macron arrives in Algeria on visit aimed at fixing ties
Agence France Presse./August 25/ 2022
French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Algeria on Thursday for a three-day
visit aimed at mending ties with the former French colony, which this year
marked 60 years since independence. Macron landed at 3:30 pm (1430 GMT) at
Houari Boumediene Airport, where he was to be received by his Algerian
counterpart Abdelmadjid Tebboune.
The Latest LCCC English analysis &
editorials from miscellaneous sources published
on August 25-26/2022
Congress Holds the Key to the Balance of Airpower
between Turkey and Greece
Turkey Trying to Buy More Fighter Jets: To Do What?
Burak Bekdil/Gatestone Institute./August 25/ 2022
The U.S. House of Representatives on July 14 approved legislation that could
create a new hurdle for Biden's plan to sell F-16 fighter jets to Turkey.
The House approved a measure that basically said that the amendment would bar
the U.S. from selling or transferring the [F-16] jets to Turkey unless the
administration certifies that doing so is essential to U.S. national security
and includes a description of concrete steps taken to ensure that they are not
used for unauthorized overflights of Greece (which Turkey repeatedly conducts).
The U.S. Congress should take into account a political perspective in Aegean
military balance -- in addition to the $6 billion or so business for the
American industry -- if and when it decides on an F-16 sale to Turkey.
Turkey, theoretically, is a NATO ally, but in the last decade, Erdoğan's rigid
anti-Western ideology has brought Turkey closer to like-minded states such as
Russia and Iran. Erdoğan should not be allowed access to critical weapon systems
with which he can further threaten Greece, a NATO and EU member. Further
escalation in the Aegean Sea is not in anyone's interest in the West.
Turkey, theoretically, is a NATO ally, but in the last decade, President Recep
Tayyip Erdoğan's rigid anti-Western ideology has brought Turkey closer to
like-minded states such as Russia and Iran. Erdoğan should not be allowed access
to critical weapon systems with which he can further threaten Greece, a NATO and
EU member. Further escalation in the Aegean Sea is not in anyone's interest in
the West. Pictured: A Turkish Air Force F-16 fighter jet performs aerial
maneuvers during an airshow over the Turkish-occupied northern part of Cyprus'
capital Nicosia, on November 15, 2021. (Photo by Birol Bebek/AFP via Getty
Images)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan may be a notorious gambler but his
miscalculations and bad bluffing have cost Turkey a lot, both economically and
geostrategically.
In 2019, underestimating reaction from Turkey's NATO allies, Erdoğan decided to
buy the Russian-made S-400 air defense system, the first such system to be
purchased by a NATO member state. The cost to the Turkish taxpayer was a good
$2.5 billion. The system remains "unpacked": Erdoğan fears further Western
sanctions if he actually deploys the S-400s.
In return, the U.S. sanctioned Turkey under the Countering America's Adversaries
Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) . Additionally, the U.S.-led multinational
consortium that builds the new generation of F-35 fighter jets expelled Turkey
from the partnership. The cost to the Turkish taxpayer was another $1.5 billion.
Turkey's defense industry, suspended from the consortium, will have been
deprived of $10 billion worth of contracts over the next decade.
One move, ordering the S-400s from Russia, cost Turkey a net loss of $14
billion. And his fans call Erdoğan a wizard gambler.
That was only the financial loss to a country, where the per capita Gross
Domestic Product is still crawling at around $9,500 -- the second-lowest in
Europe, after Albania. It appears that the S-400 decision will also cost Turkey
geostrategically.
Turkey, with NATO's second-biggest military, has traditionally had a deterrent
air force, during and after the Cold War. In 2022, the Turkish Air Force (TuAF)
ranked 21 in the Global Air Powers Ranking. An attempted coup in July 2016 led
to tens of thousands of people purged from both the civil service and the
military. The number of generals in the TuAF dropped from 72 before the failed
coup to 44 after. The force had lost half of its pilots – from 1,350 to 680.
Resignations and retirement requests of TuAF pilots followed the purge, further
weakening the air force's command and operational capabilities, and bringing the
number of pilots to fewer than 400. The air force had to recruit Pakistani
pilots for its F-16 missions.
Turkey's air force operates fighter jet squadrons of fourth-generation
U.S.-built F-16s and older F-4s. Today, the Turkish military has a total of 270
F-16C/D aircraft in its inventory, all of them Block 30/40/50 models. Is that
good enough? No. Most of those aircraft will have to be phased out within the
next 10 to 12 years, depending on their upgrades. So, this means that Turkey's
air force is flying into an abyss.
Meanwhile, on the opposite shores of the Aegean Sea, rival Greece has taken
steps to change the air power balance in its favor. Greece in January showcased
its newly acquired defense capabilities by flying six new Rafale fighter jets
over the Acropolis hours after they arrived from France -- along with a bill for
€11.5 billion.
Ironically, in June, Greece sent an official request to the U.S. for the
purchase of 20 F-35 fighter jets -- which Turkey would have bought if Erdoğan
had not insisted on buying the Russian S-400s that he never unpacked. "Our
intention is to acquire an F-35 squadron with a possible option for a second
one. Sending a Letter of Request (LoR) which has happened in the past few days
is part of this process," Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told
reporters after the NATO summit on June 30.
Erdoğan had also threatened his NATO allies that he would purchase Russian-made
Su-35 or Su-57 aircraft if all other Western fighter jet options failed. Some
Western governments were concerned about pushing Turkey further into Russia's
orbit by denying Turkey fighter technology. After Russia's invasion of Ukraine
in February, however, buying from Russia is no longer an option. Erdoğan,
fearing further sanctions, cannot buy even an airplane wing from Russia, let
alone an advanced fighter.
A Swedish solution (Saab's Gripen jets) is also no longer an option. China is
not either: Beijing keeps harboring hard feelings over Ankara's decision to
scrap a $3.4 billion contract initially awarded to a Chinese company in 2013 for
the air defense program -- instead of which Ankara later chose the Russian-made
S-400s. There is always the European Typhoon (Eurofighter). But Turkey and the
Typhoon's European makers have not yet solved differences over intellectual
property rights and other co-production details.
All this picture showed Ankara was that the only viable option is another
U.S.-made fighter, although not the new generation: The F-16 Block 70. Thus,
Turkey in October made a request to the U.S. to buy 40 F-16 fighter jets and
nearly 80 modernization kits for its existing warplanes. This purchase would
mean an estimated $6 billion+ business for F-16 maker Lockheed Martin.
The Biden administration seems to be supportive. President Joe Biden is "willing
to cooperate with U.S. Congress on the renewal and modernization of Turkey's
F-16 fighter jet fleet," according to a statement made by a State Department
official on July 7. According to Doug Jones, deputy assistant secretary of state
for European and Eurasian affairs:
"So the F-16 issue has been up there for a while. And I think the administration
has stated Biden's position on this, which is that the administration supports
Turkey's modernizing... The President has also been clear that he needs to
support Congress to do this as well. So the leaders have spoken about this, but
the position of the administration remains what it was before, before the summit
in support of this sale, and expressed the willingness to work with Congress."
Things, however, are not progressing as smoothly as Biden may have hoped. The
U.S. House of Representatives on July 14 approved legislation that could create
a new hurdle for Biden's plan to sell F-16 fighter jets to Turkey.
The House approved a measure that basically said that the amendment would bar
the U.S. from selling or transferring the jets to Turkey unless the
administration certifies that doing so is essential to U.S. national security
and includes a description of concrete steps taken to ensure that they are not
used for unauthorized overflights of Greece (which Turkey repeatedly conducts).
The amendment, offered by Democratic Representatives Frank Pallone and Chris
Pappas to the annual National Defense Authorization Act by a vote of 244 to 179,
restricted the sale by making it conditional. It was the latest effort by
members of Congress to exert control over the sale of F-16s to Turkey.
An ostensibly strong argument in favor of the sale is this: the U.S. will not be
selling the advanced F-16 to Erdoğan, but to a NATO ally, Turkey. So, why block
the sale as, after a while, the Turkish Islamist strongman, like others, will
have to disappear from the political scene.
The argument is that the 69-year-old Erdoğan will be ousted by popular vote
either in 2023 or, that failing, in 2028 -- whereas the F-16s will be in use in
the next couple of decades.
However, even then, post-Erdoğan politics in Turkey will most likely produce
another Islamist/conservative/nationalist alliance of some flavor, probably led
by another Erdoğan.
The U.S. Congress should take into account a political perspective in Aegean
military balance -- in addition to the $6 billion or so business for the
American industry -- if and when it decides on an F-16 sale to Turkey.
Turkey, theoretically, is a NATO ally, but in the last decade, Erdoğan's rigid
anti-Western ideology has brought Turkey closer to like-minded states such as
Russia and Iran. Erdoğan should not be allowed access to critical weapon systems
with which he can further threaten Greece, a NATO and EU member. Further
escalation in the Aegean Sea is not in anyone's interest in the West.
*Burak Bekdil, one of Turkey's leading journalists, was recently fired from the
country's most noted newspaper after 29 years, for writing in Gatestone what is
taking place in Turkey. He is a Fellow at the Middle East Forum.
© 2022 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.
Violent Crime Rocks Sweden Ahead of Elections
Peder Jensen/ Gatestone Institute./August 25/2022
For the first time, crime tops the list of voters' most important concerns in
the run-up to the elections.
Of the more than 8,200 people the Swedish police counted as being members of
criminal gangs by late 2021, almost 15% were under the age of 18.
Sweden has in just two generations gone from being one of the safest countries
in the world to being one of the most dangerous countries in Europe. During the
same time, mass immigration has dramatically altered Sweden's population. 1.2
million of those eligible to vote in the elections in September 2022 were born
outside Sweden...
Basem Mahmoud is an imam operating in the heavily Muslim-dominated area of
Rosengård in Malmö. He has called Jews "the offspring of pigs and apes," said he
was "only quoting the Koran," and is looking forward to "the great battle" when
all non-Muslims will be forced to submit themselves to Muslims.
In a sermon in February 2022, Mahmoud went on the attack against Swedish schools
and social services and stated that Muslims are taking over the country. "Sweden
is ours," he said. " It is ours, whether they [Swedes] like it or not. In ten to
fifteen years, it is ours."
Sweden has one of the world's worst recorded rape rates. In 2018, the state
broadcaster SVT revealed that 58% of men convicted in Sweden of rape and
attempted rape over the previous five years were born abroad. Some of the most
brutal rape cases have involved Muslim or African immigrants.
Unfortunately, such problems are no longer confined only to major cities. They
are spreading to smaller towns and even rural areas across Sweden. Kalmar, a
relatively small medieval town of historical importance, has experienced
multiple deadly gang shootings.
Swedes who want their families to be safe from violent crime are running out of
places to move to -- unless they decide to leave their homeland behind entirely,
as some are doing already.
For the first time in Sweden, crime tops the list of voters' most important
concerns in the run-up to the elections. Of the more than 8,200 people the
Swedish police counted as being members of criminal gangs by late 2021, almost
15 percent were under the age of 18. Pictured: Police commandos enter the Latin
School in Malmö, Sweden on March 21, 2022, following an attack in which two
teachers at the school were stabbed to death by a student.
Sweden will hold general elections on September 11, 2022. At the same time, the
country is rocked by a wave of violent crime that is unprecedented in modern
Scandinavian history.
For the first time, crime tops the list of voters' most important concerns in
the run-up to the elections. "It's going to be a very unique type of Swedish
election with a very unusual issue at the top of the agenda," Henrik Ekengren
Oscarsson, professor of political science at Gothenburg University, told
newspaper Dagens Nyheter. Forty-one percent of those surveyed said that law and
order are the most important issues in society, as well as the most important
political issues.
Patrik Öhberg, political scientist at the SOM Institute, states that "This is
the first election campaign in modern times where it's so high up on the agenda
that all parties, whether they want to or not, have to discuss the issue." This
could benefit the Moderate Party, the Christian Democrats, or the Sweden
Democrats. On the other side of the political spectrum, it could be detrimental
to the Left Party, the Greens, and the ruling Social Democrats.
The Social Democratic Party has headed the Swedish government since 2014. During
these eight years, crime has continued growing to intolerable levels nationwide.
Sweden has in recent years suffered attacks involving bombs, hand grenades or
other explosive devices on a weekly basis, sometimes several times a week.
In November 2021, Prime Minister Stefan Löfven stepped down as party leader and
PM, and Magdalena Andersson became Sweden's first female prime minister. In
April 2022, several Swedish cities experienced violent riots and attacks against
the police by Muslims when anti-Islamic activist Rasmus Paludan tried to burn
copies of the Koran. Andersson then admitted that a lack of integration had
contributed to gang violence, saying that there are "strong forces that are
ready to go to great lengths to harm our society."
"Segregation has been allowed to go so far that Sweden now has parallel
societies," Andersson said according to Aftonbladet. "We live in the same
country but in completely different realities... Integration has been too poor
while we have had large-scale migration. Society has also been too weak."
Others, after having allowed these problems to grow largely unchecked for
decades, have belatedly come to the same conclusion. Ulf Kristersson, leader of
the liberal-conservative Moderate Party, in August 2022 co-authored a column
which admitted that "Sweden has lost control over crime. While the violence is
getting worse, the perpetrators are getting younger."
Unfortunately, every single party represented in the Swedish Parliament (Riksdag)
has contributed to the current problems, with the right-wing Sweden Democrats
being a partial exception.
Even mainstream media outlets such as the BBC admit that Sweden has one of the
highest rates of gun killings in Europe. An official Swedish government report
published in 2021 stated that each year, four in every million inhabitants in
Sweden die in shootings. The European average is 1.6 people per million
inhabitants. Statistics reveal that 85% of suspects involved in fatal shootings
in Sweden are either born abroad or come from an immigrant background. Recently,
bombings and shootings have spread outside the main cities. After a spate of
shootings in the smaller city of Örebro, the local police chief said that they
now not only had more gangs, but that they had also become more violent. "Where
maybe 10 years ago they gave someone a beating, they then switched to shooting
each other in the legs," Mattias Forssten told Reuters. "Now they shoot each
other in the head."
On August 19, a man was killed and a woman was sent to the hospital with serious
wounds after a shooting incident in Malmö, Sweden's third-largest city. The
attack took place inside Emporia, a major shopping mall. According to the
police, the murdered man had known ties to a criminal gang. The wounded woman,
however, appears to have been an innocent bystander. The perpetrator fired many
shots on a busy afternoon inside one of the country's largest shopping malls. He
could easily have wounded or killed many other people, even unintentionally.
A 15-year-old boy was arrested and admitted to the murder in Malmö.
Unfortunately, he is far from unique. Of the more than 8,200 people the Swedish
police counted as being members of criminal gangs by late 2021, almost 15% were
under the age of 18. Some gangs recruit teenagers specifically. Under the
Swedish legal system, they can expect more lenient sentences due to their young
age and may even be able to avoid spending any time in jail. Prisons in Sweden
are already overcrowded.
While confronted by a massive crime wave, the Swedish police force is
overwhelmed and understaffed. A disturbing number of murders are never solved,
while many lesser crimes go nearly unpunished.
Sweden has in just two generations gone from being one of the safest countries
in the world to being one of the most dangerous countries in Europe. During the
same time, mass immigration has dramatically altered Sweden's population. 1.2
million of those eligible to vote in the elections in September 2022 were born
outside Sweden -- about 200,000 more foreigners than in the previous election,
in 2018. Nearly one in four first-time voters aged 18-21 was either born abroad
or has two parents born abroad. In central Malmö, almost every second person
eligible to vote for the first time has a foreign background.
Muslim immigrants in Sweden, as in other European countries, tend overwhelmingly
to vote for the Social Democrats or other socialist or left-wing parties.
However, they have now become so numerous and self-confident that they also
create their own political parties. Mikail Yüksel, a Turkish-born Muslim, heads
Partiet Nyans, which has a following in cities such as Malmö. Yüksel has argued
that an artwork by the late Swedish artist Lars Vilks should be burned because
it allegedly represents Islamophobia.
Basem Mahmoud is an imam operating in the heavily Muslim-dominated area of
Rosengård in Malmö. He has called Jews "the offspring of pigs and apes," said he
was "only quoting the Koran," and is looking forward to "the great battle" when
all non-Muslims will be forced to submit themselves to Muslims. He has also
defended the brutal murder of the French teacher Samuel Paty in 2020, who was
beheaded by a Chechen Muslim after teaching students a class on freedom of
expression.
In a sermon in February 2022, Mahmoud went on the attack against Swedish schools
and social services and stated that Muslims are taking over the country. "Sweden
is ours," he said. " It is ours, whether they [Swedes] like it or not. In ten to
fifteen years, it is ours."
Sweden has both imported and exported Jihadists for years. Some Muslims after
2014 traveled from Europe to the Middle East to support the self-proclaimed
Islamic State, arguably the world's most brutal terrorist organization. While
many of them died there, some of the survivors in recent years returned to
Europe. They have directly or indirectly supported brutal terrorist attacks,
massacres, beheadings, and slave auctions. Nevertheless, many of them have not
faced any real punishment after returning to Sweden. Some local municipalities
even offered them free driving licenses and housing grants in an attempt to
reintegrate these hardened Jihadists into Swedish society.
In early 2022, a man was charged with threatening the police after he hung what
looked like an Islamic State flag from his balcony in the Broby, a town of about
3,000 people in southern Sweden. He told the police that he would behead them,
but later claimed that they had a personal vendetta against him.
Norberg, an old mining community in central Sweden, has roughly 4,500
inhabitants. In April 2022, a man in his 40s who is believed to be from
Afghanistan was arrested there for raping and attempting to murder a woman by
pushing her down an old mine shaft. The man had come to Sweden with the migrant
wave in 2015 and been denied a residence permit, but had nevertheless remained
in the country. He had apparently asked a Swedish woman to marry him. When she
refused, he raped her and then pushed her about 20 meters down a mine shaft.
When he returned later and discovered that the woman was still alive, he started
throwing rocks at her to kill her. By some miracle, the woman survived and,
after lying in the abandoned mine for two days, was rescued. The assailant may
also have killed his former wife.
In July 2022, a 9-year-old Swedish girl was the victim of a brutal attempted
murder at a playground in the town of Skellefteå, in northern Sweden. She was
raped and then beaten into a coma. The suspect was an immigrant from Ethiopia.
He initially claimed to be 13 years old, but he is probably several years older.
He had been granted permanent residency in Sweden merely a week before this
attempted murder, despite being described in the local community as a "walking
hand grenade."
Sweden has one of the world's worst recorded rape rates. In 2018, the state
broadcaster SVT revealed that 58% of men convicted in Sweden of rape and
attempted rape over the previous five years were born abroad. Some of the most
brutal rape cases have involved Muslim or African immigrants.
Black Axe is an international and extremely violent criminal organization with
roots in Nigeria. They are one of the many rival criminal gangs in the process
of establishing themselves in Sweden. An official police report from 2019
indicated that Stockholm alone has at least 50 different criminal gangs
currently operating in the city. They are also getting more aggressive and
violent. Scandinavian countries traditionally did not have strong organized
crime groups comparable to the mafia found in southern Italy. Now Sweden has
dozens of different groups or clans competing against one another for control
over the local market of narcotics, protection money or other illegal
activities. Some of them have even managed to create a criminal infrastructure,
with ties to lawyers or bureaucrats. Nearly all of them have been imported to
the country since the 1970s. Many of these criminals have an ethnic background
from far more brutal and cynical societies in the Islamic world or Africa. Soft
Scandinavian prisons do not deter them.
Unfortunately, such problems are no longer confined only to major cities. They
are spreading to smaller towns and even rural areas across Sweden. Kalmar, a
relatively small medieval town of historical importance, has experienced
multiple deadly gang shootings.
In December 2019, when three masked men robbed a local restaurant in the town of
Gislaved, a 60-year old Swedish family man was murdered with a machete .
Swedes who want their families to be safe from violent crime are running out of
places to move to -- unless they decide to leave their homeland behind entirely,
as some are doing already.
*Peder Jensen is a Norwegian author and essayist.
© 2022 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.
Will Anyone Punish Iran for Its Murderous Campaign?
Bret Stephens/The New York Times/August 25/2022
A lot has been written about the broader meaning of the attack this month on
Salman Rushdie, for which a Muslim religious fanatic has been charged with
attempted murder. Not enough has been said about the evil of the regime that
presumably inspired the deed and so many others like it — or of what it says of
the wisdom of trying to strike a nuclear deal with it.
The Iranian Republic of Iran did not take responsibility for the murder attempt
on Rushdie. But Khomeini’s 1989 fatwa against him for “The Satanic Verses”
remains in effect, and in 2007 Rushdie reported that every Feb. 14 he receives a
“sort of Valentine’s card” from Iran recalling its promise to kill him.
Following this month’s attack, Iranian state media called it “divine
retribution.”
Nor is Tehran being discreet about similar attempts being made on American and
European soil against some of its other enemies, literary or political.
On Aug. 10, the Justice Department unveiled criminal charges against Shahram
Poursafi, a member of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps, for trying to
orchestrate an assassination attempt against former national security adviser
John Bolton. Axios’s Mike Allen reported the same day that Iran had put out a $1
million bounty for the murder of former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
In July, the target was Masih Alinejad, the Iranian American journalist and
human-rights activist, whose Brooklyn home was visited last month by a man later
arrested with a loaded AK-47 in his car. The regime was also behind an elaborate
earlier kidnapping attempt against Alinejad.
Last year, a Belgian court convicted Vienna-based Iranian diplomat Assadollah
Assadi, along with three Iranian Belgian accomplices, in a plot to bomb a 2018
gathering of Iranian opposition figures in Paris. In July the Belgian Parliament
ratified a prisoner-exchange treaty with Iran after Tehran arrested a Belgian
national in Iran on espionage charges, though a Belgian judge has barred an
exchange.
Also last year, the Iranian American writer Roya Hakakian disclosed that she had
been warned by the F.B.I. that she, too, was a target for Iranian agents in the
United States. Hakakian is the author of “Assassins of the Turquoise Palace,”
the stunning account of Iran’s 1992 assassination of four Iranian opposition
figures in Berlin’s Mykonos restaurant, and of the long struggle for justice
that followed.
On it goes: In November, Norwegian media disclosed that a former first secretary
to the Iranian Embassy in Oslo was accused by authorities of being the
mastermind of a 1993 assassination attempt against William Nygaard, Rushdie’s
publisher there. In 2020 Iran executed journalist and dissident Ruhollah Zam
after he had been lured to Iraq and then handed over to Iran. That same year
Iran kidnapped Jamshid Sharmahd, a German citizen and California resident. He is
now at serious risk of execution. In 2018 Denmark foiled an effort by Iranian
intelligence to assassinate a dissident there. In 2011, Iranian agents plotted
to kill the Saudi ambassador to the United States by bombing the Cafe Milano in
Washington.
“The assassination needed to go forward, even if doing so would cause mass
casualties,” the plot leader instructed his accomplices, according to court
filings.
The point of this abbreviated list is that the stabbing attack on Rushdie, even
if it was only inspired by Tehran rather than directed by it, was not unique. On
the contrary, it was all too typical.
The Iranian Republic has been carrying out a campaign of assassination,
kidnapping and intimidation of its critics from its earliest days. Those who
argue that these efforts are merely responses by Iran for wrongs done to it —
the Trump administration’s 2020 assassination of Maj. Gen. Qassim Suleimani of
the Revolutionary Guards, for instance — have cause and effect backward.
Suleimani was targeted after a career spent killing others, including, according
to the Pentagon, hundreds of Americans.
How does all this bear on the negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program? The
conventional wisdom is that it doesn’t — that Iran’s record of fanaticism and
murder has nothing to do with its willingness to limit its atomic ambitions in
exchange for economic incentives.
But this evades two key points. First, what signal does it send to Tehran that
we will do nothing to punish it, and will continue to negotiate with it, even as
it seeks to murder Americans on our own soil, including former senior officials?
The answer is: weakness. That’s a perception the Biden administration can ill
afford, and an incentive to further Iranian provocations.
Second, what do Iran’s murderous tentacles reveal about the character of the
regime? The answer is: It doesn’t stop at red lights. Advocates of a deal can
tell themselves that it will have safeguards to verify compliance. But Iran has
found ways to cheat, and the lifting of sanctions will provide it with a
financial bonanza that it will immediately put to destructive use. Making a deal
with Iran now is about as wise as striking a new arms-control agreement with
Vladimir Putin.
Since the attempt on Rushdie’s life, writers, activists and celebrities have
sought to raise the banner for free speech. That’s good as far as it goes. But
it will never go far enough until the free world again finds the nerve to stand
up to the odious regime that brought the outrage about.
Confronting the roots of violence in religious discourse
Hassan Al-Mustafa/Arab News/August 25/2022
Investigations are continuing into Hadi Matar, the 24-year-old American of
Lebanese origin accused of repeatedly stabbing the novelist Salman Rushdie in an
attack at a New York literary event. With reports suggesting Matar was motivated
by a fatwa issued by Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini in 1989 calling
for the author’s death, the attack brings to the fore important issues
concerning the underlying roots of violence in Islamic heritage, the law of
apostasy, and fatwas for killing those labeled heretics or apostates.
If what Rushdie wrote in “The Satanic Verses” can be categorized as contempt of
religion, the correct process would be to resort to the law and file a judicial
complaint in the country in which the incident occurred. We cannot restrict
freedom of expression, no matter how painful it is for us or contrary to our
opinions. We cannot view the person with an opposing thought as an enemy who
must be killed.
In the Arab world, many articles were published about the attack on Rushdie, and
many took on a political polemic nature. Few noted the issue of “takfir” and
“call for death” in the scriptural heritage of many Muslim scholars, a heritage
that must be disposed of, because it is not true religion and not true Islam,
but rather the understanding of these people of religion.
The Lebanese intellectual Radwan Al-Sayyed wrote an important article on the
Asas Media website, entitled “The Rushdie Issue in which neither fairness nor
impartiality is possible.” Al-Sayyed emphasized that Khomeini’s fatwa “was not
appropriate or wise despite its justifications. Otherwise, we would have been
obligated to kill every prominent person who attacked our religion or our
Messenger, and they are many today. It is contrary to wisdom because it does not
consider the negative effects on Muslims in the West.”
At the same time, Al-Sayyed raised a fundamental question: “How can we reconcile
freedom of expression with the feelings of the general believers? Some want the
general public to remain calm and reassured about what they are accustomed to,
without violating their sanctities, and some believe that creativity, even if it
is absurd, is the guarantee of liberation and change.”
Al-Sayyed did not discuss the attack on Rushdie with an emotional or political
bias, but rather tried to raise questions and express frank and direct ideas,
questioning the Muslim public and politicians in the West, as well as
intellectuals and supporters of freedom of expression.
It is easy to condemn Khomeini’s fatwa. Some Shiite Muslim scholars have opposed
“killing the apostate,” including the Iraqi religious scholar Ayatollah Mohammed
Baqir Al-Sadr, who was executed by Iraqi President Saddam Hussein in 1980.
Al-Sadr, despite being a supporter of the Iranian revolution, did not issue a
fatwa to kill the apostate. There is also the late Lebanese scholar Sayyed
Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah, who took a different position from Khomeini’s fatwa
toward Rushdie. Sheikh Hussein Al-Khashin followed the same approach as
Fadlallah, who believes that “the main legislative and dogmatic reference in
Islam, which is the Holy Qur’an, did not include any reference to the ruling on
killing the apostate, even though it refers to the issue of apostasy in many
verses.” Likewise, the Saudi jurist Abd Al-Hadi Al-Fadhli, a religious scholar
and former professor at King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah, believes apostates
should not be killed.
However, while some Muslim scholars oppose killing apostates, the human Islamic
heritage, which was replete with violence, the fierce passion of Muslims, as
well as the use of religion for political interests in previous eras, made
killing those who disagree with the prevailing opinion possible.
Emirati researcher Mansour Al-Nogaidan tweeted on Aug. 13: “Saladin killed the
philosopher Suhrawardi, and Lisan Al-Din Ibn Al-Khatib was killed at the
instigation of some scholars. They strangled him and burned his body. Al-Mahdi
killed many on charges of heresy. Some Muslim scholars declared Ibn Rushd to be
an infidel and burned his books and others declared Ibn Taymiyyah to be an
infidel and called for his death. Some scholars issued dozens of fatwas accusing
many writers and thinkers of blasphemy and calling for their death.”
If what Rushdie wrote in “The Satanic Verses” can be categorized as contempt of
religion, the correct process would be to resort to the law and file a judicial
complaint in the country in which the incident occurred.
Al-Nogaidan added: “Some of the Sunni scholars accused Al-Ghazali of blasphemy.
Ibn Taymiyyah accused Ibn Arabi and Avicenna of blasphemy. Some scholars accused
Abu Al-Walid Al-Baji, who was an Islamic scholar, of blasphemy. Ibn Abd Al-Wahhab
accused thousands of blasphemy and called for their death and their money to be
taken away, and he himself was declared an infidel by some Muslim scholars who
considered him a heretic and called for his death.”Al-Nogaidan was explicit and
direct in his reference to a tough history of violence, blood, incitement and
takfir, in which religion was used as a tool for influence, domination and
oppression.
We should not look at this history with reverence nor consider it an example to
be followed. Rather, we should criticize and transcend it, and dare to point out
its faults, so that no one will respond again to the word with a bullet or
consider himself a defender of God while he distorts His image and kills people.
Hassan Al-Mustafa is a Saudi writer and researcher interested in Islamic
movements, the development of religious discourse and the relationship between
the Gulf Cooperation Council states and Iran. Twitter: @Halmustafa
ريموند إبراهيم: قائمة باحداث الإضطهاد الإسلامي للمسيحيين
خلال شهر حزيران/2022/… أب سبب لإبنته العمى لتتوقف عن رؤية الكنائس
Father Blinds Daughter So She Can “Stop Seeing Churches Forever”: Muslim
Persecution of Christians, June 2022
Raymond Ibrahim/Gatestone Institute/August 25/2022
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/111473/raymond-ibrahim-gatestone-institute-father-blinds-daughter-so-she-can-stop-seeing-churches-forever-muslim-persecution-of-christians-june-2022-%d8%b1%d9%8a%d9%85%d9%88%d9%86%d8%af-%d8%a5%d8%a8/
The following are among the abuses Muslims inflicted on
Christians throughout the month of June, 2022:
The Muslim Slaughter of Christians
Nigeria: On Pentecost Sunday, June 5, terrorists stormed the St. Francis
Catholic Church in Ondo, and massacred about 50 Christians who were otherwise
peacefully worshipping their God. Videos, according to one report, “showed
church worshippers lying in pools of blood while people around them wailed.”
Western media presented the attack as a baffling aberration for Nigeria,
arguing, as the AP did, that “It was not immediately clear who was behind the
attack on the church.” Not once did the AP even mention the words “Muslim,”
“Islam,” or “Islamist,” in its determined attempt to ignore the fact that
Islamic terrorists have routinely stormed churches and slaughtered many
Christians over the years in Nigeria—here, here, and here for three notable
examples.
In fact, exactly two weeks after the St. Francis Church attack, on Sunday, June
19, motorcycle-riding Muslims raided two other churches in Nigeria, the
Maranatha Baptist Church and the St. Moses Catholic Church. According to one
report,
[T]hree worshippers were killed while several others were abducted when the
attackers in large numbers swooped on the worship places…. [T]he terrorists shot
indiscriminately as they approached the various churches, killing three while
several others sustained injuries.
The Christians of Nigeria are, in fact, being purged in a genocide, according to
several NGOs (here and here, for instance). One Christian is killed every two
hours in Nigeria. As a June 19 report notes, “Painfully, the attack on St.
Francis Church was not the only one that jolted Christians in Nigeria. In fact,
more than 100 worshippers were killed that week across the country.” Among these
hundred other Christians to be killed, the report notes the killing of 32
Nigerian Christians inside their church “a few days before” the St. Francis
attack.
The report adds that, Heavily armed bandits, many of whom are said to be ethnic
Fulanis, are waging their own form of Jihad; killing, abducting and terrorizing
worship centers and educational institutions owned by churches as well as
impoverished communities in the North and Middle Belt regions.
Such bandits and terrorists have further abducted/killed 35 pastors over the
last 17 months. As one example, according to a June 26 report, “bandits” gunned
down and murdered a Catholic priest. The Biden administration’s response to the
jihadist onslaught against Christians in Nigeria—where 13 Christians are
slaughtered every day—has been to remove Nigeria from the State Department’s
list of Countries of Particular Concern, that is, nations which engage in, or
tolerate violations of, religious freedom.
Democratic Republic of Congo: On June 24 and 25, Islamic terrorists targeted two
Christian villages, where they slaughtered a total of thirteen Christians. The
Muslims also torched many Christian homes and shops in both villages, and stole
much of the residents’ property.
Burkina Faso: On June 27, “suspected jihadists” burst into and opened fire on a
Christian baptismal, massacring at least eight Christians. According to the
brief report,
The landlocked Sahel state, one of the world’s poorest countries, is in the grip
of a nearly seven-year-old jihadist insurgency. Thousands of people have died
and nearly two million have been driven from their homes.
Uganda: A Muslim man stabbed his daughter in the eyes and killed her for
embracing Christ. Earlier that day, in the morning of Sunday, May 29, Hawa Amoti,
aged 28, visited her Christian neighbor. “Amoti came to our home very early in
the morning and needed to know more of Issa [Jesus], whom she had seen in a
dream,” he said. “After explaining to her about eternal life and forgiveness of
sin that comes from Jesus who came to take away the sins of the whole world, she
willingly accepted Jesus for the salvation of her soul. I then prayed for her,
and then together we went to church in Nansana.” After church, she joined the
neighbor’s family for lunch at their home and stayed until about 5:45 p.m., when
she left for her home. Her father, Haji Shariifu Agaba, and brothers were
already aware of where she had been and what she had been doing. When she
arrived home, her father “Agaba ordered his sons to seize and beat her, then
took a sharp knife and pierced her eyes,” one of her brothers who had tried to
defend her later said. “I want to remove these eyes so that you stop seeing
churches forever—even if you die, we are not going to bury you,” her Muslim
father said. Concludes the report:
Amoti’s wailing and screaming drew neighbors who rushed over to rescue her… As
more members of the community arrived, Agaba and his sons went inside their
house. Neighbors arranged for a vehicle to rush Amoti to a nearby hospital,
where she succumbed to profuse bleeding from her eye injuries…
In a separate story in Uganda, a court sentenced Alias Mohammed Wamala, a Muslim
man, to life in prison for killing Christians. According to a local pastor, “the
accused confessed to having killed Zulaikha Mirembe and several other Christians
to fulfill what was written in the Koran about supporting the cause of Allah by
killing infidels.” The report adds that, “During the trial, Wamala and other
Muslims were accused of ritual killings as part of an occult practice that
involved a shrine where the bodies were buried, [an] area Christian said.”
Pakistan: Two Muslims hacked a Christian farm worker, Younis Masih, aged 50, to
death, before dragging his body through the streets with a hose tied around his
neck. According to the June 23 article,
The men used farm sickles and scythes to inflict large gaping wounds to the head
and body of the murder victim. They then threw bricks at his head smashing his
skull—probably to make sure he was dead. A hose was then placed around the neck
of the corpse which was dragged through the farm onto the streets nearby the
home of the murder victim. His family were later awoken at 3.30 am by the
terrified employer of the deceased Christian who had found his dead body between
the farm and the victim’s home. A police investigation later uncovered that the
two Muslim men, both of whom owned neighbouring farms, were involved in the
murder. As of now neither murderer has revealed the motive for the killing.
“I could not recognize the dead body of my father,” said one of his sons: “His
face was severely deformed due to the violence.” From the start, police have
been uncooperative, the slain man’s family says. After they called police, and
“though a dead body involved in a murder crime was on the streets, Bambanwala
Police Station officers did not arrive at the scene of the crime till 7am. A
delay believed to be induced by the fact that a ritually impure Christian was
killed. It should be noted that the police station itself is only 30-40 minutes
away from the place the body of Mr. Masih was found.” Gulfam, another of Masih’s
sons, said:
We contact the police every day to learn of any development in their
investigation, but police are not cooperating. Muhammad Abubakar Nawaz [one of
the murderers] threatened me in the presence of the station house officer and
they did nothing to stop him. He boldly told me that though he has confessed to
murdering my father, there is nothing I can do to get justice. Though I am
scared I will do all I can to seek justice.
Irfan, his brother, added: The behaviour of the police is creating more agony.
They have not explained why our father was murdered so brutally. We have no
property or anything of value that could lead to such violence. We are poor
people who labour to earn for our families. We demand to know why this
despicable fate has befallen our father.
Egypt: On Sunday, June 5, 2022—the same day Muslims attacked a packed church in
Nigeria, massacring 50 Christians—Abdullah Hosni, a Muslim man attacked a
Christian, Kirollos (Cyril) Megali, with a meat cleaver in a village in Sohag.
According to an Arabic report, Kirollos, who was rushed to a hospital “drenched
in blood and with multiple stab wounds,” spent three days in an intensive care
unit before succumbing to his injuries, including hack wounds to his skull.
According to the deceased’s brother, Abdullah was locally known for harassing
Christians. He had relocated to Libya for a time but returned two days before
assaulting Kirollos. The Christian himself had been working abroad (in Kuwait)
and was visiting family, when Abdullah knocked him off his motorbike and started
hacking at him. According to the report, “A state of anger prevailed among the
village’s Copts, because the perpetrator, Abdullah Hosni, had previously
assaulted and always harassed Copts, but no action was ever taken against him.”
Mourning Christians attending Kirollos’s funeral were heard to chant “With our
souls, with our blood, we will redeem you, O Cross. The rights of Kirollos must
be returned—and where is the media?”
In a separate but similar incident in Egypt, another Muslim man attempted to
slaughter a Christian woman with a sickle. According to a June 15
Arabic-language report, Qassim Falah Muhammad attacked Mona Wafdi Marzouk, 35,
as she was walking to her family farm early in the morning to assist her sick
and ailing father. Muhammad crept up behind her and began to strangle her; then,
according to the report, “he grabbed a sickle and tried to slaughter her with
it.” Luckily, the blade had dulled over the years and did not fully slice though
the arteries of her neck. Muhammad then fled the scene, as reported by Mona’s
cousin, Makari, who saw the incident from a distance and ran to the butchered
woman’s aid. He and other family members quickly transferred her to the nearest
medical center, where she received seven stitches to her neck. Although she
survived, “Mona lives in a state of terror and panic after the harsh experience
of this extremist person.” While it is unclear why Muhammad targeted Mona, it is
clear and well established that he hates Christians and has targeted them
before. Just the day earlier, he invaded the home of another Copt in the same
village and robbed him of his money and possessions. In response to a police
investigation, Muhammad’s family produced a certificate indicating that he is
“mentally ill”—a tactic on regular display in Egypt whenever a Muslim is caught
after attacking a Christian, to get him the most lenient sentencing. But as the
report notes,
If he is mentally ill, why does he exclusively target Copts? Is it sensible to
promote the ‘psychopath’ narrative in every single incident against the Copts—as
if the mentally ill only see and try to kill Copts?
Muslim Attacks on Christian Churches
Egypt: On the evening of June, 23, 2022, Muslim mobs attacked the homes of
Christians, including by hurling stones through their windows, in al-Hilla, a
village in Luxor governate. This occurred soon after Muslims learned that the
Church of Michael the Archangel, which was originally built in 2003, had finally
received formal recognition to begin functioning as a church. Soon after this
news spread, the angry mobs, which were augmented by others from neighboring
villages, had grown very large and, “amidst hostile chants” began hurling stones
through the windows of Christian homes. According to the report, “the security
force charged with protecting the church tried to rebuff them, but the number of
assailants was too large.” Before peace could be regained, many Christian homes
had been damaged; several vehicles and motorcycles parked in front of Coptic
homes were also “smashed” or set aflame, including the village priest’s vehicle.
On the following day, Friday, June 24, Luxor police forces reinforced their
presence in the village in anticipation of more Muslim anger following Friday
mosque prayers—when imams habitually whip the faithful into a frenzy concerning
the alleged sins of the “infidels” who need to be punished. Armed security and
national forces, including several armored vehicles, were deployed all
throughout the village, especially around the Church of Michael the Archangel,
Christian homes, and surrounding mosques. Meanwhile, and as the report notes,
the traumatized Christians maintain that their “only sin” was to have “obtained
an official decision to legalize the church.”
Sudan: On June 14, police marched into a church Bible study class and arrested
two Christian leaders, Pastor Kabashi Idris of the African Inland Church and
Evangelist Yacoub Ishakh of the Independent Baptist Church, where the Bible
class was being held. They were arrested for “violating public order,” under
Article 77 of Sudan’s penal code. According to their lawyer, [The pastors] were
accused by a radical Muslim neighbor who filed a case against them at the police
station in the area, prompting the police to arrest the two church leaders. The
radical Muslim told police his children were singing the songs of the Christians
and feared they might convert to Christianity.
Although the Christian leaders were released later that day on bail, a guilty
verdict could result in a prison sentence of up to three months, a fine or both,
and the court could issue an order for them to cease worship services. According
to the report, Following two years of advances in religious freedom in Sudan
after the end of the Islamist dictatorship under Omar al-Bashir in 2019, the
specter of state-sponsored persecution returned with a military coup on Oct. 25,
2021. After Bashir was ousted from 30 years of power in April 2019, the
transitional civilian-military government managed to undo some sharia (Islamic
law) provisions. It outlawed the labeling of any religious group “infidels” and
thus effectively rescinded apostasy laws that made leaving Islam punishable by
death. With the Oct. 25 coup, Christians in Sudan fear the return of the most
repressive and harsh aspects of Islamic law.
Turkey: On Sunday, June 5, ceremonies for the reopening of a historic church
were marred after a large Muslim mob attacked a Christian family that had
planned on attending the re-opening service. According to one report,
The Yilmaz family—the only Assyrian [Christian] family who live in the
village—were attacked at their home by a group of around 50 Muslims. The family
were at the time entertaining visiting clergy who had come to officiate at the
service. The attackers were led by a Muslim family with whom the Yilmaz family
have had a long-standing dispute over land. The mob attacked the home with
stones, sticks and other weapons. They then set fire to wheat being grown by the
Yilmaz family.
“They threatened us,” said Cengiz, one of the Christian Yilmaz family, “saying
that they would not let us live in the village … But we are not afraid. We will
continue to stay here.” The Christian family “accused the attackers of
specifically choosing the day of the church ceremony to re-open the land
dispute” and thus spoil the long expected event. Adds the report: The tiny
remnant Christian community in Turkey is mainly historic Christian ethnic groups
such as Assyrians (like the Yilmaz family) and Armenians; they still bear the
trauma of the Armenian, Assyrian, Syriac and Greek genocides of the early
twentieth century. During these genocides, at least 3.75 million believers were
killed by Ottoman Turks, with many attacks occurring in south-eastern Turkey….
In August 2021 an Assyrian Christian village in northern Syria was bombed by the
Turkish air force in a campaign against Kurdish militants.
General Attacks on and Abuse of Christians
Pakistan: On June 6, a 15-year-old Christian girl told a court how she was
kidnapped and raped by a Muslim accused of abducting and forcibly converting her
to Islam and marrying her. “While most girls facing captors’ threats to harm
them or their families are pressured into making false statements that they
voluntarily married and converted to Islam, Saba Nadeem Masih of Faisalabad
showed great bravery in truthfully sharing her ordeal before a judge,” Lala
Robin Daniel, a local human rights advocate said of the young girl: “Saba was in
severe mental and physical trauma when the relatives of the accused produced her
before police on May 31. The recovery was made possible due to the pressure
built by church leaders and rights activists by holding a daily protest from 7
p.m. till midnight.” According to the young girl’s testimony against her
abductor, 45-year-old Muhammad Yasir Hussain, who has since gone into hiding, We
were heading to work when the accused forcibly put me in a rickshaw after
pushing away my sister. He then put something on my mouth due to which I fell
unconscious….. He raped me for two days. I kept crying and pleaded with him to
let me talk to my parents, but he did not listen.
Discussing this case, local human rights activist Lala said:
Today’s development is very important because it exposes how these predators
sexually exploit underage minority girls and then prepare forged documents of
Islamic marriage and religious conversion to seek immunity for their crimes.
Saba’s statement proves that the Islamic Nikah [marriage] and conversion
certificates submitted by the accused to the police are fake. He should now be
charged with statutory rape and related offenses and made an example for all
those who target minority girls for their evil designs.
Discussing this same case, Bishop Azad Marshall, president of the Anglican
Church of Pakistan, said, It’s very sad and tragic that a large number of
teenage girls from both the minority Christian and Hindu communities continue to
suffer sexual exploitation at the hands of these predators, but very few are
able to pull such courage and share their trauma in public…. Rape scars the
victims for life, and in case of girls as young as 10, one cannot even imagine
the pain and horror these children of God have suffered in the cover of
religion. Enough is enough.
In a separate incident in Pakistan, a June 14 report tells the story of Rehmat
Masih, a Christian man who “has been in prison for five months in a new
fabricated blasphemy case. He is accused of profaning and desecrating the pages
of the Koran, but in reality he allegedly simply refused an offer to change
religion. The police also threatened the family, warning them not to prosecute
the case. As a result, he had to move to a safer location.” For the previous 20
years, Rehmat, a 44-year-old father of two teenagers, had worked as a cleaner at
the Zam Zam publishing house, which prints Korans. There, the “owners and
employees had offered him to convert to Islam, but he had repeatedly refused to
change religion.” Shortly after Christmas, 2021, his employers asked him about
some torn pages of a Koran found in the sewage drain; he replied that he knew
nothing about that. A few days later, on January 3, “police arrested Rehmat
Masih, accusing him of committing blasphemy and tortured him severely” in an
effort to make him admit to desecrating the Koran, an offence punishable by life
imprisonment under Section 295-B of the Pakistan Penal Code. On January 19,
2022, a bail application was filed for the defendant, but the judge rejected it.
Rehmat has been in prison since, awaiting his trial. The report closes by
quoting several human rights activists on this situation:
Malook Samuel described it as unthinkable that—with no eyewitnesses to the
alleged event and no evidence—the accused is behind bars, while the complainants
and witnesses involved in making false allegations against the accused enjoy
impunity, and are not instead prosecuted for charges of perjury under Section
182 of the Penal Code, which provides for sentences of five to seven years.
Pastor Tariq George added that it is regrettable that innocent people are being
targeted to settle personal scores, and that this story was created to punish
religious minorities who do not want to change their faith.
Egypt: A June 19 report argues that “institutionalized discrimination against
Copts in Egypt” is even evident in that nation’s diplomatic corps, based on an
evaluation of 155 diplomats:
Copts, the indigenous Christian inhabitants of Egypt, account for, at the very
least, 10 percent of Egypt’s population, and should, therefore, account for, at
the very least, 10 percent of Egypt’s diplomatic corps [though they are nowhere
near that amount]. Nor is such discrimination limited to diplomatic corps; it
permeates every state institution. As one recent example, on March 3, 98 female
judges took the legal oath in preparation for assuming judicial roles in Egypt’s
State Council. This was considered a major and unprecedented development; since
its inception 75 years earlier, not a single woman had sat on the podium of the
State Council court—and now 98 will. And yet, not one of them is a
Christian—again, despite the fact that the Copts account for at least 10 percent
of the nation’s population, suggesting that at least 10 of the 98 should have,
for proper representation, been Copts.
*Raymond Ibrahim, author of the new book, Defenders of the West: The Christian
Heroes Who Stood Against Islam, is a Distinguished Senior Fellow at the
Gatestone Institute, a Shillman Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center, and
a Judith Rosen Friedman Fellow at the Middle East Forum.
About this Series
The persecution of Christians in the Islamic world has become endemic.
Accordingly, “Muslim Persecution of Christians” was developed in 2011 to collate
some—by no means all—of the instances of persecution that occur or are reported
each month. It serves two purposes:
1)To document that which the mainstream media does not: the habitual, if not
chronic, persecution of Christians.
2)To show that such persecution is not “random,” but systematic and
interrelated—that it is rooted in a worldview inspired by Islamic Sharia.
Accordingly, whatever the anecdote of persecution, it typically fits under a
specific theme, including hatred for churches and other Christian symbols;
apostasy, blasphemy, and proselytism laws that criminalize and sometimes punish
with death those who “offend” Islam; sexual abuse of Christian women; forced
conversions to Islam; theft and plunder in lieu of jizya (financial tribute
expected from non-Muslims); overall expectations for Christians to behave like
cowed dhimmis, or second-class, “tolerated” citizens; and simple violence and
murder. Sometimes it is a combination thereof.
Because these accounts of persecution span different ethnicities, languages, and
locales—from Morocco in the West, to Indonesia in the East—it should be clear
that one thing alone binds them: Islam—whether the strict application of Islamic
Sharia law, or the supremacist culture born of it.
https://www.raymondibrahim.com/2022/08/25/father-blinds-daughter-so-she-can-stop-seeing-churches-forever-muslim-persecution-of-christians-june-2022/
سياسة بايدن اللامبالية منحت إيران اليد العليا في العراق
ديفيد شينكر/معهد واشنطن وفورن بوليسي/25 آب/2022
Biden’s Indifference Has Given Iran the
Upper Hand in Iraq
David Schenker/Foreign policy and Washington Institute/August 25/2022
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/111476/%d8%af%d9%8a%d9%81%d9%8a%d8%af-%d8%b4%d9%8a%d9%86%d9%83%d8%b1-%d8%b3%d9%8a%d8%a7%d8%b3%d8%a9-%d8%a8%d8%a7%d9%8a%d8%af%d9%86-%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%84%d8%a7%d9%85%d8%a8%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%8a%d8%a9-%d9%85%d9%86/
In light of Tehran’s concerted efforts to reverse last year’s electoral setback,
it has become too risky to let Baghdad’s nascent democracy simply fend for
itself.
About six weeks ago, U.S. President Joe Biden boasted in the Washington Post
that the Middle East was “more stable and secure” than when he inherited the
region from his predecessor, Donald Trump. Among other examples, Biden named
Iraq, where rocket attacks against U.S. troops and diplomats had diminished.
While he’s correct that fewer Americans have been targeted, this single metric
alone is hardly enough to support his claim of stability. By nearly every other
measure, Iraq is less stable today than in January 2021—and U.S. interests there
more threatened.
It’s a remarkable turn of events. Just 10 months ago, Iraq improbably appeared
poised to form a government committed to diminishing the destructive role played
by Iran-backed militias and enforcing Iraqi sovereignty against its bigger
neighbor. Now, Iran’s political allies in Iraq have the upper hand, the
country’s fragile democracy is threatened as never before, and, for the first
time in a decade, violence even among Shiite groups is a possibility.
It didn’t have to be this way. The big winner in last October’s parliamentary
elections was Moqtada al-Sadr, a populist Shiite cleric who during the campaign
called for an Iraq dominated by neither Washington nor Tehran. Sadr’s alliance
secured a plurality of the 329 seats in the Council of Representatives,
defeating Iranian-backed Shiite Islamist parties that represent the political
arms of the militias known as the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).
Sadr is no panacea. Following the 2003 U.S. invasion, Sadr’s Mahdi Army became a
leading adversary of the U.S. presence in Iraq, and the cleric was nearly killed
by U.S. forces. More recently, though, Sadr has positioned himself as a
nationalist, an anti-corruption crusader, and a critic of PMF military activity
in Iraq targeting U.S. diplomatic and military personnel.
To be sure, we do not know whether the mercurial cleric, once in power, would
eventually have opted for an Iranian-style theocracy, with himself as the
self-styled supreme leader. In the wake of the election, at least, Sadr was
poised to establish a majoritarian government coalition of Shiites, Sunnis, and
Kurds that excluded Iranian-backed parties. He and his parliamentary allies
might have been able to exert Iraqi sovereignty and fight corruption—a major
goal of a massive countrywide protest movement in 2019.
That government never materialized. Government formation was delayed by Iran’s
allies: PMF groups Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada, and Kataib
Hezbollah reportedly threatened to overrun the government, attempted to
assassinate Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, rained down rockets and drones on
the Kurds, and bombed the home of the speaker of parliament, Mohamed al-Halbousi.
Admittedly, Sadr and his Kurdish partners didn’t exactly seize their moment, but
at least they were making slow progress.
Then the Iran-backed Coordination Framework coalition—Sadr’s Shiite
rivals—played their ace card. To prevent Sadr, the Kurds, and Sunnis, who had
secured a majority of the seats in parliament, from selecting a prime minister
and cabinet, the Iran-backed opposition used their control of the corrupt
judiciary to move the goalposts. The Federal Supreme Court ruled that now—for
the first time—not just a simple majority but a two-thirds supermajority would
be needed to form a government. Unable to reach that threshold, Sadr’s 73
members of parliament resigned en masse in June, and their seats were
reallocated to Iran-aligned parties.
Who masterminded this judicial coup? None other than Nouri al-Maliki, who served
as premier from 2006 to 2014 and is best known for his prodigious corruption and
vicious sectarianism, which in no small part contributed to the rise of the
Islamic State. In January 2021, he reportedly narrowly escaped being sanctioned
by the Trump administration. As kingmaker, Maliki would once again be pulling
the strings.
Sadr and Maliki have been rivals for the mantle of Shiite leadership in Iraq
since at least 2008, when government forces led by Maliki attacked and defeated
Sadr’s Mahdi Army in the Battle of Basra. Given this history of bad blood, Sadr
responded to the Coordination Framework’s July 25 nomination of a Maliki
ally—Mohammed Shia al-Sudani—for prime minister by directing his supporters to
occupy the parliament and prevent a vote for prime minister, which they duly
did. It was as if Sadr had taken a page from the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrectionists
in Washington.
Today, Sadrists no longer inhabit the legislature but continue to camp out in
the International Zone just across from the parliament, blocking Sudani’s
election. Meanwhile, Sadr is calling for the dissolution of parliament and for
early elections to be held under a revised election law—demands opposed by the
Iran-backed Coordination Framework. As the impasse drags on, tensions among
Iraq’s Shiites are spiking. Regardless of how the standoff is resolved, Iran
will likely emerge with a strengthened position in Baghdad, thwarting the will
of an Iraqi electorate that overwhelmingly voted for change last October.
To be sure, it’s not clear that Washington could have prevented this outcome. In
any event, it doesn’t appear that the administration made any concerted effort
to forestall this scenario. In nearly nine months between the elections and the
Sadr deputies’ walkout, public records show, senior U.S. State Department and
National Security Council officials visited Iraq only twice, and Secretary of
State Antony Blinken made just a small handful of calls to Iraqi decision-makers
in an attempt to affect developments on the ground. The excellent new U.S.
ambassador to Iraq, Alina Romanowski, may have pressed the cause after her
arrival in Baghdad this June as well. But by all appearances, she did so without
sufficient backing from Washington.
The absence of high-level administration engagement in Iraq’s post-election
attempts to form a government was not an oversight but a purposeful decision. As
one anonymous senior Biden administration official said rather indifferently
last December, their plan was to “leave it to the Iraqis to sort out.”
Washington doesn’t typically weigh in on election outcomes in foreign countries,
preferring instead to focus on supporting institutions. Regrettably, Iraqi is
not a typical case, given that its fledgling democracy has been struggling to
survive under the pressure of Iran’s long arm in Iraq, the approximately
100,000-strong PMF militia. Elections in Iraq could ultimately have contributed
toward weakening Iran’s stranglehold, but U.S. disengagement during the
government formation process left a void eagerly filled by Tehran.
Meanwhile, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps chief Esmail Qaani and other senior
Iranian officials visited Iraq no fewer than 10 times in recent months to
threaten, cajole, and convince their local partners and adversaries how to sort
out the next government. While the number of visits alone doesn’t measure U.S.
interest, the disparity does suggest that Washington’s approach was
laissez-faire. The administration did not employ Washington’s diplomatic and
economic leverage to protect a process under attack from Tehran.
All this matters because Iraq is important to the United States and its
interests in the region. Not only did thousands of Americans lose life and limb
to help build a post-Saddam Hussein Iraq, but, unlike Afghanistan, Iraq really
is a counterterrorism partner with a real chance at becoming a full-fledged
democracy. The country stands on vital geostrategic territory, holds the world’s
fifth-largest oil reserves, and is on the front line against Iran’s effort to
expand its influence throughout the Middle East.
As Washington appears to inch closer to a nuclear deal with Tehran, countering
the latter’s meddling in Baghdad has taken on added urgency—both for the United
States and for its regional partners. After Iraqis bravely voted for parties
opposed to Iranian domination, the Biden administration’s subsequent hands-off
approach to the government formation process has allowed the mullahs to steal
victory from the jaws of defeat. Inexplicably, it appears that Iraq—where the
United States has fought two major wars in recent decades—is no longer a
priority for Washington. Unfortunately, it is for Tehran.
*David Schenker is the Taube Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute and
former assistant secretary for Near Eastern affairs at the State Department.
This article was originally published on the Foreign Policy website.