English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For August 28/2022
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news

The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/aaaanewsfor2021/english.august28.22.htm

News Bulletin Achieves Since 2006
Click Here to enter the LCCC Arabic/English news bulletins Achieves since 2006

Bible Quotations For today
The Parable of the Sower/But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.
Luke08/04-15/And when much people were gathered together, and were come to him out of every city, he spake by a parable: A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it. And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it. And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. And his disciples asked him, saying, What might this parable be? And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand. Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.

Question: “How can I evangelize my friends and family without pushing them away?”
GotQuestions.org/August 27/2022
Answer: At some point, every Christian has had a family member, a friend, co-worker, or acquaintance who is not a Christian. Sharing the gospel with others can be difficult, and it can become even more difficult when it involves someone with whom we have close emotional ties. The Bible tells us that some people will be offended at the gospel (Luke 12:51–53). However, we are commanded to share the gospel, and there is no excuse for not doing so (Matthew 28:19–20; Acts 1:8; 1 Peter 3:15).
So, how can we evangelize our family members, friends, co-workers, and acquaintances? The most important thing we can do is pray for them. Pray that God would change their hearts and open their eyes to the truth of the gospel (2 Corinthians 4:4). Pray that God would convince them of His love for them and their need for salvation through Jesus Christ (John 3:16). Pray for wisdom as to how to best minister to them (James 1:5).
We must be willing and bold in our actual sharing of the gospel. Proclaim the message of salvation through Jesus Christ to your friends and family (Romans 10:9–10). Always be prepared to speak of your faith (1 Peter 3:15), doing so with gentleness and respect. There is no substitute for personally sharing the gospel: “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ” (Romans 10:17).
In addition to praying and sharing our faith, we must also live godly Christian lives in front of our friends and family members so they can see the change God has made in us (1 Peter 3:1–2). Ultimately, we must leave the salvation of our loved ones up to God. It is God’s power and grace that saves people, not our efforts. The best we can do is pray for them, witness to them, and live the Christian life in front of them. It is God who gives the increase (1 Corinthians 3:6).

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on August 27-28/2022
Presidency Press Office: Some politicians and media professionals have reached the extent of incitement and inciting sectarian strife to serve the...
Submarine finds 10 bodies on Lebanon's sunken migrant ship
Lebanese plane makes emergency landing in Athens
Lebanese singer George al-Rassi dies in tragic car crash
Lebanon officials battle to resolve power crisis
MoPH: 638 new Coronavirus infections, two deaths
Strong Republic bloc MPS launch a law proposal to turn Bisri meadow into a nature reserve
Salam: Ministry of Economy implementing Digital Governance, a major quality transformation for supervisory and administrative work
Education and Culture - Education Ministry denies news of distributing money to encourage learning
Khoury: I support judges' demands
Halabi: No integration of Syrians into official education before noon
The Sharia Sunni Council supports Mikati: We are keen on powers
Lebanon seeks urgent solution to electricity crisis to avoid blackout

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 27-28/2022
Pope expands ranks of cardinals who’ll likely pick successor
UN report says Arab region is the most unequal worldwide
Macron visits famed Disco Maghreb record shop on Algeria trip
German tourist detained in Iran — Berlin
Russia blocks adoption at UN of nuclear disarmament text
Israel expects re-appointment of ambassador to Turkey ‘within weeks’
Iraqi PM: Political crisis undermining security achievements
Iran-US skirmishes highlight fierce rivalry in eastern Syria
Wives, widows of Syrian detainees lead shackled life
Ukraine nuclear plant back online as inspection prepared
Risk of radioactive leak at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, operator says
Libya clashes kill 13, spark fears of new war
US approves sale of radio systems to strategic ally, Morocco

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on August 27-28/2022
Still More Dangerous New Concessions by Biden Administration for a Nuclear Deal with Iran's Mullahs/Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/August 27/ 2022
What are the chances of a meeting between Putin and Zelensky?/Dr. Diana Galeeva/Arab News/August 27/ 2022
Iraq gets deeper and deeper into a political quagmire/Hafed Al-Ghwell/Arab News/August 27/ 2022
Europe emerges as an anchor for a potential nuclear deal with Iran/Andrew Hammond/Arab News/August 27/ 2022

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on August 27-28/2022
Presidency Press Office: Some politicians and media professionals have reached the extent of incitement and inciting sectarian strife to serve the...
NNA/August 27/2022
The Presidency Press Office issued the following statement:
“Since the beginning of the search for the formation of a new government, the visual, audio and written media have been alternately publishing news, analyzes and articles ascribing to the President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, positions, steps, and procedures that are in fact an allegation of reading intentions, on one hand, and pure fabrication and slander on the other.  Again, within the framework of the ongoing plan to target the position of the Presidency of the Republic and the person of the President, by saying that he has a desire to disrupt the formation of the government at times, or to bypass the constitution with regard to the end of his term at other times. The Presidency Press Office refutes all these slanders, which some politicians and media professionals continue to promote imaginative scenarios with the aim of further insulting and deceiving public opinion at home and abroad.
The Presidency of the Republic always goes beyond such insults and lies, and is satisfied from time to time by clarifying its positions, but the matter has reached some politicians and media people to the point of provoking sectarian strife, through suspicious calls for political and religious references to “not remain silent about the dangerous tampering with the Constitution and the sect”.
Any coup adventures, or other inflammatory expressions that clearly reveal the intentions of those who seek to mislead and try to fabricate sedition to serve their known goals, and to pay bills to the parties behind them inside and outside Lebanon, which use them to strike stability and further weaken the state’s national and security unity, after these parties succeeded in exhausting the state economically and financially, and the multifaceted life crises that resulted from that.
The Presidency of the Republic affirms that all published jurisprudence, interpretations and allegations related to the positions of the President of the Republic, his decisions and the steps he intends to take before the end of his term, are a mixture of lies and slander that cannot be relied upon.
The Presidency of the Republic also warns against the persistence of some in planting false news and information, sectarian incitement, misleading public opinion, and targeting the country’s security and stability, and stresses that these attempts have become exposed and those behind them are known.
The Press Office calls on the Lebanese to be aware of the malicious intentions of their paid owners and those responsible for major crimes committed against the rights of the Lebanese, and they themselves, however, cling to playing suspicious roles, and their past and present are the best evidence.
The Presidency of the Republic asserts that President Aoun's positions regarding the formation of the new government are based on his firm conviction of the need to protect national partnership, preserve the charter, and provide positive climates that contribute to facing the difficult circumstances the country is going through.  As for presidential elections, the President of the Republic, who took an oath without any other official, has demonstrated throughout his rule his commitment to the provisions of the Constitution. The President had exercised his full powers based on these principles, and he has never been accustomed to breaking his oath. And in the hope that the foregoing will put an end to the slander, lies and fabricated narratives circulated by the media and some political forums, it may be useful to recall what was said in the old days: “Errant wieners are the ones who tell the president what he didn’t say, and blame him for actions he didn’t do”.

Submarine finds 10 bodies on Lebanon's sunken migrant ship
Associated Press/August 27/2022
A submarine has found the remains of at least 10 migrants who drowned when their boat sank earlier this year off the coast of Lebanon with about 30 people on board, the navy announced. The boat, carrying dozens of Lebanese, Syrians and Palestinians trying to migrate by sea to Italy, went down more than 5 kilometers from the port of Tripoli, following a confrontation with the Lebanese navy. Ten bodies were recovered that night, including one of a child, while 48 survivors were pulled from the Mediterranean Sea. According to navy estimates, 30 people were believed to have gone down with the boat. Since Monday, the small, 3-person underwater craft -- a Pisces VI submarine -- has been searching for the remains. The wreck was located on Wednesday, at a depth of some 450 meters (about 1,470 feet). The circumstances of the vessel's sinking are disputed to this day. Survivors say their vessel was rammed by the Lebanese navy, while the military claims the migrants' boat collided with a navy vessel while trying to get away. Capt. Scott Waters, who operated the craft, told reporters at a press conference in Tripoli Friday that the first body they found was outside the wreck but much of it had decayed since the sinking, with mostly bits of clothing and some bones remaining intact. He said the second body was found coming up from the wreckage. Waters said the crew identified four more bodies inside the wreckage and a substantial amount of debris around the vessel. At least four other bodies were found away from the wreck. Some of the people who tried to escape the boat, he assumed, got "tangled in that debris.""One of the very last footage and images we took," he added, was of the remains of a person, an arm around another. "They died holding each other."
Tom Zreika, a Lebanese-Australian and the chairman of Australian charity AusRelief that helped bring the submarine to Lebanon, said the boat was a "fair degree under silt," making it difficult to retrieve it. Zreika said what's next is for Lebanon to bring the sunken boat out but that remains a difficult task. Lebanon's navy chief, Col. Haitham Dinnawi, said all the video footage from Waters' crew will be handed over to the judiciary as it investigates the sinking.
Tripoli lawmaker Ashraf Rifi helped lease the submarine for cash-strapped Lebanon through Zreika and his own brother, Jamal Rifi, who lives in Sydney. Rifi and Zreika told The Sydney Morning Herald last month that an anonymous donor had given just over $295,000 to lease the submarine. The April sinking was the greatest migrant tragedy for Lebanon in recent years and put the government further on the defensive at a time when the country is in economic free fall and public trust in the state and its institutions is rapidly crumbling. With a population of about 6 million people, including 1 million Syrian refugees, Lebanon has been mired since 2019 in an economic meltdown that has plunged three quarters of the population into poverty. Once a country that received refugees, Lebanon has become a launching pad for dangerous migration by sea to Europe. As the crisis deepened, more Lebanese, as well as Syrian and Palestinian refugees have set off to sea, with security agencies reporting foiled migration attempts almost weekly.

Lebanese plane makes emergency landing in Athens
Naharnet/August 27/2022
A plane belonging to Middle East Airlines -- Lebanon’s national carrier -- made an emergency landing overnight in Athens due to an engine malfunction. The plane took off from Beirut and was headed for the Heathrow Airport in London. “All of the plane’s passengers were evacuated and they are all doing well,” Al-Arabiya TV reported. In a phone call with al-Jadeed TV, Civil Aviation Director General Fadi al-Hassan said the plane returned to Beirut on Saturday with no passengers on board. “The passengers who were on board were transferred to another plane and they have now become in London,” al-Hassan added.

Lebanese singer George al-Rassi dies in tragic car crash
Naharnet/August 27/2022
Lebanese singer George al-Rassi was killed at dawn Saturday in a car crash in the al-Masnaa area following his return from a concert in neighboring Syria. He was 39 years old. The National News Agency said al-Rassi’s car crashed into a median divider. A woman accompanying al-Rassi, identified by media reports as Zeina al-Merehbi, also died in the crash. Civil Defense members used special tools to pull the two bodies out of the badly damaged car. Al-Rassi is the brother of Lebanese actress Nadine al-Rassi.

Lebanon officials battle to resolve power crisis
Gulf Daily News Online/August 27/2022
BEIRUT: Authorities in Lebanon are racing against the clock to resolve an electricity crisis that threatens to plunge the country into total darkness, officials said yesterday, reports Arab News. Utility provider Electricity of Lebanon said it was “fighting tooth and nail” to find a solution before the lights go out at Beirut’s airport, port and presidential palace. The problem arose after Al Zahrani power plant ran out of gas oil and ceased operations. Roumieh Central Prison is also on the brink of darkness. The families of its inmates blocked a road in Baalbek on Friday in protest against the situation. They said their relatives had been deprived of food since catering companies stopped supplying prisons. A source from EDL said the company was now set to use grade B gas oil instead of grade A, after the idea was approved by its board of directors, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Energy Minister Walid Fayad. The plan also requires the use of the remaining diesel from the Tyre thermal power plant, so EDL can restart the Zouk thermal power plant today. The authorities also agreed to reduce the production at Al Zahrani plant from about 200 megawatts to 40 MW to provide electricity to the airport, port, Roumieh prison, water pumps, sewers, Lebanese University, parliament, government headquarters and the presidential palace. EDL said it was awaiting delivery of a gas oil shipment from Iraq but that could take between 20 and 30 days to arrive. Electricity production at EDL’s plants has been dependent on the Lebanese-Iraqi agreement, as the dates for when electricity from Jordan will arrive and the extraction of natural gas from Egypt will begin are still unknown. Funding for both projects has yet to be secured by the relevant authorities. After meeting President Michel Aoun yesterday to discuss the crisis, Fayad said resolving the problem would require the use of the gas oil from Al Jiyeh and Zouk power plants.

MoPH: 638 new Coronavirus infections, two deaths
NNA/August 27/ 2022
Lebanon has recorded 638 new coronavirus cases and two deaths within the last 24 hours, as reported by the Ministry of Public Health on Saturday.

Strong Republic bloc MPS launch a law proposal to turn Bisri meadow into a nature reserve
NNA/August 27/2022
Strong Republic Bloc MPs, announced that they submitted a proposal to the House of Representatives to turn Bisri meadow into a nature reserve. MP George Adwan denounced, during a press conference, the policy of random dams, which proved the failure of the dams experiment. He explained that "opposition to the dam was based on practical matters, and all environmental and technical data did not allow the dam to be built first, especially since no study of its environmental impact was conducted." He concluded by saying: “We have to cooperate in constructive projects to build a homeland, and we want to turn this green area into a real paradise."

Salam: Ministry of Economy implementing Digital Governance, a major quality transformation for supervisory and administrative work
NNA/August 27/2022
Minister of Economy and Trade Amin Salam announced that the ministry and UNDP will begin work on the Digital Transformation Project of the Consumer Protection Directorate, funded by the Lebanon Recovery Fund, a multi-partner trust fund established to support recovery and reconstruction efforts.
This initiative comes as part of the efforts of the Ministry of Economy and Trade to accelerate digital transformation at the national level, and as a practical translation of the digital transformation strategy approved by the Council of Ministers on May 12, 2022.
The initiative also comes at a time when Lebanon continues to suffer the consequences of economic and financial crises including inflation and significantly high prices in all consumer goods and services, as well as disruption of supplies of some of the most important goods and utility services such as electricity and water. Salam said: “Despite limited capabilities and resources, the Ministry's Consumer Protection Directorate has played a crucial national role in the past two years to ensure that consumers, especially vulnerable groups, have access to safe and affordable goods as well as basic facilities services. It has seen an increase in licensing applications from the private sector to provide these services, to fill the growing gap caused by the weakness of the public sector. The Directorate also plays a crucial role in ensuring the timely and safe entry of imported goods into the country.” Salam added: “The digital transformation project of the Consumer Protection Directorate will be one of the first and most important national projects aimed at digitizing key administrative functions and will constitute a qualitative leap for the supervisory directorate's work. As part of this initiative, processes will be streamlined and accelerated, with the aim of reducing the time required for businesses and merchants to apply for licenses, improving the time required to ensure the safety of imported goods for local consumption and use, and ensuring that consumer complaints and regulatory workflows are promptly responded to in an effective, timely and transparent manner.”The digitization of administrative transactions and processes is an essential and critical start to advancing the government’s digital transformation agenda and should ideally pave the way for broader digitization efforts across other government functions.

Education and Culture - Education Ministry denies news of distributing money to encourage learning
NNA/August 27/2022
The Media Bureau of the Ministry of Education & Higher Learning denied, in a statement, distributing a sum of money to every citizen to encourage education. "One of the social networking sites published that the Ministry of Education distributes a sum of money to every citizen in order to encourage education.... Accordingly, the office categorically denies this news, and warns citizens against circulating these rumors," the statement said. The statement confirmed that the ministry will pursue the owner of the website and the promoters of these rumors before the competent judiciary.

Khoury: I support judges' demands
NNA/August 27/2022
Caretaker Justice Minister Henry El Khoury confirmed to Radio Free Lebanon that "the judges are not amateurs of seclusion, as the judiciary has been fighting existential battles since independence until today.""I am with the judges' demands. In the exceptional circumstances we live in, I am not against everyone who takes his right," the minister said. Khoury indicated that today's meeting with President Najib Mikati will be a review to discuss most of the issues and solutions in which the ministry will play a major role. He expressed his hope that the judges would suspend their strike, stressing that the ministry was working to achieve their demands.

Halabi: No integration of Syrians into official education before noon
NNA/August 27/2022
Caretaker Minister of Higher Education Abbas Al-Halabi confirmed that Lebanon will not integrate Syrian students into formal education before noon, stressing that this matter is not on the ministry's agenda. "This case is a conspiracy against formal education to discourage parents from enrolling their children in government schools," he said, stressing that funding for the education of the displaced is available from international institutions. Al-Halabi revealed, during an interview, that he will visit Al-Diman next week to discuss with the Patriarch the issues of installments in dollars and educational curricula.

The Sharia Sunni Council supports Mikati: We are keen on powers
National News Agency/August 27/2022
The Supreme Islamic Sharia Council held its regular session at Dar Al-Fatwa headed by the Mufti of the Republic, Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian, and discussed Islamic and national affairs and the latest developments on the Lebanese arena. In a statement, the Sharia Council indicated that it “was waiting for a long time in front of an abnormal phenomenon represented in circumventing the issue of electing a new president of the republic and taking care of an artificial issue to form a new government, or amending the current government headed by President Najib Mikati.” The statement added: “The Legitimate Council affirms that Lebanon needs a new president for the republic, especially after a series of pitfalls and regressive stances from the spirit of the Lebanese constitution, the Taif Agreement, and the charter of coexistence. These values ​​and principles, sometimes by challenging and circumventing the legitimacy of the current government, and at other times by putting forward slogans of sectarian and sectarian representation.”
He continued, "The constitutional references in Lebanon showed how these deliberately obstructive stances on the role of the government and the holding of the presidential elections on time constitute a violation of the constitution and the Taif Agreement." He also called on the Sharia Council to respect the constitutional texts, warning that “circumventing these texts under any pretext will only lead to more troubles and turmoil that push Lebanon toward the abyss, instead of extricating it from its suffering.” He appealed to "all political forces for cooperation, solidarity and unity to find effective national solutions for the birth of the government," considering that "the formula presented by the President-designate to the President of the Republic to form the government is the fruit of the meetings, contacts and consultations that President Najib Mikati conducted with the political forces and all parliamentary blocs to complete the formation of the government, which is The first step is on the right path to saving the country.”
The Sharia Council renewed "its support and support for President Mikati in his efforts to form a government and in the steps he is taking for the sake of his country and people." He pointed out that “he is keen on the powers of the prime minister in exercising the tasks entrusted to him and specified for him in the constitution and the Taif Agreement, especially with regard to the formation of the government. The narrow calculations in it should be lifted.” The Council expressed its “great pain at the failure of state agencies to address the suffocating living crisis that the Lebanese suffer from, whether in terms of the unaccountable rise in the dollar exchange rate, and consequently the rise in food prices.” The most dangerous of these is school and university fees, which are now paid in both Lebanese and American currencies. In this context, he called on all officials to “pay attention, attention and effective treatment to these living, social and life issues, instead of revolving in vicious circles of accusations and counter accusations. The citizen wants bread, not fanfare. He wants a decent life, medicine and treatment, not false promises.” In addition, the Sharia Council stressed that “the issue of the displaced Syrians is a Lebanese, Arab and international issue and requires more efforts to put an end to the tragedy that Lebanon cannot bear alone, which calls for Arab and international support for Lebanon in this humanitarian issue.” He stressed that "exposing the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries from time to time is unacceptable and constitutes a condemnation of Lebanon, which is keen on its relations with the Arab Gulf countries, with which we want our relations to be at the best level, and any threat to the Saudi embassy or any other Arab embassy is a threat to national security." and peace in Lebanon, and this is with the care of the competent security services, whose performance we trust.” The Sharia Council appealed to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz, and his Crown Prince, Muhammad bin Salman, and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, "not to abandon Lebanon and leave it in its ordeal. Lebanon is Arab in identity and belonging, and it will only be with its Arab brothers." The statement concluded: “On the occasion of the anniversary of the Israeli aggression on Al-Aqsa Mosque and the continuation of this aggression day after day, and week after week, the Council calls upon the countries of the Islamic world, especially the League of Arab States and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, to work on implementing the decisions previously issued by Arab and Islamic summit conferences regarding Liberation of Arab and Islamic holy sites from the clutches of the Zionist occupation.”

Lebanon seeks urgent solution to electricity crisis to avoid blackout
Najia Houssari/Arab News/August 27/ 2022
BEIRUT: Authorities in Lebanon are racing against the clock to resolve an electricity crisis that threatens to plunge the country into total darkness, officials said on Friday. Utility provider Electricity of Lebanon said it was “fighting tooth and nail” to find a solution before the lights go out at Beirut’s airport, port and presidential palace. The problem arose after Al-Zahrani power plant ran out of gas oil and ceased operations. Roumieh Central Prison is also on the brink of darkness. The families of its inmates blocked a road in Baalbek on Friday in protest against the situation. They said their relatives had been deprived of food since catering companies stopped supplying prisons.
Relatives of victims of the deadly 2020 Beirut Port explosion hold portraits of their lost loved ones as they block a main highway near the port. (AP)
A source from EDL said the company was now set to use grade B gas oil instead of grade A, after the idea was approved by its board of directors, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Energy Minister Walid Fayad.
The plan also requires the use of the remaining diesel from the Tyre thermal power plant, so EDL can restart the Zouk thermal power plant on Saturday.
HIGHLIGHTS
• Utility provider EDL’s board of directors issued a decision to increase the tariff in parallel with the increase of electricity hours.
• The matter required the approval of the finance minister and the government, Energy Minister Walid Fayad said.
• Fayad said that the go-ahead could be given in exceptional circumstances by the president and caretaker prime minister.
The authorities also agreed to reduce the production at Al-Zahrani plant from about 200 megawatts to 40 MW to provide electricity to the airport, port, Roumieh prison, water pumps, sewers, Lebanese University, parliament, government headquarters and the presidential palace.
EDL said it was awaiting delivery of a gas oil shipment from Iraq but that could take between 20 and 30 days to arrive.
Electricity production at EDL’s plants has been dependent on the Lebanese-Iraqi agreement, as the dates for when electricity from Jordan will arrive and the extraction of natural gas from Egypt will begin are still unknown.
Funding for both projects has yet to be secured by the relevant authorities.
After meeting President Michel Aoun on Friday to discuss the crisis, Fayad said resolving the problem would require the use of the gas oil from Al-Jiyeh and Zouk power plants. The meeting discussed the possibility of renewing the Iraqi deal, allowing Lebanon to receive 1 million additional tons of fuel after the first quantity ran out, he said. Such a quantity would secure about three hours of electricity, he added. Fayad said authorities were previously relying on the World Bank, the Egyptian gas and electricity from Jordan. But he added that the World Bank imposed new conditions, including increasing the tariff, developing a plan to cover the cost and carrying out procedures for the establishment of the regulatory body.
EDL’s board of directors issued a decision to increase the tariff in parallel with the increase of electricity hours. The matter required the approval of the finance minister and the government, Fayad said, adding that the go-ahead could be given in exceptional circumstances by the president and caretaker prime minister.
Fayad said Iraq would provide about 40,000 tons but Lebanon would still need about 110,000 tons so a separate deal would have to be reached with another country. Algeria had expressed its readiness to help in that regard, he added.
Concerns have also been raised about a possible interruption of the telecommunications sector despite it having its own generators. Caretaker Telecommunications Minister Johnny Corm confirmed on Friday that the sector did not rely on EDL to operate.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 27-28/2022
Pope expands ranks of cardinals who’ll likely pick successor
AP/August 27/2022
Pope Francis elevated 20 more churchmen to the rank of cardinal on Saturday, formally expanding those now eligible to vote for his successor in case he dies or resigns — the latter a step he has said he’d consider if the need arises. Of the churchmen being named new cardinals in the consistory ceremony in St. Peter’s Basilica, 16 are younger than 80 and thus eligible to participate in a conclave — the ritual-shrouded, locked-door assembly of cardinals who cast paper ballots to elect a new pontiff. The 85-year-old Francis has now named 83 of the 132 cardinals currently young enough to join a conclave. The others were appointed by the previous two popes, St. John Paul II and Benedict XVI, whose unexpected retirement in 2013 paved the way for Francis to be elected. With the eight batches of cardinals Francis has named, prospects are boosted that whoever becomes the next pontiff will share his vision for the future of the church. Francis reminded the cardinals of their mission, which he said includes “an openness to all peoples, to the horizons of the world, to the peripheries as yet unknown.” Underlining Francis’ attention to those on society’s margins, among the new cardinals is Archbishop Anthony Poola of Hyderabad, India. The prelate, 60, is the first member of the Dalit community, considered the lowest rung of India’s caste system, to become a cardinal.
One by one, the cardinals, whose red cassocks and headgear symbolizes the blood they must be prepared to shed if necessary in their mission, knelt before Francis, who placed on their head the prestigious biretta, as the three-peaked hat is known. That intimate moment was a chance to exchange a few words with Francis, who smiled to put them at ease. At times, the seated Francis, himself hobbled by mobility problems, lent his own arms to help kneeling cardinals stand up. In choosing San Diego Bishop Robert Walter McElroy, Francis passed over U.S. churchmen leading traditionally more prestigious dioceses, including San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone. McElroy has been among a minority of American bishops who opposed to a campaign to deny Communion to Catholic politicians who support abortion rights. Cordileone has said he’d no long allow U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to receive Communion for her defense of abortion rights.While staunchly against abortion as a grave sin, Francis has also decried what he calls the weaponization of Communion.
McElroy last year was also among a small group of U.S. bishops signing a statement denouncing the bullying that is often directed at LGBTQ youth. Francis has tried to make gay Catholics feel welcome in the church, whose teaching holds that same-sex intercourse is a sin.
Among the newest cardinals is Bishop Richard Kuuia Baawobr from Wa, Ghana, who has spoken out against LGBTQ rights.Asked by The Associated Press about such contrasting views among church leaders, McElroy replied that “there are always cultural differences within the life of the church as there is within in the human family. And different cultures approach these questions in different ways.” McElroy added: “My own view is that we have an obligation in the church to make the LGBT persons feel equally welcome in the life of the church, as everyone else.” With electing future pontiffs a key role for cardinals, McElroy, 68, was asked what he thought of Francis’ saying that resignation for popes is a valid option. “In principle, I think it is a good idea at a particular moment when they feel they can no longer carry the burdens of that office, but I think this pope is far from that moment,” the U.S. prelate said. “I believe he sees himself as far from that moment. What he has is a mobility issue, but it has not affected his mind. I can tell you he is still on top of things.” Archbishop Ulrich Steiner of Manaus, Brazil, became the first cardinal from the Amazon, the vast, environmentally-vulnerable region in South America on the Argentine-born pontiff’s home continent. In remarks to The AP, Steiner expressed concern about increasing violence in the Amazon. “But this violence was not born there, it came from outside,″ Steiner, 71, said. ”It is always violence related to money. Concessions, deforestation, also with the mines, also with the fishing.” At 48, the youngest member among the cardinals’ ranks is an Italian missionary in Mongolia, where Catholics number some 1,300. Francis “knows how important it is supporting these little communities,″ said the new cardinal, Giorgio Marengo. Originally, the pope had picked 21 new cardinals. But retired Belgian Bishop Luc Van Looy declined the honor, citing his own inadequate handling of cases of sexually abusive priests while he led the Ghent diocese from 2004-2020. --- AP

UN report says Arab region is the most unequal worldwide
Arab News/August 27, 2022
The report, called “Inequality in the Arab Region: A ticking time bomb,” said the region had registered some of the highest levels of income inequality globally
It said gender inequality had been systematically above the global average
JEDDAH: The Arab region is the most unequal worldwide, according to a new report from the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, which warned there was a risk of a “breakdown in social cohesion” if inequalities were not addressed. The report, called “Inequality in the Arab Region: A ticking time bomb,” said the region had registered some of the highest levels of income inequality globally. In some countries, the top 10 percent of earners accounted for more than 60 percent of national income, compared with 52 percent globally, 55 percent in Latin America, and 36 percent in Europe. Factors driving inequality included demographic dynamics, poor education, the digital divide, weak institutions, corruption and lack of transparency, data deficits, and unaffordable housing. It said gender inequality had been systematically above the global average, with an estimated 179 years needed to close the gender gap compared with 142 years globally. This gender gap was one of the highest worldwide in 2021 at 61 percent, compared with 67.7 percent globally. Youth unemployment, which was 3.8 times higher than that of adult workers, had been the highest globally for the past 25 years.
Unemployment among certain groups, such as women and people with disabilities, was even higher than that of men and people without disabilities. “Such factors, if left unaddressed, will deepen existing inequalities, hitting the poorest and most vulnerable communities hardest. These factors risk inflaming greater disaffection and alienation among Arab populations, resulting in a breakdown of social cohesion,” said UNESCWA executive secretary Rola Dashti. “Despite this bleak picture, Arab populations are optimistic and hopeful. A survey conducted by ESCWA found that 52 percent of people in the region believe that equality exists, either fully or partially, while 47 percent believe that equality will increase in the next five years,” she said. She proposed the establishment of a solidarity fund and a regional coalition to reconnect different population groups across the wealthiest and poorest segments of society to create opportunities. The report said the pandemic had highlighted “deep and long-standing inequalities” across the region, hitting the poorest and most vulnerable communities hardest. It pushed an additional 16 million people into poverty, increasing the number of poor in the region to over 116 million, almost a quarter of the population. People in the informal sector, vulnerable workers, women, young people, less-educated workers, and those with disabilities suffered the most from job losses during the pandemic.

Macron visits famed Disco Maghreb record shop on Algeria trip
AFP/August 27/2022
French President Emmanuel Macron and his Algerian counterpart Abdelmadjid Tebboune Saturday declared a "new, irreversible dynamic of progress" in their nations' ties, concluding a visit by Macron aimed at ending months of tensions. The three-day visit comes less than two months after Algeria marked six decades of independence following 132 years of French rule and a devastating eight-year war. It also comes as European powers scramble to replace Russian energy imports -- including with supplies from Algeria, Africa's top gas exporter, which in turn is seeking to expand its clout in North Africa and the Sahel.
In their joint declaration on Saturday, the two leaders said "France and Algeria have decided to open a new era ... laying the foundation for a renewed partnership expressed through a concrete and constructive approach, focused on future projects and youth."At the signing ceremony, Tebboune addressed his guest in French, gushing over an "excellent, successful visit... which allowed for a rapprochement which wouldn't have been possible without the personality of President Macron himself." Ties between Paris and Algiers have seen repeated crises over the years. They had been particularly cool since last year when Macron questioned Algeria's existence as a nation before the French occupation and accused the government of fomenting "hatred towards France". Tebboune withdrew his country's ambassador in response and banned French military aircraft from its airspace. Normal diplomatic relations have since resumed, along with overflights to French army bases in sub-Saharan Africa.
- 'Lack of courage' -
After vowing to "build a new pact", Macron was in the spiritual home of Rai music on Saturday, visiting a record shop made famous by French-Algerian singer DJ Snake's recent hit of the same name, "Disco Maghreb". He also met athletes and artists and went for a somewhat chaotic walk in the streets where police struggled with onlookers trying to shake his hand or take photos. On Friday evening, Macron had dinner with Algerian writer Kamel Daoud and other Oran personalities. He had also met young entrepreneurs who quizzed him on the difficulties of getting visas to France, the decline of the French language in its former colony and the contentious issues around the two countries' painful past. Macron announced that an additional 8,000 Algerian students would be admitted to study in France this year, joining 30,000 already in the country. He also announced the creation of a joint commission of historians to examine the colonial period and the devastating eight-year war that ended it. But in France, both left and right-wing politicians were angered by the proposal. Socialist party leader Olivier Faure noted that Macron in 2017 had called French colonialism a "crime against humanity", then later questioned the existence of Algeria as a nation prior to the colonial period. "The lightness with which he deals with the subject is an insult to wounded memories," Faure tweeted. Far right leader Thomas Menage tweeted that Algeria should stop "using its past to avoid establishing true, friendly diplomatic relations". Macron's visit was not universally welcomed by Algerians either. "History ca't be written with lies... like the one that Algeria was created by France," read an editorial in the French-language Le Soir newspaper. "We expected Macron to erase this gross untruth during this visit," it said, criticising him for a "lack of courage... to recognise his own faults and those of his country". ---

German tourist detained in Iran — Berlin
Reuters/August 27, 2022
BERLIN: A German tourist has been detained in Iran, the German foreign ministry said on Saturday, declining to give further details beyond saying the man was receiving consular assistance. On Friday, the Persian Service of Radio Liberty said a 66-year-old German man was arrested about a month ago in Iran for taking pictures in an area where photography was prohibited. The Iranian interior ministry was not immediately available to comment on the detention.

Russia blocks adoption at UN of nuclear disarmament text
Agence France Presse/August 27/2022
Russia has prevented the adoption of a joint declaration following a four-week U.N. conference on a nuclear disarmament treaty, with Moscow denouncing what it said were "political" aspects of the text. The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which 191 signatories review every five years, aims to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, promote complete disarmament and promote cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy. The nations have been gathered at U.N. headquarters in New York since August 1 participating in a month of negotiations, including a final session that was postponed for several hours on Friday. In the end, the conference's president, Gustavo Zlauvinen of Argentina, said it was "not in a position to achieve agreement" after Russia took issue with the text. Russian representative Igor Vishnevetsky said the draft final text, which was more than 30 pages long, lacked "balance."
"Our delegation has one key objection on some paragraphs which are blatantly political in nature," he said, adding that Russia was not the only country to take issue with the text. According to sources close to the negotiations, Russia was opposed in particular to paragraphs concerning the Ukrainian nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia, which is occupied by the Russian military. The latest draft text had expressed "grave concern" over military activities around Ukrainian power plants, including Zaporizhzhia, as well as over Ukraine's loss of control of such sites and the negative impact on safety. The signatories discussed a number of other hot-button topics during the conference, including Iran's nuclear program and North Korean nuclear tests. At the last review conference in 2015, the parties were also unable to reach an agreement on substantive issues. At the opening of this year's conference, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that the world faced "a nuclear danger not seen since the height of the Cold War.""Today, humanity is just one misunderstanding, one miscalculation away from nuclear annihilation," Guterres said.

Israel expects re-appointment of ambassador to Turkey ‘within weeks’
AFP/The Arab Weekly/August 27/2022
The Israeli charge d’affaires in Turkey said on Friday the re-appointment of an ambassador to Ankara could happen within weeks, while repeating Israel’s expectation that the Hamas office in Istanbul be closed down. In a roundtable meeting with journalists, Israel’s current top representative in Ankara Irit Lillian said the process of re-appointing an ambassador to Turkey was only a matter of “when and not if.” “It’s only because of elections in Israel that things might be delayed on the Israeli side but I hope it will be on time and it will be just a few more weeks and the process will be over,” Lillian said. Israel will hold a general election on November 1. Earlier this month, Turkey and Israel agreed to re-appoint respective ambassadors more than four years after they were called back, marking another milestone after months of improved relations. The two regional powers had expelled ambassadors in 2018 over the killing of 60 Palestinians by Israeli forces during protests on the Gaza border against the opening of the US Embassy in Jerusalem. But they have been working to mend long-strained ties with energy emerging as a key area for potential cooperation. Lillian reiterated the challenges to the ties, saying that the biggest obstacle to the “positive tendency seen throughout the year” was the existence of a Hamas office in Istanbul. “There are plenty of challenges, but from our point of view, one of the main obstacles is the Hamas office in Istanbul,” she said. “Hamas is a terrorist organisation, and it is no secret that Israel expects Turkey to close this office and send the activists there away from here,” Lillian added. A visit to Turkey by Israeli President Isaac Herzog in March, followed by visits by both foreign ministers, helped warm relations after more than a decade of tensions. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid held a phone call earlier this month, expressing their satisfaction with the progress in ties and congratulated each other on the decision to appoint ambassadors. Erdogan said necessary steps to appoint the ambassador would be taken as soon as possible, while Lapid said the strengthening ties would lead to achievements in commerce and tourism.

Iraqi PM: Political crisis undermining security achievements
AP/August 27, 2022
is threatens the security achievements and the nation’s stability,” al-Kadhimi said
BAGHDAD: Iraq’s caretaker Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi warned Saturday that the political crisis in the country is threatening security achievements made in past years. Al-Kadhimi’s warning is a clear indication of the dangers of one of Iraq’s worst political crises since the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq. It is the result of disagreements between followers of influential Shiite cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr and rival Iran-backed groups since last year’s parliamentary elections. Al-Sadr won the largest share of seats in the October elections but failed to form a majority government, leading to what has become one of the worst political crises in Iraq in recent years. His bloc later resigned from parliament and his supporters last month stormed the parliament building in Baghdad. Al-Sadr has demanded that parliament be dissolved and early elections held. “This political crisis threatens the security achievements and the nation’s stability,” Al-Kadhimi said in a speech marking Islamic Day of Combatting Violence against Women in Baghdad. “Now, the solution is for all political parties to make concessions for the interests of Iraq and Iraqis,” said Al-Kadhimi. Last week, Al-Kadhimi called for a meeting of senior political leaders and party representatives to find a solution. He warned that if “fighting erupts, the shootings will not stop and will remain for years.” Earlier this month, Al-Sadr called on his followers to be ready to hold massive protests all over Iraq but then indefinitely postponed them after Iran-backed groups called for similar rallies the same day, saying he wants to preserve peace and that “Iraqi blood is invaluable” to him. Iraq has witnessed relative stability since the Daesh group was largely defeated in the country in 2017. But militants have continued to wage attacks, frequently hitting security forces and military targets with roadside bombs and firing on convoys or checkpoints. During the rise of Daesh, when it controlled large parts of Iraq, deadly explosions were common in the oil-rich country.

Iran-US skirmishes highlight fierce rivalry in eastern Syria
AFP/The Arab Weekly/August 27/2022
Deadly skirmishes have been on the rise in recent days between US forces and Iran-aligned militias in Syria’s oil-rich east, where both have carved out strategic footholds. There is a number of rival zones of influence in the desert province of Deir al-Zor, where rocket, mortar and drone attacks have increased – just as negotiations over the revival of a nuclear deal between Iran and the West come to a head. Syria’s eastern Deir al-Zor is a 33,000 square kilometre (12, 741.37 square mile) desert province, divided diagonally by the Euphrates River and mostly populated by tribes that share kinship with neighbouring Iraq.
Syria’s government and its backers on one side, and the United States and its Syrian allies on the other, fought separately to oust Islamic State fighters from the zone. Now, the US forces and their allies on the ground – the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces – are based in two large oil and gas fields in the province’s eastern half. The fields – locally known as Al Omar and Conoco – host most of the 900 US servicemen deployed in Syria. The provincial capital of Deir al-Zor, the strategic border town of Albu Kamal and the area south and west of the river are held by Syria’s government and allied fighters, with the Iranian units among them seen as the most elite. These fighters have also taken up bases on a collection of river islands known as Hweija Sakr, which they use as a launching pad for attacks on US forces across the river. The United States says its presence there aims to ensure the lasting defeat of the Islamic State, but skirmishes with Iran-backed groups have sporadically broken out over the last five years. In the first attack in June 2017, a suspected Iranian drone targeted the outskirts of the Tanf garrison, a US outpost at the intersection of Syria’s borders with both Iraq and Jordan. US warplanes responded with strikes against Shia militias closing in on the base. Since then, Iran-aligned groups have fired mortars, Iranian-manufactured rockets, and small unmanned drones at Tanf and the oil and gas fields. The US-led coalition has responded with air strikes by jets and helicopters, typically targeting weapons depots or other infrastructure. In some cases, the United States has responded to rocket attacks on its troops in neighbouring Iraq by bombing positions along the Syrian-Iraqi border hosting Iraqi armed groups tied to Iran. Alongside Russia, Iran and its proxies have been instrumental in helping Syrian President Bashar al-Assad regain most of the territory his forces lost since conflict erupted in 2011. That has allowed them to retain and build up their zones of influence in far-flung parts of the country even after battles have subsided: from the northern city of Aleppo, recaptured by government-aligned forces in late 2016, to the vast desert zones in Homs and Hama and the suburbs of the capital Damascus. In particular, Iran has extended support in energy and mineral exploitation to Syria, helping rehabilitate power plants and extract phosphate. Its troops and their allies retain effective control of Syria’s eastern front with Iraq, where units from Iran’s elite Quds Force are suspected to be based, and its western border with Lebanon. That corridor allows Tehran to transfer people, goods and military equipment across several countries – prompting serious concern in Israel, which has carried out its own air attacks against Iranian forces and their allies in Syria.

Wives, widows of Syrian detainees lead shackled life
Agence France Presse/August 27/2022
In the decade since Syria's regime pronounced her jailed husband dead, Ramya al-Sous was threatened by security forces, locked out of her spouse's estate and forced to flee abroad. The mother of three, now a refugee living in Lebanon, was never told how her husband died and is unable to sell or rent the properties confiscated by authorities. "By virtue of me being a woman, everything becomes nearly impossible," she told AFP, echoing a plight shared by many wives and widows of Syrian prisoners. But the 40-year-old wants to put up a fight. "My children wouldn't have suffered as much if it had been me who was detained. They were left with nothing, but I insist on winning something back," she said. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime waged a brutal crackdown on an Arab Spring-inspired uprising in 2011, sparking a war that has killed nearly half a million people. Around the same number of people, mostly men, are estimated to have been detained in regime prisons since, with tens of thousands dying either under torture or due to poor conditions. Outside prison walls, their wives are anything but free, facing a maze of red tape in a society and legal system that favors men, said Ghazwan Kronfol, a Syrian lawyer living in Istanbul. Without their husbands' formal death certificates, widows cannot claim inheritance or property ownership, he said. Nor can they access their dead husbands' real estate if it was confiscated or escrowed by the state, the lawyer added. Worse still, guardianship over their children is not guaranteed, with judges often granting it to a male next of kin. "All of this comes on top of financial blackmail and sexual harassment" by security officers, Kronfol said.
'Easy prey'
Syria's 2012 anti-terrorism law stipulates the government can temporarily or permanently seize the properties of prisoners accused of terrorism -- a blanket charge used to detain civilians suspected of opposition links. The government is believed to have seized $1.54 billion worth of prisoner assets since 2011, according to an April report by The Association of Detainees and The Missing in Sednaya Prison. The Turkey-based watchdog was founded by former detainees held in Sednaya, a jail on the outskirts of Damascus which is the largest in the country and has become a by-word for torture and the darkest abuses of the Syrian regime. Sous's home and farmland were among the properties escrowed after her husband was arrested in a raid in 2013 and later hit with terrorism-related charges she says were trumped up. A few months later, authorities handed her a "corpse number", she said. Alone and poor, she spent years being bounced around from one security branch to another as she tried to clear bureaucratic hurdles. Sous said she was met mainly with harassment and intimidation. "Women are easy prey," she said. Fearing persecution by security forces, she fled to neighboring Lebanon in 2016, clutching the old red and white plastic bag in which she keeps her property deeds and reams of other official documents. She has little money left but continues to pay bribes and lawyer fees in an attempt to reclaim assets from the state.
"I want to sell them, not for me but for my children."
'Closed door' -
Salma, a 43-year-old mother of four, also fled to Lebanon after her husband disappeared inside the black hole of Syria's prison system. The one time she enquired about his fate in 2015, security forces locked her in a room and threatened her. "I never asked about him again," Salma said, asking to use a pseudonym due to security concerns. When she tried to sell her husband's car and home, she found they had been seized by the state. "I sold all my jewelry to buy that house," she said. In their ordeal, some women have found a rare silver lining with the empowerment that being left to their own devices has brought about. Tuqqa, a 45-year-old mother of five whose husband also disappeared in prison, argued her life was already hard before the war due to social and religious conservatism. "I wasn't even allowed to open the front door of the house, let alone go out to buy groceries or bread," she said.
But all that changed when she became the sole guardian of her children. She eventually moved to Lebanon, where she secured work and attended livelihood trainings and workshops run by aid groups, a leap from her previously sheltered life. When she was sexually harassed by her landlord, she blamed herself: "That is what we were taught: women are always to blame."Her children may not inherit a family home from their father but Tuqqa is adamant they will inherit new values from her. "I am not raising my children the way I was raised," she said. "War has given women strength. They are learning how to say 'no'," said a Damascus lawyer who asked not to be named. While the odds are stacked against her, Tuqqa said she feels ready to face the challenges ahead. "I lost a lot, but I became a strong woman," Tuqqa said. "I am no longer the woman living behind closed doors."

Ukraine nuclear plant back online as inspection prepared
Agence France Presse/August 27/2022
Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, occupied by Moscow's troops, came back online Friday, the state operator said after Kyiv claimed it was cut from the national power grid by Russian shelling. The plant -- Europe's largest nuclear facility -- was severed Thursday from Ukraine's power network for the first time in its four-decade history due to "actions of the invaders," Energoatom said. The operator said that as of 2:04 pm (1104 GMT) the plant "is connected to the grid and produces electricity for the needs of Ukraine" once again. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his country's nuclear experts had managed to protect the plant "from the worst case scenario which is constantly being provoked by Russian forces." But he added: "I want to underline that the situation remains very risky and dangerous." The Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant has been cause for mounting concern since Russian troops seized it in early March. In recent weeks, Kyiv and Moscow have traded blame for rocket strikes around the facility in the southern Ukrainian city of Energodar. Separately Friday, the EU presidency vowed to hold an emergency summit on the spiraling energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine, which this week entered its seventh month. The bloc has vowed to wean its 27 member states off Russian oil and gas in protest against the invasion, which has led to tough international sanctions against Moscow. Friday saw Norway, a major natural gas producer, say it was joining the latest package of EU sanctions. However, anxiety over supply has sent prices soaring, with Germany and France reporting Friday record electricity prices for 2023, more than 10 times higher than for this year. Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said his country, which holds the EU presidency, "will convene an urgent meeting of energy ministers to discuss specific emergency measures".
Anxiety over plant
Zelensky said late Thursday the power cut-off was caused by Russian shelling of the last active power line linking the plant to the network. "Russia has put Ukrainians as well as all Europeans one step away from radiation disaster," he said. Energoatom said the outage was caused by ash pit fires at an adjacent thermal power plant, which damaged a line connecting the only two of the plant's six reactors in operation. Blaming Russian attacks for damage to the three other power lines linking the complex to the national grid, Energoatom said Friday afternoon one reactor had been reconnected "and capacity is being added".
International Atomic Energy Agency head Rafael Mariano Grossi said Thursday he wants to visit the site within days, warning of potential disaster. Ukraine energy minister adviser Lana Zerkal said an IAEA inspection "is planned for the next week."Zelensky said Friday that the team needs to get there as soon as possible "and help maintain the station under Ukrainian control on a permanent basis." Zerkal told Ukraine's Radio NV late Thursday she was skeptical the mission would go ahead, despite Moscow's formal agreement, as "they are artificially creating all the conditions so that the mission will not reach the site".
U.S. warning
Kyiv suspects Moscow intends to divert power from the Zaporizhzhia plant to the Crimean peninsula, annexed by Russian troops in 2014. On Thursday, Washington warned against any such move. "The electricity that it produces rightly belongs to Ukraine," State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters, saying attempts to redirect power to occupied areas were "unacceptable". Britain's defense ministry said satellite imagery showed an increased presence of Russian troops at the power plant with armored personnel carriers deployed within 60 meters (200 feet) of one reactor. In another development Friday, French energy firm TotalEnergies said it was divesting its stake in a Russian gas field following a media report that some of its fuel was ending up in Russian fighter jets. The company said it had signed a deal Friday with its local Russian partner Novatek to sell its 49 percent in the Termokarstovoye gas field "on economic terms enabling TotalEnergies to recover the outstanding amounts invested in the field". It said the divestment had been agreed in July and Russian authorities gave the approval on August 25. A day earlier, French daily Le Monde had reported the alleged refining of natural gas condensates from Termokarstovoye into jet fuel for fighter-bombers involved in Russia's assault on Ukraine. TotalEnergies is the only major Western energy group to continue its operations in Russia but chief executive Patrick Pouyanne said in March Russian gas fields exploited by the company's joint ventures were vital for supplying energy to Europe.

Risk of radioactive leak at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, operator says
The National/August 27/2022
Ukrainian energy operator Energoatom has said there is a risk of “hydrogen leakage and sputtering of radioactive substances” at Europe’s largest nuclear power plant. The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is currently occupied by Russian troops. "As a result of periodic shelling, the infrastructure of the station has been damaged, there are risks of hydrogen leakage and sputtering of radioactive substances, and the fire hazard is high," Energoatom said on Telegram. Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the situation at the plant was risky. Its reactors were disconnected from the plant for the first time in history on Thursday, following shelling in the area. Both of the plant's two functioning reactors were subsequently reconnected to the grid. “Let me stress that the situation remains very risky and dangerous,” Mr Zelenskyy said in his regular evening address, praising Ukrainian experts working to “avert the worst-case scenario”.“Any repeat of yesterday's events, meaning any disconnection of the station from the grid, any action by Russia that could provoke the disconnection of reactors, would once again place the station one step away from a catastrophe,” he said.
Russia, which invaded Ukraine in February, took control of the nuclear plant in March, although it is still operated by Ukrainian technicians working for Energoatom.

Libya clashes kill 13, spark fears of new war
AP/AFP/The Arab Weekly/August 27/2022
TRIPOLI: Clashes between backers of Libya’s rival governments killed at least 13 people and damaged six hospitals in Tripoli on Saturday, sparking fears that a political crisis could spiral into a major new armed conflict. Small arms fire and explosions rocked several districts of the capital overnight and into Saturday, when smoke could be seen rising from damaged buildings. An AFP correspondent saw dozens of charred cars and buildings riddled with bullet holes or burnt, and said clashes continued into Saturday evening. In an updated toll, the health ministry in Tripoli said 13 people had been killed and 95 wounded in the fighting. Six hospitals were hit and ambulances were unable to reach areas affected by the clashes, the ministry had said earlier, condemning “war crimes.” The two rival administrations vying for control of the North African country and its vast oil resources — one based in the capital, the other approved by a parliament in the country’s east — exchanged blame. The UN’s Libya mission called for “an immediate cessation of hostilities,” citing “ongoing armed clashes including indiscriminate medium and heavy shelling in civilian-populated neighborhoods.” The US ambassador to Libya, Richard Norland, said in a statement that Washington “condemns” the surge in violence, urging an “immediate cease-fire and UN-facilitated talks between the conflicting parties.”News agency Lana said actor Mustafa Baraka had been killed in one of the neighborhoods hit by fighting, parking anger and mourning on social media.
The Government of National Unity (GNU) of Abdulhamid Dbeibah said fighting had broken out after negotiations to avoid bloodshed in the western city collapsed. Dbeibah’s government, installed as part of a United Nations-led peace process following a previous round of violence, is challenged by a rival government led by former interior minister Fathi Bashagha. Bashagha, who is backed by Libya’s parliament and eastern-based military strongman Khalifa Haftar, says the GNU’s mandate has expired. But he has so far been unable to take office in Tripoli, as Dbeibah has insisted on only handing power to an elected government. Dbeibah’s government accused Bashagha of “carrying out his threats” to seize Tripoli by force. Dbeibah’s GNU said negotiations had been underway to “hold elections at the end of the year to resolve the political crisis,” but that Bashagha had “walked out at the last moment.”
Bashagha denied such talks had taken place, and accused Dbeibah’s “illegitimate” administration of “clinging to power.” Local media reported later Saturday that a group of pro-Bashagha militias that were making their way to the capital from Misrata had turned back. Emadeddin Badi, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, warned that the violence could quickly escalate. “Urban warfare has its own logic, it’s harmful both to civilian infrastructure and to people, so even if it isn’t a long war, this conflict will be very destructive as we have already seen,” he told AFP.
He added that the fighting could strengthen Haftar and those close to him. “They stand to benefit from western Libya divisions and have a better negotiating position once the dust settles.”Meanwhile Badi said on Twitter: “It will be lost on no one that the GNU is more concerned with entrenching itself in Tripoli than with protecting any Tripolitan constituency.”“The same is valid for the parallel government and its allies.” Oussama Ali, a spokesman for Tripoli’s ambulance service, told Al-Ahrar television that an unknown number of civilians had been wounded but that his service was “having difficulties moving around.”
Bashagha was appointed in February by the parliament, which was elected in 2014 and is based in the eastern city of Tobruk, but he has been unable to impose his authority in Tripoli. Initially ruling out the use of violence, the former interior minister has since hinted that he could resort to force. Last week, he called on “Libyan men of honor” to drop their support for Dbeibah’s “obsolete and illegitimate” administration. Last month, clashes between rival groups in Tripoli left 16 people dead, including a child. It was the deadliest violence to hit the Libyan capital since Haftar’s ill-fated attempt to seize it by force in 2019 and 2020.

US approves sale of radio systems to strategic ally, Morocco
AFP/The Arab Weekly/August 27/2022
The US State Department has approved the potential sale of joint tactical radio systems to Morocco in a deal valued at up to $141.1 million, the Pentagon said on Thursday. The principal contractors will be General Atomic Aeronautical Systems, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, and Leonardo SpA, it said. The approved sale will support Washington’s foreign policy and national security by helping to improve the security of a Major Non-NATO Ally that has built stronger military and security ties with the US, especially in the war on terror. “The proposed sale will improve Morocco’s capability to meet current and future threats by providing timely Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) and target acquisition for its security and defense,” said the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA). “The capability is a deterrent to regional threats and strengthens its self-defense. Morocco has demonstrated a commitment to modernising its military and will have no difficulty absorbing these articles into its armed forces,” it added. Last June, the United States and Morocco conducted the vast annual “African Lion” military exercise, amid heightened tensions between the North African kingdom and neighbouring Algeria. The exercise, which began in the southern Moroccan region of Agadir and lasted for the rest of the month, involved some 7,500 personnel from ten nations including Brazil, France and the United Kingdom. It included observers from NATO and for the first time, officials from Israel.The exercise caùe amid heightened tensions over the Western Sahara since US president Donald Trump recognised Moroccan sovereignty over the territory in 2020 in return for Rabat establishing ties with Israel. Algeria responded months later by severing links with Morocco, citing “hostile acts” and slamming its neighbour’s security cooperation with the “Zionist entity” (Israel). Last June, Algiers also scrapped a long-standing treaty with Madrid after the Spanish government broke with decades of neutrality to back a Moroccan plan for autonomy in the desert territory. Morocco considers it an integral part of the kingdom, while the Polisario has long demanded an independence referendum there. The former Spanish colony boasts hundreds of kilometres of coastline with rich Atlantic fishing waters, plentiful phosphate resources and a key highway to West African markets.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on August 27-28/2022
د. ماجد رفي زاده/ معهد جيتستون: المزيد من التنازلات الجديدة الخطيرة من قبل إدارة بايدن لإسترضاء ملالي إيران والتملق لهم بهدف قبولهم بالإتفاق النووي
Still More Dangerous New Concessions by Biden Administration for a Nuclear Deal with Iran's Mullahs
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/August 27/ 2022
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/111499/dr-majid-rafizadeh-gatestone-institute-still-more-dangerous-new-concessions-by-biden-administration-for-a-nuclear-deal-with-irans-mullahs-%d8%af-%d9%85%d8%a7%d8%ac%d8%af-%d8%b1%d9%81%d9%8a-%d8%b2/
Newly leaked information from inside Iran, obtained by Iran International, reveals that the Biden administration has made even more concessions to revive the nuclear deal, which have not been revealed to the public. According to the report, "the US guarantees that its sanctions against IRGC would not affect other sectors and firms: e.g. a petrochemical company shouldn't be sanctioned by US because of doing business with IRGC."
The Biden administration seems to have been bragging that Iran's leaders have dropped a key demand: removing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) from the US foreign organizations terrorist list. But if other sectors that are linked to the IRGC can freely do business under the nuclear deal, then the designation of the IRGC as a terrorist organization, as well as the sanctions against the IRGC, are merely cosmetic.
The IRGC has a large stake in almost every industrial sector in Iran, which includes the energy sector, mining, telecommunications, gold, shipping and construction. Private sector competitors are not permitted in these sectors because the more closed the economy, the more easily the IRGC can monopolize it.
As a result, any economic growth in these sectors will directly benefit Iran's military, the IRGC and its elite Quds Force branch, and Iran's militia and terror groups across the Middle East. Since Iran's economy is predominantly controlled by the IRGC or the state, additional revenues will likely be funneled into the treasury of the IRGC and the office of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The other critical concession being reportedly made is that "the participants note the firm commitment of the US President [without mentioning Joe Biden by name] for returning to JCPOA compliance as long as Iran remains committed to the deal." This probably means that future US presidents are obliged to continue with the implementation of the nuclear deal. But why should the US guarantee the implementation of the nuclear deal if it is not even a legally binding treaty, approved by two-thirds of the Senate, in accordance with Article II, section 2 of the US Constitution? In addition, it is illegal for any president to commit future presidents to anything that has not been approved as a formal treaty by two-thirds of the Senate.
This is a much worse deal than the 2015 nuclear deal. Because, first, the US or EU3 (France, the United Kingdom and Germany) cannot call for reinstating sanctions on Iran unilaterally even if they believe that the Iranian regime is violating the nuclear deal. In the previous nuclear deal, at least, any single party to the deal could unilaterally trigger the snap-back sanctions clause. In addition, with the new deal, restrictions on the regime's nuclear program could be lifted only two years after the agreement is signed; and the Iranian regime will not be obliged to reveal its past nuclear activities, which had military dimensions; and Russia will be trusted to store Iran's enriched uranium, a task for which Moscow will be paid.
Reportedly, another concession that the Biden administration has made to Iran is that the IAEA is expected to halt its investigation into the regime's past nuclear activities.
"This shift to appeasement was never going to solve any of the world's issues with the Islamic Republic. The regime's problem with the West is the West's very existence, which obstructs its path to a global caliphate." — Reza Pahlavi, eldest son of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and an advocate of secular democracy for Iran, Wall Street Journal, August 8, 2022.
The Biden administration's policy towards the Iranian regime has been one of capitulation and giving concessions, and it appears determined to enrich and empower what the State Department has called "the world's top state sponsor of terrorism," whose core policy since its Islamic Revolution in 1979 has been to "export the revolution," as anchored in "Death to America" and "Death to Israel". Pictured: A member of the Islamic Basij volunteer militia burns an American flag in Tehran, Iran, on July 16 2022. (Photo by Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images)
Since assuming office, the Biden administration's policy towards the Iranian regime has been one of capitulation and giving concessions to the ruling Islamist mullahs of Iran. So far, they include suspending some of the anti-terrorism sanctions on Iran-backed Houthis, then revoking the designation of Yemen's Houthis as a terrorist group; disregarding Iran's oil sales to China; shipping oil to Syria, Lebanon's Hezbollah and Venezuela in direct violation of US sanctions; ignoring the Iranian regime's crackdown on protesters, smuggling weapons to the Houthis and Venezuela; attempting to murder US former officials and citizens on American soil, and taking more foreign hostages.
On top of that, newly leaked information from inside Iran, obtained by Iran International, reveals that the Biden administration has made even more concessions to revive the nuclear deal, which have not been revealed to the public. According to the report, "the US guarantees that its sanctions against IRGC would not affect other sectors and firms: e.g. a petrochemical company shouldn't be sanctioned by US because of doing business with IRGC."
The Biden administration seems to have been bragging that Iran's leaders have dropped a key demand: removing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) from the US foreign organizations terrorist list. But if other sectors that are linked to the IRGC can freely do business under the nuclear deal, then the designation of the IRGC as a terrorist organization, as well as the sanctions against the IRGC, are merely cosmetic.
The IRGC has a large stake in almost every industrial sector in Iran, which includes the energy sector, mining, telecommunications, gold, shipping and construction. Private sector competitors are not permitted in these sectors because the more closed the economy, the more easily the IRGC can monopolize it.
As a result, any economic growth in these sectors will directly benefit Iran's military, the IRGC and its elite Quds Force branch, and Iran's militia and terror groups across the Middle East. Since Iran's economy is predominantly controlled by the IRGC or the state, additional revenues will likely be funneled into the treasury of the IRGC and the office of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The other critical concession being reportedly made is that "the participants note the firm commitment of the US President [without mentioning Joe Biden by name] for returning to JCPOA compliance as long as Iran remains committed to the deal." This probably means that future US presidents are obliged to continue with the implementation of the nuclear deal. But why should the US guarantee the implementation of the nuclear deal if it is not even a legally binding treaty, approved by two-thirds of the Senate, in accordance with Article II, section 2 of the US Constitution? In addition, it is illegal for any president to commit future presidents to anything that has not been approved as a formal treaty by two-thirds of the Senate.
Additionally, one critical issue about Iran's nuclear program is linked to its past nuclear activities, which reportedly have military dimensions. The IAEA opened a probe into this issue, but the Iranian regime has been refusing to provide answers about several clandestine nuclear sites. Reportedly, another concession that the Biden administration has made to Iran is that the IAEA is expected to halt its investigation into the regime's past nuclear activities.
Yet another major concession reportedly includes the term that only a report from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) can trigger the snap-back sanctions clause.
This is a much worse deal than the 2015 nuclear deal. Because, first, the US or EU3 (France, the United Kingdom and Germany) cannot call for reinstating sanctions on Iran unilaterally even if they believe that the Iranian regime is violating the nuclear deal. In the previous nuclear deal, at least, any single party to the deal could unilaterally trigger the snap-back sanctions clause. In addition, with the new deal, restrictions on the regime's nuclear program could be lifted only two years after the agreement is signed; and the Iranian regime will not be obliged to reveal its past nuclear activities, which had military dimensions; and Russia will be trusted to store Iran's enriched uranium, a task for which Moscow will be paid.
To make things worse, even if the deal falls apart again for any reason, the Iranian regime will be exempt from the US sanctions for 2.5 years. In other words, even if the regime is found breaching the deal and the US decides to pull out of the agreement, Tehran can continue enjoying sanctions relief for additional 2.5 years.
Even though the concessions that Iran has been obtaining from the Biden administration may be catastrophic to the region and even to the United States -- presumably based on a fantasy that normalizing trade with Iran with normalize its aspirations to be a hegemon and instead become a pacifist good neighbor -- the Biden administration nevertheless appears determined to enrich and empower what the US Department of State has called "the world's top state sponsor of terrorism," whose core policy since its Islamic Revolution in 1979 has been to "export the revolution," as anchored in "Death to America" and "Death to Israel". "
As Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran's former Shah, explained last week: "This shift to appeasement was never going to solve any of the world's issues with the Islamic Republic. The regime's problem with the West is the West's very existence, which obstructs its path to a global caliphate. Any efforts to accommodate this radical regime are shows of weakness that Tehran can manipulate" -- as Tehran already seems to be doing extremely well.
*Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a business strategist and advisor, Harvard-educated scholar, political scientist, board member of Harvard International Review, and president of the International American Council on the Middle East. He has authored several books on Islam and US Foreign Policy. He can be reached at Dr.Rafizadeh@Post.Harvard.Edu
© 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.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/18821/iran-dangerous-concessions

What are the chances of a meeting between Putin and Zelensky?
Dr. Diana Galeeva/Arab News/August 27/ 2022
Is a meeting likely between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, the heads of two countries whose crisis in relations is shaping the world? With small steps forward, a meeting should indeed be on the horizon in an effort to resolve the conflict through diplomatic channels, but is it still a long way off or can we expect it in the shorter term?
This question has, from the beginning, been among those that are central to finding a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine crisis, and last week promising steps appeared to be taken in this direction. Reportedly, the issue of a meeting was raised by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who played the useful mediator role, when he visited Lviv on Aug. 18 to meet Zelensky and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
It was not the first time Erdogan had suggested such an initiative; he did so two weeks previously, on Aug. 6, when he invited Putin to meet Zelensky in Ankara as a platform for a process of negotiations. The official responses from both sides were not made public, other than a comment by Gennady Gatilov, Russia’s permanent representative to the UN in Geneva, a few hours later during an interview with the Financial Times in which he said there “was not any practical platform for having this meeting” between Putin and Zelensky.
Indeed, in addition to other developments in the Ukraine crisis, the continuing deterioration of relations includes the circumstances surrounding the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and the investigation of the shelling of a pretrial detention center in Yelenovka. Moreover, the car bomb attack outside Moscow that killed Darya Dugina, the daughter of Russian philosopher and Putin ally Alexander Dugin, the so-called ideologist of the “Russian world,” on Aug. 20 (a day after Erdogan was supposed to discuss a proposed meeting between Putin and Zelensky) has further complicated matters.
Among other challenges facing efforts to arrange a meeting between the two leaders are their countries’ successes on the battlefield, which clearly offer trump cards they can play in the negotiations.
Ukraine seems very skeptical about proposals for a meeting of the presidents, given that Zelensky has ruled out any negotiations while Russian troops remain in Ukraine. Dialogue between Moscow and Kyiv is also likely to be impossible in the event that captured Ukrainian soldiers are put on trial in Mariupol, or if Moscow goes ahead with plans to hold referendums in Russian-occupied territories on the issue of becoming part of Russia.
In addition, the Ukrainians say that negotiations with Russia cannot begin until the Ukrainian army achieves an advantageous negotiating position through a counteroffensive. Given all of these considerations, Ukraine’s readiness to consider negotiations clearly depends on many variables.
Turkey and the UN have already played a crucial role in achieving and implementing a deal to resume grain exports, one of the complicated issues arising from the crisis.
On the Russian side, in contrast, there have been small signs of progress. On Aug. 18, Moscow softened its stance on the conditions for a possible meeting between Putin and Zelensky.
Previously, the Russians had insisted that a road map be drawn up before any meeting of the two leaders. At the beginning of August, the Kremlin stated that the necessary prerequisites had not been met for a summit meeting between Russia and Ukraine because the delegations had not done their “homework.” Now, according to reports by CNN Turkey, Moscow seems prepared to adjust its conditions and the Russians have said that the leaders can first discuss and define a road map, and their delegations can then start work on implementing it.
These facts suggest two possible scenarios, one positive, the other more skeptical. The first scenario is linked to the active involvement of Turkish mediators and Erdogan’s vision of ending the conflict quickly through diplomatic channels. His desire for this was evident on Monday when the Turkish president stated during a Cabinet meeting that his goal is to arrange a meeting between Putin and Zelensky. His enthusiastic view on this is indeed very promising and, as noted, there are small but positive steps that suggest Turkish mediation might yet bring the two leaders to the table soon.
However, given the ongoing developments in the conflict and the importance to both sides of the trump cards they hope to hold and play during the negotiation process that will shape the roadmap for reconciliation, it is also worth considering the more skeptical view of how events might play out.
While Erdogan emphasizes the necessity of a meeting between the presidents of Ukraine and Russia, the UN secretary-general has said, with undisguised skepticism, that: “I think there is probably a lot of time and ultimately a lot of changes in the verification of the situation so that this becomes possible.” He continued: “To be honest, I don’t know. I think we are not there yet. I think it’s probably too early for that.”
Given the complexity of this conflict, both of these possibilities are worth considering. However, as a believer in the power of diplomacy, and the view that this channel is the only one that can end the crisis, I tend to favor Erdogan’s efforts and his optimism. It should be noted that Turkey and the UN have already played a crucial role in achieving and implementing a deal to resume grain exports, one of the complicated issues arising from the crisis.
Perhaps this positive outcome serves as a good advert for Turkish diplomacy, and as motivation for us to believe in the power of the positive thinking behind Erdogan’s vision for ending this crisis through the use of diplomatic tools, and that perhaps a meeting between Putin and Zelensky can happen sooner rather than later.
**Dr. Diana Galeeva was an academic visitor to St. Antony’s College, Oxford University (2019-2022). She is the author of two books: “Qatar: The Practice of Rented Power” (Routledge, 2022) and “Russia and the GCC: The Case of Tatarstan’s Paradiplomacy” (I.B. Tauris/Bloomsbury, 2023). She is also a co-editor of the collection “Post-Brexit Europe and UK: Policy Challenges Towards Iran and the GCC States” (Palgrave Macmillan, 2021).
Twitter: @diana_galeeva

Iraq gets deeper and deeper into a political quagmire
Hafed Al-Ghwell/Arab News/August 27/ 2022
Ten months ago, Iraq was on the verge of pulling off a remarkable, albeit improbable, feat after the conclusion of national parliamentary elections. Most Iraqis were skeptical of the tired promises, delivered with the usual populist grandeur typical of a country adrift in chaos and with an absentee leadership. However, the October 2021 vote offered the last, best chance for a hopelessly battered Iraq to break a nearly two-year political stalemate that was hampering efforts to deliver improved public services, new jobs and much-needed reforms.
After the election, two broad coalitions formed, guided less than in the past by sectarian, or even class-related, differences in visions for post-2019 Iraqi politics, the economy and society at large. Instead, a tripartite gathering of Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds emerged, seeking a majoritarian government that could free Iraq from nearly two decades of ineffectual politicking and gridlock.
On the other hand, however, a loose coalition of Iran-backed Shiite groups sought to reinforce the politicking by insisting on the traditional “tawafuq” — a sort of “broad” consensus governance that came to define (and cripple) Iraqi politics after the ill-fated US-led invasion 19 years ago.
The two sides have jostled, face-to-face and within the judiciary, for months seeking ways to undermine each other and prevent their opponents from cobbling together an acceptable base from which to advance the political process.
Each episode, interspersed with bizarre stunts and maneuvering by the followers of Shiite cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr, has only complicated Iraqi politics and scuttled promising alliances that could have been key to securing voting majorities on a raft of legislation designed to tackle the country’s most pressing challenges. Ironically, a constitutional requirement intended to prevent the three confessional groups from sidelining each other during government formation is now impeding them, since none of them can single-handedly secure a two-thirds majority in parliament.
Fast-forward to this month and Iraq is even deeper in the thralls of worsening political gridlock. There are no feasible solutions in sight beyond calls for what will likely be open-ended dialogue coming mostly from the Shiite Coordination Framework, which Iran, curiously, supports as well.
On the other hand, the tripartite coalition disintegrated after members of the Sadrist bloc in parliament abruptly resigned, only to be replaced by political rivals angling to fast-track a stalled political process. After all, if the Sadrists were to try to outmaneuver parliament from the outside, or manacle its work through “peaceful revolutions,” it would be before and during government formation. Any later moves would force a now incumbent government to deploy the security forces against the Sadrists. The latter would have likely summoned the power of the state to suppress the opposition, justifying the use of force as necessary for enacting change from within a seemingly broken political system.
Of course, the Sadrists dismiss these concerns as mere suppositions by a gilded elite beholden to foreign agendas, which necessitate calls for more drastic expressions of public furor. Patience is wearing thin among rival factions. They hint at taking up arms when dialogue fails. There have already been assassination attempts and attacks on the offices of key political figures, underscoring the razor’s edge Iraq is walking ahead of a possible plunge into a maelstrom that would make the horrors of Daesh’s emergence pale in comparison.
The current political crisis is easily the longest in almost two decades since the 2003 invasion. Worse yet, now that there is a conspicuous lack of a common “enemy” or cause — such as the “defeat” of Daesh or the end of Kurdish secessionist ambitions — the bulk of Iraq’s maladies are coming from within, where politics have become the purview of proxies, guided by brinkmanship and not a lot of substance.
Patience is wearing thin among rival factions. They hint at taking up arms when dialogue fails.
Last year’s elections may have elevated the Sadrists and afforded them some political heft, but their ability to defy expectations and pick up a sizable number of seats in parliament did not usher in a period of promised change, nor liberation from a heavy-handed Tehran and a strangely indifferent US.
In turn, a peculiar multipolar system has emerged among a mostly leaderless, feuding Shiite assemblage that includes both the Sadrists and the expansive Coordination Framework, featuring an alliance led by former Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki. Having failed to threaten or beguile fellow Shiites into falling in line behind him, Al-Sadr has since resorted to outlandish actions such as demanding the country’s Supreme Judiciary Council dissolve the parliament.
These latest efforts came to naught but did not dissuade staunch Sadrist supporters from protesting outside the Supreme Judiciary Council in an effort to pressure the court into issuing a favorable ruling next week in an unrelated lawsuit seeking dissolution.
The chief concern among many keen observers is that escalating tensions, against the backdrop of Iraq’s extreme socioeconomic and political challenges, might lead to Iraqis fighting among themselves for completely different reasons. Everyone in Iraq is armed, whether members of paramilitaries or civilians, and so the possibility of further escalations and a heightened potential for violence demand the utmost prudence — not a stubborn reversion to the impracticable and incendiary.
Simply shutting the Sadrists out will not work either, even if their ultimate goal is to rewrite the Iraqi constitution and social contract. Despite multiple calls for this, and many changes in Iraq since 2003, the political will or capital to amend the flawed constitution simply does not exist. In addition, the US, Iran, Turkey and some other enterprising external actors would not accept such a drastic change in the status quo, since the persistent dysfunction more or less prevents other forces from seeking to dominate Iraqi dynamics, while leaving enough space to exert some influence.
As a result, the inadvertent imbalances of power created by the constitution are unlikely to be addressed in the short-to-medium term, despite fueling the squabbling not only with the Sadrists but also among the Coordination Framework’s multiple factions.
In addition, Sunnis and Kurds are particularly squeamish about any talk of fiddling with the constitution — after all, talk of reforms is all well and good but public outbursts or “spontaneous, peaceful resolutions,” could lead to a systemic breakdown and intra-Shiite armed conflict that would disproportionately affect minorities.
Looking ahead, it will not be easy to break this deadlock given the wide gulf between the visions of the Coordination Framework and the Sadrists for an ideal political system for Iraq. Nearly two decades of endemic corruption, backroom deal-making and the apportioning of benefits has only served the interests of a connected and well-to-do political elite, including Al-Sadr himself. Meanwhile the rest of Iraq has languished despite having the fourth-largest proven oil reserves in the world.
The Sadrist plan, which demands swift, radical political change, might appeal to a desperate Iraqi public but its suspicious lack of coherence or clarity has left more questions than answers, which the mercurial cleric has yet to provide.
• Hafed Al-Ghwell is a non-resident senior fellow with the Foreign Policy Institute at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He is also a senior adviser at the international economic consultancy Maxwell Stamp and the geopolitical risk advisory firm Oxford Analytica, a member of the Strategic Advisory Solutions International Group in Washington, and a former adviser to the board of the World Bank Group.

Europe emerges as an anchor for a potential nuclear deal with Iran
Andrew Hammond/Arab News/August 27/ 2022
The two key parties in any new nuclear deal with Iran would be Washington and Tehran. Yet to the surprise of some, it is Europe that has emerged as the lynchpin of any agreement that might be concluded.
Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign affairs chief, announced the “final” text of a deal this month that he said is non-negotiable, based on parameters agreed in March after about a year of talks in Vienna.
He stated that Washington and Tehran now have to make “political decisions” about whether or not to move forward with the revival of the deal. The original agreement, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, was signed in 2015 but US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from the deal in 2018.
The external reactions to Europe’s brokering of a potential agreement, while its focus is heavily diverted by Ukraine, have been hugely mixed. For one thing, views differ dramatically on the wisdom of a deal. Many European countries, and the Joe Biden team, believe an imperfect deal is probably better than no deal at all. But there are vociferous critics of this approach, especially Israel.
There are also those who perceive that despite the efforts of Brussels, an agreement remains a distant prospect. This includes market participants such as Goldman Sachs, which last week poured cold water on the prospects of a deal.
Amid this cacophony of viewpoints, however, it is the perspective of the Biden team and the decision-makers in Tehran that matter most. Among the latter, a green light would be needed not only from Iran’s Supreme National Security Council but also from Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
The two sides have broadly welcomed the European overtures. Iranian negotiating team adviser Mohammed Marandi said that the “remaining issues are not very difficult to resolve.” The US State Department acknowledged that the draft circulated by Brussels represents “the best and only basis on which to reach a deal.”
Even if a deal does not happen this year, Brussels, the Biden team and some of the key decision-makers in Tehran will not want to see the negotiation process break down completely.
Yet, multiple key differences remain. For instance, Iran reportedly wants the international community to shut down a long-running investigation by the International Atomic Energy Authority into traces of uranium found several years ago at three undeclared nuclear sites.
While that, and some other demands, might be resolved, what is much more tricky is Tehran’s desire for a guarantee that the new deal will be binding, regardless of the changing views of future US administrations. The Biden team cannot legally guarantee that and the reality remains that a new president could seek to cancel any deal, just as Trump did. Significant hurdles therefore remain but there does now appear to be a political tailwind that could get this process “over the line.”
One of the potential upsides of a deal for Europe and the US is that some market analysts think Iran could raise exports of oil by between 1 million and 1.5 million barrels a day, or up to 1.5 percent of global supply, possibly within six months. This, combined with factors such as any continued economic weakness in China and the wider, slowing world economy, could possibly result in significant reductions in oil prices.
It is not only European leaders who would welcome lower energy prices but also others, including Biden as the Democrats prepare for difficult midterm elections in November. While the overwhelming majority of US voters will not be influenced, per se, by the security elements of a nuclear deal with Iran, an agreement could have wider beneficial effects for the Democrats if oil prices continue to drop amid the backdrop of the continuing war in Ukraine.
Even if a deal does not happen this year, Brussels, the Biden team and some of the key decision-makers in Tehran will not want to see the negotiation process break down completely. For now, it suits all of their political interests for it to remain “alive,” even if an agreement cannot currently be reached.
Some key Biden officials, whose current attention is primarily focused on Ukraine, perceive that this might be the least-worst way to try to place some constraints on Iran’s nuclear program for the foreseeable future. The Trump team’s policy of using “maximum economic pressure” to incentivize Tehran to amend its behavior is undermined by nations such as China and India continuing to buy Iranian oil.
Biden has, of course, said that military action remains on the table, too. However, there might not be a serious option to completely take out Iran’s nuclear program in this way, and any such action would risk sparking a wider regional war and/or attacks by Tehran on the US and its global interests.
For Iran, meanwhile, stretching out the negotiations provides a potential window of opportunity for amassing a large stockpile of enriched uranium, in violation of the terms of the 2015 deal from which Trump withdrew. Tehran is reportedly enriching uranium to 60 percent purity, well above the limit agreed seven years ago. So amid the huge uncertainty over whether a deal can be reached, what is more clear is that Brussels will not want to see the negotiation process break down completely, and probably neither will the Biden team or some of the key players in Tehran. It suits all their political interests, for differing reasons, that the negotiations remain in play — for now.
• Andrew Hammond is an associate at LSE IDEAS at the London School of Economics.