English LCCC Newsbulletin For
Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For November 12/2022
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news
The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/aaaanewsfor2021/english.november12.22.htm
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Bible Quotations For today
If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me
before it hated you.
John 15/18-21: “‘If the world hates you, be aware
that it hated me before it hated you. If you belonged to the world, the world
would love you as its own. Because you do not belong to the world, but I have
chosen you out of the world therefore the world hates you. Remember the word
that I said to you, “Servants are not greater than their master.” If they
persecuted me, they will persecute you; if they kept my word, they will keep
yours also. But they will do all these things to you on account of my name,
because they do not know him who sent me.”
Question: “What does the Bible say about a Christian
serving in the military?”
GotQuestions.org?/Friday, 11 November, 2022
Answer: The Bible contains plenty of information about serving in the military.
While many of the Bible’s references to the military are only analogies, several
verses directly relate to this question. The Bible does not specifically state
whether or not someone should serve in the military. At the same time,
Christians can rest assured that being a soldier is highly respected throughout
the Scriptures and know that such service is consistent with a biblical
worldview. The first example of military service is found in the Old Testament
(Genesis 14), when Abraham’s nephew Lot was kidnapped by Chedorlaomer, king of
Elam, and his allies. Abraham rallied to Lot’s aid by gathering 318 trained men
of his household and defeating the Elamites. Here we see armed forces engaged in
a noble task—rescuing and protecting the innocent.
Late in its history, the nation of Israel developed a standing army. The sense
that God was the Divine Warrior and would protect His people regardless of their
military strength may have been a reason why Israel was slow to develop an army.
The development of a regular standing army in Israel came only after a strong,
centralized political system had been developed by Saul, David, and Solomon.
Saul was the first to form a permanent army (1 Samuel 13:2; 24:2; 26:2).
What Saul began, David continued. He increased the army, brought in hired troops
from other regions who were loyal to him alone (2 Samuel 15:19-22) and turned
over the direct leadership of his armies to a commander-in-chief, Joab. Under
David, Israel also became more aggressive in its offensive military policies,
absorbing neighboring states like Ammon (2 Samuel 11:1; 1 Chronicles 20:1-3).
David established a system of rotating troops with twelve groups of 24,000 men
serving one month of the year (1 Chronicles 27). Although Solomon’s reign was
peaceful, he further expanded the army, adding chariots and horsemen (1 Kings
10:26). The standing army continued (though divided along with the kingdom after
the death of Solomon) until 586 B.C., when Israel (Judah) ceased to exist as a
political entity. In the New Testament, Jesus marveled when a Roman centurion
(an officer in charge of one hundred soldiers) approached Him. The centurion’s
response to Jesus indicated his clear understanding of authority, as well as his
faith in Jesus (Matthew 8:5-13). Jesus did not denounce his career. Many
centurions mentioned in the New Testament are praised as Christians,
God-fearers, and men of good character (Matthew 8:5; 27:54; Mark 15:39-45; Luke
7:2; 23:47; Acts 10:1; 21:32; 28:16).
The places and the titles may have changed, but our armed forces should be just
as valued as the centurions of the Bible. The position of soldier was highly
respected. For example, Paul describes Epaphroditus, a fellow Christian, as a
“fellow soldier” (Philippians 2:25). The Bible also uses military terms to
describe being strong in the Lord by putting on the whole armor of God
(Ephesians 6:10-20), including the tools of the soldier—helmet, shield, and
sword.
Yes, the Bible does address serving in the military, directly and indirectly.
The Christian men and women who serve their country with character, dignity, and
honor can rest assured that the civic duty they perform is condoned and
respected by our sovereign God. Those who honorably serve in the military
deserve our respect and gratitude.
Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese &
Lebanese Related News & Editorials published
on November11-12/2022
Council of Catholic Patriarchs and Bishops to call for national dialogue
in Lebanon
Mikati shelves Iranian fuel grant after 'US warning'
Raad says Hezbollah wants president who 'won't stab resistance in back'
Opposition closes ranks to reject Berri's call for legislative session
'Extreme hardship' looms for displaced this winter in Lebanon, Mideast
Reports: New president to be elected this year
Sayyed Nasrallah: USA Responsible for Lebanon’s Curses-Israeli Aggression,
Takfiri Scheme. Economic Siege, Political Chaos
Amid crisis, Hezbollah seeks ally in next Lebanese president
Titles For The Latest English LCCC
Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on November11-12/2022
Israel Determined to Strike Iranian Weapons in Syria
Netanyahu to receive mandate to form government Sunday
Iran Hypersonic Missile Claim Raises Nuclear Watchdog Concern
UK summons Iranian diplomat over threats to journalists
Iran accuses West of helping protesters make weapons
Iran Sets up Meeting on IAEA Inquiry as Diplomatic Clash Looms
Countries request U.N. human rights debate on Iran - document
Iranians protest in southeast flashpoint, mark 'Bloody Friday'
Ukraine war's environmental toll to take years to clean up Russia Ukraine War
Russia says it has completed Kherson withdrawal
New damage to major dam near Kherson after Russian retreat -Maxar satellite
Germany's Scholz promises more air defence help to Ukraine
Russia and US to Hold First Nuclear Talks Since Ukraine War
US Election: Trump Tears into Rising Republican Rival DeSantis
Al-Sudani Cancels Security Checks in Iraqi Provinces Liberated from ISIS
Titles For The
Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published
on November11-12/2022
Breaking The Crosses' And Other Ills
Alberto M. Fernandez/MEMRI Daily Brief No. 427/November 10.2022
The Dangerous Nexus: Russia and Iran’s Mullahs/Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone
Institute/November 11/2022
Why Australia Is Gearing Up for Possible War With China/Hal
Brands/Bloomberg/November, 11/2022
Iran: Looking for a Booted Saviour/Amir Taheri/Asharq Al-Awsat/November, 11/2022
Strong institutions key to ending Iran’s influence in Iraq/Zaid M. Belbagi/Arab
News/November 11, 2022
The Latest English LCCC Lebanese &
Lebanese Related News & Editorials published
on November11-12/2022
Council of Catholic Patriarchs and
Bishops to call for national dialogue in Lebanon
Naharnet/Fri, November 11, 2022.
The Council of Catholic Patriarchs and Bishops in Lebanon on Friday announced
that it will seek a national dialogue in the country, as it stressed that the
election of a president remains the top priority. “There is no priority that is
higher than the priority of electing a president and we call on MPs to elect a
president immediately,” the Council said in a statement that followed a meeting.
“Without a president, there can be no protecting for the constitution, no
supervision over the regularity of the work of state institutions, no separation
of powers and no exit from the political, economic and financial paralysis,
seeing as without a president the state plunges into total paralysis,” the
Council warned. It also revealed that it is working on a plan under which a
“truth and reconciliation commission” would be appointed to “communicate with
all Lebanese religious, political and civilian parties to pave the way for
calling for dialogue.”“We call for a real dialogue and reconciliation has become
an urgent necessity, because Lebanon is passing through the most dangerous phase
of its political, economic, financial and social history,” the Council added.
Mikati shelves Iranian fuel grant after 'US warning'
Naharnet/Fri, November 11, 2022.
The reports about a U.S. warning against bringing Iranian oil into Lebanon were
confirmed after caretaker PM Najib Mikati met with visiting USAID chief Samantha
Power in the presence of U.S. Ambassador Dorothy Shea, ad-Diyar newspaper said
on Friday. “During the meeting, Mikati was informed that the U.S. considers all
Iranian oil as subject to sanctions, and that’s why he has in principle decided
to shelve the grant if there won’t be an exemption from the U.S. Treasury
similarly to what’s happening with Iraq,” the daily added. Quoting informed
sources, ad-Diyar said Mikati will not focus on the negotiations with Algeria
that are aimed at allowing Electricite du Liban to purchase large quantities of
fuel that would allow for raising power supply to 10 hours daily. “And as the
central bank continues to reject to cover any spending without a law from
parliament that would authorize a $300 million loan for EDL, he (Mikati) will
meet with Speaker Nabih Berri over the next two days to reach a decision over
this point,” the newspaper added.
Raad says Hezbollah wants president who 'won't stab
resistance in back'
Naharnet/Fri, November 11, 2022.
The head of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc, MP Mohammed Raad, said Thursday that
his party wants a new Lebanese president who would not “stab the resistance in
its back.”“Let us elect a president. If we want him to protect national
sovereignty and preserve his constitutional oath and the interest of the
Lebanese, let us agree on a president who would not be a confrontational
president,” Raad urged. “We want a president who would not challenge anyone. We
want him to know the value of martyrs and the importance of the resistance in
preserving Lebanon’s sovereignty and protecting it. His decision must be
sovereign and he must not bow to pressures to stab the resistance in its back,”
the lawmaker said.
Opposition closes ranks to reject Berri's call for
legislative session
Naharnet/Fri, November 11, 2022.
The opposition parliamentary blocs are mobilizing to confront what they consider
a violation of the constitution as Speaker Nabih Berri prepares to call for a
legislative session amid a presidential vacuum, a media report said on Friday.
Berri will schedule the session within two weeks, Asharq al-Awsat newspaper
reported. “This has created a constitutional debate between those who consider
that the priority today is for the election of a president and those who are
talking about the ‘legislation of necessary,’” the daily said. Sources close to
Berri meanwhile told the newspaper that “there are important and necessary laws
that cannot wait.” “Opposition blocs and MPs, who comprise around 50 lawmakers,
are meanwhile intensifying their communication to unify the stance over
rejecting the attendance of the legislative session, most notably the Lebanese
Forces party and the Kataeb Party,” Asharq al-Awsat said.
'Extreme hardship' looms for displaced this winter
in Lebanon, Mideast
Agence France Presse/Fri, November 11, 2022.
The United Nations Friday cautioned that millions of people displaced by
conflicts and persecution in the Middle East risk "extreme hardship" as winter
approaches. UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, said there was a dire need for more
funds to support many displaced people at a time when the coming northern
hemisphere winter is expected to be "far more challenging than in recent years".
The UN agency warned that an estimated 3.4 million Syrians and Iraqis displaced
within their conflict-torn countries or in the surrounding region will need
"critical assistance to prepare for and cope with winter". "Across the Middle
East, many displaced Syrians and Iraqis will have to contend with extreme cold
and snowstorms once again," Sarrado said, pointing out that "this will be the
12th consecutive winter in displacement for many". The situation is particularly
dire in Lebanon, in the grips of a severe economic crisis, where nine out of 10
Syrian refugees are already living in extreme poverty, UNHCR warned. At the same
time, Sarrado warned that there was a significant funding shortfall to address
the swelling needs, adding that UNHCR was launching a winter fundraiser to
bridge the gaps. The agency, she said, has estimated that it will need $400
million to help displaced people in Ukraine, Afghanistan and the Middle East
"meet their most urgent needs during the coldest months of the year".
Reports: New president to be elected this year
Naharnet/Fri, November 11, 2022.
Despite the total deadlock in the presidential election process, a breakthrough
is still possible within two months, informed sources told al-Joumhouria
newspaper in remarks published Friday. MP Marwan Hamadeh of the Democratic
Gathering bloc also told al-Jadeed TV on Friday that, according to information
he has, the presidential election will not be delayed beyond this year.
Lebanon's divided parliament on Thursday failed to elect a new president for the
fifth time, with the post vacant since the mandate of Michel Aoun expired last
month. Aoun's own election in 2016 followed a more than two-year vacancy at the
presidential palace as lawmakers made 45 failed attempts to reach consensus on a
candidate. But this year's vacancy comes as Lebanon is gripped by an
unprecedented financial crisis that has pushed much of the population into
poverty since 2019.
Sayyed Nasrallah: USA Responsible for Lebanon’s
Curses-Israeli Aggression, Takfiri Scheme. Economic Siege, Political Chaos
Mohammad Salami/Al-Manar English Website
Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah stressed on Friday that the
United States of America is behind all the woes plaguing Lebanon, adding that
the Resistance, in cooperation with the patriotic parties, has confronted the US
curses. Addressing Hezbollah ceremony marking Martyr’s Day, Sayyed Nasrallah
responded to the remarks made the US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Asis
Affairs, Barbara Leaf, who had described Hezbollah as Lebanon’s curse.
Sayyed Nasrallah recalled that all the Israeli massacres and crimes against the
Lebanese were committed under the patronage of the US administration, adding
that the Israeli curse was made in USA. The US administration is the curse that
has plagued Lebanon, and Hezbollah, in cooperation with the Resistance factions,
expelled it, Sayyed Nasrallah said.
The US greed made Washington destroy the Middle East countries, including Iraqi
and Afghanistan, through wars and invasions, according to Sayyed Nasrallah who
added that USA also sent dozens of thousand of takfiri terrorists to the region.
Hezbollah as well as the Lebanese people and army confronted the terrorist curse
and overcame it, Sayyed Nasrallah recalled.
Hezbollah leader emphasized the US administration was beyond the chaos which
spread in Lebanon in 2019, adding that the US officials confessed that they
trained and prepared the NGOs in order to destabilize the Lebanese state.
Sayyed Nasrallah noted that the anarchy plot in 2019 failed to decompose the
state, but that it managed to besiege Lebanon remotely. Washington has prevented
all the world countries from helping Lebanon, according to the Resistance Leader
who added that the US officials have always warned the Lebanese officials
against accepting donations. Will the Lebanese officials accept the Russian
power and wheat aids? Sayyed Nasrallah asked. Sayyed Nasrallah pointed out that
the US administration has prevented the Lebanese officials from purchasing
Iranian fuel oil, adding that it obliged Lebanon to reject an Iranian fuel
donation as well. Iran welcomed a Lebanese technical team that visited Tehran to
coordinate the fuel donation and approved the required amount, Sayyed Nasrallah
said, adding that the Islamic Republic intends to help Lebanon without asking
for anything in return.
Regarding the maritime border demarcation, Sayyed Nasrallah affirmed that the US
administration facilitated the indirect deal in order to shun a Middle East war
and help the Zionist entity, not Lebanon. USA knows the repercussions of a war
between Hezbollah and ‘Israel’, so it accepted the demands of the Lebanese
state, according to Sayyed Nasrallah, who added that Lebanon reached that
indirect deal, thanks to the Resistance power and the international
circumstances. Who is preventing Lebanon from importing the Egyptian gas and
Jordanian electric power? Sayyed Nasrallah asked. Regionally, Sayyed Nasrallah
said the US policy in the Middle East is even more detrimental, highlighting the
Caesar Act used in order to starve Syria, adding that the Americans want to
defeat Syria via siege after the failure of dozens of thousands of terrorists to
reach this end. Sayyed Nasrallah asked, “Who is responsible for all the regional
woes, what is going on in Yemen and Iran ?”Sayyed Nasrallah drew the attention
of the audience to the fact that Iran has resolutely overcome the
US-Israeli-Western conspiracy and even become more powerful.
Sayyed Nasrallah also noted that the US curse is beyond the Palestinian woe as
well, highlighting the ongoing aggression of the Israeli enemy on the
Palestinians.
Hezbollah Chief called on the Lebanese officials and political parties to
confront the US policies, or that the US curse will lead Lebanon to destruction.
Sayyed Nasrallah: Hezbollah Wants New President in Lebanon to Be Courageous,
Refrain from Backstabbing Resistance
Hezbollah Secretary General indicated that all the Lebanese political parties
reject the presidential vacuum, adding, however, filling this vacuum must not be
away from the required specifications. Sayyed Nasrallah added that the Lebanese
presidency is an important post which concerns all the Lebanese, not just the
Christians or the Maronite, calling for more political efforts to reach an
agreement in this regard.
Bilateral and trilateral meetings can replace the dialogue session, called for
by House speaker Nabih Berri and rejected by some parties, according to Sayyed
Nasrallah.
Sayyed Nasrallah stressed that Hezbollah wants the new president must be able to
protect the national strengths, led by the Resistance, noting that this is a
strategic issue related to that national security. Sayyed Nasrallah added that
this Resistance is always under fire, noting that the US remarks confirm this
notion and pointing out that the US scheme aims stirring sedition in Lebanon and
provoking the Lebanese army to fight Hezbollah.
in light of the shameful US intervention in the Lebanese internal affairs, the
Resistance and its supporters have the right, as a large segment of the Lebanese
people, to say that they want a courageous president who reassures the
resistance, Sayyed Nasrallah said.
Frankly speaking, we want a courageous president who does not shudder and get
scared when the US embassy threatens him, Sayyed Nasrallah said, adding that the
new president must not be a person who accepts to be bought and sold.
Sayyed Nasrallah recalled the experience of the two former Presidents Emile
Lahoud and Michel Aoun who reassured the Resistance and refrained from
backstabbing it, adding that all the military achievements of the resistance in
2000, 2006 and 2017 benefited from thus presidential support. Sayyed Nasrallah
reiterated that Hezbollah does not need the new president to protect it, adding
what is important is that the new president does not back stab the Resistance.
Sayyed Nasrallah clarified that President Aoun did not grant Hezbollah any extra
influence on the Lebanese state, adding, had Hezbollah been able to rule the
government, it would have approved the Iranian fuel donation. Sayyed Nasrallah
noted that the other presidential elections are also important, but that the
basic requirement of the presidential candidate is reassuring the resistance.
US Midterm Elections
Hezbollah leader indicated that the US elections will not change the strategic
policies of the United States based on launching wars, plundering fortunes, and
supporting ‘Israel’. All the US governments resort to different tactics, but
preserve the same criminal principles, according to Sayyed Nasrallah who added
that the United States is responsible for the Israeli crimes and massacres
against the Lebanese, Palestinians and all the Arabs. Sayyed Nasrallah pointed
out that, in face of the US schemes, the national unity in the region must be
sustained in order to protect the resources and fortunes.
Israeli Knesset Elections
Hezbollah leader indicated that the result of the Knesset elections, whcih gave
the Right Coalition led by Benjamin Netanyahu, does not make any difference with
respect to Lebanon. Sayyed Nasrallah said, “All Israeli governments since that
which was led by Ben-Gurion have been similar. Things will not change despite
far-right coalition’s win.” Lebanon will not be affected even if Netanyahu
chooses insane figures to be in his government, thanks to the Resistance power,
according to Sayyed Nasrallah, who added such a step will just deteriorate
strife in the Zionist society. Sayyed Nasrallah also indicated that Netanyahu
will not be able to revoke the indirect maritime deal with Lebanon, adding that
the Resistance power guarantees Lebanon’s rights in this regard.
Hezbollah Martyr’s Day
Sayyed Nasrallah started his speech by reciting Quranic verses which praise
martyrdom, adding that the Resistance Party has chosen November 11 to mark
Martyr’s Day because, in 1982, it witnessed the immense martyrdom operation
carried out by martyr Ahmad Kassir against the Israeli enemy.
Martyr Kassir’s operation, which destroyed the Israeli military command
headquarters in Tyre and killed over 100 Zionist soldiers and officers,
immensely shocked the Zionist enemy, Sayyed Nasrallah said. Sayyed Nasrallah
said that martyr Kassir’s operation has been the most enormous in face of
‘Israel’ so far, hoping there will be more immense operations against the
usurping entity. His eminence underscored that the martyrs’ families played a
vital role in their heavy sacrifices by guiding them to the battlefield, just as
the case of Karbala.
Sayyed Nasrallah stressed that preserving and appreciating the sacrifices of the
martyrs and the families sustains our power, adding that Hezbollah is trying its
best to retrieve bodies of martyrs missed in battlefields. Sayyed Nasrallah
indicated that Hezbollah has witnessed a phenomenon of having trans-generational
martyrdom-grandfather, father, and son, adding that this confirms failure of
soft warfare aimed at morally perverting “our young generation”. In this regard,
Sayyed Nasrallah cited the scene of the young Resistance fighters who display
commitment and enthusiasm in the battlefield, adding that this has surprised the
Israeli enemy in Lebanon and Palestine as well.
Sayyed Nasrallah also warned against the plot aimed spreading the moral
degeneration enhanced by the telecommunication devices, calling on the families
to look after their children.
Amid crisis, Hezbollah seeks ally in next Lebanese
president
BEIRUT (AP) /Fri, November 11, 2022.
The leader of Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group said Friday wants the next
Lebanese president to be a politician who won’t “betray” the Iran-backed faction
and assailed the United States for what he described as an undeclared “siege" on
his country. Speaking through a video-link to supporters gathered to mark
Hezbollah’s Martyrs Day, a commemoration of the group’s fallen fighters, Hassan
Nasrallah did not name a Hezbollah favorite for the post of president. But his
remarks indicated the shadowy militant leader plans to exert influence over
whoever is elected. Lebanon’s parliament failed to elect a new president in five
attempts after the term of President Michel Aoun, a strong ally of Hezbollah,
ended on Oct. 31. That left Lebanon in a political vacuum with a caretaker
government that does not have full powers as the country is roiling in the worst
economic and financial crisis in its modern history. “We want a president that
does not stab the resistance in the back,” Nasrallah said, using a term that has
become synonymous with Hezbollah. “We want a president who will reassure the
resistance.”The public perception is that Nasrallah's Hezbollah widely backs
politician Sleiman Frangieh, a close ally, for the post. Lebanon's
Western-backed coalition supports Michel Moawad, a harsh critic of Hezbollah and
its stockpile of weapons. In the last round in parliament, Moawad got 44 votes
in his favor, far short of a the two-third majority needed in the 128-member
legislature. Under Lebanon's power-sharing system in place since after the
country's independence from French mandate in 1943, a president has to come from
the Maronite Catholic sect; the prime minister is a Sunni and the parliament
speaker a Shiite. Hezbollah was the only group allowed to keep its weapons after
Lebanon's brutal 1975-90 civil war because it was fighting Israeli forces
occupying parts of southern Lebanon. After Israel withdrew from Lebanon in 2000,
Hezbollah kept its weapons, saying they were a necessary defense to deter any
future attack from Israel. Hezbollah fought Israel to a draw in a 34-day war in
the summer of 2006. Israel today considers Hezbollah — designated a terrorist
group by the U.S. and Israel — its most serious immediate threat, estimating
that the militant group has some 150,000 rockets and missiles aimed at it.
Nasrallah also blamed the “American curse" for Lebanon's power shortage, saying
Washington's sanctions are preventing Lebanon from receiving free Iranian fuel
for its power stations. His speech came on the heels of Wednesday's visit to
Lebanon by USAID chief Samantha Power, who announced the U.S. was giving $80.5
million in aid for food assistance and solar-powered water pumping stations in
crisis-battered Lebanon. Power also met with Lebanese political leaders to push
for a resolution to the political vacuum and for a slate of political and
economic reforms required by the International Monetary Fund to clinch a $3
billion aid package to Lebanon.
The Latest English LCCC
Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on November11-12/2022
Israel Determined to Strike Iranian Weapons in Syria
Tel Aviv - Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 11 November, 2022
Although the Israeli authorities have neither confirmed nor denied
responsibility for the bombing in Syria, military sources in Tel Aviv said that
the Iranian convoy that was bombed two days ago near the Iraqi-Syrian border
“was carrying weapons and ammunition, not just oil, as Tehran claims.”The
sources said that Tehran, “which received severe blows in the destruction of
arms convoys in several Syrian airports, especially Damascus International
Airport, has returned to transport [weapons] by land.”They added that the
Iranians “tried to hide these weapons through a civilian convoy, in the hope
that Israeli intelligence would not discover them.” According to the sources,
the regime of Bashar al-Assad has probably “asked Tehran to stop the transfer of
weapons, because the Israeli strikes destroyed most of the Syrian military
industries.” But Iran “insists on sending missile
warheads to its factories in Syria and Lebanon, in order to ensure the
continuation of the missile industry and improve its accuracy,” they remarked.
“Tel Aviv insists on sending clear messages to all players on Syrian soil
that it will not allow the transfer of weapons in any form. It is trying to
carry out its raids in the eastern regions of Syria, before reaching the west,
where the Russian army is located. It takes into account that Moscow is angry
with Tel Aviv for its stance on the war in Ukraine,” the sources noted.
According to the Israel Hayom newspaper, the Israeli military leaders are
conducting in-depth deliberations on the possible reaction from Russia, which
has so far been silent or just issued political criticism in one out of three or
four raids. These leaders have asked the Israeli ministry of Foreign Affairs to
assess the Russian position through diplomatic channels, the sources said.
Netanyahu to receive mandate to form government Sunday
Agence France Presse/Friday, 11 November, 2022
Former Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu will receive an official
mandate on Sunday to form a new government, Israel's presidency said, following
the completion of consultations with lawmakers. Sixty-four representatives from
Israel's 120-seat legislature recommended that President Isaac Herzog appoint
Netanyahu, a statement said Friday, adding that the former premier has been
summoned "to accept the task of forming the government from the president on
Sunday". Netanyahu will have 28 days to form a cabinet, with a 14-day extension
available if required. His right-wing Likud party and its allies -- two
ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties and the extreme-right Religious Zionism bloc --
won 64 seats in the Knesset, or parliament, at the November 1 election --
Israel's fifth in less than four years. After a period of unprecedented
political gridlock, the result has given the veteran premier the majority to
form a stable governing coalition, which may also be the most right-wing in
Israeli history. Netanyahu led Israel from 1996 to 1999 and then again from 2009
to 2021 in a record tenure in office. The 73-year-old remains on trial over
corruption allegations, which he denies.
Iran Hypersonic Missile Claim Raises Nuclear Watchdog Concern
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 11 November, 2022
An Iranian general claimed Thursday that the Iranian republic had developed a
hypersonic missile capable of penetrating all defense systems, raising concerns
from the UN nuclear watchdog. Hypersonic missiles,
which like traditional ballistic missiles can deliver nuclear weapons, can fly
at more than five times the speed of sound. "This
hypersonic ballistic missile was developed to counter air defense shields,"
General Amirali Hajizadeh, the commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard
Corps aerospace unit, was quoted as saying by Fars news agency. "It will be able
to breach all the systems of anti-missile defense," he said, adding that he
believed it would take decades before a system capable of intercepting it is
developed. The head of the International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi, speaking at a UN climate summit in Egypt, expressed
concerns about the announcement. "We see that all
these announcements increase the attention, increase the concerns, increase the
public attention to the Iranian nuclear program," Grossi told AFP. But he added
that he does not see this as "having any influence" on negotiations over the
Iranian republic's nuclear program.
The announcement comes after Iran admitted on Saturday that it had sent drones
to Russia, but said it had done so before the Ukraine war.
The Washington Post reported on October 16 that Iran was preparing to
ship missiles to Russia, a report Tehran rejected as "completely false". It also
comes at a time protests have rocked Iran since the September 16 death of Mahsa
Amini after her arrest for allegedly flouting the Iranian republic's hijab dress
code for women.
Stalled nuclear talks -
Unlike ballistic missiles, hypersonic missiles fly on a trajectory low in the
atmosphere, able to reach targets more quickly. North
Korea's test of a hypersonic missile last year sparked concerns about the race
to acquire the technology, which is currently led by Russia, followed by China
and the United States.
Both Iran and Russia are targeted by stringent sanctions -- Iran after the US
unilaterally pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal, and Russia since it invaded
Ukraine in February. The two countries have responded to the sanctions by
boosting cooperation in key areas to help prop up their economies. Iran on
Wednesday hosted Russia's security chief Nikolai Patrushev for talks on subjects
that the Russian side said included "the fight against terrorism and extremism"
as well as measures to counter Western interference. A hypersonic missile is
maneuverable, making it harder to track and defend against. While countries
including the United States have developed systems designed to defend against
cruise and ballistic missiles, the ability to track and take down a hypersonic
missile remains a question. Thursday's announcement
comes against a backdrop of stalled talks on reviving the 2015 nuclear deal. The
deal Iran reached with Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the US gave
it relief from sanctions in return for guarantees it could not develop an atomic
weapon. Iran has always denied wanting a nuclear arsenal. The deal collapsed
after the US's unilateral withdrawal in 2018 under then president Donald Trump.
The IAEA said Thursday it had seen "no progress" in discussions with Iran over
undeclared nuclear material at three sites, a sticking point in the talks aimed
at reviving the accord. Iran has been enriching uranium well over the limits
laid down in the 2015 deal with world powers, which started to unravel when the
United States withdrew from it in 2018.
UK summons Iranian diplomat over threats to journalists
AFP/November 11, 2022
LONDON: Britain on Friday hauled in a senior Iranian diplomat after what it
described as death threats against journalists living in the UK, following weeks
of anti-regime protests. The move coincided with Melika Balali, 22, an
Iranian-born wrestler now based in Scotland, receiving police protection after
accusations that she too had been threatened by the Tehran regime. “I have
summoned the Iranian charge d’affaires today after journalists working in the UK
were subject to immediate threats to life from Iran,” Foreign Secretary James
Cleverly tweeted. “We do not tolerate threats and intimidation from foreign
nations toward individuals living in the UK,” he said. Two British-Iranian
journalists working in the UK for an independent Farsi-language channel have
received “credible” death threats from Iran’s security forces, the channel’s
broadcaster said on Monday. Volant Media, the London-based broadcaster of Iran
International TV channel, said the pair had received “death threats from the
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.” The channel has been covering the
anti-regime protests in Iran following the death in mid-September of Mahsa Amini
for allegedly breaching strict dress rules for women.
Volant Media said London’s Metropolitan Police force had also notified other
journalists of threats. The Met refused to comment. But Police Scotland
confirmed Friday that it had instituted a “safety plan” to protect Balali, who
moved to Scotland a year ago and now represents her adopted country in UK
competitions. When she won gold for Scotland at the British Wrestling
Championships in June, Balali held up a sign saying “stop forcing hijab” and “I
have the right to be a wrestler.” Amini, who was also 22, died in police custody
after her arrest for allegedly wearing the hijab “improperly.”
Balali recently shaved her head at a protest in Glasgow, in an act of solidarity
with the ongoing protests in Iran over women’s rights. “These threats make me
stronger. When I receive threats from the government of Iran I just think my way
is right — if I were wrong, why would they threaten me?” the wrestler told BBC
Scotland. Iran has warned Britain it will “pay” for what it labelled its actions
to destabilize the Islamic republic in the protests sparked by Amini’s death,
state media reported Wednesday. Iran says Britain harbors hostile Farsi-language
media reporting on the protests. The BBC in turn has accused Tehran of waging a
campaign of threats and intimidation against its Persian service.
Iran accuses West of helping protesters make weapons
Agence France Presse/Friday, 11 November, 2022
Iran's top diplomat has accused Western countries of promoting violence in the
Islamic republic by helping protesters to make weapons and Molotov cocktails.
Street violence has flared across Iran since the death in police custody of
Mahsa Amini on September 16, after her arrest for allegedly flouting the
country's hijab dress code for women. Dozens of people, mainly demonstrators but
also security personnel, have been killed during the demonstrations, which the
authorities have dubbed "riots", and hundreds more have been arrested. In a
phone call late Thursday with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Iran's
Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian accused Western governments of
"promoting violence and teaching (protesters) to make weapons and Molotov
cocktails via social networks and the media". These actions led to the "killing
of police officers, and insecurity in Iran, and they even prepared the ground
for the terrorist action of the Islamic State" group, he said, quoted on his
ministry's website. At least 13 people were killed on October 26 at a Shiite
shrine in the southern city of Shiraz, in an attack claimed by the jihadist
group. Amir-Abdollahian also criticized Western countries that have been
pressing for a special session of the U.N. Human Rights Council to be held on
Iran's response to the Amini protests. Such a session should instead be held for
"governments that propagate violence and terror, not for (Iran), which is the
true defender of human rights and has exercised serious restraint regarding the
recent riots," he said.
Iran Sets up Meeting on IAEA Inquiry as Diplomatic Clash
Looms
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 11 November, 2022
Iran has agreed to a visit by the UN nuclear watchdog this month to start giving
answers the agency and its 35-nation board have long called for on the origin of
uranium particles found at three sites, an IAEA report on Thursday seen by
Reuters said. Iran has yet to provide new material,
however, and its offer came before next week's quarterly meeting of the
International Atomic Energy Agency's Board of Governors at which diplomats say
they expect Western powers to push for a resolution calling on Iran to
cooperate, a move that Tehran usually bristles at. Many diplomats see Iran's
offer as a thinly veiled attempt to reduce support for another resolution after
a similar one was passed in June, though in the absence of tangible progress
there is little to suggest Tehran's move would scupper a push to formally
criticize it at the board. "(IAEA chief Rafael Grossi)
takes note of Iran's proposal to hold a further technical meeting with senior
Agency officials in Tehran before the end of the month, but stresses that this
meeting should be aimed at effectively clarifying and resolving those issues,"
one of two confidential IAEA reports on Iran sent to member states on Thursday
ahead of the board meeting said. The IAEA "expects to start receiving from Iran
technically credible explanations on these issues, including access to locations
and material, as well as the taking of samples as appropriate", it added. A
senior diplomat said the Vienna-based agency hoped the meeting would be the
start of a process leading to answers but concrete progress was also needed at
the meeting itself. Grossi told Reuters on Wednesday
the meeting would be "in a couple of weeks". The issue has become an obstacle in
wider talks to revive Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, since Tehran
has demanded a closure of the IAEA's investigation in those talks.
The IAEA has said it will not yield to political pressure and its job is
to account for all nuclear material. The fact material that has not been
accounted for appears to have been present at these sites is therefore an issue
it must keep looking into until it is resolved. "You
can see the pattern of Iran is always similar. Every board there is something
they try to do just before the board. Historically you see a pattern," the
senior diplomat said when asked about the planned meeting in Tehran, pointing to
previous meetings and offers preceding Board of Governors sessions.
Rumbling on
The 2015 deal restricted Iran's atomic activities in exchange for sanctions
relief. In 2018, then-President Donald Trump ordered a US withdrawal from the
deal, reimposing US sanctions against Tehran. Iran responded by breaching and
going well beyond the deal's restrictions. Iran has recently installed hundreds
more advanced centrifuges, machines that enrich uranium, at its underground
plants at Natanz and Fordow. The move increases the pace at which it can enrich.
The 2015 deal only lets Iran produce enriched uranium with more basic,
first-generation centrifuges. The other IAEA report, issued on Thursday and also
seen by Reuters, showed Iran's stock of enriched uranium had shrunk slightly,
decreasing by around 267 kg to an estimated 3,673.7 kg, still far beyond the
202.8 kg allowed by the deal. Its stock of uranium enriched to 60% purity, close
to the roughly 90% weapons-grade level, grew by an estimated 6.7 kg to more than
62 kg. That is more than enough, if refined further, for one nuclear bomb. Iran
denies seeking nuclear weapons, saying its nuclear technology is solely for
civil purposes.
Countries request U.N. human rights debate on Iran -
document
GENEVA (Reuters)/Fri, November 11, 2022
Germany and Iceland submitted a request on Friday on behalf of dozens of
countries to hold a special session at the U.N. Human Rights Council on the
ongoing protests in Iran later this month, a document showed. The request called
for the session "to address the deteriorating human rights situation in the
Islamic Republic of Iran, especially with respect to women and children,"
according to the letter signed by the two countries' ambassadors.
Anti-government demonstrations began in September after the death of a Kurdish
woman, Mahsa Amini, who had been detained by morality police for allegedly
flouting the Islamic Republic's strict dress code imposed on women. They have
since grown into a popular revolt and rights groups say hundreds of protesters
have been killed in the government crackdown. The government has blamed Amini's
death on preexisting medical problems. At least one-third of the U.N. Human
Rights Council's voting members supported the proposal, as is required for
meetings outside of the body's normal agenda, meaning its convening is a
formality. Dozens of others also signed up, the German diplomatic mission in
Geneva said, bringing the total number of backers to 44. It did not immediately
provide the list.
The letter requested the meeting take place on Nov. 24. Iran has opposed the
convening of the meeting in private meetings, diplomats told Reuters. Its
diplomatic mission in Geneva did not respond to an emailed response for comment
on the planned debate on Friday. The rights council has no legal powers in
itself but its debates boost scrutiny of alleged abuses and sometimes the
evidence gleaned from its investigations are later used in international court
cases.
Iranians protest in southeast flashpoint, mark 'Bloody
Friday'
DUBAI (Reuters)/Fri, November 11, 2022
Thousands of Iranians protested in the restive southeast on Friday to mark a
Sept. 30 crackdown by security forces known as "Bloody Friday" as the country's
clerical rulers battled persistent nationwide unrest. Amnesty International said
security forces unlawfully killed at least 66 people in September after firing
at protesters in Zahedan, capital of flashpoint Sistan-Baluchistan province.
Authorities said dissidents had provoked the clashes. A video posted by the
widely followed 1500 Tasvir activist Twitter account purported to show thousands
marching again in Zahedan on Friday. Reuters could not verify the authenticity
of the footage. Another video which 1500 Tasvir said was from the town of Khash
in the southeast showed protesters trampling and breaking a street sign carrying
the name of top general Qassem Soleimani who was assassinated in a U.S. drone
attack in 2020 in Iraq. Popular anger ahead of the Sept. 30 shooting was fuelled
by allegations of the rape of a local teenage girl by a police officer.
Authorities have said the case is being investigated. Anti-government
demonstrations also started erupting that month after the death of a Kurdish
woman, Mahsa Amini, who had been detained by morality police for allegedly
flouting the Islamic Republic's strict dress code imposed on women. Nationwide
demonstrations have since turned into a popular revolt, with people ranging from
students to doctors, lawyers, workers and athletes taking part, with fury
directed mostly at Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
GRIEVANCES, TRIALS
The government, which has blamed Amini's death on preexisting medical problems,
has said the protests are fomented by Iran’s foreign enemies including the
United States, and has vowed to reestablish order. It accuses armed separatists
of perpetrating violence and seeking to destabilise the Islamic Republic.
Some of the worst unrest has been in areas home to minority ethnic groups with
long-standing grievances against the state, including the Sistan-Baluchistan and
Kurdish regions. Sistan-Baluchistan, near Iran’s southeastern border with
Pakistan and Afghanistan, is home to a Baluch minority estimated to number up to
2 million people. They have faced discrimination and repression for decades,
according to human rights groups. Iran denies that. The region is one of the
country’s poorest and has been a hotbed of tension where Iranian security forces
have been attacked by Baluch militants. The activist HRANA news agency said 330
protesters had been killed in the unrest as of Thursday, including 50 minors.
Thirty-nine members of the security forces had also been killed, while nearly
15,100 people have been arrested, it said. Iran's hardline judiciary will hold
public trials of about 1,000 people indicted for unrest in Tehran, a
semi-official news agency said on Oct. 31. They were accused of acts of
sabotage, assaulting or killing members of the security forces or setting fire
to public property.
VIDEOS, SERMONS
In a statement, United Nations human rights experts urged Iranian authorities on
Friday to stop indicting people with charges punishable by death for
participation, or alleged participation, in peaceful demonstrations. The
experts, special rapporteurs, expressed concern that women and girls who have
been at the forefront of protests might be particularly targeted. Social media
videos purported to be from the town of Saravan in Sistan-Baluchistan showed
protesters wearing traditional Baluch robes calling for the death of Khamenei.
"Where did the military forces get trained to shoot people? Today it has become
clear that people were killed unjustly," Molavi Abdolhamid, Iran's most
prominent Sunni cleric and a long-time critic of Iran's Shi'ite leaders, said in
his Friday prayer sermon in Zahedan. "Authorities must condemn this crime, and
those who ordered (the events of) Bloody Friday and its perpetrators must be
brought to trial," Abdolhamid added. It appeared tensions could rise again in
Zahedan. State television reported that the ground forces commander of Iran's
elite Revolutionary Guards, Brigadier General Mohammad Pakpour, told a gathering
of Sunni and Shi'ite tribal elders and religious leaders that clerics had to be
careful about what they said.
Ukraine war's environmental toll to take years to clean up
Russia Ukraine War
DEMYDIV, Ukraine (AP)/November 11/2022
Olga Lehan's home near the Irpin River was flooded when Ukraine destroyed a dam
to prevent Russian forces from storming the capital of Kyiv just days into the
wa r. Weeks later, the water from her tap turned brown from pollution. “It was
not safe to drink,” she said of the tap water in her village of Demydiv, about
40 kilometers (24 miles) north of Kyiv on the tributary of the Dnieper River.
Visibly upset as she walked through her house, the 71-year-old pointed to where
the high water in March had made her kitchen moldy, seeped into her well and
ruined her garden. Environmental damage from the 8-month-old war with Russia is
mounting in more of the country, with experts warning of long-term consequences.
Moscow's attacks on fuel depots have released toxins into the air and
groundwater, threatening biodiversity, climate stability and the health of the
population. Because of the war, more than 6 million Ukrainians have limited or
no access to clean water, and more than 280,000 hectares (nearly 692,000 acres)
of forests have been destroyed or felled, according to the World Wildlife Fund.
It has caused more than $37 billion in environmental damage, according to the
Audit Chamber, a nongovernmental group in the country.
“This pollution caused by the war will not go away. It will have to be solved by
our descendants, to plant forests, or to clean the polluted rivers,” said Dmytro
Averin, an environmental expert with Zoi Environment Network, a non-profit
organization based in Switzerland. While the hardest-hit areas are in the more
industrial eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, where fighting between
government troops and pro-Russian separatists has been going on since 2014, he
said, the damage has spread elsewhere.
“In addition to combat casualties, war is also hell on people’s health,
physically and mentally,” said Rick Steiner, a U.S. environmental scientist who
advised Lebanon’s government on environmental issues stemming from a monthlong
war in 2006 between that country and Israel. The health impact from contaminated
water and exposure to toxins unleashed by conflict “may take years to manifest,”
he said. After the flood in Demydiv, residents said their tap water turned
cloudy, tasted funny and left a film on pots and pans after cooking. The village
was under Moscow's control until April, when Russian troops withdrew after
failing to take the capital. Ukrainian authorities then began bringing in fresh
water, but the shipments stopped in October when the tanker truck broke down,
forcing residents to again drink the dirty water, they said.
“We don’t have another option. We don’t have money to buy bottles,” Iryna
Stetcenko told The Associated Press. Her family has diarrhea and she’s concerned
about the health of her two teenagers, she said. In May, the government took
samples of the water, but the results have not been released, said Vyacheslav
Muga, the former acting head of the local government’s water service. The Food
Safety and Consumer Protection agency in Kyiv has not yet responded to an AP
request for the results.
Reports by other environmental groups, however, have shown the effects of the
war. In recent weeks, Russia has targeted key infrastructure like power plants
and waterworks. But even in July, the U.N.’s environmental authority already was
warning of significant damage to water infrastructure including pumping
stations, purification plants and sewage facilities.
A soon-to-be-published paper by the Conflict and Environment Observatory, a
British charity, and the Zoi Environment Network, found evidence of pollution at
a pond after a Russian missile hit a fuel depot in the town of Kalynivka, about
30 kilometers (about 18 miles) southwest of Kyiv.
The pond, used for recreation as well as a fish farm, showed a high
concentration of fuel oil and dead fish on the surface -- apparently from oil
that had seeped into the water, A copy of the report was seen by the AP.
Nitrogen dioxide, which is released by burning fossil fuels, increased in areas
west and southwest of Kyiv, according to an April report from REACH, a
humanitarian research initiative that tracks information in areas affected by
crisis, disaster and displacement. Direct exposure can cause skin irritation and
burns, while chronic exposure can cause respiratory illness and harm vegetation,
the report said.
Ukraine's agriculture sector, a key part of its economy, also has been affected.
Fires have damaged crops and livestock, burned thousands of hectares of forest
and prevented farmers from completing the harvest, said Serhiy Zibtsev, forestry
professor at Ukraine’s National University of Life and Environmental Sciences.
“The fires are so massive," he said, adding that farmers “lost everything they
were harvesting for winter.” The government in Kyiv is providing assistance when
it can.In Demydiv and surrounding villages, flood victims were given the
equivalent of $540 each, said Liliia Kalashnikova, deputy head of the nearby
town of Dymer. She said the government would do everything it could to prevent
long-term environmental effects, but she didn't specify how. Governments have an
obligation to minimize environmental risks for the population, especially during
war, said Doug Weir, research and policy director for the Conflict and
Environment Observatory, a U.K.—based monitoring organization. Some Ukrainians
have already lot hope. “I feel depressed — there's water all around and under my
house," said Demydiv resident Tatiana Samoilenko. “I don't see much changing in
the future.”
Russia says it has completed Kherson withdrawal
Reuters/November 11/2022
STORY: In its daily briefing, the ministry said all Russian forces and equipment
had been transferred to the left, or eastern, bank of the Dnipro. It said the
withdrawal was completed by 0500 Moscow time (0200 GMT) on Friday morning.
Reuters could not independently verify those details. Pro-Russian bloggers had
reported late on Thursday that Russian forces crossing the river were coming
under heavy fire from Ukrainian forces. The ministry said Ukrainian forces had
struck Dnipro River crossings five times overnight with U.S.-supplied HIMARS
rocket systems. Russia ordered the withdrawal on Wednesday, saying it had
concluded that attempts to maintain its position and supply troops, including in
the regional capital Kherson, were "futile" in the face of a mounting Ukrainian
counteroffensive.
New damage to major dam near Kherson after Russian retreat
-Maxar satellite
Reuters/November 11, 2022
Significant new damage to the major Nova Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine can be
seen following Russia's withdrawal from nearby Kherson city, U.S. satellite
imagery company Maxar said on Friday. Maxar said images taken on Friday showed
several bridges that cross the Dnipro river had also been damaged. Ukrainian
troops were greeted by joyous residents in the centre of Kherson after Russia
abandoned the city. "Satellite images this morning ... reveal significant new
damage to several bridges and the Nova Kakhovka dam in the aftermath of the
Russian retreat from Kherson across the Dnipro river," Maxar said in a
statement. It said sections of the northern extent of the dam and sluice gates
had been "deliberately destroyed". Earlier this week Russia accused Ukraine of
shelling the dam. Both sides have repeatedly accused each of planning to breach
the dam using explosives, which would flood much of the area downstream and
would likely cause major destruction around Kherson. It was the only regional
capital city that Russia had captured since its forces invaded neighbour Ukraine
in late February.
Germany's Scholz promises more air defence help to Ukraine
LEIPZIG, Germany (Reuters)/November 11, 2022
Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Germany's priority in its aid to Ukraine should be
to help it defend itself from Russian air raids on its cities and to help it
rebuild its infrastructure. He added in an interview with RND newspapers on
Friday that Europe should prepare to receive more refugees from Ukraine, which
has been battling a Russian invasion since Feb. 24. "Russia is bombing Ukraine's
energy infrastructure. Russia wants to make sure people in Ukraine can't survive
the winter cold," he said in an on-stage interview. "We are currently discussing
with many German companies what they can do to counter this destruction." The
air defence systems Germany had sent to Ukraine had played a key role in
minimising the destruction so far, but Germany would work with partners to send
more, he added. Earlier, Scholz agreed in a call with Ukrainian President
Volodymyr Zelenskiy that Germany would continue to send air defence systems.
Scholz told the audience that he was convinced that, regardless of the flurry of
diplomacy with which Western leaders had tried to avert war in the run-up to
Russia's invasion, President Vladimir Putin had long been set on his course.
"I'm convinced Putin decided on this war two years ago," he said. "We saw the
troop build-up... We hoped it was just threatening gestures, but it wasn't: it
was a war long in the planning."
Russia and US to Hold First Nuclear Talks Since Ukraine War
Bloomberg/November 11, 2022
Russia said it will hold talks with the US from late November to early December
in Cairo about inspections of atomic weapons sites under the New START treaty, a
first step toward reviving broader arms-control talks suspended since the
Russian invasion of Ukraine. The consultations in the Egyptian capital will last
about a week, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Friday,
according to state news service RIA Novosti. Russia barred US inspectors from
its nuclear weapons sites in August, citing visa and travel restrictions for
Russians that it said made it impossible for them to reach the US. The two
countries had suspended the on-site inspections in March 2020 because of the
Covid-19 pandemic and were discussing how to restart them safely. The Bilateral
Consultative Commission, which handles practical matters on how the New START
deal is implemented, last met in Geneva in October 2021. US State Department
spokesman Ned Price said earlier this week the BCC will meet in the “near
future” but declined to offer details. He said the US was “realistic” about what
can be achieved from negotiations with Russia but it was important to make sure
the two countries retain the ability to talk to each other. Ryabkov said it’s
unlikely an agreement on restarting the inspections can be reached in a matter
of days in Cairo, Tass reported. Russia and US to Hold First Nuclear Talks Since
Ukraine Invasion. While the US has cut off most contacts with Russia over the
invasion, some channels remain. In Moscow, officials have called for a
resumption of broader strategic dialogue, including on a possible successor
treaty to New START. The US has said that’s not possible until the inspections
resume. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Monday confirmed that
the US had had high-level contacts with Russia, while declining to comment on
reports that National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan recently held secret talks
with aides to President Vladimir Putin in an effort to halt the slide toward
nuclear escalation. Sullivan himself confirmed communication channels remain
open between Moscow and Washington, saying it was “in the interests” of the US
to maintain contact with the Kremlin, the BBC reported. Putin and President Joe
Biden’s administration extended the New START treaty for five years in 2021,
giving the former Cold War rivals time for new talks on strategic security.
Putin’s attack on Ukraine in February has sparked a spiral of confrontation,
with the US spending billions of dollars on military and financial support for
Kyiv. The US has accused Russia of dangerous nuclear saber-rattling.
US Election: Trump Tears into Rising Republican Rival
DeSantis
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 11 November, 2022
Ex-US President Donald Trump has lashed out at Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, as
the simmering rivalry between the two top Republicans boiled over. Trump
belittled his former political apprentice as an "average" governor, lacking in
"loyalty", BBC reported.
DeSantis, 44, won re-election in a landslide in Tuesday's midterms, sealing his
status as the Republican party's brightest rising star.
He is widely expected to run for the party's 2024 White House nomination.
"Ron had low approval, bad polls, and no money, but he said that if I would
Endorse [sic] him, he could win," Trump said in a lengthy statement on Thursday.
He went on to complain that DeSantis - whom he is nicknaming "Ron
DeSanctimonious" - was "playing games" by refusing to rule out a presidential
bid. "Well, in terms of loyalty and class, that's
really not the right answer," Trump added. The former president is widely
expected to announce his own plan for a White House comeback as soon as next
week. The race for control of the House of
Representatives and Senate went down to the wire. Two days after Americans went
to the polls, it remains unclear which party will control the twin chambers of
Congress.
Al-Sudani Cancels Security Checks in Iraqi Provinces
Liberated from ISIS
Baghdad - Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 11 November, 2022
Sources close to the Iraqi government said that the decision of Prime Minister
Muhammad Shiaa al-Sudani to cancel security permits in areas liberated from the
ISIS was aimed at facilitating the affairs of citizens. Al-Sudani canceled the
security checks that were imposed on the residents of the western governorates
that fell under the control of ISIS from 2014 to 2017. This security procedure
was one of the main points of contention between the people of those regions and
the previous Iraqi governments. A source close to the Iraqi government assured
that security forces have a considerable database about terrorists. “This
decision was taken three times before. There are parties that do not implement
it for the sake of extortion,” the source said, noting that the government of
Sudani “does not deal with the logic of revenge, but its main task is to manage
the affairs of citizens in every region of Iraq.”Former deputy of Anbar
province, Abdullah Al-Kharbit, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the decision was fair
and ensured equality between the Iraqi people.
The Latest LCCC English analysis &
editorials from miscellaneous sources published
on November11-12/2022
مقالة من موقع ميمري بقلم الكاتب البرتو أم.
فرنندس تتناول موجة تكسير الصلبان وازلة الرموز المسيحية في دول الغرب، وممارسات
داعش الإسلامية وحكام انظمة دول اسلامية في اضطهاد المسيحيين والأقليات حماية
لسطوتهم وسيطرتهم
Breaking The Crosses' And Other Ills
Alberto M. Fernandez/MEMRI Daily Brief No. 427/November 10.2022
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/113287/alberto-m-fernandez-memri-breaking-the-crosses-and-other-ills%d9%85%d9%82%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%a9-%d9%85%d9%86-%d9%85%d9%88%d9%82%d8%b9-%d9%85%d9%8a%d9%85%d8%b1%d9%8a-%d8%a8%d9%82%d9%84%d9%85-%d8%a7/
Issue 15 of the ISIS English-language magazine Dabiq from 2016 was titled
"Breaking the Cross" by the terrorist organization. It was mostly an
anti-Christian edition featuring theological arguments expanding on the much
more succinct ISIS threat to the West that they would "break your crosses, take
your women, and paint the White House black."[1]
The Islamic State's dreams of world conquest turned out to be a pipe dream,
although the group is very much alive in the corners of the world and boosts its
body count numbers these days mostly by killing African Christian civilians. But
the dream of "breaking the crosses" is not limited to jihadists.
In preparation for the recent G-7 meeting in Munster, Germany's Foreign Ministry
removed a 482-year-old crucifix from the city's historic town hall where the
Peace of Westphalia was signed in 1648.[2] Germany's Foreign Minister Annalena
Baerbock, a Green Party member of Germany's ruling leftist coalition, regretted
that the cross had been removed by her ministry but could not really explain why
it happened.
Meanwhile in Spain, the country's ruling leftist (Socialists plus
the Communists of Unidas Podemos) and anti-clerical allies are wrestling how or
whether to take down the tallest (150-meter or 500 feet) cross in the world,
built by the Franco regime in Spain's Valle de los Caidos ("Valley of the
Fallen").[3] The complex was finished in 1958. Facing tough political and
economic headwinds, the ruling leftist parties are eager to be seen as zealously
anti-Franco although the dictator has been dead for almost 50 years.[4]
Elsewhere in Europe, a Tory majority Parliament endorsed a ban on silent prayer
too close to abortion clinics[5] while the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR)
ruled unanimously in favor a topless abortion activist who entered La Madeleine
church in Paris and simulated aborting baby Jesus using a bloody calf's liver in
front of the main altar just days before Christmas. The tribunal overturned the
ruling against the activist and ordered the French state to pay her 9,800 Euros
(2,000 for "moral damages" and 7,800 for costs and expenses).[6]
All of these actions in Europe were in the service of the increasingly dominant
ideology of the age, not Christianity of course, but a successor faith that
elevates as dogma certain views about gender, race, abortion, and immigration
and that is often either skeptical if not hostile toward traditional religion
and traditional families and the nation state. Most flags, except perhaps the
rainbow flag or the Ukrainian one, make the new faith's clerisy uncomfortable.
The partisans of the Islamic State were terrorists and revolutionaries but today
much change, radical ideological change included, comes from above and not from
below, not from revolutionary regimes or from populist insurrectionists but from
entrenched permanent bureaucracies. These bureaucracies, often coupled with
powerful NGO networks boosted with government money and a mostly left-leaning
social media and academic infrastructure, act as ideological enforcers of the
new dogma. Indeed, in Europe these enforcers target governments – Hungary,
Poland, and possibly Meloni's Italy – seen as fallen from the pure progressive
faith. Farther afield, an increasingly rightist nationalist democracy like
Israel also makes them uneasy. These Western enforcers decide what constitute
the new sacred cows, the new blasphemies. A Barcelona hate crimes prosecutor
just sentenced a Twitter user to 15 months in jail and a 1,600-Euro fine for
racist, anti-immigrant tweets.[7]
While the United States is still different than Europe in many ways (certainly
on free speech issues), the combination of bureaucracy plus the
activist/academic community plus compliant media is also a powerful progressive
tool on these shores. It is perhaps not surprising that the French abortion
activist at La Madeleine later praised the influence of American
"intersectional" Critical Race Theory (CRT) ideologues had on her thinking.[8]
Despite talk about a global confrontation between democracy and
authoritarianism, the new orthodoxy being steadily but surely imposed on the
West has parallels in, of all places, those authoritarian regimes in the East.
Certainly, in the Arab world, authoritarian regimes have often embraced
political Islam or Islamist narratives for their own reasons, enabling Islamist
and jihadist action (while at times fighting it). Sudan's leftist dictator
Nimeiry turned to Islamism as his popularity waned. Baathist Syria channeled
jihadist fighters into Iraq to kill Americans. Baathist Saddam Hussein's late
Islam Campaign enabled the education of a pious young man who would become "ISIS
Caliph" Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. All of this came from above.
While Saudi Arabia was once the chief promoter of Islamism in the region, they
have stopped and the slack has been taken up by Qatar and Turkey. Probably
almost as dangerous a model is in ostensibly anti-Islamist Egypt. There the
national security state zealously pursues the banned Islamist Muslim Brotherhood
while allowing other forms of Islamism to flourish. The narratives often seen on
Egyptian media, which is deeply penetrated by Egyptian security services, are
replete with conspiracy theories, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, and
anti-Americanism.[9] Rather than a refutation of an extreme ideology, they
complement and reinforce it. The Egyptian government is zealous in the policing
of its own "sacred cows," including the power to prosecute religious blasphemy.
These charges fall heaviest on the marginalized: secular or heterodox Muslims,
atheists, Shias and, of course, Coptic Christians.
There is indeed in the region Islamist and jihadist grassroots, extremist
subversion, and terrorism, but much of the space given to the larger Islamist
narrative is provided by regimes, as in Egypt, for their own reasons, the main
reason being to stay in power and distract populations from other, less popular,
topics. If in democratic Spain, the Socialists would rather talk about long-dead
Franco than sky high prices, in Egypt the regime can talk about immorality and
blasphemy rather than deal with corruption or inflation. The power to punish
"transgressors," whether they are freethinkers in the East or populists,
rightists, or Christians in the West, is the ultimate demonstration of
entrenched power by ruling elites.
Ironically, despite the fierce competition and incendiary rhetoric we often here
about "us and them," the powerful share some characteristics. Whether in
dictatorships or in ostensible democracies, raw power is being used from above
to enforce conformity among the dissenters.
*Alberto M. Fernandez is Vice President of MEMRI.
[1] Acct.nl/publication/dabiq-issue-15-a-call-to-islamic-states-enemies-as-the-caliphate-crumbles,
August 4, 2016.
[2] Msn.com/en-xl/news/other/germanys-foreign-office-removes-historic-cross-for-g7-summit/ar-AA13KaPs,
accessed November 10, 2022.
[3] Blogs.publico.es/otrasmiradas/65382/volar-la-cruz-del-valle-de-los-caido-una-imprescindible-iconoclasia-laica,
October 27, 2022.
[4] Actuall.com/historia/la-obsesion-patologica-de-la-izquierda-con-franco,
November 11, 2020.
[5] Cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2022/november/uk-bans-prayers-near-abortion-clinics-even-silent-ones-when-did-it-
become-against-the-law-to-pray, November 1, 2022.
[6] Businessinsider.co.za/france-catholic-church-topless-slut-protester-wins-human-rights-case-2022-10?
fbclid=IwAR2UlJWslAwAZaLo8s26C9THMsogY1Qvg0pBLoJkHy8fg3E5fd-sQXP6nuk, October
22, 2022.
[7] Thespainreport.substack.com/p/spanish-supremacist-twitter-user, accessed
November 10, 2022.
[8] Cafebabel.com/en/article/eloise-bouton-liberated-after-femen-5ae009e4f723b35a145e5997,
accessed November 10, 2022.
[9] See MEMRI TV Clip No. 9844, Egyptian TV Host Muhammad Musa: Freemasonry Aims
To Establish A New World Order, Turn Arab States Into Zionist Lebensraum; The
Protocols Of The Elders Of Zion Contains Plots To Spread Deviant Entertainment,
September 16, 2022.
https://www.memri.org/reports/breaking-crosses-and-other-ills
د. ماجد رفي زاده/معهد جيتستون: محور روسيا وملالي إيران
الخطير
The Dangerous Nexus: Russia and Iran’s Mullahs
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/November 11/2022
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/113290/113290/
The Iranian regime, which has long argued that it is not seeking
to develop nuclear weapons… has lately changed its tone and is boasting that it
currently has the ability to build a nuclear bomb.
Biden’s new nuclear deal, if reached, will also allow Russia to cash in on a $10
billion contract to further expand Iran’s nuclear infrastructure.
Sadly, this still seems to be the legacy that the Biden administration wants to
leave: Iran’s predatory regime, the top state sponsor of terrorism, armed with
nuclear bombs, and an empowered Russia that does not hesitate to use aggression
and military force to invade other countries.
No wonder Biden is being called a “Russian stooge.”
The Iranian regime is now providing weapons and troops to Russia with full
impunity. What are the ruling mullahs of Iran getting in return?
First of all, Iran’s theocratic establishment is rushing to cross the nuclear
threshold in order to become a nuclear-armed state. Iran wants Russia to help it
bolster and speed up its nuclear program. On October 24, Ukrainian President
Volodymyr Zelensky accurately warned: “In eight months of full-scale war, Russia
has used almost 4,500 missiles against us. And their stock of missiles is
dwindling. Therefore, Russia went looking for affordable weapons in other
countries to continue its terror. It found them in Iran.”
Zelensky added: “I have a question for you – how does Russia pay Iran for this,
in your opinion? Is Iran just interested in money? Probably not money at all,
but Russian assistance to the Iranian nuclear program. Probably, this is exactly
the meaning of their alliance.”
The Iranian regime, which has long argued that it is not seeking to develop
nuclear weapons due to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s reported “fatwa”
forbidding such an act, has lately changed its tone and is boasting that it
currently has the ability to build a nuclear bomb.
In July, Kamal Kharrazi, Iran’s former foreign minister, acknowledged to Al
Jazeera: “It’s no secret that we have become a quasi-nuclear state. This is a
fact. And it’s no secret that we have the technical means to produce a nuclear
bomb… In the past, and within just a few days, we were able to enrich uranium up
to 60%, and we can easily produce 90% enriched uranium.”
Kharrazi added that “what we want is a Middle East without any nuclear weapons”
— most likely meaning that only Iran will hold onto nuclear weapons, but not any
other country.
Other Iranian officials have also come out admitting that the regime’s nuclear
program was always designed to manufacture nuclear weapons. In April, it was
reported that former deputy speaker of the Iranian Parliament Ali Motahari said:
“From the very beginning, when we entered the nuclear activity, our goal was to
build a bomb and strengthen the deterrent forces but we could not maintain the
secrecy of this issue.”
The former head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Fereydoon
Abbasi-Davani, also acknowledged that his work was part of a “system” designed
to develop nuclear weapons. According to a report from November 2021: “The
former AEOI head also told IRNA that he worked with [nuclear scientist Mohsen]
Fakhrizadeh on ‘nuclear defense.’
“Abbasi claimed that Fakhrizadeh had been targeted by Iran’s enemies for years,
but ‘when the country’s all-encompassing growth came concerning satellites,
missiles, and nuclear weapons, and [Iran] crossed the various frontiers of
knowledge, the issue became more serious for them.'”
The Biden administration’s non-existent leadership has helped the ruling mullahs
to buy time in the last two years and speed up their nuclear program, increasing
their uranium enrichment from 20% to 60%, conducting uranium metal research,
development and production, and adding additional advanced uranium enrichment
centrifuges. The emboldened regime of the mullahs even announced that they would
not allow the International Atomic Energy to see images of the centrifuges.
Even a joint statement issued by the UK, France and Germany stressed that Tehran
“has no credible civilian need for uranium metal R&D and production, which are a
key step in the development of a nuclear weapon.” Russia and Iran previously
worked together to construct several nuclear reactors in Iran and advance the
regime’s nuclear technology.
Biden’s new nuclear deal, if reached, will also allow Russia to cash in on a $10
billion contract to further expand Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. US Secretary
of State Antony Blinken has stunningly made it clear to US lawmakers that the
Biden administration will not stand in the way of Russian-Iranian nuclear
cooperation and Russia cashing in on the $10 billion contract. State Department
spokesman Ned Price repeated the Biden administration’s stance by pointing out:
“We, of course, would not sanction Russian participation in nuclear projects
that are part of resuming full implementation of the JCPOA”.
Sadly, this still seems to be the legacy that the Biden administration wants to
leave: Iran’s predatory regime, the top state sponsor of terrorism, armed with
nuclear bombs, and an empowered Russia that does not hesitate to use aggression
and military force to invade other countries.
No wonder Biden is being called a “Russian stooge.”
* 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/19100/iran-russia-nexus
Why Australia Is Gearing Up for Possible War With China
Hal Brands/Bloomberg/November, 11/2022
Japan is America’s single most important ally, but Australia has historically
been its most reliable. Alone among US allies, not just in the Indo-Pacific but
globally, Australia has fought in all of America’s major wars since World War I.
As I found during three days in Sydney and Canberra, the prospect of war in the
Taiwan Strait is forging Australia, Japan and the US into a latter-day Triple
Entente — the pre-World War I coalition that sought to contain Imperial Germany
— in the Western Pacific. That comparison is reassuring and disquieting at the
same time.
Less than a decade ago, Australia was the poster child for US allies who refused
to choose between Washington and Beijing. How times change. In 2017-18,
revelations of pervasive Chinese efforts to corrupt Australian politics caused a
pivot in public opinion.
In 2020, China punished Australia economically after the Canberra government
supported an international inquiry into the origins of Covid-19. Beijing’s
expanding influence in the South Pacific has sparked fears of Chinese flotillas
threatening Australia’s sea lanes.
Yet what came through most clearly this week, in conversations with Australian
analysts and officials, was concern that a Chinese invasion of Taiwan might
catastrophically compromise the security of the entire Indo-Pacific. “Australia
could not survive in a Chinese-dominated region,” one defense expert told me. It
would become “a satrapy,” forced to toe Beijing’s line or suffer the
consequences.
This is why, as Michael Green of the US Studies Center in Sydney notes ,
Australia has in recent years pushed Washington to go faster on issues ranging
from curbing the influence of Huawei Technologies Co. to creating one new
security grouping, AUKUS, and reinvigorating an older one, the Quad.
The Australian government recently signed a joint declaration with Japan that
looks a lot like “alliance-lite.” The two countries pledged to consult and work
with each other “on contingencies that may affect our sovereignty and regional
security interests.”
It’s a remarkable historical shift: In 1942, Northern Australia feared a
Japanese invasion; today, Japanese troops are preparing to train there with the
Australian army. And Australia, like Japan, is striving to strengthen its
ability to defend itself and the region it inhabits.
Nuclear-capable American B-52 bombers will soon operate out of Northern
Australia as part of a larger expansion of the US presence there. AUKUS — the
Australia-UK-US security arrangement announced last year — will produce
(eventually) nuclear-powered attack submarines and (more quickly) unmanned
underwater vehicles and other advanced capabilities.
Based on conversations I’ve had in Washington and Canberra, it also seems likely
that Australia may lease one or more US attack submarines until the boats built
under the AUKUS deal are ready. Investments in cyberwarfare and intelligence
capabilities are increasing as defense spending rises.
Admittedly, the Australian military is small, and the distances to the Taiwan
Strait are large. The Australians wouldn’t have huge amounts of firepower to
contribute to a Taiwan fight.
But, Australian officials told me, in a conflict where the margin between
victory and defeat would be razor-thin, their military would have a critical
role. Envision a geographic division of labor — in which Australia uses air
power and sea power to secure critical lines of movement through Southeast Asia,
while Japan holds Northeast Asia, and the US busts the invasion or blockade of
Taiwan itself.
US air power and Marines in a Taiwan conflict would likely operate from
Australian bases. Australian space, cyberwarfare and intelligence assets would
be crucial. Conceivably, US-made Australian F-35s might fly from American bases
in the Western Pacific, or Australian ground forces could help Taiwan repel an
invasion (although geography alone makes these more distant possibilities).
Distance isn’t the only dilemma Australia faces. Developing the capabilities
currently envisioned, especially attack submarines, will require major spending
hikes. Deepening cooperation with allies and partners triggers perennial
concerns about Australian sovereignty. Australia would suffer economically in a
conflict with China, which accounts for 31% of its trade.
Even so, Australia probably wouldn’t stay on the sidelines. Opinion polling
indicates that a plurality of the population favors sending forces to defend
Taiwan, so long as the US does, too. The center-left government of Prime
Minister Anthony Albanese refuses to be pinned down on Australia’s intentions,
but one recent defense minister deemed it “inconceivable” that Australia
wouldn’t be involved.
There is increasingly an assumption here that a war in the Western Pacific would
involve a “three-plus-one” coalition — Australia, Japan and the US helping to
defend Taiwan. These three countries increasingly resemble the Triple Entente —
between France, Russia and Britain — a loose coalition committed to stopping
their era’s autocratic challenger, Imperial Germany, from shattering the balance
of power.
Yet the Triple Entente failed to prevent World War I, in part because its
looseness — there was no formal treaty binding all three members — encouraged
German leaders to hope it might fracture in a crisis. There’s a similar
challenge before the democracies today.
Australia, Japan and the US all have policies of “strategic ambiguity” regarding
Taiwan — they have indicated they won’t let China take the island, but made no
formal commitments to its defense. Separate alliances bind the US to Japan and
the US to Australia, but there is no trilateral mechanism ensuring that an
attack on one would be treated as an attack on all. Nor is there a unified
command structure that would be needed for the three powers to fight together
effectively.
There are sound reasons for maintaining strategic ambiguity, not least that no
one wants to set off a crisis by shifting the status quo in the strait. Yet as
World War I reminds us, conflicts have also started when aggressors
underestimate the resistance they will eventually face. Australian officials
told me they worry that it will be difficult to generate tons of new military
capabilities in the next half-decade, so one way to strengthen deterrence is to
make as clear as possible that Beijing will face a powerful democratic coalition
if it attacks Taiwan. After all, it seems likely that Australia, like Washington
and Tokyo, would find it hard to avoid such a fight. One critical question, in
Canberra and elsewhere, is how explicitly to make this known in advance.
Iran: Looking for a Booted Saviour
Amir Taheri/Asharq Al-Awsat/November, 11/2022
As Iran enters a third month of popular protests, or a revolutionary uprising as
some analysts assert, it seems that the troubled country may be heading for an
impasse in which the ruling clique is neither able to calm down the situation
nor capable of crushing it as it did on a number of previous occasions.
Taken by surprise by what seems to be a spontaneous upsurge of political energy
against a moribund system, the regime’s many opponents both inside and outside
Iran have so far failed to canalize that energy towards regime change.
Thus both the regime and its opponents are looking for a deus ex-machina to
slide down his celestial chute and cut the Gordian knot with a single blow. In
other words they are desperately seeking a pair of boots to kick the mullahs
back into their mosques and madrassas while coaxing the rebellious youth back to
universities, colleges and primary schools and even kindergartens.
But where could the boots come from?
Those who hope to save the Khomeinist regime and those still nostalgic of the
anti-Shah revolt of five decades ago seek the saviour-in-boots in the Iranian
Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).Last week over a two-third of the members of
the Islamic Majlis, the 290-seat ersatz parliament, passed a revolution inviting
the IRGC to step in full force and “cleanse the country” of anti-regime
elements.
Several exile groups have even published open letters to IRGC commanders
inviting them, in effect, to stage a coup and to "flush the mullahs out of
power.”
At the other end of the spectrum, nationalist and self-styled “democratic”
personalities and groups hope that the booted deus ex machina will come from the
regular national army.
Both aspirations face a number of hurdles.
Those who want an IRGC commander to play Bonaparte ignore the fact that the IRCG
is more of a brand, a logo or a franchise than a revolutionary army like the one
that Napoleon, with several spectacular victories behind it, headed.
Unlike “revolutionary” armies in pre-Communist China, pre-independence Algeria,
or the Vietcong and Pathet Lao in Indochina, the IRGC was created after the
victory of the Khomeinist revolution with the clear mission of suppressing
dissent rather than fighting foreign armed enemies.
Because it is divided into more than a dozen entities, designed for use in a
wide range of activities such as security espionage, black market operations,
business ventures, money laundering, and “exporting revolution,” it has never
been able to develop a coherent culture let alone an esprit de corps.
Moreover, those wearing the IRGC brand are already in power under different
guises. They have over 100 seats on the Islamic Majlis, more than the mullahs
and have claimed most of the other plum positions such as provincial governors,
diplomats, and more, lucrative ones as heads of huge public sector businesses.
IRGC chief Gen. Hassan Salami sits on the executive boards of some 30
conglomerates.
In other words Iran already has a military-security regime that uses a
pseud-religious narrative as a cover for what is a very this-worldly and brutal
pursuit of power and wealth.
If the mullahs created IRGC to protect their power and privilege, the IRGC, in
turn created the Baseej and a dozen other instruments of oppression to protect
its own power and wealth.
Those who describe the present regime in Iran as a theocracy are victims of a
visual error by not noticing the military cap under the turban.
I know that this might sound outlandish but one may suggest that, rather than
being the guardian of the Revolution, the IRGC may has become the principal
cause of its loss of legitimacy and eventual downfall. The IRGC cannot deliver
Iran form the Khomeinist nightmare because it has been and remains the key
instrument pushing us into that nightmare.
So, can the regular army produce the Bonaparte that many seem to seek? My answer
is: no. Iranian politics never developed a culture of military coups.
What caused some confusion was the erroneous description of events that led to
the emergence of Reza Shah the Great as the architect of a new Iran as a coup
d’etat. In 1921 a group of political activists backed by a small number of
troops led by Reza Khan marched on Tehran and “persuaded” the then monarch Ahmad
Shah to appoint one of their leaders as prime minister.
There was no change in the constitution and Ahmad Shah remained head of state
and commander-in-chief of the armed forces until he himself decided that a
comfortable life on the French Riviera was more enjoyable than sitting on the
Peacock Throne in Tehran. Reza Khan served as minister of war, prime minister,
and finally interim prince, until an elected Constituent Assembly decided to
keep the constitutional monarchic system and name him as king.
Some young protesters have been shouting the slogan “Reza Shah, Bless Your Soul”
to indicate their hope that history repeats itself by producing a similar
“saviour”, at a time that Iran tries to shake off another despotic system.
What they ignore, perhaps, is that Reza Shah was the expression and implementer
of the goals of the Constitutional Revolution rather than their architect.
Backed by a generation of politicians, intellectuals, clerics, bazaar merchants
and military officers, he was able to negotiate a dangerous passage in Iran’s
history and lay the foundations of a modern nation-state.
Reza Shah was not a creature of the Iranian army but its creator. Today, as in
1921, the Iranian army, even assuming it has not been turned into a ghost of
self under the Khomeinist regime, is more of a character in search of an author
rather than an author capable of producing a new Reza Shah.
Whichever way you look it, the present system no longer reflects Iran’s identity
as a young nation aspiring after building a normal life and gaining a presence
in the modern world, something that neither the turban nor the military cap is
able to provide.
Iran doesn’t need a military coup to replace one form of despotism with another.
What it needs is a national consensus to restore our constitutional system and
its aspirations that produced Reza Shah in the context of national sovereignty
and the rule of law.
In other words stop looking for boots and start looking at the path chosen by
those on the march towards a better future for Iran.
Strong institutions key to ending Iran’s influence in Iraq
Zaid M. Belbagi/Arab News/November 11, 2022
Political stability has been a rare commodity in Iraq since the 2003 invasion.
Though governments have come and gone, the lot of normal Iraqis has only
worsened. Public services are in tatters, the economy is as broken as the
country’s politics and the proliferation of militias has made security
impossible. Iran, long contained by a strong Iraq, filled this vacuum,
exacerbating the country’s weaknesses and drawing it away from the Arab world.
With the Iranian regime on the back foot at home, many now wonder what the
implications will be in Baghdad.
Amid a failing state and violent clashes across the country, new Prime Minister
Mohammed Al-Sudani was appointed last month following months of infighting that
paralyzed the government of his predecessor, Mustafa Al-Kadhimi. Al-Sudani’s
appointment comes amid a wider conflict between pro and anti-Iranian factions,
which has left members of the Council of Representatives of Iraq unable to form
a stable coalition government or elect a new president.
With the coalition led by former Prime Minister Nouri Al-Malki and his Dawa
Party seeking to grow its national representation and Muqtada Al-Sadr first
insisting he form a majority government, only to then use his militia to scupper
the parliamentary process, the country and its political life have been caught
between a rock and a hard place.
Iraq’s democracy hangs by a fine thread, with the country’s institutions,
security services, judiciary and the media all failing to provide for citizens.
The political stalemate of the last year began after protests called for the
overhaul of the political system. Chief among the complaints of protesters has
been the interference of Iran, which has consistently sought to undermine Iraq’s
fragile democracy. It is therefore unsurprising that, despite several
invitations, the movement of firebrand cleric Al-Sadr, Al-Sudani’s rival in
Iraq’s majority Shiite camp, refused to join the government.
The dysfunction among the Shiite factions in Iraq is representative of a wider
problem, which is Iran’s tireless commitment to shaping Iraqi politics.
According to London-based think tank the International Institute for Strategic
Studies: “Iraq continues to pose a threat to Iranian national security, which is
why Iran is intent on shaping Iraq’s domestic politics and strategic
orientation.”
Two decades of empowering key militia groups and political parties has given
Iran an incredible amount of influence in Iraq and leverage over its politics.
Though Iran’s relationship with its Iraqi allies is usually one of mentorship as
opposed to direct control, Tehran has a broad network of Iraqi political and
militant groups. Today, an increasing number of militia members have graduated
into mainstream Iraqi politics. This has allowed Iran to ensure that, though
Iraqi political life is chaotic, those who become preeminent are friendly to the
regime in Tehran.
The dysfunction among the Shiite factions is representative of a wider problem,
which is Iran’s tireless commitment to shaping Iraqi politics
Irrespective of the popular movement opposing it at home, Iran’s government
remains focused on its proxies in Iraq simply because it remains its largest
security concern. Despite Iran’s policy of deliberate public ambiguity in
respect of its operations across its western border, it provides material and
political support to hundreds of thousands of militiamen, allowing it to have a
military footprint in the country while also being able to capitalize on
existing domestic rivalries to retain its influence.
The recent arrival of Al-Hashd Al-Sha’abi and Kata’ib Hezbollah — radical Iraqi
Shiite paramilitary groups backed by Iran — at Mashhad airport, effectively
propping up regime security on Iranian soil, showed the extent to which these
groups are under Iran’s control.
This is an extension of Iran’s already well-documented strategy of placing proxy
groups in control of key political sites, especially along Iraq’s national
borders and the disputed boundaries of the Kurdistan region. Though these
militias, alongside the larger Shiite-dominated Al-Hashd Al-Sha’abi, are a
byword for Iranian influence in the country, Tehran also has a strong connection
to the supposedly anti-Iranian Al-Sadr, the leading Sunni actors and the
Kurdistan Democratic Party’s Kurdish rival, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan.
The recent Iranian missile attacks on KDP territory in Iraq are in fact a direct
result of Iran’s domestic upheaval. As Tehran simultaneously seeks to limit the
territory being used by dissident groups and to pressure Iraqi politicians to do
its bidding, the recent bombings show domestic pressures are not limiting Iran’s
interference in Iraq, but rather increasing it.
Though the schism between Iraq’s Shiite factions is dominated by concerns over
power and political ambition, it is also indicative of a wider fatigue with
Iranian influence in Iraq. Iranian interference in Iraq is increasingly seen as
only reinforcing the situation of a weak state riddled with corruption that is
unable to ensure adequate public services provision. Although it may be that
Tehran’s distraction over affairs in Iraq weakens a regime that should be
focusing on matters at home, it is unlikely Iran will relinquish its control in
Iraq willingly.
Political infighting in Iraq can only end with Tehran’s exit and, for that to
happen, Iraq’s institutions must be rebuilt and the involvement of foreign
actors, including Turkey, the US and the Gulf states, must be kept to a minimum.
Only strong Iraqi institutions can recalibrate the country’s politics; weak ones
will continue to host menacing foreign actors and the failed state that comes
with them.
• Zaid M. Belbagi is a political commentator and an adviser to private clients
between London and the GCC. Twitter: @Moulay_Zaid