English LCCC Newsbulletin For
Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For August 09/2024
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news
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Bible Quotations For today
You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the sabbath untie his ox
or his donkey from the manger, and lead it away to give it water
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 13/10-17/:"Jesus
was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. And just then there
appeared a woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years. She was
bent over and was quite unable to stand up straight. When Jesus saw her, he
called her over and said, ‘Woman, you are set free from your ailment.’When he
laid his hands on her, immediately she stood up straight and began praising God.
But the leader of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had cured on the
sabbath, kept saying to the crowd, ‘There are six days on which work ought to be
done; come on those days and be cured, and not on the sabbath day.’ But the Lord
answered him and said, ‘You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the sabbath
untie his ox or his donkey from the manger, and lead it away to give it water?
And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen
long years, be set free from this bondage on the sabbath day?’ When he said
this, all his opponents were put to shame; and the entire crowd was rejoicing at
all the wonderful things that he was doing."
Titles For The Latest English LCCC
Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on August 08-09/2024
Galant threatens the Lebanese.. This is the
fate of those who "play with fire"!
CNN: Hezbollah Could Strike Israel Independent of Iran
In Lebanon, Life on Hold Four Times Amid Conflict
UNIFIL Says Families of its Personnel Must ‘Temporarily’ Leave Lebanon
UNIFIL Calls on the Families of its Personnel to Leave Lebanon Temporarily
Hezbollah Fighter Killed on Southern Front
South Lebanon: Three Wounded in a Raid on Yarine
Three wounded in drone strike on al-Jebbayn
Macron calls Netanyahu in bid to prevent all-out war with Hezbollah
Reports: US promises Gaza truce if Iran, Hezbollah don't retaliate
Report: Hochstein urges restrained response, Grand Serail speaks of major
settlement
Air France extends Beirut flight suspension until Sunday
Housing prices soar as Dahieh residents flee amid fears of all-out war
Tajaddod Reject Dragging Lebanon into External Manipulations
Geagea Questions Syria’s Refusal to Extradite Sleiman’s Suspects
‘Proof of Their Simple-Mindedness’
Nasrallah’s Speech: A Quick Analysis
Lebanon faces food-security crisis if war escalates, economy minister warns
Simon Abi-Ramia: Walked in Shame for 20+Years, but Walks Out Now that it's Too
Late
If this cataclysm Michel Aoun did not exist, the free region would have probably
been member of the EU by now.
Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on August 08-09/2024
Israel agrees to resume Gaza truce talks next week
US and other frustrated mediators call on Israel, Hamas to resume Gaza talks,
saying, 'no excuses'
Netanyahu Says Israel 'Striking Enemies' as Attack Expected
Israel's Western allies slam Israeli minister's remark that Gaza starvation may
be justified
Behind Sinwar’s Selection: Internal, Regional, and Israeli Factors
Israel Kills 40 Palestinians in Gaza Airstrikes amid Fears of Wider War
Iran defector loses to old friend and former taekwondo teammate at Paris
Olympics
Iranian brothers charged in alleged smuggling operation that led to deaths of 2
Navy SEALs
Five arrested over attack that wounded U.S. troops in Iraq airbase, statement
says
Cyprus again offers sanctuary as Middle East violence spreads
Russia battles Ukrainian troops for third day after shock incursion
US Strikes at Houthi Targets in Yemen
HRW: Yemen’s Houthis Obstructing Aid, Exacerbating Cholera
Egypt Supports EU ASPIDES to Protect Security of Red Sea Navigation
Bani Tamim Tribesmen Shut Down Police Stations, Govt Departments in Eastern Iraq
Titles For The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous
sources on August 08-09/2024
How Qatar buys powerful friends in
Washington ... The case of Bob Menendez and others like him/Natalie Ecanow/The
Washington Times/August 08/2024
Why Are the European Union and the World Bank Paying Palestinian
Terrorists?/Robert Williams/Gatestone Institute./August 08/2024
Iraqi Christians’ Never-Ending ‘Black Day’/Raymond Ibrahim/PJ Media/August
07/2024
Time: Exclusive Interview With Israeli PM, Benjamin Netanyahu/August 8, 2024
Concerning America's Ability to Protect and Defend Its Very Future/Lawrence
Kadish/Gatestone Institute/August 08, 2024
Four Scenarios for The Day After in Gaza/Dr. Nassif Hitti/Asharq Al Awsat/August
8, 2024
Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published
on August 08-09/2024
Galant threatens the Lebanese.. This
is the fate of those who "play with fire"!
News Agencies/August 08, 2024
In a new threatening message, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant addressed the
Lebanese, saying: "Whoever plays with fire heralds destruction." Galant added,
"If Hezbollah continues its aggression, we will fight it very fiercely."
In a message to the Lebanese via social media, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav
Galant said, "Iran and its affiliates, led by Hezbollah, have taken Lebanon and
its people hostage in the service of their narrow sectarian and religious
interests." That "Israel aims for tranquility, prosperity, and stability on both
sides of the northern border. Therefore, it absolutely does not allow Hezbollah
to undermine stability on the border and in the region."
CNN: Hezbollah Could Strike Israel Independent of Iran
Asharq Al Awsat/August 8, 2024
The Israeli military said on Thursday it had struck Hamas command centers
embedded in the areas of two schools in the Gaza Strip, which were used to carry
out attacks against Israeli troops, Reuters reported. "Prior to the strike,
numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians, including
the use of precise munitions, surveillance, and additional intelligence," the
military said. "The school compounds were used by
Hamas terrorists and commanders as command-and-control centers, from which they
planned and carried out attacks against Israel Defence Forces troops and the
state of Israel," it claimed.
In Lebanon, Life on Hold Four Times Amid Conflict
Beirut: Youssef Diab/Asharq Al Awsat/August 8, 2024
Since Hezbollah opened a front in southern Lebanon to support Gaza, Lebanese
lives have been upended, with fears that this support could escalate into a
devastating war. The conflict has seen four key moments. Initially, diplomatic
efforts tried to contain the situation. Tensions grew after the Israeli military
killed Hamas leader Saleh al-Arouri in Beirut’s southern suburbs in early
January. This led to a flurry of diplomatic activity aimed at preventing the war
from spreading. The third phase came after Israel's
killing of Iranian Revolutionary Guard leaders at the Iranian consulate in
Damascus and Iran’s retaliation. The fourth phase is unfolding now, with Israel
recently assassinating Hezbollah leader Fuad Shukr in Beirut’s southern suburbs
and Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran. This has
left Lebanon in suspense, with everyday life paused as everyone waits for
responses from Iran, Hezbollah, and Israel. The strategies of both sides have
shifted. Hezbollah thought that attacking northern Israeli settlements would
force Israel to stop its assault on Gaza and meet its demands.
However, Hezbollah’s goals were not met. On the other hand, the Israeli
military believed that its strikes in Lebanon and Syria would make Hezbollah
retreat and comply with Resolution 1701 by withdrawing north of the Litani
River. This has not happened, despite international pressure. Whenever tensions
rose, diplomatic efforts were made to prevent the conflict from widening. These
efforts succeeded in stopping the war from expanding before the recent
assassinations of Shukr and Haniyeh but failed to de-escalate or end the current
conflict. A diplomatic source, speaking under the
conditions of anonymity, told Asharq Al-Awsat that international efforts have
not yet managed to ease the tensions between Israel and Hezbollah. Lebanon is
now facing crucial and challenging days as it awaits Hezbollah’s response to the
assassinations and Israel’s reaction. The source
pointed out that embassy closures and urgent evacuation warnings from Western
embassies underline the serious risks, signaling that any major attack on Israel
could have severe consequences for Lebanon. The source
hopes that all parties understand that the ongoing diplomatic efforts are the
last chance to avoid a wider war. As Lebanon waits for Hezbollah’s response to
the killing of Shukr and Iran’s reaction to the assassination of Haniyeh, the
country is facing high tension. Western and Arab embassies have urgently advised
their citizens to leave Lebanon, and most airlines have suspended flights to
Beirut International Airport.
UNIFIL Says Families of its Personnel Must ‘Temporarily’ Leave Lebanon
Asharq Al Awsat/August 8, 2024
The families of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon personnel must leave the
country, UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti told Italian news agency ANSA on
Wednesday. The request, which the spokesman said is a “temporary measure,”
coincided with a military escalation in the south while Hezbollah and Israel
continue to exchange threats. In Beirut, Prime Minister Najib Mikati held
several meetings to follow up on the current situation and assess the readiness
of Lebanese ministries and departments in the event of any emergency. Meanwhile,
Tenenti told ANSA that the families of UNIFIL personnel must leave Lebanon. He
said the request was made by the UN according to an order already issued in May
when the mission has become a “non-family duty station” with tension escalating
at the border between Lebanon and Israel. “Many families have left, even though
some remained in Beirut where the situation was calmer,” the spokesperson said.
“Now the new measure concerns them as well,” he noted, adding however that it is
a “temporary measure.” Tenenti added that the measure
is expected to last “at least until the end of August” and it can't be described
as “an evacuation but rather as a relocation.”UNIFIL’s request came while
regional tensions have escalated following last week's assassination of Hamas
political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Hezbollah senior commander Fouad
Shukr in an airstrike in Beirut's southern suburbs. Iran and Hezbollah
threatened a “harsh and painful response” for the presumed Israeli
assassinations. Countries have issued urgent calls for their nationals to leave
in recent days while several airlines have delayed or suspended flights to
Beirut and Tel Aviv. The US Embassy in Lebanon said it remains open and
continues to process emergency passports, repatriation loans, and other
emergency consular services. “US citizens who need financial assistance
returning to the United States may apply for a repatriation loan,” it said in a
post on X. Earlier, the Embassy warned that Americans
who do not leave the country should be prepared to “shelter in place for an
extended period of time.”Also, the German defense and foreign ministries, after
frequent calls to German citizens to leave Lebanon, warned those remaining not
to rely only on the fact that the German state will evacuate them in the event
of an escalation of the conflict. “The evacuation operation is not a package
deal with a guarantee of return. The evacuation operation is associated with
dangers and uncertainties and is not at all without problems. And in this
context, we again call on all Germans staying in Lebanon to leave immediately,”
said the Foreign Ministry spokesman. Also, the Defense Ministry said that the
refusal to leave Lebanon while being called up is completely wrong and
irresponsible, including towards German soldiers. Since the beginning of this
week, reporting on evacuation preparations and options has created a false
impression, preventing German citizens in Lebanon from leaving the country, the
country's authorities said in a statement. In the Lebanese capital, Mikati held
a series of meetings, including with caretaker Environment Minister Nasser
Yassin and Public Works and Transport Minister Ali Hamieh, as well as the
Secretary General of the Council of Ministers, Judge Mahmoud Makkieh, and
Secretary-General of the Supreme Defense Council Major General Mohammad Mustafa.
They followed up on the current situation and assessed the readiness of
Lebanese ministries and departments in the event of any escalation. Yassin said
the meetings discussed the issue of accommodating displaced persons, the
emergency health plan, food security, and the available quantities of fuel.
UNIFIL Calls on the Families of its Personnel to Leave
Lebanon Temporarily
This Is Beirut/August 08/2024
UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti said on Thursday that “the families of UNIFIL
soldiers must leave Lebanon.”This request, the UN official recalled, follows “an
order that was issued as early as May by the UN, when tensions were escalating
on the border between Lebanon and Israel,” and where a war has been raging since
October 8, 2023.“Many families had already left Lebanon, while others remained
in Beirut, where the situation was relatively calm. They are now affected by
this new procedure,” continued Tenenti. These measures come at a time when the
Lebanese population is living in fear of an Iranian response against Israel,
following the assassination last Wednesday of Ismail Haniyeh, head of the Hamas
political bureau, who was killed in Teheran. Not to mention the murder on the
previous day of Fouad Shokr, a prominent Hezbollah’s military chief and an
influential adviser to Hassan Nasrallah, in Haret Hreik, in the heart of
Hezbollah’s stronghold in Beirut’s southern suburbs. Shokr had died in an
Israeli air strike that left four dead, including two children, and 74 injured.
Hezbollah Fighter Killed on Southern Front
This Is Beirut/August 08/2024
After a precarious calm on the southern front on Thursday afternoon, Hezbollah
launched an intensive missile attack on the Israeli settlement of Nahariya,
where loud explosions were heard. Israeli media reported that “several rockets
landed between Shlomi and Nahariya in western Galilee.”Israeli army radio
reported that 15 rockets were fired from Lebanon and landed in the Shlomi and
Kabri areas of western Galilee after sirens sounded in the settlements of
Nahariya and Shlomi. The Times of Israel also reported
that 23 rockets and eight others were launched from Lebanon in less than twenty
minutes and that the Israeli army had “bombarded the sources of the fire” in
retaliation. Following these strikes, Israeli Defense
Minister Yoav Galant reacted on his X account by reiterating his threats against
Hezbollah. Addressing the Lebanese directly, he added, “Whoever plays with fire
is destined for destruction.”
Israeli warplanes launched two air strikes targeting the outskirts of the towns
of Rshaf and Haddatha in the Bint Jbeil caza, where ambulances were dispatched.
Other airstrikes targeted Hula and Wadi al-Izziya, on the outskirts of
Zebqine in the Tyre caza, without causing casualties. Also, for the fifth
consecutive day, the Israeli army targeted the locality of Kfar Kila with four
successive strikes. Artillery fire also hit the outskirts of Aita al-Shaab and
Ramya.One Hezbollah fighter, Hassan Atef al-Sayyed from Aitaroun, was killed.
The pro-Iranian group announced his death, stating that he “succumbed to his
wounds.”In the evening, Hezbollah claimed responsibility for a strike against
the Ramim barracks. In addition, it claimed three strikes in the afternoon, one
targeting a gathering of Israeli soldiers in the Al Marj settlement, another
targeting Al Malikiyah, and yet another destroying “spy equipment” at Rweissat
al-Alam in the Shebaa Farms, as announced in successive communiqués. According
to the local channel Al-Jadeed, the party targeted Israeli positions in Zarit,
Branit in the Shebaa Farms, and Samaqa in the early evening.
As a reminder, on Thursday morning, an Israeli raid targeted a car in
Yarine, injuring four people, according to the Emergency Operations Center under
the Ministry of Health.
South Lebanon: Three Wounded in a Raid on Yarine
This Is Beirut/August 08/2024
Bombardments resumed in South Lebanon on Thursday, following a relatively calm
morning. An Israeli raid targeted a car in Yarine, injuring three people,
according to preliminary information from the Ministry of Health’s Emergency
Operations Center.
On Thursday morning, Israeli artillery targeted the outskirts of Shebaa town
with heavy shells. At the break of dawn, an Israeli airstrike targeted an
unoccupied residence in Doueir, reducing it to rubble without causing any
casualties. However, the neighboring area bore the brunt of the attack, with a
dozen houses sustaining damage. For his part, the Israeli Army’s Arabic-speaking
spokesman, Avichay Adraee, announced that the air force had destroyed several
infrastructures belonging to Hezbollah in Bint Jbeil, Majdal Zoun, and Doueir.
On Wednesday night, Israeli aircraft bombed the outskirts of Mansouri in the
caza of Tyre, resulting in significant harm to agricultural lands and local
infrastructure. Flare bombs were also fired at villages in the western and
central sectors.
Three wounded in drone strike on al-Jebbayn
Associated Press/August 8, 2024
An Israeli drone targeted Thursday a car between the southern towns of
al-Jebbayn and Yarine, wounding three people. Hezbollah, for its part, targeted
al-Malkia with artillery shells and a group of soldiers in the al-Marj post with
a suicide drone. Israeli warplanes had raided overnight the outskirts of the
southern village of al-Mansouri and a house in Doueir near Nabatieh, also in
south Lebanon. On Wednesday, an Israeli strike killed a Hezbollah fighter in
Jwayya, who Israel said was a commander in the militant group’s anti-tank
missile unit. There have been months of near-daily attacks along the border.
Both sides are bracing for a potentially significant escalation after the
killings last week of a top Hezbollah commander in Beirut and the Hamas
political leader in Iran. Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has vowed to
retaliate against Israel for the strike in Beirut “no matter the consequences."
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant warned that Nasrallah might cause Lebanon
"to pay very, very heavy prices" and warned that the process may deteriorate
into war. "That’s not theoretical, it’s real," he said.
Macron calls Netanyahu in bid to prevent all-out war with Hezbollah
Agence France Presse/August 8, 2024
French President Emmanuel Macron has told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu to "avoid a cycle of reprisals" in the Middle East, his office said,
as fears of a regional war soar. After earlier telling his Iranian counterpart
to "avoid a cycle of reprisals that would put the populations and stability of
the region at risk", Macron urged Netanyahu in a telephone call on Wednesday to
adopt the same reasoning, the French presidency said in a statement. Already
high amid the war in Gaza, tensions in the Middle East have soared following the
assassinations of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Hezbollah
military commander Fouad Shukur in Beirut last week. Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran
have vowed reprisals, raising fears of wider conflict in a region already on
tenterhooks since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. The
French presidency said it was imperative to prevent all-out war between Israel
and Hezbollah, which have been trading near-daily cross-border fire since
Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel. "Faced with rising tensions on the border
between Israel and Lebanon, every effort must be made... to avoid a regional
conflagration," said the French presidency, stressing that "a war between Israel
and Lebanon would have destructive consequences for the entire region". Macron
also reminded Netanyahu that "the absolute priority" for France remained "the
immediate achievement of a ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all hostages... and
the massive and unimpeded delivery of humanitarian aid to the people there".
Reports: US promises Gaza truce if Iran, Hezbollah don't
retaliate
Naharnet/August 8, 2024
A proposal has been made to the Iran-led axis in the region, promising that the
efforts to reach a Gaza truce will be expedited if Iran and Hezbollah choose not
to retaliate against Israel over the recent assassinations, an informed source
told Kuwait’s al-Anbaa newspaper. Lebanon’s al-Liwaa newspaper for its part said
that “the U.S. is leading serious negotiations” in this regard. The U.S. wants
Hezbollah and Iran not to respond against Israel in return for “a declaration of
a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon and finalizing the (prisoner) exchange deal,”
al-Liwaa quoted sources as saying. A senior Axis of Resistance leader confirmed
the reports to al-Liwaa, but said that “the Axis rejects this bargain and the
retaliation is certain.”“Any negotiations would begin after the response and not
before it,” the leader added. Al-Akhbar newspaper for its part said that
“intensive contacts were held over the past two days on the hope of reaching a
truce in Gaza within days, which according to a U.S.-Egyptian assumption would
precede the response of the Axis of Resistance.”The White House insisted
Wednesday that Israel and Hamas are still close to a ceasefire deal despite the
growing fears of a regional war. "We are as close as we think we have ever been"
to a deal for a Gaza ceasefire and the release of hostages held by Hamas, U.S.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters. U.S. officials
have said on several occasions in recent weeks that a deal is close, while
urging both Israel and Hamas to accept the current proposal which would lead to
an initial six-week truce. On Tuesday the White House said negotiations had
"reached a final stage," in a readout of calls between President Joe Biden and
the leaders of Qatar and Egypt, but did not elaborate. The United States is now
working to prevent an all-out war in the region, and has moved planes and
warships into the area to help defend Israel if necessary. "We're involved in
some pretty intense diplomacy here across the region," Kirby said. He added that
he was "not going to talk about intelligence assessments" of when, or whether,
Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah might attack. U.S. Secretary of State
Antony Blinken said on Tuesday that he had told both Iran and U.S. ally Israel
to avoid escalating conflict.
Report: Hochstein urges restrained response, Grand Serail
speaks of major settlement
Naharnet/August 8, 2024
U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein communicated with Lebanese officials over the past
hours and urged a restrained retaliation from Hezbollah against Israel so that
things do not spiral out of control, a media report said. However, Hochstein did
not receive a guarantee from any party, ad-Diyar newspaper reported on Thursday.
Grand Serail sources meanwhile told the daily that “a major settlement is in the
works.”The reported settlement calls for “the full implementation of Resolution
1701, which would lead to long-term stability,” the sources said. “The broad
lines of the settlement have been laid out and they only need some final touches
when the appropriate regional moment comes,” the sources added, noting that such
a settlement might come after military escalation. Informed and “credible”
diplomatic sources meanwhile told the newspaper that “there will be no solution
between Lebanon and Israel before an agreement is reached over a deal and a
ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.”
Air France extends Beirut flight suspension until Sunday
Agence France Presse/August 8, 2024
Air France has extended the suspension of flights between Paris and Beirut until
at least Sunday "due to the security situation" in Lebanon. Air France and its
low-cost subsidiary, Transavia, have halted flights to the Lebanese capital
since July 29 after Israel vowed to retaliate following rocket fire from Lebanon
that killed 12 people in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights. Transavia has also
extended the flight suspension until Sunday. "The resumption of operations will
be subject to a further assessment of the local situation," Air France said in a
notice on its website posted late Wednesday."Air France reiterates that the
safety of its customers and crews is its top priority," it said. Other airlines
have also stopped flights to Beirut. Tensions have soared further in the past
week as Iran and its allies vowed revenge for the high-profile killings of
Hezbollah's top military commander Fouad Shukur in Lebanon and Hamas political
leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran, both blamed on Israel. Hezbollah has been
exchanging near-daily fire with Israeli forces across the border between Lebanon
and Israel.
Housing prices soar as Dahieh residents flee amid fears of all-out war
Agence France Presse/August 8, 2024
Batoul and her family have been scrambling to secure housing outside Beirut's
southern suburbs where an Israeli strike killed a senior Hezbollah commander
last week, but spiking demand has sent prices soaring. Many in the southern
suburbs -- a packed residential area known as Dahieh which is also a Hezbollah
bastion -- have been trying to leave, fearing full-blown war between the
Iran-backed group and Israel in the wake of the commander's killing. "We are
with the resistance (Hezbollah) to death," said Batoul, a 29-year-old
journalist, declining to give her last name as the matter is sensitive. "But
it's normal to be scared... and look for a safe haven," she told AFP. Iran and
its regional allies have vowed revenge for the killing, blamed on Israel, of
Hamas's political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran last week, just hours after
the Israeli strike in Beirut's southern suburbs killed Hezbollah's top military
commander Fouad Shukur. Hezbollah has traded near-daily fire with Israeli forces
in support of ally Hamas since the Palestinian militant group's October 7 attack
on Israel triggered war in Gaza. After the twin killings, fears have mounted of
an all-out war, with foreign airlines suspending Beirut flights and countries
urging their nationals to leave. Last week's Beirut strike also killed an
Iranian adviser and five civilians -- three women and two children. "Whoever
says they want to stay in Dahieh while it's being bombed is lying to themself,"
Batoul said.
'No choice'
On Tuesday, Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said his Shiite Muslim
movement and Iran were "obliged to respond" to Israel "whatever the
consequences". Batoul said she had been trying unsuccessfully to rent in "safe
areas" -- unaffiliated to Hezbollah -- outside Beirut, but landlords were
charging "exorbitant prices". She said one landlord cancelled suddenly even
after she agreed to pay six months' rent in advance for a flat in the mountain
town of Sawfar. A 55-year-old teacher and Hezbollah supporter, who requested
anonymity because the matter is sensitive, said she felt lucky to find a flat
about 15 kilometers outside Beirut. But it came with a price tag of $1,500 a
month, in a country battered by more than four years of economic crisis. The
teacher, also a Dahieh resident, said price gouging was rampant, noting another
apartment was listed online for $1,500 a month "but when we arrived, they asked
for $2,000". "They know we have no choice. When there is a war, people will pay
any amount of money to be safe," she said. But "many people will stay (in
Dahieh) because they cannot afford to rent," she added. Riyad Bou Fakhreddine, a
broker who rents out homes in the Mount Lebanon area near Beirut, said
apartments were being snapped up "within half an hour to an hour of being
listed". Some landlords have asked him to raise apartments normally priced at
around $500 a month to as high as $2,000, he said.
He said he refused. "I tell them I'm not a crisis profiteer. I don't want to
take advantage of people's fears," he said.
'Polarization'
Almost 10 months of cross-border violence have killed some 558 people in
Lebanon, most of them fighters but also including at least 116 civilians,
according to an AFP tally. On the Israeli side, including in the annexed Golan
Heights, 22 soldiers and 25 civilians have been killed, according to army
figures. Ali, who rents serviced apartments in central Beirut, said his phone
had "not stopped ringing" ahead of Nasrallah's speech. "I booked 10 flats in two
days," he said. "Many people walked in and booked on the spot... Or called me
and were here within an hour," said the 32-year-old, who requested to be
identified only by his first name. In 2006, Hezbollah fought a devastating war
with Israel, whose air force bombarded Beirut's southern suburbs nightly for a
month, flattening hundreds of apartment blocks. Back then, many people from
across Lebanon's sectarian divides expressed support for Hezbollah and
solidarity with the Shiite Muslim community, many of whom lost their homes and
livelihoods. But this time, Dahieh resident Batoul said solidarity was lacking,
with politicians divided after Hezbollah decided unilaterally to begin attacking
Israeli positions on October 8. In 2006, "there wasn't such polarization," she
said. Landlords and others profiting from high demand on housing now are simply
driven by greed, Batoul said.
Tajaddod Reject Dragging Lebanon into External
Manipulations
This Is Beirut/August 08/2024
The ‘Tajaddod’ bloc condemned the entanglement of Lebanon in conflicts
orchestrated by external forces. In a statement issued on Thursday, the Bloc
emphasized Lebanon’s longstanding support for the Palestinian cause while
criticizing Hezbollah’s recent statement suggesting that Iran and Syria are not
obligated to participate in the conflict, which they view as using Lebanon’s
sacrifices for regional leverage. According to the statement, how can the
advocates of the ‘unity of the fronts’ doctrine accept that Lebanon be the only
battlefield, while others use it as a tool to strengthen their regional
influence? It questions the logic behind Lebanon being left to bear the brunt of
conflicts while others utilize it to advance their regional agendas, portraying
such actions as detrimental to Lebanon’s national interests and a blind
adherence to a resistance ideology detached from Lebanon’s sovereignty.
Expressing dismay at what it views as the government’s complicity in echoing
positions favoring Hezbollah over Lebanon’s greater good, the bloc holds the
government accountable for relinquishing its responsibilities and national
duties. It calls on Caretaker Prime Minister Mikati to assert the executive
authority’s role in safeguarding Lebanon’s stability and sovereignty.
Geagea Questions Syria’s Refusal to Extradite Sleiman’s Suspects
This Is Beirut/August 08/2024
Samir Geagea, the leader of the Lebanese Forces party, highlighted on Thursday
that the full truth behind the assassination of LF coordinator in Jbeil, Pascal
Sleiman, has not yet come to light. He noted in a statement that while five
individuals are detained by the Intelligence Directorate of the Lebanese Army,
the gang leader Zakaria Dhafer Qassem and one of the key figures, Firas Riad
Mimo, remain in the custody of the Syrian authorities, who refuse to hand them
over to the Lebanese authorities. Geagea questioned the Caretaker Ministers of
Justice and Foreign Affairs on why the Syrian authorities are refusing to
extradite Zakaria and Mimo, both of whom are connected to Sleiman’s
assassination and are wanted by the Lebanese judiciary. He emphasized that their
arrest is crucial for uncovering the motives behind the assassination and
identifying those responsible.
In Geagea’s opinion, at the very least, the Ministers of Justice and Foreign
Affairs, along with the relevant judicial and security bodies, should take swift
measures with the Syrian government to secure the extradition of these two
wanted individuals.
Sleiman was abducted and killed in an alledged car theft gone wrong on April 8.
‘Proof of Their Simple-Mindedness’
Marc Saikali/This Is Beirut/August 08/2024
With this statement, Hezbollah’s Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah kicked off
one of his usual Castro-style speeches on Tuesday. A speech that was free of any
opposing views, which is far easier than an interview or a debate.
Oh, yes! The “simple-minded” are the Israelis, according to Nasrallah’s view —
who is far from simple himself. But the small detail that shouldn’t be
overlooked is that just before the speech, Israeli fighter jets petrified about
3 to 4 million Lebanese by repeatedly breaking the sound barrier at low altitude
over the capital. The so-called “simple-minded” made their message crystal
clear: We’re hovering over your heads, doing whatever we please. Your weapons
and your rants don’t intimidate us. And you’re utterly powerless. Except that,
unlike Hassan Nasrallah, the Lebanese passed this delicate test with flying
colors.
The residents of Beirut have neither warning systems to alert them to danger nor
tunnels to take cover in. They are like tightrope walkers running blindfolded on
a wire with no safety net. What was even more surprising was the temporal
schizophrenia. On one side, a show of force meant to intimidate and scare, and
on the other, a flood of geopolitical theories fueling a crowd eagerly convinced
that the “support front” is a resounding success. Claims suggest that the
Israeli economy is in collapse, northern residents have fled, and the military
is reportedly overwhelmed and exhausted… What’s conveniently overlooked is that
Israelis who have evacuated are being provided for by the government, while
hundreds of thousands of Lebanese who have lost everything are left without aid
and forced to pay exorbitant rents to stay in so-called “safe areas.”Then
there’s the human toll — how does it compare? And what about the Lebanese
economy? It was relying on the summer season to recover but instead has taken a
severe blow. But they say that victory is right around the corner!!! That
doesn’t even take into account the potential of a full-scale war. Meanwhile, the
Lebanese are placing their hopes on Hezbollah’s iron dome for protection. So
much for being reassured! Is there none? Strangely enough, all that confidence
might lead us to believe otherwise. However, winning is all about keeping quiet.
If you disagree with the planned destruction, you’re kindly asked to stay
silent. It would be unthinkable to entertain dissent or traitors that could
jeopardize the creation of a Palestinian state. Let
the “simple-minded” have fun with their fancy American planes.
We are moving forward. That’s the directive. Better be careful or else!
Nasrallah’s Speech: A Quick Analysis
Salam Zaatari/This Is Beirut/August 08/2024
Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah delivered a speech that has
provoked considerable debate and analysis. After one week of anticipation, the
address was not as expected. “The Israelis waiting for a week is part of the
punishment.” This statement was ridiculed on social media, but it shows that
there’s no clear time nor targets agreed upon to retaliate yet for Iran, and it
seems that international pressure is in effect to specify the target without
escalation. The Hezbollah leader asserted that the psychological warfare but
also, especially, the economic losses of Israel are part of the response to the
assassination of one of its top commanders, Fouad Shokr. It’s like trying to
ruin someone’s picnic by stealing their sandwiches and hoping it rains and the
ants invade their blanket. Nasrallah hinted about not
wanting to “eliminate” Israel anymore, and the goal now is not to let Israel win
the war. “If the Resistance in Gaza is defeated, neither Islamic nor Christian
holy sites will remain,” yet electing Yehya Sinwar as the new leader of Hamas
might appear as a self-destructive move for the movement and a significant
challenge to Israel and future negotiations.
Nasrallah then added, “If the Resistance in Gaza is defeated, Israel will move
to a dangerous level, and the risks will be for all countries in the region.”
Why mention defeat now? Does it mean that Iran will lose its policing status in
the region? Or did Hamas realize that there’s no more Iranian support?
Nasrallah’s assertion that Hezbollah’s response to the assassination of Fouad
Shokr is “inevitable” underscores the organization’s commitment to retaliation.
While this stance aligns with Hezbollah’s historical approach to responding to
perceived aggression, it raises questions about the potential for escalation.
Nasrallah’s declaration of a “strong, impactful, and effective” response serves
to reassure supporters and intimidate adversaries. However, it also risks
exacerbating tensions and igniting a broader conflict. Nasrallah continues to
give the impression that he does not want the clashes to escalate to an all-out
war. “It is the Israelis who resorted to escalation,” he reminded, and it’s
true, especially when Israel officially announced that it was responsible for
the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, as if it’s taunting Iran to respond.
The promise of retaliation, while rooted in Hezbollah’s strategic doctrine,
might inadvertently escalate regional instability, particularly if Hezbollah’s
actions provoke further Israeli retribution. The US and Russia sent their
advisors to Israel and Iran, both consistently pressuring Iran and Israel to
avoid a regional escalation. Till now, Iran has not responded as heavily
advertised. Only CG videos portray a “doomsday” scenario, but in real life, it’s
not clear what the right proportional response would be. It appears that Russia
advised Iran to avoid provoking Israel, offering full support for Iran’s defense
but refraining from endorsing a large-scale attack. This advice outlines new red
lines that should not be crossed with Israel.
By stressing that Iran and Yemen are “committed to responding,” Nasrallah aims
to present a united front against Israeli actions. But he also hinted that the
reply of Iran’s proxies might be separate from Iran’s response. He even
justified why Syria and Iran are exempt from this battle. “In this battle, Syria
and Iran are required to provide moral and political support and facilities,” as
if Lebanon can afford the rest! Nasrallah’s criticism
of the United States, labeling its efforts to mediate in Gaza as hypocritical,
reflects a broader narrative that portrays the US as complicit in Israeli
actions. His statement that “the US pretends to be dissatisfied with Netanyahu’s
conduct” while supplying arms to Israel is a pointed critique of American
foreign policy. This criticism serves to undermine US credibility in the region
and aligns with Hezbollah’s longstanding narrative of Western bias against
resistance movements. However, this view may oversimplify the complexities of
international diplomacy and the challenges of balancing support for allies with
efforts to mitigate conflict.
Nasrallah’s speech also delves into the broader implications of Israeli actions,
particularly concerning the West Bank and Gaza. His warnings about potential
Israeli plans to displace Palestinians and expand settlements reflect
Hezbollah’s broader opposition to Israeli policies. While these statements aim
to galvanize support for the Palestinian cause, they also risk reinforcing
existing hostilities and complicating peace efforts.
Nasrallah’s assertion that a successful Israeli campaign could lead to a
diminished Palestinian cause and the threat of Jordan becoming a substitute
homeland for Palestinians is a significant claim. This perspective reflects
Hezbollah’s view of the conflict as part of a larger existential struggle for
Palestinian rights. While this narrative resonates with many in the Arab world,
it may also exaggerate the potential consequences of current hostilities and
distract from practical efforts to achieve a lasting resolution. The focus on
dire predictions might overshadow more pragmatic approaches to addressing the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Finally, Nasrallah’s argument that Israel is no longer as strong as it once was
and that it relies on US support for protection is a strategic statement
designed to boost Hezbollah’s standing, and he may have a valid point there;
Israel defeated the biggest armies in the Arab world twice by itself in 67 and
73, and now it desperately needs the US military support to defend itself
against Iran and its proxy militias. By suggesting that Israeli power is in
decline, Nasrallah aims to bolster the morale of Hezbollah’s supporters and
highlight the resilience of the resistance. But what about Iran’s strength?
However, this narrative might overlook the complexities of Israeli military and
diplomatic capabilities. While Israeli vulnerabilities exist, the perception of
Israeli weakness may not fully account for the strategic depth and resilience of
the Israeli state. While the speech reinforces
Hezbollah’s commitment to retaliation and highlights the broader geopolitical
stakes, it also raises important questions about the future of Iran in the
region, as well as about the future of Iran’s militias in the region. If Israel
is weak now, like Nasrallah stated, and its army is in a messy, chaotic state,
if now is not the right time to defeat Israel, then when is it? After 40 years
of building momentum and marketing the defeat of the state of Israel and
liberating Jerusalem, the moment came and the opportunity is slipping away, and
if Iran with its proxies can’t deliver their promise today, when will the
promise be fulfilled?
If the goal is no longer the “demise of Israel,” and there is no consensus on a
full-frontal assault or comprehensive retaliation, and with Gaza facing
destruction and 40,000 innocent lives lost, what should be the next move? If
Hamas has lost control of Gaza, its new leader is unable to negotiate
effectively from hiding, and Iran is constrained by security breaches, economic
difficulties, and surrounded by powerful armies and the unofficial Abraham
Alliance, when will Iran and its proxies fulfill their promised objectives?
Lebanon faces food-security crisis if war escalates,
economy minister warns
NAJIA HOUSSARI/Arab News/August 08, 2024
BEIRUT: The Lebanese government is continuing its preparations for a possible
expansion of the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel, as Air France on
Thursday extended its suspension of flights between Paris and Beirut until at
least Sunday “due to the security situation” in Lebanon. Tensions have continued
to soar in the past week, as Iran and its allies vowed to take revenge for the
high-profile killings of Fuad Shukr, Hezbollah’s top military commander, in
Lebanon and Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas, in Iran. Israel is
accused of carrying out both assassinations. Meanwhile, Hezbollah forces have
continued to exchange fire with the Israeli military on a near-daily basis
across the border between their countries.
Germany’s Foreign Ministry has repeated the call by its embassy in Lebanon for
all German nationals to “immediately leave” the country “due to the increasing
risk of military escalation in the region.”Amin Salam, the Lebanese economy
minister, said the conflict presents a significant challenge for the government.
He stressed the need to ensure food security and maintain the supply of
commodities and raw materials in a country that “imports 90 percent of its needs
and produces only 10 percent,” and said the Ministry of Economy has been in a
state of emergency for three years.
“We must reassure people regarding food security as we are constantly dealing
with the crisis, and with traders and citizens exploiting the situation,” he
added. “A part of the private sector has saved the
country from total collapse, while another part — a large percentage — exploits
people’s fear and concerns about the future and the lack of commodities and food
in case a war breaks out.”Regarding levels of food security and strategic stocks
of commodities and raw materials, Salam said unions report that “available food
items and raw materials can suffice for three months.” More shipments are on
their way to Beirut, he added. “They will arrive
during the upcoming weeks and can cover two additional months, meaning we have
enough food items and commodities for five months.
“Israel’s targeting of the Lebanese economy is systematic through the
destruction of the agricultural sector and the burning of Lebanese soil.
Agriculture provided a portion of the country’s foreign currencies through
exports.”The damage to the agricultural sector has cost the country billions of
dollars, Salam said.
He added that “internal and external” media outlets have sounded alarms warning
that Lebanon’s only airport, Rafic Hariri International, might be targeted.
“This was a blow to the tourism sector, as it led expatriates and
tourists to leave Lebanon while reservations were canceled,” he said.
Meanwhile, a car on a road connecting the towns of Yarine and Jebbayn was
attacked by an Israeli combat drone on Thursday. Three people were injured,
according to the Ministry of Health’s emergency operations center.
On Wednesday night, the Israeli army advanced north in the area south of
the Litani River and for the first time carried out a raid in the town of
Doueir, destroying an uninhabited house belonging to the Rammal family.
And Israeli warplanes attacked the outskirts of the town of Mansouri in
Tyre district, causing severe damage to property, crops and infrastructure.
In an attempt to reassure Lebanese concerned about the possibility of the
conflict escalating into a wider war, Hezbollah MP Ali Fayyad said that the
party “takes into account the unique characteristics of Lebanon and the highest
national interests, as well as the interests of our people.
“Therefore, while we are determined not to allow the enemy to breach the
rules, no matter the cost or how far the confrontation may go, we are acting in
the interest of our people and our homeland, which we do not compromise in any
way.”He continued: “Those who want to stop the state of collapse, and this
volatile situation that is sweeping the entire region, must pressure the Israeli
enemy to stop its aggression against Gaza. “But how
can we understand the calls for a ceasefire or prevent escalation if these
parties continue to supply the enemy with the latest missiles, aircraft
artillery, and other weapons from their arsenals?”
His comments came as Hezbollah responded to Israeli assaults with a drone attack
that targeted Israeli soldiers at Al-Marj military site. The party said “it
achieved a direct hit, inflicting confirmed injuries.”Elsewhere, Israeli army
spokesperson Avichay Adraee said in a message posted on social media platform X:
“Air Force warplanes destroyed several Hezbollah infrastructures in Bint Jbeil,
Majdal Zoun and Doueir.”As part of diplomatic efforts by government officials
from Lebanon and other countries with influence on the combatants to avoid
further escalation of the conflict, Abdullah Bou Habib, the caretaker foreign
minister, received a phone call from his Norwegian counterpart, Espen Barth
Eide. The former’s media office said that Eide offered
reassurance that Norway “is committed to working with all relevant parties to
de-escalate tensions and prevent further conflict,” and that “prioritizing the
interests of the Palestinians and achieving a ceasefire in Gaza necessitates
avoiding the ignition of war in the region.” Eide also “reaffirmed that Norway,
which places great importance on Lebanon, does not want it to become a victim of
a new wave of escalation and wars in the region.”Bou Habib said: “The Israeli
escalation aims to disrupt the initiative launched by US President Joe Biden to
reach a ceasefire in Gaza.”He denounced “Israel’s deliberate targeting of
civilians in its attacks on Lebanon, in flagrant violation of the principles of
international law,” and called for the full implementation of UN Security
Council Resolution 2735, which was adopted on June 10 and calls for a ceasefire
agreement in the war between Israel and Hamas.
Simon Abi-Ramia: Walked in Shame for 20+Years, but Walks
Out Now that it's Too Late
Hanibaal Atheos/lebanoniznogood.blogspot.com/August 08/2024
Like the idiot Alain Aoun who last week was booted out like a leper from the
Bassil Dictatorial Kingdom,
[https://lebanoniznogood.blogspot.com/2024/08/alain-aoun-useful-idiocy-with-stench-of.html
], Simon Abi-Ramia the other village idiot of the FPM has resigned. Not on
principle, but in loyalty to Alain. Loyalty and arrivism are more important for
these sycophants than principles, for if they had any principles they would have
walked out of the Bassil shitbath in 2006 when Bassil dived into the Hezbollah
cesspool and dragged everyone behind him, including his father-in-law Michel
Aoun.
Everyone, except some principled men and women who marched with Michel Aoun
during his exile and upon his triumphant return to Lebanon, but ditched him like
a bag of dirt when Zibran Basij convinced him to strike an alliance with the
devil in order to become president, as if becoming president was the objective
of the 17-year long campaign of "liberation" from Syria and its proxies. But
such is the political scumpond of Lebanon: every time you think you've seen the
bottom, shiny objects embedded in the scum like Alain Aoun and Simon Abi-Ramia
prove you wrong.
Those unprincipled idiots followed Basij because he made them MPs and Ministers,
without any consideration for the foundational principles of the FPM. Treason,
mercantilism, cronyism, ... all were fine as long as they "arrived" at political
power. But now, when the two village idiots woke up to their principles, they
found themselves sniffing scum out in the wilderness. They should have known -
and I know that they knew very well - that an arrangement with the domestic
enemy of the Lebanese State, namely the criminal Iranian enterprise of
Hezbollah, would lead to disaster. How could they have not known when they spent
much of the previous 17 years (1989-2006) labeling Hezbollah a traitor, Shebaa a
lie, Syria as the enemy, etc?. Now that Lebanon is facing the disaster that we
all warned them about, the two cowards are walking out of the arrangement. They
can say later, after Lebanon is destroyed by Hezbollah, that they walked out of
the FPM. But 18 years (2006-2024) of treason cannot be erased with 20 days of
escapism. At the very least, they should explain and apologize to the Lebanese
people for having screwed Lebanon for pathetic political power.
We are witnessing the obvious disintegration of the Free Petulant
Movement (FPM) of Zebran Basij. Michel Aoun's original promises could have made
transformative miracles in the incestuous rotten political system in Lebanon,
had Aoun had the integrity to abide by them. But he succumbed to the siren song
of Basij: Marry Hassan Nasrallah and he will make you president. And he did. But
to what purpose? None. Michel Aoun became the worst emasculated president in the
history of the country, playing the poodle in the lap of Hassan Nasrallah,
smearing his own country's army as incapable, and turning all his principles
upside down. He oversaw the disintegration of the economy and the collapse of
the State, the Beirut Harbor explosion, and the takeover of the country by a
treasonous agent of the Iranian regime. Well done, Michel Aoun.
If this cataclysm Michel Aoun did not exist, the free
region would have probably been member of the EU by now.
Roger Bejjani/Face Book/August 08/2024
Ignore what is happening in the orange political party of the dumb and dumbest.
The people leaving the sinking boat are even worse than the ones staying in. Any
individual who still believed in Michel Aoun after the election of Rene Moawad,
is sharing the responsibility of all the misery that we have endured during the
past 34 years. If this cataclysm Michel Aoun did not exist, the free region
would have probably been member of the EU by now.
The Latest English LCCC
Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 08-09/2024
Israel agrees to resume Gaza truce talks next week
AFP/August 09, 2024
GAZA STRIP, Palestinian Territories, Aug 8, 2024 Agence France Presse: Israel
has agreed to resume Gaza ceasefire talks on August 15 at the demand of US,
Qatari and Egyptian mediators, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said
on Thursday, as regional tensions skyrocket over the war.
Gaza’s Hamas-controlled civil defense agency said Israeli bombardment
killed more than 18 people in strikes on two schools on Thursday, as Iran
accused Israel of wanting to spread war in the Middle East.
After a week-long pause in November, US, Qatari and Egyptian mediators
have endeavoured to secure a second truce in the 10-month-old war sparked by
Hamas’s unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel. In a
joint statement on Thursday, the three countries’ leaders invited the warring
parties to resume talks on August 15 in Doha or Cairo “to close all remaining
gaps and commence implementation of the deal without further delay.”A framework
agreement was “now on the table, with only the details of implementation” left
to conclude, and the mediators were “prepared to present a final bridging
proposal” to resolve remaining issues, they said.
Netanyahu’s office said later Thursday Israel would send a negotiating team on
August 15 “to the agreed place to conclude the details of implementing a deal.”A
prospective cessation of hostilities also involving the release of hostages held
in Gaza and scaled-up aid deliveries has centered around a phased deal beginning
with an initial truce. Recent discussions have focused
on a framework outlined by US President Joe Biden in late May which he said had
been proposed by Israel. “It’s not like the
agreement’s going to be ready to sign on Thursday. There’s still a significant
amount of work to do,” a senior Biden administration official said of the talks
that come after calls between Biden and the Egyptian and Qatari leaders this
week. Israel had been “very receptive” to the idea of
the talks, the official told reporters on condition of anonymity, rejecting
suggestions that Netanyahu was stalling on a deal.
The announcement of the talks came after Hamas named Yahya Sinwar — the alleged
mastermind of the October 7 attack — as its new leader, sparking fears the
torturous negotiations have become even more difficult.
On the ground in Gaza, the Hamas-controlled civil defense agency said
Israeli strikes hit Al-Zahra and Abdel Fattah Hamoud schools in Gaza City,
killing more than 18 people.
Senior agency official Mohammad Al-Mughayyir said 60 people were wounded and
more than 40 still missing. “This is a clear targeting
of schools and safe civilian facilities in the Gaza Strip,” he said.
The Israeli military said the schools housed Hamas command centers.
At least 13 people were killed elsewhere in Gaza, rescuers and medics
reported, as the Israeli military issued its latest evacuation order, for parts
of the main southern city of Khan Yunis. Diplomats
pressed efforts to defuse tensions in the region, sky-high after the killing of
two top militant leaders in attacks blamed on Israel that the militants and
their Iranian backers have vowed to avenge. Iran’s
acting foreign minister, Ali Bagheri, told AFP that Israel had committed “a
strategic mistake” by killing Hamas’s political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran
last week — hours after the assassination in Beirut of Hezbollah’s military
chief. Although Israel has not admitted to killing
Haniyeh, Iran and its allies have vowed to retaliate.
Israel seeks “to expand tension, war and conflict to other countries,” but has
neither “the capacity nor the strength” to fight Iran, Bagheri said.
Netanyahu, speaking at a military base on Wednesday, said Israel was
“prepared both defensively and offensively” and “determined” to defend itself.
Officials in the Middle East and beyond have called for calm, with
Britain’s minister for international development, Anneliese Dodds, telling AFP
on a visit to Jordan: “We must see a de-escalation.”
The United States, which has sent extra warships and jets to the region, has
urged both Iran and Israel to avoid an escalation.
France’s President Emmanuel Macron spoke Wednesday with his Iranian counterpart
Masoud Pezeshkian and later with Israel’s Netanyahu, telling both to “avoid a
cycle of reprisals,” according to the French presidency.
The Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip has already drawn in
Tehran-aligned militants in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen.
Lebanese Hamas ally Hezbollah, which has traded near-daily cross-border
fire with Israeli troops throughout the Gaza war, has vowed retaliation for
military chief Fuad Shukr’s killing. The unprecedented
Hamas attack that triggered the war in Gaza resulted in the deaths of 1,198
people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official
figures. Palestinian militants seized 251 hostages,
111 of whom are still held in Gaza, including 39 the Israeli military says are
dead. Israel’s retaliatory military campaign in Gaza
has killed at least 39,699 people, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health
ministry, which does not give details of civilian and militant deaths.
Netanyahu, who has resisted making an apology for security failures over
Israel’s worst-ever attack, said in an interview published Thursday that he was
“sorry, deeply, that something like this happened.”“You always look back and you
say, ‘Could we have done things that would have prevented it?’” Netanyahu told
Time magazine.
US and other frustrated mediators call on Israel, Hamas
to resume Gaza talks, saying, 'no excuses'
Ellen Knickmeyer/WASHINGTON (AP)/ August 8, 2024
Leaders of the United States, Egypt and Qatar jointly demanded Israel and Hamas
return to stalled talks on the war in Gaza next week, saying Thursday that “only
the details” of carrying out a cease-fire and hostage release remain to be
negotiated. “There is no further time to waste, nor excuses from any party for
further delay,” they said in a joint statement. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu's office said Thursday that it had accepted the invitation. President
Joe Biden, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Qatari Emir Tamim
al-Thani, mediators in indirect negotiations to end 10 months of devastating war
in Gaza, set the talks for Aug. 15, to take place in either Doha, Qatar, or
Cairo. A senior U.S. official, speaking to reporters on condition of anonymity
to discuss the push by mediators, said only four or five areas of disagreement
over implementation remained to be resolved between the two opponents. The
official cited the timing of a planned swap of Palestinian detainees held by
Israel, and hostages held by Hamas, as an example.
Egypt, the U.S. and Qatar said they have a proposal ready to present at next
week’s talks to resolve the remaining issues. Critics of Netanyahu accuse him of
slow-rolling talks to end the war in Gaza, which began Oct. 7 when Hamas-led
militants killed about 1,200 people in Israel. Israel's offensive in Gaza since
then has killed nearly 40,000 people. There was no immediate response to the
offer by Hamas. Last week’s killing of its top political leader in Tehran raised
tensions across the region, an escalation widely seen as a blow to cease-fire
talks. The killing was widely ascribed to Israel, although Israel has not
commented. U.S. officials have said they believe Hamas
can resume negotiations despite the July 31 assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, who
had been presiding over the talks for Hamas. Hamas military chief Yahya Sinwar,
who is believed to be sheltering from Israeli attack in underground bunkers
beneath Gaza, took over as the group’s political leader. Hamas had other
representatives besides Haniyeh attending the talks who can step in for the
slain official, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said.
Netanyahu Says Israel 'Striking Enemies' as
Attack Expected
Asharq Al Awsat/August 8, 2024
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was hitting its enemies and
"continuing forward to victory" on Wednesday as the country braced for an
expected attack by Iran and its proxies. Israel was "determined to defend"
itself following threats of retaliation after its killing of a top Hezbollah
commander and following the death of Hamas's former chief Ismail Haniyeh. "We
are continuing forward to victory," the premier told new recruits at the Tel
Hashomer military induction in Tel Aviv, AFP reported. "I know that the citizens
of Israel are concerned, and I ask one thing of you: be patient and
level-headed. "We are prepared both defensively and offensively. We are striking
our enemies and are determined to defend ourselves."Israel claimed the killing
of Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut last week. It has not
commented on the death of Haniyeh in Tehran. However, both Iran and Hamas blamed
Israel for Haniyeh's assassination and, along with Iran-linked Lebanese group
Hezbollah, threatened reprisals. Separately, Israeli government spokesman David
Mencer told reporters, "This country is able to defend itself, and of course,
both in ways which our enemies have seen, but also in ways they have not
seen."He added: "We know how to deal with this Iranian menace... together with
our allies, we are able to stand up to them."
Israel's Western allies slam Israeli minister's remark
that Gaza starvation may be justified
JERUSALEM (AP)/August 8, 2024
Israel's Western allies have condemned remarks by the country's far-right
finance minister who suggested that the starvation of Gaza's population of more
than 2 million Palestinians “might be just and moral” until hostages captured in
Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel are returned home. Finance Minister
Bezalel Smotrich said in a speech on Monday that Israel had no choice but to
send humanitarian aid into Gaza. “It’s not possible in today’s global reality to
manage a war — no one will allow us to starve 2 million people, even though that
might be just and moral until they return the hostages,” he said at a conference
in support of Jewish settlements. Smotrich, a key partner in Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition, supports the reoccupation of Gaza, the
rebuilding of Jewish settlements that were removed in 2005, and what he
describes as the voluntary migration of large numbers of Palestinians out of the
territory.The European Union on Wednesday condemned his remarks, noting that the
“deliberate starvation of civilians is a war crime.”EU foreign policy chief
Josep Borrell called the remarks “beyond ignominious," saying "it demonstrates,
once again, his contempt for international law and for basic principles of
humanity.”David Lammy, Britain's new foreign secretary, said “there can be no
justification for Minister Smotrich’s remarks.”“We expect the wider Israeli
government to retract and condemn them,” he wrote on the social media platform
X. Germany's ambassador to Israel, Steffen Siebert, called the remarks
"unacceptable and appalling.”“It is a principle of international law and of
humanity to protect civilians in a war and to give them access to water and
food,” he wrote on X. Egypt's foreign ministry on
Thursday also condemned Smotrich's remarks, describing them as “shameful
statements unacceptable in form and substance” and a violation of international
humanitarian law. Such “irresponsible statements” create incitement against
Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, the ministry added.
The ongoing war sparked by Hamas' attack has plunged Gaza into a humanitarian
catastrophe. The vast majority of its population has been displaced within the
blockaded territory, often multiple times, and hundreds of thousands are packed
into squalid tent camps. The leading international authority on the severity of
hunger crises, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, said in June
that Gaza was at “high risk” of famine. Aid organizations say efforts to deliver
food and other assistance have been hindered by Israeli restrictions, ongoing
fighting and the breakdown of law and order. Israel says it allows unlimited
humanitarian aid to enter and blames U.N. agencies for failing to promptly
deliver it. Hamas-led militants killed about 1,200
people in the surprise attack into Israel that triggered the war and took around
250 hostages. Some 110 hostages are still being held in Gaza, though Israel
believes that about a third of them are dead. Most of the rest were released
during a weeklong November cease-fire. Israel's ongoing offensive has killed
nearly 40,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, and has caused
widespread devastation.
Behind Sinwar’s Selection: Internal, Regional, and
Israeli Factors
Ramallah: Kifah Zboun/Asharq Al Awsat/August 8, 2024
Sources familiar with the internal discussions that led to the selection of
Yahya Sinwar as the new leader of Hamas in Gaza revealed several key factors
behind his appointment. Sinwar succeeded Ismail Haniyeh, who was assassinated by
Israel in Tehran. Sinwar’s own ambitions, Khaled Meshaal's decision to step
aside, and strategic considerations involving Israel and regional dynamics were
all influential in this decision. Hamas unanimously chose Sinwar in a decisive
meeting on Tuesday after two days of discussions. Sources told Asharq Al-Awsat
that most Hamas leaders abroad, including those from Gaza, the West Bank, and
members of the political bureau and Shura Council based in Lebanon, Türkiye, and
Qatar, participated in these crucial meetings and supported Sinwar’s
appointment. Initially, Sinwar’s name was not proposed
right after Haniyeh’s assassination. The focus was on appointing Khaled Meshaal
as a temporary leader until the Gaza conflict ended. However, Meshaal declined
due to health issues and unspecified pressures related to various foreign
relations. Some noted that Meshaal was seen as more aligned with the Muslim
Brotherhood than with Iran. Sources revealed that
Hamas aimed to send several clear messages with Sinwar’s appointment. The main
message was defiance towards Israel, showing unity within Hamas and dismissing
any internal conflicts, including the October 7 attack, which Sinwar and Qassam
Brigades leader Mohammed Deif masterminded. This move
also signals a return of leadership to the battlefield and reaffirms Hamas’ role
in the Iran-led “axis of resistance.” Sources, who
requested anonymity, stated that Sinwar’s selection was primarily a response to
the assassination of Haniyeh. “The key message to
Netanyahu and Israel is that by killing Haniyeh, a negotiator willing to make
concessions to stop the war, you now face Sinwar, your primary enemy and a war
instigator. If Israel’s government wants to continue the conflict, this is our
reply,” explained the sources. Additionally, the sources mentioned that truce
negotiations are now in Sinwar’s hands, meaning Israel must negotiate with him.
They also confirmed that with Sinwar’s appointment, the decision was made to
resume ceasefire talks in Gaza, with Sinwar personally overseeing them. Other
factors behind Sinwar’s selection involve Hamas’s external situation and its
relationships with various countries. “One reason was to ease the immense
pressure on the external leadership from mediators and host countries to expel
Hamas leaders. Shifting decision-making to Gaza reduces these pressures,” a
source, who asked to remain anonymous, told Asharq Al-Awsat. “It’s easier to
assassinate someone abroad, so choosing a leader from Gaza is the best option to
handle the movement’s external challenges. It’s unclear if Sinwar’s appointment
will succeed, as some countries welcomed it while others remained silent,” the
source explained. Meanwhile, Israel has vowed to kill Sinwar, using his
appointment to justify military control over Gaza and the West Bank.
Israel Kills 40 Palestinians in Gaza Airstrikes amid Fears of Wider War
Asharq Al Awsat/August 8, 2024
Israeli forces stepped up strikes across the Gaza Strip on Thursday, killing at
least 40 people, Palestinian medics said, in further battle with Hamas-led
militants as Israel braced for potential wider war in the region. Israeli
airstrikes hit a cluster of houses in central Gaza's Al-Bureij camp, killing at
least 15 people, and the nearby Al-Nuseirat camp, killed four, medics said.
Nuseirat and Bureij are among the densely populated enclave's eight historic
camps and seen by Israel as strongholds of armed militants, Reuters reported.
Israeli aircraft also bombed a house in the heart of Gaza City in the north,
killing five Palestinians, while another airstrike in the southern city of Khan
Younis killed one person and wounded others, according to medics, Reuters
reported. The armed wings of Hamas and Islamic Jihad said they were firing
anti-tank rockets and mortar bombs at Israeli forces operating across Gaza,
causing deaths and injuries among them. Israel's military said it had struck
dozens of military targets across Gaza over the past 24 hours, including rocket
launching pads. Since the Gaza war started on Oct. 7 last year, at least 39,699
Palestinians have been killed, including 22 within the past 24 hours, and 91,722
injured in Israel's devastating air and ground war in Gaza, the Gaza health
ministry said in an update on Thursday. The ministry
in the Hamas-run territory does not distinguish between combatants and civilians
in its death lists. As Gaza's war churns on, Israel has been battening down for
another attack expected in the coming days following vows from Iran and its
Lebanon proxy Hezbollah to retaliate for the assassinations last week of Hamas
leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr in
Beirut. A relatively contained conflict between Israel and Hezbollah along its
northern border, a spillover from the Gaza fighting, now threatens to spiral
into an all-out regional war.
MORE BURIALS IN GAZA
On Thursday dozens of Palestinians rushed into Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis to
bid farewell to slain relatives before carrying them away for burials. Reuters
footage showed relatives moving out the bodies of their loved ones in plastic
bags with names written on them, and holding special prayers before the
funerals. The Israeli military renewed evacuation orders to Palestinian
residents in several districts in eastern Khan Younis, saying it would act
forcefully against militants who had unleashed rockets from those areas. The
army posted the evacuation order on X, and residents said they had received text
and audio messages.
Iran defector loses to old friend and former taekwondo teammate at Paris
Olympics
Samuel Petrequin/The Associated Press/August 8, 2024
One wore a veil, the other fought with her head bare.
Nahid Kiyani Chandeh and Kimia Alizadeh were once friends and roommates as part
of the junior Iran taekwondo team. Now an entire world separates them.
They clashed Thursday at the Paris Olympics in the 57-kilogram division
and Alizadeh, who defected from Iran, lost in her bid to win a gold medal for
her new country, Bulgaria. Kiyani Chandeh, the current world champion, came out
on top of a very tense fight that was settled by a referee decision after the
athletes, both 26, finished tied with seven points each in the decisive third
round. Alizadeh had a three-point lead in the decider with six seconds left, but
Kiyani Chandeh leveled with a kick to the head and was handed the victory by
superiority. Alizadeh was the first Iranian female athlete ever to win an
Olympic medal when she claimed bronze in Rio de Janeiro as an 18-year-old. Her
win catapulted her to fame, but she grew frustrated with life in Iran. As she
announced she was leaving her country four years ago, she accused Iranian
officials of sexism and criticized wearing the mandatory hijab headscarf. At the
time, she described herself as “one of the millions of oppressed women in
Iran.”After heading to Germany, she became a member of the Refugee Olympic Team
and came close to earning a bronze medal in Tokyo. In
April, she left the IOC team — created in 2016 to provide opportunities to
victims of political persecution and war — when she announced she had received
Bulgarian citizenship. The round-of-16 fight Thursday between the two rivals —
who used to be roomates at Iran's national training center during their youth
year — was revenge for Kiyani Chandeh, who had lost to Alizadeh in Tokyo.
She belted out her joy and clenched her fists in delight after her win
and celebrated with her coach as Alizadeh took a knee. The rivals didn’t even
glance at each other as they exited the octagonal combat zone, then declined to
speak to reporters. Asked whether the bout was
politically charged, the president of the Iranian taekwondo federation said it
was just a “very hard match.”“This is a sport, it's not politics,” he said. “She
is in the Bulgaria team now, we respect everybody. Their relationship is not
bad.”
Iranian brothers charged in alleged smuggling operation
that led to deaths of 2 Navy SEALs
Matthew Barakat/The Associated Press/August 8, 2024
Two men linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard are now facing terrorism charges in
the U.S. in connection with the interception of a vessel in the Arabian Sea that
resulted in the deaths of two Navy SEALs earlier this year. The new indictment
announced Thursday by federal prosecutors in Richmond, Virginia, charges two
Iranian brothers, Shahab Mir’kazei and Yunus Mir’kazei, as well as a Pakistani
boat captain, Muhammad Pahlawan, with providing material support to Iran’s
weapons-of-mass-destruction program, among other charges. The brothers are at
large. Pahlawan and three of his crew members have been in custody since the
Navy SEAL team intercepted their small vessel, described as a dhow, in January.
While boarding the dhow, U.S. officials say Navy Special Warfare Operator
1st Class Christopher J. Chambers fell overboard as high waves created a gap
between the two boats. As Chambers fell, Navy Special Warfare Operator 2nd Class
Nathan Gage Ingram jumped in to try to save him, according to U.S. officials
familiar with what happened. Both Chambers and Ingram were declared dead after
an 11-day search failed to find either man. The search of the dhow turned up a
variety of Iranian-made weaponry, including cruise and ballistic missile
components, according to court documents. U.S. officials say the dhow was part
of an effort to supply weapons to Houthi rebels in Yemen, and that Houthis have
stepped up attacks on merchant ships and U.S. military ships in the Red Sea and
Gulf of Aden in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war. The Houthis have been
designated as a terrorist group by the State Department since February,
according to the indictment. The Revolutionary Guard Corps has been designated a
terrorist group by the State Department since 2019. The new indictment contains
additional details linking the dhow to Iran. It alleges the two brothers who
work for the Revolutionary Guard Corps paid Pahlawan 1.7 billion rials — about
$40,000 in U.S. dollars — to carry out multiple smuggling operations from Iran
to the Somali coast near Yemen. The federal public
defender's office, which was appointed to represent Pahlawan, did not
immediately respond Thursday to emails seeking comment. The two Iranians, who
are not in custody, do not have attorneys listed. Arrest warrants for both
brothers were issued Wednesday.
Five arrested over attack that wounded U.S. troops in Iraq airbase, statement
says
Reuters/August 8, 2024
CAIRO - Security forces have arrested five people in connection with an attack
this week at a military base in Iraq in which five U.S. troops and two U.S.
contractors were wounded, Iraqi officials said on Thursday. The arrests were
announced by the Iraqi Security Media Cell, an official body responsible for
disseminating security information. "After in-depth legal investigations and
listening to witnesses' statements ... five of those involved in this illegal
act were arrested," the Security Media Cell added in a statement. In Monday's
attack, two Katyusha rockets were fired at Ain al-Asad airbase in the west of
the country. On Tuesday, Iraq's military condemned what it called "reckless"
actions against bases on its soil and said it had captured a truck with a rocket
launcher. The attack came as the Middle East braced for a possible new wave of
attacks by Iran and its allies following last week's killing of senior members
of militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah. It was unclear whether the incident in
Iraq was linked to threats by Iran to retaliate over the killing in Tehran of
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. Iraq is a rare ally of
both the U.S. and Iran. It hosts 2,500 U.S. troops and has Iran-backed militias
linked to its security forces. It has witnessed escalating tit-for-tat attacks
since the Israel-Hamas war erupted in Gaza in October. Iraq wants troops from
the U.S.-led military coalition to begin withdrawing in September and to
formally end the coalition's work by September 2025, Iraqi sources have said,
with some U.S. forces likely to remain in a newly negotiated advisory capacity.
Cyprus again offers sanctuary as Middle East violence spreads
LARNACA, Cyprus (Reuters) / August 8, 2024
The Mediterranean island of Cyprus is on standby to assist in the evacuation of
Europeans and third-country nationals if conflict in the Middle East deepens,
officials said on Thursday. The European Union's easternmost state, Cyprus has
over the past several decades been a sanctuary for thousands escaping war in the
volatile region. Israel's antagonism with Iran and the Lebanese Hezbollah
movement have fanned fears of a broader conflict in a region already on edge
amid 10 months of war between Israel and Hamas militants in Gaza. "We are ready,
we have activated a specific plan, ESTIA, which has been tried and tested,"
Cyprus' deputy government spokesperson Yiannis Antoniou said.
"In the event we are asked to assist other countries who may be moving
their nationals from the crisis area home, we are in a position to host them for
a few days until they are repatriated," he said. Antoniou told Reuters close to
10 countries had made inquiries on the scheme, but that there had been no
specific formal request. If a mass evacuation plan does transpire it would
largely be by air, he said. "We have the capacity, the infrastructure," he said.
The hub of coordination will be the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC) in
the southern port town of Larnaca, near the island's largest airport. It
operates around the clock with its primary role to coordinate, control and
direct search and rescue operations. Some tents had been erected in the compound
on Thursday, with cots which would be use to process any arrivals, people on the
site said. Cyprus played a crucial role as an evacuation hub for about 30,000
people who left Lebanon during a flare-up in hostilities between Israel and
Hezbollah in 2006. "Historically we have very good relations with all our
neighbours, so we try to utilise this special role we have and want Cyprus to be
a pillar of safety and stability, and act as a bridge of cooperation and peace,"
Antoniou said.
Russia battles Ukrainian troops for third day after shock incursion
Guy Faulconbridge/MOSCOW (Reuters) / August 8, 2024
Russian forces were battling Ukrainian troops for a third day on Thursday after
they smashed through the Russian border in the Kursk region, an audacious attack
on the world's biggest nuclear power that has forced Moscow to call in reserves.
In one of the biggest Ukrainian attacks on Russia of the two-year-old
war, around 1,000 Ukrainian troops rammed through the Russian border in the
early hours of Aug. 6 with tanks and armoured vehicles, covered in the air by
swarms of drones and pounding artillery, according to Russian officials.
Heavy fighting was reported near the town of Sudzha, where Russian
natural gas flows into Ukraine, raising concerns about a possible sudden stop to
transit flows to Europe. The incursion has come as a shock to Russia, nearly
two-and-a-half years since President Vladimir Putin sent his army into Ukraine
in February 2022. Putin has cast the Ukrainian
offensive as a "major provocation". Sergei Mironov, leader of a Kremlin-loyal
political party, called it a "terrorist attack" and "the invasion of an
internationally recognised foreign territory". Kursk's
regional acting governor, Alexei Smirnov, said that thousands of residents had
been evacuated. The White House said the United States - Ukraine's biggest
backer - had no prior knowledge of the attack and would seek more details from
Kyiv. Russia's defence ministry said on Thursday that the army and the Federal
Security Service (FSB) had halted the Ukrainian advance and were battling
Ukrainian units in the Kursk region. "Units of the Northern group of forces,
together with the FSB of Russia, continue to destroy armed formations of the
Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Sudzhensky and Korenevsky districts of the Kursk
region, directly adjacent to the Russian-Ukrainian border," the ministry said.
The Ukrainian military has remained silent on the Kursk offensive, though
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy praised the Ukrainian army on Thursday for its
ability "to surprise" and achieve results. He did not explicitly reference
Kursk. Some Russian bloggers said Ukraine's forces were pushing towards the
Kursk nuclear power station, which lies about 60 km (37 miles) northeast of
Sudzha. Yuri Podolyaka, a popular Ukrainian-born, pro-Russian military blogger,
said that there were intense battles about 30 km from the Soviet-era nuclear
plant, which supplies a large swathe of southern Russia with power.
CRITICAL JUNCTURE
Ukraine's energy minister said gas transit via Sudzha was still functioning,
despite reports of hostilities there. Most EU nations have reduced their
dependence on Russian gas, but Austria is one country that still receives most
of its gas via Ukraine. The Center for Information
Resilience, a non-profit open-source analysis organisation, said it was unable
to visually confirm any damage to the gas metering station as a result of the
incursion, but had verified significant damage to the border checkpoint about
500 metres to the south. "This, combined with footage verified by CIR of several
Russian soldiers surrendering to Ukrainian soldiers near the entrance of the gas
metering plant, makes it likely that the plant has been affected by the
Ukrainian incursion, however, the level of damage cannot be verified at this
time," it said. The battles come at a crucial juncture in the conflict, the
biggest land war in Europe since World War Two. Kyiv is concerned that U.S.
support could weaken if Republican Donald Trump wins the November presidential
election. Trump has said he would end the war, and
both Russia and Ukraine are keen to gain the strongest possible bargaining
position on the battlefield. Ukraine wants to pin down
Russian forces, which control 18% of its territory, though the strategic
significance of the border offensive was not immediately clear.
Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev said the Ukrainian attack was an
attempt to force Russia to divert resources from the front and to show the West
that Ukraine could still fight. As a result of the Kursk attack, Medvedev said,
Russia should expand its war aims to include taking all of Ukraine. "From this
moment on, the SVO (Special Military Operation) should acquire an openly
extraterritorial character," Medvedev said, adding that Russian forces should go
to Odesa, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Mykolayiv, Kyiv "and beyond".
"We will stop only when we consider it acceptable and profitable for
ourselves."
US Strikes at Houthi Targets in Yemen
Asharq Al Awsat/August 8, 2024
US military forces have struck at targets in Houthi-controlled Yemen in the past
24 hours, destroying two drones, a Houthi ground control station, and three
anti-ship cruise missiles, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said. Earlier, the
Iran-aligned Houthis said they had attacked a container ship in the Red Sea and
two US destroyers in the Gulf of Aden on Wednesday. "These weapons presented a
clear and imminent threat to US and coalition forces, and merchant vessels in
the region,” CENTCOM said in a statement on the US strikes. It said this
"reckless and dangerous behavior" by the Houthis threatened regional stability,
but it gave no further details and did not confirm that any US vessels had been
attacked. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree
said earlier that the Houthi air force had launched drones against the US
destroyer Cole and fired a number of ballistic missiles at the US destroyer
Laboon on Wednesday. The Liberia-flagged container ship Contship Ono was also
targeted with ballistic missiles and drones, he said.
Contships Management in Athens told Reuters the vessel had not been hit and its
crew were safe. A US official said there was no data or information to
corroborate the Houthis' claim that the two warships had been attacked.
HRW: Yemen’s Houthis Obstructing Aid, Exacerbating Cholera
Taiz: Mohammed Nasser/Asharq Al Awsat/August 8, 2024
Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Wednesday accused the Houthis of obstructing aid
work and exacerbating a deadly cholera outbreak across Yemen, and called on
authorities in various regions to strengthen preventative measures against the
epidemic. The organization said the Yemeni government has quickly responded to
the news of the outbreak in October 2023 by working with humanitarian agencies
to set up clinics and procure necessary medicines. “The cholera outbreak will
continue to take lives so long as Yemeni authorities obstruct aid and
authorities and the international community fail to adequately invest in
prevention and mitigation measures,” the non-governmental organization said in a
statement. HRW called on Yemeni authorities to remove obstacles to aid delivery,
including to public health information. It again asked the Houthis to halt
arbitrary detentions and release UN and civil society staff and aid workers. The
NGO said Houthis failed to take measures to prevent future cholera outbreaks and
they also detained and threatened civil society staff, including humanitarian
aid workers, in their recent arrest campaign. Data collected by aid agencies
indicate that between January 1 and July 19 there have been about 95,000
suspected cholera cases, resulting in at least 258 deaths, it showed. “The
obstructions to aid work by Yemen’s authorities, in particular the Houthis, are
contributing to the spread of cholera,” said Niku Jafarnia, Yemen and Bahrain
researcher at Human Rights Watch. “More than 200 people have already died from
this preventable disease, and the Houthis’ detention of aid workers poses a
serious threat to further limit the presence of lifesaving aid.”
Houthis Refuse to Announce Cholera Outbreak
The Yemeni government met with HRW and explained that many of their constraints
in addressing the cholera outbreak were linked with a lack of funding, HRW said.
Government officials also provided information demonstrating the actions
they had taken to inform the Yemeni public about the outbreak. The organization
said that several sources affirm that Yemen’s severely damaged healthcare
infrastructure, the lack of safe drinking water, high malnutrition rates, and
growing levels of vaccine denial and hesitancy from Houthi vaccine falsehoods
have facilitated the spread and impact of cholera in Yemen. According to a
doctor working with a humanitarian aid organization in Houthi-controlled areas,
though patients began showing signs of cholera starting in November 2023, Houthi
authorities refused to acknowledge the crisis to humanitarian agencies until
March 18, 2024, when there were already thousands of cases. In March, the
Houthis finally began providing information about cholera cases in
Houthi-controlled territory, but they still have not announced the outbreak
publicly, the doctor said. Houthi authorities have also detained at least a
dozen UN and civil society staff since May 31, with informed sources telling HRW
that the number of those detained continues to grow. The arrests have left many
agencies questioning whether or how to continue safely providing humanitarian
aid in Houthi-controlled territories, which has the potential to further
exacerbate the current cholera outbreak, it said.
Government Responds to Outbreak
HRW affirmed that the Yemeni government quickly responded to the news of the
outbreak in October 2023 by working with humanitarian agencies to set up clinics
and procure necessary medicines. Though they have continued to share information
with humanitarian agencies since the start of the outbreak, an informed source
told HRW that they have instructed aid groups not to use the word “cholera” in
public statements, particularly in Arabic. This hinders people’s ability to take
measures to prevent further spread of the disease. According to the
International Organization for Migration (IOM), during the last cholera outbreak
in Yemen from 2016 to 2022, Yemen had 2.5 million suspected cases, constituting
“the largest ever reported cholera outbreak in recent history,” with over 4,000
deaths. Despite that immense toll, HRW said the authorities failed to take
measures to prevent future outbreaks.
The New-York based organization said the Houthis and the Yemeni government are
obligated to protect everyone’s human rights in territory they control,
including the rights to life, to health, and to an adequate standard of living,
including food and water. Their aid obstructions violate these obligations, it
added. Although limited resources and capacity may
mean that economic and social rights can only be fully realized over time, the
authorities are still obliged to ensure minimum essential levels of health care,
including essential primary health care, HRW said.
Egypt Supports EU ASPIDES to Protect Security of Red Sea
Navigation
Cairo: Fathiya al-Dakhakhni/Asharq Al Awsat/August 8, 2024
Egypt expressed on Wednesday its support for the European Union’s ASPIDES naval
mission, established in February to protect navigation in the Red Sea.
Tensions escalated in the Red Sea region at the end of November, with
Yemen’s Houthi militias targeting ships passing through the shipping lane in
response to the Israeli war in the Gaza Strip. These attacks prompted
international shipping companies to change their route and avoid passing through
the Red Sea canal, which had repercussions on the economy and global trade.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty emphasized the need to strengthen
efforts to secure navigation in the Red Sea amid escalating regional tensions,
according to a statement from the Egyptian Foreign Ministry. His remarks came
during a meeting in Cairo with Vasileios Gryparis, operation commander of the
European Union’s ASPIDES naval mission. The minister pointed to the necessity of
ensuring a safe environment for commercial vessels, adding that threats to
navigation in the Red Sea have significantly impacted the Egyptian economy by
reducing Suez Canal revenues. “Egypt is one of the
most impacted countries in the world because of this situation,” he underlined.
The Suez Canal is one of the main sources of hard currency in Egypt. Its
revenues last year amounted to $10.3 billion, according to official data.
But these revenues have witnessed a decline in recent months, due to
regional perturbations. Egyptian Prime Minister Dr. Mostafa Madbouly said in a
press conference last week that his country was losing between $500 and $550
million a month due to the Red Sea tensions.” Gryparis expressed commitment to
engaging with the affected countries, particularly Egypt and reviewing
successful operations against Houthi attacks. Stressing the need for coordinated
efforts to secure navigation in the Red Sea, the EU official pointed to “the
defensive nature of the European naval operation in the face of threats,”
reviewing the successes it achieved in deterring many Houthi attacks. In remarks
to Asharq Al-Awsat, strategic expert and head of the Arab Foundation for
Development and Strategic Studies, Brigadier General Samir Ragheb, said: “Egypt
is concerned with protecting the security of navigation in the Red Sea, and
believes that the only way to do so is to stop the escalation and war on the
Gaza Strip.”
“Cairo’s support for the European mission falls within this context,” he added.
Bani Tamim Tribesmen Shut Down Police Stations, Govt Departments in Eastern Iraq
Baghdad: Fadhel al-Nashmi/Asharq Al Awsat/August 8, 2024
Despite the Diyala Provincial Council’s vote on its local government, the sharp
polarization among the political blocs in Iraq, which secured seats in the
council, remains unresolved. Dozens of protesters from the Bani Tamim tribe
disrupted government operations in the Diyala governorate on Tuesday, shutting
down several offices in al-Muqdadiyah district to demand a tribal member be
appointed governor. The demonstrators, angered by the
appointment of another candidate, blocked the local police station and other
government buildings. Last Thursday, the Diyala
Governorate Council decided on local government positions, about 8 months after
the local elections in December. Political differences and intense competition
for positions among the winning blocs had prevented reaching an agreement,
despite ongoing meetings held by the Prime Minister Mohammad Al-Sudani with
representatives of the blocs. The Diyala Council is
divided into two groups: the first is trying to renew the term of former
governor Muthanna al-Tamimi, and includes 8 members from Shiites, Sunnis, and
Kurds. The other is made up of seven members of Sunnis and Shiites who object to
al-Tamimi’s renewal. The position of governor was
given to Adnan Al-Jayer Al-Shammari from the Al-Bashair movement, which is part
of the State of Law coalition. The position of Chairman of the Governorate
Council went to Omar Al-Karawi from the Sovereignty Coalition, while Hessa
Al-Tamimi from Asaib Ahl Al-Haq was given the post of vice-chairman of the
council. This distribution of posts led to the
exclusion of the former governor, Muthanna Al-Tamimi, despite him winning the
largest number of votes (40,000 votes) and his list, the Diyala National
Alliance, winning the highest number of seats (4 seats), which angered the Bani
Tamim tribe and the groups supporting the former governor.
Meanwhile, press sources spoke of a decision to dismiss a senior officer
in light of the events in Diyala. The sources stated that exemption orders were
issued by the Ministry of Interior to an officer with the rank of brigadier
general who was in charge in the city of al-Muqdadiya, where Tuesday’s riots
occurred.
The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from
miscellaneous sources on August 08-09/2024
How Qatar buys powerful friends in
Washington ... The case of Bob Menendez and others like him
Natalie Ecanow/The Washington Times/August 08/2024
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2024/08/133027/
What do gold bars, luxury watches and Formula One racing tickets have in common?
They’re all part of the reported corruption scheme that brought down Bob
Menendez, the once-influential Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman.
Menendez stepped down from his powerful post days after a jury found him guilty
of accepting bribes and using his influence to secure a multimillion-dollar
Qatari investment deal. Menendez still denies any wrongdoing. The Justice
Department brought no charges against Qatari individuals, but Doha was involved.
And that marks another example of the mega-wealthy and corrupt petrostate buying
influence in Washington and around the world.
The indictment unveiled against Menendez and his co-defendants in January
alleged that the senator accepted bribes from New Jersey real estate developer
Fred Daibes. In return, Daibes reportedly expected that Menendez would “induce”
a Qatari investment firm linked to the royal family to invest with him,
“including by taking action favorable to the Government of Qatar.”
One such action was a news release drafted by Menendez’s office praising the
Qataris as “moral exemplars” because they housed Afghan refugees after the
botched U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. Never mind that Qatar negotiated that
botched withdrawal. Never mind that the government in Doha is a patron to the
Taliban and Hamas.
Menendez allegedly passed the text of the statement to Daibes, telling him, “You
might want to send to them,” meaning his partners in Qatar. A Qatari investor
subsequently informed an unnamed official in Doha that he “received a copy from
F” — a likely reference to Fred Daibes.
The next month, prosecutors say that Menendez and Daibes attended a private
dinner hosted by the Qatari government. Within days, Menendez reportedly
received a message from Daibes with images of luxury watches worth over $23,000
and five words: “How about one of these.”
Months later, a court-authorized search of Menendez’s home turned up no less
than 11 bars of gold with serial numbers “indicating they had previously been
possessed” by Daibes, as well as envelopes stuffed with tens of thousands of
dollars in cash that had the tycoon’s fingerprints on them. (At trial, Daibes
did not deny that he gave Menendez gold and cash, but said they were “gifts.”
Daibes was found guilty of all charges alongside Menendez in July.)
Daibes may not have been the only conduit for Qatar’s largesse. According to the
indictment, Menendez “continued to receive things of value” from the Qataris,
including tickets to the 2023 Formula One Grand Prix in Miami, even after
securing the investment deal.
Menendez also traveled to Qatar to attend the 2022 World Cup. In an interview,
he told the state-run news agency, “Qatar has brought the global community
together as one; in my time here I saw great achievements of justice and
security.”
Menendez also lauded the purported progress that Qatar had made “in the
development of labor rights.” At the time, Qatar was facing heat for exploiting
migrant workers by forcing them to work long hours in the desert sun, at times
without pay, in order to build stadiums in time for the World Cup. When they did
get a reprieve, the workers returned to cramped and squalid living quarters. Yet
a senior foreign policy figure on Capitol Hill applauded Qatar for its alleged
labor reforms.
Nowhere has Qatar’s practice of buying favor been more apparent than in the
events surrounding the 2022 World Cup.
In 2010, soccer’s governing body, FIFA, selected Qatar to host the 2022 World
Cup. But this was more of a business transaction than a fair vote. Three weeks
before FIFA awarded Doha the 2022 hosting rights, Qatar allegedly offered FIFA a
$400 million television contract with state-controlled Al Jazeera. FIFA
reportedly received a second $480 million payment from the Qatari government
three years later. The Justice Department asserted in a 2020 superseding
indictment that FIFA executives “were offered and received bribe payments” to
secure hosting privileges for Qatar.
Then, as the 2022 World Cup got underway, a bombshell scandal rocked Europe:
Belgian authorities uncovered a Qatari bribery scheme involving European Union
officials and more than $1.5 million in cash. Qatar was paying off members of
the European Parliament. Leaked documents showed efforts to scrub Qatar’s image
by “neutralizing” resolutions critical of Doha and shifting the “narrative in
parliament” about Doha’s human rights record, which was under intense scrutiny
in the run-up to the World Cup.
The Menendez episode fits with Qatar’s broader strategy of buying clout —
sometimes legally, often not — to evade accountability for things like terror
finance and human rights abuses. Qatar continues to host the largest U.S.
military base in the Middle East and reaps the benefits of its status as a major
non-NATO ally, even as it backs terrorist groups and violates human rights. To
sustain this insane arrangement, Qatar courts U.S. lawmakers and lobbyists as a
matter of survival.
Menendez faces up to 222 years in prison. Qatar, however, continues to buy
immunity in Washington, Brussels and beyond. Qatar must be held to account.
Authorities here in the United States should investigate the Qatari role in this
scandal — and put Qatar on notice that there can be no alliances with a partner
who relies on bribery to protect its standing.
*Natalie Ecanow is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of
Democracies, a nonpartisan research institute in Washington focusing on national
security and foreign policy. Follow her on X @NatalieEcanow and FDD @FDD.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2024/aug/6/how-qatar-buys-powerful-friends-in-washington/
Why Are the European Union and the World Bank Paying
Palestinian Terrorists?
Robert Williams/Gatestone Institute./August 08/2024
Back in March, the Biden administration claimed that it was persuading the
Palestinian Authority (PA), led by Mahmoud Abbas, to change its murder-for-hire
"pay for slay" policy. Terrorists who have been imprisoned in Israel for their
crimes, as well as families of deceased or wounded terrorists, receive monthly
stipends as a reward for murdering Jews. The longer the prison sentence, the
higher the monthly stipend. Talk about incentivizing and encouraging terrorism.
Not only has the PA not begun to change the "pay for slay" system, it is adding
tens of thousands of terrorist prisoners and "martyrs" to be funded by the
scheme.
The PA is, as always, undergoing a major financial crisis, in part because it
has failed to promote a productive economy – a failure made possible by
unconditional handouts from the international community.
Fortunately for Abbas and his terrorists, both the Biden administration, the
World Bank and the EU stand ready with taxpayer financing to ensure that the
terrorists are not about to run out of murder-for-hire payments anytime soon.
The World Bank, in fact, decided that the PA should get more money. In July, it
announced that its usual annual grant to the terrorist entity of $70 million
would be raised in to a whopping $300 million, no questions asked. The World
Bank thereby knowingly and willingly made itself an active accomplice to
terrorism. Even the PA leadership itself seemed surprised at the sum.
"The money will be disbursed in the form of grants and loans in three payments
between July and September, subject to progress in the implementation of the
reform agenda of the Palestinian Authority," the European Commission said in a
statement.
What reform agenda?
On May 31, the EU Commission bragged: "The European Union is the biggest
provider of external assistance to the Palestinians which amounts to
indicatively almost €1.2 billion [$1.3 billion] for 2021-2024 under the European
Joint Strategy, of which €809.4 million have already been adopted."
[W]hy is not one European leader questioning the use of EU taxpayer money for
propping up a terrorist regime and its terrorists? Why is the EU knowingly
enabling terrorism?
Not only has the PA not begun to change the "pay for slay" system, it is adding
tens of thousands of terrorist prisoners and "martyrs" to be funded by the
scheme. On July 23, 2018, at a ceremony honoring Palestinian terrorists,
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said: "We will neither reduce nor
withhold the allowances of the families of martyrs, prisoners, and released
prisoners... if we had one single penny left, we would spend it on the families
of the martyrs and the prisoners." (Image source: MEMRI)
Back in March, the Biden administration claimed that it was persuading the
Palestinian Authority (PA), led by Mahmoud Abbas, to change its murder-for-hire
"pay for slay" policy. Terrorists who have been imprisoned in Israel for their
crimes, as well as families of deceased or wounded terrorists, receive monthly
stipends as a reward for murdering Jews. The longer the prison sentence, the
higher the monthly stipend. Talk about incentivizing and encouraging terrorism.
"There's been a great deal of work on this behind the scenes, and the progress
is encouraging," an unnamed senior Biden administration official told Politico
in March, while another said that "changes to the system were expected soon."
The Biden administration has its own reasons for giving the false impression
that the PA is reforming itself. The administration plans to reward Iran and the
Palestinians for their October 7 massacre and the nearly 20,000 rockets fired
into Israeli towns and cities by forcing a two-state solution on Israel. Such a
Palestinian state, according to the Biden administration, will be run by a
"revitalized" Palestinian Authority, and for that it is necessary to give the
impression that the PA has started to "reform". That is why we are all now
supposed to pretend that the PA leadership, with its praise of the October 7
massacre – calling it "heroic" – no longer promotes or rewards terrorism.
Not only has the PA not begun to change the "pay for slay" system, it is adding
thousands of terrorist prisoners and "martyrs" to be funded by the scheme,
presumably including terrorists who actively participated in the October 7
slaughter, abductions, and mass rapes, torture and murder of Israeli children,
women and men. According to Palestinian Media Watch:
"9,750 terrorist prisoners are now recognized by the PA as eligible for monthly
terror rewards, up from 4,300 prior to October 7. This means the PA is
committing to pay nearly NIS 60 million [$16.4 million] a month to terrorist
prisoners. The PA has recognized Hamas' Martyr count, and a total of 38,983 new
Martyrs' families are currently eligible for terror rewards. This means nearly
55 million shekels [$14.7 million] in additional monthly payments to the
families of Martyrs."
The most recent tally of terrorist prisoners to receive stipends from the PA
includes 899 terrorists who were captured in the ongoing Gaza war. That is in
addition to the 661 captured terrorists that were announced in January as
joining the "Martyrs payment" program. Palestinian Media Watch notes:
"[E]ach of the new terrorist prisoners will receive a starting salary of 1,400
shekels per month ($375 per month), which will rise the longer he or she is in
prison, reaching a maximum of 12,000 shekels per month ($3,215 per month)."
The Palestinian Authority is, as always, undergoing a major financial crisis, in
part because it has failed to promote a productive economy – a failure made
possible by unconditional handouts from the international community. The PA
prioritizes its terrorists at the expense of its own employees, paying them only
half a salary, while terrorists and their families receive a full salary. The
PA, in other words, as a priority, sees itself as the employer and benefactor of
terrorists.
PA leader Mahmoud Abbas said on television in 2018:
"By Allah, even if we have only a penny left it will only be spent on the
families of the Martyrs and the [terrorist] prisoners, and only afterwards will
it be spent on the rest of the people. This is a group that we appreciate and
respect, and we consider it the one paving the way to Palestine's independence
for the future generations... We view the Martyrs and prisoners as stars in the
sky of the Palestinian people and the sky of the Palestinian people's struggle,
and they have priority in everything."
Fortunately for Abbas and his terrorists, both the Biden administration, the
World Bank and the EU stand ready with taxpayer financing to ensure that the
terrorists are not about to run out of murder-for-hire payments anytime soon.
The World Bank, in fact, decided that the PA should get more money. In July, it
announced that its usual annual grant to the terrorist entity of $70 million
would be raised in to a whopping $300 million, no questions asked. The World
Bank thereby knowingly and willingly made itself an active accomplice to
terrorism. Even the PA leadership itself seemed surprised at the sum. PA Prime
Minister Muhammad Mustafa said:
"The World Bank Board of Directors decided a few days ago to increase the annual
grant that it provides to the State of Palestine from approximately $70 million
to $300 million per year. This is an unprecedented sum in the history of
Palestine's relations with the World Bank." [bold in original]
Also in July, the European Union announced that it would provide the Palestinian
Authority with 400 million euros ($435.5 million) of EU taxpayer money in
emergency financial support in the coming two months "amid concerns within the
EU that the authority could collapse." The sole reason why the PA is in the
process of collapse is because of its pay-for-slay scheme, but this apparently
does not bother the EU in the least: it happily continues to disburse EU
taxpayer money to enable Palestinian terrorism.
"The money will be disbursed in the form of grants and loans in three payments
between July and September, subject to progress in the implementation of the
reform agenda of the Palestinian Authority," the European Commission said in a
statement.
What reform agenda?
Incidentally, the 400 million euros are in addition to the 25 million euros the
EU announced in May in a second portion of assistance to pay the salaries and
pensions of PA civil servants.
That is not all. Despite the deep involvement of UNRWA in Hamas terrorism, the
EU is also pouring more taxpayer money there: In March, the European Commission
announced
"Today, the Commission has decided to allocate an additional EUR 68 million to
support the Palestinian population across the region to be implemented through
international partners like the Red Cross and the Red Crescent. This comes in
addition to the foreseen EUR 82 million of aid to be implemented through UNRWA
in 2024, bringing the total to EUR 150 million."
On May 31, the EU Commission bragged:
"The European Union is the biggest provider of external assistance to the
Palestinians which amounts to indicatively almost €1.2 billion [$1.3 billion]
for 2021-2024 under the European Joint Strategy, of which €809.4 million have
already been adopted."
It is inconceivable that European leaders are unaware of the PA's consistent
involvement in terrorism and its approval of the Hamas atrocities committed on
October 7. After the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on July 31, Mahmoud
Abbas "declared a day of mourning and lowering of flags to half-mast for a full
day as a sign of mourning over the assassination of former Prime Minister Ismail
Haniyeh," according to WAFA, the official PA news agency.
Senior PA official and arch terrorist Jibril Rajoub, who holds the powerful role
of secretary general of Fatah's Central Committee, eulogized Haniyeh as "a great
leader, a dear brother, a friend, and a staunch fighter." In October, Rajoub
justified the October 7 massacre: "Hamas is part of our political and social
fabric and of our struggle, and their involvement is important."
Nothing above is a secret. All the information is readily available. So why is
not one European leader questioning the use of EU taxpayer money for propping up
a terrorist regime and its terrorists? Why is the EU knowingly enabling
terrorism?
**Robert Williams is a researcher based in the United States.
© 2024 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.
Iraqi Christians’ Never-Ending ‘Black Day’
Raymond Ibrahim/PJ Media/August 07/2024
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2024/08/133022/
Yesterday, on Aug. 6, the Christians of Iraq commemorated the tenth anniversary
of “The Black Day” — when the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) invaded
northern Iraq, where most of that nation’s Christian minorities live(d),
beginning on Aug. 6, 2014.
The atrocities then committed — and which were correctly labeled genocide by the
international community — were unimaginable: I personally remember going through
and still have access to numerous reports, many in non-English languages, on how
ISIS butchered, crucified, enslaved, raped, bought, and sold Christians as if
they were chattel — not to mention the bombing or burning of countless, often
ancient heritage-site churches and monasteries.
Incidentally, and striking closer to home, it should be remembered that one of
the main reasons that an otherwise small band of terrorists was able to conquer
the large Christian populations of Northern Iraq is because the latter were
disarmed by their government and thus unable to fight back. As John Zmirak of
The Stream wrote,
[Iraq’s Christians were] kept disarmed, politically powerless, but physically
safe by a regime that valued its credentials as religiously tolerant. The U.S.
invasion in 2003 destroyed the regime of Saddam Hussein, dissolved the Baathist
party, and unleashed the long-simmering forces of inter-religious hatred… The
one group which all the others saw no reason to protect, and which many
scapegoated for the invasion by U.S. “crusaders,” were the helpless local
Christians.
Be that as it may, and as fitting as it is to remember the “Black Day” that
unleashed ISIS on the Christians of Northern Iraq, it is equally important to
remember that the plight of Iraq’s Christians — one of the oldest Christian
communities in the world — began well before the advent of ISIS and continues to
the present moment. In other words, ISIS was always only the icing on the
jihadist cake, one which continues to be dished out to Christians, even if in
smaller slices.
Everything went downhill for Iraq’s Christians following the U.S. invasion of
Iraq in 2003 and subsequent toppling of Saddam Hussein. Whatever his faults,
Saddam was a secularist — meaning that his internal enemies were the same
enemies of Christians: observant (“radical”) Muslims who, just as they disliked
Christian “infidels,” also disliked and sought to overthrow Saddam for not being
a “true” Muslim — for being an apostate as they had long characterized him. As
such, he kept them suppressed, which indirectly benefited Christians.
As one leading Vatican official once put it, Christians, “paradoxically, were
more protected under the dictatorship [of Saddam Hussein].”
Once he was toppled, the genie — or jihadi — bottle was uncorked: “militant”
Muslims everywhere — many of them presented by the mainstream media as U.S.
allies and “freedom fighters” — began to exercise sharia (as they later did in
Libya, Yemen, Egypt, and Syria under the Obama-sponsored guise of an “Arab
Spring”).
Here, for example, is a telling excerpt from an article I wrote in April 2011 —
three years before ISIS even existed and had not yet caused the “Black Day”:
Last week an Iraqi Muslim scholar issued a fatwa that, among other barbarities,
asserts that “it is permissible to spill the blood of Iraqi Christians.”
Inciting as the fatwa is, it is also redundant. While last October’s Baghdad
church attack which killed some sixty Christians is widely known … the fact is,
Christian life in Iraq has been a living hell ever since U.S. forces ousted the
late Saddam Hussein in 2003…. Among other atrocities, beheading and crucifying
Christians are not irregular occurrences; messages saying “you Christian dogs,
leave or die,” are typical. Islamists see the church as an “obscene nest of
pagans” and threaten to “exterminate Iraqi Christians.”
Again, keep in mind that the Muslims doing this were not yet ISIS, as ISIS would
not even become an entity till 2013. They were just “militant” Muslims who hated
Christians for the same reason their ancestors hated and ruthlessly subjugated
Christians: Islam, which exploits innate tribalism, makes a detested enemy of
the “other” — in this case, the non-Muslim, the infidel, who is to be abused,
plundered, and slaughtered at will.
That the real issue was an uncorked Islam, as opposed to an organization called
ISIS, is further apparent in the fact that, long after ISIS has been gone,
Christians continue to suffer persecution and discrimination — at the hands of
regular Iraqi citizens and even the U.S.-installed government no less.
Since late 2017, when ISIS was officially defeated in Iraq, Christians have
continued to be physically attacked, including with knives; Christian shops have
been firebombed; Christian churches invaded; Christian lands burned, and
Christian homes illegally seized — always with the Iraqi government looking the
other way.
None of this should be surprising: mainstream Iraqi clerics — Sunnis and Shias,
neither “radicals” — continue to spew hate for infidels from their minbars. One
Muslim leader on the government’s pay described Christians as “infidels and
polytheists,” stressing the need for “jihad” against them.
Discussing Islam’s correct approach to non-Muslims, the Grand Ayatollah Ahmad
al-Baghdadi, Iraq’s top cleric, even went so far as to say on live television:
If they are people of the book [Jews and Christians] we demand of them the
jizya—and if they refuse, then we fight them. That is if he is Christian. He has
three choices: either convert to Islam, or, if he refuses and wishes to remain
Christian, then pay the jizya [and live according to dhimmi rules]. But if they
still refuse—then we fight them, and we abduct their women, and destroy their
churches—this is Islam!
In a Dec. 30, 2022, interview, Louis Raphaël I Sako, the Chaldean Catholic
Patriarch of Babylon, discussed the continuing plight of Christians in post-ISIS
Iraq. After saying that Christian minors continue to be pressured to convert to
Islam and that sharia is being imposed on Christians, he added:
The [Iraqi] constitution talks about freedom of conscience, but it is just on
paper. This mentality and these practices—all this inherited tradition—must end.
The world has become a global village. Just look at the Muslims abroad. When I
visit abroad and meet with heads of state, I see that the Muslims there have the
same rights as the Christians and atheists. Here, however, I am treated as a
second-class citizen.
Almost as if to prove him right, the most recent form of Iraqi persecution comes
directly from Abdul Latif Rashid, the president of Iraq, and is directed against
the Chaldean Patriarch himself. According to a 2023 report, “Under mounting
pressure from a pro-Iran militia group, the Iraqi president earlier this month
revoked a decade-old decree that formally recognized Chaldean Patriarch Cardinal
Louis Raphael Sako and granted him powers over Christian endowment affairs.”
Christians are convinced that this move was meant to facilitate the further
confiscation of their property, which began under ISIS. In the words of Diya
Butrus Slewa, a human rights activist from Ainkawa, “This is a political
maneuver to seize the remainder of what Christians have left in Iraq and Baghdad
and to expel them. Unfortunately, this is a blatant targeting of the Christians
and a threat to their rights.”
Other Christians gathered in peaceful protests, holding up “placards telling the
Iraqi government that they had committed ‘enough injustice’ against the
long-suffering Christian community.” Another sign read:
Mr. President, the protector of the constitution should not violate the
constitution. The Iraqi president orders the displacement of Christians, and
opens the way for violating the property of the Chaldean Church which represents
nearly 80 percent of Christians in Iraq and Kurdistan.
In short, Iraq’s Christians have gone from having ISIS, a terrorist
organization, persecute them, to the U.S.-sponsored president of Iraq
persecuting them, if in an admittedly less sensationalist form (hence why zero
coverage from the “mainstream media”).
This should make clear that ISIS was never the cause, but rather an overt
symptom of the persecution of Christians in Iraq and the broader Middle East.
The true cause — Islamic hostility and contempt for “infidels” — remains alive
and well, not least because it must never be named or acknowledged.
And so, although it began ten years ago yesterday, Iraq’s Christians continue to
live under a “Black Day” — one that has not seen a sunrise for a decade.
https://pjmedia.com/raymond-ibrahim/2024/08/07/iraqi-christians-never-ending-black-day-n4931416
Time: Exclusive Interview With Israeli PM, Benjamin
Netanyahu/نص مقابلة رئيس وزراء إسرائيل نتنياهو مع مجلة التيمز
August 8, 2024
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2024/08/133053/
Exclusive: Netanyahu at War
Eric Cortellessa/Jerusalem/TIME/ August 08/2024
For the past 10 months, Benjamin Netanyahu has refused to apologize for leaving
Israel vulnerable to Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attack. After the deaths of 1,200
people and the abduction of hundreds more, a traumatized Israeli public heard
abject admissions of responsibility from the heads of the Israel Defense Forces
and Shin Bet, the country’s domestic security service, but none from Netanyahu,
who had been Prime Minister for almost a year when the attack happened, and had
presided over a more than 10-year strategy of tacit acceptance of Hamas rule in
Gaza. His only apology was for a social media post blaming his own security
chiefs for failing to foil the assault. So, early in a 66-minute conversation
with TIME on Aug. 4 in the Prime Minister’s office in Jerusalem, the question
is, Would he make an apology?
“Apologize?” he asks back. “Of course, of course. I am sorry, deeply, that
something like this happened. And you always look back and you say, Could we
have done things that would have prevented it?”
For Netanyahu, who first occupied the dowdy Kaplan Street offices in 1996, it’s
a fraught question. Through a combination of electoral vicissitudes, sweeping
regional changes, and his own political gifts, his almost 17-year cumulative
tenure is longer than that of anyone else who has led Israel, a country only two
years older than he is. Over that span, Netanyahu’s political endurance has been
built around one consistent argument: that he’s the only leader who can ensure
Israel’s safety.
But in the wake of the worst slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust, with more
than 40,000 Gazans dead in the ensuing conflict, Israel under Netanyahu is not
blessed with peace but besieged by war. As we speak, the country is on edge for
an expected aerial attack from Iran, the second in four months. Shops are
shuttered, and pedestrians stay within sprinting distance of bomb shelters. The
fighting is ongoing in Gaza, with more than 100 hostages still held by Hamas.
Much to the frustration of the Biden Administration, Netanyahu still has not
articulated a credible plan to end the war or a vision for how the Israelis and
the Palestinians can peacefully coexist. Instead, he’s bracing for escalating
conflict on even more fronts: in the north with Hezbollah in Lebanon; in the
Gulf with the Houthis in Yemen; and most of all, with Israel’s nemesis Iran.
“We’re facing not merely Hamas,” Netanyahu says. “We’re facing a full-fledged
Iranian axis, and we understand that we have to organize ourselves for broader
defense.”
The story of how Israel arrived at this precarious moment is entwined with
Netanyahu’s personal ambitions and vulnerabilities. In the months before Oct. 7,
Israeli society was sundered by his support of right-wing legislation
diminishing the power of the Supreme Court. The collective trauma of the Hamas
attack may have brought Jewish Israelis together, but deepened doubts about
their Prime Minister, with 72% saying he should resign, either now or after the
war, according to a July poll for Israel’s most watched television station.
Abroad, the toll of the Gaza war can be tallied in Israel’s increasing
isolation: arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav
Gallant sought by the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court for alleged
war crimes; American college campuses convulsed by anti-Israel protests, the
largest of their kind since Vietnam; antisemitism rising around the globe.
On his first trip overseas since the war’s outbreak, Netanyahu addressed a joint
session of Congress on July 25 in hopes of reinforcing his nation’s most
essential alliance. But behind the standing ovations, the advice from both ends
of the political spectrum was unanimous: President Biden, Vice President Kamala
Harris, and former President Donald Trump all said it was time to end the war in
Gaza.
Netanyahu’s response? Two days after arriving home, without a heads-up to the
White House, a bomb almost certainly planted by Israel killed Hamas’ most
prominent negotiator in a heavily guarded government guest house in Tehran. With
every passing week, critics raise further alarms that Netanyahu is drawing out
the Gaza campaign for personal political reasons, arguing that a deal for a
permanent cease-fire that would bring home the remaining hostages would also
open the door to elections that could result in his removal from office. Biden
himself told TIME on May 28 that there was “every reason to draw that
conclusion,” and in Israel, many do. “Netanyahu is focused on his longevity in
power more than the interests of the Israeli people or the State of Israel,”
says former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, who for four years served as his
Defense Minister. “It will take half a generation to repair the damage that
Netanyahu has caused in the last year.”
A defiant Netanyahu, 74, calls these charges a “canard.” He insists the goal in
Gaza must be a victory so decisive that when the fighting stops, Hamas can make
no claim to govern in Palestinian territories or pose a threat to Israel.
Otherwise, he argues, it will only condemn his country to a future of more
massacres at the hands of enemies who want to eliminate the world’s only Jewish
state. With the conflict expanding, Netanyahu says he is puncturing the
confidence of every other element of Iran’s “axis of resistance,” a network of
nonstate actors throughout the Middle East with a collective arsenal of rockets
trained on Israel.
If the war in Gaza widens into a regional conflict, the consequences for Israel
and the world would be dangerously unpredictable. The U.S. and the West risk
being dragged into another Middle East quagmire. Israelis increasingly worry
that the war supposedly launched to save Israel will imperil it. Among their
most profound fears is that the cycle of violence and the perception it shapes
of Israel for the next generation will cause lasting damage to its survival and
its soul.
For Netanyahu, who says he’s waging an existential war, it’s a risk he
recognizes, but one he’s willing to take. “Being destroyed has bigger
implications about Israel’s security,” he says. “I’d rather have bad press than
a good obituary.”
Protesters demanding a hostage-release deal outside Netanyahu’s Jerusalem
residence on Aug. 3.Paolo Pellegrin—Magnum Photos for TIME
Earlier this year, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken flew to Tel Aviv to
meet Israeli officials in the Kirya, the towering office complex from which the
Prime Minister and his Cabinet were conducting the war. Israel’s bombardment of
Gaza had already caused an estimated 30,000 deaths, a count by the Hamas-led
Health Ministry that doesn’t distinguish between militants and civilians, but is
accepted by the U.N. and the White House. Nearly 2 million Palestinians had been
displaced. It was a humanitarian catastrophe inflaming the world, and Blinken’s
message to Netanyahu was simple: Wind down the war, you have achieved your
objective, Hamas can no longer carry out another Oct. 7.
“That’s not our objective,” Netanyahu replied, according to a source familiar
with the exchange. “Our objective is to completely destroy Hamas’ military and
governing capabilities.” The larger, more essential goal, Netanyahu argued, was
restoring Israel’s principle of deterrence. The price of Oct. 7 had to be
sufficiently high for Hamas that any other power considering an attack on Israel
would fear similar destruction. While Israel faces a cynical enemy that
endangers its own people to delegitimize the Jewish state, the price of that
full-throttle approach was already evident: the civilian death toll was
mounting, Palestinians struggled to access basic health care, and there was a
shortage of food and water. The calamity spawned accusations of a
disproportionate counterattack. “This is collective punishment,” says Rashid
Khalidi, a Columbia University professor who worked on Palestinian peace
negotiations in the 1990s. “You don’t punish civilians for what Hamas did.”
Netanyahu dismisses those allegations out of hand. “We’ve gone out of our way to
enable humanitarian assistance since the beginning of the war,” he says, citing
Israel’s delivery of aid through food trucks and air drops.
To some extent, Netanyahu has been preparing to fight this war his entire adult
life. His political career began as a telegenic diplomat explaining Israel’s
positions on U.S. television during Iran’s takeover of the U.S. embassy in 1979,
and he was elected Prime Minister three times pitching himself as “Mr.
Security.” That the worst terrorist attack in Israel’s history happened on his
watch was a deep wound, forcing a reckoning in Israel over the strategic policy
decisions he had championed for decades.
The first was allowing Qatar to send funds into the Gaza Strip. Hamas had come
to power first by the ballot box (in 2006 elections promoted by U.S. President
George W. Bush) and a year later by force of arms, amid factional fighting.
Israel first responded by enforcing a blockade on the enclave. But under a
policy embraced over the past 10 years by Netanyahu, billions in Qatari cash was
allowed into Gaza. The infrastructure it financed included many miles of
tunnels.
“Hamas wore two hats. It wore a terrorist hat and it wore a governance hat after
2007,” says Michael Oren, Netanyahu’s ambassador to Washington from 2009 to
2013. “We thought that we could incentivize Hamas to wear the governance hat
through large infusions of Qatari cash and by allowing Palestinian workers into
Israel. Give Hamas something to lose. That was the idea. But it was wrong.”
Others saw a more cynical strategy, to deepen divisions between Palestinians in
the West Bank and Gaza, and undermine the prospects for a unified Palestinian
state. “He saw Hamas as an asset and the [West Bank–based] Palestinian Authority
as a liability,” says Barak. “As long as he can hold Hamas alive and kicking and
being a threat to Israel, he can easily protect himself against demands from
America and from the rest of the world who argued that Israel should look for a
way to achieve a breakthrough with the Palestinians.”
Netanyahu reportedly said as much at a Likud Party meeting in 2019, according to
the Israeli media, but he denies it. Rather, he tells TIME, his approval of
Qatari cash infusions was humanitarian: “We wanted to make sure that Gaza has a
functioning civilian administration to avoid humanitarian collapse,” he says.
Moreover, he claims, the money didn’t form the basis of Hamas’ eventual threat
to Israel. “The main issue was the transfer of weapons and ammunition from the
Sinai into Gaza,” he says. His primary mistake, he says, was acceding to his
Security Cabinet’s reluctance to wage full-on war. “Oct. 7 showed that those who
said that Hamas was deterred were wrong,” he says during the Aug. 4 interview.
“If anything, I didn’t challenge enough the assumption that was common to all
the security agencies.”
Instead, Israel maintained a policy known as mowing the grass—periodic fighting
to degrade Hamas’ military capability and deter its desire to assault Israel.
The 2014 Gaza war, during which Hamas sent forces into Israel via tunnels,
lasted 51 days. Early in that round, senior Israeli officials say, Netanyahu’s
Security Cabinet presented him with a plan to destroy Hamas that estimated the
cost in deaths: roughly 10,000 Gazan civilians and nearly 500 Israeli soldiers.
“There was no domestic support for such an action,” says Netanyahu. “There was
certainly no international support for such an action—and you need both.”
While Hamas was growing stronger in secret, Israel was making a spectacle of its
own division. In January 2023, after Netanyahu returned to power for the third
time with a coalition that included far-right parties previously considered too
extreme to govern, he backed a radical bill to weaken the judiciary. The plan
triggered an immense backlash, with tens of thousands of Israelis protesting
every weekend. “You are weakening us, and our enemy is going to see it and we’re
going to pay the price,” former Minister of Defense Benny Gantz warned
Netanyahu.
Netanyahu blames the protesters, thousands of whom declared they wouldn’t serve
in the military of an Israel with a diminished democratic foundation. “The
refusal to serve because of an internal political debate—I think that, if
anything, that had an effect,” he says.
Amid this tumult, Hamas had been planning to infiltrate Israel by land, air, and
sea, and not just for a one-off attack. The plan on Oct. 7 was to secure the
south of Israel and keep moving farther into the north, according to two senior
Israeli sources who have reviewed Hamas documentation discovered in Gaza. “This
was not a plan to wound Israel,” says one source who reviewed the documents. “It
was planned to be the first step in the operation to destroy Israel entirely.”
Israel’s invasion of Gaza began on Oct. 27, when Netanyahu launched a full-scale
ground operation with aerial strikes. The offensive came with a cold
calculation; because Hamas intentionally embeds its military infrastructure in
densely populated areas, the attacks would inevitably inflict wide-scale
civilian casualties. For an Israeli public still reeling from Oct. 7, their
deaths became a tragic but necessary price to protect the nation-state
established after the Holocaust to provide a safe haven for Jews in their
ancestral homeland. A Pew poll in May showed fewer than 20% of Israelis thought
the country’s military went “too far.” The press here seldom shows images of
civilian deaths. In our interview, Netanyahu says the IDF’s “best estimate” is
that the ratio of civilian deaths to military is 1 to 1—extraordinarily low for
urban combat. (The U.N. has said that civilians usually account for 90% of
casualties in war.)
The hostages remain the focus of domestic attention. In November, Israel and
Hamas reached a temporary cease-fire to exchange 105 of them for 240 Palestinian
prisoners. When fighting resumed a week later, the humanitarian crisis
increasingly became the global focus. Only under intense pressure from the Biden
Administration did Netanyahu allow more aid into the Strip. When he prepared to
push into the southern Gaza city of Rafah, the last refuge both for displaced
civilians and Hamas’ remaining battalions, Netanyahu also found himself up
against the American President who had flown in after Oct. 7 to publicly embrace
him.
Israel seemed more internationally isolated than ever before. Most wounding to
Netanyahu was a March cover of the Economist, which he read growing up in the
States, headlined “Israel alone.” That, it turns out, was exaggerated. A few
weeks later, on April 14, Iran for the first time launched 300 missiles toward
Israel, a retaliation for its attack on a diplomatic facility in Damascus. Under
Biden’s stewardship, the American, British, French, and Arab forces all rushed
to Israel’s defense.
But two things can be true at once. A government anxious to prevent a full-bore
regional conflagration might scramble jets to save Israeli lives while also
holding grave reservations about what Israel was doing in Gaza. The war had been
going on for six months, and Biden wanted Netanyahu to accept a
cease-fire-for-hostage deal that would end it. To Biden’s frustration, Netanyahu
resisted. He wanted only a temporary pause in the fighting upon the return of
the hostages. A longer respite for Hamas stood to cost Netanyahu the support of
his far-right governing partners, tanking his fragile coalition. “He’s risking
his government in having a deal with Hamas,” says a senior Israeli official.
“Bibi will have a hostage deal only when it suits him politically.”
This was the backdrop for Netanyahu’s first trip abroad since Oct. 7, to address
a joint session of Congress in Washington. The speech was at first opposed by
Biden and Democratic congressional leadership, who knew it would exacerbate
party tensions over the Administration’s support for the war. Nearly 130
Democrats skipped it, including Harris, who as Vice President would
traditionally preside over the address.
A visit intended to showcase solidarity with Israel’s most essential ally
instead underscored what was for Israel a growing partisan divide. In recent
years, Democratic voters have grown less supportive of Israel and more
sympathetic toward Palestinians, according to Gallup. The Gaza war had only
intensified the trend.
Netanyahu says that’s not his fault. “I don’t think that the much reported
erosion of support among some quarters of the American public is related to
Israel,” he says. “It’s more related to America.” He cites a Harvard-Harris
survey that in January found that 80% of respondents supported Israel whereas
20% supported Hamas—a significant chunk of support for a terrorist organization.
“There’s a problem that America has,” Netanyahu says. “It’s not a problem that
Israel has.”
The partisan divide on display during his trip offered the canny Israeli Premier
an opportunity. After the speech he traveled to Trump’s Mediterranean-style Palm
Beach mansion to repair his relationship with the billionaire, who remained
angry at Netanyahu for backing out of a joint strike on a top Iranian in January
2020, and for congratulating Joe Biden on his election victory. But at
Mar-a-Lago, Trump greeted Netanyahu and his wife Sara with open arms, and after
their conversation set up a makeshift cabinet meeting around a boardroom table
with Netanyahu’s top brass and his own.
Perhaps Netanyahu’s ultimate metric of success in the U.S. came as he prepared
to fly home. On July 27, the centrist Israeli television station Channel 12
released a poll that showed his leading all three of his potential rivals in a
hypothetical snap election.
Less than a day after the meeting with Trump, a Hezbollah rocket launched from
Lebanon struck a soccer field in northern Israel, killing 12, mostly children.
In retaliation for the soccer-field attack, Israel on July 30 bombed a senior
Hezbollah commander in a suburb of Beirut—a rare strike in the Lebanese capital.
Just hours later, news broke that the Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh had
been killed in his sleep in Tehran, where he had just attended the inauguration
of the new Iranian President. The Iranians accused the Israelis of the hit,
which was reportedly delivered via a bomb secreted into an Islamic Revolutionary
Guard Corps guesthouse. Israel has not confirmed or denied involvement but went
on high alert, awaiting the promised Iranian retaliation.
Last April, a wider conflict had been narrowly avoided when Iran responded to an
Israeli airstrike that killed an Iranian general with a massive but telegraphed
direct attack on Israel that was rebuffed with the help of the allied defenses
arranged by the U.S. This time, both sides again professed to want to avoid a
broader conflict, even as each encounter tested the line between deterrence and
provocation.
If a larger war can indeed be averted, Netanyahu believes he can transcend the
infamy of Oct. 7 in two ways, according to those close to him. One is by
successfully ridding Gaza of Hamas. The second: cementing a Saudi-Israel
normalization deal. This would be a dramatic expansion of the Abraham Accords
forged under Trump, which normalized Israel’s ties with four Arab nations.
Eviscerating Hamas, then providing the Jewish state a network of alliances in
the heart of the Islamic world, would turn a catastrophe into a strategic
triumph.
The two goals could intersect in Netanyahu’s vague plan for a postwar Gaza. Once
Hamas is out of power, he says, he wants to recruit Arab countries to help
install a civilian Palestinian governing entity that wouldn’t pose a threat to
Israel. “I’d like to see a civilian administration run by Gazans, perhaps with
the support of regional partners,” says Netanyahu. “Demilitarization by Israel,
civilian administration by Gaza.”
Few Israelis see this as a realistic scenario. “He doesn’t have any plan for the
endgame,” says Efraim Halevy, a former head of Mossad. “First of all, it took
him a long time to admit that there would be an endgame, but he has never
published it as a proposition, and what he has published is very flimsy.” It
also strikes Palestinians as unlikely. “Not unless there’s some kind of
Palestinian buy-in, and there will not be a buy-in to something that’s not
Palestinian run,” says Khalidi. “Something that’s run by the Emirates or any
other alternative is not going to fly.”
The fates of Israelis and Palestinians remain inextricably intertwined. If
Israel does not find a way to peacefully separate from the millions of
Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza, it faces a future of either absorbing
them as citizens and losing its Jewish majority, or depriving them of the rights
and freedoms afforded to the Jewish population and losing its democracy.
Netanyahu has no interest in overseeing the creation of a Palestinian state.
Rather, he offers a vision of limited pockets of autonomy in Palestinian areas
where Israel maintains overriding security control, a version of the situation
in the West Bank today. “That’s a detraction of sovereign powers,” he admits,
“there’s no question about it.” But he also tacitly recognizes the dilemma
Israel faces. “I agree we should maintain a Jewish majority, but I think we
should do it in democratic means,” he says. “That’s why I don’t want to
incorporate the Palestinians in Judea and Samaria as citizens of Israel,”
referring to the biblical name of the West Bank. “It means that they should run
their own lives. They should vote for their own institutions. They should have
their own self-governance. But they should not have the power to threaten us.”
The Saudis have publicly said Israel needs to be taking steps toward a
Palestinian state in order to clinch a normalization deal. But Netanyahu’s
far-right ruling coalition won’t tolerate any move in that direction. Naming
Itamar Ben-Gvir as National Security Minister and Belazel Smotrich as Finance
Minister is, as Union for Reform Judaism president Rick Jacobs has put it, like
a U.S. President welcoming into the Cabinet the KKK. The former cheered on the
assassination of former Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin; the latter has said Israel
would be “justified” in starving Palestinians to death but the world won’t let
them. Together, they have undertaken a bureaucratic push to eliminate any
possibility of Palestinian sovereignty. Smotrich has authorized illegal Israeli
outposts in the West Bank and streamlined the approval of settlement activities
to expand Israel’s footprint in the occupied territories.
Extremist elements have seeped deeper and deeper into Israeli society since Oct.
7. At the end of July, a Palestinian detainee was rushed to the hospital with
severe wounds after being sexually abused with a polelike object. Far-right
demonstrators, including some lawmakers, stormed a military base to protest the
arrest of nine suspects.
The compounding crises may have Israel at the greatest risk since its founding
76 years ago. Halevy, the former Mossad chief, views the situation ominously.
“There were 70 or so years between the temples,” he says, referring to the last
two periods the Jewish people had sovereignty in Israel. “You can say that there
is a pattern here.”
Amid the gathering sense of existential danger, Netanyahu is, as always,
pitching himself as the man who can ensure that Zionism survives the war. “It
will, if we win,” he says. “And if we don’t, our future will be in great
jeopardy.” Barak, the former Prime Minister, says Netanyahu is in his
psychological element. “He genuinely believes that he’s saving Israel,” says
Barak. “Not that he’s responsible for one of the worst events in its history.”
Ultimately, the Israeli electorate will determine its future. Though 7 in 10
Israelis say he should step down, the Channel 12 poll showed Netanyahu winning a
plurality of 32% support. “There’s a disconnect between public opinion, which is
a majority against him in every measure, and his potential for him to stay in
power,” says Dahlia Scheindlin, an Israeli pollster. “That doesn’t necessarily
translate into losing power in elections.”
The country’s own fraught history suggests Netanyahu’s vulnerability. Prime
Minister Golda Meir resigned months after the Yom Kippur War of 1973, when Egypt
and Syria attacked Israel on the holiest day of the Jewish year, killing over
2,600 Israeli soldiers. Netanyahu has himself been a harsh judge of leaders who
oversaw military disasters. In 2008, after a damning report was published on
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s management of the 2006 Lebanon war, he called
Olmert unfit and incompetent. “The government is in charge of the military, and
it failed miserably,” Netanyahu said at the time. “The political echelon and its
leader refuse to take responsibility and exhibit personal integrity and
leadership—which is what the decisive majority of the public expects them to
do.”
In his office on Kaplan Street, TIME asks Netanyahu whether he intends to remain
Prime Minister. “I will stay in office as long as I believe I can help lead
Israel to a future of security, enduring security and prosperity,” he replies.
And would he say an opposition leader who presided over Israel’s worst security
failure should stay in power?
Netanyahu pauses to think through his answer. “It depends what they do,” he
says. “What do they do? Are they capable of leading the country in war? Can they
lead it to victory? Can they assure that the postwar situation will be one of
peace and security? If the answer is yes, they should stay in power.”
“In any case,” he says, “that’s the decision of the people.” —With reporting by
Vera Bergengruen/Washington and Leslie Dickstein/New York
Contact us at letters@time.com.
Concerning America's Ability to Protect and Defend Its Very
Future
Lawrence Kadish/Gatestone Institute/August 08, 2024
On July 24, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) intercepted two
Russian and two Chinese bombers flying near Alaska. Pentagon officials say this
marks the first time our two adversaries have been intercepted while operating
aircraft in a clearly coordinated flight meant to be just provocative enough to
send a message. Pictured: F-35 and F-16 fighter jets of the US Air Force
intercept an H-6 bomber of China's People's Liberation Army Air Force flying
near Alaska on July 24, 2024.
While the world's attention is focused on the Middle East as the next probable
flashpoint, it would be wise to look to the skies over the Bering Sea, near the
coast of Alaska.
China's People's Liberation Army Air Force is now getting a good look at the
continental United States. And they are doing it from bombers flying in
formation with their allies, the Russians.
Over the last number of years, China has been confronting Japan, the
Philippines, and Taiwan with provocative naval and air exercises. Now add the
United States to their list of targets. This time, however, they are working in
close coordination with the Russians.
On July 24, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) intercepted two
Russian and two Chinese bombers flying near Alaska. Pentagon officials say this
marks the first time our two adversaries have been intercepted while operating
aircraft in a clearly coordinated flight meant to be just provocative enough to
send a message.
The Russian TU-95 Bear and Chinese H-6 bombers did not enter U.S. or Canadian
airspace. In addition, they were intercepted by U.S. and Canadian fighter jets,
so it's not as if they were unobserved. But then again, that was not their
intent.
The Chinese Defense Ministry responded with a statement that suggested there was
nothing unusual or threatening about this sortie. Rather, it was "joint
strategic aerial patrol in the relevant airspace of the Bering Sea." The
Ministry's spokesman told the press that "[we are] further testing and enhancing
the level of cooperation between the two air forces, as well as deepening
strategic mutual trust and practical cooperation between the two countries."
"This action is not aimed at third parties, it is in line with relevant
international laws and international practices and has nothing to do with the
current international and regional situation," Zhang said.
Russia insisted the exercise was part of a 2024 military cooperation plan and
"not directed against third countries."
However, the presence of Chinese aircraft appears to be a new development. In
March, the head of US Northern Command, General Gregory Guillot, said China was
pushing farther north into the Arctic and he expected to see aircraft there "as
soon as this year potentially."
"It is a very big concern of mine."
China considers their country a "near-Arctic" nation and has worked to expand
its presence in the far north, including through its cooperation with Russia.
At a time when China and Russia are watching our American democracy in turmoil,
they are placing bets on whether they will confront a strong, resolute president
in 2025 or one that has neither the skill nor the will to retain our nation's
global leadership. During the next few weeks, Iran may very well test our
nation's resolve. But in 2025, China and Russia will do far more than that. They
will test our ability to defend our very future.
*Lawrence Kadish serves on the Board of Governors of Gatestone Institute.
© 2024 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.
Four Scenarios for The Day After in Gaza
Dr. Nassif Hitti/Asharq Al Awsat/August 8, 2024
The Palestinian struggle is at the forefront of the regional priorities agenda
after a years-long absence that resulted from the need to put out the many other
fires that have broken out. The Palestinian question has now become the most
pressing and volatile concern in the region following Israel's genocidal war on
Gaza. The war gave rise to a temporally and spatially open-ended conflict, as a
new element has been added to the struggle: the "unity of arenas" strategy. As a
result, the geography of the war has been gradually expanding, and the nature of
the conflict has changed. The October War (Yom Kippur War), the last of the
Arab-Israeli wars, was confined to neighboring countries directly involved.
After that, we saw "asymmetric" wars between an occupying power and resistance
movements, whether in Palestine or Lebanon.
With the war on Gaza, the conflict has further transformed again. It is now a
conflict between an occupying state on one side, and on the other, a coalition
of factions and forces supporting the resistance in the occupied territories.
This shift was made in the name of transnational ideological and identitarian
solidarity, and it is an operational strategy that some have turned into a key
card play in the "game of nations" underway in the region.
What scenarios could await us once the "day after" arrives?
First scenario: A protracted war of attrition that remains chronologically
open-ended amid efforts to contain it geographically, as well as to prevent it
from escalating into a full-blown regional war that would threaten the stability
and security of the Middle East and “reshuffle the cards” in the region. One
segment of this scenario would be an agreement among the "three influential
parties" to contain the conflict, both geographically and in terms of the nature
of attacks, as they work to gradually de-intensity the conflict until the war
ends altogether.
This scenario would involve temporary ceasefires whose sustainability would
hinge on the achievement of certain goals that Israel has reiterated on a daily
basis. These goals include the release of prisoners, total Israeli security and
military control over the Gaza Strip, and allowing a political authority formed
in partnership between the Palestinians, Arabs, and international actors to
administer Gaza through a predetermined framework. However, this scenario is
practically impossible, as it would essentially legitimize the reoccupation of
Gaza at no cost to Israel.
Second scenario: The region slides into an open war that reshuffles the cards.
Ending such a war would require a "grand bargain" among the key regional and
international actors involved. However, such a bargain would not lead to a
stable and sustained settlement, as it does not address the root causes of the
conflict: the perpetuation and consolidation of the occupation. So long as these
root causes are not addressed, the likelihood of hostilities resuming in a
different form would remain high.
Third scenario: Israel continues its overt attempts (through the increasing
Judaization of the West Bank—both geographically and demographically) to
establish Greater Israel. This remains the Israelis’ explicitly stated strategic
and ideological goal, as reflected by Israel’s policies amid the social and
political hegemony of religious and traditional right-wing factions. Implicitly,
the other side of the coin, here, is the revival of the so-called "Jordanian
option." Various "soft" approaches to creating this link between the West Bank
and Jordan are already being discussed. It goes without saying that the
Jordanians and Palestinians clearly and firmly reject this idea.
Fourth scenario: The "realistic" way this war ends is through a Security Council
resolution for a permanent ceasefire, rather than the frameworks for a partial
or conditional truce laid out in current proposals. The Security Council was
established to maintain global peace, security, and stability, as well as ensure
the peaceful resolution of conflicts. Doing so requires taking this path: taking
the decisions and exerting the pressure needed to ensure Israel's compliance,
which is in the interests of all the parties involved, both within the region
and beyond.
After that, an international conference attended by the key international actors
would be held to revive the peace process and oversee and support its
implementation within the framework of relevant UN Resolutions and international
law, leading to a two-state solution. There are several impediments to reaching
the two-state solution, most of them coming from Israel. Nonetheless, it remains
the only legal, internationally recognized, moral, and realistic path to
achieving comprehensive, just, and lasting peace. The other options we mentioned
are temporary solutions that essentially buy us time but further complicate the
path toward a solution. These kinds of stop-gap measures would perpetuate the
conflict and lead to its resumption in new forms by different parties.
To sum up, achieving these partial solutions is relatively easy. However, they
can only create temporary calm, kicking the can down the road at great cost
without creating real peace. On the other hand, the two-state solution and an
end to the occupation, while difficult (indeed, extremely difficult) to achieve
given the current circumstances, remains the only solution that can- if the
conditions we mentioned are met, which is more than possible- lead to a
comprehensive, just, and lasting peace. It would open a new chapter in the
region, creating new priorities and state-relation patterns.