Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on February 26-27/2024
Lessons Learned from the Bleeding Woman's Miracle That Applies to Our Everyday Lives/Elias Bejjani/February 25/2024
Hezbollah mourns more deaths of its members
Bombing several Israeli sites... with 60 Katyusha rockets... “Hezbollah” targets the headquarters of the Golan Division
An Israeli military spokesman: We targeted a large number of Hezbollah cadres and leaders
Israel claims responsibility for the assassination of Hassan Hussein Salami
A prominent Hezbollah field commander was killed by the bombing of an Israeli Attack
For the first time since the start of the war... an Israeli raid targets Hezbollah in the vicinity of Baalbek
The Lebanese front rages after the Israeli raid on Baalbek... and Hezbollah bombs the Golan with dozens of missiles
Hezbollah” rejects the French card and “did not lose in order to give up”
The day of the raids... from the south to Baalbek and Berri: Tel Aviv will be bombed opposite Beirut
US, Israel and Lebanon do not support French paper
Gallant: Gaza Deal Won’t Affect Israel’s Hezbollah Fight
Israel vows to target Hezbollah even if cease-fire reached in Gaza
Israel’s Air Force Strikes Deep Inside Lebanon, Killing 2 People, After Hezbollah Downs Drone
Israel strikes Baalbek, killing two, after Hezbollah downs drone
Israeli strike on Tyre's Majadel kills at least one person
Moderation bloc begins presidential initiative amid 'green light' from Berri
Bou Habib: Lebanon to respond next week to French proposal
Biden’s Hezbollah Plan Is a Win-Win—for the Terrorists...Israel faces a harsh reality in an election year for the United States./Richard Goldberg/The Dispatch/February 26/2024

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on February 26-27/2024
Iran has further increased its total stockpile of uranium, UN nuclear watchdog report says
Netanyahu Says Will Conduct Operation in Rafah Even if Hostage Deal is Reached
Israeli military proposes 'plan for evacuating' Gaza civilians
Arab States, Türkiye Ask World Court to Declare Israel’s Occupation Illegal
Israeli Military Proposes ‘Plan for Evacuating’ Gaza Civilians
Human Rights Watch Accuses Israel of Blocking Aid to Gaza in Violation of UN Court Order
Palestinian PM Submits Govt Resignation, Paving Way for Possible Reforms
Iraq’s Nujaba: Suspension of Attacks against US Forces Is ‘Calm before the Storm’
Captagon File Grows ‘More Complicated’ with Damascus Announcing Seizure of Shipment Bound to Iraq
US Says Yemen’s Houthis Ballistic Missile Misses US Tanker Torm Thor
US Air Force member dies after self-immolation outside Israeli embassy
Hungary's parliament ratifies Sweden's NATO bid, clearing the final obstacle to membership
Saudi source denies reports that commerce minister met Israeli counterpart
Final day of ICJ hearing: OIC says two-state solution in Palestine imperative to regional peace
Greek frigate departs to join EU Red Sea mission

Titles For The Latest English LCCC  analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources on February 26-27/2024
Palestinians Need New Leaders, Not New Governments/Khaled Abu Toameh/Gatestone Institute/February 26, 2024
Israel will pay a price for sabotaging its own reputation/Baria Alamuddin/Arab News/February 26, 2024/
Time to translate words into actions on Gaza/Dr. Ramzy Baroud/Arab News/February 26, 2024/
Navigating Western contradictions on region’s nonstate actors/Dr. Mohammed Al-Sulami/Arab News/February 26, 2024/
Could Houthi attacks on ships off the Yemen coast continue even after a Gaza ceasefire?/ALEX WHITEMAN/Arab News/February 26, 2024

Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on February 26-27/2024
Lessons Learned from the Bleeding Woman's Miracle That Applies to Our Everyday Lives
Elias Bejjani/February 25/2024
"When Jesus turned and saw her, he said, 'Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.' And the woman was healed at that moment." (Matthew 9:22)
In our modern times, where we've distanced ourselves from the teachings of the Holy Gospel, who among us doesn't bleed because of deviations from values, honest relationships, derailed practices, shallow faith, and lack of hope?
Yes, we've drifted away, immersing ourselves in a consumer society that traps us mercilessly in selfishness, afflicting us with the deadly disease of ego. Our lives, actions, words, and relationships are often structured by this deceitful ego.
This deadly selfishness dismantles family bonds, erases love from our hearts, and leads us away from the righteous path of salvation offered by Jesus Christ through his sacrifice on the cross.
We've lost sight of Jesus's warning: "What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?"
Due to our lack of faith, we've fallen into the traps of Satan, blindly pursuing material possessions, power, and authority. With each sin, we bleed, succumbing further to greed and desires.
We bleed when we fail to resist evil, neglect love, forgiveness, good deeds, prayer, and spreading the word of the Lord.
Let us heed the lesson of the bleeding woman, finding healing through faith and repentance. May we turn away from selfishness and towards the path of love, forgiveness, and righteousness, as taught by Jesus Christ.
We bleed in our minds, souls, and hearts when we drift away from faith and succumb to temptations.
We bleed when we recklessly indulge in the fleeting pleasures of this earthly world.
We bleed when we fail to hold a reverent fear of God in our relationships with one another, our children, and our families.
We bleed when we distance ourselves from the essence of love, which is God, manifested in its purest form through self-sacrifice for others.
We bleed when we allow the lusts of greed, envy, and gluttony to dictate our lives.
We bleed when we prioritize the possessions of this earthly world over worshiping God and adhering to His teachings.
We bleed when we disregard the sacrifices of martyrs and disrespect those who laid down their lives for the sake of our nation, unwaveringly upholding the truth.
We bleed because we pledge allegiance to leaders and politicians who barter away our fate and the sustenance of our nation.
We bleed because we have accepted the status of being mere slaves and sheep, resigning ourselves to living in the shadows.
After all these deviations, should we wonder why our beloved country Lebanon has become a battleground for others, and why we've lost our independence and sovereignty?
There is no salvation for us, no end to our bleeding, except through repentance, prayer, fasting, and the performance of penance.
The Lord is forgiving, merciful, and loving. He is always ready to help us cease our bleeding if we seek Him with piety, faith, and hope, as the bleeding woman did.
The Lord redeemed us through His only Son, freeing us from the yoke of the original sin, and guiding us to the path of salvation.
However, He has left us with a two choices: to follow the path that leads to the heavenly mansions He has prepared for us in His kingdom, where there is no pain, suffering, and hatred, or to stray and deviate from this path, succumbing to the ways of evil that lead to hell—a place of weeping, gnashing of teeth, eternal fire, and the undying worm. On this Sunday, let us draw lessons from the faith of the bleeding woman, strengthening our trust in God, His power, His love, and the grace of forgiveness He offers to those who earnestly seek it and repent, as expressed in Psalm 103:3, "who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases."Let us fervently pray for the salvation of our beloved country Lebanon, for the cessation of the hemorrhage that afflicts its institutions, and for its leaders to turn to the paths of faith, justice, and truth.

Hezbollah mourns more deaths of its members
Agencies/February 26, 2024
In a statement issued Monday afternoon, Hezbollah mourned the fighter Hassan Hussein Salami “Mahmoud,” born in 1974 from the town of Khirbet Selm in southern Lebanon. In another statement, the “party” mourned the fighter Ahmed Muhammad Sindian “Ahmad Ahmad,” born in 1966 from the town of Ali al-Nahri in the Bekaa. Hezbollah also mourned the fighter Hassan Ali Younis “Abu Al-Ezz,” born in 1969 from the town of Brital in the Bekaa. In addition, the “party” mourned the fighter Muhammad Ali Maslamani “Montazar,” born in 1988 from the town of Shaiteyeh in southern Lebanon.

Bombing several Israeli sites... with 60 Katyusha rockets... “Hezbollah” targets the headquarters of the Golan Division
Neda Al Watan/February 26, 2024
Hezbollah issued the following statement: “In support of our steadfast Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and in support of their brave and honorable resistance, and in response to the Zionist aggression on the vicinity of the city of Baalbek in the Bekaa and the attacks on villages and civilian homes, the Mujahideen of the Islamic Resistance targeted at 04:00: 00‌‌‌‎ From the afternoon of Monday, 02-26-2024, the headquarters of the Golan Division command in Nafah with sixty Katyusha rockets. ‏
Here is information about the operation and description of the Nafah base:
- Headquarters of the 210th Regional Division (Golan), headquarters of the 474th Regional Brigade
- Regional Brigade 474 Clinic
Oz Camp, headquarters of the 77th Armored Battalion
- Leadership level from the 209th Artillery Regiment
- Ground formations of the forces trained in the Golan camps
- A forward divisional command headquarters in emergency situations and forward command of formations operating in the Syrian direction
- Command and tactical communications station, Avik Rahav, Etax
- Front Maintenance Operator 754 of the Northern Regional Armament Unit for maintenance of armored vehicles.
In another statement, the "party" announced that it had targeted the "radar" site in Shebaa Farms with missile weapons, and confirmed that direct hits had been achieved there. Hezbollah announced in the evening that it had targeted a gathering of Israeli soldiers in the vicinity of the Al-Marj site with missiles, announcing a direct hit.

An Israeli military spokesman: We targeted a large number of Hezbollah cadres and leaders
Tel Aviv/Asharq Al-Awsat / February 26, 2024
Avichay Adraee, spokesman for the Israeli army, said that Israel raided the compounds of the air defense unit of the Lebanese Hezbollah group in Baalbek, in response to Hezbollah shooting down an Israeli drone in the airspace of Lebanon, and also targeted a large number of the party’s cadres and leaders during The past 24 hours.Adraee added in statements to the Arab World News Agency today (Monday): “Israel confirms that these raids came in response to this action by Hezbollah, and it will continue to protect Israeli sovereignty first, and will continue to work to protect the Israelis as well, in the skies and in the Lebanese airspace.” The Hezbollah group had announced that it had fired 60 Katyusha rockets at the headquarters of the Golan Division of the Israeli army, in response to the Baalbek attack earlier today. The Israeli army announced that it launched raids targeting Hezbollah facilities in southern Lebanon, amid Lebanese reports of the killing of 4 people, while the party confirmed the killing of two of its members. Adraee said: “Hezbollah is the one who entered the war against Israel in support of the killers from (Hamas) in Gaza, and it is risking Lebanon, the Lebanese, and Lebanese stability. Since October 8, it has been launching attacks on Israeli territory, and has attempted several times to target Israeli aircraft and air force aircraft operating in Lebanese airspace. He added: “These planes operate in Lebanese airspace to protect the Israelis, and to monitor sabotage cells operating from Lebanese territory to attack Israeli sovereignty.” He stressed that Israel is responding forcefully to protect its borders, and has targeted a large number of “Hezbollah saboteurs” and the party’s cadres and leaders during the last 24 hours in various areas of southern Lebanon. He explained: “Israel targeted Hezbollah’s interests, military buildings, and terrorist infrastructure in various areas of southern Lebanon, in Aita al-Shaab, and elsewhere. In recent days, raids were launched on various areas of the south, targeting Hezbollah leaders, cadres, and military interests. He continued: “We are inflicting a heavy price on this organization and stripping it of the capabilities it had gathered in southern Lebanon.” He added that the Israeli forces are first carrying out “defensive efforts” along the border with Lebanon, with the aim of preventing Hezbollah from achieving any achievements it is trying to achieve by targeting Israeli forces, citizens and towns. He added that Israeli forces are trying to “confront the attacks by intercepting missiles and targeting sabotage cells along the border.” Secondly, we attack Hezbollah, and we targeted thousands of targets belonging to the party throughout southern Lebanon, and we attacked major systems, cells, sites and warehouses in which missiles and military capabilities are stored, as well as the headquarters of Hezbollah’s military command.”

Israel claims responsibility for the assassination of Hassan Hussein Salami
Nedaa Al Watan/February 26, 2024
Israeli army spokesman Avichai Adraee wrote on his account on the “X” platform: “An IDF plane in the southern Lebanon region eliminated the so-called Hassan Hussein Salami, the official of the Hujair region in Hezbollah. Salami, who belongs to the Nasser unit in Hezbollah, led several terrorist operations.” “It was committed against IDF forces and against Israeli civilian and military sites in the north of the country.” He added: "In the recent period, he was keen to coordinate many terrorist operations, including the firing of anti-tank missiles towards the Kiryat Shmona area and the headquarters of the 769th Brigade."

A prominent Hezbollah field commander was killed by the bombing of an Israeli Attack
Al-Seyasi/February 26/2024
An Al Jazeera correspondent reported that an Israeli drone targeted the car of a prominent Hezbollah field commander in the town of Khirbet Selm in southern Lebanon, killing him and wounding another who was with him, while Hezbollah announced targeting Israeli military sites off the border, causing direct casualties. Hezbollah announced the killing of leader Wissam Tawil in the town of Khirbet Selm in southern Lebanon, after his car was targeted by an Israeli drone, and another who was with him was injured. The party said that it carried out two operations in two Israeli sites off the southern border of Lebanon, and added that it targeted the Israeli “Ruwaisat Al-Alam” site in the occupied Shebaa Farms, and the “Hadab Al-Bustan” site, confirming that it achieved direct hits. Al Jazeera's correspondent reported that an anti-tank missile was fired from southern Lebanon, and exploded in the Kiryat Shmona settlement near the Lebanese border, without causing casualties, at a time when Israel launched raids on the vicinity of the town of Aita al-Shaab, and bombed - at dawn on Monday - military sites and infrastructure. Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. For its part, the Israeli army said that Air Force planes bombed a Hezbollah military compound in the area of the village of Marvin, and attacked a missile launch pad and infrastructure in the area of the village of Aita al-Shaab, and Israeli artillery bombed the surroundings of the towns of Kafar Shuba, Khiam, and Al-Adisa, in the eastern sector of southern Lebanon. The Israeli army stated that during the past day, an Air Force drone attacked a platform from which fire was fired at positions in northern Israel, and a combat helicopter attacked an area from which an anti-tank missile was launched towards Israel.

For the first time since the start of the war... an Israeli raid targets Hezbollah in the vicinity of Baalbek
Beirut: “Asharq Al-Awsat”/February 26/2024
Today (Monday), Israel launched two air strikes targeting the vicinity of the city of Baalbek, which is Hezbollah's main stronghold in eastern Lebanon, according to what a security source told Agence France-Presse, in the first strikes in the region since the start of the escalation. The security source said that one of the raids “targeted a building belonging to a civilian institution in Hezbollah on the outskirts of the city of Baalbek,” in the second Israeli targeting outside the south, since the exchange of fire between Hezbollah and Israel began due to the impact of the war in Gaza. Two Lebanese sources, including a security source, told Reuters that the Israeli strike near Baalbek killed at least two Hezbollah members. The Israeli army spokesman for the Arab media, Avichay Adraee, said today, “The IDF launched raids deep into Lebanon targeting Hezbollah targets.” On January 2, Israel launched a strike targeting an apartment in the southern suburb of Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold, killing the deputy head of the Hamas political bureau, Saleh Al-Arouri, along with six of his companions. The strikes on Baalbek came today, shortly after Hezbollah announced that it had shot down “a large Israeli Hormuz 450 drone with a surface-to-air missile over the Iqlim al-Tuffah area,” located approximately 20 kilometers from the border.

The Lebanese front rages after the Israeli raid on Baalbek... and Hezbollah bombs the Golan with dozens of missiles
Al-Nahar”/February 26, 2024
The confrontation between Hezbollah and #Israel has begun to take an escalating and dangerous turn that warns of the “war of support” spreading into something broader. Israeli fighters carried out a raid targeting a “Hezbollah” site in the Baalbek area. This is the first time that strikes of this depth have been carried out since the July 2006 war. The targeting came in two waves, the first via a missile that struck a food storage container between the towns of Al-Alaq and Hosh Tal Safiya on the Budai road, while the second raid targeted a rented house belonging to a citizen of Al-Alaq. Muawiya. The Lebanese Army implemented a security cordon in the area and in the vicinity of the targeted place. Hezbollah mourned two of its members, namely Ahmed Muhammad Sindian “Ahmad Ahmad,” born in 1966 from the town of Ali al-Nahri in the Bekaa, and Hassan Ali Younis “Abu al-Ezz,” born in 1969 from The town of Brital in the Bekaa. While the Israeli army said that the bombing came in response to Hezbollah shooting down an Israeli drone in Lebanese airspace. Hezbollah had announced earlier today, Monday, that the “Air Defense Unit of the Islamic Resistance” shot down an Israeli “Hormuz 450” drone with a surface-to-air missile over the Iqlim al-Tuffah area. The party's response to the Baalbek raid was not delayed, as it announced the bombing of the Golan Division headquarters in Nafah with sixty Katyusha rockets. The "Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc" member, MP Hassan Fadlallah, also commented on the #Israeli bombing that targeted #Baalbek, saying that "the enemy threatened Lebanon, and we tell it that the fire of resistance is burning and will confront any attack on our country.” Fadlallah believed that “the enemy thinks that he can regain his prestige through raids on Baalbek and the villages,” but he stressed that “the resistance will be creative in finding responses to the enemy’s persistence in its aggression against villages and towns,” stressing that “the end of this war will not be achieved except with victory.” ".

Hezbollah” rejects the French card and “did not lose in order to give up”
The day of the raids... from the south to Baalbek and Berri: Tel Aviv will be bombed opposite Beirut
Neda Al Watan/February 26, 2024
Yesterday, Lebanon witnessed an escalation, the first of its kind since the 2006 war, as Israeli aircraft raided the Baalbek area, leading to the killing of two Hezbollah members and causing material losses. The security development was accompanied by the “party” shooting down an Israeli warplane. At the same time, the “party” lost field commander Hassan Salami, who was assassinated by a drone in the town of Al-Majadil, Tyre district. Amid these new field conditions, the “Ekhbariya News 4” website quoted Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nabih Berri, as saying that he informed yesterday the commander of the UNIFIL forces operating in southern Lebanon, General Aroldo Lazaro, that “if Beirut is attacked, the resistance will respond to Tel Aviv.”
How was the day of the raids yesterday from the south to Baalbek? Hezbollah announced that it had bombed the headquarters of the Golan Division in Nafah Bastin with dozens of missiles, hours after Israeli raids targeted it in eastern Lebanon. At least two raids, according to a security source, targeted a building and a warehouse belonging to the “party” in the vicinity of the city of Baalbek, which is its main stronghold in the Bekaa region.
The rocket launch came shortly after the party mourned fighters from its ranks. The Israeli army announced earlier that its fighters had targeted “sites used by Hezbollah’s air defense system,” in “response to the firing of a surface-to-air missile at a Hermes 450 drone that fell earlier” Monday, inside Lebanon. The Israeli statement was followed by the party’s announcement yesterday morning that its fighters shot down “a large Israeli Hermes 450 drone with a surface-to-air missile over the Iqlim al-Tuffah area,” located approximately 20 kilometers from the border. Commenting on the developments on the ground, Deputy Secretary-General of Hezbollah, Sheikh Naim Qassem, said: “I was caught in the Israeli media today by what was said about a dangerous event that took place in Lebanon, which is that Hezbollah shot down a drone. “This gives Israel justification for greater aggression.” He stressed that “any expansion will be accompanied by expansion, and any transgression of the borders will lead to transgressions of the borders for us.” In Israel, Defense Minister Yoav Galant said, “The residents of the north who were evacuated will not return to their cities and homes until the hostages held by Hamas are returned.” In a meeting with the families of the hostages, he wanted to reassure them that Israel was doing everything militarily and diplomatically to return about 100 living hostages and the bodies of the 30 dead hostages. Although his statement that the residents of the north would wait for the return of the hostages to return to their homes was not surprising in some respects, it was a clearer admission than usual that it would likely “take months before the Hezbollah threat is neutralized,” even if a solution is reached. To a temporary ceasefire with Hamas. In a related context, “Nidaa Al Watan” learned from diplomatic circles that “Hezbollah” rejected the French paper that the embassy in Beirut sent to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates in the caretaker government, Abdullah Bou Habib, last Wednesday, and described it as a “security arrangements paper” only. Hezbollah” which also received a copy of this paper, considered that it “is not concerned with the concessions being asked of it, and the reason is that the war did not occur, and therefore it did not lose.” The “party” asked who “will implement Resolution 1701.”

US, Israel and Lebanon do not support French paper
Naharnet/26 February 2024 
The U.S., Israel and Lebanon do not support a French proposal for a truce between Hezbollah and Israel, prominent sources said. The sources told Asharq al-Awsat newspaper, in remarks published Monday, that Israel prefers that U.S. special envoy Amos Hochstein continue his mediation. The Lebanese government also refused to discuss the French paper, the sources said. Diplomats from the United States and European countries have presented a series of proposals in hopes of producing a deal that would tamp down the border conflict. The ideas mostly hinge on a Hezbollah pullback a few kilometers from the border, a beefed-up Lebanese army presence in the border region, and negotiations over border points that Israel has been occupying since withdrawing its forces from the rest of southern Lebanon in 2000. Eventually, the plans could lead into a demarcation of the land border between Lebanon and Israel, following the maritime border deal reached in 2022. The most recent of these proposals, put forward by France, would involve Hezbollah withdrawing its forces 10 kilometers from the border, said a Lebanese government official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the negotiations.

Gallant: Gaza Deal Won’t Affect Israel’s Hezbollah Fight
Asharq Al Awsat/26 February 2024
Israeli Defense minister Yoav Gallant on Sunday said there would be no let up in Israeli action against Lebanon's Hezbollah movement, even if a ceasefire and hostage deal is secured in Gaza, AFP reported. Gallant visited the military's Northern Command in Safed, which was hit earlier this month by a militant rocket strike from southern Lebanon, killing a soldier. The Minister said he was keen to assess how Israel was combating increased Hezbollah activity from across the heavily fortified border. “f anyone thinks that when we reach a deal to release hostages in the south and the firing stops it will ease what is happening here they are wrong,” he said in a video message. Israel's aim is to ensure the Iran-backed militants do not pose a threat from border areas in southern Lebanon, he added.,If a diplomatic solution to the situation is not possible, “we will do it by force,” Gallant warned. Talks are underway towards a possible deal for Hamas to release hostages and pause the fighting in Gaza, which was sparked by the militants' attack on southern Israel on October 7. Since then, there have been near-daily cross-border exchanges of fire between Israel and Hamas's allies Hezbollah on the border with Lebanon, prompting fears of a regional escalation. On Sunday, the Israeli military said it had intercepted a “suspicious aerial target” in the Upper Galilee region of northern Israel, and rockets were fired at a number of locations. Since October 7, 10 Israeli soldiers and six civilians have been killed by hostilities in the north, according to an AFP tally.On the Lebanese side, at least 276 people have been killed, most of them Hezbollah fighters but also 44 civilians, including three journalists. In Gaza, the Hamas-run health ministry says at least 29,692 have been killed in the war between the militants and Israel.

Israel vows to target Hezbollah even if cease-fire reached in Gaza
Naharnet/26 February 2024 
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has said that Israel would increase its strikes on Hezbollah even if a ceasefire is reached in the Gaza Strip. “We are planning to increase the firepower against Hezbollah, which is unable to find replacements for the commanders we are eliminating,” Gallant said during a visit to the Israeli army’s Northern Command headquarters in Safad. Hezbollah has said that it would abide by any Gaza truce. Gallant emphasized that strikes on Hezbollah would continue even if Israel signed a hostage deal with Hamas, which would see a pause in fighting in Gaza and the release of Palestinian prisoners in return for freeing the hostages held in the Strip. “In the event of a temporary truce in Gaza, we will increase the fire in the north, and will continue until the full withdrawal of Hezbollah (from the border) and the return of the residents to their homes,” he said, referring to some 80,000 Israelis displaced by the fighting. “The goal is simple -- to push Hezbollah back to where it should be. Either by an agreement or by force,” Gallant added. Since October 8, Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging near-daily fire but strikes have been largely contained to the border area -- although Israel has on occasion launched strikes elsewhere in Lebanon, including in Beirut’s southern suburbs. At least 278 people have been killed on the Lebanese side since fighting erupted, most of them Hezbollah fighters but also including 44 civilians. On the Israeli side, 10 soldiers and six civilians have been killed according to the Israeli army.

Israel’s Air Force Strikes Deep Inside Lebanon, Killing 2 People, After Hezbollah Downs Drone
Asharq Al Awsat/26 February 2024
The Israeli military says its air force on Monday struck targets of the militant Hezbollah group “deep inside Lebanon,” where residents reported explosions near the northeastern city of Baalbek. At least two people were killed in the strikes, a Hezbollah official said. The strikes are among the deepest into Lebanon since the Israel-Hamas war began more than four months ago. They come a day after Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant vowed to step up attacks on Lebanon’s Hezbollah even if a cease-fire is reached with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Lebanese security officials said Israel’s air force carried out three airstrikes on the outskirts of the village of Buday, near Baalbek, targeting a convoy of trucks. Buday is a Hezbollah stronghold. A Hezbollah official confirmed that three strikes hit near Baalbek. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters. He said the strikes killed at least two people and that one hit a warehouse for food products that's part of Hezbollah's Sajjad Project that sells to people in its stronghold at prices lower than on the market. The Israeli army said further details would follow. The airstrikes near Baalbek came hours after Hezbollah said its fighters on Monday shot down an Israeli drone over its stronghold in a province in southern Lebanon. Another missile fired by Hezbollah toward the drone was intercepted by Israel, and landed near a synagogue in a town close to Nazareth in northern Israel. There were no injuries or damage. Hezbollah has been exchanging fire with Israeli troops along the border since the Israel-Hamas broke on Oct. 7. The strike on Baalbek, because of its location deep inside Lebanon, is the most significant one since the early January airstrike on Beirut that killed top Hamas official Saleh Arouri. Hezbollah, which has been exchanging fire with Israel throughout the war in Gaza, has said it will halt its near-daily attacks on Israel if a cease-fire is reached in Gaza. But Gallant, the Israeli defense minister, said Sunday that anyone who thinks a temporary ceasefire for Gaza will also apply to the northern front is “mistaken.” Western diplomats have brought forward a series of proposals for a cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, most of which would hinge on Hezbollah moving its forces 7-10 kilometers (4-6 miles) away from the border. This will come in addition to a beefed-up Lebanese army presence, and negotiations for Israeli forces to withdraw from disputed points along the border where Lebanon says Israel has been occupying small patches of Lebanese territory since it withdrew from the rest of country's south in 2000. Hezbollah has signaled willingness to entertain the proposals but has said there will be no deal in Lebanon before there is a ceasefire in Gaza.

Israel strikes Baalbek, killing two, after Hezbollah downs drone
Agence France Presse/26 February 2024
Israeli strikes near the Hezbollah-dominated city of Baalbek killed two group members Monday, two security sources told AFP, in the first strikes on Lebanon's east since clashes began after the Gaza war. "Two Hezbollah members were killed in the Israeli strikes near Baalbek," a security official told AFP, with another security source also confirming the toll. Israeli airstrikes targeted Monday Baalbek's outskirts after Hezbollah shot down an Israeli unmanned drone in southern Lebanon, nearly five months into near-daily cross-border clashes sparked by the Gaza war.
Lebanese security officials said Israel’s air force carried out three airstrikes on the outskirts of the village of Bouday, near Baalbek, targeting a convoy of trucks. Bouday is a Hezbollah stronghold in the Bekaa valley bordering Syria.
A Hezbollah official confirmed that three strikes hit near Baalbek. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters. He said the strikes killed at least two people and that one hit a warehouse for food products that's part of Hezbollah's Sajjad Project that sells to people in its stronghold at prices lower than on the market. A second Israeli strike hit "a building housing a Hezbollah civilian institution" in a Baalbek suburb, a security source told AFP, requesting anonymity because they are not allowed to speak to the press.
The strikes are among the deepest into Lebanon and the first strikes in east Lebanon since the Israel-Hamas war began more than four months ago. They come a day after Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant vowed to step up attacks on Lebanon’s Hezbollah even if a cease-fire is reached with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Because of its location deep inside Lebanon, the strike on Baalbek is the most significant one since the early January airstrike on Beirut's southern suburb that killed top Hamas official Saleh Arouri. The Israeli army said it struck "Hezbollah targets deep in Lebanon" after it confirmed one of its drones had been downed in Lebanon.
It claimed the sites in Baalbek are used by Hezbollah for its aerial defense system, adding that the strikes came "in response to the launch of a surface-to-air missile" that downed the drone. A missile "was fired toward an Israeli Air Force UAV operating in Lebanon.... A short while after, an additional missile launch toward the UAV was identified and the UAV fell inside Lebanese territory," Israel's army said. Hezbollah had earlier said in a statement that its air defense unit had shot down "a large Israeli Hermes 450 drone with a surface-to-air missile" in the Iqlim al-Tuffah region. The Hermes 450 is a medium size unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) supplying real time intelligence data to Israeli forces. Hezbollah said its "fighters' eyes will remain vigilant and will keep shooting down enemy aircraft and preventing them from achieving their aggressive goals". Another missile fired by Hezbollah toward the drone was intercepted by Israel, and landed near a synagogue in a town close to Nazareth in northern Israel. There were no injuries or damage. Since October 8, Hezbollah and its arch-foe Israel have been exchanging fire but strikes have been largely contained to the border area -- although Israel has struck elsewhere in Lebanon, including in Beirut's southern suburb. Since October, at least 280 people have been killed on the Lebanese side, most of them Hezbollah fighters but also including 44 civilians, according to an AFP tally. On the Israeli side, 10 soldiers and six civilians have been killed, according to the Israeli army. The clashes have displaced tens of thousands of civilians on both sides of the border.

Israeli strike on Tyre's Majadel kills at least one person
Associated Press/26 February 2024
An Israeli airstrike targeted Monday a car in the Tyre district town of Majadel, killing at least one person, local rescuers said, without providing further details. Israeli airstrikes had targeted earlier on Monday other areas deep inside Lebanon including Bouday near the northeastern city of Baalbek and Iqlim al-Tuffah, after Hezbollah shot down a "large" Israeli drone there. At least two other people were killed in the strikes on Bouday in Baalbek, rising Monday's death toll to at least three. An Israeli airstrike later targeted the al-Jarmaq area in Iqlim al-Tuffah. An Israeli was reportedly injured in Shtula as Hezbollah targeted the Biranit Barracks, the Shtula settlement, and a group of soldiers in the Hadb Yarin post, while Israeli artillery shelled the outskirts of Aita al-Shaab and al-Jebbayn.Hezbollah had targeted an Israeli force in the Baghdadi post overnight, and six posts on Sunday. The group, which has been exchanging fire with Israel throughout the war in Gaza, has said it will halt its near-daily attacks on Israel if a cease-fire is reached in Gaza. But Gallant, the Israeli defense minister, said Sunday that anyone who thinks a temporary cease-fire for Gaza will also apply to the northern front is “mistaken.”Western diplomats have brought forward a series of proposals for a cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, most of which would hinge on Hezbollah moving its forces 7-10 kilometers away from the border. This will come in addition to a beefed-up Lebanese army presence, and negotiations for Israeli forces to withdraw from disputed points along the border where Lebanon says Israel has been occupying small patches of Lebanese territory since it withdrew from the rest of country's south in 2000. Hezbollah has signaled willingness to entertain the proposals but has said there will be no deal in Lebanon before there is a cease-fire in Gaza.

Moderation bloc begins presidential initiative amid 'green light' from Berri
Naharnet/26 February 2024 
The National Moderation parliamentary bloc has launched an initiative aimed at breaking Lebanon’s presidential vote deadlock, amid a “green light” from Speaker Nabih Berri, the Nidaa al-Watan newspaper reported on Monday. Berri has asked the Moderation bloc not to use the phrase “dialogue session” so that it does not clash with his initiative, the daily said.“The bloc’s effort is aimed at agreeing on one or several names and going to an open-ended session with successive rounds that would enjoy the constitutional quorum, which is two thirds of parliament’s members,” Nidaa al-Watan added.

Bou Habib: Lebanon to respond next week to French proposal
Naharnet/26 February 2024 
Lebanon will respond next week to a French proposal for halting the Israel-Hezbollah cross-border clashes, caretaker Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib said on Monday. “The discussions tackled the response to the French proposal and we are preparing the letter on which we have agreed and the points that will be in it. God willing, the French will have the response next week,” Bou Habib added, after meeting caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati at the Grand Serail. “Our stance is known and we want a full and comprehensive implementation of Resolution 1701 that would include Shebaa (Farms) and Kfarshouba (Hills),” Bou Habib said. He added: “We welcome the French role and the French have submitted these ideas because the care about Lebanon and Lebanon’s safety.”France’s proposal would involve Hezbollah withdrawing its forces 10 kilometers from the border, a Lebanese government official told The Associated Press. Lebanon is still studying the proposal, and Hezbollah officials have indicated they are willing to consider it, but both government and Hezbollah officials have said there would be no agreement on the border before there is a cease-fire in Gaza. Since October 8, Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged near-daily fire. At least 280 people have been killed on the Lebanese side since fighting erupted, most of them Hezbollah fighters but also including 44 civilians. On the Israeli side, 10 soldiers and six civilians have been killed according to the Israeli army. The fighting has also displaced tens of thousands of residents on both sides of the border and Israel has repeatedly warned that it might use bigger force against Hezbollah to secure its residents' return.

Biden’s Hezbollah Plan Is a Win-Win—for the Terrorists...Israel faces a harsh reality in an election year for the United States.
Richard Goldberg/The Dispatch/February 26/2024
The Biden administration is quietly pushing Israel into a phony political agreement with Lebanon that would deliver a strategic victory to Iran and its chief terror proxy, Hezbollah, while creating a false sense of security for the residents of northern Israel. With an American president unwilling to back the Jewish state in a war against a threat 10 times greater than Hamas, Jerusalem may yet agree to a farcical arrangement that puts lipstick on an unsustainable status quo. But no one should be confused by an election year ploy to buy a few months of quiet on Israel’s northern border. A major war is coming—it’s only a question of when.
Hezbollah is a U.S.-designated foreign terrorist organization for good reasons, from its 1983 bombing of the U.S. embassy and Marine barracks in Beirut that killed 250 to the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires that killed 85. And in fact it is now in America’s backyard, partnering with Mexican drug cartels to finance its operations and penetrate the U.S. homeland.
But its base of operations and popular support remains the Shiite-majority areas of southern Lebanon, where Iran has spent the last 17 years building up the group’s military capability to deter Israel from attacking Tehran’s nuclear program and preparing for an October 7 style invasion. Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, advises Iran’s supreme leader and coordinates terror attacks from a bunker in Beirut.
In briefings earlier this month, multiple Israeli sources assessed the group’s arsenal includes 160,000 mortars with ranges up to 10 kilometers, 65,000 short-range rockets with ranges up to 80 kilometers, 10,000 medium- and longer-range rockets with ranges from 80 to more than 200 kilometers. It also possesses thousands of unmanned aerial vehicles, hundreds of precision guided munitions (PGMs), short-range ballistic missiles, anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs), surface to air missiles, and more. Some estimate Hezbollah’s PGM arsenal to be in the thousands, including an unknown number of Iran’s Fateh-110 ballistic missiles with a range of 300 kilometers.
Hezbollah therefore poses a strategic threat to Israel that extends well beyond a few dozen communities on the border of Lebanon. Major population centers throughout Israel are in the crosshairs, along with critical infrastructure and military installations.
Hezbollah has launched rocket, drone and ATGM attacks across the border almost every day since October 7. Israel is losing soldiers and civilians in these strikes—and its military is striking back harder and deeper into Lebanon every week. Multiple sources confirm that roughly 60 percent of all Hezbollah fighters killed by the Israeli military since October lived in the villages that border Israel. Their families are embedded in southern Lebanon—as are most of their missile capabilities. It was Hezbollah, of course, that taught Hamas how to use human shields by embedding its weapons in civilian population centers.
Israel and Hezbollah last went to war in 2006. That summer, Hezbollah crossed the border, killed three Israeli soldiers, and kidnapped two others. Israel responded with furious airstrikes, a naval blockade, and eventually a ground operation that met stiff resistance and mixed results. A U.N.-endorsed ceasefire too effect after 34 days of war, accompanied by a Security Council Resolution that ordered the U.N. Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL) to assist the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) in disarming Hezbollah in southern Lebanon—from the Israeli border up to the Litani River, some 30 kilometers away.
Despite billions of dollars in U.S. taxpayer support over the last 17 years, the LAF made no requests to UNIFIL, which then never disarmed Hezbollah. Instead, Iran accelerated delivering weapons to the terrorist group—building up its forces to a threat level that dwarfs the one Israel faced in 2006. The politics of Lebanon shifted over time as well, with Hezbollah taking effective control of the Lebanese government and exerting its influence (and sometimes even control) over the LAF and its U.S.-funded systems.
Which brings us back to the present day. October 7 forced Israeli leaders to disabuse themselves of past delusions that the fanatical Iran-backed enemies on its borders can ever truly be deterred. The lies Israelis told themselves for years— that Hamas was afraid of provoking a full-scale war, that Hamas had to balance its terror objectives with the responsibility of governing in Gaza—have been exposed. So, too, have the lies many still tell themselves that Nasrallah fears the destruction of Lebanon and a popular backlash from the Lebanese people—that Hezbollah can be deterred, or at the very least, contained.
In the face of this strategic awakening and realignment, alongside the daily attacks from southern Lebanon, Israel’s war Cabinet has signaled it will use overwhelming military force to dismantle Hezbollah’s presence south of the Litani River. It’s determined to finally achieve what it could not in 2006 and willing to pay a much higher cost in the process. The so-called Dahiya Doctrine established during that conflict—detailing the IDF’s willingness to deliver crushing blows to civilian infrastructure in southern Lebanon to increase local pressure on Hezbollah—remains in effect.
Such a conflict would likely engulf the Iran-aligned presence in Syria and increase attacks against Israel from Tehran-backed militias in Iraq. Then there is the possibility of a simultaneous Israeli attack inside Iran. It would disrupt the brain of the regional terror octopus and, perhaps, set back its most dangerous nuclear and missile programs while degrading the regime’s primary deterrent, Hezbollah. While Jerusalem would plan for a result that guarantees the Jewish state’s security for another 75 years, the conflict would likely escalate for a while before it de-escalated. And it would require solid political support and unwavering military assistance from the United States.
Such escalation, however, is not welcomed by the White House. The Democratic Party’s base got tired of Israelis defending themselves within a couple of weeks of the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. Those calling for a ceasefire in Gaza before Hamas is destroyed have zero tolerance for an even larger battle in southern Lebanon. President Biden’s team wants to bring quiet to the region as soon as possible, already pressuring Israel to wind down operations in Gaza and laying the groundwork for a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.
White House senior adviser Amos Hochstein, who helped broker a maritime border agreement between Israel and Lebanon in 2022, is shuttling almost weekly between Washington, Beirut, and Jerusalem to negotiate another deal. Given its historical equities in Lebanon, the French government is also heavily involved. The U.S.-French goal: Deliver just enough concessions from Hezbollah to enable Israel to persuade 100,000 Israelis currently evacuated from the country’s northern border to return to their homes, and head off an Israeli invasion of southern Lebanon.
But this situation is nothing like the one Hochstein encountered two years ago. At the time, Hezbollah threatened to attack Israeli gas platforms in the eastern Mediterranean unless Israel conceded part of its maritime border—and $6 billion in gas profits over 15 years—to Lebanon. With the private sector unwilling to move forward with investment until the threat abated, then-Prime Minister Yair Lapid agreed, a move many in Israel view in hindsight as emboldening Nasrallah and the rest of the Iran terror axis.
Hezbollah gave up nothing in the deal. It didn’t have to withdraw from territory, dismantle infrastructure, or destroy weapons. It just had to hold its fire. The Biden administration’s current proposed deal would require Hezbollah—and by extension Iran—to cede strategic advantages. And that’s something Israel’s top Nasrallah watchers assess has a near-zero possibility.
None of this is to suggest that Nasrallah is rushing to a full-scale war. Indeed, he held his fire after October 7, a moment of unprecedented weakness for Israel when a full-scale attack could have landed an unimaginable blow. Despite multiple escalations by Israel—including a targeted strike against a Hamas leader in a Hezbollah compound in Beirut, and attacks against high-value Hezbollah personnel and facilities—Nasrallah has not responded in a manner that could give Israel international support for an invasion. His objective appears to be twofold: Keep Israel distracted and afraid, forced to stretch itself to defend against the potential threat, while keeping most of his capabilities intact to be ready for the day when Iran really needs them.
To that end, Nasrallah might be persuaded to agree to certain window-dressing concessions as long as he can spin the deal as a win for Lebanon. The threat from Hezbollah’s “Radwan” special forces—a group that’s been training for years to execute a complex invasion of northern Israel like the one Hamas perpetrated on Gaza’s border communities—forced Israel to evacuate all communities close to the Lebanese border. Many of these families might be willing to brave occasional rocket attacks, as they have for decades, but none will return to a border crawling with Radwan terrorists.
In the weeks after October 7, the IDF targeted Radwan leaders, prompting Hezbollah to pull these high-value assets farther back from Israel’s border. Thus, a deal that requires these fighters to stay 10 kilometers from Israel’s border and removes their outposts south of that line would be a meager concession for Nasrallah. But alongside an historic surge of IDF border patrols, it could offer Israel enough of a fig leaf to persuade evacuated communities to return home.
Unsurprisingly, that is exactly the deal on the table from the United States and France. With reports that sweeteners might include a massive economic bailout for Lebanon and Israeli negotiation over its disputed land border with it, too. Who would be responsible for keeping the peace? The LAF and UNIFIL—the same pair that has spent 17 years helping Hezbollah become the threat it is today. That would guarantee that Hezbollah’s commitments will never be verified or enforced.
It’s a win-win for Nasrallah. Many of his fighters live and keep their missiles hidden within 10 kilometers of Israel’s border. They will blend into the civilian population without any mechanism to force their departure. And even if the U.S. or France could verify a movement of weapons to the north, Nasrallah’s arsenal is more than capable of terrorizing Israeli cities from 10 kilometers away. Meanwhile, a bailout of Lebanon will increase Hezbollah’s popularity—demonstrating its tactics against Israel work.
Israel faces a harsh reality in which an American president is saying ‘No.’ President Biden will not come to Israel’s aid in the U.N. Security Council or from the White House podium. He will not approve requests for emergency resupply of critical munitions Israel will need in a war with Hezbollah. Biden felt compelled to support Israel in a war against Hamas after seeing the horror of October 7, but he does not want conflict to continue in the Middle East deep into his re-election. These truths compel the Israeli government to secure whatever agreement can both buy time until Jerusalem is independently prepared for a full-scale war and give its citizens the illusion of security on the northern border.
Whatever the Hochstein process delivers, it will not deliver Israelis the security they need, along the border or in major cities in the north and central regions. Nor will it in any way degrade the robust capabilities of a terrorist group that threatens America as much as Israel. The longer the Hezbollah can gets kicked down the road, the bloodier and costlier the eventual day of reckoning will be.
*Richard Goldberg is a senior advisor at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. He served on the US National Security Council and as a senior aide in both the US House and Senate.

Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on February 26-27/2024
Iran has further increased its total stockpile of uranium, UN nuclear watchdog report says
VIENNA (AP)/February 26, 2024
Iran has further increased its total stockpile of uranium, according to a report by the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog seen by The Associated Press on Monday, and continues to bar several of the most seasoned inspectors from monitoring its nuclear program. The International Atomic Energy Agency also said in a second confidential report, distributed to member states, that Tehran made no progress in explaining the presence of manmade uranium particles found at two locations. The IAEA estimated in its quarterly report that as of Feb. 10, Iran’s total enriched uranium stockpile was at 5,525.5 kilograms (about 12,182 pounds), an increase of 1,038.7 kilograms (2,289 pounds) since the last quarterly report in November 2023. It also said that according to its assessment, Iran has an estimated 121.5 kilograms (267.8 pounds) of uranium enriched up to 60% purity, which represents a decrease of 6.8 kilograms (14.9 pounds) since the last report in November 2023. The decrease is the result of Iran having diluted some of its 60% enriched uranium in recent weeks with lower-grade material. According to the IAEA’s definition, around 42 kilograms (92.5 pounds) of uranium enriched to 60% is the amount at which creating one atomic weapon is theoretically possible. The 60% purity is just a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%. Between June and November last year, Iran slowed down the enrichment to 3 kilograms (6.6 pounds) per month, but then increased the rate again to 9 kilograms (19.8 pounds) at the end of the year, the IAEA reported. Under the original nuclear deal with world powers in 2015, Iran was allowed to enrich uranium only up to 3.67% purity, maintain a stockpile of uranium of 300 kilograms (661 pounds), and use only very basic IR-1 centrifuges, machines that spin uranium gas at high speed for enrichment purposes, in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions. U.N. inspectors were tasked with monitoring the program.
In 2018, then-President Donald Trump unilaterally pulled the U.S. out of the accord, saying he would negotiate a stronger deal, but that didn’t happen. Iran began breaking the terms of the deal a year later. U.S. President Joe Biden said he was willing to re-enter a nuclear deal with Iran, but formal talks to try to find a roadmap to restart the deal collapsed in August 2022. In the meantime, global political circumstances have changed and tensions in the Middle East have increased significantly, making nuclear diplomacy with Iran more complicated. Iran has long denied ever seeking nuclear weapons and continues to insist that its nuclear program is entirely for peaceful purposes, such as for energy or medicine. But the IAEA’s director-general warned last year that Tehran has enough enriched uranium for “several” nuclear bombs if it chose to build them. Iran would likely still need months to build a nuclear weapon, non-proliferation experts say. In the second report, the IAEA said Iran's government has not responded to the nuclear watchdog's request about the origin and current location of manmade uranium particles found at two locations that Tehran has failed to declare as potential nuclear sites, named Varamin and Turquzabad. The IAEA has accused Iran of stonewalling such an investigation over the past five years. However, Tehran made some progress by providing “a possible explanation” for the undeclared uranium particles for another location called Marivan in 2023. Western officials have suggested the so-called safeguards probe of the undeclared sites could confirm longstanding suspicions that Iran had a nuclear weapons program up until 2003. The report also said there was no progress thus far in reinstalling more monitoring equipment, including cameras, in June 2022. The IAEA stated their inspectors were allowed to “service the cameras at the workshops in Esfahan, but without providing access to the data recorded by those cameras.”Since June 2022, the only recorded data is that of the cameras at the centrifuge workshop in Isfahan in May 2023 — although Iran has not provided the IAEA with access to this data. Iran responded to criticism by the U.S., Britain, France and Germany on those issues by barring several of the IAEA’s most experienced inspectors from monitoring its nuclear program in September 2023. In its current report, the IAEA said Tehran has not reconsidered its position and the watchdog’s head Rafael Grossi “deeply regrets” this decision. “The Director General continues to strongly condemn Iran’s sudden withdrawal of the designations of several experienced agency inspectors," it said. The report also said Iran’s nuclear chief Mohammad Eslami in late October 2023 reiterated that his country "was within its rights to de-designate the Agency inspectors.”The 35-member IAEA Board of Governors had previously censured Iran for failing to cooperate fully with the agency. It is not yet clear whether the board, which is meeting all of next week in Vienna, will do so again. The confidential reports come amid heightened tensions between the U.S. and Iran. The White House promised to unveil new sanctions against Iran in the coming days in retaliation for its arms sales that it accused of bolstering Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and threatening a “swift” and “severe” response if Tehran moves forward with selling ballistic missiles to Moscow. The U.S. and Britain are also fighting increased attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels against cargo ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

Netanyahu Says Will Conduct Operation in Rafah Even if Hostage Deal is Reached
Asharq Al Awsat/26 February 2024
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday an Israeli military operation into Gaza’s Rafah would hand Israel “total victory” over Hamas within the time span of just a few weeks.“If we have a (ceasefire) deal, it will be delayed somewhat, but it will happen,” he told CBS. “If we don’t have a deal, we’ll do it anyway. It has to be done because total victory is our goal and total victory is within reach—not months away, weeks away, once we begin the operation,” the PM added. Netanyahu said if Hamas goes down from its “delusional claims and bring them down to earth, then we'll have the progress that we all want.”The PM’s comments came while state-linked Egyptian media reported Sunday that negotiations for a temporary ceasefire in Gaza have resumed in Doha between “experts from Egypt, Qatar, the United States and Israel” as well as Hamas representatives.Lately, an Israeli delegation led by Mossad chief David Barnea was in Paris discussing possibilities of a deal to ensure a fresh ceasefire and the release of captives held in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. International pressure for a ceasefire has mounted in recent weeks, as the death toll from Israel's military offensive on the Palestinian territory nears 30,000, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry.Israel has pledged not to stop its campaign in Gaza until Hamas is destroyed. On Sunday, the Israeli war on Gaza reached its 142nd consecutive day while the humanitarian crisis is quickly worsening. The UN World Food Program (WFP) highlighted that a quarter of Gazans (576,600 people) have exhausted their food supplies and coping capacities. It said 90 percent of children under the age of 2 face severe food poverty. And while all areas in the Gaza Strip suffer from a catastrophic humanitarian crisis, residents in the north endure the most. Around 800,000 Palestinians in the northern Gaza Strip who are grappling with hunger have resorted to grinding animal feed to make bread due to the prolonged scarcity of wheat flour amid Israel's blockade of humanitarian aid. Raed Nims, the spokesperson for the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said reports issued by the Health Ministry and government authorities documented the death of children and elderly people due to hunger. He said the Israeli army is preventing the delivery of aid to the North and Gaza city. Nims told the Arab World Press that an average of 80 aid trucks entered the Strip following the ceasefire. “We demanded that more trucks be delivered due to the deteriorating situation. However, the number was brought down and less aid trucks are currently delivered to the area.”

Israeli military proposes 'plan for evacuating' Gaza civilians
Agence France Presse
Israel's military proposed a plan for evacuating civilians from "areas of fighting" in Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office announced Monday, after he said a ground invasion of the Palestinian territory's southern city Rafah was necessary.
Foreign governments and aid organizations have repeatedly expressed fears that an invasion of Rafah would inflict mass civilian casualties. More than 1.4 million Palestinians -- most of them displaced from elsewhere -- have converged on the last Gazan city untouched by Israel's ground troops. It is also the entry point for desperately needed aid, brought in via neighbouring Egypt. Israel's military "presented the War Cabinet with a plan for evacuating the population from areas of fighting in the Gaza Strip, and with the upcoming operational plan", a statement in Hebrew from Netayahu's office said Monday. The statement did not give any details about how or where the civilians would be moved. The announcement comes after Egyptian, Qatari and U.S. "experts" met in Doha for talks also attended by Israeli and Hamas representatives, state-linked Egyptian media reported, the latest effort to secure a truce before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Israel's ally the United States said ongoing mediation efforts produced "an understanding" towards a ceasefire and hostage release, while a Hamas source said the group insisted on the withdrawal of Israeli forces. But Netanyahu -- who has dismissed the withdrawal demand as "delusional" -- said a ground invasion of Rafah would put Israel within weeks of "total victory" over Hamas, whose October 7 attack triggered the war. "If we have a (truce) deal, it will be delayed somewhat, but it will happen," he said of the ground invasion in an interview with CBS Sunday. "It has to be done because total victory is our goal and total victory is within reach -- not months away, weeks away, once we begin the operation."Amid a spiralling humanitarian crisis, the main U.N. aid agency for Palestinians urged political action to avert famine in Gaza.
Dire food shortages in northern Gaza are "a man-made disaster" that can be mitigated, said Philippe Lazzarini, head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA."Famine can still be avoided through genuine political will to grant access and protection to meaningful assistance."The UN has said it faces restrictions, particularly on aid deliveries to northern Gaza.
'No aid'
Nearly five months into the war, desperate families in Gaza's north have been forced to scavenge for something to eat. "We have no food or drink for ourselves or our children," Omar al-Kahlout told AFP, as he waited near Gaza City for aid trucks to arrive."We are trapped in the north and there is no aid reaching us -- the situation is extremely difficult." Hundreds of Palestinians headed south whichever way they could, walking down garbage-strewn roads between the blackened shells of bombed-out buildings, said an AFP correspondent. Israeli forces have continued striking targets across the Palestinian territory, with the Hamas-run health ministry saying early Monday that 92 people were killed overnight. Israel's military campaign has killed at least 29,692 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry. The war broke out after Hamas's unprecedented attack, which killed about 1,160 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official figures.
'Expanding the conflict'
Militants also took about 250 Israeli and foreign hostages, 130 of whom remain in Gaza, including 31 presumed dead, according to Israel. Israel's army confirmed Sunday the death of soldier Oz Daniel, 19, whose "body is still held captive", according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which said he was killed on the day of Hamas's attack. Mediators have voiced hope that a temporary truce and a hostage-prisoner exchange can be secured before the start of Ramadan on March 10 or 11, depending on the lunar calendar. Jordan's King Abdullah II warned fighting during the holy month "will increase the threat of expanding the conflict", according to a royal statement. Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, whose country hosts Hamas leaders and had helped broker a one-week truce in November, is due in Paris this week, the French presidency said. Media reports suggest the warring parties are weighing a six-week halt to fighting and the initial exchange of dozens of female, underage and ill hostages for several hundred Palestinian detainees held by Israel.
Hezbollah threat -
Across from overcrowded Rafah, neighbouring Egypt has kept its border closed, saying it will not help facilitate any operation to push Palestinians out of Gaza. But satellite images show it has built a walled enclosure next to Gaza, in what is feared to be an effort to brace for the possible arrival of large numbers of refugees.Inside Israel, pressure has grown on Netanyahu from families of hostages demanding swifter action, and resurgent anti-government protests. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said there would be no let-up in action against Hamas's powerful Lebanese ally Hezbollah, whose militants have traded near-daily fire with Israeli forces since early October. "If anyone thinks that when we reach a deal (with Hamas)... it will ease what is happening here -- they are wrong," he said.

Arab States, Türkiye Ask World Court to Declare Israel’s Occupation Illegal
Asharq Al Awsat/26 February 2024
Arab states urged international judges on Monday to rule the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories illegal and Türkiye described the occupation as "the real obstacle to peace" on the final day of hearings in a case examining its legal status. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has been hearing arguments from more than 50 states following a request by the UN General Assembly in 2022 to issue a non-binding opinion on the legal consequences of the Israeli occupation. On the sixth and last day of hearings, Türkiye’s Deputy Foreign Minister Ahmet Yildiz told judges the occupation was the root cause of conflict in the region. Yildiz also addressed the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas in Israel, which killed 1,200 people, and Israel's military response that has since killed over 29,000 Palestinians. "The unfolding situation after October 7 proves once again that, without addressing the root cause of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, there can be no peace in the region," he said, describing the occupation of Palestinian territories as "the real obstacle to peace" and urging the judges to declare it illegal. Israel, which is not taking part in the hearings, has said the court's involvement could be harmful to achieving a negotiated settlement to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, calling the questions posed to the court prejudiced. The Arab League's secretary general Ahmed Aboul Gheit described the occupation "an affront to international justice" in a statement read out by a representative. It called upon the ICJ, also known as the World Court, to "confirm the illegality of this occupation and unambiguously rule on the legal consequences for all parties, especially those who turn a blind eye, facilitate, assist, or participate in any way in perpetuating this illegal situation".Last week, Palestinian representatives asked the judges to declare Israel's occupation of their territory illegal and said its opinion could help reach a two-state solution to decades of Israeli-Palestinian conflict that has now devastated Gaza. The judges are expected to take roughly six months to issue an opinion on the request.

Israeli Military Proposes ‘Plan for Evacuating’ Gaza Civilians
Asharq Al Awsat/26 February 2024
Israel's military proposed a plan for evacuating civilians from "areas of fighting" in Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office announced Monday, after he said a ground invasion of the Palestinian territory's southern city Rafah was necessary.
Foreign governments and aid organizations have repeatedly expressed fears that an invasion of Rafah would inflict mass civilian casualties. More than 1.4 million Palestinians -- most of them displaced from elsewhere -- have converged on the last Gazan city untouched by Israel's ground troops. It is also the entry point for desperately needed aid, brought in via neighboring Egypt. Israel's military "presented the War Cabinet with a plan for evacuating the population from areas of fighting in the Gaza Strip, and with the upcoming operational plan", a statement in Hebrew from Netanyahu's office said Monday. The statement did not give any details about how or where the civilians would be moved. The announcement comes after Egyptian, Qatari and US "experts" met in Doha for talks also attended by Israeli and Hamas representatives, state-linked Egyptian media reported, the latest effort to secure a truce before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Israel's ally the United States said ongoing mediation efforts produced "an understanding" towards a ceasefire and hostage release, while a Hamas source said the group insisted on the withdrawal of Israeli forces. But Netanyahu -- who has dismissed the withdrawal demand as "delusional" -- said a ground invasion of Rafah would put Israel within weeks of "total victory" over Hamas, whose October 7 attack triggered the war. "If we have a (truce) deal, it will be delayed somewhat, but it will happen," he said of the ground invasion in an interview with CBS Sunday.
"It has to be done because total victory is our goal and total victory is within reach -- not months away, weeks away, once we begin the operation."Amid a spiraling humanitarian crisis, the main UN aid agency for Palestinians urged political action to avert famine in Gaza. Dire food shortages in northern Gaza are "a man-made disaster" that can be mitigated, said Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA. "Famine can still be avoided through genuine political will to grant access and protection to meaningful assistance." The UN has said it faces restrictions, particularly on aid deliveries to northern Gaza.
'No aid'
Nearly five months into the war, desperate families in Gaza's north have been forced to scavenge for something to eat. "We have no food or drink for ourselves or our children," Omar al-Kahlout told AFP, as he waited near Gaza City for aid trucks to arrive. "We are trapped in the north and there is no aid reaching us -- the situation is extremely difficult."Hundreds of Palestinians headed south whichever way they could, walking down garbage-strewn roads between the blackened shells of bombed-out buildings, said an AFP correspondent. Israeli forces have continued striking targets across the Palestinian territory, with the Hamas-run health ministry saying early Monday that 92 people were killed overnight. Israel's military campaign has killed at least 29,692 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry. The war broke out after Hamas's unprecedented attack, which killed about 1,160 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official figures.
'Expanding the conflict'
Militants also took about 250 Israeli and foreign hostages, 130 of whom remain in Gaza, including 31 presumed dead, according to Israel. Israel's army confirmed Sunday the death of soldier Oz Daniel, 19, whose "body is still held captive", according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which said he was killed on the day of Hamas's attack. Mediators have voiced hope that a temporary truce and a hostage-prisoner exchange can be secured before the start of Ramadan on March 10 or 11, depending on the lunar calendar. Jordan's King Abdullah II warned fighting during the holy month "will increase the threat of expanding the conflict", according to a royal statement. Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, whose country hosts Hamas leaders and had helped broker a one-week truce in November, is due in Paris this week, the French presidency said. Media reports suggest the warring parties are weighing a six-week halt to fighting and the initial exchange of dozens of females, underage and ill hostages for several hundred Palestinian detainees held by Israel.
Hezbollah threat
Inside Israel, pressure has grown on Netanyahu from families of hostages demanding swifter action, and resurgent anti-government protests. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said there would be no let-up in action against Hamas's Lebanese ally Hezbollah, whose militants have traded near-daily fire with Israeli forces since early October. Both Hamas and Hezbollah are backed by Israel's enemy Iran.
"If anyone thinks that when we reach a deal (with Hamas)... it will ease what is happening here -- they are wrong," he said.

Human Rights Watch Accuses Israel of Blocking Aid to Gaza in Violation of UN Court Order
Asharq Al Awsat/26 February 2024
Israel has failed to comply with an order by the United Nations' top court to provide urgently needed aid to desperate people in the Gaza Strip, Human Rights Watch said Monday, a month after a landmark ruling in The Hague ordered Israel to moderate its war. In a preliminary response to a South African petition accusing Israel of genocide, the UN’s top court ordered Israel to do all it can to prevent death, destruction and any acts of genocide in Gaza. It stopped short of ordering an end to its military offensive that has triggered a humanitarian catastrophe in the tiny Palestinian enclave. Israel vehemently denies the charges against it, saying it is fighting a war in self-defense. One month later and nearly five months into the war, preparations are underway for Israel to expand its ground operation into Rafah, Gaza’s southernmost town along the border with Egypt, where 1.4 million Palestinians have flooded into in search of safety. Early Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the army had presented to the War Cabinet its operational plan for Rafah as well as plans to evacuate civilians from the battle zones. It gave no further details. The situation in Rafah, where dense tent camps have sprouted to house the displaced, has sparked global concern and Israel’s allies have warned that it must protect civilians in its battle against Hamas.Also Monday, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh said he was submitting his government's resignation. The move, which still must be accepted by President Mahmoud Abbas, could open the door to US-backed reforms in the Palestinian Authority, which the US wants to rule postwar Gaza but in a revitalized shape. In its ruling last month, the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to follow six provisional measures, including taking “immediate and effective measures to enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance to address the adverse conditions of life faced by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.”
Under the orders, Israel also must submit a report on what it is doing to adhere to the measures within a month. While Monday marked a month since the court’s orders were issued, it was not immediately clear whether Israel had handed in such a report. The Israeli Foreign Ministry had no immediate comment.
Human Rights Watch said Israel was not adhering to the court’s order on aid provision, citing a 30% drop in the daily average number of aid trucks entering Gaza in the weeks following the court’s ruling. It said Israel was not adequately facilitating fuel deliveries to hard-hit northern Gaza and blamed Israel for blocking aid from reaching the north, where the World Food Program said last week it was forced to suspend aid deliveries because of increasing chaos in the isolated part of the territory.
“The Israeli government has simply ignored the court’s ruling, and in some ways even intensified its repression, including further blocking lifesaving aid,” said Omar Shakir, Israel and Palestine director at Human Rights Watch. Israel denies it is restricting the entry of aid and has instead blamed humanitarian organizations operating inside Gaza, saying hundreds of trucks filled with aid sit idle on the Palestinian side of the main crossing. The UN says it can’t always reach the trucks at the crossing because it is at times too dangerous.
Netanyahu’s office also said Monday the War Cabinet had approved a plan to deliver humanitarian aid safely into Gaza in a way that would “prevent the cases of looting.” It did not disclose further details. The war, launched after Hamas-led militants rampaged across southern Israel, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking roughly 250 people hostage, has unleashed unimaginable devastation in Gaza. Nearly 30,000 people have been killed in Gaza, two thirds of them women and children, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza which does not distinguish in its count between fighters and noncombatants. Israel says it has killed 10,000 militants, without providing evidence. Fighting has flattened large swaths of Gaza's urban landscape, displacing about 80% of the territory’s 2.3 million people who have crammed into increasingly smaller spaces looking for elusive safety. The crisis has pushed a quarter of the population toward starvation and raised fears of imminent famine, especially in the northern part of Gaza, which was the first focus of Israel’s ground invasion and where starving residents have been forced to eat animal fodder and search for food in demolished buildings. “We have to feed the children. They keep screaming they want food. We cannot find food. We don’t know what to do,” said market vendor Um Ayad in northern Jabaliya, who showed off a leafy weed that people pick from the harsh, dry soil and eat. Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner general of the UN agency for Palestinians, said it has not been able to deliver food to northern Gaza since Jan. 23, adding on X, formerly Twitter, that “our calls to send food aid have been denied.”Israel said that 245 trucks of aid entered Gaza on Sunday, less than half the amount that entered daily before the war. But Human Rights Watch, citing UN figures, said that between Jan. 27 and Feb. 21, the daily average of trucks entering stood at 93, compared to 147 trucks a day in the three weeks before the world court’s ruling. The daily average dropped further, to 57, between Feb. 9 and 21, the figures showed. United Nations agencies and aid groups say the hostilities, the Israeli military’s refusal to facilitate deliveries and the breakdown of order inside Gaza make it increasingly difficult to get vital aid to much of the coastal enclave. In some cases, crowds of desperate Palestinians have surrounded delivery trucks and stripped the supplies off them. The UN has called on Israel to open more crossings, including in the north, and to improve the coordination process.

Palestinian PM Submits Govt Resignation, Paving Way for Possible Reforms
Asharq Al Awsat/26 February 2024
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh said on Monday his government is resigning, in a move that could open the door to US-backed reforms in the Palestinian Authority. President Mahmoud Abbas must still decide whether he accepts Shtayyeh and his government's resignation, tendered Monday.
But the move signals a willingness by the Western-backed Palestinian leadership to accept shake-up that might usher in reforms seen as necessary to revitalize the Palestinian Authority. The US wants a reformed Palestinian Authority to govern Gaza once the war is over. But many obstacles remain to making that vision a reality.

Iraq’s Nujaba: Suspension of Attacks against US Forces Is ‘Calm before the Storm’
Baghdad: Asharq Al Awsat/26 February 2024
Secretary-General of the Iran-aligned Nujaba movement in Iraq Akram al-Kaabi said on Sunday that the halt of military operations against American bases in the country was the “calm before the storm”.In a message on the advent of the middle of the hijri month of Shaban, he stressed that the current calm “was only a temporary tactic aimed at redeployment and mobilization.”“It is the calm before the storm,” he warned. Moreover, he alleged that certain sides, which he did not name, “have provided the American forces with information about the resistance and their positions.”“This demanded a redeployment of our forces and a change in battles tactics,” he went on to say. He pledged that “more surprises” are in store. “We are keen on protecting the Popular Mobilization Forces from American attacks,” stated Kaabi. Commenting on the Baghdad government’s negotiations with American forces over their withdrawal from Iraq, he said the “Islamic Resistance” did not reject the talks, but “we assert that the American occupier is a liar, treacherous and arrogant.”He added that it would be “delusional” to believe that the US would “yield and withdraw from Iraq through negotiations.”In January, a US strike in Baghdad killed Mushtaq Taleb al-Saidi, a leading member of the Nujaba who was involved in planning and carrying out attacks against American personnel in Iraq and Syria.

Captagon File Grows ‘More Complicated’ with Damascus Announcing Seizure of Shipment Bound to Iraq
Damascus: Asharq Al Awsat/26 February 2024
Damascus announced on Sunday the seizure of a shipment of captagon pills bound to Iraq. State television said the shipment had arrived in Syria from a neighboring country that it did not name. It did not disclose the amount of narcotics that were busted. The announcement came a day after Iraqi Interior Minister Abdul Amir Al-Shammari said Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani was planning for Iraq to become the “security hub” in combating drugs, reported the state news agency (INA). He also announced the formation of a joint liaison cell between Jordan, Lebanon and Syria to combat drug smuggling. Al-Shammari praised the major cooperation with neighboring countries in cracking down on drug smuggling. The cooperation is part of a comprehensive strategy that was prepared in early 2023 and should span three years and aim to achieve 15 goals with 24 partners.
Thorny file
Informed sources in Damascus told Asharq Al-Awsat that the drug file was “growing more complicated” because of the involvement of Iran-aligned militias and several powerful officials. In 2021, the American New Lines Institute estimated that $5.7 billion was being generated annually by the drug trade.
Damascus appears helpless in answering pressure from Jordan and other Arab countries in cracking down on the illicit business. Syria is languishing under Iranian debts and a crumbling economy, so it needed to look for alternative sources of income, such as the drug trade, to remain afloat. This has put it in hot water with various Arab countries that have complained about the rise in drug use in the region. Besides Syria, Lebanon and Iraq have witnessed a spike in drug production that thrived on instability in these countries. The growing phenomenon has become a threat to Arab peace and national security, most notably in Jordan and the Gulf region. British and American estimates have said that Syria is the source of 80 percent of the captagon in the world. In 2023, Washington slapped sanctions on several Syrian and Lebanese figures involved in the trade. Observers have said that the threat of drugs was one of the main reasons why Jordan led efforts to reinstate Syria’s membership in the Arab League, which was seen as precursor to Arab countries normalizing relations with it. Other issues on the table were the Syrian refugee file and reaching a political solution to the Syrian conflict in line with United Nations resolutions. However, drug smuggling did not diminish with Syria’s return to the Arab League. Jordan has since dispatched the army to the border with Syria where it often clashes with smugglers. The Jordanian air force has even carried out strikes against smugglers inside Syria. One attack left ten civilians dead in the Sweida region. Tensions in relations have since spiked between Amman and Damascus. This did not prevent armed opposition groups in predominantly Druze Sweida to declare they were ready to cooperate with Jordan in cracking down on the smugglers to avert more strikes and civilian casualties. Jordan has since cast doubt on Damascus’ ability in curbing the illicit activity.

US Says Yemen’s Houthis Ballistic Missile Misses US Tanker Torm Thor
Asharq Al Awsat/26 February 2024
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said early on Monday that Yemen's Houthis militias launched one anti-ship ballistic missile likely targeting the MV Torm Thor, but missed the US-flagged, owned and operated oil tanker, in the Gulf of Aden on Feb. 24. The missile impacted the water causing no damage nor injuries, CENTCOM added in a post on X. The Iran-aligned group said on Sunday that they targeted the tanker, as the militants continue to attack shipping lanes in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. The US military also shot down in "self-defense" two one-way unmanned aerial attack vehicles over the southern Red Sea on Sunday, said CENTCOM. The Houthis have launched exploding drones and missiles at commercial vessels since Nov. 19 as a protest against Israel's military operations in Gaza. The turmoil from Israel's war with the Palestinian group Hamas has spilled over to some extent into other parts of the Middle East. Apart from the Houthi attacks on vital shipping lanes, Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah group has traded fire with Israel along the Israel-Lebanon border and Iraqi militia have attacked bases that host US forces.

US Air Force member dies after self-immolation outside Israeli embassy
Associated Press/February 26, 2024
An active-duty member of the U.S. Air Force has died after he set himself ablaze outside the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., while declaring that he "will no longer be complicit in genocide."The 25-year-old airman, Aaron Bushnell, of San Antonio, Texas, died from his injuries, the Metropolitan Police Department said Monday. Bushnell had walked up to the embassy shortly before 1 p.m. on Sunday and began livestreaming on the video streaming platform Twitch, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. Law enforcement officials believe the man started a livestream, set his phone down and then doused himself in accelerant and ignited the flames. At one point, he said he "will no longer be complicit in genocide," the person said. The video was later removed from the platform, but law enforcement officials have obtained and reviewed a copy. The person was not authorized to publicly discuss details of the ongoing investigation and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity. The incident happened as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking the cabinet approval for a military operation in the southern Gazan city of Rafah while a temporary cease-fire deal is being negotiated. Israel's military offensive in Gaza, however, has drawn criticisms, including claims of genocide against the Palestinians. Israel has adamantly denied the genocide allegations and says it is carrying out operations in accordance with international law in the Israel-Hamas war. In December, a person self-immolated outside the Israeli consulate in Atlanta and used gasoline as an accelerant, according to Atlanta's fire authorities. A Palestinian flag was found at the scene, and the act was believed to be one of "extreme political protest."

Hungary's parliament ratifies Sweden's NATO bid, clearing the final obstacle to membership
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP)/February 26, 2024
Hungary’s parliament voted Monday to ratify Sweden's bid to join NATO, ending more than 18 months of delays that frustrated the alliance as it sought to expand in response to Russia's war in Ukraine.The vote, which passed with 188 votes for and six against, was the culmination of months of wrangling by Hungary's allies to convince its nationalist government to lift its block on Sweden's membership. The government of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán submitted the protocols for approving Sweden's entry into NATO in July 2022, but the matter stalled in parliament over opposition by governing party lawmakers. Hungary's decision paved the way for the second expansion of NATO's ranks in a year after both Sweden and Finland applied to join the alliance in May 2022 following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine — an assault that was purportedly intended to prevent further NATO expansion.
Unanimous support among NATO members is required to admit new countries, and Hungary was the last of the alliance’s 31 members to give its backing since Turkey ratified the request last month. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said his country was “now leaving 200 years of neutrality and nonalignment behind us." "It is a big step, we must take that seriously. But it is also a very natural step that we are taking. NATO membership means that we've found a new home within a large number of democracies which work together for peace and freedom," he told a news conference in Stockholm.
Orbán, a right-wing populist who has forged close ties with Russia, has said that criticism of Hungary's democracy by Swedish politicians soured relations between the two countries and led to reluctance among lawmakers in his Fidesz party.
But addressing lawmakers before the vote, Orbán said: “Sweden and Hungary’s military cooperation and Sweden’s NATO accession strengthen Hungary’s security.”
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told The Associated Press that the vote "makes NATO stronger, Sweden safer and all of us more secure.”Stoltenberg said Sweden brings with it capable armed forces and a first-class defense industry, and it is spending at least 2% of national gross domestic product on defense, which is NATO’s target level. The vote “also demonstrates that NATO’s door is open" and that Russian President Vladimir Putin "did not succeed in his attempt to close NATO’s door,” he said.
On Monday, Orbán criticized Hungary's European Union and NATO allies for pressuring his government in recent months to move forward on Sweden's request to be part of the alliance. “Hungary is a sovereign country. It does not tolerate being dictated by others, whether it be the content of its decisions or their timing,” he said. Last weekend, a bipartisan group of U.S. senators visited Hungary and announced it would submit a joint resolution to Congress condemning Hungary’s alleged democratic backsliding and urging Orbán’s government to allow Sweden into NATO.
A presidential signature, which is needed to formally endorse the approval of Sweden’s NATO bid, was expected within a few days. In the U.S., White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre urged the Hungarian government to quickly complete the process of bringing Sweden into the alliance. “Having Sweden as a NATO ally will make the United States even safer,” she said, speaking aboard Air Force One as President Joe Biden flew to New York for an appearance. Kristersson, Sweden’s prime minister, met last week with Orbán in Hungary’s capital, where they appeared to reach a decisive reconciliation after months of diplomatic tensions. Following their meeting, the leaders announced the conclusion of a defense industry agreement that will include Hungary's purchase of four Swedish-made JAS 39 Gripen jets and the extension of a service contract for its existing Gripen fleet.
Orbán said the additional fighter jets “will significantly increase our military capabilities and further strengthen our role abroad” and will improve Hungary’s ability to participate in joint NATO operations. “To be a member of NATO together with another country means we are ready to die for each other,” Orbán said. “A deal on defense and military capacities helps to reconstruct the trust between the two countries.” Robert Dalsjö, a senior analyst with the Swedish Defense Research Agency, told the AP on Friday that Hungary’s decision to finally lift its opposition came only after Turkey and its president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, voted in January to ratify Stockholm’s bid. After becoming the last NATO holdout with the Turkish vote, Orbán had to show some results for his government’s delays, Dalsjö said. “In hiding behind Erdogan’s back, Orban could play, do some pirouettes,” he said. “Then when Erdogan shifted, Orban wasn’t really prepared for adjusting his position, and he needed something to show that could legitimize his turnaround. And that turned out to be the Gripen deal.”Monday's vote was just one matter on a busy agenda for lawmakers in the Hungarian parliament. A vote was also held on accepting the resignation of President Katalin Novák, who stepped down earlier this month in a scandal over her decision to pardon to a man convicted of covering up a string of child sexual abuses. After accepting Novák's resignation, lawmakers confirmed Tamás Sulyok, the president of Hungary's Constitutional Court, as the country's new president. He is set to formally take office on March 5.

Saudi source denies reports that commerce minister met Israeli counterpart
ARAB NEWS/February 27, 2024
RIYADH: An official Saudi source denied on Monday allegations circulating on social media platforms regarding a meeting between Majid Al-Qasabi, Minister of Commerce, and an Israeli occupation official, Saudi Press Agency reported. The same source said in a statement carried by SPA that the video circulated was while Al-Qasabi was standing with his Nigerian counterpart, prior to the opening of the thirteenth Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization in Abu Dhabi. “The individual shook (the Saudi minister’s) hand and then was introduced, without (Al-Qasabi’s) prior knowledge,” the source told SPA. This was followed by Israeli media reports claiming that the two discussed peace between Saudi Arabia and Israel, with one Israeli outlet running a picture of the two under the heading: “Israeli minister and Saudi counterpart shake hands and discuss ‘making history together.’”The source also affirmed to SPA Saudi Arabia’s firm position on the Palestinian issue and its steadfast support for the Palestinian people against Israeli aggression.

Final day of ICJ hearing: OIC says two-state solution in Palestine imperative to regional peace
ARAB NEWS/February 26, 2024
THE HAGUE: Representatives of Turkiye, the Arab League, Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and the African Union presented arguments on Monday, on the final day of proceedings at the UN’s highest court, on the legality of Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories. Over one week, the judges of the International Court of Justice, also known as the World Court, heard arguments from more than 50 states and three international organizations following a request by the UN General Assembly in 2022 for the court to issue a non-binding opinion on the legal consequences of the Israeli occupation. Gaza genocide is the essence of decades-long tragedy: African Union African Union representative, Hajer Gueldich, told the ICJ that the “unspeakable suffering and horror inflicted on the population of Gaza” is the essence of the Palestinian tragedy for over a century. She called Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza as “nothing but a shameful attempt to create another Nakba, a further catastrophe destined to erasing the Palestinian presence in Palestine.”
“The history of Palestine is a history of dispossession, displacement, and dehumanization. It’s a history of injustice.”She said the ongoing Israeli aggression against Gaza demonstrates the tragedy of the Palestinians who have been “systematically subjugated and oppressed by the Israeli colonial project” for over seven decades. The advisory proceeding, she noted, presents an opportunity to hold Israel accountable for attacks, put an immediate end to Israel’s “impunity” and uphold international humanitarian law. OIC says two-state solution imperative to regional peace. Hussein Ibrahim Taha, Secretary General of the OIC, said “a just, lasting and comprehensive peace based on a two-state solution in Palestine is only way to ensure security and stability of all people in the region and protect them from the cycle of violence.”He urged countries to cease exporting arms and ammunition to Israel as “the army and settlers are using them against the Palestinian people” and called on the ICJ to condemn the accelerated colonization of East Jerusalem and the Israeli attacks against the Islamic and Christian holy places. Taha reiterated the organization’s condemnation of Israel’s attack on Gaza, which killed about 30,000 Palestinians and injured thousands more, as well as the escalated violence in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. He also deplored the inability of the Security Council “to uphold international law to end the spiral violence and render justice to the Palestinian people.”Arab League says Gaza genocide is result of failure to end prolonged occupation
Abdulhakeem Al Rifai, representative of the Arab League, said failure to end the prolonged Israeli occupation of Palestine “has led to the current horrors perpetrated against the Palestinians [in Gaza] amounting to genocide.”He said the occupation is an “affront to international justice.”
“There can be no moral or juridical justification for occupying lands, killing, terrorizing, and displacing their populations.”He called Israel the “last oppressive, expansionist apartheid settler colonial occupation still standing in the 21st century”, urging the ICJ to confirm the illegality of Israel’s occupation and “unambiguously rule on legal consequences for all parties especially those who turn a blind eye, facilitate, assist or participate in any way in perpetrating this illegal situation.”“Only the rule of law not the prevailing law of the jungle will pave the way to peace in the region,” he said. “Ending the occupation is the gateway to peaceful coexistence”.He noted that the insistence of placing Israel above the law through the politicization of accountability and adopting double standards were “a direct threat to international peace and stability.”Turkiye warns of danger of leaving Israel ‘unaccountable’
Ahmet Yıldız, the deputy foreign minister, told warned the UN top court of the risks of leaving Israel’s ‘indiscriminate attacks’ on Palestinian civilians in Gaza unaccountable. “As the injustices and double standards that the Palestinians have been subjected to for decades continue, reactions from people in the region and beyond will multiply. In other words, we must hold accountable before the law those responsible for their attacks on civilians otherwise such outrageous behavior might be emulated elsewhere in the future.”He condemned Israel’s plans to limit access of Muslim worshipers in Al Aqsa Mosque during the holy month of Ramadan, noting that the rhetoric repeated by Israeli ministers “is worrisome.”
Yıldız reiterated Turkiye’s calls for the international community to address the root cause of Palestine-Israel war as the only method to bring regional peace.
He argued that the conflict did not start from Oct. 7, and wasn’t “about a certain Palestinian faction or group. The conflict dates back to an earlier century.”
He added: “The real obstacle to peace Is obvious – the deepening occupation by Israel of Palestinian territories and failure to implement the two-state solution.”
Israel’s military offensive on Gaza since Oct. 7 has killed almost 30,000 Palestinians, most of them are woman and children, and placed 2.3 million people under full blockade by Israel. More than 2 million Palestinians have been forcibly displaced.
“Israel’s attacks have turned into collective punishment,” said Yıldız.
“The lack of political interest among the international community to address root causes of the conflict created a strong sense of injustice among the Palestinians and, in general, among international community.”He accused the UN Security council, which, he said, has the primary responsibility for maintaining international order and security, of failing to bring solution in Gaza. On the first day of hearings on Monday, Feb 19, Palestine’s representatives asked the judges to declare Israel’s occupation of their territory illegal and said its opinion could help create conditions for agreement on a two-state solution. Most nations have been critical of Israel’s conduct in the occupied territories, with many urging the court to declare the occupation illegal.
However, the US has stood by its ally, arguing against immediate and unconditional withdrawal from the occupied territory. Israel, which is not taking part, said in written comments that the court’s involvement could be harmful to achieving a negotiated settlement. The hearings are part of a Palestinian push to get international legal institutions to examine Israel’s conduct, which has become more urgent since the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas in Israel, which triggered a military response that has since killed about 29,600 Palestinians. The ICJ’s 15-judge panel has been asked to review Israel’s “occupation, settlement and annexation ... including measures aimed at altering the demographic composition, character and status of the Holy City of Jerusalem, and from its adoption of related discriminatory legislation and measures.”
The judges are expected to take about six months to issue their opinion on the request.

Greek frigate departs to join EU Red Sea mission
REUTERS/February 27, 2024
ATHENS: Greece’s frigate Hydra departed for the Red Sea on Monday to participate in a mission to protect merchant ships from attacks by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militia, a defense ministry official said. Earlier on Monday, the Greek government approved the country’s participation in the European Union naval mission dubbed Eunavfor Aspides in the Red Sea. Many commercial shippers have diverted vessels following attacks by the Houthis who control much of Yemen and say they are acting in solidarity with the Palestinians as Israel and Hamas wage war in Gaza. Greece’s security council approved a proposal by Defense Minister Nikos Dendias for participation in the EU mission, government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said in a statement. The government said it was important to join the mission as the Houthi attacks have disrupted Greek-owned commercial vessels’ activities at the country’s biggest port Piraeus and some container ships have stopped using it. France, Italy and Germany are also taking part in the EU mission, under the code name “Aspides,” the Greek word for shields.Participating countries will be mandated to protect commercial ships and intercept attacks, but not take part in strikes against the Houthis on land. Several Greek-owned merchant ships have been hit off Yemen since November, suffering damages but no casualties.

Latest English LCCC  analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on February 26-27/2024
Palestinians Need New Leaders, Not New Governments
Khaled Abu Toameh/Gatestone Institute/February 26, 2024
The sole way to "revitalize" the Palestinian Authority is to insist that it rid itself of every leader who has failed his people and who remains in power, disregarding the will and interests of the people. That is hardly likely, at least not in the foreseeable future. No one is willingly going to forego perks and power. There is no way that Abbas or any of his senior aides are voluntarily going to step down.
Only a new and fresh leadership committed to reforms, democracy, and transparency has a chance of leading the Palestinians towards a better life. Sadly, leaders with such a portfolio are hard to come by in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Any leader who comes through the US or Israel will be accused by Palestinians of being a traitor and collaborator with the enemies of the Palestinian people.
The assumption that 88-year-old Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will step down or agree to share power with others is a non-starter. Abbas, who was elected in 2005, is now in the 19th year of a four-year term. He has already proven that he does not care what others say about him.
According to a famous Arab proverb, "A dog's tail is never straight." It is used to describe people who will never be cured of their bad habits.
This proverb comes to mind when one hears the US administration talking about the need for the "revitalization" of the Palestinian Authority (PA), established exactly 30 years ago in accordance with the Oslo Accords signed between Israel and the PLO.
Since its inception, the Palestinian Authority has consistently dismissed demands to abandon its old habits: financial corruption, bad governance, and lack of freedom of speech and a free media. It is unrealistic to expect the Palestinian leadership to introduce meaningful changes in its style of governance and in its institutions.The US administration seems to believe that the PA, once revamped, would be qualified to manage the civilian and security affairs of the Palestinians after the current Israel-Hamas war.
The Americans have yet to explain what exactly they mean when they talk about the "revitalization" of the Palestinian Authority. If they are referring to the present leaders of the PA stepping down and handing control over to younger and new leaders, that is unlikely to happen. If they are hoping that the current Palestinian leadership will embark on comprehensive reforms in Palestinian civilian and security institutions, that, too, does not appear to be a realistic expectation.
The assumption that 88-year-old PA President Mahmoud Abbas will step down or agree to share power with others is a non-starter. Abbas, who was elected in 2005, is now in the 19th year of a four-year term. He has already proven that he does not care what others say about him. Recent public opinion polls have shown that up to 80% of the Palestinians want him to resign. So what? The polls have also shown that a majority of the Palestinians believe that the PA is corrupt. So what? Abbas has also proven that he prefers to consult only with two or three of his loyalist officials.
Since he came to power, Abbas has been controlling the Palestinian Authority as if it were a private fiefdom.
In 2018, he went as far as dissolving the elected parliament, known as the Palestinian Legislative Council. Since then, Abbas has been issuing his own laws in the form of "presidential decrees." Last year, for instance, he issued a decree firing 12 Palestinian governors without giving any reason for the move.
Abbas has effectively replaced the parliament by appointing himself as the chief and sole lawmaker of the Palestinians. He has also worked to consolidate his rule over the judicial system by ordering the establishment of the Supreme Council of Judicial Bodies and Authorities, headed by none other than Abbas himself. The judicial body was created by Abbas on October 28, 2022, through "presidential decree." According to the decree, the new judicial body has full power over the Palestinian Authority's judicial system.
Abbas, in other words, serves as the Palestinians' chief lawmaker and judge -- in addition to his full control over the Palestinian political system. In this regard, he hardly differs from his predecessor, Yasser Arafat, who also ruled as an authoritarian president and refused to share powers with others.
In the past two decades, Abbas has refused to appoint a vice president, repeatedly avoided attempts to hold presidential and parliamentary elections, and has waged a continuous crackdown on Palestinian officials who dared to criticize him or his policies. Senior officials of his ruling Fatah faction, such as Mohammed Dahlan and Nasser al-Qidwa, were expelled from the faction and forced to live in exile: the first in the United Arab Emirates, and the second in France.
In 2017, after having entrenched his control over the political, judicial, executive and legislative branches, Abbas sought to extend his power to the media. During that year, he issued another decree for enacting the Palestinian Cybercrime Law, which became a tool for quashing his political rivals and critics and imposing severe restrictions on the Palestinian media. After the law was passed, several journalists and political activists were arrested by Palestinian Authority security forces for propagating news that allegedly threatened the Palestinians' national security and public order.
Abbas has since used the law to block dozens of Palestinian websites, blogs, and Facebook pages that oppose the PA leadership. The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate denounced the move as a "black day for Palestinian journalism."
"Blocking websites is clearly a violation of the right to news and information," said Sabrina Bennoui, head of Reporters Without Borders' Middle East desk. "In so doing, the Palestinian Authority confirms its refusal to accept media pluralism and its desire to eliminate all opposition by making it invisible to the public."
Some Palestinians are now talking about the possibility of forming a government of independent technocrats as part of the proposed plan to "revitalize" the Palestinian Authority. This means is that the new members of the Palestinian government would not be affiliated with any political faction. A Palestinian prime minister who does not have the backing of a political faction is not likely to succeed in his job. The best examples are former premiers Salam Fayyad and Rami Hamdallah, who were not openly affiliated with any faction.
The Palestinians have had a number of technocratic governments in the past, and none of them was able to bring about real changes, such as stemming financial and administrative corruption.
More significantly, the fact that the prime minister and the cabinet ministers were all handpicked or approved by Abbas refuted the notion that the government was independent. The same happened under Arafat, who maintained a tight grip on the government and its prime minister. The words "technocrat" and "independent" may sound nice, but the Palestinians have learned that regardless of who heads the government and who its members are, the real power will always remain in the hands of the Palestinian Authority president.
Those who are talking about a "revitalized" Palestinian Authority are ignoring that the Palestinians are controlled by two parties: the PA in the West Bank and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. No government can be established without the approval of either party.
Abbas is not going to allow the establishment of a government that does not report to him and his inner circle in the West Bank. Hamas, for its part, is not going to allow any new government in the Gaza Strip that does not receive its blessing. No prime minister or government would be able to carry out his duties as long as Fatah and Hamas are in charge. The two factions will always interfere with the work of the government in the hope of fully controlling it.
Revitalizing the Palestinian Authority means a great deal more than appointing new or independent figures as prime ministers and cabinet ministers. The PA needs a total overhaul of its leadership, starting with Abbas himself and his veteran entourage. No government would ever be able to function independently with Abbas and his cronies breathing down its neck. The same applies to the Gaza Strip as long as Hamas remains in power.
The sole way to "revitalize" the Palestinian Authority is to insist that it rid itself of every leader who has failed his people and who remains in power, disregarding the will and interests of the people. That is hardly likely, at least not in the foreseeable future. No one is willingly going to forego perks and power. There is no way that Abbas or any of his senior aides are voluntarily going to step down.
Only a new and fresh leadership committed to reforms, democracy, and transparency has a chance of leading the Palestinians towards a better life. Sadly, leaders with such a portfolio are hard to come by in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Any leader who comes through the US or Israel will be accused by Palestinians of being a traitor and collaborator with the enemies of the Palestinian people.
**Khaled Abu Toameh is an award-winning journalist based in Jerusalem.
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https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/20432/palestinians-need-new-leaders

Israel will pay a price for sabotaging its own reputation
Baria Alamuddin/Arab News/February 26, 2024/
The latest hearings at the International Court of Justice are nails being hammered into the coffin of Israel’s international standing. More than 50 countries are submitting evidence questioning the legality of Israel’s “occupation, settlement and annexation” of Palestinian territories. This runs parallel to hearings at the same court considering whether Israel’s actions in Gaza constitute genocide.
South Africa’s representative denounced Israel’s “fundamentally illegal” policies as an “extreme form of apartheid.” Saudi Arabia criticized Israel’s “dehumanization” of Palestinians as “disposable objects.” Egypt said: “Israel cannot invoke self-defense to maintain a situation created by its own illegal conduct.” Belize condemned Israel’s “racist apartheid” and “excessive use of force, arbitrary killing and mass incarceration.” Israel unsurprisingly refused to participate, but apparently cajoled Fiji to speak on its behalf — a move angrily denounced by Fijian citizens. Brazil’s president accused Israel of genocide and compared its Gaza offensive to the Nazi Holocaust.
We are witnessing the situation of Israel and its dwindling number of supporters aligning themselves against almost the entire civilized world. Israel’s leaders arrogantly brought this global backlash upon themselves with a brazenly disproportionate military campaign in Gaza in which two thirds of the official 30,000 death toll are women and children, along with hundreds of thousands of others maimed, orphaned, or suffering other life-destroying losses. An entire displaced population teeters on the brink of starvation.
This utter collapse in Israel’s international reputation has correspondingly left its biggest international champions seriously exposed — in particular the US. Among other young, cosmopolitan anti-war demographics, America’s Arab communities wield influence as never before: notably in Michigan, where anti-war anger risks swinging the presidential election against Joe Biden.
This has given rise to a panicked and incoherent hodgepodge of policies. Although the Biden administration last week affirmed that settlement building was illegal, it utterly undermined that welcome U-turn by simultaneously urging the court against a legal mandate for ending the occupation, arguing that control of the West Bank was justified by Israel’s “very real security needs.” Britain resorted to the tortuous logic of acknowledging that the occupation was “illegal,” while claiming that this was a bilateral dispute and therefore outside the court’s jurisdiction.
Such rhetorical gymnastics will hardly appease global publics horrified that Israel’s genocidal campaign continues to be fueled by US arms, US funding and US diplomatic cover. One Palestinian American activist accused Biden of bankrolling genocide, and said his policies were “like showing up to a five-alarm fire with a cup of water while giving fuel to the arsonist.” China’s usually tight-lipped UN Security Council envoy categorized the US’s ceasefire veto as “giving a green light to the continued slaughter.”
With European nations besieged by similar pressures, a growing nexus of states have sought to steer the EU in a markedly less pro-Israel direction. Spain and Belgium’s prime ministers jointly denounced “indiscriminate killings of innocent civilians.” Ireland has sought to build consensus toward recognizing a Palestinian state. Even reflexively pro-Israel governments in Germany and Britain have been compelled to rethink their language and actions, so as not to completely lose touch with millions of citizens outraged by the carnage. Conservative pro-Israeli bastions of the Western media haven’t held back from transmitting heart-rending Gaza developments to their audiences.
UN experts say they have seen “credible allegations” that Palestinian women and girls have been subjected to sexual assault and rape in Israeli detention.
The Wall Street Journal highlighted US intelligence findings that “Israeli bias serves to mischaracterize much of their assessments on UNRWA, which has resulted in distortions.” This raises questions about those states that rushed to slash life-saving aid to the UN’s Palestinian refugee agency, despite Israel’s failure to produce evidence in support of its allegations against a tiny number of staff members.
Nothing signals Israel’s growing international isolation more strongly than counter-productive attacks on UN institutions and Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who himself warned that Israel’s “clear and repeated rejection of the two-state solution” was unacceptable and would prolong the Gaza conflict.
Since day one of this conflict, Benjamin Netanyahu’s regime has seized every opportunity to cut off all humanitarian support. The UN’s humanitarian office last week described Gaza as “a textbook formula for epidemics and a public health disaster” due to the collapse of its health system. With Nasser hospital in Khan Younis out of action, all of Gaza’s major hospitals are now out of service, with many having been subject to bombing and invasion.
It is right to investigate rape allegations arising from the Oct. 7 atrocities by Hamas. But UN experts say they have seen “credible allegations” that Palestinian women and girls have been subjected to sexual assault and rape in Israeli detention. The UN’s special rapporteur found that “violence and dehumanization of Palestinian women and children and civilians has been normalized.” A UN human rights panel highlighted the “extrajudicial killing of Palestinian women and children in places where they sought refuge, or while fleeing … holding white pieces of cloth when they were killed.”
The conflict has inspired a flood of fake news from both sides. As Israel sees the tide of global opinion turn relentlessly against it, it has increasingly resorted to transmitting debunked claims. This ranges from incessant allegations that injured and dead Palestinians are “crisis actors,” to Israel’s president falsely telling a German newspaper that a German dual national had been beheaded on Oct. 7. Both sides exploited old Syria conflict footage to disingenuously support their narratives.
Throughout the democratic world, Israel should rightly fear what will happen to its disintegrating international position as political parties around the world struggle to realign themselves with public sentiment to avoid punishment at the ballot box. Equally, Hamas — already widely labeled a terrorist organization — should consider the impact of its own atrocities against civilians on the reputation of the entire Palestinian cause, and consider tangible measures such as freeing hostages.
A vengeful Israel has yet to digest the implications of its actions for global legitimacy and its own regional security. Israel is not the exception it believes itself to be: peaceful coexistence with its neighbors comes only through playing by the rules, treating all its citizens as equals, and conscientiously pursuing a just settlement for Palestinian statehood.
• Baria Alamuddin is an award-winning journalist and broadcaster in the Middle East and the UK. She is editor of the Media Services Syndicate and has interviewed numerous heads of state.

Time to translate words into actions on Gaza
Dr. Ramzy Baroud/Arab News/February 26, 2024/
Left to its own devices, Israel would never grant Palestinians their freedom.
In the past, some, whether ignorantly or otherwise, claimed that peace in Palestine could only be achieved through “unconditional negotiations.”
This mantra was championed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, when he cared enough to pay lip service to the “peace process” and other US-originated fantasies. Back then, he spoke of his readiness to hold such unconditional negotiations, while constantly arguing that Israel did not have a peace partner. All of this was, of course, doublespeak. What Netanyahu and other Israelis were, in fact, saying was that Israel should be freed from any commitment to international law, let alone international pressure. Worse, by declaring that Israel had no Palestinian peace partner, the Israeli government essentially canceled the hypothetical “unconditional negotiations” before they even took place. For years — in fact, for decades — Israel was allowed to perpetuate such nonsense, empowered, of course, by the total and unconditional support of Washington and its other Western allies.
This process of shielding Israel remains in place today, even when tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed. In an environment in which Israel received billions of dollars of US-Western aid and where it had grown to become a thriving technological hub, let alone one of the world’s largest weapons exporters, Tel Aviv simply had no reason to end its occupation or to dismantle its racist apartheid regime in Palestine.
But things must change now. The genocidal Israeli war in Gaza should completely alter our understanding, not only of the tragic reality underway in Palestine but also of past misunderstandings. It should be made clear that Israel never had any intentions of achieving a just peace, ending its colonialism in Palestine — that is, the expansion of the illegal settlements — or granting Palestinians one iota of their rights. On the contrary, Israel had been planning to carry out a genocide against the Palestinians all along. Israel has already carried out terrible war crimes against Palestinians, during the Nakba in 1947-48 and in successive wars ever since. Each crime, large or small, was accompanied by a campaign of ethnic cleansing. More than 800,000 Palestinians were ethnically cleansed when Israel was established on the ruins of Palestine 76 years ago. An additional 300,000 were ethnically cleansed during the “Naksa,” the war and “setback” of 1967. Throughout the years, the mainstream Western media did its best to completely hide the Israeli crimes, minimize their impact or blame someone else entirely. This process of shielding Israel remains in place today, even when tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed since Oct. 7 and when the majority of Gaza, including its hospitals, schools, mosques, churches, civilian homes and shelters, have been erased.
Considering all of this, anyone who still speaks of unconditional negotiations — especially those conducted under the auspices of Washington — is, frankly, only doing so to help Israel escape international legal and political accountability.
Luckily, the world is waking up to this fact and, hopefully, this awakening will mature sooner rather than later, as the Israeli massacres in Gaza continue to claim hundreds of innocent lives every single day. The collective realization that Israel must be stopped through international measures is accompanied by an equally critical realization that the US is not an honest peace broker. In fact, it never was.
The US’ legal position remains committed to defending the illegality of Israel’s conduct throughout Palestine
To appreciate the ruinous role of the US in this so-called conflict, just marvel at this fact: While practically every country that participated in the International Court of Justice public hearings between Feb. 19 and 26 formulated its position based on international law, the US did not. “The court should not find that Israel is legally obligated to immediately and unconditionally withdraw from occupied territory,” the acting legal adviser for the US State Department, Richard Visek, embarrassingly said. So, 76 years after the Nakba and following 57 years of military occupation, the US’ legal position remains committed to defending the illegality of Israel’s conduct throughout Palestine. Compare the above stance to the rounded, courageous and legally grounded position of almost every country in the world, especially the 50-plus countries that requested to speak at the world court hearings.
China, whose words and actions seem far more consistent with international law than many Western nations, went even further. “In pursuit of the right to self-determination, Palestinian people’s use of force to resist foreign oppression and complete the establishment of an independent state is (an) inalienable right well founded in international law,” Chinese representative Ma Xinmin told the court.
Unlike the cliched and noncommittal position of the likes of UK Foreign Minister David Cameron on the need to make “irreversible progress” toward an independent Palestinian state, the Chinese position is arguably the most comprehensive and realistic articulation. Ma linked self-determination to liberation struggle, sovereignty and the inalienable rights of people, which are all consistent with international laws and norms. In fact, it is these very principles that have led to the liberation of numerous countries in the Global South. Considering that Israel has no intention of freeing the Palestinians from the grip of apartheid and military occupation, the Palestinian people have no other option but to resist. The question now is: Will the international community continue to defy the US position in words only or will it formulate a new approach to the Israeli occupation of Palestine, thus bringing it to an end by any means necessary? In his statement to the International Court of Justice last week, British barrister Philippe Sands, who is a member of team Palestine, offered a roadmap as to how the international community can force Israel to end its occupation. “The right of self-determination requires that UN member states bring Israel’s occupation to an immediate end. No aid. No assistance. No complicity. No contribution to forcible actions. No money. No arms. No trade. No nothing,” he said. Indeed, it is now time to turn words into actions, especially when thousands of children are being killed through no fault of their own, but merely for being born Palestinian. **Dr. Ramzy Baroud is a journalist and author. He is editor of The Palestine Chronicle and nonresident senior research fellow at the Center for Islam and Global Affairs. His latest book, co-edited with Ilan Pappe, is “Our Vision for Liberation: Engaged Palestinian Leaders and Intellectuals Speak Out.” X: @RamzyBaroud

Navigating Western contradictions on region’s nonstate actors
Dr. Mohammed Al-Sulami/Arab News/February 26, 2024/
Multiple studies have identified a significant factor that contributes to the prolonging of conflicts in the Middle East: the inconsistency of Western approaches, specifically in addressing the threats posed by armed nonstate actors. This contradiction in Western policies is seen as a crucial element that undermines regional and global security and peace. This issue is particularly highlighted in the light of ongoing Gulf efforts that call for a unified response to the threats armed nonstate actors pose to the security and stability of sovereign states.
Despite repeated calls from Gulf states, notably Saudi Arabia, for Western powers, including the US and its allies, to prioritize security and stability in the Middle East, there has been a noticeable failure to adequately respond. This failure is concerning, as it not only impacts the protection of traditional and strategic allies but also puts at risk vital maritime routes and international trade corridors that are of great importance to Western nations. For more than four decades, Saudi Arabia has been warning about the dangers posed by certain regional leaders and their affiliated proxies because of intertwined ideological and geopolitical interests. These warnings underscore the escalating threat of destructive projects and efforts of sabotage initiated by the aforesaid in the region. Western nations have largely ignored the Kingdom’s warnings regarding regional security and associated threats. Instead, they have stressed that the preservation of sovereign states and regional security should be addressed within national contexts, considering the diverse political, social, cultural and economic dimensions, as well as the necessary solutions, even if they take a long time to devise and implement.
Western nations have largely ignored the Kingdom’s warnings regarding regional security and associated threats
Despite the Kingdom’s persistent calls, Western nations have shown little concern, allowing certain regional powers with expansionist agendas to take advantage of the various crises in the region since the early 2000s. These powers have used internal divisions to strengthen the influence of armed nonstate actors at the expense of nation states, infringing on national sovereignty and crossing Western red lines multiple times, highlighting the West’s indifference not only to the interests of their allies but also to their own established boundaries and principles.
Saudi Arabia’s repeated warnings about the dangerous activities of nonstate actors, especially in the Yemeni arena, highlight the Western inconsistency in addressing the threats posed by such entities. The Kingdom has consistently pointed to the consequences of nonstate actors increasing their influence, which happened in parallel with the weakening of Yemeni state institutions and legitimacy.
It has called on the international community to support its efforts to safeguard international trade and navigation, particularly at the strategic Bab Al-Mandab Strait, a crucial international trade route. Saudi Arabia has urged the UN, the permanent members of the Security Council and diplomatic representatives from various countries to review their positions and fulfill their legal, humanitarian and moral obligations. Additionally, it has called for unified pressure on the Houthis to stop their violations and advocated for their inclusion on global terrorism lists.
Western nations have come under fire for their inability to effectively address the growing threat posed by nonstate actors in the Yemen conflict. Despite continuous atrocities against the Yemeni people and the deliberate targeting of civilian infrastructure, such as airports and oil facilities in Saudi Arabia, both the UN and certain European countries have been criticized for their lackluster and feeble responses. Additionally, the actions of Western nations have impeded the progress of the Yemeni army and the legitimate Yemeni government, supported by coalition forces, particularly in Hodeidah and other regions where significant victories had been achieved. The decisions made during the Stockholm Conference, such as placing Hodeidah under UN supervision, have been condemned for obstructing legitimate victories under false justifications.
Both the UN and certain European countries have been criticized for their lackluster and feeble responses
The Biden administration faced a backlash when it removed the Houthis from the US’ terror list in February 2021. This decision contradicted the classification made by former President Donald Trump, with concerns raised that labeling the Houthis as terrorists could hinder Yemenis’ access to essential goods such as food and fuel. However, this action was viewed as disregarding the numerous crimes committed by the Houthis against Yemen and its neighboring nations, allowing atrocities to continue and resulting in the loss of innocent Yemeni lives, as well as ongoing drone strikes on Saudi Arabia and the targeting of its territory with ballistic missiles.
The Houthis’ targeting of Israeli, US and British commercial ships under the guise of pressuring the West to halt the conflict in Gaza directly threatened Western interests. These incidents drew attention to the escalating risks at the strategic Bab Al-Mandab Strait, despite numerous prior warnings from Saudi Arabia. Following this, the Biden administration promptly reclassified the Houthis as a terrorist group, announced the formation of a military coalition to counter Houthi attacks in the Red Sea and called on Middle Eastern allies to join the coalition.
However, the response from regional countries was lukewarm, possibly reflecting doubts about Western intentions and contradictions. While the coalition was ostensibly created to protect Israeli vessels and Western interests, there was a notable absence of Western support when Gulf states previously sought assistance in securing oil supplies and international trade in the Red Sea. Over the past four decades, the regional dynamics have worsened due to escalating security concerns in the Red Sea, validating Saudi Arabia’s long-standing warnings regarding the growing threats posed by armed nonstate actors to international peace and security. The failure to acknowledge these warnings has expanded the circle of danger, impacting the interests of Western nations that disregarded Saudi Arabia’s alerts. Regional dynamics emphasize the importance of considering regional competition from a broader perspective, as it has significant implications for global stability and the interests of all parties involved. In response, Saudi Arabia has taken proactive measures to address the escalating risks in the Red Sea and its neighboring countries, while also pursuing the ambitious Vision 2030. The Kingdom’s efforts reflect the viability of regional options for addressing threats and escalating dynamics.
Vision 2030 has led to domestic transformations and successes and contributed to the Kingdom spearheading efforts to resolve the crises in countries like Yemen and Iraq. Last year’s agreement with Iran, facilitated by China, marked a significant step in Saudi Arabia’s commitment to steering the region toward stability, especially amid perceived indifference from Western nations that prioritize their own interests.
The potential danger lies in the erosion of allied powers’ confidence in Western nations as reliable allies that are capable of safeguarding their security and protecting international shipping lanes. There is a risk of allied powers reassessing their foreign policies and exploring multiple alternative alliances and partnerships within a new strategy to protect their interests. This shift reflects a broader international dynamic, as major powers vie for global leadership within the international order.
Disregarding the interests of influential allies or overlooking the roles of nonstate actors is no longer a viable strategy for major powers to advance their interests. Regional powers have recognized this reality, learning from past experiences and diversifying their options to prioritize their own interests. The loss of confidence in Western nations, particularly in their handling of threats in the Red Sea, has led to a reevaluation of foreign policies. The Biden administration’s position on the Houthis highlights the West’s approach to regional insecurity, potentially hindering genuine reconciliation efforts or prioritizing Israeli interests. “If the Houthis cease their attacks, we can consider delisting the designation,” a senior Biden administration official said on a call with reporters. These remarks reflect the fact that the Biden administration’s designation of the Houthis is merely a tactical rather than a strategic move, meaning that Washington is once again failing to address the root issue, which is the proliferation of Iranian proxies in the region. Hence, regional countries, in particular Saudi Arabia, view this position as harmful to the political efforts to resolve the Yemeni crisis, as well as others in the region. It is imperative for major powers to adapt to changing dynamics and collaborate with allies to effectively navigate complex regional and international affairs.
**Dr. Mohammed Al-Sulami is the founder and president of the International Institute for Iranian Studies (Rasanah). X: @mohalsulami

Could Houthi attacks on ships off the Yemen coast continue even after a Gaza ceasefire?
ALEX WHITEMAN/Arab News/February 26, 2024
LONDON: The campaign of attacks by Yemen’s Houthi fighters on shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden continues, despite renewed US and UK strikes on their positions, leading to fears about the long-term security of these strategically important waterways. The persistence of the attacks has turned the spotlight on the Iran-backed militia as it appears to be gaining strength, in terms of weaponry and fighters, and confidence in its ability to cause global trade disruptions.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference last week, Rashad Al-Alimi, chair of the Presidential Leadership Council of the UN-backed Yemeni government, said the Houthis had irrevocably altered the region’s geopolitical contours. “The Red Sea will continue to be a source of tension, ready to explode at any political turn, as long as the Houthis control coastal regions,” he added. “To end Houthi piracy, we must address its origin and source. This can only be accomplished by restoring state institutions, ending the coup, and applying maximum pressure on Iran.”
The Houthi militia is part of the “axis of resistance,” a loose network of Iran-backed proxy militias throughout the region that includes the Palestinian militant group Hamas, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and several Shiite groups in Iraq. When the Houthis began attacking commercial shipping in November, they claimed they were only targeting vessels with links to Israel in an attempt to pressure the Israeli government to end its military operation against Hamas in Gaza. However, Houthi drones, missiles and acts of piracy have been launched against several ships with no ties to Israel. In fact, in recent weeks Yemeni ships, and even vessels belonging to Houthi-allied Iran, have come under attack. According to a tally by the Associated Press news agency, the Houthis have carried out at least 57 attacks on commercial and military ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden since Nov. 19. US Central Command has even identified the use of a Houthi-operated submarine drone.
In response to these attacks, many of the world’s biggest freight companies have redirected their vessels from the Suez Canal route to the Mediterranean, thereby avoiding the Red Sea, and instead are using much longer and more expensive routes via the Cape of Good Hope.
Simon Evenett, founder of nonprofit organization the St. Gallen Endowment for Prosperity Through Trade, said that while shipping costs have risen, they are still “well below” their pandemic-era peaks. He also noted that some freight companies had simply continued to traverse the waterways of the Red Sea despite the risk of attack.
“The New York Fed’s index of Global Supply Chain Pressure has barely moved,” Evenett told Arab News. “Important as it is, just 11 percent of global trade flows through the Red Sea. This isn’t enough to disrupt the world economy.
“What’s harder to assess is whether yet more upheaval in trade routes further undermines policymakers’ and corporate trust in long-distance sourcing. A further nudge towards national and regional sourcing can be expected.”
To prevent disruption to trade, protect mariners and uphold the right to freedom of navigation, the US-led patrol mission, Operation Prosperity Guardian, was established in December. When the Houthi attacks persisted, the US and UK launched strikes against militia targets in Yemen.
In a joint statement on Feb. 24, the US and the UK said their military forces struck 18 Houthi sites across eight locations in Yemen, including underground weapons and missile storage facilities, air defense systems, radars and a helicopter.
The operation was the fourth time the US and UK had carried out joint attacks against the Houthis since Jan. 12. The US has also carried out almost daily operations against Houthi targets, including incoming missiles, rockets and drones targeting vessels.
These Western strikes have done little to stem the tide of attacks, however. On Feb. 19, the Houthis mounted one of their most damaging assaults yet, on the Belize-flagged Rubymar, carrying cargo from the UAE to Bulgaria, forcing its crew to abandon ship.
Indeed, far from curtailing the activities of the Houthis, their popularity in Yemen appears to have grown since the shipping attacks began, with thousands of recruits reportedly joining their ranks. If its intent was to force a swift Houthi climbdown, the Western military response has so far borne little fruit. The Houthis seem only too keen to up the ante, with their leader Abdul Malik Al-Houthi stating “we will also attack with submarine weapons.”
However, in a message posted recently on social media platform X, the militia said: “What the world is impatiently waiting for is not the militarization of the Red Sea, but rather an urgent and comprehensive declaration of ceasefire in Gaza, for humanitarian reasons that are clear to anyone. “There is no danger to international or European navigation so long as there are no aggressive operations, and thus, there is no need to militarize the Red Sea.” In a joint statement on Feb. 24, the US and the UK said their military forces struck 18 Houthi sites across eight locations in Yemen. Not everyone is convinced that securing a ceasefire in Gaza will end the Houthi attacks on shipping. Like Al-Alimi, those with such concerns want the international community to take the worst-case scenario more seriously and take preventive action now.
Raiman Al-Hamdani, a researcher at social enterprise organization Ark, agreed that attacks are likely to continue after the war, but in the form of piracy in a “push to monetize their presence” in the seas off the coast of Yemen.
“This could mean attacking commercial vessels in the future, albeit not to the extent that we are seeing today,” Al-Hamdani told Arab News, who also predicted the Houthis could begin demanding tolls from vessels passing through Bab Al-Mandab Strait in return for avoiding attacks. Farea Al-Muslimi, a research fellow at Chatham House, likewise believes the Houthis have hit upon an opportunity to raise revenues from passing vessels. “They will, of course, try to make deals and there are already countries that are looking for waivers,” Al-Muslimi told Arab News.
“But there are several problems with this, one of which is that were they to escalate the crisis in the Red Sea, it would not be safe for anyone.
“As you can see, they have already attacked ships linked to Yemen and vessels belonging to their own ally, Iran, so any escalation of this will not be a clean battle.”
Some countries, including regional states, have called for a more measured response to the attacks, rather than military action that might inflame tensions in the region.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry recently expressed “deep concern over the escalation of military operations in the Red Sea and the airstrikes that were directed at a number of sites in Yemen.” It called for a “united international and regional effort to reduce tension and instability in the region, including navigation security.”It added: “The dangerous and escalating developments taking place are a clear indication of what we’ve repeatedly warned against regarding the dangers of expanding the conflict in the region as a result of the continued Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip.”Security experts have also said the military response might prove counterproductive, with concerns that it could play into the hands of the Houthis, who have sought to present themselves as defenders of Gaza who are standing up to Israel and its Western allies. Al-Hamdani believes the attacks on shipping serve several purposes for the Houthis: to help recruit new followers, distract from domestic problems, burnish support among the population, and to strengthen the militia’s negotiating position in the ongoing Yemen peace process. Al-Muslimi believes the Houthis have “already capitalized on it as much as they could politically,” suggesting the attacks will likely stop when the war in Gaza ends. However, he said the regional calculus has changed as a result of the Houthi onslaught and the broader context in the region since the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas on southern Israel that sparked the conflict in Gaza, increasing the chances the Middle East could be plunged into a wider war. “Nothing in the Middle East will be the same after Oct. 7, and this includes how the world views Yemen, how the world views the Red Sea,” said Al-Muslimi. “That applies to everything and everywhere. That is how much of an influence it has had. That is how much it has spilled over.”