Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on June 20-21/2024
Hezbollah Threatens Cyprus Over Israel Links
Hezbollah fires ‘dozens’ of rockets at Israel after drone attack kills fighter
Head of Lebanon's Hezbollah threatens Israel and Cyprus
Cyprus Denies Nasrallah’s Accusations of Implication in Gaza War
Hezbollah Threats: A Cypriot Security Envoy Was in Beirut, Revealed Bou Saab
Israel Kills Three Hezbollah Fighters
UNIFIL and Hochstein Warn of Imminent Escalation in South Lebanon
Will Hezbollah Succeed in Disrupting Lebanese-Cypriot Relations?
UN Special Coordinator Calls for Halting Conflict in South Lebanon
Cameron to Mikati: UK Ready to Help Ease Tensions in Lebanon
Halabi: Exams Will Be Held on Schedule
The Uncertain Fate of Official Exams… Until Further Notice
Ministry of the Environment Warns of Increased Fire Risks
Lebanon’s Fast-Growing Generation of Stateless Syrian Refugee Children
Registration of Syrian Refugee Births… A Persisting Challenge
Skyrocketing Tuition Fees: The Struggle of Education in a Failing Economy
What a BBC article tells us about Israel’s Lebanon challenge/Seth J. Frantzman/| The Jerusalem Post

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on June 20-21/2024
IDF Discovers ‘There is Almost No Home Without a Tunnel’ in Rafah
UN experts say firms sending arms to Israel could be complicit in abuses
US deeply disappointed over Netanyahu's criticisms
Israel's pledge to guard an aid route into Gaza falls flat as lawlessness blocks distribution
Gaza pier resumes operations as aid collects in marshalling area
U.S. Pier for Gaza Aid Is Failing, and Could Be Dismantled Early
No normalization with Israel without Palestinian state, Saudi ambassador to UK says
Iran's presidential candidates talk economic policies in 2nd live debate ahead of June 28 vote
Iran’s acting FM is building an alliance against Israel – this is how
Netanyahu Says Israel Needs US Ammunition in 'War For Its Existence'
The fate of the latest cease-fire proposal hinges on Netanyahu and Hamas’ leader in Gaza
US will redirect air defense inceptor missiles to Ukraine that other allies had on order
Russia, China find payments workaround as US sanctions net widens, sources say
Putin accuses NATO of creating a security threat for Russia in Asia
The Putin-Kim summit produced an unusual - and speedy - flurry of glimpses into North Korea
Russia obliterates Ukraine's front-line towns faster with hacked bombs and expanded air base network
US destroys six Houthi drones in Red Sea

Titles For The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources on June 20-21/2024
Israel’s long war ... A “ceasefire deal” won’t end it/Clifford D. May/The Washington Times/June 20, 2024 |
Europe: Nazis' 'Do Not Buy from Jews' 2.0/Robert Williams/Gatestone Institute./June 20, 2024
Biden Administration Seeks to Silence Consensus Civil Society Organizations in Israel/Naomi Linder Kahn/Gatestone Institute/June 20, 2024
France: Towards a Year of Uncertainty?/Amir Taheri Friday/Asharq Al-Awsat/21 June 2024
Turnout a key issue in Iran’s presidential election/Majid Rafizadeh/Arab News/June 20, 2024

Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on June 20-21/2024
Hezbollah Threatens Cyprus Over Israel Links
FDD/June 20/2024
Hezbollah warned Cyprus on June 19 against helping Israel in any future war in Lebanon, signaling that the Mediterranean island nation could also face a terrorist attack. Amid expectations that more than eight months of Hezbollah provocations against northern Israel could soon spiral into full-blown war, the Iran-backed terrorist organization’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, sharpened the threats in a televised speech. No part of Israel would be safe from Hezbollah missiles and drones in a war, Nasrallah said, adding that the Mediterranean Sea would also become a combat zone. “The Cypriot government must be warned that opening Cypriot airports and bases for the Israeli enemy to target Lebanon means that the Cypriot government has become part of the war and the Resistance will deal with it as part of the war,” he said during a ceremony commemorating the Hezbollah terrorist commander Taleb Abdullah, who was eliminated in an Israeli air strike on June 12. Nasrallah did not elaborate on the alleged planned cooperation between Jerusalem and Nicosia. Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides said that Nasrallah’s inflammatory comments “don’t in any way reflect what’s being attempted, which is to present a picture that Cyprus is involved in military operations.”Christodoulides added that his country “is not part of the problem, it is part of the solution” — a reference to a maritime aid corridor running from Larnarca to Gaza .
Expert Analysis
“After a series of Iranian-orchestrated assassination plots in Cyprus were foiled, an Iranian-backed terrorist group is now directly threatening to attack an EU member state. This cannot be allowed to pass. We already have indications that Tehran has used the Turkish-occupied north of Cyprus as a staging ground for such subversion. Might Ankara, whose energy and other geostrategic interests stand to gain from driving a wedge between Cyprus and Israel, have a hand in this new menace?” — Mark Dubowitz, FDD CEO
“Hezbollah’s belligerence towards Cyprus is not a new phenomenon. Hezbollah and Iran’s IRGC have previously targeted Israelis on Cypriot soil and been thwarted in these attempts. Cyprus has played a critical role in helping to establish a maritime corridor to provide humanitarian aid to Gaza. Nasrallah wants nothing more than to undermine the positive role Cyprus is playing in the region. These threats underscore the need to help Cyprus defend itself against terror threats by lifting all restrictions on weapon sales to the island nation.” — Tyler Stapleton, Director of Congressional Relations at FDD Action

Hezbollah fires ‘dozens’ of rockets at Israel after drone attack kills fighter
NAJIA HOUSSARI/Arab News/June 20, 2024
BEIRUT: Hezbollah said it fired “dozens” of Katyusha rockets targeting a barracks in northern Israel on Thursday in retaliation for a deadly strike in southern Lebanon that killed a member of the militant group in the village of Deir Kifa. It came after fears of a wider regional conflict grew on Wednesday when Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah warned that “no place” in Israel would be spared if authorities in the country declared all-out war against his group. He also threatened to target Cyprus if the island nation allowed Israel to use its air bases. Israel and Hezbollah have traded cross-border fire on an almost daily basis since the Oct. 7 attacks by Palestinian militant group Hamas that triggered the war in the Gaza Strip. In the attack by Israeli forces on Thursday, a combat drone hit a car on the Deir Kifa-Srifa road, killing its driver, Abbas Ibrahim Hamadeh. The Israeli army described him as a “Hezbollah operations commander in the Jouaiyya area.”Elsewhere, Ammar Jomaa, the son of cleric Mohammed Jomaa, a Hezbollah official, died when a drone hit the car he was driving on the road to the town of Houmine El-Faouqa. And two people were seriously injured when an Israeli drone struck a pickup truck in the town of Hanouiyeh in the Tyre district. On Wednesday, Israeli forces attacked four Hezbollah sites. It came shortly after the departure of Amos Hochstein, the US president’s envoy for Lebanon and Israel, who had visited Tel Aviv on Monday and Beirut on Tuesday in an attempt to calm the situation. On Thursday morning, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the Jish settlement in the Upper Galilee, near the border with Lebanon, had been evacuated.
Nasrallah’s comments on Wednesday raised concerns on both sides about a possible escalation of hostilities. Michael Malchieli, the Israeli minister of religious services, told Channel 14 news that his ministry, which is responsible for burials, “is preparing for significant scenarios in the north.” Avichay Adraee, a spokesperson for the Israeli army, said the war in the north is “defensive but has offensive aspects in southern Lebanon. The army leadership discussed plans for confrontation in Lebanon and approved them, and we are awaiting the decision of the political leadership. Our current goal is to keep Hezbollah away from our borders, which we achieve through our strikes against its leaders and interests.”Eitan Davidi, head of the Margaliot settlement council, said no place in Israel is safe. “What worries us is the laxity and weakness of the Israeli government on the northern front,” he told Israeli radio news.
Nasrallah threatened during his speech to target all parts of Israel and said Hezbollah had obtained “new weapons that will be seen in action.”He added: “We have prepared ourselves for the most challenging times. There is an unprecedented human power in the resistance, as we have far exceeded 100,000 members. “There will be no place in Israel safe from our drones and missiles. The enemy knows very well that we have prepared ourselves for the most difficult days and the enemy knows what it will face. If war is imposed, the resistance will fight without constraints, rules or limits.”
He warned the Cypriot government that “opening its airports and bases to the enemy to target Lebanon means it has become part of the war.”This threat to Cyprus caused concern in Lebanon and prompted criticism of Hezbollah for its unilateral declaration of war and threats against countries considered friendly. Lebanon’s Foreign Ministry said: “Lebanese-Cypriot relations are built on a rich history of diplomatic cooperation … bilateral communication and consultations are ongoing at the highest levels between the two countries.”Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib, during a call to his Cypriot counterpart, Constantinos Kombos, expressed “Lebanon’s constant reliance on the positive role that Cyprus plays in supporting regional stability.”The Cypriot minister affirmed that his country “hopes to be part of the solution and not the problem,” adding that “Cyprus doesn’t want to be involved in the ongoing war in the region in any way.”In a message posted on social media platform X, the former leader of the Progressive Socialist Party, Walid Jumblatt, wrote: “Cyprus has been a refuge for Lebanese for decades in times of distress.”MP Ghassan Hasbani described Nasrallah’s threat as “very dangerous” and added: “This party had previously threatened the brotherly Gulf states and isolated Lebanon. Today, it expanded that threat to include the EU through Cyprus, since it is a bloc member.”The National Liberal Party warned that “dragging Lebanon into a full-scale war gives Israel a reason to achieve its goal and destroy the country.”It added: “Taking Lebanon and the Lebanese to a place that the majority don’t want is considered an outside decision to hold the country hostage, which serves Iran’s doctrinal plan in the Arab region.”It was reported on Thursday that the Cypriot embassy in Beirut had closed its doors to visa applicants. However, embassy officials said “the consulate didn’t receive on Thursday any visa applications or papers for processing, for one day only.”The Lebanese Foreign Ministry confirmed that this had nothing to do with the comments by Nasrallah: “The decision was predetermined for administrative reasons related to raising the visa fee and the embassy’s work will resume on Friday.”

Head of Lebanon's Hezbollah threatens Israel and Cyprus
Laila Bassam and Maya Gebeily/Reuters/June 20/2024
BEIRUT, June 19 (Reuters) - The head of Lebanon's Hezbollah said on Wednesday that nowhere in Israel would be safe if a full-fledged war breaks out between the two foes, and also threatened EU member Cyprus for the first time and other parts of the Mediterranean. Hezbollah has been trading fire with Israel for more than eight months in parallel with the Gaza war. On Tuesday, the Iran-backed group published what it said was drone footage of sensitive military sites deep in Israeli territory. In a televised address on Wednesday, Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said "there will be no place safe from our missiles and our drones" in Israel in the event of a broader war. The group also had "a bank of targets" that it could target in precision strikes, he said. Israel "knows that what also awaits it in the Mediterranean is very big ... In the face of a battle of this magnitude, it knows that it must now wait for us on land, in the air, and at sea," Nasrallah added. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz had warned on Tuesday that a decision on an all-out war with Hezbollah was coming soon and Israel's military said "operational plans for an offensive in Lebanon were approved and validated". Nasrallah also threatened Cyprus - the EU member state in closest proximity to Lebanon, with which it has cordial relations - accusing it of allowing Israel to use its airports and bases for military exercises. "I used to think she was as beautiful as the moon," Walaa Akel says of her 10-year-old daughter, "The Cypriot government must be warned that opening Cypriot airports and bases for the Israeli enemy to target Lebanon means that the Cypriot government has become part of the war and the resistance (Hezbollah) will deal with it as part of the war," Nasrallah said.
CYPRUS DENIES TAKING SIDES
Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides denied any suggestion Cyprus was taking sides in any conflict. "It (Cyprus) is not part of the problem, it is part of the solution. That role is evident, for example, through the humanitarian (aid) corridor which has been acknowledged not only by the Arab world, but from the international community," he said, referring to shipments of aid from Cyprus to Gaza. Cyprus is not known to offer any land or base facilities to the Israeli military, but has in the past allowed Israel to use its vast airspace - its flight information region - to occasionally conduct air drills, but never during conflict. Sovereign British military bases on Cyprus have been used by Britain for operations in Syria in the past and more recently, Yemen. The Cyprus government has no say in the matter. There are two British bases in Cyprus, which was a colony until 1960. Nasrallah said his group would fight with "no rules" and "no ceilings" in the event of a broader war. He was speaking at a memorial event for a commander killed in an Israeli strike last week - the most senior Hezbollah figure to be killed so far in the current conflict with Israel.
Hezbollah unleashed its largest volleys of drones and rockets at Israel in retaliation. U.N. officials expressed concern at the escalation, and U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein travelled to Israel and Lebanon to urge both sides not to move into a full-scale conflict.
Hezbollah first showed it could hit a vessel at sea by striking an Israeli warship in the Mediterranean during their 2006 war. Reports by media and analysts have for years indicated that Hezbollah acquired Russian-made anti-ship Yakhont missiles in Syria, after its forces deployed there more than a decade ago to help President Bashar al-Assad fight the country's civil war.
This story has been refiled to fix the spelling of Cyprus in the crosshead

Cyprus Denies Nasrallah’s Accusations of Implication in Gaza War
This Is Beirut/June 20/2024
Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah’s speech on Wednesday triggered a wave of international and local reactions. Not only did Nasrallah reiterate his threats against Israel, but he also targeted Cyprus, a member of the European Union.
Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides responded firmly to Nasrallah’s threats, stating that “Cyprus is not involved” in the war between Israel, Gaza and southern Lebanon. He emphasized, “The Republic of Cyprus is part of the solution and not part of the problem,” in remarks published by the Cyprus News Agency (CNA) on Thursday night. Christodoulides criticized Nasrallah’s speech as misleading, saying it falsely implicated Cyprus in military activities. “This is completely contrary to reality,” he stated. He further highlighted Cyprus’s role in facilitating humanitarian aid to Gaza, which is “recognized by the Arab world and the entire international community.”Similarly, former leader of the Progressive Socialist Party Walid Jumblatt expressed concern over Nasrallah’s remarks, noting on X (formerly Twitter), “Cyprus has been a refuge for Lebanese for decades in times of distress.” On Wednesday evening, the Cypriot Ambassador to Israel, Kornelios Korneliou, assured that Cyprus would respond to Nasrallah’s threats and awaited an official reaction from Nicosia. In an interview with the Israeli news site Ynetnews, Korneliou reiterated Cyprus’s non-involvement in the conflict and mentioned the close coordination with Israel to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza. He noted, “Relations between Israel and Cyprus have never been stronger.”Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari commented on Hezbollah’s drone that captured images of “sensitive” areas in Haifa, stating that the army did not intercept it to avoid endangering civilians. In response to Nasrallah’s claims of having precise data on Israeli military positions, Israeli Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi dismissed these as largely inaccurate. He asserted, “We are preparing solutions to face Hezbollah, which will be confronted with our powerful capabilities at the appropriate time.”
Locally, Kataeb leader Samy Gemayel criticized Nasrallah’s strategy of linking southern Lebanon to external conflicts. He remarked, “The violation of sovereignty has destroyed Lebanon and the future of its generations for decades.” He added that the Lebanese people “do not want wars; they only want life.”

Hezbollah Threats: A Cypriot Security Envoy Was in Beirut, Revealed Bou Saab
This Is Beirut/June 20/2024
Deputy Speaker Elias Bou Saab revealed, in an interview on MTV, that a Cypriot security envoy was in Beirut on Thursday, but did not specify the nature of his mission. The visit was related to the Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah’s threats against Cyprus on Wednesday. According to Bou Saab the threats were in fact a message “that led to reactions” from Nicosia. But he pointed out that this message was essentially directed at London, “which has military bases in Cyprus, that are considered British territory”. “Lebanese officials should therefore contact the British authorities to ensure that their bases are not used by Israel to attack Lebanon,” he noted. Commenting on the recent visit of American envoy Amos Hochstein to Lebanon and Israel, Mr. Bou Saab explained that the latter resumed a mission he initiated with a view to the post-Gaza period. The goal of this mission, he said, is to get the Lebanese and Israelis to agree on arrangements that would guarantee lasting calm on the southern border. “The only new element in the efforts to bring about a cessation of hostilities in Gaza and southern Lebanon is US President Joe Biden’s ceasefire proposal. If it doesn’t succeed, it seems that there are other ideas that are considered and that could achieve the same result,” he said, ruling out a wider war. Regarding his relationship with the FPM, from which he was expelled, Mr. Bou Saab explained that he “could no longer accept the methods of this party,” without elaborating on his conflict with its leader, Gebran Bassil. He said only that “proposals” had been made to him, but that he could not go against his convictions. Among other things, Mr. Bou Saab said he was not convinced by Gebran Bassil’s refusal to support the candidacy of MP Ibrahim Kanaan for the presidency of the Republic. On the subject of the economy and the financial crisis, he stressed that the majority of MPs are opposed to the IMF’s proposed regulation, which includes the abolition of bank deposits. In the same vein, he warned against the liquidation of the banking sector, considering the ideas put forward to be suspect, before advocating the implementation of a plan to return depositors’ money.

Israel Kills Three Hezbollah Fighters
This Is Beirut/June 20/2024
The Israeli army raided three cars in Southern Lebanon on Thursday, resulting in the deaths of two Hezbollah fighters. In the first attack, Israel launched four missiles at a car in Deir Kifa around noon, killing Abbas Ibrahim Hamza from the southern town of Shihabiyeh, who was mourned by Hezbollah. The second attack occurred later in the afternoon in the town of Houmin al-Fawqa, killing Hadi Jumaa, the son of Hezbollah leader Sheikh Muhammad Jumaa. The Israeli army also conducted an airstrike targeting a car on the Hanawayeh road in the Tyre district. Later on, it confirmed killing Hezbollah Joya sector commander Fadl Ibrahim. Israeli warplanes targeted the Bir Kallab area in Iqlim al-Tuffah with two air-to-surface missiles. Additionally, a raid was recorded on Jabal al-Rayhan in the Jezzine district, and its echoes were heard in the city of Saida and its eastern surroundings. Israeli reconnaissance planes flew over Naqoura and the coast between Tyre and the al-Qasimiya area north of Tyre. Drones were also seen in the airspace of the Tyre area and the Abu al-Aswad al-Qasimiya area. In retaliation for the attack in Deir Kifa, Hezbollah announced in a statement that it shelled the Zar’it barracks with dozens of Katyusha rockets. Hezbollah also targeted the Ruwaisat al-Alam position in the occupied Lebanese Kfarchouba Hills with heavy machine guns. It also targeted Israeli soldiers inside the Sammaqa position in the Kfarchouba Hills, hitting them directly. According to the Al-Hadath news channel, 25 missiles were reportedly launched from southern Lebanon towards Israel. Earlier in the day, Avichay Adraee, the Israeli army’s Arabic spokesperson, said that after Gaza, the northern border will be where Israel will conduct its offensive operations. In an interview with Al-Hurra news channel, Adraee stated that “the army command has discussed and approved plans for engagement in Lebanon and is awaiting the decision of the political leadership.” Adraee also underscored Israel’s objective of “keeping Hezbollah away from our borders through strikes on its leaders and interests,” reiterating that “Israel did not seek war on Lebanon’s borders, but Hezbollah pushed for it.” On Thursday morning, Israel had instructed civilians to evacuate the town of Jish in the Upper Galilee due to heightened tensions on the border.

UNIFIL and Hochstein Warn of Imminent Escalation in South Lebanon
This Is Beirut/June 20/2024
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) expressed on Thursday deep concern about the escalating confrontations on both sides of the Blue Line. In an interview with Al-Arabiya television, Candice Ardell, Deputy Director of the UNIFIL press office, warned of “a miscalculation that could lead to a sudden and broader conflict.” She urged both conflicting parties (Hezbollah and Israel) to “stop the escalation and reaffirm their commitment to Resolution 1701 for more peace and stability.”Ardell revealed that the peacekeeping forces had begun “direct talks with both parties to the conflict, namely Hezbollah and the Israeli army, to urge them to call a ceasefire and reach a political and diplomatic solution.”According to Ardell, a diplomatic solution is still possible, even though “Resolution 1701, which helped maintain relative stability for 17 years, is now facing many challenges.” This argument is supported by the position of the main parties, who “insist on the importance of 1701 and its level of effectiveness for a long-term settlement of the conflict.”
UNIFIL’s Mission Persists
Ardell said UNIFIL will continue to carry out its mission to achieve the full implementation of Resolution 1701, conducting patrols in collaboration with the Lebanese army. She added, “Around 20% of our operations are carried out in cooperation with the army.”She noted that “any solution involving violence will only lead to more casualties and destruction on both sides of the Blue Line,” adding that “since October 8, UNIFIL posts and vehicles have been regularly exposed to incidents and firing from both sides, resulting in the death and injury of peacekeepers.” The UNIFIL representative also denounced these “unacceptable maneuvers which constitute a violation of Resolution 1701,” calling for “the perpetrators to be brought to justice.”
Netanyahu Addresses Serious Threats
The day after he visited Israel, US special envoy Amos Hochstein warned Lebanese leaders of “serious” threats from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Netanyahu had threatened to step up his attacks on Lebanon if the parties involved failed to reach a political solution that would end the war in South Lebanon.During his visit to Lebanon on Tuesday, Hochstein called for a political solution that would “prevent escalation into a full-scale war,” stressing the urgency of ending the conflict swiftly and diplomatically.

Will Hezbollah Succeed in Disrupting Lebanese-Cypriot Relations?
Natasha Metni Torbey/This Is Beirut/June 20/2024
The self-proclaimed decision-maker on matters of war and peace in Lebanon, Hezbollah strives to increase the country’s isolation from the rest of the world. Today, the focal point is Cyprus, located approximately 200 km from Lebanon, whose relations with the latter are at risk of significant deterioration, depending on the mood and interests of Hezbollah’s Secretary-General, Hassan Nasrallah, and his Iranian protector. “We consider ourselves at war with Cyprus if it allows Israel to use its airports and military bases to target Lebanon,” he warned in a televised speech on Wednesday evening. This threat had immediate repercussions: On Thursday morning, Lebanese citizens were alarmed by an announcement regarding the suspension of Cypriot visa services until further notice. A startling report, swiftly refuted first by Parliament’s Vice-President Elias Bou Saab, then by a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs , and finally confirmed by the Cypriot Embassy in Beirut. “The consulate will not process any visa or legalization requests on June 20, 2024. Passports and legalizations can be collected by presenting the receipt issued by the consulate during the visa application,” stated the Nicosia embassy on X. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, this suspension of services is purely administrative, and the embassy will resume normal operations starting Friday. A simple coincidence or a veiled Cypriot response? The situation has grown increasingly complex recently between the “Resistance” axis and Cyprus. “Hezbollah has surely become at the forefront of this confrontation,” explains Fadi Assaf, co-founder of Middle East Strategic Perspectives. According to him, the clash seemed inevitable after Cyprus aligned itself with the Arab-Israeli camp, which previously had strained relations. The quick partnership forged between the two countries has turned Cyprus into “one of the most pro-Israel European Union countries,” Assaf points out. He believes that Nicosia tightly monitors the presence of Hezbollah-linked elements deemed suspicious on its territory, and has been steadily expanding its military and security cooperation – including intelligence exchanges – with Israel in both bilateral and multilateral contexts. He suggests that the tipping point was likely the series of Israeli military exercises in Cyprus, especially in the Cypriot mountains, which are similar to Lebanon’s landscape.
From the perspective of Beirut’s southern suburbs (Hezbollah’s stronghold), the island is now at the heart of an anti-Moumanaa axis and is upholding one of the most pro-Israeli policies within the EU. In the current geopolitical and military landscape, “Hezbollah’s Secretary-General is taking a proactive stance, issuing direct threats against Cyprus, aiming to use his famous ‘deterrence strategy’ with regard to Nicosia, potentially escalating into a new front involving (as usual) all of Lebanon,” explains Fadi Assaf. It’s important to note that Cyprus is a neighboring country, with which Lebanon has several intricate issues to address, including maritime borders and migratory flows. Therefore, the main victims of this incident would be the Lebanese state and its citizens, who have a growing economic presence in Cyprus.
Historical relationships
History says it all. For a long time, Cyprus has been a key transit point and business hub for the Lebanese population. It is worth noting that after 1974, Nicosia was among the first cities to welcome Lebanese expatriates, who significantly contributed to the country’s economic recovery. The number of brokerage firms, real estate agencies and Lebanese businesses operating there has steadily increased over the years. “We cannot imagine the potential consequences of a conflict between the two countries at this level. We have much at stake, especially since the economic crisis in Beirut has driven a substantial number of Lebanese to flee to Cyprus for security issues and to safeguard their future,” stated the CEO of a real estate agency to This is Beirut. “The amount of Lebanese investment in Nicosia, and their profound interest in the island’s real estate market, highlight the critical need to avoid any further instability that could jeopardize the safety of Lebanese residents in this neighboring country,” he emphasized. Indeed, the Lebanese population has always turned to Cyprus, especially during periods of security and economic instability in their home country. There was even a time when Lebanese nationals did not need visas to travel to the island, as they could obtain them upon arrival. The Cypriot government’s efficient visa and residency permit processes, along with cultural and geographical proximity, have established the island of Aphrodite as the top destination for Lebanese nationals. Cyprus serves as a hub for tourism, business trips, family summer retreats, shopping and interfaith weddings. Recently, Cyprus has also attracted the attention of Lebanese educational institutions: In 2023, the American University of Beirut (AUB) established a branch there, AUB Mediterraneo. From a social perspective and among the Cypriot population, who view the Lebanese people favorably, there is concern about a potential “shift in attitude following Hassan Nasrallah’s aggressive speech against their country, especially if the government fails to respond effectively to dispel any misunderstandings,” Assaf notes.
Official reactions
In response to Hezbollah’s Secretary-General’s threat, Cypriot President Nikos Chrisodoulides replied diplomatically. “I would like to emphasize that the Republic of Cyprus is not involved in any way in this conflict. Cyprus is part of the solution, not part of the problem,” he asserted firmly.On Thursday, Nicosia’s government affirmed that it will not allow any nation to conduct military operations from its territory. In response, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs promptly responded: “We would like to emphasize that Lebanon and Cyprus have longstanding relations marked by diplomatic cooperation. Regular and ongoing communication and consultations continue on matters of mutual interest.” Will diplomacy prevail?

UN Special Coordinator Calls for Halting Conflict in South Lebanon
This Is Beirut/June 20/2024
United Nations Special Coordinator Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert emphasized the necessity of halting conflict along the Blue Line during a meeting on Thursday with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) Head of Mission and Force Commander Aroldo Lázaro and peacekeepers stationed in south Lebanon. “Our joint efforts are aimed at restoring stability along the Blue Line after over eight months of intense fire exchanges (between Israël and Hezbollah) that have severely disrupted tens of thousands of lives on both sides,” the special coordinator stated following her visit to the UNIFIL headquarters.
“It is crucial for all sides to stop the firing and for the parties to commit to sustainable solutions in line with Security Council Resolution 1701. There is no inevitability to conflict,” Hennis-Plasschaert said, stressing the importance of negotiations to restore peace at the southern border. Lieutenant General Lázaro reiterated UNIFIL’s commitment to peace. “Despite the current challenges, peacekeepers will continue to support the implementation of Resolution 1701 on the ground and to engage both parties through our liaison and coordination mechanisms. We will continue to work closely with the special coordinator to urge de-escalation and steps toward a lasting political and diplomatic solution,” he said. Earlier on Thursday, UNIFIL expressed deep concern over the escalating confrontations on both sides of the Blue Line. In an interview with al-Arabiya television, UNIFIL’s Media Office Deputy Director Candice Ardell warned of the dangers of miscalculation in the current climate. “A miscalculation could lead to a sudden and broader conflict,” she cautioned.

Cameron to Mikati: UK Ready to Help Ease Tensions in Lebanon
This Is Beirut/June 20/2024
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron called Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Thursday, expressing the United Kingdom’s readiness to engage and assist in efforts to reduce tensions in southern Lebanon. Cameron and Mikati also discussed bilateral relations and the current situation in Lebanon and the region, aiming to define ways to establish calm, security and stability amid escalating tensions along the Blue Line. The UK has joined diplomatic efforts led by the United States and France to prevent a war between Lebanon and Israel. Recently, Washington sent its envoy, Amos Hochstein, to the region in hopes of reaching a political solution.

Halabi: Exams Will Be Held on Schedule
This Is Beirut/June 20/2024
Caretaker Minister of Education Abbas Halabi stated in an interview on MTV Lebanon that the official exams will proceed as planned, despite the ongoing conflict in southern Lebanon. “We are well aware of all the difficulties and concerns that the students in the south are enduring,” Minister Halabi noted. “However, we have a national educational obligation. We have chosen the exam centers in the safest locations, developed an emergency plan, and distributed the admission cards, which are usually not given out until 24 hours before the exam date,” he said. He emphasized that “the official exams will be held on their scheduled dates: June 24 for technical education and June 29 for high school certificates, at the same time across the Lebanese territory. This decision is irrevocable.”Halabi added that the Ministry will start distributing admission cards to students in the south on Friday. “It is my duty to ensure all conditions are met for conducting the exams, and students need to know that a school certificate does not qualify them to enter universities and institutes abroad,” he stressed. “I must conduct these exams, and rumors suggesting that the Ministry is not ready or that there will be certificates issued instead are just rumors. I want to stress that the exams will be held on schedule,” the minister reiterated.

The Uncertain Fate of Official Exams… Until Further Notice
Michael Al Andary/This Is Beirut/June 20/2024
South Lebanon students, on Thursday, protested in front of the Ministry of Education against holding the official exams, as caretaker Minister of Education Abbas Halabi is expected to make an announcement about the fate of the exams this evening.
The protesters accused Halabi of disregarding the violence that has been gripping South Lebanon since October 8, depriving students there of proper education and forcing the displacement of a large number of them. They stressed that the war, initiated by Hezbollah in its so-called “support front” for Gaza, started on the eve of the beginning of the school year. Scores of families have since been displaced from the southern villages due to intense Israeli bombardments. Addressing the protesters, a student representative said that “those who stayed in their villages had their school year continuously disrupted by heavy Israeli artillery shelling and drone attacks.”In a country where postponement, vacancy and extension of deadlines has been a common feature since the end of the last presidential term on October 31, 2022, Halabi appears to be swimming against the tide. Following a meeting with caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Halabi had announced that Lebanese official exams will take place next June 29, confirming earlier statements to An-Nahar newspaper. The dates for the baccalaureate exams were set for June 29, July 1, 2, 4 and 5, 2024, whereas the brevet exams were canceled. Informed sources close to Halabi told This Is Beirut that “the exams will take place on time as the minister previously said, and all necessary preparations have been made.” Halabi also declared that he was “looking for safer areas to allow South Lebanon students to sit for their exams safely.”In this context, the Director General of Vocational and Technical Education, Hanadi Berri, issued a circular allowing students in the South and Nabatieh governorates to enroll in exam centers other than the ones to which they were assigned. Amidst uncertainty about the fate of the official exams, school administrations and teachers are living in limbo. “Every day we wake up to different rumors circulating on WhatsApp or fake statements claiming that the exams have been canceled and students will be granted certificates,” said a school principal in Zahle who spoke to This Is Beirut on condition of anonymity. “Teachers are frustrated and their work is being affected… I wonder how hard it is on students,” the principal added. “The government postponed municipal elections because the Parliament Speaker refused to separate the South from Lebanon, this should be the case also for official baccalaureate exams… imagine giving students who live in the South certificates, while holding the exams normally in other regions. This is nonsense,” the principal contended. Until further notice, the government is still keen and insisting on holding official exams according to schedule, but uncertainty still prevails over their fate.

Ministry of the Environment Warns of Increased Fire Risks
This Is Beirut/June 20/2024
The Ministry of the Environment has issued a caution regarding a significant increase in the risk of fires in Lebanon in the coming days, especially in the regions of West Bekaa, Rachaya, and Akkar. The ministry urges citizens to exercise extreme caution and avoid any activities that could start a fire near vegetation, as temperatures are expected to rise significantly. In a statement issued on Thursday, the ministry also called on municipalities, environmental protection committees, regional fire surveillance teams, and civil organizations to monitor potential dangers closely. It emphasized the importance of early detection to ensure rapid intervention by civil defense teams and first responders. For more information, visit the national early warning platform: https://ewsp.gov.lb/fire-forecast-bulletin and the Fire Lab platform: https://firelab.balamand.edu.lb/FireLabWeb/FireDanger. In case of emergencies, call 125 to report fires.

Lebanon’s Fast-Growing Generation of Stateless Syrian Refugee Children
Samar Kadi/This Is Beirut/June 20/2024 
Ahmad slipped through the cars stopping at the red lights as he hopped from one vehicle to another selling flowers. The six-year-old boy is so small that he could hardly reach the cars’ window. He is among scores of Syrian refugee children working on the streets in Lebanon. A fast-growing generation of Syrian children born in Lebanon since their parents fled the war in their country in 2011, are stateless, lacking legal recognition as citizens of any country. Without birth certificates, and official papers proving their identity, these children are simply invisible to the authorities. According to the data of the Ministry of Social Affairs, some 250,000 children were born to Syrian migrant and refugee families since 2015. However, there is no data on Syrian births before that date, or on the number of unregistered births. The majority of the newborns are not registered in any official register, including a certain percentage who don’t even have a birth certificate. Maria Assi, executive director of Beyond, a local NGO that works on preventing child labor, underlines that the lack of basic documentation is the main reason for the alarming rise in the number of child labor among Syrians. “They work in agriculture, collecting recyclables from garbage bins, in car repair shops, in begging, and many jobs for adults. These children cannot even access informal education because they are not registered and have no legal proof that they exist,” Assi told This is Beirut. A complex registration process, lack of marriage certificates of the parents and unaffordable registration fees, in addition to ignorance of the registration procedures are among the reasons for failing to register newborn Syrians in Lebanon. “Many couples who got married in Lebanon did not register their marriage,” Assi said. “This is especially true in informal Syrian refugee camps where religious ceremonies are carried out at the hands of a local uncertified sheikh to make the marriage ‘halal’ (legal according to religion), but there is no official documentation to prove that union.”“Another reason could be that the parents do not register their children intentionally, because being stateless increases their chances of getting accepted as asylum seekers if they succeed to reach Europe,” Assi added. Sociologist and psychology professor at the Lebanese University, Mona Fayyad, noted that the Arab world is home to the highest number of refugees and war-displaced children, who are left out of schooling and other basic rights. “We will have whole generations of illiterate people,” Fayyad warned. “They would probably engage in some sort of labor or manual work, and others might deviate, becoming delinquents, while girls engage into early marriage.”
“The same applies to Syrian refugee children who are not registered and left without papers,” she added.
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) has been investing time and money to mitigate the alarming problem of statelessness among Syrian children by offering legal counseling, and helping process registrations which, however, remain largely incomplete.
Jenny Bjerlestam, Information, Counselling and Legal Assistance specialist with NRC, points out that “the large majority of the children have some kind of birth certification from a doctor or a midwife, resulting in an increase of birth registration at the foreigners’ registry by 36%.”Nonetheless, the next step of registration at the Syrian embassy is largely disregarded. Refugees mostly fear approaching the embassy for security concerns. “Among other top barriers are the lack of awareness of the procedures, limited freedom of movement due to illegal residency or lack of identification documents, fees and transportation,” Bjerlestam said in an interview with This is Beirut.
But the main obstacle for children’s registration remains the illegal marriage contract of their parents. An estimated 33% of Syrian marriages contracted in Lebanon are not registered, thus unofficial under Lebanese Law. “Of all those married in Lebanon, 3% have no marriage certification whatsoever, while marriage contracts made by uncertified clerics is estimated at 21%,” Bjerlestam noted. Unregistered children will not be able to return to Syria with their families, leaving them with no option but to be smuggled back into their home country through the porous border. “But there, again, without papers, they will have no access to any of their rights. It is a vicious circle. If their status is not legalized, these children will eventually pass on their statelessness to their own children,” the NRC official added. According to human rights’ activist and lawyer Mohamad Araji, local and international NGOs are increasingly involved in helping refugees legalize their children, underpinning the gravity of the issue and its detrimental consequences on Lebanon and the children. “Some NGOs have been lately working on the registration process from A to Z, but they cannot do anything for children who don’t even have a birth notification, as if they were not born at all, not to mention that some registrations are chaotic in the sense that the child is sometimes registered under the name of his uncle or a relative,” Araji said. The Lebanese government is also showing flexibility to encourage the refugees to register their marriages and offsprings. “While initially, the couple needed to have residency permits to legalize their marriage, it is now possible to register the marriage contract if one of them has a legal status. Also, parents can still register their children who exceeded the one-year deadline without a court procedure,” Araji added. Under its Information, Counseling and Legal Assistance (ICLA) program, the NRC conducts information and awareness campaigns about the importance and the process of birth and marriage certification, and provides legal counseling and support in carrying out the actual registration. In certain cases, clerks are taken to the informal tented settlements to carry out the registration.

Registration of Syrian Refugee Births… A Persisting Challenge
Credit: Syahtuah Mohamed / Shutterstock.com
Joanne Naoum/This Is Beirut/June 20/2024
Syrian refugees and migrants in Lebanon, whose number is believed to have exceeded two million, compared to the Lebanese population of six million, are a hot subject of local debates. However, what is even more concerning, is the fast-growing number of unregistered Syrian births. Thirteen years have passed since the war in Syria, and yet, this issue that has drowned Lebanon unequivocally has been long overdue. We are past the fact that Lebanon is not a refugee country. Past that Lebanon has been plagued by multiple severe crises. And yet it seems, that a radical and permanent solution to this alarming issue proves sterile, both internally and internationally. However, Lebanon developed a mechanism that facilitates the administrative procedures for Syrian refugees to register their newborns. The challenge remains in the high number of these births, whether of registered refugees or Syrian migrants who have entered Lebanon illegally. The fact remains that any newborn who is not registered as Syrian is considered “stateless” after a certain period, and the risk of integration or naturalization of these unregistered births proves critical to Lebanon.
UNHCR on “Integration or Naturalization”
“Nearly 60% of Syrian children born in Lebanon still need to complete their birth registration process,” said UNHCR Spokesperson in Lebanon Lisa Bou Khaled to This is Beirut. She highlighted that “children born to Syrian parents in Lebanon are registered as Syrian, not Lebanese, and UNHCR is not advocating for the integration or naturalization of refugees in Lebanon.”Bou Khaled explained some of the complications that refugees face in registration, the main barrier to completing the process remains associated with cost. She pointed out that the other difficulties reside in meeting birth registration requirements due to the loss of documents and the inability to replace them. To address this “the UN, in partnership with the Government of Lebanon, facilitates the registration of births”, she said. The UNHCR Spokesperson in Lebanon stated that birth registration rates and residency rates have seen some “improvement year on year thanks to the efforts of response partners providing legal services and outreach.” Birth registrations for children born in Lebanon increased to 41% at the end of 2023, up from 36% in 2022, at the Foreigner’s Registry level. Similarly, overall birth registration at the Noufous level rose to 56%, compared to 53% in 2022, she added.
Plan to Register Births of Syrian Refugees
For her part, the head of the Lebanese crisis response plan (LCRP) Ola Boutros told This is Beirut that the Ministry’s Social Affairs LCRP team has been actively working to add the births of Syrian refugees to the records of families registered with the UNHCR. She explained that incomplete files are referred to legal partners to finalize birth registration documents in the civil registration office and the foreigners’ registry at the General Directorate of Personal Status. “This process ensures that Syrian identities are preserved, helping to prevent statelessness and protecting Lebanon from the risks associated with permanent settlement,” she said. In 2015, the registration of new Syrian refugees in the UNHCR records was suspended by a decision from the Lebanese government. However, the Ministry of Social Affairs’ database has included 250,000 Syrian newborns from 2015 to date, Boutros said.
In collaboration with partners such as the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities and UNHCR, the Ministry of Social Affairs launched the “National Plan for Registering Births of Syrian Refugees and Palestinian Refugees from Syria.” This comprehensive plan includes awareness campaigns, legal consultations, referrals, and follow-ups in informal camps, Boutros said. Additionally, a program is being implemented to reach births of both registered and unregistered refugees with UNHCR, in cooperation with local officials (mukhtars) and other related activities.
Ministry of Public Health
Registration Procedures
1. Obtain the Lebanese birth notification from an authorized doctor or midwife.
2. Get the birth certificate endorsed by a Mukhtar located in the region where the birth occurred.
3. Register the birth certificate at the Noufous (District level “Caza”).
4. Register the birth certificate at the Foreign Registry of the Personal Status Department (Governorate level).
5. Register/stamp the birth certificate at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
6. Register/stamp the birth certificate at the Syrian Embassy in Lebanon.
The issue of unregistered births of Syrian refugees raises serious concerns as it is inherently linked to Lebanon’s demography and any potential demographic change to its identity, amidst the increasing migration of Syrians in recent years. Add to it that Lebanese births have declined over the years to 66,866 in 2023, according to Policy and Research Specialist at Information International, Mohammad Chamseddine.

Skyrocketing Tuition Fees: The Struggle of Education in a Failing Economy
Salam Zaatari/This Is Beirut/June 20/2024
Over the past four years, Lebanon has experienced a stark contrast in living conditions, highlighting the nation’s dramatic decline. The revolution that once held the promise of change has failed, leaving citizens disillusioned as the state continues to neglect their needs. The collapsed economy has plunged the country into decadence and rampant corruption. The war on Gaza has frozen any future solutions, and further divided a country with no president, no oil and gas plans, no reform plans – no plans for anything, really. The Lebanese, as a nation and state, are simply winging it at this point. Robert Fisk once wrote an acute description of Lebanon, stating, “Lebanon is like a Rolls Royce with square wheels… it has a lot that’s worthy of praise, but it doesn’t run so well.”This dichotomy is evident in the contrasting scenery across Lebanon: In the south, the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah brings devastation, while in Beirut, new expensive clubs and cafés flourish, hosting concerts for artists like Amr Diab and offering wild rooftop nightlife. This stark disparity paints a picture of national schizophrenia, where the harsh realities of war and economic collapse coexist with pockets of opulence and revelry. Or are there simply two separate Lebanons? People or journalists who tweet about the economy improving based solely on the flourishing F&B businesses or the number of new restaurants opening are misguided fools. To be more respectful, let’s say they are delusional or naive in their comparison. This is not a valid way to assess the health of an economy. Our economy is barely recovering, and it’s taking too long to do so. The country’s GDP growth is 0.5%, the unemployment rate is high, inflation is high, there is a trade deficit and no clear plan of fiscal and monetary policy. I’m mentioning all of this to put the topic I’m writing about into context; namely, the new school tuition fees. The future of education affects the future of the country. This year, private schools decided to raise their tuition fees, between 50% and 120%. The cost of education in Lebanon has soared, placing a significant financial burden on families. The economic crisis, coupled with inflation, has led to skyrocketing tuition fees in private institutions. Many parents find themselves struggling to afford quality education for their children, often making tough sacrifices to do so. The tuition is in US dollars, but average salaries in Lebanon have not increased; if anything, they’re even worse than in 2019. Parents find themselves working more than two jobs and a side hustle just to survive. As a result, an increasing number of students are facing disruptions in their education. Middle-class families had the option of providing a good education for their kids before the crisis because public schools in Lebanon were not an option. But many families are left with no option for next year but to pull their kids out of school, consider another school with lower tuition fees or the worst case scenario, a public school admission. The deterioration of the educational system poses significant dangers to any society. In Lebanon, the neglect of public schools and the soaring tuition fees in private institutions will have severe repercussions. Education, a cornerstone of societal progress, is becoming increasingly inaccessible to the middle class, threatening the country’s future stability and growth. Not to mention that dozens of these private schools did not improve their teachers’ salaries. Can you imagine the state of public school teachers? Public schools in Lebanon have long been underfunded and poorly maintained. The government’s neglect has led to deteriorating facilities, a lack of resources and underpaid teachers. As a result, public education is often perceived as substandard, pushing parents to seek private schooling for their children despite its high cost. Again, this shift places an immense financial burden on families.
Private schools, once seen as a refuge from the failing public system, have become prohibitively expensive, making quality education a luxury rather than a right. For a family with an annual income of $50,000, a significant portion of their budget – around one-fifth, or $10,000 – is dedicated to school fees and activities. This allocation leaves less room for other essential expenses, such as healthcare, housing and savings. It’s one of the reasons why Lebanon’s birth rate is dropping in recent statistics, as former Minister of Interior Marwan Charbel claimed that out of every five births in Lebanon, four were Syrians and only one Lebanese. The impact on society is profound. Middle-class families, traditionally the backbone of economic stability, are being squeezed out of educational opportunities. As access to quality education diminishes, social mobility is stifled, widening the gap between the rich and the poor. Children from less affluent families are left with fewer opportunities to succeed, perpetuating a cycle of poverty and limiting the nation’s potential for innovation and growth. If this trend continues, Lebanon risks creating a society where only the wealthy can afford quality education, undermining the principles of equality and fairness. Investing in the public school system and regulating private school fees are crucial steps to ensure that every child has the opportunity to receive a good education, ultimately benefiting the entire nation.

What a BBC article tells us about Israel’s Lebanon challenge
Seth J. Frantzman/| The Jerusalem Post
The report about this small village is symbolic: It almost gets at the truth but it refuses to fully uncover how Hezbollah has destroyed the life of villages like this.
An article published by the BBC on Saturday can shed some light on the town of Alma al-Shaab – sometimes spelled “Aalma El Chaeb” – located across the border from the Israeli community of Hanita, which has been a frequent target of Hezbollah attacks.
Alma al-Shaab is a Christian village and shares a similar name with Ayta ash-Shaab, a different town located 17 km. to the east, which is a frequent target of IDF strikes due to Hezbollah’s presence. The article is titled “Why 800 people fled a sun-kissed Mediterranean village,” and is written by Ali Abbas Ahmadi. “Why, why us?” asks Milad Eid, a resident of the village. “An hour earlier, he was dousing a fire at a house that had been hit by an Israeli missile. While he was there, a bomb struck another one,” reads the article.
It sketches out a story of a town whose residents had to flee due to the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel. Since October 8, Hezbollah has launched thousands of rockets, missiles, and drones at Israel in support of Hamas after the attacks on October 7. This has plunged the poor people of the border villages of Lebanon into a war zone.
These are people who have no say in the fact Hezbollah uses their lands to hide weapons. Hezbollah has a massive arsenal of 150,000 rockets, it has missiles and drones and effectively functions as an army – an army large enough and similar enough to that of other established states.
However, it is also a terrorist group. The international community has long tolerated Hezbollah’s illegal role in hijacking Lebanon, the same way it tolerated Hamas taking over Gaza. One conclusion could be that the international community recognizes some sort of benefit to having these groups growing in power on Israel’s borders. Instead of focusing on trying to curtail them, some see them as helpful proxies. Yet these groups have brought destruction to Gaza and Lebanon. IDF Spokesman R.-Adm. Daniel Hagari warned on Sunday, “Hezbollah’s increasing aggression is bringing us to the brink of what could be a wider escalation – one that could have devastating consequences for Lebanon and the entire region… Israel must defend the people of Israel. We will fulfill that duty – at all costs.”
Israel will face an uphill struggle in Lebanon
Israel, however, will face an uphill battle in Lebanon, not only because of Hezbollah but also because of global media coverage and the international community, which will oppose Israel launching any kind of larger war in the North. Meaning, that it is acceptable for Hezbollah to launch 4,000 rockets at Israel in eight months and force the evacuation of thousands from their homes, but not to go to war over it. According to the BBC report, around 800 people fled this small Christian town. “Nobody knows why they are attacking our houses,” Eid says. “It’s not our war.”
Eid is correct; it is not his war. Hezbollah has hijacked this landscape; its actions in southern Lebanon have harmed Christian villages like Eid’s, as well as many others belonging to various groups, such as Shi’ites, who live in southern Lebanon.
And yet any Israeli action in this area is likely to come in for global critique because the cards are stacked against Jerusalem. The BBC article, for instance, notes that the village’s “closeness to the border has seen it heavily targeted by Israeli forces over the past nine months.” The reason why it was targeted is absent. This approach mirrors the one used towards Hamas’s presence in Gaza. Hamas’s presence in hospitals, schools, and tunnels under civilian homes is rarely critiqued or discussed the way it needs to be on the international stage. Hezbollah and Hamas both exploit the civilian landscape, though southern Lebanon is different than Gaza because it is less urban and the towns are more spread out.
The BBC report says that by May 2024 the village had been “hit 188 times,” according to the Beirut Urban Lab, a research center. There is no context or reason given for these hits either. The IDF says it targets Hezbollah fighters and infrastructure and retaliates to attacks on army bases in the North. Still, some top Lebanese officials accused it of “implementing scorched earth tactics to make the whole area uninhabitable,” the article says. This is how these stories are reported: There are the Israeli claims, followed by the claims of the anti-Israel voices, with no due diligence to find out which is closer to the truth. The fact that Hezbollah has used these areas to attack is precisely why they are targeted. The BBC report nearly gets at the truth. “The villagers the BBC spoke to were reluctant to discuss whether Hezbollah or other armed groups were using Alma al-Shaab to attack Israel. One hinted that locals had unsuccessfully tried to stop fighters from using their land.” The article says that 10 houses have been destroyed in the village – does this mean that Hezbollah sought to enter this Christian village and use it as cover? This would be an extreme violation of the rights of these people.
Where is the UN? Where are the other observers?
This report is symbolic in that it almost gets at the truth but refuses to fully uncover how Hezbollah has destroyed the lives of villages like this one. The illegal terrorist group has harmed these beautiful areas by using them in the war on Israel, a fact that the international community conveniently ignores. It doesn’t send observers or investigate the claims and counter-claims. Instead, what we end up with is claims that Israel is targeting civilian homes, with no deeper investigation as to why, or into Hezbollah’s presence. Did it enter this area when civilians left, exploiting it? Or did it already use the village? Why is Hezbollah using this Christian village, if it is, and to what extent is it doing so? We will likely never know the answers, because if and when a war comes, these areas will continue to be targeted. In the end, all the civilian homes that are damaged will go into one large list, without any reference to whether the homes were used by Hezbollah. This is how terrorist groups operate; they make sure that they exploit the civilian landscape to benefit from it. This is the uphill battle Israel faces.
*Seth Frantzman is the author of Drone Wars: Pioneers, Killing Machine, Artificial Intelligence and the Battle for the Future (Bombardier 2021) and an adjunct fellow at The Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on June 20-21/2024
IDF Discovers ‘There is Almost No Home Without a Tunnel’ in Rafah
FDD/June 20/2024
An Israel Defense Forces (IDF) commander spoke on June 19 about the deadly challenges of operating in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. Private homes are connected to an extensive underground tunnel network and are boobytrapped with wired explosives that can be detonated from a distance, IDF Nahal Brigade Commander Col. Yair Zuckerman told The Jerusalem Post. “There is almost no home without a tunnel,” Zuckerman stressed, as he surveyed the challenges encountered by Israeli troops in the city’s Shabura neighborhood. Zuckerman explained “that the tunnels connected the homes in the neighborhood in one vast labyrinth. Holes were also broken through the walls to connect them,” The Jerusalem Post reported. “Rafah is chock-filled with tunnels,” Zuckerman noted. “During the last days alone, I found 17 tunnels.”The IDF has expanded operations in neighborhoods around Rafah. Col. Liron Betito of the IDF Givati Infantry Brigade told The Times of Israel that Hamas terrorists, waiting in tunnels for the arrival of his troops, had booby-trapped a vast number of homes in Rafah. Hamas has also used car backup cameras to ascertain when troops arrive at a booby-trapped building in order to detonate the explosives, Betito observed.
Expert Analysis
“The vast tunnel network discovered by the IDF thus far reveals the staggering military infrastructure that Hamas has constructed beneath Gaza. This extensive network, likely a critical factor in Hamas’s strategic decision-making, in part granted Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar the confidence to launch the October 7 terrorist attack. Sinwar calculated that any Israeli military response to the attack would be unable to destroy Hamas’s infrastructure, thereby ensuring the group’s survival in the Gaza Strip.” — Joe Truzman, Senior Research Analyst at FDD’s Long War Journal. “The IDF is uncovering the extent of Hamas’s terrorist infrastructure in Rafah and southern Gaza. As Israeli forces expand operations, they have found that Hamas illegally placed tunnel shafts and weapons in a plethora of civilian homes. This endangers civilians and has caused suffering to the people of Gaza.” — Seth J. Frantzman, FDD Adjunct Fellow
35,851 Aid Trucks Crossed Into Gaza Since Start of War. A total of 35,851 aid trucks have crossed into Gaza since the start of the war in October, the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the Israeli agency which coordinates aid deliveries from Israel into Gaza, said on June 19. On June 18, “305 humanitarian aid trucks were inspected and transferred to Gaza,” COGAT noted

UN experts say firms sending arms to Israel could be complicit in abuses
GENEVA (Reuters)/June 20, 2024
A group of United Nations experts on Thursday warned arms and ammunitions manufacturers against taking part in the transfer of weapons to Israel, saying it could make them complicit in human rights abuses and violations of international law. The group of 30 experts, including several U.N. Special Rapporteurs, said arms manufacturers supplying Israel should halt their transfers of war materiel, "even if they are executed under existing export licenses". "These companies, by sending weapons, parts, components, and ammunition to Israeli forces, risk being complicit in serious violations of international human rights and international humanitarian laws," the experts said in a statement. There was no immediate comment from Israel which has repeatedly denied carrying out abuses during its Gaza operations, saying it is acting to defend itself and is fighting Hamas militants, not the Palestinian population. The U.N. experts said on Thursday the risk to arms firms had increased since the International Court of Justice ordered Israel last month to halt its military offensive in Rafah in the southern tip of the Gaza Strip, in a landmark emergency ruling in South Africa's case accusing Israel of genocide.
"In this context, continuing arms transfers to Israel may be seen as knowingly providing assistance for operations that contravene international human rights and international humanitarian laws and may result in profit from such assistance," the experts said. Israel has rejected the genocide accusations as false and grossly distorted. The U.N. human rights office said on Wednesday that Israeli forces may have repeatedly violated the laws of war and failed to distinguish between civilians and fighters in the Gaza conflict. Israel dismissed the findings as flawed. Israel's air and ground offensive has killed more than 37,400 people in the Hamas-ruled Palestinian territory, according to health authorities there. Israel launched its assault after Hamas fighters stormed across the border into southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing around 1,200 people and taking more than 250 people hostage, according to Israeli tallies.

US deeply disappointed over Netanyahu's criticisms
Steve Holland and Humeyra Pamuk/WASHINGTON (Reuters)/June 20, 2024
The White House expressed deep disappointment over criticism from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of the United States on Thursday amid tensions between the two allies over Israel's war in Gaza. The White House response came as national security adviser Jake Sullivan and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken planned meetings with Netanyahu's two top aides to discuss the Gaza conflict. Netanyahu on Tuesday issued an English-language video in which he said Blinken had assured him that the Biden administration was working to lift restrictions on arms deliveries to Israel, an exchange the top U.S. diplomat declined to confirm. In a rare account of normally private diplomatic conversations, Netanyahu also said he told Blinken that it was "inconceivable" that in the past few months Washington was withholding weapons and ammunitions to Israel. White House national security spokesperson John Kirby addressed the comments in a briefing with reporters, saying the U.S. had directly expressed displeasure to Israel. "I think we've made it abundantly clear to our Israeli counterparts through various vehicles our deep disappointment in the statements expressed in that video and our concerns over the accuracy in the statements made," Kirby said. "The idea that we had somehow stopped helping Israel with their self-defense needs is absolutely not accurate," he said. Israeli national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi and Ron Dermer, Israel's minister for strategic affairs, will speak with Sullivan as a larger, more formal "strategic dialogue" meeting was being rescheduled, according to a White House official who spoke on the condition of anonymity. Blinken will meet with the Israelis at 3 p.m., according to a senior State Department official. Blinken said weapons shipments - with the exception of one with large bombs - were moving as usual given Israel faced security threats beyond Gaza, including from Hezbollah and Iran. He declined to comment on his private exchange with Netanyahu during a news conference on Tuesday. The United States in May paused a shipment of 2,000-pound and 500-pound bombs due to concern over the impact they could have in densely populated areas but Israel was still due to get billions of dollars worth of U.S. weaponry. Scrutiny on Israel's conduct in its military operation in Gaza has increased as the Palestinian death toll from the war has soared to above 37,000, according to health officials in the Hamas-run enclave and reduced Gaza to a wasteland. The war started when Palestinian Hamas militants stormed across the border and attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and taking 250 others hostage, according to Israeli tallies. Biden in April warned Israel that the U.S. would stop supplying it weapons if Israeli forces make a major invasion of Rafah, a city in southern Gaza that is the last refuge for many displaced by the war.

Israel's pledge to guard an aid route into Gaza falls flat as lawlessness blocks distribution
Julia Frankel/JERUSALEM (AP)/June 20, 2024
The Israeli military said Sunday that it was establishing a new safe corridor to deliver aid into southern Gaza. But days later, this self-declared “tactical pause” has brought little relief to desperate Palestinians. The United Nations and international aid organizations say a breakdown in law and order has made the aid route unusable. With thousands of truckloads of aid piled up, groups of armed men are regularly blocking convoys, holding drivers at gunpoint and rifling through their cargo, according to a U.N. official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media on the issue. He said lawlessness has emerged as the main obstacle to aid distribution in southern Gaza — where an estimated 1.3 million Palestinians displaced from Rafah, or more than half of Gaza’s entire population, are now sheltering in tent camps and cramped apartments without adequate food, water, or medical supplies.
Here is a closer look at the security challenges facing the U.N. and aid organizations.
Israel's ‘tactical pause’ stymied
Israel said Sunday it would observe daily pauses in combat along a route stretching from Kerem Shalom — the strip’s only operational aid crossing in the south — to the nearby city of Khan Younis. Before the pause, aid organizations had reported that the need to coordinate trucks’ movement with the Israelis in an active combat zone was slowing aid distribution. The U.N. official familiar with the aid effort said that there has been no sign of Israeli activity along the route. The U.N. tried to send a convoy of 60 trucks down the road Tuesday to pick up aid at Kerem Shalom. But 35 of the trucks were intercepted by armed men, the official said. In recent days, armed men have moved closer to the crossing and set up roadblocks to halt trucks loaded with supplies, the U.N. official said. They have rifled through the pallets in search of smuggled cigarettes, a rare luxury in a territory where a single smoke can go for $25.
The surge in lawlessness is a result of growing desperation in Gaza and the power vacuum that left by Hamas’s waning power over the territory, said Mkhaimar Abusada, an associate professor of political science at Al-Azhar University in Gaza who is now in Cairo. With the territory's police force targeted by Israel, he said, crime has reemerged as an untreated issue in Gaza. “After Hamas came to power, one of the things that they brought under their control was the lawlessness of the so-called big clans,” said Abusada. “Now, that’s left for the Palestinians on their own to deal with it. So once again, we are seeing shootings between families, there are thefts, all the bad things are happening.” UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, used to deploy local Palestinian police to escort aid convoys, but many refused to continue serving after airstrikes killed at least eight police officers in Rafah, the agency said.
Israel says the police are legitimate targets because they are controlled by Hamas.
Is any aid still getting into Gaza?
The situation has largely paralyzed aid distribution to the south — particularly since Gaza’s nearby Rafah crossing with Egypt was closed when Israel invaded the city early last month. The U.N. official said that 25 trucks of flour used the route Tuesday. Some private commercial trucks also got through — many of which used armed security to deter groups seeking to seize their cargo. An AP reporter stationed along the road Monday saw at least eight trucks pass by, armed security guards riding on top. Before Israel’s offensive into the city of Rafah, hundreds of fuel trucks routinely entered the area. The U.N. has now begun rerouting some fuel trucks through northern Gaza. Farhan Haq, a U.N. spokesman, said five fuel trucks entered Gaza Wednesday. The U.N. humanitarian office reported that these were the first fuel deliveries since early June and supplies remain scarce. Aid groups say only a ceasefire and a reopening of the Rafah crossing could significantly increase aid flow to the area. The military body in charge of coordinating humanitarian aid efforts, COGAT, did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Security concerns also afflict aid from U.S. pier project. The U.S. installed a pier off Gaza’s coast last month, aiming to provide an additional route for aid to enter Gaza. But the ambitious project has suffered repeated logistical and security setbacks. Cyprus, a partner in the effort, said the pier was up and running again Thursday after being detached for a second time last week because of rough seas. COGAT said Thursday there were “hundreds of aid pallets awaiting collection and distribution by the U.N. aid agencies.” But there, too, security concerns are hindering distribution of aid. The U.N. suspended its cooperation with the pier on June 9 – a day after rumors swirled that the Israeli military had used the area in a hostage rescue operation that left over 270 Palestinians dead. Photos of the operation have shown an Israeli helicopter in the vicinity of the pier. Both Israel and the US deny the pier was used in the operation. But the perception that the pier was used for military purposes could endanger humanitarian workers, and threaten humanitarian groups’ principles of of neutrality, the U.N. says. Aid workers said they are working with the Israelis to find a solution, but that the security burden falls squarely on Israel’s shoulders. U.N. and other humanitarian officials, including Samantha Power, head of the U.S. Agency for International Development, met with Israel’s military chief and COGAT officials this week to seek solutions. USAID said afterward that the meeting ended with promises of specific actions, but gave no details.

Gaza pier resumes operations as aid collects in marshalling area
WASHINGTON (Reuters)/Thu, June 20, 2024
The U.S. military's floating pier off Gaza has resumed bringing humanitarian aid into the Israeli-besieged Palestinian territory, the Pentagon said on Thursday, even as aid continues to collect in a nearby marshalling area since the United Nations has not restarted transporting it to warehouses.
The pier had been re-attached to the shore on Wednesday after being temporarily removed last Friday due to poor sea conditions, the latest challenge to the effort that has been hampered by bad weather since it was put into place in May.
U.S. President Joe Biden announced the pier in March for aid deliveries as Israel invaded and bombarded Gaza while also severely limiting aid through land routes, threatening famine conditions. "Overnight, the transfer of humanitarian assistance from Cyprus to Gaza resumed with more than 656 metric tons, or 1.4 million pounds, being delivered to the marshalling yard in Gaza today," Air Force Major General Patrick Ryder told reporters. The United Nations said on Friday it had still not resumed transportation of aid from the pier to U.N. World Food Programme warehouses. The pier has been temporarily removed several times from Gaza's coast. At one point rough seas damaged the pier, forcing repairs. The U.S. military estimates the pier will cost more than $200 million for the first 90 days and involve about 1,000 service members. Ryder said the Pentagon had not yet established an end date for the pier, but officials have said it is likely to be a sustainable option only until August or September because the sea state in the region usually worsens after that.

U.S. Pier for Gaza Aid Is Failing, and Could Be Dismantled Early
Helene Cooper and Eric Schmitt/The New York Times/ June 19, 2024
WASHINGTON — The $230 million temporary pier that the U.S. military built on short notice to rush humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip has largely failed in its mission, aid organizations say, and will probably end operations weeks earlier than originally expected. In the month since it was attached to the shoreline, the pier has been in service only about 10 days. The rest of the time, it was being repaired after rough seas broke it apart, detached to avoid further damage or paused because of security concerns. The pier was never meant to be more than a stopgap measure while the Biden administration pushed Israel to allow more food and other supplies into Gaza through land routes, a far more efficient way to deliver relief. But even the modest goals for the pier are likely to fall short, some U.S. military officials say.
When the pier was conceived, health authorities were warning that the territory was on the precipice of famine. In recent weeks, Israel has given relief organizations greater access, but the groups say the situation remains dire. The Biden administration initially predicted that it would be September before surging seas would make the pier inoperable. But military officials are now warning aid organizations that the project could be dismantled as early as next month, a looming deadline that officials say they hope will pressure Israel to open more ground routes. President Joe Biden ordered the U.S. military to begin building the pier in March, at a time when he was being sharply criticized for not doing more to rein in Israel’s military response to the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attacks. The first truckloads of aid began moving ashore on May 17. Since then, the project has struggled, while many Gaza residents are experiencing immense hunger, aid groups say. In the latest blow to the aid effort, the U.S. military said on Friday that it would temporarily move the pier to keep it from being damaged by high seas.
The decision “is not made lightly but is necessary to ensure the temporary pier can continue to deliver aid in the future,” the U.S. Central Command said in a post on social media, stating that the pier would be towed to Israel. Sabrina Singh, a Pentagon spokesperson, said on Monday the pier could be reattached and aid deliveries resumed later this week. The pier “is not working, at least not for Palestinians,” Stephen Semler, a co-founder of the Security Policy Reform Institute, wrote in an essay for Responsible Statecraft, a Quincy Institute publication. Semler argued that the pier had succeeded only in providing “humanitarian cover” for the Biden administration’s policy of supporting Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.
U.S. officials say that in addition to delivering aid with many of the land routes closed, the pier also threw a spotlight on the urgent need to provide more humanitarian assistance overall to Gaza. But the project’s challenges have frustrated and disappointed top Biden administration officials. Despite the weather-related delays and other problems, there has been one bright spot: The pier has not yet been hit in an attack. Earlier this month, the Pentagon rejected claims on social media that the pier had been used in an Israeli raid that freed four hostages but that led to the deaths of scores of Palestinians. In the hours after the rescue, video circulated online showing an Israeli military helicopter taking off from the beach with the U.S. pier in the background.
After the videos emerged, U.S. Central Command said in a statement that the pier and “its equipment, personnel and assets were not used in the operation to rescue hostages today in Gaza.” American military officials were especially concerned about possible attacks because reports had emerged after the rescue that the United States provided intelligence on the hostages before the operation. Last week, Maj. Gen. Patrick S. Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, denounced “inaccurate social media allegations” that the pier was part of the rescue, but said that “there was some type of helicopter activity” near the pier during the operation. Arlan Fuller, director of emergency response with Project Hope, said the image of “the helicopter taking off from the beach really was contravening to the overall use of the humanitarian space.” He added that the image “muddies the waters” and could put humanitarian workers on the pier in greater risk. Added to that, Central Command had just announced that the pier was usable again after a nearly two-week hiatus for repairs when the hostage rescue effort took place. A day later, the World Food Program said it had again paused aid distribution from the pier because of security concerns.
Biden surprised the Pentagon when he suddenly announced the pier in his State of the Union address. Army engineers built and deployed the pier in two months time, with about 1,000 U.S. troops now involved in some part of the project. When Biden announced the project, officials predicted that it would help deliver as many as 2 million meals a day for Gaza residents. The Pentagon calls the project JLOTS, for Joint Logistics Over the Shore, a capability that it has previously used for humanitarian relief in Somalia, Kuwait and Haiti. On the days that the pier has been in working order, it has enabled the delivery of thousands of tons of aid to Gaza, officials say.
Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, the Central Command deputy commander, recently said that the issues with the pier “stemmed solely from unanticipated weather.”Usually, spring and early summer on the shores of Gaza are calmer. “Plan on X, and nature sends 2X,” said Paul D. Eaton, a retired major general who was in Somalia in 1993 when the U.S. military put a pier in place there to deliver humanitarian aid to civilians caught in war.
Several congressional Republicans have criticized the project for its cost and potential risk to U.S. troops. “This irresponsible and expensive experiment defies all logic except the obvious political explanation: to appease the president’s far-left flank,” Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, the senior Republican on the Armed Services Committee, said earlier this month. Aid workers say the deliveries of food and other supplies have been slowed by bottlenecks for shipments at border crossings caused by lengthy inspections of trucks, limited operating hours and protests by Israelis.
Israel has argued that there are no limits on the amount of aid it allows to enter. It regularly blames disorganized aid groups — as well as theft by Hamas — for failure to deliver food to Palestinians efficiently. Central Command said on Friday that 3,500 tons of aid had been delivered to shore using the pier since the operation started on May 17, with about 2,500 tons of that delivered since the pier was re-anchored and resumed operations on June 8. But much of the aid that makes it through is not reaching Palestinians, aid groups said, because of the logistical and security issues, and looting.
Aid workers say the equivalent of only seven truckloads of assistance is arriving in Gaza via the pier each day, far short of the goal of eventually ramping up to 150 trucks per day. “The volume is negligible,” said J. Stephen Morrison, director of the Global Health Policy Center at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “And the seas are just going to get rougher and rougher.”
c.2024 The New York Times Company

No normalization with Israel without Palestinian state, Saudi ambassador to UK says
ARAB NEWS/June 20, 2024
LONDON: Saudi Arabia will not normalize ties with Israel at the expense of Palestinian statehood, the Kingdom’s ambassador to the UK said on Thursday. Speaking at Chatham House’s London Conference, Prince Khalid bin Bandar said that normalization remained important to Saudi Arabia and other nations in the region because it would ensure peace, stability and security. He admitted that “compromises would have to be made” to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict, which he said affected the world in a way other conflicts did not. “If what is happening (in Gaza) keeps happening, we are going to go down a path that is irreversible,” Prince Khalid said. “The further we get away from finding a solution, the more people lose hope, the more we’re at that point, it’s going to spread to a regional conflict. It’s important for everyone to recognisze the danger of what lies ahead. The conflict will not remain regional, it will become international very quickly,” he said. But Prince Khalid said that normalization would be “irrelevant” until the plight of Palestinians was resolved. “We believe in the creation of a Palestinian state and a solution to the conflict,” he said. “If it was easy, we’d have done it by now but without that, normalization is irrelevant. There is no point having normalization because we would still have conflict and conflict is the problem, not normalization. “There is no point in discussing everything else until we find a solution. Once we do that, everything is on the table.”Prince Khalid said that the Kingdom was “one of the most important countries in the region,” which had “leverage” in opening up the Arab and Muslim world to Israel and for it not to play a role in brokering a solution would be “silly.” But he added for that to happen, Israel “needs to play ball as well,” adding that the price for finding a solution was an independent Palestinian state. The ambassador bemoaned how little global coverage the Saudi position on the crisis received, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s recent Hajj address, in which he reiterated calls for an immediate halt to attacks in Gaza. “It’s important to recognize our position, which has never changed, despite people never listening to us,” Prince Khalid said. “The crown prince’s positon, Saudi Arabia’s position, his majesty (King Salman)’s position, the government’s position and the will of almost every Saudi I know is we need a Palestinian state. “The offer was made in the Arab Peace Initiative; on 1967 borders, a Palestinian state, a two-state solution and everyone lives happily ever after. It goes back to 1982, King Fahd presented the same offer, it has not been taken up, I find it mystifying. “The crown prince stated very clearly, we need a ceasefire, an irreversible solution for the Palestinians and then there’s peace everywhere, it wasn’t even reported. “It’s annoying and frustrating for us because the world assumes something totally different and that’s not helping the situation,” he said.

Iran's presidential candidates talk economic policies in 2nd live debate ahead of June 28 vote
Amir Vahdat, The Associated Press/June 20, 2024
In the second live debate on state television, six presidential candidates on Thursday discussed Iran's economic problems ahead of the country's June 28 election following a helicopter crash last month that killed President Ebrahim Raisi and seven others.
It was the second of five debates planned in the days before the vote in a shortened campaign to replace Raisi, a hardline protégé of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei once floated as a possible successor to the 85-year-old cleric. Like the first debate, the second one also related to economics with the candidates discussing their proposals for Iran’s spiraling economy which is struggling under sanctions imposed by the United States and other Western nations. The candidates also discussed inflation, the budget deficit, fuel consumption subsidies and education. They all promised to try to get the sanctions lifted and to introduce reforms, but none offered concrete details. “Negotiation is a method of struggle," said prominent candidate Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, 62, with regards to getting the Western sanctions on Iran lifted. Qalibaf is a former Tehran mayor with close ties to the country’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.
He emphasized the destructiveness of the sanctions on the economy and said that Iranians have a right to a good life, not just an ordinary life. Iran’s vice president, Amir Hossein Qazizadeh Hashemi, 53, said he will continue Raisi’s unfinished administration and vowed to develop the tourism industry. Regarding the health sector and the emigration of doctors and nurses abroad, Qalibaf said there should be a fundamental change in the way health workers are paid to increase the motivation to stay. Many doctors and nurses reportedly have left Iran in recent years over its deepening economic woes and poor working conditions. Qalibaf's call for more pay for health workers was repeated by the other candidates. All the candidates said they believe the Education Ministry is the most important part of the government because “the next generation of the country is raised in this ministry.” Qalibaf said the ministry's budget must be increased. The one pro-reform candidate, Masoud Pezeshkian, who is backed by pro-reform figures such as former President Mohammad Khatami and former foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, thinks the economic crisis can be resolved by solving party differences inside the country as well as external factors. The June 28 election comes at a time of heightened tensions between Iran and the West over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program, its arming of Russia in that country’s war on Ukraine and its wide-reaching crackdowns on dissent. Iran’s support of militia proxy forces throughout the wider Middle East, meanwhile, has been increasingly in the spotlight as Iran-backed Yemen’s Houthi rebels attack ships in the Red Sea over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.

Iran’s acting FM is building an alliance against Israel – this is how
Seth J. Frantzman/The Jerusalem Post/June 20/2024 |
The report is part of a larger series of moves by the foreign minister and also the Iranian foreign ministry against Israel. Iran’s acting Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani is seeking an alliance with other Islamic countries to “exert pressure” on Israel, the Iranian state media IRNA reported yesterday. The report is part of a larger series of moves by the foreign minister and also the Iranian Foreign Ministry against Israel.“ Bagheri Kani spoke with his Afghan counterpart, Amir Khan Muttaqi, on the phone on Sunday, with the two discussing relations between Iran and Afghanistan, as well as the situation in war-ravaged Gaza,” the report said. Afghanistan is not that important in terms of any role it might have against Israel. But Iran is trying to do more than just rope in the Taliban to its crusade against Israel. “The Iranian diplomat called for joint action by Islamic countries, particularly within the framework of the Islamic Cooperation Organization, in order to increase pressure on the Zionist regime to end its crimes against the people of Gaza,” IRNA said.
Responding to G7 comments
Meanwhile, on Sunday Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani “said that the Islamic Republic will continue to play a constructive role in establishing sustainable security in the region. At the same time, the country will act decisively in defending its security and national interests,” a separate report noted. Kanaani was responding to comments from the G7. The G7 is concerned about Iran’s close ties with Russia and the transfer of military technology between these two states. It is also concerned about Iran’s nuclear program. “The Iranian spokesman reiterated that the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program is only meant for peaceful purposes,” the IRNA claimed. Iran’s foreign ministry slammed the US, UK, France, and Germany in regard to countries putting pressure on its nuclear program. “Some countries, under political motivations and through leveling false and unproven allegations, are trying to continue with their ineffective and failed policy to impose and maintain sanctions against the Iranian nation. Therefore, we advise the Group of Seven to learn from past experiences and stay away from destructive policies,” the ministry said. The acting Iranian foreign minister also met with Igor Khovaev, a special representative for the Russian Foreign Minister. The Iranians called for more cooperation with Russia, especially in the Caucasus. The overall trend is clear. Iran’s acting foreign minister is taking up where his predecessor left off. He is not skipping a beat in terms of trying to work closely with Iran’s friends, such as Russia, in search of isolating Israel. Seth Frantzman is the author of Drone Wars: Pioneers, Killing Machine, Artificial Intelligence and the Battle for the Future (Bombardier 2021) and an adjunct fellow at The Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

Netanyahu Says Israel Needs US Ammunition in 'War For Its Existence'
Asharq Al Awsat/June 2024
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday the country needs ammunition from the United States in "the war for its existence", directly addressing the White House after it criticized him for complaining about arms deliveries related to the Gaza war, AFP reported. "I am prepared to suffer personal attacks provided that Israel receives the ammunition from the US that it needs in the war for its existence," he said in a statement. The Israeli leader's comments came after he angered Washington with a video statement this week accusing it of "withholding weapons and ammunitions to Israel".US officials have said they were not aware of what Netanyahu was referring to. "Those comments were deeply disappointing and certainly vexing to us, given the amount of support that we have and will continue to provide," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told journalists earlier on Thursday. Washington said that there is only one shipment of 2,000-pound bombs that is under review because of concerns about their use in densely populated areas in Gaza. Kirby separately said that US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan is due to meet his Israeli counterpart Tzachi Hanegbi and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer on Thursday. Washington is Israel's main military backer, but the White House has voiced frustration over the rising civilian death toll in Gaza, where Israel has co

The fate of the latest cease-fire proposal hinges on Netanyahu and Hamas’ leader in Gaza
Tia Goldenberg/TEL AVIV, Israel (AP)/June 20, 2024
The fate of the proposed cease-fire deal for Gaza hinges in many ways on two men: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas’ leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar. Each leader faces significant political and personal pressures that may be influencing their decision-making. And neither seems to be in a rush to make concessions to end the devastating eight-month-long war and free hostages taken by Hamas in its Oct. 7 attack. Hamas has accepted the broad outline of the plan but requested “amendments.” Netanyahu has publicly disputed aspects of it, even though the U.S. has framed it as an Israeli plan. Among the major sticking points is how to move from an initial temporary truce in the deal’s first phase to a permanent cease-fire that includes an end to the fighting and full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza. Here is a look at what may be driving the two leaders:
Netanyahu is ‘buying time’
Throughout the war, the long-serving Israeli leader has been criticized for letting political considerations get in the way of his decision-making.
His government is buoyed by two ultranationalist parties that oppose cease-fire deals. Instead, they prefer continuous military pressure to try to defeat Hamas and free the hostages. They also talk about “encouraging” Palestinians to leave and reestablishing Israeli settlements, which were dismantled when Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005 after a 38-year occupation. Netanyahu himself has taken a tough line on the cease-fire, saying he will not end the war until Hamas' military and governing capabilities are destroyed. But with his hard-line partners pledging to topple the government if a cease-fire is struck, Netanyahu has been pushed even farther into the corner. His reliance on them to remain in power recently intensified after a centrist member of his war Cabinet, former military chief Benny Gantz, quit over frustrations with Netanyahu's handling of the conflict. Netanyahu has had to balance internal pressures against demands from the Biden administration, which is promoting the latest cease-fire proposal, and from families of hostages who believe only a deal can set their loved ones free. Tens of thousands of Israelis have joined mass protests in support of the hostage families. Netanyahu appears to be siding with his far-right governing partners for the moment, knowing they hold the key to his immediate political survival, although he says he has the country's best interests in mind. Their departure from the government could lead to new elections, which would open him up to a vote that could end his rule and likely the start of investigations into the failures of Oct. 7.
Netanyahu is also on trial for corruption, proceedings that have continued throughout the war yet have faded from the public consciousness. A cease-fire deal could refocus attention on the charges, which have dogged the Israeli leader for years and which he adamantly denies. Netanyahu's political fortunes appear to have improved over the course of the war. His public support plummeted in the aftermath of Hamas' surprise attack on southern Israel. But over time it has gradually ticked up. While he would still face a tough path toward reelection, he isn't a write-off.
“He runs the war as he wants, which means very slowly. He’s buying time,” said Gideon Rahat, a senior fellow at the Israel Democracy Institute, a Jerusalem think thank, and chairman of the political science department at Jerusalem’s Hebrew University.
Rahat said Netanyahu is also keen to push on with the war in the hopes that former U.S. President Donald Trump returns to office, possibly giving Israel more leeway in its fight against Hamas. “I don’t see any cease-fire that really comes close to being something he adopts,” Rahat said. “But he’s not the only one that controls reality.”
Sinwar's mission is to survive
Hamas' leader in Gaza also appears to be in no rush to sign on to a deal. The militant group's exiled leadership is somewhat varied in its opinion on how to approach a cease-fire agreement. But Sinwar — the mastermind of the Oct. 7 attacks — has particular weight on the matter. As a Hamas stalwart who spent decades in Israeli prisons, he has incentives to keep the war going. On a personal level, his life may be on the line. Israel vowed to kill him in response to the October assault, and Sinwar is believed to be hiding deep within Gaza's underground tunnels surrounded by Israeli hostages. If a cease-fire takes hold, Sinwar will be taking a great risk stepping out in public. “I think he understands that he’s kind of a dead man walking. But it’s a matter of how long can he hold out?” said Khaled el-Gindy, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Middle East Institute think tank. But Sinwar is motivated by more than just his own personal fate. Steeped in Hamas' radical ideology, Sinwar seeks Israel's destruction and has made political gains by watching the war harm Israel's international standing and boost support for the Palestinian cause. Israel has faced surging international criticism — from its Western allies, from the international justice system, from protesters around the world — over its conduct during the war. That has deepened Israel's global isolation, brought accusations that it is committing genocide against Palestinians and driven the prosecutor at the International Criminal Court to seek the arrests of Israeli leaders. Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council think tank, wrote on the social platform X that Sinwar was also “counting on the sustained global outcry due to the horrendous killing of Gazans to force Israel to stop the war eventually,” on his own terms. But Sinwar could face some difficult questions of his own when the war ends — not only over his personal role in the atrocities of Oct. 7 but also from the Palestinian public as the full extent of the wartime devastation and the years-long process of reconstruction sink in. El-Gindy said Sinwar wasn't deterred by the high price Palestinian civilians in Gaza are paying in the war, seeing it as an unavoidable sacrifice on the road toward liberation. From Sinwar’s perspective, continuing to fight Israel’s powerful army, even if only through pockets of resistance, denies Israel a victory, el-Gindy said. “Their whole mission is to survive,” he said. “If they survive, they win.”

US will redirect air defense inceptor missiles to Ukraine that other allies had on order
Will Weissert/WASHINGTON (AP) /June 20, 2024
The White House announced Thursday that it will rush delivery of air defense interceptor missiles to Ukraine by redirecting planned shipments to other allied nations, as Washington scrambles to counter increased Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure. National security spokesman John Kirby said the U.S. had taken the “difficult but necessary decision to reprioritize near-term planned deliveries of foreign military sales to other countries,” though he wouldn't say which nations would be affected or how many. “Right now, we know that Ukraine urgently needs these additional capabilities,” Kirby said on a call with reporters, adding, “Obviously more is needed, and it’s needed now.”The announcement comes after President Joe Biden, during last week's Group of Seven meeting in Italy, suggested such action might be necessary, saying, “We’ve let it be known for those countries that are expecting, from us, air defense systems in the future, that they’re going to have to wait."“Everything we have is going to go to Ukraine until their needs are met,” Biden said. “And then we will make good on the commitments we made to other countries.”The U.S. was already sending Ukraine a consistent stream of interceptors for its air defense systems, including for the Patriot missile batteries and the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems, or NASAMS. But Kirby said that more was urgently needed as Russia's military has accelerated missile and drone attacks against cities and infrastructure centers “trying to destroy Ukraine's energy system ahead of this winter.”Russia has resumed its aerial pounding of Ukraine’s power grid while Kyiv’s forces are again targeting Russian oil facilities with drone strikes, as each side seeks to hinder the other's ability to continue fighting. The number of interceptors to be sent isn't clear but Kirby said it could involve “hundreds” of Patriot interceptor missiles. Kirby said Ukraine will get prioritized shipments as soon as systems roll off assembly lines for the next about 16 months, and those will provide the country with "enough capability” during that period. After that, he said, “Countries that have been asked to delay will start to get” deliveries of systems they had already ordered. Kirby said the move means “a range of countries” will face delays in receiving missile systems that are being diverted to Ukraine but that the shift would not affect Taiwan or what it “continues to need and receive for self-defense" in the face of potential threats from China. Asked to describe how other countries reacted to the shift, Kirby said they were "broadly understanding of it.”“They know how serious the need is in Ukraine," he said.

Russia, China find payments workaround as US sanctions net widens, sources say
MOSCOW (Reuters/June 20, 2024
Russia-China trade options have narrowed since the U.S. imposed sanctions last week on the only Russian bank branch in China, but President Vladimir Putin's Chinese visit last month has helped ensure the two countries have payment alternatives for now, three sources said.
Since Putin's visit, specially authorised banks have been set up in border regions which allow Russian firms to open non-resident accounts (NRA) with Chinese banks, a step that has become more important since VTB's Shanghai branch was targeted with sanctions, they told Reuters. Trade between Russia and China ballooned to a record $240 billion in 2023. Maintaining the flow of income and goods, which is crucial to the Kremlin, depends on ensuring smooth payments. The workaround, which involves smaller, regional banks that can for the time being fly below the U.S. sanctions radar, shows how Moscow and Beijing are having to take increasingly complex steps to ensure bilateral payments continue to be made but at the same time potentially exposing some Chinese financial firms to U.S. sanctions as they look to circumvent restrictions. Using banks in border regions makes it easier for go-betweens working on behalf of Russian companies to flit between them. The scheme, involving small banks with limited or no business with countries which Russia considers unfriendly, also reduces the potential fallout for China. However, the window for them to carry out payments for Russian companies may be narrowing. A senior U.S. Treasury official said this month it is working to identify smaller banks with weaker compliance departments that are still helping to process transactions that aid Russia's military output. Trade with Beijing has become more important to Moscow since it sent its army into Ukraine in February 2022. Russian banks were subsequently blocked from the SWIFT global payments system, while many Western countries and companies severed ties with Russia. "After (Putin's) visit, banks have appeared in one of China's provinces that are opening NRA accounts for Russian companies on Chinese territory," said one banking source, who declined to disclose names due to sanctions risks. Only a handful of banks, located near the border in the northeast, still work with Russia, a second banking source said. "We are not even talking about ... large and medium-sized banks today," the person said. "None of them work with Russia. This is the problem that we must really recognise."The People's Bank of China and China's banking regulator, the National Financial Regulatory Administration, did not respond to requests for comment. After more Chinese firms were sanctioned by the U.S., many may have decided to stop any business with Russia and imports from China could drop, said Yevgeny Kogan, investment banker and professor at Russia's Higher School of Economics. Sanctions on Russian bank subsidiaries in China also create issues, he added.
'FRIGHTENING'
VTB was already under sanctions, but the U.S. Treasury modified restrictions on previously targeted Russian banks to include foreign entities, including VTB's Shanghai branch, a step sources said would complicate payment flows. "The branch of a Russian bank that we all love to use in China was included in the sanctions package," said a source in the payments market said, who expects even Chinese banks to stop all dealings with the branch as a result. Prior to the latest sanctions, CEO Andrei Kostin said VTB was tripling staff in Shanghai to try and cut queues of clients trying to open accounts. Reuters has previously reported delays as long as six months. "We do not comment on the activities of our foreign entities," VTB said. When a Russian company buys or sells goods or services with a Chinese trading partner it needs to be able to receive or pay the cash through payments systems operated by banks. Russia's largest private lender, Alfa Bank, has for months been working on opening two Chinese branches, in Shanghai and Beijing, but without success. That did not stop it touting its China credentials with a vast red inflated dragon adorning its stand at a St Petersburg economic forum this month. "American sanctions are the most frightening, including for our Chinese partners," the payments markets source said. "As the Chinese say, they fear them like the tiger." The threat of secondary sanctions, which could cut institutions off from dollar access, has spooked Chinese banks who do not want to lose access to global markets, the person said, even if there is lucrative trade to be done with Russia.
LIMITED RUSSIAN SWAY
For Russia, payment issues hurt export revenues, disrupt supply chains and raise import prices, the central bank has said, while its oil firms face months-long payment delays.
Compared to U.S. and EU markets, it has limited pull. "No-one in China is ready to fall under secondary sanctions and lose the global market just because of Russia," the payments markets source said. "Neither manufacturing companies, nor financial structures, including banks."The second banking source said non-sanctioned Russian banks were still acceptable to Chinese partners, but U.S. restrictions are a killer blow, with even specially authorised Chinese banks halting settlements. Russian companies can now either open an NRA account with a Chinese bank or create a Chinese subsidiary and open accounts domestically, the person said.

Putin accuses NATO of creating a security threat for Russia in Asia
Reuters/MOSCOW (Reuters) /June 20, 2024
President Vladimir Putin on Thursday accused the NATO military alliance of creating a security threat for Russia and other nations in Asia. We see what is happening in Asia: a bloc system is being put together," Putin told a news conference in Vietnam at the end of a two-day trip to Asia. He held talks in North Korea a day earlier. "NATO is already "moving" there (to Asia) as if to a permanent place of residence. This, of course, creates a threat to all countries in the region, including the Russian Federation. We are obliged to respond to this and will do it," Putin said. Alarmed by China's growing military power, the United States has pushed for NATO to share expertise and build ties with countries such as Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. At odds with NATO over his war in Ukraine, Putin sees the military alliance as an adversary and accuses it of deceiving Russia by granting membership to east European countries following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

The Putin-Kim summit produced an unusual - and speedy - flurry of glimpses into North Korea
The Associated Press/ June 20, 2024
The imagery from Pyongyang emerged quickly, notable in its variety — glimpses into North Korea in near-real time that showed its leader, Kim Jong Un, grinning and glad-handing with Russian President Vladimir Putin and showing him around the capital of one of the world's least accessible nations.
For those who follow the happenings of the Kim family's three-generation rule, the coverage of the Kim-Putin meeting this week — visuals released only by the respective propaganda arms of each government — represented an extraordinary flurry of views into a nation where imagery that feels even remotely off the cuff, not vetted and edited ad nauseam, is rare. The pair marched on the red carpet in Kim Il Sung Square, named after the current leader's grandfather and the nation's founder. They gazed upon a sea of balloon-toting children. They reviewed a military parade and eyed a crowd waving pompoms. They saw — but were not shown interacting with — groups of North Korean citizens, who if the past is any indication were meticulously vetted before getting anywhere near the scene. Those images were vivid and plentiful, but they represented the predictable output of an experienced propaganda apparatus. Far more striking were the in-between moments that managed to peek through — also calibrated carefully, but revealing a smidgen more about the North and its leader than most imagery does. From stills and videos made by both Russian and North Korean state media operations (independent journalists were not given access to cover Putin's visit), the images were many and varied. Here was Kim showing Putin a bust he’d had made of the Russian leader as a gift. Here were the two leaders hugging, looking at horses and Korean Pungsan dogs, leaning in for informal conversations, laughing at a “gala concert.” And here were cutaways to the background of a state dinner — complete with camera dollies, rooms before the leaders entered and other outtake-style shots that surface less often in North Korea's home-grown imagery. One of the most impactful sequences came from Kremlin pool video, filmed just before Putin's arrival in Pyongyang. It showed Kim on the tarmac with his hands behind his back, silhouetted against the airport gate and a scarlet welcome sign behind him, pacing and awaiting his counterpart's presence. It was easy to imagine that Kim Jong Un was, for a moment, not the packaged leader of an authoritarian government but a weary man waiting for a plane after dark. Perhaps most noteworthy was the sense that all this was coming at the world in almost real time — mostly through Russian pool imagery. The North Korean government's own images usually present its leader and nation as stilted, rigid and slightly out of sync — and photos usually emerge well after an event takes place. Also at play: Imagery from the North’s main propaganda organ, the Korean Central News Agency, has occasionally been digitally manipulated before being transmitted; stringent vetting is required before it can be used.
Part of what made this week's images so compelling was the occasional appearance of spontaneity. The overwhelming share of imagery out of North Korea feels staged — because so much of it is. Awkward and deferential people typically surround Kim, as they did his father and grandfather. And often Kim appears awkward himself. But in these frames and footage, amid the fast-moving nature of the week's events, that set-piece feel sometimes seemed absent. And it made North Korea appear more like other places, rather than reinforcing the “hermit kingdom” image. Photos and video can distance us. They can draw us nearer. They can humanize. They can show, to the many, places that only the few see. And sometimes, collectively, they can offer some small epiphanies about a place, its people, even its leader.To look at this week's photos and video from Pyongyang is to know just a bit more about what makes North Korea tick — even if that wasn't the primary intent of the propagandists who created them.

Russia obliterates Ukraine's front-line towns faster with hacked bombs and expanded air base network
Lori Hinnant, Vasilisa Stepanenko And Hanna Arhirova/KHARKIV, Ukraine (AP)/June 20, 2024
The first shock wave shattered aisles stacked almost to the ceiling with home improvement products. The next Russian bomb streaked down like a comet seconds later, unleashing flames that left the megastore an ashen shell. A third bomb failed to detonate when it landed behind the Epicenter shopping complex in Kharkiv. Investigators hope it will help them trace the supply chain for the latest generation of retrofitted Russian “glide bombs” that are laying waste to eastern Ukraine. The Soviet-era bombs are adapted on the cheap with imported electronics that allow distant Russian warplanes to launch them at Ukraine. Other cities that have been devastated by the weapons include Avdiivka, Chasiv Yar and Vovchansk, and Russia has nearly unlimited supplies of the bombs, which are dispatched from airfields just across the border that Ukraine has not been able to hit. Store manager Oleksandr Lutsenko said the May 25 attack hints at Russia's aim for Kharkiv: “Their goal is to turn it into a ghost city, to make it so that no one will stay, that there will be nothing to defend, that it will make no sense to defend the city. They want to scare people, but they will not succeed.”Russia has accelerated its destruction of Ukraine’s front-line cities in 2024 to a scale previously unseen in the war using the glide bombs and an expanding network of airstrips, according to an Associated Press analysis of drone footage, satellite imagery, Ukrainian documents and Russian photos. The results can be seen in the intensity of recent Russian attacks. It took a year for Russia to obliterate Bakhmut, where the bombs were first used. That was followed by destruction in Avdiivka that took months. Then, only weeks were needed to do the same in Vovchansk and Chasiv Yar, according to images analyzed by AP that showed the smoldering ruins of both cities.
Now, Russia is putting the finishing touches on yet another airstrip less than 100 kilometers (60 miles) from Ukraine and launching the bombs routinely from multiple bases just inside Russian borders, according to the AP analysis of satellite pictures and photos from a Russian aviation Telegram channel. The bombing of the Epicenter in Kharkiv killed 19 people, including two children. In all, glide bombs have hit the city more than 50 times this year, according to Spartak Borysenko of the Kharkiv regional prosecutor’s office.
He showed investigation documents to AP that identified at least eight Russian air bases used to launch the attacks, all within 100 kilometers (60 miles) of Ukraine. He said at least one of the munitions had foreign electronics and was made in May. That date suggests Russia is using the bombs rapidly and that it has successfully circumvented sanctions for dual-use items. Photos on Russian Telegram channels linked to the military show glide bombs being launched three and four at a time. In one launch of four bombs, the AP traced the aircraft's location to just outside the Russian city of Belgorod, near the air base now under construction. All four bombs in the photo were headed west — with Vovchansk and Kharkiv in their direct line of fire. At the end of May, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia was launching more than 3,000 of the bombs every month, with 3,200 used in May alone. Oleh Katkov, whose military-oriented site Defense Express first traced the launch location, said hitting air bases is key to slowing the pace of the bombings by forcing Russian planes to launch farther away. “This doesn’t mean they will completely stop their bombings, but it will become more difficult for them,” Katkov said. “They will be able to make fewer sorties per day.”For months, Ukrainian officials complained bitterly about restrictions on using Western-supplied weapons against targets in Russia, including the airfields that house Russian bombers. The United States and Germany recently authorized some targets in Russia, but many others remain off-limits. The newest airfield, just outside Belgorod, has a 2,000-meter (-yard) runway, the AP analysis found. Construction began late summer 2023, during the failed Ukrainian counteroffensive. A Ukrainian intelligence official, who provided information to AP on condition of anonymity, said his government had been closely following the construction, which did not yet appear complete in a photo taken mid-June.
The official also noted that Belarus provides sanctuary for Russian bombers. A map created by the Ukrainian battlefield analysis site DeepState showed 10 airfields in Belarus, including five just across the border from Ukraine. In all, the DeepState map shows 51 bases used by Russia within 600 kilometers (370 miles) of Ukrainian-controlled territory, including three in occupied eastern Ukraine, six in the illegally annexed peninsula of Crimea, and 32 in Russia. “The greatest strategic advantage Russia has over Ukraine is its advantage in the sky,” Zelenskyy said last week. “This is missile and bomb terror that helps Russian troops advance on the ground.” Russia launches up to 100 guided bombs daily, Zelenskyy said. Besides missiles and drones, which Russia already routinely uses for attacks, the bombs cause “an insanely destructive pressure.” The base material for the glide bombs comes from hundreds of thousands of Soviet-era unguided bombs, which are then retrofitted with retractable fins and guidance systems to carry 500 to 3,000 kilograms (1,100 to 6,600 pounds) of explosives. The upgrade costs around $20,000 per bomb, according to the Center for European Policy Analysis, and the bombs can be launched up to 65 kilometers (40 miles) from their targets — outside the range of Ukraine’s regular air defense systems.
The bombs are similar in concept to the American Joint Direct Attack Munition, or JDAM, missiles, which have had their GPS systems successfully jammed by Russian forces in Ukraine. Because Russia does not have the strength to occupy eastern cities such as Kharkiv, bombing is their preferred option, said Nico Lange, an analyst with the Center for European Policy Analysis. “From their point of view, the strategy seems to be to terrorize the cities enough that people will leave,” Lange said. Back at the Epicenter home improvement store, surveillance footage taken just before the explosion showed salesperson Nina Korsunova walking across the floor toward the aisle that she was staffing that day. Then there was a blinding flash, and the camera cut out. Korsunova curled into the fetal position as a display crashed on top of her. She uncovered her eyes just in time to see the second bomb streak inside. With her eardrums blown out, she could hear nothing and saw not a single sign of life. “I thought I was alone and that they had abandoned me there. It gave me the strength to climb out,” she said. She crawled over piles of shattered lamps, and cables snarled her legs as she climbed through debris from the electrical supply aisle.
Two weeks later, the skeleton of the building reeked of a disorienting combination of scorched metal and laundry detergent that spilled from melted jugs in the cleaning products aisle. Neither Korsunova nor the store manager have any plans to leave their hometown. “It didn’t break me,” she said. "I will remain in Kharkiv. This is my home.”

US destroys six Houthi drones in Red Sea
AFP/June 21, 2024
WASHINGTON: The US military said Thursday that it had destroyed four Houthi nautical drones and two aerial ones over the Red Sea off Yemen. The Iran-backed Houthis have launched scores of drones and missiles at commercial vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November, describing the attacks as being in support of Palestinians during the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. The United States and its allies, particularly Britain, have responded with an increased naval presence to defend shipping in the vital waterway and with retaliatory strikes on Houthi targets. The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement Thursday night that its forces had “destroyed four Iranian-backed Houthi uncrewed surface vessels (USV) in the Red Sea and two uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) over the Red Sea” in the past 24 hours.CENTCOM said the day before that it had destroyed “one ground control station and one command and control node” in a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen. This week, a merchant ship whose hull was breached in an earlier Houthi attack, the M/V Tutor, was believed to have sunk in the Red Sea after its crew was evacuated, according to a maritime security agency run by the British navy. A Filipino sailor aboard the vessel was killed in the attack.
A Sri Lankan crew member on another ship, the M/V Verbena, was seriously injured in a separate attack, and the vessel had to be abandoned. US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller condemned those attacks in a statement and said Washington would “continue to take necessary action to protect freedom of navigation and commercial shipping.” He also called on the Houthis “to release all detainees, including the United Nations, diplomatic, and non-governmental organization staff they detained earlier this month.”The Houthis earlier this month arrested a number of people they claimed were part of a US-Israeli spy network, adding that those held worked under “the cover of international organizations and UN agencies.” The heads of six United Nations agencies and three international NGOs subsequently issued a joint call for the release of their staff, with UN rights chief Volker Turk dismissing the spying accusations as “outrageous.” The Houthis are engaged in a long-running civil war that has triggered one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. More than half of the population is dependent on aid in the Arabian Peninsula’s poorest country.

Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources on June 20-21/2024
Israel’s long war ... A “ceasefire deal” won’t end it
Clifford D. May/The Washington Times/June 20, 2024 |
The Nova Music Festival was billed as a celebration of “Friends, Love, and Infinite Freedom.” On Oct. 6, 2023, attendees from more than two dozen countries gathered in Israel’s Negev Desert just three miles from Hamas-ruled Gaza to sing, dance, and celebrate peace through the night.
At dawn the next day, Hamas terrorists used bulldozers and bombs to break through Israel’s high-tech fence that was thought to secure the border. Arriving at the festival grounds, they began slaughtering, raping, mutilating, and kidnapping concertgoers, exuberantly shouting: “Allahu Akbar!” – “God is greatest!”
On a visit to Israel earlier this month, I wandered through that killing field, now a makeshift memorial. Atop a small forest of poles are pictures of the more than 360 victims, most of them young, and, in these photos, smiling and full of life. Flowers and Israeli flags surround them. I also toured Be’eri, a nearby kibbutz, a farming community, where the invaders from Gaza gleefully tortured, shot and burned alive men, women, children, toddlers, and babies.
Oct. 7 was the bloodiest day in Israeli history, the worst Jew-killing orgy since the Nazis overran Europe. Within hours, jihadists and their secular allies were blaming Israelis and/or Jews for Hamas’ crimes and atrocities. Hamas, they insisted, was responding to the Israeli “occupation” – ignoring the plain fact that, in 2005, the Israelis withdrew from Gaza, a territory they’d taken from Egypt in the defensive war of 1967.
Hamas seized full control of the territory in 2007, after waging a brief war to oust the Palestinian Authority. Hamas then began importing weapons and ammunition – provided mostly by Iran’s rulers – and constructing the expensive and elaborate subterranean fortress in which Yahya Sinwar and other Hamas honchos are believed to be ensconced, presumably surrounded by hostages in chains.
Aboveground, Hamas fighters have blended in with noncombatants serving as human shields. That this is a key component of Hamas’ warfighting strategy was confirmed by the Wall Street Journal’s publication last week of secret messages Mr. Sinwar has sent to his compatriots outside Gaza. Dead Gazans, he told them, are “necessary sacrifices” in the long war to annihilate Israel and exterminate Israelis.
Israel’s many critics and enemies refuse to recognize this reality. On June 8, Israeli commandos staged a daring broad-daylight rescue of four hostages from two civilian buildings in Nuseirat, a city in central Gaza.
Joseph Borrell, the European Union’s foreign minister, called the operation a “massacre.” How dare Israelis return fire at those trying to kill them as they were extricating their citizens! Indeed, the leader of the Israeli mission was mortally wounded by heavily armed Hamas terrorists.
The Washington Post headlined: “More than 200 Palestinians killed in Israeli hostage raid in Gaza.” The Post is one of many media outlets that parrots whatever numbers Hamas provides without attempting to verify or distinguish civilians from combatants. (Israel’s military estimates about 100 Gazans were killed or wounded, most of them gunmen.) BBC news anchor Helena Humphrey asked Jonathan Conricus, a former officer in the Israel Defense Forces, whether Gazans should not have been warned of the impending rescue operation. (The BBC has gone beyond parody.)
While the media remains focused on Gaza, there are other fronts in this war. Most significantly, since Oct. 8, Hezbollah, Tehran’s most formidable foreign legion, has been firing rockets and drones from southern Lebanon into northern Israel, the Galilee and the Golan. The attacks have sharply escalated over recent days. This demonstrates – to anyone with eyes that see – that “ceasefire deals” and “peace agreements” with proxies of Tehran are useless or, worse, lethal traps.
Recall that Hezbollah’s last major war against Israel was in 2006. U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701 mandated a “full cessation of hostilities” by Israel in exchange for the establishment of a zone from Lebanon’s border with Israel to the Litani River “free of any armed personnel, assets and weapons other than those of the Government of Lebanon” and U.N forces. It also called for Hezbollah’s disarmament.
But the 10,000 U.N. troops charged with enforcing the demilitarization of southern Lebanon merely watched as Hezbollah hid thousands of missiles in mosques, hospitals, schools, and homes. And the American-supported Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) has acted as Hezbollah’s auxiliary. Hezbollah’s attacks have forced more than 60,000 Israelis to abandon their homes, farms, villages and cities. Hezbollah rockets have sparked fires that have consumed thousands of acres of forest.
Another full-blown war with Hezbollah would cause many deaths and much destruction in Israel. As for Lebanon, already a failing state thanks largely to Hezbollah, it might never recover. But it’s hard to see how the Israelis can long allow a proxy of Tehran to turn regions of their small country into an uninhabitable free-fire zone. Final note for today: On June 10, the U.N. Security Council passed an American ceasefire proposal for Gaza. Biden administration officials then pleaded for Mr. Sinwar to agree to it. Secretary of State Antony Blinken observed that Gazans are “suffering every day,” adding – with determined naivety – that if Mr. Sinwar “has their interests at heart, he will come to a conclusion to bring this to a conclusion.”
To what should be nobody’s surprise, Mr. Sinwar rejected the proposal. He expects President Biden to pressure the Israelis to offer more concessions – or end the war as Mr. Biden ended the conflict in Afghanistan: by capitulating.
For now, the Israelis are continuing to battle Hamas in Gaza while preparing for the eventuality of an all-out war against Hezbollah. And, at some point, they will need to attend to unfinished business with the patron of both terrorist groups, the jihadist and genocidal regime in Tehran.
*Clifford D. May is founder and president of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) and a columnist for the Washington Times.

Europe: Nazis' 'Do Not Buy from Jews' 2.0
Robert Williams/Gatestone Institute./June 20, 2024
Since October 7, when Iranian proxies Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad committed unspeakable atrocities against men, women, children and babies in Israel, large parts of the international community have been in a frenzy over the Jews' puzzling inclination to defend themselves.
This is the same French government [which banned Israel from participating in Eurosatory 2024 defense industry trade fair] so obsessed with appearing inclusive and non-discriminatory that it recently supported a bill that outlaws discrimination based on hair texture, length, color or style.
Meanwhile, the French government did not think it necessary to ban the participation of China, presently indulging in two genocides – against Tibetans and against Uyghurs – from participating in Eurosatory. China's representation at the trade fair counts around 61 defense companies.
The French government also did not ban... Turkey, which has been taken to the International Criminal Court for committing crimes against humanity against hundreds of thousands of opponents of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's ruthless regime...
When there are no Jews to blame, evidently, crimes against humanity, genocide and human rights abuses are perfectly acceptable.
Since October 7, more than 19,000 rockets have been launched into Israel, a country smaller than New Jersey, primarily by the terrorist groups ruling Gaza, as well as from another of Iran's terrorist proxies, Hezbollah in Lebanon
Never mind that John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, determined that Israel has consistently implemented more measures to prevent civilian casualties than any military in the history of warfare.
"The Middle East does not need more weapons, it needs more peace," said Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares. The remark, oddly, did not appear to be addressed the entities that started the war: Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran and Qatar.
Iran, the Middle East's warmonger par excellence, and -- along with major funding from Qatar, which seems never to have met an Islamic terrorist group it did not finance or promote -- was the originator of the current war in Gaza.
Iran's terrorist proxies span the region -- Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza; Hezbollah in Lebanon; the Houthis in Yemen, and various proxy militias in Syria and Iraq -- well-funded because of the Biden administration's lifting sanctions. Yet Albares has nothing but praise for Iran.
The submission to the Islamic regime by European leaders such as Albares, who knows full well that Iran is behind the war in Gaza, tells us more about them than about Israel.
In April, however, the EU imposed sanctions on Israeli "settlers." Regrettably, to many Palestinians, all of Israel is "one big settlement" that needs to be uprooted, and everyone there, a "settler."
France and other European countries are falling over themselves to boycott and exclude Israel.
Since October 7, when Iranian proxies Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad committed unspeakable atrocities against men, women, children and babies in Israel, large parts of the international community have been in a frenzy over the Jews' puzzling inclination to defend themselves.
This preference, however, not to simply let themselves be murdered by allowing Iran -- through Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah -- to continue inflicting death and misery on them, has led to several countries to break ties with Israel. Not only that, but other countries have recalled their ambassadors, amid demands for boycott, divestment, sanctions (BDS), isolation, and general exclusion from world society of the world's only Jewish state.
Countries that have broken ties with Israel since October 7 include Belize, Bolivia, Colombia, and Turkey. Bahrain, Chad, Chile, Honduras, Jordan and South Africa have withdrawn their ambassadors. The Maldives, popular with vacationing Israelis, announced in early June that Israelis, because of the war in Gaza, would be banned from the country, but later suspended the ban when it realized that Arab-Israelis would also be affected by the ban.
Even before October 7, Israeli passport-holders were already prohibited from entering 16 countries, including Algeria, Bangladesh, Brunei, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Oman and Yemen. Apartheid, anyone?
Instead of breaking ties, several European countries have used boycotts and exclusion. Last month, French authorities announced that the entire Israeli defense industry would be banned from the Eurosatory 2024 fair, one of the world's largest defense industry trade shows, which is taking place in France this year from June 17-21. Israel was scheduled to participate with 74 companies.
"The conditions are no longer right to host Israeli companies at the Paris show, given that the French president is calling for the cessation of IDF operation in Rafah," France's Defense Ministry said in a May 31 statement, ordering the organizers to ban the participation of Israeli companies.
Coges Event, the organizer of Eurosatory, appealed the French government's ban in the Paris Commercial Court. On June 18, the court order that the ban be suspended – probably too late to be of any help to Israel. The reason given by the court was that the government ban forced the organizers of the exhibition to discriminate, a criminal offence under French law.
This is the same French government so obsessed with appearing inclusive and non-discriminatory that it recently supported a bill that outlaws discrimination based on hair texture, length, color or style.
Meanwhile, the French government did not think it necessary to ban the participation of China, presently indulging in two genocides – against Tibetans and against Uyghurs – from participating in Eurosatory. China's representation at the trade fair counts around 61 defense companies.
The French government also did not ban Saudi Arabia, among the world's worst human rights abusers, or Turkey, which has been taken to the International Criminal Court for committing crimes against humanity against hundreds of thousands of opponents of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's ruthless regime, and that continues to wage war against the Kurds, threatens its Greek island neighbors, and of course still occupies the northern half of Cyprus, after illegally invading it in 1974.
When there are no Jews to blame, evidently, crimes against humanity, genocide and human rights abuses are perfectly acceptable.
The ban, however, was not enough for French-based pro-Hamas NGOs, including Association France Palestine Solidarité (AFPS) and Al-Haq. These NGOs filed a petition with another French court -- Bobigny District Court -- to ensure that not only the Israeli companies and their representatives, but all Israelis, would be excluded from participating in the fair.
Bobigny District Court granted the NGOs their wish, ruling that anyone working for or representing Israeli firms was banned from the event, including "intermediaries" acting on behalf of those companies. The court did not limit this ban to Israelis alone, but "to any person likely to operate as their broker or intermediary." In addition, the court strictly prohibited exhibitors from welcoming Israelis and their intermediaries to their stands, or from promoting them.
Sacha Roytman, CEO of the organization Combat Antisemitism said about the court's ruling:
"Banning Jewish companies simply because Israel is defending itself against the largest attack on Jews since the Holocaust is blatant antisemitism. Today, Israel is at the forefront of the war between Western values and radical Islamism. Countries will soon need to learn from Israel how to combat terrorism effectively. The Holocaust began with laws against Jews. Today, it starts again with laws and courts authorizing the boycott of the only Jewish state. In 1933, no one believed it would lead to the Holocaust and World War II, yet it happened."
Other European countries are also falling over themselves to boycott and exclude Israel. Belgium, which enjoys warm and strong relations with terror-sponsoring Qatar, is strongly advocating that the European Union boycott products from Israel's Judea and Samaria regions, also known as the "West Bank," over Israel's response to the Iranian-orchestrated October 7 invasion by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Since October 7, more than 19,000 rockets have been launched into Israel, a country smaller than New Jersey, primarily by the terrorist groups ruling Gaza, as well as from another of Iran's terrorist proxies, Hezbollah in Lebanon. In addition to the rockets, Hezbollah has since unremittingly attacked Israel with barrages of guided anti-tank missiles and explosive-laden drones, killing civilians and security forces, destroying homes, and causing wildfires and the destruction of farmland and nature reserves in Israel's north.
On April 13, the Islamic Republic of Iran itself fired more than 120 ballistic missiles, 170 drones and 30 cruise missiles in its first direct attack on Israel from Iranian soil.
"Can we now simply continue with Israel as a trading partner? I do not think so," intoned Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, who then announced that his goal was to have Belgium break economic ties with Israel and influence other European countries to follow suit.
The Belgian government also called for the EU foreign policy chief to examine whether Israel has "violated its association agreement with the EU" and stop all weapons sales to Israel. His Deputy Prime Minister, Petra De Sutter, has been itching for sanctions against the Jewish state since at least November 8, just one month after Palestinian terrorists mass raped, kidnapped, tortured, murdered and burned alive babies, children, women, men and the elderly.
"We are working on further sanctions," DeSutter said in May. Both France and Belgium support international arrest warrants for Israel's leaders. In Belgium, the city of Liege "suspended all relations with Israel", mostly as a show of Jew-hate: the city has no formal ties with Israel. In March, the Brussels City Council unanimously decided to "block public procurement of products from Israeli settlements in the West Bank" and on June 19, the city council announced that it would be "impossible" to host an upcoming UEFA soccer match between Belgium and Israel in Brussels, citing concerns for "the safety of spectators, players, Brussels residents and our police forces."
The Netherlands stopped delivering parts for F-35 fighter jets to Israel after a Dutch court ruled in February that there was a "clear risk" the planes would be involved in "breaking international humanitarian law in Gaza." Never mind that John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, determined that Israel has consistently implemented more measures to prevent civilian casualties than any military in the history of warfare. The court case was the outcome of a lawsuit filed by several NGOs, including Oxfam. The Dutch government has appealed the decision.
Oslo, the capital of Norway, announced a ban on importing goods and services of companies that "contribute directly or indirectly" to "settlements."
Spain, the home of the Inquisition, suspended arms sales to Israel, and "Spain's Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albares, revealed that Madrid has halted all arms exports to Tel Aviv since 7 October," when the Hamas mass-murder of 1,200 Israelis was ongoing and Israel was still trying to stop it. Even that was evidently too much to stomach for the Spanish government. Still not enough for Spain. it recently said that not even foreign ships carrying military supplies to Israel would be allowed to dock in Spanish ports.
"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will systematically reject these docking operations for a clear reason. The Middle East does not need more weapons, it needs more peace," said Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares. The remark, oddly, did not appear to be addressed the entities that started the war: Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran and Qatar.
Barcelona severed all official ties with Israel, which the mayor, grotesquely, accused of "apartheid." Guess it is still 1492 there.
Iran, the Middle East's warmonger par excellence, and -- along with major funding from Qatar, which seems never to have met an Islamic terrorist group it did not finance or promote (such as here, here and here) -- was the originator of the current war in Gaza. Iran's terrorist proxies span the region -- Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza; Hezbollah in Lebanon; the Houthis in Yemen, and various proxy militias in Syria and Iraq -- well-funded because of the Biden administration's lifting sanctions. Yet Albares has nothing but praise for Iran. On the sidelines of the Davos World Economic Forum meeting in January, Albares, according to a report by Iran's Foreign Ministry, described Iran "as a very important and influential player in the region."
"... Albares expressed gratitude to the Iranian foreign minister for his perspective on mutual and regional issues, welcoming the continuation of consultations and exchanges of views between the two sides in bilateral and regional areas.
"The Spanish foreign minister voiced concern over the consequences of the perpetuation of war in Gaza, highlighting the need to stop war and attacks on civilians and observe international laws as well as humanitarian rights."
The submission to the Islamic regime by European leaders such as Albares, who knows full well that Iran is behind the war in Gaza, tells us more about them than about Israel.
Finally, the EU as a whole is seriously considering imposing EU-wide sanctions on Israel. At the end of May, EU foreign ministers met to discuss the issue, but have yet to reach agreement on how to proceed. In April, however, the EU imposed sanctions on Israeli "settlers." Regrettably, to many Palestinians, all of Israel is "one big settlement" that needs to be uprooted, and everyone there, a "settler."
© 2024 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of

Biden Administration Seeks to Silence Consensus Civil Society Organizations in Israel
Naomi Linder Kahn/Gatestone Institute/June 20, 2024
The letter provides irrefutable evidence and undeniable testimony that the humanitarian aid provided to Gaza, ostensibly to the civilian population, is invariably commandeered by Hamas: The letter cites statements to this effect by the US embassy in Israel, the US government itself, the IDF, UNRWA – and even Fatah officials.
"The shocking truth is that the United States is providing material support to a terrorist organization that is waging a brutal war against the only democratic ally the US has in the middle east, and the US-funded and trained Palestinian Authority Security Forces are no different than Hamas. Exposing the terrorist nature of the US's 'partner for peace' is 'inconvenient,' to put it politely, so the Administration has decided to attack the messenger in order to suppress the message." – Meir Deutsch, Director General, Regavim.
Biden Administration seeks to silence consensus civil society organizations in Israel with sanctions typically used against terrorists: "A draconian measure that harks back to the days of colonialist oppression."
A team of legal experts submitted a sharply worded letter to the US State Department following the announcement of Executive Order 14115 sanctioning the Tzav 9 Movement. "The Executive Order is an anti-democratic attack on free speech and the right to protest."
Earlier this week (Monday), following publication on Friday, 14 June 2024 of a US Executive Order imposing sanctions on the Israeli protest movement Tzav 9, a team of lawyers headed by Attorneys Marc Zell, Noam Schreiber, Jerome Marcus and other experts in US and international law, on behalf of the Regavim Movement, sent a request for clarification to the US State Department.
The sharply-worded letter decried the Executive Order as vague and unsubstantiated, describing it as an attempt to stifle free speech and the right to protest. The legal team called upon the US government to explain both the basis for the sanctions and the practical implications for Tzav 9 and Regavim, one of several civil society organizations that helped the Tzav 9 activists organize.
"Our firms represent The Regavim Movement, a public interest organization dedicated to the protection of Israel's national lands and resources, as well as Regavim's Chief Executive Officer, Meir Deutsch; a number of persons who have donated to Regavim and wish to continue to do so; and ... persons and political advocacy organizations which have interacted with, supported, and been addressed by Regavim and its leaders," the letter explained. "The Regavim Movement is active in the public, parliamentary and judicial spheres, through publication of opinion and research papers, and through the dissemination of reports, policy and opinion papers, media communications and, when necessary, legal action."
"One of Regavim's initiatives is support for Tsav 9, an entity which conducts nonviolent demonstrations and civil disobedience in an effort to prevent the transfer of assets to Hamas."
The letter went on to highlight the vast differences between the target of the sanctions – Tzav 9, an apolitical, non-violent, law abiding grassroots protest movement – and the beneficiaries of the aid that the sanctions aim to protect -a US-designated terrorist organization that continues to take pride in the atrocities it perpetrated on October 7th, the very same group that continues to hold men, women and children hostage.
"Tsav 9 is resolutely nonpartisan, and is supported by over 15,000 members and supporters from all walks of Israeli life, and from all points on the religious and political spectra. ...The protest activities in which Tsav 9 has engaged are completely nonviolent, and precisely the kind of public advocacy and civil disobedience of which President Biden and members of his administration have explicitly approved. Hamas is a Designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, and the provision of any financial support to Hamas is a federal crime."
The letter provides irrefutable evidence and undeniable testimony that the humanitarian aid provided to Gaza, ostensibly to the civilian population, is invariably commandeered by Hamas: The letter cites statements to this effect by the US embassy in Israel, the US government itself, the IDF, UNRWA – and even Fatah officials.
The letter further notes that the Executive Order was issued without any prior dialogue, clarification, discussion or communication with the Tzav 9 leadership or with the Regavim Movement, despite the fact that the US Embassy in Israel has an open and active channel of communication with the public policy group.
Meir Deutsch, Director General of Regavim: "The Biden Administration, which claims to be the leader of the world's greatest democracy, has been exposed as anti-democratic. Apparently, both Tzav 9 and Regavim have spotlighted some uncomfortable facts that the American government prefers to hide: The shocking truth is that the United States is providing material support to a terrorist organization that is waging a brutal war against the only democratic ally the US has in the middle east, and the US-funded and trained Palestinian Authority Security Forces are no different than Hamas. Exposing the terrorist nature of the US's "partner for peace" is "inconvenient," to put it politely, so the Administration has decided to attack the messenger in order to suppress the message."
"Regavim extended support to Tzav 9 and to the families of those murdered and captured by Hamas, adding our voice to their call to halt support for the Nukhba terrorists in Gaza – as did 80% of Israeli citizens," Deutsch added. "Particularly against the backdrop of the most recent United Nations report, which determines that there is no famine in Gaza, the imposition of sanctions is a desperate move by American government, a misdirected tantrum targeting a protest movement that expresses dissent through legally protected non-violent free speech, in the most legitimate and justified protest there is. These unprecedented punitive measures hark back to the dark era of the Iron Curtain. Executive Order 14115 is illiberal and anti-democratic."
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France: Towards a Year of Uncertainty?
Amir Taheri Friday/Asharq Al-Awsat/21 June 2024
It is still too early to decide how Emmanuel Macron might be remembered by history. But one distinction he is unlikely to win is that of “master of timing.” Yet his entourage claims that his decision to call an early general election was a master stroke in good timing.
This is how the argument goes:
With the ultra-right National Rally topping the polls in the European election, Macron saw the danger that it would also win the next presidential election in 2027. So he decided to bring the parliamentary election forward so that the ultra-right’s youthful standard-bearer Jordan Bardella would get the premiership and more than two years in which to be exposed as a disagreeable and incompetent figure, thus allowing Macronists to keep the presidency with a new candidate of their own.
But what if things don’t happen the way Macron the super-strategist fantasized?
In the European election, Bardella’s list won what many see as a “stunning victory” with over 31 percent of the votes and 30 of the 81 French seats in the European Parliament.
President Macron’s coalition received only 14.6 percent of the vote, translated into 13 seats. A normal reaction would have come in the form of ”too bad, but so what?”
European elections have never been part of the mainstream of the French political process. These elections are held on a single-round proportional representation basis which magnifies the rewards as in the first-past-the-post system the British have.
Held under a different electoral system parliamentary elections in France do not mirror Euro-elections. Here a two-round voting system means 577 separate constituency elections affected by a variety of factors beyond a straight ideological duel.
To win a majority and thus get to name a prime minister, a party or coalition of parties must win at least 289 seats. No party or coalition of parties has won that many seats in the first round of any parliamentary election in France.
That means you need coalition partners to secure a majority in the second round. Without that, the votes you get in the first round are simply wasted ballots.
Throughout the Vth Republic, that is to say, since 1958, the system has favored the non-ideological “parties of government”, that is to say, groups that simply wished to govern rather than impose what the French call “a projet de societe”
Gaullists and their centrist allies along with Social Democrats and radical party associates were the main beneficiaries of the system while the ultra-right National Front, now renamed National Rally, and Communists were the losers.
In the 1969 presidential election, the Communist candidate Jacques Duclos won almost 22 percent of the votes. But the party’s share of parliamentary seats seldom rose above five percent. In the 2002 presidential election, National Front founder Jean-Marie Le Pen won almost 18 percent of the votes. But in the following parliamentary election, his party ended up with only two seats.
His daughter and successor as party leader Marine Le Pen steadily increased the party’s share of votes in presidential and European elections but it was not until 2022 that the National Rally won 89 seats in the National Assembly, still far from the 289 majority needed to get a majority. Can Bardella increase the 31per cent he has won in European elections to the 51 percent he needs to cohabit with Macron as prime minister? Most bet that he can. I am not so sure.
Bardella himself says he won’t accept the premiership unless he gets the magical 289 seats.If we add the 5.3 percent won by the now vanishing Re-conquest Party Bardella would still remain below 40 percent. Supposing he gets a further 4 percent from the badly split Republican Party’s 7.3 share in the European vote he would still not reach the 51 percent needed to win in 289 constituencies. All that however is mathematical rather than political reasoning. In the first round of the European elections, the Bradella-Le Pen party never broke the 51 percent glass wall in any constituency. Thus the fight will have to take place in 577 constituencies many of which are held by well-entrenched old Gaullist, Socialist, and Communist barons who may not be easy to dislodge.
The creation of a new left coalition named the New Popular Font, after the 1936 coalition of French Communists and Social Democrats, this time also including the ecologists, makes Bardella’s task more complicated. Both the National Rally and the New Popular Front get much of their votes from the working-class electorate. This makes it difficult to guess how that electorate might split in the second round of voting if a National Rally candidate faces a New Popular Front adversary.
Waving the Palestinian flag and adopting an anti-Israel posture the New Popular Front also heavily depends on Muslim voters who may not choose the anti-Muslim National Rally over Macronists in the second round.Couldn’t Macron woo those voters in the second round by anti—-Israel gesticulations?
Anticipating that Macron has already excluded 74 Israeli firms from the annual armaments fair held near Versailles. He has also hinted at a formal recognition of a putative “State of Palestine.”Projections are that in at least 100 constituencies a second round would pit either a Macronist or a Popular Front candidate against a National Rally one. Will Macronists not try to make a deal with the Popular Front to defeat the National Rally?
The New Popular Front is already split over who to suggest as prime minister, and its chances of winning a majority of seats are already smaller than that of either the National Rally or the Macronist coalition.
In a further 80 constituencies, the National Rally candidate may face a Popular Front challenger in the second round. Will Bradella’s dyed-in-wool anti-left voters not see Macronists as the lesser evil? The smaller parties including most of the Republicans may also prefer either a Macronist or a Popular Fronter to a Le Penist whom they have designated as “ the enemy” enemy for decades. If Macron’s calculation was to bring Bardella into the tent to destroy his political future, he may end up with a big disappointment. The election he unnecessarily provoked could produce a hung parliament in which no party has a majority. That could make France ungovernable for at least a year as the president cannot dissolve the parliament within a year of a previous dissolution. Macron could be hoisted by his petard. France is the only European Union nation with a system in which the president has virtually unlimited powers when he enjoys a majority in the National Assembly. With that, the president can play polo or even politics but certainly not poker as Macron has done. Without that, the French presidency isn’t worth a bucket of lukewarm spit as President Harry Truman defined vice presidency in the United States.

Turnout a key issue in Iran’s presidential election
Majid Rafizadeh/Arab News/June 20, 2024
The upcoming presidential election in Iran, scheduled for June 28, has garnered significant attention both domestically and internationally. One of the most critical aspects to observe in this election is the voter turnout. The Iranian government is keen on ensuring a high turnout for several reasons. Primarily, a high voter turnout would signify robust support for the government, demonstrating that it enjoys the backing of the populace. This is crucial for the government as it seeks to project an image of legitimacy and stability both within the country and on the global stage. In other words, a perception of widespread approval could bolster the government’s legitimacy. The second issue is related to the current regional tensions. Amid escalating tensions with Israel and the US, a strong voter turnout can be leveraged, from the perspective of the Iranian leaders, to show that the Iranian people are united and supportive of the government’s stance against external pressures. Third, for the Iranian government, demonstrating a united front through high voter turnout can be crucial in portraying internal stability, particularly in the face of various domestic challenges.
Demonstrating a united front through high voter turnout can be crucial in portraying internal stability
Nevertheless, the most recent parliamentary elections in Iran witnessed a historically low voter turnout, as reported by the Iranian government itself. This trend of low participation raises concerns about the likelihood of a similarly low turnout in the upcoming presidential election. Several factors contribute to this anticipated low voter engagement. One of the primary reasons for a potential low turnout would be the widespread dissatisfaction with the current economic situation. Iran has been grappling with high inflation and significant unemployment, leading to considerable public discontent. Iran’s official annual inflation rate stood at 47.5 percent last July, the highest level the country has experienced in more than three decades. The economic hardships faced by ordinary Iranians, including a drastic reduction in purchasing power due to the devaluation of the national currency, have left many living below the poverty line. These economic struggles are likely to deter many from participating in the election, as they may feel that their vote will not bring about the necessary economic reforms and improvements.
In addition to economic woes, there is a pervasive sense of sociopolitical dissatisfaction among the Iranian populace. The imposition of strict religious laws, particularly those affecting women, has previously sparked widespread protests and demonstrations, as witnessed by the international community. The sociopolitical landscape in Iran is heavily influenced by conservative and hard-line ideologies, which many citizens disagree with and view as out of touch with modern societal values. This discontent is another significant factor contributing to the anticipated low voter turnout.
Low voter turnout could further undermine the government’s legitimacy and exacerbate socioeconomic challenges
Furthermore, another critical issue is the apparent lack of enthusiasm for the slate of presidential candidates. The Guardian Council, which is responsible for vetting the candidates, has approved only six individuals to run for president: Masoud Pezeshkian, Mostafa Pourmohammadi, Amir-Hossein Ghazizadeh Hashemi, Mohammed Baqer Qalibaf, Saeed Jalili and Alireza Zakani. The limited choice and the preponderance of hard-line candidates have most likely left many voters feeling disillusioned and unmotivated to participate in the elections.
One important aspect of the Guardian Council’s final selection is the dominance of hard-liners among the approved candidates. This has significant implications for the political landscape in Iran, which is now heavily skewed toward hard-line ideologies. These hard-liners are known for their staunch adherence to the revolutionary principles of the Islamic Republic and their advocacy of a more rigid interpretation and implementation of these ideals.
Domestically speaking, hard-liners push for the enforcement of strict religious laws, which has led to widespread dissatisfaction, especially among the youth and women, who feel increasingly marginalized by these policies. The conservative approach to governance adopted by these candidates is also often viewed as a barrier to social progress and modernization. Regionally, the hard-liners’ views align closely with the objectives of the senior cadre of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. This alignment suggests a continuation of Iran’s current foreign policy stance, which is characterized by a confrontational approach toward Israel and a defensive posture against perceived threats from the US and its allies. The outcome of the upcoming presidential election in Iran will have far-reaching implications for the country’s future, both domestically and internationally. The anticipated low voter turnout could further undermine the government’s legitimacy and exacerbate existing socioeconomic challenges. Moreover, the dominance of hard-line candidates suggests that there will be little change in Iran’s domestic and foreign policies. On the international front, the continuation of hard-line policies could result in increased isolation for Iran, as well as heightened tensions with regional and global powers. This could further strain the Iranian economy and limit the country’s ability to engage in meaningful diplomatic negotiations.
In a nutshell, as Iran approaches its presidential election, one key issue to watch will be voter turnout. The government’s desire for high participation likely clashes with the reality of widespread public dissatisfaction with the country’s economic conditions, sociopolitical issues and the limited choice of candidates. The dominance of hard-line ideologies in the candidate pool further complicates the situation. The results of this election will be a crucial indicator of Iran’s future direction, both internally and on the world stage.
• Majid Rafizadeh is a Harvard-educated Iranian American political scientist. X: @Dr_Rafizadeh