English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For September 27/2024
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news

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Bible Quotations For today
A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
Matthew12/38-45: Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from you.” He answered, “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now something greater than Jonah is here. The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, and now something greater than Solomon is here. “When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order.Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation.”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on September 26-27/2024
Due to Their Failure and Narcissism: A Call for Lebanese Maronite Patriarch Al-Ra'i, Maronite Politicians, Officials and Political Party Leaders to Resign and Repent/Elias Bejjani/September 26, 2024
Elias Bejjani/Text & Video: Iranian Terrorist Hezbollah Booby-Trapped Shiites Villages, Cities, Institutions & Created a Landscape of Hatred and Deception/Elias Bejjani/September 24/2024
Etienne Sakr (Abu Arz) delivers a scathing critique of the terrorist Iranian Hezbollah and its war policy against Israel
Netanyahu vows to use ‘full force’ against Hezbollah and dims hopes for a ceasefire
Gallant says attacks against Hezbollah to continue
Israel ministers reject Lebanon ceasefire, Ben-Gvir threatens to quit
Netanyahu says Israel to keep striking Hezbollah until all its goals are achieved
Blinken says world united in calling for Lebanon cease-fire
Israel vows to keep fighting Hezbollah 'until victory'
Two killed in Israeli strike on Dahieh, Hezbollah commander targeted
Israeli strikes wound 5 along Lebanon-Syria border
Heavy Israeli airstrikes hit Hezbollah strongholds
US, allies call for 21-day ceasefire in Lebanon
Report: Temporary Israel-Hezbollah truce sought after previous talks collapsed
Britain sends humanitarian aid for civilians in Lebanon
Conflicting reports on Israel-Lebanon ceasefire negotiations
French woman, 87, dies in Israeli strike near Tyre
US, France to 'talk to Netanyahu' after Dermer 'rejects' Lebanon truce proposals
Mikati says implementation of ceasefire deal up to Netanyahu
What obstacles stand in the way of an Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire?
Israel shoots down first Hezbollah missile aimed at Tel Aviv as group says it targeted spy agency
Macron says would be ‘mistake’ for Israeli PM to ‘refuse’ Lebanon ceasefire
All eyes on Hezbollah ... but that’s the wrong place to look
Shadow soldiers: Does Lebanon have an army and why it is absent amid rising conflict with Israel?
Norway issues wanted notice for man connected to exploding pagers in Lebanon

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on September 26-27/2024
Israeli military chief says troops are preparing for ground war in Lebanon
Hostages families urge Israel to agree to Gaza, Lebanon cease-fire
Gaza rescuers say 7 killed in Israeli strike on school
All eyes on Iran’s balancing act as IRGC’s Middle East proxies face Israel’s onslaught
Yemen’s president vows to defeat ‘new imamates’ as country commemorates 1962 revolution
UNRWA earning ‘global vote of confidence’: Jordanian FM
US troops deployed to Cyprus as fears of wider Middle East war intensify
Iran shows ‘willingness’ to re-engage on nuclear issue: IAEA chief
Analysis-US diplomacy in Mideast falters as clock ticks down for Biden
Multiple Iranians indicted over Trump campaign hack, Politico reports
Yemen’s president vows to defeat ‘new imamates’ as country commemorates 1962 revolution
Trudeau, French president Macron meet in Canada as trade deal challenges continue
Alabama to carry out the second nitrogen gas execution in the US

Titles For The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources on September 26-27/2024
The New Torture Industry of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, China and India: Abductions, Beatings and Death/Raymond Ibrahim/ Gatestone Institute./September 26, 2024
Has the balance of power shifted in France-Algeria ties?/KHALED ABOU ZAHR/Arab News/September 26, 2024
The Muslim Connection: How Spain Became a ‘Country of Criminals … Pedophiles and Rapists’/Raymond Ibrahim/The Stream/September 26/2024
Diplomatic breakthrough on Iran unlikely at UNGA/DR. MAJID RAFIZADEH/Arab News/September 26, 2024

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on September 26-27/2024
Due to Their Failure and Narcissism: A Call for Lebanese Maronite Patriarch Al-Ra'i, Maronite Politicians, Officials and Political Party Leaders to Resign and Repent
Elias Bejjani/September 26, 2024
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2024/09/134945/
"You brood of vipers! How can you speak good things when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks." (Matthew 12:34)
Because silence in the face of truth makes one a silent devil, and because refusing to acknowledge an illness only allows it to fester, we speak now with anger, bitterness, and disappointment. The truth is crystal clear, known even to children: our Lebanese Maronite leaders, both clerical and political—foremost among them Patriarch Al-Ra'i—have expired in their roles. They have become mere Iscariots, and betrayers who must step down and be removed from the picture.
With very few exceptions, these leaders are completely disconnected from the suffering and hardships that Lebanon and the Lebanese people endure under Hezbollah’s bloody and evil Iranian occupation.
Our Lebanese Maronite clergymen and political leaders are generally surrounded by spies, opportunists, merchants, and mercenaries. They are weak and afraid of those who are honorable, honest, and competent, preferring instead to fight them. Their followers, castrated supporters and slaves within their so-called political "parties," are nothing more than idol worshippers—blindly loyal and foolish.
The vast majority of these leaders lack the basic qualities of leadership: faith, honesty, courage, and vision. They have enabled the terrorist, sectarian, and Iranian Hezbollah to control Lebanon, dismantle the state, and undermine all its institutions because they are cowards, afraid to speak the truth, or take a clear patriotic stance.
Here are some of the national crimes, grave mistakes, and sins they have committed in the pursuit of their sickening visions, selfishness, stupidity, and evil personal agendas:
1- They turned a blind eye to the fact that Hezbollah did not liberate the South Lebanon (Security Zone); instead, it occupied it, transforming it into an Iranian colony filled with weapons depots and tunnels for the Iranian mullahs' arsenal. They distorted the truth, bore false witness, and committed the grave sin of declaring that Hezbollah's armed terrorists, killed in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Gaza, and elsewhere while fighting Iranian wars and Jihad battles, are martyrs—equating them with our own. They lacked the courage to boldly state the truth—that Israel implemented UN Resolution 425 and withdrew from the South in 2000 purely out of Israeli self-interest, as part of an Iranian-Arab-international understanding (an Israeli blunder that brought disaster upon itself)....Hezbollah did not liberate the South but rather occupies it.
2-They abandoned the residents of South Lebanon, (security Zone) as well as the South Lebanon Army (SLA) and its members and leaders. They lacked the bravery to champion their just cause, succumbed to Hezbollah’s Jihadist rhetoric, and failed to oppose the unjust and hostile labeling of these people as collaborators and traitors. In reality, they are heroes and patriots of the highest order, left behind in Israel without any effort made to ensure their honorable return.
3- They cowardly accepted the lie, deceit, and hypocrisy that Hezbollah is Lebanese, that it liberated the South, that it is a resistance force, that it represents a segment of the Lebanese population, and that it speaks for the Shiite community in Parliament. They lacked the courage to demand the implementation of UN resolutions addressing Lebanon (the Armistice Agreement, Resolutions 1559, 1701, 1680). Like sheep, they shamefully followed the foolish heresy of the treasonous trinity: "Army, People, Resistance."
4-They betrayed the residents of South Lebanon, silenced the voice of God—their conscience—and transformed into disciples of Judas, driven by a culture of betrayal and the lure of silver coins. By national and moral standards, all those who abandon the heroes and martyrs of their country and people deserves nothing but curses, disgrace, humiliation, and isolation.
5-Today, as Lebanon faces destruction, displacement, poverty, crime, and chaos due to the ongoing war between Israel and the terrorist Iranian Hezbollah, they swallowed their tongues and hid like frightened mice in their holes, just like the charlatan Hassan Nasrallah. They did not speak up to name things as they are, to tell the world, the Arab countries, the United Nations, the Vatican, and the Lebanese people that Hezbollah is a terrorist, Iranian, jihadist entity that occupies Lebanon, dismembers it, and kills its people. Their cowardice and lack of vision prevent them from demanding the implementation of UN resolutions related to Lebanon under Chapter VII, the arrest and trial of all Hezbollah leaders and fighters, and the severing of ties with their patron, the criminal and terrorist Iranian rouge regime.
These Lebanese leaders, clerics, the Patriarch, the heads of the falsely called Christian political parties, and the entire political Maronite -Christian class failed to take a patriot stance during the ongoing destructive war between Israel and the terrorist Hezbollah. They did not adopt and declar a unified Lebanese solid stance against Hezbollah and its Iranian war agenda. Instead, they cowardly continued their submissive path, appeasing, flattering, and supporting Hezbollah, while regurgitating the foolish and dhimitude narratives of “the Israeli enemy,” “the Israeli aggressions,” and “Israeli expansionist ambitions.” Their list of stupidity, cowardice, and lack of vision goes on and on.
Given all these acts of treason, which are only a fraction of their crimes, it is imperative that all these failures, cowards, temple merchants, and Judases resign.
*The author, Elias Bejjani, is a Lebanese expatriate activist
Author’s Email: Phoenicia@hotmail.com
Author’s Website: http://www.eliasbejjaninews.com

Elias Bejjani/Text & Video: Iranian Terrorist Hezbollah Booby-Trapped Shiites Villages, Cities, Institutions & Created a Landscape of Hatred and Deception
Elias Bejjani/September 24/2024
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2024/09/134845/
There is no shed  of doubt that the terrorist Iranian proxy, Hezbollah, is the one that has mined and booby-trapped the Shiites areas in occupied Lebanon and placed them evilly on explosive barrels. It drowned its Shiites communities with illusions, myths, hatred, arrogance, worshipping death, while belittling its opponents and labeling them as traitors. In this context we are sadly witnessing the ongoing tragedies inflicted on the civilian Lebanese Shiites' communities.
In the recent wave of violence, only in one day over 600 innocent Shiite civilians were killed and two thousand inquired and thousands forced to abandon their homes and livestock's in fear for their lives because of devastating Israeli air strikes targeting Hezbollah's weapon caches strategically hidden among populated areas in South Lebanon, beeka valley, Dahea district in Beirut. This tragedy underscores a painful truth and shows clearly that the real perpetrators behind the suffering of these victims are not only the Israeli forces, but rather Hezbollah and its Iranian backers.
For decades, Hezbollah has turned Lebanese neighborhoods, mainly the Shiites villages, cities and institutions into battlegrounds, placing weaponry in schools, religious institutions, and even homes, endangering the very people it claims to protect. This reckless strategy has turned civilians into collateral damage in a conflict driven by Iran's regional expansionist and denominational satanic ambitions.
Compounding this situation, recently Iran has increasingly distanced itself from Hezbollah and Hamas, opting instead to appease the United States. The Mullahs have publicly stated that they do not seek to engage in direct conflict with Israel, declaring a shift towards cooperation with the U.S. This pivot reveals a significant change in Iran's approach, highlighting its desire to stabilize its position rather than escalate tensions because its main aim is to keep its regime in power.
The continuous threats from Hezbollah and Iran have put Israel in a precarious position, where it feels compelled to act in self-defense. The recent bombings, while devastating, are a response to a longstanding pattern of aggression and provocation. It is essential to recognize that the chaos affecting the Middle East, including the tragic loss of life among Shiite communities, is a direct consequence of Iran's expansionist policies and Hezbollah's militant strategies.
As Lebanon grapples with this ongoing crisis, it is vital to hold accountable those who have chosen to weaponries their neighborhoods. The suffering of innocents must be acknowledged, but so must the responsibility of those who have perpetuated this cycle of violence.
The massacre that the people of the south Lebanon are being subjected  falls on  the terrorist Hezbollah, which is made up of Lebanese and non-Lebanese mercenaries, as well as their masters the Iranian Mullahs. Hezbollah has booby-trapped and mined the south villages and towns with weapons depots among the people in schools, religious, educational and governmental institutions, and even inside homes. Yesterday, Israel blew up a large number of these depots, killing hundreds and wounding thousands of civilian victims.
Terrorist Hezbollah, the enemy of Lebanon and the Lebanese, has kidnapped the Shiites communities and taken them hostage by force and terror. Hezbollah is a mere slave to an expansionist Iranian agenda that has lured Israel into waging its destructive war on Lebanon in general, and on the Shiite areas in the south, the Bekaa and the southern suburbs of Beirut in general in a bid to defend its people and existence of the Jewish state..
What do Hezbollah and its Iranian masters expect from the state of Israel, while they have been shamelessly, immorally and promiscuously promoting the idea of ​​throwing their state into the sea, killing Jews, while raising their children on a culture of ignorance, barbarism, hatred, reverence, sanctification of death and crime, and at the same time demonize who oppose their Iranian ambitions, and labeling them as traitors.
The killing, assassinations and destruction that Israel is doing currently in Iranian occupied Lebanon are caused by the policy and culture of the mullahs of Iran, as well as the Sunni and Shiite political Islam, leftist, nationalist groups, and merchants of the so called resistance and liberation.
In conclusion, Iranian occupied Lebanon will not be saved or restore is sovereignty, independence and free decision making process before uprooting the criminal Hezbollah, arresting and putting on trial its Trojan and mercenary leaders, and implementing the UN resolutions related to Lebanon; The Armistice Accord, 1559, 1701 and 1680, which gives the Lebanese state full control over all Lebanese territories by its own forces, and disarming all Lebanese and non-Lebanese militias. At the same time arresting and putting on trial all Lebanese politicians, officials and clergymen who conspired against Lebanon and helped Hezbollah to fully occupy Lebanon.hitting Lebanon but becoming a regional catastrophe.”

Etienne Sakr (Abu Arz) delivers a scathing critique of the terrorist Iranian Hezbollah and its war policy against Israel
26 September/2024
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2024/09/134939/
In his article dated September 26, 2024, Etienne Sakr (Abu Arz) delivers a scathing critique of Hezbollah and its war policy against Israel. He begins by highlighting Hezbollah's repeated promises over the past four decades, such as liberating Jerusalem and eliminating Israel, describing them as mere illusions and empty slogans that no longer even convince the simplest of people. He also criticizes the alliance with the Iranian regime, which he describes as a "paper tiger" and unreliable, as it entangles its proxies in uneven wars only to abandon them at the negotiation table with the U.S. in order to gain favor.
Sakr then points to the Israeli strikes Hezbollah has suffered and the losses it has incurred on various fronts, stressing that it is now imperative for the party to announce its withdrawal from this "futile war," hand over its weapons to the Lebanese Army, and apologize to the Lebanese people for dragging them into a war that does not concern them—one that has led to the destruction of southern Lebanon and drained what remains of the country’s already exhausted strength.
Sakr emphasizes that the Lebanese Army, despite its limited numbers and equipment, remains the only guarantor of Lebanon's protection and territorial integrity, urging Hezbollah to withdraw from this losing war and spare the country and its people further disasters and tragedies.
In conclusion, Sakr reiterates his commitment to Lebanon with the hashtag "Labayka_Lebanon."
(Translated freely from Arabic by: Elias Bejjani)

Netanyahu vows to use ‘full force’ against Hezbollah and dims hopes for a ceasefire
AP/September 26, 2024
NEW YORK: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday vowed to carry out “full force” strikes against Hezbollah until it ceases firing rockets across the border, dimming hopes for a ceasefire proposal put forth by US and European officials. Israel carried out a new strike in the Lebanese capital, which it said killed a senior Hezbollah commander, and the militant group launched dozens of rockets into Israel. Tens of thousands of Israeli and Lebanese people living near their countries’ border have been displaced by the fighting.
Netanyahu spoke as he landed in New York to attend the annual UN General Assembly meeting, where US and European officials were putting heavy pressure on both sides of the conflict to accept a proposed 21-day halt in the fighting to give time for diplomacy and avert all-out war. Nearly 700 people have been killed in Lebanon this week as Israel dramatically escalated strikes, saying it is targeting Hezbollah’s military capacities. Israeli leaders say they are determined to stop the group’s cross-border attacks, which began after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack that ignited the war in Gaza. Israel’s “policy is clear,” Netanyahu said. “We are continuing to strike Hezbollah with full force. And we will not stop until we reach all our goals, chief among them the return of the residents of the north securely to their homes.”
Just before his comments, the Israeli military said it killed a Hezbollah drone commander, Mohammed Hussein Surour, in an airstrike in the suburbs of Beirut. Hezbollah did not immediately comment on the claim. The Health Ministry said two people were killed and 15 wounded in the strike. The strike gutted an apartment in a residential building in Dahiyeh, the mainly Shiite suburb where Hezbollah has a strong presence, according to Associated Press photos of the scene. Over the past week, Israel has carried out several strikes in Beirut targeting senior Hezbollah commanders. One strike in eastern Lebanon on Thursday killed 20 people, most of them Syrian migrants, according to Lebanese health officials.
Israel hit 75 sites early Thursday across southern and eastern Lebanon and launched a new wave of strikes in the evening, the military said. Throughout the day, Hezbollah fired some 175 projectiles into Israel, the Israeli military said. Most were intercepted or fell in open areas, sparking some wildfires, though one rocket hit a street in a town near the northern city of Safed. Israel has talked of a possible ground invasion into Lebanon to drive Hezbollah — an Iranian-backed Shiite group that is the strongest armed force in Lebanon — away from the border. It has moved thousands of troops to the north in preparation. Some 100,000 Lebanese have fled their homes in the past week, streaming into Beirut and points further north. In Israel, military vehicles transported tanks and armored vehicles toward the country’s northern border with Lebanon a day after commanders issued a call-up of reservists. Several tanks arrived in Kiryat Shmona, a hard-hit town just several miles from the border. The escalation has raised fears of a repeat – or worse – of the 2006 war between the two sides that wreaked destruction across southern Lebanon and other parts of the country and saw heavy Hezbollah rocket fire on Israeli cities.

Gallant says attacks against Hezbollah to continue
Naharnet/September 26/2024 
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Thursday that he has approved more “offensive operations” in Lebanon, together with the army chief, the head of the intelligence division and the head of the army’s operations division. “We are continuing the sequence of operations to eliminate Hezbollah terrorists, dismantle the offensive formations and destroy the missiles and rockets,” he said. “We have additional tasks to complete to enable the return of the residents of the north to their homes. We will continue to throw Hezbollah off balance and deepen its plight,” Gallant added. His remarks come despite reports of ongoing negotiations to halt the fighting.

Israel ministers reject Lebanon ceasefire, Ben-Gvir threatens to quit
Agence France Presse/September 26/2024
Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on Thursday rejected a proposal for a 21-day ceasefire in Lebanon and called for the "crushing" of the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah. "The campaign in the north should end with a single result: crushing Hezbollah and elimination of its ability to harm the residents of the north," Smotrich said on social media platform X, adding that the ceasefire proposed by the U.S. and its allies would give Hezbollah time to "reorganize". Israel's Foreign Minister Israel Katz also said there would be no ceasefire with Hezbollah. "There will be no ceasefire in the north. We will continue to fight against the Hezbollah terrorist organization with all our strength until victory and the safe return of the residents of the north to their homes," Katz said in a post on social media platform X, referring to tens of thousands who have been displaced. Far-right partner in Netanyahu’s government and head of the Jewish Power party Itamar Ben-Gvir threatened to quit the coalition if a permanent cease-fire is reached with Hezbollah. Ben-Gvir threatened to suspend cooperation with the coalition if a temporary deal is reached. “If a temporary cease-fire becomes permanent, we will resign from the government,” he said. It was the latest sign of displeasure from Netanyahu’s hard-line government toward international cease-fire efforts. If Ben-Gvir leaves the coalition, Netanyahu would lose his parliamentary majority and could see his government come toppling down, though opposition leaders have said they would offer support for a cease-fire deal.

Netanyahu says Israel to keep striking Hezbollah until all its goals are achieved
Associated Press/September 26/2024
Dimming hopes for a cease-fire, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that Israel plans to continue striking Hezbollah "with full force" and will not stop until all of its goals are achieved. Netanyahu spoke as he landed in New York to attend the annual U.N. General Assembly meeting and as U.S. and European officials were pressing for a 21-day halt in fighting between Israel and Hezbollah to give time for negotiations. Only a short time before his statement, the Israeli military said it killed a Hezbollah drone commander in an airstrike on an apartment building in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital. Netanyahu said Israel's "policy is clear. We are continuing to strike Hezbollah with full force. And we will not stop until we reach all our goals, chief among them the return of the residents of the north securely to their homes." Israel has dramatically escalated strikes in Lebanon this week, saying it is targeting Hezbollah. Israeli leaders have said they are determined to stop more than 11 months of cross-border fire by the group into Israel, which has forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of Israelis from communities in the north. The statement tempered hopes for the international initiative aimed at halting increasingly heavy exchanges of fire that have killed hundreds of people in Lebanon and threatened to trigger an all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah. Israel has talked of a possible ground invasion into Lebanon to push the group away from the border. Hezbollah has not yet responded to the proposal for a pause in fighting while caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati welcomed it. Hezbollah has insisted it would halt its strikes only if there is a cease-fire in Gaza, where Israel has battled Hamas for nearly a year. That appears out of reach despite months of negotiations led by the United States, Egypt and Qatar. In a statement, Netanyahu's office said that "the fighting in Gaza will also continue until all the objectives of the war have been achieved." Netanyahu is expected to meet with other world leaders on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly. One of Netanyahu's far-right governing partners threatened on Thursday to suspend cooperation with his government if it signs onto a temporary cease-fire with Hezbollah – and to quit completely if a permanent deal is reached. It was the latest sign of displeasure from Netanyahu's allies toward international cease-fire efforts. If Ben-Gvir leaves the coalition, Netanyahu would lose his parliamentary majority and could see his government come toppling down, though opposition leaders have said they would offer support for a cease-fire deal.

Blinken says world united in calling for Lebanon cease-fire
Associated Press/September 26/2024
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Thursday the world is united in calling for a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah and will be seeking approval from Israeli officials after the release of a proposal for a temporary 21-day halt in fighting. “It is now the G7 countries, the European Union, the leading Arab countries, everyone speaking with one clear voice about the need to get that cease-fire in the north,” Blinken said in an interview with MSNBC before he met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s top strategy advisor, Ron Dermer, in New York. Netanyahu himself is en route to New York where he will speak on Friday at the UN General Assembly. His office said the cease-fire call is only a proposal and that Israel would continue to defend its land and people from attacks by Hezbollah from Lebanese territory. “I can’t speak for him,” Blinken said of Netanyahu. “I can just say that the world is speaking clearly for virtually all of the key countries in Europe and in the region on the need for the ceasefire." “What we’re saying, what the world is saying, is very clear, and we’ll be looking to work with the Israelis and all the parties throughout the rest of the day,” he added. Britain's defense secretary echoed the call for a pause in Israel's conflict with Hezbollah. “I urge President Netanyahu and the Lebanese Hezbollah leaders to pay heed to the combined voices at the United Nations to do just that," John Healey said after a meeting with his U.S. and Australian counterparts in London. Healey said his country has sent 700 troops to Cyprus to assist in a potential emergency evacuation of civilians in Lebanon should a full war break out. U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin pressed both Israel and Lebanon to choose the path of cease-fire and urged each side to accept a temporary pause to avoid further escalation. “Israel and Lebanon can choose a different path,” he said. “Despite a sharp escalation in recent days, a diplomatic solution is still viable ... All parties should seize this opportunity."
And he issued a warning to Iran and other U.S. adversaries, saying: “No one should try to exploit this crisis or expand this conflict.”

Israel vows to keep fighting Hezbollah 'until victory'
Agence France Presse/September 26/2024
Israel flatly rejected on Thursday a push led by key backer the United States for a 21-day ceasefire in Lebanon, as it vowed to keep fighting Hezbollah militants "until victory". Israeli aerial bombardment of Hezbollah strongholds around Lebanon has killed hundreds of people this week, while the militant group has hit back with barrages of rockets. "There will be no ceasefire in the north. We will continue to fight against the Hezbollah terrorist organization with all our strength until victory and the safe return of the residents of the north to their homes," Katz said in a post on social media platform X. Moments earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office issued a statement saying he had "not even responded" to the truce proposal, and that he had ordered the military "to continue the fighting with full force". The United States, France and other allies issued a joint statement calling for a 21-day halt in the fighting, with President Joe Biden, his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, and other allies meeting on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York. The situation in Lebanon has become "intolerable" and "is in nobody's interest, neither of the people of Israel nor of the people of Lebanon," the statement said.On the ground, there was no let-up in the violence. On Thursday, the Israeli military said it had struck "approximately 75 terror targets" in the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon and the south, both Hezbollah bastions that have seen a huge exodus people fleeing their homes in recent days.
One strike near the ancient city of Baalbek killed at least nine people, Lebanon's health ministry said, as the official National News Agency described the overnight bombing of the area as "the most violent" of recent days. "It was indescribable, it was one of the worst nights we've lived through. You think there's just a second between life and death," said Fadia Rafic Yaghi, 70, who owns a shop in Baalbek. The Israeli military also said around 45 rockets had been fired from Lebanon, adding that some had been intercepted while others had landed in unpopulated areas. Hezbollah said that it had targeted defense industry complexes near the city of Haifa in northern Israel, saying it was "defending Lebanon and its people", after rocketing the same complex previously this week.
Possible ground offensive
Israel earlier this month said it was shifting its focus from Gaza, where it has been fighting a war with Hamas since the October 7 attack, to securing its border with Lebanon. Hamas ally Hezbollah has been fighting Israeli troops across the Lebanon border since October, forcing tens of thousands of people on both sides to flee their homes. Netanyahu announced earlier this month that ensuring the safe return of Israelis to their homes in the north was a priority. He delayed his departure for New York until Thursday, where he is due to address the General Assembly.On Wednesday, Israel's army chief told soldiers to prepare for a possible ground offensive against Hezbollah, as two reserve brigades were called up "for operational missions in the northern arena"."We are attacking all day, both to prepare the ground for the possibility of your entry, but also to continue striking Hezbollah," Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi said.
Exodus
For many on both sides of the border, the violence has sparked bitter memories of the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel that killed 1,200 people in Lebanon, most of them civilians, and 160 Israelis, most of them soldiers. According to the U.N., Israel's bombardment of Lebanon has forced 90,000 people to flee their homes in traditional Hezbollah strongholds to safer areas elsewhere in the tiny Mediterranean country. Hezbollah had on Wednesday said it targeted Israel's Mossad spy agency headquarters on Tel Aviv's outskirts -- the first time it has claimed a ballistic missile firing in almost a year of cross-border clashes sparked by the Gaza war. Tel Aviv resident Hedva Fadlon, 61, told AFP: "The situation is difficult. We feel the pressure and the tension... I don't think anyone in the world would like to live like this." Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the Middle East was facing a "full-scale catastrophe" and warned Tehran would back Lebanon by "all means" if Israel escalated its offensive. The Israeli military said Wednesday it had hit more than 2,000 Hezbollah targets over the previous three days, including 60 Hezbollah intelligence sites. Israeli strikes killed at least 558 people on Monday -- by far the deadliest day of violence in Lebanon not just in the latest escalation, but since the 1975-1990 civil war. Israel's bombardment on Wednesday killed another 72 people and wounded 400 more, according to the Lebanese health ministry.
Gaza link?
Prior to the current escalation, diplomats had said efforts to end the war in Gaza were key to calming regional tensions, including in Lebanon. But Qatar, a key broker in the stalled talks to end the Gaza war, said it was unaware of a "direct link" between the two.
"I'm not aware of a direct link, but obviously both mediations are hugely overlapping when you are talking about the same parties, for the most part, that are taking part," foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said.

Two killed in Israeli strike on Dahieh, Hezbollah commander targeted
Agence France Presse/September 26/2024
The Israeli military said Thursday its latest strike on south Beirut killed Mohammad Srour, the head of Hezbollah's drone unit, who a source close to the group had earlier said was the target. "Following precise intelligence guidance from the Air Force and the Intelligence Division, fighter jets targeted and eliminated (Srour), the commander of Hezbollah's air unit, in Beirut," a military statement said. The statement said Srour "promoted, directed and commanded many aerial terrorist attacks, including drone attacks, cruise missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles aimed at Israel."The strike Thursday on al-Jamous street in Beirut's southern suburbs targeted the head of Hezbollah's drone unit, a source close to the group said, adding it was not clear whether he was killed. "The Israeli strike targeted the commander of Hezbollah's drone unit, Mohammad Srour, known as Abou Saleh, whose fate is still unclear," the source said, requesting anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to the media. The health ministry said two people were killed and 15 wounded in the strike. "The Israeli enemy strike on Beirut's southern suburbs killed two people and wounded 15, including a woman in critical condition," a ministry statement said.

Israeli strikes wound 5 along Lebanon-Syria border
Agence France Presse/September 26/2024
The Israeli military said on Thursday that its fighter jets struck infrastructure on the Syria-Lebanon border used by Hezbollah, as cross-border attacks continued amid calls for a ceasefire. "A short while ago, (Israeli air force) fighter jets struck infrastructure along the Syria-Lebanon border used by Hezbollah to transfer weapons from Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon, which the terrorist organization used against Israeli civilians," a military statement said. Syria’s Sham FM radio station and Dama Post reported that the airstrike wounded five people and destroyed the bridge near the Matraba border crossing on the Lebanese side in the northeastern Hermel region. Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported several Israeli airstrikes in Hermel.

Heavy Israeli airstrikes hit Hezbollah strongholds
NAJIA HOUSSARI/Arab News/eptember 26, 2024
BEIRUT: The Israeli military on Thursday stepped up airstrikes on Hezbollah strongholds in Beirut’s southern suburbs and the Bekaa Valley, killing at least one senior militia commander. For a fourth consecutive day, Israel continued its pursuit of Hezbollah leaders, with an F35 jet targeting a 10-story residential building in the Roueiss area, near the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Qaim Complex, in south Beirut. srael said that the strike killed Mohammed Srur, the head of Hezbollah’s drone unit, who is believed to have overseen recent attacks on northern Israel. Four people were killed and several others wounded in the strike. Hezbollah has not issued any clarification. srael claimed the assassination was in response to rocket fire directed toward Tel Aviv on Wednesday. n the early hours of Thursday, Israel launched a new round of airstrikes after a lull in exchanges between its military and Hezbollah.
The respite followed international calls for a 21-day ceasefire to allow border issues to be resolved and to reduce longstanding tensions between the two countries. Prime Minister Najib Mikati’s media office denied reports that he had signed a ceasefire agreement proposal after meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US mediator Amos Hochstein. owever, Mikati welcomed the joint initiative led by the US and France, with support from the EU and Western and Arab countries, to establish a temporary truce. Israeli warplanes launched dozens of deadly airstrikes after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied reports of a ceasefire. In the Bekaa region alone, 155 people were killed and 520 wounded within hours. For the first time, airstrikes targeted both legal and illegal border crossings between eastern Lebanon and Syria, some under Hezbollah’s control and others used for smuggling. An attack on a bridge near the Matraba border crossing on the Syrian side injured eight people. Airstrikes hit the towns of Al-Qasr and Housh Al-Sayyed Ali, including the Al-Arida, Saleh, and Qabash border crossings. The Israeli army said that it attacked eight border crossings used to bring weapons from Syria to Hezbollah. Airstrikes killed 15 Lebanese and wounded nine in the town of Karak, near Zahle. At least 23 Syrian refugees were also killed in the town of Younin in the Baalbek district. An airstrike destroyed a residential house belonging to Turki Zeaiter in the town of Chaat, killing all members of the family. A building near the home of Ali Youssef Hijazi, secretary-general of the Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party, was struck, injuring several people. Hijazi was not at home at the time.
In the Bekaa towns, the cries of people buried under rubble could be heard, while paramedics were unable to reach damaged sites for hours due to heavy shelling.
People in the villages appealed via social media to officials and Hezbollah to provide relief to the victims. Airstrikes destroyed homes in the towns of Nabi Sheet, and Khodor, Brital, Al-Bazzaliyah, and Doures, near Baalbek. In the south, three people were killed in Aita Al-Shaab and a Syrian national was killed in Qana. An airstrike killed three young men from the town of Halta while they were in their car. The Lebanese Ministry of Health said that strikes on Tyre district towns on Thursday killed three people and injured 17. After halting its attacks on Israel for 16 hours, Hezbollah resumed its strikes, launching dozens of rockets toward Acre and Haifa Bay. The Israeli army warned settlers to “stay near shelters.” It said that more than 45 rockets were fired from Lebanon, with some intercepted and others falling in open areas. An Israeli army spokesman said that about 75 Hezbollah targets in the Bekaa and the south had been targeted, including weapons depots, rocket launchers, and military infrastructure. Hezbollah said that it targeted the Rafael military manufacturing plant in the Zvulun area, north of Haifa, with salvos of rockets. More than 70,000 people have been forced to flee southern Lebanon, with thousands more displaced from the Baalbek-Hermel region and towns in central Bekaa. Many people have also left their homes in Beirut’s southern suburbs. Newly displaced people spoke of “neighborhoods emptied of their residents.”Ibrahim, a father of two, told Arab News: “Everyone is scared, and we hope we will not stay displaced for long. No one asked us about our needs and the resources we have. We are trying to rent a house, but we can’t find a single vacant room in Beirut, so we turned to relatives.”A total of 530 shelters have opened their doors in Beirut and various regions. MP Bilal Abdullah, chairman of the parliamentary health committee, told Arab News: “The state is stumbling and confused in addressing the needs of the displaced and so is Hezbollah. The government’s emergency plan was excellent, but in terms of execution, it’s safe to say it’s at zero. People would be sleeping on the ground if it weren’t for personal initiatives.”According to the Lebanese government, more than 600 people were killed and thousands wounded in the first three days of the war.

US, allies call for 21-day ceasefire in Lebanon
Associated Press/September 26/2024
The U.S., France and other allies jointly called Wednesday for an immediate 21-day cease-fire to allow for negotiations in the escalating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah that has killed more than 600 people in Lebanon in recent days. The joint statement, negotiated on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York, says the recent fighting is "intolerable and presents an unacceptable risk of a broader regional escalation." "We call for an immediate 21-day cease-fire across the Lebanon-Israel border to provide space for diplomacy," the statement said. "We call on all parties, including the governments of Israel and Lebanon, to endorse the temporary cease-fire immediately." There was no immediate reaction from the Israeli or Lebanese governments — or Hezbollah — but senior U.S. officials said all parties were aware of the call for a cease-fire. Earlier, representatives for Israel and Lebanon reiterated their support for a U.N. resolution that ended the 2006 war between Israel and the Iranian-backed militant group. The U.S. hopes the new deal could lead to longer-term stability along the border between Israel and Lebanon. Months of Israeli and Hezbollah exchanges of fire have driven tens of thousands of people from their homes, and escalated attacks over the past week have rekindled fears of a broader war in the Middle East. The U.S. officials said Hezbollah would not be a signatory to the cease-fire but believed the Lebanese government would coordinate its acceptance with the group. They said they expected Israel to "welcome" the proposal and perhaps formally accept it when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at the General Assembly on Friday. While the deal applies only to the Israel-Lebanon border, the U.S. officials said they were looking to use a three-week pause in fighting to restart stalled negotiations for a cease-fire and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas, another Iranian-backed militant group, after nearly a year of war in Gaza. The nations calling for a halt to the Israel-Hezbollah conflict are the United States, Australia, Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Qatar.
Work on the proposal came together quickly this week with President Joe Biden's national security team, led by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan, meeting with world leaders in New York and lobbying other countries to support the plan, according to U.S. officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomatic conversations. Blinken first raised the proposal with the French foreign minister Monday and then broadened his outreach that evening at a dinner with the foreign ministers of all the Group of Seven industrialized democracies.
During a meeting Wednesday morning with Gulf Cooperation Council foreign ministers, Blinken approached Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan to ask their approval and got it. Blinken and senior White House adviser Amos Hochstein then met with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, who signed off on the deal. Sullivan, Hochstein and senior adviser Brett McGurk were also in touch with Israeli officials about the proposal, one of the U.S. officials said. McGurk and Hochstein have been the White House's chief interlocutors with Israel and Lebanon since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas launched the war in Gaza. The officials said the deal crystallized by late Wednesday afternoon during a conversation on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly between Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron. Blinken expects to meet Netanyahu's top strategic adviser in New York on Thursday ahead of the prime minister's arrival.
An Israeli official said Netanyahu has given the green light to pursue a possible deal, but only if it includes the return of Israeli civilians to their homes. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were discussing behind-the-scenes diplomacy. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told the U.N. Security Council during a special meeting that "we are counting on both parties to accept it without delay" and added that "war is not unavoidable."
At the meeting, Mikati, the Lebanese prime minister, publicly threw his support behind the French-U.S. plan that "enjoys international support and which would put an end to this dirty war." He called on the Security Council "to guarantee the withdrawal of Israel from all the occupied Lebanese territories and the violations that are repeated on a daily basis."
Israel's U.N. Ambassador, Danny Danon, told journalists that Israel would like to see a cease-fire and the return of people to their homes near the border: "It will happen, either after a war or before a war. We hope it will be before." Addressing the Security Council later, he made no mention of a temporary cease-fire but said Israel "does not seek a full-scale war."
Both Danon and Mikati reaffirmed their governments' commitment to a Security Council resolution that ended the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah war. Never fully implemented, it called for a cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanon to be replaced by Lebanese forces and U.N. peacekeepers, and the disarmament of all armed groups including Hezbollah.
Earlier Wednesday, Biden warned in an appearance on ABC's "The View" that "an all-out war is possible" but said he thinks the opportunity also exists "to have a settlement that can fundamentally change the whole region."Biden suggested that getting Israel and Hezbollah to agree to a cease-fire could help achieve a cessation of hostilities between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. "It's possible and I'm using every bit of energy I have with my team … to get this done," Biden said. "There's a desire to see change in the region."The U.S. government also raised the pressure with additional sanctions targeting more than a dozen ships and other entities it says were involved in illicit shipments of Iranian petroleum for the financial benefit of Iran's Revolutionary Guard and Hezbollah.

Report: Temporary Israel-Hezbollah truce sought after previous talks collapsed
Naharnet/September 26/2024
Inflexible stances by Israel and Hezbollah have torpedoed a comprehensive solution for the current escalation and made efforts instead focus on a “temporary ceasefire” that would give a chance to further negotiations, an informed Lebanese source said. “The previously proposed solution had called for issuing a U.N. resolution that would have laid out a new executive mechanism for Resolution 1701 … but Hezbollah’s insistence on linking the plan to a ceasefire in Gaza, and Israel’s rejection to link between them, torpedoed the proposed solution,” the source added. Describing the current negotiations as “plan B,” the source hoped there will be an agreement on the plan, “which calls for a three-week temporary ceasefire during which there would be a negotiations process led by U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein, who would shuttle between Beirut and Tel Aviv.”

Britain sends humanitarian aid for civilians in Lebanon
Associated Press/September 26/2024
Inflexible stances by Israel and Hezb
Britain says it’s sending $6.7 million worth of humanitarian assistance, including medical supplies, hygiene kits and fuel to Lebanon to support the civilian population there as fighting forces thousands to flee their homes. The United Kingdom said in a statement that the United Nations agency for children, UNICEF, will distribute the supplies, which will also help aid workers better deal with urgent health and nutrition needs. The U.K. earlier announced that 700 troops, including Border Force and Foreign Office officials, would be deployed to a British military base in Cyprus to prepare for possible evacuations of British citizens from the region as fighting could potentially escalate. An online portal and phone line have been reopened for British nationals in Lebanon to register their presence. Cyprus is situated approximately 210 kilometers west of the Lebanese capital. The east Mediterranean island nation served as a waystation for the repatriation of approximately 60,000 foreign nationals who where evacuated from Lebanon during the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war. Britain’s Minister of State for Development, Women and Equalities, Anneliese Dodds, said the U.K. will continue to support Lebanese people as it urges British nationals to leave the country. British navy ships RFA Mounts Bay and the HMS Duncan were already in the eastern Mediterranean on Thursday, while the Royal Air Force has aircraft and transport helicopters on standby to provide support if needed.

Conflicting reports on Israel-Lebanon ceasefire negotiations
Naharnet /September 26/2024
The diplomatic efforts are advancing and expect a Lebanon-Israel ceasefire soon, sources informed on the negotiations in New York told Lebanon’s MTV on Thursday. An Arab diplomat meanwhole told LBCI television that “the Israeli envoy (to the U.N.) clearly informed everyone that the operation on Lebanon will not stop and that they have many remarks over the U.S. proposal.” “The envoys who are communicating with Hezbollah have unclear answers from it, as it is linking the solution to an understanding with Hamas, while Hamas has not agreed to the wording of the proposal,” the diplomat added. “A meeting will be held soon between officials from the U.S., French, Qatari and Egyptian intelligence to discuss modifying the proposed solution,” the diplomat said. The U.S., France and other foreign and Arab allies had overnight issued a joint statement calling for “an immediate 21 day ceasefire across the Lebanon-Israel border to provide space for diplomacy.” “The ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah will enter into effect within hours,” Israel's Channel 13 said. And as Israeli reports said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had ordered the army to lower the intensity of the strikes on Lebanon in connection with the ongoing negotiations, the premier’s office denied that and said Netanyahu was yet to respond to the proposal. Mediator Qatar meanwhoile said there is no "direct link" between talks for a Gaza truce and an international push for an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz -- a hardliner who will head Israel’s security cabinet sessions in the presence of Netanyahu in New York -- for his part wrote on X that “there will be no ceasefire” and that Israel |will continue to fight” against Hezbollah “until victory and the safe return of the residents” to the north.

French woman, 87, dies in Israeli strike near Tyre
Agence France Presse/September 26/2024
An elderly French woman was killed this week when her home collapsed following an explosion in south Lebanon, the French foreign ministry said Thursday, as Israel presses a deadly air campaign against Hezbollah. "We are sorry to announce the death on Monday of an 87-year-old fellow countrywoman in a village near the city of Tyre. The building where she lived collapsed following a large explosion nearby," the ministry said.

US, France to 'talk to Netanyahu' after Dermer 'rejects' Lebanon truce proposals
Naharnet/September 26/2024
Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, who is close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, informed U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein Thursday in New York that “Israel is continuing its war in Lebanon and will not agree to the presented proposals,” an Arab diplomat said. However, U.S., Qatari, French and Turkish intelligence services have started a series of meetings and the mediators have not lost hope in the possibility of reaching a solution, the diplomat told LBCI television. “The French and Americans will talk to Netanyahu, while the Qataris and Turks will hold meetings with Iranian officials,” the diplomat added.

Mikati says implementation of ceasefire deal up to Netanyahu
Naharnet/September 26/2024
Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati has said that he has done “everything necessary to protect Lebanon” in the face of Israel’s escalation, noting that foreign and Arab powers have supported Lebanon’s stance. "The issue now is about implementation, or in Benjamin Netanyahu's commitment to the U.S.-French statement, because he had previously rejected several initiatives coming from U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, the (U.N.) Security Council and Arab sides," Mikati told the Mustaqbal Web news portal.
Mikati concluded by saying: "We have done what needs to be done, but the rest is not in our hands."

What obstacles stand in the way of an Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire?
AP/September 27, 2024
Israel and Hezbollah each have strong incentives to heed international calls for a ceasefire that could avert all-out war — but that doesn’t mean they will. Hezbollah is reeling after a sophisticated attack on personal devices killed and wounded hundreds of its members. Israeli airstrikes have killed two top commanders in Beirut in less than a week, and warplanes have pounded what Israel says are Hezbollah sites across large parts of Lebanon, killing over 600 people. So far, Israel clearly has the upper hand militarily, which could make it less willing to compromise. But it’s unlikely to achieve its goal of halting Hezbollah rocket fire with air power alone, and a threatened ground invasion of Lebanon poses major risks. After nearly a year of war, Israeli troops are still fighting Hamas in Gaza. And Hezbollah is a much more formidable force.
“Hezbollah has yet to employ 10 percent of its capabilities,” military affairs correspondent Yossi Yehoshua wrote in Yediot Ahronot, Israel’s largest daily newspaper. “The euphoria that is evident among the decision-makers and some of the public should be placed back in the attic: the situation is still complex and flammable.” The United States and its allies, including Gulf Arab countries, have tried to offer a way out, proposing an immediate 21-day ceasefire to “provide space for diplomacy.” But any deal would require both sides to back away from their core demands, and they may decide the price is too high.
Hezbollah wants a truce in Gaza, too
Hezbollah began launching rockets, drones and missiles into northern Israel after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack in the south triggered the war in Gaza. Hezbollah and Hamas are both allies of Iran, and the Lebanese militant group says it is acting in solidarity with Palestinians. Israel has responded with waves of airstrikes. Overall, the fighting has killed dozens of people in Israel, more than 1,500 in Lebanon and forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people from communities on both sides of the border. Hezbollah has said it will halt the attacks if there is a ceasefire in Gaza. But months of negotiations over Gaza led by the United States, Qatar and Egypt have repeatedly stalled, and Hamas might be less motivated to reach a deal if it thinks Hezbollah and Iran will join a wider war against Israel. For Hezbollah, halting its rocket fire without securing any tangible gains for the Palestinians would be seen as a capitulation to Israeli pressure, with all of its recent casualties suffered in vain. Any deal involving a ceasefire in Gaza would be a hard sell for Israel, which would view it as a reward for Hezbollah rocket attacks that have displaced tens of thousands of its citizens for nearly a year.
For Israel, a ceasefire might not be enough
Israel’s goals in Lebanon are far narrower than in Gaza, where Prime Minister Benjmain Netanyahu has vowed “total victory” over Hamas and the return of scores of hostages. Israel wants the tens of thousands of people who were evacuated from northern communities nearly a year ago to return safely to their homes. And it wants to ensure that Hezbollah never carries out an Oct. 7-style attack. A weekslong ceasefire — which would give Hezbollah a chance to reset after major attacks on its chain of command and communications — might not be enough. Few Israelis are likely to return if they know it’s only temporary, and even an agreement for a lasting ceasefire would face skepticism. The UN Security Council resolution that ended the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah called for the militants to withdraw north of the Litani River, some 30 kilometers (18 miles) from the border, and for the area between to be patrolled by Lebanese forces and UN peacekeepers. Israel says that provision was never implemented and is likely to demand additional guarantees in any new ceasefire. But Hezbollah is far stronger than Lebanon’s regular armed forces and the UN detachment, neither of which would be able to impose any agreement by force.
Netanyahu’s partners want him to fight on
Netanyahu leads the most religious and nationalist government in Israel’s history. His far-right coalition partners have threatened to bring down his government if he makes too many concessions to Hamas, and they are also likely to oppose any deal with Hezbollah. Bezalel Smotrich, Netanyahu’s hard-line finance minister, said Thursday that Israel’s campaign in the north “should only end in one scenario – crushing Hezbollah and denying its ability to harm residents of the north.” Itamar Ben-Gvir, the far-right National Security Minister, said he would not support a temporary ceasefire and would leave the government if it becomes permanent. Although opposition parties would likely support the ceasefire, the defection of his partners would eventually bring down Netanyahu’s government and force early elections, potentially leaving him even more exposed to investigations into the security failures of Oct. 7 and corruption charges that predate the war. It could even mean the end of his long political career.
Iran has sent mixed signals
In Lebanon, Prime Minister Najib Mikati has welcomed the ceasefire proposal, but he has little power to impose an agreement on Hezbollah. Iran, which helped establish Hezbollah in the 1980s and is the source of its advanced weapons, has more sway over the group, but it has yet to express a position on any ceasefire. It likely fears a wider war that could bring it into direct conflict with the United States, but can’t stand by indefinitely while its most powerful proxy force is dismantled. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, a relative moderate elected over the summer, struck a more conciliatory tone toward the West than his predecessors when he addressed the UN General Assembly on Tuesday. But he had sharp words for Israel and said its heavy bombardment of Lebanon in recent days “cannot go unanswered.”

Israel shoots down first Hezbollah missile aimed at Tel Aviv as group says it targeted spy agency
Cybele Mayes-Osterman, USA TODAY/September 26/2024
Israel on Wednesday said it shot down a missile fired by Hezbollah toward Tel Aviv, the first time the Iran-backed militia group had fired at one of Israel's most populated cities. Hezbollah said the missile targeted the headquarters of the Israeli Mossad spy service, believed to have coordinated an unusual attack that exploded thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies across Lebanon, killing 39 and injuring thousands, last week. Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon on Wednesday killed at least 23 people, according to the country's health ministry. Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon on Wednesday killed at least 23 people, according to the country's health ministry. Israel's military said war sirens sounded across central Israel, but nobody was injured. Its air defense systems intercepted a surface-to-surface missile fired from a village in Lebanon, but the missile was headed toward "civilian areas," not the Mossad's headquarters. "The Mossad headquarters is not in that area," Spokesman Nadav Shoshani said.
Israel continues intense strikes targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon
Israeli warplanes continued to pummel southern Lebanon and the eastern Bekaa Valley, a Hezbollah hub, on Wednesday. The military said in a statement it hit 60 targets of Hezbollah's intelligence directorate, including "intelligence-gathering tools, command centers, and additional infrastructure." At least 23 people were reported dead in Wednesday's airstrikes, Lebanon's health ministry. The Lebanese army evacuated more than 60 people from the village of Alma Chaab, on the southern border with Israel, after intense airstrikes overnight. Meanwhile, Israel's northern Galilee region endured a heavy rain of Hezbollah rockets – around 40 were fired in one burst. One rocket hit an assisted living facility in the town of Safed, but no one was injured, authorities said. More: Middle East tensions flare: What to know about escalating Israel-Hezbollah fighting
Israel-Hezbollah fighting escalates
For almost a year, the Iran-backed militant group has intensified the firing of rockets into northern Israel. Tensions on that border have increased since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel that killed 1,200 people. Israel responded by launching military strikes on Gaza that have killed about 40,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Gazan Health Ministry. U.S. officials are concerned that a ratcheting up of tensions could lead to a broader regional conflict in the Middle East and have been trying to negotiate a cease-fire. The increase in fighting pushed Israel and Hezbollah closer to an all-out war. Many fear a larger conflict could wreak unprecedented destruction on the region and escalate tensions between the U.S. and Iran – Israel's and Hezbollah's respective allies.

Macron says would be ‘mistake’ for Israeli PM to ‘refuse’ Lebanon ceasefire
AFP/September 27, 2024
MONTREAL: French President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday it would be “a mistake” for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to refuse a ceasefire in Lebanon, and that he would have to take “responsibility” for a regional escalation. “The proposal that was made is a solid proposal,” Macron said at a news conference in Montreal, specifying that the plan supported by the United States and the EU had been prepared with Netanyahu himself.

All eyes on Hezbollah ... but that’s the wrong place to look
Ross Anderson/Arab News/September 27/2024
“Another full-scale war could be devastating for both Israel and Lebanon,” US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said after talks with his British and Australian counterparts in London. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was at the UN meeting with Israeli officials over the truce proposal. Speaking in an interview with MSNBC, he said major powers, the Europeans and Arab nations were united, “everyone speaking with one clear voice about the need to get that ceasefire in the north.” “I can’t speak for him,” Blinken said of Netanyahu. Hezbollah has not yet responded to the proposal. Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati welcomed it, but his government has no sway over the group. Netanyahu’s office downplayed the initiative, saying in a statement that it was only a proposal. One of Netanyahu’s far-right governing partners threatened on Thursday to suspend cooperation with his government if it signs onto a temporary ceasefire with Hezbollah – and to quit completely if a permanent deal is reached. It was the latest sign of displeasure from Netanyahu’s allies toward international ceasefire efforts.
“If a temporary ceasefire becomes permanent, we will resign from the government,” said National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, head of the Jewish Power party. If Ben-Gvir leaves the coalition, Netanyahu would lose his parliamentary majority and could see his government come toppling down, though opposition leaders have said they would offer support for a ceasefire deal. Hezbollah has insisted it would halt its strikes only if there is a ceasefire in Gaza, where Israel has battled Hamas for nearly a year. That appears out of reach despite months of negotiations led by the United States, Egypt and Qatar.
One day after Hamas’ Oct 7 attack on southern Israel that triggered the war in Gaza, Hezbollah began firing rockets into northern Israel, bringing Israeli counterfire and a cycle of reprisals that has gone on near daily since. Hezbollah says its barrages are a show of support for Palestinians and that it is targeting Israeli military facilities, though rockets have also hit civilian areas. Before this week, the cross-border exchanges had killed about 600 people in Lebanon, mostly militants but including more than 100 civilians, and about four dozen people in Israel, roughly half of them soldiers and the rest civilians. The fighting also forced tens of thousands to flee homes on both sides of the border.
Israel says its escalated strikes across Lebanon the past week are targeting Hezbollah rocket launchers and other military infrastructure. Since Monday, strikes have killed more than 690 people in Lebanon, around a quarter of them women and children, according to local health authorities. The campaign opened with what is widely believed to be an Israeli attack on Sept. 18 and 19 detonating thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah, killing at least 39 people and maiming thousands more, including civilians. Hezbollah in turn has fired hundreds of rockets into Israel. Several people in Israel have been wounded. On Wednesday, the group fired on Tel Aviv for the first time with a longer-range missile that was intercepted. Early Thursday, an Israeli airstrike hit a building housing Syrian workers and their families near the ancient city of Baalbek in Lebanon’s eastern Bekaa Valley. The Lebanese Health Ministry said 19 Syrians and a Lebanese were killed, one of the deadliest single strikes in Israel’s intensified air campaign. Hussein Salloum, a local official in Younine, said most of the dead were women and children. The state news agency had initially reported that 23 people were dead.
Lebanon, with a population of around 6 million, hosts nearly 780,000 registered Syrian refugees and hundreds of thousands who are unregistered — the world’s highest refugee population per capita.

Shadow soldiers: Does Lebanon have an army and why it is absent amid rising conflict with Israel?
Sergio Cantone/Euronews/September 26/2024
As the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon keeps teetering towards an outright war, many are asking, does Lebanon have an army and why it is nowhere to be seen?
However, its role and place in the conflict are much more complicated than one might think.
Khalil Helou, on-leave general of the Lebanese army and a professor of geopolitics at St Joseph University of Beirut, told Euronews that the Lebanese army's role in Lebanon is not just to defend the country's borders. "It's not a classic army like Western armies. The Lebanese army is subject to the instructions of the Lebanese government," he said.
"For the time being, and for a long time, there have been extreme divisions. The army was left to itself. Now whoever commands the army, whoever is the commander-in-chief of the army, they must take the decisions that they finds suitable." Lebanon's leadership has several significant issues to consider — all of which come with serious consequences. If the Israeli army turns the current airstrikes into a boots-on-the-ground operation as it did in 2006, and violence spills over from southern Lebanon and the Bekka Valley into the rest of the country, the entire Middle East will be under threat. Southern Lebanon and the Bekka Valley are supposedly under the legal shelter of the UN Security Council Resolution 1701.
This resolution establishes the creation of a UN peace keeping force, the UNIFIL, in the South. It also gives an active role to the Lebanese regular army, and calls upon the Government of Lebanon and UNIFIL "to deploy their forces together" so that "there will be no weapons without the consent of the Government of Lebanon and no authority other than that of the Government of Lebanon" after the withdrawal of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF).
In the case of a major military attack, the Lebanese armed forces will be faced with a dilemma: either confront the Israeli army or disarm Hezbollah by force, complying in both cases with the UN resolution.
Delicate balance of power and unfriendly neighbours
Between 1975 and 1990, Lebanon was ravaged by civil war, and it became a military playground for regional actors and major powers. The country's current political regime is a delicate balance between the representatives of different confessional communities, and the army is constitutionally subordinate to political institutions whose members have mutually contradictory views of the ongoing crisis. "If there is ever a ground attack, the units deployed in the south should defend themselves and should defend the Lebanese territory with the means at their disposal," Helou explained. "But basically, the mission of the brigades deployed in the South is to work together with UNIFIL and not with the use of force. So it's not a strike force, it's not a force that's going to oppose Israel. The balance of power is not at all in our favour in this case". According to Resolution 1701, Hezbollah should have pulled its armed groups out of Southern Lebanon, and especially its missiles systems capable of targeting Israel — yet it did not comply with the commitments.
Hezbollah is formally first of all a legitimate and constitutional Lebanese political force mostly composed by Lebanese Shia Muslims. Its armed force is operating as highly operational contingents alien to the command structure of the Lebanese army as proxies of Iran.
When Hezbollah takes the unilateral initiative to target Israel, the other Lebanese political forces and the army are completely paralysed. Many Lebanese people of different confessions wouldn't see a defeat of Hezbollah as an headache, they could easily live with it like a relevant sector of the Lebanese army. However, in Lebanon everyone knows that there are inter-communitarian red lines that cannot be crossed.
"To confront Hezbollah is an immediate and automatic recipe for civil war. And the army command knows that the absolute priority is the internal stability first all over a war that could drag on between the army itself and Hezbollah," Helou said. The relations between Hezbollah and the Lebanese security structures have been also marked by some constructive moments of crucial cooperation:
"One only has to think of the collaboration between Hezbollah and the Lebanese Army during the period of maximum expansion of the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, when elements associated with the Islamic State group and Al-Nusra were present and operating within Lebanon itself in terms of preparation, training and recruitment," Claudio Bortolotti, a researcher from the Milan-based International Politics Research Institute, told Euronews.
Hezbollah's armed wing has a peculiar paramilitary structure. It has a vigorous ballistic capacity, but uses guerrilla units as infantry and has neither an air force nor tank regiments.
The Lebanese regular army, by contrast, has a typical military structure but insufficient weaponry.
The role of Europe
"The European Union has always been trying to boost the Lebanese armed forces capabilities. And it's not new. They have helped the Lebanese army," explained Lebanese security correspondent Agnes Helou. "Mainly, let's say first Germany has helped the Lebanese army to maintain all the towers, the surveillance towers on the navy side, as well as on the land side, land borders with Syria and on the naval sites on the Mediterranean.""Some EU countries and the US will try to organise a conference to help arming the Lebanese army on the southern border if there is a political decision to send the Lebanese army," she explained. "So the issue is not with the armament or with the capabilities or perhaps means the issue is just with the Lebanese political decision to be sending them or effectively deploying them." The Lebanese ambassador to the EU, Fadi Ajali, praised the bloc's contribution.
"The European Peace Facility is providing funds for the Lebanese army to play its central and fighting vital role in promoting the 1701 resolution, which would provide peace and security to the country and to the region," he told Euronews. However, he emphasised, "the Lebanese army is overstretched because it must deal with the internal security affairs of Lebanon (such as) trying to control the overflow of migrants to the EU. "The Lebanese army is also trying to provide security for those refugees. The Syrian refugees and the Palestinian camps."
What about the army in Bekka?
This is an army unable to operate on new fronts. And if the Lebanese regular army became involved in a direct ground confrontation between the IDF and Hezbollah, it would cause enormous political problems for its financial sponsors in the West, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States. Meanwhile, Israeli missiles are hitting Lebanese territory, but the Lebanese army is not even trying to shoot them down. Why not? "Missile defence and air defence are the same thing," Khalil Helou said. "It's defence against flying targets. But the Lebanese army does not have any of its own. "Hezbollah doesn't have any. The Syrians have S-300s. It hasn't worked at all. And when you talk about a balance of forces like that, there are huge regional powers that are unable to shoot down missiles. So we can't ask the Lebanese army to do it."
History has it that an army needs clear objectives and well-defined orders.
"The Bekka Valley is controlled by the Bekka brigade, which is an operational brigade with essentially standard personnel. The question is whether it is a fully staffed brigade today and whether it is ready to confront a threat that is not only external but could also be internal," said Bortolotti. "I believe that there could be two scenarios. That is, in the event of a land invasion by Israel, there could be, and I believe this is the most likely scenario, a disengagement of the regular army units, thus leaving the Bekka Valley uncovered or leaving it as a battleground between Israel and Hezbollah. "Scenario number two here is possible, but more improbable instead, a reinforcement of military units not so much to counter a military presence or to give support to Israel. However, the presence of the Lebanese army could be a deterrent to Israel's operational activity," he concluded. During the Israeli invasion of 2006 the Lebanese regular army avoided any confrontation with the IDF, despite the bombing of the some of its military bases. The Lebanese army did not use its force to disarm Hezbollah despite the binding provisions of Resolution 1701.

Norway issues wanted notice for man connected to exploding pagers in Lebanon
AP/September 26, 2024
The notice is part of a multi-country investigation trying to piece together how thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies were rigged to explode and their trail to Lebanon. Hezbollah and the Lebanese government have blamed Israel for the coordinated two-day attacks
COPENHAGEN: Norway issued an international wanted notice on Thursday for a man linked to a Bulgaria-based company that may have been involved in the dissemination of exploding electronic devices to the militant Hezbollah group that killed dozens and wounded thousands in Lebanon last week.
The notice is part of a multi-country investigation trying to piece together how thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies were rigged to explode and their trail to Lebanon. Hezbollah and the Lebanese government have blamed Israel for the coordinated two-day attacks, which killed at least 39 people and wounded more than 3,000, including civilians. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied involvement. “We have on behalf of the Oslo police sent out an international wanted notice today,” Åste Dahle Sundet, a spokeswoman for Norway’s National Criminal Investigation Service told The Associated Press.
The agency declined to name the man or provide his nationality. All that is known is that he was listed as working for a Norwegian company. Norwegian news agency NTB wrote on Thursday that the 39-year-old man had traveled to the United States last week but vanished after arriving there. The man was subsequently reported missing on Wednesday, one of Norway’s major tabloids VG wrote, citing police. The CEO of the man’s employer, Norway-based DN Group, told the AP in an email that the company had “tried to contact our employee without success since we first heard the serious allegations about his alleged private activity, which we did not know about and has nothing to do with us as a company.”“We haven’t heard from him since (last) Wednesday, and we don’t know where he is. This worries us,” DN Group CEO Amund Djuve said.
Djuve also did not give the man’s name.
The man holds a Norwegian passport and has lived in Norway for 12 years but was born in another country, NTB reported. The news agency described him as one of the founders of the Bulgarian company that was allegedly connected to supplying the pagers to Hezbollah. The Bulgarian company is not the only firm implicated in the pagers’ journey to Lebanon. Last week, Taiwanese firm Gold Apollo, whose name appeared on the pagers, said it had authorized Budapest, Hungary-based BAC Consulting to use its brand for the devices that exploded, but insisted the Hungarian company was responsible for their manufacturing and design. Hungary’s Special Service for National Security told the AP last week that the CEO of BAC Consulting had been interviewed “several times” as part of an investigation, but that they believed the company had not taken part in rigging the devices to explode.
“The results of the investigation so far have made it clear that the so-called pagers have never been on Hungarian territory, and that no Hungarian company or Hungarian expert was involved in their manufacture or modification!” the agency said in an email. Norway’s domestic security agency, known by its acronym PST, earlier told the AP that it was checking whether a Norwegian national had any connection with the company that sold the pagers that exploded in Lebanon. PST stressed that it was not a formal investigation and that there was currently no concrete suspicion against the man.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on September 26-27/2024
Israeli military chief says troops are preparing for ground war in Lebanon
Brad Dress/The Hill/September 26/2024
The Israeli military’s top commander, Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, told troops Wednesday they were preparing for a ground invasion into Lebanon. Halevi said during an exercise in northern Israel with the 7th Brigade that Israeli strikes in the past few days are meant to “prepare the ground for your possible entry and to continue degrading Hezbollah.” “Today, Hezbollah expanded its range of fire, and later today, they will receive a very strong response. Prepare yourselves,” he said, according to a video released by the Israeli military. “The goal is very clear — to safely return the residents of the north.”“To achieve that, we are preparing the process of a maneuver, which means your military boots, your maneuvering boots, will enter enemy territory, enter villages that Hezbollah has prepared as large military outposts,” Halevi added. The comments come as Israeli strikes targeted multiple Hezbollah targets, taking out rocket launch sites. Hezbollah also fired a rocket for the first time at Tel Aviv overnight Wednesday and has continued launching a barrage of missiles toward Israel, which have largely been downed by air defense systems. Israel has increasingly targeted the Iranian-backed Hezbollah in the past week, including a deadly round of strikes on Monday that killed more than 500 people and the detonation of pager and handheld radios last week that killed at least 37 and wounded thousands. The Israeli attacks have taken out several top Hezbollah commanders, most recently a Beirut strike killing Ibrahim Muhammad Qabisi, the Commander of Hezbollah’s Missiles and Rockets Force, the Israeli military said Tuesday. The United Nations is warning of a humanitarian crisis in Lebanon and said more than 90,000 people have been displaced in the past three days.
Israeli officials have indicated there is a new phase in the north and set a war goal to return the about 60,000 displaced residents from the Lebanon border area. Israeli Maj. Gen. Uri Gordin, head of the Israeli military’s Northern Command, said in remarks to the 7th Brigade on Tuesday that Israel has “entered a new phase of the campaign.” “The operation began with a significant blow to Hezbollah’s capabilities, focusing on their firepower capabilities, and a very significant hit on the organization’s commanders and operatives,” he said. “Facing this, we need to change the security situation, and we must be fully prepared for maneuvers and action.”Israel may be preparing for a larger war against Hezbollah after 11 months of cross-border fire with the Lebanese militant group backed by Iran because the Gaza war is wrapping up. Israel has largely defeated Palestinian militant group Hamas, even as fighting continues in the coastal strip, and that has freed up resources.On Wednesday, the Israeli military called up two reserve brigades for what it said were operational missions in the north. An elite unit that played a key role in Gaza was also sent to the north roughly a week ago. The U.S. is pushing for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict, trying to avoid an Israeli invasion of Lebanon and a broader war. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos on Wednesday that a large war would not achieve Israel’s goals. “If there were to be a full-scale war, that wouldn’t solve the problem. It wouldn’t get people back to their homes,” Blinken said. But Halevi told Israeli troops that they “will show them what it means to face a professional, highly skilled, and battle-experienced force,” referring to Hezbollah. “You are coming in much stronger and far more experienced than they are. You will go in, destroy the enemy there, and decisively destroy their infrastructure,” he said. “These are the things that will allow us to safely return the residents of the north afterward.”

Hostages families urge Israel to agree to Gaza, Lebanon cease-fire
Associated Press/September 26/2024
Families of Israeli hostages still held in Gaza for nearly a year are urging Israel to ensure than any possible cease-fire deal with Hezbollah includes provisions for the war in Gaza. Gil Dickmann, whose cousin, Carmel Gat, was kidnapped and was one of six Israelis killed in Hamas tunnels in August, said the families of the hostages are feeling forgotten as attention shifts to the northern front. “We know that these things are connected to each other, the northern part and the southern part, they’re all part of the same large situation in which we are at from October 7th on. And we’re very worried that if we don’t make the right decisions now, we will miss this amazing opportunity to get the hostages out,” Dickmann said on Thursday. He slammed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for missing multiple opportunities to free his cousin over the past 11 months and begged him to agree to a cease-fire with both Hezbollah and Hamas that would include provisions for the hostages. Dickmann’s sister-in-law, Yarden Roman-Gat, was released in the week-long cease-fire deal last November, along with nearly 100 other hostages. Hamas-led militants abducted some 250 people during their Oct. 7 attack in Israel. More than 41,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war in Gaza since then.

Gaza rescuers say 7 killed in Israeli strike on school
AFP/September 26, 2024
GAZA STRIP: Civil defense rescuers in Gaza said an Israeli strike on a school-turned-shelter killed at least seven people, with the Israeli military saying it had targeted a Hamas command center. he vast majority of the besieged Gaza Strip’s 2.4 million people have been displaced at least once by the war, sparked by the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, with many seeking shelter in school buildings. ivil defense agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal said there were “seven martyrs, including children, and many wounded following an Israeli missile attack that targeted Al-Faluja School in Jabalia camp in north Gaza.” The military said it carried out “precise strikes” targeting Hamas militants operating inside what it said was a command-and-control center at the Al-Faluja School. Thursday’s attack was the latest in a series of Israeli strikes on school buildings housing displaced people in Gaza, where fighting has raged for nearly a year.
A strike on the UN-run Al-Jawni School in central Gaza on Sept. 11 drew an international outcry. n his address to the UN General Assembly, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called on the international community to stop sending weapons to Israel to halt the bloodshed in the West Bank and Gaza, singling out the US. Abbas said that Washington continued to provide diplomatic cover and weapons to Israel for its war in Gaza despite the mounting death toll there, now at 41,534 according to the Health Ministry in the Strip. Stop this crime. Stop it now. Stop killing children and women. Stop the genocide. Stop sending weapons to Israel. This madness cannot continue. The entire world is responsible for what is happening to our people in Gaza and the West Bank,” Abbas told the UN General Assembly. The US alone stood and said: ‘No, the fighting will continue.’ It did this by using the veto,” he said, referring to the veto repeatedly wielded to thwart censure in the UN Security Council of Israel’s campaign in Gaza. “It furnished Israel with the deadly weapons that it used to kill thousands of innocent civilians, children, and women. This further encouraged Israel to continuous aggression,” he added, saying that Israel “does not deserve” to be in the UN.

All eyes on Iran’s balancing act as IRGC’s Middle East proxies face Israel’s onslaught
JONATHAN GORNALL/Arab News/September 26, 2024
LONDON: On July 31, Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas’ decision-making Political Bureau, was killed in the heart of Tehran. As a prominent negotiator of an eagerly awaited ceasefire deal with Israel, Haniyeh would have made an unlikely target for an Israeli government looking to bring an end to the months of indiscriminate death and destruction being suffered in Gaza. However, for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whom critics accuse of maintaining the impetus of perpetual war as a guarantee of clinging on to power, the audacious killing appeared to be a calculated provocation of Tehran, designed to escalate the war in Gaza into a regional conflict. According to this line of thinking, other than vowing to avenge Haniyeh for the “cowardly action,” Tehran refused to play ball. In much the same way, Iran’s reaction to the Israeli missile attack on an Iranian diplomatic mission in Damascus in April, in which senior members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps were killed, was unexpectedly muted. Iran’s response — a wave of missiles and drones that constituted its first direct attack on Israeli soil — was largely gestural, planned, telegraphed and executed deliberately to cause minimum damage and casualties. This week, following the deadly pager-bomb attacks — widely believed to be carried out by Israel’s spy agency Mossad targeting Hezbollah operatives — and airstrikes, as Israeli troops massed on the border with Lebanon, critics said Netanyahu was poised once again to try to provoke Iran into a regional escalation.
And, once again, Tehran is exercising restraint.
Haniyeh could have been killed anywhere, at any time, but the timing and location of his death was chosen carefully. The former Palestinian prime minister was in Tehran for the inauguration of Iran’s new president, Masoud Pezeshkian — a moderate whose election and approval by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is seen by some commentators as a sign that Iran might be entering a new, conciliatory era, anathema to an Israeli leader dependent on perpetual conflict for his political survival. The day before the killing of Haniyeh, Pezeshkian spoke in his inauguration speech of his determination to normalize his country’s relations with the rest of the world — an ambition underlined by the presence of Enrique Mora, the European Union’s chief nuclear negotiator. This week, even as Israel is bombarding Lebanon and hitting Hezbollah hard, Iran has kept its finger off the trigger. (AFP)
This week, even as Israel is bombarding Lebanon and hitting Hezbollah hard, Iran has kept its finger off the trigger. Not only that, but in an unprecedented and lengthy press conference with Western media at the UN in New York earlier this week, Pezeshkian spelled it out for anyone who had not already noticed the extent to which Iran has exercised restraint in the face of repeated provocation. “What Israel has done in the region and what Israel tried with the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in Iran was to drag us into a regional war,” he said. “We have exercised restraint so far, but we reserve the right to defend ourselves at a specific time and place with specific methods.” But, he added: “We do not wish to be the cause of instability in the region.” According to a report last month by the media outlet Iran International, citing sources “familiar with the subject,” in the wake of Haniyeh’s killing, Pezeshkian made the case for restraint directly to Ayatollah Khamenei, clashing with senior leaders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps who wanted to launch attacks against Israel.
INNUMBERS
• 200,000 Rockets and missiles of various ranges believed to be in Hezbollah’s arsenal.
But the most remarkable evidence that Pezeshkian may be seeking a new path for Iran came on Tuesday, when he addressed the UN General Assembly in New York. Predictably enough, he condemned the “atrocities” carried out in Gaza by Israel, which “in 11 months has murdered in cold blood over 41,000 innocent people, mostly women and children.” Israel’s “desperate barbarism” in Lebanon, he added, must be halted “before it engulfs the region and the world.”And then came the real message he had flown to New York to deliver: “I aim to lay a strong foundation for my country’s entry into a new era, positioning it to play an effective and constructive role in the evolving global order,” he said. “My objective is to address existing obstacles and challenges while structuring my country’s foreign relations in cognizance of the necessities and realities of the contemporary world.”
Echoing the words of Iran’s equally new foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, Pezeshkian indicated that Tehran was keen to reopen the nuclear negotiations from which former US president Donald Trump unexpectedly walked away in 2017.
He also made the case for ending sanctions, “destructive and inhumane weapons … endangering the lives of thousands of innocent people (and) a blatant violation of human rights.” Iran, he added, “stands prepared to foster meaningful economic, social, political and security partnerships with global powers and its neighbors based on equal footing.” Faced with Iran’s seemingly conciliatory new president, offering an olive branch at a time when Iran might normally be expected to be reaching for weaponry, experts are divided over whether or not Tehran is truly on a new course and set to defy expectations of its response to events in Lebanon. “Pezeshkian and Araghchi receive their orders from Ayatollah Khamenei and from the National Security Council in Tehran and they thus don't have a mandate for some sort of a grand change in Iranian policies that would help end its pariah status,” said Arash Azizi, visiting fellow at Boston University’s Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future and author of the 2021 book “The Shadow Commander — Soleimani, the US, and Iran's Global Ambitions.” “But they do have a mandate for lessening tensions, negotiating with the West, including the US, over Iran’s role in Ukraine and its nuclear program, and trying to get to some sort of a rapprochement that could help alleviate pressure on Iran and fix its economy.”He added: “Any success Iran has in this path will strengthen the pro-reform factions in Iran and affect the trajectory of the country's future, especially a future after Khamenei dies.” Ali Alfoneh, a senior fellow at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington and author of the book “Political Succession in The Islamic Republic of Iran,” believes Pezeshkian is uniquely positioned to effect change. “Iranian President Pezeshkian presides over a cabinet composed of capable technocrats, who also happen to represent different factions among the ruling elites of the Islamic Republic,” he said. “This rare combination of skills and representation not only provides Pezeshkian with the opportunity to engage in effective diplomacy, but also lessens the risk of domestic factional sabotage of his diplomatic efforts.”Certainly, when it comes to events in Lebanon, Ali Vaez, Iran Project director with the International Crisis Group, said: “Iran is going to stand behind, not with, Hezbollah. Tehran’s forward defense strategy has always been based on projecting power beyond its borders and deterring, not inviting, strikes against its own territory.”

Yemen’s president vows to defeat ‘new imamates’ as country commemorates 1962 revolution
Updated 26 September 2024
SAEED AL-BATATI/Arab News/September 26, 2024
AL-MUKALLA: The chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad Al-Alimi, pledged to defeat the Houthi militia and end their rule, as the country marked the 62nd anniversary of its Sept. 26 Revolution. In a televised speech on the eve of the commemoration of the 1962 uprising, he accused the Houthis of attempting to restore the Zaidi Imamate that ruled Yemen before the revolution, and promised to defeat them and foil Iran’s plans for the country. “At the forefront of our national tasks and priorities is the completion of the country’s liberation from terrorism, slavery, tyranny, ignorance and injustice brought about by the new imamates,” Al-Alimi said. “We must defeat the Iranian project, and the outcome of this decisive battle, in which we have no choice but to win, will determine our freedom and dignity, as well as the future of all Yemeni men and women.”
The Yemeni leader thanked Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Oman for the support they have provided to the Yemeni people, the transitional council and state bodies, and for facilitating peace talks in the hope of ending the war in the country.
The revolution, which began on Sept. 26, 1962, resulted in the overthrow of the Zaidi Imamate rulers who had controlled northern Yemen for centuries, paving the way for the establishment of the Yemen Arab Republic. Many Yemenis believe the Houthis share similar radical ideologies as the Zaidi Imamate and wish to revive its era, during which rule over the country was limited to Hashemites. The Houthis have attempted to suppress celebrations of the anniversary of the revolution in areas under their control. They have abducted at least 250 people over the past few days for commemorating the event online or encouraging others to do so. They also deployed forces and armored vehicles in Sanaa, Hodeidah, Taiz, Ibb, Dhamar and other areas to to crack down on any revolutionary rallies. The Houthis say those who celebrate the revolution are being used by the US and other opponents to put pressure on the militia to halt its attacks on international shipping. The leader of the group, Abdul Malik Al-Houthi, on Thursday vowed that attacks on vessels in waters off the coast of Yemen will continue until Israel ends its war in the Gaza Strip. He also said his forces would defend Hezbollah against Israeli attacks in Lebanon.
“We will continue to support Gaza and Palestine in general, as well as Lebanon and Hezbollah, without hesitation,” he said during a televised speech. The Houthis say their attacks on ships using missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles and drone boats, which began in November, target Israeli, American and British ships in an attempt to put pressure on authorities in Israel to halt their military operations in Gaza. However, critics say the militia is using outrage in Yemen over the deaths of thousands of civilians in Gaza to gain public support, recruit new fighters and divert attention from its failures to address crumbling services and pay public-sector salaries. Speaking in the US on Wednesday during an event organized by the New York-based Council on Foreign Relations, Al-Alimi called for the Houthis to be globally designated as a terrorist organization in an attempt to deter them from undermining the security of international shipping lanes. He warned that the group would continue to attack ships even if the war in Gaza ended. “After using the Red Sea as a weapon, Iran and its affiliate militias will continue to blackmail international trade, waterways and the environment in the future,” he said.

UNRWA earning ‘global vote of confidence’: Jordanian FM
CASPAR WEBB/Arab News/September 27, 2024
UNRWA chief: Gaza ‘definitely horrifies even the most seasoned humanitarians’
NEW YORK CITY: A high-level meeting on the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugee produced a “global vote of confidence” in the agency despite Israel’s “political assassination campaign” against it, Jordan’s foreign minister said on Thursday.
Ayman Safadi was speaking at a joint press conference with UNRWA Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini following the meeting at the UN headquarters. Safadi said: “Today rallied international support behind an agency which carries out heroic work in helping the Palestinian people through the misery that Israel continues to bring to Gaza. “Nobody can do the job that UNRWA is doing. It’s irreplaceable. It’s indispensable. It’s needed now more than ever before. “UNRWA and its staff made the ultimate sacrifice. Israel has killed 222 UNRWA staff members. It targets them. It doesn’t allow them to operate.” Safadi said more than 50 countries attended the meeting. He hailed UNRWA’s “noble job” in saving the lives of thousands of Palestinian children from paralysis through a polio vaccination campaign. The agency has become the victim of an Israeli “political assassination campaign” designed to undermine support for the Palestinian people, Safadi said. It is “incomprehensible” that a UN member state would designate a UN agency as a terrorist organization, he added. “That can’t happen, and we must stand against that,” Safadi said, because “it’s undermining the whole UN system, and the world mustn’t allow that, and we’ll stand up to it, along with all our partners who showed up in support of UNRWA today.” He added: “We’ll continue to do everything to ensure that UNRWA stands because UNRWA is also a beacon of hope for Palestinians, and that’s why Israel has launched the political assassination campaign on UNRWA, because it wants to liquidate the cause of the Palestinian refugees, which shouldn’t be done and won’t be done.” Lazzarini echoed Safadi’s words, describing the Israeli campaign against the agency as “relentless” and “coming from every corner.” He said: “These aren’t just attacks against UNRWA. They’re attacks against the broader UN system, attacks against the broader international community. “They aim, first, at stripping Palestinians from the refugee statute, but secondly, they aim at weakening or putting an end to the aspirations of the Palestinians for self-determination.”The UNRWA chief said his agency and others, as well as international NGOs, have seen staff being “phased out” in the Occupied Territories as a result of Israeli practices.
Calls to dissolve UNRWA or end its presence in the Middle East would be “unconscionable, unprecedented, and would open an extraordinary Pandora’s Box,” Lazzarini warned.
To counter the Israeli campaign, “we’ll continue to push the true narrative that UNRWA deserves to be supported,” Safadi said. “UNRWA deserves to be thanked for the tremendous sacrifices that it continues to do in the execution of its global mandate.”
Both officials described conditions on the ground in Gaza almost one year on from Israel’s invasion. The UNRWA chief warned that the Palestinian enclave is a “place which definitely horrifies even the most seasoned humanitarians who’ve seen it all over the last 20, 30 years.”
He said more than 1 million school-age children in Gaza are “deeply traumatized” and living amongst rubble. “An entire generation might be sacrificed if they aren’t brought back to learning,” he added. “Obviously learning in this environment is extraordinary difficult, but we’re trying to make sure that they lose as little as possible.” Lazzarini discussed the financing of his agency, warning that the shortfall in funding from October to the end of the year stood at $60-$80 million. But he said UNRWA would make sure to “bridge the gap” despite some donor countries signaling a decline in foreign aid due to austerity measures. Lazzarini also highlighted UNRWA operations in Lebanon, saying shelters are now open to “not only Palestinian refugees, but also Lebanese and Syrian refugees.” The UNRWA meeting on Thursday was backed by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and French Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot. “Virtually all donors have reversed their funding suspensions” to UNRWA, Guterres said in a statement, adding that “123 countries have signed up to the declaration on shared commitments to UNRWA. “This underscores the consensus that UNRWA’s role across the West Bank and the region is vital. Friends, there is no alternative to UNRWA.”Barrot said: “The role of UNRWA is necessary in the Gaza Strip to provide vital humanitarian aid to a civilian population of Gaza whose needs are immense.
“France pays tribute to the UNRWA personnel and to all the humanitarian personnel killed in Gaza while they were trying to rescue civilians.”

US troops deployed to Cyprus as fears of wider Middle East war intensify
Natasha Bertrand and Alex Marquardt, CNN/September 25, 2024
Dozens of US troops have been deployed to Cyprus amid sharply escalating tensions between Israel and Hezbollah, and they are preparing for a range of contingencies including a possible evacuation operation from Lebanon for US citizens should a full-blown war erupt, four US officials told CNN. Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said earlier this week that the US military would be deploying “a small number of US military personnel forward” to the region “out of an abundance of caution.” But he declined to say how many troops were deployed, where they were sent, and what branch they belonged to.
Cyprus played a key role in helping to evacuate foreign nationals from Lebanon during Israel’s war with Hezbollah in Lebanon in 2006, facilitating the departure and accommodation of tens of thousands of people at the time as they fled the conflict.
Cyprus’s deputy government spokesperson, Yiannis Antoniou, told Reuters last month that the island nation is again on standby to help if needed. The UK announced on Tuesday that it was sending 700 troops to Cyprus to prepare for a possible emergency evacuation of British citizens from Lebanon if one becomes necessary. “The most important message from me this evening is to British nationals in Lebanon, to leave immediately and I just want to reinforce that,” said British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The US State Department has also repeatedly warned US citizens to leave Lebanon while commercial travel options are still available. Tensions between Israel and Hezbollah have reached new highs over the last week, beginning when Israel carried out covert attacks that detonated Hezbollah pagers and walkie-talkies. Israel followed up by pounding Beirut and southern Lebanon with airstrikes that have killed hundreds of civilians and Hezbollah fighters in recent days. The militant group has responded with rocket attacks targeting Israeli sites including Ramat David air base east of Haifa, and on Wednesday launched a missile directly at Tel Aviv which was intercepted by Israeli air defenses. Later on Wednesday, the Israel Defense Forces announced it would be calling up two reserve brigades for a mission in northern Israel. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that the US is “working tirelessly” on diplomatic efforts to prevent an “full-blown war” between Israel and Lebanon. “Risk of escalation in the region is acute, and I know that we are all very much focused on that,” Blinken told his counterparts in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) at a meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
A US official told CNN on Monday that “we are the closest we’ve been to spiraling to a regional war” since Hamas’ October 7 attack. One of the biggest concerns for the US right now is that Iran, which is a key backer of Hezbollah, will get involved, the official said. Tehran has not intervened yet, but they will if they believe they are about to lose their most powerful proxy force, Hezbollah, the official added.

Iran shows ‘willingness’ to re-engage on nuclear issue: IAEA chief
AFP/September 27, 2024
UNITED NATIONS: The head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog on Thursday said Iran is showing “willingness” to re-engage on the nuclear issue, but that Tehran will not reconsider its decision to deny access to top UN inspectors. International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi said Tehran was “showing signs of willingness to reengage, not only with the IAEA, but also... with our former partners in the nuclear agreement of 2015.”Grossi spoke after meeting this week with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who played a key role in the negotiations that culminated in the 2015 landmark nuclear deal with world powers which has since unraveled. “It’s a moment where there is a possibility to do something” on the nuclear question, Grossi told AFP on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly. “The advantage Araghchi has is that he knows everything about this process, so that allows us to move faster,” Grossi said at the IAEA’s New York offices. In recent years, Tehran has decreased its cooperation with the IAEA, while significantly ramping up its nuclear program, including amassing large stockpiles of uranium enriched to 60 percent — close to the 90 percent needed to develop an atomic bomb. But since the July election of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Tehran has signaled openness to relaunching talks to revive the nuclear agreement. The landmark deal — also known by its acronym JCPOA — started to unravel in 2018 when then-US president Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from it and reimposed sanctions, and Iran retaliated by stepping up its nuclear activities. Efforts to revive the deal — bringing the United States back on board and Iran back into compliance — have so far been fruitless. “If things move in a positive way... and I think this is the intention of the president and the foreign minister (of Iran), there will be a return to the conversations with the former partners,” Grossi said. Tehran, however, is not willing to walk back on a decision it took last year to ban some of the IAEA’s “best inspectors,” Grossi said, a move Teheran initially described as retaliation for “political abuses” by the United States, France, Germany and Britain. “They are not going to restore the inspectors to the list,” Grossi said. “Maybe there will be a review of that. I will keep pushing,” he added, explaining that he is due to visit Tehran in the “coming weeks.”During his visit, Grossi plans to discuss “different monitoring and verification measures that we could agree on prior to a wider agreement.” “I think getting an agreement with Iran on these things would be a very constructive indication... toward a future negotiation,” Grossi said. “If you do not allow me to establish a baseline of all the capacities that the country has at the moment, then what kind of confidence and trust are you injecting in the system for a negotiation with other partners?” he added. According to a diplomatic source, the European side is skeptical about the possibility of returning to the framework of the initial pact.
Grossi said the actual framework of the deal would be left to Iran and Western powers. “Will it be the same? Will it be updated? Will it be something completely different? This is for them to decide,” Grossi said.

Analysis-US diplomacy in Mideast falters as clock ticks down for Biden
Matt Spetalnick, John Irish and Humeyra Pamuk/Reuters/September 26, 2024
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. efforts to secure a Gaza ceasefire remain stalled after nearly a year of fighting. Iran-backed Houthi rebels continue to attack Red Sea shipping. And now, despite intense U.S.-led diplomacy, the Israel-Hezbollah conflict threatens to flare into an all-out regional war. With the clock ticking on his administration, U.S. President Joe Biden faces an arc of Middle East crises likely to defy solution before he leaves office in January and which look all but certain to tarnish his foreign policy legacy, analysts and foreign diplomats say.
Biden has struggled over the past year to thread the needle of embracing Israel’s right to self-defense against Palestinian Hamas militants in Gaza and the Hezbollah group in Lebanon while trying to contain civilian casualties and prevent a spiral into a broader Middle East conflict.
Time and again he has confronted the shortcomings of that strategy, the latest being Israel’s rejection on Thursday of a U.S.-backed proposal for a 21-day truce across the Lebanon border as it pressed ahead with strikes that have killed hundreds of Lebanese.
“What we’re seeing are the limits of U.S. power and influence in the Middle East,” said Jonathan Panikoff, the U.S. government's former deputy national intelligence officer for the region. Perhaps the clearest example of that trend has been Biden’s reluctance to exercise much U.S. leverage – as Israel’s top arms supplier and diplomatic shield at the United Nations - to bend Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Washington’s will.
For nearly a year the United States has sought unsuccessfully to help broker a deal between Israel and Hamas to halt the fighting and free hostages taken by the militants in their Oct. 7 cross-border rampage that triggered the Gaza war.
No breakthrough is imminent, say people familiar with the matter.
U.S. officials are quick to pin blame for failed negotiations on Hamas but some also cite Netanyahu’s shifting demands. During U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s nine trips to the region since Oct. 7, the top U.S. diplomat several times found himself at odds with senior Israeli leaders. In one instance last November, Blinken at a news conference urged Israel to pause its military offensive in Gaza to allow aid to enter the Palestinian enclave. Moments later, Netanyahu rejected the idea in a televised statement, saying he had made clear to Blinken that Israel was continuing with its operation "full force." The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this story.
U.S. CREDIBILITY AT STAKE
Biden has been credited by fellow Western leaders with reinvigorating key U.S. alliances, including with NATO and top Asian partners, after his White House predecessor, Donald Trump, questioned the value of such relationships. That was demonstrated in April when the Biden administration marshalled support from regional and European partners to help defend Israel from an Iranian drone and missile attack.
But some foreign diplomats say Biden’s handling of the volatile Middle East, especially his response to the Gaza war, has frayed U.S. credibility abroad. “President Biden's original blunder was to say the U.S. will, no matter what, stand for Israel,” one Western official said. “We have never recovered from that.” A Middle East diplomat said U.S. diplomacy had “failed to impress adversaries" and noted that Biden sent military assets to the region after Oct. 7 as a warning to Iran and its proxy groups but that it did not seem to deter them completely.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have kept up a steady barrage of missile attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea despite Biden and other Western leaders providing warships for beefed-up protection.
"He could have been quicker to respond and more severe to these attacks by proxy forces," said Michael 'Mick' Mulroy, a former deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Middle East under the Trump administration. U.S. officials have repeatedly pushed back on such criticism, saying their diplomacy has made a difference for the better and that the U.S. military deployment to the region had helped so far to avert a spillover from Gaza into a regional war.
"Diplomacy is not a matter of snapping our fingers and – voila," U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the Security Council earlier this month. "It takes hard work. It takes effort and, unfortunately, it takes time. It has not failed." Even so, since Oct. 7, Biden has seen his hopes dashed for what was once touted as a potential signature foreign policy achievement – normalization of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia coupled with U.S. security guarantees for Riyadh.
At the United Nations, where the Security Council in June backed Biden’s plan for a Gaza ceasefire-hostage deal, there are signs that patience with U.S. Middle East diplomacy has waned. Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said on Thursday that efforts to stop the violence in the Middle East constituted "a year of failure" and that if the Israeli government was not held to account it was not going to listen to international law, "and it's not even listening to its friends, including the U.S."Panikoff, the former intelligence official now at the Atlantic Council think-tank in Washington, described the crux of the Biden administration’s Gaza dilemma as: “Plan A hasn’t worked for months. So where’s Plan B?”With Israel threatening a ground offensive in Lebanon and vowing to keep pressure on Iran-backed Hezbollah until thousands of Israeli evacuees can return to their homes in the north, the crisis there could also deepen. The trajectory of the Lebanon conflict could have further implications not only for Biden’s legacy but by extension the presidential campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris. Some Democratic progressive voters are already angry over unflinching U.S. support for Israel. It remains to be seen whether Netanyahu will heed Biden’s entreaties to avoid further escalation in Lebanon. As a lame duck president in his final four months in office, analysts say Biden cannot be faulted for keeping up his efforts to ease Middle East turmoil - but they expect his successor to inherit the current crises.

Multiple Iranians indicted over Trump campaign hack, Politico reports
Reuters/September 26, 2024
(Reuters) - Multiple Iranians have been indicted by a U.S. grand jury on charges over hacking Republican Donald Trump's 2024 presidential campaign, Politico reported on Thursday.
Politico said the names of the defendants and the specific criminal charges were not immediately available. Without citing sources, it said a grand jury secretly approved the indictment on Thursday afternoon and that the Justice Department was expected to announce the charges as soon as Friday. The Justice Department declined to comment and the Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Trump campaign said in August that some of its internal communications were hacked, and blamed the Iranian government.
Trump, who is running for second four-year term in the White House, said on Wednesday that Iran may have been behind recent attempts to assassinate him and suggested that if he were president and another country threatened a U.S. presidential candidate, it risked being "blown to smithereens". Iran said on Thursday that accusations that it had targeted former U.S. officials were baseless. Trump made his remarks after U.S. intelligence officials briefed him a day earlier on "real and specific threats from Iran to assassinate him," according to his campaign.
Federal authorities are probing assassination attempts targeting Trump at one of his Florida golf courses in mid-September and at a rally in Pennsylvania in July. There has been no public suggestion by law enforcement agencies of involvement by Iran or any other foreign power in either incident Also on Thursday, Trump raised the idea of making a deal with Iran aimed at ending hostilities if he is elected president on Nov. 5. "I would do that," Trump said, without offering details on what sort of deal he was talking about.

Yemen’s president vows to defeat ‘new imamates’ as country commemorates 1962 revolution
SAEED AL-BATATI/Arab News/September 26, 2024
AL-MUKALLA: The chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad Al-Alimi, pledged to defeat the Houthi militia and end their rule, as the country marked the 62nd anniversary of its Sept. 26 Revolution. n a televised speech on the eve of the commemoration of the 1962 uprising, he accused the Houthis of attempting to restore the Zaidi Imamate that ruled Yemen before the revolution, and promised to defeat them and foil Iran’s plans for the country. “At the forefront of our national tasks and priorities is the completion of the country’s liberation from terrorism, slavery, tyranny, ignorance and injustice brought about by the new imamates,” Al-Alimi said. We must defeat the Iranian project, and the outcome of this decisive battle, in which we have no choice but to win, will determine our freedom and dignity, as well as the future of all Yemeni men and women.”
The Yemeni leader thanked Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Oman for the support they have provided to the Yemeni people, the transitional council and state bodies, and for facilitating peace talks in the hope of ending the war in the country.
The revolution, which began on Sept. 26, 1962, resulted in the overthrow of the Zaidi Imamate rulers who had controlled northern Yemen for centuries, paving the way for the establishment of the Yemen Arab Republic. Many Yemenis believe the Houthis share similar radical ideologies as the Zaidi Imamate and wish to revive its era, during which rule over the country was limited to Hashemites. he Houthis have attempted to suppress celebrations of the anniversary of the revolution in areas under their control. They have abducted at least 250 people over the past few days for commemorating the event online or encouraging others to do so. They also deployed forces and armored vehicles in Sanaa, Hodeidah, Taiz, Ibb, Dhamar and other areas to to crack down on any revolutionary rallies. he Houthis say those who celebrate the revolution are being used by the US and other opponents to put pressure on the militia to halt its attacks on international shipping. he leader of the group, Abdul Malik Al-Houthi, on Thursday vowed that attacks on vessels in waters off the coast of Yemen will continue until Israel ends its war in the Gaza Strip. He also said his forces would defend Hezbollah against Israeli attacks in Lebanon.
“We will continue to support Gaza and Palestine in general, as well as Lebanon and Hezbollah, without hesitation,” he said during a televised speech. he Houthis say their attacks on ships using missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles and drone boats, which began in November, target Israeli, American and British ships in an attempt to put pressure on authorities in Israel to halt their military operations in Gaza. owever, critics say the militia is using outrage in Yemen over the deaths of thousands of civilians in Gaza to gain public support, recruit new fighters and divert attention from its failures to address crumbling services and pay public-sector salaries. Speaking in the US on Wednesday during an event organized by the New York-based Council on Foreign Relations, Al-Alimi called for the Houthis to be globally designated as a terrorist organization in an attempt to deter them from undermining the security of international shipping lanes. He warned that the group would continue to attack ships even if the war in Gaza ended. “After using the Red Sea as a weapon, Iran and its affiliate militias will continue to blackmail international trade, waterways and the environment in the future,” he said.

Trudeau, French president Macron meet in Canada as trade deal challenges continue
Dylan Robertson/The Canadian Press/September 26, 2024
OTTAWA — French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau say their governments will collaborate more on issues ranging from the war in Ukraine to foreign interference, as they face off against rising populism and misinformation.
"In these troubled times, we have an agenda that is extremely aligned," Macron said in French during a Thursday visit to Parliament Hill, thanking Trudeau for "the hospitality and especially the shared vision." Macron arrived Wednesday evening for a short visit to Ottawa and Montreal, with the pair discussing a slew of issues ranging from the French language and ocean protection to the gang crisis in Haiti and defence.
On Haiti, Macron hinted France might finally meet two years of demands from Trudeau that Paris sanction some of Haiti's political and economic elites, whom Canada and the U.S. have barred from financial transactions on the basis of support for gangs that are terrorizing the country. "We will take the necessary actions in terms of sanctions or equipment, as we have discussed ourselves (in France) and within European bodies," Macron told reporters in French.
The pair also talked about escalating violence between Israel and Lebanon, and an effort led by France and the U.S. for a three-week ceasefire, which Israel has rejected despite support from G7 countries and Gulf states. Macron said he didn't see that initial rejection as Israel's final response to the proposal.
The visit follows a March vote by France's senate to reject the European Union's trade deal with Canada, against Macron's wishes.
He said "tempers flared" over the deal, known as CETA, but he is confident the deal will be fully implemented, noting that most of it is operational and boosting trade for both France and Canada. "If someone is against CETA today, it is someone who never wants to make trade agreements with anyone again, because it has the best standards of any (deals) that we have ratified," Macron said in French. After the formal meeting on Parliament Hill, Macron flew to Montreal, where he was scheduled to meet Quebec Premier François Legault on Thursday afternoon and discuss artificial intelligence. Both their governments have overseen measures that limit the role of religion in the public sphere.
Since 2004, France has had a law banning conspicuous religious symbols and garments in public schools, including hijabs and kippahs as well as large Christian crosses. Such policies have inspired laws like Quebec's Bill 21, which since 2019 has blocked Muslim women from a slew of government jobs.
Macron lamented that France's policies have been caricatured in the English-speaking world and caused divisive debates. "The French model of secularism is not a model of exclusion of religions," Macron said, while stressing that France doesn't impose the model on other countries. "If it inspires (others) I welcome it, but everyone must pursue their model in a democratic way," he said, based on local history and living together in harmony.
Both Trudeau and Macron have faced a rise in populist movements and discontent that has challenged each country's policies on climate change and immigration. This summer, Macron's allies lost control of the national legislature in a snap election that saw a rise in turnout for left- and right-wing parties.
Trudeau's government has had a sustained slump in the polls amid frustration over housing costs made worse by a boom in short-term immigration.
Meanwhile, both leaders endorsed a joint statement Thursday on a "stronger defence and security partnership." The statement builds on work dating back to the D-Day landings 80 years ago, and pledges to "fight against foreign interference and information manipulation."
It pledges to "strengthen our co-operation in the area of military equipment support to Ukraine and training" and stick with ongoing work to bring home children abducted by Russia.
"Canada and France will support Ukraine for as long as it takes to thwart Russia's war of aggression," reads the statement, which unlike some previous Canadian statements does not mention outright victory for Ukraine.
Both leaders say the statement "will enable us to provide more effective support to Ukraine."
In the Indo-Pacific, both countries will beef up "strategic and military analysis" and study opportunities for joint patrol missions, such as possibly integrating Canadian support in the deployment of a French aircraft carrier. The two countries will also increase communication to better respond to "foreign interference operations and information manipulation."
Macron and Trudeau were in New York earlier this week for the opening of the United Nations General Assembly, and they will meet again next week, this time in France, for the Francophonie summit. Macron last visited Canada in 2018 for a meeting of the G7 leaders, but a French president hasn't made an official, stand-alone visit to Canada in a decade.

Alabama to carry out the second nitrogen gas execution in the US
Kim Chandler/The Canadian Press/September 26, 2024S
ATMORE, Ala. (AP) — Alabama is preparing to carry out the nation’s second nitrogen gas execution Thursday as disagreements continue over the humaneness of the new method of putting prisoners to death. Alan Eugene Miller, 59, is scheduled to be executed with nitrogen gas at a south Alabama prison two years after the state unsuccessfully attempted to execute him by lethal injection. Miller was convicted of killing three men — Lee Holdbrooks, Christopher Scott Yancy and Terry Jarvis — in back-to-back workplace shootings in 1999.
In January, Alabama put Kenneth Smith to death in the first nitrogen gas execution, a new method that involves placing a respirator gas mask over the inmate’s face to replace breathable air with pure nitrogen gas, causing death by lack of oxygen. Alabama officials and advocates have argued over whether Smith suffered an unconstitutional level of pain during his execution after he shook in seizure-like spasms for more than two minutes while strapped to the gurney and then gasped for breath for several minutes. “Alabama’s nitrogen hypoxia system is reliable and humane,” Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said last month in announcing a lawsuit settlement agreement that allowed Miller’s execution. The state has scheduled a third nitrogen execution for November. But death penalty opponents and advocates for other inmates facing nitrogen execution maintain that what happened with Smith shows there are problems with, or at least questions about, the method and say it should be scrutinized more before being used again.
“The fact that the state scheduled two more nitrogen executions without publicly acknowledging the failures of the first one is concerning. Going through with a second in the world nitrogen execution without reassessing the first, and under a continued veil of secrecy is not how a transparent government operates,” John Palombi, an attorney with the Federal Defenders Program who is representing another inmate facing nitrogen execution in November, wrote in an email. Death penalty opponents delivered petitions Wednesday asking Gov. Kay Ivey to halt the execution. Miller is one of five inmates scheduled to be put to death in the span of one week, an unusually high number that defies a yearslong trend of decline in the use of the death penalty in the U.S. Miller, a delivery truck driver, was convicted of capital murder for the shootings that claimed three lives and shocked the city of Pelham, a suburban city just south of Birmingham.
The Aug. 5, 1999, workday had begun normally, a witness testified, until Miller showed up armed with a handgun saying he was “tired of people starting rumors on me.”
Police say that early that morning Miller entered Ferguson Enterprises and shot and killed two co-workers: Holdbrooks, 32, and Yancy, 28. He then drove 5 miles (8 kilometers) away to Post Airgas, where he had previously worked, and shot Jarvis, 39. All three men were shot multiple times. A prosecutor told jurors at the 2000 trial that the men "are not just murdered, they are executed.” Miller had initially pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity but later withdrew the plea. A psychiatrist hired by the defense said that Miller was mentally ill but his condition wasn’t severe enough to use as a basis for an insanity defense, according to court documents. Jurors convicted Miller after 20 minutes of deliberation and recommended by a 10-2 vote that he receive a death sentence, which a judge imposed.
In the hours ahead of his execution, Miller visited with his siblings and two attorneys, and had a final meal of hamburger steak, french fries and a baked potato, according to information provided by the Alabama Department of Corrections. Alabama attempted to execute Miller by lethal injection in 2022 but called off the execution after being unable to connect an IV line to the 351-pound (159-kilogram) inmate. The state and Miller agreed that any other execution attempt would use nitrogen gas. The state might be making minor adjustments to execution procedures. Miller had initially challenged the nitrogen gas execution plans, citing witness descriptions of what happened to Smith. But he dropped the lawsuit after reaching a settlement last month with the state. Court records did not disclose the terms of the agreement, but Miller had suggested several changes to the state’s nitrogen gas protocol. Those include giving him an oral sedative before the execution. The Associated Press filed a records request seeking information about any changes to execution procedures. The Alabama Department of Corrections said Thursday that it objected to releasing the requested information because it “seeks a confidential agreement not currently subject to disclosure.”Mara E. Klebaner, an attorney representing Miller, said last month that he “entered into a settlement on favorable terms to protect his constitutional right to be free from cruel and unusual punishmen

The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources on September 26-27/2024
The New Torture Industry of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, China and India: Abductions, Beatings and Death
Raymond Ibrahim/ Gatestone Institute./September 26, 2024
In short, "transnational repression" exists when a government, such as the Chinese Communist Party tracks, intimidates or persecutes you from one country to another.
"You should mind your own business... You should not be indulging in Pakistan's affairs.... we have your brother and you will be responsible." — "Hamza" on a telephone call to Salman Shabbir, an Australian citizen of Pakistani descent who promotes democratic reform in Pakistan.
Shabbir later learned that his brother had been taken to a nearby jail, held in a traditional cell, all of which confirmed that his brother's abductors and torturers were state agents, most likely of the notorious Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
"They told me to be quiet so that there could be 'stability' in Pakistan, but it is their own actions that are causing instability. I told them that what they were doing was illegal, counterproductive, but they mocked me when I mentioned the law and forced me to listen to them torturing my brother on the phone." – Salman Shabbir to Drop Site News, August 23, 2024.
"My family and I feel like hunted animals... We're taking on the ISI because we're dead anyway." — Salman Ahmad, Pakistan-American physician, musician with the Pakistani rock band Junoon, Drop Site News, August 23, 2024.
"You should mind your own business... You should not be indulging in Pakistan's affairs.... we have your brother and you will be responsible." — "Hamza" on a telephone call to Salman Shabbir, an Australian citizen of Pakistani descent who promotes democratic reform in Pakistan. Shabbir's brother had been taken to a jail, which confirmed that his brother's abductors and torturers were state agents, most likely of the notorious Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). (Illustrative image by iStock/Getty Images)
"Transnational repression" is a little-known practice that refers to pressure exerted by a government, through illegal or violent means, to silence expat citizens of other nations, increasingly, those living in the West.
A recent report, based on the audio recording of a Pakistani state agent trying transnationally to repress a Pakistani expat living in Australia – and written for Drop Site News by Ryan Grim and Murtaza Hussain – exposes the practice:
"A government—or individuals working at the behest of a government to target its rivals —cracking down on the political activity of people who live outside its borders. The act goes beyond a typical human rights abuse because it not only violates the rights of its immediate target, but also challenges the sovereignty of the nation the victim calls home."
In short, transnational repression exists when a government, such as the Chinese Communist Party, tracks, intimidates and persecutes you from one country to another. The report continues:
"When Saudi Arabia sent a hit squad to murder American journalist and resident Jamaal Khashoggi in Istanbul, the killing was seen not just as an act of aggression against the free press, but as a slap in the face of both Turkey and the United States....
"'Australians would be alarmed to learn of foreign governments using coercive measures against Australia citizens and their families,' said Andrew Wilkie, a member of Australia's House of Representatives, responding to Shabbir's case."
The recording (which was translated into English and can be heard here) is of a call made to Salman Shabbir, an Australian citizen of Pakistani descent, who runs a small X account called Citizen Action, focused on promoting democratic reform in Pakistan. Among other things, he has helped collect and circulate letters and petitions concerning Pakistan's abysmal human rights record and its rigged elections, and has called for outside investigations.
Prior to the call made to Shabbir, his brother had been abducted by half a dozen men dressed in black. Shabbir responded by posting about the abduction on his Citizen Action account. On the following day, he received a call from his brother's number.
After briefly hearing his brother's voice, another man yanked the phone and asked, "Where is your brother?"
"Now listen to me," the man proceeded, "and don't try to pull a trick or be clever. If you do, you will create problems for your brother."
The man, who only towards the end of the call identified himself simply as "Hamza," went on to warn Shabbir against interfering with Pakistani politics, especially seeing that he had relocated from Pakistan and now lives in Australia: "You should mind your own business... You should not be indulging in Pakistan's affairs."
Shabbir was then asked who runs the Citizen Action portal. When Shabbir replied that he did, "Hamza" ordered him to give him his username and password. When Shabbir objected, "Hamza" said, "If you don't send it, we have your brother with us, and you will be responsible." The call ended.
Later that day, the phone rang again, and Shabbir heard his brother's voice:
"Salman, brother, this bro has got me here and I am in a lot of trouble and I request you to please do as they say."
When Shabbir asked what they wanted, his brother said, "You are speaking against the government of Pakistan—don't do it, otherwise I would run into trouble."
After asking him about his well-being and gathering that his brother had been tortured, Shabbir said, "Ok, I won't speak against the government. All good?"
At this point, the brother addressed his abductor, "Sir, do you have another demand?"
"Hamza" went on to say that he no longer needed the username and password, but rather that Shabbir needed instantly to delete his more recent post saying his brother had been abducted, and instead say that it had all been a mistake. When Shabbir said he would do so only after he knew that his brother had been released and was home safe, his brother pled for him to comply without condition: "Salman, they will torture me!"
The phone was again seized from his brother, and "Hamza" returned: "Right now, I have abducted your brother, next time I will bring your whole family."
Sounds of a beating are then heard.
"Did you hear that?"
"Yes, I heard," Shabbir responds.
The beating and screams continue until Shabbir agrees to delete the tweet and cease criticizing Pakistan. His brother was released soon after.
Shabbir later learned that his brother had been taken to a nearby jail, held in a traditional cell, all of which confirmed that his brother's abductors and torturers were state agents, most likely of the notorious Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
Discussing this incident with Drop Site News, Shabbir said:
"They told me to be quiet so that there could be 'stability' in Pakistan, but it is their own actions that are causing instability. I told them that what they were doing was illegal, counterproductive, but they mocked me when I mentioned the law and forced me to listen to them torturing my brother on the phone."
As unsettling as such dispatches may be in the West, they are also unsettlingly common. The report lists several more examples of Pakistani expatriates being threatened, or their family members being threatened and attacked, if the expatriate does not cease casting a negative spotlight on Pakistan:
"American citizens—even ones with celebrity status in Pakistan—have not been spared from this dragnet. Salman Ahmad, a Pakistan-American physician and well-known musician with the Pakistani rock band Junoon, said that he has faced violence targeting his family in Pakistan, including the abduction and torture of his brother-in-law last year. Ahmad is a supporter of imprisoned former prime minister Khan, and his family was targeted as a result of his activism. Like Shabbir, he also received demands to hand over his internet passwords and other personal information."
Ahmad said during an interview:
"My family and I feel like hunted animals. The psychological torture is made worse by the physical threats to our lives and businesses. We're taking on the ISI because we're dead anyway."
In a separate incident, as Wajahat Saeed Khan, a veteran Pakistani journalist and permanent U.S. resident and his partner were preparing dinner in their NY apartment, an anonymous number called. Picking it up, Khan's partner was greeted by the voice of an unfamiliar man who immediately began rattling off the names and addresses of her relatives living in Pakistan, where she was born. When the woman asked who the caller was, he replied,
"We know who you are, and you know who we are. Maybe you should tell your gentleman caller [Khan] to relax, and to stop doing his work with so much anger."
These practices, according to the report, are not limited to beatings and threats:
"Over the past several years, a number of Pakistani dissidents have died in murky circumstances abroad. Among them was Sajjid Hussain, a Pakistani journalist who had been granted asylum in Sweden and found dead in 2020, as well as Karima Baloch, a dissident human rights activist who died in Canada the same year. In 2022, a British man was found guilty in a murder-for-hire plot targeting Waqas Goraya, a Pakistani blogger living in exile in the Netherlands and vocal critic of the government. And last year, prominent Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif was murdered in Kenya after likely being tortured, a Kenyan court concluded."
While the above reports from Pakistan underscore the terrors involved with transnational repression, they are not limited to Pakistan. Many more high profile cases have taken place at the hands of Saudi Arabia—which assassinated dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey in 2018—and of India, which assassinated Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh political dissident and separatist living in Canada last year.
During a US Congressional hearing on transnational repression held earlier this year in response to the assassination of Nijjar, John Sifton of Human Rights Watch underscored the chilling effect such foreign governments have on legitimate criticism and consequently reform:
"Transnational repression leads to self-censorship. Even if some reporters and human rights defenders continue their work, others cannot afford to do so. As a result, intended research and reporting on a government's human rights record does not happen."
The Drop Site report relates:
"Despite the objections of some members of Congress over increasing repression and the rigging of elections this February, the U.S. has continued to embrace the military-backed Pakistani government."
The hug apparently includes a planned $101 million aid package and an IMF loan for Pakistani arms to Ukraine.
Drop Site continues:
"A spokesperson for the State Department said they couldn't comment publicly on individual cases involving private citizens or residents, but added, 'the Department takes allegations of abuse or mistreatment of U.S. citizens, permanent residents, and international visitors by foreign entities very seriously. We coordinate closely with other federal, state, and local authorities to engage local communities on their concerns, and always encourage individuals with safety or security concerns to raise them with law enforcement.'"
How wet is that?
**Raymond Ibrahim, author of Defenders of the West, Sword and Scimitar, Crucified Again, and The Al Qaeda Reader, is the Distinguished Senior Shillman Fellow at the Gatestone Institute and the Judith Rosen Friedman Fellow at the Middle East Forum.
© 2024 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/20965/torture-industry-pakistan-saudi-arabia-china

Has the balance of power shifted in France-Algeria ties?
KHALED ABOU ZAHR/Arab News/September 26, 2024
Recurring crises between France and Algeria have become the norm. In 2024 alone, there have been three diplomatic conflict points between the two countries. Sixty years after the independence of the North African country at the cost of 1 million martyrs, relations with the former colonizer continue to be strained. Policymakers and analysts alike put the issue of memory at the heart of the dynamics of this relationship. Yet, one might also ask if it is France’s lack of recognition of the past wounds or its denial of the powerhouse Algeria has become that continues to strain relations between the two countries.
Last week, a meeting of historians took place at the Elysee Palace, at which President Emmanuel Macron had requested that the work already undertaken by a joint Franco-Algerian commission be completed and concrete proposals produced. The objective is to reach what the joint commission qualified as a reconciliation of memories, which could help educate French and Algerian youths.
This commission was established in 2022 by the French president and his Algerian counterpart Abdelmadjid Tebboune to relaunch the bilateral relationship. However, its work remained suspended due to the recurring diplomatic tensions between the two countries. This is why, at the Elysee, only the French members of the joint commission were present. This raises the question of whether the relationship needs fewer historians and more current stakeholders or if history and its interpretation is all that is left in this relationship.
There are many facets to the relationship between the two countries, but one key element of today’s geopolitical relations is energy supply. This element has become a central focus for Europe, especially after the war in Ukraine led to its divestment from Russian energy supplies. Algeria has transformed into a true energy powerhouse for Europe. It has, in short, become unavoidable in the European energy mix and hence it has an influential voice beyond its relations with France. With an annual production of 90 to 100 billion cubic meters of natural gas and 1 to 1.2 million barrels per day of crude oil, Algeria is a leading energy producer. It exports 30 to 40 billion cubic meters of gas to Europe annually, primarily through pipelines like TransMed to Italy and Medgaz to Spain. Italy is the largest importer, receiving 35 to 40 percent of Algeria’s gas exports, while France gets some 7 to 10 percent.
Thanks to France’s reliance on nuclear power, which accounts for 70 to 75 percent of its electricity generation, natural gas represents only a modest portion of its energy mix, while most of its oil comes from other countries. This all means that Algeria supplies less than 2 percent of France’s total energy consumption. In contrast, Italy depends more heavily on Algerian gas, making it a key partner for Algeria in Europe. Energy has strengthened Algerian-Italian relations, as well as Algerian-Spanish, giving Algiers more leverage in Europe. In turn, this new dynamic puts relations with France at a second-tier level.
Even if its overall contribution to Europe’s total energy needs is estimated at only about 2 to 3 percent, given the continent’s reliance on a variety of sources, Algeria’s role has become more strategically important to Europe. This importance is not only linked to Europe’s decision to reduce its dependence on Russian energy, but also the fact that other suppliers such as Libya do not offer the same stability. Coincidentally, Italy is also Libya’s biggest energy partner. This is a second blow to France in terms of its energy development and potential business for its national companies. This current energy-based geopolitical map and dynamic clarifies the difficulties in mending relations between France and Algeria. A lack of interdependence could easily put their relations in a zero-sum game. There are many facets to the relationship between the two countries, but one key element is energy supply.
While energy represents the largest part of Algeria’s exports, the other side of the story is Algerian imports — and here too it is interesting to notice the shrinking share of French imports in Algeria’s total. It has decreased from 30 to 40 percent in the 1990s to 15 to 20 percent in recent years. This decline cannot be linked to the political tensions between the two countries, as it has mainly been driven by the rise of China as a dominant supplier of machinery and consumer goods. One can also mention Algeria’s focus on expanding its imports with key partners such as Italy and Turkiye.
Could we now say that, as a result of their shrinking trade relationships, whether in terms of energy exports or machinery imports, France and Algeria are left only with the wounded past and bitter current regional and domestic feuds, without anything to act as a barrier or a cooler? Has the trade relationship become obsolete? Is Algeria not now capable of accessing the same level of “control levers” from various partners instead of a single one? Moreover, looking mainly at this angle, does this not give Algeria better leverage than France in their bilateral dynamics?
Despite Algeria’s strengthened energy relations with other European countries, its ties with France and their historic diplomacy are symbolic of a less powerful or at least less relevant Western bloc.
*Khaled Abou Zahr is the founder of SpaceQuest Ventures, CEO of EurabiaMedia, and editor of Al-Watan Al-Arabi.

The Muslim Connection: How Spain Became a ‘Country of Criminals … Pedophiles and Rapists’
Raymond Ibrahim/The Stream/September 26/2024
Spain’s Left is worried that a growing number of Spaniards are remembering and learning from their nation’s long history with, and under, Islam. Sergio Gracia, president of the so-called Center for Research on the Far-Right (CINVED) in Spain, recently complained that
The extreme right usually refers to historical figures like Don Pelayo or El Sid, also using terms like reconquer, making reference to battles such as the battle of Covadonga, the battle of Alarcos, the battle of las Navas of Tolosa or the takeover of Granada.
Don Pelayo is the first Christian king of Spain following that nation’s conquest by Muslims in 711. Vastly outnumbered, he first defied the Muslims at the epic battle of Covadonga.
The battle of Alarcos, 1195, was one of Islam’s supreme triumphs over the Christians, and, according to one Muslim chronicler, “became ever after celebrated for the complete defeat of the Christians, of whose number no less than thirty thousand perished by the swords of the Moslems.”
The battle of las Navas de Tolosa, 1212, was the opposite—the greatest Christian victory, which saw Islam retreat to the southern tip of the peninsula.
The “takeover of Granada”—which itself was taken over by Muslims from Christians in 711—was accomplished by the Christians in 1492, thereby bringing an end to the Reconquista, the centuries long Christian drive to reclaim—reconquer—Spain from Islam.
To be sure, these are just but a few of the battles and conflicts to take place during the long war between Muslim and Christian in Spain. Notably, Mr. Gracia fails to mention the centuries’ worth of persecution and atrocities committed by Muslims against Christians—the thousands of churches torched and/or turned into mosques, the thousands of women and children enslaved and sent to harems—particularly when Muslims were a greater power, from the eighth to eleventh centuries.
Rather, and without providing such necessary context, Gracia states that
The far right sees Muslims as invaders and they sell it that way. You can read on social media references such as expel the invader or you can hear a politician of extreme right talk about Troy [Trojan] horses, Islamization or that demographics are changing in Spain—referring to the construction of religious centers such as mosques…
The question here is, are these “far-right” Spaniards correct in seeing continuity between their nation’s past and present interaction with Islam? The answer is yes, of course. Just as the Muslim conquest and centuries’ long occupation of Spain was replete with atrocities against Christians—precisely because Islam commands hate for and persecution of “infidel” Christians—so too is today’s Spain suffering from similar atrocities at the hands of its growing Muslim population, especially new-come migrants who are still dedicated to the “old ways.”
But, as is well known, demonstrating continuity is the enemy of those—namely, the “Left”—who would subvert both history and current events to suit their agenda. Much better to present disturbing facts in a vacuum. Consider, for example, how Gracia goes on to bemoan how “Muslims in the Iberian Peninsula faced the choice between Christianization, death or exile” following the Reconquista:
Moriscos were the descendants of the Spaniard Muslims who had remained in the Iberian Peninsula after the fall of the Nasrid kingdom of Granada in 1492 and who were forced to choose between conversion or exile. Not wanting to sacrifice either his [sic] land or his faith, the vast majority converted to Christianity but clandestinely maintained their fidelity to Islam. In 1502, an edict was published that required all subjects of the crown to baptize — were they Christians or not. Later, other prohibitions that could be identified with Islam were carried out—like the way of dressing or the use of the Arabic language. After the expulsion decree, they had no other option but to hide their convictions.
On the surface, this sounds backwards and cruel: beating Muslims and reclaiming lost territory is one thing; but why force them to become Christian?
Well, as it happens, following the conquest of Granada, Muslims were allowed to practice their religion. But because they continued to engage in uprisings—always on jihadist logic—the crown concluded that the only way Muslims would ever slough off their tribal anti-Christianism was for them to become like everyone else—Christian (hence also why distinctly Muslim customs were prohibited). Either that, or keep your Islam—keep your hostility for Spain—but return to North Africa (whence the eighth century conquest of Spain originated).
Rather than do the honorable thing, some half a million Muslims outwardly converted, while inwardly still practicing Islam and secretly preaching death for the infidel. Generation after generation of Muslims pretended to be and lived as model Christians in Spain — even as they had nothing but undying hatred for Christianity and preached it to their children — and all to remain and eventually reconquer Spain for Islam. As one frustrated Spaniard remarked
With the permission and license that their accursed sect [Islam] accorded them, they could feign any religion outwardly and without sinning, as long as they kept their hearts nevertheless devoted to their false impostor of a prophet. We saw so many of them who died while worshipping the Cross and speaking well of our Catholic Religion yet who were inwardly excellent Muslims.
In other words, when, as Gracia said, Spanish politicians of the “extreme right talk about Troy [Trojan] horses, Islamization or that demographics are changing in Spain,” these too—especially the Trojan Horse—all have antecedents in Spain’s history with Islam.
The report quoting Gracia goes on to suggest that, as with France and all of Europe, the so-called “far right” party of Spain is—despite its demonization—growing, to the consternation of many political observers. Its leader, Luis Perez, demonized in the report for “his harsh anti-Islam and anti-immigrant rhetoric,” is quoted as saying, “Spain has become a country of criminals, corrupt people, mercenaries, pedophiles and rapists, and this is a sad situation. Many Spaniards suffer from this every day.”
The report distressingly complains that Perez referred to all illegal immigrants as “criminals” and that he refused to live in Brussels as an MEP, calling it “the capital of a failed country full of Islamists, insecurity and rape.”
The fact is, in Spain and all throughout Europe, Europeans have learned what it means to live side-by-side with Muslims, the hard way. The US should learn from this mistake before it too is slowly transformed into Americastan.

Diplomatic breakthrough on Iran unlikely at UNGA
DR. MAJID RAFIZADEH/Arab News/September 26, 2024
The annual UN General Assembly serves as a platform for world leaders to discuss and debate pressing global issues. For Iran, its agenda at the event is often shaped not by the immediate political goals of its presidents, but rather by the overarching policies dictated by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. As the ultimate authority on both domestic and foreign affairs, Khamenei’s influence is inescapable when addressing matters of international diplomacy, particularly at the UNGA.
One important topic surfacing at the ongoing 79th session of the UNGA in New York is Iran’s nuclear program, an issue that has been a focal point of international concern for many years. The nuclear program, which Tehran insists is for peaceful purposes, has been a cause of anxiety due to suspicions that Iran is seeking the capability to produce nuclear weapons. The increasing concern over Iran’s nuclear intentions has become a central point of friction between the country and the West.
This year’s session is particularly notable because of the first appearance of Iran’s new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, on this global stage. Pezeshkian, often described as more moderate than his predecessor Ebrahim Raisi, has signaled a departure from the hard-line approach that dominated Raisi’s presidency.
Pezeshkian’s emergence as a more conciliatory figure is seen as a potential pivot in Iran’s foreign policy. He is perceived as a pragmatist. He has expressed openness to rekindling diplomatic talks, especially regarding his country’s nuclear program. His administration has also signaled a willingness to engage in negotiations to relieve Iran from the crippling economic sanctions that have strangled its economy in recent years.
Pezeshkian’s emergence as a more conciliatory figure is seen as a potential pivot in Iran’s foreign policy
Despite his firm grip on power, Khamenei has recently hinted that he is open to a return to negotiations as well — a development that has added intrigue to the UNGA discussions. Khamenei’s signals are often subtle, but when viewed against the backdrop of Pezeshkian’s more moderate tone, they may suggest a potential opening for talks. While the president might initiate overtures, the world will be closely watching Khamenei’s reactions, as his approval is essential for any substantive change in policy.
One of the key motivations for Iran’s willingness to negotiate is its dire economic situation, which has been exacerbated by years of sanctions. The Iranian economy is in a state of crisis, with inflation and unemployment soaring and the national currency continuing to lose value. The lifting of sanctions would offer Iran a lifeline, thereby alleviating some of the economic pressures on the government. Pezeshkian’s call for renewed nuclear talks can be seen as a bid to relieve this economic stranglehold.
Beyond the economic realm, sanctions relief would also bolster Iran’s legitimacy on both the regional and international stages. This renewed legitimacy would strengthen its hand in regional politics, where it has long sought to be recognized as a dominant power.
However, significant obstacles remain in the path of renewed diplomacy. Chief among them is the fact that Iran’s nuclear program has continued to advance during the years of stalemate in the negotiations. The country is now closer than ever to becoming a nuclear-armed state, with reports suggesting that it is only a short step away from reaching critical capacity. This advancement has made Western nations, particularly the US and the EU3 (France, Germany and the UK) more reluctant to trust Iran in any future talks.
While Pezeshkian may wish to present himself as a moderate voice advocating for dialogue, his ability to convince Western powers to take him seriously is severely undermined by Iran’s continued nuclear progress. Without clear and verifiable steps toward scaling back its nuclear activities, Iran is unlikely to find willing partners in Washington or Brussels.
Without clear and verifiable steps toward scaling back its nuclear activities, Iran is unlikely to find willing partners
Another factor complicating any potential breakthrough is the growing tension between Israel and Iran. As these tensions continue to escalate, Washington appears less inclined to seek a diplomatic resolution that involves lifting sanctions on Tehran. The Biden administration is already under pressure to support Israel’s security and any easing of sanctions could be seen as undermining that commitment. This creates a dilemma for Pezeshkian: while he seeks sanctions relief to stabilize Iran’s economy, he must navigate a geopolitical landscape where Washington is less willing to compromise due to its strategic alliance with Israel. Further complicating the situation is Iran’s involvement in the Russia-Ukraine war. Reports have surfaced that Iran has been supplying ballistic missiles to Moscow, a move that has sparked outrage in Europe and further strained relations with Western powers. The EU3, in particular, are now more cautious in their dealings with Iran, fearing that any concessions made in the nuclear talks could embolden Tehran’s military ambitions.
Given these complex dynamics, it is unlikely that the 79th session of the UNGA will result in any significant breakthroughs regarding Iran’s nuclear program or its relations with the West. The core issues — Iran’s nuclear advancements, escalating tensions with Israel and its involvement in the Russia-Ukraine war — remain deeply entrenched and are unlikely to be resolved through diplomatic discussions alone. The deeper geopolitical rifts are likely to be too wide to bridge in the short term. In a nutshell, while Pezeshkian hopes for the lifting of sanctions against Iran, the underlying obstacles suggest that any progress will be limited. The deep-seated and increasing mistrust between Iran and the West, exacerbated by Tehran’s support for Russia and heightened tensions with Israel, is likely to prevent any kind of comprehensive diplomatic initiative.
- Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a Harvard-educated Iranian American political scientist. X: @Dr_Rafizadeh