English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For January 14/2025
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news

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Bible Quotations For today
John proclaimed, The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit
Saint Mark 01/01-08: “The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in the prophet Isaiah, ‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way; the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight” ’, John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. He proclaimed, ‘The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”.

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on January 13-14/2025
Elias Bejjani/ Text and Video: The Appointment of Joseph Aoun as President and the Designation of Nawaf Salam to Form the Government Confirm Lebanon's Chapter VII Status and the Irreversibility of the International and Regional Decision to End Iran's Era and Uproot its Proxies
Text & Video: Najib Mikati’s Return As PM Will Doom President Joseph Aoun’s Term, Perpetuate Hezbollah’s Occupation, and Block Reform and Change/Elias Bejjani/
Prominent diplomat and jurist who heads top UN court named Lebanon's new prime minister
Nawaf Salam named PM with sweeping 84 votes as Hezbollah decries 'exclusion
FPM, PSP and National Moderation bloc vote for Nawaf Salam
Hezbollah reverses decision to postpone PM consultations meeting with Aoun
Aoun meets with US military delegation after Israeli strikes
Trump reportedly tells Israel he wants calm in Lebanon and Syria
UAE delegation in Lebanon to reopen embassy
IDF says it hit Hezbollah targets in Lebanon after truce mechanism failed to address threats
Guila Fakhoury/Congratulations to Lebanon.
Lebanese American Coordinating Committee (LACC) Statement on the Election of President Joseph Aoun
Lebanon’s Aoun could move toward peace – if Hezbollah lets him/Hussain Abdul-Hussain/The Times of Israel/January 13/2025
Lebanon’s Third Republic and Arab and International Diplomacy/Sam Menassa/Asharq Al Awsat/January 14/2025
Aoun ... A President to Reclaim Lebanon/Ghassan Charbel/Asharq Al Awsat/January 14/2025
Lebanon’s New Dawn: President Elected, Ending Regional Exploitation and Hezbollah’s Hold/Abdulrahman Al-Rashed/Asharq Al Awsat/January 14/2025

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on January 13-14/2025
Some Israeli soldiers refuse to keep fighting in Gaza
Minister makes first trip to Syrian border area after Assad regime ends
Russia says Iran's president will visit this week and sign a partnership pact with Putin
German-Iranian women's rights activist released from Iranian prison
Germany welcomes release of German-Iranian rights activist from prison in Iran and her return home
Progress made in talks over Israel-Hamas ceasefire and hostage release
Gaza ceasefire deal being finalised, Palestinian official tells BBC
What are the main obstacles to a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages?
At least 40 farmers killed by Boko Haram militants in northeast Nigeria, an official says
Iranian army takes delivery of 1,000 new drones
Iran, European powers to hold nuclear talks ahead of Trump return
Iraq PM says he will sign security deal with Britain
Assyrian Parties in Syria Issue Joint Statement

Titles For The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources on January 13-14/2025
Blame It on the Jews!/Nils A. Haug/Gatestone Institute/January 13, 2025
A fake genocide meets a real one/Ben Cohen/Jewish News Syndicate/January 13/2025
Trump should get tough again on chemical weapons states/Andrea Stricker/Washington Examiner/January 13/2025
Israel, Hamas ceasefire close, but not 100 percent: Israeli official/Laura Kelly/The Hill/January 13, 2025
Escalation from and on Yemen and its Link to the Expected Solutions/Colonel Charbel Barakat/January 14/2025

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on January 13-14/2025
Elias Bejjani/ Text and Video: The Appointment of Joseph Aoun as President and the Designation of Nawaf Salam to Form the Government Confirm Lebanon's Chapter VII Status and the Irreversibility of the International and Regional Decision to End Iran's Era and Uproot its Proxies
Elias Bejjani/ January 14, 2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/01/139023/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Th3fzcFxJjw&t=2s
Today in Lebanon, Judge Nawaf Salam was tasked to for a new government, the first under President Joseph Aoun's tenure. His designation was unexpected, as until the early hours of the morning, Najib Mikati led by a significant margin, with over 73 MPs set to endorse him. However, suddenly, all the calculations Hezbollah was promoting and attempting to impose collapsed. Mikati was decisively defeated, receiving only 9 votes. Had those nine MPs delayed their visit to Baabda Palace by two hours, they would have likely shifted their support to Salam as well. This clearly indicates that most Lebanese MPs are mere puppets controlled by either local or international powers who brought them to parliament and who dictate their decisions.
This MP's puppet-like behavior was also evident during the election of Joseph Aoun as president on January 9, 2025. All MPs, both sovereignist and non-sovereignist, bowed to international and regional dictates, electing Aoun with 99 votes out of 128. Even MPs from Amal and Hezbollah had no candidate after MP, Suleiman Frangieh withdrew. They were seemingly coerced by the Iranian regime, following an Iranian-Saudi agreement, to accept Aoun's presidency in the realm of their recent defeat in the war against Israel and their surrender through the ceasefire agreement. Their attempt to delay the second voting session by two hours to 'negotiate' with Joseph Aoun was a farcical show, merely aimed at saving face and deceiving their base into believing they still hold power.
This same failed theatrical act repeated today when Hezbollah and Nabih Berri tried to postpone their visit to Baabda Palace to choose a prime minister until the next day. However, they backtracked when Nawaf Salam secured the majority, and their candidate, Mikati, failed. After meeting President Joseph Aoun, their parliamentary bloc leader, Mohammad Raad, stated they did not name a candidate and expressed dissatisfaction, implying a coup against the so-called 'national pact.' His comments suggested Hezbollah might boycott and obstruct the government under the pretext of the lack of Shiite representation, based on their distorted interpretation of the pact.
It is evident that Lebanon is currently under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, even if not officially declared. The international and regional communities are actively enforcing its provisions to end Hezbollah's era of terrorism, occupation, bullying, and Iranian influence, aiming to help the Lebanese reclaim their nation, independence, and sovereignty.
As for the 'national pact' that Hezbollah is threatening to use in a bid to sabotage Nawaf Salam's coming government, it constitutionally pertains to balance between Christian and Muslim sects, not political parties. Therefore, Nawaf Salam is legally entitled to appoint Shiite ministers from outside Hezbollah and Amal circles if those parties refuse to participate. This principle was echoed today by dozens of Shiite politicians and journalists opposing Hezbollah's total subservience to Iran's mullahs and its extremist ideology of Wilayat al-Faqih.
We would have preferred patriotic figures like MP Major General Ashraf Rifi, MP Fouad Makhzoumi, or the courageous academic Dr. Saleh Al-Machnouk to e tasked with forming the government. These figures have proven national credibility and experience in public service. Therefore, we see little hope in Nawaf Salam leading Lebanon into the much-needed peace era for the Middle East. His record reflects Arabist, leftist, and pro-Palestinian positions, marked by hostility towards Israel. He has also legally advocated for the resistance narrative against Israel both locally and internationally.
Given his ideological background, it is difficult to imagine Salam supporting the Abraham Accords or Lebanon's integration into peaceful agreements with Israel. Lebanon’s ability to join the Arab and Islamic peace treaties with Israel will be nearly impossible under a prime minister who remains ideologically driven by leftist, Arab nationalist, Nasserist, and pro-Palestinian sentiments.
Who is Nawaf Salam?
Nawaf Salam was born in Beirut on December 15, 1953. He is an international judge who was elected President of the International Court of Justice in February 2024. His name emerged prominently during the 2019 popular uprising and after Saad Hariri's resignation when he was proposed as a neutral compromise candidate, though Hezbollah and Amal rejected him, labeling him a U.S. nominee. Salam has a long history of supporting the Palestinian cause. He was an active member of Fatah and contributed alongside Mahmoud Darwish to drafting Yasser Arafat's famous 1974 UN speech. He holds a Doctorate in Political Science from the Institute of Political Studies in Paris and a Master of Laws from Harvard University. He represented Lebanon at the UN between 2007 and 2017. However, despite his distinguished academic qualifications, his hostile stances towards Israel significantly diminishes the chances of his government advancing peace with Israel.

Text & Video: Najib Mikati’s Return As PM Will Doom President Joseph Aoun’s Term, Perpetuate Hezbollah’s Occupation, and Block Reform and Change
Elias Bejjani/January 11/2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/01/138949/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-avRPmDoAHs&t=26s
There is no doubt that the sin of designating Mr. Najib Mikati to form the first government under President General Joseph Aoun constitutes a harsh blow to the aspirations of the Lebanese people for reform, change, the implementation of UN resolutions, and the end of Hezbollah’s armed and occupying role. Mikati is not just a traditional politician; he is a corrupt businessman and a prominent figure within the system of corruption and foreign dependency that has driven Lebanon into its current crises during the Syrian occupation, and later under the ongoing Iranian occupation.
It should not be forgotten by anyone in Lebanon or abroad that Mr. Mikati entered politics under the direct sponsorship of the Assad Syrian regime, which ruled Lebanon with iron and fire. He was a financial partner to key Syrian figures like Rami Makhlouf, amassing his vast wealth through influence peddling and shady deals.
His history is filled with corruption cases, from subsidized housing loans redirected for his personal gain, to exploiting banks and public institutions for profit while Lebanon's economy collapsed and poverty rates soared.
Most dangerously, since entering politics, Mikati has never been independent in his stances or decision-making domains. He has always been a tool fully submissive to the dominance of the Syrian and later Iranian occupiers. His repeated appointments as Prime Minister in Lebanon were imposed through the coercion and intimidation of the Syrian regime and later Hezbollah, with his role consistently reduced to a mere puppet rather than a decision-maker.
During the recent military confrontation between the terrorist Hezbollah and Israel, Mikati chose suspicious silence, failing to uphold his responsibilities as Prime Minister. Instead, he echoed Hezbollah’s narratives justifying war and destruction, in blatant collusion against Lebanon’s national interest. This subservience is nothing new. In 2011, Mikati led the so-called “Black Shirts” government, imposed by Hezbollah through force after toppling Prime Minister Hariri’s government while he was meeting the U.S. President in the White House.
Sadly, reinstating Mikati today as the head of the first government under President Joseph Aoun is perfectly described in the Holy Bible: “No one puts a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will run out, and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.” (Matthew 9:16-17)
Lebanon needs courageous, honest, and independent leaders capable of confronting corruption and rescuing the nation from Iranian hegemony and terrorism, not the recycling of figures who lost legitimacy long ago. Additionally, implementing the ceasefire agreement between Hezbollah and Israel requires a Prime Minister who is fearless, unwilling to appease Hezbollah, and refuses to engage in deceptive compromises that derail Lebanon's liberation and recovery.
In conclusion, Najib Mikati’s political history is entirely incompatible with the aspirations of President Joseph Aoun’s mission. Meanwhile, we believe strongly that even if there is regional, international, or Arab consensus on his reappointment, this consensus must be rejected, even if it requires the Lebanese people to take to the streets and protest against this disastrous political farce. Mikati’s return to power would only solidify Hezbollah’s occupation, obstruct the implementation of the UN resolutions, sabotage all prospects for reform and change, and simply doom the new presidency from its very inception.

Prominent diplomat and jurist who heads top UN court named Lebanon's new prime minister
Bassem Mroue/BEIRUT (AP)/January 13, 2025
Lebanon’s new president has asked prominent diplomat and jurist Nawaf Salam to form the country’s new government after Salam was named prime minister by a large number of legislators Monday. The move apparently angered the Hezbollah group and its allies.
Salam is currently serving as the head of the International Court of Justice and his nomination was made by Western-backed groups as well as independents in the Lebanese parliament. Salam has the support of Saudi Arabia and Western countries as well. Hezbollah legislators abstained from naming any candidate for the prime minister’s post. Salam's nomination is seen by many as a glimpse of hope after the 14-month Israel-Hezbollah war that left 4,000 people dead and more than 16,000 wounded and caused destruction totaling hundreds of millions of dollars. The war stopped in late November when a U.S.-brokered 60-day truce went into effect. Shortly after Salam won majority backing from legislators, some people celebrated in the streets of Beirut with fireworks amid hopes that his nomination and last week’s election of army commander Gen. Joseph Aoun as president would help release billions of dollars of investements and loans by foreign donors. Salam will have a difficult mission ahead of him following the truce with Israel that caused widespread destruction in the Mediterranean nation and weakened the Iran-backed Hezbollah. He will also have to work on getting the small nation out of its historic five-year economic meltdown. In past years, Hezbollah has repeatedly blocked Salam from becoming prime minister, casting him as a U.S.-backed candidate. “We will see their acts when it comes to forcing the occupiers to leave our country, bringing back prisoners, reconstruction” and the implementation of the U.N. Security Council resolution that ended the Israel-Hezbollah war, the head of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc, Mohammed Raad, said after meeting with Aoun.
Raad added that Hezbollah extended its hand last week by electing Aoun and they were hoping to meet an extended hand from the other side, “but this hand was cut off.”Last week’s election of Aoun as president and Monday’s nomination of Salam is likely to lead to a flow of funds from Western and oil-rich Arab nations to Lebanon to help in the reconstruction process. Tens of thousands of Lebanese have lost their savings since the country's banking sector crashed as a result of the economic crisis. Neither Aoun nor Salam are considered part of the country’s political class that is blamed for widespread corruption and mismanagement over the past decades that exploded in October 2019 into one of the world’s worst economic meltdowns in more than a century. Lebanon has been run by a caretaker government for more than two years and Aoun was elected after a 26-month vacuum in the president's post. After a day of consultations between Aoun and legislators, Salam got the backing of 84 deputies, while outgoing Prime Minister Najib Mikati received nine votes. Thirty-four legislators from the 128-member legislature abstained.
Shortly after the results came out, Mikati called Salam to congratulate him and wish him luck with the new job.
Antoine Shoukeir, the presidency's director general, told reporters after the consultations that Salam now is prime minister-designate, adding that he is currently outside Lebanon and should be back in the coming hours. A meeting was scheduled for Tuesday at the presidential palace in Beirut's southeastern suburb of Baabda between Aoun, Salam and parliament Speaker Nabih Berri after which he will start the process of forming a new Cabinet. It was not immediately clear whether Salam plans to resign as head of the ICJ. “My voice is for Nawaf Salam because my voice is for Lebanon and no one else,” independent legislator Paula Yacoubian told journalists after meeting with Aoun. Salam, 71, is a member of a prominent Sunni Muslim family from Beirut and his late paternal uncle, Saeb Salam, was one of the Lebanese leaders who fought for the country’s independence from France and later served several terms as Lebanon’s prime minister. Salam’s cousin, Tammam, also served as prime minister for two years starting in 2014. Salam holds a doctorate in political science from France’s prestigious Sciences Po university as well as a doctorate in history from France’s Sorbonne University. He also has a Master of Laws degree from Harvard Law School. Salam has worked as a lecturer at several universities, including the American University of Beirut. In 2007, he was named Lebanon’s ambassador to the United Nations, where he served for 10 years. In 2018, Salam was elected as a judge on the ICJ and in February last year he was elected as president of the court becoming the first Lebanese citizen to hold the post.
Salam is married to journalist Sahar Baasiri, who for many years was a columnist at Lebanon’s leading An-Nahar daily. Baasiri has been serving since 2018 as Lebanon’s ambassador to UNESCO.
By Bassem Mroue, The Associated Press

Nawaf Salam named PM with sweeping 84 votes as Hezbollah decries 'exclusion'
Associated PressAgence France Presse
Prominent Lebanese diplomat and judge Nawaf Salam was named PM-designate on Monday after he won sweeping support from legislators, as Hezbollah accused some parties of "staging an ambush aimed at disintegration, partitioning, elimination and exclusion."The Presidency, which issued a decree naming Salam as PM-designate, said the latter received 84 votes as caretaker PM Najib Mikati received only nine votes and 35 MPs refrained from naming anyone. Salam is currently serving as the head of the International Court of Justice and his nomination was made by Western-backed groups as well as independents in the Lebanese parliament. Salam is backed by Saudi Arabia and western countries. Monday’s nomination of Salam during binding consultations with President Joseph Aoun is a major blow to Hezbollah, which is also a powerful political party, after its militant wing was weakened by a 14-month war with Israel. Salam will have a difficult mission ahead of him, as Lebanon truce with Israel that ended the nearly Israel-Hezbollah war. Salam will also have to work on getting the small nation out of its historic five-year economic meltdown. Salam's nomination and last week’s selection of the country's army commander Aoun as president is likely to lead to flow of funds from Western and oil-rich Arab nations to Lebanon to help in the reconstruction process. Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc meanwhile voiced regret over the manner in which Salam was nominated. “Our meeting with the president was to express our regret over those who want to harm the presidential tenure’s consensual start,” the head of the bloc, MP Mohammad Raad, said after the bloc’s meeting with Aoun. According to media reports, the bloc asked for the postponement of its meeting with Aoun until Tuesday before eventually reversing its decision.
“Once again some are staging an ambush aimed at disintegration, partitioning, elimination and exclusion, in a deliberate and spiteful manner,” Raad decried.
“We made a positive step upon the election of the president and we were hoping to meet the hand that had always boasted about being extended, but it suddenly was severed,” the MP added. “It is our right to demand a government to respect the National Pact, and any government that contradicts with coexistence has no legitimacy. We will monitor and carry on with all due calm and wisdom and we will watch their actions for removing the occupier from our land, returning the captives, reconstruction and the correct implementation of 1701 in a manner that preserves national unity,” Raad went on to say.
Speaker Nabih Berri's Development and Liberation bloc also refrained from naming anyone for the PM post. "We hope for a new start for Lebanon's salvation from the multiple crises, topped by the continued Israeli aggression," the bloc's MP Ayyoub Hymayyed said after the bloc's meeting with Aoun.
"The bloc did not make a nomination based on the principle that there should not be a contradiction between the (1943) National Pact and real coexistence," Hmayyed added. Salam's backers view the judge and former ambassador as an impartial figure able to carry out much-needed reforms, a contrast to Mikati regarded by critics as under Hezbollah's influence. Lawmaker George Adwan of the Lebanese Forces said after meeting Aoun and endorsing Salam that it was time for Hezbollah to focus on "political work." "The era of weapons is over," Adwan told reporters. Hezbollah ended a deadly war against Israel this fall bruised and weakened. Under a ceasefire deal, the group must pull its fighters from areas of southern Lebanon near the Israeli border as the national army -- until last week under Aoun's command -- and U.N. peacekeepers deploy there.
Hezbollah also lost a key ally in neighboring Syria when Islamist-led forces toppled president Bashar al-Assad last month. Independent lawmaker Melhem Khalaf said he backed Salam as a candidate of "change," coming from outside of Lebanon's traditional ruling class. A source close to Hezbollah had told AFP that the movement and its ally Amal movement supported Mikati. The Monday front page of Al-Akhbar, a newspaper close to Hezbollah, said Salam's nomination would be tantamount to a "complete U.S. coup", after Washington had backed Aoun for president. In his inaugural speech on Thursday, Aoun said his election as president would usher in a "new phase" for the country. Lebanese university professor Ali Mrad said support for Salam's nomination reflected "the real changes that Lebanon is experiencing." "Today there are two options in the country: a serious reform option, called Nawaf Salam, and an option that takes up back, called Najib Mikati," he said. Some opposition lawmakers on Saturday threw their weight behind anti-Hezbollah lawmaker and businessman Fouad Makhzoumi, but on Monday he withdrew to allow consensus around Salam. Whoever heads Lebanon's new government will face major challenges, including implementing reforms to satisfy international donors amid the country's worst economic crisis in its history. They will also face the daunting task of reconstructing swathes of the country after the Israel-Hezbollah war and implementing the November 27 ceasefire agreement. According to Lebanon's constitution, the president designates the prime minister after talks with all political parties and independent lawmakers in parliament. By convention, he chooses the candidate with the most votes during these consultations. Nominating a premier does not guarantee a new government will be formed imminently. The process has previously taken weeks or even months due to deep political divisions and horse-trading.

FPM, PSP and National Moderation bloc vote for Nawaf Salam
Naharnet/January 13, 2025 
The Free Patriotic Movement, the Progressive Socialist Party and the predominantly-Sunni National Moderation bloc on Monday voted for former ambassador and current International Court of Justice presiding judge Nawaf Salam for the premier post, effectively making him the country's PM-designate.
MTV earlier reported that Speaker Nabih Berri has tried to pressure the Democratic Gathering to vote for caretaker PM Najib Mikati instead of Salam. Salam’s triumph deals another blow to Hezbollah, after media reports said that the Shiite Duo had agreed with Saudi Arabia on keeping Mikati as PM until the 2026 parliamentary elections. MTV meanwhile reported that Hezbollah might boycott the binding parliamentary consultations.

Hezbollah reverses decision to postpone PM consultations meeting with Aoun
Naharnet/January 13, 2025 
Hezbollah’s Loyalty to Resistance bloc on Monday asked President Joseph Aoun to postpone its consultations meeting with him until Tuesday before eventually reversing its decision, the state-run National News Agency and Lebanese and Arab TV networks said. "The meeting of the Loyalty to Resistance bloc with President Joseph Aoun is still scheduled for 3:30 pm," Presidency spokesman Rafic Chlala said, in a statement carried by NNA. By 3:45 pm, the bloc was still not present at the Baabda Palace.Hezbollah's move and its reversal came after Nawaf Salam seemed inclined to be named as PM-designate, after winning key support from the Strong Lebanon bloc and the Democratic Gathering.Al-Arabiya TV quoted sources close to Hezbollah and Amal’s MPs as saying that “what is happening in the government consultations is not in the interest of the new presidential tenure.”
“The Hezbollah and Amal blocs have expressed their dismay over the inclination to name Nawaf Salam as premier,” Al-Arabiya quoted sources as saying.

Aoun meets with US military delegation after Israeli strikes
Naharnet/January 13, 2025 
President Joseph Aoun met Monday at the Baabda Palace with a U.S. military delegation, hours after Israel carried out violent airstrikes deep in south Lebanon and on the country’s border with Syria. The delegation, which was accompanied by U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Lisa Johnson, comprised U.S. Central Command chief General Michael Kurilla, the head of the ceasefire monitoring committee Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers and a number of officers. LBCI reported that the U.S. delegation assured Aoun that "Washington will continue to support the Lebanese Army" and that "the talks discussed the situation in the south, the measures taken to implement Resolution 1701, and the ongoing cooperation between the army, UNIFIL and the monitoring committee." The overnight airstrikes placed further strain on a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, which came into effect on November 27. The Israeli military said it struck a number of Hezbollah targets it had presented to ceasefire monitors as threats. "Among the targets struck were a rocket launcher site, a military site, and routes along the Syria-Lebanon border used to smuggle weapons to Hezbollah," it said. The strikes came just two weeks before the January 26 deadline for implementing the November ceasefire, which both sides have accused the other of violating.The Israeli military statement said it was operating "in accordance with the ceasefire understandings." Under the terms of the deal, Hezbollah is to dismantle its remaining military infrastructure in the south and pull its forces back north of the Litani River, around 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the border. The U.N. peacekeeping force in Lebanon this month accused Israel of a "flagrant violation" of the Security Council resolution which forms the basis of the ceasefire. Israeli strikes in south Lebanon killed five people on Friday, according to the Lebanese health ministry, with the Israeli military saying it targeted a Hezbollah weapons truck.

Trump reportedly tells Israel he wants calm in Lebanon and Syria
Naharnet/January 13, 2025 
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s associates have made it clear in talks with senior Israeli officials that Trump is interested in calm in the Middle East in order to focus on domestic issues, Israel’s Channel 12 has reported. “Senior officials in the incoming administration stated that they expect peace in Lebanon and Syria” and that "the president has no desire to deal with another war in his first days," Channel 12 reported. Senior Trump administration officials are also advising Israel to “avoid making strong statements against the new Syrian government so as not to increase tensions and internal pressure in the country.” They added that Syria's new leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa, is not interested, at least for now, in starting a conflict with Israel. “The message from senior Trump administration officials regarding Lebanon is also similar, saying that Trump wants to see the ceasefire continue. According to his associates, Trump really does not want the military conflict on Israel's northern border to resume,” Channel 12 said.

UAE delegation in Lebanon to reopen embassy
Associated Press/January 13, 2025
A high-level delegation from the United Arab Emirates is in Beirut to undertake all necessary arrangements to reopen the UAE Embassy in Lebanon, the state news agency of the oil-rich nation said. Monday’s move came days after Lebanon’s army commander, Gen. Joseph Aoun, was elected president ending a 26-month vacuum in the country’s top job. The UAE withdrew its diplomats from Lebanon in October 2021 in protest to comments by a Lebanese Cabinet minister about the war in Yemen. Aoun spoke by telephone with the president of the UAE over the weekend who told him the embassy will resume work in Beirut, according to Aoun’s office. His election is likely to improve Lebanon’s cold relations with oil-rich gulf Arab nations. Ties have been tense for years because of Iran’s influence in the small Mediterranean nation.

IDF says it hit Hezbollah targets in Lebanon after truce mechanism failed to address threats
Darryl Coote/United Press International/January 13, 2025
As seen from Misgav Am in northern Israel and unidentified attack on a southern Lebanon village close to Metula show smoke billowing up seconds after a large explosion on December 1, 2024, the first day of the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire. Israel on Monday said it conducted attacks in Lebanon overnight after hezbollah threats conveyed to the truce mechanism weren't addressed, it said. Israeli war planes struck Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, the Israel Defense Forces said early Monday, as it accused the truce monitoring mechanism of ignoring the threat the targets posed to Israel.
A rocket launcher site, a military location and Hezbollah smuggling routes along the Syria-Lebanon were among those hit by the Israeli Air Force throughout Lebanon overnight. Israeli military officials said the strikes were conducted after the threats to Israel were conveyed to the truce monitoring mechanism but "weren't addressed." "The IDF continues to act to remove any threat to the State of Israel and will operate to prevent any attempt by Hezbollah to rebuild its forces in accordance with the cease-fire understanding," the IDF said in a statement. Israel and Hezbollah have been maintaining a fragile 60-day cease-fire established in late November, which includes the withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon and Hezbollah pulling its forces north of the Litani River. Hezbollah had been attacking Israel over the southern Lebanese border since the second day of Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza, which began on Oct. 7, 2023. The cross-border attacks prompted Israel to evacuate tens of thousands of northern Israelis. Fighting between the Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel intensified starting in the fall with Israel updating its war objectives to include returning evacuated citizens to their homes in the north. The year-long fighting, which killed more than 3,500 people and displaced 1 million in Lebanon, came to a halt in late November when the long-sought truce which included a monitoring mechanism, was reached.

Guila Fakhoury/Congratulations to Lebanon. جيش شعب دولة🙏
Today, Lebanon’s parliament voted for Judge Nawaf Salam as the new Prime Minister, defeating Najib Mikati, who was supported by Hezbollah and associated with the old government and corruption. Judge Salam represents a vision for a free and sovereign Lebanon, free from Iranian influence and Hezbollah's control. With President Joseph Aoun's backing, he aims to guide the country toward peace and a new beginning. This election is a turning point for Lebanon.

Lebanese American Coordinating Committee (LACC) Statement on the Election of President Joseph Aoun
January09/2025
The Lebanese American Coordinating Committee (LACC) congratulates the people of Lebanon on the historic election of General Joseph Aoun as President of the Lebanese Republic. This momentous occasion marks a turning point for the nation, and we commend all parties who contributed constructively to this democratic process. We also wish to extend our profound gratitude to the United States for its positive leadership role in ensuring a smooth and transparent electoral process. American engagement and steadfast support have been invaluable in promoting Lebanon’s sovereignty, stability, and democratic principles throughout this critical time. The LACC looks forward to continued collaboration with the U.S. and other international partners to further strengthen Lebanon’s state institutions and foster long-term reforms.
In his inaugural speech, President Aoun underscored several guiding principles, including fully securing Lebanon’s sovereignty by demilitarizing non-state actors; ensuring the state alone holds a monopoly on arms; developing a comprehensive defense strategy to protect borders; revitalizing the economy and reforming the banking sector; facilitating the return of Syrian refugees; promoting decentralization and good governance; and reinforcing the independence of the judiciary. The LACC unequivocally endorses these goals, recognizing them as essential building blocks for a prosperous and secure Lebanon.
As a coalition of organizations committed to fostering both Lebanese interests in the United States and American interests in Lebanon, the LACC offers its assistance in strengthening diplomatic, cultural, and economic ties between our two nations. We stand ready to leverage our contacts and resources in the U.S. and Lebanon to support initiatives that advance these principles—whether by fostering policy dialogue,encouraging investment, or facilitating humanitarian and development programs.
Once again, we congratulate President Joseph Aoun on his election and reaffirm the LACC's commitment to help forge a brighter future for Lebanon—one defined by good governance, economic renewal, and a truly sovereign and secure state. We encourage the international community, led by the United States, to remain steadfast in assisting Lebanon at this pivotal juncture.

Lebanon’s Aoun could move toward peace – if Hezbollah lets him
Hussain Abdul-Hussain/The Times of Israel/January 13/2025
Israel’s military success in Lebanon and the strings Gulf patrons attached to reconstruction money forced Hezbollah to cut its losses and acquiesce to the election of a president it had vetoed for 802 days: Lebanese Armed Forces Commander Joseph Aoun. The new president promised the state would hold the monopoly on arms – code for disarming Hezbollah – and vowed “positive neutrality” in the Arab-Israeli conflict, signaling a return to the 1949 truce with Jerusalem. In his swearing-in speech, Aoun promised “a state that invests in its army to fight terrorism and prevent Israeli aggression on Lebanese territory.” Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV, posted Aoun’s statement on its website. The untrained ear might take umbrage at the reference to “Israeli aggression,” in connection with a war Hezbollah launched against the Jewish state “in support of Gaza,” on November 8, 2023. But within Lebanon, dislike of Israel is the norm. The division is over whether the state or the Hezbollah militia deals with Israel’s imagined animosity, and whether it is dealt with through diplomacy or war. The last time Hezbollah got an Aoun elected president – Michel in October 2016 – the former president said in his inaugural speech: “On the conflict with Israel, we will spare no effort or withhold any resistance to liberate the remaining occupied Lebanese territories and protect our homeland from an enemy that still covets our land, water, and natural resources.”
Today, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah has been eliminated, and with him, the words “resistance” and “liberation” are gone from the presidential speech. Lebanon is back to debating “positive neutrality” – Lebanese lingo for reviving the 1949 UN General Armistice Agreement, whose ultimate goal, per UN Security Council Resolution 62, is “to facilitate the transition from the present truce to permanent peace.” This agreement kept Lebanon out of major regional conflicts including the wars of 1967 and 1973.
For good measure, the new Lebanese president also promised to combat money laundering and smuggling, two of Hezbollah’s main income sources.
Lebanon is on the right track but it’s not out of the woods yet. Hezbollah is planning a comeback, although first, it must placate its own followers’ fury. In the aftermath of the war, Lebanon’s southern residents lost 40,000 homes, with 60,000 units damaged. The Iran-backed militia promised to refund everyone for everything but ended up cutting checks for $50 and $72 drawn against its destroyed and broke Qard al-Hassan bank.
Hezbollah needs the Lebanese state to come up with the money. The Lebanese government, for its part, relies on Gulf largesse. After Saudi Arabia summoned Aoun and extracted guarantees that he would disarm Hezbollah, Riyadh deployed its emissary to Beirut, where he spent the days leading up to the election lobbying for Aoun’s election.
Not dead yet
With Saudi money dangling, Hezbollah conceded, but choreographed its change of heart carefully. For starters, the militia flexed its muscles to show who’s boss in parliament. In the first round, Aoun failed to secure a majority – in the second round, the Shia bloc of Hezbollah and Speaker Berri voted for Aoun, whose end tally stood at 99 of 128 votes. With its 28 votes, the Shia bloc hopes for a share in the upcoming cabinet. Berri will likely keep the finance portfolio, which will be instrumental in disbursing money to the angry Shia base. Even the chief of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc, Muhammad Raad, sounded tame. “By voting for his excellency President Aoun, we wanted to send a message that we are the defenders of national consensus in this country,” Raad said, adding that the spilled blood of Nasrallah and “all the martyrs” made this possible.
A famous Arabic poem reads: “If you see the lion’s teeth, do not assume he is smiling.” The verse perfectly describes Hezbollah today: Tired, wounded, and broke, but not dead yet. For now, Hezbollah is focused on rebuilding its non-military side. It will certainly try to preserve and rearm its militia when everyone loses interest in Lebanon and stops looking. In the interim, it is incumbent on the Lebanese to grab this opportunity to disarm Hezbollah, restore state sovereignty, and reform. If the economy starts growing, the natural next step would be to think more of national interests and sue for peace with Israel.
While it’s off to a good start, Lebanon must not start counting its chickens before they hatch. The upcoming cabinet lineup will be another sign. Finalizing the ceasefire with Israel is yet another. All of these are baby steps that we are watching in hopes that the baby can finally walk. The fear is that Hezbollah might, again, knock it back down.

Lebanon’s Third Republic and Arab and International Diplomacy
Sam Menassa/Asharq Al Awsat/January 14/2025
Arab-international pressure on Lebanese politicians, both those in government and the opposition, allowed for the election of a president after the seat had been vacant for 26 months. Through an Arab-international consensus, the opportunity presented by the shifts that swept the region, particularly in Lebanon and Syria, was seized. The opportunity could have been squandered by the narrow-minded maneuvers and political games we typically see from Lebanese politicians. It is too early for excessive optimism or burdening the new president with resolving decades of accumulated crises. He is an army man, not part of the traditional political elite. However, Army Commander General Joseph Aoun’s election to Baabda Palace has major implications that go beyond his personal history and role in the military. His election is a real step toward aligning Lebanon with the region's trajectory and fully integrating the country into the region’s future that reflects a regional and international formula favoring sovereign nation-states over non-state actors.
The pressure of Arab and international actors was not solely driven by concern for Lebanon's significance in the region after more than 50 years of its political hijacking. It also stemmed from Arab and international concern for reintegrating Lebanon into its natural environment, allowing it to become a normal state that is governed by elected state authorities, ending the hegemony of non-state actors, and putting Lebanon on track to join the region's path to peace, development, freedom, and international and regional cooperation. Aoun’s inaugural speech explicitly and clearly pushed in this direction.
Joseph Aoun’s election will not comprehensively solve Lebanon’s myriad of problems. Rather, it is the first step needed to enter a new phase, especially since his election follows a ceasefire agreement between Hezbollah and Israel that ended military hostilities between the two sides and stipulated that only state forces would carry arms across the country and Hezbollah would be disarmed, starting with the south. His election comes after Lebanon was liberated from 50 years of Syrian hegemony under both Assads, senior and junior and then Iranian hegemony, with the latter inheriting and extending the control that Syria had had. After fifty years of tutelage and occupation, it is farcical to lament today’s violations of the constitution and Lebanon’s sovereignty, especially when those who are complaining had colluded with the occupier for decades. The current Arab-international pressures constitute a pathway to reclaiming, not undermining, Lebanon’s sovereignty and constitutional integrity.
More Arab-international diplomatic intervention is needed even after the presidential election, regulating political life in the country and overseeing Lebanese parliamentary deputies as they form a government, appoint a new army commander, and draft the ministerial statement. The goal is to transform this election into a milestone that leads us to a new era, allowing for a rupture with the Syrian and Iranian past and restoring Lebanon’s sovereignty and constitution, as well as allowing its democratic process to function properly.
Foreign actors will oversee all the urgent tasks facing the president and the new government, foremost among them the full implementation of the recent ceasefire agreement. First, their involvement is essential for reclaiming our sovereignty, ensuring that Israel pulls out of the South, sparring Lebanon attacks from the air and the ground, and most importantly, ensuring that only state security and military institutions bear arms, thereby guaranteeing durable security and stability.
Second: the full implementation of the Taif Agreement, which is necessary for reassuring all parties, silencing calls for imagined and self-destructive alternatives, and laying the foundations for political stability- a crucial prerequisite for allowing political and economic reform. Respecting the Taif Agreement also provides a needed guarantee to the international institutions that are expected to provide the assistance Lebanon needs to overcome the financial and economic crisis that has been aggravating since 2019.
Third, Lebanon must return to the fold of moderate Arab states, positioning itself on the right side of history and moving with the tide of the geopolitical shifts sweeping through the region. This is necessary for building a state of institutions and the rule of law, as well as advancing a just regional peace.
The most significant outcome of the new president’s election, the climate surrounding the process, and the preparation that had been for it is that Lebanon has been saved from marginalization or abandonment. This peril had arisen from friendly countries’ fatigue and frustration with the state of Lebanese politics and politicians. The election of Joseph Aoun to the presidency might signal that Lebanon’s era of stagnation is ending and of the cycle of solutions that only reinforce the status quo, which had been the approach of political forces in both the government and the opposition, particularly those who opposed or hesitated to support Aoun’s candidacy for the presidency.
Indeed, some have expressed concern that there may have been implicit arrangements agreed to with Hezbollah regarding its future role and that these deals could curb change in Lebanon. The Shiite duo and others may have finally grasped the significance of the shifts, from Gaza to Damascus and Beirut, that have unfolded in the region, as well as the implications of Tehran's declining influence in the Levant. Hezbollah, now facing existential threats, is being called upon to consider its setbacks and the reasons for them, as well as its role in isolating Lebanon from its Arab and international allies and turning it into a quasi-rogue state. It needs to conduct a fundamental, comprehensive reassessment of the policies and approaches it has followed for decades. Not only were they irresponsible and harmful to the country, many of its officials’ decisions also played a role in leading the country to ruin. International and regional political changes are anticipated, and they will have profound domestic implications for all countries. Indeed, Donald Trump is about to enter the White House, bringing uncertainty and volatility with him.

Aoun ... A President to Reclaim Lebanon
Ghassan Charbel/Asharq Al Awsat/January 14/2025
I was at the Damascus residence of Iraqi politician and publisher Fakhri Karim. A visitor, who appeared weighed down with disappointment, arrived. I tried to persuade him to return to journalism after a long break. My friends warned me that he was a difficult person to deal with. But I viewed him as a unique writer, and it was an honor for publications to print his works. Poet Mohammed al-Maghout smiled at me and said: “You want me to return to writing articles. My pen has grown tired of what I have written. I am weary myself. What do you want me to write about amid this cross-border chaos and destruction we are witnessing?”Commenting on an interview I had held with Bashar al-Assad, Maghout smiled again and said: “Be careful. This cub is the son of that lion [Assad is Arabic for lion].” He did not elaborate, but his expression said it all. This regime cannot be reformed. Before leaving, he advised me against “falling in the trap of hope.”I recalled Maghout in these recent weeks. I recalled him the first time when Ahmed al-Sharaa made his appearance from the Umayyad Mosque square in Damascus to declare the fall of over half a century of Hafez and Bashar al-Assad's rule. I recalled him again when the rudderless Lebanese republic elected army commander General Joseph Aoun as president, tasking him with the mission of restoring the republic and reviving hope in building the state after decades of ruin.
Lebanon had witnessed a particularly terrible slide towards ruin in recent years. It experienced long years of humiliation and poverty. The more the state grew fragmented, the more the Lebanese people became isolated and orphaned. The Lebanese and non-Lebanese people lost their life savings in the banks amid the financial collapse. Citizens queued in front of banks to beg for a handful of dollars. World news agencies broadcast images of Lebanese people rummaging through garbage in search of anything that would stem their hunger. For the first time in the country’s history, youths threw themselves in the “boats of death” to escape unemployment and hunger.
Aoun feared that the army would fall apart, but his integrity encouraged friends of Lebanon to aid the military institution and prevent it from collapsing under the weight of poverty and as the state lay in a coma. From his office in Yarze, Aoun took bold decisions. He refused to quell protests against the political elite who caused this chaos. He also prevented the country from sliding into civil war. The abasement of the Lebanese people became a daily occurrence. The abasement of the constitution became a rule. The parliament and the state were in disarray. The judiciary fell into the hands of those undermining it. Lebanon lost is regional and international friends. It lost its role and meaning. It seemed that the Lebanese patient was resisting all treatments that would save it.
With the vacancy in the presidency lasting two years yet again, it seemed that the Lebanese entity was drawing its last breath and that the segments that make up its society no longer shared the same principles and beliefs that would allow them to coexist under the same roof.
Joseph Aoun did not lose hope. Throughout the vacuum, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati tried to salvage what he could from the last remaining pieces of the state and delay the imminent collapse. But then the surprises started to happen. Yehya al-Sinwar launched the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation and Hassan Nasrallah opened the “support front” a day later and everything unraveled after that. US envoy Amos Hochstein had to stop the Israeli machine of destruction. Lebanon had no choice but to agree to return to resolution 1701. The Israeli practices after the ceasefire came into effect revealed the extent of the imbalance in the balances of power. Netanyahu had launched a war to change the features of the Middle East and his brutal military machine struck near and far, targeting Iran’s proxies and even Iran itself.
Then the seismic shift happened. Bashar al-Assad got on a plane that flew him to exile and Ahmed al-Sharaa took his place in Damascus, while the Iranian influence in the region waned.
The war that had taken place on several maps altered the balances of power in the region. Lebanon found itself confronted with the fallout of the ceasefire and the major change in Syria. Lebanon had to find a man who believed in the state, institutions and the state of law, and who had not played a part in the country’s ruin. Joseph Aoun’s candidacy started to gain steam.
Several blocs didn’t want to elect him. They view him as a difficult man to deal with. He is brave and cannot be intimidated. He is honorable and his will cannot be broken with temptations. Wide internal support for him intersected with an Arab and international drive to help Lebanon reclaim its state.
Aoun was elected. His inaugural speech revived the dream of restoring the state. He spoke of unity and equality in a state of law. He spoke of the Taif Accord, positive neutrality and an independent judiciary. He spoke of the state reclaiming all of its rights, including limiting the possession of weapons to its institutions. He spoke of what the vast majority of the Lebanese people dreamed of. The world soon rushed to embrace Lebanon. It won’t be easy to save Lebanon from the vast ruin and it won’t be easy for it to revive the state. It needs internal and external support. It needs a Lebanese awakening that supports integrity, the state of law and that understands the need to take difficult decisions. This is not just a test to the new president, but a test to all the Lebanese people and political powers. Patience will be necessary and roles that are beyond Lebanon’s capabilities and which had led it to ruin need to be abandoned.

Lebanon’s New Dawn: President Elected, Ending Regional Exploitation and Hezbollah’s Hold
Abdulrahman Al-Rashed/Asharq Al Awsat/January 14/2025
After Damascus, Beirut now celebrates a new era with the election of a president, a position that Hezbollah had obstructed, leaving the post vacant since October 2022. This new phase in Lebanon concludes fifty years of regional exploitation of this small country, the second smallest Arab state in terms of area.
For decades, Lebanon became a hub for regional conflicts involving Nasserism, Saddamism, the al-Assad regime, and Iranian influence. It was forced to be the sole front with Israel after the Egyptian, Jordanian, and Syrian fronts were closed. The situation is now returning to balance after Iran’s influence has been eliminated and the Assad regime removed. Thus, international demands have finally been met, paving the way for political and commercial dealings with Beirut. Local battles among Lebanese factions will persist, but as long as they remain without gunfire, they are not the concern of other countries and are left to internal settlements within Lebanon’s complex governance framework. Following the successful resolution of the presidency, a series of changes is anticipated. Joseph Aoun was elected president through a successful “cesarean” process, facilitated by Arab and international forces. The Americans threatened to halt economic support from any source, and Israeli drones continued to circle overhead, leveraging the context of war and political vacuum.
During deliberations, the Iranian embassy’s luggage was searched at Beirut Airport, and prohibited contents were confiscated and publicly exposed. On the land border, Lebanese security handed over dozens of wanted Syrian officers to the new regime in Damascus. Inside parliament, it is no longer possible or permissible to coerce MPs into voting against their will, as Hezbollah and the Assad regime once did. Regardless, Iran is now part of the past. While Hezbollah remains, efforts to dismantle much of its arsenal will continue under a ceasefire agreement. The latest war will be the last conflict with Israel via Lebanon. Amid the evolving circumstances, we will witness further developments and new hopes. Lebanon’s commercial activity, disrupted by the Syrian war and constrained by Hezbollah and Assad’s drug-smuggling operations, will find open markets once again.
The country will also be able to activate the oil production agreement in its shared waters with Israel and put an end to the remaining border disputes fabricated by the Assad regime after Israel’s withdrawal from the south in 2000. This was used to justify the “Iranian-Syrian resistance” under the pretext of liberating the “occupied Shebaa Farms.” Sovereign states in the region have realized that ending the state of war with Israel serves their national security interests.
Sadat signed the Camp David Accords, closing the Egyptian front, followed by King Hussein with the Wadi Araba Agreement. Even Hafez al-Assad preceded them by signing the Disengagement Agreement in 1974, which effectively became a peace treaty lasting fifty years.
Some Lebanese argue for the need for something beyond a ceasefire – an internationally guaranteed permanent agreement to prevent the return of wars in the name of resistance. In his inauguration speech, the new president hinted: “We will discuss a comprehensive defense strategy on diplomatic, economic, and military levels.”Lebanon may not yet have recovered sufficiently to take such a bold step and end its use as a battleground for Syria, Palestinian organizations, or Iran. However, Lebanon can build on the Naqoura Agreement it signed with Israel in 1949. Based on this, both countries recognized each other’s borders and agreed to abstain from military actions by “regular and irregular forces.” In reality, peace agreements protect Arab states, not Israel, which is always militarily superior to them.
These agreements also safeguard Arab states’ rights to their lands and resources amid the shifting dynamics of conflict with Israel and regional powers. This matter is left to the Lebanese and the appropriate time. It is likely that the last war convinced even the remaining factions – Hezbollah’s popular base, which bore the greatest cost – that ending wars is in their best interest.
What do others want from Lebanon? In his inaugural speech, President Aoun stated that Lebanon would not rely on external forces but would export only its best products and focus on its economy.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on January 13-14/2025
Some Israeli soldiers refuse to keep fighting in Gaza
Sam Mednick And Julia Frankel/The Associated Press/January 13, 2025
Yotam Vilk says the image of Israeli soldiers killing an unarmed Palestinian teenager in the Gaza Strip is seared in his mind. An officer in the armored corps, Vilk said the instructions were to shoot any unauthorized person who entered an Israeli-controlled buffer zone in Gaza. He saw at least 12 people killed, he said, but it is the shooting of the teen that he can’t shake. “He died as part of a bigger story. As part of the policy of staying there and not seeing Palestinians as people,” Vilk, 28, told The Associated Press. Vilk is among a growing number of Israeli soldiers speaking out against the 15-month conflict and refusing to serve anymore, saying they saw or did things that crossed ethical lines. While the movement is small — some 200 soldiers signed a letter saying they’d stop fighting if the government didn't secure a ceasefire — soldiers say it’s the tip of the iceberg and they want others to come forward. Their refusal comes at a time of mounting pressure on Israel and Hamas to wind down the fighting. Ceasefire talks are underway, and both President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump have called for a deal by the Jan. 20 inauguration. Seven soldiers who've refused to continue fighting in Gaza spoke with AP, describing how Palestinians were indiscriminately killed and houses destroyed. Several said they were ordered to burn or demolish homes that posed no threat, and they saw soldiers loot and vandalize residences. Soldiers are required to steer clear of politics, and they rarely speak out against the army. After Hamas stormed into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Israel quickly united behind the war launched against the militant group. Divisions here have grown as the war progresses, but most criticism has focused on the mounting number of soldiers killed and the failure to bring home hostages, not actions in Gaza. International rights groups have accused Israel of war crimes and genocide in Gaza. The International Court of Justice is investigating genocide allegations filed by South Africa. The International Criminal Court is seeking the arrests of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant. Israel adamantly rejects genocide allegations and says it takes extraordinary measures to minimize civilian harm in Gaza. The army says it never intentionally targets civilians, and investigates and punishes cases of suspected wrongdoing. But rights groups have long said the army does a poor job of investigating itself.
The army told AP it condemns the refusal to serve and takes any call for refusal seriously, with each case examined individually. Soldiers can go to jail for refusing to serve, but none of those who signed the letter have been detained, according to those who organized the signatures.
Soldiers' reactions in Gaza
When Vilk entered Gaza in November 2023, he said, he thought the initial use of force might bring both sides to the table. But as the war dragged on, he said he saw the value of human life disintegrate. On the day the Palestinian teenager was killed last August, he said, Israeli troops shouted at him to stop and fired warning shots at his feet, but he kept moving. He said others were also killed walking into the buffer zone — the Netzarim Corridor, a road dividing northern and southern Gaza. Vilk acknowledged it was hard to determine whether people were armed, but said he believes soldiers acted too quickly. In the end, he said, Hamas is to blame for some deaths in the buffer zone — he described one Palestinian detained by his unit who said Hamas paid people $25 to walk into the corridor to gauge the army's reaction. Some soldiers told AP it took time to digest what they saw in Gaza. Others said they became so enraged they decided they'd stop serving almost immediately. Yuval Green, a 27-year-old medic, described abandoning his post last January after spending nearly two months in Gaza, unable to live with what he’d seen. He said soldiers desecrated homes, using black markers meant for medical emergencies to scribble graffiti, and looted homes, looking for prayer beads to collect as souvenirs. The final straw, he said, was his commander ordering troops to burn down a house, saying he didn’t want Hamas to be able to use it. Green said he sat in a military vehicle, choking on fumes amid the smell of burning plastic. He found the fire vindictive — he said he saw no reason to take more from Palestinians than they’d already lost. He left his unit before their mission was complete. Green said he understands Israeli anger over Oct. 7 but hopes his act of refusal encourages all sides to break the cycle of violence.
The soldiers' refusal as an act of protest
Soldiers for the Hostages — the group behind the letter troops signed — is trying to garner momentum, holding an event this month in Tel Aviv and gathering more signatures. A panel of soldiers spoke about what they'd seen in Gaza. Organizers distributed poster-size stickers with a Martin Luther King Jr. quote: “One has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws.”Max Kresch, an organizer, said soldiers can use their positions to create change. “We need to use our voice to speak up in the face of injustice, even if that is unpopular,” he said. But some who fought and lost colleagues call the movement a slap in the face. More than 830 Israeli soldiers have been killed in the war, according to the army. “They are harming our ability to defend ourselves,” said Gilad Segal, a 42-year-old paratrooper who spent two months in Gaza at the end of 2023. He said everything the army did was necessary, including the flattening of houses used as Hamas hideouts. It’s not a soldier’s place to agree or disagree with the government, he argued. Ishai Menuchin, spokesperson for Yesh Gvul, a movement for soldiers refusing to serve, said he works with more than 80 soldiers who have refused to fight and that there are hundreds more who feel similarly but remain silent.
Effects on soldiers
Some of the soldiers who spoke to AP said they feel conflicted and regretful, and they're talking to friends and relatives about what they saw to process it. Many soldiers suffer from “moral injury,” said Tuly Flint, a trauma therapy specialist who's counseled hundreds of them during the war. It's a response when people see or do something that goes against their beliefs, he said, and it can result in a lack of sleep, flashbacks and feelings of unworthiness. Talking about it and trying to spark change can help, Flint said. One former infantry soldier told AP about his feelings of guilt — he said he saw about 15 buildings burned down unnecessarily during a two-week stint in late 2023. He said that if he could do it all over again, he wouldn’t have fought. “I didn’t light the match, but I stood guard outside the house. I participated in war crimes,” said the soldier, speaking on condition of anonymity over fears of retaliation. “I’m so sorry for what we’ve done.”

Minister makes first trip to Syrian border area after Assad regime ends
The Canadian Press/January 13, 2025
International Development Minister Ahmed Hussen and MP Omar Alghabra have made the first Canadian delegation visit to the border region of Turkey and Syria since the fall of the Bashar Assad regime in Syria. During the visit, Hussen announced $17.25 million in funding for humanitarian assistance including clean water and food, protection services, sanitation and health services. The pair also went to Qatar where they met with that country's minister of state for international cooperation to discuss their role in assisting Syrians. In Saudi Arabia, they met with the minister of state for foreign affairs and the secretary general of the Gulf Cooperation Council to discuss "shared objectives for regional peace and security."And in Turkey, Hussen and Alghabra met with the deputy minister of foreign affairs to discuss the changing Middle East landscape. Hussen says the ongoing conflict in Syria has left millions of people in need of urgent aid, and that Canada's funding will allow for critical supports. Assad fled to Russia last month after opposition forces seized Damascus, marking an end to his family's 50-year control of the country.According to Global Affairs Canada, more than 250,000 people have died in the Syrian conflict that began in 2011. Hussen says Canada stands in solidarity with the people of Syria and those in neighbouring countries, and that his government will continue work to address the conflict's impacts. Alghabra called it a "pivotal moment for Syria, the region and the world," adding that after decades of conflict, Syrians have an opportunity to build an inclusive and prosperous society.

Russia says Iran's president will visit this week and sign a partnership pact with Putin
The Associated Press/January 13, 2025
Russian President Vladimir Putin will host his Iranian counterpart this week for the signing of a broad partnership pact between Moscow and Tehran, the Kremlin said Monday. The agreement on “comprehensive strategic partnership” between the countries will be signed during Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian's visit to Moscow on Friday, the Kremlin said. It added that the leaders will discuss plans for expanding trade and cooperation in transport, logistics and humanitarian spheres along with “acute issues on the regional and international agenda.”
Ukraine and the West have accused Tehran of providing Moscow with hundreds of exploding drones for use on the battlefield in Ukraine and helping launch their production in Russia. The Iranian drone deliveries, which Moscow and Tehran have denied, have allowed for a barrage of long-range drone strikes on Ukraine’s infrastructure. Iran, in turn, wants sophisticated Russian weapons like long-range air defense systems and fighter jets to help fend off possible attacks by Israel. Pezeshkian will visit Moscow three days before the inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has pledged to broker a peace deal on Ukraine.

German-Iranian women's rights activist released from Iranian prison
Reuters/January 13, 2025
Nahid Taghavi, an Iranian-German women's rights activist, has been released from prison and is back in Germany after more than four years incarceration in Iran, Amnesty International said on Monday. The release of Taghavi followed concerns about the 70-year-old's health and calls from rights groups on the German government to pressure Tehran on the case. Taghavi was detained in October 2020 during a visit to Tehran and later sentenced to 10 years and eight months in prison for her alleged involvement in an illegal group and for propaganda against the state. Amnesty called the charges fabricated. "My mum is finally home. Words are not enough to describe our joy. At the same time, we mourn the four years we were robbed of and the horror she experienced in Evin prison," her daughter Mariam Claren said in a statement. The rights group said Taghavi was tortured during her time in prison and held in solitary confinement. The activist landed safely in Germany on Sunday, Amnesty said, calling for many more releases to follow in Iran. Iran's judiciary was not immediately available for comment. "A great moment of joy that Nahid Taghavi can finally embrace her family again," German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said in a post on X. Germany has clashed with Iran in the past over its jailing of dual citizens and criticised its human rights record. In October, Berlin recalled its ambassador to Iran over the execution of German-Iranian national Jamshid Sharmahd. Last week Iran freed Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, three weeks after she was detained in Tehran during a reporting trip.

Germany welcomes release of German-Iranian rights activist from prison in Iran and her return home
BERLIN (AP)/January 13, 2025
Germany's foreign minister on Monday welcomed the release of a German-Iranian rights activist from prison in Iran and her return to Germany. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock wrote on the social media platform X that it's “a great moment of joy that Nahid Taghavi can finally embrace her family again.”Baerbock retweeted a post by Taghavi's daughter, Mariam Claren, with a photo of herself hugging her mother, which said: “It’s over. Nahid is free! After more than 4 years as a political prisoner in the Islamic Republic of Iran my mother Nahid Taghavi was freed and is back in Germany.”
The German Foreign Office expressed delight that Taghavi’s “time of suffering has come to an end and that she has been reunited with her family.” “Ms. Taghavi and her family have endured unbearable hardship,” the ministry said, adding that the German government had worked hard for her “overdue release.”Taghavi was sentenced to 10 years and eight months in prison in Iran in 2021. Rights group Amnesty International, which lobbied for Taghavi's release for years, said in a statement Monday that “after more than 1,500 days in arbitrary detention, Iranian-German women’s rights activist Nahid Taghavi has been released.”“Since her arrest, Amnesty International had been campaigning for her unconditional release and an end to her persecution,” the group said, adding that Taghavi landed in Germany on Sunday. Taghavi was arrested in October 2020 during a visit to Tehran and later sentenced to prison for alleged involvement in an “illegal group” and for “propaganda against the state" and was held incommunicado for months and tortured, Amnesty International said.

Progress made in talks over Israel-Hamas ceasefire and hostage release
Associated Press/January 13, 2025
U.S. and Arab mediators made significant progress overnight toward brokering a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war and the release of scores of hostages held in the Gaza Strip, but a deal has not been reached yet, officials said Monday. Three officials acknowledged progress has been made and said the coming days would be critical for ending more than 15 months of fighting that has destabilized the Middle East. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the talks. One of the three officials and a Hamas official said there were still a number of hurdles to clear. On several occasions over the past year, U.S. officials have said they were on the verge of reaching a deal, only to have the talks stall. One person familiar with the talks said there had been a breakthrough overnight and that there was a proposed deal on the table. Israeli and Hamas negotiators will now take it back to their leaders for final approval, the person said. The person said mediators from the Gulf country of Qatar had put renewed pressure on Hamas to accept the agreement, while President-elect Donald Trump's envoy, Steve Witkoff, was pressing the Israelis. Witkoff recently joined the negotiations and has been in the region in recent days. The person said the mediators had handed off the draft deal to each side and that the next 24 hours would be pivotal. An Egyptian official said there had been good progress overnight but that it would likely take a few more days, and that the sides were aiming for a deal before Trump's Jan. 20 inauguration. A third official said the talks were in a good place but had not been wrapped up. That official also assessed that a deal was possible before the inauguration. A Hamas official, however, said a number of contentious issues still need to be resolved, including an Israeli commitment to ending the war and details about the withdrawal of Israeli troops and the hostage-prisoner exchange. The official was not authorized to brief media and spoke anonymously.
The Egyptian official confirmed that those issues were still being discussed.
Months of negotiations have repeatedly stalled
The Biden administration, along with Egypt and Qatar, has spent over a year trying to broker an agreement to end the deadliest war ever fought between Israelis and Palestinians and secure the release of scores of hostages captured in Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack, which triggered the conflict.
But the sides have been divided over the details of the planned exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, as well as the nature of the ceasefire itself. Hamas has said it will not release the remaining captives without an end to the war, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue the campaign until "total victory" over the militant group.Under discussion now is a phased ceasefire. Netanyahu has repeatedly signaled he is committed only to the first phase, a partial hostage release in exchange for a weekslong halt in fighting. The possibility of a lasting ceasefire and other issues would be negotiated after the first phase begins. Hamas has demanded a full withdrawal and complete end to the war, and is hoping this first phase will lead to that outcome. U.S. President Joe Biden, who hopes to wrap up a deal before leaving office next week, spoke with Netanyahu about the talks on Sunday.
The head of Israel's Mossad foreign intelligence agency, David Barnea, and Biden's top Mideast adviser, Brett McGurk, were both in the Qatari capital, Doha. Barnea's presence meant high-level Israeli officials who would need to sign off on any agreement are once again involved in the talks.
McGurk has been working on final details of a text to be presented to both sides, Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told CNN's "State of the Union." But he said he would not predict whether a deal can be reached by Jan. 20, the day of the inauguration. "We are very, very close," he said. "Yet being very close still means we're far because until you actually get across the finish line, we're not there." Palestinians and families of the hostages hope for a deal. Just one brief ceasefire has been achieved in 15 months of war, and that was in the earliest weeks of fighting. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last week that a deal is "very close" and he hoped to complete it before handing over diplomacy to the incoming Trump administration. Israel's campaign in Gaza has killed more than 46,000 Palestinians, the majority women and children, according to the territory's Health Ministry. Hamas-led militants allegedly killed some 1,200 people and abducted around 250 others in the attack that ignited the war. Families of the roughly 100 hostages still held in Gaza are pressing Netanyahu to reach a deal to bring their loved ones home. Israelis rallied again Saturday night in the city of Tel Aviv, with photos of hostages on display.
In Gaza, Palestinians were tempering their hopes for a stop to Israel's campaign, which has devastated much of the territory and driven around 90% of its 2.3 million people from their homes. "We hear that there are negotiations every day, but we see nothing," said Mazen Hammad, a resident of the southern city of Khan Younis. "When we see it on the ground, then we believe that there is a truce."

Gaza ceasefire deal being finalised, Palestinian official tells BBC
Rushdi Abualouf and Maia Davies - BBC News/January 13, 2025
The terms of a deal between Israel and Hamas for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages are being finalised, a Palestinian official familiar with the negotiations has told the BBC. It comes as White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said a truce and hostage deal could be done "this week".
An Israeli official also told news agency Reuters that negotiations were in "advanced stages", with a deal possible in "hours, days or more". US President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, and with Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani of Qatar - who is mediating the negotiations - on Monday. Sullivan said Biden was also due to speak with Egypt's President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi. The latest developments come as Netanyahu faces fierce opposition to a potential deal from within his governing coalition. Ten right-wing members, including some from Netanyahu's own Likud party, have sent him a letter opposing a truce. The Palestinian official told the BBC that Hamas and Israeli officials were conducting indirect talks in the same building on Monday. Revealing some potential details of the agreement, the official stated that "the detailed technical discussions took considerable time".
Both sides agreed that Hamas would release three hostages on the first day of the agreement, after which Israel would begin withdrawing the troops from populated areas. Seven days later, Hamas would release four additional hostages, and Israel would allow displaced people in the southern to return to the north, but only on foot via the coastal road. Cars, animal-drawn carts, and trucks would be permitted to cross through a passage adjacent to Salah al-Din Road, monitored by an X-ray machine operated by a Qatari-Egyptian technical security team. The agreement includes provisions for Israeli forces to remain in the Philadelphi corridor and maintain an 800-meter buffer zone along the eastern and northern borders during the first phase, which will last 42 days. Israel has also agreed to release 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, including approximately 190 who have been serving sentences of 15 years or more. In exchange, Hamas will release 34 hostages. Negotiations for the second and third phases of the agreement would begin on the 16th day of the ceasefire. Meanwhile, Gaza's civil defence agency reported that a wave of Israeli air strikes on Gaza City on Monday killed more than 50 people. "They bombed schools, homes and even gatherings of people," civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP. The Israeli military said it was looking into these reports. Separately, it said five soldiers were killed on Monday in the north of the Gaza Strip. The war was triggered by Hamas's attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others taken to Gaza as hostages. Israel launched a military offensive in Gaza to destroy Hamas in response. Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry says more than 46,500 people have been killed during the war. Israel says 94 of the hostages remain in Gaza, of whom 34 are presumed dead, as well as another four Israelis who were abducted before the war, two of whom are dead.Gaza war death toll could be significantly higher, researchers say Israeli settlers in West Bank see Trump win as chance to go further

What are the main obstacles to a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages?
Joseph Krauss/The Associated Press/January 13, 2025
Israel and Hamas have been holding indirect talks for more than a year aimed at ending the war in Gaza and returning scores of militant-held hostages in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. But despite intensive mediation by the United States, Qatar and Egypt, the talks have repeatedly stalled over several key issues, including the details of the exchange, whether the ceasefire would be permanent and the withdrawal of Israeli forces. As each side has accused the other of backtracking, the war has ground on. Dozens of Palestinians have been killed each day in Israeli strikes, and most of Gaza's 2.3 million people are huddled in squalid tent camps, their neighborhoods in ruins. Humanitarian groups struggle to deliver desperately needed aid, and experts have warned of famine. In Israel, families of the hostages have held weekly rallies demanding a deal for their release, fearing their loved ones will die in the harsh conditions of their captivity the longer the fighting drags on.
Here's a look at the main points of contention.
Lists of names but no clarity on hostages
Hamas and other groups are still holding around 100 hostages captured in the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel that ignited the war, in which militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250. The Israeli military has declared a third of the hostages dead, but suspects that the true number could be around half.Hamas is demanding the release of a large number of Palestinian prisoners, including senior militants convicted of orchestrating attacks that killed civilians. Israel is reluctant to free such prisoners, especially since one of the masterminds of the 2023 attack, the slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, was a former prisoner released in such a deal. The two sides have exchanged lists of names, with Israel demanding more information about which hostages are alive to ensure they come out first. Hamas says it needs at least a brief truce to determine the status of the hostages, because they are being held by various groups in scattered, secret locations.
Hamas seeks a lasting truce; Israel wants ‘total victory’
The emerging deal calls for a multiphase plan. In the first stage, Hamas would release the most vulnerable hostages and Israeli forces would pull back from some areas, allowing some Palestinians to return to their homes and a surge of humanitarian aid. In the second step — which would be negotiated during the first — the rest of the living hostages would be released in exchange for a lasting ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces. Hamas has said it won't release the remaining hostages without assurances that the war will end. Israel's offensive has killed more than 46,000 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to local health authorities, which don't say how many of the dead were militants. Hamas likely fears that Israel will resume its offensive — and step up its intensity — once the hostages are out and the militants no longer have their most valuable bargaining chip. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to do just that. He says that Israel won't end the war until it has destroyed Hamas' military and governing abilities and ensured that the Palestinian militant group no longer poses a threat. The lack of trust goes both ways: Israelis fear that Hamas will drag out negotiations over the second phase, extending the ceasefire indefinitely while the hostages languish. Israel says it must retain strategic corridors
The talks nearly collapsed last summer when Netanyahu said that Israel would maintain a lasting presence in the Philadelphi corridor, a strip of land along the Gaza-Egypt border. Israel says Hamas has long smuggled weapons into Gaza through tunnels beneath the corridor and that it must control the area to prevent Hamas from rebuilding. Egypt, a key mediator, says it blocked the tunnels years ago, and is opposed to any Israeli presence on the Gaza side of its border. Israel has also demanded a mechanism for inspecting people returning to their homes in northern Gaza, from which around a million people fled following Israeli evacuation orders at the start of the war. Their return is a key Hamas demand, the details of which are still being worked out. Israel says people returning to the north should be searched for weapons. That would probably require an Israeli presence in what's known as the Netzarim corridor, a strip of closed roads and military installations stretching from the border to the sea just south of Gaza City. The Palestinians are opposed to any permanent Israeli occupation, though Hamas has reportedly shown flexibility on the timetable of the Israeli withdrawal.
Clashing visions for postwar Gaza. Israel says Hamas can never again rule Gaza, but it has yet to endorse a realistic plan for an alternative government. With no internal rivals, Hamas has been able to quickly regroup after Israeli operations, even in the hardest-hit areas, and still controls much of the territory.
The Biden administration has long pushed for a grand bargain in which a reformed Palestinian Authority would govern postwar Gaza with the support of Arab and Muslim countries, including Saudi Arabia, which would also take the historic step of forging ties with Israel. But Arab and Muslim leaders say they will only sign onto such plans if they include a pathway to a Palestinian state in the occupied West Bank, Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem and Gaza, territories Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast war. Israel's government is opposed to Palestinian statehood and has ruled out any role for the Palestinian Authority in Gaza. Netanyahu says that Israel will maintain open-ended security control while delegating governance to politically independent Palestinians. But none appear to have volunteered, and Hamas has threatened anyone who cooperates with Israel in running the territory. Hamas has said, however, that it's willing to relinquish control of Gaza to other Palestinians. Late last year, it agreed to an Egyptian-brokered plan for a group of independents to govern the territory under the auspices of the Palestinian Authority, which has yet to accept the proposal. Hamas has also demanded the lifting of a blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt after it seized power in 2007, which experts say is needed for Gaza to be rebuilt. The lifting of the blockade, however, would allow Hamas to claim a major victory and to eventually rebuild its military capabilities. That's another nonstarter for Israel.

At least 40 farmers killed by Boko Haram militants in northeast Nigeria, an official says
Wilson Mcmakin/DAKAR, Senegal (AP)/January 13, 2025
At least 40 farmers were killed in an attack by Islamic militants in northeast Nigeria’s Borno state, a government official said Monday. The attack Sunday was suspected to have been carried out by extremists from the Boko Haram group and its breakaway faction that is loyal to the Islamic State group in Borno’s Dumba community, said Borno state Gov. Babagana Umara Zulum. He warned civilians to stay within designated “safe zones” that have been cleared by the army of both extremists and munitions. Zulum also called for an investigation into the attack by the armed forces. "Let me assure the citizens of Borno that this matter will be thoroughly investigated for further necessary action. Let me use this opportunity to call on the armed forces to track and deal decisively with the perpetrators of this heinous act of violence against our innocent citizens,” he said. Boko Haram, Nigeria’s homegrown jihadis, took up arms in 2009 to fight Western education and impose their radical version of Islamic law. The conflict, now Africa’s longest struggle with militancy, has spilled into Nigeria’s northern neighbors. Some 35,000 civilians have been killed and more than 2 million have been displaced in the northeastern region, according to the U.N. The 2014 kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls by Boko Haram in the village of Chibok in Borno state — the epicenter of the conflict — captured the attention of the world.
Wilson Mcmakin, The Associated Press

Iranian army takes delivery of 1,000 new drones
Reuters/January 13, 2025
DUBAI (Reuters) - A thousand new drones were delivered to Iran's army on Monday, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported, as the country braces for more friction with arch-enemy Israel and the United States under incoming U.S. president Donald Trump. The drones were delivered to various locations throughout Iran and are said to have high stealth and anti-fortification abilities, according to Tasnim. "The drones' unique features, including a range of over 2,000 kilometres, high destructive power, the ability to pass through defence layers with low Radar Cross Section, and autonomous flight, not only increase the depth of reconnaissance and border monitoring but also boost the combat capability of the army's drone fleet in confronting distant targets," the news agency added. Earlier this month, Iran started two-months-long military exercises which have already included war games in which the elite Revolutionary Guards defended key nuclear installations in Natanz against mock attacks by missiles and drones.

Iran, European powers to hold nuclear talks ahead of Trump return
Agence France Presse/January 13, 2025
Iran is set to hold nuclear talks with France, Britain and Germany on Monday, just a week before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes office. They are the second round of talks over Iran's nuclear program in less than two months, following a discreet meeting held in Geneva, Switzerland, in November between Tehran and the three European powers, known as the E3. "These are not negotiations," the German foreign ministry told AFP. Iran has similarly emphasized that the talks are merely "consultations". The talks, scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, will cover a "wide range of topics," Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said during a weekly press briefing. "The primary objective of these talks is to remove the sanctions" on Iran, he noted, adding that Iran was also "listening to the... topics that the opposite parties want to raise."On Thursday, France's foreign ministry said the meeting was a sign that the E3 countries "are continuing to work towards a diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear program, the progress of which is extremely problematic."The talks come as Iran's nuclear program received renewed focus in light of Trump's imminent return to the White House on January 20.
During his first term, Trump had pursued a policy of "maximum pressure", withdrawing the U.S. from a landmark nuclear deal which imposed curbs on Iran's nuclear program in return for sanctions relief. Tehran adhered to the deal until Washington's withdrawal, but then began rolling back its commitments. Efforts to revive the 2015 nuclear pact have since faltered and European officials have repeatedly expressed frustrations over Tehran's non-compliance.
- 'Breaking point' -
Last week, French President Emmanuel Macron said the acceleration of Iran's nuclear program is "bringing us very close to the breaking point". Iran later blasted the comments as "baseless" and "deceitful". In December, Britain, Germany and France accused Tehran of growing its stockpile of high enriched uranium to "unprecedented levels" without "any credible civilian justification." "We reiterate our determination to use all diplomatic tools to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, including using snapback if necessary," they added. The snapback mechanism -- part of the 2015 deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)-- allows signatories to reimpose United Nations sanctions on Iran in cases of the "significant non-performance" of commitments. The option to trigger the mechanism expires in October this year, adding urgency to the ongoing diplomatic efforts. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) nuclear watchdog says Iran has increased its manufacturing of enriched uranium such that it is the only non-nuclear weapons state to possess uranium enriched to 60 percent. That level is well on the way to the 90 percent required for an atomic bomb. Iran maintains that its nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes and denies any intention to develop atomic weapons. It has also repeatedly expressed willingness to revive the deal. President Masoud Pezeshkian, who took office in July, has favored reviving that agreement and called for ending his country's isolation. In a recent interview with China's CCTV, foreign minister Abbas Araghchi also expressed willingness "to engage in constructive negotiations". "The formula that we believe in is the same as the previous JCPOA formula, namely, building trust on Iran's nuclear program in exchange for lifting sanctions," he added.

Iraq PM says he will sign security deal with Britain
Reuter/January 13, 2025
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said he would sign a bilateral security deal with Britain as well as a strategic partnership accord as he headed to London for an official visit against a backdrop of historic shifts in the Middle East. Iraq is trying to avoid becoming a conflict zone once again amid a period of regional upheaval that has seen Iran's allies Hamas degraded in Gaza, Hezbollah battered in Lebanon and Bashar al-Assad ousted in Syria. A rare ally of both Washington and Tehran, Iraq's balancing act has been tested by Iran-backed Iraqi armed groups' attacks on Israel and on U.S. troops in the country in the aftermath of the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7, 2023. That has led to several rounds of tit-for-tat strikes that have since been contained, but some Iraqi officials fear an escalation after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Jan. 20. "It is definitely an important timing, both as it concerns the path of Iraq's relations with the U.K. and as a result of the development of the (regional) situation, which requires more consultations," Sudani told Reuters on Monday while en route from Baghdad to London. Sudani said the security deal between the U.K and Iraq would develop bilateral military ties after last year's announcement that the U.S.-led coalition set up to fight Islamic State would end its work in Iraq in 2026. The U.K., Iraq’s former colonial ruler, is a key member of the coalition. Islamic State was territorially defeated in Iraq in 2017 and in Syria in 2019 though concerns remain high that it may reconstitute in remote areas of Iraq and exploit a power vacuum in Syria after Assad's ouster by Islamist rebels last year. Regarding the strategic partnership agreement, Sudani said: "This is one of the key moments in relations between Iraq and the UK. I can describe it as the beginning of a new era in ties." He did not elaborate. The visit will also see the signing of major agreements with British companies, he said."This is not a protocol trip," he added. Iraq previously signed a strategic partnership deal with the U.S. that aimed to expand relations beyond the military ties established after the U.S-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, which the U.K. also joined. That invasion toppled former dictator Saddam Hussein but unleashed years of sectarian bloodletting and war and then the rise of Islamic State, which massacred minorities and briefly established a so-called caliphate before being beaten back. Violence has subsided in recent years and much of the country is enjoying relative stability, though the economy remains highly dependent on public-sector wages financed almost entirely by oil, leading to periodic crises when prices fall. Sudani has tried to focus on rebuilding Iraq's war-damaged infrastructure and expanding ties with Western and Arab states while balancing relations with neighbouring Iran, which backs an array of Iraqi armed groups but also provides crucial power and gas.

Assyrian Parties in Syria Issue Joint Statement
(AINA) January 13/2025
The Syriac-Assyrian component, an integral part of the Syrian people, has participated in all activities of the revolution since its inception, both locally and abroad. This participation has been carried out through their political and civic organizations, in pursuit of freedom and dignity. Like their Syrian brethren across various regions of Syria, they have endured their share of oppression and brutality, displacement, killing, detention, and state-enforced disappearance, at the hands of the ousted regime and terrorist forces.
After December 8, 2024, an overwhelming joy swept among Syriac-Assyrians and all Syrians, following the fall of the regime of tyranny and corruption; and the liberation of the country from the oppression of the Assad family and the Baath Party, promising the beginning of a new dawn and new era of freedom. In light of this new development, the leaderships of the Assyrian Democratic Organization ADO and the Syriac Union Party SUP convened and reached an understanding to unify their demands and political vision, aiming to contribute effectively alongside all national forces in building a new Syria.
The two parties emphasized the importance of launching a peaceful transitional process through inter-Syrian dialogue, supported by the international community and Arab states, as outlined in the principles of UN Security Council Resolution 2254. This process should include all components of the Syrian people and their political and social forces, to form a comprehensive, non-sectarian transitional governing body with full executive powers and proceed to implement the articles of the resolution, including transitioning to a new political system that meets the aspirations of all Syrians. This will be achieved through free and fair elections supervised by the United Nations, based on a new constitution drafted with the participation of all components of Syrian society and approved through a general referendum in the country.
The two parties agreed on Syriac-Assyrian national demands and vision for the new Syria, as the following,
Constitutional recognition of the Syriac-Assyrians' existence and national identity, guaranteeing their national, political, and cultural rights within the framework of Syria's "territorial unity and people". Recognition of the Syriac language as a Syrian national language, which
is historically recognized as Syria's language, and adopting it as an official language alongside other languages in areas where Syriac- Assyrians constitute a significant population. Enhancing the role of the Syriac-Assyrian component and ensuring genuine representation, of its political forces, in the transitional process and the institutions emerging from it, leading to permanent resolutions. Abolishing all discriminatory laws against certain components or groups in Syrian society, including Syriac-Assyrians, and restoring lands and property ownership of those affected that were seized in the past, with
fair compensation. Taking measures aimed at preserving Syriac-Assyrian areas and villages and preventing any demographic changes (particularly in the Khabur region), after ensuring the return of all recently displaced and uprooted individuals to their original areas. Affirming the unity and sovereignty of Syria, and working to restore its occupied territories through peaceful means and international resolutions. The Syrian Republic constitutes an independent sovereign state where sovereignty belongs to the people who are the source of all authority. It is founded on the principles of equal citizenship, the separation of powers,
judicial independence, the rule of law, and the peaceful transfer of power through free and fair elections. Adopting a decentralized system, is the ideal approach, for governing the country while preserving Syria's territorial unity. This system ensures the protection of national and cultural diversity, guarantees the broadest possible popular participation in governance, promotes the equal distribution of power and resources, and achieves balanced and sustainable development across all regions of Syria.
Constitutional acknowledgment that Syria is a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural,and multi-religious state and that the Syrian people are composed of Arabs, Kurds, Syriac-Assyrians, Turkmen, and others, with the constitution guaranteeing their national rights. Commitment to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and all related charters concerning political, social, economic, and cultural fields. Commitment to the principles and measures of transitional justice after completing the democratic transition process, as a step toward achieving national reconciliation, addressing the consequences and tragedies of the
war, compensating the affected, and holding accountable those who committed war crimes or crimes against humanity, bringing them to justice. Acknowledgment of political pluralism and the freedom to engage in a peaceful political process, with competition among various political viewpoints based on the principle of equal opportunities. Employ peaceful means to promote civic peace and social harmony, reinforcing the values of coexistence, and elevating the Syrian national bond based on the foundation of equal citizenship and full partnership among all Syrians. Complete guarantees of equality between Syria's women and men, and ensuring women's representation and participation in decision-making in all state institutions. It will enhance the role of youth groups and empower them to actively engage in public affairs. The constitution guarantees equal rights for all Syrian women and men to hold any positions in the State, including the presidency, regardless of religion, sect, belief, ethnicity, or gender. Restructuring the army and security agencies, and limiting their duties to defending the nation, protecting its security, independence, and territorial integrity, as well as safeguarding citizens and constitutional institutions.
And prohibit the armed forces personnel from engaging in political activities or affiliating with political parties while in active service. The Syrian state guarantees representation and equal participation of all Syrian components in the State institutions, ensuring equal opportunities
politically, economically, socially, and culturally for all citizens. Abolishing all extraordinary laws, court orders, and rulings passed by the regime, and rejecting any demographic changes that took place in Syria during the previous era.
Assyrian Democratic Organization
Syriac Union Party

The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources on January 13-14/2025
"Blame It on the Jews!"
Nils A. Haug/Gatestone Institute/January 13, 2025
To their enemies, the Jews cannot do anything right. They are hated when they are strong; they are hated when they are weak. They are hated when they are poor; they are hated when they are rich. They are hated when they win; they are hated when they lose.
How this unfounded, blatantly anti-Semitic blaming of innocent Jews arose is difficult to fathom -- particularly as the traditional custodians and purveyors of Judeo-Christian moral-ethical precepts are, in fact, the Jews. It is their principles -- the Judeo-Christian values -- that underpin Western Civilization...
Even after the unspeakable events in Israel of October 7, 2023, with the slaughter of more than 1,200 innocents, many onlookers held Israel and the Jews -- not Hamas and Iran -- primarily responsible for the horror.
Frequently, the small population of Jews are held responsible for geopolitical and other events far beyond their control. Last month, Russia's President Vladimir Putin accused "ethnic Jews" of "tearing apart Russian Orthodox Church." How this unfounded, blatantly anti-Semitic blaming of innocent Jews arose is difficult to fathom -- particularly as the traditional custodians and purveyors of Judeo-Christian moral-ethical precepts are, in fact, the Jews. Pictured: Putin speaks to the media at Igora ski resort in the Leningrad region on December 26, 2024. (Photo by Alexei Danichev/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
Frequently, the small population of Jews are held responsible for geopolitical and other events far beyond their control.
This week, two American "far-left" anti-Israel groups -- Code Pink and Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), among others -- actually blamed Israel for the ongoing California wildfires.
"When US taxes go to burning people alive in Gaza, we can't be surprised when those fires come home," Code Pink posted on Instagram.
It was, in fact, Palestinians from Gaza who burned Israelis alive -- including infants -- that started the current conflict. If you do not want your people killed, do not start a war.
Code Pink apparently receives a major portion of its funding from an American couple, Sri-Lankan-born Neville Roy Singham and his wife Jodie Evans, based in Shanghai.
"'Jewish Voice for Peace' is Neither," and appears to be a "false-flag" operation:
"Many of its chapters were started by non-Jews. In 2019, Facebook's transparency feature revealed that the JVP page administrator was based in Lebanon, a fact that JVP later tried to hide."
JVP, reportedly with "ties to terrorism," has been given $490,000 by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and $75,000 from the Tides Foundation, funded, along with others, by George Soros, with $875,000 coming directly from Soros's Open Society Foundations.
Centuries earlier, during the bubonic plague, "Jews were doubly attacked," notes historian Jeremy Brown, "once by the bacteria, and then a second time by violence that in some cases killed more."
To their enemies, the Jews cannot do anything right. They are hated when they are strong; they are hated when they are weak. They are hated when they are poor; they are hated when they are rich. They are hated when they win; they are hated when they lose.
In December 2024, Russia's President Vladimir Putin accused "ethnic Jews" of "tearing apart the Russian Orthodox Church." After excluding Orthodox Christians and Muslims from these opponents of the church, he explained further:
"These [Jews] are people without kin or memory, with no roots. They don't cherish what we cherish and the majority of the Ukrainian people cherish as well."
How this unfounded, blatantly anti-Semitic blaming of innocent Jews arose is difficult to fathom -- particularly as the traditional custodians and purveyors of Judeo-Christian moral-ethical precepts are, in fact, the Jews. It is their principles -- the Judeo-Christian values -- that underpin Western Civilization, the Christian Church in general, and the Russian Orthodox Church.
That conflict, however, actually has nothing whatsoever to do with Russia's or Ukraine's small Jewish populations or with Israel itself. Putin's accusation, therefore, might need to be understood as yet another instance of Jews being accused of events outside their sphere of influence, but for which they are unjustly and irrationally held accountable. The nation's Jews become collateral damage in the process.
Understandably, there is some apprehension of potentially devastating consequences for Russia's remaining Jewish population. Putin's remarks will be taken seriously by his siloviki -- his devoted security apparatus, successors to the defunct Soviet-era KGB -- keen to place the blame on outsiders for Russia's mounting death toll in the war and Putin's failure to bring an early victory.
Once Jews are blamed for certain events, the likelihood of adverse after-effects for their community principles greatly escalates, as during the repressive reign of Josef Stalin.
Moscow's Chief Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt, currently president of the Conference of European Rabbis -- who himself had to flee from Russia in 2022 when he refused to endorse the Russian invasion of Ukraine -- explains of Putin's blame-gam:
"This is all reminiscent of Stalin's 'Fight against Cosmopolitanism' and the 'Doctors' Plot' of 1948–53, the brutal antisemitic campaign in the Soviet Union, resulting in the arrest and killing of much of the Soviet Jewish leadership in the Soviet Union. We cannot emphasize enough, the dangerous effect of such statements in a semi-totalitarian society."
For centuries past, Jews have been scapegoats for events outside their involvement. This blame-game often led to brutal pogroms in which they were murdered or ousted from villages (shtetls) where they had quietly resided for generations.
During the massacre of Jews by Cossacks in the 1648-1657 Khmelnitsky pogroms, in what is now Ukraine, a series of bloodthirsty assaults on peaceful Jewish communities were initiated by Ukrainian rebels, led by Bogdan Khmelnitsky (Chmielnicki). Again, the Jews became the innocent scapegoats for political events. Although at that time, the Cossacks were rebelling against the ruling Polish nobility, it was the Jews who were blamed by both parties and became collateral damage in the conflict. Rabbi Yehuda Altein describes what transpired:
"Over the course of the insurrection, hundreds of thousands of Jews across Eastern Europe were savagely pillaged, tortured, and murdered, in a tragedy surpassed only by the Holocaust three centuries later."
The Nazis' so-called "final solution" for the Jews was itself fomented through mass propaganda that blamed them for Germany's defeat during World War I and the subsequent dire economic situation -- yet another horrific instance of blaming the most miniscule part of the population for events beyond their control.
Even after the unspeakable events in Israel of October 7, 2023, with the slaughter of more than 1,200 innocents, many onlookers held Israel and the Jews -- not Hamas and Iran -- primarily responsible for the horror. Some Western politicians claimed that "Israel had it coming."
Former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis remarked that he would "never denounce Hamas for these atrocities." Instead, he blamed Israel:
"The path to ending the tragic loss of innocent lives – both Palestinian and Israeli – begins with one crucial first step: the end of the Israeli occupation and apartheid."
This blame-game, it seems, will never cease. Perhaps that is due to the fact that Israel and the Jewish people set an example that others would rather not try to live up to. Turning a land the size of New Jersey, of malaria-infested swamps and sand dunes, into a major nation is probably a sight that could induce envy and resentment.
In December 2024, British-Israeli Rabbi Leo Dee proposed that:
"Just like our ancestors, the mighty Maccabees, armed with a Torah in one hand and an Iron Dome missile interception battery in the other, the Israeli people defend the only true morality."
Of course, compared to 3,000 Hamas terrorists who gang-raped, tortured, beheaded and burned alive Israeli men, women, children and babies, such a claim might not have been that hard to make.
The Jews continue to exist because, as with other attempts throughout history to eradicate the Jews, the "final solution," thanks to the WWII Allies, was not final, their hearts did not stop beating, and the Jews had again called on what the State of Israel's founding Prime Minister David Ben Gurion called the nation's "secret weapon": "ein brera" ("no alternative"). They live because every spring, at the Passover Seder, they continue to recall their past in Pharaoh's Egypt, determine never to be slaves again, and remember their ancient homeland with a prayer, "Next year in Jerusalem."
"If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning," is from Psalm 137:5, which is thought to have been written roughly 2,500 years ago, when the Jews were forced out of Jerusalem by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Around 589–587 BCE, Babylonian armies besieged Jerusalem and then destroyed it, along with the Jews' sacred Temple of Solomon.
After so many years of exile, the Jews can once again gather together as a nation, in a land of their own, with Jerusalem as its capital. This nation provides them with strength: "Don't threaten us with cutting off your aid," Israel's Prime Minister Menachem Begin told US Senator Joe Biden in 1982, "It will not work. I am not a Jew with trembling knees. I am a proud Jew with 3,700 years of civilized history."
They have no choice but to succeed, and succeed they shall.
Nils A. Haug is an author and columnist. A Lawyer by profession, he is member of the International Bar Association, the National Association of Scholars, a faculty member at Intercollegiate Studies Institute, the Academy of Philosophy and Letters. Retired from law, his particular field of interest is political theory interconnected with current events. He holds a Ph.D. in Apologetical Theology. Dr. Haug is author of 'Politics, Law, and Disorder in the Garden of Eden – the Quest for Identity'; and 'Enemies of the Innocent – Life, Truth, and Meaning in a Dark Age.' His work has been published by First Things Journal, The American Mind, Quadrant, Gatestone Institute, Jewish News Syndicate, Minding the Campus, James Wilson Institute (Anchoring Truths), national Association of Scholars, Document Danmark, Jewish Journal, and others.
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A fake genocide meets a real one
Ben Cohen/Jewish News Syndicate/January 13/2025
The obsession with Jews and Israel diverts column inches and airtime away from humanitarian crises that are far more dire than Gaza and far more intractable.
For more than a year, Jews inside and outside the State of Israel have been besieged by false claims of the “genocide” of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. The rhetoric of the pro-Hamas mob—“We don’t want no Zionists here,” “Go back to Poland” and so on—has been ugly enough to make Nazi Germany proud. The real-world impact—arson and gun attacks on synagogues and other Jewish institutions from Canada to Australia, a pogrom in Amsterdam, physical and sexual assaults on those wearing identifiably Jewish symbols, creeping discrimination against “Zionists” in the worlds of art and medicine and academia, and too many other such episodes to comprehensively list here—is all too reminiscent of Nazi thuggery.
There is no longer any doubt that Jewish communities are facing the worst upsurge of antisemitism since World War II. At the root of the current onslaught is what my JNS colleague Melanie Phillips calls “Palestinianism,” which, she argues, “seeks to write the Jews out of their country, their history and the world.” That explains the fixation with affixing the label “genocide” to Israel’s military response to the atrocities of Oct. 7, 2023, which were themselves an act of genocide, intentionally targeting Jews because they are Jews living in their historic homeland. Yet in public relations terms, we have to concede that this has been a blood libel with legs, embraced not just by the keffiyeh-clad automatons but by governments from Ireland to South Africa, as well as by the United Nations, whose secretary-general, António Guterres, opined last September to his eternal shame that he had “never seen such a level of death and destruction as we are seeing in Gaza in the last few months.”
It’s important to recognize that the trauma Jews have experienced since Oct. 7 has also impacted non-Jews. I don’t mean our immediate neighbors in Europe and North America who, apart from a courageous and vocal minority, have followed in the ignoble tradition of their forebears by looking the other way. I am referring to those minorities and stateless nations around the world whose fate at the hands of repressive regimes and their proxy militias has been drowned out by the noise of the pro-Hamas mob and its enablers. Silence and indifference have greeted the Turkish regime’s bloodthirsty pledge to “eliminate” the Kurdish-led, U.S.-backed resistance forces in Syria in the wake of the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad’s vile dictatorship. The same U.N. Human Rights Council that lambastes Israel last month co-hosted a “human rights” conference with the same Chinese Communist Party that is waging a genocide in the northwestern region of Xinjiang.
It’s the ongoing slaughter in Sudan, however, that really exposes the moral rot at the heart of “Palestinianism.” For the first time since the term “genocide” was given legal standing with the 1948 adoption of the U.N. Genocide Convention, the world’s attention has been gripped by a fake genocide while a real one has been raging at the same time. Hamas propaganda preying on the minds of the stupid and the gullible in our own societies is largely to thank for this sordid outcome, which leaves an indelible stain on Western civilization.
Since the outbreak of Sudan’s latest civil war in 2023, the Biden administration has placed the issue at the bottom of its foreign-policy pile. But one of the last acts of outgoing Secretary of State Antony Blinken was to issue a Jan. 7 statement concluding that “members of the RSF and allied militias have committed genocide in Sudan.” Too little, too late, certainly, but not wholly useless.
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are an outgrowth of the feared Janjaweed paramilitaries that carried out a genocide in the western region of Darfur 20 years ago. The latest fighting followed the decision of RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as “Hemedti,” to split with the military government that took power in a 2021 coup in Khartoum. As Blinken correctly pointed out, both the military regime and the RSF “bear responsibility for the violence and suffering in Sudan and lack the legitimacy to govern a future peaceful Sudan.” But the RSF and its allies have, to quote Blinken again, “systematically murdered men and boys, even infants, on an ethnic basis, and deliberately targeted women and girls from certain ethnic groups for rape and other forms of brutal sexual violence.”
The overall humanitarian cost is staggering. More than 11 million human beings have been internally displaced, and another 3.1 million have fled across Sudan’s borders—about 30% of the country’s population. Nearly 640,000 are suffering from one of the worst famines in Sudan’s history. More than 30 million people are in dire need of humanitarian assistance. The number of dead lies in the tens of thousands. The number of demonstrations, rallies and performative protests stands at zero.
Included in the raft of sanctions that accompanied Blinken’s announcement are seven companies based in the United Arab Emirates—a U.S. ally and partner in the broader Middle East peace process—that have helped the RSF purchase weapons and smuggle gold from Sudan’s lucrative mines through Dubai. The UAE operates an embassy and three consulates here in the United States, whose addresses are easily available with a quick online search. A demonstration outside one of these, under the slogan “UAE: Stop Funding Genocide in Sudan,” would be perfectly feasible and eminently laudable. But those organizations that might be in the position to organize one—like Black Lives Matter, a sentiment that clearly doesn’t apply to Black Lives in Africa when Arabs are doing the killing—are absent.
This brings me back to the point I made earlier about the impact of this present surge of antisemitism. I’ve never been a fan of the oft-made assertion that Jews are the canary in the coal mine and that what starts with them won’t end there, because it assumes a much greater degree of overlap between antisemitism and other forms of bigotry than is actually the case.
However, a more salient point is that the obsession with Jews and Israel diverts column inches and airtime away from those humanitarian crises that are far more dire than Gaza and far more intractable, given that the war in the Strip would be over as soon as Hamas releases the remaining hostages it kidnapped on Oct. 7 and lays down its weapons, as growing numbers of Palestinians—as distinct from their Western cheerleaders—are exhaustedly urging.
As long as the outside world continues to indulge the Palestinian strategy of being the only victims worth the name, we are abetting the genocides that don’t get talked about.
*Ben Cohen, a senior analyst with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, writes a weekly column for JNS on Jewish affairs and Middle Eastern politics.

Trump should get tough again on chemical weapons states
Andrea Stricker/Washington Examiner/January 13/2025
The media has largely ignored a disturbing trend: Russia is openly using chemical weapons against Ukraine. Ukraine’s army support services say Russia has carried out 4,800 chemical attacks against its troops since Russian President Vladimir Putin‘s invasion. Kyiv has counted a resulting 3 deaths and 2,000 hospitalizations. Moscow is not the only culprit increasingly turning to nonconventional weaponry: Iran, Syria, China, North Korea, and Burma all possess chemical weapons programs. The United States has failed to effectively deter, counter, and penalize chemical weapons development and use. The incoming Trump administration must prioritize new penalties against states that dare violate the global antichemical weapons norm.
In April 2024, the State Department reported Russia was attacking Ukrainian troops with gas grenades containing riot-control agents, which are banned under the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention for use in warfare and cause debilitating physical symptoms. In May, the department determined Moscow was adding to grenades containing RCAs, a chemical agent that causes choking, chloropicrin. In September, the international chemical weapons watchdog, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, gathered forensic evidence confirming the presence of RCAs on Ukraine’s front lines.
Moscow famously used the lethal chemical nerve agent Novichok in brazen 2018 and 2020 assassination attempts against Sergei Skripal, a Russian double agent to the United Kingdom, and Alexei Navalny, Putin’s key political challenger until his death in a Russian prison in February 2024. However, while Russia’s chemical weapons use garners periodic U.S. and European sanctions against key individuals and entities, they amount to a slap on the wrist and have failed to deter Moscow.
Russia’s impunity no doubt inspires further chemical weapons development by Iran, a junior member of a growing Russia-China-Iran-North Korea axis of aggressors. The State Department and the nongovernmental Institute for Science and International Security report that Tehran is developing not only RCAs, like Russia, but also pharmaceutical-based agents, such as fentanyl and medetomidine, that can kill or severely incapacitate enemies during warfare or attack.
Israel is concerned, given Iran’s support for attacks by terrorist proxies, including Hamas’s atrocities against Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, that Tehran might provide PBAs to terrorists to launch further assaults against the Jewish state. Elsewhere in the region, Bashar Assad’s now-defunct Syrian regime used chemical weapons repeatedly against its own people between 2012 and 2019, at times with Russian support. While Israel likely eliminated the bulk of the Assad regime’s remaining chemical weapons cache in Syria in December, the OPCW has yet to verify their eradication.
China’s military, for its part, is reportedly researching PBAs such as fentanyl, as well as toxins and animal venoms. In Malaysia in 2017, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered the assassination of his half-brother using the nerve agent VX. Unfortunately, successive U.S. administrations have mistakenly believed that token sanctions against chemical weapons attacks and chemical weapons development would salvage a badly eroding antichemical weapons norm.
The first Trump administration took several positive steps to bolster the norm by releasing more intelligence about chemical weapons violators, enacting stronger sanctions against Syria and Russia, conducting air strikes on Syrian chemical weapons facilities, and pushing for the suspension of Damascus’s OPCW voting rights and ability to hold office.
A second Trump administration should go further.
The team should announce a new policy to enact targeted financial sanctions against states that develop and use chemical weapons. In practice, this means the U.S. would freeze assets held by financial institutions that transact with foreign chemical weapons-related entities and individuals and would restrict those institutions from accessing the U.S. financial system. Executive Order 13382, already on the books since 2005, authorizes the president to sanction weapons of mass destruction proliferators and supporters and block related property and transactions, but a new executive order specific to chemical weapons could help.In addition, while Russia, Iran, China, Syria, and Burma — but not North Korea — are party to the CWC, which bans the stockpiling, development, and use of chemical weapons, these states have actively flouted their obligations while weakening the convention and organization to which they claim to adhere. Moreover, the OPCW’s 193 member states have also failed to rigorously utilize OPCW inspections and enforcement mechanisms.
The Trump administration must address this problem. At the OPCW, the Trump team should pursue the suspension of the OPCW voting rights and ability to hold office of any state found to be in violation of its CWC obligations. To that end, the administration may need to share currently classified information about chemical weapons violations with the OPCW secretariat and member states, which can then vote to authorize OPCW investigations and seek suspension of states’ voting rights and privileges.
The norm against chemical weapons hangs by a thread, undermined by the usual anti-American suspects. President-elect Donald Trump and his team have a new opportunity to save it.
**Andrea Stricker is a research fellow and deputy director of the Nonproliferation and Biodefense Program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Follow her on X @StrickerNonpro. FDD is a nonpartisan research institute focused on national security and foreign policy based in Washington, D.C.

Israel, Hamas ceasefire close, but not 100 percent: Israeli official
Laura Kelly/The Hill/January 13, 2025
Israel, Hamas ceasefire close, but not 100 percent: Israeli official
Efforts to secure a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and release hostages are close but not yet finalized, an Israeli official told The Hill on Monday, after Reuters reported Qatar has handed a final deal to both sides.
International mediators have intensified efforts to secure a deal ahead of President-elect Trump taking office on Jan. 20.
Trump has warned that “all hell” will break loose in the Middle East if hostages Hamas kidnapped from southern Israel during its Oct. 7 attack are not released before he is sworn in, adding pressure as President Biden seeks to secure a major foreign policy win in his few days left in office.
But Hamas officials have reportedly talked of sticking points over where the Israeli army will withdraw from; the size of a buffer zone between Israel and the Gaza Strip; and whether the ceasefire will be permanent.
“I think we are talking about very crucial hours, we are in the nearest point to reach a ceasefire agreement,” Bassem Naim, a member of Hamas’s political bureau, told The Hill.
“If nothing extraordinary is happening, I’m sure we’re heading towards agreement soon.”Biden stressed the immediate need for a ceasefire in Gaza in a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, following indirect negotiations between U.S., Israeli, Qatari, Egyptian and Hamas officials that have taken place in Doha, Qatar. Trump’s envoy for Middle East peace, Steve Witkoff, has also coordinated with the Biden team on the negotiations.
Naim said that the ceasefire deal is largely based on a July proposal with some changes he did not specify. “I hope it will lead to a final and permanent ceasefire and total withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, a serious prisoner exchange and opening the borders to relieve the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip to help the Gazans to rebuild their city again,” he said.
The July proposal called for a two-phase deal, with the first phase to include a weeks-long ceasefire, release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas, and a scale-up of humanitarian aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip. During the first phase, negotiators are expected to talk about a transition to a second phase of the deal, for a permanent ceasefire and ongoing terms for governance of the strip.
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said Monday a deal can get done this week. “I’m not making a promise or a prediction, but it is there for the taking, and we are going to work to make it happen.”
Brett McGurk, special coordinator for the Middle East and Biden’s head of negotiations, is keeping Witkoff “fully informed of what we’re doing,” White House national security communications adviser John Kirby told reporters last week. “I can assure you that the President has directed his national security team to make sure that there are no surprises as we work through this negotiation process,” Kirby said. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said the U.S. has reintensified negotiations to get to a ceasefire before the Biden administration leaves office. The goal is to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas, alive and dead, including seven Americans; and surge humanitarian support to Palestinians alongside the pause in fighting. A number of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails are also expected to be released as part of any deal.
Israeli opposition leaders have offered assurances to Netanyahu for a political safety net, to encourage the prime minister to accept a ceasefire and hostage release deal in the face of opposition from far-right, extreme members of his coalition that are opposing the deal. “I want to remind Netanyahu again, he doesn’t need them,” said Yair Lapid, leader of the opposition and head of the Yesh Atid party, referring to Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, the Times of Israel reported.
“I offered him a political safety net for a hostage deal. This offer is valid now, more than ever. If Netanyahu wants to and can make a deal, he and I know how to close the details of the safety net in half an hour,” Lapid said.
Smotrich has called the emerging ceasefire deal a “catastrophe.”

Escalation from and on Yemen and its Link to the Expected Solutions
Colonel Charbel Barakat/January 14/2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/01/139037/
(Freely translated from Arabic by Elias Bejjani, editor and publisher of the LCCC website)
Introduction
Colonel Charbel Barakat, a retired Lebanese Army officer, historian, terrorism expert, and author of numerous works on Lebanon, the Iranian regime’s schemes, and jihadist movements, has testified multiple times before the U.S. Congress on critical issues, including Iranian and Syrian terrorism, the Syrian occupation of Lebanon, jihadist threats, and the pursuit of Middle East peace. In his below analysis of today Barakat focuses on the "Escalation from and on Yemen and its Link to the Expected Solutions"
After severing Iran's primary armed aproxies in the region, particularly Hezbollah and the Syrian regime, the Houthis have launched a new wave of aggressions against Israel, driven solely by Tehran's agenda. This escalation aims to pressure the only remaining active front before reaching Iran itself, seeking leverage before the Biden administration exits office, hoping to secure influence at future negotiation tables.
The ongoing U.S. and British military responses to Houthi bases in Yemen, which continue to harass Red Sea shipping routes, alongside a distancing from Israel's defensive operations, suggest a hesitation to fully cut off Iran's proxies. This delay grants Tehran additional time to consider concessions regarding regional security.The Yemeni regime, long a victim of Iranian interference and military aggression despite Saudi and Gulf efforts to curb Houthi advances, shares a similar stance with Israel's retaliations. While defensive strikes aim to prevent further attacks, they fall short of fully deterring aggression or curbing Yemen's destabilization.
Observers question the efficacy of Israeli airstrikes, which cover nearly 2,000 kilometers yet fail to halt aggression or missile launches. Some argue, however, that these operations serve a dual purpose: they provide live training for potential long-range strikes against Iran's nuclear facilities, requiring similar distances, ammunition loads, and mid-air refueling capabilities.
Iran has taken these preparations seriously, conducting drills to simulate such attacks and leaking threats of closing the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for global energy supplies. While the UAE and Saudi Arabia have developed pipelines bypassing the Strait, much of the region's oil—particularly from Kuwait, Iraq, and Iran—still relies on this passage. Iran's use of Houthi drones to target Saudi infrastructure in 2019 highlights the threat it poses in potential conflicts.
The U.S. continues efforts to avoid direct military confrontation with Iran, particularly as Tehran threatens a military cooperation pact with Russia on January 20, coinciding with President Trump's return to the White House. This timing signals Iran's fear of increased U.S. support for Israel should conflict erupt.
However, Iran's internal fragility raises doubts about its capacity to endure external strikes. Following the weakening of Hezbollah and the Syrian regime—both heavily backed by Tehran with finances, arms, and foreign fighters under IRGC supervision—its influence has dwindled. Iranian aggression has drained its national resources, with minimal returns for its people. Should a joint U.S.-Israeli strike occur, Iran's threats to destroy Israel could backfire, exposing the regime to internal collapse.
The Iranian people, who faced over 900 executions last year alone, are unlikely to show sympathy for a regime that has long oppressed them. Should Tehran face a devastating blow, it is doubtful the populace would support its leaders' survival.
The coming days may bring irreversible changes, ending the turmoil of the region and the ambitions of tyrants who hoped for renewed Iranian funding. The era of militias and mercenaries may finally close, leaving those who once glorified the mullahs' commands powerless and forgotten.
The next conflict will reshape the Middle East. The question remains whether new leaders will recognize the necessity of shifting alliances, improving relations, and facilitating Lebanon's reintegration into progress and stability. Or will the region require further transformations—moving from a legacy of senseless sacrifices to one of strategic vision, where national interest, unity, and cooperation replace blind loyalty and destructive ideologies? The time for clarity, sovereignty, and collaboration with neighboring nations has come, demanding the abandonment of failed theories and foreign dependencies.
The evolving landscape also calls for a renewed focus on the aspirations of the Lebanese people, who yearn for a future free from foreign intervention and sectarian strife. Stability and progress in Lebanon can only be achieved when the grip of Iranian influence is fully dismantled, allowing for national unity and prosperity to take root.