English LCCC Newsbulletin For
Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For February 27/2025
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news
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Bible Quotations For today
“Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your
life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. For life is
more than food, and the body more than clothing.
Luke 12/22-31: “Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry
about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. For
life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens:
they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God
feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And can any of you by
worrying add a single hour to your span of life? If then you are not able to do
so small a thing as that, why do you worry about the rest? Consider the lilies,
how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all
his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of
the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much
more will he clothe you you of little faith! And do not keep striving for what
you are to eat and what you are to drink, and do not keep worrying. For it is
the nations of the world that strive after all these things, and your Father
knows that you need them. Instead, strive for his kingdom, and these things will
be given to you as well.”
Titles For The Latest English LCCC
Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published
on February 26-27/2025
In Response to MP Sami Gemayel’s Speech in Parliament: No Dialogue, No
Deals, No Lifelines for Hezbollah Before Implementing All UN Resolutions/Elias
Bejjani/February 27, 2025
Walid Jumblatt, the politician, is nothing more than an actor who dutifully
follows the orders of the director and producer in any theatrical
performance./Elias Bejjani/February 26/2025
Text & Video: Exposing Hezbollah’s Lies and Mythical Victories: Neither Did It
Liberate the South in 2000, Nor Did It Win the 2006 War/Elias Bejjani / February
25, 2025
Abu Arz - Etienne Sakr: Hezbollah Does Not Represent the Shiite Sect
PM Nawaf Salam's Government Gains Parliament's Confidence with 95 Votes
Trump for the first time revives America's effort for peace between Lebanon and
Israel/.
Hussain Abdul-Hussain/X/February 26, 2025
Witkoff says Lebanon, Syria could potentially join Abraham Accords
1 killed, 1 hurt in Israeli drone strike in Hermel
Israeli general says security situation allows for northerners return
Federalism debate in 2nd day of parliament session on govt. policy statement
Berri claps as Abou Faour rejects normalization with Israel
Geagea calls for implementing ceasefire agreement without maneuvers
FPM walks out of parliament session debating govt. policy statement
Qassem meets Iranian officials prior to their departure from Lebanon
Michel Aoun and Mikati offer condolences to Hezbollah in Dahieh
Hezbollah backs new Lebanese government ahead of confidence vote
Israel spy chief says pager bombs 'turned the tables' on Hezbollah
Israeli jets overfly South and Bekaa at low altitude amid drones over Beirut,
suburbs
What's behind Israeli, US silence on Lebanon blocking Iranian flights delivering
cash to Hezbollah?
Close this content, you can also use the Escape key at anytime
Is Hezbollah sincere in ceding ‘resistance’ to Lebanon’s government?/Nadia
Alfaour/Arab News/February 26, 2025
Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on February 26-27/2025
Iran Accelerates Production of Near Weapons-grade Uranium, IAEA
Says
Israelis bid farewell to Shiri Bibas and her 2 young sons killed in captivity in
Gaza
Gaza reconstruction needs political clarity, stability, UAE’s Gargash says
Hamas Says Preparations Begin in Gaza's Khan Younis to Receive Palestinian
Prisoners
Hamas armed wing says to hand over bodies of four hostages ‘tonight’
Egypt rejects proposal for it to run Gaza as ‘unacceptable’
16-year-old Lea joins children killed in Israeli ceasefire violations
Jordan, Syria leaders agree to bolster border security
Residents of south Syria fear Israeli escalation after strikes
Russia, US diplomats to meet in Istanbul on Thursday
Saudi FM discusses regional developments with Iranian counterpart
At Security Council, concerns over ‘fragmentation’ of Sudan
Pope Francis shows further improvement, no longer has kidney issue, Vatican says
Titles For
The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous
sources
on February 26-27/2025
Time to Bring Down the Curtain on Iran's Terror Axis/Robert
Williams/Gatestone Institute/February 26, 2025
The Jihad on Man’s Best Friend/Raymond Ibrahim/The Stream/February 26, 2025
Israel responsible for the safety of people under its occupation/Daoud Kuttab/Arab
News/February 26, 2025
US must take proactive approach to counter China/Dalia Al-Aqidi/Arab
News/February 26, 2025
What Germany’s election means for the Western left/Bartosz M. Rydlinski/Arab
News/February 26/2025
Kurdish-Turkish Peace Process and its Regional Implications/Dlawer Ala'Aldeen-Former
Minister in the Kurdistan Regional Government/Asharq Al Awsat/February 26/2025
The Latest English LCCC
Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published
on February 25-26/2025
In Response to MP
Sami Gemayel’s Speech in Parliament: No Dialogue, No Deals, No Lifelines for
Hezbollah Before Implementing All UN Resolutions
Elias Bejjani/February 27, 2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/02/140653/
In times of crises and catastrophes,
true leadership requires vision, along with a clear sense of priorities. Given
the tragic state Lebanon is in today, what is needed is not pointless dialogues,
humiliating compromises, fake embraces, or absurd theatrics. The priority must
be the complete eradication of Hezbollah’s terrorist and occupying cancerous
status in all its forms—civil, cultural, and military.
To be clear, the issue is Hezbollah, not the honorable Shiite community, which
the party has been taken hostage, suppressing its will through force, money, and
sectarian indoctrination.
The first step must be the full implementation of international resolutions,
including all provisions of the ceasefire agreement, the restoration of state
authority from Hezbollah’s mini-state, and the prosecution of Hezbollah
alongside legal action against Iran in international courts to demand
reparations for the destruction and devastation it has inflicted upon Lebanon.
Only after these priorities are met can the Lebanese people—freely and under
international supervision—engage in discussions about the Lebanon they envision
and the system that preserves their religious, ethnic, historical, cultural, and
civilizational diversity.
As for those whose priorities seem misguided for whatever reason, let us remind
them with goodwill that "Abu Melhem," the symbol of compromises, deals, and
power-sharing, is long dead and buried.
And finally, it is a great injustice, wrapped in ignorance, to equate the
different eras of Lebanese crises since independence—between those who were
martyred to preserve Lebanon as a state, with its identity, people, freedoms,
laws, and coexistence, and those who, through force, terrorism, invasions, and
with the support and funding of foreign powers, sought to annex Lebanon to
Syria, turn it into an alternative Palestine, and a subordinate state under the
rule of the Iranian Mullahs' Wilayat al-Faqih.
Walid Jumblatt, the
politician, is nothing more than an actor who dutifully follows the orders of
the director and producer in any theatrical performance.
Elias Bejjani/February 26/2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/02/140633/
Mr. Walid Jumblatt, who recently rushed to Syria after the fall of the criminal
Assad regime to meet Farouk Al-Sharaa in a desperate attempt to appease him—with
no regret to all his previous rhetoric—will be the first to sprint toward
neighboring Tel Aviv, throwing away the Palestinian keffiyeh, should President
Trump and the Arabian Gulf states take serious steps toward imposing a peace
agreement between Lebanon and Israel. Jumblatt moves with the tide, tramples
those who fall, and glorifies those in power. Meanwhile, he spends his time idly
by the riverbanks, orchestrating and contemplating moments of abandonment and
transcendence. This is Walid Jumblatt. This is how he has always been, and this
is how he shall remain... very acrobatic....Highly agile and
adaptable...Opportunistic and chameleon-like. He is a replicate for the majority
of the rotten Lebanese politicians...All are cut from the same garment.
Elias Bejjani/Text & Video: Exposing
Hezbollah’s Lies and Mythical Victories: Neither Did It Liberate the South in
2000, Nor Did It Win the 2006 War
Elias Bejjani / February 25, 2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/02/140565/
Hezbollah’s leaders, members, officials, and religious figures falsely claim to
be the most honorable, intelligent, pure, and devout people. Yet, they have
never been ashamed of their absolute, public, and brazen subservience to Iran’s
rulers and the doctrine of the Supreme Leader (Iranian Guardianship of the
Jurist/Velayat-e faqih). In this doctrine, there is no allegiance to Lebanon as
a state, its constitution, or its borders—just as is the case with the followers
of this religious ideology in Syria, Iraq, and Yemen. Their only and absolute
loyalty is to Iran.
In reality, they live in a delusional state, feeding on fantasies,
hallucinations, and daydreams, completely detached from the reality of military
and scientific capabilities—whether their own or those possessed by Israel, the
United States, and the Western nations they label as "the Great Satan"
(America), "the Little Satan" (Israel), and "infidels" (any country not under
their control). This hostile culture of betrayal, division, and slander has
never ceased since Iran and Hafez al-Assad’s regime established Hezbollah in
1982. During Syria’s occupation of Lebanon, Hezbollah was handed control over
Shiite-populated areas through force and terror. One of the bloodiest milestones
was the battle of Iqlim al-Tuffah in March 1988, where Hezbollah eradicated the
Amal Movement’s military presence, killing more than 1,200 fighters, and leaving
thousands wounded and maimed, thus ending Amal’s military existence and
subjugating it entirely to Hezbollah’s Iranian agenda. Hassan Nasrallah, Hashem
Safieddine, Naim Qassem, Nabil Qaouq, Mohammad Raad, Hussein Mousawi, and the
rest of the leaders of this misguided faction—both the living and the
dead—deluded themselves into believing that their Persian empire project was
within reach. Yet, this illusion is collapsing under relentless blows, their
leaders are being eliminated, their strongholds are being destroyed, and their
so-called "supportive environment"—which is in fact a hostage population—is
turning against them.
Hezbollah, its members—whether civilian, military, or clerical—do not belong to
Lebanon, to Arab identity, or to any nation. They are entirely detached from
reality and from all that is humane. They have built castles of illusions,
locked themselves inside, hearing only their own voices and seeing only their
own reflections. To them, anyone different is nonexistent, and in their
extremist ideology, the blood of Lebanese, Syrians, and Arabs is permissible.
With every crime, explosion, assassination, and defeat, their arrogance and
impudence only increase. They are indifferent to the suffering of others, taking
sadistic pleasure in it, celebrating tragedies by distributing sweets. They have
taken their own sect hostage, turning its youth into cannon fodder for Iran’s
reckless wars in Syria, Yemen, and beyond. They believe they can humiliate and
subjugate the Lebanese people, forgetting that Lebanon, a civilization over
7,000 years old, has crushed, expelled, and humiliated all invaders and outlaws
like them. The last of these was Assad’s army, which was disgracefully expelled
in 2005. Hezbollah is practically finished at the hands of Israel, backed by
Arab and Western powers. It will not rise again. The unprecedented human and
economic losses it has inflicted on Lebanon’s Shiite community guarantee that,
once the Lebanese state regains its sovereignty, the people will turn against
Hezbollah and reject it.
For this reason, all those involved in public affairs—especially in the Lebanese
Diaspora—must understand that any Lebanese, whether expatriate or resident, who
supports or collaborates with Hezbollah under any pretext is an enemy of
Lebanon, its sovereignty, identity, and independence.
The Myth of "Liberating" the South and "Victory" in the 2006 War
The terrorist-Jihadist Hezbollah that claims to be a resistance and liberation
movement has never been either of the two, but merely a military Iranian proxy.
The narrative of the "liberation of the south" in 2000 is nothing but a colossal
lie, as Israel withdrew from Lebanon by an internal decision, after its presence
became costly and futile, and Hezbollah did not play a decisive role in that. As
for the 2006 war, the results were catastrophic for Lebanon, where more than
1,200 Lebanese were killed, infrastructure was destroyed, and the Shiite
environment was completely devastated. Hezbollah did not achieve any victory,
but all of Lebanon emerged defeated and destroyed... and the, the catastrophic,
the disastrous, and the complete defeat of its foolish recent war against
Israel in support of Hamas in Gaza, has led to its end and to the entire world
standing behind the necessity of implementing international resolutions related
to Lebanon 1559, 1680, and 1701, which stipulate its disarmament, the
dismantling of its military institutions, and the extension of Lebanese state
authority by its own forces over all Lebanese territories, and confining the
decision of war and peace to the Lebanese state alone.
Based on well-documented Lebanese, Arab, Israeli, and international facts,
Hezbollah neither liberated the South nor won the 2006 war. It is certainly not
a resistance movement nor an opposition force. It is, in fact, Lebanon’s
foremost enemy, as well as that of all Arabs. It must be dealt with accordingly,
along with all its allies—politicians, parties, officials, and clerics. Any
other approach is sheer foolishness and self-deception.
In conclusion, Hezbollah has destroyed Lebanon, impoverished its people,
displaced them, and turned the country into an arms depot and a launch pad for
Iran’s futile wars.
Lebanon can only be saved by dismantling Hezbollah, disarming it, arresting its
leaders, and holding them accountable for the devastation they have inflicted on
the nation.
Abu Arz - Etienne Sakr:
Hezbollah Does Not Represent the Shiite Sect
February 26, 2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/02/140644/
The head of the Guardians of the Cedars Party – the Lebanese National Movement,
Etienne Sakr (Abu Arz), issued the following statement:
The funeral of Hezbollah's leaders on Sunday, February 23, and the subsequent
official and spiritual participation in this event was a grave and unforgivable
mistake committed by the Lebanese state. Even Bkerke and others fell into this
miscalculation by sending representatives to attend.
These parties operated under the false assumption that Hezbollah represents the
Shiite sect and that their participation would somehow reinforce national unity.
However, reliable statistics confirm that Shiite participation in this gathering
did not exceed 10% of the sect's members—a clear indication of Hezbollah's
dwindling support within its own base. This decline is directly linked to its
humiliating defeat in the last war with Israel, the crippling financial and
military constraints it now faces, and its forced retreat from the southern
region, which served as both its operational stronghold and its primary excuse
for existence.
The reality is clear: Hezbollah no longer represents the Shiite community.
Instead, it has become a burdensome liability and a malignant tumor eating away
at the sect’s national identity. From its inception, Hezbollah has hijacked the
Shiite sect, subjugated it to Iran’s agenda, and severed its natural ties to
Lebanon. This reckless allegiance has isolated Lebanon’s Shiites, exposed them
to existential threats, and dragged them into endless conflicts. The only path
to salvation for this community is to sever all ties with Iran and reclaim its
Lebanese identity before Hezbollah's destructive course leads to its total
devastation.
We strongly condemn the participation of all those—officials, political figures,
spiritual leaders, and so-called sovereignists—who attended this funeral. Their
presence granted Hezbollah undue legitimacy and indirectly absolved it of its
long history of terrorism, assassinations, and crimes against Lebanon. These
crimes include:
The systematic assassination of national leaders, from Rafik Hariri to Lokman
Slim.
The hostile takeover of the Lebanese state, plunging it into devastating wars
with Israel.
The semi-nuclear Beirut port explosion, which massacred thousands, displaced
countless families, and annihilated half of the capital.
Therefore, we reaffirm the undeniable truth:
Whoever honors criminals is a partner in their crimes.
At your service, beloved Lebanon.
(Free translation from Arabic by: Elias Bejjani)
PM Nawaf Salam's Government
Gains Parliament's Confidence with 95 Votes
This is Beirut/February 26, 2025
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam’s government gained the confidence of 95 MPs of the
128-strong parliament on Wednesday at the end of the two-day debate of its
policy statement. At the end of the deliberations, and ahead of the voting,
Salam made the following remarks in response to the MPs who took the floor
representing the various parliamentary blocs. Salam stressed that despite being
“diverse,” the government stands in unity, which “will be manifested through our
actions.” He stated, “We are committed to adopting a language of transparency
and dialogue, and our main objective is to achieve the national interest.”While
pointing out that the ministerial statement did not provide a detailed policy
outline, but a declaration of principles, Salam emphasized that Israel’s
complete withdrawal from Lebanon is “a fundamental and top priority for this
government.”He upheld the Taif Agreement as an indivisible and comprehensive
political roadmap that must be fully implemented and added that political
reforms must be applied on the basis of the national accord document. Salam also
vowed that his government will work on expanded administrative decentralization
and rebuilding of state institutions. He promised to establish a special fund
for reconstruction and to mobilize international and Arab support to rebuild the
nation. The government will make the return of Syrian refugees to their homeland
a priority and will seek a revision of Lebanese-Syrian accords to ensure that
they serve the mutual interests of both nations. In the energy sector, Salam
promised that his government will work to improve billing practices and combat
illegal encroachments on the power grid, to enhance the overall power supply. He
also highlighted the urgency of reopening the Qlayaat René Mouawad Airport,
developing Beirut and Tripoli ports, proceeding with the continued exploration
of oil and gas resources, and finding just and equitable solutions to the
depositors’ issue, protecting their rights and ensuring that justice is served.
Trump for the first time revives America's effort for peace
between Lebanon and Israel.
Hussain Abdul-Hussain/X/February 26, 2025
After decades of ceding Lebanon to the control of Syria's Assad (starting in
1983) and to Hezbollah (after 2008), Trump for the first time revives America's
effort for peace between Lebanon and #Israel.
Lebanon was the second Arab League country whose parliament ratified a bilateral
peace treaty with Israel, second only to Sadat's Egypt.
Lebanon's parliament voted on a peace treaty with Israel on May 17, 1983. Assad
later threatened Lebanese Prez Amin Gemayel not to sign it, and Gemayel bent his
knee.
Witkoff says Lebanon, Syria
could potentially join Abraham Accords
Naharnet/February 26, 2025
Steve Witkoff, U.S. President Donald Trump’s point person on the Middle East,
has voiced optimism at efforts to bring Saudi Arabia into the Abraham Accords, a
series of normalization agreements between Israel and Arab states that Trump
brokered during his first term. He also said he sees potential for normalization
with Israel by Lebanon and Syria, after recent setbacks for Iran-backed forces
in the two countries. “Lebanon, by the way, could actually mobilize and come
into the Abraham Peace Accords, as could potentially Syria. So, so many profound
changes are happening,” Witkoff told an event in Washington for the American
Jewish Committee.
1 killed, 1 hurt in Israeli drone strike in Hermel
Naharnet/February 26, 2025
An Israeli drone on Wednesday targeted a car in the town of al-Qasr in the
Hermel region near Syria. MTV said the strike killed one person and wounded
another. Al-Arabiya television meanwhile identified the slain person as
“Hezbollah member Mahran Nasreddine.” The attack followed intensive Israeli
overflights over most Lebanese regions since the morning hours.
Israeli general says security situation allows for
northerners return
Naharnet/February 26, 2025
Israeli Northern Command chief Major General Uri Gordin has told the heads of
authorities in north Israel near Lebanon’s border that "the security situation
allows for a return (by evacuated residents) to the communities.”“The IDF
(Israeli army) will allow the opening of tourist sites (in north Israel) in
early March," Gordin added. Around 60,000 Israelis evacuated by the Israeli
government from communities along the Lebanese border during a 14-month war with
Hezbollah. A tenuous ceasefire has largely held, though both sides have accused
each other of violations, and Israeli has kept its forces on five strategic
Lebanese hills that overlook both south Lebanon and north Israel. The vast
majority of Israel’s evacuated residents still haven't returned to north Israel.
Hezbollah began launching rockets and missiles toward Israeli border settlements
on Oct. 8, 2023, a day after the deadly Hamas attack that sparked the war in
Gaza. Soon after, Israel evacuated dozens of settlements along the border. In
Lebanon, at the height of the war, more than 1 million people were displaced,
and reconstruction will take years, especially in southern border towns that
were totally devastated. Hezbollah rockets killed 77 people in Israel, more than
half of them civilians. Israeli air and ground assaults killed more than 4,000
people in Lebanon, mostly civilians. Israel made returning the displaced
residents to their homes an aim in its war against Hezbollah and has promised
incentives to entice them back. The return has been slow, in part because many
residents are skeptical of the government's pledges to ensure their safety and
because much work remains to rehabilitate communities.
Federalism debate in 2nd day of parliament session on govt. policy statement
Naharnet/February 26, 2025
Most MPs who spoke on the second day of a parliamentary session debating the new
government’s policy statement announced that they would grant the government
their votes of confidence.However, MP Cynthia Zarazir of the Change bloc said
that she will withhold confidence as MP Imad al-Hout of Jamaa Islamiya said that
he will abstain from voting. “The ministerial statement is supposed to represent
a roadmap for rescuing Lebanon, but unfortunately we found ourselves before a
document lacking the essential points,” Zarazir said. Hout for his part wished
success for the government but said that he will judge it based on “its actions,
not words.”MP Michel Doueihi meanwhile announced that his Change Alliance bloc
will grant its votes of confidence to the government. The bloc also comprises
MPs Marc Daou and Waddah al-Sadek. Doueihi, however, said that he has “no
confidence in the finance minister nor in his previous role on the finance
parliamentary committee.”He also said that the government, in its policy
statement, should have adopted the phrase “the Lebanese state’s right to
self-defense” and not “Lebanon’s right to self-defense.”MP Ashraf Rifi for his
part granted the government confidence and said “the war in Lebanon and the
region is about to end and has become in its final stages.”“The Lebanese must
prepare to return to the state and enough with wars,” Rifi added. MP Halima
Qaaqour of the Change bloc meanwhile said that all foreign interference in
Lebanese affairs should be condemned and that rejecting it should not depend on
the side interfering. She also said that “resistance and self-defense should be
a right for the state.”“We must raise the Lebanese flag in this resistance, not
the ‘Shia, Shia’ slogan,” she added. MP Osama Saad for his part noted that he
will be granting the government his vote of confidence, something that he had
never done in the past with previous governments. “I hope my confidence will be
deserved,” he added, calling on the state to “confront (Israel’s) aggression and
occupation with its own forces, or else popular resistance will regain its
legitimacy.”“Let Lebanon immunize itself with deep national agreements and the
people want a state that protects them,” he went on to say. The session
meanwhile witnessed a debate on “federalism” as MP Wael Abou Faour was
delivering his remarks. Abou Faour noted that some ministers in the new
government are “advocates of federalism,” in an apparent reference to Industry
Minister Joe Issa al-Khoury, the former secretary-general of 'Ittihadiyoun,' a
federalist association in Lebanon. “Your opinion is your right and no one can
dispute that, but this government is clearly committed to the Document of
National Accord (Taif Agreement), which does not mention federalism nor does it
accept it, and accordingly and with all due respect for you and your ideas, we
hope your work in your ministries will abide by the Document of National
Accord,” Abou Faour said. MP Nadim Gemayel of the Kataeb Party intervened,
telling Abou Faour that “some parties are thinking of the (Islamic) Ummah and of
Iran and other things,” prompting the MP to say that he also does not support
that. “This is a healthy debate, if someone believes that federalism is a
solution, let them come to parliament to amend the constitution and establish
federalism, but this government … is committed to the Document of National
Accord,” Abou Faour added.
Berri claps as Abou Faour rejects normalization with Israel
Naharnet/February 26, 2025
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri clapped his hands in applause Wednesday after MP
Wael Abou Faour of the Progressive Socialist Party rejected any normalization
agreement between Lebanon and Israel. “The U.S. president’s envoy to the Middle
East Steve Witkoff said that Lebanon could join the (Abraham Peace) Accords with
Israel … Our historic, principled and current stance is that the maximum that
Lebanon can reach would be the (1949) Armistice Agreement with the Israeli
enemy,” Abou Faour said in a speech in parliament during a session debating the
new government’s policy statement. “I believe that this is the impending
challenge,” Abou Faour warned. The Abraham Accords are a series of normalization
agreements between Israel and Arab states that U.S. President Donald Trump
brokered during his first term. Witkoff said Tuesday that he sees potential for
normalization with Israel by Lebanon and Syria, after recent setbacks for
Iran-backed forces in the two countries. “Lebanon, by the way, could actually
mobilize and come into the Abraham Peace Accords, as could potentially Syria.
So, so many profound changes are happening,” Witkoff told an event in Washington
for the American Jewish Committee.
Geagea calls for implementing ceasefire agreement without
maneuvers
Naharnet/February 26, 2025
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea on Wednesday stressed “the importance of
building the future on firm and solid foundations based on security and
stability.”He voiced his remarks during a meeting in Maarab with French
Ambassador to Lebanon Hervé Magro. Security and stability “can only be
guaranteed through the state’s regaining of its authority, decision and
sovereignty across Lebanese soil, with all of what the means of exclusivity in
possessing arms, the war and peace decisions, and controlling the border and its
crossings in a permanent manner,” Geagea added. “The priority is for
implementing the ceasefire agreement that was approved by the previous
government without maneuvering. When the state fully shoulders its
responsibilities and shows its seriousness in enforcing all U.N. resolutions,
especially 1559, 1701 and 1689, all world countries will stand by us to ensure
Israel’s withdrawal from all the remaining points,” the LF leader went on to
say.“Without this we will remain in the same dilemma and we will hear further
futile ‘resistance and defiance’ theories that led to Lebanon’s ruin and
destruction. We will also lose the world’s confidence in Lebanon’s ability to
rise, despite the momentum created by the president’s inaugural speech and the
government’s statement, and despite all the efforts that the government will
exert in the domestic files, reforms and reconstruction,” Geagea said.
FPM walks out of parliament session debating govt. policy statement
Naharnet/February 26, 2025
The MPs of the Free Patriotic Movement walked out Wednesday of a parliamentary
session debating the new government’s policy statement, after Speaker Nabih
Berri refused to allow a second MP from the bloc to deliver a speech. Berri
argued that FPM chief Jebran Bassil had consumed all the 30 minutes allowed for
each bloc in his remarks on Tuesday. The MPs Walid al-Baarini, Wael Abou Faour,
Ghassan Skaff, Abdel Karim Kabbara, Ibrahim Mneimneh, Ibrahim Kanaan and Qabalan
Qabalan had earlier in the day announced that they will grant the government
their votes of confidence, with Qabalan speaking on behalf of Berri’s
Development and Liberation bloc. Bassil had on Tuesday declared “positive
opposition” to Nawaf Salam’s government, hoping it will not turn into “a fierce
and comprehensive opposition.”“Mr. Prime Minister Salam, we granted you our
confidence when we voted for you, and had it not been for it, you would not have
become a premier today. Today we remove this confidence from you, because you
have not deserved it,” Bassil added, accusing Salam of unfair representation of
Christians in his government.
Qassem meets Iranian officials prior to their departure
from Lebanon
Naharnet/February 26, 2025
Hezbollah said Wednesday that its chief Sheikh Naim Qassem met with Iran’s
parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi
“prior to their departure from Lebanon.”The meeting was held in the presence of
Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Mojtaba Amani and tackled the latest local,
regional and international developments, Hezbollah said in a statement,
apparently confirming Qassem’s presence in Lebanon, after media reports
speculated that he had fled to Iran during the latest war with Israel. Ghalibaf
and Araghchi had led an Iranian delegation to the funeral of slain Hezbollah
leaders Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and Sayyed Hashem Safieddine on Sunday. An
Iranian delegation also met with President Joseph Aoun, Speaker Nabih Berri and
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam. Aoun told the Iranian delegation that the
war-scarred country was "tired" of external conflicts playing out on its
territory. "Lebanon has grown tired of the wars of others on its land," Aoun
told the Iranian officials. Aoun is a former army chief seen as close to the
West. "Countries should not interfere in the internal affairs of other
countries," he added. Long the dominant force in Lebanon, Hezbollah suffered
staggering losses in the war with Israel compounded by a seismic blow with the
December fall of ally Bashar al-Assad in Syria -- long used as the militant
group's weapons lifeline from Iran. Hezbollah's weakening allowed Lebanon's
divided parliament to elect Aoun, seen as Washington's preferred candidate,
after more than two years of presidential vacuum, followed by the approval of a
new prime minister and government. Aoun said Lebanon wanted "the best relations
with Tehran, for the benefit of both countries and peoples."The Iranian
delegation landed in Beirut although regular flights between the two countries
had been suspended. The ban, which prompted protests from Hezbollah supporters,
came after the United States warned that Israel might target Lebanon's only
international airport in Beirut to thwart alleged money shipments from Iran, a
Lebanese security source had told AFP. In a televised address to tens of
thousands attending Nasrallah's funeral in a Beirut stadium, Qassem said he
refused for "tyrant America to control" Lebanon.The United States helped broker
the Hezbollah-Israel ceasefire, which ended more than a year of hostilities
including two months of all-out war that killed longtime leader Nasrallah in
September. The fighting, launched by Hezbollah in support of Palestinian ally
Hamas in the early days of the Gaza war, killed thousands in Lebanon and left
large swathes of the country's south in ruins. Israel has on several occasions
accused Hezbollah of using the airport in Beirut to bring in weapons from Iran.
The group as well as Lebanese leaders have denied the allegations.
Michel Aoun and Mikati offer condolences to Hezbollah in
Dahieh
Naharnet/February 26, 2025
For the second consecutive day, Hezbollah received condolences Wednesday in
Dahieh over Israel’s killing of its leaders Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and Sayyed
Hashem Safieddine. A massive funeral was held for the two leaders on Sunday in
Beirut, five months after they were buried in secret locations due to security
concerns that following the all-out September-November war with Israel. Former
president Michel Aoun and former prime minister Najib Mikati were among those
who offered their condolences on Wednesday. Both did not attend the massive
funeral on Sunday. Describing Nasrallah’s death as “a major loss for Lebanon,”
Aoun added: “We are still contemplating how to work and how to preserve the
Lebanese people.”And in the book of condolence, Aoun described Nasrallah as “an
honorable friend, extraordinary leader and loyal and brave resistance
figure.”“You were great in your life and great in your martyrdom and you will
remain an icon for heroism and sacrifice,” Aoun added. Speaker Nabih Berri and
Marada Movement chief Suleiman Franjieh were the only senior political leaders
at the funeral. U.S. Republican Representative Joe Wilson had criticized
Lebanese politicians who would attend the funeral. "Any Lebanese politician who
attends the funeral of the murderous terrorist Hasan Nasrallah is standing with
the Iranian Regime," Wilson said on X.
Hezbollah backs new Lebanese government ahead of confidence
vote
Agence France Presse/February 26, 2025
Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc on Tuesday gave its support to Lebanon's new
government, which in a ministerial statement ahead of a confidence vote vowed a
state monopoly on arms and the country's neutrality. "We give our confidence to
the government," said Mohammad Raad, the head of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc,
expressing hope the new administration would "succeed in opening the doors to
real rescue for the country". "We are keen on cooperating to the greatest extent
to preserve national sovereignty and its stability and achieve reforms and take
the state forward," Raad told a two-day parliamentary session that began on
Tuesday and will culminate in a vote of confidence in the new government.
Hezbollah, once the country's most powerful military and political force,
suffered major setbacks in more than a year of hostilities with Israel including
two months of all-out war, including an Israeli ground invasion, that halted
with a November 27 ceasefire. Israel killed a slew of senior commanders
including the group's longtime chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and pounded the
group's strongholds in the country's south and east and in Beirut's southern
suburbs. The ministerial statement, an outline of the new government's work plan
that was read out by Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, vowed to extend "state
sovereignty across all its territories exclusively with its own forces". It also
committed to deploy the army "in internationally recognized Lebanese border
areas", and emphasized the need to work to implement a commitment by Lebanese
President Joseph Aoun on "the state's duty in monopolizing the bearing of
weapons" and "deciding on war and peace". Hezbollah was the only faction to keep
its weapons after the Lebanese civil war, using them to fight the Israeli
occupation of south Lebanon that ended in 2000. It also fought a major war with
Israel in 2006.
'Make Lebanon neutral'
The ministerial statement noted the need to take "all the necessary steps to
liberate all Lebanese territories from Israeli occupation". Israel has
maintained its troops in five "strategic" points along the shared border despite
the ceasefire deal requiring its forces to withdraw completely. Raad said the
aim of the latest war was "to finish with Hezbollah... and end its resistance
presence" against Israel, adding, "That attempt failed". The new government has
pledged to create a fund for rebuilding damaged and destroyed areas and is
hoping for foreign assistance with the reconstruction effort, with the country
mired in a five-year economic crisis. The ministerial statement also pledged to
adopt a "foreign policy that works to make Lebanon neutral from axis conflicts"
and ensure "Lebanon is not used as a platform for attacking" Arab and friendly
countries. Hezbollah has been a key player in Iran's so-called "axis of
resistance" against Israel and the United States. A number of Arab states
including Saudi Arabia have for years accused Hezbollah of having too much
control over Lebanese politics and being involved in activities that threatened
their countries' security.
Israel spy chief says pager bombs 'turned the tables' on
Hezbollah
Associated Press/February 26, 2025
The head of Israel's Mossad foreign intelligence agency has called the exploding
pagers and walkie talkies operation against Hezbollah militants in Lebanon and
Syria a “turning point of the war,” which gave Israel momentum to deal a heavy
blow to Hezbollah. The devices used by hundreds of Hezbollah members exploded
almost simultaneously in two waves on Sept. 17 and 18. The attack killed at
least 12 people — including two young children — and wounded thousands more.
Mossad chief David Barnea spoke Tuesday while accepting an award for the
operation from a Tel Aviv think tank, the Institute for National Security
Studies. Barnea said the first 500 pagers outfitted with explosives arrived in
Lebanon just a few weeks before the war in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023, but that
officials involved in the operation decided to wait to detonate them until more
pagers had arrived and were in use. He said the operation involving the walkie
talkies with explosives started more than a decade ago, while the pager
operation began in 2022.
Israeli jets overfly South and Bekaa at low altitude amid
drones over Beirut, suburbs
Naharnet/February 26, 2025
Israeli warplanes on Wednesday overflew the eastern sector of south Lebanon and
the Baalbek-Hermel region at low altitudes. Israeli drones meanwhile hovered
over Beirut and its suburbs and over areas in the South and the Bekaa. Lebanese
state media said that an Israeli air strike overnight Tuesday killed at least
two people in the country's east, where the Israeli military said it targeted
Hezbollah militants. "An enemy drone carried out an air strike on the town of
Shaara... near the eastern Lebanon mountain range, killing two people and
wounding two" others, said the state-run National News Agency. Israel's said
that it "struck Hezbollah terrorists" who "were identified operating within a
Hezbollah production and storage facility for strategic weapons."Hezbollah and
Israel fought a war last year that ended in a late November ceasefire, which has
largely held despite mutual accusations of violations. The Israeli military
statement said that the activity in the site targeted on Tuesday "constitutes a
blatant violation of the ceasefire understandings."Hezbollah was left weakened
by a year of hostilities, including the two months of all-out war, in which its
leadership was decimated. Under the November 27 truce agreement, Israeli forces
were to withdraw from southern Lebanon while Hezbollah was to remove its
military infrastructure from the area. Israeli troops are still occupying five
points in south Lebanon deemed "strategic" by the Israeli military.
What's behind Israeli, US
silence on Lebanon blocking Iranian flights delivering cash to Hezbollah?
Michael Lipin/VOA/February 25, 2025
Israel and the United States have responded with silence to claims by Hezbollah
that the two allies secretly threatened Lebanon this month into stopping the
arrivals of Iranian commercial airliners delivering cash to the Lebanese terror
group. The silence of the Israeli and U.S. governments on Hezbollah's
allegations is typical of their low-key approaches to dealing with some regional
security problems, according to U.S. and Israeli researchers who spoke to VOA in
recent days. The researchers also say Lebanon's indefinite suspension of landing
rights for Iranian airlines, in effect since Feb. 13, will make it harder but
not impossible for Iran to airlift cash to Hezbollah, its main regional proxy
force. Beirut began the suspension by calling it a "security" measure and
denying landing rights to a scheduled flight that day of Iran's Mahan Air, whose
passengers were left stranded in Tehran. Lebanese authorities initially said the
halt to commercial flights from Iran would last five days but then extended it
with no declared end date.Lebanon blocks Iranian passenger flight to Beirut;
analysts cite Israeli pressure A day before the flight suspension began,
the Israeli military posted a warning to the X social media platform, calling
for a stop to Iran's elite military Quds Force using civilian planes to smuggle
cash to Hezbollah via Beirut's airport. The warning said Israel "will use all
available means" to ensure its security, as Hezbollah tries to refinance and
rebuild from major losses sustained in a months-long Israeli offensive that
ended with a November ceasefire. Iran's United Nations mission in New York did
not respond when asked by VOA to comment on the Israeli warning.
In a recorded speech televised on Feb. 16, Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem said the
Lebanese government had received a warning that Israel would attack the Beirut
airport runway if the Mahan Air jet had been granted permission to land there.
On Feb. 19, Hezbollah TV network Al Manar published a commentary that also
blamed the flight's cancelation on "American bullying and threats," which it
said included "U.S. financial and political sanctions" on Lebanon if the
government did not agree to "limit" Hezbollah's freedom of movement. In a
conversation with reporters on Feb. 18, Lebanese President Jospeh Aoun said his
government's measures against Iranian airlines "are linked to the sanctions
imposed on them." Several Iranian airlines, including Mahan Air and Iran Air,
are under U.S. and EU sanctions that prohibit transactions with those companies.
The Lebanese Embassy in Washington did not respond to a VOA request for comment
on whether the government had received a warning that Israel would bomb Beirut's
airport runway if the Mahan Air flight had landed there on Feb. 13.
The Israeli military also has declined to comment to VOA on whether it made such
a threat.
The U.S. State Department did not respond to several VOA inquiries about whether
it conveyed Israel's Feb. 12 warning to the Lebanese government through the
U.S.-led ceasefire monitoring mechanism. Israeli Brigadier General (Retired)
Assaf Orion, a defense researcher at the Washington Institute for Near East
Policy, said Israel did not have to publicize a specific threat against Beirut's
airport to get its point across to Lebanon. He cited multiple Israeli strikes on
Syria's main civilian airports in Damascus and Aleppo in October and November
2023. The strikes, which left the Syrian airports temporarily inoperable, were
part of a years-long Israeli military campaign to obstruct Iranian arms
shipments to Hezbollah through Syria, then ruled by Iranian ally Bashar
al-Assad. "Look at Israel's track record at Damascus International Airport.
Assad, before he fled Syria into exile in December, understood that if he wanted
his airport to be operational, he needed to stop it from bringing in Iranian
arms shipments," Orion said. The U.S. also typically conveys warnings to Lebanon
through a combination of private communications and public diplomacy rather than
through issuing public threats, said former Israeli intelligence official Avi
Melamed, who runs Inside the Middle East, a U.S. nonprofit research group.
U.S. Deputy Special Envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus, in a visit to
Lebanon on Feb. 7, told reporters that Hezbollah must be prevented from using
any role in the Lebanese government to terrorize the Lebanese people, calling
that a "red line" for Washington. She did not mention the possibility of any new
sanctions on Lebanon. U.S. Major General Jasper Jeffers, who arrived in Lebanon
in November to lead the ceasefire monitoring mechanism, has said little publicly
about his work. In a January 15 comment, the latest of three Jeffers statements
published by the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, he commended the Lebanese Armed Forces'
efforts in "providing for the security and stability of Lebanon."The researchers
said Iran's inability to fly its civilian planes to the Lebanese capital will
complicate its longstanding efforts to deliver cash by air to Hezbollah. Eyal
Zisser, a Middle East history professor at Tel Aviv University, said Iran has
alternative options of transporting cash on Iraqi and Turkish airliners that fly
to Beirut."But if you are moving millions of dollars through Iraqi and Turkish
airports, you would need cooperation from authorities of those countries,"
Zisser said. "Transferring the money from an Iranian plane to a Turkish plane at
a Turkish airport would be a complicated process."Delivering smaller amounts of
cash on Iraqi and Turkish flights to Beirut would be relatively easier for Iran
and harder for authorities of other nations to prove as illicit activity,
according to David Daoud of the Washington-based Foundation for Defense of
Democracies. The Lebanese government began asserting more control over security
at Beirut's airport last October, reducing the influence of Hezbollah as it was
reeling from Israel's offensive.
Exclusive: Hezbollah running out of money amid Israeli bombardment But Daoud
said Lebanon's decision to suspend flights only from Iran, rather than from
other nations, shows that its tightening of security has been inconsistent.
Close this content, you can also use the Escape key at
anytime
Mick Krever, CNN/Wed, February 26, 2025
US President Donald Trump posted a video on his Truth Social account late on
Tuesday, which appears to have been created with generative AI, promoting the
transformation of Gaza into a Gulf state-like resort featuring a golden statue
of himself, a hummus-eating Elon Musk, and shirtless American and Israeli
leaders lounging on a beach. “No more tunnels, no more fear,” a voice sings over
a dance beat. “Trump Gaza is finally here!”The American president has proposed
expelling 2.1 million Palestinians from Gaza and transforming the enclave into a
“Riviera” that would be owned by the United States.
The West Bank-based Palestinian Authority has called that proposal a “serious
violation of international law.” The PA foreign minister, Varsen Aghabekian
Shaheen, said earlier this month: “We have tried displacement before, and it
will not happen again,” referring to the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians
displaced during the Arab-Israeli war that led to the creation of Israel in
1948.The video opens on barefoot Palestinian children walking through Gazan
rubble. “What’s next?” a title card asks. They walk towards a skyline of
skyscrapers lining Gaza’s coast. “Donald’s coming to set you free,” a voice
sings. “Trump Gaza shining bright. Golden future, a brand-new light. Feast and
dance. The deed is done.”The video, incongruously, features bearded and
bikini-clad belly dancers, a child holding a golden ballon in the shape of
Trump’s head, and Elon Musk dancing on a beach under a shower of US dollars.
It is unclear whether Trump intends to carry through on his expulsion plan.
After receiving forceful pushback from Egyptian and Jordanian leaders, Trump
told Fox News on Friday: “The way to do it is my plan. I think that’s the plan
that really works. But I’m not forcing it. I’m just going to sit back and
recommend it.”A CNN poll conducted by telephone and online in mid-February found
that the proposal for Gaza with no right of return for Palestinians was the
least popular Trump action or proposal asked about. Only 13% of Americans in the
poll called it a “good thing,” while 58% described it as a “bad thing.”
Arab leaders met in Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh on Friday for the first time
to formulate a response to Trump’s plan for the US to take ownership of Gaza. As
the Truth Social video ends – “Trump Gaza, number one!” – the camera pushes in
on Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sipping drinks on a
beach.
Is Hezbollah sincere in
ceding ‘resistance’ to Lebanon’s government?
Nadia Alfaour/Arab News/February 26, 2025
DUBAI: Thousands gathered in Beirut on Sunday to mourn Hezbollah’s founding
leader, Hassan Nasrallah, as his body was finally laid to rest nearly five
months after his killing. The elaborate funeral, held under the watchful eye of
Israeli fighter jets overhead, served as a stark reminder of the Iran-backed
group’s ongoing conflict with Israel.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz made it clear that figures like Nasrallah
would continue to meet their demise, stating: “You will specialize in funerals,
and we will in victories.”
Last November, Hezbollah’s new leader, Sheikh Naim Qassem, pledged to coordinate
closely with the Lebanese army to implement a ceasefire deal between the
governments of Lebanon and Israel. “There will be high-level coordination
between the Resistance (Hezbollah) and the Lebanese army to implement the
commitments of the deal,” he said in an address to supporters.
But as the dust settles from Nasrallah’s funeral, a critical question emerges:
Is Hezbollah truly committed to ceding control of “resistance” to the Lebanese
state, as many assumed?
Long the dominant force in Lebanon, Hezbollah suffered heavy losses during its
14-month conflict with Israel from Oct. 8, 2023, the day after a Hamas-led
attack by Palestinian militants on Israel. Nasrallah was killed on Sept. 27,
2024, when Israeli forces bombed a building in southern Beirut where he was
meeting with Hezbollah commanders.
But as the dust settles from Nasrallah’s funeral, a critical question emerges:
Is Hezbollah truly committed to ceding control of “resistance” to the Lebanese
state, as many assumed? (AFP)
What made matters worse was the fall in December of ally Bashar Assad in Syria,
a reliable conduit for Middle East militant groups for weapons from Iran.
It is undeniable that Hezbollah is facing mounting challenges. A recent Wall
Street Journal report cited an anonymous source close to Hezbollah as saying
that fighters not originally from the south had been told to vacate their
positions and that the Lebanese Armed Forces would be allowed to take control of
the area as per the terms of the ceasefire.
The source also said the war had emptied Hezbollah’s coffers, making it
impossible for it to fulfill its financial obligations to the families of slain
soldiers, and supporters who lost their businesses and homes during the war.
The WSJ report also quoted residents as saying that Al-Qard Al-Hassan,
Hezbollah’s primary financial institution, had “frozen payments for compensation
checks that had already been issued.”
At the same time, Israel has extended its presence in five strategic positions
on the Lebanese side of the Blue Line, citing security concerns. Nadav Shoshani,
an Israeli military spokesperson, described it as a “temporary measure” to
protect displaced northern Israeli communities.
Lebanese officials, however, view it as an “occupation” and are engaged in
diplomatic efforts with Washington and Paris to secure a full Israeli
withdrawal.
In his televised address to mourners on Sunday, Qassem vowed to continue in his
predecessor’s footsteps, asserting that “the resistance is not over.” He accused
the Lebanese government of bowing to American pressure, particularly in
preventing two Iranian planes from landing at Beirut’s Rafic Hariri
International Airport. That decision, reportedly influenced by US warnings of an
imminent Israeli strike, sparked protests, with Hezbollah supporters storming
the streets and attacking a UN convoy, injuring two peacekeepers.
The attack on UNIFIL peacekeepers prompted swift condemnation. President Joseph
Aoun called it a “flagrant violation of international law” and vowed that
security forces would act against those destabilizing the country. Meanwhile,
Hezbollah dismissed the government’s actions as merely following “an Israeli
order.”Lebanon’s new government finds itself in a precarious position, balancing
the need for international credibility with the reality of Hezbollah’s
entrenched power.
On Tuesday, Lebanon’s parliament began a two-day debate on the government’s
ministerial statement, which sets out the objectives of the new administration.
Opening the debate, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam reiterated the state’s monopoly
on the use of force, emphasizing the need to enforce UN Resolution 1701, which
calls for Hezbollah’s disarmament south of the Litani River, and to his
commitment to Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Deputy Speaker Elias Bou Saab, meanwhile, called for national unity, warning
that “if the state fails to act, alternative forces will take over.”
In a sign that Hezbollah is perhaps willing to work with the new administration
for the collective good of Lebanon, Mohammad Raad, head of the group’s
parliamentary bloc, issued a statement on Tuesday in support of Salam’s
government.
“We give our confidence to the government,” said Raad, expressing hope the new
administration would “succeed in opening the doors to real rescue for the
country.”
“We are keen on cooperating to the greatest extent to preserve national
sovereignty and its stability and achieve reforms and take the state forward,”
he added.
FASTFACTS
• Hassan Nasrallah, who helped found Hezbollah in 1982, following Israel’s
invasion of Lebanon, was killed on Sept. 27 last year.
• Nasrallah’s funeral was held on Sunday at the 48,000-seat Camille Chamoun
Sports City Stadium located in southern Beirut.
• The funeral also honored Hashem Safieddine, who led Hezbollah for just a week
after Nasrallah’s death before he was killed by Israel.
While Prime Minister Salam has reaffirmed Lebanon’s commitment to UN Resolution
1701, there is little indication that the state can enforce this mandate without
Hezbollah’s consent.
“The current government has a limited life and has several priorities;
implementing the ceasefire agreement is at the top of them,” Nadim Shehadi, an
economist and political adviser, told Arab News.
“How quick this will be is as much a logistical as it is a political question.
It is wrong to assume that the Lebanese army can disarm Hezbollah without its
political consent. There are competing interpretations of the ceasefire
agreement.”
Shehadi added: “Nasrallah’s funeral on Sunday was significant. It was a
political show of force accompanied by a defiantly uncompromising speech by
Qassem.”
Sheikh Naim Qassem, pledged to coordinate closely with the Lebanese army. (AFP)
The US has made clear its stance on Hezbollah’s disarmament, tying Lebanon’s
financial aid to progress on this front. The Trump administration recently froze
all foreign aid through the State Department and USAID, citing misalignment with
US interests.
In 2024, Lebanon received $219 million from USAID and an additional $17 million
from the State Department. President Donald Trump’s decision to suspend aid was
seen by many as a means to pressure Lebanon into fully implementing Resolution
1701 and preventing Hezbollah’s rearmament.
“American aid cuts are less chaotic than expected and are in fact linked to
performance. The devil is everywhere, including the details,” Shehadi said.
“Given the amount of bureaucracy involved and the immensity of cuts that the
administration is carrying out across the board, one worries more about the
implementation than about the principle.”
Hezbollah’s massive turnout for Nasrallah’s funeral underscored its continued
influence. “Our struggle in support of Gaza is part of our faith in the
liberation of Palestine,” Qassem, the new Hezbollah chief, told the mourners.
“We confront the Zionist regime and its supporter, the great tyrant, the US,
which is conspiring against Gaza, Palestine, Lebanon, Iraq, and Iran.”
By contrast, President Aoun told a visiting Iranian delegation that was in
Beirut for the funeral that Lebanon was “tired” of external conflicts playing
out on its territory. “Lebanon has grown tired of the wars of others on its
land,” he said, according to an official statement.
“Countries should not interfere in the internal affairs of other countries.”
In a recent op-ed for Arab News, Dania Koleilat Khatib, a specialist in US-Arab
relations, said: “The US should be wise enough to realize that the continued
presence of Israeli forces in Lebanon and their operations aimed at eliminating
Hezbollah members will only strengthen the group in the long run.
“For stability, Israel must withdraw, and the Lebanese state must be
strengthened. If this happens, Hezbollah will eventually be decommissioned as an
armed movement.”
Despite Hezbollah’s assurances that it would coordinate closely with the
Lebanese government to implement the ceasefire, its words and actions tell a
different story.
Even now, it remains Lebanon’s most powerful armed entity, seen by its critics
as undermining the state’s sovereignty while blaming external actors for its
challenges.
The group’s financial troubles may weaken it in the long term, but for now its
grip on Lebanon’s security landscape appears as firm as ever.
Whether the Lebanese government can assert full control over national defense —
or whether Hezbollah will remain a state within a state — remains an open and
pressing question.
The Latest English LCCC
Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on February 26-27/2025
Iran Accelerates Production of Near Weapons-grade Uranium, IAEA Says
Asharq Al Awsat/February 26/2025
Iran has accelerated its production of near weapons-grade uranium as tensions
between Tehran and Washington rise after the election of US President Donald
Trump, a report by the United Nations´ nuclear watchdog seen by The Associated
Press on Wednesday showed. The report by the Vienna-based International Atomic
Energy Agency said that as of Feb. 8, Iran has 274.8 kilograms (605.8 pounds) of
uranium enriched up to 60%. That´s an increase of 92.5 kilograms (203.9 pounds)
since the IAEA´s last report in November. That material is a short, technical
step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%. A report in November 2024 put the
stockpile at 182.3 kilograms (401.9 pounds). It had 164.7 kilograms (363.1
pounds) last August. "The significantly increased production and accumulation of
high enriched uranium by Iran, the only non-nuclear weapon State to produce such
nuclear material, is of serious concern," the confidential report stated.
According to the IAEA, approximately 42 kilograms of 60% enriched uranium is
theoretically enough to produce one atomic bomb, if enriched further to 90%. The
IAEA also estimated in its quarterly report that as of Feb. 8, Iran´s overall
stockpile of enriched uranium stands at 8,294.4 kilograms (18,286 pounds), which
represents an increase of 1,690.0 kilograms (3725.8 pounds) since the last
report in November. During his first presidential term, Trump unilaterally
withdrew the US from Tehran´s nuclear deal with world powers and reimposed
sanctions on Iran. He also ordered the 2020 killing of Qassem Soleimani, who led
the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps´ Quds Force. Iran has maintained
its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only, but the IAEA chief, Rafael
Mariano Grossi, has previously warned that Tehran has enough uranium enriched to
near-weapons-grade levels to make "several" nuclear bombs if it chose to do so.
Iranian officials have increasingly suggested Tehran could pursue an atomic
bomb. US intelligence agencies assess that Iran has yet to begin a weapons
program, but has "undertaken activities that better position it to produce a
nuclear device, if it chooses to do so."Iran´s accelerated production of near
weapons-grade uranium puts more pressure on Trump as he´s repeatedly said he´s
open to negotiations with the Tehran while also increasingly targeting Iran´s
oil sales with sanctions as part of his reimposed "maximum pressure" policy.
Even Iran´s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has final say on all
state matters, in a speech in August opened the door to talks with the US,
saying there is "no harm" in engaging with the "enemy." More recently, he
tempered that, saying that negotiations with America "are not intelligent, wise
or honorable" after Trump floated nuclear talks with Tehran.
The IAEA already warned last December that Iran was poised to "quite
dramatically" increase its stockpile of near weapons-grade uranium as it has
started operating cascades of advanced centrifuges. That move came as a response
to the Board of Governors at the IAEA passing a resolution condemning Iran for
failing to cooperate fully with the agency. In the past, Iran has repeatedly
responded to resolutions by the IAEA Board of Governors by further enhancing its
nuclear program. Wednesday´s report also said that Iran has also not
reconsidered its September 2023 decision to ban some of the agency´s most
experienced inspectors from monitoring its nuclear program. "The Director
General deeply regrets that Iran, despite having indicated a willingness to
consider accepting the designation of four additional experienced Agency
inspectors, did not accept their designations," the report said. Additionally,
the report says that "no progress was made towards resolving the outstanding
safeguards issues in relations to Varamin and Turquzabad," the two locations in
Iran where the nuclear watchdog has questions about the origin and location of
man-made uranium particles found there. The report also said that IAEA Director
General Rafael Mariano Grossi held telephone discussions with Iranian Foreign
Minister Abbas Araghchi at the beginning of this year, during which he
"reiterated his readiness to work with Iran to resume implementation" of a deal
the agency and Tehran agreed two years ago. The Joint Statement included a
pledge by Iran to resolve issues around Varamin and Turquzabad where inspectors
have questions about possible undeclared nuclear activity, and to allow the IAEA
to "implement further appropriate verification and monitoring
activities.""Foreign Minister Araghchi indicated Iran´s preparedness to
cooperate with the Agency and raised the possibility of the Director General
visiting Tehran again," the report said.
Israelis bid farewell to Shiri Bibas and
her 2 young sons killed in captivity in Gaza
The Associated Press/February
26, 2025
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Holding flags, orange balloons and signs saying “forgive
us,” tens of thousands of Israelis lined highways as the bodies of a mother and
her two young sons, killed in captivity in the Gaza Strip, were taken for burial
on Wednesday. The plight of the Bibas family has come to embody the profound
sense of loss and grief still permeating Israel after the militant Hamas group's
Oct. 7, 2023 attack that triggered the war. Footage of a terrified Shiri Bibas
clutching her two sons — 9-month-old Kfir and 4-year-old Ariel — as they were
taken to Gaza by militants is seared into the country's collective memory.Israel
says forensic evidence shows the boys were killed by their captors in November
2023, while Hamas says the family was killed along with their guards in an
Israeli airstrike. Their bodies were handed over earlier this month as part of a
ceasefire deal that paused the Israel-Hamas war. Israelis endured another moment
of agony when testing showed that one of the bodies returned by Hamas was
identified as someone else. Shiri's body was returned the following night and
positively identified. Yarden Bibas was abducted separately and released alive
in a different handover last month. His wife and their two children will be
buried in a private ceremony near Kibbutz Nir Oz near Gaza, where they were
living when they were abducted. The three will be buried next to Shiri’s
parents, who were also killed in the attack. People lined up on the side of the
roads as far as the eye could see, sobbing and embracing each other as the
casket made their way along the 100-kilometer (60 miles) route from central
Israel to the cemetery. Hundreds of motorcycles, each with an Israeli flag and
orange ribbons, rode solemnly behind the convoy. In the city of Tel Aviv,
thousands gathered to watch a broadcast of the eulogies, many dressed in orange.
Kfir was the youngest of about 30 children taken hostage. The infant, with red
hair and a toothless smile, quickly became well-known across Israel. His ordeal
was raised by Israeli leaders on podiums around the world. The extended Bibas
family has been active at protests, branding the color orange as the symbol of
their fight for the “ginger babies.” They marked Kfir Bibas’ first birthday with
a release of orange balloons and lobbied world leaders for support.Family photos
aired on TV and posted on social media created a national bond with the two boys
and made them familiar faces. Israelis learned of Ariel Bibas’ love for Batman.
Photos from a happier time showed the entire family dressed up as the character.
On Wednesday, many people dressed up in Batman costumes and saluted as the
caskets passed.
Yarden Bibas eulogized his family. “Do you remember our last conversation
together? In the safe room, I asked if we should fight or surrender. You said
fight, so I fought,” he sad, speaking directly to his wife. “Shiri, I’m sorry I
couldn’t protect you all. If only I had known what would happen, I wouldn’t have
fought.”Then he spoke of his elder son, Ariel: “I hope you know I thought about
you every day, every minute.”“I’m sure you’re making all the angels laugh with
your silly jokes and impressions," he added, envisioning the boy in paradise. "I
hope there are plenty of butterflies for you to watch, just like you did during
our picnics.”He also addressed his youngest son. “Kfir, I’m sorry I didn’t
protect you better,” he said. “I miss nibbling on you and hearing your
laughter.”Dana Silberman Sitton, Shiri's sister, said she had tried to prepare
herself for over a year to bury her sister alongside their parents, but the
moment was still overwhelming. She begged people to remember Shiri full of light
and laughter — not just the photo of her terror-stricken face as she was being
kidnapped. She also asked forgiveness on behalf of Israel’s government and
military because it had taken so long to bring them home.
Yarden's sister, Ofri Bibas Levy, one of the most active voices in the fight to
bring the hostages home, said “our disaster as a nation and as a family should
not have happened, and must never happen again.”“Forgiveness means accepting
responsibility," she said. "There is no meaning to forgiveness before the
failures are investigated, and all officials take responsibility.”During the
release of the bodies in Gaza last week, Hamas militants displayed coffins on a
stage labeled with Shiri’s name and those of her two boys as upbeat music
blared. Behind them hung a panel where their pictures hovered beneath a cartoon
of a vampiric-looking Netanyahu. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
called the delayed release of Shiri’s remains a “cruel and malicious violation”
of the ceasefire agreement. Some 1,200 people in Israel were killed in the Oct.
7 attack that triggered the war in Gaza and 251 were taken hostage. More than
48,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, according to the Gaza Health
Ministry, which does not differentiate between combatants and civilians.
Gaza reconstruction needs
political clarity, stability, UAE’s Gargash says
Reuters/February 26, 2025
ABU DHBAI: Anwar Gargash, the diplomatic adviser to UAE’s president, said on
Wednesday a Gaza reconstruction plan cannot happen without a clear path to a
two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians. Investment in the project
would need political stability, he added in remarks to the Investopia 2025
conference in Abu Dhabi. “Gaza does need a reconstruction plan, a massive one,
but that reconstruction plan cannot really take place without a clear path to a
two-state solution. So, clearly here, you need political stability of a roadmap
in order for these big investments to come to place,” Gargash said. Arab states
are weighing a post-war plan for Gaza to counter US President Donald Trump’s
proposal to redevelop the strip under US control and displace Palestinians, a
prospect that has angered regional leaders. The mainly Egyptian proposal may
include up to $20 billion in funding over three years from the region, sources
familiar with the discussions have said. Egypt and Jordan held discussions with
Gulf states in Riyadh last week to discuss the proposal ahead of an emergency
summit to be held in Egypt on March 4 to discuss Gaza reconstruction. Gargash
added: “You know, you can’t just go and sort of invest billions without that
political clarity and come back to see yet another conflict. I think that
position is very clear.”When asked if Trump’s proposal for Gaza was
intentionally provocative to force Arab states to come up with a plan, Gargash
said: “President Trump is a disruptor in many areas and the Arab, let’s say
state system, was up to the challenge in my opinion. And I think it allowed the
Arab state system to step up.”
Hamas Says Preparations Begin in
Gaza's Khan Younis to Receive Palestinian Prisoners
Asharq Al Awsat/February 26/2025
Preparations have begun at Gaza's European Hospital in Khan Younis to receive
Palestinian prisoners to be freed later on Wednesday, after their release was
delayed from Saturday, the Hamas media office for prisoners said. It said the
prisoners would be released on Wednesday night between 10:00 p.m. and midnight.
Earlier, Palestinian group Hamas said an exchange of Palestinian prisoners for
the bodies of Israeli hostages would take place through "a new mechanism" that
guaranteed Israel's compliance. Hamas also said it had not received a proposal
about the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal despite its readiness to
proceed with it to complete all the phases. An Egyptian source had said on
Wednesday mediators have reached a deal to release Palestinian prisoners who
were originally set to be freed by Israeli authorities last Saturday, along with
the handover of Israeli hostages' bodies by Hamas.
Hamas armed wing says to hand over bodies of four hostages ‘tonight’
AFP/February 26, 2025
GAZA CITY: Hamas’s armed wing said Wednesday that it would hand over the bodies
of four Israeli hostages “tonight” as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal. “Within
the framework of the deal, the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades has decided to hand
over the bodies of four hostages tonight,” the group said, providing the names
of the captives, which Israeli authorities have yet to confirm. A Hamas official
had said earlier that 602 prisoners who had been due for release in a swap over
the weekend would instead be freed in return for the bodies. Israel had halted
the prisoners’ release to protest what it called the “humiliating” public
ceremonies that have accompanied previous transfers of hostages and remains. The
official said the coming handover would be done in private. Another 23 people,
all women and minors, would also be released, he said. The Israel Prison Service
said Wednesday that it was “making preparations for... releasing imprisoned
terrorists in accordance with the agreement for the return of the hostages.”A
second Hamas official familiar with the exchange told AFP that the Palestinian
prisoners would be released as soon as the bodies were returned. “Hamas will
hand over the bodies of the four Israeli prisoners by midnight, and in return,
Israeli authorities will release the Palestinian detainees and prisoners from
the seventh batch simultaneously,” he told AFP, referring to the inmates whose
release had been delayed.The remaining 23 Palestinians would be freed after
Israeli authorities verified the dead hostages’ identities, he added. “This
arrangement was made based on a proposal presented by the mediators, which Hamas
agreed to,” the official said. In a statement, Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said
that “within hours” Palestinians would witness “the release of the seventh batch
of our prisoners — the largest batch so far — under the ceasefire agreement.”
Egypt rejects proposal for it to run Gaza as ‘unacceptable’
AFP/February 26, 2025
CAIRO: Egypt rejected on Wednesday an Israeli opposition leader’s proposal that
it take over the administration of Gaza, calling the idea “unacceptable” and
contrary to longstanding Egyptian and Arab policy. “Any notions or proposals
that circumvent the constants of the Egyptian and Arab stance (on Gaza)... are
rejected and unacceptable,” the official MENA news agency quoted foreign
ministry spokesman Tamim Khallaf as saying, a day after Israel’s Yair Lapid
floated the idea. g it.He said the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including
Israeli- annexed east Jerusalem, were integral parts of the Palestinian
territories that must be under “full Palestinian sovereignty and management.”On
Tuesday, Lapid said Egypt should run the Gaza Strip for at least eight years
after the war is over, in exchange for massive debt relief. Egypt has repeatedly
rejected proposals for the Gaza Strip’s 2.4 million Palestinian inhabitants to
be relocated, calling such mass displacement a “red line.”It led diplomatic
efforts this month against a plan floated by President Donald Trump for the
Unmited States to “take over” and “own” the war-battered enclave after its
inhabitants have been relocated to Egypt or Jordan.
16-year-old Lea joins
children killed in Israeli ceasefire violations
Naharnet/February 26, 2025
Lea Abou Karnib was with her two sisters and a sibling in a car on the Jarjou -
Arab Salim road when an Israeli drone struck a car nearby. On Wednesday,
16-year-old Abou Karnib died of her wounds, while her two sisters and their
sibling survived their injuries. Since a ceasefire was reached in late November,
the Israeli army did not stop its attacks, claiming it is targeting Hezbollah
members "violating" the ceasefire. The attacks are less frequent, compared to
the 13 months of clashes including two months of all-out war, but too recurrent
as sometimes Israel struck Lebanese territories more than once per day. The
Israeli army struck more than 15 locations over the week end, during the
funerals of former Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah who was killed in an
Israeli strike during the war in September. The frequent almost daily
violations, including mock raids and the Israeli occupation of five "strategic
points" in south Lebanon, leave Lebanon and the Lebanese in a state of fear as
the state plans to disarm Hezbollah, saying that from now on only the Lebanese
army would defend the nation. The strike on Arab Salim in the Iqlim al-Tuffah
region, two weeks ago, targeted and killed two Hezbollah members, but also
killed Abou Karnib who was critically injured in the head on the road to her
village, Arab Salim. At least 57 civilians have been killed, since the ceasefire
went into effect, although Israel says it is targeting Hezbollah. At least 26
civilians were killed in January as Israeli forces opened fire in south Lebanon
at war-displaced residents who were trying to return home while the Israeli
military remained deployed past their withdrawal deadline. In early February,
two children were killed along with their father, a Hezbollah member, in an
explosion of their house in the southern border town of Tayr Harfa. A
14-year-old girl was later killed by gunfire in the southern border town of
Houla as Israeli forces opened fire on a group of residents attempting to return
to their village and did not allow ambulances to reach the area. During the war
on Lebanon and Gaza, Israel showed willingness to kill significant numbers of
civilians in pursuit of a single target. The Israeli army also deliberately
attacked hundreds of civilians, including families of Hezbollah members,
journalists, and medical workers. It also targeted Lebanese Army soldiers -
although the army did not participate in the war between Israel and Hezbollah.
In September, simultaneous mass explosions targeting electronic devices across
Lebanon in crowded civilian areas, such as residential streets and grocery
stores, as well as in people’s homes, killed and injured civilians and spread
terror among the Lebanese, who saw people running in the streets with blood
flowing from their fingers and eyes. The pagers were not only distributed to
Hezbollah fighters but were likely also distributed to employees of Hezbollah
institutions that work in civilian capacities.
Jordan, Syria leaders agree to bolster border security
Reuters/February 26, 2025
AMMAN: Jordan’s King Abdullah and Syria’s President Ahmed Al-Sharaa agreed on
Wednesday to work together to secure their common border against arms and drug
trafficking, officials said. At a meeting with Sharaa in Amman, the Jordanian
monarch also condemned Israel’s strikes late on Tuesday on southern Damascus and
in southern Syria near the Jordan border, the latest in a series of Israeli
attacks on Syrian military targets. The leaders agreed that coordination was
crucial for border security and for curbing arms and drug smuggling, a
phenomenon that Jordan struggled to contain along its border during the rule of
ousted president Bashar Assad, the palace added. Jordan has blamed the rampant
drug and weapons smuggling on pro-Iranian militias that held sway in southern
Syria during Assad’s time. Sharaa pledged to stamp it out. The visit is the new
interim leader’s third foreign trip along with Saudi Arabia and Turkiye since he
came to power after leading the offensive that ousted Iran-backed Assad. Assad’s
relationships with most of the Arab world and his neighbors were strained
throughout the nearly 14-year Syrian war. Jordan, which hosted the first
international conference on Syria a week after Assad was forced to flee, wants
to see a peaceful political transition in Syria, fearing a return of chaos and
instability along its borders. The monarch welcomed the outcome of a landmark
national dialogue conference held at the presidential palace in Damascus on
Tuesday, saying it was “an important step toward rebuilding Syria to attain the
aspirations of the Syrian people.”Jordanian officials have said they were ready
to help Syria rebuild and promised to help it ease its acute power shortages by
supplying it with electricity and gas.
Residents of south Syria fear Israeli escalation after
strikes
AFP/February 27, 2025
KISWEH, Syria: In the Syrian region of Kisweh, southwest of Damascus, residents
jolted awake by Israeli strikes voiced their fears Wednesday of a fresh
escalation after similar attacks had appeared to taper off in recent weeks.
Israel said it had targeted military sites containing weapons in the Tuesday
night raids, which came just days after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
demanded the demilitarization of Syria’s south. The Syrian Observatory for Human
Rights said at least two people were killed at the headquarters of a military
unit in Kisweh, while other raids struck military sites in Daraa province to the
south. “We heard successive strikes followed by explosions. The sky lit up, then
we saw tongues of flame rising,” said Ahmed Mohammed, who works at a service
station near the military site in Kisweh. “We fear the resumption of Israeli
strikes and an Israeli incursion.”Members of the new Syrian government’s armed
forces occupied the site, located in a large field. Aerial photos taken by AFP
showed 20 tanks at the site, three of them blackened by flames. The owner of a
nearby car dealership, who gave his name as Rayan, said most of the tanks had
been moved there after they were abandoned by the former Syrian armed forces
around the time of the fall of president Bashar Assad. “When the missiles fell,
the houses and windows shook,” he said, adding that a drone had been filming in
the area about an hour beforehand.
After the strikes, the Israeli military said that military assets in southern
Syria “pose a threat to the citizens of Israel,” adding it would “continue to
operate in order to remove” such threats. The nighttime raids came hours after
demonstrations in several Syrian cities in response to Netanyahu’s call on
Sunday for the “complete demilitarization” of the country’s south. Following the
toppling of Assad in December, Israel carried out a wave of hundreds of strikes
against positions formerly held by his military, while also sending troops into
a UN-patrolled buffer zone that has separated Israeli and Syrian forces on the
strategic Golan Heights since 1974. “While the strikes were previously focused
on border crossings and abandoned weapons warehouses, they are now directly
targeting vital military sites and strategic hills,” Observatory head Rami Abdel
Rahman told AFP. Netanyahu, he added, was starting “to put his threats into
action.”Syria’s new authorities have condemned Israel’s strikes in their
territory, but the country’s interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa has also said it
is too exhausted by years of civil war to undertake any new conflicts.
Russia, US diplomats to meet in Istanbul on Thursday
AFP/February 26, 2025
DOHA: Russian and US diplomats will meet in Istanbul on Thursday to discuss
resolving issues related to their embassies, Russia’s foreign minister said,
amid easing relations between the two countries. US President Donald Trump has
upended US foreign policy since coming to office last month, reaching out to
President Vladimir Putin and initiating high-level talks with Moscow for the
first time in over three years. The latest meeting will focus on resolving
diplomatic issues, after both countries expelled embassy staff from the other
during former US President Joe Biden’s administration. “Such a meeting will take
place tomorrow in Istanbul. I think that its results will show how quickly and
effectively we can move forward,” Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday
on a visit to Qatar. Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met on
February 18 in the Saudi capital Riyadh, where they agreed to kickstart talks on
the Ukraine war without Kyiv. Both sides have since moved closer while
sidelining Ukraine. Last Wednesday, Trump branded his Ukrainian counterpart a
“dictator” and called for him to “move fast” to end the war. The United States
sided with Russia twice Monday in votes at the United Nations, as it sought to
avoid condemnation of Moscow’s invasion of its neighbor three years ago.
Saudi FM discusses regional developments with Iranian
counterpart
Arab News/February 26, 2025
RIYADH: Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan made a phone call to his
Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi on Wednesday, Saudi Press Agency reported.
During the call, the two officials discussed regional developments and efforts
made with regard to them.
At Security Council, concerns over ‘fragmentation’ of Sudan
AFP/February 26, 2025
UNITED NATIONS, United States: Several members of the UN Security Council on
Wednesday voiced concern over the declaration of a parallel government by
Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, while Kenya pushed back against
accusations that it had recognized the entity. RSF rebels and their allies
fighting government forces on Sunday agreed to form a rival government,
triggering diplomatic tensions between Sudan and Kenya. The parties to the
agreement, inked behind closed doors in Nairobi, said the charter establishes a
“government of peace and unity” in rebel-controlled areas of the northeast
African country. “Attempts by the RSF and aligned actors to establish a
government in RSF-controlled territory in Sudan are unhelpful for the cause of
peace and security in Sudan, and risks a de facto partition of the country,” US
Representative John Kelley told a Security Council meeting. British Ambassador
Barbara Woodward also expressed “deep concern” over the development. “Respect
for Sudan’s charter rights, its unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity is
vital and will be necessary for a sustainable end to this war,” she said. Envoys
from France and China echoed that view, with Chinese Ambassador Fu Cong saying
the move “risks increasing the fragmentation of the Sudan.”Deputy Algerian
Ambassador Toufik Laid Koudri, speaking on behalf of the Council’s three African
members Algeria, Somalia, Sierra Leone as well as Guyana, urged “the RSF and
their allies to put the unity and national interest of Sudan above all other
considerations.”Sudanese Ambassador to the UN Al-Harith Idriss Al-Harith Mohamed
denounced the move as “an unprecedented violation of the UN Charter and the AU
constitution,” and accused Kenya of taking “a step that aims to dismantle the
Sudan.”His Kenyan counterpart Erastus Lokaale denied the claim. “I reiterate
that neither President William Ruto nor the Government of Kenya has recognized
any independent entities in the Sudan or elsewhere,” he said. The war in Sudan,
which has claimed tens of thousands of lives, erupted after a rift emerged
between Burhan and Dagalo over the future structure of the government. The war
has triggered the world’s largest displacement and hunger crisis. Both warring
sides face accusations of committing grave atrocities against civilians, with
their leaders sanctioned by the US.
Pope Francis shows further improvement, no longer has
kidney issue, Vatican says
Reuters/February 26, 2025
VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis has shown a “further, slight improvement” in his
medical condition, the Vatican said on Wednesday, in a sign of progress as the
88-year-old pontiff battles double pneumonia. The pope is spending his 13th
night at Rome’s Gemelli hospital, the longest hospital stay of his nearly
12-year-old papacy. “The clinical condition of the Holy Father in the last 24
hours has shown a further, slight improvement,” the latest detailed health
update read. The pope, it said, is continuing to receive oxygen but has not
experienced any further respiratory crises. A CT scan of his chest, performed on
Tuesday, “showed a normal evolution” of the inflammation in his lungs, it added.
Over the weekend, the Vatican said the pontiff had shown a “mild kidney
insufficiency,” raising fears he might be about to suffer kidney failure. On
Wednesday, it said the issue had been “resolved.”
The statement did not specify whether the pope was still considered to be in
critical condition, as he has been listed since Saturday. Despite the pope’s
improvements, it said his prognosis was still “guarded.”A Vatican official, who
did not wish to be named because he was not authorized to discuss the pope’s
condition, said earlier on Wednesday that Francis was alert through the day and
was able to eat normally and move about his hospital room.
ARGENTINIANS IN ROME PRAY FOR POPE
Francis, who has been pope since 2013, is originally from Argentina and is the
first Catholic pontiff from the Americas. On Tuesday evening, many in Rome’s
Argentinian community gathered at the Our Lady of Sorrows Church to pray for
him. “We pray for his health, that he can continue to govern the Church,” said
Reverend Mario Aler, who referred to the ongoing 2025 Catholic Holy Year.
“(Francis) should continue to accompany this important event for the whole
Church,” he said. Paraguay’s ambassador to the Vatican, Romina Taboada Tonina,
who was attending the service, called the pope “a great leader, without a
doubt.”“Not only for Catholics, but he is a great political leader as well,” she
said. At the Vatican on Tuesday evening, for the second day running, hundreds
gathered in St. Peter’s Square for a prayer vigil attended by pilgrims and
senior Church figures. The service is being repeated daily this week. Double
pneumonia is a serious infection of both lungs that can inflame and scar them,
making it difficult to breathe. The Vatican has said the pope’s infection is
“complex,” and caused by two or more microorganisms. Francis has suffered
several bouts of ill health over the past two years. He is prone to lung
infections because he developed pleurisy as a young adult and had part of one
lung removed. Francis has been working occasionally from the hospital as Vatican
business continues apace during his illness. The Vatican announced several new
appointments on Wednesday that would have needed the pope’s approval.
The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous
sources
on February 26-27/2025
Time to Bring Down the Curtain on Iran's Terror Axis
Robert Williams/Gatestone Institute/February 26, 2025
In the US, in the past -- many people may have forgotten -- Iran was found
guilty of supporting the 9/11 attacks.... Recently, Iranian state agents have
been trying to murder senior US officials who served in the Trump
administration, various dissidents, and Donald Trump himself.
Iran has an interest in having Democrats re-elected as soon as possible. Even
while Iran fired on US forces in the region more than 160 times just since
October 7, 2023, the Biden administration never stopped being inordinately
generous to Iran and compliant with its nuclear weapons program.
Iran has also been busy setting up a drone factory in Venezuela, as well as
expanding its presence in Cuba.
The mullahs might well hope simply to wait until President Trump's term is over
to break out their nuclear weapons and resume "exporting the Revolution."
While the US might be reluctant to seek regime change in Iran, if the Trump
administration allows the mullahs to stay in power, there will be no peace for
the foreseeable future in the US, Europe or the Middle East. In addition, almost
90 million Iranians will continue to have to suffer unimaginable abuses and
human rights violations that the mullahs daily impose on them.
Ending Iran's regime would finally put a stop to its becoming a nuclear power
and its incessant attacks on US assets in the Middle East, and finally could
bring peace to the region. That prospect appears worth serious consideration by
the Trump administration.
Iran's terror axis, thanks to Israel's military operations, is finally beginning
to collapse. Ending Iran's regime would put a stop to its becoming a nuclear
power and its incessant attacks on US assets in the Middle East, and could bring
peace to the region. That prospect appears worth serious consideration by the
Trump administration.
Iran's terror axis, thanks to Israel's military operations, is finally beginning
to collapse. Iranian terrorist proxies have been seeming to disintegrate across
the region.
In Gaza, Israel has degraded Iran's Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ)
terrorist infrastructure. In Lebanon, Israel has severely decimated Hezbollah's
capabilities and killed its leaders and commanders. In Syria, Hezbollah, along
with Iranian forces, have been shown the door. Even though roughly 2,000 Hamas
and 7,000 PIJ terrorists are still operating in Syria, while Iran retains
proxies in Iraq and the Houthis in Yemen, the Shia terrorist "octopus," overall,
has had several of its tentacles detached. Now, what about the rest of the
octopus?
The Iranian regime will most likely do anything to ensure its own survival –
presumably why it used proxies in the first place. Better to have someone else,
other than Iran, take the blowback. The regime could start redirecting its
terrorist efforts towards soft targets in the West, where it is easier to
operate. For years, already, Iran has already been operating an assassination
program abroad, in Europe, where it has been recruiting local gang members and
drug dealers to murder Iranian dissidents, Israelis and Jews. A report published
in September 2024 found that the criminal groups hired by Iran increasingly
target Israelis and Jews in Europe, including Israeli embassies and private
Jewish individuals.
According to Britain's MI5, the situation is about to get rapidly worse: the UK
is expected to see a "staggering rise" in assassination attempts by
Iranian-hired criminals. An Israeli official recently warned that Hamas, as
their abilities continue to be cut down in Gaza, will increasingly target
Israelis and Jews worldwide.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson recently warned of Iran's active role in
carrying out attacks in Sweden.
"Iran is using organized and violent criminal gangs to carry out serious attacks
within Sweden," Kristersson said in a remarkable statement at a conference in
January. "Sweden is not at war. But there is no peace either."
According to Sweden's security service Säpo, Iran was behind two recent attacks
on Israeli targets: a shooting at the offices of the Israeli military technology
Elbit in Sweden last year carried out by a 13-year-old, who was arrested for it
in October 2024, and detonating two hand grenades outside Israel's embassy in
Copenhagen year by two teenagers who had traveled from Sweden to Denmark to
commit the terrorist attack.
In the US, in the past -- many people may have forgotten -- Iran was found
guilty of supporting the 9/11 attacks. In 2011, the Iranian regime attempted to
murder the Saudi Ambassador to the US, Adel al-Jubeir. Recently, Iranian state
agents have been trying to murder senior US officials who served in the Trump
administration, various dissidents, and Donald Trump himself.
Iran's mullahs, as was evident during the election campaign, when Iran "emerged
as the chief election security concern within the U.S. government," according to
the Wall Street Journal, are also hard at work to subvert the US. Originally,
the purpose seems to have been preventing the election of Trump. Just because
that influence and hacking campaign failed, however, does not mean that Iran's
influence operations in the US will stop. Iran has an interest in having
Democrats re-elected as soon as possible. Even while Iran fired on US forces in
the region more than 160 times just since October 7, 2023, the Biden
administration never stopped being inordinately generous to Iran and compliant
with its nuclear weapons program.
Iran has also been busy setting up a drone factory in Venezuela, as well as
expanding its presence in Cuba.
The Iranian regime will most likely keep seeking windows of opportunity to
dislodge the US from the Middle East and the Western Hemisphere, presumably as a
Western home base for its proxy Hezbollah, whatever is left of it. Hezbollah, in
its heyday, according to one 2020 Atlantic Council report, helped to "turn
Venezuela into a hub for the convergence of transnational organized crime and
international terrorism."
According to Professor Alejandro Cassaglia, an expert in terrorism and organized
crime at the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina:
"It's crucial to recognize that these groups are dedicated to hybrid warfare,
cyber-intelligence, and terrorist attacks... The presence of Iran and the Quds
Force [in Latin America] is not just a potential risk, but a palpable reality.
These criminals have total freedom of movement in the region, they have
Venezuelan passports and are usually of Lebanese or Persian origin."
These groups came into the US largely during Biden's presidency. The most
problematic transnational terrorist group, Tren de Aragua, which originated in
the prisons of Venezuela, has grown exponentially, and under the Trump
administration its members are now being deported. It has been described as the
"largest and most powerful organization in Venezuela," with "a history of
flooding other countries with military-aged Venezuelan males to establish a base
of operation to carry out violent crimes in those countries," Texas Governor
Greg Abbott said in September. It has reportedly maintained networks in
Colombia, Peru, and Chile, and set up bases in 18 US states, including
California, Florida, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee, Texas and Utah. The group
has already been tied to hundreds of crimes, including the shooting of two New
York Police Department officers in June, the murder of Georgia nursing student
Laken Riley, and the brutal rape and killing of 12-year-old Houston girl Jocelyn
Nungaray.
Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Middle East Policy Simone
Ledeen warned in February 2024 that Hezbollah has had its own sleeper cells in
the United States for years, and may just be waiting for the word from Iran.
Overshadowing all of this is Iran's obsession with getting nuclear weapons --
which the regime may not hesitate to use, either directly or as a threat. Iran's
regime did not hesitate to fire at least 300 ballistic missiles, rockets and
drones against Israel, a country the size of New Jersey. Iran's Houthi proxies
in Yemen launched missiles and attack drones into Israel many times since
October 2023. The mullahs might well hope simply to wait until President Trump's
term is over to break out their nuclear weapons and resume "exporting the
Revolution." In the meantime, Iran most likely will continue trying to forge
even closer ties with rogue states, such as Venezuela, Cuba, China, North Korea
and Russia, to try to destroy the West.
While the US might be reluctant to seek regime change in Iran, if the Trump
administration allows the mullahs to stay in power, there will be no peace for
the foreseeable future in the US, Europe or the Middle East. In addition, almost
90 million Iranians will continue to have to suffer unimaginable abuses and
human rights violations that the mullahs daily impose on them. In 2024 alone,
Iran executed more than 900 people, reportedly the highest recorded number in
nine years, including 31 women, the UN human rights office recently announced.
Given the UN's utter lack of trustworthiness and its complicity with Iran, that
number is likely to be much larger.
In 2021, Iran actually served on the UN's women's rights body, although it later
was expelled. It has chaired the UN's Conference on Disarmament. A report from
Hengaw, a Kurdish human rights group, noted that more than half of people
executed in Iran last year were from ethnic minorities, including 183 Kurds.Many
possibly innocent political prisoners currently are held in Iran's prisons,
where they are tortured and abused. According to the US State Department:
"Although there were no official statistics regarding the number of citizens
imprisoned for their political beliefs, the NGO United for Iran identified at
least 1,074 prisoners of conscience in the country at year's [2023] end."
Ending Iran's regime would finally put a stop to its becoming a nuclear power
and its incessant attacks on US assets in the Middle East, and finally could
bring peace to the region. That prospect appears worth serious consideration by
the Trump administration.
*Robert Williams is based in the United States.
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The Jihad on Man’s Best Friend
Raymond Ibrahim/The Stream/February 26, 2025
You may have heard that “in Springfield, they’re eating the dogs,” but did you
know that in the Muslim world, they’re exterminating them — by the millions?
In early January, it was reported that a whopping three million dogs were going
to be killed in Morocco: A top conservationist has condemned Morocco and urged
FIFA to take action over the slaughter of three million street dogs ahead of the
2030 World Cup… Reports suggest thousands of stray dogs have already been
massacred in venues across the North African nation, with fears the killings are
escalating.
In a letter to FIFA, Jane Goodall, a prominent animal rights campaigner, accused
the organization of ignoring “a horrific act of barbarity” and “large-scale
killings… [Y]ou have been presented with detailed dossiers documenting these
horrific acts [of dog slayings], most of which are conducted in the most brutal
and cruel fashion imaginable, and yet appear to have ignored them.”
Sadly, such barbaric behavior against what is otherwise considered “man’s best
friend” is not uncommon in the Muslim world.
Slay All Day
Last summer, Turkey began the “greatest dog massacre ever recorded in modern
history”:
The “dog massacre law” that the government of Turkey passed on July 30 [2024] is
causing a rampage of cruelty by evil people in Turkey. Municipalities are now
hunting down and massacring stray dogs (sometimes including pets loved and cared
for, found in the neighbourhoods of their owners). Horrifying news is coming not
only from municipalities but also from private citizens. Those who hate dogs are
poisoning, shooting, and even beheading dogs. Some are buried alive. The efforts
of good people are not enough to stop the slaughter. They’re crying in anguish,
protesting and trying to confront the murderers, but they’re being intimidated
by the government and threatened with jail sentences or fines. Turkey is
currently carrying out the greatest dog massacre ever recorded in modern
history. If the government of Turkey is not stopped, millions of dogs will die a
horrible death. Please look at this video. How the dogs are crying in fear and
pain….Before that, according to a November 2022 report, “The mayor of Hebron [a
Palestinian city] offered 20 shekels to anyone who kills a dog in his city.
Palestinians took to the streets, torturing and killing dozens of dogs.” The
report is accompanied by a picture of what appeared to be Palestinians beating
or striking to death a dog with sticks. A few months before that, in July 2022,
in the words of a report titled “Unspeakable Cruelty,”The ruthless regime in
Iran has raided a dog shelter and killed more than 1700 stray dogs protected by
volunteers. Very few dogs survived. This volunteer woman in tears holds a dead
dog and says “This was the most vulnerable & obedient one.”o on and on with
similar stories, but they will break your heart to read them. So we’ll stop
making the point, which is sufficiently clear — but if you insist, here's a
couple more from Qatar and Afghanistan.
Master of the House
To be sure, not all Muslims are inhumane to dogs. For example, the Animal and
Environment Association in Bethlehem, the only animal shelter in the West Bank,
issued a statement condemning the mayor of Hebron’s recent “bloody campaign,”
which “resulted in killing many dogs, [by] shooting, hanging, abusing, running
over them by cars. What happened today is beyond humanity and ethics … No
religion would accept such barbaric actions toward innocent animals.”
And here we come to it: Is this true? Does no religion — including the one in
question, Islam — “accept such barbaric actions toward innocent animals”?
To answer this question, and as with all questions concerning what is and is not
Islamic, we must turn to the religion’s founder, Muhammad.
As it happens, he detested dogs, to the point of calling for their arbitrary
extermination. According to Abdullah bin Omar, as recorded in the canonical (sahih)
hadith collection of al-Muslim, “The Messenger of Allah used to order the
killing of dogs, so we used to send [men] to Medina and its adjoining vicinity,
and we spared no dog but rather killed it.” [My translation of Arabic text.]
Muhammad later modified his decision by allowing dogs that earn their keep by
herding, hunting, or guarding to go unmolested, though the hate for them
remained: angels, the prophet of Allah warned, would never visit or bless homes
that keep dogs. In short, and as one modern day anti-dog fatwa, or Islamic
decree, on the popular Islam Question &Answer website concludes:
We must ensure that Muslims continue to be averse to dogs, even in the midst of
what the kuffaar [Western infidels] are used to do and what some Muslims have
adopted of their habits.
Despite all this, and because the West must pretend that any accusation against
Islam is unwarranted, it remains complicit in the abuse of dogs. According to
one report, “The U.S. government spends millions of dollars to train
bomb-sniffing dogs essential to federal and local law enforcement capabilities
but some are gifted to foreign countries that abuse them.” The nations listed
are Bahrain, Lebanon, Egypt, Indonesia, Morocco, and Syria — all Muslim-majority
(and we’ve already seen Morocco’s behavior).
Moreover, Muslim hostility for dogs has reached and is causing problems in the
West. Reports of Muslim cab drivers in the USA, Europe, Canada, and Australia
refusing to pick up blind passengers because they are accompanied by seeing
eye-dogs are becoming increasingly common. In one instance in the UK, a Muslim
cabbie, Abandi Kassim, cited “my religion” as the reason for denying service to
a blind man accompanied by his seeing-eye dog.
Incidentally, and considering that certain Islamic teachings and scriptures
assert that the life of a non-Muslim, of an infidel, is of equal value to the
life of a dog, here is one more reason why Islam mandates hate for all
non-Muslims.
**Raymond Ibrahim © 2025.
Israel responsible for the safety of people under its
occupation
Daoud Kuttab/Arab News/February 26, 2025
One of the strangest situations taking place in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict
today is the Israeli and, to a certain extent, international attitude regarding
the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Despite Israeli efforts to claim that it is not an occupier, all the relevant UN
bodies have made it clear that, in fact, what we see with our own eyes is what
is happening: namely that Israel is the occupier of Palestinian territories.
Therefore, since the status is clear, what are the responsibilities of an
occupying power toward the population it is occupying? International
humanitarian law, specifically the Fourth Geneva Convention, which was issued to
deal with the problems of prolonged occupations, makes it clear that the
occupier has a responsibility to protect the civilian population, provide for
their humanitarian needs and ensure that their cultural, educational and medical
institutions are preserved.
All these issues have been violated during the 58 years of Israeli occupation.
Its violations of the Geneva Conventions could fill volumes. The illegal
annexation of East Jerusalem, the movement of citizens of the occupying power
into the occupied territory and the building of illegal (including most recently
under UN Security Council Resolution 2334) Jewish settlements are just a few of
the violations.
In the Gaza context, a few issues stand out. As Francesca Albanese, the UN
rapporteur for human rights in the Occupied Territories, has stated, the
occupying power does not have the right to self-defense, while the right of
resistance is in fact guaranteed to the people under occupation. Furthermore,
detentions of people under occupation accused of any act against the occupier
are supposed to take place within the occupied territory — another major
violation by Tel Aviv, which has for years been holding thousands of
Palestinians inside the internationally recognized borders of the state of
Israel.
Moreover, the issue of the safety of civilians under occupation is also of
uppermost importance, as tens of thousands of civilians and civilian
institutions (including houses of worship, hospitals, bakeries and educational
institutions) have been deliberately targeted. These revenge acts against
Palestinians and Palestinian institutions cannot be justified, despite the
unacceptable claims of solidarity of occupied people with the resistance
movement.
The claim that schools and hospitals are being targeted based on the claim that
they are harboring “terrorists” has also been debunked many times. There have
been videos of mosques and other institutions being blown up after occupying
engineers placed explosives within their empty premises. Israeli soldiers have
been seen celebrating the blowing up of these buildings, further contradicting
the claim that they were targeted because they were hosting combatants.
The vast majority of Palestinians in Gaza have been collectively punished in a
number of ways, including forcible relocation and preventing them accessing
energy and other basic humanitarian needs.
Ironically, the humanitarian needs of the Palestinians in Gaza have become part
of the trade-offs in the ceasefire negotiations sponsored by Qatar, Egypt and
the US. The idea that the occupying power, a member state of the UN, is being
asked to allow access to oil, drinking water, medical supplies, tents and other
basic humanitarian needs is a scandal. Even when the International Court of
Justice made a binding rule last January, in the context of the South African
case, that Israel should allow humanitarian aid into Gaza, the occupying forces
totally ignored this demand and continued using food and energy as a tool of
pressure on the population under occupation. The occupier has a responsibility
to protect the civilian population and provide for their humanitarian needs.
While Israel itself refused to meet the occupied population’s humanitarian
needs, it also prevented any third party from helping Gazans receive aid. Israel
used the ungenuine claim that demonstrations by radical groups were preventing
aid vehicles from reaching the Gaza border. Media reports have also noted that
an Israeli government body that controls the influx of aid sometimes, through
bureaucracy, ends up causing deaths and illnesses as food aid goes rotten, as
well as leaving entire communities without electricity or other sources of
energy and heating during the extremely cold winter months.
The basic obligations of an occupying power are still part of international
humanitarian law and UN member states are obliged to ensure that other members
of the UN, as well as other bodies that are violating these laws, are held
accountable and not given a free pass.
**Daoud Kuttab is an award-winning Palestinian journalist and former Ferris
Professor of Journalism at Princeton University. He is the author of “State of
Palestine NOW: Practical and logical arguments for the best way to bring peace
to the Middle East.” X: @daoudkuttab
US must take proactive approach to counter China
Dalia Al-Aqidi/Arab News/February 26, 2025
The Chinese Communist Party has aggressively expanded its influence beyond
China’s borders, posing a significant and evolving threat to US national
security, economic interests and global stability. This expansion is not limited
to traditional military or economic competition, it also extends into espionage,
cyberwarfare, strategic infrastructure control and influence operations.
Recent reports from the US House Committee on Homeland Security highlight the
increasing threats posed by China’s espionage activities, especially on American
soil. Additionally, the Department of Homeland Security has raised alarms about
Chinese-made internet-connected cameras that could be exploited for
surveillance. At the same time, China’s growing control over strategic maritime
chokepoints, particularly the Panama Canal, presents serious risks to global
trade and American geopolitical interests. These developments demand urgent
attention and decisive action from policymakers in Washington to counteract
Beijing’s encroachments. One of the most persistent threats from China is its
extensive espionage operations. The FBI has long warned about relentless Chinese
efforts to infiltrate American institutions, steal critical information and
undermine national security. Beijing’s intelligence services operate through
various methods, including recruiting insiders, cyber intrusions and economic
espionage.
A key example is the “Thousand Talents Plan,” a program designed to recruit
scientists, researchers and professionals worldwide, often encouraging them to
transfer valuable intellectual property back to China. This strategy has led to
the theft of cutting-edge technologies, including in defense, artificial
intelligence and biotechnology, eroding America’s competitive advantage.
According to the FBI, China benefits from more than 80 percent of all economic
espionage cases in the US.
Furthermore, espionage is not limited to the economic sphere. In recent years,
Chinese intelligence agencies have attempted to infiltrate various levels of
government, from local to federal, targeting politicians, business leaders and
even military officials. These efforts undermine decision-making processes,
influence policy debates and gather intelligence on the nation’s defense
strategies.
China’s cyber capabilities present another major challenge to America’s national
security. Cyber intrusions by Chinese state-sponsored hackers have been
responsible for some of the largest data breaches in US history. These attacks
target both government agencies and private sector companies, aiming to obtain
sensitive information that could benefit Beijing’s military and economic
ambitions.
As mentioned, the Department of Homeland Security this month issued a warning
about Chinese-manufactured cameras being used for espionage. These cameras,
which are installed in critical infrastructure such as power plants,
transportation hubs and government buildings, could be exploited to conduct
surveillance on key facilities. The concern is that these devices might allow
China to gather intelligence on US infrastructure vulnerabilities, which could
be exploited in future cyber or physical attacks.
Chinese cyberattacks are not only focused on intelligence gathering but also on
disrupting essential services. China-linked hacking groups have been implicated
in attacks targeting American water systems, energy grids and hospitals.
Another serious challenge is the expansion of Chinese control over strategic
maritime chokepoints and one of the most alarming developments of recent years
is Beijing’s growing influence over the Panama Canal. This canal is one of the
world’s most critical trade routes, serving as a key passage for global shipping
and a substantial portion of US trade. Although the canal remains under the
Panamanian administration, Chinese state-owned enterprises have secured
significant stakes in port operations on both the Atlantic and Pacific sides.
These investments have raised concerns in Washington that China could leverage
its position to control, monitor or disrupt the flow of global commerce.
The US has historically maintained strong relations with Panama, ensuring the
canal remains neutral and open to international trade. However, China’s
increasing foothold in the region raises strategic concerns. If tensions between
Washington and Beijing escalate, China could exert influence over Panama to
restrict US naval operations or disrupt the movement of American goods. Given
that more than 70 percent of cargo passing through the canal is either coming
from or going to America, any disruption could have catastrophic effects on its
economy.
Additionally, Chinese investments in ports throughout Latin America contribute
to a broader strategy of gaining influence over key maritime trade routes. By
controlling crucial points in the Western Hemisphere, China enhances its ability
to project power, gather intelligence and challenge US dominance in global
trade. Beyond these two vital operations, China has engaged in transnational
repression and influence operations inside America. Chinese security agencies
have reportedly been operating secret police stations in major cities, including
New York, to monitor and intimidate Chinese dissidents living abroad. These
stations, disguised as cultural or business centers, are used to harass critics
of the Chinese Communist Party and coerce individuals into silence or even
forcibly repatriate them to China.
The House Committee on Homeland Security has documented numerous instances of
Chinese authorities attempting to influence local US politics. These efforts
include funding political campaigns, spreading disinformation and leveraging
business investments to gain sway over American politicians.
The influence of the communist government also extends into academia, where
Confucius Institutes, Chinese government-backed educational programs, have been
accused of promoting the party’s propaganda on university campuses. Many of
these programs have faced scrutiny and closures due to concerns over
intellectual property theft, censorship and interference in academic freedom.
China-linked hacking groups have been implicated in attacks targeting American
water systems, energy grids and hospitals.
To counter these growing threats, Washington must take decisive action.
Strengthening cybersecurity is crucial to protect critical systems from Chinese
intrusions, while cracking down on economic espionage requires stricter
regulations on research collaborations and foreign investments. Reducing
reliance on Chinese technology by boosting domestic manufacturing will also
minimize vulnerabilities.
At the same time, Congress must increase oversight of strategic assets,
especially in ports and telecommunications, while working with allies to counter
China’s regional influence. Meanwhile, exposing the Chinese Communist Party’s
influence in politics, academia and business is equally vital.
Finally, given China’s expanding military presence, reinforcing US naval power
in key regions is essential. A proactive strategy is the only way for America to
protect its national security and maintain global leadership.
**Dalia Al-Aqidi is executive director at the American Center for Counter
Extremism.
What Germany’s election means for the Western left
Bartosz M. Rydlinski/Arab News/February 26/2025
Germany’s Social Democrats are one of the West’s oldest political parties, with
a legacy of advocating parliamentary democracy, opposing Nazism and leading the
modernization of postwar Germany. In addition to the many notable labor,
economic and human rights reforms that the party has implemented over the years,
former Social Democratic Party leader and West German Chancellor Willy Brandt’s
“Ostpolitik” in the 1970s laid the groundwork for Germany’s reunification in
1990.
But today’s party is a shadow of its former self: it won only 16.4 percent of
the vote in Sunday’s federal election, putting it behind both the Christian
Democratic Union/Christian Social Union and the far-right Alternative for
Germany. It is worth considering how this defeat came about and what it means
for the future of Western social democratic forces.
Support for the SPD began to fall toward the end of the 2000s. In the 2005 and
2009 federal elections, the party received 34.2 percent and 23 percent of the
vote, respectively — a drastic decline from the 1998 federal election, when it
won nearly 41 percent.
This drop-off can be largely attributed to the “Agenda 2010” and “Hartz” reforms
that Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder introduced in the early 2000s. Schroeder’s
neoliberal project, which sought to revive a stagnant German economy by
deregulating the labor market and reducing welfare benefits, put the SPD at odds
with its working-class base, organized in powerful trade unions. It also led the
charismatic finance minister and former party leader Oskar Lafontaine to defect
to a left-wing alliance, taking the SPD’s socialist faction with him.
Despite this exodus of voters, the SPD could rest on its laurels as the junior
coalition partner to the CDU/CSU — its main competitor — under Angela Merkel.
When Merkel retired in 2021, the SPD won that year’s election with a quarter of
German votes. But party leader and Chancellor Olaf Scholz had to form a
“traffic-light coalition” (so named for the parties’ colors) with the Greens and
the liberal, market-oriented Free Democrats. This led his government to pursue
conflicting goals, such as advancing social justice and lowering taxes;
constructing social housing and boosting support for entrepreneurs; and
combating climate change and protecting Germany’s automotive industry. Such a
wide-ranging agenda did little to win back the trust of workers, especially with
fear of globalization on the rise.
In the lead-up to Sunday’s election, neither Scholz nor his party seemed to
gauge German voters’ primary concerns accurately. According to one survey, 37
percent of Germans consider immigration to be the most important problem facing
the country — an issue on which the SPD has been ambivalent and indecisive.
The party tacitly supported Merkel’s “open-door policy” in 2015, when Germany
accepted more than 1 million asylum seekers from Syria, Afghanistan and other
countries in the Middle East and North Africa. And yet, Scholz has advocated
deporting “serious criminals” to Syria and Afghanistan following terror attacks.
Instead of winning over voters, this muddled approach to migration and security
has bolstered the anti-immigration AfD.
The second most important issue for voters, according to the recent survey, is
the economy, with 34 percent of respondents agreeing that it should be the
government’s top priority. As an article about Scholz in Der Spiegel recently
pointed out, the German economy contracted for the second consecutive year in
2024, the number of unemployed people is rising, industry is cutting jobs and
consumer confidence has tanked.
The fact that this occurred on Scholz’s watch undermined his image as a
successful economic steward, burnished during Merkel’s term. This resulted in a
devastating loss of working-class support for the SPD. According to Infratest
dimap’s exit poll, the AfD won 38 percent of workers’ votes, compared to just 12
percent for the SPD. The SPD’s electoral disaster is reminiscent of the
Democrats’ defeat in the 2024 US presidential election.
Scholz fell short in other areas, too. The much-heralded turning point (“Zeitenwende”)
in foreign policy and national security after Russia’s full-scale invasion of
Ukraine in 2022 has not materialized. Germany barely meets NATO’s 2 percent
defense spending target and has not honored its commitments to Ukraine. As
Benjamin Tallis concluded in his German Council on Foreign Relations report
titled “The End of the Zeitenwende,” Scholz’s project has been a failure.
The SPD’s electoral disaster is reminiscent of the Democrats’ defeat in the 2024
US presidential election. Both parties failed to formulate an effective response
to migration concerns, win over working-class voters and adopt major progressive
economic reforms. Instead, they chose to emphasize cultural liberalism, which
appealed to the winners of globalization — people who do not fear for their
future.
But fear of being left behind economically and socially proved to be potent fuel
for both Donald Trump and the AfD. So long as social democrats fail to address
this fear, the far right will continue to exploit it. If center-left parties
want to regain their relevance, they must confront and analyze their electoral
failures and declining support while finding new ways to make inroads with
workers and shield them from the effects of deindustrialization, automation and
artificial intelligence.
**Bartosz M. Rydlinski is an assistant professor of political science at
Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw. Copyright: Project Syndicate
Kurdish-Turkish Peace Process and its Regional Implications
Dlawer Ala'Aldeen-Former Minister in the Kurdistan Regional Government/Asharq Al
Awsat/February 26/2025
Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Abdullah Ocalan’s new initiative to end the
five-decade-long conflict in Türkiye seems serious. If successful, it could
completely reshape dynamics across the region. The objective of Turkish leaders
is clear: disarming the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), de-securitizing
Türkiye’s relations with its southern neighbors, boosting economic recovery, and
improving ties with the West - all achievements that would strengthen their
standing ahead of the country’s upcoming general elections. While the Turkish
leaders are well placed to emerge victorious, Iraqis, Syrians, Arab states, and
the West all have an interest in a sustainable peaceful resolution. Türkiye is
home to more than half of the over 40 million Kurds worldwide, as well as
millions of people who belong to other non-Turkish communities, including Arabs.
However, the country is run like a nation-state for Turks alone, with limited
integration of others into the state, and that is one major driver of grievances
and internal conflict.
Since the previous peace process collapsed in 2015, Turkish leaders have
deliberately leveraged their military superiority to undermine the PKK before
re-engaging in negotiations with Kurdish leaders. They kept the “Ocalan card”
close to their chest - the influence of the imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah
Ocalan - until they felt confident that they could dictate the terms.
After Ocalan delivers his message later this month, the PKK members exhausted by
years of conflict are expected to cooperate with the Turkish authorities and
engage in legitimate partisan political activity, becoming part of the Turkish
political process through the pro-Kurdish Green Left Party (Peoples’ Equality
and Democracy Party). Türkiye is then likely to announce amnesty for Ocalan and
the PKK, and to gradually loosen the state’s authoritarian grip on
Kurdish-majority cities in Türkiye.
For Iraq and the Iraqi Kurds, the stakes are high. Failure would bring serious
threats, and they have a lot to gain from peace. Both the Turkish Armed Forces
and the PKK have established military bases in Iraqi Kurdistan, turning some of
the region’s breathtaking mountains into conflict zones. Türkiye has invaded
Iraq several times in recent decades, thereby militarizing its relationships
with both Baghdad and Erbil. At the same time, it has substantial economic
interests in the country’s energy development, trade, and infrastructure.
Leaders in Iraqi Kurdistan are monitoring the situation closely and playing an
active role in the cross-border multilateral discussions. They recognize that
ending the conflict between Türkiye and the PKK would mean a more stable region
for the Kurds and a healthier relationship between Iraq and Türkiye.
Syrian Kurds and the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (commonly
known as Rojava) have been even more of a stake in the conflict within Türkiye
and have the most to gain for a successful peace process. Ocalan is likely to
call on PKK fighters in Syria to withdraw, leaving Syrian Kurdish leaders to
negotiate their future with their compatriots in Damascus, free of foreign
influence or the threat of a Turkish invasion. In response, Türkiye could
reciprocate by restraining its proxies and avoid directly attacking Rojava.
Both the Kurdish and other communities in northeastern Syria have suffered from
isolation and neglect for a long time. Over the past decade, they have garnered
global esteem through their struggle for survival against ISIS. Now, they are
fighting for full Syrian citizenship rights and guarantees that their human,
political, and cultural rights will be respected. They do not want to be
reintegrated into a purely Arab nation-state. Syrian Kurdish leaders understand
that neither Ankara nor Damascus are willing to agree to the adoption of a
federal system or any form of additional autonomy exclusive to Rojava. Instead,
they seek a symmetrically decentralized system that is acceptable to and
applicable in all regions of Syria.
Fortunately, Syria’s new leadership has taken a moderate tone in dealing with
the Kurds so far. However, they have yet to clarify how Kurdish rights will be
codified in a unified Syria. They are beginning to realize that Syria cannot be
reunified by the adoption of a new version of the highly centralized and
authoritarian governance model of the past. Agreeing to a framework that creates
a credible model for regional administrative autonomy across all provinces will
be essential to building trust, fostering reconciliation, and preserving
national unity.
Arab states have been broadly sympathetic to the Kurdish cause, and they are
apprehensive about Türkiye’s growing influence in the region. While they have
vehemently opposed Iran’s dominance of Syria, they do not want to see the
country become a Turkish satellite state either.
It is crucial for Arab states to engage in the Turkish-Kurdish peace process,
pushing Turkish leaders to de-securitize their relations with their southern
neighbors, particularly Syria. By advocating for the respect of Kurdish rights
within a unified Syria, Arab states would facilitate constructive engagement
between Damascus and Syrian Kurds and negotiations on a shared future. This
would accelerate Syria’s path to restoring its sovereignty, as well as
reinforcing regional stability.
A comprehensive peace process with the Kurds would also improve Türkiye’s
standing in the West. European countries and the United States all have a vested
interest in stability. Over the years, they have invested significant political,
financial, and military capital in neighboring states, and durable peace between
Turks and Kurds would contribute to smoothing out complex security dynamics
among the region’s network of actors, reducing cross-border conflicts, violent
extremism, displacement (including refugees), and barriers to trade and economic
growth. That is precisely what the West wants to see. In return, the West can
play a positive role by leveraging its influence to foster deeper and more
structured dialogue among regional stakeholders. Fortunately, the new US
administration has been advocating peace and economic partnership in the region.
It is likely to welcome the Turkish-Kurdish peace process, which could
ultimately pave the way for ending its US military presence in Syria. The
Turkish-Kurdish peace process presents a unique opportunity for Turkish leaders.
They could use it to adopt inclusive policies that address the broader and more
deep-rooted issues of the Kurdish cause, both inside and outside Türkiye.
Kurdish leaders across the region can embrace this initiative, turning it into a
roadmap for a durable peace. Turks and Kurds must remain open to involving other
regional and international actors who could play constructive roles and invest
in broader regional peace and prosperity.