English LCCC Newsbulletin For
Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For July 20/2025
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news
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Bible Quotations For today
The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few;
therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest
Saint Luke 10/01-07/:”After this the Lord appointed seventy
others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he
himself intended to go. He said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the
labourers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers
into his harvest. Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the
midst of wolves. Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and greet no one on the
road. Whatever house you enter, first say, “Peace to this house!”And if anyone
is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not,
it will return to you. Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever
they provide, for the labourer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house
to house.”
Titles For The
Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published
on July 19-20/2025
Saint Elias (Elijah) the Living: Prophet of Fire, Ascension, and Holy
Zeal/Elias Bejjani/July 20/2025
The crimes committed by al-Julani and his ISIS thugs in Sweida—and the
disgraceful support he receives from Arab countries and media outlets—are both
deeply saddening and utterly reprehensible/Elias Bejjani/July 18/2025
Video Link To An Interview From “Transparency” Youtube Platform with Dr. Walid
Phares
Druze Sheikh Akl in Lebanon calls for Arab and Turkish sponsorship to reassure
Syrian people
Legal Complaints Target Hezbollah Officials in Lebanese Courts
Statement of the Political and National Conference of the Lebanon Renaissance
Gathering:
Aoun, Berri reportedly put final touches on response to US paper
Salam to Qassem: Hand over weapons to Lebanon, not to Israel
Report: Berri tells US Hezbollah to hand over arms if Israel makes a step
Former Prime Ministers meet with Walid Jumblatt, call for unity amid regional
tensions
Israeli army says Hezbollah's Radwan Force member killed in South Lebanon
airstrike
Israeli airstrike on motorcycle in South Lebanon's Yohmor al-Shaqif kills one
Lebanese Health Ministry: One killed in South Lebanon's Khiam
Qassem says to talk 'defense strategy' after 'existential threat' ends
Strida Geagea at the opening of the Cedars International Festival: We are back,
Lebanon, and stronger than before
Clemenceau Meeting: Condemning Attempts to Exploit Events in Syria to Transfer
Tensions to Lebanon
Salam visited Al-Rahi in Diman. What did he say about Bkerke's role?
Geagea's Calls Regarding the "Crisis in Sweida"
FPM leader Bassil: Decentralization is key to reforming the state, and there is
no longer any impediment for the return of refugees to Syria
Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on July 19-20/2025
Clashes rage in Druze region as Syria struggles to enforce fragile
ceasefire
US announces Syria-Israel truce as new clashes rock Druze heartland
Syrian security forces begin deploying in Sweida province
France urges all sides to respect Syria ceasefire
Syrian Presidency Says Ceasefire in Place, Urges Parties to Respect it
Syria Reportedly Believed it Had Green Light from US, Israel to Deploy Troops to
Sweida
Syria's Hospital in Sweida a ‘Mass Grave’
US envoy praises Jordan’s role in ceasefire efforts in Syria’s Sweida region
after meeting FM
At least 32 killed by Israeli fire while seeking aid in Gaza, hospital says
Report: Israel Seeks US Help on Deals to Move Palestinians Out of Gaza
US envoy urges accountability for church attack in West Bank village
Yemen’s Foreign Ministry: Iran’s Arming of Houthis Hinders Peace, Fuels Conflict
Ukraine proposes fresh peace talks with Russia next week
Sudan crisis worsens as violence escalates in Kordofan and Darfur
Ancient statue returns to Turkiye 65 years later
Titles For
The Latest English LCCC analysis &
editorials from miscellaneous sources
on July 19-20/2025
Stop The Avarice and Cowardice: Europe Must Confront Iran's Regime/Dr.
Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/July 19/2025
Israel and Iran Usher in New Era of Psychological Warfare/Steven Lee Myers,
Natan Odenheimer and Erika Solomon/The New York Times/July 19/2025
Terrorism: A Global Menace Beyond Borders/Jebril Elabidi/Acharq Al-Awsat/July
19/2025
On This Land, There Is That Which Deserves Life — Or Quite the Opposite, That
Which Perpetuates Misery/Dr. Ali Khalifa/Nidaa Al-Watan/July 19/ 2025
We Are Living in Chaos and the Bloody Disintegration of National Societies for
Several Reasons/By Ghazi Al-Masri – Facebook – July 19, 2025
The Latest English LCCC
Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on July
19-20/2025
Saint Elias (Elijah) the Living: Prophet of Fire, Ascension, and Holy Zeal
Elias Bejjani/July 20/2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/07/145366/
Lebanon, together with the Maronite Church and believers
everywhere, celebrates on July 20 the Feast of the Prophet Elijah—known in our
tradition as Saint Elias the Living. He was a fiery prophet who stood fearlessly
before kings and tyrants, boldly proclaiming God's word in a time of fear,
corruption, and spiritual decline. He was a prophet of confrontation, a man of
unwavering faith and divine fire—a flame that never goes out, a zeal that burns
away lies and betrayal.
Elijah in the Bible: The Voice of Truth Against Tyranny
Elijah appeared during the reign of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel, who led Israel
into idolatry and worship of Baal. But Elijah stood firm and declared: “As the
Lord lives, before whom I stand” (1 Kings 17:1). With this declaration, he began
his prophetic mission—defying earthly powers, false worship, and spiritual decay
without fear or compromise. God was with him in power. Elijah raised the widow’s
son from death, called down fire from heaven, parted the waters of the Jordan,
and ascended alive into heaven in a chariot of fire. He was a forerunner of
Christ—the victorious one—and a symbol of every person who fights for truth and
righteousness.
The Transfiguration of Elijah and Moses with Christ: A Revelation of Glory,
Prophecy, and the Law
In a moment beyond description, Jesus ascended a high mountain with His three
disciples: Peter, James, and John. There, before their eyes, “His face shone
like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light” (Matthew 17:2).
Suddenly, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him (Matthew 17:3), in
a scene where prophecy met the Law, and the ancient testimony bore witness to
the glory to come. The Evangelist Luke tells us that Moses and Elijah spoke with
Jesus about His departure, which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem (Luke
9:31)—a clear reference to His crucifixion and resurrection. Then came the voice
of the Heavenly Father from the cloud, saying: “This is My beloved Son, in whom
I am well pleased. Listen to Him!” (Matthew 17:5). Thus, Elijah the prophet—who
never tasted death—stood alongside Moses to bear witness to Christ, the
incarnate Word, who fulfilled all the prophecies and brought the Law to its
fullness.
The Miracles of Saint Elijah
He prayed, and the heavens were shut: It did not rain on the land for three
years and six months.
(1 Kings 17:1; 1 Kings 18:1; James 5:17; Luke 4:25)
The ravens brought him food: God commanded the ravens to feed him.
(1 Kings 17:4)
He blessed the widow’s flour and oil: The jar of flour was not used up, and the
jug of oil did not run dry.
(1 Kings 17:8–9)
He raised the widow’s son from the dead: Elijah cried out to the Lord, and the
child’s life returned to him.
(1 Kings 17:17–24)
Fire from heaven consumed the sacrifice: The altar was burned, the offering was
accepted, and the prophets of Baal were destroyed.
(1 Kings 18:29–40)
His prophecy against King Ahaziah was fulfilled: The king died as Elijah had
foretold.
(2 Kings 1; 2 Kings 9:27–28)
He parted the Jordan River with his mantle: The waters divided, and he crossed
on dry ground.
(2 Kings 2:8)
Fire from heaven consumed the messengers of King Ahaziah: Twice Elijah called
down fire from heaven, and it devoured the captains and their men.
(2 Kings 1:10–14)
His ascension into heaven: Elijah was taken up by a chariot of fire and ascended
to heaven in a whirlwind.
(2 Kings 2:11–12)
The Character of Elijah: Zeal, Courage, and Prayer
Elijah wasn’t just a prophet—he was truly a man of God. He was zealous for the
Lord’s commandments, fearless before kings, and humble in the presence of God.
He wept and prayed, and God revealed Himself not in the earthquake or fire, but
in a still, small voice (1 Kings 19:12). Elijah was a man of prayer and hope.
When he cried out to heaven, rain fell after three and a half years of drought.
When he prayed for the widow in Zarephath, God raised her son back to life.
Elijah was God's voice in a time of drought—His hand of mercy in an age of
despair.
Mount Carmel: The Fire of Confrontation
On Mount Carmel, Elijah stood alone against 450 prophets of Baal. He challenged
the people, saying: “If the Lord is God, follow Him! But if Baal, follow him!”
(1 Kings 18:21). The prophets of Baal prayed all day, but no fire came. Then
Elijah rebuilt the altar of the Lord, poured water over the sacrifice three
times, and cried out: “Answer me, O Lord, so that this people may know that You,
O Lord, are God!”(1 Kings 18:36-37) God answered with fire from heaven—it
consumed the offering, the stones, and even the water. The people fell to the
ground and cried out: “The Lord, He is God!”Then Elijah prayed again, and the
rain returned after years of drought, soaking the thirsty land (1 Kings
18:42–45).
The Fiery Ascension and the Glory of Christ
After fulfilling his mission, Elijah struck the waters of the Jordan with his
cloak and crossed on dry ground with his disciple Elisha. Then, “suddenly, a
chariot of fire with horses of fire appeared... and Elijah went up by a
whirlwind into heaven” (2 Kings 2:11). He did not die—he was taken up in glory.
And because he did not taste death, Elijah later appeared with Moses during the
Transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor (Luke 9:30). This showed the union of
the Law (Moses) and the Prophets (Elijah) in Jesus Christ, the Son of God and
the Light of the world.
Elijah in Zarephath: The Miracle on Lebanese Soil
The Gospel of Luke tells us: “There were many widows in Israel... yet Elijah was
sent to none of them but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon”
(Luke 4:26). That widow gave him bread from her poverty, and God blessed her
flour and oil, and later brought her dead son back to life through Elijah’s
prayer. So the first miracle of resurrection took place in Lebanon. And the
blessing of Elijah touched our land—and began here.
Lebanon and Saint Elias: A Spiritual and Historic Bond
Few prophets are as closely tied to Lebanon as Saint Elias. From Zarephath of
Sidon to Mount Hermon, from ancient churches bearing his name in the mountains
and valleys, to the caves where monks sought his spirit, Lebanon holds Elijah
close in heart and soul. The great Lebanese thinker Fouad Ephrem al-Boustani
wrote in his Book of Days: “This is the feast that lights the wounds of the
nation—not to deepen them, but to show that the fire of God’s truth is still
alive. And in every generation, a new Elijah must rise—to bear witness, to call
down rain, and to restore hope to the people.” He called him “The Prophet of
Lebanon”—because he walked our soil, breathed our air, and glorified God on our
mountains.
Saint Elias and the Lebanese Identity
Saint Elias reflects the very soul of Lebanon: faith in freedom, rejection of
false gods, and speaking truth to tyranny. Today, as Lebanon suffers under the
oppression of the Iranian occupation and its armed proxies, we need Elijah’s
spirit more than ever—a spirit that does not fear, does not bow to Baal, and
does not trade truth for power. He is the protector of the free, the voice of
courage, the prophet of justice, and the standard-bearer of divine truth on
every mountaintop.
The Message of His Feast Today
In an age of compromise, idolatry, and moral decay, we need a new Elijah: A
prophet who will not be silent, who will burn with holy zeal, and who will
cleanse the land of falsehood and fear. Let us pray through his intercession
that the Lord would once again send the rain—not only from the skies, but the
rain of grace, of repentance, and of spiritual renewal.
A Prayer for Lebanon
O Saint Elias the Living, Prophet of fire and truth, You who called down rain
and fire by your prayers, Send peace upon our suffering Lebanon, Give courage to
our people, And renew in our Church the spirit of prophecy. Teach us to stand
like you stood, To speak truth like you spoke, And to remain faithful to the
Lord alone. Let your fire hover over this land, So that Lebanon may remain
forever A nation of faith and freedom, From generation to generation. Amen.
The crimes committed by al-Julani and his ISIS thugs in Sweida—and the
disgraceful support he receives from Arab countries and media outlets—are both
deeply saddening and utterly reprehensible
Elias Bejjani/July 18/2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/07/145329/
The criminality taking place in Syria’s Suwayda province is unacceptable.
Genocide is unacceptable. So is the humiliation of Druze religious leaders, the
shaving of their mustaches, the killing of civilians and unarmed individuals,
the waving of swords in the streets, the burning of a church, the so-called
jihadi invasions, and all other barbaric acts.
These are savage atrocities carried out by Al-Julani’s ISIS followers—disciples
of Al-Shara—who are funded and adapted by Erdogan and Qatar, along with all
branches of political Islam, both Sunni and Shiite. Regardless of how the names
and faces change, they are all cut from the same cloth, rooted in the ideology,
culture, and terrorism of the Muslim Brotherhood and the Iranian mullahs.
In practice, what they are doing in the Syrian Suwayda province has nothing to
do with religion. These barbarians know nothing of faith; they only distort and
defile its image. Likewise, whatever Israel—or any other power—does, whether for
legitimate or illegitimate reasons, can never justify the barbaric crimes
committed by the factions of political Islam across the Middle East, especially
now in Suwayda.
What is both shameful and disgraceful is the blind bias shown by the majority of
major Arab media outlets—particularly those based in the Gulf—which have taken
the side of Al-Shara and his ISIS militants, driven by sectarian fanaticism that
ignores even the most basic rights of the Druze people in Suwayda. This blatant
display of religious bigotry reveals the depth of moral and humanitarian
collapse in these platforms.
As for the official statements issued by Arab governments—including Lebanon,
which remains under Iranian occupation through its jihadi proxy falsely named
Hezbollah—they have overwhelmingly focused on condemning what they term “Israeli
intervention,” employing nauseating, parroted populist rhetoric. These worn-out,
recycled slogans are tailor-made to fit the propaganda of the so-called “Axis of
Resistance,” while not a single word has been uttered about the genocide, forced
displacement, destruction, and systematic terror inflicted upon the Druze of
Suwayda. It is as if their blood is expendable, and their rights not even worthy
of token verbal solidarity.
In short, Al-Julani and his jihadi regime have proven to be “ISIS at its core”
in every sense of the phrase. Notably, despite extensive support from Arab
states—including Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia—as well as the United States,
international actors, and even Israel, Al-Julani has failed, and his regime
stands fully exposed. All the cosmetic efforts to rebrand him—the trimmed beard,
tailored suits, French ties, and Italian shoes—have done nothing to mask the
extremist truth.
Indeed, as the saying goes: He who grows up on something, grows old with it.
Video Link To An Interview
From “Transparency” Youtube Platform with Dr. Walid Phares
Analytical Reading into the following Latest Developments
July 19/2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/07/145391/
1. Lebanese Crisis & Leadership: Dr. Phares delivers a critical
analysis of the current Lebanese crisis, focusing on the lack of decisive action
from Lebanon’s hesitant, ambiguous, and passive political class—described as
watching from the “balcony” while the nation remains under Hezbollah’s
occupation.
2. Hezbollah’s Weapons & Responsibility He calls on Lebanese
officials—especially those responsible for the weapons file—to come down from
the balcony and stop repeating the evasive phrase “We’ll see” (“mnshouf”),
emphasizing the urgency of confronting Hezbollah’s armed dominance and ending
the threat posed by its arsenal.
3. Developments in the Syrian Sweida Druz Province: Dr. Phares comments on the
situation in Sweida, raising critical questions about the future direction of
the conflict in light of the positions adopted by the Charaa regime, Israel, and
the United States.
4. Iran’s Future Post-Strike: The interview also explores the prospective status
of Iran following the recent strikes and the resulting destruction of its
nuclear capabilities. Dr. Phares offers strategic insight into what the region
may expect moving forward.
Druze Sheikh Akl in Lebanon calls for Arab and Turkish sponsorship to reassure
Syrian people
NAJIA HOUSSARI/Arab News/July 19,
2025
BEIRUT: Former Lebanese prime ministers Najib Mikati, Fouad Siniora, and Tammam
Salam announced during their meeting on Saturday with former Progressive
Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt at his home in Beirut their support for
the steps and positions taken by the Syrian state to “heal the national rift in
Syria,” against the backdrop of escalating events in Sweida between the Druze
and the Bedouins. The Sunni former prime ministers emphasized “the need to
prioritize dialogue, openness, and tolerance among our Syrian brothers in order
to nip sedition in the bud, and to do everything possible to strengthen internal
national unity among all Syrian citizens on the basis of citizenship and justice
for all.”The attendees praised Jumblatt’s stance on the ongoing events. They
denounced “Israel’s interference and aggression against Syria, stressing that
this interference in Syria’s internal affairs is unacceptable and condemned. It
aims to fragment and divide the Syrian people, and to incite and turn certain
forces and parties against each other, under the pretext of protecting our true
Arab Druze brothers from the Bani Ma’rouf in Jabal Al-Arab, who believe that
what Israel is doing is the implementation of a malicious, exposed, and
unacceptable plan to perpetuate its occupation of the Syrian Golan.”The
statement issued by the attendees called for “the need to initiate an immediate
ceasefire and affirm full commitment by all parties to it, to free the
kidnapped, lift the siege, and restore public services. They also called for
efforts to establish communication, understanding, and tolerance among all
Syrian citizens to prevent strife and stop the bloodshed. This should then lead
to constructive dialogue among them, based on the unity of the Syrian identity,
the principles of citizenship, the unity of the Syrian homeland, the sovereignty
of a single, capable, and just state, and the integrity of all Syrian
territory.”The attendees stressed “the necessity of an impartial investigation
committee to hold accountable those who instigated the sedition and those who
carried out and perpetrated the killings and attacks against peaceful civilians,
regardless of their affiliation.”Lebanese Army Commander General Rodolphe Heikal
visited the Sheikh of the Druze community, Sheikh Sami Abi Al-Muna. (Supplied)
They also denounced “attempts to exploit the dangerous events in Syria to spread
tension and sedition to Lebanon,” affirming that the Lebanese Army and state
security agencies will stand guard against these malicious and despicable
attempts. Lebanese Army Commander General Rodolphe Heikal visited the Sheikh of
the Druze community, Sheikh Sami Abi Al-Muna, on Saturday evening, accompanied
by Chief of Staff Major General Hassan Odeh. Discussions focused on “ways to
contain the repercussions of the events in Syria on the Lebanese scene and
preserve internal security stability,” according to a statement issued by the
attendees.
Abi Al-Muna called on everyone in Sweida “to unite under the umbrella of the
state.” He said: “However, this places the responsibility on the Syrian state to
reassure its people and instill confidence among the people, so that citizens
will surrender their weapons and commands to it. This is a difficult task, but
not impossible, and Arab and Turkish sponsorship is essential.”Arab tribes in
Lebanon have also taken action to prevent any repercussions from the events in
Sweida. A delegation from the Arab Zreikat tribes visited Sheikh Abi Al-Muna and
affirmed their “solidarity with the Druze community and their condemnation of
the painful events in Sweida Governorate.”Sheikh Abi Al-Muna described what is
happening in Jabal Al-Arab as “something alien to our customs and traditions,
and we are trying to calm our youth so that things do not slide into an absurd
confrontation in Lebanon and undermine coexistence.”Sheikh Kamel Al-Daher, on
behalf of the tribal delegation, stressed the need to “quell the strife in the
face of those who throw words and money at it, and for the Syrian state, headed
by Sharaa, to stop the bloodshed, address the issue, and establish
reconciliation, as is our tradition.”Representatives of the Progressive
Socialist Party, the largest party under which most of Lebanon’s Druze are
united, met this morning with representatives of the Arab tribes in the Bekaa
and agreed that “Lebanon should not be a crossing point for any tensions.”
Legal Complaints Target Hezbollah
Officials in Lebanese Courts
Beirut: Youssef Diab/Asharq Al Awsat/19
July 2025
Legal complaints are mounting against Hezbollah officials in Lebanon, accusing
them of threatening national security and inciting violence against citizens,
calling for the disarmament of all non-state actors, including the powerful
Iran-backed group. The latest complaint was filed by Sami Gemayel, head of the
Kataeb Party and an MP, against Hezbollah's deputy chief for the Bekaa region,
Faisal Shukr. In the filing submitted to the Court of Cassation, Shukr is
accused of “death threats, inciting violence and sectarian strife, and
endangering Lebanon’s sovereignty and unity.” The complaint centers on remarks
made by Shukr during a speech at a Hezbollah-organized Ashura procession in the
Bekaa on July 6. “Whoever calls for disarming the party, we will rip their soul
out,” Shukr said in a video now submitted as evidence. Gemayel’s legal team
argued that the speech amounted to “direct incitement to violence and civil
strife,” calling for Shukr’s arrest and prosecution. This is the second
high-profile legal action against Hezbollah in recent days. A group of lawyers,
journalists, and activists had earlier filed a complaint against Hezbollah
Secretary-General Naim Qassem. The complaint cited Qassem’s open declaration of
support for Iran during its confrontation with the United States following the
Gaza war. The plaintiffs say his statements constitute “a direct threat to
Lebanon’s state policy” and “an incitement to rebellion that endangers Lebanese
lives.”While these legal actions may not advance quickly, observers say they
mark a significant shift in Lebanon’s political landscape. For years, few dared
to challenge Hezbollah through the courts - even after the group’s 2008 military
takeover of parts of Beirut and a string of political assassinations targeting
its critics. But the judiciary, which once routinely dismissed complaints
against the group, is now formally registering them. A judicial source told
Asharq Al-Awsat that while investigations depend on the strength of the
evidence, claims that the judiciary is biased in favor of Hezbollah are “not
entirely accurate.”“All serious cases are documented,” the source said. “But
summoning individuals for questioning is easier when their whereabouts are
known. That’s not always the case with Hezbollah officials.”Beyond high-level
political disputes, a number of Lebanese citizens, particularly southerners
living abroad, have begun filing lawsuits against Hezbollah for allegedly
endangering civilians during the recent war. The complaints accuse the group of
storing weapons under residential buildings and digging tunnels beneath homes
without the owners’ knowledge, which plaintiffs say turned these areas into
targets for Israeli airstrikes.
A legal source said many lawyers refused to take on these cases for fear of
reprisals by Hezbollah supporters. “Some plaintiffs were attacked simply for
inspecting the ruins of their homes,” the source said, adding that business
owners also claimed their shops were looted during the conflict and blamed
Hezbollah for failing to protect property in areas under its control. However,
the judiciary has not yet launched formal investigations into these complaints.
The legal source acknowledged that lawsuits filed against Hezbollah as an
organization, without naming specific individuals, make it harder for courts to
initiate proceedings. The growing number of complaints reflects what some legal
experts call a historic shift. Political activist and lawyer Elie Kairouz said
the public is beginning to shed its fear of challenging Hezbollah, as the
party’s once-firm grip on the state, security agencies, and judiciary weakens.
“The old consensus that the army, people, and resistance form Lebanon’s defense
doctrine is gone,” Kairouz told Asharq Al-Awsat. “Today, the government is
calling for exclusive state control over weapons and is working to enforce
that.” He said Hezbollah’s narrative of defending Lebanon and deterring Israel
has lost traction along with the reverence once attached to its weapons.“The
real turning point,” he said, “will be when courts stop merely registering these
lawsuits and begin issuing rulings. Only then can Lebanese citizens be truly
protected.”
Statement of the Political and National Conference of the
Lebanon Renaissance Gathering:
A Call to Place International Resolutions on Lebanon Under Chapter VII of the
United Nations Charter, Under the Direct Supervision of the UN Security Council
LCCC/July 19, 2025
On Saturday, July 19, 2025, a national political conference was held at the Le
Royal Hotel in Dbayeh, organized by the Lebanon Renaissance Gathering. The event
was convened by key figures including Engineer Alfred Al-Madi (President of the
Other Choice Movement), Professor Hassan Al-Qutb (Director of the Lebanese
Center for Research and Consulting), and Professor Jad Al-Akhawi (President of
the Coalition of Lebanese Democrats). The conference was attended by a broad
spectrum of religious and civic leaders, notably:
His Eminence Bishop Elias Nassar, representing His Beatitude Cardinal Bechara
Al-Rai, Maronite Patriarch of Antioch, Bishop Boulos Matran, representing His
Eminence Elias Audi, Greek Orthodox Metropolitan of Beirut, Sheikh Rashid Khaled
Rabie from Dar Al-Fatwa in Sidon,Sheikh Iyad Abdullah
Also in attendance were numerous spiritual and secular figures, political
activists outside the ruling establishment, as well as independent journalists
and media professionals.
The conference convened amidst the ongoing and alarming deterioration of
Lebanon’s situation, resulting from the hegemony of the armed Hezbollah and the
entrenched grip of the corrupt ruling system. This reality has eroded the
state’s sovereignty and paralyzed any initiative to revive political life or
engage with the rapidly evolving regional landscape. A key feature of the
conference was the reading of an official statement (attached), outlining the
fundamental objectives and principles of the gathering. Chief among these was a
bold call to place all relevant international resolutions on Lebanon under
Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, under direct supervision of the UN
Security Council, as an urgent rescue solution in light of the state’s ongoing
paralysis and inability to act. The gathering stressed that if the state
continues to default on its responsibilities, the Lebanon Renaissance Gathering
would pursue this course of action through all available means in order to
preserve what remains of Lebanon’s statehood and the dignity of its people. The
statement was thoroughly discussed with the participation of over thirty
political movements and civil society organizations. Attendees agreed on the
formation of follow-up committees and underscored the critical need for national
solidarity to achieve urgent national goals that can no longer be delayed.
Aoun, Berri reportedly put final touches on response to US
paper
Naharnet/19 July 2025
President Joseph Aoun met Friday with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri to put the
final touches on Lebanon's response to a U.S. request to disarm Hezbollah, Saudi
news interactive channel al-Hadath said. Aoun who took office in the aftermath
of more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah had vowed a
state monopoly on bearing arms, while demanding Israel comply with a November
ceasefire. Israel has warned it will continue to strike until Hezbollah has been
disarmed. U.S. envoy Thomas Barrack asked Lebanese leaders to formally commit to
disarming Hezbollah in a proposal that reportedly focused on halting hostilities
for a comprehensive and lasting solution to the Lebanese-Israeli conflict, with
a deadline for a complete disarmament of Hezbollah before the end of November.
After that, the reconstruction of war-hit regions can begin, al-Joumhouria
newspaper said Friday.
Salam to Qassem: Hand over weapons to Lebanon, not to
Israel
Naharnet/19 July 2025
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has noted that the paper presented to Lebanon by U.S.
envoy Tom Barrack is for "the implementation of the cessation of hostilities
arrangements and not a new agreement" as Hezbollah chief Sheikh Naim Qassem has
suggested. Responding to Qassem's remarks that Hezbollah will not "hand over its
weapons to Israel," Salam said: "Who has called for handing over the arms to
Israel? It not requires to hand over the weapons to Israel but rather to the
Lebanese state, and the current (Israeli) attacks against these weapons are
regrettable.""We call for the monopolization of arms in the hand of the Lebanese
state exclusively, not in the hand of Israel, the U.S. or the devils," Salam
added. "The majority of the Lebanese are very clear in demanding the
monopolization of arms and the concentration of the war and peace decisions in
the hands of the state exclusively," the premier said. Admitting that the
continued presence of arms in Hezbollah's hands is hindering the reconstruction
process, Salam said there are fears of a possible Israeli escalation. "But in
return we have a chance to seriouslu work on implementing Resolution 1701 and
engage positively with ideas presented by Barrack, because they would lead to a
full Israeli withdrawal and a cessation of hostilities," Salam added. "We have
reservations over the paper and we're working on improving it and adding balance
to some of its points," the PM said, reassuring that "no one will give up the
Lebanese principles." Acknowledging that "had it not been for the resistance's
arms, the South would not have been liberated in 2000," Salam lamented that
"afterwards we missed a major chance to monopolize arms and equip the Lebanese
Army.""And over the past two years, it turned out that arms have not deterred
Israel, because it has done what it has done," Salam added.
Report: Berri tells US Hezbollah to hand over arms if
Israel makes a step
Naharnet/19 July 2025
Friday’s meeting between President Joseph Aoun and Speaker Nabih Berri lasted 45
minutes and was aimed at “coordinating Lebanese stances prior to U.S. envoy Tom
Barrack’s visit” to Lebanon, which will take place on Tuesday, MTV said.
It noted that Barrack’s second paper which was handed by the U.S. embassy to
Lebanese officials included a request that Hezbollah issue a “clear” public
stance on its willingness to hand over its weapons.“Berri gave the Americans
guarantees that Hezbollah would accept to gradually hand over its arms and
endorse the proposed plan if Israel take an encouraging step in this regard,”
MTV added.
Former Prime Ministers meet with Walid Jumblatt, call for
unity amid regional tensions
LBCI/19 July 2025
Former Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) leader Walid Jumblatt received former
Prime Ministers Fouad Siniora, Tammam Salam, and Najib Mikati at his Clemenceau
residence, in the presence of current party leader MP Teymour Jumblatt and MPs
Marwan Hamadeh, Hadi Aboul Hosn, Akram Chehayeb, Wael Abou Faour, Bilal Abdallah,
and Faisal Al Sayegh. Following the meeting, Walid Jumblatt told LBCI, "We
remain committed to the statement issued yesterday and insist on a ceasefire in
Sweida. From there, we can move forward to the next phases."Former Prime
Minister Fouad Siniora expressed full support for Jumblatt's positions, stating,
"We came here to affirm our complete solidarity and support for the national
stances taken by Walid Jumblatt and the Democratic Gathering. We must stand
united to confront the threat of sedition, whether in Syria or to prevent its
spillover into Lebanon."He added, "We have full confidence that the Lebanese
people are capable of resisting this strife, along with the Lebanese Army and
security forces who will be vigilant."Former Prime Minister Tammam Salam echoed
the call for national unity, saying, "This honorable house has always stood up
to protect our national unity and the legacy of Lebanon."
Israeli army says Hezbollah's Radwan Force member killed in
South Lebanon airstrike
LBCI/19 July 2025
The Israeli army announced it had carried out an airstrike earlier on Saturday,
claiming it had targeted a member of Hezbollah's Radwan Force in South Lebanon.
According to army spokesperson Avichay Adraee, the strike hit a site in the town
of Khiam, where the operative was allegedly involved in efforts to rebuild
infrastructure. Adraee claimed the actions of the Hezbollah member violated
understandings between Israel and Lebanon, adding that the Israeli army "will
continue to eliminate any threat to Israel."
Israeli airstrike on motorcycle in South Lebanon's Yohmor
al-Shaqif kills one
LBCI/19 July 2025
An Israeli airstrike targeted a motorcycle in the town of Yohmor al-Shaqif in
the Nabatieh district, according to the National News Agency (NNA). The attack
resulted in the death of one individual, with initial reports also indicating
additional injuries.
Lebanese Health Ministry: One killed in South Lebanon's Khiam
LBCI/19 July 2025
Lebanon's Health Ministry reported that one person in the southern town of Khiam
was killed on Saturday following an Israeli strike.
Qassem says to talk 'defense strategy' after 'existential threat' ends
Naharnet/19 July 2025
Hezbollah chief Sheikh Naim Qassem has said that his group senses the presence
of an “existential threat,” citing Israel’s “genocidal war” in Gaza, its attacks
on Syria and Iran, the new Islamist rulers in Damascus, and the sectarian
massacres in Syria. “There is an existential threat to the resistance, the
resistance’s environment and the resistance’s supporters, as well as an
existential threat to Lebanon with all its sects,” Qassem said in a televised
speech commemorating slain Hezbollah commander Ali Karaki. “Today, if a decision
is taken, (Syria-based extremist Sunni fighters) do not need a long time to come
through eastern Lebanon to Lebanon to carry out extraordinary attacks. Today we
are before a real Israeli threat and a threat from Israel’s proxies that can be
used one way or another,” Qassem warned. He added that Hezbollah is ready to
“defend” against any new Israeli attack on Lebanon. “If we defend and incur
major losses, and this is expected if we defend, we would have hope that
confrontation might enable us to block them and open a door to solutions and
liberation,” Qassem said. Addressing those in Lebanon calling for Hezbollah’s
disarmament, Qassem said: “Be confident that after we eliminate this threat, and
after the needed is achieved, we will be willing to discuss the national
security strategy and the defense strategy and to achieve results that serve
Lebanon’s strength and Lebanon’s continuity.” “I call on you not to offer a
service to Israel. Together we can be stronger and through confrontation America
cannot achieve its goals,” he added. “We are ready for confrontation to achieve
one of two good things: victory or martyrdom. We do not have surrender. We will
not submit to Israel and Israel will not be handed over the weapons by us,”
Qassem went on to say. He added: “We are ready for any action that leads to
Lebanese understandings, Lebanese capability and Lebanese strength. But we will
not give this under any form of threats … Let no one think of such a course.”“We
know that confrontation would be very costly, but surrender would leave us with
nothing,” Qassem said. Noting that Hezbollah would not initiate any attack on
Israel but would rather “defend if Israel attacks,” the Hezbollah leader called
on everyone “not to bet on an inter-Shiite rift” between Hezbollah and Speaker
Nabih Berri, nor on a dispute among President Joseph Aoun, Berri and PM Nawaf
Salam.
Aoun, Berri and Salam are “cooperating” and “have enough wisdom and awareness
and recognition of threats and reality in order to pull the country out of its
crisis in a proper way,” Qassem added.
Strida Geagea at the
opening of the Cedars International Festival: We are back, Lebanon, and stronger
than before
Al-Markaziya/July 19, 2025
At the opening evening of the Cedars International Festival, under the title "We
are back, Lebanon," MP Strida Geagea delivered a moving speech in which she
emphasized the symbolism of return and resilience, saying: "How can we not
return when we are more than capable of returning? From the fear of destruction,
we have returned, and to the spaciousness of the life we deserve, we have set
out. We are back, Lebanon, we are back, Cedars International Festival, after a
forced hiatus... We are back stronger than before, for this Lebanon is the
phoenix, drawing strength from its ashes to soar higher." Geagea extended a
special greeting to the people of Bsharri, saying: "My people in Bsharri, these
festivals are for you, so raise your heads and be proud: Here is Bsharri, here
are the cedars of the Lord, here is creativity and universality." In a message
of support to Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, she said, "I wish you all the best in
your difficult mission, which is possible with the cooperation of all those
dedicated to building a strong and capable state." She concluded her remarks
with a tribute to Dr. Samir Geagea: "To the love of my life and my companion, to
the revolutionary inspiration and greatest supporter of the progress march, I
will not say thank you, because thank you is achieved by achieving more."
Clemenceau Meeting:
Condemning Attempts to Exploit Events in Syria to Transfer Tensions to Lebanon
Al-Markaziya/July 19, 2025
Former Presidents Najib Mikati, Fouad Siniora, and Tammam Salam called on former
Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt in Clemenceau, in the presence
of Democratic Gathering leader MP Taymour Jumblatt and members of the Democratic
Gathering. The meeting aimed to "stand by their side and support them in their
important and courageous Arab and national stance during this difficult period
that Lebanon is going through, during which our brothers in Syria and our Arab
countries and peoples are suffering greatly, and in the midst of the criminal
war that Israel continues to wage against Lebanon, Gaza, the West Bank, and
Syria." The attendees denounced "Israel's aggression, occupation, and
reprehensible and unacceptable interference in Syria's internal affairs, which
aims to fragment, sow discord, and divide the Syrian people. Through this,
Israel seeks to incite and pit certain forces and parties against each other,
claiming to be protecting our Arab Druze brothers from the Bani Ma'rouf in Jabal
al-Arab, who believe that Israel's actions are merely the implementation of a
malicious, exposed, and unacceptable plan aimed at perpetuating its occupation
of the Syrian Golan Heights." They called on the people of "this afflicted
region and the brotherly Syrian people to rise above these painful wounds,"
asking God to "envelop the victims in His vast mercy and to hasten the recovery
of the wounded and bereaved." The attendees also emphasized that everyone
"should act on the basis that the blood, honor, and property of a believer are
sacred to another believer. Therefore, the attendees emphasize the need to
initiate an immediate ceasefire and affirm full commitment by all parties to it,
as well as to free the kidnapped, lift the siege, and restore public services.
They also emphasized the need to work to establish communication, understanding,
and tolerance among all Syrian citizens to prevent strife and stop the
bloodshed. They also emphasized the need to initiate constructive dialogue among
them, based on the unity of the Syrian identity, the principles of citizenship
that embraces and accepts all its national components, the unity of Syria as a
nation, the sovereignty of a single, capable, and just Syrian state, and the
integrity of all Syrian territory and national soil." The attendees also
emphasized the need for an impartial investigation committee to hold accountable
those who instigated strife and those who carried out and perpetrated the
killings and attacks against peaceful civilians in their villages, homes, and
businesses, regardless of their affiliation. They praised "the courageous and
firm national and pan-Arab stances taken by leader Walid Jumblatt. They also
value the national stances issued by the meeting of the Druze Religious Council,
at the invitation of Sheikh al-Aql Sheikh Sami Abi al-Mona, which confront plans
to divide the national ranks. Through their national and pan-Arab stances, they
block the path to this malicious conspiracy." The attendees denounced "attempts
to exploit the dangerous events in Syria to transfer tension and strife to
Lebanon. They condemn every action that leads to inciting hateful sectarian and
religious strife in Lebanon. They are fully confident that the Lebanese will
confront such attempts with their wisdom, solidarity, and sense of Lebanese Arab
nationalism, and that the Lebanese Army and all Lebanese state security agencies
will stand guard against these malicious and despicable attempts." They
expressed their support for the steps and positions "taken by the Syrian state
to heal this national rift," and they appreciated "its emphasis on promoting
dialogue, openness, and tolerance among our Syrian brothers in order to nip
sedition in the bud, and to do everything possible to strengthen internal
national unity among all Syrian citizens on the basis of citizenship and justice
for all."
Salam visited Al-Rahi in Diman. What did he say about
Bkerke's role?
Al-Markazia/July 19, 2025
Prime Minister Dr. Nawaf Salam met with Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Mar Bechara
Boutros Al-Rahi in Diman. The occasion was an opportunity to discuss the current
situation. President Salam stressed the importance of the role played by Bkerke
in consolidating national principles and strengthening partnership among the
Lebanese.
Geagea's Calls Regarding the "Crisis in Sweida"
CNN/July 19, 2025
Lebanese Forces Party Leader Samir Geagea issued the following statement:
"Lebanese Forces Party Leader Samir Geagea held a lengthy call with the Sheikh
Aql of the Druze community in Lebanon, Sheikh Sami Abi Al-Mona. He also called
the head of the Progressive Socialist Party, MP Taymour Jumblatt. The
conversation focused on the crisis in Sweida, the need to maintain stability in
Lebanon, and the affirmation that the Lebanese state is the sole source of
protection for all Lebanese."
FPM leader Bassil: Decentralization is key to reforming the
state, and there is no longer any impediment for the return of refugees to Syria
LBCI/19 July 2025
The head of the Free Patriotic Movement, MP Gebran Bassil, stated that
administrative decentralization is the foundation of the Taif Agreement and a
key to reforming the state, stressing that it remains hostage to a centralized
system that fears losing control over citizens' affairs. Speaking at a
conference, Bassil said decentralization strengthens state unity and has nothing
to do with partition or federalism. "If we genuinely want balanced development,
there's no reason to fear decentralization," he added. On the topic of municipal
and mukhtar elections, Bassil said: "We encouraged consensus and created a
positive atmosphere. Municipalities are not meant for political battles, and we
had a clear presence."On the issue of displacement, Bassil stressed that Lebanon
is a country that embraces all cultures and nationalities, pointing out at the
same time that Syrian displacement and Palestinian refugees are two facets of
resettlement, which is contrary to the constitution. "We cannot rely on a
centralized plan regarding Syrian displacement, and municipalities have broad
powers in this field," he said. He emphasized that there is no longer any
impediment to the return of refugees to Syria, noting that illegal immigration
is changing Lebanon's identity.
The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on July 19-20/2025
Clashes rage in Druze region as Syria struggles to enforce fragile
ceasefire
Reuters/July 19, 2025
DAMASCUS: Sectarian clashes escalated in Syria’s predominantly Druze region of
Sweida on Saturday, with machine gun fire and mortar shelling ringing out after
days of bloodshed as the Islamist-led government struggled to implement a
ceasefire. Reuters reporters heard gunfire from inside the city of Sweida and
saw shells land in nearby villages. There were no immediate, confirmed reports
of casualties. The government had said security forces were deploying in the
southern region to try to keep peace, and urged all parties to stop fighting
after nearly a week of factional bloodshed in which hundreds have been killed.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based monitoring group, said
clashes since last week around Sweida had killed at least 940 people. Reuters
could not independently verify the toll. Interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa said
“Arab and American” mediation had helped restore calm, before the clashes
escalated. He criticized Israel for airstrikes during the week.
VIOLENCE IN DRUZE REGION CHALLENGES DAMASCUS
The fighting is the latest challenge to the control of Sharaa’s
Islamist-dominated government, which took over after rebels toppled autocratic
president Bashar Assad in December. It started last week as clashes between the
Druze — a religious minority native to southern Syria, the Israeli-occupied
Golan Heights and parts of Lebanon and Jordan — and Syrian Bedouin tribes.
Government forces then arrived to try to quell tensions, clashing with Druze
gunmen and attacking the Druze community. Saturday’s violence once again pitted
Druze against Bedouin, witnesses said. The fighting has drawn in neighboring
Israel, which carried out airstrikes in southern Syria and on the Defense
Ministry in Damascus this week while government forces were fighting with the
Druze. Israel says it is protecting the Druze, who also form a significant
minority in Israel. But Israel and Washington differ over Syria. The US supports
a centralized Syria under Sharaa’s government, which has pledged to rule for all
citizens, while Israel says the government is dominated by jihadists and a
danger to minorities.In March, Syria’s military was involved in mass killings of
members of the Alawite minority, to which much of Assad’s elite belonged. Tribal
and Bedouin fighters cross the Al-Dur village in Syria's southern Sweida
governorate as they mobilize amid clashes with Druze gunmen on July 18, 2025. (AFP)
ISRAEL-SYRIA TENSIONS
In a statement on Saturday, the Syrian presidency announced an immediate
ceasefire and urged an immediate end to hostilities. The interior ministry said
internal forces had begun deploying. Sharaa said Syria would not be a “testing
ground for partition, secession, or sectarian incitement.”“The Israeli
intervention pushed the country into a dangerous phase that threatened its
stability,” he said in a televised speech. Sharaa appeared to blame Druze gunmen
for the latest clashes, accusing them of revenge attacks against Bedouins.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said Sharaa was siding with the
perpetrators. “In Al-Shara’s Syria, it is very dangerous to be a member of a
minority — Kurd, Druze, Alawite, or Christian,” he posted on X. US envoy Tom
Barrack announced on Friday that Syria and Israel had agreed to a ceasefire.
Barrack, who is both US ambassador to Turkiye and Washington’s Syria envoy,
urged Druze, Bedouins and Sunnis, together with other minorities, to “build a
new and united Syrian identity.”Israel has attacked Syrian military facilities
in the seven months since Assad fell, and says it wants areas of southern Syria
near its border to remain demilitarised. On Friday, an Israeli official said
Israel had agreed to allow Syrian forces limited access to Sweida for two days.
SWEIDA HOSPITAL FILLS WITH CASUALTIES
Mansour Namour, a resident of a village near Sweida city, said mortar shells
were still landing near his home on Saturday afternoon, and that at least 22
people had been wounded. A doctor in Sweida said a local hospital was full of
bodies and wounded people from days of violence. “All the injuries are from
bombs, some people with their chests wounded. There are also injuries to limbs
from shrapnel,” said Omar Obeid, director of the hospital.
US announces Syria-Israel truce as new clashes rock Druze
heartland
Agence France Presse/19 July 2025
The United States said early Saturday that it had negotiated a ceasefire between
Israel and Syria's government as new clashes erupted in Syria's Druze heartland
following violence that prompted massive Israeli strikes. At least 638 people
have died since Sunday in violence between the Druze and Bedouins, according to
the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, drawing questions over the authority of
Syria's interim leader Ahmed al-Sharaa. Israel intervened Wednesday with major
strikes in the heart of the capital Damascus, including hitting the army's
headquarters. Tom Barrack, the U.S. pointman on Syria, said in the early hours
of Saturday in the Middle East that Sharaa and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu "have agreed to a ceasefire" negotiated by the United States. Barrack,
who is U.S. ambassador to Ankara, said the deal was backed by Turkey, a key
supporter of Sharaa, as well as neighboring Jordan. "We call upon Druze,
Bedouins and Sunnis to put down their weapons and together with other minorities
build a new and united Syrian identity in peace and prosperity with its
neighbors," he wrote on X. The United States on Wednesday announced an earlier
deal in which Sharaa pulled government forces out of Sweida, the southern hub of
the Druze minority. Sharaa said the mediation helped avert a "large-scale
escalation" with Israel but his office accused Druze fighters of violating it.
Sharaa's office on Friday evening pledged to deploy fresh forces to the region
to break up further clashes in the south, urging "all parties to exercise
restraint and prioritize reason." Renewed fighting erupted Friday between
Bedouin tribal factions and the Druze at the entrance to Sweida, an AFP
correspondent said. About 200 tribal fighters clashed with armed Druze men from
the city using machine guns and shells, the AFP correspondent said, while the
Syrian Observatory also reported fighting and shelling on neighborhoods in
Sweida. In the corridors of the Sweida National Hospital, a foul odor emanated
from the swollen and disfigured bodies piled up in refrigerated storage units,
an AFP correspondent reported. A small number of doctors and nurses at the
hospital worked to treat the wounded arriving from the ongoing clashes, some in
the hallways. Omar Obeid, a doctor at the government hospital, told AFP that the
facility has received "more than 400 bodies" since Monday morning. "There is no
more room in the morgue. The bodies are in the street" in front of the hospital,
added Obeid, president of the Sweida branch of the Order of Physicians. The
U.N.'s International Organization for Migration on Friday said that 79,339
people have been displaced since Sunday, including 20,019 on Thursday alone.
Tribal back-up -
Tribal reinforcements from across Syria gathered in villages around Sweida on
Friday to reinforce local Bedouin, whose longstanding enmity towards the Druze
erupted into violence last weekend. Anas al-Enad, a tribal chief from the
central city of Hama, said he and his men had made the journey to the village of
Walgha, northwest of Sweida, because "the Bedouin called for our help and we
came to support them".An AFP correspondent saw burning homes and shops in the
village, now under the control of the Bedouin and their allies.
Israel, which has its own sizable Druze community, said Friday that it was
sending support valued at nearly $600,000, including food and medical supplies,
to Druze in Sweida. Israel has vowed to defend the Druze community, although
some diplomats and analysts say its goal is to weaken the military in Syria, its
historic adversary, seeing it at a weak point since Sharaa's Sunni Islamists
toppled Bashar al-Assad, an Iranian ally, in December.
- U.N. demands independent probe -
Rayan Maarouf, editor-in-chief of local news outlet Suwayda 24, said the
humanitarian situation was "catastrophic"."We cannot find milk for children," he
told AFP. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk called for an end
to the bloodshed and "independent, prompt and transparent investigations into
all violations."The International Committee for the Red Cross warned that health
facilities were overwhelmed, with power cuts impeding the preservation of bodies
in overflowing morgues. "The humanitarian situation in Sweida is critical.
People are running out of everything," said Stephan Sakalian, the head of ICRC's
delegation in Syria."Hospitals are increasingly struggling to treat the wounded
and the sick, and families are unable to bury their loved ones in dignity," he
said. The latest violence erupted Sunday after the kidnapping of a Druze
vegetable merchant by local Bedouin triggered tit-for-tat abductions, the
Britain-based Observatory said.
Syrian security forces begin deploying in Sweida province
Agence France Presse/19 July 2025
Syrian security forces have begun deploying in the Druze-majority province of
Sweida, where sectarian violence has left more than 700 people dead, the
interior ministry said on Saturday. "Internal security forces have begun
deploying in Sweida province... with the aim of protecting civilians and putting
an end to the chaos," ministry spokesman Noureddine al-Baba said in a statement
on Telegram.
France urges all sides to respect Syria ceasefire
AFP/19 July 2025
France's foreign ministry urged all sides to respect a ceasefire announced on
Saturday for Syria's Sweida, where tribal fighters have continued to clash with
Druze fighters despite the truce."France welcomes the announcement of a
ceasefire in the Sweida region. It urges all parties to strictly adhere to it,"
the ministry said. "Fighting and violence must cease immediately."
Syrian Presidency Says Ceasefire in Place, Urges Parties to
Respect it
Asharq Al Awsat/19 July 2025
The Syrian government said its internal security forces began deploying in
Sweida on Saturday as the presidency called on all parties to respect a
ceasefire following bloodshed in the area that has left hundreds dead. In a
statement, the Syrian presidency announced an immediate and comprehensive
ceasefire and urged all parties to commit to it and end hostilities in all areas
immediately. The country's interior ministry spokesperson said earlier on
Saturday that internal security forces had begun deploying in Sweida, in
southern Syria. US envoy Tom Barrack announced on Friday that Syria and Israel
had agreed to a ceasefire. Israel intervened in the conflict earlier this week,
hitting government forces and the defense ministry building in Damascus as it
declared support for the Druze minority. Syria's Sweida province has been
engulfed by nearly a week of violence which began with clashes between Bedouin
fighters and Druze factions, before drawing in government security forces that
were sent to the area by Damascus.
Syria Reportedly Believed it Had Green Light from US, Israel to
Deploy Troops to Sweida
Asharq Al Awsat/19 July 2025
Syria's government misread how Israel would respond to its troops deploying to
the country's south this week, encouraged by US messaging that Syria should be
governed as a centralized state, eight sources familiar with the matter told
Reuters. Israel carried out strikes on Syrian troops and on Damascus on
Wednesday in an escalation that took the leadership by surprise, the sources
said, after government forces were accused of killing scores of people in the
Druze city of Sweida. Damascus believed it had a green light from both the US
and Israel to dispatch its forces south despite months of Israeli warnings not
to do so, according to the sources, which include Syrian political and military
officials, two diplomats, and regional security sources. That understanding was
based on public and private comments from US special envoy for Syria Thomas
Barrack, as well as on nascent security talks with Israel, the sources said.
Barrack has called for Syria to be centrally administered as "one country"
without autonomous zones. Syria's understanding of US and Israeli messages
regarding its troop deployment to the south has not been previously reported. A
State Department spokesperson declined to comment on private diplomatic
discussions but said the United States supported the territorial unity of Syria.
"The Syrian state has an obligation to protect all Syrians, including minority
groups," the spokesperson said, urging the Syrian government to hold
perpetrators of violence accountable. In response to Reuters questions, a senior
official from Syria's ministry of foreign affairs denied that Barrack's comments
had influenced the decision to deploy troops, which was made based on "purely
national considerations" and with the aim of "stopping the bloodshed, protecting
civilians and preventing the escalation of civil conflict.” Damascus sent troops
and tanks to Sweida province on Monday to quell fighting between Bedouin tribes
and armed factions within the Druze community. Syrian forces entering the city
came under fire from Druze fighters, according to Syrian sources. Subsequent
violence attributed to Syrian troops triggered Israeli strikes on Syrian
security forces, the defense ministry in Damascus and the environs of the
presidential palace. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel intervened to
block Syrian troops from entering southern Syria - which Israel has publicly
said should be a demilitarized zone - and to uphold a longstanding commitment to
protect the Druze.
Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa has vowed to hold accountable those responsible
for violations against the Druze. He blamed "outlaw groups" seeking to inflame
tensions for any crimes against civilians and did not say whether government
forces were involved.
The US and others quickly intervened to secure a ceasefire by Wednesday evening.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the flare-up as a "misunderstanding"
between Israel and Syria. A Syrian and a Western source familiar with the matter
said Damascus believed that talks with Israel as recently as last week in Baku
produced an understanding over the deployment of troops to southern Syria to
bring Sweida under government control. Netanyahu's office declined to comment in
response Reuters' questions.
Israel said on Friday it had agreed to allow limited access by Syrian forces
into Sweida for the next two days. Soon after, Syria said it would deploy a
force dedicated to ending the communal clashes, which continued into Saturday
morning.
Syria's Hospital in Sweida a ‘Mass Grave’
Sweida: Asharq Al Awsat/Asharq Al Awsat/19 July 2025
In the last barely-functional hospital in Sweida, bodies are overflowing from
the morgue, staff said, amid violence that has wracked the Druze-majority
southern Syrian city for nearly a week. “It's not a hospital anymore, it's a
mass grave,” Rouba, a member of the medical staff at the city's sole government
hospital, told AFP, weeping as she appealed for aid.Dr. Omar Obeid, who heads
the Sweida division at Syria's Order of Physicians, said the facility has
received “more than 400 bodies since Monday morning,” including women, children
and the elderly. “There's no more space in the morgue, the bodies are out on the
street” in front of the hospital, he told AFP. Fighting erupted Sunday night
between Druze fighters and local Bedouin tribes before Syrian government forces
intervened on Monday with the stated intention of quelling the violence. The
government forces withdrew from the city on Thursday following Israeli
airstrikes on southern Syria and the capital, Damascus. In the hospital on
Friday, corridors were engulfed by the stench of the dead bodies, which had
bloated beyond recognition, an AFP correspondent said. Visibly overwhelmed, the
handful of medical personnel remaining at the facility nonetheless rushed to do
their best to offer care to the seemingly endless stream of wounded, many of
them waiting in the hallways. “There are only nine doctors and medical staff
left, and they are working nonstop,” said Rouba, who preferred not to give her
full name. “The situation is very bad, we have no water and no electricity,
medicines are starting to run out,” Rouba continued.“There are people who have
been at home for three days and we can't manage to rescue them,” she said. “The
bodies are on the streets and no one can go out to get them. Yesterday, five big
cars filled with bodies arrived at the hospital,” Rouba added. “There are women,
children, people whose identities are unknown, cut-off arms or legs.”
The United Nations on Friday urged an end to the bloodshed, demanding
“independent, prompt and transparent investigations into all
violations.”
US envoy praises Jordan’s role in ceasefire efforts in Syria’s
Sweida region after meeting FM
Arab News/July 19, 2025
AMMAN: Jordanian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ayman
Safadi met on Saturday with US ambassador to Turkiye and Special Envoy for Syria
Thomas Barrack and his Syrian counterpart Asaad Al-Shaibani to discuss recent
developments in Syria, the Jordan News Agency reported. Their discussions had a
particular focus on consolidating the fragile ceasefire in the southern Sweida
governorate, JNA added. The talks also addressed the importance of enforcing the
ceasefire to safeguard Syria’s unity, protect civilians and uphold the rule of
law, amid concerns over instability and violence in the region.Safadi reiterated
Jordan’s full support for Syria’s security, stability, sovereignty and
territorial integrity, and stressed that peace in Syria remained a cornerstone
of broader regional stability. He also expressed appreciation for Washington’s
diplomatic role, saying: “The United States plays a key role in bringing about a
ceasefire and in protecting Syria’s security and stability and the safety of its
people.”Safadi underscored the strength of the partnership and cooperation
between Amman and Washington on Syria-related issues. The foreign minister went
on to condemn repeated Israeli strikes on Syrian territory, denouncing them as
“a blatant violation of international law and a breach of Syria’s sovereignty,
which threatens its security, stability, unity, and the safety of its
people.”For his part, Barrack praised Jordan’s leadership in regional affairs.
“Grateful for the partnership of FM Ayman Safadi today as we operationalize the
ceasefire in Suwayda,” he wrote on X following the meeting. “The Hashemite
Kingdom of Jordan plays a critical leadership role in the region, and we are
making positive steps to support a unified, stable Syria at peace with its
neighbors, including our Jordanian allies,” he added. The meeting comes amid a
renewed diplomatic push to de-escalate tensions in Syria’s south, where tribal,
political and external dynamics continue to shape the fragile post-Assad regime
landscape.
At least 32 killed by Israeli fire while seeking aid in Gaza, hospital says
Reuters/July 19, 2025
GAZA: At least 32 people were killed by Israeli fire while they were on their
way to an aid distribution site in Gaza at dawn on Saturday, according to the
Gaza Health Ministry and Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis. The Israeli military
said it had fired warning shots at suspects who approached its troops after they
did not heed calls to stop, about a kilometer away from an aid distribution site
that was not active at the time. Gaza resident Mohammed Al-Khalidi said he was
in the group approaching the site and heard no warnings before the firing began.
“We thought they came out to organize us so we can get aid, suddenly (I) saw the
jeeps coming from one side, and the tanks from the other and started shooting at
us,” he said. The Gaza Humanitarian Fund, a US-backed group which runs the aid
site, said there were no incidents or fatalities there on Saturday and that it
has repeatedly warned people not to travel to its distribution points at dark.
“The reported IDF (Israel defense Forces) activity resulting in fatalities
occurred hours before our sites opened and our understanding is most of the
casualties occurred several kilometers away from the nearest GHF site,” it said.
The Israeli military said it was reviewing the incident.
DEATHS NEAR AID SITES
GHF uses private US security and logistics companies to get supplies into Gaza,
largely bypassing a UN-led system that Israel alleges has let Hamas-led
militants loot aid shipments intended for civilians. Hamas denies the
accusation. The UN has called the GHF’s model unsafe and a breach of
humanitarian impartiality standards, which GHF denies. On Tuesday, the UN rights
office in Geneva said it had recorded at least 875 killings within the past six
weeks in the vicinity of aid sites and food convoys in Gaza — the majority of
them close to GHF distribution points. Most of those deaths were caused by
gunfire that locals have blamed on the Israeli military. The military has
acknowledged that civilians were harmed, saying that Israeli forces had been
issued new instructions with “lessons learned.”At least 18 more people were
killed in other Israeli attacks across Gaza on Saturday, health officials said.
The Israeli military said that it had struck militants’ weapon depots and
sniping posts in a few locations in the enclave. The war began when Hamas-led
militants stormed into Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people, mostly
civilians and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza. The Israeli military campaign
against Hamas in Gaza has since killed around 58,000 Palestinians, most of them
civilians according to health officials, displaced almost the entire population
and plunged the enclave into a humanitarian crisis, leaving much of the
territory in ruins. Israel and Hamas are engaged in indirect talks in Qatar
aimed at reaching a 60-day ceasefire though there has been no sign of any
imminent breakthrough.
Report: Israel Seeks US Help on Deals to
Move Palestinians Out of Gaza
Washington: Asharq Al Awsat/19 July
2025
The director of Israel’s Mossad agency, David Barnea, visited Washington this
week seeking US help in convincing countries to take hundreds of thousands of
Palestinians from Gaza, two sources with knowledge of the issue told Axios on
Friday. Barnea told White House envoy Steve Witkoff that Israel has been
speaking in particular with Ethiopia, Indonesia and Libya. “In their meeting
earlier this week, Barnea told Witkoff that Ethiopia, Indonesia and Libya had
expressed openness to receiving large numbers of Palestinians from Gaza,” the
two sources said. Barnea suggested that the US offer incentives to those
countries and help Israel convince them. One source said that Witkoff was
non-committal, and it is not clear if the US will actively weigh in on this
issue. In February, US President Donald Trump proposed the removal of all two
million Palestinians from Gaza to rebuild the enclave. But the White House
cooled on the idea after getting significant pushback from Arab countries, US
officials say, and it hasn't gone anywhere. Israeli officials say the Trump
administration told them that if Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants to pursue this idea, Israel needs to find
countries that are willing to take Palestinians from Gaza. Netanyahu tasked
Israel’s Mossad foreign intelligence agency with finding countries that would
agree to receive large numbers of Palestinians displaced from the Gaza
Strip.
US envoy urges accountability for church attack in West Bank village
AFP/July 19, 2025
TAYBEH, Palestinian Territories: The US ambassador to Israel on Saturday visited
a Christian village in the occupied West Bank and urged accountability for an
attack on an ancient church, which residents have blamed on Israeli settlers. In
early July, the village of Taybeh was hit by an arson attack in the area of the
ruins of the Byzantine-era Church of Saint George, which dates back to the fifth
century. Residents blamed settlers for the assault, which comes as violence
soars in the West Bank and last week saw an American-Palestinian man killed near
Ramallah. Ambassador Mike Huckabee, an evangelical Christian and staunch
advocate for Israel, said his trip to Taybeh aimed to “express solidarity with
the people who just want to live their lives in peace, to be able to go to their
own land, to be able to go to their place of worship.”“It doesn’t matter whether
it’s a mosque, a church, a synagogue,” he told journalists. “It’s unacceptable
to commit an act of sacrilege by desecrating a place that is supposed to be a
place of worship.”“We will certainly insist that those who carry out acts of
terror and violence in Taybeh or anywhere be found, be prosecuted, not just
reprimanded. That’s not enough,” he said. “People need to pay a price for doing
something that destroys that which belongs not just to other people, but that
which belongs to God.” In the villages and communities around Taybeh,
Palestinian authorities reported that settlers had killed three people and
damaged or destroyed multiple water sources in the past two weeks alone. Israel
has occupied the West Bank since 1967 and violence has surged in the territory
since the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023 triggered the Gaza war. Since then,
Israeli troops or settlers have killed at least 957 Palestinians, including many
militants, in the West Bank, according to health ministry figures. Over the same
period, at least 36 Israelis, including soldiers, have been killed in
Palestinian attacks or during Israeli military operations, according to official
figures. Huckabee, who has for years been an outspoken supporter of Jewish
settlement in the Palestinian territories, on Tuesday demanded an aggressive
investigation and consequences after settlers beat to death a
Palestinian-American in the West Bank. It was a sign of rare public pressure
against US ally Israel by President Donald Trump’s administration.
Yemen’s Foreign Ministry: Iran’s Arming of
Houthis Hinders Peace, Fuels Conflict
Riyadh: Abdulhadi Habtor/Asharq Al
Awsat/19 July 2025
Yemen’s Deputy Foreign Minister Mustapha Noman sharply criticized what he
described as Iran’s ongoing “hostile policies” against the Yemeni people,
accusing Tehran of persistently arming the Houthi movement with large quantities
of weapons that prolong the country’s devastating conflict. Speaking to Asharq
Al-Awsat, Noman said Iran should have learned “harsh lessons” from the thousands
killed across the Arab world and the destruction of vital infrastructure that
has drained regional resources. Instead, he said, Tehran continues to supply its
allies with arms, fueling “ventures that bring misery to Yemenis.” His remarks
came two days after Yemen’s National Resistance forces (NRF), led by Brig. Gen.
Tariq Saleh, thwarted a major Iranian arms smuggling attempt off the coast of
Hodeidah in western Yemen. The intercepted shipment reportedly included advanced
sea-to-air and air-to-air missile systems, air defense units, modern radar
equipment, drones, surveillance devices, and anti-tank missiles destined for the
Houthis. Noman praised the Coast Guard’s “precision operation” launched from
their bases in Al-Mokha, calling it “a reassuring signal of vigilance and
readiness.” He urged recognition of the “tremendous efforts” by the National
Resistance and Coast Guard forces despite limited technical and military
resources. Moreover, Noman condemned Iran’s actions as obstructing United
Nations-led peace efforts in Yemen. “It is regrettable that Iran persists in
hostile policies against the Yemeni people by continuing to arm the Houthis with
large quantities of weapons that negatively impact efforts to end the conflict,”
he said. He added that instead of supporting peace, the Iranian government
“continues to place obstacles in the path of every peace initiative led by UN
envoy Hans Grundberg.”Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, commander of US Central Command
(CENTCOM), praised the actions of the NRF saying. “We commend the legitimate
government forces of Yemen who continue to interdict the flow of Iranian
munitions bound for the Houthis,” he said. “The interdiction of this massive
Iranian shipment shows that Iran remains the most destabilizing actor in the
region. Limiting the free flow of Iranian support to the Houthis is critical to
regional security, stability, and freedom of navigation,” he added.
Ukraine proposes
fresh peace talks with Russia next week
AFP/July 19, 2025
KYIV: Kyiv has proposed to Moscow a new round of peace talks next week,
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said Saturday, after negotiations stalled
in early June. Two rounds of talks in Istanbul between Moscow and Kyiv have
failed to result in any progress toward a ceasefire, instead yielding
large-scale prisoner exchanges and deals to return the bodies of killed
soldiers. “Security Council Secretary Umerov also reported that he had proposed
the next meeting with the Russian side for next week,” Zelensky said in his
evening address. “The momentum of the negotiations must be stepped up,” he
added. Zelensky reiterated his readiness to have a face-to-face sitdown with
Putin. “A meeting at the leadership level is needed to truly ensure peace —
lasting peace,” he said. At talks last month, Russia outlined a list of
hard-line demands, including calls for Ukraine to cede more territory and to
reject all forms of Western military support. Kyiv dismissed them as
unacceptable and at the time questioned the point of further negotiations if
Moscow was not willing to make concessions. The Kremlin said earlier this month
it was ready to continue talks with Ukraine after US President Donald Trump gave
Russia 50 days to strike a peace deal or face sanctions. Trump also pledged to
supply Kyiv with new military aid, sponsored by NATO allies, as its cities
suffer ever-increasing Russian aerial attacks. Russian strikes on Ukraine
claimed another three lives Saturday.
Sudan crisis worsens as violence escalates
in Kordofan and Darfur
AP/July 19, 2025
CAIRO: Fighting in Sudan’s Kordofan region that has killed hundreds and ongoing
violence in Darfur — the epicenters of the country’s conflict — have worsened
Sudan’s humanitarian crisis, with aid workers warning of limited access to
assistance. The UN said more than 450 civilians, including at least 35 children,
were killed during the weekend of July 12 in attacks in villages surrounding the
town of Bara in North Kordofan province. “The suffering in Kordofan deepens with
each passing day,” Mercy Corps Country Director for Sudan, Kadry Furany, said in
a statement. “Communities are trapped along active and fast-changing front
lines, unable to flee, unable to access basic needs or lifesaving
assistance.”Sudan plunged into war after simmering tensions between the army and
its rival, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, escalated to fighting
in April 2023.
BACKGROUND
The violence has killed at least 40,000 people and created one of the world’s
worst displacement and hunger crises. In recent months, much of the fighting has
been concentrated in the Darfur and Kordofan regions. On Thursday, the UN human
rights office confirmed that since July 10, the RSF has killed at least 60
civilians in the town of Bara, while civil society groups reported up to 300
people were killed, the office said. A military airstrike on Thursday in Bara
killed at least 11 people, all from the same family. Meanwhile, between July 10
and 14, the army killed at least 23 civilians and injured over two dozen others
after striking two villages in West Kordofan. An aid worker with Mercy Corps
said his brother was fatally shot on July 13 during an attack on the village of
Um Seimima in El-Obeid City in North Kordofan. Furany said that movement between
the western and eastern areas of the Kordofan region is “practically
impossible.”The intensified fighting forced Mercy Corps to temporarily suspend
operations in three out of four localities, with access beyond Kadugli, the
capital of South Kordofan, now being in “serious doubt,” Furany said, as a safe
sustained humanitarian corridor is needed. Mathilde Vu, an aid worker with the
Norwegian Refugee Council who is often based in Port Sudan, said that fighting
has intensified in North Kordofan and West Kordofan over the past several
months.
Ancient statue returns to Turkiye 65 years later
AFP/July 19, 2025
ISTNABUL: Turkiye has repatriated an ancient statue believed to depict Roman
emperor Marcus Aurelius from the United States as part of efforts to recover
antiquities illegally removed from the country, the government announced on
Saturday. The bronze statue, smuggled from the ancient city of Boubon — now the
province of Burdur in southwest Turkiye — in the 1960s, was returned to Turkiye
after 65 years, according to Turkish officials. “It was a long struggle. We were
right, we were determined, we were patient, and we won,” Culture and Tourism
Minister Mehmet Ersoy said. “We brought the ‘Philosopher Emperor’ Marcus
Aurelius back to the land where he belongs,” he added. This unique artefact,
once exhibited in the United States, was repatriated to Turkiye based on
scientific analyzes, archival documents and witness statements, added the
minister. “Through the combined power of diplomacy, law, and science, the
process we conducted with the New York Manhattan District Attorney’s Office and
the US Homeland Security Investigations Unit is more than just a repatriation;
it is a historical achievement,” Ersoy said. “Marcus Aurelius’s return to our
country is a concrete result of our years-long pursuit of justice.”The headless
statue had been on display at the Cleveland Museum of Art from April to July,
before its return to Turkiye. Ersoy said Turkiye was determined to protect all
its cultural heritage that has been smuggled out. “We will soon present the
Philosopher Emperor to the people of (Turkiye’s capital) Ankara in a surprise
exhibition,” he announced.
The Latest English LCCC analysis &
editorials from miscellaneous sources
on July 19-20/2025
Stop The Avarice and Cowardice: Europe Must Confront Iran's Regime
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/July 19/2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/07/145385/
Iran's reach does not stop "just"
with assassinations and terror cells. The regime is now a key player in one of
the most significant wars in Europe since World War II: the Russia-Ukraine war.
The "EU3" — France, Germany, and the United Kingdom — still have the legal
authority to initiate this "snapback" mechanism. If they act before October 18,
2025, they can reimpose the full slate of UN sanctions on Iran that were lifted
as part of the flawed 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) "nuclear
deal." These sanctions include restrictions on Iran's missile program, military
exports and financial networks. Tehran has not only violated the JCPOA — it has
blown it to pieces
Europe is actually pretending to stand for democracy and human rights while
doing business with the "world's leading state sponsor of terrorism."
It took decades to build the international sanctions regime that US President
Barack Obama tragically dismantled in 2015 with the JCPOA. Letting that
structure collapse completely would be... an invitation for Iran to continue
rebuilding its path toward nuclear weapons without consequence.
Beyond the snapback mechanism, the EU might sever all diplomatic and economic
ties with the Islamic Republic; close every Iranian embassy in Europe; expel
every Iranian ambassador; cut all trade deals, freeze all assets, and sanction
every official linked to the regime's terror apparatus. Maintaining business as
usual with Iran only emboldens its rulers by signaling to them that the EU is
unwilling to confront danger when it sees it.
Iran's reach does not stop "just" with assassinations and terror cells. The
regime is now a key player in one of the most significant wars in Europe since
World War II: the Russia-Ukraine war. The European Union has remained in a state
of diplomatic paralysis, watching from the sidelines as the United States and
Israel have shouldered the burden of confronting the Islamic Republic of Iran.
While American and Israeli leaders are taking real, tangible risks to counter
the threat posed by Tehran and its vast global network of terror, European
officials have chosen the path of appeasement, delay, cowardice and greed, all
the while bashing Israel for coming to its rescue instead of thanking it.
As usual in much of blowhard Europe, statements are issued, meetings are held,
but no real action is taken. This has become an all-too-familiar pattern. The EU
talks about human rights, about democratic values, about international security—
but when it comes to Iran, it has been ostentatiously unwilling to act. It is
high time for the EU to stop hiding behind empty diplomatic rituals, usually
accompanied by lavish banquets and lavish sanctimonious pronouncements, and
start doing something meaningful for a change.
Iran's regime is not simply a regional menace contained within the Middle East.
It is a revolutionary regime with global ambitions — and Europe is on its
banquet table. The regime has publicly declared its desire to export its radical
Islamist revolution to the rest of the world. The regime views the European
Union as part of the "decadent West" that must be defeated and dismantled. This
is not just rhetoric. Iran's rulers have waged a campaign of terror, espionage
and assassination on European soil; demonstrated that its reach extends far
beyond its borders, as far as South America, and that its enemies include
ordinary European citizens and lawmakers, as well as Iranian dissidents living
abroad.
A 2018 Iranian terror plot targeted a "Free Iran" gathering in Paris. This was
no small operation. It was planned and executed by an Iranian diplomat,
Assadollah Assadi, who transported explosives on a commercial flight from Iran
and handed them to operatives in Europe. The goal was to massacre thousands of
people, including international leaders, human rights activists and journalists.
Iran's plot was an act of state-sponsored terrorism in the heart of the European
Union. Yet, even after Assadi was convicted in Belgium, the EU's response was
feeble: Iran's embassies remained open, Assadi was freed, trade continued.
Tehran paid no price.
Iran's regime has also been involved in a long line of assassinations –
successful and attempted -- of Iranian dissidents living in Europe. In the
Netherlands, Iran was implicated in the killings of dissidents Ali Motamed in
2015 and Ahmad Mola Nissi in 2017. In Germany, authorities disrupted plots
targeting members of the Iranian opposition. Across the continent, Tehran's
intelligence operatives and assassins have been operating with shocking ease:
European governments have done little more than put on a serious look and issue
statements of "deep concern". Iran has interpreted this passivity as weakness --
and it is.
Iran's reach does not stop "just" with assassinations and terror cells. The
regime is now a key player in one of the most significant wars in Europe since
World War II: the Russia-Ukraine war. Tehran has supplied Moscow with thousands
of deadly drones, including the infamous Shahed-131 and Shahed-136 drones, which
Russia has used to attack civilians and infrastructure in Ukraine. In May 2025,
Russia launched over 700 suicide drones into Ukraine in a single night. These
weapons were not developed in a vacuum — they were the product of an expanding
alliance between Iran and Russia. By continuing to ignore Iran's role in this
war, the EU is effectively enabling the slaughter of Ukrainian civilians and the
consolidation of a hostile anti-Western axis.
Instead, what is the EU doing? Talking. Just as they did in the 1930s, leaders
of European democracies are choosing capitulation over action, hoping the storm
will blow over without their having to take a side. Just like the tragic
cowardice of Europe's ruling class in the face of Hitler's rise, the EU's
inaction toward Iran gives Tehran the space, time and confidence to grow
stronger. The British and Americans did not save Europe from fascism only for
its modern leaders to grovel before the ayatollahs of Tehran.
One critical step the EU can and must take -- Germany and France anyhow -- is
triggering the "snapback" sanctions mechanism under UN Security Council
Resolution 2231. The "EU3" — France, Germany, and the United Kingdom — still
have the legal authority to initiate this "snapback" mechanism. If they act
before October 18, 2025, they can reimpose the full slate of UN sanctions on
Iran that were lifted as part of the flawed 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of
Action (JCPOA) "nuclear deal." These sanctions include restrictions on Iran's
missile program, military exports and financial networks. Tehran has not only
violated the JCPOA — it has blown it to pieces by enriching uranium well beyond
legal limits, and stonewalling international nuclear inspectors.
If this deadline is missed, it will become virtually impossible to rally the UN
Security Council to impose sanctions again: China and Russia will undoubtedly
block any future action. Years of effort, pressure and diplomacy will be down
the drain. It took decades to build the international sanctions regime that US
President Barack Obama tragically dismantled in 2015 with the JCPOA. Letting
that structure collapse completely would be an unforgivable betrayal of global
security and an invitation for Iran to continue rebuilding its path toward
nuclear weapons without consequence.
Beyond the snapback mechanism, the EU might sever all diplomatic and economic
ties with the Islamic Republic; close every Iranian embassy in Europe; expel
every Iranian ambassador; cut all trade deals, freeze all assets, and sanction
every official linked to the regime's terror apparatus. Maintaining business as
usual with Iran only emboldens its rulers by signaling to them that the EU is
unwilling to confront danger when it sees it.
Europe is actually pretending to stand for democracy and human rights while
doing business with the "world's leading state sponsor of terrorism."
If EU leaders are too weak, too cowardly, or too compromised to confront the
Iranian regime directly, then at the very least, they might stop trying to
undermine the actions of Israel and the United States. Instead, support your
allies. Share intelligence. Provide public and diplomatic backing. Do not hide
behind rhetoric and "neutrality" while others are putting their lives on the
line to fight one of the world's most dangerous regimes – and one that is trying
to devour you. At a minimum, the EU should not obstruct the efforts of those who
are willing to act.
The EU's policy toward Iran has been defined by cowardice, indecision and a
dangerous desire to appease Iran's regime by looking the other way and
conducting "business as usual." October is approaching. If the EU fails to act
now — by triggering the snapback sanctions, severing diplomatic ties, halting
trade and supporting its allies — it will once again discredit itself. But when
was Europe ever bothered by shame?
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/21756/europe-avarice-cowardice-iran
**Dr. Majid Rafizadeh, is a political
scientist, Harvard-educated analyst, and board member of Harvard International
Review. He has authored several books on the US foreign policy. He can be
reached at dr.rafizadeh@post.harvard.edu
**Follow Majid Rafizadeh on X (formerly Twitter)
© 2025 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do
not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No
part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied
or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.
Israel and Iran Usher in
New Era of Psychological Warfare
Steven Lee Myers, Natan Odenheimer and Erika Solomon/The New York Times/July
19/2025
In the hours before Israeli forces bombed Evin prison in Iran’s capital on June
23, posts appeared on social media in Persian, foreshadowing the attack and
urging Iranians to come free the prisoners. Moments after the bombs struck, a
video appeared on X and Telegram, purporting to show a blast at an entrance to
the prison, which is notorious for holding political prisoners. One post on X
included a hashtag, in Persian: “#freeevin.”
The attack on the prison was real, but the posts and video were not what they
seemed. They were part of an Israeli ruse, according to researchers who tracked
the effort.
It was not the only trickery during the conflict. Over 12 days of attacks,
Israel and Iran turned social media into a digital battlefield, using deception
and falsehoods to try to sway the outcome even as they traded kinetic missile
strikes that killed hundreds and roiled an already turbulent Middle East. The
posts, researchers said, represented a greater intensity of information warfare,
by beginning before the strikes, employing artificial intelligence and spreading
widely so quickly.
Information warfare, often called psychological operations, or psyops, is as old
as war itself. But experts say the effort between Israel and Iran was more
intense and more targeted than anything that had come before, and seen by
millions of people scrolling on their phones for updates even as bombs fell. The
reason is that today’s technology — the ubiquity of social media and the advent
of generative AI — has transformed the ability of countries to respond to events
and to speak directly to citizens and others in real time in ways that are more
believable than ever before.
Iran, for example, sent alerts in Hebrew to thousands of Israeli mobile phones
warning recipients to avoid bomb shelters because militants planned to
infiltrate them and attack those inside, according to researchers and official
statements. A network of accounts on X attributed to Israel spread messages in
Persian trying to erode confidence in Iran’s government, including ones narrated
by an AI-generated woman.
“It’s certainly a new era of influence warfare,” said James J.F. Forest, a
professor of security studies at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, who has
written extensively on the subject. “There’s never really been a previous
corollary in history where you had the ability to go to scale with this kind of
propaganda.”The Israeli Defense Forces declined to respond to questions about
psychological operations. So did an official from the Iranian delegation to the
United Nations in New York. The torrent of propaganda and deception offers a
preview of what the United States or other nations would almost certainly face
if war erupted. False images of destroyed B-2 bombers appeared online when
President Trump ordered strikes on Iran’s deeply buried nuclear sites.
Some question how prepared the United States is, especially with Mr. Trump’s
administration cutting efforts to combat foreign influence operations. American
military strategy embraces information operations — which have been known in the
Pentagon since 2010 as Military Information Support Operations — but they have
often been treated as little more than a supporting role. Russia, followed by
China, is regarded as the most assertive adversary when it comes to influence
campaigns. It has waged a furious information war against Ukraine and its allies
since launching a full invasion of the country in 2022. By some accounts, it has
undercut support in some countries, including the United States.
“I think what most people would say is that we are not prepared in the military
for the kind of information operations or psychological operations that might
become mainstream in this century,” said David Millar, a former intelligence
officer who until recently taught at the Foreign Service Institute, the State
Department’s diplomatic training academy.
Israel and Iran both followed Russia’s playbook, trying to shape public opinion
at home and abroad, but with the added ability to integrate widely available AI
tools into their campaigns.
“If you go back to the early days of Ukraine, we saw disinformation campaigns
from Russia, but they were pretty primitive as compared to what we saw in the
early days of Gaza,” said Hany Farid, a professor of computer science at the
University of California, Berkeley. He is a co-founder of GetReal Security, a
company that first flagged the manipulated video of Evin prison. “That’s
nothing,” he added, “compared to what we’re seeing in Iran.”
Actors on both sides of that conflict flooded the internet with manipulated or
fabricated photographs and videos, seeking to demoralize and demonize the other.
The content included images from previous conflicts and obvious fabrications of
Iran’s supreme leader and Israel’s prime minister. More subtle ones, like the
video at Evin, were initially reported on as real by some news organizations,
including The New York Times.
Mr. Farid contrasted today’s information warfare with efforts in World War II,
when warring nations communicated with leaflets dropped from airplanes or by
radio.
“With radio you had one message and you sent it out,” he said. “Now you have a
million messages that you send out to a million individuals. That is obviously
very, very different.”
The effect in the current conflict can be hard to measure with certainty.
Citizens often rally behind their leaders when at war, viewing obvious
propaganda with skepticism or derision. Even if psychological warfare does not
change the course of a conflict, analysts say, it can shape public perceptions
of it.
“There are certainly people who believe that it’s the narrative win that carries
the day,” Mr. Millar said. Iran’s efforts appeared aimed at a domestic and
regional audience as much as Israel itself, said Ari Ben-Am, a co-founder of
Telemetry Data Labs, a digital analytics company in Tel Aviv. That reflected
“their desire to maintain a regional reputation,” he added.
One fabricated video showed devastation at Ben Gurion Airport in Israel that had
not occurred. Photographs and video of wreckage of Israeli — and later American
— aircraft appeared on accounts that researchers traced to Iran and its state
media.
Iran claimed to have downed at least three Israeli F-35s, though. Israel’s
military officials denied that it had lost any aircraft in the fighting, and no
evidence has emerged to suggest otherwise. One image showed an implausible
afterburner in the exhaust of one wrecked plane.
Iranian media even claimed to have captured an Israeli pilot, identified as
Sarah Ahronot, but NewsGuard, a company that monitors disinformation in media,
traced the photograph to one of a Chilean Navy lieutenant taken in 2011.
Terrorism: A Global Menace Beyond Borders
Jebril Elabidi/Acharq Al-Awsat/July 19/2025
Terrorism is defined differently in different societies. The French scholar
Christophe Boutin defines it as “acts of violence targeting innocent civilians,
intended to create a climate of insecurity in order to achieve political
objectives.” American writer Walter Laqueur defined it as the illegitimate use
of force to achieve a political objective by targeting innocent people.”
Today, terrorism poses a threat to the very fabric of human existence. It
endangers both international peace and the cohesion of local communities,
whether in the societies that produce and foster terrorism, harbor terror, or
simply fall victim to its attacks. Methods vary: car bombs, improvised
explosives, suicide attacks, stabbings, beheadings, rammings, and more.
Terrorism strikes indiscriminately: its victims are diverse and its scale ever
shifting. In one incident in France, a Muslim police officer lost his life
defending the people of Paris from an extremist with a distorted understanding
of religion; terrorism is not confined to any particular faith, sect, or place.
Terrorism knows no homeland and adheres to no creed. It is driven by
circumstances, causes, and converging interests. What was once a localized
threat has become a global commodity. It can be exported, reused, and deployed
as a tool to pressure states and shape policy, whether through tolerance or
sponsorship of terrorist groups.
Terrorism has grown increasingly brutal. Many villages and towns now awaken
daily to fresh horrors: beheadings, mutilations with knives, swords, and axes,
often targeting children, women, and the elderly. The tactics range from
bombings and fake checkpoints to the mass slaughter of sleeping communities. As
attacks multiply and casualties rise, some nations find themselves effectively
at war with extremist groups that refuse difference and operate from mountainous
hideouts. Their sources of funding and the actors behind them often remain
obscure.
The impulses that drive terrorism vary according to the individual’s
psychological makeup: sadistic urges to kill and witness bloodshed, the absence
or suppression of cultural awareness, and the usurpation of religious authority
in interpretation and issuing fatwas. The ensuing chaos and the free for all in
issuing religious edicts has led to perverse and fanatical readings of religion.
Some treat religious interpretations as absolute truth that cannot be corrected,
fueling radicalism and, in some cases, violence in defense of perceived
violations of sacred values.
One major factor behind the spread of terrorism has been the decline of already
fragile regions. The Middle East, for example, has been ravaged by political
conflicts that gave rise to "creative chaos" that was later branded the “Arab
Spring.” This process created political vacuums in several countries and spread
instability, leading to the rise of armed militias. Libya, Iraq, and Yemen
present stark examples of ideological militias resorting to violence and
terrorism to seize power because of their religious or ideological fanaticism.
The aggravating terrorism crisis is not only the result of political vacuums or
the collapse of central authorities, though these problems certainly played a
role in paving the way for the rise of extremist and exclusionary groups. In
fact, in their quest to expand influence and assert dominance over weaker
nations, even global superpowers can eliminate obstacles to their ambitions by
turning a blind eye to, or even facilitating, terrorism when it serves their
political agenda.
Terrorism undermines the very foundations of societies, hindering peace and
justice. It continues to rise, in part, due to the sheer number of terrorist
organizations operating across the globe, each with a distinct belief system. In
some cases, they have no belief system at all. Some are little more than
mercenaries driven solely by profit.
So-called “revolutionary” groups that employ violence as a means to achieve
change fall into the same category as religious extremist groups. Revolutionary
ideology is ideology, and once it resorts to violence, it becomes terrorism.
No society or place in the world is entirely safe or immune from the threat of
terrorism, so long as there are forces that produce or harbor it. The solution
must begin with dismantling the ideological foundations of terrorism, which is
to be followed by cutting off its sources of funding and its safehavens. This
cannot be accomplished through isolated or unilateral efforts. It demands
coordinated international operations, otherwise responses will remain
ineffective, misguided, and doomed to fail.
On This Land, There Is That
Which Deserves Life — Or Quite the Opposite, That Which Perpetuates Misery
Dr. Ali Khalifa/Nidaa Al-Watan/July 19/ 2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/07/145431/
(Translated from ASrabic freely by Elias Bejjani)
The Baathist regime in Syria did not fall with the expiration of the
constitutional term of the cub son of his father, Bashar al-Assad. Nor did it
collapse as a result of a change of heart among the supposed 99% who once
pledged him their “soul and blood” and filled the ballot boxes with their
voices. And Abu Mohammad al-Julani has shown no haste in trimming his mustache
or shaving his beard in order to don the suit of modernity and assume control of
a power that has never once known peaceful democratic transition.
Politically, however, the hour has struck for the collapse of the death corridor
and the captagon economy stretching from Tehran, through Damascus, to the
so-called “Hezbollah state,” erected atop the corpse of the Lebanese
Republic—stripped of its defense, security, economy, and societal role. The
winds of political fate have at last responded to the Syrian people’s yearning
for life and to the Lebanese people’s yearning for freedom.
Yet dictatorships do not vanish without leaving behind deep scars and open
wounds. A heavy hand may still be necessary even after a fallen dictatorship.
There’s no need to split hairs or oppose the emergence of a new regional order.
Political analysis must take precedence over sentiment. Despite all the
fragmentation, a path toward a cohesive national state in Syria is still
preferable to partition, which would only drag us back to square one: another
confrontation with Iranian expansionism and renewed attempts to restore the
"corridor" role.
Dictatorship never builds a state for its people—it is founded on violence and
solidified by domination. With barrel bombs, Bashar al-Assad slaughtered his own
people. Hezbollah was complicit in the crime, in Syria as in Lebanon, and vice
versa. What remained of those deadly barrels—imported into Beirut’s
port—ultimately exploded among the city’s residents and neighborhoods.
The defunct Syrian regime always took revenge on the Sunnis, while falsely
claiming to protect Alawite, Druze, Ismaili, and Christian minorities. In
Lebanon, Hezbollah assassinated Sunni leaders, seized Christian properties, and
convinced the Shia that it was their savior from deprivation and
marginalization—when in fact, it perpetuates their tragedies and repeatedly
hurls them into ruin.
On this land, there are mountains of skulls, rivers of blood, and hatreds that
run deep—rooted in soil watered by fear, anxiety, and oppression.
Before witnessing the resurrection of a modern state in our societies—and before
reconciling with that idea—we will have to endure a path of suffering. Only then
can individuals claim the full rights of citizenship, and communities receive
the guarantees that protect their cultures. Political and social systems must
not be built on religion, for that undermines justice and negates equality.
Religion is a personal choice—not binding, and never a substitute for the state.
Faith-based beliefs are interpretations and representations, not absolute
truths.
Based on that, we may say: On this land, there is indeed that which deserves
life… or, quite the opposite, that which ensures the persistence of misery.
We Are Living in Chaos and
the Bloody Disintegration of National Societies for Several Reasons
By Ghazi Al-Masri – Facebook – July 19, 2025
(Translated from ASrabic freely by Elias Bejjani)
The Sykes-Picot Agreement divided the Ottoman Empire, which was built on a
single-color identity. The partition was arbitrary and did not take into account
the rights of the indigenous peoples of the Near East and North Africa. It also
ignored the fact that these societies were composed of heterogeneous components
that would never blend harmoniously under the logic of religious and political
theocracy—an inheritance of conquest and imposition.Theocratic authority, which
inherited a legacy of suppressing criticism and freedom of thought, prevented
any renewal or reform in the process of building the nation and citizenship. It
blocked the integration of societal components through a just and equal
distribution of rights, responsibilities, and duties. As a result, embers always
remained beneath the ashes. This repression stifled intellectual, philosophical,
educational, and cultural productivity and creativity.
Ruling elites clung to tribal, clan, and feudal thinking, neglecting national
education that would have shifted loyalty from tribe, sect, or clan to the
nation and the broader society in all its diversity. When we speak of politics
and patriotism, all colors should dissolve into a single one called “homeland.”
But instead, religious devotion and the interests of religion were elevated
above those of the national community. This suited rulers who maintained their
thrones by instilling fear among the various communities and exploiting
differences, thereby sowing extremism in all groups. Conquests and invasions
destroyed prior cultures and the remnants of past civilizations, which failed to
melt into a single, unified identity—one that could have been called Middle
Eastern or Arab. Consequently, we were left with only a name devoid of cultural
or civilizational substance.
The illusion of Arabism, and the emotional attachment of minority leaders who
believed Arabism would protect their existence and belief systems from
intellectual, if not military, invasion, led them to reject the idea of
independent states detached from central authority. They hoped the cancer of
extremism and rejection of the "other" would dissolve within Arabism. But all
attempts to give Arabism a unifying, inclusive meaning that protected the rights
of all components failed due to the dominance of religious theocracy, which
inherited Ottoman thinking and manipulated political theocracy through blackmail
and coercion.
The failure of political theocracy to resolve disputes between tribes and clans,
and its failure to eliminate tribal loyalty and replace it with loyalty to the
state or constitution, led to the substitution of tribe with person. Loyalty
became directed to a leader rather than to an idea or system. Even within the
same tribe or group, people feared for themselves if the leader was gone. As a
result, authority, security, safety, the state, and the nation became all tied
to the existence of one individual—or their heirs—leading to the personalization
of the tribe, then of society, and ultimately of the state.
Today, we are witnessing the consequences of the failure of all dreams and the
collapse of all illusions. There is no point blaming the West for exploiting the
wide-open windows and doors in our countries and societies. What many Arabic
speakers label as a conspiracy is, in fact, our own fault. We are paying the
price of our failure to generate science, knowledge, and wisdom to preserve our
societies, nations, and states.
Selected Tweets for
19 July/2025
U.S. Embassy Syria
U.S. Special Envoy to Syria Ambassador Thomas J. Barrack met with SDF General
Commander Mazloum Abdi today to discuss the current situation in Syria and the
need for urgent steps to restore calm and stability. They also discussed
practical steps towards integration into a unified Syria for a peaceful,
prosperous, inclusive and stable future for all Syrians. They agreed the time
for unity is now. The Ambassador also thanked General Mazloum for his leadership
and the SDF’s continued partnership in combatting ISIS in Syria.
Hussain Abdul-Hussain
https://x.com/i/status/1946697767566365117
As part of “law enforcement,” Jolani’s Islamists desecrate a Druze house of
worship. Notice how the Islamists are dressed in PRESS vests.
In Gaza, Islamist Qatar’s Al-Jazeera Press people also doubled as Hamas
fighters.
Dr Walid Phares
https://x.com/i/status/1946671245514379670
The large-scale jihadi advance toward #Souaida — reminiscent of a scene from The
Lord of the Rings — reportedly includes both #ISIS fighters and Ikhwan cadres,
according to inside sources. Everything is out for the world to see, and for the
American public to judge. Who are we with?
Hanin Ghaddar
While #Hezbollah is using the violence/massacre against the #Druze in #Suwayda
to justify its weapons (see Naim Qassem’s speech today) they’re mainly targeting
the Shia community with the fear of Islamists/Daesh/Syria’s extremists.
But the problem here is not only Hezbollah, it’s also the Shia who are buying
it. Collective memory is important and can show it’s not the same for Lebanon
and the Shia:
1- The Lebanese Army (#LAF) will defend Lebanon - as it did before - against all
of the above. Remember the battle of Ersal? Nahr El Bared?
While the LAF does not have the political decision to confront Hezbollah, they
do have the political decision and the military capabilities to confront other
insurgencies.
2- Hezbollah will not, and simply cannot, protect anyone anymore after all the
losses they endured last summer. Remember when the same Joulani militants took
over Syria last year? Hezbollah was still in Syria. What did they do? They ran
off to Lebanon! All of them!
Only the Lebanese army can protect Lebanon, and the Shia have no choice but to
trust them, and stop believing Hezbollah’s lies and propaganda.
The Lebanese government and army also have the duty and obligation to address
this issue, specifically with the Shia.
Israel News Pulse
Tonight, the Israeli Air Force is delivering emergency medical aid to As-Suwayda,
airlifting supplies via helicopters under the protection of AH-64D Apache
gunships. The IDF is also considering the deployment of several battalions of
elite Israeli Druze Special Forces to support the Syrian Druze community in
defending the city from ISIS (Daesh) militants who are backed by Turkey. Close
air support will be provided by the Israeli Air Force throughout the operation.