English LCCC Newsbulletin For
Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For November 20/2025
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news
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Bible Quotations For today
You that boast in the law, do you dishonour God by
breaking the law? For, as it is written, ‘The name of God is blasphemed among
the Gentiles because of you.
Letter to the Romans 02/17-29/:”But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the
law and boast of your relation to God and know his will and determine what is
best because you are instructed in the law,and if you are sure that you are a
guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, having in the law the
embodiment of knowledge and truth, you, then, that teach others, will you not
teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal? You that forbid
adultery, do you commit adultery? You that abhor idols, do you rob temples? You
that boast in the law, do you dishonour God by breaking the law? For, as it is
written, ‘The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.’
Circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law; but if you break the law,
your circumcision has become uncircumcision. So, if those who are uncircumcised
keep the requirements of the law, will not their uncircumcision be regarded as
circumcision? Then those who are physically uncircumcised but keep the law will
condemn you that have the written code and circumcision but break the law. For a
person is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is true circumcision something
external and physical. Rather, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly, and real
circumcision is a matter of the heart it is spiritual and not literal. Such a
person receives praise not from others but from God.
Titles For The
Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on
November 19-20/2025
One cannot give what does not have, and all the
world’s Viagra is useless with the emasculated./Elias Bejjani/November 18/ 2025
The Concept and Meanings of the “Heart” in the Bible/Elias Bejjani/November
19/2025
MBS In the White House… Did you understand, or do you want another hit on the
head?/Engineer Alfred Madi/November 19, 2025
Video link and Arabic-English text of Hassan Nasrallah threatening the residents
of the Border Strip in South Lebanon in 2000, days before Israel’s unilateral
withdrawal from it,
Germany Pursues an Active Hezbollah Network Across Europe
U.S. Insurance “Card” Triggers Lebanese Alarm Amid Israeli Escalation
Two soldiers killed, three wounded in army raid on al-Sharawneh
Israel says killed two Hezbollah members in Blida, Bint Jbeil
One killed, 11 wounded as Israel strikes south
Israel Warns 2 Villages in Lebanon to Evacuate as it Steps Up Strikes in South
Israel strikes four southern towns after evacuation warnings
Hezbollah urges Lebanese leaders not to 'show leniency' amid increasing Israeli
attacks
Israeli army says Hezbollah rebuilding capabilities in south Lebanon
Aoun defends army against 'suspicious campaigns, incitement'
Berri calls for urgent UN Security Council session after al-Tiri airstrike
Jumblat voices support to army chief after cancelled US visit
Washington’s message to Beirut: Ambiguity has a price/Makram Rabah/English
Alarabia/November 19/2025
How Can Beirut’s Hamra Street Be Revived?/Hazem Saghieh/Asharq Al-Awsat/November
19/2025
Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous
Reports And News published
on
November 19-20/2025
Netanyahu visits Israeli troops in Syria
beyond ceasefire line
Syria condemns Israeli PM’s visit to country’s south
Israeli Airstrikes Kill 10 Palestinians in Gaza, Rattling Ceasefire, Medics Say
Hamas, Other Factions Cautious of New UN Security Council Resolution on Gaza
Gaza Storms Bring Flooding, Sewage and Misery in Tent Camps
US, Saudi Arabia strike deal to build rare earths refinery in the Kingdom
Trump says designating Saudi Arabia major non-NATO ally
Trump attacks ABC reporter after question about killing of Saudi journalist
Khashoggi
Trump says designating Saudi Arabia major non-NATO ally
Russian attack kills 19 in western Ukraine
UAE faces online boycott calls over Sudan war
Titles For The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous
sources on
November 19-20/2025
What Works?: America's New No-Nonsense
Realism/Pierre Rehov/Gatestone Institute/November 19, 2025
The United States Should Apply the Gaza Ceasefire’s Stipulations to West Bank
Terrorist Organizations/Aaron Goren & Joe Truzman/Providence/November 19/2025
The Stone of Magdalena/Hussain Abdul-Hussain/November 19, 2025
Saudi-US alliance under MBS: A blueprint for regional and global stability/Dr.
Majid Rafizadeh/English Alarabia/November 19/2025
Selected Face Book & X tweets for November 19/2025
The Latest
English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on
November 19-20/2025
One cannot give what does not have, and all
the world’s Viagra is useless with the emasculated.
Elias Bejjani/November 18/ 2025
Ninety-nine percent of Lebanon’s rulers, Owners Of the so called political
leaders, MPs, media outlets, and journalists are products of the occupiers’
incubators… and therefore, their paralysis cannot be cured.
The Concept and Meanings of the “Heart” in the Bible
Elias Bejjani/November 19/2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/11/144659/
The word “heart” appears over 300 times in the Bible. Theologically, it has
little, if anything, to do with the physical organ that pumps blood. Instead, it
refers to the core of human existence, the center where all our capacities
converge, including our conscience, emotions, and entire range of feelings and
contradictions. In modern psychological terms, it’s our “self” or “ego.”
Therefore, from a theological, emotional, spiritual, and faith-based
perspective, the heart isn’t the physical organ beating in our chest. It’s the
spiritual and existential reality that forms the very essence of our personal
being. It’s the central point where all the threads of our human existence
intertwine. In observing church rituals and icons, we notice the immense
significance given to the “Heart of Jesus” and the “Immaculate Heart of Mary.”
Throughout both the Old and New Testaments, dozens of verses emphasize the
critical importance and centrality of this spiritual, intellectual, and
faith-based understanding of the heart.
The Heart in God’s Commands
This understanding is clearly seen in the first of the Ten Commandments: “Love
the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your
strength and with all your mind” (Luke 10:27, Deuteronomy 6:5). Jesus Himself
speaks of the heart as the root of human intentions and the origin of all our
actions. “For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual
immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what defile a person”
(Matthew 15:19-20). This confirms that the very essence of who we are, whether
for good or ill, originates in the heart.
Only God truly knows the intentions of our hearts
Only God truly knows the intentions of our hearts, whether good or evil. Because
He loves us and awaits our return to His heavenly home—a home not built by human
hands—He, as a merciful Father, constantly warns us through various means. He
does so when we defile our hearts, fall into the devil’s temptations, and follow
our “old self”—the self of original sin—abandoning the “new self” born of
baptism by water and the Holy Spirit. “You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he
prophesied about you: ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts
are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human
rules’” (Matthew 15:7-8). This verse highlights the importance of genuine
worship that springs from the heart, rather than just outward rituals.
A Pure Heart: A Gift from God
The Bible teaches us to always pray to God with humility, sincerity, and faith,
asking for the grace and gift of a pure, upright, and good heart. “Create in me
a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10). This
prayer expresses a deep longing for spiritual renewal, rooted in a new heart.
God the Father created humanity in His image and likeness, giving us a heart
like His own. When He sees that heart being defiled, He rushes to our aid,
sending prophets, saints, and righteous people to guide us back to the right
path. However, when we disobey, remain unrepentant, and fail to atone, He
disciplines and punishes us, as He did in the time of Noah and Nimrod, and with
Lot’s cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.
God’s sorrow over the corruption of human hearts
“The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the
earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only
evil all the time. The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the
earth, and his heart was deeply troubled” (Genesis 6:5-6). These verses vividly
show God’s sorrow over the corruption of human hearts. God works through natural
law, conscience, and prophets to awaken the hearts of humanity, so they may
return to Him, find Him, give Him their hearts, and observe His ways and
commandments. “With your own eyes you saw those great trials and the signs and
great wonders. But to this day the Lord has not given you a heart to understand
or eyes to see or ears to hear. Yet I have led you forty years in the
wilderness; your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandals have not
worn out on your feet” (Deuteronomy 29:3-5). Here, we see that a lack of
understanding and perception stems from the heart.
The Heart as a Dwelling Place for the Holy Spirit
Our Lord God bound our hearts to His, so that we may love Him with all our heart
and soul, and live through Him. God fully accomplished this in the New Covenant
through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in believers. Our hearts become a
dwelling place for His Spirit, sanctified for Him, making us temples of God’s
Spirit. Our hearts become altars consecrated for worship through devout prayers
and sincere love. As our hearts are purified, we come to see God, and Christ
works within us through faith. Thus, it is crucial to pause and reflect on the
biblical and theological meaning of the heart.
The heart is that reality in which the human being finds his or her unity and
inner orientation
In his commentary on the Third Secret of Fatima, then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger
(Pope Benedict XVI) offered a concise description of the heart: “In biblical
language, the heart means the center of human existence, the integration of mind
and will, temperament and feeling.” He added: “The heart is that reality in
which the human being finds his or her unity and inner orientation.”
The heart is a human capacity that goes beyond and deeper than intellectual
ability, and beyond the reach of our imagination. It is the dimension of divine
instinct and also the depth of the soul. “The heart is deceitful above all
things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? I the Lord search the heart and
examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to
what their deeds deserve” (Jeremiah 17:9-10). This verse emphasizes that only
God truly sees and tests the hidden depths of the heart.
It’s impossible for any of us to fully penetrate another person’s inner being,
no matter how close they are, or to know what’s stored within their heart and
thoughts. However, we can understand it through their actions, words, and
feelings, which bear witness to what’s in their heart, “for the mouth speaks
what the heart is full of” (Matthew 12:34). And this heart becomes defiled when
its owner succumbs to the traps of worldly desires, failing to curb and refine
them due to a lack of faith and weak hope.
The Heart and Love
In our prayers, we say, “Lord, give me a heart like Your own” (“Create in me a
pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10)). This
means: “Bestow upon me the gifts of love, for love is God, and love is the
heart.” The meaning of love, which is God Himself, was beautifully defined by
the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:1-13: “If I speak in the tongues of men or
of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging
cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all
knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love,
I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to
hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. Love is
patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It
does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it
keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the
truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love
never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are
tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For
we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in
part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a
child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood
behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see
face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully
known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of
these is love.”
Biblical Verses on the Heart
Many verses in the Bible illustrate the meanings of the heart. Here are a few
more:
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8).
“He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by
faith” (Acts 15:9).
“The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or
swear by a false god” (Psalm 24:4).
“They would not be like their ancestors—a stubborn and rebellious generation,
whose hearts were not loyal to God, whose spirits were not faithful to him”
(Psalm 78:8).
“Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and
a new spirit. Why will you die, people of Israel?” (Ezekiel 18:31).
“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you
your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 36:26). This verse
specifically speaks of the inner transformation granted by God.
Then Jesus said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is
from within, out of people’s hearts, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality,
theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander,
arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person” (Mark
7:20-23).
“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Keep
your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips. Let your
eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you” (Proverbs 4:23-25).
This verse emphasizes the importance of protecting the heart as it is the source
of life.
“As the secrets of their hearts are laid bare, they will fall down and worship
God, exclaiming, ‘God is truly among you!'” (1 Corinthians 14:25).
“Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their
eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand
with their hearts, and turn and be healed” (Isaiah 6:10). This verse shows the
consequence of stubbornness and refusal to hear God’s word.
The Sacred Heart of Jesus: A Fount of Divine Love
Pope Benedict XVI: “The roots of this devotion (to the Sacred Heart of Jesus)
are deeply embedded in the mystery of the Incarnation. Through the Heart of
Jesus, God’s love for humanity was revealed in a vivid way. Therefore, authentic
devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus retains its meaning and particularly
attracts souls thirsting for God’s mercy—an unfathomable spring of living water
capable of quenching the deserts of the soul, allowing hope to grow.”
Prayer to the Sacred Heart
O Jesus, You possess a compassionate heart, full of goodness and kindness. You
see me and love me. You are merciful and forgiving, for You cannot witness
misery without desiring to heal it. Behold, I place all my hope in You, trusting
that You will not abandon me, and that Your graces will always surpass my
expectations. Therefore, Jesus, fulfill all Your promises for me, grant me the
graces necessary for my state, bestow peace upon my family, comfort me in my
trials, and be my refuge throughout my life and at the hour of my death. If I am
lukewarm in faith, I will grow fervent through You. If I am fervent, I will
ascend to higher degrees of perfection. Grant me, Jesus, a special grace to
soften hardened hearts, and to spread devotion to Your Sacred Heart. And
inscribe my name in Your adored Heart, that it may never be erased. I also ask
You to bless my home, where the image of Your Most Sacred Heart is honored.
MBS In the White House… Did you understand, or do you
want another hit on the head?
Engineer Alfred Madi/November 19, 2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/11/149347/
The Result:
Guarantee of the safety of Saudi territories by the United States
F-35 aircraft for the Kingdom
Economic and financial agreements
Plus the unknown!!!
President Al-Sharaa at the White House The Result:
Cancellation of all sanctions against Syria and Al-Sharaa
Security agreement with Israel
Reconstruction of Syria
Plus the unknown!!!
The Lebanese government and politicians are living in a state of Denial
regarding what is happening in Lebanon, the region, and the world. Therefore,
the first strong shock had to happen:
The visit of the Army Commander to the United States was cancelled, and there’s
more to come…
Did you understand, or do you want another hit on the head?
It is time for you to reconsider all your strategies and policies…
Otherwise, what is coming is greater (or worse)!!!
(Free translation by: Elias Bejjani)
Video link and Arabic-English text of Hassan Nasrallah
threatening the residents of the Border Strip in South Lebanon in 2000, days
before Israel’s unilateral withdrawal from it,
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/11/149357/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n03lpYYH8Jc
as part of a secret agreement between Tel Aviv and the Iranians, with Arab,
German, and European mediation… A withdrawal and not a liberation.”
“By God, we will enter your houses and slaughter you on the mattress. These
criminals and traitors have three options before them: either they leave with
the enemy, surrender themselves to the Lebanese judiciary, or they are killed
after the enemy leaves. After the enemy leaves, if you do not leave with it, we
are coming to you, not with peace but with guns.”
Germany Pursues an Active Hezbollah Network Across
Europe
U.S. Insurance “Card” Triggers Lebanese Alarm Amid Israeli Escalation
Nidaa Al-Watan/November 20/2025
Amid stalled reform and sovereignty tracks, Lebanon now finds itself facing
three rapidly accelerating races converging in both timing and consequence. The
first is the deadline for expatriate voter registration, which expires this
evening, amid growing parliamentary pressure to guarantee their right to vote
and remove political obstacles—especially from the Parliament Speaker’s gate—in
preparation for submitting the electoral law before the General Assembly. The
second is the intensification of official and diplomatic communications to
address the emerging crisis with the U.S. administration. As for the third race,
directly tied to the previous point, it lies in the expanding circle of Israeli
strikes and evacuation warnings in the South, signaling that zero hour—set to
Tel Aviv’s timing—may be approaching. In parallel with
this tangled scene, and to prevent the state from becoming fully exposed before
the outside world and losing the American insurance “card,” Nidaa Al-Watan has
learned that high-level contacts continued yesterday in an attempt to contain
the fallout from the cancellation of Army Commander General Rudolf Haykal’s
scheduled meetings in Washington. It has become clear to Lebanon’s political
leadership that the American message is purely political and was delivered
through military channels to pressure Lebanon on the issue of exclusive state
control over weapons and the implementation of related governmental and
international decisions. Available information
confirms that focusing pressure on General Haykal will not turn him into a
scapegoat amid deep political division over this issue, and that the military
institution will not be dragged into the game of mutual accusations. Information
also intersects with what President General Joseph Aoun previously indicated
about parties “spreading venom abroad.” President Aoun is expected to open
today’s Cabinet session in Baabda with a statement clarifying the background of
the situation and stressing the need to safeguard the military institution at
this critical moment. It has also become evident that
the U.S. Embassy in Beirut was the center of intensified political and
diplomatic contacts yesterday aimed at restoring balance, in parallel with the
Lebanese Embassy in Washington, which has been working to clarify what happened.
According to the available data, the American position is firm and explicit: no
settlement is possible without removing all illegal weapons from Lebanese
territory before the end of the current year, alongside ongoing direct contacts
with Israel to formulate a comprehensive settlement addressing outstanding
security and border issues.
Hezbollah Axis May Raise Heat in Cabinet Today
Regarding today’s Cabinet session—and despite the absence of hot political items
on the agenda—Nidaa Al-Watan has learned that the campaign launched by the
“Resistance Axis,” from Tehran to Hezbollah, against Central Bank Governor Karim
Saeed may impose itself on the table. Information indicates that several
ministers will emphasize the need to support the regulatory measures taken by
the Central Bank due to their essential role in organizing and stabilizing the
financial sector.
Hamas Strike Revives the Camp Weapons Issue
While the Lebanese state remains unable to disarm Hezbollah south of the Litani
River and beyond, Tuesday night’s Israeli airstrikes on Ain al-Hilweh camp—which
killed 13 Hamas members—have thrust the issue of Palestinian weapons back into
the spotlight, according to official information obtained by Nidaa Al-Watan.
Sources noted that the Israeli operation provoked wide Palestinian resentment,
especially given Hamas’s use of the camps as human shields and as platforms for
military activity, endangering refugee safety. In
response, new state action is expected, particularly after Hamas refused to
comply with the weapons-collection decision issued by the Lebanese government
and supported by the Palestinian Authority. Data indicates an inclination to
escalate official measures against Hamas, after the strike revealed that its
military activity inside Lebanon is rising in a way that will not be allowed to
continue.
Final Hours for Expatriate Registration
Electorally, Nidaa Al-Watan has learned that the number of registered
expatriates reached 120,000 as of last night—24 hours before the deadline. MPs
who signed the electoral law petition reiterated in a statement yesterday that
holding elections on schedule in May is a constitutional obligation that cannot
be postponed, and that ensuring this requires immediately placing the
government’s expedited draft law on the agenda of the General Assembly.
Israel Signals Expansion of Operations
Israel’s Broadcasting Authority reported military indicators showing that
current strikes against Hezbollah are not achieving their desired objectives,
strengthening assessments that broader operations will be needed. The Authority
added that Hezbollah is working to rebuild its military capabilities, increasing
the likelihood that the Israeli army may launch attacks in areas it previously
avoided. Israeli warplanes have already struck multiple towns in South Lebanon,
claiming to target “weapons depots,” after issuing evacuation warnings to
residents.
A Secret Hezbollah Network Operating in Europe
The German Federal Prosecutor revealed the existence of a secret and
sophisticated Hezbollah communication network operating across several parts of
Europe, tasked with smuggling large quantities of weapons, spare parts, and
drones into Lebanon. According to Israeli media, the network began to unravel
during the interrogation of Lebanese citizen Fadel Z., 35, who is currently
being tried before the regional court in the city of Celle in northern Germany.
The indictment accuses him of belonging to Hezbollah and playing a central role
in facilitating the transfer of military-grade drones into Lebanon.
Two soldiers killed, three wounded in army
raid on al-Sharawneh
Naharnet/November 19/2025
Two soldiers were killed on Tuesday night in a clash between the army and wanted
drug dealers in the Sharawneh neighborhood of Baalbek. Three other soldiers were
wounded during the clashes and the wanted drug dealer, who fired at the army,
was killed.
The army said the man had previously fired at army patrols in many occasions,
had killed four soldiers and wounded an officer, and had committed many other
crimes including kidnapping, theft, robbery at gunpoint, and drug trafficking.
Large quantities of drugs and weapons were seized.
Israel says killed two Hezbollah members in Blida, Bint
Jbeil
Agence France Presse/November 19/2025
The Israeli military said Wednesday it had killed two Hezbollah members in
strikes the previous day in south Lebanon, where Israel has carried out repeated
attacks despite the ceasefire. The Israeli military said in a statement it had
"struck and eliminated two Hezbollah terrorists in the areas of Bint Jbeil and
Blida in southern Lebanon" on Tuesday. It said the
Hezbollah member killed in Bint Jbeil was involved in rebuilding the militant
group's military capacities, severely weakened by the recent war with Israel.
The statement said the Hezbollah member killed in Blida had been
gathering intelligence on the Israeli military. The Israeli army’s announcement
comes a day after at least 13 people were killed in an Israeli strike Tuesday
night on the Ain al-Hilweh camp for Palestinian refugees in southern Lebanon,
according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health. The
Israeli army said it targeted a "training compound" belonging to the Palestinian
group Hamas. Hamas has denied having any military installations in Lebanon's
Palestinian camps and dismissed the Israeli assertion as "lies". The Israeli
army announced Monday it had killed a Hezbollah member in south Lebanon,
accusing him of being responsible for coordination between Hezbollah and the
residents in the Mansouri area, where Israel conducted the strike. Lebanon
accuses Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement reached under U.S. and
French sponsorship on 27 November 2024 through its strikes and by maintaining
forces inside its territory. Israel accuses Hezbollah of working to rebuild its
military capabilities and of breaking the ceasefire terms.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently accused Hezbollah of
attempting to rebuild its capabilities and rearm itself.
One killed, 11 wounded as Israel strikes south
Naharnet/November 19/2025
One person was killed Wednesday in an Israeli strike on a car in the southern
town of al-Tiri. Eleven other were wounded in the strike, the health ministry
said, as a school bus with students on board was passing near the targeted car.
The Israeli army later called for the evacuation of two buildings in the
southern towns of Deir Kifa and Shehour, minutes after an airstrike targeted the
southern town of Yohmor al-Shaqif. "You are located near buildings used by
Hezbollah. For your own safety, you must evacuate them immediately and move away
from the area," the Israeli military's Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee
said in a series of posts on X. On Tuesday night, an airstrike on a Palestinian
refugee camp in southern Lebanon killed 13 people and wounded several others. It
was the deadliest strike on Lebanon since a ceasefire was reached a year ago.
The war ended in late November 2024 with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire. Since
then, Israel has carried out scores of airstrikes in Lebanon, saying that
Hezbollah is trying to rebuild its capabilities. Lebanon’s Health Ministry has
reported more than 270 people killed and around 850 wounded by Israeli military
actions since the ceasefire.
Israel Warns 2 Villages in Lebanon to Evacuate as it Steps
Up Strikes in South
Asharq Al-Awsat/November 19/2025
The Israeli military carried out powerful airstrikes in two villages in Southern
Lebanon on Wednesday, witnesses said, pressing a campaign of near-daily attacks
in the border region where Israel says it is targeting Iran-backed Hezbollah.
The Israeli military said it was striking "several Hezbollah terror
infrastructure sites" in the region. Earlier, the Israeli military issued an
evacuation warning to residents of specific buildings in the southern villages
of Deir Kifa and Chehour, ahead of what it said were imminent attacks. There
were no immediate reports of casualties in the latest strikes. The Israeli
military earlier in the day killed at least one person as it pressed its attacks
which it says is designed to block a military revival by Iran-backed Hezbollah
in the border area. Israel has accused Hezbollah of trying to rearm since a
US-backed ceasefire its war with Hezbollah last year. The group says it has
abided by requirements for it to end its military presence in the border region
near Israel, and for the Lebanese army to deploy there. On Wednesday, residents
fled after Israel issued warnings on social media identifying buildings it
planned to strike in villages in the south, where the strikes later sent thick
plumes of smoke into the air.
Israel strikes four southern towns after evacuation
warnings
Agence France Presse/November 19/2025
The Israeli army launched strikes on four south Lebanon towns on Wednesday,
claiming it was targeting "Hezbollah infrastructure" after warning civilians of
the impending raids. The strikes came a day after 13
people were killed in an Israeli strike on a Palestinian refugee camp in south
Lebanon -- the worst raid since a ceasefire took effect last year between Israel
and Hezbollah. Israel has kept up frequent strikes on Lebanon despite the
November 2024 ceasefire that sought to end more than a year of hostilities
including two months of open war between Israel and the Iran-backed group. The
Israeli military usually says it is targeting operatives and sites from the
Iran-backed Hezbollah, which it accuses of rearming, but also occasionally its
ally, the Palestinian militant group Hamas. "The IDF
(military) is currently striking several Hezbollah terror infrastructure sites
in southern Lebanon," it said in a brief statement.
Lebanon's official National News Agency (NNA) said two raids hit the towns of
Deir Kifa, Shehour, Ainata and Tayr Felsay. In messages on X, the Israeli
military had posted maps identifying buildings in the towns and urging immediate
evacuation, saying it would strike Hezbollah "military infrastructure... in
response to Hezbollah's prohibited attempts to rebuild its activities in the
area."Israel has accused Hezbollah of carrying out activities that breach the
ceasefire, saying its frequent strikes aim to uphold it.
Lebanon, which under heavy U.S. pressure and fears of expanded Israeli
raids has begun disarming Hezbollah, says Israel is violating the truce with its
strikes and by maintaining troops in five areas of the country's south that it
deems strategic. Hezbollah has rejected the idea of handing over its weapons.
Earlier Wednesday, Lebanon's health ministry said one person was killed and 11
others wounded in an Israeli strike on a vehicle in south Lebanon's al-Tiri that
Israel said killed a Hezbollah operative. The NNA said the man killed worked for
the local municipality and said the strike took place as a "university bus
carrying 26 students" passed by, wounding some of those on board. On Tuesday,
Israel said it struck a Hamas training compound in south Lebanon's Ain al-Helweh
Palestinian refugee camp, while the militant group denied it had military
installations in Lebanon's refugee camps and called Israel's claims "lies." Also
on Tuesday, Lebanon said two people were killed in Israeli strikes elsewhere in
Lebanon, while the Israeli military later said it had killed two Hezbollah
members, accusing them of rebuilding the group's military capacities and
gathering intelligence on the Israeli military.
Hezbollah urges Lebanese leaders not to 'show leniency'
amid increasing Israeli attacks
Naharnet/November 19/2025
Hezbollah, in a statement issued Wednesday, condemned in the strongest terms
what it called "the horrific massacre perpetrated by the criminal Zionist enemy
last night in the Ain al-Helweh camp in Sidon,” which resulted in the death of
thirteen Palestinian refugees and a large number of wounded. “The attack
targeted a densely populated area filled with innocent civilians and children,
in a yet another brutal act added to the enemy's dark record of crimes and
genocide against Palestinians, Lebanese and the peoples of the region,"
Hezbollah said. "This bloody crime and heinous aggression is an attack on
Lebanon and its sovereignty, and a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement
and U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, which the enemy continues to violate
daily with the complicity and blatant partnership of the American
administration, which supports and even plans such crimes and attacks against
Lebanon and Palestine,” Hezbollah added. It accordingly called on “the pillars
of the Lebanese state” to “realize that showing any leniency, weakness or
submission to this enemy will only increase its ferocity, brutality and
aggression.”“Merely responding with reactions that fall short of addressing the
aggression will only lead to further attacks and massacres,” Hezbollah warned.
It added that "national duty requires taking a firm and unified stance in
confronting the crimes of this enemy and deterring its aggression by all
possible means, in addition to adhering to all elements of strength that Lebanon
possesses, as they are the only guarantee for thwarting the enemy's plans and
protecting Lebanon's sovereignty and security."
Israeli army says Hezbollah rebuilding capabilities in
south Lebanon
AFP/19 November/2025
The Israeli military on Wednesday accused Hezbollah of violating the terms of a
ceasefire by attempting to re-establish itself in southern Lebanon a short
distance from Israel’s northern border. “The Hezbollah terrorist organization
has been working to rebuild its capabilities in the village of Beit Lif in
southern Lebanon, in a blatant violation of the understandings between Israel
and Lebanon,” Israel’s military said in a statement.
The military said it “identified dozens of terrorist infrastructure sites in the
area of the village, including headquarters and weapons storage facilities,”
some of which were placed inside civilian homes.
Aoun defends army against 'suspicious campaigns,
incitement'
Naharnet/November 19/2025
President Joseph Aoun on Wednesday called Army Commander General Rodolphe Haykal
and offered condolences over the two soldiers who were killed Tuesday in clashes
with drug barons in Baalbek’s al-Sharawneh neighborhood. “Once again, the army
is paying with the blood of its men to protect Lebanese society from the scourge
of drugs on the one hand, and to enforce the law on the other. Yesterday's two
martyrs have joined a long line of comrades who sacrificed their most precious
possession in fulfillment of their oath, reaffirming the military institution's
determination, in cooperation with other security forces, to continue enforcing
the law, pursuing perpetrators, and curbing crime in all its forms,” Aoun said.
The president added that the army is simultaneously protecting the borders and
extending the state's authority and that “nothing will deter the army from
carrying out its national duty -- neither suspicious campaigns, nor incitement,
nor questioning from any side it may come from, whether internal or external.”
Berri calls for urgent UN Security Council session after
al-Tiri airstrike
Naharnet/November 19/2025
Speaker Nabih Berri on Wednesday called for seeking an urgent U.N. Security
Council session over Israel’s attacks in Lebanon. Commenting on the airstrike
that targeted the southern town of al-Tiri earlier in the day and wounded a
number of school and university students, Berri decried that Israel considers
itself above accountability, lamenting that Lebanon is being condemned and
criticized despite “its commitment to Resolution 1701 and the November 2024
cessation of hostilities agreement.”“Lebanon should continue filing complaints
to the Security Council and today is it is demanded to call for an urgent U.N.
Security Council session to consolidate the Lebanese right and condemn the
Israeli violations represented both in the targeting of civilians and the
annexation of territory,” the Speaker added.
Jumblat voices support to army chief after cancelled US
visit
Naharnet/November 19/2025
Former Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat voiced Wednesday his
support to Lebanese Army chief Rodolphe Haykal after U.S. senators harshly
criticized him. A scheduled visit of Haykal to the
U.S. was cancelled Tuesday after U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham posted on the X
platform that Haykal is "a giant setback for efforts to move Lebanon forward
because of a reference to Israel as the enemy and his weak almost non-existent
effort to disarm Hezbollah."Another senator said that Haykal is "shamefully
directing blame at Israel" instead of seizing the opportunity to free Lebanon
"from Iran-backed Hezbollah terrorists".These posts came after the Lebanese Army
condemned Israel's attacks on Lebanon and accused it of violating Lebanon's
sovereignty and obstructing the deployment of the army in south Lebanon.
Jubmlat described Haykal as a patriotic person and stressed the
importance of respecting the ceasefire agreement, extending the state's
authority over all Lebanese territories, halting Israeli violations, and
liberating the Lebanese prisoners.
Washington’s message to Beirut: Ambiguity has a price
Makram Rabah/English Alarabia/November 19/2025
The sudden cancellation of all scheduled meetings for Lebanese Army Commander
Gen. Rodolphe Haykal in Washington – including a reception planned in his honor
at the Lebanese Embassy – is not a diplomatic hiccup. It is a deliberate signal.
And Lebanon would be mistaken, once again, to treat it as anything less than a
warning that its margin for ambiguity has finally evaporated.
US officials cancelled the visit after the Lebanese Army issued a
statement blaming Israel for recent escalation along the southern border while
omitting any mention of Hezbollah, the actor that instigates, manages, and
escalates every confrontation in that theater. Senators Lindsey Graham and Joni
Ernst viewed the Army’s stance as symptomatic of a deeper problem: an
institution constrained and politically intimidated into repeating Hezbollah’s
narrative. Graham went so far as to describe the LAF as an “unwise investment”
for the United States. The episode has now landed with
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who – by all indications – is prepared to link
future assistance to the Army’s willingness to articulate positions consistent
with the basic responsibilities of a sovereign state: Border control, monopoly
over arms, and clarity about who actually makes decisions of war and peace in
Lebanon. To understand the weight of Washington’s
reaction, it is essential to appreciate the history it touches. US support for
the Lebanese Armed Forces is not a recent experiment nor a passing policy whim.
Since the 1980s – through civil war, reconstruction, political paralysis, and
regional turmoil – the LAF has been the one Lebanese institution the United
States consistently chose to bet on.
The logic was straightforward: If Lebanon was ever to regain sovereignty, it
needed a national military capable of anchoring security and preventing the
state’s collapse into factional militias. The LAF became, over time, the
repository of international confidence, the institution foreign governments
looked to when they wanted to believe Lebanon still had a chance.
That confidence was not blind. Washington has always known the Army operates
under immense political constraints. Yet it also believed – rightly or wrongly –
that the LAF represented the last remaining space where sovereignty could still
be reclaimed.
The cancellation of Haykal’s visit is therefore not a symbolic gesture. It is a
rupture in a relationship that, for forty years, has been shielded from
political storms.
The real crisis here does not lie in one statement issued by the Army; it lies
in the Lebanese state’s decades-long refusal to confront Hezbollah’s monopoly on
violence. Lebanon’s political class has perfected a survival mechanism built on
evasion: Insisting on “balance,” preaching “national consensus,” and hiding
behind semantic formulas that pretend Hezbollah is part of a legitimate
defensive architecture rather than an Iranian proxy shaping Lebanon’s fate.
For years, these linguistic acrobatics worked – at least externally. Lebanon
learned that it could navigate international diplomacy by pretending that the
state and the militia were two halves of an awkward but manageable arrangement.
But the mask has slipped. Washington now sees what most Lebanese have known for
years: the Lebanese Army’s statements, silences, and hesitations no longer
reflect institutional neutrality – they reflect fear. Fear of political
retribution, fear of isolation, fear of confronting a militia that decides when
Lebanon goes to war and when it retreats. The United
States is not only punishing the Army for failing to confront Hezbollah
militarily. It is punishing the Lebanese state for refusing to acknowledge
reality.
Lebanon today faces a strategic crossroads. The US message is simple: The LAF
cannot act as the state’s representative abroad while deferring to Hezbollah’s
narrative at home. It cannot be the recipient of Western support while speaking
the language of an organization Washington classifies as terrorist. And Lebanon
cannot expect indefinite international backing while voluntarily submitting its
sovereignty to a parallel military structure answerable to Tehran. This is not
about pleasing Washington. It is about recognizing that Lebanon’s survival as a
state is incompatible with permanent ambiguity. Countries do not survive by
outsourcing their borders, their war-making authority, or their national
discourse to militias. For years, Lebanese leaders convinced themselves that
foreign partners – France, the United States, the Gulf – would always step in,
always understand, always forgive, always fund. That era is over. The freeze on
Haykal’s visit signals a shift from sympathy to conditionality, from patience to
consequences. This moment should force a reckoning.
Lebanon cannot reclaim sovereignty while allowing Hezbollah to dictate when
institutions speak and what they can say. Nor can the Army maintain credibility
if its public positions continue to mimic the rhetoric of a militia whose
interests diverge fundamentally from the nation’s. If
the US-LAF partnership collapses, the damage will be far greater than the loss
of funding or equipment. It will mark the end of the last meaningful strategic
relationship Lebanon still possesses – and the final confirmation that the state
has surrendered its sovereignty in full. Washington has delivered its message.
The question is whether Lebanon, after decades of dodging responsibility, is
finally willing to hear it.
How Can Beirut’s Hamra Street Be Revived?
Hazem Saghieh/Asharq Al-Awsat/November 19/2025
The administration of the Beirut theater “Masrah Al-Madina” has announced that
it will hold a gathering under the title “Reviving Hamra Street: Memory and
Life.” The fact is that there is a need and demand for such an effort,
especially since Hamra Street is unlike any other street in Beirut, nor any
other city in the region. For decades, it had been the capital of the capital
and the first cosmopolitan space in the region. Lebanese, both urbanites and
migrants from the periphery, have long resided there next door to Americans,
Britons, Palestinians, Iraqis, Bahrainis, Indians, Pakistanis, and Nigerians...
With its transition away from the raw state of nature- where cactus, sand, and
foxes are sovereign- Hamra Street shaped the highpoint that Lebanon had reached
before 1975. It was the product of collective and transnational human action
that built cinemas, theaters, libraries, hotels, cafes, restaurants, commercial
offices, and banks... Hamra’s commerce- in solidarity with its sectarian
diversity and the freedoms, denied by closed communities, that it offered women-
gave rise to this new entity frequented by intellectuals, tourists, and
businessmen arriving from all kinds of faraway places. It constituted a space of
freedom where books, plays, and films were not prohibited, nor, of course, was
expressing wholly opposed and divergent opinions.
This new entity would not have been Hamra Street if it were not for the American
University of Beirut. Its establishment gave rise to a growing need to meet the
demand of its professors and students (housing, food, and bookstores), and
landlords emerged to rent homes to incoming tenants. More substantially, it
transformed Hamra Street, as well as the entirety of Ras Beirut, into a space
where residence was not dictated by a traditional Eastern kinship system. One’s
"neighbors" were not necessarily siblings or cousins; they could be from any
country on the planet.
Hamra Street became what it is because, on one hand, it is "us," and on the
other, it is "not us." And on one hand, it resembles us, and on the other, it
does not resemble us. Our voices and the voices we like can be heard there, and
so can voices we dislike and wish- deep down in our crummy selves- we wouldn't
hear. That is to say, it is the ideal city where tongues meet and become muddled
along with faces, complexions, and opinions, whereby we find and lose ourselves
at the same time. It is the antithesis of the ideal village inhabited by people
with whom we do not get lost, and if we do, we get lost among them as they all
voice sentiments that we all share.
All of that could only be achieved, however, in a country that neither wages war
nor glorifies war and resistance, nor imposes an official ideology on its
citizens that points them to the correct ideas they are to embrace and the
harmful ideas they are to avoid.
In other words, that is precisely what is needed to revive Hamra: the death of
war, violence, militarism, and the delegitimization of all by a single "correct"
opinion, which is ultimately tied to reviving Lebanon’s pluralism, if that
remains possible.
The state of war has, decade after decade, been undermining everything that had
made Hamra Street what it was. It is the reason for the displacement of
residents along sectarian and ideological lines. This displacement, in both its
visible and invisible forms, has continued to expand, with the latest (though
not the largest) wave coming in 2008, when Hezbollah and its subordinates seized
control of the capital.
Another outcome of the war and its expansion was the rise of kidnapping and
assassinating foreigners, which aggravated when Lebanon became tied to the
Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s. Among the many victims was the political scientist
and American University of Beirut president, Malcolm Kerr, who was murdered in
1984.
Amid the perpetual state of war, various forms of local fanaticism became
increasingly widespread, as did inflammatory nationalist and religious claims,
rendering Hamra's cosmopolitanism superfluous to requirements and granting
national and moral legitimacy to suspecting "dubious" outsiders and labeling
them "spies."Boasting of anti-modern, xenophobic, and traditional identities has
always gone hand in hand with our pride in our wars, which prevented any harmony
of urban life and unleashed chaotic waves of displacement whose costs were borne
by the wars’ victims, culminating in the suffering enduring during the "war of
support." It soon became evident that these boasts announced the impossibility
of the city and the impossibility of a street like Hamra. After the Syrian
regime's censorship of newspapers and magazines, a similar sort of censorship
was applied to books and films that did not fit this (fantastical and
authoritarian) conception of patriotism. Pursuant to this eradicative culture,
Hamra Street- with its history, people, institutions, achievements, and
symbolism- was reduced to a single young man who we thank for firing two shots
at invading Israeli soldiers in 1982. Until very recently, Hamra Street would
witness paramilitary parades on the special occasions of a certain political
party- a party that continues to raise swastikas that have been slightly
modified so they can be called "whirlwinds.""Reviving Hamra Street" also
requires a state monopoly on armament and, to the same extent, rescuing "memory
and life" from this mendacious reductionism that erases the former and falsifies
the latter.
The Latest English
LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on
November 19-20/2025
Netanyahu visits Israeli troops in Syria beyond ceasefire line
Agence France Presse/November 19, 2025
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Israeli troops deployed in
Syria beyond a ceasefire line on Wednesday, an Israeli government spokesman told
AFP. Netanyahu was accompanied by Foreign Minister
Gideon Saar, Defense Minister Israel Katz, the army's Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir
and the head of the Shin Bet security service David Zini, the spokesman said.
Since the overthrow of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad in December, Israel has
kept troops into a UN-patrolled buffer zone in the Golan Heights separating
Israeli and Syrian forces.
Syria condemns Israeli PM’s visit to country’s south
Arab News and AFP/November 19, 2025
DAMASCUS: The Syrian Arab Republic condemned a trip Wednesday by Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials to Syria’s south, where they
visited troops deployed in a buffer zone intended to separate the two countries’
forces. Syria “condemns in the strongest terms the
illegal visit... considering it a serious violation of Syria’s sovereignty and
territorial integrity,” the foreign ministry said in a statement, calling it “a
new attempt to impose a fait accompli that contradicts relevant Security Council
resolutions.”Netanyahu visited Syria’s southern region along with ministers of
defense and foreign affairs. The ministry said the visit “falls within the
occupation’s policies aimed at consolidating its aggression and continuing its
violations of Syrian territory.”“We call on the international community to
assume its responsibilities, deter the occupation’s practices and compel it to
fully withdraw from southern Syria and return to the 1974 Disengagement
Agreement,” the statement added. The United Nations expressed concern over
Netanyahu’s visit to Syria, describing it as “worrying.” UN Secretary-General
spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said the visit, which took place publicly and
openly, is “concerning at the very least,” and called on Israel to respect the
1974 Disengagement Agreement.
Israeli Airstrikes Kill 10 Palestinians in Gaza, Rattling Ceasefire, Medics Say
Asharq Al-Awsat/November 19/2025
Israeli airstrikes killed 10 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday in a
part of the enclave under Hamas control since a shaky ceasefire took effect in
October, health authorities said. Medics said two people were killed in Shejaia
suburb east of Gaza City and four in the nearby suburb of Zeitoun. A third
airstrike killed four Palestinians in Mawasi area, west of Khan Younis in the
south of Gaza. The Israeli military said its forces struck Hamas targets across
Gaza after members of the Palestinian group fired on its troops in violation of
the nearly six-week-old ceasefire. No Israeli forces were injured. Repeated
shooting incidents have pointed to the fragility of the ceasefire. Israel and
Hamas have traded blame for what both call violations of the US-brokered truce,
the first stage of President Donald Trump's 20-point plan for a post-war Gaza.
All three attacks were far beyond an agreed-upon imaginary "yellow line"
separating the areas under Israeli and Palestinian control, according to medics,
witnesses and Palestinian media. The Zeitoun attack was on a building belonging
to Muslim religious authorities and the Khan Younis attack was on a UN-run club,
both of which house displaced families. The October 10 ceasefire in the two-year
Gaza war has eased the conflict, enabling hundreds of thousands of Palestinians
to return to Gaza’s ruins. Israel has pulled troops back from city positions,
and aid flows have increased. But violence has not completely halted.
Palestinian health authorities say Israeli forces have killed 290 people in
strikes on Gaza since the truce, nearly half of them in one day last week when
Israel retaliated for an attack on its troops. Israel
says three of its soldiers have been killed since the ceasefire began and it has
targeted scores of fighters.
Hamas, Other Factions Cautious of New UN Security Council Resolution on Gaza
Asharq Al-Awsat/November 19/2025
Hamas and several Palestinian factions issued separate and joint statements on
Tuesday rejecting the UN Security Council resolution sponsored by the United
States on Gaza’s future, particularly its provisions for a proposed “Peace
Council” and an international stabilization force. The reaction raised
questions, as Hamas had previously called for any such force to be authorized by
the Security Council to ensure international legitimacy.
In their joint statement, Hamas and other Palestinian groups said the
resolution “overrides international references” and creates field arrangements
“outside the Palestinian national will.”They warned that deploying an
international force under the proposal could amount to “a form of imposed
guardianship or administration,” undermining Palestinian self-determination. The
draft resolution called for an interim international force to be deployed
immediately in Gaza to stabilize the situation. It would train and support
pre-approved Palestinian police units in Gaza, coordinate with Egypt and Jordan,
and work alongside Israel and Egypt to secure border areas. Sources within Hamas
and other factions told Asharq Al-Awsat that their opposition is not merely
political. One major concern is the possibility of armed confrontations if the
force attempts to disarm Hamas’s Qassam Brigades or other groups. Such a
scenario, the sources said, is unacceptable and could trigger uncontrolled
escalation. They also fear that both the international force and the locally
trained units - expected to receive training in Egypt and Jordan - could use
their authority to pursue and arrest faction members, similar to the Palestinian
Authority’s actions in the 1990s. This, they warn, would inevitably lead to
direct clashes and dangerous developments. According
to Hamas sources, the movement had hoped the Security Council would authorize a
monitoring force focused solely on enforcing a ceasefire, particularly on the
Israeli side, which they accuse of repeatedly violating the Sharm el-Sheikh
ceasefire agreement. The sources did not rule out an imminent meeting between US
envoy Steve Witkoff and senior Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya, saying direct talks
with Washington have become necessary to prevent Israel from exploiting the
resolution to control Gaza’s security, aid, and reconstruction. Regarding the
proposed Peace Council, Hamas and other factions said they expected it to be
symbolic only, with actual governance handled by a technocratic committee
previously agreed upon with Egyptian mediators. They
warned that many understandings reached with mediators and the US had been
“stripped of their original substance,” allowing Israel to retain open-ended
security control rather than follow clear timetables. The factions also
criticized the resolution for separating Gaza from the West Bank and Jerusalem,
saying this harms the unity of the Palestinian state-in-waiting. Finally, they
said labeling the Palestinian resistance as terrorism carries “extremely
dangerous consequences,” opening the door to legal persecution of fighters,
leaders, and even civilians both inside and outside Palestinian territory.
Gaza Storms Bring Flooding, Sewage and Misery in Tent Camps
Asharq Al-Awsat/November 19/2025
Crammed into flimsy tent camps hard up against the seashore, Gazans have been
flooded by heavy rain and storm surges in recent days, destroying some shelters,
soaking mattresses and blankets and bringing new misery even after a ceasefire.
The Hamas-run Gaza government has estimated losses from the stormy
weather at around $4.5 million, including 22,000 tents, spoiled food and
medicines and damage to infrastructure, while local aid groups say 300,000 new
tents are urgently needed. Nearly all Gazans were
forced from their homes during more than two years of Israel's assault on the
tiny, crowded enclave, triggered by the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023, with
many now living in tents and other basic shelters.
SAVING BELONGINGS FROM THE WATER
For Abu Mohammed al-Qarra, the rain and cold have been devastating, with water
coming into his family's tent on a beach just 20 meters (yards) from the waves,
drenching their possessions and forcing them to spend a night frantically moving
their things.
"There is no warmth, or anything. I have been up since five in the morning, and
(now) I am at my neighbors' place because I want to (rest) and forget the cold
and the things that we are suffering from," he said. The al-Qarra family ended
up in the southern Gaza camp area of al-Mawasi in the spring after an earlier
truce collapsed and Israel's military told civilians to head there, but
struggled to find any remaining space to pitch their tent.
Eventually they settled on a spot close up against the sea, protected
from surges by only a small sand wall maintained by the families living in that
area. "We were there in the middle of the night, moving and removing our
clothes, they got wet, and our mattresses and our pillows. Everything," he said.
The Gaza government media office head Ismail al-Thawabta said flooding had
destroyed more than 22,000 tents along with tarpaulins, mattresses and cooking
equipment amounting to more than $2 million of damage. Emergency shelters also
collapsed in areas, turning camps into pools of water and mud, he said. Further
expensive damage also hit water and sanitation systems including temporary water
lines and sewage pits, as well as small solar installations that provide nearly
all the electricity Gazans rely on.
HOSPITALS REPORT SURGING GASTRIC ILLNESS
Amjad al-Shawa, the head of the Palestinian NGOs Network, which liaises with UN
and international humanitarian agencies, said 1.5 million people in the enclave
needed new tents."The tents that are already in Gaza have worn out, they will
not protect people against the rain," he said. Even further inland in Gaza the
rainfall has created major problems. Most people sheltering in tents have no
proper toilet or sewage facilities but rely on small cesspits dug near their
tents, which overflow in heavy rain. Most people also
live near unregulated garbage heaps because landfills and other facilities are
inaccessible or destroyed. Already overstretched hospitals have repeatedly
warned that they are coping with surging rates of gastric illness and skin
diseases due to the crowded and insanitary conditions made worse by widespread
malnutrition that has weakened immune systems. Large pools used to store
rainwater before the war have filled with sewage and, with pipes and pumping
systems smashed or damaged, risk overflowing into surrounding crowded areas of
tents. The United Nations deputy spokesperson, Farhan Haq, said on Tuesday that
the situation in Gaza had sharply deteriorated after the rain flooded camps. He
said aid teams were distributing tents, tarpaulins and other basic supplies
while assessing the level of damage.
US, Saudi Arabia strike deal to build rare earths
refinery in the Kingdom
Joseph Haboush/ Al Arabiya English/19 November/2025
Rare earths company MP Materials is partnering with the US military and Saudi
Arabia’s flagship mining company to build a rare earth refinery in the Kingdom,
in a move that aims to diversify the global critical minerals supply chain.
Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden) and the Pentagon will create a joint
venture to process rare earth materials from Saudi Arabia and other parts of the
world to supply the US and Saudi manufacturing and defense sectors. Washington
and Riyadh signed the Critical Minerals Framework during Crown Prince Mohammed
bin Salman’s visit to the White House this week to deepen collaboration to
diversify critical mineral supply chains. “The formation of a joint venture to
build a rare earth refinery in Saudi Arabia is a pivotal step toward rebalancing
the global rare earth supply chain and aligns with US economic and national
security interests,” MP Materials said in a statement. “The joint venture will
leverage Saudi Arabia’s competitive energy base, world-class infrastructure,
strategic location, and significant untapped rare earth resource potential to
advance a stable and secure supply chain for rare earth materials.”
MP CEO James Litinsky said the deal would fundamentally strengthen and
diversify the supply chain, adding that it further aligns US and Saudi
interests. For his part, Maaden CEO Bob Wilt hailed the “significant step
forward” in developing the sector. “I am proud of the role that Maaden plays as
Saudi Arabia’s national mining champion, and through our significant growth
ambitions, we will continue to develop this strategic sector as an integral
pillar of the Kingdom’s economy,” Wilt said. Under the deal, MP Materials and
the Pentagon will hold 49 percent of the joint venture, and Maaden will have “no
less than” 51 percent. The US military will finance the joint venture, not MP
Materials. It is unclear how much that investment will be. MP Materials said it
was also in talks to support or collaborate on magnet manufacturing inside Saudi
Arabia. “The joint venture will also deepen economic and security ties between
the United States and Saudi Arabia and support industrial resilience without
reliance on adversarial sources,” MP Materials said. MP Materials is expected to
begin construction on its second magnet manufacturing facility in the US. The
company operates the world’s second-largest rare-earth mine in California.
Trump says designating Saudi Arabia major non-NATO ally
Agence France Presse/November 19, 2025
U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday he was designating Saudi Arabia as a
major non-NATO ally, as he hosted Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for a gala
dinner at the White House. "Tonight, I'm pleased to announce that we're taking
our military cooperation to even greater heights by formally designating Saudi
Arabia as a major non-NATO ally, which is something that is very important to
them," Trump said. "And I'm just telling you now for
the first time, because they wanted to keep a little secret for tonight," Trump
said of the designation, which only 19 other countries have previously received.
Trump attacks ABC reporter after question about killing of Saudi journalist
Khashoggi
Associated Press/November 19, 2025
President Donald Trump denounced ABC News' Mary Bruce as a "terrible reporter"
Tuesday and threatened the network's license to broadcast after she asked him
three sharp questions at the White House. The network's chief White House
correspondent was among reporters let into the Oval Office to question the
president and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. She asked Trump whether it
was appropriate for his family to be doing business in Saudi Arabia while he was
president. Before he could answer, she directed a question to the Saudi leader:
"Your Royal Highness, the U.S. intelligence concluded that you orchestrated the
brutal murder of a journalist. 9/11 families are furious that you are here in
the Oval Office. Why should Americans trust you? And the same to you, Mr.
President."After asking Bruce who she worked for, Trump called ABC "fake news"
and defended his family's business operations in Saudi Arabia. The president
dismissed the U.S. intelligence findings that the prince likely had some
culpability in the 2018 killing of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a
critic of the Saudi kingdom. He said "a lot of people didn't like" Khashoggi, a
Saudi citizen and a Virginia resident. For his part, Prince Mohammed said
Khashoggi's death was painful and "a huge mistake."Trump later criticized Bruce
for asking the prince a "horrible, insubordinate and just a terrible question."
He laced into her after a third query, about why the White House is waiting for
congressional action to release more details about sex offender Jeffrey
Epstein's correspondence. "Why not just do it now?" Bruce asked. "It's not the
question that I mind," Trump said. "It's your attitude. I think you are a
terrible reporter. It's the way you ask these questions."
After addressing the Epstein question, he returned to Bruce, saying that "people
are wise to your hoax." "I think the license should be taken away from ABC
because your news is so fake and it's so wrong," he said. "And we have a great
(FCC) commissioner, the chairman, who should look at that because I think when
you come in and you're 97% negative to Trump. And then Trump wins the election
in a landslide. That means, obviously, your news is not credible. And you're not
credible as a reporter." ABC News had no comment Tuesday on Trump's statements,
which referred to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, who leads the federal agency
responsible for licensing local broadcast stations. Meanwhile, Bloomberg News
issued a comment on Trump referring to one of its reporters, Catherine Lucey, as
"piggy" during a question-and-answer session last Friday on Air Force One.
"Our White House journalists perform a vital public service, asking
questions without fear or favor," Bloomberg News said. "We remain focused on
reporting issues of public interest fairly and accurately."
Trump says designating Saudi Arabia major non-NATO ally
Agence France Presse/November 19, 2025
U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday he was designating Saudi Arabia as a
major non-NATO ally, as he hosted Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for a gala
dinner at the White House. "Tonight, I'm pleased to announce that we're taking
our military cooperation to even greater heights by formally designating Saudi
Arabia as a major non-NATO ally, which is something that is very important to
them," Trump said. "And I'm just telling you now for
the first time, because they wanted to keep a little secret for tonight," Trump
said of the designation, which only 19 other countries have previously received.
Russian attack kills 19 in western Ukraine
Agence France Presse/November 19, 2025
A Russian missile and drone strike on the western Ukrainian city of Ternopil
killed at least 19 people and wounded dozens, officials said Wednesday, updating
a previous toll. "Nineteen people were killed as a
result of a massive combined Russian strike on the city. Another 66 people were
wounded, including 16 children," the interior ministry said on social media.
Moscow has been intensifying its daily drone and missile barrages in recent
months, targeting Ukraine's energy infrastructure and hitting a number of
civilian sites ahead of winter. In its latest wave of attacks overnight, Russia
launched more than 470 strike drones and 48 missiles of various types, Zelensky
said. The attacks injured people in the northeastern region of Kharkiv and in
the western region of Ivano-Frankivsk, local authorities said.
UAE faces online boycott calls over Sudan war
Agence France Presse/November 19, 2025
The UAE is coming under increasing fire on social media over claims it is
embroiled in Sudan's civil war, with calls to boycott its crown jewel: the
financial and entertainment hub of Dubai. Abu Dhabi has repeatedly denied
supporting the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, despite accusations from the
Sudanese government, U.N. experts and international groups. Posts blaming the
UAE for "funding genocide" and "killing Sudanese" have snowballed in the weeks
since the city of El-Fasher fell to the RSF, with reports of mass atrocities
being committed in the city. Public figures including climate activist Greta
Thunberg have endorsed a campaign that analysts say threatens to taint the
reputation of a country that has long sought to polish its overseas image to
attract foreign professionals. Reports of mass killings, rape and other
atrocities have emerged since the RSF seized the Sudanese army's last stronghold
in the Darfur region in late October, just the latest horror in more than two
years of war. "The campaign could be damaging to the Emirati brand as the
situation in Sudan has cut through into wider consciousness," said Kristian
Coates Ulrichsen, a researcher at Rice University's Baker Institute. "Dubai in
particular has a reputation as a soft power magnet that may be damaged," he
said. Campaigners are pushing the phrase "habibi
boycott Dubai", a reference to the viral "habibi come to Dubai" campaign
promoting the city. It's a targeted swipe at the UAE's flagship city, which has
become synonymous with flashy influencers, wealth and success.
'Habibi boycott Dubai'
Thunberg and rapper Macklemore, who combined have more than 20 million
followers, shared a post titled "habibi boycott Dubai", describing the RSF as
"the UAE's hand in Sudan". Others have joined in, with more users calling for a
boycott of the entire country. X user Anis Mansour
accused the UAE of being "the main financier of genocide in Sudan", while Bint
Khalifa, another user, blamed it for prolonging "the Sudanese tragedy, under the
guise of humanitarian aid". Commenting on the campaign, the Emirati foreign
ministry told AFP it had seen "a marked increase in unfounded accusations and
deliberate propaganda from the so-called Port Sudan Authority," referring to the
army-aligned Sudanese government. Analysts agree that it's too early to tell
whether the damage would extend beyond a reputational hit because of limited
international pressure so far. "Now they're
experiencing perhaps some reputational backlash, which they tend to be averse
to," said Emadeddin Badi, a researcher at the Global Initiative Against
Transnational Organized Crime. For much of the last two years, campaigners
including Thunberg had been focused on the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas,
but a ceasefire in the Palestinian territory has coincided with the RSF's
capture of El-Fasher. Before the city's fall, there
was only limited political backlash, with some US lawmakers calling for a halt
in arms sales to the UAE. In recent days, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio
insisted "some country, and we know who they are" must stop sending weapons to
the RSF, but he refused to single out the UAE. "In terms of broader political
implications, I haven't seen any and I also haven't seen a significant momentum
to sort of look at revising the exports," Badi said.
'Fake News'
In response to the backlash, some pro-UAE users have taken to social media, with
Badi saying authorities also used mosque sermons to urge people to ignore online
posts. But Emirati political science professor
Abdulkhaleq Abdulla conceded it would be "difficult to keep up" with the
campaign. "Sometimes it's best to just ignore it," he said.
In parallel, the UAE has amped up condemnation of violence in Sudan in
recent weeks, with the foreign ministry lamenting crimes against humanity while
UAE presidential advisor Anwar Gargash criticized atrocities being committed in
El Fasher. But they stopped short of condemning the
RSF, with Gargash decrying "fake news" about the UAE's alleged involvement in
Sudan. With enough political pressure, the UAE may shift its policy or tone on
Sudan, Ulrichsen said, but it "will likely be done quietly and communicated
through signaling and messaging rather than an acknowledgement of a policy that
has gone wrong or is in need of adjustment".
The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous
sources on
November 19-20/2025
What Works?: America's New No-Nonsense Realism
Pierre Rehov/Gatestone Institute/November 19, 2025
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/22057/america-no-nonsense-realism
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Truth Social
This new statecraft, begun by [US President Ronald] Reagan, was neither
isolationist nor utopian. It was positive and pragmatic, based on whatever might
work, rather than confined by ideological strictures. Its successes—such as
revitalized growth, a revived military and renewed national morale — have given
the US a strategic steadiness.
Both political parties, once fluent in kitchen‑table economics and national
pride, often sounded like seminars rather than positive results, for instance, a
functional education for its citizens or "affordable healthcare" that was
actually affordable.
Into this vacuum came a businessman, speaking a language voters understood:
borders, jobs, sovereignty and global respect. He did not reject American
leadership; he redefined it as the capacity to secure the interests of American
citizens. Tariffs – which some other countries had been imposing on the US –
were not "taxes" or theology; they were instruments of geopolitical persuasion
other than war. Alliances were tools to strengthen America's military breadth.
Diplomacy was to be measured by outcomes—defeated terrorists, deterred
adversaries, reshored industries — not by applause at international conferences.
On China, the government's new hard look at reality ended decades of wishful
thinking that economic engagement alone would liberalize a Communist
party‑state. By imposing tariffs and spotlighting technology theft, supply chain
vulnerabilities, and the national security stakes of having handed over American
jobs to its adversaries, he forced a reconsideration of how much malign behavior
it is advisable to tolerate.
Communist China, in 1990, had already declared a "peoples war" – meaning all-out
war – on the US.
On the Middle East, the government rediscovered deterrence making it clear --
credibly -- to enemies that the cost to them of aggression would be
catastrophically high.
Looking at "what works" demands that leaders match means to ends and judge
policies by what they deliver. Under this lens, moral posturing is not a virtue;
it is vanity. A nation that promises to save the world while failing to protect
its own communities is not moral—it is at best negligent, at worst
catastrophically destructive, as can be seen in much of Europe.
What looks like "moral righteousness" often compounds the problem: it depends on
who thinks what is "moral." Many seem to have recast foreign policy as "virtue
signaling": proclamations (here, here and here), hashtags, and ambitious
frameworks that unravel upon contact with reality. Multilateral consensus, as
over "climate change," is confused with legitimacy, and national borders are
treated as embarrassments rather than as obligations to protect one's citizens
for national security. This is not compassion; again, it is vanity -- abdication
cloaked as empathy.
Pragmatic, unsentimental realism is not cynical: it assumes that safeguarding a
nation requires enforceable borders, credible deterrence and growing paychecks.
While an unsecured border may sound humane; it is often seen as an invitation
for abuse. America's current call for enforcement — walls, technology,
remain‑in‑Mexico, interior checks — should be judged by results: fewer deaths,
less fentanyl and safer streets.
Internationally, if you are no-nonsense, you choose your priorities. The United
States faces simultaneous challenges from China's aggression, Russia's
expansion, and Iran's terror networks. The United States cannot meet them with
"slogans." It needs steady, vast defense spending; energy dominance – most
urgently from developing nuclear fusion energy with which China is racing ahead,
rather than US addiction to low-hanging nuclear fission energy.
Some politicians, perversely, seem to obstruct their constituents from
flourishing – perhaps to keep them dependent on promises always just a nose in
front of them; perhaps to thwart accomplishments by another political party to
prevent one's own deficiencies from being exposed. The antidote is the
Constitution — checks and balances, federalism that gives power to the states,
and public debate that keeps leaders tethered to positive results.
When US President Ronald Reagan revived the phrase "shining city on a hill," he
did so not as a marketing flourish but as a governing ethic: the United States
would deter evil by projecting confidence, prosperity and moral clarity. His
message blended optimism with hard power — lower taxes and deregulation to spur
growth, rebuilding the military to restore deterrence, and an unapologetic
defense of Western civilization.
When US President Ronald Reagan revived the phrase "shining city on a hill," he
did so not as a marketing flourish but as a governing ethic: the United States
would deter evil by projecting confidence, prosperity and moral clarity.
His message blended optimism with hard power — lower taxes and deregulation to
spur growth, rebuilding the military to restore deterrence, and an unapologetic
defense of Western civilization. The mix resonated because it tied virtue to
results: fewer hostages, a stronger dollar, and an adversary in Moscow forced
onto its back foot. This fusion of ideals and outcomes gave the GOP a compass
that pointed true north.
Reagan called it "peace through strength." The logic was simple: credible power
restrains predators, and free economies outrun "planned" ones. That worldview,
articulated in the 1980s and vindicated by the collapse of the Soviet bloc, set
a high bar for a new statecraft. This new statecraft, begun by Reagan, was
neither isolationist nor utopian. It was positive and pragmatic, based on
whatever might work, rather than confined by ideological strictures. Its
successes—such as revitalized growth, a revived military and renewed national
morale — have given the US a strategic steadiness.
After the Cold War, however, the glue that had held these policies together
began to loosen. Without an existential foe, Washington elites seemed to drift
toward a missionary impulse: the United States would not only deter threats but
also refashion distant societies in terms of national security – both theirs and
ours in the West.
In Iraq, the amazing, quick war devolved into an incompetently executed,
grinding occupation that cost lives, treasure, and strategic trust. The outcome
was not American moral authority but a credibility gap that emboldened
adversaries and internationally damaged faith in America's judgment.
Libya offered a bipartisan variation on the same error: intervention but without
a realistic plan, especially in the event of unexpected consequences. The result
was -- and sadly remains -- a failed state whose instability has radiated across
North Africa and into Europe.
As the foreign policy establishment chased missions abroad, it neglected duties
at home. Factories closed, addiction surged, and border chaos mounted. Large
segments of Middle America concluded that the government, while pursuing
possibly noble ideals, might be ignoring tangible harms. Both political parties,
once fluent in kitchen‑table economics and national pride, often sounded like
seminars rather than positive results, for instance, a functional education for
its citizens or "affordable healthcare" that was actually affordable.
Into this vacuum came a businessman, speaking a language voters understood:
borders, jobs, sovereignty and global respect. He did not reject American
leadership; he redefined it as the capacity to secure the interests of American
citizens. Tariffs – which some other countries had been imposing on the US –
were not "taxes" or theology; they were instruments of geopolitical persuasion
other than war. Alliances were tools to strengthen America's military breadth.
Diplomacy was to be measured by outcomes—defeated terrorists, deterred
adversaries, reshored industries — not by applause at international conferences.
On China, the government's new hard look at reality ended decades of wishful
thinking that economic engagement alone would liberalize a Communist
party‑state. By imposing tariffs and spotlighting technology theft, supply chain
vulnerabilities, and the national security stakes of having handed over American
jobs to its adversaries, he forced a reconsideration of how much malign behavior
it is advisable to tolerate.
Communist China, in 1990, had already declared a "Peoples War" – meaning all-out
war – on the US. Today, even critics of the government's policies concede that
fending off this aggressor, which has openly stated that it plans to displace
the US as the world's leading superpower, began with his break from the old
orthodoxy of "competition" eventually leading China to evolving into an open,
democratic society.
On the Middle East, the government rediscovered deterrence: making it clear --
credibly -- to enemies that the cost to them of aggression would be
catastrophically high. The ISIS caliphate was crushed; the air strike that
killed the Iranian terrorist Qasem Soleimani reestablished red lines against all
terrorists, and the Abraham Accords demonstrated that Arab‑Israeli normalization
could advance without yielding to demands from rejectionist groups. This
combination—force where necessary, diplomacy only where useful—restored a sense
that American power could achieve concrete, stabilizing gains.
Critics called this "transactional" – perhaps another word for accountable.
Looking at "what works" demands that leaders match means to ends and judge
policies by what they deliver. Under this lens, moral posturing is not a virtue;
it is vanity. A nation that promises to save the world while failing to protect
its own communities is not moral—it is at best negligent, at worst
catastrophically destructive, as can be seen in much of Europe.
Former US administrations sought appeasement to avoid "escalation" (here, here,
here, here and here). While members of the current government can be blunt --
even abrasive -- they have nevertheless re‑centered the only important question:
does a policy actually help Americans, Europeans, or whomever is possibly being
bamboozled?
What looks like "moral righteousness" often compounds the problem: it depends on
who thinks what is "moral." Many seem to have recast foreign policy as "virtue
signaling": proclamations (here, here and here), hashtags, and ambitious
frameworks that unravel upon contact with reality. Multilateral consensus, as
over "climate change," is confused with legitimacy, and national borders are
treated as embarrassments rather than as obligations to protect one's citizens
for national security. This is not compassion; again, it is vanity -- abdication
cloaked as empathy.
Pragmatic, unsentimental realism is not cynical: it assumes that safeguarding a
nation requires enforceable borders, credible deterrence and growing paychecks.
The surest way to defend a nation is to maintain one strong enough to deter
predators and prosperous enough to inspire emulation. Reagan understood this;
the current government revived the same policy in an even harsher international
climate. Both rejected the illusion that words alone can police the world.
Economically, strength means reconnecting trade policy to national
self-reliance. The pandemic exposed the folly of having offshored critical
industries, from medicine to semiconductors. An on-the-ground realism measures
trade by the ability of people to buy goods -- especially working-class and
middle‑class prosperity -- not by aggregate charts that disguise regional
collapse. When a policy hollows out cities, it hollows out the ability of people
to live there in safety and in comfort.
On immigration, a healthy sovereign nation distinguishes between lawful, welcome
entry, and unlawful, entry -- sometimes by people who do not share the values of
the host country, or who may be criminals, or who are determined to take it
down. A healthy sovereign nation honors citizens who follow the laws, enabling
people to live safely together, and that protects the vulnerable from predators.
While an unsecured border may sound humane; it is often seen as an invitation
for abuse. America's current call for enforcement — walls, technology,
remain‑in‑Mexico, interior checks — should be judged by results: fewer deaths,
less fentanyl and safer streets.
In much of the non-progressive world -- often referred to as "far right,"
although everyone probably thinks he is "center" -- parents have demanded
authority over schools; communities have demanded order over mayhem. These are
not "culture war" distractions; they are the preconditions for self‑government.
A nation that cannot safeguard historical truth in classrooms -- such as if
there "really" was a Holocaust or an October 7, 2023 -- will, one hopes, have a
hard time projecting any kind of worldwide leadership.
Internationally, if you are no-nonsense, you choose your priorities. The United
States faces simultaneous challenges from China's aggression, Russia's
expansion, and Iran's terror networks. The United States cannot meet them with
"slogans." It needs steady, vast defense spending; energy dominance – most
urgently from developing nuclear fusion energy with which China is racing ahead,
rather than US addiction to low-hanging nuclear fission energy. The US also
needs secure supply chains, and a diplomatic posture that rewards friends and
deters foes. That is not isolationism; it is national security.
The political throughline is therefore to align means with ends, rhetoric with
reality, and "morality" with beneficial, measurable results. Reagan ended
stagflation and the Cold War; President Donald J. Trump ended ISIS's caliphate
and upended a failing, complacent consensus on both China and "open borders."
Both presidents faced critics who mistook their policies for cruelty. Both
proved that purpose without power is fantasy—and power without purpose is waste.
There are risks, of course. Populism can drift into grievance. Some politicians,
perversely, seem to obstruct their constituents from flourishing – perhaps to
keep them dependent on promises always just a nose in front of them; perhaps to
thwart accomplishments by another political party to prevent one's own
deficiencies from being exposed. The antidote is the Constitution — checks and
balances, federalism that gives power to the states, and public debate that
keeps leaders tethered to positive results. All parties not solely interested in
becoming a tyranny -- acquiring power for its own sake -- would do well to
channel popular energy toward several outcomes: fair elections that would not
need contesting; empowering parents; providing lawful streets, and backing an
economy that, while ensuring a safety net for those who cannot work,
nevertheless rewards work and keeping families together.
Demands in NATO to share the economic burden have resulted in higher European
defense spending. The move of the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem broke a
diplomatic taboo and anticipated the Abraham Accords. Energy policy that favored
U.S. production lowered prices and limited the leverage of Russia and other
petro‑tyrants. These are not applause lines; they are concrete metrics.
The mandate for all political parties in the US is sober: keep the peace by
reminding enemies, credibly, that the cost of aggression would be far too high;
revive industry and the economy by rewarding production and allowing people to
keep more of what they earn; secure the border either by enforcing immigration
laws or demanding that Congress change them, and project confidence without
sounding overbearing. That is how a republic is preserved.
Patriotism is a responsibility to one's fellow citizens. Compassion is not open
borders; it is a lawful system that protects the weak from cartels and
terrorists. International leadership is a quiet credibility earned when
adversaries hesitate and partners invest. These are hardheaded virtues that some
former administrations have celebrated and that the current one — despite rough
edges — has resurrected.
In the end, America's moral compass does not swing with fashions. It is anchored
to the permanent values: the inviolability of the individual, the rule of law,
freedom of speech and protecting its citizens from abuse -- including from the
government. The challenge for America's political parties is to turn these
principles into ways of life that families can enjoy and that adversaries
respect.
Power, wisely used, becomes peace.
**Pierre Rehov, who holds a law degree from Paris-Assas, is a French reporter,
novelist and documentary filmmaker. He is the author of six novels, including
"Beyond Red Lines", " The Third Testament" and "Red Eden", translated from
French. His latest essay on the aftermath of the October 7 massacre " 7 octobre
- La riposte " became a bestseller in France.As a filmmaker, he has produced and
directed 17 documentaries, many photographed at high risk in Middle Eastern war
zones, and focusing on terrorism, media bias, and the persecution of Christians.
His latest documentary, "Pogrom(s)" highlights the context of ancient Jew hatred
within Muslim civilization as the main force behind the October 7 massacre.
© 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.
The United States Should Apply the Gaza Ceasefire’s
Stipulations to West Bank Terrorist Organizations
Aaron Goren & Joe Truzman/Providence/November 19/2025
Days after U.S. President Donald Trump’s 20-point ceasefire plan was announced,
senior Hamas member Zaher Jabarin directed attention to the West Bank, where
Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), and al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades operate.
Jabarin described the territory as key in the terror group’s campaign against
Israel, and warned that continued Israeli policy, including attempts to
“Judaize” Jerusalem, would set off a powder keg in the West Bank. The threat was
not mere bluster; it was a warning to Israel’s security establishment that Hamas
envisions a violent future for the West Bank.
Currently, Hamas’s future is in limbo. The group agreed to the first phase of
Trump’s plan, which entailed the release of all remaining Israeli hostages, both
living and deceased, in exchange for a partial IDF withdrawal from Gaza and the
release of Palestinian detainees from Israeli prisons, including other
stipulations. Subsequent phases of the ceasefire dictate that Hamas must disarm
and step back from governance in the war-torn enclave.
This disarmament is hypothetical since Hamas has not agreed to anything beyond
the first phase of the ceasefire. Some may even label the prospects of a Hamas
disarmament in Gaza as a pipe dream. Still, it illuminates another question:
Should the United States stipulate that Hamas be disarmed in the West Bank, not
just Gaza?
Fundamentally, the answer is yes.
Hamas is a terrorist organization whose leaders and members are principally
split between Gaza and Qatar. And while Gaza has always served as the
organization’s nerve center, the West Bank has been its second home for decades,
and a key territory in the Islamic Republic of Iran’s “unification of arenas”
doctrine. Disarming Hamas in Gaza would effectively hobble the group’s
activities in the coastal enclave. But without applying similar stipulations to
Hamas in the West Bank, the Islamist organization and its allies will renew
their efforts to foment terrorism on Israel’s doorstep.
The Jewish state cannot have a “de-radicalized terror-free zone” in Gaza while
the same enemy operates miles from the capital and other major cities without
the same constraints.
President Trump has demonstrated that the United States has the political clout
to compel some of Hamas’s allies to pressure the Islamist group into accepting
political deals that it may initially oppose. While Hamas is an independent
entity, it relies heavily on allies like Qatar and Turkey that also seek Trump’s
favor. Hamas’s significantly diminished state in Gaza, coupled with months of
sustained Israel Defense Forces (IDF) operations in the West Bank, has created
an opportunity for the United States to impose the Gaza ceasefire’s stipulations
on Hamas in the West Bank.
After all, the White House has signaled it has an ambitious goal: to bring
“lasting peace to the Middle East.” Why not seize the opportunity to take a step
closer to achieving that goal while Hamas is weakened? The opportunity will not
last forever.
While Hamas’s actions in Gaza have received the lion’s share of media attention
since the atrocities of October 7, 2023, terrorist activity by the Islamist
group and other Palestinian factions in the West Bank has been less visible.
It has been almost eleven months since the beginning of Operation “Iron Wall,”
an IDF initiative in the West Bank to root out a campaign of terrorism waged by
Palestinian armed groups and their backers. Since then, the IDF has stymied the
export of terrorism that plagued Israeli communities on both sides of the Green
Line. The results of the IDF’s operation paid off in April 2025, a month that
recorded the lowest number of West Bank attacks in five years.
Since then, however, Hamas and its allies have continued to operate in the West
Bank. In June, Israel’s internal security service, the Shabak, hailed the arrest
of some 60 Hamas members across the West Bank as the “largest and most complex
investigation” in the West Bank in a decade.
The Islamist group’s allied Palestinian extremist organizations also showed
signs of resurgence in the territory, creating an environment ripe for Hamas to
reestablish itself should diplomatic or military pressure weaken its Gaza
branch.
PIJ exemplified this trend when it announced in October that it had launched a
campaign that targeted IDF drones and other reconnaissance assets in the West
Bank. “All our military formations continue to inflict pain on the enemy through
new field tactics according to the realities and conditions of the battlefield,”
the group stated.
Complicating matters, Tehran demonstrated that its 12-day war with Israel in
June had not deterred it from pursuing its long-standing policy of supporting
Palestinian terrorist groups. Israel’s internal security agency, the Shin Bet,
accused Iran in early October of smuggling advanced arms to terrorist groups in
the West Bank. The agency revealed that it had confiscated a shipment of 29
claymore-type explosives, four drones, of which two were explosive, 15 anti-tank
missiles, a rocket-propelled grenade launcher, 20 hand grenades, 53 pistols,
seven rifles, nine machine guns, and 750 rounds of pistol ammunition.
If Iran’s attempts to smuggle heavy weaponry into the West Bank were not
troubling enough for Israel, they were far from the only threat emanating from
Tehran.
The IDF’s discovery of a homemade rocket in the northern West Bank town of
Tulkarem on September 24, just days after dismantling a terror cell near
Ramallah, which produced dozens of crude projectiles, was a significant
development. Following the two incidents, Israeli security officials reportedly
assessed that “foreign elements, led by Iran,” were working to establish rocket
launching capabilities in the West Bank — akin to those possessed by pre-war
Hamas in Gaza — that could target central Israeli cities like Tel Aviv, Kfar
Saba, Ra’anana, Netanya, Afula, and Beit She’an.
These recent activities by armed Palestinian terror groups, statements from
their leaders, Israeli counterterrorism operations, Iranian efforts to foment
chaos in the West Bank, and the release of hundreds of terrorists to the
contested region during recent Gaza ceasefires not only demonstrates that
terrorism is on the rise in the territory but that Hamas and its allies are
carrying out a deliberate campaign to destabilize the West Bank once again. In
the optimistic scenario that sees Hamas in Gaza voluntarily comply with
disarmament (or being militarily compelled into doing so), a counterterrorism
plan will be needed to combat West Bank branches of Hamas and other Palestinian
terrorist organizations to prevent their reconstitution right on Israel’s
doorstep, a threat that would loom even closer than Gaza. This can be
accomplished by demanding that the same stipulations that apply to Hamas, for
example, in Gaza, be applied to branches of Hamas in the West Bank. Otherwise,
the threat is simply being shifted from being contained in Gaza to being
dispersed around Israeli communities in the West Bank, presenting a future
decentralized terrorism threat that could see Israel’s major population centers
become the target of future attacks in a post-ceasefire paradigm.
**Aaron Goren is a research analyst and editor at the Foundation for Defense of
Democracies (FDD). Joe Truzman is a senior research analyst and editor at
FDD’s Long War Journal (LWJ).
https://providencemag.com/2025/11/the-united-states-should-apply-the-gaza-ceasefires-stipulations-to-west-bank-terrorist-organizations/
Read in Providence
The Stone of Magdalena
Hussain Abdul-Hussain/November 19, 2025
Been a busy time with policy and politics and needed a break. For my sanity, I
spent some time in my happy place — history (alternative, not mainstream).
In 2009, Israel excavated a first century synagogue in the town of Magdalena on
the Sea of Galilee. A rectangular stone (picture) was found and called the Stone
of Magdalena. It had the following symbols engraved on it: A six-petal rose,
palm trees and a menorah, among others. Now let’s unpack the elements at hand:
1. The town was presumably named after, or gave its name to, Mary Magdalena from
the New Testament. The etymology of the name Magdalena comes from the word
migdal, meaning tower. The tower is one of the oldest legends in human
mythology. In the old testament, humans wanted to build a tower to reach the
sky. The gods felt threatened by this kind of alien invasion and scattered these
humans by confusing their tongues into several languages to stop the
construction project. Still, the tower persisted as a structure that brought the
most pious of humans close to the sky, where the human could hear divine chatter
and acquire wisdom. In the Quran, genies tried to sit near the sky (they
imagined a sky actually existed) to snoop on God (chitchatting with whom
exactly?), but the angels hurled rocks at them and never let them get near the
sky (in Muslim tradition, a shooting star is a rock hurled at a genie to kick
him away from the sky). Back to the top of the tower. The earliest structure
would be Mesopotamian. Daniel was a prophet in Babylonia (south Iraq) who
foretold the downfall of the Neo-Bayblonian dynasty and its last king Nabonidus
to a Persian invasion. Daniel etymology breaks the name into dan, Semitic for
judge, and El, that is the Lord who Judges. But I hypothesize that the dan in
Daniel comes from another Semitic root, dna, meaning "came closer" (the root
still carries this meaning in Arabic). When sitting atop a tower, Dana-El became
close to God and therefore could explain divine wisdom.
The tradition of the messenger between God and mortals sitting atop a tower
continued in the Muslim faith in the form of minarets, traditionally designed
for hermits to live in them. Some Christian traditions simplified the tower
concept into a column and kept the messenger on its top, which gave us Simon the
Stylite, one of the most popular saints in the Levant and Anatolia. Simon was a
hermit who worshipped atop a column. The believers went to him for counsel and
heeling.
One last quick note about towers, whenever you see a minaret, understand that if
it is four-sided, then its is Levantine and Byzantine. If the minaret is round,
then it is Mesopotamian (and today Iranian). The oldest Islamic minarets were
all four-sided. The Abbasids introduced the circular shape.
All deities across religions were female, before they gradually turned into
male. Judaism and Islam stuck the longest with female deities. Mary Magdalene
must have been the predecessor legend of both Daniel and Simon the Stylite. In
the Galilee in the first century, the older tradition survived, but it was being
subsumed under newer male deities, Magdalena thus recast as a disciple of Jesus.
2. The palm tree is sometimes drawn as a hand to give us the number five. A
pentagram is what Planet Venus draws after a full cycle. Venus is the most
shining planet, and therefore the deity of power. In Arabic, the word for power
is ayn-z-z, Uzza or Aziz. The U.S. Department of War’s building was designed as
a pentagon influenced by this old myth (likely passed on through the Free
Masonry circles).
3. The six rose petal and any hexagram star is the shape that Planet Mercury
draws in the sky after a full cycle. Mercury is the planet closest to the sun
that moves between it and the other planets. For such role, Mercury was imagined
as the messenger between God (the sun) and immortals (the rest of the celestial
bodies). For this role, the planet won the epithet “mi ka El” (Aramaic and
Hebrew for “who is like God”) or Mikhael, anglicized as Michael, the archangel.
Michael had to be honest to convey divine will as is. He thus won the epithet
“melakhi tsedeq” or “al-malak al-sadiq.” In Islam, this characteristic of the
messenger planet or angel was bestowed on Prophet Muhammad, who got the epithet
al-sadiq al-amin. Another iteration was the sixth Shia imam Jaafar al-Sadiq,
believed to have been the source of Islamic sharia. Note that the angel who
carried God's word to Muhammad was Gabriel, from Gebra (Aramaic and Hebrew for
man) and El. This was likely a depiction of a deity (maybe God himself) that
incarnated in the shape of a man and narrated the verses for Muhammad to
memorize.
Back to Magdalena, whose epithet in Gnostic gospels and some circles of the
Catholic Church is “the apostle of the apostles,” again matching the concept of
the six-petal rose on its stone.
4. The menorah, on the Magdalena Stone, has seven hands. Now this is a pickle
because seven is the number of perfection. Had the menorah had eight hands, like
the ones used in Hanukkah, then it could have been interpreted differently.
Eight is the number of rebirth. But in this case, we cannot use number eight.
Conclusion: The Stone of Magdalena bundled together the deity of wisdom atop a
column (the name Magdalena) and the deity of power (the palm tree). The role of
Magdalena was a messenger (six-petal rose).
In the Synoptic Gospels, Magdalena was standing at crucifixion, burial, and
resurrection. She was one of three women, even though the Gospels do not agree
on the other women. The women at the cross were the old trinity of maternal
deities who were replaced by a newer male trinity of God the Father, the Son,
and the Holy Spirit. The Quran too names the older female trinity — al-Lat
(masculinized as Allah, Arabic for the god or simply God), Uzza (remember, the
word for power) and Manat (can mean either death or wish, represents the deity
that dies and comes back from the dead).
Saudi-US alliance under MBS: A blueprint for regional
and global stability
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/English Alarabia/November 19/2025
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) of Saudi Arabia is making a highly
significant visit to Washington to meet with President Donald Trump. This visit
is not merely ceremonial; it represents a deepening of one of the most
consequential partnerships in the modern Middle East.
Both the United States and Saudi Arabia hold extraordinary influence in regional
and global affairs, and under MBS’s leadership, the Kingdom has increasingly
positioned itself as a proactive agent of diplomacy, stability, and economic
development. This meeting underscores the mutual interest of both nations in
promoting peace, security, and prosperity, not just in the Middle East but
across the globe.
Saudi Arabia has, under MBS, emerged as a regional mediator and stabilizing
force, playing a constructive role in some of the Middle East’s most intractable
crises. For instance, the Kingdom has been actively engaged in efforts to reduce
the intensity of the ongoing conflict in Sudan, leveraging its influence to
facilitate dialogue between rival factions and support ceasefire agreements.
These efforts are emblematic of a broader Saudi approach that prioritizes
negotiation and humanitarian considerations alongside strategic interests.
Similarly, Saudi Arabia has signaled readiness to contribute to the recovery and
reconstruction of Syria, seeking to support stabilization efforts while
fostering regional development. These initiatives demonstrate that the Kingdom,
traditionally viewed primarily as an oil powerhouse, is increasingly functioning
as a diplomatic force for peace – one that aligns closely with US interests in
regional security and humanitarian stability.
Beyond crisis mediation, Saudi Arabia under MBS has also focused on
strengthening security architecture across the region. The Kingdom has taken
proactive measures to counter destabilizing influences, whether through
diplomatic pressure, strategic partnerships, or direct engagement in regional
security issues. Its involvement in Lebanon, Palestine, and broader Gulf affairs
highlights a commitment to shaping a more stable Middle East.
The Washington visit provides an opportunity for the United States to solidify
this alignment, transforming it into a coordinated framework of regional
peacekeeping, crisis management, and strategic deterrence. By combining American
technological and military advantages with Saudi regional influence and
leadership, the two nations can form a highly effective partnership capable of
addressing both immediate and long-term security challenges.
One of the most compelling aspects of Saudi Arabia under MBS is the Kingdom’s
emerging role as a model of diplomacy and international engagement. Rather than
merely following US direction, Riyadh is increasingly demonstrating independent
strategic vision.
MBS’s leadership has emphasized proactive negotiation, forward-looking economic
policies, and innovative approaches to international challenges. The Kingdom’s
efforts in Sudan, Syria, and other regional crises reflect a deliberate strategy
to act as a trusted mediator, earning credibility not only with Western powers
but also with countries across Africa, Asia, and Europe.
This dual role – as a regional power and as a bridge between competing interests
– positions Saudi Arabia as an essential partner for the United States, one
whose influence can be leveraged to stabilize hotspots and foster constructive
international dialogue.
The US-Saudi partnership also extends to areas of technological, industrial, and
defense collaboration, which are crucial for the next stage of both nations’
strategic ambitions.
The United States and Saudi Arabia can enhance cooperation in defense, security,
artificial intelligence, and advanced technology sectors, creating a foundation
for mutual innovation and protection. The potential sale of F-35 stealth
aircraft and other cutting-edge military equipment is not merely a transactional
deal but a step toward interoperable security frameworks that allow both nations
to respond rapidly to threats and operate cohesively in complex conflict
scenarios.
In parallel, joint investment in AI, cloud computing, and high-tech
infrastructure presents opportunities to cultivate economic interdependence
while advancing technological modernization. These collaborative projects
reinforce the strategic depth of the partnership, demonstrating that it is
rooted not only in immediate security concerns but also in long-term
technological and economic growth.
The strategic importance of this partnership cannot be overstated. By working
together, the United States and Saudi Arabia under MBS have the potential to
shape a stable, secure, and prosperous Middle East, with far-reaching
implications for global peace and economic growth. Saudi Arabia’s evolving
diplomatic posture, combined with its regional credibility and economic clout,
allows the US to advance its strategic objectives more effectively. In turn,
American technological, military, and institutional strengths provide Riyadh
with the tools necessary to maximize its role as a stabilizing force. Together,
the two nations exemplify a model of power exercised responsibly, anchored in
cooperation, and guided by long-term vision.
In conclusion, MBS’s Washington visit marks a pivotal moment for US-Saudi
relations. It is a demonstration of what can be achieved when two powerful
nations align not only strategically but also diplomatically. The United States
can capitalize on Saudi Arabia’s role under MBS to promote peace and security,
while both nations can continue to strengthen cooperation in defense,
technology, and economic development. This partnership is not just a bilateral
arrangement; it is a blueprint for regional and global stability, a
forward-looking collaboration that leverages the strengths of each nation to
address the challenges of today and the opportunities of tomorrow. By deepening
this partnership, both the United States and Saudi Arabia are poised to play an
increasingly influential role in shaping a more secure, prosperous, and peaceful
world.
Selected Face Book & X tweets for November 19/2025
Hussein Abdel Hussein
Mind you, no one invested in Lebanon State and military more than
Sen. Graham but the Lebanese don’t seem to be willing to help themselves, always
whine and blame Israel for their unwillingness to do anything (and this
incompetence started in 2000 after unilateral Israeli withdrawal).
@followers
@highlight
@everyone