LCCC English News Bulletin For Lebanese & Global News/October 06/2021 Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
Deatails Of The Bulletin Bible Quotations For today No one tears a piece from a new garment and sews it on an old garment; otherwise the new will be torn, and the piece from the new will not match the old Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 05/33-39/:”Then they said to Jesus, ‘John’s disciples, like the disciples of the Pharisees, frequently fast and pray, but your disciples eat and drink.’ Jesus said to them, ‘You cannot make wedding-guests fast while the bridegroom is with them, can you? The days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.’ He also told them a parable: ‘No one tears a piece from a new garment and sews it on an old garment; otherwise the new will be torn, and the piece from the new will not match the old. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine desires new wine, but says, “The old is good.””.
Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on October 05-06/2021 Aoun meets German Secretary of Foreign Affairs in Baabda Miqati Briefs Aoun on Meetings with Ministerial Committees, Call with IMF Miqati Reacts after He’s Mentioned in ‘Pandora Papers’ Lebanon PM Mikati says family wealth legal in response to ‘Pandora Papers’ Miqati Briefs Ambassadors of EU States on Govt. Program New U.S. Sea Border Mediator to Visit Lebanon Army Seizes 28,275 Kilograms of Ammonium Nitrate in Arsal Bitar Schedules Interrogation Sessions for ex-Ministers and Diab Judge Khoury Cleared of Breach of Duty in Port Case AUB Head Congratulates ex-Student Patapoutian on Nobel Prize Fayyad Meets with Egyptian PM in Cairo Mashnouq to File ‘Suspicion’ Lawsuit, Diab to Return to Lebanon Israel has conducted operations in Lebanon, Syria in search of pilot’s remains Les objectifs de la manifestation de demain dirigée contre la visite du ministre iranien des Affaires étrangères/Jean-Marie Kassab/Octobre 05/2021 Pivoting Away From America/Michael Young/Carnegie/October 05/2021
Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on October 05-06/2021 US Republicans blast Arab states over normalization efforts with Syria’s Assad Biden aides to tell Israelis U.S. will pursue ‘other avenues’ if Iran diplomacy Iran Says Foresees Nuclear Talks Resuming By Early November Report: Mossad abducted Iranian general to locate Ron Arad Report: Mossad took DNA samples to find Ron Arad Iran demands UN condemn Israel for alleged attack on nuclear facility Israel-Abbas Ties Warming But Peace Talks Unlikely Youth in Iraq Protest Hub Vow to Boycott ‘Rigged’ Polls Jordanian King’s Properties Undercut Father Figure Image ‘Pandora Papers’ leaks come at a delicate time for Jordan Macron Hopes for Easing of Tensions with Algeria U.S. Resumes Afghan Refugee Flights after Measles Shots Blinken, in Paris, Seeking to Heal AUKUS Rift with France
Titles For The Latest The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on October 05-06/2021 Is Iran threatening Azerbaijan over Israel ties?/Seth J Frantzman/October 05/2021 Biden national security adviser to host Israeli counterpart for talks on Iran/Jacob Magid/The Times Of Israel/October 05/2021 Taliban Unlawfully Killed 13 Ethnic Hazaras/Associated Press/October 05/2021 UK Urged to Tackle ‘Dirty Money’ after Leaked Pandora Papers/Associated Press/October 05/2021 What the Western press won’t say about safety at Dubai Expo 2020/The Arab Weekly/October 05/2021 The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on October 05-06/2021
Aoun meets German Secretary of Foreign Affairs in Baabda Naharnet/October 05/2021 President Michel Aoun met Tuesday with German Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Niels Annen at Baabda palace, the Presidency said. The meeting was held in the presence of German Ambassador to Lebanon Andreas Kindl. Aoun assured Annen that “Lebanon has started its contacts with the International Monetary Fund to launch reforms in conjunction with forensic audits.”He also talked about developing the electricity sector and rebuilding the port of Beirut.
Miqati Briefs Aoun on Meetings with Ministerial Committees, Call with IMF Naharnet/October 05/2021 President Michel Aoun met Tuesday with Prime Minister Najib Miqati and discussed the general situation and the latest developments in the country. Miqati briefed Aoun on the results of his meetings with the ministerial committees, the Presidency said. He also informed Aoun about his call with the International Monetary Fund in preparation for negotiations to address the economic and financial situation in the country.
Miqati Reacts after He’s Mentioned in ‘Pandora Papers’ Naharnete/October 05/2021 The press office of Prime Minister Najib Miqati has issued clarifications after the premier’s name was mentioned in the Pandora Papers — a massive trove of leaked documents showing how the world’s elite is using tax havens and offshore and shell companies to stash assets worth hundreds of millions of dollars. The documents show that Miqati, a businessman who formed a new government last month, owns a Panama-based offshore company that he used to buy property in Monaco in 2008 worth more than $10 million. Miqati’s son Maher was a director of at least two British Virgin Islands-based companies, according to the report. Below is the full text of the statement issued by Miqati’s press office: “In the context of the recently revealed “Pandora Papers”, it would be important to emphasize the fact that the origin of the wealth of Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati is derived from over 20 years of sustained work in the telecom sector, that culminated in 2005, with the listing of the telecom company – (that the Mikati family used to own) – on the main board of the London Stock Exchange; and its subsequent merger with the Johannesburg-based telecom leader MTN. Therefore, the source of wealth of the Mikati family had been well-scrutinized by the concerned bodies and entities that were piloting the Initial Public Offering (IPO) – thus certifying that the same source of wealth was well-documented, legal, legitimate and audited; and that it derived from the family business’ global activities that preceded the entry of Najib Mikati into politics in Lebanon. The Monaco property, among other assets around the world, specifically mentioned in the “Papers”, is not the only property owned via a corporate entity. Most family assets and properties fall under the same corporate principle of management and good governance. It is a common and lawful business practice that, in case many family members share the same assets, to organize the ownership via legal entities that offer flexibility as well as corporate, financial and fiscal advantages. In addition, all the assets and properties belonging to PM Najib Mikati have been duly disclosed to the Constitutional Council in Lebanon, as per the prevailing laws, rules and regulations, since he entered politics. It is worth highlighting that not all people mentioned in the “Pandora Papers” are necessarily accused of wrongdoings. Also, not all fortunes amassed ought to have necessarily happened at the expense of the common good and needy people. Regrettably, the underlying logic behind the “Papers” drifted toward transforming most, if not all, of those mentioned into “suspicious” individuals &/or companies, by the mere fact of being listed in there – a logic that goes against the free-market business practices and good governance, in liberal economies, principles that the Mikati family defends. Since its inception, M1 Group (the Mikati family business) – and all of its subsidiaries around the world – have upheld a separation between public and private. They continue to be fully compliant with global standards; retain world-class auditors; and operate in multiple jurisdictions. The group respects the right of board members &/or senior executives to run for or hold public office. However, politics &/or public office holders do not influence the group’s guiding principles and business operations; and vice-versa. At all times, PM Mikati and M1 Group respect the rule of law and abide by it everywhere.”
Lebanon PM Mikati says family wealth legal in response to ‘Pandora Papers’ Reuters/05 October ,2021 Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati’s family wealth comes from a communications business that has been audited in the past and is legal, a statement by his office said on Tuesday in response to a giant leak of financial documents. A Lebanese news organization, Daraj, was one of a number of international media outlets that reported the “Pandora Papers”, a set of leaked documents purported to reveal offshore transactions involving global political and business figures. Daraj had said Mikati owned an offshore firm in Panama called Hessvile through which he purchased a property in Monaco worth 7 million euros. On Tuesday, Mikati said owning property through firms was a common commercial practice that was legal. Mikati’s family wealth was audited when his communications firm listed in London in 2005 and when it merged with South Africa’s MTN later, the statement said. Reuters has not verified the reports or the documents. The use of offshore companies is not illegal and not evidence of wrongdoing on its own, but the news organizations that published the trove said such arrangements could be intended to hide transactions from tax collectors or other authorities. The Daraj report includes other top political figures in Lebanon and senior bankers who it said had embraced offshore havens.
Miqati Briefs Ambassadors of EU States on Govt. Program Naharnet/October 05/2021 Prime Minister Najib Miqati on Tuesday held a meeting at the Grand Serail with the ambassadors of the European Union member states. “Grateful to PM Najib Mikati for meeting with EU Ambassadors to Lebanon today to present his government’s programme,” EU Ambassador to Lebanon Ralph Tarraf said in a tweet. “We encourage the PM to firmly move ahead with economic and governance reforms, for the country to start recovering from the crisis,” Tarraf added.
New U.S. Sea Border Mediator to Visit Lebanon Naharnet/October 05/2021 Amos Hochstein — U.S. mediator in talks between Israel and Lebanon over the maritime frontier demarcation between the two countries– will arrive in Lebanon mid-October to discuss resuming the negotiations, al-Liwaa newspaper said Tuesday. Hochstein had in the past agreed with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on a framework that led to the indirect negotiations, after which another U.S. mediator was appointed. Hochstein was appointed by U.S. President Joe Biden to handle the border dispute, replacing U.S. diplomat John Desrocher who had mediated indirect negotiations under the Trump administration. The last U.S.-sponsored negotiations between Israel and Lebanon on the maritime border demarcation were held in May.
Army Seizes 28,275 Kilograms of Ammonium Nitrate in Arsal Naharnete/October 05/2021 The army on Tuesday announced the confiscation of more than 28 tons of ammonium nitrate in the eastern border town of Arsal. “After information was received about the presence of ammonium nitrate in the town of Arsal, an army force and an Intelligence Directorate patrol raided a gas station in the aforementioned town on October 4, 2021,” an army statement said. “28,275 kilograms of ammonium nitrate were seized while a Lebanese citizen and three Syrians were arrested,” the statement added. The army noted that, according to the seized ammonium nitrate bags, the material contains a 26% level of nitrogen. “The interrogation of the detainees has started, while a specimen of the nitrates has been sent for examination in order to verify the nitrogen level,” the army added. The development comes after 20 tons of ammonium nitrate were seized in the Baalbek district. On August 4, 2020, a monster blast of hundreds of tons of ammonium nitrate at a Beirut port warehouse caused one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history. The shockwave was felt as far away as Cyprus, entire swathes of Beirut were devastated, 215 people were killed and thousands wounded, some of them several kilometers from the blast site. That shipment contained a nitrogen level of 34.7%, a very high and dangerous level, well above the acceptable concentration of around 11%. Ammonium nitrate is a chemical compound commonly used as a fertilizer, but it can be used to make explosives. It can also be dangerous if stored improperly, as demonstrated by the catastrophic port blast.
Bitar Schedules Interrogation Sessions for ex-Ministers and Diab Naharnete/October 05/2021 Beirut port blast investigative judge Tarek Bitar has scheduled sessions for the interrogation of three former ministers and ex-PM Hassan Diab, TV networks said on Tuesday. The TV networks said ex-minister Ali Hassan Khalil has been summoned to appear before Bitar on October 12 while Ghazi Zoaiter and Nouhad al-Mashnouq have been summoned for questioning on October 13. Both dates precede the date of parliament’s return to session, which means that the ex-ministers who are also incumbent MPs will not enjoy parliamentary immunity. A session to interrogate Diab has meanwhile been set for October 28, the TV networks added.
Judge Khoury Cleared of Breach of Duty in Port Case Naharnet/October 05/2021 Attorney General Judge Imad Qabalan on Tuesday issued a ruling on the memo referred to him by Beirut port blast investigative judge Tarek Bitar, who had asked the prosecution to determine whether Judge Ghassan Khoury had committed breach of duty in connection with the case. “Judge Qabalan considered that the investigative judge’s memo was empty of any suspicion and that there is no evidence of a breach of duty,” the National News Agency said. “Khoury’s role was limited to adding a ‘for archiving’ notice on a State Security report… which did not include the names of any suspects but rather called for taking measures to protect the material stored at the port to protect it from theft,” NNA added, explaining Qabalan’s decision.
AUB Head Congratulates ex-Student Patapoutian on Nobel Prize Naharnete/October 05/2021 AUB President Fadlo Khuri has expressed his pride in Professor Ardem Patapoutian, who was awarded this year’s Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine, through a congratulatory letter in which he expressed that the AUB community is doubly pleased as Patapoutian is not only Lebanese, but also a former student at the American University of Beirut. Patapoutian, professor of neuroscience at Scripps Research institute in California, an American University of Beirut (AUB) alumnus and former student, has been awarded this year’s Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine. The Nobel Committee in Stockholm announced Monday that Patapoutian and his fellow molecular biologist David Julius have been awarded for their discoveries of receptors for temperature and touch. Patapoutian is the first AUB alumnus to win a Nobel Prize. In a year when many had expected the prize to go to at least one of the makers of a COVID-19 vaccine, the Nobel Committee’s Thomas Perlmann stated in the prize announcement that Julius and Patapoutian had “unlocked one of the secrets of nature,” how we sense and feel our way around in the world. In his research, Patapoutian used “pressure-sensitive cells to discover a novel class of sensors that respond to mechanical stimuli in the skin and internal organs,” the committee writes. His team switched 72 individual genes off one by one and then poked a cell with a small pipette (a micropipette) and observed how the genes within the cell reacted. They found two genes within the cell that were insensitive to being poked. Moreover, those genes seemed to be able to switch their sensitivity off. The two genes were named Piezo1 and Piezo2. “Sensory neurons were found to express high levels of Piezo2 and further studies firmly established that Piezo1 and Piezo2 are ion channels that are directly activated” when pressure is exerted on cell membranes. Combined with research by Julius, the discoveries have made key contributions to our understanding of such things as core body temperature, inflammatory pain, protective reflexes, respiration, blood pressure, and urination. “This knowledge,” said the Nobel Committee, “is being used to develop treatments for a wide range of disease conditions, including chronic pain.” Ardem Sarkis Patapoutian was born in Beirut and speaks fondly of his trips to the Mediterranean Sea and the wooded mountains surrounding Beirut, and “the beautiful campus of the American University of Beirut.” As a pre-med sophomore majoring in chemistry, he studied at AUB during the academic year 1985-86. He completed 31 credit hours and was placed on the dean’s honor list. In an autobiography for the Kavli Prize, he explained that an escalation of conflict during the Lebanese Civil War led to him being captured and held by armed militants. He moved to Los Angeles a few months later. Before the Nobel Prize, Patapoutian shared with Julius in 2020 the Kavli Prize in Neuroscience for this same body of research. They also shared in 2019 the Rosenstiel Award for Distinguished Work in Basic Medical Research.
Fayyad Meets with Egyptian PM in Cairo Naharnet/October 05/2021 Lebanon’s Energy Minister Walid Fayyad met Tuesday morning in Cairo with Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, in the presence of Egypt’s Petroleum and Mineral Resources Minister Tarek El-Molla and Lebanon’s Ambassador to Egypt Ali al-Halabi. Madbouly started the meeting by expressing Egypt’s wishes of success for Lebanon’s new government, stressing that President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi always instructs ministers to “offer all possible support to Lebanon, especially in this critical period that it is going through.” Fayyad for his part lauded Egypt’s role in the region, demonstrating the outcome of his talks with his Egyptian counterpart on the issue of “transferring Egyptian gas to Lebanon to contribute to resolving the electricity crisis.”He added that “the Lebanese government is looking forward to boosting and activating cooperation with Egypt during the coming period.”
Mashnouq to File ‘Suspicion’ Lawsuit, Diab to Return to Lebanon Naharnet/October 05/2021 Ex-interior minister and incumbent MP Nouhad al-Mashnouq will file a “legitimate suspicion” lawsuit before the Court of Cassation to ask that Judge Tarek Bitar be replaced as the lead investigative judge into the Beirut port blast catastrophe, al-Akhbar newspaper said on Tuesday. The report comes a day after the Court of Appeals dismissed requests filed by Mashnouq and two other ex-ministers for Bitar’s removal from the case. Ex-PM Hassan Diab, who has been subpoenaed by Bitar as a suspect, will meanwhile return to Lebanon in mid-October from the United States, where he has been on a family visit since several weeks, al-Akhbar added. The daily also said that families of some detainees in the case will begin acting to demand their release, “especially that they have been detained for more than 10 months.”The families will “form a committee and appoint a number of lawyers,” sources from the families told al-Akhbar. Israel has conducted operations in Lebanon, Syria in search of pilot’s remains Al Arabiya English/05 October ,2021 The Israeli Mossad has carried out two security operations last month in Lebanon and Syria in search of its lost pilot Ron Arad’s remains, sources told Al Arabiya. The sources added that DNA has been taken from a body buried in the Lebanese village of Nabi Sheet in the Bekaa valley, to examine the possibility that it was Arad’s remains. Many years have passed since Israel lost its pilot, Ron Arad, whose plane was shot down over Lebanese territory in 1986, but Tel Aviv has not stopped seeking information about his fate, especially since his case is still attracting the attention of the Israeli public. The source added that the second operation, which was carried out in Syria, included the kidnapping of a retired Iranian officer and interrogation regarding the pilot’s case before he was later released. In addition, the sources indicated that it is not excluded that Iran may have tried to respond in Cyprus to this development. Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said, on Monday, that the Mossad had carried out an operation to obtain new information about Ron Arad. He added in a speech before the parliament that intelligence agents have “carried out a large-scale and daring operation” in an effort to find out the fate of the long-missing pilot. Arad was taken out of the plane that was shot down over Lebanon, during a mission in 1986. He was first captured by the Lebanese Amal Movement fighters, but information about him was later cut off, while it was widely believed that he would not be alive. The fate of the pilot has always attracted strong public interest in Israel, whose leaders have vowed over the years to reveal what happened to him, without result.
Les objectifs de la manifestation de demain dirigée contre la visite du ministre iranien des Affaires étrangères Jean-Marie Kassab/Octobre 05/2021 Le but de la manif de demain n’est point dans le but de dire au visiteur Iranien qu’il n’est pas bienvenu, car il le sait déjà et s’ en fout. Il sait très bien que sa présence en tant qu’occupant a été imposée de force par ses armes et l’aide des collabos qui ont permis cela, ces caches-sexes qui nous gouvernent malgré nous. Le but est médiatique : il s’agit de démontrer au monde à travers les médias que la crise du Liban est existentielle , que le Liban est occupé par l’Iran, et que sa crise économique est due à cette occupation et le désordre qui en résulte. Il est IMPERATIF de changer cette pérception. Il faut guetter les médias étrangers, exploser sa colère devant leurs caméras et parler uniquement de l’occupation. Il faut filmer sur les téléphones mobiles et disseminer le plus possible les propos des manifestants dans ce sens. S’exprimer en bon français ou anglais serait idéal sans pour autant faire bonne figure. Faire bonne figure nous a fait traiter de BCBG et d’amateurs incapables de remplacer les actuels collabos. Il faut menacer et brandir haut les couleurs et bousculer et crier . Il faut faire scandale. Que quelques blessures ou bleus dus aux crosses des policiers ne vous effraient pas. Un bobo vaut bien une patrie. Vive la résistance Libanaise. Jean-Marie Kassab
Pivoting Away From America Michael Young/Carnegie/October 05/2021 Regional and international actors are accumulating cards to engage in a new Middle Eastern power game. Republicans in Congress have just accused the Biden administration of withholding a report on Hezbollah’s financial empire. The report, which is to be prepared by the State and Defense Departments, is a requirement of the Hezbollah International Financing Prevention Amendments Act of 2018. This report is critical to Republicans, according to a story in the conservative Washington Free Beacon, “as the Biden administration considers lifting economic sanctions on Hezbollah-controlled Lebanon as the country grapples with a massive cash crunch.” Rep. Pat Fallon, a Texas Republican, noted, “Additionally, the possibility that this administration will bailout and lift sanctions on Lebanon is a play straight out of the Neville Chamberlain foreign policy playbook. Hezbollah alone is responsible for Lebanon’s economic ruin.” Fallon’s remarks raised interesting questions, because there is no sign that the United States has really sanctioned Lebanon. It has certainly imposed sanctions on Lebanese politicians and Hezbollah members and associates, but there are no indications, for instance, that Washington will block an International Monetary Fund bailout of the country. In fact, the Biden administration recently sought to assist the Lebanese Army, while U.S. members of Congress were in Beirut in September to examine ways of assisting the country. One delegation member, Richard Blumenthal, even stated, “I wouldn’t discount or dismiss the idea of a mini Marshall Plan for Lebanon because our security interests depend on it…” This is hardly the language one uses for countries under sanction. More significantly, congressional sources told the Washington Free Beacon that the administration’s refusal to release the State and Defense Department report is receiving “increased congressional scrutiny amid separate reports the Biden administration is prepared to waive economic sanctions on the Assad regime in Syria to facilitate an energy deal with Lebanon.” The deal in question involves sending Egyptian natural gas, via pipeline, through Jordan and Syria to supply Lebanon’s Deir Ammar power station near Tripoli. Lebanon has been facing debilitating power cuts amid money and fuel shortages, and the plan would help produce energy for an economy at a standstill. However, for the plan to go ahead, the United States would need to issue waivers not only to Lebanon but also to Jordan, so that they would not face sanctions under the Caesar Act. This is U.S. legislation passed to punish the Syrian regime for crimes against its population. It was, therefore, revealing that the gas plan was announced by the U.S. ambassador in Beirut, Dorothy Shea, in August. However, an initial request to allow it came from Jordan’s King Abdullah when he visited Washington in July. The gas plan was also mentioned by Lebanese politician Saad al-Hariri after he met with Egyptian officials in Cairo on July 16. This indicated that Egypt and Jordan were on the same wavelength over Lebanon, and both apparently managed to persuade the Biden administration to support their approach. While the headlines are that the plan would supply a suffering Lebanon with gas, the real story is that Egypt and Jordan are looking for ways to reintegrate Syria into the Arab fold, using Lebanon as a hook to do so. It seems increasingly apparent that what some in Washington are portraying as a Biden administration effort to lean in the direction of the Assad regime and Iran, may actually be more significant: an effort by Arab states to use openings toward Syria and Lebanon to challenge Iran’s sway in both countries and turn them into places where the Arabs can bargain with Tehran. If this is correct, it would suggest a sea change in Arab attitudes toward the Islamic Republic. Until recently, the hope of many Arab states was that the United States, and even Israel, would contain Iranian expansionism in the region. This policy of containing Iran has long been a part of the U.S. approach, to the extent that the Clinton administration proposed what it called “dual containment” of both Iran and Saddam Hussein’s Iraq three decades ago. The normalization agreements between Gulf states and Israel last year seemed to be another step in that direction. They were a way of creating a counterweight to Iran after the United States under Donald Trump did nothing to respond to Iranian attacks against Saudi or Emirati ships in May 2019, and after Trump was visibly reluctant to intervene on behalf of his Saudi allies following Iranian drone attacks against Aramco plants in Abqaiq and Khurais in September 2019. However, U.S. containment has been a failure. Despite decades of sanctions, Iran’s reach in the Middle East has expanded. Tehran offers no model worth emulating, but it has exploited the dysfunctional and fragmented nature of several Arab countries to its benefit. Apparently realizing this, and realizing further that Israel, without U.S. backing, will think twice about launching a war against Iran that may destabilize the region, some Arab states have shifted tactics. Their policies in Syria and Lebanon suggest that they have decided to engage with two countries over which Iran has significant influence—unlike Saudi Arabia, which for years has completely cut Lebanon and its Lebanese allies off, viewing the country as a lost cause. The Saudi approach is very much a case of political opportunity cost. Whereas the Iranians leveraged their ties with Ansar Allah in Yemen to draw the Saudis into a quagmire, the Saudis have all but surrendered their Lebanese cards—not least the presence of a Sunni community at last as large as Lebanon’s Shia community, and one that is in search of a regional sponsor to push back against Hezbollah. That said, what the Saudis don’t seem to quite appreciate is that many Sunnis are unwilling to provoke a new civil war in pursuit of that goal. The trend elsewhere in the Arab world showns a more imaginative direction. Egypt’s and Jordan’s behavior in Lebanon, like that of the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, seems to indicate that if Sunni-majority states can mobilize their alliances and sympathizers around the Middle East, they have a better chance of forcing Iran to consider Arab state interests than a reliance on U.S. or Israeli arms. What we have here is a return to politics. Given that many countries where Iran plays a dominant role—Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, and Iraq—have either Sunni majorities or significant minorities hostile to Iran, creating opportunities to oblige Iran to compromise makes sense. In a way we’re going back to the Middle East of the 1950s, when countries throughout the region were divided internally according to the political sympathies of segments of their populations—favoring Nasserism, Baathism, communism, the Hashemites, or the West. Today, the region has opened up to contending regional and international actors—Iran, Turkey, Israel, Russia, France—even as the United States retains influence, so the possibilities available in balancing off other actors cannot be ignored. In looking the other way on the Egyptian gas deal with Lebanon, the Biden administration appears to have embraced this logic. A self-generating regional balance of power following a U.S. military withdrawal was the aim of the Obama administration, one with which Joe Biden may agree today. It was, after all, Barack Obama who told Jeffrey Goldberg of The Atlantic, “The competition between the Saudis and the Iranians, which has helped to feed the proxy wars and chaos in Syria and Iraq and Yemen, requires us to say to our friends, as well as the Iranians, that they need to find an effective way to share the neighborhood and institute some sort of cold peace.” This message is finding an echo in the Arab world. In the absence of a United States acting as a Middle Eastern regulator, Arab states are accumulating cards to play power games of their own at the regional level. The debate in Washington remains insular, focused on how an administration in office acts and what this means domestically, but in the Middle East the regimes are imposing a new playbook. They’re preparing for a region that has pivoted away from America. *Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on October 05-06/2021 US Republicans blast Arab states over normalization efforts with Syria’s Assad Joseph Haboush, Al Arabiya English/05 October ,2021 Two Republican officials on Tuesday blasted attempts by unnamed Arab states to normalize ties with Syria and its president Bashar al-Assad. “It is disappointing that some US partners, including members of the Arab League, are losing their resolve to punish Assad by looking to normalize relations, including through energy deals that would involve payments to the Assad regime,” Senator Jim Risch and Congressman Michael McCaul said in a statement. The statement was released following reports of US partners pursuing normalization with Assad, the two officials said. Over the weekend, it was reported that Jordan’s King Abdullah received a call from Assad in what was believed to be the first time they have spoken since the start of the Syrian war. Biden administration officials have repeatedly warned against normalizing relations with the Syrian president before he agrees to implement UN-backed resolutions on a peaceful solution to the yearslong war. Although they did not name any countries specifically, Egypt and Jordan have recently agreed to supply crisis-struck Lebanon with electricity and natural gas. This would have to pass through Syria, which is under crippling US economic sanctions. The Caesar Act law, which was passed with overwhelming bipartisan support last year, prevents countries and international companies from doing business with the Assad regime. But US officials have been working on ways to ensure that Cairo and Amman are not sanctioned for such a move, greenlighted by Washington and the Biden administration. Separately, the UAE’s economy minister met with his Syrian counterpart on the sidelines of the Dubai Expo 2020. The pair looked at ways to expand their relationship, the state-run WAM news agency reported. “Bashar al-Assad has inflicted enormous suffering on the Syrian people, slaughtering hundreds of thousands of Syrians and committing crimes against humanity with assistance from Russia and Iran,” Risch and McCaul said. “The conflict in Syria has destabilized the entire Middle East region. Normalizing relations now will only allow that destabilization to continue,” they added.
Biden aides to tell Israelis U.S. will pursue ‘other avenues’ if Iran diplomacy Reuters/October 05/2021 Top U.S. officials will tell their Israeli counterparts on Tuesday that the Biden administration remains committed to diplomacy with Iran, but if necessary would be prepared to pursue “other avenues” to ensure Tehran does not acquire a nuclear weapon, a senior U.S. official said. A visit to Washington by Israel’s national security adviser, Eyal Hulata, will allow the two allies to share intelligence and develop a “baseline assessment” of how far Tehran’s nuclear program has advanced, the official said. Under a 2015 deal, Iran curbed its uranium enrichment program, a possible pathway to nuclear arms, in return for the lifting of economic sanctions. Then-U.S. President Donald Trump quit the deal in 2018 and the Israeli government opposes U.S. efforts to revive it. In broad terms, U.S. experts believe the time it would take Iran to achieve nuclear “breakout” – enough enriched uranium to build a nuclear bomb – has “gone from about 12 months down to a period of about a few months” since Trump pulled out of the pact, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “Obviously that is quite alarming,” the official told reporters ahead of Hulata’s talks with U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan. Iran has consistently denied it is developing nuclear weapons. Echoing President Joe Biden’s comments in a White House meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in August, the official said: “We of course remain committed to a diplomatic path.” “But obviously if that doesn’t work there are other avenues to pursue, and we are fully committed to ensuring that Iran never develops a nuclear weapon.” Asked what actions were under consideration and whether that included military options, the official said “we’ll be prepared to take measures that are necessary” but did not elaborate. The official said that Iran was “sending indications to a number of parties that they are preparing to come back to Vienna,” where the United States and Iran held indirect talks earlier this year that stalled. But signaling that obstacles remain, Iran’s foreign minister said on Saturday that the United States must first release $10 billion of Tehran’s frozen funds as a sign of good will, something the Biden administration has shown no willingness to do. Bennett, a far-right politician who ended Benjamin Netanyahu’s 12-year run as prime minister in June, has made clear he wants Biden to harden his stance against Iran, Israel’s regional arch-foe. There is also disagreement over Biden’s opposition to further expansion of Jewish settlements on occupied land that the Palestinians want for a future state. Asked whether the issue would be part of Tuesday’s talks, the U.S. official said Israel was well aware of the administration’s view of the need to refrain from actions that could be seen as “provocative” and undermine efforts to achieve a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.
Iran Says Foresees Nuclear Talks Resuming By Early November Agence France Presse/October 05/2021 Iran foresees talks with world powers aimed at reviving its nuclear deal resuming by early November, foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said Monday. “I don’t think it will take us the same amount of time as it took the Biden administration to come,” Khatibzadeh said, referring to US diplomats under President Joe Biden indirectly joining the Vienna talks. For the government of Iran’s ultraconservative new President Ebrahim Raisi, “I don’t think the (return to talks) will take as much as 90 days,” he said, suggesting talks will be underway again by early November.m It is the first time Iran has suggested a rough date for a possible return to the table. The 2015 nuclear deal gave Iran sanctions relief in return for tight controls on its nuclear programme, monitored by the UN. In 2018 then-US president Donald Trump withdrew from the multilateral deal and began reimposing sanctions. Tehran has gradually rolled back its nuclear commitments since 2019. Talks in Vienna to revive the deal have been stalled since June, when Raisi was elected as Iran’s president. He took office on August 3 and formed his government over the following weeks. The talks had made little concrete progress and the process then went into a standstill, with Iran saying it needed time after the transition from the more moderate government of Hassan Rouhani. Khatibzadeh on Monday said Iran’s new administration was “examining the details” of the previous rounds of nuclear talks. “As soon as this is done we will not waste one hour and we will give a new date” for the resumption of discussions, he added. “The truth is that the executive team tasked with the nuclear (issue) has changed. The (new) negotiators will certainly have different opinions… and they will be presented” when the talks resume, he said. The foreign ministry spokesman added that the other parties to the talks must embrace the change in Iran’s government by showing “flexibility and comprehension”. Biden — who took office in January — has signalled a willingness to return to the deal and talks to that end began in April in Vienna, before they stalled. The talks involve Iran and the remaining parties to the deal — Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia — but the US has not participated directly.
Report: Mossad abducted Iranian general to locate Ron Arad Arutz Sheva Staff /October 05/2021 London-based Arabic newspaper claims recently revealed Israeli operation to locate Ron Arad included abduction of Iranian general. Agents from Israel’s Mossad agency abducted an Iranian general recently during an operation to locate a captured Israeli serviceman held in captivity since the 1980s, according to a report released Tuesday. Rai al-Youm, a London-based Arabic news outlet reported Tuesday afternoon that the Mossad operation revealed by Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett aimed at locating the lost Israel Air Force navigator Ron Arad had included a daring abduction and questioning of an Iranian general. On Monday, Bennett said the Mossad had carried out “a successful operation” last month, “bringing the information to Knesset members,” though Mossad chief David Barnea said that the Mossad had failed to determine Arad’s whereabouts. According to the Rai al-Youm report Tuesday, as part of last month’s operation, the Mossad captured an Iranian general in Syria and transferred him to an unnamed African country where he was interrogated. The Mossad agents involved later released the general. The report claimed that Iran became aware of the Israeli operation after it was completed, and is believed to have obtained details on how it was undertaken. A recent attempt by Iranian-linked operatives to target Israelis in Cyprus, the report added, may be part of a bid by Tehran to retaliate for the general’s abduction. Ron Arad, a navigator onboard an IAF F-4 Phantom fighter jet during the First Lebanon War, was captured in October 1986, after the aircraft was damaged by a prematurely detonated bomb during an operation over Lebanon. While Arad’s fate remains unknown and he is officially listed as missing, an IDF report in 2016 suggested Arad was likely killed two years after his capture, in 1988.
Report: Mossad took DNA samples to find Ron Arad Arutz Sheva Staff /October 05/2021 Arabic media reports Mossad operated twice in Lebanon and Syria, took DNA from body to determine it if was missing Israeli navigator. Saudi media report that DNA samples were taken from a body in the village of Nabi Chit, Lebanon to determine if the body is that of missing Israeli navigator Ron Arad. Al-Arabiya reported that Israel operated twice in Lebanon and Syria during the operation. Rai al-Youm, a London-based Arabic news outlet reported Tuesday afternoon that the Mossad operation revealed by Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett aimed at locating the lost Israel Air Force navigator Ron Arad had included a daring abduction and questioning of an Iranian general. On Monday, Bennett said the Mossad had carried out “a successful operation” last month, “bringing the information to Knesset members,” though Mossad chief David Barnea said that the Mossad had failed to determine Arad’s whereabouts. According to the Rai al-Youm report Tuesday, as part of last month’s operation, the Mossad captured an Iranian general in Syria and transferred him to an unnamed African country where he was interrogated. The Mossad agents involved later released the general. The report claimed that Iran became aware of the Israeli operation after it was completed, and is believed to have obtained details on how it was undertaken. A recent attempt by Iranian-linked operatives to target Israelis in Cyprus, the report added, may be part of a bid by Tehran to retaliate for the general’s abduction. Ron Arad, a navigator onboard an IAF F-4 Phantom fighter jet during the First Lebanon War, was captured in October 1986, after the aircraft was damaged by a prematurely detonated bomb during an operation over Lebanon. While Arad’s fate remains unknown and he is officially listed as missing, an IDF report in 2016 suggested Arad was likely killed two years after his capture, in 1988.
Iran demands UN condemn Israel for alleged attack on nuclear facility Arutz Sheva Staff /October 05/2021 Iranian nuclear chief cites damage to facility in refusing IAEA access to site, demands intl. community condemn Israeli ‘terrorism.’ Iran has demanded that the United Nations International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) condemn Israel for an alleged act of “sabotage” against an Iranian nuclear facility in June. Iranian media reported that Iran had foiled an attack on the nuclear facility in the city of Karaj on June 23. Iranian officials told the New York Times that the alleged attack was carried out was by a small quadcopter drone. The officials said that the building which was targeted was used to manufacture centrifuges to enrich uranium. Israeli intelligence group The Intel Lab released satellite footage showing damage at the site, contradicting Iran’s assertions that it had thwarted the attack. Mohammad Eslami, the head of Iran’s nuclear agency, accused Israel of being behind the attack on Sunday and derided the international community and the IAEA for not condemning what he called an act of “terrorism.” Eslami also acknowledged that the building was “severely damaged.” Iran’s official news agency IRNA on Tuesday repeated Eslami’s accusations, stating that “the latest act of sabotage by the occupation regime in Jerusalem against our country’s nuclear program was the terrorist attack on the TESA complex in Karaj.” Eslami blamed damage from the attack, specifically damage to security cameras, for Iran’s refusal to allow IAEA inspectors into the site in Karaj
Israel-Abbas Ties Warming But Peace Talks Unlikely Agence France Presse/October 05/2021 Recent visits by three Israeli cabinet ministers to Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas indicate both sides are keen to promote stability and improve ties, even if peace talks remain off the table for now. The Israeli coalition led by hardline nationalist Prime Minister Naftali Bennett — which includes left-wingers and Islamists — has no common position on ending the decades-long Palestinian conflict, complicating any formal diplomatic negotiations. But Bennett has said his government will aim to improve economic conditions in the West Bank, a Palestinian territory under Israeli military occupation since 1967. For Abbas, who was largely ignored by Bennett’s predecessor Benjamin Netanyahu, moves by Israel to bolster his position would likely be welcome, analysts said. A poll last month by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research found that 80 percent of Palestinians want Abbas to resign, an unprecedented figure reflecting deep frustration with the 86-year-old leader. Only 19 percent of respondents believe Abbas’s secular Fatah movement deserves to lead the Palestinian people, with 45 percent preferring Hamas, the Islamist movement which controls the Israeli-blockaded Gaza Strip. ‘Take advantage’ – For Abbas and his Palestinian Authority — facing mounting anger over endemic corruption and a crackdown on human rights activists — talking to Israel is partly about “taking advantage of the diplomatic context”, said Uzi Rabi, director of the Moshe Dayan Middle East Research Center at Tel Aviv University. That context, Rabi said, is shaped by an Israeli coalition that includes leaders committed to a two-state solution and, for the first time ever, an Arab-Israeli party. US President Joe Biden’s administration is also seen as far more sympathetic to the Palestinians than Donald Trump, accused of egregious bias towards Israel. The first high-level Israeli visit to Abbas in Ramallah, which came days after Bennett met Biden in Washington, was by Defense Minister Benny Gantz. Bennett is the former head of a lobby group representing Jewish settlers, who live in West Bank communities considered illegal under international law, and he opposes the creation of a Palestinian state. After Gantz met Abbas, a source close to the premier clarified that the discussions were on security issues and that there would be no “peace” talks during Bennett’s premiership. But on Sunday, Abbas received Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz, Regional Cooperation Minister Issawi Freij and lawmaker Michal Rozin, all from the left-wing Meretz party, part of the ruling coalition. “We have a common mission,” Horowitz wrote on Twitter. “To maintain the hope of a peace founded on the two-state solution.” The tweet included a photo of him standing with Abbas. Ultimatum As Abbas has stepped up his diplomacy with Israel, he has also maintained a hard rhetorical line. In an address to the United Nations General Assembly last month, he said that if Israel did not withdraw from all occupied territory within a year, he would no longer recognize the Jewish state based on pre-1967 borders. Rabi said Abbas’s goal with that unrealistic ultimatum was to suggest that if there was no progress on peace talks during his tenure as president, a “chaotic” situation could result. Palestinian analyst Diana Buttu stressed the limitations of Abbas’s dealings with Israel, saying the Jewish state was open to discussing humanitarian issues, but it “does not want to hear about rights or political freedoms”. For Khalil Shaheen, a veteran Palestinian analyst and journalist, Abbas is betting that he can create “momentum” that pressures Bennett into reviving moribund peace talks. But that strategy could prove “ineffective” because Bennett’s ideologically disparate coalition is more focused on its own survival than on peace talks with the Palestinians, Shaheen told AFP. This “Israeli government has agreed to avoid controversial subjects like the Palestinian question that could tear it up at any moment,” he said.
Youth in Iraq Protest Hub Vow to Boycott ‘Rigged’ Polls Agence France Presse/October 05/2021 Iraq will hold early elections Sunday as a concession to a youth-led protest movement, but in Nasiriyah, the city at the heart of the revolt, most young people won’t vote. Ahead of the parliamentary polls, the mood in Nasiriyah and much of Iraq is somber with little hope the election will bring much-needed change to the war-scarred country.”Elections in Iraq are rigged,” said 21-year-old Anas, echoing a common sentiment among young adults in the impoverished southern city. “They are corrupted by arms and money, and I can’t be made to vote with a gun to my head.” Anas, who declined to give his full name, is an economics graduate but, like 40 percent of Iraqi youths, he is unemployed. In October 2019, anti-government protests erupted in Baghdad and cities in the mainly Shiite south like Nasiriyah against corruption, unemployment, poor public services and neighboring Iran’s influence over Iraq. Two years on, the protests have died down across much of the country. But in Nasiriyah, simmering public anger is still palpable. From time to time, young demonstrators still take to the streets, which are filled with posters of “martyrs” killed in clashes with security forces. ‘Voice being heard’ – Anas said the protests changed his life and opened his eyes to the problems facing his country. “Before, I was a normal person who went to university. I studied or texted my girlfriend,” he said. “But after the October revolution, I felt I had a responsibility to assume, a place to fill within society, and that my voice was being heard.” Nearly 600 people died across Iraq and tens of thousands were wounded in violence related to the protests. More activists have been murdered since, kidnapped or intimidated, but there has been no accountability. Activists have blamed pro-Iran armed groups, part of the Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary coalition that helped defeat the Islamic State jihadist group. Aside from insecurity, Iraq is grappling with an economic crisis exacerbated by diminished oil revenues and the coronavirus pandemic, as well as infrastructure dilapidated by decades of conflict and neglect. Nasiriyah reflects it all: poverty is rampant, there are severe power and water cuts, and investment in infrastructure is sorely lacking. ‘Awash with weapons’ The country is emerging from almost two decades of war and insurgency since the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein. But promises of a new beginning for the oil-rich country have remained elusive, with many blaming corrupt politicians for Iraq’s ills. Haider Jaafar, 23, said that two years ago he thought elections “were the only means to change things”. Like Anas and other young graduates in Nasiriyah he is now disillusioned. “How can we hold polls when the country is awash with weapons… when political parties wield a lot of influence and control big money?” he asked. With so much anger bubbling, candidates hoping to be elected to the 329-seat parliament have kept a low profile in Nasiriyah. Instead of canvassing the streets of the city of half a million inhabitants, they have taken their campaign to social media. After the massacre The few who put up campaign posters in Nasiriyah have had them torn down. “It’s difficult for a candidate to campaign in Nasiriyah, especially after October (2019) and the massacres that took place,” said Jaafar. “Some people believe that every candidate is linked to the death of a friend.” Jaafar said that some of the 85 demonstrators killed on a single day in November 2019 in clashes with security forces were friends of his. “At our age, we should not see friends die, lie in a pool of blood,” he said. The government had vowed to bring those responsible for the deaths to justice “but nothing has happened”, said Jafaar. On a cautiously optimistic note, Muntazer, a medical student, said independent candidates with no links to traditional political parties could make a difference. “If one or even 10 independents win seats in the election, they could exert pressure (in parliament) and form the nucleus of a real opposition,” he said.
Jordanian King’s Properties Undercut Father Figure Image Associated Press/October 05/2021 Jordan’s King Abdullah II was meeting with the World Bank president, asking for more financial support for his country’s battered economy, just around the time the news broke: A trove of leaked documents revealed the king had secretly bought more than a dozen luxury homes in the U.S. and Britain for over $100 million in the past decade. Abdullah was one of scores of public figures identified as holders of hidden offshore accounts. But perhaps nowhere was there a more evident contradiction between the public man and the private one, for the king has carefully cultivated an image as a caring father of a struggling nation, and it turns out he has amassed an empire of luxury real estate. “Nobody’s going to turn a blind eye to this,” said Dave Harden, a former senior official at the U.S. Agency for International Development who is now running for Congress as a Democrat in Maryland. He said even a perception of misspending could lead to calls for greater oversight of future American assistance to Jordan. Abdullah was on a long list of world leaders, politicians, billionaires, celebrities, religious leaders and drug dealers who have been hiding their investments in mansions, exclusive beachfront property, yachts and other assets for the past quarter-century, according to a report Sunday by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. The report, based on a review of nearly 12 million files obtained from 14 firms around the world, was dubbed the “Pandora Papers.” There were no allegations of illegal activity or misuse of international aid money. Still, the report came at a delicate time for Abdullah. The country’s economy has struggled in recent years, and his leadership came under scrutiny earlier this year when his half-brother accused the “ruling class” of corruption. Seen by the West as a force of moderation and stability in the volatile Middle East, Abdullah relies on billions of dollars of international aid — a flow that could be disrupted if donors believe their assistance is being squandered. Abdullah angrily denied any wrongdoing, saying the homes had been kept secret because of security concerns and were purchased with personal funds. “Any allegations that link these private properties to public funds or assistance are baseless and deliberate attempts to distort facts,” a statement from the Royal Hashemite Court said Monday. It called any such suggestions “defamatory and designed to target Jordan’s reputation as well as his majesty’s credibility.”In the short term, Abdullah does not appear to face any threat at home. When his half-brother, Crown Prince Hamzah, leveled his accusations of corruption and incompetence last April, he was quickly placed under house arrest. Hamzah has been seen in public just once since then and remains incommunicado. Two former top aides, meanwhile, have been sentenced to 15-year prison terms for incitement and sedition over their roles in an alleged plot with Hamzah. In an apparent sign of concern, the Jordanian media, most of which is directly or indirectly controlled by the palace, made no mention of the Pandora Papers affair. Even independent Jordanian media outlets engage in self-censorship, avoiding criticism of the royal family and security forces. Jordan’s economy has fallen onto hard times over the past decade, hit by an influx of hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing war in neighboring Syria and, more recently, by the coronavirus pandemic. According to the World Bank, Jordan’s economy contracted slightly last year, while unemployment spiked to 25%. The country of 10 million is divided between a small middle and upper class with close ties to the government, and impoverished masses living in city slums, outlying villages and refugee camps. “When anyone lives in hardship, difficult conditions and extreme poverty, it is difficult to see their rulers living in prosperous conditions,” said Maisara Malas, a union activist who has joined antigovernment protests seeking lower taxes and an end to corruption. Abdullah, who took power in 1999 after the death of his father, King Hussein, has sought to straddle these worlds by portraying himself as father figure. He is careful not to flaunt his wealth. Though he spends lengthy periods overseas, he does so quietly, often at undisclosed locations. He meets with powerful tribal leaders in Jordan’s hinterlands to underscore his local roots. Posters in government offices and on billboards often show the king wearing a red Arab headdress or military uniform. Last year, his then-prime minister, Omar Razzaz, launched an effort to crack down on tax evasion, corruption and “smuggling money into tax havens.”On Monday, the king paid a visit to tribal leaders and other dignitaries in Badia, a region south of the capital Amman, where he said Jordan was being threatened by destabilizing forces. “There is a campaign against Jordan, and there are still those who want to sabotage and build suspicions,” he said. “There is nothing to hide.”Labib Kamhawi, a Jordanian analyst, said that given the media blackout and lack of internet use among the poorest, he did not see any immediate threat to the king. But he said that as word of the scandal spread, it could be “very damaging” domestically. But perhaps more troubling, he said, is that it could anger donor nations. According to Jordan’s official Petra News Agency, the country received some $5 billion in foreign aid last year, both in unrestricted budget assistance and specially earmarked grants. More than a quarter of that money came from the U.S. alone. “It is bound to affect the ability of Jordan to solicit aid easily,” Kamhawi said. As a strategic Western ally and with a peace agreement with Israel, Jordan remains too important to be abandoned by the international community. President Joe Biden this year called Abdullah a “loyal and decent friend.”U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price would not comment specifically on Abdullah’s real estate holdings but said: “When it comes to our assistance to Jordan, we have been helping to improve the lives of the Jordanian people for over six decades. We carefully conduct monitoring and evaluation of all of our assistance programs to ensure they’re implemented according to their intended purpose.” Price said that American aid to Jordan is in the national security interest of the United States, because it helps the country secure its borders, promote stability and participate in countering the Islamic State group. Harden, the former U.S. aid official, said it is a common concern in the profession that assistance ends up being misused and helping corrupt leaders instead of everyday people. He said to avoid that, money is often earmarked for specific development projects and tightly supervised. He predicted a “serious review” of any unrestricted aid to Jordan but said he expects money to continue to flow to programs with tight safeguards. Even so, he said the disclosures in the Pandora Papers look bad for the king. “It cuts against the core of what we are trying to achieve,” he said.
‘Pandora Papers’ leaks come at a delicate time for Jordan The Arab Weekly/October 05/2021 AMMAN–Claims contained in the “Pandora Papers” according to which King Abdullah II created a network of offshore companies to build a secretive $100 million overseas property empire have come at a delicate time for Jordan both at home and abroad, analysts said. Jordanian political analysts attributed the official annoyance with the leaked documents to the fact that they come at an incovenient time for the king, who had succeeded in containing the ripple effects of the “sedition” crisis and limiting its domestic impact. They fear that these documents could hurl Jordan back to square one. Jordan’s leadership came under scrutiny earlier this year when the king’s half-brother, former Crown Prince Hamzah, accused the “ruling class” of corruption. A sedition case was brought up against associates of the prince but not Hamzah himself. Bassem Awadallah, who once served as a top aide to the king and Sharif Hassan bin Zaid, a member of the royal family, were sentenced to 15 years in prison in July by a state security court. They were accused of conspiring with Hamzah and of seeking foreign help to carry out their designs. The king later announced that the royal rift had been resolved within the family and Hamzah was never charged with any wrondoing. Jordanian political sources said that talking about King Abdullah’s properties abroad could affect the image of the king himself and the overall reputation of the Hashemite Kingdom, especially its campaigns to fight corruption and its pledges to provide the necessary services to citizens, pledges that have so far succeeded in absorbing protests and the ripple effects on tribal clans after the “sedition” crisis. Jordanian sources speculated that the leaked allegations would come as a shock to Jordanian citizens who have supported Amman’s implementation of an anti-graft law recently approved by the National Assembly. The accusations risked undermining the credibility of the kingdom’s whole campaign against corruption. In a statement, Jordan’s Royal Hashemite Court said the reports “included inaccuracies and distorted and exaggerated the facts”. It said the king had “personally funded” the properties and all related expenses. The royal court also denounced the reports for revealing the location of the properties, saying it was “a flagrant security breach and a threat to His Majesty’s and his family’s safety”. The king was busy Monday portraying the leaked information as an attack against Jordan. “Attempts to embarrass Jordan have been going on for some time and there are still those who want to sabotage it and sew suspicions,” a royal court statement quoted him as saying to a group of tribal elders. “We have nothing to hide,” he added. The royal court said “it is no secret that His Majesty owns a number of apartments and residences in the United States and the United Kingdom. This is not unusual nor improper. “His Majesty uses these properties during official visits and hosts officials and foreign dignitaries there. The King and his family members also stay in some of these properties during private visits.” The statement said the location of the properties was not publicised “out of security and privacy concerns, and not out of secrecy or an attempt to hide them, as these reports have claimed”. “As such, the act of revealing these addresses by some media outlets is a flagrant security breach and a threat to His Majesty’s and his family’s safety.”“Any allegations that link these private properties to public funds or assistance are baseless and deliberate attempts to distort facts,” it added. The palace also stressed that “all public finances and international assistance are subject to professional audits and their allocations are fully accounted for by the government and donor entities”. It said the allegations made in the Pandora Papers “are defamatory and designed to target Jordan’s reputation as well as His Majesty’s credibility and the critical role he plays regionally and internationally”. In his meeting with tribal elders, Abdullah echoed those words. “The kingdom enjoys the esteem and support of brotherly and friendly nations and has a strong and influential role on the regional and international scene,” he said. “It is not the first time that Jordan has been targeted,” he said, vowing that his country would “remain strong”. The release of the documents at this particular time could shake confidence in the work of the Royal Committee to Modernise the Political System, which completed its work a few days ago, Jordanian analysts said. Jordanian affairs experts say that such reports may also affect Jordan’s efforts to obtain foreign aid and may affect the return of warmth to relations with the United States. Labib Kamhawi, a Jordanian analyst, said that given the media blackout and lack of internet use among the poorest, he did not see any immediate threat to the king. But he said that as word of the scandal spread, it could be “very damaging” domestically. But perhaps more troubling, he said, is that it could anger donor nations. According to Jordan’s official Petra News Agency, the country received some $5 billion in foreign aid last year, both in unrestricted budget assistance and specially earmarked grants. More than a quarter of that money came from the US alone. “It is bound to affect the ability of Jordan to solicit aid easily,” Kamhawi said. As a strategic Western ally and with a peace agreement with Israel, Jordan remains too important to be abandoned by the international community. President Joe Biden this year called Abdullah a “loyal and decent friend.”US State Department spokesman Ned Price would not comment specifically on Abdullah’s real estate holdings but said: “When it comes to our assistance to Jordan, we have been helping to improve the lives of the Jordanian people for over six decades. We carefully conduct monitoring and evaluation of all of our assistance programmes to ensure they’re implemented according to their intended purpose.”Price said that American aid to Jordan is in the national security interest of the United States, because it helps the country secure its borders, promote stability and participate in countering the Islamic State (ISIS) extremist group. The investigation by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, involving some 600 journalists from media worldwide, was based on the leak of some 11.9 million documents from 14 financial services companies. While not alleging criminal wrong-doing by Abdullah II, the reports alleged he created a network of offshore companies to quietly purchase luxury residences from Malibu and California to Washington and London.
Macron Hopes for Easing of Tensions with Algeria Agence France Presse/October 05/2021 French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday he hoped that tensions with Algeria would ease following his critical comments about the country’s leaders and a row about visas. “My wish is for a calming down because I think it’s better to talk and to make progress,” Macron told the France Inter broadcaster, adding that his relations with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune were “truly cordial”.Algeria over the weekend recalled its ambassador from Paris and banned French military planes from its airspace, which France regularly uses to reach its forces battling jihadists in the Sahel region to the south. The moves came after France announced it would slash the number of visas granted to Algerians by half, as well as reported comments by Macron that Algeria’s post-independence “political-military system” had “totally re-written” the country’s history. Macron told descendants of Algeria’s war of independence last week that the history transmitted to Algerians was “not based on truths” but “on a discourse of hatred towards France”, according to remarks reported by Le Monde newspaper on Saturday. The office of Algeria’s president responded by saying the comments, which have not been denied, were an “interference” in the country’s internal affairs. ‘Memory war’ Macron has gone further than previous French presidents in seeking to face up to the legacy of France’s colonial history, which he sees as part of efforts to create a sense of national unity given the millions of French citizens of African origin. He told France Inter that there were many different memories and “injuries” stemming from French colonialism, but that his ambition was to “try to recognize all of these memories and enable them to co-exist”. “There will inevitably be other tensions, but I think our duty is to try to advance this work,” he said. In 2018, Macron admitted that France had created a “system” that facilitated torture during the war and he acknowledged that French mathematician Maurice Audin, a famed Communist pro-independence activist, was murdered by French forces in Algiers. While campaigning for president in 2017, he declared that the colonization of Algeria was a “crime against humanity,” and last month he asked for “forgiveness” from the families of Algerians who fought alongside the French in Algeria. Many of these fighters, known as Harkis, were massacred by Algerian troops after being abandoned by France ahead of the north African state’s independence in 1962. In July last year, Macron also tasked French historian Benjamin Stora with assessing how France has dealt with its colonial legacy in Algeria, but the final report has since become a sore point between the nations. Algeria’s government called it “not objective” and “below expectations”. Stora described a “never-ending memory war” between the former colonial power and ex-colony, which were locked in “competing (claims of) victimization”. – Visa row – Algeria was also angered last week by France’s decision to reduce the number of visas for Algerians by 50 percent, while those granted to Moroccans are set to fall 50 percent and for Tunisians by 33 percent. The French move was described as retaliation for the countries’ refusal to take back illegal immigrants. According to figures from the French interior ministry, Algeria only issued papers to 31 Algerians who are subject to expulsion orders from January to July, out of 7,731 in total. In Algeria, daily newspaper Liberte said this week that relations between Paris and Algiers had “never seen such a deterioration, despite regular episodes of turbulence”. Algerian journalist Ali Bahmane wrote in French-language daily El Watan that Macron was “desperately” trying to win elections scheduled for April next year, with the issue of immigration featuring prominently in early campaigning. “To do this, he is taking the foolish risk of getting lost in issues of extreme sensitivity, such as French colonization in Algeria (in order) to win over part of the right and the extreme right,” Bahmane wrote.
U.S. Resumes Afghan Refugee Flights after Measles Shots Associated Press/October 05/2021 Afghan refugees will soon be arriving again in the U.S. after a massive campaign to vaccinate them against measles following a small outbreak that caused a three-week pause in evacuations, officials said Monday. Authorities have administered the vaccination to about 49,000 evacuees staying temporarily on American military bases as well as to those still at transit points in Europe and the Middle East, according to the Department of Homeland Security. The measles outbreak, detected in 24 people, had put on hold one of the largest refugee resettlement efforts in U.S. history, dubbed Operation Allies Welcome. It also stranded about 15,000 at overseas transit points. “The success of this vaccination campaign demonstrates our commitment to the health and well-being of arriving Afghan evacuees, the personnel assisting this mission, and the American people,” Dr. Pritesh Gandhi, the DHS chief medical officer, said in announcing the completion of the effort. Everyone coming from Afghanistan is also tested for COVID-19. About 84 percent of the refugees in the U.S. and at overseas transit points have now received vaccinations against the coronavirus, officials said. The U.S. evacuated about 120,000 people in the chaotic days following the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in August. They were a mix of U.S. citizens, Afghans with legal permanent residency or who were applying for visas and refugee status along with their families. Testifying before Congress last week, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the U.S. has admitted about 60,000 people from the airlift out of Afghanistan, about 7% of whom are American citizens and about 6% of whom are permanent residents. About 3% have, along with their families, received the special immigrant visa for people who worked for the U.S. government or its allies during the war as interpreters or in some other capacity. The rest are a combination of people who are in the process of finalizing their special immigrant visas or are considered likely candidates for refugee status because they are human rights activists, journalists or others who are considered particularly vulnerable under Taliban rule or for some other reasons. All undergo security vetting before they arrive in the U.S. DHS says a majority of the Afghans being resettled in the U.S. worked for the country in some form or are related to someone who did. The agency projects at least 40% are eligible for the special immigrant visa. There are about 53,000 Afghans currently staying at eight U.S. military bases and receiving medical care and other assistance before they settle around the U.S. Gen. Glen VanHerck, head of U.S. Northern Command, told reporters Thursday that about 4,000 Afghans at the U.S. bases have completed medical screening and the 21-day quarantine required after receiving the vaccine for measles, mumps, rubella, and chickenpox that most Americans receive in childhood, and should be setting in their new homes in the coming days.
Blinken, in Paris, Seeking to Heal AUKUS Rift with France Associated Press/October 05/2021 U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Paris as the Biden administration seeks to repair damage to relations caused by excluding America’s oldest ally from a new Indo-Pacific security initiative. Blinken is meeting with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and President Emmanuel Macron’s national security adviser on Tuesday to try to restore trust between the countries, particularly as it relates to countering growing challenges from China. The Biden administration has acknowledged that last month’s announcement of a three-way Indo-Pacific agreement between Australia, Britain and the U.S. known as AUKUS was handled poorly. But it has also signaled a desire to make amends even while suggesting France’s rage is an overreaction. France responded with fury to the announcement that also scuttled a multibillion-dollar submarine contract it had with Australia, and briefly recalled its ambassadors to Washington and Canberra in an unprecedented display of pique. French officials called it a stab in the back by allies and have said it will take much time and work to overcome. France has also said it underscores the need for Europe to develop its own security and defense plans. Ahead of Tuesday’s meetings, Le Drian’s office reiterated that the “crisis” involves more than just France and was a snub to the broader European Union of which Britain is no longer a member. The foreign ministry said it involves “the interests of all Europeans regarding the functioning of our alliances and the engagement of Europeans in the Indo-Pacific.” Blinken is in the French capital for a two-day international economic conference that has been overshadowed by the AUKUS controversy that erupted on Sept. 15 announcement with the announcement of the project. Ahead of his visit, his second to France, as secretary of state but first since the rupture, Blinken met Friday with French Ambassador Philippe Etienne on his return to Washington after having been recalled to Paris by Macron. Blinken, a fluent French speaker who grew up and went to high school in Paris, has expressed disappointment that the France has reacted so harshly to AUKUS. He and others have suggested some degree of French anger is related to domestic French politics and the shifting dynamics within the EU, which will soon see Angela Merkel depart as the leader of Germany after 16 years in power. Blinken’s visit follows a Sept. 22 phone call between President Joe Biden and Macron, who have agreed to try to calm matters and are due to meet in Europe later this month. The ostensible reason for Blinken’s trip to France, which had been planned well before the AUKUS ruckus, is to co-chair a ministerial meeting of the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on Tuesday and Wednesday about climate change and security. Former Secretary of State and current U.S. climate envoy John Kerry will also attend the Paris talks, which will take place just weeks before the next U.N.-backed international conference on climate, in Glasgow, Scotland.
The Latest The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on October 05-06/2021 Is Iran threatening Azerbaijan over Israel ties? Seth J Frantzman/October 05/2021 Tehran wants to send a message to Baku that “we know what you are doing.” And Iran has done this before. Iran’s media has begun to up the rhetoric against Azerbaijan, with a headline claiming that Baku has “denied the presence of the Zionist regime near the border with Iran,” a claim that appears to contrast with its insinuation that Israel’s close relationship with Azerbaijan is a threat to Tehran. The larger context is that Iran has carried out military maneuvers near the border with Azerbaijan and Armenia and hosted an Armenian delegation, signaling its commitment to a robust policy that wants the status quo maintained on the border. What’s really going on here? A year ago, Azerbaijan launched a war against Armenian forces in the disputed area of Nagorno-Karabakh. In Baku’s view, backed by Turkey, the Armenians had for too long dominated disputed areas that they captured in the 1990s. In Armenian’s view, these were historical lands where Armenians lived and which the Soviet Union had arbitrarily made an autonomous part of the Azeri Soviet republic in the 20th century. Regardless of who is correct in this dispute, it shares similarities to many others such as in Northern Cyprus, the West Bank and other places. What matters is that a rising and increasingly powerful Azerbaijan is asserting itself militarily. Israel and Iran’s northern neighbor enjoy close relations and Baku has acquired a large number of Israeli-made drones in recent decades, becoming a pioneering drone power. Azerbaijan frequently shows off Israeli-made drones and boasts of their effectiveness. Recent videos posted online even appeared to show IAI Harop drones in launch formation on the back of trucks being toured by Azeri leader Ilham Aliyev, according to videos on Twitter. Regardless of who is correct in this dispute, it shares similarities to many others such as in Northern Cyprus, the West Bank and other places. What matters is that a rising and increasingly powerful Azerbaijan is asserting itself militarily. Iran’s media claims the “Zionists” may be on Iran’s doorstep by working with Baku. But it also prints Azerbaijan’s denials. “Azerbaijan pursues an independent foreign policy and on this basis establishes relations with its neighbors and does not allow anyone to interfere in its internal affairs,” Aliyev said, according to Iran’s Fars News. WHAT IS the point of Iran’s major media, linked to the IRGC, printing denials without printing the accusation? The reason Iran does this is because the regime is careful not to up the rhetoric and stoke tensions with Azerbaijan. But Tehran also wants to send a message to Baku that “we know what you are doing.” Iran has done this before, leaking information to pro-Iranian militias in Iraq so that those militias have blamed Azerbaijan for being the base for alleged drone attacks on pro-Iran militias in Iraq. Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, leader of Kataib Hezbollah in Iraq, a key part of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) claimed in 2019 that “we have accurate and confirmed information that this year, the Americans introduced four Israeli drones via Azerbaijan to operate within the US fleet to carry out flights and target Iraqi military bases.” The Guardian reported at the time in August that “the development comes as Shia militants in Iraq claimed that Israel has used drones launched from Azerbaijan to attack targets in the north and center of the country – areas which regional officials say have become transit hubs for weapons being sent to Iranian positions near Israel.” The US soon afterwards killed Muhandis and IRGC Quds Force head Qasem Soleimani in a January 2020 drone strike, the drone in this case being flown from the Gulf. The point here is that Iran and its allies in Iraq were already accusing Baku of being a base for Israeli drones back in 2019. Now Iran is accusing Azerbaijan of similar activities. This comes in the context of regional Iranian attempts to harass and strike at Israel-linked targets, including attacks on shipping off the coast of Oman where Tehran used drones in July that killed two people on a ship, and an alleged plot recently in Cyprus. IRAN’S MEDIA printed on Tuesday a long list of comments from Azerbaijan. “We demand respect for our sovereign rights and non-interference in our internal affairs,” the president of the Republic of Azerbaijan stressed. “The charges against us must be formally substantiated. Let them come here and find a foreigner… They claim that Azerbaijan has opened the door to Israel in these areas… Where did they see Israel here?” This illustrates that Tehran is continuing to message about tensions with Baku. Iran wants Azerbaijan to stress the friendship between the two countries. Iran’s media prints claims that they share a historic friendship. “We do not accept allegations of the presence of third countries or any country near the Iran-Azerbaijan border, or the provocative actions of such forces, because such views have no basis,” a spokesman for Azerbaijan was quoted as saying. Meanwhile, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, during the presentation of the new ambassador of the Republic of Azerbaijan to Iran’s credentials, stated that “we do not tolerate the active presence of the Zionist regime in Azerbaijan against Iran’s security.” Iran has also carried out a military drill near the border. The Foreign Affairs minister had recently stated regarding the Iranian exercises on the border that “such exercises inside Iran are within the framework of Iran’s national sovereignty and clarified the Zionist regime’s movements along the joint borders of Iran and Azerbaijan,” according to Fars News. “The Islamic Republic of Iran does not tolerate the presence and activities of the Zionist regime against its national security and will take any necessary action in this regard,” Iran said. IRAN HOSTED Armenia’s foreign minister this week to hammer home its commitment to Armenia and to discuss the border tensions. While Yerevan stressed the need for open roads to its communities in Nagorno-Karabakh, Tehran discussed trade and other issues. Trade and operation of the Armenian transit route is one of the important issues of the two countries, Iran said. “In defining the transit and truck routes of trade, we will not allow Iran’s relations with its neighbors to be affected by some foreign interference.” The Iranian foreign minister then said he expressed concern over the presence of “the Zionists in the region…. Our region in the South Caucasus and our neighbor is still suffering from conditions, and the presence of the Zionists is a matter of serious concern to us.” He mentioned this several times, discussing foreign “actors” that were harming relations in the region. Amir-Abdullahian emphasized that the region’s problems should be solved away from foreign interference, adding that, “considering the intense crises and also approaching the exit from the Corona crisis, we declare that our region will not tolerate new crises.” It is not clear if Iran will want to press this issue further or if it feels it has said enough. Its desire is to send a message to Azerbaijan and show its commitment to Armenia. However, the Islamic Republic does not want to increase tensions with Turkey, preferring that these issues on the border be compartmentalized. This is because Iran, Turkey and Russia share other common interests in removing the US from Syria and also discussions about Afghanistan and trade. Iran does not actually want to be a party to a conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia: It wants to send messages and show where its redlines are. Biden national security adviser to host Israeli counterpart for talks on Iran Jacob Magid/The Times Of Israel/October 05/2021 Sullivan, Hulata to hold 1st in-person meeting of bilateral forum established to address Tehran nuclear threat, will hold follow up meeting to discuss Palestinians, Abraham Accords US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan will host his Israeli counterpart Eyal Hulata at the White House on Tuesday for talks on the Iranian nuclear program. Sullivan and Hulata will chair a meeting of the US-Israel Strategic Consultative Group (SRG), an inter-agency bilateral forum established in March for discussing Iran and other regional security issues, a senior US official told reporters Monday in a briefing. The SRG includes representatives from the military, diplomatic and intelligence communities in both Israel and the US. The forum has met several times in recent months, but the Tuesday morning session will be the first time it will be held in person. The senior US official said that the SRG meeting will build off the White House sit-down between US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in late August. Then, Biden assured Bennett that he would never allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon and that while his administration was still pursuing diplomatic efforts — namely a reentry into the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action — it would be prepared to pursue other avenues if they failed. “We still believe very strongly that the diplomatic path remains the best path for resolving this issue,” the US official told reporters on Monday. “Since we came in we have not lifted any sanctions, we are not going to pay upfront, and we’ve made that very clear.” Israel opposes the revival of the JCPOA, which former president Barack Obama signed in 2015, and his successor Donald Trump vacated in 2018. However, Bennett has told Biden that he would not publicly campaign against the JCPOA the way his predecessor Benjamin Netanyahu did. Tuesday’s session will also be the third time Sullivan has hosted Hulata for talks in Washington after doing so twice in August. “We’ve been engaged in regular contact with the Bennett administration on the many threats posed by Iran, including its nuclear program, its destabilizing regional activities, its ballistic missile program, support for terrorism, Iranian-backed UAV network,” the senior official said. The official added that there is an agreement between the sides “of the extent to which Iran’s nuclear program has dramatically broken out of the box since the previous administration left the Iran nuclear deal.” “We’re very closely aligned on how we see the bigger picture. We don’t see eye-to-eye on every single issue, but there’s a great deal of alignment both on how we see the challenges presented by Iran and how to ensure that we are effectively utilizing the full range of tools at our disposal,” he said. In addition to the SRG meeting, Sullivan and Hulata will hold a separate session to discuss other issues relating to the US-Israel bilateral relationship. They will include US security assistance to Israel along with the strengthening and expansion of the Abraham Accords. Asked if the possibility of Saudi Arabia normalizing with Israel was discussed during Sullivan’s meetings in Riyadh last week, the US official said those discussions mainly focused on the civil war in Yemen. The official acknowledged that Israel-Saudi normalization “would be a game-changer” but added, “I don’t want to get ahead of any process. These are decisions for the Saudis, and I’ll leave it there.”The Biden administration has repeatedly emphasized its commitment to the Abraham Accords, an initiative launched by Trump, but has yet to make headway on the issue as its foreign policy priorities are largely focused elsewhere. “We’ll also raise the current situation with the Palestinians, including the importance of ensuring calm in Gaza, which was a key topic in [Sullivan’s] meetings in Cairo a week ago, and more broadly the importance of efforts to dampen potential flash-points in the West Bank and Gaza and take steps to improve the lives of Palestinians,” the senior official said. Sullivan met with Egyptian security officials last week during a regional tour and discussed Cairo’s efforts to broker a long-term ceasefire between Israel and Gaza-ruling Hamas. Asked whether the US planned to pressure Israel on its plans to further settlement growth in the West Bank, the senior official did not comment directly on the matter, instead repeating a frequently used talking point about how the Biden administration opposes unilateral steps by Israelis and Palestinians and wants to see equal levels of freedom and prosperity for both.
Taliban Unlawfully Killed 13 Ethnic Hazaras Associated Press/October 05/2021 Taliban forces unlawfully killed 13 ethnic Hazaras, most of them Afghan soldiers who had surrendered to the insurgents, a prominent rights group said Tuesday. The killings took place in the village of Kahor in Daykundi province in central Afghanistan on Aug. 30, according to an investigation by Amnesty International. Eleven of the victims were members of the Afghan national security forces and two were civilians, among them a 17-year-old girl. The reported killings took place about two weeks after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in a blitz campaign, culminating in their takeover of Kabul. At the time, Taliban leaders sought to reassure Afghans that they had changed from their previous harsh rule of the country in the late 1990s. Meanwhile in Kabul, the Taliban said Tuesday they arrested 11 members of the Islamic State group, a rival and bitter enemy of the insurgents. The Islamic State group’s affiliate — based in eastern Nangarhar province — has claimed responsibility for a spate of recent attacks targeting Taliban forces in eastern Afghanistan and elsewhere. Taliban spokesman Bilal Karimi posted on Twitter that the raid was carried out on Sunday night in the Afghan capital’s Fifth Police District. He provided no further details. The raid came just hours after a bombing that targeted the Eid Gah Mosque in Kabul, killing at least five people. IS claimed responsibility for the mosque attack late on Monday, saying in a posting on its media arm, the Aamaq news agency, that one of their suicide bombers targeted senior Taliban figures following a mourning service. Sunday’s bombing was the deadliest attack in Kabul since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan with the chaotic departure of the last U.S. troops on Aug. 31. IS had also claimed responsibility for the horrific bombing on Aug. 26 that killed more than 169 Afghans and 13 U.S. military personnel outside the Kabul airport, where thousands of people were trying to reach the airport to escape Taliban rule. The world has been watching whether the Taliban would live up to their initial promises of tolerance and inclusiveness toward women and ethnic minorities, among them the Shiite Hazaras. However, Taliban actions so far, such as renewed restrictions on women and the appointment of an all-male government, have been met with dismay by the international community. Hazaras make up around 9% of Afghanistan’s 36 million people. They are often targeted because they are Shiite Muslims in a Sunni-majority country. Amnesty’s secretary general, Agnes Callamard, said that “these cold-blooded executions (of the Hazaras) are further proof that the Taliban are committing the same horrific abuses they were notorious for during their previous rule of Afghanistan.” Taliban spokespersons Zabihullah Mujahid and Karimi did not respond to calls from The Associated Press seeking comment. The rights group said Sadiqullah Abed, the Taliban-appointed chief of police for Daykundi, denied any killings had happened and only said that a member of the Taliban had been wounded in an attack in the province. The Taliban took control of Daykundi province on Aug. 14, according to the Amnesty report, and an estimated 34 former soldiers sought safety in Khidir district. The soldiers, who had government military equipment and weaponry with them, agreed to surrender to the Taliban. Mohammad Azim Sedaqat, who led the group’s surrender, arranged to decommission the weapons in the presence of Taliban members. On Aug. 30, an estimated 300 Taliban fighters arrived in a convoy close to Dahani Qul village, where the security forces members were staying, some with family members, according to Amnesty’s report. As the security forces attempted to leave the area with their families, Taliban fighters caught up with them and opened fire on the crowd, killing a 17-year-old girl named Masuma. One soldier fired back, killing a Taliban fighter and wounding another. The Taliban continued to shoot as the families fled, killing two soldiers, according to the report. After nine security forces surrendered, the Taliban took them to a nearby river basin and killed them, according to the rights group. Amnesty said it verified photographs and video evidence taken in the aftermath of the killings.
UK Urged to Tackle ‘Dirty Money’ after Leaked Pandora Papers Associated Press/October 05/2021 Britain’s Conservative government is facing calls to tighten the country’s defenses against “dirty money” after a massive leak of offshore data showed how London, in particular, is the destination of choice for some of the world’s richest and most powerful people to conceal their cash. The cache of almost 12 million files, which has been dubbed the “Pandora Papers,” was published Sunday by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and its media partners, including Britain’s Guardian newspaper and the BBC. The U.K. and London specifically are prominent in the data dump, with the documents showing how wealthy people around the world reportedly set up offshore companies to buy property and avoid taxes. Foreign individuals identified as beneficiaries of these types of offshore accounts in London include Jordanian King Abdullah II, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev and associates of Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan. Abdullah has denied any impropriety and Khan tweeted that his government would investigate anyone mentioned and take appropriate action if wrongdoing is found. Aliyev hasn’t commented. Though the purchases are legal under British law, the latest revelations highlight the complicated — and often anonymous — financial practices wealthy individuals use to avoid tax, far removed from the everyday experience of most of the British population. London in particular is a go-to for the rich and powerful because it’s home to a sophisticated ecosystem of businesses that can help in the process, including creative wealth management firms, high-end lawyers and long-established accounting firms. The London property market has for years struggled to shake off a reputation for playing a central role in how rich people around the world seek to hide and accentuate their wealth, with many prime properties in the heart of the city owned by non-nationals. Russian oligarchs have been high-profile purchasers of London properties in recent years, for example. London, one of the world’s biggest financial hubs, was also prominent in previous leaks of financial data, including 2016’s “Panama Papers” and the “Paradise Papers” the following year. For decades, authorities in the U.K. have pushed a light touch approach to regulation in order to attract foreign capital and talent. Critics say that has been a magnet for tax avoidance, which can be legal, as well as more criminal activities, including money laundering. Duncan Hames, policy director at the campaign group Transparency International U.K., said the disclosures should act as a “wake up call” for the government to deliver on long-overdue measures to strengthen Britain’s defenses against tax avoidance and money laundering. “These leaks show that there is one system for corrupt elites who can buy access to prime property and enjoy luxury lifestyles and another for honest hard-working people,” he said. “Once again Britain’s role as an enabler of global corruption and money laundering have been exposed with the same loopholes exploited to funnel suspect wealth into the country,” he added. Transparency International U.K. is urging the government to close a loophole that allows companies in the U.K.’s offshore financial centers such as the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands to hold property in the country without requiring these companies to reveal the names of their true owners. It also wants the government to crack down on professionals that help those with illicit wealth move and hide their cash in the U.K. and to properly resource the National Crime Agency to go after those suspected of having made their money through crime and corruption. Treasury chief Rishi Sunak said Britain’s tax authorities will inspect the Pandora Papers. He defended the country’s record on tackling tax avoidance. “I don’t think it is a source of shame because actually our track record on this issue is very strong,” Sunak told BBC radio. He pointed to measures taken over the past decade by the Conservative government to improve transparency — who owns what — and exchange data between tax authorities. “As you’ve seen from the papers, it is a global problem, there’s a global dimension to it and we need other countries to co-operate with us to tackle this, but we are determined to do that,” he added. Sunak also said there is “always more we can do” when he was asked about reports that half of all Russian money laundering is estimated to occur in the U.K. Opposition parties said the revelations, which also raised questions over donations given to the Conservative Party, needed to be acted on urgently by the government. “The tentacles of dark money exposed by the #PandoraPapers reach into the heart of U.K. democracy,” Labor Party foreign affairs spokesperson Lisa Nandy said in a tweet.
What the Western press won’t say about safety at Dubai Expo 2020 The Arab Weekly/October 05/2021 It was, of course, only a matter of time before the sniping began. No sooner had Dubai’s COVID-delayed Expo 2020 opened its doors than the Western media was full of stories highlighting the deaths and injuries among the site’s migrant construction workers. The implication is that the workforce was ill-treated and forced to work in unsafe conditions and that the number of accidents and fatalities was extraordinary. None of this is true. Over the six years of its construction, the Expo 2020 site has proved to be a far safer environment for its workers than that found on average in the European construction industry. But facts have rarely hampered negative coverage of Dubai, a city whose astonishing growth and success never fails to provoke envy in Western coverage of events in the Gulf states. According to Reuters, three workers died in accidents during the six years it has taken to build Expo 2020. This figure is confirmed by the organisers, who add that one of the victims was from Bangladesh, another from Pakistan and a third from Germany. Expo 2020 also says three other workers died after contracting COVID-19, one was in construction, the other two worked in a site office. All deaths and injuries are regrettable, yet on a project of this scale they are unavoidable. In fact, one death every two years is little short of a miracle and speaks volumes about the health and safety standards that have been rigorously enforced at Expo 2020. During construction, another 73 people suffered serious injuries requiring three or more days off work. Again, this is a near-fantastic rate among 200,000 workers over 247 million work hours. More seriously for the credibility of the anti-Dubai coverage, the number of deaths and injuries during the six-year construction of Expo 2020 is far below the average for the Western construction industry in general. In March, the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health released its annual construction fatality report, which revealed that in 2019 24 construction workers died in New York City, with migrant workers from Latin America accounting for one in five of the deaths. In the UK, meanwhile, statistics from the Health and Safety Executive record that in the year to March 2021 there were 39 construction deaths. Expo 2020 makes the point that its “accident frequency rate”, a calculation used to measure incidents over a period of time worked, was 0.03, compared with 0.07 in the construction industry in Britain. Other statistics come to Dubai’s defence. The European Union keeps tabs on the safety of employees through the application of a metric known as the incidence rate, the number of non-fatal or fatal accidents at work for every 100,000 employees. In 2018, the 27 countries in the EU had an average incidence rate of about 1,600 serious accidents for every 100,000 workers. With just 73 accidents over six years, the incidence rate per year at Expo 2020 was a mere six per year for every 100,000 workers. Similarly, the incidence rate for fatal accidents in the EU in 2018 was 2.21 fatal accidents per 100,000 persons. Expo 2020? Just 0.25 per 100,000. Of course, Europe’s construction industry is not responsible for all of Europe’s deaths at work. But it is responsible for 20 percent of them, which means that with a rate of 0.44 deaths per 100,000 its safety record in terms of fatalities is almost twice as bad as Expo 2020’s, with a similar disparity in non-fatal injuries. Statistics, in other words, show the highlighting of the deaths and injuries during the construction of Expo 2020 to be wholly unwarranted. So what about the exploitation of all those workers from South Asia? This is a tired old chestnut, which Dubai and the UAE has addressed time and time again, opening up labour accommodations for inspection and enforcing a strictly-observed safety code which, among other things, bans outdoor working during the hottest hours of the day in the summer months. Have there been infringements of such rules on the Expo site? Yes. This has been a gigantic project, with no fewer than 2,000 main contractors and another 2,000 subcontractors, each of which employs its own labour direct. But Dubai Expo’s worker welfare unit investigated and acted swiftly whenever breaches of employment codes came to light and at least two contractors lost their contracts after failing to address reported violations. One of the issues that has plagued migrant employment in the UAE is the practice among unscrupulous recruiters operating in workers’ home countries of demanding hiring fees. This practice is banned by the UAE and following an in-house Expo investigation, 300 workers who had been charged this illegal fee were reimbursed. And two key points are never made in all the carping media coverage of the “plight” of the migrant workers. The first is that they would not be coming to the Gulf states to work if conditions and job availability in their home countries were any better. The second is that millions of people in countries such as Pakistan and Bangladesh, entire communities, in many cases, rely on the money the migrant workers earn and send home: in a typical year, over $4.6 billion dollars flows into Pakistan alone in remittances from the UAE. Finally, the hypocrisy of the negative Expo 2020 coverage will not be lost on those who have been following the slow-motion car crash that is the consequence of the UK’s disastrous Brexit. The UK is currently in the grip of a series of economic crises, all of which are related to the fact that many of its industries, from farming to transport, can no longer rely on the cheap labour they used to get from poorer European countries. Britons were not prepared to work for the low pay and poor conditions on offer, and still aren’t. What is now apparent is that for the UK, the “freedom of movement” it has now turned its back on meant the freedom to exploit labour from poorer countries. Perhaps the Arab press should be covering that scandal. Copyright: Syndication Bureau
