LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

August 29/16

Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

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Bible Quotations For Today

All who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 18/09-14/:"Jesus also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: ‘Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax-collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, "God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax-collector.I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income."But the tax-collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!"I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.’"

Who hopes for what is seen? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience
Letter to the Romans 08/18-27/:"I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God; for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labour pains until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God".

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on August 28-29/16

Political battle around Lebanese Army chief position/Mohamed Kawas/The Arab Weekly/August 28/16
Russia, Iran and Syrian legitimacy/Khairallah Khairallah/The Arab Weekly/August 28/16
Lebanese cabinet faces another crisis/Chadi Ala Iddine/The Arab Weekly/August
Egypt’s law on the construction of churches sparks ire/By Sonia Farid/Al Arabiya/Saturday, 27 August 2016
Turkey’s battle in Syria/Abdulrahman al-Rashed/Al Arabiya/August 28/16
Who is with whom in Syria and Yemen/Jamal Khashoggi/Al Arabiya/August 28/16
Arabs and the plight of Muslims/Abdullah Hamidaddin/Al Arabiya/August 28/16
Entertainment, the void that needs filling/Turki Aldakhil/Al Arabiya/August 28/16
On Turkey's 'Stolen Youth'/Burak Bekdil/Hürriyet Daily News/August 28/16
Which French values: Tolerance or gender equality/Rina Bassists/Jerusalem Post/August 28/16
Christians as “Target Practice/Raymond Ibrahim/ Gatestone Institute/August 28/16
 

Titles For Latest Lebanese Related News published on August 28-29/16
Berri to Propose Solutions to Prevent Aggravation of Political Crisis
Report: Christian Polarization Not in Favor of 'Confused' FPM
UNIFIL Head of Mission Hosts Local Authorities and Religious Leaders
Qaouq: Lebanon Paying Price of Anti-Aoun Veto, Daraya Liberation Ended Saudi Dreams
Moussawi Urges Mustaqbal to End 'Deprivation Policy against FPM'
Statue Carrying Suleiman's Name Vandalized as FPM Flag Hoisted near Shabtini's Home
2 Syrians Held in Southern Town for Belonging to IS
Yaziji from Cyprus: Blackout on kidnapped Aleppo Archbishops' case surprising!
Fadlallah: Political crisis results from regime's nature, presidential vacuum
Hajj Hassan from Tehran: Neither the US sanctions against Iran nor the pressures on Lebanon prevent money transfers
Ali Abdel Karim Ali: Countries that conspired against Syria suffer today from terrorism
Sheikh of Azhar: Lebanon represents a tributary of culture and civilization for the entire Arab region
Bassil tours borderline villages in Bint Jbeil: We shall never be absent from any part of Lebanese territories!
Political battle around Lebanese Army chief position

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 28-29/16

Iran: Criminal execution of 12 prisoners in Central Prison of Karaj 78 executions since the beginning of August
Dozens Killed as Turkey Ramps Up Syria Offensive
France urges for UN resolution on Syria chemical use
Turkish strikes kill 35, as rebels advance on Kurds
Israeli to be extradited to US over Iran defense sales
Houthis say ready for fresh Yemen talks if attacks stop
Iran arrests nuclear negotiator over spying
Saudi envoy: policies on Iraq will not change
Saudi City Soldiers On as Civilian Toll Mounts
In another ward, several men are recovering from a separate attack on their automotive garage.
Iraq Requests Saudi Ambassador be Changed
Yemen Government Cautiously Welcomes U.S. Peace Plan
Israel Court Delays Hearing for U.N. Worker
Philippine Muslim Extremists Stage Mass Jailbreak

Links From Jihad Watch Site for on August 28-29/16
Australia’s SBS: Jihad “doesn’t mean war against non-Muslims”
Back then, jihad was very clean and beautiful”
UK: Anjem Choudary and other jihad preachers got over £1 million of taxpayers’ money
Germany: Muslim screaming “Allahu akbar” stabs couple, police say “no indication of any political motive”
Morocco: Muslims threaten women wearing bikinis on beach, tell them to “turn to religion”
Obama-backed Syrian “rebel” calls mother: “I severed your son’s head, you traitorous b****”
Australia Muslim pol to wife: “I’m gonna rape your mum and your f***ing dad!…I swear on the Koran”
Merkel slams European countries that say they won’t take Muslim refugees
Indonesia: Muslim with ISIS flag stabs priest, tries to blow up church during mass, police search for motive
Top 10 Innocent Women Executed in Iran — An Anni Cyrus Video
Oklahoma: Muslim charged in terrorism hoax after sending white powder to mosque

Links From Christian Today Site for on August 28-29/16
Egypt: Coptic Church settles row with government over church buildings
Egypt's Coptic Christians protest exclusion from Olympic and other sports
Republican sources say Family Research Council head wanted gay cure therapy on party platform
Boko Haram leaves 1.4 million children displaced, dozens used as suicide bombers - Unicef
Catholic sex education programme slammed by conservatives
Online dating is massive among US evangelicals
Indonesia: Priest injured in suspected church 'terror' attack
Justin Welby: 'I am constantly consumed with horror' at the way the Church has treated gay people
Man charged with murder over fatal stabbing of two nuns in Mississippi
Sarkozy tells comeback rally he would ban burkini across France
Italy earthquake: Priest hails 'great miracle' after being rescued from collapsed home
Two nuns stabbed to death in Mississippi
Italy earthquake: Death toll climbs to 247 as rescue continues

Latest Lebanese Related News published on on August 28-29/16

Berri to Propose Solutions to Prevent Aggravation of Political Crisis
Naharnet/August 28/16/The upcoming week will witness attempts to address the latest deterioration of the country's political crisis that was triggered by the Free Patriotic Movement's boycott of Thursday's cabinet session and all eyes will turn to Speaker Nabih Berri who will deliver a key speech on Wednesday, a media report said on Sunday. Berri's speech in commemoration of the 38th anniversary of the disappearance of Imam Moussa al-Sadr and his two companions will carry the speaker's “vision regarding the growing local crises and the threats that they pose to the country should they protract any longer,” An Nahar newspaper reported. Lebanon has been without a president since the term of Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014 and the MPs of Hizbullah, MP Michel Aoun's Change and Reform bloc and some of their allies have been boycotting the parliament's electoral sessions, stripping them of the needed quorum. Al-Mustaqbal Movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri, who is close to Saudi Arabia, launched an initiative in late 2015 to nominate Marada Movement chief MP Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency but his proposal was met with reservations from the country's main Christian parties as well as Hizbullah.
Hariri's move prompted Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea to endorse the nomination of Aoun, his long-time Christian rival. The supporters of Aoun's presidential bid argue that he is more eligible than Franjieh to become president due to the size of his parliamentary bloc and his bigger influence in the Christian community. The FPM's latest boycott of the cabinet is linked to the thorny issue of military and security appointments. Defense Minister Samir Moqbel has recently postponed the retirement of Higher Defense Council chief Maj. Gen. Mohammed Kheir after no consensus was reached over three candidates that he had proposed, angering the FPM which says that it opposes term extensions for all senior officers. The movement fears that the extension of Kheir's term could pave the way for a new extension of the tenure of Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji next month. Qahwaji's retirement had been postponed in September 2013 and his term was instead extended for two years.

Report: Christian Polarization Not in Favor of 'Confused' FPM
Naharnet/August 28/16/The Free Patriotic Movement's latest political escalation has not concealed the magnitude of “the confusion it has got itself into,” a media report said on Sunday. “This escalation in the rhetoric has not concealed the growing confusion that the FPM has got itself into but has rather sparked a wave of controversy and a war of words with several parties and figures that will not serve the movement in anything, unless this campaign is aimed at creating polarization among the Christian forces, especially between those who back the FPM and those who oppose it,” informed sources told An Nahar newspaper. “But that also will not be in favor of the FPM,” the sources added. Senior FPM officials have warned that the movement would take gradual escalation measures that might take the form of resigning from the cabinet, boycotting national dialogue, resorting to the judiciary or taking to the streets in popular demonstrations. The FPM's latest boycott of the cabinet is linked to the thorny issue of military and security appointments.
Defense Minister Samir Moqbel has recently postponed the retirement of Higher Defense Council chief Maj. Gen. Mohammed Kheir after no consensus was reached over three candidates that he had proposed, angering the FPM which says that it opposes term extensions for all senior officers.
The movement fears that the extension of Kheir's term could pave the way for a new extension of the tenure of Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji next month. Qahwaji's retirement had been postponed in September 2013 and his term was instead extended for two years.

UNIFIL Head of Mission Hosts Local Authorities and Religious Leaders
Naharnet/August 28/16/UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commander Major-General Michael Beary on Saturday hosted local authorities, religious leaders and Lebanese Armed Forces representatives from south Lebanon at the UNIFIL Headquarters in Naqoura to convey his profound appreciation for their strong support and to discuss issues of common concern to UNIFIL and the local communities, a UNIFIL press release said. Beary expressed his gratitude to the leaders for their continued cooperation and friendship they have unwaveringly demonstrated to UNIFIL peacekeepers and to the mandate of the Mission. “Your cooperation is paramount to UNIFIL and it is vital for the implementation of Resolution 1701,” he said. “I assure you that your hospitality and support are very significant elements in UNIFIL’s success.”“I am aware of the great needs the people of south Lebanon have and UNIFIL does its best to address some of these through different means, within its mandate,” he added. “I pledge to continue working with the Lebanese Armed Forces in order to maintain a safe and stable environment, in which the people of south Lebanon can grow more prosperous. I will also spare no effort in personally reaching out to you, on bilateral meetings or in occasions we might have to discuss our common goals and, hopefully, to celebrate our many achievements.”LAF South Litani Sector Commander Brigadier-General Charbel Abou Khalil and the Mufti of Tyre and Jabal Amel Sheikh Hassan Abdallah also addressed the ceremony respectively on behalf of the Lebanese Army, local community and religious leaders. In their speeches, they strongly emphasized their heartfelt appreciation for the work carried out by UNIFIL in support of the local communities and in preserving stability in south Lebanon. UNIFIL currently has over 10,000 peacekeepers from 40 troop contributing countries. Since 1978, UNIFIL has shown a strong humanitarian disposition that has been demonstrated on a daily basis. So far in 2016, UNIFIL has undertaken several thousand CIMIC (Civil-Military Co-operation) and Civil Affairs initiatives aimed at improving the living conditions of the people of south Lebanon. The Mission has carried out an average of around 400 activities per day between patrolling in close coordination with the LAF and assistance to local communities. In 2016, the Mission has provided free medical, dental, veterinary assistance in large numbers. Over 20,000 people have been treated by UNIFIL doctors and dentists. UNIFIL veterinaries have taken care of around 35,000 herds throughout the area of operations.

Qaouq: Lebanon Paying Price of Anti-Aoun Veto, Daraya Liberation Ended Saudi Dreams
Naharnet/August 28/16/Senior Hizbullah official Sheikh Nabil Qaouq charged Sunday that “the Lebanese are paying hefty prices as a result of the Saudi interference that is putting a veto on MP Michel Aoun's presidential nomination.” “The solution to the crisis lies in addressing its core reason, which is the Saudi veto on the nomination of the presidential candidate who is the strongest at the national and popular levels,” Qaouq, who is the deputy head of Hizbullah's executive council, said. Turning to Syria, the Hizbullah official said that the Syrian army's recapture of the Damascus suburb of Daraya under a deal that followed a four-year siege has “ended the Saudi regime's dream of toppling the regime in Syria” while “highlighting the victories of the Syrian army and the defeats of the takfiri gangs on the battlefields.”“This achievement is strategic, pivotal and historic and it will have repercussions on the course of the confrontations with the takfiri gangs and an outcome that will shape Syria's future,” Qaouq added. Lebanon has been without a president since the term of Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014 and the MPs of Hizbullah, MP Michel Aoun's Change and Reform bloc and some of their allies have been boycotting the parliament's electoral sessions, stripping them of the needed quorum. Al-Mustaqbal Movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri, who is close to Saudi Arabia, launched an initiative in late 2015 to nominate Marada Movement chief MP Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency but his proposal was met with reservations from the country's main Christian parties as well as Hizbullah. Hariri's move prompted Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea to endorse the nomination of Aoun, his long-time Christian rival. The supporters of Aoun's presidential bid argue that he is more eligible than Franjieh to become president due to the size of his parliamentary bloc and his bigger influence in the Christian community.

Moussawi Urges Mustaqbal to End 'Deprivation Policy against FPM'
Naharnet/August 28/16/MP Nawwaf al-Moussawi, an outspoken member of Hizbullah's Loyalty to Resistance bloc, has urged al-Mustaqbal Movement to end what he called the “policy of deprivation” against the Free Patriotic Movement, warning that the “persecution of the FPM is equivalent to the persecution of all Christians.”“In the absence of firmness from al-Mustaqbal Movement's international bosses and decisiveness from this movement's regional leadership, a conflict over who should be the next premier has erupted between the 'enemy brothers' in this movement,” Moussawi alleged. “But Lebanon does not have time to continue observing the chapters of this conflict between the 'enemy brothers', and therefore the problem is not in our camp but rather inside this movement,” he added. “Someone is waging a fierce battle to prevent a certain candidate from reaching the presidency, or to pave the way for himself to reach the premiership, and we as Lebanese cannot wait any longer,” the lawmaker went on to say, referring to al-Mustaqbal leader ex-PM Saad Hariri. He added: “Until when will the policy of eliminating and eradicating the FPM continue? Lebanon is based on cultural, religious and political pluralism, not on monopolization. This pluralism must not cease to exist when the issue is related to the FPM or its founder who enjoys support from a broad popular base.” And lamenting that “the continued persecution of the FPM has turned into a persecution of Lebanon's Christians,” Moussawi cautioned that “we all realize that persecution and deprivation would undermine the State's foundations and stability.”“The other camp must end the policy of deprivation against the FPM,” Moussawi urged. “We encourage the leader of al-Mustaqbal Movement to continue the approach of openness that he had showed towards the FPM without delay because Lebanon cannot wait any longer,” he added. Lebanon has been without a president since the term of Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014 and the MPs of Hizbullah, FPM founder Michel Aoun's Change and Reform bloc and some of their allies have been boycotting the parliament's electoral sessions, stripping them of the needed quorum. Hariri, who is close to Saudi Arabia, launched an initiative in late 2015 to nominate Marada Movement chief MP Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency but his proposal was met with reservations from the country's main Christian parties as well as Hizbullah. Hariri's move prompted Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea to endorse the nomination of Aoun, his long-time Christian rival. The supporters of Aoun's presidential bid argue that he is more eligible than Franjieh to become president due to the size of his parliamentary bloc and his bigger influence in the Christian community.

Statue Carrying Suleiman's Name Vandalized as FPM Flag Hoisted near Shabtini's Home
Naharnet/August 28/16/ Supporters of the Free Patriotic Movement hoisted an FPM flag outside the house of Minister of the Displaced Alice Shabitini in Jbeil overnight before vandalizing a statue carrying the name of ex-president Michel Suleiman in the city, state-run National News Agency said. A picture published by the agency shows the former president's surname on the statue covered with black paint and the word Aoun written over it, which changes the text on the monument from “The Square of His Excellency President General Michel Suleiman” to “The Square of His Excellency President General Michel Aoun”. Suleiman condemned the incident on Twitter, slamming the vandals as “masked bats.” Shabtini, who is one of three ministers loyal to Suleiman in the cabinet, had recently lashed out at FPM chief and Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil. “Cursed are those who are not allowing the election of a president,” Shabtini said in response to a recent speech by Bassil. “Cursed are those who try to uproot us from cabinet through holding sessions that violate the National Pact,” the FPM chief said on Thursday. Shabtini hit back, warning that “whether he knows it or not, Bassil is dragging the country towards partitioning, or federalism in the best case scenario.” “We reject to be called traitors by anyone and a traitor is one who pushes the country towards further deterioration,” she added. The FPM's latest boycott of the cabinet is linked to the thorny issue of military and security appointments. Defense Minister Samir Moqbel, who is close to Suleiman, has recently postponed the retirement of Higher Defense Council chief Maj. Gen. Mohammed Kheir after no consensus was reached over three candidates that he had proposed, angering the FPM which says that it opposes term extensions for all senior officers.
The movement fears that the extension of Kheir's term could pave the way for a new extension of the tenure of Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji next month. Qahwaji's retirement had been postponed in September 2013 and his term was instead extended for two years.

2 Syrians Held in Southern Town for Belonging to IS
Naharnet/August 28/16/An army intelligence patrol on Sunday arrested two Syrians in the southern town of Kfar Rumman, state-run National News Agency reported.The two are accused of “belonging to the Islamic State group and communicating with IS officials,” it said.
They were referred to the relevant security authorities, NNA added. The army launched an unprecedented crackdown on suspected extremist cells in the country in the wake of the multiple suicide bombings that rocked the Christian border town of al-Qaa. Militants from the IS and Fateh al-Sham Front – formerly known as al-Nusra Front -- are entrenched in rugged areas along the undemarcated Lebanese-Syrian border. The two groups briefly overran the Bekaa town of Arsal in August 2014 before being ousted by the army after days of deadly battles.The two groups have also claimed responsibility for several deadly bombings inside Lebanon and for rocket attacks on areas in the Bekaa.

Yaziji from Cyprus: Blackout on kidnapped Aleppo Archbishops' case surprising!
Sun 28 Aug 2016/NNA - Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and all the East, Youhanna Yazigi, pursued on Sunday his visit to Cyprus, whereby he visited this morning the ancient St. Nicholas Monastery in Kakopetraa, which hosts the youth camp organized by the Church of Cyprus that brings together young people from the Churches of Alexandria, Antioch, Quds and Cyprus. After presiding over Mass at said Monastery, Patriarch Yaziji delivered a word in which he heaped praises on the deeply entrenched relations between the Antioch and Cypriot Churches, underscoring the "paramount importance of such a youth activity annually organized by the Church of Cyprus."The Patriarch also dwelt on the current situation in the region, affirming Christians' resilience and steadfastness on their land despite the simmering ongoing events. In a press interview following his delivered word, Yaziji branded the existing blackout over the case of the kidnapped Archbishops of Aleppo, Boulos Yaziji and Yohanna Ibrahim, as utterly "surprising and in clear contempt for human rights."The Archbishop also underlined the cordial relation between Christians and Muslims living in national coexistence, saying that "the ongoing events of violence, terrorism and kidnapping are matters peculiar to the past and present of Middle Eastern communities and countries."

Fadlallah: Political crisis results from regime's nature, presidential vacuum
Sun 28 Aug 2016/NNA - Member of Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc, MP Hassan Fadlallah, said that the current political crisis in the country resulted from the regime's nature and the presidential vacuum. Fadlallah's words came during a ceremony held for students who passed their official exams in Ainata in the presence of figures. He said that Lebanon was suffering from the presence of Future Movement, composed of some members who are "troublemakers" and every step taken to solve the internal crisis someone within the party hampers it.

Hajj Hassan from Tehran: Neither the US sanctions against Iran nor the pressures on Lebanon prevent money transfers
Sun 28 Aug 2016/NNA - Industry Minister Hussein Hajj Hassan, said on Sunday that "the Central Bank Governor has reassured him that neither the United States sanctions against Iran nor the pressures on Lebanon prevent financial transfers to Lebanese banks."Hajj Hassan's words came upon his arrival in Tehran, starting an official visit to the Iranian capital on head of a Lebanese delegation. His first meeting was with Iranian Minister of Industry, Trade and Mines, Nemat Zadeh, who briefed him on various functions supervised by his Ministry. The encounter was a chance to dwell on latest hour issues, including the sanctions on Iran. Hajj Hassan described the relations between Lebanon and Iran as "historic, based on strong foundations of brotherhood and friendship."He added: "We work in favor of developing bilateral relations, particularly in terms of strengthening mutual trade and considering Lebanon as a center for exporting Iranian goods to Africa and Arab countries."Hajj Hassan also prompted Iran's Central Bank Governor to visit Beirut and meet with his Lebanese counterpart, so as to agree on a specific mechanism for money transfers. He added that "such a visit is important to develop a clear plan that will pave the way for opening Iranian banks in Lebanon and vice versa."In turn, the Iranian Minister stressed on his country's readiness to put all its potential at the disposal of the Lebanese, highlighting the "historical and deeply-rooted friendly ties shared between Lebanon and Iran."Politically, Zadeh hoped that peace would prevail in Lebanon, noting that many interventions have affected the Lebanese internal affairs, hoping that they would be eliminated.

Ali Abdel Karim Ali: Countries that conspired against Syria suffer today from terrorism
Sun 28 Aug 2016/NNA - Syrian Ambassador to Lebanon, Ali Abdel Karim Ali, said on Sunday that the countries that conspired against Syria were suffering today from the terrorism which they supported and exported to the country. "Syria has almost defeated terrorist organizations and those who supported them," the diplomat said before a delegation composed of Parties' Coordination Committee and Lebanese National Forces. Ali also stressed that the resistance front was solid and all attempts to undermine the resistance doomed to failure.

Sheikh of Azhar: Lebanon represents a tributary of culture and civilization for the entire Arab region
Sun 28 Aug 2016/NNA - Sheikh of al-Azhar, Grand Immam Ahmad Tayyib, said on Sunday that "Lebanon represents a stream of culture and civilization for the Arab region as a whole."Immam Tayyib's words came during his meeting with newly appointed Egyptian Ambassador to Lebanon, Nazih Najari, which was devoted to discussing ways of coordinating between al-Azhar and Egypt's Embassy in Beirut. The Azhar Sheikh praised the historical coexistence between various constituents of Lebanon, stressing on the Azhar's continuous support to the unity of the Lebanese people.

Bassil tours borderline villages in Bint Jbeil: We shall never be absent from any part of Lebanese territories!
Sun 28 Aug 2016/NNA - Foreign and Expatriates Minister, Free Patriotic Movement Party Head, Gebran Bassil, stressed, on Sunday, his Party's presence "on all Lebanese territories and at Constitutional institutions."Bassil's words came during his tour of borderline towns and villages in the Casa of Bint Jbeil. The tour began by a Mass service held in the town of Dibil, following which Bassil pledged to "work for the development of a fair electoral law, highlighting the State's duties towards its citizens." Bassil's next stop-over was in Ain Ebel, then in Rmeich, where an artesian well and a new FPM branch were inaugurated in presence of several political figures, namely representatives of the Free Patriotic Movement, Lebanese Forces, Kataeb Party, Amal Movement and Hezbollah. Bassil praised the coexistence and national integration witnessed in Rmeich, Dibil and Ain Ebel, saluting the resistance of their citizens in confronting the Israeli enemy and remaining attached to their land. "The understanding agreement we have with Hezbollah protects Lebanon and renders us capable of facing all difficulties and challenges," he said. Addressing hour issues prevailing on the Lebanese political scene, Bassil explained that his political group was aware of Army Commander's term of office renewal, but actually feared a third extension of the Parliament Council's mandate. "We will prevent such a scenario, if present, not in Parliament but by taking to the street," Bassil underscored, reiterating rejection of any unconstitutional act. Bassil then visited the border villages of Yaroun and Alma el-Shaeb, the last leg of his Sunday tour.

Political battle around Lebanese Army chief position
Mohamed Kawas/The Arab Weekly/August 28/16

LONDON - For many observers, the po­litical crisis gripping Lebanon that has left the country without a president for more than two years is the fault of the Hezbollah-backed Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) leader Michel Aoun and his struggle for the presidency.
Lebanese Army chief Jean Kahwaji’s term comes up for renewal in September. With a political battle raging around the issue, Aoun’s rejection of Kahwaji’s replacement is being framed as an attempt by the presidential hopeful to reignite Lebanon’s Christians against what his supporters see as their marginalisation.
Those who criticise Aoun say that keeping Kahwaji as commander of Lebanon’s armed forces is not only necessary domestically, given the difficult situation Lebanon is going through, but also internationally. Such views have been boosted by the recent visit of US Central Command Commander General Joseph Votel to Lebanon, his meeting with Kahwaji and his comments confirming the Lebanese Army as an important strategic partner with the United States, particularly in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS).
“The Lebanese armed forces is a strong institution and America has been and will continue to be the army’s steadfast and foremost se­curity partner,” Votel said.
The FPM, which is part of the Hezbollah-led March 8 alliance, and unaffiliated Christian ministers boycotted a recent cabinet meeting to pressure embattled Prime Minister Tammam Salam. Some of Aoun’s aides, complaining about the so-called marginalisation of Lebanon’s Christian community, which Aoun sees himself the protector of, intimated that future cabinet meetings could be similarly disrupted.
This Aounist escalation coincides with an escalation in the rhetoric from the rival March 14 alliance’s Future Movement against Hezbollah. Interior Minister Nohad Machnouk, a member of the Future Movement, accused Hezbollah of being responsible for Lebanon’s presidential vacancy, saying this created a dangerous constitutional vacuum. He condemned Hezbollah’s military adventures in Syria at a time when Lebanon is dealing with a political crisis.
Machnouk began his term in office with seeming openness towards Hezbollah, calling for dialogue between his Future Movement and the group. When Future Movement leader Saad Hariri was in selfimposed exile, many believed Machnouk was trying to promote himself as a future consensus prime minister. Hariri’s return, however, dispelled such hopes.
Hariri surprised everybody by nominating Marada Movement leader and Hezbollah ally Suleiman Frangieh for president in Decem­ber 2015. The former prime minister said he viewed Frangieh as the figure most capable of breaking the deadlock surrounding the presi­dency.
However, Hezbollah rejected Hariri’s initiative, saying that it preferred Aoun as president, with Hariri’s allies believing this was due to regional, not domestic, considerations. They claimed that Iran, which is backing Hezbollah, prefers the presidential crisis to continue, viewing this as one of a number of regional issues it would prefer to link together to strengthen its ne­gotiating position, thus explaining its continuing support for Aoun.
Lebanese commentators agree that the FPM’s rhetoric about the rights of the Christians, along with the escalation in the Future Movement’s opposition to Hezbollah, is a smokescreen meant for domestic consumption and ultimately will not affect the Beirut’s political pa­ralysis.
The international community is committed to ensuring a relative level of stability in Lebanon and ensuring that the country does not slide into open conflict. So the Aounist escalation, threatening Christian protests and civil disobe­dience, could be explained as an attempt to prompt the international community to take a more active role in Lebanon and resolve the crisis.
The recent regional developments over Syria, where Hezbollah is fighting alongside Syrian govern­ment troops, could lead to a political settlement of the civil war. Turkey’s direct military intervention in Syria, alongside rapprochement with Russia and signs of rapproche­ment with Tehran, has changed the regional dynamic and could also affect Lebanon’s domestic political situation. Lebanon is preparing for new developments triggered by a new regional situation.

Russia, Iran and Syrian legitimacy

Khairallah Khairallah/The Arab Weekly/August 28/16
Amid furore over Russia’s use of airbase in Iran’s western Hamadan prov­ince, it is clear that there can be no outright victory.
Despite Russian air strikes from Iran’s Hamadan Airbase and Iran-backed militias fighting on the ground, a Russian-Iranian victory in Syria remains elusive. Amid the furore over Russia’s use of the airbase in Iran’s western Hamadan prov­ince close to the Iraqi border and whether this will continue, it is clear that there can be no outright victory regardless and continuing on the same path will change nothing.
Tehran and Moscow are relying on a Syrian regime that has no legitimacy, that has been rejected by its own people and the wider international community and whose days are numbered. In short, Russia and Moscow are in an impossible position thanks to their support of Syrian President Bashar Assad and his teetering regime. They had propped up this regime to protect their interests in Syria but these interests are under more threat than ever.
Most importantly, Iran and Russia’s strategic interests in Syria are not mutually inclusive. Russia wants to protect its military and economic interests in the region through Syria, while confirming that it remains a major player on the international stage.
As for Tehran, Syria is a vital conduit to Lebanon and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia, which has been working to promote and secure Iranian interests across the region and beyond. Hezbollah’s role cannot be underestimated; the militia has even played a part in supporting Houthi rebels fighting in Yemen. Hezbollah’s growing political role in Lebanon means that that country is under de facto control of Iran.
So Russia and Iran are looking for legitimacy from a regime that has none, even if they are looking for different kinds of legitimacy. Russia is depending on its history of relations with the Syrian military and security institutes, while Iran is banking on sectarian interests prevailing, namely its relationship with Syria’s Alawite-led regime, if not necessarily the entire Alawite community.
Syria’s Alawite community at large, which numbers up to 4 million, views Damascus’s relationship with Tehran with caution and is worried about the possible establishment of an Alawite statelet in the coastal region and what that would mean for its future.
Ultimately, Russia and Iran will fail in their endeavours to prop up the Assad regime. The military regime that Moscow is banking on ended a long time ago. For Tehran to succeed based on sectarian ties, it would require major demographic and territorial changes in Syria that are simply not possible, even with the campaign of forced displacement that we have been seeing in Homs or Aleppo. About three-quarters of the Syrian people are Sunnis; nothing can be done about that. They will reject any agreement or deal that would see them transformed into second-class citizens.
Historically, the Assad regime has depended on its security and military power effectively silencing its detractors. It has also relied on an alliance of Syria’s minorities, led by the Alawites, who, in turn, have taken the leading role in the security and military apparatus. This had been an effective policy until the recent conflict but it is now a thing of the past. Russia and Iran would be unwise to rely on old formulas such as this.
Russia and Iran, whether working together or separately, cannot and will not succeed in Syria. But the threat is in the partition of Syria and whether this could serve Russian and Iranian strategic interests. If that proves the case, there can be no doubt where things are headed.
**Khairallah Khairallah is a Lebanese writer. The commentary was translated and adapted from the Arabic. It was initially published in middle-east-online.com.

Lebanese cabinet faces another crisis
Chadi Ala Iddine/The Arab Weekly/August
Bassil’s fiery declarations do reveal that his party is ready to face all of tough decisions coming its way.

The Lebanese cabinet, which has been barely functioning because of political disputes among its members, was again shaken by the non-agreement over another delicate issue: the extension of the mandate of army chief General Jean Kahwaji.
Practically all of Lebanon’s government institutions have been paralysed for more than two years because of the legislature’s inability to convene a quorum to select a president. This has led to employment extensions at various agencies, including the military. Kahwaji’s mandate to lead the army is expected to be extended for a second time as no agreement on a new commander has been reached. The extension has been a point of contention, especially for the Christian Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), which opposes the move for internal rather than constitutional reasons.With the withdrawal of minis­ters representing the Kataeb Party (the Lebanese Phalange Party) and the initial refusal of the Lebanese Forces Party to join the ruling coalition, the FPM finds itself as the sole major Christian party in the government. Its exit from the government would unravel the alli­ance holding it together.
The FPM boycotted the August 25th Council of Ministers’ meet­ing to protest extending Kahwaji’s tenure. The council refrained from acting on the commander’s mandate and is to meet again on September 8th. “We decided to boycott the Council of Ministers’ meeting as a warning message to the govern­ment to stop breaking the law,” FPM President Gebran Bassil said. “Can our fellow partners in this country accept a government with­out a Christian presence among its members? Without the presence of all of its components, Leba­non cannot be. As for us, we will remain a movement of militants ready to defend the land and take to the streets, always defending our dignity.” Bassil’s fiery declarations reveal that his party is willing to face tough decisions. He may believe a policy of escalation might bear fruit, particularly in the context of the difficult dossiers, such as hav­ing his party’s leader, Michel Aoun, win the presidency of Lebanon. This change of policy stems from the failure of the movement’s policy of constructive patience. Bassil’s declarations are embar­rassing to the FPM’s strategic ally in Lebanon, Hezbollah, whose ministers did attend the August 25th cabinet meeting.
Hezbollah cannot leave the al­liance because it is not in its best interest to work towards bringing down the current government, especially in light of the militant group’s involvement in the Syrian war. Some observers claimed that FPM’s protest against Kahwaji’s mandate extension is a show exer­cise and that the real target is Saad Hariri, former prime minister and leader of the rival Future Move­ment. Hariri, a Sunni, is holding to his position of refusing Aoun’s nomination for the country’s presidency. The escalation is also a test by Aoun’s camp to see how far Hezbollah is willing to stand by its side in pressuring Hariri.
Member of Parliament Amine Wehbe said Hezbollah’s reactions to its ally’s escalation campaign are part of a tactic of role switching because both “Hezbollah and the FPM often exchange favours but always within the limits of each party’s own narrow interests”.

Speaking for the FPM, Member of Parliament Simon Abi Ramia told Al-Arab newspaper: “When discussions concerning the presidency were opened, the Future Movement told us that it had no objections to General Aoun’s nomi­nation but it had its own candidate namely, Samir Geagea.”
Abi Ramia said after nego­tiations that “a bilateral Christian agreement” was reached but that there has been “no change in the situation because of the opposite party’s refusal”.“This shows disdain towards Christian citizens and the Christian point of view and we cannot accept that,” Abi Ramia said.
The strategies adopted by the Aoun camp have not won support from all Christians in Lebanon. The Lebanese Forces Party does not op­pose extending Kahwaji’s mandate and the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Tashnag) said it has no intention of leaving the govern­ment in solidarity with the Aoun camp, according to its president, Hagop Pakradounian. However, the Tashnag minister boycotted the cabinet session.
Chadi Ala Iddine is a Lebanese writer.

Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on on August 28-29/16

Iran: Criminal execution of 12 prisoners in Central Prison of Karaj 78 executions since the beginning of August
بلغ عدد الذين اعدموا في إيران هذا الشهر 78/برسم عون وكل من يريد نقل نموذج الملالي إلى لبنان
NCRI/Sunday, 28 August 2016 15:42
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/08/28/iran-criminal-execution-of-12-prisoners-in-central-prison-of-karaj-78-executions-since-the-beginning-of-august/
Simultaneous with the anniversary of the massacre of 30,000 political prisoners in 1988, the anti-human clerical regime continues the mass executions of prisoners.
In the morning of Saturday, August 27, 2016, despite international calls, 12 prisoners were hanged in the Prison of Karaj. These prisoners had been transferred to solitary cells on August 24, to prepare them for implementation of the death sentence. The number of executions registered so far thus amounts to 78 in the past 26 days.
One of those executed, Alireza Madadpour, 34, was a student of accounting who had to quit school because of poverty and financial problems, and was earning his life by being a custodian. After getting arrested, he did not afford to hire a lawyer and he was sentenced to death in a 20-minute sham trial.
The clerical regime executes groups and groups of Iranian youths on drug-trafficking charges while all the drug-trafficking networks are controlled by the mullahs' supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, and the Revolutionary Guards Corps. The revenues are spent on export of terrorism and fundamentalism. In a confidential UN report published by the WIKIleaks, it has been reiterated that the Iranian regime is the largest drug trafficker in the world. (Reported by US Embassy in Baku, June 12, 2009)
Inside the country, the reins of most drug distribution networks especially among university and high school students are in the hands of the regime and the Revolutionary Guards Corps. Majlis deputy Rassoul Khezri said the number of people involved with drugs is 10 million. He added: While the price of all goods have risen, the price of CRACK has dropped.
Abdolreza Fazli, Rouhani's Interior Minister, said: Consumption of CRACK, a dangerous chemical drug, has grown from 4 to 22 per cent in only two years. According to him, only 7 per cent of the addicts are illiterate, and the rest have high school diplomas or Bachelors of Science. He also asserted that the rate of addiction among women which used to be 4 per cent has now reached 9.3 per cent. (The state-run ISNA news agency, August 19, 2014)
The Iranian Resistance calls on all international human rights organizations to take urgent action to stop the brutal death penalty in Iran under the mullahs' rule.
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
August 27, 2016

Dozens Killed as Turkey Ramps Up Syria Offensive
Naharnet/August 28/16/Dozens of people were killed in Turkish bombardment in Syria on Sunday as Ankara ramped up its unprecedented offensive inside the country against the Islamic State group and Kurdish militants. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 40 civilians had been killed in Turkish shelling and air strikes on two areas held by pro-Kurdish forces in northern Syria, the first report of significant civilian casualties in Turkey's operation. But Ankara said its raids had killed 25 Kurdish "terrorists" and that the army was doing everything to avoid civilian casualties. The bombardments came after Ankara suffered its first military fatality in the offensive against IS and the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia it launched on Wednesday. The Observatory said at least 20 civilians were killed and 50 wounded in Turkish artillery fire and air strikes on the village of Jeb el-Kussa early on Sunday. Another 20 were killed and 25 wounded, many seriously, in Turkish air strikes near the town of Al-Amarneh, it added. The monitor also said at least four Kurdish fighters had been killed and 15 injured in Turkish bombardment of the two areas. A spokesman for the local Kurdish administration said 75 civilians had been killed in both villages .But the Turkish army said it had killed 25 Kurdish "terrorists" from Turkey's outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and Syria's YPG, state-run Anadolu news agency said. "All possible measures are being taken to prevent harm to the civilian population living in the area and the maximum sensitivity is being shown on this issue," the army said, quoted by Anadolu. The Observatory said the bombardment targeted an area south of the former IS border stronghold of Jarabulus, which Turkish-led forces captured on the first day of the incursion. Turkish-backed rebels say they have captured at least nine towns and villages, including Jarabulus, from IS and Kurdish forces since Wednesday. In a statement Saturday, Kurdish forces accused Ankara of seeking to "expand its occupation" inside Syria.
Funeral for Turkish soldier -
The latest fighting is likely to raise deep concerns for Turkey's NATO ally the United States, which supports the YPG as an effective fighting force against IS. Ankara considers the YPG a "terrorist" group and has fiercely opposed its bid to expand into areas recaptured from IS to create a contiguous autonomous zone. On Saturday, a Turkish soldier was killed and three more wounded in a Kurdish attack south of Jarabulus. Turkish media named the dead soldier as Ercan Celik, 28, and said a funeral for him would be held on Sunday in Gaziantep, which Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is currently visiting. Turkish forces carried out their first air strikes on pro-Kurdish positions on Saturday as part of what Ankara is calling "Operation Euphrates Shield". Turkey says that the YPG has broken a promise to return across the Euphrates River after advancing west this month, despite U.S. guarantees. Ankara's military intervention in Syria has added another dimension to the country's complex multi-front war, a devastating conflict that has killed more than 290,000 people and forced millions from their homes since it began in March 2011. Much of the heaviest fighting this summer has focused on second city Aleppo, which is roughly divided between rebel forces and President Bashar Assad's troops.
Push for 48-hour ceasefire
Global powers have been pushing for 48-hour humanitarian ceasefires in the embattled city and U.N. Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura has urged warring parties to announce by Sunday whether they will commit to a pause in the fighting. The U.N. says it has "pre-positioned" aid to go to the city for some 80,000 people. Russia, which backs Assad's forces, has endorsed the proposal. But some rebel groups have rejected the plan unless aid passes through opposition-held areas and the ceasefire applies to other areas of Syria under siege. Opposition groups have repeatedly called for an end to regime sieges of rebel-held areas, accusing Assad's government of using "starve or surrender" tactics. On Saturday, the last rebel fighters were evacuated from the town of Daraya just outside Damascus, under a deal that followed a brutal four-year government siege. Hundreds of fighters and their families were bused north into rebel-held territory in Idlib province, with other civilians transferred to government territory near Damascus for resettlement. The Syrian army said it was in complete control of the town, from which roughly 8,000 civilians were due to be evacuated.

France urges for UN resolution on Syria chemical use
Reuters, Weimar Sunday, 28 August 2016/French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said he was pressing members of the UN Security Council, including Russia, to condemn the Syrian regime following a report that found Syrian government troops used chemical weapons. “I see no reason that could be given, or any arguments that could be made, for not condemning the use of chemical weapons,” he said, when asked if Russia would support the resolution. A joint investigation by the United Nations and the global chemical weapons watchdog OPCW found that Syrian government troops were responsible for two toxic gas attacks and ISIS militants used sulfur mustard gas.The inquiry found there was sufficient information to conclude that Syrian Arab Air Force helicopters dropped devices that then released toxic substances in Talmenes on April 21, 2014 and Sarmin on March 16, 2015, both in Idlib province. Both cases involved the use of chlorine.On Saturday, Ayrault said the UN report represented a chance to push Russia to accept a resolution condemning the Syrian regime and resume political negotiations.Russia said on Thursday it was prepared to work with the United States on a response to the UN report.

Turkish strikes kill 35, as rebels advance on Kurds
The Associated Press, Beirut Sunday, 28 August 2016/Turkey-backed Syrian rebels seized a number of villages and towns from Kurdish-led forces in northern Syria on Sunday amid Turkish airstrikes and shelling that killed at least 35 people according to rebels and a monitoring group. Turkey sent tanks across the border to help Syrian rebels drive the ISIS group out of the frontier town of Jarablus last week in a dramatic escalation of its involvement in the Syrian civil war. The operation, labeled Euphrates Shield, is also aimed at pushing back US-allied Kurdish forces. Turkey's official Anadolu news agency said Turkish airstrikes killed 25 Kurdish "terrorists" and destroyed five buildings used by the fighters in response to attacks on advancing Turkish-backed rebels in the Jarablus area. The Turkish military is "taking every precaution and showing maximum sensitivity to ensure that civilians living in the area are not harmed," Anadolu reported. A Turkish soldier was killed by a Kurdish rocket attack late Saturday, the first such fatality in the offensive, now in its fifth day. The SDF crossed the Euphrates River and drove ISIS out of Manbij, a key supply hub just south of Jarablus, earlier this month. Both Turkey and the United States have ordered the YPG to withdraw to the east bank of the river. YPG leaders say they have, but their units play an advisory role to the SDF and it is not clear if any of their forces remain west of the Euphrates. ANHA, the news agency of the Kurdish semi-autonomous areas, said Beir Khoussa has "reportedly lost all its residents." SDF spokesman Shervan Darwish said the airstrikes and shelling started overnight and continued Sunday along the front line, killing many civilians in Beir Khoussa and nearby areas. He said the bombing also targeted Amarneh village. He said 50 Turkish tanks were taking part in the offensive. An Associated Press reporter in the Turkish border town of Karkamis spotted at least three Turkish jets flying into Syria amid heavy Turkish shelling from inside Syrian territory on Sunday morning.
(Additional editing by Al Arabiya English)

Israeli to be extradited to US over Iran defense sales
AFP, Jerusalem Sunday, 28 August 2016/Israel’s Supreme Court on Sunday ruled that a national charged with selling US defense equipment to Iran can be extradited to the United States, the justice ministry said. It said in a statement that Arye Eliyahu “Eli” Cohen should be rendered to US authorities “in order to stand trial for the commission of federal offences of trading military spare parts with Iran.” “According to the charge sheet on which the extradition request is based, during the years 2000-2004 Cohen exported military spare parts from the United States to his place of residence in Israel,” the Hebrew-language statement said. It said that he and three accomplices in the United States shipped parts for Hawk missiles, fighter aircraft and armored troop carriers from the US to Israel, using false declarations as to the materials and their final destination. A transcript of Sunday’s court hearing said that the charges alleged that between 2012-2013 Cohen “on two occasions re-exported from Israel to Iran, via Greece, US-made military spare parts used by fighter planes.”The charges were filed in the Federal District Court of Connecticut in 2013, and the United States made an extradition request the following year. The Jerusalem District Court granted the request but Cohen then appealed to the Supreme Court. “The act for which extradition is requested constitutes a criminal offence under the laws of both” Israel and the United States, the court said in Sunday’s ruling. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused arch-foe Iran of “preparing another Holocaust” and seeking to acquire nuclear arms with which to attack the Jewish state. He is implacably opposed to last year’s nuclear deal between Iran and six world powers, which saw the lifting of international economic sanctions in return for Tehran ensuring that its nuclear program remains purely for civilian use. An arms embargo on the Islamic republic remains in force.

Houthis say ready for fresh Yemen talks if attacks stop
Reuters, Sanaa Sunday, 28 August 2016/Yemen’s Houthi-run governing council said on Sunday it was ready to restart peace talks with the country’s exiled government provided a Saudi-led coalition stopped attacking and besieging Houthi-held territories. UN-sponsored negotiations to end 18 months of fighting in the impoverished country on Saudi Arabia’s southern border collapsed earlier this month and the dominant Iran-allied Houthi movement there resumed shelling attacks into the kingdom. At its weekly meeting at Sanaa’s presidential palace, the council said that its willingness to restart peace talks was contingent on the “total cessation of the aggression and lifting of the unjust siege on the Yemeni people.”In talks in Jeddah this week, US Secretary of State John Kerry said the conflict had gone on too long and needed to end. He said the Iran-backed Houthi militia group must cease shelling across the border with Saudi Arabia, pull back from the capital Sanaa, cede their weapons and enter into a unity government with their domestic foes. Yemen’s internationally recognized government, based in Saudi Arabia, has made similar demands but insisted that the Houthis fulfill all those measures before any new government was formed. However, Kerry suggested they could move ahead in parallel. The exiled government suggested in a statement carried by the Saba news agency that it was prepared to consider the ideas outlined by Kerry. It said: “The government is prepared to deal positively with any peaceful solutions ... including an initial welcoming of the ideas resulting from the meeting in Jeddah that included the foreign secretaries of the US, the United Kingdom and Gulf states.”

Iran arrests nuclear negotiator over spying
Reuters, Dubai Sunday, 28 August 2016/Iran has arrested a member of the negotiating team that reached a landmark nuclear deal with world powers on suspicion of spying, a judiciary spokesman said on Sunday. The suspect was released on bail after a few days in jail but is still under investigation, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said at a weekly news conference, calling the unidentified individual a “spy who had infiltrated the nuclear team,” state media reported. The deal that President Hassan Rowhani struck last year has given Iran relief from most international sanctions in return for curbing its nuclear program, but it is opposed by hardliners who see it as a capitulation to the United States. Ejei was responding to a question about an Iranian lawmaker’s assertion last week that a member of the negotiation team who had dual nationality had been arrested on espionage charges. Tehran’s prosecutor general on Aug. 16 announced the arrest of a dual national he said was linked to British intelligence, but made no mention of the person being in the nuclear negotiations team. On Sunday, Ejei did not explicitly confirm that the arrested person had a second nationality. Britain said on Aug. 16 that it was trying to find out more about the arrest of a joint-national.

Saudi envoy: policies on Iraq will not change
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Sunday, 28 August 2016/Riyadh’s polices on Baghdad “will not change,” Saudi Ambassador for Iraq told Al Arabiya News Channel on Sunday after Iraq asked the kingdom to change its envoy in its capital. “Saudi policies [towards Iraq] will remain unchanged and are not tied to individuals,” Thamer al-Sabhan said, in reference to Iraqi request to replace him. “[Saudi Arabia] will not abandon Iraq’s Arab identity,” highlighting Riyadh’s desire to keep proximity to Baghdad amid Iran trying to wield its influence. “Iraqis are suffering from pressures and particular agendas which impose its policies on the country,” he said without mentioning Iran. He said these “pressures” are “imposed” via “military advisors from other countries on Iraqis.”Qassem Soleimani, the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps-Qods Force – the external operations wing of the Revolutionary Guards –leading the now government-supervised mainly Shiite and anti-ISIS Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), has been seen in Iraq with numerous pictures taken of him. “God be with Iraqis for having a neighboring a country harboring animosity,” Sabhan added. Iraqi Shiite politicians have made persistent requests that Sabhan be expelled in reaction to comments he made about Iran’s involvement in Iraq and claims that Iranian-backed Shiite militias were exacerbating tensions with Sunnis. Sabhan has also expressed alarm over a plot to assassinate him in Iraq. Recently, Aws al-Khafaji, head of the Iraqi militia group Abu al-Fadhl al-abbas, which is currently part of PMF, said Sabhan is a “wanted person” and it is an “honor for everyone if he was assassinated.” “We have a very amicable relationship with Iraqi politicians that the media does not capture,” Sabhan said. Sabhan, whose credentials were received in January 2016, became the first Saudi ambassador to Iraq in a quarter century, after relations were cut following ex-president Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait.

Saudi City Soldiers On as Civilian Toll Mounts
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 28/16/It doesn't look like there is war in Najran. Not when you drive down King Abdul Aziz Road in the late afternoon sun, past the luxury hotel, the hypermarket and the sprawling gym in this southern Saudi city near the border with Yemen. But enter the King Khaled Hospital and you can see what the war has done.Saleh al-Abbas weeps outside the room where his nine-year-old son Mahdi lies with his head and face bandaged.  A Katyusha rocket struck their home around breakfast on Saturday and Mahdi's cousin, aged three, is dead. The boy brings to at least 31 the number of civilians killed in Najran since early last year, when Yemen's Huthi rebels and their allies began bombarding southern Saudi Arabia in retaliation for air strikes by a Saudi-led coalition. The Arab alliance intervened in March 2015 to support Yemen's internationally recognized government after the Huthis seized much of the country. At least 19 soldiers have also died in the Najran region, which is just a few kilometers (miles) from the border and has borne the brunt of rebel attacks. "They target the civilians. The main ones suffering are the civilians," says Colonel Ali al-Shahrani, a spokesman for the Saudi Civil Defense Department. He says the bombardment worsened after the suspension in early August of United Nations-brokered peace talks."Now it's continuous," he tells visiting foreign reporters.
Power plant hit
On Friday, rebels made a rare hit on Saudi infrastructure when a Katyusha hit the Saudi Electricity Company's Najran Power Plant at the base of a mountain. There were no injuries but it punctured an oil tank, starting a fire which left much of the facility blackened and twisted. The tank still spewed fuel on Saturday as fire crews and officials inspected the damage. Katyushas are short-range rockets without sophisticated guidance systems. Escorted by the information ministry, foreign journalists on Saturday were granted rare access to Najran. The tour coincided with increased criticism of Saudi Arabia over civilian casualties in its Yemen bombing campaign. On Thursday the U.N. called for the creation of an independent international body to investigate an array of violations in Yemen's war. A report laid out allegations of grave human rights abuses by all sides in the conflict.
More than half of the 6,600 people killed in Yemen since March last year have been non-combatants, the U.N. says, adding that 6,711 were wounded. At the King Khaled Hospital, a doctor says three Pakistani workers were also injured in the attack that saw Mahdi wounded and his cousin killed. One of the Pakistanis, Imran Khan Aslam Khan, lies with eyes closed, his head bandaged and a tube in his mouth after surgeons removed shrapnel from his brain and heart."Now he is OK," the doctor says as surgeons work on another wounded Pakistani. Attacks 'come anytime'

In another ward, several men are recovering from a separate attack on their automotive garage.
"I was in the workshop when suddenly the shells hit," Suleiman Abdulthabit, a 25-year-old Yemeni mechanic, says quietly from his bed, touching the back of his head to show where some shrapnel hit. Earlier this month civilians suffered their heaviest losses when four Saudis and three Yemenis died in what officials said was a Grad rocket strike. It leveled a car dealership in the industrial area where the power plant is located. Streets surrounding the destroyed dealership are flooded with leaked fuel, the cars are now twisted metal, and shrapnel has deeply scarred a wall across the street. Saudi Arabia has deployed high-tech Patriot missile batteries against long-range ballistic missiles the rebels have fired occasionally towards Najran and elsewhere in the south. Katyushas are harder to detect, officials say, although authorities regularly send out SMS and television announcements to help people protect themselves. But attacks can "come anytime," Shahrani says, and residents say there is little they can do. "We just don't gather at the sites after the missiles or the rockets land," Najran resident Fahad Juraib, 48, tells AFP. He and others are stoic as they get on with their lives. Najranis are dealing with the war "very casually... There is no crying, no screaming, no loud voices," Juraib says. There is only a quiet hope. "They wish the war would stop."

Iraq Requests Saudi Ambassador be Changed
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 28/16/Iraq has officially asked Saudi Arabia to recall its ambassador to Baghdad after the envoy allegedly told media outlets of a plot by Iran-backed Iraqi groups to assassinate him. "The Iraqi foreign ministry has sent an official request to the Saudi foreign ministry to replace its ambassador to Iraq," ministry spokesman Ahmad Jamal said in a statement. "Several statements and opinions voiced in the media overstepped the boundaries of diplomatic protocol and of an ambassador's duties," he said. Thamer al-Sabhan, whose credentials were received in January 2016, became the first Saudi ambassador to Iraq in a quarter century, after relations were cut following ex-president Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait. His posting got off to a rocky start however, with popular anger among Iraq's Shiite majority over the execution by Saudi Arabia a few days earlier of Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr. Iraq has since been angered by the views Sabhan aired in the media and Jamal said the envoy was repeatedly urged to refrain from commenting publicly on Iraqi affairs. In January, Sabhan gave an interview in which he criticized the Tehran-backed Shiite militia that make up the bulk of the Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary force battling jihadists alongside Iraqi security forces. More recently, Baghdad was infuriated by a claim the ambassador allegedly made that those same groups were planning to assassinate him. Jamal said Sabhan's claim was unsubstantiated and solely "aimed at undermining Iraq's image and questioning its ability to protect diplomatic delegations." Iraqi officials have repeatedly accused the Gulf kingdom, a Sunni powerhouse, of abetting the Islamic State group, which took over swathes of the country in June 2014.

Yemen Government Cautiously Welcomes U.S. Peace Plan
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 28/16/Yemen's exiled government has said it welcomes in principle a U.S.-backed plan to resume peace talks with Iran-backed rebels on the basis of forming a unity government. At a meeting in Riyadh, the cabinet gave an "initial welcoming to the ideas that came out of the meeting in Jeddah," which included U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, the government's sabanew.net website said late Saturday. Kerry announced a fresh international peace initiative to resolve the 17-month-old conflict after meeting Thursday with Gulf counterparts, a British minister and the U.N. envoy to Yemen. The plan offers Huthi rebels and their allies participation in a unity government but demands their withdrawal from Sanaa and other key areas, as well as surrendering heavy weapons to a third party. The rebels had been demanding a unity government as the first step towards resolving Yemen's war. But the internationally backed government of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi wanted a rebel pullout from seized territory, including the capital, and a surrender of weapons, as the first steps, in line with a U.N. Security Council resolution on the crisis. On Saturday, the government stressed its "readiness to positively deal with any peaceful solutions."But it said any proposal should comply with U.N. Resolution 2216, sabanew.net reported. A foreign ministry official said Yemen has not officially received the new initiative, adding that U.N. envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed was tasked with delivering it to warring parties. U.N.-sponsored talks in Kuwait collapsed in early August after three months. Kerry said on Thursday that Yemen's war "needs to end as quickly as possible."A Saudi-led coalition launched a military campaign in March 2015 against the rebels in support of Hadi who was holed in his refuge in Aden before being forced into exile. More than 6,600 people, mostly civilians, have been killed since March 2015 and more than 80 percent of the population has been left in need of humanitarian aid, according to the U.N.

Israel Court Delays Hearing for U.N. Worker
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 28/16/An Israeli court on Sunday postponed a hearing for a U.N. worker accused of aiding the Islamist movement Hamas after a dispute over whether he should be immune from prosecution. Waheed Borsh, wearing a brown prisoner's uniform, appeared briefly in court in the southern Israeli city of Beersheba. His lawyer Lea Tsemel said the 38-year-old was innocent and that they had requested more time to be able to prove it. Borsh declined comment when approached by AFP. The hearing was rescheduled for September 29. The engineer from Jabaliya in northern Gaza who worked for the U.N. Development Program (UNDP) was arrested on July 16. He was accused by Israel of being recruited by a Hamas member to "redirect his work for UNDP to serve Hamas' military interests." He was charged with diverting 300 tonnes of rubble from a UNDP project in the Gaza Strip, run by Hamas, to build a jetty for the Islamist movement's naval force. After reviewing the charge sheet, the UNDP challenged Israel's allegations and said Borsh diverted the rubble under instructions from the Palestinian Authority. U.N. officials have argued that Borsh, as a U.N. employee, may qualify for immunity from prosecution and have requested that they be allowed to visit him in jail. They have also called for his release into U.N. custody until they can determine whether they should press for his immunity. Israel has rejected claims Borsh can benefit from immunity, saying "whoever assists a terror organization cannot hide behind a claim of immunity." Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip have fought three wars since 2008. More than two-thirds of the population of the enclave -- which Israel has blockaded for a decade -- are reliant on some form of aid, according to the United Nations.

Philippine Muslim Extremists Stage Mass Jailbreak
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 28/16/Muslim extremists who support the Islamic State group staged a daring jailbreak in the southern Philippines, freeing 23 detainees in the latest in a series of mass escapes, officials said Sunday. About 50 heavily armed members of the Maute group raided the local jail in the southern city of Marawi on Mindanao island on Saturday and freed eight comrades who were arrested barely a week ago, police said. Fifteen other detainees, held for other serious offenses, also escaped in the raid, said provincial jail warden Acmad Tabao. Police earlier said that 28 inmates escaped but Tabao clarified the figure. In a report Tabao said two women came to the prison gate, asking the guard to take delivery of some food for the detainees. When the guard opened the gate, hooded men forced their way into the compound. They overwhelmed the guards, forcing them to their knees and taking two rifles before freeing the inmates. The hooded men shouted "Allahu Akbar" (God is great) before fleeing in a prison vehicle to a nearby lake. The Maute gang members then fled by boat while the other inmates scattered, Tabao said. At the jail, two bullet holes and a shattered television set were the only evidence of the attack. The eight Maute group members were arrested on August 22 after soldiers manning a checkpoint found improvised bombs and pistols in the van they were driving. The Maute group is one of several Muslim gangs in Mindanao, the ancestral homeland of the Muslim minority in the largely Catholic Philippines. The group has carried out kidnappings and bombings and is believed to have led an attack on an army outpost in the Mindanao town of Butig in February. The fighting there lasted a week, leaving numerous fatalities and forcing thousands to flee their homes as helicopter gunships fought off the attackers. During the Butig fighting the group's members were seen carrying black flags of the Islamic State group, and bandanas bearing the jihadists' insignia were found in their base, the military said. Authorities said they were investigating the jailbreak and the reason why security had not been increased after high-risk suspects were brought in. It was the latest of several mass escapes from poorly secured Philippine jails, with the incidents often involving Muslim extremists. In 2009 more than 100 armed men raided a jail in the strife-torn southern island of Basilan, freeing 31 prisoners including several Muslim guerrillas. The southern Philippines has been plagued by Muslim separatist insurgencies for over four decades, with the conflict leaving more than 120,000 dead. President Rodrigo Duterte is pursuing peace talks with the largest Muslim insurgent groups, the Moro National Liberation Front and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front which have ceasefires with the government. Smaller bands like the Maute group and the Abu Sayyaf group are not covered by the ceasefires and are not part of the peace process.

Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on on August 28-29/16

Egypt’s law on the construction of churches sparks ire
By Sonia Farid/Al Arabiya/Saturday, 27 August 2016
The construction of churches has for years been a major reason for clashes between Muslims and Christians in Egypt, especially in the south. A rumor that a new church will be constructed in some village with a considerable Christian population is enough to ignite a conflict that in most cases turns bloody. The complicated procedure of obtaining a permit to build a church also drives some Christians to turn their own houses into prayer areas, another cause of sectarian clashes. Added to that is the fact that restrictions imposed on the construction of churches date back to the Ottoman rule of Egypt and that modifications of the law have not proven to make things any easier for Egyptian Christians. The recent eruption of sectarian violence in Upper Egypt underlined the necessity of expediting the issuance of the new law on the construction and restoration of churches. Yet as promising as the steps taken toward that end might seem, disagreements over the law forebode further complications, more stalling, and possibly arriving at a dead end.
Coptic activist and director of the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights Naguib Gobreil objected to a number of articles in the new law, the foremost of which is linking the construction of new churches to the number of Christian residents in the area where the church is to be constructed. “There are no accurate statistics of the number of Christians in Egypt in general, so this article will deprive many Christians of having a house of worship in their village or town,” he said in an interview. Gobreil argued that the law did not define the shape and structure of a church in details. “There is no mention of the fact that a church has to have a cross on top or that domes are part of the building,” he explained. “This means that upon the construction of a new church, there might be objections to building a dome or placing crosses on top.” Gobreil also had reservations regarding the procedure of obtaining a construction permit which involves security approval. “Seeking a security approval has particularly been one of the main reasons for obstructing the construction of churches,” he said, in reference to security concerns over the eruption of violent clashes when a new church is built.
Bishop Yohanna Qalta, vice patriarch of the Egyptian Catholic Church, called the law “absurd” since it only concerns churches. “There isn’t a country in the world where a law is about a specific house of worship. The construction of houses of worship is treated everywhere like other buildings, whether schools or hospitals or any kind of organization,” he said in an interview. Qalta also argued that the law gives the impression that those churches are built for a foreign community not for Egyptians. “The very existence of such a law implies that Christians are an intruding group that needs special laws. This is a discriminatory law that takes us back to the Middle Ages. We should have laws that apply to all Egyptians regardless of their religion.” Qalta rejected earlier proposals at issuing a unified law for all houses of worship that would include both mosques and churches. Like Gobreil, Qalta refused linking the construction of churches with the number of Christians, but for a different reason. “What if there is a village that has only two Christian families? Don’t they want to pray too? Even if one family!”
A disillusioned statement?
The Coptic Orthodox Church issued a disillusioned statement following a meeting of its clergy and their counterparts from the Catholic and Evangelical churches held with state officials. “We were shocked to see that the government made unacceptable modifications and impractical additions,” said the statement which also called the law “a threat to national unity in Egypt.”
The law, the statement added, undermines the principles of citizenship and is not considerate to Egyptian Christians. For Coptic MP Emad Gad, the statement is extremely alarming because it demonstrates a lack of trust between the church and the state: “It also makes us ask the question of whether the state is really keen on solving the problem of the construction of churches,” he said, adding that the government’s elusive stance can trigger an “explosion” in Egyptian society and requesting that the president interferes to resolve the issue.
Journalist and former head of the Press Syndicate Makram Mohamed Ahmed criticized the lack of transparency about the law and the subsequent lack of knowledge about the points of agreement and contention between the government and the three Egyptian churches. “For example, we have not been told about the modifications that the government made to the law and which were not accepted by the churches,” he wrote. “We only knew that such a thing happened when the Coptic Orthodox Church issued a statement.” Ahmed added that objections by the churches and a number of Coptic figures are always linked to a deeper problem that involves state policies towards Christians in Egypt. “For example, how come that till the present moment we don’t have the accurate number of Christians in Egypt?” Ahmed also objected to the part of the law in which disputes about the construction of a church are handled by the Administrative Court. “If the governor refuses to approve the construction of a church, why shouldn’t the case be handled by the Court of Urgent Matters and is instead assigned to the Administrative Court which can take up to 10 years?”
In response to objections, Prime Minister Sherif Ismail stressed that the law will only be finalized after a full agreement is reached with the three churches and that the government is keen on meeting the church’s demands: “We are currently engaged in continuous negotiations and will make sure the law comes out soon in its final form,” he told the Middle East Agency. The PM, however, did not comment on the criticism leveled against the law. Minister of Social Solidarity Ghada Wali dismissed rumors that churches built in the future will have no crosses on top, the issue on which much of the controversy focused. “These rumors are groundless and do not make any sense,” she said. “Churches will have an altar, a pulpit, a baptism room, a spire, a sanctuary, domes, and crosses.” Wali, however, did not address the articles of the law.
In the midst of the heated debate, the government issued a brief statement stressing that the issue was resolved after “reaching an agreement with the three churches,” but gave no details. The government’s announcement came a day after the three Egyptian churches issued quite an enigmatic statement: “We pray that the application of the law will be a step forward towards building the new Egypt. We understand that the first years will prove how feasible the law is and we hope no problems will surface on the ground.”

Turkey’s battle in Syria
Abdulrahman al-Rashed/Al Arabiya/August 28/16
Turkey has many enemies but foremost among them are Turkish-Kurdish separatists and the Syrian-Kurds who are allied with them. Like Arabs, the Kurds are made up of different groups of people who live in areas in Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Iran. On several occasions, Turkish forces crossed over into Iraq and pursued Turkish-Kurdish groups. “The number one enemy” became a threat over the course of a few months as Syrian-Kurdish factions expanded their control over a vast area, which some media reports estimate at 600 kilometers stretching from northern Syria to Turkish borders. The secret is that Syria’s Kurds, despite their leftist tendencies, have volunteered to spearhead the coalition’s war against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and as such have received large-scale US support – both intelligence and logistics wise – which has enabled them to expand. The various parties - the Turks, the Iranians, the Russians, the Syrian regime and the Syrian opposition - did not mind empowering the Kurds as long as the aim was simply to fight ISIS. However, the Kurds have violated agreements and seized complete control over some cities and towns between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers. They did not settle at just fighting ISIS but oversaw the expulsion of residents from entire areas of land! As a result of their massive expansion, they engaged in several confrontations with Turkish and ISIS forces and even with Bashar al-Assad’s forces.
Feeling threatened
The Turks felt threatened by the actions of the People’s Protection Units of the Democratic Union Party. They saw inherent in those actions the plans for a state which would threaten their borders and the unity of their country. Therefore, they decided to declare war inside Syria for the first time since the crisis erupted five years ago. One cannot fail to see the threat that the war in Syria poses to all the countries which share borders with it. Turkey shares the longest and most intertwined border with Syria. Syria also shares borders with Iraq, which lost control over its borders a long time ago and also lost around one third of its territory to ISIS. Furthermore, Syria also shares a border with Jordan which has seized complete control over the boundary line but only after one million refugees crossed into the country and after huge battles erupted close by in the Syrian governorate of Daraa. Meanwhile, there are Iranian forces and Hezbollah militias stationed against the Free Syrian Army which is posted inside Syrian territories, just north of Jordan. Can Turkey transform its military involvement in Syria into a political process that encourages the various parties to agree to a political solution which will end the war?The Turks viewed the Kurdish expansion as a threat to their country’s unity so they entered Syria and pursued Kurdish militias. The coalition forces, led by the US, withdrew their backing within the context of justified agreements.
Halting Kurdish attempts
The Turkish army’s swift victory in Jarablus and other areas may result in an agreement that restrains Syria’s Kurds and puts a stop to Kurdish attempts to create an area similar to the Kurdistan region in northern Iraq, which has been semi-autonomous since 1990.
Despite the enmity between the two regimes, Assad and Turkey agree on rejecting the establishment of any Kurdish entity in these regions. Ankara’s government considers this a plan to destabilize it because the new Syrian-Kurdish region would be established on its southern borders and would be a backyard to the separatist Turkish-Kurdish movement. The same applies to the Assad regime which fears that the Kurdish entity would be a Trojan horse for coalition forces to engineer a plan for change in Syria – just as the Iraqi-Kurdish entity did when it participated in toppling Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq.
I think Turkey could have, in the first few years of the war, secured its borders and even expanded its influence into a large governorate such as the neighboring governorate of Aleppo in order to influence the outcome of the conflict. However, it seems that Ankara did not desire to muddy the waters by directly intervening and this has resulted in increased threats against it today. In all cases, we must take into account the possible obstacles which may have influenced Ankara’s decisions: it is committed to the rules of engagement imposed by NATO defense treaties which state that the involvement of a member country in a war without the alliance’s approval does not obligate the latter to defend it. This must be taken into account in addition to threats related to the violation of international laws regarding conflicts and sovereignty.
Can Turkey transform its military involvement in Syria into a political process that encourages the various parties to agree to a political solution which will end the war? Turkey will be a stronger player than before but I rule out the cooperation of Iran and Russia which don’t yet think it’s necessary to exclude Assad. Any solution that keeps Assad in power will fuel the war even if all politicians agree on keeping him in power. Assad has no army and security forces on ground. In the past, these troops allowed him to govern by force but he currently does not have any forces that follow his orders. The army currently fighting on his behalf is made up of Iranian forces, Hezbollah and Iraqi militias while his air force consists of Russian fighters orchestrating the war on his behalf. Even if Syrian opposition leaders submit to a solution that keeps Assad in power, the fighters will rebel against their leaders because given the extent of the hostility - half a million people have been killed so far - it’s not possible to impose upon them a solution that has been signed in a Swiss hotel.
*This article was first published in Asharq al-Awsat on Aug. 28, 2016.

Who is with whom in Syria and Yemen?
Jamal Khashoggi/Al Arabiya/August 28/16
Whenever crises become drawn out, things get more complicated, stances and alliances change, suspicions worsen and intentions become more elusive. This is happening in Yemen and Syria.
Turkey is conducting a military operation in northern Syria, supporting the Free Syrian Army (FSA) against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The Kurds are objecting the most about this and threatening Turkey. They are backed by Kurds in Turkey’s parliament. Iraqi Kurds are silent as their leader visited Ankara this week. Iraqi Kurds are unenthusiastic about Turkish Kurds and their Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is listed as a terrorist group. All analysts think that Syrian Kurds’ military victories, with US support, are aimed at dividing Syria or forming a nucleus for a Greater Kurdistan spanning Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Syria. However, Iraqi Kurds are unenthusiastic about the Syrian Kurds’ projects. The latter are against Iraqi Kurds and afraid of Iran, so they do not support Iranian Kurds either. On Aug. 15, the Turks announced a deal with the United States about the withdrawal of Syrian Kurds west of the Euphrates. However, Washington disregarded the announcement because at the time the Kurds were triumphing against ISIS in the city of Manbij, west of the Euphrates. Despite the Syrian regime exploiting the Kurds against all its opponents, they have suddenly clashed with each other, so the regime has bombed them. It seemed like a minorities’ alliance between the Alawites and Kurds, the latter expanding - along with ISIS - without any arrangement between the two, at the rebels’ expense. The Kurds perhaps think their time has come, ignoring their deal with the regime and triumphing against it in the city of Hasaka. Russia urged both parties to meet at its airbase on the Syrian coast, then imposed ceasefire terms, which offended the regime. The Americans warned the regime about raiding Hasaka or the Kurds again, thus imposing some kind of no-fly zone for the sake of the Kurds, Arab tribes allied to them, and civilians trapped in this conflict.
These same Americans previously rejected a no-fly zone to protect civilians in Syria’s major cities, where hundreds of thousands have been killed by barrel bombs, napalm, and even chemical weapons used by the regime, in flagrant violation of the laws of war. They said a no-fly zone was a complex issue and could not happen without international consensus. This is what lured Russia to be part of such raids, while the United States stood still. However, it took Washington five minutes to declare Hasaka a safe area when its Kurdish allies were targeted. Its justification was that there are US forces with the Kurds, but everyone benefited from the prohibition, including innocent children. This was not the case for Omran Daqneesh, the boy whose photo in an ambulance in Aleppo awakened the conscience of the world and the media for two or three days, then was quickly forgotten. On Wednesday, Turkey launched Operation Euphrates Shield, and the Americans were the first to change their stance. Vice President Joe Biden, at a press conference during his visit to Ankara to improve ties with Turkey, called on the Kurds to withdraw to the west of the Euphrates or lose US support. Whenever crises become drawn out, things get more complicated, stances and alliances change, suspicions worsen and intentions become more elusive. This is happening in Yemen and Syria. Meanwhile, Russia’s expressed concern for civilians is inconsistent with what it is doing daily in Idlib and Aleppo. The positive is that Moscow is not against the operation, so clearly there was prior Turkish-Russian agreement. The operation can now expand to the whole region within the western side of the Euphrates and the Kurdish flank of Afrin in northern Aleppo. It will constitute a buffer zone controlled by Syrians and protected by Turkey, one that is recognized by all the parties active in Syria. The Russians and even Americans would then turn the country into a swamp that drags in Turkey. This is why Ankara is taking steps vigilantly; there is no trust between the parties.
Yemen
The case in Yemen is similar to that in Syria. President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi is appointing ministers and governors who cannot stand each other. Saudi Arabia is supporting meetings of religious clerics in Yemen, which made them come up with agreements that could unite them regarding the country’s future. The legitimate government approved of the meetings and the agreement that was announced at a huge ceremony in Riyadh. Then Yemen’s Minister of State Hani Ben Brik, who became the most powerful leader in Aden with his militia, attacked the Riyadh meeting. He accused all those who signed the deal of advocating terrorism, and arrogantly said many of the attendants were not Yemeni clerics but “members of a party that is considered a terrorist group in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates [UAE].”His tweets, just like his violations against public order in Aden, passed without anyone holding him accountable. The same goes for statements published in a newspaper printed in Aden. The statements were made by a minister who wishes that the war goes on in the north “so that they would be able to arrange their situation in the south.” An online newspaper said these statements were fabricated, but no one sued the newspaper. Insults, accusations and suspicions have affected everyone in the resistance. Every time someone is appointed in any position, comments and rumors arise that the appointed person is unwelcomed by a specific country or strongly supported by another. The excessive appointment of ministers, governors and ambassadors is complicating things. It seems as if they are dividing shares in a way that pleases all parties and countries. I once had lunch with senior Yemeni officials, and one pointed to Sheikh Sofian al-Arada, governor of Maarib and leader of its resistance, and said: “If it weren’t for God and this man, two thirds of the Yemeni governorates wouldn’t have been able to resist.” He told me how he shared 23 billion Yemeni riyals, which were in the central bank’s branch in Maarib and never fell into Houthi hands.
He then said if it were not for the Yemeni Congregation for Reform, which is constantly being accused, “the resistance in Taiz, Ibb, Dhamar, Al-Bayda and Al-Hodeidah wouldn’t have existed.” I asked him why he did not say that to the media so divisions within the ranks would end. He smiled and said the people who should know this truth know it already. Riyadh has saved Yemen through Operation Decisive Storm, which was launched in March 2015. Now perhaps it is time for another, similar operation. It will not take too much time to happen and be fruitful. US Secretary of State John Kerry left Riyadh on Thursday after meeting with Saudi officials. According to the US State Department, he presented his project for a “permanent and fair peace.” However, it did not include the preservation of the current administration. After the talks in Kuwait, which were supported by Saudi Arabia but aborted by the Houthis and former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, we must understand that no negotiation or peace plan will succeed without support and abidance by the different parties.
**This article was first published in al-Hayat on Aug. 27, 2016.

Arabs and the plight of Muslims
Abdullah Hamidaddin/Al Arabiya/August 28/16
About three weeks ago, an op-ed in a Saudi newspaper cast doubt on claims that Muslims in China are persecuted. The reaction to that can be considered a case study in how Arabs view the situation of Muslims worldwide. Some comments supported the article’s argument, but most were extremely critical, even shocked to see such an opinion in a Saudi newspaper. The arguments between supporters and detractors of the op-ed reveal not only a different understanding of the facts about Muslims in China, but also a fundamental difference in the value system that shapes the attitudes and positions of Saudis - and more generally Arabs - toward Muslims worldwide. We all have different attitudes or positions toward the plight or persecution of other people. Most of us claim to be driven by a sense of shared humanity or moral reasoning, but often many of us act is if we believe only certain humans deserve our empathy or moral responsibility. This seems to be the case in Arab countries. The op-ed’s supporters emphasized state sovereignty and considered Uighurs’ plight a consequence of their quest for autonomy or independence, almost denying wrongdoing in the Chinese government’s response. The detractors emphasized Muslim responsibility to support the freedom of all Muslims, especially if they are governed by non-Muslims. They cited abuses against Chinese Muslims, one even saying they are being forced to eat donkey meat and drink its milk. The detractors also highlighted the plight of Muslims worldwide, especially in Kashmir, Burma and Palestine. Often many of us act is if we believe only certain humans deserve our empathy or moral responsibility. This seems to be the case in Arab countries. In the discussion on the op-ed, it was clear that oppression was acknowledged or denied based on a political value rather than a moral or humanitarian one. This was almost a discussion on ethnic solidarity, not human rights or morality, with one group defining the ethnic group based on sovereign borders, and the other defining it based on commonality of religion.
Narratives
As significant, this was also a debate between two narratives set against a debate on the situation of Muslims in non-Muslim countries. The first, older and more popular narrative believes the world is divided into two camps: non-Muslims and Muslims. In this narrative, non-Muslims are continuously conspiring against Muslims - who are too weak and divided to protect themselves - and the duty of all able Muslims is to support weaker Muslims then turn the tables on the conspirators. The second narrative divides the world into nations that compete or cooperate based on interests. This narrative pledges allegiance to the sovereign state above all, seemingly even above human rights.Both narratives have many consequences. One is nurturing Islamic radicals inside and outside the Arab world. The second is a key factor in accepting human right abuses in many Arab countries, which in turn promotes nationalist radicalism. Together, they nurture and sustain a radical outlook to political and social life in Arab countries. There is a third narrative that divides the world into individual humans who have a moral responsibility toward each other’s wellbeing. However, those subscribing to it seem to be decreasing in number or in visibility due to the weight of political polarization.

Entertainment, the void that needs filling
Turki Aldakhil/Al Arabiya/August 28/16
Saudi Arabia was not void of entertainment as some say. In the years prior to 1979, there were means of entertainment. Old newspapers boasted ads for plays, dinner programs at hotels, concerts and music events. They are all part of society’s memory and they reflected societal taste. However, there’s been a disconnect between artistic memory and society and it’s due to an absolute coma and hypnotism - as author Ali al-Wardi puts it - of an entire society. One rhetoric and preference dominated society during that phase of disconnect, and so an entire generation was born and exposed to this single rhetoric. That generation was programmed to forget the features of what became known as the “beautiful era.” The single rhetoric succeeded in distorting art, evidenced in the fact that when one concert, out of 1,000 others, is associated with some immoral behavior, it is generalized on all other concerts. When an artist does something wrong or when he, out of 1,000 other artists, falls into addiction, they deem all art corrupt even though the artistic community is a mirror of society! It’s useful to see the generation born in the 1980sobjecting to and fighting against those who have hijacked their lives for two or more decades, particularly on Twitter. Don’t be harsh on society. Society is eager to be joyous and is driven to this by instinct. Society seeks happiness and cheerfulness. Let society live!
**This article was first published in Okaz on Aug. 28, 2016.

On Turkey's 'Stolen Youth'
Burak Bekdil/Hürriyet Daily News/August 28/16
Excerpt of article originally published under the title "'Stolen Youth' Is Not Only about Gülen or ISIL."
In his excellent piece on Aug. 12, "Stolen Youth," prominent Hürriyet columnist Taha Akyol wrote:
I am talking about those young people who are almost spellbound by certain cults, communities or organizations into becoming robots. In these incidents, there is an 'enthraller' and an 'enthralled.' ... [This] happens for many with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) of today.
When I come across these psychological enchantment states, I remember Adolph Hitler's propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels, who wrote in his journal when he saw Hitler for the first time in 1924: 'I was reborn at that moment.' ...
My aim is to explain what kind of 'black magic' it is to be attached and enchanted to someone, thinking it is the 'only way,' and what kind of disasters it can lead to. I want to explain that this is a totalitarian enchantment. By creating the sentiment of dedication, it destroys the individual's will and makes people robots. I think it is important to notice that this psychology is not a religious ecstasy or Islamic service awareness; rather, it is a sick mentality. It is also seen in the totalitarian secular movements of the Nazis and the Bolsheviks. ... Of course, every incident is different, but what I am drawing attention to is the hypnosis power of those people who are attributed supernatural or superhuman skills. ...
Barely a week after Mr. Akyol's "Stolen Youth" article, a child jihadist killed more than 50 people at a wedding ceremony in a southern Turkish city. Another robot, driven by faith, murdering and perishing. No doubt, Mr. Akyol's analysis explains some of the main motives, if not all, behind the massive German support for Hitler, the Russian love affair with Bolshevism, young or even child recruits of the Islamic State (ISIS, ISIL), and Gülen's "robots." But the explanation looks incomplete.
ISIS is at the forefront because it has killed more than 300 Turks in several attacks over the past year or so. Gülen is also at the forefront because his loyalists attempted to take power by means of a coup overthrowing the elected political authority.
Millions of young Erdoğan loyalists are ready to kill or die for him.
Sadly, there are also hundreds of less violent or violent jihadist groups operating in this part of the world. Worse, there are more potentially violent groups, all of which are fighting for a holy cause, often religiously-related. Some of those groups are even "legitimate" for millions of peaceful Islamists. Then there are non-violent but potentially violent Islamists, like the millions of Turks who deny that ISIS is a terror group.
Finally, there are ... millions of young Turks who are not only Erdoğan loyalists but who do not hide that they are ready to "kill or die" for him, proudly exhibiting what Mr. Akyol described in his article: "the hypnotic power of those people who are attributed supernatural or superhuman skills." As Mr. Akyol described it, this is "totalitarian enchantment," and "by creating the sentiment of dedication it destroys the individual's will and makes people robots."
The "robots" of ISIS, the Gülenists, and Kurdish militants are not the only security threat to the Crescent and Star.
**Burak Bekdil is an Ankara-based columnist for the Turkish newspaper Hürriyet Daily News and a fellow at the Middle East Forum.

Which French values: Tolerance or gender equality?
Rina Bassists/Jerusalem Post/August 28/16
NICE – The burkini ban imposed by the mayors of Nice and Cannes seem to be working, with not a single woman wearing a burkini spotted this morning by Nice beach-goers.
Jean-Claude, who visits the Nice promenade almost every morning all-year-round, says he didn’t see any women dressed in the bathing suit that covers everything except the face, the hands and the feet, or wearing traditional Muslim dress for that matter.
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“Not many of them come to the Miami Beach near the Old Town,” he notes. “We mostly see tourists here; young couples and also families from France and abroad. There are of course French Muslims coming. People who live here peacefully like any other citizen.
And sometimes the women keep their dresses on [in the water], or their head scarfs. But I didn’t really see here women in burkinis, and in any case I wouldn’t mind. People come here from all over the world, and you get all sorts.
So why shouldn’t these women dress as they like?” Florence, a 23-year-old student, feels the same way. “With my girlfriends, we often suntan topless on the beaches of Cagnes-sur-Mer – some 20 kilometers west of Nice. No one bothers us. So I think that these women shouldn’t be bothered either. What happened with the policemen who forced a woman to take off her burkini in front of her children [on the beach at Nice’s Promenade des Anglais on Tuesday] was really awful. No woman should be humiliated because of her bathing suit.”
Some people think differently. “I do not support the burkini ban,” says Isam J., “but I can understand some of the logic behind it.”
He tells The Jerusalem Post that he grew up in a traditional Muslim family, but with the years has come to reject the strict approach to women preached by some Muslim societies in the Arab world.
“We are different here. We are part of France. My family came from Algeria, and I was born here, in this town. These days especially, we have to show everyone that Muslim women are not oppressed, and the burkini is interpreted by many in France as oppression. So I would prefer that there won’t be a ban, but that Muslim women here understand the sensitivity of the burkini these days.”
Indeed, for many French people the burkini has come to represent gender inequality.
“Why should we agree to have this symbol of oppression of our beaches?” says a young woman who ask that her name not be divulged. “These women obey their husbands and the religious clerics who tell them that they should be covered, excluded from society, branded as different, as impure. The values of the French Republic oppose such an approach.”
The public debate that has swept over the country, dominating talk shows on all TV channels last week, cannot be detached from the terrorist attack Nice experienced on Bastille Day, July 14. Talking on the condition of anonymity, French youngsters admit that the burkini ban might not have been imposed if not for the terrible attack, when an Islamist drove a truck into a crowd of celebrants on the Promenade des Anglais, killing 86 people and wounding 307.
“Here on the French Riviera, there are quite a few people who need someone to blame. Islamic State is a far-away entity, while the Muslim community in France is here, among us. And so, many people just don’t want to see anything around them reminding them of Islam. They want to feel safe, and the way to safety, for them, is to distance from the public sphere any sign of religious intolerance,” one youngster says.

Christians as “Target Practice”
Raymond Ibrahim/ Gatestone Institute/August 28/16
Muslim Persecution of Christians: May 2016

http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/08/28/raymond-ibrahim-gatestone-institute/

“We will show the Armenians and the Christians who we are… We have been ordered not to leave any Armenians in the area.” — Islamic rebels, Aleppo, Syria.
Thousands of Christians are fleeing Eritrea due to extreme persecution. A report describes Eritrea as “one of the world’s fastest emptying nations” and the “North Korea of Africa.” The majority of the 40,000 who fled to Italy last year are Christians.
“The government of Iran continues to engage in systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom, including prolonged detention, torture, and executions based primarily or entirely upon the religion of the accused.” — Report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom.
A new study claims that as many as 40,000 Christians — including Muslims who wish to convert to Christianity — are being attacked and harassed by Muslims in migrant homes. According to the report, “Now in European asylum homes they are finding more and more that they are in as much danger from radical Muslims in Europe as they were in their home countries.”
More reports of the brutal treatment that Christians and other minorities experienced at the hands of the Islamic State (SIS) emerged during May. One account told of a couple who, after their children were abducted by ISIS militants, answered their door one day to find a plastic bag on their doorstep. It contained the body parts of their daughters and a video of them being brutally tortured and raped.
Another Christian mother from Mosul answered the door to find ISIS jihadis demanding that she leave or pay the jizya (protection money demanded as a tribute by conquered Christians and Jews, according to the Koran 9:29). The woman asked for a few seconds, because her daughter was in the shower, but the jihadis refused to give her the time. They set a fire to the house; her daughter was burned alive. The girl died in her mother’s arms; her last words were “Forgive them.”
The Islamic State reportedly beheaded another Christian leader on February 18. No media reported it, except for one Italian paper in May: “There are reliable reports are that Father Yacob Boulos, was beheaded by the terror group’ militants after he prayed on the altar of his church. He was punished for his faith.”
According to another report,
“In yet another disturbing example of the genocide facing Christians and other religious minorities in the Middle East, on 12-13 May a group from Islamic State (IS) entered a town near the city of Hama in Syria, populated only by Christians and Alawites, killing an as yet unspecified number of men, women and children. Men were beheaded, whilst women were raped and then murdered. Many children were also killed. It is not yet clear exactly how many people have been killed.”
A local Christian leader said,
“Where are the leaders of the West, Ban Ki-Moon (Secretary-General of the United Nations), the EU, WHO (World Health Organization), and other Christian organisations? How long will my nation tolerate and stay. We don’t hold arms and weapons, but we are melting like a candle! Is it possible for our voice to reach to all others?”
Father Douglas Bazi, an Iraqi priest, who was kidnapped by ISIS in 2006 but later escaped,recounted his experiences as a captive:
“They destroyed my car, they blew up my church on [sic] front of me. I got shot by AK-47 in my leg. The bullet is still in my leg. And I [have] been kidnapped for nine days. They smash my nose and my teeth by hammer. And they broke one of my back discs.”
He was released after his church paid for his ransom, but eventually had to flee the region after continued persecution by ISIS. “To be Christian in Iraq, it’s an impossible mission,” said Father Bazi, adding, “But even so, I’m not actually surprised when they attack my people. I’m surprised how my people are still existing. Please talk about our stories. Let the world know what happens to us.”
The rest of May’s roundup of Muslim persecution of Christians around the world includes, but is not limited to, the following:
More Muslim Slaughter of Christians
Uganda: A Christian pastor was poisoned to death by a Muslim. Micah Byamukama, 61, pastor of a Baptist Church, died on May 15, after ingesting an insecticide that a Muslim, Ahmed Mupere, had put into his food. Mupere is believed to have been upset that the pastor challenged his belief in jinn, supernatural creatures attested to in Islamic literature, including the Koran. “The true God is the God of the Lord Jesus Christ, who conquered the power of Satan including the Islamic Jinn… the Islamic Jinn are acts of Satan and should be denounced,” the pastor had apparently said. Soon, unidentified persons believed to have been hired by Ahmed attacked and wounded the pastor with knives.
Five days after the knife attack, Mupere, pretending not to be angry, came to visit the pastor, a widower with no children. According to the report, “Feigning reconciliation as he dined with the pastor from a shared dish, Ahmed secretly put poison on the food and stopped eating as Pastor Byamukama continued.” Shortly thereafter, the Christian man began having stomach pains, was rushed to the hospital and was soon declared dead.
Earlier, the pastor had told his neighbor, “Ahmed took a little food with me and then stopped. When I asked him why not continue with the food, he said he had eaten at his home, and that he wanted [to] go back home because it was getting late.” A nurse said he died from ingesting a highly toxic insecticide. Once investigations began, Mupere fled. The incident is the latest in a series of attacks, including other poisonings, by Muslims against Christians in eastern Uganda.
Separately in Uganda, a Muslim man strangled his wife to death for leaving Islam and converting to Christianity. Awali Kakaire, 34, began to suspect that his wife Mariam Nakiriya, 30, was a Christian a month earlier, when the local imam asked him why his wife and children had not been attending the mosque or madrassa (Islamic school). According to one of Kakaire’s sons: “Our father questioned us why we have stopped attending the madrassa, but we told him that we were busy with school work as our mother had instructed us This made my father to cool down his tempers.” Then, on May 8, Kakaire awoke at 6 a.m., and after his Islamic cleansing ritual, woke his wife to join him in morning Islamic prayers: “Our mother refused, and our father started strangling her as she cried for help,” his son said. After killing her, Kakaire left the house only to return two hours later and force his five children, ages 5 to 12, into a hole he had dug in a nearby garden.
“We resisted and began screaming, and neighbors arrived immediately, but he had already dumped us into the hole that he had dug. Seeing the neighbors, he tried to flee but he was overtaken and then began to be questioned by those who surrounded him.”
Kakaire was heard shouting “My family has no respect for Islam.” Thanks to some Muslim accomplices, Kakaire managed to escape the murder scene.
Syria: Up to 200 Christians were reportedly killed during sustained bombardments of the city of Aleppo. Between April 22 and April 30, approximately 1,350 rockets hit the Christian region. The attack killed 132 people, half of them women and children. Another 65 were killed on May 3, and hundreds more injured. Islamic rebels had earlier, on April 22, issued a direct threat against Aleppo’s large community of Armenian Christians, and warned, “We will show the Armenians and the Christians who we are… We have been ordered not to leave any Armenians in the area.”
Bangladesh: “Fighters from the Islamic State assassinated a doctor who called to Christianity in Kushtia, western Bangladesh,” ISIS announced in a brief statement issued in Arabic. Doctor Sanaur Rahman, 58, was riding home on his motorcycle along with his friend when they were attacked by machete-wielding terrorists. Rahman was hacked to death, while Zaman was critically wounded in the attack. The doctor was popular in his village because he used to treat and offer medicine to poor people free of charge and ran a free clinic on Fridays.
Congo: Muslim terrorists killed scores of villagers in the east of the Christian-majority nation. The attackers carried machetes and axes into a village in North Kivu province during the evening of May 3. According to the local administrator, “the enemy managed to get past army positions and kill peaceful residents in their homes, slashing their throats. The 16 bodies are in front of me, killed by machete or axe.” Another source said that as many as 38 were slaughtered, including two Evangelical Christian leaders and their wives. According to the report,
The MDI [Muslim Defensive International] has repeatedly attacked the majority-Christian population in eastern DRC for years. Kidnapping and murder are common. It is alleged to have support from the Islamic government of Sudan… The MDI is known to have attracted foreign recruits and to have forced Christians to convert to Islam. The local population in the related area is overwhelmingly Christian (95.8%) and the impact on them has been immense.
In a letter released a year ago, Congolese Bishops denounced a “climate of genocide” and the passivity of the Congolese government and the international community: “Does the situation have to deteriorate even more before the international community takes measures against jihadism?” asked the Bishops in May 2015. Philippines: Islamic jihadis attacked the “Crusaders” of the Catholic-majority nation. The recently-established ISIS branch in the Philippines claimed responsibility for a terror attack on a military position on Basilan Island. The attack killed one soldier and injured another. Basilan Island has long been a stronghold of local Muslim terror organizations that aim to topple the government and establish a Sharia-compliant government.
Muslim Rape and Humiliation of Christian Women
Bangladesh: A 26-year-old Catholic high school teacher was raped on May 12 by her Muslim principal and his friend, Shariful Islam. Afterwards, they threatened to post the video of the rape on Facebook, if she reported them. According to parish priest Fr. Domenic K. Halder, “The girl is very frightened. We pray for her, she is still in hospital.” Hundreds of Christians also protested in the streets of Dhaka and demanded justice.
Egypt: On May 20, a 70-year-old Christian woman was stripped naked, savagely beaten, spat upon, and paraded in the streets of Minya to jeers, whistles, and yells of “Allahu Akbar,” after a mob of some 300 Muslim men descended on her home. Her crime was that her son was accused of having a romantic relationship with a Muslim woman, an intimacy that is banned under Islamic law, Sharia. It is the same body of teachings that prescribes collective punishment to non-Muslim “infidels.” Seven Christian homes were also torched during the attack. Earlier that day her husband and she had gone to local police and complained that they were being harassed and threatened by neighborhood Muslims. The police responded by also threatening and ordering them out of the station. A few hours later, the attack occurred. It took the same local police over two hours to appear, giving the mob “ample time,” as one Christian clergyman put it, to riot. Minya’s most senior Christian cleric, Bishop Makarios, said during a televised interview concerning 70-year-old woman’s ordeal, that if a Muslim man were pursuing a Christian woman, the police response “would not have been anything like what happened…. No one did anything and the police took no preemptive or security measures in anticipation of the attacks.”
Uganda: After a 22-year-old Christian woman accused a mosque leader of murdering her father earlier in the year, local Muslims responded by beating and raping her. The woman, whose name was withheld, said she was beaten and raped on April 19 for telling a court what she had witnessed. She was found unconscious in a pool of blood, with cuts on her body. One of the three Muslims who assaulted her told her, “We shall kill you today because you are the one who made our sheikh to be imprisoned.” According to the woman, speaking from a hospital bed,
“I was able to identify the sheikh because we are neighbors, and my father had been questioning him about the Islamic faith not leading one to salvation with God. The sheikh had said to him, ‘You have no respect of our religion, and we have come for your life today.’ They started strangling my father as well as hitting him on the head with a big stick. When my father fell down, I managed to escape through the window.”
Muslim Attacks on Christian Churches
Tanzania: Another church was burned to the ground. The Roman Catholic church in the Kagera region is the third church in four months to be burned down in the nation. According to a local pastor, “Since 2013 we have had over 13 churches torched here in Kagera and no-one has been held accountable. This is not acceptable.”
Fortunatus Bijura, a priest at the church, said: “Those who think that destroying our church means we won’t pray, they are wrong … We have a big tree near the church and will continue meeting there for prayers.” Tanzania is approximately 35% Muslim.
Pakistan: The government announced its plans to demolish four historic churches in order to make way for the construction of a metro train. On May 3, Christians gathered in front of the Lahore High Court to protest the decision. “These churches were built pre-Pakistan and these all [sic] churches are located at very expensive and prime locations which politicians and Islamists are jealous of,” said Nasir Saeed, director of the Center for Legal Aid. “They cannot stand that Christians have such prime property and … so try to use any excuse to grab the land and belittle Christians.” While the community is still mourning their loved ones who perished during the Easter Sunday attack on Christians that left 69 dead and more than 340 injured, Saeed said they now face a new threat to their churches: “There is no respite for them and one problem after the other seems to follow Pakistani Christians,” he said.
Muslim Attacks on Christian Apostates, Blasphemers and Preachers
Pakistan: A fatwa, or Islamic decree, was issued against a Christian after Muslims accused him of watching an anti-Islamic video on his phone. Imran Masih was last reported on the run after a $10,000 bounty was put on his head. As a form of collective punishment, fellow Christians in his village were prevented from buying food from Muslim shopkeepers and given three options: “convert to Islam, leave the village forever, or hand over Imran so he can be burnt alive.” Speaking of this incident, a Pakistani human rights activist said,
I cannot believe that such things are still happening in this world. Such treatment towards Pakistani Christians is a slap on the face of the Punjab and central government, and to all those who never tire of telling the world that minorities are protected and enjoying equal rights in the country. I don’t understand how watching a video on the internet can be criminalised as an act of blasphemy…. I believe this is not an act of blasphemy and if people still think Imran has committed blasphemy then he should be punished according to the law. No one has any right to take the law into their own hands, harass local Christians, threaten them, burn Imran alive or force Christians to convert to Islam or leave the village. Such conditions from lay people make a mockery of the law. The Government of Pakistan must take this matter seriously, provide protection to the local Christians, and those who are breaking the law should be dealt according to the law. Separately in Pakistan, police arrested a Christian man in Punjab province for allegedly posting messages on his Facebook account that were considered blasphemous by Muslims. According to Liaquat Usman’s wife, “My husband stopped some [Muslim] boys from teasing girl students. A couple of days ago the boys manhandled Usman. Instead of arresting the boys, police arrested Usman saying a complaint against him has been lodged for committing blasphemy.” Initial investigations showed that the “blasphemous” messages were posted on Usman’s Facebook account a year earlier, and that someone else living abroad tagged them on his account.
Germany: A new report claimed that as many as 40,000 Christians – including Muslims who wish to convert to Christianity — are being attacked and harassed by Muslims in migrant homes. According to the report,
Many converts [to Christianity] wished to do so in their homelands, but in places like Iran and Afghanistan the penalty for leaving the Islamic religion can be death and so they fled to Europe. Now in European asylum homes they are finding more and more that they are in as much danger from radical Muslims in Europe as they were in their home countries. The most prevalent form of abuse was verbal insults with 96 people saying that had received abuse or threats. Eighty-six said they had been physically assaulted and 73 said they had been subjected to death threats against themselves and family members. Three quarters of the migrants also said they had been victims of multiple attacks. The perpetrators of most of the attacks were fellow migrants who look down on converts and believe them to be apostates. Perhaps, more interestingly was the prevalence of Muslim security guards who participated in the attacks. Almost half of those surveyed said they had received abuse from security guards and in the German capital of Berlin the figure rose to two-thirds.
Azerbaijan: Christian activists called attention to the plight of a frail Christian evangelist from Azerbaijan who has spent a year behind bars in neighboring Georgia on what his supporters say are “trumped-up charges” for the possession of drugs. If convicted, the man could face 14 years imprisonment. The Azeri evangelist says he has been framed by people who are angry about his evangelism work among Muslims. Local sources said “His health is very bad and he needs urgent help — medical, spiritual and materially.” Fears also exist that the man will not be able to return safely to predominantly Muslim Azerbaijan after an eventual release from prison. According to a human rights organization,
Officially, the country is secular and religion is tolerated. However, the level of surveillance is so incredibly high that Christians in Azerbaijan do not know whom to trust anymore. Persecution of Christians has gone up markedly since last year due to ever-increasing government controls,” added Open Doors. Another sign of the government pressure is the fact that Azeri Christians find it easier to evangelize in countries like Georgia and Iran than in their own country.
Muslim Hate for and Violence against Christians
Syria: The Islamic State released an online video on May 16, showing an ISIS fighterdesecrating the graves of Christians and showing off the damage that was done to the Christian cemetery. The video was allegedly filmed in the city of Deir ez-Zor. The ISIS militant is shown touring the cemetery, showing shards of stone and wood, while in the background are destroyed headstones and corpses of Syrian soldiers — some torn to pieces — who apparently tried to stop the desecration.
Eritrea: Thousands of Christians are fleeing the nation due to extreme persecution, according to a report which describes Eritrea as “one of the world’s fastest emptying nations” and the “North Korea of Africa.” The majority of the 40,000 who fled to Italy last year are Christians. The report added that “all evangelical and independent churches have been closed.” Dawit, who was among hundreds of Christians jailed and tortured for his faith, said:
“There is no law and no justice. When I was living in Eritrea I was arrested because of my Christian faith. That’s why I left. In Eritrea almost every Christian faces imprisonment. That’s why I was in prison.”
Berhane, another Christian who managed to escape said:
“We believe there are over 300 Christian prisoners at the moment. Most of them have been in prison for over ten years and they are suffering for lack of food and proper hygiene and proper medical care and even some of them have lost their lives.”
Turkey: United States ally and NATO member Turkey is aiding and abetting the Islamic Stateand other terrorist groups in Syria that kill Christians, by providing them with aerial cover and “safe haven,” said Mindy Belz, an activist and senior editor of WORLD magazine:
We have to have a new approach to our ally, Turkey. Turkey is a country that is in transition and is becoming more and more radicalized. There is strong evidence, as I interviewed people at the border who had escaped to Lebanon. I sat down with them in Beirut. They were up at the border when Turkey shot down the Syrian jet that crossed the border [in 2015]. … The people who witnessed it said, “Turkey is providing air cover for these Islamic militant groups”…. There has been strong evidence that they have provided air cover and provided safe haven at their borders for ISIS…They have aided and abetted extremist groups, not only ISIS but Al-Nusra Front and some of the others. These are groups that are killing Christians and America ought to not tolerate allies that support groups that kill Christians.
Iran: Despite the nuclear deal made with the Obama administration, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom has found that religious minorities in Iran, including Christians, continue experiencing severe human rights abuses. The report, released only a couple of months shy of the one-year anniversary of the nuclear deal reached in July 2015, found that religious freedom conditions “continued to deteriorate” over the past year, with Christians, Baha’is, and the minority Sunni Muslims facing the most persecution at the form of harassment, arrests, and imprisonment.
Under President Hassan Rouhani’s administration, the number of religious-based arrests has increased, despite Iran’s continuous denial that it is violating people’s human and religious freedom rights. The report states:
“The government of Iran continues to engage in systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom, including prolonged detention, torture, and executions based primarily or entirely upon the religion of the accused.”
The report notes that as many as 550 Christians have been arrested and detained since 2015, and at least 90 Christians remain in prison or detention as of February due to their religious beliefs and activities:
“During the reporting period, human rights groups inside Iran reported a significant increase in the number of physical assaults and beatings of Christians in prison. Some activists believe the assaults, which have been directed against converts who are leaders of underground house churches, are meant to intimidate others who may wish to convert to Christianity.”
A report from May indicate that one Christian prisoner in Iran, Maryam (Nasim) Naghash Zargaran, who earlier underwent heart surgery, is suffering from illnesses, including nausea, ear pain, and chronic pain in her joints and spinal cord, which were diagnosed as caused by lumbar disk, arthritis, and osteoporosis. Regardless, prison officials have refused to transfer her to a hospital to receive proper medical care. Mrs. Zargaran was initially summoned to an Iranian intelligence office for interrogation in March of 2011. Interrogators constantly threatened her and her family, insulted her and questioned her Christian activities.
Pakistan: According to Sardar Mushtaq Gill and fellow attorneys who represent the family of the Christian couple burned alive by a mob for allegedly desecrating a Koran, “Witnesses and lawyers are [being] threatened…. There are many concerns about the possible impunity for the perpetrators.” Because witness have refused to recognize those most responsible for the killing of the Christian couple, they have already been released on bail. “There are 106 detainees accused of this lynching and if the trial continues in this direction, it seems that everyone will be freed.”
Nigeria: Gunmen shot at a car carrying Roman Catholic Cardinal John Onaiyekan in the country’s southern Edo state. The attack on the cardinal comes amid increasing violence and kidnappings of Christian clergy by Muslims for ransom. Three other Christian leaders were kidnapped for ransom within the same year. The decomposing body of a cleric kidnapped in a Muslim-majority region was found last April.
A separate report tells of the day-to-day sufferings of Christians living alongside Muslims in Nigeria:
For Bishop Matthew Kukah, persecution is not just the history of the Church. It’s a reality that he lives every day. In the diocese of Sokoto, located in northern Nigeria, ministry includes not only the normal sacramental and pastoral concerns of any other diocese. It also includes regularly responding to violence and attacks against the small Christian minority living in the majority-Muslim area. Christians living in northern Nigeria today wonder “why have they and their institutions become target practice,” explained Bishop Kukah told CNA. Christian churches and businesses – as well as the people who frequent them – suffer both targeted violence at the hands of Islamist extremists… And after the attacks, Christian communities face a wall of bureaucratic challenges and lack of government support as they struggle to rebuild…. While some targets of violence find government and societal aid in rebuilding and accessing services such as schools and hospitals, the state in northern Nigeria merely “looks on” as Christian churches and institutions struggle to rebuild.
“[Y]ou live in a state that is less than you expect as a citizen,” said Bishop Kukah. “You don’t know what to expect tomorrow. … Christians suffer disproportionate violence from Muslim extremists. … Our churches are being bombed with no compensation paid for the schools or other properties of the Church.”
Bangladesh: Unidentified attackers hurled crude bombs at the home of a Christian family and left two Christians injured. The attack occurred just after midnight in a mainly Christian hamlet in the western Chuadanga area. Police suspected “attempted robbery” as the motive. But the report notes:
“the attack comes amid a string of murders of Christians, Hindus and members of other religious minorities across the country by suspected militants, as Bangladesh reels from rising Islamist violence… Suspected Islamists have murdered at least 30 members of religious minorities, secular bloggers and other liberal activists, foreigners and intellectuals in Bangladesh in the past three years.”
About this Series
While not all, or even most, Muslims are involved, persecution of Christians by Muslims is growing.
The report posits that such Muslim persecution is not random but rather systematic, and takes place in all languages, ethnicities, and locations.
Image attached/Left: The house of Imran Masih in the village of Chak-44, Pakistan. Masih was last reported on the run after Muslims accused him of watching an anti-Islamic video on his phone and a $10,000 bounty was put on his head. Right: The Catholic Church in the village. (Images source: World Watch Monito
Raymond Ibrahim is the author of Crucified Again: Exposing Islam’s New War on Christians (published by Regnery with Gatestone Institute, April 2013).
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/8771/christians-target-practice

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