LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS
BULLETIN
December 27/16
Compiled
& Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
The
Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
http://www.eliasbejjaninews.com/newsbulletin16/english.december27.16.htm
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Bible Quotations For Today
You snakes, you brood of
vipers! How can you escape being sentenced to hell?
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 23,29-39.24,10-02/:"‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the graves of
the righteous, and you say, "If we had lived in the days of our ancestors,
we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the
prophets." Thus you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of
those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of your ancestors.
You snakes, you brood of vipers! How can you escape being sentenced to hell?
Therefore I send you prophets, sages, and scribes, some of whom you will kill
and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to
town, so that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the
blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah,
whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. Truly I tell you, all
this will come upon this generation. ‘
I may be untrained in speech, but not in knowledge; certainly in every way and
in all things we have made this evident to you.
Second Letter to the Corinthians 11/01-09/:"I wish you would bear with me
in a little foolishness. Do bear with me! I feel a divine jealousy for you, for
I promised you in marriage to one husband, to present you as a chaste virgin to
Christ. But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by its cunning, your
thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if
someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you
receive a different spirit from the one you received, or a different gospel
from the one you accepted, you submit to it readily enough. I think that I am
not in the least inferior to these super-apostles. I may be untrained in
speech, but not in knowledge; certainly in every way and in all things we have
made this evident to you. Did I commit a sin by humbling myself so that you
might be exalted, because I proclaimed God’s good news to you free of charge? I
robbed other churches by accepting support from them in order to serve you. And
when I was with you and was in need, I did not burden anyone, for my needs were
supplied by the friends who came from
Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis
& editorials from miscellaneous sources published on December 26-27/16
Lebanese Forces Resistance For Hezbollah's Occupation is on hold, if not
dead/Elias Bejjani/26 December/16
Year in review: Lebanon made an admirable effort in 2016 but must do better/Michael
Karam/The National/December 26/16
Love, peace and tolerance – ‘Merry Christmas to all/Ahmad Al-Sarraf/The Arab Times/December 26/16
Muslim Extremists: Cheerleading the Killers/Khadija
Khan/Gatestone Institute/December 25/2016
Christmas brings hope for peace for Aleppo’s Christian/Al Monitor/December
26/16
West’s strategic failure, Muslims’ moral failure/ Nadav
Eyal|/Ynetnews/December 26/16
The Suicide of Germany/Guy Millière/Gatestone
Institute/December 26/2016
Does Islamic State Engage in Organ Trading out of Turkey/Kasim
Cindemir/Gatestone Institute/December 26/2016
Use performance indicators to reach Saudi Vision 2030 goals/Khaled
Almaeena/Al Arabiya/December
26/16
China and Trump, with the Gulf caught in between/Dr. Mohamed A. Ramady/Al Arabiya/December 26/16
Titles For Latest Lebanese Related News published on on December 26-27/16
Lebanese Forces Resistance For Hezbollah's Occupation is on hold, if not
dead
Year in review: Lebanon made an admirable effort in 2016 but must do better
Lebanese Parliament Launches Confidence Rounds Tuesday
Saniora Will not Attend Parliament Sessions to
Discuss Policy Statement
Tueini: Consensus Helped 'Record Time' Endorsement of
Policy Statement
Hajj Hassan: Devising New Electoral Law a Cabinet Priority
Lebanon’s President Attends Christmas Celebrations for First Time since Two
Years
Jumblatt sends condolences cable to Lavrov in wake of Russian plane crash victims
Jumblatt meets with Hezbollah Command delegation in
Clemenceau
Nasrallah to address a word at Jabri's
memorial service on Tuesday
Geagea receives invitation to partake in Martyr Shatah's assassination commemoration
Qaouq: Adoption of 1960's electoral law implies
relinquishing first step towards building a capable and just State
Rahi receives congratulatory calls from Siniora, Deryan
Hajj Hassan: for a new electoral law that enhances political stability
Titles
For Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on December
26-27/16
Act of Terror 'Not at Forefront' of Plane Crash Probe
Turkey Urges Air Support for Assault on IS-Held Syria Town
21 Civilians 'Executed' by Rebels in Aleppo
Turkey Accuses IS of Killing 30 Civilians in Syria
Duped by Fake News, Pakistan Minister Makes Nuke Threat to Israel
Kuwait jails Filipina for joining ISIS
Revealing the deadly history of Russia’s Tu-154 jet
Bombed-out Aleppo soapmaker revives age-old tradition
in Paris
Is a ‘faceless’ preacher behind the Berlin attack?
Call on Human Rights Organizations for Immediate Release of Political Prisoners
in Iran
Iran: 40 Girls and Boys Arrested in a Night Party
Political Prisoner Letter on Charter of Citizens Rights Announced by Iran
Regime's President Rouhani
Syrian dad who pushed ‘daughter-bomber’ killed
Netanyahu meets US envoy after UN settlement vote
Latest
Lebanese Related News published on December 26-27/16
Lebanese Forces Resistance
For Hezbollah's Occupation is on hold, if not dead
Elias Bejjani/26 December/16
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/12/26/elias-bejjani-lebanese-forces-resistance-for-hezbollahs-occupation-is-on-hold-if-not-dead/
It will not be a surprise at all if we learn very soon that a paper of
understanding suddenly surfaces between Hezbollah and the Lebanese Forces, a
replicate of that forged in 2006 between Hezbollah and Michael Aoun's party, The Free Patriotic Movement (FPM).
Practically, and in actual reality The Lebanese Forces resistance for
Hezbollah's occupational status quo is on hold if not totally dead. Although rhetorically it is still timidly and marginally in
existence. Now that the LF has officially shelved the Hezbollah ministate, weaponry, wars, and its dire occupational status
quo in return for being a partner in the governments we are going to witness
too many 180 decree political turns and shifting.
The well known journalist, Ali Hmade today in his
interview with the Future TV stated that potential talks between LF and
Hezbollah are on the Horizon with President Aoun's
mediation.
In this same context we learned today that Melhim Riachi, LF Minister in the Hariri Government (Information
Portfolio) personally intervened to see that the Hezbollah's General Secretary,
Hassan Nasrallah last speech was aired on the
Lebanese official State TV. (Report is attached).
In conclusion, Sadly all the Lebanese 14th of March coalition political parties
did give up on the peaceful resistance option, and did succumb to the
Hezbollah's imposed occupational status..
The forming of the current Hariri Government portrayed clearly this succumbing
shift.
Meanwhile only time will tell if these 180 decree turns and shifts serve
In summary,
*Elias Bejjani
Canadian-Lebanese Human Rights activist, journalist and political commentator
Email phoenicia@hotmail.com
Web sites http://www.eliasbejjaninews.com
& http://www.10452lccc.com & http://www.clhrf.com
Tweets on https://twitter.com/phoeniciaelias
Face Book https://www.facebook.com/groups/128479277182033
& https://www.facebook.com/elias.y.bejjani
Year in review: Lebanon made an
admirable effort in 2016 but must do better
Michael Karam/The National/December 26/16
http://www.thenational.ae/business/economy/year-in-review-lebanon-made-an-admirable-effort-in-2016-but-must-do-better
Lebanon’s report card for 2016 might read: "Bright and resilient but often
disruptive. Must do better."
And yet it was a year that ended on a high, of sorts. After a two-and-half-year
hiatus, the Lebanese had a new president and a government. And despite the
usual suspects once again being handed ministerial portfolios, including a man
to run Women’s Affairs and a pensioner tasked to oversee the Ministry of Youth
– just to highlight a few of the puzzling appointments – most Lebanese were
just happy that country was again open for business.
Back in January things were looking decidedly dicey. There appeared to be no
let up in the number of Syrians fleeing over the border, taking the unofficial
number of refugees to nearly 2 million, equivalent to 50 per cent of the
population, or to put it another way it’s as if 36 million Europeans moved to
the United Kingdom over the same period. On this point, at least, we won the
world’s admiration.
We also had a garbage crisis of apocalyptic proportions, which began in July of
the previous year and, in January, showed no sign of ending. Hundreds of
thousands of tonnes of trash quite literally had nowhere to go and the Ministry
of Health reported an alarming spike in respiratory illness.
Both were bad for business. The burden of giving refuge to 2 million extra
souls placed enormous strain on an already weakened infrastructure and there
soon may not be enough water, electricity, road space and broadband to go
around; hardly a mouthwatering environment for
foreign investment, which, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade
and Development (Unctad), had already fallen by 19.4
per cent to US$2.34 billion in 2015 from the year earlier, and down from
$4.38bn in 2009.
There was also little meaningful progress made on
In February, there was bad news for tourism and what little inward investment
we could muster when
In May,
In other news, the Lebanese Central Bank suspended three senior Hizbollah members’ accounts. The party declared that the
Central Bank had "crossed a red line" while the bank said it was
merely abiding by the Hizbollah International
Financing Prevention Act, which targets banks that deal with Hizbollah or individuals, businesses or institutions linked
to the party. One Hizbollah MP called the law "a
violation of
Meanwhile, at a conference in
At one point over the summer were told that Europeans topped the list of
foreign tourists. The French apparently loved us the most, followed by the
Germans and the British. The Americans and Canadians, came second and the
Brazilians third. Arabs came in fourth with the Iraqis cited as the most
frequent visitors, followed by Jordanians and Egyptians. The
number of Saudi Arabian nationals visiting
The November 8 US presidential elections coincided with the airing of an ad on
CNN sponsored by the Lebanese developer Demco Properties.
"
It made no difference to HSBC, whose local operation was sold off to BLOM bank
for about $100 million. HSBC, then the British Bank of the Middle East, opened
in
Happy New Year to all.
**Michael Karam is a freelance writer who lives
between
Lebanese Parliament Launches Confidence
Rounds Tuesday
Naharnet/December/16/Lebanon's parliament prepares to hold three consecutive
sessions this week to discuss the government’s vote of confidence, which is
expected to garner a confidence majority due to its composition that brought
together most of the political spectrum, the Kuwaiti al-Rai
daily reported Monday. The parliament will convene on Tuesday, Wednesday and
Thursday to discuss the ministerial statement of Prime Minister Saad Hariri's government, which was endorsed in a record
time, on the basis of which the government would seek a vote of the
parliament's confidence.A ministerial panel composed
of seven ministers was tasked to draft the statement last Wednesday. It was
able to endorse it in a time record of only two sessions, after which the
cabinet convened and approved it. It will be referred to Speaker Nabih Berri and discussed at
parliament. Unnamed sources told the daily that “both, President Michel Aoun and PM Hariri seek to give a quiet and consistent push
toward a strong government progress, which was evident since the formation of
the cabinet a week ago.
“Likewise, Speaker Nabih Berri
has rushed to set a date for the parliament hearings as soon as the cabinet
approved the policy statement.”Over the weekend, the
cabinet, chaired by Aoun, convened at the
Presidential Palace in Baabda and approved the
government's policy statement.Lebanon acquired a new
30-minister government last Sunday which brought together the entire political
spectrum except for the Kataeb Party that rejected to
be represented by a state minister. The government was formed six weeks after
the election of Aoun.
New portfolios include an anti-corruption post and, for the first time, a
minister of state for women's affairs. Hariri's appointment and Aoun's election after two and a half years of presidential
vacuum have raised hopes that
Saniora Will not Attend Parliament Sessions to Discuss Policy
Statement
Naharnet/December/16/Head of al-Mustaqbal
parliamentary bloc MP Fouad Saniora
announced that he will not attend the parliament sessions dedicated to
discussing the government policy statement due to travel plans, but assured
that he granted the newly elected cabinet his vote of confidence, the National
News Agency reported Monday. “Because of prior commitments that compelled him
to be outside
He also said that he “looks forward that the government exerts the needed
efforts for the implementation of the pledges it made in the policy statement
for the best interest of
Tueini: Consensus Helped 'Record Time' Endorsement of Policy
Statement
Naharnet/December/16/State Minister for combating corruption Nicolas Tueini stated on Monday that keenness of all political
parties to help the new term of President Michel Aoun
succeed, has contributed to an unprecedented speedy formation of the policy
statement, the Kuwaiti al-Anbaa daily reported
Monday. “The consensus and will of all political parties, without exception,
for the success of the new term in addition to the political savvy of President
of the Republic (Michel Aoun, Prime Minister (Saad Hariri and Speaker (Nabih Berri) have all contributed to the record time endorsement
of the ministerial statement,” said Tueini in an
interview to the daily. He added that the swiftness with which the statement
was completed was unprecedented since the Taef
accord. Tueini continued to say that the political
parties have come to realize that disputes and bickering only produced
negativity that was reflected in the vacuum at the presidential post in
addition to the political stalemate and the deterioration at the economic and
security levels. Over the weekend, the cabinet, chaired by Aoun,
convened at the Presidential Palace in Baabda and
approved the government's policy statement.
Hajj Hassan: Devising New Electoral Law a
Cabinet Priority
Naharnet/December/16/Industry Minister Hussein Hajj Hassan
stated on Monday that the priority of the newly elected government is to issue
a new electoral law for the upcoming parliamentary elections that ensures
political stability in Lebanon, stressing that his (Hizbullah)
party adheres to proportional representation, the National News Agency
reported. Hajj Hassan's comments came during a funeral ceremony in South of
Lebanon, where he considered that “devising a new electoral law requires a
political decision.”
The Minister remarked that “security in Lebanon has provided the basis for
political stability which resulted in the election of a new president, the
formation of a national unity government that succeeded at drafting its policy
statement” which will be discussed by the parliament for the vote of confidence
starting Tuesday. Hajj Hassan also pointed out that the cabinet of PM Hariri
would also take charge of socio-economic problems and implement
a new development plan.
Lebanon’s President Attends Christmas
Celebrations for First Time since Two Years
Asharq Al-Awsat/December
26/16/ Beirut – Two years following the absence of a President, Lebanon’s
President Michel Aoun participated on Sunday at the
Christmas celebrations promising all Lebanese he would endeavor
to make it a year of plenty, peace and success. “We know there are plenty
of promises. I do not want you to get disappointed. We will work very hard to
achieve those promises,” Aoun said. And when
asked in which holiday the new electoral law would see the light, Aoun replied: “The holiday of elections.” For his
part, Maronite Patriarch Beshara
Rai said during his sermon that the country needed to
emerge out of its darkness into the light, noting that the presence of two
million displaced people and refugees posed a grave danger to domestic
security. “The majority of political and parliamentary blocs agreed over
your name and no one else’s because they realized you were the best and most
appropriate person to reinforce a State of law and institutions,” Rai said, addressing Aoun. Rai added: ”
Jumblatt sends condolences cable to Lavrov
in wake of Russian plane crash victims
Mon 26 Dec 2016/NNA - Democratic Gathering Head, MP Walid
Jumblatt, cabled, on Monday, Russian Foreign
Minister, Sergei Lavrov, expressing his deepest
condolences for the fallen victims in the Russian plane crash tragic incident.
Jumblatt meets with Hezbollah Command delegation in Clemenceau
Mon 26 Dec 2016/NNA - Democratic Gathering Head, MP Walid
Jumblatt, met on Monday evening at his Clemenceau
residence with a delegation from Hezbollah's Command, including Political Aid
to the Party's Secretary General, Hajj Hussein Khalil,
and Coordination Unit Head, Wafiq Safa.
Also attending the meeting were: Jumblatt's son, Aslan; Deputies Ghazi Aridi, Akram Shehayeb and Wael Abu Faour, as well as PSP
General Secretary, Zafer Nasser.
Nasrallah to address a word at Jabri's
memorial service on Tuesday
Mon 26 Dec 2016/NNA - Hezbollah Secretary General, Sayyid
Hassan Nasrallah, is expected to address a speech at
the memorial ceremony of the late National Movement Head, Sheikh Abdel-Nasser Jabri, which shall take place at 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday at
"Risalat Hall" near the Kuwaiti Embassy.
Geagea receives invitation to partake in Martyr Shatah's assassination commemoration
Mon 26 Dec 2016/NNA - Lebanese Forces Party Head, Samir
Geagea, met at his Me'rab
residence, on Monday, with the family members of the late former Minister,
Martyr Mohamad Shatah, who
extended to him an invitation to partake in Martyr Shatah's
3rd annual assassination commemoration. The commemoration event is scheduled to
take place at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday at the Pavillon
Hall in
Qaouq: Adoption of 1960's electoral law implies
relinquishing first step towards building a capable and just State
Mon 26 Dec 2016/NNA - Hezbollah Executive Council Vice Head, Sheikh Nabil Qaouq, criticized, on
Monday, the 1960's electoral law, considering that "the adoption of said
law implies giving-up the first step towards building a capable and just State
that represents all sides.""The duty of the
new government is to be well-aware that the measure of its success is through
endorsing a new electoral law that guarantees proper and fair
representation," he added. Qaouq's words came
during a memorial ceremony held in the area of Hadath,
during which he shed light on the latest prevailing issues, especially the
security situation and the Takfiri dangers
threatening the country. "The threat of extremism still exists, whereby
the new government ought not to neglect the presence of Daesh
and Nusra Front in the outskirts of Ersal and Ras Baalbak,"
warned Qaouq.
Rahi receives congratulatory calls from Siniora, Deryan
Mon 26 Dec 2016/Among the felicitators were State
Minister for Anti-Corruption, Nicholas Tueni, MPs
Henry Helou and Elie Aoun, representative of the Coptic Church, Father Rweiss Urshalimy, and a
delegation from the Higher Islamic Shiite Council. Rahi
also received phone calls from Mufti of the Republic, Sheikh Abdulatif Deryan, and MP Foad Siniora.
Hajj Hassan: for a new electoral law that
enhances political stability
Mon 26 Dec 2016/NNA - Minister of Industry, Hussein Hajj Hassan, said that the
priority of the new government is to issue a new electoral law that ensures
political stability in
Latest LCCC Bulletin For
Miscellaneous Reports And News published on December 26-27/16
Act of Terror 'Not at
Forefront' of Plane Crash Probe
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/December/16/The probe
into the Russian plane crash that killed 92 people Sunday is not considering an
act of terror as a strong possible cause of the accident, Kremlin spokesman
Dmitry Peskov said Monday. "All possible
versions are being looked into and it's too early to say anything with
certainty, but as you know, the version of an act of terror is by far not at
the forefront," Peskov told journalists.
Thousands of rescuers were searching for bodies in the Black Sea as
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/December/16/Turkey on
Monday said it wanted international air support for its army's assault on the
jihadist-held Syrian town of
21 Civilians 'Executed' by Rebels in
Aleppo
Associated Press/Naharnet/December/16/Syrian authorities have accused rebel
fighters of executing 21 civilians, including women and children, at close
range as they quit second city Aleppo last week, state media reported. The
bodies were found in two neighbourhoods in east
Turkey Accuses IS of Killing 30 Civilians
in Syria
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/December/16/The Turkish
army on Monday accused Islamic State (IS) jihadists of killing at least 30
civilians seeking to flee the flashpoint Syrian town of Al-Bab
which Ankara and its rebel allies have been seeking to capture for weeks. The
army said that the civilians were killed with mines and homemade bombs as they
tried to make their way out of Al-Bab, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported, without giving further
details. Turkish forces and allied Syrian rebels have been seeking to take Al-Bab as a key part of un
unprecedented four month campaign that began in late August. But they have been
facing tough opposition from the jihadists and suffered the highest casualties
of the campaign so far in the fight for the town.
Duped by Fake
AFP,
The woman told interrogators that her husband was an active fighter with ISIS
in
Kuwaiti courts have sentenced to various jail terms a number of members,
sympathizers and financiers of the
An ISIS-linked suicide bomber killed 26 worshippers in June last year when he
blew himself up in a mosque of Kuwait’s Shiite minority, in the worst such
attack in the Gulf state’s history.
Revealing the deadly history of Russia’s
Tu-154 jet
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Monday, 26 December
2016/The Russian Tupolev Tu-154 jet that crashed
while carrying 92 people on board on Sunday had a past in notorious accidents,
it has been revealed. The plane, which was carrying 84 passengers and eight
crew members, disappeared from radar on Sunday morning local time after taking
off from an near
There were no survivors and Russian President Vladimir Putin has called for an
investigation into the crash. The aircraft became a symbol of air travel in the
A year earlier, 168 people died when their flight from
Bombed-out Aleppo soapmaker
revives age-old tradition in Paris
Reuters, Santeny, France Monday, 26 December 2016/A
Syrian soapmaker who fled Aleppo after the factory he
worked in was bombed has set up shop in a Paris suburb, reviving a tradition he
says dates back millennia. Hassan Harastani left
Is a ‘faceless’ preacher behind the
By Staff writer Al Arabiya English Monday, 26
December 2016/German authorities are looking into whether the suspect behind
the recent
Call on Human Rights Organizations for
Immediate Release of Political Prisoners in Iran
December 26/16/NCRI - A political prisoner in Iran in a letter described the
horrible condition of the prison and the suffering and injustice he endured by
the hands of henchmen and agents of the repressive regime ruling Iran. He urged
human rights organizations and activists to take action to release all
political prisoners in
Iran: 40 Girls and Boys Arrested in a Night
Party
December 26/16/NCRI - ontinuing wave of repression
and harassment of people in their private and home parties, on Saturday the
Iranian regime’s police chief in Orumiyeh announced
that 40 girls and boys were arrested at a night party in Orumiyeh
(northwest Iran). In addition, six people were arrested in southeastern
Political Prisoner Letter on Charter of
Citizens Rights Announced by Iran Regime's President Rouhani
December 26/16/NCRI - The political prisoner, Ali Mo’ezi,
in a letter dated December 23 about Hassan Rouhani’s
statements on the so-called “Charter of Citizens Rights”, wrote: “The President
of executions, Rouhani, has announced the Citizens
Rights on paper in the framework of Velyat-e Faqih (Supreme Leader’s) absolute dictatorship.”“Yes,
we all know there is something called «The Citizens’ Rights », but it has
nothing to do with the mullahs’ regime. When Iranian people are denied their
most basic and fundamental right of popular sovereignty and self-determination
(to determine their own fate), the Citizens Rights is based on what ground and
where does it go? It is like when you don’t have water but lecture about
observing hygiene and cleanness,” he added. Referring to the political
prisoners’ hunger strike in the regime’s prisons, Ali Mo’ezi
said: “So many political prisoners have been executed during these years and
many more have been imprisoned and many others are still in prisons but their
sentences were not based on law and had no legal and human rights basis, none
of them. During these years, there have always been many political prisoners
who staged hunger strike. Indeed, those prisoners whose situation is not
addressed find no way to seek justice but to inevitably go on hunger strike and
pay the price by their lives.” “In this same Gohardasht
prison, my brave child, Saeed Shirzad,
who has sewed his lips for days and staged hunger strike, is dying down and melting
in front of our eyes. His demands are mostly for the officials to observe and
respect the same prison regulations and rules. He has been in limbo for three
years and his fate is still undecided, but at the same time they were even
unwilling to receive his letter of (official) hunger strike for several days.”“Or Arash Sadeghi in Evin prison, who is
protesting the unjust and cruel sentences issued by the regime’s kangaroo court
and after 60 days of hunger strike is grappling with painful death, and also Morteza Morad-Pur in
Syrian dad who pushed ‘daughter-bomber’
killed
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English
Monday, 26 December 2016/A Syrian extremist who sent his 12-year-old daughter
on a suicide bombing mission in the Syrian capital of
Unidentified gunmen on Sunday opened fire on Abdul Rahman
Shaddad known also as Abu Nimr
al-Suri, according to information received by the
Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. He and his wife made global headlines more than a week
ago when a video released online showed them speaking to their two young girls
about an attack they intended to carry. According to Syrian news agency
Netanyahu meets US envoy after UN
settlement vote
AFP, Jerusalem Monday, 26 December 2016/Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu on Sunday met the US ambassador two days after Washington withheld
its vote during a UN resolution against Israeli settlements, an official source
said. The meeting between Netanyahu and Ambassador Daniel Shapiro came just
hours after the foreign ministry summoned representatives of most of the 14
states that supported the UN vote. Foreign ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon said 10 representatives answered the summons.
Netanyahu, who also holds the foreign ministry portfolio, did not meet the
other envoys but had talks only with Shapiro, an official source said. There
were no immediate details on the meeting which the US State Department
confirmed. But earlier, Netanyahu told the weekly cabinet that
Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis
& editorials from miscellaneous sources published on December 26-27/16
Love, peace and tolerance –
‘Merry Christmas to all’
Ahmad Al-Sarraf/The Arab Times/December 26/16
In a homily delivered by the Pope some time ago at the St Peter’s Square in the
Vatican, His Holiness said ‘I am thinking of some benefactors who come and say
they like to give this to the church, but these monetary donations sometimes
are stained with the blood of many who are exploited, oppressed and enslaved.
To those I say: Please, take your donations with you and burn it, the church
does not need such donations.’When I read these
words, I remembered the number of mosques when I passed by bearing the names of
people who I knew very well when I worked at the bank and how they acquired
that wealth. However, that is another story. I wrote some time ago an article
about the transformations that is expected to affect the Catholic Church, the
largest Catholic Church, at the hands of the current head, Pope Francis, on
topics of divorce and the use of birth control pills, outlawing abortion, and
the ordination of women as priests.
Then there are the other vital things, being the largest church and the
most stringent in the world, which has a billion followers and almost a half
billion, more than half of the Christians of the world. We have 40 percent
Catholics in Latin America, and 24 percent of them in
The changes that the Pope has planned to introduce, and the previous
church flexibility, have attracted many people to the Church, and Christianity
today has spread very quickly, after affiliation to it became more accessible,
and in keeping with the times.
It is not shameful to emulate them. They have changed and evolved, but
remained at the height of their power in religion and culture and the
knowledge. Why is it difficult for others to develop and make progress and make
worship more accessible, and in line with the times?
What is important to point out here is that the Melkite
Catholics (The Melkite Catholic Church is an Eastern
Catholic Church in full communion with the Holy See as part of the worldwide
Catholic Church), who are mentioned in our previous article, and who represent
the Catholics of the east, were originally followers of the Orthodox Church,
but in 1724 they joined the Catholic Church in Rome under the leadership of
Patriarch Cyril VI after having expressed their desire to secede from the
Orthodox church because of the heavy laws imposed on them. The Pope of Rome,
welcomed a request from the Melkite to join the
church and considered them a true church in full communion with the Catholic
Church, and since that day the Melkites became part
of the Catholic Church, and in complete separation from the Patriarchate of
Antioch and all the East of Greek Orthodox. It is a known fact that the
Catholic Church runs schools and universities, hospitals, shelters and nursing
homes in many countries, and it has the role of political influence in many of
them.
We take this occasion to wish the followers of all the churches in Kuwait
Merry Christmas, and a year of more love, peace and tolerance.
email: habibi.enta1@gmail.com
Muslim Extremists: Cheerleading the
Killers
Khadija Khan/Gatestone
Institute/December 25/2016
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/12/26/khadija-khangatestone-institute-muslim-extremists-cheerleading-the-killers/
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/9644/muslim-extremists
Cheerleading for killers and terror-mongering has become synonymous with the
countries where religious extremists enjoy popular and official support.
This is exactly what is wrong with the Muslim world, where masses are kept
ignorant by these radical mullahs from the real challenges such as poverty,
illiteracy and disease.
Instead, at the behest of the powerful extremist regimes such as
Some of the terrorists have entered
However, the wrong political policies of governments in
Time has come for those who are still confused about the acts of these
terrorists -- or those who serve as terrorist apologists to try to cover up
their deeds after every incident -- to be exposed. A large number of Muslims
are already sick and tired of these extremists.
We Muslims also need to leave no stone unturned to return the humane gestures
that our fellow citizens have shown when we Muslims faced trouble. In the same
way they took to the streets for us, it is now our turn to show all our fellow
citizens -- non-Muslims as well as Muslims -- that we also stand by them. Merry
Christmas!!!
The world saw a massacre in Aleppo, the assassination of Russian ambassador in
Turkey, a brazen terror attack in Berlin and a shooting incident in a Zurich
mosque – all just last week. We also saw religious extremists across the Muslim
world cheering for the killers of both the Russian envoy and the truck driver
in
ISIS hailed the Berlin terror attack and the killing of the Russian ambassador
while themselves facing imminent extinction due to massive Russian, European
and US led strikes against their strongholds in Mosul, Raqqa,
Aleppo and other cities.
Terrorists such as ISIS and their sympathizers seemed translating this chaos
into another opportunity to pour the "victim narrative" into the
minds of naïve Muslim youths apparently in the hope of recruiting more soldiers
for their holy war.
One incident of the behavior witnessed in Pakistan
where the biggest religious political party was seen cheerleading for the
anti-Russia attack, hailing the extremist Muslim killer, Melvut
Mert-Altintas, as a hero.
Jamaat e Islami (JI), a
radical political party in nuclear-armed
This is not the new trend for JI, as they have been involved in marketing the
radical version of Islam while celebrating the terrorists like Osama bin Laden
as heroes for decades.
Hence, cheerleading for killers and terror mongering become synonymous with the
countries where religious extremists enjoy popular and official support.
This is exactly what is wrong with the Muslim world where masses are kept
ignorant by these radical mullahs from the real challenges such as poverty,
illiteracy and disease.
Instead, at the behest of the powerful extremist regimes such as
It often appears that, out of this havoc, these terror organizations and their
handlers are fixed on dragging the world back into the Stone Age by invoking
their counterparts in the West as their "rivals" to get the kind of
imaginative wars they were taught about by their "spiritual" role
models.
The
He was one of the petty criminals who were hooked up by ISIS to massacre so
many innocent shoppers in
Anis Amri was reportedly in touch with a hardliner
extremist organization in
There seems to be a clear pattern in the working of such terror organizations,
which run as propaganda and recruitment fronts, mostly among youths who are
"seeking a purpose" after failing to succeed in life.
However, the wrong political policies of governments in
There are many fanatic groups and organizations operating in the West, such as Hizb ut-Tahrir, TWR True
Religion, Al Muhajiroon, Al-Ghurabaa,
Al-Shabaab, as well as dozens of small groups
operating in different mosques in the name of charity and support for Syrian
victims.
On December 23, 2016 two British men were convicted of funding extremists in
the Middle Eastern war zone.
Some terrorists have entered
Some of the terrorists involved in the attacks in
In the wake of terrorist attacks in 2015, some of the gunmen were identified as
routine visitors to Molenbeek, a district of Brussels
considered the hub of jihadists, drug addicts and dealers, and gangs, while
acting as a no-go zone for police and as a safe haven for criminals.
"Routine visitors" included most of perpetrators of the Belgian
attacks: the French-Algerian, Mehdi Nemmouche, who killed four people at Jewish Museum in
Abdelhamid Abaaoud, one of
the planners of the November 2015 terrorist attacks in
These no-go zones, right under the noses of law enforcement agencies, provide
terrorists with the opportunity to flourish -- and then all asylum seekers have
to face the accusation of being suspected terrorists.
The town administrators and the residents of such dark areas, who largely come
from an immigrant background, are also to be blamed for presence of such
criminal activity in these localities. Because they themselves either
sympathize or keep their eyes shut, despite knowing what goes on around them.
European governments have clearly failed to enact strong measures to deal with
the danger they were facing. Warnings even intensified after the terror attacks
in
Anis Amri was also such a criminal. He had spent four
consecutive years in six prisons in
It seems time to take these petty criminals seriously when it comes to dealing
with the problem of terrorism, as many of those being allured by the jihadist
organizations have a background of small scale crimes.
Amri's case again puts spotlight on the link between
terrorism and the criminal background of the "youths" who join the
band wagon of organizations like Islamic State.
Whipped up by extremists, intoxicated by ancient conspiracy theories that
Muslims are facing "crusades" by the Christian world and the Jewish
Israel, many confused Muslim youths are unable to realize that they are doing
more damage to Islam and Muslims by committing such horrible crimes.
Such people, drunk on propaganda, claim to be the "representatives of the
Muslims," thereby putting the credibility of the whole community in
question.
Europe was not blindfolded when its leaders invited in so many migrants from
the
The mindset of the extremists in Muslim world that the "crusaders"
are threatening them by invading their countries and looting their resources,
is one of the biggest hurdles in the way of a campaign to avoid war and
colonialism -- a "peace campaign" being strenuously promoted in
Europe, the US and elsewhere.
The critics of Western Muslims accuse them of lacking empathy towards the
victims of Islamic terrorists and a failure to show adequate disassociation
from that lot.
Many people across the US and Europe stood by the Muslims when they thought
that this minority might be treated less than fairly by Donald Trump who, when
he was campaigning, said that he wanted to ensure that Muslims entering the
United States should be vetted to make certain they were not terrorists.
People in the US-organized protest rallies in support of Muslims; and Jews,
about whom we often speak -- unfairly -- in disparaging terms, promised to
register as Muslims if Trump tried to setup a special entry register for Muslim
immigrants.
Student groups organized a human chain of solidarity to secure the Muslim
students in the
This is just one example of living together where all people from different
social backgrounds are willing to stand by each other in the hour of need. Now
if some rigid Muslim extremists are determined to kill our fellow citizens or
impose their understanding of religion on everyone, and we do not take a fair
stand against this, then that criminal silence also makes us accomplices in
this injustice.
The Muslims would do well to bear the responsibility of showing solidarity with
those who lose their lives in terrorist attacks committed by Islamists and with
anyone who is hit by the inhumane acts of these terrorists. The time has come
for all of us to understand that cheerleading for the killers is what
encourages even more people to join the ranks of terrorism.
Keeping a strict check on extremist organizations and their operations would be
needed through more intelligence gathering on their activities if they are
related to loyalty and commitment to their own community or ethnic group rather
than to society as a whole, and we should do that without discriminating
against any religion or political belief.
Both governments and communities will have to put curbs on clergy who exploit
Muslim youths by promising them a trip to paradise after committing mass
murders.
Regimes such as
We need to send a loud message to terrorists, who are exploiting the name of
Islam by unleashing terror against people of different faiths, and clearly
state that we Muslims will have nothing to do with them.
Time has come for those who are still confused about the acts of these
terrorists - or those who serve as terrorist apologists to try to cover up
their deeds after every incident - to be exposed. A large number of Muslims are
already sick and tired of these extremists.
We Muslims also need to leave no stone unturned to return the humane gestures
that our fellow citizens have shown when we Muslims faced trouble.
In the same way they took to the streets for us, it is now our turn to show all
our fellow citizens– non-Muslims as well as Muslims - that we also stand by
them. Merry Christmas!!!
**Khadija Khan is a Pakistan-based journalist and
commentator.
© 2016 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The
articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of
Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced,
copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone
Institute.
Christmas brings hope for peace for
Al Monitor/December 26/16
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/12/26/al-monitor-christmas-brings-hope-for-peace-for-aleppos-christian/
The costs of the war in
Jesuit Priest Ziad Hilal,
who represents Aid to the Church in Need, a Catholic nongovernmental
organization in Syria, told The Christian Post, "Despite the harsh
conditions the people of Aleppo are enduring, [for both] Christians and
Muslims, Christmas brings the hope for peace that we have missed for the last
five years. Although many churches have been destroyed in
The population of
Patriarch of the Syriac Catholic Church of Antioch
Ignatius Joseph III Younan reported that half a
million Syrian Christians, a quarter of the community, have fled as a result of
the war and 140 churches and monasteries have been abandoned, vandalized or
destroyed throughout the country.
In September, Pope Francis said that those responsible for the bombing of
civilians in
The past year has witnessed a continued assault on the region’s Christian
communities by the Islamic State (IS) and other terrorist groups. On Dec. 11,
IS bombed St. Mark’s Cathedral in
Antonio Guterres, the incoming UN secretary-general,
recently said that Christians are part of the “DNA of the
Cengiz Candar wrote that
following the assassination of Russian ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov on Dec. 19, “Turkish authorities, without losing a
beat, turned to what has become their common measure after every terror
incident and blocked Twitter and ordered a media blackout on the issue. This
was followed by cliche statements where government
officials condemned the terror and said that terrorism could not divert
“Whoever committed the two terror acts in
Turkish resentment of Iran escalates
Semih Idiz wrote that “The
‘fall’ of Aleppo has left the staunchly Sunni Islamist support base of
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)
in Turkey with a deep sense of defeatism and resentment, and it has even
prompted calls for revenge to be wreaked on Turkish Alevis.”
Idiz noted, “The fact that
Mustafa Akyol explained that the rise of anti-Iranian
sectarianism in
“Lately,
http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/12/christmas-aleppo-turkey-war-erdogan-iran-assad.html?utm_source=Boomtrain&utm_medium=manual&utm_campaign=20161224&bt_ee=4LDzjWqxjAcsRZHad1XoTktprFF3Zkb+auGgbhXisEmYNgdoSQCFqino+oWlOaUy&bt_ts=1482744693686
West’s strategic failure, Muslims’
moral failure
Nadav Eyal|/Ynetnews/December
26/16
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/12/26/nadav-eyalynetnews-wests-strategic-failure-muslims-moral-failure/
Op-ed: Security forces can do an excellent job trying to prevent
terrorism, but as long as Europe’s Muslim communities don’t reject radicalism,
more and more young people will hear inciting messages and carry out sacrifice
attacks.
The September 11 terrorists planned their fatal plot in
The failures uncovered in
The terror attack in Berlin, which ISIS claimed responsibility for,
doesn’t seem like an act carried out by an organized terror network, but rather
as an act of a lone wolf terrorist. It’s too early to say, but this kind of
terrorism is reminiscent of similar phenomena we see in the West in general. A
young man, the son of immigrants (usually not an immigrant himself), undergoes
a quick radicalization process, and with relatively limited cooperation with
others he executes a plan that could be very fatal. A truck is an intimidating
weapon, as we saw in Nice.
The West, like
Clearly, a more public and “online” radicalization process makes it
easier for the intelligence agencies to locate it and maybe even intervene
before the attack. In the European Union, there is a variety of plans giving
teachers, academics and police tools for locating radicalization that could
turn fatal. How well is it working? To a limited extent.
The West’s biggest failure hides in comments repeated by US President
George W. Bush, followed by President Barack Obama: Islam is not the problem.
The problem is terrorism and the radicals leaning on it. These statements were
the recommendation of the American security authorities, which pleaded with
Bush to make a distinction between “the good” and “the bad” and not turn the
entire Muslim world into an enemy. The statement itself is accurate, of course,
but it failed to bring along the most effective communal tool against radicalism—social
rejection.
For example, how does the West fight racism? It tries (or tried, to be
more accurate) to ostracize the racists. It puts them to shame and embarrasses
them in their ignorance and hate. Yes, it is wearing out, but the Western norm
is that racists are people who should be kept away from the camp, and thereby
turned into an insignificant and illegitimate phenomenon.
The ostracism has not worked well in the context of Islamic
radicalization. The West tried to convince, its leaders said the right words,
but the European Muslims are not rejecting radicalism. Their leaders will
condemn it, but they don’t persecute and remove the radicals from their midst.
And I don’t mean violent radicalism; it’s very easy to condemn after an attack.
There is no rejection of the inciting, inflaming radicals.
The West failed strategically, but the moral failure belongs to many
Muslim communities in
As long as this remains the situation, more and more young people will
hear radicalizing messages and carry out sacrifice attacks. The security forces
can do an excellent job trying to prevent them (and in
**Nadav Eyal is
Channel 10's chief international correspondent.
The Suicide of Germany
Guy Millière/Gatestone Institute/December 26/2016
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/12/26/guy-millieregatestone-institute-the-suicide-of-germany/
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/9645/germany-suicide
Of the 1.2 million migrants who arrived in Germany in 2014 and 2015, only
34,000 found work.
Angela Merkel went to lay white roses at the scene of the Christmas market
attack in
Nothing better describes the present state of
The law that condemns incitement to hatred, presumably intended to
prevent a return to Nazi ideas, is held like a sword over whoever speaks too
harshly of the growing Islamization of the country.
The great majority of the Germans do not want to see that
If Angela Merkel does not see the difference between Jews exterminated by
the Nazis, and Muslims threatening to exterminate Christians, Jews and other
Muslims, she is even more clueless than it seems.
The attack in
When she decided to open the doors of
When hundreds of rapes and sexual assaults took place in Cologne and other
cities in Germany on last year's New Year's Eve, she said that the perpetrators
should be punished "regardless of their origin", but she did not
change her policy. When attacks took place in
She only changed her position recently, it seems because she wants to be
a candidate again in 2017, and saw her popularity declining.
The comments she made immediately after the December 19 attacks were
mind-numbing. She said that "if the perpetrator is a refugee", it
will be "very difficult to bear" and it will be "particularly
repugnant for all Germans who help refugees on a daily basis."
Such remarks could be considered simply naïve if someone were not
informed, but Angela Merkel does not have that excuse. She could not ignore
warnings from German and
In another country, Merkel might have been shamed into resigning; in
The German population is aged and the birthrate is dangerously low: 1.38
children per woman. The immigrants are replacing the German population, which has
been disappearing little by little. The Germans who pass away are the
Christians or, more often, non-religious secularists. As everywhere in
The German economy is still strong but running out of steam. Returns on
invested capital are declining. At a time when human capital is the main source
of profits, German human capital is collapsing: people from underdeveloped
countries cannot easily replace highly educated Germans. Most do not have
marketable skills; newcomers remain long unemployed and dependent. Of the 1.2
million migrants who arrived in
Politically correct propaganda speeches that are inexhaustibly broadcast
in
The German population is intimidated with fear, both by the antisocial behavior of many migrants and by the speech police of their
own governments. Many Germans do not even dare to speak. Those who use public
transportation resign themselves to insults. They bend their head and run for
refuge to their homes. Attendance in restaurants and theaters
is falling sharply. Women have become resigned to wearing "modest"
outfits and are careful to not go out alone. Protests organized by Pegida (Patriotic Europeans Against
the Islamization of the West) have never attracted
more than a few thousand people after a photograph of its founder was released
in which he was styled as Hitler.
The Alternative for
On December 20, Angela Merkel went to lay white roses at the scene of the
Christmas market attack. Thousands of Germans did the same. Many brought
candles and cried. But anger and the will to combat the threat remained largely
absent. After a few weeks, the page will be turned -- until next time.
Nothing better describes the present state of
The great majority of the Germans do not want to see that
They accept defeat and docilely do what jihadists want them to do: they
submit.
In analyzing the December 19 attack on the Christmas market, German
journalist Josef Joffe, editor of Die Zeit, explained Angela Merkel's decision to welcome
refugees as "an act of atonement" and a way to welcome a threatened
population, seven decades after the Holocaust. He also explained the passivity
of many Germans by a feeling of collective guilt.
If Joffe is right, if Angela Merkel does not
see the difference between Jews exterminated by the Nazis, and Muslims threatening
to exterminate Christians, Jews and other Muslims, she is even more clueless
than it seems.
If many Germans are filled with collective guilt to the point that they
want to compensate for what Germany did to the Jews by welcoming hundreds of
thousands of Muslims many of whom openly state that they want to replace
Germany's Judeo-Christian culture with Islam, and who are replacing its
Christian population with a Muslim one -- that will include ruthless killers in
its ranks -- it shows that Germans today either detest themselves so much that
they desire their own destruction, or that they have simply lost their will to
stand up for what they care about -- an act otherwise known as surrender.
**Dr. Guy Millière, a professor at the
© 2016 Gatestone Institute. All rights
reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the
Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced,
copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone
Institute.
Does Islamic State Engage in Organ
Trading out of
Kasim Cindemir/Gatestone
Institute/December 26/2016
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/9646/turkey-organ-trading-isis
"The apostate's life and organs do not have to be respected and may be
taken with impunity." — Islamic State document found during a raid in
December by U.S. Special Forces in
"Former prisoner Abo Rida
stated that surgeons for IS terror group removed kidneys and corneas from
prisoners. He said that they were told that jihadists were more deserving of
organs." — Anne Speckhard,
According to the World Health Organization, illegal organ trading generates
between $600 million and $1.2 billion in profits each year.
Charges that Islamic State (IS) engages in organ trading -- taking body parts
from their victims in Iraq and Syria and selling them to traffickers in Turkey
-- have surfaced again.
The Iranian news network Alalam reported on October 6
that IS has set up a market in
The Iraqi News also reported that IS has kidnapped and sold many children in
Wayne Madsen, an American investigative reporter and a former intelligence
analyst at the US National Security Agency (NSA), told Gatestone
that IS has been, and is, involved in organ trading. "The Uyghur
battalions of
"We have no reason to doubt them given similar atrocities that have been
documented and other heinous crimes for which ISIL has taken credit," U.S.
State Department said in response to charges of IS's
organ harvesting. In December, the
Anne Speckhard wrote that ISIS is
involved in organ smuggling and earns profits from it. "Former prisoner Abo Rida stated that surgeons for
IS terror group removed kidneys and corneas from prisoners. He said that they
were told that jihadists were more deserving of organs," she added.
Speckhard told Gatestone
that given their mentality – that anyone who does not believe as they do can be
killed - it is believable that IS is involved in organ trading:
"Defectors we talked to said it is happening."
According to press reports, there is high demand for organs
such as kidneys and hearts. Based on the same
reports, a kidney is sold in the Turkish market for $4,000 and a heart for $6,000.
The Spanish newspaper, El Mundo, reported
that the IS does not merely use the organs of its captives' bodies for
transplants to its members; it also sells them to other countries as a
lucrative business.
Speckhard told Gatestone
the UN's investigation of Ambassador Alhakim's charges was inconclusive. She
also underlined that they know some
Turkish businessmen were involved in the slave trade with IS.
A report by Iraqi News said that IS's organ
trafficking comes as the terror group is finding it difficult to fund the
self-proclaimed caliphate as its revenues from oil fields are plunging.
American analysis firm IHS's expert Ludovico Carlino, was cited by Reuters that as of
March 2016, IS's monthly oil revenue has dropped from
80 to 56 million dollars.
IHS senior analyst Columb Strack
said, "There are fewer people now to tax; the same applies to properties
and land to confiscate." The population of
the territory under IS's control has fallen from 9
million to about 6 million.
Nancy Scheper-Hughes, director of Organs Watch, a
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), illegal organ trading generates
between $600 million and $1.2 billion in profits each year.
Mahmut Togrul, a member of the Turkish National
Assembly representing Gaziantep from the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), told Gatestone that, "IS is
committing all kinds of atrocities to many innocent people it considers
enemies. They have even sold women in
Togrul also blamed the
Fethi Albayram, a doctor in
In the last year, IS has
killed more than 200 people in
The Turkish government was criticized in
the past for looking the other way regarding the IS activities in
Many reporters, experts, and eyewitnesses have alleged that Turkey
has actively helped jihadist terrorists in the
region by letting IS members travel through
According to some reports, IS members have been treated
at Turkish hospitals. According to a Turkish chief of
police, there are IS cell houses in seventy cities across
A news report from German broadcaster ARD shows photos of Yazidi
slaves distributed by ISIS (left), as well as undercover footage of ISIS
operatives in Turkey taking payment for buying the slaves (right).
On April 17, 2016, the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet reported
that the Gaziantep police department had raided the office and found $310,000,
many foreign (non-Turkish) passports and 1,768 pages of Arabic receipts that
showed the transfer of millions of dollars between Turkey and Syria.
Six people were brought to court for
their involvement in crimes, which included "being members of an armed
terrorist organization." But the complainant, the Gaziantep Bar Association, was not even
invited to attend the hearings, which lasted for sixteen days.
"We learnt of the ruling accidentally. The court made the decision of
acquittal without looking into the documents found by police," said Bektas Sarkli, the head of the Gaziantep
Bar Association. Bektas Sarkli
told Gatestone that they will appeal.
The former chief of Turkey's counter-terrorism police,, Ahmet
Yayla said during recent testimony to the U.S. House
of Representatives that the Turkish Government has provided funds, logistical
support, and arms for IS members. Pro-government Turkish media alleges that Ahmet Yayla is part of FETO (Fethullah Gulen) organization.
Yayla, who now teaches at
Erkan Sahin, who is the Gaziantep
Chairman of the opposition Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) told Gatestone that IS uses the city
like a base. "We know that," he said.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan,
on the other hand, said the most effective fight against Daesh
(IS) was waged by
But evidence indicates that Turkish forces are primarily targeting and
attacking Kurds in
The American experts, Steven A. Cook and Michael J. Koplow,
wrote: "Rather than overlook Turkish excesses while hoping Mr. Erdogan will come around, it is time to search for more
reliable allies."
Opinions may vary on how reliable an ally
**Kasim Cindemir, a leading
journalist from
© 2016 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The
articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of
Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced,
copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone
Institute.
Use performance indicators to reach Saudi Vision 2030 goals
Khaled Almaeena/Al Arabiya/December 26/16
It seems inevitable that in every private or public
gathering with family or friends, the main focus is on complaints. And mind
you, as we moan and groan, and many are quite right in doing so, we do not come
up with solutions or remedies for the problems under discussion.
The list of complaints ranges from the attitude of immigration officials at the
airport to the low-level services provided by the Municipality. Added to that
are the traffic department and the courts where the main complaint is the
absence of notary public officials and at times even judges. And then those in
business bring to the table of discussions the zakat
department, as well. Listening to these views for years, I have somewhat
shielded myself by hoping that things will get better. Let’s for a moment be
optimistic. The services of the Ministry of Interior have improved
tremendously. Exit/re-entry visa and passport services and some license
procedures have truly become fantastic.
The services of the Ministry of Interior have improved tremendously.
Exit/re-entry visa and passport services and some license procedures have truly
become fantastic
What then is wrong? Why the complaints?
The answer lies with people working in some government departments who are
caught up in their own past practices and do not realize that it is time for
them to get onboard the Saudi Vision 2030 train which has already left the
station.
And this is what must be done: We need to launch business accelerators to boost
the efforts of these government offices and unify their efforts to help resolve
issues and problems. We also need to identify key sectors, such as economy,
environment, education and the judiciary, and to establish key performance
indicators and the evaluation of those in charge. The focus should be on
innovation and productivity.
We have to immediately streamline laws, develop initiatives and set clear
standards and goals. To do that we also need a judicial system that ensures
fair litigation for everyone. We need a judiciary that has a high level of
integrity and professionalism. The judiciary must ensure civil rights for all.
In order to do that, they should also set a good example and lead by imbibing
true Islamic principles.
I personally believe that if such business accelerators are put in place, the
number of complaints will decrease and we can then focus on other subjects.
**This article was first published in the Saudi Gazette on December 25, 2016.
China and Trump, with the Gulf caught in
between
Dr. Mohamed A. Ramady/Al Arabiya/December
26/16
The Gulf is in a bit of a quandary, trying to figure out where the latest spat
between China and Trump is leading to and at the same time trying to ensure
that they do not have to choose sides as both China and the US remain important
strategic partners, but for different reasons.
They have watched with some mounting alarm the fall out from the controversial
call that was concluded between President-elect Donald Trump and
However, made a point in noting that Trump has yet to assume office, and is
“inexperienced” as a politician, President Xi Jinping
instructed Foreign Minister Wang Yi to adopt solemn protests and a “mild”
reaction – for now.
Going forward,
China Sea tensions between the US and China are still unresolved, and President
Xi did not rule out the possibility the Trump Administration could challenge
China’s “core interests,” especially in Taiwan and the South and East China
Seas. Chinese officials warn that if the Trump Administration were to conduct
high-level military exchanges with
Over the next two months,
Chinese sovereign entities took up a substantial amount of the recently concluded
Saudi mega bond issue, especially in the medium and longer tenors, and have
expressed their interest in the planned Aramco IPO
Mutual interests
And so, where does this leave the Gulf states, principally the largest GCC
member, Saudi Arabia? They are all inextricably linked to the
The fact that ExxonMobil Chairman and CEO Rex Tillerson
has been nominated as US Secretary of State offers some hope that strong energy
relations will continue, at least in joint projects in the US, with its cheap
gas feedstock for chemical manufacturing.
The large number of Gulf students studying on scholarships in the
The Chinese, however, have made major strides since establishing diplomatic
relations with
Since then several high level bilateral visits have taken place to cement this
growing relationship, with Chinese President visiting the Kingdom, Egypt and
Iran in January 2016, where he entered into many agreements to integrate the
region, and Saudi Arabia especially, into a new “Silk Road” trade hub,
something that appealed to Saudi Arabia as the current Saudi Vision 2030
aspires to have the Kingdom become a center for services and manufacturing.
The attendance of Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman
at the recent G20 Summit in
It was noticeable that Chinese sovereign entities took up a substantial amount
of the recently concluded Saudi mega bond issue, especially in the medium and
longer tenors, and have expressed their interest in the planned Aramco IPO, as well as a possible listing in
From almost negligible trade relations in 1990, China overtook the US as the
Kingdom’s major trading partner by 2014, with imports of SR 87.1 billion
compared with imports of SR 84.7 billion from the US, and Chinese imports
growing to SR 92.3 billion in 2015 compared with SR 89 billion for the US.
Trade ties
In 2013, Chinese imports to
Chinese relations have not only been in commercial trade but also in the
military sector and several GCC countries have purchased military equipment
from China, either as part of their procurement diversification or as a signal
to traditional suppliers, such as the USA, that alternative sources can be
found.
When the US refused to sell Saudi Arabia long-range fuel tanks for Saudi F-15
fighters, Saudi Arabia arranged a deal with China in 1988, even before full
diplomatic relations were established, to obtain nuclear-payload-capable CSS-2
intermediate-range ballistic missiles, but these purchases pale into
insignificance compared with defence purchases from the US by Gulf countries
and China has not, to date, any physical military presence in the region,
unlike the US with bases and military facilities in Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain.
For the Gulf, it is indeed a quandary – to continue depending on the US for a
military alliances and support knowing that US global interests can change,
while at the same time continue to build up an ever expanding economic and
trade relations with China that can support the ambitious transformation programs
that all GCC countries are embarking on? Can the Gulf ride two horses at the
same time, whereby they look west but in essence go East?