LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
January 27/16

Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

Bible Quotations For Today

Where do wars and fightings among you come from?
James 4/1-10: “Where do wars and fightings among you come from? Don’t they come from your pleasures that war in your members? You lust, and don’t have. You kill, covet, and can’t obtain. You fight and make war. You don’t have, because you don’t ask. You ask, and don’t receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it for your pleasures. You adulterers and adulteresses, don’t you know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who lives in us yearns jealously”? But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Be subject therefore to God. But resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament, mourn, and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he will exalt you.”

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on january 26-27/16
The truth about the Saudi executions/Nawaf Obaid/Al-Monitor/January 26/16
Another Israeli woman is dead after Palestinians attacked Beit Horon with knives. They also carried bombs/DEBKAfile/January 26, 2016
Saudi Arabia and Iraq – Cooperation or a Threat/Tariq Alhomayed/Asharq Al Awsat/January 26/16
Palestinians: Is Abbas Losing Control/Khaled Abu Toameh/Gatestone Institute/January 26/16
Fanfare in the West and proxy war in the East/Camelia Entekhabi-Fard/Al Arabiya/January 26/16
Containing ISIS in the ‘Dark Web’/Diana Moukalled/Al Arabiya/January 26/16
No Obama, the conflict does not date back millennia/Jamal Khashoggi/Al Arabiya/January 26/16
Does Joe Biden really mean what he says on ISIS/Raed Omari/Al Arabiya/January 26/16

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin for Lebanese Related News published on  january 26-27/16
UNIFIL Commander Meets Officials, Urges their Support to 'Isolate Blue Line from Regional Unrest'
Vatican Satisfied with LF-FPM Rapprochement, Says Next President Should 'Act as Bridge'
Al-Rahi Says Pope Discussing Presidency with Key Parties but Ball in Lebanese Court
Mustaqbal: Presence of More than One Presidential Candidate Enhances Democracy
Kanaan Hopes 'All Sides Would Derive Lessons' from Maarab Meeting
Rifi Mulling to 'Suspend' Cabinet Membership over Samaha Bill
Roumieh Prisoner Stabs another Inmate to Death
Lebanese ISF Arrests Ex-Officer for Smuggling Suspects from Brital to Beirut
General Security Arrests Abra Terror Suspect
Syria Regime Forces, Hizbullah Capture Key Southern Rebel Town
Report: Hizbullah Continues to Back Aoun as President Despite Competitions in Race
Cheap Loans Proposed to Lebanon, Other Hosts to Ease Aid Gap in Refugee Crisis
Hizbullah, Mustaqbal Say Political Debate Must 'Preserve Civil Peace', Urge Activating Cabinet
Lebanese Swedish Employee Fatally Stabbed by Migrant in Sweden
Bassil Says Arab States Understand Lebanon's 'Neutral Stance'

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on  january 26-27/16
Rouhani Pitches Iran as Safest Country in Middle East
Grandson of Iran’s Khomeini excluded from elections
American pastor freed by Iran says he was tortured
Rowhani from Italy: trade could beat extremism
Moscow denies asking Assad to step down
Deadly truck bomb explodes in Syria’s Aleppo
Syria opposition to meet in Riyadh, casts doubt on talks
Russia: Syrian strikes have helped ‘turn around’ situation
Turkey ‘against’ Kurdish PYD joining Syria talks
Syrian regime forces capture key southern town
Deadly bomb hits army checkpoint in Syria’s Homs
U.S.-led coalition conducts 18 strikes against ISIS
Self-proclaimed ISIS ‘emir’ on trial in UAE
Tunisia to relax curfew as security improves

Links From Jihad Watch Site for  january 26-27/16
Italy covers up naked statues, bans wine for visit of Iranian President Rouhani
Egyptian court jails writer for three years for insulting Islam
Muslims from Sudan accused of burning church in South Sudan
Daniel Greenfield Moment: Why Feminism Failed Cologne’s Women
Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarch: “No one defends Islam like Arab Christians”
Egypt: Lawyer accuses Al Azhar of promoting hate for Christians
ISIS are among us, say Muslim refugees in Germany
Robert Spencer, PJM: Iran vs. US is Darth Vader vs. Mister Rogers

UNIFIL Commander Meets Officials, Urges their Support to 'Isolate Blue Line from Regional Unrest'
Naharnet/January 26/16/United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon commander Major General Luciano Portolano held talks on Tuesday with each of Speaker Nabih Berri, Prime Minister Tammam Salam and Minister of Interior Nouhad al-Mashnouq on the latest developments in southern Lebanon. He briefed them on the continued efforts of UNIFIL to maintain the calm that has returned along the Blue Line since the serious breach of the cessation of hostilities that occurred on 4 January, said a UNIFIL statement. Following the meetings, Portolano said: “Today I had very good meetings with the Lebanese leaders. I shared my concerns at the recent incidents along the Blue Line, where we witnessed two instances of grave violations of resolution 1701 on December 20 and January 4.” “These incidents interrupted an extended period of calm and stability that had prevailed through most of 2015, and risked precipitating a larger conflict across the Blue Line, a situation we were able to avoid thanks to the confidence of both parties in UNIFIL and their willingness to engage in our efforts to quickly defuse the situation and restore the cessation of hostilities,” he remarked. “I thanked the leaders for their constant support to UNIFIL and called on their continued assistance in our endeavor to isolate the Blue Line from the destructive regional conflict,” he added. “I also briefed about my discussions with the local authorities and religious leaders last week, and our wider engagement with the communities throughout the south, where the message to me has been loud and clear: no one wants any disruption in the safe and secure environment that has largely prevailed in the area since 2006,” stated Portolano. “I assured the Lebanese leaders of UNIFIL’s strong determination to continue the implementation of our mandated tasks, working closely with the Lebanese army and other partners on the ground. I was encouraged by their positive appreciation of UNIFIL’s efforts and assurances of Lebanon’s firm commitment to U.N. Security Council resolution 1701 (2006),” he said.

Vatican Satisfied with LF-FPM Rapprochement, Says Next President Should 'Act as Bridge'
Naharnet/January 26/16/The Vatican has expressed its satisfaction with the latest rapprochement between the Lebanese Forces and the Free Patriotic Movement, reiterating its warning that the Baabda Palace vacuum puts the Christians in danger. Maronite Bishop of Beirut Boulos Matar told al-Joumhouria daily published on Tuesday that the meetings of Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi in Rome “have been positive.”“The Vatican believes that the Christian reconciliation meeting, which took place in Maarab, helps the presidential elections,” he said. The Vatican supports any reconciliation that takes place among the different Lebanese factions, Matar told the newspaper. LF chief Samir Geagea withdrew from the presidential race last week and announced his endorsement of his long-time rival MP Michel Aoun, the founder of the FPM. The bishop revealed that France continues to work with Vatican officials to help the Lebanese elect a new president. “They are also following up the issue with the Iranians during (President Hassan) Rouhani's visit to Paris.” Rouhani traveled to Italy on Monday on his first visit to Europe since Tehran's nuclear deal with the West came into force this month. He is due at the Vatican on Tuesday where Pope Francis is expected to reiterate concerns over human rights and the death penalty in Iran, as well as asking Rouhani to help protect Christians in the Middle East. The Iranian leader, who is accompanied by more than 100 ministers, officials and businessmen, will fly on to France Wednesday. Lebanon’s political crisis, which erupted following the end of the term of President Michel Suleiman in May 2014, is expected to be among the major topics that will be discussed by Rouhani and French President Francois Hollande. On al-Rahi's visit to Rome, informed sources told An Nahar daily that the Vatican insists on the swift election of a president.Lebanon's next “president should be a bridge of communication among the different factions,” they said.“The prolonged vacuum not just puts Christians in Lebanon in danger but in the entire region,” the sources said.

Al-Rahi Says Pope Discussing Presidency with Key Parties but Ball in Lebanese Court
Naharnet/January 26/16/Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi confirmed Tuesday that Pope Francis is holding consultations with all the regional and international players who can influence the stalled presidential vote in Lebanon while noting that “the Lebanese must play the main role.”“The Lebanese must make up their minds and be at the level of all people's expectations,” said al-Rahi at Beirut's airport upon his arrival from a visit to the Vatican. “The pope as well as Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and the secretary for relations with states are all concerned about Lebanon, especially about the presidential election,” the patriarch added. He said the pontiff and the Vatican's top officials call on all Lebanese and on political and parliamentary blocs to “elect a president, because it is unacceptable to keep the situation in Lebanon like this.”“This concern is a tangible concern and they are following it up with all the parties who have a say in this regard but the Lebanese must play the main role,” al-Rahi added. The Vatican has reportedly expressed its satisfaction with the latest rapprochement between Lebanon's top Christian parties – the Lebanese Forces and the Free Patriotic Movement, according to Maronite Bishop of Beirut Boulos Matar. LF chief Samir Geagea withdrew from the presidential race last week and announced his endorsement of his long-time rival MP Michel Aoun, the founder of the FPM. The move came after al-Mustaqbal movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri proposed the nomination of Marada Movement chief MP Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency. Lebanon’s political crisis, which erupted following the end of the term of President Michel Suleiman in May 2014, was likely discussed during talks between Pope Francis and Iran's President Hassan Rouhani in Rome on Tuesday. The Lebanese crisis is also expected to be among the major topics that will be discussed by Rouhani and French President Francois Hollande.

Mustaqbal: Presence of More than One Presidential Candidate Enhances Democracy
Naharnet/January 26/16/Al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc noted Tuesday that the presence of two presidential candidates “enhances democratic practice,” urging all parliamentary blocs to attend the February 8 electoral session. “The bloc reiterates its call for the parliament to end the state of presidential void and quickly elect a president,” said Mustaqbal in a statement issued after its weekly meeting. “The presence of more than one candidate vying for the presidential post enhances democratic practice,” the bloc pointed out. It was referring to the nominations of Change and Reform bloc chief MP Michel Aoun and Marada Movement leader MP Suleiman Franjieh – both members of the March 8 camp. “The bloc holds all parliamentary blocs responsible for attending and taking part in the February 8 parliamentary session to elect a president,” Mustaqbal added. Lebanon has been without a president since May 2014 when the term of Michel Suleiman ended without the election of successor. The blocs of Aoun and Hizbullah and some of their allies have been boycotting the electoral sessions. Al-Mustaqbal movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri launched late in 2015 a proposal to nominate Franjieh as president.Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea, Hariri's ally in the March 14 camp, was a presidential candidate at the time and some observers have said that the LF leader has recently nominated Aoun for the presidency as a “reaction” to Hariri's proposal, a claim Geagea has denied.

Kanaan Hopes 'All Sides Would Derive Lessons' from Maarab Meeting
Naharnet/January 26/16/The Change and Reform bloc hoped on Tuesday that the meeting that was held last week between bloc chief MP Michel Aoun and Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea would “restore balance” in state institutions in the country.MP Ibrahim Kanaan said after the bloc's weekly meeting: “We hope that all parties would derive lessons from the Maarab talks to pave the way for a greater understanding in Lebanon.”“Our hand is extended to all sides in order to reach a solution,” he said. “We proposed a solution at the Maarab meeting and we hope that it caters to the insecurities of various blocs,” continued Kanaan. “The Maarab meeting is not merely an understanding between two parties, but it should set an example for the whole of Lebanon,” he explained. Geagea and Aoun held talks on January 18 in a landmark meeting during which the LF chief endorsed the MP's nomination for the presidency in an attempt to overcome the pre sidential deadlock that started in May 2014. Addressing Thursday's cabinet session, Kanaan said: “The bloc's stance on the meeting is clear.”He stated that the government needed to tackle its decision-making mechanism and settle the dispute on the military appointments before the bloc attends the session. “We hope pledges can be translated into action,” he stressed. The Change and Reform bloc boycotted the most recent cabinet session due to the dispute over the military council appointments. The Loyalty to the Resistance bloc of Hizbullah also refrained from attending the meeting in support of its ally. Turning to the Foreign Ministry's recent stance at the Organization of Islamic Cooperation meeting, Kanaan said: “The Change and Reform bloc calls against meddling in the affairs of Arab countries.”It seeks to establish “the best of ties with them,” he added. OIC foreign ministers recently "condemned the aggressions against the missions of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Tehran and Mashhad".Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil, also a member of the Change and Reform bloc, expressed Lebanon's rejection of an Arab League statement that also condemned Iran.

Rifi Mulling to 'Suspend' Cabinet Membership over Samaha Bill
Naharnet/January 26/16/Justice Minister Ashraf Rifi is mulling to boycott cabinet sessions if a bill which he has proposed on the trial of former Minister Michel Samaha is not discussed during a session scheduled to be held on Thursday, al-Joumhouria daily reported. The newspaper quoted reliable sources as saying that Rifi “is seriously thinking to take a decision on the suspension of his participation in the government” if obstacles were put to the approval of his bill on Thursday. The adoption of the bill to transfer the case of Samaha from the Military Tribunal to the Judicial Council for a retrial needs a simple majority in the cabinet. Last Thursday, Samaha stood before the judge at the Military Court of Cassation and answered a series of questions on the transfer of explosives from Syria to Lebanon for the purpose of carrying out terrorist acts. Following his interrogation, the trial was adjourned to February 4. Samaha was released earlier this month on a 150 million Lebanese pounds ($100,000) bail under the condition not to leave the country for at least one year, and not to speak to the press or use social media. The ex-minister was arrested in August 2012 and charged with attempting to carry out "terrorist acts" over allegations that he and Syrian security services chief Ali Mamluk transported explosives and planned attacks and assassinations of political and religious figures in Lebanon. Samaha was sentenced in May 2015 to four-and-half years in prison, but in June the Cassation Court nullified the verdict and ordered a retrial.

Roumieh Prisoner Stabs another Inmate to Death
Naharnet/January 26/16/The Internal Security Forces said on Tuesday that a Palestinian has stabbed to death a Lebanese inmate in Roumieh prison after accusing him of being the reason for his transfer to another cell. A communique issued by the ISF general-directorate said the 25-year-old Palestinian inmate stabbed the Lebanese man in his neck and chest with a sharp object last Friday. The Lebanese prisoner, who is 46 years old, was taken to hospital but he succumbed to his injuries, it said. According to the ISF, the investigation concluded that the sharp object was an improvised weapon and had not been smuggled to the prison. The prison's management seizes contraband and takes legal measures against violators during routine inspections of all cells, it said. The overcrowding of prisons puts a lot of pressure on guards and creates tension among inmates, the communique added. Roumieh is Lebanon's largest prison and has long been infamous for the poor conditions in some of its blocks, including overcrowding and harsh treatment.

Lebanese ISF Arrests Ex-Officer for Smuggling Suspects from Brital to Beirut
Naharnet/January 26/16/The Internal Security Forces Intelligence Bureau detained a former member of the force on charges of smuggling wanted suspects from the eastern Bekaa region to Beirut, it announced in a statement on Tuesday. It said that retired Brigadier General J. Merhej “abused his former position” to smuggle the suspects from Brital to Beirut. The statement revealed that a week ago, he had facilitated the transport of a suspect by allowing him to bypass the ISF checkpoint at the Dahr al-Baydar crossing from Brital to Beirut.He was arrested shortly after his activity was closely monitored by the bureau.

General Security Arrests Abra Terror Suspect
Naharnet/January 26/16/General Security said it has arrested a Lebanese national who has admitted to belonging to a terrorist group and fighting against the Lebanese army in 2013. A communique issued by the directorate-general of the General Security Department said the man, whom it identified with his initials as M.B., was seized as part of its monitoring of terrorist groups and dormant cells. The suspect admitted to investigators that he belongs to the al-Qaida-linked Abdullah Azzam Brigades and is in charge of an armed group that works under its umbrella, said the communique. The man confirmed that he had been trained on the use of arms and the preparation of explosives, and was active in recruiting fighters and providing them with financial and logistics support. He also told General Security officers that he had participated in the battles against the Lebanese army in the Abra suburb of the southern city of Sidon.
The June 2013 battles pitted the army against gunmen loyal to radical cleric Sheikh Ahmed al-Asir, who is in custody. The suspect was referred to the judiciary to take the appropriate action against him.

Syria Regime Forces, Hizbullah Capture Key Southern Rebel Town
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/January 26/16/Syrian pro-government forces captured a strategic southern rebel town close to the Jordanian border after weeks of fighting, a monitor said on Tuesday. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said regime troops and allied fighters, including Hizbullah members and Iranian officers, "seized control of Sheikh Miskeen" with the help of Russian and Syrian government air strikes. The town, in Daraa province, lies on a vital crossroads between Damascus to the north and the government-controlled city of Sweida to the east. It is 12 kilometers (seven miles) from the rebel stronghold of Nawa, another key target for regime forces. A security source had told Agence France Presse the Sheikh Miskeen was a "launching pad" for rebel operations, and one of the opposition's "centers of gravity for the whole of Daraa province". He said seizing control of the town would sever a rebel supply route to areas under opposition control around Damascus. Last month, government troops captured the Brigade 82 base outside the town, and they have since been pushing to capture Sheikh Miskeen.Most of Daraa province is controlled by opposition forces, though the government holds parts of the provincial capital and a few villages in the northwest.

Report: Hizbullah Continues to Back Aoun as President Despite Competitions in Race
Naharnet/January 26/16/A Hizbullah delegation led by senior official Wafiq Safa visited the founder of the Free Patriotic Movement MP Michel Aoun and reiterated the party's adamant stance in backing him for the top state post despite other competitors in the presidential race, An Nahar daily reported on Tuesday. The newspaper said that Safa has restated “the party's unwavering backing for Aoun even if the Marada chief MP Suleiman Franjieh remained a candidate.” Aoun, a March 8 nominee, has been lately nominated by his long time rival from March 14 camp Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea who withdrew his nomination in favor of Aoun. The move was analyzed by observers as a reaction to the nomination of Franjieh by al-Mustaqbal movement chief Saad Hariri late last year, which was met by reservation from the LF, Kataeb and FPM. The Hizbullah delegation assured Aoun, during the visit which the paper said came 48 hours following the Maarab rapprochement, that “any parliamentary sessions that convenes with quorum will end up electing Aoun even if Hizbullah prefers not to take part in a session where the two candidates for the post are from the March 8.” Furthermore, An Nahar daily quoted sources of the FPM, MPs of the Change and Reform bloc and allies “will not participate in a parliament session that does not guarantee to get Aoun to the post,” and that this stance “has been coordinated with Hizbullah following the Maarab rapprochement.” “Hizbullah's positions has not changed on nominating Aoun. It is useless to wait for a statement from Hizbullah declaring otherwise. The words of Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah were clear in that regard and he has reiterated more than once that the party's candidate is Aoun.”Lebanon has been without a president since the term of President Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014. The 35th parliament session has been scheduled on February 8 to elect a successor with conflicting reports speculating that it will meet the same fate as its predecessors.

Cheap Loans Proposed to Lebanon, Other Hosts to Ease Aid Gap in Refugee Crisis
Associated Press/Naharnet/January 26/16/Faced with a chronic shortfall in Syria aid, the World Bank and other donors are promoting new ideas, including interest-free development loans for the hard-hit Middle Eastern countries that are hosting most refugees.The idea was discussed at a meeting with top officials from regional host countries on Monday, ahead of next week's Syria pledging conference, where aid agencies and regional governments are expected to seek close to $9 billion for 2016. The appeal at the Feb. 4 conference in London would include $3.18 billion to alleviate suffering inside Syria and $5.75 billion for close to 4.3 million war refugees and their regional host countries, among them Jordan and Lebanon, according to U.N. figures. Last year's aid request of more than $8 billion was only half-funded, a gap that forced cuts in vital food and cash aid for refugees in regional host countries and was seen as one of the triggers for the influx of hundreds of thousands of displaced Syrians to Europe last year. The shortfalls have led to a search for a new approach, including shifting from what has largely been humanitarian relief to funding development programs, such as building schools, hospitals and water networks in overburdened host countries. The London conference is also expected to discuss ways to put more refugees to work and make them less dependent on aid — a hot-button issue in Jordan and Lebanon, where unemployment is high. On Monday, representatives from the World Bank, the Islamic Development Bank and the U.N. met with top officials from refugee host countries to gauge the response to the idea of loans, potentially with zero interest, to Jordan and Lebanon to help narrow funding gaps.The idea was first raised last year, but more details were presented at Monday's closed-door meeting in the Jordanian capital of Amman. "We are faced with a reality that grants are not infinite," Ferid Belhaj, the World Bank director for the Middle East, told The Associated Press. In such a climate, inexpensive loans are the next best option for Jordan and Lebanon, he said on the sidelines of the meeting. Belhaj said he expects vigorous debate over how much Jordan and Lebanon would be expected to borrow.
"The politics of it are very heavy," he said in a separate phone interview last week."So we need to wait for all the stars to get aligned and ... the donors showing how much they are ready to put on the table, and based on that see what the Lebanese and the Jordanians will be willing to accept in terms of borrowing," he said. The two countries have argued that they pay a high economic price for providing a global public good — hosting large numbers of refugees — and that the world must do more to help them.About 1.2 million Syrian refugees have been registered in Lebanon and about 630,000 in Jordan.
Imad Fakhoury, the Jordanian planning minister, said Monday that he expects the international community to step up in London and provide "substantively more support and resources for countries that are about to enter the sixth year of the crisis." Jordan welcomes potential offers of concessionary financing, including for development programs that the country had to put on hold after the 2011 start of the Syria crisis, he said. However, Jordan expects grants — not loans — to address the needs of refugees and of host communities in Jordan that had to absorb large numbers of displaced Syrians. "We will not borrow, as a country, to fund priorities related to the Syrian refugees," Fakhoury told AP. Meanwhile, the head of the International Labor Organization, Guy Ryder, is visiting Jordan later this week to talk to government officials about labor rights for refugees — a key component of the aid debate. Largely barred from working legally, many Syrian refugees in Jordan and Lebanon work in informal day jobs for low wages. As an interim step, the ILO has called for work permits for Syrians in sectors that have trouble attracting locals, such as agriculture and construction in Jordan.

Hizbullah, Mustaqbal Say Political Debate Must 'Preserve Civil Peace', Urge Activating Cabinet
Naharnet/January 26/16/Hizbullah and al-Mustaqbal movement stressed Monday the need to “address the points of contention” in the country in a “calm and responsible” manner and to activate the work of the paralyzed cabinet.
The conferees “discussed the points of contention among the parties and means to address them through a calm and responsible political debate, in a manner that would preserve and enhance civil peace,” said a joint statement issued by the two parties after their 23rd dialogue session in Ain al-Tineh. They also agreed to “activate the work of the government and give a chance for addressing people's affairs,” the terse statement added.On Sunday, senior Hizbullah official Sheikh Nabil Qaouq strongly criticized Mustaqbal over its ties with Saudi Arabia and support for the Syrian uprising against President Bashar Assad. A Saudi-Iranian war of words has been raging for several weeks now after Riyadh executed prominent Shiite dissident Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr and angry Iranian protesters torched the Saudi embassy in Tehran. The tensions between Riyadh and Tehran have led to an exchange of tirades in Lebanon between Saudi Arabia and Iran's main allies in the country – Mustaqbal and Hizbullah.

Lebanese Swedish Employee Fatally Stabbed by Migrant in Sweden
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/January 26/16/Lebanese Swedish employee Alexandra Pierre Mezher has been killed at the hands of a migrant in Sweden, Lebanon's National News Agency reported on Monday. It said the 22-year-old victim hailed from the town of Qlayaa in the southern Marjeyoun district.
Earlier on Monday, Agence France-Presse said a young asylum seeker stabbed and killed a female employee of the refugee center for unaccompanied minors where he was staying in western Sweden, quoting Swedish police. The 22-year-old victim was rushed to a nearby hospital but died of her wounds, police said.Police would not comment on the identity or nationality of the alleged attacker, except to say that he was a young man who was a resident of the center for 14- to 17-year-olds. He was under arrest for murder. "These kinds of calls are becoming more and more common. We're dealing with more incidents like these since the arrival of so many more refugees from abroad," police spokesman Thomas Fuxborg said. Sweden, like the rest of Europe, has been struggling with the continent's biggest migration crisis since World War II. A country of 9.8 million, Sweden took in more than 160,000 asylum seekers in 2015, which put it among the EU states with the highest proportion of refugees per capita. It has since tightened its asylum rules to curb the migrant flow.

Bassil Says Arab States Understand Lebanon's 'Neutral Stance'
Naharnet/January 26/16/Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil stressed Monday that the Arab countries have started to understand Lebanon's “neutral stance” towards the events in the region, days after al-Mustaqbal movement accused the ministry of breaching “Arab consensus.”“We are sensing understanding of Lebanon's neutral stance but sometimes this issue infuriates certain parties because each party wants to take us in a certain direction,” Bassil told reporters in Abu Dhabi on the sidelines of an Arab League consultative meeting. “In the end, this stance will protect Lebanon and its importance will be understood in the long run,” the minister added. Asked about Arab appreciation of Lebanon's so-called dissociation policy, Bassil said: “They appreciated it to a great extent, but the ongoing incitement which originated in Lebanon is creating an atmosphere in the media that is distorting the Lebanese stance and misleading public opinion.” "The Arab issues, including the Saudi-Iranian dispute, are weighing heavily on the entire Arab political life. But we believe that through its neutral stance, Lebanon can preserve its own national unity and become an effective example that can play a positive role” in the region, Bassil added.
On Friday, Lebanon's Foreign Ministry stressed that its decision to abstain from voting on a statement condemning Iran during a meeting for the world's top Muslim body was in line with Lebanon's dissociation policy as well as with the stances that were voiced during the last national dialogue session. Its clarifications come after al-Mustaqbal movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri and Mustaqbal bloc chief MP Fouad Saniora strongly criticized the decision to abstain from voting and described it as a breach of Arab consensus on supporting Saudi Arabia. The statement of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation condemned “the aggressions against the missions of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Tehran and Mashhad." It followed an extraordinary meeting requested by Saudi Arabia after protesters in Iran in early January set fire to the embassy in Tehran and a consulate in the second city of Mashhad.
The violence against Riyadh's missions occurred after Saudi Arabia executed prominent dissident Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr, a driving force behind anti-government protests in the kingdom.

Rouhani Pitches Iran as Safest Country in Middle East
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/January 26/16/President Hassan Rouhani on Tuesday described Iran as the safest and most stable country in the Middle East as he urged international investors to help modernize the country's sanctions-hit economy. On the second day of a landmark visit to Europe, the Iranian leader also pitched the Islamic Republic's potential for companies seeking a base in a region of 300 million people and vowed the government would never interfere in private business deals. "Iran is the safest, the most stable country in the entire region," Rouhani told an audience of Italian and Iranian business executives on his first overseas trip since the lifting of sanctions linked to Tehran's nuclear program. "Everyone understood that the nuclear negotiations represented a win-win situation for both sides," Rouhani said. "Now we have created the conditions for investment and for the transfer of know-how. There has to be an advantage for both sides: we invite you to invest and we will provide stability and ensure that you can make adequate returns."Rouhani emphasized that all sections of Iran's often-divided political class were firmly behind the post-sanctions drive to secure the trade and investment needed to create new roads, rail links, airports and other infrastructure. The vision was to transform Iran into a hub for intra-regional economic development, linking the Middle East to South Asia and even the Western fringes of China. "Do not regard us as just one country but as a country at the center of a much larger market," Rouhani said, citing the example of the port of Chabahar on Iran's southern coast. Iran is seeking international investment to help complete a port which will provide a gateway for Indian companies seeking to do business in Afghanistan and Central Asia, as well as in Iran. He vowed Tehran would do nothing to jeopardize its stability and said economic growth could help beat terrorism in the region. "We have no intention of attacking or invading any other country. We have no intention of interfering in the affairs of any other country. "A lack of development creates the conditions for extremism, unemployment recruits soldiers for terrorism," he argued. Italy was Iran's largest European trade partner before the impact of sanctions shrunk annual exchanges from over seven billion euros ($7.58 billion) to 1.6 billion last year. Italian companies are now scrambling to get back into the country. They have got off to a strong start with some 17 billion euros worth of contracts signed on the first day of Rouhani's visit on Monday. Riccardo Monti, the president of the Italian Trade Agency, warned that business leaders could not afford to be complacent. "This country has an enormous need of investment, expertise and a great desire for Italy," he said. "If an Iranian entrepreneur has a choice, he chooses to do business with Italians. But there is a queue forming in Iran. We have a little advantage at the moment and we have to make the most of it." Moshen Jalapour, the president of Iran's Chamber of Commerce, said Monday's deals were only a first step and urged Western companies to start sending more specialist trade delegations to Tehran.

Grandson of Iran’s Khomeini excluded from elections
AFP, Tehran Tuesday, 26 January 2016/The grandson of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, founder of the Islamic Republic on Iran, has been excluded from contesting elections next month, his son said Tuesday. Hassan Khomeini, a 43-year-old cleric with close ties to Iranian reformists, was not verified as having sufficient religious competence by the Guardian Council, his son Ahmad said on his Instagram account, despite "testimony from dozens of religious authorities". Khomeini had hoped to be a candidate for election to the Assembly of Experts, a clerical group which is responsible for monitoring the work of Iran's current supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khameni, and will be responsible for selecting his successor. Elections to the Assembly and for parliament will take place on February 26.

American pastor freed by Iran says he was tortured
Reuters Tuesday, 26 January 2016/Saeed Abedini, an American pastor freed this month from an Iranian prison as part of a U.S.-Iranian prisoner swap, said in a television interview aired on Monday that he was tortured and left in solitary confinement for refusing to sign a false confession and saw other prisoners being taken to be hanged. Abedini told Fox News that while in Tehran's Evin prison he was beaten by interrogators, left with an al Qaeda prisoner who tried to kill him and watched people screaming and crying while taken to be hanged. "Yes, in interrogation once they beat me very badly because they wanted me to write something I didn't do ... Actually it was in a courtroom that the judge closed the door and the interrogators started beating me, and at that time I got a stomach bleeding," he told Fox News. "The worst thing that I saw was when they took some Sunnis for execution...Most of them were Sunnis, some of them were political prisoners.... I can say most were executed for their faith." Abedini was supposed to be reunited with his wife and children on Monday at a Christian center in North Carolina, but it was delayed because the family's travel plans have been "in flux day-to-day," a spokesman for the center said. The Billy Graham Training Center at the Cove, founded by the famed evangelical minister and his family, said Abedini wanted time to adjust and reconnect with his family after more than three years of imprisonment in Iran. Abedini's wife, Naghmeh, told Reuters last week the couple would work on their marriage. She said in a message to supporters that became public that her husband had been abusive and suffered from a pornography addiction. Abedini arrived at the Asheville, North Carolina, center on Thursday. He and his avid supporter Franklin Graham, Billy Graham's son, have so far declined comment. Abedini, 35, a naturalized U.S. citizen, was sentenced by an Iranian court in 2013 to eight years in prison for allegedly compromising Iran's national security by setting up home-based Christian churches there. Abedini was one of five Americans released by Iran in exchange for clemency to seven Iranians who were convicted or facing trial in the United States. The swap was announced at the same time as international sanctions on Iran were lifted in a deal with the United States and other major powers to curb Tehran's nuclear program.

Rowhani from Italy: trade could beat extremism
Steve Scherer and Antonella Cinelli, Reuters, Rome Tuesday, 26 January 2016/Generating economic growth in the Middle East is crucial to defeating extremism, Iranian President Hassan Rowhani said on Tuesday, putting forward his country as a regional trade hub and pillar of stability. Rowhani is on a four-day trip to Italy and France, looking to rebuild Iranian relations with the West some two weeks after financial sanctions on Tehran were rolled back in the wake of its nuclear accord with world powers last year. Italy announced some 17 billion euros ($18.4 billion) of business deals with Iran on Monday. Mega contracts are also in the offing in France, reflecting EU countries’ keenness to cash in on the diplomatic thaw with the Islamic Republic. Underscoring the growing warmth, Rowhani said he expected Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi to visit Iran in the coming months to help boost bilateral economic alliances. “We are ready to welcome investment, welcome technology and create a new export market,” Rowhani told a business forum on the second day of his visit to Rome, saying Iran had ambitions to develop its own economy after years of curbs and hardship. “Under the new conditions, we want to export 30 percent of what we produce in Iran.” Italy has rolled out the red carpet to Rowhani and his 120-strong delegation of business leaders and government ministers, seeing Shi'ite Muslim Tehran as a possible partner in the battle against ISIS. “If we want to combat extremism in the world, if we want to fight terror, one of the roads before us is providing growth and jobs. Lack of growth creates forces for terrorism. Unemployment creates soldiers for terrorists,” Rowhani said.
‘Strategic alliance’ eyed
Many Western nations accuse Iran of funding various militant groups that are on U.S. and EU terror blacklists. Despite Iran's deal with world powers to curb its disputed nuclear program, the United States is keeping some of its financial sanctions in place because of its links to organizations such as Hezbollah.
Any such criticism has barely been heard in Rome, with the government eager to welcome Iran as a potentially positive force in an increasingly fragmented Middle East. “We are not looking at simple reactivation of our cooperation with Iran, but rather a comprehensive relaunch of a strategic alliance,” Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni told the business conference. Among the deals signed on Monday were a $4 billion contract for oil services group Saipem, up to 5.7 billion euros in contracts for steel firm Danieli, up to 4 billion euros of business for infrastructure firm Condotte d’Acqua, 4 billion euros for rail and road company Gavio and 400 million euros for planes from Finmeccanica. Industry Minister Federica Guidi told la Repubblica newspaper that the total value of the contracts could exceed the 17 billion euros initially indicated by the government. Two large Italian business delegations went to Tehran soon after the nuclear deal was inked last year. Another such group is scheduled to visit Iran from Feb. 8 to 10. ($1 = 0.9224 euros)

Moscow denies asking Assad to step down
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Tuesday, 26 January 2016/Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was not asked to step down by Russia, nor did Moscow offer him political asylum, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday. "In both cases, the answer is: 'No'," Lavrov told his annual news conference. "This is untrue... No one asked about political asylum, and no one offered anything of the kind."His remarks came after reports that a late Russian general was sent to by President Vladimir Putin to ask Assad to step down – news that Putin has already denied. Lavrov also said ISIS militants were building up influence in Afghanistan. He also insisted that U.N.-backed Syria talks planned to start later this week will not be successful if Kurdish representatives are not invited. "Without this participant the talks cannot achieve the results that we want, a definitive political resolution in Syria," Lavrov said, adding, however, that it was up to U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura to decide which opposition groups to invite to the talks. He said that some participants of the Syria peace process had been "capricious" by refusing to negotiate. "When there are attempts to put conditions for collective fight against terrorism, conditions that are irrelevant, such as 'if you agree to a regime change, for example, in Syria, then we will for real begin to fight terrorism collectively' ... that is, I believe, the biggest mistake," Lavrov said.

Deadly truck bomb explodes in Syria’s Aleppo
AFP, Beirut Tuesday, 26 January 2016/At least 23 people, most of them from the Ahrar al-Sham rebel group, were killed by a truck suicide bomber in Syria’s Aleppo city on Monday, a monitor said. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 19 fighters from the group and four civilians were killed in the blast in the Sukari district of the city. The attack hit an Ahrar al-Sham checkpoint at the entrance to a security complex belonging to the group. The Observatory said several prisoners being held by Ahrar al-Sham at a facility in the complex were also believed to have been killed, but it had no immediate toll. The blast destroyed three buildings, and people were missing under the rubble, the monitor added. It was unclear who was responsible for the blast, but Ahrar al-Sham has been targeted by assassinations in the past. In September 2014, most of its top leadership was wiped out in a devastating explosion at its headquarters in Idlib province that killed nearly 50 people. And more recently, the group has seen several of its commanders among a string of Islamist rebels killed in mysterious targeted killings. The attacks have not been claimed, and suspicion has fallen on either the regime or the Islamic State group, which considers all forces that have not pledged allegiance to it to be rivals. Also on Monday, an Ahrar al-Sham commander and 11 members of his family were killed in a Russian air strike on village between northern Idlib and western Aleppo province, the Observatory said. The monitor said three children were among the dead, but gave no further details about the commander. Ahrar al-Sham is one of Syria’s most powerful rebel groups, and is a leading member of the Army of Conquest alliance that controls Idlib province along with al-Qaeda affiliate al-Nusra Front.

Syria opposition to meet in Riyadh, casts doubt on talks
Reuters, Amman/Beirut Tuesday, 26 January 2016/The Syrian opposition cast doubt on whether it would go to peace talks planned for Friday, throwing U.N. diplomatic efforts into question and accusing the United States of adopting Iranian and Russian ideas for solving the conflict. The opposition was meeting on Tuesday to decide whether to attend the talks which U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura aims to open in Geneva on Friday, ushering in months of negotiations with delegates in separate rooms. Opposition official Asaad al-Zoubi told Arabic news channel Al-Hadath that he was pessimistic, though the final decision would be taken at the opposition meeting in Riyadh. De Mistura was expected to issue invitations on Tuesday. “It’s going to be very low-key proximity talks,” U.N. spokesman Ahmad Fawzi told journalists in Geneva. A Western diplomat said the aim was to get the talks started without further delay. “There is a little bit of fear that if the talks don’t start soon they’ll never really get going.” The Syrian government, which is taking territory from the rebels with the help of Russian air strikes and Iranian ground forces, has already said it will attend. The opposition comprising the recently formed High Negotiations Committee (HNC) has however repeatedly said the government and its allies must halt bombardments and lift blockades of besieged areas before they will go to any talks. Zoubi, who is due to head the opposition delegation to any negotiations, told Reuters that without the implementation of goodwill steps including release of detainees “there will be no negotiations”. “This is what the HNC has laid down,” he said.
Reflecting opposition misgivings about the process, he told Al-Hadath that U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had tabled Iranian and Russian ideas about Syria at a recent meeting with opposition leader Riad Hijab. “It was not comfortable for us for America - even in theory or partially - to adopt what came in the Iranian and Russian initiatives,” Zoubi said in the interview. He also heaped criticism on de Mistura, saying the U.N. Syria envoy “cannot impose conditions” on the opposition. The U.S. Special Envoy for Syria, Michael Ratney, urged the opposition to attend the talks. “Our advice to the Syrian opposition is to take advantage of this opportunity to put the intentions of the regime to the test and to expose in front of international public opinion which are the parties serious in reaching a political settlement in Syria and which are not,” he said. Lost legitimacy. The United States has supported the opposition to President Bashar al-Assad, who it says has lost legitimacy and must leave power. But the opposition has been increasingly critical of U.S. policy. Hijab said earlier this month the United States had backtracked on its position over Syria, softening its stance to accommodate Russia. Preparations for the talks have been beset by problems including a dispute over who should represent the opposition. Russia has sought to expand the opposition delegation to include a powerful Kurdish faction that controls wide areas of northern Syria. The Sunni Arab opposition say the Kurdish PYD party should be part of the government delegation. De Mistura has said the Geneva meeting will aim to kick off six months of talks, first seeking a ceasefire, later working towards a political settlement to a war that has killed more than 250,000 people and forced than 10 million to flee. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday it would be impossible to reach a peace agreement in Syria without inviting Kurds to take part in the negotiating process. It would be “unfair” and “counter-productive” to stop Syrian Kurds from taking part in the peace talks, Lavrov said. He also said some participants of the peace process had been “capricious” in refusing to negotiate. Turkey, a major sponsor of the insurgency, however said it was against the participation of the Kurdish YPG militia which is affiliated to the PYD. The YPG has become an important partner in the U.S.-led fight against Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Turkey views the YPG as an extension of the PKK, which it sees as a terrorist organization. “Those who are recognizing them as a legitimate partner, they don’t live in the reality of the region, nobody can convince us that these people are for peace,” Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told CNN. The Syrian government and its allies have made significant gains against rebels in western Syria in recent weeks. On Monday they captured the rebel-held town of Sheikh Maskin in southern Syria near the border with Jordan. It was the first significant gain for Damascus in that area since the start of the Russian intervention on Sept. 30. In recent weeks government forces and their allies have also captured two strategic towns in the northwestern province of Latakia, where they are trying to seal the border to cut insurgent supply lines to Turkey.

Russia: Syrian strikes have helped ‘turn around’ situation
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Tuesday, 26 January 2016/Air strikes by the Russian military in support of forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad have helped turn the tide in Syria, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday. Lavrov said that the Russian air force’s strikes had “really helped to turn around the situation in the country, helped towards reducing the territory controlled by terrorists” since Moscow launched a bombing campaign at Assad’s request on September 30. Russia’s top diplomat also denied reports that Russia had asked long-time ally Assad to step down and offered him political asylum. “This is not true,” Lavrov said of media reports that Russia’s late military intelligence chief Igor Sergun had travelled to Syria to ask Assad to resign. “No one asked for political asylum and no one offered anything of the kind.” Lavrov also said that no-one has ever supplied proof that Russian air strikes in Syria caused civilian deaths or struck the wrong militant groups, He said the Russian military went to great lengths to avoid civilian casualties in Syria. Russia has staunchly supported Assad’s beleaguered regime and said that his removal could not be a prerequisite for a deal to end the conflict, which has left more than 260,000 people dead and millions displaced. The West has accused Russia - whose jets carried out more than 5,000 combat sorties in Syria last year - of mainly targeting moderate rebels fighting the Assad regime as well as inflicting civilian casualties. Moscow meanwhile insists it is tackling “terrorist” groups such as Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Forces backing Assad have recently made several key gains on the ground. Regime forces backed up by several dozen Russian air strikes overnight captured the rebel stronghold of Sheikh Miskeen close to the border with Jordan, the British-based monitor Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Tuesday. Russian planes from Friday to Sunday carried out 169 flights, bombing almost 500 targets, the Russian defense ministry said Monday. Talks aiming to end the brutal war that has lasted almost five years are set to begin in Geneva on Friday after delays due to disagreements over who would represent the splintered opposition, United Nations envoy Staffan de Mistura told reporters. (With AFP and Reuters)

Turkey ‘against’ Kurdish PYD joining Syria talks
Agencies Tuesday, 26 January 2016/Turkey on Tuesday said it strongly opposes the Syrian Kurdish group Democratic Union Party (PYD) taking part in U.N.-backed talks planned for later this week seeking a political solution to the Syrian crisis. “We are categorically against the YPG and PYD sitting at the table,” Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told ruling party's lawmakers in parliament. Turkey considers the PYD and its military wing the People's Protection Units (YPG) to be offshoots of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) which wages an armed insurgency against Ankara.
Meanwhile, the Syrian opposition cast doubt on whether it would go to peace talks planned for Friday, throwing U.N. diplomatic efforts into question and accusing the United States of adopting Iranian and Russian ideas for solving the conflict. Opposition official Asaad al-Zoubi told Al Arabiya’s Al-Hadath News Channel that he was pessimistic, though the final decision would be taken at the opposition meeting in Riyadh.
France: opposition must lead
France’s foreign ministry also said on Tuesdy that the Syrian opposition platform created in Riyadh last month must lead proposed talks with the Syrian government. “The opposition group created in Riyadh gathers for the first time a large spectrum of politicians and non-jihadist military that are committed around a common project for a free, democratic and inclusive Syria,” ministry spokesman Romain Nadal said in a daily briefing to reporters. “It is therefore up to this group to be the interlocutor of the regime in these negotiations.”Nadal was responding to a question on whether Kurdish fighters should be part of talks expected to begin on Friday, as Russia has called for. (With AFP, Reuters)

Syrian regime forces capture key southern town
AFP, Beirut Tuesday, 26 January 2016/Syrian pro-government forces captured a strategic southern rebel town close to the Jordanian border after weeks of fighting, a monitor said on Tuesday. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said regime troops and allied militia including fighters from Lebanon's Hezbollah movement and Iranian officers "seized control of Sheikh Miskeen" overnight with the help of Russian and Syrian government air strikes.The town, in Daraa province, lies on a vital crossroads between Damascus to the north and the government-controlled city of Sweida to the east. It is 12 kilometers from the rebel stronghold of Nawa, another key target for regime forces. A security source had told Agence Feance-Presse the Sheikh Miskeen was a "launching pad" for rebel operations, and one of the opposition's "centres of gravity for the whole of Daraa province". He said seizing control of the town would sever a rebel supply route to areas under opposition control around Damascus. Last month, government troops captured the Brigade 82 base outside the town, and they have since been pushing to capture Sheikh Miskeen. Most of Daraa province is controlled by opposition forces, though the government holds parts of the provincial capital and a few villages in the northwest. At least 17 people have been killed in a double suicide bomb blast at an army checkpoint in the Syrian city of Homs, the provincial governor said. Talal Barazi told AFP that a first suicide bomber detonated explosives while in a car at the checkpoint and a second set off another blast a few moments later.

Deadly bomb hits army checkpoint in Syria’s Homs
AFP, Damascus Tuesday, 26 January 2016/At least 22 people were killed in a double suicide bomb attack at an army checkpoint in the central Syrian city of Homs on Tuesday, state media said. In a breaking news alert, state television said 100 people had also been injured in the blasts in the Al-Zahraa neighborhood of the city, which has been targeted in bomb attacks multiple times before. The provincial governor of Homs, Talal Barazi, told AFP at least 19 people had been killed in the attacks. He said the two bombers appeared to have pulled up at the army checkpoint in a car together, with one exiting the vehicle before the other detonated his explosives while still inside. In the chaos of the first blast's aftermath, and as a crowd gathered, the second bomber detonated his explosives, Barazi said. The hardline militant group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it had killed at least 30 people. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, also reported the blasts, saying at least 21 people had been killed, among them 13 regime forces. The group's director Rami Abdel Rahman said the second suicide bomber had been wearing military clothes. The Al-Zahraa district of Homs has been targeted in multiple bomb attacks in the past, including in late December, when 19 people were killed in several simultaneous blasts. The residents of Al-Zahraa are mostly Alawites, the minority sect of Syria's ruling clan, and ISIS group has in the past claimed attacks on the district. Homs city was once dubbed the "capital" of Syria's uprising, which began with anti-government protests in March 2011. But after years of devastating fighting and government sieges, most of the city is now back in regime hands, with the exception of the Waer district, which is being gradually turned over to the government under a deal with opposition fighters.

U.S.-led coalition conducts 18 strikes against ISIS
Reuters, Washington Tuesday, 26 January 2016/The coalition of the United States and its allies conducted 18 strikes against ISIS in Iraq and Syria on Monday, the group said. In a statement released on Tuesday, the Combined Joint Task Force said three strikes in three cities in Syria hit a tactical unit, a headquarters building and destroyed two cranes. Separately in Iraq, 15 strikes near six cities hit vehicles, a bulldozer and a fuel tanker; destroyed fighting positions, mortar systems and a weapons cache; and denied access to terrain, the statement said.

Self-proclaimed ISIS ‘emir’ on trial in UAE
Staff writer, Al Arabiya News Tuesday, 26 January 2016/An Emirati man accused of seeking to carry out attacks on targets including Abu Dhabi’s Formula 1 circuit claimed to be the local leader of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group, newspapers reported on Tuesday, citing a Federal Supreme court hearing. A prosecution witness told the court that an Emirati and his wife had taken an oath of allegiance to ISIS through social media, Gulf News reported. He was married to Alaa Bader al-Hashemi, an Emirati woman executed in July for the militant-inspired murder of U.S. school teacher Ibolya Ryan, 47, in the washroom of an Abu Dhabi shopping mall in December 2014. The witness said the defendant’s computers showed he used speeches of ISIS leader Abu Baqr Al-Baghdadi and late head of Al-Qaeda Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi to spread the radical militant ideology among youth and recruit them.
“The man set up a website named ‘the media battalion’ to promote the terrorist ideology of these terrorist organizations and recruit young people for them,” the witness added. Another witness said the defendant’s computers had software to log on to sites teaching people how to make explosives with plans to target a shopping mall, a military site and to assassinate a leader. Meanwhile, The National daily cited a witness as telling a court during the trial that the defendant and his wife had performed a “symbolic ceremony to pledge allegiance” to Al-Baghdadi. International media are not allowed access to the trial of the man, 34, at the Federal Supreme court in the UAE capital, which has upped security measures since the wave of Arab Spring protests that swept the region in 2011. He is charged with joining ISIS and plotting attacks on Abu Dhabi’s Formula 1 circuit. He is reportedly also accused of plotting to attack the Abu Dhabi branch of furniture chain Ikea, as well as preparing to assassinate an unspecified Emirati leader. The United Arab Emirates is a member of the U.S.-led coalition that has been bombing ISIS since September 2014. UAE authorities have enacted tougher anti-terror legislation, including harsher jail terms and even introducing the death penalty for crimes linked to religious hatred and “takfiri groups.”(With AFP)

Tunisia to relax curfew as security improves
The Associated Press, Tunis Tuesday, 26 January 2016/Tunisia is relaxing a nationwide curfew imposed last week in the face of widespread protests by youths demanding jobs. The curfew will now only be enforced from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., two hours less than before. The government cited an improved security situation in the country. The curfew went into force Friday after protests by unemployed young people spread nationwide. The protests were triggered by the death of a young man in the city of Kasserine who was electrocuted when he climbed a transmission tower to protest losing out on a government job.

The truth about the Saudi executions
Nawaf Obaid/Al-Monitor/January 26/16
Saudi Arabia's execution of 47 accused terrorists on Jan. 2 drew extensive condemnation in the United States. Further, because four of the men executed were Shiites, including in particular Shiite religious leader Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, Saudi Arabia's embassy in Tehran and consulate general in Mashhad were stormed the same day and set ablaze by rioting Iranian Basij and others. In response to these incidents, Saudi Arabia and many of its Arab allies severed diplomatic relations with Iran. Yet, in the face of criticism by US officials and pundits trying to twist the executions into an example of the state-sanctioned killing of innocent people, or a case of Sunni sectarian actions against a Shiite minority, the truth needs to be told: The 47 men executed were proven terrorists and criminals, all of whom had committed or inspired murder, and many of whom had direct links to al-Qaeda or the terrorist Shiite group Hezbollah al-Hejaz (Saudi Hezbollah).
The al-Qaeda links were established legal fact. Indeed, 43 of those executed were tied to the men who carried out 9/11. They had been fighters, recruiters, senior commanders and theologians in the terrorist group behind the horrors of the attacks on the World Trade Center, United Flight 93 and the Pentagon. Furthermore, they had been part of the local Saudi branch of al-Qaeda that carried out a series of terrorist attacks between 2003 and 2006 in the kingdom in an attempt to foment mass murder on a scale equal to or beyond 9/11. Although these attempts ultimately failed, they nevertheless led to the deaths of numerous civilians, including many Americans.
As noted, some critics have characterized the Saudi executions as an act of Sunni sectarian violence against members of a Shiite minority primarily because one of those executed, Nimr, was a renowned cleric in the Shiite enclave of Qatif. Leaving aside that only 4 of the 47 men killed were Shiites, thus totally debunking the accusations of sectarian violence, a closer look at Nimr suggests that he was nothing like the peaceful activist campaigning against an authoritarian monarchy and discrimination depicted in the press by certain White House officials. He was in fact a political extremist linked to a known terrorist group and numerous killings. In the words of Tawfiq al-Sayf, a prominent Shiite activist in Saudi Arabia, Nimr was fomenting a “Shi‘a equivalent of ISIS.”
In his public life, Nimr had been closely tied to Hezbollah al-Hejaz, the armed, avowedly Khomeinist group established in Qatif and active in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, Kuwait and Bahrain. As a leadership figure in the organization, Nimr consistently preached that the Sunni ruling dynasties in the three countries were illegitimate and called for armed struggle against the Saudi government. Hezbollah al-Hejaz carried out the 1996 Khobar Towers bombing that killed 20 US service personnel and injured 498 people of various nationalities. The four senior members who led the attack, and who are on the FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorists list, subsequently fled to Iran and continue to live there in hiding with the support of the mullahs in Tehran. The plot recently thickened.
On Aug. 26, 2015, it was announced that Saudi intelligence officers had apprehended Ahmed Ibrahim al-Mughassil, leader of the Hezbollah al-Hejaz cell that carried out the Khobar Towers bombing, in a sting operation in Beirut. Since being whisked away under the eyes of Lebanese Hezbollah, Mughassil has been in Saudi custody divulging details about who carried out the Khobar bombings and how they did it. According to a Saudi security official who spoke on condition of anonymity, Mughassil has provided information on the structure of the organization, its funders, its members and its covert links to the current Iranian leadership. Mughassil fingered Nimr as a leading fundraiser, recruiter and facilitator for Hezbollah al-Hejaz in Qatif and Bahrain.
Prior to his execution, Nimr had been directly implicated in the shooting deaths of several Saudi police officers in late 2011, early 2012. Three of his young followers admitted that they had been inspired by Nimr's teachings and directly encouraged by him when they attended a “diwaniya” (gathering) in his home village of Awamiya, in Qatif. Nimr and the three accused killers were subsequently arrested. Convicted of several acts of murder by Saudi courts, they are the four Shiites the kingdom executed.
Perhaps Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan best summed up the mood in Saudi Arabia and most of the Muslim world when he said, “The same people who keep silent during mass killings are now trying to stir up the world over the execution of one person. Four hundred thousand [Syrian] people have been killed … You can never justify yourselves.” Executions like those carried out Jan. 2 will continue as Saudi Arabia attempts to defend itself against terrorists. Mughassil, whose horrific crimes will eventually be made public, will most likely be among those executed. In time, such revelations may come as an embarrassment to the Barack Obama administration, which given the Iranian nuclear deal, seems much more concerned about legacy building than prosecuting Tehran-backed terrorists who have taken countless American lives.

Another Israeli woman is dead after Palestinians attacked Beit Horon with knives. They also carried bombs
DEBKAfile Special Report/January 26, 2016
For the third time in 10 days, Palestinian terrorists Monday, Jan. 25, infiltrated an Israeli village for murder. This time, they stabbed two women shopping in the grocery of Beit Horon, which is located on Route 443 between Modi’in and Jerusalem. Shlomit Krugman, 24, from Shdemot Mehola, later died of her wounds in hospital. The second woman is in serious condition. The killers also carried three bombs, a significant escalation in the current Palestinian terror campaign. They were shot dead by a security guard before they could detonate them.
Last week, Palestinian terrorists murdered a mother of 6 at Othniel and injured a pregnant woman at Tekoa. Monday, the two knifemen also planned to blow up buildings with people. They were later found to have come from the neighboring village of Beit Ur a-Tachta and the Kalandia refugee camp..
debkafile pointed to the following conclusions immediately after the episode Monday night:
1) How did the terrorists manage to break through the fence enclosing Beit Horon without sounding the alarm?
2) They were clearly familiar with the layout of the village and made straight for the store to reach their targets.
3) The Palestinians were not satisfied with stabbing women, but planned to round off their murders with an explosion for more casualties.
4) Route 443, as one of the two main highways linking the capital, Jerusalem, to the rest of the country should be much better secured than it is. However, each time traffic or soldiers at checkpoints are attacked by Palestinians, security measures for keeping the route safe prove inadequate.
5) This attack bore the hallmarks of am organized terrorist operation. It will be hard for IDF and Defense Ministry spokesman to continue to dismiss the wave of Palestinian terror ongoing since September as just another lone initiative unsupported by an organization.
IDF units Monday night encircled Ur a-Tachta, the Palestinian village on Rte 443, home to one of the two terrorists who raided Beit Horon earlier Monday.. The other terrorist came from the Kalandia refugee camp near Jerusalem. Police have closed Rte 443, one of the two highways to Jerusalem for some hours – officially because of ice on the road, but additionally, in view of security operations related to the latest Palestinian terrorist attack. It marked a serious escalation due to the introduction of bombs.
debkafile's counter-terrorism sources add: Raids of Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, the new Palestinian terror tactic, call for an organization, rather than lone-wolf operations on impulse or conspiracies at family level. The Beit Horon attack was carried out by terrorists from two different villages, and therefore required pre-planning, a go-between and a supplier of explosive devices, as well as accessories to help cut through the security fence of the targeted community and arrange an escape route.

Saudi Arabia and Iraq – Cooperation or a Threat?
Tariq Alhomayed/Asharq Al Awsat/January 26/16
In an interview published in this newspaper on Saturday, the Iraqi Defence Minister Khaled Al-Obaidi said that Iraq’s current government “has announced its political favouritism by opening up to all Arab brothers without exceptions”. The minister specifically talked about Saudi Arabia saying that it is “an important country that has a place in the Arab, Islamic, regional and international community. We need to help it, and if we received an invitation to visit the kingdom, we are ready to respond to it and meet our Saudi brothers and leaders. Certainly, Saudi’s cooperation with us will have a significant impact on the fight against ISIS”.Of course, the minister’s comments are considered to be positive and a source of happiness to any prudent person except that Reuters news agency yesterday published news that talked about what it describes as the “violent” reactions of Shiite Iraqi legislators in response to statements by the Saudi ambassador to Iraq Thamer Al-Sabhan who was quoted as saying on Sumaria Iraqi television channel that Hashd Al-Shabi, an alliance of Shiite armed groups supported by Iran to fight ISIS, must leave fighting ISIS to the army and the official security forces so as to avoid an escalation in sectarian tensions.
Following the Saudi ambassador’s statement, some Shiite Iraqi representatives issued a number of violent and extreme statements the most notable of which was a demand by Awatef Nima, MP from the State of Law bloc, to “immediately expel the Saudi ambassador from Iraq to teach him a lesson in respecting the country which is hosting him, and in the event that he stays, he will face unpleasant consequences”. We do not know whether she meant attacks on the Saudi embassy in Iraq like the brutal attacks on the Saudi embassy in Iran. What is certain is that these emotional, sectarian statements should be taken seriously. Are the statements of the ambassador considered unacceptable whilst the Iraqi Prime Minister’s statements about the recent executions of terrorists in Saudi Arabia acceptable?
It is clear that in Iraq there are those who want to destroy any Iraqi-Arab rapprochement, especially with Saudi Arabia and the beneficiary of all this is Iran. It is therefore necessary that there be Saudi-Iraqi agreement despite all of these statements and that Iraq is not left to the Iranians and extremists. Intervention in Iraqi internal matters and instant responses are not what is required here. Rather, what is needed is more communication, denying extremists opportunity and diminishing the chances of destroying Saudi-Iraqi relations thereby establishing competent authority in Baghdad.

Palestinians: Is Abbas Losing Control?
Khaled Abu Toameh/Gatestone Institute/January 26/16
http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/7302/palestinians-abbas-control
If Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas loses control of his Fatah faction, who gets to comfort him? Could it be his erstwhile rivals in Hamas?
Abbas seems firm in his refusal to pave the way for the emergence of a new leadership in the West Bank. A split within Fatah in the West Bank seems the inevitable result. Gaza's Fatah leaders are furious with Abbas. The deepening divisions among Fatah could drive Fatah cadres in the Gaza Strip into the open arms of Hamas. "The talk about Fatah-Hamas reconciliation is nothing but a smokescreen to conceal the growing discontent with President Abbas's autocratic rule." — Palestinian official. Fatah is Israel's purported "peace partner" -- the faction spearheading efforts to establish an independent Palestinian state. Decision-makers in the U.S. and Europe might wish to keep abreast of the solvency of Abbas's Fatah faction when they consider the wisdom of the two-state solution. If Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas loses control of his Fatah faction, who gets to comfort him? Could it be his erstwhile rivals in Hamas? Abbas has been facing increasing criticism in the past weeks from senior Fatah officials in both the West Bank and Gaza Strip. It seems that they have tired of his autocratic-style rule. Some of them, including Jibril Rajoub and Tawfik Tirawi, have even come out in public against the PA president, demanding that he share power enough at least to appoint a deputy president.
shape in the Gaza Strip. Fatah leaders and activists there have accused Abbas of "marginalizing" the faction, and are making unmistakable break-away noises. At a meeting of Fatah cadres in the Gaza Strip last week, Abbas and the Palestinian Authority leadership were castigated for turning their backs on the faction there.Fatah's top representative in the Strip, Zakariya Al-Agha, said that the faction's leaders, including Abbas, do not want to see Fatah (in the Gaza Strip) reorganize itself and "pick up the pieces." Another senior Fatah official in Gaza, Abdel Rahman Hamad, took advantage of the meeting to announce that, "Some were trying to turn Fatah in the Gaza Strip into a "weary and spiritless body."
Fatah leaders in Gaza are furious with Abbas. They have a substantial list of grievances. First, Abbas has not paid the salaries of thousands of their members there, including policemen and security officers who have been sitting at home since Hamas seized control over the Strip in 2007.
Moreover, they point an accusing finger at Abbas's failure to include any Fatah members from Gaza in a recent decree to appoint 130 Palestinians as senior officials within the Palestinian Authority. Abbas's failure to hold general elections for the Fatah faction is a further issue of contention. It is roundly suspected that the PA president is deliberately delaying the vote in order to prevent his rivals in the faction from winning key positions.
Amal Hamad, a resident of the Gaza Strip and member of the Fatah Central Committee, joined the chorus of Abbas detractors, declaring, "We wish to tell our (Fatah) brothers in the West Bank that we are an integral part of you. We are an original part of this homeland. It's time to end the state of silence and put matters on their right track." Hamad's remarks are the strongest yet to be directed against Abbas and the Fatah leadership in the West Bank. Palestinian political analysts read in Hamad's words a signal that Fatah might well be facing the threat of splintering, one group in the West Bank and another in the Gaza Strip. The deepening divisions among Fatah could also drive the Fatah cadres in the Gaza Strip into the open arms of Hamas. Hints to this effect have been dropped in recent weeks by Fatah officials in Gaza. They have noted that they do not rule out the possibility of joining forces with Hamas and Islamic Jihad and other Palestinian groups in the Gaza Strip as a way of protesting their continued "marginalization" by Abbas.
And then there is always Qatar. As the crisis in Fatah intensifies, reports have surfaced of a fresh Qatari effort to achieve "national reconciliation" between Fatah and Hamas. According to the reports, the two parties are scheduled to hold "secret talks" in Doha in the coming days in yet another bid to form a Palestinian national unity government. Senior Fatah officials have dismissed these reports as simply the most recent in a long line of attempts by Abbas to divert attention from the crisis he's facing in his own backyard (Fatah). "Each time we hear about increased tensions in Fatah and criticism of President Abbas, we suddenly receive reports about renewed efforts to achieve reconciliation with Hamas," one official said. "The talk about Fatah-Hamas reconciliation is nothing but a smokescreen to conceal the growing discontent with President Abbas's autocratic rule."
According to a Palestinian official, "The talk about Fatah-Hamas reconciliation is nothing but a smokescreen to conceal the growing discontent with President Abbas's autocratic rule." Pictured above, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (right) shakes hands with Hamas's leader in Gaza, Ismail Haniyeh, during negotiations in 2007 for a short-lived unity government. (Image source: Palestinian Press Office) Hamas aside, Qatar's reconciliation ventures could be put to good use by Abbas: perhaps it would be willing to host a sulha (reconciliation) meeting to end the internal strife plaguing Fatah, the predominant power in the PA. Fatah's festering dissension points to a Palestinian political scene that could be headed toward complete chaos -- especially in the West Bank.
Abbas seems firm in his refusal to pave the way for the emergence of a new leadership in the West Bank. A split within Fatah in the West Bank seems the inevitable result. Palestinians may see several Fatah officials officially break away from the faction and create their own leaderships -- turning the West Bank into so many cantons ruled by rival Fatah leaders. Of course, under such conditions, the Palestinian Authority would hardly hold its own as a central power in the West Bank. As for the Gaza Strip, Fatah discontent is likely to escalate in the wake of Abbas's continued policy of "marginalizing" the Fatah members there. Having already lost the Strip to Hamas, Abbas may soon lose his loyalists there. In the end, Gaza could see the emergence of a Fatah leadership that does not report at all to its sister in the West Bank. Fatah is Israel's purported "peace partner" -- the faction that is spearheading efforts to establish an independent Palestinian state. Yet one wonders if Palestinians will live long enough to see their leaders lead them towards a state -- or even a better life.
Decision-makers in the U.S. and Europe might wish to keep abreast of the solvency of Abbas's Fatah faction when they consider the wisdom of the two-state solution.

Fanfare in the West and proxy war in the East
Camelia Entekhabi-Fard/Al Arabiya/January 26/16
It has taken more than a decade for Iranians to see their president travel to western countries respectfully and pursue restoration of diplomatic relations and economic partnerships. President Hassan Rowhani arrived in Rome on Jan. 25 accompanied by a large business delegation. After signing deals to expand economic ties with Italy he is scheduled to visit France on Jan. 27. Both the trips are primarily aimed at highlighting the success of the country’s diplomacy and to attract foreign investors in the post-sanctions era. The visits are aimed at giving Iran political weight, considering its tense relations with its neighbors. In fact the diplomatic path of cooperation and multilateral engagement seems limited to western powers because of Tehran’s soured relations with most of its neighbors. On Jan. 26, Rowhani tweeted about a letter to the heads of neighboring states saying: “Hope we seize the #PostImplementationDay opportunities to cooperate on many levels.”Provoking unnecessary escalation of conflict would deprive Iran of the leverage it is trying to gain and boost the economy. Notwithstanding the opportunities available, Iran’s adversaries perceive that Tehran is trying to gain maximum benefit from its renewed engagement with the international community. However, apprehensions regarding Iran remain following escalation of hostile rhetoric in recent weeks. Some people attribute the ongoing tension in the region to the execution of Shiite cleric Nimr el-Nimr and the ransacking of Saudi diplomatic facilities in Tehran and Mashad. However, Saudi Arabia’s suspension of diplomatic ties with Tehran exposes more fundamental issues. Some Arab states, which hoped improvement of relations with Tehran after Rowhani’s rise to power, now see arrogance in Iran’s efforts to gain international leverage following the implementation of the nuclear deal.
Political leaders in Tehran also don’t understand that it stands to achieve much more power and influence by pursuing policies of multilateral cooperation and peace building. Trying to stand its ground or provoking unnecessary escalation of conflict would deprive Iran of the leverage it is trying to gain and boost the economy.
Neighbors’ worries
Iran’s growing ability to use diplomatic and military power appears more worrisome for its neighbors. Unlike Iran, not all its neighbors have diversified economies, large, well-educated and technologically advanced populations or a relatively pluralistic political process open to debate and disagreement.
Theoretically, Iran’s adversaries want the country to go back to using military solutions as that is how they will gain the upper hand. They can do this in two ways: by creating conditions in which they can point to Iran’s renewed militancy thereby eroding its international support, or by ramping up support for proxies that bleed it of personnel and resources. It seems that Hassan Rowhani’s moderate government is not taking such scenarios into account. Regardless of whether the attacks on Saudi Arabia's diplomatic facilities were spontaneous or orchestrated by hardliners, they ended up tarnishing Iran’s image.
The image that emerged was that diplomatic lives and property is threatened in Iran, which as a nation it is duty-bound to respect and protect. It also played into the hands of those who want Iran to abandon the path of cooperation and flexibility in Syria and to turn away from diplomatic successes back toward using military confrontation to resolve regional conflicts. Hardliners and vested interests in Iran will exploit these crises to their own narrow advantages. They will appeal to the argument that force is a means to assert and defend national honor. This is what scares the neighbors and will have an influence on Syria peace talks. While Rowhani is much welcomed in Rome and Paris, western nations expect Tehran to closely examine their policies in Syria, Yemen and Iraq. This is irrespective of the strength of the trade delegation accompanying the president and the business opportunities that are available in Iran. The West would also like to hear more about its approach toward Syria. Iran’s participation in Syria talks will determine whether its policies are in any way fueling suspicion over Tehran’s intentions in the region. Following this fanfare in the West, Syria talks on Jan. 29 in Geneva, we will give us a better glimpse of Iranian diplomacy in post implementation time.

Containing ISIS in the ‘Dark Web’
Diana Moukalled/Al Arabiya/January 26/16
When I read Jared Cohen, the Google head of ideas, saying that ISIS needs to be pushed off the public view and “contained to the dark web” my first thought was that he was just being metaphorical. However, following a brief online search, I realized that the term “dark web” is commonly used to refer to a parallel online market where one can anonymously and illegally attain arms and drugs. This segment has grown to the extent that governments now claim they are incapable of controlling it. Internet has not produced groups such as ISIS even though it has become a major tool in spreading their ideologies
In effect, Cohen said we must push ISIS off the internet and social networking websites and force it into mysterious domain described as the dark web. But what do digital experts mean when they say “we have to force” ISIS and its supporters into unknown spaces? Or what does it mean to concede that there is a dark space for arms and drug dealers, terrorists and criminals toward which we must force all evildoers? Is it safe to create differentiations between open and dark web?
Parallel space
There is a parallel space which allows evil people to operate while we delude ourselves into believing that they don’t exist. This reminds me of the underground culture with two parallel worlds that deny each other’s existence. Such a dark space is developing and no longer have complicated digital keys. Just a little electronic wit can allow one access to these worlds where organized terrorism is not the only menace. There are still no answers to all these questions and perhaps some parties don’t want to engage much in this matter. We are not talking here about clear distinctions between good and evil but about states, interests and intelligence apparatuses. There’s ambiguity over who secretly supports evil and who says they are struggling against it. I am not only referring to ISIS here but also to these unknown groups who have become influential in illegal quarters.
Turf battle
It is pertinent to question what technology tycoons can do besides shutting down websites and social networking pages suspected of being related to terrorism. This applies to internet companies as well as social networking websites, which are both of immense significance for the propaganda being carried out by ISIS and other extremist groups. Those in charge of social media platforms have been incapable of balancing between our need for free space and the ability of ISIS and other extremist groups to exploit it. What raises suspicion is how several governments and security apparatuses tend to hold the internet and social networking websites directly and solely responsible for the spread of these groups while also claiming that these tools are the means to confront them. Parallel web space allows evil people to operate while we delude ourselves into believing that they don’t exist This also raises questions about the intentions of governments and parties who claim to be fighting against ISIS. The internet has not produced groups such as ISIS even though it has become a major tool in spreading their ideologies. Social networking platforms and the internet are not responsible for the ideology in itself. ISIS sneaks into the western and Arab communities through their weak points which were not created by electronic space. Containing them in the “dark web” is not the way to confront ISIS. It solidifies a parallel world which we think is far away when in fact it’s close to our lives.

No Obama, the conflict does not date back millennia
Jamal Khashoggi/Al Arabiya/January 26/16
In his State of the Union address to the American people, U.S. President Barack Obama did not elaborate on the situation in the Middle East. After all, there are no accomplishments for him to be proud of except for the nuclear deal with Iran, which he has been promoting as a peace project to the world even though it is actually a war project. From the few words spoken by Obama on this topic, we must reflect on a particularly dangerous sentence and even build policies around it. We must know if this is his personal opinion or that of many others, making it U.S. policy. In his speech, Obama described the latest dangerous developments in the region as “rooted in conflicts that date back millennia.” The underlying threat here is that he is the head of a superpower responsible for past and future disasters in the Middle East.
This sentence distorts reality and reduces it to mere sectarian polarization
This sentence distorts reality and reduces it to mere sectarian polarization existing only in the minds of Shiite and Sunni extremists. In fact, this is a fight for the freedom of peoples longing for a better Arab world. Many Western scholars have pointed out the error in his statement. Obama has described the conflict as sectarian in many speeches and interviews, but does this justify his reluctance to intervene, letting the region seethe until it collapses? Is this why he has turned a blind eye to daily human rights violations that have escalated to the point of using starvation as a weapon of war, not only in Syrian cities and villages but also in the Yemeni city of Taiz? Is this why Obama did not honor his own “red line” regarding the Syrian regime’s use of chemical weapons against its own people in clear violation of international law? Being familiar with the region’s history, his use of the sectarianism argument is unexpected.
Is it to justify the inaction that he will be held accountable for in the future? If Saudi Arabia had not intervened in Yemen, the situation there today would be as bad as in Syria. What is needed is a diplomatic and intellectual movement formed by future powers in the region to stop the kind of thinking expressed by Obama from becoming U.S. policy and equating Saudi Arabia’s futuristic system with Iran’s reactionary regime.
Sectarianism
Tehran only supports Shiites who are ready to serve its project. It does not care if they are dictators such as Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, or a sectarian and separatist party such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and Ansar Allah in Yemen. Saudi Arabia is leading the region today against Iranian ambitions, but without adopting a sectarian viewpoint. In fact, this is a fight for the freedom of peoples longing for a better Arab world . No Saudi official will ever say his country has leadership over Sunnis in the region, or accept the popular but incorrect belief that what is happening is a proxy war between Sunnis led by Saudi Arabia and Shiites led by Iran. Riyadh believes in the sovereignty of states, and refuses to interfere in their affairs. It does not export rebellion or support armed militias. Ignorant are those who say Saudi Arabia backs Sunni extremists - they are considered criminals in the kingdom, whereas Shiite extremists are celebrated as heroes in Iran. No one cares for Sunni extremists once they get killed, while Shiite extremists are considered martyrs.
Inaction
This conflict started when the West, represented by Obama, ignored the weapons and training provided to Hezbollah - as long as they were not directed at Israel - and Iran’s transfer of weapons and militias to Damascus for the past five years. They were neither exposed nor intercepted by Washington.
This conflict began with the world’s silence over Shiite militias turning against Iraqi civilians after U.S. aircraft made it easier for them to fight the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), as if all Iraqi Sunnis are affiliated to the group. This conflict started when Washington doubted Saudi intelligence that Iran is not only sending weapons to Yemen, but to countries as far as Nigeria. In the Middle East, there are powers foreseeing the future, seeking to rebuild countries that Obama has described as failing. This transformation will play out for a generation. These powers are part of the Islamic nation, extending from Indonesia to Morocco, moving toward modernism and democracy. They refuse to leave their future in the hands of an Iranian supreme leader or an ISIS caliph, both of whom claim to govern in the name of Allah.

Does Joe Biden really mean what he says on ISIS?
Raed Omari/Al Arabiya/January 26/16
In several public speeches and interviews U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has reiterated “I always say what I mean.” I wonder whether his recent remarks on ISIS can really fit into this mould, especially with facts on the ground suggesting the exact opposite. In a joint press conference with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Istanbul recently, Biden said the U.S. and Turkey are prepared for a military solution against ISIS in Syria should the Syrian government and rebel-opposition forces fail to reach a peace agreement during their upcoming meeting in Geneva. Even if we assume that Biden really meant what he said, there are undeniable complications that would hinder the implementation of his conditional warning – paramount of which is Russia’s presence in Syria. It is pertinent to ask how the U.S. can fight ISIS in Syria without any cooperation and coordination with the Russians whose jet fighters control the country’s airspace.
The outcome that Moscow seeks in Syria are all overwhelmingly inimical to long-term U.S. interests. Zero military cooperation with Russia has been an established principle of the U.S. since the end of the World War II, unless things really change on the ground or if there is convergence of interests between Moscow and Washington on Syria. Americans so far maintain there is no such thing. Also, how can Ankara be involved in any of Washington’s military action in Syria given its unabridged enmity toward Moscow? Answers to these questions might provide the context for his remarks.
Contradictions
Biden’s remarks are also inconsistent with the Obama Administration’s position on Syria. ISIS, as put in one way or another by Biden, is Washington’s only stake in Syria. However, President Obama has himself has affirmed and re-affirmed that ending Syria’s longstanding dictatorship is the U.S.’s top priority.
For Obama, the Assad regime is the source of all terror in Syria while it is ISIS for Biden. And if defeating ISIS is Washington’s first and foremost priority in Syria – as understood from his press remarks – then Washington may need to cooperate with Assad or soften its position toward him. This would be very embarrassing for President Obama considering his unaltered firmness that “Assad must go”. If the U.S. really has a military plan in place for ISIS in Syria (not for Syria), which it wants to implement without the need to coordinate with the Russians, it has to be in the form of intensified airstrikes and not with American boots on the ground. However, the question is who will carry out such a plan? Depending on the White House pledges and statements, ground troops fighting ISIS would neither be American nor Syrian Kurds – to avoid angering the Turks. They will probably constitute Syrian rebels that are seen as moderate by Washington. But what happens if Syrian rebels get busy fighting ISIS giving Assad the opportunity to make gains on the ground? Or what if Assad joins in with the fight?
Moscow’s interests
Fact remains that Obama has been hesitant to go to war since the early days of his presidency and doesn’t seem to be changing this position in its final leg. If Syria peace talks are meant to destroy ISIS, this entails Washington’s willingness to cooperate with Assad. The other question is whether Russia’s primary motivation in Syria is indeed a broad counterterrorism campaign. Moscow’s intervention is driven by multiple overlapping motives – of which the fight against ISIS is just one. The outcome that Moscow seeks – including strengthening of the Assad regime, preserving Russia’s military access to the Mediterranean and gaining leverage for its policies in Ukraine – are all overwhelmingly inimical to long-term U.S. interests. Even though Washington and Moscow share a tactical interest in eliminating ISIS, embracing Putin’s current approach toward Syria does not make for a sound U.S. policy. Russia is not really fighting against ISIS. It is propping up the Syrian regime. If Russia were truly engaged against ISIS, its promises and desires would deserve a serious look. But it’s simply backing a brutal dictator and sticking it to the U.S. in doing so.