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Bible Quotations For Today
Jesus cures the Blind Man In Bethsaida
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 08/22-26:"They came to Bethsaida. Some people brought a blind man to him and begged him to touch him. He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village; and when he had put saliva on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, ‘Can you see anything?’And the man looked up and said, ‘I can see people, but they look like trees, walking.’Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he looked intently and his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. Then he sent him away to his home, saying, ‘Do not even go into the village.’"

Let anyone be accursed who has no love for the Lord. Our Lord, come!
First Letter to the Corinthians 16/15-24:"Now, brothers and sisters, you know that members of the household of Stephanas were the first converts in Achaia, and they have devoted themselves to the service of the saints; I urge you to put yourselves at the service of such people, and of everyone who works and toils with them. I rejoice at the coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus, because they have made up for your absence; for they refreshed my spirit as well as yours. So give recognition to such people. The churches of Asia send greetings. Aquila and Prisca, together with the church in their house, greet you warmly in the Lord. All the brothers and sisters send greetings. Greet one another with a holy kiss. I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. Let anyone be accursed who has no love for the Lord. Our Lord, come! The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you.
My love be with all of you in Christ Jesus.".

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on March 01/16
Iran: A Setback for Hardliners and Little Cheer for Reformists/Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat/February 29/16
Riyadh’s wrath/Alex Rowell/Now Lebanon/February 29/16
Betrayal by those closest to you/Turki Al-Dakhil/Al Arabiya/February 29/16
Can Arab world economies achieve what politics couldn’t/Raed Omari/Al Arabiya/February 29/16
What a Trump presidency will mean for Iran/Dr. Theodore Karasik/Al Arabiya/February 29/16
Towards a strategic Arab-Russia dialogue/Raghida Dergham/Al Arabiya/February 29/16

Titles For Latest Lebanese Related News published on March 01/16
Hariri Meets Berri: We Won't Tolerate Isolating Lebanon from Arab Environment and No One Can Drag Us to Strife
Hizbullah Brings Back Corpses of Fighters Including Ali Fayyad's
Salam’s Sources Say No Party Intends to Resign from Cabinet
Report: Salam Might Suspend Cabinet Sessions over Trash Hurdle
Kuwait Urges Lebanon to be 'Part of Arab Region', Vows to 'Maintain Aid'
Kataeb Slams 'Security Chaos' of Past Two Days, Urges Election of President
Palestinian Islamist Wounded in Ain el-Hilweh Shooting
Report: France Seeks to Revive Saudi Aid to Lebanese Army
Berri Holds onto Hizbullah-Mustaqbal Dialogue despite Tension
Bassil: PM's Remarks on Us Committing Foreign Policy Mistake Do Not Represent Lebanon, Govt. Policy
Jumblat to Saudi: Halting Aid Weakens State, Economic Siege on Lebanon Not Useful
Body of Hezbollah commander found in Syria
Saudis increasingly frustrated with Lebanon
Why is Saudi Arabia angry at Lebanon
Punishing Lebanon or Hezbollah?
Israel: Lebanon violated UNSC resolution calls to disarm Hezbollah more than 2,000 times

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on March 01/16
Canada fulfills promise to take in Syrian refugees
Netanyahu: Israel ranked the eighth strongest country in the world
Israel 'very concerned' by rising Iranian power in Syria, Ya'alon says
Bahrain Jails 'Terrorists' for Attacking Police
NATO Chief Voices Concern over Syria Truce Violations
U.N. plans aid for 154,000 besieged Syrians in next 5 days
UN chief: Syria ceasefire holding ‘by and large’
Death toll in suicide attack northeast of Baghdad rises to 24: sources
Baghdad blasts’ death toll rises to 70
Russia: Turkish military strikes on Syria would derail ceasefire plan
Gunmen kill pro-govt Sunni cleric in Yemen’s Aden
Suicide bombing kills 4 in Yemen’s Aden: official
Yemeni official: Houthis recruiting African fighters
Yemeni minister criticizes UN over Taiz, hails Gulf contribution
Yemeni army seeking to tighten control of Hajjah and Hodeidah
Top Iran conservatives lose seats on key body
Palestinians reject direct Iran aid to ‘intifada’ families

Hariri Meets Berri: We Won't Tolerate Isolating Lebanon from Arab Environment and No One Can Drag Us to Strife
Naharnet/February 29/16/Al-Mustaqbal Movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri held talks Monday evening in Ain al-Tineh with Speaker Nabih Berri. The talks were expected to focus on the faltering dialogue between Hizbullah and al-Mustaqbal and the latest tensions in the country in the wake of the row with Saudi Arabia, media reports said. A joint statement issued after the meeting warned that “there has been a systematic campaign in recent days to inflame sentiments and incite citizens against each other in order to stir sectarian strife, implicate us in internal fighting and return us decades backwards.”Accordingly, Berri and Hariri called on “opinion leaders in Lebanon, the religious and political leaders and all the media and cultural institutions” to “confront these suspicious campaigns and any attempt to stir strife, out of keenness on Lebanon and the Lebanese.”State-run National News Agency ealier said that the two men discussed "the current situations and developments."Berri threw a dinner banquet in Hariri's honor after the talks, NNA added. Earlier on Monday, Hariri had noted that the election of a new president would resolve “50 percent” of the country's problems, while stressing that his camp will not tolerate “isolating Lebanon from its Arab environment.” “The Lebanese are suffering nowadays from the obstruction of the presidential vote and from the deterioration of the social, health and environmental situations and the rest of the files,” said Hariri during a Center House meeting with a delegation of Akkar municipal chiefs and mayors. “The absence of a president is the reason behind this situation and if we elect a president we would be resolving 50 percent of the problems, seeing as everything can be addressed inside state institutions,” he added. Lebanon has been without a president since May 2014 when the term of Michel Suleiman ended and Hariri launched late in 2015 a proposal to nominate Marada Movement chief MP Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency. Hariri's initiative was however rejected by the country's main Christian parties as well as Hizbullah, and Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea, the ex-PM's ally in the March 14 camp, has recently nominated Change and Reform bloc chief MP Michel Aoun for the presidency in an apparent response to Hariri's move. Separately, Hariri noted Monday that “the current political dispute is over Lebanon's role in its Arab environment.”“We are keen on our Arab identity and we will not tolerate isolating Lebanon from its Arab environment,” the ex-PM stressed. “The Kingdom (of Saudi Arabia) has only offered us good things and it has always stood by us. It supported us during the reconstruction process, it mediated to stop the civil war and it stood by us during the Israeli attacks,” Hariri said.
“We call on all those concerned in Lebanon to take the higher interests of the Lebanese into consideration and to stop the campaigns that harm Lebanon and its Arab role and subject it to unnecessary dangers,” the former premier went on to say. He was referring to the latest row with Saudi Arabia that the kingdom has attributed to "hostile Lebanese positions resulting from the stranglehold of Hizbullah on the State" and alleged Hizbullah "terrorist acts against Arab and Muslim nations." The kingdom started a series of measures against Lebanon and Hizbullah on February 19 when its foreign ministry announced that the kingdom was halting around $4 billion in military aid to the Lebanese army and security forces. The kingdom later slapped sanctions on individuals and firms accused of ties to Hizbullah and advised its citizens against travel to Lebanon while urging those already in the country to leave it. Around 90 Lebanese citizens have also been fired from their jobs in Saudi Arabia, according to media reports. Saudi Arabia has also linked its move to Lebanon's refusal to join the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in condemning attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran last month. Riyadh cut diplomatic ties with Tehran after demonstrators burned its embassy and a consulate following the Saudi execution of a prominent Shiite cleric, Nimr al-Nimr. Later on Monday, Hariri held a meeting with a delegation of Beirut mayors. “We reject the attempts to sow strife in Beirut that we witnessed in the past few days. If a certain party does not approve of a certain issue, there are several ways to express anger and dismay other than burning tires or blocking roads,” Hariri said. He was referring to angry protests that Hizbullah supporters staged on Saturday and Sunday to protest a TV show that poked fun at Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. The episode was aired by the Saudi-owned MBC channel and came amid rising tensions between the Iran-backed Hizbullah and Riyadh over the wars in Yemen and Syria. “Our political rhetoric is clear and our behavior is well-known and we won't allow anyone to drag us into sectarian strife. We are keen on Beirut's security and the safety of its residents,” Hariri underlined.

Hizbullah Brings Back Corpses of Fighters Including Ali Fayyad's
Naharnet/February 29/16/Hizbullah was able to bring back the bodies of four of its fighters including that of a senior military commander who was killed in battles in the northern Syrian province of Aleppo last week, reports said on Monday. Hizbullah recovered the bodies of four of its fighters including that of Ali Fayyad in a special operation carried out in collaboration with the Syrian army in the town of Tal-Hmam, LBCI said. Ali Fayyad, aka “Alaa of Bosnia”, was killed last week in the ongoing clashes with Syrian rebels on the Athrayya-Khanasser road in rural Aleppo, according to reports. Fayyad was known to have “planned, overseen and led” a key part of the siege that is imposed on the rebels in Damascus' Eastern Ghouta region, they added. He also played a key role in the capture of the strategic Syrian town of Shebaa that lies on the road to the Damascus international airport. “Fayyad also led a military operation to besiege the Syrian rebel groups and isolate them in the south of the Syrian capital after having pushed them away from the area of the Sayyida Zeinab (Shiite) shrine,” the reports said. His military tactics also played an important role in “halting the Syrian rebels' advance towards the Syrian coast.”
Hizbullah has deployed at least 6,000 militants to fight alongside Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces against Islamist-led rebels and jihadists and around 1,000 Hizbullah members have been killed in Syria since the start of the conflict. The party argues that its intervention, which is controversial in Lebanon, was necessary to protect the country from extremist groups and to prevent the fall of Syria into the hands of hostile forces.

Salam’s Sources Say No Party Intends to Resign from Cabinet
Naharnet/February 29/16/Sources close to Prime Minister Tammam Salam have denied that any party had the intention to resign from the government or suspend its participation in it.The sources told As Safir daily published on Monday that despite the growing tension between the Mustaqbal-led March 14 alliance and the Hizbullah-dominated March 8 camp, all parties are aware that there is no alternative to the cabinet. The rising tension came after Saudi Arabia announced last week that it would cut $4 billion in aid to the Lebanese army and security forces. Riyadh's decision came in retaliation to Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil's rejection to support Saudi resolutions against Iran during two recent meetings of Arab and Muslim foreign ministers. Bassil is an ally of Hizbullah, which is backed by Iran. Riyadh’s move was followed by travel warnings issued by Saudi Arabia and several Gulf countries, which also urged their citizens already in Lebanon to leave. Saudi Arabia also blacklisted several individuals and companies for their alleged ties to Hizbullah. The sources said that Riyadh remains angry at Lebanon’s lack of support to the Kingdom against its rival Iran. Salam has told Saudi Ambassador Ali Awadh Asiri that he wants to visit Riyadh to explain the official Lebanese stance. But no date has been set yet for the visit, the sources added.

Report: Salam Might Suspend Cabinet Sessions over Trash Hurdle
Naharnet/February 29/16/The agenda of the next cabinet session slated for Thursday has been distributed on Lebanon's ministers and includes 169 items for discussion, although Prime Minister Tammam Salam threatens to halt it over a delay in solutions for the garbage file, An Nahar daily reported on Monday. Ministerial sources said that Salam has deplored the slow progress in the months long trash management file and that he is ready to “turn tables” if no progress is made before the session is held. Sources following up closely on the file told the daily that Salam is willing to suspend the cabinet meetings if the controversial file is not solved. Lebanon's garbage crisis erupted when the Naameh landfill was closed in July 2015. In December, the cabinet approved a waste export plan. But a scandal broke out revealing that Britain’s Chinook Urban Mining company, which was selected by the government to manage the export scheme, may have fabricated its permits. Several plans to solve it have failed including one to establish landfills in several areas, which is being reconsidered by the cabinet in light of the absence of all other solutions.

Kuwait Urges Lebanon to be 'Part of Arab Region', Vows to 'Maintain Aid'
Naharnet/February 29/16/Kuwait reassured Monday that it will maintain its support and aid for Lebanon despite the latest diplomatic rift between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Gulf states. “The Kuwaiti aid for the brotherly Lebanese people will continue,” Kuwait's Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Khaled al-Sabah announced. But he noted that “Lebanon is required to be part of its Arab region and its concerns and problems.”The top Kuwaiti official's remarks come despite the fact that his country has joined Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Gulf countries, except for Oman, in warning citizens against visiting Lebanon. Saudi Arabia started its measures on February 19 when its foreign ministry announced that the kingdom was halting around $4 billion in military aid to the Lebanese army and security forces in response to what it called "hostile Lebanese positions resulting from the stranglehold of Hizbullah on the state" and Hizbullah "terrorist acts against Arab and Muslim nations."Around 90 Lebanese citizens have also been fired from their jobs in Saudi Arabia, according to media reports. The kingdom also attributed its move to Lebanon's refusal to join the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in condemning attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran last month. Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil said Lebanon abstained from voting on the two resolutions in line with its famous “dissociation” policy and because Hizbullah was described as “terrorist” in the Arab statement. Riyadh cut diplomatic ties with Tehran after demonstrators burned its embassy and a consulate following the Saudi execution of a prominent Shiite dissident, Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr.

Kataeb Slams 'Security Chaos' of Past Two Days, Urges Election of President
Naharnet/February 29/16/The Kataeb Party on Monday slammed what it called the “all-out security chaos” that accompanied protests staged by Hizbullah supporters in the past two days, as it reiterated its call for the speedy election of a president. The party “rejects the all-out security chaos that erupted in various Lebanese regions and involved roaming convoys, road-blocking and tire-burning at the hands of Hizbullah supporters, in a scene that reminded us of the 'Black Shirts' incident,” Kataeb's political bureau said in a statement issued after its weekly meeting. The Hizbullah supporters took to the streets on Saturday and Sunday to protest a TV show that poked fun at Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. The episode came amid rising tensions between the Iran-backed Hizbullah and Saudi Arabia over the wars in Yemen and Syria. “These practices in Lebanon mirror Hizbullah's behavior abroad, which has dealt a severe blow to Lebanon's ties with its Arab neighbors and with the international community,” Kataeb said on Monday, warning that Hizbullah's alleged policies were “subjecting the Lebanese to all types of security, economic and political crises.”Saudi Arabia started a series of measures against Lebanon and Hizbullah on February 19 when its foreign ministry announced that the kingdom was halting around $4 billion in military aid to the Lebanese army and security forces. The kingdom later slapped sanctions on individuals and firms accused of ties to Hizbullah and advised its citizens against travel to Lebanon while urging those already in the country to leave it. Around 90 Lebanese citizens have also been fired from their jobs in Saudi Arabia, according to media reports. Saudi Arabia has linked its move to "hostile Lebanese positions resulting from the stranglehold of Hizbullah on the State" and alleged Hizbullah "terrorist acts against Arab and Muslim nations."It also attributed the move to Lebanon's refusal to join the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in condemning attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran last month. Riyadh cut diplomatic ties with Tehran after demonstrators burned its embassy and a consulate following the Saudi execution of a prominent Shiite cleric, Nimr al-Nimr. Separately, Kataeb renewed its call Monday for the election of a new president in order to “liberate the country from governmental paralysis and revive the approach of resorting to the Constitution and state institutions.”“The governmental decay has reached an unprecedented extent and it is manifesting itself in the handling of social files, security, the garbage crisis and lastly the Arab ties crisis,” the party warned.“This all proves that there can be no quick solution except through the election of a president,” Kataeb added, reminding the political parties of the upcoming March 2 electoral session.

Palestinian Islamist Wounded in Ain el-Hilweh Shooting
Naharnet/February 29/16/A Palestinian Islamist activist was injured in a shooting in the southern refugee camp of Ain el-Hilweh overnight, the state-run National News Agency reported on Monday. Mohammed Shraidi was lightly wounded in the foot and was taken to hospital when unknown assailants opened fire at him, it said. The attack, which took place in the camp’s al-Fawqani street, was followed by intermittent gunfire.But the Palestinian leadership launched contacts to contain the incident, NNA added. The impoverished Ain el-Hilweh camp has gained notoriety as a refuge for extremists and fugitives and for the settling of scores between factions. By long-standing convention, the army does not enter the Palestinian refugee camps, leaving the factions themselves to handle security.

Report: France Seeks to Revive Saudi Aid to Lebanese Army
Naharnet/February 29/16/France is insisting on reviving a $3 billion Saudi grant to the Lebanese army despite Riyadh’s decision to cut the aid, al-Joumhouria newspaper reported on Monday. The Saudi government confirmed last week that it has stopped all military aid to Lebanon. There are deals worth $4 billion aimed at equipping and supporting the Lebanese army and security forces. One of the Saudi-financed deals is worth $3 billion under which France would provide arms and equipment to the Lebanese army. Al-Joumhouria said that Paris provided guarantees to Riyadh that the weapons would be delivered to the army and would not go to any other side, especially Hizbullah. In April last year, Lebanon received the first shipment of the $3 billion worth of French arms to boost the country's defensive capabilities to combat terror threats, along its northeastern border in particular. The Saudi aid cut was followed by a call by Riyadh and other Gulf states on their citizens not to travel to Lebanon for safety reasons and ordered those staying there to leave. The move sparked fears of deportations of Lebanese residing in the Gulf. Al-Joumhouria said that the U.S., France and Canada have launched contacts with the Saudi authorities over the issue because many Lebanese working there hold the citizenship of these states.

Berri Holds onto Hizbullah-Mustaqbal Dialogue despite Tension
Naharnet/February 29/16/Speaker Nabih Berri held onto the dialogue between Hizbullah and al-Mustaqbal officials despite the rising tension between them as a result of a Saudi aid cut. Berri told his visitors on Sunday that the talks have no other alternative. According to As Safir daily published Monday, the adviser of Hizbullah chief, Hussein Khalil, Minister Ali Hassan Khalil, who is from Berri’s Amal movement and, Nader Hariri, the adviser of the Mustaqbal leader have agreed to meet again. The last dialogue session that they held under Berri’s sponsorship in Ain el-Tineh was on Wednesday night. But the meeting was limited to them. Previous talks used to be attended by more representatives from the two parties. The newspaper said that the next round of talks could be between 16 and 20 March. As Safir also quoted Mustaqal leaders as saying that a meeting, which is expected to be held between Berri and al-Mustaqbal chief Saad Hairri, would give a new impulse to the dialogue. Tension rose last week between the Mustaqbal-led March 14 alliance and the Hizbullah-dominated March 8 camp after Saudi Arabia announced that it would cut $4 billion in aid to the Lebanese army and security forces. Riyadh's decision came in retaliation to Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil's rejection to support Saudi resolutions against Iran during two recent meetings of Arab and Muslim foreign ministers. Bassil is an ally of Hizbullah, which is backed by Iran. Travel warnings issued by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar this week further exacerbated the situation. The Gulf countries also urged their citizens already in Lebanon to leave.

Bassil: PM's Remarks on Us Committing Foreign Policy Mistake Do Not Represent Lebanon, Govt. Policy
Naharnet/February 29/16/Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil hit back Sunday at Prime Minister Tammam Salam over remarks that the minister had committed a “foreign policy mistake” through his stances at the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. “The prime minister's remarks that we committed a foreign policy mistake do not represent Lebanon or the government's policy,” said Bassil during an interview on al-Jadeed TV, when asked about Salam's remarks to Sky News television. He noted that “some ministers escalate their rhetoric outside the cabinet and in their remarks to the media as they show softer stances during the cabinet meetings.”Bassil's remarks come after the rival March 14 camp accused Hizbullah and the minister of sabotaging Lebanon's ties with Saudi Arabia, following a series of Saudi measures against Lebanon. The measures started on February 19 when the Saudi foreign ministry announced that the kingdom was halting around $4 billion in military aid to the Lebanese army and security forces. The kingdom later advised its citizens against travel to Lebanon and urged those already in the country to leave it, citing “safety” concerns. The rest of the Arab Gulf countries except for Oman followed suit, issuing similar travel warnings. Around 90 Lebanese citizens have also been fired from their jobs in Saudi Arabia, according to media reports. Saudi Arabia has linked its move to "hostile Lebanese positions resulting from the stranglehold of Hizbullah on the state" and alleged Hizbullah "terrorist acts against Arab and Muslim nations."It also attributed the move to Lebanon's refusal to join the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in condemning attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran last month. Riyadh cut diplomatic ties with Tehran after demonstrators burned its embassy and a consulate following the Saudi execution of a prominent Shiite cleric, Nimr al-Nimr. Addressing the Saudi leadership on Sunday, Bassil said: “Lebanon is a free country and it suffers from certain weakness, so help it become strong.” “I'm willing to do anything to serve my country … but others must understand Lebanon's stances,” he added. He also said he does not mind “communicating with the Saudi foreign minister if the other party is ready for such a move,” noting that the government has “decided to form a ministerial panel headed by the PM in order to visit Riyadh.”

Jumblat to Saudi: Halting Aid Weakens State, Economic Siege on Lebanon Not Useful
Naharnet/February 29/16/Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat on Sunday warned Saudi Arabia that its halt of military aid to Lebanon would only “weaken the Lebanese state” and that any “economic siege” on Lebanon would “impoverish all Lebanese.”“The response against Lebanese institutions will weaken the institutions and the State. Suspending the military aid will weaken the State and they (Hizbullah) will benefit from this,” Jumblat cautioned during an interview with Orient News TV, which supports the Syrian opposition. “An economic siege on Lebanon would impoverish all Lebanese and will not be useful, unless there are plans to undermine Lebanese stability and the Lebanese entity,” Jumblat added. His remarks come amid an unprecedented rift in the ties with Riyadh that has seen the kingdom halt around $4 billion in aid to Lebanon's army and security forces and advise its citizens against visiting the country. Saudi Arabia has linked its move to "hostile Lebanese positions resulting from the stranglehold of Hizbullah on the state" and alleged Hizbullah "terrorist acts against Arab and Muslim nations."Asked about the Lebanese government's stance on the row with Riyadh and the statement it issued after an emergency session, Jumblat described the statement as “sufficient.” “I believe that Prime Minister Tammam Salam has done what is necessary and I hope the kingdom, the UAE and other Gulf states will accept the official Lebanese apology, for the sake of Lebanon and the historic ties between Lebanon and the Gulf states,” the PSP leader added. Asked about justice minister Ashraf Rifi's recent resignation from the government, Jumblat accused the minister of “attention seeking,” noting that he should have “showed solidarity with (al-Mustaqbal movement leader ex-PM) Saad Hariri.” “Saad Hariri remains the first guarantee for Lebanese moderation,” Jumblat stressed. He also described Hizbullah as “a part of an Iranian system” in Lebanon and the region, when asked whether the party cares about the interests of its supporters and the interests of the Lebanese in general.

Body of Hezbollah commander found in Syria
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Monday, 29 February 2016/Hezbollah has recovered the body for one of its senior commanders, Ali Fayyad, after earlier reports said he was killed in the northern Syrian province of Aleppo, Al Arabiya News Channel reported Monday. Reports of Fayad's death first surfaced on Feb. 26 when Syrian activists said he was killed in Aleppo. Fayad, originally from the village of Ansar in southern Lebanon, was considered one of the key military commanders in Hezbollah. Hezbollah has been quiet on the number of its fighters killed in Lebanon over the course of the Syrian conflict, but a Washington Institute for Near East Studies puts the number close to 865 members killed in the past four years.

Saudis increasingly frustrated with Lebanon
Ibrahim al-Hatlani/Al-Monitor/February 29/16
Saudi Arabia is not happy with Lebanon or its failure to control the Islamist militant group Hezbollah, and it's making its displeasure clear. What’s not known is what it will take to appease Riyadh. The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Feb. 23 asked its citizens not to travel to Lebanon, for their own safety. It has also asked citizens residing in or visiting Lebanon to leave, unless they absolutely have to stay. This stance pe rsists despite attempts by the Lebanese government and others to convince Riyadh to reconsider its Feb. 19 decision to cancel $4 billion in military aid to Lebanon. Riyadh said it is protesting Lebanese Foreign Minister of Affairs Gebran Bassil’s stance during a Jan. 10 ministerial meeting of the Arab League. Bassil refrained from condemning the recent attack on the Saudi Arabian embassy and its consulate in Iran. Lebanon has a long-standing policy of distancing itself from external conflicts.
Saudi Arabia's actions come against a Lebanese government that has been politically hijacked by Hezbollah, according to Hezbollah’s opponents in Lebanon and abroad. Also, Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah has been escalating his media attacks on Saudi Arabia.
Adding to the hostility, Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi declared Feb. 16 that Hezbollah members have been directly implicated in supporting Houthis in their war against the Saudi-backed legitimate Yemeni government. On Feb. 24, the military adviser to Saudi Defense Minister Ahmad Assiri said, “We have intelligence information and recordings about the involvement of Hezbollah’s militia in supporting Houthis.” That same day, Saudi media published a video that seems to have been taped between June and July. The Yemeni army said it had found the video in an area where the Houthi militia had been. The video reportedly showed a Lebanese recruiter from Hezbollah talking to Houthi soldiers about carrying out suicide attacks in Saudi Arabia. “Hezbollah is a threat to all Arab states, especially the Gulf,” a source from the Gulf Cooperation Council told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. “We have all suffered from Hezbollah’s terrorism and Iran’s use of it,” he continued. “The security services have succeeded in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain and the UAE [United Arab Emirates] in controlling several security and financial operations of Hezbollah during the past three years, and we are in solidarity with Saudi Arabia.
“There must be a radical change in the balance of power in Lebanon, either through the emergence of a party with equal strength to Hezbollah or through weakening Hezbollah to become equal to other Lebanese parties.”
Hezbollah anticipated the Gulf’s angry measures and sent a security delegation to Cairo. The delegation met with Egyptian officials, reportedly admitted Hezbollah’s role in Yemen and asked Cairo to intercede.
But Saudi Arabia is not expected to accept any mediation in this issue, especially from Cairo, which hosted the Houthis in July and permitted them to stage seminars during which they criticized Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi retaliation against Lebanon surprised many observers there and abroad. It is part of a series of security measures that Riyadh has taken against figures or parties operating directly or indirectly in Saudi Arabia in favor of Iran or Hezbollah. These measures include Saudi trials in May that restricted bank accounts, investments and real estate assets of 44 Lebanese people affiliated with Hezbollah in Saudi Arabia. Saudi authorities also pursued several Shiite clerics in the eastern provinces of Qatif and Ihsaa who collect money from their Shiite citizens and send it to their religious authorities in Tehran. Some clerics were arrested on the grounds of money laundering, like Sheikh Khaled Seif, who was tried in October and sentenced to five years in jail.
The kingdom’s ruling parties are convinced Hezbollah is working with Iran to penetrate the Gulf and foil or paralyze Saudi Arabia’s plans to lead the region on both military and security levels. Those plans began when King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud became ruler, and grew as his ambitious son Mohammad Bin Salman launched Operation Decisive Storm in March. The plans continued with the kingdom’s success in forming an Arab alliance to face Houthis in Yemen and were bolstered in December when it formed a 34-country Muslim military alliance to fight terrorism.
Saudi Ambassador to Beirut Awad Assiri launched an open-arms policy in April 2013, but Riyadh has failed to contain Hezbollah behind diplomatic doors. Now it seems Riyadh will not stop at diplomatic and economic displays of anger. It’s not looking for a middle ground with the Lebanese government, which is unable to control Hezbollah locally and abroad.

Why is Saudi Arabia angry at Lebanon
Hussain Abdul-Hussain/Now Lebanon/February 29/16
Lebanon is inching closer toward becoming a failing state. Services are mediocre, the infrastructure crumbling, garbage piling up and the economy contracting. Now Beirut has added yet another failure to its list: Amateurish diplomacy that is turning whoever is left of Lebanon's friends into enemies. Lebanon’s deteriorating relationship with Saudi Arabia is a case in point. But before we understand the reasons behind Beirut’s crumbling relations with Riyadh, a quick history is in order. During the civil war, the Lebanese state managed to maintain some neutrality and decency. In the thick of war, Beirut deployed skilled Foreign Ministers like Fouad Boutros and savvy diplomats like Ghassan Tueni. But when the war ended in 1991, warlords and their militias took over the state and infested its bureaucracy. Suddenly, the nation’s foreign ministry turned from the voice of a weak, yet credible, government into one of the spoils rewarded to Lebanon’s new and incompetent leaders.
During the 1990s, late Prime Minister Rafik Hariri — a leader with unparalleled skills — covered up for the failure of Lebanese diplomacy. During all-out wars with Israel, like in 1996, Hariri shuttled between foreign capitals and invaded international broadcasts making the case for Lebanon.
At the Arab Summit in Beirut in 2002, when Syrian President Bashar al-Assad instructed his Lebanese counterpart Emile Lahoud to censor late Palestinian President Yasser Arafat’s live video address from his siege in Ramallah, it was Hariri who roamed the corridors at Phoenicia Hotel and brought back the Palestinian delegation, thus saving face for Beirut and its summit. But after Hariri, the inadequacy of Lebanon’s Foreign Ministry became evident, especially after the takeover by Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, an engineer by training. Those who think career diplomats can make up for Bassil’s inexperience, keep in mind that — like in the rest of the Lebanese bureaucracy — sectarian quota and appointment by political intercession trumps qualification.
Bassil’s shortcomings at Lebanon’s Foreign Ministry — like in his role at the Ministery of Electricity — have been evident for a long time. Bassil abused state resources by treating himself to a summer trip to Brazil to watch the 2014 World Cup games, justifying his trip by saying that its goal was to connect with the Lebanese Diaspora (even though emigrants usually visit Lebanon in the summer). The Lebanese also watched another one of Bassil’s scandals, on video, when he looked as if he was offering the sexual services of one of Lebanon’s senior female diplomats in New York to the Foreign Minister of the UAE.
Bassil’s blunders at the Foreign Ministry and his amateurism eventually caught up with him at the Arab League’s meeting that was convened, in January, to condemn Iranian attacks on the Saudi embassy in Tehran and its consulate in Meshhad. Had Bassil had the slightest of diplomatic wit, he would have noticed that Iran’s three most ardent Arab allies — Iraq, Oman and Algeria — voted for the resolution. Algeria, which noted its reservation on commending the Saudi severing of ties with Iran, still voted for the resolution. Bassil did not.
Even Iranian President Hassan Rouhani denounced the attacks and said that his government had opened an investigation to punish the perpetrators. So here you have it: Lebanon’s talentless Foreign Minister Bassil, who won his position thanks to his familial connections, has taken down the last shred of respectability that the Lebanese state once enjoyed. Perhaps Bassil thought that Arab League meeting was one of Lebanon’s irrelevant cabinet meetings. Perhaps he thought he could erase his mistake by having his and Hezbollah’s media tweaking the story, just like they did with the UN Tribunal, among other false propaganda stunts. Unfortunately, the only thing worse than Bassil’s blunder at the Arab League was the Lebanese failure to understand the mistake and rectify it. Lebanon’s enemies of Saudi Arabia started questioning its angry position. Lebanon’s friends of Saudi Arabia launched a campaign against Iran and Hezbollah. A better response might be to review the bylaws of the Arab League and see whether Beirut can recast Lebanon’s vote. Symbolic as it may be, recasting the vote might tell Riyadh that Beirut understands that Lebanese-Saudi relations cannot be run by amateurs like Bassil, for if Saudi Arabia believes that the Lebanese government is in the image of Bassil, the kingdom will certainly continue distancing itself away from Lebanon, for the first time since the inception of both countries.
Recasting Lebanon’s vote at the Arab League might help rekindle the crumbling Lebanese-Saudi friendship, which if it ever collapses, will cost the Lebanese dearly.
**Hussain Abdul-Hussain is the Washington Bureau Chief of Kuwaiti newspaper Alrai. He tweet @hahussain.

Punishing Lebanon or Hezbollah?
Abdulrahman al-Rashed/Al Arabiya/February 29/16
Following Saudi measures against Hezbollah, some people now think the Lebanese people are satisfied with the party’s actions. Let us recall that those who assassinated former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, as international investigators have proven, are Hezbollah members. He and other Lebanese symbols who dared confront the Iran-Hezbollah-Syrian regime axis were killed. They included ministers Mohammad Chatah and Bassel Fleihan, army official Francois al-Hajj, Wissam al-Hassan, one of the most prominent security officials who was monitoring Hezbollah, Major Wissam Eid for the same reason, and intellectual George Hawi. One of the most prominent young Christian leaders, minister and MP Pierre Gemayel - son of Kataeb Party leader Amin Gemayel - was killed at the age of 34. Prominent author Samir Kassir and renowned journalist Gebran Tueni, former editor-in-chief of An-Nahar newspaper, were also killed. TV journalist May Chidiac was targeted by a car bomb. She survived but lost a leg and arm. Despite this, her stances are the same. When Hezbollah invaded Sunni areas in west Beirut six years ago, causing much death and destruction, Druze leader Walid Jumblatt stood in solidarity with the Sunnis. Hezbollah then attacked Druze areas in the mountains, killing 46 and injuring 123. The bravest of men to defy Hezbollah is Christian leader Samir Geagea, who has continued to confront the party and the Syrian regime since his release from jail. Many Lebanese Shiites have dared to protest in front of the Iranian embassy in Beirut against Hezbollah’s intervention in Syria. However, party members attacked them, and shot and killed protest leader Hisham Salman in a hideous public execution.
Unreasonable demands
This is why it is unacceptable to say the Lebanese people have not tried to defy Iranian hegemony. Hezbollah possesses a power that it established under the pretext of resisting Israel - a lie that in the past naive Arabs believed and supported. Most Lebanese wish to get rid of the party ideologically and militarily, for domestic reasons that have nothing to do with Syria or Saudi Arabia.Hezbollah has restrained their lives and created fear that has led to the emigration of hundreds of thousands and the loss of investors. Its activities have harmed downtown Beirut, as the party has invaded it whenever it wants to protest and terrorize its visitors. One cannot demand that the Lebanese people confront Iran and Hezbollah when there is no foreign power willing to support them. The same goes for the Syrian people who are being slaughtered.
I think Riyadh will increase support to all those confronting Tehran and its allies, including those in Lebanon and even opposition parties in Iran
The Saudi suspension of aid to the Lebanese army is justified. The aim of the aid was to empower state institutions in the face of extremist organizations such as Hezbollah and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). However, Hezbollah is using the army in its war against the Syrian people to protect its fronts and passages, and army officials are powerless. Riyadh’s decision is wise because it targets Hezbollah. The kingdom has also halted Saudi flights to Beirut, urged Saudi citizens to leave Lebanon, and blacklisted some companies and people for having links to Hezbollah. All these decisions are justified to confront Iran and its proxy, especially after the latter’s plan to hijack a Saudi passenger plane in the Philippines was exposed. I do not think Saudi Arabia will stop supporting parties that confront Hezbollah, and will not stop dealing with Lebanese who have nothing to do with the party. I think Riyadh will increase support to all those confronting Tehran and its allies, including those in Lebanon and even opposition parties in Iran.

Israel: Lebanon violated UNSC resolution calls to disarm Hezbollah more than 2,000 times
J.Post/February 29/16/NEW YORK – Lebanon violated UN Security Council Resolution 1701, 2,374 times in 2015, according to a report the Israeli Mission released to the UN on Sunday. Resolution 1701 was passed in 2006 and was intended to resolve that summer’s war between Israel and Lebanon. It called for a disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon, including Hezbollah. It also stated that no armed forces other than the UN Interim Force in Lebanon and the Lebanese army would be posted south of the Litani River. According to the report, 2015 saw 1,079 incidents in which armed individuals were cited freely roaming in southern Lebanon. Additionally, there were 589 violations involving the UN-delineated Blue Line border between Israel and Lebanon, and 653 Hezbollah patrols along the border fence. Two incidents in which Israel was attacked, including two rockets fired at Nahariya, were also recorded, as well as 51 violent demonstrations against the IDF. “Hezbollah has free reign in south Lebanon and instead of reacting forcefully to their violations, the UN is ignoring the problem,” said Danny Danon, ambassador to the UN. “Israel will continue to show zero tolerance regarding anyone who attacks us,” he told UN Secretary- General Ban Ki-moon. “The government of Lebanon is not acting and armed Hezbollah operatives are roaming freely throughout the south Lebanon in violation of the UN.” The report follows Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s threat last week to strike the ammonia storage facility in Haifa, which he claimed would cause a nuclear-like explosion.Danon had filed several complaints about violations of the resolution to Ban since January, including one earlier this month in which he asked the secretary-general to condemn rocket attacks from Lebanon on northern Israel.

Canada fulfills promise to take in Syrian refugees
AFP, Montreal Monday, 29 February 2016/Canada has met a self-imposed deadline to accept 25,000 Syrian refugees fleeing their country’s civil war, officials said, fulfilling a campaign promise by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “25000 reasons why Canadians should be proud today #WelcomeRefugees,” Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister John McCallum tweeted after a charter flight carrying refugees touched down in Montreal on Saturday. Trudeau had made a campaign pledge to take in 25,000 Syrian refugees from Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey before the end of 2015. But his Liberal government pushed the target back two months after taking office following elections in October. Canada has chartered around a hundred flights from Lebanon and Jordan since Trudeau met the first arriving plane in December. The government’s resettlement program will cover costs for more than half the refugees during their first year. Private groups or a combination of both will cover the rest, the country’s immigration authorities said. Syrian refugees will continue to arrive in Canada, albeit at a slower pace. The country is set to take in some 12,000 more refugees by the end of the year under a program run jointly with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the immigration authorities said. Some 250 Canadian cities and towns have taken in refugees so far. The UNHCR has contacted nearly 70,000 Syrians living in refugee camps in Lebanon and Jordan about emigrating to Canada. Fewer than half said they were interested. Europe’s migrant crisis became a political issue in Canada during last year’s election campaign. Political parties competed over the number of refugees the country should accept after a photograph of the drowned Syrian boy Aylan Kurdi on a Turkish beach captured international attention.

Netanyahu: Israel ranked the eighth strongest country in the world
J.Post/February 29/16/Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu touted Israel's strength among world nations on Monday, saying that Jewish state's international alliances account for its high ranking among global powers. Speaking at the weekly Likud faction meeting, Netanyahu said that two trends were characterizing Israel's international standing: an effort to delegitimize Israel on the one hand, and a strengthening of Israel's ties with the nations of the world on the other hand. Netanyahu cited a survey published recently by the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, which ranked Israel the eighth strongest country in the world. The survey listed the most powerful nations as the United States, Russia, China, Germany, Britain, France, Japan, and in eighth place, Israel, according to Netanyahu. "They rank us high in international power because of our international alliances," Netanyahu said. Netanyahu's comments came after Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid and Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Liberman held a press conference earlier in the day, contending that Netanyahu had damaged Israel's standing in the world. "Israel is ranked eighth in the world on the basis of three criteria that the survey mentioned: military power, that's clear. International influence, and notice what they said - international alliances," he said. Netanyahu said that he had met earlier in the day with the new Egyptian ambassador to Israel and later with representatives from African states who want Israel to strengthen its ties once again with Africa. He said that he would also be meeting US Vice President Joe Biden in the coming days. "We are strengthening ties with the great powers of Asia and with Latin American countries. That is what we do all the time, on a daily basis," he said. Dismissing the press conference held by Lapid and Liberman, Netanyahu said: "The coalition chairman told me that the left-wing parties held a political emergency conference. So there are those who choose to blabber and to deal with political conferences, and there are those who defuse the pressures on Israel an strengthen the international alliances in order to ensure our future here."
Netanyahu said that Israel's military, economic, diplomatic and technological strength would ensure the country's future and bring Israel's enemies to make peace with it. Lapid and Liberman had argued that Netanyahu was hurting Israel's ability to fight the delegitimization of Israel by closing down foreign representations abroad and splitting the Foreign Ministry up into smaller departments. Laqid said that "the deterioration is dramatic. The BDS movement is gaining steam. The international media is running an anti-Israel line with the help of Israeli organizations like Breaking the Silence. Our international standing has never been worse, and what makes the situation more drastic is that the Israeli government won't admit that the situation is terrible."

Israel 'very concerned' by rising Iranian power in Syria, Ya'alon says
J.Post/February 29/16/Israel is highly concerned by the prospect of a stronger Iranian presence in Syria, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon told his Italian counterpart, Roberta Pinotti, on Monday in Tel Aviv. Ya'alon, who met with Pinotti at his Tel Aviv bureau, praised defense relations between Israel and Italy, and pointed out the use by the IAF of Italy's M346 training plane. Although Israel would very much like the Syrian civil war to come to an end, the conflict, which has led to half a million casualties and ten million refugees, "is still continuing at this time. It has not completely stopped," Ya'alon said.Israel is highly concerned by the prospect of a stronger Iranian presence in Syria, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon told his Italian counterpart, Roberta Pinotti, on Monday in Tel Aviv. Ya'alon, who met with Pinotti at his Tel Aviv bureau, praised defense relations between Israel and Italy, and pointed out the use by the IAF of Italy's M346 training plane. Although Israel would very much like the Syrian civil war to come to an end, the conflict, which has led to half a million casualties and ten million refugees, "is still continuing at this time. It has not completely stopped," Ya'alon said.

Bahrain Jails 'Terrorists' for Attacking Police
SourceAgence France Presse/Naharnet/February 29/16/Bahrain jailed five people for up to 15 years on Monday for "terrorist" attacks against police in the Sunni-ruled Gulf kingdom that has been shaken by Shiite-led unrest since 2011. A high criminal court sentenced three defendants to 15 years each after convicting them of setting an interior ministry vehicle on fire, the prosecutor in "terrorist" cases, Ahmed al-Hammadi, said. They were also collectively fined more than 17,000 dinars ($45,000), said Hammadi in a statement published by the official BNA news agency. No casualties were reported in the attack that took place in August last year. In another case, the same court jailed two defendants, one for three years and the second for 10 years, after convicting them of rioting and throwing explosives and rocks at police last April. That "terrorist" attack wounded two policemen, the statement said. Bahrain, just across the Gulf from Iran and home to the U.S. Fifth Fleet, has seen frequent clashes between protesters and security forces in Shiite villages since a Shiite-led uprising was crushed five years ago.

NATO Chief Voices Concern over Syria Truce Violations
SourceAgence France Presse/Naharnet/February 29/16/NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg expressed concern over reports of violations of a three-day-old ceasefire in Syria on Monday and urged all parties to respect the truce. "We have seen encouraging signs that the ceasefire is largely holding, but at the same time we have seen some reports about violations," Stoltenberg told a press conference in Kuwait City. "Of course, that is of concern because it is important that all sides should respect the agreement," which is the best way to renew efforts for a political solution to the devastating five-year conflict, he said. The ceasefire deal was brokered by Moscow and Washington and took effect at midnight on Friday. It entered its third day largely intact on Monday despite accusations of violations from both sides. Stoltenberg said NATO was also concerned about Russia's military buildup in Syria, where it has carried out a five-month bombing campaign in support of President Bashar Assad. "We are concerned about the Russian military buildup we have seen in Syria," whether it is military or air force, he said. The NATO chief said Russian air strikes had "mainly targeted" non-jihadist rebels rather than the Islamic State group, which has been targeted by a U.S.-led coalition. He said the Western alliance had no plans to send ground troops to Syria as part of the campaign against the jihadists.

U.N. plans aid for 154,000 besieged Syrians in next 5 days
Reuters, Geneva Monday, 29 February 2016/The United Nations and partner aid organizations plan to deliver life-saving aid to 154,000 Syrians in besieged areas in the next five days, the UN Resident Coordinator in Damascus Yacoub El Hillo said in a statement on Sunday. Pending approval from parties to the conflict, the UN is ready to deliver aid to about 1.7 million people in hard-to-reach areas in the first quarter of 2016, he said. The U.N. estimates there are almost 500,000 people living under siege and 4.6 million who are hard to reach with aid.

UN chief: Syria ceasefire holding ‘by and large’
By Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Monday, 29 February 2016/The UN chief said Monday a fragile Syria ceasefire was holding “by and large” despite “incidents” of fighting at the weekend and the opposition warning that the truce was facing a “complete nullification.”“As of now I can tell you that by and large the cessation of hostilities is holding even though we have experienced some incidents,” United Nations Secretary Genera Ban Ki-moon told reporters in Geneva. A UN-backed taskforce was also set to meet to evaluate various accusations of breaches. The taskforce monitoring the truce is “now trying to make sure that this does not spread any further and that this cessation of hostilities can continue.”That taskforce would meet at 3:00 pm (1400 GMT), the top UN envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, told AFP. The tenuous truce, negotiated by Washington and Moscow and backed by the UN, entered its third day despite reports of violations on both sides. The special international task force co-chaired by the United States and Russia last met on Saturday, just hours after the cessation of hostilities began.It is one of several mechanisms in place to oversee and deal with violations of the agreement, which does not apply to territory held by ISIS and Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Nusra Front.
Syrian opposition warning
On Monday, a Syrian opposition official told Al Arabiya's sister channel Al Hadath that the fragile truce is facing a “complete nullification” because of President Bashar al-Assad government’s attacks. Asaad al-Zoubi, head of the Saudi-backed High Negotiations Committee’s delegation to peace talks, said the truce which came into effect early on Saturday had collapsed before it started. “We have alternatives to protect our people” if the international community could not, it quoted him as saying without elaborating. Zoubi added there were “no indicators” that the ground was being prepared for peace talks, which the United Nations has said it plans to reconvene on March 7. The Syrian opposition has also sent a letter to the Security Council, saying that Russian war jets on Sunday have executed 26 raids on Syrian rebel factions who were already implementing the ceasefire. The letter also accused Moscow of dropping cluster bombs on residential buildings, which led to the killing of many civilians. France has also called for an immediate meeting of the Syria taskforce to discuss breaches of the cessation of hostilities that came into force on Friday night, French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said on Monday. Ayrault told reporters at the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva that he had information about attacks against zones held by moderate rebels in Syria. “We have received indications that attacks, including air strikes are continuing in areas controlled by the moderate opposition,” Ayrault told reporters in Geneva. “This must all of course be verified. France has therefore asked that the task force overseeing the implementation of the cessation of hostilities meets without delay,” he said on the sidelines of the UN Human Rights Council. Meanwhile, the Syrian government said on Monday Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister was trying to thwart a fragile cessation of hostilities agreement. “What Adel al-Jubeir says ... about a plan B regarding the current developments in Syria is merely ... an attempt to thwart the cessation of hostilities,” a Syrian foreign ministry official was quoted as saying in a statement on state media.
Aid delivery
On Monday, aid workers began carrying out the first delivery of humanitarian assistance to Syrians since the landmark truce came into effect at the weekend, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent said. The Red Crescent said that 10 trucks of aid including blankets and hygiene supplies provided by the United Nations had entered the besieged Syrian town of Moadamiyet al-Sham southwest of Damascus.
(With AFP, Reuters)

Death toll in suicide attack northeast of Baghdad rises to 24: sources
Reuters, Baghdad Monday, 29 February 2016/The death toll in a suicide bombing in Iraq’s eastern province of Diyala rose to 24 on Monday, police and hospital sources said.A further 55 people were wounded in the attack at a funeral for a Shiite Muslim militia fighter in Muqdadiya, 80 km (50 miles) northeast of Baghdad.

Baghdad blasts’ death toll rises to 70
AFP and Reuters, Baghdad Sunday, 28 February 2016/The death toll of a twin suicide bombing in a Shiite district of Baghdad on Sunday rose to 70, with more than 100 wounded, police, medics and morgue sources said, Reuters reported. The attack in Sadr City was earlier claimed by ISIS. Two police sources said the assailants were suicide bombers riding motorcycles through a crowded mobile phone market. They said police had sealed off the area to prevent further attacks. Officials said the bombings in Sadr city claimed by ISIS killed at least 33 people. ISIS also attacked an army position in an area west of Baghdad, seizing it and killing at least eight security personnel over the course of the day. The two blasts near a market in the Sadr City area of northern Baghdad, at least one of which was a suicide bombing, also wounded at least 79 people, security and medical officials said. ISIS, which overran swathes of territory north and west of Baghdad in 2014, claimed the attacks in a statement online that said two suicide bombers had detonated explosive belts in Sadr City. ISIS considers Shiite Muslims, who make up the majority of Iraq’s population, to be heretics and frequently targets them with bombings and other attacks. Suicide bombings are a tactic almost exclusively used in Iraq by ISIS. The militant group claimed twin suicide bombings targeting Shiite worshippers on Thursday that killed at least nine people in Shuala, another Shiite-majority area in northern Baghdad. ISIS also launched an attack on an army position in the Abu Ghraib area west of the city on Sunday, security officials said. The militant attacked the position early in the morning and held it until government reinforcements arrived and took it back later in the day, the officials said. The Abu Ghraib violence killed at least eight people, including both members of the security forces and allied paramilitaries, and wounded at least 22, while IS members were also killed, officials said. While attacks are still common in Baghdad, violence in the city has decreased significantly since IS launched a sweeping offensive in June 2014, after which many of its militants became occupied with fighting elsewhere. In early 2015, the Iraqi government ended a long-running curfew that kept most Iraqis off the streets between midnight and 5:00 am (1800 to 0200 GMT), a move that expanded freedom of movement and has not negatively impacted security. The Iraqi government is now building a series of walls and trenches at various points surrounding the capital with the aim of restricting the movement of militants and curbing other illegal activity. Security spokesman Brigadier General Saad Maan has said that after the completion of the first phase of construction, half of the checkpoints in the capital will be removed, though such proposals have been made before but not implemented. The city is littered with checkpoints manned by forces who often wave cars through or at most perform cursory searches, adding little to security while causing major traffic jams. Security personnel at many Baghdad checkpoints, including those leading to the heavily-fortified Green Zone, still employ "bomb detectors" that have long since been proven to be fake.

Russia: Turkish military strikes on Syria would derail ceasefire plan
Reuters, Moscow Monday, 29 February 2016/Russia is concerned about Turkey’s military preparations along its border with Syria and an armed intervention by Ankara would deal an “irreparable blow” to the Syria ceasefire plan, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Monday. “Unfortunately, our Turkish colleagues still have not abandoned the idea of cross-border strikes,” Ryabkov told a news briefing. He also said Syria could become a federal state if that model works in the country. In the same day, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Monday the alliance was concerned by a Russian military build-up in Syria. “We are concerned about the significant Russian military build up we have seen in Syria with the ground troops, with the naval forces in eastern Mediterranean and with air forces conducting air strikes,” he told a press conference in the Gulf Arab country of Kuwait.

Gunmen kill pro-govt Sunni cleric in Yemen’s Aden
AFP, Aden Monday, 29 February 2016/Gunmen killed a pro-government Sunni Salafist cleric on Sunday in Yemen’s main southern city of Aden, home to a growing militant presence, a security official said. Sheikh Abdulrahman al-Adani was shot dead as he was heading to a mosque near his home, the official said. Adani headed a Salafist religious school which attracts both local and foreign students. He was known for his stance against the Shiite Houthi rebels as well as against ISIS and Al-Qaeda which are becoming increasingly active in Aden, sources there said. According to Zaid al-Sallami, an Aden-based expert on Islamist groups, Adani was known for “rejecting violence and terrorism.” His murder was an attempt to “push moderate Salafist youths towards violence,” Sallami said. Al-Qaeda and ISIS have stepped up attacks in Aden despite the efforts of the government and its backers in a Saudi-led coalition battling the Houthis and their allies to secure it. In another sign of growing unrest in Aden, clashes broke out near the entrance to the presidential palace in the port city’s Crater district between presidential guards and soldiers demanding their salaries, an official told AFP. The fighting spread to nearby residential districts and there were casualties, the official and residents said. President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi’s internationally recognized government has declared Aden the country’s provisional capital after the Houthis and their allies drove it out of Sanaa and much of northern Yemen since September 2014. The rebels controlled Aden for months before government loyalists pushed them out in July. Because of the unrest gripping Aden, Hadi himself and many senior officials in his government spend most of their time in Riyadh, which has led an anti-rebel coalition since March 26 last year.

Suicide bombing kills 4 in Yemen’s Aden: official
AFP, Aden Monday, 29 February 2016/A suicide car bombing killed four people Monday when it hit a gathering of loyalist forces in Yemen’s Aden, the southern city serving as a government base, a security official said. Five others were wounded in the attack in the residential Sheikh Othman district, the official said. The suicide bomber rammed his explosives-laden vehicle into an area where security forces and pro-government militiamen had assembled, the official said. President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi has declared Aden as Yemen’s temporary capital as Sanaa remains in the hands of the Iran-backed Houthi militias and their allies since they seized it in September 2014. Al-Qaeda and ISIS have stepped up attacks in Aden despite the efforts of the government and its backers in a Saudi-led coalition battling the Houthis and their allies to secure it. The Houthis controlled Aden for months before government loyalists pushed them out in July.Because of the unrest gripping Aden, Hadi himself and many senior government officials spend most of their time in Riyadh, which has led an anti-rebel coalition since March 26 last year.

Yemeni official: Houthis recruiting African fighters
Staff writer, Al Arabiya News Channel Monday, 29 February 2016/A top military Yemeni official said the Iran-backed Houthi militias and their ally’s forces have started recruiting “mercenaries,” coming mostly from African countries, Al Arabiya News Channel reported Monday. Deputy Chief of Staff Gen. Nasir al-Tahiri said the move by the Houthis and forces allied to to the toppled Ali Abdullah Saleh was to buttress their weakening fronts at the capital Sanaa and the northwestern governorate of Saada. Meanwhile, military sources said Saleh has ordered Republican Guards forces to withdraw from central al-Baydha, southwestern Ibb and Dhammar (west of al-Baydaha) to be consolidated in Sanaa as battles heat up. It is not the first time that an abroad force is helping with the militias in Yemen. Last week, the internationally recognized Yemeni government said it has evidence that the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah is backing the Houthi militia group. President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi’s internationally recognized government has declared Aden the country’s provisional capital after the Houthis and their allies drove it out of Sanaa and much of northern Yemen since September 2014. The rebels controlled Aden for months before government loyalists pushed them out in July. Because of the unrest gripping Aden, Hadi himself and many senior officials in his government spend most of their time in Riyadh, which has led an anti-rebel coalition since March 26 last year.

Yemeni minister criticizes UN over Taiz, hails Gulf contribution
By Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Sunday, 28 February 2016/A minister from Yemen’s internationally recognized government criticized the UN for not doing enough to help break the siege on the southwestern province of Taiz, hailing the Gulf states as the main contributors of relief to his war-wracked country.
Abdul Raqeeb Saif Fateh, who is the minister of local administration and also chairman of the Higher Committee for Relief in Yemen, told the London-based Al Arab newspaper this week that the UN and its humanitarian agencies had not been able to lift the ongoing sanctions against Taiz for the past nine months.
He criticized the UN for accusing “all sides” in the conflict of wrongdoing after sending one of its teams to Taiz, saying the international organization should know who is responsible. The Iran-backed Houthi militia group is currently laying siege to Taiz, the country’s third largest city, and surrounding areas. Some 200,000 civilians in Taiz are caught up in the fighting. Last week, the Yemeni army and popular resistance forces made considerable progress on several fronts in Taiz, while Houthi militias have continued a bombing campaign of civilians in the city, the Arabic website of Al Arabiya News Channel reported. Fateh, who was speaking on the sideline of a charity conference held in Qatar, described the Gulf states as taking a “brotherly stance” towards Yemen, adding the main issue in Yemen is “political” and “not sectarian.” Without naming sides, Fateh said political factions backed from powers abroad are the ones “complicating” the situation in Yemen. He also made the claim that “82 percent of the Yemeni population [are] in an urgent need of humanitarian relief.” “The Yemeni president Abdrabbu Mansour Hadi and his deputy Khaled Bahah have explained that the war imposed was for peace, and that dialogue is the only solution,” he said. “But we do not want the devil’s dialogue which brings us back before 2011 just as toppled Ali Abdullah Saleh [the deposed former longtime president] and his allies want.”Since March last year, the Saudi-led coalition has bombed Iranian-backed Houthi militias and forces allied to deposed leader Saleh, in a bid to put the government of internationally recognized President Abdrabbu Mansour Hadi back in power.

Yemeni army seeking to tighten control of Hajjah and Hodeidah
Staff writer, Al Arabiya Sunday, 28 February 2016/The army of Yemen’s internationally recognized government and Popular Resistance units are planning to tighten their grip over the northwestern province of Hajjah and advance south to the coastal Hodeidah province after making gains, the army said.
Brigadier General Omar Sajjaf said that government forces are preparing to advance towards new areas after receiving reinforcements, according to Al Arabiya News Channel. Several areas in Hajjah province are still controlled by the Iran-backed Houthis and forces loyal to ousted former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, although government forces are seeking to dislodge the militias with the backing of the Saudi-led coalition. Coalition fighter jets launched intensive raids on militia positions in Sanaa and other Yemeni provinces, targeting a camp south of the capital Sanaa, in addition to a gathering of military members and vehicles. The strikes reportedly killed and wounded dozens of militias.In the southwestern province of Taiz, Popular Resistant units said dozens of militia gunmen were killed and wounded after shelling from the Arab coalition.

Top Iran conservatives lose seats on key body
AFP, Tehran Monday, 29 February 2016/Two leading hardline ayatollahs, Mohammad Yazdi and Mohammad Taghi Mesbah-Yazdi, have lost their seats on Iran’s top clerical body, results from last week’s election confirmed on Monday. The reformist alliance formed in support of moderate President Hassan Rowhani had campaigned against both Yazdi, the outgoing chairman of the Assembly of Experts, and Mesbah-Yazdi, an outspoken opponent of the reformists. But a third conservative, Ahmad Jannati, who had been targeted by the pro-Rowhani coalition, narrowly kept his seat on the assembly, a powerful committee which oversees the work of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, state television reported. Iran said on Monday that counting of votes cast in Friday's twin elections was over and the nationwide turnout was 62 percent."Counting of the votes is finished .... the participation in Tehran was 50 percent and in the whole country was around 62 percent," said Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli. Jannati, who chairs the conservative-dominated Guardian Council which must confirm the results of Friday’s elections for both the assembly and for parliament, came 16th in Tehran, scraping the last of the capital’s 16 assembly seats. Verification of the result is not expected for several days. The election to the 88-member Assembly of Experts is important because it will pick Khamenei’s successor if he dies during its eight-year term. Rowhani placed third in polling for the assembly in Tehran and his key ally, former president Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani took first place.
Conservative accusations
The race for the Assembly of Experts saw claims from prominent conservatives of foreign interference and some accused the Rowhani-Rafsanjani slate of being “a British list”. On Sunday as it became increasingly clear that Yazdi and Mesbah-Yazdi were set to lose their seats the head of the country’s judiciary, Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani echoed those allegations. Reformists worked with “American and English media outlets” during the poll, Larijani charged. “Is this type of coordination with foreigners in order to push out these figures from the Assembly of Experts in the interests of the regime?” he asked. Rowhani’s government dismissed the accusations when they were first made during the election campaign. “We don’t have anything such as a British list and if anyone wants to say that there is such a list, they are in fact insulting the Guardian Council,” said government spokesman Mohammad Bagher Nobakht, a vice president. The Guardian Council approved all candidates who ran in the elections for parliament and for the Assembly of Experts.
(With Reuters)

Palestinians reject direct Iran aid to ‘intifada’ families
AFP, Ramallah, Palestinian Territories Sunday, 28 February 2016/The Palestinian Authority on Sunday said direct financial assistance by Iran to the families of Palestinians killed in a five-month wave of violence would be unacceptable. Tehran announced last week assistance would be offered to families of Palestinians killed in the wave of violence that erupted in October, but the PA says such aid must follow official channels. Palestinian presidency spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina, cited by local media, said bypassing the authority in handing out such funds would constitute illegal interference in internal Palestinian affairs. Iran should “send this money through official channels to the (PA’s) Martyrs and Prisoners Foundation rather than relying on informal and circuitous routes,” Abu Rudeina said. Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon, Mohammad Fathali, said Wednesday that Tehran would offer $7,000 to the families of each Palestinian killed in what he called the “Jerusalem intifada”. Iran will also give $30,000 to Palestinian families whose homes have been destroyed by Israel because a member is accused of carrying out an anti-Israeli attack, he told a news conference in Beirut. The money pledged is in addition to the monthly aid paid since 1987 by an Iranian institution to families of Palestinians killed, he said. The wave of violence in Israel and the Palestinian territories since October has killed 177 Palestinians as well as 28 Israelis, an American, a Sudanese and an Eritrean, according to an AFP toll. Most of the Palestinians who died in the violence were killed by Israeli forces while carrying out knife, gun and car-ramming attacks, according to Israeli authorities. Others were shot dead by Israeli forces during clashes and demonstrations. Iran has been accused of providing support to Hamas, which runs the Gaza Strip and is a rival to Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas’s Fatah party. Fatah dominates the Palestinian Authority. Palestinian economists have questioned whether Iran would be capable of distributing the aid to the families directly via banks since it could be considered “terrorism financing.” The day after Iran’s announcement, Israel denounced the decision, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying it showed Tehran was “continuing to aid terrorism.”

Iran: A Setback for Hardliners and Little Cheer for Reformists
Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat/February 29/16
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/02/29/amir-taheriasharq-al-awsat-iran-a-setback-for-hardliners-and-little-cheer-for-reformists/
An Iranian man holds a copy of the daily ‘Shargh’ newspaper with pictures of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani on it. The headline reads ‘Decisive victory for the reformist’ (EPA)
The final results of Iran’s elections on Friday were released yesterday and it is possible to examine the latest snapshot of opinion within the ruling Khomeinist establishment. Some analysts dismiss elections in the Islamic Republic as no more than a charade if only because all candidates are pre-approved by the Council of Guardians while the Ministry of Interior rather than an independent election commission is in charge of the whole operation.
However, Iranian elections remain interesting because they offer a glimpse into the balance of forces within the regime, much like primaries in the US Republican and Democrat parties. The first item of interest in Iranians elections is the voter turnout as a measure of public interest in the exercise. Turnout figures are always hard to establish with accuracy because there is no way to verify official data.
This time, a month before voting the Interior Ministry reported that 56 million people were eligible to vote. But a week before voting that figure was brought down to a fraction under 55 million. A day after voting, the ministry announced that a further three million could not have voted because they did not have national identity cards. Thus, theoretically at least, the number of those eligible is at least 58 million.
Official figures claim that 33 million votes were cast of which 32 million were authenticated. This means that about a million votes were spoiled or blank. Interior Minister Rahmani Fazli puts the percentage of those who voted at just over 60 per cent, as opposed to around 58 per cent according to the alternative setoff figures. But even if we accept his figure, it is still four per cent lower than the last general election four years ago. In other words, the hype created by the nuclear “deal” with the P5+1 Group led by the US did not create the “avalanche of participation” that President Hassan Rouhani had hoped for.
Of the nine elections held under the Islamic Republic, yesterday’s produced the second lowest turnout after the first which had only 51 per cent. There was, however, one major exception: Tehran where, compared to elections four years ago, voter turnout increased by a whopping 20 per cent to reach, helping the list backed by former President Hashemi Rafsanjani to win most of the 30 seats reserved for the capital (Rouhani is in the same faction). The Rafsanjani faction also scored a major victory by winning a majority of the 16 seats of Tehran in the Assembly of Experts, the body of mullahs that could choose or dismiss the “Supreme Guide”.
Of equal symbolic importance was the fact that the Rafsanjani-Rouhani faction succeeded in unseating two of the most high profile ayatollahs of the hardline radical faction: Muhammad Yazdi and Muhammad-Taqi Mesbah-Yazdi from the Assembly of Experts (Ayatollah Muhammad Yazdi was President of the Assembly).
But beyond those spectacular successes, the picture is not as encouraging for the Rafsanjani-Rouhani faction not to mention President Barack Obama who had hoped for a change of course in Tehran. The next Assembly of Experts will continue to have a solid hardline majority of 58 percent compared to the Rafsanjani faction’s 17 with “weathervanes” holding the balance of its 88 seats.
In the Islamic Majlis, the unicameral parliament, the hardliners loyal to “Supreme Guide” Ali Khamenei have won 153 of the 290 seats, a slim majority. The main Rafsanjani faction, known as “Reformers” has won seats 67 seats while a smaller list, closer to Rouhani himself, secured 13 seats. The “Independents” won 21 seats. The remaining seats will be decided in a second round of voting in a month’s time.
The final results must be approved by the Council of the Guardians of the Constitution before they become legal. At the time of writing this analysis, a lot of horse-trading was going on to allow a few grandee losers to secure a seat.
One grandee who was squeezed in was Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, head of the Council of the Guardians of the Cosntitution. He had stood for a seat in the Assembly of Experts in Tehran but was declared stuck at the 17th place, thus failing to get in. Yesterday, however, the results were altered to let him squeeze in at 16th place.
There was talk of another grandee securing a seat in the Islamic Majlis. This was Ghulam-Ali Haddad Adel whose daughter is married to Ayaollah Khamenei’s son. However, he didn’t succeed getting a seat in the end because alteration of results could have led to a split in the Rafsanjani winning coalition.
Friday’s election produced a major turnover of the political personnel. First, the number of female members of the Islamic Majlis was more than doubled, largely thanks to Tehran where eight women were elected.
Of the incumbent members, a whopping 54 were eliminated while another 30 had been disqualified as candidates or decided not to run.
Another feature was the continuation of the trend towards the ascendancy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard (IRGC). Those with an IRGC background accounted for 30 per cent of the members in the outgoing Islamic Majlis. In the next Majlis that number will rise to 38 per cent. In contrast, the mullahs, accounting for 18 per cent in the outgoing Majlis will lose further ground, sinking to 12 per cent in the new parliament. The position of the military in the legislature is further strengthened by the fact that former intelligence and security officers have gained at least 12 seats in the new Majlis.
However, the biggest share, around 40 per cent, belongs to technocrats and government functionaries. All in all, the new Majlis, compared to the nine previous ones, has an even narrower social base. The bazaaris, tribal and clan figures, and professionals such as physicians and engineers, have a smaller presence in the new Majlis.
The Rafsanjani-Rouhani factions, presenting three lists in the election, suffered from the fact that the mass-audience television channels were controlled by the hardliners. That was in part compensated for by the Persian-language TV services of the BBC and the Voice of America which helped the narrative favored by ”moderates”. The hardliners, known as “Fundamentalists” (Ousul-garayan) also controlled most of the news agencies and a number of newspapers. The “moderates” were compensated by their control of the government news agency IRNA and a number of newspapers financed by Rafsanjani or his business associates.
None of the rival lists offered a political program. Thus voters made their choice on the basis of perceptions they had about candidates. Those who voted for the Rafsanjani-Rouhani list wanted to show their rejection of the hard-line policies promoted by Khamenei. The personality of the candidates also counted, especially in smaller constituencies and among religious and ethnic minorities.Though producing no decisive shift in power in Tehran, Friday’s election strengthens the position of those who promote the “Chinese option”, that is to say focusing on economic growth combined with good relations with the outside world and crushing any opposition at home. Those who support the “North Korean option”, that is to say a closed economic system, repression at home and adventurism abroad, have suffered a setback, especially in Tehran and other major cities. The Rafsanjani-Rouhani faction favors better ties with the US and Great Britain. The faction led by Khamenei has just launched its “Looking East” strategy and counts on building an axis with Russia. If anything, the power struggle in Tehran is likely to intensify as concern about Khamenei’s succession grows.

Riyadh’s wrath
Alex Rowell/Now Lebanon/February 29/16
SAUDI ARABIA, MECCA : A handout picture provided by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) shows Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz delivering a speech at the Royal Palace in Mecca on September 24, 2015
Beginning with its surprise suspension of $4 billion in pledged aid to the Lebanese army and Internal Security Forces on February 19, Saudi Arabia has undertaken an extraordinary set of punitive measures against Lebanon and Lebanese nationals, including warning its own citizens against traveling to the country (a step later emulated by the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait); designating several Lebanese companies and individuals as “terrorists;” and firing at least 90 Lebanese expatriates from their jobs in the Kingdom.
Most recently, speculation has mounted that Saudi and other Gulf states could also withdraw their deposits in Lebanon’s central bank (said to amount to around $900 million out of Lebanon’s total foreign reserves of over $37 billion), while Saudi sources told NOW investment from the Kingdom in Lebanon had likely ceased already.
“I’m sure a Saudi businessman, even without receiving a telephone call from his government […] is very much reluctant to invest more in Lebanon right now,” said Jamal Khashoggi, a veteran Saudi journalist and former advisor to then-ambassador Prince Turki al-Faisal.
Officially, the trigger for this sudden deterioration in Riyadh-Beirut ties was the refusal by Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil to sign a recent Arab League statement condemning Iran and Hezbollah in the wake of the January attack on the Saudi embassy in Tehran. The anti-Hezbollah March 14 coalition subsequently blamed the loss of Saudi’s $4 billion donation on the Party of God, which it accused of forcing its ally Bassil’s hand. Hezbollah has substantially escalated its rhetoric in general against the Kingdom in recent weeks, with leader Hassan Nasrallah calling it a “takfiri and terrorist” state and mass-murdering agent of Western imperialism and Zionism in a January speech, drawing repeated chants of “Death to the Saud family!” from the audience. Responding to calls for an apology to Saudi Friday, Hezbollah’s deputy leader Naim Qassem said it was Saudi who ought to apologize to Lebanon: “Saudi Arabia is the one that attacked us, we did not attack it.”
Yet knowledgeable sources told NOW the Saudi measures were just as much about sending a message to the Kingdom’s ostensible allies in March 14, who have failed to meet the expectations of the new Saudi leadership that took over following the death of King Abdullah in January 2015. Specifically, NOW was told the new King Salman, along with his highly influential son, Deputy Crown Prince and Defense Minister Muhammad bin Salman, are deeply disappointed with what they see as a lack of meaningful opposition to Hezbollah from Saudi partners in Lebanon.
“I think the Kingdom got fed up with Lebanese taking Saudi Arabia for granted, [fed up] that even our Lebanese friends just assume that Saudi Arabia will not let go of Lebanon, will continue in supporting Lebanon, despite them not taking a decisive positon regarding Hezbollah,” said Khashoggi.
“They complain about [Hezbollah] when they come to Saudi Arabia, they all realize that Hezbollah is threatening the Lebanese constitution, Lebanese authority, but at the same time they are not doing anything about it.”
In particular, two recent developments left the Saudis’ “blood boiling,” according to a Lebanese political source, citing information from people close to Muhammad bin Salman, who requested anonymity to speak freely. These were the release on bail in January of bomb-plotting former minister Michel Samaha, and the nomination by March 14’s two leading factions of presidential candidates notoriously hostile to the Kingdom.
“March 14 has failed to grasp that Salman and Muhammad bin Salman have a new management style,” the source told NOW. “What did they expect from Saudi, when one of their allies [Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea] backed the presidential candidacy of [Free Patriotic Movement leader] Michel Aoun, a major opponent of Saudi, and their other key ally [Future Movement head Saad al-Hariri] one-upped him by nominating [Marada Movement leader] Sleiman Franjieh, another enemy of the Kingdom?”
An opening for Tehran?
Both the Lebanese source and Khashoggi told NOW the Saudi move was no short-term phenomenon, but rather a fundamental reassessment of policy priorities in Lebanon and, indeed, the region overall.
“Saudi Arabia is throwing everything in the air, and saying, ‘I’m no longer going to finance hostile Lebanon’,” said Khashoggi. Asked what, if anything, could persuade Riyadh to reconsider its decision, Khashoggi replied, “If the miracle happens, and a national united front against Hezbollah is formed in Lebanon, that would bring Saudi Arabia to the support of that national front.”
With a “downsized Saudi role in Lebanon,” as Washington Institute for Near East Policy analyst David Schenker termed it, thus potentially the new reality, some figures, including Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt, are concerned the Lebanese state will only grow weaker and more susceptible to the influence of Hezbollah and Iran henceforth. Already, one unconfirmed report in the pro-Hezbollah Al-Akhbar newspaper claims Iran stands ready to more than double Saudi’s previous bid, offering as much as $10 billion in expenditure on Lebanon’s army, water and electricity infrastructure, and waste management programs. Whether such a dramatic riposte truly comes to fruition, the worries of many in Lebanon were summarized by the TV presenter and critic of Hezbollah, Nadim Koteich, who recently met King Salman, and later wrote:
“I fear the Kingdom may make the same strategic mistake with Lebanon that it made with Iraq, leaving it prey to Iran in its entirety.”

Betrayal by those closest to you!
Turki Al-Dakhil/Al Arabiya/February 29/16
The tragic news of the martyrdom of Badr Hamdi al-Rashidi, a member of the Saudi anti-terror forces in the central Qassim region, brought to mind similar incidents when Saudis were betrayed and killed by their relatives.
Colonel Nasser al-Othman was killed in April 2007 with the assistance of his own nephew. In Sept. 2015, Madous Fayez al-Anzi was killed by his cousins in Al-Shamli in Hail.
Security measures help succeed on one front in this war on terror, but not another front that is related to ideological rhetoric and educational awareness
Rashidi’s murder by his relatives comes nine years after this phenomenon of treacherous murder surfaced. So far there has been no progress in fortifying generations from extremist ideology, so we are left to be shocked by news of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), Al-Qaeda and similar groups.
War on terror
It seems this battle will be long and difficult. Security measures help succeed on one front in this war on terror, but not another front that is related to ideological rhetoric and educational awareness. If this hideous crime passes without controlling speeches aimed at the public and addressing education, future incidents will be more catastrophic.The kingdom’s admirable security success has amazed many countries, but if we do not work to achieve similar success in religious and educational institutions, we will be waging a war on infested fruits without uprooting the cause of the problem.

Can Arab world economies achieve what politics couldn’t?
Raed Omari/Al Arabiya/February 29/16
We Arabs have been in a state of loss and despair since late 2010. If it is not war, bloodshed and starvation, we encounter instability and insecurity. Even the luckiest among us are at the least worried about developments. It would be no exaggeration to say that all Arabs are either traumatized or are in a state of indifference that has developed over a period of time owing to their inability to keep pace with events they can’t figure out. A complex set of political and military realities face our region today. The region has turned into a domain for settling scores and crises, one after another, both homegrown and borrowed. International interference in the Arab region, which is either passive as in the case with the U.S. or destructive as in Russia’s case, has had its impact on the Arab world’s relations and on its historically preserved alliances. It is difficult nowadays for an Arab state to build an alliance with another without taking into account the geopolitical risks involved. Just like Arab citizens, its politicians seem bewildered as well. They haven’t fully come to terms with the lack of interest demonstrated by the U.S. in the region and are unable to deal with the Russians who have been on a different trajectory.
As a result, Arabs look at the world map redrawn based on economic alliances, whether in Europe, Latin America, the Indian subcontinent, or in China and Russia. They look outward and close their doors on each other to avoid further conflict.
However, this approach has proved to be a failure especially with the region’s woes surpassing the capabilities of a single state to address. Putting aside the complex politics and sensitive remapping of alliances, the Arab world has one option to restore hope for its desperate and traumatized citizens – economic opportunities. Before the so-called Arab Spring surfaced, inter-Arab gatherings used to conclude with large Arab corporations signing on the dotted lines for mega project in other brotherly Arab countries. This would boost the economy and create jobs. This doesn’t seem to be happening anymore. Nowadays, even letters of intent or memoranda of understanding, for pan-Arab projects, are not signed for fear of political conflict and unrest. Even during business gatherings within the Arab region, such as the World Economic Forum in Jordan, politics continues to be in focus. In the Forum’s 2015 edition, for instance, almost all the spotlight was on the situation in Syria and Iraq and the peace process.
Private sector
The Arab world’s private sector also seems to have lost its spirit of adventure and independence. The sensitive remapping of alliances within the region has also left a deep impact on the Arab companies’ pragmatism in terms of investment and joint ventures. The overindulgence in politics and an atmosphere of suspicion has made issues such as sustainable development and joint ventures either a luxury or taboo. The people of the Arab world seems to have been forgotten between an extremely cautious private sector and governments concerned with security. It is obvious that there is a need to enhance economic opportunities in the Arab world. In the wake of its troubling politics, a heartening scene would be that of two Arab leaders, or more, signing on dotted lines for major cooperation agreements between their countries for the benefit of their youth or may be a group of Arab states announcing an economic alliance of some kind such as the EU, even at the micro level, to serve their mutual interests. What we must realize is that it is the economy and not politics that makes the EU still hold and the U.S. seeking relations with Cuba. These countries have seized opportunities and put aside their political differences for the sake of the welfare of their citizens. Let economies of the Arab world achieve what politics and armies fail to.

What a Trump presidency will mean for Iran
Dr. Theodore Karasik/Al Arabiya/February 29/16
It’s important – immediately – to start thinking seriously about a Donald Trump presidency to be sworn into office on January 20, 2017. The republican front runner is pulling away from his rivals, and, with Super Tuesday on March 1, is likely to be crowned the Republican Party nominee by default.
There are a host of issues in the MENA region that need to be analyzed in what seems to be a very probable outcome. At this time, not only will the FBI investigation into Hillary Clinton’s discretions perhaps lead to her dropping out of the race but also there is an extremely high likelihood of ISIS followers to throw off the election in the United States by using Paris-style violence in American cities. Both can give The Donald a victory. A key question is: How will a Trump presidency look and interact with the Islamic Republic of Iran? The answer may surprise you. Trump is a prominent opponent of the Obama administration’s policy towards Iran and plays keenly into the narrative that the current president retreated. He is appealing to what can be called American economic patriotism. Trump has previously said he would be much tougher than the current U.S. president.
Opposed to JCPOA
The potential next President of the United States has been dead set against the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) process and its aftermath since last year. In July 2015, Trump stated: “We were dealing from desperation. We look so desperate, and it’s a disgrace. I think the deal is absolutely something. I love the idea of a deal. But it’s not a well negotiated deal. We should have doubled up the sanctions and made a much better deal.” The republican front runner is still advocating scrapping the deal. Trump also banged the drum on other Obama administration deals with Iran especially a hostage exchange deal two months ago: the release of five American hostages in exchange for U.S. clemency for seven Iranians held in America plus the release of frozen assets as a result of sanction lifting. Trump argued that “they’re getting seven people, so essentially they get $150 billion plus seven, and we get four. I’m happy they’re coming back, but I will tell you it’s a disgrace they’ve been there so long.”
Simultaneously, the Iranian capture of 10 sailors and their two boats in the Arabian Gulf also ignited The Donald. He exclaimed “… the Iranians like to taunt us because they don’t have like respect for our leaders, right?” He elaborated: “When I see pictures of them with arms up in the air and guns pointed at them, I wouldn’t exactly say that’s friendly”.At that time, Trump said Iran resolved the standoff so quickly because Tehran wants to stay on good terms with the United States with the Implementation Day a few days away. The Donald asserted “Obviously they’re going to release them. They’re not going to keep them. If it happened two weeks from now, they would have kept them, and they would’ve kept them for a long period of time.”
It is quite likely that Donald Trump doesn’t like it that the Europeans and the Asians are beating him to the Iranian treasure chest based on American economic patriotism
At this time, Trump’s attitude with Iran may play well to an American audience sick of the last eight years of Obama. But his biggest negotiation is coming up yet in 2017. Opening Iran to American business and accelerating the process based on his vision of U.S. economic prowess. Yes, you read that right, the real estate mogul cum U.S. president is likely to accelerate Iran’s acceleration into the global economy. The next American president cannot avoid the biggest business deals ever, even of his own corporation, has gone through numerous bankruptcies. It is quite likely that The Donald doesn’t like it that the Europeans and the Asians are beating him to the Iranian treasure chest based on American economic patriotism. Perchance for President Trump, Iran is the biggest piece of “real estate” ever with immense wealth and opportunity for American companies. The billions of dollars’ worth of business is too good for the next American president to pass up.
Currently, U.S. sanctions remain in place. U.S. persons and banks are still prohibited from all dealings with Iranian companies including investing in Iran or facilitating third-country trade with Iran. That might just change under President Trump, and, all of us need to be prepared for that outcome, both good and bad. The “sea-change” required in Washington thinking about core Iran sanctions may be coming in January 2017. This scenario between Trump and Iran will not play well with Gulf Arab neighbors especially in the current environment. According to an Emirati analyst, Trump’s comments about the Gulf states have been less than reassuring. Don’t be surprised if a Trump presidency cuddles up to Iranian business. Overall, a President Trump will likely find a domestic resonance for his outreach to the Islamic Republic if American companies create new jobs and opportunities to make America great again no matter what the cost.

Towards a strategic Arab-Russia dialogue
Raghida Dergham/Al Arabiya/February 29/16
No sane person today expects the Arab countries to have consensus on the conflicts in the region with a unified position like that of Russia or the deliberately absent United States. The reputation for division and rivalry behind the scenes emerges – and is even part of the policies foreign ministers draft – ahead of any meeting among Arab leaders. The biggest problem, however, is when Arab diplomatic readings conflict with Russia’s positions, for example, leading to conflicting policies, as this only serves to continue the bleeding. This applies to the various readings of US policies in the Middle East as well as Russian policies. The problem essentially lies in the structure of Arab-Arab relations, and in the Arab region’s lack of firm and necessary action to reconfigure the Arab region in the global space. The Beirut Institute in partnership with A.T. Kearny, presented this week a number of bold policy recommendations following a unique summit that brought together key decision makers and young leaders in Abu Dhabi last year. These recommendations to policymakers included a strategic roadmap for the reconfiguration of the Arab region, containing five main elements designed to: stop the bleeding; align and reinforce the core; unleash transformative growth; strengthen societal cohesion; build a regional security architecture.
Stopping the bleeding is extremely crucial in Syria and Yemen, but also Libya and Iraq. Starting out from Syria and an Arab assessment of Russian and American policies there is self-evidently important, especially since the Arab engagement with Russia covers both the issues of the bleeding and the regional security architecture. To be sure, Russian-American partnership in Syria could evolve into a broader-based partnership, including in restructuring regional security, and talks in this direction have already started in various capitals. Regardless of whether this happens or not, the Arab region must avoid denial and burying heads in the sand in light of the historical developments taking place. They must confront geopolitical arbitrariness with a practical vision and strategy.
A short pause at the conflicting Arab readings of Russian policy shows the depth of the problem. On the one hand, a segment of the people of the Gulf were worried when they heard the statement that Russia sees its relationship with Iran as a long-term strategic one, as this column quoted high-level Russian sources last week. On the other hand, diplomats skeptical about this said the information in their possession from decision makers in Moscow directly contradicts this statement. The bottom line of what these diplomats say is that the Russian-Iranian relationship is not a permanent strategic one, but is one of rivalry even in Syria. They say the Russian military intervention in Syria serves the interests of the Gulf countries, because it disallows their rival Iran from dominating Syria. They believe the GCC countries stand to benefit from the Russian intervention because it aims to defeat ISIS, which is an existential threat to these nations. The proponents of this view, however, deliberately ignore two issues: First, the Russian intervention has targeted primarily the moderate Syrian rebels, which some in the Gulf claim to support. Second, Russian policy is to rescue the regime in Damascus and keeping Bashar al-Assad in power until further notice. In this regard, some like to insist vehemently that Moscow’s support for the regime is to support the Syrian state and not necessarily Bashar al-Assad. Others like to claim that Moscow wants a secular Syria and not a pro-Shiite pro-Persian Syria. In their view, all this proves that there is a Russian-Iranian dispute over Syria.
Strategic ties?
There is no need to delve into a rebuttal of these interpretations. Perhaps Russian diplomacy itself is distributing roles in its messages to the Arab regions in a deliberately contradicting manner. Perhaps Russian diplomacy’s vision for relations with key Arab countries is that having long-term strategic ties with Iran does not conflict with having strong ties with Saudi Arabia, for example. Moscow does not want to acknowledge that the regime in Tehran is a theocracy one of whose stated goals is to export the Shiite revolution to the Arab countries. The reason is that Russia is fully invested in fighting the rise of Sunni Islamists to power, because this would allow them to export their radical ideas to Russia where the 20 million Muslims are mostly Sunni.
In the view of one senior Emirati official, the Russian interest requires having strong and strategic relations with Saudi Arabia, home to Islam’s holiest sites in Mecca and Medina. His opinion is that Russian diplomacy must consider two issues when upholding its policies on Syria and Iran: One, the fact that its leadership of the battle against what it terms Sunni Islamic terrorism could invite revenge in the Russian homeland and the five Muslim republics formerly in the USSR. And two, the fact that Russia’s alliance with Iran and the Shiite militias in Syria reinforces the view that it is at war with Sunnis. Therefore, in order to avoid being implicated in Sunni-Shiite war, Russia must develop special ties with Saudi Arabia, according to the UAE official, who said that the kingdom’s stability is crucial for his country and the Arab Gulf nations, and must therefore be taken into account by Russian diplomacy.
Some Russian diplomats agree building strong relations with Riyadh is as important as having strong relations with Tehran, and Saudi already welcomes the bid to develop relations with Russia. Others believe there is no choice but to make a choice between the two, because it is impossible to reconcile the two. Therefore, these diplomats believe it would be best for Moscow to mediate between Saudi Arabia and Iran.
The reconfiguration of the Arab region in the global space requires accelerating institutionalization of Arab strategic and operational integration by creating a cohesive plan and vision
The view of the group of elite thinkers from both the government sector and the private sector meeting at the Beirut Institute summit, as stated in the recommendations, was that “the bilateral relationship between Saudi Arabia and Iran arguably represents the single most important driver of the evolution of the Middle East geopolitically, economically and socially. Therefore, a disciplined, energetic effort to regularize dialogue between these two powers is a critical imperative for the region and the world.” I am the founder and executive president of Beirut Institute – an international think tank focused on the Arab region. The 21 pages of recommendations, and the names of those who attended the summit in Abu Dhabi, are available on www.beirutinstitute.org. The second summit will convene in Riyadh in partnership with the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies next fall.
The recommendations for decision-makers refer to the need to build momentum gradually in the bilateral relationship between Saudi Arabia and Iran, to include efforts for a “second path” away from the limelight for confidence-building measures and establishing a strategic dialog. Russia can play an active role in this context, provided that it turns from a partner of Iran in the bleeding of Syria to a serious partner in international efforts to stop that bleeding.
Stopping the bleeding has become a moral and strategic imperative, as the recommendations state, and establishing the necessary security basis to achieve comprehensive progress in the region. This also requires funding and a region-wide plan for stability and reconstruction, led by the Gulf nations with international assistance. It also requires systematically intensifying of the military, financial and strategic communication efforts to defeat ISIS. The reconfiguration of the Arab region in the global space requires accelerating institutionalization of Arab strategic and operational integration by creating a cohesive strategic plan and vision for the region. It also requires improving the pillars of good governance across the Arab region, strengthening governance and the rule of law based on agreed norms grounded in local legitimacy and engaging youth in building the regional future. Political realism does not prevent conflicting readings but by its nature, that does not require a lot of diligence. There is no need to deny what is clear just because that would fit with wishful thinking. The task ahead for the Arab region is huge. The least thing to do would be to admit to the facts even if they are painful, in order to develop rational policies to deal with them.
**This article was first published in Al-Hayat on Feb. 26, 2016 and translated by Karim Traboulsi.

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