LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
March 10/16
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
http://www.eliasbejjaninews.com/newsbulletin16/english.march10.16.htm
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Bible Quotations For Today
He woke up and
rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ Then the wind ceased,
and there was a dead calm. He said to them, ‘Why are you afraid? Have you still
no faith?’
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 04/33-41:"With many such
parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; he did not
speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his
disciples. On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, ‘Let us go
across to the other side.’ And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them
in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him. A great gale arose, and
the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. But he
was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him,
‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’He woke up and rebuked the
wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ Then the wind ceased, and there
was a dead calm. He said to them, ‘Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?’
And they were filled with great awe and said to one another, ‘Who then is this,
that even the wind and the sea obey him?’".
God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a
spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.
Second Letter to Timothy 01/06-14: "For this reason I remind you to rekindle the
gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; for God did
not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and
of self-discipline. Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord or
of me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel, relying on the
power of God, who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to
our works but according to his own purpose and grace. This grace was given to us
in Christ Jesus before the ages began, but it has now been revealed through the
appearing of our Saviour Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and
immortality to light through the gospel. For this gospel I was appointed a
herald and an apostle and a teacher, and for this reason I suffer as I do. But I
am not ashamed, for I know the one in whom I have put my trust, and I am sure
that he is able to guard until that day what I have entrusted to him. Hold to
the standard of sound teaching that you have heard from me, in the faith and
love that are in Christ Jesus. Guard the good treasure entrusted to you, with
the help of the Holy Spirit living in us.".
Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on March 10/16
The Rifi
revolt/Alex Rowell/Nolw Lebanon/March 09/16
In Jaffa, Biden deplores terrorism/Jerusalem Post/March 09/16
An intifada of the mind/Ron Ben-Yishai/Ynetnews/March 09/16/
Let the Syrian hostilities begin again at Geneva/Chris Doyle/Al Arabiya/March
09/16
As we await Iran’s openness/Abdulrahman al-Rashed/Al Arabiya/March 09/16
Partners in terror/Kyle Orton/Now Lebanon/March 09/16
What makes Georges Tarabichi great/Turki Al-Dakhil/Al Arabiya/March 09/16
Trust is key to bolstering Russia-Egypt ties/Maria Dubovikova/Al Arabiya/March
09/16
Israel is losing friends in high places/Yossi Mekelberg/Al Arabiya/March 09/16
Titles For
Latest Lebanese Related News published on March 10/16
Gulf
States Snub Hizbullah-Affiliated Channels
Differences on Electoral Quorum Dominate National Dialogue
Salam's Resignation Ruled Out as Waste Panel Nears Agreement on 3 Landfills
GCC Discusses Measures to 'Confront Hizbullah' as Salam Meets Gulf Envoys
4 Held for Smuggling Arms to Arsal Militants, Cameras Seized with Majdal Anjar
Suspects
Hussein Yaaqoub Granted Bail in Gadhafi Abduction Case
PM, Salam welcomes Lebanese Businessmen Association
Lebanese Ministerial committee to resume meeting tomorrow over waste management
Beirut/GCC Ambassadors from Grand Serail: Each honorable person to be treated
well
Smuggled Internet Services Endanger Security and Squander Funds
U.S. Concerned over Saudi Aid Cut, Says Lebanese Army Assistance 'Essential'
The Rifi revolt
Titles For
Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on March 10/16
Canada
lawmakers vote symbolically for anti-ISIS mission
Iran launches ballistic missiles bearing Hebrew writing
Kerry raises concern to Iran on missile launches
US captured top ISIS chemical arms engineer
FM: Saudi could turn page if Iran changes policies
Turkey's bid to lift immunity of pro-Kurdish MPs gathers pace
UN sees no halt in Syria truce, talks to run to March 24
Houthi official tells Iran to stay out of Yemen crisis
Saudi committed to political solution in Yemen
Gulf states stress importance of a unified Syria
Kerry, European foreign ministers to meet on Syria next week
Italy says ISIS has 5,000 fighters in Libya
Morocco accuses UN's Ban of dropping neutral tone in West Sahara dispute
Grim realities of children’s lives in Syria revealed
Saudi king receives Ethiopian president
Two militants, Tunisian soldier killed in clashes
US has no battlefield plans to storm ISIS
‘No offense taken’ after Bibi snubs Obama
Senior ISIS leader Shishani ‘possibly killed’ in strike
ISIS fire from Syria kills two in Turkey
US condemns ‘outrageous’ Tel Aviv killing spree
Biden criticizes Palestinians for not condemning attackers
‘Radical’ Frenchman held after flying to Morocco with knives in hold
Heavy rains bring the UAE to a standstill
Links From
Jihad Watch Site for March 10/16
Iran fires missiles with “Israel must be wiped out” written on
them in Hebrew
Uruguay: Muslim screaming “Allahu akbar” stabs Jew to death
Ali
Gharib: Apologist for evil
Italy: Migrant imam tells Muslim migrants, “Allah ordered you to kill”
Muslim cleric: London “more Islamic” than Muslim world
Robert Spencer Video: Why a Muslim Woman Beheaded a Child in Moscow
William Kilpatrick: Was Muhammad a False Prophet?
Palestinian” Muslims murder US tourist, wound 12 Israelis in jihad stabbings
Iran threatens to walk away from nuke deal after new missile test
Tunisia: 50 dead in Islamic State bid to “establish a new emirate”
Egypt drafts bill to ban face veil for women, says it’s Jewish tradition
Austria: Muslim taxi driver beats up gay couple, says “people
like you should be shot”
Gulf States
Snub Hizbullah-Affiliated Channels
Naharnet/March 09/16/Information ministers of the Saudi-led Gulf Cooperation
Council have taken a series of measures following the GCC's blacklisting of
Hizbullah last week. During a meeting they held in Riyadh on Tuesday, the
ministers decided to take all legal measures to prevent cooperation with TV
channels affiliated to Hizbullah or its leaders. The statement issued following
the meeting said “Hizbullah seeks to stir strife and incite chaos and
violence.”The ministers stressed that legal measures apply to production
companies, producers, and all that falls under the umbrella of the media as part
of measures taken to implement the GCC resolution which considered Hizbullah a
terrorist organization. The move by the Saudi-led bloc of six Gulf nations last
Wednesday came less than two weeks after Saudi Arabia announced it was cutting
$4 billion in aid to the Lebanese army and security forces. There are fears that
the Gulf states would pile more pressure on Lebanon, including deporting
Lebanese expats and stopping flights to Lebanon.
The Saudi Embassy in Beirut denied a report in the Kuwaiti daily al-Qabas that
Saudi Arabian Airlines has urged travel agencies in Kuwait to stop booking
flights to Lebanon on the kingdom's national carrier. The airline urged the
agencies to allow travelers, who have already booked their flights, to redeem
their tickets, al-Qabas said. However, an official at the Saudi Embassy told al-Mustaqbal
daily that the report is not true. “Saudi Arabian Airlines has not taken any
decision to stop booking flights to Lebanon,” said the official.
Differences on Electoral
Quorum Dominate National Dialogue
Naharnet/March
09/16/Discussions on reviving the role of parliament and on the quorum needed to
hold the presidential elections were at the center of discussions of a national
dialogue session held at Speaker Nabih Berri's residence on Wednesday. LBCI
television reported that differences emerged between the gatherers on the quorum
needed at parliament to hold the polls, with some sides being accused of
deliberately obstructing the elections. Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil said
after the talks: “Obstructing quorum is a constitutional right.”“Those accusing
us of obstruction are the ones who are violating the National Pact and the will
of the people,” he told reporters. LBCI said that a dispute erupted at the
dialogue between the minister and Marada Movement leader MP Suleiman Franjieh on
constitutionality at the presidential elections. Bassil attended the talks as a
representative of Change and Reform bloc leader MP Michel Aoun.
According to Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3), Franjieh told Bassil: “No one can
restrict Christian representation to one person and no one can eliminate
us.”“The errors of the Taef accord are a product of Aoun's actions,” he added.
The accord was adopted in 1989 to end the Lebanese civil war. On reviving
parliament, Telecommunications Minister Butros Harb demanded that parliament be
primarily used to elect a new head of state. “It should not be exploited to
hinder the polls,” he stressed. Loyalty to the Resistance bloc MP Ali Fayyad
later stated that parliament should be revitalized similar to cabinet.
“Parliament should be revived, but some differences remain over this issue,” he
acknowledged. The next dialogue session was scheduled for March 30. Two-thirds
of lawmakers, or 86 MPs, are needed in order for the presidential elections to
be held. The Change and Reform and Loyalty to the Resistance blocs have been
boycotting the polls over lingering disputes. The Hizbullah bloc had announced
that it will not attend the elections until guarantees are made to ensure that
its candidate and ally, Aoun, is victorious in the presidential race. Lebanon
has been without a president since May 2014 when the term of Michel Suleiman
ended without the election of a successor. Ongoing disputes between the rival
March 8 and 14 camps have thwarted the polls.
Salam's Resignation Ruled Out as Waste Panel Nears Agreement on 3 Landfills
Naharnet/March 09/16/Prime Minister Tammam Salam appeared to have postponed a
decision on stepping down on Wednesday as “positive indications” emerged from a
meeting for the ministerial panel tasked with addressing Lebanon's long-running
waste management crisis. “There are positive indications and we have agreed to
one suggestion out of three that were proposed to us,” LBCI television quoted MP
Talal Arslan's envoy to the meeting, ex-minister Marwan Kheireddine, as saying.
“An agreement has been reached over two landfill sites amid an attempt to find a
third site,” LBCI added, noting that “efforts are ongoing to find an alternative
to the Costa Brava landfill and MP Talal Arslan has suggested utilizing a land
lot in Choueifat.” “Under the solution that is being mulled, each region would
manage its own waste and the garbage that has accumulated (in random sites)
would be transferred to the Naameh landfill,” LBCI said. MTV meanwhile reported
that Salam “removed resignation from his calculations after he received a dose
of support from (al-Mustaqbal movement leader ex-PM Saad) Hariri and other
leaders.” Hariri had visited Salam earlier in the day to discuss the garbage
crisis with him. Salam has declared that he will not call for a cabinet session
before the parties reach a final deal on the implementation of a waste
management plan.Salam's sources told al-Joumhouria daily in remarks published
Wednesday that he would not invite the government to convene before he receives
the final confirmation on where sanitary landfills will be located. The premier
warned last week that the government would collapse if the waste problem was not
resolved soon. Despite his warning, Speaker Nabih Berri has not expressed fear
over the fate of the cabinet. “The PM could call the ministers for a session
anytime he wanted. But he seems to be procrastinating pending a solution to the
issue of landfills,” al-Joumhouria quoted Berri's visitors as saying. Rubbish
has piled up on beaches, mountain forests and river beds across Lebanon since
the closure in July of the country's main landfill in Naameh that lies south of
Beirut. A plan to export the waste to Russia failed last month, and the
government decided to resort to decentralization. But the establishment of
landfills in certain areas is facing obstruction by local officials and
residents.
GCC Discusses Measures to
'Confront Hizbullah' as Salam Meets Gulf Envoys
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 09/16/The Gulf Cooperation Council on
Wednesday discussed measures aimed at “confronting Hizbullah” as Prime Minister
Tammam Salam held talks with the ambassadors of the Gulf states. “The council of
GCC foreign ministers discussed the measures that must be taken to confront
Hizbullah,” Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir announced after a council
meeting in Riyadh. “We call for Lebanon's unity but what is disturbing in the
Lebanon question is that a militia that is classified as terrorist controls
decision-making in Lebanon," he said. Jubeir also criticized a recent decision
by Lebanon's Military Court to release on bail Syria-linked ex-minister Michel
Samaha, who is facing charges of having planned "terrorist" acts and
assassinations in collaboration with a top Syrian official. Samaha's release
"does not positively indicate that the army is independent of Hizbullah's
influence," he said. Asked about further Gulf sanctions against Hizbullah,
Jubeir said the foreign ministers of the GCC had decided to look into measures
that "would prevent Hizbullah from benefiting from GCC states." Meanwhile, PM
Salam met with the GCC ambassadors at the Grand Serail to discuss the latest
measures that were taken against Lebanon. “We are here at Salam's invitation and
to listen to what he has to say,” Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Awadh Asiri
said upon his arrival at the meeting. Speaking on behalf of the envoys after the
meeting, Kuwaiti Ambassador Abdel-Al al-Qinai said: “Salam conveyed a clear
message to us and we will carefully relay it to our countries.” Wishing the
Lebanese-Gulf ties “continuous improvement,” Qinai said the envoys sensed
Salam's “keenness on the best ties with the Gulf countries.”He also reassured
that no measures will be taken against “the good Lebanese who do not have
problems with the Gulf countries.”The developments come amid an unprecedented
strain in the relations between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia that Riyadh has
attributed to “hostile” Lebanese diplomatic positions and alleged Hizbullah
"terrorist acts against Arab and Muslim nations." Saudi Arabia started a series
of measures against Lebanon and Hizbullah on February 19 when it announced that
it 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 also pushed the GCC to label Hizbullah as a
“terrorist” organization over purported "terrorist acts and incitement in Syria,
Yemen and in Iraq."Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah hit back on Sunday,
noting that “Saudi Arabia is angry because its bets in Syria and Yemen have
failed.”
4 Held for Smuggling Arms to
Arsal Militants, Cameras Seized with Majdal Anjar Suspects
Naharnet/March 09/16/The army arrested Wednesday thirteen suspects in the Bekaa
region in two separate operations, according to military statements. “Following
search and investigations, an Intelligence Directorate patrol raided the houses
of Ibrahim Ahmed Matar, Ali Ahmed Matar, Hussam Abdo Matar and Mustafa Mohammed
Seifeddine in the Bekaa area of Jdeidet al-Fakiha, where it managed to arrest
them,” an army statement said. The four were wanted on charges of “smuggling
arms, ammunition and military equipment to the militant groups in Arsal's
outskirts,” the army added. It said the suspects used “secret compartments
inside an Opel car and a Volkswagen car” to carry out their smuggling
operations. “A rocket, a shell, pistols, light ammunition, a large cache of
military gear and a BMW car with no legal registration papers” were seized in
the raid, the army added. Separately, an army force arrested nine Syrians and
Palestinians in the Bekaa area of Majdel Anjar for “entering Lebanon illegally
and possessing a car with no legal papers and a number of surveillance cameras,”
the military said in another statement. Extremists from the al-Qaida-linked al-Nusra
Front and the Islamic State group are entrenched in mountainous regions in
Arsal's outskirts and along the porous Lebanese-Syrian border. The militants
clash with the army and with Hizbullah occasionally but a major confrontation
erupted in August 2014 when the two groups overran Arsal in the wake of the
army's arrest of a senior militant. Nineteen soldiers and around 60 militants
were killed in the fighting. The two groups also abducted during the battle
dozens of troops and policemen of which four were eventually executed.
Hussein Yaaqoub Granted Bail
in Gadhafi Abduction Case
Naharnet/March 09/16/The brother of former lawmaker Hassan Yaaqoub was released
on bail on Wednesday despite accusations of involvement in the kidnapping of
Hannibal Gadhafi, the son of slain Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. Mount Lebanon
Examining Magistrate Peter Jermanous ordered the release of Hussein Yaaqoub in
exchange for a bail payment of LL5 million for lack of evidence. Under his bail
conditions, Yaaqoub, who was arrested at the Rafik Hariri International Airport
before boarding a flight on Monday, was barred from leaving the country and
speaking to the press. Jermanous issued on Tuesday an arrest warrant against
Yaaqoub after hearing his testimony. His brother Hassan, who has been in
detention since December, was hospitalized late Monday after suffering a heart
attack. The two brothers are the sons of Sheikh Mohammed Yaaqoub – one of the
two companions who disappeared with revered Shiite cleric and founder of the
AMAL Movement Moussa al-Sadr in Libya in 1978. They are accused of involvement
in the kidnapping of Gadhafi. Hannibal was abducted in a Syrian area near the
Lebanese border in December before being smuggled into Lebanon's Bekaa region.
He was handed over hours later to Lebanese security forces. Lebanese authorities
have charged Hannibal with withholding information about the disappearance of
al-Sadr. Hussein's release on Wednesday came hours after women from the Yaaqoub
family held a sit-in near the Iranian Embassy in Beirut's Bir Hassan
neighborhood. They said their protest was a show of support for the mother of
the two brothers, who was also hospitalized on Monday following the arrest of
Hussein.
PM, Salam
welcomes Lebanese Businessmen Association
Wed 09 Mar 2016/NNA - Prime Minister, Tammam Salam, on Wednesday welcomed at the
Grand Serail a delegation of the Lebanese Businessmen Association, headed by
Fouad Zmokhol. Talks reportedly touched on the current economic situation in the
country.
Lebanese Ministerial
committee to resume meeting tomorrow over waste management
Wed 09 Mar 2016/NNA - The ministerial committee tasked with solid waste
management will meet tomorrow at the Grand Serail to resume talks over the trash
issue, National News Agency correspondent reported on Wednesday.
The committee convened earlier today under the chairmanship of Prime Minister,
Tammam Salam.
Beirut/GCC Ambassadors from
Grand Serail: Each honorable person to be treated well
Wed 09 Mar 2016/NNA - Each honorable citizen, whether Lebanese or from the Gulf,
shall be treated well; both are first and last brothers, Kuwaiti Ambassador to
Lebanon, Abdulal al-Qinai, told reporters in the name of the envoys of the Gulf
Cooperation Council.
The delegation, which also comprised the ambassadors of Qatar, Oman, and the UAE,
on Wednesday, visited Prime Minister Tammam Salam, upon his request, at the
Grand Serail, for talks over Lebanon's ties with the GCC.
"Me and the GCC ambassadors were honored to meet the invitation of Prime
Minister, Tammam Salam, to discuss the headway of the relations between Lebanon
and the Gulf," al-Qinai said.
"We sensed his keenness on the best ties with the Gulf states (...) as well as
on removing any obstacle that might hinder the development of those ties. We
carried a clear message which we will convey with all due honesty, hoping that
relations between us would always flourish," he added, voicing the keenness of
the "entire" Gulf, on Lebanon's security, stability, and institutions, besides
bolstering relations.
In response to a question about Lebanese in the Gulf against whom various
measures were taken, al-Qinai said: "The Prime Minister spoke in general about
the interests of Lebanon and the Lebanese, and those of the Gulf and its
citizens; he confirmed keenness on the interest of everybody without exception.
I believe that each honorable citizen, whether Lebanese or from the Gulf, shall
be treated well. They are first and last brothers, and I don't think that this
relation would be affected by anything."
Smuggled Internet Services
Endanger Security and Squander Funds
Naharnet/March 09/16/Telecommunications Minister Butros Harb stressed on
Wednesday that investigations will continue to uncover the perpetrators behind
installing illegal internet networks in several areas around Lebanon, As Safir
daily reported. “The probe will continue until the details on the violating
companies and their owners are uncovered,” Harb told the daily in an
interview.The Minister said that the security apparatuses have been informed
about the incident adding that he has filed a complaint to the General
Prosecutor's office. During a meeting of the parliamentary media committee, the
interlocutors unveiled what was described as a “mafia” that is bluntly taking
advantage of internet services by installing internet stations that are not
subject to the state control. The owners of these stations are buying
international internet bandwidth with nominal cost from Turkey and Cyprus which
they are selling back to Lebanese subscribers at reduced prices. For his part,
head of the committee MP Hassan Fadlallah told the daily: “This file triggers
many question marks,” pointing out that “ the circumstances surrounding the
issue are suspicious.” He warned that the illegal Internet networks might be
breached by Israel or any party that wants to spy on Lebanon. It has been
reported that wireless internet towers and technical equipment were placed
illegally in some mountainous terrains including Tannourine, al-Dinnieh, Sannine
and al-Zaarour. Smuggled internet services initiate risks namely the possibility
of security breach as it lacks the basic control standards exposing Lebanon's
security to third parties including Israel. Adding to the above is the fact that
smuggling online services outside legal frameworks is a waste for the state's
treasury amounting to over $2 million losses on a monthly basis.
U.S. Concerned over Saudi Aid
Cut, Says Lebanese Army Assistance 'Essential'
Naharnet/March 09/16/The United States has expressed concern over a Saudi
announcement that it was cutting off $4 billion of aid to the Lebanese army and
security forces, and stressed that assistance to the military is "essential" to
limit Hizbullah's role. “We’ve raised our concerns about the reports of aid
cutoff with the Saudi authorities. I’m not going to talk about the details of
that,” State Department Spokesman John Kirby said Tuesday. U.S. support to the
Lebanese army “is important and it’s going to continue,” he said, adding that
assistance to the military and “to other legitimate state institutions is
essential to help diminish the role of Hizbullah and its foreign patrons.”Kirby
stressed that Washington doesn't want “to leave the field open to Hizbullah or
its patrons. Our assistance to the Lebanese military makes a real difference on
the ground against Daesh and other extremists.”
The military “deserves the support of the international community as well,” he
told reporters. Kirby's comment came after he was asked about a report in The
Wall Street Journal that the Obama Administration is pressuring Saudi Arabia not
to take further steps to punish Lebanon economically in retaliation for the
growing political power of Hizbullah in Lebanon. Last Wednesday, the Saudi-led
bloc of six Gulf Arab nations formally branded Hizbullah a terrorist
organization, ramping up the pressure on the party. The move by the Gulf
Cooperation Council comes less than two weeks after Saudi Arabia announced it
was cutting $4 billion in aid to the Lebanese army and security forces. The
kingdom and other Gulf states followed up that move by urging their citizens to
leave Lebanon. U.S. State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner praised on
Tuesday the GCC decision. He said the U.S. will continue its consultation with
Gulf countries to discuss imposing sanctions and other measures to face
Hizbullah’s “terror acts” in the region.
The Rifi revolt
Alex Rowell/Nolw Lebanon/March 09/16
The hawkish Hezbollah foe has resigned from cabinet and chastised his March 14
allies. But can he achieve anything alone?
The fragile stability of Prime Minister Tammam Salam’s cabinet suffered its
first casualty late last month with the surprise resignation of Justice Minister
and former Internal Security Forces head, Maj. Gen. Ashraf Rifi. Declaring that,
“The practices of Hezbollah's statelet and its allies are not acceptable and
staying in the government means approving them,” Rifi handed in his notice and
returned to his house in the northern city of Tripoli, where a crowd of
supporters gathered to chant in celebration.
In the days since,
Rifi has sought to shake things up further, criticizing his ostensible allies in
the Future Movement and calling in a 50-minute interview with Al-Jazeera for the
fall of the entire cabinet, an end to dialogue between Future and Hezbollah, and
even a “second Independence Intifada to eject the statelet of Hezbollah,”
referring to the 2005 uprising that led to the Syrian army’s withdrawal from
Lebanon.
With these characteristically hawkish stances against the Party of God and its
patrons in Tehran and Damascus, the cabinet’s loss of Rifi may represent a blow
for the Future-led March 14 coalition. Though a newcomer to government, in his
former role as security czar Rifi boasted a track record of countering Syria’s
and Hezbollah’s operations. Under his watch, the ISF investigator Wissam Eid
would uncover evidence that later led the Special Tribunal for Lebanon to indict
five Hezbollah members for the 2005 assassination of Prime Minister Rafiq
al-Hariri. And it was Rifi’s deputy, ISF intelligence chief Brig. Gen. Wissam
al-Hassan, who would catch the pro-Damascus politician Michel Samaha red-handed
in the act of planning a series of bombings of Lebanese civilian targets in
coordination with Syrian regime officials. Both Eid and Hassan were later
assassinated, and Rifi has long been himself deemed a possible target.
In his final weeks in government, Rifi campaigned for the retrial of Samaha
(sentenced to just four and a half years’ imprisonment) in a non-military court,
a demand now officially dropped from the cabinet’s agenda.
He also vocally opposed the presidential candidacies of Hezbollah allies Michel Aoun and Suleiman Franjieh. In both of these battles he was publicly at odds with Future Movement leader Saad al-Hariri, who had personally endorsed Franjieh, and who tweeted in regard to the Samaha question that “Minister Rifi’s stance does not represent me.”Rifi’s resignation was thus a “protest” against “the weakness of the government,” according to Asaad Bishara, a journalist and advisor to Rifi (who could not be reached for comment himself). I
In his Al-Jazeera
interview, Rifi described the cabinet as “a riding-camel” for Hezbollah,
providing a veneer of legitimacy for the party’s military interventions in Syria
and elsewhere.
Beyond the symbolism of this protest, however, it’s unclear what Rifi can now
tangibly achieve. Asked what specifically the former minister would do to bring
about a “second Independence Intifada,” Bishara could only reply in general
terms about continuing “national and patriotic work […] as part of [former]
Prime Minister Rafiq al-Hariri’s project.” While the timing of his resignation
raised eyebrows – coming as it did just two days after Saudi Arabia canceled a
$4bn aid package to Lebanon, partly in anger at the perceived underperformance
of March 14 – Bishara categorically ruled out the possibility of Rifi seeking to
work with Riyadh to try and form his own alternative to the Future Movement.
Indeed, for their part, Future sources characterized Rifi’s move as a blunder
that hasn’t garnered the reaction he was hoping for. An aide to a current Future
cabinet minister, requesting anonymity due to the sensitivity of the subject,
spoke caustically to NOW of Rifi as a political naïf who let his newfound status
get to his head, and who will fail to have any further impact unless he makes
amends with Hariri. “Ashraf is the latest in a very long chain,” said the aide.
“We’ve seen so many people [start] thinking of themselves as not only working
for Saad, or being part of Saad’s team, but as allies of Hariri. Would Ashraf
Rifi be a minister in the first place if Saad Hariri hadn’t decided it? On the
contrary.”According to the aide, Rifi had discussed his plans to resign in
advance with Future officials, saying he wanted to try going solo politically.
“[Hariri] sent him envoys, [Future MP] Ahmad Fatfat talked to him twice. And
Ashraf was very sincere, by the way, in saying, ‘You know what, I think I have
something to do. I think I have an experiment to go through, let me go through
it, and we’ll see what happens.’ He wanted to test himself […] with the Hariri
audience, with the people in Tripoli, with the Sunnis in general.”“But I think
that, besides the Facebook and Twitter euphoria that he created for a few hours,
and the couple of hundred ‘likes’ he earned, he didn’t really do much, in real
politics.”In the end, then, if Rifi seeks a political future, he will likely
rebuild bridges with Hariri sooner or later, those with whom NOW spoke said. “Of
course, there are lots of people within Future who are not happy with the policy
of Saad al-Hariri, and I think [Rifi] is expressing out loud their criticisms,”
said former Tripoli MP Misbah al-Ahdab. “But we still did not hear any
solutions, and this is why I think that we’re not very concerned by this
disagreement, knowing very well that [Rifi and Hariri] will meet again and fix
their personal problems.”
**Amin Nasr contributed reporting.
Canada lawmakers vote
symbolically for anti-ISIS mission
AFP, Ottawa Wednesday, 9 March 2016/Canadian lawmakers voted symbolically
Tuesday to support the government's rejigged contribution to the US-led
coalition fighting ISIS in Iraq and Syria. Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
announced last month the withdrawal of Canadian fighter jets from the fight,
while tripling the number of special forces training Kurdish militia in northern
Iraq to about 210. Canadian CC-150T Polaris refueling and CP-140 Aurora
surveillance aircraft were also left to continue to play roles in the coalition.
Members of parliament voted 178 to 147 in support of the new mandate on Tuesday,
which also included expanding Canada's intake of refugees and humanitarian aid
for the Mideast region ravaged by war.
Iran launches
ballistic missiles bearing Hebrew writing
Roi Kais/Ynetnews/March 09/16/
The Islamic Republic made a number of launches in a recent military drill,
towards targets 1,400 kilometers away. The words "Israel must be wiped out" were
written on the missiles in Hebrew.Iran launched two ballistic missiles Wednesday
at targets that stood 1,400 kilometers away, Iranian news agency Fars reported.
The missiles reportedly bore the writing "Israel must be wiped out" in Hebrew.
Brig. General Amir Ali Haji Zada, commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's
air corps, said Wednesday that Iran's missiles belong to the Palestinian people,
the Lebanese people, the Syrian people, the Iraqi people, the Islamic world, and
all of the oppressed people of the earth. Brigadier General Hossein Salami,
Deputy commander of the Revolutionary Guard, told journalists on Wednesday that
Israel would collapse very soon. He boasted about Iran's large reserve of
missiles that could be readily launched, toward a variety of targets and ranges.
Salami said that the accumulation of missiles was the result of sanctions
imposed on Iran, and that the more sanctions were imposed, the more missiles
would be manufactured. He added that the missiles were ready for launch if
Iran's enemies were to implement what he called their aggressive intentions. US
Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton said on Wednesday she was
"deeply concerned" by reports that Iran had tested multiple ballistic missiles
and said the country should face sanctions for its actions."This demonstrates
once again why we need to address Iran's destabilizing activities across the
region, while vigorously enforcing the nuclear deal," Clinton said in a
statement. "Iran should face sanctions for these activities and the
international community must demonstrate that Iran's threats toward Israel will
not be tolerated," she said.At a daily press briefing with reporters, White
House spokesman Josh Earnest said it would not be a surprise if there are
additional missile launches over the next several days. "We will continue to
redouble our efforts with our allies and partners in the region to try to limit
Iran's ability to continue to develop their missile program," Earnest said.
Reuters contributed to this report.
Kerry raises
concern to Iran on missile launches
Agencies Wednesday, 9 March 2016/U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry spoke on
Wednesday with Iran’s foreign minister about Iran’s test-firing two ballistic
missiles that Tehran said were designed to be able to hit Israel, a State
Department spokesman said. “The secretary did raise his concerns today with
Foreign Minister (Mohammad Javad) Zarif,” State Department spokesman John Kirby
told reporters in a daily briefing. Before Kerry, US Vice President Joe Biden
said Wednesday that the United States would take action against Iran if
long-range ballistic missile tests Tehran said it carried out were confirmed. “I
want to reiterate, as I know people still doubt, if in fact they break the
(nuclear) deal, we will act,” Biden said during a visit to Israel. “All their
conventional activity outside the deal, which is still beyond the deal, we will
and are attempting to act wherever we can find it.”Meanwhile, the White House is
aware of and reviewing reports of an additional Iranian ballistic missile test,
a spokesman said on Wednesday, adding that the administration will determine an
appropriate response to the test. At a daily press briefing with reporters,
White House spokesman Josh Earnest said it would not be a surprise if there are
additional missile launches over the next several days. “We will continue to
redouble our efforts with our allies and partners in the region to try to limit
Iran’s ability to continue to develop their missile program,” Earnest said.
Earlier on Wednesday, Iran test-fired two ballistic missiles that it said were
designed to be able to hit Israel, defying US criticism of similar tests carried
out the previous day. "The reason we designed our missiles with a range of 2000
km (1,200 miles) is to be able to hit our enemy the Zionist regime from a safe
distance," Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh was quoted as saying by the ISNA
agency. Iran said its armed forces had fired two more ballistic missiles as it
continued tests in defiance of U.S warnings. "Long-range Qadr-H and Qadr-F
precision missiles were fired today... which destroyed targets" some 1,400
kilometers (870 miles) away, official media quoted the deputy head of the
Revolutionary Guards, General Hossein Salami, as saying. Missile sanctions were
imposed a day after nuclear-related sanctions on Iran were recently lifted. US
State Department spokesman John Kirby said on Tuesday he could not confirm
Tehran's multiple tests, but warned that Washington might take unilateral or
international action in response. "The more our enemies increase the sanctions
the more intense the Guards' reaction" will be, General Amir Ali Hajizadeh who
heads the Revolutionary Guards' aerospace wing said on Wednesday. "Yesterday we
saw missiles fired from silos and platforms and today the launches are taking
place from the heart of our Islamic land," he added. "The reason we have
designed these missiles with such a range -- 2,000 kilometers -- is to be able
to hit our remote enemies, the Zionist regime," ISNA news agency quoted
Hajizadeh as saying, referring to Israel. The series of tests included short-,
medium- and long-range precision guided missiles, with ranges of 300 kilometers,
500 kilometers, 800 kilometers and 2,000 kilometers, state media reported. (With
AFP and Reuters)
US captured top
ISIS chemical arms engineer
The Associated Press, Baghdad Wednesday, 9 March 2016/US special forces captured
the head of the ISIS group’s unit trying to develop chemical weapons in a raid
last month in northern Iraq, two senior Iraqi intelligence officials told The
Associated Press, the first known major success of Washington’s more aggressive
policy of pursuing ISIS militants on the ground. The Obama administration
launched the new strategy in December, deploying a commando force to Iraq that
it said would be dedicated to capturing and killing ISIS leaders in clandestine
operations, as well as generating intelligence leading to more raids. US
officials said last week that the expeditionary team had captured an ISIS leader
but had refused to identify him, saying only that he had been held for two or
three weeks and was being questioned. The two Iraqi officials identified the man
as Sleiman Daoud al-Afari, who worked for Saddam Hussein’s now-dissolved
Military Industrialization Authority where he specialized in chemical and
biological weapons. They said al-Afari, who is about 50 years old, heads the
ISIS group’s recently established branch for the research and development of
chemical weapons. He was captured in a raid near the northern Iraqi town of Tal
Afar, the officials said. They would not give further details.The officials, who
both have first-hand knowledge of the individual and of the ISIS chemical
program, spoke on condition of anonymity as they are not authorized to talk to
the media. No confirmation was available from US officials. A US official said
Wednesday that one or more follow-up airstrikes were conducted against suspected
IS chemical facilities in northern Iraq in recent days. The official, who spoke
on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence-related operations, was
unfamiliar with details of the airstrikes but indicated that they did not fully
eliminate ISIS’s suspected chemical threat. The US-led coalition began targeting
ISIS’ chemical weapons infrastructure with airstrikes and special operations
raids over the past two months, the Iraqi intelligence officials and a Western
security official in Baghdad told the AP. Airstrikes are targeting laboratories
and equipment, and further special forces raids targeting chemical weapons
experts are planned, the intelligence officials said. They and the Western
official also spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized
to talk to the media. ISIS has been making a determined effort to develop
chemical weapons, Iraqi and American officials have said. The militant group,
which emerged out of al-Qaeda in Iraq, is believed to have set up a special unit
for chemical weapons research, made up of Iraqi scientists from the Saddam-era
weapons program as well as foreign experts.
Iraqi officials expressed particular worry over the effort because ISIS
militants gained so much room to operate and hide chemical laboratories after
overrunning around a third of the country in the summer of 2014, territory which
they then joined with territory they controlled in neighboring Syria. Still,
ISIS group’s progress in developing chemical weapons has been limited. It is
believed to have created limited amounts of mustard gas. Tests confirmed mustard
gas was used in a town in Syria when ISIS was launching attacks there in August
2015. Other unverified reports in both Iraq and Syria accuse ISIS of using
chemical agents on the battlefield. But so far, experts say, the extremist group
appears incapable of launching a large-scale chemical weapons’ attack, which
requires not only expertise, but also the proper equipment, materials and a
supply-chain to produce enough of the chemical agent to pose a significant
threat. “More than a symbolic attack seems to me to be beyond the grasp of
ISIS,” said Dan Kaszeta, a former US Army chemical officer and Department of
Homeland Security expert who is now a private consultant. “Furthermore, the
chemicals we are talking about are principally chlorine and sulfur mustard, both
of which are actually quite poor weapons by modern standards.”Speaking to
reporters from a base outside the city of Tikrit, Iraq’s defense minister played
down fears of the ISIS group’s chemical weapons capabilities, saying the group
lacks “chemical capabilities.”The attacks the group has carried out, Khaled al-Obaidi
continued, were only intended to “hurt the morale of our fighters,” as they have
so far not caused any casualties. The United States has been leading a coalition
waging airstrikes against ISIS in Iraq and Syria for more than a year. The
campaign has been key to backing Iraqi and Kurdish forces that have slowly
retaken significant parts of the territory the militants had seized. But after
coming under pressure at home for greater action against the militants, the
Obama administration moved to the tactic of stepped-up commando operations on
the ground. Last year, US special forces killed a key ISIS leader and captured
his wife in a raid in Syria, but the new force in Iraq was intended as a more
dedicated deployment. American officials have been deeply secretive about the
operation. Its size is unknown, thought it may be fewer than 100 troops. “This
is a no-kidding force that will be doing important things,” was about all
Defense Secretary Ash Carter would say about the force in testimony to the
Senate Armed Services Committee in December.
FM: Saudi could turn page if
Iran changes policies
AFP, Riyadh Wednesday, 9 March 2016/Saudi Arabia and other Gulf monarchies could
turn a page and build strong relations with Iran if it respects them and stops
“meddling” in their affairs, Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said Wednesday. “If
Iran changes its way and its policies, nothing would prevent turning a page and
building the best relationship based on good neighborliness, with no meddling in
the affairs of others,” he told reporters in Riyadh. “There is no need for
mediation” in such a case, said Jubeir, whose country severed all links with the
Islamic republic in January after crowds attacked the kingdom’s diplomatic
missions in Iran. Jubeir said relations with Tehran had deteriorated “due to the
sectarian policies” followed by Shiite-dominated Iran and “its support for
terrorism and implanting of terrorist cells in the countries of the region”.
“Iran is a neighboring Muslim country that has a great civilization and a
friendly people, but the policies followed that the revolution of (Ayatollah
Ruhollah) Khomeini have been aggressive,” he said. Jubeir was speaking after a
meeting for Gulf foreign ministers and their counterparts from Jordan and
Morocco. Sunni powerhouse Saudi Arabia and fellow Gulf nations also accuse Iran
of supporting Shiite rebels in Yemen, as well as attempting to destabilize their
own regimes. They also support rebels in Syria’s five-year-old war while Tehran
openly backs the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
Turkey's bid to lift immunity
of pro-Kurdish MPs gathers pace
Reuters | Ankara Wednesday, 9 March 2016/Turkey’s prime minister applied to
parliament on Wednesday to lift the immunity of senior pro-Kurdish opposition
deputies to prosecute them on charges of belonging to an armed terrorist group.
Such a step could further inflame tensions in the mainly Kurdish southeast which
has been hit by the worst violence in two decades since a two-year Kurdistan
Workers Party (PKK) ceasefire collapsed in July. President Tayyip Erdogan has
repeatedly called for Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) deputies to face
prosecution, accusing them of being an extension of the PKK. Lawmakers in Turkey
are normally protected from prosecution. Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu’s office
filed a submission requesting immunity from prosecution be lifted from HDP
co-leaders Selahattin Demirtas and Figen Yuksekdag and deputies Selma Irmak,
Sirri Sureyya Onder and Ertugrul Kurkcu, parliament officials told Reuters. They
deny the accusation of belonging to an armed terrorist organization and
provoking hatred. “The attitudes of those who exploit ‘podium immunity’ and
offend the shared conscience cannot be assessed within (the framework of)
immunity,” Davutoglu told reporters. The Kurdish conflict in NATO Turkey has
been further complicated by the activity of armed Kurdish groups across the
border in Syria. Syrian Kurds have been a close ally of the United States in
fighting ISIS but Ankara regards them as a partner of the PKK and a terrorist
grouping. Demirtas alone is the subject some 60 dossiers in parliament calling
for the lifting of his immunity, including some related to calls for protest
marches. As yet, there have been no moves in the assembly to open the way for
his prosecution.
“Feelings of revenge”
“Erdogan is personally angry with us, especially me and a few other friends. He
is...driven by feelings of revenge,” Demirtas told reporters this week,
attributing this to HDP election successes last year that chipped at the power
of the AK Party Erdogan founded. The HDP exceeded the threshold of 10 percent of
votes to become the first party with Kurdish roots to enter parliament on its
own in a general election in June. Demirtas says he opposes violence and wants a
negotiated end to a three-decade conflict with the PKK, deemed a terrorist
organization by the United States and the EU as well as Turkey, that has cost
some 40,000 lives. The latest requests were prepared in response to calls for
Kurdish self-rule by the lawmakers at a congress last December. If the
parliamentary commission backs lifting immunity, the request will be debated and
a vote held, requiring a simple majority. In 1994, at the height of the
conflict, lawmakers had their immunity revoked after speaking Kurdish in
parliament. Four MPs spent a decade in prison, sparking condemnation from
Turkey’s Western partners.
UN sees no halt in Syria
truce, talks to run to March 24
Reuters, Geneva Wednesday, 9 March 2016/The Syrian opposition said on Wednesday
there had been fewer breaches of a truce agreement by the government and its
allies in the past day as a U.N. envoy unveiled plans to resume peace talks next
week. The “cessation of hostilities agreement” brokered by the United States and
Russia has slowed the war considerably despite accusations of violations on all
sides, preparing the ground for talks which the United Nations plans to convene
in Geneva. The talks will coincide with the fifth anniversary of a conflict that
began with protests against President Bashar al-Assad before descending into a
multi-sided war that has drawn in foreign governments and allowed the growth of
ISIS. U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura said he planned to launch substantive peace
talks on Monday, focusing on issues of Syria’s future governance, elections
within 18 months, and a new constitution. While the opposition High Negotiations
Committee (HNC) has yet to declare whether it will attend, spokesman Salem al-Muslat
said it was positive that the talks would “start ... with discussion of the
matter of political transition”. He said the HNC would announce its decision
very soon. The Syrian government, its position strengthened by more than five
months of Russian air strikes, has also yet to say whether it will attend. There
was no immediate response from Damascus to de Mistura’s remarks. The Syrian
foreign minister is due to give a news conference on Saturday at noon (1000
GMT). Peace talks convened in Geneva two years ago collapsed as the sides’ were
unable to agree an agenda: Damascus wanted a focus on fighting terrorism - the
term it uses for the rebellion - while the opposition wanted talks on
transitional government.
TALKS ABORTED
De Mistura aborted a previous attempt to hold talks on Feb. 3 and urged
countries in the International Syria Support Group, led by the United States and
Russia, to do more preparatory work. The result was the cessation of hostilities
which Western governments say has largely held since it came into effect on Feb.
27. It has been accompanied by more aid deliveries to opposition areas besieged
by government forces, though fighting has continued in some important areas of
northwestern Syria. Rebel groups fighting to topple Assad had initially said
they would support a two-week halt to the fighting. De Mistura said on Wednesday
however that it was an “open-ended concept”. The next round of talks would not
run beyond March 24. There would then be a break of a week or 10 days before
resuming. Asked if the talks could be delayed further from an original start
date of March 7, de Mistura said the format gave him a lot of flexibility. Jan
Egeland, who chairs the Syria humanitarian task force, said the United Nations
had delivered aid to 10 of 18 besieged areas across the country in the last four
weeks, and was working to overcome obstacles and reach remaining areas. The
truce agreement, accepted by Assad’s government and many of his enemies, was the
first of its kind in a war that has killed more than 250,000 people and caused a
major refugee crisis. The agreement has not been directly signed by the warring
parties and is less binding than a formal ceasefire. It does not cover ISIS or
the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front, whose fighters are deployed in western Syria in
close proximity to rebel groups that have agreed to cease fire. Russia says it
has recorded opposition violations including supplies of weapons via Turkey to
rebels in Syria.
FEWER VIOLATIONS
Muslat of the HNC said: “The violations of the truce were great at the start,
but yesterday they were much fewer. There are perhaps some positive matters that
we are seeing.”Speaking to Reuters, he said a government blockade of the
Damascus suburb of Daraya must be lifted in order to “pave the way to the start
of negotiations”. He added this was not a condition for the attending talks but
a humanitarian requirement. Despite the relative success of the cessation of
hostilities, the peace talks face great challenges, including the question of
Assad’s future.
Houthi official tells Iran to
stay out of Yemen crisis
Reuters, Dubai/Cairo Wednesday, 9 March 2016/A senior Houthi official told
Iranian officials on Wednesday to stay out of Yemen’s conflict, after an Iranian
general said Tehran might send military advisers to help Houthi forces fighting
a Gulf Arab coalition. The Houthis usually see Shiite Iran as a friendly power
in their year-old war against the Saudi-led Arab coalition, which is trying to
restore President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to power. "Officials in the Islamic
Republic of Iran must be silent and leave aside the exploitation of the Yemen
file," the official, Yousef al-Feshi, a member of the Houthis’ Revolutionary
Committee, said in a posting on Facebook. It was the first public remark from a
senior official in the Houthi group, seen to be very close to Houthi leader
Abdel-Malek al-Houthi, to be directed at Iranian officials. On Tuesday,
Brigadier General Masoud Jazayeri, deputy chief of staff of Iran’s armed forces,
suggested in an interview with the Tasnim news agency that Iran might support
the Houthis in a similar way it has backed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s
forces in Syria. Feshi’s posting coincided with a visit by a Houthi delegation
to Saudi Arabia, a move that could signal an attempt to end a year of fighting
that has killed some 6,000 people.Saudi Arabia said on Wednesday it had
exchanged a Saudi officer for seven Yemeni prisoners with its Houthi enemies and
confirmed that a calm along their common border was holding.
Saudi committed
to political solution in Yemen
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Wednesday, 9 March 2016/Saudi Arabia is
committed to a political solution to Yemen's war under UN-backed peace efforts
and sees as positive a call by a Houthi official for Iran to stay out of Yemen,
Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said on Wednesday. Arab coalition forces
said earlier on Wednesday that tribal figures in Yemen have sought to create a
“state of calm” on the border with Saudi Arabia to allow medical and aid
materials to be sent to in Yemeni villages, the state-owned Saudi Press Agency
(SPA) reported. The aid for the villages near areas of military operations will
reach the people through the Olab border crossing. The statement on state news
agency SPA, also carried by Al Arabiya News Channel said that the Saudi-led
coalition welcomed the “calm” to heavy clashes on the border which it said could
lead to a political solution. The coalition launched strikes against Iran-allied
Houthi militia in Yemen to restore the legitimate government of President
Abdrabbu Mansour Hadi a year ago. (With Reuters)
Gulf states stress importance
of a unified Syria
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Wednesday, 9 March 2016/The Gulf Cooperation
Council (GCC) expressed its support for a political solution in Syria and
stressed on the importance of keeping Syria’s territories unified in a joint
statement Wednesday, Al Arabiya news channel reported. The Gulf states also
urged the Security Council for a process that could impose a more effective
ceasefire in Syria. They also reiterated their rejection to Iran’s interference
in the region and emphasized that Lebanon’s Shiite organization Hezbollah is
“terrorist.”
The statement comes after the GCC’s foreign ministers including their Jordanian
and Moroccan counterparts met in Riyadh. On Monday, Saudi Arabia’s council of
ministers also reaffirmed GCC’s decision that Hezbollah and its affiliated
factions are “terrorists.”
Kerry, European foreign
ministers to meet on Syria next week
AFP, Cairo Wednesday, 9 March 2016/US Secretary of State John Kerry and his
French, German, British and Italian counterparts will meet Sunday in Paris to
discuss the Syrian crisis ahead of planned peace talks in Geneva, France's
foreign minister said. The five diplomats will examine the status of the
ceasefire in effect since February 27 and "if everything is going forward as we
hope... encourage the opposition to return to the negotiating table," Jean-Marc
Ayrault told reporters as he arrived in Cairo Wednesday for a two-day visit.
Italy says ISIS has 5,000
fighters in Libya
AFP, Rome Wednesday, 9 March 2016/The ISIS group has around 5,000 fighters in
Libya with the capacity to carry out deadly raids into neighboring countries,
Italy's foreign minister told parliament on Wednesday. The figure is at the top
end of recent Western estimates of the number of ISIS fighters in Libya and is
likely to further fuel concern over the threat posed by the group's
establishment of a base in the troubled north African state. "According to our
analyses, there are today around 5,000 Daesh fighters in Libya," Foreign
Minister Paolo Gentiloni told the Italian Senate, using an Arabic name for ISIS.
"They are concentrated particularly in the area of (the city of) Sirte but from
there they have the capacity to carry out dangerous incursions (into neighboring
states)." Authorities in neighboring Tunisia have accused ISIS of being behind
Monday's attack on an army barracks and police and national guard posts in the
border town of Ben Guerdane. Tunisian security forces say they have killed 43
suspected militants since the attack. Italy last week dispatched a reported 50
members of its special forces to join US, British and French agents already on
reconnaissance and intelligence operation services in Libya. Rome has also
recently authorized the United States to launch drone strikes into its former
colony from an airbase in Sicily in what has been seen as a sign of Western
powers moving towards more active involvement in the country. Gentiloni told the
Senate there were no plans for action beyond the possible deployment of an
Italian-led peacekeeping force if and when Libya forges a unified national
government with the authority to request outside security support. "The
government will not be dragged into a pointless adventure that would be
potentially dangerous for our national security," the minister said. "Military
interventions are not the solution," Gentiloni added, recalling that "Libya is
six times the size of Italy and has 200,000 armed men between the militias and
the army."
Morocco accuses UN's Ban of
dropping neutral tone in West Sahara dispute
Reuters | Rabat Wednesday, 9 March 2016/Morocco’s government has accused U.N.
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon of no longer being neutral in the Western Sahara
conflict, saying he used the word “occupation” to describe Morocco’s presence in
the region. The long-running dispute over the desert region in the northwest
corner of Africa has festered since Morocco took control over most of it in 1975
following the withdrawal of former colonial power Spain. The Polisario Front,
which says the territory belongs to ethnic Sahrawis, waged a guerrilla war until
a U.N.-brokered ceasefire in 1991, but the two sides have been deadlocked since
particularly over a referendum on its future. Ban said last week he would
restart U.N. efforts to reach a solution after visiting camps in southern
Algeria for the Polasario Front leadership and refugees who fled the The
Moroccan government said Ban had used the word “occupation” to describe Moroccan
annexation of Western Sahara in 1975. “The kingdom of Morocco has noticed ...
the Secretary General has dropped his neutrality and impartiality and has showed
a guilty indulgence with a puppet state without attributes, territory,
population, nor a recognized flag,” a statement from the Moroccan government
said. “The use of such terminology has no legal nor political basis and it is an
insult to the Moroccan government and people,” the statement, carried by state
news agency MAP late on Tuesday, said. Polisario, backed by Morocco’s regional
rival and neighbour Algeria and a number of other African states, wants to hold
the vote promised in the ceasefire deal on the region’s fate. Morocco says it
will not offer more than autonomy for the region, rich in phosphates and
possibly offshore oil and gas.
Grim realities of children’s
lives in Syria revealed
The Associated Press, United Nations Wednesday, 9 March 2016/An international
children's group painted a grim picture of life in Syria's besieged cities,
where young people have lost any hope for the future, living in constant fear of
aerial bombardment and lacking access to food and proper medical care. Save the
Children said in a report published Tuesday that access to besieged areas by
humanitarian organizations is virtually non-existent and only about 1 percent of
food aid from the U.N. reached Syrians in besieged areas in 2015. About 250,000
children live in besieged areas, according to the report. "Children have really
lost any sense of the future," Sonia Khush, the organization's regional director
for Syria told a news conference at U.N. headquarters on Monday. She described a
life in which parents and their children are surrounded by warring groups and
access to medicine or physicians is limited or non-existent. Children "barely
know what fresh fruits and vegetables are" because the government or other
combatants have blocked access to them, Khush said. For the report, Save the
Children, working with partners in Syria, interviewed 126 people in eight
besieged areas, including children aged 10 to 16, parents and professionals such
as doctors and teachers living in areas that have effectively become "open air
prisons."Syria's five-year war has killed at least a quarter million people and
displaced half the country's population. The conflict, which erupted in March
2011 as a popular uprising against President Bashar Assad's authoritarian rule,
quickly descended into an all-out civil war that allowed militants such as ISIS
to seize large swaths of land. Violence has eased in the country since the
government and opposition agreed to a partial cease-fire 10 days ago. According
to diplomats, humanitarian aid has begun reaching some besieged areas thanks to
a partial cease fire, and a spokeswoman for U.N. envoy for Syria Staffan de
Mistura said Tuesday that peace talks with Syrian government officials and
opposition representatives will begin no later than next Monday. The resumption
of talks has been expected ever since the U.S.-Russia-engineered truce, which
has sharply reduced the bloodshed, took effect on Feb. 27. The cease fire -
though limited and tentative - has mostly held, even as sporadic violence has
continued. An aid worker living in Syria who attended Monday's news conference
but asked that her name not be used for fear of reprisals said food, medicine
and other vital supplies are removed by combatants at checkpoints long before
reaching the besieged areas. The situation is so precarious, she said, children
routinely run to freshly bombed buildings to salvage wood from the wreckage to
provide heat to stay warm, the aid worker said. Michael Klosson, vice president
for policy and humanitarian response for Save the Children, said the only real
way to get supplies to the people who need them is to end the siege of these
areas and ensure sustained access. After five years of war, he said, "Enough is
enough."
Saudi king receives Ethiopian
president
Saudi Gazette Wednesday, 9 March 2016/Saudi King Salman received at Al-Yamama
Palace in Riyadh on Tuesday Ethiopian President Mulatu Teshome. They discussed
bilateral relations, ways of developing them and the latest developments in the
region. In a separate meeting, King Salman held talks with Special
Representative of European Union for Middle East Peace Process Fernando
Gentilini.
Two militants, Tunisian
soldier killed in clashes
AFP, Tunis Wednesday, 9 March 2016/Two “terrorists” and a Tunisian soldier were
killed Wednesday at Ben Guerdane near the Libyan border, taking to 45 the number
of militants killed in recent clashes in the area, authorities said. “Two
terrorists were shot dead by police and military units,” the defence and
interior ministries said in a statement, adding that the militants were killed
after breaking into a building site to steal food. A civilian was also wounded.
The military operation late on Tuesday on a house in Ben Guerdan also recovered
weapons and at least ten other people have been arrested, a security source
said.
The swoop by the army and security forces came after 17 suspects were arrested
earlier in a manhunt following Monday’s dawn attacks in the border town of Ben
Guerdane, which left dozens of fighters dead. “As part of the continuing
operation at Ben Guerdane, security forces and the army were able to eliminate
five terrorists tonight in the Benniri area,” the ministry said in a statement,
adding that weapons had been seized. Local media had reported that security
forces had surrounded a house where several men were holed up, information that
was not confirmed in the brief ministry statement. A boy stands near a
bullet-riddled house, which was damaged during security operations and clashes
between Tunisian security forces and ISIS in Ben Guerdan, Tunisia. (Reuters)
Analysts said Monday’s coordinated attacks showed extremists are keen to spread
their influence from Libya to Tunisia and to set up a new stronghold in the
country. Prime Minister Habib Essid said about 50 extremists were believed to
have taken part in the dawn attacks on an army barracks and police and National
Guard posts in Ben Guerdane. He said several attackers were killed and seven
captured in a fierce firefight that also saw the deaths of seven civilians and
12 security personnel. Defence ministry spokesman Belhassen Oueslati said 17
other suspects were arrested on Tuesday near a military barracks and handed over
to the National Guard for questioning. Essid said the militants “murdered one
internal security force member in his own home” and that three civilians and 14
security personnel were also wounded.
US has no battlefield plans
to storm ISIS
AFP, Washington Wednesday, 9 March 2016/The commander of US special operations
said Tuesday that while coalition forces have put ISIS under pressure there is
no immediate battlefield plan to take its de facto capital. Briefing US
lawmakers in Washington, senior generals said the US-led anti-ISIS coalition was
working with local ground forces to isolate the group’s Syrian stronghold in the
city of Raqqa. But General Joseph Votel, head of Special Operations Command,
said this broad strategy does not yet amount to a plan to storm Raqqa, despite
recent advances by US-backed fighters grouped under the “Syrian Democratic
Forces” banner. “There is currently not a plan,” he said. Asked whether the
coalition has a plan to hold the city after it falls, he added: “I would say no,
there is not a plan to hold Raqqa.”General Joe Dunford, who is the US military’s
highest-ranking officer, later told reporters that any move to retake Raqqa
would be contingent on a variety of factors. “We don’t have a timeline along
which I would tell you that I know we are going to retake Raqqa,” he said during
a work trip to Florida. “It’s going to be conditions-based. It will be based on
the size of the force… it will be based on enemy disposition.”Dunford pointed to
recent gains in and around the town of Shadadi, which US-supported local forces
recaptured from ISIS last month, as evidence of momentum for an eventual
recapture of Raqa. “This is all part of tightening the noose on ISIL in Syria,”
he said. General Lloyd Austin, who currently heads the US military’s Central
Command, which manages Middle East operations, told lawmakers it might be time
to revisit a contentious program to train and equip groups of Syrian fighters to
hold recaptured territory. “I’ve asked for permission to restart the effort by
using a different approach,” Austin said, adding the revived program would focus
on training smaller numbers of fighters. The program attracted scorn after it
emerged some trainees had given gear and ammunition to an Al-Qaeda-linked
affiliate, the Al-Nusra Front. Votel also faced questions from the Senate Armed
Services Committee on the composition of the SDF units that the US-led coalition
relies upon for ground operations in the Raqqa area. He said the group is
“probably about 80 percent” Kurdish. The US-led coalition has been criticized
for its over-reliance on Kurdish allies, who may struggle to win over civilians
in a mainly Arab town like Raqqa and are considered suspect by neighboring
Turkey.
‘No offense taken’ after Bibi
snubs Obama
Reuters, Washington/Tel Aviv Wednesday, 9 March 2016/Israel would have shown
good manners had it informed the United States directly rather than through the
news media that it was turning down a proposed summit meeting with U.S.
President Barack Obama, the White House said on Tuesday. But spokesman Josh
Earnest said there was “no offense taken” by the decision which Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday ascribed to a desire to steer clear of
the U.S. presidential election campaign. It was the latest episode in a fraught
relationship between the right-wing Israeli leader and the Democratic U.S.
president that has yet to recover from deep differences over last year’s
U.S.-led international nuclear deal with Israel’s foe Iran. The White House said
on Monday it had been “surprised” to learn first from Israeli media that
Netanyahu had decided against coming to a conference of the pro-Israel lobby
AIPAC in Washington on March 20, and to see a suggestion in some reports that
Obama’s unavailability had been one of the reasons. It said Netanyahu had been
offered a March 18 meeting with Obama, ahead of the president’s landmark visit
to Cuba on March 21 and 22.
Asked whether the Netanyahu government should have told the Obama administration
before the media, Earnest said on Tuesday, “I think it’s just good manners.”
Senior ISIS leader Shishani
‘possibly killed’ in strike
Reuters, Washington Wednesday, 9 March 2016/A senior ISIS leader, Abu Omar al-Shishani,
a Syrian-based Georgian national, may have been killed in a March 4 air strike
by the US-led coalition near the Syrian town of al-Shadadi, US officials told
Reuters. The United States had offered up to $5 million reward for information
about Shishani, also known as Omar the Chechen, who officials said served as the
group's de facto minister of war.
ISIS fire from Syria kills
two in Turkey
AFP, Istanbul Tuesday, 8 March 2016/Eight rockets fired from a
militant-controlled area of Syria slammed into a Turkish border town on Tuesday,
killing two people including a four-year-old child, reports said. Some of the
Katyusha-type rockets hit empty areas of the town of Kilis, but at least one
caused casualties, Turkish media quoted the mayor Hasan Kara as saying. A woman
aged 54 was killed in the strike while shrapnel hit a passing car in which two
children aged six and four were travelling, the state run Anatolia news agency
said. The four-year-old boy later died of his wounds on the way to hospital, it
added. The six-year-old was also wounded. It is the first such incident since
January 18, when a rocket fired from an ISIS-controlled position in Syria killed
a janitor and wounded a pupil at a school in Kilis. Television footage showed
anxious residents inspecting a crater made by one of the rockets as another
missile slammed into the ground nearby. Mayor Kara urged residents not to panic,
CNN-Turk said. The Dogan news agency said that the rockets had been fired from
an area in Syria controlled by ISIS militants. The Turkish army then struck back
by firing on ISIS positions in Syria according to the rules of engagement, it
quoted security sources as saying. Turkey has on occasion been accused by its
western allies of not doing enough to combat the threat of ISIS, which has
captured swathes of Iraq and Syria right up to its border. But Ankara is now
playing a key role in the US-led anti-ISIS coalition and hosting foreign
warplanes at its Incirlik airbase for strikes on the group. The latest attack
comes after Turkish armed forces launched repeated artillery strikes in the last
two weeks on ISIS positions in Syria. A fragile ceasefire backed by Turkey has
taken effect in Syria, but the deal does not apply to territory held by the ISIS
group and al-Qaeda affiliate al-Nusra Front. From mid-February, Turkish
artillery had also shelled targets of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party
(PYD) inside Syria, with the military saying it was responding to incoming fire.
But Turkey has not shelled any positions held by Syrian Kurdish fighters inside
Syria since the ceasefire was implemented on February 27. Washington had urged
Ankara to halt its fire on the PYD and its People’s Protection Units (YPG)
militia.
US condemns ‘outrageous’ Tel
Aviv killing spree
AFP, Washington Wednesday, 9 March 2016/The United States on Tuesday condemned a
shooting and stabbing spree in Tel Aviv that killed an American tourist and left
12 people wounded. “The United States condemns in the strongest possible terms
today’s outrageous terrorist attacks in Jaffa, Petah Tikvah, and Jerusalem,
which tragically claimed the life of US citizen Taylor Allen Force and left many
others severely injured,” US State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a
statement. The attacker – a Palestinian around 21 years old from the occupied
West Bank – was shot dead by police near where US Vice President Joe Biden was
meeting with Israel’s former president, police said. The slain American, Taylor
Force, a 29-year-old native of Texas and a US army veteran, was a graduate
student at Vanderbilt University, the school said in a statement. “We offer our
heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of Taylor and all those affected
by these senseless attacks, and we wish a speedy recovery for the injured,”
Kirby said. “As we have said many times, there is absolutely no justification
for terrorism,” he added. “We continue to encourage all parties to take
affirmative steps to reduce tensions and restore calm.”Five of the injured were
in critical condition, officials said.
Further attacks
Two Palestinians opened fire at two different locations in Jerusalem on
Wednesday, leaving one person seriously wounded, Israeli police said. Both
attackers were shot by police, with at least one killed. Police provided
conflicting information on whether the second attacker had been killed or
wounded. The shootings were the latest in a string of attacks coinciding with US
Vice President Joe Biden's arrival on Tuesday.
Biden criticizes Palestinians
for not condemning attackers
AP | Jerusalem Wednesday, 9 March 2016/U.S. Vice President Joe Biden criticized
“the failure to condemn” a Palestinian stabbing spree Wednesday that killed an
American student, after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ political party
posted a statement online praising the stabber. The stabbing spree took place
near the sea in the city of Jaffa, where Biden was meeting with Israel’s former
president. Biden said his wife and grandchildren were having dinner on the beach
not far from where it happened. For more than five months, there has been a rash
of Palestinian attacks on Israeli civilians and security forces. Palestinians
say the violence stems from frustration at nearly five decades of Israeli rule
over the West Bank and east Jerusalem. Israel says the violence is fueled by a
campaign of Palestinian incitement compounded on social media sites that glorify
and encourage attacks. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned Abbas’ Fatah
party for its statement calling the stabber a “hero” and “martyr.”
In Jaffa, Biden deplores
terrorism
Jerusalem Post/March 09/16
US Vice President Joe Biden condemned Tuesday’s Jaffa terrorist attack that
occurred just a short distance away from where he sat in a meeting with former
president Shimon Peres. Biden had been in the country for less than an hour when
a Palestinian on a stabbing rampage killed an American tourist and wounded 12
others. His office later said that Biden “condemned in the strongest possible
terms the brutal attack.”During the meeting with Peres, “he expressed his sorrow
at the tragic loss of American life and offered his condolences to the family of
the American citizen murdered in the attack, as well as his wishes for a full
and quick recovery for the wounded. The leaders also discussed ways to deepen
US-Israeli collaboration on research to combat cancer,” Biden’s office added.
A source close to Peres said that the attack occurred just four minutes into the
off-camera meeting with Biden. Peres received a report of the attack and shared
the information with Biden, the source said. “The reality here, unfortunately,
is that terrorism has become part of life,” said the source, adding that Biden
told Peres that “nothing justifies the murder of innocent people.” During their
public greetings at the Peres Center for Peace in Tel Aviv, Biden told
reporters, “We have absolute total unvarnished commitment to the security of
Israel, I hope we can make some progress.” Two other terrorist attacks – one in
Jerusalem and another in Petah Tikva – occurred around the time that Biden’s
plane landed at Ben-Gurion International Airport.
Biden’s two-day visit comes amid a minor row with Washington over Netanyahu’s
cancellation of a meeting with US President Barack Obama and reports in The Wall
Street Journal that the White House is mulling a plan to revive the peace
process between Israelis and Palestinians.
Israel and the US are also at odds over future defense funding for Israel. The
two countries are negotiating the renewal of the Memorandum of Understanding
under which Israel annually receives defense funding from the US. The MOU is
likely to be part of the conversation between Biden and Netanyahu when the two
meet in Jerusalem on Wednesday. But the focus is likely to be on other issues,
such as Iran and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Biden will also meet with President Reuven Rivlin in Amin Maqboul, a senior
Fatah official who is closely associated with Abbas, said the Palestinian
leadership was not denouncing attacks on Israelis because Israel does not
condemn “deliberate attacks against Palestinians.”Maqboul and a number of
Palestinian officials accused the US administration of “bias” in favor of
Israel. They said Biden’s remarks were further proof the White House has
endorsed the Israeli government’s position.
Biden’s two-day visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories that began
Tuesday was marked by the Jaffa attack that occurred soon after he landed at
Ben-Gurion Airport. The attack, in which 12 others were wounded, occurred just a
short distance away from where Biden was meeting former president Shimon Peres.
Biden noted that his wife and his grandchildren were having dinner on the beach
nearby. “It just brings home that [terrorism] can happen anywhere at any time,”
Biden said during his press conference with Netanyahu. “The kind of violence we
saw yesterday, the failure to condemn it, the rhetoric that incites that
violence, the retribution that it generates, has to stop. “This cannot become an
accepted modus operandi,” he continued.
“This cannot be viewed by civilized leaders as an appropriate way in which to
behave even if it appears to inure to the benefit of one side or the other. It’s
just not tolerable in the 21st century,” Biden said. “They’re targeting innocent
civilians, mothers, pregnant women, teenagers, grandfathers, American citizens.
“There can be no justification for this hateful violence, and the United States
stands firmly behind Israel’s right to defend itself, as we are defending
ourselves at this moment as well.” Biden also called on the Palestinians to
recognize Israel as a Jewish state, something they have refused to do. Israel
has been known as a Jewish state since its inception in 1948, he said. “We
should get over all of this. It was a Jewish state that was set up,” said Biden.
He urged both Israelis and Palestinians to find a way to move beyond the impasse
in the peace process and to resolve the conflict so that there can be two states
for two peoples. “The status quo has to break somewhere along the line here in
terms of a two-state solution,” Biden said. “Even though it may be hard to see
the way ahead, we continue to encourage all sides to take steps to move back
toward the path to peace – not easy – and for the sake of Israel, and I might
add, for the sake of the Palestinians. “There cannot be unilateral steps to
undermine trust,” he continued. “That only takes us further away, further and
further away from an outcome we know in our hearts is the only fundamental
outcome, the only outcome that is the ultimate guarantor.”Netanyahu thanked
Biden for his strong support and denounced the PA for failing to condemn his
people’s terrorist attacks against Israelis, including the one in which Force
was killed. “Unfortunately Abbas has not only refused to condemn these terror
attacks. His Fatah party portrays the murderer of this American citizen as a
Palestinian martyr and a hero,” Netanyahu said. “This is wrong. This failure to
condemn terrorism should be condemned itself by everyone in the international
community.”Palestinian society itself persistently incites against the Jewish
state and glorifies those who kill its citizens, Netanyahu said. Civilized
societies must stand together to fight terrorism, and Israel has no better
partner in this battle than the US, he added.
“I look forward to continuing to work together with you and President [Barack]
Obama to strengthen the remarkable and unbreakable alliance between our two
countries,” Netanyahu said. Biden promised Netanyahu the US would insist Iran
must comply with the terms of the deal it worked out with the six world powers
to curb its nuclear program. “If in fact they break the deal, we will act. We
will act,” Biden said and explained that the US would also work to halt Iran
conventional military aggression. He noted that he had come to talk with
Netanyahu, who he considers to be a decade-long friend, about regional issues
even though he did not have any concrete plans in his back pocket. He swore
Islamic State – which he said had helped the region change its attitude toward
Israel – would be crushed.
“They’ve realized they’d rather be in your orbit than in the orbit of Daesh and
ISIS and terrorism, and al-Nusra, et cetera,” he added.
Similarly, he said, Israel’s natural gas reserve, “which is about to make it the
epicenter of energy in the region” has also had a positive impact on its
relations with its neighbors.Additionally, Biden urged Netanyahu to renew the
Memorandum of Understanding under which Israel annually receives defense funding
from the US while Obama was still in office. Israel and the US are at odds the
size of the funding package.
In a discussion with President Reuven Rivlin earlier in the day, Biden focused
on the reduction of extremism and the offering of greater economic opportunities
for both Israelis and Palestinians.“The two-state solution and a strong and
secure Israel are very much in the interests of the United States,” Biden told
Rivlin at the start of their meeting. At the President’s Residence Biden also
spoke of Force’s death: “This plague of terrorism has a tendency to harden
hearts,” he said. “Israelis and visitors cannot go about afraid to walk in the
streets,” Biden insisted, adding: “This violence has to stop and it cannot be
done just by physical force.” Rivlin opened the meeting with Biden by referring
to the more recent terrorist attack which had taken place in Jerusalem on
Wednesday morning. “Once again we woke up to terrorism in Jerusalem,” he said,
adding “I stand here in grief and solidarity. Our prayers go to the victim’s
family and to the injured.”Greer Fay Cashman and Michael Wilner in Washington
contributed to this report.
‘Radical’
Frenchman held after flying to Morocco with knives in hold
AFP, Nantes, France Wednesday, 9 March 2016/A Frenchman described as
“radicalized” was arrested in Morocco Wednesday after flying there with low-cost
airline Ryanair with knives and a gas bottle in the hold, a local government
official said.The 31-year-old man, who had been under house arrest in France,
was held upon his arrival in Fez, where authorities discovered the items in his
luggage, which also included a black balaclava. He took the flight from Nantes
in western France, despite heightened security in the country which is still
under a state of emergency imposed after an Islamic State attack on Paris in
November that left 130 people dead. The Dublin-based carrier Ryanair told AFP
the case was "the responsibility of Nantes airport security officials who are
investigating".
Heavy rains
bring the UAE to a standstill
By Ismaeel Naar and Rua'a Alameri Al Arabiya English Wednesday, 9 March
2016/Heavy rains lashed parts of the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday, bringing
airports, roads and schools to a standstill for most of the morning. Dramatic
videos posted on social media networks from the desert country showed strong
winds and flooding battering parts of the the capital Abu Dhabi and Dubai, as
authorities announced airport delays, schools closed, and traffic piled up as
commuters began their drive home. See more photos and videos here: Rainstorm
videos in UAE flood social media. Departure flights at Dubai's two international
airports were slightly delayed due to bad weather conditions but operations were
largely unaffected, the Dubai Airports operator said on Wednesday. At the
arrivals terminal of Dubai International airport, a passenger flying in from
Karachi, Pakistan, told Al Arabiya English over the phone about her Emirates
Airlines plane circling the air for nearly an hour and half when its pilot could
not receive clearance for landing due to the severe weather conditions. “The
plane landed on time actually but we we’re circling the air for an extra hour
and a half until we got permission to land. We landed on a spare landing strip
and mind you this was a 737 airplane,” Alia Chughtai, a media personnel arriving
from Karachi told Al Arabiya English. “But I have to give it to them, the
Emirates airlines staff and immigration staff at Dubai airport were very upbeat
and efficient given the number of people arriving because of delays. But I can’t
say the same for the baggage area which has been chaotic until I left the
airport,” she added. Authorities at Abu Dhabi Airport had earlier suspended
flights until further notice for safety reasons, but resumed operations by the
afternoon. In Dubai, many schools had asked parents to pick up their children
and close early due to the heavy rain and thunderstorms experienced. Reports of
schools requesting parents to pick their children up from school to ensure their
safety also arose after traffic jams grounded many buses.
The UAE’s education minister issued an order for schools to remain closed
tomorrow as well.
Heavy traffic, accidents
Heavy traffic hit Dubai's main causeways on Wednesday afternoon as commuters
headed home to the neighbouring emirate of Sharjah. Emilene Parry, a Dubai
resident from the UK, was stuck in traffic for an hour during her commute at
2:30 PM local time. “People are all keeping their hazard lights on al-Khail road
[a major artery for the city’s hundreds of thousands of commuters],” she said.
“It is dangerous as one can’t tell when cars are turning and if there was an
actual accident or not.” Parry added that she had seen a car completely
submerged, some roads blocked, and several minor accidents. In another Dubai
district, the British expat estimated that the depth of the water on the roads
reached 40cm. Sarah Williams, a media professional heading home, said: “We’ve
moved maybe 100 meters in the past 45 minutes due to the heavy traffic.” “The
journey has been literally tripled by the cars going up the hard shoulder from
behind and cutting back in further ahead,” she added. The UAE’s weather
authority, the National Center of Meteorology & Seismology, told Al Arabiya
English that the unstable weather conditions in the country began on March 5.
“The unstable weather condition are expected to carry on overnight and during
the day tomorrow,” the NCMS said in a statement to Al Arabiya English, adding
that the weather conditions should begin to gradually stabilize on Friday. The
UAE, which is one of the world's driest countries, rarely receives rain.
(Additional reporting by Dina al-Shibeeb and Paul Crompton) (With Reuters and
AFP)
An intifada of the mind
Ron Ben-Yishai/Ynetnews/March 09/16/
Op-ed: In the face of spontaneous terrorism, Israel has no intelligence,
deterrence, or military targets; the government has no diplomatic or military
means to end this intifada.There is no single motivation for the young people
who go out to stab, run over, and shoot sporadically. The success of one or two
terrorists is disseminated and empowered within minutes on social media networks
and mass media outlets, becoming a model for imitation. There terrorists also
have many modi operandi. They work alone and in pairs, using knives, scissors,
IEDs, and improvised weapns. Anything goes. This chaotic model is very difficult
to thwart, and stopping an attack is random, because someone encountering a
terrorist is not always an armed security guard. Yishai Montgomery, who on
Tuesday struck the terrorist in Jaffa in the head with a guitar, is an example.
Yonatan Azrihav of Petah Tikva, who pulled the knife from his neck and plunged
it into the terrorist, did not practice and did not know such a thing could
happen to him. They acted instinctively. In both previous intifadas, the IDF and
intelligence community responded with deterrence, intelligence, and offensive
military action. Intelligence made it possible to thwart attacks; deterrence
made the Palestinian population and leadership rein in terror operatives; and
the military action contributed to both intelligence and deterrence. That’s how
the second intifada (and the first, to a large extent) was ultimately overcome.
In the current intifada, there is no intelligence, no deterrence, and no targets
or objectives for offensive military action. There is no deterrence because the
methods we have already used and the “iron fist” offered by Lieberman have been
exhausted. They are no longer effective. The young Palestinians simply do not
care in many cases about what might happen to their families, and they’re not
“prepared to die”. They want to die.Against this, Israel has no means or
diplomatic or military method that can put an end to this intifada within a few
weeks or month. At most, Jerusalemites are praying for a miracle to “dampen" it.
We must admit that in the face of this intifada, we Israelis are helpless at the
moment. There may not be hundreds of dead and thousands of wounded like in the
second intifada, but it’s not possible to continue a daily routine and live
without reasonable personal security over time.
What’s worse, the spontaneous youth intifada in its current pattern could in a
moment, in the flash of one incident, it become a general armed popular intifada
that would include Fatah’s Tanzim, whose members are armed. In such a situation,
we must dismantle the pattern of terror into its components and try to find a
response for each element. If only it were possible to block the Palestinian
social media networks and the Palestinian and Arab media outlets, which are
overflowing with incitement. It’s nearly impossible. An attack of the mind is
therefore necessary in an attempt to convince the Palestinians that the
spontaneous terrorism is not an act of heroism, but rather an act of
foolishness. It’s possible, even in a society that sanctifies the martyr and
provides a halo of courage to his or her personal despair or mental disorder.
Abbas and Fatah leaders can order an end to incitement in schools and the media,
but Israel needs to offer them a deal that will encourage them to take such
steps. Israel could release Fatah prisoners, who have been sitting Israeli
prisons for many years and announce a freeze on building settlements outside of
consensus settlement blocs.
Israel must make a concession to the Palestinian leadership so that they are
motivated to tell their youth to stop destroying their futures and dreams.
Israel could also approach local leaders in Jerusalem, where the PA is almost
nonexistent, and in tandem with teachers offer incentives to them to convince
their youth to stop carrying out attacks. The intelligence services can
undertake greater efforts to foil attacks. The fact that most terrorists use
improvised weapons indicates that there is welding shop or a garage where they
are crafting such weapons. The Shin Bet can reach those locations, if it makes
an effort. More than anything –avoid forceful measures that will only increase
despair and anger among the youth and bring older people out to the Palestinian
street for a full-on popular uprising that would exact much heavier price..One
last thing: If Israel does not find a way to provide security to its citizens in
light of the wave of terror, it needs to at least give them "a sense of
security" by increasing security forces in public places. Such a step would
accomplish two objectives: It will encourage terrorists to confront armed
individuals, who are able to confront them. It will cause citizens to leave
their homes out of a sense, perhaps illusory, of being safe. This intifada is
motivated by psychological, religious, and cultural factors. This is an intifada
whose generator is, in short, of the mind. It must also be thwarted this way.
Let the Syrian hostilities begin
again at Geneva
Chris Doyle/Al Arabiya/March 09/16
This Wednesday afternoon in Geneva, attempts are due once more to bring about
talks on Syria. Well into the second week of an imperfect but partially
successful semi-cessation of hostilities, will it be the political arena in
which combat resumes? These diplomatic efforts are of course not for the
resumption of talks as some in the media have described them but actually to try
to get them going. In February, there were talks about having proximity talks,
to lead to direct talks with representatives of the Syrian regime and an
opposition delegation for the first time since 2013. Sadly, these did not
materialize and to save the whole process, UN special envoy, Staffan de Mistura
announced their suspension until 25 February. The resumption in efforts to hold
indirect talks were scheduled to start on 7 March, delayed to 9 March and now
possibly delayed to 15 March. De Mistura says the 9 March date was only
“pencilled in”. It seems all agreements on Syria, all dates, all commitments are
at best just “pencilled in”. Red lines of course were simply there to be erased
and ignored. The head of the opposition High Negotiations Committee, Dr Riyad
Hijab stated on 7 March that “the current conditions are not favorable for a
resumption of negotiations.” Leaving aside the issue that negotiations did not
even start, this begs a huge question. In such a bitter protracted conflict as
the Syrian, are there favorable conditions for negotiations? It would be like
waiting for the Atlantic Ocean to have no waves or for snow in Riyadh. What
there is - is a need for negotiations. The war has to end for the sake of
Syrians if for nobody else. Given that none of the sides looks like it can win,
these conflicts will end with talks and a deal eventually. Syrians fervently
dream of an end of the last five years of hell with the caveat that the majority
will not accept such devastation just to return to the ancient regime or some
extremist tyranny. From an opposition perspective perhaps the talks might have
been more optimal before the Russian military intervention in September but no
doubt the conditions were not right then either. Will waiting and holding out
benefit Syrians? Might it just convince Russia to push ever harder for an all
out crushing victory by overwhelming force. The cessation of hostilities has
shown Syrians just a glimpse of what peace might feel like. Where fighting did
calm down, Syrians were able to come out of their shelters, visit families and
friends and do things that had been impossible for weeks, months or years.
Delineated ceasefire
Yet this is fragile. Reports indicate that Russian planes have mostly been
grounded but not all Syrian regime aircraft. The shaky cessation of hostilities
has to become a proper delineated ceasefire with proper modalities and monitors.
The absence of fighting must become a norm not a one-off, and where productive
economic life can start to replace the dominant war economy.Aid has begun to
enter besieged areas where up to a possible million people have been eking out
an existence. Since the Munich meeting, the UN has delivered 236 aid trucks
benefitting 115,000 people. It aims to get another 225,000 people by the end of
next week. This is a considerable success given the low starting base and must
be built on. The sieges are not lifted and the delivery of aid must be speeded
up. Many issues can be addressed such as the failure to vaccinate up to half
Syria’s children. The most uplifting moment was last Friday when over 100
protests took place across Syria in non-regime held areas. It was 2011 once
again. The popular grassroots Syrian desire for change undimmed by the carnage.
Syrian hopes were voiced once more having been ignored against the background of
competing ambitions that tore Syria apart.
Those threatened by this are those that object to popular will. The Syrian
regime will take little comfort that protests were not in the areas it
controlled and will fear the day they resume in their own backyard. Jabha Al-Nusra,
al-Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria, tried to suppress demonstrations in Idlib. Above
all, these are exactly the same parties who fear the end of hostilities. Syrians
fervently dream of an end of the last five years of hell with the caveat that
most, in my view the majority, will not accept such devastation just to return
to the ancient regime or some extremist tyranny. The regional power brokers are
still reluctant to accept that outright “victory” is not achievable. Putin needs
an exit, but one on Russia’s terms. The current lull in fighting is a fragile
moment, nigh impossible to replicate in the near future. Far from being
unfavorable conditions, surely these are the only times when political steps
forward can be made.
As we await Iran’s openness
Abdulrahman al-Rashed/Al Arabiya/March 09/16
Some sense change in Iran, noting the defeat of some extremist leaders during
recent legislative elections, and thinking this is due to the nuclear deal. In
reality, however, extremists’ grip has been strengthened. We have not yet seen a
trace of the nuclear deal’s awaited political, economic and social effects.
The fact that two hardliners lost their seats during the recent elections means
nothing because there are many hardliners in government, and even when some lose
their posts, Iran’s behavior and policies do not change. This is what experts on
Iranian affairs confirmed in Abu Dhabi during a workshop organized by the
Emirates Policy Center this week to discuss shifts in Iran’s political landscape
following the nuclear deal and legislative elections. There is a popular desire
to be open to the world and to work with it, but the extremist regime fears that
openness will mark its end, so it will fight it. The regime controls all
decision-making, funds and market activity. One of the experts at the Abu Dhabi
workshop said the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) controls 68 ports and
maritime centers, which it uses to export and import without paying taxes or
fees to the state. The IRGC also controls many economic institutions such as
petroleum refineries and major governmental companies, so economic openness will
not be with real private or public sectors, but with state institutions.
The long view
Even the luckiest past experiences of openness took a long time to yield
economic or political results. China, which adopted an open-door policy after it
signed a historic deal with the United States in the 1970s, remained closed for
around 20 more years until the world sensed real domestic economic change.
It is too early to sense change in Iran, where there are apprehensions about
reconciling with the West and opening up to the world. Moscow, which accepted
opening up to the world in the mid-1980s, did not change until 1991, and then
the Soviet Union split into 15 republics. It is too early to sense change in
Iran, where there are apprehensions about reconciling with the West and opening
up to the world. Many high-ranking figures have voiced their intention to oppose
any domestic changes. As is typical with totalitarian regimes, economic benefits
are expected to only enrich the ruling class, which will then be better able to
resist change.
Partners in terror
Kyle Orton/Now Lebanon/March 09/16
Last week, a judgment in United States District Court in Washington, D.C.,
awarded nearly $350 million to the families of two Americans killed in Jordan in
2005 by the predecessor organization to the Islamic State (ISIS). The important
point of the case was who the court found liable: the regime of Bashar al-Assad,
currently presenting itself to the world as the last line of defense to a
terrorist takeover of Syria. This case highlights a neglected history, which
began in 2002, where the Assad regime underwrote ISIS and fostered its growth,
first to destabilize post-Saddam Iraq and later Lebanon, and since 2011 to
discredit and destroy the uprising against Assad in Syria.
The group now known as ISIS was founded in early 2000 with Al-Qaeda seed money
at a camp in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. ISIS’ founder, Abu Musab
al-Zarqawi, did not formally swear allegiance to Osama bin Laden until 2004, but
the two pooled resources, notably on the Millennium Plot, which was meant to
target Zarqawi's Jordanian homeland and Los Angeles International Airport.
After the U.S. overthrew the Taliban in the wake of 9/11, Bin Laden went to
Pakistan and Zarqawi went to Iran. Zarqawi then moved into Iraqi Kurdistan in
April 2002, joining Ansar al-Islam, a group he and Al-Qaeda had co-sponsored,
which was waging war against the elected Kurdish government that was protected
by the Anglo-American no-fly zone. Ansar was penetrated at senior levels by
agents of the Saddam Hussein regime, according to Kurdish intelligence, which
also caught Saddam providing "logistical support, money, weapons, transportation
[and] safe houses" to Ansar. Any enemy of the Kurds was a friend of
Saddam's—even before the reorientation of Saddam's foreign policy in the
mid-1980s toward instrumentalizing Islamist groups for the Baathist government's
own ends (which was later extended to internal policy).
By May 2002, Zarqawi was in Baghdad with a group of more than a dozen
Al-Qaeda-affiliated jihadists, including: Zarqawi's successor, Abu Hamza al-Muhajir,
a long-time Qaeda-affiliated Egyptian who was arrested in 2014 while training
jihadists in Libya, Thirwat Shehata, and Abu Humam al-Suri, who went on to
become the military chief of Jabhat al-Nusra (Al-Qaeda in Syria). Zarqawi, who
had "relatively free" movement within Iraq, departed Iraq in the early summer of
2002 to go on a recruitment-drive in the Levant.
First, Zarqawi went to Ain al-Hilweh, a Palestinian camp in southern Lebanon
known for its Islamist militancy, and then to Syria. Zarqawi recruited numerous
Syrians, notably ISIS’ current spokesman, Taha Falaha, better known as Abu
Mohammed al-Adnani. From Syria, Zarqawi organized—with the complicity of
Assad—the assassination of a U.S. diplomat, Laurence Foley, in Jordan. More
importantly, Zarqawi set up, in collaboration with the Syrian secret police, the
networks that would bring the foreign jihadists into Iraq after the fall of
Saddam.
During the invasion of Iraq, Mahmoud al-Aghasi (pseudonym: Abu al-Qaqa), a
Salafi agitator in Aleppo, had gone door-to-door rounding up young men to go and
wage jihad in Iraq, who were then allowed to pass into Iraq unhindered by Syrian
border guards. Al-Aghasi was an asset of Assad's intelligence. Throughout the
entire U.S.-led occupation of Iraq, Syria was the main conduit for ISIS’ foreign
volunteers who formed the overwhelming majority of the suicide bombers.
With the foreign fighter flow into Iraq reaching 100 per month by late 2007,
almost solely from Syria, U.S. commandos crossed into eastern Syria on October
26, 2008, and killed the man chiefly responsible for the pipeline, Badran al-Mazidi
(Abu Ghadiya), a facilitator who answered directly to ISIS’ leadership. The raid
was made possible when the U.S. turned a member of Al-Mazidi's inner circle—who
had, incidentally, been working for Assad. But the Assad regime's oversight of
Al-Mazidi was more direct than penetrating his network with secret agents—that
was merely an additional layer of surveillance from a totalitarian regime that
uses terrorism as an instrument of statecraft.
The U.S. was well aware that Al-Mazidi operated "with the knowledge of the
Syrian government," specifically the dictator's brother-in-law, Assef Shawkat,
the head of Military Intelligence, from information gathered during five years
of grinding war in Iraq. The jihadists were landing at Damascus International
Airport and being shipped into eastern Syria, where they lived in safe-houses
run by Military Intelligence and had access to a "network of training camps"
where senior ISIS members "met regularly with Syrian Military Intelligence
officials," including Shawkat. These jihadists were then set loose in Iraq, but
were able to return to Syria to receive medical treatment if they were injured.
It was Syria's Military Intelligence that U.S. attorney F.R. Jenkins sued on
behalf of Lina Mansoor Thuneibat, 9, and Mousab Ahmad Khorma, 39, who were
killed in ISIS’ hotel bombings in Amman in November 2005. The families will be
paid from the United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund. This is
the second U.S. ruling to find Assad liable in an act of murder by ISIS.
In 2008, a U.S. court found that Assad "provided substantial assistance to
Zarqawi and [ISIS' predecessor organization] Al-Qaeda in Iraq and that this led
to the deaths by beheading of Jack Armstrong and Jack Hensley," both American
citizens. The court ruling awarded more than $400 million to the families.
The collaboration did not cease after Al-Mazidi was killed, however. In 2009,
emissaries of the Assad regime, ISIS and the fallen Iraqi Baathist regime met
directly in Syria and plotted attacks in Iraq. The resultant bombing in Baghdad
in August 2009 was the second deadliest of the Iraq War and did not target U.S.
forces but rather Iraqi government institutions. Iraq expelled the Syrian
ambassador in response to the attack.
Since the Syrian revolution began in 2011, these old networks have "flipped,"
flowing from Iraq into Syria. While this might seem like a near-template case of
blowback, there is a difference: this is willed blowback, and the Assad regime's
assistance to ISIS did not cease even after the group began to bite the hand
that fed it. Assad understood early that having ISIS as an enemy might save him.
Assad said from the start of the protests against him that Syria faced a
sectarian, jihadist rebellion that had been stirred up from the outside, and he
did everything he could to make that come true.
In March 2011, eleven days after the uprising broke out—at that stage a peaceful
protest movement—Assad released 246 violent Islamists. There were subsequent
releases of Islamists in May, and June 2011, as the regime intensified its
crackdown on the protesters and widened its targeted assassinations against
secular activists. As defectors have explained: "The regime did not just open
the door to the prisons and let these extremists out, it facilitated them in
their … creation of armed brigades." One of those released was killed last
Thursday: Amr al-Absi, one of ISIS’ most senior leaders, who was crucial in the
formation of the ISIS caliphate.
ISIS emerged publicly in 2013 and began seizing territory. Assad had built his
counter-insurgency strategy on displacement: by launching air attacks on
liberated areas, he could prevent any attractive alternative government taking
shape and could simply empty the country of those who opposed him or sympathized
with the opposition—hence the refugee crisis in Europe. It is notable, then,
that between November 2013 and November 2014, Assad attacked ISIS just six
percent of the time. This was after ISIS stormed into Iraq, alerting the world
to its existence, that Assad began tokenistic strikes on ISIS-held areas to try
to insinuate himself into the global anti-terrorist coalition. Those numbers
remain largely unchanged and Russia continues the same policy.
Since its military intervention in Syria, Russia has systematically targeted the
moderate opposition with upwards of eighty percent of its airstrikes. In
October, Russia enabled ISIS to make its largest territorial gains in six months
in Aleppo when it bombed hundreds of rebels who had been holding the line
against ISIS. The regime had previously played this role of ISIS' air force
before, so blatantly that even the U.S. State Department called them out on it.
Meanwhile, Syria's energy sector is a joint criminal enterprise of the Assad
regime and ISIS, with Russia as the intermediary, providing millions of dollars
in cash, via Kremlin-affiliated oligarchs, which Assad hands over to ISIS, and
technicians who keep these facilities running.
Assad has had one overarching strategic aim since the rebellion erupted in
Syria: present the population and the world with a binary choice between the
dictator and the terrorists. ISIS shares that goal, and has worked in tandem
with the regime, directly and indirectly, to eliminate all non-ISIS alternatives
to the regime. Last week's ruling in Washington and the much-neglected 2008
court judgment are reminders that this collaboration did not begin yesterday. It
was Assad's past cooperation with ISIS against America that provided the
foundations for ISIS' caliphate to take root so quickly, and Assad's cynical
wish to make extremists the face of the opposition that allowed ISIS to expand
virtually unhindered.
Assad—with Russia and Iran behind him—might undertake symbolic attacks against
ISIS to counter rising international accusations of collaboration, and Assad
will fight ISIS eventually—when the regime and ISIS are the only combatants left
in Syria. But until then, Assad has every interest in making the ISIS problem
worse to help facilitate the complete defeat of the rebellion, politically and
physically. This is not the conventional definition of a counter-terrorism
partner.
ISIS fighters pose after overrunning a position northwestern Iraq. (AFP
Photo/Handout/Welayat Salahuddin)
Assad understood early that having ISIS as an enemy might save him.
What makes Georges Tarabichi
great?
Turki Al-Dakhil/Al Arabiya/March 09/16
Our modern intellectual thought is full of brilliant and influential figures who
are not only well-known in the Arab world but have also attained worldwide fame.
It is difficult to read the works of Abdallah Laroui, Mohammad Arkoun, Mohammad
al-Jabri and Georges Tarabichi and not get affected by them. These authors
influence the readers’ convictions and the ideas they inherit without
questioning. They undo the pause that we apply on our minds and revive the
questions that we always wanted to ask. Their tryst with education and learning
is a beacon of light for students as it teaches them persistence, hard work and
patience. Last month, Dr. Tarabichi wrote an article on six phases of his life.
It took the reader through a range of emotions, from a sense of weakness to
strength and from stimulation to deterrence. Such writings always reveal
different sides of a renowned intellectual. In this case, it was one of the most
significant modern thinkers of our times.
The Freud connection
Dr. Tarabichi highlighted the changes in his religious belief and how he
developed Baathist orientations and went to jail. He also narrates how he became
interested in the works of Sigmund Freud, which greatly influenced him. “My
story with Freud began with a funny incident,” he wrote. “After I got married
and had two kids, I developed the habit of unconsciously tearing apart loaves of
bread from the sides. I would do that in the presence of my wife and daughters
while we sat on the table. I couldn’t resist this habit even when we had guests
on the table.”“My wife would tell me this was inappropriate. One day I was
reading an article - I don’t think it was by Freud but by one of his students.
It was about this psychological phenomenon in which tearing bread into crumbs
was described as a neurotic symptom and an unconscious destruction of the
father’s image. When I read it, I started to shake (and realized): ‘I am tearing
my father apart!’ In fact, I wasn’t on good terms with my father during my
teenage years.”Dr. Tarabichi, who believed in writing as an outlet and as a
means to change society’s obsolete ideas, feels great pain over the disastrous
crisis in his homeland, Syria. Dr. Tarabichi honestly and objectively speaks
about his criticism of Jabri, which began with the latter’s writings on the
Brethren of Purity from the perspectives of logic and philosophy. Dr. Tarabichi
embarked on a journey of finding books on history to trace Jabri’s footnotes and
he did a critique of him in over thousands of pages. “I will frankly say this as
after spending a quarter of a century reading Jabri’s books and reviews and
reading hundreds of references on Muslim, Christian and Greek heritage and
whatever writings are required to address his writing. I admit to him and to you
that I benefitted a lot from him and that he forced me to rebuild my cultural
heritage. I owe him a lot despite all the criticism I made against him”, Dr.
Tarabichi wrote.
Critiques
Dr. Tarabichi, whose name is associated with Jabri for critiquing his works,
always insisted on restructuring his vision and examining and analyzing them. He
even revolted against the suggestions he himself made. Not resigning himself to
closed facts and vision, he questioned his own thought that allowed himself to
revisit ideas consistently. He allowed himself to become a rebel against himself
by criticizing and questioning his own approaches. This is what makes authors
great and influential and this is what has distinguished Dr. Tarabichi from the
rest. Dr. Tarabichi, who believed in writing as an outlet and as a means to
change society’s obsolete ideas, feels great pain over the disastrous crisis in
his homeland, Syria. He wrote: “My paralysis from writing, I who has done
nothing in life other than to write, is tantamount to death. But in all cases,
this is a small death considering what great death might be, and which is the
death of the homeland.”
Trust is key to bolstering
Russia-Egypt ties
Maria Dubovikova/Al Arabiya/March 09/16
On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Egyptian counterpart Abdel
Fattah al-Sisi talked on the phone about the situation in Syria, according to
the Kremlin. The leaders agreed to continue their close cooperation in this
regard, as well as on anti-terrorism efforts.Given growing global demand for
weaponry, as well as energy shortages facing Egypt’s growing population, energy
projects and further purchases of Russian weaponry were likely also discussed.
Egypt is waiting with growing impatience for Moscow to lift the ban it imposed
last year on Russian tourists travelling there after the downing by the Islamic
State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) of a Russian passenger plane over the Sinai. The
ban has caused significant financial losses for Cairo, but despite great
diplomatic efforts, Moscow is in no hurry to lift it. Nevertheless, Russia
continues to expand its cooperation with Egypt, sending one government
delegation after another. Russia’s Communication Ministry recently signed a
memorandum on cooperation in IT, and postal and mass communication. The two
sides have agreed to cut roaming costs, which will benefit business people and
tourists once the ban is lifted. Russia considers Egypt a promising market for
its IT companies.
Hurdles
Moscow awaits the arrival of Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukri in
mid-March. The agenda is supposed to be broad, from Syria to tourism. Russia
considers Egypt a key counterpart for pursuing its geopolitical goals in the
region, but is treading carefully due to a sense of Egyptian unpredictability.
Efforts to improve bilateral relations will be bolstered by the lifting of the
tourist ban, as it is impossible to build friendship without trust. Cairo needs
Russian tourist revenue, and Egyptian investors want to invest in Russia and do
business in the country. However, their view of Russians and Russian business
consists of outdated stereotypes such as being slow, corrupt, unreliable and
unpredictable. There are also language barriers that Russians seem not so eager
to overcome. Moscow is focused more on building government ties than those
between societies and business. Efforts to improve bilateral relations will be
bolstered by the lifting of the tourist ban, as it is impossible to build
friendship without trust. Until Russia trusts Egypt with the wellbeing of its
citizens, all other fields of cooperation will be affected. However, lifting the
ban is unlikely before autumn. Firstly, Russia needs to guarantee the huge
tourism boom for the summer season to its domestic destinations such as Sochi
and Crimea. Secondly, by autumn the situation in Syria is expected to be
clearer, and ISIS significantly weakened.
Israel is losing friends in
high places
Yossi Mekelberg/Al Arabiya/March 09/16
Whenever criticized by foreigners Israelis shrug their shoulder and maintain, in
what has become an almost a cult response, “anyway the whole world is against
us”. This response is employed according to needs toward friends and foes alike,
sometimes towards friends with more venom, as they are expected to support
Israeli’s every whim. In a survey last year 71 per cent agreed with the
statement “the countries of the world make moral demands of Israel that they do
not make of other countries that are in situations of conflict.” Most recently
the British prime minister was on the receiving end of accusations of bias
against Israel for daring to criticize the Israeli occupation generally and
settlements policy more specifically. Cameron is in truth regarded as one the
friendliest of British prime ministers towards Israel ever, and undoubtedly one
of the least critical among European leaders of the current Israeli government.
David Cameron has a much bigger fish to fry right now than entering into the
Israeli-Palestinian fray. At least until June his big battle is winning the
Brexit referendum and keeping his own Conservative party and leadership intact.
It is also the case that not a single politician has found it rewarding thus far
to try to persuade Netanyahu to see sense regarding his Jewish settlement
policy. Similarly, it has been futile to try to make the Israeli government
accept that there is an international consensus that the occupation of
Palestinian territory and colonizing it with Jewish settlements is illegal and
provocative. It violates international law and it is widely seen as a deliberate
Israeli attempt to derail a peace agreement based on two-state solution. On this
issue the there is at best a nuanced difference between Israel’s closest ally
the United States and the European Union.
By asserting that what Israel is doing in East Jerusalem amounted to an
effective encirclement of the Arab areas of the city, and that it was genuinely
shocking to him, the British prime minister was merely stating what he observed
during his visit to the city. This is the approach taken by all EU countries and
reflects numerous UN resolutions. Attempting to silence countries for their
past, in a rather pathetic attempt to avoid accountability for the Israeli
occupation and settlement expansion, does not work anymore
Netanyahu’s compulsive need to react to any criticism, once again provided a
window into his patronizing and colonialist set of values. In tandem with the
mayor of Jerusalem, they both lectured Cameron that Israel’s control of the
city, and by extension of the rest of the West Bank, is the last line of defence
from militant Islam taking over and it. Moreover, they stated that Israel brings
progress and development to the Palestinians. They both conveniently ignore that
it is for the Palestinians themselves to decide whether they would like Israel
to play their knight in the shining armour. A more empirical approach,
considering Palestinian resistance and the views they express in public opinion
polls, indicates the complete opposite. They would like to determine their
future by themselves not leave it for the Israelis to decide. In the Israeli
prime minister’s book, certain countries have a lesser right than others to
express even the slightest of concerns regarding Israeli policies. Most obvious
is Germany, and to a lesser extent Great Britain due to its role during the
Mandate over Palestine and for not doing enough to save Jews during the Second
World War. However, attempting to silence countries for their past, in a rather
pathetic attempt to avoid accountability for the Israeli occupation and
settlement expansion, does not work anymore.
In recent weeks France, for example, is advancing the idea of convening an
international peace summit, despite Israel’s fierce opposition. Laurent Fabius,
until last month French foreign minister, not only condemned the constant
settlement building, but also pleaded the world not to allow the two-state
solution to unravel. He explicitly warned that France would formally recognize a
Palestinian state if diplomatic efforts failed to end the conflict. Fabius, as
many others, understands that recognizing Palestinian statehood outside a
comprehensive agreement between Israel and the Palestinians is a major lever to
pressure Israel to change its current policies. Israel rejects the notion of
Palestinian self-determination recognition as separate issue from a peace
package deal that addresses all outstanding issues, a notion that most of the
international community has subscribed to since the signing of the Oslo Accords
in 1993.
The two-state solution
However, there is a growing international realization that the Netanyahu
government has no intention of cooperating in advancing peace, hence
condemnation and resigning to other ideas and tactics by world leaders has
become more frequent. What should worry Israelis most is that consecutive
Israeli governments are blind to the fact that without negotiating in good
faith, the two state solution is quickly disappearing, the Palestinian society
is abandoning this option and the world is turning against the Jewish state.
Mounting verbal attacks on foreign leaders might provide Netanyahu a sense of
instant gratification for standing up for Israeli interests, but in reality he
isolates Israel further and further from its closest of friends and allies. If
he had any sense of history, he would have recognized that by delaying a
genuine, just and viable solution, Israel encourages the radicalization of
considerable parts of the Palestinian society, allows the space for the BDS
ideas to prosper and alienates friends. This approach compromises the long term
survival of the Jewish state as an independent state.