LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

May 13/16

Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

http://www.eliasbejjaninews.com/newsbulletin16/english.may13.16.htm

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Bible Quotations For Today

Isaiah: ‘Lord, who has believed our message, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 12/37-43:"Although he had performed so many signs in their presence, they did not believe in him. This was to fulfil the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah: ‘Lord, who has believed our message, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?’And so they could not believe, because Isaiah also said, ‘He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, so that they might not look with their eyes, and understand with their heart and turn and I would heal them.’ Isaiah said this because he saw his glory and spoke about him. Nevertheless many, even of the authorities, believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they did not confess it, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved human glory more than the glory that comes from God."

Be sure of this, that no fornicator or impure person, or one who is greedy (that is, an idolater), has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
Letter to the Ephesians 05/01-07:"Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But fornication and impurity of any kind, or greed, must not even be mentioned among you, as is proper among saints.
Entirely out of place is obscene, silly, and vulgar talk; but instead, let there be thanksgiving. Be sure of this, that no fornicator or impure person, or one who is greedy (that is, an idolater), has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes on those who are disobedient. Therefore do not be associated with them."

Pope Francis's Tweet For Today

Dear Religious: wake up the world! Be witnesses to a different way of thinking, acting and living!
Chers religieuses et religieux, réveillez le monde ! Soyez les témoins d'une façon différente de penser, d'agir et de vivre
أيها الرهبان والراهبات الأعزاء: أيقظوا العالم! كونوا شهودًا لأسلوب مختلف في التفكير والتصرُّف والعيش
 

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on May 13/16

We the Lebanese, This is what we are & who we are/Elias Bejjani/May 12/16
Lebanese Shiites disrupting the status quo/Myra Abdallah/Now Lebanon/May 12/16

Free at last/Win or lose, Saad Hariri may finally be his own man/Michael Young/Now Lebanon/May 12/16

Israel and "Palestine": What International Law Requires/Louis René Beres/Gatestone Institute/May 12/16
Yazidi Girl Exposes ISIS Rape Hellhole/Raymond Ibrahim/Gatestone Institute/May 12/16
Recreation is a legitimate and civil right/Turki Al-Dakhil/Al Arabiya/May 12/16
Russian messages via Palmyra concert, Victory Parade/Maria Dubovikova/Al Arabiya/May 12/16
Welcome realism and goodbye comfort zones/Eyad Abu Shakra/Al Arabiya/May 12/16
On attempts to destroy Saudi-Egyptian ties/Mshari Al Thaydi/Al Arabiya/May 12/16
Tunisia: Between terrorism and tourism/Lina Khatib/Al Arabiya/May 12/16
Israel at 68: Not isolated, but badly misunderstood/Herb Keinon/Jerusalem Post/May 12/16

Titles Latest Lebanese Related News published on May 13/16

We the Lebanese, This is what we are & who we are
Lebanese Shiites disrupting the status quo
Free at last/Win or lose, Saad Hariri may finally be his own man
Nasrallah: We are not Obligated to any Side that the FPM Allies itself with in Municipal Polls
Hajj Hassan Tells Cabinet 'Red Line' Crossed as Banks Reportedly Suspend 2 Hizbullah MPs' Accounts
Salam: Successful Municipal Elections Demonstrate Ability to Elect President
Hariri Says Institutions 'Should No Longer be Taken Hostage' after Municipal Vote
Chamoun: No alliance with FPM in Deir al Qamar elections
Cabinet tasks PM with following up on US sanctions on Hezbollah
Jumblatt: Mukhtara has chosen its municipalities by acclamation
Adwan announces LF, FPM municipal list in Deir al Qamar
Byblos readies to elect 40 municipal councils, 104 mukhtars
Tohme: Holding municipal elections on time democratic achievement
Salam pushes for presidential elections
Report: Hariri Evades Challenge in Tripoli Municipal Elections, Plans to Meet Miqati
Report: Hariri Evades Challenge in Tripoli Municipal Elections, Plans to Meet Miqati
Hariri Says Institutions 'Should No Longer be Taken Hostage' after Municipal Vote
Saqr Files Charges against Five People for IS Affiliation
Portolano Highlights UNIFIL Cooperation with Army in Talks with Berri, Qahwaji
Gunmen Shoot Down a Man in Arsal
Bassil Holds Talks with Qatari Counterpart in Doha
Activists Rally at Interior Ministry Demanding Parliamentary Polls
 

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on May 13/16

Erdogan Says Turkey Preparing to Clear IS from Syrian Side of Border
Russia blocked in bid to blacklist Syria rebels
Fighting erupts north of Aleppo as ceasefire expires
Syria’s al-Qaeda branch seizes central Alawite village
Syrian Opposition Leader Wants 'Actions not Words ' from Foreign Backers
ISIS in Iraq losing terrain ‘every single day’
Asiri: Yemen army to enter Sanaa if talks fail
Iran bans own citizens from performing Hajj
Iranian, Indian cities ranked worst for air pollution
Will Canada give Iran's regime a free pass?
Iran regime claims to have test-fired ballistic missile with 2000 km range
Iran nuclear deal fails to make a difference
US cool on France ME peace push, may not attend
Saudi Woman Sentenced to 6 Years' Jail for IS Support
French PM slams UNESCO Jerusalem resolution as 'unfortunate, clumsy'

Links From Jihad Watch Site for May 13/16
Iraqi Ayatollah: Muslims can lend slave girls to friends to prevent marital problems
Trump: Muslim ban ‘just a suggestion’
Hugh Fitzgerald: The Pope: Neither Holy, Nor Roman, Nor An Umpire

Muslim “Sharia patrols” terrorize Copenhagen bars in “Sharia zone”.
London’s Muslim mayor pledges to help Hillary Clinton beat Donald Trump.
Australian judge to jury in jihadi’s trial: “Islam is not on trial here”.
Turkey threatens to “send the refugees” if European Parliament doesn’t allow visa-free travel in Europe for Turks.
Hindu group asks gods to help Trump save humanity from Islamic terrorism.
Hamas-linked CAIR threatens suit as Citadel denies hijab for Muslim cadet.
As Iran repeats that US is its chief enemy, Kerry tries to drum up some business in Europe for Iran.
London Muslim mayor’s veiled threat: “Trump’s ignorant view of Islam could make both of our countries less safe”.
Germany: Muslim migrant sexually assaults 6-year-old boy in changing room.
UK: Muslim sentenced for threatening to behead UKIP candidate wins appeal, sentence quashed.

Latest Lebanese Related News published on May 13/16
We the Lebanese, This is what we are & who we are
Elias Bejjani/May 12/16
We want the whole world to know that to be a Lebanese is a grand privilege,
We want the whole world to know that to be a Lebanese is a great gift from Almighty God,
A gift endowed only to the descendents of those Phoenician heroes who carried bravely the Lebanese torch for 7000 years,
To be Lebanese is be a believer in the 10452 klm square doctrine.
To be Lebanese, is to be a believer in the Lebanese distinctive identity and deeply rooted history.
The identity of love, peace, benevolence, courage, devotion,
The identity of civilization, freedom and democracy,
The identity of our great ancestors, Cadmus, Aheram, Hannibal and Zinoon,
The identity of martyrdom, sacrifice and patriotism.
A Lebanese is the one that the love of Lebanon circulates in his blood with each breathe,
A Lebanese is the one whose mind soul and body are pure and transparent, like the skies of Lebanon,
A Lebanese is the one that believes in the holiness of the Lebanese soil.
A Lebanese is the one who believes that the ongoing struggle for a free, independent, sovereign Lebanon is a destiny and a sacred duty, and not a choice.
We want the whole world to know that martyrdom is a Phoenician invention.
We want the whole world to know that sacrifice is not only a national obligation for the Lebanese, but a tradition and a heritage.
We want the whole world to know that although we peach peace and love, and practice what we preach, we are also fierce fighters and ready always to die for our beloved Lebanon and for the holy symbols that it personifies to us.
Lebanon is a ball of fire, it enlightens the darkness for those who yearn for the light.
At the same time it burns the hands of those who dare to infringe on its rights.
My dear Lebanese comrade stand tall like the holy Cedars of your beloved Lebanon
Be proud for being a Lebanese, and do not ever forget that to be Lebanese is to be open minded, tolerant, peace loving and fearing Al mighty God and His Day Of Judgment.
Long Live Free Lebanon

Lebanese Shiites disrupting the status quo
Myra Abdallah/Now Lebanon/May 12/16
The electoral dynamics in Lebanon this year are not the same. The civil society in several Lebanese areas is on the rise and competing with established political parties. Last Sunday, the first round of municipal elections in Lebanon took place in Beirut and the Bekaa. In Beirut, the list of “Beirut Madinati”, supported by the civil society and facing off against a list of all established political parties, managed to obtain approximately 40% of the Beiruti votes. The numbers in Beirut were a clear indicator of the changes in city’s power dynamics that have been witnessed recently. Similarly, in Baalbek, the unexpected results showed to what extent civil society in Lebanon is ready for change, and more importantly, not afraid to challenge powerful political parties that were taking electoral victory and citizens’ support for granted. The civil society group “Baalbek Madinati”, who was competing against Hezbollah and its allies in Baalbek, obtained approximately 45% of the votes. The results of the vote in Baalbek revealed Hezbollah’s growing inability to mobilize the community it is supposed to rule over.
Yet, the traditional Shiite parties’ nightmares are unlikely to be over. The rise of independent Shiite voices in Hezbollah and Amal Movement controlled areas seems to be contagious. “Ghobeiry for Everybody” is an electoral list, comparable to “Baalbeck Madinati,” that was formed in an attempt to challenge, this time, in the region that is, or was once, one of the most powerful fortresses for the Shiite parties: Beirut’s southern suburbs (Dahiyeh). In fact, during the last municipal elections in 2010, the Ghobeiry opposition list managed to obtain around 40% of the votes against Hezbollah and Amal Movement, proving that the Shiite community has been questioning its political affiliations for some time now.
“Six years ago, the situation was not the same,” said Gobeiry for Everybody media officer Bilal Kanj. “During the last municipal elections, they underestimated us. This year, [Shiite political] parties are putting a lot of pressure on us since they control the area here.” Dahiyeh has been a Hezbollah security zone for years, and the municipality was taken over by Hezbollah affiliated citizens over 18 years ago. “The competing list is called ‘The List of Development, Loyalty and Reform’. They had a chance for 18 years to undertake reform and they didn’t. Until now, some areas are still being neglected and we all know that none of the municipality boards over the 18 years have worked for the development of the city,” Kanj told NOW. In fact, Ghobeiry is a city that has hosted numerous citizens who have been displaced during different wars in Lebanon, especially on the southern borders. Yet, according to Ghobeiry citizens, the municipality never worked to ease the burden that was put on the residents’ shoulders. “Inequality is the main characteristic of the city,” said one Ghobeiry resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “Only some areas here are being taken care of. The rest is almost totally neglected. During these elections, many residents decided to vote for the alternative list who is trying to achieve equality and planning to execute development work. We are tired of being ruled by the same powers who did nothing for us,” she said.
What happened in Baalbek and Beirut may be encouraging other citizens to speak up against political parties and support the civil society. “The important achievement that Baalbek Madinati specifically did was encouraging the Shiite community to speak up against Hezbollah,” said political analyst Malek Mroue. “Under the name of resistance, Hezbollah took over the municipality and did not really work for the city’s development. It is a very big step for the Shiite community to have independent voices rising against it. Despite the ‘al-Takleef al-Shar’ii’ (commissioning constituents to act based on a religious directive or fatwa), even Hezbollah supporters are running on lists competing with the party because they are trying to make a change.” Facing this opposition and competition, Hezbollah will not remain silent. Knowing that it has the potential to face more powerful competitors during the elections, the general ambiance in areas under its control does not seem to be in their favor. “Hezbollah tried to pressure us using family affiliations. As a result, one of our candidates withdrew because of family pressure,” said Kanj. “Although we know that Hezbollah employs threats when facing opposition, no serious incidents have been recorded so far,” said Mroue. “However, when Hezbollah feels that the competition is serious, the party will do anything to preserve its powers.”

Free at last/Win or lose, Saad Hariri may finally be his own man
Michael Young/Now Lebanon/May 12/16
While there has been a tendency to argue that the results of municipal elections in Beirut were a defeat of sorts for Saad Hariri—given the low turnout and the unexpectedly high vote total for the Beirut Madinati list—the reality is somewhat different. Hariri faced a test in the capital and, despite a five-year absence, passed it. However, it is a very different Lebanese political environment to which the former prime minister has returned. The March 8-March 14 dichotomy no longer truly exists; Hariri is facing furtive challenges from within his own movement; and, generally speaking, many people believe his return was tied to the financial difficulties of his Saudi Oger company, so that he regarded politics as a means of compensating for this. More revealing about Hariri’s limitations was not Beirut, but the elections in Zahle. There, the former prime minister backed the losing list of Myriam Skaff, against his past allies in the Lebanese Forces and the Kataeb. One of his first visits after arriving in Lebanon was to the Skaff home. This, effectively, placed him in the midst of a looming inter-Christian contest whose ramifications Hariri never fully comprehended. Indeed, if there is one reality with which Hariri will have to come to grips, it’s that Christian attitudes toward him have changed fundamentally. This will represent a significant challenge at a time when the principal Sunni and Shiite parties are seeking to enroll Christians in their own political rivalries.
Despite the fact that the Lebanese Forces joined Hariri in the Byerti List in Beirut, relations between the two sides continue to be very poor. And that’s not likely to soon change. Samir Geagea and his followers felt betrayed by the clumsy way Hariri suddenly reversed himself with regard to his Christian ally, by endorsing Geagea’s major political foe, Sleiman Franjieh, for the presidency. Their response was to reconcile with Michel Aoun, a popular step among Christians, that in no way can be regarded as equivalent to Hariri’s opening to Franjieh.  This situation unleashed a longstanding, and ugly, Christian resentment of Sunnis, one that goes back to the time when the two communities were on opposite sides of Arab nationalism and the Palestinian struggle. Christian minority reflexes have returned, and are feeding into another belief from an older time, namely that the Shiite community, like the Christians, are a fellow minority in a Sunni-dominated Middle East.
This attitude has not translated into political behavior—the Lebanese Forces remain profoundly uneasy with Hezbollah. However, at the popular level a mood of hostility can be discerned (and was evident in widespread Christian indifference toward the Hariri-sponsored list in Beirut), and Hariri will have to take this into account as he calculates how to revive his own political fortunes. To many Christians, Hariri’s betrayal of Geagea contrasted negatively with Hezbollah’s systematic unwillingness to break with Michel Aoun.
Even within the Sunni community Hariri will need to rebuild what he had, and this time without the funds he could deploy in the past. In that sense the Beirut municipal election was a success. Hariri emerged as the dominant figure in an election in which he appears to have spent little of his own money. For a man whose influence was largely linked to his financial prowess, it will be important to determine if he can rebuild his political base on a different, more personal, foundation, given that the days when money could be spread around appear to be over. We may, finally, be at a moment when Saad Hariri becomes his own man—less reliant on the Saudis for political backing, less dependent on his father’s legacy for his popularity and more conscious that those around him have political ambitions of their own, which he will have to manage in subtle ways. Fouad Siniora and Nohad Machnouk are two such examples—individuals with political experience and skill, who saw an opening during Hariri’s long absence from Lebanon.  A more independent and self-sufficient Hariri is a good thing for the country. Whatever his enemies try to do to undermine him, they also realize that he embodies Sunni moderation better than most others. If Hariri is discredited and humiliated today, this will only embolden those in the community who argue for a less compromising approach to communal relations. The case of Ahmad al-Assir is a cautionary tale in this regard. Municipal elections in Tripoli and Sidon will better reveal what Hariri is facing. Many of those he left behind five years ago have less patience for the man. But at the same time Hariri is more than Hariri; what happens to him says a great deal about what happens to his community. Disappointments may lie ahead, but at last the former prime minister has an opportunity to succeed on his own terms, if he has the perseverance to carry through.
**Michael Young is a writer and editor in Beirut. He tweets @BeirutCalling

Nasrallah: We are not Obligated to any Side that the FPM Allies itself with in Municipal Polls
Naharnet/May 12/16/Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah emphasized on Thursday the party's commitment towards its ally the Free Patriotic Movement in the municipal elections, saying that the victorious candidates will serve all who “voted for us and those who did not vote for us.”He said during a Hizbullah ceremony marking the "resistance's wounded fighters": “We are not obligated towards any side that the Free Patriotic Movement chooses to ally itself with during the municipal polls.”He made his statement in reference to the FPM's alliance in the polls with the Lebanese Forces and Kataeb Party. Nasrallah explained that these alliances seek to serve the people, but that they also have political objectives. “We ally ourselves with our friends, not our foes, who have not spared any media outlet to slander us. We respect ourselves and our supporters and we do not stab our allies in the back.”“We hope the next stages of the municipal elections will run as smoothly as the ones held over the weekend,” added the Hizbullah chief. Beirut and the Bekaa regions witnessed on May 8 the first stage of municipal polls. The next stage will be held in the Mount Lebanon region on Sunday. They will be followed by polls in the South and Nabatieh on May 22 and the North and Akkar on May 29. Addressing regional developments, Nasrallah remarked that the Islamic State group is a U.S. product “aimed at destroying the resistance movements in the region.” He explained that the U.S. first came up with the idea of using fighters “trained in Wahhabi thought” in order to defeat the Soviet Union. It sought to use a similar approach, through the IS, in defeating the “spirit and will of the resistance.” “The West does not have a problem with Muslims, but with the movements and people who reject the Israeli occupation of Palestine. They have a problem with all those who reject foreign hegemony in the region.” “They have a problem with all who believe in the resistance,” stated Nasrallah. “How are they going to fight them? They attempted to do so through direct combat in Lebanon in 2006 and later in Gaza, but they failed,” he noted. They therefore resorted to the IS, said the Hizbullah chief. “They want the IS to reach all of Iran's borders and even within Iran itself. The Saudi regime is trying to do so. The IS is a means to achieve U.S. goals as demonstrated through the return of American troops in Iraq. “This is not a regional Sunni-Shiite battle, but this is all an attempt to break the rise of resistance movements.”

Hajj Hassan Tells Cabinet 'Red Line' Crossed as Banks Reportedly Suspend 2 Hizbullah MPs' Accounts
Naharnet/May 12/16/A Hizbullah minister warned during a cabinet session Thursday that a “red line” was crossed, after two Lebanese banks reportedly suspended three Hizbullah-linked accounts in conformity with a U.S. sanctions law. “Two Lebanese banks have suspended the accounts of two Loyalty to Resistance bloc MPs and the account of the daughter of an ex-MP who was in the bloc,” MTV and LBCI reported. Commenting on the banks' measures during the cabinet session, Industry Minister Hussein al-Hajj Hassan of Hizbullah warned that “a red line has been crossed” and that “the U.S. sanctions shall not pass,” the TV networks said. Reciting an official statement after the session, Information Minister Ramzi Jreij said “following extensive discussions, the cabinet decided to task the prime minister with following up on the issue with the central bank governor in coordination with the finance minister who is in the picture of the contacts and the taken measures.”“The cabinet will be informed of the developments when needed,” Jreij added. Earlier in the day, Hizbullah's parliamentary bloc said that U.S. sanctions on banks that knowingly do business with the group could threaten Lebanon's financial sector, hinting that supporters may withdraw their money from local banks. The bloc, known as Loyalty to the Resistance, also criticized Lebanon's central bank for saying it would abide by the U.S. law, which came into effect last month and which the Hizbullah lawmakers said violates Lebanon's sovereignty. The bloc said the central bank and private banks would be participating in "a war of exclusion" against the group by upholding the law. Central Bank governor Riad Salameh has said the bank will abide by the restrictions in the Hizbullah International Financing Prevention Act, which was signed into law in December. The U.S. regulations say Washington will target those "knowingly facilitating a significant transaction or transactions for" Hizbullah or any individual, business or institution linked to the group. Those under sanctions include Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and top commander Mustafa Badreddine as well as some businessmen. The list also includes the group's al-Manar TV and al-Nour Radio. Nasrallah said last year that his group won't be affected by the law because it doesn't deal with Lebanese or foreign banks. But a large network of social and educational organizations associated with Hizbullah provide services to its supporters and other Lebanese, and deal directly with the government.When asked last month whether banks dealing with Hizbullah Cabinet ministers or legislators who get paid by the state would be affected, Central Bank Governor Salameh told The Associated Press that the law does not mention salaries. Lebanese officials and lawyers say the impact of the law on the country's economy remains unclear. U.S. Treasury officials are expected in Lebanon later this month to discuss its implementation.

Salam: Successful Municipal Elections Demonstrate Ability to Elect President
Naharnet/May 12/16/Prime Minister Tammam Salam stated on Thursday that the success in holding the municipal elections have thwarted allegations against the Lebanese incompetency in staging the process in a peaceful and civilized manner. “The state and its institutions are capable of running and protecting the most challenging electoral difficulties. The municipal and mayoral elections have dropped claims that the Lebanese are incapable of holding the municipal elections,” said Salam in a speech delivered at the Arab Economic Forum held in Beirut.“It seems possible now that we can build on this achievement and progress forward toward rebuilding our constitutional pillars, mainly the presidency and drafting a new modern electoral law,” he added. On Sunday, the first round of municipal elections concluded in Beirut in the eastern Bekaa Valley and Baalbek-al-Hermel, in the first vote of any kind in Lebanon since the last municipal polls in 2010.On the vacuum at the presidential post, Salam said: “In two weeks from now, we will sadly mark two years of presidential vacuum which represents a great offense for Lebanon and the Lebanese. It is basically the reason behind the suffering and stumbling of the (state's) institutions.”Lebanon has been in a state of presidential vacuum since the term of President Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014. Salam concluded by voicing hopes that the upcoming municipal elections in other Lebanese regions go as smoothly as in the capital. The elections in Mount Lebanon will be held on May 15. Elections in south Lebanon and Nabatieh are set for May 22 and north Lebanon and Akkar for May 29.

Hariri Says Institutions 'Should No Longer be Taken Hostage' after Municipal Vote
Naharnet/May 12/16/Al-Mustaqbal movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri stressed Thursday that state institutions “should no longer be taken hostage,” three days after authorities managed to organize largely peaceful municipal and mayoral elections last Sunday.“Lebanon today is an oasis of hope amidst a region in turmoil,” said Hariri during a lunch banquet at the Center House on the occasion of “Europe Day”. “Just a few days ago, the people of Lebanon, young and old, from all walks of life, proved that our democracy is strong,” he noted. “I hope that the momentum of the municipal elections will drive the different blocs in parliament to realize that the people of Lebanon, the state institutions and the presidency can and should no longer be taken hostage,” the ex-PM added. The municipal and mayoral polls that started on Sunday in Beirut and the Bekaa are the first elections of any kind in Lebanon since the last municipal vote in 2010, in a country with a deeply divided political scene that has not had a president for the past two years nor voted for a parliament since 2009. The next round of elections, which will be held in the Mount Lebanon governorate, is scheduled for Sunday.“Just like you, we value our democracy and we aspire for a strong, stable state,” Hariri said, addressing Europe's representatives. “I am confident that the future of Lebanon is promising. Many opportunities await us. Our society is vibrant, diverse and life loving,” he stated. Hariri added: “The Lebanese are dynamic, talented and hard working. We will overcome the challenges, and we will remain committed to maintaining the peace and stability of this country.” Later on Thursday, Hariri declared that Lebanon “is and will remain hopefully a place for dialogue, peaceful debate, the exchange of constructive ideas and experiences.”“A place where enlightened Arab minds meet for the benefit of the Arabs, their economies and their societies,” he added, in a speech at the conclusion of the 24th Arab Economic Forum that was organized by the Al-Iktissad wal Aamal group. “Lebanon has proven that enjoys high immunity, despite the fires that are surrounding it, the enormous pressure of its displaced (Syrian) brothers and the political crisis resulting from the presidential vacuum,” Hariri noted. He attributed this immunity to its army and security forces and “the adherence of its loyal sons to stability and to the democratic system and their rejection of any kind of violence.” Hariri also pointed out that the main political forces in the country “have drawn lessons from the civil war and decided to reject any new slide towards it.” The ex-PM also said that the results of the municipal elections in Beirut, which were won by the Mustaqbal-led Beirutis List, “confirm the adherence of the people of the capital” to “the legacy of Rafik Hariri.”Turning to the economic concerns, Hariri added: “We are able to return to growth, create jobs, reinvigorate economy and investment, improve the infrastructure and allow public and private initiatives.”“We, in al-Mustaqbal movement, are preparing a plan to reinvigorate national economy through improving the business environment, starting with the adoption of the public-private partnership law,” he said. The plan also includes the reactivation of tourism through “a global advertising campaign that aims at promoting tourism in Lebanon,” added Hariri. He said partnership between the public and private sectors must include key fields like electricity and communications. “We also have a plan to involve the private sector in the public transport network, and we are studying a Metro project, and a maritime transport project between the coastal cities,” Hariri went on to say. The plan also aims to “launch biddings for gas and oil exploration and extraction, as well as ratify the law governing the work of the Sovereignty Wealth Fund to preserve the revenues from oil and gas for the future generations, and allocate part of it to decrease public debt.”

Chamoun: No alliance with FPM in Deir al Qamar elections
Thu 12 May 2016/NNA - Head of the National Liberal Party MP Dory Chamoun said in an interview with As-sharq radio station that we cannot pin high hopes on a French mediation in the presidential election dossier."Chamoun called "not to manipulate the constitution.""If we want the election to happen, it must be for 6 years as stated in the Constitution," he said. The MP hoped "that the municipal elections would be held in Deir Al-Qamar in a sporting spirit," denying any alliance with the Free Patriotic Movement, and expressing a centrist position, "leaving the freedom to the voters."On what "Al-Nahar" newspaper published about the Free Patriotic Movement and the Lebanese Forces having formed a list against him, Chamoun emphasized that "this act was not surprising because they [FPM and LF] only take into account their own interests."

Cabinet tasks PM with following up on US sanctions on Hezbollah
Thu 12 May 2016/NNA - The Cabinet tasked on Thursday Prime Minister Tammam Salam to follow up on the US financial sanctions imposed on Hezbollah, with Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil and Central Bank governor Riad Salameh to assist him. The Cabinet convened today in an ordinary session at the Grand Serail, under Salam's chairmanship. "The Prime Minister renewed calls to elect a president of the republic in the nearest time possible, hoping that the municipal polls would be a motive to meet other constitutional due dates," Minister of Information, Ramzi Jreij, told reporters following the session.

Jumblatt: Mukhtara has chosen its municipalities by acclamation
Thu 12 May 2016NNA - Head of the Progressive Socialist Party, MP Walid Jumblatt, announced, in a Twitter on Thursday, that Mukhtara had chosen its municipality by acclamation, calling for more work, especially as to waste management.

Adwan announces LF, FPM municipal list in Deir al Qamar
Thu 12 May 2016/NNA - MP George Adwan announced, in a press conference on Thursday, the municipal list in Deir-al-Qamar, backed by the Lebanese Forces and the Free Patriotic Movement, headed by former ambassador Melhem Misto.

Byblos readies to elect 40 municipal councils, 104 mukhtars
Thu 12 May 2016/NNA - A heated municipal and mukhtar electoral battle is building up in Byblos with growing anticipation to elect 40 municipal councils and 104 mukhtars, NNA field reporter said on Thursday. This is the first time these elections take place under the shadow of inter-Christian consensus between the Lebanese Forces and the Free Patriotic Movement in the wake of Meerab agreement, which eased the situation in many Byblos villages and towns.The most remarkable aspect of Byblos city's municipal election is that this is the first time that Byblos Municipality, headed by Ziad Hawwat, runs for elections facing another competing list. Hawwat's list will be competing with an independent candidate, Claude Marji, who refused to withdraw her candidacy to ensure an uncontested triumph for Byblos city's current municipality. It is to note that Marji, a previous Free Patriotic Movement partisan, has defected from the FPM after the latter pressured her into boycotting elections in Byblos city. Marji duly gave up her FPM membership card, whereas the FPM has declared that Marji no longer represents the party in Jbeil.

Tohme: Holding municipal elections on time democratic achievement
Thu 12 May 2016/NNA - MP Nidal Tohme said after his meeting with Akkar's governor, lawyer Imad Allabaki at Halba Serail that holding the municipal elections on time, despite all the circumstances, is a democratic achievement for which the Interior Minister ought to be congratulated. "It is owing to Minister Nuhad Al-Mashnouq's concern over the country and the people's interests," he said.After checking on the preparations underway for the elections in Akkar, Tohme called on the Ministry of Interior to complement the governor's efforts so as to provide Akkar region with the care it requires.

Salam pushes for presidential elections
Thu 12 May 2016/NNA - Prime Minister Tammam Salam pushed on Thursday to rebuild the structure of the Constitution starting from "the election of a president."He added that the presidential vacuum reflected a bad image of Lebanon for world investors. "The failure to elect a head of state is a main reason for the deterioration of the economy in addition to the regional turmoil," the Prime Minister confirmed. On another note, he said that the municipal and mukhtar elections have proven that the Lebanese are capable of achieving this deadline in a democratic and civilized manner. His remarks came during the opening of the Arab Economic Forum. Moreover, the PM added that the state and security institutions have as well proven that they are able to manage and protect the elections. "The municipal elections represent a great accomplishment for the interior ministry," he asserted. The Prime Minister said that "it is not impossible to agree on a modern electoral law and go for elections to renew the parliamentary council."Finally, the PM saluted the economic bodies which have exerted efforts to persist despite the domestic troubles and all the surrounding difficulties and obstacles.

Report: Hariri Evades Challenge in Tripoli Municipal Elections, Plans to Meet Miqati
Naharnet/May 12/16/Al-Mustaqbal Movement chief MP Saad Hariri and former Prime Minister Najib Miqati are set to meet at a “neutral venue” to discuss the upcoming municipal elections in the northern city of Tripoli, al-Akhbar daily reported on Thursday. The two men are to meet either at the Grand Serail in Tripoli or at the residence of PM Tammam Salam. The daily noted that both officials have refused a suggestion to visit the other, which compelled mediators to suggest the house of Salam as a middle ground. “Hariri plans to avoid an electoral battle in the upcoming municipal elections in Tripoli,” said the sources. “He believes that if a confrontation occurs, it would be financially costly and would have massive political implications on the Mustaqbal Movement if it was to be defeated in the northern city.”Elections in north Lebanon and Akkar are set for May 29.

Report: Berri to Shun By-Elections in Jezzine
Naharnet/May 12/16/Speaker Nabih Berri might not engage in the by-parliamentary election battle in the southern area of Jezzine against the candidate of the Free Patriotic Movement, al-Akhbar daily reported on Thursday. “Berri, who supports Ibrahim Azar the son of a former MP, might not wage a battle against the FPM candidate, Amal Abou Zeid, in Jezzine's parliamentary by-elections,” March 8 sources told the daily on condition of anonymity.“From the beginning, Berri had planned to leave the vacant seat for the FPM. He did not plan to wage a battle and might call on Azar to withdraw his candidacy,” the sources added. “He finds it useless to do so with the parliamentary elections less than ten months away. He also wants to set a consensual municipal list for the upcoming elections in Jezzine,” they added.But they emphasized that the speaker has not announced his stance yet. Seven candidates will be running for the post which has been left vacant by the death of Change and Reform bloc MP Michel Helou, who passed away in 2014. The candidates are: Michel Elias al-Helou, Jad Rizk, Patrick Rizkallah, Amal Abou Zeid, Ibrahim Azar, Kamil Serhal, and Salah Jebran. The by-election will be held simultaneously with municipal elections that kicked off in Beirut and the Bekaa-al-Hermel region over the weekend. The elections in Mount Lebanon will be held on May 15. Elections in south Lebanon and Nabatieh are set for May 22 and north Lebanon and Akkar for May 29.

Hariri Says Institutions 'Should No Longer be Taken Hostage' after Municipal Vote
Naharnet/May 12/16/Al-Mustaqbal movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri stressed Thursday that state institutions “should no longer be taken hostage,” three days after authorities managed to organize largely peaceful municipal and mayoral elections last Sunday. “Lebanon today is an oasis of hope amidst a region in turmoil,” said Hariri during a lunch banquet at the Center House on the occasion of “Europe Day”. “Just a few days ago, the people of Lebanon, young and old, from all walks of life, proved that our democracy is strong,” he noted. “I hope that the momentum of the municipal elections will drive the different blocs in parliament to realize that the people of Lebanon, the state institutions and the presidency can and should no longer be taken hostage,” the ex-PM added. The municipal and mayoral polls that started on Sunday in Beirut and the Bekaa are the first elections of any kind in Lebanon since the last municipal vote in 2010, in a country with a deeply divided political scene that has not had a president for the past two years nor voted for a parliament since 2009. The next round of elections, which will be held in the Mount Lebanon governorate, is scheduled for Sunday. “Just like you, we value our democracy and we aspire for a strong, stable state,” Hariri said, addressing Europe's representatives. “I am confident that the future of Lebanon is promising. Many opportunities await us. Our society is vibrant, diverse and life loving,” he stated. Hariri added: “The Lebanese are dynamic, talented and hard working. We will overcome the challenges, and we will remain committed to maintaining the peace and stability of this country.”

Saqr Files Charges against Five People for IS Affiliation
Naharnet/May 12/16/Military Prosecutor Judge Saqr Saqr charged five people with belonging to the Islamic State terror group, the state-run National News Agency said on Thursday. The suspects include a Lebanese and a Syrian who have been detained previously, NNA said. They were charged with carrying out terror acts, providing refuge for terrorists and for helping Sirajeddine Zureiqat flee from his village to outside Lebanon. They were also charged with possessing explosive materials. Saqr referred their case to First Military Investigation Judge Riyad Abu Ghida. Zureiqat is a top militant and the so-called spokesman of the Qaida-linked Abdullah Azzam Brigades. His name has been linked to several security reports and suspects as his Abdullah Azzam Brigades is a staunch enemy of Hizbullah.

Portolano Highlights UNIFIL Cooperation with Army in Talks with Berri, Qahwaji
Naharnet/May 12/16/The Head of Mission and Force Commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, Major General Luciano Portolano held talks on Thursday with Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri and the Army Commander, General Jean Qahwaji, said UNIFIL in a statement. Portolano briefed the speaker on the situation along the Blue Line and UNIFIL’s engagement with the people of South Lebanon in efforts, together with Lebanese army, to maintain security and stability in the area within the framework of U.N. Security Council resolution 1701. Following the meeting with Berri, the UNIFIL commander said: “I am ever grateful to the honorable speaker for his personal attention to UNIFIL’s concerns and his support to our mission in the best interests of the people of the South and the country as a whole.”“I expressed my deep appreciation for the understanding and support UNIFIL, and I personally, have been receiving from the local institutions and religious leaders. UNIFIL highly values the strong relationship with the local authorities and l look forward to the same level of collaboration with the elected municipal representatives on completion of the ongoing electoral process.”
“I assured the speaker of UNIFIL’s firm resolve to pursue its mandated tasks, working closely with the Lebanese army and other partners on the ground. The results of our combined efforts have been amply evident in the continued overall calm and stability that has prevailed in the area under very challenging circumstances. It is important that we stay the course, and I was very encouraged by the speaker’s appreciation of this imperative and his expression of Lebanon’s commitment to this shared objective.”In a separate meeting with Qahwaji earlier on Thursday, Portolano discussed the situation in UNIFIL’s area of operations, collaboration with the army and issues related to the implementation of UNIFIL’s mandate under resolution 1701.

Gunmen Shoot Down a Man in Arsal
Naharnet/May 12/16/Unknown assailants opened fire at a man in the northeastern town of Arsal and injured him, the National News Agency reported on Thursday. Two masked gunmen on a motorcycle shot Omar Mohammed al-Hujeiri, 41, aka Omar al-Antar, on the al-Jamaleh road in Arsal, said NNA. They hit him in his neck and reports said that his condition is critical. Investigations were launched into the case. No further details have been unveiled so far on the circumstances of the incident. Such incidents have become frequent in Arsal in recent years. The border town hosts thousands of refugees who fled the conflict in neighboring Syria. Militants from the al-Nusra Front, al-Qaida's Syria branch, and the Islamic State group are entrenched in the town's outskirts. In August 2014, they stormed the town and engaged in bloody battles with the Lebanese army.

Bassil Holds Talks with Qatari Counterpart in Doha
Naharnet/May 12/16/Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil held talks Wednesday in Doha with his Qatari counterpart Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman al-Thani.
“Talks tackled the bilateral ties between Lebanon and Qatar and the one-hour meeting also addressed the refugee crisis and the issue of combating terrorism,” Lebanon's National News Agency said. The Qatari minister stressed his country's “appreciation of Lebanon and the Lebanese,” hoping relations “will return to normal” between the two countries and describing the current period as “transient.” Bassil for his part highlighted “the friendly ties that gather Lebanon and Qatar” and Lebanon's keenness on “restoring the balance of relations” between the two countries. The meeting was held on the sidelines of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum. Lebanon's ties with the Gulf countries have deteriorated in recent months as Hizbullah engaged in a political confrontation with Saudi Arabia against the backdrop of a Saudi-Iranian standoff in the region. Bassil's stances at Arab and Muslim meetings were also part of the moves that angered Riyadh and pushed it to take a series of measures against Hizbullah and Lebanon. Saudi Arabia's measures started on February 19 when it announced that it was halting around $4 billion in aid to the Lebanese army and security forces over “hostile” Lebanese diplomatic positions resulting from “Hizbullah's stranglehold on the State.”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. Saudi Arabia also pushed the Gulf Cooperation Council to label Hizbullah as a “terrorist” organization over purported "terrorist acts and incitement in Syria, Yemen and in Iraq."

Activists Rally at Interior Ministry Demanding Parliamentary Polls
Naharnet/May 12/16/Activists from the We Want Accountability civil society campaign staged a sit-in Wednesday outside the Interior Ministry in Sanayeh to urge authorities to organize parliamentary elections. The sit-in, which was surrounded by a heavy police deployment, was held under the slogan “The Excuses for Extension Have Fallen and We Want Parliamentary Polls”. The campaign meant to refer to the first round of municipal and mayoral elections that was held in Beirut and the Bekaa on Sunday, the first elections of any kind in Lebanon since the last municipal vote in 2010. The country has not had a president for the past two years nor voted for a parliament since 2009 due to sharp differences among the rival political parties. The legislature has extended its own term twice, citing security concerns. “Seeing as the staging of municipal polls has proved that there are no extraordinary circumstances, the continued failure to organize parliamentary elections by this ruling class turns it into a rogue authority that is violating the Constitution,” We Want Accountability said in a statement recited at the sit-in. “This usurper ruling class, with both its legislative and executive councils, must take the necessary measures in order to stage the parliamentary polls immediately and according to a new and proportional electoral law that respects all aspects of citizenship,” the campaign added. A new civic campaign won a third of votes in Sunday's municipal elections in the capital, despite all council seats going to the established political class. Beirut Madinati emerged this year with the aim to take on traditional parties in the politically deadlocked country's first elections in six years. Experts hailed Beirut Madinati's results as a victory despite it not winning any of the city council's 24 seats.
Civil society in Lebanon gained momentum after protests last summer over the country's unprecedented waste disposal crisis.
 

Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on May 13/16

Erdogan Says Turkey Preparing to Clear IS from Syrian Side of Border
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/May 12/16/Turkey is preparing to "clean" the Syrian side of the border of Islamic State jihadists after a Turkish border town came under repeated deadly rocket attacks, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday. "We are doing all the necessary preparations to clean the other side of the border because of the problems in Kilis," Erdogan said amid persistent speculation of a possible Turkish cross-border ground operation, without giving details on the preparations. Around two dozen people have been killed in the Turkish border town of Kilis by rocket fire from IS jihadists since January, prompting the army to respond with artillery fire. Turkey, a member of the U.S.-led coalition battling IS, also allows U.S. jets to use its air base in southern Turkey for air strikes on the extremists. But Erdogan complained that Turkey was not receiving the support it desired from its allies in the fight against IS and indicated Ankara was prepared to take unilateral action. "While our citizens fall martyr every day in the streets of Kilis by rockets launched from the other side, what can we expect from our allies?" he said. "Let me say it here. We will not hesitate to take needed steps on our own if necessary," he said. Turkish media reports have indicated a 20-strong Turkish military team crossed into Syria over the weekend on a reconnaissance mission to seek out IS launchers to target in artillery strikes, but this has not been officially confirmed. Erdogan said what happens in Kilis would be a "litmus test" to show the anti-IS coalition's sincerity in dealing with the threat. "We do not believe the sincerity of any country that has not seen rockets falling on our town as if they fell on Moscow, London, Brussels, Washington, Paris or Berlin," he said.

Russia blocked in bid to blacklist Syria rebels
Ahrar al-Sham is an ultra-orthodox Salafist group and has fought as part of a Reuters Thursday, 12 May 2016/Britain, the United States, France and Ukraine blocked a Russian proposal at the United Nations to blacklist Syrian rebel groups Jaish al-Islam and Ahrar al-Sham for links to ISIS and al-Qaeda militants, diplomats said on Wednesday. Russia made the proposal late last month and the US mission to the United Nations had signaled it would oppose the move, saying it would undermine attempts to get a sustained halt in the fighting in Syria. The UN Security Council’s 15-member ISIS and al-Qaeda sanctions committee has to agree by consensus before individuals or groups can be blacklisted. Jaish al-Islam (Islam Army) is a major armed rebel group in Syria and part of the High Negotiation Committee, which was set up in Riyadh last December to negotiate on behalf of opposition groups at U.N.-brokered peace talks with the government. The High Negotiation Committee is backed by Western nations and key Arab states. Ahrar al-Sham withdrew from the Riyadh meeting, saying “revolutionary groups” were sidelined. But the group did attend the last round of peace talks in Geneva. Russia’s Foreign Ministry has long said that Jaish al-Islam and Ahrar al-Sham should not be involved in Syria peace talks. Ahrar al-Sham is an ultra-orthodox Salafist group and has fought as part of a military alliance including the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front, which was not part of a cessation of hostilities agreement brokered in February.Ahrar al-Sham, whose late leader fought alongside Osama bin Laden, last year denied sharing al Qaeda’s ideology or having organizational ties to the group.

Fighting erupts north of Aleppo as ceasefire expires
Reuters, Beirut Thursday, 12 May 2016/Syrian government forces battled rebels north of Aleppo on Thursday as a ceasefire expired in the city itself, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and rebels sources said. The fighting was focused around the rebel-held Handarat area which is important because it is near the last route into opposition-held areas of Aleppo, Syria’s biggest city before the conflict and now divided between the government and rebels. The Observatory said pro-government forces had launched an attack in the area, supported by air strikes targeting Handarat in addition to the only road into rebel-held areas of the city. The rebel sources said government forces had initially captured some ground, but this was later recovered. Syrian army officials could not immediately be reached for comment. The 48-hour truce in the city of Aleppo announced by the Syrian military on Monday ended at 1 a.m. (2200 GMT). There was no immediate announcement of an extension of the truce which was brokered by the United States and Russia with the aim of reviving a wider cessation of hostilities agreement that has broken down in much of western Syria. The acceleration of fighting in the Aleppo area contributed to the collapse of peace talks in Geneva last month.

Syria’s al-Qaeda branch seizes central Alawite village
The Associated Press, Damascus Thursday, 12 May 2016/Syria's al-Qaeda branch and allied fighters from ultraconservative rebel factions on Wednesday seized a village of President Bashar Assad's minority Alawite sect in central Syria, following fierce clashes with government troops. The capture of Zaara, which was reported by activists and Syrian state media, is sparking fears of an outbreak of sectarian violence as activists say many families from the village are missing. The development came as the International Red Cross was expected to deliver the first aid in almost four years to a cut-off Damascus suburb besieged by government forces. The International Committee of the Red Cross was to bring humanitarian relief to Daraya in cooperation with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent and the United Nations, said ICRC spokesman Pawel Krzysiek. It would be the first aid sent to rebellious Daraya since November 2012. The UN estimates the suburb's current population is between 4,000 and 8,000 people. The civil war in Syria, whose population is majority Sunni, was sparked by a crackdown on anti-government protests in 2011 but it has also developed a distinct sectarian undertone. The Alawites are an offshoot of Shiite Islam and Assad, an Alawite, has presented his side as defending the country's minorities against a Sunni Islam terror insurgency. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an activist group tracking the conflict, said families disappeared from Zaara after the militants overran the village. Along with Syria's al-Qaeda branch known as the Nusra Front, other hard-line factions that took part in the raid on Zaara included Ahrar al-Sham and Faylaq al-Rahman. Separately, al-Qaeda's more powerful rival, the ISIS - also an extremist Sunni group - is in control of about a third of Syria's territory since its blitz in the summer of 2014 when it captured large swaths of Iraq and Syria. Both al-Qaeda and ISIS are designated as terrorist organizations by the United Nations and were not part of a US-Russia-brokered cease-fire that was implemented at the end of February. Syrian state media said "terrorists" killed a number of townspeople and abducted others, adding that they looted and destroyed many homes in Zaraa. World powers working to promote a resolution to Syria's civil war are planning to resume talks next week in Vienna, with UN-led, indirect peace negotiations between Syria's government and opposition representatives expected to follow some days later. The Vienna talks aim to build on a US-Russia agreement announced this week to try to restore a nationwide cease-fire.

Syrian Opposition Leader Wants 'Actions not Words ' from Foreign Backers
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/May 12/16/Former Syrian prime minister turned key opposition leader Riad Hijab has told AFP in an interview the forces fighting the regime need "actions, not words" from countries that support them. He said the opposition urgently required surface-to-air missiles to counter the air strikes carried out by the regime and their Russian allies. And he called for tougher action against President Bashar Assad, who he claimed had effectively received a "green light" from Moscow and Washington to continue bombing civilian areas. "What we want are practical and effective measures on the ground. We don't need statements or pretty words in the media because that doesn't produce any results," Hijab told AFP. Hijab, who was speaking in Paris on Wednesday after attending a meeting of Arab and European allies of the Syrian opposition as well as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, said he was frustrated at the lack of tough action against the Damascus regime. He accused the regime of responsibility for "more than 2,300 violations of the ceasefire" since it came into effect on February 27. Hijab accused the Syrian regime and their Russian allies of committing war crimes. "In April alone, there were 27 massacres, with bombings of markets, schools and hospitals carried out by the regime. We saw what happened in Aleppo recently," he said. The ceasefire between regime forces and non-jihadist rebels in Syria, overseen by Moscow and Washington, was shattered at the end of April, most strikingly in Aleppo, the strategic city in northern Syria whose control is split between government and rebel forces. Around 300 people were killed in a surge in fighting in the city.
Green light to Assad'
A fragile new ceasefire was introduced last week and Russia and the United States agreed to "redouble" efforts to find a political solution to a war that has lasted five years and cost the lives of 270,000 people. "It's completely insufficient," Hijab said. "The joint statement by the Russians and the Americans says they want to 'minimize' the bombing of civilians and civilian areas as much as possible. "That is like giving the regime a green light to continue its abuses and saying: 'You are killing 100 Syrians a day. Well today you mustn't kill more than 10." The regime defends its air strikes by saying it is targeting "terrorist groups", meaning the Al-Nusra Front (the Syrian branch of Al-Qaida) and the Islamic State group, neither of which are included in the ceasefire. "The Syrian people have been dying for five years. We want actions, not words, from our friends," Hijab said. "We hope that the United States, the French, the British, the Germans and others are going to act on the ground," Hijab said. The opposition forces' main plea, as it has been since the start of the war in 2011, is for weapons. "The United States has prevented us obtaining anti-aircraft weapons for five years. And until recently they were blocking us from getting anti-tank weapons," he said. "We are fighting on several fronts: against Daesh (the Arab acronym for Islamic State), there have been fierce battles in recent days around Aleppo, Homs and Damascus and in the south. "We are fighting against regime forces, against the (Kurdish) PYD, against religious militia from Iraq and Lebanon, and against Afghan mercenaries and others... We need weapons that can make a difference on the ground." Hijab also called for the 17-nation International Syria Support Group (ISSG), which is due to meet in Vienna next Tuesday, to take measures to force the regime to respect the international community's humanitarian demands. The ceasefire, he said, "is not an end in itself". "The solution for Syria is a genuine political transition," said the man who oversees the opposition's negotiations in Geneva. Three rounds of U.N.-backed peace talks since the start of the year have failed to make significant progress. The most recent round, in April, was suspended when fighting resumed in Aleppo. "We want to return to Geneva," Hijab said. "We're at an impasse at the moment because the regime does not want to talk about a (political) transition." He stressed though that the opposition's approach remained unchanged -- there can be no solution that includes Assad. "It is completely unrealistic to imagine that he can stay in power," said Hijab, who was serving as prime minister under Assad when he fled Syria with his family in August 2012 to join the opposition.
 

ISIS in Iraq losing terrain ‘every single day’
AFP, Washington Thursday, 12 May 2016/ISIS is losing ground in Iraq, struggling to replenish its ranks after it is attacked and is increasingly unable to mount major operations, a US general said Wednesday. Baghdad-based Major General Gary Volesky said efforts are paying off for US-backed Iraqi security forces, who are trying to recapture vast tracts of territory seized by ISIS in 2014, including the key cities of Mosul and Fallujah in the Anbar and Nineveh provinces.The extremists’ “ability to conduct large-scale offensive operations has primarily stopped,” Volesky told Pentagon reporters in a video call. “They’re more on the defensive, trying to delay Iraqi security forces just to buy time.” He added that the ISIS is “losing terrain every single day.”In August 2014, the United States launched an international coalition to fight back against ISIS after they captured large parts of Syria and Iraq. Much of the work is being conducted through US-led air strikes, although coalition trainers are also helping advise and equip Iraqi forces and moderate Syrian fighters. Volesky said that at the start of the campaign, it wasn’t unusual to see dozens of jihadists attack at once, but that is less frequently the case now. “When we used to see, you know, 50, 60, 70 fighters, now what we’re seeing is five to eight, maybe 15, with a VBIED (car suicide bomber) associated.”“We’re not seeing them generate these large operations. We expect it’s about a two- to three-week cycle after they do an operation to be able just to try to generate enough combat power to maintain relevance, frankly.”Still, the extremists did mount a surprise attack on May 3 in northern Iraq, when a Navy SEAL was killed while on a mission to rescue US advisers working with peshmerga forces. And three car bombs in Baghdad, including a huge blast at a market in a Shiite area, killed at least 94 people Wednesday. ISIS claimed all the attacks. A government spokesman said the IS group now only controls 14 percent of Iraq, down from 40 percent. Washington decided last autumn to increase its military support for Iraqi forces to quicken the pace of the anti-ISIS campaign.

Asiri: Yemen army to enter Sanaa if talks fail
By Staff writer Al Arabiya English Wednesday, 11 May 2016/If the United Nations announces the failure of peace talks in Kuwait aimed at ending the year-long war in Yemen, Yemen’s internationally recognized government will launch a military operation to enter the capital Sanaa, the Saudi-led military coalition spokesman said on Tuesday. Brigadier General Ahmed Asiri defended the presence of coalition troops in Yemen, saying it was meant to protect the Yemeni people, not invade the country or take its resources.He said coalition forces used precision-guided munitions to hit targets in Yemen to avoid harming civilians. Iran-allied Houthi rebels and Yemen’s Saudi-backed government are trying to reach a peace deal in Kuwait. Following a two-day interruption, the two delegations resumed face-to-face talks on Monday after mediation efforts and an appeal by the U.N. envoy. The two sides met again on Wednesday and agreed in principle on a proposal to free half of the prisoners and detainees held by both sides ahead of the holy month of Ramadan, which starts in early June. They also discussed the mechanism of the prisoners’ exchange, Al Arabiya’s correspondent in Kuwait said. Top Yemeni commander escapes assassination. Meanwhile, a top Yemeni commander escaped an assassination attempt by a suicide car bomber in southern Yemen on Wednesday, in an attack that also killed three people and injured others, a military statement and security officials said. The officials say that the bomber targeted Maj. Gen. Abdel-Rahman al-Halili, the commander of the First Army District in the province of Hadramawt. He was heading to a camp located between the towns of Qatn and Sayoum. No group claimed responsibility for the attack but al-Hilali has been targeted by al-Qaeda previously in failed assassination attempts.

Iran bans own citizens from performing Hajj
By Staff Writer Al Arabiya English Thursday, 12 May 2016/Iran will ban its citizens from going to Saudi Arabia this year to perform the annual Hajj pilgrimage, international news agencies quoted an Iranian official as announcing Thursday, According to the Associated Press (AP), the Iranian Minister of Cultural and Islamic Guidance, Ali Jannati, blamed travel to Saudi Arabia for failing to “resolve the issue of security” in the months-long discussions which took place between the two countries. Jannati said in comments carried by AP: “They [the Saudis] did not accept our proposals concerning the issuing of visas or security and transport of the Iranian pilgrims.” AP said the Saudi state news agency did not carry any comment, but didn’t clarify if they themselves had tried to obtain a Saudi response.Tensions between the two regional powers escalated even more last year when an accident occurred during the annual Hajj season, resulting in the deaths of a number of Iranians who were among the causalities of the accident. The Saudi king visits an iraninan woman injured in the Hajj stampede Saudi officials, for their part, have called upon Iran to stop ‘politicizing’ this accident, however diplomatic ties were completely cut-off between the two countries when Iran failed to protect the Saudi Embassy in Tehran from mobs which attacked them in objection of Riyadh executing a Shiite, albeit a Saudi, convicted hate-preacher earlier this year. The Iranian decision raises questions as Hajj is a religious duty and one of the “five pillars” of Islam, each able-bodied Muslim is required to perform this pilgrimage at least once in their life, and at no point did Riyadh ever signal that it won’t be welcoming Iranian pilgrims this year.

Iranian, Indian cities ranked worst for air pollution
Reuters Thursday, 12 May 2016/India is home to four of the five cities in the world with the worst air pollution, the World Health Organization said on Thursday. But while WHO experts acknowledge India faces a “huge challenge”, many countries are so bad that they have no monitoring system and cannot be included in its ranking. The dirtiest air was recorded at Zabol in Iran, which suffers from months of dust storms in the summer, and which clocked a so-called PM2.5 measure of 217. The next four were all Indian: Gwalior, Allahabad, Patna and Raipur. India’s capital New Delhi was the survey’s ninth worst city, measured by the amount of particulate matter under 2.5 micrograms found in every cubic meter of air, with an annual average PM2.5 measurement of 122. Tiny particulate matter can cause lung cancer, strokes and heart disease over the long term, as well as triggering symptoms such as heart attacks that kill more rapidly. The WHO says more than 7 million premature deaths occur every year due to air pollution, 3 million of them due to outdoor air quality.
Inside Iran: Pollution an everyday challenge
New Delhi was ranked worst in 2014 with a PM2.5 reading of 153. It has since tried to tackle its toxic air by limiting the use of private cars on the road for short periods. Maria Neira, head of public health, environmental and social determinants of health at the WHO, praised India’s government for developing a national plan to deal with the problem when others have been unable to.“Probably some of the worst cities that are the most polluted ones in the world are not included in our list, just because they are so bad that they do not even have a good system of monitoring of air quality, so it’s unfair to compare or give a rank,” she said. Common causes of air pollution include too many cars, especially diesel-fueled vehicles, the heating and cooling of big buildings, waste management, agriculture and the use of coal or diesel generators for power. On average, pollution levels worsened by 8 percent between 2008 and 2013, although most cities in rich countries improved the state of their air over the same period. The WHO data, a survey of 3,000 urban areas, shows only 2 percent of cities in poorer countries have air quality that meets WHO standards, while 44 percent of richer cities do. The WHO database has almost doubled in size since 2014, and the trend towards more transparency translated into more action to deal with the problem, Neira said. However, there was still very sparse data on Africa, she said.

Will Canada give Iran's regime a free pass?
Thursday, 12 May 2016
National Council of Resistance of Iran
Greater attention should be given to the threats posed by the Iranian regime as the "world’s biggest state sponsor of global terrorism," argues Canadian author and columnist Candice Malcolm. "Financing is the lifeblood of any terrorist organization, and Iran is notorious for enabling jihadists and aiding their capacity to carry out murderous attacks," Ms. Malcolm wrote on Thursday in the Toronto Sun. She pointed out that in 2012, the Stephen Harper government designated the Iranian regime as a "state-sponsor of terror" and "expelled Iranian diplomats from Ottawa — regime members suspected of spying in North America.""The feds named Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, known as the Qods Force, as being instrumental in creating, training and arming terrorist organizations including the Taliban, Hezbollah, Hamas, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, among others," she wrote. "The Harper government listed the Qods Force as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code and adopted the Justice for the Victims of Terrorism Act — allowing families and victims of terrorism to take legal action against perpetrators of terrorism, including Iran." This gave Canadian families a legal avenue to seek damages against the Iranian regime, and dozens of cases were brought to the Ontario Superior Court. An Ontario judge ordered the seizure of $7 million in Iranian assets located in Canadian bank accounts and properties, allowing victims to seek financial compensation for their losses. "Harper was unequivocal in his criticism of the Islamic Republic of Iran," Ms. Malcolm wrote. "His foreign affairs minister at the time, John Baird, did not mince words when he said, 'Canada views the government of Iran as the most significant threat to global peace and security in the world today.'" "At a time when both the U.S. and United Nations were cosying up to Iran in pursuit of a nuclear agreement, the Harper regime called out Iran’s bad behaviour.""Canada refused to look the other way on Iran’s illegal nuclear program, its egregious human rights record, its blatant racism and anti-Semitism and its bankrolling of global jihad." Ms. Malcolm urged current Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to take a similar approach. She pointed out that "Iran Accountability Week" was held on Parliament Hill last week. Conservative foreign affairs critic Tony Clement and Conservative Senator Linda Frum hosted the program in hopes of bringing greater awareness to the problematic elements of re-engaging with Iran's regime. They aimed to shine a light onto the nefarious activities carried out by the Iranian regime. "Islamist terrorism remains the greatest threat to peace and stability around the world, and Iran is the biggest financier of global terrorism," Ms. Malcolm wrote. "Over the next few months, we will learn whether the Trudeau government listens to the Canadian Coalition Against Terror or to the Ayatollahs in Iran.""Will Canada stand up to Islamist terrorism, or will we cower in the face of it?"

Iran regime claims to have test-fired ballistic missile with 2000 km range
Thursday, 12 May 2016/National Council of Resistance of Iran/NCRI - The Iranian regime's Deputy Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces claimed this week that Tehran had test-fired a "high precision ballistic missile with a range of 2000 kilometers" - a violation of United Nations resolution 2231 that prohibits Iran's regime from firing any missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. Brigadier General Ali Abdollahi said the missile had been test-fired a fortnight ago. Shahin Gobadi of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) said that Tehran's claim came in the wake of serious blows to the Iranian regime's force in Syria in recent days. He added that the mullahs' regime is more isolated than ever before, as was evidenced in the recent resolution of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). "Domestically, the factional feuding has exacerbated to unprecedented levels. Thus it is facing a significant demoralization among its forces and is resorting to this kind of hollow show of force to cover up its precarious situation and to boost the morale of its forces.”

Iran nuclear deal fails to make a difference
Wednesday, 11 May 2016
National Council of Resistance of Iran/Since the conclusion of nuclear talks between Iran's regime and six world powers last summer, the Iranian regime has carried out at least five provocative ballistic missile tests in defiance of UN Security Council resolutions, warned Ali Safavi of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI).Each test has been followed by boastful comments from top officials, including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, the ultimate authority in all matters of the Iranian regime’s foreign and domestic policy, Dr. Safavi wrote on Wednesday in the Independent Journal Review. Safavi pointed out that in a recent speech, Khamenei declared, “Those who say the future is in negotiations, not missiles, are either ignorant or traitors.”The tests are a crucial component in developing the capability to send nuclear warheads over long distances, at targets thousands of miles away, Safavi pointed out. Hassan Rouhani’s Foreign Minister Javad Zarif defended them by saying in essence that Tehran has the right to defend itself. Zarif neglected to mention that the phrase “Israel must be wiped out” was scrawled on the most recently tested missiles. But what about the “resounding victory for moderates” in recent parliamentary elections, as reported by the Western press? Unfortunately, those “moderates” are the same politicians who preside over Iran’s ballistic missile program, who were instrumental in deceiving nuclear inspectors, and who continue to wreak havoc across the region, Safavi continued. Iran has not changed, neither before the nuclear deal, nor since. This was underscored by General Lloyd Austin, the outgoing Commander of US Central Command, in remarks before Congress on March 9th: “Since the nuclear deal, Iran has not yet changed its acts in the region… Iran is the biggest factor of instability in the region.”This is true in Iraq, where it sponsors violent sectarian militias; in Syria, where it fuels the atrocities of the Assad regime; and in Yemen, where it instigated a rebellion, catapulting the country into chaos and bloodshed, and continues to arm the Houthi rebels, as evidenced by the recent French and U.S. capture of ships carrying weapons. The so-called moderate Rouhani boasted on May 10, “The IRGC is a pioneer for sacrificing and defending the holy shrines in Iraq and Syria and the oppressed people in Palestine, Lebanon and other countries seeking support from Iran. We hope that the IRGC and the victorious Bassij will succeed in all the scenes…”
If these are the moderates, we’re in deep trouble, Safavi warned. He wrote: "At home, the regime continues to execute opponents by hanging them from cranes, and to jail and torture minorities and anyone perceived as an opponent. At least 66 have been hanged since April 10 and nearly 1,000 executed in 2015, according to Amnesty International.""Tehran’s sickening practice of using construction cranes to murder people is in ironic contrast with other countries, where cranes symbolize progress, new building projects, economic growth and hopefully improving living standards."
"Those who advocate genuine change in Iran – and have not been killed for it – must live either under constant threat of violence, or in exile. Every summer, more than 100,000 exiled Iranian political activists assemble near Paris to demonstrate that absolute repression has failed to extinguish the campaign to end to Iran’s religious dictatorship.""The United States and its European allies must abandon their policy of appeasement. What is needed is quite simply a policy that recognizes the facts: there are no moderates in the Tehran regime; it need not include direct military action against Iran, but it does need to be based on action, not simply harsh words, much less willful ignorance.""The Iranian people want their future democratic government to be secular, nuclear-free and respectful of human rights. They want an Iran reintegrated as a peaceful member of the international community. They do not want a regime that is reviled as the world’s number one state sponsor of terrorism.""Opposition leader Maryam Rajavi personifies the reality that women play a crucial role in such activism. The movement that she leads foresees a transparent, modern Iranian democracy, a vision none of today’s theocratic 'moderates' would dare to even mention."
"Iran has strong opposition forces. So why is it not receiving the recognition it deserves?""America’s next president must confront the true face of the Iranian regime. It is time we told the difference between the friends and foes of freedom," he added.

US cool on France ME peace push, may not attend
AFP, Washington Thursday, 12 May 2016/The United States appears reluctant to support a French plan to relaunch the Israeli-Palestinian peace process with a major conference this month. The State Department was unable to say on Wednesday whether Secretary of State John Kerry will attend a planned May 30 meeting in Paris.And outside experts say Washington is unlikely to want to allow France to take the lead on an issue that it traditionally sees as its own. “We remain concerned about the continued violence on the ground and we welcome all ideas on moving this forward,” US spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau said. “On this specific conference, on the May 30 event, no decision’s been made on participation.”“We still remain in consultation with the French and other international partners on it,” she said. Kerry was in Paris on Monday to see his counterpart Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, and his deputy Antony Blinken was there again on Wednesday. France’s Prime Minister, Manuel Valls, will visit Israel and the Palestinian territories this month to try to drum up interest in the French initiative. But Israel opposes the plan to bring ministers from 20 countries to Paris, insisting peace will come only through direct talks with the Palestinians. And there is clearly little enthusiasm in Washington. “They’re reluctant on at least two fronts,” said Ghaith al-Omari, a fellow of the Washington Institute of Near East Policy and a former adviser to Palestinian peace negotiators. “One front is that there’s always been American reluctance to engage in anything about the peace process that is not American led,” he told AFP. “The other component is that the administration has not decided yet whether or not they will be doing something American in the next few months.” Reports in Washington have suggested that President Barack Obama, due to leave office in January, may be planning a major speech to outline terms for peace. And Washington may decide to take a blueprint for the “two-state solution” to the conflict to the UN Security Council to be enshrined in international law. But Obama has yet to decide whether to insert himself into an issue that has frustrated so many of his predecessors – or whether to let the French try. “Until there’s a decision it's unlikely that the US will engage in any external initiatives,” Omari said. “If the president is going to give a speech I can’t see Kerry going to the French initiative. If not then there might be more space for American engagement.”

Saudi Woman Sentenced to 6 Years' Jail for IS Support
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/May 12/16/A Saudi woman has been sentenced to six years in prison for "acts of sedition" including pledging allegiance to the Islamic State jihadist group, newspapers reported on Thursday. A court in Riyadh issued the sentence against the unnamed 27-year-old on Wednesday, the Saudi Gazette said. But Al-Hayat daily reported that the judge decided to keep her in jail for only three years after she expressed "regret" for her "acts of sedition" and suspended the rest of the sentence. She will however also be banned from traveling abroad for six years, it added. The woman was convicted of pledging allegiance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of the Islamic State group which has seized territory in Iraq and Syria. IS has claimed attacks in Saudi Arabia against members of the minority Shiite community and the Saudi security forces.She posted messages on Twitter supporting a deadly attack on security forces, and hung posters at a mosque and on utility poles to seek the release of a suspected militant, Saudi Gazette said. She also reportedly called for disobedience against the kingdom's rulers. Saudi Arabia is part of the U.S.-led coalition bombing IS in Iraq and Syria. Saudi political and religious leaders routinely denounce IS attacks -- at home and abroad -- as contrary to Islam. Still, a report last year by the inter-governmental Financial Action Task Force said Saudis comprised the second largest nationality among "foreign terrorist fighters" with IS. Baghdadi, the IS leader, has called Saudi Arabia's Sunni rulers "apostate tyrants" and urged Saudis to rise up against them. The verdict against the woman coincided with an upsurge of security incidents in Saudi Arabia over the past week. Saudi police on Monday shot dead a suspected jihadist in the western province of Taif a day after one of their colleagues was killed in a shootout, the interior ministry said. On May 5, another police officer was shot dead and four suspected jihadists were killed during a raid in an area between Taif and the region of Mecca, home to Islam's holiest sites.

French PM slams UNESCO Jerusalem resolution as 'unfortunate, clumsy'
Ynetnews/AFP/05.11.16/Manuel Valls describes UNESCO's references to Israel, vows to 'never deny the Jewish presence and Jewish history in Jerusalem.'French Prime Minister Manuel Valls on Wednesday described a UNESCO resolution on the flashpoint al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem as "clumsy" and "unfortunate" and said it should have been avoided. The Paris-based UN cultural body adopted the resolution on "Occupied Palestine" presented by several Arab countries in mid-April. The resolution referred several times to Israel as the "occupying power" and made no reference to the fact that the Jerusalem site, which is located at the southeastern corner of the Old City, is also revered by Jews as the Temple Mount and is the most sacred site in Judaism. "This UNESCO resolution contains unfortunate, clumsy wording that offends and unquestionably should have been avoided, as should the vote," Valls told parliament. Valls, who will visit Israel and the Palestinian territories later this month, said the UNESCO resolution "changed nothing" in France's approach towards the Israeli-Palestinian issue. "I want to repeat once again and clearly, with conviction - France will never deny the Jewish presence and Jewish history in Jerusalem. It would make no sense, it is absurd to deny this history," Valls said. The UNESCO resolution, which also accuses Israel of "planting fake Jewish graves in Muslim cemeteries", infuriated the Jewish state, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu describing it as "absurd".The controversy comes as France is hoping to lead a revival of the moribund Israeli-Palestinian peace process following the worst flare-up of violence in and around the Gaza Strip for nearly two years.

Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on May 13/16

Israel and "Palestine": What International Law Requires
Louis René Beres/Gatestone Institute/May 12/16
http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/8016/israel-palestine-international-law
Under relevant international law, a true state must always possess the following specific qualifications: (1) a permanent population; (2) a defined territory; (3) a government; and (4) the capacity to enter into relations with other states.
While this contingent condition of prior demilitarization of a Palestinian state may at first sound reassuring, it represents little more than a impotent legal expectation.
For one thing, no new state is ever under any obligation to remain "demilitarized," whatever else it may have actually agreed to during its particular pre-state incarnation.
"The legality of the presence of Israel's communities the area (Judea and Samaria) stems from the historic, indigenous, and legal rights of the Jewish people to settle in the area, granted pursuant to valid and binding international legal instruments, recognized and accepted by the international community. These rights cannot be denied or placed in question." — Ambassador Alan Baker, Israeli legal expert.
International law has one overarching debility. No matter how complex the issues, virtually everyone able to read feels competent to offer an authoritative legal opinion. While, for example, no sane person would ever explain or perform cardio-thoracic surgery without first undergoing rigorous medical training, nearly everyone feels competent to interpret complex meanings of the law.
This debility needs to be countered, at least on a case by case basis. In the enduring controversy over Palestinian statehood, there are significant rules to be considered. For a start, on November 29, 2012, the General Assembly voted to upgrade the Palestinian Authority (PA) to the status of a "Nonmember Observer State."
Although it is widely believed by many self-defined "experts" that this elevation by United Nations has already represented a formal bestowal of legal personality, that belief is incorrect. Under law, at least, "Palestine" - whatever else one might happen to think of "fairness" - remains outside the community of sovereign states.
This juridical exclusion of "Palestine," whether welcome or not, on selective political grounds, is evident "beyond a reasonable doubt." The authoritative criteria of statehood that express this particular exclusion are long-standing and without ambiguity. Under relevant international law, a true state must always possess the following specific qualifications: (1) a permanent population; (2) a defined territory; (3) a government; and (4) the capacity to enter into relations with other states.
Moreover, the formal existence of a state is always independent of recognition by other states. According to the 1934 Convention on the Rights and Duties of States (the Montevideo Convention):
"Even before recognition, the state has the right to defend its integrity and independence, to provide for its conservation and prosperity, and consequently to organize itself as it sees fit...."
It follows that even a Palestinian state that would fail to meet codified Montevideo expectations could simply declare otherwise, and then act accordingly, "to defend its integrity and independence...."
More than likely, any such "defending" would subsequently involve incessant war and terror against "Occupied Palestine," also known as Israel. The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was formed in 1964, three years before there supposedly were any "Israeli Occupied Territories." What, then, exactly, was the PLO trying to "liberate?"
Whenever the PA finally decides it is time openly to declare statehood, certain explicit Montevideo standards and corollary criteria of statehood will need to be invoked.
Much as the Government of Israel, seeking to challenge any such adversarial PA declaration, will then cite correctly multiple Oslo Agreement violations. The PA will counter-argue that its particular right to declare an independent state of Palestine is nonetheless fundamental, or "peremptory." The PA will surely add as a footnote that its right of statehood according to "jus cogens" ("certain fundamental, overriding principles of international law, from which no derogation is ever permitted") simply overrides all previously-existing expectations of a just peace with Israel.
Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, U.S. President Bill Clinton, and PLO chairman Yasser Arafat at the Oslo Accords signing ceremony on September 13, 1993. (Image source: Vince Musi / The White House)
Undoubtedly, among other matters, the PA will cite (1) the plainly non-treaty quality of the Oslo Agreements (per definitions of "treaty" at the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties), and to (2) those basic and allegedly immutable human rights under international law that concern "self‑determination" and "national liberation."
Now, of course, Prime Minister Netanyahu seems to have acknowledged the eventual creation of Palestine, but, among other things, only on the seemingly prudent condition of antecedent Palestinian "demilitarization."
While this contingent condition may at first sound reassuring, it effectively represents little more than a contrived and ultimately impotent legal expectation. For one thing, no new state is ever under any obligation to remain "demilitarized," whatever else it may have actually agreed to during its particular pre-state incarnation. For another, there is no discernible reason to believe that "Palestine" would ever make good on any of its pre-independence promises to Israel to support the Jewish State's equally basic right to "peace and security."
For "Palestine," following formal statehood, the struggle with Israel would continue to be conceptualized as zero-sum; that is, on the corrosive assumption that absolutely any gain for Israel would represent a corresponding loss for Palestine. It could claim it was defending itself against anyone, including terrorist groups, and remain within its rights.[1]
Under the Montevideo Convention, all states are legally equal, enjoy the same rights, and have equal capacity in their exercise. The moment that the PA should proceed to declare a State of Palestine, the new country could become the effective juridical equal of Israel. To best maintain its indispensable national interests in such circumstances, Israel should insist that Palestine's borders never be based upon pre-1967 lines.
A perfect core summation of such insistence is provided in the February 10, 2013 words of Israeli legal expert, Ambassador Alan Baker:
"The legality of the presence of Israel's communities in the area (Judea and Samaria) stems from the historic, indigenous, and legal rights of the Jewish people to settle in the area, granted pursuant to valid and binding international legal instruments, recognized and accepted by the international community. These rights cannot be denied or placed in question."
Accordingly, Israel should clearly affirm that Israeli "settlement activity" is in fact fully consistent with binding international law. Any contrary affirmation by a still-aspiring "Palestine" would be founded upon specious misrepresentations of this critical law.
Louis René Beres is Emeritus Professor of International Law at Purdue University. His just-published new book is titled Surviving Amid Chaos: Israel's Nuclear Strategy. lberes@purdue.edu
[1] Over the years, a number of cases in United States federal courts have rejected the idea that the PLO, as "parent" of the PA, is in any way recognizable as the legitimate core of an independent Palestinian state. Earlier, perhaps, capable Israeli lawyers and policymakers might have been able to refer to such American case law in compelling support of an argument against Palestinian statehood. Today, however, after Oslo, and after so many years of incremental Israeli recognition of PLO/PA authority as legitimate, Israel will have to base its well-founded opposition to "Palestine" on other grounds.
© 2016 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.

Yazidi Girl Exposes ISIS Rape Hellhole
Raymond Ibrahim/Gatestone Institute/May 12/16
http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/8015/isis-rape-yazidi

Yazidi girls were "sold" in exchange for a few packs of cigarettes.
"They would come and take any girl against her will; if she refused, they would kill her on the spot." — all quotes below from "Birvan," on "Shabaab [Youth] Talk," hosted by Ja'far Abdul, March 22, 2016.
"Anyone who walked by our room and liked us would just say 'Let's go.'"
"There were 48 ISIS members in that house, and we were two girls — two Yazidi girls."
"What hospital?! They beat me even more!"
"I didn't care if I got caught. Escape or death were both better than remaining there."
A new televised interview, conducted in Arabic with a Yazidi girl who endured sexual captivity at the hands of the Islamic State, was published on March 22, 2016. It appeared on "Shabaab [Youth] Talk," hosted by Ja'far Abdul.
The teenage girl, who went by the pseudonym of Birvan, was enslaved when she was 15 and endured months of captivity before she managed to escape. She is now 17. Based on the 40-minute interview, her story is as follows:
Yazidis were escaping from their war-torn village near Tel Affar, Iraq, when they were intercepted on the road by four ISIS operatives. The men swore that if the Yazidis would cooperate and answer some questions, no harm would befall them and they would be allowed to return home in peace. Asked how many Yazidis there were, Birvan says she recalls only 95 men and their families — "many, many women and children."
Before long, 17 more ISIS vehicles "full of men" appeared. The men became aggressive, ordered the Yazidis around, separated the men from the women and marched the men away — including Birvan's father, brothers, and uncles. The women and children were taken to different buildings and kept under lock and key.
ISIS fighters said they were merely moving the men to a different location. However, soon after they disappeared, Birvan heard innumerable gunshots: "The sound of those shots will never leave me," she said. She later came across her father's corpse; she never saw her brothers or uncles again and is convinced they were all slaughtered.
The women were then transferred to different locations, and stayed a few days in each. Birvan was able to stay close to her mother. ISIS members would regularly intimidate the women, fire their guns in the air, and shout "Allah Akbar" (Allah is the greatest"). "All of us," Birvan said, "would huddle together and grab hold of each other in terror."
ISIS members, according to Birvan, would tell the women that if they "try to escape we will kill you, or slaughter you. ... My mother always held me tight, terrified that after they took her entire family — husband, children, and brothers — they would take me as well."
That day arrived. Birvan said she and her mother held each other tightly and cried as ISIS forced them apart and took her mother, and all middle-aged and older women, to a different location:
The hardest moment for me that I remember is having my hand clasped to my mom's hand and then having them forcefully broken apart. This was the hardest thing — not just for me but for all the girls and children. ... They killed any woman who resisted going, they would open fire on her.
Next, all boys older than six were taken to a military camp, presumably to be converted to Islam and trained as ISIS fighters.
Then Birvan's group — girls and women from the ages of 9 to 22 — were taken to another holding place in Mosul:
I remember a man who looked at least 40 years old coming and taking a ten-year-old girl. When she resisted him, he beat her severely, using stones, and would have opened fire on her if she had not gone with him. Everything against her will.
There Birvan found another 5,000 Yazidi girls enslaved. "They would come and take any girl against her will; if she refused, they would kill her on the spot.
"They used to come and buy the girls without a price, I mean, they used to tell us Yazidi girls, you are sabiya [spoils of war, sex slaves], you are kuffar [infidels], you are to be sold without a price," meaning they had no base value and explains why Yazidi girls were "sold" in exchange for a few packs of cigarettes.
"Anyone who walked by our room and liked us would just say 'Let's go.'"
When her turn came and a man said "come," "I refused and resisted, and he beat me savagely." He purchased her, forced her to his home, which had formerly belonged to Yazidis, where, to live, she gratified him
When asked about him, she said, "He was truly foul, truly, I mean, if you saw him, there's no difference between him and a beast. Actually animals have more mercy in their hearts than these [ISIS]."
When Ja'far Abdul asked for more details of her everyday experiences, Birvan visibly appeared uncomfortable. She kept pausing, simply repeating the word "rape." At one point she said "there were 48 ISIS members in that house, and we were two girls — two Yazidi girls" — as if to say "use your imagination."
She told how they had once taken her friend to an adjacent room: "you could not begin to comprehend what was happening there!" She heard her friend screaming out her name and saying "Please help me, save me!"
The only recurrent thought she had was "What wrong did these children — or I — commit to deserve all this? ... I lost my father and brothers, and then even my mother was taken from me. ... We were just children. Any girl over 9 years old, they took her — raped her."
Birvan said she tried to commit suicide four times. Once she took 150 pills she found in the house; what pills she never knew. She suffered toxic poisoning but did not die. Abdul asked if anyone had taken her to a hospital. She said: "What hospital?! They beat me even more!"
She also tried to drink gasoline and slice her wrists. "Life was a nightmare," she said.
She said the Yazidi women were forced to wear burqas when they were traveling outside, and mostly to hide who they were. They also compelled the girls to dress scantily. "Everything," she said, "was easy for them."
When asked if there was a daily routine, she said "Every day I died 100 times over. Not just once. Every hour I died, every hour. ... From the beating, from the misery, from the torture."
Birvan eventually managed to escape — "only because my determination was such that I didn't care if I got caught. Escape or death were both better than remaining there."
Other Yazidi and non-Muslim women living under ISIS have not been able to escape; they are hoping we will rescue them.
**Raymond Ibrahim is the author of Crucified Again: Exposing Islam's New War on Christians (published by Regnery in cooperation with the Gatestone Institute, April 2013).
© 2016 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.

Recreation is a legitimate and civil right
Turki Al-Dakhil/Al Arabiya/May 12/16
The absence of the ordinary for a long time can turn the unordinary into something normal. An example is the commission for recreation and culture that Saudi Arabia will form following a royal decree last week. Violating one’s right to recreation would be a disaster. The early Islamic period did not have a committee to issue religious edicts, or universities for learning, because the number of people and their needs did not require them. However, the number of people and their needs have increased and life has become more complicated, thus requiring organization via mechanisms, regulations and structures. Offices were established and people employed to handle state affairs.
Development
Recreation urgently needs to be looked after and developed into an industry that offers people a better life and develops the economy. Asef Bayat, a sociology instructor at Leiden University in The Netherlands who conducted extensive research on Islamism and the politics of fun, said: “Islam did not provide a specific theory about fun. Recreation urgently needs to be looked after and developed into an industry that offers people a better life and develops the economy Meaning, Islam did not speak about fun as a prohibition, but it set the condition that it does not distract one from praying.” Having fun is not forbidden. It is everyone’s indisputable right, like enjoying nature and beauty.

Russian messages via Palmyra concert, Victory Parade
Maria Dubovikova/Al Arabiya/May 12/16
The international community incorrectly interprets everything that comes from Russia as global messages. The Victory Parade, which commemorates victory in World War II, is seen by the West as belligerent Russian saber-rattling. The parade, which includes the newest weaponry, certainly delivers messages, but most of them are domestic. World War II, which claimed some 30 million Russian lives, is a key event in Russian history. Every family in the country has a hero from that war. My great grandfather was severely wounded several times while serving in the army. My grandfather survived the blockade of Leningrad (now Saint-Petersburg), which claimed over 1 million lives from starvation. The spirit of the commemoration can be described in three words: peace, memory, pride. The demonstration of weaponry is a message of protection. The government is greatly concerned about national pride. In the 1990s, Russians were not proud of their country - there were too few things to be proud of. The best way to distract them from problems, such as the economic crisis due to sanctions and low oil prices, is a vivid show of power that raises patriotic feelings and national pride, and enables the manipulation and control of the public.
The image of the nation as a liberator following World War II is being used again, but this time the morality of this approach is questionable. The indirect message to the international community is that Russia and its people will no longer be humiliated, as they have been since the fall of the Soviet Union. To them, the years of pacifism, passivity and flexibility are synonymous with failure and weakness. It is natural for a country that has gone through hell to commemorate victory and show that it can respond to aggression. It can be argued that this can lead to an arms race, but Russia is keen on balance.
Palmyra
This is illustrated by the Palmyra concert, which divided the international community. Russia tries to deliver various messages via soft power, albeit not always successfully and often clumsily. For example, the real problem of the concert was an address by Russia’s president on a big screen on the stage of the ancient theater. This inevitably led to perceptions of Russian propaganda over the blood of Syrians, and the privatization of the liberation of Palmyra. The concert would have otherwise had a much stronger impact. It could have been an international festival with Syrian orchestras and those from countries fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). This would have delivered a message of unity. However, it appeared as propaganda aimed at raising Russian pride over liberating Palmyra from ISIS. The image of the nation as a liberator following World War II is being used again, but this time the morality of this approach is questionable. Russian foreign policy is used mostly for domestic politics and manipulation.

Welcome realism and goodbye comfort zones
Eyad Abu Shakra/Al Arabiya/May 12/16
Few Americans and Europeans, I reckon, have heard of Wa’el Al-Halqi; and not many Arabs have either. For those interested, Dr Al-Halqi is the Syrian regime’s Prime Minister, who announced to the media a couple of weeks ago that ‘the countdown for the liberation of Aleppo’ had started.
In a cult, family-based and security agencies-run regime the prime minister’s political and military influence is all but non-existent. Thus, what Al-Halqi “uncovered” with regards to occupying Aleppo comes according to the popular Middle Eastern maxim “know their secrets from their little ones.” However, why was the revelation left to Al-Halqi rather than those who truly run Syria is a serious matter! Be it as it may, what is happening in Aleppo – Syria’s second largest and the world’s second oldest city – is looking increasingly like a significant part of the strategic conspiracy targeting Syria and the Arab world as a whole; otherwise, why was Aleppo intentionally excluded from the Russo-American agreement on a ceasefire that would only accelerate the implementation of the political part of the said conspiracy. Noteworthy here is that the ceasefire agreed by Moscow and Washington included greater Damascus and Latakia province, which are two areas whose guaranteed security is crucial to the Assad regime’s survival.
Aleppo’s fate
In international calculations Aleppo’s fate is totally different, for various considerations relative to all major players in the Syrian arena, the two most important being:
1- It is Syria’s closest metropolis to Turkey, where more than 4 million people inhabited the city and its environs. Sunni Arab, Turkmen and Kurds make up the vast majority of that region. Thus, in order to ‘create’ the much-trumpeted “Useful Syria” and separate Turkey from the Sunni Arab geographic depth – as Iran and Russia desire – a high percentage of Sunni Arabs and Turkmen needs to uprooted and driven away.
2- Complementing, the above, geographically and demographically, a Kurdish strip that geographically separates Turkey from northern Syria, would insure in the future a Mediterranean seaport for the so far landlocked “Greater Kurdistan” if and when Washington decides to continue Barack Obama’s policy of investing in the Kurds, hand in hand, with making Iran America’s strategic “partner” in the Middle East.
These two considerations, i.e. changing Aleppo’s identity and redrawing the map of northern Syria, seem to be the reason why the regime has launched its onslaught on the city and its inhabitants aided and abetted by Russia and Iran, with an American political cover. Such a situation is fraught with huge challenges that are neither expected to weaken nor disappear, not only to the Syrian people but also to all Arabs from the Atlantic to the Arabian Gulf.
What is happening in Aleppo is looking increasingly like a significant part of the strategic conspiracy targeting Syria and the Arab world as a whole
Indeed, these challenges today spread from Morocco, where figures close to the White House have re-visited the issue of the country’s Western Sahara, intentionally embarrassing, provoking and blackmailing one of America’s oldest African allies; to the Gulf Region and Yemen where Iran is interfering and fomenting sectarian tensions, while virtually ‘occupying’ most of the ‘Fertile Crescent’ (Iraq, Syria and Lebanon) with international blessings. Hence, more than ever, realistic approaches are needed towards the global political, economic and security realities.
One early landmark along this route has been the Vision 2030 announced in Saudi Arabia. It, perhaps, constitutes the most important and comprehensive futuristic plans that prepare for all possible positive and negative eventualities, underpinned on realism away from the costly ‘comfort zone’ mentality that plagued many Arab countries during the last half century.
Logically countries do not choose their natural resources or their neighbors, but can and must decide the economic, developmental, political and security priorities in the light of their perceptions of what they have and what they owe, who is the friend and who is the enemy, and which neighbor can be neutralized, befriended or warned against. A lot has been said during the last few years in attempting to interpret the Obama administration’s policies towards the Arabs and the middle East, notably, Washington’s opening up to Iran. Then came its positions towards the Syrian Uprising, the Sunni-Shi’ite friction fueled and exploited by Iran since 1979, and ‘co-existence’ with Russia’s ambitions in the eastern Mediterranean. Among the interpretations provided the dwindling importance of the Middle Eastern oil as a result of the discoveries of alternative sources of energy, the increasing economic and security importance of East Asia led by China, and the changing mood of the American public which has grown skeptical of military adventurism abroad. All these interpretations are true, so the question must be how to deal with them wisely? For a start, a wise approach should include; a- openness and frankness, and b- self-reliance. This is exactly what took place recently when President Obama attended the GCC summit in the Saudi capital Riyadh, which has been playing pivotal roles in tackling the two hot issues of Yemen and Syria.
Obviously the positive tone of the official statement about Obama’s meeting with the GCC leader was expected, however, both the GCC and American sides realize fully that any kind of friendship; or alliance requires maintenance from time to time. What has emerged from Washington during the last two years, culminating in what we know today as the Obama Doctrine, was neither accidental nor ephemeral, but rather a reflection of President Obama’s deep intellectual convictions that has contributed to a comprehensive ‘value system’ transcending polite diplomatic talk. On the other hand, it would be naïve for Washington to imagine that the Arabs, including those in the GCC and their leaders, are unable to read and comprehend the changing realities. In fact, the Arabs, especially the Gulf Arabs living just across the Gulf waters from Iran, possess very strong political memories and instincts, bettered only by decorum and patience. Thus, until next November when a new American president is elected, there is no alternative to realism and self-reliance; and as far as comfort zones are concerned, they now do more harm than good.

On attempts to destroy Saudi-Egyptian ties
Mshari Al Thaydi/Al Arabiya/May 12/16
Many people and parties want to sabotage Saudi-Egyptian relations. The most prominent among them are the Muslim Brotherhood and Egyptian leftists. They also include staunch Nasserists and so-called civil-rights groups. They can all be categorized under the umbrella of Jan. 25 activists. They are keen to spoil Saudi-Egyptian ties because this relation enhances both countries’ status and power. It particularly empowers Egypt, which is going through a sensitive phase as it has not yet overcome chaos and unrest. The Brotherhood and its propaganda machine think Riyadh’s alliance with Cairo weakens their efforts to topple the legitimate government of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, especially with Saudi Arabia’s moral Islamic significance and political, economic and media capabilities. As for the leftists and Nasserists, according to the traditions of their political culture they must always oppose Saudi Arabia.
Yemen
All these parties, and those influenced by them - such as media figures and social-media activists in Saudi Arabia, and even those who believe they are different from the Brotherhood - have tried to doubt Egypt’s military and political role in Operation Decisive Storm in Yemen, and have spread lies to sour Saudi-Egyptian ties. Their attempts have failed. Saudi-led military coalition spokesman Brigadier General Ahmed Asiri on Tuesday said the coalition did not ask Egypt to send ground troops to Yemen, as such a decision is voluntarily. Criticizing the government is one thing, but trying to destroy relations is another. The latter will fail no matter what Asiri added that it is not part of the coalition’s plan for ground troops to engage in the war, as the coalition considers the Yemeni army the backbone of any operation it carries out. “Egyptian pilots participated in air raids. This is in addition to the efficient participation of Egyptian naval forces,” he said. Egypt’s navy has played a significant role in coalition operations to restore legitimacy in Yemen. Cairo had previously offered to participate in ground operations, but the coalition decided it was better to depend on the Yemenis for that. Criticizing the government is one thing, but trying to destroy relations is another. The latter will fail no matter what.

Tunisia: Between terrorism and tourism
Lina Khatib/Al Arabiya/May 12/16
While many Arab Spring countries struggle with conflicts and democratic regression, Tunisia remains a trailblazer on the path to democratization. The country has seen successful parliamentary and presidential elections, possesses an active civil society, and has embraced the most progressive constitution in the Arab world. However, Tunisia still faces serious socioeconomic challenges that, if not addressed, could pose a serious threat to its democratic future. Perhaps nowhere are those challenges seen more vividly than in its border regions. I recently visited the south-eastern governorate of Medenine, Tunisia’s gateway to Libya that came to attention two months ago when militants affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) attacked one of its towns, Ben Gardane. The attack was thwarted by the Tunisian army and National Guard, but unfortunately heightened concerns about security in the country among many who would have otherwise considered Tunisia a potential tourist destination. However, this line of thinking is the opposite of how it should be viewed. It is the lack of tourism, and of other means of economic recovery, that are contributing to hurting Tunisia’s security and threatening its democratic future.
Medenine possesses some of the most dramatic geography in the country. The coastal areas enjoy sandy Mediterranean beaches, while the inland areas offer expansive, often otherworldly deserts where four “Star Wars” films were shot. However, apart from the tourism industry - which capitalizes on the area’s natural beauty - there is little else in the governorate that can create employment opportunities. Until Tunisia is able to develop its border regions, helping with the recovery of the tourism industry is one of the most immediate measures that can be taken to support its economy The ousted regime of Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali did not offer the south development initiatives. The current government is still trying to address Tunisia’s economic challenges at large, and does not appear to have the capacity to address regional development comprehensively yet.. The uncertainty that accompanied the revolution five years ago, and the series of terrorist attacks that plagued Tunisia since, have meant that tourism in the area has been reduced to a shadow of its former self, leaving thousands unemployed. In some places in the south, the unemployment rate is around 50 percent.
Despair
During my visit to Medenine, I saw a snapshot of what this situation means in concrete terms. Spring is normally high season for desert tourism, yet the inland areas were mostly empty, apart from the odd bus of Tunisian tourists. Most shops and restaurants were closed. In the coastal towns, hotels were shutting down after years of bad seasons. People were desperate for any employment. One NGO officer told me they advertised a position for a driver and received more than 100 applications, 90 percent of them from people who used to be employed in the tourism industry, most of them overqualified.
The stories that people told about their lives weaved a sad tale of despair. One man worked as a driver because he could not find other employment, although his eyesight meant he could not see properly in the dark. An elderly woman worked as a cleaner partly to support her daughter, who graduated from university two years ago and still could not find a job. A man took a boat heading to Europe to try his luck as an illegal migrant, not once but three times. Each time he was caught and forced to go back to Tunisia. On one of those trips, the boat got lost in the sea for two weeks, and he had to resort to eating his leather belt to survive. Another man had his employment terminated, and told the employer he would chain himself outside the office until they rehired him. The only business that is thriving in the area is smuggling. The smuggling of goods and petrol from and into Libya existed in southern Tunisia well before the revolution, but today, for many it is the only means of making a living.
ISIS
The attack on Ben Gardane was an attempt by ISIS to capitalize on people’s grievances, as it aimed to take over the town and use it as a platform to expand in southern Tunisia. However, despite the presence of local ISIS members in Ben Gardane who facilitated the attack, the residents at large rejected the organization. For an area reliant on tourism, becoming part of the so-called caliphate was surely not the way to restore people’s livelihoods. However, even if most people reject ISIS, Tunisia continues to supply high numbers of jihadists who are joining this terrorist organization. With ISIS present in Libya, it is easier for those jihadists to fight there than in Syria. While some are joining ISIS due to ideological conviction, many are joining out of economic destitution. The cooperation of the residents of Ben Gardane with the army to overcome the ISIS attack is reassuring, and shows that Tunisia is not a hotbed for the group. As for terrorist attacks, Tunisia is ultimately no more vulnerable than France or Belgium, since ISIS today seeks to act whenever and wherever it can around the world. However, one cannot help but wonder how long neglected areas in southern Tunisia can hold out without the implementation of regional development. It is not just terrorist groups that are the potential problem resulting from continuing lack of development. It is also the pervasive lawlessness that comes with relying on the informal economy. If lawlessness becomes the norm, the social contract between the citizen and the state changes, making people less interested in democratization. Tunisia is already vulnerable because many in the south and elsewhere see their current economic woes as being directly related to the aftermath of the revolution.
Solutions
Until Tunisia is able to develop its border regions, helping with the recovery of the tourism industry is one of the most immediate measures that can be taken to support its economy. The story of Medenine is but one concrete example of the socioeconomic challenges that Tunisia is facing. Those challenges cannot be resolved through mere micro-level measures, as they require an internationally sanctioned, comprehensive economic recovery plan for Tunisia. However, we as individuals can still help to a degree. As many of us are looking forward to the summer holidays, let us consider Tunisia as a destination, and in doing so contribute to supporting its democratic process even in a limited way.

Israel at 68: Not isolated, but badly misunderstood
Herb Keinon/Jerusalem Post/May 12/16
A nation often unloved and misunderstood, but not isolated. It’s a tale often told, especially by US politicians speaking to pro-Israel groups. Eleven minutes after David Ben-Gurion declared independence on May 14, 1948, US president Harry S. Truman bucked his entire national security staff and granted de facto recognition to the new State of Israel. Three days later, the Soviet Union granted de jure recognition, and then Nicaragua did the same, followed by Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Poland, Uruguay … until by the end of the year, 21 of the UN’s 58 states recognized the Jewish state. Another 33 countries recognized Israel the following year, meaning that by the end of 1949, 54 of the world’s 86 countries at the time had diplomatic ties with Israel. And today, 68 years later, Israel has diplomatic relations with 158 of the UN’s 193 states. It has 79 embassies abroad, 22 consulates and six special missions. Eighty-six countries maintain embassies in Israel. Yet today, as was the case in 1948, there is often a sense of intense isolation in this country. And this isolation is used by politicians on both sides of the political spectrum. Those on the Left play the isolation card when they want to convince the public that far-reaching concessions are needed. “Withdraw or our isolation will deepen,” the argument goes. “Make concessions or we will lose US or European support.”Those on the Right play the isolation card to argue against any flexibility or initiative. “We are a nation that stands alone,” this argument runs. “Nothing we do will satisfy the world.”But the general miasma that goes under the rubric of isolation is something different.
Israel is not isolated.
A country that is truly alone does not house 86 embassies; it does not continuously host presidents and prime ministers and foreign ministers and parliamentary delegations from around the world; and it is not constantly being visited by bluechip business delegations keen on doing business in the country or benefiting from its technology. An isolated country does not do more than $100 billion in annual trade with the world and attract millions of tourists, including first-rate international performers. Dozens of international airlines do not fly to an isolated country’s airports. Nor does that country send disaster relief delegations abroad.
The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement would like to isolate Israel as its forebear the Arab Boycott tried to do before it; but it is failing as its forebear failed. It is failing because there are reasonable people out there able to see the movement for what it is – a movement that wants to bring about Israel’s end. And it is failing because 68 years after independence, Israel is a serious country of some 8.5 million people, with much to offer the world. Take Britain, for instance, the epicenter of the BDS movement. Since 2009, when that country began a voluntary labeling regime for products from the settlements – a soft, polite form of BDS – Israeli exports to Britain doubled from $1.6 billion to $3.2b in 2014. Not because the British are enamored of Israel but because Israel has things they need. Israel is not isolated. What it is, however, is badly misunderstood and not universally loved, and both those conditions leave us often wringing our hands.
Everyone wants to be loved, and – perhaps because of its history – the Jewish people want to be loved more than most. Deeply ingrained in the collective Jewish psyche are fears for the worst when others don’t like us, concerned about what those who don’t like us could do to us. This stems from a historical sense of helplessness, living at the mercy of others. One of Israel’s problems with US President Barack Obama was his inability, for a variety of reasons, to shower Israel with the type of love our psyche demands. We don’t want the president of the most powerful country in the world to like us the way he likes Japan or Indonesia. We want him to like us specially. We are insecure. We want to feel that love, and – perhaps even more importantly – we want others to see it. We don’t want a little peck on the cheek from behind the bus stop. We want a smooch on the lips in full daylight.
Otherwise we feel unloved, erroneously interpreted as isolated.
Old habits die hard. Sixty-eight years after independence, we have not yet freed ourselves of the feeling that it is not the end of the world if everyone is not going to like everything we do. Not everybody likes everything any country does. Sixty-eight years since independence, we have not yet truly internalized that we are a free people in a free land, not at the mercy of others. If our enemies hit, we can hit back. If they develop tools to harm us, we can find the antidote. If they try diplomatic tricks to weaken us, we too can deflect them. It is not as if the other side is getting stronger and smarter and better, and we are sitting on our hands or standing static in place.
We are not a reed pushed this way and that by the rushing water.
And we feel misunderstood. We feel, not unjustifiably, that the world doesn’t get us, doesn’t understand what we are up against. And it doesn’t. It can’t. The world doesn’t carry with it our deep historical scars; it doesn’t listen to cries to wipe us off the map through our unique ears; it doesn’t know what it’s like to send kids to the front, generation after generation, or to worry somewhere in the back of the mind about a terrorist stabbing or shooting or a car ramming or a bus bombing on the street. The world does not know what it is like to walk in our shoes. The world sees checkpoints and interprets it as a desire to humiliate Palestinians, while we see it as a desire to keep our children safe. The world looks at the security fence and sees it as a land grab, while we see it as a way to keep suicide bombers from making our life hell. The world looks at Israeli action against rockets from Gaza and regards it as “disproportionate” response, while we see it as a natural instinct to defend ourselves. The world sees the Law of Return and interprets it as a racist law, while we see it as a natural right to the Ingathering of the Exiles. We see reality through different glasses. We are not universally loved, though also not universally unloved. We are indeed often badly misunderstood. But we are not isolated. And even if we were isolated, as perhaps we once were, 68 years of independence has proven one thing: Israel has the ability to handle it. Indeed, it has the ability to handle all of the above – and to flourish.