LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

October 04/16

Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

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Bible Quotations For Today
For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce great signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, even the elect
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 24/23-31/:"If anyone says to you, "Look! Here is the Messiah!" or "There he is!" do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce great signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. Take note, I have told you beforehand. So, if they say to you, "Look! He is in the wilderness", do not go out. If they say, "Look! He is in the inner rooms", do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather. ‘Immediately after the suffering of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see "the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven" with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Their end is destruction; their god is the belly; and their glory is in their shame; their minds are set on earthly things.
Letter to the Philippians 03,17/21.04,01/:"Brothers and sisters, join in imitating me, and observe those who live according to the example you have in us. For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ; I have often told you of them, and now I tell you even with tears. Their end is destruction; their god is the belly; and their glory is in their shame; their minds are set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will transform the body of our humiliation so that it may be conformed to the body of his glory, by the power that also enables him to make all things subject to himself. Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved."

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on October 03-04/16
US suspends contacts with Russia on Syria, as Russia suspends plutonium treaty/Ynetnews/Associated Press/Reuters/October 03/16
The Mufti Of Mauritania Calls To Cut Ties With Iran, Warns: Shi'ite Ideology No Less Dangerous Than Zionism/MEMRI/October 03/16
France: The Ticking Time Bomb of Islamization/Yves Mamou/Gatestone Institute/October 03/16
Which Nation is (Still) the Number One Sponsor of Terrorism/Peter Huessy/Gatestone Institute/October 03/16
Is Peres’ peace legacy turning to ashes/Week in Review/Al-Monitor/October 03/16
Security or freedom/Turki Aldakhil/Al Arabiya/October 03/16
Netanyahu and Abbas: What’s in a speech/Yossi Mekelberg/Al Arabiya/October 03/16
All the way to American courts/Abdulrahman al-Rashed/Al Arabiya/October 03/16
Dennis Ross Reflects on Peres, the Strategic Thinker/Jerusalem Post/October 03/16
Saudi-Iraqi Tensions Rise After Saudi Ambassador Criticizes Iranian Involvement In Iraq/E. Ezrahi/MEMRI/October 03/16

Titles For Latest Lebanese Related News published on on October 03-04/16
Berri Replies to Patriarch's Remarks on 'Package Deal'
Hajj Hassan: Hizbullah Defending Creeds, Existence of All Lebanese
Hizbullah Marks Ashura in Southern Cities and Towns
Kataeb Slams 'Political Blackmail', Attempts to 'Impose Sole Candidate'
Report: Salam Mulls Call for Cabinet Meeting after a Halt
Qobeissi: Dialogue Necessary for Convergence as the Taef Was for Ending War
Chebib receives Montreal mayor
Counter terrorism and Crimes office apprehends Lebanese, Syrian in Damour
Siniora bound for Kuwait
Kataeb after politburo meeting: Ending presidential vacuum does not occur through political blackmail

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on on October 03-04/16

Besieged Syria Town Fears Becoming 'Like Aleppo'
Suicide attack on Syria wedding kills 14: monitor
US suspends Syria ceasefire talks with Russia
Syrian regime calls on Aleppo rebels to surrender
Separatists attack on Indian army base in Kashmir kills one
Indian and Pakistani troops exchange fire in Kashmir
Morocco says arrests 10 suspected female ISIS militants
Turkey visit renews bond of cooperation: Saudi Crown Prince
Former Nusra Front says Egyptian al Qaeda cleric killed in US led strike
Hospitals under ‘unprecedented’ attack in war zones
Abbas’s farewell to Israel’s Peres stirs controversy at home
Saudi Cabinet warns over JASTA
Nobel Prize for Japanese who unraveled cell recycling system
Taliban enter northern Afghan city of Kunduz
Libyan forces foil ambush, lose eight men in Sirte battle
Colombia Govt., FARC Scramble to Save Peace Deal after 'No' Vote
IRAN: Sunni prisoners’ sentence extends for refusing to give up beliefs
IRAN: Justice Minister reiterates prudent use of death penalty
Massacre of children, bombing of hospitals in Aleppo are the worst war crimes of the 21st century
Iran: Harassment of inmates in ‘Gohardasht’ prison
Pro -PMOI (MEK) athletes and merchants write an open letter to the UN
 

Links From Jihad Watch Site for on October 03-04/16
Turkey: 5 jihadists who tortured and murdered Christians finally sentenced to jail — but walk out of court free men
Majority of Paris jihad attackers used Muslim migration routes to enter Europe
Germany’s finance minister calls for a “German Islam” based on liberalism and tolerance
Girl Power: all-female Islamic State cell dismantled in Morocco
India: Six Muslims arrested for plotting Islamic State jihad massacres during Diwali
New Zealand Muslim who assaulted wife fears deportation: “it could affect my whole family, my five little kids, my wives”
Maryland imam openly endorses the Islamic State, finances jihad terror plots, calls concerns about him “McCarthyism”
Egypt: Islamic State jihadis murder six police in Sinai

Links From Christian Today Site for on October 03-04/16
Christians In Iraq: 'We Feel The West Has Forgotten Us'
Chinese Church Pastor 'Tortured' In Prison Now Suffering From Serious Diseases
Hurricane Matthew Approaches Haiti, Threatening Havoc For The Poorest
Fast-track Sainthood Process Begins For Fr Jacques Hamel
Can We Still Call Britain A 'Christian' Country?
Hillary Clinton Calls For Gun Control: 'Protect All God's Children'
Thousands Of Polish Women Protest Against Total Ban On Abortion
No More Violence In God's Name': At A Mosque, Pope Makes Passionate Plea For Peace
Pope Says Gender Theory Is Part Of Global War On Marriage

Latest Lebanese Related News published on on October 03-04/16

Berri Replies to Patriarch's Remarks on 'Package Deal'
Naharnet/October 03/16/Speaker Nabih Berri replied on Monday to Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi, who has earlier criticized his “package deal” on the presidency, and said that his suggestion is “more constitutional than any other.”“I will leave history to rule which was more constitutional, my package deal of ideas or your package deal of people (political candidates,)” Berri's press office said. “I will let history rule which was more feasible. There is no need to target dignities,” added Berri.On Sunday, al-Rahi blasted during a sermon calls for a so-called “package deal” that precedes the election of a president, noting that any candidate who accepts it has no “dignity.”He said: “How can any presidential candidate who has dignity accept a prior package deal?”Berri has recently proposed a deal involving shortening the term of parliament and that the elections be held based on the 1960 law should political forces fail to agree on a new electoral one. He also called for staging the presidential elections after the parliamentary ones and forming a national unity government. “If we don't agree on this package deal, especially on the electoral law, we would be crucifying any elected president,” the speaker said on Monday, ruling out the election of a president before such an agreement.

Hajj Hassan: Hizbullah Defending Creeds, Existence of All Lebanese
Naharnet/October 03/16/Industry Minister Hussein al-Hajj Hassan has stressed that Hizbullah “is not only defending itself and its supporters” in its participation in Syria's conflict but rather “all Lebanese and their creeds and existence.” “Hizbullah's fighting in Syria is defensive and preemptive and it is part of its religious duty and responsibility in defense of creeds, principles, dignities and existence,” the Hizbullah minister announced during a Ashoura ceremony in the Bekaa town of Beit Shama. Had it not been for Hizbullah's military intervention, “Lebanon would not have enjoyed relative peace and security and it would not have enjoyed the stability that we are witnessing compared to the neighboring countries,” Hajj Hassan added. “The takfiris would have been staging bombings wherever they want and they would have been shelling our border areas,” he said. “Had it not been for Hizbullah, the Syrian army, the Syrian state and their allies, the Islamic world would have been engulfed with darkness now,” the minister went on to say. Hizbullah's intervention in the Syrian conflict alongside regime forces has helped Damascus achieve several military victories and allowed the party to clear most of the Lebanese-Syrian border region from rebels and jihadists. Since 2013, the Lebanese, Iran-backed party has sent thousands of combatants -- between 5,000 and 6,000, according to the expert on Hizbullah Waddah Sharara -- to help the regime fight both rebels and jihadists. They send 2,000 fighters at a time in rotation, Sharara says. Experts say Hizbullah has lost 1,000 to 2,000 fighters in the conflict, including senior commanders.

Hizbullah Marks Ashura in Southern Cities and Towns
Naharnet/October 03/16/Hizbullah began on Sunday holding daily mourning councils on the occasion of Ashura, the National News Agency reported on Monday. The party prepared processions tents in the southern cities and towns, NNA added. The occasion commemorates the killing of Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Mohammed, by the army of the Caliph Yazid in 680 AD, the formative event in Shiite Islam.

Kataeb Slams 'Political Blackmail', Attempts to 'Impose Sole Candidate'
Naharnet/October 03/16/The Kataeb Party on Monday slammed what it called “political blackmail” and attempts to “impose” a sole presidential candidate on the country. “The political bureau tackled the ongoing consultations and efforts that are aimed at ending the presidential crisis and it believes that rescuing the republic from vacuum cannot happen through political blackmail or through imposing a sole candidate,” Kataeb's politburo said in a statement issued after its weekly meeting. And accusing some political forces of seeking to “prolong vacuum and undermine the democratic system,” the party said the election of a president cannot happen through “offering incentives or intimidation but rather through resorting to constitutional norms and attending the electoral sessions.”“Accordingly, the Kataeb Party reiterates its clear refusal to vote for any candidate endorsing the vision of the March 8 camp,” it added. Ex-PM Saad Hariri's return to Lebanon last week has triggered a flurry of rumors and media reports about a possible presidential settlement and the possibility that the former premier has finally decided to endorse Free Patriotic Movement founder MP Michel Aoun for the presidency in a bid to break the deadlock. Lebanon has been without a president since the term of Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014 and Hizbullah, Aoun's Change and Reform bloc and some of their allies have been boycotting the parliament's electoral sessions, stripping them of the needed quorum. Hariri, who is close to Saudi Arabia, launched an initiative in late 2015 to nominate Marada Movement chief MP Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency but his proposal was met with reservations from the country's main Christian parties as well as Hizbullah. Hariri's move prompted Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea to endorse the nomination of Aoun, his long-time Christian rival, after months of political rapprochement talks between their two parties. The supporters of Aoun's presidential bid argue that he is more eligible than Franjieh to become president due to the size of his parliamentary bloc and his bigger influence in the Christian community.

Report: Salam Mulls Call for Cabinet Meeting after a Halt
Naharnet/October 03/16/A decision to hold a cabinet meeting this week has not been determined yet, pending consultations between the political parties, the VDL (100.5) quoted sources at the Grand Serail on Monday. The sources' comments came after media reports alleged that PM Tammam Salam has called for a meeting on Thursday. The Kuwaiti al-Anbaa daily reported on Monday that Salam plans to call the cabinet to session on Thursday after a three-week suspension against the backdrop of extending the terms of military and security officers, “The Premier will call the ministers for a meeting on Thursday,” sources from the Grand Serail told the daily. “Salam plans to put the issue of administrative appointment on the cabinet agenda,”they added. Salam suspended the cabinet meetings after a declared boycott of the Free Patriotic Movement of the government's meetings. The FPM, which says it opposes term extensions for all senior officers, has recently suspended its participation in cabinet sessions in the wake of the decision of Defense Minister Samir Moqbel decision to extend the term of Higher Defense Council chief Maj. Gen. Mohammed Kheir. The movement has also suspended its participation in national dialogue meetings and threatened street protests and a “political system crisis” over accusations that the other parties in the country are not respecting the 1943 National Pact that stipulates Christian-Muslim partnership.

Qobeissi: Dialogue Necessary for Convergence as the Taef Was for Ending War
Naharnet/October 03/16/AMAL MP Hani Qobeissi stressed on Monday that the table of dialogue is essential for Lebanese politicians to gather and discuss the country’s problems, just like the Taef Accord was to end Lebanon’s civil war, the National News Agency reported on Monday. “The table of dialogue is necessary for us to come together, as the Taef Accord was necessary for Lebanon to get out of civil war,” said Qobeissi. “We can only prevent sedition through the language of national dialogue. In this country no party is capable of imposing anything on another. Let us agree together to get Lebanon out of the deadly vacuum at the presidential level, at the hampered government level and a parliament that does not convene,” added the AMAL MP. “The country can't continue this way. There is a possibility to find solutions for our political crises through the table of dialogue,” he pointed out.“We have to agree on a president, a government and on an electoral law that protects Lebanon and all the factions and parties,” he concluded.

Chebib receives Montreal mayor
Mon 03 Oct 2016/NNA - Beirut Governor, Judge Ziad Chebib, on Tuesday received at his office a Canadian municipal delegation headed by the mayor of Montreal, the head of the executive branch of the Montreal City Council, Denis Coderre, with talks featuring high on means of improving the cooperation between Beirut and Montreal at the economic, cultural and environmental levels, notably as concerning the waste treatment issue.

Counter terrorism and Crimes office apprehends Lebanese, Syrian in Damour
Mon 03 Oct 2016/NNA - Internal Security Forces (ISF) Counter terrorism and Crimes office arrested on 1/10/206 one Syrian national (Born in 1988) and another Lebanese (born in 194) in the neighborhood of Damour, al-Dalhamieh Bridge, ISF Directorate General said in a statement on Monday. The latter was wanted for murder and attempted murder. The two detained persons were handed over to the Judicial Beiteddine Police station for further investigation, in accordance with concerned judiciary signal.

Siniora bound for Kuwait
Mon 03 Oct 2016/NNA - Future bloc Head, MP Fouad Siniora left Beirut on Monday evening heading to Kuwait.

Kataeb after politburo meeting: Ending presidential vacuum does not occur through political blackmail
Mon 03 Oct 2016/NNA - Kataeb Party fervently stressed that ending the longstanding presidential vacuum does neither occur through political blackmail nor imposing the 'solo candidate', but rather through abiding by the Constitutional norms and the application of the texts governing the nation's political life. "Salvaging the republic occurs through the attendance of presidential election's sessions," Kataeb said on Monday in the wake of its periodic politburo meeting, presided over by Joseph Abu Khalil. The Phalange Party touched on the current deliberations and contacts undertaken under the rubric of extricating out of the presidential impasse. The Party renewed its "clear-cut rejection of the election of a presidential candidate who holds March 8 project." On the other hand, Kataeb called upon the government to support apple farmers through dispensing swift compensations due to the absence of an imminent emergency plan to deal with their predicament.

Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on on October 03-04/16

Besieged Syria Town Fears Becoming 'Like Aleppo'
Naharnet/Agence France Presse/October 03/16/Air strikes shook a besieged rebel-held town east of the Syrian capital on Monday, sparking fears among civilians of a fate similar to battered Aleppo city. More than a dozen raids and several mortar rounds pounded Douma in the Eastern Ghouta opposition stronghold near Damascus, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group. The bombardment is part of a five-month offensive by government forces that has "chipped away at opposition territory" there, Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP. Backed by allied militia, Syria's army has advanced to just three kilometers (two miles) east of Douma, the largest rebel-controlled town in the area and the focus of the latest military push, he said. AFP's correspondent in Douma said he counted 10 strikes at least on Monday morning alone. The bombardment forced schools to shut down, just a week after the start of the new academic year, while streets emptied and shops closed. Activists said Douma residents were concerned that Monday's air strikes were a prelude to a ground offensive much like the army's current push to take all of Aleppo city. "People don't know what will happen to them -- anything is possible. We could become like eastern Aleppo," said Douma-based activist Mohammad. The army of President Bashar Assad announced a major push on September 22 to capture Aleppo's opposition-held east and has gained ground in the city with the help of ally Russia. The activist told AFP he and other residents "are bracing themselves for the worst" and scrambling to prepare underground bomb shelters and stockpile medical supplies. Douma has been under government siege since 2013 and is a bastion of the powerful Jaish al-Islam (Army of Islam) rebel group. In June, aid agencies reached Douma for the first time in three years, bringing in desperately-needed food and medical aid. But a doctor in Douma warned that supplies are running out. A ground offensive would cause many casualties and be a burden for hospitals, said doctor Mohammad Abu Salem. "The warehouses where we keep our medical supplies are practically empty," he said.Abu Anas, a father of four who works in a grocery shop in Douma, said the government had seized farmlands east of the town. "As the regime advances and tightens the noose around us, the supply of goods in Eastern Ghouta has plummeted," he said. More than 300,000 people have been killed since Syria's conflict erupted in March 2011 with anti-government protests.

Suicide attack on Syria wedding kills 14: monitor
AFP, Beirut Monday, 3 October 2016/A suicide bomber killed at least 14 people on Monday in an attack targeting a wedding party in the northeastern province of Hasakeh, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. "A suicide bomber blew himself up inside a hall in Al-Tall village during the wedding of a member of the Syrian Democratic Forces, killing at least 14 people and wounding dozens more," Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP. The SDF is an Arab-Kurdish coalition battling jihadists of the ISIS group in northern Syria.
 

US suspends Syria ceasefire talks with Russia
By AFP, Washington Monday, 3 October 2016/The United States on Monday suspended negotiations with Russia on efforts to revive a failed ceasefire in Syria and set up a joint military cell to target militants. “This is not a decision that was taken lightly,” State Department spokesman John Kirby said, accusing Russia and its Syrian ally of stepping up attacks on civilian areas. White House spokesman Josh Earnest added: “Everybody’s patience with Russia has run out.”“What is clear is there is nothing more for the US and Russia to talk about with regard to trying to reach an agreement that would reduce the levels of violence inside of Syria. And that’s tragic,” Earnest said. Kirby said the Russian and US militaries will continue to use a communications channel set up to ensure their forces do not get in each other’s way during “counterterrorism operations in Syria.” But the United States is calling back home personnel who had been sent to Geneva in order to set up a “Joint Implementation Center” with Russian officers to plan coordinated strikes. And US diplomats will suspend discussions with Russia on reviving a September 9 deal reached between US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Under that protocol, a truce came into effect on September 12, but it collapsed within a week amid bitter recriminations and a surge of fighting in the five-year civil war. Washington has accused Moscow of failing to rein in Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government forces and abetting his strikes on civilian targets. Moscow, meanwhile, says the United States failed to separate “moderate” anti-Assad rebels from militants linked to Al-Qaeda. “Unfortunately, Russia failed to live up to its own commitments, including its obligations under international humanitarian law,” Kirby said. According to the US spokesman, Russia was “either unwilling or unable to ensure Syrian regime adherence to the arrangements to which Moscow agreed. “Rather, Russia and the Syrian regime have chosen to pursue a military course, inconsistent with the cessation of hostilities, as demonstrated by their intensified attacks against civilian areas,” Kirby added. Kirby accused Moscow and Damascus of “targeting of critical infrastructure such as hospitals, and preventing humanitarian aid from reaching civilians in need.”And he repeated Washington’s charge that Russia and the regime were responsible for the deadly September 19 attack on a United Nations aid convoy in northern Syria, outside Aleppo.

Syrian regime calls on Aleppo rebels to surrender
Reuters, Beirut Monday, 3 October 2016/Syrian rebels and pro-government forces clashed Sunday on several fronts around Aleppo as the country’s military command called on rebels to lay down their weapons and evacuate the contested city. The Syrian military, supported by Iranian-backed militias and Russian air power, began their push to take the whole of the divided city after a ceasefire collapsed last month. The assault has nearly destroyed eastern Aleppo’s healthcare system, the U.N said. An air campaign by the Syrian government and its allies was reinforced by a ground offensive targeting the besieged eastern half of the city where insurgents have been holding out. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the Syrian military said the army and its allies had advanced south from the Handarat refugee camp north of Aleppo city, which they took earlier this week, taking the Kindi hospital and parts of the Shuqaif industrial area. Air strikes and shelling continued on Sunday, the Observatory said. Zakaria Malahifji, of the Aleppo-based rebel group Fastaqim, told Reuters there were clashes in this area on Sunday. The Observatory added that there was fierce fighting between rebels and government forces all along the front line which cuts the city in two. The Syrian army said on Sunday that rebel fighters should vacate east Aleppo and it would guarantee them safe passage and necessary aid. “The army high command calls all armed fighters in the eastern neighborhood of Aleppo to leave these neighborhoods and let civilian residents live their normal lives,” the statement carried by state news agency SANA said.

Separatists attack on Indian army base in Kashmir kills one
Reuters Monday, 3 October 2016/At least six fighters attacked an Indian army camp in north Kashmir on Sunday night, killing one border guard and wounding another, two weeks after a similar attack killed 19 Indian soldiers and ratcheted up tensions between India and Pakistan. The attack on the camp of India’s 46 Rashtriya Rifles in Baramulla, which also houses a unit of the Border Security Force, started at around 10:30 pm (1700 GMT) and repeated exchanges of fire ensued. One border guard was killed and one wounded when fighters tried to enter the army camp, said Baramulla Superintendent of Police Imtiyaz Hussein. Nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan have been at odds over Kashmir ever since independence nearly 70 years ago, fighting two of their three wars over the territory that they each rule in part but claim in full. Hussein said the militants in the latest attack, who appear to have reached the camp by boat on a river that passes through the town, had escaped. “They fled under the cover of darkness,” he told Reuters on Monday morning. India called its 4 Para special forces unit in to Baramulla and an operation continued into the morning to search and secure the army camp. Baramulla is a district capital that lies on the road from Srinagar, the summer capital of India’s northernmost state, to the frontier settlement of Uri, where the Sept. 18 attack on the army base took place. India launched retaliatory “surgical strikes” in the early hours of Thursday against militant camps on the Pakistani side of the Line of Control, announcing it had inflicted significant casualties. Pakistan denied any such attack had taken place.

Indian and Pakistani troops exchange fire in Kashmir
The Associated Press, Srinagar, India Monday, 3 October 2016/Indian and Pakistani troops fired at each other in disputed Kashmir on Monday, as Indian troops searched an army camp elsewhere in the region where suspected militants killed an Indian paramilitary soldier. Indian army Lt. Col. Manish Mehta said Pakistani troops fired without provocation using small arms and mortar shells in the Poonch sector of the Line of Control separating the Indian- and Pakistani-controlled parts of Kashmir. Pakistan’s army said in a statement that its troops were responding to unprovoked firing by Indian soldiers. Both sides said the exchange of fire was continuing. In Islamabad, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif met with the leaders of all Pakistani political parties to discuss the ongoing clashes. “Our aim is to bring all political parties on one page,” Sharif’s aide and lawmaker Talal Chaudhry said on Pakistani TV channels. “We want to send a message to the world that we’re one against any threat to the country, irrespective of our political differences.” The Indian army camp that was attacked late Sunday in the garrison town of Baramulla is the local headquarters of a counterinsurgency military unit. Police officer Syed Javeid Mujataba Gillani said it was not immediately known whether the militants tried to enter the camp during their attack, which killed one soldier and wounded another. The town is 50 kilometers (30 miles) northwest of Srinagar, the main city in the portion of Kashmir controlled by India. unday’s attack came three days after the Indian army said it had destroyed “terrorist launching pads” used by militants with support from Pakistan. Islamabad denies India’s accusations it arms and trains the insurgents, saying it offers moral and diplomatic support to Kashmiris. In another deadly attack in Kashmir last month, suspected rebels sneaked into the army base in the town of Uri and killed 18 Indian soldiers. Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan, which have fought two wars for control of the Himalayan territory since British colonialists left in 1947.
 

Morocco says arrests 10 suspected female ISIS militants
By Reuters, Rabat Monday, 3 October 2016/Morocco has dismantled a suspected ISIS militant cell and arrested 10 women believed to be planning attacks in the North African kingdom, the Interior Ministry said on Monday. It was the latest in a series of militant cells Morocco says it has broken up, but it is the first time authorities have arrested a group of female suspects. An Interior Ministry statement said the cell was operating in several regions including the cities of Kenitra and Tangier. It said the cell members reflected an ISIS effort to integrate female militants for attacks in the kingdom and they were inspired by the brother of one of them who was involved in bombings in Iraq earlier this year. Morocco’s Central Bureau of Judicial Investigation (BCIJ), the judicial arm of the domestic intelligence service, seized chemicals and bomb-making materials in one of the suspects’ houses, the statement said. The BCIJ has actively tracked alleged militants since ISIS seized large parts of Syria and Iraq in 2014-2015. Hundreds of fighters from Morocco and other Maghreb states - Tunisia and Algeria - have joined Islamist militant forces in Syria’s civil war. Some are threatening to return and create new jihadist wings in their home countries, security experts say. Nearby Libya has become a major draw for jihadists from North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa as ISIS has taken advantage of widespread chaos there to build a base, operate training camps and take over the city of Sirte. The Moroccan government believes 1,500 Moroccan nationals are fighting with militant factions in Syria and Iraq. About 220 have returned home and been jailed, while 286 have been killed in battle. Morocco, an ally in the Western campaign against Islamist militancy, has suffered attacks itself in the past, most recently in 2011 in Marrakesh when an explosion tore through a cafe and killed 15 people, mostly foreigners.

Turkey visit renews bond of cooperation: Saudi Crown Prince
Saudi Gazette, Ankara Monday, 3 October 2016/Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Nayef, deputy premier and minister of interior, sent separate cables of thanks to Turkish President Recap Tayyip Erdogan and Premier Binali Yilldirim following his two-day official visit. “I am pleased as I leave your country, at the end of my official visit and I want to convey to your excellency deep thanks and great gratitude for the warm reception and generous hospitality accorded to me and my accompanying delegation,” the Crown Prince said in his cable to President Erdogan. “Mr. President, our discussions achieved positive results which would strengthen the strategic cooperation between the two countries, according to the vision of King Salman and your excellency. “The visit has confirmed the depth of the relationship between our two countries, the common desire of enhancing them in all fields and allowed us to renew the bonds of cooperation and amity between the Saudi and Turkish brotherly peoples.”In his cable to the Prime Minister Yildirim, the Crown Prince said: “The visit gave us a chance to discuss bilateral relations in all fields in a way that emphasized our mutual keenness on moving together ahead in fostering strategic relations and underscored the significance of continuous coordination and consultation on issues of mutual interest to best serve the two countries and peoples.”Crown Prince Mohammed was honored with the Order of the Republic — the second highest state order in Turkey. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan decorated the Crown Prince with the honor during a reception hosted by him at the Presidential Palace on Friday. Saudi Arabia and Turkey signed a number of agreements in the fields of manpower and media cooperation, science and culture. A memorandum of understanding in the cultural field was also signed. *This article was first published by the Saudi Gazette on October 3, 201

Former Nusra Front says Egyptian al Qaeda cleric killed in US led strike
Reuters, Amman Monday, 3 October 2016/Syria’s militant Jabhat Fateh al Sham, formerly the Nusra Front, said on Monday that Egyptian cleric Abu al Faraj al Masri, a prominent member of the militant group, had been killed in a strike by the U.S.-led coalition. A statement posted to social media said Sheikh Abu al Faraj al Masri, whose real name is Shekih Ahmad Salamah Mabrouk, a member of the group’s religious Shura council, had been killed in a strike in the rebel-held northwestern province of Idlib. ilitant sources had earlier said al-Masri was killed when an unidentified drone hit the vehicle in which he was travelling. A US defense official confirmed to Reuters a strike had targeted a prominent al Qaeda member on Monday but said Washington was still assessing its result.

Hospitals under ‘unprecedented’ attack in war zones
AFP Monday, 3 October 2016/Medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has hit out at the “unprecedented” number of attacks on medical facilities in Syria and Yemen, a year after the deadly bombing of its hospital in Afghanistan killed 42 people. Monday marks the first anniversary of the US strike on the trauma center in Kunduz, which triggered global outrage and forced President Barack Obama to make a rare apology on behalf of the US military still deployed in war-torn Afghanistan. “Over the past year, we recorded 77 attacks against medical facilities operated or supported by MSF in Syria and Yemen: this is unprecedented,” Meinie Nicolai, MSF president, told reporters in Kabul. “Hospitals are now part of the battlefield,” she added. MSF has said the raid on the hospital in Kunduz last October by a AC-130 gunship lasted nearly an hour and left patients burning in their beds with some victims decapitated and suffering traumatic amputations. The organization has branded it a war crime. However, an investigation by the US military earlier this year concluded that the troops targeted the facility by mistake and decided they would not face war crimes charges. MSF had called repeatedly called for an independent international inquiry. The charity spoke out as condemnation grew over the bombing of hospitals in the rebel-held east of the Syrian city of Aleppo, which has been under attack by the regime and its ally Russia. “Health facilities and staff are targeted in Yemen and Syria ... most often in the name of war against terrorism,” Nicolai said. “In Syria, attacks against medical centers for civilians and against ambulances are systematic.”

Abbas’s farewell to Israel’s Peres stirs controversy at home
Reuters, Gaza Monday, 3 October 2016/Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is feeling a backlash at home over his attendance at the funeral of Israeli statesman Shimon Peres, who shared a Nobel prize for interim peace deals with the Palestinians.In Arabic postings on social media, critics of the Western-backed Abbas have focused on a view of Peres’s legacy that jars with his world acclaim as an architect of the landmark Oslo accords in the 1990s. Peres, a former prime minister and president, died on Wednesday at the age of 93. He was buried in a state ceremony in Jerusalem on Friday attended by US President Barack Obama and dozens of dignitaries from around the world. But the president of Egypt and king of Jordan, leaders of the only Arab countries to have signed peace treaties with Israel, stayed away, while Abbas’s main political rival, the Hamas Islamist group that runs the Gaza Strip, condemned his participation as having betrayed Palestinian principles. In the Arab world and social media, much mention was made of the 1996 Israeli shelling, when Peres was prime minister, of a UN compound in the village of Qana in south Lebanon. More than 100 civilians sheltering there were killed during an Israeli offensive against Hezbollah guerrillas. Israel said its forces had been aiming at militants firing rockets nearby. In the Israeli-occupied West Bank, a senior Palestinian security officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Osama Mansour, was arrested on Saturday after he criticized Abbas on Facebook. “If that was your decision to take part in the funeral of the killer of our children, you were wrong. And if you made the decision on the recommendation (of your advisers), you were misled,” Mansour wrote. Peres built up Israel’s powerful military and nuclear might in the 1950s and 1960s and, as defense minister in the 1970s, backed the expansion of settlements in territory that Israel took in a 1967 war and which Palestinians now seek for a state. Israel set up a system of military checkpoints and clampdowns to protect the settlements and prevent attacks inside Israel, and ongoing conflict over the decades since has led to deaths of civilians on both sides as well as militants. At the funeral, Abbas took a front-row seat - Palestinian officials said Peres’s family invited him - and shook hands with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. An image grab taken from a handout video released by the Israeli Prime Minister's spokesman shows Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas (C-L) shaking hands with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) during the funeral of former Israeli premier Shimon Peres in Jerusalem on September 30, 2016. (AFP) It was the president’s first visit to Jerusalem since 2010. But with peace talks with Israel frozen since 2014, there was no indication anything would come of the handshake and the few pleasantries Abbas and Netanyahu exchanged in the cemetery. The brief encounter drew largely positive headlines in Israel, but any political impact was muted by the onset at sundown on Friday of the Jewish New Year holiday. Anger continued to echo, however, among Arab critics. “Stay there, don’t come back,” Palestinian blogger Ali Qaraqea told Abbas in a Facebook video that had 345,000 views and 3,800 shares by Monday. However, commentator Bassim Barhoum, writing in the Palestinian Authority-run daily newspaper Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, said Abbas had sent a message of peace to the world. Netanyahu and far-right members of his cabinet “would have beat the drums and said he was not a partner for peace”, had he not attended, Barhoum said.
 

Saudi Cabinet warns over JASTA
By Staff writer Al Arabiya English Monday, 3 October 2016/The enactment of US legislation on 9/11 weakening sovereign immunity will affect all countries, including the United States, the Saudi Cabinet said Monday. It said the law contributes to the weakening of the principle of sovereign immunity, which has governed international relations for hundreds of years, in a statement carried by the state news agency SPA. This it said, will have a “negative impact” on all nations, including the United States. The cabinet also said Saudi Arabia hoped the US Congress would take necessary steps to avoid the ‘dangerous fallouts’ from the law, The Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA) law allows the families of 9/11 victims to sue the kingdom for damages. The Saudi foreign ministry condemned the law’s passage on Thursday, saying the “erosion” of the principle of sovereign immunity would have a negative impact on all nations.

Nobel Prize for Japanese who unraveled cell recycling system
AP/The Associated Press, Stockholm Monday, 3 October 2016/ Japanese biologist Yoshinori Ohsumi won the Nobel Prize in medicine on Monday for discoveries on how cells break down and recycle content, a garbage disposal system that scientists hope to harness in the fight against cancer, Alzheimer’s and other diseases. The Karolinska Institute honored Ohsumi for “brilliant experiments” in the 1990s on autophagy, a phenomenon that literally means “self-eating” and describes how cells gobble up damaged content and provide building blocks for renewal. Disrupted autophagy (aw-TAH’-fuh-jee) has been linked to several diseases including Parkinson’s, diabetes and cancer, the prize committee said. “Intense research is now ongoing to develop drugs that can target autophagy in various diseases,” it said in its citation. Ohsumi, 71, from Fukuoka, Japan, is a professor at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. In 2012, he won the Kyoto Prize, Japan’s highest private award for global achievement. Ohsumi said he never thought he would win a Nobel Prize for his work, which he said involved studying yeast in a microscope day after day for decades.“As a boy, the Nobel Prize was a dream, but after starting my research, it was out of my picture,” he told reporters in Tokyo.
“I don’t feel comfortable competing with many people, and instead I find it more enjoyable doing something nobody else is doing,” Ohsumi added. “In a way, that’s what science is all about, and the joy of finding something inspires me.”Nobel committee secretary Thomas Perlmann said Ohsumi seemed surprised when he was informed he had won the Nobel Prize. “The first thing he said was ‘ahhh.’ He was very, very pleased,” Perlmann said. Nobel judges often award discoveries made decades ago, to make sure they have stood the test of time. The term autophagy was coined in 1963 by Belgian scientist Christian de Duve, who shared the 1974 Nobel Prize in medicine for discoveries on cell structure and organization. But before Ohsumi’s research, scientists “didn’t know what it did, they didn’t know how it was controlled and they didn’t know what it was relevant for,” said David Rubinsztein, deputy director of the Institute for Medical Research at the University of Cambridge. Now “we know that autophagy is important for a host of important mammalian functions.” For example, it protects against starvation in the period when a newborn animal hasn’t yet started breastfeeding, by providing energy, he said. It also removes proteins that clump together abnormally in brain cells, which is important in conditions like Huntington’s and Parkinson’s diseases and some forms of dementia. If autophagy didn’t do that job, “the diseases would appear more early and be more aggressive,” he said. Animal studies suggest that boosting autophagy can ease and delay such diseases, said Rubinsztein, whose lab is pursuing that approach for therapy. As time goes on, people are finding connections with more and more diseases” and normal cellular operations, he said. The fundamental significance of autophagy was only recognized after Ohsumi’s “paradigm-shifting research” on yeast in the 1990s, the Nobel committee said. It said he published his “seminal discovery” of 15 genes crucial to autophagy in 1993, and cloned several of those genes in yeast and mammalian cells in subsequent studies. “He actually unraveled which are the components which actually perform this whole process,” Rune Toftgard, chairman of the Nobel Assembly, said. Deficiencies in autophagy are linked to diseases associated with aging like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, as well as with Type 2 diabetes, Toftgard said. Researchers are now trying to find out whether such diseases can be fought by boosting or suppressing the process. “There are now over 40 to 50 clinical trials ongoing internationally to test different inhibitors or activators of autophagy,” he said. In Tokyo, Ohsumi said many details of autophagy are yet to be understood and that he hoped younger scientists would join him in looking for the answers. “There is no finish line for science. When I find an answer to one question, another question comes up. I have never thought I have solved all the questions,” he said. “So I have to keep asking questions to yeast.”It was the 107th award in the medicine category since the first Nobel Prizes were handed out in 1905. Last year’s prize was shared by three scientists who developed treatments for malaria and other tropical diseases. The announcements continue with physics on Tuesday, chemistry on Wednesday and the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday. The economics and literature awards will be announced next week. Each prize is worth 8 million kronor ($930,000). The awards will be handed out at prize ceremonies in Stockholm and Oslo on Dec. 10, the anniversary of prize founder Alfred Nobel’s death in 1896.

Taliban enter northern Afghan city of Kunduz
Reuters Monday, 3 October 2016/Taliban fighters mounted a coordinated assault on the northern city of Kunduz overnight, attacking from four directions and entering the city itself, a senior city police official said. Sheer Ali Kamal, commander of the 808 Tandar police zone in Kunduz, said the attack began at around midnight (1930 GMT Sunday) and fighting was still going on in and around the city. “We are putting all our efforts together to push them back,” he said. Military helicopters were flying overhead and gunfire could be heard in the city. Kunduz, which fell briefly to the Taliban a year ago, has seen repeated bouts of heavy fighting as the insurgents have sought to repeat their success of 2015. Monday’s attack, a day before the start of a major donor conference in Brussels, underlines the precarious security situation in Afghanistan, where government forces are estimated to have control over no more than two thirds of the country. “A massive operation started on Kunduz capital from four directions early this morning,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in his official Twitter account. He said the Nawabad area with four checkpoints had been captured and a number of soldiers had been killed. It was not immediately possible to verify the claim. The attack came as the Taliban have stepped up operations in different parts of Afghanistan, including the strategic southern province of Helmand, where they have been threatening the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah. The fall of Kunduz last year was one of the most serious blows suffered by the Western-backed government in Kabul since the withdrawal of most international troops at the end of 2014. Although the insurgents abandoned the city after a few days, the demonstration that they were able to take a provincial capital underlined their growing strength and exposed serious flaws in Afghan security forces.

Libyan forces foil ambush, lose eight men in Sirte battle
Reuters Monday, 3 October 2016/Libyan forces repelled an attempted ambush but lost at least eight of their men as their battle with militants from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) encircled their former stronghold of Sirte on Sunday, officials said. A Dutch photojournalist, Jeroen Oerlemans, was also killed in the fighting. A spokesman for the Libyan forces, Rida Issa, said militants who staged an ambush east of central Sirte had apparently arrived from the desert, in the latest sign of an enduring extremist threat beyond the battle lines. Forces dominated by fighters from Misrata and aligned with Libya’s UN-backed government have been battling to capture Sirte for more than four months. Supported since Aug. 1 by US air strikes, they have taken control of most of the city and have been besieging militants trapped in a thin residential strip near Sirte’s seafront for several weeks. Their advance has been slowed by ISIS snipers, improvised explosive devices and suicide bombings in close-quarter street battles. Occasional ground attacks are interspersed by rest periods that allow fighters to regroup and hospitals to clear casualties. Issa said fighting had erupted “when Daesh (ISIS) ambushed our forces at the Sawawa front line. Our forces foiled the ambush.” Misrata-led forces believed the militants had come from the desert and were trying to reach Sirte’s port, captured from ISIS several weeks ago.

Colombia Govt., FARC Scramble to Save Peace Deal after 'No' Vote
The Colombian government and FARC rebels scrambled Monday to save a peace deal after voters narrowly rejected it in a referendum, throwing the four-year-old peace process into uncertainty. President Juan Manuel Santos, who has staked his legacy on ending the 52-year-old conflict, called an emergency meeting with leaders of the country's political parties to try to chart a way forward after the shock referendum defeat Sunday. A visibly crestfallen Santos said the meeting would seek "common ground and unity.""That's more important now than ever," he said. The leader of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), Rodrigo Londono, meanwhile said in a video from Havana -- where the peace talks were held -- that the Marxist guerrillas, like the government, remained committed to an ongoing ceasefire. Londono -- better known by the nom de guerre Timoleon "Timochenko" Jimenez -- said the rebels were prepared to "fix" the rejected deal. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who had offered a U.N. team to oversee the disarmament process, said he had "urgently" sent his Colombia envoy to Havana for new consultations. Still, the outcome left no clear path to end a conflict that has claimed more than 260,000 lives. Opinion polls had showed the "Yes" camp well ahead, and negotiators had said there was no Plan B in the event of a "No" vote. The peace deal had been hailed as historic from the time it was concluded on August 24 to the moment it was signed last week in the presence of U.N. chief Ban and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. But resentful of the blood shed by the Marxist guerrillas and the lenient punishment the deal meted out for their crimes, voters rejected it Sunday by a razor-thin margin: 50.21 percent for the "No" camp to 49.78 percent for "Yes." Low voter turnout of just over 37 percent also appeared to be a factor in the surprise upset. The head of the government's delegation to the peace talks, Humberto de la Calle, offered his resignation, saying he did not want to be "an obstacle to what comes next."That could pave the way for fresh negotiations, with a new government team including hardliners allied with Santos's top political rival, former president Alvaro Uribe, who led the "No" campaign. But Uribe's right-wing party, the Democratic Center, was notably absent from the meeting Santos held Monday morning at the presidential palace to assess the options for the future of the peace process.
Hatred of the FARC
Commentators compared the result to that of June's surprise "Brexit" vote for Britain to leave the European Union. Forecasts apparently miscalculated Colombians' desire to punish the FARC. Deal opponents resented concessions that included soft sentences with no jail time for rebels who confessed to their crimes. The accord called for the 5,765 FARC rebels to disarm and become a political party, with seats in Colombia's Congress. That did not sit well with some Colombians who remember the FARC for massacring civilians, seizing hostages and sowing terror in a multi-sided conflict that has seen atrocities committed all around. "How should we respond to the damage they've done to the nation? That sums it all up," said political analyst Jorge Restrepo, head of the Conflict Analysis Resource Center (Cerac) in Bogota.
Nobel hopes dashed
Santos and Londono had been tipped as top contenders for this year's Nobel peace prize.
But that prospect is all but dead after the referendum defeat, experts said. "The Colombian peace treaty or anybody associated with it simply is not a candidate for the Nobel peace prize this year," said Kristian Berg Harpviken, director of Oslo's Peace Research Institute (PRIO). The accord has now "lost legitimacy" to the point that it "is dead and cannot be implemented," said Maria Luisa Puig, a Latin America analyst at the Eurasia Group consultancy. The FARC launched its guerrilla war in 1964, after the army crushed a peasant uprising. Over the years, the conflict drew in several leftist rebel groups, right-wing paramilitaries and drug gangs. Authorities estimate it has left 45,000 missing and nearly seven million uprooted.

IRAN: Sunni prisoners’ sentence extends for refusing to give up beliefs
Monday, 03 October 2016/According to reports, two Sunni prisoners from city of Ahwaz (Southwestern Iran) have been sentenced to another year in prison by the Iranian regime’s judiciary in Ahwaz for refusing to give up their beliefs. Abdolhakim Khazraji (Marvani), 26, and Mehdi Haydari, 32, both from Malashieh district in the south of city of Ahwaz, were arrested in early winter 2015 by Iranian regime’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security in Ahwaz for promoting their belief. After being held for months in MOIS detention center and being subjected to physical and psychological tortures, the two were sentenced to one year in prison. Their sentence was about to end in September, but before it was over, they were summoned by Ahwaz Revolutionary Court Branch 4. The prisoners were asked signing a written commitment to refrain from their religious activities. After refusing to sign such a commitment the regime’s judiciary sentenced each of the prisoners to another year in prison. Khazraji and Haydari are currently serving their sentences in Sheiban Prison in Ahwaz.

IRAN: Justice Minister reiterates prudent use of death penalty
Monday, 03 October 2016/NCRI - Reacting to some comments on abolishing death penalty for drug traffickers in Iran, the Iranian regime’s Justice Minister and a member of the Death Committee responsible for the 1988 massacre of tens of thousands of political prisoners in Iran, has said: “One of the punishments for a corrupt person is execution.”In an interview with the state news agency IRNA on Friday September 30, Mostafa Pour-Mohammadi stated that he doesn’t believe that the death penalty can be ruled out and added: “There are cases in which someone is a source of corruption and his existence will bring about nothing but corruption.”To justify the rising number of executions and widespread oppression in Iran by the clerical regime, Pour-Mohammadi pointed out: “the type of punishment in any situation should be proportionate to its effect. Scholars, jurists, experts, psychologists and criminologists should join hands to determine what kind of punishment will be the most effective.”For his part, Sadeq Larijani, the Chief Justice of the Iranian regime, emphasized on Friday that it is not the Judiciary's policy to eliminate executions for drug smugglers. He said, "When did we have such an inclination? … This claim that executions were not useful is irrelevant. I urge all prosecutors across the country not to delay the implementation of the verdicts, and carry them out once they are issued. We are not allowed to delay carrying out the verdicts for three years and let the criminals begin praying in prison and then argue that since they pray we should cancel their executions. We cannot do away with executions in general because it undermines the judiciary's deterrence."The regime's chief justice admitted that executions are a means for establishing security in society. Larijani stressed, "One of the reasons for the effectiveness of these punishments is their prompt, expeditious and decisive implementation. It is against the interests of society and the Judiciary to prolong the prosecution process." He criticized "giving opportunity during the prosecution" to those accused of drug smuggling and said, "The prosecutor offices must establish security on all levels and take this task seriously."

Massacre of children, bombing of hospitals in Aleppo are the worst war crimes of the 21st century
Monday, 03 October 2016/International inaction on the catastrophe in Aleppo has jeopardized peace in the region and the world. The Iranian Resistance strongly condemns the ruthless bombings of Aleppo, the massacre of children, especially the bombardment of hospitals and the killing of patients and the wounded, as well as the inhuman siege of the city. The NCRI calls on the world community to take urgent action to stop these bombardments and put an end to the criminal siege of Aleppo, which are widely perpetrated by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and their proxies. The constant bombing of residential areas, burying children alive, along with premeditated attacks on hospitals and centers of civil defense in Aleppo have created the Holocaust of the 21st century whose perpetrators must be brought to justice. The appalling silence and inaction on this barbarism has deeply hurt the conscience of the temporary humanity and gravely jeopardized peace and tranquility in the region and the world. The admirable endurance of the heroic and innocent people of Syria in this unequal war is a great and unforgettable pride for humanity. It will undoubtedly lead to the overthrow of the Assad regime and the crushing defeat of the Iranian regime's IRGC, their agents and their allies. The Syrian dictatorship is doomed to fall.  The Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran/October 3, 2016

Iran: Harassment of inmates in ‘Gohardasht’ prison
Monday, 03 October 2016/NCRI - In a fresh attempt to put pressure on prisoners in Gohardasht prison in Karaj, the prison warden Mohammad Mardani and his deputy Darius Amirian began harassing ordinary prisoners. According to prisoners, the prison officials have been harassing three brothers, Behnam, Hamid, and Saeed Bakhshayesh, for some time and have separated them in order to put more pressure on them. Their cellmates said that these three prisoners have been transferred from one prison to another and from one ward to another so many times without any reason, and the prison officials have told them they would move them so much that they (the prisoners) request death and are no longer able to transfer any reports about the prison outside. According to the prisoners, Hamid and Behnam were first transferred to ward 4 Hall 11, and after they protested the transfer, the prison guards put them in a metal container for several hours and then transferred them to solitary confinement. These three prisoners told their cellmates that Mardani (the prison warden) will not quit (harassing them) until he kills them all.

Pro -PMOI (MEK) athletes and merchants write an open letter to the UN
Monday, 03 October 2016/NCRI - In an open letter to Ban Ki-moon, some of Malayer’s pro-PMOI (MEK) athletes and merchants have called for the referral of Iran’s violation of human rights record to the UN Security and Human Rights Councils.
Parts of the letter are as follows: Mr. Ban Ki-moon, the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the UN Human Rights Council, With rising student and educators protests across the country and the progress of the Justice-seeking movement, we express our solidarity with the movement to obtain justice regarding the 1988 Massacre. Many of those loved ones (who were massacred at the time) were young students, schoolchildren and women including pregnant women. Unfortunately, those responsible for the massacre have not yet been put on trial or questioned, while still holding executive positions and being among the officials of the current government. The silence of the international communities and various human rights organizations as well as the United Nations against this historic crime has been an incentive to continue the killing, hanging, torturing and executing the children of our people to date. We condemn this massacre and ask for the trial of all those responsible in this inhumane crime. We ask that necessary measures be taken, seriously, to refer this crime against humanity to the International Criminal Court so that the perpetrators be brought to justice. These are legitimate demands which are easily applicable, but only with political courage. We support the call by Mrs. Maryam Rajavi in this regard. Some of pro-PMOI (MEK) athletes and merchants in Malayer/Friday September 30

Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on on October 03-04/16

US suspends contacts with Russia on Syria, as Russia suspends plutonium treaty
Ynetnews/Associated Press/Reuters/October 03/16
Faced with a truce in Syria that never truly took hold, the US suspends talks with Russia regarding the deal; Russia also decides to air out its grievances against the US, suspending their plutonium disarmament treaty over disputes regarding Syria and Ukraine.
The US State Department said on Monday that the US is suspending bilateral contacts with Russia over Syria. Russia, for its part, also came out with a statement on Monday, saying that it is suspending a plutonium disarmament deal wth the US.
The US announcement came after last week's threat by Secretary of State John Kerry to suspend contacts amid new attacks on the city of Aleppo. The department said in its statement that Russia had not lived up to the terms of an agreement last month to restore the cease-fire and ensure sustained deliveries of humanitarian aid to besieged cities.
As part of the suspension, the US will be withdrawing personnel that it had dispatched to take part in the creation of a joint US-Russia center. That center was to have coordinated military cooperation and intelligence if the cease-fire had taken hold. The suspension will not affect communications between the two countries aimed at de-conflicting counter-terrorism operations in Syria.
An end to the Russia-US plutonium treaty
The US State Department's announcement came as Russian President Vladimir Putin suspended a treaty, as well, regarding the Kremlin's agreement with Washington to clean up weapons-grade plutonium, thus signaling that he is willing to use nuclear disarmament as a new bargaining chip in disputes with the United States over Ukraine and Syria.
Starting in the last years of the Cold War, Russia and the United States signed a series of accords to reduce the size of their nuclear arsenals, agreements that have so far survived intact despite a souring of US-Russian relations under Putin.
But on Monday, Putin issued a decree suspending an agreement, concluded in 2000, which bound the two sides to dispose of surplus plutonium originally intended for use in nuclear weapons.
The Kremlin said it was taking that action in response to unfriendly acts by Washington.
The plutonium accord is not the cornerstone of post Cold War US-Russia disarmament, and the practical implications from the suspension will be limited. But the suspension, and the linkage to disagreements on other issues, carries powerful symbolism.
"Putin's decree could signal that other nuclear disarmament cooperation deals between the United States and Russia are at risk of being undermined," Stratfor, a US-based consultancy, said in a commentary.
"The decision is likely an attempt to convey to Washington the price of cutting off dialogue on Syria and other issues."
US Secretary of State John Kerry last week warned that Washington could halt diplomacy with Russia over the conflict in Syria unless Russia took immediate steps to stop the violence there.
Western diplomats say an end to the Syria talks would leave Moscow without a way to disentangle itself from its military operation in Syria. The operation was intended to last a few months but has now just entered its second year.
A list of grievances
As well as issuing the decree ordering the suspension of the plutonium cleanup deal, Putin submitted a draft law on the suspension to parliament.
That draft linked the suspension to a laundry list of Russian grievances toward the United States.
It said conditions for resuming work under the plutonium deal included Washington lifting sanctions imposed on Russia over its role in the Ukraine conflict, paying compensation to Moscow for the sanctions and reducing the US military presence in eastern Europe to the levels they were 16 years ago.
Any of those steps would involve a complete U-turn in long-standing US policy.
"The Obama administration has done everything in its power to destroy the atmosphere of trust which could have encouraged cooperation," the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement on the treaty's suspension.
"The step Russia has been forced to take is not intended to worsen relations with the United States. We want Washington to understand that you cannot, with one hand, introduce sanctions against us where it can be done fairly painlessly for the Americans, and with the other hand continue selective cooperation in areas where it suits them."
The 2010 agreement, signed by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and then-US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, called on each side to dispose of 34 tonnes of plutonium by burning it in nuclear reactors.
Clinton said at the time that there was enough of the material to make almost 17,000 nuclear weapons. Both sides back then viewed the deal as a sign of increased cooperation between the two former Cold War adversaries.
Russian officials alleged on Monday that Washington had failed to honor its side of the agreement. The Kremlin decree stated that, despite the suspension, Russia's surplus weapons-grade plutonium would not be put to military use.

The Mufti Of Mauritania Calls To Cut Ties With Iran, Warns: Shi'ite Ideology No Less Dangerous Than Zionism
MEMRI/October 03/16
In a Friday sermon aired on Mauritania TV on September 16, Mufti of Mauritania Sheikh Ahmad Ould Habib Al-Rahman warned that "the penetration of this [Shi'ite] ideology into our society will ignite the fire of sectarianism among us" and said that "cutting ties with the Safavid Persian Iranian expansionism is a duty imposed by the shari'a, as well as a demand by the Republic." He further said: "The danger and evil posed by the [Shi'ite] ideology to any society it enters is no less than the danger and evil of Zionist ideology."
Sheikh Ahmad Ould Habib al-Rahman: "I turned to His Excellency, the President, during the 'Eid Al-Adha sermon, last Monday, and as you all heard, I complained to him. You can see the sermon. Thus, the Safavid Persian Shi'itization activities in our country were exposed, through the so-called social media – YouTube and Facebook. The propagation of this ideology in our country has been exposed, Allah be praised. As I said in the sermon, at the time I knew about this only from a few trusted people, but later, these people were exposed – both in video and audio – as they were describing Abu Bakr, Omar, and 'Aisha as 'hypocrites,' and publicly cursing them. As I told you, you can see it yourselves on YouTube and on Facebook. See it for yourselves! Maybe some of you have seen it already. I believe that His Excellency, the President of the Republic, has also seen it. I am certain that after he has seen it for himself, he knows that cursing Abu Bakr, Omar, and 'Aisha is the epitome of terrorism and extremism.
"I am convinced that [the President] knows that the penetration of this ideology into our society will intensify the fire of sectarianism from which we are already suffering, and which we are trying to stifle. We ask Allah to help us to do that. We trust that [the President] also knows that cutting ties with the Safavid Persian Iranian expansionism is a duty imposed by the shari'a, as well as a demand by the Republic. When I say a 'demand by the Republic,' I mean that it is a demand by the Sunni Islamic Republic of Mauritania. I used the expression 'demand by the Republic,' and not 'popular demand,' because I believe that cutting ties with [Iran] is a demand by the President, a demand by our government, and a demand by the people.
"I also know that [the President] knows that this ideology, with the sectarianism that it ignites, is no less dangerous than Zionism and what it wanted to do in our country. Indeed, [Shi'ites] are part of Islam. We do not wish to accuse them of heresy. We Sunnis accuse no one of heresy, but the danger and evil posed by the [Shi'ite] ideology to any society it enters is no less than the danger and evil of the Zionist ideology."

France: The Ticking Time Bomb of Islamization
Yves Mamou/Gatestone Institute/October 03/16
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/9058/france-islamization
The last group, defined as the "Ultras", represent 28% of Muslims polled, and the most authoritarian profile. They say they prefer to live apart from Republican values. For them, Islamic values and Islamic law, or sharia, come first, before the common law of the Republic. They approve of polygamy and of wearing the niqab or the burqa.
"These 28% adhere to Islam in its most retrograde version, which has become for them a kind of identity. Islam is the mainstay of their revolt; and this revolt is embodied in an Islam of rupture, conspiracy theories and anti-Semitism," according to Hamid el Karoui in an interview with Journal du Dimanche.
More importantly, these 28% exist predominantly among the young (50% are under 25). In other words, one out of every two young French Muslims is a Salafist of the most radical type, even if he does not belong to a mosque.
It is unbelievable that the only tools at our disposal are inadequate opinion polls. Without knowledge, no political action -- or any other action -- is possible. It is a situation that immeasurably benefits aggressive political Islamists.
Willful blindness is the mother of the civil war to come -- unless the French people choose to submit to Islam without a fight.
Recently, two important studies about French Muslims were released in France. The first one, optimistically entitled, "A French Islam is Possible," was published under the auspices of Institut Montaigne, an independent French think tank.
The second study, entitled, "Work, the Company and the Religious Question," is the fourth annual joint study between the Randstad Institute (a recruiting company) and the Observatory of Religious Experience at Work (Observatoire du fait religieux en entreprise, OFRE), a research company.
Both studies, filling a huge knowledge-deficit on religious and ethnic demography, were widely reported in the media. France is a country well-equipped with demographers, scholars, professors and research institutes, but any official data or statistics based on race, origin or religion are prohibited by law.
France has 66.6 million inhabitants, according to a report dated January 1, 2016 from the National Institute of Statistics (Insee). But census questionnaires prohibit any question about race, origin or religion. So in France, it is impossible to know how many Muslims, black people, white people, Catholics, Arabs, Jews, etc. live in the country.
This prohibition is based on an old and once-healthy principle to avoid any discrimination in a country where "assimilation" is the rule. Assimilation, French-style, means that any foreigner who wants to live in the country has to copy the behavioral code of local population and marry a native quickly. This assimilation model worked perfectly for people of Spanish, Portuguese or Polish descent. But with Arabs and Muslims, it stopped.
Now, however, despite all good intentions, the rule prohibiting collection of data that might lead to discrimination, has become a national security handicap.
When any group of people, outspokenly acting on the basis of their religion or ethnicity, begin violently fighting the fundamentals of the society where you live, it becomes necessary -- in fact urgent -- to know what religions and ethnicities these are, and how many people they represent.
The two studies in question, therefore, are not based on census data but on polls. The Institut Montaigne study, for example, writes that Muslims represent 5.6% of the metropolitan population of France, or exactly three million. However, Michèle Tribalat, a demographer specializing in immigration problems, wrote that the five million mark had been crossed in around 2014. The Pew Research Center estimated the Muslim population in France in mid-2010 to be 4.7 million. Other scholars, such as Azouz Begag, former Minister of Equality (he left the government in 2007) estimates the number of Muslims in France to be closer to 15 million.
Institut Montaigne Study: The Secession of French Muslims
The study by Institut Montaigne, released on September 18, is based on a poll conducted by Ifop (French Institute of Public Opinion), which surveyed 1,029 Muslims. The author of the study is Hakim el Karoui, a consultant who was an adviser to then Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin (2002-2005).
Three main Muslim profiles were highlighted:
First were the so-called "secular" (46%). These people said they were "totally secular, even when religion occupies an important place in their lives." Although they claim to be secular, many of them also belong to the group that favors all Muslim women wearing a hijab (58% of men and 70% of women). They also overlap with the group (60%) that supports wearing a hijab at school, although the hijab has been prohibited in schools since 2004. Many of these "seculars" also belong to the 70% of Muslims who "always" buy halal meat (only 6% never buy it). According to the study, wearing a hijab and eating only halal meat are considered by Muslims themselves as significant "markers" of Muslim identity.
A second group of Muslims, the "Islamic Pride Group" represent a quarter (25%) of the roughly thousand people polled. They defined themselves primarily as Muslims and claim their right to observe their faith (mainly reduced to hijab and halal) in public. They reject, however, the niqab and polygamy. They say they respect secularism and the laws of the Republic, but most of them say they do not accept prohibiting the hijab at school.
The last group, defined as the "Ultras", represent 28% of those polled, and the most authoritarian profile. They say they prefer to live apart from Republican values. For them, Islamic values and Islamic law, or sharia, come first, before the common law of the Republic. They approve of polygamy and of wearing the niqab or the burqa.
"These 28% adhere to Islam in its most retrograde version, which has become for them a kind of identity. Islam is the mainstay of their revolt; and this revolt is embodied in an Islam of rupture, conspiracy theories and anti-Semitism," according to Hamid el Karoui in an interview with Journal du Dimanche.
Hamid el Karoui, speaking of the opinions of French Muslims in an interview with Journal du Dimanche, said: "These 28% adhere to Islam in its most retrograde version, which has become for them a kind of identity. Islam is the mainstay of their revolt; and this revolt is embodied in an Islam of rupture, conspiracy theories and anti-Semitism."
More importantly, these 28% exist predominantly among the young (50% are under 25). In other words, one out of every two young French Muslims is a Salafist of the most radical type, even if he does not belong to a mosque.
The question is: how many will they be in five years, ten years, twenty years? It is important to ask, because polls always present a point in time, a freeze-frame of a situation. When we know that the veil and halal food restrictions are imposed on the whole family by "big brothers," we have to understand that a process is taking place, a secession process due to the re-Islamization of the whole Muslim community by the young.
Journalist and author Elisabeth Schemla wrote in Le Figaro:
To understand what re-Islamization means a definition of Islamism must be given. The most accurate is the definition given by one of his very fervent supporters, State Advisor Thierry Tuot, one of three judges chosen this summer to decide not to ban the burkini at the beach (...). Islamism, he writes, is the "public claim of a social behavior presented as a divine requirement and bursting into the public and political arena." In light of this definition, the Al Karoui report shows that Islamism is unalterably spreading.
Islam at Work; Islamism on the Move
This ticking time bomb is silently working... at work.
A poll, conducted between April and June 2016 by the Randstad Institute and Observatory of the Religious Experience at Work (OFRE), surveying 1,405 managers in different companies, revealed that two managers out of every three (65%) were reporting that "religious behavior" is a regular manifestation in the workplace -- up from 50% in 2015.
Professor Lyonel Honoré, Director of OFRE and author of the study, recognizes quietly that "in 95% of cases," the "religious behavior at work is related to Muslims."
To understand the importance of this "visible Islam" in French factories and offices today, we have to know that traditionally, the workplace was considered neutral space. The law did not prohibit any type of religious or political expression in the workplace, but by tradition, employees and employers considered that restraint must be shown by all in exercising their freedom of belief.
The 2016 Ranstad study shows that this old tradition is over. Religious symbols are proliferating in the workplace, and 95% of these visible symbols are Islamic. Overt expressions and symbols of Christianity or Judaism at work do exist, of course, but are minimal compared to Islam.
The survey considered two types of the expression of religious beliefs:
Personal practices, such as the right to be missing for religious holidays, flexible working hours, the right to pray during work breaks, and the right to wear symbols of religious belief.
Disturbances at work or breaches of rules, such as the refusal of men to work with a woman or take orders from a female manager, refusal to work with people who are not co-religionists, refusal to perform specific tasks, and proselytizing during work time.
"In 2016," states the survey, "the wearing of religious symbols [hijab] became the top expression of religious belief (21% of cases, up from 17% in 2015 and 10% in 2014). The request to be absent because of religious holidays remains stable (18%) but now ranks in second place."
Under "disturbances at work", this politically correct study notes that conflicts between employee and employer on religious grounds are few: a "minority event" and "only" 9% of religious disturbances in 2016. But figures for conflicts have nevertheless risen by 50%, up from 6% in 2015. Conflicts have also tripled since 2014 (3%) and nearly quintupled since 2013 (2%).
Eric Manca, a lawyer in the law firm August & Debouzy who specializes in labor law and was assisting at the press conference, said that when a conflict on religious ground turns to litigation, "it is always a problem with Islam. Christians and Jews never turn to the court against their employer because of religion." When Islamists sue their employer, jurisprudence shows that the accusation is always based on "racism", and "discrimination" -- charges that can only make employers regret having hired them in the first place.
Sources of conflict listed include proselytizing (6%), and refusing to perform tasks (6%) -- for instance, a delivery man declining to deliver alcohol to customers; refusing to work with a woman or under the direction of a woman (5%), and requesting to work only with Muslims (1%). These cases are concentrated in business sectors "such as automotive suppliers, construction, waste processing, supermarkets... and are located in peri-urban regions."
Conclusions
The French model of assimilation is over. As noted, it worked for everyone except French Muslims; and public schools seem unable today to transmit republican values, especially among young Muslims. According to Hakim el Karoui:
"Muslims of France are living in the heart of multiple crises. Syria, of course, which shakes the spirit. But also the transformation of Arab societies where women take a new place: female students outnumber male students, girls are better educated than their fathers. Religion, in its authoritarian version, is a weapon of reaction against these evolutions. .... And finally, there is the social crisis: Muslims, two-thirds of child laborers and employees, are the first victims of deindustrialization."
Islamization is growing everywhere. In city centers, most Arab women wear a veil, and in the suburbs, burqas and niqabs are increasingly common. At work, where non-religious behavior was usually the rule, managers try to learn how to deal with Islamist demands. In big corporations, such as Orange (telecom), a "director of diversity" was appointed to manage demands and conflicts. In small companies, managers are in disarray. Conflicts and litigation are escalating.
Silence of the politicians. Despite the wide media coverage around these two studies, an astounding silence was the only thing heard from politicians. This is disturbing because Institut Montaigne's study also included some proposals to build an "Islam of France," such as putting an end to foreign funding of mosques, and local training religious and civil leaders. Other ideas, such as teaching Arabic in secular schools "to prevent parents from sending their children in Koranic schools" are quite strange because they would perpetuate the failed strategy of integrating Islamism through institutions. Young French Muslims, even those born in France, have difficulty speaking and writing proper French. That is why they need to speak and write French correctly before anything else.
These two studies, although a start, are staggeringly insufficient. Politicians, journalists, and every citizen needs to learn more about Islam, its tenets and its goals in the country. It is unbelievable that the only tools at our disposal are inadequate opinion polls. Without knowledge, no political action -- or any other action -- is possible. It is a situation that immeasurably benefits aggressive political Islamists.
Without more knowledge, the denial of Islamization, and an immobility in addressing it, will continue. Willful blindness is the mother of the civil war to come -- unless the people and their politicians choose to submit to Islam without a fight.
**Yves Mamou, based in France, worked for two decades as a journalist for Le Monde.
© 2016 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.

Which Nation is (Still) the Number One Sponsor of Terrorism?
Peter Huessy/Gatestone Institute/October 03/16

http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/10/03/peter-huessygatestone-institute-which-nation-is-still-the-number-one-sponsor-of-terrorism/
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/9041/iran-terrorism-sponsor
The June State Department report also lists 58 "Foreign Terrorist Organizations," of which over a dozen are allied with Iran. One Iranian Al Qaeda agent was specifically sanctioned by the US Treasury for distributing cash to the same al-Nusra Front the Iranian Foreign Minister complains is a terrorist organization.
Even more chilling has been Iran's joint missile and technology cooperation with North Korea, making the potential use of weapons of mass destruction against the US a growing possibility.
On September 14, the Iranian Foreign Minister wrote in the New York Times that, "coordinated action at the United Nations to cut off the funding for ideologies of hate and extremism" is needed along with "a willingness from the international community to investigate the channels that supply the cash and the arms" to terrorists. He concluded with an appeal to "join hands with the rest of the community of nations to eliminate the scourge of terrorism and violence that threatens us all."
Given that in 2015 alone there were some 11,774 terrorist attacks in 92 countries, killing 28,300 people, one can agree that such action is needed. The irony, of course, is that the US Department of State released its annual report in June on state sponsors of terrorism, and Iran was the gold medalist for the world's number one terrorist nation -- an honor it has held since 1984. Only two other countries were listed as state sponsors of terror: Syria and Sudan.
Having Iran's Foreign Minister call for an end to terrorism is like having Bonnie and Clyde call for law and order.
The report makes clear, along with other available evidence, that much of the terrorism in the world is Iran's handiwork -- especially the terrorism directed at America.
The report emphasized that Iran "remained the foremost state sponsor of terrorism in 2015, providing a range of support, including financial, training, and equipment, to [terror] groups around the world." Iran provided arms and cash to terrorist groups and to nearly 30 Shia terrorist militias in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, especially Hezbollah, as well as Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Houthi rebels in Yemen, and Shia militias in Bahrain.
On September 13, 2015, the US Central Command officially reported that Iran is specifically responsible for killing at least 500 American soldiers through the use of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) in Iraq and Afghanistan.
And the current defense minister in Iran, appointed by President Rouhani, orchestrated the bombing of the Marine barracks in Lebanon in 1983 that killed 241 American soldiers.
Overall, the State Department report lists 13 "terrorist safe havens" around the world where "terrorists are able to organize, plan, raise funds, communicate, recruit, train, transit and operate." These safe havens include remote areas in Southeast Asia, the Middle East and South America, virtually all of which have seen terrorist related activity by Iran and its IRGC. In just the Americas, this includes, says the Clarion Project, intelligence and terrorist networks in Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Chile, Columbia, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, and Suriname.
The State Department report also lists 58 "Foreign Terrorist Organizations," of which over a dozen are allied with Iran. One Iranian al-Qaeda agent was specifically sanctioned by the US Treasury for distributing cash to the same al-Nusra Front the Iranian Foreign Minister complains is a terrorist organization.
The current defense minister in Iran, appointed by President Hassan Rouhani (left), orchestrated the bombing of the Marine barracks in Lebanon in 1983 that killed 241 American soldiers. Foreign Minister Javad Zarif (right) complains the al-Nusra Front is a terrorist organization, even as an Iranian al-Qaeda agent was specifically sanctioned by the US Treasury for distributing cash to the organization.
Iran has evidently harbored senior Al Qaeda operatives since 9/11, including facilitating the flow of fighters and funds to al-Qaeda through Iran -- a kind of jihadi pipeline. In the mid-1990s, reported the Clarion Project, Iran negotiated an agreement with Osama Bin Laden to allow al-Qaeda terrorists to freely transit Iran. And, of course, Tehran's senior leadership financed and facilitated, along with Hezbollah, the training of the 9/11 hijackers that killed nearly three thousand people in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania. According to a December 2011 decision by Judge George B. Daniels "Iran and Hezbollah materially and directly supported Al Qaeda in the September 11, 2001 attacks."
But 9/11 was not Iran's first terror attack against the United States. The Iranian government also financed the attack on the Pan Am flight that blew up over Scotland in December 1988, and was also responsible for the 1996 terror attacks against Americans at Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia, the 1998 bombings of the American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania and the 1983 bombings of our Marine barracks and embassy in Lebanon.
A number of American courts, upon hearing the evidence of Iranian government support for terrorism, found Iran guilty of terrorist attacks against the United States and its citizens, culminating in at least $56 billion in damages, which included being found guilty complicity in the 9/11 attacks.
Even more chilling has been Iran's joint missile and technology cooperation with North Korea, making the potential use of weapons of mass destruction against the US a growing possibility.
If any UN action is taken to stop terrorism, it should start with shutting down the number one source of state-sponsored terrorism in the world -- the Islamic Republic of Iran.
**Dr. Peter Huessy is President of GeoStrategic Analysis, a defense consulting firm he founded in 1981, and was the senior defense consultant at the National Defense University Foundation for more than 20 years.
© 2016 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.

Is Peres’ peace legacy turning to ashes?
Week in Review/Al-Monitor/October 03/16
Akiva Eldar and Daoud Kuttab this week reflected on the legacy of Shimon Peres, one of Israel’s most acclaimed statesmen, who died Sept. 28.
Akiva Eldar and Daoud Kuttab reflect on the legacy of former Israeli president Shimon Peres, who Eldar says offered a "bit of hope" for peace; Al-Monitor credited for breaking news on delisting of Iranian banks.
Eldar credits Peres’ many contributions to Israel’s becoming a regional military powerhouse, world leader in high tech industries and “an island of stability in the heart of a stormy Middle East.” Peres was an architect of the Oslo Accord with the Palestinians, which led to his receiving the Nobel Peace Prize with Yitzak Rabin and Yasser Arafat, and to the peace agreement with Jordan in 1994.
Despite these achievements, “Peres did not live to translate this power into peace,” Eldar writes. “The negotiations Peres conducted with Syrian President Hafez al-Assad in 1996, after Rabin’s assassination, led to a dead end. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was the one who led Israeli troops and settlers out of the Gaza Strip in 2005. Prime Ministers Ehud Barak and Ehud Olmert were much closer than Peres ever was to a permanent status agreement with the Palestinian side.”
Eldar laments that Peres’ final peace efforts were marked by “bitter disappointment,” as the former Nobel Prize winner served as an envoy for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, “trying to explain the policies of Israel’s right-wing governments.”
Not surprisingly, the Palestinian reaction to Peres’ death did not match the near universal acclaim of world leaders eulogizing the former Israeli president and statesmen.
Daoud Kuttab reports this week that the atmosphere at a Palestinian ministry was “cold as ice” after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas released his condolence statement on the death of Peres.
“The most repeated criticism of Peres — also often made against PLO officials, which includes Abbas — is that Oslo did not deal with settlements and did not even include a halt to settlement construction,” Kuttab writes. “Local leaders have often argued that the PLO, desperate for recognition by Israel, accepted the Israelis’ demand to postpone dealing with the issue of settlements. According to a senior official in the prime minister’s office, who spoke to Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, the number of settlements and settlers has tripled since 1993, making the possibility of the creation of an independent Palestinian state that much more difficult.”
“While Palestinians were generally unhappy with Abbas’ condolence message, which alluded to Peres’ lifetime commitment to peace, a number of activists and Palestinian officials contacted by Al-Monitor expressed respect for their old adversary,” Kuttab adds.
“This hate-love relationship between Palestinians and the late Israeli leader reflects the complexity of a man whom the world considers a peacemaker, while Palestinians insist that while he is an Israeli patriot, he bears major responsibility for the plight that Palestinians find themselves in today.”
For Israelis, Eldar writes, Peres “was the attractive, serious, tolerant and cultured face of Israel. He made millions of Jews around the world stand tall. He planted a bit of hope in the hearts of peace lovers among the Palestinians and the world, which last week saw at the United Nations an Israeli leader, Netanyahu, who is an expert in mongering fear and sowing division. The man who spent years lathering endless layers of concealer on Israel’s ugly face is gone, never to return.”
“Peres’ legacy,” Eldar concludes, “requires rectification of the inexcusable act in the occupied territories in which he was complicit. The leaders arriving Sept. 30 to accompany him to his final resting place cannot simply heap praise on Peres’ vision and make hollow promises to follow in his footsteps. This path has to pass through difficult decisions against the occupation, which is threatening to turn his life’s work into ashes.”
Al-Monitor broke US deal on Iranian banks
A Wall Street Journal article Sept. 29, which reported that the United States had agreed to lift UN sanctions on two Iranian banks to coincide with a prisoner swap in January, provoked outrage among congressional Republicans, as reported by The Hill.
The Hill also noted that Al-Monitor broke this story. In her Jan. 19 column, Laura Rozen wrote that “in the course of two separate tracks of negotiations with the Iranians — on the nuclear issue and the humanitarian release of detained citizens — Iran had sought the delisting of the banks from UN Security Council sanctions.”On Jan. 17, the UN Security Council removed Bank Sepah and Bank Sepah International from the UN sanctions list. The United States raised no objections. “This little-noticed action at the United Nations came as five Americans were freed from Iranian detention Jan. 16, and US Secretary of State John Kerry, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini gathered in Vienna to announce implementation day of the landmark Iran nuclear deal. As part of the agreement to free the Americans detained in Iran, the United States would grant clemency to seven Iranians charged with export violations and drop Interpol red notices seeking the extradition of 14 other Iranians abroad charged with similar offenses,” Rozen reported at the time.
A senior administration official told Rozen that the US decision not to oppose the delisting of the banks was made during the nuclear negotiations as a “confidence-building measure and goodwill gesture,” but was not able to be completed by the conclusion of the nuclear talks in July 2014.

Security or freedom?
Turki Aldakhil/Al Arabiya/October 03/16
A preacher recently asked his followers on social media if priority should be given to security or freedom. The way he phrased the question was wrong because security and freedom are not two principles we choose from or which contradict each other. Security includes some sort of freedom within. It enables individuals to move from one place to another, to work, to speak, to get engaged in discussions and to express one’s mind. There’s this passion to go back to the years of the Arab “revolutions” where the street was boiling with rage and where there was madness seeking political change and freedom from regimes. However, people have become more aware. The response to this preacher’s tweet is a proves this point. The preacher submitted to the people’s voices as they expressed their desire for security and stability away from the mad dreams of change which have so far inflicted societies. Security includes some sort of freedom within. It enables individuals to move from one place to another, to work, to speak, to get engaged in discussions and to express one’s mind
Ensuring security
Considering how the question is phrased, I would say security is more important than freedom. Owing to security, one gets to follow their religion and one’s life is protected. It is the security that safeguards religious practices and protects our wealth and our children. On the other hand, it is the calls for freedom during which dignity of people have been violated. People have been killed and there have been bloodshed and chaos in several countries in the region. The concept of freedom itself varies depending on several factors. Some people, like the preacher, may believe freedom is achieved by restoring the Caliphate. Someone else may believe it is achieved by going back to the beliefs of al-Qaeda while some may see freedom in Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
If the preacher’s question requires a direct and decisive answer, then yes, security is more important than freedom.
**This article was first published in Okaz on Oct. 3, 2016.

Netanyahu and Abbas: What’s in a speech!
Yossi Mekelberg/Al Arabiya/October 03/16
One can only wonder what Shimon Peres, who passed away last week, would have thought had he known his funeral would present Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas with the opportunity to shake hands. The handshake did after all take place only a week after both exchanged verbal punches from the United Nations General Assembly’s podium. Within the space of few hours both the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “reassured” the UN that peace between the two nations is as remote as ever, if not impossible. At the end of the day it was another public relations exercise by both leaders on the foremost leading diplomatic stage to slag each other off. Strangely enough, Netanyahu and Abbas only agreed on one thing in their speeches, and this was ironically that the UN is irrelevant in resolving the conflict between the two sides. For the out-of-sorts Abbas, the inability to overcome the veto power of the United States in the Security Council, or their inability to at least condemn the expansion of the Israeli settlements, if not to recognize Palestine as a state, renders this international body toothless. As for Netanyahu, in one of his most arrogant and provocative speeches, even by his own standards, he did not spare the feelings of the diplomats sitting in attendance and bluntly told them that their own governments disregard the institution in which they are serving their countries. Both views, as expressed in the UN, reveal more than ever two leaders who have overstayed their welcome in power. It is hard to fault Netanyahu for mocking the world in which, despite disapproval and condemnation of the entrenchment of occupation and the siege of Gaza, almost every country is happy to do business with Israel
Platform for sarcasm
Netanyahu, in a show of sheer hubris, apparently used the General Assembly as a platform for sarcasm instead of a place for constructive engagement in advancing peace with the Palestinians. It is a reflection of the current Israeli government, which believes that it is currently militarily, diplomatically and economically untouchable. The collapse of the Middle East old order, the closer than ever cooperation with Egypt, and an Iran that has little interest in directly challenging Israel, leaves an existential military threat to Israel a very low probability.Diplomatically, Netanyahu and his government’s policies have endured much disparagement, but without any tangible consequences. It is hard to fault him for mocking the world in which, despite wide disapproval and condemnation of the Israeli entrenchment of the occupation of the West Bank and the siege of Gaza, almost every country is happy to do business with Israel.
Moreover, even Obama, who has not concealed his antipathy for Netanyahu, was ready in the closing days of his administration to meet with him and even more significantly pledged a $38 billion worth in long term military aid to Israel. When the Israeli prime minister thanked the United States for this, it appeared to be a tongue-in-cheek from someone that rode his luck in prodding the most powerful country in the world and came out on top. There appeared to be almost a childlike determination in Netanyahu’s speech to boast that his country’s technological sophistication and the unwavering support of the United States make his country beyond reproach. He practically mocked the delegations at the UN General Assembly for being sent to pay no more than lip service to the Palestinian cause, but behind their backs these very same governments were happy to do business with Israel.There is no escape from admitting that he is not that far from being correct in his observations. It still leaves open the question of how smart it was of him to provoke the world in this manner, not to mention the lack of sensitivity to the moral implications of it, or how the international community is going to react to these remarks.
Abbas’ plea
If Netanyahu left the impression of a man convinced that time and history were on his side, President Abbas seemed to project the opposite, pleading with the world to act swiftly before it is too late for Palestinian self-determination. Leading a nation which has all the hallmarks of a state, but is not, turns his annual trips to New York into a mixture of highlighting the ills of Israeli occupation and constant warnings of the explosiveness of the situation. There is not much wrong with his description of the situation, however, he does not seem capable at this stage of suggesting any innovative ideas to break the stalemate. The result is adhering to what is his justifiable anger with the current situation, combined with repeating solutions that have been tried before and failed. Admittedly, for Abbas this big occasion is always tricky as he tries to reconcile the irreconcilable. He needs to satisfy his constituency back at home, which is at a boiling point and demands a robust approach. For instance, his courageous decision to attend Peres’ funeral was criticized by many Palestinians and others in the region.
Concurrently, he has to project a moderate and conciliatory approach for the benefit of the international community, avoiding giving Israel a reason to marginalize him and apply even harsher measures with his people. Not an enviable position. However, his speech consisted also of a rather unhelpful and bizarre twist, attacking the century old Balfour Declaration.
In the past he threatened to sue the United Kingdom for giving birth to it. No one should expect any Palestinian to embrace the Balfour Declaration, which promised the Jewish people a national home in Palestine. Nonetheless, to sue a country for it nearly a century later surely cannot be the best Abbas can do for his people. What does he expect to gain should he win this lawsuit? Worse, it provides those within Israel, who oppose peace, with further evidence that the Palestinians do not genuinely recognize the right of Jewish people to a state. Though Netanyahu extended an invitation to Abbas to speak in the Knesset, while inviting himself to speak in Ramallah, this was just another “Netanyahuesque” gimmick of a gesture void of substance. However, if a final status agreement is what they are after, then they live less than an hour from one another (traffic and Israeli checkpoints permitting), and they should start exploring fresh ideas, in resolving this conflict once and for all. My suggestion, don’t hold your breath.

All the way to American courts
Abdulrahman al-Rashed/Al Arabiya/October 03/16
These are people with good intentions who are urging Saudi Arabia to boycott United States over the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA). However, they are unaware of the country’s importance to us as it has the technology that allowed the production of the largest quantity of oil in the world. They are calling on us to stop using the dollar but they are unaware that China – which is bigger and richer and which loves the US less – uses the dollar more than us. China also keeps and invests all its surplus funds in the United States. Meanwhile those with ill intentions are inciting against the US as they think the Saudi government is naive enough to sacrifice its long history with it, just like Saddam Hussein, Moammar Qaddafi and Khomeini did. They became history due to this folly and for listening to such an advice. I learnt the first lesson of this kind in the beginning of the 1980s when the Kuwaiti press condemned the American Congress. They were responding to its decision to annul the right of a Kuwaiti-owned firm from leasing federal land for energy exploration. Santa Fe was the American oil company which the Kuwaiti government had bought. Around the time, I happened to meet Kuwaiti Emir, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad, during the UN General Assembly session. Sheikh Sabah was then the minister of foreign of affairs. I asked him: “Will you respond to the Americans?” He said: “We are negotiating with them.”
I was surprised and replied: “But won’t you respond to them based on the principle of an eye for an eye?” Sheikh Sabah smiled and said: “What eye and how when they have all our eyes?” Seven years passed by and the significance of international relations dawned on me when it was revealed that no matter what the disputes are, they must be put within the context and that one must not be dragged behind good people or behind those who spread rumors. Switzerland has been involved in legal battles in the United States. In Germany, Volkswagen is arguing over a $9 billion settlement to compensate its US dealers for losses sustained due to the company’s emissions scandal. A more recent lawsuit is related to Deutsche Bank as the US authorities are demanding a fine of up to $14 billion. We must put the Congress’ JASTA decision within the context of events and practices there and must tackle it accordingly
Saudi Aramco
Saudi Arabia has itself been involved in lawsuits in the US and it won most of them including lawsuits related to the September 11 twin attacks. Before that, the Saudi government had been involved in a major lawsuit – represented by the oil ministry and Saudi Aramco – and won it in the beginning of 2009. Dr Anas al-Hajji who wrote an article about this that year brought our attention to this. According to the article, American oil companies have previously filed lawsuits demanding hundreds of billions of dollars from Aramco, the Saudi oil company, and the Saudi government itself and demanding to drop sovereign immunity from lawsuits. This required gathering testimonies from 15 oil producers, all of OPEC’s member countries except for Iran, and three more countries including Russia. Perhaps what many people do not know is that the victims of September 11 attacks had previously filed lawsuits and there has been an agreement to establish a compensation fund that involves American airline companies which were used in the attacks. More than three years later, and following hundreds of US Congressional hearing sessions, $7 billion were paid to them and around $2 million to the family of each victim. Therefore, we must put the Congress’ JASTA decision within the context of events and practices there and must tackle it accordingly. There is a long list of bad circumstances which have led to the current situation. Saudi Arabia is the victim of its negative image and is being targeted by its rivals. Local extremists have tarnished its reputation and, above all this, there is the greediness of lawyers who benefit the most from the funds collected. Add to all that, there is the American government’s negative stance against Saudi Arabia as it did not care much about confronting the law from the very beginning. However, despite all these difficulties, which Saudi Arabia is confronting, it can legally and politically challenge these lawsuits thanks to its major relations and interests inside the US itself.
**This article was first published in Asharq al-Awsat on Oct. 03, 2016.

Dennis Ross Reflects on Peres, the Strategic Thinker
Jerusalem Post/October 03/16
First published on/September 28, 2016
The Washington Institute's counselor, a veteran U.S. envoy, remembers the late Israeli leader's visionary but pragmatic approach to pursuing peace.
I first met Shimon Peres in 1986. He was prime minister in the national unity government at the time. I was part of vice president George H. W. Bush's delegation. In our meetings, Peres conveyed a sense of mission, determined to change Israel's circumstances and ready to explore new possibilities with the Arabs for peace. But at the time, it was less the formal meetings that impressed me; I was struck much more by the informal meeting we had at Sde Boker, the kibbutz David Ben-Gurion had retired to in the Negev.
Peres sat with the vice president in Ben-Gurion's small library and spoke of his mentor. He spoke of Ben-Gurion's attributes as a leader -- he was a visionary; he placed a premium on education and science; he understood the need to think ambitiously; to make big, often unpopular decisions; he was never willing to settle; he was demanding of everyone but most of all of himself; he saw threats that Israel faced but also believed that not acting -- sometimes militarily, sometimes diplomatically -- could invite the greatest threats to Israeli security; his sheer force of will made it possible not just for Israel to emerge but to survive against all odds.
Peres's tone was reverential in speaking of Ben-Gurion, and he emphasized the importance of Israeli leaders measuring up to the standard that Ben-Gurion had set. In the 30 years that I have known Peres, I have seen him model himself on Ben-Gurion -- to think strategically, to imagine where Israel needed to be in the future, to embrace change, and to never fear making decisions. Many have described Peres as a dreamer, at times naive, speaking of a new Middle East in the 1990s when the region was far from being transformed and resistant to globalization and its implications.
I saw him differently. I saw a pragmatist who understood the danger of stagnation. I saw a leader steeped in the Zionist ethic that Israelis should shape their national destiny and not let others do so. I could see how as a man in his 20s, Ben-Gurion would rely on him to build Israel's military establishment. One of the great ironies of Peres's career is that he was often seen in Israel as not being credible on security because he had not served in the military. And yet it was Peres who built the Defense Ministry, was the key player in persuading the French in the 1950s to provide arms to Israel when Israel had no other source, and later during the Kennedy administration made two trips to Washington to convince the president and Bobby Kennedy that Israel needed American weaponry to offset what the Soviets were providing to Egypt, Syria and Iraq. In no small part, it was Peres who persuaded John Kennedy to break the US taboo on providing modern weapon systems to Israel.
And it was Peres again, acting on the direction of Ben-Gurion, who worked intensively to produce the French decision to help construct the nuclear reactor in Dimona. For Ben-Gurion, nuclear power was essential not just for the electricity it would generate but for the message it sent that Israel would develop the means, if necessary, to possess an ultimate deterrent in a region where all of Israel's neighbors rejected its right to exist.
From my vantage point, Peres was a strategic thinker, not a dreamer. Nor did I ever find him naive or soft on Israeli security. True, I found him impatient with those whom he felt failed to see that Israel could never stand pat; that Israel must anticipate and try to shape the strategic environment of the region and not simply respond to its developments. He was always proactive.
Did he have high hopes for Oslo? Yes, but he always sought to build in hedges in case the Palestinians failed to fulfill their side of the bargain. He never took Arafat at face value but was prepared to test what was possible. The same with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas -- whom he valued because of his commitment to nonviolence but who he also saw as being hesitant and risk averse.
Yes, Peres also criticized those Israelis he believed to be too hesitant and who failed, in his eyes, to see that their hesitancy threatened Israel's future as a Jewish, democratic state. For him, Zionism was about Israel not becoming a binational state. For him, Zionism was about preserving its Jewish majority even as its democracy respected the rights of its Arab citizens, and integrated them fully into Israel's political, economic and social life. For him, preserving Israel's values and its standing as a moral example was an essential part of fulfilling its Zionist creed.
I have always admired Peres because he was always searching, always anticipating new trends and developments, always trying to promote Israel and its possibilities. As he grew older, his curiosity deepened, and so did his desire to be on the front lines of diplomacy, economy, development and scientific progress. While serving as the president, he held an annual conference that brought leaders in every field from around the globe for dialogue and discussion. He reminded the world that Israel was on the cutting edge of advances in health, in agriculture, including developing drought resistance crops, and in digital technologies and innovation. In my most recent private lunch with Peres, he spent his time explaining to me the revolutionary breakthroughs that were being made in understanding the brain and its extraordinary implications for the future. He never stopped striving or learning or seeking to mend the world.

Saudi-Iraqi Tensions Rise After Saudi Ambassador Criticizes Iranian Involvement In Iraq
By: E. Ezrahi/MEMRI/October 03/16
Introduction
In recent months, Saudi-Iraqi relations have become extremely strained, as a result of activities by Saudi Ambassador to Iraq Thamer Al-Sabhan. The Iraqi authorities disapprove of Al-Sabhan's diplomatic activities in the country, which include meetings with Iraqi politicians and clerics, particularly Shi'ites; his provision of Saudi humanitarian aid to Iraqis who have suffered as a result of Islamic State (ISIS) activity in their area, and visits made by Saudi Embassy representatives to an Iraqi prison where Saudis accused of terrorist activity are being held. These activities were accompanied by harsh statements by Al-Sabhan criticizing Iran's involvement in Iraqi affairs as well as the participation of the Iran-backed Iraqi Shi'ite Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi militias in the Iraqi Army's campaign against the terror organizations, and their behavior as part of this campaign. Al-Sabhan said that Iran's involvement in Iraq is leading to sectarian discrimination against Sunnis and to action against them by the Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi in Sunni cities that have been liberated from ISIS control. Since the Iraqi government presents Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi as an official Iraqi organization, and Iran as a country that is helping it combat ISIS terrorism, it sees Al-Sabhan's actions and criticism as inappropriate interference in Iraqi affairs.
It should be noted that Al-Sabhan's appointment in early June 2015 was opposed by pro-Iran Iraqi politicians, and even sparked threats to harm the embassy. The politicians opposed to his appointment argued that Al-Sabhan, who had previously been Saudi military attaché in Lebanon, was not qualified to serve in a diplomatic position, and also accused him of supporting terrorism and Jabhat Al-Nusra, and demanded that he be replaced.[1]
This tension peaked in late August, when the Iraqi Foreign Ministry itself demanded that Saudi Arabia replace Al-Sabhan, claiming that he had not heeded repeated warnings about the statements he was making, and that he had gone too far when he claimed that there had been an attempt on his life in Baghdad and that the Iraqi security apparatuses were incapable of protecting him.[2] In response, Al-Sabhan said that there were well-documented threats against the Saudi Embassy and that they were regularly reported to the Iraqi Foreign Ministry. He protested also against the demand to replace him, saying that it was due to pressure on the Iraqi government by Iran and its supporters in Iraq.[3]
Also reflecting the tension were numerous articles in both the Iraqi and Saudi press. Iraqi articles accused Al-Sabhan of blatant interference in Iraq's internal affairs, and praised the actions of Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi and Iran, saying that they were helping fight terrorism. Conversely, the Saudi articles praised the ambassador and condemned the Iraqi government, which they said is allowing Iran to interfere in its affairs and is pursuing a policy of anti-Sunni discrimination. They also criticized Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi, comparing these militias to ISIS and saying that they were carrying out sectarian vengeance against the Sunnis.
This report will review the causes of the Saudi-Iraqi tension as well as articles about it published in both the Saudi and Iraqi press.
The Causes Of The Saudi-Iraqi Tension
Saudi Ambassador To Iraq: Iranian Interference In Iraq Is Meant As Vengeance Against Arabs; Iran Is Trying To Assassinate Me
Ever since his June 2015 appointment as Saudi ambassador to Iraq, Thamer Al-Sabhan has focused on cultivating relations with various elements of Iraqi society. He has met with Iraqi power brokers – not just Sunnis, but Shi'ites and Kurds as well – and visited various Iraqi provinces; he also delivered Saudi economic aid to various elements. Throughout, Al-Sabhan has spoken out harshly against Iran and Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi, accusing the Iraqi government of anti-Sunni discrimination and stressing that Saudi Arabia treats all sects equally. He also makes frequent media appearances, and does not hold back from criticizing Iran.
Thus, for example, in statements to media he has criticized Iran for seeking "to destroy the Islamic ummah and Arab nationalism by spreading its poison and incitement, by flagrantly interfering in some Arab countries, and [by means of] its lackeys and armed factions." He said that Iran's direct and indirect interference in Iraq since 2003 has been aimed at fueling sectarian conflict in the country and at "taking vengeance against Iraq and the Arabs." Stressing that Iraqi blood is being spilled in vain as a result of this "murderous [sectarian] policy" and that Iraq is "a country for all, where no one can eliminate or marginalize the other," he added that Saudi Arabia, unlike Iran, acts for and meets with all Iraqi sects, and does not discriminate among them.[4]
In June 2016, as efforts by the Iraqi Army and Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi to liberate Fallujah from ISIS came to a head, Al-Sabhan spoke out against Iran's involvement in the campaign, arguing that Iranian officials' presence in the vicinity of Fallujah would widen the rift among various elements in Iraqi society.[5] Al-Sabhan also expressed this in tweets, accusing Iran and its Iraqi loyalists of trying to change the region's demographics, bringing in Shi'ites and expelling Sunnis: He wrote: "The presence of Iranian terrorists near Al-Fallujah is clear proof of their desire to burn Arab Iraqis in the fires of despicable sectarianism, and an affirmation of their attempt to cause a demographic shift."
Al-Sabhan also mentioned the participation of Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi forces in the battle for Falluja, saying that "the presence of a group that is not accepted by the Iraqi people constitutes a big problem in itself and deepens the [already] great rift [in Iraqi society], [especially] in light of the presence of terrorist [Iranian] commanders who are wanted by the international community."[6] It should be mentioned that in January this year, the Iraqi foreign ministry summoned Al-Sabhan to protest statements he had made in an interview with the Iraqi television channel Al-Sumaria News. In the interview he said that "the opposition of the Kurds [and the Sunni residents] of Al-Anbar to Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi entering their areas indicates that Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi is not accepted by Iraqi society." He wondered: "Would the Iraqi authorities agree to the concentrated presence of armed Sunni [forces], similar to the concentrated presence of Shi'ite [forces, i.e., Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi]? Why is it only Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi that is supplied with arms?" He went on to accuse Iran of "blatant interference in Iraq's internal affairs and in the establishment of armed militias [there]."[7] This statement was criticized by Shi'ite politicians in Iraq and praised by Sunni ones.[8]
Saudi Foreign Minister 'Adel Al-Jubeir also harshly condemned Iran's involvement in the battle for Fallujah, and the presence in Iraq of Iranian military officials, among them Qassem Soleimani, the commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Qods Force, as well as IRGC forces – which, he claimed, are globally considered to be terrorist elements.[9] Al-Jubeir described the Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi forces that participated in the fighting as "sectarian and under Iranian command" and added that in the campaign there had also been "violations." He called for dismantling the Al-Hashd militias, authorizing only the Iraqi Army to fight ISIS, and establishing an inclusive Iraqi government that will incorporate all sectors and groups.[10]
The Iraqi Foreign Ministry responded to Al-Jubeir's statements with outrage at "the repeated Saudi Foreign Ministry interference in Iraq's internal affairs," stating that the Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi forces are "an official body comprising volunteers representing all groups of the Iraqi people. It is part of the national defense array, commanded by the chief of staff, funded by the state, and it fights extremist takfiri ideology, as does the army and its heroic armed branches." Hinting at Saudi Arabia, the ministry called on "certain countries to actively prevent their citizens from adopting extremist takfiri ideology and joining ISIS."[11] Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim Al-Ja'afari also told Al-Jubeir and Al-Sabhan that Iraq rejected their statements and saw them as unacceptable interference in its internal affairs.[12]
Al-Sabhan also accused Iraqi political parties, media outlets, and other elements of waging an Iran-funded campaign against Saudi Arabia and its embassy in Iraq. These elements, he said, are worried about Saudi openness vis-à-vis all Iraqi sects, including the Shi'ites, and about his meetings with their politicians and clerics. According to him, this anti-Saudi campaign is characterized by lying about and inciting against the Saudi Embassy in the media and on social networks, and included also calls by Iraqi MPs to expel him from Baghdad and shut down the Saudi Embassy. The embassy, he added, has been threatened with attack, and as a result embassy staff has had to limit their movements and use security escorts.[13] It should be mentioned in this context that the Saudi daily Makkah reported, on July 1, that Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi had threatened to kill personnel of the Saudi Embassy in Baghdad.[14]
For these and other statements, Al-Sabhan was summoned by the Iraqi Foreign Ministry, which protested against his interference in Iraq's internal affairs. The ministry added that it would not allow any ambassador to take advantage of their diplomatic post to "spark sectarian discourse in the country," and demanded that Al-Sabhan abide by the norms of international diplomacy vis-à-vis media and refrain from expressing himself in a manner that constitutes said interference, particularly in light of Iraq's war on terror.[15]
Tension between the sides peaked following the August 21, 2016 publication by the London-based Saudi daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat of a report that pro-Iran Shi'ite militias operating in Iraq had attempted to assassinate Al-Sabhan.[16] Al-Sabhan himself stated that he knew the names of those involved in these "terrorist plots," and accused Iran of being behind terrorism in the region.[17] Tension escalated further when Aws Al-Khafaji, leader of the Abu Al-Fadl Al-Abbas Forces, which are part of Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi, stated that the Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi sought vengeance against Al-Sabhan, and added that the diplomat's assassination would be an act of honor for which anyone would want to take credit.[18] The Iraqi Foreign Ministry, for its part, said that despite requests, Al-Sabhan had provided no proof that there had been any such assassination attempt; as a result, the ministry demanded that he be replaced.[19]
Al-Sabhan's activity includes, among other things, meetings with leaders and politicians from various sects in Iraq – Sunnis, Shi'ites, and Kurds – during which he makes statements that anger the Iraqi regime, including talk of the bitterness felt by these elements regarding the situation in Iraq. It seems that his efforts to foster ties with various elements in Iraqi society, including Shi'ites, also enrage the Iraqi regime.
Thus, in a meeting with Shi'ite cleric Hussein Al-Sadr, Al-Sabhan said that his country was open towards all "and does not distinguish between one sect and another," implying that Iraq discriminates against Sunnis.[20] One week later, in statements to the official Saudi daily 'Okaz, Al-Sabhan spoke against Iran and its interference in Arab countries. He stressed that many Shi'ite clerics in Iraq are displeased with the situation in the country and believe that it will bring about "the slaughter of the Islamic body." He added that other elements displeased with the situation in Iraq include Arab tribes in the south, who are loyal to the Arabs and have been confronting Iran for several years.[21]
Another matter troubling the Iraqi government is the funds transferred by Saudi Arabia to various institutions and organizations in Iraq. For example, in a meeting with a representative of the Kurdish Barzani Charity Foundation in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, Al-Sabhan announced a $1 million Saudi grant to the foundation that would benefit 1,000 Iraqi orphans whose relatives died fighting ISIS in the city.[22]
Furthermore, the Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar, which is close to Hizbullah, reported that since the Iraqi army announced the liberation of Al-Ramadi in the Sunni Al-Anbar Province, Al-Sabhan has met regularly with leaders and politicians in the province in order to coordinate the transfer of Saudi aid for its restoration. According to the daily, this aid, which is also given to tribal leaders in the province, was meant to enable Saudi Arabia to increase its political and economic influence there.[23] In response to the Iraqi government's refusal to transfer this aid to its intended recipients, Al-Sabhan claimed that Saudi Arabia's aid was intended for all Iraqis.[24]
The issue of Saudi citizens imprisoned in Iraq on charges of terrorist activity also contributed to the mounting tension between the countries. The issue made headlines after the Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar reported that on June 12, 2016, a delegation led by Al-Sabhan's aide Salah 'Abdallah Al-Hatlani visited Saudi prisoners in the city of Nasiriyah south of Baghdad, and that Al-Sabhan intended to visit them himself as well. According to the daily, Al-Hatlani told the prisoners that their release was imminent.[25]
The London-based Saudi daily Al-Hayat claimed that the visit was coordinated with the Iraqi justice ministry.[26] The justice ministry itself confirmed that the visit took place as part of international treaties that Iraq has signed, and stressed that the prisoners in question were not terrorists.[27]
However, despite the clarifications by the justice ministry, various Iraqi elements were furious at Saudi Arabia and Al-Sabhan over the visit, which they saw as blatant interference in Iraqi affairs, despite the fact that Al-Sabhan himself did not meet the prisoners.[28] Thus, for example, senior Shi'ite political leader and cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr claimed that the visit constituted forbidden interference in Iraqi's internal affairs, and Iraqi MP 'Abd Al-Hadi Mohan said that Saudi Arabia intended to free the Saudi prisoners despite the fact that most were sentenced to death. Additionally, rallies in Al-Nasiriyah and elsewhere in Iraq protested a possible agreement to release the prisoners.[29]
Iraq Accuses Saudi Arabia Of Supporting Terrorism On Its Soil
For some time, Iraq has been accusing Saudi Arabia of supporting terrorism on its soil. This matter also led to recent recriminations between Saudi and Iraqi officials, which started in early June, when Saudi Interior Ministry Spokesman Mansour Al-Turki said that Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi's participation in the campaign to liberate Falluja from ISIS "opened the door to donations for the terrorist group [ISIS]" in Saudi Arabia, adding that "it is impossible to control the emotions of people [who wish to donate to ISIS]." The Iraqi foreign ministry was furious with this statement, seeing it as Saudi admission of fundraising campaigns in the kingdom to finance ISIS's activity in Iraq, and demanded clarifications on the subject from the Saudi government. Additionally, the ministry also dismissed Al-Turki's statements regarding Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi, stressing that it was an official Iraqi government body.[30]
Iraq's Permanent Representative to the UN, Muhammad 'Ali Al-Hakim, also criticized Saudi NGOs, accusing them of transferring financial aid to terrorist groups in Al-Anbar Province under the guise of aid to the children of Falluja, and calling on the UN to force Saudi Arabia and Turkey to cease the transfer of financial and logistical aid to ISIS.[31]
Posters hung in Baghdad in July, after an ISIS terror attack, accusing Saudi Arabia of responsibility. Right: Pictures of former king 'Abdallah and current King Salman with the caption: "There is no place for you in my country." Left: Picture of Al-Sabhan with the caption: "There is no place for you in Iraq" (Twitter.com/asas78asas, July 11, 2016)
Billboards in southern Iraq. Right: Poster comparing Saudi royal family to Jews: "Saudi Arabia supports terrorism. All crimes are made in [Saudi Arabia]." Center: "Saudi Arabia is the source of terrorism. Your money murders Iraqis." Left: Image of King Salman with the caption: "This is the murderer of my brothers, mother, and father" (Al-Quds Al-Arabi, London, July 5, 2016)
Articles In Iraqi Press Criticize Saudi Support For Terrorism And Ambassador's Interference In Iraqi Affairs
As stated, the tension between the countries was also expressed by numerous articles in both the Saudi and Iraqi press. Iraqi articles praised Iran and Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi forces for fighting the terrorism fostered by Saudi Arabia, and harshly criticized Al-Sabhan, whom they called "the brazen ambassador," ISIS's ambassador to Iraq, "the ambassador of fitna and terror," among other names. Some of the articles even called to expel him from the country and declare him persona non grata, while praising Iran's involvement in Iraq and especially the involvement of Qassem Soleimani.
If The Saudi Ambassador Does Not Stop Defending Terrorism And Interfering In Iraqi Affairs, He Should Be Banished
'Abd Al-Redha Al-Sa'adi, editor of the pro-Iranian Iraqi e-daily Al-Rai, published an article harshly attacking Al-Sabhan as brazen. He wrote: "[Al-Sabhan] the brazen Saudi ambassador to Iraq, continues his overreach and makes dubious statements against the sacred Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi and against the Islamic Republic of Iran, which helps this organization that defends its land, its people, and its holy sites against the criminal ISIS, servant of the takfiri Wahhabism [i.e. Saudi Arabia] and its ally Israel...
"Thamer Al-Sabhan boldly interferes in the internal affairs of Iraq and attacks [elements there] out of hostile political motives and out of clear Saudi intentions to spark fitna and chaos in Iraq. It is as if he has come to officially represent ISIS and is their ambassador in Iraq... He attacks Al-Hashd and Iran constantly, merely for fighting terrorist elements in Iraq. This angers Al-Sabhan and his country, which is involved in aiding terrorism and is submersed in the blood of Iraqis up to its head, [which is] the head of fitna and destruction of other Arab countries... This ambassador of fitna... requires an intense course in the principles of diplomatic activity.
"At this time, we [also] call on the Iraqi foreign ministry to issue a final warning to Al-Sabhan to stop his invasive statements or be banished from Iraq as a persona non grata, since he represents only ISIS and his kingdom of terrorism, which chose him as the ambassador of fitna and terrorism..."[32]
Dr. Zaki Zaher Al-'Imara, a columnist for the Iraqi e-daily Al-Wathika, wrote: "In a new tweet by the Saudi ambassador... following his visit to the prison in Al-Nasiriyah and his meeting with the Saudi terrorists – terrorists who came here to kill Iraq's Shi'ites and change its regime so that Iraq can be a tool for the barbarian Bedouins of Sa'ud [meaning the Saudi royal family]... [the ambassador] said that he would absolutely not abandon these barbaric criminals. This ambassador has violated not just all diplomatic norms, but also all norms of morality and humanity, since it makes no sense that an honorable and self-respecting man will defend a criminal who carries out all manner of despicable crimes with cruelty unmatched in history...
"I apologize to readers for responding in a language he understands and in a Saudi dialect... Respect yourself, shut your mouth... and do not utter another word. You should be like every other ambassador that respects diplomatic norms and does not interfere in the affairs of other countries. Anyone who supports the sons of Sa'ud and their ISIS activists should know full well that Iraq is our [land] and we will decide who enters it, be it Iran, Satan, or anyone else determined to save us from ISIS barbarism... Therefore, we must tell Al-Sabhan that if he makes any more statements or wants to interfere in any more of Iraq's affairs, he will be banished immediately, and relations will even be severed with the hostile Saudi Arabia..."[33]
Iran Helps Iraq Combat Saudi-Sponsored Terror
Sayyid Ahmad Al-'Abbasi, a columnist for the pro-Iranian Iraqi daily Al-Akhbar, wrote: "Those who recently shouted the slogan 'Iran, out, out' in the Iraqi parliament[34] encouraged the Saudi ambassador and spy Thamer Al-Sabhan to interfere in Iraq's affairs, which is completely unacceptable... The [real] reason that they [the Saudi embassy in Iraq] is barking [against Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi] is the [imminent] liberation of Falluja by the honorable sons [of Iraq] in the ranks of the army, police, tribal [forces] and the sacred Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi. What angers them most of all is the involvement of Qassem Soleimani and the Islamic Republic [of Iran]... in stopping the march of the ISIS gangs across Iraq. Qassem Soleimani's presence frightens these rude, despicable homosexuals, and that is what whetted their appetite to fabricate reports about him...
"All those who shouted the slogan 'Iran, out, out!' should know that Mr. Qassem Soleimani called Iran and spoke with [its] leaders about Iraq's electricity debt to Iran, which amounts to over $750 million. The answer of [Iran's] Supreme Leader was expected [but] amazing: [he said] Iran would cancel all of Iraq's debts and will renew the power supply to it, free of charge, for a period of five years!!! In addition, Iran sent a special plane to carry those wounded in the recent events and attacks [in Baghdad] to Iran, where they will receive medical treatment at the expense of the government of Iran, [to whom you say] 'out, out!'... What have we ever received from the [Saudi] government of camels, fatwas, killing, slaughter and terror?"[35]
Iyad Al-Samawi, another columnist for Al-Akhbar, wrote similarly: "The Arab media discourse guided by Saudi Arabia, and the statements by [Saudi] officials, revolve around two main axes. The first axis concerns the alleged crimes and violations by Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi forces against Iraqi Sunnis. The second axis concerns widespread Iranian military intervention meant to take vengeance on Sunnis and enact a demographic change that serves Iranian interests. The Iraqi people know full well the reason behind these allegations, as well as who is behind them and why, and it also knows that Sunni political leaders are well aware that these allegations are false, and that there is no Iranian army fighting alongside our armed forces and Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi. Yes, there are Iranian military advisors under the command of the fighter Qassem Soleimani. These advisors are there with the knowledge, consent, and at the request of the Iraqi government, similar to [its] American military advisors. The Iraqi government alone decides on the need for these advisors..."[36]
Saudi Articles Oppose Iraqi Government Policy, Iranian Interference In Iraq
Articles in the Saudi press harshly condemned the Iraqi government's policy regarding Sunnis and its backing of the Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi forces, to whom they referred as "sectarian militias run by Iranian intelligence" and a local replica of the Iranian IRGC. The articles praised Al-Sabhan for his activity and steadfast position against the interference of the "Iranian war criminals" in Iraq, and for reminding Iraqis of their Arab identity.
Iraqi Government Is Sectarian And Ruled By Iran; Saudi Arabia Establishes Ties With All Sects
Ayman Al-Hamad, the editorial writer for the official Saudi daily Al-Riyadh, wrote that Iraq employed an anti-Sunni sectarian policy encouraged by Iran and Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi, and defended the Saudi ambassador's activity in Iraq: "When the campaign to liberate Falluja from ISIS began, the media following these operations published images of the vehicles and rocket launchers of the so-called 'Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi,' which were emblazoned with the images of the one called Nimr Al-Nimr.[37] When the heads of sectarianism came from Iran [to Iraq], led by Qassem Soleimani, an internationally wanted terrorist, the Iraqi foreign minister said that Soleimani was a military advisor to the government. When the Saudi ambassador to Iraq, Thamer Al-Sabhan, said that sectarianism is a fire that would burn those who started it, this angered the Iraqi foreign ministry, which stated that it would not allow any ambassador to spark sectarian discourse in Iraq. Has the foreign ministry turned into 'a camel that cannot see his own hump'?"
"The Iraqi people should pay attention to the attempts to conceal from them the historical facts and the role played by Saudi Arabia regarding the no-fly zone in southern Iraq between 1991 and 2003, which contributed to the Saddam Hussein regime's inability to carry out airstrikes in those areas, which are mostly Shi'ite. [In doing so,] Saudi Arabia was not acting out of sectarian motives, as Iran's militias and regime are today. Additionally, Saudi Arabia welcomed displaced people from Southern Iraq in the refugee camp at Rafha [on the Saudi-Iraqi border] out of religious and Arab motivation, and without sectarian considerations.
"Saudi diplomacy in Iraq toils diligently to strengthen Saudi-Iraqi relations on all levels – political, economic, and social – in light of the alienation and the gaps in these relations that were partially a result of the sectarian [policy] in Iraq after 2003, that was cemented the during premiership of Nouri Al-Maliki... When Saudi Arabia opened its embassy in Iraq, it aimed to conduct relations with all Iraqi sects, and it will continue to do so in [Iraqi cities peopled by various ethnicities and sects, such as] Al-Najaf, Al-Falluja, Al-Basra, Karbala, Al-Anbar, Erbil, and Nineveh... Saudi ambassador Thamer Al-Sabhan's meeting a few weeks ago with Shi'ite cleric Hussein Al-Sadr, who is known for his nationalism and moderation, was just a small part of the [Saudi] efforts to [establish ties with] all sectors and sects in Iraq, in order to bridge [the gaps] in Saudi-Iraqi relations..."[38]
In his column in the official Saudi daily Al-Jazirah, Saudi journalist Jasser Al-Jasser also criticized Iranian involvement in Iraq, and praised Saudi activity there. The ambassador's activity is welcome and effective, he said, and that is why it threatens Iran and its lackeys in Iraq: "From 2003 until less than a year ago, Iraq suffered from an Arab political diplomatic vacuum. This enabled the ayatollahs and the Iranian regime, which works to fan sectarian zealotry and fights the real Arabs and Muslims, to take over Iraq and its key political positions... With political bribes and money soaked in Iraqi blood, the agents of the Iranian ayatollahs took over everything in Iraq, [as indicated by the fact that] Iraqi governments – from the Ibrahim Ja'afari government to the latest Nouri Al-Maliki government – fought the Arab presence and harassed any Arab diplomatic presence to the point of threatening them with murder. Some diplomats from Egypt, the UAE, and Qatar were [even] kidnapped and threatened by the sectarian [Shi'ite] militias run by Iranian intelligence...
"This situation changed after the Saudi Embassy in Baghdad opened, and after Saudi Ambassador Thamer Al-Sabhan arrived; despite all the dangers [he faced] from his work and his activity, he made changes in a very short time, and made all Iraqis notice the Arab presence in Iraq, particularly the Saudi presence. In contrast to the Iranian Embassy in Iraq and its consulates in Erbil, Al-Najaf, and Al-Basra, which are chock-full of spies and intelligence officers working to spread sectarian fitna, Ambassador Thamer Al-Sabhan, from the day of his arrival in Baghdad, has toiled to help all elements of Iraqi society...
"This Saudi activity, which partially makes up for the Arab absence that has greatly harmed Iraq, has aroused the anger and hostility of the enemies of Iraq and the Arabs, who do not want what is best for the Iraqis... Therefore, these [elements] have begun to work to marginalize the beneficial diplomatic activity of the Saudi ambassador and the Saudi Embassy..."[39]
Sunnis In Iraq Caught Between ISIS Barbarism And Shi'ite Militia Terrorism
In another column, Jasser Al-Jasser criticized the Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi militias: "The residents of Al-Falluja are caught between the barbarism of the terrorist group ISIS and the terrorism of the sectarian Shi'ite Al-Hashd [Al-Sha'bi]... The part played by these Shi'ite Al-Hashd militias is purely vengeful, since their actions focused on firing surface-to-surface missiles on population centers caught between the rock of the sectarian Al-Hashd militias and the hard place of ISIS terrorists. The interference and the part played by the sectarian Al-Hashd militias, under the command of terrorist general Qassem Soleimani... caused anger and concern, because the campaign to rescue Al-Falluja from the grip of the ISIS terrorist group transferred [control of the city] to the sectarian Al-Hashd..."[40]
The Assassination Attempt Against The Saudi Ambassador – An Iranian Plot; Iranian Terror Campaign Against Any Saudi Presence In Iraq
Mashari Al-Dhaidi, a Saudi journalist and senior editor in the London-based Saudi daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, harshly attacked Iran and its supporters in Iraq, saying that they were behind the assassination attempt against Al-Sabhan and also behind the Iraqi Foreign Ministry's demand that he be replaced. Al-Dhaidi wrote: "The Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi militias... attempted to assassinate the Saudi ambassador. Aws Al-Khafaji, commander of the Abu Al-Fadl Al-'Abbas Forces, one of the factions of the Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi gangs, which are subordinate to Khomeini's IRGC, boasted of this, and openly incited against [Al-Sabhan]... Luckily for Thamer Al-Sabhan and Saudi-Iraqi relations, the catastrophe planned by Khomeini's evil apparatus – which was aimed at helping [Iran] gain exclusive control of the Iraqi arena, [unhindered by] the pathetic [Iraqi] government that lacks the minimal ability to resist Iranian infiltration – did not take place...
"The truth is that the tension gripping Iraq's Shi'ite political sphere because of the renewal of Saudi activity in Iraq by means of Ambassador Al-Sabhan was clear from the start, and a psychological intimidation and smear campaign was waged against him. But Saudi Arabia insisted on the appointment of this ambassador... There is an Iranian terrorist campaign against any Saudi presence in Iraq. The actions of Ambassador Al-Sabhan worried the Iranian conspirator and his Iraqi gangs, because he [i.e. Al-Sabhan] was working to remind the Iraqis of their Arab identity and culture, which is related to their Arab environment. This is the last thing the loyalists of the rule of the jurisprudent want..."[41]
The Iraqi Government Is Establishing Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi As The Nucleus Of An Iraqi IRGC
The Saudi press also criticized the recent decision by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-'Abadi to turn Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi into a government security apparatus and to expand its powers, so that it would operate much like antiterrorism forces in Iraq.[42] In an editorial, the official Saudi daily 'Okaz called this an Iranian attempt to create a copy of the IRGC in Iraq, with Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi forming its nucleus. The newspaper wrote: "Iran is striving to duplicate its IRGC in Iraq, with the consent of Prime Minister Haider Al-'Abadi, in order to launch a new period of Iranian unrest in Arab countries, this time in Iraqi garb. This 'Iraqi IRGC' will carry on with the horrific actions being perpetrated by the Al-Hashd Al-Sha'bi – the seed from which a copy of the Iranian organization will sprout...
"Thus, the fate of Iraq's Sunnis is in the hands of these sectarian Iranian gangs, which learn violence, murder, and robbery from Iranian war criminals such as Qassem Soleimani, who operates unfettered throughout Iraq, with Al-'Abadi's backing. So it will come as no surprise if this 'Iraqi IRGC's first request to the Iraqi foreign minister is for him to declare Saudi Ambassador Thamer Al-Sabhan persona non grata. These developments mean that Iran is seeking further opportunities to continue its interference in the affairs of Arab countries, and is ignoring regional and international warnings and condemnations of its policy towards the countries of the region."[43]
* E. Ezrahi is a research fellow at MEMRI.
Endnotes:
[1] Among the opposing elements was the State of Law Coalition (Dawlat Al-Qanoon) in parliament, headed by former Iraqi prime minister Nouri Al-Maliki. See Al-Quds Al-Arabi (London), June 8, 2015; Al-Mada (Iraq), June 6, 2015.
[2] Rudaw.net, August 28, 2016.
[3] Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), August 24, 2016; Alarabiya.net, August 28, 2016; Al-Jazirah (Saudi Arabia), August 29, 2016.
[4] 'Okaz (Saudi Arabia), June 2, 2016; Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), June 4, 2016.
[5] Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), June 4, 2016.
[6] 'Okaz (Saudi Arabia), June 2, 2016.
[7] Alsumaria.tv, January 24, 2016.
[8] Al-Quds Al-Arabi (London), January 25, 2016.
[9] 'Okaz (Saudi Arabia), May 27, 2016.
[10] Al-Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), June 30, 2016.
[11] Ara.shafaaq.com, June 30, 2016.
[12] Al-Zaman (Iraq), July 23, 2016.
[13] Al-Hayat (London), June 6, 2016; Al-Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), July 3, 2016; Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), June 12, 2016; Alarabia.net, June 19, 2016; Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), June 16, 2016.
[14] Makkah (Saudi Arabia), July 1, 2016.
[15] Alghadpress.com, June 17, 2016.
[16] Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), August 21, 2016.
[17] Al-Yawm (Saudi Arabia), August 22, 2016.
[18] 'Okaz (Saudi Arabia), August 24, 2016.
[19] Rudaw.net, August 28, 2016.
[20] Al-Watan (Saudi Arabia), May 26, 2016.
[21] 'Okaz (Saudi Arabia), June 2, 2016.
[22] Al-Watan (Saudi Arabia), May 31, 2016.
[23] Al-Akhbar (Lebanon), May 19, 2016.
[24] Al-Watan (Saudi Arabia), May 24, 28, 2016; Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), May 26, 2016.
[25] Al-Akhbar (Lebanon), June 17, 2016.
[26] Al-Hayat (London), June 18, 2016.
[27] Al-Mada (Iraq), June 19, 2016.
[28] It should be mentioned that some reports erroneously reported that Al-Sabhan himself attended the meeting.
[29] Al-Akhbar (Lebanon), June 17, 2016; Al-Mada (Iraq), June 19, 2016.
[30] 'Okaz (Saudi Arabia), June 5, 2016; Arabi21.com, June 12, 2016.
[31] Akhbaar.org, July 12, 2016.
[32] Alrai-iq.com, June 21, 2016.
[33] Alwathika.com, June 17, 2016.
[34] This refers to supporters of influential Iraqi politician and cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr who on April 30, 2016 broke into the Iraqi parliament building crying out anti-Iran slogans, including "Iran, out, out!"
[35] Alakhbar.org, June 5, 2016.
[36] Akhbaar.org, June 5, 2016.
[37] Senior Shi'ite cleric executed in Saudi Arabia in January 2016.
[38] Al-Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), June 19, 2016.
[39] Al-Jazirah (Saudi Arabia), June 21, 2016.
[40] Al-Jazirah (Saudi Arabia), May 27, 2016.
[41] Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), August 29, 2016.
[42] Al-Quds Al-Arabi (London), July 28, 2016.
[43] 'Okaz (Saudi Arabia), July 28, 2016.