LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

September 22/16

Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

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Bible Quotations For Today
Whoever is not against us is for us
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 09/38-50/:"John said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.’But Jesus said, ‘Do not stop him; for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterwards to speak evil of me. Whoever is not against us is for us. For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward. ‘If any of you put a stumbling-block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell.+t,+u. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell, where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched. ‘For everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.’ "

You have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them to be false
Book of Revelation 02/01-07/:"‘To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands: ‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance. I know that you cannot tolerate evildoers; you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them to be false. I also know that you are enduring patiently and bearing up for the sake of my name, and that you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember then from what you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. Yet this is to your credit: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. To everyone who conquers, I will give permission to eat from the tree of life that is in the paradise of God."

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on September 21-22/16

Iran, Saudi Arabia Clash Swords In U.S. Press/MEMRI/September 21/16
Palestinians: "The Mafia of Destruction"/Khaled Abu Toameh/Gatestone Institute/September 21/16
Where Does Black Lives Matter's Anti-Semitism Come From/Philip Carl Salzman/Gatestone Institute/September 21/16
Syria’s ceasefire is a farce and Kerry-Lavrov plan a fantasy/Joyce Karam/Al Arabiya/September 21/16
Syrian opposition and the ‘realism’ of US-Russia deal/Raghida Dergham/Al Arabiya/September 21/16
On Obama’s comment that ‘basic order’ has broken down in the Middle East/Faisal J. Abbas/Al Arabiya/September 21/16
Saudi Arabia — When figures speak for themselves/Mohammed Fahad al-Harthi/Al Arabiya/September 21/16
MBC: 25 years of enlightenment/Abdulrahman al-Rashed/Al Arabiya/September 21/16

Titles For Latest Lebanese Related News published on on September 21-22/16
Salam Meets Lavrov, Says No Progress on Presidency despite 'Major Efforts'
Rifi: Mustaqbal Making another Mistake by Adhering to Franjieh's Nomination
On Peace Day, UNIFIL Head Lauds Progress in Achieving Peace in South
Berri on Presidency: Let No One Use My Stance as an Excuse
Bonne Briefs Mashnouq on Paris Preparations for Hosting Lebanon Meeting
U.S. Special Operations Commander Visits Lebanon
Shooting and Theft Incidents in Bekaa Overnight
Adwan: Electing Aoun or Stipulating New Election Law Avert Escalation
Salam meets his Australian counterpart, Russian Foreign Minister
Raad: We must protect our country as we are in struggle with enemy
Interior and Municipalities Minister, Nouhad Machnouk receives Ambassadors of France, Egypt, and UN's Lazarini
On International Peace Day, UNIFIL Head lauds progress in achieving peace in South Lebanon

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on on September 21-22/16
Some 60 Canada schools, universities evacuated over threat
Coptic Bishop in Egypt: “Christians Are Original Inhabitants of the Nation”
Migrant boat carrying 600 capsizes off Egypt, at least 29 dead
Iran parades new arms, tells US not to meddle in Gulf
Russia to send flagship aircraft carrier to Syria coast
Iraqi forces close in on town south of Mosul
US ‘in a parallel universe’ over Syria
Four medics killed in strike on clinic in Syria’s Aleppo
No plan to use Turkish infantry in Syria operations: minister
Iraqi forces close in on town south of Mosul
Iraqi parliament votes to sack finance minister
Saudi ‘suffered’ from terrorism before Sept. 11
Sisi says ‘there can be no return to dictatorship in Egypt’
Egypt’s Sisi urges Israel to make history with peace
UAE solider dies after wounds sustained in Yemen
Rival accuses Libya government’s forces over deadly airstrike
Palestinian local polls postponed, no new date
Israeli embassy attacker in Ankara shot and wounded by local guard
White House reiterates Obama’s will veto 9/11 families bill
France's Chirac Still in Hospital, Family Says after Death Rumors
Friends, colleagues call for release of Canadian prof jailed in Iran at rally

Links From Jihad Watch Site for on September 21-22/16
Despite references to jihad in NY bomber’s journal, investigators say they’ve found nothing linking him to terror groups
FBI hunting for two who placed IED on Manhattan street
Robert Spencer in PJ Media: ‘Aid and Comfort’: Clinton Suggests Trump Committed Treason
Muslim who plotted to behead Pamela Geller returns to Catholicism, plans to plead guilty
NY jihad bomber says he got orders from “terrorist leaders…to attack non-believers”
Why Won’t You Believe Me When I Say I Want to Kill You?
After NYC bomb, London’s Muslim mayor says terror attacks “part and parcel” of life in a big city
Turkey: Knife-wielding Muslim screaming “Allahu akbar” attacks Israeli embassy, authorities say he is “mentally unstable”
“Significant” number of Muslim migrants have entered Germany with fake passports
NY jihad bomber praised Osama, Awlaki, and Nidal Hasan, said “the sounds of bombs will be heard in the streets”
Turkey: Muslim kicks woman in the face for wearing shorts, says “everything happened according to Islamic law”
Video: Survivor of Islamic Oppression Sends a Message — an Afshin Sohrabzadeh Moment
NYC jihad bomber became “way more religious” after trip to Afghanistan

Links From Christian Today Site for on September 21-22/16
Sudan bishop urges UN to intervene to save Christians facing death sentence
Christians in Nepal 'increasingly under threat' as eight charged with trying to convert children
Evangelicals celebrate release of detained Christian missionary Kevin Garrett
Archbishop of Canterbury: Europe is 'riddled with fear, resentment and anger'
Most Germans fear the 'Islamisation' of their country, says poll
Christian boy in Pakistan jailed for blasphemy over Facebook 'like'
Syrian Archbishop: 'A bullet narrowly missed my head'
Could ISIS ever be punished in court?
Methodist exhibition 'demonises' Israel, says former Archbishop George Carey
First openly gay bishop elected by Anglican Church in Toronto

Latest Lebanese Related News published on on September 21-22/16

Salam Meets Lavrov, Says No Progress on Presidency despite 'Major Efforts'
Naharnet/September 21/16/Prime Minister Tammam Salam held talks Wednesday in New York with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. The talks were held in the presence of Foreign Minister and Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil and Lebanon's envoy to the U.N. Nawwaf Salam. After the meeting, Salam told reporters that “major efforts are being exerted regarding the presidency but there is nothing new or tangible that indicates that the issue is nearing a solution,” LBCI television said. “No date has been set until the moment for the meeting of the International Support Group for Lebanon that French President Francois Hollande promised to hold in Paris but he said that can be held before the end of the year,” Salam noted. According to media reports, Hollande told Salam on Tuesday that he would raise the issue of Lebanon's presidential vacuum during all of his upcoming meetings in New York, “especially with the Saudi and Iranian delegations.” Lebanon has been without a president since the term of Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014 and Hizbullah, MP Michel 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. Al-Mustaqbal Movement leader ex-PM Saad 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 initiative followed a Paris meeting with Franjieh. The ex-PM'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 the 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.

Rifi: Mustaqbal Making another Mistake by Adhering to Franjieh's Nomination
Naharnet/September 21/16/Resigned Justice Minister Ashraf Rifi said that the adamant stance of al-Mustaqbal Movement to support Marada chief MP Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency is “correcting a mistake by doing another mistake,” the state-run National News Agency reported on Wednesday. “MP Franjieh and General Michel Aoun are equal in their commitment to Hizbullah's project that is threatening the state and institutions. If any of them was elected, they would secure a cover for the role played by Hizbullah as a tool for Iran in Lebanon and the region. Electing any of them will not be settlement but a surrender,” said Rifi. "Adhering to the election of Franjieh would be correcting a mistake by making another one."“We urge everyone to withdraw their nomination for Franjieh and Aoun and to stop the efforts racing to show the advantages of each,” he remarked.

On Peace Day, UNIFIL Head Lauds Progress in Achieving Peace in South
Naharnet/September 21/16/“The young children playing in the school yards of Tibnin dreaming of a bright future, men and women going to work every day in Bint Jbeil to support their families and the elderly residents of Naqoura enjoying evening chai with their neighbors as the sun sets over Tyre. These are the people we are here to support so that they and their communities can not only survive but also prosper and to lay the foundations of peace for the coming generations.”These were the words of the Head of Mission and Force Commander of UNIFIL, Major-General Michael Beary, while addressing a special ceremony organized to mark the International Day of Peace at the U.N. mission’s headquarters in Naqoura on Wednesday. “I am glad to say that we are making progress,” said Beary, who was joined at the ceremony by representatives of UNIFIL contingents from 40 countries, the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), local government authorities, and political, religious and civil leaders from across south Lebanon. The Irish general added that UNIFIL – established in 1978 to confirm the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, restore international peace and security, and assist the Lebanese government in restoring its effective authority in south Lebanon – continues to extend its support in laying the foundations of a permanent peace for the civilian population of the area. Since the end of the 2006 war between Israel and Hizbullah, UNIFIL’s mandate has changed to one of monitoring the cessation of hostilities, supporting the Lebanese Armed Forces in the Mission’s Area of Operations and extending assistance to help ensure humanitarian access to civilian populations and the voluntary and safe return of displaced persons. “The fact that we are still here in 2016, standing shoulder to shoulder with our LAF and OGL (Observer Group Lebanon) colleagues is an indication of how difficult and elusive peace can be,” said Beary. While paying tribute to 310 peacekeepers who have given their life in the cause of peace in Lebanon, he said, “It is our responsibility to continue the struggle for peace in south Lebanon so that the sacrifice of the fallen will not be in vain.” The International Day of Peace was established in 1981 by the U.N. General Assembly. Two decades later, in 2001, the General Assembly unanimously voted to designate the Day as a period of non-violence and ceasefire. Also on Wednesday, a group of 17 schoolchildren from south Lebanon painted murals on the theme of peace on the walls of the main UNIFIL base in Naqoura.

Berri on Presidency: Let No One Use My Stance as an Excuse
Naharnet/September 21/16/Speaker Nabih Berri on Wednesday called on all parties not to use his stance as an “excuse” to justify their own stances regarding the stalled presidential vote. “Let no one use my stance as an excuse, seeing as my stance involves paving the way without getting into the issue of the favorite candidate,” MPs quoted Berri as saying during his weekly meeting with lawmakers. “When the country is in danger, we must not resort to ambiguities and mazes and we must embark on addressing our crises without any clamor or uproar,” Berri added. He also reiterated that “political and national understandings would pave the way for electing a president, not the exchange of blame.”Some parties have accused al-Mustaqbal Movement of taking advantage of the fact that Berri has not endorsed MP Michel Aoun for the presidency to justify its own rejection of the presidential bid of the Free Patriotic Movement founder. 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. Al-Mustaqbal Movement leader ex-PM Saad 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 the 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.

Bonne Briefs Mashnouq on Paris Preparations for Hosting Lebanon Meeting
Naharnet/September 21/16/French Ambassador to Lebanon Emmanuel Bonne briefed Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq on Wednesday on his country's preparations for hosting a meeting for the International Support Group for Lebanon, state-run National News Agency reported. During the talks, Bonne stressed the importance of “electing a new president for the regularization of the political life and the work of state institutions in Lebanon in a manner that would allow the international community to help Lebanon address its economic crises and the Syrian refugee crisis,” NNA said. The Bonne-Mashnouq meeting comes a day after a New York meeting between French President Francois Hollande and Prime Minister Tammam Salam. Hollande told Salam during their meeting that Paris will maintain its contacts with all parties to press for the election of a president in Lebanon, media reports said. The French president also noted that he will raise the issue of Lebanon's presidential vacuum during all of his upcoming meetings in New York, “especially with the Saudi and Iranian delegations,” Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3) said. Hollande also revealed that France is preparing for a Paris meeting for the International Support Group for Lebanon that will be held in November in order to “take the necessary measures to help Lebanon at all levels.” Lebanon has been without a president since the term of Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014 and Hizbullah, MP Michel 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. Al-Mustaqbal Movement leader ex-PM Saad 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 initiative followed a Paris meeting with Franjieh. The ex-PM'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 the 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.

U.S. Special Operations Commander Visits Lebanon
Naharnet/September 21/16/Major General Darsie Rogers, Commander for Special Operations Command-Central Command will be visiting Lebanon September 21-23 to observe U.S. forces partnering with Lebanese Armed Forces and to meet with Lebanese military leaders, the U.S. Embassy said on Wednesday. “Rogers' visit highlights the ongoing professional relationship between U.S. forces and the Lebanese Armed Forces and especially the strong degree of training cooperation between the two countries,” the embassy added. Observing a combined training event featuring Lebanese special forces, Rogers said: "Our partnership with forces here in Roumieh serves as a shining example of the professionalism, dedication and competence of the Lebanese Armed Forces." “The visit underscores the United States' continuing support for the LAF and serves as a clear signal of U.S. commitment to the security of Lebanon,” the embassy said

Shooting and Theft Incidents in Bekaa Overnight
Naharnet/September 21/16/Unknown assailants opened gunfire at two men in the Bekaa town of Majdal Anjar at dawn, the National News Agency reported on Wednesday. The victims, R.N. and M.A.H. were driving through the town in a Hyundai when they went under fire by unknown assailants, NNA said. The men were admitted to the hospital. In another incident in Majdal Anjar, a man was subject to theft at gunpoint. Aa. M.H. was driving his Rapid vehicle when the assailants forced him to stop. They kidnapped and robbed him and later set him free, reported NNA.

Adwan: Electing Aoun or Stipulating New Election Law Avert Escalation
Naharnet/September 21/16/Lebanese Forces deputy chief MP George Adwan stated that the party will be compelled to escalate measures shall one of its two plans that include the election of MP Michel Aoun as president or stipulating a new parliamentary election law, fail to be achieved, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Wednesday. The LF believes that avoiding escalation can be achieved through two approaches: the election of founder of the Free Patriotic Movement Aoun as head of state, or stipulating a new law for the parliamentary elections. The LF is operating based on a drawn plan to achieve these two goals through its relations with allies and the basic political parties, said the daily. “We are communicating with al-Mustaqbal Movement and are awaiting for the return of ex-PM Saad Hariri to conclude his decision as for the election of Aoun as president. However, shall he insist on nominating (Marada Movement chief Suleiman) Franjieh for the post, then we will resort to plan B and that is a new election law,” Adwan told the daily in an interview. “We are trying to persuade Mustaqbal and the Progressive Socialist Party of the hybrid election law, but if we fail to approve a new one by October 13, when the ordinary parliament session is due to convene, then we will have no choice but escalation, which we do not wish for,” added the MP. He remarked that shall the LF choose to step up measures, “it will examine the step accurately, because as much as we suffer from a crisis in partnership in relation to the electoral law, we consider ourselves as bearers of national choices and coexistence. “We ally ourselves with Mustaqbal and the PSP, therefore our escalation will not bear sectarian issues mainly that the election law has become a national requirement for all people,” he added. “It is true that our basic demand is proper Christian representation but we will place it in a national framework because we are keen on our national interest,” Adwan concluded.

Salam meets his Australian counterpart, Russian Foreign Minister
Wed 21 Sep 2016/NNA - PM Tammam Salam on Wednesday received at the UN headquarters in New York his Australian counterpart Malcolm Turnbull and discussed with him the general situation, in presence of Foreign Affairs Minister, Gibran Bassil. Separately, Premier Salam received Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, in presence of Minister Bassil.

Raad: We must protect our country as we are in struggle with enemy
Wed 21 Sep 2016/NNA - Head of Loyalty to Resistance Bloc, Mohammad Raad, said that the country should be protected and defended as the struggle with the enemy was ongoing. MP Raad's stance came Wednesday in the context of an honorary ceremony for students who passed official exams in Kfarfila in Iklim Toufah. Raad criticized the Arab countries directing their attack against Iran instead of Israel, considering such direction as "a big flaw in the history of the Islamic and Arab region."He addressed Lebanese students to rely on themselves to reach sovereignty and national dignity.

Interior and Municipalities Minister, Nouhad Machnouk receives Ambassadors of France, Egypt, and UN's Lazarini
Wed 21 Sep 2016/NNA - Interior and Municipalities Minister, Nouhad Machnouk, received on Wednesday Egyptian Ambassador to Lebanon, Nazih Najjari, with whom he discussed the latest developments in Lebanon and the region. In the wake of the meeting, Najjari stressed the importance of maintaining stability in Lebanon, especially in light of the regional challenges that have been rocking the region. In turn, Mashnouk said that Lebanon needed effective regional and Arab support to help the country cope with the prevailing difficulties. Later during the day, Mashnouk had an audience with France's Ambassador to Lebanon, Emmanuel Bonne, with whom he discussed the ramifications of presidential void and disruption of constitutional institutions on the Lebanese economy, let alone the security threats. For his part, Ambassador Bonne stressed the importance of electing a new president to revive the political and institutional work which would enable the international community to help Lebanon overcome its economic crisis. Bonne also briefed Machnouk on the preparations underway for the meeting of the international support group for Lebanon in Paris before the end of 2016. Mashnouk finally met with the Deputy Special Coordinator of the United Nations in Lebanon, Philippe Lazarini, with whom he discussed the situation of Syrian refugees in Lebanon and the role of the Interior Ministry in this regard.

On International Peace Day, UNIFIL Head lauds progress in achieving peace in South Lebanon
Wed 21 Sep 2016/NNA - "The young children playing in the school yards of Tibnin dreaming of a bright future, men and women going to work every day in Bint Jbeil to support their families and the elderly residents of Naqoura enjoying evening chai with their neighbours as the sun sets over Tyre. These are the people we are here to support so that they and their communities can not only survive but also prosper and to lay the foundations of peace for the coming generations."These were the words of the Head of Mission and Force Commander of UNIFIL, Major-General Michael Beary, while addressing a special ceremony organized to mark the International Day of Peace at the UN mission's headquarters in Naqoura today. "I am glad to say that we are making progress," said Maj-Gen Beary, who was joined at the ceremony by representatives of UNIFIL contingents from 40 countries, the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), local government authorities, and political, religious and civil leaders from across south Lebanon. The Irish General added that UNIFIL - established in 1978 to confirm the Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, restore international peace and security, and assist the Lebanese Government in restoring its effective authority in south Lebanon - continues to extend its support in laying the foundations of a permanent peace for the civilian population of the area.Since 2006 UNIFIL's mandate has changed to one of monitoring the cessation of hostilities, supporting the Lebanese Armed Forces in the Mission's Area of Operations and extending assistance to help ensure humanitarian access to civilian populations and the voluntary and safe return of displaced persons. "The fact that we are still here in 2016, standing shoulder to shoulder with our LAF and OGL (Observer Group Lebanon) colleagues is an indication of how difficult and elusive peace can be," said Maj-Gen Beary. While paying tribute to 310 peacekeepers who have given their life in the cause of peace in Lebanon, he said, "It is our responsibility to continue the struggle for peace in south Lebanon so that the sacrifice of the fallen will not be in vain." The International Day of Peace was established in 1981 by the UN General Assembly. Two decades later, in 2001, the General Assembly unanimously voted to designate the Day as a period of non-violence and ceasefire. Also today, a group of 17 schoolchildren from south Lebanon painted murals on the theme of peace on the walls of the main UNIFIL base in Naqoura.
 

Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on on September 21-22/16

Some 60 Canada schools, universities evacuated over threat
Wed 21 Sep 2016/NNA - Some 60 schools and universities in eastern Canada were evacuated Wednesday over a series of threats, including an anonymous bomb threat received by police. "Police agencies and school administration are evacuating all Prince Edward Island schools due to a potential threat," the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a statement. Students at all primary and secondary schools across the Atlantic island province were taken to designated safe locations, federal police said, with parents anxiously awaiting information about where to pick up their children. In Nova Scotia meanwhile police were probing an anonymous bomb threat against three university campuses in the province. The campuses of Nova Scotia Community College in Halifax and in Sydney were shuttered after local police received the threat, at about 7:50 a.m. local time. Cape Breton University was also evacuated.--AFP

Coptic Bishop in Egypt: “Christians Are Original Inhabitants of the Nation”
Raymond Ibrahim/Coptic Solidarity/September 21, 2016/Coptic Christian Bishop Daniel met with the Swiss Minister of exterior at the St. Mark Cathedral in Cairo, the seat of the Coptic Orthodox Church, during the minister’s recent visit. The bishop said that, formally, the Church enjoys good relations with the state and Al Azhar, which represents Islam in Egypt, but less formally, on the ground, “there is still a need for society to be aware of the rights of citizenship,” regardless of religion. He also pointed out something that many, including Western dignitaries, are often unaware of: “The Christians are the original inhabitants of the nation and not foreign imports…. One of the problems of the East is that some are not good at dialogue, but rather try to infringe on the other who is different either in religion, gender, or otherwise.”

Migrant boat carrying 600 capsizes off Egypt, at least 29 dead
Reuters, CairoWednesday, 21 September 2016/A boat carrying around 600 people capsized off Egypt's coast, killing at least 29, officials said on Wednesday, in the latest disaster to befall migrants attempting to make the crossing to Europe. The boat sank in the Mediterranean Sea off Burg Rashid, a village in the northern Beheira province. Of the 29 bodies found so far, 18 were men, 10 were women and one was a child, local officials said. "Initial information indicates that the boat sank because it was carrying more people than its limit. The boat tilted and the migrants fell into the water," a senior security official in Beheira told Reuters. Rescue workers have so far saved 150 people, officials said. The boat was carrying Egyptian, Syrian, and African migrants, they added. It was not immediately clear where the boat was headed, though officials said they believed it was going to Italy. More and more people have been trying to cross to Italy from the African coastline over the summer months, particularly from Libya, where people-traffickers operate with relative impunity, but also from Egypt. Some 320 migrants and refugees drowned off the Greek island of Crete in June. Migrants who survived told authorities their boat set sail from Egypt
Some 206,400 migrants and refugees have crossed the Mediterranean this year, according to the International Organization for Migration. More than 2,800 deaths were recorded between January and June, versus 1,838 during the same period last year. World leaders, including Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, gathered in New York this week at the United Nations General Assembly to discuss the migrant crisis.

Iran parades new arms, tells US not to meddle in Gulf
By Babak Dehghanpisheh Reuters, BeirutWednesday, 21 September 2016/Iran marked the anniversary of its 1980 invasion by Iraq by showing off its latest ships and missiles and telling the United States not to meddle in the Gulf. At a parade in Tehran on Wednesday, shown on state TV, the military displayed long-range missiles, tanks, and the Russian-supplied S-300 surface-to-air missile defense system. At the port of Bandar Abbas on the Gulf, the navy showed off 500 vessels, as well as submarines and helicopters, at a time of high tension with the United States in the strategic waterway.
US officials say there have been more than 30 close encounters between US and Iranian vessels in the Gulf so far this year, over twice as many as in the same period of 2015. In front of the portraits of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, and late revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini, left,
On Sept. 4, a US Navy coastal patrol ship changed course after an Iranian Revolutionary Guard fast-attack craft came within 100 yards (90 meters) of it in the central Gulf, at least the fourth such incident in less than a month, US Defense Department officials said.
“We tell the Americans that it’s better that the capital and wealth of the American people should not be wasted on their inappropriate and detrimental presence in the Persian Gulf,” said Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The Tasnim news site quoted him as saying: “If they want to extend their reach and engage in adventurism they should go to the Bay of Pigs” - a reference to the location of a botched US attempt to overthrow Cuban leader Fidel Castro in 1961. In Tehran, the Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, Major General Mohammad Hossein Baqeri, declared that Iran wanted peace.
‘Brothers in faith’
But he said Iran’s lessons in the 1980-88 war against Iraq now served as a guide for “our brothers in faith” in Syria, Palestine, Lebanon, Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen and Bahrain, countries where Iran has political, religious or military allies. Among the weapons displayed was the new long-range “Zolfaqar” ballistic missile, named after a legendary sword said to have given by the Prophet Mohammad to Imam Ali. It has “a cluster warhead capable of hitting targets spread over the ground,” according to Tasnim. A banner on the side of a truck carrying the new missile bore a threat to Iran’s arch-foe Israel: “If the leaders of the Zionist regime make a mistake then the Islamic Republic will turn Tel Aviv and Haifa to dust.”The Russian-supplied missile defense system on show in Tehran was deployed last month around Iran’s underground uranium enrichment facility at Fordow. Enrichment at the site, around 100 km (60 miles) south of Tehran, has stopped since the implementation in January of Iran’s agreement with world powers to curb its nuclear program in exchange for an easing of sanctions. Also on display was the Qadr H missile, which has a range of 2,000 km, according to state TV. Iran’s ballistic missile program has been criticized by the West, and the US Treasury imposed sanctions on two Iranian companies in March because of their alleged ties to it.

Russia to send flagship aircraft carrier to Syria coast
AFP, Moscow Wednesday, 21 September 2016/Russia’s defense minister said on Wednesday that Moscow was dispatching its flagship aircraft carrier to bolster its forces in the eastern Mediterranean off Syria. The Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier would be sent to join Russia’s current naval deployment there, minister Sergei Shoigu said during a televised meeting. “Currently the Russian naval deployment to the east Mediterranean consists of no less than six battleships and three or four support vessels,” he said. “In order to bolster the military capabilities of the group we plan to add the Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier to the group,” Shoigu said, without specifying a timeframe.
Bombing campaign
Russia has been flying a bombing campaign in Syria for the past year in support of Bashar al-Assad and has deployed a naval contingent to back up its operation. This is the first time that the Soviet-era Kuznetsov – Russia’s only aircraft carrier that is part of its Northern fleet based in Murmansk -- will join the Russian deployment after undergoing a refurbishment. Russia has a base in government-controlled Syrian territory from which it has flown most of its bombing raids in the country. It has flown long-range bombing raids from bases in Russia and fired cruise missiles from ships in the Caspian Sea and a submarine in the Mediterranean.

Iraqi forces close in on town south of Mosul
Reuters, Tikrit, IraqWednesday, 21 September 2016/Iraq’s military closed in on Wednesday on the center of Shirqat, a northern town held by ISIS seen as a stepping stone in the campaign to recapture the extremists’ stronghold of Mosul. The army, backed by local police and Sunni Muslim tribal fighters, have taken 12 nearby villages since launching the operation on Tuesday morning, said Ali Dawdah, the mayor of Shirqat currently based in Erbil. With air support from a US-led coalition, the troops are now less than 3 km (2 miles) from the town center, according to Dawdah, who said he expected the campaign to be concluded within 48 hours. Five security personnel and one civilian have been killed in the battle for Shirqat, where they face hazards including roadside bombs, mortars and snipers, said the mayor and a source in the Salahuddin Operations Command which oversees military operations in the area. Shirqat, on the Tigris river 100 km south of Mosul, has been surrounded by Iraqi troops and Iranian-backed Shi’ite Muslim militias allied to the government but so far the militias have not participated in the operation. Tens of thousands of civilians are thought to be trapped in Shirqat and surrounding villages, which have been under ISIS control since the group seized a third of Iraqi territory in 2014. Officials have warned for months of a humanitarian disaster inside, where residents living under ISIS’s harsh rule say food supplies have dwindled and prices soared. There has not been a large-scale displacement of civilians so far. Iraqi authorities hope the course of the battle will allow most residents to stay at home to avoid creating a humanitarian crisis as forces move towards Mosul. Residents of Shukran and Houri villages told Reuters by phone they had begun waving white flags above their houses on Tuesday evening as the military advanced, but ISIS punished them with 50 lashes each. The behavior of the fighters and the treatment of Shirqat’s residents will be closely watched by the million or so Sunni residents of Mosul, who have a historic mistrust of the forces of successive Shi’ite-led governments in Baghdad.US and Iraqi officials have said the push on Mosul could begin in October, though there are concerns that not enough planning has been done for how to manage Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city, if and when ISIS is kicked out.

US ‘in a parallel universe’ over Syria
By Associated Press, United Nations Wednesday, 21 September 2016/The United States and Russia blamed each other for Syria’s failing ceasefire Wednesday, illustrating why a fractured UN Security Council has been unable for more than five years to do anything to stop the Arab country’s civil war.
In a public session originally envisioned to enshrine Syria’s Sept. 9 truce, world powers were left to rue the possibility of the conflict entering an even darker phase after a series of attacks on humanitarian workers. Washington, Moscow and the council’s other nations all sought to revive the US-Russian ceasefire deal, but seemed stuck on fundamental differences old and new: Who bears ultimate responsibility for the war and whose actions over the last days scuttled perhaps the best opportunity for peace? “Supposedly we all want the same goal. I’ve heard that again and again,” a clearly angry US Secretary of State John Kerry told the council, referencing oft-repeated international objectives of a united, secular and democratic Syria. “But we are proving woefully inadequate in ... making that happen.”Kerry outlined a litany of US complaints against Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government and its chief backer, Russia. He recited Moscow’s changing narrative over a deadly attack this week on an aid convoy that has included everything from claims of a justifiable counterterror strike to vehicles spontaneously combusting.
I felt a little bit like we’re in a parallel universe here
Kerry after listing to Lavrov speak
“This is not a joke,” Kerry said, sharply criticizing those who engage in “word games” to dodge responsibility over questions of “war and peace, life and death.”Kerry offered one concrete suggestion to revive diplomatic hopes. Focused on protecting key aid routes in northern Syria, it was unclear if Russia and Syria would agree. “To restore credibility, we must immediately ground all aircraft flying in those key areas in order to de-escalate the situation and give a chance for humanitarian assistance to flow unimpeded,” he said. The top American diplomat spoke just after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov delivered his own set of barbs, underscoring the breakdown in trust in the 12 days since he and Kerry clinched a ceasefire agreement and a potential US-Russian military partnership against ISIS and al-Qaeda. The former Cold War foes and much of the international community hailed the outcome, only to watch it unravel amid an upsurge in violence that even included an accidental US strike that killed more than 60 Syrian soldiers. Unlike Kerry, who stressed the importance of Assad’s government ending military operations against rebels and allowing in unfettered aid, Lavrov said the US had the biggest responsibility.
“The key priority is to separate the opposition forces from the terrorists,” Lavrov said. Responding to the wide criticism of the convoy airstrike, which American officials are blaming on Russia, Lavrov cited various possible explanations. Twenty civilians were killed when the Syrian Red Crescent convoy was struck. Lavrov was more direct in laying out what he presented as a series off truce violations by US-backed rebels groups near the northern city of Aleppo. And he declared Syria’s conflict, as well as that of Iraq, Libya and other instable nations, the “direct consequence” of foreign military interventions in the region. It was a not-so-subtle finger pointed at Washington. Larvov and Kerry’s speeches laid bare their widely divergent views of a war that has killed up to a half-million people, contributed to Europe's worst refugee crisis since World War II and allowed ISIS to emerge as a global terror threat. At one point, Kerry said listening to his Russian counterpart was like hearing about a “parallel universe.”“I felt a little bit like we’re in a parallel universe here,” said Kerry after listing to Lavrov speak. On Tuesday, the two diplomats met with more than a dozen Arab and European foreign ministers, hoping to hold onto what might be salvageable from a week of relative calm in Syria. No one spoke of any progress, beyond a decision to hold follow-up discussions later this week. Lavrov on Wednesday mentioned the possibility of a three-day period of “silence” being announced. “We are at a make or break moment,” UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said, opening the session. His peace envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, described his long-delayed plans for a multi-step Syrian peace process and transition that appeared, even by his own admission, untethered to reality on the ground. Wednesday’s latest violence included an airstrike in the north that killed five medical staff, according to a relief organization.“I know, it looks like a dream,” de Mistura said.

Four medics killed in strike on clinic in Syria’s Aleppo
AFPWednesday, 21 September 2016 /Four medics were killed and a nurse critically wounded when an air strike hit a clinic in a village near Syria’s second city Aleppo late Tuesday, the aid group that supports it said. The four staff of the Union of Syrian Medical Relief Organisations (UOSSM) were in two ambulances that had been called to the clinic to take some patients for more specialised treatment, the group said. The clinic in the village of Khan Tuman was completely levelled in the 11:00 pm (2000 GMT) strike and more dead were feared to be buried under the rubble, the group added. “The building has three floors, including a basement. Because of the intensity of the bombardment, the three storeys collapsed and are completely destroyed,” the groups’ hospitals and trauma director for the area, Ahmed Dbais, said in a statement. “We don’t yet know exactly how many dead there are.” Khan Tuman is near Orum al-Kubrah, the town where an attack on aid trucks and a warehouse killed around 20 civilians on Monday, triggering a war of words between major powers after Washington accused Moscow of responsibility. According to the World Heath Organization, Syria is the most dangerous country in the world for health professionals with 135 strikes on clinics and hospitals last year. The head of UOSSM France, Dr Ziad Alissa, condemned the “unacceptable” attack on the group’s clinic and staff. “Deliberately targeting humanitarian workers and medical professionals is a clear violation of international humanitarian law,” he said. “We appeal to the international community to act swiftly to put a stop to these atrocities. Too many lives have been lost.”The UOSSM is a medical aid group originally founded by Syrian expatriates but now international.

No plan to use Turkish infantry in Syria operations: minister
Reuters, AnkaraWednesday, 21 September 2016/Turkey has no plans to use Turkish infantry in its military operations in northern Syria targeting ISIS and Kurdish fighters, Defence Minister Fikri Isik told reporters on Wednesday.He said that if any operation was launched to take control of the ISIS -held town of al-Bab, further south from the current area of operations, this would be done with forces from the Free Syrian Army.

Iraqi forces close in on town south of Mosul
Reuters, Tikrit, IraqWednesday, 21 September 2016/Iraq’s military closed in on Wednesday on the center of Shirqat, a northern town held by ISIS seen as a stepping stone in the campaign to recapture the extremists’ stronghold of Mosul. The army, backed by local police and Sunni Muslim tribal fighters, have taken 12 nearby villages since launching the operation on Tuesday morning, said Ali Dawdah, the mayor of Shirqat currently based in Erbil. With air support from a US-led coalition, the troops are now less than 3 km (2 miles) from the town center, according to Dawdah, who said he expected the campaign to be concluded within 48 hours. Five security personnel and one civilian have been killed in the battle for Shirqat, where they face hazards including roadside bombs, mortars and snipers, said the mayor and a source in the Salahuddin Operations Command which oversees military operations in the area. Shirqat, on the Tigris river 100 km south of Mosul, has been surrounded by Iraqi troops and Iranian-backed Shi’ite Muslim militias allied to the government but so far the militias have not participated in the operation. Tens of thousands of civilians are thought to be trapped in Shirqat and surrounding villages, which have been under ISIS control since the group seized a third of Iraqi territory in 2014. Officials have warned for months of a humanitarian disaster inside, where residents living under ISIS’s harsh rule say food supplies have dwindled and prices soared. There has not been a large-scale displacement of civilians so far. Iraqi authorities hope the course of the battle will allow most residents to stay at home to avoid creating a humanitarian crisis as forces move towards Mosul. Residents of Shukran and Houri villages told Reuters by phone they had begun waving white flags above their houses on Tuesday evening as the military advanced, but ISIS punished them with 50 lashes each. The behavior of the fighters and the treatment of Shirqat’s residents will be closely watched by the million or so Sunni residents of Mosul, who have a historic mistrust of the forces of successive Shi’ite-led governments in Baghdad. US and Iraqi officials have said the push on Mosul could begin in October, though there are concerns that not enough planning has been done for how to manage Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city, if and when ISIS is kicked out.

Iraqi forces ready by ‘early October’ for Mosul assault: top US officer
AFP, Washington Wednesday, 21 September 2016 /Iraqi security forces will be ready by next month for an assault on the Islamic State stronghold of Mosul, the top general in the US military said Wednesday. “We assess today that the Iraqis will have in early October all the forces marshaled, trained, fielded, equipped that are necessary for operations in Mosul,” General Joe Dunford, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at a military event in Washington. “Timing of that operation now is really just a function of a political decision by Prime Minister (Haider al-)Abadi.”Iraqi forces have been moving northwards from Baghdad for almost two years, gradually retaking areas over which ISIS declared its “caliphate” in June 2014. Kurdish peshmerga forces to the north of Mosul will also join the assault. The United States is leading an international air campaign that has been pounding ISIS targets across Iraq and Syria. Though the Pentagon does not plan on directly sending American troops into combat, it has thousands of soldiers in Iraq who are training and arming Iraqi partners. “We will be in a position to provide whatever support, whatever reinforcement, those forces need in order to be successful,” Dunford said. ISIS seized Mosul, Iraq’s cosmopolitan and religiously mixed second city, in a lightning offensive through the north and west of the country. Mosul had an estimated population of around two million before ISIS took it over. Accurate numbers for the population remaining in the city are hard to come by but the United Nations and other officials have said up to one million civilians may still be living under ISIS rule in the Mosul area.
The Pentagon estimates 3,000 to 4,500 IS fighters are in Mosul.

Iraqi parliament votes to sack finance minister
By Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Wednesday, 21 September 2016/The Iraqi parliament has voted on Wednesday to sack Finance Minister Hoshyar Zebari after a grilling session in late Agust, questioning him about graft, Al Arabiya New Channel’s correspondent reported. In Iraq’s 328-seat parliament, 158 voted in favor of sacking Zebari, who is also deputy prime minister. Zebari assumed office as foreign minister in October 2014 after spending 11 years as Iraq’s foreign minister. The powerful Iraqi Kurdish politician sacking comes after the removal of the country’s Defense Minister Khalid Al-Obeidi in late August after grilling the latter over corrupt arms deal. Since assuming office in September 2014, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi pressed for reforms but political squabbling and division obstructed his path to pursue anti-corruption steps.

Saudi ‘suffered’ from terrorism before Sept. 11
By Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Wednesday, 21 September 2016/Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef said on Wednesday that the kingdom was “one of the first” countries that suffered from terrorism, way before the deadly Sept. 11 attack in New York in 2001. “Saudi Arabia was one of the first countries that suffered from terrorism,” Crown Prince Mohammed told the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. The crown prince said in 1992, Saudi Arabia had confronted 100 terrorism operations, including 18 terrorist attacks “implemented by elements linked to regional countries,” without giving any names. He said “before Sep. 11, Saudi Arabia had signed agreements with other Arab states to fight terrorism,” and until now it is still “waging an unrelenting war terrorist groups.” He added: “[Saudi] is now part of 12 international agreements to fight terrorism,” and it heads in “partnership” with the United States and Italy a group combating ISIS funding. To combat radicalism, Saudi Arabia “has launched Mohammed bin Nayef Counseling and Care Center and its top clerics have been issuing religious edicts prohibiting terrorism or joining terror groups.” Saudi Arabia “was one of the first countries that denounced September 11,” attacks which killed almost 3,000 people. “The security apparatus in Saudi Arabia has foiled 268 terrorist operations, including operations against friendly states such as United States,” he said. He said Saudi was “puzzled”, alongside the international community, over the Congress passing a bill that will allow Sept. 11 families to sue Riyadh since the majority of the 18 hijackers behind the 2001 tragic attack were Saudis. As the White House is trying to press on Congress not to approve the bill, US President Barack Obama has till Sept. 23 to veto the law if passed. The crown prince reiterated the Saudi stance that if the law is passed it will violate international law. Instead, he said Al-Qaeda – group behind Sept. 11 – had long attempted to sabotage US-Saudi relations, and “we should not allow it to succeed” in fulfilling its objective. He said combating terrorism should be a “joint international responsibility…we call for cooperation as per the international law and principles on which the UN was built, which equates the sovereignty of all nations.”
Islamic military alliance
The crown prince also called on the international community to cooperate with the 40-member Islamic Military Alliance to Fight Terrorism (IMAFT), which was formed in late 2015.He also urged the UN to include IMAFT under its “umbrella” after Saudi Arabia funneled $110 million into the alliance to beef it up.
On Iran
The crown prince also urged Iran to exercise a ‘Good Neighbor policy’ and not interfere in the internal affairs of regional countries. He also accused Iran of not offering “enough protection as per international agreements” after protesters stormed both the Saudi embassy in Tehran and its consulate in Mashhad in January this year. The storming of the Saudi embassy and consulate has led Riyadh to sever ties with Tehran soon after the incidents. Meanwhile, the crown prince also stressed that the Middle East should be free of nuclear arms and Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs), and urged for launching an international conference to make this objective a reality in a clear message to Israel, which observers speculate has a 200-warhead stockpile. He also denounced the Israeli aggression on Palestinians and urged for a two-state solution with Jerusalem being the capital of Palestine.
He urged a political solution for Syria and the implementation of Geneva I accord, which stipulates a transitional government. In Yemen, he reiterated the Saudi position over UN resolution 2216 requiring the Iran-backed Houthis militias and their allies to withdraw from areas they occupied in 2014.
He also said the Houthis continue to attack Saudi borders, using ballistic missiles. In a separate remark, the crown prince rejected the misuse of freedom of expression against religions.

Sisi says ‘there can be no return to dictatorship in Egypt’
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English, Wednesday, 21 September 2016/President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi responded to reports of human rights abuses in Egypt and stressed that “there can be no return to dictatorship” in the country, state-run news site Ahram Online reported on Tuesday. In an interview with a US-based TV channel, Sisi stated that that media outlets have not given an accurate representation of the human rights situation and the state of NGOs in the country. The president - currently in New York to attend the 71st United Nations General Assembly – said that Egyptian media “says what it wants as there are no restrictions and there is no dictatorship in Egypt.”
Law to regulate NGOs
Yet he added that Egypt’s House of Representatives is currently discussing a law to regulate NGOs, as his government aims to achieve security and stability due to what he describes as “a faction” in Egypt that resorts to violence against the state. However, earlier this week an Egyptian court upheld an administrative order to freeze the assets of five rights activists over accusations of receiving foreign funding “with the aim of destabilizing the country” following the 2011 uprising. The decision, however, sparked an international outcry, with Amnesty International describing the move as a “shameless ploy to silence human rights activism.”

Egypt’s Sisi urges Israel to make history with peace
AFP, United NationsWednesday, 21 September 2016/Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Tuesday urged Israel to “write a bright page” in Middle East history and make peace with the Palestinians. Speaking at the United Nations, Sisi said the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was at “the core of regional instability” and called for a settlement based on a two-state solution leading to a Palestinian state. “Permit me to deviate from the written statement to address an appeal to the Israeli leadership and Israeli people,” Sisi told the UN General Assembly. READ ALSO: Egypt at the UN: Can Sisi restore security, economic faith? “We have a real opportunity to write a bright page in the history of our region, to move toward peace,” he said. The first Arab country to make peace with Israel, Egypt has stepped up its diplomacy over recent months to try to re-start Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations. The peace process has been comatose since the collapse of a US-led initiative in April 2014.

UAE solider dies after wounds sustained in Yemen
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Wednesday, 21 September 2016/Saeed Anbar Juma al-Falasi, an Emirati solider, has died from wounds he sustained in a Yemen operation, the state news agency (WAM) reported the UAE’s Armed Forces as saying on Tuesday. Falasi, who was being treated at a hospital in France, was the latest UAE solider killed during the Saudi-led Arab Coalition’s efforts in Yemen, aimed at restoring legitimacy of the southern Arabian Peninsula country’s internationally recognized movement of President Abedrabu Mansour Hadi. The General Command of the Armed Forces offered its deepest condolences to his family but did not any disclose any further detail of where and how Falasi died during the Yemen operation. The local 7DAYS daily said Falasi’s death brings the total number of UAE soldiers killed in Yemen up to 99.

Rival accuses Libya government’s forces over deadly airstrike
AFP, Tripoli Wednesday, 21 September 2016/A rival Libyan administration on Wednesday accused forces allied with the country’s unity government of carrying out an air strike that killed seven civilians. Women and children were among those killed in the raid on Tuesday in Sokna, 480 kilometers (300 miles) southeast of Tripoli, the parallel administration said in a statement on its website. The strike was carried out by “aircraft that took off from an air base in Misrata belonging to illegal militias and terrorist groups allied with them,” it said, referring to forces loyal to the UN-backed unity government.

Palestinian local polls postponed, no new date
AFP, Ramallah, Palestinian TerritoriesWednesday, 21 September 2016/Palestinian municipal polls scheduled for October 8 were postponed on Wednesday after a court delayed a ruling on whether to hold the first vote since 2006 to include both Fatah and Hamas. The Palestinian high court in the Fatah-led West Bank put off its ruling until October 3, only five days before the scheduled date for the elections. Two weeks of campaigning are usually allotted for Palestinian elections and had been set to begin on Friday. In response, the electoral commission confirmed that the October 8 date “is no longer applicable.” It set no new date. On September 8, the court suspended the elections following disputes between the rival Fatah and Hamas movements over candidate lists. It had left open the possibility that they could be re-scheduled for the same date if the dispute was resolved, but Wednesday's announcement by the electoral commission was widely anticipated. Islamist movement Hamas, which runs the Gaza Strip, boycotted the last Palestinian municipal elections in 2012, but it was due to participate this year. Fatah and Hamas have not contested an election since 2006 parliamentary polls, which Hamas won -- sparking a conflict that led to near civil war in Gaza the following year. This year's vote was planned with 81-year-old president Mahmud Abbas under heavy political pressure as opinion polls have suggested most Palestinians would like him to step down. There has been no Palestinian presidential election since 2005 and Abbas has remained in office despite the expiry of his term. Some analysts saw Abbas's decision to call the elections as a failed gambit since he may have been hoping Hamas would repeat its 2012 boycott. Abbas is currently in New York ahead of his UN General Assembly address on Thursday. Despite repeated reconciliation attempts, Hamas and Fatah have failed to bridge their differences and form a unified administration for the Palestinian territories. The October vote was to choose municipal councils in some 416 cities and towns in Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank. It is seen by some analysts as a test of whether Hamas and Fatah can take a significant step towards reconciliation.

Israeli embassy attacker in Ankara shot and wounded by local guard
AFP, AnkaraWednesday, 21 September 2016/An attacker wielding a knife tried to storm the Israeli embassy in the Turkish capital Ankara on Wednesday but was shot before reaching the building, Turkish reports and Israeli officials said. Turkey’s NTV television said the attacker tried to enter the well-defended embassy but was “neutralized” by being shot in the leg. Employees of the embassy took refuge in a shelter, it added. Israel’s foreign ministry said the assailant tried to attack the Israeli embassy but was shot before reaching the building. “The team members are unharmed. The assailant was injured before he reached the building,” a ministry statement said. The health condition of the attacker was not made clear. It was also not clear if the person had been shot by Turkish security forces or embassy guards. Large numbers of police vehicles were dispatched to the scene and the road closed on which the building is located, an AFP correspondent said. Witnesses said they heard several shots fired. CNN-Turk television said a suspicious package was also being investigated in front of the embassy.

Israeli guards shoot Palestinian who ‘did not stop at crossing’
AFP, BeirutWednesday, 21 September 2016/Israeli guards fearful of an attack shot and wounded a Palestinian on Wednesday after she did not stop at a crossing, officials said, the latest incident in an upsurge of violence. The Palestinian’s intentions were not immediately clear and details were still emerging of the incident. The incident occurred at a checkpoint near the Israeli settlement of Alfei Menashe and the Palestinian town of Qalqilya in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinian health ministry described her as a “girl,” but had no further details on her identity. It said she had been shot and described her wounds as moderate. Palestinian media described her as a teenager. The Israeli defense ministry said she had approached the crossing by foot while carrying a bag. “Crossing security officials called to her to stop and fired warning shots into the air,” it said in a statement. “She continued toward the crossing and security officials fired warning shots toward the ground in order to stop her.” It provided no further details. A ministry spokeswoman declined to comment further, including on whether any weapons were discovered.

White House reiterates Obama’s will veto 9/11 families bill
ReutersWednesday, 21 September 2016/The White House said on Tuesday it is trying to persuade Congress not to press ahead with a bill that would allow survivors and families of victims of the Sept. 11 attacks to sue the government of Saudi Arabia for damages, in an apparent effort to avoid having a presidential veto overridden. White House spokesman Josh Earnest, speaking during a press briefing in New York, repeated a promise that President Barack Obama would veto the bill, which has been passed by both houses of Congress, but said there was a push to change legislators’ minds about the law. “White House officials and other senior officials on the president’s national security team have engaged members of Congress and their staffs in both parties in both houses,” Earnest said.
The Senate sent the bill to Obama last week, giving him a 10-day window, which ends on Sept. 23, to veto the measure. “We’re going to continue that engagement up to and through the president vetoing this legislation,” Earnest said. The bill could lead to US diplomats, service members and companies being taken to court all over the world because it would erode the principle of sovereign immunity, he said.

France's Chirac Still in Hospital, Family Says after Death Rumors
Agence France PresseNaharnet/September 21/16/Former French president Jacques Chirac is still in hospital in Paris, his family said Wednesday following rumors that the 83-year-old had died. "President Chirac is being treated for a lung infection and I want to pay homage to the exceptional quality of the medical teams," Chirac's son-in-law Frederick Salat-Baroux told Agence France Presse. Chirac was hospitalized Sunday. Rumors he had died were sparked early Wednesday when former housing minister Christine Boutin tweeted "Mort de #Chirac" (death of #Chirac). Salat-Baroux, husband of Chirac's daughter Claude, asked for the family's "tranquility" to be respected during Chirac's hospitalization. Chirac, who led France from 1995 to 2007, had just returned from a visit to Morocco with his wife Bernadette when he was admitted to Pitie-Salpetriere hospital in Paris. The center-right Chirac, who served two terms as head of state, is probably best remembered internationally for his opposition to the US military intervention in Iraq in 2003. A small stroke while in office in 2005 weakened him, and he is now rarely seen in public. In December 2015, he spent two weeks in hospital, suffering from what his family described as fatigue. In recent weeks, his entourage said his health had improved.Boutin, known for fanning controversy, is appealing a 2015 conviction for calling homosexuality an "abomination".

Friends, colleagues call for release of Canadian prof jailed in Iran at rally
MONTREAL — The Canadian Press/Wednesday, Sep. 21, 2016/Friends and former colleagues of a jailed Canadian-Iranian academic say they’re still having trouble believing she’s behind bars in Iran. Many of them gathered at a rally in Montreal today to call for Homa Hoodfar to be freed. Hoodfar, 65, has been held at Tehran’s notorious Evin prison since June 6 on what her friends and family describe as trumped-up charges. Her family has said the Iranian probe into the retired anthropology professor centred on her “dabbling in feminism” and security matters. Former colleagues and students at Montreal’s Concordia University say she’s a sweet and generous person with no political leanings. Nearly 5,000 academics worldwide have signed a petition this summer in support of Hoodfar.

Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on on September 21-22/16

Iran, Saudi Arabia Clash Swords In U.S. Press

MEMRI/September 21/16//Special Dispatch No.6622
On September 13, 2016, The New York Times published an op-ed by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif titled "Let Us Rid the World of Wahhabism."[1] In it, Zarif harshly attacked Wahhabism, the branch of Sunni Islam espoused by the Saudi regime, calling it a "death cult" and a "theological perversion" of Islam that is the origin of all terrorist organizations including Al-Qaeda, the Taliban, Boko Haram, Jabhat Al-Nusra (formerly Al-Qaeda's Syria branch, now called Jabhat Fath Al-Sham), and ISIS. He accused Saudi leaders of spending tens of billions of dollars in recent decades in order to export this Wahhabi ideology to the Muslim world and to the world at large. He called on the UN and the international community to cut off the routes used to fund "ideologies of hate and extremism" and investigate how money and arms are delivered to the followers of these ideologies.
In response to Zarif's article, Saudi Foreign Minister 'Adel Al-Jubeir published his own op-ed in the Wall Street Journal arguing that it is Iran who, ever since the onset of Khomeini's revolution, has been striving to spread its revolutionary ideology by sparking sectarian and religious conflict, bluntly interfering in the affairs of other countries, aiding terrorist organizations including Al-Qaeda, and carrying out terrorist attacks around the world. According to Al-Jubeir, Iran's false propaganda regarding its fight against extremism cannot whitewash its record of "death and destruction," whose results are currently visible in Syria and Iraq. He argued that Saudi Arabia is one of the leaders in the global war against terrorism, and would improve relations with Iran if the latter ended its support for terrorism and "subversive and hostile" actions, ceased interfering in the affairs of other countries, and respected its neighbors.[2]
Furious responses to Zarif's article also appeared in the official Saudi media. The Saudi press featured numerous articles condemning Zarif and accusing him of participating in a campaign aimed at blackening Saudi Arabia's name in the world, accusing it of supporting terrorism, and sparking conflict within the Sunni world. Some articles criticized the absence of Saudi informational efforts to combat Iran's growing influence on global discourse, and called to expose Iran's oppression of its own people and its sponsorship of terror organizations in the Arab world, while highlighting the tolerance and coexistence in Saudi society. One article stated that the publication of Zarif's article in a paper as prominent as The New York Times indicates that the Americans have traded in their traditional allies for Iran.
The following are excerpts from some of these articles:
Editor Of Saudi Daily: Iranian Propaganda Agents Infiltrate Institutions Influencing Global Public Opinion
'Abd Al-Wahhab Al-Fayez, chief editor of the official Saudi daily Al-Yawm, condemned Zarif's allegation that Saudi Arabia supports terrorism, and called to expose Iran's oppression of its own people and its crimes in Arab countries. He wrote: "The article by Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif in The New York Times is part of the ongoing propaganda and political ideologization program of the Khomeinist revolution. This propaganda has skillfully managed to create a rift among Arab Shi'ites, and is now working to divide Sunnis by lying about the Wahhabi [stream] and making it the focus of the Iranian propaganda spread by politicians, clerics, researchers at Western centers, and civil society activists.
"Sadly, the Iranian propaganda program, which aims to create a link between Saudi Arabia and Wahhabism and between Wahhabism and terrorism, finds an audience and influences discourse. This is happening after we abandoned the scene to the Iranian propaganda agents, who infiltrate authoritative institutions that influence local and international public opinion – particularly global newspapers and TV and radio networks.
"Iran's strength does not [really] lie in what it spreads and markets about others – specifically the lie regarding Saudi Arabia and its alleged support of terrorism – because [Iran itself] lives in a glass house [and is vulnerable] on many issues, and is the target of condemnation by international institutions. In fact, its allied parties and subordinate militias carry out terrorism and ethnic cleansing in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen, and the oppressive Khomeinist security apparatuses similarly operate against Arabs in the Al-Ahwaz [region], both Shi'ites and Sunnis.
"This commotion caused by Iran resonates [only] because it operates freely in a vacuum and without any resistance! Of course, reality proves that the rope of lies is short and slack, which is also true for [its lies regarding] us in the region, as we have already exposed the biggest Khomeinist lie. However, we must help the peoples with whom we have good relations and positive interests to quickly expose the Iranian lie for themselves."[3]
Saudi Columnist: "Political Dwarf" Zarif Ignores His Own Country's Bloody Record
Similar criticism of Zarif was also expressed by Saudi writer Fahd bin Jleid in his column in the official Saudi daily Al-Jazirah. He wrote: "Mohammad Zarif penned his article of racism, hatred, and lies... which was published in The New York Times, in order to divert the world's attention towards a new artificial struggle among Sunnis. This is part of a long-term anti-Islamic Persian plot. In his article, this political dwarf ignored the black and bloody record of his own country, which fosters and funds the leaders of terrorist [groups] like Al-Qaeda, Hizbullah, and ISIS, as well as its evil plots to spread the poisons of sectarianism and hatred in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bahrain, and more...
"Zarif's statements in his article are nothing but another Iranian step meant to distort Saudi Arabia's image in global public opinion, while exploiting loopholes in global free speech, as happened in The New York Times. Therefore, we must not simply make do with an identical response [article] in the same newspaper... We must confront with this plot with a series of corrective steps, including by publicizing [Saudi] activity in the fields of culture, art, sports, and society, activity that reflects the real picture: the tolerant [nature] of the Saudis, their life in coexistence, and their peaceful disposition and religion – in contrast to the image spread by Iran and its helpers around the world.
"Iran is currently experiencing a crisis and isolation in the Islamic world after its great Hajj plot failed. Its true place and status among Muslims was exposed when no one attributed much significance to its absence from Hajj ceremonies this season, viewing it instead as Iranian political stupidity.[4] This prompted it to mobilize all its efforts to create new battles and spark fires among various schools in Islam in order to harm the image of the [Saudi] kingdom using international platforms."[5]
Saudi Columnist: Zarif's Article Indicates That The U.S. Is Trading In Its Traditional Allies For Iran
Salem bin Ahmed Sahab, a columnist for the official Saudi daily Al-Madina, claimed that the publication of Zarif's article in The New York Times indicates that the American administration has traded in its traditional allies for Iran. He wrote: "Last Wednesday, the reputable American newspaper The New York Times published an op-ed by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, in which he attacked Saudi Arabia... There is no reason to accuse Zarif, the new Safavid, for the publication of his apostasy and lies, lowly as they may be. The accusation should be directed solely at the newspaper, which is considered the most important for decision-makers in the country of Uncle Sam. [And] the worst accusation should be directed at us Arabs, if we think that the appearance of this stupid article was a coincidence or an accident, or that there is some measure of regret there – for [we should have known] that this is not the case at all! The article would have been published even if we had proven [in advance] that it was rife with lies, nonsense, and twisted facts...
"This is an [American] policy of washing one's hands of old allies in favor of shaking hands with new ones. The goal is to destroy the region in order to eradicate the Sunnis, or at the very least crush them so they can never experience revival, prosperity, development, or might. No one is more suited for this despicable task than those with the darkest record of long-term collaboration with the enemies of the ummah – the deviant, hostile, infidel, Shi'ite Zoroastrian Safavids!"[6]
Endnotes:
[1] Nytimes.com, September 13, 2016. The original Persian version of the article was published on the daily the same day.
[2] Wsj.com, September 18, 2016.
[3] Al-Yawm (Saudi Arabia), September 18, 2016.
[4] On increasing Saudi-Iranian tension over the Hajj affair, see MEMRI Special Dispatch No.6607, Following Rafsanjani Call To Moderate Iranian Policy Vis-à-vis Saudi Arabia, Khamenei Delivers Virulently Anti-Saudi Speech, Sparking Increased Conflict With Kingdom, September 12, 2016.
[5] Al-Jazirah (Saudi Arabia), September 18, 2016.
[6] Al-Madina (Saudi Arabia), September 18, 2016.

Palestinians: "The Mafia of Destruction"
Khaled Abu Toameh/Gatestone Institute/September 21/16
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/8989/palestinians-medical-corruption
Hamas and Palestinian Authority (PA) officials have turned medical care into a business that earns them hundreds of thousands of dollars per year. This corruption has enabled top officials in the West Bank and Gaza Strip to embezzle millions of shekels from the PA budget.
In 2013, the PA spent more than half a billion shekels covering medical bills of Palestinians who were referred to hospitals outside the Palestinian territories. However, no one seems to know exactly how the money was spent and whether all those who received the referrals were indeed in need of medical treatment. In one case, it appeared that 113 Palestinian patients had been admitted to Israeli hospitals at the cost of 3 million shekels, while there is no documentation of any of these cases. Even the identities of the patients remain unknown.
Hajer Harb, a courageous Palestinian journalist from the Gaza Strip, says she is now facing charges of "slander" for exposing the corruption. She has been repeatedly interrogated by Hamas. The PA regime, for its part, is not too happy with exposure about the scandal.
Gaza's hospitals would be rather better equipped if Hamas used its money to build medical centers instead of tunnels for smuggling weapons from Egypt to attack Israel.
Question: How do Palestinian patients obtain permits to receive medical treatment in Israeli and other hospitals around the world? Answer: By paying bribes to senior Palestinian officials in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Those who cannot afford to pay the bribes are left to die in under-equipped and understaffed hospitals, especially in the Gaza Strip.
Yet, apparently some Palestinians are more equal than others: Palestinians whose lives are not in danger, but who pretend that they are. These include businessmen, merchants, university students and relatives of senior Palestinian Authority (PA) and Hamas officials, who receive permits to travel to Israel and other countries under the pretext of medical emergency.
Many Palestinians point a finger at the PA's Ministry of Health in the West Bank. They argue that senior ministry officials have been abusing their powers, in order to collect bribes both from genuine patients and from other Palestinians who only want medical permits in order to leave the Gaza Strip or the West Bank. Thanks to the corruption, many real patients have been denied the opportunity to receive proper medical care in Israel and other countries.
A Palestinian man is transferred to an Israeli ambulance at the Erez crossing between the Gaza Strip and Israel, on his way to an Israeli hospital, July 29, 2014. (Image source: Israeli Foreign Ministry)
This, of course, does not apply to senior Palestinian officials and their family members, who continue to make ample use of Israeli hospitals and other medical centers in Jordan, Egypt, the Gulf and Europe.
Even top Hamas officials enjoy access to Israeli hospitals. In 2013, Amal Haniyeh, the granddaughter of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, was transferred to an Israeli hospital for urgent medical treatment. A year earlier, Haniyeh's sister, Suheilah, was also brought to an Israeli hospital for urgent heart surgery.
Haniyeh, however, did not need to offer cash to get his daughter and sister medical treatment in Israel. Indeed, some Palestinians are evidently very much more equal than others.
The corruption in the Palestinian health system, both in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, has long been a well-known secret. Palestinians without the right connections and without money to hand over to a senior official or physician are fully aware that they would never be allowed to receive what is called "medical referrals abroad." The signature of a physician or a senior health official is the most precious merchandise in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. This signature allows patients to receive free medical treatment in Israel and various countries.
The absence of clear regulations to define who is entitled to this privilege have facilitated widespread corruption in the Palestinian health system. Nepotism plays a major role in this form of corruption. The relative of a senior Palestinian official can easily be transferred for treatment in an Israeli, Jordanian or Egyptian hospital, while poor patients from the Gaza Strip can wait months and years before obtaining such permits.
Hamas and PA officials are trading with the lives of Palestinian patients. They have turned medical care into a business that earns them hundreds of thousands of dollars per year. This corruption, in the absence of transparency and accountability, has also enabled top officials in the West Bank and Gaza Strip to embezzle millions of shekels from the PA budget.
Although both the Palestinian Authority and Hamas have vowed to combat this exploitation of Palestinian patients, the Palestinians themselves report no improvement. They say that more than 70% of the cases of medical referrals to Israeli hospitals and abroad have never been documented, and it remains unclear how and where the money was spent.
In 2013, for instance, the PA spent more than half a billion shekels covering medical bills of Palestinians who were referred to hospitals outside the Palestinian territories. However, no one seems to know exactly how the money was spent and whether all those who received the referrals were indeed in need of medical treatment.
The PA maintains that in 2014, more than 54,000 Palestinians from Gaza received medical referrals for treatment outside the Strip. Health officials in the Gaza Strip, however, say they are aware of only 16,382 documented cases of real patients who received such permits.
Between 1994 and 2013, the Palestinian Authority did not ask Israeli hospitals for detailed bills of the medical treatment provided to Palestinian patients. The money is deducted on a monthly basis from tax revenues collected by Israel and later paid to the PA.
The Coalition for Accountability and Integrity (AMAN), a Palestinian group working in the fields of democracy, human rights and good government, to combat corruption and enhance integrity, principles of transparency and systems of accountability in Palestinian society, is one of the few bodies sounding an alarm bell about this abuse.
Last year, AMAN released a report in which it warned against corruption in the Department of Medical Referrals Abroad, which belongs to the PA Ministry of Health. The report pointed out discrepancies in the costs of medical treatment in Israeli and other hospitals, and the actual bills. For example, in one case it appeared that 113 Palestinian patients had been admitted to Israeli hospitals at the cost of 3 million shekels, while there is no documentation of any of these cases. Even the identities of the patients remain unknown.
The AMAN report stated that measures taken by Palestinian health officials to limit nepotism and bribes, and prevent the squandering of public funds, have been insufficient. Physicians, it said, faced pressure from Palestinian Authority officials to issue medical referrals to Israeli hospitals and other hospitals around the world, even to those not in need of them. Some of the cases, the report notes, could have been treated in Palestinian hospitals, and there was no need to transfer them to other hospitals at very high costs.
The PA says that it has asked its Anti-Corruption Commission to investigate the scandal. To date, it remains unclear whether substantive measures have been taken against those responsible for the corruption.
Hamas, for its part, continues to hold the PA responsible for the misery of patients in the Gaza Strip. The Islamist movement claims that the PA government is withholding the issuance of medical permits as a means to punish Palestinians for their support of Hamas.
The truth, however, is somewhat different: health officials in the Gaza Strip who are linked to Hamas have also been exploiting the plight of patients. Hamas is uninterested in this coming to light.
Hajer Harb, a courageous Palestinian journalist from the Gaza Strip, recently prepared an investigative report about the corruption of health officials in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. She has been repeatedly interrogated by Hamas.
Harb says she is now facing charges of "slander" for exposing the corruption. She was told by her interrogators that the decision to summon her for investigation came after a physician in the Gaza Strip filed a complaint against her for "defamation."
Hamas interrogators demanded that Harb reveal her sources and the identity of those involved in the corruption scandal. "I told them that I am a journalist and I cannot provide them with the identities of my sources without a court order," she said.
"The prosecution told me that I was facing the following charges: impersonation of another person (they claim I did not reveal my real identity during the investigative report); slandering the Ministry of Health, publishing inaccurate and incorrect information and working with 'foreign parties' (by preparing a report for a London-based television station under the pretext that the media organization is not registered with the Press Office in the Gaza Strip)."
In her report, Harb wrote about the middlemen who obtain medical referrals to Israeli and foreign hospitals in return for bribes. She approached one of the middlemen and claimed she wanted to travel from the Gaza Strip to the West Bank to marry a man living there. She wrote that she received a permit to leave the Gaza Strip and receive medical treatment in East Jerusalem's Al-Makassed Hospital after she paid a bribe to a local physician. She also found several forged medical referrals in the name of the son of a senior Palestinian official in the Gaza Strip, who obtained them in order to complete his studies in the West Bank. Harb further located a man who claimed that he works for the PA's Preventative Security Service and who boasted that he could get a permit for medical treatment outside the Gaza Strip in return for $200. Another Palestinian bought a medical permit to leave the Gaza Strip and work in a restaurant in Ramallah.
Hamas claims to be combating the corruption of officials who are tampering with the lives of Palestinian patients. In reality, it is busy harassing journalists who speak the truth. The Palestinian Authority regime, for its part, is not too happy with exposure about the scandal.
The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate (PJS), based in the West Bank, condemned Hamas for harassing Harb. But this critique should be seen more in the context of the power struggle between the PA and Hamas, rather than as stemming from a concern for public freedoms.
In a statement, the PJS criticized Hamas for interrogating Harb as a "grave breach of media work and freedom of expression" in the Palestinian territories. The syndicate emphasized the right of journalists not to reveal the identity of their sources, adding that Harb had abided by all moral, legal and professional standards.
Najat Abu Baker, a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council who belongs to PA President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah faction, was one of the few politicians in the West Bank who dared to come out against the corruption scandal.
In her words, the corruption in the PA's Department of Medical Referrals has transformed it into a "real mafia headed by influential figures." Abu Baker accused the ministry of exploiting the impoverished residents of the Gaza Strip and wasting public funds:
"The issue of medical permits has become a business and the only ones who are paying the price are the patients from the Gaza Strip. Hundreds of these patients who have died are the victims of the ministry's measures."
She called for a commission of inquiry into the corruption scandal. She noted that many patients from the Gaza Strip have died while waiting for medical referrals while others, who were not ill, were given the permits thanks to nepotism and bribery.
"The merchants of death are tampering with the fate of our patients. It is time to tell the truth so that we can get rid of the mafia of destruction and end their trade in the lives of our patients."
The medical permit scandal is yet further proof that Hamas and the Palestinian Authority shamelessly exploit their people for political and financial purposes. The PA leverages its power to issue medical permits in order to pressure Palestinians in the Gaza Strip to turn against Hamas. Its officials sell the permits for cold hard cash. Hamas, which continues to hold the entire Gaza Strip hostage, has its own ideas about how money is well spent. Gaza's hospitals would be rather better equipped if Hamas used the money it has to build medical centers instead of tunnels for smuggling weapons from Egypt to attack Israel. While medical permits are sold to the highest Palestinian bidder, we ask: What is the going rate for a permit for clarity concerning the behavior of Palestinian leaders?
**Khaled Abu Toameh, an award-winning journalist, is based in Jerusalem.
© 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.

Where Does Black Lives Matter's Anti-Semitism Come From?
Philip Carl Salzman/Gatestone Institute/September 21/16
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/8956/black-lives-matter-antisemitism
Black Lives Matter has been guided to anti-Semitism by the concept of "intersectionality, which argues that all oppressions are interlinked and cannot be solved alone. Thus, women can never be treated fairly if blacks face racial prejudice, and the disabled are not given sufficient support to be equal to the abled, and unless the Palestinians are liberated from the Israelis, and the Israelis are liberated from their lives and their home.
"Intersectionality" urges us to view the world as divided into a conspiracy of oppressors and an agony of oppressed, and reduces people to a number of categories, such as gender, sexuality, race, nationality, religion, capability, etc. Differences, such as sexism, racism, nationalism and ability -- as opposed to what we have in common -- are reinforced.
Supporters of "intersectionality" cheer terrorists when they murder Jews. To them, that is just "social justice" at work.
The recently published platform of Black Lives Matter (BLM) states that Israel is responsible for "the genocide taking place against the Palestinian people," and "Israel is an apartheid state ... that sanction[s] discrimination against the Palestinian people." These statements are anti-Semitic not only because they are false and modern versions of tradition anti-Semitic blood libel, but also because BLM selectively chooses the Jewish State out of all the states in the world to demonize. What has inspired BLM to engage in this counter-factual, anti-Semitic rant? BLM has been guided to anti-Semitism by the concept of "intersectionality."
"Intersectionality" is the idea that all oppressed peoples and categories of people share a position, and by virtue of that fact are potential allies in the struggle against their oppressors.
"Intersectionality" is a concept used to describe the ways in which "oppressive institutions" (racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, xenophobia, classism, etc.) are interconnected and cannot be examined separately from one another. The concept is credited to the legal scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw, writing in 1989, but it is only in recent years that it has escaped academia and swarmed into the streets.
"Intersectionality" has, however, been extended beyond individuals to types of oppression. The argument, as above, is that all oppressions "interconnected and cannot be examined separately." Thus, women can never be treated equally or fairly, if blacks face racial prejudice, and the disabled are not given sufficient support to be equal to the abled, and unless the Palestinians are liberated from the Israelis, and the Israelis are liberated from their country, their lives and their home. To make the point, the Israelis are accused of having had a hand, direct or indirect, in the oppression of blacks, women, and the disabled everywhere. So much oppression, intersectionists apparently think, can be traced back to the fraudulent Protocols of the Elders of Zion, and the International Jewish Conspiracy.
Black Lives Matter (BLM) has been guided to anti-Semitism by the concept of "intersectionality, which argues that all oppressions are interlinked and cannot be solved alone. BLM activists have visited Gaza and expressed a sympathetic attitude towards groups like Hamas, which calls for the genocide of Jews and engages in terrorism.
How well does "intersectionality" stand up to critical scrutiny? According to the journalist, James Kirchick,
"intersectionality compels one to adopt agendas that have nothing to do with his or her own. Worse, in the name of 'solidarity' with other supposedly 'oppressed' groups, it leads to alliances with those actively hostile to one's cause. This is how a gay rights organization led by well-meaning progressives can be duped into disinviting private citizens of the one country in the Middle East respecting the humanity of gays, all at the behest of people who use cultural relativism to excuse Muslim societies that throw homosexuals from the tops of buildings."
Here are some of its other problems, weaknesses, and errors:
For a start, "intersectionality" urges us to view the world as divided into a conspiracy of oppressors and an agony of oppressed: Victimizers and victims. Two classes, one relationship: oppression. This is the model offered to understand, explain and reform the world. It could not be more simplistic.
Consider "class oppression" by capitalists of workers. Why have tens of millions of rural people in China flooded the cities to take jobs offered by capitalists? Because by so doing they improve their standard of living, their life chances, and the opportunities that they can offer their kinsmen back home. This "capitalist oppression," which replaced communist political atrocities and economic disasters, has raised China from a backward agrarian society to a modern, developing society.
If we look at the "hot spots" of the world, who are the oppressors and who the oppressed, in Afghanistan, in Iraq, in Syria, in Nigeria? If only simple-minded ideas such as "intersectionality" could help us clarify the destructive disasters and human tragedies -- drought, corruption, intolerance, civil war -- but unfortunately they are useless.
Further, "intersectionality" focuses on people's victimhood. People are "oppressed" and disadvantaged, and that becomes the most important thing about them. Reducing people to victims takes away their ability to understand, their ability to act, their motivation, tenacity, resourcefulness, force of character, and everything that enables people to engage the world.
Young women in the West and increasingly the Far East, for example, may not feel oppressed by "patriarchy," but are confident in their abilities, not as a result of ideology, but as a result of their experience in the world. They know that their fair participation is supported by their societies. Reports making claims such as "women make 70% pay that men receive" have been demolished. Single women working the same hours in the same industries make the same as men; women who choose motherhood work less and make less than men.
Moreover, "intersectionality" reduces people to a number of categories, such as gender, sexuality, race, nationality, religion, capability, etc. Differences, such as sexism, racism, nationalism and ability -- as opposed to what we have in common -- are reinforced.
In addition, "intersectionality," in identifying all the oppressed as one, united and with common interests, is incoherent and oblivious to the facts (often, it seems, unpopular in radical social movements). The idea, for example, that victims of Islamophobia and homophobia are natural allies flies in the face of the fact that Islamic law and many Muslims are strongly opposed to homosexuals, and that Iran, for instance, executes homosexuals (even teenagers) by hanging them from cranes in public squares. The Islamic State does not require large machinery; it throws homosexuals off buildings.
There is also a lack of affinity between victims of Islamophobia and victims of racial prejudice. The Arab world -- the heart of Islam -- has for many centuries, up to today, carried on an extensive black slave trade in Africa, sending Arab expeditions to captures slaves. There has been much observation in recent decades of slaves taken from the south by the Arabs of northern Sudan. Ayaan Hirsi Ali, in her autobiography, Infidel, reports her experiences in Saudi Arabia, where the term for blacks is abid, "slave," and blacks are denigrated in the street.
Also, advocates of "intersectionality," such as various political parties -- for example the Greens in Canada and Podemos in Spain -- and racial groups such as Black Lives Matter, often seem not to identify oppressors and oppressed -- never mind about the Chinese occupation of Mongolia, Tibet, and Turkestan, or the annihilation of Christians and Yazidis in the Middle East, or the Arab, Turkish, and Persian war against the Kurds. Instead, they appear to prefer to turn to the historical scapegoat, the Jews, selectively demonize Israel and celebrate the Jews' terrorist enemies, the Palestinians, as poor, suffering victims . No worries about prejudice against Jews for champions of "intersectionality." So we should not be surprised to see Quebec nationalists marching with Hezbollah flags , and "anti-racists" in European demonstrations chanting "Hamas, Hamas, Jews to the gas."
Supporters of "intersectionality" cheer terrorists when they murder Jews. To them, that is just "social justice" at work.
**Philip Carl Salzman is Professor of Anthropology at McGill University, Canada.
© 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.

Syria’s ceasefire is a farce and Kerry-Lavrov plan a fantasy
Joyce Karam/Al Arabiya/September 21/16
If we were to take the Russian-American agreements as serious diplomatic breakthroughs, then Syria would be a different place by now. A transitional government, a new constitution, an “independent, unified, secular” state would have transpired from Geneva I, or Geneva II, or the Vienna peace plans, and not the fragmented, war-torn, living hell unfolding in Syrian cities.
Yet, this has not stopped international gatherings -with few or no Syrians on the table- from taking place. The latest was John Kerry’s and Sergey Lavrov’s in Geneva as they announced the secret deal between US and Russia on settling Syria.
Its recipe fits perfectly with the old templates: a detached fantasy of a ceasefire lacking both the leverage to achieve it, and the mechanism to enforce it. A ceasefire that looks the other way as regular clashes continue across the country, war crimes are casually condemned and besiegement becomes only a cause of concern.
Ceasefire is dead
The deal that Kerry and Lavrov broke in Geneva on September 10th is a classic case of flawed and non-transparent diplomatic exercises. Neither the Syrian factions, nor journalists covering the agreement and not even close partners of the United States such as France received a copy of the agreement. Kerry’s own reluctance to publish the deal speaks volumes to his faith in the concessions offered, and to his confidence (or lack thereof) in the implementation. According to the New York Times, Kerry privately “has conceded to aides and friends that he believes it will not work.”
To begin with, this was “a minimalist agreement”, Tobias Schneider a defense analyst and close follower of events in Syria says of the Kerry-Lavrov deal. The violations accounting to war crimes in targeting an aid convoy, not allowing food to besieged areas, “spell the end of the current cessation of hostilities” says the expert.
With airstrikes resuming in Aleppo, bombing of aid trucks, a rebel offensive and Israeli strike in Quneitra, clashes near Hama, Jobar, and Homs, the ceasefire is not just dead, it’s six feet under
Indeed, with airstrikes resuming in Aleppo, bombing of aid trucks, a rebel offensive and Israeli strike in Quneitra, clashes near Hama, Jobar, and Homs, the ceasefire is not just dead, it’s six feet under. Further dooming the deal is the Pentagon who had reservations about the agreement in the first place, pointing fingers at Russia in the aid strike, and dimming hopes for prospects of intelligence sharing with Moscow. Even if Kerry and Lavrov had the most noble intentions, Schneider explains that “in the end, (the Assad) regime recalcitrance is proving insurmountable...and the deal illustrates the ever-widening gap between the diplomatic preferences of Moscow and DC on the one hand, and the tough realities of the Syrian civil war on the other.” The absence of an enforcement mechanism, and complete detachment from the ground events have also worked against its implementation.
What is next?
The long-term objective of the Kerry-Lavrov deal had it succeeded was starting a US-Russian joint implementation center (JIC) to target designated terrorist groups such as ISIS, Jabhat Fateh Sham (JFS formerly known as Nusra), and the newly labeled Jund al-Aqsa. In reality, counterterrorism has taken the front seat in both US and Russia’s calculus in Syria. Russian President Vladimir Putin “needs the West and its regional allies for a diplomatic solution to the conflict, that can absolve Moscow of its military responsibilities in Syria” says Schneider. This would aid Moscow’s interest in primarily targeting JFS, which would “split the armed opposition, reduce American leverage on the ground and further secure Assad in his position.” However, the Pentagon’s unease with the deal, and its current “mistake” in targeting Assad forces rather than ISIS in Deir Zour might have choked the JIC and partnering with Russia for now. It is not unforeseeable for the White House and Kerry to re-pitch such cooperation irrelevant of the ceasefire. This effort “will likely be the last attempt for the current US administration to affect the wider Syrian civil war.” Schneider references Kerry’s own eagerness seen previously in his failed negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians, “not to leave office without some success on the issue, while Obama would likely be fine passing the issue on to his successor.” Kicking the can down to the next administration is an acceptable outcome for Obama. It would serve to absolve his legacy from entering the Syrian predicament while focusing on rolling back ISIS from its 2014 held territories. In this context, it is only dishonest and contemptuous to the war victims to pretend there is a ceasefire when aerial bombardment, clashes and sieges continue. There is no end in sight for Syria’s war, and no serious effort to stop it, only brazen rhetoric and glossy photo-ops from New York to Geneva.

Syrian opposition and the ‘realism’ of US-Russia deal
Raghida Dergham/Al Arabiya/September 21/16
Despite its apparent failure, the US-Russia ceasefire deal on Syria is bound to surface at the United Nations General Assembly summit. Aleppo will also feature among deliberations in New York and will certainly test the honesty and determination of its stakeholders. Everyone will exploit the tragedy of the displaced and refugees to feign sympathy, while everyone will deny their involvement in the murder of half a million Syrians and the destruction of their ancient cities and infrastructure, to secure themselves a stake in the reconstruction of the country after finishing their realignments there. The heads of states and their delegations will flock to the UN General Assembly hall to deliver their speeches, while the members of the Security Council will convene their club and consecrate the ceasefire deal, should it last till then. No one dares to challenge a deal concluded by Washington and Moscow to impose a ceasefire and cooperate militarily against ISIS and similar groups, including Jabhet Fateh al-Sham formerly known as Jabhet al-Nusra. But many will be quietly betting on the collapse of the ceasefire, because the deal has some fundamental flaws that makes it all but unsustainable. Some will argue that the Syrian opposition has no choice because Ankara has welcomed the deal and the Gulf states have not vetoed it if for anything then the fact that it deliberately exempted Iran-backed militias from accountability and scrutiny, when the rebels by contrast are being demanded to disband. Some will say that the cessation of hostilities has become an important resort as the political transition remains shrouded in ambiguity and humanitarian aid is obstructed. Barack Obama addressed the world from the UNGA platform for the last time as president. He will receive attention but it will not be comparable to the enthusiasm and curiosity he was met with during his first speech there eight years ago. Obama will be judged from the Syrian lens no matter how much he tries to avoid it by convening a summit on refugees and no matter how hard he tries to push the attendees to credit him for his nuclear deal with Iran. If the ceasefire survives and Russia’s promises pan out, Obama may survive the blame and reproaching. If the deal collapses, the burden will fall on John Kerry, who will be bombarded with criticism from all sides including the US military. Perhaps everyone is approaching battle fatigue, because continuing open ended wars and quagmires is suicide, regardless of the appearance of having a victor and a vanquished party today.
The US-Russian deal effectively terminated the momentum for holding the Syrian regime accountable for the use of chemical weapons
In who’s interest?
One key new development following the deal between Kerry and Sergei Lavrov is that US planes could now bomb groups designated as terrorist after refusing the US-Russian designations. Iran, her militias, and the regime in Damascus will benefit as the US helps destroy their foes, and this explains why they rushed to welcome the deal that Russia told them is in their interests. For its part, the Syrian opposition’s survival is once again on the line, and in the hands of regional and international players. No one wishes for the bloodletting in Syria to continue except for ISIS and similar groups. But the other stakeholders in the Syrian tragedy are in need for an exit strategy from their predicament, and to avoid being dragged to a deeper quagmire, especially Russia and Iran. It will be the political process and its outcome that will determine whether the truce and the deal will collapse or not. If the axis of Russia, Iran, Assad use the temporary truce and deal to seek victory on the basis of victor and vanquished, then the Syrian crisis could last for a long time still and become Even more complicated. Other parties may want to benefit from a humanitarian truce to regroup, and therefore, it is the duty of the US and Russia to plan for contingencies. Some say the truce’s collapse is inevitable because of the multiplicity of the agendas of the factions and their sponsors, and the difficulty of a diplomatic breakthrough as long as the situation on the battlefield does not allow it. Thus there are calls to be modest about expectations and be more realistic.
Richard Hass, head of the CFR, wrote in the Financial Times that the alternative is to change the facts on the ground by establishing safe zones and humanitarian zones with air cover and troops from the rebels and friendly neighboring countries. This line echoes previous Turkish ideas about safe zones, and no-fly zones. Either way, the implication is that the prospect for ending the Syrian war is not plausible in the near future, according to Hass. Neither a nationwide ceasefire nor a transitional post-Assad government is in the cards, he adds, meaning that the best thing to be done now is to establish safe areas to reduce humanitarian suffering in Syria. One of the key players in Syria’s neighborhood is Turkey, which has entered the war for two goals, namely, ISIS and the Kurds. Ankara had no option but to welcome the deal, but that does not mean it will approve the designation to come of Syrian rebel forces as either terrorist or moderate. President Erdogan is intent to get the Kurdish militias designated as terrorists, challenging the US position that sees them as allies in the war with ISIS in Syria and Iraq, where the looming battle of Mosul is crucial. Turkey’s allies in the rebel ranks are also not satisfied with the US-Russian designations and exemptions of the factions in Syria.
But do the Syrian factions have the power to do anything if realpolitik forces their backers to endorse the US-Russian terms? The answer lies with the leaders in the Gulf capitals concerned and the Turkish leadership, in light with what has been agreed upon and declared during the press conference last week of the Saudi and Turkish foreign ministers: beginning with reiterating the call for Assad to step down and responding to rumors about Turkish willingness for him to remain during an open-ended transitional period, and not ending with the need to support Syrian Rebels especially n Aleppo.
The military equation remains in the heart of the future of the truce, but there is little trust between local, regional, and international players, as well as between the Syrian opposition and the US administration.
Regime accountability
In reality, the US-Russian deal effectively terminated the momentum for holding the Syrian regime accountable for the use of chemical weapons. Once again, Kerry and Lavrov exempt the regime from accountability. Indeed, the recent agreement protects the Syrian government from accountability, despite damning evidence by the UN inquiry against Damascus, in violation of international resolutions and even US-Russian agreements. Most likely, the truce will remain in place, with the deliberate decision of Damascus, Tehran, and Moscow, meaning to ensure the UN meeting in New York proceeds positively, without Russian raids, regime barrel bombs, and Iranian militias being the center of attention, and without mention of the need to hold the regime accountable for its chemical attacks. There is also a battle of perceptions and public opinion, and Damascus and its allies stand to lose if the public opinion turns against them because of the scenes of shivering children burned by outlawed weapons. Some concessions were thus necessary to buy time, but also for military calculations especially for Aleppo, where Iranian backed militias sustained heavy losses. As usual, John Kerry was ready to shake hands with Lavrov, who gave Kerry a carrot and kept many sticks in both their hands. Lavrov understands Kerry well and knows his weaknesses, whether toward Iran, or his hostility to the Syrian rebels and their backers. The moderate Syrian opposition seriously questions the intentions of and deals made by the Obama administration, and is not willing to fall in line by default. For one thing, this would mean signing its own death warrant. Indeed, the recent deal entails ordering Syrian rebels to destroy one another, and threatens joint US-Russian operations to finish the mission in case any rebel factions fail to do so. A permanent truce is imperative as is a grand deal to end the war in Syria, as part of the grand deals between the US and Russia and in the region, however, all of this appears unlikely to happen today.**This article was first published in al-Hayat on Sept. 16, 2016 and translated by Karim Traboulsi.

On Obama’s comment that ‘basic order’ has broken down in the Middle East
Faisal J. Abbas/Al Arabiya/September 21/16
“If, as reported, aid convoy attack was an airstrike, it could have only been Assad regime or Russia,” Gareth Bayley, the UK’s special envoy for Syria, tweeted yesterday in response to the horrific bomb attack which killed more than 20 people near Aleppo, despite a US-Russian ceasefire. Once again we find ourselves in the realms of “ifs” and “maybes,” despite Syria probably being the most carefully monitored geographical location on the planet today, and despite the massive leaps in radar, satellite and surveillance technology which we now enjoy. However, even if a proper investigation was to take place and the Syrian regime or the Russians are found guilty, it is rather unlikely that justice will be served given everything else that has occurred and gone unpunished. Just in case we have forgotten, only a few weeks ago, the images of five-year-old Omar Daqneesh stunned the world in the aftermath of an air strike which had bloodied him but left him alive. Resorting to tears and tweets, we expressed our anger and called upon the perpetrators to be punished. Of course, the news cycle has moved on since and given that nobody claimed responsibility, the perpetrators will go unpunished. Who was likely to have done it? Well, like the attack on the aid convey, one has to wonder who has such capabilities? Hint: Syrian opposition forces don’t possess fighter jets, so this leaves us with either the Russian/Syrian regimes or the Americans who have categorically denied it was one of their jets. Of course, the horrific images of Omar came only a few days after news leaked that there was yet another chemical weapon attack in Syria, and yes, you guessed it right… that is also now forgotten and will ultimately go unpunished. All this occurs as we commemorate a year since the drowning of three-year-old Syrian boy Aylan Kurdi. It was also through tears and tweets that we expressed our anger last September, after Aylan was found in the Mediterranean Sea. The little boy was washed ashore and had his face to the ground and seemed as if he was discovered in a deep sleep. The image jolted the world and sparked a lot of anger, outcry and pain.
Even if a proper investigation was to take place and the Syrian regime or the Russians are found guilty, it is rather unlikely that justice will be served
There were pledges of support, calls for action and a general sense of empathy was expressed for all those caught in the crossfire of the Syrian conflict. Yet, a year later, it is extremely disheartening that we seem to have just moved on. Few people remember what happened and even fewer are in a position to do anything about it.
It all goes back to the ‘red-line’
The collective failure of both the public and the published opinion to influence decision making, particularly in democratic countries, is highly alarming. However, it is not solely to blame as Syria continues to pay the price for the inaction and wrong decisions taken by the international community at the beginning of the crisis. Just yesterday, during his final UNGA speech, President Obama enlightened us with the fact that “basic security, basic order has broken down” in the Middle East. Of course, he failed to mention that it was his abandoning of his own chemical weapon “red-line” back in 2013 that – at the very least – paved the way for a full-fledged Russian intervention in support of the murderous Assad regime. The reality is President Obama was not held accountable, mostly because the majority of US media – which famously brought down President Nixon in the past – has become either misinformed or misguided. I am not sure what has happened to the American press, but when the New York Times decides to publish a horrendously biased column such as the one recently penned by Iranian FM Mohammad Javad Zarif, only weeks after it published an unprecedented front-page story calling Saudi Arabia (but not Iran) both the “arsonists and the firefighters” of extremism, one really has to wonder if the paper isn’t being one-sided. How could any reasonable editor ignore all the state-backed Iranian attacks against the US since 1979? Or the fact that Tehran is still one of two states in the world which directly support Assad?
After all, it couldn’t possibly be in the public interest to provide an unchallenged platform for someone like Zarif, who represents a country which – in the words of President Obama himself – is a “state-sponsor of terror”! How could any reasonable editor ignore all the state-backed Iranian attacks against the US since 1979? Or the fact that Tehran is still one of two states in the world which directly support Assad? With that in mind, it was not surprising that not a single word was published in the newspaper about Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Nayef’s recent speech at the UN refugee summit, or the fact that over the past four decades Riyadh has donated over $139 billion in aid. There is no question that Saudi Arabia has many issues and it has certainly committed many mistakes in the past. Yet, as much as some editors at the NYT may not like the fact that the whole “28 page” fiasco ended up vindicating Riyadh, completely ignoring the massive work the kingdom is doing on the humanitarian front is utterly biased. Now, if the NYT really wants to do something in the public interest, I suggest it runs an investigative piece on how Iran will spend the billions of dollars it will receive from the US as part of the infamous nuclear deal. To get a head-start, I suggest reading this extremely indicative piece entitled “Obama’s Cash-for-Jihad Program” published in the The National Review.

Saudi Arabia — When figures speak for themselves
Mohammed Fahad al-Harthi/Al Arabiya/September 21/16
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif’s speech at the UN Summit for Refugees and Migrants on Monday highlighted the Kingdom’s role in supporting refugees. The $139 billion relief assistance given by Saudi Arabia over the past four decades made the Kingdom the third biggest donor to the cause of refugees globally. Saudi Arabia has received 2.5 million Syrian refugees and granted them residency and jobs; more importantly, it gives free education to more than 141,000 Syrian students. Saudi Arabia considers refugees residents of the country, and makes job and study opportunities available for them, quite unlike the way they are treated in most Western countries. Moreover, Saudi Arabia received more than half a million Yemenis, whom it considers visitors and provides free education to 285,000 Yemeni students. The Kingdom treats refugees as temporary residents who will return to their countries of origin once peace and security are restored. It exerts all these efforts to help refugees and grants donations as some countries stir problems and incite wars whose outcome is more refugees. Saudi Arabia considers refugees residents of the country, and makes job and study opportunities available for them, quite unlike the way they are treated in most Western countries
The root causes
As such, to address the problem of refugees, the world must treat the root causes — war, conflict, poverty and marginalization. The crown prince made it clear that the key to tackling these crises is intensified efforts to resolve the conflicts in the world, according to the UN Charter, and using diplomacy to prevent the crises from escalating. This is what the international community should have done in Syria. Instead, it fanned the flames of conflict and allowed a war to ravage the country, turn people into refugees and Syria into a breeding ground for extremists — a scenario that Saudi Arabia had warned against since the beginning of the conflict. The Kingdom focused on intensifying preventive diplomacy, but lacked the support of the international community right from the beginning of the crisis in Syria. Granting humanitarian aid and support for refugees is a top political priority for Saudi Arabia. It is what really defines Saudi Arabia’s political and humanitarian efforts at all times. **This article first appeared on Arab News on August 30, 2016.

MBC: 25 years of enlightenment
Abdulrahman al-Rashed/Al Arabiya/September 21/16
The years have passed quickly since the launch of MBC TV, but it has not been an easy journey. It was no ordinary TV station, and its aim was not just to be an entertainment channel or make a profit. There was a higher goal when Sheikh Walid al-Ibrahim founded it. This is why it was quickly targeted by those who oppose modernization, enlightenment and progress. Since its launch from London, its founder has been respected and appreciated by Arab media personalities and intellectuals, because he defied prohibitions and dared to cross boundaries. Now, after 25 years of the MBC phenomenon, can we say the aspired change has been achieved? Yes and no. MBC has led the change, supported modernization and improved our world. Even those fighting it as an idea and institution acknowledge that it has achieved change, but they complain that it is for the worse. This is a testimony in favor of the venerable institution, not against it. MBC has taken Arab media from the stone age to a more civilized, wider space. It is a liberal and civilized window in an underdeveloped Arab world that has closed in on itself. It is proof that in Saudi Arabia, which is accused of extremism and backwardness, there are institutions and individuals that lead active roles in enlightenment, change and peace in the Middle East. Those who visit MBC’s headquarters in Dubai will read at the entrance a beautiful phrase: “We see hope everywhere.” This is what we need: hope in a better future.
MBC has taken Arab media from the stone age to a more civilized, wider space. It is a liberal and civilized window in an underdeveloped Arab world that has closed in on itself
Opposition
The Arab world is struggling and suffering. MBC’s success in reaching millions of Arabs via TV broadcasts that are supposedly out of the ordinary have woken up those who reject change. When they realized they were unable to stop it from London due to satellite dishes, they engaged in a broadcasting battle after warning those who watch TV that they would go to hell, and threatened to destroy satellite dishes. To confront this civilized institution, institutions that aim to obstruct progress emerged, including many TV stations that promoted social backwardness, political violence and extremist religious ideology. In these 25 years, we have lived through and witnessed huge battles between progress and backwardness.Those who reject development realized the threat of the channel and the institution, and of modern ideas and modern media, so they decided to confront them. They have partially succeeded in slowing the train, and enabled extremists to open TV channels that compete for the management of the minds of 300 million Arabs. They have caused major abnormalities in the Arab world and the entire world, giving birth to terrorist organizations such as al-Qaeda and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). They enhanced the influence of groups that try to impose their social model and stop progress.
Change
However, we know from history that it is impossible to stop its wheel. They can only temporarily obstruct it. Change is one of God’s laws, and will reach our region due to MBC and similar institutions. MBC has presented humanitarian models of life that are out of the ordinary. It brought relations between nations and civilizations closer, supported loving homelands to confront internationalists and fascists via satire, diminished the sanctity of those who impose themselves as an authority to punish society when it opposes them, and defied them by presenting alternatives through series, shows, dialogue, and creative characters and ideas. We must thank Ibrahim for 25 years of development and renewal. We also thank the huge army of creative people who have presented a distinguished, artistic and intellectual model. With such an institution, we can look forward to a better future.
**This article was first published in Asharq al-Awsat on Sept. 21, 2016.