New Page 5

News Bulletin Achieves Since 2006
Click Here to go to the LCCC Daily English/Arabic News Buletins Archieves Since 2006

Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.’"
Luke 10/13-16: "‘Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the deeds of power done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But at the judgement it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades. ‘Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.’"

He has not left himself without a witness in doing good giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, and filling you with food and your hearts with joy.
."Acts of the Apostles 14/08-18: "In Lystra there was a man sitting who could not use his feet and had never walked, for he had been crippled from birth. He listened to Paul as he was speaking. And Paul, looking at him intently and seeing that he had faith to be healed, said in a loud voice, ‘Stand upright on your feet.’ And the man sprang up and began to walk. When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, ‘The gods have come down to us in human form!’ Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates; he and the crowds wanted to offer sacrifice. When the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting, ‘Friends, why are you doing this? We are mortals just like you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. In past generations he allowed all the nations to follow their own ways; yet he has not left himself without a witness in doing good giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, and filling you with food and your hearts with joy.’ Even with these words, they scarcely restrained the crowds from offering sacrifice to them."

LCCC Latest analysis, editorials from miscellaneous sources published on July 06-07/15
Israeli-Egyptian coordination is working, but it's not enough/Smadar Perry /Ynetnews/July 06/15
Yesh Atid Chairman Yair Lapid slams Netanyahu on emergent Iran deal/Attila Somfalvi/Ynetnews /July 06/15
Europe scrambles to respond to Greek ‘No’ vote/AFP, Paris//July 06/15
Greek finance minister steps down after overwhelming 'No' referendum/Reuters/Ynetnews //July 06/15
Egyptian army backed by Apaches kills 241 Islamists in broad area between Sheikh Zuwaid and Rafah//July 06/15
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report July 6, 2015
A Greek tragedy/Steen Jakobsen/Al Arabiya//July 06/15
Iran's Ideological Camp Increases Pressure To Reject Upcoming Nuclear Agreement/MEMRI/July 06/15

LCCC Bulletin itles for the Lebanese Related News published on July 06-07/15
Statistics Lebanon tasked with creating Christian poll
Geagea rejects calls to open extraordinary Parliament session
Kidnappers free north Lebanon boy after 2-day captivity
Salam Believes Aoun Putting Coexistence in Danger, Berri Less Pessimistic
Report: Al-Rahi Urges Aoun not to Take to the Streets
Indictment Issued in Roumieh Prison Torture Case
Hizbullah Delegation Visits Kataeb HQ, Says Dialogue Still Ongoing
Sources Say Lebanese Firm Tasked with Carrying Out Presidential Survey
Jumblat: Paralysis is No Longer Acceptable
Jumblatt says Lebanon needs a leader like Greece's Tsipras
Judge wants up to 3-year prison terms for Roumieh torture suspects

LCCC Bulletin Miscellaneous Reports And News published on July 06-07/15
EU official: Migrant boats also carrying ISIS fighters
Bombs at mosque, restaurant in central Nigerian city kill 44
Israeli officer who killed stone throwing teen felt in 'mortal' danger
Jordan ‘foils Iranian-backed terror plot’
Analysis: Egypt, Hamas, ISIS and Israel after the latest rocket attack
EU official: Migrant boats also carrying ISIS fighters
Bombs at mosque, restaurant in central Nigerian city kill 44
Egypt killed 241 Sinai militants from July 1-5, army says
Israeli officer who killed stone throwing teen felt in 'mortal' danger
ISIS regains Kurdish-held town near Syria’s Raqqa
Iranian Ground Force Commander Brigadier General Ahmad Reza Pourdastan: US will remain our enemy despite emerging nuclear deal
Iran: Last ‘few’ issues remain before deal

Statistics Lebanon tasked with creating Christian poll
The Daily Star/July 06, 2015/BEIRUT: Statistics Lebanon has been tasked with creating a one-question opinion poll to determine which presidential candidate Lebanese Christians favor, a report said Monday. Local daily Al-Mustaqbal said preparations were underway ahead of the polling involving 4,600 Christian citizens. It said Statistics Lebanon will ask one question: "Who is your candidate for the presidency?"A source from Statistics Lebanon, a prominent polling and research company, confirmed the report to The Daily Star.
Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun, the March 8 presidential candidate, had proposed carrying out the poll. Aoun’s March 14 rival, Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea, has supported the idea. Lebanon has been without a head of state since President Michel Sleiman left office at the end of his term in May 2014.

Geagea rejects calls to open extraordinary Parliament session
The Daily Star/ July 06, 2015/BEIRUT: Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea Monday rejected calls for opening an extraordinary legislative round in Parliament, saying it would only be necessary if lawmakers were to endorse urgent draft laws. "The Parliament is now considered to be an electoral body, which is only tasked with electing a new president," Geagea said in remarks published in Al-Markazia news agency. The LF leader said that his party "only agreed to the so-called urgent draft laws sessions due to the prolonged presidential vacuum." Lebanon has been without a president since the tenure of President Michel Sleiman ended on May 25, 2014. Geagea, who questioned the intentions behind calls for holding an extraordinary parliamentary session, expressed readiness to attend such a session "if urgent draft laws topped the agenda of the legislature."Speaker Nabih Berri recently voiced support for the revival of the roles of the Cabinet and Parliament, saying that he would call on lawmakers to meet to act on a set of draft laws once the government decides to open an extraordinary legislative round. Parliament hasn't held a legislative session since it voted to extend its term by more than two and a half years on Nov. 5, 2014. Christian parties have been boycotting legislative session due to the absence of a president.

Kidnappers free north Lebanon boy after 2-day captivity
The Daily Star/ July 06, 2015/BEIRUT: A 6-year-old boy who was kidnapped from outside his house in the north Lebanon coastal town of Amchit Saturday has been freed, a relative said. A cousin of Ricardo Jaara told The Daily Star the boy was freed Monday, two days after being abducted while feeding the family's chickens. The boy’s family had previously said kidnappers demanded a $250,000 ransom for his release. The boy's cousin who spoke to The Daily Star Monday declined to discuss details of release. LBCI TV reported that the boy was freed after his family paid a $50,000 ransom.

Salam Believes Aoun Putting Coexistence in Danger, Berri Less Pessimistic
Naharnet/ 06 July/15/Prime Minister Tammam Salam has expressed concern over Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun's threats to mobilize his supporters, saying his move is putting Lebanon's coexistence in danger. Salam's concern comes despite Speaker Nabih Berri being more optimistic.Sources close to Salam told An Nahar daily published on Monday that the PM has expressed regret that Aoun has resorted to an “unwanted approach.”His stances are now linked to personal interests over his intention to reach Baabda Palace and bring his son-in-law Commando Regiment chief Brig. Gen. Chamel Roukoz as army chief, they told An Nahar. This is a “source of concern” for Salam and “puts coexistence, which the Lebanese have believed in and worked for … in danger,” said the sources. “Will the threat to use force to give Christians their rights help achieve objectives?” they asked, saying the election of a president was the only solution. Over the weekend, Aoun said the FPM started preparing for popular movements and demonstrations in the districts of Mount Lebanon, Baabda and Koura. His son-in-law Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil also vowed to take “partnership by force.” Bassil, who is a top FPM official, also promised to keep fighting to defend the authorities of the president.
“No one will put his hand on it as long as we are here,” he warned. FPM officials told several local dailies published on Monday that the movement will resort to “innovative techniques” during the protests. The FPM is fighting a “battle of existence,” they said, adding that conventional measures to resolve the crisis are no longer implementable. They stressed that “this is a battle of life or death for Christians.” The officials, who were not identified, also accused the parties claiming to hold onto the system of seeking to topple it. Despite their remarks, Berri told his visitors that he did not think Aoun would abuse the system. “Aoun is a man (who backs) the system. I don't think he will leave it to abuse,” said Berri, whose remarks were published in local dailies on Monday. Ain el-Tineh sources told al-Akhbar newspaper that Berri believes “there is no fundamental problem that pushes him (Aoun) to paralyze the institutions.” The sources also “advised” the FPM “to stop this adventure.”

Report: Al-Rahi Urges Aoun not to Take to the Streets
Naharnet/ 06 July/15/Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi has reportedly urged Free Patriotic Movement chief MP Michel Aoun not to go ahead with his plans to resort to street action. Al-Rahi told Aoun during a telephone conversation that he is not in favor of street protests against the backdrop of the cabinet crisis, An Nahar daily reported Monday. The Change and Reform bloc leader threatened over the weekend to mobilize his supporters against the government for failing to make appointments of high-ranking military and security officials. The lawmaker accuses his rivals of seeking to end the role of Christians in Lebanon. The cabinet met last week after a three-year suspension caused by threats made by the FPM that its ministers would boycott any session whose agenda is not topped by the appointments decree. Although the FPM's ministers attended, the session was marred by disputes among the rival parties. Prime Minister Tammam Salam has called for another session on Thursday. Reports have said the FPM will organize the protests immediately after the session although Change and Reform officials denied to al-Liwaa daily on Monday that they have set a date.

Indictment Issued in Roumieh Prison Torture Case
Naharnet/ 06 July/15/Military Examining Magistrate Judge Riyad Abou Ghida issued on Monday an indictment in the case of the beating of Islamist inmates at Roumieh prison. Last month, State Commissioner to the Military Court Judge Saqr Saqr charged five guards for abusing the prisoners and referred them to Abou Ghida for questioning. Abou Ghida then formally issued an order for their arrest and on Monday he indicted two of the guards for assault and battery, said LBCI TV. The third was indicted for videotaping the abuse. The two others were released on bail, it said. The five guards were arrested after online video clips made the rounds on social media, showing several of them beating the prisoners. Roumieh is Lebanon's largest prison and has long been infamous for the poor conditions in some of its blocks, including overcrowding and harsh treatment.

Hizbullah Delegation Visits Kataeb HQ, Says Dialogue Still Ongoing
Naharnet/ 06 July/15/A delegation from Hizbullah on Monday visited the headquarters of the Kataeb Party in Beirut's Saifi area to congratulate newly-elected party chief MP Sami Gemayel and the political bureau members. The delegation was led by Hizbullah's Loyalty to Resistance bloc MP Ali Fayyad. “There is dialogue between the Kataeb Party and Hizbullah and the sessions are being held every now and then,” Fayyad said after meeting Kataeb's officials. “Maybe we need to tackle the Lebanese complications in a more thorough way,” he added. “But dialogue is still ongoing and the Lebanese obviously need it in an urgent manner,” the lawmaker went on to say. On April 11, al-Akhbar newspaper reported that Fayyad and Kataeb bloc MP Elie Marouni had agreed to “meet once every week to continue setting the agenda of dialogue between Kataeb and Hizbullah.”The two parties “chose Fayyad and Marouni as their representatives, in a bid to reconcile viewpoints and reach common denominators,” the daily said. The two MPs held “a series of meetings, continuing the rapprochement that had been launched by (Kataeb's) former minister Salim al-Sayegh and Fayyad,” it added. On Sunday, Gemayel proposed that Lebanon's constitutional system be reexamined following “90 years of a structure that has only deepened sectarianism and divisions among the Lebanese.” In June, Gemayel stressed that the army is capable of “repelling any terrorist attack on the border,” calling on Hizbullah to “to place its decisions in the hands of the Lebanese state as a first step.”“We are realistic and we believe that the problem of Hizbullah's weapons cannot be solved with the push of a button,” Gemayel added. “Hizbullah must leave the military decision to the Lebanese army, especially in the face of the takfiris,” he pointed out. Gemayel also emphasized that Lebanese “unity” is needed in the anti-terror fight, noting that Hizbullah can't fight jihadist groups through a “sectarian” approach.

Sources Say Lebanese Firm Tasked with Carrying Out Presidential Survey
Naharnet/ 06 July/15/A Lebanese polling and research firm has been tasked with carrying out a survey proposed by the Free Patriotic Movement to help ease the presidential deadlock, al-Mustaqbal newspaper reported on Monday.
Sources told the daily that Statistics Lebanon, which was established in 1994, will ask a sample of 4,600 Christians who their candidate for the presidency is. The sample will include Christians from different sects who will be chosen randomly, they said. FPM leader MP Michel Aoun had proposed to organize the survey to determine which Christian party or parties are the most influential in the country. His idea has garnered the support of Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea and Marada Movement leader MP Suleiman Franjieh despite his call for tasking several firms to carry out the poll. However, the Kataeb Party has expressed reservations. Baabda Palace has been vacant since the six-year tenure of President Michel Suleiman ended in May last year. The rivalry between Aoun and Geagea is partly to be blamed for the presidential deadlock. The two leaders announced last month a declaration of intent, which as a first step, will likely be put into effect through the implementation of Aoun's proposal to carry out the poll.

Jumblat: Paralysis is No Longer Acceptable
Naharnet/ 06 July/15/Progressive Socialist Party chief MP Walid Jumblat has said that his only concern was to keep the government functioning to take important decisions and avoid paralysis. “My main concern is for the cabinet to continue its work to take the necessary decisions and open an extraordinary session for the parliament,” said Jumblat. He told As Safir daily published on Monday that “it is no longer acceptable for the paralysis of state institutions, which is reflecting negatively on the citizens' interests, to continue.”
“It is their own business and right if some sides have an objection,” the lawmaker said. The cabinet has been unable to function properly since MP Michel Aoun's Free Patriotic Movement threatened earlier this month that its ministers would boycott cabinet sessions if Prime Minister Tammam Salam did not place a decree on the appointment of high-ranking military and security officials at the top of the agenda. The cabinet convened last week following a three-week suspension and the FPM's ministers attended. But it failed to make the appointments, prompting Aoun to warn that he is mobilizing his supporters for street action. The cabinet is scheduled to convene again this Thursday. The government crisis is coupled with a legislative deadlock. The parliament has been unable to convene over the boycott of several blocs.

Jumblatt says Lebanon needs a leader like Greece's Tsipras
The Daily Star/July 06, 2015/BEIRUT: Praising the Greek people’s Sunday rejection of European creditors' demands for more austerity in return for a loan, Lebanon's Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt said his country could use someone like Greece's premier to tackle its own economic problems. “Greece’s step is huge and unprecedented in terms of how it influences the whole European reality, and [Greece’s] young Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras was able to create substantive change in the relations with Europe to protect the rights of his country’s people,” Jumblatt said in his weekly column in Al-Anbaa Magazine. Tsipras, the leader of the left-wing party Syriza elected in January, has been trying to negotiate a deal with lenders, including the European Central Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the European Commission, to prevent his country's exit from the Eurozone. “But the question remains this: where is Lebanon’s Tsipras, who can stop the continuous disruption of institutions and the failure to make the necessary decisions to deal with the socio-economic situation?” Jumblatt asked. Jumblatt said Lebanon’s economic conditions were also devastating, with 25 percent unemployment and the public debt almost 130 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product. “[But] Lebanon is not like Greece because in addition to the absence of a Lebanese Tsipras, Europe is not on our borders to save our domestic economy, which is on the brink of breakdown while the Arab world collapses slowly,” Jumblatt said.

Judge wants up to 3-year prison terms for Roumieh torture suspects
The Daily Star/July 06, 2015/BEIRUT: Military Investigative Judge Riad Abu Ghaida demanded Monday up to three years in prison for two members of the Internal Security Forces on charges of brutally beating inmates at Lebanon's notorious Roumieh prison in April, a judicial source told The Daily Star.The source said Abu Ghaida recommended two ISF corporals receive sentences ranging from two months to three years in prison for beating inmates at Roumieh facility, insulting them, harming them, and treating them in an inhumane way. He recommended the same sentence for a third corporal accused of filming the torture.Abu Ghaida's indictment said that "the suspects individually carried out the torturing act without the prior knowledge of the ISF and officers in charge of them." "They violated the given military instructions, beat up prisoners with a plastic and a wooden baton, which are not used by the ISF, and filmed their act," the indictment said. Another corporal and a sergeant who knew about the torture but failed to inform authorities were set free after paying a fine. The defendants were referred to the military court to stand trial, the source added. In June, leaked videos surfaced on social media showing ISF members brutally beating Islamist prisoners, drawing the ire of several officials and sparking nationwide protests. Military Prosecutor Judge Saqr Saqr had charged the five suspects, referring them to Judge Abu Ghaida, who in turn issued arrest warrants against them and summoned four others, whose names appeared in the investigation. Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk said the videos were filmed when security forces quelled riots by Islamist inmates in April.

EU official: Migrant boats also carrying ISIS fighters
By AP | Brussels/Monday, 6 July 2015/The European Union’s top prosecutor says she has been told that smugglers’ boats bringing migrants across the Mediterranean to Europe also are carrying miltants from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. Michele Coninsx, head of the EU’s judicial cooperation agency Eurojust, told reporters Monday she received the information as part of Eurojust’s efforts to help EU nations jointly respond to illegal immigration, terrorism and cybercrime. Coninsx said Eurojust’s coordination efforts are ongoing and she couldn’t divulge what EU nations have told the agency.

Bombs at mosque, restaurant in central Nigerian city kill 44
AP, Nigeria/Monday, 6 July 2015/Two bombs blamed on the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram exploded at a crowded mosque and an elite Muslim restaurant in Nigeria's central city of Jos, killing 44 people, officials said Monday. Sixty-seven other people were wounded and were being treated at hospitals, said National Emergency Management Agency coordinator Abdussalam Mohammed. The explosion at the Yantaya Mosque came as leading cleric Sani Yahaya of the Jama'atu Izalatul Bidia organization, which preaches peaceful co-existence of all religions, was addressing a crowd during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, according to survivors who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. Another bomb exploded at Shagalinku, a restaurant patronized by state governors and other elite politicians seeking specialties from Nigeria's mainly Muslim north. Jos is a hotspot for violent religious confrontations, located in the center of the country where Nigeria's majority Muslim north and mainly Christian south collide. The city has been targeted in the past by bomb blasts claimed by Boko Haram extremists that have killed hundreds of people. Sunday's attacks are the latest in a string blamed on Boko Haram that have killed more than 200 people over the past week in northeast Nigeria.
The extremists returned Sunday to northeastern villages attacked three days earlier, killing nine villagers and burning down 32 churches and about 300 homes, said Stephen Apagu, chairman of a vigilante self-defense group in Borno state's Askira-Uba local government area.
He said the vigilantes killed three militants. Boko Haram took over a large swath of northeastern Nigeria last year and stepped up cross-border raids. A multinational army from Nigeria and its neighbors forced the militants out of towns, but bombings and village attacks increased in recent weeks, apparently in response to an Islamic State group order for more mayhem during Ramadan. Boko Haram became the Islamic State group's West Africa franchise earlier this year.

Israeli officer who killed stone throwing teen felt in 'mortal' danger
Mohammed Daraghmeh/Associated Press/July 06, 2015 /RAMALLAH, West Bank:The Israeli military says a senior West Bank commander who killed a Palestinian stone-thrower last week opened fire because he felt "mortal" danger after stones hit his jeep's windshield. The military said Monday that Col. Israel Shomer exhausted "all measures" before firing at 17-year-old Mohammad al-Kusbah, without elaborating on what the measures were.
However, Palestinian witness Haroun Hazeen told The Associated Press that the officer got out of his jeep and opened fire immediately, shooting even as Al-Kusbah fled. Hospital physician Samer Saliba says Al-Kusbah was shot in the face and back. An initial army investigation backed Shomer. Sarit Michaeli from the rights group B'Tselem says the high-profile case sends a message to soldiers that lethal force is acceptable even when stone-throwers no longer seem to pose a threat.

Jordan ‘foils Iranian-backed terror plot’
By Staff writer | Al Arabiya News/Monday, 6 July 2015/Jordanian security forces have foiled a terror plot by a member of an Iranian-backed group, local newspaper Al Rai reported on Monday. The report states that the suspect belongs to the Iranian Bayt al-Maqdis group and holds Iraqi and Norwegian citizenship. The suspect was found to be in possession of large amounts of explosives and was arrested in northern Jordan, the newspaper added. Jordan's state security court was set to hold its first hearing on the case on Monday.
Despite similarities in the name, the Iranian-backed group is reportedly unrelated to Egyptian militant group Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, which recently changed its name after pledging allegiance to ISIS. A source familiar with the investigation told Al Rai that 45 kilograms of explosives were found in the suspect's possession. "This is the most serious case in a decade in terms of the quantity of explosives discovered and their quality," said the source, adding that a major terror operation had been averted.

Analysis: Egypt, Hamas, ISIS and Israel after the latest rocket attack
YOSSI MELMAN/J.Post/07/06/2015/For a few hours last week, after the rockets landed in Israel, there was uncertainty from where they were fired. At first it was thought the projectiles came from the southern Gaza Strip, but later it was reported that the Islamic State's Egyptian affiliate in the Sinai claimed responsibility for the attack. Hamas denied that the rockets were fired from Gaza. Nonetheless, it's conceivable that the group that fired the rockets on Friday was a rebellious Salafist organization in Gaza, that does not recognize Hamas's authority and wants to drive a wedge between it and Israel. What this would mean is that despite Egyptian efforts to control them, the Sinai-Gaza smuggling tunnels are still operational. In any case, Israel needs to be concerned about the latest rocket fire, but the incident does not mark a dramatic turn of events. In the past, formerly al-Qaida affiliated Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, that recently pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and now calls itself Sinai Province, fired rockets on the Negev and Eilat. Members of the Sinai Province group also succeeded in infiltrating Israeli territory more than three years ago when they engaged IDF soldiers and attacked Israeli motorists on Highway 12 that runs between Eilat and Mitzpe Ramon. That attack was carried for Hamas that wanted to open another front against Israel.
But the situation has changed since that attack. Hamas, and in particular its political leadership, has no interest in cooperating with Islamic State, which would lead to a deterioration in its relations with Egypt. A possibility remains alive that Hamas' military leadership could decide to cooperate with Islamic State because of internal tensions with the political leaders. Lately, there are signs of warming relations between Egypt and Hamas, including intelligence sharing with regard to Islamic State. What is really important for Israel is the Egyptian military's struggle against Islamic State in the Sinai, a struggle that will only intensify after Wednesday's attack in which the army suffered heavy losses. But alongside its determination, the Egyptian Army seems lacking in its intelligence and operational capabilities. The IDF and the Israel Security Agency on the other hand have extensive intelligence knowledge of the Sinai and a few years ago created a unit for this purpose. It can be assumed that in its efforts to secure the Sinai border, Israel is sharing intelligence with the Sisi regime in Cairo.

EU official: Migrant boats also carrying ISIS fighters
By AP | Brussels/Monday, 6 July 2015/The European Union’s top prosecutor says she has been told that smugglers’ boats bringing migrants across the Mediterranean to Europe also are carrying miltants from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. Michele Coninsx, head of the EU’s judicial cooperation agency Eurojust, told reporters Monday she received the information as part of Eurojust’s efforts to help EU nations jointly respond to illegal immigration, terrorism and cybercrime. Coninsx said Eurojust’s coordination efforts are ongoing and she couldn’t divulge what EU nations have told the agency.

Bombs at mosque, restaurant in central Nigerian city kill 44
AP, Nigeria/Monday, 6 July 2015/Two bombs blamed on the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram exploded at a crowded mosque and an elite Muslim restaurant in Nigeria's central city of Jos, killing 44 people, officials said Monday. Sixty-seven other people were wounded and were being treated at hospitals, said National Emergency Management Agency coordinator Abdussalam Mohammed. The explosion at the Yantaya Mosque came as leading cleric Sani Yahaya of the Jama'atu Izalatul Bidia organization, which preaches peaceful co-existence of all religions, was addressing a crowd during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, according to survivors who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. Another bomb exploded at Shagalinku, a restaurant patronized by state governors and other elite politicians seeking specialties from Nigeria's mainly Muslim north. Jos is a hotspot for violent religious confrontations, located in the center of the country where Nigeria's majority Muslim north and mainly Christian south collide. The city has been targeted in the past by bomb blasts claimed by Boko Haram extremists that have killed hundreds of people. Sunday's attacks are the latest in a string blamed on Boko Haram that have killed more than 200 people over the past week in northeast Nigeria.
The extremists returned Sunday to northeastern villages attacked three days earlier, killing nine villagers and burning down 32 churches and about 300 homes, said Stephen Apagu, chairman of a vigilante self-defense group in Borno state's Askira-Uba local government area.
He said the vigilantes killed three militants. Boko Haram took over a large swath of northeastern Nigeria last year and stepped up cross-border raids. A multinational army from Nigeria and its neighbors forced the militants out of towns, but bombings and village attacks increased in recent weeks, apparently in response to an Islamic State group order for more mayhem during Ramadan. Boko Haram became the Islamic State group's West Africa franchise earlier this year.

Egypt killed 241 Sinai militants from July 1-5, army says
AFP, Cairo/Monday, 6 July 2015/Egypt's military killed 241 militants in the Sinai from July 1-5, the army said Monday, including militants from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) who launched spectacular attacks last week. The military has poured troops and armour into the peninsula where security forces have been fighting an Islamist insurgency since then army chief and now President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ousted president Mohamed Morsi in July 2013. On July 1, militants from ISIS launched blistering attacks in the North Sinai town of Sheikh Zuweid - the scene of regular militant attacks - in which dozens were killed.The military said 21 soldiers were killed in those attacks, after several media outlets reported higher tolls from security officials. In figures released on Monday by the army spokesman on his Facebook page, the military said its forces killed 241 militants between July 1 and 5. Four wanted militants and 29 suspected militants were also arrested. Sixteen crude bombs were detonated, while 26 cars and 28 motorbikes belonging to militants were destroyed over the same period, the army said. On Facebook, the army also posted photographs of dead militants, some even displayed on military tanks. On Saturday, Sisi made a surprise visit to North Sinai, where in an address to troops at a camp whose location was not disclosed he said the region was now "totally stable".The jihadists say their attacks are in response to the bloody repression launched by the authorities after Morsi's ouster, which has seen at least 1,400 people killed and thousands more jailed. Most of the attacks on the security forces are claimed by a group calling itself "Sinai Province". Formerly known as Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, it changed its name when it pledged allegiance to ISIS last November.

Israeli officer who killed stone throwing teen felt in 'mortal' danger
Mohammed Daraghmeh/Associated Press/July 06, 2015
OCCUPIED RAMALLAH, West Bank:The Israeli military says a senior West Bank commander who killed a Palestinian stone-thrower last week opened fire because he felt "mortal" danger after stones hit his jeep's windshield.
The military said Monday that Col. Israel Shomer exhausted "all measures" before firing at 17-year-old Mohammad al-Kusbah, without elaborating on what the measures were.
However, Palestinian witness Haroun Hazeen told The Associated Press that the officer got out of his jeep and opened fire immediately, shooting even as Al-Kusbah fled. Hospital physician Samer Saliba says Al-Kusbah was shot in the face and back. An initial army investigation backed Shomer. Sarit Michaeli from the rights group B'Tselem says the high-profile case sends a message to soldiers that lethal force is acceptable even when stone-throwers no longer seem to pose a threat.

ISIS regains Kurdish-held town near Syria’s Raqqa
By Staff writer | Al Arabiya News/Monday, 6 July 2015/The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) seized a Syrian town back from Kurdish-led forces near Raqqa city on Monday, a group monitoring the war reported, according to Reuters news agency. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said ISIS forces had taken Ain Issa and surrounding areas from the YPG militia, which only seized the town from ISIS control two weeks ago.The Observatory said the attacks destroyed seven bridges over waterways in the city, which is bordered to the south by the Euphrates river, in a bid to curtail ISIS's ability to move fighters and equipment. A spokesman for the YPG could not immediately be reached for comment, but had earlier reported an attack by large numbers of ISIS fighters on YPG positions in the area about 50 km (30 miles) north of Raqqa city. U.S. officials said the air strikes in Raqqa city over the weekend were some of the most intense to date against ISIS in Syria. Ain Issa, the town reportedly recaptured on Monday, sits on a major east-west highway that runs all the way from Aleppo in the west to the Iraqi city of Mosul. The YPG-led forces captured Ain Issa on June 23, part of an offensive that drove deep into Islamic State's stronghold of Raqqa province. The YPG also captured the town of Tel Abyad at the Turkish border in the offensive.

Iranian Ground Force Commander Brigadier General Ahmad Reza Pourdastan: US will remain our enemy despite emerging nuclear deal
JPOST.COM STAFF /07/06/2015/A senior Iranian military official said Sunday that despite the emerging nuclear deal between Iran and the US-led P5+1 group of world powers, America will remain Tehran's enemy. Iranian Ground Force Commander Brigadier General Ahmad Reza Pourdastan said that even if a nuclear deal comes to fruition in Vienna, where Iranian and western negotiators are currently trying to reach an agreement by a Tuesday deadline, Tehran and Washington will not become friends."The US might arrive at some agreements with us within the framework of the Group 5+1 (the US, Russia, China, Britain and France plus Germany), but we should never hold a positive view over the enemy," Iran's Fars News Agency quoted Pourdastan as saying."Our enmity with them is over the principles and is rooted because we are after the truth and nations' freedom, but they seek exploiting nations and putting them in chains," he explained further.

Iran: Last ‘few’ issues remain before deal
By AFP | Vienna/Monday, 6 July 2015/Only “a few” hurdles remain before world powers negotiating with Iran reach an unprecedented deal that would curtail the Islamic republic’s nuclear program, an Iranian official told AFP Monday. As foreign ministers chasing a deal by Tuesday’s deadline met for their first full session in the latest round of talks in Vienna, the official said the fate of the negotiations was now in their hands. Three months ago there were a number of unresolved issues, the official said, asking not to be identified.
But now “there are only a few items left which need to be tackled by the ministers. That is why the ministers are here,” he said. Experts who have been meeting in Vienna “have moved a lot further” but “there are tough issues ... which were not resolved at expert level or the deputy minister level, those are not easy issues.”Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States are seeking to end a 13-year standoff with Iran which began when dissidents revealed its nuclear program in 2002. Tehran has long denied seeking to develop nuclear arms, and in return for curtailing its atomic industry is demanding an end to biting economic sanctions. A mechanism for quickly re-imposing sanctions if Iran breaks the deal is one of the hurdles blocking an accord. Tehran wants a reciprocal so-called “snapback” measure. “If there are issues that we have for instance in regard to sanctions termination the same procedure has to be applied to that issues as well,” the Iranian official said. “To put it broadly, snapback is something that needs to be provided to all sides, not only one side.” He insisted that Iran had already “made a number of concessions, we have shown a good amount of flexibility. I suppose everybody has done so.”This round of talks in Vienna has already busted through a June 30 deadline, and is now in its 10th straight day. But all sides have insisted they are not planning a further extension beyond Tuesday’s new deadline. The Iranian delegation had not even discussed “a possible extension because extension to be honest is not in anybody’s interest,” the official said. But he conceded: “If we need to stay some more days in Vienna, it is much better to spend some more time here than to go home and then come back.”

Israeli-Egyptian coordination is working, but it's not enough
Smadar Perry /Ynetnews/Published: 07.05.15/ Israel Opinion/Analysis: Officials in Cairo and in Jerusalem voiced the same mantra over the weekend: It's not ISIS, it's Hamas which is insisting on rocking Egypt. But for how long can Israel rely solely on Egypt to keep the triangle of terror off its fence? There are two ways to look at the image and conduct of General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the president of Egypt: He is either a nervous dictator who takes the law into his hands, silences people, throws his rivals in jail and sentences them to death by mere words, or a patriotic leader who has come to turn over a new leaf, stabilize the complicated security situation, create economic solutions and restore the trust of the world and of some 100 million Egyptian residents.
One thing's for sure: He should not be envied. Last week's assassination of Egypt's top public prosecutor, Hisham Barakat, conveys a threatening message to go even further, all the way to the presidential palace. Al-Sisi decided to flex his muscles and showed up at Barakat's funeral – quite a big headache for his bodyguards. On Saturday he made history by paying a visit, in military uniform, to the soldiers in Sinai in order to lift their spirits.
His message is clear and firm: All's fair in love and war, and those who have been hit with a death sentence for their contribution to terror attacks had better not dream of escaping the gibbet. The cameras caught a glimpse of ousted President Mohamed Morsi, in his cage, marking the "we slaughtered him" sign on his neck. Who needs further proof of the Muslim Brotherhood's involvement in the tsunami Egypt is experiencing now?
Unlike US President Barack Obama, Israel is indifferent to the state of democracy and human rights in Egypt. Israel wants a strong rais. After all, al-Sisi's enemies are our enemies. Over the weekend, we heard the same mantra from Cairo and from Tel Aviv: Hamas' military wing is pushing for radicalization vis-à-vis Israel and vis-à-vis Egypt. Here, the coordinator of the government's activities in the territories, Major-General Yoav Mordechai, chose to quarrel with an al-Jazeera anchorwoman in order to relay the following message: Israel knows that Hamas' military wings are smuggling murderers, weapons and combat trainers into Sinai.
In Cairo, at the same time, a military source went on the air and hurled similar accusations: It's not the Islamic State, it's Hamas which is insisting on rocking Egypt. The immediate conclusion is that the coordination between the Mukhabarat headquarters in Cairo and the Kirya base in Tel Aviv is working. No one is talking about the extent and depth of the cooperation with Egypt. One thing is clear: Israel cannot afford to have the triangle of terror – the new local branch of ISIS, the Muslim Brotherhood's "volunteers" and the infiltrators from Gaza – sitting on its fence. When this triangle demonstrates alarming abilities against the Egyptian security organizations in Sinai, attacking 19 of the security forces' centers simultaneously, red lights are turned on here. When they fire a missile (or three missiles, according to reports on the other side), it raises the question how long can we continue relying solely on Egypt. The Egyptian prime minister is willing to admit that there is a "real war" taking place in Sinai. Officials in Tel Aviv's Kirya base say the Egyptian army can do much more and enter the real centers of terror in Jabal Halal and in the Sinai caves. Egypt must choose who will be more convenient to confront – terrorist gangs infiltrating from Libya or the military wings of the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas.
In the meantime, the wave of terror torpedoed the first anniversary celebrations of al-Sisi's presidency. The Brothers in their prison cells are not afraid to boast that "the final word has yet to be said," and Cairo is preparing to curb the next terror attack – as no one can guess where and when explosive devices will be planted. Al-Sisi's major test will arrive next month, with a long series of ceremonies and VIPs who have been invited – although it's not so sure they will arrive now – to the inauguration of the new Suez Canal. This is the future. Tens of thousands of new workplaces are being created here. The date, the location and the targets have been marked by the military wings and terrorist gangs. They will do anything to sabotage the event.

Yesh Atid Chairman Yair Lapid slams Netanyahu on emergent Iran deal
Attila Somfalvi/Ynetnews /07.06.15/Israel News/Yesh Atid chairman says PM is to blame for lack of Israeli influence on agreement, says gov't betrayed its people by striking down conversions law. Yesh Atid Chairman Yair Lapid slammed the developing agreement on Iran's nuclear program on Monday, saying that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was to blame for the current impasse in the talks. In a studio interview with Ynet, Lapid said the emergent accord was a bad deal: "We have to fight (the deal) until the last moment if possible because this is a bad agreement for the state of Israel, I think there is no coalition and opposition in opposing this agreement."Lapid spoke to the toothless nature of any deal without snap inspections. "You can't have an agreement without snap inspections," he said. "The inspectors should have the ability to pop up from the ground and say, 'we want to see that you are not developing anything that is forbidden behind closed doors.' "Instead you have a committee and you have to ask the Iranians for permission before you go to inspect them.
"The Israeli Prime Minister is not to be blamed for the agreement, but is to blame for not being part of it," he added. Lapid said the better option for Israel would have been to take an active role in the formation of the agreement. "We should have had a delegation in Vienna, we should have been participants – a nation with possible influence in the agreement," he argued. The relationship between Netanyahu and the current American administration kept Israel from exerting influence, according to Lapid. "We should have had an open channel of communication with the American administration," he said. "We don’t have all this due to the relations Netanyahu has not only with the American administration but also with the P5+1 including China, Russia, France, Germany and UK." According to Lapid, "none of them were willing to listen due to Netanyahu's foreign policy." Lapid accused Netanyahu of failing to prevent a bad deal. "We went to the citizens of Israel and said, 'I'll prevent an agreement,'" said Lapid. "You didn't prevent an agreement. You have to go home."
Lapid did however promise that when and if an agreement was signed, his party would fight it alongside the government. Both US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif released statements on Saturday alluding to progress in the talks, as the July 7 deadline for an accord rapidly approaches. Lapid also had criticism for other recent government actions. Regarding the government's decision on Sunday to strike down a reform that was meant to enable easier conversions to Judaism, Lapid said Israel had betrayed three groups of Israelis. The first group was women, he said. "A woman who goes to family court is in a worse position than yesterday; she becomes a second-class citizen before the courts. "The second betrayal is of 300,000 Israeli citizens who are told, 'we'll draft you into the army and you'll die in Operation Protective Edge, but in life you are second-class citizens and your conversion will not occur. "The third betrayal is of world Jewry. On the one hand we're trying to recruit American Jews in particular in the battle against Iran's nuclear program, to assist in Israel's security, but yesterday we told them that their rabbis are not rabbis, their conversions are not conversions, their synagogues are not synagogues. Israel declares them to be second-class Jews."

Europe scrambles to respond to Greek ‘No’ vote
AFP, Paris/Monday, 6 July 2015/European leaders reacted with a mix of dismay and caution Sunday after Greek voters defied their warnings of a possible "Grexit" by saying a resounding 'No' to creditors' harsh bailout terms. Jeroen Dijsselbloem, leader of the Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers, who had warned ahead of Sunday's crunch referendum a 'No' vote would likely lead to Greece exiting the single currency, termed the result "very regrettable". "I take note of the outcome of the Greek referendum. This result is very regrettable for the future of Greece," the Dutch finance minister said in a statement. Germany's vice chancellor Sigmar Gabriel took an even dimmer view of the message sent by austerity-addled Greeks after they rallied to a call by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras for a boosted mandate to pursue a more lenient debt deal that includes debt forgiveness. Leading the reaction from Germany, Gabriel, who heads the centre-left Social Democratic Party that shares power with Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats, accused Tsipras of having "torn down the last bridges which Europe and Greece could have crossed to find a compromise.""By saying 'No' to the eurozone's rules... negotiations over billions of euros in bailout programs are difficult to imagine," Gabriel told his country's Tagesspiegel newspaper, referring to Greece's request for a new bailout programme. A German government spokesman said in a later statement that Merkel had discussed the outcome of the vote with French President Francois Hollande in a telephone call. The chancellor, an advocate of austerity, and Hollande, who spoke Sunday night by phone with Tsipras, were "in agreement that the vote by the Greek people be respected," the spokesman said.
The leaders of the eurozone's two biggest economies also called for a summit of eurozone leaders on Tuesday -- a request rapidly granted by EU Council President Donald Tusk.
The European Commission issued only a terse statement on the vote, saying it "respects" the result and that Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker -- who had lobbied for a 'Yes' vote -- would hold a teleconference Monday with Dijsselbloem and Mario Draghi, head of the European Central Bank, whose emergency loans have been keeping Greek banks afloat. While most EU leaders refrained from repeating their pre-referendum warnings about the uncertain fate facing Greece, Slovakian Finance Minister Peter Kazimir declared Athens had moved closer to leaving the eurozone. "The nightmare of the 'euro-architects' that a country could leave the club seems like a realistic scenario after Greece voted No today," tweeted Kazimir. Foreign Minister Timo Soini of Finland's eurosceptic Finns Party told his country's MTV television that Greece's future in the eurozone depended on European taxpayers "willingness to pay". "It cannot be that when they vote in Greece, they vote to have other eurozone members' tax euros for themselves," said Soini, whose country is part of a staunchly pro-austerity club of eurozone members. Baltic states within the single currency, and non-eurozone member Poland, also voiced dismay at the outcome. Lithuania's President Dalia Grybauskaite said the Greek vote has "further complicated the situation", while Estonian Prime Minister Taavi Roivas tweeted: "Does not look good for the future of Greek people..."Latvian PM Laidmota Straujuma, also on Twitter, wrote that a Greek 'No' "will make any further negotiations very difficult". But her spokeswoman Aiva Rozenberga later told AFP that "Europe keeps the door open for negotiations if the Greeks are willing to return". Russia also weighed in, with deputy economy minister Alexei Likhachev seeing the Mediterranean country -- whose prime minister has been accused of cosying up to President Vladimir Putin -- as having taken "a step towards a eurozone exit". But anti-austerity and euroskeptic parties were heartened by the Greek rebuff to the EU. "EU project is now dying. It's fantastic to see the courage of the Greek people in the face of political and economic bullying from Brussels," the leader of Britain's euroskeptic UK Independence Party Nigel Farage wrote on Twitter, praising the Greeks for "calling the EU's bluff". Spain's radical left Podemos party, an ally of Greece's ruling Syriza party, also cheered the result, which comes ahead of a general election later this year in Spain in which the left is tipped for gains. "Today in Greece democracy won," Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias posted on his Twitter page. In a sign of the nervousness of Spain's conservative government about the possible political contagion from Tsipras' victory Sunday, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy called an emergency meeting on Monday with senior officials including his economy and finance ministers.

Greek finance minister steps down after overwhelming 'No' referendum
Reuters/Ynetnews /07.06.15/ Israel News
61% reject European bailout offer, leaving Greece in risk of financial and political isolation within the euro zone, and a banking collapse. Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis announced his resignation on Monday, a day after Greeks delivered a resounding 'No' to the conditions of a rescue package. In a statement, Varoufakis said he had been "made aware" that some members of the euro zone considered him unwelcome at meetings of finance ministers, "an idea the prime minister judged to be potentially helpful to him in reaching an agreement." Greeks voted overwhelmingly on Sunday to reject terms of a bailout, risking financial ruin in a show of defiance that could splinter Europe. The results -- 61 percent voted "no," compared with 39 percent for "yes" -- left the bankrupt country's future in the European Union and its euro currency uncertain. The astonishingly strong victory by the 'No' camp overturned opinion polls that had predicted an outcome too close to call. It leaves Greece in uncharted waters: risking financial and political isolation within the euro zone and a banking collapse if creditors refuse further aid. But for millions of Greeks the outcome was an angry message to creditors that Greece can longer accept repeated rounds of austerity that, in five years, had left one in four without a job. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has denounced the price paid for aid as "blackmail" and a national "humiliation".
Hundreds of Greeks began pouring into the central Syntagma square in front of parliament to celebrate, after a week of building desperation as banks were shut and cash withdrawals rationed to prevent a collapse of the Greek financial system.
"This is an imprint of the will of the Greek people and now it's up to Europeans to show if they respect our opinion and want to help," said Nikos Tarasis, a 23-year-old student. Officials from the Greek government, which had argued that a 'No' vote would strengthen its hand to secure a better deal from international creditors after months of wrangling, immediately said they would try to restart talks with European partners. "I believe there is no Greek today who is not proud, because regardless of what he voted he showed that this country above all respects democracy," Labour Minister Panos Skourletis said. "The government now has a strong mandate, a strong negotiating card, to bring a deal which will open new ways."
But euro zone officials shot down any prospect of a quick resumption of talks. One official said there were no plans for an emergency meeting of euro zone finance ministers on Monday, adding the vote outcome meant the ministers "would not know what to discuss".
Many of Athens' partners have warned over the past week that a 'No' vote would mean cutting bridges with Europe and driving Greece's crippled financial system into outright bankruptcy, dramatically worsening the country's economic depression.
The result also delivers a hammer blow to the European Union's grand single currency project. Intended to be permanent and unbreakable when it was created 15 years ago, the euro zone could now be on the point of losing its first member with the risk of further unravelling to come. "I believe such a result can be used as a strong negotiating tool so that Europeans can understand that we are not a colony," said Nefeli Dimou, a 23-year-old student in Athens.
Greek banks, which have been closed all week and rationing withdrawals from cash machines, are expected to run out of money within days unless the European Central Bank provides an emergency lifeline. Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis is due to meet top Greek bankers later on Sunday and State Minister Nikos Pappas, one of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras's closest aides, said it was "absolutely necessary" to restore liquidity to the banking system now that the vote is over.
However the European Central Bank, which holds a conference call on Monday morning, may be reluctant to increase emergency lending to Greek banks after voters rejected the spending cuts and economic reforms which creditors consider essential to make Greek public finances viable, central bankers said.
First indications were that any joint European political response may take a couple of days. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande will meet in Paris on Monday afternoon. The European Commission, the EU executive, meets in Strasbourg on Tuesday and will report to the European Parliament on the situation. "EU leaders must get together immediately, even on Monday. The situation is too serious to leave to finance ministers," said Axel Schaefer, a deputy head of the Social Democrat (SPD) group in the German parliament. "You have to have confidence in the ability of the ECB to act. We must use all the possibilities in the EU budget to help Greece, which is still a member of the euro and the EU."
Uncharted A 'No' vote puts Greece and the euro zone in uncharted waters. Unable to borrow money on capital markets, Greece has one of the world's highest levels of public debt. The International Monetary Fund warned last week that it would need massive debt relief and 50 billion euros in fresh funds. Greek officials see the IMF report as a vital support for their argument that the bailout terms as they stood would merely have driven Greece further into depression.
Tsipras called the referendum eight days ago after rejecting the tough terms offered by international creditors as the price for releasing billions of euros in bailout funds. He denounced the bailout terms as an "ultimatum" and his argument that a 'No' vote would allow the government to get a better deal appears to have convinced many Greeks, particularly among younger voters who have been ravaged by unemployment levels of nearly 50 percent. "I have been jobless for nearly four years and was telling myself to be patient," said 43-year-old Eleni Deligainni, who said she voted 'No'. "But we've had enough deprivation and unemployment." Opinion polls over the months have shown a large majority of Greeks want to remain in the euro.
But, exhausted and angry after five years of cuts, falling living standards and rising taxes imposed under successive bailout programmes, many appear to have shrugged off the warnings of disaster, trusting that a deal can still be reached.

Egyptian army backed by Apaches kills 241 Islamists in broad area between Sheikh Zuwaid and Rafah
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report July 6, 2015
An immense stretch of Sinai desert populated by half a million people is under siege, as the Egyptian army fights off a major offensive by the Islamic State’s Egyptian affiliate, the Sinai Province, against its positions in northern Sinai. The battle, which Monday, July 6, went into its sixth day, is being fought in an area bounded by the northern town of Sheikh Zuwaid, Rafah on the Gaza border, and up to Kerem Shalom and Nitzana on the Israeli border to the south. debkafile’s military sources report a news blackout on the ongoing warfare except for Egyptian army handouts. Egyptian security sources reported Monday that helicopter strikes and ground operations had since July1 killed 241 Islamists in villages between Sheikh Zuwaid and Rafah, where four of their hideouts had been located. Our sources add that these air strikes are directed against civilian dwellings, especially in farming districts, where ISIS fighters are suspected of hiding out. No figures have been released by Cairo on civilian or Egyptian army casualties.
debkafile describes the contest as an asymmetrical one between an army that depends heavily on aerial operations and ISIS terrorists, who have resorted mainly to guerilla warfare. By night, they flit swiftly on foot between the dunes to strike Egyptian army positions. By day, their foot soldiers trap Egyptian soldiers by setting up ambushes around those positions and on the roads of Sinai to keep Egyptian troops pinned down. Terrorist operations are a constant on their agenda.
The Egyptians respond with blanket air strikes which swoop on any moving object in the embattled area
- whether by car or on foot
The hide-and-seek tactics employed by ISIS are sustainable in the long term, especially when the Islamists can rely on a constant influx of reinforcements, weapons and ordnance, the sources of which debkafile disclosed in an exclusive report Sunday, July 5.
The Islamic State is rushing reinforcements to Egypt from Libya and Iraq for its battle with Egyptian forces in northern Sinai, which went into its fifth day Sunday, July 5, and other offensives, debkafile’s intelligence and counter-terror sources report. After sustaining hundreds of casualties, both sides claim to have won the upper hand but the tenacious struggle is not over.
An Islamist manpower pool is provided by Egyptian extremists who crossed into Libya in the past and settled in bases around Benghazi. Last week, ISIS summoned them to take up positions in Cairo and the Suez Canal and wait for orders to go into action. They crossed back with the help of smugglers. Those rings, dominated by the Muslim Brotherhood underground, with branches controlled by Hamas and Hizballah, bring illicit weapons and ammunition supplies to Sinai from Libya via Egypt.
President Abdel Fatteh El-Sisi is therefore obliged to earmark substantial military and intelligence resources for defending the Suez Canal and Cairo – more even than the Sinai front.
The other source of jihadi reinforcements is Iraq, They use another branch of the smuggling network which carries them through southern Jordan to the Gulf of Aqaba where they are picked up by smugglers’ boats and ferried across to the eastern coast of the Sinai Peninsula.
The IDF had more than one reason for its decision last Wednesday to close to traffic Rte 12, Israel’s main southern highway, which runs parallel to the Egyptian border up to Eilat: It was a necessary precaution lest ISIS turned its terrorists and guns against Israel from next-door northern Sinai. The other reason was to deter the Islamists coming from Iraq from trying to transit Israel and reach Sinai with the help of Bedouin smugglers operating on both sides of the Israeli-Egyptian border.
Our military sources estimate that some 1,000 jihadists are directly engaged in the North Sinai battle with the Egyptian army, but add that they could quickly recruit supplementary fighting manpower from Bedouin tribes near the warfront who already play ball with the terrorists.
Egyptian tacticians have strictly limited the army action on this front to air and helicopter strikes and local ground and armored forces. They are focusing on defending three Sinai enclaves, the northern district around Sheikh Zuweid, El Arish port and Rafah, and Sharm el-Sheikh in the south, to pin ISIS forces down in those places and prevent them from fanning out into areas controlled by the big Bedouin tribes. When President El-Sisi visited the troops in northern Sinai Saturday, July 5, he disclosed that only one percent of the Egyptian army of 300,000 men was assigned to Sinai. He indicated that his army was perfectly capable of wiping out the Sinai terrorist threat in no time if all its might were to be thrown into the fray. This strategy leaves ISIS with free rein in central Sinai. However, El-Sisis, like his predecessor Hosni Mubarak, is not prepared to go all out against ISIS in its “dens” any time in the near future, because he needs all his military resources and assets he can muster to defend the capital Cairo and the Suez Canal. Neither the Islamic Army nor the Muslim Brotherhood or any other radical Islamists make any secrets of their next plans. ISIS has announced that it is setting its sights on Egypt’s pyramids, the Sphinx of Giza, and the country's unique historic monuments in general, after its savage vandalism and looting of other precious world heritage sites. In a new message released Friday, July 3, a number of radical Islamist leaders, including the ISIS “caliph” Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, told their followers that the destruction of Egypt’s national monuments, such as the pyramids and the sphinx, was a “religious duty” that must be carried out by those who worship Islam, as “idolatry is strictly banned in the religion.”This message has sharply ratcheted up the jihadist element of ISIS military confrontation with Egypt to a higher, more inflammatory leve

A Greek tragedy
Steen Jakobsen/Al Arabiya
Monday, 6 July 2015
This is now officially a Greek tragedy.
In many ways, it is relatively easy to understand why the result was a “No” from Greece. There is little to lose, as a “Yes” to more austerity hardly was a great choice for a society on the brink of a breakdown.
The vote clearly was not helped by the fact that the actual referendum, to vote Yes or No, was confusing. What did they actually say “No” to?
This does not change the fact that I firmly believed Greece would say “yes” and unseat a government that is more interested in their own survival than the country’s destiny. What comes next politically is difficult to predict but markets are slightly easier:
• DAX (German stock index) will open down 5% - again – and probably lose 10% during next few weeks unless European Central Bank and Federal Reserve does a repeat of 2010-11 plunged protection teams.
• The EU’s so-called “Club Med” spreads will rise 20-50 bps over the next few weeks
• Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania should see considerable spread increases
• Predicting the euro against the dollar is a difficult one. I expect a weaker open, but if Greece is actually going to leave the euro then it will be stronger by the end of week. For now I expect 2-5% range the first 24/48 hours (Early Sunday night indication points to: 1.0990/1.1000 (i.e. down 120 pips)
This is one of the biggest failings in European history.
The real risk remains the illiquidity of the market. Do not forget that through government intervention (QE’s) in the bond market there is no two-way market. No market makers and no risk capital (due to capital requirement and regulation).
The big other risk is that banks will NOT re-open despite the assurances by Greek government on Tuesday. Will it lead to 30% haircut on depositors as the Financial Times wrote over the weekend?
The reactions are coming in fast and furious – many gloating and playing games, but where is the long-term solution?
A solution lies in Greece getting a haircut but also make real commitments to redefining a new country. SYRIZA has shown how powerful it is in an environment of “pretend-and-extend” from Europe, but the same “pretend-and-extend” is now dead. The change in macro policies always comes from failings. This is one of the biggest failings in European history.
The Plan A was to do pretend-and-extend. Plan B was to use a “carrot and sticks” approach – and it seems Plan C was not to have a plan at all! Having no plan is not a plan, as is pretty obvious now, but its good news in the sense that someone now needs to own up to the losses incurred alongside no reforms, no structural changes and with no hope.
No winners, only losers
Zero hope, zero reform and zero willingness to change equals a Greece of tomorrow with no access to finance, very little friends and a future which is, if possible, is even more dire.
Europe on the other hand has also lost out. My classic argument since day one has been that the Greek tragedy is one without solutions. No winners, only losers. Europe looks inflexible and stubborn. Clearly we finance people understand and mostly agree with the medicine prescribed, but at all times any policy needs to be embedded in democracy and in the ability of carrying through with the plan.
SYRIZA and Greece however have probably lost out on more. The mere idea they will have come to a new deal in 24 hours is pure fantasy as it has been every week when the now outgoing finance minister promised us a plan by next week.
Like Europe, however they do not have a Plan B or Plan C, only a rhetoric that reminds me of Eastern Europe before 1989.
I love sports analogies as much as most people hate them: This is a now football match being played without referees and rules. Either team can claim to have won: Greece is claiming they made the highest amount of free kicks and three free kicks against them equals a goal for Greece, while the EU and ECB claim that they had more corners than Greece, making them the winners. With no rules and no referees, it’s anybody’s call, but of course, in a regular match these two sides would draw nil-nil.

Iran's Ideological Camp Increases Pressure To Reject Upcoming Nuclear Agreement;
Majlis National Security Committee Chairman: 'Kerry Is Talking Nonsense Because His Broken Leg Hurts... You Can't Expect Much From A Sick Man'
MEMRI/July 3, 2015 Special Dispatch No.6092
As the June 30, 2015 deadline for Iran and the P5+1 to reach a final nuclear agreement approached, Iran's ideological camp, led by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, stepped up its anti-agreement statements. On June 18, 2015, Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Committee Chairman Ala Al-Din Boroujerdi rejected pragmatic camp claims that Iran should, as other countries have, accept the Additional Protocol as part of the comprehensive agreement, in order to resolve the issue of Possible Military Dimensions (PMD) and so that the IAEA could confirm that the Iranian nuclear program is indeed for civilian purposes.[1] According to Boroujerdi, such a move would not end Western pressure on Iran and therefore Iran should reject the demand to inspect its military facilities and question its nuclear scientists.
Also on June 18, the Iranian daily Kayhan, which is the mouthpiece of the ideological camp, claimed that the pragmatic camp's expectation that the U.S. – the "serial killer of agreements" that had in the past, it said, violated its past agreements with the Soviet Union and North Korea – would honor the nuclear agreement with Iran was baseless. Calling on the negotiating team to get ready for American violations, the paper also rejected the argument by Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif that cementing the agreement in the UN Security Council would ensure that the U.S. would implement it.
A few days earlier, on June 15, the IRGC weekly Sobh-e Sadeq stated that Iran could become an international nuclear model and change the global order if it could thwart Western demands to inspect its facilities. Iran, it said, is energy independent and therefore it should reject the economic and nuclear incentives offered to it by the West to cut back activity at the Fordo and Arak facilities, and should continue with the goal of enrichment on an industrial scale.
Following are excerpts from several statements on this matter:
Boroujerdi: "No Country In The World Has Shown Transparency On The Nuclear Issue Like Iran Has"
In a June 18, 2015 interview with the Iranian website Snn.ir, Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Committee Chairman Ala Al-Din Boroujerdi said: "In my opinion, John Kerry is talking nonsense because his broken leg hurts. He is sick, and you can't expect much from a sick man. Iran's nuclear program focuses on nuclear facilities, and Iran has opened these facilities' doors to local and foreign journalists, even to CNN, in its increased transparency. No country in the world has shown transparency on the nuclear issue like Iran has...
"The Additional Protocol would have to be ratified by the Majlis. This means that the [Rohani] government does not have the authority to accept it. It is unacceptable to compare Iran to other countries that have ratified the Additional Protocol. This is because few countries in Iran's situation would do so; the reason for this is that there is great political sensitivity about Iran due to its status as a unique country and the West's constant aspiration to pressure its nation and its government.
"Therefore, there is no doubt that while many countries have ratified the Additional Protocol, comparing Iran to other countries is unacceptable. If we can be the exception to the Additional Protocol vis-à-vis inspection of military installations and talks and meetings with nuclear scientists – this would be very good. We too seek to draft such a protocol."[2]
Kayhan: What Guarantee Do We Have That The Americans Will Not Violate The Agreement?
In a June 18, 2015 editorial titled "The Serial Killer Of Agreement," the Iranian daily Kayhan, which is the mouthpiece of the ideological camp, stated: "Two weeks remain until the ultimatum set for the nuclear negotiations, and sources close to the talks say that the language of the agreement is full of parentheses that are unlikely to be bridged in the remaining timeframe. These doubts are increasing, and turning into certain knowledge [that an agreement will not be reached], since the Americans are backtracking from their positions... Even if an agreement is reached... we must not forget that it will stretch over more than a decade, and, according to published reports, it is unlikely that after that period the attitude towards Iran's nuclear activity will be normalized and will exist based on the NPT [as it does for all other parties to the treaty].
"One subject up for debate in the negotiations these days is the American effort to set up a mechanism to reactivate the sanctions on Iran if it violates the agreement. American officials explicitly state that they are maintaining their hostile view of Iran... and that they cannot base the agreement on trust and must therefore take into account a worst-case scenario.
"Does the Iranian negotiating team also hold this view of the agreement's framework, essence, and future? What guarantee do [we] have that the Americans remain committed to the agreement and will not violate it? If they do violate it, how will Iran react? Those who are excited [about the agreement, i.e. the pragmatic camp] will say that the guarantees for this agreement will come in the form of a Security Council resolution. [However,] such a guarantee is more a legal gesture than a substantial and practical measure. Legal and international relations experts both say that international laws are [as fragile as] spider webs...
"Nothing beats history and experience in properly understanding the dimensions of this issue. The nuclear talks have in fact become [bilateral] negotiations between Iran and the U.S., [in the guise of] attempts to prevent nuclear arms proliferation. Such negotiations and agreements are rare in the world, and only last a few decades at most... Their eventual doom [proves] that America is essentially untrustworthy.
"At the height of the Cold War, America and the USSR signed the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty [ABMT] to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; it was signed in 1972 by Richard Nixon and Leonid Brezhnev. Under this treaty, each country could possess only two anti-ballistic missile complexes, each restricted to no more than 100 missiles. In 1973, it was agreed that each country would have only one such complex... Three months after the September 11 attacks, George Bush announced... that his country was dealing with threats that could not be effectively combated due to the 1972 treaty... [so] America announced the end of this treaty and withdrew from it...
"In 1979, Jimmy Carter and Brezhnev signed the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty [i.e. SALT II], under which the two countries were meant to reduce their strategic missile [arsenals] to 1,320... The treaty was never implemented because of interference by the White House and Senate, and after several years of debate, the Americans officially announced its end.[3]
"In 1994, America and North Korea signed the Agreed Framework in Geneva... Pyongyang committed to freezing its heavy water reactor, export its nuclear fuel to a third-party country, and allow the IAEA [to conduct] special inspections [of its nuclear facilities]. Washington committed to reducing the obstacles to trade and investments with North Korea, lifting some sanctions on communications and financial services, constructing two 1,000-megawatt light-water reactors, transferring half a million tons of crude oil per year until the construction of the light-water reactors was complete, and normalizing relations between the two countries. The Americans, who were supposed to construct the reactors together with Japan and South Korea, never did this, and the oil shipments were only delivered after delays due to various excuses, and in the end were stopped altogether. In 2002, America officially announced that it did not recognize the nuclear treaty with North Korea and stepped up its pressure on it. This resulted in North Korean nuclear breakout and nuclear weapons armament. The outcome of the negotiations and agreement between America and Libya are also clear enough today to require no clarifications.
"Yes, this is the truth. Today Iran is sitting at the negotiating table with a country like this – a country that easily tramples agreements that it has signed and remains committed to them only so long as they serve its interests. A look at the above cases makes the following question even more necessary and requires an even deeper answer: What guarantee is there that America will maintain its commitments [to Iran], and what will be Iran's response to repeated violations of the agreement [by the U.S.]?"[4]
Sobh-e Sadeq: We Fear The Loss Of Iran's Nuclear Achievements And The Country's Takeover By The West
A June 15, 2015 article in the IRGC weekly Sobh-e Sadeq stated: "The nuclear negotiations between Iran and the P5+1... have arrived at a point that is sensitive, because of their impact on the international balance of power. If Iran can maintain its nuclear rights and beat back Western greed – such as in the matter of inspection of military facilities and the questioning of military and nuclear officials, as well as in the lifting of the sanctions – it will undoubtedly achieve the status of a country that stood fast against the six global superpowers, and will attain unique international status. Iran is becoming a global model in the nuclear field, and other countries will undoubtedly join it as a nation with independence, freedom, and tremendous scientific and technical capabilities.
"On the other hand, if the West can force its greed on Iran and harm its nuclear rights, or manages to achieve its more general goals – inspection of Iran's defensive and missile capabilities, and implementing its plan of humiliating Iran by questioning military and nuclear officials – Iran will be presented to the world as a model of defeat.
"The West is presenting a false scenario: If Iran meets its demands in the negotiations, it will receive special nuclear and economic support from the West... Media and political circles in the West are presenting a plan to establish an international consortium to assist Iran's physical research, including the redesign of the Arak heavy water reactor. They [the West] believe that if Iran forgoes the current setup of the Fordo and Arak facilities, it could benefit from joint research with other countries in order to redesign these facilities.
"The West is depicting its entrance into Iran's economy – especially the fields of oil and gas – as a groundbreaking move towards Iran's economic leap forward, and even as a factor that will strengthen [Iran's] power in the region... However, behind their words is a significant point, and that is the principle of self-reliance and the domestic nature of Iran's economic and nuclear achievements. The truth is that the West cannot stand for a country, even a nation, that arrives at great achievements on its own, because it views such a country as a model that will undermine [the West's] aspiration for supremacy and absolutism, and [fears that such a country] could form the basis of a global movement against the West's continued takeover attempts.
"In the nuclear arena, Iranian scientists have achieved a great deal, thanks to the considerable national persistence [in pursuing], for example, fuel [i.e. uranium, enriched to a level of] 20%, construction of the Arak research reactor, and the token operation of Fordo. There is a scenario in which the West, on the pretext of establishing a consortium to redesign Arak and Fordo and, ostensibly, to involve the world in Iran's nuclear development – is actually preventing new nuclear achievements by Iran and is bringing local [Iranian] achievements under its control.
"In the economic arena, Iran has taken many steps in its oil and gas [industries] in order to become independent. The removal of domestic companies and capabilities in these areas – on the pretext of the entrance of [Western] oil and gas giants – threatens Iran's industries and obstructs Iran's economic self-reliance, particularly with regard to its achievements in recent years in our oil and gas industries...
"Therefore, we must ensure that nuclear and economic agreements will not impact Iran's self-reliance in nuclear enrichment at a level of 190,000 SWU [Separative Work Units], or its other nuclear rights. We must not let any harm come to Iran's achievements of recent years in industrial self-reliance, inter alia in our oil and gas industries."[5]
Endnotes:
[1] For more on these claims by the pragmatic camp, see MEMRI Inquiry & Analysis Series Report No. 1167, Nuclear Negotiations At An Impasse: Leader Khamenei Rejects Agreement Reached On Token Inspection Of Military Sites And Questioning Of Scientists; U.S. Willing To Close IAEA Dossier On Iranian PMD, To Settle For Inspecting Declared Nuclear Sites Only, And To Rely On Intelligence; EU Objects, June 11, 2015.
[2] Snn.ir, June 18, 2015.
[3] The treaty was never ratified by the U.S. Senate, but was honored until it expired in 1985.
[4] Kayhan (Iran), June 18, 2015.
[5] Sobh-e Sadeq (Iran), June 15, 2015.

News Bulletin Achieves Since 2006 Click Here to go to the LCCC Daily English/Arabic News Buletins Archieves Since 2006

News Bulletin Achieves Since 2006
Click Here to go to the LCCC Daily English/Arabic News Buletins Archieves Since 2006