LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS
BULLETIN
January 20/17
Compiled
& Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
The
Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
http://www.eliasbejjaninews.com/newsbulletins17/english.january20.17.htm
News Bulletin
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Bible Quotations For Today
The harvest
is plentiful, but the labourers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest
to send out labourers into his harvest.’
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 09/35-38/":Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in
their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and curing
every disease and every sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for
them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are
few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his
harvest.’
I fear that there may perhaps
be quarrelling, jealousy, anger, selfishness, slander, gossip, conceit, and
disorder
Second Letter to the Corinthians 12,17-21.13,01-04/"Did
I take advantage of you through any of those whom I sent to you? I urged Titus
to go, and sent the brother with him. Titus did not take advantage of you, did
he? Did we not conduct ourselves with the same spirit? Did we not take the same
steps? Have you been thinking all along that we have been defending ourselves
before you? We are speaking in Christ before God. Everything we do, beloved, is
for the sake of building you up. For I fear that when I come, I may find you
not as I wish, and that you may find me not as you
wish; I fear that there may perhaps be quarrelling, jealousy, anger,
selfishness, slander, gossip, conceit, and disorder. I fear that when I come
again, my God may humble me before you, and that I may have to mourn over many
who previously sinned and have not repented of the impurity, sexual immorality,
and licentiousness that they have practised. This is the third time I am coming
to you. ‘Any charge must be sustained by the evidence of two or three
witnesses.’ I warned those who sinned previously and all the others, and I warn
them now while absent, as I did when present on my second visit, that if I come
again, I will not be lenient since you desire proof that Christ is speaking in
me. He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful in you. For he was crucified in weakness, but lives by the power of God.
For we are weak in him, but in dealing with you we will live
with him by the power of God.
Titles
For Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources
published on January 19-20/17
History will be without mercy/Khalil Helou/Face Book/January 19/17
Recycling in Beirut falls to activists and refugees/Clare Maxwell/The New
Arab/January
Walid Phares: ‘Trump’s
Administration Will Aid Regional Countries to Face Iranian Expansion/Khalid Mahmoud/Asharq Al Awsat/January 19/17
It starts right now," O'Leary told CTV's Your
Morning, moments after the announcement online. "I'm in."/Josh
Elliott, CTVNews/Wednesday, January 19/17
Turkey and Terrorists/Burak Bekdil/Gatestone
Institute/January 19/17
Turkey Turns Church into Museum; Greece Builds New Mosque/Uzay
Bulut/Gatestone Institute/January 19/17
Pope Francis Strengthens Palestinian Refusal to End Hostilities with Israel/Giulio Meotti/Gatestone
Institute/January 19/17
Saudi Writer: Ahwaz Region Deserves Self-Determination; Its Occupation By Iran
Is No Less Barbaric Than Palestine's Occupation By Israel/MEMRI/January 19,
2017
Has Obama Presidency withered the hopes of Western liberalism/Dr. Azeem Ibrahim/Al Arabiya/January
19/17
Saudis are not racists and must speak out against it/Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi/Al Arabiya/January 19/17
Time to trip over vintage Trump/Trisha de Borchgrave/Al
Arabiya/January 19/17
Titles For Latest Lebanese Related News
published on January 19-20/17
Lebanon’s Hariri seeks $10 bln foreign
investment amid refugee crisis
Report: Hezbollah claims IDF breached Lebanon border to install spy gear
Iran's weapons shipments to Hizballah violated
international law
Hizballah's boasting lands Iran in hot water with UN
Saudi, Lebanese leaders focus on future
Resumption of Parliament Activities Stirs Calls for Long-Standing Demands
Aoun: Parliamentary Vote to be Held on Time under
Consensual Law
Jumblat: PSP Election Law Demands Compatible with Taef Accord
Relatives of Kidnapped Elderly Block Bekaa Roads,
Threaten Counter-Abductions
Israel Removes Lebanese Army Barricade, Installs Spy Device
Army Sets Checkpoints in Nabatieh
Ibrahim: Situation Controlled but Vigilance against IS Threats Necessary
Bou Assi: Int'l Community
Has No Intention to Naturalize Syrian Refugees in Lebanon
MoI contract workers resume sit in
Information Ministry contractual employees resume sit in this evening at Nejmeh Square
Riachy: Contractual file shall reach happy end
tonight or before end of January
Khalil to Information Minisrty
contractual employees: If your dossier is separated
Zeaiter: We support every equitable, legal demand
Recycling in Beirut falls to activists and refugees
Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous
Reports And News published on January 19-20/17
Ceasefire deal reached in Syria’s Barada Valley
US air strike killed al Qaeda leader in Syria
Syria Regime Encircles Rebel Area Supplying Damascus Water
Iran Looks to Syria Talks to Boost Regional Clout
Iraq Forces Battle Last IS Pockets in East Mosul
Amnesty: Iran must stop systematic repression of young people
Iraq: Most ISIS commanders in Mosul killed
Collapse of Burning Tehran High-Rise Kills at Least 30 Firefighters
New Gambia President to Take Oath in Senegal as Regional Force Masses on Border
Syria's Assad Says Astana Talks will Focus on Ceasefire
Kuwait Court Upholds Jail for 3 Royals for Insults
Egypt to Try 304 over 'Brotherhood Militant Attacks'
Iran: Over %25 of ICU Patients Die Due to Hospital Infections
Twenty First Fundraising Campaign of Simay-E-Azadi
Iran: Second Lashing Sentence Issued for Reporters
Iran: Industry Sector Faces Negative Growth of %47 and Unemployment of 6500
Over 80 IS Fighters Killed in U.S. Strikes in Libya
Latest Lebanese Related News
published on January 19-20/17
History will be without mercy.
Khalil Helou/Face
Book/January 19/17/A man with principles does not change nor his beliefs concerning the moral values and national nor his
attitudes and actions vis-à-vis the great causes, while transcending its narrow
interests. For this race that doesn't get flat-belly in front of the enemy, nor
who drools in front of the money and material things, which may be of the 19th
or 20th century, for this race, act Contrary to his principles would be
self-Annihilation, prostitution and hypocrisy. It would turn into a biological
being devoid of dignity and values.There are many who
agree to turn into biological beings in front of the enemy and that drools in
his crackling pieces of gold or silver, sneering at the men of principles, and
tarnishing their image with lies and wild... but not Who can watch them
straight in the eye. History will be without mercy.
Reuters,
Report: Hezbollah claims IDF breached
Jerusalem Post/January 19/2017 /The Shi'ite Lebanese
terror group claimed that Israeli forces crossed the so-called Blue Line
between the two countries, where they excavated dirt embankments constructed by
the Lebanese army. Hezbollah has accused
The Channel 2 report also stated that residents in northern
The New Arab/19 January, 2017/The United Nations Security Council has raised
alarm that
When asked by the international body to clarify the issues,
Hizballah's boasting lands Iran in hot water with UN
The New Arab/19 January, 2017/A statement by Hizballah
has caused embarrassment for Iran after the UN Security Council raised concerns
its arms transfers to the Lebanese militia could have violated the nuclear deal.The United Nations Security Council has raised alarm
that Iran could have violated its nuclear deal by selling arms to Hizballah. A June 2016 televised statement by the Lebanese Shia militia group's secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah claiming it receives its salaries, expenses,
weapons and missiles from Iran has raised "particular concern" among
UN officials. "The statement suggests that transfers of arms from
Saudi, Lebanese leaders focus on future
By Gulf News Journal Reports | Wednesday, Jan 18, 2017 /Saudi Arabian King Salman bin Abdulaziz recently met
with Lebanese President Michel Aoun to discuss ways
to enhance bilateral relations and to focus on Arab and international
developments. The Riyadh meeting was also attended by Saudi Prince Faisal bin
Bandar bin Abdulaziz, governor of Riyadh Province;
ministers Prince Mansour bin Miteb
bin Abdulaziz, Prince Miteb
bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, Musaed
bin Mohammed Al-Aiban, Ibrahim bin Abdulaziz Al-Assaf, Adel bin Zaid Altoraifi, Adel bin Ahmed
Al-Jubeir, Mohammed bin Abdullah Al-Jadaan and Thamer bin Sabhan Al-Sabhan; and Walid bin Abdullah Bukhari, Saudi
charge' d'affaires to Lebanon. In attendance from
Resumption of Parliament Activities Stirs
Calls for Long-Standing Demands
Naharnet/January 19/17/The parliament
convened on Thursday for the second day in a row after meeting for two, evening
and morning, rounds a day earlier to discuss and approve pressing draft laws,
but not the controversial electoral law. The parliament passed a law pertaining
to the right of access to information which was submitted by MP Ghassan Mokhayber. It also passed
an old rent law and added a paragraph pertaining to establishing a state-fund
for tenants to benefit from. The parliament held its first legislative session
in 2017 on Wednesday after quorum was met with 65 lawmakers. Speaker Nabih Berri chaired the meetings.
It approved 19 bills out of the 73 draft laws on its agenda. The controversial
electoral law was not on the agenda. Most of the laws that have been approved
by the parliament are related to international treaties and proposals between
Aoun: Parliamentary Vote to be Held on Time under
Consensual Law
Naharnet/January 19/17/President Michel Aoun announced Thursday that the upcoming parliamentary
elections will be held “on time” and according to a law “that enjoys the
consensus of the Lebanese.”Aoun also called for
voting for “parties and not individuals” in the parliamentary polls. “We have
founded parties that can create strong blocs and make achievements. An MP alone
does not have the ability to plan or impose certain planning, that's why we
encourage voting for parties and not individuals, who are an absent and
ineffective force in parliament,” Aoun told a
delegation comprising the municipal chiefs and mayors of the Keserwan district. Retired Brigadier General Chamel Roukoz, the former Commando
Regiment chief and Aoun's son-in-law, attended the
meeting. Roukoz, who hails from Keserwan,
intends to run in the next parliamentary elections. Separately, Aoun vowed to “continue the course of reform, combating
corruption and controlling expenditure.” Interior Minister Nouhad
al-Mashnouq announced Wednesday that the
parliamentary elections “will be held on time” under the controversial 1960
electoral law unless a new law is passed. Hizbullah
has repeatedly called for an electoral law fully based on proportional
representation but other political parties, especially al-Mustaqbal
Movement and the Progressive Socialist Party, have
rejected the proposal, arguing that Hizbullah's arms
would prevent serious competition in the party's strongholds. Mustaqbal, the Lebanese Forces and the PSP have meanwhile
proposed a hybrid electoral law that mixes the proportional representation and
the winner-takes-all systems. Speaker Nabih Berri has also proposed a hybrid law. The country has not
voted for a parliament since 2009, with the legislature instead twice extending
its own mandate. The 2009 polls were held under an amended version of the 1960
electoral law and the next elections are scheduled for May 2017.
Jumblat: PSP Election Law Demands Compatible with Taef Accord
Naharnet/January 19/17/Progressive Socialist Party
leader MP Walid Jumblat
stressed on Thursday that his party's demands for a new electoral law for the
upcoming parliamentary elections go in harmony with the Taef
accord, as he assured that it must secure balanced political and regional representations . “The election law must ensure an accurate
balance for political and regional representation,” said Jumblat
in a tweet. He added: “We have great hopes that the three presidents
--President Michel Aoun, PM Saad
Hariri and Speaker Nabih Berri--
and all political forces would have a clear understanding about the requests of
the Democratic Gathering bloc which shows coherence with the Taef Accord.”A PSP delegation met
a day earlier with Aoun where talks focused on a law
that will govern the May 2017 elections. Jumblat has
recently revoked backing for a hybrid law system as agreed previously with the
Lebanese Forces and al-Mustaqbal Movemnet.
Instead, he voices backing for a majoritarian
electoral system.
Relatives of Kidnapped Elderly Block Bekaa Roads, Threaten Counter-Abductions
Naharnet/January 19/17/Relatives of a 74-year-old man
who was abducted on Wednesday blocked several key roads in central Bekaa on Thursday and threatened to carry out
counter-kidnaps if he is not freed by 8:00 PM. The angry relatives of Saad Risha blocked several roads
with dirt, trucks and burning tires, media reports said. Meanwhile, an envoy
dispatched by Speaker Nabih Berri,
Bassam Tlais, was meeting
with dignitaries in the Bekaa town of
Israel Removes Lebanese Army Barricade, Installs
Spy Device
Naharnet/January 19/17/Israeli forces on Thursday
removed a sand barricade erected by the Lebanese army in the Khillet al-Makhafer area on the
southern border, media reports said. Lebanese troops deployed in the area after
this “blatant violation of an area disputed by
Army Sets Checkpoints in Nabatieh
Naharnet/January 19/17/The Lebanese army has erected
checkpoints on the roads and entrances leading to the southern town of al-Nabatieh, the National News Agency reported on Thursday.
NNA said ,army troops and military vehicles were
positioned at the checkpoints in search of fugitives. The step comes as part of
intensified security measures carried out by the army around several areas in
Ibrahim: Situation Controlled but Vigilance against IS Threats Necessary
Naharnet/January 19/17/General Security chief Maj.
Gen. Abbas Ibrahim said although the security
situation in Lebanon is “under control,” but vigilance is essential to counter
threats of Islamic State retaliation as the result of its losses in the region,
al-Joumhouria daily reported on Thursday.“The
situation is under control, the security in our country may be better than many
other surrounding countries, or even better than many states around the world,”
said Abbas in an interview to al-Joumhouria
saily on Thursday. “However, we cannot ignore the
fact that terror act threats have not been 100% eliminated. Vigilance is a duty
here,” he added. “We always take into consideration that terrorism in all its
classifications and names, mainly the Islamic State group which has been
exposed to setbacks in Syria and other countries, may look for a chance to
enter Lebanon for acts of terrorism in retaliation for the successive losses it
suffered,” added Ibrahim. He assured however, that the security agencies are watchful
focusing on places they believe provide safe sanctuary for terrorists, similar
to the encampments of Syrian refugees where a number of suspects were caught.
“Investigations with detained terrorists and thorough follow ups carried out by
the General Security, revealed that members (in the encampments) were ready to
collaborate with terror cells to carry out suicide attacks,” he said. Ibrahim
referred to the latest apprehension of a Syrian female in
Bou Assi: Int'l Community Has
No Intention to Naturalize Syrian Refugees in Lebanon
Naharnet/January 19/17/Social Affairs Minister Pierre
Bou Assi stressed Wednesday
that “the international community has no intention at all to naturalize Syrian
refugees in Lebanon.”“But what's more important is
the stance of the Lebanese and the Lebanese government, which categorically
rejects any form of naturalization,” Bou Assi added in an interview with
MoI contract workers resume sit in
Thu 19 Jan 2017/NNA - Ministry of Information contract workers renewed their
sit-in at the parliament's entrance, coinciding with the convening of the second
round of the legislative session, to press for the approval of the item related
to their draft law on pension and medical care after retirement. MOI
contractual employees have stages a sit in this morning as the Parliament
convened in its legislative session, whereby they were promised by some
attending ministers and deputies to separate their dossier from the contractual
dossiers of other state institutions.
Information Ministry contractual employees
resume sit in this evening at Nejmeh Square
Thu 19 Jan 2017/NNA - Ministry of Information contractual employees resume
their sit in at 6.00 p.m. on Tuesday evening outside Nejmeh
Square, coinciding with the convening of the second round of the legislative
session, to press for the approval of the item related to their draft law on
pension and medical care after retirement. MOI contractual employees have
stages a sit in this morning as the Parliament convened in its legislative
session, whereby they were promised by some attending ministers and deputies to
separate their dossier from the contractual dossiers of other state
institutions.
Riachy: Contractual file shall reach happy end tonight or
before end of January
Thu 19 Jan 2017/NNA - Information Minister, Melhem Riachy, said on Thursday on Tele Liban
that the contractual file would reach a positive end this evening or before or
before the end of this month. Minister Riachy said
that he met with Finance Minister, Ali Hassan khalil,
MP Hassan Fadlallah and House Speaker Nabih
Khalil to Information Minisrty
contractual employees: If your dossier is separated
Thu 19 Jan 2017/NNA - Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil
categorically voiced support of the project of the Information Ministry's
contractual employees, saying that the project has not been rejected but rather
asked to be further re-examined in terms of the cost and impact on the pension
system. Minister Khalil was speaking to Information
Ministry contractual employees who staged a sit in outside the Parliament to
proclaim their righteous rights and longstanding demands. Khalil
sounded optimistic notably that all parliamentary blocs agree over the project,
saying if the Ministry of Information contractual employees' dossier was
separated from other dossiers, the draft law shall pass during today's
legislative session.
Zeaiter: We support every equitable, legal demand
Thu 19 Jan 2017/NNA - Agriculture Minister, Ghazi Zeaiter,
told on Thursday the Contractual employees at the Ministry of Information that
the House Speaker and members of the parliament supported every righteous and
legal demand of Lebanese people, notably that of journalists. "The draft
law includes all journalists; and to be clear there is a consensus from all
political parties regarding giving contractual employees their rights,"
Minister Zeaiter said. He also underscored that the
Parliament would study the possibility of separating Information Ministry's
contractual dossier from other files. NNA Director, Laure Sleiman,
responded by saying that "the work at the Agency will be suspended until
the approval of such draft."
Recycling in
Clare Maxwell/The New Arab/January 19/17
During Lebanon's recent garbage crisis, several non-profit organisations,
activists, and civil society groups said that comprehensive recycling programs
should be a key part of any solution. Since then, businesses and NGOs in the
Greater Beirut area have stepped up to the task of collecting, cleaning, and
sorting recycling. There is a commonly touted belief that the city recycles
eight percent of its garbage - a statistic that comes from research done by
SWEEP-Net, a think-tank that focuses on solid waste management in the Middle
East/North Africa. However, a close reading of the study shows that the actual
percentage of trash recycled in
According to
In this chaotic system, there little clarity or
accountability. But some actors are doing a better job of holding
themselves accountable than others.
Several small organisations operating in and around
For a fee of $10–16 per pick-up, they collect recyclables, sort and clean them,
and sell off batches to recycling treatment plants. For day-to-day operations,
these organisations use the same model - most of their operational costs are
covered by the pick-up fees, with the rest by grant funding.
The resale of recyclables covers only a small percentage of costs, as treatment
plants pay between $50 and $200 per ton, depending on the material. At present,
these groups are working on a small scale, providing services for a few hundred
to a thousand clients each. All agree, the resale of recyclables will never
make ends meet, and there is minimal public money available to support
sustainable recycling programmes.Where these groups
differ, however, is on their long-term vision for recycling programmes in
Sam Kazak, cofounder of Recycle Beirut, says he attended protests organised by
You Stink during the summer of 2015, but that he's lost confidence in any
political fix for the broken waste management system.
"People don't trust the government, but they want the government to find a
solution," he tells The New Arab. Running a recycling plant as a social
business chips away at the mountains of trash and provides a living wage for
his 17 employees, some of whom are Syrian refugees.
The less politics is involved, the better, says Kazak.NGOs,
on the other hand, see their work as a form of political advocacy. Cynthia Khawly, who works with Arc en Ciel,
says their programme is just a stepping stone to a community-based system,
countrywide. In addition to recycling for homes and businesses, Arc en Ciel works with 80 municipal governments, as a contractor
either for transporting and cleaning their recyclables, or for helping towns
build their own sorting centres.To assist
municipalities in becoming responsible for their own recycling, Khawly wants to see a law put in place that would compel
local governments to meet recycling quotas.The idea
is based on Arc en Ciel's previous legislative
success in forcing hospitals to properly sterilise medical waste. Khawly noted that the system only worked because Arc en Ciel had first created a facility that could handle medical
waste treatment.It seems that even if the government
could pass the desired legislation, the work of making sure it was implemented
and enforced could still fall on the shoulders of private and non-governmental
actors.
With limited cooperation from municipal governments, NGOs and smaller
contractors face substantial constraints on how much they can actually recycle.
Since their business and residential programmes are opt-in, they can only hope
that more clients will want to take advantage. Additionally, these
organisations note that their clients come almost entirely from middle- and
upper-class neighbourhoods in
As a percentage of what could be recycled in
Sukleen, the giant contractor whose waste-management
contracts cover almost all Greater Beirut, ought to be responsible for the
majority of the country's recycling. Yet any actual details on how much waste
they process remains vague, and SWEEP-net sources suggest they might not
recycle any of their waste whatsoever. Sukleen
purports to offer free recycling pick-ups to homes and businesses wishing to
participate in recycling, through its "Red and Blue" programme.
However, the process is irregular enough that more and more homes and
businesses are opting to pay $10 pickups rather than deal with Sukleen
The number of private pick-ups per month is also unknown. When interviewed,
multiple representatives from Sukleen insisted that
any information regarding the number of clients, or the areas of
Sukleen might do better at facilitating the work of
scavengers than it does with its own recycling. At one massive burning and
dumping site in Burj Hammoud,
a suburb of
Scavenging operations can be as simple as a child searching through trash at
the side of the road or as complex as this one. While the workers didn't want
to risk their employment or immigration status by answering too many questions,
they did provide a few answers.
Trash is dumped at the site almost every day, and a handful of workers live in
an abandoned house next to the dump to work as full-time sorters. Their
employer picks up the recyclables once a week, and a
quick scan of the area showed massive heaps of sorted recyclables. Between one
and five tons of plastic, metal, glass, and cardboard are salvaged every week.
Whatever comes out of the dump that doesn't have resale value is burned to make
room for incoming garbage. Though dozens of scavenge sites operate across the
metropolitan area, the likelihood that they would process and produce 80,000
tons of recyclables recycling per year, bringing Beirut to the eight percent
recycling threshold, is quite low. While such operations publish no exact
record of how much they sort and sell, the quantities viewed at any given site,
as well as the physical space taken up by the operation were comparable to
those collected at any small business or NGO site. Due to the semi-legal nature
of the sites, there is also no public record of how many exist
or where they are located.
Under such circumstances, it's almost impossible to ascertain the amounts of
recyclables that scavenge operations move in a month, and due to their limited
resources, they remain the least efficient method for trash sorting.
With NGOs and small businesses covering only a small amount of Greater Beirut
and
Furthermore, as SWEEP-Net itself notes, with rapid population growth, largely
due to incoming refugees, waste management is going to get more and more
irregular.
One thing is certain: More and more people in Greater Beirut are waking up to
the necessity of comprehensive recycling programmes. Small-scale recycling
programmes are seeing more members sign up every week, and a handful of
municipalities are working on building their own recycling programs. Meeting
the low benchmark of eight percent recycling may be possible even yet. Clare Maxwell is a journalist and media
activist living in
Latest LCCC Bulletin For
Miscellaneous Reports And News published on January 19-20/17
Ceasefire deal reached in
Syria’s Barada Valley
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Thursday, 19 January
2017/Sources from Al Arabiya’s al Hadath
Channel announced that the governor of Damascus and a German envoy by the
German embassy in Damascus who is also a delegate for the International Red
Cross, met with civilian members and military personnel for the Barada valley; to mediate between the rebels and the forces
of the regime, aiming for a ceasefire between the parties. As a result, the
delegation agreed on several clauses with the Barada
valley rebels, the agreement has been signed by both parties. The terms of the
agreement specify a complete ceasefire, to end all military operations in the
Reuters,
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/January
19/17/Syrian government forces encircled a key rebel area northwest of
Iran Looks to Syria Talks to Boost
Regional Clout
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/January
19/17/Iran is looking to Syria peace talks next week as a chance to build on
its regional clout, experts say, as Tehran, Moscow and Ankara all stake out
claims for influence. The Syrian army's victory in recapturing the rebel
stronghold of east
- 'Tactical partners' -Negotiations between Iran and Turkey, which has been on
the opposing side in the war as a backer of Islamist rebel groups, were always
going to be thorny.
More surprising have been the cracks starting to emerge in
Iraq Forces Battle Last IS Pockets in East
Mosul
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/January
19/17/Iraqi forces on Thursday battled jihadist holdouts in the last pockets of
east Mosul still held by fighters from the Islamic State group, a top commander
said. The head of
Amnesty: Iran must stop systematic
repression of young people
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Thursday, 19 January
2017/Amnesty International declared that young people in Iran are exposed by
the ruling regime in their country to a “systematic violence,” referring to the
incident of flagellation of young people on charges of participating in mixed
celebrations. Amnesty International condemned in a statement the physical
violence sentences issued by Iranian courts against citizens, citing the
example of the Iranian journalist who was whipped after an error in his report
on the confiscation of motorcycles by the police. Randa
Habib, Regional Director for Middle East and
Cops flog wedding guests
One of the girls recounted how the police broke into
her wedding ceremony in the
The Iranian regime prohibits most entertainment activities for young people,
such as sitting in coffee shops. In last December, the police abducted 120
people who were sitting in a coffee shop in the center of the capital, under
the pretext that they were not in a normal state of mind! The Iranian regime
bans musical concerts and entering night coffee shops, while women are not even
allowed to enter the gym. Since the advent of President Hassan Rowhani, many coffee shops opened their doors in major
Iranian cities such as
Iraq: Most ISIS commanders in Mosul killed
Reuters, Mosul, Iraq Thursday, 19 January 2017/Most ISIS commanders in Mosul
have been killed in battles with Iraqi government forces that raged over the
past three months in the eastern side of the city, an Iraqi general said on
Thursday.
The fight to take the western side of
Assadi climbed during his visit to the upper floor of
a huge unfinished mosque and gazed out at the western side of the northern
Iraqi city, which is divided into two halves by the
“It will not be harder than what we have seen. The majority of
On one of the streets newly recaptured from
Collapse of Burning Tehran High-Rise Kills
at Least 30 Firefighters
Agence France Presse/Associated
Press/Naharnet/January 19/17/A high-rise building in
Tehran engulfed by fire collapsed on Thursday, killing at least 30 firefighters
and injuring some 75 people, state media reported. The disaster struck the Plasco building, an iconic structure in central
Police tried to keep out shopkeepers and others wanting to rush back in to
collect their valuables.
"I do not know where they are now," Kazemi
said, crying. In a nearby intersection, Abbas Nikkhoo stood with tears in his eyes. "My nephew was
working in a workshop there," he said. "He has been living with me
since moving to
New
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/January
19/17/Gambian president-elect Adama Barrow was to be
sworn in Thursday at the country's embassy in
Inauguration to go ahead
Barrow, a real-estate agent turned politician who won a presidential vote on
December 1, flew to Senegal on January 15 after weeks of rising tension over Jammeh's refusal to step down. Jammeh
initially acknowledged Barrow as the election victor but later rejected the
result. He attempted to block Barrow's inauguration with a court ruling and by
declaring a state of emergency this week. Speaking to AFP by phone, a senior
member of Barrow's opposition coalition, Isatou Touray, welcomed the army chief's declaration that his
troops would not prevent Jammeh's removal by force.
"That's a very positive outlook from him, given that Jammeh's
regime is done," Touray said. "We don't
have to risk the lives of innocent citizens."In
remarks at a hotel restaurant late Wednesday, Badjie
said he loved his men and wouldn't risk their lives in a "stupid
fight," witnesses said.
'Really scary'
Arriving back from The Gambia at Manchester airport in northern England,
several passengers could be seen comforting a Gambian national and UK resident
who had tried unsuccessfully to get his family out. Speaking to AFP, Ebrima Jajne described the
situation as "really scary for everybody... because this president (Jammeh) doesn't want to step down and people are
fleeing." Tourist Ralph Newton said local residents had done what they
could to reassure visitors, despite the threat to themselves. "All the
locals were just worried... They said it's a bad time for us but you'll be
alright... It'll be us they come for, if they come for anybody." And Sara
Wilkins, another tourist, said they had struggled to get clear information on
the developing situation. "We weren't told anything... I kept phoning
(tour operator) Thomas Cook and they were just like... don't worry about
it," she told AFP. "I rang Thomas Cook again this morning and they
said pack your bags, you've got to go."Despite
the build-up along the border, an army source told AFP Senegalese troops were
"not yet" present on Gambian soil.
Eyes on border
After 11th-hour talks in
It was not clear whether the Mauritanian leader had secured a deal or made an
asylum offer to Jammeh. The last-minute intervention
came after several unsuccessful attempts at diplomacy by the 15-nation Economic
Community Of West African States (ECOWAS).
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/January
19/17/Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said peace
talks next week in the Kazakh capital will focus on enforcing a cessation of
hostilities to allow aid access across his war-torn country. The talks
sponsored by regime allies
Assad proposes reconciliation -Assad said an agreement at Astana would
"allow these (rebel) groups to join the reconciliation deals in Syria".Damascus has reached a series of local deals
under which rebels evacuate areas in exchange for an end to bombardment or
sieges.
Assad said if a similar deal was struck in Astana, opposition fighters would
"lay down their arms and receive an amnesty from the government. This is
the only thing we can expect at this time."Such
deals have been fiercely criticised by rebel groups as a deliberate strategy of
displacement.
Several major rebel groups announced on Monday that they would attend the
Astana talks to discuss the fragile truce and improved humanitarian access.They announced a delegation of eight
representatives, led by Mohammad Alloush of the Jaish al-Islam (Army of Islam) rebel faction. But the
powerful Ahrar al-Sham faction, which
counts thousands of fighters in central and northern
The regime is seeking to gain full control over the area -- including the key
Ain al-Fijeh spring -- to restore running water to
the capital. In addition to devastating infrastructure,
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/January
19/17/Kuwait's court of appeals on Thursday upheld a five-year jail term for
five men including three members of the al-Sabah ruling family for insulting
top judges online. The court also confirmed a one-year jail term against a
sixth man and upheld the acquittal of six others. The royals include Sheikh Athbi al-Fahad al-Sabah, a nephew
of the Gulf state's emir and the former head of the secret service police. He
is also the younger brother of international sports figure Sheikh Ahmad al-Fahad al-Sabah, who is president of the Olympic Council of
Asia and a member of the International Olympic Committee. They were among 13
people charged with posting on Twitter and WhatsApp
fake footage showing a judge accepting a bribe from an aide to ex-premier
Sheikh Nasser Mohammed al-Ahmed a-Sabah. The defendants -- most of whom were jailed for a week in June before being released on
bail -- were also convicted of spreading lies about the integrity of top
judges. The judges include the current and former chiefs of the supreme
judicial council, the highest judicial authority in the oil-rich Gulf state.
Also convicted was Sheikh Khalifa Ali al-Sabah, the
editor of al-Watan newspaper and television which
authorities shut down for violating corporate finance rules in a decision
ratified by the courts. Thursday's rulings are not final as can still be
challenged in the supreme court. The 13th defendant,
who allegedly posted online the footage, was sentenced to 10 years in jail by a
lower court but the appeals court did not examine his case on Thursday as he is
on the run.
Egypt to Try 304 over 'Brotherhood
Militant Attacks'
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/January
19/17/Egypt's prosecution has referred 304 suspects including Muslim
Brotherhood leaders in Turkey to military trial for allegedly organising
militant groups that claimed several attacks in Cairo last year. The case is
one of the largest to link armed attacks with the Muslim Brotherhood movement
of Mohamed Morsi, the Islamist president toppled by
the military in 2013. A prosecution statement on Wednesday said the suspects,
many of them abroad, had set up the Hassam militant group that claimed
responsibility for several assassinations and attacks in
Iran: Over %25 of ICU Patients Die Due to
Hospital Infections
NCRI Iran News/ Thursday, 19 January 2017/ “Unfortunately, we can say that
roughly more than 25 percent of the deaths of our patients in the intensive
care unit is due to infection.” Stated Head of the Scientific
Society of Critical Care. According to state-run ILNA news agency, on
January 18, Ali Amir Savad Kouhi,
Head of the Scientific Society of Critical Care, in an interview said: “Patients
who enter the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) have a lower immunity (body immune
system) and the possibility of transmission of infection to these patients is
very high.”“One of the main problems we witness in
the ICU is transmission of infections. Lack of air flow separation in the
hospital with the ICU is one of the reasons for the increase in infections. We
have structural weaknesses in these sectors, which spread infections,” he
emphasized. He referred to the unstandardized
structure of the hospitals and said: “Management of the ICUs is so hard that we
have to get along with the situation. If we want to reach a situation like
world-class hospitals, we must make changes in the structure of hospitals.”
Regarding the impact of infections on patients’ mortality, Head of the
Scientific Society of Critical Care said: “Several factors may have a role in
patients’ mortality but one of the main causes is infection.”“Unfortunately,
we can say that roughly more than %25 of the deaths of our patients in the
intensive care unit is due to infection.”
Twenty First Fundraising Campaign of Simay-E-Azadi
NCRI Iran News/ Thursday, 19 January 2017/ Contribution of thousands of
Iranians from Iran and around the world to Simay-e-Azadi
(Iran National Television)
Twenty-first fundraising telethon of Simay-e-Azadi,
Iran National Television, turned to a manifestation of national will and
solidarity in support of the Iranian Resistance, disgust toward the religious
fascism ruling Iran in its totality and the demand for changing this regime and
the establishment of freedom and democracy. In this program that continued for
40 hours from January 13 to 15, thousands of Iranians from various backgrounds
from
Contributors in this fundraising praised Simay-e-Azadi
for being "the voice of the voiceless" and its irreplaceable role in
delivering news of protest and resistance within the country and breaking the
wall of repression, exposing the catastrophic situation of human rights in
Iran, expressing pains and problems of deprived classes and unbearable lives of
grave sleepers and street kids, spread of social anomalies including addiction,
prostitution, trafficking of Iranian women and children, institutionalized
repression and discrimination against women and widespread suppression of
students and youths who are the nightmare for this inhumane and anti-Iranian
regime, suppression of ethnic and religious minorities as well as unique
programs in exposing the clerical regime’s efforts in spread of missile
programs and its devastating meddling and export of terrorism around the world
and specifically in the Middle East. Some Iranians inside the country delivered
their contributions to Simay-e-Azadi through their
relatives and friends abroad. Passionate calls of the Iranian youth and their
contributions despite their financial limitation, and calls of the families of
martyrs of the resistance and survivors of the massacre of 88 and their support
for justice movement for this massacre, financial support of a number of
political prisoners who offered their support and contributions to Simay-e-Azadi despite all the pressures and torture and
deprivation from the most basic human rights, as well as support for hunger
striking political prisoners and praising the resistance of prisoners, were
among the interesting parts of the twenty-first fundraising for Simay-e-Azadi.
In many calls, contributors to Simay-e-Azadi reminded
the crises of the final stage of the clerical regime, lethal effects of nuclear
“chalice of poison” and failure of JCPOA, consequences of Rafsanjani’s
death and losing the internal balance of the clerical regime, and stressed on
the sensitivity of the situation and heavy responsibilities and duties of all
forces and supporters of the Resistance and those yearning for Iran freedom.
This program was supported by many European MPs and representatives and the
Arab world personalities, and many Syrian fighters, despite their own pains and
difficulties, supported fundraising efforts of Simay-e-Azadi
and continuation of its programs.
Fearful of the enlightening role of Simay-e-Azadi,
the clerical regime uses all its efforts to disrupt Simay-e-Azadi
and seeks to turn it off by arrest, imprisonment and execution of contributors
as well as nonstop noise diffusion and removing satellite receivers. However,
Iranians inside and outside Iran, countering the clerical regime and in order
to foil its suppressive measures on the one hand and trying to promote and
expand this TV program on the other, have turned the support for this media to
a symbol of solidarity, and with their active participation help this TV to
continue its broadcasts and to expand and promote its programs.
Iran: Second Lashing Sentence Issued for
Reporters
NCRI Iran News/ Thursday, 19 January 2017/ Following publication of the news
regarding lashing of a reporter in Najaf Abad (Province of Isfahan, central
Iran) and implementation of 40 lashes, another reporter in Shahroud
(Province of Semnan, central Iran) received 40 lashes
as well in less than a month. According to the state-run Quds
Online news agency on January 18, manager of the local site “Shahroud news” was sentenced to 40 lashes after trail in a
branch of the criminal court in the city of
In this regard, the reporter refrained from appeal to protest lack of jury and
the issued verdict. It should be reminded that not long ago, Hossein Movahedi, a media
reporter in Najaf Abad, was arrested for publishing the wrong number of the
confiscated motorcycles by the police and sentenced to 40 lashes. The sentence
was carried out last week while the media that published the news had even
published the police response.
Iran: Industry Sector Faces Negative
Growth of %47 and Unemployment of 6500
NCRI Iran News/ Thursday, 19 January 2017/ On January 18, 2017, the state-run Tasnim news agency, affiliated to terrorist Quds force, revealed deplorable state of the Iron and Steel
Industry in Iran reporting that 6500 employees of this industry were laid off
or fired in the past year. The report indicates a negative growth rate of %47
in investment in the Iron and Steel industrial projects in one just year from
2014 to 2015. According to the news agency, "The number of licenses for
industrial facilities manufacture of iron and steel in 2015 showed a negative
growth of %32 compared to year 2014. In the investment sector, negative growth
of 47% in investment and negative employment of 39% has occurred in this field.
In addition, over the past year, 6500 people lost their jobs in this industry.
"
Over 80 IS Fighters Killed in U.S.
Strikes in Libya
Naharnet/Agence France Presse/January 19/17/More than 80 Islamic State jihadists
were killed in a U.S. aerial blitz on training camps in Libya, including
fighters involved in plotting attacks in Europe, Defense
Secretary Ashton Carter said Thursday. The Pentagon made the highly unusual
decision to conduct the air strikes with a pair of B-2 stealth bombers that
flew to North Africa on a 34-hour mission from their base in
Wednesday's massive strike saw the B-2s and Reaper drones unleash about 100
bombs on the IS training camps -- equating to more than one bomb per jihadi that was killed. The camps were located about 45 kilometers (30 miles) southwest of the coastal city of Sirte, Gadhafi's former home town
that IS for a time turned into a stronghold as it attempted to expand its
presence in Libya. Speaking on his last day in office, Carter said the targets
"certainly are people who were actively plotting operations in Europe, and
may also have been connected with some attacks that have already occurred in
15 air tankers
Cook would not discuss why the Air Force chose to use the B-2s,
or whether it was a show of force as Obama leaves the White House ahead of
President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration on Friday. "The use of the B-2
demonstrates the capability of the
Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis
& editorials from miscellaneous sources published on January 19-20/17
Walid Phares: ‘Trump’s
Administration Will Aid Regional Countries to Face Iranian Expansion’
Khalid Mahmoud/Asharq Al Awsat/January
19/17
Cairo- Walid Phares, a key
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump adviser for Middle East affairs, said that
the new U.S. administration, which will take over on Friday, will reconsider
the nuclear deal signed earlier with Iran.
Phares, who is nominated for a higher post in Trump’s
new administration, noted that the major reason behind reconsidering the
nuclear deal is that Trump believes that it opposes the U.S. national security’s
considerations, and it allows Iran to act freely in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and
Lebanon to face interests of U.S. Arab partners in the region and especially in
the Gulf.
“President Trump and his administration will work on implementing what should
be implemented in this deal regarding the nuclear weapon,” Phares
said as he answered questions by Asharq Al-Awsat via email.
“On the other hand, they will work on developing this deal to include stable
security in Iraq, Syria and Yemen and settlement in Lebanon, thus reassuring
Arab states and partners, especially the U.A.E., Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and
other countries such as Jordan and Egypt,” he added.
“
Regarding the future of relations with Gulf partners, especially
He explained that Trump’s administration fully understood these countries’
concerns from what is happening in the region and from the policies adopted by
Obama’s administration and led to the decline of
Phares confirmed that this will change under Trump’s
administration, which will work on rebuilding trust with
The new administration, according to Phares, will
also renew its commitment to maintain security in these countries and organize
bilateral and regional relations so that every party knows its duties and
obligations.
“Trump said it clearly in his speeches, whether before his electoral campaign
or after it, and he will reconfirm it when he enters the White House.”
Trump considers that the Iranian regime has been practicing aggressive policy
in the region, whether in Iraq where his militias are expanding, in Syria where
his militias are also being expanded with the Lebanese so-called Hezbollah or
in Yemen where Iran has installed weapons and missiles that some were launched
on U.S. ships and others were targeted towards Makkah.
“All these practices proved for Trump’s administration that there is expansion
and violence practiced by
Trump’s adviser stressed that this new administration will carry out an
assessment to adopt a new strategy in the region and will review it with the
Congress; whose majority of members refuse Iran’s aggressive policy that is
practiced in the region.
Phares said that the new
"It starts right now,"
O'Leary told CTV's Your Morning, moments after the
announcement online. "I'm in."
Josh Elliott, CTVNews/Wednesday, January 18, 2017
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2017/01/18/canada-kevin-oleary-enters-conservative-leadership-race-im-in%d9%83%d8%a7%d9%81%d9%86-%d8%a7%d9%88%d9%84%d8%a7%d8%b1%d9%8a-%d9%8a%d8%af%d8%ae%d9%84-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%b3%d8%a8%d8%a7%d9%82/
Celebrity investor Kevin O'Leary appears on CTV's
Your Morning moments after officially declaring his intentions to run for
leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada on Facebook
on Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2016.
Kevin O'Leary running for Conservative leadership
Celebrity investor Kevin O'Leary officially declared his intentions to run for
leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada on Facebook
on Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2016.
O'Leary enters the fray one day after the Conservatives' first French-language
leadership debate, in which all 13 other candidates participated. O'Leary does
not speak fluent French.
However, he says he spoke French up until the age of seven, when he was a boy
growing up in
He added that the Conservative caucus of
O'Leary says he will be fluent enough to debate Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
in French during the 2019 election campaign, if he wins the Tory leadership.
Supportive of gay rights, legalized marijuana
In an appearance on CTV’s
Power Play, O’Leary outlined his fiscal-first plan for the Conservative Party.
He said he considers himself a feminist who supports LGBT rights, access to
abortion, the legalization of marijuana and assisted suicide. He repeatedly
touted his business background, saying that his ability to “read a balance
sheet” makes him qualified for
O’Leary had tough words for Trudeau, who he called “the enemy” and accused of
“destroying our country.” He described the prime minister’s economic policy as
“insane” and repeatedly referred to the next federal election as “the exorcism
in 2019.”
“You know who’s going to elect Kevin O’Leary? Justin Trudeau. He just has to
keep doing what he’s doing, and I’ll be the next prime minister,” he said.
He added that he hopes his message will strike a chord with millennials,
and he plans to reach out to younger Canadians through social media.
“I have to grow the base because the only way the Conservative Party can win is
we’ve got to win back 60 per cent of those people that are 18 to 35 years old,”
he said. “And I’ve told the party, if I don’t get 60 per cent of them, they can
fire me, because I can’t win a majority mandate without them.”
He also defended his decision not to participate in the French language debate
on Tuesday night, calling the event “incredibly bad television” that very few
people watch.
“I want to debate, but you can’t do it in any language with 14 people,” he
said.
Past comments
O'Leary acknowledged that he's made a lot of bold remarks on various issues
over the years, both as an on-air commentator in Canadian television, and as a
reality TV star on investment shows such as "Shark Tank." However, he
insists those remarks don't mean anything for his campaign platform.
"There's 10,000 hours of things that I've said," he told CTV's Your Morning. "I expect all of them to get
regurgitated. They don't mean anything. They're not policy."
In terms of policy, O'Leary said he plans to use the best ideas from his
opponents for his own campaign. He says he's particularly focused on bringing
jobs to young Canadians between the ages of 18-35, whom he suggested have been
let down by Justin Trudeau. "That's my army of entrepreneurs."
He vowed to dig
On energy, O'Leary said he wants to lean more on Canadian oil, rather than
importing oil from
He also criticized Trudeau for "charging ahead" with his own economic
policies, instead of preparing to react based on the big changes coming to the
Identity politics and Trump
When asked, O'Leary did not outline his definitive position on immigration,
which has become a hot-button issue in the Conservative leadership race.
Instead, he repeated his intention to bring the "best ideas" of his
opponents to
A handful of O'Leary's leadership rivals have recommended screening immigrants
for "anti-Canadian values."
O'Leary instead shifted his attention to Donald Trump's aggressive immigration
stance, citing his own background as an example of the value of diversity.
"I'm the son of an immigrant from
In terms of Trump, O'Leary said "we both got famous on reality
television," but the similarities between the two men are superficial.
"We need a leader that can actually deal with Trump," he said.
The Canadian businessman stands opposite to Trump on at least one issue, in
that he says NATO needs more help from
Trump has come out against NATO, condemning it as "obsolete."
O'Leary's candidacy holds at least one similarity to Trump's, in that that he
appears eager to use social media as a driving force behind his campaign.
O'Leary says his decision to run was based on social media support, and he
ultimately announced his candidacy on Facebook
minutes before hitting the airwaves at CTV.
He also used Twitter to respond to Tuesday night's Conservative French-language
debate.
O'Leary made his candidacy official less than a week after an exploratory
committee told him there was a "clear path to victory" available to
him in the race.
Burak Bekdil/Gatestone
Institute/January 19/17
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/9773/turkey-terrorists
Common sense would expect such a front-runner victim at least to have some
sense of empathy for terror victims elsewhere. Right?
Wrong. Not in
Unfortunately, Erdogan's ideological attachments
visibly defeat his fake rhetoric that there are no good terrorists and bad
terrorists.
Unsurprisingly, Erdogan, who "opposes terror
regardless of the terrorist's identity, rhetoric or faith... whoever it
targets," has not condemned the latest attack in
Ten statements in total condemning terror. Not a
single word for the young victims of terror in
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had a good point when, a day after a
terrorist attack in
A few days later, Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman issued an order outlawing the
Istanbul-based International Kanadil Institute for
Humanitarian Aid, a Turkish aid group, accusing it of funnelling money to Hamas
and the Muslim Brotherhood. "The Kanadil
foundation is identified with Hamas and with the Muslim Brotherhood and in
recent years had been used as a main pipeline for funding projects by Hamas in
In a November interview with
In a November interview, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that he does
not view Hamas as a terrorist organization. Pictured above: Erdogan (right) meeting with Hamas leaders Khaled Mashaal (center) and
Ismail Haniyeh on June 18, 2013, in
What Erdogan says about terror and terrorists often
makes perfect sense. On June 11, 2016, he said that "for us there is no
good terrorist or bad terrorist; all terrorists are bad." On June 15, 2016,
Erdogan proposed that "let us oppose terror
regardless of the terrorist's identity, rhetoric or faith... Let us disapprove
of [terror] whoever it targets." And on Dec. 1, 2016, after meeting with
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Erdogan said that
"terrorism has no religion, nationality or identity ... that we should
exhibit a common stance and common solidarity in our fight against all kinds of
terror."
Common sense would expect such a front-runner victim at least to have some
sense of empathy for terror victims elsewhere. Right?
Wrong. Not in
On Jan. 8, four Israeli officer cadets were killed and a dozen wounded when a
Palestinian driving a truck ploughed into them deliberately. Israeli police
said the dead, three women and one man, were all in their twenties. Among the
wounded three were described as in a serious condition. Hamas, Erdogan's "political movement born from [a] national
resurrection," praised the truck attack but did not claim responsibility.
In a statement, the group's spokesman Abdul-Latif Qanou called it a "heroic" act and encouraged other
Palestinians to do the same and "escalate the resistance."
Unsurprisingly, Erdogan who "opposes terror
regardless of the terrorist's identity, rhetoric or [religious] faith ...
whoever it targets," has not condemned the latest attack in
*Burak Bekdil, one of
Turkey's leading journalists, was just fired from Turkey's leading newspaper
after 29 years, for writing what was taking place in Turkey for Gatestone.
© 2017 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.
Turkey Turns Church into Museum; Greece Builds
New Mosque
Uzay Bulut/Gatestone
Institute/January 19/17
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2017/01/19/51670/
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/9803/turkey-church-greece-mosque
When one talks about Christians in Turkey, one tends to think of them as
migrants who moved to the area after Muslims took over, or as if Muslims have
always been the majority there. The truth is, Bilecik
and the rest of
"The Greek community is dying, and it is not a natural death." — A
Greek an in
"The Greek community in
"The conquest of Bilecik is not a random
conquest of a territory. The conquest of Bilecik
means the establishment of the Ottoman state... the beginning of a blessed
march. When future generations see this project, they will understand they
should be proud of their ancestors and history." — Selim
Yagci, Mayor of Bilecik.
As Turks are taught to take pride in every single thing in their history --
including all of the crimes of their ancestors -- they still continue
committing similar crimes.
Turkish newspapers have recently reported that plans are underway to restore
the historic
Osmaneli Mayor Munur Sahin said that the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople,
Bartholomew I, also visited the region, and said:
"We re-evaluated the situation of the church. This place will never be
opened to worship again. It will serve as a museum and a cultural venue. We
obtained the necessary permits; we will bring movable cultural artifacts from around Osmaneli
and keep them here."
The restoration project, approved by the Council of Monuments, is set to be
finished in two years. The church lies in ruins -- largely because the congregants
were either murdered or forcibly deported during and after the 1914-1923 Greek
genocide.
The historic
When one talks about Christians in
The truth is Bilecik and the rest of
The early Ottoman policy: Conquest and Co-operation
In 1071, Seljuk Turks invaded and began to conquer Anatolian territories.
"Starting as far back as 1071," wrote journalist Kerry Kolasa-Sikiaridi, "Turks began their settlements in
Anatolia, and shortly after, dominated the vast majority of the region, excluding
the
The Ottoman state achieved tremendous military success as a fighting machine.
The scholars Ebru Boyar and Kate Fleet explain in
their book A Social History of Ottoman Istanbul that the policy of the early
Ottoman state was far more sophisticated than utter war and conquest, as
The authors describe in the sophistication of Osman Bey in his dealings with the Byzantines:
While his brother Gunduz adopted the somewhat
unsubtle approach of total destruction of the enemy, proposing that they should
attack and destroy the area, Osman disagreed. 'This',
he told his brother, 'is a bad idea,' for plundering and devastating the region
around Karacahisar, their latest conquest, would simply
ensure that the town would not thrive and develop. Therefore, Osman argued, 'the first thing which should be done is to
get on well with our neighbors and be their friends.'
In accordance with this policy, Osman had very good
relations with the local Byzantines when he came to the throne (according to
the Ottoman historian Asikpasazade), and a
long-standing friendship with the Byzantine ruler of Bilecik,
to whom he gave presents of fine carpets and rugs, cheese and clotted cream.
No doubt more pragmatic than sincere, such relations were very useful for the
survival of a small state in a hostile environment, and the policy of
'dissimulation' was praised by Asikpasazade:
Cheat your enemy that you may in the end win
If you find an opportunity, do not draw back from taking his head
Feed him on good food and let him drink sweet wine
Let this weaken him while you grow strong
But do not be careless, think that he can cheat you
If in the end you suffer, regret will be useless.
This ability both to conquer and to co-habit was one of the reasons for Ottoman
success.
All of those insidious and patient strategies bore fruit. In 1299, the Ottoman
leader, Osman, captured the Byzantine city of
Throughout decades, the Ottoman conquest of Byzantine towns continued – until
the fall of Constantinople, which brought the collapse of the
Persecution of Orthodox Greeks in Turkey
The Greek communities of Anatolia were exposed to genocide between 1914 and 1923,
and a forcible population exchange campaign between Turkey and Greece, in which
many of the survivors were expelled from Turkey in 1923.
Decades passed since these atrocities but the persecution of Orthodox Greeks at
the hands of Turks continued. In 1992, a Greek man in
"The Greek community in
"Their fearfulness is related to an appalling history of pogroms and
expulsions that they have suffered at the hands of the Turkish government. The
problems experienced by the Greek minority today include harassment by police;
restrictions on freedom of expression; discrimination in education involving
teachers, books and curriculum; restrictions on religious freedom; limitations
on the right to control their charitable institutions; and the denial of ethnic
identity."
As a result of several attacks and constant pressure, the once-flourishing Greek
communities of Bilecik and the rest of
Mihail Vasiliadis, the
editor-in-chief of Apoyevmatini, the only remaining
Greek newspaper in
"The Greek population in
Glorification of Ottoman conquests
On May 28 of last year, Turkish officials including the Ministry of Energy and
Natural Resources Undersecretary Fatih Donmez celebrated the 717th anniversary of the Ottoman
conquest of Bilecik in a ceremony held at a cultural
center in the city. Selim Yagci,
the mayor of the Bilecik, stated:
"Bilecik is a city of history. The conquest of Bilecik is not a random conquest of a territory. The
conquest of Bilecik means the establishment of the
Ottoman state. And the establishment of the Ottoman state means the beginning
of a blessed march."
The speeches of officials were followed by the chanting of the Koran, the
reciting of the "adhan (Islamic prayer) of
conquest," a musical show of the Ottoman military band of the municipality
and another show in which a young man performing the role of an Ottoman sultan
"symbolically" girded himself with a sword.
The event also marked the opening of the "project for timeline of Ottoman
sultans" to be held in the city center. The mayor defined it as "a
project of history, culture and education as well as of ownership and
belonging" and declared that they aimed to educate people on "the
lives and services of the Ottoman sultans".
"When future generations see this project, they will understand they
should be proud of their ancestors and history," added the mayor.
As Turks are taught to take pride in every single thing in their history –
including all of the crimes of their ancestors – they still continue committing
similar crimes. There are very few Christian congregants left in the country
and even their historic churches and monasteries have either been destroyed or
are in ruins. Many of the remaining churches are used for sacrilegious
purposes, such as stables or warehouses.
Seckin Evcim, an academic
and expert of art history, wrote in his article about the Hagios
Georgios:
"The church which was built between the end of the 19th century and
beginning of the 20th century, was used probably till the population exchange
and left after that. During the
Most of the areas which today are within modern Greece's borders were under the
Ottoman occupation from the mid-15th century until the Greek War of
Independence in 1821 and the establishment of the modern Greek state in 1832.
But the government of
"The Greek capital's first modern Muslim house of worship is slated for
completion by the end of April, as work at the site has gotten back on track.
The tender for the 887,000-euros project, financed through the Public
Investment Program, was signed with a consortium of
Haven't we all heard that
Meanwhile, the Turkish Hurriyet Daily News has
covered the restoration of the Bilecik church in a
news report titled, "
The indented use of a church is not to serve tourism. And what is it that makes
it difficult for the Greek government to learn lessons from history?
Sadly, the cultural genocide against the Christian heritage remains ongoing in
**Uzay Bulut, a journalist
born and raised a Muslim in
© 2017 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.
Pope Francis Strengthens Palestinian
Refusal to End Hostilities with Israel
Giulio Meotti/Gatestone
Institute/January 19/17
January 19, 2017 at 5:30 am
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/9798/pope-francis-palestinians-israel
By opening the Palestinian embassy during this critical time of intensified
anti-Israel animosity, was the Pope justifying the Palestinian-Arab attempt to
isolate the Jewish State and to impose on it unacceptable conditions of
surrender through international pressure?
Unfortunately, Pope Francis's papacy has been marked by a long list of
anti-Israel gestures which did not advance the cause of peace the Pope claims
to champion.
The Pope also met with Palestinian "refugees," as if the 1948 war
were the source of conflict between the two peoples, instead of centuries of
Muslims having displaced Christians and other non-Muslims from
The Pope called Abbas an "angel of peace". Really? An angel of peace? According to Shmuely Boteach,
"Abbas spent his life murdering Jews," by
financing the
During these four years, Pope Francis has continually put significant barriers
in the way of peace between Israelis and Palestinians -- a peace based on
dialogue, mutual respect and the end of conflict. Instead, this supposed man of
peace has strengthened Abbas's refusal to negotiate
with the Jews -- the Christians' "elder brothers", as Pope John Paul
II bravely called them -- and to end hostilities with them. If
this is his view of Caritas, what a tragic shame.
Mahmoud Abbas's activities
in
The "Palestinian president," now in the twelfth year of his four-year
term, then met with Pope Francis for the third time since the start of his
papacy four years ago. The high-profile get-together took place in the middle
of the Palestinian attempt to bypass peace talks with
A few weeks ago, the UN Security Council, in Res. 2334, condemned Israel for
its "settlements"; failed to mention any wrongdoing, such countless
Palestinian stabbings and car-rammings of Israeli
civilians, and the Obama Administration, which had planned and orchestrated the
UN ambush, refused, for the first time in forty years, to veto the anti-Israel
resolution, thereby ensuring it would pass.
This week, on January 15, 2017, the "Palestinian question" dominated
the French "peace conference" in
Unfortunately, Pope Francis's papacy has been marked by a long list of
anti-Israel gestures that did not advance the cause of peace that the Pope
claims to champion.
When the Pope visited
Pope Francis approaches the separation barrier near
Sadly, Francis's homily, delivered in
The Pope also met with Palestinian "refugees", as if the 1948 war
were the source of conflict between the two peoples, instead of centuries of
Muslims having displaced Christians and other non-Muslims from
Pope Francis then accepted an invitation to visit -- along with Muhammad Ahmad
Hussein, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem -- the
A year before his visit in the region, Pope Francis, greeting the Catholic
faithful at the General Audience in Rome, said:
"I ask you to pray for the peace in the Middle East: in Syria, in Iraq, in
Egypt, in Lebanon and in the Holy Land, where the Prince of Peace is
born".
Was it so difficult for the head of the Catholic Church to say the word "
Previously, when he visited the shrine of St. Francis in Assisi, the Pope said:
"Let us listen to the cry of all those who are weeping, who are suffering
and who are dying because of violence, terrorism or war, in the Holy Land, so
dear to Saint Francis, in Syria, throughout the Middle East and everywhere in
the world."
Again, the Pope refused to mention any Israeli Jews among the victims of
terrorism.
In the days before the launch of a devastating "Third Intifada"
against the Israeli civilians, the Pope called Mahmoud
Abbas an "angel of peace". Really? An angel of peace? According to Shmuely Boteach,
"Abbas spent his life murdering Jews," by
financing the
In May 2015, on "Naqba Day"
("Catastrophe Day") -- commemorating the day of
During these four years, Pope Francis has continually put significant barriers
in the way of peace between Israelis and Palestinians -- a peace based on
dialogue, mutual respect and the end of conflict. Instead, this supposed man of
peace has strengthened Abbas's refusal to negotiate
with the Jews -- the Christians' "elder brothers," as Pope John Paul
II bravely called them -- and to end hostilities with them. If
this is his view of Caritas, what a tragic shame.
Giulio Meotti, Cultural
Editor for Il Foglio, is an Italian journalist and
author.
© 2017 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.
Saudi Writer: Ahwaz Region Deserves Self-Determination; Its Occupation By
Iran Is No Less Barbaric Than Palestine's Occupation By Israel
MEMRI/January 19, 2017
Every so often, the issue of Iran's Ahwaz region, home to an oppressed Arab
minority that seeks independence, comes up in the Arab press. On December 3,
2016, an international conference on Ahwaz was held in
Speakers at the conference criticized the Iranian oppression in
The following week, at a December 6-7 Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) meeting,
Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Ahwaz leader Habib
Jabr sent a letter to the GCC member countries at the
meeting calling on them to view the Ahwaz issue as the most important link in
the chain of Arab resistance to the Persian-Iranian plan. He asked that they
work to liberate the region from the claws of the Iranian occupier and
eliminate the Persian plan because otherwise Ahwaz would have neither security
nor stability.[2]
It should be noted that in late 2015 and early 2016, MPs from Gulf states
called on their governments, and the international community, to recognize
Iran's Ahwaz province as an "occupied Arab country" and to provide
aid to the Ahwazi Arab minority in its struggle for
independence.[3]
Also following the December 3 conference, 'Abd
Al-Mohsen Hilal wrote in
his column in the Saudi daily 'Okaz about the Arab
history of Ahwaz and called for adopting the conference's recommendations. The
Ahwaz issue, he argued, is older than the Palestinian issue, and the Iranian
occupation of Ahwaz is no less barbaric than the Israeli occupation of
Following are excerpts from the column:
"Ahwaz was Arab land since the time of [the kingdom of]
"Arab Ahwaz is mentioned in many Arab history books... In 1762,
German explorer Casten Niebuhr refused to recognize
his contemporary geographers' designation of
"Both [of these issues] represent an historic moment of Arab
weakness following the collapse of the Ottoman state and the desire of the
successors of the 'Sick Man [of
"There is a pressing need to recognize the Ahwazi
issue, in order to deal with
"The issue of
Endnotes:
[1] 'Okaz (
[2] Al-Madina (
[3] See MEMRI Inquiry & Analysis No. 1233, MPs In Gulf Countries Urge
Recognition Of
[4] Pre-Islamic battle waged in the 7th century CE between the Arab
tribes and the Sassanid Persian army near Kufa in
modern day southern Iraq.
[5] An Arab kingdom located in modern day southern
[6] A term for the
[7] 'Okaz (
Has Obama Presidency withered the hopes of
Western liberalism?
Dr. Azeem Ibrahim/Al Arabiya/January
19/17
Fortune favors the bold. That is one of the most
reliable lessons to learn from history, and it is especially true in politics.
The last few years have also shown this to be true with astonishing frequency.
Vladimir Putin’s forays into the Middle East and
Even in the global Islamist insurgency,
Unfortunately, the Obama Presidency has not been similarly bold. It was
audacious, and hopeful, to be sure. But not bold. And for that, he leaves a
legacy that is much diminished from what it could have been. And
a legacy which his successor is vowing to dismantle completely. With it
will also wither the hopes of Western liberalism.
President Obama’s final speech as President was at a rally in
What was remarkable about his speech, however, was how much it sounded like the
speeches made by the candidate Barack Obama. Using the same rhetorical
motifs and cadences. You would be forgiven for forgetting that this man
has spent the last eight years in the Oval Office.
But of course, the tragedy is that the speech needed to be the same. It needed
to appeal to hope. It needed to call on the faith that liberal values and
creeds are on “the right side of history”. It needed to do these things,
because neither
Neither America nor the world had moved very much toward the vision the
candidate Obama set out ten years ago
‘Cardinal sin’
Obama’s cardinal sin was his unwavering faith that the world will inevitably,
ultimately bend to his vision of the future – what he called the “long arc of
history”. That faith meant that he was too patient for the world to do just
that. And it absolved him of the need and urgency to assert that vision of the
world and defend it robustly.
Much ink has been spilled about the catastrophic decision not to enforce the
chemical weapons red line in
Obama was right to bail out the financial system in 2008. That prevented a
1930s-style Great Depression in the
The financial crisis
And in the
In the 1930s,
But he was not bold. He demurred. He caved in to pressure from Wall Street that
things had to go on exactly as they had done before the crisis, and bought the
line that any drive to hold Wall Street accountable for its crimes would affect
the wider economy. He played it safe. And sure enough, the economy has been
limping along rather well. But at what cost?
The cost is that the economy has been and will continue to be increasingly
hijacked by a plutocratic oligarchy – just look at the Trump cabinet. The world
has been left to chancers who have no regard for
human rights and who will continue to trample on civilian lives as they jostle
for regional power and prestige. And liberalism and its values have been
discredited by association.
Where eight years ago the world looked like it could only get better, now it
looks like it can only get worse. And Obama has to own much of that legacy and
what is to come over the next decade.
Saudis are not racists and must speak out against it
Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi/Al Arabiya/January
19/17
The title of this article is taken from a video posted by the well-known media
figure Kamal Abdulqadir on
his Twitter account. The video talks about the ferocious racist campaign
launched against non-Saudis.
In the video, Abdulqadir said that it does not befit
us Saudis to launch such campaigns. He wonders why someone would launch a
campaign called “The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is for Saudis only”. It is a
strange title, because, of course, the Kingdom is for Saudis not for any other
nationality.
Some Saudis are angry because expatriate workers transfer billions of riyals
out of the Kingdom every year and say that it is not fair that this money goes
abroad instead of being spent inside the country. Abdulqadir
asks: “Why do these Saudis want expatriate workers to spend their money
locally?” After all, this is their money; they have earned it legally and have
worked hard for it. We should thank them for helping us build our country and
should always remember that they have the full right to transfer their money to
their families back home.
I do not understand why some Saudis want expatriate workers to spend their
money in the country. How can these Saudis say that? We have to remember that
expatriate workers are the ones who have built our country. They have not
invaded our country; they entered it legally and we asked them to come here.
They have worked hard and have made this money to support their families back
home.
There are expatriate workers who have been living in the Kingdom for decades
and some were born and raised here. Abdulqadir says
that these people deserve to be naturalized and be given Saudi citizenship
because the Kingdom has become their homeland.
In the video, he states that some people will not like the things that he says
and some will even describe him as a naturalized citizen who does not have
original Saudi roots while some will use racist words against him although
Islam is against racism. At the end of the video, he calls upon Saudis to rise
up to the occasion and treat all expatriate workers with respect because they
are here to help us and provide services for us.
I have noticed that when people do not have an argument to support their
hostile opposition to expatriate workers, they bring up the issue of expatriate
workers transferring money abroad
Viral on social media
The video became widely popular shortly after it was
posted on Twitter and many people responded to it: some supported Abdulqadir while others opposed his views. Jameel Farsi, who is considered to be an authority on
jewels and who is a social media activist, said that over 165,429 people have
watched Abdulqadir’s video, over 1,163 have commented
on it and over 3,500 have retweeted
it.
Farsi said that only five percent of the comments smacked of racism and that
these comments were made by people who use fake names and have no respect for
religion, ethics or other human beings. Unfortunately, the ferocious campaign
against expatriate workers has not only been launched on social media but has
also appeared in some newspapers.
An Arabic daily published a cartoon offending all
expatriate workers and then removed it from its website following a barrage of
criticism from many. Although many people asked the cartoonist to apologize for
the offensive cartoon, he refused to do so. I have called many times for the
cartoonist to be put on trial for his racist comments if he continues to refuse
to apologize.
It seems that some people are encouraging the cartoonist to draw similar
offensive cartoons. Apparently, some people have an ethics crisis and poor
education, and by some I mean those who describe expatriate workers as invaders
who enter the Kingdom to steal jobs from Saudis.
When I discuss this issue with people on social media websites or read the
comments made by some readers on newspaper websites, I find that there are
people who insist that Saudis have the right to fill the vacancies available in
the market. Of course, I agree with them, but the problem that is we do not
have enough Saudis to do certain jobs. We still need expatriate workers who can
work as doctors, engineers, pharmacists, nurses, construction workers, street
sweepers, etc.
I have noticed that when people do not have an argument to support their
hostile opposition to expatriate workers, they bring up the issue of expatriate
workers transferring money abroad. They keep saying that these transfers are a
great loss to the national economy and that the country needs this money.
When I explain to these people that this money belongs to expatriate workers
and that they have worked hard to earn it and are free to spend it on their
families and children who live thousands of kilometers
away from them, they do not seem to be convinced. The money belongs to
expatriate workers and we have no right whatsoever to tell them how to spend it.
“We must remember that expatriate workers have entered the Kingdom legally to
help us build and develop our country. They have contributed immensely to the
development and progress of the nation. They deserve to be thanked and
appreciated for the work that they have done. We wish them all the best. We, as
Saudis, should rise up and speak up against racism and discrimination which
conflict with the teachings of Shariah. Prophet
Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: “Leave it (i.e.,
racism), it is rotten.” He also said: “One who does not thank people does not
give thanks to Allah.”
**This article was first published in the Saudi Gazette on January 19, 2016.
Time to trip over vintage Trump
Trisha de Borchgrave/Al Arabiya/January
19/17
The publication by Buzzfeed of the 35-page
intelligence dossier on Donald Trump by a British ex-MI6 agent has, not
surprisingly, stirred controversy. In today’s echo chambers of news that mix up
fact with post-truth, information with propaganda and accuracy with falsity,
releasing a dossier whose contents are “unverified” is counter-productive.
There is much to challenge about Trump’s character, modus operandi, bigotry,
bullying and generally reprehensible pronouncements about women, minorities and
the handicapped. But when the
However, what the intelligence dossier reveals with certainty is the danger of
underestimating Trump’s Darwinian instincts. He may be short on attention span,
intellectual capacity and psychological maturity, but he displays the ability
to sniff out something that just doesn’t smell right.
It is credible that he refrained from accepting offers to invest in
Trump’s supporters are tired of being strong in the face of neglect. They look
for a leader who channels the unfairness of exclusion, not the injustice of
race discrimination or minorities’ rights
The dossier gift
The dossier gifted Trump the chance to seethe and appear masterful over an issue
that is as complex as pouring breakfast cereal – that hotel rooms are bugged in
Russia. Filling up time by sharing with the press his sagacious advice to his
employees to be careful when traveling there allowed further deflection from
the fact that his sons Donald, Jr. and Eric will now take control of his
business empire with the seal-proof proviso that they are “not going to discuss
it with me”, even as they vet candidates for his administration.
Trump supporters reveled in his performance.
And authoritarian methods, in contrast to power through consensus, nuance and
detail, promise to deliver results. Trump’s supporters are tired of being
strong in the face of neglect. They look for a leader who channels the
unfairness of exclusion, not the injustice of race discrimination or
minorities’ rights.
And a man who looks like them continues to sound like them. At the press
conference, he aimed with his finger and fired journalists of the liberal
mainstream with a “not you”, telling one news organization that it was
“terrible”. Even his AbFab habit of prefacing any
mention of his business ventures with their marvelousness
has become background noise, like shrugging off an elderly relative who can’t
help but go on about the war.
The gold tower
Efforts to find evidence to impeach him will fall on deaf ears in the short run, yet could threaten the propriety of sound media
reporting. Trump could have an inappropriate physical encounter with a donkey
and it would have zero impact on his fan base. A conflict of interest for a
Trump supporter is an American company training a Mexican to take his job in
What further seduced his voters was the certainty with which he gave time lines
on the next Supreme Court nomination (two weeks), wall building (right away),
an alternative health insurance (to be repealed and replaced within the hour,
in marked contrast to the two to four years Republicans aides have suggested),
and the completion of a “report” on how to stop cyber hacking to be delivered
within 90 days. And he has yet to turn his mind to the specter
of open-carry gun laws, armed schools and military weapons in private hands.
And exacted from a nation of special interests will be “respect” – the key word
for those seeking retribution – which Trump repeated more than a few times
towards the end of the press conference, no doubt in reaction to Meryl Streep's drubbing last week in which she contented that his
disrespect of others “invites disrespect”. Trump might gesticulate with thumb
touching forefinger, but it might as well be with the pinky
raised to the corner of his pursed lips.
In his first press conference since winning the
Objective reporters should adjust their own methods in order to hold the new “Unpresident” to account.