LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
April 17/16
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
http://www.eliasbejjaninews.com/newsbulletin16/english.april17.16.htm
News Bulletin Achieves Since 2006
Click Here to go to the LCCC Daily English/Arabic News Buletins Archieves Since 2006
Bible Quotations For Today
Pray for us; we are sure that we
have a clear conscience, desiring to act honourably in all things
Letter to the Hebrews 13/18-25: "Pray for us; we are sure that we have a clear
conscience, desiring to act honourably in all things.I urge you all the more to
do this, so that I may be restored to you very soon. Now may the God of peace,
who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep,
by the blood of the eternal covenant, make you complete in everything good so
that you may do his will, working among us that which is pleasing in his sight,
through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory for ever and ever. Amen. I appeal to
you, brothers and sisters, bear with my word of exhortation, for I have written
to you briefly. I want you to know that our brother Timothy has been set free;
and if he comes in time, he will be with me when I see you. Greet all your
leaders and all the saints. Those from Italy send you greetings. Grace be with
all of you."
Jesus Shows
Himslef To The Desciples By The Sea Of Tiberias
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ
according to Saint John 21/01-14:"After these things Jesus showed himself again
to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias; and he showed himself in this way.
Gathered there together were Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of
Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples. Simon
Peter said to them, ‘I am going fishing.’ They said to him, ‘We will go with
you.’ They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know
that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, ‘Children, you have no fish, have you?’
They answered him, ‘No.’He said to them, ‘Cast the net to the right side of the
boat, and you will find some.’ So they cast it, and now they were not able to
haul it in because there were so many fish. That disciple whom Jesus loved said
to Peter, ‘It is the Lord!’ When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put
on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the lake.
But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for
they were not far from the land, only about a hundred yards off. When they had
gone ashore, they saw a charcoal fire there, with fish on it, and bread. Jesus
said to them, ‘Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.’ So Simon Peter
went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, a hundred and
fifty-three of them; and though there were so many, the net was not torn. Jesus
said to them, ‘Come and have breakfast.’ Now none of the disciples dared to ask
him, ‘Who are you? ’ because they knew it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the
bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the
third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples after he was raised from the
dead."
Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources
published on April 17/16
Hezbollah snubs French president during Lebanon visitéGulf
News/By Joseph A. Kechichian/April 16, 2016
Who is to blame for Beirut’s airport security gapéSami Nader/Al-Monitor/April
16/16
The irrepressible myth of the Islamic CaliphateéDr. Azeem Ibrahim/Al Arabiya/April
16/16
The OIC’s 10-year strategic plan for the Muslim worldéMaha Akeel/Al Arabiya/April
16/16
An Algerian village’s tryst with colonialism and developmentéEhtesham Shahid/Al
Arabiya/April 16/16
An Iraqi earthquake named Moqtada al-SadréMshari Al Thaydi/Al Arabiya/April
16/16
Europe: Suicide by JihadéGuy Millière/Gatestone Institute/April 16/16
John Bolton: US, Israel Missed Major Opportunities to Take Out Iran’s Nuclear
Capabilities/Lea Speyer/The Algemeiner/April 15/16
Will Sisi, Muslim Brotherhood make peace/Rania Rabeaa Elabd/Al-Monitor/April 16/16
First Turkey-backed operation against IS becomes a fiasco/Fehim Taştekin/Al-Monitor/April 16/16
Titles For Latest Lebanese Related News published on April 17/16
Hollande, Bassil convene at Pine
Palace
Sleiman to Hollande: For equipping Lebanese Army, Lebanon's relations with
friendly states declining due to presidential vacuum
Hollande Lands in Beirut, to Urge Distancing Lebanon from Regional Tensions
Hezbollah snubs French president during Lebanon visit
Once again, PM Seniora fails again to demonstrate understanding of political
strategy and even US politics.
Report: Salam-Qatari Emir Talks Did not Touch on IS Held Soldiers
Nasrallah-Shahristani Meeting Highlights Latest Developments
Lebanese Army Shells Militants in Outskirts of Ras Baalbek
US State Department spokesperson says Lebanon’s financial system a priority to
Washington
Ein Teeneh: Berri sees Ivory Coast ambassador
Geagea: To withdraw from all regional wars, place all weapons in Army's hand,
lift siege on presidential elections
Three Palestinians Arrested, One on Human Smuggling Suspicions
Syrian Child Kidnapped in Khalde
Who is to blame for Beirut’s airport security gap?
Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on
April 17/16
Pope Francis Brings Hope to
Migrants, Chastizes Leaders in Lesbos Visit
Iran regime hangs 3 while EU’s Mogherini is in Tehran for trade deals
Prisoners say EU officials’ visits to Iran encourage more executions
Turkey Eyes Iran Deals as Rouhani Meets Erdogan
Iran accuses West of not honoring nuke deal
Hollande a no-hoper if he stands for presidential re-election
ISIS makes gains in north Syria from regime, rebels
EU, Iran pledge deeper ties after high-level EU visit
Spanish police arrest couple with links to ISIS, son put in care
Deal reached on reinforcing truce in Yemeni city
Iraqi MPs quit session aimed at replacing speaker
Record 155 countries are to sign landmark UN climate agreement
Pakistani religious group demands execution of blasphemers
Four soldiers killed, two wounded in bomb attack in southeast Turkey
Links From
Jihad Watch Site for
April 17/16
Pope brings 12 Syrian Muslim refugees to Italy
Video: Robert Spencer in Ottawa on the Muslim migrant crisis
Europe: Muslim migrants converting to Christianity fear being killed by Muslims
State Department wants to bring in 1,500 Muslim migrants every month
Cover-up in Halifax: Parents confirm reports media retracted — Muslim migrants
did brutalize their children
Canada: $16,000,000 project to vet Muslim migrants is complete failure
UK: Christian loses appeal of suspension for giving Muslim a religious book
Brussels jihadi was star of documentary about successful integration of migrants
Video: Robert Spencer on Islamic tolerance and contributions to civilization
UK: Muslim cleric praises killer of foe of Pakistan’s blasphemy laws
Minnesota Muslim pleads guilty to conspiring to aid the Islamic State
UK: 5 Muslims arrested in probe linked to Paris and Brussels jihad massacres
Citadel mulls changing uniform policy to allow Muslim cadet to wear hijab
Germany allows potential prosecution of comic for insulting Turkey’s Erdogan
Pakistan’s ISI funded deadly attack on CIA camp in Afghanistan
The Unknown: Islam’s 25 Scars On My Body
President Hollande Says Election of
President Lies in Hand of Lebanese, Promises Swift Military Aid
Naharnet/April 16/16/French
President Francois Hollande said during a visit to Beirut on Saturday that he
was eager to make a third trip to Lebanon to meet with the country's new head of
state, calling for the swift election of a president. "I want to visit Beirut
again when there is a president in Lebanon but the issue lies in the hand of
Lebanese lawmakers ... who should resolve the deadlock and elect a head of
state," said Hollande following talks with Speaker Nabih Berri. "France stands
by Lebanon and is keen on consolidating security in Lebanon through military
cooperation," he said during a short press conference that he held with Berri.
Hollande first visited Beirut in 2012. The speaker said he discussed with
Hollande military aid to Lebanon, the demarcation of the maritime border,
terrorism and the regional tension. Following their meeting, the French
president headed from the parliament in downtown Beirut's Nejmeh Square to the
nearby Grand Serail where he held talks with Prime Minister Tammam Salam. Salam
said at a joint press conference that Hollande stressed to him "French keenness
on Lebanon’s independence and sovereignty, and the functioning of state
institutions which requires a president first."The PM also hoped that Paris
would "resume its efforts to push for the election of a new head of
state."Hollande praised Salam and said France stands by Lebanon due to their
historic ties, geographic proximity and relations that were developed between
the two countries one generation after the other. He reiterated that a president
should be swiftly elected and said France will provide "immediate" military
assistance to Lebanon.
The French defense minister will hold talks with his Lebanese counterpart to
hear the demands of the Lebanese army, Hollande told reporters. Defense Minister
Jean-Yves Le Drian "will define with his Lebanese counterpart (Samir Moqbel)
material resources to strengthen Lebanon's ability to ensure its security".
His pledge came a month after Saudi Arabia suspended a grant to finance $3
billion worth of French weaponry for Lebanon. He also revealed that French
assistance to the Syrian refugees in Lebanon will reach 50 million euros this
year and 100 million euros in the coming years. The official welcome ceremony
for Hollande, who was on a two-day visit to Lebanon, was held at the parliament
building since Lebanon has been without a head of state for almost two years.
Hollande carries a message that will urge the Lebanese and its regional partners
to distance the country from regional turmoil, a senior French official at the
Elysee Palace told the National News Agency. “Hollande carries with him a stern
message that includes calling the Lebanese and the regional partners to take
some steps in order to separate the situation in Lebanon from the regional
tension particularly in the security files,” the unnamed source said on
condition of anonymity. “The institutional crisis and the divisions over the
regional situation have been weakening the state's policies because of the
presidential vacuum,” it added. Lebanon has been in a presidential vacuum since
the term of President Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014. Efforts to fill the
post have been thwarted over conflicts between the March 8 and March 14 camps.
“Hollande will confirm France's support for Lebanon which is facing an
unprecedented humanitarian crisis," said the source. Lebanon is home to more
than a million Syrian refugees, the equivalent of a quarter the country's
population of 4.5 million. There also about 400,000 Palestinian refugees spread
in 12 camps.
Visiting a Syrian refugee encampment is one of the French President's plans
where he will meet with a family from Syrian origin. He is set to meet another
two families residing at the International Red Cross headquarters who are
preparing papers for residency in France. The French president will reiterate
that “his country assumes responsibility towards the refugees and countries
neighboring Syria. Paris has announced in September 2015 that it will grant 100
million euros of additional aid to these countries, of which 40 million are for
Lebanon,” the source said.
Hollande, Bassil convene at
Pine Palace
Sat 16 Apr 2016/NNA -
Foreign Affairs Minister Gebran Bassil met Saturday evening with French
President Francois Hollande at the Pine Palace.
Sleiman to Hollande:
For equipping Lebanese Army, Lebanon's relations with friendly states declining
due to presidential vacuum
Sat 16 Apr 2016/NNA -
Former President Michel Sleiman appreciated Saturday French President Francois
Hollande's visit to Lebanon, while wishing that he had been officially welcomed
by an elected President of the Republic and warning of "the ongoing presidential
vacuum that is hindering Lebanon's relations with friendly states and negatively
impacting its image abroad."Sleiman's words came in a special interview to "MTV"
Channel, during which he called on Hollande "not to delay in manufacturing
French weapons for equipping the Lebanese army via the frozen Saudi Arabian
grant," considering herein that the Saudi Kingdom shall resume its support to
Lebanon. It is to note that Sleiman handed the French President, during their
encounter at the Pine Palace earlier today, a copy of the letter addressed to UN
Secretary General over "guaranteeing a safe and timely return of Syrian refugees
to their homeland and compensating Lebanon for its incurred losses; in addition
to demanding border demarcation and the deployment of international observers,
while warning against the dangers of Syrian division and its repercussions on
Lebanon."
Hollande Lands in Beirut, to Urge Distancing Lebanon from Regional Tensions
Naharnet/April 16/16/French
President Francois Hollande arrived in Beirut on Saturday on the first leg of a
Middle East tour that includes Egypt and Jordan.
Hollande landed at the Rafik Hariri International Airport on a two-day visit on
board a private jet and at the head of a delegation. The official welcome
ceremony was held at the parliament building in Nejmeh Square since Lebanon has
been without a head of state for almost two years. Hollande carries a message
that will urge the Lebanese and its regional partners to distance the country
from regional turmoil, a senior French official at the Elysee Palace told the
National News Agency. “Hollande carries with him a stern message that includes
calling the Lebanese and the regional partners to take some steps in order to
separate the situation in Lebanon from the regional tension particularly in the
security files,” the unnamed source said on condition of anonymity. “The
institutional crisis and the divisions over the regional situation have been
weakening the state's policies because of the presidential vacuum,” it added.
Lebanon has been in a presidential vacuum since the term of President Michel
Suleiman ended in May 2014. Efforts to fill the post have been thwarted over
conflicts between the March 8 and March 14 camps. “Hollande will confirm
France's support for Lebanon which is facing an unprecedented humanitarian
crisis," said the source. Lebanon is home to more than a million Syrian
refugees, the equivalent of a quarter the country's population of 4.5 million.
There also about 400,000 Palestinian refugees spread in 12 camps. Visiting a
Syrian refugee encampment is one of the French President's plans where he will
meet with a family from Syrian origin. He is set to meet another two families
residing at the International Red Cross headquarters who are preparing papers
for residency in France. The French president will reiterate that “his country
assumes responsibility towards the refugees and countries neighboring Syria.
Paris has announced in September 2015 that it will grant 100 million euros of
additional aid to these countries, of which 40 million are for Lebanon,” the
source said.
Hezbollah snubs French
president during Lebanon visit
Gulf News/By Joseph A. Kechichian/April 16, 2016
Bold move points to an emboldened Iran, which no longer cares to entertain
Beirut: Although Mohammad Ra’ad, a leading Hezbollah parliamentarian, was
expected to meet President Francois Hollande of France during the latter’s short
visit to Lebanon on Saturday and Sunday, Al Jadeed television confirmed that the
Hezbollah had turned down the meeting.
Hezbollah could have been under pressure from Iran to rebuke the French
president after Iran, itself, was rebuked at the Organisation of Islamic
Cooperation summit in Istanbul this weekend.
The summit condemned Hezbollah’s “terrorist acts in Syria, Yemen, Bahrain and
Kuwait”.
The bold move points to an emboldened Iran, that no longer cared to entertain
Arab and Western criticism against it. In the current situation, Iran seems
adamant not to unravel the Lebanese Gordian knot that Hollande presumably wished
to untangle.
Hollande, who arrived in Beirut on Saturday, urged Lebanese officials — and
presumably foreign parties that insisted on interfering in the small country’s
internal affairs — to rise above differences and distance the presidency from
several regional crises led by the civil war in Syria.
Lebanon has been without a president since May 2014 when Michel Sulaiman’s term
expired. Since then, Lebanese parliament has gathered dozens of times, each time
failing to establish quorum to carry out the vote.
Officially, Hezbollah backed Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun, who
contended for the post against Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea.
After over a year of deadlock, Geagea, in a surprise move, announced his support
for Aoun as president.
Despite the agreement, Hezbollah MPs and their allies have failed to elect Aoun,
despite the fact he would receive the majority of parliament votes.
The inaction has led observers to believe that Hezbollah has orders from Iran
not to elect a Lebanese president and maintain the status quo as a weakened
state.
On Friday, former Lebanese Speaker Hussain Hussaini floated the idea of voting
for a caretaker president with a single-year term.
Speaking at a news conference, Hussaini said that a caretaker president would
help pave the way for a neutral government, force the adoption of a new
electoral law, conduct parliamentary elections and then finally elect a
head-of-state who would serve the normal six-year term.
“There is no alternative to the Taif Agreement, and we do not demand a change in
the system,” Hussaini added.
The Taif Agreement, signed in 1989, ended Lebanon’s gruelling 15-year civil war
and redistributed power among the country’s Christian, Sunni and Shiite sects.
Hollande was also set to visit a Syrian refugee camp and meet those set to be
repatriated to France.
In September 2015, Paris pledged 100 million euros (Dh414.38 million) to aid
several countries housing Syrian refugees. It allocated 40 million of that aid
for Lebanon.
Lebanon is home to over 2 million Syrian refugees which has put a strain on the
tiny country’s resources.
Once again, PM Seniora fails again to demonstrate understanding of political
strategy and even US politics.
Thawrat Al Arz/Face
Book/April 16/16/PM Seniora stated that Republican members of congress said Mrs
Clinton will be the next president of USA that is a false statement because they
never say such thing and no one would know , but that is his wishful thinking
because he further said Clinton will be a a very good President to help Lebanon,
however Mrs Clinton said she will continue Obama policy in the region which
means full pledge support for the Mullahs of Iran. Again, PM Seniora failed the
cedars revolution in 2005, didn't allow UN to apply chapter 7 resolution in
2006, Hezbollah invaded Beirut in 2008 on his watch. PM Seniora has no
nationalism in him so he despises the American nationalism at this time.
Report: Salam-Qatari Emir
Talks Did not Touch on IS Held Soldiers
Naharnet/April 16/16/Prime Minister Tammam Salam has renewed his gratitude to
Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani on the role that his country has
played in releasing the Lebanese soldiers from the al-Nusra Front, but did not
bring up the issue of the soldiers who are still held captive by the Islamic
State group, al-Mustaqbal daily reported on Saturday. Sources close to Salam
said that the PM took the opportunity in a meeting with the Emir, on the
sidelines of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation summit, to thank him for
the role that his country had in the liberation of the soldiers. Reports say
that Salam did not bring up the issue of the soldiers that are still abducted by
the IS because Qatar had said that it has no open channels with the kidnappers.
Prime Minister Tammam Salam returned to Beirut on Friday after taking part in
the OIC summit that was held in Turkey. He held meetings on the sidelines of the
summit with Emir of Qatar and Turkish President Recep Tayyib Erdogan. Late in
2015, the al-Qaida-affiliated al-Nusra Front released 16 servicemen it had
abducted during clashes with the Lebanese army in the northeastern border town
of Arsal in 2014. The servicemen were released through a Qatari-mediated deal
that also included a prisoner swap to release a number of inmates from Lebanese
jails. Nine hostages are still in the captivity of the IS and their families do
not know much about their fate.
Nasrallah-Shahristani Meeting
Highlights Latest Developments
Naharnet/April 16/16/Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah met with Jawad al-Shahristani
the official representative of Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the state-run National
News Agency reported on Saturday. Discussions have focused on the “situation in
Lebanon and the region including the latest developments at the religious and
political levels,” NNA said. Reports have said that Nasrallah was tasked by
Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei with carrying out a reconciliation
in Beirut between Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, al-Shahristani, and an
envoy from former Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, who were on a visit to
Lebanon. On Friday, reports said that Nasrallah has met with al-Sadr in Beirut
in an effort to resolve the inter-Shiite conflict in the Arab country. But the
reports were slammed as untrue on Saturday when Voice of Lebanon radio (100.5)
quoted sources close to al-Sadr who denied the above.
Lebanese Army Shells
Militants in Outskirts of Ras Baalbek
Naharnet/April 16/16/The Lebanese army bombarded the positions of militants in
the outskirts of the border town of Ras Baalbek, the state-run National News
Agency reported on Saturday. NNA said: “The army shelled suspicious movements of
takfiri militants in the outskirts of Ras Baalbek,” where IS fighters and
Syria's al-Qaida affiliate, known as al-Nusra Front, are active. The militants
clash with the army occasionally but a major confrontation erupted in August
2014 when the al-Nusra Front overran Arsal in the wake of the arrest of a senior
IS leader. Nineteen soldiers and around 60 militants were killed in the
fighting. The jihadists of the two groups also abducted dozens of troops and
policemen of which four were eventually executed. Nusra released in December 16
servicemen in a prisoner swap that saw the the release of a number of inmates
from Lebanese jails.
US State Department
spokesperson says Lebanon’s financial system a priority to Washington
LBC/April 16/16/United States Department of State Spokesperson John Kirby
tackled the sanctions imposed against Hezbollah, noting that these measures
represent a continuation to the US efforts against Hezbollah, since they give
the US government the authority to impose further sanctions against this
“terrorist organization” and those who support it around the world. On another
note, he stressed that the safety of Lebanon’s financial system is a priority to
Washington, pointing out that the US government will work in order to isolate
Hezbollah from the international financial system.
Ein Teeneh: Berri sees Ivory
Coast ambassador
Sat 16 Apr 2016/NNA - Ivorian ambassador Gilbert Dowe and embassy consul general
Rida Khlayfi have been discussing with Speaker Berri and senior AMAL aides the
forthcoming Afro - Arab summit due to open shortly in the capital Abidjan, NNA
field reporters said today. Visitors reportedly thanked the Speaker for
delegating Lebanese parliamentarians to Abidjan where they offered condolences
at the recent killing of Ivorians at the hands of terrorists the same reporters
concluded.
Geagea: To withdraw from all
regional wars, place all weapons in Army's hand, lift siege on presidential
elections
Sat 16 Apr 2016/NNA - Lebanese Forces Party Head, Samir Geagea, stressed
Saturday on the need to immediately "withdraw from all ongoing wars in the
region, place all weapons and arms within the hands of the Lebanese Army and
lift the siege off the presidential elections."Geagea's words came during his
patronage of the "Student Day" 4th commemoration organized by the Lebanese
Forces youth branch at the Party's general headquarters in Me'rab. Geagea
stressed the need to "implement the Constitution and all applicable laws, and
return to normal political life in Lebanon." "We are required to put all our
efforts together for the rise of a real state in Lebanon," he underscored.
Geagea praised the spirit and the role of the Lebanese youth generation, the
"promise of Lebanon's tomorrow, a country for its entire people and an oasis of
liberty and human dignity."
Three Palestinians Arrested,
One on Human Smuggling Suspicions
Naharnet/April 16/16/The army arrested a Palestinian national on Saturday in
north Lebanon on suspicions of smuggling people, an army statement said. “An
army patrol in the north arrested Mahmoud Nawfal Ali, a Palestinian, suspected
of smuggling people of different nationalities. He was arrested along another
Palestinian, Rabih Khalil Chehadeh, for not having identity cards,” the
statement added. In the southern city of Sidon, the army arrested Palestinian
Khalil Louai Khaled who had in an earlier incident opened fire from a military
weapon at one of the houses located in the city. The detainees were referred to
the related authorities.
Syrian Child Kidnapped in
Khalde
Naharnet/April 16/16/A Syrian toddler was abducted Friday in the coastal Khalde
area south of Beirut, state-run National News Agency reported.“The mother of
four-year-old Syrian child Abed al-Katheri Ghoushou filed a report with police,
saying her son disappeared at noon today from the vicinity of a Khalde building
where his father works as a janitor,” NNA said. The woman and her husband
received a phone call in the afternoon from an unknown person who claimed that
he had kidnapped her son, the agency added. The alleged captor demanded a
$15,000 ransom to release the child, NNA said. “The family cannot provide this
amount of money seeing as the husband's monthly salary is only $250,” the agency
noted. The Choueifat police station has since launched an investigation in a bid
to identify the caller, NNA said.
Who is to blame for Beirut’s airport
security gap?
Sami Nader/Al-Monitor/April 16/16
With the trash crisis still pending, having tainted Lebanon’s image around the
world and exposed its government’s division and incompetence when it comes to
performing a basic duty like waste collection, another crisis looms on the
horizon: Lebanon’s airport security and its compliance with international safety
standards are now called into question. This time, too, the government has
failed yet again to perform one of its essential duties: preserving security and
protecting a vital economic facility at a critical time when terrorism is
striking in many world capitals and airports, with the latest incident at
Brussels airport on March 22. Lebanon has already been the stage of terrorist
attacks, the latest of which was the twin explosions that shook the Burj el-Barajneh
neighborhood in Beirut’s southern suburb on Nov. 12, 2015, only two days prior
to the Paris attacks. Airport security returned to the forefront with Lebanese
Interior Minister Nouhad al-Machnouq’s official three-day visit to London on
March 20, which aimed to enhance bilateral ties between Lebanon and the United
Kingdom and explore opportunities for cooperation on security and
counterterrorism. During his visit, Machnouq met with several British officials
who voiced their concerns over Beirut airport security.
“I am raising my voice now, because I am tired of the situation,” he said in a
statement issued March 25, holding his colleague Minister of Public Works and
Transportation Ghazi Zeaiter responsible for the current security gaps and
referring to him as the airport’s “tutelage minister.” Two technical committees
comprising aviation safety experts from the United Kingdom and France visited
Rafik Hariri International Airport on Jan. 16, and concluded with comments on
the administrative, technical and security situation at the airport. Safety
concerns were raised in regard to the Beirut airport, which has no fence or wall
equipped with surveillance cameras and protection devices. In addition, the
luggage inspection methods are inefficient due to a lack of scanners and the
baggage carts are obsolete. British Airways had already expressed concerns over
baggage inspection and asked the airport administration to run a random
inspection on passengers via drugs and explosives detectors. But the most
important announcement was communicated at a press conference Jan. 31 by Fadi
Hassan, the head of the airport. Hassan addressed three technical gaps: the
airport’s perimeter wall lacks surveillance cameras, the baggage carts need to
be replaced and X-ray scanners should be deployed at the airport.
Machnouq’s statements in London prompted a response from Zeaiter, who held a
press conference March 29. Zeaiter blamed the problem on the Lebanese
government, accusing it of negligence with regard to airport security, as no
funds have been allocated to address the security gaps.
He said, “They allocate money for interior ministers, Lebanon’s delegation to
Milan and the Ministry of Education, but not for the Beirut airport.” He added
that nothing substantial will comfort the French and the British concerns
because of a lack of funds. Zeaiter said that an approximate sum of $1.4 million
was needed to meet the costs of the necessary security provisions.
At another press conference April 6, Zeaiter spoke of an amount that is
estimated at $30-$35 million to “guarantee airport security and general aviation
safety in all departments.” If the amount of $1.4 million seems too small for a
security renovation plan at an international airport, the second higher
estimation reveals the need for a clear and accurate budget for this purpose.
The Ministry of Interior offered a more detailed figure of $26,239,555 to
complete the work it is overseeing, including the installment of surveillance
cameras, scanners and inspection equipment. However, this amount was deducted
from Saudi Arabia’s donation of $1 billion, which was canceled by the donor due
to "special reasons," according to the Interior Ministry’s statement in January.
This was a prelude to the unfolding of the crisis that broke out between Lebanon
and Saudi Arabia, after the latter claimed that “Hezbollah controls Lebanon.”The
harsh reality is that today, the appropriation of funds for this specific
project encounters a financial problem since the required funds have been either
canceled after the suspension of the Saudi donation or cannot be met by the
budget reserves due to the lack of a Cabinet decree, which in turn is subject to
the current division within the government.
A Cabinet source told Al-Monitor, “We were not able to include the issue on the
agenda that was discussed during the Cabinet session on April 7. There is no
consensus among the ministers as to the items on the agenda and the disagreement
revolved around the priority of the addressed issues.” He added, “The airport
[security] issue is of critical importance as it was the main subject of
discussion between the British foreign minister and Prime Minister Tammam Salam
during the surprise visit of Philip Hammond to Lebanon on March 30.” Former
member of parliament Fares Soueid, the March 14 secretariat coordinator, tweeted
April 8, “London will be the first European capital to impose an embargo on
flights coming from Beirut if the government fails to implement security
reforms.”Gen. Wehbe Katicha, the Lebanese Forces adviser and a leading figure in
the March 14 coalition, told Al-Monitor, “Lebanon is constantly under threat of
suicide attacks. The main problem is that there is no government in Lebanon.
Finding a radical solution for the technical gaps at the airport is complicated;
not only that, but the airport crisis may persist longer than the current
sanitary crisis.” The current security situation at the airport in Beirut does
not bode well. No solution is available in the short term. On Twitter, each
minister marches to the beat of his or her own drum, while Lebanon steps closer
to anarchy. After the garbage crisis and the unfolding of the Arab sanctions on
Lebanon — represented by the suspension of the Saudi donation for considering
the Lebanese government under Hezbollah’s control — will the government rift
over Beirut Rafik Hariri Airport drive international and Arab airlines to halt
their flights to Lebanon, intensifying the country’s isolation? This does not
seem unlikely.
Pope Francis Brings Hope to
Migrants, Chastizes Leaders in Lesbos Visit
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/April 16/16/Declaring "we are all migrants," Pope
Francis on Saturday brought a message of hope to thousands of people facing
expulsion from Greece as he slammed the world community for failing to end the
wars fueling the crisis. In an emotional visit that saw people kneeling in tears
at the pope's feet, the pontiff told exiles they were "not alone" and pleaded
for the world to show "common humanity" following a hardening of the EU's stance
on migrants. And in a clear message to hardline states who have refused to
participate in a European Union migrant relocation scheme, the 79-year-old
leader of the Catholic Church took with him three Muslim Syrian families whose
homes have been bombed. "You are not alone... do not lose hope," the pope, who
was accompanied by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and Archbishop Ieronymos,
the head of the Church of Greece, told migrants at the Moria registration
centre, where around 3,000 people are being held. The vast majority have
requested asylum but will likely be deported under a controversial agreement
reached last month to tackle Europe's refugee crisis by sending all irregular
migrants who land in Greece back to Turkey.
'Save us, Papa' -
As the pope was escorted through Moria to meet a select number of migrants, one
man broke into tears as he knelt at the pontiff's feet, requesting his blessing.
Another woman who slipped past security to approach the pontiff also broke down
in tears as he paused to listen to her. Other migrants gathered outside held
handmade signs that read 'We want freedom', 'Let my people go' and 'Papa cherche
a nous sauver' ('Pope, try to save us'). A group of small children presented the
pope with a dozen drawings.Lesbos is one of the first ports of call in the EU
for the hundreds of thousands of asylum-seekers who have fled war, poverty and
persecution in the Middle East and Asia across the Aegean Sea via nearby Turkey
in the past year.The religious leaders held a prayer at Lesbos harbor in memory
of the hundreds of migrants who have drowned during the voyage in overcrowded
smuggler boats. "Merciful God...though many of their graves bear no name, to you
each one is known, loved and cherished," the pope said. "May we never forget
them, but honor their sacrifice with deeds more than words," he said.Earlier
they signed a declaration calling on the international community to "respond
with courage" to the humanitarian crisis and calling on religious communities to
step up efforts to assist refugees. The pope stressed that migrants were not
numbers but people with "faces, names and individual stories" who were preyed on
by "unscrupulous thugs" and called for "resolute" efforts to clamp down on arms
trafficking. "The world will be judged by the way it has treated you. And we
will all be accountable for the way we respond to the crisis and conflict in the
regions that you come from," Bartholomew said.
'Worst humanitarian disaster'
The refugee influx has sparked fierce disagreements between EU members and
brought the bloc's system of open borders to the brink of collapse. Lesbos has
become the focus of criticism of the EU's deal with Turkey to take back migrants
who travel to the Greek islands, in return for billions in EU cash.
All new arrivals on the island are being held at Moria while waiting to be
processed to determine whether they can legitimately claim asylum or should be
returned as "economic migrants". Rights groups have accused Greece of turning
the center into a detention camp.Migrant flows to Greece have drastically fallen
since the agreement took effect. The number of deaths in the perilous crossing
have also been cut -- though not entirely eliminated. Another 125 arrived
through the Aegean in the last 24 hours, including 46 on Lesbos, the Greek
government said on Saturday. The refugee families to be taken in by the Vatican,
which include six children, will be initially cared for by the community of
Sant'Egidio in Rome, the Holy See said. They originally lived in Damascus and
Deir Azzor, an area currently occupied by jihadists, and have lost their homes
to bombings, it said. Francis had framed his visit as an exercise to raise
awareness of the "worst humanitarian disaster since the Second World War".The
former Jesuit priest has repeatedly said he does not accept the EU's distinction
between those fleeing conflicts, like the war in Syria, and those fleeing
poverty and starvation created by global economic inequalities. That line has
been backed by Bartholomew, the Turkey-based leader of the world's roughly 250
million Orthodox Christians, who said Europe as a whole must display the same
generosity as the people of Lesbos. On a 2013 visit to Lampedusa, the Italian
island which has witnessed several deadly sinkings of migrant boats off its
shores, the pope made one of the defining speeches of his papacy, denouncing the
"globalization of indifference" which has allowed thousands to perish at sea.
Over one million people crossed clandestinely from Turkey to Greece in 2015 and
some 150,000 have made the trip since the start of this year.
Iran regime hangs 3 while
EU’s Mogherini is in Tehran for trade deals
Saturday, 16 April 2016 /NCRI - Iran's fundamentalist regime on Saturday hanged
three prisoners in a jail in Rasht, northern Iran, as the European Union's
foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini is in Tehran to build greater trade ties
between the EU and the regime.
The three prisoners were identified by the regime’s judiciary in Golestan
Province only by their initials and ages: E. M., 29; D. A., 51; and F. V.,
31.The mullahs' regime has executed at least 17 people in the past week while
European officials have been paying visits to Tehran.
The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) said in a statement on
Wednesday that the increasing trend of executions “aimed at intensifying the
climate of terror to rein in expanding protests by various strata of the
society, especially at a time of visits by high-ranking European officials,
demonstrates that the claim of moderation is nothing but an illusion for this
medieval regime.”Ms. Mogherini, the High Representative of the European Union
for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, arrived in Tehran on Saturday along
with seven EU commissioners for discussions with the regime’s officials on trade
and other areas of cooperation. Her trip was strongly criticized by Mohammad
Mohaddessin, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the NCRI who said:
“This trip which takes place in the midst of mass executions, brutal human
rights violations and the regime's unbridled warmongering in the region tramples
on the values upon which the EU has been founded and which Ms. Mogherini should
be defending and propagating.”Amnesty International in its April 6 annual Death
Penalty report covering the 2015 period wrote: "Iran put at least 977 people to
death in 2015, compared to at least 743 the year before." "Iran alone accounted
for 82% of all executions recorded" in the Middle East and North Africa, the
human rights group said. There have been more than 2,300 executions during
Hassan Rouhani’s tenure as President. The United Nations Special Rapporteur on
the human rights situation in Iran in March announced that the number of
executions in Iran in 2015 was greater than any year in the last 25 years.
Rouhani has explicitly endorsed the executions as examples of “God’s
commandments” and “laws of the parliament that belong to the people.”
Prisoners say EU officials’
visits to Iran encourage more executions
Saturday, 16 April 2016/
NCRI – A group of resilient political prisoners in Iran’s notorious Evin and
Gohardasht prisons have written to the Prime Minister of Italy Matteo Renzi
pointing out that at least eight prisoners were executed in Iran while he was
visiting Tehran earlier in the week to reestablish trade ties with the regime.
They also warned of a serious risk that other prisoners would be executed in
Iran in the coming days since the silence of European officials on the issue of
human rights during their visits to Iran only emboldens the regime to step up
its abuses.
On Saturday, European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini arrived in
Tehran along with seven EU commissioners for discussions with the regime’s
officials on trade and other areas of cooperation.
The following is the text of the April 13, 2016 letter by a group of political
prisoners in Gohardasht (Rajai-Shahr) and Evin prisons to Italian officials
after the execution of eight prisoners in Gohardasht Prison, north-west of
Tehran:
To the Prime minister of Italy:
We, the most of us, are the inmates that had warned you before about your visit
to Iran. In fact, the reason of our warning is not for bringing any political
propaganda and atmosphere but to mention that people like you do not value
humanity. So your travel to Iran will be the price for our execution. And it is
us, our families and our youths who must be sacrificed.
Dear Prime Minister of Italy, have you seen the red carpet of blood that is
spread for you today? Have you seen the trembling bodies of our fellow inmates
on the gallows? Have you seen the queue of those families who were waiting
behind the walls to receive the corpse of their children? Have you heard the
bitter sound of weeping and wailing of their children and families who were
waiting for the ambulance filled with the corpse of their loved ones.
Of course…of course you have not seen or heard any of them. Those who have kept
you in the waiting queue to sign the commercial treaties; they have also kept
our families waiting for the execution of their children. They use your big
posters and pictures to cover up the gallows of execution!
It is good for you to know that through your trip to Iran, the stream of new
executions will resume again even though they had been stopped for a while
because of international pressures. By traveling to Iran, you are to a large
extent giving political legitimacy and authority to these criminal and murderous
executions. At this moment we have just heard about the execution of nine
people. By coming to Iran, you have definitely given them the political
legitimacy and authority for further such executions.
We, the inmates of Gohardasht (Rajai Shahr) prison, will file a complaint and
send it to the people, political parties and all human rights organizations in
Italy against your travel to Iran, because your travel to Iran is contrary to
all humanitarian and philanthropic principals.
Finally, for your information, we will write the names of some executed
prisoners who were sacrificed to give you their welcomes. We will also attach
the name of other inmates of this prison (Rajai Shahr) who are waiting in the
queue to be executed, because without any acceptance from the political
authorities like you, the prisoners cannot easily be executed by them. Please
excuse us for the bitter criticism and directness because the lives of human
beings and the forthcoming crimes do not leave us any political consideration.
Here are the names of some of those who have just been executed today: Ebad
Mohammadi, Hossein Moiinfar, Hamzeh Dowlatabadi,Mehdi Haqshenas…
Also, the following names are of only some of those people who are on the
waiting list to be executed. The number of names listed below is trivial in
comparison to the full number of names of this category:
First name, last name. Father's name
Nima Esmaiilian. Karim
Afshin Hashemi. Hossein
Ahmad Qasemi. Gholam-Ali
Mohammad Zarei. Esmaeili
Amir Khalilpour. Mirza
Reza Pourabbasyan. Hossein
Akbar Beyrami. Ali
Hossein Hassani. Hasan
Akbar Dehghan. Ayyaz
Mohammad Azizi. Mosayeb
Fariborz Jalali. Mohyeddin
Mohammad Khedmati. Issa
Issa Ebrahimi. Ebrahim
Bagher Basiri. Koochak
Fethullah Bakhtiari. Ali Akbar
Alireza Gharbali. Hossein
Saeed Eskandari. Jamshid
Esrafil Mohammadi. Qayum
Faramarz Fakhraei. Ali Asghar
Barat-Ali Rahimi. Muhammad Ali
Hossein Moiinifar. Ali Asghar
Azad Ardukhany. Sekhavat
Ali kavandi pour. Moosa
Alireza Afshar. Safar-Ali
Javad. Seifi
Khaled Mohammadian. Saleh
Mahmood. Khan Mohammadi
Hamid Shirkhani. Mansour
Ghorban Ali Heidari. Fathollah
Jabbar Mollah Hashemi. Asadollah
Saadi Babakhanyan. Javanmeer
Morteza Shafeghati. Ali
Mehrdad Saeb-ol-Afshar. Abdullah
Hassan Kandy. Fethullah
Sohrab Sanamy. Rahim
Kazem Khadem-e-Rezaeaian. Rahim
Mohsen Kazemi Abdi
Farma Salehi Abdollah
Hamzeh Dowlatabady
Mahdi Haghshenas
Koorosh Chakery. Zabihollah
Hossein Sadegh Kasmaee
The signatories of this letter:
1. Abol-Qasem Fooladvand 2. Khaled Hardani 3. Farhang Pour-Mansouri 4. Rasool
Hardani 5. Reza Akbari Monfared 6. Pirooz Mansouri 7. Shahram Pourmansouri 8.
Shahin Zoghitabar 9. Hassan Sadeghi 10. Saied Masouri 11. Saleh Kohandel 12. Ali
Moezzi 13. Alireza Golipoor 14. Masood Arabchoobdar 15. Amir Doorbani Ghaziani
16. Saeed Shirzad 17. Farid Azmoudeh 18. Behzad Tarahomi 19. Iraj Hatami … etc.
and the names of those political prisoners reserved for security reasons.
CC:
UN Human Rights Council and Special Rapporteur
European Parliament
European Union
Liberal Democrat Party of Italy
The Five-Star Movement
Progressive Party of Italy
Social-Democratic Party of Italy
Radical Party of Italy
Labor party of Italy
Communist Party of Italy
The Center-Right Party
"Hands Off Cain" association
Turkey Eyes Iran Deals as Rouhani Meets Erdogan
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/April
16/16/Iranian President Hassan Rouhani held talks Saturday with his Turkish
counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is hoping to boost trade with the Islamic
republic following the lifting of most international sanctions on Tehran. The
meeting at Erdogan's lavish palace near Ankara comes a day after Iran came under
fierce criticism from fellow heads of state from the Muslim world, who accused
his country at a summit in Istanbul of supporting terrorism. Rouhani boycotted
the closing meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation in protest at the
rebuke. His meeting with Erdogan, who is also at the center of controversy, for
seeking to silence critics at home and abroad, is expected to focus on the
Syrian conflict and two-way trade. Flanked by several ministers, Rouhani was due
to co-chair with Erdogan a strategic cooperation council aimed at improving the
two countries' relationship. In a break with a tradition usually observed by
visiting heads of state, his itinerary will not include a trip to the Ankara
mausoleum of Turkey's founding father Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, symbol of secular
Turkey. After being brought in from the cold following last year's nuclear deal
with world powers Iran is being courted by both Europe and Turkey as a
potentially lucrative market for trade and investment. Turkish Prime Minister
Ahmet Davutoglu visited Tehran in March. At the time, the two countries said
they aimed to triple annual bilateral trade to $30 billion within two years.
Several business deals are expected to be concluded during Rouhani's visit,
Turkish media reported. Despite the rapprochement Turkey and Iran remain on
opposing sides of the five-year civil war in Syria. Tehran backs Syrian
President Bashar Assad, while Ankara sees Assad's ouster as key to any
resolution of the conflict and supports rebels fighting to overthrow his regime.
The war in Syria has pitted Shia-majority Iran against predominantly Sunni rival
and Turkish ally Saudi Arabia, with both aiming to increase their dominance in
the region by helping their preferred camps triumph on the battlefield. The two
countries have also been embroiled in a diplomatic crisis since a mob in January
set fire to Riyadh's missions in Tehran and Mashhad, Iran's second city, in
protest at the execution by Saudi Arabia of a prominent Shiite cleric. Rouhani's
visit comes as the debate over Turkey's deteriorating record on press freedom
and free speech spills over into Germany. In a controversial move Friday German
Chancellor Angela Merkel authorized criminal proceedings sought by Turkey
against a German TV comedian over a crude satirical poem about Erdogan.
Iran accuses West of not honoring
nuke deal
AP, Washington Saturday, 16 April 2016/A top Iranian official on Friday accused
the US and the European Union of failing to honor last year’s nuclear deal by
keeping Iran locked out of the international financial system. The White House
insisted Washington is committed to fulfilling its part of the accord and said
Tehran wants concessions that weren’t part of the deal. The historic accord took
effect in January and envisions Iran curtailing its nuclear program in exchange
for billions of dollars in sanctions relief. The head of Iran’s central bank,
Valiollah Seif, said in a speech Friday that Iran’s counterparts have not lived
up to their commitments and that “almost nothing” has been done as part of the
deal. “In general, we are not able to use our frozen funds abroad,” Seif said at
the Council on Foreign Relations through a translator. Seif was in Washington to
attend the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World
Bank. “They (Iran’s partners) have not honored their obligations.”He urged
Washington to do more to encourage international banks to do business with Iran
and ease Iran’s access to US financial institutions. Otherwise, he said, the
deal “breaks up on its own terms.” He did not elaborate. White House press
secretary Josh Earnest insisted Friday that Western nations are doing their
part. “The United States, along with the rest of the international community, is
committed to living up to our end of the bargain,” he told reporters. Earnest
said that the agreement does not involve giving Iran access to the US financial
system and that such a move is not being contemplated. State Department
spokesman John Kirby said the US already has fulfilled its part of the nuclear
deal. “There is no need to do more, when we have met all of our commitments,”
Kirby told reporters later in the day. The nuclear pact provided Iran sanctions
relief for curtailing programs that could lead to nuclear weapons. But the
Iranians say they haven’t benefited to the extent envisioned under the deal
because of other US measures linked to human rights, terrorism and missile
development concerns. The Obama administration has been toying with the idea of
easing financial restrictions that prevent US dollars from being used in
transactions that enable business with Iran, but it is facing fierce resistance
from lawmakers who believe that Tehran would be getting more than it deserves
from the nuclear accord. Seif reiterated that Teheran’s nuclear program is meant
strictly for peaceful purposes, but he argued for Iran's right to defend itself,
including by developing missiles, saying the country is located in a highly
volatile region where the Islamic State group is on the rise. “Based on
experience, based on our history, Iran has come to the conclusion that we should
rely on our own capabilities, those capabilities that can be used for defensive
purposes, defense against any kind of invasion,” Seif said.Asked how much Iran
has spent on its nuclear efforts, Seif declined to provide a figure but said the
program has been successful. “Definitely we have done some investments, and of
course it has been worth the effort,” he said.
Hollande a no-hoper if he
stands for presidential re-election
AFP, ParisSaturday, 16 April 2016/Beleaguered President Francois Hollande would
not make it past the first round of France’s presidential election next year,
should he choose to stand, according to a new survey published Thursday. However
his fellow Socialist, Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron, who recently set up his
own political movement, would fare much better, the Odoxa Institute/Dentsu-Consulting
poll found. Hollande said Thursday he would decide at the end of the year
whether to stand for re-election in May 2017. If the first round of the
presidential election were to take place this weekend, Hollande would win just
15 percent of the votes, according to the poll for Le Parisien/Aujourd’hui daily
and BFMTV. Former president Nicolas Sarkozy, of the center-right Republicans,
would win 20 percent of the vote behind far-right leader Marine Le Pen on 31
percent, meaning those two would go through to a second round run-off vote in
May next year, the poll showed. One of Hollande’s main problems, should he seek
re-election, is France’s stubbornly high jobless rate of around 10 percent and
rising, especially when compared to falling rates in other large European
economies. Opinion polls on Thursday showed nearly 90 percent of voters take a
negative view of Hollande’s presidency. French Prime Minister Manuel Valls
unveiled measures Monday to help young people find work, aiming to quell weeks
of protests against the government. Reform-minded Macron last week announced the
creation of the “En Marche” (“On the Move”) political movement, fueling
speculation over the former banker’s presidential ambitions. Macron, 38,
insisted then that the 2017 presidential election - just 13 months away - was
“not my priority today”, but pointedly did not throw his support behind Hollande.
Should he decide to put his hat in the ring, Saturday’s opinion poll suggested
he would secure 21 percent support against 30 percent for Le Pen and the two of
them would go forward to the run-off which Macron would win.
The poll of 949 voters was carried out on April 14-15.
ISIS makes gains in north
Syria from regime, rebels
AFP, BeirutSaturday, 16 April 2016/ISIS made gains in northern Syria on Saturday
from both government forces and their rebel opponents, a monitoring group said.
The northern province of Aleppo borders Turkey and is criss-crossed with supply
routes that are strategic for practically all of Syria's warring sides. On
Saturday, ISIS fighters seized another border village in their offensive against
non-extremist rebel groups in the province, the Syrian Observatory for Human
Rights said. The ISIS counterattack has rolled back rebel gains in the border
area, which had seen advance them from Azaz, a town eight kilometers (five
miles) south of the Turkish border, towards ISIS bastions further east. “The
ISIS gains have cut off opposition territory around Azaz from rebels in the town
of Dudyan further east,” Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said. “Now the
rebels in Dudyan are practically surrounded by ISIS.”The extremist group also
advanced against government forces near Khanasser, a battleground town southeast
of Aleppo that has changed hands several times. The road through Khanasser is
the sole link between government-held areas in and around Aleppo and those in
the rest of the country. On Saturday, ISIS took several hilltops in the area but
had not yet cut the supply route, Abdel Rahman told AFP. In Aleppo itself, two
civilians were killed by rebel fire on a residential neighborhood in the
government-held west of the city, the Observatory said. Aleppo was once Syria's
commercial hub, but since rebels seized eastern districts in 2012 a front line
has carved through the heart of the city. The escalating clashes in Aleppo
province have strained a fragile ceasefire in place since February 27, and left
more than 200 combatants dead in the past week. ISIS and its extremist rival
Al-Qaeda are not party to the truce. In total, more than 270,000 people have
been killed since conflict first erupted in Syria in 2011.
EU, Iran pledge deeper ties
after high-level EU visit
Julia Fioretti, Reuters, Brussels Saturday, 16 April 2016/The European Union
said on Saturday it would support Iran’s bid to join the World Trade
Organization but it urged Tehran to refrain from further ballistic missile tests
after the highest-level talks with Iran in more than a decade.Seeking to
capitalize on last year’s nuclear deal, EU foreign policy chief Federica
Mogherini led a team of seven European commissioners on a one-day trip to Tehran
where they agreed to cooperate on everything from banking to energy to transport
issues. “It is in the European interest and in the Iranian interest to make sure
that banks engage and feel confident to come to Iran and facilitate and support
this new economic engagement,” Mogherini said at a news conference with Iranian
Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Tehran. With a view to opening a full
EU diplomatic mission in Iran an EU liaison team will be sent to Tehran,
Mogherini and Zarif said in a joint statement. “Today is a new beginning in Iran
and EU relations. We hope this cooperation between the Iranian nation and
European Union brings about shared interests and global development,” Zarif was
quoted as saying by the state news agency IRNA. He also urged the United States
to remove obstacles to Iran gaining access to the global financial system,
saying this was the main goal of its nuclear talks with world powers. The EU
executive’s visit comes on the heels of trips to Tehran by European governments
seeking to revive ties with Iran after the July 2015 nuclear deal. The EU and
Iran will exchange business missions in the second half of this year and
Brussels will assist Iran in becoming a member of the WTO, the statement said.
On the issue of human rights, which also figured in discussions, Mogherini said
the EU would continue to be firm on its principles while maintaining dialogue
with Iran. The EU is troubled by the more than 1,000 executions in Iran last
year, its ballistic missiles and its funding of blacklisted militant groups.
Mogherini repeated that she did not see Iran’s recent ballistic missile tests as
a breach of the nuclear accord between Iran and world powers, though she added
it was a “worrying step.”“This doesn’t mean that we are not concerned,”
Mogherini said. “On the contrary, we see this as a worrying step ... and we are
encouraging (Iran) to abstain from further steps.”The Iranian Revolutionary
Guards’ support for President Bashar al-Assad puts Tehran directly at odds with
the West in Syria. Mogherini said the nuclear deal was important for improving
the security landscape in the Middle East and the two sides had agreed to work
together to foster dialogue in the region. “Any step that could pass different
messages in the region, that could escalate tensions is not welcome from our
side,” she said. Iran pushes US for financial access. Earlier, Zarif said Iran’s
main goal in its nuclear talks with world powers was to secure access to the
global financial system, and the United States must now do more to remove
obstacles to the banking sector. His statement comes after the White House said
on Friday that an agreement with Iran does not include giving it access to the
global financial system. Iranian central bank Governor Valiollah Seif met US
Treasury Secretary Jack Lew on Thursday in Washington and said they discussed
Iran’s expectations under the nuclear deal. Lew told Seif that the United States
would keep meeting “its sanctions-related commitments in good faith” as long as
Iran continues to uphold its end of the bargain. (With AFP)
Spanish police arrest couple
with links to ISIS, son put in care
Reuters | MadridSaturday, 16 April 2016 /A Moroccan man and a Spanish woman with
links to ISIS were arrested in the southern Spanish port of Algeciras on
Saturday as they were trying to leave for Morocco with their young son, the
interior ministry said. The couple were part of a group that supported and
recruited ISIS fighters, including individuals that had carried out suicide bomb
attacks in Syria, a ministry statement said. The man’s brother had recently died
in a suicide bomb attack and that was why the couple were travelling to Morocco
in a hurry, the ministry said without giving further details. Their son has been
put in care, it said. Authorities are searching the couple’s house in Granada
and the investigation remains open.
Deal reached on reinforcing
truce in Yemeni city
Yemen, Friday, March 11, 2016. (AP)/Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Saturday, A
deal has been reached on Saturday to reinforce the fragile Yemeni ceasefire in
its southwestern city of Taiz, sources told Al Arabiya News Channel. Sources
said the local committee tasked to supervising the ceasefire in Taiz has agreed
with Yemen’s warring sides to start reinforcing the country-wide truce which
started at midnight on April 10. Unlike other parts of Yemen, the ceasefire in
Taiz had been breached. The sources said the ceasefire reinforcement will start
at 2 PM local time (11 GMT). The agreement will allow the opening of the two
main thoroughfares connecting Taiz and the capital Sanaa from the east, and Taiz
and Al-Hudaidah city from the west. A source in the committee has also confirmed
that each of the warring sides will bring lists of prisoners for a potential
swap. On Friday, the UN special envoy for Yemen, who will be leading peace talks
next week between the internationally-recognized government and Houthi militias,
said that peace has never been as close as it is today. Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed
urged the government and the Iranian-backed Houthis to “drop their destructive
and belligerent attitudes,” agree to overcome obstacles, and restore peace after
more than 18 months of war.The conflict has killed more than 6,400 people,
injured over 30,000, and devastated the Arab world’s most impoverished country.
Iraqi MPs quit session aimed
at replacing speaker
AFP, Baghdad Saturday, 16 April 2016/A group of Iraqi lawmakers announced their
withdrawal on Saturday from a session of parliament aimed at selecting a
replacement for the speaker, apparently leaving it without the necessary quorum.
Instead, the session was postponed and will take place on Monday, Al Arabiya
News Channel’s correspondent reported after the incident. Iraq was on course to
have two rival claimants to the speakership, further increasing chaos in
parliament, which has already seen a vote to sack speaker Salim al-Juburi, a
fistfight among MPs and a sit-in this week. The political turmoil had sidelined
Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s efforts to replace the current cabinet, a
setback for the premier. Both the United Nations and Washington have warned that
the political wrangling could undermine Iraq’s fight against ISIS group, which
overran large areas in 2014 but has since lost significant ground. MP Qassem al-Araji
announced that 23 lawmakers from the Shiite Badr bloc were withdrawing from the
session, saying the parliamentary division could result in two governments and
undermine the fight against ISIS. “We were living with two parliaments, and that
could lead to two governments,” Araji told journalists, warning that might
result in “the collapse of the front” against ISIS. “We are against dividing the
parliament and we want to maintain the democratic political process in Iraq,”
Araji said. Juburi rejected the Thursday vote to remove him on the grounds that
the session lacked a quorum and called parliament to meet on Saturday, but
cancelled the session over an unspecified security risk. But his opponents
insisted that the vote to sack him was legitimate and planned to hold their own
session on Saturday to nominate replacements for Juburi and his two deputies.
The Badr withdrawal effectively precludes the session from being held, though it
was not immediately clear if it was final or just a strategy to gain
concessions. Badr chief Hadi al-Ameri is a top commander of Shiite paramilitary
forces fighting against IS, and also aspires to a senior government post. MP
Kadhim al-Shammari, a member of another bloc involved in the anti-Juburi
session, called on the Badr lawmakers to return and “participate with their
brothers in writing a new history for Iraq.” Abadi has called for the current
cabinet of party-affiliated ministers to be replaced by a government of
technocrats, but has faced significant resistance from the powerful parties that
rely on control of ministries for patronage and funds. Those efforts have been
put on hold by disputes over the new lineup and by the move to oust the speaker.
Record 155 countries are to
sign landmark UN climate agreement
Edith M. Lederer, The Associated PressSaturday, 16 April 2016/A record 155
countries will sign the landmark agreement to tackle climate change at a
ceremony at U.N. headquarters on April 22, the United Nations said Friday. U.N.
spokesman Farhan Haq said that five countries — Barbados, Belize, Tuvalu,
Maldives and Samoa — will not only sign the agreement reached in Paris in
December but deliver their ratification. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, French
President Francois Hollande and French Environment Minister Segolene Royal, who
is in charge of global climate negotiations, have invited leaders from all 193
U.N. member states to the event. The U.N. says more than 60 heads of state and
government plan to attend. The current record of 119 signatures on the opening
day for signing an international agreement is held by the Law of the Sea treaty
in 1994. The Paris agreement will take effect 30 days after at least 55
countries, accounting for 55 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, deposit
their instruments of ratification or acceptance with the secretary-general. The
list of countries planning to sign the Paris agreement includes the major
sources of greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming: China, United
States, Japan, India, Brazil, Australia and many European Union countries
including Germany, France, United Kingdom, Italy and Spain. The agreement sets a
collective goal of keeping global warming below 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees
Fahrenheit) compared to pre-industrial times, and to pursue efforts to limit the
temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit). It requires
all countries to submit plans for climate action and to update them every five
years, though such plans are not legally binding. Secretary-General Ban has
stressed that the signing ceremony is just a first step in accelerating efforts
to tackle climate change.
Pakistani religious group
demands execution of blasphemers
AP | Islamabad Saturday, 16 April 2016/A Pakistani religious group on Friday
demanded the immediate execution of a Christian woman on death row and all
others convicted under the country’s harsh blasphemy law. Small groups from the
Sunni Tehrik party held demonstrations in several Pakistani cities warning the
government against any attempt to amend the blasphemy law. A statement from the
party accused the government of seeking to change the blasphemy law to pave way
for transforming the country into a secular and liberal state. The protesters
demanded the execution of all those convicted of blasphemy including Aasia Bibi,
who was convicted in 2010. Her appeal was dismissed by the Lahore High Court in
2014, but the supreme court stayed her execution in 2015 and suspended the high
court verdict. Bibi was arrested under the blasphemy law after she had a verbal
clash with Muslim women working at a farm harvesting berries in eastern Punjab
province. She was accused of insulting the prophet of Islam, a charge she has
repeatedly denied.
Four soldiers killed, two
wounded in bomb attack in southeast Turkey
Reueters, Diyarbakir, TurkeySaturday, 16 April 2016/Four soldiers were killed
and two wounded when a bomb hit a military vehicle traveling in the southeastern
Turkish province of Mardin on Friday, security sources said. The vehicle was on
patrol between the villages of Yazdir and Taslikli in Mardin’s Savur district
when a handmade explosive was detonated, the security sources said. The two
wounded soldiers were being treated in hospital, they said.In another attack in
Sirnak, east of Mardin, one police officer died and seven security force members
were wounded by a bomb during the search of a house by security forces, security
sources said. Turkey’s largely Kurdish southeast has been hit by waves of
violence in clashes between government security forces and members of the
outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) after a ceasefire fell apart last year.
On Friday authorities lifted a curfew imposed to fight Kurdish militants in an
area of southeast Turkey’s largest city, Diyarbakir. The one-day curfew in
Silwan district was lifted from 4:30 p.m. (1:30 GMT). Thousands of militants and
hundreds of civilians and soldiers have been killed since the PKK resumed its
fight for Kurdish autonomy last summer, ending a 2-1/2-year ceasefire and a
peace process. The government has ruled out any return to the negotiating table
and has said it will crush the PKK, which is considered a terrorist organization
by Turkey and its Western allies. The bombing of security force vehicles and
installations is common in the southeast. On Monday a car laden with explosives
smashed into a military base in Diyarbakir province, killing one soldier and
wounding 20, hours after the government cabinet adjourned in the region. More
than 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict since the PKK took up arms
in 1984.
The irrepressible myth of the
Islamic Caliphate
Dr. Azeem Ibrahim/Al Arabiya/April 16/16
Today, we suffer of entirely too many generalizations about Muslims. There are
many reasons why this is the case, and our position in the global conversation
since 9/11 has no doubt contributed to it. But I believe there is much more to
it. If you consider any national group, Englishmen, Frenchmen, Americans: one
and all have the exact same tendency. Each finds that within their own group, no
generalization based on nationality can really be made. Of the tens of millions
of their co-nationals, they will have nothing in common with most of them. But
that does not stop them from painting the others with the broad brush of
“national character”. To others, the Englishmen are pompous, the Frenchmen are
rude, and the Americans are arrogant. To themselves, such generalizations are
quite obviously silly, and sometimes even quite insulting. Muslims suffer from
being painted like this as outsider “others” every day. Everyone seems to know
what Muslims are like. But unlike Englishmen, Frenchmen and the others, we do
not seem to mind being categorized and reduced to “essential character.” What is
quite remarkable about Muslims, I believe, is that we generalize about ourselves
almost as much as they generalize about us. Of course, we do not generalize in
the same ways. But fundamentally there is no difference of mindset. The only
thing we object to is the accuracy of the generalization. Otherwise, we will not
hesitate to tell every Muslim or non-Muslim, what Muslims do, what they are
like, and especially what is expected of them. We never tire of telling each
other how Muslims should behave. Obviously, this is hugely problematic – not
least because it is completely divorced from fact. But it has much more serious
consequences. And we ourselves are largely responsible for those consequences.
Talking about ‘Muslims’
Take for example just the way in which wider society talks about “Muslims.” Some
will make profoundly offensive and inflammatory generalizations: the kind that
some of our more impressionable youth have taken as evidence that the West is at
war with Islam, just like ISIS would like them to believe. And then there will
be others who will stand up and point out just how much of a ridiculous
generalization that is. But what do Muslims and especially Muslim leaders do?
They go on TV and start some lecture or sermon about the “Muslim Community” and
its role in society. Notice the singular “Community”. We are very enamored with
our Ummah. Never mind that there is no such thing. That between a Moroccan, a
Saudi and an Indonesian, they only have as much in common as a Scottish
Presbyterian would have in common with an Ethiopian Copt. We talk about
ourselves as one monolithic thing. And then we are surprised when non-Muslims
fail to notice our differences and our individuality. And this is deeply rooted
in the essential character of Islam. When it emerged in the Arabian Peninsula,
Islam was a social revolution against the brutal, violent tribalism of Arabian
culture. It established a new community based not on blood ties, but on shared
faith in One God, and a shared moral outlook on the world. But that was a
community of a few thousand within a much larger social context. A few thousand
people who self-select to join together in a new group with a new group identity
can reasonably be described by that group identity. 1.5 billion people who were
born into the religion, in different places around the world and in vastly
different cultures, will have next to nothing in common beyond their shared
humanity. There is exactly no reason to expect that a Moroccan will have more in
common with a Pakistani than he would with a Spaniard, just because they happen
to have been born in a culture which calls God by a same name, and worships him
in a vaguely similar way. What is quite remarkable about Muslims, I believe, is
that we generalize about ourselves almost as much as they generalize about us
And yet here we are, most of us pretending that all 1.5 billion of us are a
community. This self-delusion may seem benign. Indeed, it is easy to see why we
find it so charming. But let us not ignore its dark side. It is a profoundly
totalitarian thought. That all 1.5 billion us are not just the same, but that we
should be the same. This is what sectarian wars are fought over. And if we are
all the same, of course we should all want to be one body politic – a Caliphate,
like in the Islamic Golden Age. Nevermind that the Golden Age was one bloody
sectarian bloodbath after another, typically fought over the dynastic
aspirations of petty tyrants and not the high ideals of Islam.
Yet still we yearn with foggy eyes over an Ummah that has not existed since the
7th century CE, and still we lust over holy Caliphates that never were all that
holy. The rest of the world is looking forward. And they are moving forward.
That is the one thing that the historical Muslim caliphates did: they moved
forward. Muslims today not so much. We are still trapped in a fantasy past, when
we think we were a Community, just as we keep fighting with each other today.
The OIC’s 10-year strategic
plan for the Muslim world
Maha Akeel/Al Arabiya/April 16/16
This week, over 40 heads of state, representing the Muslim world, met in
Istanbul at a Summit of the second largest intergovernmental organization in the
world: the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).The theme of the Summit was
unity - it is no coincidence that the OIC has ‘Cooperation’ in its name.
The Summit sowed the seeds of rapprochement across the Muslim world, based on
mutual understanding and respect, and shared goals around peace, development,
and education for stability and counter-extremism. If the last two decades have
shown the Muslim world anything, it is that we cannot depend on others to do
things for us - we must get our own house in order. Too often, ‘intervention’ by
outside powers is seen as a continuation of colonial policies, with only
short-term aims around resources and tactical, rather than strategic aims.
Islamic rapprochement and unity is long overdue - the Summit committed to this
in its final communique. Sectarianism is the gateway to extremism, division, and
destruction of millions of lives - as we have seen in Syria.
Tough on extremism
The Heads of State were tough on extremism and tough on the causes of extremism.
The largest exporters of extremist recruits tend to be states whose citizens
face the greatest socio-economic difficulties. Many so-called ‘revolutions’ and
examples of civil unrest in the Muslim world have begun not with political
demands per se, but with demonstrations about food prices or cost of living.
That is why the OIC Heads of State committed to further increase intra-OIC
trade, which has already been growing by 4% annually. OIC member states include
some of the wealthiest, and some of the poorest nations on earth - mutual trade
will create safety and security for all Muslim countries. The Conference also
welcomed the establishment of the Islamic Organization for Food Security, a new
specialized institution of the OIC. National and global security starts with
food security. Since Muslims are the biggest victims of terrorism, it is Muslims
who should be motivated to do the most to fight it. Tragically, many Muslim
countries lack high quality education - that is why the OIC has already
established four universities, in Bangladesh, Niger, Uganda and Malaysia. The
Conference supported efforts to widen access of women to these institutions.
As well as educating our people, we must create jobs for them through
development - that is why the Conference commended the increase of the Islamic
Development Bank’s Authorized Capital from 100 Billion Islamic Dinars. It also
supported various member states in contributing to the Islamic Solidarity Fund
for Development, which is currently scaling-up its micro-finance and vocational
training, with a target capital of $10 Billion.
All of this political and economic effort is essential to resolve conflicts in
the Muslim world and fight extremism. The biggest victims of extremists like
ISIS are Muslims. There is no room for double standards on terrorism, which the
Head of State unequivocally opposed in all its forms. The Conference invited
member states to join the Islamic Military Coalition to combat terrorism. Since
Muslims are the biggest victims of terrorism, it is Muslims who should be
motivated to do the most to fight it. At the Summit, an ‘Islamic Interpol’ was
also agreed upon to fight terrorism, headquartered in Istanbul. At the
intersection of Europe and Asia and with input from various member states, this
will be a game changer in fighting the roots and branches of terrorism. The
roots of terrorism inevitably lie in its financing, which is often disguised as
charitable activity. The Conference welcomed the hosting of a workshop on this
problem. It is essential to entice charities towards the official financial
sector so that financial regulations can protect against their abuse by
extremists. The other side of extremism is Islamophobia - each problem feeds off
the other. The OIC holds annual Islamophobia observatories, and the Conference
called on member states to be proactive in fighting Islamophobia through both
mainstream and social media. It is on unregulated social media that the enormity
of the danger of Islamophobia is most evident - for example in the hashtag #stopislam
trending recently. Many anti-extremism efforts ultimately lie in working with
Muslim youth - the majority of ISIS recruits are aged 15-24. This why the OIC
has a dedicated youth wing which held its first ever Young Leaders Summit this
week - all its recommendations were welcomed by the Conference. All these OIC
efforts towards solidarity, development and counter-extremism crystallized in
positions on resolving conflicts and preserving the territorial integrity and
sovereignty of states including Palestine, Syria, Kashmir, Libya, and Yemen -
and protecting Muslim minorities in Myanmar and the Philippines. The Conference
is committed to a 10-year strategic plan for the Muslim world - and it is
working to ensure that there will be more security, development and - above all
- unity, for the Muslim world in the next decade than there has been in the
previous one.
An Algerian village’s tryst
with colonialism and development
Ehtesham Shahid/Al Arabiya/April 16/16
A village called Shabat, perched on the hills across the Mediterranean Sea in
western Algeria, has witnessed remarkable transformation over and over again.
For centuries, the region surrounding Shabat contained agricultural wealth that
became subject of greed for outside powers – from the Romans to the Spaniards,
and the Ottomans – until the French arrived in the last century. As a result of
outside interventions, these rather idyllic surroundings transformed from being
the “granary of Rome” to the “wine cellar of France” in the 19th and 20th
centuries. What followed though was a Soviet Kolkhoz-style experiment that
reduced this fertile land into an expanse that now depends on food imports. Dr.
Farid Azzi, an Abu Dhabi-based sociologist, hails from Shabat. He remembers the
days when French settlers transformed the village – and many others in the
neighborhood – into huge neatly cut vineyards. Ironically, these were looked
after by local laborers whose ancestors once owned these lands. According to
him, French settlers in Algeria created “an apartheid system from which the
locals were excluded”. “I was born in the first year of the Algerian liberation
war. Growing up as a kid I didn’t understand what was going on, I didn’t
understand why my father didn’t come home as he was in the Algerian liberation
army,” he says. Dr. Farid was eight years old when Algeria became independent.
“I remember that day as if it is today. Few months before independence I saw my
father hoisting the national flag on the roof of our house. On the day of
independence, we took our flag like everybody else in the village. We walked
toward the colonial village, danced and burst crackers. We were free, at last,”
he says. The Soviet Kolkhoz experience further alienated the peasantry in
Algeria because the model – essentially a commune system – was imposed on a
society which was rather individualistic. As a result of this liberation, the
French and other European settlers (estimated to be more than a million) left
the country in indescribable chaos. They left everything behind, millions of
hectares of fertile lands, factories, cities and villages. Initially the
colonial farms were taken over by laborers in a movement known as “self-
management”.
Agrarian reform?
These farms were soon taken over by the state. Unfortunately, what followed was
a spell of bureaucracy and mismanagement leading to steady decline in
agricultural production. “The ancient granary of Rome now imports most of its
loaves of bread from Europe and the US,” he laments. The fascinating part of
Shabat, however, is a major agrarian reform that was implemented in the 1970s as
part of the process to distribute land to poor peasants. Despite the good
intention of ensuring justice for the landless, it led to a further downward
spiral for the local community. The trouble was the so-called agrarian
revolution tried to ape the then socialist bloc collectivist land reform. The
Soviet Kolkhoz experience further alienated the peasantry in Algeria because the
model – essentially a commune system – was imposed on a society which was rather
individualistic. Dr. Farid’s grandfather was ideologically opposed to this
system. “If you want a pig to be satisfied and have enough to eat, then leave it
eat alone,” he said. In other words, peasants should be left alone too. Instead,
the government put them to work in what was then called Agricultural Production
Cooperation. The state built new agricultural farms named “socialist villages”
where it gathered peasants scattered across the hills. They were given
facilities such as electricity and water, schools, health centers and concrete
houses. “The road to hell is paved with good intentions. Wanting to change rural
conditions and alleviating poverty through reforms and top-down policies ended
up in complete failure,” says Dr. Farid. According to him, the collectivist mode
of agricultural work and production ended up with peasants becoming
functionaries in their own farms, and turning into consumers in their socialist
villages. The system was indeed abandoned over a period of time. The
cooperatives mode of work organization was dismantled and replaced with private
property and free market mechanisms. However, for Dr. Farid, “productivity in
agriculture didn’t rise to match local needs and the country now imports 60
percent, especially vital products like cereals, milk, sugar, cooking oil …etc.”
An Iraqi earthquake named
Moqtada al-Sadr
Mshari Al Thaydi/Al Arabiya/April 16/16
Shiite cleric and politician Moqtada al-Sadr has turned the tables on his fellow
politicians in Iraq, starting with Shiite leaders, namely the ruling Dawa party.
He has led popular protests against the “corrupt” government. His boldest move
is his opposition to the sectarian quota system. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi
has proposed a new government, but opposition to it is attributed either to
insignificant changes, or to him turning against the parties from which
government members should be appointed.
Golden opportunity?
A friend of mine who is an Iraqi journalist says Sadr should not be trusted, as
Shiite and Sunni fundamentalist religious movements control the government and
the opposition. However, others say such a golden opportunity should be seized
to undermine the sectarian structure of Iraqi politics and reestablish it in
accordance with national civil rules.
Sectarianism in Iraqi politics should end
What is happening now should be an opportunity to restore Iraqi national
identity and correct the deadly mistakes that were behind the establishment of
the crooked political regime. Sectarianism in Iraqi politics should end.
Europe: Suicide by Jihad
Guy Millière/Gatestone
Institute/April 16/16
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/04/16/guy-millieregatestone-institute-europe-suicide-by-jihad/
In the last two
decades, Belgium has become the hub of jihad in Europe. The district of
Molenbeek in Brussels is now a foreign Islamist territory in the heart of
Belgium. It is not, however, a lawless zone: sharia law has effectively replaced
Belgian law.
One of the organizers of the Paris bombings, Salah Abdeslam, was able to live
peacefully in Molenbeek for four months until police decided to arrest him.
Belgian police knew exactly where he was, but did nothing until French
authorities asked them to. After his arrest, he was treated as a petty criminal.
Police did not ask him anything about the jihadist networks with which he
worked. Officers who interrogated him were ordered to be gentle. The people who
hid him were not indicted.
Europe's leaders disseminated the idea that the West was guilty of oppressing
Muslims. They therefore sowed the seeds of anti-Western resentment among Muslims
in Europe.
Hoping to please followers of radical Islam and show them Europe could
understand their "grievances," they placed pressure on Israel. When Europeans
were attacked, they did not understand why. They had done their best to please
the Muslims. They had not even harassed the jihadists.
The March 22 jihadist attacks in Brussels were predictable. What is surprising
is that they did not take place sooner. What is also surprising is that more
people were not killed. It seems that the authors of the attacks had larger
projects in mind; they wanted to attack a nuclear power plant. Others may
succeed in doing just that.
In the last two decades, Belgium has become the hub of jihad in Europe. The
district of Molenbeek in Brussels is now a foreign Islamist territory in the
heart of Belgium. It is not, however, a lawless zone: sharia law has effectively
replaced Belgian law. Almost all the women wear veils or burqas; those who do
not take risks. Drug trafficking and radical mosques are everyplace. The police
stay outside and intervene only in cases of extreme emergency, using
military-like commando operations. Other areas of Belgium, such as Shaerbeek and
Anderlecht have the same status as Molenbeek.
The Belgian authorities have allowed the situation to deteriorate. The situation
in the country now is virtually equivalent to a surrender.
They seemed to hope that willful blindness and accepting the unacceptable would
permit the country to be spared. It did not.
The attack on Belgium's Jewish Museum on May 24, 2014 should have served as a
warning. It did not. That "only" Jews were the target led the Belgian government
to underestimate the threat. The jihadi who wanted to kill passengers on train
from Amsterdam to Paris, on August 21, 2015, prepared his attack in Brussels.
That three American heroes neutralized him before he could start shooting again
led the Belgian government to think the danger was not large.
The jihadis who struck Paris on November 13, 2015 had also organized their
attacks from Molenbeek, but the blood was not spilled in Belgium. Belgian
authorities perhaps assumed that Belgium would be spared. They spoke of
"imminent danger" for a day or so, but never increased security.
One of the organizers of the Paris bombings, Salah Abdeslam, Europe's most
wanted terrorist criminal, was able to live peacefully in Molenbeek for four
months until police decided to arrest him. Belgian police knew exactly where he
was, but did nothing until French authorities asked them to. After his arrest,
he was treated as a petty criminal, not a jihadi terrorist. Police did not ask
him anything concerning the jihadist networks with which he worked. Because he
was hurt during police operations, officers who interrogated him were ordered to
be gentle. The people who agreed to hide him for so long were not considered
suspects and were not indicted.
The Brussels jihadist attacks took place two days later.
Despite the worst attacks on Belgium soil since World War II, Belgian
authorities do not seem ready to change their behavior.
Abdelhamid Abaaoud (left), one of the planners of the November 2015 terrorist
attacks in Paris, was -- like many terrorists in Europe -- from Molenbeek,
Belgium. Philippe Moureaux (right) was mayor of Molenbeek for 20 years, thanks
to his alliance with radical Islamists.
After the attacks, Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel denounced "violent and
cowardly acts" and stressed his "determination," without saying what he intended
to do. He did not speak of the necessity of changing the Belgian laws to make
them more effective. He did not mention any enemy. He never used words such as
"jihad" or "radical Islam."
He behaved and talked as most of his European counterparts did. French Prime
Minister Manuel Valls used more courageous words and said many times he is
fighting "radical jihad" and "Islamism." The French parliament passed laws
allowing what is still impossible in Belgium: police searches at night. But
France stands alone, and effectively the situation in France is no better than
in Belgium. Islamist enclaves exists in many suburbs. Whole cities are
controlled by thugs and radical imams: cities such as Roubaix, Trappes,
Aubervilliers and Sevran in the northeast of Paris.
Islamist enclaves also exist in other European countries: Spain, the
Netherlands, Germany, the United Kingdom and Sweden.
European leaders have been making choices. After World War II, they decided
Europe would be a region of the world where war would be banished and all
problems solved through diplomacy and appeasement. They gradually abandoned
financing defense and security activities. Instead, they built welfare states.
They thought that taking care of people from cradle to grave would suppress
anger and conflicts. They denied the existence of totalitarian dangers and the
necessity of showing strength. To this day, their statements indicate that
European leaders think both the Berlin Wall and the Soviet empire fell thanks to
the benevolence of Mikhail Gorbachev, not thanks to the determination of Ronald
Reagan. To this day, they seem to think that Islam is essentially a religion of
peace and that the jihadis belong to a tiny, marginal sect.
Decades ago, Europe's leaders adopted a general policy of "openness" to the
Islamic world in general, and the Arab world in particular. They decided to
welcome migrants from the Muslim world by hundreds of thousands but without
asking them to integrate. They made cultural relativism and multiculturalism
their guiding principles. They acted as if Islam could mingle in the Western
world harmoniously and without difficulty. Europe's leaders disseminated the
idea that the West was guilty of oppressing Muslims and had to pay for its sins.
They therefore sowed the seeds of anti-Western resentment among Muslims in
Europe.
When in the Muslim world jihadis started to kill, Europe's leaders wanted to
believe that the attacks would take place in the Muslim world only. They thought
that by not interfering with what European jihadis were planning, they would not
risk jihadi attacks on European soil.
When Jews were attacked, Europe's leaders decided that the problem was not
jihad, but Israel. They stressed the need not to "export Middle East conflict in
Europe." Hoping to please followers of radical Islam and show them Europe could
understand their "grievances," they placed increasing pressure on Israel. They
also increased their financial and political support for the "Palestinian
cause."
When Europeans were attacked, they did not understand why. They had done their
best to please the Muslims. They had not even harassed the jihadists. They still
do not know how to react.
Many of them now say privately what they will never say in public: it is
probably too late.
There are six to eight million Muslims in France, and more than thirty million
in Western Europe. Hundreds of jihadis are trained and ready to act -- anytime,
anyplace. European intelligence services know that they want to make "dirty
bombs." Surveys show that tens of thousands of Muslims living in Europe approve
of jihadi attacks in Europe. Millions of Muslims living in Europe keep silent,
behave as if they see nothing and hear nothing, and protest only when they think
they have to defend Islam.
European political leaders know that every decision they make may provoke
reactions among the Muslims living in Europe. Muslim votes matter. Riots occur
easily. In France, Belgium, other European countries, Islamists are present in
the army and police forces. In the meantime, Islamist organizations recruit and
Islamic lobbies gain ground.
European governments are now hostages. The European media are also hostages.
In most European countries, "Islamophobia" is considered a crime -- and any
criticism of Islam may be considered "Islamophobic." People trying to warn
Europe, such as the Dutch MP Geert Wilders, despite an apparently biased judge
and forged documents against him, are now on trial.
Books on radical Islam are still published but surrounded by silence. Books
praising the glory of Islam are in every bookstore. When Bat Ye'or's Eurabia was
published in Europe, she was denounced and received hundreds of death threats.
Bruce Bawer's While Europe Slept, published in the U.S., was not even available
in Europe. Ten years later, the situation is worse.
Political movements expressing anger and concerns are rising. All are demonized
by political power holders and the media. They have almost no chance of gaining
more influence.
Populations are gnawed by fear, frustration and impotence. They are looking for
answers, but cannot find them. A few hours after the attacks on Brussels, a man
on Belgian television said that Europe is on the verge of suicide.
Europe looks like a dying civilization. European governments created a situation
that can only lead to more attacks, more massacres, and maybe unspeakable
disasters. Europe's leaders continue to react with speeches and a few police
operations.
If some European governments decided to restore their abolished borders, it
could take years, and most European leaders would probably disagree with such a
policy. Meanwhile, millions more "migrants" will enter Europe, and among them
many more jihadis. In spite of the mayhem created in Germany by "migrants" who
arrived in 2015, Angela Merkel said she would not change her decisions. No
Western European government dared to disagree with her, except Viktor Orbán in
Hungary, a lone voice of dissent.
In Brussels, as in Paris earlier, people gathered where the attacks took place.
They brought candles and flowers to mourn the victims. They sang sentimental
songs. They cried. There were no shouts of revolt against jihad. Members of the
Belgian government called on the Belgian people to avoid reactions of violence,
and declared that Muslims are the main victims of terrorism.
In Europe's near future, more people will bring candles, flowers and songs to
mourn victims. Another two or three jihadists will be arrested. But nothing will
be done.
.Dr. Guy Millière, a professor at the University of Paris, is the author of 27
books on France and Europe.
© 2016 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. No part of the Gatestone
website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without
the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.
John Bolton: US, Israel Missed Major
Opportunities to Take Out Iran’s Nuclear Capabilities
Lea Speyer/The Algemeiner/April 15/16
The US and Israel “missed a huge range of opportunities over the last 10 years”
to destroy Iran’s nuclear capabilities, a former US Ambassador to the UN told
The Algemeiner Thursday evening.
Speaking on the relationship between the US and Israel during a forum sponsored
by the Israel Air Force Center Foundation in New York alongside Israel Air Force
Brig. Gen. Yaron Rosen, diplomat John Bolton said, “The two countries sort of
look at each other and say, ‘Well, why don’t you do it first.’ The fact is a US
strike could be more effective because we’ve got better capabilities.”
Bolton — who also serves as chairman of the conservative think-tank the
Gatestone Institute — told The Algemeiner that the situation with Iran is
becoming increasingly perilous. “I didn’t have any trouble before advocating a
strike because I view this nuclear threat as extremely grave,” he said. He went
on to explain that the next president of the US will face a “very dangerous”
period wherein they must “do the analysis that’s required to come to a decision
to use force.”
“Nobody should be under any illusions that this deal solves anything,” Bolton
said.
The Obama administration’s arming of allied Arab countries to intimidate Iran
into halting its nuclear ambitions also won’t work, said Bolton. “The trouble is
that the military assistance we’re giving to friendly Arab states isn’t going to
deter Iran. It’s irrelevant to an Iranian nuclear capability. That’s why there
is a nuclear arms race because that’s the only thing the Saudis and others view
as real,” Bolton explained.
In his address, Bolton made clear that ISIS is also a significant threat. “We
still have to deal with ISIS…the threat to innocent civilians comes now,” he
said. “As long as ISIS or any other terrorist group has privileged sanctuary, we
are vulnerable all around the world.”The West must go after both ISIS and Iran together, Bolton said, before the two
apparent adversaries join forces against their mutual enemies. “I believe the
threats posed by Iran and ISIS are grave and growing. Every day that goes by
that we don’t collectively deal with them effectively increases the threat,” he
said. “We should not ignore the possibility…that if Assad stabilizes and the
Russian’s remain…that the Iranian coalition could reach an accommodation with
ISIS…and they will mutually go after the real targets, the oil producing
monarchies.”
Will Sisi,
Muslim Brotherhood make peace?
Rania Rabeaa Elabd/Al-Monitor/April 16/16
The return of Egyptian TV broadcaster Tarek Abdel Gaber to Egypt earlier this
month has reopened the debate on a reconciliation between the Brotherhood and
the ruling regime. Abdel Gaber, who worked for an Islamic-leaning station, had
fled to Turkey in the wake of the June 30, 2013, events and after openly
declaring his support for the July 2013 sit-in at Rabia al-Adawiya that called
for reinstating ousted President Mohammed Morsi. Gaber, who is suffering from
cancer, had previously expressed his desire to return to Egypt for treatment but
he feared arrest for being associated with a group the state deems a terrorist
organization.President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who was the country’s top military
leader at the time of Morsi’s ouster, had agreed to develop a new road map for
the country that included reconciliation with “all personalities who enjoy
credibility and acceptance by all national elites and represent different
movements.” The road map was also subject to a number of conditions, most
notably that all of its items shall take into consideration preserving the
country's security and stability.
Sisi held lengthy meetings March 22 with a group of intellectuals, later dubbed
the "Group of 24." Shortly afterward, a number of intellectuals who had not
attended the meetings drafted a detailed paper on the proposed procedures in
order to bridge the gap between the state’s considerations and the general
principles of freedoms and human rights.People from three groupings — media and
young people, human rights and public freedoms, and social justice — have been
working to develop mechanisms to deal with and implement the road map related to
these groupings. Egyptian writer Abdullah al-Sinawi, one of the intellectuals
who attended the meeting with the president, told Al-Monitor that reconciliation
is not currently discussed as an item on the road map and that it is far too
early to discuss it. He claimed that the return of Abdel Gaber did not fall
under political reconciliation between Sisi and the Muslim Brotherhood.
Sinawi explained that the broadcaster’s return was triggered by purely
humanitarian circumstances, since he had been diagnosed with a fatal disease and
asked to return to Egypt to die in his own country. However, he said Abdel
Gaber’s return is a positive sign for the possible return of other exiled media
figures in Turkey who are implicated in other cases.
Sinawi even predicted that Brotherhood members could return to Egypt, even if
individually, as long as their situation was similar to that of Abdel Gaber or
involved humanitarian concerns.
He said, “There is no objection for the return of Muslim Brotherhood members if
they accept constitutional legitimacy. [But this] requires the recognition of
all current state institutions and the results for the elections of such
institutions, mainly the presidential election and the parliamentary election,
the current legislative power in the country. These members must renounce
violence and terrorism." Sinawi, who is known for being close to the presidency
and other state institutions, told Al-Monitor that according to the information
he received from government sources, “each application filed by a [Muslim
Brotherhood member] abroad wanting to return to Egypt will be examined
separately by the presidency and not by any other authority.”
Sinawi said that permission to return to Egypt is limited to journalists and
politicians who had been deceived by the Muslim Brotherhood, and this decision
does not include any of the group's leaders.Mohammed Abdel Fattah, a member of
the Muslim Brotherhood residing abroad, told Al-Monitor, "A reconciliation with
the current regime is unlikely to happen.” He said that if there is a real
opportunity for reconciliation, the situation would be very complicated,
especially with respect to the issue of detainees. Abdel Fattah said that
Egyptian reports about a reconciliation can be categorized as “media shows.”
“I think that Sisi’s departure is more likely than any reconciliation between
the two parties right now,” Abdel Fattah said, noting that regional intervention
could be used to achieve reconciliation between the two sides. “There is no
explicit proposal of reconciliation thus far, but as soon as regional parties
intervene, place pressure on the two parties and impose acceptable terms,
something might happen to change the status quo.”Brotherhood members, however,
still have their eyes on the regime. “The seriousness of the regime’s
reconciliation intentions can be tested through [their efforts to reconcile
with] the April 6 Youth Movement and release their prisoners,” Abdel Fattah
said, adding that if this happens, the likelihood of the Brotherhood dealing
with the regime and agreeing on reconciliation may increase.
He added, “Although the release of the Muslim Brotherhood Supreme Guide Mohammed
Badie or Khairat el-Shater may have greater impact than the release of the April
6 movement members, such a move can increase the chances of reconciliation with
the Brotherhood in the future.”Al-Monitor also spoke with Yasser Fathi, a
Brotherhood member living outside Egypt. Fathi said the current Egyptian state
and its institutions “are not constitutional and the Egyptian state is not a
state of law as it lacks real legitimate legislative, regulatory and executive
institutions.”Fathi’s opinion, which is similar to that of a broad sector of
young Brotherhood members, especially those who were forced to leave the country
for fear of arrest, confirms that the road to reconciliation with the current
regime has reached a dead end. Fathi believes that Sisi’s government breaches
the constitution and the law and aims to control the country’s capabilities and
nationalize the economy and politics in favor of the security and military
system.
There is a lack of trust between the two parties to the reconciliation,
according to Fathi, who said that any reports about reconciliation are
delusional and far from the essence of the problem suffered by the Egyptian
people. Such reports, he added, are a mere attempt to escape the current impasse
and failure.
Diaa Rashwan, a researcher at Al-Ahram Strategic Center and a specialist in
Islamic movements for nearly 30 years, believes that the Muslim Brotherhood is
plagued by deep divisions as some members of the group are ready to renounce
violence and terrorism and modify their ideas, but the group currently lacks the
sufficient courage to announce this. According to Rashwan, the Muslim
Brotherhood’s shift is contrary to the course of many jihadi groups, which
embraced extremism in the beginning, then renounced violence and gradually
integrated into the community after they committed to the conditions imposed
upon them by the state. One case in point is the jihadi groups in Algeria, which
started integration in 1997. The Brotherhood’s reverse shift that turned it from
a radical group to an extremist one following the dispersion of the Rabia al-Adawiya
protest made reconciliation more difficult. “Reconciliation will not occur in
the absence of an initiative on the part of those who erred against the state,”
Rashwan said.
First Turkey-backed operation against IS becomes a fiasco
Fehim Taştekin/Al-Monitor/April 16/16
Turkey recently proposed that the United States abandon Syrian Kurdistan's
People's Protection Units (YPG) and "let us wipe out the Islamic State [IS]
jointly with the moderate opposition." Turkey then made its first such move last
week at al-Rai, Syria, with a composite force of Turkmens, Free Syrian Army
factions and Salafists. That force took the town with Turkey’s support, winning
much acclaim, but was trounced four days later when IS retook the city April 11.
As the Syrian army was preparing for a major move at Aleppo with the support of
Russia, Iran and Hezbollah, the United States was involved in an operation with
the Kurds south of the Euphrates River, and Turkey was hatching its plan against
IS north of the Euphrates with the participation of so-called moderate groups.
The US goal is to expel IS from the area along the Euphrates before the Syrian
army does it. Turkey’s goal is to prevent the YPG from entering. Faced with
heavy international pressure to liberate Jarablus and al-Rai from IS, Turkey had
two options: allow the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) led by the YPG to conduct
operations west of the Euphrates, or push forward to al-Rai and Jarablus with
organizations linked to Turkey’s National Intelligence Service.
Because Moscow might still retaliate for Turkey's downing of a Russian jet in
November, it's no longer an option for Turkey to field its own army and air
force in Syria. There were reports that, during his recent visit to Washington,
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had proposed to President Barack Obama
that the United States should not cooperate with the YPG, but consider a joint
operation with Turkey and Arab tribes. Media reports in Turkey said the
presidents had agreed for the United States to launch an operation at Menbic
with the SDF, while leaving the area to the north to the "moderate
opposition."Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, referring to the
bargaining with the United States, hinted that the Free Syrian Army (FSA) could
be shifted to the areas where IS is now in control. “Special forces can guide
them. With additional training, cadres could be prepared to command them. The
idea is not to send our army in, but to shift the FSA from the northwest toward
the IS area. Turkey will provide air and ground support from its side of the
border,” he said. “We have the means to do this. This is how the area will be
cleansed of IS. We didn’t discuss sending Turkish and American soldiers to
Syria. We have political agreement on this.”
In line with the road map Cavusoglu spoke about, Turkey gave artillery support
to the operation that began April 7, and coalition planes from Incirlik Air Base
provided air support. A local source at Elbeyli, on the Turkish side of the
strip of land controlled by IS, told Al-Monitor about military activities.
“For a while every evening, people were seen being transported to the border
area in buses. … We also saw trucks laden with earth-moving equipment and 4x4
vehicles," the source said. "This was done at night, and because some of the
trucks were covered with tarpaulins, we couldn’t see their loads. Clashes
escalated Saturday night. They brought about 20 wounded to Kilis. Two of them
were IS men."
Pro-government media in Turkey reported the developments as a victory of
Turkmens, while organizations such as Ahrar al-Sham released their own combat
photographs. This move added credibility to Ankara’s view that the area can be
cleaned of IS without the Kurds.
Turkish media lauded the al-Rai victory as “a success of opposition forces
toward establishment of a safe zone,” as Turkey has been advocating. After
taking al-Rai, the opposition groups were expected to advance 60 kilometers (37
miles) to Jarablus, which is the most significant logistics hub on Turkey’s
border.
The euphoria lasted four days — until IS returned with 11 explosive-laden
vehicles and routed Turkey’s allies.
Not only was al-Rai lost again, but the Azaz-Marea corridor held by
Turkey-supported groups came under threat. Turkish media, which had replayed the
"safe zone" scenarios, fell mute and then began debating how Turkmen forces had
to be reorganized. Abdurrahman Mustafa, chairman of the Turkmen Assembly,
replied to Al-Monitor’s question about why Turkey-backed groups could not hold
on to al-Rai: “We have been fighting east of Azaz for the past two years.
Daesh's [IS] defense is incredible. The area changed hands so many times. Combat
conditions are different here. It is flat land with many villages. Daesh can
come from any direction easily with their vehicle-borne bombs. That is why we
had to retreat, but we are preparing for new actions.”He added, “Last week we
had the support of planes that took off from Incirlik. This is the first time we
had coalition support. Turkey was firing artillery within their rules of
engagement any time Kilis was shelled. Those were useful. Turkey’s support is
within its rules of engagement." According to Mustafa, 25-30 Turkmens fighters
were killed.
Another Turkmen official, who did not want to be identified, scorned the Arab
allies and the coalition. “The Syrian war is one of treachery. Someone is always
shooting Turkmens in the back. We lost al-Rai because of the treachery of
militants who had infiltrated Arab groups. Coalition forces did not give
sufficient support. As you know, until now, coalition forces have always fired
on groups Turkey supports. Turkey’s response was limited by its rules of
engagement,” the official said. “The northern corridor is so confusing, we have
no idea who is on whose side. There is the risk of losing the Azaz-Marea line.
Actually, there is that risk all over because of rampant treachery,” the Turkmen
source said, referring to mounting fears that IS — as it did last year — might
not stop at al-Rai but press on to Azaz again. “Turkmens pay the heaviest price.
We have lost the reins in our area. The process is manipulated by foreign
powers. We are now discussing what we can do, whether we can reorganize the
Turkmen forces. I don’t know how effective we can be."As this is happening north
of the Euphrates, the Menbic operation that SDF was going to carry out with the
United States was delayed. “We are not yet ready for the operation,” Zuhat
Kobani, an official with the Kurdish nationalist Democratic Union Party, told
Al-Monitor. Another Kurdish source said, “There are issues to be cleared up
about the Menbic operation. The United States and Turkey have not yet agreed on
this matter.” Turkey’s tactical moves designed to keep the YPG away from the
area are impeding a real and meaningful struggle against IS. The expectation is
that if the Kurds and their Arab allies move against Menbic, Turkey will arrange
for a repeat of the al-Rai offensive. If the Syrian army succeeds in the “Great
Aleppo War,” the northern front will be even more complicated, so much so that
even Turkey won’t be able to cope with it. Then, the “with Kurds or without
Kurds” debate will become irrelevant.