LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS
BULLETIN
December 18/16
Compiled
& Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
The
Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
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Bible Quotations For Today
Greater
love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends
John 15/12-15/:"My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.
Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants,
because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called
you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to
you."
I am longing to strengthen you or rather so that we may be mutually encouraged
by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.
Letter to the Romans 01/01-12/:"Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to
be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand
through his prophets in the holy scriptures, the gospel concerning his Son, who
was descended from David according to the flesh. and was declared to be Son of
God with power according to the spirit of holiness by resurrection from the
dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and
apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for the
sake of his name, including yourselves who are called to belong to Jesus
Christ, To all God’s beloved in Rome, who are called to be saints: Grace to you
and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. First, I thank my God
through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed
throughout the world. For God, whom I serve with my spirit by announcing the
gospel of his Son, is my witness that without ceasing I remember you always in
my prayers, asking that by God’s will I may somehow at last succeed in coming
to you. For I am longing to see you so that I may share with you some spiritual
gift to strengthen you or rather so that we may be mutually encouraged by each
other’s faith, both yours and mine.
Titles For Latest
LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on
December 17-18/16
Hezbollah are no geniuses. Our guys are helping a lot/Roger Bejjani/Face Book/December 17/16/
Elite Beduin trackers guarding Israel's border with
Lebanon/Jerusalem Post/December 17/16
Egypt Church Bombing Raises Calls to Uproot Bigotry/Agence
France Presse/Naharnet/December 17/16/
Christian Worship Is ‘Worse than Murder and Bloodshed’/Raymond Ibrahim/Coptic
Solidarity/December 17/16
Islamism in Europe/Khadija Khan/Gatestone
Institute/December 17/16
After the Fall of Aleppo/Jonathan Spyer/Jerusalem
Post/December 17/16
Does expelling religion from the public space lead to extremism/Samar Fatany/Asharq Al Awsat/December
17/16
Here’s How Trump could Succeed/Philip Churm/Washington
Post/December 17/16
Titles For Latest
Lebanese Related News published on December 17-18/16
Hezbollah are no geniuses. Our guys are helping a lot.
Image shows Hezbollah, Iranian militia detain civilians in Aleppo
Berri: Don't Push Me to Tell Who is Obstructing
Cabinet Line-Up
Bassil: FPM Makes Sacrifices to Serve Lebanon's
Interest
Report: Gov. Formation Facing New Complexities, LF Won't Relinquish Portfolios
Ogassapian Says Proportionality 'Impossible' Under
'Logic of Arms'
LAF artillery shells militants in Arsal outskirts
Christmas Village" kicksoff with the muchawaited 100 Santa Claus Parade
Arslan via Twitter: We are in agreement with MP Joumblatt over all matters that promote the Druze community
Clash between public van owners blocks Aley
international highway
Security forces reopen Aley international highway
Elite Beduin trackers guarding Israel's border with
Lebanon
Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin For
Miscellaneous Reports And News published on December 17-18/16
Aleppo’s civilians fleeing Assad attacks
Thousands in Desperate Wait for Evacuation from Aleppo
Egypt Church Bombing Raises Calls to Uproot Bigotry
Iran sermon: Muslims defeated ‘infidels’ in Aleppo
Iran threatens to restart nuclear activities
Iran summons British envoy in Syria tit for tat
Arab League Condemns the Brutal Killings in Aleppo
David Cameron: Britain is suffering from Iran regime’s terrorism
Iran: 11 Executions in Three Prisons
Iran Regime Is Explicitly Formulating the Sectarianism Plan in Syria
PLO warns peace prospects ‘dead’ if US embassy moves to Jerusalem
Hamas blames Israel for killing of drone expert in Tunisia
S. Korea Protests Switch Focus to Impeachment Court
Links From Jihad Watch Site for on December 17-18/16
Tunisia:
Rapist gets off by marrying 13-year-old girl he impregnated
Islamic
State threatens Egypt with “volcano of jihad” for executing jihad murderer
Muslim
Chaplain of the Canadian army: Beat your wife, but keep it private
Patient
Diagnosed as “Islamophobic” on CBS’s “Pure Genius”
Minnesota:
Muslim migrant rapes woman on bus
Noam
Chomsky: Idea of “Islamic terror as seeking to destroy us” is “scapegoating”
Obama:
“Almost every country on Earth sees America as stronger” than eight years ago
De
Blasio “really angry” with Muslim hate crime hoaxer
because it’s really Trump’s fault
Germany:
12-year-old Muslim boy targets Christmas market with nail bomb
PA
claims it got no US aid in 2016, when it really got $357 million
Bloomberg
Businessweek: “Europe’s Migrant Flood Brings Germany
a Much-Needed Baby Boom”
Jamie
Glazov Christmas Moment: Crucified Again
Latest Lebanese Related News
published on on December 17-18/16
Hezbollah are no geniuses. Our guys are
helping a lot.
Roger Bejjani/Face Book/December 17/16/When you
blackmail your own people and country and violate the constitution hence
voiding Baabda Presidential palace from his resident
for 2 years and half, you should not be surprised Mr. President to be fed with
the same nature of crap. If is your turn to be blackmailed.
As for Hariri and Geagea if they have not learned yet
that their opponent considers every "rapprochement" as weakness and
an opportunity to move forward, they should change careers.
If Aoun and Hariri had political vision and b----,
they should have created 48 hours subsequent to the taklif
a non-partisan apolitical cabinet of 14 which main mission must have been
coordinating a new electoral law and organizing the forthcoming parliamentarian
elections in May 2017. This cabinet would have been entrusted with a
parliamentarian majority. Unfortunately, FPM, Aoun, Geagea and Hariri were dreaming of this piece of the pie
for those unfortunate 6 months to come.
Hezbollah are no geniuses. Our guys are helping a lot.
Image shows Hezbollah, Iranian militia
detain civilians in
Saturday, 17 December 2016/Pro-regime media outlets have published an image
allegedly showing Iranian and Lebanese militiamen detaining and killing
civilians who were trying to leave besieged
Berri: Don't Push Me to Tell Who is Obstructing Cabinet
Line-Up
Naharnet/December 17/16/Speaker Nabih
Berri said he knows the “secret” behind the delay in
the cabinet formation but prefers not to be “provoked” into disclosing it to
the public, al-Joumhouria daily reported Saturday. “I
know where the problem is, and I know the secret behind the obstructions. Don't
provoke us to make us announce it frankly and publicly,” sources close to Berri quoted him as saying. The sources pointed to some
attempts aiming to hold the AMAL Movement responsible for the cabinet delay,
“some want to blame us, but they can't hold us responsible. We are not the
problem. Things are clear on our part. Let them search for the solution
somewhere else, it is in their own hands.”Berri
however said: “Everyone knows that President Michel Aoun,
Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri and myself have agreed during our meeting at Babbada
to form a cabinet of 30 minsters. We were not the ones who retracted, but they were.”Aoun and Hariri are still struggling to put together
a new cabinet amid conflicting demands from the political forces that are
seeking to join the unity government. The formation process made major progress
on Monday and Tuesday after the political parties reached a settlement over the
thorny issue of the public works portfolio. Under the settlement, the Marada Movement will be given the public works portfolio
while the Lebanese Forces will get the health portfolio. But horsetrading resumed when it was agreed to form a 30-member
cabinet instead of 24, where the disagreement lingers on the additional six
state ministers and their distribution on the political parties.
Bassil: FPM Makes Sacrifices to Serve
Naharnet/December 17/16/Foreign Minister and Free
Patriotic Movement leader Jebran Bassil
stated that the FPM makes sacrifices for the greater interest of
Report: Gov. Formation Facing New
Complexities, LF Won't Relinquish Portfolios
Naharnet/December 17/16/The Lebanese Forces party
said forming a new cabinet is facing complexities because shifting to form a
cabinet of 30 ministers instead of 24 requires anew consultations, and stressed
that they will not concede any ministerial portfolio in the new line-up
agreement, al-Akhbar daily reported on Saturday. “The
formation of the cabinet is getting complicated,” Maarab
sources told the daily on condition of anonymity. “We are not against forming a
cabinet of 30 ministers, but we technically oppose it for two reasons: first it
will blow away the arrangement of 24 ministers, secondly it will bring the
consultations back to square one which means that the efforts exerted by Prime
Minister-designate Saad Hariri have gone in vain,”
added the sources. On the difficulties facing the formation, the sources
expressed astonishment at the insistence of Speaker Nabih
Berri to have all the March 8 alliance parties
represented in the cabinet. They said it would push the March 14 alliance to
take similar steps and demand the representation of independent Shiite and
Sunni figures, similar to former Minsters Ashraf Rifi, and Ibrahim Shamseddine and
ex MP Mohammed Baydoun. The sources concluded by
saying that the LF will not make any concessions as for the ministerial
portfolios to be allotted, “we won't let them withdraw any of the portfolios
agreed upon.”
The formation process made major progress on Monday and Tuesday after the
political parties reached a settlement over the thorny issue of the public
works portfolio. Under the settlement, the Marada
Movement will be given the public works portfolio while the Lebanese Forces
will get the health portfolio. But horsetrading
resumed when plans changed and a suggestion to form a 30-member cabinet instead
of 24 emerged. The disagreement lingers on the additional six state ministers
and their distribution on the political parties.
Ogassapian Says Proportionality 'Impossible' Under 'Logic of
Arms'
Naharnet/December 17/16/Al-Mustaqbal MP Jean Ogassapian said on Saturday it is impossible to reach a
complete proportional representation election law in light of the spread of Hizbullah's arms. “Everyone knows that proportional
representation will not be passed in the parliament, and it is impossible to
reach this representation under the logic of arms spread in specific areas,”
said Ogassapian in an interview to Free Lebanon
radio. “This law will drag the country into further paralysis. We will face a
problem shall we approach June 20 next year when the tenure of the parliament
ends, without having a new law to stage the elections or agreeing on the term
extension or staging the elections based on the 1960,” he added. “We need
political stability and we must benefit from the election of President Michel Aoun and the designation of PM Saad
Hariri. We need an efficient government to restore life to the constitutional
institutions,” he went on to say. Ogassapian urged
the March 8 alliance to facilitate the mission of the President, and the
political parties to help
LAF artillery shells militants in Arsal outskirts
Sat 17 Dec 2016/NNA - The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) targeted the outposts of
militants in the outskirts of Arsal on Saturday
afternoon, NNA correspondent to Hermel reported.'
Christmas Village" kicksoff with the muchawaited 100
Santa Claus Parade
Sat 17 Dec 2016/NNA - "Christmas Village" was officially launched, on
Saturday, at Beirut Souks with an opening ceremony headed by Deputy Atef Majdalani representing
PM-designate Saad El Hariri, Mr. Mohamed Choukair, President of the Chamber of Commerce, Industry
& Agriculture in Beirut and Mount Lebanon, and Mrs. Sandra Ghattas, General Manager of Gata
Events & Promotions, and the organizer of the event in collaboration with Solidere.
The official ceremony kicked-off with the one-of-a-kind and much anticipated
100 Santa Claus Parade featuring 100 Santa Claus who marched around the Souks
to spread the joyful Christmas spirit. The Christmas Village will be welcoming
visitors, free-of-charge, starting today the 17th till Friday the 23rd of
December 2016 from 3 PM till 10 PM, to discover the Food Village offering live
cooking and all sorts of Christmas sweets; Souk el Tayyeb,
famous for their local produce; and the Christmas Market with more than 50
participants showcasing their Christmas products, handcrafts, and trendy
decoration and gift ideas including fashion, fashion accessories, jewelry, handbags, home accessories, candies and sweets,
and toys for the little ones.The Village also
features a fun-packed entertainment schedule every day with on-stage performances
and mobile entertainers for all ages.
Arslan via Twitter: We are in agreement with MP Joumblatt over all matters that promote the Druze community
Sat 17 Dec 2016/NNA - Lebanese Democratic Party Head, MP Talal
Arslan, stressed Saturday via Twitter on "the
ongoing agreement with MP Walid Joumblatt
over all matters pertaining to the development of the Druze community,
including the government issue," while criticizing anyone who tries to
insinuate otherwise.
Clash between public van owners blocks Aley international highway
Sat 17 Dec 2016/NNA - Owners of vans and public transport busses blocked Aley international highway to both sides of traffic
following a dispute between a van owner from Aley and
another one from
Security forces reopen Aley
international highway
Sat 17 Dec 2016/NNA - Following a personal dispute between van owners for
public transportation, security forces successfully reopened Aley international highway to both sides of traffic.
Elite Beduin
trackers guarding
Jerusalem Post/December 17/16
It’s a sunny day, the first after a few days of rain.
Looking at the dirt path running along the border with
Across the valley, Gahder points to a shack “that
used to be a Hezbollah outpost.” He kneels, motioning for me to return to the
footprint, explaining with a smile that it represented no danger. “It was a cow.”Ghader, a Beduin from
northern
Beduin men, who patrol Israel’s borders and act as
the first line of defense, are not obliged to serve
in the army, meaning that they volunteer to put their lives at risk for their
country. Since 1948, more than 110 Beduin have been
killed defending
In the IDF, Beduin are highly respected for their
tracking and navigational skills, something they learn in their youth, Gahder told The Jerusalem Post, adding that in his unit
there are career soldiers between the ages of 35 and 47, and soldiers as young
as 20 years old.
But Gahder is worried that technological advancements
will render them obsolete. Israel’s border installations are some of the most
advanced in the world, with smart fences, concrete walls, cameras and thermal
sensors.
“In the next five, 10 years, I am not sure if we will still be needed,” he
said. “It’s my biggest fear.”
But technology is not always the answer and the trackers are always the first
called to the scene of a possible infiltration. On one three-day incident Gahder recounted, it was the trackers who lasted the
longest in the field, not the helicopter, not the trucks and not the dogs.
The difficulty of the tracker’s job varies with the location and the
topography, Gahder told the Post. Near the Gaza
Strip, the trackers are able to easily read the sand, and are able to quickly
tell if there is an infiltration toward
According to Kamal, a Beduin
from the southern city of
According to a May report by State Comptroller Joseph Shapira,
a third of
And in addition, the government continues to demolish these unrecognized Beduin villages, mainly in the southern part of the
country. Many NGOs have criticized
And demolition isn’t the only danger Beduin face
living in unrecognized villages. During Operation Protective Edge
two-and-a-half years ago, a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip struck the
All the men in his family had been in the army, but even after his death, the
High Court of Justice ruled that there was no need for a shelter to be placed
in unrecognized Beduin villages. According to the
court, while these villages are vulnerable to rockets, “the level of risk did
not justify the supply of portable shelters at the expense of areas at higher
risk.”
“Will his sons now join the army? If their safety is such a
low priority for the state? I don’t think so,” Kamal
told the Post over coffee. “When the army says it’s the army of the people,
what does that even mean? Are the Beduin not part of
the people of
There is also pressure from the Islamic Movement in
These pressures have affected enlistment. According to a senior IDF officer,
357 Beduin joined the IDF in 2015, 254 from the North
and 103 in the South.
Gahder, who after 12 years in the army still hopes to
advance as far as he can, plans to build community centers when he is
discharged, where more of his fellow Beduin can
connect to Israel and be encouraged to volunteer to enlist in the army.
“I am very proud to serve in the IDF,” he told the Post. “We all have one goal:
to protect
http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Politics-And-Diplomacy/Elite-Bedouin-trackers-guarding-Israels-border-with-Lebanon-475681
Latest LCCC Bulletin For
Miscellaneous Reports And News published on on December
17-18/16
Aleppo’s civilians fleeing
Assad attacks
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Saturday, 17
December 2016/Syrian activists shot a video of civilians in eastern Aleppo
escaping after Assad forces and loyalists opened fire at the border crossings
during the evacuation process, which the regime and its allies claimed was safe
operations. In the video, the Syrian activist says as he’s running with a crowd
of civilians: “these people are currently under threat by the Syrian regime, they are running away from the Regime’s checkpoint
that
Thousands in Desperate Wait for Evacuation
from
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/December
17/16/Thousands of trapped civilians and rebels waited desperately Saturday for
evacuations to resume from the last opposition-held areas of
"We are working on a resumption of the operations today (Saturday),"
said Al-Farook Abu Bakr, a
representative of the hardline Islamist rebel group Ahrar al-Sham.
"There will be evacuations from Fuaa and Kafraya, as well as Madaya and Zabadani, and all the residents of
- Women, children trapped -Tens of thousands of civilians had already fled
opposition-controlled parts of
The Russian defence ministry said after evacuations were suspended that only hardline rebel fighters remained. But World Health
Organization country representative Elisabeth Hoff said: "There are still
high numbers of women and infants -- children under five -- that need to get
out."
The main regional supporters of the rival sides in
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu,
whose government is a key backer of the opposition, said he had spoken more
than a dozen times with his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad
Zarif, during the day. On Friday a convoy of evacuees
that had already left east
In
Several thousand people protested on the Turkish border on Saturday against the
siege of
Egypt Church Bombing Raises Calls to
Uproot Bigotry
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/December
17/16/
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/12/17/afp-egypt-church-bombing-raises-calls-to-uproot-bigotryap-egypt-church-attack-prompts-fears-of-militant-escalation/
Growing up in Egypt, Mina and other Copts remember all too well the
anti-Christian slurs they used to hear at school and on the street. Once, while
playing football, a Muslim youth snatched Mina's necklace and crucifix and
stomped on it. "I won't forget that day," said Mina, now in his 30s.
"School curricula, some (religious) platforms and the absence of an
enlightened current are what have led to this," said Coptic Church
spokesman Boulos Halim.
Egyptian authorities have announced the arrest of four jihadist suspects. But
the authorities must go much further and address the kind of prejudice running
through Egyptian society that for decades has fuelled attacks on Coptic
Christians, said Halim. "Police and military
power have never been able to erase terrorism. It must be accompanied by the
power of thought," he said.
The attack claimed by the Islamic State group was the second church bombing in
Halim traces the roots of violence against his
community to the 1970s, when then president Anwar
Sadat empowered Islamists against his socialist opponents. Attacks by Muslims
on Christians, especially in rural areas, carried on after Sadat himself was
assassinated by jihadists in 1981 and succeeded by his vice president, Hosni
Mubarak. In more recent times, Copts have also had to contend with Islamist
extremists whose propaganda portrays them as outsiders and second-class
citizens.
- Roots of discrimination -Some say the roots of discrimination can be found in
schools.
Schools teach compulsory classes in religion, with Christians leaving
classrooms during Islamic lessons to attend separate Christian religion
tuition. In Arabic classes, Christians memorise Koranic
verses -- a primary reference for teaching the language -- while Muslims are
taught about Christianity from an Islamic perspective. "They don't learn
anything about my religion," said Peter, a Copt in his 30s. Bigotry was
one of the reasons that Peter, who asked not to be fully identified, left
With former military chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's
election a year later, Copts hoped they had found an ally who understood the
dangers of Islamist extremism. Sisi, who oversaw a
bloody crackdown on Morsi's supporters and pledged to
wipe out a jihadist insurgency, became
- Uptick in sectarian violence -"What happened is not enough to change
ideologies," said Halim.
There has been an uptick of sectarian incidents in 2016. In May, Muslim
villagers set ablaze Christian homes and paraded an elderly Coptic woman naked
over rumours that her son was in a relationship with a Muslim woman. In
February, authorities halted the hiring of a Christian woman as a school
principal after student protests in Minya province,
south of the capital.
Violent attacks have increased, with clashes often ignited by rumours that
Christians were building a church. Activists say extremist Salafi
preachers are spreading hatred in non-mainstream religious services, some of
them available online. "It is very clear that hatred is present in
speeches. I don't know what they (the authorities) are waiting for," Halim said.
This year, four Coptic teenagers were convicted of insulting Islam after they
recorded a video mocking the Islamic State group. The government prefers to
defuse communal tensions or clashes between Muslims and Copts by holding
"conciliation meetings" rather than applying the law, critics say.
Egypt Church Attack Prompts Fears of Militant Escalation
Associated Press/December 17/16
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/12/17/afp-egypt-church-bombing-raises-calls-to-uproot-bigotryap-egypt-church-attack-prompts-fears-of-militant-escalation/
When a suicide bomber blew himself up in a Cairo church a week ago, it marked a
bloody escalation by Egypt's jihadi militants,
raising fears that an insurgency which for years largely focused on fighting in
the Sinai and killing policemen may now turn to unleash attacks on civilians in
the country's capital. A stepped up campaign by militants linked to the Islamic
State group would be a heavy blow to a country trying to rebuild a wrecked
economy and revive a vital tourism industry. The prospect is already spreading
terror among
"They are framing justification for sectarian violence in
A storm of attacks on civilians would be a frightening change for
Extremists linked to the Islamic State group have been waging an insurgency in
the
But weapons and explosives are easily found across
"It's a sprawling hub for explosives like TNT, just take a look at all the
improvised explosive devices going off in Sinai and that the government claims
it has seized — we are talking tons," he said. El-Sissi
has fashioned himself as the leader of the fight against Islamic militancy in
the region, portraying his crackdown on
Last Sunday's suicide bomber hit a church linked to the main cathedral of
The government said Sunday's bomber was a former supporter of the Brotherhood
who joined militants. Later, the Islamic State group claimed responsibility.
Egyptian officials, however, have kept their focus on the Brotherhood, the
Islamist political movement whose leader, Mohamed Morsi,
was ousted from the presidency by the military in 2013. On Monday, the Interior
Ministry said exiled Brotherhood leaders provided "financial and
logistical support" for the church bombing. Spokesmen for the Interior
Ministry, responsible for police, as well as the Foreign Ministry, did not
respond to requests for comment on whether they believed the bombing signaled the start of a wider campaign.
But a recent uptick in attacks has shown how violence has evolved the past two
years. New groups such as one known as Hasm have
emerged, launching high-level assassination attempts and attacks on security
forces in mainland
More likely, they could be trying to push the security agencies into mass
arrests or abuses that could stoke resentment and further radicalize some.
In the aftermath of the bombings and at the ensuing funerals, many Christians
shouted angry anti-government slogans, echoing a long-standing charge that the
government's security state is neglecting the most vulnerable segment of the
population — theirs. El-Sissi himself has denied the
church bombing was due to a lapse in security. "In the present context,
any attack on Egypt's Christians is bound to both embarrass the government and
its pretense to restoring law and order and erode
popular support for the el-Sisi regime," wrote
Michael Hanna, a senior fellow at the U.S.-based Century Foundation. "But
more importantly, those effects can be achieved while not risking broad-based
backlash, with
Iran sermon: Muslims defeated ‘infidels’
in Aleppo
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Saturday, 17
December 2016/Tehran Friday prayers cleric, Ayatollah Mohammad Emami Kashani, claimed a military
victory in Aleppo, applauding what he commended as “Aleppo triumph” as a
victory of the “Muslims over the Infidels”, according to various Iranian state
run controlled media outlets. According to “al-Alam”
news channel website, Kashani affirmed that Aleppo
was “liberated” and not “fallen” and that the Muslims were victorious over the
infidels, as an innuendo to the Syrian opposition, who rebelled against Bashar al Assad’s authoritarian regime and consequently
being forcibly evacuated from their homes as culmination of the siege,
starvation and shelling. In addition, Kashani was
quoted by the Iranian “al Hawza news agency”
Saturday, saying that
Iran threatens to restart nuclear activities
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Saturday, 17
December 2016/Iran’s Vice President and head of Iran’s Atomic Energy
Organization, Ali Akbar Salehi, threatened to restart
to nuclear activities ‘if necessary.’In an interview
on Friday night with an Iranian television channel, Channel Two, Salehi brought up the possibility of new negotiations on
the nuclear agreement as the US administration stated. He said that the new
negotiations will prove to be a lesson on how to negotiate nuclear terms, and
the need to be more accurate. “Today, each will explain the terms of the
nuclear deal as he wants, and will say the deal has not been violated,” he added.Iran’s Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javed
Zarif, sent a letter to the nuclear deal’s Joint
Comprehensive Plan of Action calling for a meeting to discuss the United
States’ recent call to extend sanctions on Iran. Zarif
pointed out
AFP,
They restored relations following a nuclear deal between
Arab League Condemns the Brutal
Killings in
Saturday, 17 December 2016/NCRI - The Council of Arab League in the final
statement of its meeting in
David Cameron: Britain is suffering from
Iran regime’s terrorism
Saturday, 17 December 2016/NCRI - Speaking at the ‘Arab Strategy Forum’ in
Dubai, former British Prime Minister David Cameron and former CIA Director and
Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta looked at the
world’s political status in 2017 while expressing concerns about terrorism. On
the Iranian regime, former British PM David Cameron said that “I understand
that the Iranian regime’s policies have been the source of concern in the
region and
Saturday, 17 December 2016/The Iranian regime’s authorities sent 11 inmates to
the gallows in the span of three days (December 12 to 15) in the prisons of Maragheh,
These remarks are made at a time when regime officials have in the past few
weeks alone launched a widespread propaganda campaign on decreasing death
sentences, all aimed at influencing a United Nations General Assembly
resolution on human rights violations in
“We have been witnessing a large number of executions related to drug charges
under existing laws. We are involved in efforts to alter this law and 80% of
the executions will be cancelled if we succeed in passing this law in
parliament. This can be important news,” Javad Larijani had said prior to this.
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran/December 16, 2016
Iran Regime Is Explicitly Formulating the
Sectarianism Plan in Syria
Saturday, 17 December 2016/NCRI - The member of the National Coalition for
Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces: The Iranian regime intends to occupy Kaaba by its sectarianism plan. Al-Arabiya
television had an interview with the member of the National Coalition for
Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces, Osama Taljo.Al-Arabiya:
what are your view and concern regarding the residents of East of Aleppo who
are being relocated?
Osama:
I hope that the process of relocation will be carried out successfully. In
fact, this process began with crime and we fear that the plan is associated
with other crimes as well since the Iranian officials were forced to accept
this agreement so they are unwilling to implement it. Consequently, they are
likely to do anything.
First, international observers must be present during the relocation process,
because we do not trust any party other than international partners.
Second, the number of those who are being relocated is scarce. This process
would take a month to be completed. Due to this slow process, the residents
will remain without enough food, medicine, and water. They do not have
necessary resources to live in this one month.
Therefore, we initially call for airlifting the humanitarian aids to our people
until the process of relocation takes place. Second, the international
observers should be present during the relocation process in order to ensure
the safety and security of citizens.
Third, according to the ceasefire agreement, the families who want to stay in
the town shall be under the international protection so that they will be safe
from the militants that are currently in
Al-Arabiya: the issue is about the future of
Osama: we are now talking about the people of
Nevertheless, the forced immigrations, changing the population texture and the
sectarianism are the plans of the Iranian regime. The Iranian militants
occupied a neighborhood known as Hanano
a few days ago and they have established religious centers there.
Therefore,
PLO warns peace prospects ‘dead’ if US
embassy moves to Jerusalem
Reuters, Jerusalem/Washington Saturday, 17 December 2016
A senior Palestinian official warned on Friday that implementation of Donald
Trump’s pledge to relocate the US embassy to Jerusalem would destroy any
prospects for peace with Israel, even as a spokesman for the US president-elect
said he remained committed to the move.
Saeb Erekat,
secretary-general of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, issued the grim
prediction just a day after Trump announced his decision to nominate as
ambassador to Israel David Friedman, a pro-Israel hardliner who supports
continued building of Jewish settlements and shifting the embassy from Tel
Aviv.
Speaking to foreign journalists, Erekat said
Successive
“No one should take any decisions which may preempt
or prejudge (negotiations) because this will be the destruction of the peace
process as a whole,” Erekat said, according to a
transcript provided by an aide. The last U.S.-backed talks on statehood
collapsed in 2014.
He further warned of dire consequences if
Erekat said he would like to look Trump and Friedman
in the eye and tell them “if you were to take these steps of moving the embassy
and annexing settlements in the
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has had a fractious relationship
with President Barack Obama, was satisfied with Friedman’s appointment,
according to the Israeli website Ynet, and several
members of his right-wing government welcomed the choice.
Liberal Jewish-American groups have raised objections over positions he has
stated in writings and press interviews, which they see as a rejection of a
two-state solution, a longtime
bedrock of U.S. Middle East policy, and alignment with
Trump spokesman Jason Miller said the president-elect “remains firmly
committed” to relocating the embassy but that it was “premature” to present a
timetable for such a move.
US-based analysts said that while Friedman’s appointment could signal a break
with longstanding
Friedman, who must be confirmed by the US Senate, declined to answer questions
when contracted by Reuters. “I’ll do that at some point, but I’m not providing
any comments just yet,” he said.
In Thursday’s announcement, Friedman said he looked forward to doing the job
“from the
“Appointing David Friedman ... is a positive declaration of intent,” Justice
Minister Ayelet Shaked
tweeted. “David is a true friend of
Friedman has also called liberal Jewish Americans supporting a two-state
solution “worse than kapos,” a reference to Jewish
prisoners in World War Two concentration camps assigned by Nazi guards to
supervise fellow inmates.
Hamas blames
Reuters,
Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, did not offer any evidence to support its
accusation. A spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not
respond to a Reuters request for comment. “Qassam
Brigades mourns the martyr of Palestine, martyr of the Arab and Muslim nation,
the Qassam leader, engineer and pilot Mohammad Zawari, who was assassinated by Zionist treacherous hands
on Thursday in Sfax,” a statement posted on the
group's website said.
“The enemy must know the blood of the leader Zawari
will not go in vain,” the statement said.The Tunisian
interior ministry said Zawari was killed in his car
by multiple gunshots in front of his house in El Ain, near Sfax,
on Thursday. Four rental cars were used in the killing and two handguns and
silencers were seized, the ministry said. Television footage aired on local
media showed a black Volkswagen with its windows apparently shot out. A
judicial spokesman from Sfax, Mourad
Tourki, told Tunisian radio Shems
FM eight Tunisian nationals had been arrested in connection with the killing.
One of the suspects is a Tunisian journalist based in
Local media said Zawari had returned to
S. Korea Protests Switch Focus to
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/December
17/16/TTens of thousands of protestors turned out in
Park still has her supporters, many of them elderly voters who remain steadfast
admirers of her father, the late military dictator Park Chung-Hee -- credited as the architect of the South's economic
transformation but vilified as an authoritarian rights abuser.
- Flags and roses -Police said around 30,000 Park loyalists attended their own
rally near the court earlier in the day to demand the impeachment bill be
thrown out. Waving national flags and clutching red roses they carried banners
denouncing the anti-Park protests as a leftist conspiracy. On Friday, Park's
legal team formally submitted a 24-page rebuttal of the impeachment charges to
the court, arguing that they had no legal basis. "We can't accept that
there was any violation of the constitution by the president... the impeachment
motion should be rejected," one of her lawyers, Lee Joong-Hwan,
told reporters. Park was impeached on numerous counts of constitutional and
criminal violations ranging from a failure to protect people's lives to bribery
and abuse of power. Most of the charges stemmed from an investigation into a
scandal involving the president's long-time friend, Choi
Soon-Sil, who is currently awaiting trial for fraud
and embezzlement. Prosecutors named Park a suspect in the case -- a first for a
sitting president -- saying she colluded in Choi's
efforts to strong-arm donations from large companies worth tens of millions of
dollars.
- Public outrage -The impeachment process was ignited and fuelled by public
outrage at Park's behaviour, with the weekly mass demonstrations demanding that
politicians take a proactive role in removing her from the presidential Blue
House. The National Assembly has played its part, but the country now faces a
lengthy period of uncertainty at a time of slowing economic growth and elevated
military tensions with nuclear-armed
Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis
& editorials from miscellaneous sources published on on
December 17-18/16
Christian Worship Is ‘Worse
than Murder and Bloodshed’
Raymond Ibrahim/Coptic Solidarity/December 17/16
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/12/17/raymond-ibrahimcoptic-solidarity-christian-worship-is-worse-than-murder-and-bloodshed/
For an idea on why Egypt’s Coptic Christians and their churches
are constantly under attack—most recently last Sunday, when a church was
bombed, killing at least 25 Christians—one need merely listen to the words and
teachings of some of the nation’s Muslim preachers.
Take Dr. Ahmed al-Naqib, for instance. He has studied
at the best Islamic madrassas, including Al Azhar, authored numerous books on doctrine, received awards
and decorations for his academic achievements, and regularly appears on
television. In one video he appears discussing an earlier Muslim mob attack on
a church in
Citing revered Islamic texts including the Koran, Dr. Naqib
explained that the open display of shirk—the greatest sin in Islam, associating
someone else with God, which the Koran accuses Christians of doing via the Trinity—“is
the worst form of fitna, worse than murder and
bloodshed.”
In other words, and as he went on to make perfectly clear in the
remainder of the video, fitna (or discord) is not
when Muslims attack Christian churches—far from it—but rather when Christians
are allowed to flaunt their shirk (or blasphemies) in churches near Muslims.
Fighting that—even to the point of “murder and bloodshed”—is preferable.
Then there’s Dr. Yasser Burhami, the face of
Egypt’s Salafi movement, who is as well credentialed
and prolific as Naqib: he’s on record saying that,
although a Muslim man is permitted to marry Christian or Jewish women, he must
make sure he still hates them in his heart—and always shows them that he hates
them—because they are infidels; otherwise he risks losing his Islam.
As for churches, Burhami once issued a fatwa
forbidding Muslim taxi and bus drivers from transporting Christian priests to
their churches, which he depicted as “more forbidden than taking someone to a
liquor bar.”
But it’s not just “radical” or Salafi sheikhs
who make such hateful pronouncements. Even so-called “moderate” Islamic
institutions, such as Al Azhar’s Dar al-Ifta, issued a fatwa in August 2009 likening the building
of a church to “a nightclub, a gambling casino, or building a barn for rearing
pigs, cats or dogs.”
The analogy is not original to the Salafis or
Dar al-Ifta, but rather traces back to some of
Islam’s most revered doctrinaires, including Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn Qayyim. They taught that “building churches is worse than
building bars and brothels, for those [churches] symbolize infidelity, whereas
these [bars and brothels] represent immorality.”
One can go on and on with examples of Muslim clerics and institutions
inciting—with absolute impunity—against Christians and their churches in
Those who killed the young and vulnerable Mary Sameh
George, for hanging a cross in her car, are not criminals, but rather wretches
who follow those who legalized for them murder, lynching, dismemberment, and the
stripping bare of young Christian girls—without ever saying [the word] “kill.”
[Islamic cleric] Yassir Burhami
and his colleagues who announce their hate for Christians throughout satellite
channels and in mosques—claiming that hatred of Christians is synonymous with
love for God—they are the true killers who need to be tried and prosecuted.
One can say the same thing about the suicide-bombing of St. Peter’s
cathedral.
In short, until such time comes that the Egyptian government removes the
“radical” sheikhs and their teachings from the mosques, schools, television
stations and all other positions of influence, Muslims will continue to be
radicalized, churches will continue to be bombed, and Christians will continue
to be killed.
Islamism in Europe
Khadija Khan/Gatestone
Institute/December 17/16
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/12/17/khadija-khangatestone-institute-islamism-in-europe/
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/9566/islamism-europe
Ironically, those who dare to speak out against extremists either face severe
consequences, such as death threats, or are called anti-Muslim bigots. This
kind of response often discourages progressive voices from speaking out, and
understates the progress of counter-extremism even within the Muslim community.
Opposition voices still might be there -- more than ever. They just go
underground.
Since the unprecedented terror attacks in
With Brexit, the election of Donald Trump, and
The dull reaction of a vast number of European Muslims to the rising wave of
terror and violence has also contributed to this shift. Increasing numbers of
native-born Europeans seem angry and distrustful of their fellow Muslim
citizens, especially when everyone else has come out loud and clear in
denouncing terrorist crimes.
German authorities and those across
This awakening, however, seems to be coming after a major price that Europe had
to pay in terms of death and chaos unleashed by terrorists in Germany, Belgium,
France, Denmark, and so on.
Governments across the
German Chancellor Angela Merkel sounds as if she is backing down a bit from
championing the influx of migrants and her slogan of "We can do it!"
in developing a multicultural society. She not only vowed to Germans in an
address last week that the migrant crisis must never be repeated; she also
called for an all-out ban on the full-face veil covering in
Following Merkel's lead, Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière
also proposed a partial ban on veils, and pronounced them contrary to
assimilation.
The dramatic shift in policy might be a consequence of the planned and
perpetrated acts of terrorism by extremist Muslims, many of whom are the
migrants on whom Merkel placed her hopes. It might also be the result of the
resultant rise of European neo-Nazis. More likely, it would appear to come from
an eye to re-election.
Merkel was declared by many the only defender of the free world after the
election of Donald Trump as
The brutal rape and murder of a 19-year-old German woman, Maria Ladenburger, apparently by Afghan migrant who claims to be
17 years old, seems to have been the last nail in the coffin of Merkel's
open-door migrant policy, which she had promised to not to let go even after
extreme opposition from within her own party's leadership.
Ladenburger had been a medical student volunteering
at a migrant housing facility. Her murderer had reportedly seen her in the
shelter. The incident set off shockwaves not only in the
In the meanwhile, authorities in
German police a few weeks back also launched an operation against a Salafist group in the country, whose members were
brainwashing Muslim youths, mostly in
The Salafist organization had registered itself as a
social work entity under the cover of distributing the Quran in markets and
public places, and claiming to be bridging the gap between the West and Islam.
One suspect was arrested in
This recent shift in strategy is also a lesson that the West has learnt a bit
too late, despite having experienced similar assaults not that long ago by the
Nazis, Mussolini, Lenin, Stalin as well as terror organizations such as Baader Meinhof, al-Shebaab, ETA, the Red Brigades, Hamas, Al Qaeda,
Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah, to name just a few.
Since the unprecedented terror attacks in
Since the unprecedented terror attacks in
With Brexit, the election of Donald Trump, and
The dull reaction of a vast number of European Muslims to the rising wave of
terror and violence has also contributed to this shift. Increasing numbers of
native-born Europeans seem angry and distrustful of their fellow Muslim
citizens, especially when everyone else has come out loud and clear in
denouncing terrorist crimes.
Ironically, those who dare to speak out against extremists either face severe
consequences, such as death threats, or are called anti-Muslim bigots. This
kind of response often discourages progressive voices from speaking out, and
understates the progress of counter-extremism even within the Muslim community.
Opposition voices still might be there -- more than ever. They just go
underground.
The majority of Muslims in the West seem oblivious to the fact that they would
be the greatest victims of empowered lunatic extremists such as ISIS or
neo-Nazis, because both would try to punish progressive Muslims either for
remaining silent about terrorist attacks or for not joining the bandwagon for
Progressive Muslims should realize that their voices matter at this sensitive
time if they do not want to end up being losers between those two extremes.
The failed political policies of the global powers have started to translate
into a dreadful future for humanity where a clone of Abu Bakr
al-Baghdadi, Anders Breivik or a Neville Chamberlain
clone might be calling the shots, and the civilized world would become a hell
for those caught in the middle, the rest of us.
**Khadija Khan is a Pakistan-based journalist and
commentator.
© 2016 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The
articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of
Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced,
copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone
Institute.
After the Fall of
Jonathan Spyer/Jerusalem Post/December 17/16
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2016/12/17/jonathan-spyerjerusalem-post-after-the-fall-of-aleppo/
The battle for
The process of evacuation of civilians and rebels is yet to be completed.
Syrian oppositionists are alleging that pro-regime militias are committing
atrocities in the conquered areas. The UN accused pro-regime forces of summarily
executing 82 civilians. But while important, these details cannot obscure the
main point. Rebel-controlled eastern
What does this mean for
First and most obviously, there is no longer any prospect of the Assad regime
being removed by force. In effect, any such possibility ended on September 30,
2015, with the entry of Russian airpower into the war. The rebellion had and
has nothing in its arsenal capable of challenging the might of a world class
air force. From the moment of the Russian entry, Assad’s survival was assured.
With the destruction of rebel eastern
Assad has now gained control over all of the major cities of
Secondly, the fall of
The regime side is now likely to turn its attentions to Idleb.
One of the original heartlands of the revolt,
The regime is set to present its actions there as part of the war against
al-Qaeda. These jihadi organizations also dominate
the rebel controlled area in the area south of
But while there will be few in the west who will leap to the defense of these organizations, Ahrar
al Sham has a close relationship with
In the
Ongoing Turkish support for and cooperation with the rebels in these areas
complicates the picture for the regime and the Russians, and is likely to
prevent the complete eclipse of the rebellion in the immediate future.
In the south of the country, the rebellion is dominated by non-jihadi groups and supported by
From an Israeli point of view, the prospect of a regime return to the border is
of deep concern. It may be assumed that
It is worth noting that the regime’s advances in
Thirdly, the separate war against Islamic State in eastern
Large swathes of eastern and northern
The regime is likely now to propose itself as the right candidate for global
support to defeat IS in
Finally, much will depend on the stance taken by the new US Administration
after January 20th. The current Administration’s
The incoming Administration contains hawkish figures who
are deeply suspicious in particular of the ambitions of
If the Iran-sceptic element in the new Administration wins out, this may usher
in a determined policy to contain the gains of the Iran-aligned Assad regime,
and maintain support to anti-regime and anti-IS forces in
If, however, the desire to ‘co-ordinate’ with Russia against IS wins out, this
raises the genuine possibility of pro-Iranian, pro-Russian forces taking the
key role in the ongoing fight against IS and by so doing launching a real bid
to reunite Syria under their own control.
If this latter scenario transpires, it isn’t immediately imminent, given the
regime’s manpower problems and remaining priorities in its war against the
rebels further west. But it will be a matter of concern for all regional
elements, including
So the fall of eastern
Does expelling religion from the public
space lead to extremism?
Samar Fatany/Asharq Al Awsat/December
17/16
The Mediterranean Dialogue held in
One of the most interesting panels addressed the threat of religious
intolerance in
Professor Roy refuted the prevalent perception that radicalization is the
result of failed integration. He explained that many of the European extremists
were well integrated and spoke French, English and German. They are very
Western in their approach and hardly know anything about their Islamic
tradition. He stated that they are more likely influenced by the violence in
movies and video games. According to research studies these recruits do not
belong to a Muslim community and most of them are not religious and many of
them are petty criminals and drug addicts.
He goes on to say that Islamist radicalization can neither be attributed to
current foreign policy nor to colonial crimes. These young radicals don’t know
anything about the colonial wars in
In
The problem with Islam in
The French scholar believes that the way to counter the narrative of
Marginalizing religion
In Europe, the trend is to consider any religion as a potential problem. In
Professor Roy asserts that
The French scholar concluded by highlighting the need to urgently take a
multidisciplinary approach when tackling the phenomenon of Islamist
radicalization. He believes that radicals are not reacting to a real situation
or conflict. They are in a virtual war, he says, pointing out that
Professor Roy believes that in
Appreciating European values
Mufti Nedžad Grabus of
The Mufti argued that problems occur when people do not enjoy equal rights and
when they are not allowed to satisfy their spiritual needs. He demonstrated how
Muslims in
The Slovenian Mufti believes that it is better for European governments to
allow Muslim religious and cultural institutions to operate overtly and not be
forced underground.
Both panelists presented the voices of wisdom and
positive solutions to address the growing threat of terrorism and the
radicalization of young Europeans. Their presentations provided a new
perspective to the situation of Muslim immigrants in
At a time when the region is going through a turbulent and violent cycle, the
value of the Mediterranean Dialogue 2016 initiative organized by the Italian
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Italian Institute for International
Political Studies cannot be underestimated. The dialogue, which addressed
regional challenges, led to the formation of new ideas and the rethinking of
traditional approaches.
Here’s How Trump could Succeed
Philip Churm/Washington Post/December 17/16
On Fox News on Sunday, President-elect Donald Trump lamented that those seeking
government permits sometimes “are waiting in line for 15 years,” sometimes only
to get rejected in the end, and vowed to speed up the process. To succeed,
he’ll need a new approach to governing. Every president since Jimmy Carter has
vowed to cut unnecessary regulations, but the red-tape machine has defied all
attempts at control.
Trump’s idea is to institute a “one-in, two-out” rule — that for every new
regulation, two must be removed.
Red-tape reformers have failed because they assume the problem is a matter of
degree — that there are just too many rules. Liberals stride into the red-tape
jungle with pruning shears, and find themselves entangled in the internal logic
of the rules. Conservatives get cheers for demanding deregulation, but when
push comes to shove, voters don’t want to drink polluted water, eat spoiled
food or entrust loved ones to the unsupervised care of strangers in day-care
centers and nursing homes. That’s why the regulatory state grew, not shrank, in
the 20 years of Reagan and two Bush presidencies.
What reformers have missed is that regulatory failure is not merely a matter of
too much regulation but is caused by a flawed philosophy on how to regulate.
Both sides assume that human responsibility should be replaced by what is
called “clear law.” By striving to prescribe every possible good choice, and
proscribe every possible evil,
But ordinary citizens in our free society are also lashed to these mindless
dictates — complying with rules that often make no difference, filling out
forms no one reads and stymied by bureaucrats whose response to every idiocy is
always “The rule made me do it.” In the name of better freedom, detailed
regulations have made everyone powerless.
The solution — the only solution — is to retool regulation to focus on results,
not inputs. Find any good school, any good agency, and you will find people who
take responsibility for getting the job done. Experts at the Federal Aviation
Administration certify planes as “airworthy” based on their expert judgment,
not compliance with detailed specs on, say, how many rivets per square foot.
Teachers at good schools typically say that the principal encourages them to do
what they think is best and not worry about complying with many forms and
metrics.
The activating mechanism for every public choice must be human responsibility.
What’s good is what works. Yes, it’s a good idea to review environmental
impacts, but it’s idiotic to spend a decade creating 5,000-page tomes that
double the cost of projects and cause environmental harm by prolonging
polluting bottlenecks.
The opportunity here is to move from paralysis to practicality. Focusing on
results, with clear lines of authority and accountability, is a win-win
strategy: Regulation is more effective, and less costly, when regulators and
citizens are not preoccupied with compliance.
Regulation by results would radically simplify law — in some areas, more like
“one-in, 20-out.” Hundreds of federal safety specifications for factory
equipment could be encompassed within one general principle: “Tools and
equipment shall be reasonably suited for the use intended, in accordance with
industry standards.” Is there room for disagreement? Yes, but only at the
margins. Instead of wasting regulatory resources on foot faults that don’t
matter, the safety agency could redeploy its resources to finding workplaces
that are actually unsafe. Specificity would still be needed for, say, pollution
discharge limits, but the litmus test should be whatever achieves the desired
results.
Rebuilding the federal behemoth is an ambitious goal, fraught with perceived
peril as well as opportunity. But do we have a choice? No one serious defends
the inefficiencies in the current system. Americans are tired of being pushed
around by headless bureaucracy. Half-measures by the past six presidents have
all failed.
The upside here is transformational. Virtually every federal program is broken,
with the only open question how much. Should Dodd-Frank compliance costs drive
small banks into the arms of larger banks? Should safety laws prohibit children
from normal play activities? All these stupidities can be cured, but only if
people with responsibility are given the freedom to use common sense. Giving
permits for infrastructure in two years, not 10, would
add 1.5 million jobs and create a greener footprint.
The downside is low. Rigid bureaucracy prevents officials and citizens alike
from adapting to rapid changes in global forces. Regulation by results doesn’t
guarantee success, but it gives us the freedom to try.
**Philip Churm is a UK-based multi-media journalist
and lecturer with knowledge of European, South Asian and Middle Eastern
affairs. He specializes in news and analysis of British diversity issues.