LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
March 23/16
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
http://www.eliasbejjaninews.com/newsbulletin16/english.march23.16.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
It is better for you to have one man
die for the people than to have the whole nation destroyed
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 11/47-54:"So the chief
priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the council, and said, ‘What are
we to do? This man is performing many signs.If we let him go on like this,
everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and destroy both our holy
place and our nation.’But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year,
said to them, ‘You know nothing at all! You do not understand that it is better
for you to have one man die for the people than to have the whole nation
destroyed.’He did not say this on his own, but being high priest that year he
prophesied that Jesus was about to die for the nation, and not for the nation
only, but to gather into one the dispersed children of God. So from that day on
they planned to put him to death. Jesus therefore no longer walked about openly
among the Jews, but went from there to a town called Ephraim in the region near
the wilderness; and he remained there with the disciples."
I will proclaim your name to
my brothers and sisters, in the midst of the congregation I will praise you
Letter to the Hebrews 02/05-12:"God did not subject the coming world, about
which we are speaking, to angels. But someone has testified somewhere, ‘What are
human beings that you are mindful of them, or mortals, that you care for them?
You have made them for a little while lower than the angels; you have crowned
them with glory and honour, subjecting all things under their feet.’ Now in
subjecting all things to them, God left nothing outside their control. As it is,
we do not yet see everything in subjection to them, but we do see Jesus, who for
a little while was made lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honour
because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste
death for everyone. It was fitting that God, for whom and through whom all
things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of
their salvation perfect through sufferings. For the one who sanctifies and those
who are sanctified all have one Father. For this reason Jesus is not ashamed to
call them brothers and sisters, saying, ‘I will proclaim your name to my
brothers and sisters, in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.".
Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources
published on March 23/16
Obama in Cuba: Lessons for the Middle East/Joyce Karam/Al Arabiya/March 22/16
Saudi Arabia’s economy needs a makeover/Jamal Khashoggi/Al Arabiya/March 22/16
Warning signs over uptick in Syria, Iraq chemical attacks/Brooklyn Middleton/Al Arabiya/March 22/16
Refugees in Europe: Between Ramadan’s dreams and Morin’s realism/Fahad Suleiman Shoqiran/Al Arabiya/March 22/16
Sharia in Denmark/Judith Bergman/Gatestone Institute/March 22/16
Titles For Latest Lebanese Related News published on March 23/16
Who Are Donald Trump's Foreign
Policy Advisors?
Mashnouq Vows to Address 'Security Gaps' at Beirut Airport after Belgium Blasts
Abou Faour Asks Public Prosecutor to Resolve Wheat Case
Berri Tells Simple Majority Advocates 'Don't Mess with Me,' Says 'Fruit is Ripe'
Mustaqbal: Nasrallah's Ongoing Criticism of Riyadh Shows Reckless Disregard for
Lebanon's Interests
Hand Grenades Found at Bab al-Tabbaneh Mosque
Change and Reform Urges 'Popular Readiness', Says Presidency 'Not a Battle of
Quorum'
Saudi Arrests Shiite Imam for 'Glorifying' Hizbullah
Hizbullah on Brussels Blasts: Fire Raging in Europe Lit by Sides Fueling Syria
War
Report: Salam Calls for Security Meeting over Illegal Internet Network
Sources: UK Officials Express Surprise in Talks with Mashnouq on Saudi Aid Cut
Clinton Backs Israel, Vows to Counter Hizbullah
Geagea: How Can World Powers Combat the IS and Remain Silent over Syrian Regime?
Brussels Attacks Show Syria Peace Talks 'Vital', Says Opposition
Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on
March 23/16
ISIS claims Brussels bombings that
killed at least 34
Syrian Trapped for a Year at Istanbul Airport Moved to Detention Center
De Mistura Says Brussels Blasts Show 'No Time to Lose' Reaching Syria Peace
Kerry to Meet Putin to Push Peace in Syria, Ukraine
Second Iraqi Found Guilty of War Crime in Finnish Court
Libya's Neighbors Say Unity Govt. Must Take Office in Tripoli
Europeans Ignored Danger, Criticised Israel instead, Says Israeli Minister
Tunisia Extends State of Emergency, Hosts Talks on Libya
Tunisia Reopens Libya Border after Attack on nearby Town
Yemen FM '99%' Sure of Peace Talks this Month
Links From
Jihad Watch Site for March 23/16
Brussels: “War scene” as jihad suicide bombings rock airport and
subway
“I heard a man shout some Arabic words then an explosion” — death
toll at least 28 in jihad attacks in Brussels
Islamic State quotes Muhammad as it claims responsibility for
Brussels jihad mass murder attacks
CCTV image released of Brussels jihad mass murderers, one being hunted as
fugitive
Trump: Brussels an “armed camp,” today’s jihad attacks “just the beginning”
“We are at war,” says French Prime Minister after jihad mass murder attacks in
Brussels
International Business Times: “Muslims Fear Backlash After Brussels Attack”
Cruz: “In the wake of Brussels, we don’t need another lecture from President
Obama about Islamophobia”
Hillary Clinton: US response to Brussels jihad mass murders must be “consistent
with our values”
Video: Just two months ago, Brussels ridiculed idea that it was a “war zone”
It’s time for the governments of Europe to fall
Islamic State supporters on social media scream “Allahu akbar,”
celebrate Brussels jihad mass murders
Who Are Donald
Trump's Foreign Policy Advisors?
Justin Holcomb/Town Hall/Mar 22/16/Republican frontrunner Donald Trump released
his much awaited list of foreign policy advisors on Monday and each have
distinct backgrounds in areas that vary from global oil distribution to
international terrorism. "Walid Phares, who you probably know. Ph.D., adviser to
the House of Representatives. He's a counter-terrorism expert," Trump said.
"Carter Page, Ph.D. George Papadopoulos. He's an oil and energy consultant.
Excellent guy. The honorable Joe Schmitz, inspector general at the Department of
Defense. General Keith Kellogg. And I have quite a few more. But that's a group
of some of the people that we are dealing with. We have many other people in
different aspects of what we do. But that's pretty representative group." Dr.
Walid Phares is an American author of Lebanese origins who has been warning the
world of global Jihadism for over a decade. He teaches at the National Defense
University in Washington, D.C. and has written numerous Op-Eds and books
concerning the spread of Islam throughout the world. Retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith
Kellogg is a former commander of the 82nd Airborne and led the invasion of Iraq
in 2003 where he served as chief operating officer for the Coalition Provisional
Authority in Baghdad. Joseph Schmitz is a former Pentagon Inspector General and
graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy. He is co-author of the book Sharia: The
Threat to America and has extensive experience with controversial groups such as
Blackwater. Carter Page and George Papadopoulos have backgrounds in
international energy and affairs. Page is the founder of his own group, Global
Energy Capital, and Papdopoulos is the director at the Center for International
Energy and Natural Resources Law & Security at the London Center of
International Law Practice.There is no doubt that like Trump, there is a since
of disenfranchisement in the minds of his advisors. More than likely, these are
men who are not completely satisfied with the way the U.S. has handled foreign
policy over the past decade and are looking to support the candidate who can
right the wrong.
Mashnouq Vows to Address
'Security Gaps' at Beirut Airport after Belgium Blasts
Naharnet/March 22/16/Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq on Tuesday vowed from
Britain that he will exert efforts to address the “security gaps” at Beirut's
Rafik Hariri International Airport, hours after suicide bombers killed 35 people
and wounded over 200 at Brussels airport and a metro train. Speaking after talks
with UK Secretary of State for International Development Justine Greening, which
tackled Beirut airport's security, the minister pledged that the priority once
he returns to Beirut will be for “addressing the security gaps at Beirut's
airport.”He warned that the said gaps “might be equivalent to those that were
present at the Sharm el-Sheikh airport and led to the bombing of the Russian
plane, according to Western reports.”He lamented that “the response was
insufficient at the cabinet, which did not take into consideration the magnitude
of the threats and the negative repercussions on the reputation of Beirut's
airport in the world.”Mashnouq noted that he has instructed Airport Security
Chief Brig. Gen. George Doumit to “step up security readiness at Beirut's
airport,” while calling on all security agencies to “maintain the highest levels
of alert and vigilance and boost preventative measures.”“Once I return to
Beirut, the only choice will be to ask the Ministry of Finance to earmark the
necessary funds in order to sign the needed contracts, in coordination with the
Public Works and Transport Ministry,” the minister added. “We must admit that
administrative obstacles that have been running for around 20 months have
prevented us from inking necessary contracts that have to do with repairing the
airport's fence and buying advanced equipment and devices for baggage scanning,”
Mashnouq went on to say.
Abou Faour Asks Public
Prosecutor to Resolve Wheat Case
Health Minister Wael Abu Faour asked the prosecutor's office on Tuesday to
launch an investigation into the wheat scandal that has recently rocked the
country. A statement issued by the health ministry said Abou Faour referred the
file to the public prosecutor after it was confirmed that tests carried out on
samples taken from Beirut Port showed wheat contained high levels of the
carcinogenic ochratoxin substance.“The results showed that there is 20mg (of
ochratoxin) in every 1kg of wheat. The level should not exceed 5mg in every 1kg
of wheat,” the ministry added. The statement came a day after three cabinet
ministers, including Abou Faour, agreed to form a task force to resolve the
problem of imported wheat. Abou Faour, Agriculture Minister Akram Shehayyeb and
Economy Minister Alain Hakim said at a press conference that they would
cooperate to ensure the safety of wheat. They made the announcement following a
dispute between the health minister and Hakim on the safety of the grain.While
Abou Faour had insisted the wheat is carcinogenic, the economy minister stressed
that the samples tested by his inspectors did not include dangerous substances.
Berri Tells Simple Majority
Advocates 'Don't Mess with Me,' Says 'Fruit is Ripe'
Naharnet/March 22/16/Speaker Nabih Berri has vowed not to violate Lebanon's
Constitution by allowing only the parliament's simple majority to elect a new
president. “Don't try me and don't mess with me,” Berri told the officials who
are calling for the election of a head of state by simple majority. “Don't mess
with quorum. If you continue to do so, you would not be successful,” the speaker
warned. Among the advocates of such a demand is al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc
chief MP Fouad Saniora, who has said that there is no need for the presence of
two-thirds of parliament's 128 members to choose the country's next president.
Berri vowed in remarks to As Safir daily published on Tuesday not to hit the
gavel unless 86 MPs are present at the electoral session. “I will not violate
the Constitution,” he said. Baabda Palace has been vacant since the term of
President Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014. But parliament has failed to meet
over lack of quorum caused by the boycott of some parliamentary blocs. Berri
stressed that it was important to swiftly elect a head of state. But this should
not entail “the destruction of (Lebanon's) Constitutional foundation.”He
reiterated that it was “time to pick the presidential fruit after it has
ripened.”He warned that “the fruit would fall and the country would collapse
with it if it was not picked at the right time.”Berri also said that the state
is halfway into reaching the edge of the abyss. The failure to elect a president
has paralyzed the parliament and limited the functions of the government. He
expressed the same stance during a speech at a ceremony held on the occasion of
the 80th anniversary of the Lebanese Tobacco and Tunbac Monopoly Department (Regie).
Berri said in his speech that Lebanon is doing much better security wise than
the rest of the Middle Eastern countries and the world “due to our dialogue,
unity, the army and security forces.”He called Lebanon a “miracle,” saying only
the Lebanese don't know its value. "Arabs and Europeans love it more than us.
Even God loves it more than us," he said. “Lebanon is an experiment for
coexistence of religions and civilizations,” he said. “Lebanon, which defeated
the Israeli enemy in 2006, cannot give up its resistance as long as Israel
continues to occupy our land,” the speaker added.Berri reiterated the need to
demarcate Lebanon's maritime border with Israel so that the country can exploit
its natural resources.
Mustaqbal: Nasrallah's
Ongoing Criticism of Riyadh Shows Reckless Disregard for Lebanon's Interests
Naharnet/March 22/16/The Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc condemned on Tuesday
Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's ongoing criticism of Saudi Arabia and
Arab countries, while warning of the repercussions of the prolonged vacuum in
the presidency. It said in a statement after its weekly meeting: “Hizbullah and
Nasrallah's persistent attacks against the kingdom and Arab countries undermine
the interests of the Lebanese people, as well as their stability and source of
income.” It accused Nasrallah of fabricating claims against Saudi Arabia, Arab
countries, and the Gulf Cooperation Council, adding that the Lebanese people
“are facing problems because of the consequences of Hizbullah's involvement in
the conflict in Syria and other Arab countries.”On Monday, Nasrallah accused
Saudi Arabia of blocking any “political solution” to the Syrian conflict, adding
that he does not expect progress on the political track. “Its schemes in Syria,
Iraq and Yemen have failed,” he said of Riyadh. Hizbullah has repeatedly held
Saudi Arabia responsible for the unrest in Syria and Yemen. In wake of the
party's virulent stances, the kingdom halted an aid grant to the Lebanese army
and issued a travel advisory against Lebanon. The GCC and Arab Leagues recently
labeled Hizbullah as terrorist and a number of Gulf countries have started
deporting party supporters. Addressing the presidential vacuum, the Mustaqbal
bloc said that Hizbullah and the Free Patriotic Movement's boycott of the polls
will lead to further “fragmentation of the Lebanese state.” “The vacuum is
exposing the state to more crises, which are revealing its weaknesses,” it
warned. These weaknesses include the recent trash disposal crisis, the dispute
over the safety of wheat in Lebanon, and the uncovering of an illegal internet
network, the bloc explained. Lebanon has been without a president since May 2014
when the term of Michel Suleiman ended without the election of a successor.
Disputes between the rival March 8 and 14 camps are hindering the polls.
Hizbullah announced that it will boycott the elections until it receives
guarantees that its candidate FPM founder MP Michel Aoun will be elected head of
state.
Hand Grenades Found at Bab
al-Tabbaneh Mosque
Naharnet/March 22/16/A bag containing hand grenades was found Tuesday at a
mosque in the northern city of Tripoli, state-run National News Agency reported.
“Army troops discovered a bag containing several unarmed hand grenades at the
al-Jihad Mosque in Tripoli's Bab al-Tabbaneh,” NNA said. Meanwhile, Voice of
Lebanon radio (100.5) said the finding coincided with strict security measures
by the army in Tripoli. “The army erected random checkpoints and staged armored
patrols against the backdrop of the death of the father of the fugitive Shadi
al-Mawlawi,” the radio station said. Islamist militant Mawlawi disappeared from
Tripoli's Bab al-Tabbaneh following the October 2014 fierce gunbattles between
his followers and the army. In early 2015, Mawlawi claimed that he left the
southern Palestinian refugee camp of Ain el-Hilweh for an unknown destination.
Media reports said Mawlawi fled the camp disguised in women clothes and using
fake identification papers, the same way he entered it in November 2014.
Change and Reform Urges
'Popular Readiness', Says Presidency 'Not a Battle of Quorum'
Naharnet/March 22/16/The Change and Reform parliamentary bloc on Tuesday called
on its supporters to await a signal from bloc chief MP Michel Aoun to stage
popular protests, stressing that the presidency is not about parliamentary “quorum.”“The
presidential battle is not a battle of quorum but rather a battle related par
excellence to the National Pact,” said the bloc in a statement issued after its
weekly meeting in Rabieh. The 1943 National Pact is an unwritten agreement that
set the foundations of modern Lebanon as a state based on a sectarian
distribution of power and the bloc has in recent years accused rival parties of
marginalizing Christians in state institutions. “Unfortunately, tomorrow's
presidential election session will be similar to the previous ones,” Change and
Reform noted. “The government of national interest is turning into a government
of corruptness and now is the time for popular readiness,” it added. Lebanon has
been without a president since the term of Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014 and
Change and Reform, Hizbullah and some of their allies have been boycotting the
electoral sessions. Al-Mustaqbal movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri launched late
in 2015 a proposal to nominate Marada Movement chief MP Suleiman Franjieh for
the presidency but his suggestion was rejected by the country's main Christian
parties as well as Hizbullah. The Hizbullah-led March 8 camp, as well as March
14's Lebanese Forces, have argued that Aoun is more eligible than Franjieh to
become president given the size of his parliamentary bloc and his bigger
influence in the Christian community.
Saudi Arrests Shiite Imam for
'Glorifying' Hizbullah
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 22/16/Saudi security forces have arrested a
Shiite preacher accused of glorifying Hizbullah, a newspaper reported on
Tuesday. Hussein al-Radi was detained after Gulf Arab states declared Hizbullah
a "terrorist" group earlier this month and brought in tough new measures against
anyone supporting it. The Al-Watan daily reported that security forces arrested
Radi, from the Al-Ahsa oasis region in Eastern Province. "This is after he
glorified the terrorist group Hizbullah and insulted the kingdom in a video clip
that has been shared" online, the report said. Radi "also broke previous pledges
he had made after defending the terrorist Nimr al-Nimr following his execution,"
it added. Nimr, another Shiite cleric from Eastern Province, was a driving force
behind protests that began in 2011 among the Shiite minority in Sunni-majority
Saudi Arabia. The Shiites complain of marginalization.
Nimr and three other Shiites were among 47 people executed on January 2 for "terrorism."Iranian
demonstrators stormed the Saudi embassy in Tehran and a consulate following
Nimr's execution, prompting Riyadh to cut diplomatic ties. Al-Watan quoted a
security source as saying authorities had shown "patience" over a number of
violations Radi allegedly made. "But he continued to incite the public, taking
advantage of the mosque platform to breach regulations."A video posted Sunday on
YouTube showed the bespectacled Radi, with a bushy white beard, speaking at a
podium where he hails Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah as a "hero."Radi
also praises Iran as a regional and international power. An interior ministry
spokesman could not confirm Radi's arrest to AFP but said: "I would assure you
that ... laws in the kingdom are enforced."Ibrahim AlMugaiteeb, president of the
Eastern Province-based Human Rights First Society, said Radi's arrest was no
surprise. But even though the imam "pushed the envelope," AlMugaiteeb said he
did not condone the arrest of an elderly religious figure. Other Gulf states
have also taken measures against alleged Hizbullah supporters since the
"terrorism" blacklisting. Bahrain announced it had deported several Lebanese
residents for alleged links to the group. A Kuwaiti newspaper reported on Monday
that authorities there had taken similar action against 11 Lebanese and three
Iraqis. And the United Arab Emirates has reportedly put seven people on trial
for allegedly forming a cell linked to Hizbullah.
Hizbullah on Brussels Blasts:
Fire Raging in Europe Lit by Sides Fueling Syria War
Naharnet/March 22/16/Hizbullah condemned on Tuesday the bombings that shook the
Belgian capital Brussels, saying they were committed by the “takfiri terrorist
groups” that are not sparing anyone in the world. It said in a statement: “The
fire that is blazing in the world, Europe in particular, is the same one that
was ignited by some powers against Syria and other countries in the region.”“It
is very unfortunate that all the world is aware of the source and funding of
this terrorism and yet major powers are still providing support and protection
to countries that are harboring terrorism,” it remarked. “Terrorism needs to be
confronted in a brave and serious fight, total regional and international
cooperation, and a clear and transparent policy,” the party said. “Remaining
silent over this issue is a major sin and it will only lead to more death,
killings, and destruction,” added Hizbullah. The party expressed its “complete
solidarity with innocent people in general, and Belgium and its people during
their harsh plight.”At least 34 people were killed in bombings that targeted
Brussels' Zaventem Airport and the city's subway system. The bloodshed comes
days after the dramatic arrest in Brussels on Friday of Salah Abdeslam -- the
prime suspect in the Paris terror attacks claimed by the Islamic State group --
after four months on the run. European leaders reacted with shock and
solidarity, urging cooperation in the fight against terrorism on a continent
that has been on high alert for months.
Report: Salam Calls for
Security Meeting over Illegal Internet Network
Naharnet/March 22/16/Prime Minister Tammam Salam has called security and
military officials for a meeting at the Grand Serail on Wednesday to discuss the
illegal internet network file jeopardizing the country's security, al-Mustaqbal
daily reported on Tuesday. A parliamentary source told the daily on condition of
anonymity: “The negligence of the government in punishing the perpetrators,
mainly between 2009-2010 when the Barouk network was uncovered, led to their
indifference and even encouraged others to commit similar crimes against the
country's national sovereignty, security and economy.”Experts at the Finance
Ministry following up on the economic repercussions of the issue said that the
illegal crossings have an ability of 40GB per second Wifi network speed which is
equivalent to 600,000 international telephone lines that the state could benefit
from, lowering the telecommunication revenues from international calls by $7
million on a monthly basis. During a meeting of the parliamentary media
committee early this month it was unveiled that a “mafia” is bluntly taking
advantage of internet services by installing internet stations that are not
subject to the state control. The owners of these stations are buying
international internet bandwidth with nominal cost from Turkey and Cyprus which
they are selling back to Lebanese subscribers at reduced prices. At a press
conference that Telecommunications Minister Butros Harb held last week he said
that some of the State institutions were “victims” to these networks after
subscribing to the services not knowing of the danger entailed. It has been
reported that wireless internet towers and technical equipment were placed
illegally in some mountainous terrains including Tannourine, al-Dinnieh, Sannine
and al-Zaarour and other areas.
Smuggled internet services initiate risks namely the possibility of security
breach as it lacks the basic control standards exposing Lebanon's security to
third parties including Israel.
Sources: UK Officials Express
Surprise in Talks with Mashnouq on Saudi Aid Cut
Naharnet/March 22/16/British officials have regretted during a meeting with
Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq a decision by Saudi Arabia to freeze
billions of dollars of aid to the Lebanese army and security forces, sources
said on Tuesday. Mashnouq's sources told An Nahar newspaper that the minister
has met with several officials on the first day of his official visit to London.
He stressed the importance of assisting Lebanon and exerting efforts along with
regional powers to press for the swift election of a new president, they said.
The British officials told Mashnouq that they “did not understand” why Riyadh
decided to freeze the aid at a time when Lebanon's friends should consolidate
the role of its military and security institutions, the sources added.Saudi
Arabia has halted $4 billion in arms deals with Lebanon after accusing the
country of siding with Iran. It has spearheaded efforts by the Gulf Cooperation
Council to declare Hizbullah, which is backed by Tehran, a terrorist
organization. The Arab League followed suit by branding Hizbullah a terrorist
group earlier this month.
Clinton Backs Israel, Vows to
Counter Hizbullah
Naharnet/March 22/16/Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has said
that she would forcefully counter anti-Semitism and thwart Iran's proxies like
Hizbullah if she was elected U.S. president. “We cannot forget that Tehran’s
fingerprints are on nearly every conflict across the Middle East, from Syria to
Lebanon to Yemen,” the Democratic frontrunner told nearly 18,000 attendees at
the American Israel Public Affairs Committee's annual policy conference on
Monday. “The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and its proxies are attempting to
establish a position on the Golan from which to threaten Israel, and they
continue to fund Palestinian terrorists,” she said. “In Lebanon, Hizbullah is
amassing an arsenal of increasingly sophisticated rockets and artillery that
well may be able to hit every city in Israel,” she told the cheering
crowd.Clinton said Washington “must work closely with Israel and other partners
to cut off the flow of money and arms from Iran to Hizbullah.”She urged European
states and the international community to designate Hizbullah a terrorist
organization similar to what the Arab League has done. Earlier this month, the
Arab League formally branded Hizbullah a terrorist organization, ramping up the
pressure on the Shiite group, which is fighting on the side of President Bashar
Assad in Syria. In her speech, Clinton positioned herself as an unwavering
friend to Israel. "We need steady hands, not a president who says he's neutral
on Monday, pro-Israel on Tuesday and who knows what on Wednesday, because
everything's negotiable," she said about Republican frontrunner Donald Trump.
"Israel's security is non-negotiable," she added.
Geagea: How Can World Powers
Combat the IS and Remain Silent over Syrian Regime?
Naharnet/March 22/16/Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea condemned on Tuesday
the double standards adopted by the international community in combating
terrorism, saying that they “overlook certain forms of terror due to their
personal interests.”He said during a conference on terrorism held in Maarab:
“How can these powers combat the Islamic State group and still remain silent
over the regime of Bashar Assad?”The IS was born about three years ago, while
the regime dates back to at least 40 years, he continued. The number of people
living under the IS rule is less than 3 million Syrians, while about 20 million
Syrians are suffering under the Assad regime. The IS has killed about 4,000
people, while during the same three-year period, the Assad regime has killed
tens of thousands of people, declared Geagea. “We should not overlook the
unprecedented police apparatus that was installed in Syria” and the oppression
of the people.“Given these facts, who is more dangerous, the IS and al-Qaida or
the Syrian regime?” he asked. In spite of its history, Damascus is being treated
by the international community “as a valid regime even though it does not
respect the most basic human rights.”If the world is committed to combating
terror, then it should do so in full, demanded the LF chief. Plans similar to
those adopted to fight terror should be devised to fight the Syrian regime
“otherwise we will be faced with a never ending cycle of violence,” he warned.
“If we want to defeat a certain disease, then we should properly diagnose the
problem,” he concluded.
Brussels Attacks Show Syria
Peace Talks 'Vital', Says Opposition
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 22/16/Tuesday's deadly attacks in Brussels
show the importance of ongoing Syrian peace talks in Geneva in reining in the
growing extremist threat, Syria's main opposition said. "These attacks show once
again the terrorist insanity inflaming the Middle East and also hitting at the
heart of Europe," said Bassma Kodmani, a spokeswoman for the opposition umbrella
group, the High Negotiations Committee (HNC). Following the coordinated attacks
in the Belgian capital, which killed about 35 people, Kodmani insisted that
support for the U.N.-brokered Syrian peace talks was "more vital than ever".
"The Geneva process is today fundamental to reestablishing the global political
order and avoiding the chaos that fanatics are threatening us with here in
Europe and there in the Middle East," she said in a statement. Another HNC
spokesman Salem Al Meslet also urged the world to "stand united to defeat
terrorism". Their comments came as a second week of peace talks in Geneva got
under way, with United Nations mediator Staffan de Mistura eager to make
progress before the negotiations pause on Thursday. But the talks hit a new
impasse on Monday, when the regime's lead negotiator in Geneva, Bashar al-Jaafari
once again branded the opposition foreign-backed terrorists and reiterated that
any discussion of Assad's fate was "excluded". However, he said Damascus was
committed to the peace process, and that his delegation had "clear instructions
from our leadership to engage seriously in these talks".Assad's fate has been a
key obstacle in the latest talks aimed at ending Syria's devastating five-year
war, which has killed more than 270,000 people and displaced millions. "The
government delegation continues to avoid discussing deadlines and is simply
trying to get a rise out of the opposition," Hisham Marwa, who serves as a
consultant in the HNC delegation, told AFP Tuesday. Any talk of leaving Assad in
power is "absolutely unacceptable," he said."A political transition means
creating a new authority... including the powers of the presidency," he said.
But Marwa stressed that the regime position "will not affect our decision to be
engaged in a political process, and to show a higher degree of responsibility
and patience". Speaking to reporters on Monday evening, de Mistura said he asked
Jaafari how Damascus defined the term political transition. "He said it was...
premature to talk about it. My message was 'premature' means imminent as far as
we are concerned," de Mistura said. While conceding that progress remained slow,
de Mistura stressed it was vital that opposing sides reach a basic understanding
on how to move to a second round, tentatively scheduled for next month. "I have
been reminding everyone that there is no Plan B," the U.N. envoy said.
ISIS claims Brussels bombings
that killed at least 34
Ynet reporters/03.22.16
Explosions at airport and on underground train stun Belgian capital mere days
after the capture of terrorist Salah Abdeslam in the city. At least 34 people
died on Tuesday morning when terrorist bombings in Brussels struck Zaventem
Airport and a metro station. An estimated 230 people were wounded.
Islamic State claimed responsibility in an online statement. At least one of the
attacks at the airport was carried out by a suicide bomber. At the airport, two
explosions splattered blood across the departure lounge and collapsed the
ceiling. Witnesses told The Associated Press that one occurred at an excess
baggage payment counter and the other near a Starbucks cafe. As a result of the
attacks, Belgium was placed on maximum terror alert, the airport has been closed
down, and the subway has been shut. Places normally crowded in Brussels have
been cleared. The EU Commission ordered its staff to stay indoors or stay at
home in the wake of the terrorist attacks.
Authorities locked down the Belgian capital after the explosions. Brussels
resembles a city under siege as authorities ordered citizens to stay in their
homes. The explosions came just days after the main suspect in the November
Paris attacks was arrested in Brussels. After his arrest, Salah Abdeslam told
authorities he had created a new network and was planning new attacks. The
check-in counter of American Airlines was the target of the attack, according to
several unconfirmed reports. Belgian news agency Belga reported that prior
to the attacks gunfire was heard and cries in Arabic were heard.
IS claimed responsibility in an online statement. “A number of Caliphate
soldiers wearing explosive belts and carrying explosive devices and machine guns
attacked places that were carefully chosen in Brussels, the capital of Belgium,
and stormed the Brussels airport and the metro station and eliminated a large
number of crusaders and then detonated their explosive belts,” read the
statement. The statement included a typical threat: “We promise the crusading
nations that have allied against the Islamic State that there will be black days
in response t their aggression against the Islamic State. What is coming will be
far more terrible, with the help of Allah.”
Tightened security
Authorities in Europe and across the world tightened security at airports,
railway stations, government buildings and other key sites after the attacks.
With Brussels on lockdown and the French prime minister saying that Europe is
"at war," European leaders held emergency security meetings and deployed more
police, explosives experts, sniffer dogs and plainclothes officers, with some
warning against travel to Belgium. The nervousness was felt far and wide. In New
York City, authorities deployed additional counterterrorism units to crowded
areas and transit locations."The threat we are facing in Europe is about the
same as what Israel faces," said Olivier Guitta, the managing director of
GlobalStrat, an international security consultancy. "We have entered an era in
which we are going to have to change our way of life and take security very
seriously." Strong criticism of Belgian security came on Tuesday from Pini
Schiff, a former security director at Israel's Ben-Gurion Airport, which is
considered among the most secure in the world. After Palestinian attacks on
Israeli planes and travelers in the 1970s, Israeli officials put in place
several layers of security at that airport in Tel Aviv, meaning an attacker who
escapes notice at one level of security would likely be captured by another.
Schiff said the attacks at the Brussels airport mark "a colossal failure" of
Belgian security and that "the chances are very low" such a bombing could have
happened in Israel.
Aftermath of the bombs at the airport
People fleeing Brussels airport after explosions
Intelligence
US government officials acknowledged that the United States believed an attack
by Islamic State in Brussels was possible, if not likely. Still, they were not
aware of any US intelligence about where or when the attack would occur. One of
the main US lines of inquiry is that even though the attack may represent
retaliation for the arrest of Abdeslam, it was likely already in the works
before his arrest. Under that scenario, the attack date was already on the
schedule before his arrest, and possibly advanced somewhat because of his
arrest, two of the officials said.
Israeli lightly wounded in attack
A Belzer Chassid from Jerusalem was lightly injured in the blast. His relative
who was with him went into shock. “We were in the middle of morning prayers, we
arrived from New York and suddenly there was a blast that shook the entire
building and then there was another blast,” Yaakov Israeli Erez told Ynet.
Yaakov Israeli Erez, a volunteer paramedic, said: "The first thought in my mind
was to go where the explosion was and help people. There are mannered Europeans
here, everyone is standing outside, some of them are smoking, some of them are
waiting. There is complete silence.
"They moved us all over the airport and they said there was chaos. I've been
volunteering for several years and I immediately understood this was an
explosion. I understood this was not a place where I could provide aid because
it's impossible to get there. We saw security forces and soldiers running, the
blast was strong," he concluded.
**Itamar Eichner, Itay Blumenthal, Gilad Morag and Rachel Kidras contributed to
this report.
Syrian Trapped
for a Year at Istanbul Airport Moved to Detention Center
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 22/16/A Syrian refugee who was trapped for
over a year at Istanbul's main airport after being refused entry to Turkey has
been transferred to a detention center, Amnesty International said Tuesday. On
Saturday, Fadi Mansour, who is reported to be in his twenties, left the
windowless "problematic passengers room" at Ataturk airport where he was being
held for a migrant detention center in Istanbul, Amnesty said. From Istanbul,
authorities plan to move him to another detention facility in the southern city
of Adana while his fate is being decided, the group added in a statement.
The plight of the young man, who fled his war-torn homeland in 2012, echoed that
of Tom Hanks' character in the 2004 film "The Terminal". Amnesty said he had
first moved to Lebanon, then settled in Turkey. He later tried to enter Malaysia
but was turned back and detained on his return to Istanbul on March 15, 2015.
Rights defenders had voiced concern about the conditions in which Mansour was
being held. Amnesty said the lights in the room where he was held remained
always on and quoted him last week as saying his "only dream right now... is to
sleep with the lights off". Welcoming his transfer from the airport, the rights
group called for him to be immediately released and given the temporary
protection status given to other Syrian refugees in Turkey. Turkey's government
declined to comment on the reasons for his detention. In "The Terminal", Hanks
plays a man who becomes trapped at New York's JFK airport when his home country
collapses into revolution. The film was inspired by the case of Mehran Karimi
Nasseri, an Iranian who spent 18 years stranded at Paris's Charles de Gaulle
airport.
De Mistura Says
Brussels Blasts Show 'No Time to Lose' Reaching Syria Peace
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 22/16/Syria's peace talks remained at an
impasse Tuesday, even as deadly attacks in Brussels highlighted the urgency of
ending the brutal conflict, seen as a trigger for extremist attacks around the
world. U.N. Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura voiced "horror and outrage" at the
attacks claimed by the Islamic State group that killed around 35 people in the
Belgian capital Tuesday. "The tragedy in Brussels ... reminds us that ... we
have no time to lose," U.N. Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura told reporters in
Geneva. "We need to extinguish the fire of war in Syria," he said, insisting
that "to fight terrorism, the best formula is to find a solution for political
transition in Syria." The main opposition umbrella group, the High Negotiations
Committee (HNC) also stressed the need to rapidly end the five-year conflict,
which has killed more than 270,000 people and displaced millions. HNC
spokeswoman Bassma Kodmani said the U.N.-brokered Syrian peace talks were "more
vital than ever.""The Geneva process is today fundamental to reestablishing the
global political order and avoiding the chaos that fanatics are threatening us
with here in Europe and there in the Middle East," she said in a statement.
Snail's pace
But despite the calls to speed up the process, the Geneva talks, which are in
their second week, remain indirect and continue to move at a snail's pace.
Conceding that progress remains slow, de Mistura has stressed the importance of
getting the opposing sides to reach a basic understanding on how to advance to a
second round of talks, tentatively scheduled for next month. The envoy, who has
been shuttling between the two sides, said Tuesday he is eager to make progress
before the negotiations pause on Thursday, telling reporters: "We are all
working hard on getting a common understanding." But the talks continue to
stumble on the fate of Syrian President Bashar Assad, with the regime's lead
negotiator in Geneva, Bashar al-Jaafari on Monday reiterating that discussing
the issue was "excluded." Hisham Marwa, who serves as a consultant in the HNC
delegation, meanwhile told AFP Tuesday that any talk of leaving Assad in power
is "absolutely unacceptable." Assad's fate has been a key obstacle in the latest
talks aimed at ending Syria's devastating five-year war, which has killed more
than 270,000 people and displaced millions. France-based Middle-East expert
Agnes Levallois told AFP the regime was dragging its feet in the talks, "because
when real negotiations begin, it will be the beginning of the end." She said its
only hope was to stall until "de Mistura throws in the towel just like his
predecessors," Kofi Annan in 2012 and Lakhdar Brahimi in 2014.
Strong expectations' for Moscow meet
But de Mistura appeared far from defeated, hailing a more positive atmosphere
than during a previous aborted round, largely helped by a fragile ceasefire
declared on February 27. On Tuesday, he said there was "some level of mutual
respect", and stressed "we have not had walk-outs or slamming of doors."
The partial ceasefire has raised hopes for an end to the violence, which were
further fueled when Russia -- a key backer of Assad -- announced last week it
would withdraw most of its troops from Syria. De Mistura also voiced hope that a
meeting between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry with his Russian counterpart
Sergei Lavrov in Moscow on Wednesday could provide momentum to the peace drive.
"They have been proving in the past, and I hope they will prove it in the
future, that when they do have a common understanding it helps enormously the
process," he said. The envoy said he had "a strong expectation that the talks in
Moscow will be productive."
Kerry to Meet Putin to Push
Peace in Syria, Ukraine
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 22/16/U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry
heads to Moscow this week for talks with President Vladimir Putin, hoping to
build momentum for peace in Syria after a partial Russian withdrawal and to
restore a fragmenting ceasefire in Ukraine. But few experts expect Washington's
top diplomat to make much headway with a Kremlin that has achieved its
short-term goals and is seeking new victories. Having ensured that he has a seat
at the top table of world diplomacy and that his allies in Damascus are in no
immediate danger of defeat, Putin has ordered the bulk of his forces out of
Syria without suffering great losses. Now, observers say, his separatist proxies
in Ukraine are increasing pressure on the ceasefire line there, hoping that
Europe's commitment to renew sanctions will waver this summer before Russia's
September parliamentary polls. Joerg Forbrig, a fellow at the German Marshall
Fund of the United States, compared this week's trip by Kerry to Moscow to one
he made last year to see Putin in Sochi after Russia helped Washington to
negotiate the Iran nuclear deal. Russia carried through on its support for the
Iran deal, helping ship out Tehran's uranium stockpile, and now Kerry wants
Moscow to help push through a Syrian peace plan. "So he goes to Moscow to see if
this positive momentum can be cultivated and perhaps extended. I don't think it
can," Forbrig, an expert on central and eastern Europe, told AFP. "Russia has
basically got out of this intervention everything that it needed," he argued,
suggesting Moscow will be content to see peace talks drag on indefinitely if its
interests are not again threatened."It has a place at the negotiating table, it
is sure to be part of the political process that is now underway. It has sold to
its own public a very successful intervention that installed a ceasefire in this
five-year-old conflict. So I think they've cashed in now."
New incentive?
Steven Pifer, a former ambassador to Ukraine and director for Russia on the U.S.
National Security Council, is less sure that, having brought Bashar Assad's
Syrian regime to the negotiating table, the Kremlin will scale back its support
for the U.N.-mediated peace talks in Geneva. "After the last week, with Putin
having in a way declared victory, the Russians now have an incentive to see the
negotiations succeed," Pifer -- now a senior fellow at the Brookings
Institution, a Washington think tank -- told AFP. "After the Russian
intervention, Assad's certainly in a more stable place than he was last summer,
but if it deteriorates again, it looks bad for Putin if he has to send the
military back in. So that may bring more into line the American and Russian
aims."Fyodor Lukyanov, editor-in-chief of the journal "Russia in Global
Affairs", told AFP that this odd couple diplomatic partnership is the only hope
for peace in Syria. "Apart from Russia and the United States, there are no other
motors behind the process, a little like in the good old days of the great
powers," he said, reflecting Moscow's nostalgia for its Cold War eminence in
world diplomacy. U.S. and Russian spokesmen have confirmed Syria will be a key
issue at the Kremlin talks on Thursday, but the crisis in Ukraine will also be
on the agenda, and here too Putin may sense an opening to score points against
the West. In a sign of the allies' close coordination, the U.S. secretary of
state will fly into Moscow on Wednesday hot on the heels of another key player,
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who is also due at the Kremlin.
Germany and France are leading the western push for the implementation of the
2014 Minsk Protocol, under which Moscow is to calm its separatist allies in
Ukraine while Kiev reforms its constitution to hold new elections and grant the
Donbass region federal autonomy.
Ceasefire violations
Last week, a senior State Department official told reporters that recent weeks
have seen a stark increase in ceasefire violations, a development he attributed
to Putin's desire to turn up the political heat on Kiev. U.S. policymakers are
sympathetic to Kiev's dilemma, arguing that Russian provocation acts as a
"violent veto" on its attempts to pass reform -- but some in Europe are becoming
frustrated with Ukraine's failure to prepare for elections. "If there's an
uptick in violence, then Berlin gets very nervous, because they have no Plan B,"
Forbrig said. "They have absolutely no alternative to Minsk and they will ...
increase their pressure on Kiev because that's the only point where they have
leverage.""This undermines the unity on sanctions that we've seen so far," he
said, noting that some of Germany's partners in Europe are already lukewarm on
maintaining an embargo against Russia and may look for an excuse to back out. So
is Kerry wasting his time? Or worse, is he handing Putin a propaganda coup by
heading once again to pay court to the Kremlin? "It's his job. He's a top
diplomat. Their job is to go, try to talk, try to negotiate. That may seem naive
to us, but they have to try," Forbrig said. "But I don’t see this resulting in
anything to be honest."
Second Iraqi Found Guilty of
War Crime in Finnish Court
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 22/16/For the second time in a week, an
Iraqi migrant to Finland was found guilty on Tuesday of a war crime for posting
images of himself on Facebook with the decapitated head of an enemy fighter.
Hadi Habeeb Hilal, 23, was given a 13-month suspended sentence by the Kanta-Hame
district court on Tuesday, for desecrating the corpse of an Islamic State
fighter by posting on Facebook an image of himself holding up the decapitated
head. Hilal's countryman, Jebbar Salman Ammar, had posted three similar pictures
on a different occasion, and received a 16-month suspended sentence at another
Finnish court last week. Hilal, who served as a sergeant in the Iraqi army,
admitted to posting the picture in April 2015 on a public Facebook profile page,
but denied committing a war crime. Prosecutor Juha-Mikko Hamalainen told AFP
that the conduct of both men was defined as "a war crime" by the International
Criminal Court. He said the cases were similar but not related to each other.
Both Iraqi men had arrived in Finland about six months ago as part of Europe's
huge migrant influx. The country of 5.4 million people received some 32,000
mostly Iraqi asylum seekers last year, as Europe experienced its biggest migrant
crisis since World War II. More than one million migrants fleeing war in Syria
and upheaval across the Middle East, Asia and Africa have landed in Europe since
the start of 2015.
Libya's Neighbors Say Unity
Govt. Must Take Office in Tripoli
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 22/16/Libya's neighbors on Tuesday called on
the U.N.-backed government to take office as quickly as possible in Tripoli to
help tackle the growing influence of jihadists threatening their stability. The
call was made at a ministerial meeting hosted by Tunisia and attended by
delegates from Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Niger and Sudan, as well as the U.N. envoy
to Libya. Libya's neighbors said they fully backed the unity government and
stressed the "necessity to speed up its departure for Tripoli," a statement
said. Libya has had two rival administrations since mid-2014 when the recognized
government was forced from Tripoli to the far east after a militia alliance
including Islamists overran the capital. The United Nations is pushing the two
sides to accept a unity government, created under a power-sharing deal agreed by
the rival parties in December. But it failed to obtain formal parliamentary
approval from both administrations, a move effectively blocking its declared
will to take office and move to the capital. The jihadist Islamic State group
has taken advantage of the chaos to spread its influence in Libya claiming
devastating attacks in the North African nation and in its neighbors, namely
Tunisia. At the onset of the meeting, Tunisian Foreign Minister Khemaies Jhinaou
warned that "the proliferation of terrorist groups and their control of certain
regions in Libya is a source of extreme concern... a danger for Libya's people..
and for the stability of its neighbors."U.N. envoy Martin Kobler exhorted
Libya's neighbors to back efforts by the United Nations to install a unity
government in the oil-rich country. "The (political) process remains
precarious... At the same time, the terrorists are taking advantage of the
political divisions and the Libyans, as well as their neighbors, continue to
bear the consequences," said Kobler. "Daesh (an Arabic acronym for IS) in Libya
is a growing and imminent threat," he added. The U.N. envoy also called for the
formation of a united Libyan army that would include General Khalifa Haftar."He
must be part of a solution," said Kobler. Haftar heads the armed forces loyal to
the internationally recognized government and his ouster is demanded by
Islamist-backed administration in Tripoli. The general returned to Libya after
more than 20 years in exile in the United States to join the 2011 uprising that
toppled dictator Moammar Gadhafi. He has since vowed to crush Islamists.
Europeans Ignored Danger, Criticised Israel instead, Says Israeli Minister
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 22/16/An Israeli minister on Tuesday
suggested Europeans had ignored the danger of "Islamic terror cells" and focused
on criticizing Israel instead, in a statement in response to the Brussels attacks.While offering condolences over the deadly bombings, Science, Technology
and Space Minister Ofir Akunis also hit out at Europe over its labeling of
products from Israeli settlements in the occupied territories. "I will repeat:
many in Europe have preferred to occupy themselves with the folly of condemning
Israel, labeling products, and boycotts," Akunis, an ally of Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu, said on his Facebook page. "In this time, underneath the
nose of the continent's citizens, thousands of extremist Islamic terror cells
have grown. There were those who repressed and mocked whoever tried to give
warning. There were those who underestimated. "To our sorrow, the reality has
struck the lives of dozens of innocent people, powerfully and fatally," the
minister from Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party said. Tuesday's bombings of
Brussels airport and a metro train killed around 31 people, officials said,
citing initial figures. In November, new EU guidelines were issued forcing
member countries to label imported goods from Israeli settlements in the
occupied territories, sparking condemnation from Netanyahu. Israel has also
faced heavy criticism in Europe over settlement building in the occupied West
Bank and over alleged abuses against the Palestinians.
Tunisia Extends State of
Emergency, Hosts Talks on Libya
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 22/16/Tunisia on Tuesday extended by three
months a state of emergency imposed following jihadist attacks and hosted talks
with Libya's neighbors on the growing threat posed by the Islamic State group.
Authorities also decided to reopen the border with Libya, which had been closed
two weeks ago after a deadly raid on the frontier town of Ben Guerdane which
they blamed on the jihadist group.Analysts and officials have said the raid was
an attempt by the extremist organization to spread its influence from Libya
across the border into Tunisia. The North African nation, the birthplace of the
Arab Spring, has suffered from a wave of jihadist violence since the 2011
revolution that ousted longtime dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. IS claimed
brazen attacks last year on the National Bardo Museum in Tunis and a beach
resort, and a November suicide bombing in the capital, that killed in total 59
tourists and 12 presidential guards.After the November attack targeting the
presidential guards authorities declared a state of emergency which President
Beji Caid Essebsi decided to extend for the third time on Tuesday. Essebsi "has
decided after consultations... to extend the state of emergency for a period of
three months from March 23," two months more than the previous extension, his
office said in a statement. The measure comes just two weeks after seven
civilians and 13 security personnel were killed in coordinated jihadist attacks
in Ben Guerdane. Forty-nine jihadists were killed by security forces in clashes
and raids after the attacks. On Monday night the interior ministry said
authorities had arrested 12 members of a cell suspected of having helped
"terrorists" travel to Libya. Ben Guerdane, home to 60,000 people, has been
under nighttime curfew since the March 7 attacks, but two crossings with Libya
were reopened on Tuesday. The reopening is seen as crucial for cross-border
trade, a mainstay of the economy of Tunisia's largely impoverished southern
provinces. It came as Tunisia hosted talks with other countries that share
borders with Libya on the threat posed by the growing influence of IS in the
lawless oil-rich North African nation.Libya has had two rival administrations
since mid-2014 when the recognized government was forced from Tripoli to the far
east after a militia alliance including Islamists overran the capital. The
United Nations is pushing Libya's rival politicians to accept a unity
government, created under a power-sharing deal sealed by the rival parties in
December. The deal has not been formally endorsed by lawmakers from either side,
effectively blocking the unity government from operating. IS has taken advantage
of the political vacuum to expand its influence in Libya and spread it further
beyond. Tunisian Foreign Minister Khemaies Jhinaou opened Tuesday's meeting with
a plea to delegates from Algeria, Egypt, Sudan, Niger and Chad for greater
cooperation to end Libya's chaos. "The proliferation of terrorist groups and
their control of certain regions in Libya is a source of extreme concern... a
danger for Libya's people.. and for the stability of its neighbors," he said.
Libya's U.N. envoy Martin Kobler told the meeting that the "terrorists are
taking advantage of political divisions", urging support for the U.N.-backed
unity government. Libya's neighbors said in a statement at the end of the Tunis
talks that a unity government must be installed quickly in Tripoli to counter
the threat of jihadists.
Tunisia Reopens Libya Border
after Attack on nearby Town
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 22/16/
Tunisia reopened its border crossings with Libya on Tuesday after a two-week
closure in response to a deadly jihadist attack on a town near the frontier, the
interior ministry said. The move came as Tunisia hosted talks with other
countries neighboring Libya on the threat posed by the growing Islamic State
(IS) group presence in the lawless North African nation. Both the Ras Jedir
crossing on the Mediterranean coast and the Dehiba crossing in the mountainous
desert interior reopened at 0600 GMT, ministry spokesman Yasser Mesbah said. An
official of the main organization that looks after the interests of Tunisians
working abroad said traffic at Ras Jedir was still light in mid-morning and
consisted mainly of goods lorries. Customs officers were carrying out
"painstaking searches" of every vehicle, Ali Ouni told AFP from the crossing.
Tunisia closed the two crossings on March 7 when dozens of heavily armed
jihadists who had slipped across the border from Libya launched coordinated
attacks on police and army posts in the town of Ben Guerdane, north of Ras Jedir.
Seven civilians and 13 security personnel were killed in the immediate assault
and there have been further casualties over the past two weeks as the police and
army hunted down jihadists still at large. Security forces recovered the body of
one wanted militant on Monday morning after a firefight through the night that
wounded 10 security personnel and a civilian. It is the second time that Tunisia
has closed its border with Libya in recent months. It shut the crossings for 15
days following a November 24 attack in the heart of Tunis that killed 12
presidential guards.
Thousands of Tunisians are believed to have traveled abroad to join jihadist
groups, many of them to Libya, and closing the border is an obvious security
response. But cross-border trade, both legal and illegal, forms a mainstay of
the economy of Tunisia's southern provinces, which are among the poorest in the
country. Tunisia has failed to curb a rise in extremism since the 2011
revolution that ousted longtime dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. Last year, IS
claimed responsibility for attacks on the Bardo museum in Tunis and a popular
resort hotel that killed 59 tourists in total, as well as the suicide bombing
that killed the presidential guards.Last month, Washington carried out an air
strike on an IS training camp in Libya that killed dozens of jihadists, likely
including the suspected Tunisian mastermind of two of the attacks. The European
Union has been increasingly concerned about the IS presence just across the
Mediterranean in Libya. EU officials were due to join U.N. and African Union
representatives at Tuesday's talks in Tunis among Libya's neighbors. Britain has
also sent troops to train Tunisian forces guarding the Libyan border, which has
been fortified along half of its length.
Yemen FM '99%' Sure of Peace Talks this Month
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/March 22/16/Yemen's foreign minister said on
Tuesday he was confident that U.N.-brokered peace talks would take place in
Kuwait by the end of this month. Asked if the discussions would happen before
April, Abdulmalek al-Mikhlafi replied that he was "99 percent" sure that the
talks would go ahead. On Monday, a Yemeni government official told AFP that the
peace negotiations would also be accompanied by a ceasefire in the war-torn
country. Mikhlafi's confirmation came as he attended the Al-Jazeera Forum in the
Qatari capital. "We are going to go to these peace talks and we will say we are
ready to go anywhere and we are hopeful that we are going to reach a solution,"
he had said at the conference on Monday. Yemen has been gripped by violence
since September 2014, when the Iran-backed Huthi rebels stormed Sanaa and forced
the internationally recognized government to flee south to the second city of
Aden. The government has declared Aden the temporary capital, but it has
struggled to secure the city, where jihadists frequently target officials.
Unidentified gunmen on Tuesday shot dead an officer in the presidential guards
in Aden before fleeing, a security official said. Mikhlafi's comments come
almost a year since a Saudi-led coalition launched a military campaign in
support of the Yemeni government. President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi and members
of the Yemeni government now spend most of their time in Riyadh. Hadi on Tuesday
held talks with U.N. envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed who said he was "optimistic"
about the talks, according to the official sabanew.net website. "We are working
for peace with the cooperation of all" parties in the Yemeni conflict, the
website quoted him as saying. The World Health Organization says fighting in
Yemen has killed almost 6,300 people, half of them civilians, since March 2015.
Obama in Cuba: Lessons for
the Middle East
Joyce Karam/Al Arabiya/March
22/16
Old animosities don’t hold and strategic political and economic interests
ultimately get the last word. That’s the message, resonating loud and clear, as
Air Force One touched down for the first time since 1928 in Havana this week,
granting US President Barack Obama his biggest foreign policy moment, and
effectively turning the page on the adversarial era between Washington and what
is left of Castro’s revolution. In Cuba, Obama’s message travels well beyond
Havana’s magnificent coastline, the Malecon, reasserting to friends and foes
alike new benchmarks in US policy which will likely outlast the current
administration. In the Middle East particularly, these benchmarks overlook
slogans of past revolutions, and prioritize mutual interest as well as regional
integration over domestic differences or old threats.
Between Havana & Tehran
Other than Richard Nixon’s visit to China in 1972, the images of Obama in Havana
are projecting futuristic parallels with Iran, another country whose revolution
in 1979 has put it in the circle of adversaries or sometimes the “axis of evil”
for Washington and where diplomatic engagement has brokered the nuclear deal but
not normalization. Can Obama’s aura of reconciliation take him to Tehran after
Havana? Is Iran’s Supreme leader or its IRGC ready for a Castro-like transition?
The short answer to these questions is not yet. Cuba is not Iran, and while the
end goal of US diplomacy is normalizing relations with both, the Castro model
crumbles when contrasted regionally and internally with Tehran, making a repeat
of a Havana scenario very unlikely in the near future. What Cuba offers,
however, is an important lesson for policymakers in Iran that there is a path to
international legitimacy and economic prosperity that does not go through
regional instability and anti-American theatrics and slogans. In such context,
the rehabilitation of the Castro regime politically and economically within the
inter Latin-American system, was a critical prelude to the US pivot two decades
later.
What Cuba offers is an important lesson for policymakers in Iran that there is a
path to international legitimacy and economic prosperity that does not go
through regional instability and anti-American theatrics and slogans
Washington is the last newcomer to Cuba, as European and Latin American
countries started opening up to the island following the collapse of the Soviet
Union and the dire economic crisis that hit the Castro regime in the 1990s.
Unlike Iran, “communist Cuba” slowly started to tone down its anti-Western
rhetoric, and abandoned its agenda of “exporting the revolution” after 1991. It
laid to rest its nuclear ambition and realigned its politics in the Western
Hemisphere.
This stands in contrast with Iran’s hardliners who paraded US sailors they
captured in January, have sought regional instability from Lebanon to Iraq to
Syria and Yemen, and are sponsoring non-state actors in all those countries.
Just yesterday, pro-Iran backed militias threatened to fight US troops in Iraq,
while Hezbollah still points to an American-Zionist conspiracy that is playing
out in Yemen, Iraq and Syria. Obama’s moment in Cuba was followed by the gradual
normalization of Havana with all its neighbors which stands at odds with Iran’s
trajectory today. Cuba was granted a seat at every presidential inauguration in
Latin America in the last twenty years. Also, Havana’s participation in several
regional summits starting with the Ibero-American summits in 1991, is contrary
to Iran's which is excluded from most of the major summits whether the topic is
Arab-Israeli peace, inter-Gulf relations or OPEC.
Both politically and economically, the communist era that brought Fidel Castro
to power is gradually fading in Cuba as property laws change, US investors flow
and the talk on exporting the revolution has become history. Iran, on the other
hand, is still grappling with such transition, as its hardliners pull it in the
direction of regional meddling and antagonizing the United States. As long as
this trajectory holds, a Nixon moment in China, or Obama's in Cuba is unlikely
anytime soon in Tehran.
Human rights not a priority
Another message that the Obama administration is sending from Havana is that
human rights violations, and domestic agendas of governments don’t set the
policy for relations with Washington. While the US President has made a point of
meeting dissidents, their arrest and a poor freedom record did not slow down the
US rapprochement with Cuba. This benchmark is not exclusive to Havana and is
also rampant for US policy widely in the Middle East. Human rights violations
practiced by US adversaries and partners in the region have not affected those
relations since the 1960s. CIA director John Brennan often speaks highly of
Egyptian President Abdel Fatah Sisi, and military aid has fully resumed after
army takeover in 2013. The Cuba turn will most likely reinforce his trend and
the perception that human rights violations don't set the policy in Washington.
This approach will also likely continue even after Obama leaves office. Neither
Hillary Clinton nor Donald Trump are promising a return to cutting relations
with Cuba, and none of the candidates left in the race has prioritized human
rights and democracy over security and strategic interests. GOP candidate
Senator Ted Cruz has made a habit of praising Sisi, and Clinton has stuck to
this approach while Secretary of State. Nevertheless, the Cuba trip offers Obama
his biggest foreign policy moment after eight years in office and with
disappointments from Iraq to Russia. In the Middle East it signals to Tehran and
other capitals that Washington can overlook theatrical slogans and domestic
agendas, and pursue strategic policies that meet its core interests.
Saudi Arabia’s economy needs
a makeover
Jamal Khashoggi/Al Arabiya/March 22/16
Saudi Arabia’s economy needs a makeover. It is asymmetric with some sectors
burdened while others becoming prosperous. A makeover is therefore needed to
eliminate burden in some sectors while enhancing the positives features in
others. It seems that the country is already taking steps in this direction. A
decision generally unnoticed by the media was taken a few days ago to Saudize
the telecom sector. This news wouldn’t have been important if it only applied to
this sector, which doesn’t represent a significant proportion of the Saudi
economy. There are not more than 20,000 people working in the sector while there
a few thousand fewer investors. But if what is being said in the corridors of
the Labor Ministry is true, then the Saudization of the retail sector has begun.
These measures will not only make a big difference to the Saudi economy and the
labor environment but will also transform the society by reducing pressure on
cities, organizing work hours and eliminating hundreds of thousands of useless
shops that have made a city like Riyadh overcome other cities of the world in
retail space measured in meters per capita. It is time we admit this as an
enormous challenge and tackle it. However, such an initiative will generate the
talk of “recession”, which is disliked by economists in the Ministries of
Finance and Planning. But is it really bad for our economy? Saudi Arabian
economist and author Barjas Al-Barjas believes that the kingdom needs a
productive economy that will liberate it from excessive dependence on the oil
sector. Oil prices are low and will remain so for many years with a surplus in
production of up to one million barrels over at least the next three years. Al-Barjas
calls for an increase in the Gross National Product (GNP) and has criticized the
McKinsey plan. The retail outlets, services and restaurants owned and managed by
foreigners do not contribute to this rise. In light of the oil market data,
recession would be the appropriate solution as it would ease the burden on
millions of people who do not contribute toward the national economy, neither in
the form of taxes nor through export.
We must learn from the two economic booms witnessed by Saudi Arabia in the 70s
and during the first decade of this century, which made those who do not fear
poverty spend excessively. All data point to the need for the economy to adapt
to low price of oil. Even if a miracle was to happen and the prices of each
barrel became $80 again it will cover the kingdom’s primary need, employees’
salaries, which is covered with the current price of $30. Whatever exceeds this
amount will then be allocated to development projects and to the private sector.
This is why we must learn from the two economic booms witnessed by Saudi Arabia
in the 70s and during the first decade of this century, which made those who do
not fear poverty spend excessively. Let us not repeat the same mistake.
Rainy days
We should therefore establish rainy-day funds which is roughly what we are doing
now as the kingdom’s economy is stable thanks to these saved funds exceeding 2
trillion Saudi riyals. However, oil price decline and the kingdom’s commitments
have raised pessimism among economists fearing economic instability unless
structural reforms are implemented. It seems that the Deputy Crown Prince of
Saudi Arabia, Mohammad bin Salman, is currently working on this through the
Council of Economic and Development Affairs which includes ministers and experts
who manage serious challenges facing the country.
Dr. Barjas was in the limelight for his important article entitled “McKinsey
plan 246”, which was one of the most read articles last year. Saudis exchanged
it via emails and whatsapp messages. The article did not anger anyone but, at
the same time, no one clarified whether Dr. Barjas was being overly pessimistic.
This shows that the fears he expressed in his article are real and must be
discussed. Many officials asked him for his opinion while he was calling for
greater transparency and a more open dialogue about this great challenge.
One of his main ideas came in the following sentence: “The Ministry of Planning
and Economy assigned the task of preparing ‘Saudi Arabia beyond oil: the
investment and productivity transformation’ plan to McKinsey Global Institute
that adopted the plan (6-4-2), (2) meaning the economy of the kingdom must
double over 15 years to reach SAR 6 trillion, (4) meaning that the private
sector will invest $ 4 trillion, i.e. SAR 15 trillion during the next 15 years
to produce 6 million jobs for Saudis, which stands for the last number (6).”
Dr. Barjas believes that it is impossible to agree to the McKinsey plan of
doubling the Saudi economy by pumping SAR 15 trillion to produce 6 million jobs
to Saudis. I agree with him as the kingdom’s reserves – before the current
withdrawals - is slightly over SAR 2.6 trillion and the assets of the private
sector do not exceed more than 3.5 billion. Making the foreign investment cover
the difference is therefore impossible. So how can this case be resolved? This
is another reason why prospects of recession should be handled and reviewed by
the state. What is more important for the kingdom: to be at the top of the list
of developing countries’ economies and preserve the rank it is proud of, which,
in reality, depends on the high prices of oil, or to provide a happy life and a
job for its citizens? I think priority should be given to the second option for
political and economic reasons. Providing a home, good education, good health
care and a happy life is more important than waving figures that do not affect
the Saudis’ life. Perhaps even Dr. Barjas will disagree with me here as the word
“recession” is disliked by economists as I have mentioned before. He wants a
productive economy based on exports with an income equivalent to the one
produced by oil while no one wants oil to be the main source of income. How will
we achieve this considering the previous data and the challenges facing the
economy? Let it be a temporary “recession” applied to market reality until the
equation of “creating jobs for Saudis” instead of “creating just jobs” is
achieved. Before carrying out any reforms, this equation must be achieved while
consolidating the work culture. A Saudi middle working class must emerge and
regain its position as a catalyst for development so we do not generously feed
foreigners instead of our own people.
Warning signs over uptick in
Syria, Iraq chemical attacks
Brooklyn Middleton/Al Arabiya/March 22/16
A new report released by the Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS) this week
confirms that there was an uptick in chemical weapon attacks in Syria over the
course of the last year, underscoring the shortcomings of the Russia-DC brokered
deal that ostensibly saw the Assad regime’s chemical weapon program dismantled
and their arsenal destroyed. The report was published just two days before the
anniversary of the worst chemical weapon attack in history: Saddam Hussein’s
barbaric gassing of at least 5,000 Kurds in the northern Iraqi city of Halabja
on March 16, 1988.
The 28-year somber anniversary was an especially poignant one as Kurds, Syrians
and Iraqis are once again under constant threat of chemical weapon attacks. With
each chemical weapon attack the Syrian regime and ISIS carry out, the likelihood
for another major massacre increases.
According to the SAMS report titled, “A New Normal: Ongoing Chemical Weapons
Attacks in Syria,” at least 161 chemical weapon attacks were carried out in the
country since the beginning of the conflict, 69 of which were executed in 2015,
leaving at least 1,491 people dead and another 14,581 injured.
The report further noted, stunningly, that 77 percent of such attacks were
carried out after the US-Russia backed CW-destruction deal that led to UNSC
Resolution 2118 in September 2013.
Deal failure
The failures of that deal – including allowing the Assad regime to self report
its own arsenal and excluding chlorine altogether – has indeed cultivated a “new
normal” where chemical weapon attacks – that kill just a few but not thousands -
are allowed to go ahead by the international community. In a particularly brutal
attack, nearly a year ago to date – and on the anniversary of the massacre in
Halabja – the Assad regime dropped at least several barrel bombs packed with
cylinders of chlorine gas on Sarmin and a nearby village, killing at least six
people – including three children under the ages of four - and injuring another
110, according to a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report. Most recently, Israeli
Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon claimed the Syrian regime had used chlorine gas
during the tenuous ceasefire agreement. Meanwhile, several months prior to the
SAMS publication, credible reports surfaced indicating the Islamic State (ISIS)
had carried out a number of attacks with mustard agent against Kurds in both
Iraq and Syria. The attacks, which were initially reported in July 2014, have
continued into the very recent term. Earlier this month, Iraqi three-year-old
Fatima Samir died after ISIS militants launched rockets containing chemicals –
possibly mustard agent - at the Iraqi town of Taza, killing the child and
injuring hundreds of other people. As an increasing number of nefarious actors
carry out chemical weapon attacks against civilians, a failure to confront the
number one offender could have dire, long-lasting consequences for the region
Amid the horrendous uptick in ISIS-executed chemical weapon attacks, the United
States has increasingly targeted suspected chemical weapon sites belonging to
the militant group, relying on intelligence provided by the recently captured
Sleiman Daoud al-Afari. The AP reported that Afari was one of Saddam Hussein’s
chemical and biological weaponeers and prior to US Special Forces apprehending
him, Afari was the leader of the ISIS’s chemical weapon program. Afari’s capture
is hugely significant for efforts to degrade the militant group on all fronts.
That said, as the US continues destroying ISIS’ chemical weapon making
capabilities and thwarting associated plots, Assad, too, must be held
accountable for continuously carrying out attacks against civilians. The
regime’s total lack of commitment to halting chemical weapon attacks – even as
Syria is under a ceasefire and being closely watched by the international
community – is a warning; they can and will carry out additional chemical weapon
attacks and may escalate the intensity of them. As an increasing number of
nefarious actors carry out criminal chemical weapon attacks against civilians, a
failure to confront the number one offender could have dire, long-lasting
consequences for the region.
Refugees in Europe: Between
Ramadan’s dreams and Morin’s realism
Fahad Suleiman Shoqiran/Al Arabiya/March 22/16
The refugee crisis in Europe has revived the problems between Muslims and the
West. Discussions on identity, freedom and state-related matters have resurfaced
and led to academic debates. Anxiety is developing over this challenge as
another identity is taking roots in Europe within a humanitarian context that
has the potential to cause a political problem. Resentment over Arab names
spreading among newborns has already triggered debate. Around 3,000 neo-Nazis
and extremist right-wing supporters participated a recent protest in Berlin
against Chancellor Angela Merkel’s open-door policy. The police was expecting
few hundred neo-Nazis to participate; however, it was surprised that a lot more
attended. This is a major challenge on the ideological, social and political
fronts and is bound to be debated across different platforms. Swiss academic and
writer Tariq Ramadan appears on European media outlets as a representative of
the “moderate” Islamic view dealing with the problem of refugees and their
integration. His views are considered as part of efforts to better understand
Islam and resolve the current problems between Muslims and Christians. I have
written many articles on the subject; however the book Au péril des idées (The
risking of the ideas) was released last week in Arabic and it’s about the
dialogue between Ramadan and philosopher Edgar Morin. It’s an interesting
dialogue between a Muslim jurist and an academic who contemplates about sharia
laws and a philosopher who has always raised questions about religion. In the
book, Ramadan displays a range of verbal and semantic diversity. He disagrees
with the term “integration” in the context of refugees and instead calls for
“rootedness” as it is more appropriate. He feels that younger generations have
become French as they speak French and live like the French.
Tariq Ramadan rejects the term “integration” because he believes it does not
demonstrate the progress which Muslims have made in Europe by becoming “rooted”
in these countries. Ramadan writes: “Muslims’ demands that others respect their
values, culture, religion and even their memory are legitimate requests. These
demands are irrefutable evidence to this historical rootedness. When young men
whistle when they hear the French national anthem during a football game against
the Algerian team, they’re saying in what’s certainly a reckless yet clear
manner that: Algeria is our origin, history and memory which we are proud of
while France is our present and disgrace; and we’re whistling to oppose racism!”
Integration vs rootedness
Ramadan’s point on rootedness was, however, tarnished by the part on national
anthem and racism. When there is uncertainty over the depth of Muslim identity
toward the second country, this identity must be the substitute and the more
rooted one while confronting speeches like those of Ramadan when he calls for an
isolated approach. Let us take a look at the second generation of refugees of
Arab descent in France. We can see that those with a French identity – who
understand the significant meaning of the state and who are involved in the
secular system – are the most forthcoming when it comes to thanking their
country of origin while believing in French values. This can be seen in the
dialogues with Zinedine Zidane, the former French national team captain.
Ramadan however speaks of historical legacy and the possibility of racial
discrimination. He skips integration and calls for reviving of the old roots in
the same text where he speaks about “rootedness” as an alternative to
integration.
Edgar Morin responds to Ramadan saying: “A very strong component remains linked
in an unspecific period of time to a deep feeling of injustice.” The point is
that prolonging patterns of injustice and the continuous contemplation in
identity-related matters will make refugees go through difficult and
unsuccessful experiences and their situation will resemble that of isolated
entities in some parts of Europe”. This will indeed make integration difficult.
Ramadan rejects the term “integration” because he believes it does not
demonstrate the progress which Muslims have made in Europe as they have become
“rooted” in these countries. He uses the experience of Arabs in France,
particularly those belonging to the second and third generations. What’s more
inclusive than integration is “education.” Refugees who arrived from Muslim
countries were used to receiving education designed to “guard instilled ideas.”
However there’s now an urgent need to adopt an educational system that is based
on equality, comparative theology and criticism. Refugees need such approaches.
Some high schools for refugees in Germany have already started doing this.
The dialogue between Ramadan and Morin exposes two different mindsets. Morin is
a strict, scientific and conceptual philosopher while Ramadan still demands
European countries to benefit from “the implementation of Islamic sharia.”
This is the tragedy of millions of distressed people and it is further
escalating toward the unknown! A century ago, France’s great poet Charles
Baudelaire wrote: “The poor’s bag of money and old homeland...is that hallway
open to unknown horizons.”
Sharia in
Denmark
Judith Bergman/Gatestone Institute/March 22/16
http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/7648/denmark-sharia
Documentary filmmakers in Denmark conducted an undercover investigation, with
hidden cameras, into claims that imams are working towards keeping parallel
societies for Muslims within Denmark.
Abu Bilal, imam of the Grimhřj mosque, told Fatma that her husband is entitled
to take another wife. Fatma is not allowed to deny her husband his "sexual
rights," even when he is violent.
The imam of the Hamad Bin Khalifa mosque gave Fatma the same answers she had
received in all the other mosques: She must not take a job without her husband's
permission, and even if her husband continues to beat her, she must not contact
the police.
Umm Abdullah told Fatma that she should only meet with Danish people in order to
tell them about Islam. This is necessary, she said, to save the Danes from hell,
and the only reason Muslims should interact with Danes.
The issue of parallel Muslim societies has sparked renewed debate in Denmark
after a three-part television documentary, "The Mosques Behind the Veil" was
aired at the beginning of March on Danish TV2.
The documentary consists of an undercover investigation into claims that Muslim
imams are working towards keeping parallel societies for Muslims within Denmark.
The filmmakers had two young Muslims -- brought from outside Denmark -- go
undercover in Gellerupparken, an area best described as a predominantly Muslim
ghetto in Aarhus, Denmark's second city. For three months, the two lived as a
fictitious couple, Fatma and Muhammed, while visiting eight different mosques in
Aarhus, Odense and Copenhagen -- the three largest cities in Denmark -- with
hidden cameras. The goal was to hear what imams say behind closed doors about
Danish law and authorities, gender equality and general contact with Danish
society, such as Muslim women participating in the Danish job market. There are
approximately 140 mosques in all of Denmark.
The film is similar in concept to the British BBC Panorama documentary, "Secrets
of Britain's Sharia Councils," which aired in April 2013. The BBC went
undercover to document the discrimination practiced in British sharia councils
against Muslim women. (The existence of British sharia councils were no secret
to the British; the Danish film, it turned out, documented a Danish sharia
council for the first time).
For the purpose of the documentary, Fatma was given a personal cover story --
based on real-life dilemmas -- for which she would seek advice from the
different imams: Her husband is violent, and she does not wish to have sex with
him. She cannot get pregnant and his family has found a second wife for him. She
consulted with a Danish girlfriend about the violence, which has left her
bruised, and the girlfriend told her to go to the police.
What do the imams think she should do?
The series begins in the Grimhřj mosque. The mosque has been in the Danish
headlines for years, especially since police statistics in 2013 showed that 22
out of the 27 Muslims from Aarhus who left to fight with Islamic State in Syria
had frequented it. The head of the mosque, Oussama El Saadi, has, in fact, said
that he hopes the Islamic State will win and that there will be an Islamic world
government. The imam of the same mosque, Abu Bilal, was sentenced last year in
Germany for inciting hatred against both Jews and non-Jews, and fined €10,000.
Abu Bilal, imam of the Grimhřj mosque in Denmark, was fined €10,000 last year in
Germany, after being found guilty of inciting hatred against both Jews and
non-Jews. (Image source: MEMRI video screenshot)
Fatma, during her visits to the mosque, learned from imam Abu Bilal that married
women who commit infidelity should be stoned to death, and that Muslims who
leave Islam may be killed. He makes no reservations about these teachings. She
also learned that young children who refuse to pray should be beaten (a woman
asks the imam specifically, how she should conduct those beatings). Fatma was
also informed that a woman may not take a job without her husband's permission.
Abu Bilal further says that her husband is entitled to take another wife. Fatma
is not allowed to deny her husband his "sexual rights," even when he is violent.
When she asks the imam if she should involve the police, the answer is an
emphatic "no."
Officially, the spokesman of the Grimhřj mosque, along with spokesmen from three
of the eight mosques, professes that the mosque respects Danish law. But behind
closed doors -- on hidden camera -- he advocates polygamy and beating children.
He also instructs Fatma to go back to her abusive spouse and to let him commit
what amounts to rape.
Fatma attended three other mosques in Aarhus, one of which publicly claims to be
"moderate." All of the clerics gave her the same answers. Some told her that
violence is not allowed, but made it clear that there is nothing she can do. The
imam at the Fredens mosque added that she might be able to obtain a divorce, if
necessary, from their sharia council.
Muhammed, reporting what he experienced in the mosques, told TV2 news that he
had been warned in the mosques against the Danes; informed that they were kuffar
(unbelievers), and that he should avoid them and their social functions, such as
birthday parties. One imam told the couple that they should "not melt into
Danish society," but simply surround themselves with other Muslims.
In Copenhagen, Fatma consulted the leader of the female section of the Islamisk
Trossamfund mosque, Umm Abdullah. The claim at Islamisk Trossamfund is that it
is in contact with several thousand Muslims every week, and thus among the
biggest mosques in Denmark. Umm Abdullah tells Fatma that she must not go to
birthday parties; there would be, she says, alcohol and mixed male and female
company -- and she should only meet with Danish people in order to tell them
about Islam. This is necessary, says Umm Abdullah, to save the Danes from hell,
and the only reason why Muslims should interact with Danes. When Fatma asks her
about her personal problems, Umm Abdullah tells her that she must not contact
the police about the violent husband. "Why should you become a laughing stock in
front of the infidels?" she rhetorically asks.
Fatma also went to see the imam at the Hamad Bin Khalifa mosque in Copenhagen,
better known in Denmark as "Stormoskeen" ["the big mosque"]. Named after the
former emir of Qatar and fully sponsored by him, it opened in 2014. The
organization behind the Hamad Bin Khalifa mosque, the Danish Islamic Council,
has claimed that the people who operate the mosque have chosen a moderate
interpretation of Islam that is compatible with Danish society.
On camera, the spokesman from the Hamad Bin Khalifa mosque confidently assured
the journalists from TV2 News that the mosque thoroughly respects Danish laws.
He even assured them that women enjoy even better rights than men.
When Fatma spoke to the imam of the Hamad Bin Khalifa mosque, however, and
filmed it with a hidden camera, she was given the same answers she had received
in all the other mosques: She must not take a job without her husband's
permission, and even if her husband continues to beat her, she must not contact
the police. This most "moderate" of all the Danish mosques also advocated
polygamy, and the right of the husband to his wife's body, even when she might
prefer to refuse him.
One of the questions Danes are asking themselves after viewing the documentary,
is whether Danish Muslims actually listen to the imams and do what they say.
According to a poll conducted in October 2015, 40% of all Danish Muslims believe
that the law in Denmark should be based solely on the words of the Quran and 77%
believe that the Quran should be followed to the word. Ten years ago, the figure
was 62%. The poll showed that 50% of all Danish Muslims pray five times a day;
ten years ago, the figure was 37%.
While the working assumption has been that with time, Muslims would become less,
not more, religious, these numbers fly in the face of the wish that Muslims
might be comfortably assimilated into Danish culture.
At the end of the documentary, Fatma and Mohammed visit the sharia council --
which, since the documentary aired, has been dismantled, but others are believed
to exist -- at the Fredens mosque in Aarhus. Here, Fatma pleads over ten times
for a divorce from her violent husband, but the council refuses, telling her to
go back home and try again.
These were exactly the same responses as those given by the imams of the British
sharia councils in the BBC Panorama documentary from 2013. Genuinely abused
women pleaded in vain for divorce, and sometimes had to wait for ten years to
obtain it. The answers they received from the imam were identical with the
answers that Fatma heard from the eight different imams in Denmark: Go back to
your violent spouse and try to work it out.
TV2 presented the secret recordings to all the mosques that had been
investigated, but the mosques refused to comment on them.
Instead, 31 Danish mosques and Islamic organizations decided to react to the
exposure of their goings-on by collectively condemning the way that TV2 had
portrayed the Islamic organizations in the documentary. The organizations held
the TV station responsible for the "way that it was destroying the integration
that the organizations had worked on for the past 30 years in Denmark" and
claimed that "Danish Muslims are an integral part of Danish society and play a
positive role in integrating Muslims into Danish society." They also reaffirmed
that "Muslims have a right to seek advice about Islam, Islamic rules and Islamic
sharia in Denmark."
The ongoing public debate that has followed the broadcast, shows --
unsurprisingly -- that neither politicians, opinion makers nor so-called
"experts" have any workable plans for how to deal with what the TV documentary
revealed. Some have suggested that imams get a special university education or
go through a licensing process. Others have suggested closing the Grimhřj mosque
-- an act that would doubtless be regarded as provocation, and one that would
not solve anything in other, similar, mosques. Still other observers have
suggested looking more closely at possibilities in the Danish constitution for
dealing with the problem. One thing is clear: Denmark is as far away from
solving this problem as the rest of Europe -- and it is not going to get any
easier.
**Judith Bergman is a writer, columnist, lawyer and political analyst.
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