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Bible Quotation For Today/Who acknowledges me before others, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God; but whoever denies me before others will be denied before the angels of God
Luke 12/06-10: "Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten in God’s sight. But even the hairs of your head are all counted. Do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows. ‘And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before others, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God; but whoever denies me before others will be denied before the angels of God. And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven; but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven."

Bible Quotation For Today/My child, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, or lose heart when you are punished by him;for the Lord disciplines those whom he loves, and chastises every child whom he accepts
Letter to the Hebrews 12/01-09: "Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as children ‘My child, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, or lose heart when you are punished by him;
for the Lord disciplines those whom he loves, and chastises every child whom he accepts. ’Endure trials for the sake of discipline. God is treating you as children; for what child is there whom a parent does not discipline? If you do not have that discipline in which all children share, then you are illegitimate and not his children. Moreover, we had human parents to discipline us, and we respected them. Should we not be even more willing to be subject to the Father of spirits and live?.

LCCC Latest analysis, editorials from miscellaneous sources published on July 10-11/15
Micheal Aoun & Jobran Bassil Are Mere Evil Trojans/Elias Bejjani/July 10/15
Stalling in Lebanon can only lead to more chaos/Nayla Tueni/Al Arabiya/July 10/15
Israel wants to avoid giving Hamas a bartering chip at all costs/By YOSSI MELMAN/J.Post/July 10/15
What Politicians Say vs. What People Can See/Douglas Murray/Gatestone Institute/July 10/15
Greece and the Return of Ideology/Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat/July 10/15
The Rapid Spread of ISIS/Mshari Al-Zaydi/Asharq Al awsat/July 10/15
Prince Saud al-Faisal’s legacy lives on in Saudi foreign policy/Andrew Bowen/Al Arabiya/July 10/15
Playing with diplomacy: Obama’s fear of nuclear failure/Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Al Arabiya/July 10/15
Syrian War Takes Rising Toll on Hezbollah/By Dan De Luce/Foreign Policy/July 10/15
Iran’s revolution at 36: To be or not to be nuclear/Mohamed Chebarro/Al Arabiya/July 10/15
the Iranian daily Kayhan,: The White House Will Be Destroyed In Under 10 Minutes If The U.S. Attacks Iran/MEMRI/July 10/15
No Rest for the Weary: The Plight of Assyrian Christians in the Levant/Todd Daniels & Sandra Elliot/July 10/15

LCCC Bulletin itles for the Lebanese Related News published on July 10-11/15
Salam 'Not Afraid' as Politicians Rush to his Support
Bassil Vows to Confront 'Daeshi' Politics: We are Defending All Christians, Lebanese
Franjieh Denies Row with FPM but Calls for 'Consultation' on Decision-Making
Reports: Lebanese IS Fighter Killed in Iraq
Army Arrests Osama Mansour's Brother in Tripoli
Eichhorst Regrets Leaving Lebanon without Seeing Election of President
Berri Stays Mum on Stormy Cabinet Session
Kataeb minister says 'appalled' by Cabinet shouting match
Derbas fears growing influx of refugees despite restrictions
Banks unaffected by scuffle between Army, protesters
EDL cracks down on illegal power hookups

LCCC Bulletin Miscellaneous Reports And News published on July 10-11/15
U.S. refuses to back down on Iran sanctions relief
Iran, powers give themselves to Monday for nuclear deal
Iran blames changing demands for tough talks
U.S. seeks U.N. action on chemical attacks in Syria
Turkey arrests 21 suspected ISIS members in raid
Saudi Arabia’s former FM Prince Saud Al-Faisal dies at 75
UN declares humanitarian truce in Yemen amid doubts over rebels’ commitment
Iconic Egyptian actor Omar al-Sharif dies
As Iran talks continue in Vienna, Israel, US flags, burn in streets of Tehran
Hamas official: 'No negotiations regarding possible swap for missing Israelis'
US-Israeli-Egyptian mobile sensor-fence projects to block further ISIS Mid East expansion

Micheal Aoun & Jobran Bassil Are Mere Evil Trojans
Elias Bejjani/July 10/15
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/2015/07/10/elias-bejjanimicheal-aoun-jobran-bassil-are-mere-evil-trojans/
There is no shed of doubt that the stupid, childish, demagogue, evil, pro Axis Of Evil, and chaotic street demonstrations and political maneuvers that were viciously orchestrated and executed yesterday in our beloved mother country, Lebanon, by MP, Micheal Aoun's criminal, Trojan, herds of sheep and terrorist gangs are not Lebanese in soul or spirit, do not represent the Lebanese Christians' ethical or patriotic codes, and in particular those of the deeply rooted faithful and peaceful Maronites. And most importantly do not serve the Lebanese-Christians' rights nor existence as the false Aoun-Bassil tags alleged.
Meanwhile all the Evil Aoun-Bassil Charade of yesterday does not carry any sort of Christian values, honesty or altruism. Aoun and Bassil are two evil parasitic and cancerous creatures who have completely lost both faith and hope. In this context of faith and hope derailment, all their rhetoric, alliances, conduct and thinking are motivated and fully controlled by their instincts of hatred, worship of earthly riches, hunger for power, selfishness, and disrespect for law, order, freedom and rights of all others.
No, and one million and one thousand loud "NO", Aoun-Bassil and all the herds of sheep who support them blindly, instinctively, and stupidly do not represent the Lebanese Christians by any means, because they in reality they are worst than Judas. They with no shame sold themselves, their country and their Christian-Lebanese identity with thirty silvers to the Iranian occupier, and to its local occupational military tool, the terrorist Hezbollah.
On the bright side, these two earthly creatures, Aoun-Bassil and all those MP's, politicians and clergymen who are from the same Judas's cut and venomously side with them against every thing that is Christian and Lebanese have disastrously failed yesterday. They all failed to gather more than 100 young men and women to participate in their aggressive, hostile and chaotic street demonstrations. This public clear phenomena of failure indicates that these creature are sole aliens in our Christian society and do not represent us in way. Simply they are mere Trojans and cheap anti Lebanese destruction human tools serving the Iranian- Syrian Axis of Evil schemes of fundamentalism, bloody wars, ethnic cleansing, terrorism, and territorial expansionism.
Aoun-Bassil's thunderous failure of yesterday does not mean by any way that the other Christian political parties in the 14th of March sovereign collision are patriotically, vision wise or conduct are much better than this evil dual -Aoun-Bassil. No not at all in reality and actuality, all, if not the vast majority, are cut from the same garment, and carry the same education of selfishness, hegemony and worship of earthly riches.
In conclusion, the Lebanese in general, and the Lebanese Christians in particular, are required as soon as possible to find a new patriotic, educated and altruistic leadership for both fields politics and religions, because the vast majority of the current ones are corrupted and defiled with all sorts of deadly human, patriotic and religious unlawful activities, conducts and sins.
As a major priority, the Maronite derailed Patriarch Bchara Al Raei is the fist leader that needs to immediately retire and be replaced by a clergyman who is humble meek, fears Almighty God and His Day Of Judgment.
Let us pray that Almighty God shall safeguard our beloved Lebanon from the evilness of its Leaders, politicians and clergymen
*Elias Bejjani
Canadian-Lebanese Human Rights activist, journalist and political commentator
Email phoenicia@hotmail.com
Web sites http://www.eliasbejjaninews.com & http://www.10452lccc.com & http://www.clhrf.com
Tweets on https://twitter.com/phoeniciaelias
Face Book https://www.facebook.com/groups/128479277182033 & https://www.facebook.com/elias.y.bejjani

Salam 'Not Afraid' as Politicians Rush to his Support
Naharnet/July 10/15/Top Lebanese politicians, including former President Michel Suleiman, rushed to Prime Minister Tammam Salam's support on Friday, a day after his dispute with the Free Patriotic Movement reached a climax. Suleiman said after his meeting with Salam at the Grand Serail that the PM has played a good role in keeping the cabinet alive. Among his visitors was also Telecommunications Minister Butros Harb. Sources close to Salam have said the premier is not afraid of the threats made by the FPM, adding that he won the support of several parties following the dispute with Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil. Bassil, who is an FPM official, said on Friday that he intended to cause a dispute with Salam at the start of the cabinet session a day earlier to make a point. Yet Salam's sources told several local and pan-Arab dailies that the dispute opened the way for a solution that can be built on in the coming two weeks. Thursday's session became stormy after Bassil, who is the son-in-law of FPM chief MP Michel Aoun, began talking about the infringement on the Christian president’s powers in the absence of a head of state. Despite the tension, the cabinet reached a compromise that allowed Salam to pass one item on the agenda on funds to public hospitals, while the FPM ministers received a pledge to discuss the government’s decision-making mechanism at a session at the end of July.Next Thursday will coincide with Eid al-Fitr, which makes it improbable for the government to meet. So Salam would likely set a session for July 23.“Salam is not afraid and does not cause fear,” his sources told the newspapers. “The situation has not reached a dead-end,” they said. “Lebanon is the country of compromises and eventually we will reach a solution.”The sources reiterated that the parties represented in the cabinet “do not intend to topple the government despite attempts made by a single side to cause disorder for personal objectives.” “We were informed by Hizbullah that it remains in solidarity with MP Michel Aoun in his demands but it doesn't seem to be satisfied with his movements,” said the sources. The tension between Salam and Bassil on Thursday was accompanied by a protest by FPM supporters near the Grand Serail where the session was underway. The FPM claims that it is working for the restoration of Christian rights. The same sources said that the PM received several phone calls from top political leaders. “They expressed support to him and lauded his performance,” they added.

Bassil Vows to Confront 'Daeshi' Politics: We are Defending All Christians, Lebanese
Naharnet/July 10/15/Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil hailed on Friday the street protests that took place on Thursday by Free Patriotic Movement supporters, saying that they have restored hope for the Christians in Lebanon. He said during a press conference: “ We are waging the battle of defending all the Christians and Lebanese.”“We will confront 'Daehsi' politics,” he vowed, in a reference to the Arabic acronym of the Islamic State extremist group. “Those who took to the streets on Thursday have restored our glory days and they make us proud,” he added to reporters. Addressing the dispute that erupted between him and Prime Minister Tammam Salam at the beginning of Thursday's cabinet session, Bassil explained: “We were deliberate in showing this quarrel before the media.” “We sought to respond to the premier in the same manner in which he approaches us, which is through a disregard of principles,” he explained. “We wanted to demonstrate the extent to which violations against us are being committed,” he said. “We are concerned at cabinet with the implementation and respect of the constitution,” stated the minister. “In the absence of the president, we can at times assume the role of the president and this issue has been disrespected,” he went on to say. “Do you expect us to remain silent over the violations committed against the jurisdiction of the president?” Bassil wondered. “Is there anything more important happening in the country than the disregard of Christian rights?” he asked.“We are accused of obstructing state functioning when we attempt to defend Christian rights,” he added.
“How can cabinet decisions be taken without the FPM, Hizbullah, Tashnag Party, and Marada Movement?” he continued.“The developments on the street allow us to respond to Salam through the media and our constitutional jurisdiction,” he stressed.
A heated exchange erupted between Salam and Bassil during a contentious cabinet session on Thursday. The cabinet's parties later agreed to continue the thorny debate over the cabinet's decision-taking mechanism after Eid al-Fitr. The session was accompanied by demonstrations by FPM supporters in the vicinity of the Grand Serail. FPM chief MP Michel Aoun had called on his supporters to prepare for rallies to restore what he described as “the rights of the Christians.” Preparations for the demos began after the cabinet failed to discuss the appointment of high-ranking security and military officials. Aoun has been lobbying for the appointment of Commando Regiment commander Chamel Roukoz, his son-in-law, as army chief.

Franjieh Denies Row with FPM but Calls for 'Consultation' on Decision-Making
Naharnet/July 10/15/Marada Movement leader MP Suleiman Franjieh denied on Friday he was engaged in a row with the Free Patriotic Movement, but said he had different viewpoints with it on several issues, including a proposal to have a federal system.
“We don't have differences with the FPM,” Franjieh said at a press conference he held in Bnashii. “We will continue to stand by (FPM chief MP Michel) Aoun as long as he is sticking to his policies,” he said. “If we are consulted on a political program and convinced by it, then we remain committed to the FPM,” he stated. “Had we been consulted” on Thursday's protests held by the FPM “we might have resorted to the streets with it,” the MP said. But “we did what suited us.” FPM supporters marched towards the Grand Serail on Thursday but scuffled with Lebanese soldiers who stopped them from reaching the government house. The tension on the streets took place as Aoun's son-in-law Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil argued with Prime Minister Tammam Salam during a cabinet session over the alleged violation of the Constitution and the infringement on the Christian president’s powers. Baabda Palace has been vacant since President Michel Suleiman's six-year term ended in May last year. Franjieh stressed: “We want to preserve the authorities of the president and the dignity of the PM as well.” “Having a centrist president means continued vacuum,” he said in response to a question by a reporter. “A centrist president means weakness.”Franjieh, who is a member of Aoun's Change and Reform parliamentary bloc, said the FPM chief is keen on the country's Christians and wants to give them their rights. But he stressed that Aoun should resort to dialogue to achieve a solution. Franjieh also rejected a proposal made by the FPM to have a federal system. “We can't tell our partners in the country that we no longer want them.”“Federalism would make the situation much worse,” he said. Aoun has said federalism could resolve Lebanon’s political and sectarian woes. "I hope this was a slip of the tongue," added Franjieh. Meanwhile, Progressive Socialist Party chief MP Walid Jumblat telephoned Franjieh “to thank him on his stance, which falls in favor of protecting stability and Lebanon's unity,” said a PSP statement. Jumblat, a centrist, “stressed the importance of intensifying contacts between the different parties at this difficult stage,” it added.

Reports: Lebanese IS Fighter Killed in Iraq
Naharnet/July 10/15/A Lebanese Islamic State group fighter, who hails from the northern city of Tripoli, has been killed in Iraq, media reports said Friday. Hassan al-Masri, known as Aba Qassem al-Lubnani, died while fighting alongside the IS, they said, without specifying in which area. Al-Masrsi hails from the Tripoli area of al-Beddawi, the reports added. Several Lebanese have been killed fighting alongside militants in Iraq and Syria. The latest to die in Syria was Khaled Sharrouf, a notorious Lebanese-Australian IS fighter. Sharrouf gained global infamy last year when he posted pictures of himself and his seven-year-old son on Twitter holding up the severed heads of soldiers. The IS has taken over large parts of Syria and Iraq and declared a self-styled caliphate.

Army Arrests Osama Mansour's Brother in Tripoli
Naharnet/July 10/15/The Lebanese army arrested overnight suspected Islamist Amin Mansour, the brother of Osama Mansour, in the northern city of Tripoli's, the army said in a statement on Friday. The arrest in Bab al-Tebbaneh triggered a wave of popular protests in the streets of the city, NNA added. The army escalated measures in several areas in Bab al-Tebbaneh and the vegetable market to maintain stability in the area. LBCI later said that the army had detained Mansour based on an arrest warrant and that he had disappeared directly after the security plan kicked off in Tripoli. Islamist militant Osama Mansour was killed in April by the police during an operation to arrest a radical cleric in Tripoli. Mansour belonged to an armed group that staged terrorist attacks, and holed up at a Tripoli mosque with the aim of preparing bombs and explosive devices to target Lebanese troops in the area. The army also arrested Syrian national Tarek Khaled Fayyad for suspiciously touring areas close to the army's positions in al-Bahsas. They also raided the house of Ali Monzer Zoaiter in Fanar's al-Zaatrieh and confiscated amounts of narcotics and six surveillance cameras.

Sources: Ibrahim in Turkey Next Week over Lebanese Hostages
Naharnet/July 10/15/ General Security chief Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim is expected to travel to Turkey next week to discuss with Qatari officials the case of Lebanese servicemen taken hostage by jihadists last year. Security sources told al-Akhbar daily published on Friday that Ibrahim, who is the official Lebanese negotiator in the case of the troops and policemen, will inform the Qataris that Lebanon has completed the file on the prisoner exchange which was mediated by Doha's envoy. The deal reportedly includes the release of 16 soldiers and policemen taken by al-Qaida-linked al-Nusra Front from the northeastern border town of Arsal last August in return for setting free Islamists from Roumieh prison. The Islamic State has also taken servicemen as hostages but the negotiations with the extremist group have reached a standstill over its crippling demands. Ibrahim is expected to inform the Qatari officials that the Lebanese authorities have not backed off from the deal, said the sources. But the problem lies in the failure of the jihadists to settle on specific conditions in the prisoner exchange. On July 2, the families of the hostages blocked two vital roads in and around Beirut to draw attention to the almost one-year case of the captives and urge the authorities to prioritize it. They warned that they will hold Prime Minister Tammam Salam responsible for any damage inflicted on the captives. The protesters also urged Turkey and Qatar to work on releasing their loved ones.

Eichhorst Regrets Leaving Lebanon without Seeing Election of President
Naharnet/July 10/15/European Union Ambassador to Lebanon Angelina Eichhorst has expressed regret that she will leave Lebanon at the end of her mission amid a continued vacuum at the presidential palace in Baabda. In remarks to An Nahar daily published on Friday, the diplomat said: “I regret that I will leave Beirut in this situation, without knowing when a president will be elected.” Baabda has been vacant since President Michel Suleiman's six-year term ended in May last year. “You need to move forward,” she told the Lebanese, adding that the government would be able to function properly after the election of a new president no matter who leads it. “There is also a need for a new electoral law and to hold the elections so that a new parliament rules,” Eichhorst added. The Dutch diplomat, whose four-year mission ended and will depart soon to Brussels, told the newspaper that the EU did not put preferences on one faction or another in politics. “Our objective is to have a modern state .. and to have a regular and strong partnership,” she said. “I have heard that we were not doing enough … it's true the EU cannot alone meet all the demands,” she added.

Berri Stays Mum on Stormy Cabinet Session
Naharnet/July 10/15/Speaker Nabih Berri has preferred to remain silent over a stormy cabinet session caused by tension between Prime Minister Tammam Salam and Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun. “I am not talking and not hearing,” Berri told officials who visited him in Ain el-Tineh. “Ask me about Vienna,” he said, in reference to nuclear talks underway in the Austrian capital between Iran and the P5+1 group -- Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States.The talks are aimed at ending a 13-year standoff by curbing Iran's nuclear activities in exchange for sanctions relief. Berri's remarks were published in al-Joumhouria daily on Friday, a day after Salam and Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil, who is Aoun's son-in-law, argued after the FPM official took advantage of the presence of reporters at the start of the cabinet session and began talking about the violation of the Constitution. The tension was accompanied by a protest by FPM supporters near the Grand Serail where the session was underway. The demonstrators scuffled with Lebanese soldiers who stopped them from reaching the Serail. As Safir daily said that Berri had asked the ministers representing him in the cabinet to remain silent throughout the session out of his keenness on supporting Salam and not confronting Aoun, who is allied with Hizbullah. Berri's Amal movement is an ally of Hizbullah in the March 8 alliance that also includes the FPM and other parties. Al-Akhbar daily also quoted Ain el-Tineh sources as saying that Amal ministers are staying “neutral” in the dispute. “No one emerged victorious yesterday,” they said.

Tributes Pour in for Long-Serving Former Saudi FM
Naharnet/July 10/15/Tributes flowed Friday following the death of Saudi Arabia's Prince Saud al-Faisal, the world's longest-serving foreign minister, credited with facing down successive regional crises and forging strong ties with the West. Prince Saud oversaw four decades of diplomacy for the world's biggest oil exporter before he retired in April for health reasons. A statement from the Royal Court just before midnight said the prince, who was born in 1940 and became one of the highest profile members of the kingdom's ruling elite, died Thursday in the United States. It did not give a cause of death. The funeral will be held on Saturday in the Muslim holy city of Mecca, where his brother Prince Khaled is governor, the Royal Court said. Top officials in the kingdom's longtime ally Washington said Saud would be missed. "Generations of American leaders and diplomats benefited from Prince Saud's thoughtful perspective, charisma and poise, and diplomatic skill," President Barack Obama said in a statement. "He was committed to the importance of the US-Saudi relationship and the pursuit of stability and security in the Middle East and beyond, and his legacy will be remembered around the world." John Kerry, the US Secretary of State, called Saud "a man of vast experience, personal warmth, great dignity".The official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) on Friday reported that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had called King Salman "expressing sorrow" at Saud's death. Citing statements from Saud's counterparts in the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, as well as Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayyeb, the head of Egypt's Al-Azhar, the agency said officials paid tribute to a "man of peace, (a) balanced and moderate thinker."British Prime Minister David Cameron said he and others had benefited from Saud's "great wisdom in international affairs over his long years of service".Saud "worked tirelessly for peace and stability in the Middle East", French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said.
Health problems -
The goateed prince oversaw Saudi Arabia's emergence as a major diplomatic player, and had to deal with regional turmoil including civil war in Lebanon, and the 1991 Gulf War in which U.S.-led forces used Saudi Arabia as a launchpad. He maintained a focus on relations with the West, but ties with Washington were sometimes strained, including after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the U.S., in which 15 of 19 plane hijackers were Saudi. Saud served under four monarchs, and took his final oath of office in March after King Salman acceded to the throne following the death of king Abdullah, when Saud was in the U.S. for back surgery. His back troubles forced him to drop his hobbies of driving cars and taking desert trips.He was first named top diplomat in October 1975, seven months after his father, King Faisal, was assassinated by a nephew. Another of Saud's brothers, Prince Turki, was a longtime intelligence chief who served briefly as ambassador to Washington. Upon his retirement, Saud was replaced as foreign minister by Washington ambassador Adel al-Jubeir, reflecting a shift to a younger generation of Saudi leaders.Agence France Presse

Kataeb minister says 'appalled' by Cabinet shouting match
The Daily Star/ July 10, 2015/Kataeb Party minister Sejaan Azzi said Friday he was "appalled" by the heated war words that erupted at a Cabinet meeting one day earlier between Prime Minister Tammam Salam and Foreign Affairs Minister Gebran Bassil.

Derbas fears growing influx of refugees despite restrictions
The Daily Star/July 10, 2015/Social Affairs Minister Rashid Derbas Friday sounded the alarm over a new influx of Syrian refugees into Lebanon and warned that the country is already overwhelmed by over one million refugees.

Banks unaffected by scuffle between Army, protesters
The Daily Star/July 10, 2015/Customers and depositors briefly avoided the branches of the famous Banks Street in Downtown Beirut following the scuffle between protesters and the Lebanese Army.

EDL cracks down on illegal power hookups
The Daily Star/July 09, 2015/Electricite du Liban will boost its efforts to halt illegal connections to Lebanon’s power grid, with the help of the Internal Security Forces, the state-run company said in a statement Wednesday.

Stalling in Lebanon can only lead to more chaos
Friday, 10 July 2015
Nayla Tueni/Al Arabiya
Perhaps Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) leader Michel Aoun is working to meet Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyid Hassan Nasrallah’s call for a constituent assembly that reformulates the Lebanese system established in 1943 and which many actually agree needs restoration. The policy of obstruction Aoun adopted certainly leads to this path.
The country has been without a president due apparently to Aoun’s insistence to hold on to the slogan of “I or no one else” and Aoun has managed to impose this status quo thanks to the support of his alleged ally, Hezbollah. And now I believe Aoun, with Hezbollah’s support, seeks to obstruct the government’s work perhaps because it did not appoint his son-in-law as army commander. Aoun thinks the parliament, which extended its own ter,m is illegitimate and therefore cannot legislate. It seems that Aoun therefore thinks he should obstruct all state institutions in order to provide a suitable atmosphere to establish a constituent assembly.
Suitable circumstances
The call may be rightful if the suitable circumstances are secured and they are:
- The availability of an atmosphere of dialogue among the Lebanese people in order to formulate a work plan that can pave the way for future amendments for a new republic.
- Reconsidering the Taif Agreement, what has been implemented from it and what hasn’t.
- Guaranteeing that amendments and changes adopted will not lead to shedding blood and will not be the basis for future wars.
- Providing regional and international cover so no amendment is adopted at the expense of another party especially by parties who’ve become part of regional axes.
- Guaranteeing that any adopted changes protect the formula of co-existence in Lebanon – that formula which has become an international need in our world as ethnic, sectarian and racial struggles expand.
Wavering confidence
However, the circumstances surrounding us and the identity of those making such demands do not inspire confidence due to disrespecting the constitution and laws and due to failure to thoroughly study these laws.
During the Lebanese Civil War, Aoun chose the militant path when he assumed governance of the interim military government and he violated military, financial and administrative laws. I do not believe he has abandoned that path as he now allegedly supports Hezbollah in its wars which it imposed on Lebanon. Aoun also failed to reach a solution with the rival Christian Maronite party, the Lebanese Forces, in regards to the current presidential vacuum. The FPM leader, also a member of parliament, also never attempted to become closer to the Future Movement until the election of a president neared.
Meanwhile, Hezbollah has continuously violated the state laws and its wars in Syria are biggest proof to that. Hezbollah – which rejected all national plans for a defense strategy and which refuses to hand over defendants to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon - has through these wars in Syria become part of the Iranian project in support of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
So how can the FPM and Hezbollah expect us to go along with a plan for a constituent assembly amidst our current circumstances? Aoun’s current acts of mobilizing his supporters, in my mind, seem like the groundwork for a coup. And we must also note that Aoun’s agitation and calls to mobilize the street date back to more than a quarter of a century. This agitation has not at all contributed to building the state as on the contrary, it caused further chaos, wars and fighting.

U.S. refuses to back down on Iran sanctions relief
Agencies/Jul. 10, 2015
VIENNA: Washington’s refusal to budge on Tehran’s demands for relief on economic sanctions as part of a nuclear agreement threw a wrench into last-minute talks between Iran and world powers, a source told the country’s semi-official Fars news agency Thursday.
“While the Iranian team is showing flexibility, the Americans are refusing to accept Iran’s obvious right, particularly on sanctions,” Fars quoted an unnamed source as saying.The roadblock emerged as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry threatened to walk away from the talks as he signaled that diplomats won’t conclude an agreement by Friday – another delay that this time could complicate American efforts to quickly implement any deal.
“This is not open-ended,” Kerry told reporters outside the 19th-century Viennese palace hosting the negotiations. “We can’t wait forever for the decision to be made. If the tough decisions don’t get made, we are absolutely prepared to call an end to this process.”
It was the strongest indication yet of U.S. frustration with Iran. It comes two days after President Barack Obama promised Senate Democrats the same response to Iranian intransigence, suggesting patience for continuing the current round of discussions was running out as it headed into its 14th day.
The latest delay for a comprehensive deal is significant. Iran is demanding prompt easing of economic penalties for nuclear concessions, and the longer it takes world powers to make good on their promises, the longer they’ll have to wait for the Iranians to scale back their nuclear program. Under U.S. law, the seven nations negotiating in Vienna must complete the accord early Friday to avoid invoking a 60-day congressional review period during which President Barack Obama cannot waive sanctions on Iran. If they meet the target, the review would only be 30 days.The specter of prolonged public relations campaigns for and against the pact also may not work in Obama’s favor. The delay could imply that the U.S., Iran and other negotiating powers may end up having to push off the talks until September when any deal would again only amount to a 30-day review period.“We will not rush and we will not be rushed,” Kerry said. “We would not be here continuing to negotiate just for the sake of negotiating. We’re here because we believe we are making real progress toward a comprehensive deal,” he said. But “we are not going to sit at the negotiating table forever.”
Kerry spoke after discussing the state-of-play with other world powers for almost an hour Thursday evening. That conversation followed a flurry of other closed-door meetings, including a 45-minute session between Kerry and his Iranian counterpart.
“We’re working hard, but not rushed, to get the job done,” Zarif tweeted. French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said he would remain in Vienna for talks into Friday morning, citing “good things, but there is still work to do.”The current round of negotiations has already been extended twice since it started on June 27, as has an interim nuclear accord with Iran that these negotiations are meant to finalize. The preliminary deal was due to expire on June 30, then July 7 and then Friday. It would have to be renewed a third time if the talks go beyond Friday.
When the talks missed their second deadline it raised new questions about the ability of world powers to cut off all Iranian pathways to nuclear weapons through diplomacy.Long-standing differences persist over inspections of Iranian facilities and its research and development of advanced nuclear technology. New difficulties also have surfaced over the past few days. Iran is pushing for an end to a U.N. arms embargo on the country but Washington opposes that demand.

Iran, powers give themselves to Monday for nuclear deal
John Irish/Arshad Mohammed| Reuters/ July 10, 2015
VIENNA: Iran and major powers gave themselves until Monday to reach a nuclear agreement, their third extension in two weeks, as Tehran accused the West of throwing up new stumbling blocks to a deal. Both sides say there has been progress in two weeks of talks, but British Secretary Philip Hammond called it "painfully slow" and he and his French counterpart, Laurent Fabius, left Vienna saying they would return on Saturday. Having missed a Friday morning U.S. congressional deadline, U.S. and European Union officials said they were extending sanctions relief for Iran under an interim deal through Monday to provide more time for talks on a final deal. Iran and six powers - Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States - are trying to end a more than 12-year dispute over Iran's atomic program by negotiating limits on its nuclear activities in exchange for sanctions relief. The sides remain divided over issues that include a U.N. arms embargo on Iran which Western powers want to keep in place, access for inspectors to military sites in Iran and answers from Tehran over past activity suspected of military aims.
Iran's foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said a deal was unlikely to be reached on Friday and negotiators would probably spend the weekend in Vienna. He sought to blame the West for the impasse. "Now, they have excessive demands," he said of the major powers' negotiating position. Britain's Hammond said ministers would regroup on Saturday to see if they could overcome the remaining hurdles."We are making progress, it's painfully slow," he told reporters before leaving Vienna. Zarif has been holding intense meetings for two weeks with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to try to hammer out a deal limiting Iran's nuclear program in return for withdrawing economic sanctions that have crippled the Iranian economy.
An agreement would be the biggest step towards rapprochement between Iran and the West since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. But the negotiations have become bogged down, with final deadlines extended three times in the past 10 days and diplomats speaking of a shouting match between Kerry and Zarif. The negotiators missed a Friday morning deadline set by the U.S. Congress for an expedited 30-day review of the deal. Any deal sent to Congress before Sept. 7 would now be subject to a 60 day review period, accounting for lawmakers' summer recess. U.S. officials had previously expressed concern that the extended review would provide more time for any deal to unravel, but have played down that risk in the last few days as it became increasingly likely that the deadline would not be met.
On Thursday, Kerry suggested Washington's patience was running out: "We can't wait forever," he told reporters. "If the tough decisions don't get made, we are absolutely prepared to call an end to this." Ali Akbar Velayati, top adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, called Kerry's remarks "part of America's psychological warfare against Iran."
A senior Iranian official speaking on condition of anonymity said the United States and the other powers were shifting their positions and backtracking on an April 2 interim agreement that was meant to lay the ground for a final deal. "Suddenly everyone has their own red lines. Britain has its red line, the U.S. has its red line, France, Germany," the official said. Back in Iran, Friday provided a reminder of the depth of more than three decades of enmity between Iran and the West that a deal could help overcome. Iranians rallied for the last Friday of the fasting month of Ramadan, observed in Iran as "Qods Day" or "Death to Israel day," to show support for Palestinians, protest against Israel and chant slogans against the "Great Satan" United States. Western countries suspect Iran of seeking the capability to make nuclear weapons. Iran says it has the right to peaceful nuclear technology. Over the past two years, the nuclear talks have brought about the first intensive direct diplomacy between the United States and Iran since Iranian revolutionaries stormed the U.S. embassy in Tehran in 1979 and held hostages for over a year. A successful outcome would be a triumph both for U.S. President Barack Obama and Iran's President Hassan Rouhani, a pragmatist elected in 2013 on a pledge to reduce Iran's international isolation. Optimists say a deal could help reshape Middle East alliances at a time when Washington and Tehran face a common foe in the Sunni ISIS But both presidents face skepticism from powerful hardliners at home, making it difficult to bridge final differences.

Iran blames changing demands for tough talks
AP, Vienna/Friday, 10 July 2015
The Iran nuclear talks turned Friday from talk of progress to a blame game, with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif accusing the United States of shifting its demands. He dismissed a warning that the U.S. is ready to quit the negotiations as counterproductive.
Hours after his comments, Zarif met again U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry for another try at resolving differences standing in the way of a landmark deal that offers Iran sanctions relief in exchange for long-term and verifiable curbs on nuclear programs which Tehran could turn to making weapons. The tougher rhetoric mirrored the frustrations by the sides as the current round of talks entered its 14th day. After blowing past two extensions, negotiators had hoped to wrap up the talks by Friday, but Zarif’s comments cast doubts that agreement was near. The sides had hoped to seal a deal before the end of Thursday in Washington in attempts to avoid delays in implementing their promises. By missing that target, the U.S. and Iran now have to wait for a 60-day congressional review period during which President Barack Obama cannot waive sanctions on Iran. Had they reached a deal by then, the review would have been only 30 days. Iran is unlikely to begin a substantial rollback of its nuclear program until it gets sanctions relief in return.
The talks are formally between Iran and six world powers but have devolved into U.S.-Iranian negotiations over recent months, with diplomats saying the other nations were ready to accept terms agreed to by Tehran and Washington. Zarif’s critical comments were thus seen as mostly directed against Washington. Still, disagreements also have surfaced recently between the U.S. and Russia. Moscow supports Iranian demands for at least a partial lifting of the conventional arms embargo as part of any deal. That's something Washington opposes - and an issue Zarif appeared to touch on in his comments to Iranian state television. Beyond “witnessing a change of stances” from the other side, Zarif noted a “different stand” on some issues among the six nations. “This situation has made the work difficult,” he said. Kerry had warned on Thursday that the Americans were ready to leave, declaring “we can’t wait forever for a decision to be made.” Zarif, in contrast, said his side was ready to stay and work for a “dignified and balanced deal.”Even jokes meant to dispel tensions reflected the raw nerves after two weeks straight at the negotiating table, relieved only by brief breathers on the balcony of the ornate manor-turned-hotel venue for the talks. “We’re pushing,” said Kerry when asked if there would be a deal this weekend. “Off the balcony,” quipped Federica Mogherini, the top EU diplomat convening the talks, prompting a smile and a wave of the finger from Kerry. The scope of access to U.N. inspectors monitoring Iran’s nuclear program remains one of the sticking points. The Americans want no restrictions, whereas Iranian officials say they are concerned that unrestricted monitoring could be a cover for Western spying. Diplomats say Iran’s negotiators have signaled a willingness to compromise on the issue, but hardliners in Iran remain opposed to broad U.N. inspections. In a message directed to “negotiators on both sides,” Iran’s military spokesman, Gen. Masoud Jazayeri, told Iran’s Fars news agency that “access to the military sites will not be allowed under any circumstance.” Anti-American sentiment remains strong in the country, though Iranians overwhelmingly welcomed the preliminary accord in April. On Friday, tens of thousands of Iranians taking part in an annual pro-Palestinian rally marched in Tehran, chanting "Down with America" and “Death to Israel.”
An Iranian clergyman chants slogan in an annual pro-Palestinian rally marking Al-Quds (Jerusalem) Day at the Enqelab-e-Eslami (Islamic Revolution) St. in Tehran, Iran, Friday, July 10, 2015 (AP)

U.S. seeks U.N. action on chemical attacks in Syria
By Staff writer | Al Arabiya News
Friday, 10 July 2015
The United States submitted a draft resolution to the Security Council on Saturday in aim to set up an investigative body that would identify those behind chemical weapons attacks in Syria and bring them to justice. The investigative mechanism would be a joint program between the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and the United Nations, Al Arabiya News Channels’s correspondent in New York reported. The United States has been promoting Security Council action to assess blame for an increasing number of alleged chlorine attacks, and Russia’s U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said last month that the council should look at the best way to ensure that the people allegedly responsible for chlorine attacks are brought before a court. The OPCW, the global chemical weapons watchdog based in The Hague, Netherlands, has a mandate to carry out fact-finding missions and has condemned the use of chlorine in Syria as a breach of international law, the Associated Press reported. But neither the OPCW nor the United Nations have a mandate to determine responsibility for the use of chemical weapons. “Given the frequent allegations of chlorine attacks in Syria, and the absence of any international body to identify the perpetrators of chemical weapons attacks, it is critical that the U.N. Security Council find consensus and set up an independent investigative mechanism,” U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power office said in an emailed statement. The draft resolution asks U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, in coordination with OPCW Director-General Ahmet Uzumcu, to submit to the council within 15 days recommendations to establish an “OPCW-United Nations Joint Investigative Mechanism.” It says this investigative body will identify “entities, groups or governments who were perpetrators, organizers, sponsors or otherwise involved in use of chemical weapons” in Syria in instances where an OPCW fact-finding mission has determined that an incident involved or likely involved the use of chemical weapons. The draft resolution reiterates that Syria is banned from using or retaining chemical weapons and that “no party in Syria” should use or acquire such weapons. It expresses the council’s determination “to identify those responsible for these acts.” And it reiterates “that those individuals, entities, groups or governments responsible for any use of chemicals as weapons, including chlorine or any other toxic chemical, must be held accountable.”While Russia and the United States have failed to agree on a way to end the Syrian conflict, now in its fifth year, they have agreed in the past on eliminating its chemical weapons stockpile. Council diplomats said Russian and American diplomats discussed the text of the new resolution before it was circulated. Following a chemical weapon attack on a Damascus suburb that killed hundreds of civilians on Aug. 21, 2013 a U.S.-Russian agreement led to a Security Council resolution the following month ordering the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons, precursors, and the equipment to produce the deadly agents. The Syrian government’s support for the resolution and decision to join the OPCW warded off possible U.S. military strikes in the aftermath of the Aug. 21 attack, which Damascus denied carrying out. While Syria’s declared stockpile of 1,300 metric tons of chemicals has been destroyed, there are still outstanding questions about possible undeclared chemical weapons that the OPCW is still investigating. Chlorine is not a banned agent used in chemical weapons, like sarin or ricin. But it is toxic and its use in attacks in Syria started being reported last year. In March, the Security Council approved a U.S.-drafted resolution that condemns the use of toxic chemicals such as chlorine in Syria, and threatens further measures including sanctions in the case of violations.[With AP]

Turkey arrests 21 suspected ISIS members in raid
By AFP | Istanbul/Friday, 10 July 2015/Turkey on Friday detained 21 suspected members of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group, including three foreigners, in a major operation in several cities including Istanbul, state media said. The suspects, who were arrested in pre-dawn raids, are suspected of helping the militant group recruit people from Europe, the official Anatolia news agency said.

Saudi Arabia’s former FM Prince Saud Al-Faisal dies at 75
Prince Saud was the world's longest-serving foreign minister with 40 years of service
Riyadh, Asharq Al-Awsat—Saudi Arabia’s former Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal passed away on Thursday, two months after he retired following 40 years of service. “Prince Saud Bin Faisal Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud passed into God’s mercy in the United States on Thursday. The Saudi people, Arab and Islamic nations, and entire world knew Prince Saud over five decades he spent serving his homeland and religion with all devotion and sincerity. Prince Saud, may he rest in peace, sacrificed his health in the service of his nation to achieve the objectives of his leadership and the Saudi people,” a royal court statement said. Prince Saud was the world’s longest-serving foreign minister. His tenure lasted for 40 years until he was replaced by Adel Al-Jubeir on April 29, 2015. Born in 1940 in Taif, Prince Saud was the second son of King Faisal Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. He graduated from Princeton University with a bachelor degree in economics in 1964. He held several positions at the Ministry of Petroleum before he moved to the general organization for petroleum and mineral resources. In 1970 Prince Saud was appointed as deputy minister of petroleum. In 1975, King Khalid Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud issued a royal decree appointing Prince Saud as the Minister of Foreign Affairs, succeeding his late father who held the foreign portfolio in addition to his duties as the monarch of Saudi Arabia. In appreciation of his political influence and patriotic role, Prince Saud was appointed as a minister of state, a member of the council of ministers, adviser and special envoy of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and overseer of foreign affairs by King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud earlier this year. Fluent in seven languages, in addition to Arabic, the veteran diplomat was well-read and gained the respect of world leaders and politicians who often described him as a tireless defender of the rights of Muslims and Arabs. In January he traveled to the US where he underwent a successful back surgery. He returned to the Kingdom in March to resume his duties. Despite his long years of service, Prince Saud requested in April that he be relieved of his post due to health issues. Funeral prayers for Prince Saud are set to be held at the Grand Mosque of Mecca after evening prayers on Saturday, according to the royal court.

UN declares humanitarian truce in Yemen amid doubts over rebels’ commitment
July 9, 2015. (REUTERS/Stringer)/Riyadh and Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—The United Nations said that Yemen’s warring factions on Thursday accepted a truce to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians amid doubts by the government loyalists over Houthis’ commitment. The UN has said it expects an unconditional humanitarian truce will begin in Yemen on Friday, lasting until the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on July 17th. “The Secretary-General [Ban Ki-moon] looks forward to the commitments of all parties to the conflict in Yemen to an unconditional humanitarian pause to start on Friday … until the end of Ramadan,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Thursday. Yemen descended into crisis after Houthi militants, backed by Iran, overran the capital Sana’a in September, prompting the internationally recognized President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi to flee to Aden and then to the Saudi capital Riyadh. In response to a call for intervention by Hadi, Saudi Arabia began an aerial campaign in Yemen in late March to drive back the Houthis and restore the beleaguered president to power. A five-day humanitarian ceasefire, proposed by the Saudi-led coalition, took place in Yemen in May. Riyadh Yassin, Yemen’s Foreign Minister, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the truce the UN declared “had been called for by the [international organization] rather than the Yemeni government.” Yassin urged “warring factions on the ground, particularly the Houthis and their allies, to comply with the truce and refrain from obstructing the ceasefire [efforts].” Hadi and Saudi Arabia accuse Yemen’s powerful former president Ali Abdullah Saleh of colluding with the Houthis who control large parts of the country. The FM said he doubted the truce would be honored by the Houthis and Saleh’s followers, arguing that they gave “unclear” guarantees to the UN Envoy to Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed. “Today [Thursday] there was shelling with Katyusha rockets on the cities of Aden and Taiz by the Houthi militia and the followers of the ousted former president Saleh,” he said, adding that “the Popular Resistance is set to defend its lands.” While the Saudi-led coalition has been targeting the Houthis from the air, pro-Hadi forces, known as the Popular Resistance, have engaged the rebels on the ground. The exiled foreign minister said his government was not against a humanitarian pause in Yemen, but worried that the Houthis would take advantage of the truce to extend their reach. The seven-day truce “could be extended if the Houthis and their allies showed seriousness,” Yassin added. Pro-Hadi forces in Aden warned that unless the Houthis withdrew from the strategic city, they would not comply with the truce. “The resistance’s demand is that the aggressors withdraw completely [from the city],” Ali Al-Ahmadi, a spokesman for the Popular Resistance force, said, referring to the Houthi militants. Representatives of the tribes that support Hadi’s government said they would rather continue fighting than accept a truce that could result in more gains for the Houthis. A senior tribal figure in the southern Shabwa province said: “Tribes are capable of holding out against Houthi insurgents and Saleh’s followers and they have won several battles, arresting hundreds of [insurgents].” Meanwhile, informed sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Houthis and their allies plan to recruit more volunteers from the northern governorates as they intend to advance towards the strategic Ma’rib province.Ma’rib is the country’s main oil and gas hub, and provides Yemen—the poorest country in the Arabian peninsula—with the bulk of its electricity and a sizable portion of its income. Additional reporting contributed by Arafat Madabish from Sana’a.

Iconic Egyptian actor Omar al-Sharif dies
By Staff writer, Al Arabiya News/Friday, 10 July 2015/Egypt’s cinematic icon Omar al-Sharif, known to his Western audience for roles in Hollywood epics Doctor Zhivago and Lawrence of Arabia, passed away on Friday at the age of 83, Al Arabiya News Channel’s correspondent reported. Sharif’s grandson reportedly posted a picture on his Facebook account on Friday with a message of condolence in Arabic. Sharif’s longtime agent, Steve Kenis, told The Associated Press that Sharif died of a heart attack in a Cairo hospital. Sharif had been suffering from Alzheimers. Famed Egyptian actress Yusra told the local Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper that she spoke to Sharif's son to verify news of his father’s death. She expressed her sadness over Sharif's demise, saying it was a “big loss.”In mid-May, his son, Tarek, told Spanish newspaper El Mundo that his father, who skyrocketed to fame in 1962 following his supporting role as the princely Sherif Ali in Lawrence of Arabia, has been suffering of Alzheimer for the past three years. Egyptian actor Omar Sharif is seen with his wife, actress Faten Hamama, and their eight-year-old son, Tarek, as they get together for New Year's Eve celebration in Madrid, Spain, on Dec. 31, 1965. (File: AP) Tarek said his father also renowned bridge player was aware of whom he was, but when fans approached him he had a hard time understanding why. Sharif married the famous Egyptian actress Faten Hamama, known as “Lady of the Arab Screen,” but divorced in 1974.
Before converting to Islam to marry Hamama, Sharif was born as Michel Demetri Chalhoub in Alexandria to a Catholic family. Despite the divorce, Sharif maintained that Hamama was the love of his life. The star never remarried.
His films include Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Doctor Zhivago (1965) and Funny Girl (1968). He has been nominated for an Academy Award and has won three Golden Globe Awards. Actor Omar Sharif, in movie based on Boris Pasternak' s "Doctor Zhivago". November 1965, location unknown. (File: AP) Sharif also appeared in the films “Che!” and “The Pink Panther Strikes Again.” “Lawrence of Arabia” earned Sharif a supporting-actor Oscar nomination and international stardom.

US-Israeli-Egyptian mobile sensor-fence projects to block further ISIS Mid East expansion
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report July 10, 2015
US counter-terror experts are overseeing a lightning operation for setting up mobile sensor towers and electronic fences in Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan and Israel in a desperate bid to seal their borders off against the fast-moving impetus of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – ISIS, or at least slow it down. This reign of terror is spreading out from Iraq and Syria and creeping into southern Jordan, the Israeli Negev, and Egyptian Sinai, then on to Libya and over to Tunisia and Algeria, covering a distance of 4,000 km.
When President Abdel-Fatteh El-Sisi saw his army had not repelled the ISIS Sinai affiliate’s offensive in North Sinai as it went into its second week – controlling only the main highway from El Arish to Cairo via Bardawil Lake - he turned to Washington with an urgent request to ship over mobile surveillance sensor towers and American crews to operate them. His plan is to string them across the Sinai Peninsula and along Egypt’s borders with Libya and Sudan in a last-chance bid to block the constant influx of reinforcements and weapons to ISIS fighters reaching Sinai from Libya, through the Egyptian borde,r and from Iraq, through southern Jordan and the Israeli Negev.
The State Department acceded to the Egyptian request and has submitted the application worth $100 million for congressional approval. The application states: “This procurement is intended for Egyptian Border Guard Forces, which currently lack any remote detection capability along unpatrolled areas of Egypt’s borders.” Libya, Sudan and Sinai are specified. The application goes on to explain: “The system would provide an early warning capability to allow for faster response times to mitigate threats to the border guards and the civilian population.”debkafile’s counter-terror and intelligence sources disclose that Egypt already has one set of American mobile sensor towers. They were installed on the 193 km long banks of the Suez Canal more than a year ago and have kept ISIS terrorists from reaching those banks and firing missiles at passing ships to block the waterway, like the RPG attack of Sept. 5, 2013. The sensor towers have proved effective so long as the various terrorist groups, such as ISIS, were deterred from directly attacking American facilities by tactical considerations of their own, such as a preference for those systems rather than a large-scale army forces to police the Suez zone, which would physically impede the convoys carrying men and arms from Libya into Egypt. The drivers of these convoys stop over at Suez and Port Suez to rest up before carrying on with the long drive to their destinations in Sinai. Scattering the mobile sensor towers in areas unpatrolled by Egyptian troops would expose the American operators to ISIS attacks and abductions. So while solving one problem, they may well generate another. In any case they won’t make the ISIS threat go away. Whereas Egypt asked for mobile sensors, Tunisia is to have a new, permanent fence with electronic warning stations along its route. Our counter-terror experts point out that, however effective this system is, it can’t promise Tunisia hermetic protection against terrorist encroachment.
ISIS has at least two ways of getting around the fence barrier:
1. Landing by sea. The gunman who massacred 39 tourists on the Soussa beach on June 26 landed from the Mediterranean by speedboat.
2. Circumventing the fence through the meeting point of the Tunisian-Libyan-Algerian borders. That point will not be enclosed. Tunisia may be reached through western Algeria where the border is wide open.
The second electronic fence the United States is providing will run down 30 km of the border between Israel and Jordan from Timna to Eilat. It is a joint project, which has become necessary to curb ISIS movements from southern Jordan through the Israeli Negev and onto Egyptian Sinai and the Gaza Strip.

As Iran talks continue in Vienna, Israel, US flags, burn in streets of Tehran
By JPOST.COM STAFF/07/10/2015/
As world powers in Vienna continued talks with Iran over its nuclear program for the fifteenth straight day, demonstrators took to the streets in the Islamic Republic Friday in anti-Israel protests.
Millions of Iranians took part in the protests in "cities across the country" to mark International Quds (Jerusalem) Day, Iran's Fars news agency reported. Iranian protesters burned Israeli, American, Saudi Arabian, and British flags in Tehran to mark the day.
Protesters carried placards and chanted "Down with the US" and "Down with Israel," Fars reported. Quds day – initiated in 1979 by the Islamic Republic’s founder Ayatollah Khomeini – is an annual event of fiery anti-Israel protests in Iran held on the last Friday of Ramadan. Ayatollah Mohammad Taqi Vaezi, one of some 80 members of Iran’s Assembly of Experts that is a supervisory body around Iran’s Supreme Leader, was quoted Wednesday as saying that shouting the “Death to the Zionist regime” chant prevents Israeli “aggression.” Earlier in the week, Iran’s Foreign Ministry, according to the The Islamic Republic News Agency, issued a statement to mark the coming day, saying that the “restoration of lasting peace and tranquility in the Middle East can be attained through full observance of legitimate rights of oppressed Palestinian nation.”
Nuclear talks
Iran's foreign minister said on Friday that talks between Iran and the six major powers had made some progress but were likely to continue during the weekend. "Some progress has been made but we are not there yet ... I doubt it will happen today ... it seems that we are going to spend the weekend in Vienna," Mohammad Javad Zarif told reporters. Despite the ups and downs and missed deadlines in the nuclear talks , Jerusalem believes the the world powers will soon sign an agreement with Iran, paving its way to a bomb, senior officials in the Prime Minister's Office said on Thursday. US Secretary of State John Kerry said Thursday that the US is“absolutely prepared to call an end” to negotiations with Iran if Tehran does not make a series of “tough” political choices, quickly.
But the US is not walking out yet, after blowing through its third deadline for those talks in just two weeks. Kerry said that neither he, nor President Barack Obama, nor their allies in the P5+1 powers (Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany) are willing to rush to complete a nuclear deal that would face a “test for decades.” **Herb Keinon, Michael Wilner and Reuters contributed to this report.

Analysis: Israel wants to avoid giving Hamas a bartering chip at all costs
By YOSSI MELMAN/J.Post/07/09/2015/Once again the Israeli security establishment proved how it disregards the right of the public to know. But the scandalous efforts to prevent the publication of the case of Avera Mengistu, the young Israeli of Ethiopian origins that voluntarily infiltrated Gaza by climbing over the border fence, is nothing compared to the way the government treated his family and the entire Israeli Ethiopian community. The family claims they were threatened by the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) and police officers not to talk to the media about the fate of their son. It turned out that they were rarely briefed by the authorities who were handling the case and that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu bothered only Wednesday to call them. The strong feeling is that if the skin color of the missing Israelis would have been paler or had he come from a different socioeconomic class, the security apparatus would have treated the case with less indifference and with more care and consideration. It is true that the government and the military establishment have set an important goal to deprive Hamas of having "assets" and "bargaining chips" in order to reduce the price Israel would have to pay for the release of Mengistu and another Israeli of Arab origins who also infiltrated into Gaza and is missing. The government wants to prevent the repetition of past prisoner swaps such as the 1985 Jibril swap, the 2004 swap for Colonel (res) Elchanan Tenenboim, who was lured to a drug deal and kidnapped by Hezbollah, and more recently the Gilad Schalit case with Hamas. On all these occasions, and others, the government found itself pressured by the public, families and lubricated PR campaigns, eventually caving in to both the domestic pressure and to the other side.
This conduct by the security establishment is rooted in a new obsession that began in the last Gaza war.

Hamas official: 'No negotiations regarding possible swap for missing Israelis'
By JPOST.COM STAFF/07/10/2015/A senior Hamas figure on Friday said that the Islamist organization has not been involved with any negotiations concerning two Israeli citizens said to be currently held captive in Gaza, Maan news reported Friday.
"Israel must pay for everything," said Hamas official Ismail Radwan, who did not confirm the presence of the two Israeli nationals in Gaza, but who claimed that his organization would only broach the subject if Jerusalem first agrees to release Palestinians who have been rearrested in previous prisoner swaps. Radwan referred to 73 Hamas linked militants released as part of the 2011 Gilad Shalit deal, who have been taken back into Israeli custody since. On Thursday, a gag-order over the two the disappearances of the two men was lifted, revealing that they both of had histories of mental illness, and that they were believed to have crossed into the Gaza strip last year. In response, Hamas issued a statement explaining that they had released one of the men, Avraham Mengistu, after interrogating him, a claim that the defense establishment has rejected as an attempt by Hamas to dodge responsibility for the man’s welfare. On September 7, 2014, Mengistu, 29, from Ashkelon, crossed into the northern Gaza Strip, climbing over the barrier near the Mediterranean Coast. Soldiers arriving on the scene called on Mengistu to make his way back towards Israeli territory, yet Mengistu apparently ignored them and continued moving into the Hamas-run enclave. The second incident, which occurred separately, involved an unidentified Beduin man whose family suggested had crossed into Gaza before. "He crossed the border once to Jordan, once to Egypt and once to Gaza - in February 2010 - and in all three cases he was returned to the family. The fourth time he must have entered Gaza again and didn't return."
"I hope that he is in Gaza again and that he will come back to us in peace," the relative added. "He is mentally ill and this is not the first time he's gone missing."

What Politicians Say vs. What People Can See
Douglas Murray/Gatestone Institute
July 10, 2015 at 5:00 am
http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/6137/politicians-isis-islamic
Throughout a bombing-and-murder campaign lasting three decades, the BBC never referred to the Irish Republican Army (IRA) as the "so-called IRA." If you flatten ISIS's military, the strong-horse appeal of ISIS would simply go away. If there is nothing to join, no one can join it. Cameron's and Obama's tactic is to deny something that Muslims and non-Muslims can easily see and find out for themselves: that ISIS has a lot to do with Islam -- the worst possible version, obviously, for Muslims and non-Muslims alike, but a version of Islam nevertheless. A few days after the massacre of 30 British subjects on a Tunisian beach, the UK Prime Minister, David Cameron, used an interview on the BBC to berate the broadcaster and others for using the term "Islamic State." Mr. Cameron's suggestion was that the broadcaster should either refer to the "so-called Islamic State," use the acronym "ISIL," or adopt the Arabic term, "Daesh." None of these suggestions is workable. The Irish Republican Army (IRA) was never the "army" of the Irish Republic. It was instead a group of sectarian terrorists who claimed to fight for a community that was largely disgusted by their actions. Yet throughout a bombing and murder campaign lasting three decades, the BBC never referred to the IRA as the "so-called IRA." The group called itself the IRA, and so broadcasters and others referred to it as such. One might wish to call such groups all sorts of things, but calling by the name its leaders adopt is the easiest option of presenting the facts and not getting bogged down in nomenclature.
The Prime Minister's other suggestions -- that the Islamic State should either be called "ISIL" or "Daesh" -- are equally doomed to failure. For ISIL of course simply means "Islamic State of Iraq and Levant," while "Daesh" is effectively an Arabic acronym of the same. If the aim of all this wordplay is that the general public dissociate "Islamic State" from Islam, there seems little hope that this will much help to break the connection. After all, what if someone -- anyone -- asks what ISIL or Daesh stand for? What should people then say in response? Of course, the problem that the Prime Minister got into on this occasion is the same problem he and all other world leaders get into whenever they adopt the "Islam is a religion of peace" line. What they are perfectly understandably trying to do is to disentangle more than a billion Muslims worldwide (and specifically the tens of millions of Muslims in Western democracies) from the violent jihadists in their religion. At the same time, they -- again understandably -- hope to give the message to their non-Muslim publics that they should not blame Muslims everywhere for the actions of this violent minority.
This is a laudable aim, but it is doomed to failure because members of the public no longer rely on either politicians or the mainstream media as their only sources of information or news. They can perfectly well get on the internet and find things out for themselves, and it is in this growing gulf between what politicians say and what the general public can perfectly easily find out for itself that a real long-term danger could emerge.
Why won't the public believe them when they explain that the "so-called Islamic State" has nothing to do with Islam? Pictured left, UK Prime Minister David Cameron. At right, US President Barack Obama.
All this is really a reminder that if we are in a war with ISIS, it is one in which we are performing very badly. Consider something said by Mr. Cameron's American counterpart a week after Cameron's statement. President Barack Obama gave a press conference at the Pentagon in which he, too, discussed the group that must not be named. On this occasion, the President said that the fight against ISIS was "not simply a military effort," and went on to say, "Ideologies are not defeated with guns, they are defeated by better ideas, a more attractive and more compelling vision."
Of course suggesting that there are many people who think a military solution alone can solve the ISIS problem is to create a straw man argument. But it is surely almost undeniable that the best thing on ISIS's side at the moment (and the cause of their current recruitment drive) is that they are seen to be not only on the offensive but on the way up -- gaining ground both figuratively and literally. When they take over whole cities in what used to be Syria or Iraq, radicalized young men and women from across the world, who might have been vacillating on whether or not to jump on board with the group, get galvanized in its direction. But if you flatten ISIS's military, the strong-horse appeal of ISIS would simply go away. If there is nothing to join, no one can join it.
President Obama is right to say that no ideology can be destroyed on the battlefield alone. The destruction of Nazi fascism in the 1940s was completed not only by its wholesale military defeat but by the world's awareness of the evil of the Nazi ideology and its wholesale moral and ethical failure. If the destruction of ISIS's ideology is to be complete, this too will have to be understood. But the U.S. and its allies ought to be wondering what is going wrong here. Although the numbers of citizens we are losing to ISIS constitute only tiny pockets of our own societies (if larger numbers across the Middle East and North Africa), we ought to consider how we are even losing people in ones and twos in a public relations war with this group.
While the Nazis tried to hide their worst crimes from the world, the followers of ISIS repeatedly record and distribute video footage of theirs. Between free and open democratic societies, and a society which beheads women for witchcraft, throws suspected gays off buildings, beheads other Muslims and Christians, burns people alive, and does us the favour of video-recording these atrocities and sending them round the globe for us, you would have thought that there would be no moral competition. But there is. And that is not because ISIS has "better ideas, a more attractive and more compelling vision," but because its appeal comes from a specific ideological-religious worldview that we cannot hope to defeat if we refuse to understand it. That is why David Cameron's interjection was so important. The strategy Barack Obama and he seem to be hoping will work in persuading the general public that ISIS has nothing to do with Islam is the same tactic they are adopting in the hope of persuading young Muslims not to join ISIS. Their tactic is to try to deny something that Muslims and non-Muslims can easily see and find out for themselves: that ISIS has a lot to do with Islam -- the worst possible version, obviously, for Muslims and non-Muslims alike, but a version of Islam nevertheless. ISIS can destroy its own credibility among advocates of human rights and liberal democracy. The question is how you destroy its credibility among people who want to be very Islamic, and think ISIS is their way of being so. Understand their claims and their appeal, and work out a way to undermine those, and ISIS will prove defeatable not only on the battlefield but in the field of ideas as well. But refuse to acknowledge what drives them, or from where they claim to get their legitimacy, and the problem will only have just started.

Greece and the Return of Ideology
Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat
Friday, 10 Jul, 2015
Ever since the Soviet Empire collapsed, a mantra of Western political analysis has been “the death of ideology.”
The argument is that, having experimented with a variety of ideologies, from nationalism to Fascism and Nazism and, more recently, Khomeinism, mankind has concluded that trying to organize and regulate its life based on ideological tenets is dangerous in the short-run and deadly in the long-run.
But what if ur-ideology is making a comeback in new forms, indicating that organizing human life, solely on the basis of rationality, may not be as easy as we thought a decade ago?
By the 1980s it was generally assumed that “Red” China had moved away from Communist ideology, preferring the delights of get-rich-quick capitalism. In the past few years, however, the new and far more prosperous People’s Republic has been groping in the dark for new ideological self-expression. President Xi Jinping and his team seem to have found it in a mixture of Maoist sentimentalism, nationalist ambitions, and Confucian shibboleths.
The People’s Republic is flexing its military muscles, trying to build a blue-water navy, grabbing atolls where it can, and putting old anti-American and anti-Japanese themes back into circulation. Through the so-called Shanghai Group, it is also hoping to build a new alliance capable of filling part of the gap left by the American strategic retreat under Barack Obama.
In Russia, President Vladimir Putin is experimenting with a different version of the same recipe.
He has invaded and annexed large chunks of territory in neighboring Georgia and Ukraine, increased the military budget by a whopping 20 percent, and revived some of the old themes of the Cold War. His ideological cocktail contains a variety of ingredients, some contradictory, including Orthodox Christianity, Leninism, Slavophilia (of the type developed by Khomiakov), and modernization as defined by Herzen and Belinsky.
Countries still trying to absorb the aftershocks of the “Arab Spring” are also looking for new forms of ideological self-expression. The Islamist version has been discredited because of horrors committed by Khomeinists, the Taliban, Al-Qaeda, and, more recently, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). That leaves pan-Arabism and a range of dusted-on-shelf leftist narratives.
It is not only so-called developing nations and emerging powers that are afflicted by this new thirst for ideology.
Today, the political discourse in Japan echoes the pre-war melodramatic narrative of fear and hubris at the expense of the democratic and liberal discourse of the post-war decades.
In many European countries, ideologies of both right and left are making a comeback.
Under a radical right-wing leadership, Hungary today is the mirror image of what it was under Communist rule.
In much of Western Europe, radical right parties are making an impression they couldn’t dream of a generation ago.
In Britain’s recent general election almost 4 million people voted for a rightist nationalist party.
In France, the prospect of an extreme right candidate winning the presidency in two years’ time is no longer regarded as a bad joke.
In the United States, part of Obama’s “success” is due to a dose of leftist ideology. His attempt at nationalizing the health service, some 15 percent of the US economy, his increase of the minimum wage, and his passionate defense of gay and lesbian marriages are due, at least in part, to his determination to move the US as far from the “old system” as possible. His normalization with Castrist Cuba and the Khomeinist regime in Iran is designed to give the two fingers to “American imperialism.”
Today, the most spectacular return of ideology can be witnessed in Greece where a coalition of radical left and radical right offers a cocktail of xenophobia, class warfare, raw nationalism, and utopianism.
Sadly, the outside world including Greece’s partners in the Eurozone insist on analyzing the crisis in technocratic rather than ideological terms.
It may shock experts but I believe that economic issues are not the cause but the effect of the Greek crisis.
Much is said about the need to write off the Greek debt, which is equivalent to 1.8 years of its GDP. However, the issue of debt repayment does not kick in until 2025 and, for part of it, until 2060. Leaving aside the problem of short-term liquidity, none of Greece’s banks are in danger of collapsing as was the case with Irish, Spanish, and Portuguese banks.
There is also no material reason for Greeks to be angry at the European Union. Since it joined the European Community, now the European Union, Greece has benefited from almost a trillion dollars in aid and direct investment. The whole of Greece is dotted with plaques claiming projects financed by the EU.
Many Greeks resent the status of their country as a bit player in a grand European piece dominated by giants such as Germany, France, and Great Britain. They resent that the EU and its central bank dictate their economic policy, a resentment shared by many in other member countries.
The nationalist and socialist discourse of the radical left–radical right coalition government in Athens also contains echoes of anti-colonial and anti-imperialist themes popular in the so-called Third World in the 1960s and 1970s. Throughout 1970s and 1980s Greece was a hotbed of anti-West, especially anti-NATO, activities including terrorist operations.
Greece owes its creation as a state to European schemes against the Ottoman Empire in decline in the 19th century. When Greek independence was declared in 1830, the British wrote its first constitution and provided the money needed to get it going. Greece was formally established as a new state in the London Hellenic Conference of 1832. Bavaria provided the new country’s king, the 17-year-old Prince Otto, who didn’t speak a word of Greek and, worse still, who was a Catholic while most Greeks are Orthodox. (At that time Germany did not exist as a state but various German principalities contributed to the creation of Greece.) After that, princes from various German and Danish royal families reigned in Greece.
British, French, and German scholars also helped establish, and codify, modern Greek as a language and link it with ancient Greek, which 19th-century Greeks could not understand.
Today, Greece is craving for self-affirmation as master of its destiny and not a pawn of European empires against the Ottomans or an extra in a European Union led by Germany.
The crisis is psycho-political rather than economic, reflecting the return of ideology as a matrix for national policies. This new ideological craze will not last long. But while it is there, it would be wise to take it seriously and deal with it in an intelligent way.

The Rapid Spread of ISIS
Mshari Al-Zaydi/Asharq Al awsat
Thursday,10July 2015
One of the differences between Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) lies in the way members join each of these ultra-radical groups.
Those wishing to join Al-Qaeda are often exposed for a long period of time to the writings of the group’s ideologues. The process would take several years before recruits are no longer content with the mission of merely calling for “jihad.”
However, with ISIS recruitment is much easier—but more dangerous. An ISIS member could be someone who had no Islamist links weeks or even a few days before joining the radical group. An ISIS recruit could be a normal youth who supports, say, Real Madrid or FC Barcelona, or a fan of pop stars. Such recruits usually go unnoticed by state security until they detonate themselves or engage in a shooting spree, taking by surprise official bodies who fail to predict their activities, particularly what they say on social media.
Two such examples are Seifeddine Rezgui, the Tunisian criminal who carried out the Sousse beach massacre, and Fahd Suleiman Abdul Mohsen Al-Qaba’a, the 23-year-old Saudi national who attacked the Imam Al-Sadiq Mosque in Kuwait.
Rafik Chelli, senior Tunisian security official, said the perpetrator of the Sousse attack was a university student who “had no criminal record.” The Saudi Interior Ministry said in a statement that Qaba’a was born in 1992 and was not previously involved in any terror-related activities.
This means that ISIS poses a hidden danger whose elimination requires from all those concerned, whether governmental or civilian organizations, in Muslim and non-Muslim countries to take preemptive measures against potential ISIS members.
How can this be achieved while these murderers continue to escape the state radar?
One solution is to split potential murderers into two groups: those under state surveillance, and those who have escaped the state radar. As for the former group, governments should step up monitoring and restrictions on their movements.
One way of dealing with the latter group may be to increase the online monitoring of the writings and activities of the ideologues of terrorist groups, such as Al-Qaeda, ISIS, and the Al-Nusra Front, in addition to holding those authors accountable. While this would not completely eliminate the spread of ISIS and Al-Qaeda and their culture of killing and takfirism (declaring people infidels), it would swiftly and firmly counter the threats they pose.
ISIS poses a threat to the entire world and thus could be one of the rare causes that lead to the unification of global policies.
Every day that passes without encircling the culture that has produced ISIS and Al-Qaeda brings the world a step closer to annihilation.

Prince Saud al-Faisal’s legacy lives on in Saudi foreign policy
Andrew Bowen/Al Arabiya
Friday, 10 July 2015
In his decades-long service, Prince Saud al-Faisal represented the hallmarks of Riyadh’s wise and pragmatic leadership in foreign policymaking. He played a critical role in diplomatically navigating this turbulent and changing region and cultivated the kingdom’s relations with key global powers including the U.S., China, and India. Prince Saud importantly made a deep impact on the broader Muslim world through his work in helping lead the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
When Prince Saud stepped down as foreign minister this past April, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry noted, “I will continue to seek his counsel and value his friendship, forged over many hours spent discussing the challenges our nations face. Prince Saud has not just been the planet’s longest-serving foreign minister but also among the wisest. He worked with 12 of my predecessors as U.S. Secretaries of State, and was universally admired.” As a senior counsel to King Salman after retiring, his wisdom and experience continued to help guide the kingdom’s judicious navigation of regional and international security challenges including, Yemen, Iran, and Syria, and Riyadh’s engagement with the U.S.
A critical advocate for peace
Prince Saud assumed his role as foreign minister in 1975 during a period of great regional turbulence after the October War of 1973 and one that would shape his tenure as foreign minister. In a speech in front of the U.N. General Assembly in September 2014, he implored, “the Arab-Israeli conflict has overshadowed and dominated all other issues in the past six decades. No regional crisis has greater potential to affect other regional conflicts or world peace than this conflict.”
Prince Saud also served as a critical partner in countering violent extremism globally and stood with the U.S. after the September 11 terrorist attacks
A critical advocate of the Arab Peace Initiative of 2002, the late foreign minister sought to secure a just and sustainable end to this crisis. “Unfortunately, all efforts up to the present have concentrated on partial and piecemeal steps that achieved little, or unilateral measures that have only resulted in worsening the suffering of the Palestinian people,” the prince stressed.
A strong partner
Prince Saud also served as a critical partner in countering violent extremism globally and stood with the U.S. after the September 11 terrorist attacks. In a 2002 interview on PBS’ “Frontline,” the foreign minister, stressed “we had problems with al-Qaeda before 9/11, as a matter of fact. They are pursued everywhere by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”
Emphasizing partnership to confront these challenges, which is salient today as the U.S. and Saudi Arabia confront ISIS, in a 2004 address to the Council on Foreign Relations, in New York, Prince Saud, noted, “In the struggle against these evils, we must be partners, who, sharing the same objectives, are still able to recognize and allow for diversity. We must not fight the wrong battle; our quarrel is not with each other. Let us join forces instead against the uncivilized, the criminal, and the unjust.” Even at times when the prince disagreed with President Bush’s decision to intervene in Iraq in 2003, the Foreign Minister sought to work with the U.S. after 2003 in securing Iraq’s future.
Strengthening Gulf unity to confront common challenges
Prince Saud was also a long-time advocate for unity amongst the Gulf States to address common security challenges, notably Iran and Yemen. In a 2004 address at IISS’s Manama Dialogue in Bahrain, Prince Saud stressed, “All GCC countries need to realize that their individual and collective interests are best served by developing a clear and unified economic and security strategy and meeting the requirements of a joint and meaningful military capability as a priority,” he said. “This should in no way affect any special relationships that some or any of these countries have with others.”
A seasoned observer of Yemeni politics, the prince wisely observed that Yemen’s future and the GCC’s future are interlinked and advocated for the Kingdom’s southern neighbor to be integrated into the GCC’s security architecture. In his address to the Manama Dialogue in 2004, the foreign minister warned “the Gulf cannot be separated from the rest of the Arabian Peninsula. The geographic and demographic size of Yemen should contribute positively to the maintenance of security and stability of the region. Yemen has developed substantial and meaningful relationships with GCC countries which would undoubtedly make it easy to attain full membership in the GCC.”
In his efforts to secure Yemen’s future, earlier this April, the Prince stressed, “We came to Yemen to help the legitimate authority, which is the only party that can speak in the language used by Imam Khamenei.” A keen observer of regional politics, Prince Saud noted, “Iran’s voice has only risen after problems appeared in Yemen and it began to intervene in Yemen’s decisions.”
A careful steward of Saudi foreign policy
Despite his reservations about Iran, Prince Saud sought engagement at times and most recently, in May of 2014, he extended an invitation for Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif to visit Riyadh. He stated, “Any time that sees fit to come, we are willing to receive him. Iran is a neighbor, we have relations with them and we will negotiate with them, we will talk with them.” However, Iran’s repeated refusal to engage in serious dialogue with the GCC and its disinterest in peace led the late foreign minister to conclude Iran’s leadership isn’t committed to such a relationship. In October 2014, the foreign minister warned, “In many of these conflicts, Iran is part of the problem and not part of the solution.” He further stressed, “If Iran wants to contribute to solving the problems in Syria, it should withdraw its troops” from Yemen, Syria, and Iraq.
Prince Saud’s careful stewardship of Saudi foreign policy for four decades deeply contributed both to the long-term security and prosperity of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, but also, to the security and stability of the region. His positioning of Saudi Arabia as the leading broker in securing the end of the Arab-Israeli conflict from the 1970s further cemented the kingdom’s relationship with the U.S. and ensured that Washington needed Riyadh as a partner for peace and security in the region. His careful navigation of the U.S.-Saudi relationship during different periods, including the Gulf War of 1990, September 11, and the Iraq War of 2003, ensured that the relationship between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia endured.
With ISIS’ emergence in Iraq and Syria and Iran’s aggressive and expansive behavior in the region, his wise voice and experience will be missed as the U.S., Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Turkey, and the GCC navigate this increasingly turbulent time. His legacy and words are ones that leaders and policymakers can draw wisdom from now and in the future.

Playing with diplomacy: Obama’s fear of nuclear failure
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Al Arabiya
Friday, 10 July 2015
One of the lengthiest diplomatic negotiations, the Iranian nuclear deal seems to be never-ending. Two deadlines have already been missed in the last month. In addition, the negotiators missed the target of tonight Washington time set by the U.S. Congress. This would grant the Congress two months instead of 30 days to review any agreement. Nevertheless, it is crucial to point out that extensions or missing deadlines do not necessarily scuttle the nuclear talks or mean that the negotiations will fall apart.
With Russia and China being on the side of Tehran, the Islamic Republic’s attempts to obtain more concessions from the United States, France, and Germany are on the rise.
After almost two years of negotiations and meetings, the motive to reach a final nuclear deal has also intensified for Obama administration. While at the beginning of the talks, President Obama might have been searching for a lifetime legacy in the Middle East by sealing a nuclear deal with the Islamic Republic, currently another reason is pushing the talks- the president’s fear of his credibility being damaged if a deal is not reached.
It is evident that the current terms being negotiated will not only keep Iran’s nuclear threat intact, but will create a whole new security framework
Not reaching a nuclear deal with the Islamic Republic would be a strong blow to President Obama and the Democratic Party due to the considerable amount of political capital that has been spent on these marathon talks.
As a result, diplomacy is being played in order to keep dragging the nuclear talks into a seemingly never-ending process. In addition, Iran is good at this and at obtaining more points to its advantage. The Iranian leaders want the deal both ways.
Iran demands more: Political opportunism and the lifting of the arms embargo
In the eleventh hour, Iran has added another demand to the table: lifting the arms embargo on Iran as part of the U.N. sanctions against the Islamic Republic.
If the arms embargo is lifted, it will have severe repercussions on ratcheting up the conflict in Iraq and Syria, as Iran will gain access to more advanced weapons.
Iran’s demand in the final hours indicates that Iranian leaders are very skillful at diplomacy and realize President Obama’s weakness and desperation to seal a deal.
In addition, the Iranian negotiating team is capitalizing on the split in their opponent's teams as Russia and China are on the Iranian side when it comes to lifting the arms embargo. Iranian leaders will attempt to obtain the optimum amount of concessions without rushing to seal a deal.
With the lifting of the arms embargo, the deal will be much sweeter for the Iranians. Iranian leaders will have it both ways. After 10 years , if Iran do not cheat and if the ruling clerics honor their commitments (which the Islamic Republic does not have a good record of doing), Iran’s nuclear break-out capacity will shrink to zero, meaning Iran will be a nuclear power. Secondly, Iran will gain more advanced weaponry, the IRGC will solidify its economic power, and the government will receive billions of dollars.
Another issue is that, even if the six world powers and the Islamic Republic reach a “final” nuclear deal, the deal is not going to be final.
Both sides will not be signing the final agreement until a few months later. First, the U.S. Congress and Iranian domestic counterparts will review the agreement. Then, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will have to inspect Iran’s nuclear activities and verify the compliance with the article of the agreement. Finally, after the IAEA verified compliance, sanctions will be lifted and both sides will sign the deal.
This method also appears to be a solution not to discredit Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s redline. Khamenei previously demanded that all sanctions should be lifted upon the signing of the final agreement. While in international diplomacy, deals are first signed and then implemented, the six world powers and the Islamic Republic are reversing the process.
Will it be a good deal? Who will be the winner?
Another crucial and lingering question is whether the potential deal will be a good one, and who the primary winner or losers will be. The response to such questions depends on the terms of the deal and the lenses through which one analyzes and examines the nuclear deal.
It is crucial to point out that the winners and losers of such a deal will not be limited to the seven countries engaged in the talks. The repercussions or positive aspects of such a deal goes beyond the gilded circle. One can argue that the winners will be primarily President Obama, the Iranian government, Shiite proxies in the region, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, President Rowhani, the Syrian government, Bashar Al-Assad, as well as Western corporations and companies.
President Obama will finally have a quiet night as he will seal and achieve his awaited dream and foreign policy legacy. President Obama and his administration will also be creating the narrative that the deal is historic and a positive one for the world.
On the other hand, the easing of sanctions on Iran will create a whole array of other winners including the IRGC, office of the supreme leader, and the Quds force (an elite branch of IRGC which operates in extraterritorial landscapes).
As the economic power of the IRGC and the Quds force increases, Iran’s Shiite proxies in the region will benefit from the trickling down of these funds. Assad can be more assured that the Islamic Republic will continue supporting his government financially, economically, militarily, and through intelligence and advisory roles. Finally, non-state or state actors which will not benefit from the potential deal are those that are resisting the Shiite militias or are concerned with regards to the Iran’s hegemonic ambitions, it’s search for regional preeminence and supremacy and are worried about Iran’s attempts to tip the balance of power in its favor. The question of whether the deal will be a good or bad one depends on how and who looks at the deal. When we analyze the negotiations and terms comprehensively and meticulously, it becomes evident that the current terms being negotiated will not only keep Iran’s nuclear threat intact, but it will create a whole new security framework, geopolitical concerns and nuclear arms race in the region.

Syrian War Takes Rising Toll on Hezbollah
By Dan De Luce/Foreign Policy/July 9, 2015
As the Lebanese militia takes over the fight to save Assad’s regime, casualties are rising and so are the risks of overreach.
The powerful Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia is suffering mounting battlefield casualties in neighboring Syria, as Tehran’s most important proxy plunges ever deeper into a potential quagmire. With Hezbollah increasingly shouldering the burden of the war on behalf of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, the Lebanese militia faces the risk of overextending itself and puncturing its carefully cultivated image as an invincible fighting force, according to U.S. and Mideast officials. Hezbollah units are now spearheading the fight against opposition rebel groups while the faltering Syrian army plays a supporting role. Although the militia is highly secretive about the size of its footprint in Syria, Western officials and analysts believe it has roughly 6,000 to 8,000 fighters on the ground there. The group also refuses to discuss its losses in Syria, but the numbers are substantial and on the rise. Since Hezbollah began taking part in full-fledged combat in Syria in 2013, officials and outside analysts estimate that roughly 700 to 1,000 fighters have been killed or wounded in battle, a substantial loss for the group. The casualties in Syria could soon approach the tally from the militia’s 1985-2000 war with Israel in southern Lebanon, in which 1,248 Hezbollah fighters were killed and at least a thousand wounded.
“There’s no question the Syrian conflict is taking a toll on Hezbollah,” a U.S. intelligence official told Foreign Policy, echoing the assessments of several Mideast officials.
But the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Hezbollah remains a resilient force. The militia has built up a vast arsenal of 40,000 rockets and missiles in Lebanon, including anti-ship and Scud missiles as well as surveillance drones.
The militia’s experience in previous conflicts and “continued backing from Tehran underscore its ability to weather adversity,” the official said.
And Tehran could soon have more money and weaponry to relay to the group. If world powers and Iran clinch an agreement on the country’s disputed nuclear program, Tehran would see relief from punitive economic sanctions, which could free up more funds for the fight in Syria, analysts said.
Iran would also be able to maintain, or increase, the roughly $6 billion it sends each year to Assad.
But it was unclear Thursday if marathon negotiations on a nuclear deal would produce a final agreement. During a break in the talks in Vienna, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said that crucial issues remain unresolved and that difficult decisions have to be confronted.
“One way or the other, those decisions must be taken very soon,” Kerry said.
For now, funerals are commonplace for Hezbollah militants killed in Syria, and local papers sometimes publish death notices honoring fallen “martyrs” in the war. Pro-Hezbollah websites recently mourned the death of a militia commander, Jamil Hussein Faqih, who reportedly was killed as he led Hezbollah militants near Idlib.
The casualty toll does not represent a crippling blow for the militia, but it does underscore the rising costs of an open-ended campaign for a regime that is gradually losing ground.
“Given Assad’s setbacks, it wouldn’t be surprising if he sought to leverage Hezbollah more aggressively, particularly to stem opposition gains near key sites or regions,” the intelligence official said.
“Given Assad’s setbacks, it wouldn’t be surprising if he sought to leverage Hezbollah more aggressively, particularly to stem opposition gains near key sites or regions,” the intelligence official said.
Hezbollah initially sent out advisors to aid the Syrian army after the conflict erupted four years ago. But in June 2013, the group for the first time deployed combat forces that proved decisive in recapturing the city of al-Qusayr near Lebanon.
Initially concentrated along Syria’s border with Lebanon, Hezbollah units are now operating over an increasingly wide area, including in the northwest in Idlib and Aleppo, in the south in Daraa, and even in central and eastern areas, analysts said.
“They’ve shown up in some places pretty far afield from the Lebanese border,” said Christopher Kozak, a research analyst focusing on Hezbollah at the Institute for the Study of War.
To the militia’s followers, Hezbollah leaders have portrayed the campaign in Syria as a life-and-death defense of their bastion in Lebanon designed to prevent Sunni rebels from crossing the border to stage attacks closer to home.
Militia leaders have hailed operations over the past two months along the Qalamoun mountain range straddling the Syrian border as a success.
“We are killing terrorists, and we are protecting Lebanon and the villages in those areas from the same terrorists who are committing massacres across Iraq and Syria,” Hezbollah MP Nawwaf Moussawi told Foreign Policy in June.
But beyond Qalamoun, the results on the battlefield have been mixed.
Al-Nusra Front and other rebel groups have managed to repel offensives led by Hezbollah in Idlib, in Daraa, and near Aleppo, according to opposition activists and analysts.
bruary, Hezbollah troops tried to clear out rebels who had encircled two Shiite villages north of Aleppo, but the operation — which was overseen by Iranian Revolutionary Guard advisors — ended in defeat, said Firas Abi Ali, an analyst with the London-based IHS Country Risk group.
“The Aleppo offensive really failed,” Abi Ali said.
Seth Jones, a former advisor to the U.S. military and now with the Rand Corp. think tank, said “the regime and its proxies, including Hezbollah, have lost ground in key areas and have suffered pretty serious casualties.”
With no end in sight and the Assad regime under assault on multiple fronts, the Syrian conflict poses a potential dilemma for Hezbollah and its Iranian patrons as they try to spread their influence across the Middle East.
For Hezbollah, Syria has long served as a conduit for arms deliveries from Iran and as a buffer, providing it “strategic depth” from its arch-foe, Israel.
But the Shiite militia has to balance its need to prevent a Sunni takeover in Syria with retaining combat-ready forces in southern Lebanon to take on Israel.
And the Iranian leadership is gambling that it can emerge victorious from a grinding war in Syria while maintaining large-scale military assistance for Shiite militias in Iraq and sustaining support for other groups, including Hamas in the Palestinian territories and Houthi rebels in Yemen.
“I think that the fear of mission creep is a concern for Hezbollah,” Kozak said.
The militia has tried to pursue its military objectives in a deliberate way in Syria, hoping to avoid unnecessary losses on the battlefield, he said.
“With the kind of methodical pace that they are moving at, they recognize they can’t go full tilt and burn themselves out,” he said.
The militia this month has been concentrating combat power around Zabadani, the gateway to its heartland in southern Lebanon, partly as a hedge in case Assad falls, according to Bruce Riedel, a former CIA officer who served in the Middle East.
Losing the border town of Zabadani would be a massive setback for the militia, as the town lies along vital land routes that link up Hezbollah-controlled territory with Syria. In the past, Zabadani served as a logistical hub used to transport Iranian arms to the militia.
Iran, which backs Hezbollah as well as other Shiite foreign fighters in Syria, has doubled down on its gamble on the Syrian regime, expanding shipments of weaponry, ammunition, and other equipment.
Tehran also has deployed advisors from the country’s Revolutionary Guard force closer to the front, and some have reportedly taken charge of some operations from Syrian army officers, analysts said.
Kozak said Tehran is facing a critical choice: continue using Hezbollah to shield Assad despite the group’s losses or cut ties with its most important ally in the Arab world to preserve the militia’s influence in Lebanon and ensure it remains prepared for a potential future conflict with Israel.
“They’re running a high-risk, high-reward type of path right now,” he said. “If it gets to a point where the [Assad] regime looks like it is on its last legs, then Iran has a big decision to make.”
https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/07/09/syrian-war-takes-rising-toll-on-hezbollah/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_term=*Situation+Report&utm_campaign=SitRep0710

Iran’s revolution at 36: To be or not to be nuclear?
Mohamed Chebarro/Al Arabiya
Friday, 10 July 2015
Whether the leaders of the international community clinch a last minute deal with Iran to limit its nuclear ambition and open its sites to international monitoring is not important anymore. It is not even important whether Iran opens all its sites to inspection or only a part of them, whether this will be for ten years, fifteen or twenty years as the international community wished at the onset of the talks.
The daily noise reverberating in Vienna and the world about a breakthrough on immediate sanctions lifting is secondary, as its people and economy suffered the brunt of these sanctions for years. And it is secondary too, if those sanctions that caused so much damage and dilapidated Iran’s currency were to be lifted gradually if a deal was reached in Vienna.
Weapons and missiles sanctions
It is also not very crucial whether sanctions restricting weapons imports and/or trade are lifted immediately or those concerning missile technology.
Research and development will remain an Iranian privilege that the international community will fail to curb
For decades Iran had access to weapons and technology despite the international sanctions.
Despite the sanctions, Iran managed to extend its influence to the shores of the Mediterranean, and has pocketed Lebanon and Syria too, not to mention Iraq which is currently a pawn in Iran’s hand.
This is not all, Iran, under crippling international sanctions, established its credentials as the main broker in the Gaza strip and most Israeli towns became within reach of Hamas missiles reportedly supplied by Tehran. Yemen too, after Bahrain, is at the mercy of Iran’s policy.
Research and development
Research and development will remain an Iranian privilege that the international community will fail to curb regardless of a nuclear deal, its annexes or appendixes.
Up until now, there were no precedents in which the international regime of sanctions succeeded to curtail knowledge as the pursuit of knowledge is usually difficult to limit. This depends more on the good will of nations or groups to be transparent about their research and development programs.
Khamenei’s red lines
Irrelevant too are the red lines drawn by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He repeatedly reminded everyone inside Iran and the outside world that he bars the international verification inspector from setting foot on any military installation in his country.
Those red lines seem irrelevant today, and will be irrelevant whether Iranian nuclear sites were in University laboratories or hidden in custom made caves buried under Iran’s many mountains.
In approaching the closing days of what seems a decade long cat and mouse game between Iran and the international community about its nuclear program.
There are more questions that remain:
- Whether Iran has agreed at last to come out of its revolutionary tunnel.
- Whether or not the gradual lifting of sanctions will be coupled with more food on Iranian tables.
- Whether or not an inspection regime is set to ensure Tehran nuclear sites remain within their bounds, and that such inspectors’ visits do not overshadow a further clamp down on freedom of expression in the country.
- Whether or not the lifting of sanctions on military hardware accelerate the rearmament of an aggressive Iranian Revolutionary Guards rather than using the new found resources to retrain and educate the guards about how best to serve the citizens.
- Whether or not the clearance for research and development finds new ways to empower Iranians rather that further militarize an already volatile region.
- Whether or not the billions expected to flow back to Tehran coffers could find their way to Iranian pockets rather than to the pockets of insurgency leaders and insurgents such as the Quds brigade, Ansar Alla, Hezbollah and various militias Iran sponsor across the Middle East.
In the dying hour before reaching a deal, and my guess is that this deal is ready on the table, it is Iran that will make or break it if it came to terms with the above question.
Therefore, it is no longer important how many centrifuges Iran is likely to keep, but how ready Tehran is to cooperate as a responsible state actor on the world stage and start with a clean slate its rehabilitation process.
Regardless of the way Iran is likely to sell the deal domestically or internationally, its likely to pursue one of two clear paths, one that gradually undos the revolution that was born in 1979. The second is for the Iranian leadership to accept the deal today but empty its framework and clauses gradually so that a duplicitous game is played with the international community and the institutions guarding such deal. In opting for the second, Iran could be opting for a long term fate similar to that of North Korea, it is definitely proud nation, but a state where citizens sleep hungry.

the Iranian daily Kayhan,: The White House Will Be Destroyed In Under 10 Minutes If The U.S. Attacks Iran
July 10/15
MEMRI/On June 17, 2015, the Iranian daily Kayhan, which is affiliated with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, published an editorial praising the month of Ramadan and, in connection with this, praising also the 175 Iranian military frogmen killed in the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War whose bodies were recently brought to Iran and given a martyrs' interment.
Kayhan stated that Iran is currently in a situation similar to that of the early battles of Islam, when Muhammad won the Battle of Badr and annihilated the Jews of Khaybar. It called on Iranian nation to act in Ramadan after the example of the martyrs and to redeem Islam, "which is entangled by the Jews' deception" and by the trickery of the U.S. – "The Great Satan" – and Britain – "the wily fox." It warned that as part of this struggle, Tehran would strike the White House within minutes of any American attack on Iran's nuclear facilities.
Criticizing attempts by pragmatic camp leaders Hashemi Rafsanjani and President Hassan Rohani to reach a nuclear agreement with the U.S., the editorial stated that these attempts to reach such an agreement contradict the Koranic order against making pacts with the enemy. It implicitly accused President Rohani – who once called the U.S. "the village leader,[1] thus indicating his perception of U.S. supremacy – of violating the Koran's statement that God will not allow infidels to gain the upper hand over His faithful, and added that the attempts also contradict the martyrs' fierce resistance to the U.S.-led West. It also said that the U.S. is now on its deathbed.
The paper expressed resentment at the wealth and economic corruption attributed to the Rafsanjani family,[2] and stated that these values are contrary to the legacy of the martyrs who clung to the jihadi management recently preached and promoted by Khamenei.[3] It concluded by stating that Iran would not submit to the U.S. despite its economic hardship, because it has extensive room to maneuver, is advancing towards realizing its goal, and is anticipating divine assistance.
Following are excerpts from Kayhan's editorial:
During Ramadan, "Divine Angels Call Us [To Join] God"
"Slowly but surely, Ramadan approaches... The month of God that is arriving is better than a thousand suns... During this month, the heavens are open to all, and the path of the world and of the souls is facilitated. A good message arrives this month, and the angels distribute hidden aspirations and good tidings of salvation. Divine angels call us [to join] God.
"The month of God [i.e. Ramadan] reveals its face gradually, with joyful mornings and iftar [break-fast] dinners that grant vitality. With the morning devotions and the call to prayer that infuses us with the voice of salvation and eases our spirit, and like swift children, we shed tears and our hearts beat like those of lovers. The sound of the believers' Koran recitation is like a beehive... This is [the Imam] Ali, who receives the worshippers of God during this month. He is the hand of God, and the hand of God is in his sleeve – a hand that caresses orphans and the oppressed and smites the oppressors and the violators of treaties, that digs a well to bring sweet water to the people, that makes the palm trees grow and destroys the gates of Khaybar [populated by Jews] to annihilate the foundations of idolatry...
"A few days ago, we received news that some men [175 frogmen killed in the Iran-Iraq war], whose hands were bound and who were killed, although they were strong, have come to us... These are the true men, who are a source of national pride. Their secret is their bound hands, unbound 30 years later... They knew that war is war, and that dying in the path of God is one kind of victory. They convey to us that it is better to die, even with bound hands, than to be humiliated [by the enemy], and that it is inconceivable for us to submit to Satan. Oh great brothers, how honorable and proud are you. How close to God are you, and how distant from you are we. Your hands are bound, but your hearts are generous... Can the hands of God, which carry out divine actions, ever be bound?..."
"Iran Is Now In The Era Of [The Victory Of] Badr And [The Massacre Of The Jews At] Khaybar"; Islam Is "Entangled By The Jews' Deception"
"Iran is now in the era of [the victory of] Badr and [the massacre of the Jews at] Khaybar[4] – What is honor? What is humiliation?
"[To the dead frogmen:] Come tell us about honor and zeal. Tell us the ABC of courage and honesty. [Tell us] what the Iraqi Ba'ath regime did to you on the orders of 'the Great Satan' and the P5+1 of that time – so that our zealotry will overflow and so that our faith will be as fervent as that of the young men who held their heads high because of [the spilling of] your blood. [Do this] so that we will have faith in those who, without help from [Rohani's designated] 'village leader,' [i.e. the U.S.], crossed the boundaries of [nuclear] science and made their mark. [Do this] so that we will have faith in those who made the enemy tremble with jihadi management and with the management of the young people – and not with the management that seeks profit, that is old and rife with corruption [a reference to Rafsanjani]... [Do this] so that we will have faith in in the young people who did not go to study in Britain and America but who surprised the alumni of Western [education] and Western scientists. [Do this] so that we will have faith in those who did not receive scholarships or diplomas from overseas, and did not bribe Western companies...
"Let us have faith that America is incapable of any misstep [against Iran], and that it cannot even attack Iranian facilities without the White House being destroyed in under 10 minutes. Let us have faith that the old 'village leader' [i.e. the U.S.] has fallen onto his deathbed, and that even in his youth, he never made the mistake [of daring to attack Iran], and that he, like Israel, remains mired in quicksand. Let us have faith that Britain is a wily fox, and that its laughter is deceptive. Let us have faith in the Koran that says that the enemies are not men of their word, and that God has not permitted the infidels to gain supremacy over the believers...
"[Again addressing the frogmen:] Oh brothers, you went [to Iraq] and came home [to Iran]... Welcome... We can speak at length of your bound hands. Our arms are short, but your heads, and your stature, are high. They [the Iraqis] bound your hands so that you could not not raise them to the heavens – but they did not know that your heads touched the sky.
"Brothers, your jihad is blessed, and your lot is Paradise. You, who sat with God during the month of God's Prophet and the month of God [Ramadan], will understand us and honor us – not by means of bread [i.e. the pragmatic camp's promise of an agreement with the U.S. and the West] but by means of the redemption of the world that is mired in deception, and by means of redeeming Islam, which is entangled by the Jews' deception and by the trickery of the American 'Great Satan' and [the British] old fox [i.e. the promise of the ideological camp].
"While we are aware of the people's dinner table [that Rohani and Rafsanjani vowed to provide for], we will not accept the humiliation of table scraps provided by 'the village leader' and his servants – because we are the sons of Ramadan, and our eyes are turned towards the highest peaks, and towards the morning star that emerges above the horizon.
"Our hands are not closed before Satan, but are full, and we believe that just as the hands of God never remained closed, the straight path will also never reach a dead end."
Endnotes:
[1] In a campaign speech on May 12, 2013, Rohani announced that he intended to conduct direct talks with the U.S. if he were elected president, because, he said, the U.S. is "the village leader." Mehr (Iran), May 12, 2013.
[2] Hashemi Rafsanjani's son Mehdi was recently sentenced to prison for economic corruption.
[3] See MEMRI Special Dispatch No. 6088, Khamenei's 'Red Lines' Speech, June 30, 2015.
[4] A reference to the victory of a few Muslims led by the Prophet Muhammad against the wealthy infidel Quraysh tribe (623 CE) and the Prophet Muhammad's massacre of the Jews of Khaybar (628 CE).

No Rest for the Weary: The Plight of Assyrian Christians in the Levant
Todd Daniels, Regional Manager for the Middle East
and Sandra Elliot
07/10/2015 Washington, D.C. (International Christian Concern) - "Within minutes, tens of thousands of people fled their homes," Nuri Kino, founder of A Demand for Action, explained to International Christian Concern (ICC).
"We actually heard them [ISIS] crying takbir (God is greater)," Ahmed Siraj Aji Mohamed, a former resident of Hassakeh told IRIN News.
These are the first and second hand recollections of those who fled the northeastern Syrian city of Hassakeh on June 25. Islamic State militants entered the city by the southern neighborhoods reigniting familiar fears and terror for the largely Assyrian Christian population. Families, some seeking only temporary refuge in the city, faced the decision of chancing death and abduction or running north.
A Demand for Action told ICC that an estimated 60,000 people have been displaced within the city while another 10,000 people have fled to Qamishli and other areas. Assyrian International News Agency reported that approximately 2,000 Assyrian families were among those who fled north. This is the fourth attack of its kind in Hassakeh but it has been the strongest one as ISIS was able to gain control of multiple neighborhoods in the city.
Since the initial incursion on the 25th, Kurdish and Assyrian/Syriac militias have reclaimed much of the city and cleansed Hassakeh of terrorists; however land mines planted by the militants still litter the area. This is a single win in a string of losses for the people of northeastern Syria.
An Ancient Community Under Threat
Assyrians in the northern regions of modern day Iraq and Syria have roots dating back to the third millennium BCE. Christianity came to the area in the 3rd century, which is over 300 years before the birth of Islam and well over 1000 years before the discovery of the New World. Syria itself is named after these ancient people.
With the growing face of Islamic radicalism in the Middle East and the direct targeting of Christian demographics, Assyrians are now facing exile and execution for their belief and dedication to Jesus.
Entire Villages Drained of Christians, Again
This past February, ISIS invaded the northeastern Khabour area of Syria and ruthlessly drained around 30 villages of their Assyrian Christian populace. According to Unrepresented Nations and People's Organization (UNPO), over 200 of these captives are still being held by the jihadi militants who have demanded $100,000 ransom per prisoner, a price few in the region can ever expect to meet. There has been no real effort made to rescue these Christians, many of whom are women and children.
It's a dire state to live in, an atrocity that seems unthinkable.
Yet, we are reminded that the Assyrians of the Levant region are no strangers to atrocity, having suffered two genocides and a civil war in the past 100 years.
Assyrians, alongside of Armenians, were targeted by the Young Turk's genocide during and after WWI. In 1933, with the formation of the new Iraqi state, they were massacred yet again, causing many to flee to the Hassakeh region of Syria. And for decades they suffered under Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi Ba'ath party. The plight of these in Syria has been most serious with the outbreak and longevity of the Syrian Civil War.
Now as the country has been devastated by war for over four years with opposition groups, Islamic extremists, and the Syrian regime battling each other, Christians are not just collateral damage but prime targets in the conflict.
The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SN4HR) reports that, "Christians have become trapped and squeezed between the fire of the Assad Government and the hell of the extremist groups."
Despite Bashar Al-Assad's distinct claim to protect minorities, 63 percent of Christian worship places destroyed in the war have been targeted by government forces. Missiles unfortunately do not differentiate between Christian and non-Christian facilities. This is second tiered, but still an added burden to the suffering ISIS, Jabhat al-Nusra, and other extremists have inflicted on the Assyrian Christians.
"It Is Imperative We Find Another Solution"
With no protection from the outside world or even their own leaders, Assyrian Christians have been forced to take up arms of defense. The Patriarch of the Syriac Orthodox Church, Ignatius Aphrem II recently visited Qamishli and called on the youth to fight.
"We are not the type of people who want to carry weapons," the Patriarch explained in his address, "but because the army is not able to protect us, it is imperative that we find another solution."
There seems to be no rest or refuge for the Assyrian population. The world today continues to turn a blind eye to the suffering of this ancient and deeply rooted people group. Eshu Paul, an Assyrian Christian now living in Canada, expressed his concern to ICC in an interview, "If nothing is being done [for] Assyrians in the next decade, I don't think there will be any Christians left."
We must not allow these fears to manifest and be proven legitimate. The world, specifically the Christian world, has a responsibility to help these brothers and sisters in Christ.
Will it take another genocide for the church to wake up and see the needs of its own?
If so, we need only look to Hassakeh to realize it is already happening.
For interviews, contact Todd Daniels, Regional Manager for the Middle East:
RM-ME@persecution.org

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