LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
April 28/2019
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

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Bible Quotations For today
Jesus Appears to The 12 Disciples When Thomas Was With Them
John20/14-29/Now Thomas (also known as Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on April 27-28/19
Thousands of Christians Gather for Holy Fire Ceremony
UN Demands 'Hezbollah’s' Disarmament
Lebanon: Geagea Calls for Disclosing Fate of Prisoners, Missing in Syria
Rahi, French Deputy convene in Bkirki
Zaspikin says he is not aware of any information conveyed to Jumblatt by any Russian diplomat
Kanaan: Budget structural reform puts an end to revenue loss, uncontrolled spending
Sayegh: Defense Minister's Statement Is a Black Mark for the Government
Tabsh says economic situation difficul
Azar to Radio Lebanon: For budget acceleration, international assurances confirm exclusion of war prospect in the region
Pioneers from Lebanon' Committee honors leading media figures, including NNA Director
Beirut advances over AlRiyadi in the final basketball championship
Syrian Coalition' Condemns Destruction of Refugee Camp in Bekaa
Bustani Says Ending Power Tapping Allows Better Distribution
Hezbollah Militia in Syria Fall on Hard Times

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on April 27-28/19
One dead, 3 injured in San Diego County synagogue shooting
Putin Says Doesn't Rule Out Full-scale Assault on Syria's Idlib
Astana Meeting Fails to Agree on 'Constitutional Committee'
Jihadist Attacks Kill 17 Syria Pro-Regime Fighters
Residential Areas of Libya Capital Turning into 'Battlefields', Says ICRC
Sudan's Sadiq al-Mahdi: 'We Seek to Agree With Military Council on Constitutional Declaration'
Fifteen Dead as Sri Lanka Forces Raid Islamist Hideout
Germany Halts Processing Some Syrian Asylum Applications
Trump proposals on nuclear arms disarmament "not serious" Kremlin

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on April 27-28/19
UN Demands 'Hezbollah’s' Disarmament/Ali Barada/Asharq Al-Awsat/April 27/2019
Hezbollah Militia in Syria Fall on Hard Times/Syrian Observer/April 27/2019
Want a College Loan? First, Serve Your Country/Karl W Smith/Bloomberg/April 27/2019
The US Sanctions on Mullahs are Working/Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/April 27/2019
How Turkey's Democracy Went From Insanity to 'Beyond Insanity'/Burak Bekdil/Gatestone Institute/April 27/2019
As the economic net tightens, Tehran is becoming ever more fractious/Rageda Dergam/April 27/2019
Iran’s human bargaining chips/Camelia Entekhabifard/Arab News/April 27/19
Daesh is thriving in the unlikeliest of places while Washington ignores the threat/Hafed Al-Ghwell/Arab News/April 27/19
Why the West is so worried by China’s Belt and Road/Andrew Hammond/Arab News/April 27/19

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on April 27-28/19
Thousands of Christians Gather for Holy Fire Ceremony
Kataeb.org and Agencies/ Saturday 27th April 2019/Thousands of Christians gathered at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem on Saturday in order to witness the Holy Fire that emerges from the tomb of Jesus Christ. The Holy Fire sparks inside the Edicule, a chapel built over the burial place of Jesus Christ. Following the fire's descent, Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem passed the holy fire over to believers who lit their candles. A Lebanese delegation is set to bring the Holy Fire in a special capsule to Beirut on Saturday night. According to Orthodox tradition, the stone on which Jesus was buried, in what is now the Sepulchre church, emits a light that bursts into flames initially cool enough to touch before turning scalding hot. During the ceremony, the Greek Orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem enters the Edicule – the newly restored structure that encases the tomb – kneels before the light and then carries it out to the 10,000 expectant pilgrims who greet the appearance of the flames with expressions of joy and wonder. Prior to the event, the Edicule is searched to ensure there are no lit flames.

UN Demands 'Hezbollah’s' Disarmament
New York - Ali Barada/Asharq Al-Awsat/April 27/2019
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/74279/%D9%85%D8%B7%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A8%D8%A9-%D8%A3%D9%85%D9%85%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%B2%D8%B9-%D8%B3%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%AD-%D8%AD%D8%B2%D8%A8-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%84%D9%87-un-demands-hezbollahs-dis/
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned from the maintenance of Hezbollah of sizeable and sophisticated military capacities and he called on the Lebanese government and Army to take all necessary measures to prevent the Iranian-backed group from possessing arms and to work on making it a civil political party. Guterres’ demands came in the semi-annual report on the implementation of Security Council resolution 1559, which was first adopted on September 2, 2004. It also came amid reports saying the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, which is looking into the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, should soon issue default judgments in the case, which includes indictments against Hezbollah officials and activists. Diplomats at the Security Council told Asharq Al-Awsat on Friday that the United States was not satisfied with the last UN Secretary-General report on the implementation of Security Council Resolution 1701 and Hezbollah’s compliance with the arms embargo, prepared by UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jan Kubis. A diplomat who lately attended a Security Council meeting where Kubis spoke about his report, told Asharq Al-Awsat that acting US Ambassador to the United Nations Jonathan Cohen repeatedly criticized the way through which UN reports dealt with the implementation of the arms embargo and with information about the continuous flow of arms into Hezbollah’s hands.
The diplomat believes that Washington does not seek to change or amend the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), similar to claims launched by some Lebanese parties.Instead, the diplomat said, the US demands the effective implementation of Resolution 1701, which stipulates the establishment between the Blue Line and the Litani River of an area free of any armed personnel, assets and weapons except those of the Government of Lebanon and UNIFIL. In the new semi-annual report on Resolution 1559 received by Asharq Al-Awsat, Gueterres emphasized on Lebanon’s commitment to the disassociation policy. He noted that Hezbollah’s engagement in the conflict in Syria is in breach of this policy. In his report, Guterres welcomed the formation of the new cabinet and he called on President Michel Aoun to develop a national defense strategy capable to address the need to achieve a State monopoly over the possession and use of weapons.

Lebanon: Geagea Calls for Disclosing Fate of Prisoners, Missing in Syria
Beirut - Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 27 April, 2019/Lebanese Forces Party Chief Samir Geagea called Friday through an issued statement for an official demand to reveal the fate of all prisoners and missing persons in Syria. "We remember the detainees, the prisoners and the missing in Syrian jails, and we have to work day and night to ease the pain and agony of their families," Geagea said. "It would be better for the Assad regime to reveal the fate of these people instead of revealing the fate of Israeli soldiers," he added. "Bashar al-Assad's regime has managed to recover the remains of Elijah Cohen since 1965 and managed to find the remains of an Israeli soldier killed in Lebanon in 1982, yet till this moment does not respond to any Lebanese request to return the missing and the prisoners or at least to disclose their fate!" Geagea stressed in his statement. "The Lebanese Forces ministers have raised the issue before the Council of Ministers in its meeting on April 25, but unfortunately we did not receive any answer...So we are sending out a new cry through the media this time to the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister and the majority of cabinet ministers, to demand the General Security to do all the necessary to uncover the fate of these detainees, prisoners and missing persons because they are Lebanese citizens in the first place," Geagea noted.

Rahi, French Deputy convene in Bkirki
Sat 27 Apr 2019/NNA - Maronite Patriarch, Cardinal Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, met on Saturday with French MP Michele Alliot-Marie, who had previously served in the Ministry of Defense, Interior, Justice and Foreign Affairs, accompanied by her husband, former Minister Patrick Ollier, and the Mayor of Zouk Mikael Elie Baino. The encounter was a chance to confer over the general prevailing situation in Lebanon and France, and to offer Easter greetings and well-wishes to the Patriarch. On emerging, Marie said, "I was honored to meet His Beatitude and it was an occasion, once again, to hear his opinion on a number of topics, having already enjoyed listening to his positions and views, both in the European Parliament and in Lebanon, positions characterized by clarity and realistic approach to matters.""This meeting was an opportunity to exchange views and reflect on the importance of the twinning project between a number of Lebanese and French municipalities, especially the twinning between the two municipalities of Zouk Mikael and Roël Malmeson, which has existed for 10 years," she added. "We also discussed the unfortunate fire incident that broke out in the Cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris, which had a striking effect on all those who have ties to Christianity and France," disclosed the French MP. "A major role awaits Lebanon in the project I intend to develop," she maintained, "which is to create a Francophone economic and political community in which we will unite our efforts to meet the peoples' future needs."
"This prject will allow our voice to reach various Francophone countries in this competitive world," Marie underscored.

Zaspikin says he is not aware of any information conveyed to Jumblatt by any Russian diplomat
Sat 27 Apr 2019/NNA - Russian Ambassador Alexander Zaspikin commented Saturday on a recent statement by Progressive Socialist Party Chief Walid Jumblatt, in which he revealed that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has sent a letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, quoting a Russian diplomat herein. Zaspikin denied being aware of any such information disclosed to Jumblatt by any Russian diplomat, stressing that "Russia has considered, ever since the beginning of the Syrian crisis, President Bashar al-Assad to be the leader of the Syrian people in all their segments, and this position is declared in the media and in Russia's side contacts with other countries.""

Kanaan: Budget structural reform puts an end to revenue loss, uncontrolled spending
Sat 27 Apr 2019/NNA - "Strong Lebanon" Parliamentary Bloc Secretary, MP Ibrahim Kanaan, confirmed Saturday that the state's priority at this stage is its annual budget and the necessary reforms required internationally and locally, alongside the financial accounts, which the government is called upon to transfer to the parliament the soonest possible for audit purposes. "We have to balance between maintaining the value of the Lebanese pound and developing the economy by investing in the productive sectors. In the light of our meetings in Washington with the World Bank and the IMF, and at the London conference before that, we sensed great confidence in Lebanon," Kanaan said in an interview with "Sawt Al Mada" Radio Station earlier today. However, Kanaan referred to an "international fear of Lebanon's inability to carry out reforms", so he stressed that "we must stay away from wasting time to make a difference within three months, during which we can implement the required reforms through the state budget and the implementation of the electricity plan." "The budget should reflect structural reform through the control of public spending and setting a ceiling for borrowing...Our demand is an integrated basket of reforms," Kanaan emphasized, adding that structural reform within the budget will put an end to the loss of state revenues and uncontrolled spending.

Sayegh: Defense Minister's Statement Is a Black Mark for the Government
Kataeb.org/Saturday 27th April 2019/Kataeb's Deputy-President Salim Sayegh on Saturday reiterated the party's decision to play the role of a constructive opposition, saying that a challenge has been prepared to contest the government's power plan before the Constitutional Council. "The challenge we prepared does not halt the electricity plan, but rather reconsiders governance given that the Tenders Department has not been granted any authority and been turned into a false witness as all prerogatives have been given to the committee formed by the Energy Ministry,” Sayegh said in an interview on Future TV. "We have considered this as dubious and we will leave it to the Constitutional Council to have the final say in this matter."Turning to the controversial high-voltage power lines in Metn, Sayegh noted that the Kataeb party has cabled donor countries at CEDRE to inform them that more than 44,000 residents will be impacted by this project given its health hazards. Asked about the recent visit made by Marada leader Sleiman Frangieh to the Kataeb's headquarters, Sayegh pointed out that it was normal that the latter visits the center of the opposition in the country, adding that such a meeting implies a message to those who have been trying to eliminate others. "Since the presidential settlement, the Free Patriotic Movement has been attempting to confiscate the decision-making power and to speak on behalf of all the Christians. This unilateralism won’t lead anywhere," he said.
The Kataeb official condemned recent remarks made by Defense Minister Elias Bou Saab who said that talks over a defense strategy will not be launched until Hezbollah feels that the Army is ready to take charge of the border protection. "Elias Bou Saab is the defense minister and, therefore, he must have the Army as a top priority," he said. "This is a black mark in the government's record.""By saying so, the defense minister confirmed that there will be no defense strategy which is a dangerous sign and a blatant violation of the UN Security Council Resolution 1701,” he said.

Tabsh says economic situation difficult
Sat 27 Apr 2019/NNA - Future Parliamentary Bloc Member, MP Roula Tabsh Jaroudy, said during a political rally in Sidon that Lebanon was facing a difficult economic situation. "Lebanon is facing a dire economic situation, which has led to a high rate of unemployment," Tabsh told the audience.
The MP also deemed that "despite the economic difficulties facing Lebanon, CEDRE conference is a great opportunity to rescue the situation in the country," stressing that PM Saad Hariri will place Lebanon on the track. Finally, she refused any attack on the Prime Minister's powers, concluding that all the latter's political compromises were aimed solely at protecting Lebanon.

Azar to Radio Lebanon: For budget acceleration, international assurances confirm exclusion of war prospect in the region
Sat 27 Apr 2019/NNA - "Development and Liberation" Parliamentary Bloc Member, MP Ibrahim Azar, pointed Saturday to the determination to speed up the annual budget plan, since the current dire conditions entail a quick endorsement and consensus in this respect within the cabinet and parliament council. Speaking to "Radio Lebanon" this morning, he indicated that the course of matters is veering more towards reducing public spending, referring to a "political consensus on the need to accelerate the completion of the annual budget.""There are several considerations to raise the voice regarding the critical economic situation and the need to carry out reforms, the most important of which are the conditions of the Cedar Conference," Azar added. "The international community was clear that it would not help Lebanon unless it adhered to an austerity reform plan. Hence, the state budget is supposed to reflect this logic and make bold decisions that are non-populist and do not affect people's rights and the middle and low income classes," he asserted. Azar refused to "undermine the public sector and hold it responsible for the money waste, since there are people who assume their responsibilities and carry out their duties while others try to benefit without performing their required tasks, which is happening in all public and private sectors alike." He, thus, called for "tightening control, restructuring...and taking legal measures against those who fail to tend to their work duties."On the electricity plan, the MP hoped that it would reap success, and that Lebanon would benefit from its oil wealth especially that a large amount of oil has been detected in the first well being explored, which would act as an incentive to investors. Over the threat of a regional war, Azar said "the official and international guarantees to Lebanon confirm the exclusion of a war in the region." However, he feared that "a military option could be a possibility in wake of the ineffective sanctions imposed on Iran or any aggression against its allies, including Lebanon."

Pioneers from Lebanon' Committee honors leading media figures, including NNA Director
Sat 27 Apr 2019/NNA - The "Lebanese Media Foundation - Pioneers from Lebanon Committee" held an honorary ceremony to mark the achievements of a number of leading women journalists and writers in Lebanon, including National News Agency Director Laure Sleiman. In a reception held Friday evening at the Phoenicia Hotel under the patronage of Prime Minister Saad Hariri, represented by MP Bahiya Hariri, the honorees were celebrated for their successful accomplishments in their respective domains. They received honorary shields as a token of appreciation for their valuable contributions. A word from the President of the Republic, Michel Aoun, was read out to the attendees, in which he praised the achievements of the honored women pioneers, wishing them continuous success and prosperity. In turn, Editors' Syndicate Dean Joseph Kosseifi addressed the honorable guests, saying: "Lebanon remains the land of goodness, truth and beauty, despite the shovels of destruction that have distorted its beautiful nature...a land of genius and creativity.""The honored women tonight are not prophets...but they are among the chosen elite in their field. They have set their path in the professional world with persistence and professionalism. They have been the example and role model to many of their generation who have become involved in the profession of trouble, combining between prophetism and professionalism...the kind of perfection that the successful media figures aspire to achieve," Kosseifi underlined. "We are proud of their capabilities and expertise, and of what they offer to the media profession to maintain its consistency and persistence with the faith of those who believe in it," Kosseifi asserted.

Beirut advances over AlRiyadi in the final basketball championship
Sat 27 Apr 2019/NNA - The Beirut Club reaped victory over its host, Al-Riyadi team, in the final round of the Lebanese Basketball Championship for men's first-class clubs, superseding it by 14 points (86-72) during a match held this afternoon at the Shiyah Municipal Sports Stadium. Both two teams are to meet in a second game round at 8:30 pm on Monday at the Sa'eb Salam Hall at Al-Riyadi Sports Club in Manara. The two teams are aspiring to win the Basketball Championship for this year, the Beirut team aiming to reap its first victory record while Al-Riyadi strives to restore its leading role among basketball teams after losing its champion title during last year's game season.

Syrian Coalition' Condemns Destruction of Refugee Camp in Bekaa
Beirut - Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 27 April, 2019/The Syrian Coalition released a press statement condemning the destruction of the Yasamin camp for Syrian refugees in Lebanon's Bar Elias, Bikaa, claiming that it was carried out by elements of the Lebanese army. The Coalition called for the release of those who were detained and for the compensation for those who were affected. "The camp belongs to the Union of Relief and Development Associations" the Coalition noted. "It is imperative that the Lebanese authorities launch a full investigation."The Coalition further stressed its rejection for any attempt to force the refugees to return to Syria under pressure. "The Syrian Coalition renews its rejection of any attempts to force the Syrian refugees to return to Syria in the current conditions involving serious risks posed by the Assad regime and its allied terrorist militias."

Bustani Says Ending Power Tapping Allows Better Distribution
Naharnet/April 27/19/Energy Minister Nada al-Bustani launched a campaign on Saturday to remove infringements on the crumbling electricity grid as part of fixing the electricity sector that has cost state coffers about $2 billion annually. “Removing electricity violations will allow a reduction in wasted energy and provide a better distribution,” said Bustani as she accompanied the campaign launched in the area of Bourj Hammoud. The Minister wished “citizens' participation in this campaign,” and urged Electricite du Liban “to keep pace with the process.” Recently, the parliament passed amendments necessary to implement an ambitious plan to restructure the country's crumbling electricity sector. Restructuring the power sector, dysfunctional since Lebanon's 1975-90 civil war, has been among key demands for reforms by the World Bank and international donors. The electricity plan was approved by a large majority in parliament on April 17, days after it was agreed on by the government. It aims to eventually bring electricity to the Lebanese 24 hours a day, securing an additional 1,450 megawatts of temporary power by next year so that total output will reach 3,500 megawatts — enough to provide power around the clock. In the longer term, the plan calls for power production to be increased by more than 3,000 megawatts over the next six years by building new plants and relying more on renewable energy. Part of EDL’s deficit is due to illegal connections to the grid, theft and manipulating the meters. Lebanese officials hope that plans to fix the electricity sector that has cost state coffers about $2 billion annually would lead to the release of $11 billion in loans and grants made by international donors at the CEDRE conference in Paris last year.

Hezbollah Militia in Syria Fall on Hard Times
Syrian Observer/April 27/2019
According to Iqtissad, militias controlled by Hezbollah and Iran are suffering from a shortage in funds, which is leaving them unable to pay wages. A well-informed source has told Iqtissad that Iran and Hezbollah have reduced the salaries of its fighters in Syria, indicating a financial crisis for these militias.
The military source, who spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons, said that three months ago, Iran and Hezbollah started to reduce the salaries of fighters and groups fighting alongside regime forces in Syria, which created a state of alarm among these fighters because they didn’t get their monthly salaries and were not able to cover their expenses. According to the source, a lack of liquidity is behind the cuts in salaries, and they aimed to reduce the civilian groups belonging Hezbollah or Iran. He explained that the members of these groups receive their salaries from Hezbollah and in each military sector there are five Lebanese party members. The elements of these militias and groups requested an “advance” on their salaries in the hope that the full salary would come at the end of each month. Fighters were asking for 10,000 Syrian pounds (20 dollars) as an advance on their salary. According to the same source, each element in those groups receives about 60,000 pounds (116 dollars). Most of the elements are Syrians under contracts, but their salaries come directly from Hezbollah. The same source revealed that the Air Force Intelligence has canceled the contracts of 6,000 civilians associated with the so-called al-Nimer Forces of Bri. Gen Suhail Hassan for about five months, also because of the financial crisis. He added that each element of the al-Nimer group was receiving about 75,000 pounds (145 dollars), while the salary of the mandatory conscription soldier is 25,000 pounds.The source pointed out that low salaries were the reason for people “escaping” from compulsory or reserve service. “The salary of a first assistant, who has served in the ranks of the regime for about 15 years is 60,000 pounds (119 dollars), which is not enough even to pay transportation fees.” He said, “while my salary as a reserve soldier is up to 52,000 pounds (100 dollars), so it is equivalent to the salary of the volunteer assistant”Hezbollah and Iran are fearful of not receiving salaries that have been delayed for three months.“The consequences of the financial crisis are beginning to appear in the meals of the militias” he said. As for the future of these militias, our source said that these elements chose either patience or looting, which is considered a second source of income for these militias after it proved to be profitable. “Today, you have to loot more because your salary is low. People are even looting tools and equipment belonging to the Syrian state, such as huge cables, generators and other property belonging to the regime or the army” he added. According to civilian sources, the Iranian militias control all aspects of life in the city of Deir ez-Zor and other areas, and it interferes with the daily lives of civilians significantly. Iranian militias share areas of influence with Russian forces at the entrance to the northern towns of Deir ez-Zor at the Salhiya crossing. They also share the barriers of the army’s elite Fourth Armored Division, Military and Air Security Forces and the Criminal Security Branch.
This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.

Latest LCCC English Miscellaneous Reports & News published on April 27-28/19
One dead, 3 injured in San Diego County synagogue shooting
DebkaFile/April 28/19/One of the four injured victims of a shooting attack on a Chabad synagogue near San Diego on Saturday, April 27, has died in hospital. One man is in custody after gunning down members of the Congregation Chabad in the city of Poway, just over 32 km north of San Diego. One of the victims hospitalized is Rabbi Israeli Goldstein. The synagogue was hosting its Second Passover Seder on the last day of the festival, which was scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. local time. Saturday’s shooting comes six months to the day after eleven people were shot and killed in the Pittsburgh Tree of Life synagogue. Police have cordoned off the Chabad synagogue compound which also houses a Hebrew school and is near two churches. They have not released information about the gunman’s motive or the condition of the victims.

Putin Says Doesn't Rule Out Full-scale Assault on Syria's Idlib
Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 27 April, 2019/Russia's President Vladimir Putin called Saturday for continuing the fight against terrorism, however, he noted that launching a full-scale assault on militants in Syria’s Idlib province was unpractical for now. Putin said the presence of civilians in parts of Idlib where militants were also active meant the time was not yet ripe for full-scale military operations, Reuters reported. “I don’t rule it (a full-scale assault) out, but right now we and our Syrian friends consider that to be inadvisable given this humanitarian element,” Putin stated. Russia and Turkey brokered a deal in September 2018 to create a demilitarized zone in the northwest Idlib region that would be free of all heavy weapons and militants. According to Reuters, Ankara is concerned about potential refugee flows from Idlib in the event of a military operation, and wants to retain its influence there.

Astana Meeting Fails to Agree on 'Constitutional Committee'
Moscow - Raed Jaber/Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 27 April, 2019/The new round of Astana Talks, held in the Kazakh capital Nur-Sultan, saw no progress in the main issue which guarantor countries, Russia, Turkey, and Iran were hoping to achieve. The organizers were forced to announce the parties' failure to reach an agreement on the constitutional committee and the dispute remained regarding six names in the list of civil society. The guarantor countries sponsoring the cease-fire in Syria (Russia, Turkey, and Iran) announced that the talks will continue to resolve points of contention, and in a final statement confirmed their commitment to a political process led by the Syrians. The statement reiterated the parties’ determination to implement the agreements on the stabilization of the situation in Idlib’s de-escalation area and agreed to include Iraq and Lebanon in Astana Talks as observers. It reaffirmed their commitment to moving forward with the political process led by Syrians and supervised by the United Nations, in line with Security Council Resolution 2254. The parties also agreed to expedite the work to launch the constitutional committee as soon as possible in line with the Syrian national dialogue conference in Sochi.
The next round of consultations on the establishment of the committee will be held in Geneva, indicated the statement, adding that the parties affirmed their full readiness to contribute to the efforts of UN’s Special Envoy.
Russian President's envoy to Syria, Alexander Lavrentiev, noted that in the process of the formation of a constitutional committee on Syria, there remain several “unclear points”. He indicated that the participants of the Astana process hope to help the special envoy of the UN Secretary-General on Syria Geir Pedersen with the process of its formation and launch. The Syrian government, the armed opposition factions and those supporting the parties can agree to form a constitutional committee in the coming months, according to the Envoy. Diplomats from Russia, Iran, and Turkey will meet with UN negotiators in Geneva to further discuss the matter, adding that the issue was “in its final stage.”He said that participants also discussed the return of refugees to Syria and assisting the Syrian people in reconstruction.
The Special Envoy noted that before the meeting, the participants did not expect to have an agreement on the Constitutional Committee, but to continue the good discussions with the Syrian government, and the Syrian opposition. “I am looking forward also to meeting with Turkey, Russia, and Iran in Geneva, and as you know they have accepted my invitation and I am looking very much forward to those discussions.”Asked by the press about the formation of the constitutional committee, Pedersen expressed his belief that progress has been achieved, adding that he will continue his consultations with the government, and with the opposition and of course also with other international parties. At the same time, the Special Envoy indicated that it is difficult to say the states are close to reaching a solution, but the important thing is to reach an agreement and begin the peace-building process in Syria. Head of the Syrian opposition delegation to the Astana talks Ahmed Tomah pointed out that the discussion on the constitutional committee was “the most important in the round of talks.”He explained that there are two very important issues relating to the commission: finalizing the names with only six names haven’t been agreed on, and the procedural process relating to the presidency of the committee, how decisions will be made, voting process and mechanism.
During the meeting, Iran, Russia, and Turkey renewed their refusal of US recognition of Israel's sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights. In the joint statement, the three countries strongly condemned the US move, saying it “constitutes a grave violation of international law, particularly the UN Security Council resolution 497, and threatens peace and security in the Middle East.”The talks also saw bilateral and trilateral meetings discussing the situation in Idlib against the backdrop of the failure to implement the Idlib de-escalation area. According to the statement, they also agreed to take concrete steps to reduce violations in the Idlib de-escalation area, without determining the steps. Head of the Iranian delegation Ali Asghar Khaji said negotiations on Syria would continue until reaching a political settlement. The guarantor states agreed to continue their consultations on the situation in the north-east of Syria and emphasized in this regard that security and stability in this region can only be achieved on the basis of respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country.

Jihadist Attacks Kill 17 Syria Pro-Regime Fighters
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/April 27/19/Attacks by two jihadist groups killed at least 17 Syrian government troops and militiamen in the northern province of Aleppo early on Saturday, a war monitor said. Thirty others were wounded in the assaults by Al-Qaeda's former Syria branch, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), and its ally Hurras al-Deen, which remains affiliated to the global jihadist network, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The attacks in the southern and southwestern countryside of Aleppo province were launched shortly after midnight and triggered clashes that continued until dawn, Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said. He said the fighting subsided after Russian aircraft struck jihadist positions in the area, prompting the fighters to pull back. Eight jihadists were killed, he added. Russia aircraft also carried out strikes in neighbouring Hama province early on Saturday, killing five civilians, the Observatory said. On Friday, Russian strikes killed 10 civilians in Idlib province, the hub of territory held by the jihadists of HTS in northwestern Syria. Russia and rebel-backer Turkey in September inked a buffer zone deal to avert a massive government offensive on the Idlib region, but the deal has never been implemented. The region of some three million people has come under increasing bombardment since HTS took full control of it in January. The latest Russian air raids came after two days of talks on the Syrian conflict between Turkey, Russia and fellow government backer Iran in Kazakhstan earlier this week. The three governments expressed concern over the growing power of HTS in Idlib and parts of adjacent provinces, and determination to cooperate to eliminate the jihadist group. The civil war in Syria has killed more than 370,000 people and displaced millions since it began with the bloody repression of anti-government protests in 2011.

Residential Areas of Libya Capital Turning into 'Battlefields', Says ICRC
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/April 27/19/Intensified fighting for control of the Libyan capital is turning residential areas of Tripoli into "battlefields", the International Committee of the Red Cross said Thursday. "The humanitarian situation in and around Tripoli has deteriorated sharply over the past three weeks," since military strongman Khalifa Haftar launched an offensive on April 4 against forces loyal to the internationally-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA), the ICRC said in a statement. "More than 30,000 people are said to have fled their homes and are sheltering with relatives or in public buildings," it said, a figure which Libyan authorities and the United Nations say has risen to almost 35,000. "Tripoli's basic services and infrastructure, such as hospitals and water pumping stations, which have already suffered from violence over the past eight years, are being weakened further," it said, referring to the insecurity in Libya since the 2011 uprising that ousted Moamer Kadhafi. Youness Rahoui, the head of office in Tripoli for the ICRC, singled out the impact of the violence, which has focused on Tripoli's southern suburbs, on residents of the capital."One of our greatest concerns is for civilians living near the frontlines. Densely-populated residential areas are gradually turning into battlefields," Rahoui said. He also said it was becoming "increasingly dangerous for medical workers to retrieve the wounded, with mounting reports of indiscriminate shelling". At least 278 people have been killed and more than 1,300 wounded in the clashes, according to the latest casualty toll from the World Health Organization. Forces loyal to the GNA, which is based in Tripoli, launched a counter-attack last weekend. The UN voiced concern earlier this week that civilians had been trapped by shelling on densely populated parts of the city.
The International Organization for Migration's (IOM) Libya office also highlighted the plight of some 3,000 migrants held at detention centres in areas hit by fighting. People traffickers have operated freely across much of Libya since the 2011 uprising and the country has become a major conduit for sub-Saharan African migrants desperate to reach Europe. The UN's refugee agency UNHCR said it had evacuated 325 refugees from a centre in Qasr ben Ghachir on Wednesday night, a day after the IOM reported a "random shooting" at the centre south of Tripoli. UNHCR said armed men had attacked migrants as they protested against conditions in the centre. "There were no gunshot wounds, but 12 refugees suffered physical attacks that required hospital treatment," it said. The agency says it has transferred more than 825 migrants out of combat zones over the past two weeks.

Sudan's Sadiq al-Mahdi: 'We Seek to Agree With Military Council on Constitutional Declaration'
Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 27 April, 2019/Sudan’s head of the National Umma Party Sadiq al-Mahdi called on Saturday for the continuation of the sit-in until all objectives are reached. In a press conference in the Sudanese capital Khartoum, al-Mahdi said: “We call for the continuation of the sit-in until all the people’s goals are met.” However, he added: “We seek to agree with the military council on the constitutional declaration.”He also called on the protest leaders to deal with the Transitional Military Council “with wisdom and not with anger.”Al-Mahdi said he appreciated for the Transitional Military Council’s respect for the opposition’s role. He stressed that the National Congress Party (NCP) and its allies must be stripped of the illegal privileges. On Thursday, al-Mahdi warned that Sudan could face a counter-coup if military rulers and the opposition do not reach agreement on a handover of power to civilians.

Fifteen Dead as Sri Lanka Forces Raid Islamist Hideout
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/April 27/19/Suicide bombers cornered by security forces in a hideout in eastern Sri Lanka blew themselves up in a raid which left 15 people dead, including six children, police said Saturday. A civilian was also killed in crossfire during the night-time raid near the predominantly Muslim town of Kalmunai, with hundreds of families later fleeing their homes. Kalmmunai is in the home province of the jihadist suspected of organising the Easter Sunday attacks that left 253 dead. Three men set off explosives killing three women and six children inside the house on Friday night, police said. "Three other men, also believed to be suicide bombers, were found dead outside the house," said a police statement. Police officials said all three were shot by security forces. Gunmen opened fire on troops when they attempted to storm the house under cover of darkness, military spokesman Sumith Atapattu said. An ensuing gun battle lasted more than an hour, a military official said, adding that the bodies were recovered following a search operation. Charred bodies and at least one gunman cradling an assault rifle, were seen in video footage shown on state television. Explosives, a generator, a drone and a large quantity of batteries were seen inside the house. Some 600 Muslims fled a neighbouring settlement built to house displaced survivors of the 2004 Asian tsunami because of the fighting and took shelter in a school, residents said. The civilian was hit in crossfire and died while a wounded woman and child were taken to hospital. The operation followed a tip off that extremists linked to the Easter suicide bombings were holed up in Kalmunai, 370 kilometres (230 miles) east of the capital. Zahran Hashim, founder of the National Thowheeth Jama'ath (NTJ) group blamed for the attacks and one of the Colombo suicide bombers, comes from the same province. The clashes came hours after security forces raided a nearby location where they believe Hashim and other suicide bombers recorded a pledge of allegiance to Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi before carrying out the bombings of three churches and three hotels. Police said they found an IS flag and uniforms similar to those worn by the eight fighters in a video used by IS to claim responsibility for Sunday's attacks. "We have found the backdrop the group used to record their video," the police said in an earlier statement. The Islamic State group released their video two days after the bombings. Police showed the clothing, the flag, some 150 sticks of dynamite and about 100,000 ball bearings seized from the house on national television. Security forces armed with emergency powers have stepped up search operations for Islamic extremists since the bombings.

Germany Halts Processing Some Syrian Asylum Applications
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/April 27/19/Germany has stopped processing some applications for asylum by Syrian refugees, pending a new assessment of the security situation in the war-torn country, according to a report on Saturday. German media group Funke, quoting the interior ministry, said decisions on some asylum applications from Syrians have been 'postponed' with changes expected to be made to ministry guidelines. Delegations from Iran, Russia and Turkey met in Kazakhstan on Thursday seeking an end to the Syrian conflict. As a consequence of the Germany's halting of some asylum applications, refugee organisations fear Angela Merkel's government will reject more applications from Syria if there is no longer armed conflict there, say Funke. According to the Funke report, those affected are asylum seekers awarded "subsidiary protection" -- exposed to serious danger, acts of war, the death penalty or torture in their home country. According to government figures, 17,411 Syrians were awarded the status in 2018. Germany has been deeply polarised by Chancellor Angela Merkel's 2015 decision to open the country's borders to those fleeing conflict and persecution at the height of Europe's migrant crisis. Since then, the influx of over a million asylum seekers -- mainly from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan -- has fuelled the rise of the far-right, anti-Islam AfD party. The civil war in Syria has killed more than 370,000 people and displaced millions since it started with the brutal repression of anti-government protests in 2011.

Trump proposals on nuclear arms disarmament "not serious" Kremlin
Sat 27 Apr 2019/Reuters/NNA - U.S. President Donald Trump's proposals on nuclear arms disarmament is "not serious," a Kremlin spokesman said on Saturday. Trump has ordered his administration to prepare a push for a new arms-control agreements with Russia and China citing the cost of the 21st-century nuclear arms race, The Washington Post reported on Thursday citing administration officials. "It would be ideal to clean up the whole world from the nuclear weapon...but on the other hand we would have been deprived from the deterrent factor," Dmitry Peskov told reporters on the sidelines of a summit on China's Belt and Road plan. "Don't forget about the deterrent factor, about the deterrent parity," he said. Peskov also said Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping held substantial talks and exchanged views on Syria, Venezuela and Libya when they met on Friday.

Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on April 27-28/19
Want a College Loan? First, Serve Your Country
Karl W Smith/Bloomberg/April 27/2019
Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, has made headway in his long-shot bid for the Democratic presidential nomination with an appeal to heal the divisions within the US. He’s proposed mandatory national service as a means of forging a renewed sense of national unity from the American mix of ethnicities, religions and creeds. That’s a praiseworthy ambition now that the one-time unifying consensus for spreading American ideals abroad has turned into a source of division.
In the past, national service has been envisioned as a civilian version of a military draft. Both are a way to provide a shared experience for Americans of diverse backgrounds. But the draft was abolished 46 years ago in the US and compulsory service offends the spirit of free association. It also, as Buttigieg seems to acknowledge, has the potential to produce hardship for those who have family obligations or other reasonable objections to participating.
The idea can be salvaged, however, if it's changed from a mandatory program to a prerequisite for receiving federal student loans.
US student loan debt has exploded, in part because the college admissions process obscures the costs and lures students into borrowing more than they need. The pressure of competition to get into the most prestigious possible school creates an incentive to ignore the cost-benefit balancing that should precede heavy borrowing to cover tuition. Government loans appear to be a lifeline when for many families, they’re really a trap.
Requiring a year of service has the potential to put the brakes on this process. For students younger than 26, federal loans should be available only to those who spend a year participating in projects like rebuilding communities hit by natural disasters, or distributing food to the elderly. The only requirement should be that the service must be performed outside a person’s home region in order to expose young people to others with diverse experiences and backgrounds.
Some would realize that, while they are committed to their education, at this point they are unready to take on a big financial obligation. Roughly 3.9 million students with student loan debt dropped out of college during the 2015-2016 school year.
It's impossible to know exactly how many of them got in over their heads versus those that were only marginally committed from the start. In either case, however, the tragedy of racking up debt with little or nothing to show for it could be avoided.
The trade of service for loans would compensate the citizenry for the increasing national commitment to financing higher education. Student loan debt grew to approximately $1.5 trillion in 2018. Over 10 percent of borrowers are currently in default, a growing liability for taxpayers. A national service year would give the taxpayer something upfront.
The Department of Education estimates that 4 million 18- and 19-year-olds will be enrolled in college in 2020. That means there are roughly 2 million incoming freshmen a year, about 70 percent of whom will take on student loans at some point in their education.
A national service requirement could be expected to cut that percentage. So let’s guess that over a million prospective students a year would join up. That would unite nearly one-third of all graduating seniors in national service — a solid core of shared experience.

The US Sanctions on Mullahs are Working
د.ماجد رافيزادا/معهد جيتستون: العقوبات الأميركية على الملالي حققت نتائج جيدة
Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/April 27/2019
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"The golden days are gone and will never return. Iran doesn't have enough money to give us." -- A militant with an Iranian-backed militia in Syria, New York Times, March 26, 2019.
Feeling the pressure of sanctions on Iran, Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Iran's proxy, Hezbollah, has also called on his group's fundraising arm "to provide the opportunity for jihad with money and also to help with this ongoing battle."
Iran's national currency, the rial, has dropped to historic lows — one US dollar, which equaled approximately 35,000 rials in November of 2017, now buys you nearly 130,000 rials.
Thanks to the Trump administration's sanctions, the flow of funds to the Iranian government is being cut off, impacting the Iranian leaders' efforts to fund and sponsor terrorist and militia groups across the region.
Critics of US President Donald Trump and his policy regarding the Iranian government are quick to condemn him for the sanctions he has imposed on the theocratic establishment. Their argument is anchored in the idea that the only informed and effective policy that will deal with Iran's clerical establishment is rooted in enticing them in from the cold: in oher words, appeasement.
These critics had the opportunity to initiate and expand appeasement policies during the eight-year administration of former President Barack Obama. Throughout this time, President Obama made unprecedented concessions in an attempt to appease the ruling mullahs. He met them with generosity and flexibility every step of the way. What was the outcome?
As sanctions against Iran were lifted during the Obama administration, it quickly became clear that those actions instead gave Iran global legitimacy in the eyes of the international community. This newfound legitimacy and the lifting of sanctions generated billions of dollars in revenue for Iran's military institution, the Revolutionary Guard Corps, as well as for Iran's militia and terror groups.
Tehran used that influx of revenues to expand its influence throughout the region, including in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Lebanon. The expansion campaign proved to be immensely successful.
Now the latest reports show that those who support the idea of appeasing Iran, and criticizing Trump's strict policy toward Iran, are dead wrong.
The sanctions have, in fact, imposed significant pressure on the Iranian government to such an extent that the Iranian leaders are cutting their funding to their allies, militia and terror groups.
In an unprecedented move, on April 17 2019, the state-controlled Syrian newspaper Al-Watan made an astonishing revelation when it reported that Iran had halted its credit line to the Syrian government. This occurred one day after the Iranian foreign minister, Javad Zarif visited Syria on April 16, 2019.
The Syrian newspaper complained that Tehran has also been unable to ship oil to Syria in the past six months. According to Al-Watan, this has imposed significant pressure on the government of Bashar Al Assad as it faces a fuel shortage. The Syrian government only produces roughly 25% of the fuel that it needs, making it dependent on Iran to provide the rest.
In addition, the fact that Al-Watan made such a disclosure just one day after the Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif visited the country, shows that Damascus has failed in its plea to convince Tehran to extend its credit line and oil exports to Syria.
Since US President Donald J. Trump withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal, Iran's oil revenues and exports have been steadily falling. Before the US pulled out of the nuclear deal and began taking a tougher stance towards the ruling clerics of Iran, Iran was exporting more than 2.5 million bpd. Iran's oil exports have since dropped to approximately 1.1 million barrels per day (bpd). That represents a decline of more than 50%.
According to the latest reports, US sanctions have also caused Iran to cut funds to its militias in Syria. Iran's militants are not getting their salaries and benefits, making it extremely difficult for them to continue fighting and destabilizing the region. A militant with an Iranian-backed militia in Syria told the New York Times, "The golden days are gone and will never return," he added "Iran doesn't have enough money to give us."
Feeling the pressure of sanctions on Iran, Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Iran's proxy, Hezbollah, has also called on his group's fundraising arm "to provide the opportunity for jihad with money and also to help with this ongoing battle."
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani recently admitted that the Islamic Republic is encountering the worst economic crisis since its establishment in 1979. Iran's national currency, the rial, has dropped to historic lows — one US dollar, which equaled approximately 35,000 rials in November of 2017, now buys you nearly 130,000 rials.
Thanks to the Trump administration's sanctions, the flow of funds to the Iranian government is being cut off, thereby, in turn, impacting the Iranian leaders' efforts to fund and sponsor terrorist and militia groups across the region.
To the dismay of the proponents of the Iranian government and the advocates of pursuing policies of appeasement with the ruling mullahs-- and to the dismay of Trump's critics -- the US sanctions imposed on Iran are working.
*Dr. Majid Rafizadeh, is a business strategist and advisor, Harvard-educated scholar, political scientist, board member of Harvard International Review, and president of the International American Council on the Middle East. He has authored several books on Islam and US Foreign Policy. He can be reached at Dr.Rafizadeh@Post.Harvard.Edu
© 2019 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14126/the-us-sanctions-on-mullahs-are-working

How Turkey's Democracy Went From Insanity to 'Beyond Insanity'
براك باكديل/جيتستون: الديموقراطية في تركيا تدرجت من الجنون إلى ما بعده
Burak Bekdil/Gatestone Institute/April 27/2019
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"Bad economic management, among others, brought him [Erdoğan] to power ... It may remove him power, too." -- International banker who asked not to be named.
Ironically, the man who could recharge the machine called Erdoğan & Co. (or push it over the cliff) is the president's son-in-law, Berat Albayrak.
In December 2015, Russia's defense ministry said it had proof that Erdoğan and his family were benefiting from the illegal smuggling of oil from Islamic State-held territory in Syria and Iraq. "Turkey is the main consumer of the oil stolen from its rightful owners, Syria and Iraq.
So, guess when and where wonder boy Albayrak last came to the attention of the U.S. public? On April 16, when he met with President Donald Trump in Washington. A smiling Albayrak happily announced that Trump took a reasonable point of view regarding Turkey's planned purchase of the Russian-made S-400 surface-to-air missile system. He also said that there was agreement at his meetings in Washington to increase annual bilateral trade between the United States and Turkey to $75 billion.
The man who could recharge the machine called Erdoğan & Co. (or push it over the cliff) is the president's son-in-law, Berat Albayrak. (Photo by Stringer/Getty Images)
In the country he has ruled since 2002, 80% of the minorities cannot openly express themselves on social media, and a good 35% say they are subjected to hate speech on the same platform. His top ulama [Islamic scholars] once issued a fatwa that read: "... a father kissing his daughter with lust or caressing her with desire has no effect on the man's marriage".
Between August 2014, when he was elected president of Turkey, and April 2016 he sued at least 1,845 people for insulting him, thereby winning the title of "the world's most insulted president".
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan once accused Western Europe of "intolerance that spreads like the plague," and described Belarus, which Western countries describe as a dictatorship, as "a country in which people with different roots live in peace".
When Turkey, officially, was the world's biggest jailer of journalists Erdoğan's Islamist party drafted a bill that would release about 3,000 men who married children, including men who raped them.
In December 2016, Alperen, an often violent youth group who enthusiastically support Erdoğan, celebrated Christmas and New Year's Eve in Turkey by holding a man dressed as Santa Claus at gunpoint. A headline in an Islamist newspaper (also pro-Erdoğan) read, "This is our last warning, DO NOT celebrate."
In 2017, Erdoğan's law enforcement authorities arrested and indicted a liberal group for terrorism whereas the group had only carried a placard that read: "Let Nuriye and Semih live!" – Nuriye Özakça and Semih Gülmen were two teachers who went on a hunger strike to protest their dismissal from work without a legal pretext. Erdogan's Turkey probably became the first country worldwide where "not wishing death to someone" was a serious crime.
Also in 2017, Erdoğan's Education Minister, Ismet Yılmaz, decided that Turkey's national school curriculum should leave out evolution but add the concept of "jihad," as part of Islamic law, in schoolbooks.
The insanity goes on; it is probably now beyond the level it was before. The deputy leader of an ultranationalist party, Erdoğan's staunchest ally in the Turkish parliament, Yaşar Yıldırım, criticized the opposition for "trying to topple the one-man regime and substitute it with democracy" (and no typo here!) told a news broadcaster: "This is exactly what they [the opposition] is trying to do. We should not allow this to happen". It was not a slip of the tongue; Yıldırım has never denied saying it or that it was what he wanted to say.
It was Erdoğan and his ultranationalist partners who turned a simple municipal election into an existential political war. This municipal election of March 31, they insisted, was a matter of "national survival" for Turkey. They wanted to mobilize their voters. Their pre-election strategy when the Turks voted to elect their mayors -- to portray the polls as existential: if we lose, Turkey would be facing an existential threat – has become their worst nightmare. after March 31. The opposition won all three of the biggest cities (Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir). Turkey's Islamists lost Istanbul and Ankara for the first time since they had won them 25 years ago. The opposition also won major Mediterranean cities such as Antalya, Turkey's top tourist hub; Adana and Mersin as well as Bolu and Kırşehir in Central Anatolia, another first for the opposition, as well as Artvin on the eastern Black Sea.
Erdoğan, since that election night, has been trying to exert damage control and keep morale among party fans high. "We came first." "Our alliance [with the ultranationalists] still has more than 50% support." But he seems to remain nervous. Under new management. 25 years of Islamist rule in Istanbul (or in Ankara) may produce embarrassing documents.
There are many explanations for Erdoğan's decline, the most accurate possibly being different combinations of all of the factors. Erdoğan, immediately after he won the presidential race in 2018, warned his party administration of "metal fatigue". He was right about his suspicion. But he did not see that part of the metal fatigue was his own authoritarian rule.
Then, last summer, the lira plunge came after Turkey's political tensions with the United States peaked over the detention in Turkey of a U.S. pastor, Andrew Brunson, (who was later released.) In January, Turkey's jobless rate surged to its highest point in a decade at 14.7% with the ranks of the unemployed swelling by 366,000 people in one month. The number of people without jobs has now reached 4.7 million, with youth unemployment jumping to 26.7%, a record high, according to data that goes back to 1988. There is recession: in the last quarter of 2018, the economy shrank by 3%. The national currency, Turkish lira, is not enjoying a stable recovery. On Aug. 21, 2017, it closed the trading day at 3.5 against the U.S. dollar. On Apr. 24, 2018, 1½ years later, one dollar was traded at 5.9 liras, a rise of nearly 70%.
Erdoğan, whose political popularity coincided with record growth rates (though some economists call the Turkish success a bubble based on construction-consumption), knows that his political future greatly depends on the performance of the economy. "Bad economic management, among others, brought him [Erdoğan] to power ... It may remove him power, too," said one international banker who asked not to be named.
The Turkish economy remains vulnerable. So does the lira. If there are more more plunges in the national currency, or more price hikes (annual inflation rate already runs at around 20%), or if more past fans suffer more job cuts, they may turn against him.
Ironically, the man who could recharge the machine called Erdoğan & Co. (or push it over the cliff) is the president's son-in-law, Berat Albayrak.
Who is the man that some in the Ankara political circles jokingly call "Damat Ferit Pasha?"
The original "Ferit Son-in-Law" Pasha, was born in 1853, and was an Ottoman diplomat. In 1885 he was married to Mediha Sultan, the daughter of Sultan Abdulmajed, and given the title 'pasha' (an Ottoman general) in 1888. During the most turbulent years of the empire, in 1920, he served as the Ottoman sadrazam, or prime minister, for six months. In 1922, he fled to Europe and in 1923 he died in Nice.
Albayrak, another "son-in-law," has a different story. He was born in Istanbul in 1978, with ancestry from the Yenice village of a town called Of in Trabzon province in the eastern Black Sea region of Turkey. This village is located in mountainous terrain closer to the neighbouring province of Rize, where Erdoğan was born. Inhabitants of this region are predominantly migrants from Georgia who fled during the 19th century conflicts in the Caucasus between the Ottoman State and Russia. They are mostly of (more) Christian Orthodox or (less) Jewish heritage who, in order to integrate into the local community, and with pressure from the Ottoman administration, converted to Islam. When the modern Turkish Republic was established in 1923, most converts became Turkish-Muslim supremacists, although there is no way of knowing if the Albayrak family were converts.
Mostly due to poverty, immigrant families on the eastern Black Sea coast migrated westwards to Istanbul and settled in the more conservative parts of the city. They established their congregations, associations, mosques and other social structures around the Ismailağa off-shoot of the Menzil sect, which is dominant in today's state apparatus. These are extremely devout, Islamist sects trying to gain more and more power in state bureaucracy.
Berat's father, Sadık Albayrak is a prominent figure in the Sunni Islamist circles. Albayrak the father started his religious education during his childhood in his village and continued on to the religious Imam Hatip School in Trabzon province. He is one of the opinion leaders of the early Islamist movement in the 1960s. He has served as the chief imam of the Blue Mosque along with Beyazıd, Fatih and Şehzadebaşı mosques, which also served as the meeting points of the Ismailağa sect.
Albayrak's business grew and became a conglomerate, Çalık Holding, with a large number of interests, which included gold mining, pipelines, power distribution networks, public construction tenders, wind and hydroelectric power stations, telecommunications, media and energy.
The younger Albayrak was the CEO of Çalık Holding when, in 2004, he married Erdoğan's eldest daughter, Esra. In 2015, a year after Erdoğan's first presidential victory, he became the Energy Minister. He has postgraduate degrees from New York Pace University in finance, and an MBA from the Lubin University of Business in the United States.
In 2008 the Çalık group was at the center of a controversial privatization of the country's second largest media group, ATV-Sabah, then under the disposition of a government fund. Çalık , amid rumors of nepotism, acquired ATV-Sabah for $1.1 billion. The deal was financed by cheap loans from two government-owned banks, Halkbank and Vakıfbank, which granted a combined $750 million. The rest of the money came from a Qatari media group, Al Wasaeel International Media in return for 25% of ATV-Sabah shares.
In 2016 Powertrans, a company with links to Albayrak, allegedly made hefty gains in oil trading between Turkey and Islamic State. In December 2015, Russia's defense ministry said it had proof that Erdoğan and his family were benefiting from the illegal smuggling of oil from Islamic State-held territory in Syria and Iraq. "Turkey is the main consumer of the oil stolen from its rightful owners, Syria and Iraq. According to information we've received, the senior political leadership of the country - President Erdoğan and his family - are involved in this criminal business," said Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov.
So, guess when and where wonder boy Albayrak last came to the attention of the U.S. public? On April 16, when he met with President Donald Trump in Washington. A smiling Albayrak happily announced that Trump took a reasonable point of view regarding Turkey's planned purchase of the Russian-made S-400 surface-to-air missile system. He also said that there was agreement at his meetings in Washington to increase annual bilateral trade between the United States and Turkey to $75 billion.
*Burak Bekdil, one of Turkey's leading journalists, was recently fired from the country's most noted newspaper after 29 years, for writing in Gatestone what is taking place in Turkey. He is a Fellow at the Middle East Forum.
© 2019 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14139/turkey-democracy-insanity

As the economic net tightens, Tehran is becoming ever more fractious
Raghida Dergham/April 27/2019
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The mutual escalation between the US and Iran could evolve into a confrontation that goes beyond sanctions, designations and threats
Iranian officials are issuing threats in response to the United States’ decision to end sanctions waivers given to eight major importers of Iranian oil, coupled with threats of imposing sanctions upon them, should they continue to buy crude from Tehran.
Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, vowed that the move would not go without a response and challenged Washington by saying Iran would continue to “export our oil as much as we need and we intend”. For his part, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani laid out the conditions of negotiating with Washington, saying: “Negotiations will be possible when all pressures are taken off, and they apologise for their illegal measures and when there is mutual respect.”
Mr Rouhani said the US was not ready to negotiate, and criticised Saudi Arabia and the UAE for welcoming and co-operating with Washington’s measures to ensure the oil markets have sufficient supplies. Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohamed Javad Zarif warned against attempts to block Iran from using the Strait of Hormuz, saying: “If the United States takes the crazy measure of trying to prevent us from doing that, then it should be prepared for the consequences.” Mr Zarif said the situation was dangerous and that “accidents” were possible, and proposed possible co-operation with the United States to bring stability to Iraq and Afghanistan, countries that are a priority for both Tehran and Washington.
For its part, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps has hinted it may shut the Strait of Hormuz if Iran is denied access to it, as Mr Rouhani alluded to following the US withdrawal from the nuclear pact back in July. At the time, the IRGC Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani praised Mr Rouhani for his stance, and offered to “kiss your hands” in a letter addressed to the Iranian president. Mr Soleimani recently sat next to the new IRGC commander Hossein Salami, a man known for his hardline positions and support for the Quds Force incursions in Arab nations.
Ayatollah Khamenei’s appointment of General Hossein Salami as the IRGC’s new commander came a week after Washington designated the IRGC as a terror organisation. Tehran responded by according the same designation to the US Central Command, in addition to appointing Mr Salami and promoting him to Major General – a clear message to Washington that Iran is ready to retaliate on the issues of its ballistic missile program and regional expansionism, both of which are backed by Mr Salami.
The end of US oil sanction waivers will affect some major countries, namely China, India, and Turkey. The five other nations affected by the waiver – Italy, Japan, Greece, Taiwan and South Korea – have gradually reduced their oil purchases from Iran. But Washington has not threatened to shut the Strait of Hormuz to Iran. Instead, Iran has threatened to shut the strategic waterway, either in response to US measures that are not on the table, or in retaliation to Arabian Gulf countries, preventing them from exporting their oil through the Strait.
The mutual escalation between the US and Iran could evolve into a confrontation that goes beyond sanctions, designations, and threats. Most of the 12 demands set by the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for Iran to meet are impossible. The question here is, then, whether US pressures, designed to coerce the regime into revising its policies, will lead Iran to reform itself, or will the IRGC prevent any such adaptation and adjustment as the price would be its own head?
Nothing in Tehran indicates that the supreme leader or the IRGC are ready to bargain over the nature of the regime or to engage in reforms. So the next question is this: is Iran ready for war with the US? There are no indications to support this, which means there will be “alternative arenas” for the confrontation to play out, either to reach a deal or to battle it out militarily.
Nothing in Tehran indicates that the supreme leader or the IRGC are ready to bargain over the nature of the regime or to engage in reforms
In Yemen, the Iranian regime seems determined to continue supporting the Houthi rebels. Saudi Arabia and the UAE are ready to end the war, but Iran has so far refused to facilitate this, believing the war in Yemen is an economic drain on the two Gulf nations. The US congress and the Democratic Party are, meanwhile, using the Yemen war to undermine US President Donald Trump, while also ignoring Iran’s role in the conflict. Here, the IRGC is likely to continue to see the Yemeni arena not only as ammunition for its plans, but also as a launchpad to the Red Sea to expand Iran’s sphere of influence.
Iraq is another dangerous arena, should the IRGC decide to use it to attack US forces there. Mr Zarif proposed co-operation with Washington in Iraq, as though offering a carrot against the IRGC’s stick. The rapidly evolving political and economic relations between Gulf nations – led by Saudi Arabia – and Iraq have vexed Iran, which sees Baghdad as one of its strategic prizes. But while Iraq is indeed an open arena for coming confrontations, the prospect of a military confrontation remains unlikely in the present time, because if the IRGC decides to target US troops in Iraq, Washington will likely respond violently and on Iranian soil. The US decision is not to leave Iraq to Iran or Russia.
Syria, however, has been left to Russia, with implicit US agreement, on the condition that the Iranians do not take over, and strategic US deployments in Syria are accepted and understood. The Syrian arena however can be the place where the IRGC project for expansion into the Mediterranean comes crashing down. Yet it will not be the US that will confront this project, but Russia and Israel, which has said it will not accept a permanent military presence on its borders.
Russia and Iran, who are tactical allies on the ground in Syria, have started seeking strategic and economic concessions in Syria, launching a period of rivalry, bargaining, and pressures on Bashar Al Assad, who owes his survival to Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah. Mr Al Assad wanted to give the port in Latakia to the Iranians, but the Russians protested and demanded more concessions to guarantee its military bases in Tartus and Latakia. Israel has been bombing Iranian positions in Syria amid Russian silence, while Washington intends to keep around 1,000 soldiers in eastern Syria and will not abandon its strategic airbase in Tanf. In short, Iran’s projects in Syria are being contained through an agreement between Russia, Israel and the US.
Lebanon, home to the IRGC’s precious asset Hezbollah, is another arena. Israel has said it will not tolerate the existence of an Iranian-backed manufacturing facility for precision-guided missiles on Lebanese soil. The IRGC wants to have the final say in Lebanon, and Mr Soleimani seems to be the key person who communicates Iranian instructions to Hezbollah. However, going to war is a fateful decision that only Ayatollah Khamenei can approve. The Iranian leadership may decide that it is best to avoid an Israeli attack on its Lebanese asset, and back down on the issue of rocket production and reach some kind of deal with Israel. Or it could decide that its interests are best served through a war in Lebanon, no matter the cost.
All indications suggest Israel will not coexist with Iranian rockets in Lebanon, and that Israel’s returning prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is ready for war, backed by the anticipated right-wing coalition once his government is formed. Mr Netanyahu also enjoys absolute support from Mr Trump and may need a war to divert attention away from the domestic corruption scandal he faces in the coming months.
All indications also suggest that the Trump administration is ready to support Mr Netanyahu in a war with Hezbollah, if it judges there will be no other option to contain the Lebanese militia. That would mark a radical shift in US positions, away from accommodation of the Lebanese government’s inability to deal with Hezbollah. The top priority for Washington today is to subdue Iran and eliminate its expansionist projects everywhere.
It is a truly sensitive and dangerous time for the region.

Iran’s human bargaining chips
Camelia Entekhabifard/Arab News/April 27/19
Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has offered a prisoner swap, using the fate of hostages in Iran as a bargaining chip in negotiations with the US.
It is telling that none of the American-Iranians released from US prisons in the most recent prisoner swap had any interest in returning to Iran or giving up their US citizenship. Those freed in Iran, meanwhile, could not get out of the country fast enough, and a special plane was provided to take them to Switzerland. Tehran released journalist Jason Rezaian, who had been convicted of espionage; former Marine Corps infantryman Amir Hekmati, jailed for co-operating with hostile governments; Christian pastor Saeed Abedini, who was convicted of violating national security; and former Iranian infantryman Nosratollah Khosravi-Roodsari, who had been found guilty of breaking alcohol laws and was awaiting trial on espionage charges.
In return, the US released Bahram Mechanic, Khosrow Afghahi and Tooraj Faridi, who were charged with sanctions violations; Nader Modanlo, who was convicted of illicit business deals that helped Iran launch its Sina-1 satellite in 2005; and Arash Ghahreman, who was convicted of money laundering and sanctions violations for exporting navigation equipment to Iran; Nima Golestaneh, who was jailed for hacking; and Ali Saboonchi, who was convicted of sanctions violations. American student and researcher Matthew Trevithick was allowed to leave Iran under a separate arrangement.
It is telling that none of the American-Iranians released from US prisons in the most recent prisoner swap had any interest in returning to Iran or giving up their US citizenship.
In addition, the US government withdrew the charges and Interpol red notices against 14 Iranians living outside of the US, “for whom it was assessed that extradition requests were unlikely to be successful.”
None of those released by the US were particularly well known to the Iranian public, and we do not know exactly who Zarif has in mind to include in a new prisoner swap.
At this stage, it seems like the regime in Tehran perhaps hopes to secure some benefits from releasing Michael White, from California, a US Navy veteran who has been held in the city of Mashhad on unspecified charges since last July. The 46 -year-old was arrested while visiting his Iranian girlfriend.
Then there is Nizar Zakka, a Lebanese national and a permanent resident of the US, who was arrested in 2015, and Xiyue Wang, an American, a history student at Princeton University who was jailed for 10 years in 2017.
Perhaps they are among those whose fates Zarif wants to negotiate with the US. It is not clear whether Siamak Namazi might also be on that list. The 46-year-old businessman, who promoted closer ties between Iran and the West, was arrested in Oct. 2015. Like others with dual Iranian and US citizenship who have been jailed, he and his 82-year-old father, Baquer, faced secret charges during closed-door trials in Iran’s Revolutionary Court, which handles cases involving alleged attempts to overthrow the government.
It remains to be seen what souvenir Zarif will take back to his bosses in Tehran from New York: More sanctions or a prisoner-swap deal?

Daesh is thriving in the unlikeliest of places while Washington ignores the threat
Hafed Al-Ghwell/Arab News/April 27/19
Easter Sunday 2019 is a day that will live in infamy, not only for Sri Lanka but for Southeast Asia as well — a day that will resonate with Christians across the planet. A series of coordinated explosions triggered by eight suicide bombers at six locations in three cities claimed at least 253 lives and injured hundreds.
The following day, Sri Lankan officials placed the blame on a local Islamist group called National Thowheed Jamaath, while conceding that the little-known (and often overlooked) organization must have had international help. Up until the attacks, the group was only known for defacing Buddhist statues. The following day, Daesh claimed responsibility for the bombings, which came as a surprise to all.
Sri Lanka’s moderate Muslim minority has no history of violence and has consistently chosen restraint in the face of harassment and violent attacks from local, radical Buddhist groups. In fact, security-threat assessments of Southeast Asia in the past decade probably excluded Sri Lanka as a potential hotbed of terrorist activity.
Daesh, which the White House had triumphantly declared to be “dead” just four months ago, announced to the world, in the most dramatic of ways, that it is far from destroyed. In fact, the Sri Lankan bombings clearly demonstrated how the group remains a lethal force capable of even more death and destruction, even though it no longer holds any territory. The Easter Sunday attacks in Sri Lanka were nearly twice as lethal as the Paris attacks in 2015, when Daesh held significant swaths of territory in Syria and Iraq.
Pentagon officials had cautioned the White House against making such premature declarations of victory, and also warned that the rush to end military engagements would cripple critical operations designed to keep tabs on Daesh remnants. For these officials, analysts and policy advisers, in the United States and other countries, the wresting of territories from Daesh was only the beginning.
Precedent had already shown that when waging a “war on terror,” it takes much more than boots on the ground, heavy ordnance, drone strikes and loose coordination with locals to push radical elements out. When US forces surged into Afghanistan and Iraq, there was no resultant miracle transformation and hardly any “hearts and minds” were won over. In fact, the opposite happened; in place of the peaceful, US- and Western-friendly states the White House envisioned, the region descended into years of chaos and civil war. These conditions birthed Daesh, emboldened Al-Qaeda and afforded the Taliban the veneer of legitimacy that had eluded them.
While the United States has chosen to retreat, Daesh has stepped up its operations and transformed itself into a global threat in even the most unlikely of places.
Going forward, the Easter Sunday attacks show a further unraveling of the $2.04 trillion dollar US-led War on Terror, signaling to other nations (potentially vulnerable or not) that the White House dropped the ball — and has no interest in picking it up. How can nations such as Sri Lanka, with few or no extremist groups operating locally, now take Washington’s word for it that Daesh no longer poses a threat? Such questions are important because it is not only about the lives of those who are killed or wounded; such devastating attacks also carry huge economic ramifications. Sri Lanka's $6 billion tourism industry is likely to suffer a painful slowdown, with knock-on effects on jobs and livelihoods.
Of even more concern, the Trump administration appears to have abdicated its leadership of the global coalition of nations fighting against terrorist insurgency groups. If anything, this disinterest, and the resultant intelligence failures, are likely to intensify global ire against an embattled White House distracted by domestic scandal and intrigue. In the meantime, Daesh and other radical groups continue to evolve, reorganizing and modifying operations to fit an ever-changing transnational security landscape. Other extremist groups, in pursuit of religious, ethnic or political goals, are probably paying attention and will seek to copy what “works,” thereby transforming themselves into major threats aligned with or alongside Daesh.
Daesh is peculiar, in that even after its core was weakened and ultimately decimated, its peripheries have persisted, successfully assuming the group’s ambitions of a global caliphate. For instance, a Philippine affiliate was responsible for an attack in January that claimed 23 lives. The group has also poached Taliban fighters, despite US officials breaking bread with the Taliban to engineer a US exit from Afghanistan.
The defeats in Iraq and Syria did not hinder Daesh at all. Thousands of its fighters have gone underground, while its media arm continues to pump out propaganda and issue directives to far-flung cells and affiliates. The recent anti-Islam rhetoric from Western politicians and attacks by white extremists, such as the recent one in New Zealand, have also served to fuel radical Islamist groups and amplify their messages and recruitment.
Recently, Daesh expanded its presence in Africa beyond Boko Haram’s operations in West Africa by recruiting the Allied Democratic Forces, an Islamist militia rebel group based in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This is the group behind attacks in the DRC’s North Kivu province, which is home to resources, such as timber, gold, tin and rare earth metals, that Daesh can potentially exploit and traffic to raise funds.
The expansion of Daesh into the DRC is especially troubling given that Muslims only account for 2 percent of the population and Arabic is neither a national nor an indigenous language. There would be no reason whatsoever for Daesh to have any interest in the DRC were it not for a lack of stability and the prevalence of armed groups engaged in resource trafficking. With the group defeated in the Middle East, pockets of instability in Africa and Asia will probably play host to the group’s plans to re-emerge — or, at the very least, provide bases from which to launch further devastating attacks.
Worryingly, 10 days before an attack in the DRC for which Daesh claimed responsibility, the country’s president, Felix Tshisekedi, traveled to Washington to warn officials that the group was likely to launch attacks and attempt to relocate some of its personnel in the Northern Province. Apparently, those warnings fell on deaf ears. Daesh attacks have even resumed in Raqqa, Syria, and in Mosul and Fallujah in Iraq, cities the group once controlled at its height. Just last week, a Daesh attack killed 35 soldiers from the Syrian Army and affiliated militias. The current chaos in Libya is also likely to once again provide a hospitable environment for groups such as Daesh. Even more dangerous is the persistent stream of radicalizing content from Daesh that is capable of inspiring lone-wolf attacks.
While the United States has chosen to retreat, Daesh has stepped up its operations and transformed itself into a global threat in even the most unlikely of places.
• Hafed Al-Ghwell is a non-resident senior fellow with the Foreign Policy Institute at the John Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He is also senior adviser at the international economic consultancy Maxwell Stamp and at the geopolitical risk advisory firm Oxford Analytica, a member of the Strategic Advisory Solutions International Group in Washington DC and a former adviser to the board of the World Bank Group.

Why the West is so worried by China’s Belt and Road
Andrew Hammond/Arab News/April 27/19
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron will meet Southeast European leaders on Monday. While they will discuss the conflict between Serbia and Kosovo, also on the agenda at the summit is the concern in Brussels, Berlin and Paris about China’s increasing influence in the Balkans.The situation in Southeast Europe is just a microcosm of wider Western worries about the impact of China’s multitrillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which now has the backing of more than 100 countries and international organizations. This project, some say the biggest logistical development in history, was also the focus of a summit in Beijing on Friday and Saturday last week of representatives of about 40 governments.
They included not only increasingly important allies of China such as Russian President Vladimir Putin (fresh from his meeting with Kim Jong Un) and Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan, but also Giuseppe Conte, the prime minister of Italy, recently the first G7 country to sign on to the BRI in a move that generated alarm not only in Europe but also the United States.
It is no coincidence that the delegates sent to Beijing by those states most skeptical about the initiative were below the rank of national leader. This included the US, which sent a significantly lower-level delegation.
The summit highlighted the progress to date in the project: It was announced, for instance, that Chinese companies have already invested $90 billion in nations that have signed up to the BRI, with a further $200-300 billion of loans agreed. Beijing also sought to tackle, upfront, concerns about so-called Chinese “debt diplomacy” by pledging to respect global debt goals and promote green growth.
While Beijing’s economic rationale for the BRI is obvious, the political angle is key too, as Western critics are only too aware. Take the example of Africa: Its growing importance is illustrated by the fact that its population is forecast to double to 2.2 billion by 2050, and 60 percent will be under the age of 25.
The continent, an increasingly key focus for China, already has six of the world’s 12 fastest-growing countries: Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Mozambique, Tanzania and Rwanda. The IMF also predicts that by 2023 Africa’s growth prospects will be among the best in the world.
Small wonder, therefore, that Beijing is utilizing the BRI to leverage its political influence there, buttressed by frequent trips from top leadership. The Chinese president, premier and foreign minister have made in excess of 80 visits to more than 40 African nations over the past decade alone. Donald Trump, meanwhile, might not visit the continent at all during his first four-year term in the White House, perhaps reflecting his reported derogatory references last year to the countries there.
Africa has six of the world’s 12 fastest-growing countries and China is utilizing its Belt and Road Initiative to leverage its political influence there
A good case study is Kenya, which has a population of about 50 million and is a key US partner in the region, including the campaign against terrorism. Yet its external debt is now largely (around 70 percent) owed to Beijing, and many large infrastructure projects are being built by Chinese firms.
Given Trump’s lack of any focus on Africa, much of the impetus behind current US policy toward the continent is coming from Congress rather than the administration. Last autumn, for instance, legislators passed, on a bipartisan basis, legislation to create a $60 billion agency to oversee strategic investment in developing countries, including those in Africa.
The proposed International Development Finance Corporation is a clear part of Washington’s response to China’s growing influence, and marks a return to US-aid policy with commercial diplomacy and geopolitics center stage. The IDFC, which has been endorsed by Trump, will become the preeminent US government development-finance institution for progressing US interests in multiple ways, including the enhancement of US geopolitical influence with regard to China.
Yet during the Trump years China still looks like securing an edge in Africa at the expense of the US. The financial clout and political resolve of Beijing in its dealing with the continent are also overshadowing other key Western nations such as France, Germany and the United Kingdom, which are also showing greater interest.
Under Macron, for instance, Paris is seeking to increase its ties with former colonies while reinforcing relations with the continent’s biggest economies, including South Africa and Nigeria. Merkel has also made numerous trips to the continent.
Meanwhile embattled British Prime Minister Theresa May made her first, and probably last, prime ministerial visit to Africa last year to meet the heads of three major Commonwealth countries: South Africa, Nigeria, and Kenya. The continent has assumed a new importance to the UK as a result of Brexit, as London seeks to consolidate ties with key non-EU nations.
However, with the possible exception of the US, especially under a future president more committed to Africa, this upsurge of attention paid to the continent by Western governments risks being dwarfed by the focus of Beijing. This is why the BRI will continue to worry the West, in its dealings with Africa and beyond, as Beijing consolidates its global political and economic influence.
• Andrew Hammond is an Associate at LSE IDEAS at the London School of Economics