English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For December 17/2020
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

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Bible Quotations For today

The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field
Matthew 13/24-30: “Jesus put before them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, “Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?” He answered, “An enemy has done this.” The slaves said to him, “Then do you want us to go and gather them?”But he replied, “No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on December 16-17/2020

Aoun Slams 'Rumors' about Interference in Judiciary
Hariri Meets al-Rahi, Says Goal is to Form Reformist Govt.
Parliament Asks Sawwan for File Containing 'Serious Suspicions' in Port Probe
Sawwan Reschedules ex-Ministers Questioning, Charges Port Officials
Fenianos: According to My Own Timing I Will Appear Before Judge
Two Lebanese ex-ministers snub judge after being charged over Beirut explosion
Army: Israeli Gunboat Violates Lebanese Waters
U.S. Ambassador Cancels Visit to Sidon Municipality over Protests
Hezbollah uses Lebanon’s health budget to disproportionally fund its institutions
Lebanese parliament speaker dismisses hope for cabinet deal
All eyes on Macron visit to help break Cabinet impasse
Tunisia, Lebanon to get Pfizer vaccines despite acute hardships
Biden must support Macron’s plan for Lebanon/Michael Young/The National/December 16/2020

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on December 16-17/2020

US blacklists four companies for helping export of Iranian petrochemical products
US designates Iran-backed Bahrain group as terrorist
Ghanim re-elected Kuwaiti parliament speaker after tough battle
UN body approves new UN envoys for Libya, Mideast
UN calls for all mercenaries to leave Libya
Biden Joins Battle for Senate as Top Republican Accepts Win
Nikki Haley: Resumption of Iran deal would be ‘devastating’
Turkey’s Erdogan says US sanctions are an ‘attack on sovereignty’
UK lawmakers urge government to designate Iran’s IRGC, replace nuclear deal
Iran’s Khamenei says US hostility toward Iran will continue after Trump
Iran’s Rouhani says he is happy that ‘lawless’ Trump is leaving office
Iranian sentenced to six months in prison for organizing mixed-gender concerts
New lawsuit filed in New York accuses top Qatar banks of funding terror in Israel
UAE’s Mohamed bin Zayed meets Egyptian President al-Sisi in Cairo

Titles For The Latest The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on December 16-17/2020

Europe Confronts Second Wave of Coronavirus/Soeren Kern/Gatestone Institute/December 16/2020
Biden rejoining the Iran nuclear deal will allow Tehran to fund militias through oil/Hussain Abdul-Hussain/Al Arabia/Wednesday 16 December 2020
Why does the Gulf lack female leaders? Data has the answers/Omar Al-Ubaydli/Al Arabiya/Wednesday 16 December 2020
US designation of Muslim Brotherhood would make the world safer/Dalia Al-Aqidi/Arab News/December 16/2020
Erdogan’s balancing act faces new challenges in Biden era/Talmiz Ahmad/Arab News/December 16/2020

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on December 16-17/2020

Aoun Slams 'Rumors' about Interference in Judiciary
Naharnet/Wednesday 16 December 2020
President Michel Aoun on Wednesday warned of “the danger of the rumors that are being circulated through media outlets.”Noting that some of the rumors are aimed at “stirring problems between leaders and politicians,” Aoun said the media reports about his meeting with the Higher Judicial Council are the “best example.”“It is important to verify information before distributing accusations, and this is part of shouldering national responsibility, especially that these rumors have caused great damage, particularly as to building confidence between the Lebanese and the judiciary,” the president added. He also reiterated his “ultimate support” for the judiciary, stressing that he will always stand by it “in the face of pressures.”

Hariri Meets al-Rahi, Says Goal is to Form Reformist Govt.
Naharnet/Wednesday 16 December 2020
Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri held talks Wednesday in Bkirki with Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi. “I put the patriarch in the picture of the line-up that I presented to the president, which is based on nonpartisan, upright and competent specialists who are capable of carrying out the reforms that have been agreed on,” said Hariri after the meeting. “I told His Eminence that the goal is not to form just any government nor that I be its premier but rather to stop the collapse and rebuild Beirut. This goal can only be achieved through carrying out the reforms that have been agreed on in order to reactivate the flow of funding towards Lebanon,” Hariri added. He also noted that he stressed to al-Rahi his insistence on unveiling the truth in the Beirut port explosion case. “We stress the right of all Lebanese, topped by the victims and their families, to know the entire truth and responsibilities. In this regard, there is no cover for anyone but rather full respect for the constitution and laws,” Hariri added. Al-Jadeed TV meanwhile reported that Hariri explained the obstacles delaying the formation of the new government, especially after al-Rahi addressed Hariri by name during his latest visit to Baabda. Hariri told the patriarch that “the problem is not a Christian-Muslim one as it is being depicted,” al-Jadeed added.

Parliament Asks Sawwan for File Containing 'Serious Suspicions' in Port Probe
Naharnet/Wednesday 16 December 2020
Parliament has asked Judicial Investigator Judge Fadi Sawwan to submit a file detailing any “serious suspicions” he has regarding officials he has charged or intends to charge in the ongoing probe into the devastating August 4 explosion at Beirut’s port. “We have received a letter from Judge Sawwan and it has been decided not to publish it in the media out of respect for the Lebanese judiciary and keenness from us on it performing its work to the fullest,” Deputy Speaker Elie Ferzli announced after a meeting for Parliament Bureau chaired by Speaker Nabih Berri. “We hope facts will be reached regarding the port’s crime and its reasons,” Ferzli added. In response, parliament sent Sawwan a letter and it is “awaiting an answer including a file carrying serious suspicions in order to act accordingly,” Ferzli revealed. “The letter we sent to Judge Sawwan includes an essential point, which is that we regret that parliament has been addressed as if it has neglected the practice of its constitutional jurisdiction, seeing as how can parliament make accusations without clear evidence?” the Deputy Speaker went on to say. “We have not found any serious or non-serious suspicions against all those who were named,” Ferzli added. He also said that parliament will hold a plenary session on Monday. Caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab and ex-ministers Ghazi Zoaiter and Ali Hassan Khalil, who are both incumbent MPs, have declined to be interrogated by Sawwan, casting doubts on the future of the probe.
Diab, the two ministers and ex-minister Youssef Fenianos were charged last week by Sawwan with negligence over the massive Aug. 4 blast that killed over 200 people, injured thousands and caused widespread destruction in the capital. The explosion was caused by the ignition of a large stockpile of explosive material that had been stored at the port for six years with the knowledge of top security officials and politicians who did nothing about it. The four are the most senior officials to be charged in the investigation and were set to be questioned as defendants this week by Sawwan, starting with Diab on Monday. According to judicial officials, Diab is now scheduled to be questioned on Friday. It was not clear what the judge's next steps will be if the politicians again decline to be questioned. Among his options are issuing arrest warrants. Or if he is totally ignored he may decide to step down. That would deal a major blow to the investigation into Lebanon's most destructive single incident in its history.

Sawwan Reschedules ex-Ministers Questioning, Charges Port Officials
Naharnet/Wednesday 16 December 2020
Judicial investigator into the port blast Judge Fadi Sawwan on Wednesday rescheduled the interrogation of ex-ministers Ali Hassan Khalil and Ghazi Zoaiter to January 4, the National News Agency said. Sawwan’s move comes after Khalil and Zoaiter failed to show up at a session scheduled for today, Wednesday and after he did not receive official responses as to whether they have received notification memos from parliament, NNA added. Also on Wednesday, Sawwan heard the testimony of former army chief of staff Maj. Gen. Walid Salman, who appeared before him as a witness. He also filed charges against the president and two directors of the port’s administration and investment authority, accusing them of negligence and causing the death of innocents. Sawwan will also question Beirut Port Director General Hassan Qureitem, who has been in custody since August, at a session that will be scheduled later.

Fenianos: According to My Own Timing I Will Appear Before Judge
Naharnet/Wednesday 16 December 2020
Former minister Youssef Fenianos said he is going to appear before the investigating judge over the Beirut port blast probe but according to his own scheduling, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Wednesday. "I decided to appear before the judge but at my own timing. My conscience is clear and will therefore meet the judge to tell him he violated article 40, 70 and 71 of the constitution," said Fenianos. On Tuesday, Fenianos went to the Judicial Palace to attend a questioning by Judge Fadi Sawwan, the lead investigator into the port blast, but that the session was postponed to a later date which he was not duly notified of. Sawwan probing last summer’s port explosion in Beirut filed charges last week against caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab, former Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil, as well as Ghazi Zoaiter and Fenianos, both former ministers of public works. Khalil and Zoaiter as well as caretaker PM Hassan Diab had refused to appear before Sawwan on Monday.

Two Lebanese ex-ministers snub judge after being charged over Beirut explosion
Reuters, Beirut/Wednesday 16 December 2020
Two former Lebanese ministers charged with negligence over a huge explosion at Beirut port in August that killed 200 people indicated on Wednesday they would not appear for questioning before the judge handling the case. Judge Fadi Sawan charged three former ministers and the caretaker prime minister last week, sparking a fierce debate about whether the judge had the authority to charge the politicians in a nation still seeking answers about the blast. The explosion added further strains to a country struggling with its worst crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war. Some leading parties rebuked the judge for his action, including Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah and the Sunni group led by former Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri. Ali Hassan Khalil, a former finance minister, and Ghazi Zeaiter, a former public works minister, who were both charged, said they had not been officially informed of Wednesday's session, which protocol demanded. Both are lawmakers from Amal, the Shia party led by powerful Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri who is allied to Hezbollah. Sawan could not immediately be reached for comment. Hassan Diab, the caretaker prime minister whose cabinet resigned after the explosion, declined to be questioned on Monday. An official source said the judge set a new appointment for Friday but had yet to receive a response. Diab says his conscience is clear over the matter. Families of blast victims are increasingly frustrated that details have not emerged from an investigation since the Aug. 4 explosion caused by a huge stockpile of ammonium nitrate, which was stored in unsafe conditions. The blast, one of the biggest non-nuclear explosions in history, injured thousands of people and devastated several districts in the centre of the capital.
 

Army: Israeli Gunboat Violates Lebanese Waters
Naharnet/Wednesday 16 December 2020
An Israeli military boat violated Lebanese territorial waters off Ras el-Naqoura region, sailing for four minutes inside Lebanese waters, the Army Command-Orientation Directorate said in a statement Wednesday. The military said the boats infiltrated the waters at 16:16 on December 14. The army and UNIFIL forces are following up on the issue, it added.

U.S. Ambassador Cancels Visit to Sidon Municipality over Protests
Naharnet/Wednesday 16 December 2020
The US ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea cancelled a visit to the municipality of Sidon on Wednesday after some protesters chanted slogans rejecting her visit, the National News Agency reported. A group of protesters staged a sit-in in the main city’s Nejmeh square, opposite the municipality building and chanted slogans against the US policies. NNA said the protesters were groups from the Nasserite Popular Organization, the Democratic Party, the Communist Party, the Arab National Youth, in addition to leftist groups, and a number of the Sidon movement groups. The Ambassador later headed to Majdalyoun where she met MP Bahiaa Hariri. She also visited the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture in Sidon and the South.

Hezbollah uses Lebanon’s health budget to disproportionally fund its institutions
Al Arabiya English/Wednesday 16 December 2020
Hezbollah has used Lebanon’s health budget to disproportionately fund its own medical institutions, according to a government document issued by the Health Ministry currently run by pro-Hezbollah minister Hamad Hasan.
The official document showed the health budget allocations for both public and private hospitals, which the caretaker Lebanese government signed before its resignation last August only four days following the Beirut port explosion. It showed that the ministry raised the budgets of Hezbollah-sponsored medical institutions. In recent governments, Hezbollah began demanding more ministerial portfolios that have access to state services and funding such as the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Industry. This disproportionate budget allocation by the Ministry of Health has raised the concerns of Lebanese citizens on Hezbollah’s use of ministries to fund and support its own parallel economy. Earlier this year, the Ministry of Health was also criticized for trying to replace medicines produced in Europe with alternatives produced in Iran. The document seen by Al Arabiya English showed that al-Rassoul al-Azam Hospital, which was not affected by the Beirut port explosion and is affiliated with Hezbollah, received 14.7 billion Lebanese pounds ($9.7 million at the country’s official pegged rate), an increase of 5.5 billion Lebanese pounds ($3.6 million) compared to the prior year. The same budget allocations were not increased for prominent hospitals such as the American University, Roum, and Hotel Dieu despite their recent challenges following the impact of the Beirut blast in August and being the major hospitals to receive and treat the number of dead and injured.
The total allocation for all three prominent hospitals did not exceed 16.4 billion pounds ($10.8 million), compared to 14.7 billion Lebanese pounds ($9.7 million) for one hospital sponsored by Hezbollah, the document showed. A source from the health ministry said, "the scandal of distributing financial ceilings is not limited to al-Rassoul al-Azam Hospital, which is classified as a first category.” “Rather, it includes raising the budget allocations of Hezbollah hospitals, institutions, and clinics run by its health authority, including newly established institutions, with an overall increase of 14 billion Lebanese pounds ($9.2 million),” the source added, wishing not to be named. Al Arabiya English reached out to Dr. Hadi Mourad, who said that the budget's massive addition only targeted Hezbollah medical institutions across the country. "Moreover, the ministry added 15 new medical institutions that were not previously funded by the ministry for the first time. Those additions did not target Shia predominantly areas, for example, Baalbek public hospital received minimal aid, despite its importance in the region. Similarly, other institutions sponsored by the Amal movement did not receive any bonuses from the ministry. These bonuses clearly targeted only Hezbollah sponsored institutions," Mourad said. "Karantina hospital, which was destroyed completely by the Beirut Port explosion, received only 75 million Lebanese Liras," he added. Mourad said that the prior health minister, Ghassan Hasbani, established a precise formula for those bonuses based on the number of beds in each hospital and its significance in the country's medical sector. The government at the time rejected Hasbani’s formula “because they wanted to keep going with the corrupt sectarian quota divisions to which the political class is used to,” according to Mourad.

Lebanese parliament speaker dismisses hope for cabinet deal
The Arab Weekly/December 16/2020
BEIRUT – The path to a new Lebanese government is completely blocked, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said in comments published on Tuesday, but he held out hope that French President Emmanuel Macron might be able to help in a forthcoming visit. Fractious politicians have been unable to agree on a new government since the last one quit in the aftermath of the August 4 Beirut port explosion, leaving Lebanon rudderless as it sinks deeper into economic and financial crisis. “The situation is not comforting at all (in Lebanon). We have entered a tunnel and I do not know how we are going to get out of it,” Berri told al-Joumhuria newspaper. “We are in a pitiful situation. The government situation is completely blocked.”Prime Minister-designate Saad al-Hariri and President Michel Aoun aired their differences over the government in statements on Monday, each blaming the other for the delay. “Why this blockage? The answer certainly lies with the president and prime minister-designate,” said Berri, an ally of the armed Iran-backed Hezbollah group. “God willing, the French President Emmanuel Macron will be able to do something in his coming visit. We can only wait.”Macron is due to visit Lebanon later this month, his third visit since the devastating port explosion which worsened an economic crisis. Caused by decades of corruption and bad governance, the financial meltdown is the worst crisis to hit Lebanon since its 1975-90 civil war. Following the blast, Macron led efforts to get Lebanese politicians to agree on a new government which could enact reforms and in turn unlock international support. But Lebanese leaders have delivered no reforms.French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Lebanon’s political and economic collapse was like the sinking of the Titanic, only without the music which it is believed the orchestra played as the ship went down.

All eyes on Macron visit to help break Cabinet impasse
Hussein Dakroub/The Daily Star/December 16/2020
BEIRUT: With the Cabinet formation process hitting a dead-end after the eruption of a “war of words” between President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri, reflecting wide differences over the makeup of a new government, attention is focused on a new visit to Lebanon by French President Emmanuel Macron next week to help break the weekslong standoff. Macron is scheduled to visit Beirut on Dec. 22-23, marking his third trip to the crises-stricken country since the massive Aug. 4 explosion that devastated Beirut Port, left half of the capital in ruins, killed nearly 200 people and injured thousands.
“The government formation process is at a complete standstill. There are internal mediators working to bridge the gap between President Aoun and Prime Minister Hariri over the Cabinet formation. But the chances of this mediation bid to break the deadlock are weak,” an official source told The Daily Star Tuesday. “With no chance to resolve the Cabinet crisis internally, Lebanese popular and political attention is focused on President Macron’s visit to Beirut next week in the hope it will help achieve a breakthrough in the government formation gridlock,” the source said.
The source noted that a week after Hariri had presented to Aoun his first draft Cabinet lineup since he was designated to form a new government on Oct. 22, no meeting has so far been planned between the two leaders to try to resolve differences over the names of potential ministers and the shape of a proposed 18-member Cabinet of nonpartisan specialists desperately awaited by the Lebanese and the international community to enact reforms and salvage Lebanon’s collapsing economy.
After presenting his Cabinet lineup to Aoun last Wednesday, Hariri sounded upbeat about forming a new government soon to deliver reforms and halt Lebanon’s economic collapse. But Hariri’s optimism has since faded by a counter-Cabinet proposal presented by Aoun. The president’s unprecedented move was viewed as a rejection of the premier-designate’s proposed Cabinet lineup.
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri also held out hope that Macron might be able to help in resolving the Cabinet crisis during his forthcoming visit. He said the path to a new Lebanese government was completely blocked.
"The situation is not comfortable at all. We have entered a tunnel and I don't know how we will get out of it," Berri said in remarks published by Al-Joumhouria newspaper Tuesday. "We are in a pitiful situation. The government situation is completely blocked."
"Why this blockage? The answer certainly lies with the president and the prime minister-designate," Berri said. "God willing, French President Emmanuel Macron will be able to do something in his coming visit. We can only wait." Berri stressed that the deteriorating economic conditions in the country required a quick formation of a new government.
Lebanon has been without a fully functioning government since Aug. 10 when then-Prime Minister Hassan Diab’s government resigned in the aftermath of the port explosion, although it stayed on in a caretaker capacity.
In a development further complicating the Cabinet formation efforts, Aoun and Hariri Monday aired their differences over the formation , engaging in a “war of words” with each blaming the other for the delay.
In a statement issued by his media office, Hariri disclosed that Aoun and the Free Patriotic Movement headed by MP Gebran Bassil demanded a veto power in the next government. Hariri, who staunchly rejects granting any party a veto power in the next government, implicitly blamed, Bassil, Aoun’s son-in-law, for the obstruction of the Cabinet formation.
Hariri also disclosed that Aoun wanted a government in which all political parties are represented, which runs contrary to the premier-designate’s decision to exclude representatives of those parties.
Responding to Hariri’statement, the presidency’s media office accused Hariri of unilaterally naming ministers, especially Christian ministers, without an agreement with the president. It also accused Hariri of not adopting unified criteria in the distribution of portfolios.
The stalled Cabinet formation process was further compounded by a widening negative political backlash with a sectarian tinge to charges filed last week by lead investigator in the port blast Judge Fadi Sawwan against Diab and three former ministers for negligence in the port disaster. The country’s top Sunni political and religious leaders, including Hariri, rallied behind Diab, accusing Sawwan of targeting the premiership’s position for political purposes.
Ahead of Macron’s visit, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian painted a gloomy outlook of the situation in Lebanon, saying the country’s political and economic collapse was like the sinking of the Titanic, only without the music.
"Lebanon is the Titanic without the orchestra," Le Drian told the daily Le Figaro in an interview published on Sunday. "The Lebanese are in complete denial as they sink, and there isn't even the music."
The FPM’s parliamentary Strong Lebanon bloc called Tuesday for the formation of “a reformist and productive government as soon as possible in order for Lebanon to benefit from French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to discuss ways of the required [financial] support to emerge from the abyss of collapse.”
In what appeared to be a response to Hariri’s tough remarks, the bloc, in a statement issued after its weekly electronic meeting chaired by Bassil, called on the premier-designate to “stop participating, or fomenting problems, escalating positions and fabricating risks that threaten the premiership’s position on which the bloc is as much keen as it is on all constitutional positions.”
Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Joumblatt, who supported the French initiative to rescue Lebanon from multiple crises, warned that Lebanon stood on the verge of the abyss.
“Rather, we are heading to the abyss. An opportunity came with the French initiative or what remained of it from President Emmanuel Macron who told us to carry out reforms in electricity and banks and then I will open to you the prospects of negotiations for aid from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. But so far, the majority of [Lebanese] parties are avoiding this matter because they have different calculations,” Joumbaltt said in an interview with the US-backed satellite channel Al-Hurra.
“The one who is preventing reforms today are those controlling power. The Free Patriotic Movement is [controlling] power. So far, we have not seen signs of a desire for reforms,” he added.
Macron was the first foreign leader to visit Beirut two days after the port blast. Following the blast, Macron led efforts to get Lebanese politicians to agree on a new government to enact reforms. But Lebanese leaders have failed to deliver reforms.
In addition to inspecting French troops serving with the UN peacekeeping force in south Lebanon, UNIFIL, Macron was expected to meet again with Lebanon’s rival political leaders to press them to agree on the swift formation of a “mission” government to enact reforms.
Implementation of long-overdue reforms is deemed essential to releasing billions of dollars in promised international aid to the cash-strapped country, which is facing an economic meltdown and a collapsing currency that has lost more than 80 percent of its value since last year, putting half of the 6 million population under the poverty line.

Tunisia, Lebanon to get Pfizer vaccines despite acute hardships
The Arab Weekly/December 16/2020
TUNIS/BEIRUT – Lebanon and Tunisia are set to get Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine, as the two Arab countries struggle to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic that has exacerbated health and financial crises. Lebanon’s caretaker Health Minister Hamad Hassan said on Monday that his country is expected to sign a deal this week for supplies of Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine and is set to receive the first batch eight weeks after that. Meanwhile in Tunisia, local media reported that the health ministry had signed an agreement to obtain vaccines at $7 per dose. A surge in infections is straining Lebanon’s healthcare system, which has been struggling amid a financial crisis and after a huge port explosion on August 4 smashed hospitals in Beirut. Adding to the pressures, the economic meltdown has prompted many doctors to emigrate and raised concerns that subsidies on medicines will be removed.
Lebanon, with an estimated population of 6 million, has reported 1,210 deaths as a result of coronavirus pandemic. Despite the nation’s dire shortage of foreign exchange, the government expects to sign the $18 million deal for supplies of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine this week, Hassan said. Officials previously said Lebanon was in talks to secure 1.5 million shots of the vaccine. The first payment of $4 million “was secured” in a meeting with the central bank and outgoing prime minister. “We removed this obstacle,” the minister said, adding that the first batch of vaccines was expected to arrive eight weeks after the signing. Lebanon has also signed up to join COVAX, a global scheme backed by the World Health Organization to provide vaccines to poorer countries. Lebanon’s latest two-week lockdown to curb a surge in infections ended this month. The authorities have struggled to enforce coronavirus restrictions in a country where half the nation has slipped into poverty. As hospitals have filled up, Hassan said Lebanon aimed to add 200 more intensive care unit (ICU) beds in the next two months, raising the total to 700. He urged UN agencies and non-governmental organisations to help secure more vaccines for Lebanon, where refugees make up at least a quarter of the population. “Protecting all the communities living in Lebanon … should be part of the same plan,” he said. The situation is no better in Tunisia, which on Tuesday reported 1,483 new cases, raising its total number of infections to 113,241. The death toll from the virus rose by 41 to 3,956 in the North African country, the health ministry said in a statement. Tunisia, like Lebanon, is struggling with economic stagnation that has left the public as angry as it was a decade ago. Over the past ten years, Tunisia’s economy has been crippled by high debt and deteriorating public services, made worse by the pandemic and a year of political turmoil. Despite the dire situation, the Tunisian health ministry signed an agreement to obtain the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Director General of the Pasteur Institute of Tunis Hechmi Louzir said Tuesday that his country has already reserved 2 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from the American pharmaceutical company Pfizer. He added in an interview with the state news agency Tunis Afrique Presse that the COVID-19 vaccines will be free for all Tunisian citizens. The first doses of the vaccine will be allocated to those suffering from chronic diseases, the elderly and health workers, according to Louzir, who noted that vaccination will not be mandatory. The vaccine, developed by Pfizer Inc and German partner BioNTech SE, won emergency-use authorisation last week.Worldwide, more than 73.4 million infections and over 1.6 million deaths have been recorded so far. But with wealthy nations reserving more than half of next year’s potential doses, there are fears the poorer parts of the world will be left behind. Even if the drug makers all produce effective, safe vaccines and meet their maximum global manufacturing targets, a study published by researchers from Johns Hopkins University warned that “at least a fifth of the world’s population would not have access” until 2022. The World Health Organisation has said it is in talks with Pfizer about including its vaccines at affordable prices for poor countries.

Biden must support Macron’s plan for Lebanon
Michael Young/The National/December 16/2020
مايكل يانغ/ذي ناشيونال: مطلوب من بايدين أن يساند خطة ماكرون للبنان
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/93726/michael-young-the-national-biden-must-support-macrons-plan-for-lebanon-%d9%85%d8%a7%d9%8a%d9%83%d9%84-%d9%8a%d8%a7%d9%86%d8%ba-%d8%b0%d9%8a-%d9%86%d8%a7%d8%b4%d9%8a%d9%88%d9%86%d8%a7%d9%84-%d9%85/
On December 22, French President Emmanuel Macron will travel to Lebanon for the third time in five months. While his plan is to visit with French UN peacekeepers, Mr Macron will also be keen to see where Lebanon’s politicians are in forming a new government. Such a government is necessary to carry out economic reforms, in return for which the French president promised in September to mobilise international financial assistance for Lebanon.
Mr Macron was criticised for wasting his credibility in pushing the hopelessly corrupt Lebanese politicians to enact reforms. There were those who said the French president was bound to fail for wagering on these officials, while others condemned Mr Macron’s dialogue with Hezbollah. The French President took a more sanguine view, saying that as the party was an essential component of Lebanese political life, trying to circumvent it made little sense.
Some time ago, however, the French recalibrated in Lebanon by saying that it was up to Lebanese officials to save their own country. In that way they played down Mr Macron’s stalled initiative to encourage Lebanon to set up a government of apolitical specialists and implement a reform plan that could unlock aid from the International Monetary Fund and other international institutions.
But Mr Macron is still keen to help Lebanon once the politicians can get over their deep divisions and form a government. The reason is that if nothing is done soon, Lebanon risks reaching a stage of complete collapse, without enough foreign currency reserves to finance the importation of vital necessities such as food, medicine and fuel. Within a matter of weeks, the government is expected to remove subsidies on a wide range of products, which will accelerate hyperinflation.
In this context, social unrest is likely. France continues to want to provide a safety net if that happens, as instability in Lebanon could have a negative affect on Europe. More realistically, the French maybe assume that once everything breaks down, the latitude of Lebanese politicians to resist reform will diminish, so that French intervention will be needed to help the country out of its mess.
The Trump administration has taken a more hardline position on Lebanon and on the Macron initiative. Last September, in private a US official visiting Beirut did not hide his mistrust of France’s contacts with Hezbollah. While the official stated that Washington did not want to undermine the French plan, he noted that the administration would soon introduce sanctions against people not tied to Hezbollah, representing an escalation from sanctions past.
A week later that is exactly what happened when Washington sanctioned Ali Hassan Khalil and Youssef Fenianos – Lebanon’s former finance minister and its former transport minister. Mr Khalil is a close collaborator of parliament speaker Nabih Berri, while Mr Fenianos is an ally of the pro-Syrian Christian politician Suleiman Franjieh. The sanctions were supposedly not aimed at derailing the French initiative but that is precisely what they did.
Yes, it may mean engaging indirectly with Hezbollah but no realistic change can happen if the party is left out
Negotiations over a government came to a standstill, as Mr Berri, the indirect target of the sanctions, apparently concluded that he had nothing to gain by being flexible on the government then being formed and nothing to lose by playing tough. The timing of the US move was questionable. And while other factors helped to block the process, sanctions were the icing on the cake.
Much the same happened when Saad Hariri began forming his government in October. There were inherent obstacles to the cabinet-formation process, not least the mistrust between Mr Hariri and Gebran Bassil, the head of the Free Patriotic Movement and son-in-law of President Michel Aoun. However, when Mr Bassil was also sanctioned by the US in November, it again made progress all but impossible, as Mr Bassil, feeling threatened, saw no reason to facilitate things.
The US has long used sanctions as if they were a silver bullet that could resolve intractable problems. But the reality is they rarely do. In Lebanon’s case they had the effect of hindering the only serious proposal available to help spur the country’s economic revival. Washington’s hard line may satisfy some people – and few regretted seeing Mr Bassil targeted. But when the country urgently needs a government, the sanctions only made matters worse.
Lebanon’s politicians form a corrupt cartel, so it is easy to take pleasure in their distress. But the delay in forming a government, on which international pressure could be put to introduce reform measures, is mainly causing suffering among Lebanon’s population, with roughly 50 per cent estimated to be below the poverty line. While the US can take satisfaction in refusing to talk to Hezbollah and obstructing the Macron plan, it offers nothing tangible to help Lebanon.
That is why it is imperative that the international community and the new Biden administration put their full weight behind the French initiative and use it to break the resistance to reform from Lebanon’s reprehensible politicians. Yes, it may mean engaging indirectly with Hezbollah but no realistic change can happen if the party is left out. Lebanon is nearing a point of no return. The consequence may be a social explosion and even famine. Avoiding this must be a priority.
*Michael Young is a Lebanon columnist for The National

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on December 16-17/2020

US blacklists four companies for helping export of Iranian petrochemical products
Agencies/Wednesday 16 December 2020
The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions on companies, accusing them of supporting the sale of Iranian petrochemicals as Washington increases pressure on Tehran even as President Donald Trump's term nears a close. The US Treasury Department in a statement said it blacklisted the four entities for facilitating the export of Iranian petrochemical products by Triliance Petrochemical Co. Ltd., which was hit with sanctions by Washington earlier this year.

US designates Iran-backed Bahrain group as terrorist
The Arab Weekly/December 16/2020
WASHINGTON – The United States on Tuesday designated the Bahrain-based Saraya al-Mukhtar group as a terrorist organisation, accusing it of being backed by Iran and of having plotted attacks against US personnel in the Arab Gulf state. Washington’s move, which comes amid a slew of sanctions announced by Washington as US President Donald Trump’s term nears a close, designates Saraya al-Mukhtar, a marginal group operating underground, as a “Specially Designated Global Terrorist.”Most of the group’s members are in jail or in Iran.
Links with Iran
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Saraya al-Mukhtar, or Mukhtar Brigades, was designated for “posing a significant risk of committing acts of terrorism that threaten the national security and foreign policy of the United States.”“The group has plotted attacks against US personnel in Bahrain and has offered cash rewards for the assassination of Bahraini officials,” Pompeo said in a statement. “Saraya al-Mukhtar’s self-described goal is to depose the Bahraini government with the intention of paving the way for Iran to exert greater influence in Bahrain,” he added. Tuesday’s action freezes any assets the Saraya al-Mukhtar group has within US jurisdictions and bars Americans from doing any business with it or its members. Pompeo also accused the group of having received financial and logistical support from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which controls a business empire as well as elite armed and intelligence forces in Iran.
Bahrain welcomes Washington’s move
The foreign ministry in Bahrain, which hosts the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet as a regional security bulwark against Iran, issued a statement welcoming the move as an important step “in combating malign acts and intentions of this terrorist group.” In 2011, members of Bahrain’s Shia Muslim majority staged major protests against its Sunni Muslim royal family inspired by the so-called Arab Spring of that year. The unrest was later crushed with the help of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Since then, militants have carried out sporadic bombing and shooting attacks against security forces that Bahrain blames on Tehran’s Shia theocracy. Iran denies any involvement in Bahrain’s unrest. A September report by the non-partisan Congressional Research Service included the Mukhtar Brigades among small underground Bahraini Shia groups that the Sunni-dominated government says have been armed and advised by the IRGC as part of an effort to destabilise the country. But, the report noted that attacks by the groups, which have mainly been aimed at security forces, “have been sporadic and appear to have waned since 2018.”The US State Department’s international terrorism report for 2019, “the latest available,” stated that there were no militant attacks in Bahrain that year.

Ghanim re-elected Kuwaiti parliament speaker after tough battle
The Arab Weekly/December 16/2020
The opposition’s reactions after the voting session carried a veiled threat to the government that it would pay the price for its vote for Marzouq al-Ghanim, who recedived 33 votes in his favour, against 28 votes for his rival Badr al-Humaidi.
KUWAIT – The features of the tough election battle at the new Kuwaiti National Assembly on Tuesday reflected the new leadership’s insistence on a policy of transparency in decision-making. Marzouq al-Ghanim won a second mandate as parliament speaker by receiving 33 votes in his favour, against 28 votes for his rival Badr al-Humaidi. Three ballots were discarded. Despite attempts by certain MPs to sabotage the session before it started, it was noticeable that a number of MPs who had publicly pledged with the opposition bloc to remove Ghanim ended up either voting for him or wrote the names of both candidates, which nullified their ballots in the final count. All members of the opposition bloc had pledged to photograph their ballots to prove they had fulfilled their commitment to vote against Ghanim, despite the unconstitutionality of the move. But it seems that at least three of them wrote Humaidi’s name on their ballot, photographed it and then added Marzouq’s name, nullifying their ballots. The opposition’s reactions after the voting session carried a veiled threat to the government that it would pay the price for its vote for Ghanim, but the government, whose president, Sheikh Sabah al-Khaled al-Hamad al-Sabah, delivered a distinguished statement in which he spoke of the real challenges facing Kuwait internally and externally and the need to confront them, seems to have received the green light from the country’s political leadership to forge ahead in earnest without paying any attention to parliamentary threats.
Kuwait’s political leadership viewed with apprehension the opposition’s rhetoric and their agenda based on the promise to kill the projects of loans, pass a general amnesty for members of the opposition and other politicians who were sentenced by Kuwaiti courts and who fled to Turkey and to amend the law on cybercrime and electoral districts.
A Kuwaiti political source asked, “What does it mean to block the loans in a country that needs to garner every financial resource to overcome its economic crisis, and do these populist calls contribute to finding economic solutions or are they mere acts of sterile bidding?”
In a statement to The Arab Weekly, the Kuwaiti political source described Ghanim’s re-election as speaker and the valuable speech by Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah as indications that the features of the coming stage in Kuwait are going to be “dreams and determination.”
The same source quoted the Emir’s speech at the opening of parliament: “There is no doubt that you are aware of what the world and the region in particular are witnessing in terms of new developments, and you have enormous challenges ahead of you, and there is no longer room for wasting more effort, time and potentials on meaningless conflicts, settling scores and fabricating crises.”Sheikh Nawaf had warned against practices and behaviours by some inside the parliament that have become the subject of discontent and frustration of citizens, and an obstacle to any achievement. Observers say that after the National Assembly elections on Tuesday, Kuwait is at a crossroads. Either all MPs, especially the figures of escalation, read the emir’s speech carefully and start working in earnest on the country’s problems or turn the hall of parliament into an arena for auctions and conflicts, in which case the country’s leadership will have no choice but to resort to tough solutions. In his speech to the new parliament, Sheikh Nawaf said that there is a need to develop a comprehensive reform programme to help the country get out of its worst economic crises in decades, and that there was no time “for fabricating crises.”
“Our dear country’s march is suffering from serious problems and faces great challenges, which necessitate that we immediately implement a comprehensive reform program,” the emir added. Sheikh Nawaf’s speech shows the extent of the ambiguity surrounding the political crisis that Kuwait is experiencing and its future impact on the country, as the same people involved in this crisis are back on the scene again. The current emir was crown prince, and the prime minister has not changed, nor has the parliament speaker. In addition, we are again seeing the emergence of the same political problems and quarrels that are taking precedence over solving the economic crisis. Previous escalations of disagreement and stalemate between the government and parliament led to several government changes and the dissolution of parliament, which impeded investment and economic and financial reform.
The Kuwaitis are betting that the emir can succesfully converge views between the government and parliament, and prevent a repeat of the scenarios of the past years. Kuwait’s economy, which stands at nearly $ 140 billion, faces a deficit of $46 billion this year. One of the government’s priorities is to pass a bill that will allow Kuwait to borrow from global loan markets. Observers believe that the continuation of the battle for dominance between the government and parliament during the coming period may lead to the dissolution of parliament and the holding of new elections in a fruitless vicious cycle.
While the government is looking for urgent reforms that respond to domestic and international economic changes, and may be forced into a harsh policy of austerity, the parliament continues to oppose any reforms that might affect the welfare system through which Kuwaitis get many benefits.
Government circles warn that continuing without reforms may impede the government’s ability to pay salaries.
 

UN body approves new UN envoys for Libya, Mideast
The Arab Weekly/December 16/2020
NEW YORK/ UNITED NATIONS – The UN Security Council on Tuesday approved a proposal by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to appoint Bulgarian Nickolay Mladenov as the UN Libya special envoy and Norwegian Tor Wennesland as the UN Middle East envoy, diplomats said. Mladenov will replace Ghassan Salame, who stepped down as the UN Libya envoy in March due to stress, and Wennesland succeeds Mladenov, who has spent the past five years as the UN mediator between Israel and the Palestinians. The appointments end months of bickering among council members sparked by a US push to split the Libya role, with one person running the UN political mission and another focused on conflict mediation. The Security Council agreed to that proposal in September, but Russia and China abstained. Libya descended into chaos after the NATO-backed overthrow of leader Muammar Gadhafi in 2011. In October, the two major sides in the country’s war – the internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) and Khalifa Haftar’s eastern-based Libyan National Army (LNA) – agreed on a ceasefire. “The members of the Security Council underlined the importance of a credible and effective Libyan-led Ceasefire Monitoring Mechanism and looked forward to a comprehensive report by the Secretary-General on the proposals for effective ceasefire monitoring under the auspices of the United Nations,” the 15-member body said in a statement on Tuesday. The council also reiterated a call for the withdrawal of all foreign fighters and mercenaries from Libya. Wennesland is currently Norway’s special envoy on the Middle East peace process. The Palestinians want to establish a state in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, territories Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war
— Ongoing talks —
The UN envoy to Libya said Tuesday rivals failed to agree on a mechanism to choose a transitional government that would lead the conflict-stricken country to elections in December next year. Stephanie Williams told an online meeting for the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum that she would form an advisory committee to help bridge the gaps among the participants and “make concrete progress.” The 75-member forum reached an agreement to hold presidential and parliamentary elections on Dec. 24, 2021. However, it failed to break the deadlock on the selection mechanism for the executive authority despite six online meetings since their face-to-face talks in Tunisia in November, Williams said. Williams said she would announce the legal committee to work on constitutional arrangements for the elections. The committee is expected to convene Monday, before its face-to-face meeting next month, she said.
“I am fully committed, the train has left the station on this process, there is no going back … Let’s not litigate the past. There has been a lot of litigation of the past, but we need to look forward,” she said. No progress was announced on the issue of foreign forces and mercenaries since they inked the cease-fire deal almost two months ago.
 

UN calls for all mercenaries to leave Libya
The Arab Weekly/December 16/2020
NEW YORK/ UNITED NATIONS – The UN Security Council on Tuesday called for all mercenaries and foreign fighters to leave Libya, in a unanimous statement that included Russia, which is accused of enabling a Russian contractor to send paramilitaries. Libya has been wracked by violence and chaos since the toppling and killing of longtime ruler Muammar Gadhafi in 2011. Moscow has been accused of supporting mercenaries fighting against the UN-backed Tripoli Government of National Accord (GNA). All 15 Security Council members called for the “withdrawal of all foreign fighters and mercenaries from Libya in line with the ceasefire agreement reached by the Libyan parties on 23 October, the commitments of the participants of the Berlin Conference and the relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions.” The statement was released following a closed-door videoconference. The Security Council also underlined “the importance of a credible and effective Libyan-led Ceasefire Monitoring Mechanism.”At the end of December, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is due to submit options to the Council for the creation of the mechanism, which would operate under the aegis of the United Nations. The UN only has a small political mission in Libya of around 230 people.
Thousands in Libya
In early December, the acting UN envoy to Libya, American Stephanie Williams, said about 20,000 foreign and mercenary forces were still in Libya. “That is a shocking violation of Libyan sovereignty,” Williams told a virtual meeting of a political dialogue forum. “They are now occupying your house. This is a blatant violation of the arms embargo… They are pouring weapons into your country, a country which does not need more weapons,” she added. The UN envoy’s remarks reflected at the time her exasperation over the lack of progress on the departure of foreign fighters and mercenaries from Libya, which was part of a ceasefire deal inked in October. Two authorities are vying for power in the country: the GNA in Tripoli, recognised by the UN and supported by Turkish military forces, and the Libyan National Army (LNA), led by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar. Wagner, a Russian military contractor, has long been accused of sending fighters to serve the Kremlin’s interests in Syria, Libya and countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
Turkish involvement
Earlier in December, LNA spokesman Ahmed al-Mismari accused Turkey of continuing to supply arms and fighters to the GNA. Last July, Turkey was reported to have dispatched to Libya thousands of Islamic extremists, including 2,500 Tunisian ISIS members. The ISIS extremists were sent to back other militants and mercenaries dispatched by Ankara to fight on the side of the GNA. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), “Turkish intelligence have transferred Jihadist groups and Islamic State (ISIS) members of different foreign nationalities, from Syria to Libya in the past few months.” These, according to SOHR, included “over 2,500 Tunisian ISIS members” out of thousands of other ISIS-affiliated Tunisians operating in Syria. According to the watch group, “the number of recruits who arrived in Libya rose to 16,100 Syrian mercenaries, including 340 children under the age of 18.”Another report published in July by the Pentagon said Turkey has sent between 3,500 and 3,800 Syrian mercenaries to back the GNA over the first three months of the year. The report, published by the US Defense Department’s inspector general, does not detail the nature of mercenary contingents dispatched by Turkey after the end of March even though Ankara has intensified its intervention in Libya since then. According to experts, Turkey is seeking economic returns, with military bases in Libya providing military backup for oil and gas drilling operations that Ankara intends to undertake in Libyan territorial waters and in the Eastern Mediterranean by virtue of the maritime border demarcation deal struck with the GNA last November. “The Libyan bases will help Ankara “penetrate deep into the African continent and its wealth of raw materials,” Tunisian international relations and security expert Alaya Allani said.

Biden Joins Battle for Senate as Top Republican Accepts Win
Agence France Presse/December 16/2020
President-elect Joe Biden threw his weight behind the Democratic battle for control of the US Senate on Tuesday, as his White House win was finally acknowledged by top Republicans and holdout foreign leaders. Biden flew into Georgia -- a southern state he won in an upset against President Donald Trump -- to host a rally for two Democratic candidates in runoff races that will determine the Senate's balance of power. "Honk for your next United States senators Jon Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock," Biden told the crowd at the drive-in event in Atlanta as he urged voters to turn out in force on January 5. "Send me these two men, and we will control the Senate!" One day after the Electoral College affirmed Biden's victory, attention shifted to the looming Senate battle -- and to the shape of the incoming administration, as Biden also announced he had nominated Pete Buttigieg, a former mayor and presidential rival, as secretary of transportation. Buttigieg would be the first openly gay person confirmed by the Senate to a presidential cabinet post -- in line with Biden's pledge to usher in the most diverse cabinet ever when he takes office on January 20. And while Trump still refuses to concede -- continuing to tweet baseless allegations of mass fraud that have been rejected in dozens of lawsuits -- top Senate Republican Mitch McConnell finally broke his silence with a message to the president: it's over. "The Electoral College has spoken. So today I want to congratulate President-elect Joe Biden," McConnell said on the Senate floor, adding Americans can also "take pride" that they will have their first female vice president in Kamala Harris. Biden told reporters before flying to Georgia that he had a "good" phone conversation with McConnell, a longtime Senate colleague. "I told him that while we disagree on a lot of things, there are things we can work together on," Biden said. The Electoral College confirmation triggered an acknowledgement of Biden's win from Russian President Vladimir Putin, who said he was "ready for collaboration" with the Democrat. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and Mexico's Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador -- who had both waited until now to recognize the president-elect -- also sent their congratulations.
'Turn the page'
Trump, in unprecedented fashion, has yet to acknowledge his defeat in the chaotic election that will see him exit the White House after a single four-year term. In the wake of McConnell's message to the president-elect Tuesday, Trump suggested he would continue to fight the results and aired unproven claims that November's poll was "rigged". "Too soon to give up," he said in a second tweet. "Republican Party must finally learn to fight. People are angry!"But Biden urged the divided country to "turn the page" as he welcomed the Electoral College vote on Monday, saying US democracy proved "resilient" against Trump's "abuse of power." He praised voters for casting ballots in record numbers despite fears of Covid-19 and "enormous political pressure, verbal abuse and even threats of physical violence." The White House transition is occurring with the coronavirus pandemic surging, pushing US Covid-19 deaths above 300,000. While critical winter months lie ahead, a bright spot has emerged with health care workers receiving the first doses of the coronavirus vaccine distributed in the nation. And with top infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci recommending Biden and Harris quickly take the vaccine, the president-elect said they would receive the shot in public view.
Minds on Georgia
Although the door has all but shut on his efforts to overturn the vote results, Trump has remained defiant. In a threatening move against Republican leaders in Georgia, where he has made baseless claims of massive voter fraud, he retweeted a pro-Trump lawyer who posted a picture of Georgia's governor and secretary of state, saying "they will soon be going to jail." Democrats, who control the House of Representatives, must flip both Georgia Senate seats in order to seize control of the upper chamber, while Republicans must hold just one to maintain their majority. Republicans have framed Georgia as must-win races, with the state forming the last line of defense against what they describe as radical "socialism." If Republicans do win, McConnell will remain majority leader, and his relationship with Biden will quickly become the most closely watched in Washington. The pair were known for striking deals during crunch periods when Biden was Barack Obama's vice president. But McConnell gave Obama no quarter, repeatedly stymying him on judicial nominations and forcing the president to curtail his legislative agenda.

Nikki Haley: Resumption of Iran deal would be ‘devastating’
Jerusalem Post/December 16/2020
Former United States Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, speaking at the first DiploTech Global Summit, said that “it would be devastating and a massive step backward” if the United States were to resume the Iranian nuclear deal as it was originally formulated.
In an exclusive conversation with Ambassador Danny Danon, Israel’s 17th UN Ambassador and recently elected Chairman of the World Likud, Haley said that “to go back and start over would be devastating.” Haley said that US sanctions against Iran have brought the Iranians to their knees. She suggested that the United States should let the Iranians come back to the negotiating table and “make them prove what they are going to do before we do anything else.” Haley said that though the Iranian people may want peace, the country’s leaders have no intention of bringing peace to the Middle East. Ambassador Danon, who worked together with Ambassador Haley during their UN years, commented, “On the issue of a nuclear Iran, Israel cannot make any mistakes.”
Spearheading this initiative, Ambassador Danon stated that “Israel is proving that it continues to be the start-up nation when it comes to technology. The world is recognizing that Israel has a lot to offer in the way of innovation and partnerships from Agritech and Watertech to Healthtech and cybersecurity. We welcome global partners to discuss post-COVID solutions to help change our lives for a better today, and to help build the world of tomorrow.”
Ambassador Haley urged the Trump Administration, which stopped funding UNRWA in 2018, to declassify information about the actual number of refugees in the UNRWA program before the Biden Administration takes office. “This is about truth, and about the fact that the entire world assumes that there are millions of people that are considered refugees according to UNRWA, yet they will never talk about the facts. It is hugely important towards peace and towards truth, and it is important that everyone deserves to know what that true refugee number is.”
The DiploTech Global Summit, which was held virtually due to COVID, brought together world leaders, heads of state, policymakers, diplomats, investors, and trailblazers from various fields, including technological innovation in medicine, hi-tech, agriculture, communications, and more.
Jerusalem Post News Editor Maayan Hoffman moderated two panels with leaders in the hi-tech field regarding challenges and solutions for a sustainable collective future and the preparation of a proactive and orderly outline for a post-COVID world, where innovation and technology will play an even greater and more meaningful role.
Ambassadors Danny Danon and Nikki Haley to speak at DiploTech 2020 (Credit: REUTERS)Ambassadors Danny Danon and Nikki Haley to speak at DiploTech 2020 (Credit: REUTERS)
The first panel, entitled ‘Israeli technology and future sustainable solutions’ featured Meggie Abecasis, vice president Commercial Landscaping for Vertical Field, which develops technological solutions for vertical agriculture, and green walls in urban areas; Zack Fenster, vice president of Business Development for Watergen, whose company produces water from the air; and Ofir Ardon, CEO of Agritask, which provides solutions to farmers to improve productivity.
Fenster said that the shortage of drinking water, which affects both developing countries and the most advanced nations, requires new approaches to provide immediate solutions. Abecasis pointed out that the corona pandemic exposed the weaknesses of poor city planning, extensive urban density, and inefficient infrastructure, all of which need to be addressed in the future. Ardon stated that due to the COVID crisis, more and more companies will support remote work, and that his company is working on solutions to support such activities.
The second panel, entitled ‘The Post-COVID World,’ focused on technological solutions that have been developed during the COVID crisis and will continue to be implemented and further developed in the post-COVID world. Participants included Dr. Kira Radinsky, Chairwoman and CTO, Diagnostic Robotics, Asher Dagan, CEO of Britannica Knowledge Systems, Rafi Kaminer, CEO of Pangea Group, and Masood Al-Awar, CEO of Medallion Associates in the United Arab Emirates.
Radinsky said that her company set up a clinical triage system at the outset of the COVID pandemic that identified the loss of taste and smell as a symptom of the disease, just three days after the outbreak of the virus. Her company’s algorithms enabled analysis of the severity of patient symptoms, which were able to predict which patients would require hospitalization and which could remain at home. This allowed hospitals to reduce the patient loads initially before a testing system for COVID was in place. She added that as a result of the advancement of medical data analysis in the COVID pandemic, many medical processes will be able to become automated in the future and will thus improve the quality and efficiency of medical care.
Kaminer, whose company develops access control systems, has created touchless and frictionless systems that provide authorized access to areas such as airports and office buildings without a need for visitors to receive physical authorization from others nearby, thus minimizing the risk of infection. They are currently working with the World Health Organization to create mobile vaccination cards and biometric vaccination cards to help open the world economy once the virus abates.
Dagan, head of Britannica Knowledge Systems, develops training systems for large companies such as Boeing and NASA, and pointed out that the corona crisis forced companies to move from classroom training to online schooling, which was challenging for these highly regulated organizations.
Masood Al-Awar discussed the effects of the pandemic in the UAE and how his country managed to maintain sufficient supplies of food and medicine during this challenging period. He said that the advanced development of the UAE’s infrastructure was accelerated and improved during this time and that future collaboration with Israel on this front will continue, stating that “technology has no boundaries.”
The virtual conference was moderated by Fox News business anchor Liz Claman and also featured appearances by foreign leaders from the Marshall Islands, Guatemala, and Antigua and Barbuda, all of whom spoke of the importance of technological innovation in the post-COVID world, and the vital role that Israel is playing, and will continue to perform in the post-COVID world.
The DiploTech Global Summit aims to continue to build on the success of the first virtual Summit and continue to forge connections through technology in the years ahead.

Turkey’s Erdogan says US sanctions are an ‘attack on sovereignty’
AgenciesWednesday 16 December 2020
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday called US sanctions against Ankara over its purchase of Russian missile defenses an “open attack” on its sovereignty. “What kind of an alliance is this? This decision is an open attack on our sovereignty,” Erdogan said during a televised speech in Ankara.
Erdogan said US sanctions imposed on Turkey over its acquisition of Russian defense systems will fail in what he said was their aim of deterring Ankara’s defense industry efforts.The Turkish president said the sanctions showed a hostile stance by the United States against its NATO ally, but that problems created by them would be overcome.

UK lawmakers urge government to designate Iran’s IRGC, replace nuclear deal
Yaghoub Fazeli/Al Arabiya English/Wednesday 16 December 2020
UK lawmakers urged Britain on Wednesday to designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization, declare Tehran’s detention of foreign nationals as “state hostage taking,” and work towards brokering a comprehensive deal to replace the current nuclear deal.
The UK Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Select Committee released a report on Wednesday urging Britain to take a tougher approach with Iran.
Proscribing the IRGC
The UK should designate Iran’s primary military force the IRGC a terrorist organization, a move taken by the US in 2019, the committee’s report said. “The actions of the IRGC meet the criteria for proscription in the Terrorism Act 2000, due to its clear and enduring support for terrorists and non-state actors working to undermine stability in the region,” the report said.
Replacing the JCPOA
Parliament members also urged the UK to work to broker a more comprehensive agreement to replace the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which they described as a “shell of an agreement.” “Despite good intentions, the JCPOA was an agreement built on weak foundations. The slow death of the nuclear deal seems to have been inevitable and, following the actions in the [Iranian parliament], it now appears beyond repair,” Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee Tom Tugendhat said. “The UK government should work to broker a replacement to the JCPOA, which also addresses regional security,” Tugendhat said. Earlier this month, Germany’s Foreign Minister Heiko Maas also said that a new broader Iran nuclear accord must be reached and that the 2015 deal was no longer enough. Tehran has rejected calls to renegotiate the JCPOA.
‘State hostage taking’
Iran’s detention of foreign and dual nationals amounts to “state hostage taking,” the report said. “The UK Government must call the arbitrary detention of foreign nationals what it is: hostage taking,” Tugendhat said. “The charges, trials and convictions of British citizens on Iranian soil are a parody of a justice system … Using young mothers and retirees as bargaining chips and leverage is an unacceptable form of diplomacy,” he added. The UK’s current approach to seeking the release of detainees is “clearly not working,” the report said, adding that a “more decisive, coordinated approach is needed.”Several dual and foreign nationals are also currently under arrest in Iran, including Iranian-Swedish scientist Ahmadreza Djalali, British aid worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, and German-Iranian architect Nahid Taghavi. The Iranian regime is accused of pursuing a “hostage-taking” policy by arresting foreign nationals on trumped-up charges and using them as hostages to try to win concessions from other countries. “The UK should also prioritize using Magnitsky sanctions to target specific Iranian human rights abusers,” the report said.
Iranians are biggest victims of regime
The Iranian people are the regime’s “greatest victims,” the report said, urging the UK to support those “suffering under the violence of the regime.” “The greatest victims of the Iranian regime are the Iranian people themselves … for too long innocent Iranians have suffered violence and human rights violations at the hands of their own government,” Tugendhat said.

Iran’s Khamenei says US hostility toward Iran will continue after Trump
Reuters/Wednesday 16 December 2020
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday that Washington’s hostility toward the Islamic Republic would not end when US President Donald Trump leaves office. “The hostility (against Iran) is not just from Trump’s America, which will not end when he leaves, as (President Barack) Obama’s America also did bad things to ...the Iranian nation,” Khamenei was quoted as saying by his official website. Khamenei is due to hold his first public function on Wednesday since rumors surfaced of his deteriorating health, Iranian media reported. The media reports said Khamenei would meet organizers of events to mark the first anniversary of the killing of Iran’s top commander Qassem Soleimani in a US drone attack in Iraq.

Iran’s Rouhani says he is happy that ‘lawless’ Trump is leaving office
Reuters/Wednesday 16 December 2020
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday he was happy that Donald Trump was leaving office, calling him “the most lawless US president” and a “terrorist.”“We are not overjoyed about Mr. Biden’s arrival, but we are happy about Trump leaving,” Rouhani said in a televised speech to the cabinet.
 

Iranian sentenced to six months in prison for organizing mixed-gender concerts
Marco Ferrari/Al Arabiya English/Tuesday 15 December 2020
Kamyar Sheykh’s dream was to start an independent record label to support musicians in his native Iran. The dream began to take shape in 2014, starting off in a humble cafe serving coffee from an espresso machine Kamyar took from his home, blossoming in time into a thriving hub of musicians and music-lovers in a city not often thought of for its performing arts scene. His label, Tehran Sessions, became the focal point of a burgeoning movement in Iran, but the dream was not to last. The authorities caught wind of the revelry, which involved women mixing with men, not wearing hijabs, and patrons sneaking in bottles of alcohol and illicit drugs. In early 2019, police descended on Kamyar’s Tech Café after female singers were seen performing, and the promoter was arrested for the charge of ‘creating an atmosphere of prostitution. He spent six nights in jail, alongside a murderer, and had to post 3,500,000,000 rials ($83,000) bail. He was then sentenced to six months in prison, eventually acquitted after a long legal battle. The ordeal left Kamyar depressed, financially destitute, and unable and unwilling to work in the music business in Iran again.
Here he tells Al Arabiya English his story.
Local music scene
“I thought if I said to men: ‘you can sing,’ and to women ‘you can’t sing,’ it would not be fair,” he said. “There is nothing like that in the Quran, even – there is nothing saying that women singing is bad. And when I saw the talents that were arising there and the communication and the communities that were being made, I was really happy about it. “I paid the cost for it. But I am happy that there are so many singers that were allowed to perform on stage.”Female performers and mixed-gender crowds are rare in Iran, Kamyar says, as licensing is usually restricted to big-name acts who perform in theaters. Many of the musicians who played at Tech Café had never taken to the stage before, and since the cafe shut down, they have been reduced to performing only for their followers on social media.
Grassroots
The idea to create a live music venue first came when Kamyar was a university student in Vienna, Austria. He returned home to Iran one summer holiday and invited local bands to play at a house in Tehran over two nights, advertising the shows on social media. To his surprise, more than 400 people showed up.
“It clicked in that time, that I could do this here, I could do this in Iran – and we have to do this.”In 2014, returning home after finishing his studies, he opened a cafe with his business partner in Sayé Gallery, in Tehran’s northern Niavaran neighborhood. At the weekends, he would invite local bands to play, take the artwork off the gallery walls to replace paintings with acoustic paneling for live shows, and serve coffee to audience members as the musicians played. The success of Sayé Gallery allowed Tehran Sessions to move to Tech Café in the city centre's Yusuf Abad district. The new venue hosted a medley of events: techno nights, acoustic sessions, karaoke, lip sync battles, pantomimes, and movie screenings. Kamyar and his wife built the business from the ground up, acting as managers, sound engineers and chefs. “It was a good community for musicians, because musicians were getting paid for what they were doing, and we made so many good connections,” he said. Performers would play mostly Western songs. Kamyar is adamant that one of the more popular female singers sounded just like Whitney Houston.He said that he had all the legal permits required to run the café except one, which would have given the green light for female singers to perform.
“Depressed, financially destitute”
The Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance contacted Kamyar and warned him to stop organizing the events, but he continued. After the warnings went unheeded, in early 2019, police descended on Tech Café and arrested the then 25-year-old promoter for the charge of “creating an atmosphere of prostitution,” after women were seen mixing with men without wearing the hijab. After he posted bail and was released, he found that Tech Café had been boarded up with signs proclaiming that the venue was a hotbed of prostitution. He had to sell the business to recover the bail money.
Now, nearly two years on, Kamyar is unwilling to try his hand again at the music business in his home country out of fear of having everything taken away for a second time. He is looking overseas, hoping to use his events management skills to forge his way through the entertainment industry in a country that is more accommodating of live music. “The things that everyone in the world is doing – we can do it here. We have the potential to do it here, and I wanted to do that, but they didn’t let me and I don’t have the energy to get in trouble again.”

New lawsuit filed in New York accuses top Qatar banks of funding terror in Israel
Ismaeel Naar, Al Arabiya EnglishWednesday 16 December 2020
A new lawsuit has been filed in New York against Qatari financial institutions and charity accusing them of funneling money to fund Palestinian extremist groups responsible for the killing of Americans in Israel, according to an initial court complaint filed to the court. The initial complaint was filed on Tuesday in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn by the family of Pinches Przewozman, an American who was killed in rocket attacks on Israel from the Gaza Strip on May 5, 2019. Tuesday’s suit directly alleges that Qatar had funneled money to groups in Palestine under the guise of charitable donations that were then used to fund Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ). “To accomplish its goal of spreading acts of terrorism and violence in Israel while evading international sanctions, Qatar coopted several institutions that it dominates and controls to funnel coveted U.S. dollars (the primary currency of Middle East terrorist networks) to Hamas and PIJ under the false guise of charitable donations,” read the 71-page legal complaint document obtained by Al Arabiya English. Przewozman’s family are directly accusing Qatar Charity, Masraf Al Rayan Bank and Qatar National Bank in their case against Qatar. The lawsuit said accused Qatar Charity of soliciting donations in Qatar and around the world and then transferring those funds to its account at Masraf Al Rayan in Doha, Qatar. “Masraf Al Rayan then utilized its “correspondent” bank account located in New York to conduct transactions involving U.S. dollars (“USD”) and to transfer funds from Doha, through New York, to Qatar Charity’s accounts in the Palestinian Territories at either the Bank of Palestine or the Islamic Bank in Ramallah,” according to the complaint. The new lawsuit filed on Tuesday follows an earlier complaint filed separately in June by US attorney Steven Perles, who has prosecuted notable cases involving terrorism and terror-financing on behalf of families and victims seeking compensation of past terror attacks. That lawsuit also accuses Qatar of secretly funding Hamas and the PIJ groups with millions of dollars who carried out terror attacks that killed US citizens. Perles specifically alleges that the money used by Hamas and PIJ were used to carry out at least six attacks between 2014 and 2016. The June lawsuit said that between March and September 2015, Qatar Charity gave $28 million to groups in the Palestinian territories that may have been then transferred to Hamas and PIJ.

UAE’s Mohamed bin Zayed meets Egyptian President al-Sisi in Cairo
Emily Judd, Al Arabiya English/Wednesday 16 December 2020
Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo on Wednesday and discussed peace and stability in the Middle East. The Crown Prince, who is also the Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, said the two leaders discussed ways to strengthen bilateral ties between the UAE and Egypt and the development of areas of cooperation. “We also considered issues of peace and stability in the region,” the Crown Prince said in a tweet. The Crown Prince recently spearheaded the UAE’s normalization of relations with Egypt’s neighbor Israel, which was made official in September in a ceremony at the White House. The UAE became the third Arab country to make peace with Israel, following Egypt and Jordan. The visit on Wednesday marked the second high-level meeting this month for both al-Sisi, who met with French President Emmanuel Macron in France on December 7, and the Crown Prince, who met with Prince Charles in England on December 10.
 

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on December 16-17/2020

Europe Confronts Second Wave of Coronavirus
Soeren Kern/Gatestone Institute/December 16/2020
On December 11, Germany recorded 29,875 new coronavirus cases, a one-day record, according to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases.
Economists are warning that the second coronavirus lockdown has increased the risk of another recession in Europe's largest economy.
"After the coronavirus crisis, Germany will look different: Now many companies, such as car factories, suppliers, steelworks and mechanical engineering companies will be closed forever. Even if the country is unlocked again, companies that are gone cannot start up again. Consumers and entrepreneurs are unsettled. This is poison for the economy and jobs." — Tichys Einblick, German blog, December 1, 2020
In Sweden, which has stood out for its "no lockdown" approach to the coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Stefan Löfven imposed the toughest restrictions yet after a spike in the number of infected people filling intensive care units. He said that the "unprecedented" response was needed if Sweden is to "curb transmission."
The German government has reimposed strict lockdown measures in an effort to reverse a spike in Covid-19 infections. Beginning on December 16, all non-essential shops and businesses, as well as all schools and daycare centers, will be closed until at least January 10.
The new restrictions, which were agreed upon after talks between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the leaders of Germany's 16 federal states, come after less intrusive lockdown measures that began on November 2 failed to significantly bring down the number of infections.
On December 11, Germany recorded 29,875 new coronavirus cases, a one-day record, according to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases. Germany's intensive care unit capacity — the most important measure of a health system's ability to deal with the pandemic — is at a critical level, with only 5% to 10% of intensive care beds available in some parts of the country, according to the Association of Critical Care and Emergency Medicine (DIVI).
Economists are warning that the second coronavirus lockdown has increased the risk of another recession in Europe's largest economy. Germany suffered its worst economic contraction since World War II after the first wave of coronavirus infections pushed down gross domestic product by 1.7% in the first quarter and by an unprecedented 9.8% in the second quarter. The economy rebounded by a stronger-than-expected 8.5% in the third quarter due to higher consumer spending and booming exports.
Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said the new lockdown measures were necessary to bring the pandemic under control and to prevent a recession next year. "It is possible, if we act wisely, to protect the economy," he told public broadcaster Deutschlandfunk.
The chief economist of Commerzbank, Joerg Kraemer, said that Altmaier's optimism was misplaced and that the tighter lockdown will almost surely plunge Germany into a second — or double dip — recession. "Germany should brace for a second recession," he told the Reuters news agency.
The new coronavirus restrictions have led to a deterioration of the business climate index in Germany, according to a survey published by the Ifo economic institute on November 24. The drop is due to pessimistic expectations for the next six months and fears that the German economy will shrink in the fourth quarter. "Business uncertainty has risen," Ifo President Clemens Fuest said. "The second wave of the coronavirus has interrupted Germany's economic recovery."
Meanwhile, the coronavirus crisis is threatening the continued existence of 15% of German companies, according to a separate survey published by Ifo on December 1. The threat level is extreme in certain sectors: 86% of travel agencies and tour operators; 76% of hotels; and 62% of restaurants. Nearly 30% of advertising firms see themselves at risk; 18% of retail and 10% of wholesale companies are facing closure; 11% of industrial companies are under threat.
The German blog Tichys Einblick recently warned that the worst is yet to come:
"Actually, life and the economy should have returned to normal by December. But now our country is more locked than unlocked. The Christmas spirit is nowhere to be seen: Christmas markets are forbidden in many places, restaurants are closed, and there is emptiness in the shopping streets. And that's just the beginning: As of January, the Value Added Tax will rise again, energy and electricity will become more expensive, new taxes are looming and promised financial aid will be discontinued. So far Germany has been able to cheat its way through the crisis. Will it be difficult for many self-employed, traders, retirees and employees in winter?
"After the coronavirus crisis, Germany will look different: Now many companies, such as car factories, suppliers, steelworks and mechanical engineering companies will be closed forever. Even if the country is unlocked again, companies that are gone cannot start up again. Consumers and entrepreneurs are unsettled. This is poison for the economy and jobs. The national debt has exploded and continues to rise in the red sky. The desperation of many freelancers, restaurateurs and traders too. The German economy is staggering into crisis. A storm threatens after Christmas."
In France, the second-largest economy in the eurozone, a lockdown that took effect on October 30 was lifted on December 15, amid growing public anger over the restrictions to personal freedom. The lockdown will be replaced with a more lenient curfew between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m.
The transition from lockdown to curfew in France comes amid a spike in the number of people hospitalized for Covid-19: from 35 on December 11 to 2,906 on December 14, according to the Reuters news agency. France has the highest number of Covid-19 cases in Europe — nearly 2.5 million, according to a tally maintained by Johns Hopkins University.
On December 14, the Bank of France estimated that the latest lockdown resulted in an 11% drop in GDP in November. The central bank cut its growth forecasts for this year and next. Bank of France governor François Villeroy de Galhau told France Inter radio that any positive economic effects from Covid-19 vaccines would not be felt until the end of 2021.
An analyst for the Dutch investment bank ING, Charlotte de Montpellier, warned that France, like Germany, is facing a double-dip recession due to the coronavirus restrictions:
"The deterioration in the business climate...in France is mainly due to the very negative economic impact of the flaring up of the pandemic and the new restrictive measures taken gradually over the last few weeks to curb the spread of the coronavirus....
"In particular, the curfew introduced...in a large part of the country (covering 70% of the French population), has a strong impact on the service sector. In particular, due to the curfew, the restaurant and catering sectors, as well as the arts and entertainment sectors, are obliged to close at the time of day when they generate the largest share of their turnover. The complete closure of bars and sports halls in the same cities does not help either.
"Apart from the direct impact on supply, the restrictive measures will also have a negative impact on demand, with households and businesses being more cautious in their consumption and investment behavior due to uncertainty about the future....
"Consequently, the probability of another quarter of negative growth in France is very high and the scenario of a W-shaped recovery becomes more likely."
In Italy, the eurozone's third-largest economy, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has tightened travel restrictions during the holidays of Christmas, New Year's and Epiphany. Starting on December 21, and running through January 6, people in Italy will be prohibited from travelling between regions except for work or urgent reasons.
In recent days, Italy has overtaken the United Kingdom as the European country with the highest number of Covid-19 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.
On November 30, the Italian government approved a fourth stimulus package to support businesses hit by Covid-related restrictions. The package, worth eight billion euros ($9.7 billion), delayed tax deadlines for companies and expanded cash handouts for workers in some sectors.
Italy, which has one of the world's heaviest debt burdens, has relied on exceptional economic support from the European Central Bank. In November, the Italian Parliament backed the government's request to swell the nation's budget deficit by 8 billion euros to fund the additional relief measures. Conte approved 100 billion euros in stimulus to provide support during the first wave of the pandemic. Any extra spending is set to send debt above 160% of GDP by the end of the year, according to Chiara Albanese of Bloomberg.
The Italian economy is forecast to contract by 10.6% in 2020, the largest decline of any advanced economy except for Spain, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In Spain, the eurozone's fourth-largest economy, a Covid-related national state of emergency entered into effect on October 25. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced a curfew from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. that is expected to last for six months — until well after Easter.
Spain's gross domestic product (GDP) is forecast to shrink by almost 13% in 2020, the biggest contraction of any advanced economy, according to the IMF. The country is also facing a record-high deficit and soaring unemployment. The unemployment rate in Spain in 2020 and 2021 is expected to hover around 17%, second only to Greece among advanced and emerging economies. Long lines are building at food banks across Spain.
On December 11, the Bank of Spain warned that new Covid-related restrictions have halted recovery from its worst-ever economic contraction earlier in the year. "The fourth quarter is worse than we expected in September," Oscar Arce, the central bank's chief economist, said. "The intensity of the second Covid-wave surprised us."
The coronavirus pandemic has hit Spain especially hard with over 1.7 million infections and 48,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.
Like Italy, Spain is depending on financial aid from the European Union to survive the pandemic. Madrid may be eligible to tap up to 140 billion euros ($170 billion) in European funds — half in grants and half in loans, according to Economy Minister Nadia Calviño.
In the Netherlands, the eurozone's fifth-largest economy, a second lockdown took effect on December 15. All schools and shops will be closed until at least January 18. "The Netherlands is closing down," Prime Minister Mark Rutte said in a live television address. "We realize the gravity of our decisions, right before Christmas." The measures include limiting gatherings, even at home, to no more than two people. An exception will be made for three days around Christmas, when three adult visitors will be permitted.
In Britain, the government is under pressure to tighten Covid-related lockdown measures ahead of the Christmas holidays. In Europe, Britain ranks second, just behind Italy, as having the most coronavirus deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University. Britain also ranks second, just behind France, as having the most cases of Covid-19, according to Johns Hopkins.
Elsewhere in Europe, in Belgium, the government is scheduled to meet on December 18 to consider lockdown options amid an increase in new daily coronavirus infections. In Luxembourg, a coronavirus-related curfew has been extended until January 15.
In Switzerland, the government ordered restaurants, bars and shops to close from 7 p.m. across much of the country as of December 12. "The number of cases is rising quickly and strongly," said Swiss President Simonetta Sommaruga.
In Poland, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that it was too early to ease coronavirus restrictions: "It is true that in the last few weeks the situation is better, but we can't pretend that we have defeated the virus, that the situation is so good that we can think about changing direction." In Hungary, a curfew will continue until at least January 11. Meanwhile, the Czech Republic will implement a partial coronavirus lockdown beginning on December 18.
In Denmark, the government announced further lockdown measures in parts of the country to curb a spike in coronavirus infections. Restaurants, museums, movie theaters and other cultural institutions closed on December 9 in 38 of 98 municipalities, including Copenhagen, and students in middle schools, high schools and universities were sent home. "We are entering a new phase of the epidemic, it is a phase where we are seeing exponential increases in the infection curves," said Health Minister Magnus Heunicke.
In Norway, Health Minister Bent Høie extended coronavirus restrictions into the second half of January. He said that even though infection rates in Norway have leveled off, the threat of infection from neighboring countries remains. In Finland, the government extended restrictions until January 10.
In Sweden, which has stood out for its "no lockdown" approach to the coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Stefan Löfven imposed the toughest restrictions yet after a spike in the number of infected people filling intensive care units. He said that the "unprecedented" response was needed if Sweden is to "curb transmission." Löfven added: "This is a very clear and strong signal to everyone in this country and to the entire society about what the rules are going forward."
*Soeren Kern is a Senior Fellow at the New York-based Gatestone Institute.
© 2020 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.
 

Biden rejoining the Iran nuclear deal will allow Tehran to fund militias through oil
Hussain Abdul-Hussain/Al Arabia/Wednesday 16 December 2020
If President-elect Joe Biden rejoins the Iran nuclear deal, he will likely suspend some sanctions on Tehran while keeping in place sanctions on non-nuclear activity. Biden should beware: Tehran has no problem with this arrangement, which will allow it to fund its militia proxies through oil revenue.
Like former President Barack Obama, President-elect Joe Biden seems to perceive of the nuclear deal with Iran as the beginning of a relationship. Tehran, however, sees the deal as the end.
The architects of the deal under both Obama and Biden are the same, including Biden’s picks for National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. The two men seem to believe that there is always an opportunity for a breakthrough “grand bargain” that will transform Iran from foe to friend. For such a bargain to work, America has to be patient, and give the process time.
Democrats see the ongoing process of improving relations with Tehran as being interrupted by President Donald Trump and his hawks. Therefore, come January 20, Biden will resume the process from where it broke off: America will rollback its sanctions on Iran, which will simultaneously dial back its level and stock of enriched uranium to where they were on May 2018, before Trump withdrew from the deal.
Obama, however, never suspended all US sanctions on Iran. On the day he paused sanctions on Iran’s financial, energy and shipping sectors, his Secretary of Treasury Jacob Lew said this: “We will continue to target sanctionable activities, including those related to Iran’s support for terrorism, regional destabilization, human rights abuses, and ballistic missile development.”
Neither did Obama suspend sanctions on Iran by legislation. Instead, he issued waivers by executive order. Congress demanded that it be in the loop, and hence Obama — and after him Trump — informed Congress of their waiver renewals, every six months, until Trump declared that May 2018 would be the last time he renewed such waivers. In November 2018, suspension of US sanctions on Iran expired, and the Iranian economy started its free fall.
The Iranian regime wanted to save face, but without breaking the deal, so when it increased level and stock of enriched uranium, it did so without violating the levels allowed. Iran’s strategy was to wait out Trump until Sullivan and other Democrats came back to the White House and restored the agreement that favored Tehran so much.
To rejoin the deal, Biden and his transitional team exaggerated the nuclear danger from Iran to justify urgently bringing Tehran back into the deal. Biden also presented himself as tough, stating that restoring the nuclear deal did not mean that Washington approved of Tehran’s sponsorship of terrorism or development of missiles. But even Obama never approved of Iranian militias or missiles, and never removed US sanctions connected to them.
According to team Biden, once US nuclear sanctions are suspended and Iran’s program is back under control, America will negotiate with Iran over terrorism and missiles. But says who Tehran wants to talk missiles or militias? In response to Biden’s pledge to negotiating with Iran over non-nuclear issues, Iranian president Hassan Rouhani said: “The Americans were trying for months to add the missile issue [to the nuclear talks] and this was rejected … and Mr Biden knows this well.”
In fact, Iran was thrilled with Obama’s deal, which allowed it to legally make billions from its oil exports to fund its missiles and militia programs. The other, non-nuclear, sanctions never bothered Tehran. As long as Iran is concerned, America can keep its non-nuclear sanctions while Tehran continues developing missiles and supporting militias that undermine the governments of Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen and other Arab countries.
In effect, Iran is using its nuclear program to buy itself immunity against American sanctions that can cripple its oil sector and the revenue that Tehran desperately needs to fund its economy, as well as its missiles and regional militias.
Even better, under the deal, Iran’s freeze of its nuclear program ends in 2031, after which it can further develop its nuclear bomb program with impunity. At that point, the US and the world might demand extending the nuclear deal, but by then, Iran would probably be close to producing a nuclear bomb that would make the regime immune to external threats and uninterested in extending the nuclear deal.
If the Democrats cannot see that this trade takes away US leverage to combat Iran’s troublemaking behavior, both nuclear and non-nuclear, then they either know little about global affairs or are simply biased in favor of Iranian mullahs.
America’s allies will have to think of other ways to counter Iran’s nuclear program, missiles and terrorism. Israel is already doing so, and winning regional friends who have an interest in stopping an increasingly bullish Iran. America under Biden will take a back seat and watch.
*Hussain Abdul-Hussain is an Iraqi-Lebanese columnist and writer. He is the Washington bureau chief of Kuwaiti daily al-Rai and a former visiting fellow at Chatham House in London.

Why does the Gulf lack female leaders? Data has the answers
Omar Al-Ubaydli/Al Arabiya/Wednesday 16 December 2020
In the Middle East, women are heavily underrepresented in leadership positions. Women account for less than 10 percent of parliamentary seats in several Gulf states, and Kuwait’s 2020 elections resulted in all 50 seats going to men. The private sector paints an even grimmer picture: only three of the 83 Gulf firms listed in the Forbes Top 100 Arab Family Businesses had a female chairperson.
Underlying this imbalance is a chronic lack of scientific data on its causes. If the Gulf countries are serious about supporting female leadership, they must remedy this deficiency.
The easiest way of trying to correct gender imbalance is to simply affirm that there is rampant discrimination, and to demand greater representation for women.
A more difficult – but potentially more productive – approach is to use scientific methods to infer the reasons for the underrepresentation of women. This is because policies that seek to empower women vary in cost and effectiveness, and selecting the best mix requires a refined understanding of the underlying causes of female underrepresentation.
For example, women might be underrepresented as senior executives because they are discriminated against at the selection phase despite having the same years of managerial experience as men; or it could be because they are less likely than men to have the requisite years of managerial experience. In the former case, government-mandated affirmative action is likely to be effective in reversing discrimination.
In contrast, in the latter case, affirmative action could be counterproductive as it might lead to companies being forced to appoint underqualified women, reinforcing prevailing stereotypes. Under these circumstances, the more effective policy would address why women are less likely to have the requisite managerial experience – for example they might be discriminated against at lower levels, in educational institutions, or by the legal system. Rectifying that might lead to women organically securing equal representation at the senior executive level without the need for affirmative action.
In Western countries, there is a large body of scientific work on why women are underrepresented in leadership positions. Economists have contributed by demonstrating that, in addition to being discriminated against, women are more likely than men to be risk averse, to be reluctant to start negotiations, to avoid competitive environments, to seek jobs with flexible working hours, and to spend time on low promotability tasks.
However, our understanding is far from complete, as illustrated in a new research paper by Alleghany College economist Professor Priyanka Chakraborty and Texas A&M University economist Professor Danila Serra. They used a series of experiments to study interactions between managers and subordinates when managers had to decide which employees to promote.
Professors Chakraborty and Serra found that women were less likely to seek managerial positions than men in situations where subordinates could express their anger at being overlooked for a promotion by the manger. Moreover, they found that female managers were more likely than their male counterparts to receive angry messages from subordinates, and that these subordinates were more likely to question the decisions of female managers than those of male managers. Within the confines of the experiment, however, they detected no overall gender difference in managerial performance, though male and female managers chose to communicate promotion decisions to their subordinates using different language, with women systematically preferring more cordial expressions.
Since this is cutting-edge research that isn’t being applied to a narrow problem, it is too early to determine the paper’s implications for broader issues of gender imbalances in leadership positions. However, it opens the door for important follow-up research into why women are treated less fairly by subordinates who are overlooked for promotion, and what role this might play in making it harder for women to climb corporate ladders.
In the Gulf countries, unfortunately, the volume of research on these issues is very limited, despite the arguably more pressing need for it be conducted. Gross expenditure on research is considerably lower, and funding for research on women’s issues available from civil society organizations is modest because these entities themselves are limited in size. In contrast, in countries like the US, private non-profit organizations that have sizeable endowments offer grants for the study of a wide range of women’s issues.
While Gulf-based policymakers can certainly make use of the research conducted by Western-based researchers such as Professors Chakraborty and Serra, there are many legal and cultural differences between Western and Gulf countries, meaning that there is no substitute for research conducted by Gulf-based scholars on populations in the Gulf. For example, in the context of the above study, organizations tend to be much more hierarchical in the Gulf, meaning that there are fewer opportunities for subordinates to express their dissatisfaction with a manager’s decision, and so this may affect the attractiveness of managerial positions to women.
Fortunately, encouraging more local research on gender differences is straightforward: provide grants and other forms of support for those who wish to study the topic. It would also help to raise the profile of those researchers who make successful intellectual contributions by giving them media coverage and prestigious prizes.
Equally important is institutionalizing dialogue with underrepresented groups. Resources should be allocated to interviewing Gulf women who do make it to the top, and to those who miss out, to understand the difficulties that they face and the potential solutions. Or, as the Greek philosopher Epictetus quipped: “We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.”
*Omar Al-Ubaydli (@omareconomics) is a researcher at Derasat, Bahrain
 

US designation of Muslim Brotherhood would make the world safer

Dalia Al-Aqidi/Arab News/December 16/2020
داليا عقيدي/ارب نيوز: تصنيف الإخوان المسلمين على قوائم الإرهاب الأميركية سيجعل العالم أكثر أمانًا

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Now and then, calls rise in Washington to designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist group due do its activities on a global level. Although several conservative politicians, intelligence think tanks, and anti-Islamist activists continue to highlight the danger of this radical movement and its proxy organizations, no official decision has been taken by the government of the US.
Early this month, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, who is known for his relentless attempts against this radical group, reintroduced the Muslim Brotherhood Terrorist Designation Act, which, if it becomes law, would allow the US government to impose a broad spectrum of sanctions on any countries, companies or individuals that support, finance or interact with the group and its members. “I am proud that under the Trump administration we continue to call out and combat radical terrorism and I am glad to join my colleagues today in reintroducing this legislation,” Cruz said in a statement, emphasizing the importance of holding foreign terrorist organizations accountable for their actions.
Even though the Muslim Brotherhood was founded in Egypt by Hassan Al-Banna more than 90 years ago, its threat has grown and its base has widened with the support of two US allies: Qatar and Turkey. However, several Arab countries close to Washington have taken firm measures against the group, considering it the No. 1 threat in the region and beyond.
Al-Banna’s ambitions exceeded the borders of his own country, as he believed the Brotherhood’s agenda — of recreating the Islam of the caliphate as a transcontinental ideology — should be implemented globally. The group’s ultimate goal is to form a bond based on a political ideology to restore the “authentic” Muslim power and prestige and to have an impact on major international decisions to serve its own political and economic interests.
Between 1949, when Al-Banna was assassinated, and 2020, the Muslim Brotherhood learned to infiltrate the West and master the political game. But how? Political persecution and the oppression of freedoms in parts of the Middle East, in addition to the desire to pursue a better life, caused waves of immigration. Millions of Muslims fled to different countries in the West, especially Europe and the US. Slowly, Muslim communities started to build their own institutions and organizations. Unfortunately, the people who were most interested in building these institutions were associated with the Muslim Brotherhood or inspired by it. Well-funded and backed by powerful governments, it has manipulated millions of Muslims around the world
Well-funded and backed by powerful governments, the Muslim Brotherhood has used a large percentage of its assets to manipulate millions of Muslims around the world by creating hundreds of organizations to keep them isolated in their own communities. Meanwhile, away from Islamic slogans, the international organization has used its resources to influence international intellectual institutions, charitable organizations, public relations firms, and numerous media outlets in the US and several European countries to indirectly promote the group and advance its ideology.
Qatar has provided the radical group with the largest media platform in the Middle East. Al Jazeera Arabic has played a vital role in radicalizing Arabic-speaking Muslims around the world, inciting hatred and anti-Semitism by playing on the emotions of its viewers, who originally came from a politically unstable and war-torn region. On the other hand, the English-language version of the Al Jazeera network whitewashes the face of certain political Islamist movements and terrorist groups to play the victim’s role and gain the sympathy of the Western world.
In the US, thanks to the propaganda coming from the left-leaning mainstream media, Islamists needed no extra effort or help in emphasizing the narrative that America is an unjust, evil country that has been targeting different minorities throughout its modern history.
Meanwhile, widespread confusion between the terms “Islamist” and “Muslim” was sown by the Brotherhood itself. The strategy of putting all Muslims into one category has served its agenda and strengthened its argument that every attack on the group was an attack on Islam. The truth is that Islamist movements have made it very hard for secular Muslims who do not want to play the game of identity politics to blend in; forcing them to endlessly distance themselves from the group’s extremist ideology.
But why should the world bow down to these religious fascists? In order to succeed in fighting the radical views that have been flourishing in the West in general, and in the US in particular, America needs to learn from Egypt, the UAE and Saudi Arabia and take drastic measures against the Muslim Brotherhood and its attempts to infiltrate its society.
Washington should not treat the Muslim Brotherhood any differently to the Lebanese Hezbollah or the Palestinian Hamas. It should send a clear warning of serious consequences to the countries that support, finance, harbor or provide a platform for the group. Will that be easy? Of course not — at least not in the next four years.
Most Democrats, including members of the upcoming administration, strongly believe that designating the Muslim Brotherhood would have a negative impact on Washington’s relations with several Arab and Muslim countries. But these people need to take a closer look at the struggles of the people in the Middle East due to the lack of security and political and economic stability caused by radical groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood.
A bold and brave decision like this would certainly make the world a better and safer place.
*Dalia Al-Aqidi is a Senior Fellow at the Center for Security Policy. She is a former Republican congressional candidate. Twitter: @DaliaAlAqidi

Erdogan’s balancing act faces new challenges in Biden era
Talmiz Ahmad/Arab News/December 16/2020
The US on Monday announced sanctions on Turkey under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act due to Ankara’s purchase of the Russian S-400 missile defense system. These sanctions will deny Turkey access to US defense products and technology, besides imposing asset freezes and visa restrictions on four senior officials from the Presidency of Defense Industries. The official US statement noted that the acquisition of the Russian missile system “would endanger the security of US technology and personnel.” The incoming Biden administration is expected to uphold the sanctions, as it has also opposed the S-400 purchase and the disunity within NATO that the Turkish acquisition has caused.
The EU had also announced sanctions on an unspecified number of Turkish officials and entities a few days earlier. These sanctions related to the eastern Mediterranean gas exploration dispute that Turkey has been engaged in with Greece and Cyprus. Athens blamed the “Berlin-Rome-Madrid bloc” for the soft response to Turkish aggressiveness. It had called for an arms embargo on Turkey, but both Italy and Germany are major arms suppliers to its hostile neighbor.
The US and EU sanctions, though mild, could discourage investments in Turkey — harmful for an economy already under strain. The national currency has depreciated 24 percent this year, while the inflation rate is 12 percent. The third quarter saw gross domestic product grow 6.7 percent due to the opening up of the economy and a government stimulus in the shape of low interest rates, fiscal spending, and increased credit. However, the recent surge in coronavirus disease infections, coupled with higher interest rates, will reduce growth in the fourth quarter, so that overall growth this year will be zero, before rising to 4 percent next year.
Joe Biden’s US presidential election victory poses fresh problems: Recep Tayyip Erdogan was personally close to Donald Trump, who backed Turkey at crucial times, particularly in Syria. There is now the need for a review of Turkey’s domestic and regional policies. Thus, sensitive to Biden’s concerns, Erdogan has already announced he is preparing a new human rights action plan.
The Turkish president is also attempting to repair ties with Israel. Erdogan this week appointed a Hebrew-speaking party loyalist, who is not a career diplomat, as Ankara’s ambassador to Israel. Diplomatic ties between the two countries were downgraded in May 2018 following Israeli violence in Gaza and Trump’s decision to shift the US embassy to Jerusalem. Since November, however, there have been substantial talks between Turkish and Israeli intelligence chiefs on upgrading diplomatic relations and their regional interests.
Turkey’s president will be reluctant to choose between the US and Russia, but will instead seek to veer between them
Besides pleasing Biden, Turkey is also anxious to reconcile with Israel due to their shared energy interests in the Mediterranean. Ankara wants to revive the idea of an Israeli gas pipeline project that goes to Europe through Turkey. It also wants to coordinate their approach to the Caucasus, after both Turkey and Israel supported Azerbaijan in its recent conflict with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh. They could also be tempted to shape a trilateral partnership with Ukraine, where Turkey is already a defense supplier.
However, this wish-list may not go through as Israel has serious reservations about Turkey’s ties with Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood. Meanwhile, Turkey’s Western allies are also reaching the limits of their patience. Outgoing US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo this month criticized Turkey for “undermining NATO’s security.” And, in a press conference in Paris last month, the French foreign minister described Turkey’s actions in the Mediterranean as “unacceptable,” while his German counterpart called them “inadmissible.”
Against this background, what will be the future shape of Turkey’s ties with Russia? Russian President Vladimir Putin has invested heavily in trying to detach Turkey from the Western embrace by developing substantial bilateral economic and military ties, accommodating Turkey’s interests in Syria and engaging with Ankara on matters relating to Libya, even though they back opposite sides. Russia also brokered the cease-fire in Nagorno-Karabakh, where again they had supported opposing parties.
Given his past record, Erdogan will be reluctant to choose between the US and Russia, but will instead seek to veer between them via the repeated acts of brinkmanship that have marked his diplomacy over the last few years. His trump card is his country’s geopolitical value — straddling Europe and Asia, its role in east-west energy transit, its dominant place along the Mediterranean coastline, and its oceanic outreach to Libya. There is also the large size of Turkey’s domestic market, both commercial and military, and its civilizational stature as the heir of the Ottoman Empire. These factors give Erdogan the confidence that both the US and Russia will remain sensitive to Turkey’s interests and positions.
But, with Trump on his way out and the Biden presidency much less tolerant of Erdogan’s unreliability as a NATO ally, the Turkish president may also find Putin not as accommodating as before. In Syria, the Russian president is likely to insist that Turkey give a free hand to the Assad government and Russian forces to fight the extremists in Idlib and affirm the country’s national unity. In Libya and Nagorno-Karabakh, Turkey will need to work closely with Moscow as the two countries seek to accommodate each other’s competing positions. For Putin, Ukraine will be a no-go area; Turkey will have to desist from any activity that threatens Russia’s interests.
Erdogan will soon discover that his traditional brinkmanship has strict limits.
• Talmiz Ahmad is an author and former Indian ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Oman and the UAE. He holds the Ram Sathe Chair for International Studies, Symbiosis International University, Pune, India.