LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
February 04.2020
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

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Bible Quotations For today
A woman in the crowd raised her voice and said to him, ‘Blessed is the womb that bore you and the breasts that nursed you!’But he said, ‘Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 11/27-32/:”A woman in the crowd raised her voice and said to him, ‘Blessed is the womb that bore you and the breasts that nursed you!’But he said, ‘Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it!’ When the crowds were increasing, he began to say, ‘This generation is an evil generation; it asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah. For just as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so the Son of Man will be to this generation. The queen of the South will rise at the judgement with the people of this generation and condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon, and see, something greater than Solomon is here! The people of Nineveh will rise up at the judgement with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the proclamation of Jonah, and see, something greater than Jonah is here!”.

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on February 03-04/2020
Al Raei Is The Wrong Man In The Wrong Position/Elias Bejjani/February 02/2020
Lebanon Banks Tighten Withdrawal Caps, Sparking Outcry
Aoun holds political, diplomatic meetings at Presidential Palace
Berri signs 2020 budget law
Diab chairs Ministerial Statement Committee's meeting
Diab inks 2020 budget, refers it to presidency
Diab meets Wahhab and Al-Kharafi, chairs financial meeting
Report: Schenker to Visit Lebanon after Govt. Confidence Vote
Probe of Lebanese-American Who Worked For Israel Postponed
Questioning of Amer Fakhoury Postponed over Health Reasons
Foreign Ministry's Director of Political, Consular Affairs tackles developments with Turkish Ambassador
Hitti from KSA: Lebanon Adheres to Arab Peace Initiative
Lebanese Banks Slash Dollar Withdrawal Limit by Half
Geagea: LF to Attend Sessions but Won't Grant Confidence to Govt.
Panel Finalizes Policy Statement, Govt. to Approve It Thursday
Rabih al-Zein to be Released on Bail as Other Activists Questioned
Activist Rabih al Zein released on bail
Minister of Health says following up on ship coming from Far East, confirms no virus symptoms among crew members
Rahi meets Maronite League delegation
Gold and Bentleys: Lebanese Spend Big to Salvage Savings
Gold and Bentleys: Lebanese Spend Big to Salvage Savings
Hasan Says Coronavirus Doesn’t Survive on Mail from China
Abdullah: Democratic Gathering Bloc to Withhold Confidence Vote
National Bloc: Ministerial Statement written by demonstrators this past weekend
Othman meets Jordan's ambassador
Ghajar meets EU Ambassador
Mortada meets Egyptian ambassador, FAO mission
Safadi Foundation” launches “TWI Accredited Welding Training Centre” in Lebanon, region
Tarraf meets Fahmi, says international community monitoring new government
'Awa'a' activists protest outside Justice Palace in support of judicial independence

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on February 03-04/2020
UN Security Council to Meet with Kushner on Middle East Plan
Netanyahu Discusses 'Normalization' with Sudan's Leader
Palestinian ties with Israel continue despite Abbas’ rhetoric. Hamas to attack Israel until Cairo lets its leaders return to Gaza/DEBKAfile/February 03/2020
Palestinians Say Sudan-Israel Meeting 'Stab in the Back'
Iran decries French 'pressure' over jailed academics
Ukraine says Iran 'knew from start' missile downed plane
Denmark Accuses Iranian Dissident Trio of Spying for KSA
Denmark arrests three members of Iranian opposition group on spy charges
Erdogan asks Russia 'not to stand in way' of Syria retaliation
Turkey and Syrian Regime in Deadly Flare-Up
ISIS claims London stabbing attack, but gives no evidence
UN-brokered Libya military talks begin in Geneva
Pan-Islamic body OIC rejects Trump's Mideast plan
China says U.S. creating, spreading fear after virus outbreak
Built in 10 Days, China's Virus Hospital Takes 1st Patients
Air Canada Plane Makes Emergency Landing in Madrid


Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on February 03-04/2020
Coronavirus, Brexit, 'Deal of the Century' and the Fragility/Ghassan Charbel/Asharq Al Awsat/February 03/2020
Redefining the Palestinian Cause/Hazem Saghieh/Asharq Al Awsat/February 03/2020
Euro-Area Economy Sees Worst Quarter Since 2013/William Horobin/Bloomberg/February 03/2020
Turkey following Iranian model with Libya move/Dr. Mohammed Al-Sulami/Arab News/February 03/2020
Trump deal piles pressure on Palestinian leadership/Ramzy Baroud/Arab News/February 03/2020
Economic effects of coronavirus to be felt for months/Cornelia Meye/Arab News/February 03/2020
Global cooperation essential to repelling Iran’s cyberattacks/Abdel Aziz Aluwaisheg/Arab News/February 03/2020
Society’s polarization helps explain state of US politics/Kerry Boyd Anderson/Arab News/February 03/2020

Details Of The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorial published on February 03-04/2020
Al Raei Is The Wrong Man In The Wrong Position
Elias Bejjani/February 02/2020
Alraei sadly has no specialised and neutral educated advisers and accordingly all his stances and rhetoric unstudied statements are impulsive, very superficial, questionable and lacks all that is common sense, wisdom and a vision to secure the interstates of Lebanon as a free and independent state. He is detached from all that is logic and reason. I strongly believe that he is the wrong man in the wrong position... He has a very poor vision and apparently his tongue always is distanced from his mind.

Lebanon Banks Tighten Withdrawal Caps, Sparking Outcry
Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 3 February, 2020
Major banks in Lebanon began tightening banking controls this month, halving the amount of dollars depositors are allowed to withdraw every month, despite growing public anger. Faced with a dollar liquidity crunch, banks have imposed informal controls on dollar withdrawals and transfers abroad since September amid widespread anti-government protests and Lebanon's worst economic crisis in decades. Withdrawal limits differ from bank to bank, but have so far generally been capped at around $1,000 a month, while most transfers abroad have been halted. Some banks have now imposed even tighter restrictions.Three major banks contacted by AFP on Monday said they have halved the dollar withdrawal limit since the beginning of February, some capping the amount at $600 a month. Several banks have allowed slightly larger allowances to depositors who have more than $100,000 in their accounts, customers said on social media. But even depositors who have more than one million dollars in their accounts can't withdraw more than 2,000 to 3,000 a month. The informal controls have sparked public outrage in protest-hit Lebanon, where an anti-government street movement launched on October 17 has grown increasingly angry at banking policies. "These new illegal measures by banks come with the political blessing of the new government," said activist Lucien Bourjeily. The new cabinet, which was formed last month, is expected this week to outline its financial rescue plan. Experts and demonstrators say banking controls amount to a de facto "haircut" on savings because they are forcing dollar depositors to deal in the nosediving Lebanese pound. The currency has plunged against the greenback on the parallel exchange market, though the official peg of 1,507 pounds to the dollar in place since 1997 remains unchanged. Central bank chief Riad Salameh last month said that he agreed with money exchange houses to cap the parallel rate at 2,000 -- but several exchanges continue to charge rates edging towards 2,200. Salameh last month asked for special powers to authorize the banks to set withdrawal limits, which had not formally been backed by the government. The finance ministry, however, has yet to publicly respond to his request.

Aoun holds political, diplomatic meetings at Presidential Palace
NNA/February 03/2020
President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, stressed on the importance of education in societies “Since education teaches social values and the concept of affiliation, and belonging to the homeland”. The President also stressed the importance of directing students to vocational education, especially in the task which the Lebanese society needs, and reiterated work to combat corruption, prevent bribes, and the waste of public money.
President Aoun’s stance came during his reception the head of the Educational Center for Research and Development, Dr. Nada Ouwaijan, who was accompanied by a delegation, today at Baabda Palace.
Ouwaijan briefed the President on the details related to the educational curriculum development workshop, which was launched by the Education Minister and the Educational Center on 9/1/2020.
Dr. Ouwaijan revealed that the project to develop curricula was launched around three weeks ago after the adequate political and economic conditions were available, in addition to funding from external projects. Ouwaijan pointed out that the President has always been keen on this project and on active citizenship in our society, and on the adoption of a fair and sustainable educational project, in order to build a cohesive society and an active citizen.
“The main concern is that the citizen is educated, balanced, happy, open, and also enjoying a sense of citizenship and belonging to Lebanon. It is also important for us that this project meets the needs of the society and labor market without working to export human capital abroad” Dr. Ouwaijan stated.
Ouwaijan also explained that this project-approach takes into account the digital and technology, which are considered the feature of the times, in order to make entry into the economy of the times and knowledge available for Lebanon, in order to regain its leadership in the region and worldwide.
Dr. Ouwaijan concluded by revealing that during demonstrations, the center launched a campaign entitled “For Citizenship to be not only a Word”, and prepared directives related to responsible freedom and other related topics, hoping for the President’s permanent care for the center and its main concerns.
President Aoun’s Reply:
The President reiterated the importance of education in societies, and considered that education progresses on pedagogics because it teaches social values and the concept of affiliation and belonging to the country, while pedagogic programs are specific, believing that it is necessary to determine what the Lebanese citizen lacks in his society, in order to define and extract educational programs. The President stressed on the elements of basic education, such as addressing, correspondence, talking to one another and etiquette, in addition to physical education, food and family.
“A person starts by being a creature who belongs to his community, and then moves to be a citizen belonging to his homeland, so that his rights and duties must be determined and likewise, the citizen, especially the Lebanese, lives in a diverse country, which makes learning the history of the development of religions a necessity for him, in order to look up to God with openness of thought and capability of understanding the concept of home” President Aoun said.
The President considered that family planning has become very essential today, especially in Lebanon, which suffers from population growth, and wished to place this within the aforementioned project. President Aoun stressed the importance of directing students to vocational education and reaffirming its commitment to fighting corruption, especially in light of the new Government.
President Aoun met the Ambassador of Bangladesh to Lebanon, Abdul Mutalib Sarker, on a farewell visit to mark the end of his diplomatic duties. The President wished Mutalib Sarker success in his new responsibilities, and thanked him for his efforts to strengthen Lebanese-Bangladesh relations.
President Aoun met two former MPs, Nabil Nicolas, and Abbas Hachem, and discussed with them recent political developments. Condolences for Victims of the Australian Accident: President Aoun allocated the Consul General of Lebanon in Sydney (Australia), Charbel Macaron, to convey his heartfelt condolences to Mr. Danny Abdullah and his wife, Laila Geagea, who lost their three children in the tragic traffic accident which took place last week in the Uttland region (Sydney). The Consul General was also assigned to condole the family of the fourth victim who died in the same accident.The President expressed his sorrow over the incident and stressed the need to impose the most severe punishment for the perpetrator, who was arrested by the Australian police.— Presidency Press Office

Berri signs 2020 budget law

NNA/February 03/2020
Speaker of the House, Nabih Berri, on Monday signed the General State Budget and Appended Budgets Law for the year 2020 and then referred it to Grand Serail. In further 'deal of the century' talks and their implications on the Palestinian cause, Berri received a phone call from head of Hamas political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh.

Diab chairs Ministerial Statement Committee's meeting

NNA/February 03/2020
Prime Minister, Dr. Hassan Diab, on Monday chaired at the Grand Serail a meeting by the ministerial committee tasked to draft the new cabinet's Ministerial Statement. The meeting is devoted to discussing the final draft of the statement before submitting it to the Cabinet for approval in its final form.

Diab inks 2020 budget, refers it to presidency

NNA/February 03/2020
Prime Minister, Dr. Hassan Diab, on Monday signed the 2020 state budget and then referred it to the Lebanese presidency.

Diab meets Wahhab and Al-Kharafi, chairs financial meeting
NNA/February 03/2020
Prime Minister, Hassan Diab, met Monday at the Grand Serail, with former minister Wiam Wahhab, over the latest local, regional and international developments. Diab later received vice chairman and CEO of Zain Group, Bader Nasser Al-Kharafi. Separately, the Prime Minister chaired a financial meeting attended by Ministers Damianos Qattar (Environment), Ghazi Wazni (Finance), Imad Hoballah (Industry), and Raoul Nehme (Economy), alongside Central Bank Governor Riyad Salameh, Secretary General of the Council of Ministers Mahmoud Makkieh, and consultant Khodor Taleb.

Report: Schenker to Visit Lebanon after Govt. Confidence Vote
Naharnet/February 03/2020
U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Schenker is expected to visit crisis-hit Lebanon “when the new government receives the Parliament’s vote of confidence,” al-Joumhouria daily reported on Monday. According to information obtained by the daily, Shencker announced during a trip to Israel that “the economic situation in Lebanon is worse than anyone can imagine, we believe the foreign reserves are much less than announced,” by central bank officials, he was quoted as saying. The new government of PM Hassan Diab, which the US says is backed by Hizbullah, must win the Parliament’s vote of confidence as the country grapples with nationwide protests, a liquidity crunch, shortage in dollars and weakening Lebanese pound.

Probe of Lebanese-American Who Worked For Israel Postponed
Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 3 February, 2020
A Lebanese judge postponed Monday the questioning of Amer Fakhoury, a Lebanese-American who confessed he'd worked for Israel during its occupation of Lebanon, state-run National News Agency reported. It said that since Fakhoury is undergoing chemotherapy treatment for cancer, the investigative judge's questioning session will be postponed until Feb. 17. Fakhoury who was detained after returning to Lebanon from the US in September, had worked as a senior warden at the Khiam Prison in southern Lebanon. Khiam was run by an Israeli-backed militia until Israel ended its 18-year occupation of the area in 2000, the Associated Press reported. Meanwhile, Fakhoury’s family said doctors have told them his condition is life threatening. In addition to an infection and a bleeding disorder, doctors believe he’s developed an aggressive form of lymphoma. Several former inmates at Khiam Prison accused Fakhoury of torturing them and filed a lawsuit against him after he returned. Human rights groups have said in the past that Khiam prison was a site of torture and detention without trial before it was abandoned following the Israeli withdrawal.

Questioning of Amer Fakhoury Postponed over Health Reasons
Associated Press/Naharnet/February 03/2020
A Lebanese judge postponed Monday the questioning of a Lebanese-American who confessed he'd worked for Israel during its occupation of Lebanon, state-run National News Agency reported. The agency said that because Amer Fakhoury is undergoing chemotherapy treatment for cancer, the investigative judge's questioning session will be postponed until Feb. 17. Fakhoury's family said doctors have told them his condition is life threatening. In addition to an infection and a bleeding disorder, doctors believe he's developed an aggressive form of lymphoma. Fakhoury was detained after returning to his native Lebanon from the U.S. in September. He had worked as a senior warden at the Khiam Prison in southern Lebanon. It was run by an Israeli-backed militia, known as the South Lebanon Army, until Israel ended its 18-year occupation of the area in 2000. The two countries technically remain at war. Several former inmates at Khiam Prison filed a lawsuit against Fakhoury after he returned to Lebanon, blaming him for cases of torture. Human rights groups have said in the past that Khiam prison was a site of torture and detention without trial before it was abandoned following the Israeli withdrawal. Israel denies the allegations.
Hundreds of former Lebanese members of the SLA militia had fled to Israel, fearing reprisals if they remained in Lebanon. Others stayed and faced trial, receiving lenient sentences.

Foreign Ministry's Director of Political, Consular Affairs tackles developments with Turkish Ambassador
NNA/February 03/2020
Director of Political and Consular Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants, Ghadi El Khoury, on Monday welcomed Turkish Ambassador to Lebanon, Hakan اakil, with whom he discussed bilateral relations between the two countries. The meeting also focused on what has been disseminated through media outlets about a cargo ship which docked under Lebanese flag in Libya's Tripoli port whilst being escorted by a Turkish frigate. The Turkish ambassador promised that he would refer back to his country's authorities to obtain further information on this issue.
Talks between the pair also touched on an array of economic issues such as the liberation of trade exchange between Lebanon and Turkey and allowing Lebanon to re-export iron to Turkey, which contributes to improving the trade balance between the two countries. Discussions also touched on the most recent developments in the region.

Hitti from KSA: Lebanon Adheres to Arab Peace Initiative
Naharnet/February 03/2020
Minister of Foreign Affairs Nassif Hitti reiterated Lebanon's commitment to the Arab Peace Initiative which was endorsed at the Beirut Arab League Summit in 2002, based upon related UN resolutions and international law principles, in order to reach a just, lasting, and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian Cause, the National News Agency reported on Monday. In a statement delivered at the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Hitti indicated that the conference was taking place "at a critical historic moment in the course of the Palestinian Cause and the Arab-Israeli conflict" considering the many challenges and reverberations not just for Palestine, but also for the region and the world. Hitti started his speech by thanking the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for its “unremitting support for the Palestinian Cause and leading role in the service of the joint Arab and Islamic action.”“The proposals made under the title of peace are solutions based on a quasi-Palestinian semi-sovereign statelet and on some Palestinian lands, while seeking to add legitimacy to the (Israeli) occupation and ignore legal principles and international resolutions," Hitti said. "Such ideas would only cause further tensions, risks and destruction," he added. "We are always open to hearing all proposals," he underlined, highlighting the necessity to abide by the related international laws and UN resolutions. He also stressed that solutions must not be advantageous to one side at the expense of the other. He lastly called for effective cooperation and swift action at all levels to make peace in compliance with the well-known international references, the principles of the Arab Peace Initiative, and the fresh Arab League decision.

Lebanese Banks Slash Dollar Withdrawal Limit by Half
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/February 03/2020
Most Lebanese banks on Monday slashed the monthly dollar withdrawal limit by 50%, media reports said. For example, Bank Audi will give every small depositor who has a dollar account $300 every 15 days instead of $300 weekly. Depositors with accounts over $100,000 will meanwhile get $500 every 15 days while those whose accounts contain more than $1 million will be eligible to $1,000. Three major banks contacted by AFP on Monday confirmed they have halved the dollar withdrawal limit since the beginning of February, some capping the amount at $600 a month. The informal controls have sparked public outrage in protest-hit Lebanon, where an anti-government street movement launched on October 17 has grown increasingly angry at banking policies. "These new illegal measures by banks come with the political blessing of the new government," said activist Lucien Bourjeily. The new cabinet, which was formed last month, is expected this week to outline its financial rescue plan. Experts and demonstrators say banking controls amount to a de facto "haircut" on savings because they are forcing dollar depositors to deal in the nosediving Lebanese pound. The currency has plunged against the greenback on the parallel exchange market, though the official peg of 1,507 pounds to the dollar in place since 1997 remains unchanged. Central bank chief Riad Salameh last month said that he agreed with money exchange houses to cap the parallel rate at 2,000 -- but several exchanges continue to charge rates edging towards 2,200.
Salameh last month asked for special powers to authorize the banks to set withdrawal limits, which had not formally been backed by the government.
The finance ministry, however, has yet to publicly respond to his request.

Geagea: LF to Attend Sessions but Won't Grant Confidence to Govt.
Naharnet/February 03/2020
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea announced Monday that the LF-led Strong Republic bloc will attend parliamentary sessions aimed at debating the new government’s Policy Statement. “The Strong Republic bloc will attend the confidence sessions out of its keenness on the continuity of the work of state institutions but it will not grant the government its confidence,” Geagea said. Noting that “there are ministers on this government who enjoy good reputation,” Geagea pointed out that the LF will wait to “see whether they would act according to their expertise and ethics or according to the political dictations of those who named them as ministers.”The LF had boycotted a recent controversial session that debated the 2020 draft state budget.

Panel Finalizes Policy Statement, Govt. to Approve It Thursday
Naharnet/February 03/2020
The ministerial panel drafting the new government’s Policy Statement completed its task on Monday and a Cabinet session will be held Thursday to approve it, the information minister said. “There are no tax amendments but the Policy Statement includes taxing and monetary reforms,” Manal Abdul Samad said after the committee finished its last meeting. Noting that the government does not endorse any leaked draft, the minister said the statement includes “plans for 100 days, 1 year and 3 years,” describing the plans as “clear, targeted and realistic.”Industry Minister Imad Hoballah meanwhile announced that "the leaked draft differs from what was agreed on today." Tourism and Social Affairs Minister Ramzi Msharrafiyeh for his part said that some final touches were put on the draft, noting that the political segment "was not altered." "The amendments are not essential and the taxing and inspection measures will target those who were getting exemptions and those who were evading taxes," Msharrafiyeh added. An-Nahar newspaper had reported Sunday that the panel has opted to use the same clauses contained in the statement of Saad Hariri’s government regarding “the sensitive political topics related to the resistance and the dissociation policy." The bulk of the statement will meanwhile be dedicated to the financial and economic crises. Parliament is not expected to hold a session to debate the statement before next week.

Rabih al-Zein to be Released on Bail as Other Activists Questioned
Naharnet/February 03/2020
Mount Lebanon Examining Magistrate Bassam al-Hajj on Monday ordered the release of protest movement activist Rabih al-Zein on an LBP 100,000 bail, referring the file to public prosecution. “The public prosecution will approve or dismiss the order tomorrow,” MTV reported. The activists Charbel Qai and Imad al-Masri were meanwhile questioned as witnessed and released. Arrest warrants were meanwhile issued for Jihad al-Ali and Joe Challita following interrogation. Judge al-Hajj had on Wednesday charged al-Zein with “incitement” over the recent torching of an ATM belonging to the Credit Libanais bank in Zouk and a Molotov attack on the Free Patriotic Movement’s office in Jounieh. Anti-government protesters Georges Azzi and Mohammed Srour had been detained in the same case and remain in custody. Al-Zein has been known for leading a group of road-blocking protesters in the northern city of Tripoli. He has also appeared at other protest sites across the country, raising suspicions about his role. He had been arrested for the first time in December over his controversial presence at the Justice Palace during an altercation between Mount Lebanon Prosecutor Ghada Aoun and MP Hadi Hbeish of al-Mustaqbal Movement.

Activist Rabih al Zein released on bail
NNA/February 03/2020
Mount Lebanon Investigative Judge, Bassam El Hajj, on Monday issued a decision to release Activist Rabih al Zein, on an LBP 500,000 bail, Al Zein's dossier will be referred tomorrow to the Public Prosecution. Activist Charbel Qai was also released without bail and without pressing charges against him.

Minister of Health says following up on ship coming from Far East, confirms no virus symptoms among crew members
NNA/February 03/2020
Minister of Public Health, Dr. Hamad Hassan, on Monday said via "Twitter" that the Ministry of Health had been following up on the ship arriving to Lebanon from the Far East and confirmed that its crew did not suffer from any virus symptoms thus far.
He added that after the ship docks at Beirut Port at 6:00 am tomorrow morning, the Ministry's quarantine team will adopt all the required procedures.

Rahi meets Maronite League delegation
NNA/February 03/2020
Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Beshara Rahi met Monday in Bkerki with a delegation of the Maronite League chaired by former MP Neemtallah Abi Nasr. Speaking to reporters following the meeting, Abi Nasr highlighted the importance of unity among the Maronite community, as well as that of adopting a Lebanese national rhetoric.

Gold and Bentleys: Lebanese Spend Big to Salvage Savings
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/February 03/2020
Companies are closing and restaurants are half empty but in the gloom of Lebanon's worst economic crisis in decades, luxury jewellers, supercar dealerships and art galleries are doing brisk business. Worried that their life savings might vanish with a collapse of the banking sector, some Lebanese are syphoning cash from their accounts and buying the most expensive goods they can get their hands on. Banks have slapped restrictions on withdrawals and overseas transfers, leading some depositors to use cashier's checks to spend savings they fear would otherwise be depleted by a haircut or a devaluation. "Our sales have trebled since November," said Karl Kenaan, a Beirut-based real estate broker. "There's a huge demand." Companies encouraging Lebanese to offload their savings by investing in property have launched advertising campaigns on billboards and on social media. "People want to diversify their investments as a precaution against the threat that hovers above the banking sector and the national currency," Kenaan said. To be on the safe side, many choose to buy flats and houses outside of Lebanon for fear the property market could collapse too.
"Secure your savings with a property investment in Greece you can pay for in Lebanon," reads a Facebook ad for a real estate agency.
Gold is golden
The Lebanese pound has been officially pegged to the dollar since 1997 but it has lost a third of its value on the parallel market recently. With the prospect that Lebanon might restructure or default on its debt after years of economic mismanagement and corruption, many Lebanese fear that an official devaluation of the pound will slash their savings. The loss of confidence in a banking sector that was once a source of national pride is such that deposits in Lebanon have slumped by $12 billion over the first 11 months of 2019. For years, deposits had been fuelled by the influx of money from Lebanon's vast diaspora and Gulf residents who were attracted by high interest rates. These rates, however, have decreased significantly since December, further dissuading depositors abroad and at home from putting their money in the bank. Despite the controls slapped by banks to prevent capital flight, Lebanese depositors can still ask for cashier's checks and they are using them to buy goods they feel will not depreciate or can be easily resold abroad. "More and more clients are buying gold coins, chains, bracelets and necklaces, only for their monetary value," said one jeweller whose business has 14 branches nationwide. One car dealer who also asked not to be identified said Lamborghinis and Bentleys sometimes fetching $400,000 were still in demand "even as auto sales are generally plummeting".
Art in the cart
"Sure, these cars gradually lose some of their value but for many buyers it's a case of trying not to lose everything," he said. Artworks, a traditional safe investment in times of crisis, are being snapped in Beirut's edgy galleries. "Lately I've had visits from people I've never seen before in my gallery," one owner said. "They basically want to see the largest paintings, buy the most expensive pieces." Those who are unsure what to spend their money on tend to pull as much cash as possible from the bank and keep it at home. According to the banking authorities, $3 billion have been withdrawn from banks and hoarded at home since September, triggering a rush on safes. "Our sales have gone up 50 percent," said Khalil Chehab, a retailer who specialises in safes and lock boxes. "Banks used to be our main clients before the crisis broke out, now it's their customers who are coming to us," he said, adding that some buyers were ready to spend up to $20,000 on high-end safes. "People are no longer looking for any kind of profit. They just want to save their money, at any price."

Hasan Says Coronavirus Doesn’t Survive on Mail from China
Naharnet/February 03/2020
Health Minister Hamad Hasan assured on Monday that the deadly coronavirus does not get transmitted through mail packages arriving from the disease-inflicted country of China. “Citizens receiving letters and parcels from China are not at risk of getting coronavirus transmitted to them. Analysis confirm the virus does not survive for a long time on the surfaces of things such as letters and parcels,” said Hamad in a tweet. Coronavirus, which originated in a live seafood market in Wuhan, in China's Hubei province, has spread to more than 24 countries, despite many governments imposing unprecedented travel bans on people coming from China. The World Health Organization has already declared the outbreak a global emergency, and the Chinese death toll has risen to 362 while total infections reached over 17,000, surpassing the SARS epidemic of two decades ago. On Sunday the first foreign death from the virus was reported in the Philippines.

Abdullah: Democratic Gathering Bloc to Withhold Confidence Vote

Naharnet/February 03/2020
Democratic Gathering bloc MP Bilal Abdullah said on Monday that his bloc shall participate in a parliament session on the new government but will not give it its vote of confidence. In remarks he made to VDL (93.3) radio station, Abdullah said the bloc will meet on Tuesday to decide whether it will attend a parliament session dedicated to discuss the government’s policy statement. “We will likely participate in the session but we will not give it our confidence vote,” he said. Criticizing a leaked Policy Statement draft, which the government of PM Hassan Diab still has to finalize, Abdullah said it introduces “no radical solutions.” Instead it “adopts embellished words that impose new taxes, tough measures on Lebanese and a clear tendency for privatization without any practical measures,” he said. The MP noted that his bloc will stand with “responsible and constructive opposition,” noting that the “government performance against tax evaders and looters of public funds is more important than the Policy Statement.”The ministerial panel drafting the new government’s Policy Statement will reportedly hold a “final reading” session on Monday after the draft was distributed to all ministers.
A cabinet session will be scheduled later at the Baabda Palace under President Michel Aoun to approve the statement in its final version.

National Bloc: Ministerial Statement written by demonstrators this past weekend
NNA/February 03/2020
The Lebanese National Bloc Party said in a statement that "the latest demonstrations illustrated the failure of the government's plans to derail the revolution by infiltrating the demonstrations with their supports. This past weekend sectarian and regional barriers were broken again with demonstrators coming to Tripoli from all regions of Lebanon, even after attempts to isolate this city on sectarian basis." In its statement, the Bloc said that banners with such slogans as "the rejection of the pharaohs of war and its political system" were raised to show that people believe that "the ministers of the current government are only the advisers of former ministers and ruling parties, and that they bare no characteristics of independence."The Bloc noted that the demonstrators are adamant about continuing the struggle no matter how long it takes in order to save Lebanon by stating that: "The revolution in Lebanon is not for a day or a month or a year; it is a historical process."The Bloc added: "Sunday was a day of creativity in Martyr's square and it was in defiance to loss of hope in the shadow of very difficult times. It was day to hold fast to Lebanon's civility and for the victory of life over despair."As for the demands of the demonstrators about the content of the ministerial statement, the Bloc "referred to some of the banners that were displayed such as: "independence of the judiciary and persecution of thieves", and getting out of the "capitalist model which is hostile to industry and agriculture, and for distribution of wealth and social justice."The Bloc considered "these enthusiastic slogans to mirror the revolutionary groups and political parties' preparations for a bailout economic plan that has been published in the media, and that should be a ministerial statement for the revolution."The Bloc also reminded that it has published on its website its own ministerial statement to overcome the current crisis, and thus there is no more need for a "government of advisers" since the demonstrators have already drafted the rescue plan." --Lebanese National Bloc

Othman meets Jordan's ambassador
NNA/February 03/2020
Internal Security Forces Chief, Imad Othman, on Monday received in his office the Jordanian Ambassador to Lebanon, Walid Al-Hadid, who came on a visit aimed at cooperation and coordination. Talks reportedly touched on the general situation in the country.

Ghajar meets EU Ambassador

NNA /February 03/2020
Water and Energy Minister, Raymond Ghajar, on Monday received in his office at the Ministry the EU Ambassador to Lebanon, Ralph Joseph Tarraf, with talks reportedly touching on means of cooperation in the water, electricity and energy sectors. Ambassador Tarraf expressed the EU's readiness to provide technical and in-kind assistance in this regard. Discussions also touched on the government's orientations in the next stage, after obtaining confidence, and ways to restore citizens' trust in it.

Mortada meets Egyptian ambassador, FAO mission

NNA/February 03/2020
Agriculture Minister, Abbas Mortada, received on Monday in his office at the Ministry the Egyptian Ambassador to Lebanon, Dr. Yasser Alawi, accompanied by the Embassy's Trade Advisor, Dr. Mona Wehbe, in the presence of Ministry's Director General Louis Lahoud.
Discussion reportedly touched on the bilateral relations between the two countries and means of enhancing them. Agricultural relations and trade exchange between both countries also featured high on their talks. Minister Mortada also met with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) mission to Lebanon, led by FAO Representative in Lebanon, Dr. Maurice Saadeh, in the presence of former Minister Wafaa Deaa. The mission aims to conduct a swift assessment of the impact and repercussions of the economic and financial crisis on the agricultural sector and food security in Lebanon, and prepare a rapid support program that responds to the crisis.

Safadi Foundation” launches “TWI Accredited Welding Training Centre” in Lebanon, region
NNA/February 03/2020
Due to the fact that the fields of Oil and Gas have recently witnessed a wider spread in Lebanon, and given the high expectations for an increase in demand on professional welding workers, Mohammad Safadi, founder of “Safadi Foundation”, launched a “TWI Accredited Welding Training Centre”, located at the “Safadi Accelerated Vocational Training Center” (SAVOTEC) in Tripoli. The first-of-its-kind in Lebanon, this centre has the ability to train and graduate up to 200 welders annually, using the latest welding equipment and technologies, through high-level professional trainers from “Safadi Foundation” accredited by TWI. During the launching ceremony, which took place at SAVOTEC in the presence of a number of representatives of international organizations and local syndicates, and senior contractors from the north region and all Lebanon, Mohammad Safadi noted that “this centre was launched during a hard time for both Lebanon and its youth. It was established with the goal to empower the youth in the north region in general and Tripoli’s specifically, and to assist them in accomplishing their dreams, and to meet their aspirations.”“Tripoli is in need of several vital projects to be implemented in order to provide job opportunities for the youth,” added Safadi. “Among these projects would be restoring and developing the railway, which would encourage the utilization of Tripoli’s port, and stimulate the trade industry. Another project would be to create an offshore platform in the north region to explore, extract, store, and process petroleum and natural gas, so that they can later be distributed through pipes, feeding factories with energy and electricity. This project in particular can create more than 10,000 job opportunities, and reduce the cost of electricity production by 40%,” he continued. Safadi also noted that he considered “the most important project to be the comprehensive research-based development initiative conducted by the Foundation, which seeks to restore Tripoli as a multicultural urban center for knowledge, commerce and trade. This initiative was based on the findings of the Socio-Economic Participatory Study of the Old City of Tripoli (OCT) published in May of 2017, during a conference held at the Grand Serail under the auspices of former PM Saad Hariri. 21 projects were developed afterwards, with the aim of social and economic revitalization. However, with the limited support received from the Government, only SAVOTEC’s establishment could be implemented.”
With reference to the “TWI Accredited Welding Training Centre” in the field of Oil and Gas, which was launched that day, Safadi stressed that “it was developed to suit the labor market needs, and to enhance the role of the Lebanese workforce in the fields of Oil and Gas, especially that an advanced technology has been introduced in training, through simulators.” He concluded by observing that “the certificate issued by TWI is an internationally accredited certificate, enabling graduates to work both inside and outside Lebanon.”
The General Manager of “Safadi Foundation”, Mrs. Samar Boulos indicated that “this initiative aims to find a solution that would help face the encounters that have fallen upon Lebanon and its citizens; and to address the urgent challenge of unemployment, which is prevalent in Lebanon, and has drastic repercussions on the social and economic sectors.” Boulos also said that “it’s worth mentioning the importance of this newly-launched centre, as well as the significance of the international accreditation that “Safadi Foundation” sought to obtain from TWI, while the Foundation was keen to meet all the conditions and standards to build such a center, from equipment to trainers.”Mr. Ernesto Moskini, Regional Manager of TWI in South-East Asia, concluding the ceremony, remarked that “the center was built in a significantly short period of time, and being the best center in the region, it would make this an amazing achievement for “Safadi Foundation”, which deserves an international recognition.” He added that “discussions are underway to extend the scope of work, and welding is only the starting point of collaboration between TWI and the Foundation.”—Safadi Foundation’s Press Office

Tarraf meets Fahmi, says international community monitoring new government

NNA/February 03/2020
Minister of Interior and Municipalities, Mohammad Fahmi, on Monday welcomed EU Ambassador to Lebanon, Ralph Tarraf, with whom he discussed the current situation on the local and regional scenes. During the meeting, Fahmi stressed that security in Lebanon was on the top of the current government's agenda, "but the current priority is the economic situation and how to overcome the crisis." For his part, Ambassador Tarraf said that the international community was monitoring the performance of the new government. "If the government's plan of action is coherent, the international community will be even more willing to lend its support," Tarraf asserted, reminding that the previous governments never kept their promises to the international community. Moreover, Tarraf condoned the way the security forces have been handling protesters.

'Awa'a' activists protest outside Justice Palace in support of judicial independence
NNA/February 03/2020
Activists representing "Awa'a Bloc" on Monday carried out a protest in front of the Palace of Justice in Beirut in solidarity with the judiciary to help it remain strong and accountable, and to demand its full independence. "An independent and impartial judiciary is the real place for fighting corruption and holding corrupt people accountable," is the motto is the bloc. It is to note that the bloc will carry out a weekly protest in front of the Palace of Justice, under the slogan "Monday of the Judiciary".

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on February 03-04/2020
UN Security Council to Meet with Kushner on Middle East Plan
Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 3 February, 2020
The United States has requested a closed-door UN Security Council meeting Thursday for President Donald Trump's son-in-law and adviser, Jared Kushner, to present the administration's new Middle East peace plan, diplomatic sources told AFP Monday. Kushner intends to set forth the plan that Washington unveiled last week and to listen to the positions of the council's other 14 members, the sources said. The meeting would take place a few days before Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas comes to the United Nations -- he is expected February 11 -- to express opposition to the US plan and to demand adherence to international law. On the occasion of Abbas' visit, the Palestinians have indicated they plan to submit a draft resolution to the Security Council, through Tunisia, a non-permanent member of the council. The resolution's content has not been divulged as yet, but the United States would likely oppose it, using its veto, if necessary, should it gain the support of nine council members, the minimum required for passage. In late 2017, a Palestinian-inspired resolution condemning Washington's unilateral recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital received 14 votes in the Security Council, but the United States quashed it with its veto. A similar resolution proposed during the UN General Assembly, a 193-member body in which no country has a veto, was approved by a vote of 128 in favor, nine against and 35 abstentions. The remaining 21 countries chose not to be present for the vote. Kushner is the architect of the plan unveiled by the president a week ago, and rejected Saturday by the Arab League and by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation on Monday. It makes numerous concessions to Israel, proposing the establishment of a Palestinian capital in Abu Dis, a suburb of Jerusalem. The Palestinians have long sought the whole of east Jerusalem as their capital. The US proposal also gives consent for the annexation of Israeli settlements as well as the Jordan Valley, Palestinian territories occupied by Israel since 1967. The US mission at the United Nations would provide no details on the request for a Security Council meeting. In a statement Saturday, Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, said he has launched a campaign to persuade member countries not to support any Palestinian action that is hostile to the US plan.

Netanyahu Discusses 'Normalization' with Sudan's Leader
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/February 03/2020
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met Sudan's leader Monday to discuss "normalization" between the two states, his office said. Netanyahu met Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, chairman of Sudan's ruling sovereign council, and "agreed to start cooperation leading to normalization of the relationship between the two countries," a statement from his office said. The two countries are technically at war and if full normalization were achieved Sudan would become only the third Arab state to recognize Israel. There was no immediate confirmation from Sudan. "History," Netanyahu said in a tweet announcing the meeting. Sudan's sovereign council is a transitional body of military officials and civilians that is currently headed by Burhan, an army general. It was created as part of a power-sharing agreement between the military and civilians following the overthrow of longtime dictator Omar al-Bashir last year. The statement from Netanyahu's office said the prime minister believed "Sudan is headed in a new positive direction."

Palestinian ties with Israel continue despite Abbas’ rhetoric. Hamas to attack Israel until Cairo lets its leaders return to Gaza
DEBKAfile/February 03/2020
The Palestinians are not really breaking off economic and security ties with Israel and the US, according to discreet messages passing from Ramallah to Jerusalem on Sunday, Feb.2. Those ties are still alive and well, despite the orders publicly issued by Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmud Abbas in his furious response to the Trump peace plan. Those messages further explained that Abbas’ fiery rhetoric was mainly meant for the ears of Arab rulers – not practical execution. The day after the peace plan was launched in Washington, Abbas allowed his senior lieutenants to receive CIA director Gina Haspel in Ramallah – hardly evidence of a Palestinian boycott of ties with the Americans. DEBKAfile’s Washington sources report that administration officials were furious with the Palestinians for leaking word of her visit, despite a commitment to keep it dark. The same officials continue to press Israel to hold back from declaring sovereignty over West Bank settlements before its general election on March 2, contrary to the wording of the Trump plan. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who had planned an immediate announcement, therefore reversed his decision and will not declare the annexation of the town of Maele Adummim near Jerusalem or the Jordan Valley in the coming days. He may just go for a smaller target as a token gesture with a promise to do more after the election. A decision on this is still being weighed in Jerusalem. As for the Palestinians, Egyptian President Abdel-Fatteh El-Sisi has firmly rejected appeals by Muslim nations, led by Indonesia, to allow Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh to return home to the Gaza Strip. He is stranded away from home with 12 senior Hamas officials because Cairo is refusing to grant him entry. Hamas’ current multiple rocket and balloon barrages against Israel are intended as pressure on Sisi to relent. Haniyeh and his party are being punished for violating a written pledge to Cairo not to include Iran in their foreign tour as the condition for permission to travel aboard. This group was, however, filmed in Tehran embracing Iranian officials at the funeral of the Iranian general Qassem Soleimani assassinated by the US. So long as the Egyptians keep the door shut against Haniyeh’s return home Hamas intends to keep up the barrages against Israeli communities. This leaves it up to the caretaker government in Jerusalem to sort out a predicament generated elsewhere.

Palestinians Say Sudan-Israel Meeting 'Stab in the Back'

Agence France Presse/Naharnet/February 03/2020
The Palestinian leadership condemned Monday a meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Sudanese leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan in Uganda, labeling it a "stab in the back." "This meeting is a stab in the back of the Palestinian people... at a time when the administration of (US.) President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu are trying to liquidate the Palestinian cause," Saeb Erekat, secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organization said in a statement carried on official news agency WAFA.

Iran decries French 'pressure' over jailed academics
NNA/AFP/February 03/2020
Pressure from France to secure the release of two academics detained in Iran since June is unproductive, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Abbas Mousawi said on Monday. Mousawi was responding to remarks made Sunday by French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, who called the detention of French-Iranian academic Fariba Adelkhah and her French colleague Roland Marchal "unacceptable". "I don't think these kinds of comments and pressure will get them (the French) the results they want," the Iranian spokesman said at a Tehran press conference. Adelkhah, an expert on Shiite Islam with numerous publications on Iran and Afghanistan, and East Africa expert Marchal are both researchers with Sciences Po University in Paris. Detained in Iran without trial since June, they are charged with "colluding to commit acts against national security". France "must let due process take its course", Mousawi said Monday, adding that the two prisoners were "accused and guilty" of security offences. "We understand some of the concerns of our French friends, but they know themselves that the two (prisoners) are accorded all their legal rights," he said.--

Ukraine says Iran 'knew from start' missile downed plane
NNA/AFP/February 03/2020
Kiev on Monday accused Tehran of knowing from the start that an Iranian missile had downed a Ukrainian airliner last month, after leaked recordings emerged from Iranian air traffic control. The recordings, aired on Ukraine's 1+1 TV channel on Sunday, feature a conversation between an air traffic controller and the pilot of another plane at the time the Ukrainian airliner was hit on January 8, killing all 176 people on board. The pilot can be heard describing "the light of a missile" on its route and then an explosion. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said after the release of the recording that it "proves that the Iranian side knew from the start that our plane was hit by a missile. "Everything is audible there," Zelensky told 1+1. "Everything is recorded." The audio clip features the pilot of an Aseman Airlines flight from Iran's southern city of Shiraz to Tehran communicating with air traffic control in the Iranian capital. "There is a series of lights on our route, like a missile. Is there something?" the pilot is heard asking. "What is the light like?" the controller asks. "It's the light of a missile," the pilot replies. The control tower then tries unsuccessfully to contact the Ukrainian airliner. After a few minutes the pilot says: "There was an explosion. We saw a very bright light here."It was unclear how the channel obtained the recording, but officials denied it had come from the Ukrainian authorities. "This is a journalistic investigation. You need to ask them where they got this recording," Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of Ukraine's Security and Defence Council, told AFP. UIA president Yevgeniy Dykhne said it was important "not to create another sensation" around the catastrophe, but to join efforts "to ensure thorough and complete investigation" of the crash.

Denmark Accuses Iranian Dissident Trio of Spying for KSA
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/February 03/2020
Danish security officials have arrested three members of an Iranian separatist group and charged them with spying on behalf of Saudi Arabia, Denmark's intelligence service said Monday. The three leading members of the ASMLA, Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Ahwaz, had been under investigation for over a year, in a case that prompted Denmark's foreign minister to summon the Saudi Arabian ambassador. The three "carried out espionage activities on behalf of a Saudi intelligence service from 2012 to 2018," Finn Borch Andersen, head of the the Danish Security and Intelligence Service (PET), told a Copenhagen press conference. PET said it launched an investigation into the trio, who live in Denmark, in November 2018 to determine whether they "had publicly condoned acts of terrorism or committed other criminal offences."They were arrested in 2018 and accused of praising five commandos who attacked a military parade in the Iranian city of Ahvaz on September 22, spraying the crowd with gunfire and killing 24 people. Danish authorities said at the time they believed the three were the target of a planned attack on Danish soil, orchestrated by the Iranian regime. Tehran had formally denied the accusation.
During the investigation "it was uncovered that they have been involved in espionage activities in Denmark on behalf of Saudi Arabia," a PET statement said. "Among other things, they have collected information about individuals in Denmark and abroad and passed on this information to a Saudi intelligence service," it added. Denmark's foreign minister Jeppe Kofod called the case "deeply serious and completely unacceptable.""We are now for the second time in a year and a half in the position where a regional conflict is played out in Denmark via proxies," Kofod said in a statement on the developments in the case.
Kofod also said he had summoned the Saudi ambassador for talks earlier Monday, and instructed the Danish ambassador in Riyadh to deliver his objections to Saudi authorities. ASMLA is a separatist group that advocates an Arab state in a southwestern Iranian province. Tehran calls it a terrorist organization. Tehran regularly accuses Saudi Arabia, as well as the United States and Israel of supporting separatist groups. Saudi Arabia, a Sunni monarchy, is Iran's, which is a predominately Shia Muslim nation, main rival in the Middle East. In the Netherlands, another suspected member of the same organisation was arrested south of The Hague on Monday. Dutch prosecutors said in a statement that the man, together with others, was "preparing for one or several terrorist attacks in Iran."

Denmark arrests three members of Iranian opposition group on spy charges
NNA/Reuters/February 03/2020
Denmark said on Monday it had arrested three leading members of an Iranian Arab opposition group on suspicion of spying for Saudi Arabia. The three members of the Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Ahvaz (ASMLA) had already been charged by Danish police for supporting an attack in Iran in 2018. "It is the view of PET (The Danish Security and Intelligence Service) that the three people, in the period from 2012 to 2018, have been spying for a Saudi Arabian intelligence service," PET chief Finn Borch Andersen told reporters. The three Iranians have been under close police protection and one was the subject of a 2018 assassination plot that was prevented by PET after a major police operation. In 2017, Ahmad Mola Nissi, an Iranian exile who established ASMLA, was shot dead in the Netherlands. PET said a Norwegian citizen of Iranian background, who was held in connection with the plot in October 2018, was still under arrest. In addition, it said it had on Monday arrested in absentia a member of the Iranian intelligence service on suspicion of espionage and complicity in the 2018 murder attempt. The Iranian government has previously denied any connection with the alleged plot. ASMLA seeks a separate state for ethnic Arabs in Iran’s oil-producing southwestern province of Khuzestan. Arabs are a minority in Iran, and some see themselves as under Persian occupation and want independence or autonomy.--

Erdogan asks Russia 'not to stand in way' of Syria retaliation
NNA/AFP/February 03/2020
Turkey warned Russia not to get involved as it retaliated against Syrian government forces for killing four of its soldiers in northwest Syria on Monday. "I want to especially tell the Russian authorities that our interlocuter here is not you but the (Syrian) regime, and do not stand in our way," President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters.

Turkey and Syrian Regime in Deadly Flare-Up
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/February 03/2020
Turkish and Syrian troops traded fire in northwest Syria on Monday, with more than 20 reported dead, further raising tension between Ankara and regime backer Moscow over the war-torn Idlib rebel enclave.
Russian air strikes also killed 14 civilians in the same area, where a government offensive has caused one of the worst displacement waves of the nine-year-old Syrian conflict, a monitoring group said. The tit-for-tat shelling between Turkish and Russian-backed Syrian forces was the deadliest since Turkey deployed troops in Syria in 2016 and escalated tensions between the conflict's two top foreign protagonists. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had offered rare criticism of Russia last week, accusing it of "not honoring" agreements to prevent a regime offensive on rebel-held Idlib.
The overnight clash began with regime shelling of Turkish positions in Idlib, hours after a Turkish military convoy of at least 240 vehicles entered northwest Syria, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor. The attack killed five soldiers and three Turkish civilians despite previous coordination on where Ankara's forces would be in the region, Turkey's defense ministry said. The Russian defense ministry said Ankara had failed to give prior warning of its troop movements at the time of the incident. Retaliatory rocket attacks by Ankara on regime positions later killed at least 13 Syrian government troops and wounded 20 others in Idlib and neighboring Hama and Latakia provinces, the Observatory said.
The heaviest Syrian casualties were inflicted south of Saraqeb, a flashpoint Idlib town that Damascus has been trying to encircle since last week, said the Observatory. State news agency SANA said the Syrian army had not suffered any casualties.
Children killed
Speaking to reporters at an Istanbul airport before leaving for Ukraine, Erdogan said between 30 and 35 Syrian forces were "neutralized" in the counterattack that had targeted 40 locations. He called on regime ally Russia to "assume its obligations." The Observatory said a new Turkish military convoy entered Syria on Monday. Increasing attacks by the regime and Moscow in northwest Syria have displaced more than 388,000 people since December, according to the United Nations, forcing many of them towards Turkey's border. Ankara -- which already hosts more than three million Syrian refugees on its soil -- says it fears the latest fighting will trigger another mass influx. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Saturday called for an end to fighting in and around Idlib but air strikes, many of them carried out by Russian warplanes, have continued. On Monday, Russian air strikes killed 14 civilians in northwest Syria, said the Observatory. Nine of those killed were displaced people who died when a missile hit their car in the Urum al-Kubra area, on the rebel bastion's eastern flank. An AFP reporter saw rescue workers carry away the limp bodies of two small children and lay them in thick blankets on the back of a pickup truck.
Regime push
The regime now controls more than two thirds of Syria, up from a barely a fifth before Russia's military might came to the rescue in 2015. A jihadist group led by members of Syria's former al-Qaida affiliate still controls swathes of land in and around Idlib province, which is home to some three million people and where pro-Ankara rebel groups are also present. Pro-Damascus forces have pressed northwards along the M5 highway that connects the capital to Syria's second city Aleppo, crossing Idlib. Government forces last week retook the key town of Maaret al-Numan along the highway, and they have moved on northwards. A Turkish-Russian deal in 2018 saw Turkish troops deploy at observation posts around Idlib, but the agreement has failed to stem repeated regime military offensives. Displaced from other regions recaptured by government forces make up half of the Idlib region's population, with many living in precarious shelters in the countryside along the Turkish border. On Sunday, hundreds of Syrian men, women and children marched towards the border in a symbolic protest, demanding to be allowed through.

UN-brokered Libya military talks begin in Geneva
NNA/Reuters/February 03/2020
Military officers from rival factions in Libya's conflict began U.N.-led talks in Geneva on Monday aimed at securing a ceasefire after 10 months of fighting on the outskirts of the capital, Tripoli. The so-called "Libyan Joint Military Commission" includes five senior officers from eastern commander Khalifa Haftar's Libyan National Army (LNA) and five officers aligned with the internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA). Haftar has been waging an offensive since April to take control of Tripoli, where the GNA is based. The fighting has displaced more than 150,000 people and drawn increasing involvement by foreign powers. The military talks come two weeks after an international summit in Berlin that was focussed on charting a path towards a political solution and enforcing a U.N. arms embargo that has been routinely violated. Haftar is supported by the United Arab Emirates, as well as Egypt, Jordan, Russia and France, while the government is backed by Turkey. The LNA had delayed appointing representatives for the military talks, but appear to have come round to participating after Turkey supplied air defence systems that blunted the air advantage enjoyed by Haftar and his backers, diplomats said. Haftar's offensive, which upended a previous U.N. peace plan, deepened the gulf between loose alliances that have competed for power from western and eastern Libya since 2014. There was an escalation in fighting late last year, and a truce brokered by Russia and Turkey from Jan. 12 has been repeatedly violated. The United Nations says weapons and fighters have continued to enter Libya since the Berlin meeting, and groups loyal to Haftar have imposed a blockade on major oil ports and fields that has shut off most of Libya oil production. The Geneva talks are aimed at trust building and working out a monitoring mechanism for a ceasefire, diplomats said. The Geneva talks are being moderated by U.N. Special Representative Ghassan Salamé.-

ISIS claims London stabbing attack, but gives no evidence
NNA/Reutersw/February 03/2020
ISIS has claimed responsibility for a stabbing attack in south London, without giving evidence, the group’s Amaq news agency said on Monday. "The perpetrator of the attack in Streatham district in south London yesterday is a fighter of [ISIS], and carried out the attack in response to calls to attack the citizens of coalition countries," a statement carried by Amaq said. The assailant in Sunday’s attack, who was shot dead by police, had previously praised ISIS, shared an online al-Qaeda magazine and encouraged his girlfriend to behead her parents.-

Pan-Islamic body OIC rejects Trump's Mideast plan

NNA/AFP/February 03/2020
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Monday rejected US President Donald Trump's plan for the Middle East, calling on its 57 member states not to help implement it. The pan-Islamic body, which represents more than 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide, "rejects this US-Israeli plan, as it does not meet the minimum aspirations and legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, and contradicts the terms of reference of the peace process," it said in a statement. It called on "all member states not (to) deal with this plan or cooperate with the US Administration efforts to enforce it in any way or form".

China says U.S. creating, spreading fear after virus outbreak
NNA/February 03/2020
The United States has acted to create and spread fear following a coronavirus outbreak in China instead of offering any significant assistance, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Monday. The United States was the first nation to suggest partial withdrawal of its embassy staff, and the first to impose a travel ban on Chinese travelers, said ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying. "All it has done could only create and spread fear, which is a bad example," Hua told an online news briefing, adding that China hoped countries would make judgments and responses that were reasonable, calm and based on science. ---Reuters

Built in 10 Days, China's Virus Hospital Takes 1st Patients
Associated Press/Naharnet/February 03/2020
The first patients arrived Monday at a 1,000-bed hospital built in 10 days as part of China's sweeping efforts to fight a new virus that is causing global alarm. Huoshenshan Hospital and a second 1,500-bed facility due to open this week were built by construction crews who are working around the clock in Wuhan, the central city where the outbreak was first detected in December. Some 50 million people are barred from leaving Wuhan and surrounding cities. The Wuhan treatment centers mark the second time Chinese leaders have responded to a new disease by building specialized hospitals almost overnight. As severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, spread in 2003, a facility in Beijing for patients with that viral disease was constructed in a week. The first patients arrived at Huoshenshan Hospital at 10 a.m. on Monday, according to state media. They gave no details of the patients' identities or conditions. The ruling Communist Party's military wing, the People's Liberation Army, sent 1,400 doctors, nurses and other personnel to staff the Wuhan hospital, the official Xinhua News Agency said. The government said earlier that some have experience fighting SARS and other outbreaks. The state newspaper Beijing Daily applauded construction workers and suppliers who cut short their Lunar New Year holiday. It hailed the rapid construction as a political triumph, despite complaints leaders in Wuhan endangered the public by failing to respond fast enough to reports of a dangerous new disease.
"Today's Chinese people are more deeply aware: where I stand is my China," the newspaper said. "When this national sense of ownership is awakened, our mentality in the face of disasters becomes more mature." Authorities have cut most road, rail and air access to Wuhan and surrounding cities, isolating some 50 million people, in efforts to contain the viral outbreak that has sickened more than 17,000 people and killed more than 360. Before this week's addition of 2,500 new beds, Wuhan had 6,754 in hospitals designated for virus patients, according to the website TMTpost.com. It said authorities were considering assigning another 2,183 beds to virus cases at the city's other hospitals. The Huoshenshan Hospital was built by a 7,000-member crew of carpenters, plumbers, electricians and other specialists, according to Xinhua.
About half of the two-story, 60,000-square meter (600,000-square foot) building is isolation wards, according to the government newspaper Yangtze Daily. It has 30 intensive care units. The name Huoshenshan means God of Fire Mountain. The second hospital, Leishenshan, means God of Thunder Mountain. Newspapers published day-by-day accounts of crews clearing a riverside plot, laying the foundation, installing sewage and electrical equipment and assembling prefabricated rooms that were shipped to the site. Photos in state media showed workers in winter clothing, safety helmets and the surgical-style masks worn by millions of Chinese in an attempt to avoid contracting the virus. Trucks were shown arriving in the middle of the night carrying rolls of insulation and other materials. Doctors can talk with outside experts over a video system that links them to Beijing's PLA General Hospital, according to the Yangtze Daily. It said the system was installed in less than 12 hours by a 20-member "commando team" from Wuhan Telecom Ltd. The building has specialized ventilation systems and double-sided cabinets that connect patient rooms to hallways and allow hospital staff to deliver supplies without entering the rooms. It is equipped with infrared scanners to warn if any employees show signs of the disease's distinctive fever, the website Economy Net reported, citing the company that provided the technology. A Chinese company donated "medical robots" to deliver medicines and carry test samples, according to the Shanghai newspaper The Paper. In other cities, the government has designated hospitals to handle cases of the new virus. In Beijing, the Xiaotangshan Hospital built in 2003 for SARS is being renovated by construction workers. The government has yet to say whether it might be used for patients with the new disease.

Air Canada Plane Makes Emergency Landing in Madrid
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/February 03/2020
An Air Canada flight made an emergency landing in Madrid on Monday following technical problems just hours after taking off from the city's Barajas airport, Spanish officials said. "Air Canada flight AC837 flying from Madrid to Toronto had an engine problem shortly after taking off. A tire also blew out on takeoff, one of 10 on this model of plane," the airline said in a statement to AFP. "The plane chose to turn around and go back to Madrid," it said, saying the plane was circling the skies "to burn off fuel to reduce weight before landing."It said the plane, which had 128 passengers on board, was a Boeing 767-300 that was designed to be able to function on one engine, but that an emergency had been declared "to ensure priority landing." The plane eventually touched down just after 7 pm (1815 GMT) "without incident", Transport Minister Jose Luis Abalos said on Twitter. Spain's defense ministry had earlier told AFP that an F-18 had been scrambled to check on the state of the plane's landing gear and the emergency services had deployed to the airport as a "preventative measure."According to the airport's website, Air Canada flight AC837 took off at 2:33 pm (1333 GMT), bound for Toronto.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on February 03-04/2020
Coronavirus, Brexit, 'Deal of the Century' and the Fragility
Ghassan Charbel/Asharq Al Awsat/February 03/2020
Three major developments stole the show last week, albeit at different extents: the growing concern over the spread of the coronavirus, Britain’s formal exit from the European Union and President Donald Trump’s announcement of the "Deal of the Century".
The outbreak in China has undoubtedly become a source of concern and panic for the entire planet. The British exit was considered a decisive turn on the British and European levels, while the US deal was seen as an extraordinary development, whether in terms of searching for peace between Israel and the Palestinians, or regarding the American role in this search process.
Nothing links the three developments together except that they reveal the fragility of countries, regional groups or international organizations.
When we speak of China, we cannot help but remember its size and its rise: it is the world’s most populous country and its second-largest economy, and enjoys the largest army that is constantly modernizing its arsenal. It is a country that has revived the Silk Road, accomplished great progress after taking hundreds of millions of citizens out of poverty, and achieved a remarkable technological leap.
Only weeks ago, we were reading old predictions about “the approaching Chinese era”, “the rise of China” and the shift of the world’s center of gravity to Asia. Suddenly, with the coronavirus outbreak, we started reading about a virus isolating or besieging China, countries evacuating their citizens and advising their nationals not to travel there and airlines canceling their flights. We also read about the high cost of the epidemic and its implications for the Chinese economy, energy prices and trade.
In just a few weeks, the picture that China has spent decades building or earning was shaken.
Countries appear to be armed to the teeth and strong like fortresses, then an unexpected foe comes to reveal their fragility. Suddenly, they find themselves forced to earmark huge sums to contain the epidemic and strengthen their health sector against surprises of this kind.
Another exciting event. On the first day of this month, the Europeans awoke up to a Britain-free European Union. The British ship chose to sail solo, looking to restore its identity and prosperity away from Brussels’ complications.
After a 47-year stay under the European roof, Britain put into effect its desire for divorce. The issue would not have taken on such a dimension had it been a small country, which had thrown itself onto Europe following the Yugoslav explosion or the Soviet collapse. We are talking about the United Kingdom, the heir to the empire where the sun never set.
As when a family loses one of its members, Europeans remembered, on the day of divorce, the size of their loss: the country that submitted its resignation from the “European dream” is the fifth largest economy in the world, has the second biggest defense budget in Europe and is a very important financial hub. This is without mentioning its permanent membership in the UN Security Council, its natural position in the major powers club and its accumulated diplomatic experience in many parts of the world.
Boris Johnson has fulfilled his promise to the British people. But when it comes to decisions of this magnitude, the coming days will test how right he was. Will Johnson be able to fulfill the Deal of the Century with his American friend? Is Donald Trump ready to offer these kinds of gifts?
It is clear that Europe faces difficult options: generosity in the new relationship with Britain may encourage other countries to jump from the ship commanded by 27 captains. On the other hand, sternness with Britain could be a loss for Europe, especially if London manages to swim alone. Johnson may also face new challenges with the re-awakening of Scotland’s dream for independence.
On the day that followed Brexit, some people spoke about the weakness of this decision, the role of social media in shaping public opinion, populist tendencies, identity crises and fear of immigrants. Others spoke of the fragility of the European structure that has been caught between American volatility and the rise of Vladimir Putin.
A third development stole the show in the Middle East last week: After a long wait, the US president unveiled the Deal of the Century.
It is a new approach to ending the Palestinian-Israeli conflict that is based mainly on accepting the fait accompli that Israel succeeded in imposing in the territories it occupied. Thus, very sensitive issues, such as the Palestinian state and its borders, the future of Jerusalem and the right of return, were tackled from outside the references that previously formed the basis for negotiations between the Palestinians and Israelis.
The difference between the photo of the signing of the Oslo Accords at the White House in 1993 and the current photo is striking. In the first, Yitzhak Rabin shook hands with Yasser Arafat, and the agreement bore the signature of the Israelis and Palestinians. In the new picture, the Palestinian side was absent. Perhaps the first argument put forward by those who stress the fragility of the new deal is the lack of a Palestinian partner, while the old version bore the signature of a full-fledged leader named Yasser Arafat.
For this reason, the Arab foreign ministers adopted a predictable stance following their meeting in Cairo, rejecting the deal and stressing their commitment to just peace and international references.
It is true that many developments in the past two decades have increased the vulnerability of the Arab position, but the new approach to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict also recalls the fragility of the role of international legitimacy and its chronic inability to implement its decisions.

Redefining the Palestinian Cause!
Hazem Saghieh/Asharq Al Awsat/February 03/2020
The “deal of the century” deserves all of the ridicule that it has been subjected to and more: a denial of rights and justice. A leader supporting another leader, both could be indicted and have elections awaiting them. The issue was settled as though it pertained to real estate. The Palestinian “partner” is absent and the international cover is weak… so its failure is likely. All of this does not negate the danger of the deal as a precedent of legitimizing the status quo. Its mere issuance lowers the bar to the lowest point it can get to and announces a desire, which might grow, for turning the page on this conflict at any cost, or rather, without a cost.
The “deal” did not come from nowhere, and it is not the result of a conspiracy here or a betrayal there. There is a history that stretches over a century of conflict during which the Arab world changed a lot, and the rest of the world changed more.
As for the Palestinians, the vast majority of those changes went against them: bad luck, bad politics and an objectively weak position combined to make this century that of defeats.To be fair, the Palestinians did not leave anything that they didn't do during this century. The good and the bad had their chances. The results did not change.
In 1936 they fought as families and clans. Between 1967 and 1982 they fought as organizations and factions. After 1993 they fought as an authority. They fought during the Cold War, before it and after it. From inside the occupied territories, they launched two intifadas, one peaceful and the other violent, and they fought from behind the international borders outside. They fought with the support of the Soviets and the Chinese, and they made peace with the support of the Americans and the Europeans. They practiced non-compromising peace symbolized by Arafat, relaxed peace symbolized by Abbas and peace through economic cooperation of Fayyad. They were led, in war and peace, by a “rightwing” faction, 'Fatah', and in particular during times of war, “leftwing” factions like the 'Popular' and 'Democratic' Fronts contributed to leading them and Islamist factions like 'Hamas' and 'Jihad' did as well. They fought “the guerilla’s long term war”, and they adopted short term strategies like hijacking airplanes.
They were inspired by various experiences, stretching from Guevara to Mandela, and expanded their ranks to include individuals like Carlos and revolutionary and terrorist organizations from the furthest corners of the world as well as pacifists who are supportive of any peace and opposed to any war. They opened up to anti-Zionist Jews and added a rabbi from among them to their National Assembly, and they allowed anti-Semitic voices to develop in the environment of their revolution. Meanwhile, they also allied with both conservative and military Arab regimes and with Iran. Some of them, like 'the general Command' and before it 'As-Sa'iqa,' were extensions of the Syrian regime, and others, like the 'Arab liberation front,' were extensions of Saddam’s Iraqi regime. The majority of them, whom 'Fatah' spoke for, held on to “independent patriotic decision making”, which Hafez Assad usually made them pay a high price for. Throughout these years, they operated under the slogan of "non-intervention in the internal affairs" of Arab countries, and under slogans like "all power to the resistance", which accompanied the civil wars in Jordan and Lebanon.
The Arabs, too, from within the boundaries of their contributions, augmented the variability of experiences, increased their volatility and usually doubled their bitterness. They fought Israel as conservative and military regimes. They fought as allies of the West and allies of the Soviets. This happened in 1948, 1967 and 1973, with seven, then three, then two armies, before wars became limited, since 1982, to Lebanon, the West Bank, and Gaza. This historical trajectory, with its contradictions and defeats, now calls for the redefinition or the reinvention of the Palestinian cause. Its clarity has been lost and its appeal has been weakened. Today, for example, four voices are heard from the Palestinian political environment: We want the lands of the 1947 border division. We want the lands of 1948. We want the lands of 1967. We want the lands of Oslo in 1993.
Also, it is no longer clear whether it is a national Palestinian issue, an Arab Nationalist issue or an Islamic issue with praying in Jerusalem at its core; or is it all three combined? Is it a political cause which we are allowed to question and disagree about, and from our questions and disagreements come up with ideas, or is it a divine cause that should not be questioned or quarreled about, in which case it rots and is left to be exploited by some hypocritical rulers who invest in its declared holiness. Moreover, are the Arab revolutions beneficial to the Palestinian cause and culminations of it, or do they compete with and harm it?
Finally, is the “deal of the century” itself a major catastrophe that tries to execute the most negative interpretations of the 67 war, or is it an opportunity to explode revolutionary energy, the existence of which there is no evidence for, neither among the Palestinians nor among the rest of the Arabs who are preoccupied with an excess of their own national concerns.
Redefining the issue is an urgent demand. The first step is to get rid of the recurrent rhetoric, from politics, literature and the media, and to then search for new tone, it's okay to say: a shocking and surprising one.
Reinvention inevitably includes distancing the tendency to reduce the issue and avoid searching for what the Palestinian writer Hassan Khodor called a “scapegoat''. For Abbas, Hamas, Oslo, 'the resistance' and others, before and maybe after them, have all contributed to where we are today. However, no single party is solely responsible. Holding a single faction or person responsible is a return, indirectly, to the logic of civil war among Palestinians.
Is the Palestinian Authority bad? Yes, but what about Hamas? Is Hamas bad? Yes, but what about the Authority? What is the alternative? Resistance? Do Palestinians have the social, economic requisites for that? Do they have the spirit and the will? Some say the: “the Nation will confront the deal” But where is the Nation? in Idlib?

Euro-Area Economy Sees Worst Quarter Since 2013

William Horobin/Bloomberg/February 03/2020
The euro-area economy barely grew at the end of 2019 as unexpected contractions in France and Italy dealt the bloc its weakest quarter in almost seven years.
The surprise slump in two of the region’s biggest nations is yet another blow for their governments. President Emmanuel Macron is already under fire amid protests over controversial pension reforms, while Italy’s fragile coalition is scarred by internal skirmishes.
Output in the 19-nation region rose just 0.1% in the fourth quarter, down from 0.3% in the previous period, and underlying inflation slowed in January to the weakest in three months. The French economy shrank 0.1%, and Italy posted a 0.3% contraction. Germany has previously said it posted slight growth at the end of 2019 -- the official reading is due next month.
The economic gloom may prove to be temporary. Surveys have suggested that the rot has been stemmed for now. The European Central Bank says the risks to the outlook have become “less pronounced,” and more signs of improving momentum came Thursday when the European Commission reported a marked rise in sentiment in January, led by manufacturing and construction.
Still, the reports could revive calls for more spending by countries that have fiscal space, such as Germany. The ECB has repeatedly called for action, and the European Union’s executive arm is planning to publish a document next week asserting that the euro zone’s fiscal rules are too convoluted.
The yield on German 10-year debt has slipped in recent days and fell below -0.4% for the first time in three months. The euro was little changed at $1.1031 at 11:57 a.m. Frankfurt time on Friday.
Trade risks have returned to the fore with the US renewing threats last week to raise duties on imports of cars from the EU, and France only narrowly avoiding American tariffs on wine and cheese in a dispute over digital taxation. The US just reported the biggest drop in imports since 2009, and new concerns are emerging such as the coronavirus and the hit to Chinese and global growth.
French cognac maker Remy Cointreau has already sounded a note of caution over the impact of the virus on its business in China and ditched its guidance for the year. Airlines including Germany’s Lufthansa cut flights, and Finnish elevator-maker Kone expect a hit on bottom lines amid factory closures.
French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire blamed his economy’s poor results on disruptions in ports, the rail network and fuel deposits and highlighted resilient consumption and business investment.
“This temporary slowdown does not call into question the fundamentals of French growth,” he said. Without the curb from companies using up stocks rather than increasing production, the economy would have expanded about 0.3%. One bright spot was Spain, where the government woke up to more evidence that the economy is one of Europe’s outperformers. Faster-than-anticipated growth of 0.5% was driven by buoyant exports and a strong increase in services.

Turkey following Iranian model with Libya move
Dr. Mohammed Al-Sulami/Arab News/February 03/2020
As the days go by, more and more revelations emerge about Turkey sending fighters from the Free Syrian Army or Turkmen Iraqi militias to fight in Libya alongside Tripoli’s Government of National Accord, led by Prime Minister Fayez Al-Sarraj. These fighters are transferred using military jets to Tripoli airport, where they are received by a special team of Turkish officers who have been tasked with working with Syrian and Libyan fighters. The UN envoy to Libya, Ghassan Salama, asserted in an interview with Reuters last month that fighters loyal to Turkey had already landed, saying: “I can confirm that those fighters have arrived in Libya.” Salama estimated that up to about 2,000 fighters had arrived from outside Libya.
For its part, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights stated that Turkey’s transfer of fighters from Syria to Libya was still ongoing. It also pointed out that a total of 1,750 fighters had arrived in Tripoli, while the number of fighters that had arrived at Turkish-administered camps to receive training had reached 1,500, with massive recruitment operations underway in both Afrin and the Euphrates Shield areas. A video was circulated on social media showing four fighters speaking in the Syrian dialect, who were reported to be affiliated with the Turkish-affiliated Al-Rahman Legion. They were filmed sitting in an apartment, with a Kalashnikov assault rifle in the middle of them. One of them spoke explicitly about receiving a lot of money, showing a large number of US dollar and Libyan dinar banknotes.
The New York Review of Books went even further, with reporter Frederic Wehrey recounting the everyday life of Syrian fighters in Libya and what their commander told him in this respect in a recent investigative report published by the magazine. The columnist said that, at the start of his investigation, while he was only 150 feet from the front line, a tall fighter approached him, but suddenly turned back when Wehrey saw him. He wrote: “I’ve been covering Libya’s conflicts for years and noticed some minor but distinctive details about his appearance: A do-rag tied around his head, an olive green tactical vest, and perhaps a certain military bearing. The Libyan commander I was with confirmed it, with a chuckle: ‘That’s not a Libyan look.’” The reporter then recounted a conversation he had with the chief commander of the fighters, who he said told him: “I belong to the Turkish army. We all have homes in Istanbul and Gaziantep.”
In the same context, Sky News Arabia reported last week that the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle spotted a Turkish frigate escorting a ship carrying armored vehicles, which was heading to Tripoli.
These details of Turkey sending its troops to Libya alongside Syrian fighters brings to mind the Iranian regime’s experience in Syria, as well as the media and political handling of this issue.
Many Turkish fighters are using their deployment as an opportunity to enter mainland Europe
At the start of its intervention in Syria, the Iranian regime denied all reports that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had members and paramilitary fighters present in the country. Later on, Tehran admitted a presence but claimed that this was confined to offering military advice to Bashar Assad’s forces without engaging in fighting. However, with an increasing number of IRGC members killed, including senior commanders like Maj. Gen. Hossein Hamadani, Iran admitted to sending IRGC and paramilitary fighters to Syria. Iran claimed they were there in order to defend Shiite shrines such as Sayyidah Zaynab and others in Damascus. However, the fighters were not confined to Damascus, but spread right across Syria.
Another striking similarity between Iran and Turkey is that they both turned to fighters who engage in conflict purely for personal benefit. The Iranian regime deployed fighters from Iraq, Pakistan and Afghanistan, as well as Afghan refugees who had fled to Iran seeking asylum, using financial incentives of about $500 per month and intimidation to get them to fight in Syria. The Afghan refugees were promised many things, such as permanent residency for themselves and their families in Iran, as well as their children being admitted to Iranian schools, which had previously rejected their applications because of a lack of residency documents. The IRGC, represented by its powerful elite arm, the Quds Force, formerly headed by Qassem Soleimani, was responsible for the recruitment, training and deployment of fighters to Syria, with IRGC training camps in northern and central Iran overseeing three-month basic training courses. The fighters were then sent to Syria on military jets or on the IRGC’s civilian Mahan Air airline’s passenger planes.
Despite the Iranian regime deploying Pakistani and Afghan fighters (the Zainabiyoun and Fatemiyoun Brigades), as well as the Lebanese Hezbollah and numerous Iraqi proxies, including Kata’ib Hezbollah and the Abu Al-Fadl Al-Abbas Brigade, it was ultimately Russia’s involvement in the Syrian conflict that tilted the scale in favor of the Syrian regime thanks to its aerial bombardment. Based on the Syrian experience, we can possibly predict how things will play out for the Turkish fighters in Libya, both with and without aerial support, with the former likely to be extremely costly.
Another similarity between the fighters of Iran in Syria and those of Turkey in Libya is that many Turkish fighters are using their deployment as an opportunity to enter mainland Europe. A number of Western Persian-language news agencies and television stations revealed during the course of a series of interviews conducted with Afghan nationals located in Eastern Europe that they had fled the fighting in Syria and joined refugee convoys to Europe, disguising themselves as Syrians. Similarly, we find media reports mentioning that many Syrian fighters sent by Turkey to Libya have also fled to Europe in general and Italy in particular. One report described how 17 fighters arrived at the Italian mainland on boats that sailed from ports controlled by the Al-Sarraj government, while many more former fighters who fled the battlefield are reportedly on their way to Europe.
The Iranian regime sent many heavily indoctrinated fighters to Syria. They are largely recognizable by their brightly colored, often red, bandanas decorated with sectarian slogans. Tehran claims that these fighters are performing their religious duties. In addition, it has claimed that they volunteered to fight in the ranks of Iran’s army under the rule of the Islamic Republic. Turkey, which is following in the footsteps of the Iranian regime, is learning from Tehran and indoctrinating the fighters it has dispatched with an ideology allegedly based on restoring the Ottoman Empire. These loyalist fighters also wear bandanas similar to those of the Iranian fighters. Ahmad Shihabi, a top-ranking commander in the Syrian National Army that is loyal to Turkey, said in an interview broadcast on Akit TV last month: “We are willing to sacrifice our lives, our children, and our elderly for the sake of our country… for the sake of the Ottoman Caliphate. We will go wherever there is jihad. We won’t stop.”
In conclusion, both Iran and Turkey are using Arab fighters to kill their Arab brothers in Syria, Libya, Iraq, Yemen and other conflict hotspots in order to fulfill their own self-serving, nationalist projects.
• Dr. Mohammed Al-Sulami is Head of the International Institute for Iranian Studies (Rasanah). Twitter: @mohalsulami

Trump deal piles pressure on Palestinian leadership
Ramzy Baroud/Arab News/February 03/2020
After several postponements, US President Donald Trump last week finally revealed the details of his Middle East plan, dubbed the “deal of the century,” at a press conference in Washington. Standing triumphantly beside Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu must surely have understood that the timing of the announcement, only a few weeks before Israel’s third general election in the space of a year, was tailored specifically to fit the embattled Israeli leader’s domestic agenda.
Consisting of 80 pages, 50 of which are entirely dedicated to the plan’s economic component, the document was a rehash of previous Israeli proposals that have been rejected by Palestinians and Arab governments for failing to meet the minimum standards of justice, equality and human rights.
Former Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat contended in an interview that the plan is not even American, but Israeli. “What you heard last night from Trump is what I heard from Netanyahu and his negotiating team in 2011-2012,” Erekat said. “I can assure you that the US team did not make a single word or comma in this program. I have the protocols and I am willing to reveal to you what we have been offered. This is the plan of Netanyahu and the settler council.”
It was no surprise, then, to read the reaction of Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas, who vowed to consign Trump’s plan to the “dustbin of history.”
As expected, Trump has granted Netanyahu everything he and Israel ever wanted. The American vision for Middle East “peace” does not demand the uprooting of a single illegal Jewish settlement and recognizes Jerusalem as Israel’s “undivided” capital. It speaks of a conditional and disfigured Palestinian state that can only be achieved based on vague expectations; it wholly rejects the right of return for Palestinian refugees; and it fails to mention the word “occupation” even once.
Obviously, only Israel benefits from the US plan. The Zionist discourse, predicated on maximum territorial gains with minimal Palestinian presence, has finally prevailed. Every Israeli request was met, to the last one. Meanwhile, Palestinians received nothing, aside from the promise of chasing another mirage of a Palestinian state that has no territorial continuity and no true sovereignty.
Palestinian concerns continue to be ignored, as Palestinian rights have been ignored for many years, even during the heyday of the “peace process” in the early and mid-1990s. At that time, all fundamental issues were relegated to the “final status negotiations,” which have never taken place.
Trump’s deal merely validates the status quo as envisioned and unilaterally carried out by Israel. That said, it will fail to resolve the conflict. Worse, it will exacerbate it further, for it offers Israel a blank check to speed up its colonial ventures, entrench its military occupation and further oppress Palestinians, who will certainly continue to resist.
As for the economic component of the plan, history has proven that there can be no economic prosperity under military occupation. Netanyahu, and others before him, tried such dubious methods of “economic peace,” and all failed miserably.
Time and again, the UN has made it clear that it follows a different political trajectory than that of Washington, and that all US decisions regarding the status of Jerusalem, the illegal settlements and the occupied Golan Heights are null and void. Only international law matters and none of Trump’s actions in recent years have succeeded in significantly altering Arab and international consensus on the rights of the Palestinians.
Knowing that the US-Israeli plot was imminent, why did Abbas wait this long to call for a common strategy?
As for the status of — and Palestinian rights in — East Jerusalem, rebranding a few neighborhoods (Kafr Aqab, the eastern part of Shuafat and Abu Dis) as Al-Quds, or East Jerusalem, is an old Israeli plan that has failed in the past. Late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat had enough political sagacity to reject it, and neither Abbas nor any other Palestinian official would dare compromise on the historic and legal Palestinian rights in the city.
However, the Palestinian leadership cannot be absolved of its responsibility toward the Palestinian people and its unmitigated failure to develop a comprehensive national strategy. Immediately after Trump announced his plan, Abbas called on all Palestinian factions, including his rivals in the Hamas movement, to unite and develop a common strategy to counter the “deal of the century.” Knowing that the US-Israeli plot was imminent, why did Abbas wait this long to call for a common strategy?
National unity among Palestinians should never be used as a bargaining chip, a scare tactic or a last resort aimed at validating the ineffectual Abbas in the eyes of his people. The PA is now facing an existential crisis. Its formation in 1994 was meant to marginalize the more democratically encompassing Palestine Liberation Organization. But, according to the new American diktats, the PA has already outlasted its usefulness.
As for Israel, the PA is only needed to maintain “security coordination” with the Israeli army, which essentially means ensuring the safety of the illegal and armed Jewish settlers in the Occupied Territories.
While unity among Palestinian parties is an overriding demand, Abbas’ PA cannot expect to maintain its ridiculous balancing act of expecting true and lasting national unity while still diligently serving the role expected of him by Israel and its allies.
While Trump’s sham plan does not fundamentally alter US foreign policy in Israel and Palestine — as US bias toward Israel preceded Trump by decades — it has definitely ended the so-called “peace process” charade, which divided the Palestinians into “moderate” and “extremist” camps. Now, all Palestinians have become “extremists” from Washington’s viewpoint; all equally shunned and marginalized.
Abbas would be terribly mistaken if he thought that the old political discourse — which was, oddly enough, written in Washington — could be saved.
The problem with the Palestinian leadership is that, despite its frequent protestations and angry condemnations, it is yet to take independent initiatives or operate outside the American-Israeli paradigm. And this is the Palestinian leadership’s greatest challenge. Will it move forward with a Palestinian-centric strategy or exist in the same place, regurgitating old language and reminiscing about the good old days?
• Ramzy Baroud is a journalist, author and editor of The Palestine Chronicle. His latest book is “The Last Earth: A Palestinian Story” (Pluto Press, London). Baroud has a Ph.D. in Palestine studies from the University of Exeter. Twitter: @RamzyBaroud

Economic effects of coronavirus to be felt for months
Cornelia Meye/Arab News/February 03/2020
The World Health Organization on Thursday declared the coronavirus outbreak to be a public health emergency. As of Monday, more than 14,300 known cases had been identified and at least 361 people had died. This brings the headcount of affected people above that of SARS, but the death rate has so far between 2 and 3 percent, which is well below SARS. The Chinese government has done a fine job quarantining the city of Wuhan, which has 11 million inhabitants, as well as neighboring cities. The virus first hit during the Chinese Lunar New Year, when people travel to see their families. This probably enabled the spread of the disease throughout the country. Now, all provinces have identified infected people. The spread overseas has been contained so far — Japan, Thailand, Australia, Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea show the most cases, ranging between 10 and 20 patients.
Aside from the human tragedy, the economic consequences are real. On Monday, Chinese markets opened for the first time since the New Year celebrations and they fell just short of 8 percent. Hong Kong had fallen 6.5 percent last week and rebounded ever so slightly on Monday.
The SARS outbreak of 2003 knocked 2 percent off Chinese economic growth, but we can expect the impact of coronavirus to be bigger. China was not as intertwined with the global economy then as it is now. In 2018, its trade volume was just shy of $25 trillion. China is integrated in global supply chains, particularly in the automotive and technology industries. Just one example is that virtually all of Apple’s iPhones are manufactured in China. Three hundred of the world’s 500 largest companies have a presence in the city of Wuhan, which was the center of the outbreak.
Thousands of flights within China and many international flights have been canceled. Russia has sealed its 4,200 kilometer-long border with China at a time when the two countries have been enjoying a political and economic rapprochement. Sino-Russian trade amounts to $100 billion and is envisaged to double by 2024. Russia still exports oil and gas via pipelines, but all other trade has come to a virtual standstill. Other countries are also restricting access (particularly of people) to and from China.
The global economy will feel the ramifications of the world’s second-largest economy shutting itself off. The effects go well beyond the aviation and tourism sectors. China is a pillar of globally intertwined supply chains, which means that the effect of the coronavirus will be felt in the manufacturing sector worldwide for months. There is a big knock-on effect on the price of oil when people stop traveling and goods stop being produced and shipped. The price of Brent has plunged from $68.9 per barrel on Jan. 6 to $56.2 in early European trading on Monday. That is a huge drop, particularly in the light of Libyan production having fallen off a cliff during that time period, which would ordinarily have placed upward pressure on the price.
China is a pillar of globally intertwined supply chains, which means that the effect of the coronavirus will be felt in the manufacturing sector worldwide for months. The outlook remains grim for as long as the virus is not contained and travel and trade do not resume. Depending on the source, experts expect between 10 and 40 percent fewer refinery runs in China. According to S&P Global Platts Analytics, global oil demand could drop by as many as 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) over the next two to three months. This constitutes between 15 and 20 percent of the estimated demand growth for 2020.
The coronavirus outbreak began just after the US and China concluded phase one of their trade negotiations. This was supposed to bring much-needed respite. The US-China trade war had an adverse effect on Chinese growth statistics, as well as on the oil price (before the outbreak of the coronavirus, the Chinese economy was expected to grow by 6.1 percent in 2020 — the lowest growth rate in 30 years).
OPEC is concerned about the sharp drop in the oil price.
Saudi Arabia would have liked to bring forward a meeting of OPEC+, the group that consists of the OPEC member countries as well as their 10 non-OPEC allies. The meeting is scheduled for the beginning of March to discuss how to proceed with the 1.7 million bpd of production cuts the organization had decided on last December, and which will run through to March 31.  Since December 2016, OPEC+ has been very successful at balancing the market, both when it got tight and when it faced a glut. The current situation certainly warrants consultations. Some analysts estimate that OPEC+ will need to cut a further 500,000 to 1 million bpd to stabilize the price. Concerns about the coronavirus will not go away for the next few weeks and its economic impact will last several months at least.
• Cornelia Meyer is a business consultant, macro-economist and energy expert. Twitter: @MeyerResources

Global cooperation essential to repelling Iran’s cyberattacks

Abdel Aziz Aluwaisheg/Arab News/February 03/2020
Riyadh hosts the Global Cybersecurity Forum on Tuesday and Wednesday — the first conference of its kind in Saudi Arabia. This timely event is expected to draw more than 1,200 participants and 100 speakers across dozens of panels and breakout sessions aimed at “joining efforts for a better cyber world,” as its subtitle says. Organizing this international gathering indicates how cybersecurity has become a priority for Saudi Arabia, as Iran has escalated its cyberwarfare against the Kingdom. Growing concerns about cyberattacks by Iran, as well as by terrorist groups and organized criminals, was behind the establishment in October 2017 of the National Cybersecurity Authority (NCA), directly linked to King Salman. The NCA has both regulatory and operational functions and works closely with public and private entities to improve the cybersecurity posture of the country and safeguard its vital interests, national security and critical infrastructure.
While Saudi Arabia had already been developing its cybersecurity capabilities, the NCA was set up to upgrade Saudi cybersecurity capacity and establish a national inter-agency platform. It was granted a comprehensive mandate that includes, inter alia, drafting the national strategy for cybersecurity and overseeing its implementation; setting up cybersecurity frameworks, controls, and compliance; building and running operational centers; developing human capabilities in cybersecurity; raising awareness on cybersecurity; stimulating growth of the cybersecurity sector and encouraging innovation and investment therein; and establishing ties with similar agencies abroad and private entities for the mutual exchange of knowledge and expertise.
Ahead of this international conference, the Riyadh-based International Institute for Iranian Studies released an important report on Iran’s systematic cyberwarfare against Saudi Arabia. The 400-page book, titled “Iran’s Software Piracy and Digital Militias: Its Threats and Unannounced War Against the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” sets out in some detail the structure of Iran’s cyber army, from the high policy apparatus to the franchised regional cyber operatives.
Iran’s cyberwarfare structure follows the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ modus operandi in non-cyber activities with its heavy use of both Iran-based outfits and regional proxies, such as Lebanon’s Hezbollah’s digital army and Syrian and Houthi cyber operatives.
The new book demonstrates convincingly how Iran targets Saudi Arabia’s cyberspace. It chronicles Iran’s cyberattacks against the Kingdom, especially attacks using the malware “Shamoon,” which started in 2012 by targeting the national oil company Aramco. That attack caused considerable damage and was billed at the time as the largest cyberattack ever recorded. After the breach was discovered and the company was able to build its cyber defenses to deal with Shamoon, the virus went through new incarnations in 2016 and 2017, albeit with less damage.
In September 2017, there was another cyberattack by Iran, this time targeting Saudi airlines and petrochemical companies. In this operation, as in the previous ones, the malware went through different stages, from “dropping” — entering and residing in the targeted network — then “reporting” the data to another network, and finally “wiping” the data.
Iran’s cyberattacks have continued, taking different shapes and utilizing different techniques, but they are all aimed at disrupting major economic activities in Saudi Arabia and stealing data. Sometimes, the attacks have resulted in the publication of sensitive documents and private information. Tehran sought both material and psychological gains in waging its cyberwar against Saudi Arabia.
Last December, cyberattacks linked to Iran targeted Saudi and other GCC computer networks, mimicking earlier attacks and focusing on economic targets. Iran has no doubt developed formidable cyberwarfare capacity, in part to make up for the deficit it has in conventional military capabilities. Cyberwarfare is part of Iran’s wider fighting doctrine: To leverage its limited resources and traditional elements of military power. Similar to cyberwarfare, Tehran has developed other nonconventional methods, such as terrorism and the use of militias and paramilitaries. For similar reasons, Iran’s proxies and partners have used forbidden weapons, such as landmines by the Houthis in Yemen and chemical weapons by the Assad regime in Syria. Both are cheap to purchase and relatively easy to use, but are indiscriminate and devastating.
As Iran appears intent on continuing its attempts to impose its will in the region by force, its use of cyberwarfare and other asymmetric attacks is expected to increase. Iran has always denied responsibility for cyberattacks. Instead, there were claims of responsibility by supposedly Syrian or Yemeni entities.
Iran’s cyberwarfare structure follows the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ modus operandi in non-cyber activities.
For these reasons, Saudi Arabia’s establishment of a dedicated nationwide cybersecurity agency was essential to hone the country’s capabilities to withstand Iran’s frequent attacks. The Global Cybersecurity Forum is expected to present new thinking in this area, including how to best protect critical infrastructure against cyberattacks.
According to the organizers, the forum will encourage greater international collaboration, information sharing and knowledge exchange around regulation, legislation and governance, and what role international coordination can play with the increasing threats of cyberattacks and warfare. The forum also features five “sector focus sessions” addressing certain vulnerabilities: Energy and utilities; financial services; smart cities; telecommunications; and health care.
It is important that similar events to this forum continue to create a regional and international front against Tehran’s use of cyberwarfare to undermine its neighbors’ security, safety and economic well-being.
*Abdel Aziz Aluwaisheg is the Gulf Cooperation Council’s assistant secretary-general for political affairs and negotiation, and a columnist for Arab News. The views expressed in this piece are personal and do not necessarily represent those of the GCC. Twitter: @abuhamad1

Society’s polarization helps explain state of US politics

Kerry Boyd Anderson/Arab News/February 03/2020
Since at least the 2016 election, many Americans have been asking how the country came to feel so deeply divided. A new book provides compelling answers to that question, though little cause for optimism.
Ezra Klein, a well-known figure in US political journalism, seeks to understand fundamental US political changes in his new book, “Why We’re Polarized.” He reassures Americans who feel that their country has become increasingly divided that they are correct. “There is less ideological overlap, fewer of us are caught in the middle, and there is more tension between the poles,” he writes.
The crux of Klein’s narrative is the idea that various identities have merged with political identities — essentially, Republican or Democrat, conservative or liberal — to create “mega-identities,” around which society and politics are clustering.
He says that this is new: A perhaps darkly reassuring argument for those who wondered if their sense of trouble in American democracy was real or just a case of recency bias. Klein argues that, in the first part of the 20th century, the Republican and Democratic parties were much less organized around ideology. The Democratic Party was an alliance of Democrats who promoted ideas such as “New Deal” policies and Dixiecrats whose interest was in maintaining Democratic and white dominance in the American South. That alliance broke with the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which the Dixiecrats vehemently opposed. Over several years, white southerners who worried about race largely shifted to the Republican Party, while black voters moved to the Democratic Party. This was the start of a broader transformation in the parties.
When the Civil Rights Act was passed, the parties were demographically similar and mostly white; today, they are clearly different. In 2012, 43 percent of self-identified Democrats were nonwhite, compared to only 9 percent of Republicans. These racial and ethnic differences have played significant roles in shaping the parties’ interests.
The parties also sorted in other ways. According to a 2017 Pew Research Center poll, both parties remain majority Christian, but religiously “unaffiliated” Americans compose 33 percent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning voters, but only 11 percent of Republican and Republican-leaning voters. Republicans and Democrats are increasingly sorted by geography too, with very strong trends of Democrats leading in urban areas and Republicans in rural areas — a shift with significant implications for the Electoral College that determines presidential elections. Beyond these demographic metrics, Klein demonstrates that Republicans and Democrats are increasingly sorted by personality type and lifestyle preferences.
In the past, these differences existed but were much more cross-cutting, while today they increasingly align with political party and ideological identities. One essential factor that is helping to drive this process — “the core cleavage of our politics,” according to Klein — is the fast pace of demographic change. The US Census Bureau has projected that, by 2044, non-Hispanic whites may no longer constitute a majority of the population. Although non-Hispanic whites would remain a plurality, this type of change is deeply concerning to many white Americans. Furthermore, as Klein notes, sometime during Barack Obama’s presidency, the country’s population shifted from a majority that was both white and Christian to less than 50 percent.
In his presidential campaign, Donald Trump tapped into the concerns that many white Americans have about these changes. Many of them feel that the US may no longer be the country they know and love; in other words, these demographic changes are perceived as posing a direct threat to their identity. In response, many nonwhite Americans see Trump as a direct threat to their own identity, while liberal white Americans see Trump’s vision of America as a direct threat to their own sense of what the US should be.
As Americans’ identities have consolidated around two poles, Klein points out that the country’s political institutions and actors have responded in ways that reinforce that polarization. Changes in the media landscape have incentivized media outlets to appeal to polarized groups, particularly to hook them with content that excites outrage. Political parties are incentivized to encourage anger toward the other party in order to motivate voters to vote for their candidates, donate money, and otherwise support the party.
Klein demonstrates that polarization in the US is playing out in ways that are deeply worrying. He draws on psychology studies to demonstrate the primacy of identity in human political activity and the fundamental human need to create “in-groups” and “out-groups” — and why it is incredibly difficult to pull out of a feedback cycle of polarization.
Political parties are incentivized to encourage anger toward the other party in order to motivate voters.
While much is specific to the US political environment, Klein’s work has implications well beyond America. The UK, as it departs from the EU, is deeply divided and demographic change has played a key role there too. Countries from India to Brazil also appear to be undergoing their own polarization processes.
Klein is clearly reluctant to move into the “recommendations” phase of his book. He thinks that it is probably not possible to reverse polarization, though he offers some ideas to improve the resilience of the US political system. He offers two suggestions that are useful beyond the US context. One is “identity mindfulness” — being aware of our identities, how they shape our behavior, and how others manipulate them. The second is to focus more on our local communities and ways that we can help to improve them. These suggestions may seem small but, if applied by many people, could have profound impacts.
*Kerry Boyd Anderson is a writer and political risk consultant with more than 16 years' experience as a professional analyst of international security issues and Middle East political and business risk. Her previous positions include deputy director for advisory with Oxford Analytica and managing editor of Arms Control Today. Twitter: @KBAresearch