LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
January 01/19

Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

Happy And Peaceful New Year

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Bible Quotations For today
Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 06/20-26: "Jesus looked up at his disciples and said: ‘Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. ‘Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. ‘Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. ‘Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice on that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets. ‘But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. ‘Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry. ‘Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep. ‘Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets.

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on January 01/19
Aoun and I have been 'very patient': Hariri
Lebanon: Meeting to Contain Tension Between 'Hezbollah', Aoun’s Movement
FPM-Hizbullah Communication Resumes amid 'Regional' Govt. Mediation
Hariri Laments Govt. Delay, Says All Parties Want Solution
Hariri Receives Cables from World Leaders
Beirut Airport sees significant rise in passenger traffic during December
Lebanese Economic Committees urge political authorities to take necessary salvation initiatives
Ghosn's Detention Extended to Jan 11

Litles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on January 01/19
Assad Authorizes Iraq to Bomb ISIS without Permission from Damascus
Sadeq Larijani Named Chairman of Expediency Discernment Assembly
Khomeini’s Grandson: No Guarantee for Regime Survival
Long-Term Pact between Iran, Syria Defies Sanctions
Algerian Army Command Warns Officers against Linking Military to Politics
Iraqi Education Minister Resigns after Brother Appears in ISIS Video
UAE Mulling Resuming Flights to Damascus
Israel Protests Against Jordanian Minister Stepping on Its Flag
Syria War's 2018 Death Toll Lowest at under 20,000
Afghan Taliban Visit Iran for Peace Talks
Russia Detains American in Moscow Suspected of Espionage

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on January 01/19
America's Loyal Syrian Kurdish Allies Evade Annihilation While US forces in Iraq face expulsion/Malcolm Lowe/Gatestone Institute/December 31/18
The West's Big-Ticket Power Grabs/Why Should People Respect the Social Contract when Politicians Do Not?/David Brown/Gatestone Institute/December 31/18
Interview With Daniel Pipes addressing The American Withdrawal from Syria/Carattri Liberi (Italy)/December 31, 2018
The Final Bullet/Ghassan Charbel/Asharq Al Awsat/December 31/18
A Sitcom About the Endangered Path to the Middle Class/Noah Smith/Bloomberg/Asharq Al Awsat/December 31/1
Analysis/Sing All You Want, but Don't Dare Drive: How an Arab Singer Evoked the Wrath of Her Saudi Female Fans/Zvi Bar'el/Haaretz/December 31/18
New Year’s Traditions Around the World/MSN News/ Monday 31st December 2018

Latest LCCC English Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on January 01/19
Aoun and I have been 'very patient': Hariri
The Daily Star/December 31/18/BEIRUT: Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri and the president have been “patient,” the premier-designate said Saturday, his first comment in days regarding the more than seven-month-old Cabinet formation stalemate. “Unfortunately, the government formation has been delayed in this way, and I am sure that all parties want a solution.”Walking around Nijmeh Square in Downtown Beirut Sunday evening to see the preparations for the New Year’s Eve celebrations there, Hariri told Future TV: “The president and I have been very patient and hope that the government will be formed for the sake of the [Lebanese] people.”Hezbollah has been blocking Hariri’s efforts as it demands that six Sunni MPs aligned with it receive representation in the next Cabinet. The MPs, who are Sunni but outside Hariri’s Future Movement, came together to form the “Consultative Gathering” bloc, despite also being members of other parliamentary blocs, including those of Hezbollah and allied Amal Movement.

Lebanon: Meeting to Contain Tension Between 'Hezbollah', Aoun’s Movement
Beirut - Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 31 December, 2018/Despite stalled efforts to form the cabinet in Lebanon, there are moves made at several fronts to dissipate obstacles hindering the launch of new initiatives that might ease the birth of a new government, eight. Asharq Al-Awsat learned on Sunday that head of the coordination unit in Hezbollah, Wafiq Safa visited lately President Michel Aoun at the Baabda Presidential Palace to discuss relations between Aoun’s Free Patriotic Movement and the party. “The two sides did not discuss new nominees for the Sunni ministerial portfolio representing the six deputies,” an informed source said. The FPM and Hezbollah witnessed tensed relations in the past week and exchanged accusations after the six Sunni deputies allied with the Shi’ite party have opposed candidate Jawad Adra, who would have entered the government as a member of the president’s bloc and not Hezbollah’s. The dispute is mainly linked to the question of who gets the ‘blocking third’ in the government. At the level of the distribution of ministerial shares, Speaker Nabih Berri was quoted as saying that he does not mind giving up the Environment Ministry, which the FPM demands. However, he refused to get the Ministry of Information or Ministry of Displaced in return. Both, Maronite Patriarch Bechara Rai and the Phalange Party are demanding a small cabinet, while head of the Lebanese Forces party Samir Geagea asked why President Michel Aoun and the Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri had not yet decided on forming a government. "What I cannot understand is why Prime Minister Hariri and President Aoun do not exercise their right to sign the decree to form a government, especially since we cannot leave Lebanon and its economy for its own destiny," he said.  For his part, Rai called Sunday for forming a mini-cabinet, saying: "We are convinced of forming a mini-government comprised of competent specialists who are impartial to take on State responsibilities and are able to work immediately on solving the country's crises."

FPM-Hizbullah Communication Resumes amid 'Regional' Govt. Mediation
Naharnet/December 31/18/Communication has been resumed between senior Free Patriotic Movement officials and Hizbullah liaison and coordination chief Wafiq Safa, an informed parliamentary source said. General Security chief Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim has also resumed his mediation that is aimed at ending the government formation deadlock, the source told al-Hayat newspaper in remarks published Monday. Other sources meanwhile told al-Hayat that “foreign contacts to encourage Hizbullah to facilitate the government’s formation have also started in recent days at the regional level.”

Hariri Laments Govt. Delay, Says All Parties Want Solution
Naharnet/December 31/18/Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri has lamented the ongoing delay in the cabinet formation process. “Unfortunately, the government’s formation has been delayed in this manner, but I’m confident that all political parties want a solution,” Hariri said as he toured downtown Beirut to inspect preparations for New Year’s Eve celebrations. “The President has shown a lot of patience and I’ve shown a lot of patience and also the whole Lebanese people,” the PM-designate added. “We must form a new government with the beginning of the new year and until then I want the Lebanese to rejoice so that we start a new chapter,” Hariri went on to say.

Hariri Receives Cables from World Leaders
Naharnet/December 31/18/Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri has received cables greeting him on the occasion of the new year from a number of world leaders, his office said on Monday. The most notable ones came from U.S. President Donald Trump, U.N. chief Antonio Guterres, King Abdullah II of Jordan, South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon, Norwegian Premier Erna Solberg and Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. Hariri was tasked with forming a new government on May 24.His mission has so far been hindered by consecutive hurdles related to Christian, Druze and Sunni representation but the PM-designate has expressed optimism that all parties want the new government to be formed in early 2019.

Beirut Airport sees significant rise in passenger traffic during December
Mon 31 Dec 2018/NNA - Beirut's Rafik Hariri International Airport closed the year with a significant rise in passenger traffic during the month of December. Passenger traffic in December was recorded at 660,633 passengers distributed between 352919 arrivals and 30,760 departures. Christmas Day recorded the arrival and departure of 24,706 passengers, distributed between 13,242 arrivals and 11425 passengers' departures.It is expected that passenger traffic will increase significantly throughout the day, as per the Directorate OF Civil Aviation at Rafic Hariri International Airport.

Lebanese Economic Committees urge political authorities to take necessary salvation initiatives
Mon 31 Dec 2018/NNA - The Lebanese Economic Committees on Monday held a meeting at the headquarters of the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture of Beirut and Mount Lebanon, chaired by Mohamed Choucair, to discuss most recent developments in the country, especially at the economic, financial and social levels.Discussions also reportedly touched on the issue of the forthcoming general strike next Friday. In a statement issued in the wake of the meeting, the Economic committees wished the Lebanese all good fortune for 2019 , hoping that the new Cabinet will see the light at the outset of the New Year in order to adopt the necessary steps for the Country's salvation.The Economic committees regretted the delay and procrastination in the government formation saga. On the call for the forthcoming strike next Friday, the economic committees affirmed they have no relation with this call, out of its conviction that such a strike may incur further losses on the country.The Committees said that the critical economic, financial and social conditions require from all political authorities to take responsible initiatives to save Lebanon.

Ghosn's Detention Extended to Jan 11
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/December 31/18/Former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn will be spending the beginning of 2019 behind bars after a Tokyo court on Monday extended his detention through to January 11. The move comes after Japanese prosecutors re-arrested Ghosn for fresh allegations on December 21, dashing his hopes of being home for Christmas."The decision to extend the (detention period) was issued today. The detention expires on January 11," the Tokyo District Court said in a statement. The growing case against the auto tycoon represents a stunning reversal of fortune for a man once revered in Japan and beyond for his ability to turn around automakers, including Nissan. Since his stunning arrest on November 19, the twists and turns of the case have gripped Japan and the business world and shone a light on the Japanese legal system, which has come in for some criticism internationally.
Authorities are pursuing three separate lines of enquiry against the 64-year-old Franco-Lebanese-Brazilian executive, involving alleged financial wrongdoing during his tenure as Nissan chief. They suspect he conspired with his right-hand man, U.S. executive Greg Kelly, to hide away around half of his income (some five billion yen or $44 million) over five fiscal years from 2010. They also allege he under-reported his salary to the tune of four billion yen over the next three fiscal years -- apparently to avoid criticism that his pay was too high. The extension that prosecutors won Monday allows them to continue investigating a complex third claim that alleges Ghosn sought to shift a personal investment loss onto Nissan's books.As part of that scheme, he is also accused of having used Nissan funds to repay a Saudi acquaintance who put up collateral money. Prosecutors have pressed formal charges over the first allegation but not yet over the other accusations.
'Cup noodle'
Monday's extension deals a new blow to Ghosn's hopes of being released from the Tokyo detention center where he has been held since his shock arrest. Earlier this month, he appeared on the verge of winning bail after a court rejected a request from prosecutors to extend his detention on the second allegation against him. But by filing the new claims, prosecutors were able to restart the clock on his detention. The once jet-setting executive, who denies any wrongdoing, was initially held in a tiny single cell but has now reportedly been moved to a more comfortable room. He has complained about the cold and the rice-based menu, sources say, though he has told embassy visitors he is being well-treated although he has shed a lot of weight. According to the Asahi Shimbun daily, Ghosn will be offered cup noodles on New Year's Eve -- based on the Japanese tradition of eating noodles at the turn of the year to wish for a long life.He will reportedly be allowed access to his lawyers on January 2 and 3, which are both Japanese holidays.
- 'Dark side' -
While he has failed to win bail, his alleged accomplice Kelly won a court-ordered release on Christmas Day. Kelly's bail conditions prevent him from leaving Japan, and he is reportedly now seeking treatment for a spinal condition at a Japanese hospital. Ghosn's lengthy detention has sparked criticism, especially from abroad, but Japanese prosecutors have defended the legal system, which allows suspects to be "re-arrested" several times over different allegations. And his arrest has laid bare tensions in the alliance he helped forge between Nissan, Mitsubishi Motors and France's Renault. While Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors swiftly ousted Ghosn from his leadership posts after his arrest, Renault has responded more cautiously to the allegations. The French firm has also repeatedly called on Nissan to hold a shareholders meeting, and is reportedly seeking increased representation on the board of the Japanese automaker.
Nissan has rejected the calls for a shareholder meeting at this stage, and says it is waiting until a commission looking into governance at the firm releases its findings. The Japanese automaker has also so far failed to agree on who should succeed Ghosn as chairman. While the tycoon was once so beloved for his role in turning around Nissan that he was immortalized in manga comic form, his former colleagues have since harshly criticized him. Nissan's CEO Hiroto Saikawa, a one-time Ghosn protege, has accused his former boss of accruing too much power and referred to his tenure's "dark side."

Latest LCCC English Miscellaneous Reports & News published on January 01/19
Assad Authorizes Iraq to Bomb ISIS without Permission from Damascus
Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 31 December, 2018/Syrian regime leader Bashar Assad has allowed Iraqi forces to strike ISIS inside Syria without waiting for authorization from Damascus, said SANA state media on Sunday. An Iraqi government source said that Iraqi fighter jets could now enter Syria’s airspace and strike ISIS without waiting for permission from the regime, reported Russia Today. Baghdad has to only inform Syrian authorities of their activity, it explained. Iraqi warplanes and artillery have in the past pounded ISIS positions inside Syria after getting the green light from Syrian authorities. The extremists have been defeated in Iraq but still hold a small area in Syria close to the Iraqi border. On Saturday Assad received a letter from Iraq's Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi calling for both countries' coordination in "fighting terrorism." President Donald Trump announced earlier this month that the US will withdraw all of its 2,000 forces in Syria. The main US-backed Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces has expressed concerns that the US plans to pull out could lead to the revival of ISIS saying that the extremists have not been defeated yet in Syria. In Washington, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said he is going to encourage Trump to sit down with generals and reconsider pulling troops from Syria. "Slow this down, make sure that we get it right, make sure ISIS never comes back," Graham said on CNN. "Don't turn Syria over to the Iranians.” Graham said that it's possible for the US to reduce its footprint in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, and that he supports the goal of having allies "do more and pay more." But he added that he also sees the US military playing a role in all three countries for "a while to come."

Sadeq Larijani Named Chairman of Expediency Discernment Assembly
London - Adil Al-Salmi/Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 31 December, 2018/ Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has appointed Sadeq Larijani as the new chairman of the Expediency Discernment Assembly and a member of Guardian Council.  The appointment was made less than a week after the death of the council's former chief Seyed Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi. Khamenei said that there is no substitute of the role of Expediency Discernment Assembly in the regime's management, strength, and directness. On August 14, 2009, Shahroudi left the post of chief justice of service and was succeeded by Larijani. However, Khamenei hinted that Larijani would leave work in the justice field soon. Leaks by reliable sources informed Iranian media that Prosecutor Mohammad Jafar Montazeri confirmed last week the appointment of Ibrahim Raesi as chairman in place of Larijani. The Iranian Supreme Leader names the 44 members of the council every five years – the current term terminates in summer 2022. Eyes are now on the first meeting of the council that will include key rival of Larijani former ex-Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who slammed the chief justice of service and called on Khamenei to change the two brothers: Sadeq and Ali Larijani. Dolate Bahar, a website promoting Ahmadinejad, published on Telegram Sunday the decree of appointing Larijani without commenting on it. US President Donald Trump administration imposed sanctions on Larijani, among other Iranian officials, in January 2018 over his role in human rights abuses – further, he is also on the EU sanctions list since March 2012.

Khomeini’s Grandson: No Guarantee for Regime Survival
London – Adil Al-Salmi/Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 31 December, 2018/Khomeini’s grandson, Hassan, said Saturday that there’s no guarantees for Iranian officials to stay in power, indicating fears of decline in public satisfaction with the survival of the current regime. But far from commenting on the internal situation, Hassan Khomeini's comments implicitly implied a recent speech by Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in which he warned that countries that have been criticizing his regional policies will "collapse." He clearly pointed to the growing public discontent with the deterioration of the living situation, reported the Jamaran website. He stressed the need to win the support of the people, noting that “communities are built on the basis of consensus. Dividing society constantly and spreading hatred and hypocrisy constantly, forces individuals into dual personality, pushing them away from honesty.
“All these factors indicate that unpleasant consequences await governments.” Hassan Khomeini also sent a message to senior Iranian officials, saying that the foundations of human behavior and reasons for survival and fall must be understood in order to take them into account. “Otherwise, there is no guarantee that we will stay and others will leave. If you don’t observe the rules, you will lose the public,” he said. His comments were made three days after Faezeh Hashemi, the daughter of former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, warned in an interview that the regime her late father helped establish some 40 years ago is weakened and could someday collapse. She said that "intimidation" and "fear" were the main things propping up the regime. She also talked about a breakdown of principles, explaining that there has not been a physical collapse, but she sees that as very likely. “In every segment of society groups of activists are in jail, from workers to teachers, truck drivers, women's rights activists, environmentalists, students..., [those involved in economic activities] and citizens who are either in jail or have been sentenced to jail," she stressed. This was not the first time she speaks about the possibility of the regime’s collapse as she said in June that international pressures faced by the regime are not related to the nuclear deal. Instead, Faezeh Hashemi said it is the result of its foreign policy, including in Syria and Yemen and the nature of its relations with regional countries and the United States.
She accused Iran's top officials of "misleading" the people instead of addressing the root of the issue, citing Iran's international standing as a result of huge spending on regional policies.

Long-Term Pact between Iran, Syria Defies Sanctions
Ankara, Damascus, London - Saeed Abdul Razek and Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 31 December, 2018/An agreement for a long-term strategic cooperation between Iran and Syria was announced Sunday in Tehran to help the two countries avoid international sanctions that affected banks, companies and individuals. The agreement was signed by Minister of Economy and Foreign Trade Mohammad Samer al-Khalil and Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development Mohammad Eslami in attendance of ambassadors of the two countries, reported Syrian state agency SANA. Eslami said that the two countries are now making great economic cooperation. The Iranian minister stressed that the historic relations between the two countries are witnessing their pinnacle, clarifying that all the exerted efforts and measures between their peoples and governments will lead to sustainable peace and security in the region.
For his part, the Syrian minister said the agreement constitutes a comprehensive cooperation at the financial and banking levels and it contributes to facilitating trade exchange and overcoming obstacles that hinder boosting the cooperation. “Relations between the two countries are excellent at many levels and we are looking forward to upgrading cooperation in the economic field,” Khalil said. Later, during a meeting with Chairman of Iran’s Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture Gholamhossein Shafei, Khalil called for opening mutual accounts and banks between Syria and Iran, referring to the importance of cooperation between their central banks. On the battlefield, Turkey intensified in recent hours its military reinforcements on the border areas with Syria and around the city of Manbij. A US military convoy entered Sunday the Syrian city despite President Donald Trump's announcement this month that he is pulling American troops out of the war-torn country. US-led coalition jets and attack helicopters could still be seen in the skies over Manbij on Saturday, Reuters reported. Separately, a diplomatic source said that the Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry had summoned the charge d’affaires at the Syrian embassy to object to Damascus’ announcement of the blacklisting of 30 Kuwaitis for suspected terror funding.

Algerian Army Command Warns Officers against Linking Military to Politics
Algiers - Boualem Goumrassa/Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 31 December, 2018/The Algerian army command warned on Sunday retired officers against mixing military affairs with politics shortly after a number of retired officers issued stances related to Chief of Staff Ahmed Gaid Salah’s position on President Abdulaziz Bouteflika running for a fifth term. In a strongly worded statement, the Defense Ministry, without identifying the officers, accused them of “completely disregarding their duty” and becoming embroiled in politics. “They claim to have a message and play a role that they are not qualified to assume,” it stated, adding that they were making assumptions about the chief of staff’s position on the presidential elections, which are set for April 2019. The statement appears to have been issued in wake of retired officer Ali Ghediri’s remarks last week in which he urged Gaid Salah against seeking Bouteflika’s reelection.
The Defense Ministry statement implied that Ghediri does not even know Gaid Salah’s stance on the reelection. Military rules in Algeria stipulate that any member of the army, whether active or retired, must refrain from meddling in political affairs. The Defense Ministry deemed the officers’ discussion of politics and elections as a “gross and dangerous oversight that can only stem from their blind ambition.” The military, which respects the constitution, “can do without any lessons by individuals who would not exist were it not for the positions they occupy.” Some retired officers, after serving for long years in the army, have assumed such “suspicious positions” in order to pursue personal ambitions and interests that they were not able to attain during their time in service. These “suspicious positions,” said observers, probably refer to former intelligence chief Mohammed Mediene, whom supporters of the army commander said was “operating behind the scenes” in promoting Bouteflika’s reelection. Mediene was sacked from his post in 2015.

Iraqi Education Minister Resigns after Brother Appears in ISIS Video
Baghdad – Hamza Mustafa/Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 31 December, 2018/Newly appointed Iraqi Education Minister Shaymaa al-Hayali submitted her resignation Sunday to Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi after it emerged that her brother had appeared in an ISIS promotional video. The video was widely circulated on social media, prompting the minister, who was appointed to her post last week, to hand in her resignation. Hayali was the Arabic Project bloc candidate, which is headed by Khamis Khanjar. The bloc is part of the Sunni national coalition that is allied with al-Binaa bloc of Hadi al-Ameri.
In her resignation letter, she said: “I am foremost an Iraqi woman. I have never worked with any political party or bloc. I was nominated to my post because I am an academic at Mosul University.”“We have suffered and are still suffering from terrorism that has destroyed our cities and killed our loved ones,” she continued. The terrorists had seized the Nineveh province and forced people to work for them, she added. “Among them was my brother, whom ISIS forced to work for them before and after the province was liberated.”“It forced him, as it did to others, to declare his loyalty to the group,” she said. Hayali clarified, however, that he had never taken up arms or abetted the terrorists in fighting Iraqis. A member of the Arabic Project told Asharq Al-Awsat that Khanjar accused the rival Qarar bloc of plotting Hayali’s demise. They plotted this in order to gain the education portfolio given that there had been disputes over this ministry before Hayali’s appointment, he said on condition of anonymity. The purpose of revealing the ISIS video was not to warn of the group’s threat, but to strike at the heart of the Arabic Project and tarnish Hayali’s reputation, he declared. Head of the Qarar bloc, Atheel al-Nujaifi, told Asharq Al-Awsat that his lawmakers had submitted many candidates from Nineveh for the education portfolio post, but the premier opted to disregard them and chose Khanjar’s candidate.

UAE Mulling Resuming Flights to Damascus
Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 31 December, 2018/The United Arab Emirates’ General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) said it is evaluating the possibility of national carriers resuming flights to the Syrian capital of Damascus, reported Reuters.GCAA made the comment in a statement on Sunday, following the UAE’s reopening on Thursday of its embassy in Damascus. UAE airlines Etihad and Emirates suspended flights to Damascus in 2012 because of security concerns. When asked for comment, Etihad airways said it “does not have immediate plans to resume services to Damascus”, but added that it was “constantly monitoring the situation”. Emirates also said in a statement it was monitoring the situation but did not have anything to announce at this time.

Israel Protests Against Jordanian Minister Stepping on Its Flag
Tel Aviv, Oman – Asharq Al-Awsat/Monday, 31 December, 2018/The Israeli government lodged a formal protest with Jordan over a picture of the government spokesperson, Jumana Ghunaimat, stepping on the Israeli flag during her visit to the headquarters of the trade union complex in Amman. Political sources in Tel Aviv said the minister of State for Media Affairs chose to take this “hostile” step at a time when the Israeli and Jordanian governments were trying to “bring the views closer and deepen relations of peaceful cooperation between them.”The spokeswoman for the government in Amman was photographed on Thursday stepping on the Israeli flag, while was on her way to attend a meeting between Jordanian Prime Minister Omar Al-Razzaz and union representatives. Al-Razzaz, however, entered the building through a rear door, avoiding having to walk over the flag. The Israeli Foreign ministry expressed “strong protest” to Jordan over the image, which angered senior officials in Tel Aviv. On Sunday, the ministry summoned Jordanian Ambassador Ghassan al-Majali to its headquarters in West Jerusalem, where it handed him a strong-worded letter. Israeli media reported that the Jordanian ambassador tried to explain the matter, saying that the Israeli flag was painted on the floor facing the entrance of the trade union building, so that those who enter the building cannot avoid stepping on it, intentionally or unintentionally. He said Al-Razzaz entered the building through a side door to avoid trampling on the flag. The behavior of the Jordanian prime minister sparked a wave of criticism in Jordan, whether in the media or in social networks, while Ghunaimat received wide support from the public, as well as from politicians and parliamentarians. Some of them wrote: “All respect. We do it in response to the crimes of the occupation in Jerusalem and the West Bank.” “Jumana Ghunaimat represents me and represents every Jordanian citizen,” read another post.

Syria War's 2018 Death Toll Lowest at under 20,000
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/December 31/18/Syria's nearly eight-year-old conflict saw its lowest annual death toll in 2018 as the regime reasserted its authority over swathes of territory, a war monitor said on Monday. A total of 19,666 people were killed this year as a result of the conflict, which erupted in 2011, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group reported.

Afghan Taliban Visit Iran for Peace Talks
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/December 31/18/The Afghan Taliban were in Iran on Sunday for fresh peace negotiations with senior officials, the Iranian foreign ministry spokesman said on Monday. "Yesterday, a delegation of Taliban were in Tehran and lengthy negotiations were held with Iran's deputy foreign minister... (Abbas) Aragchi," said spokesman Bahram Ghasemi at a televised press conference. "The main purpose of these negotiations was finding solutions to help facilitate negotiations between Afghan groups and the country's government for advancing peace talks in the country," he added. It came just days after a top Iranian official said talks had taken place with the Taliban in Afghanistan. Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, told reporters about those negotiations on December 26 during a visit to Kabul. "The Islamic Republic has always been one of the primary pillars of stability in the region and cooperation between the two countries will certainly help in fixing Afghanistan's security issues of today," Shamkhani said.

Russia Detains American in Moscow Suspected of Espionage
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/December 31/18/Russia has detained a U.S. citizen in Moscow accused of spying, the FSB security service said on Monday. It said in a statement that the American was detained on Friday "while carrying out an act of espionage" and that a criminal case had been opened.

Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on January 01/19
America's Loyal Syrian Kurdish Allies Evade Annihilation While US forces in Iraq face expulsion
Malcolm Lowe/Gatestone Institute/December 31/18
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/13493/syria-kurds-us-allies
It would be strategic wisdom to maintain the small US presence in Syria while reducing the US profile in Iraq in order to forestall a looming demand by the Iraqi parliament for a total US withdrawal. Now it is probably too late because the Syrian Kurds have decided to abandon the US before the US abandons them. It seems that US forces will leave Syria not on American and Turkish terms but on Russian and Iranian terms.
Trump was doubtless informed about events in Iraq on a running basis by McGurk over recent months, but his statements at the US base were as nonchalant about the facts in Iraq as about the situation in Syria. What he does not imagine at all is that the day may be close when the Iraqi parliament votes by a large majority to ask him to remove US forces from the country -- and he will have to comply.
The consequences of these December days will delay regime change in Iran. If a perception arises in Iran that the regime can expel the US from Iraq as well as Syria, while expanding its influence to dominate Syria from end to end, some Iranians will give the regime another chance and others will be significantly more discouraged from challenging its power. Thus a single obstinate insistence to prefer a personal instinct to all better-informed advice may bring US policy tumbling down throughout the Middle East.
Pictured: President Donald Trump and Melania Trump speak with US military officers during a visit to Al-Asad Airbase in Iraq, on December 26, 2018. (Image source: The White House)
In April 2018, we warned that President Trump's decision to withdraw US forces from Syria would be a repetition of President Obama's worst mistake, the precipitate withdrawal from Iraq that facilitated the capture of Mosul by the Islamic State (ISIS).
We perceived that the immediate consequence of abandoning Syria would be a Turkish-led campaign to annihilate America's Syrian Kurdish allies, who heroically bore the brunt of defeating the ISIS in Syria and capturing its capital, Raqqa.
The conclusion drawn was that the Syrian Kurds would have no choice but to appeal to Iran for help. For it was only Iran's foreign ministry spokesman who had protested vehemently against the Turkish-facilitated capture of Afrin, a Kurdish town in northwest Syria, in March by an Islamist militia. In the meantime, Turkey has sent many thousands of Kurds fleeing, who have been replaced with "displaced Syrian Arabs from East Ghouta." The Islamist militia has subjected Christians to Sharia-style dhimmitude and forced Yazidis to convert to Islam on pain of death. Amnesty International has also reported on rampant offences against property and individuals; it mentions the thousands of refugees who have fled from Afrin.
In these recent December days, the scenario then foreseen has been playing itself out rapidly. On December 14, in a telephone conversation with Turkey's President Erdogan, President Trump not merely made a final decision to remove US forces from Syria but invited Erdogan to replace them with Turkish forces. The invitation has terrified not just the Syrian Kurds but also other militias in the Syrian Democratic Forces that fight alongside them against ISIS. An example is the Syriac Military Council, a Christian militia that has issued its own appeal to Trump to reconsider:
"The outcome of the invasion of Afrin makes visible what will happen to us. Churches will be destroyed. Christians and Yazidis, designated 'infidels' by Turkey's mercenaries, will be killed and massacred ... Women of all ethnicities, now free, will be raped, enslaved and veiled."
Trump overruled the objections of all his advisors, generals and supporters in Congress, assuring them that Erdogan had promised to deal with any remnants of ISIS in the area. Apparently, Trump is the only person among them all who ignored -- or maybe does not even understand -- that Erdogan had eagerly accepted Trump's invitation not on account of ISIS but in order to inflict his Afrin operation upon the entire population of America's loyal allies in Syria.
The prospect of such a US withdrawal from Syria -- and such a betrayal -- has even provoked articles with almost the same title as ours, such as Mark A. Thiessen in the Washington Post and Boston Herald on December 23: "Trump repeating Obama's mistake in the Middle East." Search for those words on internet and you will now find others coming to the same conclusion.
Trump's Night Flight
Events rolled on with Trump's unannounced arrival at a US base in Iraq on December 26. Trump declined to meet first in Baghdad with Adil Abdul Mahdi, the new Prime Minister of Iraq, but invited Mahdi to join him at the base. Apparently, Trump did not realize that he had humiliated Abdul Mahdi, as if the latter were a lackey at his beck and call.
There were furious protests in the Iraqi Council of Representatives (the parliament), both from the Iran-friendly Bina Bloc – with calls for the expulsion of US forces -- and from the more independent-minded Islah Bloc. The two blocs command respectively 73 and 126 seats in the 329-seat Council, thus a decisive majority. They had come together to ratify the appointment of Abdul Mahdi in October. The parliamentary leader of Islah, Sabbah al-Saadi, called for an emergency session of the Council "to discuss this blatant violation of Iraq's sovereignty and to stop these aggressive actions by Trump who should know his limits: the US occupation of Iraq is over."
Oblivious, possibly, that he was far from welcome in Iraq, Trump told US military personnel that -- as he was planning to keep them in Iraq – there was no problem in abandoning Syria:
"If we see something happening with ISIS [in Syria] that we don't like, we can hit them so fast and so hard they really won't know what the hell happened. We've knocked them silly."
Strategic wisdom would dictate the opposite. In December 2017, the then Iraqi government led by Haider al-Abadi declared ISIS defeated in Iraq. The remaining pockets of ISIS fighters are not seen by Iraqis as a serious threat. They are smaller than in Syria, while Iraq's army is now battle-hardened and will not repeat its disgraceful flight from Mosul upon the arrival of ISIS fighters in June 2014. Also, although the mainly Shiite militias that fought fiercely alongside the army have now been largely disbanded, they could be remobilized at any time. In eastern Syria, by contrast, the local Kurdish and Arab population begged the Americans to stay and help them defend themselves. The remnants of ISIS are substantial. The area also contains most of Syria's oilfields, the only major source of income left undamaged by the civil war, so a presence there would give the US a powerful card to play in determining the country's post-war future.
It would be strategic wisdom, therefore, to maintain the small US presence in Syria (about 2,000 personnel) while reducing the US profile in Iraq in order to forestall a looming demand by the Iraqi parliament for a total US withdrawal. Now it is probably too late because the Syrian Kurds have decided to abandon the US before the US abandons them. It seems that US forces will leave Syria not on American and Turkish terms but on Russian and Iranian terms.
The Manbij Coup
For months, Turkey has been planning to repeat its Afrin operation in Manbij, a Kurdish town further east, where Erdogan was deterred only by the US and French forces stationed inside the town. In recent weeks, thousands of Turkish-backed Islamists gathered for this purpose. Two days after Trump's confident address to US forces in Iraq, the Kurds of Manbij invited the Syrian army to deploy west and north of the town in a protective shield on December 28.
The move was immediately applauded by Russia, whose air force is of course stationed in Syria and which has missile-bearing ships in and near its Syrian naval base. Indeed, some reports claim that Russian as well as Syrian troops are now stationed outside Manbij. Apprehensive of war with Russia, Erdogan limply expressed acquiescence: "We are against the partitioning of Syria. Our goal is terrorist groups leaving there. If the groups leave, then there is no job left for us." That is, he decided not to pick a quarrel with Russia over the matter. Iran has also officially welcomed this development. Turkey's high hopes of obliterating the Kurds, described in frightening detail by our colleague Burak Bekdil on December 26, were dashed by the Kurdish reaction to Trump's plans two days later.
After high-level Russian and Turkish officials met in Moscow on December 29, Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglu stated that both sides would cooperate in defending Syria's "territorial integrity and political unity from all efforts to harm them." This sounds like an admission of acceptance of the Russian-backed Syrian coup in Manbij. Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov vaguely spoke of a "very useful meeting" and added:
"Following the agreements, which were reached by our presidents, we discussed further steps to implement those tasks, which were outlined in the Astana format, primarily in the context of fighting terrorism, resolving humanitarian issues and creating conditions for refugees' return."
On December 29, a Syrian army spokesman revealed that substantial forces were on their way to Manbij: "The 4th Armored Division will join the 1st Armored Division, Republican Guard, and some units of the Tiger Forces at the western and northwestern outskirts of Manbij." Also: "A source in the area said that the Syrian Arab Army has not received orders to enter Manbij, as there are still U.S. Coalition troops inside the city."
The Syrian Kurds, for their part, intend to repeat the remedy throughout Eastern Syria in order to frustrate Erdogan's plan to devastate the entire Kurdish population on the Syrian side of the border between the two countries. They have indicated that the next place will be Raqqa itself, which is sufficiently far from the border and close to Syrian army positions to prevent Turkey from hindering a handover to the Assad regime.
Notably, throughout most of the civil war, the Syrian Kurds and the Assad regime have avoided mutual hostilities. Both were busy fighting distinct enemies. So there are no accounts for Assad to settle with the Kurds; he will be content with their obedience to his regime. The Kurds hoped for some kind of autonomy to emerge from the war, but for now are happy merely to save their lives after being cast aside by the US.
When one speaks of "the Syrian army," one implies Iran. The Syrian army was degraded by defeats and desertions during the civil war and faced dissolution until Iran mobilized militias from a range of countries with Shiite populations. It was these militias, accompanied by devastating Russian bombing from the air, that regained so much land for the Assad regime. On August 26 this year, a high-level Iranian military delegation arrived in Damascus and pledged to assist in rebuilding the Syrian army itself. So we are indeed seeing the Syrian Kurds being left by the US to probable annihilation by Turkey, but rescued by Iran.
US Foothold in Iraq Under Threat
Back in Iraq, President Trump may not have internalized the recent reports from Brett McGurk, the Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIS. McGurk was appointed by President Obama on October 23, 2015 and resigned on December 22, 2018 -- like Defense Secretary Mattis the day before -- over Trump's insistence on leaving eastern Syria and handing it over to Erdogan.
The most important thing to notice about today's Iraq is to acknowledge that President George W. Bush's decision to invade the country has brought about one significant, durable and welcome change: the country has become a parliamentary republic with a nominal president. Despite the horrific amounts of blood that were shed in the fighting between competing factions after the invasion, the series of referenda and elections initiated by the Bush administration has led to a situation in which all factions accept that the country has to be ruled -- however inefficiently -- by decisions made in the Council of Representatives. From time to time, some faction appeals to the Constitutional Court, but the court's decisions are also respected. This situation is currently unique in the Arab world.
After the most recent parliamentary elections in May 2018, the two Iran-friendly Shiite lists, State of Law (Dawat al-Qanun, 25 seats) and Conquest (Fath, 47 seats), formed the Bina Bloc in the Council of Representatives. In August, the other three mainly Shiite lists formed the Islah Bloc along with the Sunni National Coalition (al-Wataniyya, 21 seats): Marching Toward Reforms (al-Sairun, 54 seats), Victory of Iraq (Nasr al-Iraq, 42 seats) and the National Wisdom Movement (Tayar al-Hikma al-Watani, 19 seats). Among other groups, there are the Sunni Uniters for Reform (Muttahidun, 14 seats) and the two main Kurdish parties, the KDP (25 seats) and the PUK (18 seats), besides almost thirty smaller factions (with one to six seats each) and two independents.
On what has happened since, there is an instructive article by Hassan Ahmadian: "How Iran won a face-off with the US in Iraq." To put it briefly, McGurk attempted for months, via the factions that formed the Islah Bloc, to ensure the reappointment of Haider al-Abadi, the leader of Victory of Iraq, who had led the fight against ISIS since 2014 and was continuing as acting prime minister. This attempt was basically doomed already in August, when al-Abadi complied with Trump's decision to renew sanctions on Iran. Other factions associated with him in Islah, as well as some members of his own faction, disagreed: they were indeed opposed to Iranian attempts to dominate Iraq, but such hostility against Iran went too far.
This and other factors led attention to shift to Abdul Mahdi, whose roots lie in the National Wisdom Movement but who currently sits as an independent. Besides having held various senior ministerial positions in the past, he happened to have published on August 19 an article opposed to adopting the US sanctions on a Persian website, Diplomasi-ye Irani ("Iranian Diplomacy"), entitled "Let us not become a tool for the boycott policy of others". At the beginning of October, the Islah and Bina blocs concurred on appointing Barhim Salih (as usual, by convention, a Kurd) as President of Iraq, who immediately named their joint candidate Abdul Mahdi as the new prime minister. Abdul Mahdi's appointment was ratified on October 26 when the Council of Representatives approved enough ministers to form a government, although the most recent ministers were approved only on December 24 and the posts of defense minister and interior minister are still unfilled.
Mohammed al-Halbousi (by convention, a Sunni), who was favored by Bina, had already been chosen as Speaker of the Council on September 15. He belongs to the Anbar Is Our Identity faction (six seats), an offshoot of Muttahidun that ran on its own in Anbar governorate, but identifies with Bina.
As Ahmadian puts it:
"The US failed to place its desired candidates in the important positions of prime minister, president and speaker of the parliament. Instead, Iran's Iraqi allies got their way. All three positions were filled with new faces who would not allow Iraq to turn its back to Iran."
Why?
"Iran's recent victory against the US and Saudi Arabia in the Iraqi political landscape is first and foremost a result of the trust it has built in the country over decades. The US is not a trusted actor in Iraq due to its inconsistent policies... Most Iraqis, however, view Iran as a consistent force. They may not support all of Tehran's policies, but they all trust its consistency. It took Tehran decades to build this trust, just as it took the US decades to lose it."
This was the situation in which Trump appeared at the US base in Iraq on December 26. Trump was doubtless informed about events in Iraq on a running basis by McGurk over recent months, but his statements at the US base were as nonchalant about the facts in Iraq as about the situation in Syria. What he does not imagine at all is that the day may be close when the Iraqi parliament votes by a large majority to ask him to remove US forces from the country -- and he will have to comply.
Consequences for US Policy Toward Iran
The disappearance of a US presence in both Syria and Iraq will, in its turn, provide a great setback to US policy toward Iran. We recently pointed out that the situation in Iran is similar to that in the last months of the East German regime in 1989: there is widespread disillusionment about the very character of the regime, over and above the misery caused to diverse components of the population by specific policies. Nevertheless, the East German regime suddenly fell not just because its fall was latent, but as a result of a few unexpected and unforeseen events which triggered that latency. We suggested that likewise in Iran, "a change may come in weeks, months or years, depending on chance events and particularly on whether the local authorities and their security forces, at least in some areas, get tired of killing people."
The consequences of these December days will delay regime change in Iran. A constant complaint there, as our article noted, is that the regime is wasting money on futile foreign adventures instead of relieving the poverty of its own citizens. If a perception arises in Iran that the regime can expel the US from Iraq as well as Syria, while expanding its influence to dominate Syria from end to end, some Iranians will give the regime another chance and others will be significantly more discouraged from challenging its power. Thus a single obstinate insistence to prefer a personal instinct to all better-informed advice may bring US policy tumbling down throughout the Middle East.
*Malcolm Lowe is a Welsh scholar specialized in Greek Philosophy, the New Testament and Christian-Jewish Relations.
© 2018 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.

The West's Big-Ticket Power Grabs/Why Should People Respect the Social Contract when Politicians Do Not?
David Brown/Gatestone Institute/December 31/18
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/13441/power-grabs
The assertiveness of supra-national organisations with a focus on global policy-making is direct threat to the sovereignty of the nation state, and a dilution of the power of the individuals within it.
Most alarmingly, as MEP Marcel de Graaff neatly surmised from the UN Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration: "Criticism of migration will become a criminal offense." At what point have we left all pretext of democracy and moved into the sphere of dictatorship, manifest at a supranational level?
"It's very simple: the globalist political elite doesn't respect nation-states, nor does it give a damn about the views of ordinary people. Indeed, it despises them so much that it would much rather make their views illegal than listen to what they have to say." — James Delingpole, Breitbart, December 9, 2018.
French President Emmanuel Macron's recent dismissal of nationalism as "selfish" and a "betrayal of patriotism" is at odds with strengthening populist movements sweeping across Italy, Germany and Spain. Pictured: Macron shares a laugh with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the European Council leaders' summit on June 28, 2018 in Brussels, Belgium. (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images)
It is a strange time to be a citizen in a Western democracy. Our society is based on exchange -- we transact in the free market, we share ideas online, and most significantly we give up some of our natural liberty in exchange for a civil society and a vote.
But increasingly, the freedoms supposed to be protected by civil society are being eroded away. At the level of the individual, our freedom of speech is under attack. Criticism of migration is apparently about to become "hate speech" and a prosecutable offence.
When the authority of the nation state is ceded to a supra-national body, such as the United Nations, our power as citizens is diluted.
Based on the contractual theory of society and the works of Hobbes, Locke and Rousseau from the 17th and 18th century, real power is supposed to sit with the people; in order to retain moral character, government must thus rest on the consent of the governed, or the volonté générale ("general will"):
"What man loses by the social contract is his natural liberty and an unlimited right to everything he tries to get and succeeds in getting; what he gains is civil liberty and the proprietorship of all he possesses." (Jean-Jacques Rousseau, On the Social Contract)
What happens if you start to interfere with this contract? What happens, for instance if clauses within this contract are removed, or the contract ripped up altogether?
In the United Kingdom, the people were asked to decide between Leaving or Remaining in the European Union. 17.4 million people voted to Leave -- 52% of the total votes cast and a clear majority. The general will of the people was Leave.
It appears increasingly likely, however, that this vote is being frustrated, either by legal obfuscation, a potential second referendum or other political manoeuvring. The possibility of a leadership contest in the U.K. over the coming weeks adds further uncertainty for Brexit supporters.
The powerful elite made it clear their preferred outcome was to remain in the EU.
Boris Johnson correctly called thwarting the results of a vote "treasonous".
According to "social contract theorists":
"... when the government fails to secure their natural rights (Locke) or satisfy the best interests of society (called the 'general will' in Rousseau), citizens can withdraw their obligation to obey or change the leadership, through elections or other means including, when necessary, violence".
Perhaps this helps explain the recent protests by the "Yellow Vests" (Gilets Jaunes) in Paris. Many had voted for Macron based on his promises to improve the lives of the ordinary French. They were outraged by his subsequent cut to the "wealth tax", while increasing taxes for fuel.
Macron's message seems: Global before national, wealthy before poor. But his dismissal of nationalism as "selfish" and a "betrayal of patriotism" is at odds with strengthening populist movements sweeping across Italy, Germany and mostly recently Spain.
Today, dissatisfaction with Macron's Quixotic globalist aspirations -- concerning the seriously disputed policies of "climate change" rather than with the economic and other concerns of the people who elected him -- is increasingly widespread.
"Macron launched and shaped the movement as a bottom-up, revolutionary political organisation offering change, but since his presidential victory, LREM [La République En Marche!] has proved unable to evolve. It's not just a party – it's "Macron's party", a unique political creature whose only public face and leading figure is the president."
Away from the anarchy on the streets in France, and the threat to democracy itself in Britain, other clear power grabs are in progress across our Western democracies.
The assertiveness of supra-national organisations with a focus on global policy-making is direct threat to the sovereignty of the nation state, and a dilution of the power of the individuals within it.
A useful example is the United Nations Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, which was "adopted in Marrakech on 10 December by 164 Member States." The word "regular" should jar.
The United Nations intends to make it easier for migrants to relocate to new countries -- with safeguarded routes, medical and financial assistance, and open access to public services and a means of income on arrival.
The document includes details on the "harmonization" of borders, rejects the right to detain illegals, and the options for facilitating the transfer of welfare payments back to the migrants' country of origin.
Many countries with strong national political parties did not attend the meeting or sign the agreement; including Australia, the Netherlands, Austria, Bulgaria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, the Dominican Republic, Chile, Latvia, Slovakia, Estonia and Italy. And for good reason. The US has made clear its opposition to the document:
"In addition to our broad concerns regarding emerging attempts to 'globalize' migration governance at the expense of State sovereignty, the United States has specific objections to Compact text and objectives that run contrary to our law and policy... the Compact strikes the wrong balance. Its pro-migration stance fails to recognize that lawful and orderly immigration must start and end with effective national controls over borders."
Most alarmingly, as MEP Marcel de Graaff neatly surmised from the Global Compact; "Criticism of migration will become a criminal offense."
Objective 17 of the Global Compact seeks to:
"Eliminate all forms of discrimination and promote evidence-based public discourse to shape perceptions of migration
"We commit to eliminate all forms of discrimination, condemn and counter expressions, acts and manifestations of racism, racial discrimination, violence, xenophobia and related intolerance against all migrants in conformity with international human rights law. We further commit to promote an open and evidence-based public discourse on migration and migrants in partnership with all parts of society, that generates a more realistic, humane and constructive perception in this regard. We also commit to protect freedom of expression in accordance with international law, recognizing that an open and free debate contributes to a comprehensive understanding of all aspects of migration.
"To realize this commitment, we will draw from the following actions:
"a) Enact, implement or maintain legislation that penalizes hate crimes and aggravated hate crimes targeting migrants, and train law enforcement and other public officials to identify, prevent and respond to such crimes and other acts of violence that target migrants, as well as to provide medical, legal and psychosocial assistance for victims..."
This censorship of dissenting views appears to go hand in hand with insanely expensive power grabs by supra-nationals. If opposition cannot he expressed, acceptance can be asserted. Acceptance must be made mandatory. This method was used to create the EU itself. Many in Europe were obliged to keep voting until they "got it right" -- the way the elites wished.
At what point have we left all pretext of democracy and moved into the sphere of dictatorship, manifest at a supranational level?
If we know we are to be censored at the supranational level, to what extent does that awareness coerce self-censorship at the individual level? Given the disappearance of so many voices from Twitter, together with the vitriol of the on-line mob who demand that those with opposing views be "de-platformed" or forced from their jobs, many in Western Europe now fear to express an opinion outside of their own homes.
Thomas Jefferson wrote in the US Declaration of Independence that people are "endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights," which refers to the Enlightenment idea of natural rights -- rights that the government cannot take away. Jefferson wrote that "among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
If our governments sign us up to supranational bodies, such as the United Nations, the European Commission, the European Union, or the European Court of Human Rights -- with their rules about the curvature of cucumbers, or their ambitions regarding migrants or policing speech -- to what extent are we free? Our rights are being steadily eroded away.
The Declaration of Independence says:
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."
When a government does not protect the inalienable rights that are due to its constituents, the people have the right to change or get rid of it and to start a new government that will bring about their safety and happiness.
Given that these rights will be denied to those countries the leaders of which now support the Global Compact -- including Germany, the U.K., Ireland and Canada -- to what extent do the politicians deserve to remain in power?
A poll conducted across all 28 nations in the European Union in 2018 revealed:
"78% of respondents are worried about illegal immigration in their countries"
73% think that "handling immigration will pose a huge financial burden on receiving countries."
81% agreed that immigrants should be helped in their own countries, with almost half (48%) agreeing that "The EU should provide substantial financial support to countries with the highest number of immigrants currently residing (Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey)."
The governments that signed the UN's Global Compact appear to be acting in direct opposition to the general will of the people.
James Delingpole writes:
"It's very simple: the globalist political elite doesn't respect nation-states, nor does it give a damn about the views of ordinary people. Indeed, it despises them so much that it would much rather make their views illegal than listen to what they have to say."
The real question, is for how much longer will the people continue to respect the social contract when the political elites do not?
Just how much power will be ceded to supra-nationals, how censored will our voices be by law, how meaningless will the "general will" become before we exercise Jefferson's Right of the People to rip it all up and start again?
*David Brown is based in the United Kingdom.
© 2018 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.

Interview With Daniel Pipes addressing The American Withdrawal from Syria
Carattri Liberi (Italy)/December 31, 2018
http://www.danielpipes.org/18648/the-american-withdrawal-from-syria
After President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria, Carattri Liberi asked Daniel Pipes, president of the Middle East Forum, to comment. Interview conducted by Niram Feretti.
Original publication in Italian: "Il ritiro americano dalla Siria: Intervista a Daniel Pipes."
Caratteri Liberi: President Trump announced in April 2018 his intention to withdraw American troops from Syria, but then nothing happened; top administration figures even indicated the troops would remain. On Dec. 19, Trump suddenly announced their departure. How do you explain Trump's decision?
Daniel Pipes: As a result of intuition and instinct. Trump has gone very far on the basis of these qualities, so he trusts them more than polls or experts. To an unusual degree he engages in solitary and impulsive decision making.
CI: Is there a political rationale behind Trump's decision, for example, to appease his "Make America Great Again" supporters who want a U.S. retreat from the outside world?
DP: I don't think so. Rather, his isolationist temperament resists being embroiled (to quote Neville Chamberlain in 1938, referring to the Czechoslovak crisis) in "a quarrel in a faraway country between people of whom we know nothing." Or, in Trump's own words: "We are spread out all over the world. We are in countries most people haven't even heard about. Frankly, it's ridiculous."
Trump, like Neville Chamberlain, cares little about "countries most people haven't even heard about."
CI: National Security Adviser John Bolton said in September about Syria, "We're not going to leave as long as Iranian troops are outside Iranian borders and that includes Iranian proxies and militias." Do you expect him to be the next one in queue to resign?
DP: I do not; Bolton sees himself achieving many key goals working for Trump; if that means having to endure capriciousness and inconsistency, Bolton will do so.
CI: Efraim Inbar notes that both the Obama and Trump administrations have significantly retreated from the Middle East and sees the weakened American military posture reflected in the U.S. Sixth Fleet no longer having a permanent aircraft carrier in the Mediterranean. Is this accurate?
DP: Yes, between Obama's leftist dislike of American power and Trump's isolationist outlook, U.S. military power has much declined from where it was ten years ago.
Trump and Obama agree on one thing, to reduce American influence in the Middle East.
CI: Does leaving Syria in the hands of Russia, Iran, and Turkey serve U.S. interests?
DP: To ask that question is to answer it.
CI: Reports suggest that in a Dec. 14 phone call with, Turkey's President Erdoğan questioned the need for a prolonged U.S. deployment in Syria, telling Trump that he can easily handle the ISIS threat; Trump, eager to withdraw American troops from Syria, accepted his offer. Is this credible?
DP: Very credible, especially when one factors in Trump's strange attraction to dictators.
Trump and Erdoğan have not always been so friendly as at present.
CI: What does the decision to withdraw American troops mean for the Kurds of Syria?
DP: The presence of even a single American soldier meant that the Turkish government dared not attack a Kurdish-controlled region. With U.S. troops gone, the Turks can now move in – unless Putin tells them not to, preferring that the Iranians move in. Whichever state it is, the Kurdish-controlled areas appear doomed.
CI: What does the U.S. troop withdrawal mean for Israel?
DP: Not that much. Eastern Syria is quite far from Israel. Some combination of Syrian, Turkish, and Iranian control over it will not greatly affect the Jewish state.
CI: But Yossi Kuperwasser, former head of the IDF's Research Division, sees the U.S. withdrawal giving Assad and the Iranians full control over Syria, easing the delivery of weapons from Iran through Iraq to Syria and Lebanon, and "there's not going to be anything in between to stop them."
DP: True, Iranian access to Syria and Lebanon will be slightly facilitated, but Tehran has not had any trouble reaching either country over the past forty years, since its alliance with the Assad regime began in 1979.
CI: What sort of American strategy would you like to see deployed in the Middle East, specifically in Syria?
DP: The U.S. government should: (1) Stand with its allies and against its enemies –and be aware of which is which – something sadly not the case now, for example, with regard to Turkey and Qatar. (2) Recognize Islamism as the most dangerous totalitarian ideology in the world today. (3) Work with dictators as necessary but put constant pressure on them to open up to political participation.
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The Final Bullet
Ghassan Charbel/Asharq Al Awsat/December 31/18
Here you are again standing at the end of the year. You have no choice but to turn the page. You only have one bullet in your gun and have no choice but to shoot. The final day of the year. A year of your life has just ended.
At the end of each year, I have a habit of heading to a bookstore in the city I happen to be in at the time. I have learned that the journalist must stand before the treasures of a bookstore. It is a lesson he must retain in order to maintain humility and confront the illusions of the profession.
The bookstore informs you that you happen to know so little and that you have to keep seeking more knowledge. At best, your contribution will be nothing more than a drop in a turbulent ocean.
News often fades hours after it breaks out. Articles have a shorter lifespan and die before sunset.
The bookstore defies you with its treasures and classics. It reminds you of men who gambled their lives under the delusion that their experiences will stave off the sword of time. What pretty delusions. It gives these individuals the challenge of trying.
A lesson in humility. The shelves hold names that have stood the test of time. They have reached the age of Twitter where short sentences shoot out like spears.
I am in awe at how a poem can pierce a body like a spear. Here is Al-Mutanabbi, who sits in the bookstore as if he owns the place. He laughs at the ever-changing authors on the shelves, while he remains. I am in awe at the ability of a novel written in the 19th century to keep you up at night. I am in awe of the French or Russian author’s ability to speak to the youth two centuries after penning their works. I am also in awe of unyielding pioneering men, who launched the Renaissance without heeding the dark forces around them.
I am very grateful to individuals who spend their lives trying to uncover new details in the lives of men who changed the world. They spend years attempting to put on trial again the likes of Stalin, de Gaulle, Mao, Saddam, Gaddafi and Kim, whether to exonerate or condemn them again. A critique of the past is necessary in order to refresh the minds and memories.
I asked the young vendor about new books. How nice it is to find a new book. She pointed me to them and lamented that the young generation “does not read.” This is not true. They are the sons of a different time. They read in a different way, whether on their smartphone, book-reader or social media. This is perhaps why a trip to a bookstore sometimes feels like a farewell visit. In the future, it may not look the way it does now. It is destined to keep abreast the new readers, their culture and habits. The new authors also share this same fate.
I left the bookstore and the taxi driver took me passed Hamra Street where I saw the As Safir newspaper building shrouded in darkness. I was saddened by the sight. I can still see the teary face of its editor-in-chief and friend Talal Salman. Nothing is more painful than losing your voice. I passed by the Dar al-Hayat building, where I had worked. I also found a dark building. Such a good work experience deserves a better ending.
I passed by the An Nahar building and was happy to see that its lights were still on under the brave leadership of editor-in-chief Nayla Tueni as the industry confronts the technological revolution.
I worked at An Nahar after graduating from university. It was a strict environment. A news article is one thing, an oped is another. You have no room for error. If you do, you should never do it again. I learned to be accurate in my descriptions, concise in my headlines. You are allowed to use your imagination without misleading the reader. You are not allowed to use the space given to you to settle scores or for defamation. Your duty is to always respect the law, the reader’s intelligence and the image of the newspaper. Heading to the newspaper was like visiting the bookstore on a daily basis. Ghassan Tueni was good at discovering talented youth. He did not fear promising rising stars, but instead pushed them to do better.
On my way back home, I passed the dark Dar Assayyad building. Decades at an institution established by Saeed Freiha came to an end. Al Anwar also became dark and I can still see the tears of its editor-in-chief and friend Rafik Khoury. Nothing is more difficult than losing your voice.
The problem with journalism in Lebanon is the same in all countries. Sadness and elegies will not help resolve it. It has no choice but to join the massive revolutions. Newspapers do not die. They come back in new modern forms. No one has the right to close the door to the other’s freedom of expression. Change is difficult and needs a strong will, imagination and new mentalities.

A Sitcom About the Endangered Path to the Middle Class
Noah Smith/Bloomberg/Asharq Al Awsat/December 31/18
Television shows often have more economics in them than you might think. One example is the Canadian sitcom "Kim’s Convenience," which depicts the charming misadventures of a Korean immigrant couple in Toronto and their native-born children. Where so much of the media focuses on the parts of the economy that are going wrong, "Kim’s Convenience" tells an uplifting story of modest, hard-won prosperity.
The show has rightfully been heralded for its depiction of the immigrant experience, and in this sense it is certainly realistic -- for the U.S. as well as Canada. The protagonists, Mr. and Mrs. Kim, arrive in Canada without language skills, business connections or educational credentials, so they do what many immigrants do -- they start a small business. A 2012 study by the Fiscal Policy Institute, a think tank, found that in 2010, 18 percent of small businesses in the U.S. were started by immigrants, even though immigrants made up only 13 percent of the population. In retail, immigrants started 22 percent of small businesses.
For the Kims, as for many real-life immigrants, small business is a gateway to upward mobility. The Kims’ daughter is attending photography school, while their son -- despite a youthful brush with the law -- is slowly working his way up through the corporate hierarchy of a car-rental company. These are not the dramatic success stories that often feature in pro-immigration op-eds -- the Kim children aren’t founding billion-dollar startups or patenting breakthrough inventions or getting tenure at Harvard. Instead, the image is of humble, slow middle-class advancement.
And that depiction is realistic. There is broad agreement that children of immigrants tend to have substantially higher incomes than their parents, and to make up ground relative to children of native-born parents. Children of skilled immigrants tend to earn more than natives, while children of low-skilled immigrants tend to earn less, but in both cases, mobility from the first to the second generation is the norm. The second generation also tends to be better-educated, with higher homeownership rates and lower poverty rates than their parents. This has led many to conclude that the American dream is still alive for those who move in from other countries.
But the economic significance of "Kim’s Convenience" goes well beyond the immigrant experience. By showing the connection between small business and upward mobility, it highlights a type of success story that is crucial to the health of the American (and Canadian) middle class -- and one that is in great danger.
Some of that comes from a decline in high-tech, high-growth startups, but most of it -- especially in the 1980s and 1990s -- came from a drop in small-business formation. One key reason has been the replacement of small business with big business. In retail, for example, the most significant change has been the spread of chain stores. In a 2009 paper, economists Ronald Jarmin, Shawn Klimek and Javier Miranda wrote:
In 1948, single location retail firms accounted for 70.4 percent of retail sales…By 1997, this share had fallen further to 39 percent.
In other words, more Walmart branches mean fewer stores of the type featured in "Kim’s Convenience." Of course, there’s a deep economic reason for the shift -- chain stores tend to be more productive, and more long-lived, than the mom-and-pop shops of old. Chains have access to nationwide or global supply chains, mass marketing and brand recognition, and all the other advantages that huge corporations can confer.
But in exchange for this productivity, something important may have been lost. In an economy dominated by big corporations, capital ownership is concentrated among the investors, instead of dispersed among a broad class of small business owners. When even enterprising people who are willing to take risks are forced to become corporate employees rather than striking out on their own, they lose the independence that small business confers. They are also forced to rely more on business connections, job skills and educational credentials -- advantages that tend to be concentrated among the children of the well-off.
In other words, the decline of small business may deliver higher productivity at the cost of greater dependence, higher inequality and reduced economic mobility.
It also may be destroying one of the core constituencies opposing the spread of socialism. Small business owners vote overwhelmingly Republican in the U.S. -- fewer small businesspeople means fewer capital owners, which means fewer people who have a stake in preserving the system of privately owned capital. How can this trend be reversed? Thanks to the rise of e-commerce, it seems likely that many mom-and-pop businesses of the future will not be brick-and-mortar retail stores like the one in "Kim’s Convenience." But government support for small business -- and for new business owners -- don’t have to favor one type of business over another. Tax breaks are one way to put the government’s thumb on the scale for small businesses. Another is the so-called economic gardening approach, in which local and state governments partner with nonprofits to help entrepreneurs start businesses. A third option might be to increase support for franchise businesses, which offer many of the scale benefits of big corporations while preserving some elements of individual ownership.
Upward mobility and business ownership are key elements of any healthy, thriving capitalist society. "Kim’s Convenience" shows how immigration invigorates a society, but it also shows the enduring importance of small business. Policy makers would do well to watch the show and contemplate its vision of the good society.

Analysis/Sing All You Want, but Don't Dare Drive: How an Arab Singer Evoked the Wrath of Her Saudi Female Fans
زفي بارئيل وتقرير من الهآرتس يتناول صدام الفنانة الإماراتية أحلام الشامسي مع نساء السعودية ومقاطعة حفلاتها في المملكة
Zvi Bar'el/Haaretz/December 31/18
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/70609/zvi-barel-haaretz-sing-all-you-want-but-dont-dare-drive-how-an-arab-singer-evoked-the-wrath-of-her-saudi-female-fans-%d8%b2%d9%81%d9%8a-%d8%a8%d8%a7%d8%b1%d8%a6%d9%8a%d9%84-%d9%88%d8%aa%d9%82/
Saudi women are furious with Ahlam Alshamsi, whose decision to nix concerts in the kingdom tells a bigger story about feminism and double standards in the Middle East.
The singer Ahlam Alshamsi has everything, or almost everything. Tickets to her concerts are sold out months in advance, millions watch the TV shows where she appears, she has hundreds of thousands of followers on Twitter and she’s a regular in the entertainment and gossip columns.
Ahlam, who is a citizen of the United Arab Emirates, is a very wealthy woman. In an appearance a few years ago on the reality talent show Arab Idol (the Beirut-produced equivalent of American Idol), she wore a dress which reportedly cost 1.3 million rials (about 1.3 million shekels). Ahlam did not deny this report.
Her husband, the Qatari oil baron Mubarak al-Hajri, explained that “Ahlam buys her clothes and jewelry out of her own income.” Hajri, who is a race-car rally champion, does buy her dresses, but not at those prices. “I pay 25,000 or 30,000 rials for a dress I buy her, but she’s happier in those dresses than in ones that costs a million and a quarter rials."
At the same time, he counsels her not to waste so much money on dresses and jewelry because she has to save money for when she retires. “But what’s to be done, she lives for the present in her golden age, this is Ahlam’s time and she’s in charge at the moment.
In an interview with the Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Anba, al-Hajri revealed that his wife spends about a quarter of her income on her look. But one should not jump to wrong conclusions from this about her status as a woman. Hajri described her as the interior minister of their household, but nonetheless said that “you can appoint Ahlam to any ministerial post, at the end she lives in my house. I am the prime minister and the last word is mine.” Order has to be preservered.
Ahlam isn't just an example for how the rich and beautiful live their lives in the Gulf states. This month, she made headlines in those countries, particularly in Saudi Arabia, and not because of how she squanders her money or over the wonderful relationship she has with her husband. Ahlam had been scheduled to make four performances in Saudi Arabia, each at a different end of the kingdom. Everything was ready, the audience was impatiently waiting, but at the last moment the organizers called off the shows.
Ahlam offered no explanation, nor was one needed. At least half a million Twitter followers in Saudi Arabia followed accounts bearing the name 'Boycott Ahlam's shows.' The furious Saudi women did not forget that two years ago, the singer claimed that " would shouldn't be allowed to drive in the land of holy places." The furious Saudi women did not forget that two years ago she said: “Women should not be allowed to drive in the land of the holy places.”
Saudi women did win the right to drive, a move initiated by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as part of his show of strength against the religious establishment and his desire to appear liberal, but Ahlam’s statement has been neither forgiven nor forgotten.
“The artist Ahlam danced on the wounds of the Saudi woman and preferred religious norms over women’s rights. Her appearance, which was to have taken place today, was canceled after Saudi women protested against her. My respects to our women who have rejected this foreigner,” wrote Slatana Milhem, one of the leaders of the protest on social media.
“A woman must not drive in the land of purity, but she can sing there? How can you raise your voice in song in this pure land? You should be ashamed to sing in a land where women are allowed to drive,” a woman named Ayman tweeted mockingly. “This chameleon can’t decide where she stands. First she’s against [women] driving, then she sings to Tamim [the Qatari ruler] and belittles Saudi Arabia, and then she she’s asked to sing for Qatar and she responds that she has a problem. If she sings for Qatar, she’ll be photographed. I’ve seen no greater hypocrisy than this,” a woman named Queen Nura tweeted.
The truth is the Ahlam was worried that if she sang for Qatar, she would be boycotted in Saudi Arabia. But now she is banned there because of the women’s protest. Some people tried to attribute the ban to the fact that she’s married to a Qatari citizen (who was forced to leave the place where he conducted his business in the UAE because of the ban on Qatar), but this claim is completely unsubstantiated. Ahlam was invited to Saudi Arabia and the authorities are not the ones who canceled her concerts.
Ahlam is now launching a PR campaign in which she boasts of her love for Saudi Arabia, which she says she views as a second home. She even went to the trouble of spreading a story about how she gave up her airplane seat in business class for an old woman, and constantly informs the public of her work for the poor and downtrodden.
It remains to be seen whether Saudi women, whose online activity is one of the most advanced in Arab countries, would be willing to reconcile with the crooner. This is not the first time women of the kingdom made a breakthrough by means of the internet.
Perhaps one of the most famous of these instances is the case of author Rajaa al-Sanea, who rocked the Arab world in general and Saudi Arabia in particular with her 2005 novel “Girls of Riyadh,” which consists of emails she received. This was the first time a Saudi woman revealed relationships between men and women in the kingdom and even dealt, very skillfully, with gay relations in Saudi Arabia. Since that time, the internet has become the Tahrir Square of Saudi women.
https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/.premium-how-an-arab-singer-evoked-the-wrath-of-her-saudi-female-fans-1.6791491

New Year’s Traditions Around the World
MSN News/ Monday 31st December 2018
Greece
Greeks hang onions on their door on New Year as it signifies rebirth and growth in the coming year. As a symbol of prosperity and good luck, the people are also known to break a pomegranate on their doorstep before entering their houses on New Year's Day. Greeks believe the more seeds on the floor, the luckier the year will be.
Estonia
According to the tradition, if you eat seven, nine or 12 meals on New Year's Eve, you'll enjoy the strength of that many people and expect abundance of food throughout the forthcoming year.
Belgium
New Year’s Eve is also called Sint Sylvester Vooranvond or Saint Sylvester Eve in Belgium. On New Year's Day, called Nieuwjaarsdag, children buy decorated paper to write greetings for their parents and god parents. The letters are later read out to them.
Spain
In Spain, the New Year is supposed to bring you luck if you are able to eat 12 grapes, one at each stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve.
Argentina
Argentinians eat beans before the clock strikes midnight as it is considered to bring success in their career. Another traditional practice involves running around the house with a suitcase. It is believed that this ensures more travelling in the coming year.
Finland
The Finns melt little horseshoes made of tin in a pan and then throw the molten metal into a bucket of cold war. The metal then instantly solidifies again, and the resulting shape is believed to offer predictions for the person's fortunes in the coming year.
Italy
To bring luck, love and fertility, people wear red undergarments on New Year's eve. Although uncommon but in southern Italy, some people indulge in an extreme practice: they throw out old items from the windows. This symbolizes letting go of unhappiness and welcoming the future. In Venice, mass kissing at St. Mark’s Square is a popular tradition where tens of thousands lock lips to ring in the New Year.
Philippines
Twelve round fruits and dishes are placed on the dining table on New Year’s Eve: their shape represents money and courts prosperity for the year that is to come. Everything round is associated with prosperity and Filipinos even wear polka dotted dresses as part of the celebrations. At the stroke of midnight, the children are told to jump so that they grow up tall. When the clock strikes 12, the doors are thrown open to let in the good luck.
Belarus
A popular Belorussian New Year game involves getting a group of single women together in a circle. Each woman gets a pile of corn placed in front of her, then a rooster is put in the middle of the circle. Whichever pile of corn the rooster chooses to peck first, that woman will be the first to marry.
Romania
Mask dances are the traditional way of celebrating the New Year in Romania. A fun and vibrant way of celebrating the New Year is the "dance of the bear," where people take to streets and in bear masks and costumes. Symbolizing death and rebirth, this practice is performed with rhythmic drums and animal puppetry. Another tradition involves tossing a coin in a river to bring good luck all year.
Germany
The Germans eat and gift pig-shaped marzipan, considered a symbol of good luck. Other lucky charms include "Glückspilze" (lucky mushrooms), ladybugs and four-leaf clovers.
Ecuador
The Ecuadorians create effigies of people, mainly politicians and other prominent figures, to represent the misfortunes of the past year. These are then burned in the streets to "clear away" the bad luck and welcome the New Year with a clean slate.
Japan
In Japan, Buddhist temples ring their bells 108 times to welcome Toshigami, the New Year's God at midnight. The event is known as joya no kane. The number represents the number of human desires, which lead to pain and suffering. Another Japanese practice is viewing the Hatsuhinode, which is the first sunrise of the new year. People gather to get a good view of the hatsuhinode to pray for good fortune.
Switzerland
People celebrate New Year by allowing a drip of ice cream to fall on the floor as it signifies abundance and prosperity for the coming year.
Chile
Some Chileans choose to spend New Year with their deceased loved ones by making a special trip to the cemetery. People set up chairs next to gravesides for a New Year's Eve mass. This is a way to include all family members in the festivities.
Bolivia
Coins are baked with sweets in Bolivia, and whoever finds the coins has good luck for the upcoming year. Other traditions include wearing yellow undergarments: known to bring wealth in the New Year. Those looking for love wear red. Dolls made of straw and wood are hung outside homes and three stones are kept outside the door, one each for health, prosperity and love.
Canada
Canadians welcome the New Year by dipping in the freezing waters of the English Bay. The custom is popularly known as the “Polar Bear Swim.” Canadians believe that this brings good luck and prosperity. Another practice is clapping and roaring when the clock strikes 12 to get rid of past evils.
Brazil
It is believed that jumping seven waves on New Year's Eve brings good luck in the coming year. Another traditional practice followed in Brazil is of tossing white flowers into the ocean as an offering to the goddess of sea.
Mexico
Throwing a bucket of water out the window is a way of welcoming the New Year in Mexico. Only colorful clothes are worn to bring in love, luck and prosperity in the coming year.
Peru
Peruvians place three potatoes– peeled, half-peeled and unpeeled under a under a chair on New Year’s Eve. At midnight, whichever potato is chosen forecasts next year’s financial condition. The peeled potato signifies bad financials, half-peeled means a normal year, and unpeeled stands for a great bounty. Apart from that, throwing twelve coins or cents on the street and picking up twelve coins (not your own!) on New Year’s Day is said to bring luck. Peruvians are also known to place coins in their shoes and wear them to a good financial fortune in the New Year.
Ireland
One of the popular New Year traditions here is the banging of bread against the walls of a house to ward off evil spirits and bad luck. According to popular belief, this practice makes sure you have enough bread all year round.