LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
July 08/2019
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
http://data.eliasbejjaninews.com/eliasnews19/english.july08.19.htm

News Bulletin Achieves Since 2006
Click Here to enter the LCCC Arabic/English news bulletins Achieves since 2006

Bible Quotations For today
Be sure of this, that no fornicator or impure person, or one who is greedy (that is, an idolater), has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
Letter to the Ephesians 05/01-07:”Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But fornication and impurity of any kind, or greed, must not even be mentioned among you, as is proper among saints. Entirely out of place is obscene, silly, and vulgar talk; but instead, let there be thanksgiving. Be sure of this, that no fornicator or impure person, or one who is greedy (that is, an idolater), has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes on those who are disobedient. Therefore do not be associated with them.”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on July 07-08/2019
Syrians return to their home by Lebanese border
Contacts Underway to Secure Cabinet Session on Thursday
Al-Rahi Warns against 'Divisive, Destructive and Incendiary' Rhetoric
Bassil Says FPM Fighting 'Strife Schemes' with 'Openness'
Houthi radio station raises $132,000 for Hezbollah
Geagea: With a Black Heart, Bassil Taking Us 50 Years Back with His Speeches
Afiouni urges officials to end all tension, return to consensus atmosphere
Sami Gemayel from Ehmej: We will not be dragged into conflicts, and the time has come for accountability and truth
Two gold medals for Lebanon in the Young Athletes Championship
Chehayeb: The country needs nationals that believe in consensus
Lakkis from Mid Bekaa: Agriculture was not given priority in the State's economic policies
Syrians, Facing Orders to Demolish Homes, Fear Fate in Lebanon

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on July 07-08/2019
Iran announces further scale back of its commitments to 2015 nuclear deal
US calls on Germany to send ground troops to Syria
Iranian tanker wasn’t headed to Syria: Iran deputy foreign minister
EU urges Iran to halt further measures undermining nuclear deal
Netanyahu Calls For 'Snapback Sanctions' on Iran After Enrichment Move
Netanyahu calls Iran’s enrichment move a ‘very, very dangerous step’
Iranian Scientists Accused of Violating US Sanctions
Russian-led assault in Syria leaves over 500 civilians dead: Rights groups
Seizure of Iranian Oil-Laden Tanker Troubles Syrians in Damascus
Syria Forum Held to Discuss Future of East Euphrates Region after ISIS Defeat
US Calls on Germany to Send Ground Troops to Syria
Iraqi army launches offensive against ISIS near border with Syria
Iraqi Forces Begin Operation Against ISIS Along Syrian Border
Top Oman Diplomat Meets Assad in Rare Syria Visit
Greece Votes in Election Expected to Oust Leftist Tsipras
Egypt, Kuwait Call for Arab Solidarity to Confront Regional Challenges
Israeli army says five soldiers wounded after suspected car-ramming attack
Jordanian PM: Economic plan no substitute for Mideast peace
Pope Calls for 'Humanitarian Corridors' for Migrant Rescues

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on July 07-08/2019
Syrians return to their home by Lebanese border/Reuters/Ynetnews/July 07/2019
“You Are Born to Clean Our Houses”: Persecution of Christians, April 2019/Raymond Ibrahim/Gatestone Institute/July 7, 2019
FPM-Hezbollah Understanding: The Origin of the Current Crisis/Hazem Saghieh/Asharq Al Awsat/July 07/2019
Erdogan’s Enmity to Saudi Arabia/Salman Al-dossary/Asharq Al Awsat/July 07/2019
Britain caught between a US rock and a Chinese hard place/Andrew Hammond/Arab News/July 07/2019
Europe should pull the plug on Iran nuclear deal/Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Arab News/July 07/2019
Iran’s proxies defy Iraqi PM’s anti-militia decree/Baria Alamuddin/Arab News/July 07/2019

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on July 07-08/2019
Syrians return to their home by Lebanese border
Reuters/Ynetnews/July 07/2019
It was to this district that government offices were moved once the fighting ended in mid-2013. Most of those who already returned are state employees and their families. Qusayr, a once bustling commercial hub in western Syria, has not seen any fighting since government troops, with the help of Lebanon's powerful Iran-backed Hezbollah group, drove out Sunni Muslim rebels six years ago. Large sections of the city lie in ruin and of the thousands who fled the violence, most have not returned. Only about 10,000 people - a tenth of its pre-war population - have come back. According to former residents living abroad, this is partly because Qusayr, around 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the Lebanese border, is now a security zone where only those with special permission can enter. The Syrian government appears to want to signal that this is changing: On Sunday, the army escorted around 1,000 people - former residents who fled to other parts of Syria - to the city, where they thronged the streets in celebration.
Several carried the yellow and green flags of the Hezbollah group, an ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad which played a crucial role in the defeat of the rebels in Qusayr and other parts of western Syria.
Western intelligence sources say the area remains part of a belt of territory in Syria where Hezbollah maintains a strong presence, including by way of tight control on the movement of people. Although some former Qusayr residents who took part in Sunday's trip said they had come back for good, others told Reuters their homes were too damaged to live in.
Jamal Hub al Deen, 45, said his home in the city had been "razed to the ground" but that he wanted to see with his own eyes what needed to be done to try to come back soon. "We call on the state to help us financially to build our home," he told Reuters. When Hub al Deen left Qusayr due to the fighting, he fled to Homs city, the provincial capital. His journey on Sunday took him along the same route as that of his escape, he said. The crowd had gathered in Qusayr's eastern sector where shops were open on Sunday.
The neighborhood sustained the least damage in the fighting, but some buildings had visible damage, with some partially destroyed or riddled with bullet holes. It was to this district that government offices were moved once the fighting ended in mid-2013. Most of those who already returned are state employees and their families. Some other state-organized initiatives for the return of Syria's internally displaced -- who total 6.2 million - to former rebel bastions have been made public, but the uptake has been modest. Many of these areas remain under heavy security, while in others there are no basic services. Homs governor Talal al-Barazi told Syrian state media that the government had organized the trip as part of its drive to eventually return Qusayr's displaced residents. But Bazari said at least 30% percent of the city had been destroyed and reconstruction would not be completed quickly.
"(Qusayr's reconstruction) needs time," Barazi told state owned Ikhbariyah television. Qusayr and its surroundings have long been a route for smugglers. Rebels made use of it before their defeat and it is now a main supply route for Hezbollah into Syria. This has made the area a target for Israel, which regularly carries out air strikes inside Syria against Iranian backed forces. Qusayr's residents who fled to other parts of Syria are only part of the story: Thousands of others sought refuge in Lebanon, many settling in the town of Arsal. Bazari said their homecoming depended on security clearances and basic services being restored. For now, any prospect for their return looks unlikely.

Contacts Underway to Secure Cabinet Session on Thursday
Naharnet/July 07/2019Political contacts are underway in a bid to reach consensus over holding a Thursday cabinet session, media reports said. "Until Saturday, the contacts had not managed to find an exit that prevents a rift in the government, amid the growing dispute over the demand of (Lebanese Democratic Party chief Talal) Arslan and the Free Patriotic Movement that the Mt. Lebanon security incidents be referred to the Judicial Council," al-Hayat newspaper reported on Sunday. "Although the current stances do not indicate that there is a majority that backs this choice, efforts to hold the session through consensus are necessary, instead of adding a new rift that would obstruct the work of the government," al-Hayat added, quoting political sources. Sources following up on the contacts meanwhile said 14 ministers -- who represent the FPM, its allies and Hizbullah -- are in favor of referring the case to the Judicial Council at the moment. "They need two more ministers in order for this referral to enjoy the majority of votes (16 out of 30)," the sources added.

Al-Rahi Warns against 'Divisive, Destructive and Incendiary' Rhetoric
Naharnet/July 07/2019
Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi on Sunday described the Druze-Christian reconciliation in Chouf and Aley as a "treasure," as he warned against any "divisive", "destructive" and "incendiary" rhetoric.
"We want to stress that Mt. Lebanon's reconciliation is the treasure that we hold onto and that it comes before any other consideration, seeing as the country's safety depends on Mt. Lebanon's safety," al-Rahi said.
"We are working and we call for working together to consolidate the pillars of reconciliation politically and realistically and to create job opportunities for everyone so that coexistence gets restored," the patriarch added. "Secondly, we call for endorsing a unifying rather than a divisive political rhetoric, one that would move forward not backwards, that builds rather than destructs, that cooperates rather than excludes, that brings economic and developmental projects instead of repeating empty words and slogans that only serve to agitate," al-Rahi went on to say.

Bassil Says FPM Fighting 'Strife Schemes' with 'Openness'
Naharnet/July 07/2019
Free Patriotic Movement chief MP Jebran Bassil has defended his visits to the various Lebanese regions, noting that the FPM is confronting "strife schemes" through "openness." "What happened (in Qabrshmoun) indicates that there is a strife that is being prepared in the country, and this is not new in Lebanon, before and after 1975, before and after 1990, before and after 2005, before and after 2017 with what happened with our prime minister, and before and after June 30, 2019 in Aley," Bassil said during a visit to the Zgharta district. "Someone wants to throw us into the heart of sedition... and sedition lies in rejecting the other, inciting against them, creating frontlines inside the country and dividing Lebanese regions," Bassil added."We are fighting strife through the openness and rapprochement we are practicing," he said.

Houthi radio station raises $132,000 for Hezbollah
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English/Sunday, 07 July 2019
Lebanese militant group Hezbollah raised 73.5 million Yemeni rials ($132,000) from a fundraiser held by the Houthi-affiliated radio station Sam FM 99.1, according to reports from Bloomberg. The campaign ran from May 25 to July 5, reported the Houthi-controlled Saba news agency. It raised more than $100,000 despite Yemen being the poorest Arab nation, with the UN reporting that 85 percent of Yemen’s population is in urgent need of humanitarian aid. Hezbollah is designated as a terrorist group by countries and organizations including the US, UK and the Arab League. This was the third fundraiser held by the Sam FM radio station, but the first for Hezbollah, which relies on Iran for financial assistance. With US sanctions hurting Iran’s economy, Hezbollah’s leader Hassan Nasrallah has been forced to look to public donations for financial support. The group has faced financial challenges after President Trump introduced new restrictions on trade with Iran last year. Hezbollah openly supports the Houthi militia, Nasrallah telling the Houthis on June 30: “I wish I could be one of your fighters and fight under the guidance of your brave and dear leaders.” The radio station, Sam FM 99.1, had said that the donations from supporters had been accepted through the radio station’s “official account in all Yemeni post offices.” The Sam FM radio campaign said: “Support the masters of the mujahedeen in this world, the purest people, Hezbollah.”Hamoud Mohammad Sharaf, a broadcaster at Sam FM, said these donations would work toward “strengthening the Axis of Resistance,” referring to both Hezbollah and Hamas, two Iranian allies. Addressing a press conference in Riyadh in May, Arab Coalition spokesman Colonel Turki al-Maliki said that the Houthis have seized the missile capabilities of the Yemeni army and that Hezbollah and Iran have supplied the Houthis with Fateh missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

Geagea: With a Black Heart, Bassil Taking Us 50 Years Back with His Speeches
Naharnet/July 07/2019
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea on Sunday lashed out at the rhetoric of Free Patriotic Movement chief MP Jebran Bassil. "Bassil's obstruction of the cabinet session to achieve narrow partisan interests is a crime against the country," Geagea said in an interview with Radio Free Lebanon, referring to the latest cabinet session that was adjourned after the FPM's ministers arrived late. The session followed the deadly Qabrshmoun incident. "Political tensions can only dissipate with the end of tense rhetoric and with a black heart, Bassil is taking us 50 years back through his speeches," Geagea added. "I hope his remarks in the South will not be similar to his remarks in Mt. Lebanon and the North, which obliged us to contain the situation afterwards," Geagea hoped.

Afiouni urges officials to end all tension, return to consensus atmosphere
NNA -Sun 07 Jul 2019
State Minister for Information Technology, Adel Afiouni, called Sunday on all political sides to refrain from aggravating matters in the country, saying via his Twitter account: "I appeal to various parties to stop all tension and escalation and restore the atmosphere of consensus, as we urgently need to return to the cabinet table to address the challenges facing us." He added: "The economic situation requires bold decisions and structural reforms, and the Lebanese citizens are anticipating solutions to their problems while markets await our action."

Sami Gemayel from Ehmej: We will not be dragged into conflicts, and the time has come for accountability and truth
NNA -Sun 07 Jul 2019
Lebanese Kataeb Party Chief, MP Sami Gemayel, considered Sunday that the time has come for accountability and truth to prevail and for a new political class to govern the country with sound vision, efficiency and sincerity. Asserting that his Party will never be dragged into disputes, Gemayel added that it is high time that politicians are held responsible for their performance and keeping up with their promises and commitments made during their electoral campaigns. Gemayel's words came during his visit to the town of Ehmej earlier today, which he started by meeting with partisans at the Kataeb's branch in the area. He said that "the Kataeb has always warned against matters that can arise from settlements and deals, and it was right," vowing that his Party "will always be the voice of truth and will remain true and faithful to the sacrifices of martyrs." Gemayel laid a floral wreath at the martyrs' monument in the town's square as a tribute to the memory of fallen martyrs, and later participated in a Mass service dedicated to their memory and the sacrifices they made for the sake of their country and people.

Two gold medals for Lebanon in the Young Athletes Championship
NNA -Sun 07 Jul 2019
Lebanese athlete, Maissa Mouawad, won a gold medal and came in first place in the 100 meters race, while Lebanese athlete, Mark-Anthony Ibrahim, won the gold medal and first place in the javelin throw contest within the Arab Junior Athletes Championship that ends today in Tunisia.

Chehayeb: The country needs nationals that believe in consensus
NNA -Sun 07 Jul 2019
Higher Education Minister, Akram Chehayeb, said on Sunday that "Lebanon feels the need for national figures that believe in consensus."Speaking at La Sagesse University's graduation ceremony, the Minister said that he was working to restore the importance of university degrees in Lebanon. Finally, Chehayeb congratulated the freshly graduating students, wishing them success and a flourishing future in spite of all difficulties and circumstances.

Lakkis from Mid Bekaa: Agriculture was not given priority in the State's economic policies
NNA -Sun 07 Jul 2019
Minister of Agriculture, Hassan al-Lakkis, considered Sunday that the agricultural sector in Lebanon has not been accorded priority over the past decades within the economic policies set by the successive governments that assumed responsibility in running the State's affairs. "There is approximately 6% of the total labor hand in Lebanon working in agriculture," he added regrettably, noting that this percentage reaches 25% in Akkar and Bekaa, though this sector provides 80% of the GDP of rural areas in various Lebanese provinces. Lakkis was speaking during a meeting organized earlier today by Amal Movement at the residence of al-Nasseriah Municipality Head Fawaz al-Tarshishi, in the presence of MP's Selim Aoun and Anwar Joumaa and a number of dignitaries and municipality members from the region.The Minister stressed the importance of meeting with agricultural unions and farmers and addressing the needs and problems facing this vital sector. He pointed out that "the agricultural sector suffers from many obstacles, and the Ministry of Agriculture's budget is only 5%, which is very low compared to the countries of the region." Al-Lakkis disclosed that his Ministry is working to find legal provisions that take into account the social status of farmers and help to support them in their daily-living needs, noting that efforts are also pinned on combatting smuggling of agricultural produce across the borders to protect Lebanese farmers. "We are working to support the existing agricultural schools and to open other schools according to the needs of the areas, not for the purpose of employment, but to work for the development of advanced agriculture," indicated al-Lakkis.

Syrians, Facing Orders to Demolish Homes, Fear Fate in Lebanon
Asharq Al-Awsat/Sunday, 7 July, 2019
Dima al-Kanj’s house is now a pile of rubble and twisted metal.
It was just a concrete hut near the Lebanese border, but she had spent five years trying to make it cozy for her children after fleeing the war in Syria.
Then, under army orders, she had to smash it. “Every year, we fixed up one thing after another so that we could live in what you’d call a home,” she said, standing in the room leveled to the ground in the remote Lebanese town of Arsal, reported Reuters. “Now, there’s nothing left.”
Kanj is among thousands of Syrian refugees who will be left stranded by a government decision to dismantle “semi-permanent structures” in eastern Lebanon, aid agencies say. At least 15,000 children could become homeless. Lebanon is toughening enforcement of work and housing rules - some of which were ignored for years - on its more than 1 million Syrian refugees. Lebanese politicians have also ramped up their calls for the Syrians to leave.
The army demolished at least 20 refugee homes on Monday, seven global aid agencies said. In the makeshift Arsal camp where Kanj lives, home to 450 people, refugees said the army arrived at dawn with a small bulldozer taking down a few shelters. Soldiers came again two days later as a reminder that people must remove their concrete walls and metal roofs.
Kanj, 30, has since paid men from a nearby camp to knock down her hut with jackhammers. She preferred to do it herself than face a forcible demolition. She and her four small children are now crammed into their neighbor’s hut across the dirt road with a dozen people.
“We’re all sitting inside the same room on top of each other with our stuff,” she said. “We can’t rent a place or leave or do anything at all.”
People at the camp said they would follow the rules but have found it hard to meet deadlines and find money for equipment. They must also get rid of the rubble. Some worry they will not manage to cobble together the permitted tents from wood and plastic sheeting, which would barely shield them from Arsal’s harsh winter.
The military first told them of the order some two months ago and has since allowed grace periods. The army has not commented on the demolitions, but a military source said the forces were executing a legal regulation. “Of course, we’re scared of the future,” Kanj said. “God knows what more decisions (authorities) will come up with next.”
‘Start from scratch’
Human Rights Watch described the shelter order as “one of many recent actions to crank up pressure on Syrian refugees to go back.” These include more arrests, deportations, shop closures, curfews, evictions and other measures in the past months, it said on Friday.
Some Lebanese officials have called the mainly Sunni refugees a threat to Lebanon, warning the concrete huts would lead to their lasting settlement, said Reuters. It is a thorny topic in a country with a fragile sectarian political system where informal settlements of Palestinians have expanded after they came decades ago.
Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil, the president’s son-in-law, has pushed hard for Syrians to go home, insisting they should not wait for an elusive peace deal to end the war.
Last month, he said town councils could get refugees to leave by “implementing the law and protecting public order”.
But activists accuse his party and other politicians of fueling hostility toward refugees and blaming them for Lebanon’s long-existing problems.
Abou Firas, a Syrian refugee who oversees the same Arsal camp, said they would leave if they could.
As fighting died down and Damascus reclaimed much of Syria, tens of thousands of refugees have returned, Lebanese authorities say. Still, aid agencies say many have fears about going home, including reprisals, military conscription, loss of property, or fresh waves of violence.
“There’s a lot of uncertainty about our fate,” said Abou Firas, who must demolish his family’s hut too. “We don’t intend on permanently settling here.”“This room becomes a part of you,” he added. “You put effort into fixing it up ... and suddenly you find yourself having to start from scratch.”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on July 07-08/2019
Iran announces further scale back of its commitments to 2015 nuclear deal
Agencies/Sunday, 07 July 2019
Iran announced Sunday it will raise its level of uranium enrichment, breaking another limit of its unraveling 2015 nuclear deal with world powers and further heightening tensions between Tehran and the US. Officials told a news conference the new level would be reached later Sunday, but did not provide a percentage. Government spokesman Ali Rabiei said the new level “will be based on our needs.” Under the faltering nuclear deal, the cap for enrichment had been set at 3.67 percent. The officials suggested the latest steps did not close the door to diplomatic efforts to save the deal. “Opportunity will be available for diplomacy,” said Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister. Iran threatened to abandon more commitments under the nuclear agreement in “60 days” unless a solution is found with signatories to the endangered deal. “We hope we can reach a solution otherwise after 60 days we will take the third step as well,” Araghchi said, singling out Iran’s declining oil sales as one of the main issues that needed to be solved. French President Emmanuel Macron spoke to his Iranian counterpart, Hassan Rouhani, by phone Saturday, saying he is trying to find a way by July 15 to resume dialogue between Iran and Western partners. Araghchi said Sunday that discussions with the Europeans are continuing. Araghchi added that Tehran has “given enough time to diplomacy,” and that its reduction of its commitments is not a violation of the pact. He said that Iran wants the 2015 nuclear deal to be salvaged, and demanded that obligations be fulfilled by other parties. The Europeans have failed to fulfill their commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal, Araghchi said. “The doors of diplomacy are still open, but new initiatives are required,” he added.
Iran also said it has the capability to restore the Arak Heavy Water Reactor Facility, and that it will act based on Tehran’s needs.
Araghchi said if all sanctions on Tehran are lifted, “then the US can enter nuclear talks.” “From our point of view if the US wants to participate in talks between Iran and 4+1 countries, it is possible,” he said, referring to the European parties to the deal. Yet hopes for saving the faltering deal appear increasingly dim, as the Europeans have been unable to offer Iran any effective way around US sanctions. While the Iranian steps are concerning to nuclear non-proliferation experts, they could be easily reversible if Europeans offer Iran the sanctions relief it seeks.
Iran’s decision came a year after President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the deal. Iran has repeatedly warned Europe in recent weeks that it would begin walking away from an accord neutered by a maximalist American campaign of sanctions that blocked Tehran’s oil sales abroad and targeted its top officials. Sunday’s announcement came less than a week after Iran acknowledged breaking the deal’s 300-kilogram limit on its low-enriched uranium stockpile. Experts warn higher enrichment and a growing stockpile narrow the one-year window Iran would need to have enough material for an atomic bomb, something Iran denies it wants but the deal prevented. Under the 2015 atomic accord, Iran agreed to enrich uranium to no more than 3.67 percent, which is enough for peaceful pursuits but is far below weapons-grade levels of 90 percent. Iran denies it seeks nuclear weapons, but the nuclear deal sought to prevent that as a possibility by limiting enrichment and Iran’s stockpile of uranium to 300 kilograms. Iran’s foreign minister is to inform European Union leaders of the decision concerning uranium enrichment, officials said Sunday. The spokesman for Iran’s nuclear department, Behrouz Kamalvandi, said Sunday that technical preparations for the new level of enrichment will be completed “within several hours and enrichment over 3.67 percent will begin.”He says monitoring will show the increased level by Monday morning.

US calls on Germany to send ground troops to Syria
AFP, Berlin/Sunday, 07 July 2019
The United States on Sunday called for Germany to send ground troops to northern Syria, pushing Berlin to ramp up its military involvement in the fight against ISIS as Washington looks to withdraw from the region. “We want ground troops from Germany to partly replace our soldiers” in the area as part of the anti-ISIS coalition, US special representative on Syria James Jeffrey told German media including the Die Welt newspaper. Jeffrey, who was visiting Berlin for Syria talks, added that he expects an answer this month. Last year US President Donald Trump declared victory against IS and ordered the withdrawal of all 2,000 American troops from Syria. But a small number have remained in northeastern Syria, an area not controlled by the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, and Washington is pushing for increased military support from other members of the international coalition against ISIS. “We are looking for volunteers who want to take part here and among other coalition partners,” Jeffrey said. Washington has two goals in the region: to support the US-backed Kurdish forces that expelled ISIS from northern Syria as they are increasingly threatened by Turkey, and to prevent a potential ISIS resurgence in the war-torn country. The US is hoping Europe will help, pressuring Britain, France and now Germany, which has so far deployed surveillance aircraft and other non-combat military support in Syria. However Germany’s history makes military spending controversial, so the prospect of sending ground troops may provoke division in Chancellor Angela Merkel’s fragile coalition government. The Social Democrats -- the junior partner of Merkel’s governing coalition -- are likely to oppose any suggestion of sending soldiers to Syria. The US request comes after Trump has repeatedly urged Berlin to increase its defense spending, last month calling Germany “delinquent” over its contributions to NATO’s budget.

Iranian tanker wasn’t headed to Syria: Iran deputy foreign minister
Reuters, Geneva/Sunday, 7 July 2019
An Iranian tanker captured by British Royal Marines in Gibraltar was not headed to Syria, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday in a press conference broadcast live on state TV.
Royal Marines seized the tanker on Thursday for trying to take oil to Syria in violation of EU sanctions, a dramatic intervention described as “maritime robbery” by Araghchi. The minister said the giant tanker has a capacity of up to two million barrels of oil and that is why it was travelling through the Strait of Gibraltar rather than the Suez Canal. He did not give information on the tanker’s final destination.“Despite what the government of England is claiming, the target and destination of this tanker wasn’t Syria,” Araghchi said. “The port that they have named in Syria essentially does not have the capacity for such a supertanker. The target was somewhere else. It was passing through international waters through the Strait of Gibraltar and there is no law that allows England to stop this tanker. In our view the stopping of this ship was maritime robbery and we want this tanker to be freed.”The government of Gibraltar said on Friday that they had received permission from their supreme court to hold the tanker for fourteen days. An Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander threatened on Friday to seize a British ship in retaliation.

EU urges Iran to halt further measures undermining nuclear deal
Reuters, Brussels/Sunday, 07 July 2019
The European Union on Sunday strongly urged Iran to stop actions that would undermine a landmark 2015 nuclear deal, saying it was in touch with other parties to the deal and may set up a joint commission to look into the issue. “We are extremely concerned at Iran’s announcement that it has started uranium enrichment above the limit of 3.67%,” spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic for EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said in a statement. “We strongly urge Iran to stop and reverse all activities inconsistent with its commitments ... We are in contact with the other JCPoA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) participants regarding the next steps under the terms of the JCPoA, including a Joint Commission,” she said. The JCPoA is the deal between Iran and the six powers. Earlier on Sunday, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said that measures to scale back commitments to the 2015 nuclear deal are reversible only if other parties fulfill their obligations. Reacting to Iran’s announcement, Germany said it is “extremely concerned” about the move.

Netanyahu Calls For 'Snapback Sanctions' on Iran After Enrichment Move
Tel Aviv- Asharq Al-Awsat/Sunday, 7 July, 2019
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday an announced increase of uranium enrichment by Iran was an extremely dangerous move and he again called on Europe to impose punitive sanctions on Tehran. Netanyahu made the remarks after Iran said it is fully prepared to enrich uranium at any level and with any amount, in further defiance of US efforts to squeeze it with sanctions and force it to renegotiate a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. In a news conference broadcast live, senior Iranian officials said Tehran, which has denied seeking nuclear arms, would keep reducing its commitments every 60 days unless signatories of the pact moved to protect it from US sanctions. "This is a very, very dangerous step," Netanyahu said in public remarks to his cabinet. "Iran has violated its solemn promise under the UN Security Council not to enrich uranium beyond a certain level," he said. "I call on my friends, the heads of France, Britain, and Germany - you signed this deal and you said that as soon as they take this step, severe sanctions will be imposed - that was the Security Council resolution. Where are you?" Netanyahu said. If anyone of the three European parties to the accord believe Iran has violated the agreement, they can trigger a dispute resolution process that could, within as few as 65 days, end at the UN Security Council with a reimposition of UN sanctions on Tehran. The other remaining signatories, Russia and China, are allies of Iran and unlikely to make such a move. Meanwhile, the International Atomic Energy Agency said on Sunday its inspectors who are in Iran will report back once they have checked that Tehran has enriched uranium to a higher level of purity than that allowed under its nuclear deal. "We are aware of Iran's announcement related to its uranium enrichment level," a spokesman for the UN nuclear watchdog said. "IAEA inspectors in Iran will report to our headquarters as soon as they verify the announced development."

Netanyahu calls Iran’s enrichment move a ‘very, very dangerous step’
Reuters, Jerusalem/Sunday, 07 July 2019
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday an announced increase of uranium enrichment by Iran was an extremely dangerous move and he again called on Europe to impose punitive sanctions on Tehran. Netanyahu made the remarks after Iran said it is fully prepared to enrich uranium at any level and with any amount, in further defiance of US efforts to squeeze it with sanctions and force it to renegotiate a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. In a news conference broadcast live, senior Iranian officials said Tehran, which has denied seeking nuclear arms, would keep reducing its commitments every 60 days unless signatories of the pact moved to protect it from US sanctions. “This is a very, very dangerous step,” Netanyahu said in public remarks to his cabinet. “Iran has violated its solemn promise under the UN Security Council not to enrich uranium beyond a certain level,” he said.
“I call on my friends, the heads of France, Britain and Germany - you signed this deal and you said that as soon as they take this step, severe sanctions will be imposed - that was the Security Council resolution. Where are you?” Netanyahu said. If any one of the three European parties to the accord believe Iran has violated the agreement, they can trigger a dispute resolution process that could, within as few as 65 days, end at the UN Security Council with a reimposition of UN sanctions on Tehran. The other remaining signatories, Russia and China, are allies of Iran and unlikely to make such a move. “The enrichment of uranium is made for one reason and one reason only - it’s for the creation of atomic bombs,” said Netanyahu, a strong opponent of the 2015 agreement.

Iranian Scientists Accused of Violating US Sanctions
Washington- Asharq Al-Awsat/Sunday, 7 July, 2019
An Iranian scientist who was coming to the US for a prestigious visiting scientist position was arrested on arrival. Prosecutors in Atlanta have accused professor Masoud Soleimani and two of his former students of conspiring and attempting to export biological materials from the U.S. to Iran without authorization in violation of U.S. sanctions. Defense attorneys for the three argue no authorization was needed because the recombinant proteins are medical materials. The proteins were seized from one of the scientists at the Atlanta airport as she traveled to Iran in September 2016. Prosecutors got an indictment in June 2018, and Soleimani was arrested in October. The two former students - Mahboobe Ghaedi and Maryam Jazayeri - live in the US and are free on bond. Soleimani remains in custody.

Russian-led assault in Syria leaves over 500 civilians dead: Rights groups
Reuters, Amman/Sunday, 07 July 2019
At least 544 civilians have been killed and over 2,000 people injured since a Russian-led assault on the last rebel bastion in northwestern Syria began two months ago, rights groups and rescuers said on Saturday. Russian jets joined the Syrian army on April 26 in the biggest offensive against parts of rebel-held Idlib province and adjoining northern Hama provinces in the biggest escalation in the war between Syrian President Bashar al Assad and his enemies since last summer. The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR), which monitors casualties and briefs various UN agencies, said the 544 civilians killed in the hundreds of attacks carried out by Russian jets and the Syrian army include 130 children. Another 2,117 people have been injured. “The Russian military and its Syrian ally are deliberately targeting civilians with a record number of medical facilities bombed,” Fadel Abdul Ghany, chairman of SNHR, told Reuters. Russia and its Syrian army ally deny their jets hit indiscriminately civilian areas with cluster munitions and incendiary weapons, which residents in opposition areas say are meant to paralyze every-day life. Moscow says its forces and the Syrian army are fending off terror attacks by al Qaeda militants whom they say hit populated, government-held areas, and it accuses rebels of wrecking a ceasefire deal agreed last year between Turkey and Russia. Last month US-based Human Rights Watch said the Russian-Syrian joint military operation had used cluster munitions and incendiary weapons in the attacks along with large air-dropped explosive weapons with wide-area effects in populated civilian areas, based on reports by first responders and witnesses. Residents and rescuers say the two-month-old campaign has left dozens of villages and towns in ruins. According to the United Nations, at least 300,000 people have been forced to leave their homes for the safety of areas closer to the border with Turkey. “Whole villages and towns have been emptied,” said Idlib-based Civil Defence spokesman Ahmad al Sheikho, saying it was the most destructive campaign against Idlib province since it completely fell to the opposition in the middle of 2015. On Friday, 15 people, including children, were killed in the village of Mhambil in western Idlib province after Syrian army helicopters dropped barrel bombs on a civilian quarter, the civil defense group and witnesses said. The heads of 11 major global humanitarian organizations warned at the end of last month that Idlib stood at the brink of disaster, with 3 million civilian lives at risk, including 1 million children. “Too many have died already” and “even wars have laws” they declared, in the face of multiple attacks by government forces and their allies on hospitals, schools and markets,” the U.N.-endorsed statement said. Last Thursday an aerial strike on Kafr Nabl hospital made it the 30th facility to be bombed durng the campaign, leaving hundreds of thousands with no medical access, according to aid groups. “To have these medical facilities bombed and put out of service in less than two months is no accident. Let's call this by what it is, a war crime,” Dr. Khaula Sawah, vice president of the US-based Union of Medical Care and Relief Organisations, which provides aid in the northwest, said in a statement.

Seizure of Iranian Oil-Laden Tanker Troubles Syrians in Damascus
Damascus- Asharq Al-Awsat/Sunday, 7 July, 2019
The seizure of a Panamanian-flagged supertanker laden with Iranian oil by Royal Marines off the British territory of Gibraltar has spurred major anxieties among Syrians, especially those residing in the capital, Damascus.
A shortage in oil by-products has crippled power-plants feeding electric networks in Damascus and its surroundings, leaving citizens suffering from long-hours of blackouts. Contrary to Syrian government officials statements saying that the oil and diesel crisis is over, official orders forcing fuel stations to ration out monthly amounts of gasoline and diesel at a subsidized price suggests that the crisis has been eased, but isn’t over. “People are afraid,” one of the workers at a gas station north of Damascus, who requested anonymity, told Asharq Al-Awsat. They tied the crisis to the recent capture of the oil tanker. “Handouts supplied by the government are the same, but the government's stock during the war has been significantly lower, and perhaps this seized carrier was planned to arrive at a specific date,” they said, warning that depots of subsidized public oil could be a few days away from total depletion of supplies. “As long as there are US and European sanctions slapped on the Syrian government, the crises of fuel, food, medicines ... will not end, and therefore the suffering of people will continue, if there is no government decision to get sanctions lifted,” a private company employee living in the Damascus countryside told Asharq Al-Awsat. In late last month, the pro-regime Syrian newspaper Al-Watan reported that the state-owned oil company has sustained a total loss of $ 14.55 billion dollars over the course of the Syrian civil war. This coincided with a nationwide shortfall in production, at an average rate of 2,000 bpd. It is worth noting that Syria's pre-war production capacity was at 380,000 thousand bpd.

Syria Forum Held to Discuss Future of East Euphrates Region after ISIS Defeat
London, Qamishli - Kamal Sheikho and Asharq Al-Awsat/Sunday, 7 July, 2019
Syria’s northeastern town of Amuda hosted a forum where foreign and Arab researchers participated to discuss the future of Syria’s East Euphrates region after the defeat of the ISIS terrorist group. The Rojava Information Center is taking part in the three-day “International Forum on ISIS” alongside 125 other guests that include academics, researchers and politicians from 15 different countries, including the United States. Organizers announced that they were keen on having Syrian people from all backgrounds participate so that it is revealed out in the open what ISIS had done to Syrian Kurds. According to the Rojava Information Center, the forum primarily aims to shed light on crimes committed by ISIS against humanity, women, the environment and historical places by providing reports and documents supported by footage. It also looks to reviewing terrorism objectively and addressing its repercussions on both local and foreign levels according to international laws and conventions. It will also examine the fate of ISIS post its military and territorial defeat and measures to prevent its re-emergence. Kurdish factions have been calling for de-centralized governance in Syria. Kurdish political parties say they account for about 12 percent of the overall pre-Syrian war population, which was 23 million before 2011.  The Kurds have over the decades been the victims of marginalization and national discrimination in Syria, which peaked from the 80s till 90s. They were even barred from speaking their own language in official circles and institutions. The opposition Kurdish National Council was formed in 2011 with the eruption of the anti-regime uprising. It included political factions and independent figures and demanded constitutional recognition of the Kurdish identity and people living in Syria. “We call upon international bodies and Syrian authorities to exert pressure on the ruling regime to accept a political solution to put an end to the current situation in the country through implementing international resolutions,” Syria-based Kurdish politician Faisal Yusuf told Asharq Al-Awsat.

US Calls on Germany to Send Ground Troops to Syria
Asharq Al-Awsat/Sunday, 7 July, 2019
The United States called on Germany on Sunday to send ground troops to Syria to combat remaining ISIS militants in the war-torn country. "We want ground troops from Germany to partly replace our soldiers" in the area as part of the anti-ISIS coalition, US special representative on Syria James Jeffrey told German media including the Die Welt newspaper. Jeffrey, who was visiting Berlin for Syria talks, added that he expects an answer this month. Last year US President Donald Trump declared victory against ISIS and ordered the withdrawal of all 2,000 American troops from Syria. But a small number have remained in northeastern Syria, an area not controlled by the regime of Bashar Assad, and Washington is pushing for increased military support from other members of the international coalition against ISIS. "We are looking for volunteers who want to take part here and among other coalition partners," Jeffrey said. Washington has two goals in the region: to support the US-backed Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) that expelled ISIS from northern Syria as they are increasingly threatened by Turkey, and to prevent a potential ISIS resurgence in the country.The US is hoping Europe will help, pressuring Britain, France and now Germany, which has so far deployed surveillance aircraft and other non-combat military support in Syria. However Germany's history makes military spending controversial, so the prospect of sending ground troops may provoke division in Chancellor Angela Merkel's fragile coalition government. The Social Democrats -- the junior partner of Merkel's governing coalition -- are likely to oppose any suggestion of sending soldiers to Syria. The US request comes after Trump has repeatedly urged Berlin to increase its defense spending, last month calling Germany "delinquent" over its contributions to NATO's budget. Syria's war has killed more than 370,000 people and displaced millions since it started in 2011 with a brutal crackdown on anti-regime protests.

Iraqi army launches offensive against ISIS near border with Syria
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English/Sunday, 07 July 2019
The Iraqi army launched the first phase of an operation against ISIS on Sunday morning near the country’s border with Syria, they said in a statement. The statement said that the Will of Victory Operation is taking place in the areas between the governorates of Saladin, Nineveh and al-Anbar. They added that the operation is led by several Iraqi paramilitary forces, including the Iraqi Air Force and the international coalition. Although Iraq declared victory against ISIS in July 2017, the extremists have turned into an insurgency and have carried out deadly attacks in the country.

Iraqi Forces Begin Operation Against ISIS Along Syrian Border
Baghdad- Asharq Al-Awsat/Sunday, 7 July, 2019
Iraq's security and paramilitary forces began Sunday a military operation along the border with Syria aimed at clearing the area of ISIS group militants, the military said in a statement. Although Iraq declared victory against ISIS in July 2017, the extremists have turned into an insurgency and have carried out deadly attacks in the country. The military said the operation that began at sunrise was being carried out by Iraqi troops and members of the Popular Mobilization Forces. It said the operation will last several days and was the first phase of the Will of Victory Operation securing the western province of Anbar and the central and northern regions of Salahuddin and Nineveh. "We press on the hands of our heroic forces that will achieve victory with the will of its heroes against the gangs of Daesh," said Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi using an Arabic acronym to refer to ISIS. "May God protect you and make you victorious." ISIS once held large parts of Syria and Iraq where it declared a caliphate in 2014. The extremists lost in March the last territory they controlled in Syria.

Top Oman Diplomat Meets Assad in Rare Syria Visit
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/July 07/2019
Oman's top diplomat met Sunday with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus, Muscat said, in the Gulf official's second visit to the war-wracked country since conflict broke out in 2011. Assad met with Oman's state minister for foreign affairs Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah to discuss bilateral relations and regional security, the sultanate's foreign ministry said in a statement. It added that Abdullah also met with his Syrian counterpart, Walid Muallem. Oman is one of the few Arab states to have maintained ties with Damascus over the past eight years. Syria was suspended from the Arab League in 2011 for its deadly crackdown on an uprising against Assad's rule, and fellow Arab countries, including Gulf powerhouse Saudi Arabia, have supported the opposition. Oman's Sultan Qaboos adheres to a strict policy of non-interference in regional affairs, maintaining relations with rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran -- a key backer of Assad. Abdullah visited Damascus in 2015, Syria's official SANA news agency reported at the time, to discuss ways to "resolve the crisis in Syria". During a visit to Oman last year, Syria's Muallem praised Muscat for taking "supportive positions towards Syria at various Arab and international forums", the state-run Oman News Agency reported. Syria's once rocky ties with the region are on the rebound. The United Arab Emirates reopened its embassy in Damascus late last year after years of closure, and Syria's relations with Bahrain and Jordan have also improved. But Saudi Arabia remains hostile to Assad, who has made a military comeback with military support from Russia since 2015, clawing back almost two-thirds of the country. Syria's multi-fronted war has killed more than 370,000 people and displaced millions since it began with the repression of anti-government protests in 2011.

Greece Votes in Election Expected to Oust Leftist Tsipras
Naharnet/July 07/2019
Greek voters cast their ballots on Sunday in the country's first national election of the post-bailout era, with leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras's Syriza party expected to be ousted by the conservative opposition. After nearly five years in power, Greece's longest-serving crisis premier -- as well as the youngest in more than a century -- is battling to overcome a 10-point deficit in opinion polls amid widespread dissatisfaction after years of high taxation. Polling stations opened at 07.00 am local time (0400 GMT) and will close at 07.00 pm. Exit polls are expected soon after and the first results should come in around 09.00 pm. With three new opinion polls predicting a clear victory for the conservative New Democracy party, Tsipras called for supporters to mobilise, hoping for a turn around. After voting in Kypseli, near the centre of Athens, with his supporters cheering, the premier called on young people "not to leave this crucial decision for their lives in the hands of others."With temperatures forecast to reach 39 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit), all parties are concerned about the impact the heat will have on turnout. "What is at stake is too important for someone not to vote and instead go to the beach," 36-year-old Aphrodite told AFP, as she cast her vote in the bohemian downtown neighborhood of Exarcheia. "Greece is exiting ten years of crisis and the new government will have the heavy task to give a chance to the country to recover completely or to sink", she added. Opinion polls have consistently forecast that New Democracy headed by Kyriakos Mitsotakis, a scion of a leading Greek political family, will win an absolute majority in Sunday's legislative elections. "Today is a big celebration of democracy. Greek women and men hold the fate of this land in their hands," Mitsotakis said after voting in an Athens suburb.
Battle for the premiership
Some members of a small far-left party protested outside the polling station where Mitsotakis voted, but their shouts were drowned out by New Democracy supporters calling their leader the new prime minister. "I hope that from tomorrow we will be able to breathe with relief. To take a deep breath. If Mitsotakis does what he promises," Athinodoros, a 48-year-old self-employed worker voting in Athens told AFP. Tsipras called the snap election in June after losing both European and local elections to Mitsotakis' New Democracy in the space of two weeks.
He has accused Mitsotakis -- who was part of a 2012-2014 crisis government -- of "disastrous" mismanagement that brought hundreds of thousands of job losses and business failures. Mitsotakis, who took over New Democracy three years ago, is a 51-year-old Harvard graduate and former McKinsey consultant. He has pledged to create "better" jobs through growth, foreign investment and tax cuts and to "steamroll" obstacles to business. Tsipras, on the other hand, touts his party's track record in reducing unemployment and raising the minimum wage for the first time since 2012. His government also rolled out a batch of last-minute tax cuts in May. But Tsipras has been widely criticised for campaigning as an anti-austerity crusader before eventually accepting a third EU bailout. According to the latest polls, conducted for the Ant1 tv channel, New Democracy is expected to gain between 151 to 165 seats in the 300-seat parliament. Syriza meanwhile is forecast to fall from 144 seats to between 70 and 82. The biggest party picks the premier.
Budding newcomers
The vote is Greece's third poll in as many months, and the country's first mid-summer general election since 1928 is unlikely to attract strong participation. In May, fewer than 59 percent of registered voters cast ballots for European Parliament polls and the first round of local and regional elections. Two new smaller parties are vying to enter parliament for the first time, hoping to reach the three percent threshold that would allow them a seat. The MeRA25 anti-austerity party has been set up by Tsipras's former maverick finance minister Yanis Varoufakis, while Greek Solution, is a nationalist, pro-Russia party formed by former journalist and TV salesman Kyriakos Velopoulos. Polls show that each new party could win between nine and 10 MPs. Greek Solution has been buoyed by backlash against Tsipras' controversial agreement with North Macedonia that ended a bitter 27-year dispute over the country's name.
The fledgling party has also picked up voters from neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn, which is in steep decline amid an ongoing trial for the 2013 murder of an anti-fascist rapper, allegedly carried out with the knowledge of senior Golden Dawn members.

Egypt, Kuwait Call for Arab Solidarity to Confront Regional Challenges
Cairo - Asharq Al-Awsat/Sunday, 7 July, 2019
Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Jaber al-Sabah and Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi called for Arab solidarity in confronting regional challenges. Egyptian presidency spokesman Bassam Radi revealed that Sisi had telephoned on Friday night Sheikh Sabah to discuss several regional developments. They underscored the need for joint Arab efforts to confront the challenges in order to preserve Arab national security. The Emir expressed his country’s “deep appreciation” for Egypt’s efforts across in the Arab world that will help in supporting peace and security on the regional and international scenes. Discussions between the two leaders tackled bilateral cooperation and ties.Sheikh Sabah stressed to Sisi Kuwait’s firm support for Egypt’s security and stability and keenness to bolster cooperation with Cairo.

Israeli army says five soldiers wounded after suspected car-ramming attack
AFP, Jerusalem/Sunday,0 7 July 2019
A suspected Palestinian car-ramming attack in the occupied West Bank has wounded five Israeli soldiers and the alleged assailant has been arrested, the Israeli army said on Sunday. The troops were stationed on a roadside near the Palestinian town of Hizma as part of “operational activity” on Saturday night when the driver of a car rammed his vehicle into them, the army said. Three soldiers were moderately injured and two hurt lightly in the incident near the town, which is located close to a checkpoint dividing the West Bank from Jerusalem, it said in a statement. Soldiers later arrested the driver and his father at a checkpoint, it added. It said an initial inquiry “suggests that the incident was a car-ramming attack” and not an accident. Israeli army raids in the West Bank regularly set off tensions with Palestinian residents.

Jordanian PM: Economic plan no substitute for Mideast peace
The Associated Press, Amman/Sunday, 7 July 2019
Jordan’s Prime Minister says an economic deal cannot be a substitute for a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians, echoing concerns by critics of the US peace summit in Bahrain last month. Prime Minister Omar Razzaz said on Sunday that the “road to peace is clear” and must be based upon the creation of an independent Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital. He says that “there is no compromise or project or deal that will divert us from these priorities.”His remarks came during a meeting with his Palestinian counterpart, Mohammad Shtayyeh. In Bahrain, the US promoted its plan calling for $50 billion of investment in Palestinian areas and neighboring Arab countries. The Palestinians accuse the US of trying to buy off their national aspirations.

Pope Calls for 'Humanitarian Corridors' for Migrant Rescues
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/July 07/2019
Pope Francis on Sunday called for "humanitarian corridors" to help rescue migrants in response to an air strike last week that killed dozens in a Libya detention centre. "The international community cannot accept such grave incidents," the pope said during a Sunday address at St. Peter's square.
"I hope that humanitarian corridors will be organised in a concerted way for those migrants most in need."At least 53 migrants were killed Tuesday night in the air raid on the detention centre in the Tripoli suburb of Tajoura, held by forces loyal to the U.N.-recognized government.
Tripoli has blamed the strike on forces loyal to Libya commander Khalifa Haftar who controls eastern Libya and who in April launched an offensive to capture the capital. U.N. agencies and humanitarian groups have repeatedly voiced concern over the plight of thousands of migrants and refugees held in detention centres near combat zones in the Libyan capital.

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on July 07-08/2019
“You Are Born to Clean Our Houses”: Persecution of Christians, April 2019
ريموند إبراهيم/معهد كايتستون: قائمة بحوادت اضطهاد المسيحيين لشهر نيسان 2019/انتم خلقتم لتنظيف بيوتنا
Raymond Ibrahim/Gatestone Institute/July 7, 2019
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/76431/%d8%b1%d9%8a%d9%85%d9%88%d9%86%d8%af-%d8%a5%d8%a8%d8%b1%d8%a7%d9%87%d9%8a%d9%85-%d9%85%d8%b9%d9%87%d8%af-%d9%83%d8%a7%d9%8a%d8%aa%d8%b3%d8%aa%d9%88%d9%86-%d9%82%d8%a7%d8%a6%d9%85%d8%a9-%d8%a8%d8%ad/
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14469/persecution-of-christians-april
“We are a peace-loving community in this small city, we had never hurt anyone, but we don’t know from where this amount of hate is coming.” – a Christian man who survived the bombing at St. Sebastian’s Church, Morningstar News, April 22, 2019, Negombo, Sri Lanka.
“[C]rosses on graves in an Italian cemetery in Pieve di Cento have been covered with black cloth so as not to offend those who may come from another religion.” – Il Giornale, April 4, 2029, and Breitbart; Bologna, Italy.
“My brother… had compassion for me. He [told me of] the plan my father had devised; to have me beheaded in Qatar because I had refused to convert back to Islam.” – Charles Mudasir, Persecution.org (International Christian Concern), April 22, 2019, Mombasa, Kenya.
“It took about a year for me to save and arrange the required funds to establish a grocery store. However, Christians in this… society are not allowed to initiate a business. I had customers in my shop when Fiaz Khattak led an armed group…. ” — Kenneth Johnson, a poor agricultural laborer who takes care of three children, after he tried to open a small grocery store; Persecution.org (International Christian Concern), April 10, 2019, Pakistan.
On April 25, “the terrified residents of the Christian village of Jifna near Ramallah,” states a report, “were attacked by Muslim gunmen … after a woman from the village submitted a complaint to the police that the son of a prominent, Fatah-affiliated leader had attacked her family.” The gunmen “called on the [Christian] residents to pay jizya—a head tax that was levied throughout history on non-Muslim minorities under Islamic rule.” Pictured: A church in Jifna. (Image source: Soman/Wikimedia Commons)
Slaughter of Christians
Sri Lanka: On Easter Sunday, April 21, Islamic terrorists launched a bombing campaign on Christians; the death toll reached 253, with hundreds more wounded. Eight separate explosions took place, at least two of which were suicide bombings: three targeted churches celebrating Easter Sunday Mass; four targeted hotels frequented by Western tourists possibly in connection with Easter holiday; one blast was in a house, and killed three police officers during a security operation. At least 39 foreigners — including citizens of the United States, Britain, Australia, Japan, Denmark and Portugal — were among the dead.
Most of the fatalities occurred in the three church-bombings. The worst took place in St. Sebastian’s, a Catholic church in Negombo; there, over 100 Christian worshippers were murdered. At St. Anthony’s Shrine, another Catholic church in Colombo, the nation’s capital, at least 52 were murdered; and at the evangelical Zion Church, at least 28 were murdered.
“I don’t have words to express my pain,” said a Christian man who survived the bombing at St. Sebastian’s Church in Negombo:
“We lost so many people…. The smell of flesh is all around me…. We are a peace-loving community in this small city, we had never hurt anyone, but we don’t know from where this amount of hate is coming. This city has become a grave with blood and bodies lying around…. Since the past three years, we don’t know why, but we see an extremist’s mindset developing among the Muslims. I know many good Muslims, but there are also a lot who hate us, and they have never been so before. It is in these three years that we see a difference.”
“People were in pieces,” recalled Ms. Silviya, 26, concerning the bombing of St. Anthony’s Shrine in Colombo. “Blood was everywhere. I closed my son’s eyes, took him out, passed him off to a relative and ran back inside to look for my family.”
Nigeria: On Sunday, April 14, Muslim herdsmen slaughtered 17 Christians who had gathered after a baby dedication at a church. The infant’s mother was among the slain; the father was left hospitalized in critical condition.
On April 17, 2019, Fulani militants launched an attack on a predominantly Christian village; four people were killed, six were injured; over one hundred homes and food storage barns burned down.
On April 19, Muslim raiders killed 11 Christians returning from Good Friday church service; they also kidnapped and slaughtered a female British aid worker.
On Sunday, April 21, ten boys were killed while taking part in an Easter procession. Emmanuel Ogebe, a Nigerian human rights lawyer remarked in an email, “The Holy Week killings in Nigeria do not grab headlines like Sri Lanka but still Nigeria’s Christians are dying the deaths of a 1000 cuts in as many installments!”
The author of a separate April 21 report, a Nigerian Christian, spoke of the nonstop carnage of Christians there:
“In the course of investigating anti-Christian violence throughout Nigeria, I have seen things that drove me to tears. I have entered rooms and houses that were covered with blood. I have seen bodies that were shot and butchered; corpses of pregnant women who had their stomachs ripped opened [sic], the bodies of unborn babies strewn about; homes destroyed; mass graves. In some of these attacks, entire families were killed. In a visit to one state in northern Nigeria, I went to 13 villages that were desolate as a result of herdsmen attacks. In another state, I visited eight churches that were bombed in one day, and in one town I saw the only four Christians who survived a Boko Haram onslaught. They were in hiding after all other Christians fled.”
Another report quotes a local Nigerian pastor’s reaction to another church attack in April:
“After that attack, I came to visit the villages in the two-mile area around my church, and it was like a cemetery, as dozens were killed. I have dozens of little children, with no school supplies, no uniforms and no desks, and I need to create a school for them.”
United Kingdom: A court “sentenced a Muslim Iranian asylum seeker to jail,” an April 5 report says, “for stabbing his wife to death, in part for her conversion to Christianity.” Dana Abdullah, 35, stabbed Avan Najmadiein, his estranged wife and 32-year-old mother of four, 50 times with a kitchen knife because she refused to support his asylum application. He was deported from the UK in 2013 for sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl, had returned illegally, and was now“threaten[ing] to kill his wife because she ‘dishonored’ him by converting to Christianity, authorities said.” One detective involved in the case characterizedAbdullah as “an arrogant and controlling man,” who “killed Najmadiein because he resented her rejection, her refusal to support his application and her conversion to Christianity.” Abdullah was sentenced to a minimum of 18 years and one month in prison.
Attacks on Churches and Crosses
Italy: A 37-year-old Muslim migrant in Rome was recently arrested for attempted homicide after he stabbed a Christian man in the throat for wearing a crucifix around his neck. “Religious hate” is cited as an “aggravating factor” in the crime.
Days earlier, a separate report noted that “crosses on graves in an Italian cemetery in Pieve di Cento have been covered with black cloth so as not to offend those who may come from another religion,” an apparent reference to Muslim migrants, some of whom have been known to desecrate Christian cemeteries. “The cemetery,” the report adds, “has also installed motorised blackout curtains in a local chapel following renovations to hide Roman Catholic symbols during ceremonies involving other denominations.”
Indonesia: Several crosses in the Bethesda Christian cemetery in Mrican were vandalized, broken and burned in the most populous Muslim nation. The cemetery keeper said that “in the ten years since he has held the job, he has never seen such vandalism.” The report notes that
“the incident joins a long list of cases of intolerance that have taken place in recent months…. In December 2018, some residents in Purbayan removed the upper part of a cross placed on the tomb of Albertus Slamet Sugihardi, after informing his widow, Maria Sutris Winarni, that the cemetery was ‘for the exclusive use of Muslims.’ Before that, the Catholic family was forced to hold a private funeral to avoid tensions with the Islamic community. A few weeks later, Christian tombs were vandalised in several cemeteries in Magelang, 30 kilometres north of Yogyakarta, Central Java.”
Germany: While cursing his “pig god,” Muslim migrants beat and repeatedly stabbed a homeless man in Berlin for apparently displaying some Christian symbol. According to the report,
“Arabic-speaking youths were caught on video assaulting and stabbing a homeless Berlin man is speculated in the German press to be an anti-Christian motivated attack…. After physically attacking the victim, one of the men then drew a knife and stabbed him several times, leaving him with severe injuries to the buttocks, thigh, and arm, according to investigators.”
The Arabic words they yelled were translated as “We f*ck your sister, we’ll finish you!” and “Your pig-God, we f *ck your pig-God!” The report adds that this “incident is not the first in which a migrant-background Christian has been physically attacked by Arabic-speaking young men for displaying Christian symbols in public in the German capital. Recently, a 39-year-old had been beaten for wearing a necklace with a cross on it.”
Separately in Germany, a migrant man, apparently of Somali origin, entered a church in Munich during Easter Mass and threw dangerous objects at worshippers (variously described as stones or firecrackers) while shouting, “Allahu akbar” (“Allah is the greatest”). Congregants hurled their Easter meal baskets on the ground and rushed out in a panic. Some were injured; children were left in a “state of shock.” Authorities concluded that he was “mentally ill” and therefore not responsible for his actions.
Egypt: After a large Muslim mob beat two Christians, one a Coptic priest, in front of 200 terrified children who had gathered for Bible lessons, authorities responded by arresting the beaten Christian priest and shutting the church in compliance with the wishes of the mob. On the previous day, the mayor had gone to oversee ongoing reconstruction of the church. Angered at what he considered too much of an “add-on,” he accused the church of “treason” and riled local Muslims against it. At that point, according to the report,
“The city council immediately arrived, stopped the work and confiscated building materials, including the cement and the reinforced steel. The next day at 4 p.m., dozens of angry demonstrators tried to enter the church premises but were unable to get through a steel door. Carrying clubs and knives, they started shouting, cursing and pelting the building with rocks, according to Coptic Solidarity. Additional forces arrived, and Father Basilious was struck as he and another priest were escorted off the premises. Parents and church leaders were not able to move the 200 children away from the angry, chanting villagers until security forces dispersed the crowds. Though police witnessed the beating of the priest, no arrests were made. Both Father Basilious and Father Bakhoum were taken for questioning into the evening hours. Police issued an indefinite closure order, pending investigations, and froze all activities of the 10-year-old church, including its daycare and the Sunday School.”
One local Christian woman said, “The hardest emotion in that incident is the kids lived the incident in the reality. They saw the extremists attacking the church and how they injured the priests. This incident will hurt them psychologically in the future.” “This is a very hard situation,” said another. “You can see kids praying in tears because of their feelings of fear … that is very painful for us as Christians personally. I don’t trust in the government promises, but we have to continue praying for [a] reopening [of] the church.”
United States of America: South Carolina’s Midway Presbyterian Church was vandalized, an act that included having its 125 year old windows shattered. Spray-painted in black on the church’s side were: “SUBMIT TO GOD THRU ISLAM” and “MUHAMMED IS HIS PROPHET.” “It was very disturbing because we feel like this was an individual act and we don’t hold any religious group responsible for it,” said Bob Harrell, a church leader. “We think it most likely was some misguided young people.”
Attacks on Muslim Converts to Christianity
Kyrgyzstan: Three Muslim men nearly beat to death a former Muslim man because he converted to Christianity. After they broke into the home of Eldos, in his 20s,
“They shouted at him that he was a kaffir (a derogatory term for a non-Muslim) and that he had betrayed Islam (the classic Islamic view of Muslims who leave Islam). Then they tried to force him to say the shahada (the Islamic creed), which is considered conversion or re-conversion to Islam, but Eldos bravely refused. They then repeatedly kicked him in the head as he lay helpless on the floor, fracturing his jaw and smashing his teeth and leaving him semi-conscious. They then threatened that they would come back to kill him if he did not leave the village by the morning.”
Eldos reported the incident to local authorities—only to find them siding with his attackers. He “was held captive for ten hours in a prosecutor’s office in the capital Bishkek by the lawyer of his attackers. The lawyer tried to force Eldos to drop the charges against the three men who viciously attacked him.” Among the threats made during his ordeal, the defense lawyer told Eldos, was, “We are going to lock you in prison and you are going to beg me for your life.” Eldos and his uncle, also a convert to Christianity, fled the Muslim-majority nation two days later.
Uganda: A former Muslim imam and secret convert to Christianity, Sheikh Hassan Podo, 28, explained what happened to him after an informer told his family that he had been missing mosque prayers and was seen entering a church: “my brothers immediately began surrounding me, with sticks. It was difficult to escape [from the family house]. They began shouting, beating and insulting me as an ‘infidel’ and enemy of the Islamic religion.” A local heard “a loud cry emanating from Podo’s homestead, raising a big concern from the neighbors who arrived at the scene of attack and helped Podo to escape. He bled as he fled for his life. Later he was found in a pool of blood a kilometer away from the homestead, unconscious.” His wife and two children managed to escape to a nearby Christian neighbor. Podo was rushed to a clinic, where he was treated for wounds to his head and body; two days later he was discharged to a pastor’s home. According to the pastor, Podo’s father has since assembled a group of Muslims from different mosques “to hunt for the life of his son, declaring a fatwa and disowning him, and giving his land to the brothers for bringing blasphemy into the family.”
Kenya: Charles Ndingi Mudasir, a former Muslim who converted to Christianity in 2014, shared some of what transpired once his Muslim father learned of his apostasy:
“One Sunday morning, [my father] followed behind me and saw me enter the church. That evening, he called two imams and my uncles. All of them descended on me with blows, slaps, and whips, calling me a kafir (infidel)…. They forced me to repeat the shahada [several times]. They continued to beat me mercilessly. My furious father hit me in the head and I fainted. When I woke up, I found myself locked in a dark room and with a lot of pain. Back in my mind, I knew that I was still a Christian and if I died I would go to heaven. I was released after two days. Life was never the same again. I was not allowed to leave the compound on Sundays.”
Then, “in 2015, my father arranged a trip for me and my uncle, Mohamed, to Qatar. We were to be there for a month and come back,” continued Charles. While at the airport with his uncle, Charles asked his brother why he was weeping:
“My brother, who is still a Muslim, had compassion for me. He [told me of] the plan my father had devised; to have me beheaded in Qatar because I had refused to convert back to Islam. I acted very fast, escaped from my uncle at the airport and rushed back to the church.”
Later, “while surfing in a cyber café in Mombasa [with] my childhood friend, some people blindfolded and whisked me into a waiting car,” says Charles:
“I was taken round and round by the men, [who were] praising Allah that they had found me. Finally, I was taken to a mosque and uncovered….. I was later moved to another house and locked inside a small dark room. I was given seven days to repent and re-Islamize. Every day, I was given a blue pill with very little water. My captors told me that my father had sent that pill to help me remove unbelief from my thick head. Yes, my father again. My heart sank deeper…. On the eighth day, I was told that they would take me to the mosque to either be killed or [to be dropped off after] injecting me with poison. I knew my end had just arrived. I said my final prayer for deliverance from the claws of the enemy or a gracious welcome to the heavenly presence of God. The Lord answered my prayer, and my captors asked me where I wanted to go. I told them that I wanted to go to the South Coast.”
He was again blindfolded, shoved into the car, driven to the South Coast, and dumped near the Word of Life Mombasa.
General Discrimination and Persecution
Palestinian Authority: On April 25, “the terrified residents of the Christian village of Jifna near Ramallah,” states a report, “were attacked by Muslim gunmen … after a woman from the village submitted a complaint to the police that the son of a prominent, Fatah-affiliated leader had attacked her family. In response, dozens of Fatah gunmen came to the village, fired hundreds of bullets in the air, threw petrol bombs while shouting curses, and caused severe damage to public property. It was a miracle that there were no dead or wounded.” The “rioters,” the report continues, “called on the [Christian] residents to pay jizya—a head tax that was levied throughout history on non-Muslim minorities under Islamic rule. The most recent victims of the jizya were the Christian communities of Iraq and Syria under ISIS rule.” Moreover, as often happens when Muslims attack Christians in Islamic nations, “Despite the [Christian] residents’ cries for help … the PA police did not intervene during the hours of mayhem. They have not arrested any suspects.”
Malaysia: After moving to a Muslim village, Slamet Sumiarto, a Catholic artist and his family “were expelled from a village because they are not Muslim.” Sumiarto made a video about the situation:
“I just moved here to Pleret and brought all my stuff and paintings to Karet. Today I am very sad to know that I do not have the ‘right’ to stay and live here simply because I am not a Muslim and my whole family is Catholic. From an emotional point of view, I am really exhausted from this unexpected experience. My poor wife, my children and I hope to soon find a good solution to this problem so that I could stay here, in this rented house in Pleret.”
Although some local officials tried to get involved after seeing his video, in the end, Sumiarto and his family chose prudence and moved.
Pakistan: On account of his Christian identity, Muslims attacked and beatKenneth Johnson, a 27-year-old Christian, after he tried to open a small grocery store. According to Johnson, a poor agricultural laborer who takes care of three children,
“It took about a year for me to save and arrange the required funds to establish a grocery store. However, Christians in this Islamic society are not allowed to initiate a business. I had customers in my shop when Fiaz Khattak led an armed group of about a dozen Muslim [sic]. They attacked my shop, damaged the stuff, thrashed me, passed derogatory remarks against Christians and Christianity. However, I managed to escape from the scene and protected myself from major injuries.”
The Muslims made remarks to Johnson such as, “How dare you, a Christian, initiate a business of a grocery store in the village. You are born to clean the roads and our houses, not to do businesses.” Johnson continues:
“The police did not reach the scene on time when we called the helpline. Instead of a legal course of action, the police officer referred the case to the community leader. However, the community leader is even more helpless in front of an influential Muslim, therefore, I have not got any relief. It is very hard for Christians to uplift themselves. They are deprived and discouraged at different levels and face discrimination. Muslims often resist to provide opportunities to Christians. Rather, they create hurdles to keep them at lower positions.”
Egypt: On April 16, parliament approved the final draft of Egypt’s proposed amendments to the 2014 Constitution. Although the Sisi government had emphasized that these constitutional changes would help ensure the rights of Christians, the final language has disappointed many Copts. According to Article 244—the only article that mentions Christians—”the state shall guarantee that youth, Christians, the physically challenged and Egyptian expatriates are fairly represented in line with laws regulating this aspect (adequate representation).” Aside from likening Christians to the handicapped and minors, “the language is in itself problematic, as the population of Christians is considered a state secret and thus it is impossible to ascertain what fair representation looks like for believers,” notes one report.
“Most Egyptian Christians live in the Minya Governorate, where they are believed to represent nearly 50% of the population. The proposed constitutional changes also ignore other challenges Christians face, such as being treated as second-class citizens and difficulties at getting new churches approved.”
Raymond Ibrahim, author of the new book, Sword and Scimitar, Fourteen Centuries of War between Islam and the West, is a Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Gatestone Institute and a Judith Rosen Friedman Fellow at the Middle East Forum.

FPM-Hezbollah Understanding: The Origin of the Current Crisis
Hazem Saghieh/Asharq Al Awsat/July 07/2019
It is difficult to blame the tension that has recently hit Lebanon on one factor or one party. It is difficult to blame it on a faction’s feeling that it is being besieged or the other’s desire to dominate, apart from the fact that the two cases are interlaced.
The reason is the “understanding of Mar Mikhael” between the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) and Hezbollah, which is to blame as the most important incubator of all the tension that occurs and the catalyst of any civil unrest.
It is true that our sectarian system - especially in its most polarized moments - produces reservoirs of generous tension, in which everyone participates without exception. But the “understanding” of February 2006 remains undeniably the toughest. It is Lebanon’s first founding stone of the post-tutelage era.
What is the deep spirit of this "understanding"? It is a lack of understanding with all those who are not part of it, and an attempt to drag them into conflict, the outcome of which is already known, as a result of the balance of power that the “understanding” has designed. The incidents of 2008 in Beirut remain fresh in our memory.
A deadly sin, called the “quadripartite alliance” that governed the 2005 elections, led to the “understanding”. At that time, the March 14 forces seemed to be working on two contradictory programs, and they were, therefore, an easy opponent and a body whose members were internally fighting.
But there also seemed to be a strong desire to keep Christians weak in the Mountain region, and therefore in Lebanon, and that the end of the Syrian military presence would not mark the end of their weakness. This sin has reinforced the most aggressive and vengeful components of the Aounism. It pushed it into the bosom of Hezbollah, which was also looking for an ally that would end its isolation among Shiites.
The “understanding” was born out of the aptitude of the two extremes to move from defense to attack, that is, the tightening of the siege on a distracted “Haririness” and a distracting “Jumblattiness”. But like all evil geniuses, it strengthened the existing elements of the civil war through its establishment of a deadly settlement for politics and the country as a whole. A two-pronged settlement:
The FPM cuts the border to Hezbollah, while the latter cuts it from within. This is how two hostile tendencies converge: one we have already seen in Syria, and another that takes the form of political nibbling, starting from the presidency and the expansion of its powers.
There are opponents to the “understanding”. Certainly, the relationship between Aoun and Hezbollah is not homogeneous, and there are 1,000 reasons for a misunderstanding to take place within the "understanding." By virtue of the settlement, the FPM is required to abandon a crucial sovereign element, the decision of war and peace. As for Hezbollah, it is required to put up with a party that does not tolerate the presence of Shiites in the same region as the Christians.
What happened in the Hadath region summarizes this relationship and tension. Ultimately, we are faced with two sectarian forces, one religious, and the other having some prominent members who raised doubts about their hostility to Israel, which the party is fighting.
The settlement of false love has something more serious in it: it is about the impossibility of building a homogeneous ruling bloc, even if its character is complex, and therefore the impossibility of stabilizing Lebanese society and placing it on a relative national ladder of sustainability.
The theory of “the inside for the Christians and the borders for the Shiites” reminds us of the theory of “the economy for the Sunnis and the resistance for the Shiites” at a previous stage.
One does not exaggerate when saying that this Maronite-Shiite formula will not be stronger than its Syrian-sponsored Sunni-Shiite understanding, which exploded in 2005. It will also not be less expensive.
This is more than enough proof of the patchwork and negative nature of the two settlements. The national life cycle, in this case, is in a state of degeneration and exhaustion that can only be stopped by two major changes:
At the Lebanese level, the Sunni leadership can witness a turning point that will make it more capable of acting and influencing, especially if such a shift is based on balances of different regional powers that are not in the interests of the Iranian-Syrian alliance.
At the Mountain level, a real shift in Christian-Druze relations can clean the accumulated bad blood that engulfs those relations. The “reconciliation of the Mountain”, as important as it is, is not sufficient to dispel the conviction of both parties that weakening the other is the compulsory path to power. While the growing weight of Aounism among the Christians complicates such a task, it increases the need for a historic agreement sponsored by the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) and non-Aounist Christian forces, especially the Lebanese Forces.

Erdogan’s Enmity to Saudi Arabia
Salman Al-dossary/Asharq Al Awsat/July 07/2019
The G20 summit, which ended a few days ago in Osaka, Japan, was a new blow to the dreams and of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who did not bear the size of the great Saudi presence, the momentum made by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and the warm welcome by world leaders.
He launched new aggressive statements, attacking the Kingdom of course through the case of the death of Jamal Khashoggi, who died everywhere except with the “Sultan”.
It was not the first time that Erdogan’s attempts to offend Saudi Arabia prevail over his efforts to strengthen his country’s presence. He repeated his old accusations and failed endeavors for the sake of one goal: to target the Kingdom and incite enmity against it with irresponsible and recurring statements from a regime accused mainly of supporting violence and terrorism, misleading its citizens and hiding under a fake democracy mantle.
The results of the municipal elections, especially in Istanbul, revealed how the old dream was lost. Dreaming of Islamic leadership, Erdogan has not been able to consolidate his internal presence, yet does not stop inciting against Saudi Arabia. Even his citizens are tired of his boring series, which did not benefit from the expertise of the Turkish drama.
But why is Erdogan insisting on the hostility against Saudi Arabia, despite its proven failure to achieve its goal?
In my opinion, there are three main reasons behind the fury of the Turkish regime: First, Erdogan’s hostility to Saudi Arabia dates back to 2010, with the events of the so-called “Arab Spring”. While he strongly supported all parties and regimes close to the Muslim Brotherhood in their coup against power, he tried in vain to jump on those revolutions. Riyadh, on the other hand, continued to support stability and did not allow regional states, such as Turkey and Iran, to influence the choices of the Arab peoples.
The second reason was that the Kingdom considered Erdogan’s hostility against it not worthy of a reaction, as it affected Ankara more than it disturbed Riyadh itself. He waited long for a response by the Kingdom, to be surprised that it does not look at a small stone while gracefully crossing over the many obstacles trying to impede its march forward.
The third reason is that his other allies - Iran and Qatar – cannot be abandoned in this critical situation, while he has no other friends left in the world.
Therefore, despite the failure of all his endeavors, plans and conspiracies, he has only to continue the path of hostility and escalation, hoping to find a response, or even a mediation, to preserve what remains of his regime, especially that his country is currently in a relatively rickety situation.
With the Iranian ally, Turkey is the smallest partner, while it faces war with the Kurds in Afrin in the north - a military operation that will probably last for years. This in addition to a terrible failure in Sudan, Libya and Syria, not to mention the abuse of tens of thousands of Turkish people and the arrest of soldiers, civilians, judges and teachers, allegedly close to Fethullah Gulen.
If we add the expected US sanctions in response to the S-400 Russian deal, and the special relations between Riyadh and Washington, unlike Ankara, whose relations have been much strained with the United States, one can only say that Turkey is in a very weak political, economic and military position, and its only option is to export its problems abroad.
It is no secret that Erdogan has Ottoman dreams to be the leader of the Muslim world. But as he ignores history and geography, he doesn’t know that he is not facing only Saudi Arabia, but also the Arab and Islamic countries.
In addition, he has become isolated by the international community because of his practices and blatant interference in the affairs of sovereign states. Thus, Erdogan’s continued hostility towards the Kingdom and its people has proved to be a wrong bet and a cheap trade. Sooner or later, he will bear the consequences of his actions.

Britain caught between a US rock and a Chinese hard place
Andrew Hammond/Arab News/July 07/2019
Relations between the UK and China are cooling sharply amid the most serious political unrest in Hong Kong for decades. While this is a headache for Beijing, the overall challenge may be even greater for London in the context of its post-Brexit dependence on growing trade ties with fast growing economies in Asia and beyond.
The Hong Kong protesters have been squarely defended by Jeremy Hunt and Boris Johnson, the two candidates to be leader of the British Conservative Party, and almost certainly prime minister shortly thereafter. Foreign Secretary Hunt, for instance, called on Beijing not to use the protests against a proposed Hong Kong law allowing for extradition to mainland China as a “pretext for repression.”
Despite their rhetoric, Hunt and Johnson both know relations went into a deep freeze in 2012 when David Cameron, then prime minister, offended Beijing by meeting the Dalai Lama. That is why the governments of both Cameron and Theresa May ratcheted down human-rights concerns about China, and relations entered a “golden era” after Xi Jinping’s visit to the UK in 2015.
While this stance is not without its critics — including Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, who raised human-rights issues with Xi during his visit — Conservative ministers have increasingly taken the view that enhancing ties with Beijing is in the national interest. They expect Xi to be in power well into the 2020s, and believe there is an opportunity to develop a relationship that could make a significant contribution to UK prosperity for a generation.
However, it is not only Corbyn but also Washington which has raised concerns about the degree to which London is perceived to be cosying up to Beijing, especially under the Cameron government when finance minister George Osborne pledged to make the UK “China’s best partner in the West.” Feathers were ruffled in the Obama administration when the UK became a founder member of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), championed by Beijing as an alternative to the World Bank.
Beijing’s trillion-dollar Belt and Road infrastructure project may constitute a new area of dispute between London and Washington. After Italy this year became the first G7 nation to endorse the plan, much to the alarm of the Trump team, China is looking for other key nations to support it, and finance minister Philip Hammond attended the Belt and Road Summit in Beijing in April.
Conservative ministers have increasingly taken the view that enhancing ties with Beijing is in the national interest. They expect Xi to be in power well into the 2020s, and believe there is an opportunity to develop a relationship that could make a significant contribution to UK prosperity for a generation.
As these examples underline, economics has assumed even higher importance in bilateral relations in recent years. In the context of Brexit, London is putting ever greater emphasis on consolidating trade ties with non-EU nations, as underscored by recent trips to China by ministers including May and Hammond.
The UK already receives more Chinese direct investment than any other EU country, and is one of Beijing’s top three trade partners in Europe. China is also one of the UK’s top non-EU trade partner.
Security issues are a growing part of the agenda too. The two nations recently celebrated the 45th anniversary of the China-UK diplomatic relationship, and Beijing has sought to expand military cooperation with London — including, for the first time, the dispatch of warships to London for a tour in 2018.
However, on the security agenda too there are tensions for London to manage. In February, for instance, a trip by Hammond to Beijing was canceled after a speech by Gavin Williamson, defense minister at the time, was perceived by Chinese officials as saber-rattling; Williamson asserted that London could deploy an aircraft carrier in disputed waters in the Pacific for its first operational cruise in 2021.
Public confirmation of the London-Beijing spat came when the Chinese ambassador used a rare press conference to condemn UK “interference” in Hong Kong, and was summoned to the Foreign Office to have China’s obligations under the 1984 Sino-British Declaration on Hong Kong explained to him.
The Chinese technology giant Huawei could also be a source of tension. Security officials in Washington have threatened to limit intelligence sharing if the UK allows Huawei to build part of its 5G high-speed mobile network, because they believe the company would be obliged to pass sensitive information to the Chinese government. This decision, a key one for Johnson or Hunt as the next prime minister, is another example of the high-stakes diplomatic balancing act for London, given its desire for closer economic ties with Beijing after it leaves the EU.
*Andrew Hammond is an Associate at LSE IDEAS at the London School of Economics

Europe should pull the plug on Iran nuclear deal
د.مجيد رافيزدا: مطلوب من أوروبا اتخاذ موقف واضح ومتشدد من الإتفاق النووي مع إيران
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Arab News/July 07/2019
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/76442/%d8%af-%d9%85%d8%ac%d9%8a%d8%af-%d8%b1%d8%a7%d9%81%d9%8a%d8%b2%d8%af%d8%a7-%d9%85%d8%b7%d9%84%d9%88%d8%a8-%d9%85%d9%86-%d8%a3%d9%88%d8%b1%d9%88%d8%a8%d8%a7-%d8%a7%d8%aa%d8%ae%d8%a7%d8%b0-%d9%85%d9%88/
The Islamic Republic is blatantly violating the terms of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal. In addition, contrary to the shared international desire to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East, Tehran appears determined to further destabilize the region and ratchet up tensions.
According to an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) spokesperson, Tehran has breached the limit on its stockpile of enriched uranium: “We can confirm that IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano has informed the Board of Governors that the agency verified on July 1 that Iran’s total enriched uranium stockpile exceeded 300 kilograms of UF6 (uranium hexafluoride) enriched up to 3.67 percent U-235 (or the equivalent in different chemical forms).” In fact, the Iranian regime has quadrupled its production in a short period of time.
Meanwhile, Behrouz Kamalvandi, a spokesperson for Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, announced last month that Tehran would restart the process of enriching uranium up to 20 percent in July. And, on Sunday, Tehran confirmed it would imminently start enriching uranium beyond the 3.67 percent threshold. Once Iran hits the 20 percent mark, bomb-grade material would be within relatively easy reach and its breakout time — the amount of time needed to produce enough weapons-grade uranium for one nuclear bomb — would become much shorter.
The Iranian regime’s defiance is nuclear blackmail in what is tantamount to a scarcely concealed, increasingly desperate effort to force the Europeans into action. It also comes against a backdrop of surging geopolitical tensions in the region, with Tehran at the center.
On June 13, two oil tankers were attacked in the Gulf of Oman — the second such attack in the space of a month. In the days following the most recent incident, independent investigations conducted by the US and the UK separately concluded that Iranian forces were responsible for the attack, which not only threatened to ignite conflict in an extremely volatile region but also led to a surge in oil prices.
Beyond the tanker attacks, Iranian-backed Houthi forces continue to fire rockets into Saudi Arabia, frequently targeting Abha Airport, including a June 23 incident that caused one death and 21 injuries.
Iranian support for the Houthis, often overlooked in Western media coverage, is a significant factor in the continuation of the war in Yemen. As documented by the UN, the Houthis are responsible for some of the war’s worst abuses, including the use of child soldiers and torture. A recent World Food Program report also accused the militia of intercepting aid meant for the Yemenis in most need, further stalling the path to peace.
It is time to recognize that the agreement is not ‘comprehensive’ at all. It is a compromise, and bowing to nuclear extortion is a compromise too far
In contrast to the White House’s robust stance following the Iranian regime’s announcement regarding its breach of the 300-kilogram limit on enriched uranium, the response from Europeans has been muted. After a meeting with foreign ministers, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs Frederica Mogherini said that the bloc’s focus remains on “keeping the agreement in place,” telling reporters that Europe will consider Iran to be “fully compliant” with the nuclear agreement until evidence from the IAEA proves otherwise.
Since President Donald Trump withdrew the US from the JCPOA, the flawed agreement has been kept on life support by the European signatories. Tehran has consistently been pushing for Europe to do more — even more than it is capable of delivering, many would argue.
Europe has been working to implement a special purpose vehicle — known as the Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (Instex) — that will allow countries to continue trading with Iran despite US sanctions. Its implementation, however, has been fraught with difficulty. There is no doubt that the latest announcements from Tehran will trigger European officials into making further hasty efforts to ensure that Instex is viable and can help to protect the Iranian economy.
This will be precisely the response Tehran was hoping for. Cowing to demands to do more in order to keep the deal alive, while Iran is clearly doing less, is making Europe look foolish — a sentiment echoed last week by German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas.
Iran’s decision to continue breaching the JCPOA marks a new chapter in an extremely protracted and dangerous game of brinkmanship between Iran and the other signatories to the agreement. This demands a strong response from Europe. By surrendering to Iran’s extortion attempts, Europe will fail to curb Tehran’s regional and global ambitions and will, in effect, be giving it the green light to continue its march toward becoming a destructive nuclear force.
There may still be some in Europe who cannot see beyond what they consider to be the value in the JCPOA, but it is time to recognize that the agreement is not “comprehensive” at all. It is a compromise, and bowing to nuclear extortion is a compromise too far.
Europe must now focus its diplomatic efforts on countering the clear and present threat that aggressive Iranian behavior across the region poses. It is time for Europe to move its efforts away from keeping the failing deal alive. It is time for Europe to switch off the life support for the JCPOA.
• Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a Harvard-educated Iranian-American political scientist. He is a leading expert on Iran and US foreign policy, a businessman and president of the International American Council. Twitter: @Dr_Rafizadeh

Iran’s proxies defy Iraqi PM’s anti-militia decree
بارعة علم الدين: الأذرع الإيرانية في العراق تتحدى قرار رئيس الحكومة دمجها في الجيش
Baria Alamuddin/Arab News/July 07/2019
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/76445/%d8%a8%d8%a7%d8%b1%d8%b9%d8%a9-%d8%b9%d9%84%d9%85-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%af%d9%8a%d9%86-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%a3%d8%b0%d8%b1%d8%b9-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%a5%d9%8a%d8%b1%d8%a7%d9%86%d9%8a%d8%a9-%d9%81%d9%8a-%d8%a7%d9%84/
The recent trilateral meeting in Jerusalem, between Russia, the US and Israel, has been subjected to drastically different assessments: From those who melodramatically view it as a new Sykes-Picot for carving up regional influence (particularly as there were no Arab parties in the room); to those who skeptically saw it as a renewed agreement to disagree.
Nevertheless, there appears to have been consensus about the necessity of curtailing Iran-backed militias in Iraq following escalating attacks against foreign military, diplomatic and oil installations. US intelligence sources furthermore indicated that missile strikes against Saudi targets may have been launched by militants in southern Iraq.
These factors contributed momentum to Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi’s announcement last week that all paramilitary (Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi) elements must fully integrate into state forces and abandon previous affiliations. Combatants must stay out of politics. The decree gave militants until July 31 to comply or be considered outlaws. This sounds like a major setback for Iran’s cultivation of sectarian paramilitaries. However, it’s only the latest of a succession of such stillborn initiatives.
Following the end of set-piece battles against Daesh, these forces have squabbled amongst themselves; competing for influence in various localities, while rivaling one another across the full spectrum of criminal activities: From narcotics and extortion, to people-trafficking and money-laundering. The cautious welcome from some senior Hashd officials may signal their hope that this decree represents an opportunity to overcome these chronic rivalries and make the movement stronger and more coherent.
Qais Al-Khazali said the decision would “halt all attempts to dissolve or merge” the Hashd. The Hezbollah Brigades, however, warned that “criminalizing the mujahidin” would harm “elements supporting the security effort,” while the government’s priority should be removing US “occupation forces.” Another militia leader told AP that his faction had secret offices that would remain open. The prime minister and Americans “are dreaming” if they think they can implement the decision, he boasted.
Significant contingents of the security forces are under de facto control of the Hashd through its dominance of the Interior Ministry, and Hashd commander Hadi Al-Amiri’s extensive security powers across central Iraqi provinces. Prime Minister Abdul Mahdi has proved remarkably ineffectual; at times merely a mediator between the Sadrists and Al-Amiri’s Bina coalition. After a year of wrangling, the appointment of the relatively unknown Yassin Al-Yasiri (affiliated with Bina) as interior minister can be expected to allow Hashd/Iranian dominance to continue.
The post-Saddam Hussein Iraqi state has played a futile game of legislative cat and mouse with Shiite paramilitary forces. Paramilitary leaders are experts in twisting the intended meaning of decrees to fit their purposes. They base their legitimacy as Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi on Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani’s famous June 2014 fatwa, mobilizing volunteers against the Daesh threat. However, Al-Sistani instructed volunteers to enroll in the regular military — not join militias. He stressed that all forces must fight under the Iraqi flag and should not have independent banners and identities. Militia leaders facetiously responded by sewing their own logos onto Iraqi flags.
It is futile for the Hashd to be disbanded, only for these militias to pop up again under different guises
Under Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki’s patronage, the principal militia factions had already been upscaling their activities prior to the establishment of the Hashd. Al-Maliki secured the release from prison of notorious terrorists like Al-Khazali and legitimized them with political positions. The 2014 creation of the Hashd merely consolidated this reality and allowed some militias to inflate to 10 times their size.
When Al-Maliki was replaced by Haider Abadi there were serious efforts to regularize the Hashd within existing military structures. This was enshrined in 2016 legislation. Yet nothing changed. Hashd forces continued acting under their own separate identities, under local commanders, who ultimately took their orders from Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani. Abadi issued yet another decree supposedly regularizing the Hashd’s status in May 2018, just as Hashd leaders were defying the constitution by competing in elections.
Iran isn’t simply going to walk away from 40 years of investment in its Iraqi assets just because the country’s weakest prime minister to date has decreed it so. While a sanctions-squeezed Tehran has reduced its financial outflows to the Lebanese Hezbollah and Syrian proxies, the Hashd is financed from the Iraqi state payroll. According to trusted sources, some Hashd funding is being syphoned off for Tehran’s benefit. Current pressures thus make Tehran more dependent on these proxies; for sanctions evasion, revenue generation, widening its influence network, and alternative routes to retaliate against its enemies. At best, Hashd units may temporarily reduce their overt visibility before returning to business as usual when political pressure dissipates.
I hear academics and decision-makers describing militias as an inextricable component of Iraqi political life. According to these defeatist assessments, we must simply acclimatize ourselves to this reality. Yet representative political systems are incompatible with partisan paramilitaries who terrorize voters to engineer their preferred result — as happened during last year’s Iraqi elections. Iraq can’t function as a sovereign state while beholden to brazen Iranian interference. Coherent statehood or paramilitary anarchy? Iraq can’t have both.
Tehran has repeatedly proven itself more capable than Washington in tenaciously implementing long-term strategies over extended periods of time; drawing down their investments when circumstances are against them, but steadily extending its regional dominance from one decade to the next.
It is futile for the Hashd to be disbanded, only for these militias to pop up again under different guises. Senior US and Iraqi officials have told me that Iraq’s overmighty militias can only be emasculated through military confrontation. Their eradication will thus require intense and sustained efforts with muscular foreign support.
Abdul Mahdi’s decree is a laudable declaration of intent. Now we find out whether he and his international backers possess the leadership qualities and political will to make this a reality.
• Baria Alamuddin is an award-winning journalist and broadcaster in the Middle East and the UK. She is editor of the Media Services Syndicate and has interviewed numerous heads of state.