LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
July 21/2019
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
http://data.eliasbejjaninews.com/eliasnews19/english.july21.19.htm

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Bible Quotations For today
No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 15/09-14:”As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete. ‘This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on July 20-21/2019
conscience awakening
Lebanon: Merchants Complain About Shortage in Lebanese Labor Force, Fear Bankruptcy
Another Hezbollah Leader On US Sanctions List
Syrians in Lebanon Face Increased Harassment
Rahi, Druze Sheikhs Affirm Significance of Dialogue
Lebanese Forces: Labor Minister will pursue implementation of foreign labor measures, including Palestinian labor
Jumblatt says budget of 2019 is over, 2020 most important!
Bteich: Consumer Protection teams will be on the lookout for violators
Hawat says rejection of state budget sounds the alarm bell for those concerned
Alain Aoun: Celebrations uncalled for following budget endorsement since it is a duty
Jaber to Radio Lebanon: Fee on generators provides 100 billion pounds to the treasury
Jabak vows 'no austerity' in health sector, says hospitals in South, Nabatieh refuse no patient
Bustani Inaugurates Infrastructure Forum in Sidon
U.S. Marine Corps Commander Visits Lebanon
Khalil Says Ministry Embarked on 2020 Budget
Report: Government Momentum a Priority for Hariri
The 'Slow Death' of Palestinians in Lebanon

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on July 20-21/2019
Mystery drone attack on pro-Iran Iraqi militia was a gamechanger in the US-Iran standoff
US Rejects Iranian FM Proposal on Lifting Sanctions Permanently
Iran Probes British-Flagged Tanker Seized after 'Collision'
US Putting Troops Back in Saudi Arabia
Western Allies Back UK over Tanker Seizure
British FM Says Iran on 'Dangerous Path' for Seizing Tanker
Iraq: Turkey Carries Out Raids Against PKK
Jeffrey in Ankara Next Monday to Discuss Safe Zone, Manbij Roadmap
Netanyahu Makes Israeli History as Longest-Serving Premier
Last Kadhafi PM Freed in Libya for 'Health Reasons'
Human Rights Minister: Morocco Made Great Strides in Ending Violations
Syria: Fierce Shelling on 81st Day of Escalation

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on July 20-21/2019
Conscience awakening/Elias Bejjani/July 20/2019
The 'Slow Death' of Palestinians in Lebanon/by Khaled Abu Toameh/Gatestone Institute/July 20, 2019
Mystery drone attack on pro-Iran Iraqi militia was a gamechanger in the US-Iran standoff/DEBKAfile/July 20/2019
The fate of Erdogan's Turkey hangs on its relations with the US and Russia/Raghida Dergham/The National/July 20/2019
The Apollo 11 Mission Was Also a Global Media Sensation/The New York Times/Tiffany Hsu/July 20/2019
The EU Suffers From a Navigation Failure/Leonid Bershidsky/Bloomberg/Gatestone Institute/July 20, 2019
Time for Europe to Get Over The "Worst Deal Ever"/Con Coughlin/Gatestone Institute/July 20, 2019

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News published on July 20-21/2019
conscience awakening
Elias Bejjani/July 20/2019
Below is an Audio & Text Commentary in our beautiful Lebanese spoken dialogue. It openly and faith wise addresses the corrupted politicians, puppet citizens, officials and owners of the so called parties. The main question that the commentary puts for debate: Is there any hope for a conscience awakening in regards to Lebanon's leaders and citizens?
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/76841/%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%8a%d8%a7%d8%b3-%d8%a8%d8%ac%d8%a7%d9%86%d9%8a-%d8%aa%d8%b9%d9%84%d9%8a%d9%82-%d8%a8%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%b5%d9%88%d8%aa-%d9%88%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%86%d8%b5-%d9%87%d9%84-%d9%85%d9%86-%d8%a3%d9%85/

Lebanon: Merchants Complain About Shortage in Lebanese Labor Force, Fear Bankruptcy
Beirut - Paula Astih/Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 20 July, 2019
The main street of Dora on Friday was not the same as it was one month ago when the Beirut suburb was filled with pedestrians and shoppers. Today, this street is empty, similar to a large number of shops spread in this commercial and residential zone, which is considered the main destination for low-income and poor Lebanese, in addition to foreign workers. This new scenery is mainly due to the last measures enforced by the Labor Ministry as part of its “Combating illegal foreign workers” campaign, which mainly targeted Syrian workers, who in their majority are working in Lebanon without permits. Bassem, the director of a restaurant in Dora, told Asharq Al-Awsat that business has dropped 50 percent since the Ministry enforced its new measures because the majority of foreign workers, who particularly visited the street during the weekend, are not coming anymore in fear of being caught by the security apparatuses for lacking legal papers. As part of the new measures, “Lebanese institutions cannot exclusively employ foreign workers but should respect a new quota, which stipulates that they employ only one foreigner in return of 3 Lebanese,” sources from the Labor Ministry told Asharq Al-Awsat on Friday.
Printed papers are spread over windows of Dora’s shops in demand of employing Lebanese workers. However, shop owners complain that no Lebanese had applied for the available jobs. Samir, 66, the owner of a clothing shop, told Asharq Al-Awsat that he exchanged one of his Syrian employees with a Lebanese, who quickly left the job because he asked her to clean the shop and to work on Sundays and take a day off during the week.  Several sources predict there are around 800,000 Syrian workers in Lebanon, whereas only 2356 had received a working permit from the Labor Ministry. Also, those sources assume that around 65,000 Palestinian refugees work in Lebanon with only 1096 with a working permit. Lately, the cries of bakery owners were louder due to the measures enforced by the Labor Ministry. Those owners even threatened to increase the price of bread.
The head of the Association of Bakeries in Lebanon, Kazem Ibrahim, announced that Lebanese are not willing to work in bakeries due to the difficult conditions this job requires. He said that a list of demands requested by the Labor Ministry for employing foreign workers would impose additional financial burdens on bakery owners and therefore, would highly increase the price of bread.

Another Hezbollah Leader On US Sanctions List
Washington - Elie Youssef/Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 20 July, 2019
The US Treasury Department announced on Friday the inclusion of Lebanese Hezbollah leader Salman Raouf Salman on the terrorism list and has offered a reward of up to $7 million for information. “The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated a senior member of Hezbollah's External Security Organization (ESO), which is responsible for the planning, coordination, and execution of terrorist attacks outside of Lebanon. Specifically, OFAC designated Salman Raouf Salman for acting for or on behalf of Hezbollah,” an official statement read. “We are targeting Salman Raouf Salman, who coordinated a devastating attack in Buenos Aires, Argentina against the largest Jewish center in South America 25 years ago and has directed terrorist operations in the Western Hemisphere for Hezbollah ever since,” said Sigal Mandelker, Treasury’s Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. “The United States will continue to work with the Government of Argentina, and our friends throughout the region and the world, to ensure that Hezbollah operatives can never disassociate themselves from their terrorist actions, and to prevent them from carrying out new attacks that enable Iran’s malign agenda,” the statement added. Under US Treasury sanctions, any assets belonging to Salman will be frozen. Born in the city of San Andres in Colombia in 1965, Salman has Lebanese and Colombian nationalities and is believed to be currently residing in Lebanon.

Syrians in Lebanon Face Increased Harassment
Beirut - Youssef Diab/Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 20 July, 2019
The presence of Syrian refugees in Lebanon aroused controversies and disputes among the country’s political and social components, in parallel with campaigns calling for their return to Syria despite the risks they could face there.
Lebanese and international human rights organizations have warned of the persecution and racial and ethnic discrimination against the displaced, at a time when the Ministry of Labor launched recent measures to crackdown on institutions that employ foreign workers who do not hold a work permit. As the Russian-Lebanese plan to secure the return of the displaced to their homeland has nearly collapsed due to the complexities of the Syrian situation and the Syrian regime’s implicit resistance, the Syrians are facing a multidimensional campaign in Lebanon, mainly led by the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) and its leader, Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil. “The phenomenon of the harassment of Syrian refugees in Lebanon is not new, but it is developing progressively in connection with the change in the regional situation in favor of the Syrian regime,” said Lawyer Nabil Halabi, director of the Lebanese Institute for Democracy and Human Rights (LIFE). In comments to Asharq Al-Awsat, Halabi talked about a “siege" imposed on the refugee community in Lebanon, starting with the dismantling of their camps and the demolition of the cement rooms that they have built to protect their children from snowstorms, in addition to depriving them of the right to work. Reports from international organizations and statements by former Minister for Displaced Affairs Moein al-Merhebi said that dozens of Syrians who had been returned or went back voluntarily to their country were arrested and liquidated by Syrian intelligence. The reports were responded by a violent campaign by the FPM and Syrian regime allies in Lebanon, accusing Merhebi and humanitarian organizations of inciting the Syrians to remain in Lebanon. However, the head of the Foreign Workers’ Control Department at the Lebanese Ministry of Labor, Marilyn Atallah, denied the presence of a policy of persecution against Syrian refugees because of the closure of some of the illegal shops they established. She told Asharq Al-Awsat that the role of the Ministry of Labor was to implement the laws governing foreign labor and to urge anyone who employs foreign workers to attend the ministry to regulate their legal status. Atallah added that the Minister of Labor Kamil Abu Sleiman “always gives his directives to the ministry’s inspectors to deal with refugees and all foreigners residing in Lebanon, based on humanitarian standards and ethics.”

Rahi, Druze Sheikhs Affirm Significance of Dialogue
Naharnet/July 20/2019
Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi met in Bkirki on Saturday with a delegation representing the Druze Sheikhs including Ghandi Makarem and Ghassan al-Halabi, who relayed a verbal message from Druze spiritual leader Sheikh Naim Hassan, the National News Agency reported. The interlocutors stressed on preserving the national constants highlighting the importance of dialogue and communication between various components of the Lebanese society.

Lebanese Forces: Labor Minister will pursue implementation of foreign labor measures, including Palestinian labor
NNA - Sat 20 Jul 2019
In an issued statement this afternoon, the Lebanese Forces Party denied all reports that Labor Minister Kamil Abu Slaiman has retracted "the measures he had taken to regulate foreign labor in Lebanon, including Palestinian labor," deeming them as "false, fabricated news."
The statement stressed that the Minister of Labor is continuing to implement his adopted measures in this respect, because the applicable Lebanese laws require him to do so. The Party reminded that the Labor Minister has repeatedly affirmed, in more than one instance, position and interview, his pursuit of the set plan to implement the Lebanese law.
Moreover, the LF Party deplored "the deliberate misinformation by some media outlets, including Al-Akhbar and OTV," reiterating that "the news is completely groundless and that the Minister of Labor's plan is ongoing."”

Jumblatt says budget of 2019 is over, 2020 most important!
NNA - Sat 20 Jul 2019
Progressive Socialist Party Chief, Walid Jumblatt, tweeted Saturday about the annual budget, saying: "2019 budget is over...Most important is the 2020 budget!" Along with his tweet, Jumblatt published an image of a group of robots working diligently on computers.

Bteich: Consumer Protection teams will be on the lookout for violators
NNA - Sat 20 Jul 2019
Minister of Economy and Trade, Mansour Bteich, assured Saturday via Twitter that the Ministry's Consumer Protection teams will demonstrate extreme alertness towards any violators when it comes to price of products in the market. "Some have attempted to link between the budget endorsement and triggering people's anxiousness towards an increase in prices...I tell them directly that the Consumer Protection teams in the Ministry of Economy and Trade will tighten their price control measures, and will be on their usual close lookout for any violators," Bteich reiterated.

Hawat says rejection of state budget sounds the alarm bell for those concerned
NNA - Sat 20 Jul 2019
"We rejected the state budget as a triggering sign of alert to those concerned in order to prepare the 2020 draft budget according to our proposals, and placing the right finger on the wound while respecting the constitutional deadlines imposed and completing the required closure of accounts," said MP Ziad Hawat via his Twitter account earlier today. Meanwhile and on a different note, Hawat promised to submit a draft project law against airport arrests due to traffic violations. In a follow-up tweet, he said: "In wake of the case raised by Attorney Mark Habka regarding the arrest of Lebanese citizens at Beirut Airport as a result of the provisions of traffic violations issued against them, and after the appeal of HE the Minister of the Interior yesterday to amend the applicable law, next will be a practical step on my part, namely to prepare the needed draft project law for the amendment required to address the flaws in this respect."

Alain Aoun: Celebrations uncalled for following budget endorsement since it is a duty
NNA - Sat 20 Jul 2019
"The adoption of the state budget does not require celebrations and congratulations, for it is a duty of the government and the parliament council," said Member of the "Strong Lebanon Parliamentary Bloc" MP Alain Aoun on Saturday. Speaking in an interview to Radio Lebanon, Aoun said there remains a lot to be accomplished, hoping that the upcoming budget would be better than the current one. He anticipated that the 2020 annual budget would be sent to the Parliament Council between the months of September and October 2019. The MP continued to indicate that each member of parliament has the right to vote with or against the budget, while denouncing the continuous attempts by some to criticize positive achievements and actions. "They do not want to see anything good for the country, and they lack objectivity and do not distinguish between good and bad," he said regrettably. Aoun considered that while achieving the figures aspired for by the state budget might not be totally guaranteed, it remains for sure that this budget will turn out better than the previous years. He added that the "Finance and Budget Committee worked honestly and frankly and did not try to hide anything, whereby the facts were revealed through requesting the necessary details from the relevant ministries."He called on the Ministry of Economy to exert efforts to monitor the prices of products in the market. Aoun also urged the cabinet to "return to its regular meetings and necessary action because ample time has been given for matters to cool down in the country following the incident in the Lebanese Mountain," while leaving the judicial measures to take their natural course regarding said incident.

Jaber to Radio Lebanon: Fee on generators provides 100 billion pounds to the treasury
NNA - Sat 20 Jul 2019
"Development and Liberation" Parliamentary Bloc Member, MP Yassin Jaber, disclosed Saturday that his proposed fee on generators comes in wake of the absence of any charges imposed on this sector similar to other sectors, despite all its achieved profits. Jaber told "Radio Lebanon" that he is currently working on a draft article to be proposed in this context, adding that he has consulted with experts from the Ministry of Finance to improve the content of said article, while coordinating with other parliamentary blocs that have unanimously agreed to support his proposal. He also indicated that the House Speaker, Prime Minister and Finance Minister have all responded positively to his proposal, to be included as a budget item. Jaber went on to explain that his Bloc did not vote for the austerity budget because it is ideal, noting that it will be up to the government and Finance Ministry to ensure proper collection of dues and achieving the figures aspired for by implementing said budget. The MP also emphasized the need to firmly address the customs and illegal border crossings dossier, highlighting the importance of customs control through legitimate crossings. He called for "taking other reform steps to complete the austerity budget, especially in the electricity sector, customs control, marine property breaches, settlement of building violations and others, with the need to secure proper collection of state dues." "The main problem is the issue of liquidity and weak revenues," Jaber added, considering that "confidence cannot be restored through chaos and closing the gaps that the country suffers."As for the cabinet sessions, Jaber urged the government to hold more than one weekly session to improve its image and gain the trust of citizens, while expressing his regret that "many laws are not applied."

Jabak vows 'no austerity' in health sector, says hospitals in South, Nabatieh refuse no patient
NNA - Sat 20 Jul 2019
Public Health Minister, Jamil Jabak, toured Saturday the region of Nabatieh in the South, which he began by visiting "Loyalty to the Resistance" Parliamentary Bloc Head, MP Mohammad Raad, in the presence of senior Hezbollah officials. The visit was a chance to dwell on health issues related to the South and Nabatieh region. Jabak promised that there will be no austerity when it comes to the health sector, stressing that hospitals in the South and Nabatieh never fail to admit patients for financial incapabilities. "Today, the patient in the South or Nabatieh region has no problem being admitted into hospital for treatment. We have activated the Pharmacy Center located in the Nabatieh Governmental Hospital and Nabih Berri Governmental Hospital. There is a delegate who communicates with the Ministry of Health and can ensure the needed chronic medicines for patients every week," Jabak went on. "We are working on a project with the primary health centers in the region, which will be covered by the Ministry of Health and the project will serve the entire area," he added, while assuring that "this project is not for the South region alone, but for all of Lebanon."Referring to his Nabatieh visit today, Jabak said that the purpose is "to assess the needs of the region, especially following our recent visits and after the adoption of the state budget...We have now moved from promises to execution, and the possibilities of implementation are there." He added: "We can work with each other and meet the needs of citizens. We all know that Nabatieh Province is home to a large number of citizens while the medical services here are modest...Therefore, the more we can support the health sector in this region, the more we can improve its situation." In turn, MP Raad thanked Minister Jabak for his vitality, high morale and constant concern for the health of citizens in this country, and for the promising programs he has in store for the health sector. Following his visit to Raad, Jabak then headed to the residence of Nabatieh's Imam, Sheikh Abdel-Hussein Sadek, who thanked the Minister for all his exerted efforts to strengthen the health sector. Sheikh Sadek called on Jabak to ensure that the health card would include all Lebanese citizens regardless of their affiliations or sects, wishing him success in implementing his health plan so that no citizen remains deprived of proper medical care and attention. Jabak, in turn, stressed that he is adamant on pursuing his health plan and implementing the various health services promised to citizens.

Bustani Inaugurates Infrastructure Forum in Sidon
Naharnet/July 20/2019
Energy Minister Nada Bustani on Saturday inaugurated the opening of the Forum of Facilities and Infrastructure in the coastal city of Sidon accompanied by Sidon MP Bahia Hariri, the National News Agency reported. Bustani and Hariri toured the city's various heritage and historical sites before the opening, said NNA. “Sidon is the gateway to the South and deserves the effort to enjoy a clean, healthy environment and proper infrastructure,” said Bustani. The Minister has recently launched a countrywide campaign to remove encroachments on the electricity grid in a bid to help restructure the country's crumbling electricity sector.

U.S. Marine Corps Commander Visits Lebanon
Naharnet/July 20/2019
The Commander of United States Marine Corps Forces Central Command, Lieutenant General Carl E. Mundy, and U.S. Ambassador Elizabeth H. Richard visited Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) installations on Friday and met with senior officials, the U.S. embassy said.
In his meetings, General Mundy “highlighted the U.S. government’s partnership with Lebanon, which provided nearly $300 million of security assistance in 2018,” the embassy said in a statement. The Lieutenant General also reaffirmed U.S. support for the Lebanese Armed Forces in their capacity as “the sole, legitimate defender of Lebanon,” the statement said. Mundy’s visit follows a series of joint military and security training exercises in Lebanon, such as Resolute Response, which have “increased professionalism, capabilities, and collaboration with the LAF,” the statement added.

Khalil Says Ministry Embarked on 2020 Budget
Naharnet/July 20/2019
Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil hailed the government’s and parliament’s efforts leading to the ratification of the 2019 state budget, stressing that his ministry has started preparations for the 2020, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Saturday. “What has been achieved is very important, but this budget basically does not satisfy our ambitions for an “emergency” budget required by the Lebanese situation. However, the form it has been endorsed with is the best available based on which we can build to prepare a better 2020 budget,” said Khalil. Despite critics doubting the budget’s efficacy, Khalil is still hoping it would have a positive shock at the interval level, “we have made an important achievement demonstrated in the ability to reduce the deficit from more than 11 percent to within 7 percent. Further reduction and growth will be our main objective in the next budget,” said the minister. He pointed out that after the completion of the draft budget for 2019 the Ministry of Finance began preparation of the draft budget 2020, and issued a circular to all public departments and institutions in that regard.

Report: Government Momentum a Priority for Hariri
Naharnet/July 20/2019
Prime Minister Saad Hariri is keen on providing momentum for the government’s work now that the month late 2019 state budget has been approved, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Saturday. “Resumptions of the government meetings are a priority for the Premier,” sources close to Hariri told the daily without being named. However, they did not confirm that a session would be held next week. “Hariri realizes the magnitude of the crisis, his main concern is that things calm down in the country, mainly at the economic and political levels. Tension serves no one’s interest,” they said. “The government has to meet. Everyone must take responsibility, given the circumstances of the country at all levels,” added the sources. The Premier has postponed a government meeting early in July to allow tensions to ease down against the backdrop of deadly clashes in the Mountainous region of Qabrshmoun that sent politicians in loggerheads over responsible sides. “Hariri has earlier postponed a cabinet meeting to avoid tension as a result of the incident, but in all cases the government must eventually meet given the circumstances in the country,” they added.

The 'Slow Death' of Palestinians in Lebanon
by Khaled Abu Toameh/Gatestone Institute/July 20, 2019
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14553/slow-death-palestinians-lebanon
The Lebanese authorities' measures against Palestinians again highlight the discrimination Palestinians have long been facing in this Arab country. "Palestinians in Lebanon," according to a 2017 report by the Associated Press, "suffer discrimination in nearly every aspect of daily life..." Lebanese law restricts Palestinians' ability to work in several professions, including law, medicine and engineering, and bars them from receiving social security benefits. In 2001, the Lebanese parliament also passed a law prohibiting Palestinians from owning property.
Yet, somehow, Lebanon's discriminatory and racist measures against Palestinians do not seem to bother pro-Palestinian groups around the world. These groups regularly turn a blind eye to the misery of Palestinians living in Arab countries. Instead, they set their sights on Israel, scrutinizing it for imagined abuses against Palestinians.
It is high time for the pro-Palestinian groups on university campuses in the US, Canada, Britain and Australia to organize an "Arab Apartheid Week" instead of accusing Israel of "discriminating" against Palestinians. It is also high time for the international media to take notice of anti-Palestinian measures taken by Lebanon against the Palestinians at a time when Israel is increasing the number of Palestinian workers allowed to enter Israel for work.
Who will address the following question: Why are the UN and other international institutions remaining silent as Palestinians are being thrown out of their jobs in an Arab country while more than 100,000 Palestinians enter Israel on a daily basis for work? Will we see an emergency meeting of the Arab League or the UN Security Council to denounce Lebanese apartheid and racism? Or are they too busy drafting resolutions condemning Israel, which has opened its doors wide open to Palestinian workers?
Somehow, Lebanon's discriminatory and racist measures against Palestinians do not seem to bother pro-Palestinian groups around the world. These groups regularly turn a blind eye to the anguish of Palestinians living in Arab countries. Instead, they set their sights on Israel, scrutinizing it for imagined abuses against Palestinians. Pictured: Burj Barajneh, a Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon administered by UNRWA. (Image source: Al Jazeera English/Flickr CC BY-SA 2.0)
More than 100,000 Palestinians from the West Bank have permits to work in Israel, according to Palestinian and Israeli sources. In addition, the sources said, thousands of Palestinians enter Israel every day without permits.
On July 15, the number of Palestinian workers who entered Israel, according to the Israeli Defense Ministry, was estimated at more than 80,000.
Last week, as part of efforts to reach a truce agreement between Israel and Hamas, Israel was reported to have agreed to increase the number of Palestinian merchants and businessmen allowed to go from the Gaza Strip to Israel from 3,500 to 5,000.
Reports said that the latest Israeli gesture were the outcome of attempts by Egypt and the United Nations to prevent an all-out military confrontation between Israel and Hamas.
While Israel is constantly increasing the number of work permits for Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Lebanon, on the contrary, has launched an unprecedented crackdown on illegal foreign workers, including Palestinians, thereby triggering a wave of protests among Palestinians living there.
The Lebanese authorities say the crackdown on illegal foreign workers is directed mostly against Syrians who fled to Lebanon after the beginning of the civil war in Syria in 2011. As part of this campaign against illegal workers, several businesses have been closed and many Palestinian and Syrian workers have been suspended from their jobs.
Lebanese Minister of Labor Kamil Abu Sulieman denied allegations that the campaign was organized as a "conspiracy" targeting the 450,000 Palestinians in his country. "The plan to combat illegal labor was prepared several months ago and does not target the Palestinians," Abu Sulieman said. "There is a labor law in Lebanon, and we have decided to implement it. We gave a six-month warning to all the illegal workers and businesses to seek proper permits."
The Lebanese minister admitted, however, that as a result of the campaign against illegal workers, some Palestinian businesses have been shut.
The Palestinians have rejected the minister's claims. Instead, they launched protests in different parts of Lebanon against the crackdown on illegal foreign workers. Protesters burned tires at the entrances to a number of refugee camps, and some Palestinian factions and officials, condemning the campaign, have asked the Lebanese authorities to halt their measures against Palestinian businessmen and workers.
"The Lebanese measures cause harm to the Palestinians," said Ali Faisal, member of the PLO's Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP). He urged the Lebanese authorities to rescind their measures against Palestinians and pointed out that the Palestinian contribution to Lebanon's economic growth is estimated at 11%. The DFLP official also noted that, "on various pretexts," Palestinians in Lebanon are legally barred from working in several professions.
Lebanese law restricts Palestinians' ability to work in several professions, including law, medicine and engineering, and bars them from receiving social security benefits. In 2001, the Lebanese parliament also passed a law prohibiting Palestinians from owning property.
According to reports in the Arab media, the Palestinian protests could mark the beginning of a Palestinian "Intifada" [uprising] against Lebanon. The reports said that anyhow Palestinians face difficulty in obtaining work permits from the Lebanese authorities.
"The rate of unemployment among Palestinians in Lebanon is very high," said Palestinian businessman Ziad Aref. "We have the right to work towards solving this problem. The new campaign by the Lebanese authorities will leave thousands of Palestinians jobless and aggravate the financial crisis."
Aref said he believes the rate of unemployment among Palestinians in Lebanon is estimated at 56%. He also took Palestinian leaders to task for failing to address the distress of Palestinian workers and businessmen there.
Palestinian leaders in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and Lebanon say they are in daily contact with the Lebanese authorities in an attempt to halt the crackdown on Palestinian workers.
Senior PLO official Azzam al-Ahmed, who is in charge of the "Palestinian portfolio" in Lebanon, expressed deep concern over the Lebanese campaign against illegal foreign workers. He said he has contacted several Lebanese officials to warn them against harming any Palestinians.
Hamas, for its part, has accused the Lebanese authorities of employing a policy of "slow death" against Palestinians in Lebanon. Hamas said in a statement that the Lebanese campaign against illegal workers and businesses seemed to be part of a "conspiracy to liquidate the rights of Palestinian refugees. We will not accept any threat to the lives and future of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon and we will thwart the policy of slow death."
The Lebanese authorities' measures against Palestinians again highlight the discrimination Palestinians have long been facing in this Arab country. "Palestinians in Lebanon," according to a 2017 report by the Associated Press, "suffer discrimination in nearly every aspect of daily life... Many live in settlements officially recognized as refugee camps, but better described as concrete ghettos ringed by checkpoints and, in some cases, blast walls and barbed wire."
"The discrimination and marginalization [Palestinians] suffer is compounded by the restrictions they face in the labour market, which contribute to high levels of unemployment, low wages and poor working conditions.," according to a UN report. "Until 2005, more than 70 jobs were barred to Palestinians - around 20 still are. The resultant poverty is exacerbated by restrictions placed on their access to state education and social services."
Yet, somehow, Lebanon's discriminatory and racist measures against Palestinians do not seem to bother pro-Palestinian groups around the world. These groups regularly turn a blind eye to the anguish of Palestinians living in Arab countries. Instead, they set their sights on Israel, scrutinizing it for imagined abuses against Palestinians.
It is high time for the pro-Palestinian groups on university campuses in the US, Canada, Britain and Australia to organize an "Arab Apartheid Week" instead of accusing Israel of "discriminating" against Palestinians. It is also high time for the international media to take notice of anti-Palestinian measures taken by Lebanon against the Palestinians at a time when Israel is increasing the number of Palestinian workers allowed to enter Israel for work.
Who will address the following question: Why are the UN and other international institutions remaining silent as Palestinians are being thrown out of their jobs in an Arab country, while more than 100,000 Palestinians enter Israel on a daily basis for work? Will we see an emergency meeting of the Arab League or the UN Security Council to denounce Lebanese apartheid and racism? Or are they too busy drafting resolutions condemning Israel, which has opened its doors wide open to Palestinian workers?
*Khaled Abu Toameh, an award-winning journalist based in Jerusalem, is a Shillman Journalism Fellow at Gatestone Institute.
© 2019 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on July 20-21/2019
Mystery drone attack on pro-Iran Iraqi militia was a gamechanger in the US-Iran standoff
DEBKAfile/July 20/2019
The edgy US-Iranian conflict took a new turn on Friday, July 19, with the anonymous drone attack on the pro-Iran Hashd Shaabi’s 52nd Brigade camp outside Amerli, a town in the Iraqi province of Salahudin northeast of Baghdad. Up until then, the targets of this measured, no-casualty conflict were Gulf oil objects and drones. The attack on the Iraqi Shiite militia was in a different class. This time, multiple casualties were reported, including Hashd Shaabi officers and fighters as well as Iranian and Lebanese Hizballah officers and technicians. Local Sunni tribesmen attested to the camp serving as a transit station for ballistic missiles smuggled from Iran and apparently destined for the Iraqi Shiite militias fighting in Syria and for Hizballah. Other locals described the targeted site as an assembly plant for missile component smuggled from Iran in refrigeration trucks for transporting perishable food.
The attack itself on a military facility lying 110km northeast of Baghdad bears professional military fingerprints provided with good quality intelligence. This is indicated by the operation being conducted in two stages. In the first, an unidentified drone wrecked the buildings. Half an hour later, another unmarked drone made sure the buildings were razed to the ground while also liquidating the first responders coming to the site of the attack.
DEBKAfile’s military and intelligence sources report that some local witnesses had video clips taken two days earlier, which showed an aircraft identified as a US B350 reconnaissance plane making several passes over the area. This top-secret aircraft has served US special forces in counter-terror operations around the world. Its presence with special American forces in Iraq was discovered when one of them crashed in 2016.
On Friday, US officials firmly denied any American role in the attack on the Hashd Shaabi’s 52st Brigade. It occurred at the same time as the USS Boxer amphibious assault vessel shot down an Iranian drone over the Strait of Hormuz. Still, US intelligence support to the assault cannot be ruled out; or even the transfer of intelligence to the party responsible after the plan of attack was presented to Washington. This scenario would turn the finger of suspicion towards Saudi Arabia, which has a score to settle for the explosive drone which flew in from Iraq in mid-May and damaged a key pumping station on its East-West oil pipeline. Both Riyadh and Washington are unlikely to countenance Iran opening a new front from Iraq in the north on top of the assaults coming from Yemen in the south.
Another theory attributes the attack to Israel, which has put Tehran on notice that the deployment to Iraq of ballistic missiles for aiming at targets on its soil would not be tolerated. The military connotations of the drone strike on the Iraqi Shiite militia are more far-reaching that the Revolutionary Guards’ seizure of the British Stena Impero tanker in the Persian Gulf. In the latter case, it is highly doubtful that the US or the UK, which is sunk deep in political crisis, will launch a military operation for its release, whereas the former revealed that an armed conflict proper, to which none of the parties admits responsibility, was being waged on the brink of their “quiet war.”

US Rejects Iranian FM Proposal on Lifting Sanctions Permanently
Washington - Heba al-Qodsi, Elie Youssef/Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 20 July, 2019
The US State Department hosted Tuesday a diplomatic consultancy meeting behind closed doors to discuss maritime navigation security to deter threats in the region. Meanwhile, Washington rejected offer of Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif to formally and permanently accept enhanced inspections of Iran’s nuclear program, in return for the permanent lifting of US sanctions. State Department officials said the ideas put forward by the US administration on securing navigation were welcomed by several countries that had shown interest in securing vessels. Pentagon officials stressed that the United States does not want to establish a military alliance but to deter any attempt to launch attacks on commercial vessels. They noted that the initiative put forward by the administration relates to providing coordination and control vessels and coordinate patrols in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb. According to a number of the diplomats participating in the meeting, some countries have expressed concern about the escalations with Iran. They are also worried about the additional cost of securing vessels passing through Hormuz. This came after Bahrain confirmed hosting an international summit this fall on regional maritime and aviation threats posed by Iran. Meanwhile, the New York Times quoted Zarif as telling reporters that his country was ready to negotiate “sunset provisions” in the nuclear deal. This statement comes unlike previous positions echoed by several Iranian officials since President Donald Trump withdrew from the nuclear deal last year over Tehran's refusal to renegotiate the deal. Zarif said in another interview that his country will not renegotiate its 2015 nuclear agreement with world powers, rejecting the possibility of a new deal with the US that includes Iran's missile program. “You don't buy a horse twice,” said Zarif when asked about the possibility of fresh talks with the US over a new comprehensive deal that includes nuclear energy and missile programs.
An official source at the White House rejected Friday Zarif’s offer, pointing out that the FM does not have the authority to suggest such offer. He noted that any negotiations offer should come from the Religious Leader Ali Khamenei, adding that Washington will not take anything that he says seriously. The US official said Trump was still open to negotiations with Iran without preconditions on its nuclear program, but would keep tough economic sanctions on it until then. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said that sanctions will only be lifted “once Iran gives up its nuclear ambitions.” Trump spoke Friday with French leader Emmanuel Macron on the ongoing situation in Tehran. The two leaders “discussed ongoing efforts to ensure Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon,” the White House said in a brief readout of the call. Trump said Friday Sen. Rand Paul is involved in diplomatic talks with Iran. A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, noted that Iran is trying to circumvent and play on words in an attempt to obtain any easing of sanctions while continuing to maintain the ability to acquire a nuclear weapon in the future. Based on Zarif's offer, Iran will continue to enrich uranium, produce materials for the manufacture of nuclear weapons, and will continue to support terrorism through its agents in the region, said the official. He pointed out that Zarif put forward this idea and he knows that Washington will reject the offer. Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (NSA) John Bolton asserted the need to continue the strategy of pressure against Iran, and said through his account on Twitter that one of the worst mistakes of the Iran deal was allowing Iran to maintain enrichment capabilities. “There should be no enrichment for Iran. Maximum pressure continues until Iran abandons its nuclear ambitions and malign activities.”US administration insists on pushing Iran to accept tougher restrictions on its nuclear capabilities, limit the ballistic missile program and put an end to Tehran's support of its proxies in the region.

Iran Probes British-Flagged Tanker Seized after 'Collision'
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/July 20/2019
Iran opened an investigation on Saturday into a British-flagged tanker it alleges collided with a fishing vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, as tensions mount in the strategic waterway. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it seized the Stena Impero on Friday for breaking "international maritime rules" in the strait, a chokepoint for around a third of the world's sea-borne oil. Britain said Iran had seized two ships in the Gulf, and Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt warned of "serious consequences" if the issue was not resolved quickly. The British owner of the second tanker, the Liberian-flagged Mesdar, said the ship had been temporarily boarded by armed personnel, but was free to leave and that all crew were "safe and well". The incidents came hours after a court in Gibraltar said it would extend by 30 days the detention of an Iranian tanker seized two weeks ago in an operation aided by British Royal Marines on allegations of breaching EU sanctions against Syria. The Guards also said Thursday they had seized another "foreign tanker" and its 12 crew days earlier for allegedly smuggling fuel, without giving further details. Tensions in the Gulf have soared in recent weeks, with US President Donald Trump calling off air strikes against Iran at the last minute in June after the Islamic republic downed a US drone, and blaming Iran for a series of tanker attacks.
The Stena Impero had been heading for Saudi Arabia on Friday when it collided with a fishing vessel, according to authorities at the southern Iranian port of Bandar Abbas, off which the tanker is now anchored. The vessel had "collided with a fishing boat on its route and, according to law, after an accident it is necessary that the cause of the accident are investigated," said Allah-Morad Afifipoor, director-general of the Hormozgan province port and maritime authority. - 'Serious consequences' -The Swedish-owned tanker "has 23 crew and they are all on the ship," he said, quoted by Fars news agency. The Philippines said the crew was made up of 18 Indians, three Russians, a Latvian and a Filipino. Following the collision, those on board the fishing boat "contacted the British vessel but didn't receive any response", so they "informed the Hormozgan port and maritime office according to the legal procedures," Afifipoor said.
"The investigation into the cause of the accident has been started today by experts" from Hormozgan province's port and maritime authority, he added. Tanker tracking service Marine Traffic showed the Stena Impero had last signalled its location near the island of Larak at 9:00 pm (1630 GMT). The ship was transiting the Strait of Hormuz and in "international waters" when it was "attacked by unidentified small crafts and a helicopter," the owner said. Hunt warned that "if this situation is not resolved quickly there will be serious consequences". But he told Sky News that "we're not looking at military options, we are looking at a diplomatic way to resolve the situation." London on Saturday warned British ships to avoid the Hormuz Strait for "an interim period". "We remain deeply concerned about Iran's unacceptable actions which represent a clear challenge to international freedom of navigation," a government spokeswoman said following an overnight meeting of the government's COBRA emergencies committee. The latest incidents came as Trump and American officials insisted, despite denials from Tehran, that the US military had downed an Iranian drone that was threatening an American naval vessel in the Strait of Hormuz. Trump said the drone had been threatening the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer. Iran's deputy foreign minister Abbas Araghchi tweeted that the Americans may have shot down a US drone by mistake, and the Revolutionary Guards later released footage they said belies the US claims. The seven-minute video, apparently shot from high altitude, shows a convoy of ships the Guards said they were tracking as they passed through the strait. The ships in the footage could not be immediately identified, although one appears similar to the USS Boxer.
US troops in Saudi
As tensions soared, Tehran's arch rival Saudi Arabia said it would once again host US troops on its soil to boost regional security. The Pentagon said the deployment "ensures our ability to defend our forces and interests in the region from emergent, credible threats."
The US military also said it had patrol aircraft monitoring the Strait of Hormuz, and was developing a "multinational maritime effort" to ensure freedom of navigation in key Middle East waterways. The escalation comes more than a year after Washington unilaterally withdrew from the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement and began ratcheting up sanctions against Tehran. Earlier this month, Iran exceeded the deal's caps on uranium enrichment, aiming to pressure the remaining parties to make good on their promises to help prop up its economy. The Islamic republic has repeatedly threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz if attacked.

US Putting Troops Back in Saudi Arabia
Associated Press/Naharnet/July 20/2019
With Iranian military threats in mind, the United States is sending American forces, including fighter aircraft, air defense missiles and likely more than 500 troops, to a Saudi air base that became a hub of American air power in the Middle East in the 1990s but was abandoned by Washington after it toppled Iraqi strongman Saddam Hussein in 2003. The Saudi Foreign Ministry announced the basing agreement Friday without mentioning details. Senior American defense officials said some U.S. troops and Patriot air defense missile systems have already arrived at Prince Sultan Air Base, south of Riyadh, where the troops have been preparing for the arrival of aircraft later this summer as well as additional troops. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity in order to provide details not publicly announced. The agreement has been in the works for many weeks and is not a response specifically to Friday's seizure by Iran of a British tanker in the Persian Gulf. Tensions with Iran have spiked since May when the Trump administration said it had detected increased Iranian preparations for possible attacks on U.S. forces and interests in the Gulf area. In a written statement Friday evening, U.S. Central Command said the deployments to Saudi Arabia had been approved by the Pentagon. "This movement of forces provides an additional deterrent, and ensures our ability to defend our forces and interests in the region from emergent, credible threats," Central Command said. "This movement creates improvement of operational depth and logistical networks. U.S. Central Command continually assesses force posture in the region and is working with Kingdom of Saudi Arabia authorities to base U.S. assets at the appropriate locations."Putting U.S. combat forces back in Saudi Arabia, after an absence of more than a decade, adds depth to the regional alignment of U.S. military power, which is mostly in locations on the Persian Gulf that are more vulnerable to Iranian missile attack. But it also introduces a political and diplomatic complication for the Trump administration, accused by critics of coddling the Saudis even after the murder last fall of dissident writer Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents. Many in Congress now question the decades-old U.S.-Saudi security alliance and oppose major new arms sales to the kingdom. Starting with the January 1991 air war against Iraq after its invasion of Kuwait the previous summer, the U.S. flew a wide range of aircraft from Prince Sultan air base, originally known as al-Kharj. Supported by an all-American array of creature comforts like fast-food restaurants and swimming pools, U.S. forces there flew and maintained Air Force fighters and other warplanes. The base also served as a launch pad for the December 1998 bombing of Iraq, code-named Operation Desert Fox, which targeted sites believed to be associated with Iraq's nuclear and missile programs. In 2001, the base became home to the U.S. military's main air control organization, known as the Combined Air Operations Center, which orchestrated the air war in Afghanistan until it was relocated in 2003 to al-Udeid air base in Qatar.

Western Allies Back UK over Tanker Seizure
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/July 20/2019
Iran's seizure of a UK-flagged tanker in the Strait of Hormuz has further heightened tensions in the Gulf region after the US military claimed it had downed an Iranian drone. Britain's allies have called for the release of the vessel, warning of the danger of escalation.
'Nothing but trouble'
US President Donald Trump said he would hold talks with Britain about the tanker's seizure by Iran's Revolutionary Guards. "And this only goes to show what I'm saying about Iran: trouble. Nothing but trouble," he told reporters at the White House on Friday. He again denounced the 2015 deal between Iran and Western powers aimed at curbing Tehran's nuclear ambitions, describing it as a "ridiculous agreement" made by his predecessor Barack Obama. Trump pulled the United States out of the deal last year and began ratcheting up sanctions against Iran.
'Robust' reaction
British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said Tehran's seizure of the tanker showed "worrying signs Iran may be choosing a dangerous path of illegal and destabilising behaviour". The incident came hours after a court in the British territory of Gibraltar extended the detention of an Iranian tanker seized two weeks ago on allegations of breaching EU sanctions against Syria. "Our reaction will be considered but robust. We have been trying to find a way to resolve Grace 1 issue but WILL ensure the safety of our shipping," Hunt said on Twitter. British cabinet minister James Brokenshire said London was still seeking to establish diplomatic connections with Tehran over the incident.
"The action of the Iranians is completely unacceptable. It is so important that we maintain this free navigation through the Gulf," he told BBC radio."We want to see this matter resolved in a diplomatic way."
'Dangerous aggravation'
Germany called on Iran to immediately release the Swedish-owned, British-flagged Stena Impero. The seizure was a "dangerous further aggravation of an already tense situation," a foreign ministry statement said.
'De-escalation of tensions'
France made a similar call, with the foreign ministry saying Iran's action "hampers a necessary de-escalation of tensions in the Gulf region". "We call on Iranian authorities to quickly release the ship and its crew, and to respect freedom of navigation principles in the Gulf."

British FM Says Iran on 'Dangerous Path' for Seizing Tanker
Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 20 July, 2019
British foreign minister Jeremy Hunt expressed concern on Saturday that Iran had taken a “dangerous path” after it seized a British-flagged tanker on Friday in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s Fars news agency reported that the Stena Impero had been taken to the port of Bander Abbas, which faces the strait, after it said the tanker had been involved in an accident with an Iranian fishing vessel, Reuters reported. “Yesterday’s action in Gulf shows worrying signs Iran may be choosing a dangerous path of illegal and destabilising behaviour after Gibraltar’s legal detention of oil bound for Syria,” Hunt tweeted.  “As I said yesterday our reaction will be considered but robust. We have been trying to find a way to resolve Grace1 issue but will ensure the safety of our shipping,” he added. The British navy seized Iran’s Grace 1 tanker in Gibraltar on July 4 on suspicion of smuggling oil to Syria in breach of European Union sanctions. Hunt said he was also concerned about the loss of contact between jailed British-Iranian aid worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and her family after she was moved from a prison in Tehran to a psychiatric ward in a hospital. “We’d hoped this meant she was getting medical treatment she needs but the fact that she has been cut off from contact with her family is giving us huge cause for concern,” he tweeted. According to Reurters, Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a project manager with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, was arrested in 2016 at a Tehran airport as she headed back to Britain with her daughter after a family visit.

Iraq: Turkey Carries Out Raids Against PKK
Erbil, Ankara – Ihsan Aziz, Saeed Abul Razzak/Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 20 July, 2019
Kurdistan region witnessed a military escalation after Turkey carried out an airstrike on Iraqi Kurdistan in retaliation for the killing of a Turkish diplomat in one of the restaurants in the region.  People's Protection Units’ was quick to deny any responsibility for the assassination, however, Turkish warplanes launched a series of violent raids on the sites and headquarters of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the Qandil mountain ranges. On Wednesday, a Turkish diplomat and two civilians were killed in a shooting inside the restaurant on Airport Road, in Erbil. The raids killed a member of PKK foreign relations committee along with four of his companions. Turkish warplanes bombarded border areas of the Kurdistan Region's district of Amedi in Duhok province, damaging infrastructure and wounding several residents. They also launched two successive raids, one on Makhmour camp east of Nineveh, which contains two thousand refugee family of PKK supporters and armed families. Makhmour Camp’s media official Bulat Buzan said the raid destroyed a house and severely injured two of the refugees. He told Asharq Al-Awsat that the camp was not evacuated and the Turkish air force used to raid the camp, and the refugees were accustomed to that. He reported that the second raid targeted PKK sites in the mountain range surrounding Makhmour, without any casualties. “Following the evil attack in Erbil, we have launched the most comprehensive air operation on Qandil and dealt a heavy blow to the (PKK) terror organization,” Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said in a statement. Akar indicated that the air attack on Iraqi Kurdistan came in response to the killing of a Turkish diplomat in the region. Kurdistan Region’s counter-terrorism forces identified Mazloum Dag as a suspect in the attack. Dag, 26, is from Diyarbakir said he was responsible for the assassination of the Turkish diplomat according to surveillance cameras at the scene. The forces called on the residents of the region who have any information about him to inform the security authorities. Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP), led by Sezai Temelli, strongly rejected attempts to link the party with Dag, given that he is the brother of Dersim Dag, the HDP deputy for Diyarbakir. “We strongly condemn this attack,” said in a statement Friday, hoping that this unclear, mysterious attack is clarified soon and for no doubt or suspicions over the attack remain. “On the other hand, we will under no circumstances [allow] for one of our deputies [to] be targeted due to his brother over this attack,” the statement warned. The HDP rejects violence, the co-chairs said, accusing political opponents of using the attack to provoke anger and war.

Jeffrey in Ankara Next Monday to Discuss Safe Zone, Manbij Roadmap
Ankara, Washington - Saeed Abdelrazik, Elie Youssef
US Special Representative for Syria Engagement, James Jeffrey is expected in Ankara next Monday to discuss the latest developments in Syria, including the US withdrawal, the safe zone in the eastern Euphrates and the implementation of the US-Turkish roadmap in Manbij. Diplomatic sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the US official’s visit to Turkey was planned following a telephone conversation held last Thursday between Turkey’s presidential spokesperson Ibrahim Kalin and US National Security Adviser John Bolton. Jeffrey would be accompanied to Ankara by an official from the State Department.
Last Wednesday, Turkish diplomatic sources said a Turkish-US joint business group should hold talks in Washington for two days starting Thursday to discuss the latest developments in Syria, particularly the US withdrawal, the safe zone and the pull out of Kurdish units from Manbij.
However, the Pentagon denied on Friday that Turkish officials had visited the US capital for holding such talks. Pentagon spokesman Navy Cmdr. Sean Robertson told Asharq Al-Awsat that no meetings were lately held in Washington with Turkish officials, describing such reports as false. In Ankara, Jeffrey and the US delegation are expected to hold talks next Monday with Kalin and Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, in addition to several officials at the Turkish Foreign Ministry, the sources said. Jeffrey’s visit came a week after the newly appointed US Ambassador to Turkey, David Satterfield, arrived in Ankara on July 10, a post vacant since October 2017. During the past few days, reports and several sources spoke about a Turkish readiness to conduct an operation in Manbij to oust Kurdish units and other operations in Tal Abiyad and Tal Rifaat in the eastern Euphrates. The reports also said that Ankara plans to place its loyal armed Syrian factions on alert in the area of Operation Shield Euphrates and Ghosn al-Zeytoun in the north of Syria. Turkey reportedly attacked the surrounding of Tal Abiyad and Tal Rifaat in the past few days as a sign Ankara could move in this area at any time. On Friday, Kurdish circles in Washington expressed fears from the current suggestions related to the safe zone, its borders and its guarantor parties. Those circles said the suggested size of this area was unclear in light of the ignorance of some parties of the geography of towns located at the Syrian-Turkish borders.

Netanyahu Makes Israeli History as Longest-Serving Premier
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/July 20/2019
Benjamin Netanyahu is set to surpass founding father David Ben-Gurion as Israel's longest-serving prime minister on Saturday, having notched up a list of diplomatic and economic successes but with right-wing leadership many see as deeply divisive. The 69-year-old Netanyahu on Saturday will have been Israel's prime minister for a total of 4,876 days, over 13 years, according to a calculation by the Israel Democracy Institute think tank. He was first at the helm between 1996-1999, and then again since 2009. His latest apparent victory in April elections turned sour after he failed to form a coalition government and opted to move towards new elections instead. He faces the new general election on September 17 while under threat of possible corruption charges in the months ahead, including for allegedly receiving pricey cigars and champagne in return for favors. Netanyahu's legion of supporters in Israel point to what they see as his effective management of a small country in a volatile region, a series of diplomatic breakthroughs and the country's growing economy. His many critics say he has demonized political opponents and Israel's Arab minority by embracing populism and has too often put his personal ambitions above the long-term good of the country. He has sought to sideline Israel's continuing occupation of Palestinian territory and has been backed in that strategy by US President Donald Trump's administration, which has swung American policy firmly in Israel's favor.In tandem, Netanyahu has tried to leverage the common concerns of Israel and Gulf Arab states about Iran into improved ties in the region -- and has had some success. He has never been at a loss for words in describing what he sees as his achievements. "We've proven that Israel can be turned from a small country that is situated in the corner of the Middle East into a major power in the world," he told the strongly pro-Netanyahu Israel Hayom newspaper in an interview this week. The popular image of the man he is now surpassing in some ways stands in sharp contrast to that of "Bibi", Netanyahu's nickname since childhood.
'Always beyond reproach'
Ben-Gurion, who led the socialist Mapai party that declared Israel's independence in 1948, lived a spartan lifestyle that reflected his generation's sense of mission, said Peter Medding of Hebrew University in Jerusalem and whose books include "The Founding of Israeli Democracy 1948-1967". "They saw themselves as committed to the communal good," said Medding. War with Israel's Arab neighbors surrounded the founding of the state, and the political establishment realized that "unless the collective interest gets looked after, promoted and strengthened, there'll be no individual interests", he added.
Netanyahu, the son of a historian clearly mindful of his legacy, has in the past compared himself to Ben-Gurion, though the two emerged from two different strains of Israeli ideology. Comparing the two is tough both due to their very different eras and Ben-Gurion's heroic stature, said Shmuel Sandler, a political science professor emeritus from Bar-Ilan University near Tel Aviv. "A founding father is always beyond reproach," he said. But one trait that Netanyahu does share with Ben-Gurion is a sense of history, said Sandler. "They both have a historic point of view," he said, noting Ben-Gurion's self-documentation in diaries and Netanyahu's allusions to history and historic events in his speeches. One of Netanyahu's main agendas has been preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. That in some ways also links the two leaders, Sandler said. Only several years after the Holocaust, Ben-Gurion did what he could to pursue a nuclear option for Israel to prevent another genocide of the Jewish people. In the current era, "Bibi is trying to ensure that the option remains in Israel's hands only" in the Middle East, he said. Israel is widely perceived as the Middle East's sole nuclear-armed power, though it has never acknowledged the capability. Few believe Netanyahu will decide on his own to end his premiership anytime soon, even with a possible indictment looming. He will not be required to step down if indicted, only if convicted with all appeals exhausted, though he would likely face heavy political pressure. Sandler predicted "he won't exit in a dignified way." "People don't know how to quit when they're at their peak," he said, speaking not only of Netanyahu but of past Israeli prime ministers as well.

Last Kadhafi PM Freed in Libya for 'Health Reasons'
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/July 20/2019
Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi, Libya's last prime minister under ousted dictator Moamer Kadhafi, has been released from jail for health reasons four years after being sentenced to death, Tripoli's justice ministry said Saturday. Mahmoudi, in his 70s, was premier when a NATO-backed uprising in 2011 toppled and killed Kadhafi.He was handed the death sentence in July 2014 along with eight other Kadhafi-era officials including the leader's son Seif al-Islam, over their alleged role in a bloody crackdown on protesters. The justice ministry said Mahmoudi was released "for health reasons" at the recommendation of a medical commission "so that he could be treated at specialised medical centres". It gave no further details on the nature of his illness or when he was liberated. Mahmoudi was arrested in September 2011 as he tried to flee across the border to Tunisia, and was extradited to Libya the following year. During his detention in Tunisia, he claimed that Libya had financed the 2007 election campaign of former French president Nicolas Sarkozy, according to his lawyers. The French ex-president vehemently denied the allegations, initially made by Seif al-Islam. But Sarkozy was charged in March 2018 over accusations he accepted millions of euros from Kadhafi.

Human Rights Minister: Morocco Made Great Strides in Ending Violations
Rabat - Latifa Al-Arousni/Saturday, 20 July, 2019
Mustafa al-Rumaid, Moroccan acting minister of human rights, has stated that Morocco has made great strides in flagrant violations that have now become from the past. Yet there remain some cases that represent a challenge on the level of ensuring the efficiency of the national protection system. The Moroccan minister added, during presenting a report on human rights' situation since adopting the constitution in 2011, that the general indicators reveal a development on the level of civil and political rights. Rumaid stressed ensuring the practice of general freedoms namely the right to assemble and protest in which statistics show the growth of practicing these rights and freedoms in various regions of Morocco.The minister stated that there are violations for some reasons attributed to the absence of human rights concept among those enforcing the law, as well as not abiding by the law from the side of citizens.
Rumaid stated that efforts have disclosed the fate of 801 victims of the forced disappearance and arbitrary detention or people who died in various social events. On the level of economic, social, cultural and environmental rights, the report tackled the right of education, health and work noting that services enhanced in these sectors. However, the shortage remains high. The report added that there has been a progress in reinforcing social protection of women through the outcomes of the Social Cohesion Fund and Family Takaful Funds. As for the rights of the physically challenged, he pointed out that this category still needs more care and more comprehensive protection. Regarding prisoners, the report revealed that they witnessed a progress in the health, education and nutrition services.

Syria: Fierce Shelling on 81st Day of Escalation
London - Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 20 July, 2019
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said Friday that the fiercest military operation of Russia and the Syrian regime has entered its 81st day in the de-escalation zone in the western countrysides of Hama and Idlib. SOHR – headquartered in the UK – stated that the operation has proven failure despite unlimited Russian support to the regime forces and pro-forces under the leadership of Suhail al-Hasan aka the “tiger”. Also, the Russian and Syrian fighter jets conducted 58,000 air and ground strikes but only managed to progress in 20 regions in Hama and Idlib countrysides. The regime’s and Russian campaign displaced around 500,000 Syrian civilians from their houses and regions due to the shelling, and destroyed 19 hospitals and health centers. The Syrian Observatory monitored the death of 616 civilians including 153 children and 122 women since the beginning of the most violent escalation on April 30 and until Thursday evening. “At least 963 fighters were killed in the Russian airstrikes and the regime’s aerial and ground shelling including 606 of the Jihadis, in addition to the killing of 904 members of the regime forces in targeting and shelling by jihadi groups and factions,” revealed the report. Further, the regions on the Syrian-Turkish border witness relative calmness amid Turkish reinforcements. The regime’s warplanes carried out raids targeting areas in Khan Shaykhun, in coincidence with dropping barrel bombs by helicopters on the region there, added the report.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on July 20-21/2019
The fate of Erdogan's Turkey hangs on its relations with the US and Russia
Raghida Dergham/The National/July 20/2019
A web of complex alliances will determine whether the Turkish president can achieve his goals
The current phase of Turkey's relations with the US and other Nato members is extremely delicate. Washington has now removed Turkey from the F-35 fighter jet program in response to Ankara completing its purchase of the Russian-made S-400 missile defence system, which could be used to acquire technological intelligence on Nato systems, including the F-35 itself.
President Donald Trump recently said he understood his Turkish counterpart's position, and blamed his predecessor Barack Obama for the crisis, indicating that the US may relent before deciding to slap sanctions on Turkey as desired by both sides of Congress.
Jens Stoltenberg, Nato secretary general, meanwhile, rushed to dismiss any talk of expelling Turkey from Nato, describing the nation as an important ally with whom co-operation goes deeper than the F-35 issue, albeit he did not downplay the issue of Ankara's acquisition of the S-400 system.
These relatively flexible positions do not mean that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has succeeded in his attempt to bring in Russia into the heart of the Nato alliance without recriminations. Indeed, the strategic response Mr Trump is choreographing against Mr Erdogan's actions will include Russian, Kurdish, Syrian, and Iraqi rhythms.
There will also be internal Turkish elements that could end up with the ousting of Mr Erdogan, either through the army or through the elections. That is, if he continues to press ahead with arrogant plans that resemble Iran's expansionist projects in the Arab world, such as his Muslim Brotherhood project, which has antagonised many countries in the region. In other words, the S-400 crisis is much bigger than it seems, and is laden with geopolitical, commercial, and security implications.
Turkey has already been sanctioned by being removed from the F-35 program as a result of Mr Erdogan's dogged insistence on going ahead with the S-400 deal. Ankara will also come under economic sanctions approved by Congress that range from reducing US banking loans to Turkish entities to harsher measures that could collapse the Turkish economy – for example if it is cut off completely from the US financial system.
Interestingly, all Nato members are entitled to access the defence systems of other member states. This means the US still comes out on top because it will be able to study the S-400 system's Russian technology now that Turkey has it.
So why did Russia sell the system if it knew it could fall into Nato hands? Sources say that the Russian military industrial complex had objected to the sale two years ago, but political and commercial considerations swayed the final decision. Mr Putin hopes that developments could lead Turkey to exit or be expelled from Nato. In commercial terms, Moscow wants to use the S-400 deal with Turkey as a dry run to sell the platform to India and possibly Arab Gulf countries and beyond.
The US is not rushing to action on the complex Turkish crisis because it does not consider itself the losing party, according to sources familiar with the thinking of the Trump administration. It also has many options, including sanctions.
Mr Erdogan's Turkey will also fall under European scrutiny. There is talk in Brussels, Nato's headquarters, that Ankara's membership in a number of Nato programmes can be frozen. But Turkey's membership of the alliance itself is not currently at risk. This is not only because Turkey's Nato membership is of vital importance, but because removing it from the alliance would serve the Russian agenda.
The US, in other words, will not allow this, and will not allow the Astana co-operation in Syria to become a Russian-Turkish-Iranian alliance. This may explain Mr Trump's flexibility and accommodation, and his aversion to swift recrimination and sanctions. He seems to prefer a gradual response, beginning with blocking the sale of US hardware to Turkey, sanctions on Turkish arms manufacturers and exporters, and freezing the assets of Turkish entities that had been part of the F-35 development programme. Mr Trump feels he still needs Turkey in the Nato alliance, and hopes to gain its co-operation in the region, especially in Syria. He is also probably keen to learn the secrets of the S-400 system and perhaps, later even the S-500 system.
But Mr Trump may not forgive Mr Erdogan's defiance and the embarrassment he has caused him, domestically and internationally. Some observers say the Turkish military establishment could take matters into its own hands if Mr Erdogan goes too far in compromising Turkey's Nato credentials, regardless of how in control he has appeared to be since the failed coup attempt against him. Some say the US does not need to rush to get rid of Mr Erdogan via a military coup, because he is likely to be ousted in the elections in three years’ time. Many now believe that strong leaders in his party and the opposition are likely to emerge and challenge him and his project to turn Turkey from a secular state to a Muslim Brotherhood vanguard in the region.
With Mr Erdogan's fall, the Muslim Brotherhood project, which he is still trying to market in Libya and Sudan, despite its dismal failure in Egypt, would be buried, once and for all. Mr Erdogan is also still meddling in Gulf affairs, especially in Saudi Arabia, in a manner that has set off alarm bells in Washington.
The Kurdish issue is also important to Washington, despite its failed promises to the Kurds. Recent Turkish air strikes in Iraq, some 160 km deep into Iraqi territory against PKK positions, are noteworthy. The strikes were preceded by the assassination of the Turkish vice consul in Erbil, which triggered vows of retaliation in Ankara. In Syria, Turkey continues to intervene against Kurdish forces, and to engage the Syrian regime in various ways in line with Russian demands.
All this means that US-Turkish relations are complex and multi-layered.
Today, the main issues preoccupying the American president are the developments in the Gulf and the threats to international navigation there. The US is pushing for a maritime task force to address Iranian provocations.
Sources familiar with decision-making in Tehran say Tehran intends to go beyond seizing foreign oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz or Bab Al Mandeb, and is gearing up for a naval show of force in a “very personal” way. “They are cooking something, but it's not yet clear what … something more dangerous than oil tankers and drones,” one said. The sources stressed that Iran has run out of patience vis-a-vis US sanctions, which are expected to intensify, and could escalate further after next week.
The Iranian priority will dictate the rhythm of Washington's measures against Turkey. After the US president announced an American warship had shut down an Iranian drone, he said that the US reserves the right to defend its facilities and interests. In light of these mutual threats and intentions, the US-Iranian confrontation could thus be about to cross a dangerous military threshold, but time alone will tell.

The Apollo 11 Mission Was Also a Global Media Sensation
The New York Times/Tiffany Hsu/July 20/2019
The satellites were finally ready to beam images back to Earth in 1969. And some 600 million people watched the event live.
The television news director Joel Banow absorbed endless hours of “terrible old B movies” filled with extraterrestrials and rocket ships long before he oversaw the production of an authentic space opera.
While the astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins were making history above, Mr. Banow played his part on the ground, helming the coverage of the Apollo 11 mission for CBS News while standing on his feet like an orchestra conductor.
Mr. Banow treated the 32 hours of programming on July 20 and July 21, 1969, like “a big blockbuster kind of motion picture,” he said in an interview, which meant days of rehearsal, custom animation and a cast of correspondents and producers so large that the end credits lasted seven minutes.
It was one of the first global news media spectaculars. The director said he had prepared for the job by having helped with the coverage of the previous Apollo missions and several Gemini and Mercury launches.
As the Eagle module touched down on the moon, applause flared up behind Mr. Banow in the CBS News studio on West 57th Street in Manhattan. He cut to Wally Schirra, a Project Mercury astronaut working as a CBS News consultant, catching the retired spaceman in the act of wiping away a tear. Mr. Banow followed that shot with a glimpse of the network’s star anchor, the usually composed Walter Cronkite, who grabbed his nose and shook his head, momentarily at a loss for words.
Hours later, at 10:56 p.m., a hazy black-and-white image flashed on the screen of Armstrong advancing gingerly down a ladder. When he stepped onto the lunar surface, Mr. Banow finally took a seat.
“I felt pride that I was a part of this, and also wonder that NASA managed to do it without a glitch,” Mr. Banow, now 84, said. “They did it. We did it. It was really kind of a relief.”
The coverage of the event had come about thanks to recent advances in media technology. In 1962, the first live trans-Atlantic broadcast — showing images of the Statue of Liberty, President Kennedy and a baseball game — was transmitted via satellite. A more ambitious live satellite broadcast, in 1967, showed the Beatles performing “All You Need Is Love” at Abbey Road Studios in London. More than 350 million people around the world were watching.
Roughly 600 million people, a fifth of the world’s population, saw Armstrong set foot on the moon, a viewership record that held until Lady Diana Spencer married Prince Charles in 1981.
All three major American broadcast networks — CBS, NBC and ABC — covered the Apollo 11 mission, with CBS dominating the ratings. In the United States, 94 percent of people watching television were tuned into the event.
People who did not own TV sets or found themselves away from home kept up with the coverage from bars, town squares and department stores, said David Meerman Scott, the co-author of the 2014 book “Marketing the Moon.”
Many astronauts and engineers resisted the live-broadcast plan, expressing concerns about the extra weight of the filming equipment. But at NASA’s insistence, Armstrong’s moonwalk was captured by a Westinghouse camera covered in a protective thermal blanket and tucked into the lunar module. The signal bounced from the module’s antenna through microwave links, satellites and landlines around the world. The picture was degraded before it reached viewers.
The BBC covered the event with less reverence than its American counterparts, dubbing David Bowie’s just-released single, “Space Oddity,” onto the footage beamed back from the moon. During a break in the action, the BBC gave viewers about five minutes of Pink Floyd jamming live from the network’s studio on a bluesy song called “Moonhead,” as well as dramatic readings with a lunar theme from Ian McKellen and Judi Dench.
Networks in the United States rounded out their coverage with hours of analysis and moon-related entertainment. On ABC, the science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov chatted with Rod Serling, the creator of “The Twilight Zone” television series. The network had also commissioned Duke Ellington to create something new for the occasion. He made his television debut as a vocalist, performing the song he had composed, “Moon Maiden,” live on the air.
Headline writers conveyed the news with attempts at deadline poetry. The Kokomo Tribune, in Indiana, went with “Astronauts Etch Names Beside History’s Great Explorers.” The Oil City Derrick, in Pennsylvania, was more succinct: “Yanks Land on Moon.” The New York Times’s banner headline — the straightforward “Men Walk on Moon” — was set in some of the largest type ever used in the paper.
The coverage of Apollo 11 was subdued in Moscow. “It was not secret, but it was not shown to the public,” Sergei Khrushchev, the son of the former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, told Scientific American in 2009.
In the United States, NASA had spent years molding its astronauts into mythic figures, giving Life magazine exclusive access as part of its attempt to shape public opinion. Americans became emotionally invested in the crew members thanks to cover stories documenting the “making of a brave man” and the “inner thoughts and worries” of the spacemen’s wives.
“That had a large effect in showing how big a deal it is to go to space, and it helped to make the astronaut-as-celebrity culture come alive,” Mr. Scott, the author, said. “You’d flip through magazine pages and see Joe DiMaggio, a hero of baseball, and then a few pages later, an astronaut. That’s mythmaking.”

The EU Suffers From a Navigation Failure
Leonid Bershidsky/Bloomberg/Gatestone Institute/July 20, 2019
The European Union’s satellite navigation system, Galileo, has been down since July 11. The outage, the longest-ever of such a service, highlights how difficult it will be to wean the world off its dependence on the US, Russian and Chinese militaries for critical (and lucrative) navigation services.
At the time of writing, Galileo’s 24 satellites were listed as “not usable” on the system’s website. No time frame has been announced for bringing them back online, and no specific explanation has been provided beyond a reference to “a technical incident related to ground infrastructure.”
Inside GNSS reports that the problem occurred at the so-called Precise Time Facility, whose purpose is to generate (using atomic clocks) and distribute the Galileo system time. The system was purposely designed with redundancy: There are, in fact, two Precise Time Facilities, one in Germany and the other in Italy. According to the industry publication, both have apparently failed.
Galileo can’t be expected to function perfectly yet. It is still in its “initial services” phase, and was only meant to go fully operational later this year. It’s troubling, though, that such a major outage has occurred so late in the system’s development, which has taken two decades and cost 13 billion euros ($14.6 billion).
The big idea behind Galileo is to provide the first global navigation system under civilian control. All the existing rivals – the US Global Positioning System, Russia’s GLONASS and China’s Beidou – are run by their respective countries’ militaries. Their primary purpose is to make sure logistics and weaponry can still operate if a competing superpower makes its system unavailable. By contrast, Galileo is geared primarily toward reaping the huge economic benefits of satellite navigation.
In the US alone, according to a recent estimate, GPS has generated a total of $1.4 trillion in economic benefits (in 2017 dollars) since it became available for civilian use in the 1980s. According to the European Space Agency, some 7% of European economic output is dependent on satellite navigation, and the more precise the positioning, the greater the benefits to transportation, energy, agriculture and the app economy. That’s why Japan and India have developed satellite constellations that have no pretensions to global coverage but are designed to improve the accuracy of GPS-based positioning at home.
Galileo – when it worked – provided a major boost in precision; it is, after all, a newer system than GPS. Adding support for the European satellite constellation to an industrial-grade device improved positioning accuracy by up to 30% compared with GPS and by up to 11% compared with a dual GPS/GLONASS setup, according to research published in May.
Though most major global powers have moved to cut their GPS dependence in the last 20 years, the US-based system’s powerful advantage is that it is extremely reliable. The whole constellation never goes down. When specific satellites become unusable, it’s usually just for a few hours at a time. The service, in other words, is well-maintained and runs smoothly.
That can’t be said of GLONASS, which, until this year, was the only other satellite constellation with global coverage. It suffered a total outage for 11 hours in 2014 because of faulty software, and is now plagued with sanctions-related problems. Some 40% of components in GLONASS satellites are of Western origin, and neither Europe nor the US has been willing to supply dual civilian-military use technology to Russia since it invaded Ukraine. Last month, the government cut funding for maintaining GLONASS, and redirected the cash toward trying to produce homegrown technology to replace what it previously imported. This doesn’t augur well for the short- and medium-term future of GLONASS.
Beidou, the Chinese system, announced earlier this year that it had worldwide coverage. It has been launching more satellites than all the other systems in recent years, and has been pretty reliable so far. But for Europeans, being dependent on the US and China for navigation is hardly a comfortable position. That’s exactly what Europe will face, though, if Galileo keeps suffering from technical problems as serious as the one it faces today.
Once the outage is fixed, the European Space Agency and the European Commission, which jointly run Galileo, need to step up and figure out what design flaws and management mistakes led to the problem.
Civilian control of a navigation system has its obvious advantages, and the world needs a service that isn’t primarily run for military needs. But that shouldn’t mean running a critical service as if it were a home internet provider, telling users to wait indefinitely for an unspecific problem to be fixed. On the contrary, it should mean transparency and timely updates. Otherwise, the inevitable puns about the EU losing its way will be richly deserved.

Time for Europe to Get Over The "Worst Deal Ever"
كون كوغلن/معهد كايتستون: حان الوقت لأوروبا للخروج من الإتفاق  النووي "الأسوأ" الذي عقدته مع إيران
Con Coughlin/Gatestone Institute/July 20, 2019
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/76844/%d9%83%d9%88%d9%86-%d9%83%d9%88%d8%ba%d9%84%d9%86-%d9%85%d8%b9%d9%87%d8%af-%d9%83%d8%a7%d9%8a%d8%aa%d8%b3%d8%aa%d9%88%d9%86-%d8%ad%d8%a7%d9%86-%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%88%d9%82%d8%aa-%d9%84%d8%a3%d9%88%d8%b1/
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/14554/europe-get-over-iran-deal
Yet, while Iran shows no sign of scaling down its aggressive stance towards the US and its allies in the region, Europe continues to cling to the wreckage of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), to give the nuclear deal its proper name, in the misguided belief that the deal remains the best means of preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
The determination of the Europeans to stick with the nuclear deal at all costs was very much in evidence earlier this week during a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Brussels at which they came up with the decidedly bogus notion that Iran's breaches of the 2015 nuclear deal were not significant and therefore did not require the Europeans to withdraw from the JCPOA.
Europe's insistence on sticking with the nuclear deal, and its refusal to support Washington's attempts to provide naval protection for international shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, could ultimately prove self-defeating.
Europe is far more dependent on energy supplies from the Gulf than the US, and any further attempts by Iran to disrupt oil and gas supplies from the Gulf would have catastrophic consequences for Europe's economy.
While Iran shows no sign of scaling down its aggressive stance towards the US and its allies in the region, Europe continues to cling to the wreckage of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, in the misguided belief that the deal remains the best means of preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons. "Technically all the steps that have been taken, and that we regret have been taken, are reversible... We invite Iran to reverse the steps and go back to full compliance," Federica Mogherini, EU foreign policy chief, recently told EU foreign ministers. Pictured: Mogherini (left) stands with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, during her August 2017 visit to Iran.
With tensions rising in the Gulf by the day as a result of Iran's increasingly provocative conduct, the refusal of the major European powers to back the Trump administration's determination to confront Iran is looking increasingly untenable.
In the past few months Iran has been blamed for a series of attacks on oil tankers operating in the Gulf, and forced a British Royal Navy warship to intervene when a number of fast patrol boats operated by the naval division of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attempted to harass a British-owned tanker sailing through the Strait of Hormuz, the main shipping route into the oil-rich Gulf.
Additionally, US military officials at Central Command (CentCom) are currently investigating claims that Iran was behind the mysterious disappearance of the oil tanker Riah while sailing in Iranian waters at the weekend.
Also, Iranian-backed Houthi rebels have been blamed for carrying out a number of attacks against targets in neighbouring Saudi Arabia, including a missile attack on a Saudi civilian airport and a drone attack on a key Saudi pipeline.
Iran's most audacious act so far has been to shoot down an American naval drone conducting a reconnaissance mission in the Strait of Hormuz last month. The strike came within hours of provoking a military response from the Trump administration.
Meanwhile, as all this has been going on, the ayatollahs have announced that they have resumed work on enriching uranium, a blatant breach of the controversial nuclear accord Tehran signed with the world's leading powers in 2015.
Yet, while Iran shows no sign of scaling down its aggressive stance towards the US and its allies in the region, Europe continues to cling to the wreckage of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), to give the nuclear deal its proper name, in the misguided belief that the deal remains the best means of preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
Europe's insistence on adopting a different approach to the White House in its dealings with Iran dates back to US President Donald Trump's original decision last year to withdraw from the JCPOA, after arguing it was the "worst deal ever."
That, however, is not a viewpoint supported by the European signatories to the deal -- Britain, France and Germany. They still wrongly cling to the illusion that the agreement is a triumph of diplomacy, and has severely limited Iran's ability to pursue its ambition of becoming a nuclear-armed power. Under the JCPOA deal, upon its sunset, a mere ten years away, in 2030, "Iran will be permitted to build an industrial-size nuclear industry" with the ability to build and potentially deliver as many nuclear weapons as it liked.
To this end the Europeans have actively sought to undermine the Trump administration's new sanctions regime against Tehran by trying to find ways to continue trading with Iran. The Europeans have even come up with their own trading framework -- the so-called Special Purpose Vehicle -- which is supposed to enable European companies to continue trading with Iran without attracting punitive measures from the US.
In fact the measure has become an exercise in futility, as major European business conglomerates such as Airbus have shown that they are far more interested in protecting their lucrative business ties with the US than dealing with an economic basket case like Iran.
But not even this setback has deterred the Europeans from pursuing their policy of appeasement towards the ayatollahs. The determination of the Europeans to stick with the nuclear deal at all costs was very much in evidence earlier this week during a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Brussels at which they came up with the decidedly bogus notion that Iran's breaches of the 2015 nuclear deal were not significant and therefore did not require the Europeans to withdraw from the JCPOA.
"Technically all the steps that have been taken, and that we regret have been taken, are reversible," Federica Mogherini, the EU's foreign policy chief, told EU foreign ministers.
As none of the signatories to the deal considered the breaches to be significant, they were not prepared to trigger the dispute mechanism which could lead to further sanctions.
"We invite Iran to reverse the steps and go back to full compliance," were her final words on the matter.
Europe's insistence on sticking with the nuclear deal, and its refusal to support Washington's attempts to provide naval protection for international shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, could ultimately prove self-defeating.
Europe is far more dependent on energy supplies from the Gulf than the US, and any further attempts by Iran to disrupt oil and gas supplies from the Gulf would have catastrophic consequences for Europe's economy.
*Con Coughlin is the Telegraph's Defence Editor and a Distinguished Senior Fellow at Gatestone Institute. He is the author of "Khomeini's Ghost".
© 2019 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute.