English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese,
Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For October 24/2020
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
http://data.eliasbejjaninews.com/eliasnews19/english.october24.20.htm
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2006
Click Here to enter the LCCC Arabic/English news bulletins Achieves since 2006
Bible Quotations For today
The Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit
of the Lord is, there is freedom
02 Corinthians 03/12: Since we have such a hope,
we are very bold, not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face so that the
Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end.
But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant,
that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away.
Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. But when
one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and
where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled
face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image
from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the
Spirit.
Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on October 23-24/2020
US offers up to $10 million reward for
information on Hezbollah funding
Sudan to designate Lebanon’s Hezbollah as terrorist organization under Israel
deal
Pompeo Says U.S. to Continue Targeting Hizbullah's 'Financing Networks'
Lebanon Records Highest Daily Tally of Virus Cases
President Aoun hopes the 100 billion LBP will contribute to alleviating the
suffering of those affected by Beirut port explosion
President Aoun on UN International Day: I hope the organization will remain
guardian of international values and peace between peoples and keeper of justice
and equality
Hariri Says Consultations Positive, Vows to Implement French Paper
Raad Advises Hariri to Seek Understandings with All Blocs
Bassil Holds 'Frank' Talks with Hariri, Urges Techno-Political Govt.
U.N. Coordinator, Deputy Urge 'Rapid Structural Reforms' in Lebanon
UNFIIL Completes 'Temporary and Special' Beirut Mission
Bassil Denies Holding Talks with Israeli Officials on Demarcation File
One Year on, How is Lebanon's Hariri Back?
Under US pressure, Hariri is Lebanon’s PM of expediency
Lebanon: Abbas Ibrahim Returns from US after Contracting Coronavirus
October 17… The Revolution Renews/Hanna Saleh/Asharq Al Awsat/October 23/2020
Text of Treasury Department press release: Treasury targets high-ranking
Hizballah officials
Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on
October 23-24/2020
Treasury sanctions Iran's ambassador to Iraq
Text of Treasury Department press release: Treasury sanctions Iranian entities
for attempted election interference
Text of Treasury Department press release: Treasury sanctions Iranian Ambassador
to Iraq
First COVID-19 Treatment Fully Approved by FDA
Senate Committee Advances Supreme Court Nomination
The US Sets the Tempo of Its Allies’ Dealings With Syria, Refugee Conference
After Sudan, Trump Predicts Saudis to Forge Israel Ties
US, Sudan Press for Amicable Solution over Ethiopia Dam Dispute
Israel and Sudan Reach US-Brokered Deal to Normalize Ties
Israel Jets Strike Gaza after Rocket Fire
U.S. Condemns Turkish Missile System Test, Warns of 'Serious Consequences'
NATO Says Greece and Turkey Cancel Military Exercises
Turkish Cypriot Leader Sworn in with 'Two States' Call
UN: Libyan Factions Sign 'Permanent' National Ceasefire Deal
U.S. Hails Libya Ceasefire, Urges Foreign Fighters to Leave
US Drone Strike Kills 17 Militants in Northwest Syria
Kadhimi, Johnson Agree on ‘Strategic Cooperation’
Bloated Public Salaries at Heart of Iraq's Economic Woes
Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on October 23-24/2020
Turkish interference in the Caucasus risks setting
the whole region ablaze/Armen Sarkissian/The President of Armenia/The
National/October 23/2020
Question: "Why was God so evident in the Bible, and seems so hidden today?"/GotQuestions.org/October
23/2020
Iran Targeted by U.S. Over Threats Against Democratic Voters/Jamie Tarabay and
Kartikay Mehrotra/Bloomberg/ October 22/2020
Electing the President of the ‘Global Village’/Elias Harfoush/Asharq Al Awsat/October
23/2020
The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on October 23-24/2020
US offers up to $10 million reward for information on
Hezbollah funding
Joseph Haboush, Al Arabiya English/Friday 23
October 2020
The United States Friday announced a reward of up to $10 million for any
information on ways to disrupt Iran-backed Hezbollah’s funding.
“In that reward offer, [we are] seeking information on the activities, networks,
and associates of Hezbollah that form a part of its financial support, which
includes financiers and facilitators like Muhammad Qasir, Muhammad Qasim al-Bazzal,
and Ali Qasir, the individuals the Department highlights today,” the State
Department said.
The US says that Muhammad Qasir is a critical link between Hezbollah and Iran
and directs a unit that facilitates the transfer of weapons from Syria to
Lebanon. He has been a significant conduit for financial disbursements from
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps – Qods Force (IRGC-QF) to Hezbollah,”
the State Department said.
Al-Bazzal is another key financier for Hezbollah and the IRGC-QF, the statement
said.
He and Ali Qasir are affiliated with Hezbollah-linked “front companies” that
work in the steel industry and they assist in the transfer of Iranian crude to
Syria.
“All three individuals have previously been designated by the US Department of
the Treasury as Specially Designated Global Terrorists,” the State Department
noted.
Sudan to designate Lebanon’s Hezbollah as terrorist
organization under Israel deal
Joseph Haboush and Nadia Bilbassy-Charters, Al Arabiya English/Friday 23 October
2020
Sudan has agreed to designate Lebanese Hezbollah as a terrorist organization as
part of a recent deal to normalize ties with Israel, a senior US official said
Friday.
“After decades of living under a brutal dictatorship, the people of Sudan are
finally taking charge,” a joint statement between the United States, Sudan and
Israel said. But there was no mention of Hezbollah's designation, which the
senior US official confirmed to Al Arabiya English that Sudan agreed to.
It remains unclear if this was a demand by other Arab states or only Israel and
the US. Friday marked 37 years since one of the deadliest attacks against US
troops on foreign soil. On Oct. 23, 1983, a suicide bombing at the US Marine
Barracks in Beirut killed 241 American service members.
US President Donald Trump Friday announced that Sudan would normalize relations
with Israel, in a landmark step after two Gulf Arab nations moved to recognize
Israel.
Moments after Trump formally moved to remove Sudan from a US list of state
sponsors of terrorism, reporters were escorted to the Oval Office where he was
on the phone with leaders of Israel and Sudan.
The deal with Sudan will include aid and investment from Israel, particularly in
technology and agriculture, along with further debt relief. It comes as Sudan
and its transitional government teeter on the edge. Thousands have protested in
the country’s capital Khartoum and other regions in recent days over dire
economic conditions.
- With Agencies
Pompeo Says U.S. to Continue Targeting Hizbullah's
'Financing Networks'
Naharnet/October 23/2020
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday announced that the United States
“will continue to target, disrupt, and dismantle Hizbullah’s financing and
operational networks,” in a statement marking the 1983 bomb attack on the U.S.
marine barracks in Beirut that killed 241 U.S. service members.
“This attack, and the many more that followed around the world, make clear
Hizbullah’s commitment to violence and bloodshed and demonstrate its continuing
disregard for the lives of the very people that it claims to protect. These
terrorist acts have unmasked Iran, Hizbullah’s patron, as a rogue state willing
to pursue its malevolent interests at all costs,” Pompeo said. “On this solemn
day, we honor the sacrifice of those brave Americans, and we renew our
commitment to preventing Hizbullah and its sponsor Iran from spilling more
innocent blood in Lebanon or anywhere in the world,” he added. “The United
States will continue to target, disrupt, and dismantle Hizbullah’s financing and
operational networks, and will continue to take all actions available to starve
this terrorist entity of funds and support. We are grateful for the nations
around the world that have designated or acted to ban the activities of
Hizbullah as a terrorist organization,” Pompeo went on to say.
Lebanon Records Highest Daily Tally of Virus Cases
Naharnet/October 23/2020
Lebanon on Friday announced 1,534 new COVID-19 deaths, the highest daily tally
so far for the small country since the first infection was detected on February
21. In its daily statement, the Health Ministry said 1,460 of the cases were
confirmed among residents and 74 among people coming from abroad. The new cases
raise the overall tally to 68,479 while seven more deaths recorded over the past
24 hours take the death toll to 559.
The country has meanwhile recorded 32,412 recoveries. Four of the cases
announced on Friday were recorded among health workers. Hospitals meanwhile
admitted 685 patients into coronavirus sections over the past 24 hours,
including 242 into intensive care units. According to the Health Ministry
statement, 14,066 PCR tests were carried out over the past 24 hours, among them
1,100 at Beirut airport.
President Aoun hopes the 100 billion LBP will
contribute to alleviating the suffering of those affected by Beirut port
explosion
NNA /October 23/2020
The President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, expressed his hope that the
sum of 100 billion Lebanese pounds, which was dispatched at his request, would
contribute to alleviating the suffering of the owners of damaged housing units
as a result of the explosion that occurred in the Beirut port on August 4, and
affirmed that he would continue seeking to secure additional credit of 150
billion Lebanese pounds to cover the remaining cost of repairing damaged houses.
It is noteworthy that Decree No. 6979 of September 23, 2020, which decided to
allocate this amount to compensate the affected, was issued at the request of
the President of the Republic and based on the powers granted to him under
Article 85 of the Constitution that allows him to open exceptional
appropriations if emergency and urgent circumstances so require. The army has
assigned the distribution of these sums according to a specific mechanism and
based on nominal schedules. -------Presidency Press Office
President Aoun on UN International Day: I hope the
organization will remain guardian of international values and peace between
peoples and keeper of justice and equality
NNA/October 23/2020
On the occasion of the United Nations International Day, the President of the
Republic, General Michel Aoun, sent a congratulating message to the
Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. António Guterres, wishing that “The
United Nations Organization will remain a guardian of international values and
peace between peoples, and a keeper of justice and equality." While President
Aoun expressed Lebanon's appreciation for the responsibilities undertaken by the
Secretary-General of the United Nations, he saluted his stances towards Lebanon
and the Lebanese, wishing him continued health and success in the good efforts.
-- Presidency Press Office
Hariri Says Consultations Positive, Vows to Implement
French Paper
Naharnet/October 23/2020
Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri on Friday described the non-binding
consultations he held with parliamentary blocs as “positive,” noting that the
discussions focused on the reforms that the new government should implement “as
soon as possible.”“This government will be a government of specialists, so that
we work quickly according to the French reform paper,” Hariri announced after
the consultations. “We must deal with this opportunity by putting aside all our
political disputes and showing positivity, so that we regain confidence between
the citizen and the state and between the state and the international
community,” the PM-designate added. As for the dire economic and financial
situations, Hariri said that the country has not reached a “dead end.”“We can
overcome what we are going through, but certainly that will take time. However,
we must carry out our duty in terms of the reforms that we agreed on at the Pine
Residence,” Hariri went on to say. He said that the only way to achieve that is
to “speed up the formation of a government that can work on accomplishing all
these reforms as well as the International Monetary Fund’s program.”“We must lay
out the right foundations so that capital can return to the country,” Hariri
said. He added: “I carried out consultations with most blocs and I will meet the
President as soon as possible to discuss and consult with him over the outcome,
and I will hold further consultations to pave the way for the formation of the
government.”
Raad Advises Hariri to Seek Understandings with All Blocs
Naharnet/October 23/2020
The head of Hizbullah’s Loyalty to Resistance bloc MP Mohammed Raad on Friday
advised Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri to seek “understandings with all
blocs.”“We explained our viewpoint on two issues: the first is related to the
government’s role and we have largely reached consensus on it, and we also
emphasized on priorities related to the current period, especially after the
surge in coronavirus cases at a time the health sector needs to be enhanced,”
Raad said after meeting Hariri along with a delegation from the bloc. The
meeting was part of Hariri’s non-binding consultations with lawmakers over the
shape and program of the new government. “We discussed reform-linked issues
related to the judiciary, the administration and the rectification of the
financial and monetary situation, and this is all within the framework of the
French initiative. And we stressed the need for understandings with all the
blocs to ensure swiftness in the implementation of decisions,” Raad added,
stressing that the new government should be trustworthy. “We advised that every
minister should only handle one portfolio and that we should not go to a small
cabinet but rather one formed of around 24 ministers,” the lawmaker added.
Bassil Holds 'Frank' Talks with Hariri, Urges
Techno-Political Govt.
Naharnet/October 23/2020
Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil and a delegation from the Strong
Lebanon bloc on Friday held talks with PM-designate Saad Hariri as part of the
latter’s non-binding consultations with MPs over the shape and program of the
new government. “We fulfilled our constitutional duty by heeding the PM-designate’s
invitation to consultations and the discussion was responsible, frank and open.
This confirms that there is no personal problem,” Bassil said after the meeting.
“The personal aspect is a positive factor and can help reconcile viewpoints,” he
added. “We are extremely positive and our concern is the formation of a
government that can implement the reform program of the French initiative,”
Bassil went on to say. He noted that the program should begin by striking an
agreement with the International Monetary Fund, carrying out reforms and
securing 24/7 power supply to citizens. “It is our right to have concerns and
our ultimate priority is to halt the collapse and assist the people. We did not
propose any demand or condition other than following unified standards towards
all components,” Bassil added, warning that the adoption of non-unified
standards would lead to the obstruction of the cabinet formation process. Bassil
also called for the formation of a “techno-political government.” “This means
that it should enjoy political support and what’s more important is to have
ministers who enjoy specialty and expertise,” the FPM chief said.
U.N. Coordinator, Deputy Urge 'Rapid Structural Reforms' in
Lebanon
Naharnet/October 23/2020
U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jan Kubis and U.N. Deputy Special
Coordinator/Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon Najat Rochdi on
Friday issued a joint statement marking the 75th Anniversary of the United
Nations.
“October 24 -- the U.N. Day -- this year marks the 75th Anniversary of the
United Nations, and 75 years of steadfast partnership between the U.N. and
Lebanon, a founding member,” the statement said.
“The U.N. and Lebanon are inseparable. Lebanon and eminent Lebanese contributed
to the U.N. since its inception. Many Lebanese personalities served in top and
other responsible positions with honor and dignity. They contribute to the
pursuit of U.N. objectives both in the U.N. Headquarters in New York and
elsewhere dealing with important files and negotiations, and in numerous U.N.
political and peacekeeping missions and operations all around the world,” the
statement added.
It said many Lebanese served and continue to do so in U.N. agencies, funds, and
programs with dedication and professionalism.
“Many times, in their common history the U.N. came to help Lebanon to safeguard
and strengthen its security and stability, with UNIFIL at the forefront. The
U.N. has helped Lebanon to cope with many humanitarian challenges including
those concerning Palestinian and now Syrian refugees,” the statement added.
“The U.N. works with Lebanon on sustainable green development, human rights,
gender equality or good governance agendas, including fight against corruption
or technical assistance on elections. The U.N. supports the authorities and
communities to help them deal with the COVID-19 pandemic,” it said.
The statement acknowledges that for Lebanon, 2020 has been a year of deepening
hardship and mounting frustration.
“The severe economic crisis which sparked widespread popular protests has been
compounded by the deepening COVID-19 crisis. The tragic blast of 4 August that
caused the death of 193 people, injured many thousands and damaged scores of
households, businesses and heritage sites, has once again amplified grave
concerns of total lack of accountability for the lamentable situation of Lebanon
and management of its public affairs,” the statement decried. It noted that the
hardest hit by the multi-faceted crisis are “the people.”
“Those rapidly growing in numbers who have their stories of shock, neglect,
deprivation and loss of livelihoods, perspective and dignity; those who saw
lives of their dearest, their homes and futures blown away; those who lost hope
and find themselves unable to start again. It is these people who are at the
forefront of the U.N. efforts to end need and put Lebanon back on the path to
sustainable development,” the statement added.
“This is a critical time for the people of Lebanon and their leaders. A defining
moment. And perhaps more urgently than elsewhere, in Lebanon the messages of
solidarity and responsible leadership must be taken to heart. Strong political
will and firm leadership to pursue a reform agenda are also needed for Lebanon’s
early recovery, to pave the way for longer-term development, while the people
must always be at the center of bringing back and building a better Lebanon,”
the statement said.
In the period to come, the U.N. will continue “standing closely with Lebanon and
its people, will continue to encourage and facilitate the decisions that are
necessary to fulfill their legitimate aspirations for the future,” the statement
promised.
It said that the way out of the current crisis is “well known: rapid meaningful
structural reforms in political, economic, and social areas, good governance
with full transparency, accountability and independent judiciary as effective
instruments in the fight against corruption and a move towards a truly inclusive
civil society devoid of sectarian patronage, where the opportunities,
protection, and rights are equal for all, including women and youth.”
“The voices of Lebanon’s women and youth must be heard. Their presence, needs
and aspirations must figure at the forefront of a new social contract that will
help to create a better Lebanon, where all citizens can enjoy equal rights and
opportunities in public and private domains,” the statement added.
“In these difficult times, the U.N. remains resolute in its commitment to this
cherished, unique country and its brave, industrious, resilient people to help
them rebuild their country, lives and livelihoods for a better, dignified
tomorrow,” the statement pledged.
UNFIIL Completes 'Temporary and Special' Beirut Mission
Naharnet/October 23/2020
After more than three weeks of engineering work in Beirut in support of and
coordination with the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), to deal with the aftermath of
the tragic August 4 explosions, a UNIFIL detachment of multinational force
returned Friday to the Mission's area of operations in south Lebanon, the U.N.
force said. Nearly 150 peacekeepers from 13 of UNIFIL's 45 contingents
facilitated the resumption of operations at the Beirut Port by clearing 11,500
tons of debris and carried out construction works. In the process, they also
dismantled four of the damaged warehouses.
In addition, UNIFIL peacekeepers also assisted in the restoration of damaged
heritage sites from further devastation by clearing 500 tons of rubble and
separating and storing about 150 tons of stones, facades and wood ornaments for
future use. This activity was carried out in coordination with the LAF, the
Lebanese Directorate of Antiquities and the Blue Shield International. UNIFIL
Head of Mission and Force Commander, Major General Stefano Del Col, paid special
tributes to the hundreds of thousands of people directly affected by the
explosions. He also expressed appreciation for the peacekeepers involved during
the Beirut mission, authorized by U.N. Security Council resolution 2539 as
“temporary and special measures” to provide support to Lebanon and its people in
the aftermath of the explosions. “At the outset, I pay my tribute to all those
people who suffered, were injured and to those who died on the tragic 4 August
2020 explosions,” he said before laying a wreath at the monument in memory of
the Beirut blast victims. “You enabled the resumption of operations in the
Beirut Harbor, cleared the main road in the Mar Mikhail neighborhood, that had
been blocked for over two months, and supported the works at historical sites,”
said the UNIFIL head. "We are honored to have been part of this common efforts
to ease some of the pain that the city has been gone through,” he added. Del Col
also emphasized that UNIFIL's main focus continues to be ensuring stability in
south Lebanon and along the Blue Line.
“We are working to create the conditions for political and diplomatic efforts to
take root, to achieve a long-term solution and a permanent ceasefire, for which
the commitment of the parties is an essential element,” he added.
Bassil Denies Holding Talks with Israeli Officials on
Demarcation File
Naharnet/October 23/2020
Media office of the Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil denied on Friday
the Israeli reports claiming the lawmaker had held sea border talks with Israeli
officials. Bassil’s media office said the “suspicious report, comes in an
Israeli context aimed at disrupting the negotiations taking place, and reflects
a personal targeting of Bassil shared between the Israeli lying machine and
tools inside Lebanon.”Bassil’s office urged media outlets to refrain from
publishing “false Israeli news.”The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation "Makan"
quoted on Thursday an Israeli security source claiming that Bassil had a “big
secret role in the negotiations between Lebanon and Israel regarding the
demarcation of the border between them.” It also claimed that Bassil "had met
with Israeli and US officials in various countries to discuss the demarcation
file, and that he allegedly pledged to obtain the approval of Hizbullah in this
regard."
Makan also claimed that the FPM chief had "coordinated" with the US side to keep
the file in the hands of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, who is following up the
issue with the Americans through mediators in Washington of Lebanese origin.
One Year on, How is Lebanon's Hariri Back?
Naharnet/October 23/2020
One year after mass protests pushed him to resign, Saad Hariri is back as
Lebanon's prime minister designate to draw together a pro-reform cabinet that
can save the crisis-hit country.
What circumstances brought him back? What do the international community and key
players inside Lebanon think? And will the consensus on him being named make his
tricky task any easier?
Why the return?Less than two weeks after an unprecedented street movement
erupted in October 2019 against a Lebanese political class viewed as inept and
corrupt, Hariri stepped down.
He had presented a roadmap for reform to stem the country's economic downfall,
but it was rejected by the angry street.
The country has since sunk further into crisis, with poverty soaring to more
than half the population, banks increasingly restricting access to savings, a
novel coronavirus lockdown, and finally on August 4 a massive blast at Beirut
port that killed more than 200 people and ravaged large parts of the capital.
Protests gradually subsided in 2020, reinvigorating the derided political class,
which hampered the efforts of the next premier Hassan Diab towards redressing
the country, and then those of his successor Mustapha Adib in forming a new
crisis cabinet after the Beirut blast.
In early October, Hariri -- already three times premier and the head of the
country's main Sunni Muslim political party -- said he was "definitely" a
candidate to take on the task. Named on Thursday, he pledged to swiftly create a
government of experts not affiliated to the country's traditional political
parties, calling it Lebanon's "only and last chance".
"Lebanon has come full circle. We're back with Hariri," a European diplomatic
source commented. Analyst Karim Bitar said: "The revolution wasn't able to
produce leaders or form a unified front, while the traditional political parties
were able to consolidate their ranks, regardless of divergences over
pie-sharing." What does the international community think?"The international
community understands the anger of the Lebanese people over Hariri's return, but
it does not share in the same indignation because they know him, are used to
dealing with him," Bitar said.
But Hariri's foreign backers France and the United States have different
priorities. Paris wants a new pro-reform government of experts to fit the
criteria proposed by France's President Emmanuel Macron under the so-called
"French initiative". The US and its ally Saudi Arabia are however more focused
on neutralising the Shiite movement Hizbullah, the only side not to have
disarmed after Lebanon's 1975-1990 civil war.
"The Americans and Saudis are expecting Hariri to adopt a slightly more hawkish
position regarding Hizbullah," Bitar said.
The United States on Thursday targeted two Hizbullah officials with economic
sanctions, its latest against the group it regards as "terrorist".
All sides will be awaiting long-demanded reforms to unlock billions of dollars
in financial aid to rescue the debt-ridden country.
What about in Lebanon?Hariri's nomination was backed by a majority of 65
lawmakers. Hizbulah and its ally the Free Patriotic Movement led by the
president's son-in-law Jebran Bassil did not name him.
Its fellow Shiite party the Amal Movement however supported Hariri's return,
implying tacit agreement from Hizbullah.
"Hariri is the candidate of the Shiite duo and the deep state. He is an integral
part of the system," said Michel Douaihy, an analyst close to the protest camp.
"Hizbullah is comfortable with Hariri. The party needs Sunni cover in the
region," he said. Bassil's decision not to back Hariri was more to do with a
power struggle between both men, Douaihy said.
"They're both 50 years old and want to be boss," he said, one as premier and the
other eventually as president.
But in the end they would have no other option than to sit at the same table,
Douaihy predicted. What challenges?Forming a cabinet can take months in Lebanon,
where ministries have traditionally been shared out between its various
political and religious sides.
In the last bid to create a cabinet, Hizbullah and Amal refused to relinquish
control of the finance ministry and insisted on naming Shiite ministers, causing
Adib to quit. Bassil, who was foreign minister in the government that stepped
down last year, has claimed the next cabinet will have to be made up of both
technocrats and political appointees since Hariri himself is not an independent.
Finally, Hariri will have to endure the hostility of the protest camp, who view
him as a member of the old political class, even if there was no immediate
reaction in the street after his appointment.
Under US pressure, Hariri is Lebanon’s PM of
expediency
The Arab Weekly/October 23/2020
Lebanese analysts see Hariri benefiting from the intersection of French and
Iranian interests.
BEIRUT – Lebanon's Saad Hariri is once again a candidate to head a government he
left nearly a year ago under pressure from popular protests over corruption and
sectarianism. He has returned to the same mission in the same circumstances.
Nothing has changed except that Hariri’s youthful face is giving everyone the
illusion that changes are coming by winning France’s and Hezbollah's favours as
the “candidate of necessity.”Lebanese analysts said that Hariri, who has become
part of the problem and not the solution, is benefiting from the intersection of
French and Iranian interests. Neither country has any objection to placing him
at the head of a government awaiting the fate of US elections. If US President
Donald Trump hangs on, this government would stay. If he loses, Paris and Tehran
will seek a consensual solution according to the new stage.
Hariri, who is considered one of the Lebanese politicians most vulnerable to the
influence of parties, will ostensibly form a government composed essentially of
technocrats to solve the country's worsening economic crisis. But even before he
is sworn in, he must negotiate with the Shia duo, Hezbollah and its ally Nabih
Berri, leader of the Amal Movement, over who will take over the finance
ministry.
Hariri previously agreed in his latest “initiative” to breathe life in the
French plan that a Shia minister would take the reins of this important
ministry. In Lebanon, the finance minister's signature on every government
decision is essential, which virtually gives the appointee and his backers the
right to veto any government decision. Moreover, he has access to official
documents that are now used in extortion files. Lebanese President Michel Aoun
has, against his own wishes, officially tasked Hariri with forming a new
Lebanese government. The latter stressed the importance of the “time factor,"
which dictates the immediate formation of a cabinet. He spoke of the need to
speed up the process following a short meeting with Aoun, which followed the
announcement of the “binding” results of parliamentary consultations. These
consultations require the president to pick a candidate for prime minister who
gets the largest number of parliamentary votes. Political sources revealed that
the threat of US sanctions against a number of personalities prompted Aoun to
refrain from delaying the date of parliamentary consultations, after he
discovered that Saad Hariri was the only candidate for the position of prime
minister.
These sources stated that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who spoke by phone
with the Lebanese president last Tuesday evening, warned Aoun of the
consequences of postponing parliamentary consultations and of disrupting the
process of forming a Lebanese government that would be tasked with implementing
specific reforms.
It is noteworthy that the president's son-in-law, Gebran Bassil, who heads the
Free Patriotic Movement, refused to vote for Hariri, on grounds that the new
prime minister should be a “specialist” and not a politician.
Hariri won the votes of 65 out of 128 members of parliament. Eight MPs submitted
their resignations. This number is considered a personal victory for him after
the two major Christian blocs (the Lebanese Forces and the National Movement)
decided not to vote for him.
Hezbollah followed in the footsteps of the Free Patriotic Movement in also
deciding not to vote for Hariri. A Lebanese MP described the choice as trying to
accommodate the president, who had hinted to the party to raise the issue of
“the defence strategy” in terms of discussing the problem of Hezbollah’s rogue
weapons. Hariri immediately received the support of the Sunnis. The mufti of the
Lebanese Republic, Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian, issued a statement congratulating
Hariri for “being assigned to form the government and receiving once again the
vote of confidence of the binding parliamentary consultations that heralded the
imminent birth of a government of specialists whose mission is to get Lebanon
out of the dark tunnel where it is struggling into the light of the upcoming
reforms, with his enthusiasm and his ministerial team.” He wished him “success
in the tasks entrusted to him in these exceptional circumstances the country is
going through.”In a direct message to Aoun, Derian called on political forces to
“facilitate the mission of Prime Minister Hariri because it is a major
responsibility and a national duty to save the country from the political,
economic, living and development crises it is going through.”
Hariri, 50, has been prime minister, a position that must be held by a Sunni
Muslim in Lebanon's sectarian quota system, three times before. Mass protests
that erupted a year ago, fuelled by popular outrage at the ruling elite over
decades of corruption and waste within the state apparatus, toppled his previous
coalition government. Following his nomination for prime minister for the fourth
time, Hariri said that he would form “a government of non-partisan specialists,
whose mission is to implement the economic, financial and administrative reforms
contained in the French initiative paper, which the main blocs in Parliament
pledged to support the government to implement.”However, he faces major
challenges in overcoming the difficulties of a political arena that is based on
sectarian quotas, in order to be able to form a government that must address a
long list of problems, including the banking crisis, the collapse of the local
currency, the high rates of poverty and the inflation of government debt. The
new government will also have to deal with the rise in COVID-19 infections and
the repercussions of the huge explosion at Beirut port last August that killed
nearly 200 people and caused billions of dollars in losses.
The blast prompted the current government, the successor to Hariri's previous
government, to resign. Hariri told reporters, “I say to the Lebanese people who
are suffering from difficulties to the point of despair, that I am determined to
abide by my pledge made to them, to work to stop the collapse that is
threatening our economy, our society and our security, and to rebuild what was
destroyed by the terrible port explosion in Beirut.”
Lebanon: Abbas Ibrahim Returns from US after Contracting Coronavirus
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 23 October, 2020
Lebanese General Security chief Major-General Abbas Ibrahim returned to Beirut
from the United States on Friday where he had tested positive for COVID-19,
local media reported. Ibrahim's positive test result, announced on Monday, had
delayed his return from talks in Washington and forced him to cancel scheduled
meetings in Paris. "Ibrahim will continue his work after the end of the
necessary quarantine period due to him contracting the coronavirus," the media
said. Ibrahim had met US National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien at the White
House last week to discuss American citizens held in Syria.Lebanon's directorate
of General Security had said he was in good health when it announced his
diagnosis on Monday.
October 17… The Revolution Renews
Hanna Saleh/Asharq Al Awsat/October 23/2020
The Lebanese “October Revolution” started its second year quietly despite the
endless disputes about its accomplishments and how it could have been better,
more appropriate, or more effective. Most of the authoritarian coalition leaders
and their followers do not hesitate to blame the revolution for the economic
collapse, the exacerbation of hunger, and the security breakdown, as MP Gebran
Bassil claimed. The revolution is even blamed for the dangerous pandemic’s
spread in Lebanon after the crumble of the government’s claims that preventive
measures amazed the world
Beyond a shadow of a doubt, what started in Lebanon on October 17, 2019, was a
spontaneous popular movement that broke with decades of injustice, disregard for
people’s rights, violations of their dignity, nepotism and the inequality and
social disparities, which Lebanon had not known even before the civil war,
ensuing from it. At that stage, no one expected the country to be on the verge
of bankruptcy. The official media constantly reassured us that the Lebanese
pound was fine, only for the signs of bankruptcy to suddenly appear, and the
fact that plunder had reached the people’s bank deposits to become exposed!
Of course, the grievances about poor social living conditions that initially
compelled people to take to the streets exacerbated with the bankruptcy and rise
of unemployment. As to the banks’ confiscation of deposits and the revelations
about the banks’ culpability and their strong ties with political authorities,
it created a qualitative shift in the people’s movement. It became certain this
corrupt plunderous regime could not meet any of the people’s demands.
But there is no need to wait before finalizing the movement’s direction and
objectives. A whole year later, the ruling authority has not taken a single
decision in citizens’ interest. Indeed, it tied its perpetuity to the
exacerbation of the collapse. Those who planned this scheme are obsessed with
maintaining the political status quo to protect Hezbollah’s illegitimate arms.
This helped the movement's demands to crystallize rapidly, and they came to
revolve around uprooting the ruling clique. The movement took the shape of a
peaceful popular revolution, abiding by the constitution and striving to
retrieve the abducted state.
The revolution proposed put toppling the sectarian patron-client regime and
putting an end to the strongly sectarian quota system on the table. The system,
which, of course, began to take shape under the Syrian regime’s occupation three
decades ago and deepened after 2005. At that point, the Iranian regime became in
control through Hezbollah, the most prominent faction of the Quds Force and the
Persian Crescent project.
The governing regime's pillars had arranged frameworks for exercising power and
settling disputes among themselves, based on the contingencies of the balances
of power. As a result, heresy replaced the constitution, and laws were altered
and implemented with a large degree of discretion. The spoil-sharing applied to
the judiciary and the role of surveillance bodies disappeared. The authorities
subordinated the military; thus, after the revolution, it intimidated peaceful
demonstrators and arrested them!
The ruling clique’s successive rifts, starting with Hariri’s forced resignation,
embarrass Hezbollah, which has been positioning itself as the corrupt
spoil-sharing regime’s foremost defender. Various intimidation and targeting
campaigns were launched, and efforts to reinvigorate the previous March 8 and
March 14 division were relentless. This muted some groups’ roles, heightened the
specter of civil war, and even highlighted old battlefronts... Nevertheless,
despite their money, media institutions, organizational capacity, control of the
state and weapons, the shadow of the counter-revolutionary forces’ success is
scant. The reason for this is the months of mass mobilization reached the most
remote corners in the country, spreading a national consciousness that permeated
the country’s social fabric. It would not have had such a strong impact if it
weren’t for the mass participation of students and women, which hastened the
realization that the cabal that has been in power for three decades had expired.
All the functions it serves are out of date, to say nothing about the dreams the
people dared to voice and the rights they demanded!
Many comparisons were made with events that post-independence Lebanon had
witnessed, events that concluded with settlements that introduced the political
structure's internal balance of power. From the general strike in opposition to
Bechara El-Khoury in 1952 to the 1958 anti-Camille Chamoun "revolution" and all
the dangerous developments that undermined Lebanon between 1969 and the end of
the civil war in 1990. Lebanon’s relinquishment of its sovereignty through the
1969 Cairo Agreement set the stage for the later phase, and up to the
developments of 2005, all of these movements were "revolutions" from above. They
mirrored an intensification of the conflict over quotas of the spoil-sharing
regime among inheritors of authority!
The comparison does not apply today. The revolution’s impact on the authorities’
behavior is clear for all to see. They speak of a government independent of the
ruling sectarian pirates. Previously, they tried to trick the public by present
Hassan Diab's government as one of independents. On the agenda, regardless of
the arrogance, is a detailed discussion of the need for a transitional stage,
after the revolution demanded a government independent in its members and leader
was accepted by all decision-making capitals. The latter has begun to punish the
corrupt regime by going beyond it and directing relief to those who deserve it
directly.
Quietly entering the revolution's second year, however, is not, itself, the
goal. With the consolidations of the push for political change and the people's
belief that this change is forthcoming consolidated and that the tyrants who
humiliated the Lebanese will pay the price, relying on seasonal and spontaneous
outbursts may backfire and leave catastrophic consequences. And it has been
consistently demonstrated that the haughty attempts that were made repeatedly in
the name of "groups" to crystallize a for leadership are done. There is no need
for dull renditions after so many of these kinds of opportunists have already
been exposed. From those who proposed themselves as an alternative to a French
delegate, and then to an American one, seeking a position either as an advisor
or an expert ... even as part of the hybrid configuration led by Hassan Diab.
The peaceful Lebanese revolution's renewal faces a dual challenge today. The
first is moving from spontaneous mobilization to establishing a political
organization (or organizations) to bring about solid horizontal structures
toward the building of a political front out of trusted leaders. Crystallizing a
framework for a cross-regional national safety net is not a luxury any longer.
It is essential for both the legitimization of alternative leadership and more
needed now, even than it had been before. For the more exposed the authorities'
disintegration becomes, the stronger its tendency becomes to resort to violence.
As for the second challenge, developing a political program, it is no less
critical than the first. Calls for addressing key issues, the most prominent of
which is how to deal with the sovereignty and issue and extend the state’s
monopoly on the legitimate use of violence, have become pressing.
We are at a time of negotiations in Naquora to demarcate the maritime borders
and the reliance on international law to protect our borders, rights, and
wealth. Israel has kept the issue of its border vague since its establishment,
and resolving it removes the need for the statelet’s arms. Also, when we see the
Americans celebrating Major General Abbas Ibrahim, the claim that weapons
outside the legitimacy protect the borders, wealth, or the dignity of people
becomes totally untenable!
Text of Treasury Department press release: Treasury targets
high-ranking Hizballah officials
PRESS RELEASES
Treasury Targets High-Ranking Hizballah Officials
October 22, 2020
Washington – Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign
Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned two members of Hizballah’s Central Council. The
Central Council is responsible for identifying and electing the group’s highest
decision-making body, the Shura Council, which formulates policy and asserts
control over all aspects of Hizballah’s activities, including its military
activities. Specifically, OFAC designated Nabil Qaouk (Qaouk) and Hassan
al-Baghdadi (Baghdadi) for being leaders or officials of Hizballah.
“Hizballah’s senior leaders are responsible for creating and implementing the
terrorist organization’s destabilizing and violent agenda against U.S. interests
and those of our partners around the world,” said Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin.
“We must continue to hold Hizballah accountable for its horrific actions as we
approach the 37th anniversary of Hizballah’s bombing of the U.S. Marine Barracks
in Beirut, Lebanon.”
Qaouk and Baghdadi were designated under Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, as
amended, which targets terrorists, leaders or officials of terrorist groups, and
those providing support to terrorists or acts of terrorism.
NABIL QAOUK AND HASSAN AL-BAGHDADI
Nabil Qaouk and Hassan al-Baghdadi are leaders or officials of Hizballah, a
person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O.
13224, as amended.
Qaouk has served on Hizballah’s Executive Council, which oversees the group’s
social and economic activities, as well as its Central Council. In recent years,
he has spoken publicly on behalf of Hizballah, threatening war with Israel,
denouncing the U.S. presence in the region, and lauding Hizballah’s use of
guerrilla warfare, which serves only to erode security in Lebanon. Qaouk has
also delivered speeches on behalf of Hizballah at several ceremonies
commemorating deceased Hizballah terrorists, including the former Hizballah
External Security Organization chief Imad Mughniyah and Iran’s Islamic
Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) commander Qasem Soleimani, both
of whom were responsible for the deaths of countless Americans. Mughniyah was
designated in October 2001 for his ties to Hizballah, and Soleimani was
designated in October 2011 for acting for or on behalf of the IRGC-QF.
Baghdadi, who has publicly identified himself as a Hizballah official, has
participated in political events and delivered speeches on behalf of Hizballah.
In several speeches, he praised Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah and defended
Hizballah’s targeting of Americans. In 2020, Baghdadi attended a symposium in
Lebanon during which he commended the IRGC and fighters in Syria and Iraq for
attacking U.S. military bases. OFAC and members of the Terrorist Financing
Targeting Center (TFTC) designated Nasrallah in May 2018 for acting for or on
behalf of Hizballah, which he has led since 1992. OFAC previously designated
Nasrallah in January 1995 for threatening to disrupt the Middle East peace
process and in September 2012 for providing support to the Syrian regime of
Bashar Assad.
In 2015, Baghdadi attended a ceremony in Tehran, Iran, with Naim Qassem and
several other ranking officials, during which Qassem unveiled his book and
praised Hizballah’s war with Israel. OFAC and the TFTC designated Qassem, the
Deputy Secretary General of Hizballah, in May 2018 for acting for or on behalf
of Hizballah.
The TFTC is an initiative between the United States, the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia, the Kingdom of Bahrain, the State of Kuwait, the Sultanate of Oman, the
State of Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, which is designed to counter the
financing of terrorism.
SANCTIONS IMPLICATIONS
The Treasury Department continues to prioritize disruption of the full range of
Hizballah’s illicit financial activity, and with this action has designated over
95 Hizballah-affiliated individuals and entities since 2017. OFAC took this
action pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, which targets terrorists, leaders or
officials of terrorist groups, and those providing support to terrorists or acts
of terrorism. Hizballah was designated by the Department of State as a Foreign
Terrorist Organization in October 1997 and as a Specially Designated Global
Terrorist (SDGT) pursuant to E.O. 13224 in October 2001.
As a result of today’s action, all property and interests in property of the
individuals named above, and of any entities that are owned, directly or
indirectly, 50 percent or more by them, individually, or with other blocked
persons, that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S.
persons, are blocked and must be reported to OFAC. Unless authorized by a
general or specific license issued by OFAC or otherwise exempt, OFAC’s
regulations generally prohibit all transactions by U.S. persons or within (or
transiting) the United States that involve any property or interests in property
of designated or otherwise blocked persons. The prohibitions include the making
of any contribution of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of
any blocked person or the receipt of any contribution of funds, goods or
services from any such person.
Furthermore, engaging in certain transactions with individuals designated today
entails risk of secondary sanctions pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, and the
Hizballah Financial Sanctions Regulations, which implement the Hizballah
International Financing Prevention Act of 2015, as amended by the Hizballah
International Financing Prevention Amendments Act of 2018. Pursuant to these
authorities, OFAC may prohibit or impose strict conditions on the opening or
maintaining in the United States of a correspondent account or a payable-through
account by a foreign financial institution that knowingly facilitates a
significant transaction for Hizballah or on behalf of a designated terrorist
group, or a person acting on behalf of or at the direction of, or owned or
controlled by, Hizballah.
The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on October 23-24/2020
Treasury sanctions Iran's ambassador to Iraq
CELINE CASTRONUOVO/The Hill/October 22/2020
he Treasury Department on Thursday announced that it was sanctioning Iran’s
ambassador to Iraq for his role in carrying out the Islamic Revolutionary Guard
Corps-Qods Force’s (IRGC-QF) “destabilizing foreign agenda” in Iraq, according
to a press release from the department.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets and Control said in the statement that
Iraj Masjedi, a general in the Revolutionary Guard, “has directed or supported
groups that are responsible for attacks that have killed and wounded U.S. and
coalition forces in Iraq.”
“The Iranian regime threatens Iraq’s security and sovereignty by appointing
IRGC-QF officials as ambassadors in the region to carry out their destabilizing
foreign agenda,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in the press release.
“The United States will continue to employ the tools and authorities at its
disposal to target the Iranian regime and IRGC-QF officials that attempt to
meddle in the affairs of sovereign nations, including any attempts to influence
U.S. elections,” Mnuchin added, referring to a Wednesday night announcement from
Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe that Russia and Iran are behind
efforts to sway public opinions related to the 2020 presidential election.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo supported the sanction in a statement, saying,
“for many years, the Iranian regime and its primary tool of regional
destabilization, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF),
have exploited Iraq to advance their own interests at the expense of the Iraqi
people.”
The designation came as the department also sanctioned two leaders of Hezbollah,
the U.S.-designated terrorist organization backed by Iran that operates both a
political party and military wing in Lebanon.
Mnuchin argued in a statement that Hezbollah Central Council members Nabil Qaouk
and Hassan al-Baghdadi “are responsible for creating and implementing the
terrorist organization’s destabilizing and violent agenda against U.S. interests
and those of our partners around the world.”
Treasury argued in its press release that Hezbollah leaders have frequently
supported the use of military action against Israel.
These actions come amid recent U.S.-brokered talks between Israel and Lebanon to
end their decades-long dispute over their maritime border in the Mediterranean
Sea.
The Trump administration has repeatedly rebuked Iran and the groups it supports
as President Trump hopes to reduce the conflicts between Israel and surrounding
Arab nations.
U.S.-Iran tensions have run particularly high throughout the Trump presidency,
especially after the president withdrew the U.S. from the Iran nuclear deal and
reimposed sanctions on Tehran.
At the beginning of the year, the two countries appeared to be on the brink of
war after Trump ordered a drone strike in Iraq that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem
Soleimani.
Overnight Defense: Trump, Biden set to meet in final debate |...
Bipartisan group of senators call on Trump to sanction Russia over...
Iran retaliated with a missile strike on an Iraqi military base housing U.S.
troops. More than 100 military personnel suffered brain injuries, but there were
no deaths.
The Trump administration, however, continues to accuse Iran-backed militias of
targeting U.S. interests and personnel in Iraq.
Trump has attempted to reimpose all United Nations sanctions that were lifted
under the Iran nuclear deal, though the international community has largely
rejected the U.S. authority to do so, given Trump’s withdrawal from the
agreement.
Text of Treasury Department press release: Treasury
sanctions Iranian entities for attempted election interference
PRESS RELEASES
Treasury Sanctions Iranian Entities for Attempted Election Interference
October 22, 2020
WASHINGTON - Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets
Control (OFAC) designated five Iranian entities for attempting to influence
elections in the United States. The Iranian regime has targeted the United
States’ electoral process with brazen attempts to sow discord among the voting
populace by spreading disinformation online and executing malign influence
operations aimed at misleading U.S. voters. Components of the Government of
Iran, disguised as news organizations or media outlets, have targeted the United
States in order to subvert U.S. democratic processes.
“The Iranian regime uses false narratives and other misleading content to
attempt to influence U.S. elections,” said Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin. “This
Administration is committed to ensuring the integrity of the U.S. election
system and will continue to counter efforts from any foreign actor that
threatens our electoral processes.”
Treasury designated the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the IRGC-Qods
Force (IRGC-QF), and Bayan Rasaneh Gostar Institute (Bayan Gostar) pursuant to
Executive Order (E.O.) 13848 for having directly or indirectly engaged in,
sponsored, concealed, or otherwise been complicit in foreign interference in the
2020 U.S. presidential election. The Iranian Islamic Radio and Television Union
(IRTVU) and International Union of Virtual Media (IUVM) were designated pursuant
to E.O. 13848 for being owned or controlled by the IRGC-QF. The IRGC, including
the IRGC-QF, has been designated under multiple authorities since 2007.
The Iranian regime’s disinformation efforts have targeted a global audience
through a variety of covert media organizations. Disinformation campaigns run by
the Iranian regime focus on sowing discord among readers via social media
platforms and messaging applications, and frequently involve mischaracterizing
information.
Since at least 2015, Bayan Gostar has served as a front company for IRGC-QF
propaganda efforts. In the months leading up to the 2020 U.S. presidential
election, Bayan Gostar personnel have planned to influence the election by
exploiting social issues within the United States, including the COVID-19
pandemic, and denigrating U.S. political figures. As recently as summer 2020,
Bayan Gostar was prepared to execute a series of influence operations directed
at the U.S. populace ahead of the presidential election.
IRGC-QF INFLUENCE OPERATIONS
IRTVU, a propaganda arm of the IRGC-QF, and IUVM aided Bayan Gostar in efforts
to reach U.S. audiences. In addition, IRGC-QF outlets amplified false narratives
in English, and posted disparaging propaganda articles and other U.S.-oriented
content with the intent to sow discord among U.S. audiences. IUVM also posted
conspiracy theories and disinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Treasury Department encourages the American people to confirm information
received via social media intelligently by going to multiple trusted sources for
news and information, particularly when the source or suspected source of the
information is from outside the United States. More guidance specific to the
U.S. 2020 election and disinformation campaigns can be found here: https://www.cisa.gov/rumorcontrol
As a result of today’s designations, all property and interests in property of
the persons designated today subject to U.S. jurisdiction are blocked, and U.S
persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them. In
addition, foreign financial institutions that knowingly facilitate significant
transactions for, or persons that provide material or certain other support to,
the persons designated today risk exposure to sanctions that could sever their
access to the U.S. financial system or block their property and interests in
property under U.S. jurisdiction. Additionally, any entities 50 percent or more
owned by one or more designated persons are also blocked.
Text of Treasury Department press release: Treasury
sanctions Iranian Ambassador to Iraq
PRESS RELEASES
Treasury Sanctions Iranian Ambassador to Iraq
October 22, 2020
Iraj Masjedi, a senior officer in the IRGC-Qods Force, continues to try to
destabilize Iraq
Washington – Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign
Assets Control (OFAC) is designating Iraj Masjedi, a general in Iran’s Islamic
Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) and Iran’s Ambassador to Iraq,
for acting for or on behalf of the IRGC-QF. A close adviser to former IRGC-QF
Commander Qassem Soleimani, Masjedi played a formative role in the IRGC-QF’s
Iraq policy. In his decades of service with the group, Masjedi has overseen a
program of training and support to Iraqi militia groups, and he has directed or
supported groups that are responsible for attacks that have killed and wounded
U.S. and coalition forces in Iraq. In his current capacity, Masjedi has
exploited his position as the Iranian regime’s ambassador in Iraq to obfuscate
financial transfers conducted for the benefit of the IRGC-QF.
“The Iranian regime threatens Iraq’s security and sovereignty by appointing
IRGC-QF officials as ambassadors in the region to carry out their destabilizing
foreign agenda,” said Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin. “The United States will
continue to employ the tools and authorities at its disposal to target the
Iranian regime and IRGC-QF officials that attempt to meddle in the affairs of
sovereign nations, including any attempts to influence U.S. elections.”
Masjedi is being designated pursuant to the counterterrorism authority Executive
Order (E.O.) 13224, as amended, for acting or purporting to act for or on behalf
of, directly or indirectly, the IRGC-QF. The IRGC-QF was designated pursuant to
E.O. 13224 in 2007 for support to numerous terrorist groups. The IRGC, including
its external arm, the IRGC-QF, was designated as a Foreign Terrorist
Organization on April 8, 2019.
A LONG-RUNNING THREAT TO IRAQI SECURITY
Iran’s ambassador to Iraq since 2017, Masjedi has publicly admitted the
IRGC-QF’s role in special operations and the training of militia groups in Iraq,
Syria, and beyond. He claims credit for organizing and supporting regional
militias to advance Iran’s interests throughout the Middle East an enterprise
that has spawned untold destruction and corruption, robbing Iraq of a stable,
prosperous future.
Masjedi has facilitated financial transfers for the benefit of the IRGC-QF in
coordination with IRGC-QF financial facilitator Hushang Allahdad, acting at the
direction of former IRGC-QF Commander Soleimani and his successor, Esma’il Ghani.
Soleimani was designated pursuant to multiple authorities, including E.O. 13224,
in 2011, while Allahdad and Ghani were designated pursuant to E.O. 13224 in 2010
and 2012, respectively. Since 2018, Masjedi has helped the IRGC-QF obtain
foreign currency in Iraq, in return for equivalent sums that the IRGC-QF in Iran
has transferred to relevant entities. Most recently, Masjedi has provided direct
assistance in obtaining tens of billions of dinars on behalf of the IRGC-QF in
Iraq.
In the decades prior to his ambassadorial appointment, Masjedi was a senior
figure overseeing IRGC-QF activities in Iraq, which included attacks targeting
U.S. and coalition personnel, as well as kidnappings and the assassination of
Iraqi provincial officials who sought to curb Iranian influence in Iraq. The
IRGC-QF provided training for Iraqi recruits, often inside Iran. The Iraqi
recruits hailed from groups loyal to, and supported by, the IRGC-QF, which help
maintain Iranian influence in Iraqi politics and security. The IRGC-QF also
manufactured and distributed weapons, including explosively formed penetrators,
that killed and wounded hundreds during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Masjedi is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for acting or
purporting to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, the IRGC-QF.
SANCTIONS IMPLICATIONS
All property and interests in property of the individual designated today,
subject to U.S. jurisdiction, are blocked, and U.S persons are generally
prohibited from engaging in transactions with him or the blocked property. In
addition, foreign financial institutions that knowingly facilitate significant
transactions for, or persons that provide material or certain other support to,
the individual designated today risk exposure to sanctions that could sever
their access to the U.S. financial system or block their property and interests
in property under U.S. jurisdiction.
First COVID-19 Treatment Fully Approved by FDA
AP, StatNews, BBC
With 1,000 new deaths reported yesterday, the U.S. has given its first full
approval to a treatment for the coronavirus, remdesivir. The antiviral, already
approved in dozens of other countries and for U.S. emergencies, has reduced
recovery times — but not deaths — in major trials. In their final presidential
debate last night, President Donald Trump and Joe Biden presented warring
visions of the virus that has killed 220,000 Americans, with Trump promising “it
will go away” as Biden foresaw a “dark winter” coming. Meanwhile, North Korea
warned citizens to stay inside and avoid dust clouds that the government claims,
without evidence, are transporting contagion from China.
Senate Committee Advances Supreme Court Nomination
Washington Post, NPR, BBC
Judge Amy Coney Barrett moved closer to filling the empty seat on the U.S.
Supreme Court as the Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday approved bringing her
nomination to the floor of the Senate. Outnumbered committee Democrats boycotted
the vote in an unsuccessful attempt to invalidate it. Barrett is expected to be
confirmed by Monday evening, bolstering conservatives hoping to overturn Roe v.
Wade, cancel Obamacare and rein in voting access. Meanwhile, Polish police
pepper sprayed hundreds of people protesting after the country’s Constitutional
Tribunal banned abortions except in cases of rape, incest or danger to the
mother’s life.
The US Sets the Tempo of Its Allies’ Dealings With Syria, Refugee Conference
London- Ibrahim Hamidi/Asharq Al Awsat/October 23/2020
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is seeking to “set the tempo" among the member
states of the Small Group on Syria regarding a number of files, including the
political process and the Russian refugee conference scheduled in Damascus in
mid-November.
The Group consists of the foreign ministers of Egypt, France, Germany, Jordan,
Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, and the United States and works to support “a
political settlement of the Syrian crisis on the basis of UN Security Council
Resolution 2254 and the efforts of UN Envoy Geir Pederson for a political
solution that guarantees the safety, territorial integrity, and sovereignty of
Syria, and leads to the withdrawal of all foreign forces that came into the
country after 2011.”
US officials had reiterated, on more than one occasion, the need for the
withdrawal of all foreign forces, including Iranian militants, from Syria, with
the exception of the Russian army, which signed agreements with its Syrian
counterpart after entering the country in September 2015. Five states have
currently their armies engaged in the conflict in the Middle Eastern country,
including the United States, Russia, Iran, Turkey, and Israel.
It is commonly believed that the door to the implementation of Resolution 2254
is the Constitutional Committee, which has so far held three meetings and made
very slow progress.
Pedersen has until now failed to organize a fourth round of talks due to the
disagreement between the government and opposition delegations over the
Committee’s agenda.
This issue will be tackled by the UN envoy in his upcoming meeting with Foreign
Minister Walid al-Muallem and head of the government delegation to the
Constitutional Committee, Ahmad Kuzbari, on Saturday and Sunday in Damascus.
According to Western officials, the Small Group will encourage “continued
cooperation with the committee to ensure that progress is achieved in the
discussions related to the constitution”, with the need for the fourth round to
tackle “fundamental issues, including the holding of free and fair elections
under the supervision of the United Nations according to Resolution 2254.”
Western countries had sought to persuade Pedersen to go one step further by
holding certain parties, especially the government, responsible for the failure
of previous “constitutional” meetings and their inability to make a fundamental
breakthrough in their work. But the UN envoy preferred to focus on “discussing
fundamental issues.”
Another crucial file is the refugee conference that the Russian and Syrian
governments are organizing in Damascus on Nov. 11-12.
The invitation sent by the Syrian Foreign Ministry read that “the return of
security and stability to large areas of the Syrian Arab Republic, as well as
the reconstruction and renewal of infrastructure, represents a fundamental step
to provide the adequate conditions for the return of refugees and displaced
Syrians to their cities and villages to have a normal life.”
According to UNHCR statistics, the number of Syrian refugees in Turkey, Lebanon,
Iraq, Jordan, and Egypt reached 5.6 million, including 3.5 million in Turkey
(63.8 percent), 952,000 in Lebanon, and 673,000 in Jordan, in addition, about 7
million people who are internally displaced.
Damascus and Moscow are betting that the refugee conference would put Western
countries in front of two options: boycott the initiative and then being accused
by the two capitals of adopting double standards; or the return of a segment of
Syrians and use this to pressure donor countries to transfer their contributions
to Damascus instead of neighboring countries through the Brussels donor
conference.
On the other hand, Washington and Western capitals have expressed reservations
about the conference, citing several reasons, including reconstruction. European
countries and the US link the contribution to reconstruction with “the
implementation of a credible political process.”
Syrian experts have estimated the losses of the Syrian economy during the 9
years of war at about half a trillion USD.
Accordingly, the Small Group, in its recent joint statement, has adopted a
precise language about this. It pointed to the “profound suffering” of the
Syrian people after nearly 10 years of war amid the spread of the Covid-19
pandemic and the severe economic crisis, but stressed the importance of “safe
and unhindered access” to humanitarian aid for all Syrians,” while urging the
international community to “continue to support the Syrian refugees, and the
countries and societies hosting them, so that the Syrians can voluntarily return
to their homeland in safety, dignity, and security.”
The Small Group also opposed “forced demographic change and commits to disburse
no assistance for any resettlement of Syrian refugees that is not in line with
UNHCR standards.”
In its joint statement, the Group expressed the need “to reinforce efforts
toward a political solution in line with UNSCR 2254 that must result in progress
toward facilitating the safe, voluntary, and dignified return of IDPs and
refugees, the release of Syrian detainees, and holding all those responsible for
atrocities accountable.”
“There is no military solution that will bring peace, security, and stability to
Syria. Progress on the political process as outlined in UNSCR 2254, in addition
to the establishment of a nationwide ceasefire also as outlined in UNSCR 2254,
remains the only path forward towards a better future for all Syrians,” the
Small Group said in the joint statement.
After Sudan, Trump Predicts Saudis to Forge Israel Ties
Agence France Presse/October 23/2020
U.S. President Donald Trump predicted Friday that Saudi Arabia would soon forge
ties with Israel after brokering an agreement for Sudan to normalize ties with
the Jewish state. Speaking to reporters as he held a three-way phone
conversation with the prime ministers of Israel and Sudan, Trump said at least
another five Arab nations wanted to join the diplomatic bandwagon, which saw the
inking of similar agreements involving Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates last
month. "We have at least five that want to come in," Trump told reporters in the
White House. "We expect Saudi Arabia will be one of those countries," he added,
as he praised the country's "highly respected" rulers King Salman and Crown
Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Although Trump did not mention any other countries,
Oman and Mauritania are among the other countries in the region that have been
tipped to normalize ties. Before the recent accords between Israel, the UAE and
Bahrain, Egypt and Jordan had been the only Arab nations to have a formal peace
deal with the Jewish state. Trump announced the agreement between Israel and
Sudan's year-old civilian-backed government moments after he formally moved to
end Khartoum's designation as a state sponsor of terrorism.
US, Sudan Press for Amicable Solution over Ethiopia Dam Dispute
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 23 October, 2020
US President Donald Trump and Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok on Friday
called for an agreement to be reached over the dam dispute with Ethiopia and
Egypt. “We hope to reach an amicable solution soon,” Hamdok said, speaking by
phone with Trump following Sudan and Israel’s announcement to normalize ties.
Trump, who held the call in front of reporters at the White House, said he had
also told Egypt the same thing, saying it was a dangerous situation. Ethiopia,
Sudan and Egypt have been at odds over the filling and operation of the Grand
Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), and Trump on Friday said he had brokered an
agreement to resolve the issue but that Ethiopia had broken the pact, forcing
him to cut funds. “I had a deal done for them and then unfortunately Ethiopia
broke the deal, which they should not have done. It was a big mistake,” Trump
said. “They will never see that money unless they adhere to the agreement ...
You can’t blame Egypt for being a little upset.” Trump urged Hamdok to get
Ethiopia to agree come accept the deal to resolve the water dispute.
“I’m telling Egypt the same thing,” Trump added.
Israel and Sudan Reach US-Brokered Deal to Normalize Ties
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 23 October, 2020
Israel and Sudan agreed on Friday to take steps to normalize relations in a deal
brokered with the help of the United States, making Khartoum the third Arab
government to set aside hostilities with Israel in the last two months.
US President Donald Trump, seeking re-election on Nov. 3, sealed the agreement
in a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Sudanese
Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and Transitional Council Head Abdel Fattah al-Burhan,
senior US officials said.
Trump’s decision this week to remove Sudan from the US list of state sponsors of
terrorism paved the way for the accord with Israel, marking a foreign policy
achievement for the Republican president as he seeks a second term trailing in
opinion polls behind Democratic rival Joe Biden.
“The leaders agreed to the normalization of relations between Sudan and Israel
and to end the state of belligerence between their nations,” according to a
joint statement issued by the three countries. Israel and Sudan plan to begin by
opening economic and trade relations, with an initial focus on agriculture, the
joint statement said. A senior US official, speaking on condition of anonymity,
said such issues as formal establishment of diplomatic ties would be resolved
later. Trump touted the deal to reporters in the Oval Office with the Israeli
and Sudanese leaders on the line in a three-way phone call, saying at least five
other countries want to follow suit and normalize relations with Israel. Trump
insisted the Palestinians also “are wanting to do something” but offered no
proof. Palestinian leaders have condemned recent Arab diplomatic outreach to
Israel as a betrayal of their nationalist cause and have refused to engage with
the Trump administration, seeing it as heavily biased in favor of Israel. A
senior Palestinian Liberation Organization official described Sudan’s decision
to take steps to normalize relations with Israel as a “new stab in the back” for
the Palestinians.
Dropping Sudan from terrorism list
Trump announced on Monday he would take Sudan off the terrorism list once it had
deposited $335 million it had pledged to pay in compensation. Khartoum has since
placed the funds in a special escrow account for victims of al-Qaeda attacks on
US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998.
Shortly before the Israel-Sudan deal was announced, Trump notified Congress of
“his intent to formally rescind Sudan’s designation as a State Sponsor of
Terrorism.” The White House called the move a “pivotal turning point” for
Khartoum, which is seeking to emerge from decades of isolation.
Trump’s aides have been pressing Sudan to take steps toward normalizing
relations with Israel, following similar US-brokered moves in recent weeks by
the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. A sticking point in the negotiations was
Sudan’s insistence that any announcement of Khartoum’s delisting from the
terrorism designation not be explicitly linked to establishing ties with Israel.
The military and civilian leaders of Sudan’s transitional government have been
divided over how fast and how far to go in establishing ties with Israel. The
Sudanese premier wants approval from a yet-to-be formed parliament to proceed
with broader normalization, and that may not be a quick progress given
sensitivities and civilian-military differences. The agreement was negotiated on
the US side by Trump son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner, Middle East
envoy Avi Berkowitz, national security adviser Robert O’Brien, Secretary of
State Mike Pompeo and national security aide Miguel Correa. Kushner called the
normalization deals the start of a “paradigm shift” in the Middle East. He said
Sudan’s decision was symbolically significant because it was in Khartoum in 1967
that the Arab League decided not to recognize Israel’s right to exist. Sudan’s
designation as a state sponsor of terrorism dates to its toppled ruler Omar al-Bashir
and has made it difficult for its transitional government to access urgently
needed debt relief and foreign financing. Many in Sudan say the designation,
imposed in 1993 because Washington believed Bashir was supporting militant
groups, has become outdated since he was removed last year. US congressional
legislation is needed to shield Khartoum from future legal claims over past
attacks to ensure the flow of payments to the embassy bombing victims and their
families.
Israel Jets Strike Gaza after Rocket Fire
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 23 October, 2020
Israeli fighter jets struck suspected Hamas military targets in the Gaza Strip
before dawn on Friday following rocket fire from the Palestinian enclave.
Warplanes and other aircraft hit a "weapons manufacturing site and underground
infrastructures" operated by Hamas, which has controlled the territory since
2007, the Israeli army said. Hamas reported no casualties from the strikes on
the Nuseirat refugee camp and the southern city of Khan Yunis. Two rockets had
been launched at Israel late Thursday, without causing any casualties or damage.
One was intercepted by Israeli air defenses, while the other hit open ground,
the army said. The last reported rocket attack from Gaza was on Tuesday night.
It came after the army announced it had found a new tunnel that crosses "dozens
of meters into Israel" from Gaza.The next day the army said the tunnel belonged
to Hamas. Authorities have discovered some 20 tunnels originating in Gaza since
2014, army spokesman Jonathan Conricus said this week.
U.S. Condemns Turkish Missile System Test, Warns of
'Serious Consequences'
Agence France Presse/Friday, 23 October, 2020
The Pentagon on Friday strongly condemned the test of a Russian-made S-400
missile defense system by NATO ally Turkey and warned of "serious consequences."
"The U.S. Department of Defense condemns in the strongest possible terms
Turkey's October 16 test of the S-400 air defense system," Pentagon spokesman
Jonathan Hoffman said in a statement.
"We object to Turkey's testing of this system, which risks serious consequences
for our security relationship," Hoffman said. "We have been clear and unwavering
in our position: an operational S-400 system is not consistent with Turkey's
commitments as a U.S. and NATO Ally."
NATO Says Greece and Turkey Cancel Military Exercises
Agence France Presse/Friday, 23 October, 2020
Turkey and Greece have agreed to cancel rival military exercises that were to
have been held next week on their respective national days, NATO's
Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Friday.
The neighbors, while NATO members, are at loggerheads over energy drilling and
maritime rights in the eastern Mediterranean and the alliance has set up a
hotline to head off accidental clashes. "This is a very welcome step,"
Stoltenberg said after a videoconference of NATO defense ministers, including
Greece's Nikos Panagiotopoulos and Turkey's Hulusi Akar. "These are steps in the
right direction, and it helps to reduce the risks for instance and accidents."
Greece had been expected to conduct exercises on Wednesday October 28, its Oxi
Day holiday, and Turkey on Thursday, celebrated there as Republic Day. Turkey
has deployed the Oruc Reis, a gas exploration vessel under military escort into
Greek waters off the island of Kastellorizo, and Greek vessels are nearby.
Addressing a news conference after two days of talks on a variety of topics,
Stoltenberg confirmed he had raised the situation with the Greek and Turkish
ministers. "I will say that we had a good and constructive talks and allies
expressed a strong support for the NATO de-confliction mechanism," Stoltenberg
said. "I welcome now the fact that we have been able to see some concrete steps
in that direction with the cancellation of the two exercises." French Defense
Minister Florence Parly also hailed the decisions to cancel the military
exercises, stressing the need to "respect international law and restore
stability in the region." Stoltenberg also welcomed Germany's diplomatic
mediation in the underlying dispute.
On Thursday, he had warned that -- while NATO could help keep the rival
militaries apart -- it would be down to Ankara and Athens to open a dialogue to
resolve their long-standing differences.
Turkish Cypriot Leader Sworn in with 'Two States' Call
Agence France Presse/Friday, 23 October, 2020
Ankara-backed Ersin Tatar, the newly elected Turkish Cypriot leader, took the
oath of office Friday and immediately called for a two-state solution on the
divided island. Voters in the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern
Cyprus (TRNC) on Sunday narrowly elected the right-wing nationalist as president
at a time of heightened tensions in the eastern Mediterranean. The supporter of
a permanent partition edged out previous Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci,
72, a supporter of reunification with the Greek Cypriot south. "Equal
sovereignty between the two peoples on the island and cooperation on the basis
of two states is a necessity for us," he said at a swearing-in ceremony in
northern Nicosia, in the presence of Vice President Fuat Oktay of Turkey, the
only country that recognizes the TRNC. Tatar, 60, clinched his surprise victory
in a second round of elections. Cyprus has been divided since Turkey invaded and
occupied its northern third in 1974 in reaction to a Greek-engineered coup
aiming to annex the island. On Monday, Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades, the
Greek Cypriot leader, and Tatar agreed in a phone call to meet in the
U.N.-patrolled buffer zone that has for decades separated the north and the
south. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said he wants to rekindle
talks between the two sides following the north's elections.
The last attempt at U.N.-mediated negotiations collapsed in Switzerland in July
2017. The U.N. is now expected to convene a meeting between the two sides,
Turkey, Greece and former colonial ruler Britain.
In his victory speech Sunday, Tatar said he would return to the negotiating
table "when necessary," but said that Turkish Cypriots would "not compromise" on
certain points essential to their "sovereignty."
"Our neighbors in the south and world community should respect our fight for
freedom," Tatar said.
The TRNC is economically and politically dependent on Turkey -- not least
because some 30,000 Turkish troops are on Cypriot soil.
In a call with Tatar after his victory, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
said their cooperation would continue "starting with activities related to
hydrocarbons." Northern Cyprus is a centerpiece of Turkey's strategy in the
eastern Mediterranean, including a bitter dispute with Greece and Cyprus over
oil and gas reserves. The European Union has deplored Turkey's drilling for
hydrocarbons in disputed waters and warned Ankara against further
"provocations."
UN: Libyan Factions Sign 'Permanent' National Ceasefire
Deal
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 23 October, 2020
Libya's two warring factions signed a "permanent" ceasefire agreement across the
country on Friday following five days of talks at the United Nations in Geneva,
the UN's Libya mission said. The accord, concluded after talks between military
representatives of Fayez al-Sarraj's Government of National Accord (GNA) and the
Libyan National Army (LNA) of Khalifa Haftar, will be followed by political
discussions in Tunisia next month. "The 5 + 5 Joint Military Commission talks in
Geneva today culminate in a historic achievement as Libyan teams reach a
permanent ceasefire agreement across Libya. This achievement is an important
turning point towards peace and stability in Libya," UNSMIL said on its Facebook
page, which showed a live stream of the signing ceremony. “The road to a
permanent ceasefire deal was often long and difficult,” Williams said in Arabic
at the ceremony.
“Before us is a lot of work in the coming days and weeks in order to implement
the commitments of the agreement," she said. “It is essential to continue work
as quickly as possible in order to alleviate the many problems due to this
conflict facing the Libyan people."
“We have to give people hope of a better future,” Williams added. She expressed
hope the agreement will succeed “in ending the suffering of Libyans and allowing
those displaced by the conflict to return to their homes.”The meetings this week
mark the fourth round of talks involving the Joint Military Commission under
Williams' watch. The Geneva-based military talks come ahead of a political forum
in Tunisia in November. That forum aims to “generate consensus on a unified
governance framework and arrangements that will lead to the holding of national
elections,” the UN mission said. On Wednesday, Williams had said the two warring
factions agreed on issues that “directly impact the lives and welfare of the
Libyan people," citing agreements to open air and land routes in the country, to
work to ease inflammatory rhetoric in Libyan media, and to help kickstart
Libya’s vital oil industry.
U.S. Hails Libya Ceasefire, Urges Foreign Fighters to
Leave
Agence France Presse/Friday, 23 October, 2020
The United States on Friday hailed a U.N.-brokered permanent ceasefire signed
between rival factions in Libya and said that all foreign fighters must now
leave. "This agreement is a major step forward toward realizing the shared
interests of all Libyans in de-escalation, stability and the departure of
foreign fighters," said a statement issued by the U.S. embassy in Libya. "We
urge internal and external actors now to support good-faith implementation of
the agreement."The United States has long voiced concern about foreign
involvement in Libya's war, especially of Russian-backed mercenaries that a U.N.
report found were backing warlord Khalifa Haftar. The United States was part of
the European-backed campaign that helped topple dictator Moammar Gadhafi in
2011, following which Libya has been torn by bloodshed. The United States, like
the United Nations, recognizes the government in Tripoli which has made major
headway on the battlefield with support from Turkey. But President Donald Trump
last year sowed confusion by praising Haftar, whose campaign to seize control
has been backed by Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, all close
partners of the U.S. leader.
US Drone Strike Kills 17 Militants in Northwest Syria
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 23 October, 2020
The US Army said Thursday it carried out a drone strike against Al-Qaeda leaders
in northwest Syria near the border, killing 17 militants, according to a war
monitor. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said five civilians were also
among those killed. "US Forces conducted a strike against a group of al-Qaeda in
(AQ-S) senior leaders meeting near Idlib, Syria," said Major Beth Riordan, the
spokeswoman for United States Central Command (CENTCOM). "The removal of these
AQ-S leaders will disrupt the terrorist organization's ability to further plot
and carry out global attacks threatening US citizens, our partners and innocent
civilians," Riordan said in a statement. She did not specify the number of
deaths from the strike. According to OSDH, the strike targeted a dinner meeting
of militants in the village of Jakara in the area of Salqin, killing at least 17
extremists including 11 leaders. The strike hit in Syria's last major opposition
bastion of Idlib, which is dominated by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) led a former
Al-Qaeda affiliate, but other extremist groups are also present in the area.
Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said that five non-Syrian extremists were
among those killed, but their nationalities were not immediately known. Among
the six Syrian leaders killed, two were from HTS, he said. Ebaa, the media
mouthpiece of HTS, said a strike targeted a "tent belonging to one of the
dignitaries" in Jakara, killing several people.
Kadhimi, Johnson Agree on ‘Strategic Cooperation’
Baghdad - London - Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 23 October, 2020
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Kadhimi and his British counterpart, Boris Johnson,
have agreed on strategic cooperation between Baghdad and London, including on
fighting terrorism. Kadhimi met Johnson Thursday in the British capital, London,
as part of his European tour that also included France and Germany.
A statement from the Iraqi PM’s office said the meeting discussed issues of
common interest, the political and security situation in Iraq and the region,
and developing relations between the two countries in a way that serves peace
and local and regional stability.
The two officials agreed on more cooperation between Baghdad and London in
combating terrorism, as well as in political and economic affairs, in light of
the challenges facing Iraq due to the decline in global oil prices and the
repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic.
Kadhimi also met separately with Prince Charles at the Clarence House and with
British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab. During his meeting with the Prince, they
discussed prospects for cooperation between Iraq and the UK, as well as some
initiatives aimed at enhancing coexistence and protecting the environment. The
British government said in a statement that Kadhimi discussed in London Iraq’s
main security and economic challenges in addition to the cabinet’s reform plan.
Johnson expressed his strong support to the Iraqi government. Yassin Al-Bakri,
professor of political science at Al-Nahreen University, told Asharq Al-Awsat
that “Iraq continues to enjoy the confidence and support of the main European
players.” MP Aras Habib Kareem, Secretary General of the Iraqi National Congress
(INC), said that Kadhimi’s trip comes at a time when Iraq needs a strong
international partnership that generates promising economic opportunities.
Wisdom Movement MP Raheem al-Aboudi revealed that Kadhimi received pledges from
France, Germany and even Britain on a soft loan of $5 billion to resolve the
salaries’ crisis.
Bloated Public Salaries at Heart of Iraq's Economic Woes
Asharq Al-Awsat/Friday, 23 October, 2020
Long-time Iraqi civil servant Qusay Abdul-Amma panicked when his monthly salary
was delayed. Days of waiting turned to weeks. He defaulted on rent and other
bills. A graphic designer for the Health Ministry, he uses about half his salary
to pay his rent of nearly 450,000 Iraqi dinars a month, roughly $400. If he
fails to pay twice in a row his landlord will evict him and his family, he
fears. "These delays affect my ability to survive," Abdul-Amma said. Iraq´s
government is struggling to pay the salaries of the ever-swelling ranks of
public sector employees amid an unprecedented liquidity crisis caused by low oil
prices. September's salaries were delayed for weeks, and October´s still haven´t
been paid as the government tries to borrow once again from Iraq´s currency
reserves. The crisis has fueled fears of instability ahead of mass
demonstrations this week.
The government has outlined a vision for a drastic overhaul of Iraq´s economy in
a "white paper" presented last week to lawmakers and political factions. But
with early elections on the horizon, the prime minister´s advisers fear there is
little political will to execute it fully.
"We are asking the same people we are protesting against and criticizing to
reform the system," said Sajad Jiyad, an Iraq researcher. The white paper´s
calls for cutting public sector payrolls and reforming state finances would
undermine the patronage systems that the political elite have used to entrench
their power.
A major part of that patronage is handing out state jobs in return for support.
The result has been a threefold increase in public workers since 2004. The
government pays 400% more in salaries than it did 15 years ago. Around three
quarters of the state´s expenditures in 2020 go to paying for the public sector
- a massive drain on dwindling finances. "Now the situation is very dangerous,"
said Mohammed al-Daraji, a lawmaker on parliament´s Finance Committee. One
government official said political factions are in denial that change is needed,
believing oil prices will rise and "we will be fine." "We won´t be fine. The
system is unsustainable and sooner or later it will implode," the official said,
speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss internal politics. Iraq´s
activists have called for a march on Oct. 25, expected to draw large crowds, a
year since massive anti-government protests first brought tens of thousands to
the streets demanded reforms and an end to the corrupt political class. "As far
as meeting our demands, there have been no changes," said Kamal Jabar, member of
the Tishreen Democratic Movement, founded during the protests last year. "To us,
the white paper is a joke." Abu Ali, a merchant in Baghdad´s commercial district
of Shorjah, fears what the following months have in store. The state is the
primary source of employment for Iraqis, and civil servants are the lifeblood of
his business. "The delays in salary payments have affected the market directly,"
he said. "If these delays continue our business and the economy will collapse."
Abdul-Amma´s September pay was 45 days late, and he still hasn´t received the
October pay that was supposed to come on the first of the month. He worries
about the coming months as well. "I have a history of chronic heart disease, and
one of my daughters is also sick," said the father of four. He pays $100 in
medical fees per month. But to the architects of the reform paper, he is part of
the problem: Public sector bloat is first in line for reform. "We hope the civil
service and bureaucracy will recognize a need for change," Finance Minister Ali
Allawi told The Associated Press in a recent interview. Iraq relies on oil
exports to fund 90% of state revenues. Those revenues have plunged to an average
$3.5 billion a month since oil prices crashed earlier this year.
That´s half the $7 billion a month needed to pay urgent expenses. Of that, $5
billion is for public sector salaries and pensions, according to Finance
Ministry figures. Iraq also imports nearly all of its food and medicine; with
foreign currency reserves at $53 billion, the World Bank estimates the country
can sustain these imports for another nine months. Foreign debts account for
another $316 million. Poor productivity of public workers is the heart of the
issue, Allawi said.
"We´ve ended up with a low productivity, high-cost public sector that doesn´t
really earn its keep," he said. "In one way or another this issue has to be
tackled by either reducing numbers, which is politically difficult, reducing
salaries ... or increasing productivity."
The white paper calls for public sector payments to be reduced from 25% of GDP
to 12% but doesn´t detail how. Officials said one step may be to restore taxes
on civil servants' benefits that previous administrations had lifted. To meet
month-to-month commitments now, the government has had to borrow internally from
its foreign currency reserves. A request of a second loan of $35 billion was
sent to parliament, drawing criticism from lawmakers. Haitham al-Jibouri, head
of parliament´s Finance Committee, said in televised remarks that if borrowing
was the government´s only plan he would fetch a shopkeeper from Bab al-Sharqi, a
commercial area in the capital, to do the finance minister´s job.
Parliament´s endorsement of the loan and the reform paper is crucial for the
government to avoid a full-scale economic crisis.
But this will prove difficult with elections slated for next June, since
factions want to hand out jobs to maintain their constituencies.
"Whoever decides to push ahead and support reforms first will lose out, they
will also need to convince other political players who will also lose out," said
Jiyad. "That is a tough sell."
Kadhimi´s advisers privately acknowledge the challenges of having the system
that produced such mismanagement and corruption be its own savior. One official
recalled a remark made by the finance minister at a meeting of a high-level
committee tasked with managing the crisis.
He looked at the room of officials charged with halting the country´s fast
spiral toward insolvency and said, "I can´t believe this was done for 10 years
and none of you did anything to stop it." There was silence.
The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on October 23-24/2020
Turkish interference in the Caucasus risks setting the
whole region ablaze
Armen Sarkissian/The President of Armenia/The National/October 23/2020
أرمين سركيسيان، رئيس جمهورية أرمينيا: التدخل التركي في القوقاز يهدد بإشعال
النيران في المنطقة بأكملها
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/91645/armen-sarkissian-the-president-of-armenia-turkish-interference-in-the-caucasus-risks-setting-the-whole-region-ablaze-%d8%a3%d8%b1%d9%85%d9%8a%d9%86-%d8%b3%d8%b1%d9%83%d9%8a%d8%b3%d9%8a%d8%a7/
On September 30, I drafted a special letter to several world
leaders to describe to them the situation in and around Nagorno-Karabakh, a
contested region of the Caucasus inhabited predominately by ethnic Armenians. It
has been attacked aggressively by Azerbaijan, with the full support of Turkey. I
could hardly anticipate the scope of the aggression and the lack of humanity in
the behaviour of their forces. Then and even now, the reality on the ground that
my fellow Armenians are experiencing is more than alarming, and risks igniting
further escalation and insecurity in the region and even beyond.
Months and even years before the military aggression by Azerbaijan on September
27, the Azerbaijani leadership was using very harsh, militaristic rhetoric and
overtly voicing, at the highest levels of government, its intentions to resolve
the conflict through a fully fledged war. Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia have been
facing similar attempts for more than 25 years since a ceasefire was established
after the first Karabakh war in 1994. Ever since then, the rhetoric and the
destructive behaviour of Azerbaijan has never faded.
Nagorno-Karabakh – or Artsakh, as we call it in Armenia – has always been
populated overwhelmingly by Armenians. It has never been a voluntary part of
independent Azerbaijan. In 1921, Nagorno-Karabakh was given as a gift by Russia
under Josef Stalin to Soviet Azerbaijan, which was not an independent state, but
a part of the Soviet Union.
Following decades of continued discrimination, in 1987 and 1988 the Armenians of
Nagorno-Karabakh began to raise their voices to re-join with Armenia. They
conducted peaceful demonstrations and signed petitions. At the same time,
ethnically motivated persecutions against Armenians in Soviet Azerbaijan
mounted. There were pogroms and ethnic cleansing campaigns in a number of
Azerbaijani cities.
During the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh
declared their independence earlier than Azerbaijan. In fact, Azerbaijan
declared its own independence from the Soviet Union in a separate process,
without Nagorno-Karabakh. Despite this and other facts that, in Armenia’s view,
make Azerbaijan’s claims baseless in the context of the international law, the
government in Baku seeks has, for about 30 years, sought to oppress with
military means the right of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh (or the Republic
of Artsakh) to live in their homeland. It pursues a policy of forcibly capturing
lands, cleansing them of their native inhabitants and heritage and ignoring the
basic, fundamental rights.
After 30 years of rejecting any attempts at a peaceful solution, Azerbaijan,
supported militarily and politically by Turkey, is once again attacking
Armenia’s cherished homeland. Azerbaijan’s position is, in a sense, a
continuation of the policies that Armenians have faced ever since the Ottoman
Empire tried to perpetrate the genocide of Armenians almost 105 years ago. At
that time, about 1.5 million ethnic Armenians perished, or were exiled and
persecuted.
The Azerbaijani side today includes not only Turkish generals, officers and
military experts, but also Turkish F-16 fighter jets and the infamous
“Bayraktar” drones. Every day, these death machines and are involved in bombing
Nagorno-Karabakh and even Armenia. Lethal and even prohibited weapons, such as
cluster munition, have been deployed for more than three weeks against a huge
number of Armenian civilians and civil infrastructure. The latter includes
hospitals, houses and even kindergartens.
If you add to this the involvement of Syrian mercenaries, jihadists and radical
fanatics who are now on Armenian soil killing my people, the full picture is
clear. Mercenaries from international terrorist organisations fighting in the
Middle East — in particular, Jabhat Al Nusra, Firqat Hamza and the Sultan Murad
Division – are actively entering the fray. Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh are
dealing with international terrorism.
Hence, we in Armenia remain very concerned and alert for those developments on
the ground. We are also concerned by the hesitant stance of the international
community, which needs to react immediately. It needs to apply pressure to
Turkey to withdraw from our region with its weapons, mercenaries and cynicism.
It needs to apply pressure to Azerbaijan to respect two ceasefires agreed on
October 10 and 17. The war by Turkey and Azerbaijan against my nation risks
creating another Syria in the Caucasus, with the potential to fuel a greater
fire in the entire region and beyond.
Turkey does not hesitate to export Islamist militants and other terrorists into
Azerbaijan. But, as usual, it needs an excuse for doing so. One of its excuses
has been that Azerbaijanis are its ethnic kin. The reality is that that line of
thinking simply doesn’t work in the new world, because by that logic Turkey’s
ethnic kinship extends all the way into Central Asia, Mongolia, northern China
and elsewhere. Is Ankara ready to interfere with any problem that its ethnic
brothers may face there?
Perhaps the answer is yes – in which case, it is no wonder that modern Turkey
has problematic relations virtually 360 degrees in every direction. It has had
problems with Egypt. It is now involved in Libya. It speaks about the
territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, but in the meantime has crossed over its
border with Iraq. It violates the territorial integrity of Syria. It is trying
to be very present in Lebanon and in parts of the Gulf. It also has big issues
in the Eastern Mediterranean. And now, it is in the Caucasus. All of this is
unacceptable.
Mercenaries from international terrorist organisations are entering the fray in
Nagorno-Karabakh
Leaders of civilised nations, regardless of their religious or ethnic
identities, must act unequivocally to stop aggressors and establish long-lasting
peace. We need peace, and it can only be reached through negotiation and talks.
But this is what the Azerbaijani side rejects each and every time, for reasons
that are horrific to the rest of us. They claim they have a legitimate right to
use force – brutal, military force – against the Armenians living in
Nagorno-Karabakh.
We need to understand that there is no military solution to this and, I would
say, to any conflict. Armenians have always believed that a solution has to be
reached through peaceful negotiations and in a way that does not make things
worse. This is why we have refrained from officially recognising the Republic of
Artsakh, so as to allow the negotiations to take place and reach a peaceful
solution. But Turkey and Azerbaijan seem to have a different understanding of
what a solution is, and they push only a militaristic, aggressive and, in my
view, genocidal agenda.
My appeal to Muslim and Arab leaders aims at asking them to use their influence
and high prestige in the international arena to immediately stop the bloodshed
and human suffering.
Together, we can stop this aggression, because we are proponents of peace, who
reject war, violence and terrorism.
*Armen Sarkissian is the President of Armenia
Question: "Why was God so evident in the Bible, and seems
so hidden today?"
GotQuestions.org/October 23/2020
Answer: The Bible records God’s appearing to people, performing amazing and
undeniable miracles, speaking audibly, and many other things that we do not
often witness today. Why is this? Why was God so willing to reveal and prove
Himself in Bible times but seems "hidden" and silent today?
One reason God may seem hidden today is the simple fact of willful, unrepentant
sin. “Then they will cry out to the LORD, but he will not answer them. At that
time he will hide his face from them because of the evil they have done” (Micah
3:4; cf. Deuteronomy 31:18; 32:20). Also, without faith it is impossible to
please God (Hebrews 11:6). Sometimes people miss evidence of God because of a
refusal to believe (see Mark 6:1-6)—it’s hard to see when you refuse to open
your eyes.
Far from being hidden, God has completed a plan of progressive revelation to
mankind. During His centuries-long process of communication, God at times used
miracles and direct address with people in order to reveal His character, His
instructions, and His plans. In between God’s times of speaking, there was
silence. His power was not as evident, and new revelation was not forthcoming
(see 1 Samuel 3:1).
God’s first miracle – creation – has never been hidden in any way. Creation was
and is the primary evidence of God’s existence and the way He exhibits many of
His attributes. From what was made, man can see that God is powerful, sovereign,
and eternal (Romans 1:20). The creation was His first declaration to mankind.
“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the expanse proclaims His handiwork”
(Psalm 19:1). Following creation, God spoke to people to further declare Himself
and to inform man of His ways. He first spoke to Adam and Eve, giving them
commandments to follow and, when they disobeyed, pronouncing a curse. He also
assured them and all mankind that He would send a Savior to redeem us from sin.
After Enoch’s translation to heaven, it seems that God was “hidden” once again.
But later, God spoke to Noah in order to save him and his family and to Moses,
giving him the Law for His people to follow. God performed miracles to
authenticate Moses as His prophet (Exodus 4:8) and to deliver the Israelites
from Egypt. God performed miracles again in Joshua’s time to establish Israel in
the Promised Land and again during the time of Elijah and Elisha to authenticate
the prophets and to combat idolatry. In between those times of clear divine
intervention, generations passed without seeing a miracle or hearing the voice
of God. Many probably wondered, “Why is God hidden today? Why doesn’t He make
Himself evident?”
When Jesus came to earth, after 400 “silent years” from God, He performed
miracles to prove that He was indeed the Son of God and to foster faith in Him
(Matthew 9:6; John 10:38). After His miraculous resurrection, He enabled His
apostles to continue performing miracles in order to prove they were truly sent
by Him, again so that people would believe in Jesus and heed the New Testament
that the apostles were writing.
There are several reasons why, after the time of the apostles, God is no longer
speaking audibly to us or making Himself as evident. As noted above, God has
already spoken. His words were faithfully written down, and they have been
miraculously kept for us through the ages. The Bible is finished. God’s
progressive revelation is done (Revelation 22:18). Now we have the completed
canon of Scripture, and we need no further miracles to “validate” the Bible,
which has already been validated. In God’s perfect Word is everything we need
“for doctrine, for reproof, for correction and instruction in righteousness” (2
Timothy 3:16). The Bible is perfectly able to make us “wise to salvation through
faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:15). It is a “more sure Word of prophecy
[more sure than miraculous experience] to which we would do well to take heed”
(2 Peter 1:19). We need nothing more, and we are not to seek extra-biblical
revelations. To do so calls into question the efficacy of Scripture that God has
declared to be sufficient.
But doesn’t the Holy Spirit speak to us? Yes, He is our Comforter in this world
(John 14:16). And He may work with our conscience to help guide us. But it’s
important to understand that the Spirit is not giving new revelation today.
Rather, He speaks to us through the written Word of God, which is the “sword of
the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:17). The Spirit will often bring specific Scriptures to
mind at times when we need them most (John 14:26); He enlightens us to
understand the Word and empowers us to live it. But no one can say, “The Spirit
has revealed to me a new fact about heaven, not found in the Bible!” That is
adding to Scripture and the height of presumption.
Another reason for the “hidden” state of God today is alluded to by the prophet
Habakkuk: “The just shall live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4). God does not give
His people a continual chain of miraculous signs; He never has. Rather, He
expects them to trust what He has already done, search the Scriptures daily, and
live by faith, not by sight (Matthew 16:4; John 20:29; 2 Corinthians 5:7).
Finally, let us remember that, even in those times when it seems that God is
doing nothing, He is still the sovereign Lord of all creation, and He is
constantly at work, bringing about the completion of His perfect plan. One of
the best examples of God’s “hidden” working is the book of Esther, in which God
is never mentioned but which plainly shows His sovereign hand at work from
beginning to end.
Iran Targeted by U.S. Over Threats Against Democratic
Voters
Jamie Tarabay and Kartikay Mehrotra/Bloomberg/ October 22/2020,
While the Trump administration often mentioned Iran among cyber-adversaries
suspected of seeking to disrupt U.S. elections, the focus had been primarily on
China and Russia.
Now, the Islamic Republic is emerging as a prime target for President Donald
Trump in the final days before the Nov. 3 election over an alleged Iranian email
campaign to intimidate voters and incite social unrest. In a public announcement
late Wednesday, U.S. Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe described
Iran’s efforts, elevating the Islamic Republic as a more prominent suspect in
efforts to disrupt the American political process.
The emails, claiming to be from the right-wing Proud Boys group, threatened
Democratic voters with violence if they didn’t change their party affiliation
and voted for Trump on election day.
Iran was also distributing a video that sought to imply that fraudulent ballots
were being mailed from overseas in a bid to interfere with the elections,
Ratcliffe said. In addition, Iran and Russia had managed to collect voter
registration material, which was available online, and that Tehran used to
deploy emails to Americans in an attempt to “convey misinformation,” he said.
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Google also identified an operation linked to Iran that “sent inauthentic emails
to people in the U.S. over the past 24 hours,” a spokesperson said. For Gmail
users, spam filters stopped 90% of the approximately 25,000 emails sent, the
spokesperson said, suggesting the attack wasn’t particularly effective.
But with voters’ nerves already frayed, the administration’s handling of the
episode also raises questions. Ratcliffe said the Iranian operation was meant to
hurt the president, which is far from clear based on the contents of the video
and emails. Cyber-researchers are also wondering what sort of intelligence
Ratcliffe unearthed to accuse Iran of meddling within just hours of the spoofing
operation. Attributing malicious operations to nation-states typically takes
months and years, not hours.
Ohad Zaidenberg, lead cyber-intelligence researcher at ClearSky Cyber Security,
said he’s still investigating the emails and their origin to understand how the
U.S. was able to point the finger at Iran.
“We investigated the emails, but didn’t find the link to Iran,” said Zaidenberg,
an expert in Iranian cyber-operations. “This attack’s source might be Iran, or
other threat actor exploiting Iranians infrastructure.”
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi also questioned Ratcliffe’s conclusions. “I
will be very interested to hear what they have to say in a classified briefing
because everything we have seen in the public domain has not justified a
statement that we heard yesterday,” said Pelosi, at a news conference prior to a
closed-door briefing. Afterward, she told reporters, “I think we have to be very
careful about any statements coming out from the intelligence community 13 days
before the election.”
Iranian officials rejected the U.S. allegations. “These accusations are nothing
more than another scenario to undermine voter confidence in the security of the
U.S. election, and are absurd,” Alireza Miryousefi, a diplomat at the Iranian
mission to the United Nations, said in a statement.
Cyber researchers with expertise in Iranian politics contend the operation fits
Iran’s agenda of supporting the campaign of Democratic challenger Joe Biden.
These hackers weren’t trying to scare off Democrats, but instead further vilify
Trump’s base, said Paul Prudhomme, cyberthreat intelligence adviser at the
cyber-research firm, IntSights.
Iran has been turning up its cyber spigot on the Trump administration since it
pulled the U.S. out of a multinational nuclear accord with Iran in May 2018.
Since then, Treasury Department officers have been targeted by Iranian social
engineering campaigns. While Iran’s cyber capabilities pale in comparison to
Russia’s, they still aspire to “do to Trump what the Russians did to Hillary
Clinton in 2016,” Prudhomme said.
Iran is “happy to see disarray and disruption in the U.S.,” said Dr. Sanam Vakil,
the deputy director of the Middle East and North Africa program at Chatham
House, a London think tank. “And if it can embarrass America in any way that is
a positive thing.”
With U.S. sanctions imposed by the Trump administration hampering its military
endeavors, Iran sees cyber-attacks as a good way to continue to try to exert
influence and have an impact, she said. “As tensions continue this is going to
be an area where Iran is going to invest,” she said.
Yet even as Ratcliffe said the Iranian campaign sought to damage Trump’s
election chances, Vakil said that Iran’s politics aren’t monolithic. The
overriding consensus is that a Biden presidency was welcomed, but there are some
in the Iranian political establishment who prefer four more years of Trump.
“They see him as weakening the U.S., and that sort of weakness is positive for
Iran in the Middle East,” she said. “He also appears to be drawing down U.S.
influence in the Middle East and that can be billed as another win for Tehran.”
Iranian information operations date back at least eight years, said John
Hultquist, a senior director at the cybersecurity firm FireEye Inc. “They have
grown beyond fake news sites and social network activity to elaborate tactics,
such as impersonating journalists to solicit videos and interviews and placing
op-eds. They have even impersonated American politicians,” he said in an email.
The digital feud between the U.S. and Iran dates back to when a devastating
digital worm called Stuxnet, first discovered in 2010, crippled an Iranian
uranium processing facility. That attack has been attributed by multiple media
outlets to the U.S. and Israel.
Partly in response, Iranian hackers launched attacks starting in 2011 that
overwhelmed the websites of Bank of America Corp., Wells Fargo & Co. and others
over a period of months. Since then, state-sponsored hackers have been accused
of attacking Saudi Aramco, the world’s biggest oil exporter, in 2012, and a Las
Vegas casino in 2014, among other businesses in the U.S. and elsewhere.
More recently, U.S. officials and cybersecurity experts have warned that Iran
was among a handful of nation states that are intent on trying to disrupt the
Nov. 3 election. “Iran seeks to undermine U.S. democratic institutions,
President Trump and to divide the country in advance of the 2020 elections,”
according to an August intelligence assessment.
Earlier this month, Microsoft Corp. reported that an Iranian-government linked
group of hackers tried to infiltrate email accounts of a U.S. presidential
campaign. Other targets of the hackers included current and former U.S.
government officials, journalists covering global politics and prominent
Iranians living outside of Iran, the company said.
— With assistance by Alyza Sebenius, Chris Strohm, and David Wainer
Electing the President of the ‘Global Village’
Elias Harfoush/Asharq Al Awsat/October 23/2020
Every citizen in the “Global Village” feels he or she has the right to a vote in
the US presidential elections. The elections bear on the lives of the 8 billion
people who live on this earth, their state’s decisions and their governments’
policies. So it is not surprising that the entire world is drawn to this
election and concerned with its outcome.
This keen interest is not merely a result of a peculiar president, Donald Trump,
being involved. The man who launched a historic revolt against the leadership
approach that defined American presidents and their ties to both allies and
rivals is up against Joe Biden, who returns to the fold carrying Obama’s legacy.
The US military, political and financial influence compels this obsession with
its elections. The victor will become the US military’s commander in chief and
have his finger on that nuclear button that can change the world’s fate.
Everyone in the “Global Village” covets the vote that American constituents can
put in the ballot box or send by mail. It can generate such massive change, the
impact of which goes beyond the US borders to reach the four corners of the
globe, which most Americans are unfamiliar with and wouldn’t dream of ever
stepping foot in.
No constituents anywhere in the world have as weighty a vote as those in the US.
Because of its momentous consequences, we hear about foreign powers’ campaigns
to influence US constituents in one way or another. We also hear about attempts
to interfere with the electoral process by such forces with interests tied to
the results. We heard about this kind of activity four years ago, with what was
said about Russia’s interference in Donald Trump’s favor, which preoccupied
members of Congress and American prosecutors for a long time but ended without
these claims becoming anything more than that, claims.
We are hearing about it today as well, as the New York Times reports about
Russian and Iranian attempts to infiltrate constituents’ accounts and send them
bogus e-mails to heighten skepticism about the electoral process and its
outcome’s legitimacy. Although these activities do not influence the results,
Christofer Ray, the director of the FBI, and CIA Director Jon Ratcliff have
mentioned, the mere revelations about these attempts indicate the importance
that Iran and Russia, like many other counties around the world, believe these
elections have.
A change in leadership in Washington differs from that of any other capital.
Going over the impact of the four years of Donald Trump’s term on international
relations is enough to form an assessment of this change’s magnitude. It strikes
us whether we look at US-Russian relations, Washington’s relations with Beijing
and Pyongyang or the US role in the Middle East. There, we can see a strategic
shift manifested in President Trump choosing to respond to Iran’s violations by
unilaterally pulling out of nuclear agreement with Tehran, raising the
relationship with Israel to historical highs and mediating Arab countries’ talks
to establish diplomatic relations with it.
Barack Obama did not exaggerate when he described the upcoming US elections as
“the most important election of our entire lifetime.” Because of the scale of
the transformations that have taken place under the Trump administration, the
potential for change becomes simultaneously enticing and worrying, as does the
White House’s current occupant staying put for another four years. The specter
of the latter possibility transpiring worries many of those who feel that they
had been negatively affected by Trump’s policies. This apprehension is not only
felt by the country from which the “Chinese virus” emerged or that which has
established armed militias to sow instability in the Middle East. Indeed, even
Washington’s traditional allies in the European Union and NATO are not resting
on their laurels. Many observers are nervous about the prospect of Trump pulling
out of the latter if elected for a second term after having launched several
campaigns on allies, whom he accused of not fulfilling the financial obligations
needed to meet their defense needs.
Concerning ties with European allies, Trump launched a slogan seen as
contradictory to the transatlantic alliance’s framework since the Second World
War ended. “America first” struck a chord with average Americans, who did not
feel that maintaining internal security requires spending their money on foreign
interventions and alliances. But it worried traditional allies in capitals like
Paris and Berlin. In London, the special relationship between Trump and Prime
Minister Boris Johnson quelled such fears. Britain’s exit from the European
Union fortifies this reassurance, as it allows for a stronger unilateral
US-British relationship.
“I’m a Berliner,” the phrase John F. Kennedy uttered 60 years ago at the square
that bears his name in the German capital, has become nothing more than a
memory. Kennedy was promoting reunification in repudiation of the wall that
divided Berlin at the time. Today, Norbert Rottgen, the head of the foreign
affairs committee in the German Bundestag and the favorite to succeed Angela
Merkel next year, looks back on Kennedy’s words with some sorrow. He does not
find that Germany has received the support it expects from its traditional ally.
Rottgen says that over Trump’s four-year tenure, Washington has radically
reexamined everything, NATO’s survival, US foreign policy stability... These
transformations are unlike anything we have seen since the Second World War.
The Germans and the other Europeans, like the rest of the world’s inhabitants,
await the announcement of US election results on next month’s fourth morning.
They are all dreaming of the arrival of a president who will fulfill their
dreams and advance their interests; nothing more clearly demonstrates that the
president who wins at the ballot box will not merely become the president of the
US and the American citizens who elected him. He will be the president of those
who have no vote and play no role in his election. He will be the president of
the “Global Village.”