English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For September 20/2020
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

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Bible Quotations For today
Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.’”
Mark 10/35-45: “James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came forward to Jesus and said to him, ‘Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.’ And he said to them, ‘What is it you want me to do for you?’And they said to him, ‘Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.’But Jesus said to them, ‘You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?’They replied, ‘We are able.’ Then Jesus said to them, ‘The cup that I drink you will drink; and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.’ When the ten heard this, they began to be angry with James and John.So Jesus called them and said to them, ‘You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.’”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on September 19-20/2020

Ministry of Health: 779 new Corona cases, 5 deaths
Form government without delay, France tells Lebanese politicians
Stand by families of August 4 martyrs in protest against delay in investigation outcome and accountability
Former PMs Say French Initiative a True Chance for Lebanon
Report: President Determined to Help French Initiative Succeed
Army: Efforts Won’t Cease Until all Nine Missing Persons are Found
France Says No Evidence Hizbullah Storing Explosive Chemicals
Distress as Abiad Announces 18-Year-Old Dies of COVID-19
Army Surveys 85,000 Building Units Post-Beirut Blast
FPM proposes distributing sovereign ministerial portfolios among smaller sects
LCRP General Supervisor: To strengthen social security systems and vulnerable groups
'Fees are solely collected in LBP' confirms Lebanon's General Security
Okais to Radio Lebanon: No salvation in the foreseeable future except through the success of the French initiative
Akar from the South: Lebanon's commitment to international resolutions does not mean giving up our right to defend our homeland and sovereignty against any aggression
Despair in Lebanon Pushing Some to Flee to Europe in Boats
KSrelief Distributes Food Aid to Needy Families in Lebanon
Lebanon’s largest Christian party offers proposal to resolve dispute over new cabinet
Partition Is the Only Solution to Lebanon’s Woes/Joseph A. Kachichian/Foreign Policy/September 19/2020
How Lebanon Can Chart a New Path Forward/Axel van Trotsenburg/Asharq Al Awsat/September 19/2020
Lebanese couple’s tragic search for ‘lost’ newborn/Najia Houssari/Arab News/September 19, 2020
 

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on September 19-20/2020

Iran Guards Vow Soleimani Revenge will Target Only 'Those Involved'
Iran's Zarif: World should oppose US sanctions or except to face their own sanctions
Iran to execute Iranian Kurdish political prisoner after denying retrial
Jailed Iranian rights lawyer hospitalized amid hunger strike
US reinforcements push back against Russian drive into NE Syria
Turkey Enhances Positions in Northwest Syria after Talks with Russia
Turkey condemns Greek newspaper headline abusing Erdogan
Syrian Democratic Council Welcomes UN Report on Human Rights Violations
Turkey Rejects UN Report over Violation Claims in Syria
Pedersen: Faint but Real Ray of Hope on Syria Constitution Talks
US Bolsters Military Deployment in Syria
UN Warns of Possible War Crimes in Turkish-Controlled Syria
EU to Sanction Violators of UN Arms Embargo on Libya
Sadr Calls for Political Solution to Ending Foreign Presence in Iraq
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Dies at 87
Yemen’s Houthis launch projectile towards Saudi Arabia’s Jazan, 5 civilians injured

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on September 19-20/2020

Bahrain, the Nation of Peace/Houda Nonoo/Asharq Al Awsat/September 19/2020
Iran's Missile Violations: Where is the International Community?/Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/September 19/2020
Peace deals reflect the big picture in the region/Khairallah Khairallah/The Arab Weekly/September 20/2020
International summit urges UN to take tougher action against Iran/Ray Hanania/September 19/2020

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on September 19-20/2020

Ministry of Health: 779 new Corona cases, 5 deaths
NNA /September 19/2020
The Ministry of Public Health announced, on Saturday, the registration of 779 new Coronavirus infections in the past 24 hours, thus raising the cumulative number of cases since February 21 to 28,297 cases.
It also indicated that 5 death cases were reported during the past 24 hours.

Form government without delay, France tells Lebanese politicians
NNA/September 19/2020
France’s foreign ministry said on Friday that Lebanon’s political forces need to assume their responsibilities and immediately form a government under the auspices of Prime Minister Mustapha Adib. “As Lebanon goes through an unprecedented crisis, France regrets that Lebanese politicians have not yet managed to keep the commitments they made on Sept. 1, 2020 according to the announced timetable,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll said in a daily briefing. “We urge all the Lebanese political forces to assume their responsibilities and agree without delay on the formation by Moustapha Adib of a mission government capable of launching the necessary reforms to meet the aspirations of the Lebanese people.” President Emmanuel Macron set a Sept. 15 deadline to form a government. The French government has been leaning on Lebanon’s sectarian politicians to name a cabinet swiftly and embark on reforms to get the country out of the worst crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war. --- Reuters

Stand by families of August 4 martyrs in protest against delay in investigation outcome and accountability
NNA/September 19/2020

A number of families of the martyrs who lost their lives as a result of the port explosion on August 4, and their relatives, took a stand in front of entrance number 3 in the port of Beirut this afternoon, amidst a state of intense anger and grief, since the results of the probe into the causes of the explosion have not been out yet and those responsible have not been held accountable. The outraged families sent out cries of anger, expressing their deep condemnation of the authority and officials for turning a blind eye to the disaster that befell Beirut. They asked about "the reason for neglecting the serious investigation into the blast after about a month and a half following the explosion," and urging Judge Sawan "to strike with an iron fist to reach the truth as soon as possible." They also demanded "answers to the technical investigation, i.e. the reasons that led to the explosion."
 

Former PMs Say French Initiative a True Chance for Lebanon
Naharnet/September 19/2020
Former prime ministers of Lebanon emphasized the importance of the French initiative saying it could be a true chance to save Lebanon from “collapse and sedition,” the National News Agency reported on Saturday. Ex-PMs Najib Miqati, Fouad Saniora, Saad Hariri and Tammam Salam held an evening meeting on Friday at the Center House. “The initiative of French President Emmanuel Macron represents an important opportunity that must be invested in speeding up the formation of the government to keep Lebanon away from collapse, sedition and evils surrounding it,” the PMs said.
They considered that Macron has sensed the magnitude of danger facing Lebanon therefore creating “an initiative to provide support and assistance.”They said Macron has also “launched an integrated political initiative for a solution translated through commissioning Mustafa Adib to form a government. It should work,” the prime ministers stated. Urging the PM-designate Mustafa Adib to adhere to his powers regarding the formation process, they also urged him to “consult with the President under the rules stipulated in the constitution.”

Report: President Determined to Help French Initiative Succeed
Naharnet/September 19/2020
President Michel Aoun is concerned in making the French initiative succeed and is also determined to reject “sectarianism” in the distribution of ministerial portfolios “including the finance ministry”, Nidaa al-Watan newspaper reported on Saturday.
Sources close to Baabda told the daily “the President expresses determination in rejecting sectarian distribution of ministerial portfolios, including the finance ministry,” which AMAL Movement and Hizbullah insist on retaining. They said Aoun believes he has a duty to make the French initiative succeed by thwarting the obstacles delaying its formation. “The President conducted shuttle consultations with various parties to find quick consensual solutions. He will not tolerate watching the French initiative to save the crisis in Lebanon wasted. Shall the stalemate persist, he will take the appropriate decision at the appropriate time,” said the sources.Moreover, sources familiar with the French effort told the newspaper “Macron is determined to make his initiative succeed and will not back down until achieving his goal, no matter how much effort and time it takes."

Army: Efforts Won’t Cease Until all Nine Missing Persons are Found
Naharnet/September 19/2020
The Lebanese Army assured on Saturday that efforts are ongoing to find all nine missing persons after a mega blast that rocked the port of Beirut over a month ago.
“Nine persons remain missing after the port blast. This file was not and will not be closed and search operations for the missing will continue until all are found,” the Army said in a statement. After more than one month, three Lebanese, five Syrians and an Egyptian are still missing. The colossal port explosion has flattened large parts of the capital, killed well over 190 persons, wounded thousands and left around quarter of a million homeless. The army leadership also explained the results of a survey conducted by a committee tasked to scan the damages in the areas affected by the port explosion. It said 1,500 personnel carried out the mission “successfully,” and that citizens were requested to send the committee the location of their damaged apartments for compensation. A special group has surveyed the affected areas, said the Army.

France Says No Evidence Hizbullah Storing Explosive Chemicals
Naharnet/September 19/2020
France’s foreign ministry said there was no evidence that Hizbullah stores chemicals in France that can be used to make explosives. “There is no evidence that the armed wing of Hizbullah has stored chemicals for making explosives in France, after a senior US official said that the group had established hideouts in Europe since 2012,” France's Foreign Ministry announced. Nathan Sales, the U.S. State Department coordinator for counter-terrorism said Friday that Hizbullah operatives have moved ammonium nitrate from Belgium to France, Greece, Italy, Spain and Switzerland in recent years and are suspected to still be storing the material throughout Europe. “As far as we know, there is nothing concrete confirming such a claim in France today," French foreign ministry spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll told reporters in response to Sales' allegations.
The U.S. has designated Hizbullah as a foreign terrorist organization since 1997, but some countries distinguish between the organization's military wing and the political wing.

Distress as Abiad Announces 18-Year-Old Dies of COVID-19
Naharnet/September 19/2020
Firas Abiad, director general of Rafik Hariri University Hospital, expressed extreme worry on Saturday after announcing the death of an 18-year-old man of coronavirus. “I could not sleep well last night. Shocking were the number of coronavirus cases. The increase in the number of new cases was expected, albeit not at this rate,” said Abiad in a tweet. Abiad's comments came one day after Lebanon confirmed its highest virus tally since February, with 750 new infections and 18 deaths. Abiad stated that the “sharp rise in the number of deaths, including an 18-year-old man, was harsh.”But he added saying that “despair is not an option, there is more work ahead.”Out of the 750 new cases, the Health Ministry said 725 of them were recorded among residents and 25 among people coming from abroad. Ten of the local infections are among health workers. The new deaths raise the country’s overall death toll to 281 while the new cases take the tally to 27,518 -- among them 10,739 recoveries.

Army Surveys 85,000 Building Units Post-Beirut Blast
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/September 19/2020
Lebanon's army said Saturday it has carried out a survey of more than 85,000 dwellings, businesses and other building units damaged by the massive Beirut port blast last month. The August 4 explosion of hundreds of tonnes of ammonium nitrate stored at Beirut port killed more than 190 people, wounded thousands and ravaged large parts of the capital. "A total of 85,744 affected units have been surveyed," the army said. It had surveyed 60,818 housing units, 19,115 businesses, 1,137 heritage units, 962 restaurants, 82 teaching institutions and 12 hospitals, among other unis.
It recorded almost 550,000 square metres (half a square kilometre) of glass ravaged, and well as 140,000 square metres of glass facades broken. More than 108,000 doors had been damaged, the survey showed. The army said it was still looking for nine people -- three Lebanese, five Syrians and an Egyptian -- still missing after the blast. The survey "is considered to be sufficient, and there is therefore no need for further surveys by donor countries", it said in a statement. The army said the donors, non-governmental organisations or volunteers could request access to the results. On August 9, international donors pledged over 250 million euros (around $300 million) in emergency aid, in a video conference jointly organised by France and the United Nations. French President Emmanuel Macron vowed in early September during a second visit to Lebanon since the blast to host a second conference in Paris in the second half of October.

FPM proposes distributing sovereign ministerial portfolios among smaller sects
NNA/September 19/2020
The Free Patriotic Movement's political body convened Saturday in its periodic meeting headed by FPM Chief, MP Gebran Bassil, during which conferees reminded that the specific deadline set at the "Pine Palace" has ended two weeks ago, yet the awaited cabinet has not been formed.
In an issued statement following the meeting, the FPM political body "affirmed that the Movement continues, with conviction, its facilitative and positive role for the birth of the mission government, but warned that no party understands this facilitation as a kind of weakness, because FPM is contributing to the solution based on its position of popular strength and parliamentary legitimacy. However, it is never ready to annul itself politically, and will not allow any attack on its affiliates or supporters or its headquarters, and it will respond appropriately to each case."
The FPM body renewed its commitment to "the rapid formation of a government that respects the unified standards and is capable of being productive and working effectively to achieve the required reform program," while stressing that FPM offers its advice and has not set any prior conditions nor demands in this regards. However, FPM emphasized that its facilitation ought not to be perceived as a consecration of any custom, refusing herein that any ministerial portfolio be considered the right of any sect or group in the country. Rather, it suggested the distribution of "sovereign ministries" among the smaller sects in Lebanon, specifically the Druze, Alawites, Armenians and Christian minorities.
The FPM body highlighted that "the most important criterion at this stage is not the sectarian and political affiliation of the minister, but rather his/her qualifications, ethical standards, capabilities and expertise to achieve the agreed-upon goals."
It concluded its statement by asserting that "even though it has relinquished its part in the new government formation, FPM will not give up its role in representing whoever represents, and it will not accept inequality among the Lebanese, nor will it accept to bypass the partnership of the President of the Republic in forming the new government."

LCRP General Supervisor: To strengthen social security systems and vulnerable groups
NNA/September 19/2020
In the presence of representatives of the donors, United Nations agencies, International and local non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and line Ministries leading various sectors, Assem Abi Ali, the General Supervisor of Lebanon Crisis Response Plan (LCRP) at Ministry of Social Affairs called on the international community to scale up their support to Lebanon in terms of the humanitarian response, and to focus on medium and long-term plans to support the productive sectors critical for Lebanon's economic recovery and sustainable development.
Abi Ali opening remarks came during the LCRP Multi-Stakeholder Workshop held online for two days and was organized by the United Nations Development Program in Lebanon in partnership with the UNHCR, the Ministry of Social Affairs, and in collaboration with the Council of Ministers, and line ministries: Foreign Affairs, Interior and Municipalities, Energy and Water, Education and Higher Education, Labor, Economy, and international and local NGOs and all stakeholders. The aim of workshop is to identify the guidelines and the priorities of the LCRP in 2021 in a participatory and holistic approach.
Abi Ali stressed the need to prioritize strengthening social protection and social security systems and avoiding igniting tensions between the Lebanese host communities and the displaced Syrians, through a balanced response, that ensures providing humanitarian support to the most vulnerable groups in compliance with the Conflict Sensitivity principle. Furthermore, he considered the durable solution to the Syrian displacement crisis, through the return to their homeland, counting on the support of the international community and all line ministries to ensure the implementation of the return plan of the displaced Syrians, without jeopardizing their dignity and rights. Abi Ali concluded his speech by thanking the donors, United Nations organizations and all the partners for their continuous support to mitigate the impact of the economic and social crises Lebanon went through, from the Syrian displacement, the financial and economic crisis, to the repercussions of the Coronavirus and Beirut's port explosion. { LCRP - Press Release}

'Fees are solely collected in LBP' confirms Lebanon's General Security
NNA/September 19/2020
In an issued statement by the Lebanese General Security on Saturday, it denied the circulated news by certain social networking sites that the General Security officers at Beirut Airport are collecting the entrance fees into the country in US dollars, affirming that all dues are collected in Lebanese pounds only, in accordance with the applicable laws."As for passengers carrying foreign currency, they must exchange it at the accredited bank for this purpose at Beirut Airport in implementation of an organized contract between this bank and the General Directorate of Civil Aviation, which allowed it cash exchange exclusivity. Consequently, neither the General Security nor any of its personnel the airport have anything to do with this matter," the statement underlined.

Okais to Radio Lebanon: No salvation in the foreseeable future except through the success of the French initiative
NNA/September 19/2020
"We do not see in the foreseeable future any salvation except through the success of the French initiative," Member of the 'Strong Republic' bloc, MP George Okais, said Saturday. Speaking in an interview with Radio Lebanon, Okais emphasized that "the Lebanese Forces Chief, Samir Geagea's position was clear in regards to the French initiative from the moment it was announced by French President Emmanuel Macron," affirming that "LF naturally supports the French initiative."The MP expressed his surprise at the behavior of some parties in obstructing the formation of the government despite the helping hand extended to Lebanon by France, wondering: "Why do they reject this initiative by setting obstacles and conditions?" He added: "I am surprised that the two Shiite sides would go so far with their stances, at a time when all parties, including their main ally, the Free Patriotic Movement, are facilitating the government formation task and abandoning the previously prevailing norms in forming governments."

Akar from the South: Lebanon's commitment to international resolutions does not mean giving up our right to defend our homeland and sovereignty against any aggression
NNA/September 19/2020
Caretaker Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, Zeina Akar, visited Saturday the UNIFIL headquarters in Naqoura, where she was received by UNIFIL Commander, General Stefano Del Col, and a number of senior officers.
Discussions during their meeting touched on the latest developments in light of the renewal of UNIFIL's mandate and the reduction in the number of its soldiers, in addition to the Blue Line, and the daily Israeli violations and breaches of Lebanon.
According to a statement by Akar's press office, the Caretaker Minister stressed "the need for the international forces to oblige the Israeli enemy to fully respect the provisions of Resolution 1701," noting that "Lebanon's commitment to international resolutions does not mean giving up our right to defending our homeland and our sovereignty against any aggression." "Despite the reduction in the number of the international forces, we are confident that the peacekeeping missions will remain the same," she added, highlighting the "need for coordination and cooperation between the Lebanese army and UNIFIL to deter attacks," and praising their role "in maintaining peace and stability."
For his part, General Del Col gave a briefing on the decision to renew the international forces at the United Nations, noting "the importance of cooperation with the Lebanese army along the Blue Line," and indicating that the UNIFIL forces have begun providing aid after the Beirut port explosion, alongside confronting the Corona epidemic. After their meeting, Akar and General Del Col circled in a military helicopter over the Blue Line, where the Minister was given a detailed explanation of the missions of UNIFIL and the points of reservation for Lebanon.
Akar then she visited the French battalion command in Deir Kifa, where she met with its Commander, Colonel Gregory Colombani, and a number of officers.
Colombani briefed Akar on the field work of the French forces in southern Lebanon, in terms of enhancing stability and integration in the local environment, and the assistance provided to the people, especially in the domain of education and in light of the difficult economic situation and the Corona epidemic.
Akar thanked the French contingent forces for their contribution to maintaining security and peace in South Lebanon, commending the French role in supporting Lebanon internally and in international forums.
The Caretaker Defense Minister also inspected the Fifth Intervention Regiment base in the southern town of Kfardounin, were she was received by the Regiment's Commander, Brigadier General Mohammad al-Amin, and a number of Lebanese army officers and soldiers. Akar had a closer look at the Regiment's missions in the South, and at the points of the Blue Line, and how it responded to the Israeli enemy's violations, especially the enemy drone and its downfall. Akar considered that this matter "constitutes a new achievement for the Lebanese army, which remains on alert and is highly prepared to confront the enemy and thwart its plans aimed at undermining the sovereignty and unity of Lebanon."
"We will always remain, government and people, by your side for the sake defending and protecting Lebanon," she affirmed, while urging the soldiers to adhere to the safety conditions against the Corona virus.
Akar then had a stop-over at a border post belonging to the Fifth Infantry Brigade, led by Brigadier General Edgar Lawandes, were she was briefed on the army's missions in that area, in addition to a detailed explanation of the full readiness of the Lebanese army and its coordination with UNIFIL.
The Minister praised the efforts of the Fifth Infantry Brigade, and said: "We have great confidence in you, because the march to maintain security and stability is long, but it will be achieved thanks to your determination, will, capabilities and courage to confront the Israeli enemy and preserve the sovereignty of Lebanon."Akar's last stop-over in her southern tour was at the Italian contingent's base in the town of Shamaa, in the presence of General Del Col, where she met with the commander of the battalion, Brigadier General Andrea Stasio, who presented her with a detailed explanation of the Italian forces' mission in their areas of presence at the military level, in addition to the development projects and activities carried out to enhance integration into the local environment.
Akar stressed herein "the importance of the role played by the Italian forces," thanking the government and people of Italy for their efforts to support Lebanon, especially through the aid provided after the Beirut port explosion and the fight against the Corona epidemic. The Caretaker Minister also emphasized "the necessity of adhering to UN Resolution # 1701 and coordinating with the Lebanese Army to address the repeated Israeli attacks on Lebanon."

Despair in Lebanon Pushing Some to Flee to Europe in Boats
Associated Press/Naharnet/September 19/2020
Mohammed Sufian did not dream of much: a job, food on the table, the chance to buy his 2½-year-old son the little things a toddler wants.
So when he heard that smugglers were taking people from his hometown of Tripoli to the nearby Mediterranean island of Cyprus, he decided to take the chance with his pregnant wife and child. To pay their way, he sold his furniture and two of his sister's bracelets. They boarded a small fishing boat with the others. But what would be expected to be a 40-hour trip went badly: For eight harrowing days, they were stranded in the Mediterranean Sea, apparently losing their way and running out of diesel. At least four adults and two children died -- including Sufian's little boy. Six are missing. "I took my son with me not to give him a high life, not to give him the life of rich people," said Sufian, 21. "I was trying to give him a good life where if he will ask me for a potato chip bag or a juice box I am able to give it to him. This is what drove me out of the country."
In recent weeks, scores of others have tried to make the same illicit sea crossing, attempting to flee a country facing multiple crises and an unprecedented economic and financial collapse.
Generations of Lebanese have emigrated due to war and conflict, including waves of Lebanese who traveled by boat legally to Cyprus during the country's 1975-90 war. But this new flight -- people risking their lives to make illegal crossings in rickety fishing boats to escape poverty -- reflects a level of desperation the country has not seen before. Tens of thousands of people have lost their jobs in the past months. The local currency has lost 80% of its value, eradicating the purchasing power of many in this tiny country of 5 million where corruption and mismanagement are widespread. Unemployment has reached a soaring 35% and poverty is skyrocketing.
The crisis has been worsened by the coronavirus pandemic and last month's massive explosion at Beirut port which fed despair among a population that has long given up on its leaders. Tripoli, Lebanon's second largest city, had been one of the poorest and most neglected regions even before the crisis. The city is also home to tens of thousands of Syrians who fled civil war in their country that broke out in March 2011. Many of those taking the boats have been Syrian refugees.
Earlier this month, authorities in Cyprus said they were alarmed by the arrival of four boats carrying Syrian and Lebanese migrants in waters off its coastline. European Union member Cyprus and Lebanon have an agreement to prevent migrants from reaching the island nation.
The boat carrying Sufian's family and 46 other men, women and children, mostly Lebanese and Syrians, left Tripoli on Sept. 7. Each had paid the smuggler the equivalent of up to $930 in Lebanese pounds.
Upon boarding, all their belongings, including food and water, were taken away -- ostensibly, they were too heavy. All would be returned, brought to them by another boat once they are away from Lebanon's coast, they were told.
They never got them back, and were left under the scorching sun, without water or food. Sufian said that 20 hours after they sailed, his son began asking for water and milk. Having nothing to give and overcome by the heat and his own worry, Sufian fainted, he says. When he woke up, Sufian found that his relatives had given the boy three bottles of sea water.
"My son died later because of lack of food and water," Sufian said. He washed his son and followed the Islamic tradition of covering him with a cloth. Three days later, he dropped the body into the sea, thinking they might never make it back to land.
Sufian said several ships passed the stranded boat but no one helped, perhaps because they feared pirates. After six deaths, a half-dozen men leaped into the sea to seek help.
Ibrahim Lisheen, a 22-year-old migrant, swam for hours. Finally, he reached a warship for the U.N. peacekeeping force in Lebanon known as UNIFIL; its crew rescued those remaining on the boat. They were offered treatment and handed over to Lebanese authorities in Beirut.
Late Thursday, the body of a young man believed to have been on the ship washed up on the coast south of Beirut. Six are still missing, among them Mohammed Mohammed, 27, who left Lebanon to help his parents and seven sisters.
His father, Khaldoun, says his son had been jobless for years after he lost his job at a shop that sells fire extinguishers; he grew tired of taking "money from me to buy cigarettes," and decided to join cousins who were making the crossing. Mohammed had sold his sister's neckless to pay the smugglers.
The two men who took the money and put the migrants on the fishing boat are in hiding and families are demanding that they be punished.
Mohammed's mother, Afaf Abdul-Hamid, goes to the coast of Tripoli every day, hoping that her son will swim home. "These are human traffickers. They took my son to the middle of the sea and left him there with no food or water."
Lisheen, whose heroics led to the rescue, is furious. "Look at my body, it was eaten by fish. My body is swollen, my teeth were broken due to the salty water and I lost a lot of things," he said, as friends massaged his body with Aloe Vera to alleviate his sunburn. Why did he take the risk? "I did that because of poverty, it makes us blind," he said. "To those who are asking me why you are leaving, I am telling them why, I am leaving in order to feed my family, my mother."
Sufian and his wife, expected to give birth in two months, live with their sorrow. And the grieving father relives, again and again, the moment when his dreams of a better life for his family became a nightmare. "My son died due to thirst, I shrouded him with my hands, I washed him with my hands and with my hands I dropped him in the water after three days, because I lost hope."
Macron prods Lebanese leaders over cabinet formation process
The Lebanese presidency said on Twitter that President Michel Aoun and Macron discussed “the need to continue efforts to secure the creation of the government as soon as possible.”
PARIS – France’s foreign ministry said on Friday that Lebanon’s political forces need to assume their responsibilities and immediately form a government under the auspices of Prime Minister Mustapha Adib.
“As Lebanon goes through an unprecedented crisis, France regrets that Lebanese politicians have not yet managed to keep the commitments they made on September 1, 2020 according to the announced timetable,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll said in a daily briefing.
“We urge all the Lebanese political forces to assume their responsibilities and agree without delay on the formation by Moustapha Adib of a mission government capable of launching the necessary reforms to meet the aspirations of the Lebanese people.”
President Emmanuel Macron also called Lebanese leaders on Friday to discuss the need to press on with efforts to form a new government after the process hit a roadblock over which factions would get key portfolios.
The Lebanese presidency said on Twitter that President Michel Aoun and Macron discussed “the need to continue efforts to secure the creation of the government as soon as possible.”
A diplomatic source said Macron had also called Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, the leader of Amal, and the leading Sunni politician Saad al-Hariri, a former premier who has been backing Prime Minister-designate Mustapha Adib.
Adib, a Sunni, said on Thursday he would give more time for talks on forming the cabinet after reports indicated he might resign. He had proposed switching control of ministries, some of which have been held by the same factions for years.
The diplomatic source said Macron had spoken to Adib on Thursday to tell him to keep calm and not step down.
France has been leaning on Lebanon’s sectarian politicians to name a cabinet swiftly and embark on reforms to get the country out of the worst crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war.
But the process hit a logjam because of a dispute over cabinet portfolios. Lebanon’s main Shia Muslim factions, Iran-backed Hezbollah and the Amal Movement, say they must name Shia ministers who should include the finance minister.
A September 15 deadline agreed between Lebanese politicians and Paris for forming the new government has already been missed.
Christian opposition politician Samir Geagea, a fierce opponent of Hezbollah, said the Shia groups’ demands had struck at the core of the French initiative.
“God willing I am wrong, but it has really broken down, what can save it now?” Geagea said in a televised news conference.
He said that giving into the demands of Hezbollah and Amal would lead other factions making demands, obstructing reform.
Asked what would happen if the opportunity presented by the French push was lost, he said: “More collapse, but faster.”
Druze leader Walid Jumblatt wrote in a tweet, “Tomorrow, when the rooster cries, the people of the old pact and those of new deals will discover that there is no money in the treasury and that the port of Beirut has died and moved to Ashdod and Ashkelon (…) They will see that all sectarian rocket launchers from any side will not protect Lebanon.”The head of the Progressive Socialist Party added, “I am afraid to say God’s mercy on Greater Lebanon.”
Observers believe that the failure to form a new government will drag Lebanon into the unknown, with the political forces controlling the scene finding themselves in direct confrontation with the international community and possibly facing sanctions.
Paris had previously warned Lebanon’s political forces against dealing lightly with the tragedies that struck Lebanon, saying that the scenario of imposing sanctions is on the table. The United States responded cynically to the French initiative, saying that Hezbollah and its allies would not accept the formation of a government beyond their control. On Thursday, the US Treasury announced sanctions against two Lebanon-based companies Arch Consulting and Meamar Construction for their links with Hezbollah. On September 8, sanctions were imposed on two former Lebanese ministers, Ali Hassan Khalil and Yusuf Finyanus, for their involvement in major corruption operations and their cooperation with Hezbollah.

KSrelief Distributes Food Aid to Needy Families in Lebanon
Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 19 September, 2020
The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) distributed 1,740 food baskets in a number of Lebanese cities, benefiting 8,700 individuals. The aid, weighing 128 tons and 760 kilograms, reached Syrian and Palestinian refugees as well as the poorest Lebanese families. The Riyadh-based center also inaugurated in Beirut the final stage of equipping dialysis center at Al-Makassed Hospital, in presence of Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Walid bin Abdullah Bukhari. Later, the Executive Director of Al-Makassed Hospital Dr. Mohammad Badr received from the Director of KSrelief's Office in Lebanon, Fahad Al-Qannas, medical supplies, equipment and shelter materials. President of the Al-Makassed Islamic Charitable Society Hospital in Beirut, Dr. Faisal Snoo, thanked the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Government and people for their permanent support to Lebanon. Meanwhile in Yemen, KSrelief also launched on Thursday the 2nd phase of a project to operate the prosthetic center in Taiz governorate. Meanwhile, the center's mobile medical clinic kicked off work in partnership with Taybah Foundation for Developmenti in Hajjjah. This comes within the efforts exerted by Saudi Arabia to alleviate the suffering of the needy people around the world.

Lebanon’s largest Christian party offers proposal to resolve dispute over new cabinet
Reuters/Saturday 19 September 2020
A party founded by Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun made a proposal to end a dispute that has blocked the formation of a new cabinet and threatened a French drive to lift the country out of its worst crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war.
The proposal, put forward on Saturday, involved handing major ministries to smaller sectarian groups in a country where power is shared between Muslims and Christians.
There was no immediate comment from Shia Muslim groups, which have insisted they choose who fills several posts. But a political source familiar with the thinking of dominant Shi’ite groups said the idea was unlikely to work. Lebanon’s efforts to swiftly form a new government have run into the sand over how to pick ministers in a country where political loyalties mostly follow sectarian religious lines. A September 15 deadline agreed with France to name a cabinet has passed. Paris, which is leading an international push to haul Lebanon back from economic collapse, has voiced exasperation and told Beirut to act “without delay.” The leader of the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), the party founded by President Michel Aoun and allied to Hezbollah, proposed “undertaking an experiment to distribute the so-called sovereign ministries to smaller sects, specifically to the Druze, Alawites, Armenians and Christian minorities.”The statement was issued after Gebran Bassil, FPM head and son-in-law of the president, chaired a meeting of the party’s political leadership. Bassil is a Maronite, Lebanon’s largest Christian community.
Prime Minister-designate Mustapha Adib, a Sunni Muslim under Lebanon’s sectarian system of power sharing, wants to shake up the leadership of ministries, some of which have been controlled by the same factions for years.
Lebanon’s main Shia groups - the Amal Movement and the heavily armed, Iranian-backed Hezbollah - want to select the figures to fill a number of positions, including the finance minister, a top position often called a “sovereign” ministry. An FPM official said the party had not discussed the idea about distributing ministries with Hezbollah or Amal. “We are proposing an exit strategy for those who are stuck up a tree without a ladder,” the official told Reuters.With the nation buried under a mountain of debt and with its banks paralyzed, the finance minister will play a crucial role as Lebanon seeks to restart stalled talks with the International Monetary Fund, one of the first steps on France’s roadmap.
 

Partition Is the Only Solution to Lebanon’s Woes
Joseph A. Kachichian/Foreign Policy/September 19/2020

جوزيف كشيشيان/فورن بوليسي: التقسيم هو الحل الوحيد لمشاكل لبنان
Hezbollah’s dominance has deprived non-Shiite Lebanese of a voice in their own country. It is time to reconsider a century of consociational democracy and return to a form of federalism.
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/09/18/partition-is-the-only-solution-to-lebanons-woes/

Lebanon is an ancient land that is mentioned 71 times in the Old Testament; the current geopolitical entity that bears that name, which was created in September 1920 by the French government, has survived for a century—but barely.
Over the course of that century, Lebanon lived through two civil wars, two foreign occupations, and assorted calamities while being plagued by corruption and substantial losses of liberties. Regrettably, all nation-building efforts came to naught, as political and religious leaders raised fresh power-sharing formulas. These ranged the gamut from federalism to partition, as the Lebanese, Christians, Druze, Sunni Muslims, and Shiite Muslims repeatedly rejected “communal coexistence”—a colloquial expression that is frequently used but lost meaning some time ago. After 100 years, many Lebanese are asking themselves: Why continue to live a lie?
In 1920, French Gen. Henri Gouraud was optimistic and, along with the Catholic Maronite Patriarch Elias Hoayek and Sunni Grand Mufti Sheikh Mustafa Naja, expanded the predominantly Christian-inhabited Mount Lebanon by creating a new geographical entity, which the French official and the two clerics named Greater Lebanon. They added the coastal towns of Beirut (then chiefly Greek Orthodox); Tripoli, Sidon, Tyre, and their hinterlands (then mostly Sunni); and the Bekaa Valley(whose populations included Shiites, Sunnis, and Christians).
Overnight, Mount Lebanon’s 80 percent Christian majority was reduced to 55 percent, which was the basis of flawed political apportionments on Sept. 1, 1920. Importantly, a demographic parity was reached between Muslims and Christians as early as 1943, when Lebanon gained formal independence.
The country made a crucial error by preserving an unwritten sectarian system that granted the top posts of the presidency to Maronites, the premiership to Sunnis, and the speakership of parliament to Shiites.The country made a crucial error by preserving an unwritten sectarian system that granted the top posts of the presidency to Maronites, the premiership to Sunnis, and the speakership of parliament to Shiites. The French believed that power sharing would best serve the new republic, granting the three leading religious communities high-level posts.
All 18 officially recognized religious communities were allocated specific positions that, in effect, created a unique democracy based on consociationalism. A consociational state rests on a carefully divided internal setup along ethnic, religious, or linguistic lines, with none of the divisions large enough to form a majority group that would or even could dominate the rest, but which remains relatively stable because leaders consult among each other to maintain a balance of power. In Lebanon’s case, consociationalism was meant to maintain internal stability among the newly created state’s Christian and Muslim elites.
Christians promised to maintain distance from Western protectors, and Muslims pledged to forgo attachment to Syria, though only Georges Naccache, a Renaissance man par excellence, lamented this so-called National Pact as a “double negative.” In 1949, Naccache wrote that “two negations don’t make a nation,” an affirmation that was repeatedly overlooked during the country’s civil wars.
Over time, the Lebanese reached new accords, such as the 1989 Saudi-brokered Taif Agreement, which suspended the civil war and put an end successive Syrian and Israeli invasions. The Taif Agreement called for a return to political normalcy and reasserted Lebanese authority in southern Lebanon (then controlled by Israel and its South Lebanese Army allies). It also stipulated that the Syrian army withdraw within two years, though the actual withdrawal did not occur until 2005.
United Nations resolutions, along with U.N. peacekeeping troops that have now been deployed for more than four decades, mostly kept the peace on the southern border. Syrian occupying troops imposed peace from 1990 until 2005, even if Damascus emasculated every Lebanese political and security institution by encouraging the creation of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia as a state within the state.
Remarkably, after Syrian troops were withdrawn in 2005, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s Baath Party retained its intelligence operatives in Lebanon who, among other things, dominated local politics. Their grip was so strong that Damascus surfed through its own post-2011 civil war relatively unscathed, using Lebanon as a conduit for every imaginable good and service while it relied on Hezbollah for both warfare and terrorism.
Unwilling to preserve and protect their country’s sovereignty, Lebanese merchant-politicians such as Walid Jumblatt and former Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, both of whom owned dozens of companies and media outlets—saw fresh opportunities in Syria, while Hezbollah executed Iranian orders to provide troops and prop up increasingly challenged governments in both countries.
A century is a very long time for a failed experiment in nation-building. What 100 years of neglect and greed produced were immense contradictions, as relative poverty and extreme wealth existed side by side. When functional unemployment increased, for example, it was quickly camouflaged through sectarian corruption, as party bosses and other power brokers disbursed generous financial donations to smother social unrest. Simultaneously, most of the nearly 1 million Lebanese workers toiling overseas dutifully transferred hard-earned salaries year in and year out. Their remittances ensured the creation of a first-rate banking Ponzi scheme that enriched the superwealthy while it provided the illusion of prosperity to the middle class.
In fact, expatriate Lebanese workers helped keep their native land afloat, sending $7 billion to $8 billion in annual remittances—which amounted to 18 percent of gross domestic product when the economy was riding high in 2010 and were deposited in local banks or earmarked to buy property. Local banks offered high interest rates, ranging from 6 to 12 percent—and sometimes reaching 15 to 20 percent—with the full approval of the central bank that had kept the lira stable at 1,507 to the dollar since 1997, though the currency spiraled downward to around 10,000 to the dollar on the black market a few months ago (and was back down to 7,600 as of this writing).
Today, capital controls have locked up dollars in bank accounts, uniting both rich and poor in anger, with many businesses no longer accepting card payments. Most Lebanese believed that their steadily growing bank accounts were safe and that they would be allowed to enjoy life—oblivious to sophisticated mechanisms introduced by incredibly savvy pilferers.Most Lebanese believed that their steadily growing bank accounts were safe and that they would be allowed to enjoy life—oblivious to sophisticated mechanisms introduced by incredibly savvy pilferers. Organized corruption melted most savings as banks ran out of dollars and paid out dollar accounts in Lebanese lira first at the 2,600 lira rate before settling at 3,900 lira to the dollar, at a time when a dollar fetched 8,000 lira on the black market. Inflation galloped, prices skyrocketed, unemployment increased, emigration exploded, poverty settled in for at least 50 percent of the population, and the Lebanese lira lost nearly 80 percent of its value in less than a year.
Beyond the explosions that rocked Beirut on Aug. 4, beyond successive economic crises that impoverished a large majority of the Lebanese, and beyond the continued hijacking of political life by one of the most corrupt ruling establishments anywhere on the planet, Lebanon is now confronting its thirsty post-1920 demons.In the words of Salim Badaoui, a French-educated Lebanese journalist, “the 1943 National Pact was dead and the 1989 Ta’if Accords were no longer viable,” even if Lebanese Shiites were now openly calling for a constitutional convention that would presumably reach a new power-sharing accord. “It was imperative … not to accept a new Iranian-sponsored Ta’if since that would be based on excessive Shiite power. Lebanon would disappear,” Badaoui wrote in his 2019 opus Marounia: Une identité en péril

How Lebanon Can Chart a New Path Forward
Axel van Trotsenburg/Asharq Al Awsat/September 19/2020
The explosion that rocked Beirut on Aug. 4 shocked the world. It caused hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries, leveling some central sections of Lebanon’s capital while wreaking extensive damage throughout the city. The human and physical toll is immense, and given its location, the blast has knocked out the city’s port and many of its businesses. This has brought most economic life to a halt — not just for Beirut, but for the country as a whole.
The tragedy in Lebanon demands an urgent global response, and it is a hopeful sign that this is already underway. To guide these efforts, the World Bank Group has conducted a rapid damage and needs assessment (RDNA) in collaboration with the EU and the UN and in close partnership with Lebanese ministries, institutions, and civil society organizations.
Our assessment finds that damages from the explosion are in the range of $3.8-4.6 billion, with losses to financial flows amounting to $2.9-3.5 billion. The impacts are particularly severe in key sectors that are vital for growth, including finance, housing, tourism, and commerce. Through the end of 2021, the costs of recovery and reconstruction are expected to total $1.8-2.2 billion. Apart from the losses in economic activity, Lebanon can expect lower fiscal revenues, higher inflation, and a further rise in poverty. Trade disruptions are also possible, which would raise transaction costs and further impede growth.
But with its comprehensive approach, the RDNA, as we call it, offers a concrete way forward to support a rapid and robust recovery. We are committed to bringing together the people of Lebanon, donor countries, and our international partners to ensure that reconstruction is transparent, sustainable, and inclusive.
My own organization — whose first task was reconstruction, as Europe recovered after the Second World War — will be able to draw on our global expertise in helping countries after disasters. This will mean not just leveraging a wide range of analytical and practical experience but also setting up a process that puts the needs of the Lebanese people first.
This disaster is, in fact, only the most visible and dramatic of a series of misfortunes that have dominated the country over the last decade and steeply accelerated in recent months. These include spillovers from the Syria conflict, with Lebanon hosting the largest number of refugees per capita of any country in the world. An ongoing financial and economic crisis has worsened significantly: Just prior to the explosion, the economy was projected to contract by over 18 percent in 2020, while inflation rates were already in the triple digits by mid-year. And for Lebanon’s people, the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the associated lockdown have further contributed to sharp increases in poverty, unemployment, and insecurity.
The explosion only compounds this already dire situation for the country. But Lebanon’s challenges are not just a matter of economics: Its government institutions have broken down in terms of transparency and accountability, stalling international relief efforts even amid the economy’s downward spiral of recent months. Looking forward, the country needs not only to rebuild, but also to build back better. Change must be driven by three organizing principles: Transparency, inclusion, and good governance. Lebanon must begin to function better, and in ways that benefit all of its people.
Hence this moment of crisis is also a wake-up call for profound changes — in institutional, economic, and social policies — based on the priorities of the Lebanese people. The RDNA includes the views of representatives and stakeholders from all spheres of Lebanese society; this input has helped shape the report’s findings, analyses, and recommendations.
The people of Lebanon have demonstrated repeatedly over the decades that they can recover from conflict and destruction. They also can tap the resources of a highly engaged global diaspora. So I am confident that we can once again count on their drive and resourcefulness. But this time it is not just a question of survival and recovery. It is also a question of whether the country will seize the moment and take decisive action for change, charting a new path forward.
The World Bank Group stands ready to help Lebanon with reforms that promote sustainable economic and social recovery, especially to increase inclusion and to turn around the country’s high rate of poverty. We look forward to partnering at the country level and across the international community in this essential work. Together we can change the course of Lebanon’s future.
*Axel van Trotsenburg is the World Bank Managing Director of Operations

Lebanese couple’s tragic search for ‘lost’ newborn
Najia Houssari/Arab News/September 19, 2020
BEIRUT: Just four months after leaving Lebanon and heading to Istanbul for a new life, a Lebanese couple have found themselves in a desperate search for answers over the disappearance of their newborn son in a Turkish government hospital.
Mohammed Salim, 27, and Jana Al-Qawzi, 23, say that hospital authorities have failed to give them a convincing explanation for the fate of their baby, who was taken from his mother’s arms moments after being born and vanished.
Jana’s mother, Nada Al-Qawzi, who works at the American University of Beirut, said that “her daughter is devastated and inconsolable.”She told Arab News: “Jana wanted to offer her unborn child a shot at a better life, so she decided to leave Lebanon, knowing that Mohammed owned a hardware store and Jana was an employee at a private hospital in Beirut. “In Istanbul, they both found work and her pregnancy was normal. However, in the sixth month of pregnancy, doctors told my daughter that the baby’s heartbeats were slowing. A month later, Jana complained of abdominal pain and her doctor told her she should give birth immediately. “That is when Jana and Mohammed’s tragedy began.”Jana said that she cannot escape the nightmare she has been living in since July. “My tears have dried, but I am on painkillers,” she said.
The couple’s residence permit in Turkey has expired, but Jana is refusing to leave without knowing the fate of her newborn in the Okmeydani hospital in Istanbul. As a non-Turkish citizen, Jana had to pay the hospital 4,000 Turkish liras ($528) on July 5. But when she checked with the local authorities, they made the hospital admit her for free. In the hospital, Jana was left alone in the delivery room after labor was induced. Her husband was not allowed to stay with her because other women were giving birth nearby. Jana’s mother said that when her daughter gave birth, she was shocked that the baby was “so little and kind of blue-ish.” As soon as he heard Jana’s screams, a doctor came and took the newborn away. Jana was not allowed to use her phone to take pictures of the infant. Moments later, medical staff came back to tell her that the baby had died. Jana called Mohammed, who was waiting outside, and said she heard him wailing. Ever since that moment, she said, the couple’s life had become hell. The couple still do not know the fate of their newborn. A woman who was giving birth in the next room told Jana that her baby was still alive, while the hospital administration told Jana that he was dead.
When the couple asked for the baby’s body to be returned, they were given contradictory answers. No trace of the newborn was found in the hospital’s records and the only name found was Jana’s.
One doctor wrote down in a medical report that the baby was born alive but died after being placed in intensive care, while another claimed that the baby died during birth and the body removed by a nurse.
The couple hired a lawyer and Jana’s mother asked a human rights organization in Beirut to investigate and provide psychological help for her daughter.
Turkish authorities also launched an investigation, but that was very slow, according to the lawyer, who advised the couple to go to the Turkish media to raise the issue. Jana’s mother said the Lebanese embassy in Turkey contacted the couple and Turkish authorities. It told the couple that investigations have been extended to three nurses and that the manager of the hospital morgue “went off the grid after shutting down his cell phone.” Two months after the incident, Jana is yet to discover the fate of her baby, while local authorities are pressuring Jana and her husband to leave the country.
However, the couple say they will stay on, even if it is illegal, until they know the truth. Mohammed has lost his job and, according to Jana’s mother, Jana is working as a babysitter, hoping to get a new residence permit. “They want to know the truth before coming back to Lebanon,” she said.
The couple have named their lost son Mohammed. Jana’s mother said: “We want this case to reach the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. We have documents, but they are inconsistent with the course of the incidents. My daughter has made peace with the death of her newborn, but she will not rest without knowing his fate.” Many theories have been put forward about the incident, but Jana refuses to believe any of the claims.
Is it possible that the baby was used for the illegal trade in human organs? More than 1,500 babies are believed to have disappeared in mysterious circumstances in Turkey. “I do not want to think about this possibility because it is killing me,” said Jana.
Lebanese lawyer Paul Morcos has raised questions about the Turkish hospital’s handling of the case, asking why it refused to receive fees from the couple or give them hospital bills. He has also highlighted the hospital’s contradictory information and the “disappearance” of the person in charge of the morgue.
“We want to know what happened, and we want to retrieve the body to be able to exclude the possibility of an organized crime,” he said.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on September 19-20/2020

Iran Guards Vow Soleimani Revenge will Target Only 'Those Involved'
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/September 19/2020
Iran's Revolutionary Guards chief said Saturday that Tehran will avenge the US killing of its top commander General Qasem Soleimani by targeting only those involved, in an "honourable" retaliation. Soleimani, who headed the Guards elite Qods Force, was killed in an American air strike near Baghdad airport in January. A US media report, quoting unnamed officials, said Iran plans in retaliation to assassinate the American ambassador to South Africa, Lana Marks, before the presidential election in November. US President Donald Trump threatened Iran this week with a "thousand times stronger" response in case of any attack on his country, following the report. South Africa's state security agency said Friday it had found no evidence of such a plot against Marks. Guards' chief Major General Hossein Salami retorted to the US president. "Mr. Trump, our revenge for the martyrdom of our great commander is certain, serious and real, but we are honourable and take revenge with fairness and justice," he said, quoted by the Guard's official website Sepahnews. "You think we would strike at a woman ambassador to South Africa for the blood of our martyr brother? We will target those who were directly or indirectly involved in the martyrdom of this great man," he said. "You should know, that we will target whoever was involved ... and this is a serious message." Soleimani was killed in an drone air strike, alongside a top Iraqi commander. Abu Mahdi Al-Muhandis. Days later, Iran launched a volley of missiles at Iraqi bases housing US and other coalition troops, but Trump refrained from any further military response. Relations between Washington and Tehran have been tense ever since the Islamic revolution of 1979. They have deteriorated sharply since Trump unilaterally pulled out of a landmark international nuclear deal with Iran in May 2018 and reimposed crippling sanctions.

Iran's Zarif: World should oppose US sanctions or except to face their own sanctions
Reuters/Sunday 20 September 2020
The world community should oppose the United States' use of sanctions to impose its will as a "bully," or expect to face sanctions itself, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Saturday. US President Donald Trump plans to issue an executive order allowing him to impose US sanctions on anyone who violates a conventional arms embargo against Iran, which is set to expire in October, four sources familiar with the matter said on Thursday. The Trump administration says that on Saturday all United Nations sanctions on Iran have to be restored and the conventional arms embargo on the country will no longer expire in mid-October. "The Americans as a rule act as a bully and impose sanction... The world community should decide how to act towards bullying," Zarif told Iranian state television hours before the US move aiming to restore UN sanctions against Iran. "As they (other countries) will face the same thing tomorrow when America takes the same action towards the Nord Stream project, as well as other projects because a bully will continue to act as a bully if he is allowed to do it once," Zarif said. The United States and many European countries bitterly oppose the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which they say will increase Europe’s reliance on Russian gas and deprive transit states such as Poland and Ukraine of leverage over Russia.

Iran to execute Iranian Kurdish political prisoner after denying retrial
Yaghoub Fazeli, Al Arabiya English/Saturday 19 September 2020
Haydar Ghorbani, an Iranian Kurdish political prisoner sentenced to death by Iran, had his appeal for a retrial rejected by Tehran’s highest judicial authority. Ghorbani was arrested along with his brother-in-law in 2016 on charges of “cooperating and assisting” in the killing of several members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), as well as membership in the opposition group the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI). Iran’s Kurdish-populated western provinces have witnessed recurring clashes between the Iranian military and Iranian Kurdish militant groups over the years. The Supreme Court of Iran, which last month approved Ghorbani’s death sentence, denied a request by Ghorbani’s lawyer for a retrial for his client earlier this month, the lawyer told Voice of America Persian. This has fuelled fear amongst Iranian activists because Ghorbani could be the second political prisoner to be executed within the same month, following the recent execution of champion wrestler Navid Afkari. As with Afkari’s case, Iranians have taken to social media to protest Ghorbani’s death sentence, using the hashtag #SaveHaydarGhorbani. Iran’s state-run television Press TV had previously aired Ghorbani’s alleged confessions. Ghorbani’s family member reject his charges and say that he has been forced into making false confessions under torture.

Jailed Iranian rights lawyer hospitalized amid hunger strike
The Associated Press/Saturday 19 September 2020
A leading Iranian human rights lawyer has been hospitalized a month after launching a hunger strike seeking better prison conditions and the release of political prisoners amid the pandemic, her husband said Saturday.
Reza Khandan said that healthcare professionals decided to hospitalize his wife, Nasrin Sotoudeh, because of heart and respiratory problems as well as low blood pressure. Khandan said Sotoudeh was transferred to a hospital in north Tehran from the notorious Evin Prison earlier on Saturday. Sotoudeh began her hunger strike in mid-August from her prison cell. She was arrested in 2018 on charges of collusion and propaganda against Iran's rulers and eventually was sentenced to 38 years in prison and 148 lashes. Under the law she must serve at least 12 years. During her prison term, Sotoudeh occasionally visited clinics as she suffered chronic gastrointestinal and foot problems. Earlier this year, the 57-year-old Sotoudeh — known for defending activists, opposition politicians and women prosecuted for removing their headscarves,— held a five-day hunger strike demanding prisoners be released to protect them from the coronavirus.

US reinforcements push back against Russian drive into NE Syria
DEBKAFile/September 19/2020
The US is reinforcing its 500-troop contingent in northern Syria with six Bradley fighting vehicles, 100 troops, fighter jets, Apache helicopter gunship patrols, and Sentinel radars to track Russian helicopters, after several run-ins with Russian forces. In one incident, a Russian armored vehicle rammed a US ground patrol and injured 7 American soldiers. For a while, US and Russian forces parked in this small flashpoint area up against the Turkish and Iraqi borders managed to steer clear of each other. In recent weeks, tensions spiraled when the Russians started pushing more aggressively to expand their turf in these regions, which are largely controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces backed by the United States. Russian officers were reported offering “protection” to local Kurdish villagers in the “security zone” which hosts US forces. Most were rebuffed. Last week, Syrian opposition sources reported the arrival of additional Russian weaponry and logistical equipment to the northern Qamishli airport. Oil is one factor in the complexities of this big power contest. Last month, an American company, Delaware-based Delta Crescent Energy, reached a deal with the Kurdish-led authorities to develop and export crude oil in areas under their control. This deal had both Moscow and the Assad regime up in arms. The United States is also building up an SDF force to protect the oilfields in Hasakah and Deir Ezzor provinces, which are controlled by the Kurds. Although President Donald Trump would rather withdraw US forces from Syria, he contended recently that American troops “are out of Syria” except to guard the region’s oil fields.US Navy Captain Bill Urban said on Friday that the move would “ensure the safety and security of Coalition forces.” Alongside the fighting vehicles, which had been shipped in from Kuwait, he said the US would also deploy a “Sentinel radar” and increase “the frequency of US fighter patrols over US forces.” Unnamed officials said the troops and vehicles were sent to deter Russian forces from entering the security area where US coalition and Kurdish forces operate.
The small US contingent in northern Syria needed to be reinforced as an important cog in America’s strategic deployment in the region. If the Russians moved in on this Kurdish region, the American Al-Tanf garrison at the intersection of Syria-Iraq-Jordan borders would be hard to defend, as would the big American Al Assad Airbase in Iraq. There would furthermore be no bar to the influx of Iranian-backed Shiite militias across the border from Iraq into Syria.

Turkey Enhances Positions in Northwest Syria after Talks with Russia
Ankara - Saeed Abdulrazek/Saturday, 19 September, 2020
Despite a recent agreement with Moscow on withdrawing its heavy weapons from the region, Ankara on Friday sent a new military column to its observation points in the south of Syria’s Idlib province, where Russian warplanes and Syrian forces have recently reduced their military activities. The new Turkish military column, including armored vehicles and logistical supplies, crossed into Syrian territories via Kafr Lusin crossing on the border with Iskenderun region in northern Idlib. The vehicles then headed to the Turkish positions in the de-escalation zone. Over 15,000 Turkish soldiers have deployed in the area since the first Astana agreement between Ankara and Moscow was signed in 2017. One Tuesday, Turkish and Russian officials met in Ankara for a new round of talks on developments in Syria to discuss a proposal for decreasing the Turkish observation points in Idlib. However, “the meetings between the Russian and Turkish delegations have not resulted in any specific results or reached mutual understanding on Idlib,” a Turkish source familiar with the situation told Sputnik. Ankara asked that the cities of Tall Rifat and Manbij be transferred under its control, but this initiative was rejected by Moscow. During the meeting, Turkey also refused to leave checkpoints on the territories controlled by the Syrian army as well as to reduce the number of its troops in the region and withdraw heavy weapons. Meanwhile, the administration of the Bab al-Hawa crossing described on Friday the statements of United Nations Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs Mark Lowcock as “irresponsible.” During a session of the UN Security Council regarding the situation in Syria, Lowcock discussed the entry of UN aid convoys into Syria through the crossing. “There are great challenges on the Syrian side, including the delayed entry of UN convoys to Syria and their complicated return to Syria,” he said.

Turkey condemns Greek newspaper headline abusing Erdogan
AFP/Saturday 19 September 2020
The Turkish government has condemned a headline in a Greek newspaper that insults President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, urging Athens to take action.Turkey's foreign ministry had already summoned Greece's ambassador over the headline in Dimokratia newspaper, also available on its website. The headline "Siktir Git Mr. Erdogan", which means "f*** off" in Turkish, appears next to a photo of the president in the Greek newspaper, which also added the English translation. "I condemn in the strongest terms the publication of insults directed at our President... on the front page of an extreme right newspaper," Fahrettin Altun, communications director at the Turkish presidency, wrote in a letter to Greek government spokesman Stelios Petsas made public on Saturday. He urged Greece to bring to account those responsible for the "shameless" action. "Insulting a foreign leader is nothing but a sign of helplessness and lack of reason and does not fall within the scope of press freedom or freedom of expression," he said. The Greek foreign ministry had said on Friday freedom of expression was fully protected in the EU member country but added: "The use of offensive language is contrary to our country's political culture and can only be condemned." The two NATO countries are already locked in a heated dispute over energy exploration in contested waters in the eastern Mediterranean. Turkey's deployment last month of research vessel Oruc Reis prompted the uneasy neighbors to stage rival air and naval drills in strategic waters between Cyprus and the Greek island of Crete. Last weekend, Ankara pulled the vessel back to the shore for maintenance after its one-month mission. But it extended the operations of another research vessel, Barbaros Hayrettin Pasa, off Cyprus until October 18, according to a message on Friday on maritime alert system NAVTEX. Turkey's drill ship Yavuz will also remain off Cyprus until October 12. Erdogan said on Friday he wanted to give diplomacy a chance with Oruc Reis pulled back on the port and did not rule out a meeting Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis via videoconference or in a third country. In an interview with the Greek daily Naftemporiki on Saturday, Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias said a dialogue could not begin unless Ankara put "an end to threats and provocations". "An essential dialogue must be based on international law and good neighbourly relations," he said. French President Emmanuel Macron, whose country backs Greece in the dispute, welcomed the Turkish leader's willingness for dialogue, saying southern European leaders had delivered a similar message to Turkey during a meeting in the Corsican city of Ajaccio last week. "In Ajaccio, we sent a clear message to Turkey: Let's reopen a responsible dialogue, in good faith, without naivety. This call is now also that of the European Parliament. It seems to have been heard. Let's move on," he tweeted in French and Turkish. EU leaders are due to discuss possible sanctions against Turkey at their meeting on September 24-25.

Syrian Democratic Council Welcomes UN Report on Human Rights Violations
Hasaka, London - Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 19 September, 2020
The Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), the political wing of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), called on the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry to visit northeastern Syria and verify its accusations against SDF. It also welcomed the committee's report on Turkish violations.
In its statement, SDC called for forcing Turkey and its armed groups to fully withdraw from Syrian territory. It also confirmed that Turkey and its affiliated armed groups “practice displacement, killing, and terrorist crimes.”The SDC called on the international community to form an international court for war criminals to hold Turkey, its officials and ISIS factions accountable. It further called for placing the occupied northern Syrian regions under the auspices of UN peacekeepers. The UN report stated that “during the period under review, civilians residing in the Afrin and Ras al-Ayn regions of Aleppo and Hasakah Governorates witnessed an onslaught of violations, as well as shelling and vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices.”It also highlighted crimes by Turkish armed opposition factions that include the kidnapping of hostages, cruel treatment, torture, and rape.

Turkey Rejects UN Report over Violation Claims in Syria
Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 19 September, 2020
Turkey rejected on Friday the human rights violations claims in northern Syria laid out in a report by the United Nations Commission of Inquiry and following criticism. "We categorically reject the baseless allegations of human rights violations claimed against the Syrian opposition... and concerning our country in relation to them," the Turkish foreign ministry said on Friday. On Tuesday, UN war crimes investigators said Turkey must rein in militants it supports in northern Syria who may have carried out kidnappings, torture and looting of civilian property following a report covering the first half of 2020. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said the human rights situation in parts of northern Syria is grim and called on Turkey to ensure that violations committed by armed groups under their control cease, Reuters reported. "I urge Turkey to immediately launch an impartial, transparent and independent investigation into the incidents we have verified," Bachelet also said. Ankara also rejected the criticism and called it groundless.

Pedersen: Faint but Real Ray of Hope on Syria Constitution Talks
New York - Amsterdam - London - Ali Barada and Asharq Al-Awsat//Saturday, 19 September, 2020
UN Special Envoy to Syria Geir Pedersen has expressed hope that a new round of discussions on a new constitution for Syria would make progress. In a briefing to the UNSC on the political situation in the war-torn country during a videoconference meeting on Friday, Pedersen said that against the hard realities, and the deep distrust among the Syrian parties, a faint but real ray of hope shone from Geneva “when, in the last week of August, we were able to convene, after a nine-month hiatus, a Third Session of the Small Body of the Syrian Constitutional Committee.”He said the Co-Chairs of the Committee informed him that they sensed that some common ground was emerging on some subjects. “There were practical suggestions from members on how to identify such common ground and how the discussion could move forward. I was very pleased with this,” the UN envoy noted. However, Pedersen announced there were real differences on substance even at the quite general level of the discussions. He said the Co-Chairs were not able to agree while in Geneva on an agenda for the next session. “We need to finalize the agenda without further delay if we are to meet in early October as we had hoped,” the UN official added.
Pedersen reminded participants that the delegations are nominated by the Syrian government and the opposition Syrian Negotiations Commission, in addition to the Middle Third civil society delegation, and that the mandate of the Committee is to prepare and draft a constitutional reform.
He also said the Committee may review and amend the 2012 constitution or draft a new constitution. “The constitutional draft must embody the 12 living principles which emerged from the Geneva process and were approved in Sochi.”
According to the UN envoy, Syria remains a highly internationalized environment, with five foreign armies active in the theater, and Syria’s sovereignty compromised.
“Militarily, however, existing arrangements continue to sustain broad calm across Syria, relative to the intense violence of recent years. Indeed, the frontlines have barely shifted for half a year – the longest in the Syrian conflict – and a basic military status quo seems to be emerging,” he said.
He added that while Syria is calmer than before, worrying incidents could destabilize that calm, including a vehicle altercation between Russian and US forces that left four US soldiers injured, and mutual accusations of breaches of existing deconfliction arrangements, in addition to further rounds of airstrikes, attributed to Israel by the Syrian government, on military positions in Syria. Pedersen added that despite the March agreement between Russia and Turkey continues to sustain broad calm in the northwest, “we have also seen escalations, including mutual rocket and artillery fire and airstrikes, hitting near the frontlines as well as deep into Idlib.”Meanwhile, the Netherlands announced Friday its decision to hold Syria accountable under international law for gross human rights violations and torture in particular. “The Assad regime has committed horrific crimes time after time. The evidence is overwhelming. There must be consequences,” said Minister of Foreign Affairs Stef Blok. The Netherlands says that over the past decade nearly 200,000 Syrian civilians have died in the conflict in Syria, and many more even, according to some sources. According to Blok, “the Assad regime has not hesitated to crack down hard on its own population, using torture and chemical weapons, and bombing hospitals.”Caption: Syria has been accused of using chemical weapons in civilian areas (AP)

US Bolsters Military Deployment in Syria
Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 19 September, 2020
The US Army revealed Friday its plans to step up its military deployment, including troops and equipment, in northeastern Syria. US Central Command "has deployed Sentinel radar, increased the frequency of US fighter patrols over US forces, and deployed Bradley Fighting Vehicles to augment US forces" in the area, which is controlled by the US and its Kurdish allies, spokesman Captain Bill Urban said in a statement. The number of armored vehicles sent as reinforcement did not exceed half a dozen, and "less than 100 people" were sent to maneuver them, a US official said, AFP reported. Urban said the moves were meant "to help ensure the safety and security of Coalition forces," and that the US "does not seek conflict with any other nation in Syria, but will defend Coalition forces if necessary." The US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said however that the actions "are a clear signal to Russia to adhere to mutual de-confliction processes and for Russia and other parties to avoid unprofessional, unsafe and provocative actions in northeast Syria." US Bradley Fighting Vehicles were pulled out of the region last October by President Donald Trump, who tried in early 2019 to recall all US troops from Syria, before agreeing to leave a few hundred to protect oil wells. Several incidents in recent weeks have pitted the US military against Russian forces now deployed along the Turkish border under an agreement with Ankara. At the end of August, seven US soldiers were injured in a collision with a Russian vehicle. Videos posted on Twitter, apparently filmed by witnesses and the Russians themselves, showed Russian armor and helicopters attempting to block US vehicles and then force them out of the area. US and Russian troops frequently interact in Syria, but confrontations have been rare.

UN Warns of Possible War Crimes in Turkish-Controlled Syria
Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 19 September, 2020
Armed groups in the area of northern Syria controlled by Turkey may have committed war crimes and other violations of international law, the UN rights chief said Friday. Michelle Bachelet, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the situation in those areas of Syria was grim, with violence and criminality rife. In a statement, Bachelet's UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) said it had noted an "alarming pattern in recent months of grave violations", having documented increased killings, kidnappings, unlawful transfers of people, seizures of land and properties and forcible evictions. The victims include people perceived to be allied with opposing parties or as being critical of the actions of the Turkish-affiliated armed groups, Bachelet's office said. Those affiliated groups have also seized and looted houses, land and property without any apparent military necessity, said OHCHR. Furthermore, increased infighting among the various Turkish-affiliated armed groups over power-sharing was causing civilian casualties and damage to civilian infrastructure.
Turkey condemnation
The Turkish foreign ministry later Friday took umbrage at Bachelet's statement and "strongly condemned the failure to mention the Syrian regime and the PKK/YPG terrorist organization, which are the main cause of the violations in the report". Ankara considers the US-backed Syrian Kurdish YPG group a terrorist organization linked to outlawed PKK Kurdish insurgents in Turkey. "We totally reject the unfounded allegations against Syrian opposition groups" and the "baseless claims against our country in connection with these groups," it said. The ministry in a statement also accused Bachelet of "undue criticism" and said Ankara would notify the UN of its "views and challenges" related to the report. Turkey controls large stretches of northeastern Syria through various armed groups, and is conducting operations aimed at driving out Kurdish and extremist factions. In October last year, Turkish forces and their Syrian proxies occupied a 120-kilometre (75-mile) stretch of land inside the Syrian border from Kurdish forces. Ankara has also deployed forces in several military posts it established in northwestern Idlib as part of a 2018 deal with regime ally Moscow, while Turkey also controls a stretch of territory along its border in neighboring Aleppo province following a series of military offensives since 2016.
Call for investigation
Bachelet's office said it had documented the abduction and disappearance of civilians, including women and children. It also said that from the start of the year until last Monday, it had verified the deaths of at least 116 civilians as a result of improvised explosive devices and explosive remnants of war, while a further 463 civilians were injured. "I urge Turkey to immediately launch an impartial, transparent and independent investigation into the incidents we have verified, account for the fate of those detained and abducted by the affiliated armed groups and hold accountable those responsible for what may, in some instances, amount to crimes under international law, including war crimes," Bachelet said. "This is all the more vital given that we have received disturbing reports that some detainees and abductees have allegedly been transferred to Turkey following their detention in Syria by affiliated armed groups."Meanwhile Bachelet voiced concern that parties to the conflict in Syria were using essential services as a weapon. "Impeding access to water, sanitation and electricity endangers the lives of large numbers of people, a danger rendered all the more acute amid fighting a global pandemic," she said.

EU to Sanction Violators of UN Arms Embargo on Libya
Brussels - Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 19 September, 2020
The EU is set to announce sanctions on Monday against parties accused of violating a UN arms embargo on Libya. EU diplomats revealed Friday that the member states agreed on the list of companies and individuals who provided ships and planes, in addition to other means that help transport weapons to Libya. According to the diplomats, the sanctions will target three companies from Turkey, Jordan and Kazakhstan, in addition to two Libyans, AFP reported. The sanctions, which will see the companies blacklisted and their assets in the EU frozen, are expected to be endorsed by EU foreign ministers at a meeting on Monday in Brussels. Libya has endured almost a decade of violent chaos since the 2011 uprising that toppled former president Muammar Gaddafi.

Sadr Calls for Political Solution to Ending Foreign Presence in Iraq
Baghdad - Asharq Al-Awsat/Saturday, 19 September, 2020
The leader of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, warned on Friday against dragging Iraq to a “dark tunnel” by targeting cultural and diplomatic centers with missiles and explosives. Instead he called for using “political and parliamentary means” to deal with the US presence in the country. “Attacking diplomatic and cultural centers will push Iraq to a dark tunnel,” Sadr wrote on Twitter. The leader of the Sadrist movement called for using political means and resorting to the parliament “to end the occupation” and stop foreign interference in Iraq's internal affairs. Commenting on Sadr’s statements, Ihsan Al Shameri, the head of the Political Thought Center in Baghdad, told Asahrq Al-Awsat that the leader of the Sadrist movement is trying to improve his image. The position of the Shiite cleric came as armed factions continued to attack the Green Zone in Baghdad, where the US embassy is located.
On Friday, an explosion inside the American Institute for Teaching English in central Najaf, 160 km south of Baghdad, caused extensive damage to its building. The Najaf Police Command said initial information indicates that an explosive device blew up at the Institute, without causing any casualties. Shortly before the Najaf attack, an explosive device detonated on the highway in Al-Musayyib district in Babylon governorate, targeting a convoy transporting equipment for the international coalition by Iraqi transport companies, Iraq’s Security Media Cell announced. It said the explosion did not cause human losses or material damage. Also, the Salah al-Din Operations Command announced the explosion of a pile of ammunition in an abandoned building inside the Spyker base, denying rumors of the bombing of a Popular Mobilization Forces warehouse at the base. The Operations Command stated that the ammunition exploded as a result of poor storage and high temperatures.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Dies at 87
Associated Press/Naharnet/September 19/2020
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a towering women's rights champion who became the court's second female justice, died Friday at her home in Washington. She was 87. Ginsburg died of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer, the court said. Her death just over six weeks before Election Day is likely to set off a heated battle over whether President Donald Trump should nominate, and the Republican-led Senate should confirm, her replacement, or if the seat should remain vacant until the outcome of his race against Democrat Joe Biden is known. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said late Friday that the Senate will vote on Trump's pick to replace Ginsburg, even though it's an election year.
Trump called Ginsburg an "amazing woman" and did not mention filling her vacant Supreme Court seat when he spoke to reporters following a rally in Bemidji, Minnesota. Biden said the winner of the November election should choose Ginsburg's replacement. "There is no doubt — let me be clear — that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider," Biden told reporters after returning to his hometown of Wilmington, Delaware, from campaign stops in Minnesota. Chief Justice John Roberts mourned Ginsburg's passing. "Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her — a tireless and resolute champion of justice," Roberts said in a statement.
Ginsburg announced in July that she was undergoing chemotherapy treatment for lesions on her liver, the latest of her several battles with cancer.
Ginsburg spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the court's liberal wing and became something of a rock star to her admirer s. Young women especially seemed to embrace the court's Jewish grandmother, affectionately calling her the Notorious RBG, for her defense of the rights of women and minorities, and the strength and resilience she displayed in the face of personal loss and health crises.
Those health issues included five bouts with cancer beginning in 1999, falls that resulted in broken ribs, insertion of a stent to clear a blocked artery and assorted other hospitalizations after she turned 75. She resisted calls by liberals to retire during Barack Obama's presidency at a time when Democrats held the Senate and a replacement with similar views could have been confirmed. Instead, Trump will almost certainly try to push Ginsburg's successor through the Republican-controlled Senate — and move the conservative court even more to the right.
Ginsburg antagonized Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign in a series of media interviews, including calling him a faker. She soon apologized.
Her appointment by President Bill Clinton in 1993 was the first by a Democrat in 26 years. She initially found a comfortable ideological home somewhere left of center on a conservative court dominated by Republican appointees. Her liberal voice grew stronger the longer she served. Ginsburg was a mother of two, an opera lover and an intellectual who watched arguments behind oversized glasses for many years, though she ditched them for more fashionable frames in her later years. At argument sessions in the ornate courtroom, she was known for digging deep into case records and for being a stickler for following the rules. She argued six key cases before the court in the 1970s when she was an architect of the women's rights movement. She won five.
"Ruth Bader Ginsburg does not need a seat on the Supreme Court to earn her place in the American history books," Clinton said at the time of her appointment. "She has already done that."Following her death, Clinton said, "Her 27 years on the Court exceeded even my highest expectations when I appointed her."On the court, where she was known as a facile writer, her most significant majority opinions were the 1996 ruling that ordered the Virginia Military Institute to accept women or give up its state funding, and the 2015 decision that upheld independent commissions some states use to draw congressional districts. Besides civil rights, Ginsburg took an interest in capital punishment, voting repeatedly to limit its use. During her tenure, the court declared it unconstitutional for states to execute the intellectually disabled and killers younger than 18. In addition, she questioned the quality of lawyers for poor accused murderers. In the most divisive of cases, including the Bush v. Gore decision in 2000, she was often at odds with the court's more conservative members — initially Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist and Justices Sandra Day O'Connor, Antonin Scalia, Anthony M. Kennedy and Clarence Thomas.
The division remained the same after John Roberts replaced Rehnquist as chief justice, Samuel Alito took O'Connor's seat, and, under Trump, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh joined the court, in seats that had been held by Scalia and Kennedy, respectively. Ginsburg would say later that the 5-4 decision that settled the 2000 presidential election for Republican George W. Bush was a "breathtaking episode" at the court. She was perhaps personally closest on the court to Scalia, her ideological opposite. Ginsburg once explained that she took Scalia's sometimes biting dissents as a challenge to be met. "How am I going to answer this in a way that's a real putdown?" she said.
When Scalia died in 2016, also an election year, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell refused to act on Obama's nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to fill the opening. The seat remained vacant until after Trump's surprising presidential victory. McConnell has said he would move to confirm a Trump nominee if there were a vacancy this year. Reached by phone late Friday, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, declined to disclose any plans. He called Ginsburg a "trailblazer" and said, "While I had many differences with her on legal philosophy, I appreciate her service to our nation." Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer tweeted: "The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president."
Ginsburg authored powerful dissents of her own in cases involving abortion, voting rights and pay discrimination against women. She said some were aimed at swaying the opinions of her fellow judges while others were "an appeal to the intelligence of another day" in the hopes that they would provide guidance to future courts.
"Hope springs eternal," she said in 2007, "and when I am writing a dissent, I'm always hoping for that fifth or sixth vote — even though I'm disappointed more often than not." She wrote memorably in 2013 that the court's decision to cut out a key part of the federal law that had ensured the voting rights of Black people, Hispanics and other minorities was "like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet." Change on the court hit Ginsburg especially hard. She dissented forcefully from the court's decision in 2007 to uphold a nationwide ban on an abortion procedure that opponents call partial-birth abortion. The court, with O'Connor still on it, had struck down a similar state ban seven years earlier. The "alarming" ruling, Ginsburg said, "cannot be understood as anything other than an effort to chip away at a right declared again and again by this court — and with increasing comprehension of its centrality to women's lives." In 1999, Ginsburg had surgery for colon cancer and received radiation and chemotherapy. She had surgery again in 2009 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and in December 2018 for cancerous growths on her left lung. Following the last surgery, she missed court sessions for the first time in more than 25 years on the bench.
Ginsburg also was treated with radiation for a tumor on her pancreas in August 2019. She maintained an active schedule even during the three weeks of radiation. When she revealed a recurrence of her cancer in July 2020, Ginsburg said she remained "fully able" to continue as a justice. Joan Ruth Bader was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1933, the second daughter in a middle-class family. Her older sister, who gave her the lifelong nickname "Kiki," died at age 6, so Ginsburg grew up in Brooklyn's Flatbush section as an only child. Her dream, she has said, was to be an opera singer.
Ginsburg graduated at the top of her Columbia University law school class in 1959 but could not find a law firm willing to hire her. She had "three strikes against her" — for being Jewish, female and a mother, as she put it in 2007. She had married her husband, Martin, in 1954, the year she graduated from Cornell University. She attended Harvard University's law school but transferred to Columbia when her husband took a law job there. Martin Ginsburg went on to become a prominent tax attorney and law professor. Martin Ginsburg died in 2010. She is survived by two children, Jane and James, and several grandchildren. Ginsburg once said that she had not entered the law as an equal-rights champion. "I thought I could do a lawyer's job better than any other," she wrote. "I have no talent in the arts, but I do write fairly well and analyze problems clearly."

Yemen’s Houthis launch projectile towards Saudi Arabia’s Jazan, 5 civilians injured
Tuqa Khalid, Al Arabiya English/Sunday 20 September 2020
Iran-backed Houthi militia launched a military projectile from inside Yemen towards a border village in Jazan Region in Saudi Arabia, injuring five civilians, state news agency SPA reported on Friday. The spokesman for the Civil Defense Directorate in the Jazan region, Colonel Muhammad bin Yahya al-Ghamdi, stated that they received a report of the fall of a military projectile launched by the Houthis towards one of the border villages in al-Harth governorate in the Jazan region, SPA stated.
The projectile damaged three civilian vehicles and injured five civilians. Their injuries were minor, mainly due to shrapnel flying. They were all taken to the hospital and are in stable condition, SPA added. The Houthis have in recent weeks increased aerial attacks towards civilian areas in the Kingdom, mainly through explosive-laden drones. The Arab Coalition has succeeded in intercepting and destroying most of them.
Cross-border attacks by Iran-aligned Houthi forces have escalated since late May, when a truce prompted by the coronavirus pandemic expired. In late June, missiles reached the Saudi capital Riyadh.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on September 19-20/2020

Bahrain, the Nation of Peace
Houda Nonoo/Asharq Al Awsat/September 19/2020
In a brave step, the Kingdom of Bahrain once again opened new horizons for the consolidation and spread of tolerance. Under the directives of King Hamad bin Issa Al Khalifa, support for peace with Israel was announced, through which Bahrain took a step in accordance with sovereignty of its national decision and supreme interest. It is deemed a historic accomplishment, the contours of which Manama formulated wisely and astutely, and announced transparently and responsibly.
It is an agreement that opens a window of hope to the region’s peoples, who have suffered for dozens of years from conflicts, wars, and unrest, while all monotheistic religions call for peace and harmony. Bahrain, which has always been home to human civilizations and an exemplar of coexistence and tolerance, has always believed that declaring support for peace with Israel renders better opportunities for the two nations of Israel and Palestine, and achieves stability in the region and the world.
It is perhaps a fateful circumstance that I lived, by virtue of being born and growing up in Bahrain, many of the features of the conflict whose time to end has come, a conflict whose only consequences a reasonable person would find are hate and bigotry. One who follows the conflict that has been ongoing for around 70 years will find that the Arabs and Israelis have achieved through negotiation what they failed to attain on the front and war battlefields.
Bahrain, with its partners and allies, has always advocated the idea that peace is the inevitable key to solutions for disputes, stemming from His Majesty’s belief in the exigency of spreading the culture of peace around the world and his continued affirmation of the importance of intensifying efforts for ending the Palestinian- Israeli conflict.
Diplomacy taught me that the path of peace is a lifeline for all of us, and during the five years I spent as the ambassador of my country Bahrain to the United States, I realized that we are all searching for peace. Today I am entitled to say, full of pride in my country Bahrain and hope for the future, that this is a historical juncture that will take the Middle East to a new era, one of rejuvenation, prosperity and development, an era without the epidemic of violence, extremism and terrorism. This is the moment when Bahrain, which always works with brethren, friends and allies to ensure that peace prevails, confirms that it is the home of peace and the voice of sound reason and percipient wisdom, and has always adhered to international decisions regarding the establishment of diplomatic relations on the basis of mutual respect and national interests.
The Palestinian- Israeli conflict has scattered pages of pain that shall be erased with the peace of the courageous. The region’s peoples have suffered from the repercussions of poverty, unemployment, emigration, limited educational opportunities, and poor health care. Bahrain believes in uniting visions and coordinating efforts by investing in the region’s resources, and that the capabilities of the region’s peoples and its strategic location will be unwavering in the face of the well-known evil claws that are openly hostile to us all, that gamble with the security of our homelands, and pursue adventures that endanger their sons by sending them to losing battles.
Just as Bahrain recognizes that the pleasure of peace will defeat the bitterness of strife, it also knows that declaring its support for peace with the state of Israel is in line with its efforts to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in accordance with the Arab Peace Initiative that aims for a better future full of hope and optimism, with security and stability, where mutual recognition of rights to coexistence prevails. Everyone is facing an opportunity that may not recur, testing their seriousness in adopting peace as a means for reconciliation and the consolidation of alliances, as peace is not just a document that one signs; rather, it entrenches values and principles. This is Bahrain’s message to the entire world.
Our leaders have smashed the rock of deadlock with their awareness and courage, and stirred still waters with their insightful vision, while invigorated and cultured peoples are yearning for life and are fed up with conflicts and strife. They have very much understood the magnitude of sinister intentions and conspiracies. To this end I took a logical view of the declaration of support for peace with Israel and saw in it a genuine manifestation of Bahrain’s momentous legacy of tolerance and reconciliation that turned the page on a history burdened with pain, fear and uncertainty, in the hopes of reaping the fruits of this peace, development, prosperity, science and progress, thereby serving humanity. For all these reasons, we must not let them down, as one day our children will grow up and the peace of the courageous ought to be the legacy we leave behind for them. Let us work together with determination and vigor to bring them joy, and let us sow the seeds of peace, so that they may bloom in a world of harmony, love and friendship.

Iran's Missile Violations: Where is the International Community?
Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/September 19/2020
مجيد رافزادا: أين هو المجتمع الدولي من مخالفات الصواريخ الإيرانية
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/90518/dr-majid-rafizadeh-gatestone-institute-irans-missile-violations-where-is-the-international-community-%d8%af-%d9%85%d8%ac%d9%8a%d8%af-%d8%b1%d8%a7%d9%81%d9%8a%d8%b2%d8%a7%d8%af%d8%a7-%d8%a3/
"The important point about these missiles is that they are fully equipped with homing. It means they are of the fire-and-forget type. We fire the missile and the data is on the missile itself, it has various navigation systems built in." — Iran's Navy chief, Adm. Hossein Khanzadi, Associated Press, June 8, 2020.
"We are open about the fact that Hezbollah's budget, its income, its expenses, everything it eats and drinks, its weapons and rockets, come from the Islamic Republic of Iran." — Hassan Nasrallah, leader of Hezbollah, The New Yorker, December 13, 2016.
"Today, more than ever, there is fertile ground - with the grace of God - for the annihilation, the wiping out, and the collapse of the Zionist regime. In Lebanon alone, over 100,000 missiles are ready to be launched...." — Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Brigadier General Hossein Salami, to Iran's state-run IRIB TV, July 1, 2016.
Iran's foreign-based weapons factories give it an advantageous military capability for waging wars or striking other nations through third countries such as Syria, Lebanon, Yemen or Iraq.
Instead of appeasing the ruling mullahs of Iran, it is incumbent on the international community to act to stop this predatory regime -- now.
Not a word of condemnation has been issued by either the UN or the EU on the Iranian regime's acceleration of its threatening ballistic missile program. Pictured: Iranian soldiers launch a Ghader missile on September 11, 2020, during a military exercise near the Strait of Hormuz in southern Iran.
Not even a word of condemnation has been issued by either the United Nations or the European Union on the Iranian regime's latest violations and acceleration of its threatening ballistic missile program. Instead, the UN and the EU are still committed to lifting the arms embargo on Tehran and keeping global sanctions removed from the ruling mullahs.
The regime, meanwhile has been focusing on the proliferation of long-range precision-guided ballistic missiles. It recently unveiled several new missiles -- the Haj Qasem surface-to-surface ballistic missile and the Abu Mahdi long-range naval cruise missile -- as well as several reportedly high-quality jet engines.
Iran's theocratic regime currently possesses the largest and most diverse ballistic missile program in the Middle East. It is worth noting that no country other than Iran has acquired long-range ballistic missiles before obtaining nuclear weapons. While ballistic missiles can be used for either offensive or defensive purposes, the sophisticated missiles are mainly developed as delivery vehicles for nuclear weapons.
The regime has fired several ballistic missiles in the past few months and Iran's Navy chief, Adm. Hossein Khanzadi, bragged on Iran's state television:
"The important point about these missiles is that they are fully equipped with homing. It means they are of the fire-and-forget type. We fire the missile and the data is on the missile itself, it has various navigation systems built in."
The Iranian regime is in clear violation of the UN Security Council Resolution 2231. The resolution calls on the Islamic Republic of Iran "not to undertake any activity related to ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering nuclear weapons, including launches using such ballistic missile technology."
In addition, as Iran and the P4+1 (Germany, the UK, Russia, China and France) still contend that the nuclear deal (which Iran never signed) remains effective, Tehran is even violating the nuclear deal due to the fact that it indicates that Iran should not undertake any ballistic missile activity "until the date eight years after the JCPOA Adoption Day (Oct. 18, 2015) or until the date on which the IAEA submits a report confirming the broader conclusion, whichever is earlier."
The regime's expansion of its ballistic missile program poses a threat to the stability of the region and the national interests of other countries. For one thing,, the beneficiaries of Iran's expanding ballistic missile arsenal are basically terror and militia groups. Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, previously admitted: "We are open about the fact that Hezbollah's budget, its income, its expenses, everything it eats and drinks, its weapons and rockets, come from the Islamic Republic of Iran."
Iran has also ratcheted up its efforts to advance the missile technology of Yemen's Houthis. As a UN panel of experts previously acknowledged when the Houthis fired missiles into Saudi Arabia, it is extremely unlikely that the Houthis could manufacture such missiles on their own:
"The design, characteristics and dimensions of the components inspected by the panel are consistent with those reported for the Iranian-manufactured Qiam-1 missile."
The regime has also been clear about its intentions when it comes to annihilating Israel with ballistic missiles. Iran's Supreme Guide Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who enjoys the final say in all of Iran's domestic and foreign policies, proclaimed last year to the youth of Iran that they will soon witness the demise of Israel and all of American civilization. Khamenei made Iran's intentions clear while meeting with students, declaring:
"You young people should be assured that you will witness the demise of the enemies of humanity, meaning the degenerate American civilization, and the demise of Israel".
The Commander-in-Chief of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Hossein Salami, also made the strategy of his regime vehemently clear by stating on Iran State TV Channel 2, "Our strategy is to erase Israel from the global political map. And, it seems that, considering the evil that Israel is doing, it is bringing itself closer to that."
Salami also famously told the state-run IRIB TV: "Today, more than ever, there is fertile ground - with the grace of God - for the annihilation, the wiping out, and the collapse of the Zionist regime. In Lebanon alone, over 100,000 missiles are ready to be launched. If there is a will, if it serves [our] interests, and if the Zionist regime repeats its past mistakes due to its miscalculations, these missiles will pierce through space, and will strike at the heart of the Zionist regime. They will prepare the ground for its great collapse in the new era"
The Iranian regime is also reportedly setting up weapons factories abroad and manufacturing advanced ballistic missiles and weapons in foreign nations, including Syria. Some of the arms that Tehran is producing there include precision-guided missiles, using advanced technology to strike specific targets. Iran's foreign-based weapons factories give it an advantageous military capability for waging wars or striking other nations through third countries such as Syria, Lebanon, Yemen or Iraq.
Instead of appeasing the ruling mullahs of Iran, it is incumbent on the international community to act to stop this predatory regime -- now.
*Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a business strategist and advisor, Harvard-educated scholar, political scientist, board member of Harvard International Review, and president of the International American Council on the Middle East. He has authored several books on Islam and US foreign policy. He can be reached at Dr.Rafizadeh@Post.Harvard.Edu
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Peace deals reflect the big picture in the region
Khairallah Khairallah/The Arab Weekly/September 20/2020
So, how should we look at the peace agreements that the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Bahrain signed with Israel under American auspices, at a time when much meaningless talk is coming from bidders who do not want to understand that each country in the region has its own circumstances and ways of defending its interests?
We must first admit that Sheikh Muhammad bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, and King of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa have the required courage and leadership qualities to make difficult decisions in such complex circumstances engulfing the region and the world.
Few are the Arab rulers who have what it takes to recognise and seize the right moment to take a crucial step that serves the interests of their countries and peoples in the short and long terms. If King Hussein, may God have mercy on him, had not taken the decision to sign a peace agreement with Israel in October 1994, Jordan’s fate today would have been in jeopardy. King Hussein chose the appropriate moment to do that after the Palestinians accepted the Oslo Accords. At that moment, the wise monarch considered that it was about time for the Hashemite Kingdom to draw its final borders and take all of its rights to land and water. The late Jordanian monarch really did not care about the useless political auctions and bidders that followed Jordan’s step, nor about the slogans raised to harm Jordan.
What needs to be recognised by all is the fact that a huge imbalance was created in the region, resulting mainly from that 2003 political earthquake in Iraq otherwise known as the American invasion of that country. The mighty American army overthrew the existing regime, and then handed over this important Middle Eastern country to its historical enemy, the so-called “Islamic Republic” of Iran. So now, we have ended up with a huge regional imbalance that is very difficult to deal with in light of the total absence of Iraq and the aggressive roles of Iran and Turkey.
In Iraq, the Iranian expansionist project found a new start and went in all directions. Lebanon, for example, took a frontal hit and is currently suffering agonies from Iranian interference through a sectarian militia in the country called Hezbollah.
Since 2003, the borders between Iran and Iraq have been blurred, completely disrupting the regional balance. The current Iraqi government, headed by Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, is trying to restore these borders and fortify them in order to put an end to the Iranian penetration and influence in Iraq at all levels. Kadhimi, who is not hostile to Iran, has raised the slogan “Iraq first”, but will he be able to succeed in his mission? It is a big question that the UAE and Bahrain cannot spend years waiting for an answer to.
What happened on the ground is that in the Arab Mashreq, or in the Gulf region, it was almost like the collapse of the regional system that arose after the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire and the demarcation of the borders of the Iraqi state.
The late French President Francois Mitterrand considered the border separating Iraq and Iran as one between “two great civilizations”, namely the Arab civilization and the Persian civilization, and said that preserving this border is preserving the regional balance, especially since Iraq has become one of the pillars of that one hundred years-old regional system. Mitterrand said that in the context of justifying France’s intervention on the side of Iraq in 1981 during the Iran-Iraq war to prevent the border between the two countries from falling.
When Egypt made peace with Israel in March 1979, the possibility of war with Israel was no longer an option. So, the remaining slogans raised by those still pushing the agenda of war with Israel were nothing more than attempts in a game of using Palestine and the Palestinians for ulterior motives and goals, a despicable game carried out essentially by Iran, which was later on joined by Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Turkey.
Given these realities, should a country like the UAE be at the mercy of Iran, a country that is occupying three of its islands (Abu Musa, Lesser Tunb and Greater Tunb) since 1971, and strive to appease it, in order to please some Palestinians involved in playing the bidding game about the Palestinian cause? Should it expect and accept Turkish intervention in its affairs, given that Turkey is nowadays leading the international organisation of the Muslim Brotherhood, in order for it to be accepted by a Palestinian extremist movement like Hamas, a movement ready to serve the Israeli occupation at all times?
The two civilized speeches delivered on the White House lawn on the occasion of signing the UAE’s and Bahrain’s peace agreements with Israel, by Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, the Emirati Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Abd al-Latif al-Zayani, the Bahraini Foreign Minister, were evidence of the two countries’ determination to turn over a page of the past in the region. For the first time, we have two Arab countries which have never been at war with Israel take the step of signing a peace agreement with it. If they have done that, it was because they have a global view of the situation in the region, and also because they need to examine the questions related to the future of security in the region as a whole and to their relationships with the US.
It is no secret that the United States is looking at reshaping the future of its presence in the region as a whole. On the one hand, it is no longer dependent on oil supplies from the Gulf and on the other hand, it has other more pressing preoccupations to address, namely its relationship with China.
The White House occupant today is Donald Trump. What would happen if Joe Biden becomes the next occupant following the November 3rdelection? Biden may be better or worse than Trump; we just don’t know. In that case, can any Arab country, especially if it is in the Gulf, bet on the unknown?
Ultimately, Israel is going to remain one of the most important bridges to get to Washington, regardless of who the occupant of the White House is. With Israel, there is room for establishing mutually beneficial relations linked to modern technology in various fields and many other matters, such as modern medicine and research, for example. What is certain, politically, is that the UAE will have a positive impact inside Israel, and that will help rein in the Israeli impulse to annex more Palestinian lands.
In the final analysis, dealing with the Israelis can either take the path of war or the path of dialogue. If Egypt, the largest Arab country, was convinced of the usefulness of the path of dialogue,since it helped it recover its lands occupied in 1967, including Taba, which war now should Bahrain or the UAE support or join? Every now and then, everybody needs a new dose of common sense. It is definitely vital to think about the future and how to adapt to the new conditions in the region, whether in the Levant or in the Gulf. Iraq may succeed one day to lay the foundations for a normal relationship with Iran. However, that does not eliminate the double threat of Turkish aggression and Iran’s expansionist project. These are still present and still on the agenda; so caution is necessary, and that includes getting rid of the complex of how to deal with Israel and others.

International summit urges UN to take tougher action against Iran
Ray Hanania/September 19/2020
More than 100,000 people from Europe, the US and Iran took part in the online Transatlantic Summit to Support a Free Iran
Among them were Republican and Democratic US politicians who set aside domestic differences to join the condemnation of the Iranian regime
CHICAGO: An international summit of activists and political leaders on Friday called on the UN to get tough on Iran’s “murderous, terrorist” government by implementing stronger sanctions against the regime in Tehran.
More than 100,000 people from Europe, the US and Iran took part in the online Transatlantic Summit to Support a Free Iran, which was organized by the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) and the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI).
Among them were Republican and Democratic US politicians who set aside domestic differences to join the condemnation of the Iranian regime and demand an end to its campaign of repression.
Several speakers highlighted a “new wave of executions” in Iran stemming from mass protests that began in 2018 and surged again in November 2019 after the Iranian regime increased the price of gasoline.
There was an international outcry this week after it was announced on Sept. 12 that Navid Afkari, an Iranian national wrestling champion, had been executed. He was arrested during the 2018 protests and accused of killing a security guard, a charge he denied.
“His only crime was to rise up and fight to overthrow a regime that has devastated Iran and drenched it in blood while plundering the nation,” said Maryam Rajavi, the newly elected president of NCRI, during her opening remarks at the summit.
“The people of Iran had been protesting for weeks against the death sentence handed down to him by (Iranian Supreme Leader Ali) Khamenei’s judiciary. The people of Iran, human-rights advocates, freedom lovers and athletes launched an unprecedented worldwide campaign to stop the inhuman verdict.
“Today, Navid Afkari lives on in the hearts and struggle of thousands of resistance units in Iran, (which) will continue to resist and rise up for freedom and justice.”
The Iranian leadership has a long history of executing activists who oppose its rule. In 1988, more than 30,000 protesters were rounded up and put to death. Rajavi said that Iran’s leaders should face justice for those killings and the murders that followed in the following three decades.
“The experience of the past 40 years of the clerical regime’s rule in Iran has shown that it has continued its rule by committing 120,000 executions on political grounds, including the 1988 massacre of 30,000 political prisoners, 90 percent of whom belonged to the PMOI,” she added.
“The regime has been condemned 66 times so far by the UN General Assembly, as well as in the Human Rights Commission and Council for its gross human rights violations.”
Iran has spent more than $30 billion to protect the regime of dictator Bashar Assad in neighboring Syria, Rajavi said, ordering Iranian militants and their allies deployed there to target and kill American soldiers and advisers.
With American politics increasingly divided in the run-up to the presidential election on Nov. 3, there was a rare display of harmony between Republicans and Democrats.
The long list of speakers included Republicans such as Trump adviser and former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, former house speaker Newt Gingrich, and senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio. On the Democratic side, senators Bob Menendez, Jeanne Shaheen and Kirsten Gillibrand, and former senator Joe Lieberman all called for tougher and more restrictive sanctions on Iran.
“Iran is a regime of terror,” Giuliani said during his live video address. “Every year brings a new year of violations of human rights, deprivation and terrorism.”
Although most speakers looked to the future, urging the UN to strengthen its sanctions against Iran, Giuliani took the opportunity to criticize former President Barack Obama for trying to “appease” Tehran in 2015 by agreeing to give the Iranians $1 billion at the time of the negotiations for the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the so-called nuclear deal, under which Iran agreed to give up its research into nuclear weapons.
British MP David Jones said that the (JCPOA) and the failure to crack down on the Iranian regime had “encouraged them to pursue terrorism against its critics,” including members of the US Senate and Giuliani, who has been an outspoken critic of the regime for many years.
Other speakers including former general James Jones, who served during the Obama administration. He denounced the regime in Tehran as one that engages in “scandalous, outrageous and unspeakable cruelty to their own people.”
On Aug. 14, the UN Security Council rejected a US-led draft resolution calling for an extension of a UN arms embargo on Iran, which is due to expire in October. Trump is expected to announce this week that the US will impose its own embargo against Iran, and urge other nations to follow suit.
*Rajavi criticized the UN for failing to act after the attacks on protesters last fall, or to condemn the execution of Afkari.