English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For May 08/2020
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

#elias_bejjani_news
 

The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
http://data.eliasbejjaninews.com/eliasnews21/english.may08.21.htm

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

Bible Quotations For today
Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth
Letter to the Colossians 03/01-11:”If you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory. Put to death, therefore, whatever in you is earthly: fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed (which is idolatry). On account of these the wrath of God is coming on those who are disobedient. These are the ways you also once followed, when you were living that life. But now you must get rid of all such things anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive language from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have stripped off the old self with its practices and have clothed yourselves with the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator. In that renewal there is no longer Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free; but Christ is all and in all!”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on May 07- 08/2021

Ministry of Health: 600 new infections, 21 deaths
7% of the Population in Lebanon Received COVID-19 Vaccine
French FM Says Lebanon Needs Saving from 'Collective Suicide'
France threatens more sanctions against Lebanon’s politicians
Le Drian: Punitive Measures the Beginning of More Sanctions Ahead
Lebanon could go dark as cash for electricity runs out
Nasrallah Says Doesn't Have Covid-19, Warns Israel against Any 'Mistake'
Nasrallah favors every Arab, regional or international dialogue that leads to strengthening Resistance axis
Lebanon's Hezbollah backs Iran talks with US, Saudi Arabia: Nasrallah
Lebanon Plans to Vaccinate 200,000 Weekly as of June
Lebanese Army Receives 24 Tons of Food Aid from Oman
World Youth Orchestra returns to Lebanon with WYO4CHILDREN project
Hariri discusses overall situation with diplomats
President Aoun welcomes MP Dergham
Lebanese opposition needs to stand up to Hezbollah/Khaled Abou Zahr/Arab News/May 07/2021

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on May 07- 08/2021

Khamenei Says Israel 'Not a Country, but a Terrorist Base'
US believes Iran is serious about nuclear deal, ‘some progress’ has been made
Saudi official confirms talks with Iran, says too early to assess outcome
Talks ‘intensify’ on bringing US back to Iran nuclear deal
Iran jockeying for more concessions as Vienna talks to resume
Pakistan PM Khan in Saudi Arabia to discuss bilateral relations
Mystery surrounds the arrest of Qatar’s powerful finance minister
WHO Approves China's Sinopharm Covid-19 Vaccine
Pfizer/BioNTech seeks full FDA approval
Israel demands that Europe freeze funding to terror-affiliated NGOs
Land Rights Case Sparks New East Jerusalem Clashes
Israeli Police, Palestinian Worshippers Clash in Jerusalem
3 terrorists killed in attack on Israeli base in Samaria
Biden: US still recovering from 'an economic collapse'

Titles For The Latest The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on May 07- 08/2021
Question: "Is it true that everything happens for a reason?"/GotQuestions.org/May 07/2021
Turkey and Iran: Parallel Islam imperialist ambitions for the Middle East/Jonathan Spyer/Jerusalem Post/May 07/2021
Does the US want a nuclear deal sooner than Iran? – analysis/Yonah Jeremy Bob/Jerusalem Post/May 07/2021
Palestinians count down to the end of Abbas's era/Khalid Abu Toameh/Jerusalem Post/May 07/2021
Iran’s ‘Drug Terrorism’ Against Arabs/Khaled Abu Toameh/Gatestone Institute/May 07/2021
Taliban takes control of two districts in Afghan north/Bill Roggio/FDD's Long War Journal/May 07/2021
Time for Biden to Oppose Gulf Monarchies’ Outreach to Assad/David Adesnik/Policy Brief/FDD/May 07/2021
The Countdown to an Israeli War With Iran Has Begun/If Biden returns to the Iran nuclear deal, don't be surprised if Israel takes matters into its own hands./John Hannah/Foreign Policy/May 07/2021
Yemenis should take ownership of the solution for their country/Farouk Yousef/The Arab Weekly/May 07/2021
Turkey’s militarized foreign policy provokes Iraq/Sinem Cengiz/Arab News/May 07/2021

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on May 07- 08/2021

Ministry of Health: 600 new infections, 21 deaths
NNA/May 07/2021 
The Ministry of Public Health announced 600 new coronavirus infection cases, which raises the cumulative number of confirmed cases to 531834.
21 deaths have been recorded over the past 24 hours.

7% of the Population in Lebanon Received COVID-19 Vaccine
Naharnet/May 07/2021
The head of the National Committee for the Administration of COVID-19 Vaccine in Lebanon, Abdul Rahman al-Bizri, indicated that 7 percent of the population has been inoculated in Lebanon until this moment, and considered as “shameful” that the campaign gets paused during the holidays. Bizri said that specialists are working today on medications to fight coronavirus. Trials and experiments are in the second stage, he noted. Inoculations centers in Lebanon pause vaccinations during the weekends and holidays, that eventually slows down the process. Lebanon’s Health Ministry said Lebanon recorded 25 deaths and 1,017 new virus cases in the last 24 hours.

French FM Says Lebanon Needs Saving from 'Collective Suicide'
Agence France Presse/May 07/2021
France's top diplomat wielded the threat of more sanctions in Beirut Friday to prevent what he described as a "collective suicide" organised by members of Lebanon's ruling political class. Lebanon's leaders had promised reform in the aftermath of a deadly explosion at Beirut port last year but, nine months on, they have yet to form a government. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, whose country has spearheaded international efforts to assist Lebanon's moribund economy, said there was no sign of a breakthrough. "It is indeed urgent to find a way out of the political deadlock," he told reporters just before wrapping up a two-day visit to Beirut. "To this day, my observation is that the political players have not lived up to their responsibilities and have still not seriously started working on the country's recovery." Le Drian held talks on Thursday with President Michel Aoun, parliament speaker Nabih Berri and prime minister-designate Saad Hariri. "If they do not act now in a responsible surge of effort, they will face the consequences of this failure," he said. Le Drian, who had last year already compared Lebanon to "the Titanic minus the orchestra", accused those responsible for the deadlock of leading the country to its death. "I am here precisely to prevent this kind of collective suicide organised by some," he said. France announced late last month it had started imposing entry restrictions on certain figures for their role in the political crisis and in corruption. Le Drian refused to provide names but warned that the sanctions could be made tougher and extended to other politicians. "It is up to the Lebanese officials to decide whether they want to break out of the deadlock hey have organised," he said. Le Drian's official meetings on Thursday were not followed by joint press conferences. His appointment with Hariri was short and kept under wraps until the last minute.
Election
The French minister also held a meeting with representatives of opposition parties which was welcomed by their leaders as a sign that the international community was increasingly open to political alternatives. Unprecedented cross-sectarian and nationwide protests erupted in Lebanon in October 2019 to demand the wholesale removal of the hereditary political barons who have ruled the country for decades. The small political groups that carried some of the protest movement's demands have strived to close ranks in recent months and are launching a push ahead of a parliamentary election due in the spring of 2022.Reform-minded groups fear that the political establishment will try to postpone the polls, which they hope will see the opposition secure an unprecedented share of seats in parliament. "Respecting the democratic timetable in Lebanon is a must and any postponement attempt would not be accepted by the international community," Le Drian said.

France threatens more sanctions against Lebanon’s politicians
The Arab Weekly/May 07/2021
BEIRUT – France’s top diplomat wielded the threat of more sanctions in Beirut Friday to prevent what he described as a “collective suicide” organised by members of Lebanon’s ruling political class. Lebanon’s leaders had promised reform in the aftermath of a deadly explosion at Beirut port last year but, nine months on, they have yet to form a government. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, whose country has spearheaded international efforts to assist Lebanon’s moribund economy, said there was no sign of a breakthrough. Tweeting ahead of his arrival in Beirut, Jean-Yves Le Drian said French travel restrictions on Lebanese officials suspected of corruption or hindering the formation of the Cabinet were “just the start.” “It is indeed urgent to find a way out of the political deadlock,” he later told reporters just before wrapping up his two-day visit to Beirut. “To this day, my observation is that the political players have not lived up to their responsibilities and have still not seriously started working on the country’s recovery.” Le Drian held talks on Thursday with President Michel Aoun, parliament speaker Nabih Berri and prime minister-designate Saad Hariri. “If they do not act now in a responsible surge of effort, they will face the consequences of this failure,” he said. Le Drian, who had last year already compared Lebanon to “the Titanic minus the orchestra,” accused those responsible for the deadlock of leading the country to its death. “I am here precisely to prevent this kind of collective suicide organised by some,” he said. France announced late last month it had started imposing entry restrictions on certain figures for their role in the political crisis and in corruption. Le Drian refused to provide names but warned that the sanctions could be made tougher and extended to other politicians. “It is up to the Lebanese officials to decide whether they want to break out of the deadlock they have organised,” he said. Le Drian’s official meetings on Thursday were not followed by joint news conferences. His appointment with Hariri was short and kept under wraps until the last minute. The French minister also held a meeting with representatives of opposition parties which was welcomed by their leaders as a sign that the international community was increasingly open to political alternatives. Corruption and mismanagement by Lebanon’s ruling class has driven the tiny country into the ground and pushed it to the verge of bankruptcy.
Lebanon is experiencing the worst economic and financial crisis of its modern history. The national currency has lost 85% of its value against the dollar in recent months while banks have imposed informal controls on transfers and withdrawals. The economic crisis was made worse by a massive explosion at Beirut’s port last summer, which destroyed the facility and surrounding neighbourhoods. The government of Prime Minister Hassan Diab stepped down in the wake of the explosion, and former Premier Saad Hariri was tasked with forming a new one.But Hariri has not been able to form a cabinet amid deep disagreements between him and Aoun, who has no legal way to fire him. The deadlock is accelerating the country’s meltdown.
 

Le Drian: Punitive Measures the Beginning of More Sanctions Ahead
Naharnet/May 07/2021
French foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian emphasized that recent sanctions on Lebanese leaders are only the beginning of a long list of tough sanctions ahead, the National News Agency reported on Friday. “France is going to call for international community pressure on leaders to have Lebanon’s parliamentary elections held on time,” he added. Le Drian’s remarks came during a small meeting with reporters at the Pine Residence, said NNA. He said Lebanese officials have failed to honor the pledges they made to French President Emmanuel Macron when he visited Beirut after the colossal port blast. Le Drian, who met President Michel Aoun, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and PM-designate Saad Hariri on Thursday, explained that he met them only because of what they represent constitutionally.”

Lebanon could go dark as cash for electricity runs out
The Arab Weekly/May 07/2021
BEIRUT – Lebanon’s lights may go off this month because cash for electricity generation is running out, a lawmaker said on Thursday, as the country grapples with a deep economic crisis. Lebanon’s parliament had approved a $200 million emergency loan to finance fuel imports for power generation in March, but a committee reviewing the loan has yet to approve it. “We should not forget that starting May 15, gradual darkness will start,” said Nazih Negm, a member of parliament, according to a government statement released after he met the caretaker finance and energy ministers. The Lebanese have long learned to live with regular power cuts that run for at least three hours a day in the capital and much longer in other areas, because the state’s power plants cannot meet demand. Many people rely on private generators. But the financial crisis has exacerbated the heavily-indebted nation’s problems, as the government struggles to find enough foreign exchange to pay for fuel and other basic imports. The loan, approved by lawmakers in March, is being reviewed by a constitutional committee, which is studying whether it is lawful. The government resigned after a massive blast in Beirut in August and is now acting in a caretaker capacity. “We hope that the constitutional committee does not take a month to reach its decision because the situation can’t wait,” Negm said, according to the government statement. Lebanon usually keeps enough fuel for about two months or so, as it is too costly to hold strategic reserves for longer. The economic meltdown, the biggest crisis since the end of Lebanon’s 1975-1990 civil war, has fuelled unrest, locked depositors out of their accounts and hammered the currency, which has lost around 90% of its value against the dollar. Earlier in March, Lebanon’s caretaker energy minister warned the country would plunge into “total darkness” at the end of the month if no money was secured to buy fuel for power stations. Caretaker energy minister Raymond Ghajar warned the state electricity company, Electricite du Liban, was strapped for cash. “Lebanon could head towards total darkness at the end of the month if Electricite du Liban is not provided with financial aid to buy fuel,” he said at the time. Ghajar, who was speaking after meeting Lebanese President Michel Aoun, warned of repercussions on all sectors if the power went out. “Imagine your life without electricity, internet, phones, hospitals or vaccines… It’s surreal to live in the 21st century without electricity,” he said. Ghajar has called for emergency funding for the state power company to continue providing power, until a larger loan is approved by parliament. Until now the electricity company had been functioning on the remains of a loan allocated under the 2020 budget, but the 2021 budget has not yet been passed as the country struggles with twin economic and political crises. Lebanon has been importing fuel on a shipment by shipment basis since the start of the year, after a contract with a subsidiary of Algerian state company Sonatrach ran out and was not renewed. The international community has long demanded a complete overhaul of the electricity sector, which has cost the government more than $40 billion since the end of the war.

Nasrallah Says Doesn't Have Covid-19, Warns Israel against Any 'Mistake'
Naharnet/May 07/2021
Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on Friday reassured supporters that he is not infected with Covid-19, noting during a live televised address that his ongoing cough is from a trachea infection and that he has no other symptoms. He was speaking in an address marking Quds Day, an annual event held on the last Friday of Ramadan that was initiated by the Islamic Republic of Iran in 1979 to express support for the Palestinians and oppose Zionism and Israel. Referring to a major Israeli military drill that will begin on Sunday, Nasrallah warned Israel against any “mistake.” “As of Sunday morning, we will do all the calm and appropriate steps that do not alarm anyone inside Lebanon in an invisible way, but the enemy must know that we will be cautious, alert and prepared,” he said. “Any wrong move towards Lebanon during the drill will be an adventure by the enemy. The enemy will be mistaken should it think that we will be afraid to confront any attempt to alter the rules of engagement or any security or military action,” Nasrallah cautioned. He added: “We will not be lenient and we will not tolerate any mistake, violation or hostile move by the enemy across the entire Lebanese territory,” Nasrallah vowed.
Turning to the issue of the Lebanese-Israeli negotiations over the demarcation of the maritime border, Nasrallah said some have sought to interpret Hizbullah’s silence over the issue as “embarrassment towards the allies.”
“This is not true… We, as a resistance, have not and will not interfere in the issue of the border demarcation,” he added.
“Let the State shoulder its historic responsibility as to the demarcation of the border and the preservation of the Lebanese people’s rights and let it consider that it is relying on real strength,” Nasrallah went on to say. “We have found that it is in Lebanon’s interest and in the certain interest of the resistance that we stay away from this issue,” Hizbullah’s leader added, noting that “Lebanon is not weak at all” and that “the United States and Israel cannot impose choices that the Lebanese don’t want.”Separately, Nasrallah said that the latest Iranian-Saudi dialogue is “positive” and that Hizbullah supports “any dialogue that contributes to pacifying the region.”“Those who must worry over the Iranian-Saudi dialogue are the allies of Riyadh, not the allies of Iran,” he added. Nasrallah also said that Iranian-Saudi and Iranian-American talks could benefit Tehran and its allies in the region. Iraq has hosted talks between Riyadh and Tehran "more than once," its President Barham Saleh said on Wednesday.
The talks, facilitated by Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi, remained secret until the Financial Times reported that a first meeting was held on April 9. The two sides are expected to hold further talks this month, according to multiple sources including a Western official familiar with the process. Late last month, Iran welcomed a "change of tone" from Saudi Arabia which it said could clear the way to a new era of cooperation between the rival regional powers. The development came after Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman called for "a good and special relationship" with Tehran, following the reported secret talks with Iran. Nasrallah also said Friday that he cannot confirm nor deny reports of secret talks between Saudi Arabia and Syria. Riyadh has boycotted the government in Damascus since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011. Such talks, however, would be "logical," Nasrallah said, as Syrian President Bashar Assad, a key ally of Tehran, has solidified his hold on power. Riyadh, along with other regional powers such as Turkey, had supported Syria's opposition since the start of the civil war in 2011.

Nasrallah favors every Arab, regional or international dialogue that leads to strengthening Resistance axis
NNA/May 07/2021
Secretary-General of Hezbollah, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, delivered a speech this Friday marking the International Quds Day, wherein he praised "the steadfastness of the Palestinian people in their land, their clinging to their rights, and their constant struggle, which gives legitimacy to all the Axis of Resistance, and further invalidates the lie of those who rushed towards normalization." "The Palestinian people neither abandoned Al-Quds, nor gave up on its refugees and their right of return, or turned its back on the liberation of its land," he asserted. "What we are witnessing of battles waged with bare hands in Jerusalem and the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, and Gaza's entering on the front line next to Jerusalem, are all indicators that do not require any reading. Given the Israeli response, we can see that it regards such occurrences as dangerous developments in the interest of the Palestinian people, because the enemy has always strived to separate Gaza from any development in Jerusalem."In this context, Nasrallah called upon "the people of Palestine to continue to follow this approach because it will change part of the equation," stressing "the permanence of the Axis of Resistance, the most powerful of which being the Islamic Republic of Iran, which, for forty years, has not once deviated from its path." He pointed to "the fall of the bets of the US administration with the fall of Trump, who was threatening war. With Biden's different approaches, Netanyahu's bets also fell short." "If sanctions against Iran are not lifted, Iran will continue to contest," he said, alluding to certain countries in the region having dismissed the possibility of war on Iran. The Hezbollah secretary general uttered his belief that "the massive peaceful nuclear development in Iran is a source of terror for Israel." He also pointed at "the Saudi-Iranian dialogue in Baghdad," and the statements of the Saudi crown prince, "which are in line with the Iranian position."
Nasrallah assured his audience that "Iran will not change its stance regarding its allies, (…) neither will it bargain on them, nor will it negotiate on their behalf." He thus declared that he favored "every Arab, regional, or international dialogue that leads to the strengthening of our axis," hinting at "those who should be concerned about these dialogues as they will eventually lead mercenaries to their end." Moving on to Syria, Nasrallah commented on the circulating talks about Syrian-Saudi dialogue, noting that he was "not authorized to confirm or deny this," but "saw in it a logical step, in light of what is happening in the region."
"Saudi Arabia cannot go to dialogue with Iran in Baghdad and at the same time place conditions on Syria," he asserted in this context. Nasrallah also praised the steadfastness of Yemen and welcomed its inclusion to the Axis of Resistance, "especially given its young, honest and wise leadership. The Resistance has emerged stronger in the region." Moving on to talk about the Israeli situation, the Hezbollah leader shed light on the political cracks it suffers, explaining that "the Israeli entity is now at the service of one person: Netanyahu. The absence of leading figures is usually an indicator of weakness." He did not fail to mention the Syrian aerial missile that fell near the Dimona factory, and which the Iron Dome could not shoot down, and asked: "Will the Israeli air defenses have the ability to repel thousands of missiles if those start to rain on Israel from several directions?""There is also the reality of the Israeli army and the weakness of the soldiers' incentives both in morale and measures," he went on to said, linking between the repetition of the semi-monthly Israeli military maneuvers and the clear cracks in the enemy's structure. Nasrallah accordingly stressed that "indications of the decline of the Israeli entity began to appear, in contrast with the increase in strength, confidence, certainty and enthusiasm of the youth of the Resistance Axis."Shifting to the maritime border demarcation, he commented on what is being said about Hezbollah’s position, stressing "the clarity of the party’s position over strategic issues," recalling what he said in a speech he gave in 2000 and affirming that "the party will not interfere with the issue of border demarcation.""This demarcation is the duty of the state and the Lebanese. National interest must prevail."

Lebanon's Hezbollah backs Iran talks with US, Saudi Arabia: Nasrallah
The Associated Press/07 May ,2021
The leader of Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group on Friday indicated his support for a dialogue between Iran on one side and the US and Saudi Arabia on the other. Hassan Nasrallah said in a televised speech that such talks could benefit Tehran and its allies and calm tensions in the region. Iran is a top backer of Hezbollah. The US and Iran recently resumed indirect talks about getting Tehran and Washington to return to the nuclear deal. Meanwhile, Iraq is hosting talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran. “We support any Iranian dialogue with international, regional or Arab powers,” Nasrallah said in the hour-long speech. “We consider it as helpful to calming tension in the region.”Nasrallah’s comments were his first since news emerged of Baghdad-mediated talks last month between Tehran and Riyadh. There has been growing unease among Gulf partners over America’s re-engagement with Iran. Through intermediaries in Vienna, Tehran and Washington have discussed a return to Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers. Former President Donald Trump in 2018 pulled America out of the deal, saying it does not do enough to prevent Tehran from pursuing a nuclear weapon. Iran insists its nuclear program is only for peaceful purposes. Washington’s Gulf allies have been pressing that a return to the nuclear deal should address Iran’s support for regional proxies, including Hezbollah. Iran has “never sold out its allies and friends,” Nasrallah said. “It never gave them up, never comprised their interests or even negotiated on their behalf.” He also said he cannot confirm nor deny reports of secret talks between Saudi Arabia and Syria. Riyadh has boycotted the government in Damascus since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011. Ambassador Rayed Krimly, head of policy planning at the Saudi Foreign Ministry, said the reports were inaccurate. Such talks, however, would be “logical,” Nasrallah said, as Syrian President Bashar Assad, a key ally of Tehran, has solidified his hold on power.

Lebanon Plans to Vaccinate 200,000 Weekly as of June
Naharnet/May 07/2021
Caretaker Health Minister Hamad Hassan on Friday chaired a meeting for the ministry’s staff that discussed “the executive course of the national vaccination plan,” the National News Agency said. “During the meeting, measures were approved to avoid the flaws that were recorded over the past period and to follow up on some violations at a number of vaccination centers,” NNA said. The meeting comes ahead of the arrival of a large quantity of anti-Covid vaccines, including two million Pfizer vaccines in June and July. “Accordingly, the ministry will adopt a mechanism involving the vaccination of 200,000 people every week as of June 1,” the agency added.

Lebanese Army Receives 24 Tons of Food Aid from Oman
Naharnet/May 07/2021  
The Lebanese Army on Friday announced receiving food aid from Oman that is aimed at helping the military institution cover the nutritional needs of its personnel. “Following an initiative from His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik Al Said, two planes carrying 24 tons of foodstuffs donated to the Lebanese Army arrived at the Rafik Hariri International Airport today, coming from the Sultanate of Oman,” the army said in a statement. The shipment was delivered in he presence of Omani Ambassador to Lebanon Badr bin al-Munzeri, a representative of Army chief General Joseph Aoun and a number of officers. Speaking at the ceremony, the representative of the army commander expressed major gratitude to Sultan Haitham for his “valuable initiative,” voicing appreciation for Oman’s “continuous and permanent support for Lebanon.” The two planeloads represent the last batch of ten planeloads that have arrived in Beirut in recent days, which carried a total of 120 tons of foodstuffs, the army added.

World Youth Orchestra returns to Lebanon with WYO4CHILDREN project
NNA/May 07/2021   
Spreading the universal language of music to fill the educational and social void caused by the global pandemic and the financial crisis, while helping to reduce the distance between people. With this objective in mind, the World Youth Orchestra Foundation returns to Lebanon with the WYO4CHILDREN project, thanks to the important support of the Culture and Art Foundation - instrumental body of the Terzo Pilastro - Internazionale Foundation, chaired by Prof. Att.y Emmanuele FM Emanuele - which works for the promotion of cultural and artistic initiatives in the name of solidarity, as well as the support of the Italian Cultural Institute in Beirut. Six young violin students, aged seven to fourteen with problematic histories and originally from different regions of Lebanon, will benefit from it. All of them have recently been forced to halt their musical training due to pecuniarydifficulties and to the restrictions related to the coronavirus. They willbe taken care of by Ramzi Kandalaft, one of the teachers who are part of the large family of the World Youth Orchestra in the world, through individual lessons via videoconference, as long as the anti-Covid restrictions remain in force.  "All those who know me know that I have always been convinced that the arts, including music, play a leading role in the cultural and spiritual growth of the person and in the development of a collective consciousness, eliminating differences in favor of both the social inclusion of individuals and a constructive dialogue between peoples. - says Prof. Att.y Emmanuele FM Emanuele, President of the TerzoPilastro Foundation. “Restarting from music means offering young Lebanese a precious possibility of expression, thus transcending the narrow space in which they are confined today. The World Youth Orchestra works to spread a message of peace and understanding among peoples, but this year our commitment takes on an even deeper meaning: art, an essential nourishment for the human soul, is in fact a powerful tool to deal with the current crisis”, declares Maestro Damiano Giuranna, Founder and musical director of WYO. The World Youth Orchestra celebrates its twentieth anniversary this year. Twice a year, the Orchestra involves about 100 talented young musicians from major universities, conservatories and academies,representing the five continents.  The Culture and Art Foundation works for the promotion, the implementation and the dissemination of cultural and artistic initiatives, based on the fundamental assumption that art and cultureplay a leading role in favor of the social inclusion of individuals and the constructive dialogue between different peoples.-- Embassy of Italy in Beirut
 

Hariri discusses overall situation with diplomats
NNA/May 07/2021   
PM-designate Saad Hariri, on Friday welcomed at the “Center House” the Ambassadors of Canada, Chantal Chastenay, Sweden, Ann Dismore, and Denmark, Merete Juhl. The current general situation was tackled.

President Aoun welcomes MP Dergham
NNA/May 07/2021   
President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, met MP, Assad Dergham today at Baabda Palace, and deliberated with him social and developmental needs of Akkar. The meeting also addressed the conditions of displaced Syrians in Akkar and other remote areas, in addition to the need to intensify efforts to limit the repercussions of this displacement on various Lebanese sectors.—Presidency Press Office

Lebanese opposition needs to stand up to Hezbollah
Khaled Abou Zahr/Arab News/May 07/2021
خالد أبو زهر/عرب نيوز: مطلوب من المعارضة اللبنانية الوقوف في وجه حزب الله
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/98638/khaled-abou-zahr-arab-news-lebanese-opposition-needs-to-stand-up-to-hezbollah-%d8%ae%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%af-%d8%a3%d8%a8%d9%88-%d8%b2%d9%87%d8%b1-%d8%b9%d8%b1%d8%a8-%d9%86%d9%8a%d9%88%d8%b2-%d9%85%d8%b7/

*In fact, none of Lebanon’s politicians are serious about reforms, but are instead focused on getting international financial aid.
*The Lebanese government, no matter its intentions, cannot overrule Hezbollah. The “blocking minority” that Aoun and Gebran Bassil are requesting is not theirs, it is Hezbollah’s.
*The opposition needs to finally understand that it urgently needs to state a vision, with unity and loyalty, which is something that Hezbollah has and they lack.
****
As Lebanon is plunging into the abyss of chaos, the entire focus for a solution is on the formation of a government involving the same political parties that have ruled for decades and are responsible for this situation.
And this government formation, which is supposed to solve everything, has hit a dead end over the nomination of two ministers that would give President Michel Aoun veto power over all its decisions.
We need to stop for a minute and note the ridiculousness of the situation. We need to repeat that the same political parties that led us to the current situation are fighting over the formation of a government that is supposed to solve everything.
Am I the only one to think that this government, if Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri is able to form one, will not be able to tackle any of the issues for one simple reason?
The Lebanese government, no matter its intentions, cannot overrule Hezbollah. The “blocking minority” that Aoun and Gebran Bassil are requesting is not theirs, it is Hezbollah’s.
The focus within what is called the opposition has been on Aoun and particularly Bassil as the target of all accusations. Hariri and others, mainly when seeking international support, are depicting the situation as Bassil being the source of all corruption and that his removal from the political landscape would solve everything.
Despite him being hit by sanctions, this belief is an illusion. More importantly, what difference would it make? Let us go with the unlikely scenario that Aoun gives up the two seats and Hariri forms his government. What are the real reforms that can be implemented?
In fact, none of Lebanon’s politicians are serious about reforms, but are instead focused on getting international financial aid. Also, and in essence, Hezbollah does not need the blocking minority as it has the capacity to stop any decision at any time using violence. The blocking minority simply makes it happen in a decent and polite manner, with less damage.
What is today called the opposition knows this very well. They know that Bassil’s power comes from his political agreement with Hezbollah and that he loyally represents their interests in government. He did as minister of telecommunications, as minister of energy and water, and as minister of foreign affairs and emigrants.
One common denominator we can notice in all his official positions is flows: Telecommunications is the flow of data, energy is the flow of electricity, and foreign affairs is the flow of people. This is what is key for Hezbollah’s attempts to build its own state and infrastructure.
It is the military and security side of everything that needs to be focused on. So, when Bassil is accused of corruption in all these posts, he is shielding the accusation from Hezbollah and being loyal to their agreement.
Therefore, there is no reason for Hezbollah to give up its agreement with Aoun and accept the removal of Bassil. Hezbollah is loyal to its own people, but also to its partners, and this might be a big difference from the opposition, which shifts and morphs and sells out while trying to read geopolitical trends and changes.
Lately, the “Syria back in the game in Lebanon” scenario has impacted the opposition more than it did Hezbollah and company in trying to find the correct potential partners.
Focusing criticism on Bassil and depicting him as the center of all Lebanon’s problems is a weak play.
As international pressure mounts, including the threat of sanctions, most political and economic actors are looking to be part of the coming political formation to protect their own interests. This is what the current political system is all about: Protecting political parties’ interests by giving veto powers to the opposition block.
Keeping government decisions intertwined with the opposition is the best way to make sure they all keep each other’s secrets. It is also the best way to share the economic benefits of the country’s riches and to keep everyone quiet. Most of all, for Hezbollah it is a fantastic tool to keep leverage over every leader, which it can use to put the pressure on whenever it is needed.
Therefore, and as a simple example, no matter who leads the current system politically, any investigation into ministries, public institutions or obviously the Banque du Liban will be carefully selective.
No one wants to open this box, which is a clear continuation of the Syrian occupation and how public life and business is conducted in Lebanon.
This is the way of an occupied country, where whatever limited resources are available go to the occupying force and to their acolytes locally.
All political parties are currently trying to solve the same equation: How can we get international financial support to distribute to our people without implementing any real reforms, and while keeping as much leverage as possible?
The answer for all of them is to wait for the May 2022 parliamentary elections to bring in a new agreement and try to better position themselves.
The wait might even give them time to reach a new deal as the geopolitical landscape changes. They might even decide to self-extend their elapsed mandate, as they have done repeatedly in the past.
What type of political regime is this? How do we define such a political system? Simply by stating the obvious that this country is still under occupation. The rest is noise.
The opposition focusing their criticisms on Bassil and depicting him — especially to the international community — as the center of all Lebanon’s problems is a weak play and serves the occupation’s objectives. Moreover, for some within the opposition, the only objective is actually to replace Bassil within Hezbollah’s structure and reap the benefits that go with this service.
It is, therefore, high time the opposition took a courageous step, stood its ground and stayed loyal to the Lebanese people by stating that the real problem is Hezbollah’s status, starting with its military arsenal and its continuous attacks on the country’s sovereignty.
A new country cannot be built under the threat of a competitor to its armed forces. The opposition also needs to understand that the international community respects strength and avoids liabilities.
No matter the sticks and carrots, France and others will not be able to change the equation on the ground and so will go with the pragmatic solution.
The opposition needs to finally understand that it urgently needs to state a vision, with unity and loyalty, which is something that Hezbollah has and they lack.
•Khaled Abou Zahr is CEO of Eurabia, a media and tech company. He is also the editor of Al-Watan Al-Arabi.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on May 07- 08/2021

Khamenei Says Israel 'Not a Country, but a Terrorist Base'
Agence France Presse/May 07/2021
Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Friday called Israel "not a country, but a terrorist base" during a speech on Al-Quds Day, an annual show of solidarity with the Palestinians. Thousands massed for rallies across several Muslim-majority countries including Iraq, Yemen and Pakistan for the day, seen in Israel as an expression of hatred and anti-Semitism. Tensions have been running high between arch-foes Iran and Israel following a series of maritime attacks, an explosion at an Iranian nuclear facility and the assassination of a top nuclear scientist that Tehran blamed on Israel. The Islamic republic does not recognize the Jewish state, and supporting the Palestinian cause, as well as backing armed groups such as Hamas and Lebanon's Hizbullah, has long been a pillar of Iran's foreign policy. "Israel is not a country, but a terrorist base against the nation of Palestine and other Muslim nations," Khamenei said in live televised remarks. "Fighting this despotic regime is fighting oppression and terrorism, and (doing so) is everyone's duty," he added. Khamenei also blasted Israel's normalization of ties with "some weak Arab governments" during the past year as attempts to undermine the Israeli "nightmare of Muslim unity." The United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan have all normalized ties with Israel in recent months under U.S.-brokered deals. "I say this decisively: these attempts will get nowhere," Khamenei said, calling on Palestinians to continue their resistance and for Muslim governments to support them. "The decline of the enemy Zionist regime has begun and will not stop." Elsewhere in the region, thousands of Yemenis flooded the streets of the capital Sanaa, held by Iran-backed Huthi rebels, some carrying signs saying, "Death to American, Death to Israel". In the Iraqi Shiite holy city of Najaf, protesters torched paper replicas of Israeli flags and trampled an American one. At a rally in the Pakistani city of Karachi, protesters held up cardboard signs that read "We will wipe out Israel" as they took part in Al-Quds Day.
Burning flags
Al-Quds Day has been held annually on the last Friday of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan since the early days of Iran's Islamic revolution. This year state-sponsored nationwide rallies were absent due to Covid-19 restrictions. But state TV showed the burning of flags by small groups of demonstrators who it said had come out "spontaneously" for the occasion, while an AFP journalist said protesters also rallied on motorbikes in Tehran. Khamenei's comments came amid a rise in violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and as tensions have soared in annexed east Jerusalem over an eviction threat hanging over four Palestinian families. Israeli security forces killed two Palestinians and critically wounded a third after the trio had opened fire on a West Bank base on Friday. Police and protesters have clashed in recent days in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of east Jerusalem, fueled by a years-long land dispute between Palestinian refugees and Jewish settlers. The latest violence came as Palestinian Muslims flocked to the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in east Jerusalem for the last Friday prayers of Ramadan. The United Nations called on Israel to end any forced evictions in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, warning that its actions could amount to "war crimes." In 2018, Khamenei reiterated Tehran's position that Israel is a "malignant cancerous tumor" that must "be removed and eradicated."

US believes Iran is serious about nuclear deal, ‘some progress’ has been made
Joseph Haboush & Nadia Bilbassy-Charters, Al Arabiya English/07 May ,2021:
The United States believes Iran is serious about negotiations to reach a nuclear deal, US President Joe Biden said Friday. Meanwhile, the White House said there had been “some progress made” over the last several weeks of indirect talks being held in Vienna. US and Iranian officials have been talking through European, Chinese and Russian mediators for the last month as Tehran continues to refuse to engage in direct conversations with Washington. But the Iranians - as has been a consistent maneuver - continue to alternate between maximalist demands and apparent compromising tones. Asked if there was frustration with the lack of progress, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the Biden administration always knew it would be a long and challenging process. “But we also feel that it has been a good sign that there have been diplomatic engagements over the past several weeks … some progress has been made,” she told Al Arabiya during a press briefing at the White House. “And we have a better idea of what we need to do moving forward … and Iran has a better idea of what it needs to do to come back into compliance” with the JCPOA, an acronym for the 2015 nuclear deal. Former President Donald Trump withdrew from the agreement in 2018 because it failed, among other things, to address Iran’s malign behavior in the region and its ballistic missile program. “Returning to the deal as you know would require Iran to significantly roll back its nuclear program and block every available pathway to a nuclear weapon, but the talks are continuing. That is a good sign,” Psaki said.

Saudi official confirms talks with Iran, says too early to assess outcome
Reuters, Dubai/07 May ,2021
A Saudi foreign ministry official said on Friday that talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran aim to reduce regional tensions, but added it was too early to judge the outcome and Riyadh wanted to see “verifiable deeds.”The comments by Ambassador Rayed Krimly, head of policy planning at the ministry, were the first public confirmation from Riyadh that the rivals - who severed ties in 2016 - were holding direct talks. “As to current Saudi-Iranian talks they aim to explore ways to reduce tensions in the region,” Krimly told Reuters. “We hope they prove successful, but it is too early, and premature, to reach any definitive conclusions. Our evaluation will be based on verifiable deeds, and not proclamations.”He declined to provide details on the talks, but regional officials and sources had told Reuters that the discussions were focused on Yemen and the 2015 nuclear deal between global powers and Iran, which Riyadh had opposed.
Iraq’s president said on Wednesday that Baghdad hosted more than one round of talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran, who have been locked in a rivalry that has played out in proxy conflicts across the region, including Yemen.Krimly said Saudi policy had been explained “very clearly” by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who last month said that while the kingdom has a problem with Tehran’s “negative behavior” it wanted good relations with Iran.
Yemen war
Tensions between Riyadh and Tehran have festered over the Yemen war, where an Iran-aligned Houthi group has increased attacks on Saudi Arabia. Strains between the two Gulf powerhouses also grew after a 2019 assault on Saudi oil plants that Riyadh blamed on Iran, a charge Tehran denies. Riyadh supported former US President Donald Trump’s decision in 2018 to quit the nuclear pact for not addressing Tehran’s missiles program and regional behavior. After Trump re-imposed sanctions on Iran, Tehran responded by breaching several nuclear restrictions. Global powers are trying at talks in Vienna to bring the United States and Iran back into full compliance with the deal. Saudi Arabia has urged them to reach a stronger accord. Riyadh and Tehran have also backed opposing sides in Lebanon and Syria, where Iran has supported President Bashar al-Assad. Gulf states have been alarmed by the rising influence of non-Arab Iran, Russia and Turkey in Syria, especially after Syria’s membership of the Arab League was suspended in 2011 over its crackdown on protesters at the start of the civil war. Krimly said recent media reports that the head of Saudi intelligence had held talks in Damascus were inaccurate. He said Saudi policy towards Syria remained based on support for the Syrian people, for a political solution under a United Nations umbrella and in accordance with Security Council resolutions, and for the unity and Arab identity of Syria.
 

Talks ‘intensify’ on bringing US back to Iran nuclear deal
The Associated Press/07 May ,2021
World powers held a fourth round of high-level talks Friday aimed at bringing the United States back into the nuclear deal with Iran, with both sides signaling a willingness to work out the major stumbling blocks. The talks began in Austria in early April. Russian delegate Mikhail Ulyanov tweeted following Friday’s meeting that “the participants agreed on the need to intensify the process.”“The delegations seem to be ready to stay in Vienna as long as necessary to achieve the goal,” he wrote. The US pulled out of the landmark 2015 deal in 2018 after then-President Donald Trump said the pact needed to be renegotiated. The deal had promised Iran economic incentives in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program, and the Trump administration reimposed heavy sanctions on the Islamic republic in an unsuccessful attempt to bring Tehran into new talks. Iran reacted by steadily increasing its violations of the deal by enriching uranium to a greater purity than permitted, stockpiling more enriched uranium than allowed and using more advanced centrifuges, among other moves to try and pressure the powers remaining in the deal — Germany, France, Britain, Russia and China — for economic relief. US President Joe Biden says he wants to rejoin the deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, but that Iran needs to return to compliance.Speaking to reporters at the White House on Friday, Biden said he believed the Iranians were approaching the talks seriously.
“But how serious and what they’re prepared to do is a different story,” Biden said. “We’re still talking.” The pact is meant to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear bomb, something the country claims it does not want to do, and the government in Tehran has said it is prepared to reverse all of its violations but that Washington must remove all sanctions imposed under Trump. Still unresolved is what Iran’s return to compliance would look like. Delegates to the Vienna talks concede, for example, that Iranian nuclear scientists cannot unlearn the knowledge they acquired in the last three years, but it is not clear whether Iran’s new centrifuges would need to be destroyed, mothballed and locked away, or simply taken offline. Because the US is currently out of the deal, there were no American representatives at the talks. Diplomats involved are shuttling between the Iranian side and a delegation from Washington elsewhere in Vienna. Iran’s delegate to the talks, Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, told Iranian state television after the meeting that his impression was that all sides were committed to finding a solution. “The reports that are being conveyed to us from Americans is that they are also serious about returning to JCPOA. So far, they have announced that they are ready to lift most of their sanctions, but we do not think it is enough,” Araghchi said. “That is why the negotiations will continue until we reach all our demands in this regard,” he added. “If our demands are met, Iran will be quite serious about returning to its obligations in the full implementation of JCPOA.” Between the high-level meetings in Vienna of the so-called Joint Commission, expert groups have been meeting to try and come up with solutions to the outstanding issues. Alain Matton, a spokesperson for the EU delegation, which is chairing the meetings, said the expert discussions will continue in the days ahead.
“And the EU as a coordinator and facilitator of the JCPOA talks will continue with separate talks with all participants and with the US,” Matton told reporters. “The participants are continuing with discussions, which are held on various levels and which have as their objective the full and effective implementation of the deal by all sides and the US return to the JCPOA.”Ahead of the talks, a senior US official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the US position, said Washington has laid out the concessions it’s prepared to make and that success or failure now depends on Iran making the political decision to accept those concessions and to return to compliance with the accord. The official said it remains possible to reach an agreement before Iran’s June presidential election, which some believe are a complicating factor in the discussions. Heading into the talks, Ulyanov tweeted that he saw positive signs from both sides. “The head of the Iranian delegation is cautious in his assessment of the current state of affairs at the Vienna talks (very similar to assessments of the US colleagues),” he tweeted. “But both #Iran and #US refrain from pessimistic conclusions. This seems to be not a bad sign.”

Iran jockeying for more concessions as Vienna talks to resume
The Arab Weekly/May 07/2021
WASHINGTON--US, Iranian and European officials said on Thursday there were wide gaps between Washington and Tehran on resuming compliance with the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, though a US official said an accord was possible within weeks if Iran decided that it wanted one. “Is it possible that we’ll see a mutual return to compliance in the next few weeks, or an understanding of a mutual compliance? It’s possible yes,” a senior US State Department official told reporters on condition of anonymity. “Is it likely? Only time will tell because, as I said, this is ultimately a matter of a political decision that needs to be made in Iran,” the official added during a telephone briefing. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington did not know whether Iran was prepared to make the decisions needed to return to full compliance. “The jury is out,” Blinken told NBC News in an interview. Iran’s top nuclear negotiator, Abbas Araqchi, said there remained a long way to go. “When it will happen is unpredictable and a timeframe cannot be set. Iran is trying (for) it to happen as soon as possible, but we will not do anything in a rush,” Araqchi told Iranian state TV. US officials return to Vienna this week for a fourth round of indirect talks with Iran on how to resume compliance with the deal, which former President Donald Trump abandoned in 2018, prompting Iran to begin violating its terms about a year later. The crux of the agreement was that Iran committed to rein in its nuclear programme to make it harder to obtain the fissile material for a nuclear weapon in return for relief from US, EU and UN sanctions. A European diplomat said Washington had made a comprehensive proposal that included removing sanctions in key sectors such as oil, gas and banking and had indicated some openness to easing sanctions related to terrorism and human rights.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the diplomat said Iran had not shown a willingness to curtail any expertise it may have gained from work on advanced centrifuges nor to destroy them. The diplomat said there was a growing view among Western diplomats that Iran’s negotiating team was on a tight leash and that Iran’s supreme leader may believe Tehran can extract more from Washington and so may not be pushing for deal before Iran’s June 18 elections. The US official said a deal could be revived before the elections but put the onus on Iran, saying Tehran must avoid asking Washington to do more than what is envisaged in the original agreement while itself seeking to do less. “The pace would have to accelerate for us to get there in the coming weeks and (there is) no guarantee that that will be the case,” he said. The US official described as false reports last weekend about a deal to release US citizens detained in Iran as an “unspeakable cruelty” and he said there are separate talks about prisoners.“We’re treating it independently,” he said.

Pakistan PM Khan in Saudi Arabia to discuss bilateral relations
Reuters, Dubai/07 May ,2021
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan begins a two-day visit on Friday to Saudi Arabia, a traditionally close ally. Khan, invited by Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, will discuss bilateral relations as well as regional and international issues of common interest, Saudi state media SPA said. Prior to Khan’s arrival, Pakistani army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa arrived in Saudi and spoke to the Crown Prince on Friday, Pakistan’s military said in a statement. “During the meeting, matters of mutual interest, regional security situation including recent developments in Afghan Peace Process, bilateral defense, security, collaboration for regional peace and connectivity were discussed,” the statement said.

Mystery surrounds the arrest of Qatar’s powerful finance minister
The Arab Weekly/May 07/2021
DOHA - The decision of the Qatari authorities to arrest Minister of Finance Ali Shareef al-Emadi on suspicion of involvement in corruption and abuse of power has raised a number of questions.Regional experts wonder if there is more than meets the eye to the circumstances that led to fall from grace of the powerful finance minister. Qatar watchers were surprised by the arrest of the minister, long described as the right arm of the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. Emadi’s rise was linked to that of Sheikh Tamim who assigned him key state financial portfolios. He has served as minister of finance since 2013 and sits on the board of its powerful $300 billion sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority. He is also chairman of the board of directors of Qatar National Bank, the largest lender in the Middle East and Africa. Emadi is also the chairman of the Qatar Airways board of directors and chairman of the Investment Committee, as well as the secretary general of the Supreme Council for Economic Affairs and Investment. A Qatari source told The Arab Weekly that no one in Doha believed that the close relationship between the emir and the finance minister could end so dramatically. The source, who preferred to remain anonymous, said that Emadi played important roles in support of Sheikh Tamim at the beginning of his rule, including his success in “blocking the influence” of former prime minister and foreign minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim and those around him. He played a similar role in sidelining important figures from the Al-Misnad family (the family of Sheikh Tamim’s mother, Sheikha Mozah) and keeping them away from major government structures and companies, in order to curb their influence. The source added that Emadi has been a crucial pillar in the financial system that came with the accession to the throne of Emir Tamim. He also received a lot of attention for his role in channelling Qatari support to various Islamist groups over the years. Sacrificing him simply for irregularities and violations within in the ministry of finance is implausible say experts who believe the matter may be related to broader issues to do with the whole gamut of Qatari financial institutions and not just the ministry. The Financial Times reported that allegations against Emadi concern bribery and commissions related to government contracts, citing a source in Doha who “was briefed on the investigation”. Some believe Emadi was no longer relevant for the ruling establishment after having carried out most of the tasks that were asked of him in the past. Bloomberg said that recently there had been speculation that Emadi had fallen out of favour when “he was replaced as chairman of the Qatar Financial Centre — a platform through which most foreign financial firms working in the country are registered and among agencies that encourage foreign investment.”Still, activists and analysts wondered how a minister, who was named as 2020 best minister in the region by international financial magazine The Banker, can move so quickly from an exemplary and loyal cabinet member to a corruption suspect. Emirati researcher and professor of political science, Abdul Khaleq Abdullah, suspects hidden political motives behind the fall of the Qatari minister. He explains the abrupt development as the result of long-submerged score settling between prominent figures that have come into the open only now. Abdullah told The Arab Weekly, “There are major players whose time has elapsed. We may hear more about this in the coming days.” He added, “The Qatari minister of finance, accused of corruption and embezzlement of public funds, was considered the best finance minister in the Middle East a year ago, and Qatar is the second best Arab and Gulf country in the transparency and anti-corruption index after the UAE. Therefore, the news of his arrest by the attorney general is bewildering and astonishing.” This is all-the-more so since there has never before been such an arrest of a senior official on corruption charges in Qatar’s recent history. Official sources confirm that Emadi is the most prominent figure to face such allegations during Sheikh Tamim’s rule. Bloomberg described the arrest as “unusual, because allegations of criminal conduct by senior state officials or members of ruling families in the Gulf are typically addressed behind closed doors.”

WHO Approves China's Sinopharm Covid-19 Vaccine
Agence France Presse/May 07/2021
The World Health Organization on Friday approved the Sinopharm Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use -- the first Chinese jab to receive the WHO's green light. The U.N. health agency signed off on the two-dose vaccine, which is already being deployed in dozens of countries around the world. The WHO has already given emergency use listing to the vaccines being made by Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, Johnson and Johnson, and the AstraZeneca jab being produced at sites in India and in South Korea, which it counts separately. "This afternoon, WHO gave emergency use listing to Sinopharm Beijing's Covid-19 vaccine, making it the sixth vaccine to receive WHO validation for safety, efficacy and quality," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news conference. "The Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization, or SAGE, has also reviewed the available data, and recommends the vaccine for adults 18 years and older, with a two-dose schedule." An emergency use listing by the WHO paves the way for countries worldwide to quickly approve and import a vaccine for distribution, especially those states without an international-standard regulator of their own.
It also opens the door for the jabs to enter the Covax global vaccine-sharing scheme, which aims to provide equitable access to doses around the world and particularly in poorer countries.
Covax call
"The addition of this vaccine has the potential to rapidly accelerate Covid-19 vaccine access for countries seeking to protect health workers and populations at risk," said Mariangela Simao, the WHO's assistant director general for access to health products. "We urge the manufacturer to participate in the Covax facility and contribute to the goal of more equitable vaccine distribution."Currently only AstraZeneca and some Pfizer jabs are flowing through the scheme. Bruce Aylward, the WHO lead on Covax, said Sinopharm was "looking at trying to provide substantial support, make substantial doses available. "It has been very interested in looking at playing a role to help with the global response, which is encouraging." The WHO recommended that the two Sinopharm shots be taken three to four weeks apart. The vaccine's efficacy for symptomatic and hospitalized cases of Covid-19 was estimated to be 79 percent when all age groups are combined, it said. The agency said few adults over 60 were enrolled in clinical trials of the vaccine, so its efficacy could not be estimated in that age group. Nevertheless, "there is no theoretical reason to believe that the vaccine has a different safety profile in older and younger populations," it said. The Sinopharm vaccine is already in use in 42 territories around the world, fourth behind AstraZeneca (166), Pfizer-BioNTech (94) and Moderna (46), according to an AFP tally. Besides China, it is being used in Algeria, Cameroon, Egypt, Hungary, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Peru, the United Arab Emirates, Serbia and the Seychelles, among others.
- Second Chinese vaccine next -
A clutch of other vaccines are on the road towards WHO emergency use listing. A WHO decision is expected within days on Sinovac, a second Chinese-made vaccine already being used in 22 territories. But WHO experts said Friday they have now asked Sinovac for additional information and are waiting for answers before they can make a recommendation. Behind Sinovac, Russia's Sputnik V vaccine is the next furthest ahead in the process. But Simao said the WHO was still analyzing data, receiving additional information on the dossier and conducting site inspections that will end in the first week of June. Approving Sputnik V could happen after that, she said, "but it depends on the inspections being made and the dossiers being completed."

Pfizer/BioNTech seeks full FDA approval
CNN/May 07/2021
Pfizer/BioNTech has initiated its application to the US Food and Drug Administration for full FDA approval of its Covid-19 vaccine for people ages 16 and older, the companies said Friday. This is the first Covid-19 vaccine in the United States to be assessed for full approval from the FDA.
Pfizer's mRNA two-shot vaccine is currently being used in the US under emergency use authorization (EUA) from the FDA. The companies say 170 million doses of the vaccine have been distributed across the US to date.

Israel demands that Europe freeze funding to terror-affiliated NGOs
NGO Monitor/May 07/2021
Yesterday, the Shin Bet announced the arrests of a number of NGO officials, accused of diverting millions in European government funds to the PFLP terror group. NGO Monitor has been warning governments for years about the links between NGOs and the PFLP, as well as lax vetting by European funders. Our research has put this issue on the agenda in European capitals and in Israel. In the aftermath, the Israeli Foreign Ministry summoned the ambassadors of relevant European governments and demanded the immediate freeze of funding to all terror-tied groups. According to the Shin Bet, a network of PFLP-linked NGOs used fictitious projects, forged documents, and fake bank authorizations to dupe their European donors. Instead of humanitarian projects, the money paid for attacks, weapons and training, subsidies for families of PFLP terrorists, salaries for PFLP activists, and recruitment.
At this stage, Israeli authorities have identified officials from Health Work Committees (HWC), which listed Austria, European Union, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, and Japan among its donors and partners in 2018. Last year, the NGO’s finance and administration manager was arrested for commanding the terror cell that killed 17 year-old Rena Shnerb -- but the European funding continued to flow. For years, we have documented the close links between European-funded NGOs and the PFLP. In 2014-2021, the governments of Netherlands, Spain, Belgium, Italy, Sweden, Denmark, Ireland, Germany, France, Norway, Switzerland and the EU provided more than €200 million to the PFLP NGO network, including to the Health Work Committees. NGO Monitor continues to be the go-to source for all issues related to NGO funding and terror. Our research was also cited in The Jerusalem Post, Times of Israel, Israel Hayom (Hebrew), I24 News (French), Spanish News Agency (Spanish), Algemeiner, and other articles on these developments.
 

Land Rights Case Sparks New East Jerusalem Clashes
Agence France Presse/May 07/2021
Fifteen Palestinians were arrested in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem overnight in clashes with police over an eviction threat against four Palestinian families. The second straight night of rioting in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood was fuelled by a years-long land dispute between Palestinian refugees and Jewish settlers in the strategic district near Jerusalem's Old City. The violence comes as Muslims prepare to mark the last Friday of the fasting month of Ramadan, with tens of thousands of Palestinian worshippers set to gather at the sacred Al-Aqsa mosque compound. Police said protesters torched a vehicle and threw stones outside a house occupied by Jewish settlers. Palestinians also traded insults with far-right Israeli lawmaker Itamar Ben-Gvir, who visited Sheikh Jarrah to voice support for the Jewish settlers. Repeating in Hebrew the refrain "this house is ours", Ben-Gvir announced that he was setting up a makeshift parliamentary office in a tent outside a building occupied by settlers. Tensions have been fuelled by a long-running legal case over the homes of four Palestinian families on land claimed by Jews, which is due to go before the Supreme Court on Monday. The latest clashes followed violence on Wednesday night, when 22 Palestinians were wounded, according to the Red Crescent. Police said they had made 11 arrests. "This land is Palestinian land... and we, the inhabitants of the neighbourhood, we cannot accept that this land is theirs. This land is ours," said 77-year-old Nabeel al-Kurd, one of those facing eviction.
Very worrying
The United Nations has voiced concern over the violence and anti-riot police's use of water cannons spraying foul-smelling liquid. UN Middle East envoy Tor Wennesland said developments "related to the eviction of Palestine refugee families in Sheikh Jarrah and other neighbourhoods in occupied east Jerusalem" were "very worrying". "I urge Israel to cease demolitions and evictions, in line with its obligations under international humanitarian law," the envoy said in a statement. Earlier this year, a Jerusalem district court ruled the homes legally belonged to the Jewish families, citing purchases made when the whole of historic Palestine, including what is now Israel, was under British rule. The Jewish plaintiffs claimed their families lost the land during the war that accompanied Israel's creation in 1948, a conflict that also saw hundreds of thousands of Palestinians displaced from their homes.
Israeli law allows Jews who can prove pre-1948 title to recover their properties. It does not afford the same right to Palestinians. The Sheikh Jarrah families have provided evidence that their homes were acquired from Jordanian authorities, who controlled east Jerusalem from 1948 to 1967. Amman has intervened in the case, providing documents to support the Palestinian claims. Israel seized east Jerusalem in 1967 and later annexed it, in a move not recognised by most of the international community. The district court ruling infuriated Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah, who viewed it as a further step in what they see as a Jewish settler effort to drive Arabs out of east Jerusalem. Israel's Supreme Court had called on the sides to seek a compromise, but when that failed it announced it would hold a new hearing on Monday, during which it is expected to rule on whether the Palestinians can appeal the district court decision. An appeal process could take years.
 

Israeli Police, Palestinian Worshippers Clash in Jerusalem
Agence France Presse/May 07/2021
Israeli police clashed Friday with Muslim worshippers at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, the Palestinian Red Crescent said, adding that two people had been wounded.
Police spokesman Waseem Bader told AFP police used force to disperse "violent disturbances" after "rioters" threw stones, bottles and other objects at officers. Palestinian media outlets showed rows of Israeli security forces lined up in the area.
 

3 terrorists killed in attack on Israeli base in Samaria
Arutz Sheva Staff/May 07/2021
A terrorist shooting attack was reported in Samaria Friday morning, days after a deadly shooting at a Samaria bus stop. The incident occurred outside of the IDF's Salem base in northern Samaria. Initial reports indicate three terrorists opened fire at the base, prompting Israeli forces to return fire. All three terrorists were shot and killed during the firefight. There are no reports of casualties among Israeli forces.

Biden: US still recovering from 'an economic collapse'
NNA/AFP/May 07/2021
President Joe Biden said disappointing jobs figures Friday reflect the fact that the United States has a long way to go in recovering from a pandemic-induced "collapse." "We're still digging out of an economic collapse," he said at the White House. "Clearly we have a long way to go."

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on May 07- 08/2021

Question: "Is it true that everything happens for a reason?"
GotQuestions.org/May 07/2021
Answer: Does everything happen for a reason? The short answer is “yes”; because God is sovereign, there are no random, out-of-control happenings. God’s purposes may be hidden from us, but we can be assured that every event has a reason behind it.
There was a reason for the blindness of the man in John 9, although the disciples misidentified the reason (John 9:1–3). There was a reason for Joseph’s mistreatment, although his brothers’ purpose in what they did to him was very different from God’s purpose in allowing it (Genesis 50:20). There was a reason for Jesus’ death—the authorities in Jerusalem had their reasons, based on evil intent, and God had His, based on righteousness. God’s sovereignty extends even to the lowliest of creatures: “Not one [sparrow] falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will” (Matthew 10:29, NET).
Several factors help us know that everything happens for a reason: the law of cause and effect, the doctrine of original sin, and the providence of God. All these demonstrate that everything does happen for a reason, not just by happenstance or by random chance.
First, there is the natural law of cause and effect, also known as the law of sowing and reaping. Paul says, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life” (Galatians 6:7–8). This means that in every action we take or word we utter, whether good or evil, there are certain inevitable results that follow (Colossians 3:23–25). Someone may ask, “Why am I in jail? Is there a reason for this?” and the answer may be, “Because you robbed your neighbor’s house and got caught.” That’s cause and effect.
All that we do is either an investment in the flesh or an investment in the Spirit. We shall reap whatever we have sown, and we shall reap in proportion to how we have sown. “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously” (2 Corinthians 9:6). The believer who walks in the Spirit and “sows” in the Spirit is going to reap a spiritual harvest. If his sowing has been generous, the harvest will be bountiful, if not in this life, certainly in the life to come. Conversely, those who “sow” to the flesh are going to reap a life without the full blessings of God, both in this life and the life to come (Jeremiah 18:10; 2 Peter 2:10–12).
The reason some things happen can often be traced back to original sin in the Garden of Eden. The Bible is clear that the world is under a curse (Genesis 3:17), which has resulted in infirmities, diseases, natural disasters, and death. All these things, although under God’s ultimate control, are sometimes used by Satan to inflict misery upon people (see Job 1–2; Luke 9:37–42; 13:16). Someone may ask, “Why did I contract this illness? Is there a reason for it?” and the answer may be one or more of the following: 1) “Because you live in a fallen world, and we are all subject to illness”; 2) “Because God is testing you and strengthening your faith”; or 3) “Because, in love, God is disciplining you according to Hebrews 12:7–13 and 1 Corinthians 11:29–30.”
Then we have what is called the providence of God. The doctrine of providence holds that God quietly and invisibly works through the natural world to manage events. God, in His providence, works out His purposes through natural processes in the physical and social universe. Every effect can be traced back to a natural cause, and there is no hint of the miraculous. The best that man can do to explain the reason why things happen in the course of natural events is to point to “coincidence.”
Believers proclaim that God arranges the coincidences. The unbeliever derides such ideas because he believes natural causes can fully explain each event without reference to God. Yet followers of Christ are wholly assured of this profound truth: “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).
The book of Esther shows divine providence at work. The banishment of Vashti, the selection of Esther, the plot of the assassins, the pride of Haman, the courage of Mordecai, the insomnia of the king, the bloodlust of Zeresh, and the reading of the scroll—everything in the book happens, like cogs in a well-oiled machine, to bring about the deliverance of God’s people., Although God is never mentioned in Esther, His providence, working through “coincidence,” is plain to see.
God is always at work in the lives of His people, and in His goodness will bring them to a good end (see Philippians 1:6). The events that define our lives are not simply products of natural causes or random chance. They are ordained by God and are intended for our good. We often fail to sense God’s hidden guidance or protection as events in our lives unfold. But, when we look back at past events, we are able to see His hand more clearly, even in times of tragedy.
 

Turkey and Iran: Parallel Islam imperialist ambitions for the Middle East
Jonathan Spyer/Jerusalem Post/May 07/2021
جوناثان سباير/جيروزاليم بوست: طموحات تركيا وإيرانمتوازية في الشرق الأوسط وهي إسلامية وإمبريالية
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/98627/98627/

Neither Ankara nor Tehran want a strong Iraq, or a strong Syria. On the contrary, the fragmentation of these countries suits both.
Turkish forces last week launched a renewed attack on the PKK (Kurdish Workers Party) organization in northern Iraq. This latest offensive follows the “Claw Eagle 2” operation in Gare in February, in which Ankara’s forces unsuccessfully tried to liberate 13 prisoners held by the PKK in the Dohuk area. The operation, dubbed “Claw Lightning” and “Claw Thunderbolt,” involves airdrops of commando forces into the Zap, Metina and Avashin areas.
They form part of a pattern of intensified Turkish military activity in northern Iraq over the last six months. This, in turn, is an element in a broader strategy of assertion through military force undertaken by Ankara across a wide area over the last year. Active operations in cooperation with proxy elements have been undertaken in Syria, Libya and Nagorno-Karabakh. Turkey has also established a considerable military presence in Qatar.
Turkish activities in Iraq have a relevance beyond the immediate geographical context. This is because of what they reveal regarding the nature of Turkish ambitions in the surrounding areas, and what this in turn suggests regarding Turkey’s role as an ostensible Western ally in the period ahead.
The specific issue deserving attention is whether Turkey wishes to or is able to play a role in checking the advance of Iran across Iraq and the Levant, in the direction of the Mediterranean Sea and of Israel.
Turkey’s current actions in Iraq are directed specifically against the PKK. The intention is to prevent that organization from maintaining freedom of movement for its fighters from its headquarters in the Qandil Mountains, located in the tri-border area between Iraq, Turkey and Iran, to the Iraqi-Syrian border and the 30% of Syria controlled by the Syrian Kurds. The Turkish government regards the US-allied governing authority in that area as nothing more than a front for the PKK.
Turkey fears the establishment of a large, de facto, PKK-dominated area stretching from Qandil all the way to northwest Syria. The “Claw’ operations in northern Iraq thus form part of the series of military incursions undertaken by Turkey since 2016 with the intention of dividing the area of Kurdish domination into manageable chunks.
Militarily, all these operations may be regarded as qualified successes. The Kurdish fighters lack the ability to hold the Turkish Army back in conventional operations. In addition, in the Iraqi context, the extensive Turkish use of drones has struck a severe blow to the previous main advantage enjoyed by the PKK fighters: their superior knowledge of the terrain, and consequent ability to move through it without being detected by Turkish forces.
Turkey now has a considerable commitment of its own forces in these de facto security zones in Iraq and Syria. Arzu Yilmaz, a Turkish scholar interviewed this week on Al-Monitor.com, estimated that there are around 5,000 Turkish troops deployed on Iraqi soil. The number of Turkish troops in Syria is somewhere between 12,000-20,000. They are backed up by F-16s, artillery and drones. A network of checkpoints and outposts has been established in northern Iraq.
Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said this week that the Turks intend to build a base at Metina. This will join the estimated 37 military positions established by Turkey on the soil of Iraqi Kurdistan since the “Claw” operations began.
Most of these positions cluster close to the border, while some extend as far as 40 kilometers (25 miles) into Iraq. It is noteworthy that these incursions are carried out without consultation with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) of northern Iraq, whose armed forces are responsible for security on the border.
Sources in the KRG interviewed for this article said that they regard the operations as part of a Turkish effort to turn the autonomous Kurdish area in northern Iraq into a Turkish satrapy. The PKK threat, according to this view, is a useful pretext for this purpose.
SO, WHAT broader strategic lessons may be learned from the Turkish activity in these neighboring, partially fragmented Arab countries over the last years? Does the Turkish pattern of assertiveness suggest that Ankara could act as a counterweight to the ambitions of Iran in these areas?
In so far as the Turkish and Iranian projects physically impinge on one another, the result will be localized tensions. This is visible, for example (for now, it is the only real example) in the Sinjar area, on the Syrian-Iraqi border.
Turkey seeks control of this area, as part of its efforts to cut Qandil and the PKK off from Kurdish northeast Syria. Iran wants to control it too, as an entry point to Syria. There have been rumors in recent weeks of a possible major Turkish operation into the area. Such an operation remains unlikely however, because of the likely military and diplomatic ramifications. Neither Baghdad nor Tehran seriously object as long as Turkey limits its activities to the PKK and the KRG. Indeed, these two capitals share with Ankara a strategic opposition to Kurdish aspirations. Sinjar, however, would represent a step too far.
Turkey has less clearly defined ambitions in the wider Mosul area, which Turkish nationalists remember as the former Ottoman vilayet of Mosul. But here, too, the issue is wrapped up with the desire to limit Kurdish autonomy.
These local frictions notwithstanding, Turkey and Iran are not set on a collision course. For the most part, the ambitions of these countries in the relevant areas do not overlap or impinge on one another. The Iranian project further south is not a barrier to the achievement of Ankara’s aims against the Kurds. The reverse is also the case with regard to Iran’s ambitions to reach the Mediterranean and entrench its front against Israel. Turkey has of necessity abandoned the old hopes of toppling Assad and replacing him with a Sunni Islamist regime. Similarly, in Baghdad politics, the Turks are only minor players, offering limited support to a number of Sunni Arab and Turkmen politicians.
Neither Ankara nor Tehran want a strong Iraq, or a strong Syria. On the contrary, the fragmentation of these countries suits both. Both are happy to have weak neighbors whose territory can be penetrated at will. For the most part, they are interested in biting off different chunks of territory.
Iran is busy creating its areas of militia control for the purpose of the transport of weapons and men toward Lebanon and Israel. It is burrowing deep into the formal state structures of both countries. Ankara has neither the desire nor the means to act as a counter to this. Its own areas of control, meanwhile, in northern Syria and Iraq, are not areas essential to this Iranian project.
Ankara also cannot act as a bulwark against Russia in these areas. On the contrary, its fiefdoms in Syria are dependent on Russian acquiescence and goodwill. Indeed, Moscow sees the affording of this goodwill as a useful way to draw Turkey further away from the west and NATO.
In many ways, the current orientations of Ankara and Tehran resemble one another. Both countries are the centers of former empires, both are governed by regimes combining political Islam with a type of imperial revanchism. Inherent in this for both countries is opposition to the declining US-led regional order, and a desire to gain from its retreat. At the present time, however, their projects are able mostly to co-exist, like parallel crescents. Anyone hoping that Ankara might be interested in the job of propping up the regional order against Iran is not looking close enough at the reality on the ground.

Does the US want a nuclear deal sooner than Iran? – analysis
Yonah Jeremy Bob/Jerusalem Post/May 07/2021
يونا جرمي بوب/جيرازولم بوست: هل أميركا مستعجلة لإبرام الإتفاق النووي أكثر من إيران
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/98635/yonah-jeremy-bob-jerusalem-post-does-the-us-want-a-nuclear-deal-sooner-than-iran-%d9%8a%d9%88%d9%86%d8%a7-%d8%ac%d8%b1%d9%85%d9%8a-%d8%a8%d9%88%d8%a8-%d8%ac%d9%8a%d8%b1%d8%a7%d8%b2%d9%88%d9%84%d9%85/
Does Iran’s Ayatollah Khamenei want to see the outcome of June’s presidential election before agreeing to a new nuclear deal?
The signs had been unmistakable, but have only gotten more pronounced. There may be an interim US-Iran deal to move toward returning to the nuclear deal before the May 21 and June 18 deadlines, but if there is not, it will be because the Islamic Republic wants to move slower than America.
May 21 is when the temporary three-month deal between Tehran and the IAEA lapses which gave international inspectors most of the access they need to Iranian nuclear sites despite the ayatollahs’ anger that the Biden administration had not yet removed sanctions.
June 18 is Iranian elections, when many predict the hardliners will win the presidency away from the pragmatists.
Though substantively – and for Israeli purposes there might not be a huge difference between these two Iranian camps – for US and EU purposes the pragmatists are at least willing to talk and make deals.
So the conventional wisdom from four rounds of US-Iran-world power negotiations over recent months was that all sides were pushing hard for a deal before those deadlines.
This could help the pragmatists currently in power to maintain their hold on the presidency – something the US and the EU definitely prefer. But Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei may have other plans.
After a recent round of talks, Russia and China sent out very positive messages, the US lukewarm positive and Iran President Hassan Rouhani said up to 70% of the issues were already agreed upon and that a new era of détente might be just over the horizon. But Rouhani is not the real decider in Tehran, Khamenei is.
In a briefing to reporters, a top US negotiator with Iran repeatedly said that all the issues have been fleshed out and that the only real question now is whether Iran actually wants a deal in the coming weeks.
What if Khamenei doesn’t? What if he wants a deal, but only after the election so that the hardliners he is closer to can claim victory instead of the pragmatists?
Maybe he wants to rob the pragmatists of a big victory point going into the June 18 election?
Of course, there are still two weeks before May 21, and since that was an artificial deadline, there are still five weeks to the real June 18 deadline.
So there still may be a deal before then and these weeks may be the Islamic Republic playing chicken until the last moment to make sure there is not more it can squeeze out of the US. That certainly was the pattern for the 2015 Iran nuclear deal negotiations.
But may be Khamenei never wanted to cut a deal until after elections.
Maybe all of this was just to feel out Biden’s team so that after his favored hardliners win the presidency, he will know how and when to cut a deal with the US.
It is also possible that there may be no deal and that Khamenei was negotiating to change the narrative, weaken Western resistance to Iran’s violations and use the lack of a deal to blame more things on Rouhani and his pragmatists.
In any case, Washington has made it clear it is ready for a deal by May 21. The only question now is what Khamenei wants.

Palestinians count down to the end of Abbas's era
Khalid Abu Toameh/Jerusalem Post/May 07/2021
The decision to delay Palestinian elections will have far-reaching implications
Like many Palestinians, Nadia Harhash was not surprised by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s decision last week to delay the Palestinian elections.
Harhash, a prominent Palestinian journalist, author and political analyst from east Jerusalem, was on the Together We Can list for the parliamentary election, which was supposed to take place on May 22. The electoral list is affiliated with former PA prime minister Salam Fayyad.
Although she was unhappy with Abbas’s decision, Harhash, in retrospect, believes that it was a “wise” move on the part of the PA president.
“I believe the decision to postpone the elections was expected,” the mother of four told The Jerusalem Post. “Using Jerusalem as an excuse was also expected, though it was not a smart move. The decision, however, turned out to be a wise move.”
Harhash was referring to the dispute surrounding the participation of Jerusalem Arabs in the Palestinian elections.
Announcing the delay, Abbas told leaders of various Palestinian factions that Israel had failed to respond to the PA’s request to hold the elections in Jerusalem.
In reality, however, Israel never said that it would prevent the Palestinians from holding elections in Jerusalem. Israel, in addition, never said that it would ban Jerusalem Arabs who hold Israeli-issued ID cards from presenting their candidacy or casting ballots in the Palestinian elections.
Only 6,300 Arab residents of Jerusalem were expected to vote at five Israeli post offices. The rest of the eligible voters – estimated at 150,000 – were free to cast ballots at voting centers stationed in PA-controlled areas surrounding Jerusalem. These voters did not need Israel’s permission to travel a few kilometers away from the city to vote in the Palestinian elections.
The vast majority of Jerusalem Arabs, in other words, could have participated in the elections without Israel’s approval. There was no way that Israel could have stopped voters from traveling, or even walking, to nearby PA-controlled villages and towns (located outside the boundaries of the Jerusalem Municipality) to cast ballots or launch electoral campaigns.
It is worth noting that only a small number of Jerusalem Arabs participated in previous elections for the PA presidency and parliament in 1996, 2005 and 2006. That’s because most residents of east Jerusalem did not seem to be interested in the PA elections. These residents were well aware of the fact that the PA has no jurisdiction over Arab neighborhoods that are under Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem.
Since Abbas’s January 15 decree to hold the general elections, only a few hundred residents of east Jerusalem, most of whom are political activists, showed interest in the vote. Therefore, it was safe to assume that the majority of the Jerusalem Arabs anyway had no intention to be involved with the Palestinian elections. Their participation or nonparticipation in the elections would not have made a big difference.
Abbas’s critics argue that if he really cared about the issue of Jerusalem, he should have sought guarantees from the European Union and other international parties before, and not after, his decision to announce the elections.
“President Abbas began talking about the issue of Jerusalem only after he announced the elections,” noted Palestinian political analyst Ayman Barakat. “If he wasn’t sure that Israel would allow the elections to take place in Jerusalem, why did he issue the decree [to hold the elections]? Why didn’t he tell the Europeans who were pressing him to hold elections that he will comply only after the Palestinians receive assurances from Israel that Jerusalem will be included? That was the mistake he made.”
Some Palestinians say that Abbas was never serious in the first place about holding the elections and that’s why he didn’t bother back then to demand guarantees regarding the inclusion of Jerusalem. They claim that when Abbas announced the elections, he did so only to appease European donors and impress the new Biden administration.
Other Palestinians are convinced that Abbas worked in collusion with Israel to find a way to call off the elections. According to these Palestinians, Abbas and Israel came to the conclusion that maintaining the status quo was better than risking holding elections that could see Hamas or other Palestinian extremists scoring a victory, especially in the vote for the parliament, the Palestinian Legislative Council.
Abbas and his ruling Fatah faction have yet to overcome the trauma of their loss to Hamas in the 2006 parliamentary election. Abbas and several Fatah leaders still find it hard to forgive Hamas for the bloody coup it waged against them in the Gaza Strip in 2007. Abbas, in addition, will never forgive Hamas for its alleged attempt to kill him during one of his visits to the Gaza Strip.
What worried Abbas in the past few weeks was the fact that Hamas was running in the parliamentary election as a unified list, while Fatah was running on three separate slates.
THE FIRST blow to Abbas came when veteran Fatah official Nasser al-Kidwa, a nephew of former PLO leader Yasser Arafat, announced his decision to contest the parliamentary vote. A furious Abbas immediately retaliated by expelling Kidwa from the Fatah Central Committee, the faction’s highest decision-making body.
A few weeks later, Abbas was dealt an even bigger blow when jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti, who is serving five life sentences for his role in terrorist attacks against Israelis during the Second Intifada, joined forces with Kidwa.
Barghouti’s decision to join forces with Kidwa was seen by Abbas and other Palestinians as an extremely serious challenge to the PA president, particularly in light of talk that the imprisoned Fatah leader was planning to present his candidacy in the presidential elections, which were scheduled to take place on July 31. It was easy for Abbas to expel Kidwa from Fatah and present him as someone who had violated the faction’s internal regulations by forming his own list for the parliamentary elections.
Unlike Barghouti, Kidwa, a former PA foreign minister and envoy to the United Nations, does not have grassroots support among Palestinians. Barghouti, on the other hand, is regarded by some Palestinians as a popular and respected leader. That’s undoubtedly the reason Abbas did not take any measures against Barghouti after the latter’s decision to run outside Fatah’s official slate for the parliamentary election.
A Fatah official told the Post that Abbas wanted to expel Barghouti from Fatah, but was persuaded by his senior advisers not to take such a drastic measure.
“It would have caused huge damage to Abbas and Fatah,” said the official, referring to the since-shelved intention to expel Barghouti.
According to the official, it was Barghouti’s move that made Abbas realize that the idea to hold long-overdue elections was not a good one after all.
The Barghouti-Kidwa alliance was not the only challenge facing Abbas and Fatah.
Abbas and veteran Fatah leaders in the West Bank were following with deep concern the activities of Mohammad Dahlan, the exiled Fatah leader who moved to the United Arab Emirates after a fallout with the PA president in 2011.
Dahlan loyalists, especially in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem, were well organized and appeared to have unlimited financial resources.
“The money was coming from the United Arab Emirates,” said a Palestinian journalist from east Jerusalem. “Dahlan’s supporters were planning to invest millions of dollars in their electoral campaign. They were also paying large sums to young Fatah activists who were unhappy with Abbas and the current Fatah leadership.”At one point, Abbas was said to have told Fatah leaders in early April that he believed that Israel, the United Arab Emirates and other “international and regional parties” were promoting Dahlan and his men as part of a scheme to remove him (Abbas) from power.
Abbas also reportedly expressed concern about the rapprochement between Dahlan and Hamas. In the past four months, Hamas has allowed scores of Dahlan loyalists to return to the Gaza Strip in preparation for the elections. The Dahlan supporters, mostly Fatah and former PA security officers, had fled the coastal enclave before and during the 2007 Hamas coup.
Like his predecessor (Arafat), the 85-year-old Abbas is known as big believer in conspiracy theories. When he announced the postponement of the elections, Abbas hinted that Dahlan supporters were the only ones permitted to hold election gatherings in Jerusalem.
The Jerusalem Police had briefly detained a number of Abbas loyalists and Fatah candidates for holding meetings in the city in violation of a law that bans the PA from carrying out political or other activities in Jerusalem. Abbas, in other words, was saying that Israel, together with the United Arab Emirates, was supporting his sworn enemy, Dahlan, ahead of the elections.
“Somehow, Abbas realized that he was about to fall into his own trap,” remarked Harhash, the east Jerusalem candidate. “The sharp dispute in Fatah made Jerusalem a viable reason for postponing the elections. I think the issue is beyond Palestinian internal disputes; it is more of a perceived coup led by disgruntled Fatah leaders and Hamas. In the eyes of Abbas, this coup was backed by the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt and, of course, Israel.”
IN THE end, it was Israel that helped Abbas climb down the high ladder of the elections. By failing to respond to the Palestinians’ request to hold the elections in Jerusalem, Israel provided Abbas with a good pretext to delay the vote.
Paradoxically, Abbas would have been in bigger trouble had Israel announced its agreement to hold the elections in Jerusalem. Such a move would have intensified the Fatah infighting and facilitated the rise of Hamas and other anti-Abbas parties and figures to power.
But the postponement decision did not come without a price. Abbas is currently facing widespread criticism from Palestinians from across the political spectrum, as well as the European Union and United Nations, for using the Jerusalem dispute as an excuse to call off the elections.
Although his credibility has been severely undermined, the decision to delay the elections does not pose an imminent threat to Abbas’s rule.
But, as many Palestinian political analysts pointed out this week, the decision constitutes the beginning of the countdown to the end of the Abbas era.
Most of the electoral lists that had registered for the parliamentary elections have formed an alliance with the goal of waging a massive campaign against what they perceive to be Abbas’s autocratic rule over the PA and his refusal to pave the way for the emergence of new leaders.
Abbas’s critics and political rivals are saying that this time they will not allow him to get away with his decision to deprive the Palestinians of their right to elect new leaders and have a say in the decision-making process.
 

Iran’s ‘Drug Terrorism’ Against Arabs
Khaled Abu Toameh/Gatestone Institute/May 07/2021
خالد أبو طعمة/معهد جيتستون: إرهاب المخدرات الإيراني ضد العرب
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/98632/khaled-abu-toameh-gatestone-institute-irans-drug-terrorism-against-arabs%d8%ae%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%af-%d8%a3%d8%a8%d9%88-%d8%b7%d8%b9%d9%85%d8%a9-%d9%85%d8%b9%d9%87%d8%af-%d8%ac%d9%8a%d8%aa%d8%b3%d8%aa/

While Israel is seeking to dissuade the Biden administration from rejoining the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran… Tehran’s mullahs and their Lebanese Hezbollah terror proxy are busy drowning the Arab countries with drugs.
“Israel is far more honorable than the drug-dealers…. [The drug dealers’] ultimate goal is to destroy Saudi Arabia by every available means. They are smuggling weapons and drugs to the Gulf states, but when they are confronted, they accuse the governments of these states of siding with Israel, and they raise the slogan of liberating Jerusalem, while their missiles are only targeting Riyadh and Mecca.” — Turki Al-Hamad, Saudi academic, Rai Al-Youm, April 25, 2021.
“[Hezbollah has become] a criminal organization whose danger has gone beyond the stage of terrorism and military operations…. The Hezbollah project has become the destruction of people through drugs.” — Mohammed Al-Maskary, Emirati writer and journalist, Al-Ain, April 27, 2021
“Hezbollah is increasingly dependent on the revenues from terrorist activities, drug smuggling and money laundering with Colombian, Mexican and Cuban cartel networks.” — Fahim Al-Hamed, Saudi writer, Okaz, April 25, 2021.
Saudi Arabia recently announced that it thwarted an attempt to smuggle 2.4 million narcotic tablets into the Kingdom from Lebanon, hidden in a shipment of pomegranates. The smuggling attempt drew sharp criticism from many Arabs, who accused Iran and its Lebanese Hezbollah terror proxy of exporting various types of drugs to the Arab world and other countries.
While Israel is seeking to dissuade the Biden administration from rejoining the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran — currently the subject of indirect negotiations in Vienna — Tehran’s mullahs and their Lebanese Hezbollah terror proxy are busy drowning the Arab countries with drugs.
Last week, Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Lebanon, Walid Al-Bukhari, revealed that Saudi authorities recently foiled an attempt to smuggle large quantities of drugs from Lebanon. The smuggled drugs, he said, were “enough to drown the whole Arab world. The drugs were not meant to be distributed in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia only, but also in different parts of the Arab world.”
Al-Bukhari’s remarks came days after Saudi Arabia announced that it had thwarted an attempt to smuggle 2.4 million narcotic tablets into the Kingdom hidden in a shipment of pomegranates.
The smuggling attempt drew sharp criticism from many Arabs, who accused Hezbollah and Iran of exporting various types of drugs to the Arab world and other countries.
The failed attempt to smuggle drugs into Saudi Arabia is also threatening to intensify the economic crisis in Lebanon as the Saudi authorities announced a ban on the entry of Lebanese produce into the kingdom.
“Many experts believe Hezbollah and Iran made a conscious decision to deluge their Arab and Western enemies with chemicals that could ruin millions of lives,” commented Lebanese journalist and columnist Baria Alamuddin. “Using agricultural products and bulk goods as a cover for weapons and narcotics smuggling has become the well-established modus operandi, making import bans on Lebanese products inevitable.”
Alamuddin pointed out that social media has been “alight with the story of arrested drug lord Hassan Daqou, with images of him engaging with senior Hezbollah officials and with Hezbollah flags proudly displayed on his desk. Drug dealers and warlords are living in palaces while law-abiding citizens starve!”
She also noted that Hezbollah was exploiting its connections with the Lebanese diaspora to make itself a dominant player in the global trade in cocaine, heroin and weaponry. “The cultured, civilized Lebanon we know and love has always flourished when it’s been at the heart of the Arab world. Let’s throw out the terrorists, drug-dealers and warlords and work to restore this beautiful nation,” Alamuddin added.
Her sentiments, shared by many Arab political analysts, journalists and social media users, reflect a growing concern in Lebanon and other Arab countries about Iran’s ongoing effort to undermine security and stability in the Middle East.
These Arabs are also sending a warning to the Biden administration and the West to reconsider their policy of appeasing Iran’s mullahs: While you are cozying up to the mullahs, Iran and its proxies are drowning the Arab world with dangerous drugs.
“Israel is far more honorable than the drug-dealers,” said Saudi academic Turki Al-Hamad. Referring to Hezbollah and Iran, he added:
“[The drug dealers’] ultimate goal is to destroy Saudi Arabia by every available means. They are smuggling weapons and drugs to the Gulf states, but when they are confronted, they accuse the governments of these states of siding with Israel, and they raise the slogan of liberating Jerusalem, while their missiles are only targeting Riyadh and Mecca.”
Al-Hamad was referring to recurring missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia by the Iranian-backed Houthi militia in Yemen. He is saying, in other words, that Iran and its proxies continue to threaten the Arab countries that signed normalization agreements with Israel, including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
A Lebanese journalist told the Saudi satellite TV channel Al-Ekhbariya that Hezbollah’s fatwas (Islamic rulings) are responsible for smuggling drugs into the Kingdom, according to Emirati writer and journalist Mohammed Al-Maskary.
Al-Maskary pointed out that Hezbollah controls the entrances and exits of Lebanon, and that the terrorist organization’s fatwas consider that selling drugs to “hostile societies as a legal and moral duty that does not and contradict the concept of resistance [against Israel].”
He added that Hezbollah has become “a criminal organization whose danger has gone beyond the stage of terrorism and military operations. The Hezbollah project has become the destruction of people through drugs.”
Many Lebanese are now worried that other Arab countries could follow in the footsteps of Saudi Arabia and impose a ban on the import of agricultural products from Lebanon. This concern came in the wake of calls by several Gulf citizens on their governments to ban Lebanese goods and agricultural products.
“We hope that the rest of the Gulf countries will take similar measures against Lebanon,” wrote a gulf social media user called Bader on Twitter.
“The Lebanese government must bear responsibility because it allowed the exit of containers from its territory while they were full of drugs. This is a punishment until [Lebanon] fixes its internal affairs.”
“The Iranian party in Lebanon (Hezbollah) is gambling with the sustenance of the Lebanese by smuggling drugs through agricultural products,” complained social media user Ibn Al-Arabi on Twitter.
Saudi writer Fahim Al-Hamed denounced Hezbollah’s actions as “drug terrorism.”
“Hezbollah is increasingly dependent on the revenues from terrorist activities, drug smuggling and money laundering with Colombian, Mexican and Cuban cartel networks,” Al-Hamed wrote.
Now that Iran is talking about the possibility that the US sanctions on oil, banks and other sectors and individuals may be lifted based on agreements reached so far at the Vienna talks, it is likely that the drug trafficking by the mullahs and their terror groups in Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq and Syria will increase.
Many Arabs are expressing outrage about the export of drugs to their countries. They desperately fear that the US and other Western countries will wind up facilitating the mission of drowning the Arab countries with drugs.
They are sending a clear message to the Biden administration and those who are negotiating with Iran: Do not do anything that will help the terrorists and drug-dealers kill more Arabs.
*Khaled Abu Toameh is an award-winning journalist based in Jerusalem.
© 2021 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.

Taliban takes control of two districts in Afghan north
Bill Roggio/FDD's Long War Journal/May 07/2021
The Taliban seized control of two districts in the northern province of Baghlan over the past two days. The move presages a coming Taliban offensive, which the goal is to reestablish its Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan by force.
The district of Baghlani Jadid (formerly Baghlan-e-Markzai) fell to the Taliban after it overran two Afghan military bases in the district. The Taliban claimed it seized control of the district, TOLONews reported. While it is difficult to independently confirm the Taliban’s claim of control, previous claims by the group have been proven to be accurate.
Two days ago, the Taliban also overran the district of Burka in Baghlan after fighting with Afghan security forces. “The local officials have moved their offices to other places in the district after the Taliban captured some parts of the district,” TOLONews reported. A spokesman for the province said that security forces “made a tactical retreat.”
Security in Baghlan has deteriorated significantly over the past several years. Of Baghlan’s 14 districts, three are controlled by the Taliban, 10 are contested, and only one is under government control, according to an ongoing study by FDD’s Long War Journal.
The security situation in Baghlan is a microcosm of all of Afghanistan. Of Afghanistan’s 407 districts, the Taliban controls 78 and contests another 193.
The Taliban has launched a string of attacks against Afghan security forces as the U.S. is beginning to withdraw its forces form the country. U.S. Central Command noted on May 4 that an estimated 2 to 6 percent of the withdrawal has been completed.
As the U.S. military begins its withdrawal, which is to be completed by Sept. 11, 2021, the 20th anniversary of Al Qaeda’s attack on America, it has limited resources to help the Afghan military fend off Taliban attacks. The U.S. military has only intervened in Kandahar, where the Taliban are threatening the eponymous provincial capital. The Taliban has launched numerous other small scale attacks throughout the country. In one such strike, the Taliban overran a military base in Ghazni City, captured 25 soldiers and continues to hold it to this day.
While many press outfits are describing the spike in Taliban attacks as an offensive, the reality is that the group’s current operations are a continuation of its violence against the Afghan government and people. A Taliban offensive will likely look much different, and include thousands of fighters massing to seize provincial capitals, perhaps several at once. The Taliban previous took control of Kunduz City (twice, Farah City, and Ghazni City) and held them for short periods of time even while U.S. forces were in country and supporting the Afghan military.
*Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of FDD’s Long War Journal. Follow him on Twitter @billroggio. FDD is a nonpartisan think tank focused on foreign policy and national security issues.

Time for Biden to Oppose Gulf Monarchies’ Outreach to Assad
David Adesnik/Policy Brief/FDD/May 07/2021
Saudi intelligence chief Khalid al-Humaidan reportedly met with his Syrian counterpart in Damascus on Monday, the first meeting of its kind since the war in Syria broke out in 2011. Humaidan’s visit provides the latest indication that the Gulf monarchies are testing the waters of rapprochement with Damascus to determine if the Biden administration will tolerate such a move.
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates firmly supported the armed opposition in Syria during the first years of the war, seeking to oust Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad. However, following the regime’s battlefield victories in 2016 and 2017, the Gulf monarchies began to hedge their bets.
The United Arab Emirates led way in December 2018 by reopening its embassy in Damascus. Bahrain also affirmed its embassy was open in a statement that noted the kingdom’s “keenness to continue relations with the Syrian Arab Republic.” A month later, Abu Dhabi welcomed a Syrian economic delegation led by Mohammed Hamsho, an oligarch whom the Obama administration had sanctioned in the first days of the war because of his role as a front man for the interests of Maher al-Assad, Bashar’s brother.
Emiratis were among the leading investors in Syria before 2011, with $20 billion worth of deals, mainly in real estate and tourism. A top Emirati investor had visited Damascus in mid-2018, reportedly to explore participation in the Marota City project, the Assad regime’s marquee redevelopment initiative, although no deal was reached. Several months later, the European Union sanctioned all of the leading investors in Marota City for their role in financing the regime.
The greatest blow to Gulf rapprochement with Assad was the signing into law of the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act in December 2019 with overwhelming bipartisan support. The Caesar Act mandates the imposition of sanctions on foreign nationals who do business with the Assad regime, an expansion of previous restrictions that applied to U.S. persons. These so-called “secondary sanctions” put in jeopardy any Gulf investors in the Syrian market.
Whereas the Trump administration launched a high-profile effort to sanction new targets each month in the latter half of 2020, the Biden administration has yet to designate any targets under Caesar or related authorities. Caesar sanctions on eligible targets are mandatory, however, so Congress likely will pressure the White House for action if it delays much longer. Resuming the sanctions campaign would also make clear to Gulf states that the United States remains fully committed to its policy of isolating Assad in concert with the European Union and other allies.
At the United Nations in March, Secretary of State Antony Blinken made an impassioned statement about the humanitarian crisis in Syria, yet the administration’s overall Syria policy remains uncertain. If the president is committed to “putting human rights at the center of U.S. foreign policy,” then a clarification regarding Syria is long overdue.
Furthermore, there will be a need for constant vigilance. David Schenker, the State Department’s top official for Middle Eastern affairs under President Donald Trump, has urged the new administration to fill the open position of special envoy for Syria with an individual of sufficient stature to maintain and deepen the allied front against Assad.
Finally, if Riyadh wants to repair the extensive damage that human rights violations have done to its reputation on the Hill, it should not embrace the bloodiest regime in the region.
*David Adesnik is research director and a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), where he also contributes to FDD’s Center on Economic and Financial Power (CEFP). For more analysis from David and CEFP, please subscribe HERE. Follow David on Twitter @adesnik. Follow FDD on Twitter @FDD and @FDD_CEFP. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.

The Countdown to an Israeli War With Iran Has Begun/If Biden returns to the Iran nuclear deal, don't be surprised if Israel takes matters into its own hands.
John Hannah/Foreign Policy/May 07/2021
A small army of top Israeli national security officials descended on Washington last week for their first in-person consultations with the Biden administration over its intention to return to the Iran nuclear deal. Israel is adamantly opposed to the agreement, arguing that in exchange for a pause in Tehran’s nuclear program, it virtually guarantees that Iran can become a nuclear-weapons threshold state by the time the deal expires in 2030, while immediately funneling billions of dollars to a revolutionary regime single-mindedly focused not just on sowing aggression and terrorism across the Middle East but on the destruction of the Jewish state itself.
That’s not a risk that the Israelis are prepared to take lying down, as they’ve repeatedly made clear. If Washington’s strategy leaves Israel convinced that it faces a choice between fighting a much weakened Iran now or a much stronger Iran on a glide path to nuclear weapons a few years from now, no one should be surprised if Israel chooses the former. Though last week’s talks got almost no attention in the U.S. press, my impression from people familiar with the discussions is that the they may well mark the moment that the countdown to a new war in the Middle East began.
The Israeli delegation included Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s national security advisor, Meir Ben-Shabbat; the head of the Mossad, Yossi Cohen; the chief intelligence officer of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Gen. Tamir Hayman; and the air force general in charge of Israel’s Iran strategy, Tal Kelman. Together and separately, they held meetings with U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, CIA Director Bill Burns, and other senior U.S. officials. President Joe Biden himself dropped by Cohen’s White House meeting for an hourlong discussion.
The Israelis’ overriding mission was clear: to look their U.S. counterparts in the eye and gauge if their worst fears about Washington’s plans were in fact true. Was Biden really committed to a straight-up return to the nuclear deal negotiated by then-President Barack Obama in 2015? Was the administration really determined to grant the Iranian regime billions of dollars in sanctions relief without first securing fundamental changes to the nuclear deal’s major flaws—including a series of sunset clauses that start lifting constraints on Iran’s ballistic missile program in 2023 and its advanced centrifuge program in 2024, as well as its lack of an ironclad verification regime? Were the Biden officials in fact impervious to Israel’s warning that a return to the agreement would disastrously heighten the threat posed to Israel’s security?
The answers the Israelis got? Yes, yes, and yes. Based on their own intelligence about the indirect talks being held in Vienna to bring the United States and Iran back into compliance with the nuclear deal, the Israelis arrived in Washington with low expectations. These expectations were met. Israel’s bleak assessment about the administration’s determination to resurrect the Iran deal without significant modifications was confirmed in full.
Biden’s press secretary, Jen Psaki, had messaged as much even before the delegation arrived. Asked if anything the Israelis might say would alter the administration’s position on returning to the Iran deal, Psaki was unambiguous: “No.” While Biden’s team was more diplomatic in their meetings, their bottom line was no less blunt, according to people knowledgeable about the talks.
The Israelis are deeply skeptical of the administration’s assurances that restoring the 2015 deal is only a first step that will be quickly followed by subsequent negotiations to improve the agreement—by extending and strengthening its restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program while also imposing constraints on Iran’s most dangerous nonnuclear activities, including its ballistic missile arsenal and support for regional militias. The Israelis are contemptuous of the Biden administration’s claims that once the United States lifts its most powerful sanctions on Iran’s financial transactions and oil exports, the mere threat of reimposing them will somehow be sufficient leverage to compel Tehran to make additional concessions in the future.
Nor do the Israelis deem credible the suggestion that Biden would be prepared to snap back sanctions on Iran should it refuse to negotiate a follow-on deal. Once the nuclear deal is restored, the Israelis fully expect the Iranians to comply with its terms, patiently waiting for one sunset clause after another to expire and the deal’s most important remaining restrictions to disappear in 2030 in order to stockpile as much weapons-grade uranium as they desire. Under circumstances where Iran is scrupulously observing the agreement’s restrictions, just how likely is it, the Israelis ask, that Biden would be prepared to lower the boom by invoking snap back? After all, they point out, didn’t every senior administration official from Biden on down excoriate then-President Donald Trump in 2018 for reimposing sanctions at a time when Iran was judged by international inspectors to be fully complying with the deal? Are the Israelis really now supposed to take seriously the idea that Biden would be ready to follow in Trump’s footsteps and trigger an international crisis in the face of regular reports that Iran is abiding by its commitments?
Judging from my conversations with people familiar with the talks, the Israelis also have serious doubts that the Biden administration believes its own talking points about negotiating a longer and stronger agreement. They remember that all their U.S. interlocutors were prominent officials in the Obama administration when the Iran deal was negotiated. At the time, these officials derided critics who suggested that a better deal than the one signed in 2015 was possible, regularly dismissing such notions as “fantasy” and “the myth of the better deal.” Have their views of their own handiwork changed so much in the last six years that they will now insist on achieving what they once ridiculed as impossible? Or is the current pledge to pursue a longer and stronger deal in the future just rhetoric designed to neutralize opponents of the 2015 deal and smooth the way for its restoration? At that point, the Israelis fear, Biden will put Iran on the back burner and switch focus to his administration’s real priorities, including its expansive domestic agenda, climate change, and competition with China.
Questions about the administration’s sincerity aside, the Israelis believe that the results of Biden’s policy will be the same: returning to a deal that enriches and strengthens a rogue regime that is committed to Israel’s destruction, while paving its path to obtaining nuclear weapons in less than a decade.
The Israelis have been relentlessly signaling that they will not tolerate such a situation. Last month, Netanyahu noted that the “worthless” nuclear deal “is once again on the table” and issued a veiled warning to Biden: “I say to our closest friends, too: ‘A deal with Iran that threatens us with annihilation will not obligate us.’ Only one thing will obligate us: to prevent those who wish to destroy us from carrying out their plans.” Israeli Minister for Intelligence Eli Cohen was blunter still last week, claiming that “a bad deal will send the region spiraling into war” and that Israel’s bombers “can reach everywhere in the Middle East—and certainly Iran.”
It’s not just Israeli politicians making clear that a return to the 2015 nuclear deal could back Israel into a corner and force it to take drastic actions. Days after Biden took office in January, IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi gave an extraordinary speech, warning that reviving the nuclear deal would pose an unacceptable threat to Israel’s security and that he had ordered the IDF to have plans ready for attacking Iran during the coming year. Two months later, Kelman, the general in charge of the IDF’s Iran strategy, was asked in an interview if Israel has the ability to attack and completely destroy Iran’s nuclear program. He responded without hesitation: “The answer is yes. When we build these capabilities, we build them to be operational. It’s not that there aren’t many strategic dilemmas, since the day after Iran can go back to the plan, but the ability exists. Definitely.”
Are the Israelis bluffing in order to deter Biden from reentering the deal? There’s no way to know for sure. But for what it’s worth, I don’t think so. Israel’s extraordinary covert operations over the past few years to expose and set back Iran’s nuclear program are only a foreshadowing both of what’s yet to come if Israel becomes convinced that its concerns about the nuclear deal won’t be seriously addressed and of how determined it is to do whatever is necessary to keep the Iranian nuclear threat at bay. Reaching the conclusion that their best ally, the United States, has chosen a course the Israelis fervently believe will end up increasing that threat rather than containing it will only confirm their view that Israel is on its own when it comes to stopping Iran’s march to the bomb—and that its operational planning to act military to defeat it must be accelerated. That’s precisely the conclusion that the Israeli delegation appears to have taken home from Washington and why last week’s meetings may, in retrospect, have been an important inflection point. Despite all the Biden administration’s best intentions, the risk of war in the Middle East is almost certainly now rising. Biden and his advisors would be wise to take heed.
*John Hannah is a senior fellow at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America and a former national security advisor to Vice President Dick Cheney.

Yemenis should take ownership of the solution for their country
Farouk Yousef/The Arab Weekly/May 07/2021
It was expected that the Libyan solution would inspire other initiatives aimed at putting an end to crises facing many states in the region. Not because these crises are similar to that faced by Libya, as no one crisis resembles the another, but because there is a general matrix that unites all of them, even though we can continue to look at each of them separately. What happened and is still happening in Libya was not the formulation of a purely Libyan solution. What we see instead is the outcome of a collaboration between countries and regional and global powers. The views of these countries and powers have happened to converge to the extent that it became necessary for Libyans to take heed and put an end to a futile struggle that could only end with the annihilation of all belligerents.
This however, is if we assume that a civil war can end without outside intervention.. Turkey’s involvement in Libya could not end what the militias started. It could only complicate matters further. Mercenary contingents were sent by Turkey to fight its war there and to weigh in on the course of the fighting, with all its absurdity. But in a way the Turkish intervention may not have been that bad after all. Were it not for that intervention, which pushed Turkey into the eastern Mediterranean, Europe would not have mustered its forces to end the fundamental problem at the core of the disputes between Turkey and Greece and behind this, the EU countries, especially France and Italy, that have always been actively interested in Libya.
What is at stake here are Libya’s riches and the degree of danger the situation poses to the country’s neighbours, especially Egypt, which has played an assertive role, encouraging the international community to intervene so as to prevent an unnecessary war from erupting. Thus, when the international community intervened in the Libyan crisis with good intent and decisiveness, the Libyans felt that if they did not place their confidence in the solution that had been put on the table, they might end up deep in the bottom of an abyss. This was the feeling of all parties, civilian and military. What became clear through the negotiations that took place in different places is that the war hawks had to retreat. It was understood that Libya would not move on to the new phase of stability and the restoration of a form of national cohesion that enjoys international support, if it does not send the warlords into retirement. That was the condition for Libya to end its wars and become again a normal state, that was recognised by the international community, abiding by the world’s rules and laws. Libya today is on course to a safe harbour, regardless of Turkish manoeuvring. In the final analysis and based on the policies of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey will avoid to be stubborn on a matter that does not infringe upon its security or sovereignty. Libya has reached this stage not because the Libyans wanted and decided it, but because the international community wanted it and imposed it upon them. That is what was expected to happen in Yemen, after Syria had gotten engulfed in Russia’s struggle with the West. The international community has been quite close to imposing a just solution to the Yemen crisis, which had dragged the population to famine, displacement and other manifestations of human catastrophe.
The Houthis are fighting a proxy war, which means that the Yemeni war is not purely a Yemeni war, but rather a regional one. What cannot be overlooked here is that Iran, which became a party to that war, is targeting, through the Houthi front, Western interests in the region. Iran does not hide its responsibility for the continuation of that war, which it considers as part of its endless war against the West. It will be said that the international community is extremely interested in the Yemeni crisis. There is a UN envoy and an American envoy and failed talks in Muscat, and movement on the Iranian and Saudi fronts. All this is true, but the Houthis are not acting as Yemenis who fear that Yemen will descend into the abyss if it is left to be entangled in this conflict without the international community’s help. The Houthis are acting as Iranian proxies in Yemen. That is why they cannot be dealt with easily. Has it become impossible to replicate the global view of the Libyan solution in the case of Yemen because of Iran’s intervention, which is nothing like the Turkish intervention in Libya? Something like that might be true.
However, this hurdle can be overcome through direct negotiations with Iran. This is what Iran desires and is pushing the Houthis, as its surrogates, to achieve. However, that kind of solution will not be Yemeni. The Yemenis will not forgive the international community for putting their country on the Iranian agenda. The Yemenis need a firm global stance rejecting Iranian interference in their country so that the Houthis feel that they are weak and that the borrowed power from Iran will not help them in anything. Houthis need a reset that makes them feel they are Yemenis and nothing else. That is what is necessary to make a Yemeni solution possible.

Turkey’s militarized foreign policy provokes Iraq
Sinem Cengiz/Arab News/May 07/2021
ces, threat perceptions and foreign policymaking institutions have had an important effect on Turkey’s foreign policy pattern. However, the country’s foreign policymaking mechanisms have gone through serious structural changes in the past two decades.
Before the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) came to power in 2002, foreign policy decision-making mechanisms were made up of both high-ranking military generals and diplomats. The National Security Council was the key body in those times. Civilian politicians and elected leaders were not very influential in the decision-making processes, especially concerning national security matters. It was always said that “national security matters are too important to be left to civilian officials.”
With the structural changes carried out by the AKP, however, Turkey’s foreign policymaking became more “civilized” compared to “militarized,” as the monopoly of the military bureaucracy and retired generals was challenged. Since then, almost everyone in Ankara has been able to speak on foreign policy matters and even take part in the process of implementing foreign policy. From the president’s spokesperson to interior minister, many officials other than the foreign minister regularly intervene in the foreign policymaking process.
Up until 2010, Ankara largely pursued soft power tools in its foreign policy, limiting its military force to countering the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) threat. However, since 2016, Turkey’s foreign policy has significantly altered from being soft to hard power-driven, as seen on several fronts. Both domestic and regional factors have driven this militarization. In the domestic realm, this policy strengthens the government’s hand in maintaining public support. In the regional realm, through this policy Ankara aims to recalibrate its position in the regional order, while facing disquieting risks to its stability.
Today, Turkey has its troops deployed in at least nine countries, from Syria to Iraq, Libya to Azerbaijan and Qatar to Somalia, while it also carries out a series of cross-border operations in its immediate neighborhood. However, its increasing reliance on military tools to pursue national security goals has put Ankara at odds with several actors in the region. The latest is Iraq.
Baghdad this week summoned the Turkish envoy to protest the visit of Defense Minister Hulusi Akar to a military base in northern Iraq, as Turkish troops continue their cross-border offensive against the PKK, which uses Iraqi soil to launch attacks on Turkey. The Iraqi Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Monday that it handed the Turkish diplomat “a protest note” over “violations of Iraqi sovereignty” by Akar’s visit to the Turkish facility. Ankara responded that its cross-border operations and bases are not a violation of Iraqi sovereignty but an effort to eliminate the PKK, and it will continue to carry out its operations.
Akar, who visited the Turkish base in northern Iraq on Saturday, was accompanied by Chief of the General Staff Gen. Yasar Guler and Land Forces Commander Umit Dundar. During the visit, Turkish military officials were briefed about the latest offensive, called “Operation Claw Lightning,” in Metina in the northern Iraqi region of Dohuk. A day prior to this visit, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu announced that Turkey would be establishing a new base in Metina, similar to one in northern Syria, and it would be used to surveil and curtail the PKK’s movements between its strategic hiding places in the Qandil Mountains. Speaking to members of the AKP’s executive board, Soylu said: “Metina is an important region. Just as we did in Syria, we will build a base here and monitor the region. This area is a route to Qandil; we will control this route.”
Since 2016, Turkey’s foreign policy has significantly altered from being soft to hard power-driven.
Baghdad has protested against Turkey’s military operations on its soil several times in the past and complained about the growing Turkish military presence within its territory. In the past, Turkish-Iraqi relations were seriously strained by the presence of Turkish troops at the military base in Bashiqa, which Ankara established in 2015. However, the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi seems unlikely to want to increase the tensions with Ankara at the moment due to its own domestic troubles. However, Iran, through its Shiite proxies in Iraq, seems to remain firmly against the growing Turkish military presence at its doorstep. Last month, the Bashiqa base was attacked by rockets likely to have been launched by Iran-backed militiamen. One Turkish soldier lost his life in this attack.
Amid the Turkish operations against the PKK that have caused problems with Iraq, a US delegation headed by Middle East coordinator Brett McGurk met with top Iraqi officials on Tuesday, before visiting northern Iraq on Wednesday. Turkey considers McGurk to be the architect of America’s cooperation with the Syrian wing of the PKK, the People’s Protection Units (YPG), and accuses him of empowering Kurdish terrorism. Thus, while Turkey flexes its muscles against the PKK in the northern regions of Syria and Iraq, McGurk’s visit may encourage the Kurdish militias.
Turkey’s embrace of military tools in its foreign policy agenda is likely to run into local and foreign actors whose aims are to consolidate their power in the region at the expense of a Turkish military presence.
*Sinem Cengiz is a Turkish political analyst who specializes in Turkey’s relations with the Middle East. Twitter: @SinemCngz