English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For  September 07/2020
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news

The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
http://data.eliasbejjaninews.com/eliasnews21/english.september07.21.htm

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

Bible Quotations For today
Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not get back very much more in this age, and in the age to come eternal life.
Saint Luke 18/18-30/:”A certain ruler asked him, ‘Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: “You shall not commit adultery; You shall not murder; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; Honour your father and mother.” ’He replied, ‘I have kept all these since my youth.’When Jesus heard this, he said to him, ‘There is still one thing lacking. Sell all that you own and distribute the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’ But when he heard this, he became sad; for he was very rich. Jesus looked at him and said, ‘How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.’ Those who heard it said, ‘Then who can be saved?’He replied, ‘What is impossible for mortals is possible for God.’Then Peter said, ‘Look, we have left our homes and followed you.’ And he said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not get back very much more in this age, and in the age to come eternal life.”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on September 06-07/2021
Miqati to Meet Aoun Tuesday as French-U.S. Efforts Intensify
Hizbullah to Meet Bassil Prior to 'Serious' Govt. Formation Bid
Report: Paris Says Bassil Not Iran Obstructing Govt. Formation
FPM MP Expects New Govt. in 'Next Few Hours'
Ibrahim to Meet with Aoun after Visiting Miqati
Lebanon Humanitarian Fund Allocates $6 Million to Respond to Fuel Crisis
Damascus positions itself as energy mafia for Lebanon/Seth J. Frantzman/Jerusalem Post/September 06/2021
Aoun: Corrupt System Controls Lebanon
Geagea: Aoun’s Presidency Turned Lebanon into Failed State
Lebanon Ends 'Rupture' with Syria to Get Access to Egyptian Gas
6 Syrian Refugees Arrested in Lebanon at Risk of Deportation

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on September 06-07/2021
Israel’s IDF Chief: We have plans in place for when we decide to attack Iran
France demands Iran answer questions about ‘undeclared nuclear material’
Taliban raise flag over resistance stronghold Panjshir after declaring victory
Panjshir Resistance Leader Calls for 'National Uprising' in Afghanistan
Iran 'Strongly' Condemns Taliban Offensive on Panjshir Valley
Afghans take to the streets protesting against Taliban in support of Ahmad Massoud
Taliban ask former Afghan forces to integrate with group, won’t tolerate ‘insurgency’
Pope responds to Israeli criticism over comments on Jewish law
Jordan to Host Quartet Meeting to Discuss Gas Supplies to Lebanon
Egypt Opens Air Bridge to Help Sudanese Affected by Floods
Israel launches airstrikes against Gaza after incendiary balloon attacks
Police: 6 Palestinians Escape from High-security Israeli Prison
Libyan Minister to Asharq Al-Awsat: Elections Could Be Held in Phases
Son of Gaddafi Freed from Libyan Jail
Canada/Statement on passing of 1,000 days since Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor were arbitrarily detained in China
Algeria senses weakness of its diplomatic corps
New season of Turkish TV series puts ties with UAE at risk
In reward to Macron, Iraq signs $27 billion deal with TotalEnergies

Titles For The Latest The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on September 06-07/2021
Erdogan's Plans for the Future of Afghanistan: China, Russia and Terrorists/Burak Bekdil/Gatestone Institute/September 06/2021
Taliban lies will build a generation of Afghan women becoming second-class citizens/Amal al-Breiki/Al Arabiya/September 06/2021
Iraq’s Assyrian Christians, Yazidis face extinction if Biden pulls US troops out/Abraham Cooper/Al Arabiya/September 06/2021

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on September 06-07/2021
Miqati to Meet Aoun Tuesday as French-U.S. Efforts Intensify
Naharnet/September 06/2021 
A meeting Tuesday between President Michel Aoun and PM-designate Najib Miqati might be the last chance to form a new government, a media report said.
“Miqati will visit the President tomorrow carrying a new line-up. But if no pre-visit agreement was reached for the issue of the economy portfolio and if Miqati does not drop his new demand for getting the energy portfolio, tomorrow will be the date of plunging into the unknown, and it is not known whether Miqati’s next step would be resignation,” informed sources told al-Akhbar newspaper in remarks published Monday. MP Jamil al-Sayyed meanwhile announced that Washington made high-level contacts with Aoun and Miqati over the past 24 hours to press for the formation of the new government as soon as possible. “This was accompanied by an intensive French endeavor that resulted in a near-final agreement on a government comprised of eight ministers for each camp,” al-Akhbar added.

Hizbullah to Meet Bassil Prior to 'Serious' Govt. Formation Bid
Naharnet/September 06/2021 
A Hizbullah delegation will meet with Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil on Monday to inform him that “there is a decisive inclination” to form a new government, al-Liwaa newspaper said. The daily added that a “serious attempt” to achieve a breakthrough in the formation efforts is expected on Tuesday, when PM-designate Najib Miqati will meet with President Michel Aoun.There will be efforts to “convince President Aoun that he does not have the right to obtain the economy portfolio alongside the energy and social affairs portfolios,” al-Liwaa said.

Report: Paris Says Bassil Not Iran Obstructing Govt. Formation
Naharnet/September 06/2021   
Iran is not obstructing the formation of the new government in Lebanon, a senior French source has said, hours after phone talks between the French and Iranian presidents. “Paris is convinced that Iran is not impeding the government’s formation and there are no Iranian demands regarding the government. The one who is obstructing it is (Free Patriotic Movement chief) Jebran Bassil, who wants everything for himself,” the source told Annahar newspaper in remarks published Monday. “Paris is asking Hizbullah to press its Aounist allies, but the party does not want a dispute with them,” the source added. The source also said that France is “constantly” telling PM-designate Najib Miqati to form the government, noting that the latter was not selected by Paris for the post. Pointing out that France is “not advising” Miqati not to step down, the source said that Paris is, however, pressing the PM-designate to speed up the government’s formation.

FPM MP Expects New Govt. in 'Next Few Hours'
Naharnet/September 06/2021 
The general atmosphere is “positive” and the new government is supposed to be formed in the “next few hours,” a Free Patriotic Movement lawmaker said on Monday. “To us, there are no longer obstacles that prevent the government’s formation and most hurdles have been resolved,” MP Eddie Maalouf told al-Jadeed TV, noting that “it is not true that the positive atmosphere is fake.”Denying that President Michel Aoun and the FPM have been seeking a so-called blocking one-third share, Maalouf said political rivals had “invented that to refrain from forming the government.”Maalouf added that FPM chief Jebran Bassil has not engaged in any government formation negotiations, denying media reports about an expected visit by a Hizbullah delegation to Bassil. The lawmaker also said that the FPM-led Strong Lebanon bloc will decide whether or not to grant the government its confidence “based on its program,” adding that his bloc “has many choices should the government not be formed, one of which would be resignation from parliament.”

Ibrahim to Meet with Aoun after Visiting Miqati
Naharnet/September 06/2021 
General Security chief Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim has visited Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati to proceed with the discussion regarding the distribution of the ministerial portfolios, media reports said. Informed sources told al-Joumhouria newspaper that Ibrahim will also meet with President Michel Aoun today, Monday, to inform him of the outcome of his meeting with Miqati and “to suggest some ideas” that might help in the government formation process. The sources also said that contacts have been made “away from the media,” without revealing the identity of the participants. Other sources also reported to the newspaper that “work is being done in complete secrecy” and that “its results will be seen in the coming days.”The sources also advised against making "hasty conclusions,” claiming that “things are going as they should.”

Lebanon Humanitarian Fund Allocates $6 Million to Respond to Fuel Crisis
Naharnet/September 06/2021
The United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon, Najat Rochdi, has announced a US$6 million allocation from the Lebanon Humanitarian Fund (LHF) to ensure the continuation of critical health care services affected by the ongoing fuel crisis in the country.
This will complement a $4 million allocation from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) in support of water services as announced last week by the Emergency Relief Coordinator. The announcement comes as severe electricity and fuel shortages have been affecting Lebanon, threatening essential services such as health care and water provision, and putting 100,000 families on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe. The new LHF reserve allocation aims to facilitate access to fuel for critical life saving health service providers, including 246 Primary Health Care centers, 554 dispensaries and 65 hospitals, to continue to operate over the next three months. A central warehouse and distribution sites at district level used to maintain cold chain and safe storage of essential health commodities, such as vaccines and other temperature-sensitive critical medicines, will also be supported. The fuel will be directly distributed to the facilities. "The ongoing fuel crisis has brought additional hardship to the vulnerable populations who have already been suffering from the severe consequences of the compounded crises in the country. With generous contributions from the donors, and as a complement to the CERF allocation, the LHF will provide exceptional time-bound humanitarian support to ensure continuation of critical health services in the country for a maximum of three months, said Najat Rochdi, the Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon. “The intervention is a one-off emergency support, which will not be extended beyond a maximum duration of three months. The responsibility to ensure uninterrupted provision of basic services including health care and water delivery remains with the Government of Lebanon. All efforts should be expanded to implement sustainable solutions to the on-going energy crisis the earliest possible,” Rochdi added.
The LHF-supported interventions are part of the 2021-2022 Emergency Response Plan for Lebanon (ERP) -- a time-bound humanitarian plan aiming to address the immediate humanitarian needs of the most vulnerable populations affected by the ongoing crisis. The LHF is a Country-based Pooled Fund led by the Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon and managed by OCHA. Initiated in 2014, the Fund supports the strategic delivery of timely, accountable and effective humanitarian assistance to the most vulnerable people in Lebanon. The LHF allocation complements a $4 million allocation from the CERF, which was announced by the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Martin Griffiths, during his visit to Lebanon on 31 August 2021. The CERF funding aims to facilitate access to fuel for water establishments servicing 2.3 million people across Lebanon.

Damascus positions itself as energy mafia for Lebanon
Seth J. Frantzman/Jerusalem Post/September 06/2021
Move by Syrian regime and Lebanon could gain legitimacy for Damascus as it could try to get around US sanctions and move closer to Arab states.
Every good mafia don knows that the way to achieve more profit and power is to position oneself between things that people want and semi-legal services that a mafia can provide while corrupting institutions and law enforcers to allow the service to continue.
This may involve gambling or corrupting unions or moving drugs in a traditional mafia setting, but in a state setting, it can also mean putting a totalitarian regime state seeking legitimacy and profits astride the energy needs of another neighboring state. It seems the Assad family in Syria, which has plenty of mafia-like characteristics and mafia-like friends in Iran and Hezbollah, is now doing this to Lebanon’s energy sector.
A senior Lebanese delegation went to Syria last week with the intention of trying to get Syria to be a conduit for electricity and natural gas. This would help ease Lebanon’s fuel crises and the financial disaster that Lebanon is now living with. According to the reports, sending the delegation was an attempt to repair relations between Lebanon and Syria. This is mostly a false narrative because Hezbollah, which effectively controls Lebanon, is an ally of the Syrian regime and of Iran and Iran is an ally of the Syrian regime. Hezbollah sent many fighters to support Bashar al-Assad’s regime during the war and Hezbollah conducts Lebanese foreign policy on some issues, and insofar as it does, Lebanon and Syria are allies.It is true that Syria occupied Lebanon for decades, withdrawing only after Hezbollah assassinated former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri in 2005. For a short period, it seemed that those opposed to Hezbollah and Syria might come to power under an alliance led by Saad Hariri, son of Rafic. To prevent this, Hezbollah launched a war against Israel in 2006 and then engineered a dispute with Hariri and his allies in 2008 over Hezbollah’s demand to have its own communications network to support its state-within-a-state.
Fast forward to 2021. Lebanon is in a financial crisis. Most of the country is now on the verge of poverty. The country is billions in debt. Dangerous ammonium nitrate, stockpiled at the port, likely by Hezbollah, blew up last year and destroyed part of Beirut, killing over 200 people. Hezbollah holds the government hostage, has an ally in the president and has prevented a new Prime Minister from being appointed, much as it prevented a president from being appointed for years. This is the Hezbollah model: Hollow out Lebanon, turn it into a province within "Hezbollahstan," and then use it as a conduit for cash and corruption and weapons.
It is true that Syria occupied Lebanon for decades, withdrawing only after Hezbollah assassinated former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri in 2005. For a short period, it seemed that those opposed to Hezbollah and Syria might come to power under an alliance led by Saad Hariri, son of Rafic. To prevent this, Hezbollah launched a war against Israel in 2006 and then engineered a dispute with Hariri and his allies in 2008 over Hezbollah’s demand to have its own communications network to support its state-within-a-state.
Fast forward to 2021. Lebanon is in a financial crisis. Most of the country is now on the verge of poverty. The country is billions in debt. Dangerous ammonium nitrate, stockpiled at the port, likely by Hezbollah, blew up last year and destroyed part of Beirut, killing over 200 people. Hezbollah holds the government hostage, has an ally in the president and has prevented a new Prime Minister from being appointed, much as it prevented a president from being appointed for years. This is the Hezbollah model: Hollow out Lebanon, turn it into a province within "Hezbollahstan," and then use it as a conduit for cash and corruption and weapons.
As Lebanon has sunk deeper into the swamp of Hezbollah’s grasp, it has become poor and more lawless. Now the question is whether it can have basic things, like gasoline at the pump, or electricity. Once a wealthy, prosperous and open-minded country, Lebanon is slouching toward neverending disaster.
Enter the Syrian mafia state. When your neighbor is in distress the natural thing for the mafia to do is to offer its support but in return for a favor. In this case, Lebanon’s delegation went to Damascus with the caretaker Defense Minister and acting Foreign Minister Zeina Akar, to ask Syria to enable Egyptian natural gas to enter from Jordan. It’s an offer that Syria would like because it makes Syria a broker for Lebanon, it gives Damascus legitimacy and leverage. Magically, it transforms Damascus from a pariah, to “helping” Lebanon solve its crisis. Damascus rides to the rescue, and Syria’s regime has wanted this opportunity for years.
“The Lebanese side asked Syria’s help in facilitating the transfer of Egyptian natural gas and Jordanian electricity through Syrian territories. The Syrian side welcomed the request,” said Nasri Khoury, the head of Damascus-based Syrian Lebanese Higher Council, a government-linked body for bilateral relations. He spoke following a two-and-a-half-hour meeting in Damascus, according to the AP.
Now, the important part. “The meeting is also a test for US sanctions against Iran and Syria, as Lebanon seeks to use Syrian pipelines and Iranian fuel through Syrian ports to tackle its power crisis,” the AP report noted. This means that the real incentive for Syria is that it can escape sanctions. Iran has been shipping fuel to Syria this month as well, hoping to offload it in Syria and transport it to Hezbollah. A US Senate delegation that recently visited Lebanon warned against the Iranian fuel shipments.
According to a Reuters report, “the United States has been in talks with Egypt and Jordan over a plan to ease Lebanon's power crisis. The Lebanese presidency has said it involves using Egyptian gas to generate power in Jordan that would be transmitted via Syria, which is under US sanctions including the so-called Caesar act.”
That means that Syria is basically saying to the US that either it will facilitate Iranian gasoline going to Lebanon or seek US support to go against America’s own sanctions, to enable Syria to bring in gas and electricity from Jordan and Egypt, empowering the Syrian regime as it becomes the new boss of Lebanon’s electric and gas needs. This is a brilliant maneuver for Syria. Egypt has been hinting it wants to bring Syria back into the fold. In addition, the Gulf states, Jordan and Iraq want a stable Syria and have also put out feelers to increase Damascus’ role in the Arab league and welcome it back into the Arab camp. The point is that the Syrian regime was sidelined by the war and many countries even worked with rebel groups.
Today, there is no appetite for more Syrian rebels. Countries want regimes and stability. No one wants the extremism of power vacumes. But Syria’s regime, backed by Russia and Iran wants things too. It wants trade, legitimacy and cash. It knows that relying on Iran is like a poor man relying on another pauper. Iran is under sanctions too. Syria wants the legitimacy that comes with brokering a deal with Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon with quiet or tacit US support. This is the magic wand around US sanctions. And Iranian gas can flow as well to help Hezbollah. Everyone wins, in the Syrian regime view. Hezbollah wins. Iran wins. Egypt and Jordan can also get things. Iraq may win as well, as trucks from Iran transit Iraq to Albukamal.
A hidden aside to this may be why Russia brokered the deal in Dara’a that ended months of fighting and saw 50,000 people displaced. Now Dara’a is quiet. The short-lived rebellion there, the first since the regime retook the area in 2018, was a threat to Damascus and its image. Now, with Russia as a broker again in southern Syria, gas and energy can transit from Jordan. Big money and influence may be at stake.
Regional media sense that something is afoot. Al-Jarida in Kuwait noted that this was the first Lebanese visit of this kind since 2011. “This visit, the first since 2011, has two objectives; The first is technical-economic research related to the import of Egyptian gas and Jordanian electricity through Syrian territory. The second is political, giving victory to Hezbollah and an opportunity for President Michel Aoun to strengthen his political position, based on his relationship and his openness to Syria.”
Al-Alam in Iran noted that “after the Syrian-Lebanese talks session at the Syrian Foreign Ministry building, Majdi al-Khoury said: ‘The Lebanese side requested the possibility of Syria's assistance to Lebanon in passing Egyptian gas and Jordanian electricity through Syrian territory. The Syrian side welcomed the request and confirmed Syria's readiness to meet that.’”

Aoun: Corrupt System Controls Lebanon
Asharq Al Awsat/September 06/2021
Lebanese President Michel Aoun continued on Sunday his verbal campaign against what he calls the corrupt system, which he said controls the country and fears accountability. “Failure of every plan for financial and economic recovery means one thing, which is that the corrupt system that still controls the country and the people fears accountability,” he said during a meeting with a youth delegation at the Baabda Palace. Aoun explained that a recovery plan stems from three main pillars: identifying losses, defining responsibilities and accountability, and determining treatment methods.
He added that the failure to determine the financial losses and their distribution between the central bank, banks and the state led to two serious matters: First, ignoring those responsible for the financial ruin of the country and second, holding the Lebanese people solely responsible for the financial collapse, and depleting their deposits. “The people must know who is humiliating them on a daily basis as they try to obtain their most basic rights and who is preventing them from freely accessing their money at banks,” Aoun said. He added that every popular revolution must aim to identify and distribute losses, define responsibilities, hold officials accountable, and find solutions and identify those who caused the financial disaster. The people alone should not be held responsible for the crisis, he urged.

Geagea: Aoun’s Presidency Turned Lebanon into Failed State
Beirut, Tehran, London/Asharq Al Awsat/September 06/2021
Lebanese Force leader Samir Geagea slammed on Sunday President Michel Aoun, saying his term was catastrophic for Lebanon. “His term is that of complete collapse that is being managed by ruling groups that have surrendered authority and state sovereignty,” he added during an address commemorating LF martyrs. “They have turned Lebanon into a failed state that is ruled by the corrupt, failures, thieves, traitors and criminals,” he stressed. “There can be no salvation and progress with this ruling class, whose strong foundation is the Hezbollah and Free Patriotic Movement,” he added. The FPM was founded by Aoun and is now headed by his son-in-law Gebran Bassil. “Aoun’s presidency has been very catastrophic for all Lebanese, especially the Christians,” remarked Geagea. He acknowledged the criticism against the LF that had reached an agreement with the FPM in 2016 that ensured Aoun’s election as president.
“We extremely regret that a move that was full of good intentions would backfire,” he said. The Maarab agreement, he stressed, had national and Christian intentions. It sought to end the presidential vacuum, achieve national unity and mend historic wounds. “Unfortunately, the deal turned into an unprecedented tragedy for Lebanon,” lamented Geagea. “Lebanon is in need of a captain, who can steer the state ship towards safety, not a pirate, who has taken the people hostage to his selfishness and is steering the ship according to his interests.”Separately, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi informed his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Sunday that Tehran supports the formation of a strong Lebanese government. In telephone talks with Macron, he said Iran was prepared to cooperate with France to that end. The formation of a strong government “may ensure and protect the rights of the Lebanese people,” he was quoted as saying by Iranian media. “We are ready to work with France towards Lebanon and its development,” he stressed, adding that Iran, France and Hezbollah’s efforts to form a strong government “fall in Lebanon’s favor.”

Lebanon Ends 'Rupture' with Syria to Get Access to Egyptian Gas
Beirut - Nazir Rida/Asharq Al Awsat/September 06/2021
The Lebanese government ended on Saturday a rupture in official relations with Syria, with a high-ranking ministerial delegation visiting Damascus and holding talks to obtain its approval to allow the entry of gas and electric energy from Egypt and Jordan through Syrian territories.
Lebanon’s deputy Prime Minister, Zeina Akar, led the first official government visit to Syria since the outbreak of the conflict there, as Lebanon had officially followed the principle of “disassociation,” amid major divisions between the political forces over the relationship with Damascus and Hezbollah’s participation in the fighting alongside the Syrian regime forces. Two weeks after the announcement of the Lebanese presidency of Washington’s approval to help Lebanon import electric energy and gas from Egypt and Jordan, through Syria, the Lebanese delegation headed to Damascus to meet with Foreign Minister Faisal Miqdad and Minister of Oil Bassam Tohme.
In a press conference following the meeting, the Secretary-General of the Lebanese-Syrian Higher Council, Nasri Khoury, said: “The Lebanese side demanded Syria’s assistance to Lebanon in obtaining Egyptian gas and Jordanian electricity through Syrian territory. The Syrian side affirmed Syria’s readiness to meet that request.”The two sides agreed to follow up on technical matters through a joint technical team. Tohme told reporters that the goal of the joint team was to determine the “readiness and safety of the infrastructure,” which suffered “significant damage” during the conflict. Following the acute fuel crisis in Lebanon, the US effort led to an initiative to draw electrical energy from Jordan through Syria, by providing quantities of Egyptian gas to Jordan, enabling it to produce additional quantities of electricity to be placed on the grid linking Jordan with Lebanon via Syria. The initiative also provides for facilitating the transport of Egyptian gas through Jordan and Syria, to reach northern Lebanon. A similar agreement allows Egyptian gas to reach Lebanon to operate gas-fired power stations, which have been out of service for 11 years. The Arab Gas Pipeline extends by land from Egypt to Syria and Lebanon via Jordan, and crosses from the Homs region in central Syria, all the way to Deir Ammar in northern Lebanon.

6 Syrian Refugees Arrested in Lebanon at Risk of Deportation
Associated Press/September 06/2021
Lawyers of six Syrian refugees arrested in Lebanon said on Sunday that the country's security services have given them a 24-hour ultimatum — either leave Lebanon to a third country or be deported to Syria, the war-ravaged country they fled. Lawyer Mohammed Sablouh said the move is highly unusual, is a violation of Lebanon's international obligations and laws, and seriously endangers the men's lives. The authorities "know very well that since the (men) were arrested outside the embassy, they are therefore wanted by the Syrian regime, and there is a really high probability they would be tortured or in grave danger," Sablouh told The Associated Press. "This is a violation of the anti-torture convention and Lebanese laws."There was no immediate comment from Lebanese security, and it is not immediately clear who is responsible for the decision that came 10 days after the men's arrest, and without a court ruling. The threat of deportation is particularly concerning given that violence has recently resumed in the hometown of most of the arrested Syrians. Five of the men are from the southern province of Daraa, where clashes have recently erupted between government and allied forces and opposition gunmen, wrecking a three-year old Russian-negotiated truce. According to Lebanese law, the men should be put on trial, and could be either sentenced to prison or sent home after serving their sentences. Lebanon is home to over 1 million Syrian refugees, who now make up more than a quarter of the population.
In Spring of 2019, Lebanon's Higher Defense Council, a government body in charge of national security and headed by the President, decided to deport refugees who entered Lebanon "illegally" after April 2019 — a clear violation of international laws. Amnesty International said since then and up until August of the same year, nearly 2,500 Syrians were forcibly deported back to Syria. Deportations slowed down during the pandemic restrictions of 2020, according to local monitors.
Sablouh said the lawyers will appeal to prosecutors on Monday for an immediate stay of the order. The men were arrested in the last week of August, first by the Lebanese army, for entering the country illegally. They were picked up outside the Syrian embassy where they were to be issued passports.
Four days later, they were transferred to the custody of general security. On Thursday, Amnesty International urged authorities against deporting the men, saying it would endanger their lives and calling for their release, or sending them to trial. "Arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance and torture remain rife in Syria, and armed hostilities in some parts of the country have intensified significantly," said Lynn Maalouf, regional deputy director for Amnesty International. "No part of Syria is safe for returns and these men must be protected." The ultimatum was made by telephone to lawyer Jihad Deeb, who represents five of the six men, on Sunday — a weekend day making the ultimatum even more impossible to meet. Meanwhile, the passports of the men were still with the Syrian embassy. The caller said the men have 24 hours to produce passports and visas to a third country, or they will be deported. Deeb said three of the men were members of the opposition in Daraa, who had reached a settlement with the Syrian government there, but escaped nearly three weeks ago when they were asked to fight against other opposition members. "They told me: "Ustaz (Mr.), please let them sentence us to death in Lebanon, but not send us back to the Syrian regime," Deeb said.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on September 06-07/2021
Israel’s IDF Chief: We have plans in place for when we decide to attack Iran
Tuqa Khalid, Al Arabiya English/06 September ,2021
Israel has put more extensive plans in place for when it decides to “attack” Iran, Defense Force Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi said on Monday. “We have greatly accelerated our preparations for activities in Iran,” Kochavi told Israeli news site Walla, adding that a considerable increase in the budget has been allocated to that purpose, with more intelligence and operational capabilities assigned. Israel views long time foe Iran as an existential threat. Tensions between the two has heightened after a slew of tanker attacks, sabotage operations and assassinations. He added that Israel was ramping up its operations to stem Iran’s influence in Syria specifically. “The main goal is to reduce Iran’s presence in the Middle East with an emphasis on Syria and elsewhere. Those operations are taking place all over the Middle East, against Hamas [in Palestine], against Hezbollah [in Lebanon],” Kochavi said. Iran has long been accused of fanning the flames of violence in the Middle East through its network of Shia proxies in the region, specifically in Iraq, Lebanon, and Yemen. Hezbollah and Hamas have long enjoyed financial and military support from Tehran. Israeli defense officials assess Iran spends nearly $1 billion annually on Hezbollah, and $100 million on Hamas.

France demands Iran answer questions about ‘undeclared nuclear material’
Tuqa Khalid, Al Arabiya English/06 September ,2021
France demanded Iran provide a full explanation about the presence of “undeclared nuclear material” in the country, the foreign ministry said on Monday. “Iran must immediately provide the necessary full and technically credible explanations to the questions the Agency is asking about the presence of undeclared nuclear material in Iran,” a ministry spokesman said. “We call on Iran to confirm to the International Atomic Energy Agency the continued implementation of temporary measures under the technical understanding reached between them. Any interruption would compromise the IAEA’s knowledge of Iran’s nuclear activities. Iran must immediately resume full cooperation with the IAEA,” the official added. The IAEA had said in a report last month that Iran increased the purity of its refined uranium from 20 percent to 60 percent in April. Uranium can be used to make the core of a nuclear bomb. Weapons grade uranium is approximately at 90 percent purity. The move to enrich uranium to higher purity is a violation of the 2015 nuclear deal, which set a maximum limit of uranium purity enrichment at 3.67 percent. Nuclear negotiations between Iran and the US and its Western allies have stalled under the presidency of Ebrahim Raisi who was sworn in last month. The hardline president said on Saturday Iran was ready to hold talks regarding reviving the nuclear deal but not “under pressure” and with the ultimate goal of sanctions on his country being lifted.

Taliban raise flag over resistance stronghold Panjshir after declaring victory
Tuqa Khalid, Al Arabiya English/06 September ,2021
The Taliban raised the group’s flag outside the Governor's office in the Annaba district of Panjshir, home of the resistance movement, after declaring the province has been captured. Panjshir was the last part of Afghanistan where the Taliban didn’t have complete control. It was also home to the anti-Taliban movement the National Resistance Front (NRF) which mobilized under the leadership of Ahmad Massoud, the slain hero of the anti-Soviet resistance Ahmad Shah Massoud. After several days of intense fighting and heavy casualties on both sides, the Taliban declared victory on Monday, while the resistance denied defeat. Massoud released an audio message in which he called for a “national uprising.”He accused the Taliban of using “foreign mercenaries” and promised that the NRF will continue to fight. “We request other brothers and sisters, wherever you are and with whatever means you are capable, to rise up and resist against the imposition of a servile and subjugated future in Afghanistan,” Massoud said. He said the Taliban have “grown more vicious, more cruel, more fundamentalist and more discriminatory.”A day earlier, Massoud had heeded a call by religious clerics to end the fighting and said he was ready to talk to the Taliban about a ceasefire, given that the group withdraw from Panjshir. In his audio message, he accused the Taliban of discarding that resolution to end hostilities.

Panjshir Resistance Leader Calls for 'National Uprising' in Afghanistan
Agence France Press/06 September ,2021
The leader of the resistance movement in Afghanistan's Panjshir Valley on Monday called for a "national uprising" against the Taliban. In an audio message sent to media, National Resistance Front commander Ahmad Massoud said: "Wherever you are, inside or outside, I call on you to begin a national uprising for the dignity, freedom and prosperity of our country."

Iran 'Strongly' Condemns Taliban Offensive on Panjshir Valley
Agence France Presse/06 September ,2021
Iran on Monday "strongly" condemned the Taliban's military offensive against holdout fighters in Afghanistan's Panjshir Valley, as the Islamist group claimed it had taken control of the area. "The news coming from Panjshir is truly worrying," Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh told reporters. "The assault is strongly condemned." Iran, the region's dominant Muslim Shiite power, had until now refrained from criticizing the Taliban since the Sunni group seized Kabul on August 15. The Taliban on Monday claimed victory in the mountainous Panjshir area, with a spokesman declaring "our country is completely taken out of the quagmire of war", three weeks after the Islamists captured the capital. But the National Resistance Front (NRF) -- made up of anti-Taliban militia and former Afghan security forces -- said its fighters were still present in "strategic positions" across the valley, and that they were continuing the struggle. "On the question of Panjshir, I have insisted on the fact that it be resolved by dialogue in the presence of all the Afghan elders," Khatibzadeh said. "The Taliban must equally respect their obligations in terms of international law, and their commitments," he added, affirming that "Iran will work to put an end to all the suffering of the Afghan people in favor of establishing a representative government for all Afghans". Alluding to Pakistan, Khatibzadeh said Iran condemned "all foreign interference" in Afghan affairs. "We would like to inform our friends, and those who might make the strategic error of entering Afghanistan with different intentions, that Afghanistan is not a country which accepts the enemy (or) the aggressor" on its soil, Iran's foreign ministry spokesman added. Iran, which shares a 900 kilometer border with Afghanistan, did not recognize the Taliban during their 1996 to 2001 stint in power. Already host to nearly 3.5 million Afghans, and fearing a new influx, Tehran has however sought to sketch a rapprochement with the Taliban since their lightning seizure of Kabul amid the US withdrawal last month.

Afghans take to the streets protesting against Taliban in support of Ahmad Massoud
Tuqa Khalid, Al Arabiya English/07 September ,2021
Hundreds of Afghans took to the streets in the capital Kabul and Mazar-i-Sharif city Monday night protesting against Taliban rule in support of the resistance movement led by Ahmad Massoud. Videos on social media showed crowds chanting “death to Taliban, long live Afghanistan” as people marched in the dark streets. Earlier in the day, the Taliban had announced it had captured Panjshir province, the last stronghold of the anti-Taliban movement, the National Resistance Front (NRF), which mobilized under the leadership of Ahmad Massoud, the slain hero of the anti-Soviet resistance Ahmad Shah Massoud. After which, Massoud released an audio message in which he called for a “national uprising.”“We request other brothers and sisters, wherever you are and with whatever means you are capable, to rise up and resist against the imposition of a servile and subjugated future in Afghanistan,” Massoud said. In his audio message, Massoud accused the Taliban of using “foreign mercenaries”, without naming a specific country. The chants by the protesters also included “death to Pakistan.”The US has long accused Pakistan of supporting the Taliban; a charge Islamabad denies. Pakistan's spy chief Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed flew into Kabul on Saturday. It was not clear what his agenda was, but a senior official in Pakistan said earlier in the week that Hameed, who heads the powerful Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency, could help the Taliban reorganize the Afghan military.Regional media reports, citing anonymous sources, said that Pakistan provided air support for the Taliban in their strikes against the resistance fighters in Panjshir.

Taliban ask former Afghan forces to integrate with group, won’t tolerate ‘insurgency’
AFP/06 September ,2021
The Taliban on Monday called on former members of the Afghan forces to integrate with the new hardline rulers. “The Afghan forces who were trained in the past 20 years will be asked to rejoin the security departments alongside Taliban members,” spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told a press conference in the capital Kabul. The spokesman added that any insurgency against their rule would be “hit hard”, after earlier saying they had captured the Panjshir Valley -- the last pocket of resistance. “The [Taliban] is very sensitive about insurgencies. Anyone who tries to start an insurgency will be hit hard. We will not allow another,” Mujahid said. “Anyone who picks up arms and start another resistance, without any doubts, will be our enemy.” “The war has ended, the country is getting out of the crisis. It is now time for peace and reconstruction. We need the people to support us.”Three weeks after seizing power but with no government so far announced, the spokesman said an “interim” system would first be announced to allow for changes. “Final decisions have been taken, we are now working on the technical issues,” he said. “We will announce the new government as soon as the technical issues are resolved.” A key issue for the Taliban is the reopening of the airport in Kabul, which was the scene of a massive US-led evacuation plan that ended last week. Qatar has been working with the Taliban on getting the airport back up and running, and Mujahid said “serious efforts” were under way to restore operations. “Technical teams from Qatar, Turkey and UAE are working hard to repair the equipment,” he said, adding international flights would resume “soon”. Since their sweep to power last month, the Taliban have been met with widespread condemnation from the international community, with many fearing the government will be similar to the brutal regime of 1996 to 2001 when they were first in power. Mujahid told the journalists at the press conference that “Afghanistan has the right to be recognized”. “The international community should open their embassies in Kabul,” he said.

Pope responds to Israeli criticism over comments on Jewish law
Reuters/September 06/2021
For his part, the pope appeared to go out of his way in his last two public appearances to try to clear up what the Vatican considers a misunderstanding.
Pope Francis has moved to allay Jewish concerns over comments he made about their books of sacred law, following a demand for clarification from Israel's top rabbis, Vatican and Jewish community sources said on Monday. Last month Reuters reported exclusively that Rabbi Rasson Arousi, chair of the Commission of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel for Dialogue with the Holy See, had written a stern letter to the Vatican, saying Francis' comments appeared to suggest that the Torah, or Jewish law, was obsolete. At a general audience on Aug. 11, the pope said: "The law (Torah) however does not give life.""It does not offer the fulfillment of the promise because it is not capable of being able to fulfill it... Those who seek life need to look to the promise and to its fulfillment in Christ." The Torah, the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, contains hundreds of commandments for Jews to follow in their everyday lives. The measure of adherence to the wide array of guidelines differs between Orthodox Jews and Reform Jews. Arousi sent his letter on behalf of the Chief Rabbinate - the supreme rabbinic authority for Judaism in Israel - to Cardinal Kurt Koch, whose Vatican department includes a commission for religious relations with Jews.
In the letter Arousi asked Koch to "convey our distress to Pope Francis" and asked for a clarification from the pope to "ensure that any derogatory conclusions drawn from this homily are clearly repudiated."
RECONCILIATION
Francis then asked Koch to explain that his words on the Torah reflecting on the writings of St. Paul in the New Testament should not be taken as a judgment on Jewish law, the sources said. Last week Koch sent a letter to Arousi containing a quote made by Pope Francis in 2015: "The Christian confessions find their unity in Christ; Judaism finds its unity in the Torah." Jewish sources said they saw the Vatican letter as a sign of reconciliation. For his part, the pope appeared to go out of his way in his last two public appearances to try to clear up what the Vatican considers a misunderstanding.At a general audience on Sept 1, Francis said his words on St. Paul's writings were "simply a catechesis (teaching homily) ... and nothing else."At his weekly blessing on Sunday, he offered best wishes to Jews for the upcoming Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, and for the subsequent holidays of Yom Kippur and Sukkot.
"May the new year be rich with fruits of peace, and good for those who walk faithfully in the law of the Lord," he said. Both Jewish and Vatican sources said the inclusion of the word "law" in what are normally routine greetings was significant and intentional. Relations between Catholics and Jews were revolutionized in 1965, when the Second Vatican Council repudiated the concept of collective Jewish guilt for the death of Jesus and began decades of inter-religious dialog. Francis and his two predecessors visited synagogues.Francis has had a very good relationship with Jews. While still archbishop in native Buenos Aires, he co-wrote a book with one of the city's rabbis, Abraham Skorka, and has maintained a lasting friendship with him.

Jordan to Host Quartet Meeting to Discuss Gas Supplies to Lebanon
Asharq Al Awsat/September 06/2021
Jordan will host a meeting of Egypt, Syria, and Lebanon’s energy ministers on Wednesday to discuss the transit of Egyptian gas to Lebanon for electricity generation. Observers said that Amman succeeded in lifting the siege imposed on Syria in response to the energy crisis in Lebanon amid a surplus of electrical energy production in Jordan. The infrastructure is almost ready for the transit of Egyptian gas from Jordan and Syria to Lebanon. Damascus announced its approval of Beirut’s request to help pass Egyptian gas and Jordanian electricity through its territory and confirmed its readiness to help with transit for Egyptian gas and Jordanian electricity, the Syrian Arabian News Agency (SANA) reported Saturday. Jordanian King Abdullah II discussed the Lebanese energy issues during his meetings with US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin in the past two months. The monarch received in Amman a Lebanese delegation headed by deputy Prime Minister and acting Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants Zeina Akar. Top political sources told Asharq Al-Awsat there were also unannounced meetings at the royal palace with Lebanese political leaders.
King Abdullah is seeking to support Lebanon’s state institutions and army to maintain its security, stability and unity and ensure the speedy provision of its energy needs. Amman is willing to supply Lebanon with Egyptian gas and Jordanian electricity. However, according to Jordanian sources, the electricity transmission networks require months to be prepared and will need immediate support to protect power stations inside Syria. On Saturday, a Lebanese ministerial delegation visited Damascus for the first time since the outbreak of the conflict in 2011 to discuss gas and energy transit through Syria. Last month, the Lebanese presidency announced that Washington has agreed to help Lebanon secure electricity and natural gas from Egypt and Jordan through Syria. This means that the US is willing to waive sanctions that prohibit any official transactions with the Syrian government that have hampered Lebanon’s previous attempts to secure gas from Egypt. Lebanon is suffering major fuel shortages, which have impacted various sectors, including hospitals, in light of an economic crisis described by the World Bank as one of the worst in modern times.

Egypt Opens Air Bridge to Help Sudanese Affected by Floods
Asharq Al Awsat/September 06/2021
Two military cargo aircraft carrying humanitarian aid arrived at Khartoum International Airport from Egypt to support Sudanese affected by floods. Minister of Social Development Ahmed Adam Bakheet told the press that the two aircraft will be followed by seven others. Bakheet added that Sudan received Egyptian aid during the pandemic and the floods last year, noting the historic stances of the Egyptian leadership and people towards Sudan. He announced that more aid will arrive by Thursday. The minister further appreciated the support shown by the Egyptians, the leadership, and President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. According to Bakheet, this would reinforce the historic bilateral ties. Egypt's ambassador to Khartoum Hossam Issa said that the two aircraft carried medicine and aid to those affected by the floods. The shipments also include tents and medical equipment, he pointed out. Issa said this falls under the full cooperation between the Sudanese and Egyptian institutions in dealing with flood victims.

Israel launches airstrikes against Gaza after incendiary balloon attacks
AFP/September 6/2021
Israel launched airstrikes against Gaza on Monday night, the army said, retaliating after incendiary balloons launched from the blockaded Palestinian enclave had started fires. Blaming Hamas for the balloons, the Israeli army said it had targeted locations belonging to the group that controls the Gaza Strip.
“Overnight, IDF fighter jets struck a Hamas rocket manufacturing workshop, as well as a Hamas military compound in Khan Yunis,” the Israeli army said in a statement. “The strikes were in response to Hamas launching incendiary balloons into Israeli territory,” the statement added. Witnesses said that the army had also fired artillery at the north of Gaza. According to medical sources in the Palestinian enclave, no one was killed. Earlier in the day, Israeli firefighters had said that incendiary balloons had caused three bushfires at sites close to the Gaza Strip. Launching the makeshift devices is a common tactic of Hamas members in Gaza, which Israel has blockaded for nearly 15 years. Israel frequently responds with airstrikes. Monday's strikes come after six Palestinians broke out of an Israeli prison earlier in the day through a tunnel, triggering a massive manhunt. Hamas and Israel fought a devastating 11-day conflict in May, the worst between the two sides in years. Though it ended with an Egypt-brokered ceasefire and a pledge for Qatari aid to ease poverty in the Palestinian enclave, incendiary balloons and occasional border clashes have continued in the months since.

Police: 6 Palestinians Escape from High-security Israeli Prison
Asharq Al Awsat/September 06/2021
Six Palestinians escaped from a high-security Israeli prison on Monday, police said, and Israeli media reports identified them as members of militant groups. The reports said five of the prisoners belonged to the Islamic Jihad movement and one was a former commander of an armed group affiliated with the mainstream Fatah party. According to the reports, the six were cell mates and tunneled out of Gilboa prison in northern Israel. "Overnight, we received a number of reports about suspicious figures in agricultural fields and from the prison service, which discovered very quickly that prisoners were missing from their cells and that six escaped," national police spokesman Eli Levy told Kan Radio. Security forces were searching for the men and believed they might try to reach the nearby West Bank, Israeli-occupied territory where the Palestinian Authority exercises limited self-rule, or the Jordanian border, Reuters quoted him as saying. Israeli media reports identified one of the escaped prisoners as Zakaria Zubeidi, a former commander of Fatah's Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades in the West Bank city of Jenin.

Libyan Minister to Asharq Al-Awsat: Elections Could Be Held in Phases
Asharq Al Awsat/September 06/2021
Libyan Finance Minister Dr. Khalid al-Mabrouk hoped that parliamentary and presidential elections in his country will be held on time in December. In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, he expressed concerns that security challenges may force the elections to be held in phases. The Government of National Unity (GNU) is determined to achieve all the goals it has set out for itself, starting with addressing the people’s daily concerns, such as electricity and power shortages, he added. The government is focused on holding the elections on time, “but major challenges lie ahead,” he noted. If all else fails, the polls can be held in phases, whereby the parliamentary elections are held first, to be followed by the presidential ones next year, he suggested. The unification of the army remains the GNU’s greatest challenge, continued Mabrouk, highlighting the role of the 5+5 military committee in addressing this issue. It is, so far, moving ahead at a steady pace, stated the minister.

Son of Gaddafi Freed from Libyan Jail
Asharq Al Awsat/September 06/2021
Saadi Gaddafi, a son of Libya's late leader Moammer Gaddafi who was overthrown and killed in a 2011 uprising, has been freed from jail, a justice ministry source confirmed to AFP Sunday. "Saadi Moammer Gaddafi has been freed from prison," following a court ruling several years ago, the source said -- without saying whether he was still in the country. Several media reports on Sunday suggested Gaddafi had already taken a flight to Turkey. Another source, who works at the prosecutor's office, confirmed to AFP that Gaddafi had been freed. "The chief prosecutor asked, several months ago, for the execution of the decision relating to Saadi Gaddafi as soon as all the required conditions had been satisfied," said the source. Gaddafi was free to stay or leave, the source added. Saadi, 47, fled to Niger following the 2011 NATO-backed uprising, but was extradited to Libya in 2014.ة A former professional footballer in Italy, Saadi had been held in a Tripoli prison, accused of crimes committed against protesters and of the 2005 killing of Libyan football coach Bashir al-Rayani. In April 2018, the court of appeal acquitted him of Rayani's murder.

Canada/Statement on passing of 1,000 days since Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor were arbitrarily detained in China
September 5, 2021 - Ottawa, Ontario - Global Affairs Canada
The Honourable Marc Garneau, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today issued the following statement:
“Today marks 1,000 days since Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor were arbitrarily detained in China.
“Both men are being arbitrarily detained. We strongly condemn the lack of a transparent legal process.
“Years have been cruelly stolen from both men and their families. Despite this, they have shown integrity and courage throughout this terrible ordeal.
“We are inspired by their resilience as we continue to work tirelessly with our allies and international partners to do everything we can to bring them home.
“Canada is grateful to all who have joined in expressing their solidary for Mr. Kovrig and Mr. Spavor, including the two dozen countries that sent diplomats to the court proceedings and solidarity events.
“Arbitrarily detaining foreign citizens is unjust and immoral. Sixty-six countries endorsed the Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention in State-to-State Relations earlier this year and call for an end to this practice and for the release of all individuals detained for diplomatic leverage.
“This must stop. Mr. Kovrig and Mr. Spavor must come home. The thoughts of all Canadians and Canada’s partners around the world are with Mr. Kovrig, Mr. Spavor and their families as they mark this difficult date.”

Algeria senses weakness of its diplomatic corps
The Arab Weekly/September 06/2021
ALGIERS--Algeria is sensing the weakness of its diplomacy in the region, observers say, noting that the North African country’s ambition to play a more active role and mediate in a number of complex conflicts has become more obvious. Algeria, the observers note, has been increasingly keen to gain a foothold in the diplomatic push to resolve the conflict in neighbouring Libya. The country is also willing to play a key role in mediating the dispute over the controversial Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. Algeria’s desire to leverage its diplomacy has apparently prompted president of Abdelmadjid Tebboune to reconsider the country’s diplomatic approach, which over the last decade, has been marked by stagnation and inefficiency . Tebboune on Sunday announced the creation of seven special envoys “in order to lead Algeria’s international action and to launch a vast movement in the diplomatic corps which will include more than 70 diplomatic and consular posts,” according to Algeria’s official news agency APS. Tebboune also unveiled the appointment of a number of veteran figures to these new positions to deal with a range of regional and international files of interest to Algeria.
The new special envoys are Ammar Blani, Ahmed Benyamina, Boudjemaa Delmi, Tawous Haddadi Jellouli, Abdelkarim Harchaoui, Noureddine Aouam and Leila Zerrouki. According to Algerian sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, the seven have in the past held different diplomatic positions and exercised high responsibilities within the state. The Algerian government is therefore hoping to invest in their experience and competence to beef up the country’s diplomacy and push for a more active role on regional and international fronts. The seven diplomats, the same sources told The Arab Weekly, are expected to take over various regional and international files. They will likely deal include the Arab Maghreb Union, the Sahara conflict, the Sahel region, the African continent, the African Union, the Middle East and the Arab League, along with relations with Europe and America, international security, terrorism, cross-border crime, Algerians abroad, economic cooperation and the Algerian contribution to international forums.
Tebboune is also expected to conduct a broad diplomatic reshuffle that will affect more than 70 ambassadors and consuls in a redeployment aimed at pumping new blood into the country’s diplomatic corps, while also relying on veteran figures. The Algerian ministry of foreign affairs, sources said, is expected to invite senior diplomatic officials to an Algiers meeting to explain the new roadmap, the plan for the redeployment of Algerian envoys around the world and the need to reactivate Algeria’s role in a number of regional and international issues. Over the last decade, the role of the Algerian diplomacy has seen a remarkable decline, deepening the country’s external problems in the face of new regional power balances, not least in some hotbeds of tension, such as Mali and Libya. Former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika contributed to this waning of influence by monopolising decisions on a number of Algeria’s relionships including with France and Morocco. This factor limited the freedom of overseas envoys and led to the absence of a genuine strategy to guide the work of diplomatic corps. Algeria also failed to benefit from the influence of the Algerians abroad. Bouteflika’s deteriorating health over more than five years, contributed to the paralysis of the country’s diplomatic corps, as it was the case with other state agencies and institutions. During the past few days, Algerian rivalry with Morocco emerged over Libya, as Algeria hosted a meeting of Libya’s neighbouring countries. This is an attempt to withdraw the project from Rabat, which has been involved since 2014, the most important of which was the signing, after months of wrangling, of the Skhirat Agreement which enshrined the Libyan Political Agreement.
Tensions between Algiers and Rabat are rising. Earlier in August, Algeria cut diplomatic relations with Morocco, citing what it called hostile actions by its neighbour with which it has had strained relations for decades. Morocco rejected the break as “completely unjustifiable” but pledged to continue acting as “a loyal partner of the Algerian people.” Over the last few years, Morocco has accumulated significant experience in dealing with the Libyan file, becoming increasingly familiar with the details of the crisis that broke out in 2014. At the time, Morocco hosted rounds of dialogue between the House of Representatives (parliament) and the National Forum, which later became the High Council of State headed by Khaled Al-Mashri, a Muslim Brotherhood leader.
Morocco has also been active when it comes to bridging differences between the Libyan rivals, with Rabat’s efforts leading up to the signing of the coastal resort of the Skhirat Agreement in December 2015. Morocco also hosted meetings of rival Libyan politicians fin the city of Bouznika, which resulted in an agreement on the distribution of sovereign positions between Libya’s three regions. To catch up the pace, sources told The Arab Weekly that Algeria’s new diplomatic strategy was included in a government’s work plan, which is expected to be presented to parliament in the next few days.“In the coming years, our country’s diplomatic activity will focus on defending the nation’s interests, contributing to regional security and stability, strengthening ties with Africa and the Arab world, developing partnerships and supporting peace in the world, along with the redeployment of economic diplomacy in the service of the country’s development,” a document on the new strategy reads. “Algeria will undertake a proactive and multifaceted role in order to enable our country to strengthen its position as an active actor, contributing, as was the case in the past, to settling international crises and disputes and monitoring the course of important developments in the history of the international community and the life of mankind,” the document added. The document also revealed a new roadmap for the diplomatic corps, who will directed to promote and defend the country’s positions and approaches to various regional and international conflicts, including the is of the Western Sahara, relations with Morocco, the Libyan crisis and the situation near the southern border. “Algeria is working to promote reconciliation among the Libyan people, with the organisation of fair elections, away from any foreign meddling and interference. Algeria will also redouble its efforts in the Sahel to help establish security and stability in the region,” the document on the new strategy stated.

New season of Turkish TV series puts ties with UAE at risk
The Arab Weekly/September 06/2021
LONDON--Many are expecting Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s to block the airing of a Turkish TV series that could renew tensions with UAE. Analysts say his reaction will being seen as a real test for Ankara’s true intentions toward Abu Dhabi.This comes at a time when relations between the two countries are improving after years of estrangement and tension. In recent days, the Turkish TRT1 television channel began airing the trailer for the second season of the series Teskilat (The Organisation), officially sponsored and supported by Turkey’s National Intelligence Organisation (MIT). The series portrays MIT agents as fighting a covert war against a thinly-disguised Arab adversary, the United Arab Emirates. The UAE-backed fictional organisation is led by Zayed Fadi, a composite figure whose first name refers to the Abu Dhabi-based Palestinian politician, Muhammad Dahlan, who is accused by the Turkish authorities of coordinating with the Fethullah Gulen organisation and arranging an attempted coup against Erdogan in 2016. In the fictional series, the character Zayed Fadi leads an organisation affiliated with Dahlan and the name was deliberately chosen, combining the names of United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed and the former leader of Fatah, Mohammad Yusuf Dahlan, whose nickname is “Abu Fadi.”Turkey issued an arrest warrant for Dahlan on charges of links with the FETO, Gulen’s organisation and the military leaders who carried out the 2016 coup attempt. The series narrates details about the targeting of the Zayed Fadi’s organisation in Syria by a special unit of MIT, exposing links between the organisation and other parties that Turkey considers an archenemy, notably the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in northern Iraq and northern Syria and the neo-Nazi movement in Europe. TRT released this week a trailer for the second season of Teskilat, suggesting that it will be moving ahead with the braodcast. The airing of the trailer comes as experts are expecting complete calm between the UAE and Turkey at a bilateral level as well as on regional issues.
In late August, Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed and Turkish president Erdogan held talks, which marked the highest-level interaction in years. These followed a rare visit earlier this month to Ankara by a United Arab Emirates delegation, headed by UAE national security adviser Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Sheikh Tahnoun’s trip, which focused particularly on the possibility of pumping UAE investments into Turkey, was the highest-level public visit by an Emirati official to Turkey in years.
Improved Turkish political ties with Abu Dhabi, experts say, may usher in new economic and trade prospects and by the same token, provide Turkey with a new perspective on its relations with Arab Gulf countries. Economic gains reaped by Turkey from overtures to Gulf countries, such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia, will come in stark contrast to the negative fallouts at home and abroad resulting from Erdogan’s current alliances in the region. Ankara reportedly wants to shield its economic and trade relations from the impact of political differences that led to its diplomatic isolation and the flight of Gulf and foreign investors from Turkey, driven away by Erdogan’s interference in the economy and his temperamental politics. Analysts expect the reconciliation momentum, illustrated by Turkish-Emirati and Emirati-Qatari meetings, to defuse confrontation on various regional contentious issues. This new momentum, they say, also meets the United States’ desire for better relations between its regional allies in order to prioritise tackling the Iranian challenge, with its nuclear and regional dimensions. After talks held in Ankara on August 18 with Sheikh Tahnoun, Erdogan said, “We discussed what type of investment could be made in which areas”. In a later statement, Erdogan said he hoped to hold talks with the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi on establishing closer economic ties and that, “the United Arab Emirates will make serious investments in our country in a very short time.” Erdogan’s statements at the time demonstrated Turkey’s satisfaction at overcoming the obstacles to a normal relationship with the UAE, in a way likely to reflect positively on the faltering Turkish economy. Analysts describe the economic relations between the UAE and Turkey as “close and based on common interest, as the volume of trade exchange between the two countries exceeded $8 billion in 2020 and the UAE is Turkey’s second largest Arab trading partner, while the volume of investments between the two countries recently reached $5 billion.”

In reward to Macron, Iraq signs $27 billion deal with TotalEnergies
The Arab Weekly/September 06/2021
BAGHDAD--French giant TotalEnergies on Sunday signed a $27-billion contract to invest in oil, gas and solar production in Iraq, as the country faces an acute energy crisis. The announcement of the deal, supposed in part to reduce Iraq’s reliance on fossil fuels, came as Oil Minister Ihsan Ismail signed the contract at a Baghdad ceremony with TotalEnergies chief Patrick Pouyanne.
A reward for Paris
Observers told The Arab Weekly that French President Emmanuel Macron has recently shown his support for the Iraqi government and Iraq’s political system that is currently controlled by Iran-backed militias. The position of the French president, the observers added, allowed for the signing of the contract with TotalEnergies, which came as reward to Paris for its support of the Iran-backed political system in Iraq. The deal, which constitutes “the largest investment by a Western company in Iraq,” as described by the Iraqi oil minister, is rooted in political expediency, according to the same observers. It aims at encouraging France to provide international cover for the militias’ control in Iraq as a counter to the hostile position of Washington. Iraqi militias, with Iranian support, are seeking to push the United States to withdraw its forces from Iraq and believe that France, which is close to Iran and ready to recognise its proxies in the region, can fill in the vacuum. These militias, observers say, want to entice France with investments, exploiting the need of French companies to compensate for the losses they incurred following the US invasion of Iraq in 2003.
The French president has recently made statements that were understood as courting the militias, by focusing on the fight against terrorism and France’s intention to keep its forces in Iraq. Macron, however, did not raise the issue of corruption nor did he pressure the Iraqi government to implement reforms and respond to the long-standing protesters’ demands. “No matter what choices the Americans make, we will maintain our presence in Iraq to fight against terrorism,” Macron told a news conference in Baghdad earlier in August. “We all know that we must not lower our guard, because Daesh (the Islamic State group) remains a threat, and I know that the fight against these terrorist groups is a priority of your government,” Macron said earlier after a meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi. There are some 600 French troops in Iraq along with an unspecified number of French special forces. Mostly based in Baghdad, they have been training Iraqi soldiers and instructors.
Major investments
TotalEnergies has not directly confirmed the value nor duration of the contract, which was signed after months of negotiations and several visits by TotalEnergies’ chief. But the French major plans initially to invest $10 billion in infrastructure, the proceeds of which will then allow a second round of investments of $17 billion, the officials said. “Implementing these projects is the challenge we face now,” Ismail said. “Happy to be in Basra where I visited gas and oil fields,” Pouyanne tweeted in January. “Reducing flaring and increasing gas production is a priority for Iraq as well as for Total. Let’s work together!”Iraq has immense reserves of oil and gas. Despite being the number two producer in the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, it is experiencing an acute energy crisis and chronic blackouts that stoke social discontent.Officials justify the lack of investment and the dilapidated state of its energy network by citing falling oil prices, which represent more than 90 percent of state revenues.
‘Reduce gas imports’
The country is highly dependent on neighbouring Iran, which supplies a third of its gas and electricity needs. However, Baghdad currently owes Tehran six billion dollars for energy already supplied. The contract inked on Sunday with TotalEnergies covers four projects, an Iraqi oil ministry source said ahead of the signing ceremony. One of these aims to pipe seawater from the Gulf to southern Iraqi oilfields. Water is used to extract oil from subterranean deposits. Another is intended to increase production from the Artawi oilfield near the southern port of Basra from 85,000 barrels per day to 210,000 bpd. A third project will see the construction of a complex to exploit production from the sector’s gas fields. Rather than flaring or burning off the excess, the plan is to recover it for use in electricity generation. The premier’s office said this will “reduce gas imports”. The fourth project will see the installation of a solar farm in Artawi. The Iraqi source said that ultimately, the solar panels should produce “1,000 megawatts” of electricity, the equivalent of the energy produced by a nuclear reactor. “Iraq will not pay anything,” the source added. Electricity produced by solar power “costs 45 percent less than that produced by traditional power stations”, the Iraqi government said. In January, Ismail had said the relationship with the French firm was “developing rapidly”. France’s former Total, which has renamed itself TotalEnergies to symbolise a diversification into cleaner sources of power, is one of the world’s top five energy companies.
While still focused on oil and gas, the company has indicated that this year it will devote 20 percent of its growth investments to electricity and renewable energies. It has had a presence in Iraq since the 1920s.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials published on September 06-07/2021
Erdogan's Plans for the Future of Afghanistan: China, Russia and Terrorists
Burak Bekdil/Gatestone Institute/September 06/2021
The US and the EU should not buy Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's fake pro-Western posture (such as when he offered to run the Kabul airport, then fled) or his fake anti-radicalism (such as when he is courting the Afghan terrorists). Erdogan's strategy, as a member of NATO, is clearly to bolster Russia's and China's plans for the future of Afghanistan.
Iran, for its part, seems to be hoping to hit two birds with one stone: by systematically facilitating the journey of illegal Afghans to Turkey and toward Greece, it might destabilize both Turkey and Europe.
"The persistence of Erdoğan's relationship with Hekmatyar illustrates that it was wishful thinking to believe that Erdoğan was ever anything more than a jihadi in a business suit, no matter how many diplomats projected their hopes of change on him." — Michael Rubin, Middle East expert, Washington Examiner, August 11, 2021.
Now, due to Erdogan's long-term anti-Western ideology, he will probably be tempted to seek an alliance with whichever pro-sharia group(s) will, in the near future, be governing Afghanistan.
The US and the EU should not buy Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's fake pro-Western posture (such as when he offered to run the Kabul airport, then fled) or his fake anti-radicalism (such as when he is courting the Afghan terrorists). Pictured: The flag of Turkey hangs alongside the flag of Afghanistan at the Kabul airport on August 17, 2021, days before Turkish troops fled. (Photo by STR/AFP via Getty Images)
The US and the EU should not buy Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's fake pro-Western posture (such as when he offered to run the Kabul airport, then fled) or his fake anti-radicalism (such as when he is courting the Afghan terrorists). Erdogan's strategy, as a member of NATO, is clearly to bolster Russia's and China's plans for the future of Afghanistan.
When the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in December 1979 in support of the communist Afghan government, then in conflict with radical Muslim fighters, Turkey was having its own civil war between ultra-left and ultra-right factions. In September 1980, the Turkish military staged a coup d'état and banned all political parties, including Islamist ones.
Turkish Islamists set up the Welfare Party, which would also later be banned. In 1985, halfway into the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Erdoğan was the dynamic, 31-year-old Istanbul provincial chairman of the Welfare Party. It was at one anti-U.S., anti-West event that Erdoğan invited a terrorist, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, to Istanbul.
Hekmatyar is a former mujahedeen and leader of the Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin political party. Ordinary Afghan citizens knew him as the "Butcher of Kabul" for shelling the city repeatedly for no other apparent reason than to make the murder stop.
There is one particular image that has surfaced time and time again to haunt the Turkish leader: A photo of Erdoğan sitting at the feet of Hekmatyar, who once was officially designated as a terrorist by the United Nations and the U.S. That photo was taken during the event in which Erdoğan hosted Hekmatyar in Istanbul in 1985.
The photo is still telling today, when, after the collapse of the Afghan government in August, Hekmatyar met with both Hamid Karzai, former President of Afghanistan, and Abdullah Abdullah, Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation and former Chief Executive, in Doha both seeking to form a government.
A few weeks ago, as Taliban's footsteps were becoming louder in Kabul, Erdoğan once again switched sides and celebrated his ideological love affair with Afghanistan's terrorists. "The Taliban's understanding (or interpretation) of Islam does not contradict ours," he said, shocking millions of secular Turks.
"Does it (Taliban's understanding of Islam) really not contradict ours? That understanding is about gang-raping, killing women, locking them in their homes, selling girls as slaves, banning schools for girls. When has ours turned into this?" asked Gamze Taşçıer, an opposition member of parliament. "When has Turkey become a shariah state?" scores of other intellectuals asked Erdoğan.
Erdoğan's overtures to the Taliban, moreover, were not just limited to highlighting his tolerance to shariah. "Our relevant institutions," Erdoğan said, "are working on it, including talks with the Taliban, and I may also receive the leader of the Taliban."
There are two more important ramifications of the Taliban's advance and Turkey's subsequent leniency. First, the Taliban's capture of Kabul has ruined a Turkish plan to leave troops in the Afghan capital to operate the Hamid Karzai International Airport, a risk-filled task for which no other nation had volunteered.
Erdoğan had sought the job, it seems, to highlight Turkey's strategic importance to the Western nations, most notably the U.S. With that, he was likely hoping to have more leverage on the Biden administration when Turkey and the U.S. negotiated their most difficult divergences, including potential new sanctions on the Turkish government due to Turkey's acquisition of Russian-made S-400 air defense system. In short, Erdoğan was likely hoping to use the Kabul airport deal to reset deeply problematic ties with the U.S. by putting bilateral relations into a transactional frame. That way, Erdoğan's Turkey would score a point in portraying itself as a reliable Western ally.
Only a couple of weeks before the Taliban's capture of Kabul, Ankara and Washington were trying to iron out their differences for the terms and conditions of the Turkish control over Kabul's airport. As recently as August 11, Turkey still seemed intent on running and guarding Kabul airport after other foreign troops had withdrawn from Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, on August 28, after speculation on social media that Greece would open its border to Afghan refugees until September 1, thousands of Afghan refugees flooded Turkey's land border with Greece.
Iran, for its part, seems to be hoping to hit two birds with one stone: by systematically facilitating the journey of illegal Afghans to Turkey and toward Greece, it might destabilize both Turkey and Europe. The mullahs in Iran would presumably be only too happy to transport tens of thousands of Afghans to their country's difficult border with Turkey. The rest would then be the problem of Sunni Turks and the West.
As the Middle East scholar and former Pentagon official Michael Rubin wrote, Erdoğan is also possibly seeking to utilize his partnership with Hekmatyar to help shape Afghanistan's post-war political order. "The U.S. should not let them," Rubin wrote.
"The persistence of Erdoğan's relationship with Hekmatyar illustrates that it was wishful thinking to believe that Erdoğan was ever anything more than a jihadi in a business suit, no matter how many diplomats projected their hopes of change on him."
In short, there is this designated terrorist, Hekmatyar, whose relations with Erdogan date back to 1985. Hekmatyar is now in talks with both the Taliban and Erdogan for the future of Afghanistan, while Erdogan is in talks with the Taliban and probably trying to figure out where to jump next.
Erdogan had been trying to appease the U.S. by guarding the Kabul airport, but that plan collapsed after the Taliban advanced into Kabul. Erdogan therefore lost a bargaining chip for his future dealings with Biden and the US. Now, due to Erdogan's long-term anti-Western ideology, he will probably be tempted to seek an alliance with whichever pro-sharia group(s) will, in the near future, be governing Afghanistan.
*Burak Bekdil, one of Turkey's leading journalists, was recently fired from the country's most noted newspaper after 29 years, for writing in Gatestone what is taking place in Turkey. He is a Fellow at the Middle East Forum.
© 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 lies will build a generation of Afghan women becoming second-class citizens
Amal al-Breiki/Al Arabiya/September 06/2021
When the Taliban seized Kabul early August, the world was reminded of the city’s capitulation in the fall of 1996. The era of the Taliban rule was particularly grave on Afghan women, swept away from society, leaving behind empty classrooms and offices. They were bound to the rims of their homes, burqas and Mahrams (male ‘guardians’). The world watches for fear of a return to the past. More so, Afghan women whose mothers and aunts tell ghastly tales of that time, and remain engraved within. It is now the next generation that will recite the same tragedies.
The cautious optimism expressed by international officials towards the Taliban’s duplicitous attempts at being moderate is ultimately foolish. The Taliban’s misogynistic and sexist nature will inevitably overpower its ongoing momentary attempts at moderation. The recent reports of female officials, activists, journalists, and their families, hiding from the militants are self-explanatory. Afghan women know what is most likely to come, and the world does too, yet it stands in complete ineptitude.
Afghanistan lived in a parallel social landscape, between distinct private and public spheres during the Taliban rule. Decrees were enacted to segregate women from the fundamentals of civil life, denying them access to political and economic participation in a country where women once occupied 40 percent of public jobs.Moreover, medical care was cut short, and women’s health was prioritized last.
A 1998 study - Women’s health and human rights in Afghanistan – revealed the overall poor health of Afghan women under the Taliban. The study reported severe cases of post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, and suicidal tendencies. In addition, women were targeted and severely punished by the militias based on misguided readings of religious doctrine. Afghan women had become second-class citizens and were treated accordingly.
The panic resulting from the Taliban’s return is justified as it leads to profound anxiety. After the overthrow of the Taliban in 2001, Afghan women gradually re-emerged from the background and following the Bonn Agreement and the establishment of the interim administration confidence grew. Women became part of the nation’s workforce, including fulfilling roles in schools, universities, and offices, where previously they were forbidden to pursue careers.
The Ministry of Women’s Affairs was established, and women were introduced as ministers, governors, ambassadors, and police officers. Yet, within this seemingly assuring environment, threats to women remained. In many cases women were assassinated.
Women gather to demand their rights under the Taliban rule during a protest in Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, Sept. 3, 2021. As the world watches intently for clues on how the Taliban will govern, their treatment of the media will be a key indicator, along with their policies toward women. When they ruled
Today, the scenes being witnessed are a replication of history. We saw women and girls rushing home from their classes, offices, places that defined them for the past two decades.
Removing certificates off their walls, burning documents, masquerading any indications of careers built, and dreams realized. Afghan women are mourning their country, their sacrificed lives, and the lives of generations to come.
As Afghanistan changes hands, experts continue to debate the discrepancies between the 1990s Taliban and the present one. What has unraveled in the past few weeks of blatant human rights violations only serves to show that it is a clear case of history repeating itself.
Fawzia Koofi, a prominent Afghan politician and women’s rights activist, asked the inevitable question: “where are women?” in a Tweet. It followed the Taliban’s political office meeting with the High Council for National Reconciliation on August 21, 2021.
The question has loomed over every new peace agreement meeting and discussion held over the years. The future looks grim without the slightest consideration of women being involved in the negotiations. In early July 2021, a meeting attended by the Minister of Women’s Affairs, female politicians, and government advisors discussed the country’s current situation and called for a woman representative on behalf of the Ministry, and ultimately all Afghan women, to be present during the ongoing peace process.
The failure of past peace attempts was due to many underlying factors. Still, it cannot be ignored that the exclusion of women was an imperative one. Many case studies suggest that women’s participation in politically negotiated settlements has a lasting impact on peace. Only when the other half of the population is included and their rights respected will the implementation process succeed. More importantly, power-sharing deals would be incomplete if they compromise Afghan women’s rights under any circumstances.
If we assume that the Taliban is to honor its commitments, it will still need to make room for Afghan women in their government, to listen closely to their demands and act on them.
Hollow statements and keeping women out of the decision-making process will no longer do with a generation of women and girls growing up knowing what is rightfully theirs.
The international community that abandoned them has the responsibility to listen to Afghan women’s voices that have warned of the reality of living under Taliban rule. They must ensure their safety.
Reports of the Taliban likely securing a seat at the UN Commission on the Status of Women is a slap in the face of every Afghan woman, but it begs the question of whether the move will actually place the burden on the Taliban to make sure they deliver on promises toward the treatment of women. Is it merely a PR stunt?Given the militia’s long record of brutal oppression against women, the Taliban’s pledge to fulfil its human rights commitments will more than likely fail to materialize.

إبراهام كوبر/العربية: المسيحيون الآشوريون واليزيديون سوف يواجهون خطر الانقراض إذا سحب بايدن القوات الأمريكية من العراق
Iraq’s Assyrian Christians, Yazidis face extinction if Biden pulls US troops out
Abraham Cooper/Al Arabiya/September 06/2021
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/102125/abraham-cooper-iraqs-assyrian-christians-yazidis-face-extinction-if-biden-pulls-us-troops-out-%d8%a5%d8%a8%d8%b1%d8%a7%d9%87%d8%a7%d9%85-%d9%83%d9%88%d8%a8%d8%b1-%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%85%d8%b3/
Against the backdrop of the 9.0-magnitude man-made earthquake that was the disastrous US pullout from Afghanistan, two Christian leaders, Pastor Johnnie Moore and Juliana Taimoorazy, convened a news conference last week under the auspices of the Simon Wiesenthal Center. With the participation of Jameel Chomer, country director of the Yazda organization, via Zoom from Iraq, we released an open letter to the president of the United States urging him not to repeat the Afghanistan humanitarian debacle in Iraq.
Signed by Chomer and Taimoorazy, founder and president of the Iraqi Christian Relief Council, it read in part: “Mr. President, we urge you to resist pressure to withdraw all troops from Iraq. Recent blood-soaked history has shown that without such a presence, the history of Assyrians and Yazidis on their ancient lands would end.”
Today, there are only a reported 2,500 US soldiers left in Iraq. But for the battered and depleted Assyrian Christians and the Yazidis, two minorities who live side-by-side peacefully, a total pullout by the US could mean the demise of two ancient peoples in the Nineveh plains.
The greatest disaster for both was the ascendancy of ISIS, the world’s most brutal terrorist groups. ISIS was able to fill a void left by the US; a void with beheadings, murders, pillaging and rapes. That void was created when, in 2011, then-President Obama decided to remove all 45,000 remaining US forces from Iraq. On November 29 of that year, then-Vice President Joe Biden declared during an official visit to Iraq: “We are embarking on a new … and a comprehensive relationship between the United States and Iraq as sovereign partners,” Biden made the remarks after meeting with then-Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and other Iraqi officials.
Apparently, ISIS never got the memo. The bottom line is that the US created a vacuum that enabled the terrorist group to plunder, pillage, murder and rape its way through Iraq. Beyond the havoc and suffering it unleashed in Syria, in 2014, ISIS took the key Iraqi city of Mosul and seized towns and villages in the Nineveh plains. Thousands of Christians fled in front of the advancing ISIS forces, heading for refuge in Iraq’s northern Kurdish region or leaving the country altogether. ISIS went on to kill thousands of Iraqi citizens – irrespective of religion – over the next few years, destroying mosques, monasteries, shrines, churches, and tombs in Iraq and Syria, The Associated Press reported.
Meanwhile, ISIS fighters attacked the Iraqi town of Sinjar in August 2014 – home to the Yazidis. More than 30,000 Yazidi families were stranded in the Sinjar Mountains. A Yazidi lawmaker reported that 500 men have been killed, 70 children have died of thirst and women are being sold into slavery. The horrific suffering of that people was just beginning.
Throughout that period, the world also watched in horror as ISIS would broadcast the beheadings of American, British and Japanese journalists. ISIS would unleash deadly far-flung terrorist attacks from Paris and Nigeria. Eventually, the US would rush back troops to Iraq to quell ISIS. And a semblance of stability eventually returned to the decimated areas.
Yet on July 27, Joe Biden, now president, announced the remaining symbolic US forces will be leaving Iraq again “for good.” If, G-d forbid, that happens, our friend Jameel Chomer faces the very real possibility of falling into the clutches of a rejuvenated ISIS. Why should we care? Jameel served as an interpreter and cultural advisor for the US army for almost six years in Iraq and has been desperately trying to get his family to the US for years. Sound familiar?
We can only pray that President Biden and his military and foreign policy brain trust will reconsider such a move in the wake of the disaster now facing Afghans of all faiths and sects not aligned with the Taliban’s medieval brand of Islam.
If President Biden doesn’t cancel that move, two historic peoples – the Assyrian Christians and Yazidis – will be no more. And the keys to the Nineveh Plains will surely be scooped up by Iran as part of a long coveted strategic prize – unfettered access to the Mediterranean Sea and a new powerful front to threaten the very existence of another people, the nation of Israel.