LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
August 30/17
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani

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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.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to 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."

Jesus's divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness
Second Letter of Peter 01/03-11/:"His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Thus he has given us, through these things, his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of lust, and may become participants in the divine nature. For this very reason, you must make every effort to support your faith with goodness, and goodness with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with endurance, and endurance with godliness, and godliness with mutual affection, and mutual affection with love. For if these things are yours and are increasing among you, they keep you from being ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For anyone who lacks these things is short-sighted and blind, and is forgetful of the cleansing of past sins. Therefore, brothers and sisters, be all the more eager to confirm your call and election, for if you do this, you will never stumble. For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ will be richly provided for you.

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on August 29-30/17
Why did Hezbollah cede the ‘starring’ role to the army/Abdulrahman al-Rashed/Al Arabiya/August 29/17
What Defeat Means to Lebanese Army/Abdulrahman Al-Rashed/Asharq Al Awsat/August 29/17
Head of Military Intelligence: Hezbollah is Tightening Grip on Lebanon/Jerusalem Post/Anna Ahronheim/August 29/17
Afghanistan: How We See It vs. How They See It/Nonie Darwish/Gatestone Institute/August 29/ 2017
FIFA and International Olympic Committee Furthering Racism, Terror/A. Z. Mohamed/Gatestone Institute/August 29/ 2017
The problem is al-Qaeda not ISIS/Mohammed Al Shaikh/Al Arabiya/August 29/17

Titles For Latest LCCC Lebanese Related News published on August 29-30/17
Aoun signs first animal protection bill
Hariri Witness Tells of Traumatic Search for Missing Father
Macron Invites Aoun to France, Promises to Visit Lebanon
Lebanese Army in Uncharted Territory near Syria Border
Lebanon Rejects Any Changes to UNIFIL Mandate
Suspected Body of Slain Soldier Medlej Found in Border Region
Lebanon's Negotiated IS Evacuation Angers Many
Parties Trade Jabs on Executed Troops, IS Exit from Outskirts
Hariri, Jumblat Defend Salam against Troops Kidnap Criticism
Bassil Urges 'Terror-Free' Camps: Whoever Allowed Terrorism in Past Must Shut Up Today
Marouni to Radio Lebanon: Army represents hope and salvation
Why did Hezbollah cede the ‘starring’ role to the army?
Future Bloc after weekly meeting: For commitment to state, Taef accord
Economy Minister begins contacts with Syrian counterpart over trade routes
Army continues deployment in Wadi Martbaya and vicinity
Army refutes circulated news about resignation of Fajr Jouroud Operation Commander
What Defeat Means to Lebanese Army
Head of Israeli Military Intelligence, Major General Herzi Halev: Hezbollah is Tightening Grip on Lebanon

Titles For Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 29-30/17
Canada condemns North Korean provocation
Moscow Suggests ‘Supporting’ Kuwaiti Mediation
ISIS Moves from Qalamoun to Iraqi Border under Syrian Regime Sponsorship
ISIS Resort to Al-Ayadiya as their Last Refuge in Nineveh
UAE criticizes ‘colonial’ role of Iran, Turkey in Syria
Yousuf Otaiba: Qatar is a ‘destructive element’ in the region
U.N. Chief in Ramallah Says Two-State Solution Cannot be Abandoned
Iran Pilgrims Flock to Saudi in Diplomatic Icebreaker
Lavrov in Kuwait for talks to resolve Qatar crisis
Report: Iranian-backed spy ring in Saudi trained by IRGC in Mashhad
Erdogan, Abbas Stress Adherence to Two-State Solution, Reject Israeli Practices
Libya: Haftar Forces Prepare to Deter New Attack on Oil Crescent Area
Manama Accuses Doha of Inciting Chaos During 2011 Upheaval
In Syrian Skies, US Pilots Learn how Fast Air War Can Morph
Saudi Arabia Denies Receiving Official Reports from UN on Yemeni Children

Latest Lebanese Related News published on August 29-30/17
Aoun signs first animal protection bill
The Daily Star/August 29/17/BEIRUT: Lebanon's first animal protection bill was signed into law Tuesday by President Michel Aoun, officially making animal abuse illegal. The Animal Protection and Welfare Law was signed at the Presidential Palace in the presence of the Director General of the Lebanese Presidency Antoine Choucair and representatives of the NGO Animals Lebanon. “This step reflects Lebanon’s respect for animals and their protection,” a statement from the Presidential Palace said. Aoun also praised the NGOs who worked for the protection of animals and all living beings. The bill was reviewed by Cabinet last week, before being sent to Aoun for the final stage in its promulgation. Animals Lebanon expressed its delight at the news in a Facebook post, saying that “after eight years of work, Animals Lebanon was welcomed to the Presidential Palace to witness the signing [of the law].”According to the post, the NGO previously reported cases of abuse to the authorities, but they were unable to intervene due to a lack of regulation. President of Animals Lebanon Lana el-Khalil thanked Aoun for the initiative. “We could not have reached this point if it wasn’t for your support and care,” el-Khalil said, according to the statement. The organization lobbied for the law and recently launched a petition that obtained 30,000 signatures. The new legislation – composed of 30 articles – includes general requirements for the treatment and possession of domestic animals as well as specific practices for zoos, pet shops, farms, slaughter houses and others. Penalties include fines up to LL100 million ($66,379) and four years imprisonment.

Hariri Witness Tells of Traumatic Search for Missing Father
Asharq Al Awsat/August 29/17/Leidschendam (The Netherlands)- The daughter of a bystander who lost his life in the massive car bomb that killed former Lebanese premier Rafiq Hariri spoke Monday of her family’s harrowing search to find her father’s body. Lama Ghalayini, 39, is the first victim to testify before the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, a UN-backed tribunal set up to prosecute those who murdered Hariri and 21 others in the huge February 14, 2005, suicide car bombing on Beirut’s busy seafront. “In the beginning we always had hope that we would find something,” Ghalayini told judges, speaking via video link from the Lebanese capital. Her voice at times trembling with emotion, Ghalayini described how her father Abdel-Hamid spoke to her the day before going for a walk in the area near the Beirut waterfront. He was reported missing after news of the suicide bombing — blamed on five suspected members of Hezbollah, became known. “We were completely lost, we were in a state of distress and we needed to know exactly what the situation was,” Ghalayini told a five-judge bench. Looking for their relatives, the family was confronted with the scene of carnage at the blast site. Ghalayini said they received no help from the authorities in their quest to find her father, a businessman and an amateur pilot. At the scene “I found body parts. There were also pieces of metal and stones. It was complete chaos,” said Ghalayini. The family was so desperate that they even hired their own sniffer dogs but to no avail. Ghalayini’s body was eventually discovered some 17 days after the blast, buried beneath the rubble. Monday’s hearing marks the first time victims were allowed to speak in the long-running trial which started in 2014 against the five suspects indicted by the court, based just outside The Hague. However, the STL has quashed the case against one of the accused, Hezbollah commander Mustafa Badreddine, who is believed to have died in fighting in Syria in May last year. Four others, Salim Ayyash, Hussein Oneissi, Assad Sabra and Hassan Habib Merhi are being tried in absentia. The STL opened its doors in 2009 and is the only international ad-hoc tribunal with the jurisdiction to try an act of terror.

Macron Invites Aoun to France, Promises to Visit Lebanon
Naharnet/August 29/17/President Michel Aoun has received an invitation to make a state visit to France from French President Emmanuel Macron, Lebanon's National News Agency reported on Tuesday. Macron also promised that he would visit Lebanon in the spring as part of a tour of the Middle East.
“I want to stress our clinging to the countries that are witnessing divides and tensions in the region. I will soon meet with the prime minister of Lebanon and Lebanon's president, who will make a state visit to France,” Macron said. “In the name of our historic ties, France wants to support Lebanon, which is going through a critical situation and which is confronting it courageously and with a high sense of responsibility,” Macron added. Prime Minister Saad Hariri is scheduled to visit France on Friday for talks with Macron and a number of French officials.

Lebanese Army in Uncharted Territory near Syria Border
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 29/17/The dust-covered soldiers, armored vehicles and tents may not look very official, but they mark the first time Lebanese troops have deployed in this sliver of land along the Syrian border. After a week-long campaign against the Islamic State group, Lebanese troops have established an unprecedented presence in the northeastern area of Jurud Ras Baalbek, a belt of territory that has been a longstanding source of contention with Syria. An evacuation deal led to the jihadists' withdrawal into eastern Syria on Monday, as the Lebanese army organized a press tour of the area.
Dozens of Lebanese troops are manning newly erected outposts on a string of barren hilltops near Syrian territory. "Before Daesh was here, there was no Lebanese army presence," a member of the special forces' airborne division told the AFP news agency, using the Arabic acronym for IS. "When we advanced, we pulled out the Daesh flag and stuck in a Lebanese flag for the first time," the soldier said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Lebanon and Syria share a 330 kilometer border, with no official demarcation at several points, including in the northeast. For years, the mountainous territory now held by the army was expertly navigated by smugglers bringing state-subsidized diesel from Syria into Lebanon. Syrian troops had also maintained a presence on Lebanese land there, according to Beirut-based geographer Issam Khalifeh, sometimes preventing farmers in the area from tending to their crops.
Closest' to real border
Syria and Lebanon signed an agreement in 2008 to more clearly demarcate the border, but progress has been slow and the northeastern frontier remained largely uncontrolled -- until now. "This is the closest that the Lebanese army and state have gotten to completely controlling the border with Syria," said Aram Nerguizian of the U.S.-based Center for Strategic and International Studies. He said many of the new army positions lay inside territory historically contested by the two countries, closer to where Lebanon says the real border lies. Many of the soldiers who spoke to AFP on Monday described it as the closest they had ever been to this sector of the border. "These roads weren't here before. We opened them so that our vehicles could come through," said the special forces member, gesturing to white gravel roads criss-crossing the hilly terrain. "This is the first time the Lebanese army has an established presence in this area," one heavyset fighter from the 6th Brigade told AFP. The positions did not appear reinforced yet. Most soldiers relaxed near armored cars or in the shade of tents, but some manned vehicle-mounted heavy machineguns pointed at arid valleys below. After Syria's conflict erupted in 2011, the northeastern border areas were regularly hit by stray shells.
Battle over 'narrative'
In 2014, jihadist militants overran both sides of the frontier, including Jurud Ras Baalbek and the Lebanese border town of Arsal further south.
The army launched its operation against jihadists in the area on August 19, coinciding with a simultaneous assault waged from the Syrian side by Lebanese militant movement Hizbullah and the Syrian army. Lebanese troops had cornered IS into 20 square kilometers of territory in the border region when a ceasefire deal was announced on Sunday morning. The agreement was reportedly negotiated between Hizbullah and IS and has seen hundreds of fighters leave the border area for eastern Syria. Lebanon's army has insisted that there was no coordination with Hizbullah on the offensive. Hizbullah, which has intervened in Syria's conflict on behalf of the Damascus regime, is the only faction that did not hand over its weapons after the 1975-1990 Lebanese civil war.Its arsenal is a highly controversial issue in Lebanon. Late Monday, the group's head Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said IS' withdrawal was a "great achievement," calling for celebrations later in the week. Nerguizian said Hizbullah was "trying to take credit retroactively" for the success of the Lebanese Armed Forces, which is seen in the country as a rare symbol of national unity, though its military force is rivaled by the powerful Hizbullah. "The LAF's swiftly executed and successful campaign is not something many Lebanese let alone Hizbullah expected," he told AFP. With a reinforced troop presence along the border, "the LAF's own national security credentials could challenge Hizbullah's," Nerguizian said."In short, the battle against IS in Lebanon may be over, but the war over Lebanon's national security narrative has only just begun."

Lebanon Rejects Any Changes to UNIFIL Mandate
Associated Press/Naharnet/August 29/17/Lebanon has called for a U.N. peacekeeping force's mandate to be renewed without changes so that it can continue working to prevent hostilities between Israel and Hizbullah. Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil conveyed Lebanon's position to representatives of the U.N. Security Council's permanent members on Tuesday. The peacekeeping mission known as UNIFIL is up for renewal when its mandate expires Aug. 31. Israel and the U.S. are pressing for improvements to the force to combat what they say is the spread of illegal arms to Hizbullah in southern Lebanon. The UNIFIL commander in Lebanon and the Lebanese government reject the claims. Bassil said renewing the force's mandate is paramount to the country's security. He pointed to what he said were daily Israeli violations of U.N. resolutions and Lebanese sovereignty.

Suspected Body of Slain Soldier Medlej Found in Border Region
Naharnet/August 29/17/Human remains suspected of belonging to slain Lebanese soldier Abbas Medlej were found Tuesday in the Lebanese-Syrian border region, media reports said. “Human remains have been found in the area where Islamic State militants have identified as the burial ground of the martyr Abbas Medlej,” the reports said. “DNA tests will be conducted for verification,” the reports added. The development comes a few days after eight bodies suspected of belonging to Lebanese troops executed by IS were recovered by Lebanese security forces under a Hizbullah-led deal with the jihadist group. The agreement followed separate but simultaneous anti-IS offensives by Hizbullah and the Lebanese and Syrian armies on both sides of the border. According to General Security chief Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim, the eight soldiers were executed by their captors in 2015, whereas Medlej was beheaded in September 2014 after the IS claimed that he tried to “escape.”Another soldier, Ali al-Sayyed, was also executed by IS in 2014. Media reports have said that an eleventh soldier, Abdul Rahim Diab, has defected to IS. Sixteen soldiers and policeman abducted by the rival jihadist group al-Nusra Front were released as part of a swap deal with the Lebanese government in December 2015. Nusra had also executed two servicemen who were in its captivity.The servicemen were taken hostage when the two jihadist groups overran the Lebanese border town of Arsal in August 2014.

Lebanon's Negotiated IS Evacuation Angers Many
Associated Press/Naharnet/August 29/17/Buses carrying hundreds of Islamic State militants and their families arrived in eastern Syria on Tuesday following a negotiated evacuation from the Lebanon-Syria border, where the U.S.-backed Lebanese army deployed for the first time in years. The evacuation agreement, the first such publicized deal concluded with the extremist group, angered many Iraqis, who accused Syria and Hizbullah of dumping the militants on the Iraqi border rather than eradicating them. Some 600 militants were allowed to leave as part of a deal, negotiated by Hizbullah, in exchange for identifying the location of the remains of Lebanese soldiers captured by IS in 2014 and later killed. The deal also provoked controversy in Lebanon, as some have voiced opposition to negotiations with the militants. "Any deals or understandings between the warring parties inside Syria or in the region must take into consideration the security of Iraq and not to lead to anything that poses any threat to our national security," the Iraqi government spokesman, Saad al-Hadithi, told The Associated Press on Tuesday. Al-Hadithi said the Iraqi government "will firmly face any threat to Iraqi territories."Shiite-majority Iraq has been largely supportive of Syria and the Iran-backed Hizbullah in their battle against IS, a Sunni extremist group and shared enemy, but many Iraqis expressed anger on social media. "Who's going to pay for the delivery sent by Hassan Nasrallah to us?" wrote well-known writer Saleh al-Hamdani on his Facebook page, referring to Hizbullah's leader. "Will (state-sanctioned militias) or the Federal Police or Counter Terrorism Forces pay for it?" Baghdad-based analyst Hisham al-Hashimi wrote on Facebook that Iraq's "selfish ally preferred to throw Daesh danger from Lebanon to Iraq, while Iraqis demolished the second-largest city (Mosul) in order not to enable Daesh militants to flee (to Syria) and damage the neighbor." Daesh is the Arabic acronym for IS. The Lebanese government and Hizbullah have both defended the deal that allowed IS safe passage to the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, an IS stronghold, saying it was the only way Lebanon could uncover the fate of its captured soldiers and recover their remains. But many in Lebanon were opposed to the deal, which they said allowed the killers of Lebanese soldiers to get off scot-free. "Shame on a nation whose soldiers return in coffins, while the criminals leave in air-conditioned buses," many posted on social media. The departure of IS marked the end of a militant presence along the Syrian-Lebanese border dating back to the early days of the Syrian uprising. The Lebanese army was able to assume full control of the border. Syrian state-run news agency SANA said the buses carrying the militants arrived Tuesday to a handover point in the town of Hamimiyah in the eastern Deir Ezzor province. They are expected to continue from there to the town of Boukamal, near the Iraqi border.

Parties Trade Jabs on Executed Troops, IS Exit from Outskirts
Naharnet/August 29/17/The political scene in Lebanon is witnessing major controversy over the latest developments on the eastern border, especially after eight troops abducted by the Islamic State group in 2014 were announced dead and after Hizbullah was accused of facilitating a smooth exit for IS' militants from the border region. Some parties are decrying that “IS' militants were allowed to escape punishment over the murder of the soldiers,” while others are criticizing certain parties in Tammam Salam's government for “preventing the army from continuing the battle and liberating the troops in 2014.”“The political authority was not at the level required to regain the state's sovereignty and the free national decision. Instead of ordering the army to liberate Arsal's outskirts, it abandoned its duties and responsibilities, leaving to Hizbullah and the Syrian regime the mission of fighting and striking deals that contradict with the Lebanese state's higher national interest,” an opposition political source told al-Joumhouria newspaper in remarks published Tuesday. “And instead of taking sovereign decisions that meet the Lebanese army's achievement in the liberation of the outskirts of Ras Baalbek and al-Qaa..., the political authority has relinquished the military achievement and undermined the state's foundations... by refraining from recovering the national decision from its local and foreign usurpers,” the source added. Al-Mustaqbal Movement was meanwhile quick to snap back at remarks by Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.
It accused Nasrallah of seeking to “hold the political forces accountable over their principled stance on his call for communicating with the Syrian government,” slamming Hizbullah for “taking unilateral decisions pertaining to matters of peace and war independently from the state and its constitutional institutions.”
Mustaqbal emphasized that “a large segment of the Lebanese people refuses that this victory be employed in the favor of regional agendas, specifically in the favor of Bashar al-Assad's regime,” accusing Nasrallah of resorting to “sectarian incitement and populism.”Nasrallah for his part hit back over accusations that he had sought to “blackmail” the Lebanese government over the file of the IS-held troops, calling for “interrogating those who left the soldiers in IS' hands.”“The army had the ability to besiege Daesh and free the captive troops,” Hizbullah's leader underlined, accusing some politicians of “cowardice and submission.”The war of words comes after the remains of eight Lebanese soldiers executed by IS were recovered by Lebanese authorities as part of an agreement led by Hizbullah. The agreement followed separate but simultaneous assaults by Hizbullah and the Lebanese and Syrian armies on both sides of the border. The IS fighters who surrendered on both fronts were allowed to leave with their families to Syria's Deir Ezzor province as part of a deal that also involved the handover of a Hizbullah captive and bodies belonging to slain Hizbullah fighters.

Hariri, Jumblat Defend Salam against Troops Kidnap Criticism
Naharnet/August 29/17/Prime Minister Saad Hariri and Progressive Socialist Party chief MP Walid Jumblat on Tuesday threw their support behind ex-PM Tammam Salam in the face of criticism addressed to him and his 2014 government over the abduction of dozens of troops at the hands of jihadist groups. “Tammam Salam will not be affected by the attacks of the prejudiced parties. We stood by him and we always will... Enough is enough,” Hariri tweeted. He added: “I don't remember that those attacking Tammam Beik Salam today had withdrawn from his government back then in protest at what they are claiming today.”Jumblat for his part tweeted: “Enough with manipulating the sentiments of the families... In war, any soldier faces martyrdom or captivity and it is shameful to pin the blame on Tammam Salam.”Hizbullah, the Free Patriotic Movement and some of their allies have criticized Salam's government, Hariri and former army chief Jean Qahwaji over the events of the 2014 battle against the Islamic State and al-Nusra Front jihadist groups, accusing them of ordering a premature halt to the fighting that allowed the militants to abduct around 30 Lebanese troops and policemen to the outskirts of the border town of Arsal.
The war of words comes after eight Lebanese troops who were still in IS' hands were announced dead on Sunday. The fate of the troops was unveiled as part of an agreement led by Hizbullah. The agreement followed separate but simultaneous anti-IS assaults by Hizbullah and the Lebanese and Syrian armies on both sides of the border that ended with the surrender of the IS militants. IS fighters who surrendered on both fronts were allowed to leave with their families to Syria's Deir Ezzor province as part of the deal that also involved the handover of a Hizbullah captive and bodies belonging to slain Hizbullah fighters.

Bassil Urges 'Terror-Free' Camps: Whoever Allowed Terrorism in Past Must Shut Up Today
Naharnet/August 29/17/Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil on Tuesday called for the removal of any “terror hubs” in the country's Palestinian and Syrian refugee camps, as he said that parties that “allowed terrorism in the past must shut up today.”“We must benefit from the border victory to reject the persistence of terror hubs in (Palestinian) refugee camps and the gatherings of the displaced (Syrians), topped by the challenge of the Ain el-Hilweh camp,” said Bassil after the weekly meeting of the Change and Reform bloc. He was referring to separate but simultaneous anti-IS assaults by Hizbullah and the Lebanese and Syrian armies on both sides of the border that ended with the surrender and withdrawal of Islamic State terrorists entrenched in the border region. “The scheme of terrorism in Lebanon has fallen and the displacement and naturalization schemes should fall next,” Bassil added. Referring to IS' execution of abducted Lebanese troops, Bassil reminded the Lebanese that “the soldiers were martyred due to inaction and negligence over what happened in the year 2014.” The suspected remains of eight troops were recovered Sunday by Lebanese authorities and the body of a suspected soldier was retrieved on Tuesday. The bodies were located as part of a Hizbullah-led deal with IS. The troops were among around 30 Lebanese servicemen abducted by IS and al-Nusra Front during the 2014 invasion of the border town of Arsal. “Those who allowed terrorism in the past must shut up today, and let them atone for their sins by contributing to a solution to the refugee crisis,” Bassil went on to say. “Our stance in Cabinet in 2014 was clear when we rejected an illegal term extension. Do Lebanese realize now why we were calling for the appointment of a new army commander?” Bassil added. “Let Lebanon get stronger by standing by the strong president and the capable army instead of fabricating stories about allowing the terrorists to flee,” the FPM chief urged. “Some are trying to give the impression that Daesh (IS) and al-Nusra were created by Hizbullah, but the response is the acknowledgment by top (foreign) officials that some Western and Middle Eastern countries were supporting the extremists,” Bassil added. The political scene in Lebanon is witnessing major controversy over the latest developments on the eastern border, especially after Hizbullah was accused of facilitating a smooth exit for IS' militants from the border region.
Some parties are decrying that “IS' militants were allowed to escape punishment over the murder of the soldiers,” while others are criticizing certain parties in Tammam Salam's government for “preventing the army from continuing the battle and liberating the troops in 2014.”Hizbullah, the FPM and some of their allies have criticized Salam's government, al-Mustaqbal Movement and former army chief Jean Qahwaji over the 2014 clashes, accusing them of ordering a premature halt to the fighting that allowed the militants to abduct around 30 Lebanese troops and policemen to the outskirts of the border town of Arsal.

Marouni to Radio Lebanon: Army represents hope and salvation
Tue 29 Aug 2017NNA - MP Elie Marouni on Tuesday revealed that many signs implied that the soldiers kidnapped by Daesh had been killed for a long time now, but that there has always been hope to brush off the idea. Interviewed by Radio Lebanon, Marouni regretted that this sad reality had altered the joy of victory against terrorism, adding that he will not offer condolences to the martyrs' families until DNA tests' results are revealed. "We wager on the army because it represents the hope and the salvation," he said. Moreover, the Kataeb lawmaker deplored the accusations against a number of officials regarding the military hostages. Marouni did not fail to remind that his party had reservations over the army-people-resistance trinity, stressing that Hezbollah leader, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, had best leave the victory declaration to the Lebanese state.

Why did Hezbollah cede the ‘starring’ role to the army?
Abdulrahman al-Rashed/Al Arabiya/August 29/17
Can someone explain to us why the Lebanese army, and behind it Hezbollah and the Syrian regime forces, allowed 250 terrorist fighters from ISIS who are besieged in Jroud, the barren, mountainous border area between Lebanon and Syria to peacefully be evacuated to the Syrian city of Deir az-Zour? That’s from the far west to the far east and it’s more than 400 kilometers into the war-torn Syria.The deal seems suspicious as it’s based on a ceasefire between the Lebanese army – though it has not fought for the past four years there – and ISIS. When it comes to this deal, it seems the Lebanese army is the one ending the siege of the murderers in exchange of taking the corpses of Hezbollah’s fighters and learning where its soldiers are buried. ISIS had abducted nine Lebanese soldiers and the army recently found the remains of six of them. Why didn’t Hezbollah play the starring role as usual?
It is because the deal obviously reflects a defeat and represents a scandal. It’s therefore a good excuse to say that the army struck the deal considering it is a legitimate power. As long as Hezbollah claims that it controls mountainous areas, it will not be logical or even understandable why it would allow so many ISIS fighters to leave in exchange of the remains of the dead. This is why the families of the dead soldiers viewed the deal as a betrayal to their sons. It’s all based on the army’s statements that they seized control of Qalamoun and that there are only 20 kilometers left to seize control of out of an area which area is 100 kilometers.
The mysterious part is how will ISIS fighters go to Deir az-Zour? It’s a long journey that in the times of peace take five hours
Safe haven for ISIS
The truth is obvious. Hezbollah was not capable of controlling this area and it justifies the agreement by saying that it’s not a strategic area anyway. However, this is not true as it’s a safe haven for ISIS where it can threaten all of northeast Lebanon with it terrorist operations, and it’s only few kilometers away from Syria’s borders. Hezbollah is saying that the deal with ISIS aims to clear the area from ISIS and impose control over it so it can focus on fighting the Americans in the Syrian Badia region! Of course no one believes these claims! The mysterious part is how will ISIS fighters go to Deir az-Zour? It’s a long journey that in the times of peace take five hours. During these circumstances it may take an entire day or more. What concerns us about this small battle within the context of Syria’s big war? We’re trying to understand the forces’ formation on ground through it. If ISIS can save its fighters who are besieged in the Jroud and the Lebanese region of Qalamoun and secure their transport to the faraway city of Deir az-Zour, then this means it’s still strong unlike everything we’ve been told. This means that any agreement which the Russians and the Iranians impose on Syrian warring groups later will be just an illusion of peace.
Legitimacy of the regime
This does not mean terrorist groups are not collapsing in their strongholds in Syria. It’s actually true and it’s mainly a result of the western coalition’s strikes as the Iranian-Russian alliance only focuses on fighting the Syrian organizations that are fighting the legitimacy of the Assad regime and they are trying to force these factions to accept its political project. The difference between defeating an armed Syrian faction and a terrorist group like ISIS and al-Nusra Front is that terrorist organizations are capable of surviving after defeat and becoming underground groups since they are ideological parties that live in a secret organizational environment. Hezbollah wants its name to be associated with victories because it popularly lives off them. It let the Lebanese army sign the Qalamoun agreement so people get angry at the army and condemn it. The people will conclude that it was the army who agreed to the deal of evacuating ISIS fighters in exchange of recovering the corpses of dead soldiers. However, everyone views this as a losing deal and an embarrassing defeat. This time, Hezbollah made its choice and ceded the “starring” role to the Lebanese army which is still helpless.

Future Bloc after weekly meeting: For commitment to state, Taef accord
Tue 29 Aug 2017/NNA - Future bloc congratulated the Lebanese people, in general, and the army, in particular, on the great national accomplishment of the liberation of the outskirts of Ras Baalbek and al-Qaa from the Daesh terrorists. The Bloc's fresh words on Tuesday came in the wake of its regular meeting at the Center House, chaired by bloc head Fouad Siniora, to dwell on the overall situation in the country. Future bloc expressed full and profound solidarity with the families of the military servicemen who were abducted by the terrorist Daesh organization, saying "it [the bloc] awaits with the families the results of DNA testing to verify their sons' fate." The Bloc offered its heartfelt condolences to the families of fallen martyrs, in the hope that their blood would be a catalyst to strengthen national unity amongst the Lebanese and the status of the Lebanese state and its prestige. The Bloc brought to attention that the great national liberation accomplishment should reinforce commitment to the Lebanese legitimacy based on the Taef Accord and the Constitution, which underline the importance of national coexistence and the principle of citizenship. The bloc also voiced adherence to the strong and fair Lebanese state, while strengthening its role and prestige, and its exclusive sovereignty over all Lebanese soil through its sole legitimate weapon. "Only the State provides security and safety to all its citizens without discrimination," bloc said in a statement read out by MP Ammar Houry. Future also voiced commitment to the Arab legitimacy in terms of identity and belonging, affirming respect for the sovereignty and independence of Arab brotherly states, and the non-interference in the internal affairs of these countries. The bloc also said it upholds the international legitimacy, notably commitment to all international resolutions particularly resolution #1701 in all its clauses. The bloc deemed these resolutions "an an international safety umbrella for Lebanon." Future considered that these three integrated constants fall in the interest of Lebanon and all the Lebanese people, branding them "a genuine national treasure that must be preserved."

Economy Minister begins contacts with Syrian counterpart over trade routes
Tue 29 Aug 2017/NNA - Minister of Economy and Trade, Raed Khoury, has started communication with his Syrian counterpart, Mohammad Samer al-Khalil, to reach solutions over the growing economic and social crises that had saddled Lebanon since the war in Syria, a statement by Khoury's office indicated on Tuesday. The contact comes in conjunction with the positive developments on the ground, following the major achievements scored by the Lebanese army against terrorists and the liberation of the eastern borders, the statement explained. "Regarding the trade relations and the obstacles Lebanese exports are facing on the trade routes crossing Syria, work is underway to revive the activity of the ad-hoc technical committee," it added, indicating that the committee will convene in September in Beirut.

Army continues deployment in Wadi Martbaya and vicinity
Tue 29 Aug 2017/NNA - Army units have completed their deployment in the locality of Wadi Martbaya and its surroundings, after being cleared out of the terrorist Daesh Organization, Army Command Directorate General said in a communiqué. The army hoisted the Lebanese flag over the hilltops Halima Qara, Oqabat Martbaya and Halima al-Qabou. These hilltops are considered the highest in the area. In the meantime, army engineering regiment's specialized teams are currently conducting a survey on these lands to detect bombs, mines and suspicious objects left behind by the terrorists.

Army refutes circulated news about resignation of Fajr Jouroud Operation Commander
Tue 29 Aug 2017/NNA - Army Command categorically refuted what has been circulated in some electronic media websites about the resignation of the Commander of "Fajr Jouroud" Operation, Army Command Orientation Directorate said in a communiqué. The Command urged media websites to exercise precision in dealing with any subject related to the military institution, and to go back to the Command to obtain the correct information, communiqué added.

What Defeat Means to Lebanese Army
Abdulrahman Al-Rashed/Asharq Al Awsat/August 29/17
Why has the Lebanese army, along with Hezbollah and Syrian regime forces, allowed 250 ISIS terrorist fighters besieged in Lebanese-Syrian barrens to safely leave into Syrian Der Ezzor region; that is from the far west to the far east, an area covering over 400 kilometers within the already torn Syria?
The deal sounds suspicious. It is based on a ceasefire between the Lebanese army, knowing that it hadn’t been fighting there for the past four years, against ISIS.
Based on the agreement, it looked as if the army broke the siege of the murderers in exchange for handing over the bodies of Hezbollah fighters and locating the bodies of the soldiers kidnapped in 2014, with only six found so far.
Why wasn’t, this time, the role of the hero left to Hezbollah as usual?
Apparently, the reason is that this agreement is a defeat and a scandal. The excuse being said here is that the army is the legitimate force.
This doesn’t sound reasonable or even comprehensible. It doesn’t make sense to allow this large number of ISIS fighters to leave alive in exchange of remains, given that Hezbollah claims it is in control of those mountains.
Families of the deceased Lebanese soldiers considered this agreement a betrayal of their children’s rights. They relied on the army’s statements that they regained control of the Qalamoun and with only 20 kilometers left out of 100 kilometers.
The blatant truth is that Hezbollah was not capable of controlling that area. Hezbollah justifies the agreement saying it is not a strategic region. But this is not true. The area is ISIS’ safe haven, and from there it can threaten all of Lebanon’s northeastern area. It is also only a few kilometers away from Syria.
The mysterious part is the transfer of ISIS fighters to Der Ezzor, a long trip that usually requires five hours and it may even take a full day or even more now.
What is it that concerns us in such a small battle within Syria’s big war?
Through this battle, we try to understand the combination of forces in the fields. If ISIS succeeded in saving its fighters besieged in Lebanese Qalamoun and barrens and then ensure their safe transfer into Der Ezzor, this means that, unlike what we hear, ISIS is still strong.
This also means that any agreement between Russia and Iran enforced on other Syrian forces later on will only be an illusion of peace.
This doesn’t mean that terrorist organizations inside and outside Syria are falling apart.
Indeed, especially that most of their losses were because of strikes caused by the Western coalition, given that the Russia-Iran coalition focuses its strikes against Syrian organizations fighting Assad regime. They want to oblige the organizations into accepting Assad’s political project.
The difference between the defeat of an armed Syrian organization and a terrorist one like ISIS and al-Nusra Front is that the terrorist forces are capable of operating underground after their defeat. It can exist in a secretive environment.
Hezbollah wanted to tag its name to the victories because it publicly thrives on them, that is why it left al-Qalamoun agreement to the army to face people’s anger and resentment. It is as if the army was the one agreeing to the swap deal in exchange for evacuating ISIS. This seemed a losing deal and an embarrassing defeat to everyone.
Hezbollah chose and conceded this time the heroic role for the sake of the overpowered Lebanese Army.

Head of Israeli Military Intelligence, Major General Herzi Halev: Hezbollah is Tightening Grip on Lebanon
Head of Military Intelligence: Hezbollah is Tightening Grip on Lebanon
Jerusalem Post/Anna Ahronheim/August 29/17
Herzi Halevi told UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres that the organization should do more to prevent the next war.
The Head of the IDF Intelligence Directorate Major General Herzi Halevi warned UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that Hezbollah is tightening its hold on Lebanon at a meeting in Jerusalem on Monday.
According to Halevi there are serious and prolonged violations of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 by the Iranian-backed Lebanese Shiite terror group.
The IDF has accused the Shi’ite terror organization numerous times of violating the resolution which set the terms to end the 34-day Second Lebanon War fought between Israel and Hezbollah in the summer of 2006.
According to IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot, while the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) is helping maintain calm in southern Lebanon, its leadership does not do enough when Hezbollah violates the resolution. Eisenkot has accused Hezbollah of continuing to prepare themselves for war in villages, cities and towns south of the Litani River, “arming itself with more lethal and accurate weapons to harm the Israeli home front.”
Halevi stated that UNIFIL holds an important role with Hezbollah, and could exert more pressure to hinder the group’s effort to strengthen its position in Lebanon. He stressed that more could and should be done on the UN's part, not only to preserve peace but to prevent the next war.
The head of military intelligence also briefed Guterres on the intelligence situation in various sectors.
Halevi stressed to Guterres that Iran's desire to produce precision weapons for Hezbollah on Lebanese soil and in the Syrian military industry is a serious development to which Israel can not be indifferent.
In early July, Halevi confirmed reports that Hezbollah operated and managed two underground weapons factories set up by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in response to alleged Israeli strikes against weapons convoys in Syria.
According to the report, the factories can produce missiles such as Fateh-110 surface-to-surface missiles with a range of up to 300km and the capability to carry a 400kg warhead, as well as surface-to-air and anti-tank missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles able to carry explosives.
According to Halevi, the strengthening of Hezbollah in Lebanon as well as the entrenchment of Iran in Syria and its desire to produce precise weapons for the group could lead to an escalation on Israel’s northern border.
"The consolidation of Iran and the Shi'ite axis in Syria, and the strengthening of Hezbollah in Lebanon are two processes that could lead to an undesirable escalation in the northern front," he said.
The meeting was also attended by UN Deputy Secretary General Jeffrey David Feltman, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nikolay Mladenov and Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Mr. Danny Danon.
Danon told Guterres that "Iran is developing a terrorist incubator in Syria and Lebanon and is trying to ignite a fire in the entire region. The United Nations must act to uproot the roots of Iranian terrorism and UNIFIL must cleanse southern Lebanon of all of Hezbollah’s terrorist activities."
On Friday US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley harshly criticized the commander of UNIFIL, Major General Michael Beary, accusing him of turning a blind eye to Iran’s covert arming of Hezbollah.
"General Beary says there are no Hezbollah weapons," she said. "That’s an embarrassing lack of understanding on what’s going on around him."
Jerusalem has repeatedly said it would not allow Iran to set up a permanent presence in Syria. Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman warned that while there is no interest by Israel to enter into Syria’s seven-year civil war, there are red lines that Jerusalem has set including the smuggling of sophisticated weaponry to Hezbollah and an Iranian presence on its borders.
Israel fought a 34-day war against Hezbollah in 2006 and since then, hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah have been limited to occasional firing across the border and reported airstrikes by Israel against Hezbollah leaders and military equipment in Syria, where the group is fighting in support of President Bashar Assad.

Latest LCCC Bulletin For Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 29-30/17
Canada condemns North Korean provocation
August 29, 2017 - Ottawa, Canada - Global Affairs Canada
The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today issued the following statement in response to North Korea’s missile launch at 5:57 a.m. Seoul time, on August 29, 2017:
“Canada strongly condemns North Korea’s launch, on August 29, of a ballistic missile, which overflew Japanese territory. North Korea’s reckless violation of its neighbours’ territorial sovereignty and its direct threat to Japan’s citizens have threatened both regional and international peace and security.
“We will continue our steadfast support for Japan, South Korea and other partners in the region.
“North Korea’s repeated launches of ballistic missiles, in direct violation of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions, demonstrate a total disregard for its international obligations.
“We call on North Korea to cease these provocations, comply with its obligations and immediately and verifiably abandon its ballistic missile program.
“Canada supports international measures that encourage North Korea to abandon its nuclear and ballistic missile programs and resume dialogue toward a political solution.”

Moscow Suggests ‘Supporting’ Kuwaiti Mediation
Asharq Al Awsat/August 29/17/Kuwait, Moscow- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed on Monday his country’s readiness to play a “supportive role” in the mediation efforts played by Kuwait to solve the crisis between Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt from one side, and Qatar from another. Following talks with Kuwaiti Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah at the Seif Palace on Monday, in addition to a meeting held with Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, Lavrov said that the Kuwaiti mediation efforts to end the ongoing rift between Qatar and several Arab countries “deserves to be supported.”According to Russia’s official news agency TASS, Lavrov said: “We strongly believe that Kuwait’s initiative deserves the support of all those who can generate a positive impact on this situation. We are ready to provide this support in any mode that will be acceptable to all participants in this situation.”The Russian minister also said Moscow “has good relations with all the countries which found themselves in such a difficult situation.”According to Kuwait’s news agency KUNA, Lavrov’s visit on Monday came to follow-up on the implementation of the agreement reached between Kuwait’s Amir and Russian President Vladimir Putin to strengthen bilateral relations and coordinate positions on issues of mutual interest. Meanwhile, Fitch Ratings cut Qatar’s sovereign rating to AA-, with a negative outlook. The New York-based firm said in a statement Monday that it has “downgraded Qatar’s Long-Term Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) to ‘AA-‘ from ‘AA’ and removed them from Rating Watch Negative (RWN) where they were placed on 12 June 2017.” Fitch Ratings also expected that the Qatari government’s net foreign assets would fall to 146 percent of gross domestic product in 2017 from 185 percent last year, adding that “at the same time, the full financial and economic impact of the embargo is uncertain and could prove to be larger than we currently expect.

ISIS Moves from Qalamoun to Iraqi Border under Syrian Regime Sponsorship
Asharq Al Awsat/August 29/17/Beirut – Buses carrying ISIS militants started leaving the western outskirts of al-Qalamoun region in Syria on Monday towards al-Boukamal in the countryside of eastern Deir al-Zour near the Iraqi border, signaling “Hezbollah” and the Syrian regime’s completion, in record time, of the third phase of a ceasefire deal reached with the terror group to end its presence there. “This file is now closed,” said Lebanese General Security Chief, Major General Abbas Ibrahim, who was mediating to uncover the fate of nine Lebanese soldiers abducted by the terrorists in 2014. The remains of some of the soldiers were unearthed on Sunday. Meanwhile, ever since officials announced Sunday that the nine soldiers were killed by ISIS and after the Lebanese army said it ended its “Jurud Dawn” battle against the terrorists in Lebanon’s northeastern border region of Arsal, angry voices rose in Lebanon against allowing the militants and their families to leave the area toward the ISIS-held town of al-Boukamal, saying that the victory against the group was imperfect. Hussein Youssef, father of the kidnapped soldier Mohammed and a spokesperson of the soldiers’ families, tearfully told Asharq Al-Awsat on Monday: “History will hold politicians, who exploited the blood of the noble soldiers, accountable for what they did. All the Lebanese know the identities of those politicians.”A ministerial source told Asharq Al-Awsat that “Hezbollah” had previously said it refuses to negotiate with the terrorists, but it later announced that it had reached a deal with ISIS that allowed the terrorists to leave Lebanon, while the families of the kidnapped soldiers were still mourning their sons. On the other hand, a deputy close to Hezbollah defended the choices made by the party. “Those militants, who were allowed to leave are not prisoners or sentenced… instead of thanking ‘Hezbollah’ for saving Lebanon from terrorism, some people chose to condemn it,” MP Walid Sukkariyeh told Asharq Al-Awsat.

ISIS Resort to Al-Ayadiya as their Last Refuge in Nineveh
Asharq Al Awsat/August 29/17/Irbil- After being removed from Tal Afar, hundreds of Arab and foreign ISIS militants escaped to the town of al-Ayadiya in the north of Iraq, their last refuge in the Nineveh province, where Iraqi forces besieged them on Monday. “Hundreds of Arab and foreign ISIS militants were now taking shelter in al-Ayadiya,” according to Iraqi security forces. Commander of the Iraqi Army’s 2nd regiment in Battalion 92 of team 15, Lieutenant Colonel Ribuwar Aziz told Asharq Al-Awsat on Monday: “The military sectors are fiercely fighting the terrorist militants in al-Ayadiya.
We were capable to liberate towns located on the outskirts of the area. Currently, our forces are pushing toward the center of the town.”Aziz said that ISIS militants have no way left out of al-Ayadiya, adding that they could either surrender themselves or get killed. Similar to other battles fought by ISIS in the past years in Syria and Iraq, the terrorist group used on Monday explosive cars and suicide bomber attacks to halt the advancement of the Iraqi forces. US-led coalition warplanes with the help of Iraqi land and air forces were capable to destroy the majority of those cars, leaving immense losses in the ranks of ISIS. Meanwhile, the Kurdish Peshmerga Command operating in the western part of Dijlah said its forces foiled ISIS militants, including suicide bombers, from infiltrating to one town in the area, revealing that clashes that erupted between their forces and ISIS militants led two suicide bombers to blow themselves up. Media official of the Kurdistan Democratic Party in Mosul Saeed Mamouzini told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Peshmerga forces killed more than 15 ISIS militants. The recuperation of al-Ayadiya from ISIS would signal taking full control of the Nineveh province from the terrorist organization, after previously liberating Mosul, the second largest city in the country. According to AFP, the terrorist group now only controls the city of Hawija, about 300 km north of Baghdad, and desert areas along the border with Syria.

UAE criticizes ‘colonial’ role of Iran, Turkey in Syria
Reuters, Abu Dhabi Tuesday, 29 August 2017/The United Arab Emirates urged Iran and Turkey on Monday to end what it called their “colonial” actions in Syria, signaling unease about diminishing Gulf Arab influence in the war. Allied to regional powerhouse Saudi Arabia, the UAE opposes Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his backer Iran, and is wary of Turkey, a friend of Islamist forces the UAE opposes throughout the Arab world. UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan urged “the exit of those parties trying to reduce the sovereignty of the Syrian state, and I speak here frankly and clearly about Iran and Turkey.” He was speaking at a news conference with Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, whose country helps Assad militarily. “If Iran and Turkey continue the same historical, colonial and competitive behavior and perspectives between them in Arab affairs, we will continue in this situation not just in Syria today but tomorrow in some other country,” Sheikh Abdullah said. The six-year-old war in Syria has dragged in regional and international players who have sought to advance their interests there: Iran has sent troops and military support to shore up Assad's rule as he has battled mostly rebels backed by Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab states. The Syrian army and its allies have regained lost territory with the help of Russian air strikes since 2015. At the same time, ISIS is being pushed back from strongholds in Eastern Syria by the Syrian army and a rival offensive by Kurdish and Arab rebels backed by the United States. Fearing expanded Kurdish influence along its border with Syria, US ally Turkey has grown increasingly uneasy about the rebels' armed thrust. Turkey and Iran have discussed possible joint military action against Kurdish militant groups, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday.
Lavrov and Sheikh Abdullah said they agreed on a need for a negotiated end to the war. Russia is helping shepherd talks in the Kazakh capital Astana which has already produced “de-escalation” zones to reduce combat in three parts of Syria. Lavrov said Russia hoped that efforts to unify the positions of Syria's disparate opposition would aid the peace process. “There were some deep disagreements in the past which led to the failure of some meetings, but we will continue encouraging the participation of all the platforms,” he said through a translator.

Yousuf Otaiba: Qatar is a ‘destructive element’ in the region
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Tuesday, 29 August 2017/UAE Ambassador to the United States, Yousef Al-Otaiba, described Qatar as a ‘destructive force’ in the region. Otaiba denied to the Atlantic magazine what Qatar claims about its blockade. He pointed out that Qataris do not suffer from famine and the ports and airports are open. He stressed that the measures against Doha were taken to protect the security of the Arab Quartet countries. Otaiba said that Qatar is the second country in the world to host the largest number of terrorists, and some of them listed on the United Nations and Washington list of terrorism.

U.N. Chief in Ramallah Says Two-State Solution Cannot be Abandoned
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 29/17/U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said Tuesday a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict remained the only viable option as he made his first visit to the West Bank since taking office. Guterres spoke after meeting Palestinian prime minister Rami Hamdallah in Ramallah following talks with Israeli leaders the previous day. "I want to express very strongly the total commitment of the United Nations but my personal total commitment to do everything for a two-state solution to materialize," he said. "I have said several times there is no Plan B to a two-state solution."A two-state solution to the conflict has been the basis of international diplomacy since at least the early 1990s, but it has recently come under threat. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu heads what is seen as the most right-wing government in his country's history, and has signaled he has no intention of evacuating settlements in the occupied West Bank. Israeli settlements are built on land the Palestinians see as part of their future state. Prominent members of Netanyahu's government advocate annexing most of the West Bank, which would make an independent Palestinian state impossible. U.S. President Donald Trump has said he wants to reach the "ultimate deal," but he himself has cast doubt on the two-state solution, saying he could support a single state if this meant peace. Such statements deeply concern Palestinian leaders. Guterres spoke again on Tuesday of Israeli settlements as an obstacle to peace, while also noting that they are "illegal under international law." On Monday after meeting Netanyahu, he criticized settlements but also said Palestinians must condemn "terrorism."He said on Tuesday that "it is important to create conditions for leaders of all sides to appeal for calm, to avoid forms of incitement, for violence to settle down."Israeli leaders say Palestinian "incitement" against the Jewish state is a key reason why peace efforts have not advanced. Peace efforts have been at a standstill since a U.S.-led initiative collapsed in 2014.

Iran Pilgrims Flock to Saudi in Diplomatic Icebreaker
Agence France Presse/Naharnet/August 29/17/In a diplomatic icebreaker between political foes, tens of thousands of Muslim faithful from Iran have flocked to Saudi Arabia for the annual hajj pilgrimage to Islam's holiest sites. This week's hajj marks Iran's return after their absence last year following a massive stampede in 2015 that killed around 2,300 people, including 464 Iranians. The tragedy sparked bitter recrimination from Tehran over the kingdom's custodianship of the sites in Mecca and Medina, western Saudi Arabia.For the first time in nearly three decades, Iranian pilgrims were barred from the hajj last year, after several rounds of negotiations between the two Gulf heavyweights failed to overcome political and procedural differences. Adding a further obstacle, the Sunni kingdom cut all ties with Shiite Iran in January 2016 after its diplomatic missions in Tehran and Mashhad were torched by protesters angered by Saudi Arabia's execution of a prominent Shiite figure. But under a deal struck in March, about 86,000 Iranians have now arrived in Saudi Arabia for the hajj, joining two million Muslims from across the globe in converging on Mecca. "I'm happy to see so many Iranians here... Political issues shouldn't interfere in a religious duty, especially the hajj," Abbas Ali, a 54-year-old Iranian, said Monday at Jeddah airport that is the main entry point for pilgrims."It's very difficult to describe my feelings. We shouldn't stop coming here because all of us are Muslims," the newly-arrived "haji" from Zahedan in eastern Iran told AFP. The breakthrough came after several months of negotiations during which the two countries traded accusations of obstructing an agreement.
Diplomats to inspect empty embassies
Tehran and Riyadh stand on opposing sides in several regional disputes, including the conflicts in Syria, Yemen and Bahrain, as well as this year's Gulf diplomatic crisis between Qatar and a Saudi-led Arab bloc. The pilgrimage now seems to be acting as an icebreaker between the two powers. In the absence of diplomatic relations and with its missions in Iran closed, Saudi Arabia agreed to issue electronic visas for Iranian pilgrims. Saudi Arabia has also allowed Iran's national carrier Iran Air to fly in most of the Islamic republic's pilgrims, while some were transported by the kingdom's carrier. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said last week that visas have been issued for diplomats from the two countries to visit and inspect each other's empty embassies and consulates. "We are waiting for final measures to be taken so diplomats from both countries can visit," he said. "This will probably happen after the hajj."
Iran has set up temporary consulates in the kingdom to assist its pilgrims, and it has instructed them to avoid "arguments" with Saudi staff at airports and pilgrimage sites. "We have tried to separate the bilateral relations between the two countries from the pilgrimage," a former Iranian culture minister, Seyed-Reza Salehi Amiri, said last month. In another key gesture, Tehran is to hold Shiite prayers, normally accompanied by chants of "Death to America" and "Death to Israel", inside hotels rather than outdoors, to avoid "security problems", according to Ali Ghazi Askar, an aide to Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei.
In 1987, more than 400 people, most of them Iranian pilgrims, were killed in clashes with Saudi security forces at an anti-Western rally in Mecca. The hajj, which starts this year on Wednesday, is one of the five pillars of the Islamic faith, which every Muslim is required to complete at least once in a lifetime if he or she has the means to do so.

Lavrov in Kuwait for talks to resolve Qatar crisis
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Tuesday, 29 August 2017/Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah received Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and the accompanying deputation on Monday, where they discussed the latest Arab and regional updates. Lavrov’s meetings in Kuwait are a part of a Gulf tour that will also include Qatar and UAE, it is scheduled to last till August 30. Lavrov, after meeting Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, stressed Moscow’s support for Kuwaiti mediation and urged the concerned countries to sit at one table to discuss the issues.
Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah discussed with the Russian Foreign Minister the latest updates and developments on both the regional and the international level when Al-Sabah met the Russian official and his accompanying deputation in the Kuwaiti capital.
The official Kuwaiti news agency said the two sides reviewed during the meeting “the distinguished historical relations between the two countries at all levels.” Although Moscow has denied on several occasions its mediation in the Qatari crisis, Russian efforts, according to observers, came shortly after Doha’s attempts to buy weapons from Moscow in the midst of the crisis with its neighbors in the Gulf. “The visit comes as part of Russia’s efforts to support Kuwaiti mediation to resolve the Gulf crisis and will address the situation in Syria,” Russian Ambassador in Kuwait Alexei Solomatin said in an earlier press statement. Since June 5, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain and Egypt had sever ties with Qatar because of Doha’s support for terrorism.

Report: Iranian-backed spy ring in Saudi trained by IRGC in Mashhad
Staff writer, Al Arabiya English Monday, 28 August 2017/Members of an Iranian-backed spy ring currently on trial in Saudi Arabia received training at military sites of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Saudi daily Okaz reported on Monday. According to the report, the spy ring - made up of Saudi nationals - utilized religious pilgrimages to a Holy Shiite shrine in the Iranian city of Mashhad to be trained at IRGC camps. One of the spy-ring members was arrested at King Fahad International Airport in Dammam as he was attempting to leave the country. His confessions to Saudi security authorities revealed that upon arrival at Mashhad airport member of the spy-ring were transported to furnished apartments in the city and were kept indoors for three days. IRGC officers allegedly blindfolded the men before taking them to the training camps, two hours away from the airport. The men were given a “special allowance” and were housed in private quarters where they received training on weapons and explosives. The trainees met convicted terrorist Ahmed al-Mughsil who is currently detained in Saudi Arabia after being involved in the Khobar Towers bombing of 1996 that killed 19 US soldiers and wounded 372 others. Mughsil supervised their training for two weeks, and asked them to establish a terrorist cell in Saudi Arabia immediately after they returned to the kingdom, the report said. The members viewed Mughsil as a leader and awaited instructions to carry out bombings and assassinations. According to Akhbarna website, the investigations showed that the plan - led by Mughsil - included the opening of a tourism agency in Qatif to send young men and women to Iran to train and inflame public opinion against the Saudi Arabia and its security.

Erdogan, Abbas Stress Adherence to Two-State Solution, Reject Israeli Practices
Asharq Al Awsat/August 29/17/Ankara- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the road to lasting peace in the Middle East was through the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state, criticizing Israel’s continued settlement policy in the Palestinian territories. “Israel should put an end to practices that undermine the two-state solution,” Erdogan told a joint press conference with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday. The Turkish president stressed that the solution to the Palestinian case was not only in the interest of the Palestinians but also in Israel’s interest, stressing that Turkey would maintain its efforts towards the success of the two-state solution in various international forums. Erdogan received Abbas at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, where the two officials held a bilateral summit, followed by an extended meeting during a banquet held in the Palestinian president’s honor.
The two leaders stressed that there was no alternative to a two-state solution, and that Israel must stop its practices that “violate the essence and principles of a peace process in the Middle East.”Turkish sources told Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that the two sides discussed issues related to reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas and the means to activate the peace process, pointing out that Ankara was moving in the framework of a new initiative at the request of Abbas, based on the Turkish rapprochement with Hamas. The sources added that Ankara was planning to hold new dialogue meetings between Fatah and Hamas, and to provide an initiative to end divisions that have erupted in 2007. They also said that Abbas has asked Erdogan to exert pressure on Hamas to dissolve its administrative committee and move towards the establishment of a government of national unity and the holding of legislative and presidential elections.rdogan has affirmed his country’s readiness to start a round of contacts with the concerned Palestinian parties, with the aim to achieve some progress in the reconciliation file and to try to bring the views between Fatah and Hamas closer through intensive meetings to be hosted soon.

Libya: Haftar Forces Prepare to Deter New Attack on Oil Crescent Area
Asharq Al Awsat/August 29/17/Cairo- Amid a state of anticipation of a new attack by armed militias on the Oil Crescent area, which is controlled by the Libyan National Army led by Marshal Khalifa Hafter, at least five people were killed in clashes in Suq al-Khamis and al-Hira areas southwest of Tripoli airport.
Meanwhile, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) Ghassan Salame was supposed to brief the UN with the situation in Libya on Monday evening, one month after taking office. “Haftar is aware of the possibility of armed militias launching a new attack on the vital oil crescent area,” high-level Libyan sources told Asharq Al-Awsat. Sources described it as part of an attempt to “change the military situation in the country by militias, some of which belong to the city of Misrata and are supported by the GNA,” which is headed by Fayez Sarraj. Haftar, who is considered the strongest man in the eastern region of Libya, has controlled the oil crescent area after his forces deterred at least two attempts in the past year and early this year by armed militias to regain control over it. Spokesman for the Libyan National Army Ahmed al-Mismari told Asharq Al-Awsat that the army has observed what he described as “great mobilization” in the outskirts of the city of Sirte and in its western part. He said that terrorist groups in these areas have been mobilizing people, “whose destination is expected to be Gulf of Sidra to control the ports and oil installations and then move towards Benghazi and Derna.” Notably, Haftar forces control Benghazi, but Derna is under the control of militias, some of which are affiliated with al-Qaeda. Mismari stressed that the Libyan National Army’s forces are on high alert. “The operations rooms were given orders to act freely and open fire at any time needed”.

Manama Accuses Doha of Inciting Chaos During 2011 Upheaval
Asharq Al Awsat/August 29/17/Manama- Bahrain has accused the Qatari leadership of being behind the security unrest that erupted in the Kingdom in 2011. A report on Bahrain’s state television on Monday said that the first spark of events in Bahrain during that period and calls for chaos were launched from the Qatari capital. Accusations made by Manama against Doha have previously highlighted the financial and political support provided by Qatar to the outlaws and terrorist groups, but Bahrain said in this new revelation that calls for chaos and for overthrowing the regime emerged from Doha specifically. Bahraini security services have also underlined the role of Qatari state institutions in fueling the events through intensive engagement into political developments in the country and also through social media networking sites. The report also highlighted that the Qatari scheme was directly targeting the government in Manama. It noted that the social media was used to instigate sedition and chaos based on a “comprehensive plot that was provided with financial, logistical and media support” to fuel violence and terrorism that took place in Bahrain between 14 February and 16 March. According to the report, an account with the name of “Saheb Al Ahbar”, created in Qatar in 2010, began calling upon Bahrainis to “rise against their rulers and sacrifice their blood for their freedom”. The investigations of the Bahrain cyber security authorities have proved that the account was created and activated in Qatar, as the Internet Protocol (IP) address showed. They also revealed that bodies in the Qatari government have been simultaneously activated to support it, including the Emiri Court, Emiri Guard and Interior Ministry. The report also noted that the Qatari authorities have used Al Jazeera television station to fulfill their goals in Bahrain. It said that the channel worked to “internationalize the events through its programs which falsified the facts.”

In Syrian Skies, US Pilots Learn how Fast Air War Can Morph
Asharq Al-Awsat/August 29/17/US Air Force pilot Lieutenant Colonel Jeremy Renken knew that whatever happened next might escalate the war in Syria. The 40-year-old father of four was flying his F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jet in “a race track” pattern around an Iranian-made drone, which had just tried to kill US-backed forces and their advisers on the ground, said a Reuters reported on Monday. After the drone’s first shot failed to detonate on impact, it was positioning to strike again. So, on June 8, in what was an unprecedented move in the US air war over Syria to that point, Renken shot it down, even as two Russian fighter jets watched from a distance. “When we saw the drone turn back towards friendly forces, we weren’t waiting around for anybody’s permission. We destroyed it,” Renken said in his first interview about the incident. Renken’s downing of the Iranian drone, a Shaheed 129, was the first in a series of several defensive US air-to-air shootdowns over several weeks in June that at first appeared to signal a tipping point to a far more dangerous air war in Syria. But since the decisions by Renken and other US pilots to fire at two drones and a manned Syrian fighter jet in June, there haven’t been similarly provocative actions by pro-Syrian regime forces. US officials say they seem to have delivered the message. Renken’s case, in many ways, highlights not just the risks of Syrian conflict in which Russia, Syria, the United States and its allies are flying military jets within targeting range of each other. But it also illustrates the tremendous responsibility entrusted to US pilots to make life-or-death decisions in an instant, with broad, strategic implications for the war. Renken spoke with Reuters from a US military installation in the Middle East, which does not disclose its location at the request of the country hosting it.
Lethal intent
Renken, a squadron commander, developed his Air Force career in the shadow of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States by al-Qaeda.
Renken acknowledges that the Syrian air war is, in his view, unique.
US pilots, who have enjoyed air supremacy against the insurgents they’ve been battling in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, cannot be sanguine about the risks posed by advanced Russian or Syrian jets or ground-based air defense in Syria. Armed aircraft from Syria, Russia, the United States and its coalition allies are all flying within a “no escape” range of each other’s weapons. “We can all engage each other. So it takes a lot of discipline and studying the nuance of a circumstance to (determine): ‘Was that an escalation?’,” Renken said. As US-backed and Russia-backed ground forces scramble to capture what is left of ISIS’ caliphate, the risk of accidental contacts between the sides is growing, raising the stakes both on the ground and in the air. But while the US military has had years to iron out how and when to engage ISIS fighters on the ground, American pilots are still gaining experience deciphering hostile intent by other aircraft in the skies above Syria.
Closer than thought
The US Air Force proudly boasts that no US soldier has been killed by enemy aircraft since 1953. But the drone attack threatened to change that, if accounts by two US officials of a limited American presence in the convoy that day are correct. The US military initially said the drone dropped a bomb that missed the convoy, which included US-backed fighters and their advisors. Renken offered a slightly different account. He said the drone was actually carrying missiles. When it fired, it hit the door of one of the vehicles with a munition that failed to detonate, he said. “It was a dud round. So, very lucky,” Renken said. “It was definitely intended to be a lethal shot.” The criteria needed to fire the drone had been clearly met, he said. Still, one factor complicating his decision to return fire was the presence of the Russian “Flanker” fighter jets, who might think that Renken was shooting at them. “Is (the Russian pilot) going to see a missile come off of my aircraft and consider that a potential aggression against him?” he explained. Another problem was that the drone was small enough that the missile Renken would fire could potentially go long and inadvertently head toward the Russian jet. “(There) was a lot of potential for escalation,” he said.
For Renken, the big takeaway for pilots is that the war in Syria has evolved far beyond simply striking ISIS targets on the ground. US pilots have to be prepared for anything. “What this recent event has proven is that you can’t take for granted that you know what the fight is going to look like,” Renken said.
“You need to walk in ready for it to metastasize into any hybrid variation.”

Saudi Arabia Denies Receiving Official Reports from UN on Yemeni Children
Asharq Al Awsat/August 29/17/Riyadh- Saudi Arabia has denied Monday receiving official reports from the United Nations on the alleged violations against children in Yemen in light of the leaking of the draft of 2017 UN report on children and armed conflicts. Saudi Arabia’s Permanent Representative to UN Abdallah al-Mouallimi told Asharq Al-Awsat that Riyadh’s mission has not received any official information on what was reported Monday in US newspapers, which claim that Saudi Arabia has committed violations against childhood in Yemen. Mouallimi said that the Saudi mission to the United Nations has direct contacts with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Special Representative for children and armed conflict Virginia Gamba, and that there is direct exchange of information and full cooperation with them. Asked whether they have received any official letters from UN officials on what had been raised in a leaked draft report in the US press about the tendency to include Saudi Arabia on the blacklist, Mouallimi responded: “We have not received anything in this regard at all.” “It’s too early to engage in speculative discussion on this report,” Mouallimi said. But in talks with Guterres and his aides, the ambassador answered when he was asked if Saudis were concerned about the impending Children and Armed Conflict report. “The Saudis had a positive and constructive exchange of information, and we hope that exchange will result in positive results for all,” Mouallimi added. Every year, the United Nations prepares a report on children and armed conflict in which it submits to the Secretary-General and is subsequently submitted to the United Nations Security Council. The UN has previously removed Saudi Arabia from the 2016 report on children and armed conflicts after Riyadh mission clarified many aspects that were hidden from the organization. During a visit to Kuwait on Sunday, Guterres denied the Saudi-led coalition has put pressure on him over a draft UN report condemning Riyadh for its role in child deaths in Yemen. “We consider that no pressure would lead to anything,” Guterres told reporters, in remarks posted on the United Nations website. “There is technical work that is being conducted and, in the end, that will be presented to me. I will make the decision to what I think is the right thing to do.”

Latest LCCC Bulletin analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on August 29-30/17
Afghanistan: How We See It vs. How They See It
Nonie Darwish/Gatestone Institute/August 29/ 2017
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/10901/afghanistan-propaganda
CNN International, which is widely watched in the Muslim world, has not been fair to the American position in the current clash between Islam and the West and Israel. Western media have a strong presence in the Middle East but refuse to bring much needed enlightenment to the Muslim public, and explain that the West has a legitimate right to self-defense against Islamic jihadist terrorism. As a result, the majority of Muslims in the Middle East, and many in the West, have no clue why America is in Afghanistan and why Syria is a huge security threat to Western nations.
After the invasion of Afghanistan, Islamic propaganda told Muslims that the US was intentionally poisoning its humanitarian food supplies in order to hurt the Afghani people. My own cousin, who received a good education in Cairo, called during the Afghan war to ask, "Why is the US poisoning Afghanis?"
It is hard for the Western mind to understand why the Muslim leadership and media are frantically trying to keep the public hostile and misinformed as to why the US is in Afghanistan. It is because the truth about violent jihad against the West launched from Afghanistan must be hidden and protected. There is an Islamic law that commands every Muslim head of state to conduct jihad and never abandon that sacred Islamic duty. Sharia dictates that leaders who refuse to conduct and support jihad must be removed from office. Such uncompromising Sharia laws regarding jihad imposed on Muslim heads of states are ignored and not taken seriously by Western leaders and the media.
It was refreshing to hear President Donald J. Trump define without reservation a US mission to fight terrorism and prevent Afghanistan from once again becoming a safe haven for Al-Qaeda, or any other terror groups, when he summarized the US presence in Afghanistan as no longer about nation-building, but rather about "killing terrorists."
Many Americans, however, are still confused regarding our mission in Afghanistan. This is mainly because the media in general did little to keep the public informed of the complexities of the Middle East and to stay focused on why, after 9/11, the US needed to destroy the safe havens of Al-Qaeda and other terror groups.
Reporting on Afghanistan -- not just in the Arab media but also, unfortunately, by many in the US media – often appeared to portray America as the aggressor. That was perhaps a factor in why President George W. Bush overcompensated by including "nation-building" as part of the US mission in Afghanistan. Even though nation-building worked brilliantly in Japan, Germany and South Korea, it unfortunately has failed so far in Muslim nations, which clearly do not want to be "rescued" by infidels.
Concerning Islamic terrorists, Trump is the first US president rightfully to demand from Muslim leaders, in his speech in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, "to drive them out of your places of worship, drive them out of your Holy Land. Drive them out of this earth." It was a historic moment, a wake-up call to both Muslim leaders and average Muslim citizens who have traditionally settled with accepting terrorism in their midst as part of the life that is preached in mosques, praising those who die in jihad as national heroes.
The West, however, cannot rely only on Trump to assume the job of educating the public -- Muslims as well as non-Muslim Americans -- about realities of Islamic terrorism from the point of view of victims of jihad. Confusion in the West regarding Afghanistan and the dynamics of the Muslim world in general is multiplied when even the average Muslim lacks basic understanding of why the US is in Afghanistan.
CNN International, which is widely watched in the Muslim world, has not been fair to the American position in the current clash between Islam and the West and Israel. Western media have a strong presence in the Middle East but refuse to bring much needed enlightenment to the Muslim public, and explain that the West has a legitimate right to self-defense against Islamic jihadist terrorism. As a result, the majority of Muslims in the Middle East, and many in the West, have no clue why America is in Afghanistan and why Syria is a huge security threat to Western nations.
Recently in Australia, a representative of Hizb ut-Tahrir refused to condemn ISIS and went into a tirade blaming the West for the colonial occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan. Such views are not restricted to groups such as Hizb ut-Tahrir, but are common among many Muslims.
After the invasion of Afghanistan, Islamic propaganda told Muslims that the US was intentionally poisoning its humanitarian food supplies in order to hurt the Afghani people. My own cousin, who received a good education in Cairo, called during the Afghan war to ask, "Why is the US poisoning Afghanis?"
The Egyptian state-run newspaper Al Ahram, which often reports on the supposed injustice done to Afghanistan at the hands of the US, insinuates economic motives for America's invasion: "It is a war with questionable motives, for the country [Afghanistan] sits on enormous wealth in natural mineral resources."
It is hard for the Western mind to understand why Muslim leadership and media are frantically trying to keep the public hostile and misinformed on why the US is in Afghanistan. It is because, for them, the truth about violent jihad against the West launched from Afghanistan must be hidden and protected.
A U.S. Army soldier shakes the hand of a young Afghan child while on patrol in southern Afghanistan on Feb. 5, 2010. The American soldiers were part of an operation helping the Afghan National Army clear several villages of improvised explosive devices, weapons caches and illegal drugs. (Image source: U.S. Department of Defense)
These are some of the Islamic laws, in the book Reliance of the Traveller, that discuss the obligatory nature of jihad (defined as war against non-Muslims) which every Muslim head of state (Caliph) must obey or else be removed from office:
The Caliph makes war upon Jews, Christians and Zoroastrians. (o9.8 p602)
The Caliph fights all other peoples until they become Muslim. (09.9 p603)
If none of those concerned performs jihad and it does not happen at all, then everyone who is aware it as an obligation is guilty of sin. (O9.1 p600)
One of the duties of a governor appointed by a Caliph is to undertake jihad against enemies. O25.9 (8) p 647. [Note there are no duties mentioned to make peace]
If the Caliph becomes a non-Muslim, alters sharia law or imposes reprehensible innovations while in office [such as abandoning jihad obligation] then he loses his authority and its obligatory for Muslims to remove him from office. (O25.3 (a) p640)
Thus, a new Muslim head of state could come to power through seizure of power meaning by force, by an individual who possesses the qualifications of a caliph. (o25.5 (3) p644)
Every Muslim head of state fully understands the repercussions of not abiding by the above, and by many other laws forcing him to conduct jihad and never to accept peace with Islam's enemies, unless absolutely necessary. Leaders who refuse to conduct jihad, and who instead befriend the West, must be removed from office. Such uncompromising Sharia laws regarding jihad imposed on Muslim heads of states are ignored and not taken seriously by Western leaders and media.
Muslim leaders cannot therefore openly stop jihadists unless the terrorists turn against them, which they often do through coups and assassinations. They often make deals with jihadists to go conduct their business elsewhere. Muslim nations with a weak central government, such as Afghanistan, then become targets as safe havens for jihadists -- with the blessing of many Muslim leaders. The West Bank and Gaza are two other locations that have been used for nearly 70 years by Arab nations to perform the most "honorable" goal of Islam: jihad against non-Muslims.
Saudi Arabia and other wealthy Arab states understand that, but never waged a direct war against Israel from their lands because they fear retaliation and the destruction of Islamic holy sites. Instead, they chose to be the major force behind the Arab jihad conducted from Gaza, the West Bank and Afghanistan, for that matter.
After 9/11, Muslim leaders were caught in a bind. They could not openly defend and protect Osama Bin Laden in front of their citizens and the world, but behind the scenes, they housed and hid him from the US.
Muslim leaders, even after 9/11, could not give up their obligatory jihad duty especially in front of their citizens. That was one reason why no Muslim leader apologized to the US for 9/11. Also, no Muslim leader wanted to admit that Afghanistan brought the war with the US upon itself or that the US was right in invading it to take out the never-ending supply of terrorists. If anyone did that, he would be acting against Sharia. If a Muslim leader were to admit that Afghanistan was wrong, then he would also have to admit that jihad is wrong and that the West was right to defend itself. In such an Islamic equation, if anyone were to admit that Afghanistan was wrong, then the world would discover what jihad really means -- and the loser would be Islam.
The only solution, therefore, was to tell the world -- and to keep Muslims believing -- that Afghanistan is the victim of the West and that the US is an aggressor and invading colonial "occupation" force that Muslims must fight.
The Western media need do a better job of reporting the truth regarding the Muslim world in general, including Afghanistan. This does not mean that the media have to become offensive, but it does mean that the media really do need to report truths that Muslims and Muslim apologists may not want to hear.
In this saga, the US and Israel, Europe and other countries in the West, are left with little media support to tell the world the "other" side of the problem: that the public in the West should not be split regarding its legitimate right to defend itself against Islamic jihadist terrorism.
**Nonie Darwish, born and raised in Egypt, is the author of "Wholly Different; Why I chose Biblical Values Over Islamic Values."
© 2017 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.

FIFA and International Olympic Committee Furthering Racism, Terror?
A. Z. Mohamed/Gatestone Institute/August 29/ 2017
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/10909/fifa-olympics-racism-terror
Palestinian Media Watch stated that "FIFA has a clear double standard when responding to violations of its statutes. PMW has reviewed hundreds of decisions of the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) (the highest court for sport) and has learned that FIFA and the football community act forcefully to punish even minor violations when committed by other football clubs or even their fans. Yet the PFA's and Rajoub's racism and terror promotion, all serious violations, are being ignored by FIFA."
Swift action must be taken to remove Jibril Rajoub from his posts, and the Palestinian Authority needs to be pressured to replace him with someone whose passion for sports and sportsmanship exceeds that of his lust for Jewish blood. If this is not undertaken, FIFA should oust the Palestinian Football Association (PFA) from its ranks.
The same applies to the International Olympic Committee, which has a duty to remain true to its mission -- "to contribute to building a peaceful and better world by educating youth through sport practiced without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play." It has to threaten the Palestinian Olympic Committee that it will be ousted unless it rids itself of dangerous radicals such as Rajoub.
In its latest violation of the International Olympic Committee's Code of Ethics in particular and the spirit of sports in general, Palestinian boxer Sultan Abu Al-Haj recently forfeited a match because it was against an Israeli -- Druze contender, Amit Madah.
When asked recently by an interviewer on official Palestinian Authority television why he had "refused" to compete in the August 8, 2017 match at the Youth Muaythai World Championships in Bangkok, Abu Al-Haj replied:
"I didn't make the decision. It's my coaches and the [Palestinian] Olympic Committee that made the decision, and as an athlete, I cannot oppose them...The decision was reached that it is forbidden to compete with [Israelis] because it's beneath my dignity and dishonorable to compete with them and recognize them [sic] the State of Israel."
The Palestinian Olympic Committee (POC) is headed by Fatah Central committee Secretary Jibril Rajoub, a senior Palestinian Authority (PA) leader. As the research organization Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) has documented extensively, Rajoub -- who also heads the Palestinian Football Association (PFA) -- does not use sports as a means to building bridges or establishing peaceful relations between the PA and Israel, but rather as an additional tool to demonize the Jewish people and the Jewish state.
One flamboyant instance of this took place during the launch of the first Forum for Arab women sports journalists, when Rajoub referred to Jews and Israelis as "Satans" and "Zionist sons of bitches," adding, "Normalization with the occupation is impossible, impossible, impossible, with no exceptions..."
Jibril Rajoub, President of the Palestinian Football Association and the Palestinian Olympic Committee, has referred to Jews and Israelis as "Satans" and "Zionist sons of bitches." Pictured: Rajoub giving a speech at the 65th FIFA Congress on May 29, 2015 in Zurich, Switzerland. Rajoub's sentiments are not infrequent among PA leaders. On the contrary, a key element of brainwashing each new generation in the PA has been the dehumanization of Jews and rejection of Israel's right to exist. These have been carried out by messages conveyed through the education system, the media, the mosques, and even in the names of summer camps and crossword puzzles.
No medium is too small.
Schools, sports arenas and competitions in the PA are repeatedly named after terrorists "martyred" while killing Jews.
Because of Rajoub's history of unethical behavior, particularly in his sports-related roles, PMW submitted a complaint to the Disciplinary and Ethics Committees of FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) in April against him and the Palestinian Football Association. The complaint includes examples of the glorification of terrorism and Jew-hatred. It provides evidence that the PFA is in violation of the FIFA Statutes and Disciplinary Code. According to PMW, although the complaint was acknowledged to have been received by FIFA, and in spite of inquiries about the progress of the review, no action has been taken by the international body as of yet.
PMW stated:
"FIFA has a clear double standard when responding to violations of its statutes. PMW has reviewed hundreds of decisions of the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) (the highest court for sport) and has learned that FIFA and the football community act forcefully to punish even minor violations when committed by other football clubs or even their fans. Yet the PFA's and Rajoub's racism and terror promotion, all serious violations, are being ignored by FIFA." Swift action must be taken to remove Rajoub from his posts, and the PA needs to be pressured to replace him with someone whose passion for sports and sportsmanship exceeds that of his lust for Jewish blood. If this is not undertaken, FIFA should oust the PFA from its ranks. The same applies to the International Olympic Committee, which has a duty to remain true to its mission – "to contribute to building a peaceful and better world by educating youth through sport practiced without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play." It has to threaten the POC that it will be ousted unless it rids itself of dangerous radicals such as Rajoub.
**A. Z. Mohamed is a Muslim born and raised in the Middle East.
© 2017 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.

The problem is al-Qaeda not ISIS
Mohammed Al Shaikh/Al Arabiya/August 29/17
I am convinced that ISIS will end with the defeat of the so-called caliphate.
Maybe few members will remain scattered here and there but in the end they will vanish as ISIS is just an organization that branched from al-Qaeda and attracted militant extremists due to its actual victories on the ground and to its ability to establish a state with economic revenues, an army and advanced equipment. However, ISIS does not have a theoretical or special ideology that guarantees its survival as a thought which generations inherit, like the case is with other groups such as al-Qaeda, the Sururists and the Muslim Brotherhood. I have looked a lot for books which can explain ISIS’ ideological theories and how the group agrees or disagrees with other political Islam groups but I did not find except one book which is the famous Management of Savagery. This book does not have any new ideological thoughts as it rather provides a brutal revolutionary approach which can only convince enthusiastic Islamized people or young men who have deep psychological issues. ISIS achieved several victories quite fast and it quickly formed a caliphate, as it calls it. This tangible reality brought to surface all the psychological issues, which Islamized youths suffer from so they joined ISIS.
ISIS does not have a theoretical or special ideology that guarantees its survival as a thought which generations inherit
Fitting into a reality
Meanwhile, al-Qaeda is a philosophy that bears the theory of the first Khawarij and their ideas. Active members who are very knowledgeable in religion then developed this idea and adapted it to fit reality. Al-Qaeda’s philosophy also bears ideas from the inherited legacy. For example in the beginning there were “the special guards” whom the Brotherhood formed as a military wing in the mid 1990’s and which Sayyid Qutb developed, modernized and rooted in the group’s ideology. His brother Mohammed Qutb was of great help to him. Later on, the Syrian Mohammed Surur took this idea and assumed the task of rooting it and spreading in the Saudi kingdom. The Sururist Movement is named after him. In essence, the group is actually a Brotherhood movement but it was distinguished for its extreme adoption of the Salafist rhetoric inherited from the doctrine and this was viewed as a base that cannot be given up on or compromised. The traditional Muslim Brotherhood, however, does not view doctrine-related matters as a priority. The priority for the Brotherhood, whether as followers of Hassan al-Banna or Sayyid Qutb, is to politically unite all Muslims with different sects and affiliations under one movement.
Easily infiltrated
Since Salafism is old and deep-rooted in Muslim countries, Mohammed Surur found many followers as his ideas easily infiltrated Salafists, unlike the Brotherhood’s ideas. Sururism is the major concept on which al-Qaeda built its cultural ideas. Al-Qaeda has books and recorded speeches. Therefore, one can say that al-Qaeda is a politicized Salafist product. It was the first base which produced the modern violent thought which experts call militant ideology. ISIS does not have a written theoretical legacy and it lacks preaching scholars and influential preachers. Many Sururists as well as the Muslim Brotherhood criminalize ISIS and insist that their movements are innocent from it. This is why I think ISIS ideology will not stay for long. There are enough logical arguments to besiege it as an idea in practice and eliminate it. The Sururist movement will stay. It may actually disappear too but it will emerge again whenever the objective reasons for its emergence are available.