Six Lessons from Iran’s Revolution

Six Lessons from Iran’s Revolution

    Tuesday, February 11, 2014   No comments

by Henry Precht

Thirty-five years since the Iranian revolution should be adequate time for aspiring Iran hands to turn a deaf ear to the “Death to America” chants from Tehran and the more polite “They can’t be trusted “ pundit wisdom from Washington. Perhaps, modestly and cautiously, we can draw a few lessons from those bad days for the present moment of hope.

First, what we didn’t know back then was a lot and it did hurt us. Our ignorance was profound. We didn’t know the Shah was condemned by cancer. Had we known, we might have treated him more as we did Marcos and less like, say, our toleration of the Greek colonels. Today’s question relates to President Hassan Rouhani’s political health, his physical health seemingly OK. Should we be nervous, i.e., should we act as if he were politically vulnerable? Or should we consider him in adequate shape to engage with our demands? If he faces trouble, can he be saved by respectful attention? Or should we write him off as a foredoomed aberration? The signs from Tehran incline me to believe that he is worthy of considerable political risk on our part.

We knew nothing about dealing with such a massive movement of millions of people in support of the revolution — a phenomenon rarely if even seen before on the globe. Nor did we have a clue about an Islamic government — another development never before achieved on earth. Today, Iran remains a dark zone. We can’t accurately assess the strength of the reform or conservative movements in Iran. How strong is Rouhani and how wide can he maneuver? I expect the White House is better at evaluating its American support for an agreement with Iran. But can it match Rouhani’s willingness to confront critics? We can only hope that authentic, balanced expertise on Iran is available and listened to in the White House.

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Ya'alon: "Secretary of state John Kerry – who arrived here determined, and who operates from an incomprehensible obsession and a sense of messianism – can't teach me anything about the conflict with the Palestinians"

Ya'alon: "Secretary of state John Kerry – who arrived here determined, and who operates from an incomprehensible obsession and a sense of messianism – can't teach me anything about the conflict with the Palestinians"

    Wednesday, January 15, 2014   No comments

Israel's defence minister has been forced to apologise for "offensive and inappropriate" remarks, in which he described John Kerry as obsessive and messianic, after the ensuing diplomatic row engulfed the secretary of state's mission to broker a peace deal in the Middle East.

Moshe Ya'alon, an ally of Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu, had dismissed Kerry's efforts to pursue a peace deal in private conversations with US and Israeli officials, which were reported in the Israeli media. He did not deny the accuracy of the comments.

He added: "The only thing that might save us is if John Kerry wins the Nobel prize and leaves us be."

In a sharp rebuke to Israel, state department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said: "The remarks of the defence minister, if accurate, are offensive and inappropriate, especially given all that the US is doing to support Israel's security needs.

"Secretary Kerry and his team  … have been working day and night to try and promote a secure peace for Israel because of the secretary's deep concern for Israel's future. To question secretary Kerry's motives and distort his proposal is not something we would expect from the defence minister of a close ally."

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German foreign minister: Geneva II 'useless' without Iran

German foreign minister: Geneva II 'useless' without Iran

    Monday, January 13, 2014   No comments

Germany’s voice is once more echoing on the level of international foreign policy. Frank-Walter Steinmeier, a veteran German politician, has become once again the leading figure in Berlin’s diplomacy after the formation of a coalition between the Social Democratic Party (SPD) to which he belongs and Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

One of the indications of this comeback was Steinmeier’s answer when asked by As-Safir about his views on the Geneva II talks, taking into consideration the conflicts within the opposition and the vagueness surrounding the final goal of the peace conference that has yet to be held. Steinmeier stated that the conference would be useless without the participation of Iran and a balanced participation of the opposition. Also, the conference would be meaningless without deciding on humanitarian corridors to deliver aid to Syria. According to Steinmeier, the corridors issue should have been included in the deal on chemical weapons, which he explicitly criticized.

Steinmeier’s statement came during his first visit to Brussels after his meeting with the leaders of EU institutions, including EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Catherine Ashton. Steinmeier discussed with the European Parliament President Martin Schulz the necessity of restoring the integrity of the European policies, which were severely harmed by the financial crisis.

As-Safir interrupted the European visit and asked Steinmeier about the current situation of Geneva talks. Steinmeier began by expressing his uncertainty about the holding of the conference, saying, “First, I hope for the conference to be held. Many parties are currently working for this purpose. I hope the conference will be attended by the participants who are crucial to achieve, at the very least, some sort of significant progress.” He noted, however, that there are no guarantees in terms of achieving the sought after progress: “We cannot say that this [progress] will be achieved. We do not know for sure whether the opposition, or a part of it, is ready to participate in Geneva talks.”

The other reason behind his concern is related to the participation of Iran, which has [thus far] been excluded. Steinmeier put Iran under the category of “necessary participants” for the conference to achieve progress. “We do not know to what extent the neighboring countries of Syria will participate in this process. This affects Iran and its participation in particular. These questions are still prompted. Nevertheless, I hope for [these issues] to be resolved in the upcoming days,” Steinmeier continued.

This rhetoric is different than that adopted by German diplomacy during the era of former Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, who warmly welcomed the approach of his US counterpart Secretary of State John Kerry. Westerwelle would not have espoused such a rhetoric or uttered any words that would disturb the work of Kerry, especially in terms of a conference co-brokered by the United States and Russia. Steinmeier, however, has done so.

The veteran politician has been a minister, vice chancellor and parliamentary leader. The German press nicknamed him “the Grey Efficiency,” for his active role behind the scenes, where Steinmeier went beyond causing mere disturbance. His predecessor had always praised the importance of the Syrian chemical deal. Yet, according to Steinmeier, a better deal could have been concluded in exchange for the destruction of chemical weapons to include the opening of humanitarian corridors.

In this regard, Steinmeier said, “We are not satisfied with the deal concluded regarding the destruction of chemical weapons. The next step should be related to opening humanitarian corridors and providing periods of non-fighting to deliver humanitarian aid to civilians.” The cessation of fighting and the delivery of aid are seen by Steinmeier as two crucial conditions to convince the Syrians of the advantages of holding and subsequently supporting the peace conference. “Without hope for these [conditions] to be fulfilled, the public will perceive the conference on Syria as meaningless,” Steinmeier said.

In an assertive tone, he added, “To sum it up, we should work on ensuring that there is indeed still a chance to achieve this kind of progress in Syria.”

Steinmeier assumed the position of foreign minister from 2005 to 2009, and was appointed again for the same position at the end of 2013. When he was the leader of his party’s parliamentary coalition, he reiterated the necessity of focusing on the issue of humanitarian relief and aid. In the middle of last year, he led a campaign with other members of parliament to raise donations and oversaw the distribution of the aid to the Syrian refugee camps in neighboring countries.

Steinmeier noted that in order to achieve progress on the humanitarian level, it is important to ensure the holding of Geneva talks through answering the prompted questions about the representation of the opposition and the participation of Iran. He justifies this by saying, “The killing in Syria will continue and the plight of the Syrians civilians [taking place], not only in Syria, is too severe to be described,” adding, “Whoever was acquainted with the situation in the refugee camps, and that of the refugees themselves in neighboring countries namely Lebanon and Jordan, knows that it is our duty to achieve progress in this regard.”

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This article was first published in Arabic on 1/9/2014. Read original article.

Free Syrian Army Gen. Salim Idris fled to Qatar through Turkey, U.S. officials told the Wall Street Journal

Free Syrian Army Gen. Salim Idris fled to Qatar through Turkey, U.S. officials told the Wall Street Journal

    Thursday, December 12, 2013   No comments

Salim Idris

The top Western-backed Syrian rebel commander fled the country after Islamist militant fighters ran him out of his headquarters, U.S. officials said.
Free Syrian Army Gen. Salim Idris flew to the Qatari capital of Doha Sunday after fleeing to Turkey, the officials told the Wall Street Journal.

"He fled as a result of the Islamic Front taking over his headquarters," a senior U.S. official said.

An Islamic Front spokesman said Idris, an East German-trained electronics professor who was a Syrian army general until he defected to the rebel side in July 2012, fled to Turkey.

The New York Times said Idris flew temporarily to Doha but was now back in Turkey, where he has a house.

The 13-month-old U.S.-backed Syrian National Coalition, which supports the FSA, is based in Doha.

The Obama administration is urging Idris to return to Syria, the U.S. officials told the Journal.

The ultraconservative Islamic Front also took over key warehouses holding lethal and non-lethal weapons intended for moderate fighters in northern Syria, the White House said.

The warehouses were controlled by the Supreme Military Council, the moderate opposition umbrella group that includes the FSA and coordinates U.S. aid distribution, the White House said.


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With Iran, Obama can end America’s long war for the Middle East

With Iran, Obama can end America’s long war for the Middle East

    Sunday, December 08, 2013   No comments

President Obama calling President Rouhani

By Andrew J. Bacevich, Boston University

Andrew J. Bacevich is a professor of history and international relations at Boston University and the author of “Breach of Trust: How Americans Failed Their Soldiers and Their Country.”

What Jimmy Carter began, Barack Obama is ending. Washington is bringing down the curtain on its 30-plus-year military effort to pull the Islamic world into conformity with American interests and expectations. It’s about time.

Back in 1980, when his promulgation of the Carter Doctrine launched that effort, Carter acted with only a vague understanding of what might follow. Yet circumstance — the overthrow of the shah in Iran, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan — compelled him to act. Or more accurately, the domestic political uproar triggered by those events compelled the president, facing a tough reelection campaign, to make a show of doing something. What ensued was the long-term militarization of U.S. policy throughout the region.

Now, without fanfare, President Obama is effectively revoking Carter’s doctrine. The U.S. military presence in the region is receding. When Obama posited in his second inaugural address that “enduring security and lasting peace do not require perpetual war,” he was not only recycling a platitude; he was also acknowledging the folly and futility of the enterprise in which U.S. forces had been engaged. Having consumed vast quantities of blood and treasure while giving Americans little to show in return, that enterprise is now ending.

Like Carter in 1980, Obama finds himself with few alternatives. At home, widespread anger, angst and mortification obliged Carter to begin girding the nation to fight for the greater Middle East. To his successors, Carter bequeathed a Pentagon preoccupied with ramping up its ability to flex its muscles anywhere from Egypt to Pakistan. The bequest proved a mixed blessing, fostering the illusion that military muscle, dexterously employed, might put things right. Today, widespread disenchantment with the resulting wars and quasi-wars prohibits Obama from starting new ones.

Successive military disappointments, not all of Obama’s making, have curbed his prerogatives as commander in chief. Rather than being the decider, he ratifies decisions effectively made elsewhere. In calling off a threatened U.S. attack on Syria, for example, the president was acknowledging what opinion polls and Congress (not to mention the British Parliament ) had already made plain: Support for any further military adventures to liberate or pacify Muslims has evaporated. Americans still profess to love the troops. But they’ve lost their appetite for war.

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Saudi's internal power struggle sends ripples across international borders: Post-coup Egypt is only the start of Saudi Arabia's problems abroad, and the root cause may be old-fashioned courtly manoeuvring

Saudi's internal power struggle sends ripples across international borders: Post-coup Egypt is only the start of Saudi Arabia's problems abroad, and the root cause may be old-fashioned courtly manoeuvring

    Friday, November 22, 2013   No comments

The year is not ending on a high note for three men in the Saudi dynasty whose fingerprints were all over the military coup in Egypt – Prince Bandar, the current intelligence chief; Prince Muqrin, the intelligence chief he replaced, and an aspiring crown prince; and Khalid al-Tuwaijri, president of the royal court and the king's gatekeeper.

Bandar has become the target of rare criticism in the Saudi press. It is obliquely expressed, but it is unmistakably there. When the well-connected Saudi writer and journalist Jamal Khashoggi wrote in Al Hayat about "local and world intelligence men" no longer being able to change history, establish states or make new leaders, many of his readers understood that he was aiming that at Bandar.

The article continued: "It would be a mistake to defy the power of history with the illusion that the powerful can forge deals and plan the future away from the peoples whose divisions and lack of experience with democracy enabled local, regional and international forces to abuse them.

"Yet, these peoples continue to be in a state of liquidity and rage. They know what they want but they are confused about how to achieve it. What is certain is that they will not wait for a knight mounted on a white horse to lead them toward a new shining dawn. The one-man era is over."

By the standards of Saudi journalism, this is bold stuff. It's a reflection of the tensions between rival princes in the House of Saud and the policies that Bandar and his group, which include the current foreign minister, have been aggressively promoting. None of them are going well, and all are interconnected.

Egypt, which should have been pacified months ago, is still in a state of ferment. HA Hellyer, an Egypt analyst for the Royal United Services Institute who is sharply critical of President Mohamed Morsi's failures in office, describes the clearing of the pro-Morsi sit-ins in August as the most violent state-led crackdown against Egyptians in Egyptian modern history.

It is also expensive. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are bankrolling the paralysed state. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the deputy prime minister of the UAE, dropped a bombshell during a visit by the Egyptian prime minister Hazem el-Beblawi by saying that Arab support for Egypt would not last long. The Emirati's latest tranche of aid of $3.9bn has been likened to giving blood transfusion to a patient who is bleeding continuously.

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Israel, Saudi Arabia cooperating to plan possible Iran attack: Convinced that Iran is tricking the world over nuclear weapons, Israel and Saudi Arabia may work together to curb its ambitions

Israel, Saudi Arabia cooperating to plan possible Iran attack: Convinced that Iran is tricking the world over nuclear weapons, Israel and Saudi Arabia may work together to curb its ambitions

    Sunday, November 17, 2013   No comments

ONCE they were sworn enemies. Now Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency is working with Saudi officials on contingency plans for a possible attack on Iran if its nuclear programme is not significantly curbed in a deal that could be signed in Geneva this week.

Both the Israeli and Saudi governments are convinced that the international talks to place limits on Tehran’s military nuclear development amount to appeasement and will do little to slow its development of a nuclear warhead.


As part of the growing co-operation, Riyadh is understood already to have given the go-ahead for Israeli planes to use its airspace in the event of an attack on Iran.

Both sides are now prepared to go much further. The Sunni kingdom is as alarmed as Israel by the nuclear ambitions of the Shi’ite-dominated Iran.

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Qatar loses clout amid fading Arab Spring

Qatar loses clout amid fading Arab Spring

    Thursday, November 14, 2013   No comments

The gas-rich Persian Gulf state, which is slightly smaller than Connecticut, wanted to host world-class sporting events; to build a network of top-tier universities and museums; and to push, tweak and manipulate regional politics to reshape the Arab world to its liking.

At the moment, that last priority isn’t going so well.

If 2011 was the tiny state’s year for victory laps — its flag flying high alongside the Libyan rebels, as the revolution there raged with Qatari support; its satellite channel Al Jazeera praised among Egyptian protesters in Tahrir Square; and everybody wanting a bag full of Qatari cash — 2013 has been a year for losses.

Qatar is taking a beating as the Arab Spring revolts, which ushered in Islamist governments in Egypt and Tunisia and empowered upstarts across the region, yield to a reassertion of power by the region’s old heavyweights.

A military coup toppled Qatar’s allies in Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood, and the new military rulers have found funding and allies in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates — Qatar’s regional competitors.

Saudi Arabia also has publicly taken the lead on gulf support to Syrian rebels — a cause that Qatar was the first to champion — after the tiny state irked Western and Arab allies by sending aid to hard-line Islamists, analysts say.

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What money cannot buy long term: Saudi Arabia’s Image Falters among Middle East Neighbors

What money cannot buy long term: Saudi Arabia’s Image Falters among Middle East Neighbors

    Thursday, October 24, 2013   No comments

Each year, the world is reminded of Saudi Arabia’s influential status as the birthplace of Islam, as hundreds of thousands of Muslims from across the globe make the Hajj, or pilgrimage, to the city of Mecca. Perhaps owing to its pivotal role within the Islamic faith, Saudi Arabia tends to be viewed favorably in countries that are home to large or majority-Muslim populations.

However, a Pew Research Center survey reveals that Saudi Arabia’s standing has slipped substantially among key Middle Eastern publics, including in Lebanon

where favorable opinion has plummeted 31 percentage points since 2007. In contrast, opinion of Saudi Arabia has not soured in other predominately Muslim countries outside of the region.

The reasons for Saudi Arabia’s worsening image in the Middle East are likely multiple. Criticism of the influence the Saudis wield in the Middle East is significant in Lebanon, Tunisia and Turkey. And substantial disapproval of the Saudi government’s track record on protecting the personal freedoms of its citizens is evident in Turkey, Lebanon, the Palestinian territories and Tunisia, as it is in much of the world.

Saudi Arabia is viewed favorably in many countries outside the Middle East where Muslims make up a substantial percentage, if not a majority, of the population. In Pakistan, for example, 95% express a favorable opinion of the Saudi kingdom, while six-in-ten or more in Indonesia, Senegal and Malaysia share this view. However, among its Muslim neighbors, opinions of Saudi Arabia are more varied. Only in Jordan and Egypt is opinion of the desert kingdom overwhelmingly positive (88% and 78%, respectively). Elsewhere in the Middle East, views are mixed or even decidedly negative, as in the case of Turkey (26% favorable vs. 53% unfavorable).

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How Turkey blew its chance to lead this troubled region: The country could have enhanced its influence and saved a lot of lives. It did the exact opposite

How Turkey blew its chance to lead this troubled region: The country could have enhanced its influence and saved a lot of lives. It did the exact opposite

    Tuesday, October 01, 2013   No comments

Erdogan's blunders in the sectarian political swamp that stretches between Iran and the Mediterranean remind me of Tony Blair's misadventures in the Middle East. Blair, like Erdogan, was a consummate politician on his home turf with sure political instincts and, again like the Turkish Prime Minister, won three elections in a row. He was accustomed also to dealing with US and EU leaders. But when it came to Iraq and Lebanon, his judgement deserted him and hubris misled him.

The picture Blair presents in his autobiogaphy of Iraq post-invasion shows astonishingly little understanding of what was happening. Al-Qa'ida and Iran appear out of nowhere like aliens from a neighbouring planet, as agents of disruption. Erdogan, likewise, seems baffled about why his venture into the Middle East has gone so very wrong

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Obama and Rouhani make history with phone call, thawing three decade freeze between US and Iran

Obama and Rouhani make history with phone call, thawing three decade freeze between US and Iran

    Friday, September 27, 2013   No comments

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

President Barack Obama revealed Friday that he talked with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, marking the first time leaders from the U.S. and Iran have directly communicated since the 1979 Iranian revolution.
"Just now I spoke on the phone with President Rouhani of the Islamic Republic of Iran," he said from the White House.

Rouhani has been engaged in a publicity blitz as of late, a streak that began with his sit-down with NBC News' Ann Curry last week. Rouhani spent the last few days at the U.N. General Assembly meeting in New York, making a number of public addresses indicating that Iran was open to a deeper relationship with the U.S. and the West, and resolving conflict around his country's nuclear program.
"The two of us discussed our ongoing efforts to reach an agreement over Iran's nuclear program," Obama said. "I reiterated to President Rouhani what I said in New York: While there will surely be important obstacles to moving forward, and success is by no means guaranteed, I believe we can reach a comprehensive agreement."

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NSA shares raw intelligence including American citizens' data with Israel

NSA shares raw intelligence including American citizens' data with Israel

    Wednesday, September 11, 2013   No comments

Read the NSA and Israel's 'memorandum of understanding' 

The National Security Agency routinely shares raw intelligence data with Israel without first sifting it to remove information about US citizens, a top-secret document provided to the Guardian by whistleblower Edward Snowden reveals.

Details of the intelligence-sharing agreement are laid out in a memorandum of understanding between the NSA and its Israeli counterpart that shows the US government handed over intercepted communications likely to contain phone calls and emails of American citizens. The agreement places no legally binding limits on the use of the data by the Israelis.

The disclosure that the NSA agreed to provide raw intelligence data to a foreign country contrasts with assurances from the Obama administration that there are rigorous safeguards to protect the privacy of US citizens caught in the dragnet. The intelligence community calls this process "minimization", but the memorandum makes clear that the information shared with the Israelis would be in its pre-minimized state.

The deal was reached in principle in March 2009, according to the undated memorandum, which lays out the ground rules for the intelligence sharing.

The five-page memorandum, termed an agreement between the US and Israeli intelligence agencies "pertaining to the protection of US persons", repeatedly stresses the constitutional rights of Americans to privacy and the need for Israeli intelligence staff to respect these rights.

But this is undermined by the disclosure that Israel is allowed to receive "raw Sigint" – signal intelligence. The memorandum says: "Raw Sigint includes, but is not limited to, unevaluated and unminimized transcripts, gists, facsimiles, telex, voice and Digital Network Intelligence metadata and content."

According to the agreement, the intelligence being shared would not be filtered in advance by NSA analysts to remove US communications. "NSA routinely sends ISNU [the Israeli Sigint National Unit] minimized and unminimized raw collection", it says.

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Israel: A powerful Middle Eastern axis of Sunni states has taken form in the region, which “does not view Israel as a sworn enemy”

Israel: A powerful Middle Eastern axis of Sunni states has taken form in the region, which “does not view Israel as a sworn enemy”

    Monday, September 09, 2013   No comments

Speaking before the Institute for Counter-Terrorism’s international summit in Herzliya, Amos Gilad, who is director of the Political-Military Affairs Bureau at the Defense Ministry, said that Israel “won’t ever be accepted as a formal member” of the Sunni axis, but that the states that make it up all view the US as the sole superpower and that their regional policies are indirectly beneficial for Israel.

...
Had the Muslim Brotherhood succeeded in its plot for regional domination, a ring of hostility would have been formed around Israel, Gilad noted. From the perspective of Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah, there are two threats to his country: Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood.

This was reflected in the billions of dollars donated to Egypt by Saudi Arabia and the UAE after Sisi took power, Gilad argued.

“Sisi didn’t act against them [the Muslim Brotherhood] on behalf of the West or Israel, but only for the good of Egypt. He simply saw that Egypt was falling into the abyss, in terms of repression and the economy...

He wishes to save Egypt,” Gilad said.

Jordan, for its part, excels at counter- terrorism due its own interest in combatting radical Islamist interests.

As a result, there are no terrorist attacks in Jordan or attacks from Jordan on Israel, Gilad said. “Their existence as an independent kingdom is impressive,” he added.


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John Kerry reveals Arab countries have offered to PAY America to carry out full-scale invasion of Syria

John Kerry reveals Arab countries have offered to PAY America to carry out full-scale invasion of Syria

    Thursday, September 05, 2013   No comments

Secretary of State John Kerry said during a hearing Wednesday in the House of Representatives that counties in the Arab world have offered to foot the entire bill for a U.S. military mission that destroys the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria.
'With respect to Arab countries offering to bear costs and to assist, the answer is profoundly yes,' Kerry said. 'They have. That offer is on the table.'
Kerry, with a cadre of anti-war activists sitting behind him and holding red-painted hands aloft in protest, declined to name the countries that have proposed opening their purses.

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US President Barack Obama’s decision to seek the approval of Congress over military strikes in Syria has led to calls for French President François Hollande to also put the question of action against Damascus to a parliamentary vote

US President Barack Obama’s decision to seek the approval of Congress over military strikes in Syria has led to calls for French President François Hollande to also put the question of action against Damascus to a parliamentary vote

    Sunday, September 01, 2013   No comments

Pressure is mounting on French President François Hollande to put any motion to launch military strikes against Syria before a parliamentary vote.

It follows Barack Obama’s surprise announcement Saturday that he would seek approval from Congress before taking action against Damascus and Thursday's shock defeat of a motion to approve a military strike in the UK parliament.

On Saturday evening, Jean-Louis Borloo, leader of the centrist UDI party, urged Hollande to follow the example of the US and UK and also seek parliamentary approval before going ahead with an attack on Syria.

The French parliament is due to debate the issue on Wednesday, but as yet, no formal vote on Syria has been scheduled. Under the French constitution, Hollande does not require parliament’s approval in order to launch a military strike.

“Like the US president, who decided to consult the US Congress in the name of democratic principles, the French president must organise, after the debate, a formal vote in parliament," said Borloo in a statement.

A similar request was made by Christian Jacob, the leader in parliament of the right-wing UMP, as well as representatives of several other smaller French political parties on both the left and right.

France on its own as US stalls, UK backs out

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We should have been traumatised into action by this war in 2011. And 2012. But now?

We should have been traumatised into action by this war in 2011. And 2012. But now?

    Thursday, August 29, 2013   No comments

Before the stupidest Western war in the history of the modern world begins – I am, of course, referring to the attack on Syria that we all now have to swallow – it might be as well to say that the Cruise missiles which we confidently expect to sweep onto one of mankind’s oldest cities have absolutely nothing to do with Syria.

They are intended to harm Iran. They are intended to strike at the Islamic Republic now that it has a new and vibrant president – as opposed to the crackpot Mahmoud Ahmedinejad – and when it just might be a little more stable.  Iran is Israel’s enemy.  Iran is therefore, naturally, America’s enemy.  So there is nothing pleasant about the regime in Damascus.  Nor do these comments let the regime off the hook when it comes to mass gassing.  But I am old enough to remember that when Iraq – then America’s ally – used gas against the Kurds of Hallabjah in 1988, we did not assault Baghdad.  Indeed, that attack would have to wait until 2003, when Saddam no longer had any gas or any of the other weapons we nightmared over.  And I also happen to remember that the CIA put it about in 1988 that Iran was responsible for the Hallabjah gassings, a palpable lie that focused on America’s enemy whom Saddam was then fighting on our behalf.  And thousands – not hundreds – died in Hallabjah.  But there you go.  Different days, different standards.

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POV | The Law in These Parts

POV | The Law in These Parts

    Saturday, August 24, 2013   No comments

Acclaimed Israeli filmmaker Ra'anan Alexandrowicz has pulled off a tour-de-force examination of the system of military administration used by Israel since the Six Day War of 1967 - featuring the system's leading creators. In a series of thoughtful and candid interviews, Israeli judges, prosecutors and legal advisers paint a complex picture of the Middle East conflict.

On the streets of Cairo it's not just a fledgling democracy that lies in ruin. US policy too is in tatters - in the eyes of many - or at least America's reputation and credibility

On the streets of Cairo it's not just a fledgling democracy that lies in ruin. US policy too is in tatters - in the eyes of many - or at least America's reputation and credibility

    Saturday, August 17, 2013   No comments

Since the ouster of Hosni Mubarak in 2011, the US has struggled to strike a balance between support for the tenuous progress towards democracy and protection of its national security interests.

The White House has tried hard to work with whoever is in power in Egypt but has ended up with no friends and little influence in Cairo.

Washington's recent diplomatic efforts in Egypt have failed one after the other. Up until his removal from power, the US tried to counsel Mr Morsi to accept a compromise with the army and the protesters.

The US also appealed to the military not to remove Mr Morsi. After the coup, Deputy Secretary of State Bill Burns travelled to Cairo twice to help mediate between the military and the Muslim Brotherhood. But even getting an audience in Cairo these days is a hard task for US officials.

The US refrained from calling Mr Morsi's removal a coup for fear of upsetting the country's generals and the millions who demanded Mr Morsi's departure.

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Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah has said that radical Sunni Islamists were likely behind a car bomb attack that killed dozens of people in the Lebanese group's stronghold in southern Beirut

Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah has said that radical Sunni Islamists were likely behind a car bomb attack that killed dozens of people in the Lebanese group's stronghold in southern Beirut

    Saturday, August 17, 2013   No comments

The leader of Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah on Friday blamed Sunni extremists for a string of attacks targeting the group’s strongholds over the past few months, including a car bombing that killed 22 people and wounded more than 300 a day earlier.

Sheik Hassan Nasrallah said all preliminary investigations showed Takfiri groups - a term for Sunni radicals - were likely behind the bombing in a predominantly Shiite southern suburb of Beirut, as well as other recent attacks.

He also pledged to double the number of Hezbollah fighters in neighboring Syria, who have travelled there to support the regime of President Bashar Assad.

“If you think that by killing our women and children ... and destroying our neighborhoods, villages and cities we will retreat or back away from our position, you are wrong,” he said in a speech to supporters marking the end of the 2006 monthlong war with Israel.

“If the battle with these terrorist Takfiris requires for me personally and all of Hezbollah to go to Syria, we will go to Syria,” he said, drawing thunderous applause from thousands of supporters gathered in a village in south Lebanon bordering Israel. The crowd watched him speak on a large screen via satellite link.

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EU foreign ministers agreed on Monday to put the military wing of Lebanese group Hezbollah on the bloc's list of terrorist groups. But sanctions will have little impact

EU foreign ministers agreed on Monday to put the military wing of Lebanese group Hezbollah on the bloc's list of terrorist groups. But sanctions will have little impact

    Tuesday, July 23, 2013   No comments

It's a mistake that many make when they first arrive in Lebanon. Along the highway between the airport and city center, they see portraits of a plump man hanging on buildings, billboards and street lamps. He wears a black turban and glasses, his mouth usually turned up in a smile under his bushy, gray beard. Visitors often wonder if this is Lebanon's president.

But Hassan Nasrallah holds neither the office of president, nor any other political post in the country. Nevertheless, he is a powerful man in his homeland -- perhaps even its most powerful -- as the leader of Hezbollah, the Shiite militant group and political party that heads the strongest coalition in the country's parliament. Nasrallah also directs thousands of elite fighters who are searching for like-minded recruits in the region. Thanks to Nasrallah's private army, which is fighting on the side of the Syrian regime, President Bashar Assad has the upper hand against rebels there once again.
On Monday, European Union foreign ministers agreed to put this armed wing of Hezbollah on the bloc's list of terrorist groups. The move marks a striking about-face in European policy regarding the Shiite militants. Previously, European leaders had argued that Lebanon, already in a vulnerable state, would be further destabilized if the influential group were declared outcasts.

Sanctions Won't Be Felt...

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