A First: More than 800 Officials from ally nations across the Atlantic have united to publicly criticize their governments over the war on Gaza

A First: More than 800 Officials from ally nations across the Atlantic have united to publicly criticize their governments over the war on Gaza

    Friday, February 02, 2024   No comments

More than 800 officials in the US, the UK and the EU released a public letter of dissent against their governments’ support of Israel in its war in Gaza, The New York Times reported on Friday.

According to current and former officials spearheading or supporting the initiative, the letter marks the first time that officials from ally nations across the Atlantic have united to publicly criticize their governments over the war.

The officials argue that they are speaking up because they, as civil servants, consider that it is their duty to help improve policy and to work in their nations’ interests, and that they are speaking up because they believe their governments need to change direction on the war.

“Our governments’ current policies weaken their moral standing and undermine their ability to stand up for freedom, justice and human rights globally,” The New York Times quoted the letter as saying.

There is a “plausible risk” that their governments’ policies are contributing to “grave violations of international humanitarian law, war crimes and even ethnic cleansing or genocide,” it added.

According to the newspaper, the document protected the identities of signers as they fear reprisal, said one organizer, an official who has worked in the State Department for more than 20 years.

But about 800 current officials have given approval to the letter as it has quietly circulated among employees at the national level in multiple countries, the official was quoted as saying.

The effort reveals the extent to which pro-Israel policies among American, British and European leaders have stirred dissent among civil servants, including many who engage in foreign policies of their governments.

Noting that some 80 of the signers are from American agencies, with the biggest group being from the State Department, one organizer said the governing authority most represented among the signers is the collective EU institutions, followed by the Netherlands and the US.

Islamic Societies Review MONTHLY--January 2024

Islamic Societies Review MONTHLY--January 2024

    Wednesday, January 31, 2024   No comments

 

ISR MONTHLY is a bulletin updating our readers about news stories and analyses of the month. For weekly updates, please visit ISR Weekly.

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Chinese President Xi Jinping Officially Received The Credentials Of The Taliban Ambassador To Beijing

     Tuesday, January 30, 2024   No comments

The Afghan Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday that Chinese President Xi Jinping officially received the credentials of the Taliban ambassador to Beijing. Mawlawi Assadullah, also...

US Government Employees To Stage One-Day Hunger Strike On Thursday To Denounce Joe Biden’s Policy On Gaza

     Monday, January 29, 2024   No comments

The British daily, The Guardian reported that Feds United for Peace, group of workers from more than two dozen agencies, to stage one-day hunger strike on...

US Central Command Statement: "U.S. Forces, Allies Conduct Joint Strikes In Yemen; Houthis Respond

     Monday, January 22, 2024   No comments

After re-listing Houthis as a terrorist entity, US government has signaled that its strikes in Yemen are going to gain some permanence, coining a new name for the operation:  “Operation Poseidon Archer”. Afterwards, the  US Central Command issued a statement, announcing that the "U.S. Forces, Allies Conduct Joint Strikes in Yemen."

 

G77 + China: The Largest Intergovernmental Coalition Within The United Nations Meets At Turning Point

     Sunday, January 21, 2024   No comments

 The intergovernmental organization known as the G77 + China holds its summit this month in Africa. The summit is held during challenging time. UN secretary...

Media Review: Underscoring The Risks Associated With Attacking Yemen, European Countries, Including France, Refused To Support It

     Friday, January 12, 2024   No comments

 Attack on Yemen might be the riskiest action taken by the US administration, and that risk is obvious. France and some other European powers refused...

Egypt Denies Israel's Allegations Of Preventing Aid From Entering Gaza

     Friday, January 12, 2024   No comments

As reported in international media outlets, Dia Rashwan, head of the Egyptian Information Service, categorically denied the allegations and lies of the Israeli defense team...

The Washington Institute: Hezbollah's Popularity And Support For Hamas Have Risen In Lebanon

     Wednesday, January 10, 2024   No comments

The American "Washington Institute" conducted an opinion poll in Lebanon, and found that there was an increase in Hezbollah's popularity compared to the last poll...

Media Review: How Did Major American Newspapers Cover The Gaza War?

     Tuesday, January 09, 2024   No comments

 A quantitative analysis conducted by the American website "The Intercept" concluded that the coverage of major newspapers in America in the first six weeks of...

Sheikh Hasina Wins Elections Boycotted By The Opposition In Bangladesh

     Sunday, January 07, 2024   No comments

Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina (76 years old) won a fifth term in power, after legislative elections that were boycotted by the main opposition party...

Sam Altman Of OpenAI: “I Am Jewish… I See A Lot Of People In Our Industry Sticking Up For Me... While That Support For Muslims Is Comparatively Lower"

     Saturday, January 06, 2024   No comments

 OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said Thursday that he felt members of the Muslim and Arab communities in the technology industry were uncomfortable talking about their recent experiences, in an apparent reference to the impact of the ongoing war in Gaza, according to a Reuters report.

Contrary To Ankara’s Political Rhetoric In Support Of Palestinians, Turkish Exports To Israel Increased

     Saturday, January 06, 2024   No comments

Economics is the overriding engine in global relationsContrary to Ankara’s political rhetoric on the war in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza, Turkish exports to Israel...

British Documents: Britain Conducted A Secret Dialogue With Hezbollah And Then Sought To Exploit Hariri To Dismantle His Military Capabilities

     Wednesday, January 03, 2024   No comments

British documents reveal that British Prime Minister Tony Blair's government sought twenty years ago to use Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri to dissolve the military...

Media Review: The National Interest Calls On Biden To Return Soldiers From Syria And Iraq: Stop Making Them Targets

     Wednesday, January 03, 2024   No comments

The American magazine "National Interest" criticized the foreign policy of US President Joe Biden, and his involvement of the United States in endless conflicts at...

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Chinese President Xi Jinping officially received the credentials of the Taliban ambassador to Beijing

Chinese President Xi Jinping officially received the credentials of the Taliban ambassador to Beijing

    Tuesday, January 30, 2024   No comments

The Afghan Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday that Chinese President Xi Jinping officially received the credentials of the Taliban ambassador to Beijing. Mawlawi Assadullah, also known as Bilal Karimi, handed over his credentials along with ambassadors from 41 countries to President Xi at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, the ministry said in a statement.

President Xi is the first head of state to officially accredit a Taliban ambassador during a special ceremony, and last year, Taliban Prime Minister Hassan Akhund received the newly appointed Chinese ambassador to Afghanistan.

 

No country in the world has officially recognized the Taliban as the government of Afghanistan yet, but ambassadors appointed by the Taliban are actively working in many Asian capitals.

Taliban Ambassador to Chaina, Bilal Karimi

 

The Taliban movement has been criticized by the international community due to the severe restrictions it imposes on women's rights.

 

A Brussels-based research center said on Tuesday that countries in the region need to deal with Afghanistan regarding security and economic issues and urged Western powers to support such efforts or at least refrain from obstructing them.

 

China has maintained good relations with the Taliban since its return to power in August 2021, and Beijing is considered one of Kabul's largest trading partners.

US government employees to stage one-day hunger strike on Thursday to denounce Joe Biden’s policy on Gaza

US government employees to stage one-day hunger strike on Thursday to denounce Joe Biden’s policy on Gaza

    Monday, January 29, 2024   No comments

The British daily, The Guardian reported that Feds United for Peace, group of workers from more than two dozen agencies, to stage one-day hunger strike on Thursday

US government employees are planning a “day of fasting for Gaza” this week to draw attention to the humanitarian crisis in the territory and to denounce Joe Biden’s policy toward Israel.

Representatives for Feds United for Peace, a group of several dozen government employees frustrated with the Gaza crisis who organized an office walkout earlier in the month, told the Guardian that on Thursday its members will stage a one-day hunger strike. Participating federal employees are expected to show up to their offices dressed in black or wearing keffiyeh scarves or other symbols of Palestinian solidarity.

A federal employee speaking on behalf of the group said the Day of Fasting is a response to Israel’s use of “starvation as a weapon of war by intentionally withholding food from entering Gaza”, citing UN reporting that up 2 million people in the territory are at risk of famine.

US Central Command Statement: "U.S. Forces, Allies Conduct Joint Strikes in Yemen; Houthis respond

US Central Command Statement: "U.S. Forces, Allies Conduct Joint Strikes in Yemen; Houthis respond

    Monday, January 22, 2024   No comments

After re-listing Houthis as a terrorist entity, US government has signaled that its strikes in Yemen are going to gain some permanence, coining a new name for the operation:  “Operation Poseidon Archer”. Afterwards, the  US Central Command issued a statement, announcing that the "U.S. Forces, Allies Conduct Joint Strikes in Yemen."

The full statement from US Central Command:

As part of ongoing international efforts to respond to increased Houthi destabilizing and illegal activities in the region, on Jan. 22 at approximately 11:59 p.m. (Sanaa / Yemen time), U.S. Central Command forces alongside UK Armed Forces, and with the support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada, and the Netherlands, conducted strikes on 8 Houthi targets in Iranian-backed Houthi terrorist-controlled areas of Yemen. 

These strikes from this multilateral coalition targeted areas in Houthi-controlled Yemen used to attack international merchant vessels and U.S. Navy ships in the region. The targets included missile systems and launchers, air defense systems, radars, and deeply buried weapons storage facilities. 

These strikes are intended to degrade Houthi capability to continue their reckless and unlawful attacks on U.S. and U.K. ships as well as international commercial shipping in the Red Sea, Bab Al-Mandeb Strait, and the Gulf of Aden. These strikes are separate and distinct from the multinational freedom of navigation actions performed under Operation Prosperity Guardian."

The UK followed with its own statement:

UK Defense Security statement. Four British Eurofighter Typhoon fighters conducted strikes against Ansar Allah this evening.

____

Meanwhile, the Yemen government in Sanaa, responded to the new strikes with this statement, posted by Mohammed Albukhaiti. 

This reaction follows a detailed responce issued by the same Yemini official reacting to EU intent to join the US and UK in their war on Sanaa government. The full text of the statement is below.

A message from Mohammed Albukhaiti, senior member and spokesperson of Ansar Allah

My message to the European Union countries regarding their possible participation in a military mission in the Red Sea.

The exceptional state of stability and security that Europe experienced after World War II is a result of the moral values   that prevailed in its societies at the internal level.  However, this moral system began to weaken as a result of the participation of some European countries in the immoral wars that America fought outside its borders.  We are now seeing its effects in the rise of the extreme right and the war in Ukraine.

European societies must realize that moral and human values   are fixed and do not change according to the nationality and religion of a person, and their treatment of them with extreme selectivity that amounts to schizophrenia will expand the scope of wars in the world, which will expand to Europe.

There are genocidal crimes committed every day in Gaza, the majority of whose victims are women and children, in full view of the world, and all countries must take serious action to stop them.

Unfortunately, the movement of some countries with their fleets in support of the perpetrators of genocide and the silence of others is what prompted us to take unilateral military action to stop it, because we had no choice but to do so.

We only target ships linked to Israel, not with the aim of seizing them or sinking them, but with the aim of changing their course to increase the economic cost to Israel as a pressure card to stop its crimes in Gaza and allow the entry of food, medicine and fuel to its besieged residents. This is a legitimate act, especially since we are in a state of war with it.  If the crews of those ships had responded to the instructions of our naval forces, they would not have been detained or bombed.

The steadfastness of the Palestinian people and the military operations of Yemen and Hezbollah against Israel were sufficient to pressure it to stop its crimes, but the American and British support for it, which reached the point of launching an aggression against Yemen, created the conditions for it to continue committing more crimes and expanded the scope of the conflict.

Today there is a war between Yemen, which is struggling to stop the crimes of genocide, and America and Britain, which are fighting to support and protect the perpetrators. It is also clear that the Palestinian people are not ready to surrender, which means that the situation is heading towards escalation.

Instead of European Union countries moving to add more fuel to the fire, they should move seriously to stop the crimes of genocide in Gaza, and then we will stop all our military operations immediately and automatically.

The Palestinian people are being subjected to great injustice to the point of being deprived of the right to live on their land by force of arms. If another human group had been subjected to the injustice that the Palestinians are being subjected to, we would have moved to help them, regardless of their religion or color.

We are not advocates of war, but rather advocates of peace, and it is America and Britain that attacked us, whether in 2015 indirectly or today directly, and we advise the European Union countries not to participate in any aggression against Yemen.

Our keenness to achieve a just and comprehensive peace that guarantees the safety and dignity of all countries and peoples does not mean abandoning our duty to defend the oppressed, nor abandoning our right to self-defense, no matter the sacrifices it costs us. We are prepared to fight until the Day of Resurrection even if the whole world comes together against us."

 

Media review: Why did Hamas attack?

Media review: Why did Hamas attack?

    Monday, January 22, 2024   No comments

Aljazeera and other regional and global media outlets reported that Hamas released an official document a answering the question about its motivation behind the events of October 7. 

The document tilted, “This is our narrative... Why the Al-Aqsa Flood?”, explaining the motives and outcomes of its "Operation al-Aqsa Flood".

In a 16-page report published on Sunday, Hamas, said it wanted to “clarify” the background and dynamics of the surprise attack it calls Operation al-Aqsa Flood. In the document Hamas admits admits to ‘some faults’ but said the attack was a ‘necessary step’  

Hamas explained in the memorandum that the events of October 7, 2023 must be placed in their broader context, urging the recalling of instances of liberation struggle in the world in contemporary history.

 Hamas affirmed that it's a movement for a national liberation struggle with legitimate goals, and that it “derives its legitimacy in resisting the occupation from the right of its people to defend themselves.” The movement stressed that “resisting the occupation by all means, including armed resistance, is a legitimate right guaranteed by laws and religions and approved by international laws.”

Hamas explained that the “Al-Aqsa Flood” was a necessary step and a natural response to confront the hatched plans aimed at liquidating the Palestinian cause, just as it was to confront “Israel’s” plans on the land, Judaize it, and resolve sovereignty over al-Aqsa Mosque.

 Hamas added that the "Al-Aqsa Flood" was necessary in order to end the unjust siege on the Gaza Strip, and a natural step towards achieving independence and freedom like other peoples of the free world, and the right to self-determination, in addition to establishing the independent Palestinian state, with Jerusalem as its capital.

  “al-Aqsa flood” also came as a natural step within the framework of getting rid of the Israeli occupation, which practically “destroyed the possibility of establishing a Palestinian state through the fierce campaign to double settlement and Judaization in the West Bank,” Hamas explained.

 The battle with the occupation is more than a century old

In the memorandum, Hamas Movement (as it is called in the region) returned to the history of occupied Palestine, stating that the battle of the Palestinian people with the occupation did not begin on October 7, the day the “al-Aqsa Flood” began, but rather “105 years before that.”

 In this context, the Movement pointed out that the Palestinian people lived 30 years under British colonialism, and 75 years of Israeli occupation, while the Gaza Strip suffered a stifling siege for more than 17 years, turning into the largest open prison in the world, and five devastating wars, with Israel killing a disproportionate number of civilian Palestinians in each of them.

While Hamas affirmed that the Palestinian people have suffered for decades from all forms of oppression, injustice, confiscation of basic rights, and apartheid policies, it pointed out that from 2000 until September 2023, the occupation killed 11,299 Palestinians and wounded 156,768 others, the majority of whom were civilians.

 In the face of all this, Hamas asked: “Were our people required to continue waiting and betting on the United Nations and its helpless institutions?”

The October 7 attack targeted Israeli military sites

Regarding Hamas’ goals on October 7, the Movement confirmed that “al-Aqsa Flood” targeted Israeli military sites and sought to capture the occupation soldiers and fighters, in order to release the Palestinian prisoners.

 Hamas stressed that the attack focused on the Israeli military division of Gaza and Israeli sites in the “Gaza envelope” settlements, where “targeting civilians was avoided, especially women, children, and the elderly,” as this was considered a “religious and moral obligation upon which the sons of Hamas are raised.”

Hamas also affirmed that its “resistance is disciplined by the controls and instructions of our true Islamic religion, and its military wing targets the occupation soldiers and those who carry weapons against our people,” pointing out that “we dealt positively with the issue of civilians who were captured in the Gaza Strip, and we sought from day one to release them as quickly as possible.”

In this regard, the Movement stressed that what the occupation is promoting about “al-Qassam” targeting Israeli civilians in the October 7 attack “is pure slander and a lie,” as its fighters did not target “civilians,” but many of them were “killed by the Israeli police and army forces because of their confusion.”

 It was also the Israeli raids that “caused the killing of a large number of Israelis who were captured on October 7,” according to what Hamas continued, while numbers of armed settlers clashed with members of the resistance factions on October 7, and “those of them who were killed were recorded by the occupation as civilians.”

 While the occupation deliberately promoted lies that “the Qassam Brigades beheaded 40 infants,” Hamas pointed out that “this claim has been proven with certainty to be false, and the Israeli sources admit it.” The claim that “resistance fighters raped Israeli women has also been proven false,” which is what “Hamas categorically denied it.”

 As for the Gaza Strip, where Israelis were also killed by “their army” fire, the bombing and destruction operations demonstrated the occupation’s indifference to the lives of its prisoners, and its willingness to sacrifice them,” the Movement added in the memorandum.

 Hamas added that “fair investigations will confirm our story and the lies of the occupation’s allegations.”

 In addition to the above, Hamas called on “major countries, especially the United States, Germany, Canada, and Britain, to declare their support for the investigation into crimes committed in Palestine,” and the International Criminal Court to “come urgently and immediately to occupied Palestine, in order to investigate crimes and violations.”

 

The Movement continued by affirming that the peoples of the region and the world “are aware of the extent of the lies and deceit of the governments supporting the aggression, and their endeavor to search for justifications in order to justify their bias towards the occupation,” while noting that these countries “do not want to acknowledge that the root of the problem and the origin of the crisis is the existence of the occupation and its confiscation of the rights of our people to live freely.”

Hamas called for "legally punishing the Israeli occupation for its occupation, and all the suffering, victims and losses that resulted from it," and "supporting the resistance against the Israeli occupation by all available means, as it is a legitimate right."

 Hamas addressed the countries of the free world, especially the countries of the Global South, calling on them to “take a serious stance against the double standards of the forces supporting the occupation,” stressing that the major powers must “stop providing cover for the Zionist entity.”

 Hamas also called for an immediate halt to the Israeli aggression on Gaza, an end to the crimes and genocide committed by the occupation, an end to the siege, and a serious effort to force the occupation to withdraw from the Gaza Strip.

 Hamas also urged "to stand against attempts to displace Palestinians inside, and to prevent a new catastrophe upon them, so there is no displacement of Palestinians, forcing them to move into Sinai, Jordan, or any place."

 It also called for the rejection of any international and Israeli projects “that seek to determine the future of the Gaza Strip, in a way that is consistent with the standards of the occupation and ensures its continuation,” stressing that the Palestinian people have the ability and competence to decide their future for themselves and arrange their internal home with their decision, and no one may impose guardianship over them.