10 May 12 Osint Levant Tracker

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This OSINT publication contains foreign media derived entirely from open sources in and around the CENTCOM AOR.
10 May 2012 EGYPT Questions Surround Egypt Vote As Candidates To Hold TV Debate: Bikya Masr An intense meandering of political machinations has left Egyptians curious and frustrated over the upcoming presidential elections, with an administrative court on Wednesday possibly stopping the May 23-24 vote, although an appeal is pending. Egypt Presidential Elections Will Not Be Cancelled, Says Lower Administrative Court: Ahram Online Lower court refutes fears that upcoming elections are cancelled, saying their Wednesday statement merely meant SPEC's call to vote is illegal; State Council says Tantawi can rectify situation by re-announcing elections Gunmen Attack Natural Gas Station in North Sinai: Al-Masry Al-Youm Unknown gunmen shot on armed forces and police in charge of securing the station that controls the gas pipeline to Israel and Jordan, south of Arish in North Sinai. No casualties were reported, security sources said. SCAF Backs Embattled Electoral Commission: Ahram Online The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) affirmed its "full appreciation and trust in Egypt's esteemed judiciary" and the commission and emphasised the necessity of "committing to the constitutional verdicts" and "non interference of a state authority in the work of the other." Suez Canal Revenue at $433.1 in April: Al Masry al Youm Revenue from Egypt's Suez Canal fell 0.3 percent in the year to April, the Egyptian Information Portal showed on Wednesday. Moussa: Mubarak Impeded Improvement of Egyptian-Iranian Relations: MENA Presidential candidate Amr Moussa on Tuesday called for dialogue to end disputes between Iran and Arab states. Moussa said that following his appointment as Foreign Minister in 1991, he had conducted a number of calls with Iranian officials but former President Mubarak ordered him to cut off all communication with Iran. ISRAEL / GAZA New Hamas Force in Gaza Is Foiling Rocket Attacks against Israel: Haaretz The Hamas government in Gaza has been operating a force over the past few months whose sole task is to prevent the firing of rockets into Israel. The new force was formed by and is under the direct command of Hamas Interior Minister Fathi Hammad, who in the past has been considered an extremist in regard to Israel. According to a Gaza source, the force of some 300 men operates, "day and night, 24 hours, everywhere in the Strip, particularly near the borders with Israel." Fatah Delegation Makes Rare Gaza Visit: Israel National News A Fatah delegation from Ramallah made a high-profile visit to Gaza on Wednesday to hold talks with local factionmembers and other groups in the Hamas-run enclave. UNRWA Chief Urges Israel To Find Hunger Strike Solution: Maan News The Commissioner-General of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees on Thursday called on Israel to find a solution to the hunger strike by Palestinian prisoners. Israel: Ramon Quits Kadima Party: Ya Libnan Kadima council chairman Haim Ramon marred the celebrations in the party over Kadima leader Shaul Mofazs joining the cabinet Wednesday when he sent Mofaz a fiercely-worded letter announcing that he was quitting his post and leaving the party altogether, Israeli daily Jerusalem Post reported on Wednesday
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10 May 2012 JORDAN Jordan Vows Fair Retrial Of Qatada If Deported: Now Lebanon Jordan said Thursday that Islamist cleric Abu Qatada, accused of ties to late Al-Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden, will face a "fair" retrial in the Middle East country if Britain deports him. "Abu Qatada is a Jordanian citizen and if the British authorities extradite him to the kingdom, he will get a fair retrial here," Samih Maaytah, Jordan's information minister and government spokesperson, told AFP. UNRWA Workers To End Strike After Compromise Reached Judeh: Jordan Times Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh announced that an agreement in principle had been reached between UNRWAs administration and employees to end an open-ended strike by the agencys workers. Jordan Tribes Support Institutional, Partisan Work: Jordan Times Representing his tribe, the Abbad, at a ceremony to welcome His Majesty King Abdullah, former prime minister Marouf Bakhit said tribes believe that tribalism is never an alternative to partisan or institutional work as the country aggressively pursues reform. Jordan's King Under Pressure As Reforms Stall: BBC Pressure is mounting on King Abdullah of Jordan to respond to similar popular demands that have turned the Middle East upside down over the past year-and-a-half. Promised political and economic reforms appear to be stalling. Last week, King Abdullah appointed his fourth prime minister since the Arab Spring started here 17 months ago. Deputies Endorse Political Parties Bill: Jordan Times The Lower House on Wednesday passed the 2012 draft political parties law, completing so far two of the four key reform-oriented laws. With the endorsement of the draft political parties law and following the Independent Elections Commission Law, the remaining reform-oriented laws are the draft elections law and the constitutional court law. LEBANON Suleiman Contacts Assad: Bombings Arent Proper Way to Reach Democracy: Naharnet President Michel Suleiman telephoned on Thursday his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad to condemn the twin Damascus explosions that took place earlier in the day. He told Assad: Bombings that have cost the lives of several civilians are not the proper way to achieve democracy. Miqati Calls for Cooperation among Lebanese to Safeguard Country: Naharnet Prime Minister Najib Miqati called on the Lebanese to cooperate in order to safeguard the country and overcome all the obstacles facing it. Syrian Troops Kidnap Citizen in Akkar: Naharnet Syrian troops crossed over into Lebanon Wednesday night and kidnapped a Lebanese citizen, reported the daily alMustaqbal. It said that Syrian border guards crossed the Kabir River near the town of al-Abboudiyeh in Akkar and abducted Mohammed Mahmoud Ibrahim. Houri Retorts To Qassems Criticism Of Hariri: Now Lebanon Future bloc MP Ammar Houri retorted to remarks made by Hezbollah Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Qassem in which he criticized Future Movement leader MP Saad Hariri. Are [Qassems false prophecies] contributing to preventing strife and [upholding] civil peace, Houri inquired in a statement.
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10 May 2012 Hezbollahs No 2 : Hariri Is Not The Sole Sunni Leader: Ya Libnan Hezbollahs no.2 , Deputy Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem on Wednesday questioned former PM Saad Hariris leadership of the Sunni community in Lebanon and stressed that he was not their sole representative. SYRIA Turkish Daily: CIA and Mossad behind Syria Bombings: Al Manar The Turkish daily Aydinlik said that suicide bombings represent a way of incitement carried out by the CIA and Mossad agents in Iraq, and are applied now in Syria, Lebanese daily Al-Benaa reported. Two Bombs Strike Damascus, Many Casualties: State TV: Al Masry al Youm Two explosions shook the Syrian capital Damascus on Thursday killing and wounding dozens of people, state media said, in a district that houses a military intelligence complex involved in President al-Assad's crackdown on a 14-month uprising. Syrian Opposition Blames Regime For Deadly Blasts: Now Lebanon Syria's main opposition group said the regime in Damascus was behind two deadly blasts that rocked the capital, killing at least 29 people. He said the aim of the blasts was to send a warning to UN observers monitoring a tenuous truce in Syria that they were in danger and to impress upon the international community that the regime was battling "terrorists." Zasypkin Wants Syrian Opposition To Cut Relations With Armed Groups: Now Lebanon Russian Ambassador to Lebanon Alexander Zasypkin called on the Syrian opposition to cut its relation with the armed groups in Syria. Zasypkin also said that Russia wanted the bloodshed in Syria to stop immediately, adding that Moscow was working with the Syrian regime to help resolve the current Syrian crisis. Syrian Opposition Signs Deal With Cuban Counterpart: All Voices The opposition Syrian National Council has signed a partnership deal with Miami-based opponents of Cuba's communist regime, which both sides said was aimed at fighting dictatorship in their countries. IMF: Syrian Pound, Stock Market Plummeted: Now Lebanon The value of the Syrian pound is down 45% on the parallel market and the stock market has slumped 40% since an uprising broke out in March 2011, the International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday. Exclusive: Syria Buys Grain Via Lebanon To Beat Sanctions: Reuters Syria is importing significant volumes of grain via Lebanon to work around western sanctions and secure vital supplies, European traders told Reuters. The trade is not illegal because food imports are not included in sanctions imposed. But the measures have blocked access to trade finance for Syria in the same way as similar penalties imposed on Iran over its nuclear program. EDITORIALS Iran Funding Smuggling of Libyan Arms into Sinai: Asharq Al-Awsat Egyptian security sources have informed Asharq Al-Awsat that the security apparatus in Cairo believe that Iran may be funding the smuggling of arms belonging to the former Libyan arm into the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt. Iron Dome: Israeli Necessity, American Priority, Strategic Imperative: Haaretz For years, Sderot was a city under siege, the target of non-stop rocket attacks launched by Palestinian terrorists from Gaza. School was halted, synagogues were silenced and in a community defined by courage, the fragments of rockets and mortars the vehicles of attempted murder aimed at innocent Israelis were plain for all to see.
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10 May 2012 The Arab Autumn Recanters: Asharq Al-Awsat When the popular uprisings first erupted in the Arab world, intellectuals and writers were initially engulfed in a state of shock and amazement; they could never have expected or imagined what happened. However, when it seemed that the moment of change had occurred; those intellectuals changed their view and declared their support for the mass revolutions. Necrophilia Law: How Western Media Savors Islam Phobia: Al Masry al Youm Islamists and necrophilia. If you enlarge these words in a headline, and type them in a bold font, you would be boosting your Western readers Islam phobia and your story would go viral. Israels Unity Deal and Lebanon: Now Lebanon The surprise unity deal struck between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Kadima chairman Shaul Mofaz has spurred a flurry of speculation, including in the Arab media, about its ultimate significance. Was Netanyahus move driven entirely by domestic politics? Or does it indicate that an Israeli strike on Iran might be imminent? If so, how would that impact Lebanon? Supporting Documentation:
EGYPT (Top) 10 May 2012 Bikya Masr Questions Surround Egypt Vote As Candidates To Hold TV Debate Joseph Mayton
(U) The eccentric symbols assigned to candidates in Egypt's first democratic elections. An intense meandering of political machinations has left Egyptians curious and frustrated over the upcoming presidential elections, with an administrative court on Wednesday possibly stopping the May 23-24 vote, although an appeal is pending. It also came less than 24 hours ahead of Thursday evenings televised presidential debate, a first for the country. Candidates are continuing their campaigns despite the court ruling, which suspended the vote.
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10 May 2012 Leading candidate Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh, an Islamist moderate and frontrunner as a result of his ability to bring liberals and Islamists together, told Bikyamasr.com on Thursday that he hopes the election can come together and that Egyptians are getting into the period with optimism that will mean good voter turnout. Still, the debate will have the dark hand of the court ruling over it as it is certain to see Egyptians gathered around their television sets to entertain the first political debate of the countrys top leaders. I am excited to watch, said on shopkeeper on Thursday morning. He admitted he was undecided between the Muslim Brotherhoods Mohamed Morsy and Aboul Fotouh. I want to see a leader and someone who represents Egypt. Still, if the court ruling is upheld, there may be no voting in two weeks time. According to the decision, the court said that the date of the election had been incorrectly set by the independent electoral commission and should have been established by the governing military junta, in power since February 12, 2011, the day former President Hosni Mubarak stepped down. Many legal experts however, are arguing that the court itself has no authority to make such rulings, which they say would keep the election on track. And they said the election would continue without a hitch. But activists on the ground have been flirting with the idea that the move is an attempt by the military council to postpone the vote and maintain their power. Certainly it does seem like they would use the clashes and the court to make sure they keep the power, but I hope not, said Amr Tarek, a university student and ardent anti-military protester, who did admit that his conspiracy theories could just be that. I hope I am just out there and it isnt the truth, but we will see, he added. Either way, court ruling or not, it is election season in Egypt, and in true democratic style, the top candidates will be throwing punches, verbally, on Thursday night in yet another first for Egypt.
10 May 2012 Ahram Online Egypt Presidential Elections Will Not Be Cancelled, Says Lower Administrative Court Lower court refutes fears that upcoming elections are cancelled, saying their Wednesday statement merely meant SPEC's call to vote is illegal; State Council says Tantawi can rectify situation by re-announcing elections Head of the Benha Administrative Court Mohamed, Hatem Ammer stated on Thursday that their Wednesday court ruling "does not mean halting the presidential elections but rather makes the Supreme Presidential Electoral Commission (SPEC) call to vote illegitimate, since it's SCAF's authority to make this call". Earlier on Wednesday, the Nile Delta city court ruled that the SPEC had made key administrative errors such as calling for the elections as they do not have to legal right to do so. Ammer explained that only the Supreme Council for Armed Forces (SCAF), as the de-factor leader, has the authorization and power under Article 56 of the military-authored Constitutional Declaration, to call voters to vote in the upcoming presidential elections.
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10 May 2012 In addition, the Benha Administrative Court also said that according to Article 28, SPEC has the authority to call candidates to nomination but not for the elections. Judge Magdy El-Garhi, deputy head of State Council, said Wednesday evening that the presidential commission's error can be rectified by the head of the SCAF, Field Marshal Mohamed Tantawi, by reannouncing the elections. Ammer's statement comes in reaction to public outcry at the Administrative Court ruling, as many feared the upcoming elections would be suspended. This is because by declaring the announcement of the elections illegal, the whole presidential electoral process is consequently rendered illegitimate. Mokhtar El-Ashry, head of legal committee of the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) denounced the Benha court legal action, as it was issued by a 'non-specialised" lower administrative court and was "against the Constitutional Declaration." He described the action as a "conspiracy", saying it was one of the attempts to stop the presidential elections from taking place on time and was therefore defying the will of the people and the revolution as a whole. El-Ashry also added that he "rejects" any unspecialized judiciary intervention in the transitional phase of the ruling military council, as they prepare to hand over power over to a civilian president.
09 May 2012 Al-Masry Al-Youm Gunmen Attack Natural Gas Station In North Sinai
Unclassified Unknown gunmen shot on armed forces and police in charge of securing the station that controls the gas pipeline to Israel and Jordan, south of Arish in North Sinai. No casualties were reported, security sources said. The gunmen were in a vehicle when they were ambushed by security forces and a firefight ensued, the sources added. The gunmen escaped into the desert.
09 May 2012 Ahram Online SCAF Backs Embattled Electoral Commission
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10 May 2012 The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) affirmed its "full appreciation and trust in Egypt's esteemed judiciary" and the commission and emphasised the necessity of "committing to the constitutional verdicts" and "non interference of a state authority in the work of the other." The military council's statement comes one day after a row erupted between the SPEC and the lower house of Egypt's Parliament. On Monday, the electoral commission announced its intention to indefinitely suspend all its activities and postpone meetings scheduled for Tuesday with presidential candidates and media personnel. The SPEC Secretary-General Hatem Bagato said that the decision came in response to what the commission saw as parliamentary encroachment on its affairs, following Monday's parliamentary session in which several proposed amendments to Egypt's presidential elections law were preliminarily approved by MPs in attendance. Moreover, SPEC President Farouk Sultan said on Tuesday, that the commission had called on Egypt's ruling military country to intervene in the crisis in order to ensure the clear division of power between various state authorities, which, he said, Parliament had clearly violated. He added that Parliament's preliminary approval on Monday of amendments to the presidential elections law represented a "clear infringement" on the SPEC's jurisdiction. On Monday, the People's Assembly agreed to amend Article 28 in the elections law, which grants the Supreme Presidential Electoral Commission (SPEC) immunity from appeal. Article 28, which also appears in the SCAF-authored Constitutional Declaration, had been criticized by a number of MPs and come under fire from activists, as it means that SPEC decisions cannot be appealed. In the statement, the military council also rejected any claims that the upcoming presidential elections will be rigged, in response to critics who announced their fear that, under the umbrella of Article 28, the elections could be rigged in SCAF's favour. The SCAF concluded their statement by affirming that the presidential elections will be held on time, after concerns arose about the postponement of the elections following the SPEC's announcement to suspend its activities. Presidential elections have been scheduled by the SPEC to take place on 23 and 24 May, after which a run off voting round will be held, if necessary, on 16 and 17 June
10 May 2012 Al Masry al Youm Suez Canal revenue at $433.1 in April Revenue from Egypt's Suez Canal fell 0.3 percent in the year to April, the Egyptian Information Portal showed on Wednesday. Revenue decreased to US$433.1 million in April from $434.6 million in April 2011. Revenue in March was $428 million. The waterway is a vital source of foreign currency in Egypt, along with tourism, oil and gas exports and remittances from Egyptians living abroad.
10 May 2012
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10 May 2012 MENA Moussa: Mubarak Impeded Improvement of Egyptian-Iranian Relations Presidential candidate Amr Moussa on Tuesday called for dialogue to end disputes between Iran and Arab states. Moussa said that following his appointment as Foreign Minister in 1991, he had conducted a number of calls with Iranian officials but former President Mubarak ordered him to cut off all communication with Iran. Iran and Egypt severed ties in 1980 after the Islamic revolution in Iran and the normalization of relations between Egypt and Israel. Both nations have long vied for power in the Middle East. Egypt has been allied with the US and Israel for decades, but since the ouster of Mubarak relations between Cairo and Tehran have warmed. During his meeting with the Tourism Support Coalition, Moussa asserted that Iranian tourism to Egypt will increase. He assured tourism sector employees that tourism would return to Egypt as soon as possible, perhaps within three months. Commenting on the outbreak of a number of revolutions in Arab States during his stint as secretary general of the Arab League, Moussa said the Arab League had no role in advising presidents, but that it disclosed some aspects of corruption through its committees.
ISRAEL / GAZA (Top) 10 May 2012 Haaretz New Hamas Force in Gaza Is Foiling Rocket Attacks against Israel The new 300 men anti-rocket force operates day and night, but will not act if Israel is the first to strike. The Hamas government in Gaza has been operating a force over the past few months whose sole task is to prevent the firing of rockets into Israel. Hamas, which has always championed jihad against Israel, is now using its authority to foil the firing efforts of cells from other organizations such as the Islamic Jihad and the Popular Resistance Committees.
(U) Palestinians from Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements rallying for the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails, in Gaza City, Friday, April 27, 2012. Photo by: AP
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10 May 2012 The new force was formed by and is under the direct command of Hamas Interior Minister Fathi Hammad, who in the past has been considered an extremist in regard to Israel. According to a Gaza source, the force of some 300 men operates, "day and night, 24 hours, everywhere in the Strip, particularly near the borders with Israel." The soldiers wear black uniforms and make their way around on motorcycles and four-wheel drive vehicles. According to a Hamas source, the force has a green light to shoot activists who resist arrest or fire at the Hamas soldiers. Anyone arrested can expect to spend at least a couple of months in prison, the source said. The rockets and/or mortars that are found are confiscated and transferred to Hamas. The force has arrested many members of smaller Palestinian radical groups, but there have also been arrests of members of the Islamic Jihad and PRC, which are considered the leading opposition groups in Gaza. The Islamic Jihad members are almost always released on the spot, however, due to understandings reach between the two groups, the source said. Although Israel and Hamas have no direct communication, the "relationship" between the two has never looked better, with what looks like close cooperation on the ground. However, there is no security cooperation between the parties as there is between the Palestinian Authority and the Israel Defense Forces in the West Bank. But the fact that this new anti-rocket force has been formed seems to demonstrate that Hamas is looking to keep things quiet on the security front so it can better establish its government in the Strip. This force was not very much in evidence when Islamic Jihad and the PRC were firing rockets at Israel in March. This was because, among other reasons, the force won't act if Israel is the one who strikes first (and the Israeli assassination of Zuhair Al-Qaisi of the PRC in March was deemed such a provocation). But during calm times, the force has blocked more than a few rocket and mortar strikes on the south.
10 May 2012 Israel National News Fatah Delegation Makes Rare Gaza Visit
(U) A senior Fatah delegation made a rare high-profile visit to Hamas-run Gaza in a bid for elections, and to organize local leaders. A Fatah delegation from Ramallah made a high-profile visit to Gaza on Wednesday to hold talks with local factionmembers and other groups in the Hamas-run enclave. Ahead of the visit, Fatah Central Committee member Muhammad al-Madani told the Bethlehem-based Maan News Agency that he, and senior Fatah members Nabil Shaath and Amin Maqboul would form the delegation.
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10 May 2012 He declined to discuss the goal of the visit, but said the agenda may include meetings with Hamas officials. Another Fatah official, Atif Abu Seif, told Ma'an the Fatah delegation were tasked with arranging some internal party issues in Gaza. Abu Seif said the delegation would also hold talks with other factions in Gaza in hopes of pushing forward Palestinian Authority elections. Fatah has in recent months begun laying the groundwork to wrest Gaza from Hamas should elections be held, and appointed new leaders in the enclave tasked with doing so. A central figure in Fatah's plans to restructure in Gaza is Yazid Hawihi, the favorite to replace Abdullah Abu Samhadana as the Fatah chairman in Gaza. Hawihi, 50, is from Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza. Six months ago he was released from an Israeli jail where he had served five years after being convicted of terrorism related charges. The spokesman of the Hamas-run government in Gaza Tahir al-Nunu said Tuesday that premier Ismail Haniyeh welcomed the Fatah officials to Gaza in a phone call with Shaath. Hamas and Fatah have been feuding since Hamas seized Gaza from Fatah in a bloody 2007 putsch. The two factions signed a reconciliation agreement in Cairo in May 2011, but the promised unity government has yet to materialize. Earlier this year, Hamas politburo chief Khaled Mashaal and PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas reached a formula for implementing the deal in Dubai. However, their efforts resulted in another public failure, and underscored growing tension between the Hamas politburo in exile and its Gaza leaders. Mashaal tentatively accepted the notion of a state on the 1967 borders, and offered PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas a one-year mandate for negotiations with Israel though his fellow politburo members maintain any agreement with Israel will only serve as a prelude to war. However, Hamas Gaza chief Ismail Haniyeh maintains that all talks with Israel are futile and believes the tide of the Arab Spring will lead to victory in the movements armed quest to destroy the Jewish state. Amid the disagreement, Haniyeh and his cohorts imposed new demands Mashaal had not agreed to, effectively scuttling the deal again. Observers say the two factions' inability to reconcile renders Fatah's push for elections effectively moot.
10 May 2012 Maan News UNRWA Chief Urges Israel To Find Hunger Strike Solution The Commissioner-General of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees on Thursday called on Israel to find a solution to the hunger strike by Palestinian prisoners.
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10 May 2012 Filippo Grandi expressed "grave concern" for political prisoners on hunger strike and urged Israel to either charge or release prisoners detained under administrative detention. The demands of hunger strikers are related to the basic rights of prisoners as guaranteed by the Geneva Conventions, Grandi added. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday urged Israel to either charge or release Palestinian detainees "without delay." Hundreds of Palestinians in Israeli jails joined a group of hunger-strikers on April 17 protesting detention without charge, solitary confinement, restrictive visiting rights, and limited access to educational materials. Around 2,000 are now taking part in the strike, rights groups say.
09 May 2012 Ya Libnan Israel: Ramon Quits Kadima Party Kadima council chairman Haim Ramon marred the celebrations in the party over Kadima leader Shaul Mofazs joining the cabinet Wednesday when he sent Mofaz a fiercely-worded letter announcing that he was quitting his post and leaving the party altogether, Israeli daily Jerusalem Post reported on Wednesday The daily added that Ramon was one of the founders of Kadima in 2005, leaving Labor along with current president Shimon Peres and MK Dalia Itzik. The three of them moderated the image of Kadima, which at the time was seen as a second Likud. He warned Wednesday that the party had returned to be part of the Likud again. I cannot remain in the party after it betrayed the vision it was built upon, Ramon said. There is no more Kadima ideologically. It was founded as a centrist party. Joining this coalition does not mesh with our values. In a dramatic turn of events that could influence a possible Israeli strike on Iran, Israeli media reports early Tuesday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reached an agreement with the Kadima opposition party for a unity government, canceling an early election. According to the media reports, Netanyahu forged an agreement with Mofaz of Kadima shortly before parliament was set to vote on holding early elections.
JORDAN (Top) 10 May 2012 Now Lebanon Jordan Vows Fair Retrial Of Qatada If Deported Jordan said Thursday that Islamist cleric Abu Qatada, accused of ties to late Al-Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden, will face a "fair" retrial in the Middle East country if Britain deports him. "Abu Qatada is a Jordanian citizen and if the British authorities extradite him to the kingdom, he will get a fair retrial here," Samih Maaytah, Jordan's information minister and government spokesperson, told AFP. "It is standard procedure to retry Abu Qatada according to Jordanian laws, and in an impartial and independent way, in line with international standards that protect human rights."
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10 May 2012 Abu Qatada lost his bid Wednesday for top European Court of Human Rights judges to hear his appeal against Britain's efforts to extradite him to Jordan, which has given Britain reassurances to allay the European court's concerns. The ruling means Britain can now press ahead with attempts to deport him to Jordan, where the military state security court convicted him in his absence in 1998 for involvement in terror attacks. Top Salafist leader in Jordan Abed Shehadeh, known as Abu Mohammad Tahawi, has condemned the decision, saying "Abu Qatada's life would be definitely in danger if Britain extradites him to Jordan." Shehadeh insisted Abu Qatada had "nothing to do" with the crimes of which he is accused, saying Jordanian "assurances do not mean anything." "The state security court's integrity is questionable," he said, without elaborating on why he believed Abu Qatada's life to be in danger. Rights group Amnesty International said following the ruling that it "continues to believe that Abu Qatada would face a real risk of torture or other ill-treatment on return to Jordan." "Unenforceable, bilateral diplomatic assurances from one government to another do not provide a reliable safeguard against the real risk of torture or other such ill-treatment, particularly when given by a country like Jordan where, as noted by the European Court... torture remains 'widespread and routine'," it added in a statement. It said it has not seen "any evidence to indicate that trials before the state security court are no longer conducted in an unfair manner, or that the military... character of the court has been so fundamentally altered that the tribunal now meets the requirements of independence and impartiality."
09 May 2012 Jordan Times UNRWA Workers To End Strike After Compromise Reached Judeh by Muath Freij and Raed Omari Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh on Wednesday announced that an agreement in principle had been reached between UNRWAs administration and employees to end an open-ended strike by the agencys workers. At yesterdays Lower House session, Judeh said the foreign ministry had brokered an agreement with the agencys workers councils and that the employees had chosen to end the work stoppage, which began on Sunday. Under the agreement, Judeh said, salaries of the agencys workers will be increased by JD50 retroactively from the beginning of this year. Several deputies had previously called on the government to find a solution to the strike, which cut off services for the Kingdoms 1.5 million Palestinian refugees. Amman Deputy Mamdouh Abbadi charged that the salaries of UNRWA workers had been increased in all of its fields of operations except Jordan. The Lower House issued a statement yesterday calling on the foreign ministry to immediately resolve the dispute.
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10 May 2012 In the statement, a copy of which was made available to The Jordan Times, the Chamber expressed its absolute support for the demands of the UNRWA workers who it said were facing difficult financial situations. Nearly all of the agencys 7,500 employees responded to a call by their representative councils to hold a work stoppage commencing May 6 in protest against UNRWAs reluctance to meet their demands, which include a JD100 pay raise retroactively from the beginning of this year without any cut in their incentives. The employees were also demanding promotions for teachers, directors and supervisors; filling of vacancies in all the agencys sectors; and the improvement of work conditions. A source in one of UNRWAs workers councils, who declined to be named, confirmed that the employees had ended their strike and would return to work today. The source told The Jordan Times that the workers would negotiate the rest of their demands with the agencys administration in meetings next week at the foreign ministry.
09 May 2012 Jordan Times Jordan Tribes Support Institutional, Partisan Work Monarch continues tours of local communities
(U) His Majesty King Abdullah is greeted by members of the Ajarmeh tribe on the outskirts of Amman on Wednesday (Photo by Yousef Allan) Representing his tribe, the Abbad, at a ceremony to welcome His Majesty King Abdullah, former prime minister Marouf Bakhit said tribes believe that tribalism is never an alternative to partisan or institutional work as the country aggressively pursues reform. The former premier emphasized that Jordan is a country of institutions that is known for its modernization, justice and respect for human rights. During the ceremony, held in Marj Al Hamam in the southwestern edge of Amman, Abbad tribe leaders expressed their appreciation and support for the Kings efforts to achieve comprehensive reform and secure a better future for all Jordanians and to build on previous accomplishments, a Royal Court statement said.
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10 May 2012 The tour of the area was a continuation of a series of such visits by His Majesty to reach out to Jordanians in the four corners of the Kingdom, according to the Royal Court. On Wednesday, he also met with leaders and members of the Ajarmeh and Thawabieh tribes in Naour and Adasiyeh, west of Amman respectively, who also voiced their support for the national drive towards comprehensive reform, seeking to foster political life and expand public participation in the decision-making process. In Marj Al Hamam, thousands of citizens greeted the King, holding placards expressing their allegiance to the country and to the Hashemite leadership, the statement said. As the Ajarmehs received the Monarch, their leaders in Naour also voiced their support to the Kings vision for reform. In an address, Senator Mohammad Shahwan said any attempts to break the law are denounced by the Jordanian people and cannot be tolerated, stressing that Jordan will remain an oasis of stability and security. Other speakers stressed their support for the fight against corruption and pledged to stand in the face of any attempts to disturb peace in Jordan. The Monarch later visited Al Adasiyeh area to meet with leaders of the Thawabieh tribe. In a speech delivered to welcome the King, former deputy Abed Thawabieh said His Majesty is the guarantor of national unity, stressing his tribes support to the Kingdoms reform endeavor. Other speakers called for developing a national policy to support Jordans industrial sector and foster cooperation between public and private bodies.
09 May 2012 BBC Jordan's King Under Pressure As Reforms Stall By Dale Gavlakinh in Amman
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10 May 2012 (U) A woman holds up a banner saying "No to an expired government" at a protest demanding political reforms in Amman (4 May 2012) Jordanians have faced charges for making speeches or attending protests Pressure is mounting on King Abdullah of Jordan, a key US ally, to respond to similar popular demands that have turned the Middle East upside down over the past year-and-a-half. Promised political and economic reforms appear to be stalling. Last week, King Abdullah appointed his fourth prime minister since the Arab Spring started here 17 months ago. Protests erupted in the impoverished countryside south of the capital, Amman, last year before the uprisings which overthrew the presidents of Tunisia and Egypt. While demonstrations have been generally smaller and more peaceful than elsewhere in the region, Jordanians have been pressing for greater political say - specifically the popular election of prime ministers - and demanding government corruption and unemployment be tackled. The official unemployment rate stands at 11.4%, while unofficial estimates put it at 22%. The rhetoric has also developed in restive areas, like Tafileh in the south, from calls for reform to calls for regime change. Although the country has so far managed to weather the political turbulence of the Arab Spring that has seen other countries' presidents ousted, time is now a premium for the king, who has shown a penchant for deflecting criticism about policies by firing prime ministers. 'Daring' steps On 26 April, Prime Minister Awn al-Khasawneh, a former deputy chief of the International Court of Justice at The Hague, surprised many by resigning.
(U) Fayez al-Tarawneh speaks to reporters in Amman (02 May 2012) Fayez al-Tarawneh was given the task of organizing new elections as a first order of business
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10 May 2012 Mr. Khasawneh, who had only been in the job six months, was accused of not acting fast enough to bring about laws needed to hold parliamentary elections later this year. The king quickly appointed Fayez al-Tarawneh, a former prime minister and royal court chief, to form a new government and deliver the reform agenda. Interestingly, the conservative Tarawneh has called for "daring" steps to achieve the goal. "Everyone was hopeful when Khasawneh was appointed given his respected background, but he did not show leadership in proceeding with the reform process," says Musa Shteiwi, who heads the University of Jordan's Strategic Studies Centre. "The king issued the call for reform and said the path must start with elections, but how could that happen when discussion over the draft elections law was dragging?" 'Will of the people' The opposition, including the Muslim Brotherhood's political party, the Islamic Action Front, criticized the law for failing to ensure that the next parliament would be truly representative of the country's diverse population. The IAF boycotted the last legislative elections in 2010, saying it was marginalized at the expense of Bedouin supporters of the king.
(U) Riot police deployed in Amman during a protest demanding political reforms (04 May 2012) Jordan's security services have been successful in dividing dissidents But IAF spokesman Jamil Abu Bakr put the blame on the royal court and the powerful intelligence services for slowing reforms. "The security services should refrain from interfering in politics," he said. "People are now convinced that neither sacking a prime minister nor forming a government solves the problem," he added. "The only solution is to see a parliament elected by the will of the people and for a prime minister and government to emerge from that."
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10 May 2012 A recent report by the International Crisis Group claims that Jordan's security services have been successful in dividing dissidents by playing on historical divisions between Bedouin and Palestinians. Activists are also paying the price with detentions for expressing public criticism of the monarch for failure to meet demands. Minor concessions Analyst Labib Kamhawi believes King Abdullah is trying to "buy time". "Most of the reforms require accountability, democracy, and the ability of people to exercise their right to put in a parliamentary government, not a government chosen by the king. But he is not in the mood to give real concessions on these issues," Mr. Kamhawi says. Last June, the king said it could take several years for Jordan's 33 political parties to form right-wing, left-wing and centrist coalitions before the popular election of a prime minister could take place. Still, Mr. Kamhawi questions how the king can state that he is the initiator and guarantor of reform in Jordan, as he recently told the European Parliament, because change could ultimately undermine his own position. "The reform is against him. People are revolting and asking for reform because he trespassed on the constitution," Mr. Kamhawi asserts. "The division of power between the branches of government does not exist because everything is run by the king." He also says that the monarch has ordered parliament to start closing all the corruption cases it has been examining. In the process, several former government officials have been cleared of corruption charges. Once parliament closes a file, it cannot be reopened. Risk Mr. Shteiwi believes the majority of Jordanians are more concerned about stability, given the results so far of the Arab Spring revolts. "Most are for more reform, but the readiness to take a radical step for the system to change is slim," he says. "But if we reach a point in the summer, where the Tarawneh government cannot get something that works, there will be a serious problem." Mr. Kamhawi concurs: "The king seems to be giving people one choice - either status quo with stability or reform with instability. I believe this is a very dangerous game. "At the end of the day, people might be willing to take that risk, if they can't tolerate the conditions under which they are living. I believe it will be a 'hot' summer in Jordan, if that's the case."
09 May 2012 Jordan Times Deputies Endorse Political Parties Bill by Raed Omari Govt to submit policy statement on May 20.
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10 May 2012 The Lower House on Wednesday passed the 2012 draft political parties law, completing so far two of the four key reform-oriented laws. With the endorsement of the draft political parties law and following the Independent Elections Commission Law, the remaining reform-oriented laws are the draft elections law and the constitutional court law. Lower House Speaker Abdul Karim Dughmi said earlier this week that deputies are keen on completing their deliberations over the remaining reform-related laws before the end of the second ordinary session. During Wednesdays session, a majority of deputies voted for approving Article 24 of legislation as worded by the former government and later approved by the House joint committee that examined the 38-article legislation under which political parties should exclusively rely on disclosed Jordanian donors to finance their activities. Also under the same article, registered political parties can receive donations from Jordanians provided that they do not exceed JD50,000, but they cannot receive any funds from foreign donors, public figures or anonymous sources. As approved by a majority of MPs yesterday, headquarters of political parties will be exempted from taxes imposed on nonmoveable assets and, under Article 27 of the legislation, certain allocations will be set in the states budget as financial support for political parties, which are required to deposit their assets in Jordanian banks. However, a heated discussion erupted among MPs when they began deliberating Article 32 concerning the penalties set for violations of the legislation. Some deputies called for removing penalties from the law as recommended by the legal and public freedoms committees, arguing that the legislation was meant to be progressive and liberal. Their opponents argued that the Penal Code does not adequately set punishments for violations of the law, mainly those related to receiving funds from outside sources, pointing out that keeping the penalties can protect political parties against external interference. Before an overwhelming majority of MPs voted for approving Article 32 as worded by the former government, Prime Minister Fayez Tarawneh, who attended the session, explained that the penalties added to the legislation, especially those related to receiving donations, are meant primarily to safeguard the Jordanian identity of political parties and protect them against risks of foreign assistance. Under Paragraph A of Article 32 of the law, receiving or accepting funds from a foreign country, person or agency, is punishable by at least one-year imprisonment. Some deputies requested a revote on some previously endorsed articles of the legislation but their requests were rejected by a majority of MPs. Some lawmakers requested that political parties be supervised by the justice ministry or the political development ministry instead of the interior ministry but their request was opposed by their colleagues who insisted on the governments amendments. As worded by the former government and earlier approved by a majority of MPs, a committee headed by the interior minister, with the membership of the president of the Legislative and Opinion Bureau and the secretary general of the Ministry of Justice, would decide on applications to form parties.
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10 May 2012 Under the law, political parties cannot be established on religious, ethnic and ideological bases. They are prohibited from organizing propaganda activities to target military, security, or civil defence forces or judges. Established political parties can carry out their activities in complete freedom in line with the Constitution and the law under the new bill, which also grants them full privacy rights regarding their headquarters, calls and documents. Under the law, political parties are not to be monitored, their documents are not to be confiscated, and their headquarters are not to be searched under any circumstances, except in cases of legal violation provided that the search or the probe is conducted with judicial permission. Those aged 18 or above can join political parties and they cannot be questioned, interrogated or held accountable for their partisan allegiances under the new legislation. Later on Wednesday, Prime Minister Fayez Tarawneh agreed with Dughmi that the government will submit its policy statement to the Lower House, to gain a vote of confidence, on May 20, the Jordan News Agency, Petra reported. The deputies deliberations over the statement are expected to be finalized in no more than two days because the government is formed for a transitional period, Petra said. The Cabinet on Wednesday formed work committees to draft the statement. Highlights from political parties draft law Under the endorsed law, political parties, Cannot be established on religious, ethnical, racial or regional bases Are banned from promoting themselves to members of the military or judiciary Should exclusively rely on disclosed Jordanian donors to finance their activities Will remain supervised by the interior ministry Can use the facilities of social and cultural centers, professional association headquarters and sports clubs to hold various activities, provided that they obtain prior approval Should enjoy full privacy rights regarding their headquarters, calls and documents Are required to deposit their assets in Jordanian banks Will be financially supported by allocations set in the state budget Can include members aged 18 or above, who cannot be questioned, interrogated or held accountable for their partisan affiliation
LEBANON (Top) 10 May 2012 Naharnet Suleiman Contacts Assad: Bombings Arent Proper Way to Reach Democracy
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10 May 2012 President Michel Suleiman telephoned on Thursday his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad to condemn the twin Damascus explosions that took place earlier in the day. He told Assad: Bombings that have cost the lives of several civilians are not the proper way to achieve democracy. The only way to reach democracy lies in national dialogue, where issues can be discussed soundly and calmly through civilized means, he stressed. These talks must ensure that the interests of Syria and its people are set above all others, remarked the president. Two powerful blasts struck Damascus during morning rush hour on Thursday, killing at least 40 people, wounding dozens. Suleiman had held talks earlier on Thursday with visiting Tunisian Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali, who is in Lebanon to take part in the Arab Economic Forum.
10 May 2012 Naharnet Miqati Calls for Cooperation among Lebanese to Safeguard Country Prime Minister Najib Miqati called on the Lebanese on Thursday to cooperate in order to safeguard the country and overcome all the obstacles facing it.
Unclassified The political rhetoric (in Lebanon) remains under the cap of democracy that we hold onto, as the country has always been able to overcome the obstacles through the unity of its people, Miqati said during the opening ceremony of the Arab Economic Forum at the Phoenicia Hotel in Beirut. He stressed on consensus among all parties over state matters to reach salvation. Miqati stated that the developments across the Arab World put the countries at a crossroad which requires courage to avoid chaos that may have negative repercussions on the region. The premier noted that the cabinet is working on increasing job opportunities and growth, noting that the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was over 5% in 2011, which is higher than other non-oil producing Arab countries.
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10 May 2012 Miqati said that the cabinet is seeking to reform the state institutions to improve public institutions by engaging the private sectors investments. We have recently proposed an integrated plan for economic and social reform that would fortify economic growth, he added.
10 May 2012 Naharnet Syrian Troops Kidnap Citizen in Akkar Syrian troops crossed over into Lebanon Wednesday night and kidnapped a Lebanese citizen, reported the daily alMustaqbal on Thursday. It said that Syrian border guards crossed the Kabir River near the town of al-Abboudiyeh in Akkar and abducted Mohammed Mahmoud Ibrahim. He has since been taken to Syrian territory. Tensions have mounted in the town over al-Ibrahims fate and its residents have issued calls for his release. Members of his family have since blocked in protest the international road leading to Syria at al-Abboudiyeh, reported the National News Agency. They threatened to maintain the protest and escalate their action until the abductee is freed. They demanded that the Lebanese authorities intervene to stop what they called Syrias repeated violations against Lebanon. Also on Wednesday, a 70-year-old Lebanese woman was killed in a cross-border fire in eastern Lebanons al-Qaa village, the National News Agency reported. Halima Suleiman Krombi was shot in the head and taken to Hermel state hospital, NNA said. But she later died from her wounds. While the agency did not name the side that opened fire on the woman, other media reports said Syrian troops were behind the cross-border fire that also injured her daughter. Last month, al-Jadeed TV cameraman Ali Shaaban was killed by gunfire from Syrian troops across the border in the northern Wadi Khaled area. In January, Syrian forces kidnapped three Lebanese fishermen off the coast of the northern border town of al-Arida. It killed one of them and returned the other two hours after they were abducted.
10 May 2012 Now Lebanon Houri Retorts To Qassems Criticism Of Hariri
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10 May 2012 Future bloc MP Ammar Houri retorted to remarks made by Hezbollah Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Qassem in which he criticized Future Movement leader MP Saad Hariri, the National News Agency reported on Thursday. Are [Qassems false prophecies] contributing to preventing strife and [upholding] civil peace, Houri inquired in a statement. Qassem said during a speech on Wednesday that Hariri was not the exclusive representative of Sunnis in Lebanon, and that Future Movement had 3,000 gunmen [who] had started the [fight] during the May 7 events of 2008, when gunmen led by Hezbollah began a military operation to take over West Beirut.
09 May 2012 Ya Libnan Hezbollahs No 2 : Hariri Is Not The Sole Sunni Leader Hezbollahs no.2 , Deputy Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem on Wednesday questioned former PM Saad Hariris leadership of the Sunni community in Lebanon and stressed that he was not their sole representative. In a speech representing Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah during the inauguration of the fourth International Conference on Sheikh Bahaei in Beirut Qassem said that the dispute in Lebanon is not religious( between the Sunnis and Shiites) but is political between 2 political parties ( The Future Movement and Hezbollah) adding that the religious slogan is being used for incitement due to their failure to propagate their (political) vision. The Sunni community is the community of resistance and it had pioneered the resistance against the Israeli scheme and it cannot be solely represented a few figures or movements and it should not be held responsible for their stances, Qassem added. Former Saad Hariri is not a sole representative and the sect must not be held responsible for his decisions. There are people who are concerned with Islamic unity and resisting the Israeli enemy. They reject to support schemes that serve Israels plans and are promoted by the U.S. and funded by some oil-producing (Gulf) states. We cooperate with them and are honored to be with them in the same anti-Israel front, Qassem added. Qassem stressed that his party was willing to cooperate with anyone who endorses this vision, and even with those who restore their belief in this vision after straying away. According to an analyst , the number 2 man of the Iranian backed Hezbollah militant group aimed at dividing the Sunni community in his speech by undermining its current leadership . Addressing the May 7 , 2008 event when Hezbollah occupied the western part of Beirut and tried to occupy Mt Lebanon when the cabinet of former PM Fouad Siniora decided on May 5 to remove the partys telecommunications network Qassem said What happened on May 5 (2008) is the real crime, which was aimed at destroying the Resistances telecom network which would have served Israel. Qassem What happened on May 7 was an armed clash between two parties, as the Future Movement had 3,000 gunmen deployed in apartments and buildings and they opened fire first by attacking the General Labor Confederations demo with RPGs, he added.
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10 May 2012 We were very keen on containing this sedition, so it ended within hours and the army took control. We were defending ourselves and preventing civil strife and we did not attack anyone. Our arms are pointed at the Israeli enemy and that page has been turned and we must open the pages of rapprochement, construction and resistance. Qassem in the speech was responding to Hariri when he said last weekend: May 7, [2008] was not a glorious day but a disgraceful one. It poisoned life between brothers and when certain parties pointed their guns at fellow Lebanese to accomplish political goals Hariri explained why the people in Beirut did not fight back. In May 2008, people of Beirut chose peaceful resistance to prevent the ghost of the civil war from returning. Since May 2008, honorable people in Beirut and Lebanon made sacrificesto defend Lebanon by rejecting violence and non-state ( Hezbollah) arms and by holding on to democracy to express their opinion. Qassem in his speech avoided talking about Hezbollah attack against the Druze community in May 2008 when Hezbollah reportedly lost more people during its failed effort to occupy Mt Lebanon than in the 2006 war with Israel and the his (Qassems) son was reportedly killed in the Mt Lebanon battles.
SYRIA (Top) 10 May 2012 Now Lebanon Abadi Says Arab Parties Arming Syrian Opposition Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Ghadanfar Roken Abadi accused on Thursday Arab and international parties of arming the Syrian opposition. There are Arab and international parties arming the opposition to overthrow the Syrian regime, Abadi told AlManar television. Abadi commented on the blasts that targeted Damascus earlier on Thursday and said those behind the explosions target the people, not the regime. He added that there were Arab and international parties working day and night to make UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annans peace plan fail. Damascus has accepted Annan's six-point peace plan, which calls for a commitment by all parties to cease all armed violence, under UN supervision. Two powerful blasts in quick succession rocked the Syrian capital on Thursday morning, killing and wounding dozens of people, state television said, blaming the attacks on "terrorists."
10 May 2012 Al Manar Turkish Daily: CIA and Mossad behind Syria Bombings
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10 May 2012
(U) The CIA, the Mossad The Turkish daily Aydinlik said that suicide bombings represent a way of incitement carried out by the CIA and Mossad agents in Iraq, and are applied now in Syria, Lebanese daily Al-Benaa reported. CIA and Mossad agents have carried out - and still - various attacks in several countries including Iraq, Pakistan and Libya, Aydinlik stated in a report published Monday. The report made it clear that the agents have bombed mosques during the occupation of Iraq in order to incite Shiites against Sunnis and vice versa. Those agents have achieved their goal where most of their operations were targeting Shiite and Sunnite mosques. All bombings were declared suicide attacks, while the suicide bombers were announced killed, but the fact is contrary to what was claimed, the daily added. The newspaper pointed out that CIA and Mossad are adopting the same method now in Syria in order to thwart the plan of UN envoy to the country, Kofi Annan. Political analysts stress the suicide attacks level will increase in coming days in Syria, where the Mossad and the U.S. intelligence officials will be undoubtedly responsible, the Turkish report stated. However, suicide bombs will be the most dangerous tools for incitement and chaos in Syria, but, unfortunately, the Turkish borders will be the rear front of those operations for they will host Mossad and CIA perpetrators, or in other words, possible to say, that Turkey is a partner of these planned operations against the administration of President Bashar al-Assad, according to Aydinlik daily.
10 May 2012 Al Masry al Youm Two Bombs Strike Damascus, Many Casualties: State TV Two explosions shook the Syrian capital Damascus on Thursday killing and wounding dozens of people, state media said, in a district that houses a military intelligence complex involved in President Bashar al-Assad's crackdown on a 14-month uprising. Syrian television blamed "terrorists" for the rush-hour blasts on the southern edge of the city and showed dozens of mangled, burnt and smoldering vehicles at the site of one of the blasts, some containing incinerated human remains. Thursday's explosions came a day after a bomb exploded near UN monitors observing implementation of a UN ceasefire plan and less than two weeks after Syrian authorities said a suicide bomber killed at least nine people in Damascus.
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10 May 2012 Opposition to Assad, which began with peaceful protests in March last year, has grown increasingly militarized and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said this week he was worried by an "alarming upsurge" in bombings. Damascus residents said Thursday's explosions happened almost simultaneously in the same area shortly before 8 am (0500 GMT). Video footage sent to media by activists showed two columns of smoke rising into the sky, one of them forming a dark heavy cloud. State television showed a large crater in the road and at least one lorry had been overturned. Walls of buildings on either side of Wide Avenue had collapsed. Shooting could be heard in the background. A man walking around the wreckage pointed at the charred remains of cars. "Is this freedom?" he said. "This is the work of the Saudis," he added, referring to the Gulf state that has advocated arming rebels seeking to oust Assad. The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least one of the explosions was caused by a car bomb and that the target was intelligence buildings. The blasts caused limited damage to the facade of the nearby Palestine Branch Military Intelligence complex, one resident told Reuters. The Palestine Branch is one of the most feared among the more than 20 secret police organizations in the country. The United Nations says Syrian forces have killed more than 9,000 people in their crackdown on the protests. Syrian authorities blame foreign-backed Islamist militants for the violence, saying they have killed 2,600 soldiers and police. A UN-brokered ceasefire was supposed to come into force four weeks ago but, despite an initial drop in the level of violence, the bloodshed has continued. Activists say government forces have shelled several cities, and rebels have maintained attacks on security forces. The Damascus blasts came a day after Ban told the UN General Assembly he was worried by the increase in bomb attacks in Syria. "There is no escaping the reality that we see every day," he said, "Innocent civilians dying, government troops and heavy armor in city streets, growing numbers of arrests and allegations of brutal torture, an alarming upsurge in the use of IEDs and other explosive devices throughout the country."
10 May 2012 Now Lebanon Syrian Opposition Blames Regime For Deadly Blasts Syria's main opposition group on Thursday said the regime in Damascus was behind two deadly blasts that rocked the capital, killing at least 29 people. "The regime is behind this," said Samir Nashar, of the Syrian National Council's executive branch. He said the aim of the blasts was to send a warning to UN observers monitoring a tenuous truce in Syria that they were in danger and to impress upon the international community that the regime was battling "terrorists."
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10 May 2012 "This is the only way for the regime to claim that what is happening in Syria is the work of terrorist gangs and that Al-Qaeda is expanding its presence in Syria," said Nashar, who is based in Turkey. Thursday's blasts took place in front of a nine-story security building, the facade of which was destroyed along with residential buildings nearby, an AFP correspondent at the site said. The attacks came a day after the head of the UN observer mission in Syria escaped unharmed when a roadside bomb exploded as he led a team of UN observers into the southern flashpoint city of Daraa. Damascus has been the target of a number of bombs in past months as President Bashar al-Assad faces a revolt against his regime which his forces are attempting to crush.
10 May 2012 Now Lebanon Zasypkin Wants Syrian Opposition To Cut Relations With Armed Groups Russian Ambassador to Lebanon Alexander Zasypkin called on the Syrian opposition to cut its relation with the armed groups in Syria. [I call] on the Syrian political opposition to cut its relations with armed groups [in Syria] because peaceful popular [calls] should [aim toward] reform, Zasypkin told Al-Manar television. When violence increases, peaceful revolutions transform into civil war, the envoy added. Zasypkin also said that Russia wanted the bloodshed in Syria to stop immediately, adding that Moscow was working with the Syrian regime to help resolve the current Syrian crisis. Russia is Syrias main ally and it has vetoed two UN Security Council resolutions on Syria. Nearly 12,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in Syria since an anti-regime uprising erupted in mid-March last year, according to a rights group. The Syrian regime has repeatedly blamed armed terrorist groups on the unrest.
10 May 2012 All Voices Syrian Opposition Signs Deal With Cuban Counterpart The opposition Syrian National Council has signed a partnership deal with Miami-based opponents of Cuba's communist regime, which both sides said was aimed at fighting dictatorship in their countries. The agreement was signed on Tuesday at a Miami hotel, officials said, noting that it constituted the creation of a united front and an exchange of ideas to boost democracy and respect for individual freedoms in Syria and Cuba. The Assembly of the Cuban Resistance (ARC), and the SNC said in a joint declaration that "the people want the overthrow of the dictatorial regimes of [President Bashar] al-Assad and [Raul] Castro." The statement said the agreement also targeted political, diplomatic, logistical and humanitarian co-operation against the rulers in their countries.
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10 May 2012 "We are fighting for the same ideal, which is none other than the respect of the fundamental rights of the peoples of Syria and Cuba," said Sylvia Iriondo, head of Mothers and Women against Repression in Cuba, an ARC-affiliated group
10 May 2012 Now Lebanon IMF: Syrian Pound, Stock Market Plummeted The value of the Syrian pound is down 45% on the parallel market and the stock market has slumped 40% since an uprising broke out in March 2011, the International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday. "The exchange rate on the black market has depreciated by 45% and 25% on the official market," IMF deputy managing director Nemat Shafik told reporters in Beirut. The unrest has damaged the Syrian economy but little data is available, Shafik added. "For security reasons," the IMF has been unable to send a team to the country. "We know that GDP has fallen but we don't have any numbers because we haven't had people on the ground," she said, adding the last IMF visit took place in January-February 2011. Meanwhile the stock market has plunged by 40%. "The fact that the stock market has fallen by 40 percent is an important indicator of what has happened to businesses," said the IMF official. The strife-torn country's economy, hit by sanctions, is expected to suffer "significant" contraction in 2012, the head of the IMF's Middle East, North Africa, Gulf and Central Asia department, Masood Ahmed, told AFP in May. "The impact that the sanctions will have on oil exports for Syria will be the most immediate," Shafik said, noting that Libya's GDP fell by 60% when exports were halted during its conflict last year. "Oil is a much bigger part of the Libyan economy than it is for Syria," she added. "But still, for Syria it is its major foreign exchange earner and a big revenue earner for the government." The EU has adopted several rounds of sanctions against Syria, expected to tighten further, to pressure President Bashar al-Assad's regime to halt its deadly crackdown on a 14-month uprising. In September, the EU banned Syrian crude oil imports. The EU was the main importer of Syrian oil, at 95% of the total, while the industry provided the embattled state with a third of its foreign exchange earnings.
09 May 2012 Reuters Exclusive: Syria Buys Grain Via Lebanon To Beat Sanctions Syria is importing significant volumes of grain via Lebanon to work around western sanctions and secure vital supplies, European traders told Reuters. The trade is not illegal because food imports are not included in sanctions imposed by the European Union, the United States and other Western countries on President Bashar al-Assad's government over his crackdown on a revolt.
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10 May 2012 But the measures have blocked access to trade finance for Syria in the same way as similar penalties imposed on Iran over its nuclear program. Growing numbers of Syrians are struggling to obtain food, with prices of staples more than doubling after more than a year of conflict that has cost more than 10,000 lives. Some people in the capital Damascus, long spared the violence but now shaken by explosions overnight, say they are stocking up with at least a month's supplies. "Syrian grain imports are being transacted in large volumes using offices in Lebanon to handle the paperwork and act as initial buyer," one trader said. "The deal is then re-booked in Lebanon, and ships are then later diverted to Syrian ports." Some trade sources said hundreds of thousands of tons were involved, while deals in smaller volumes are also being booked via dealers based in Dubai. "Food imports themselves are not stopped by the sanctions, but it is the impact of the banking sanctions which is disrupting imports," a second trader said. Syrian imports booked in the past two months include wheat for food as well as barley and corn for animal feed. The Black Sea region, including Ukraine and Russia, has been the main grain source, dealers said. CLOSE TIES Lebanon has close trade and business ties with neighboring Syria but is politically divided between allies of Damascus and his opponents, who pushed Assad to end nearly three decades of Syrian military presence in Lebanon seven years ago. Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, whose government includes ministers from Hezbollah and pro-Syrian Christian parties, says he is seeking to prevent Syria's crisis from spilling over into his country. Mikati and the central bank have pledged to fully implement international sanctions related to Syria, but his foreign minister last year rejected an Arab League decision to impose sanctions on Damascus, saying Lebanon would not implement them. Some Lebanese trading firms seem ready to take the risk of being cut off from Western finance to do business with Syria, the second trader said. "For the Lebanese, Syria is their traditional market," he added. "Major wheat supplies to Syria seem to be arriving under state-to-state deals." Ukraine said in March it would supply Syria with 300,000 tons of food wheat under the terms of an inter-government agreement. DEADLOCK Dealers said normal direct grain trade with Syria is no longer possible because of sanctions.
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10 May 2012 "I had requests for 10,000 tons of barley and 10,000 tons of corn from Syrian buyers last week, but I cannot deal with Syria as my banks in Germany and Switzerland will not provide finance," a trader said. "Regular grain trading with Syria has stopped. It is another Iran." The Iranian government was compelled to step in and purchase millions of tons of wheat in February and March after western sanctions disrupted normal grain imports. "Whether the Syrians have imported enough for their needs is another question which is difficult to answer, but a large volume has been booked via Lebanon," another dealer said. The United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in March estimated that Syria would need to import about 4 million tons of grain in the July 2011/June 2012 season, up by 1 million tons on the previous year-ago period after a poor harvest in summer 2011. The United Nations bought Turkish sunflower oil for Syria, traders said on Monday. Syria's own 2012 wheat and barley harvest is due to start in May, which will reduce the country's import needs at least temporarily in the coming months, traders said. The FAO has warned that the outlook for Syria's 2012 harvest is uncertain because of the impact of the unrest. Syria's state grains agency issued an international tender on April 30 to buy 150,000 tons of animal feed barley.
REGIONAL EDITORIALS (Top) 09 May 2012 Asharq Al-Awsat Iran Funding Smuggling of Libyan Arms into Sinai By Abdul Sattar Hatita and Yusri Mohamed Egyptian security sources have informed Asharq Al-Awsat that the security apparatus in Cairo believe that Iran may be funding the smuggling of arms belonging to the former Libyan arm into the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt. The source added that the lack of security along the Egypt Israeli border has increased the concerns that a new attack on Israel could be launched from Egypts Sinai. For his part, an Egyptian government official who spoke to Asharq Al-Awsat on the condition of anonymity revealed that Cairo, over the past few weeks, has received some indications from Israel and from western countries, regarding the issue of the Sinai Peninsula. He said the situation in Sinai is under controlthe [Egyptian] Defence Minister has visited, as has the prime ministerand we are in charge of deciding what is to be done there. All high-level meetings between senior officials over the past few days in Cairo have discussed the grave situation in the Sinai Peninsula, which has a strategically important position, being close to the Gaza Strip, Israel, and the Suez Canal. Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr spoke with Director-General of the Multinational Forces and Observers David M. Satterfield on Monday. The Multinational Forces and Observers have been responsible for monitoring the Egypt Israel borders since the signing of the Camp David Accord.
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10 May 2012 The Egyptians are also closely monitoring what is taking place on the other side of the borders, where the Israeli army is preparing to install an early-warning missile system in the city of Eliat, which has been subject to rocket attacks by hard-line groups operating from Egyptian territory. Unidentified armed groups have also been able to thwart Egypts export of gas to Israel, targeting the oil pipelines 14 times over the past months. An Egyptian security source revealed that the Egyptian authorities have observed increased activities by jihadist groups that are moving across Egypts border with the Gaza Strip, as well as the Egyptian border with Israel, via the Sinai Peninsula. The security source claimed that weapons smuggled from Libya, including BM-21 Grad missiles and other missile systems, have increasingly appeared in the hands of extremist groups since the beginning of the year. As for the suspicions that Iran is involved in the smuggling of arms from Libya into the Gaza Strip, the Egyptian security source informed Asharq Al-Awsat that Iran might continue its attempts to incite Egyptian Israeli tensions by utilizing hard-line groups operating from the Sinai Peninsula. The source also revealed that Egyptian authorities had observed Iranian businessmen and nationals, carrying western passports, entering the country following the collapse of the Mubarak regime. It is well known that Iran is facing economic sanctions and pressure by the international community due to its nuclear program, particularly as there are suspicions that Tehran would seek to transform a peaceful nuclear program into a means to produce nuclear arms. Egyptian Iranian relations were severed more than 30 years ago due to their different opinion regarding the issue of war and peace in the region. An official working in the Iranian Interests Office in Cairo said we do not interfere in the affairs of Egypt, and we do not have any links to any groups in Sinai. Egyptian army and police forces have reinforced their presence in the Sinai Peninsula after military personnel were attacked by unknown elements that most likely belong to jihadist groups in Rafah and Sheikh Zuwayd in the Sinai Peninsula. It is well known that the presence of the Egyptian Armed Forces in the Sinai Peninsula is restricted according to the peace treaty with Israel, which was signed following the October 1973 war. Despite the fact that Israel, when necessary, allows the Egyptian Armed Forces to deploy additional forces to the Sinai Peninsula, the Egyptians say that they require more freedom to move and act in Sinai in order to counteract the recent developments. The Egyptian presidential candidates have all pledged to amend the peace treaty with Israel in order to increase Egyptian sovereignty and control over the Sinai Peninsula. The Egyptian authorities have become stricter regarding the movements of Egyptians and foreign nationals in the Sinai Peninsula or between Egypt and the Gaza Strip. Around 150 Arab and foreign businessmen who were on their way to Gaza to take part in an investment forum were prevented from crossing into Gaza via the Rafah Border Crossing on Monday. An Egyptian security official said that the delegation failed to obtain the necessary approvals to cross into the Gaza Strip via the Rafah Border Crossing, and this is why they were prevented from attending the forum. Local officials in Benghazi have claimed to have no knowledge regarding whether or not Iranian businessmen are financing any arms smuggling operations from Libya into Egypt. However, some security sources in Benghazi have revealed that there are links between military battalions with ties to the Muslim Brotherhood which were formed after the collapse of the Gaddafi regime in the Cyrenaica region of eastern Libya, and Islamists in Egypt and the Gaza Strip.
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The CENTCOM
10 May 2012 Security sources in the Sinai Peninsula have claimed that the types of weapons being used by hard-liners come from Libya. The source also revealed that Egyptian authorities had arrested 2 jihadist elements earlier this week for photographing an Egyptian armed forces security station in the al-Ahrash district of Rafah city. The source added that it was clear that the two suspects who had been arrested subscribe to jihadist ideology, and perhaps have links to the recent attacks on the Egyptian armed forces in the Sinai Peninsula.
09 May 2012 Haaretz Iron Dome: Israeli Necessity, American Priority, Strategic Imperative By Howard L. Berman For years, Sderot was a city under siege, the target of non-stop rocket attacks launched by Palestinian terrorists from Gaza. School was halted, synagogues were silenced and in a community defined by courage, the fragments of rockets and mortars the vehicles of attempted murder aimed at innocent Israelis were plain for all to see. Sderot became a living museum of terror. Witnessing the horror, U.S. lawmakers pledged that the joy of Israeli living would return with vigor to Sderot and to other communities facing bombardment at any time of the day or night. Our word was backed by a promise to help fund Iron Dome, a game changing rocket defense system fundamentally altering the strategic calculus in the region. For Israelis, this was a necessity; for Americans, a priority; for everyone, a strategic imperative. Only four years ago, an informal Israeli-Hamas cease-fire collapsed and Palestinian extremists in Gaza began firing a relentless barrage of rockets into Israel aimed at the heart of Israeli population centers. In 2008, more than 3,000 rockets and mortar shells landed on Israeli territory, putting about 15 percent of Israels population at risk. Israel was left with no choice but to defend itself and went to war in Gaza in December 2008. Unavoidably, many died in the ensuing warfare, most of them terrorists. But predictably, many in the international community condemned Israel for its necessary defensive war, including through the issuance of the notoriously biased Goldstone Report. The Obama administration did the right thing by defending Israel at the United Nations, but both Jerusalem and Washington became precariously isolated in the court of public opinion. Fast forward to March 2012. Again a massive barrage of rockets was fired from Gaza at Israeli population centers by Islamic Jihad and its terrorist cohorts. But this time, Israel wasnt defenseless. The development and deployment of three Iron Dome rocket and artillery interceptor batteries -- funded in part by the United States -- had changed the rules of the game. According to the Israel Defense Forces, Iron Dome intercepted a remarkable 90 percent of incoming rockets aimed at population centers. This time there was no need for Israel to enter Gaza defensively. There were no Gazan civilian casualties, no international protests, and no isolation for the U.S. and Israel. Only three Iron Dome batteries are now operational. Israel was lucky this time because it was only attacked on the Gaza front. But Israel is also vulnerable in the north of the country, where just across the border, Hezbollah has its own arsenal of Iranian-provided rockets laying in wait. A two-front rocket war is a distinct possibility in the future. And the collapse of law and order in the Sinai, from which a rocket was recently fired at Eilat, adds an ominous new threat.
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The CENTCOM
10 May 2012 As Michael Oren, Israel's ambassador to the U.S., has written, For America, as well as for Israel, an investment in the Iron Dome system is an investment in diplomacy helping to create the conditions conducive to peace. In the U.S. Congress, where bitter partisanship and political brinksmanship has become all too common, funding for Iron Dome enjoys strong support among Democrats and Republicans. Legislation Ive introduced, the Iron Dome Support Act, is the embodiment of that bipartisanship, backed by congressional members spanning the political spectrum. This is an important week in Congress, demonstrating that the promises made to Sderot and surrounding communities will be kept. On Wednesday, the House of Representatives will vote on the United States-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act, which includes a strong statement of support for Iron Dome. It should pass overwhelmingly. The same day, the House Armed Services Committee in Congress will further approve $680 million dollars funding for additional Iron Dome batteries to protect the entire Jewish homeland. Iron Dome is no guarantee that Palestinian extremists wont pick a fight with Israel. But it makes it much more likely that Israel will only commit its soldiers to combat when it alone chooses. The Iron Dome system enhances stability in Middle East. That's why the United States is behind its further development and strongly supports Israeli efforts to build more.
09 May 2012 Asharq Al-Awsat The Arab Autumn Recanters By Adel Al Toraifi When the popular uprisings first erupted in the Arab world, intellectuals and writers were initially engulfed in a state of shock and amazement; they could never have expected or imagined what happened. However, when it seemed that the moment of change had occurred; those intellectuals changed their view and declared their support for the mass revolutions. Some went even further and began theorizing and participating in the demonstrations although they lacked leadership - and the uprisings, although they did not have any political project other than the overthrow of the regime, and did not provide any values or clear demands for the model that should succeed it. The Egyptian parliamentary Dr. Amr Hamzawy said in an interview with BBC Arabic, a few days before the Egyptian revolution, that what happened in Tunisia was the result of the anger emanating from the Tunisian secular middle class, in solidarity with the army, and ruled out that the Egyptians would revolt against the regime of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, because Egyptian society is different to its Tunisian counterpart. A year before the revolution, the novelist Alaa al-Aswany published a book entitled Why Don't Egyptians Revolt? (2010), arguing that the Egyptian intellectual elite was corrupt and disinclined to take risks, and that it had become settled in this reality for decades, despite the inherent disadvantages and contradictions. After the revolution all this language changed, and the same individuals began to theorize about the revolution that they had previously believed would never occur. Other writers Arab and foreign filled the arena with statements, articles and books claiming to know the realities of the Arab Spring countries, presenting a barrage of justifications and interpretations to explain the current changes, and putting forward their visions for the interim period. However, not one of these writers recognized their mistake, or the failure of their vision with regards to the reality on the ground. Of course, there were a few writers in this newspaper who warned of the dangers of what was happening and urged the general public not to get carried away by the street and the slogans of the angry crowds, but these voices were blocked by a surge of Arab and Western voices blessing what they believed to be an awakening or a resurgence of the people of the region.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
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The CENTCOM
10 May 2012 Interestingly, those intellectuals who welcomed, and in some cases even adopted, these uprisings have now begun to retract their positions, with some choosing to criticize and cast doubt over the future of these revolutions. Yet few of them have acknowledged the failure in their vision, or are deliberately forgetting their role in promoting the sentiments of the rebelling street. Today, some are writing explicitly or indirectly about their fears regarding the results of the ongoing transformations. The main reason for this is that the results of the democratic elections that they preached for have paved the way for religious parties and forces that are far from the values of democracy, civility and human rights, thus reflecting the fickle attitude of the intellectual elite. It is possible to look back on the statements and comments that are now skeptical of the results of the Arab Spring, and their impact on the future of freedoms and rights in those countries. The advocates of civil society and human rights have become aware that the principles and dreams that they clung to have turned into a nightmare because of the rise of radical Islamists to power. This scene is not new; advocates of independence in the 1940s preached the dream of the nation state, then soon many of them fled or were held under house arrest, not to mention the assassinations and plots against them. Also, advocates of nationalism and later Baathist in the 1960s and 1970s turned their emerging countries into totalitarian regimes, as yesterdays comrades sacrificed each other by marginalizing institutions and tampering with constitutions. Even the Islamists have battled amongst themselves, denouncing each other as infidels with regards to matters of the emirate, earthly spoils, and the experiences of Iran, Algeria, Sudan and Yemen, which continue to be pertinent today. Today, the advocates of civil society, calling themselves names such as human rights activists or reformists, are facing the same fate. They offer a revolutionary or coup-like discourse that justifies civil disobedience and inciting violent protests, even jeopardizing the interests of the country and its people; even after the ballot boxes said what they said, some are still trying to change the reality by force, under the pretext of peaceful demonstrations. Here we must return to a bit of history. Twenty years ago, the liberal left (which included a mix of leftists and Islamist converts) in the Arab world adopted the civil society discourse in a dogmatic manner, preaching absolute slogans of freedom, democracy and human rights, and in doing so promoting a new side to the equation of opposition and power. Over time, this trend became a prisoner of its idealist vision, separate from reality, and when I say idealist I mean it was not connected to the social and political reality of the countries that it was being promoted in. In fact, it seemed closer to an imported discourse although there is nothing wrong with that than an original one. Consider for example the slogans of the Tahrir Square youths and the intellectuals participating in their revolution, and you would find that they are close to the slogans of the Occupy Wall Street movement in New York, or the protests in Londons financial district, rather than resonating with Cairos neighborhoods of Abbasiya or Imbaba. Perhaps this explains how the Tahrir Square youth lost out with their Western slogans, and how others such as the Salafi al-Noor party won, because the latter was closer to the social and religious reality. Therefore it is not out of the question that these Tahrir Square youth will be subject to marginalization and exclusion in the coming stage, because they lack an awareness or expertise in administering the state and its economy. Those who call for demonstrations every day in order to achieve the demands of the revolution are deluding themselves, and they appear in the eyes of many of their fellow citizens as people who are not concerned about the daily economic situation of millions of people. Faced with this scene, we can record two basic observations about this phenomenon of recanting [support for the Arab Spring]: the first observation is that these intellectuals and writers have gone through what some sociopolitical scientists call revolutionary romanticism, a state of emotional glorification of a radical transformation, and then when signs of failure and disarray appear, these same people move into a state of denial, accusing remnants of the former regime of trying to sabotage the revolution. However, when other revolutionary forces are able to
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
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The CENTCOM
10 May 2012 make gains or monopolize power, the same people began to justify or repudiate the failure of the revolution, under the pretext that it had been hijacked by radical forces and currents, whether leftist or Islamic. The second observation about this phenomenon is that the political and cultural elite at the beginning of the revolution opted to downplay the value of the human and material losses resulting from the chaos of change, saying that a revolution necessitates sacrifice, and it will be successful in the end no matter how long the period of change, or chaos. However, after a short period of time, this same elite found itself lamenting these losses, or even washing its hands of them, whenever it felt that the results were not in its favor, and then justified its recanting of support of the revolution under the pretext that the revolution had begun to affect innocent people, or that it had turned towards violence and revenge, even amongst its original participants. This is perhaps most evident in the stance of the revolutionaries towards the emergency laws, or the use of excessive force against protests or instances of civil disobedience by those individuals or parties that have reached power. The purpose here is not to criticize the revolution or to rebuke the revolutionaries, but rather it is a call to correct its path. The regimes of Ben Ali and Mubarak were corrupt and full of negative aspects, but there were also positive aspects, good projects, and functioning institutions, albeit weak ones. Because of this it was necessary following the departure of the president for the country to move gradually towards a democratic transition without disrupting the economic wheel or damaging state institutions and their prestige. Trying to perform a radical change in societies that are not yet capable of this will lead to disaster. The Egyptian case is clear, the suspension of work on the constitution has led the revolutionary forces to conflict, and this comes at the expense of the economic and security stability of the citizens. What could a Swiss or Scandinavian constitution do in a failed state like Somalia or Afghanistan? What would change if the US legal system was imposed upon a poor and destitute country such as Yemen or Sudan? Nothing! The citizen is the one who gives laws and regulations their value, not vice versa. It may be possible to overthrow the president and his men and call this a revolution, it may be possible to change the constitution and the regulations, but you cannot change peoples lives for the better if it is at the expense of their security and livelihoods. Such words were written at the beginning of the uprisings, but few paid any attention to this.
10 May 2012 Al Masry al Youm Necrophilia law: How Western Media Savors Islam Phobia Sam Carlshamre Islamists and necrophilia. If you enlarge these words in a headline, and type them in a bold font, you would be boosting your Western readers Islam phobia and your story would go viral. That must be what reporters in Daily Mail and The Huffington Post, among others, were thinking when they put up a recent "news" story on an alleged parliamentary bill allowing necrophilia and child marriage in Egypt. On the Huffington Post, the headline read, Farewell intercourse law: Egyptian Parliament reportedly drafts measure to allow husbands to have sex with dead wives. The headline is of course appetizing for prejudiced Western readers, since a story on how Egypts Islamists advocated that a man could have sex with his deceased wife up to six hours after her death serves to reinforce Western prejudice and Islam phobia. Hundreds of comments were posted, decrying how perverted Egyptians are. And the story was shared thousands of times through Twitter, Facebook and blogs. But the story was a hoax.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
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The CENTCOM
10 May 2012 There was never any bill in the Egyptian Parliament that authorized necrophilia, nor was the question ever raised. Instead the whole story has turned out to be based on a bizarre chain of rumors, with journalists seeing what they want to see and hearing what they want to hear, without any fact checking. The story came to life two weeks ago when the controversial columnist Amr Abdel Sami wrote a column addressing necrophilia in the Egyptian state-owned newspaper, Al-Ahram. In the article, he warned of the Islamization of Egyptian society, specifically what he considered an alarming Salafi success in the parliamentary elections. To heighten the acuteness of his argument, he gave some examples of what such a development might lead to. Among several things, he alluded to a statement from the controversial Moroccan Sheikh Zamzami Abdul Bari, in which the sheikh proposed that it would be halal for a man to have intercourse with his wife after death. It should be noted that Zamzami is infamous for his startling fatwas, having earlier embraced consumption of alcohol for pregnant women, for example. Abdel Sami proceeded to state that he was afraid that a proposal like this could be presented in Egypt. He also mentioned that the president of the National Council of Women had sent a letter to the (now dissolved) Constituent Assembly, addressing the importance of protecting women's rights in the new constitution. The day after, Tuesday, the well-known TV host Jaber al-Qarmouty discussed the column in his TV show on the private satellite channel ONTV. After reading the passage concerning necrophilia aloud several times, he also wondered whether the proposal could be introduced as a bill in the Islamist-controlled Egyptian Parliament. Without having any further proof other than the column itself, he asked rhetorically whether Abdel Sami had some access to secret discussions concerning the proposal, as basis for his speculation about the alleged necrophilia bill. Qarmoutys own assumption on Abdel Samis access to sources only gave the false story more credibility. The day after, the reputable Saudi-owned news channel Al-Arabiya brought up the matter on their English website. By now, all the little fallacies had been synthesized, and the last twist added to articulate yet another bold headline: Egyptian women urged parliamentarians to reject the draft laws that allow child marriage and sex after death. What is puzzling about the spread of this hoax story is that it could not have been that difficult for journalists to fact check it. When we contacted Ziad Bahaa Eddin, MP for the Egyptian Social Democratic Party, he replied within an hour, stating that no such ludicrous bill had ever been discussed or brought up in Parliament. But Al-Arabiya has a large audience and many took note of the astounding news, which consequently spread around the globe. Soon, the same fallacious story was published by news outlets in the West, such as the Daily Mail, the Huffington Post and the influential American feminist e-zine, Jezebel. When we got in contact with Swedens biggest morning newspaper, Dagens Nyheter, which had also published the necrophilia rumor, they were quick to defend their publication. They argued that they had trusted the source of the story in earlier occasions and that they did not see why they would be dishonest in this case. Only after being presented with extensive proof that the news was fabricated did they remove the article, and admitted that the whole story was quite embarrassing. No such apology has been published by the Daily Mail, the Huffington Post or Jezebel, and none of them has removed their articles to this day. Their adjustments amount to insignificant disclaimers on how the story provoked widespread skepticism. The fact remains, however, that around the world, people are left with the idea that crazy Egyptian Islamists are advocating necrophilia as characteristic of their faith. Judging by the contemporary attitudes towards Muslims in the Western world, it is not hard to guess which narrative will linger in the public consciousness. Regardless of the fallacy of the necrophilia story, it is likely to stick in many Western minds.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
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The CENTCOM
10 May 2012 It is hard to avoid the conclusion that the reason this story was allowed to go viral without raising any skepticism on the part of the publications that spread it was simply because it reinforced Islam phobia among prejudiced Western journalists and their readers.
10 May 2012 Now Lebanon Israels Unity Deal and Lebanon Tony Badran
(U) Benjamin Netanyahu and Kadima chairman Shaul Mofaz struck a unity deal that could influence Israels willingness to strike Iran, thus involving Hezbollah. (AFP photo) The surprise unity deal struck between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Kadima chairman Shaul Mofaz has spurred a flurry of speculation, including in the Arab media, about its ultimate significance. Was Netanyahus move driven entirely by domestic politics? Or does it indicate that an Israeli strike on Iran might be imminent? If so, how would that impact Lebanon? It would be hasty to draw conclusions about an impending Israeli attack against Tehran from Netanyahus political maneuver. However, it is worth noting that the expanded coalition does strengthen the Israeli Prime Ministers position externally, affording him more leeway to better deal with the fallout of a strike, should it actually come to pass. As cabinet minister Gilad Erdan put it: When a decision is taken to attack or not, it is better to have a broad political front that unites the public." Therefore, as some have noted, the deal may have some impact on Israels security policy. Since Iran has placed itself on the border with Israel through Hezbollah, Lebanon features prominently in this policy. Two recent interviews by high-ranking Israeli military officers provide a good exposition of Israels military strategy in any future engagement in Lebanon. Last Sunday, an unnamed senior officer in Israels Northern Command warned that any retaliation by Hezbollah against Israel for a possible strike on Iran would result in massive devastation for Lebanon. In these villages where Hezbollah has infrastructure, I will guess that civilians will not have houses to come back to after the war, he said. The day after [we attack] the village will be something that it will take 10 years to rebuild.
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The CENTCOM
10 May 2012 Some might read this as a typical exercise in psychological warfare. However, the officers comment is in fact a reiteration of the so-called Dahiyeh Doctrine, coined by Major General Gadi Eizenkot, former commander of the IDFs Northern Command, in 2008. The doctrine is premised on applying disproportionate force against any village from which Israel is fired upon. Eizenkots successor, Major General Yair Golan, also gave an extensive interview a month ago in which he further elaborated the IDFs military strategy. Golan observed that although asymmetrical warfare is viewed as a disadvantage for organized states, he holds the opposite to be true. There is total asymmetry between us and Hezbollah, and our job is to demonstrate to Hezbollah our might in action in the most muscular way possible. This doctrine signals a fundamental departure from the rules of engagement that Israel had followed in the decade prior to the 2006 war, especially since the April Understanding of 1996. In his book, Hezbollahs second in command, Naim Qassem, described the April Understanding as having been tailored to the Resistances demands. The agreement prohibited targeting civilian populated areas, but as Qassem explained, Hezbollah had its own reading of the clause forbidding the use of these areas as launching grounds for attacks. While the group didnt have to fire from within villages, it could still retreat back into their safety, and also use them as logistical centers. Especially following the 2006 war, turning the majority of the villages of South Lebanon into veritable clandestine military bases became an essential element of Hezbollahs revamped infrastructure. Eizenkots doctrine addressed precisely this phenomenon. These are not civilian villages, they are military bases, he said in 2008. The senior officers comments last Sunday reaffirmed this doctrine. Along with this reassertion, the officer presented Hezbollah with a choice: They will have to think about whether they want it or not. I hope that Iran will not push them into a war that Iran will not pay the price for but that Lebanon will. The aim behind this ominous formulation was to highlight the dilemma of Hezbollahs chief, Hassan Nasrallah: balancing the obligation to obey Irans orders with the devastation that will befall his followers and Lebanon more broadly. With Syria now in open rebellion against the Assad regime, the groups dilemma has only deepened. One could easily detect it in Nasrallahs recent interview with Julian Assange, where he made a point of referring to the 1996 April Understanding, whose framework he doubtless would wish still existed today. Thats hardly the only thing Nasrallah cannot bring back. His once secure strategic depth in Syria is no longer reliable. Although he and his Iranian patrons have been doing their best over the last 14 months to help Assad put down the revolt against his rule, they have not been successful. Making matters worse for Nasrallah, the decision to involve Hezbollah in a retaliatory strike against Israel is not his to make. Indeed, Yahya Rahim Safavi, military adviser to Irans Supreme Guide, Ali Khamenei, already declared last November that Tehrans retaliation will come from Lebanon. All Nasrallah could do at the time was to call on his followers to jump with him into the fiery abyss. Therefore, the real question, as that senior Israeli officer noted, is whether Khamenei will deem it worthwhile to ultimately issue that order to Nasrallah. This is especially so in light of the additional constraints that the deteriorating situation in Syria will impose on Hezbollah in a subsequent war with Israel. In the end, its worth noting that Netanyahu has not presided over a war during his tenure. However, should he finally decide to launch an attack, the broad-based coalition he now has securedwith three former IDF chiefs of staff in his cabinetwill be a valuable asset reflecting the wide support his government enjoys.
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10 May 2012 In sharp contrast, Nasrallahs margin is shrinking, and his position, both domestically and regionally, is increasingly strained.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO

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09 May 2012 Ahram Online SCAF Backs Embattled Electoral Commission

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10 May 2012 Now Lebanon Houri Retorts To Qassems Criticism Of Hariri

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