Wednesday, December 17, 2014
Anne Bayefsky: UN: Turning back the clock to pre-1948 is the real endgame
Incitement against the Jewish state is directly related to the stabbings, raping and killing of Jews inside and outside of Israel. But doing something to stop it requires confronting a very troubling fact: the global epicenter for incitement is the “human rights” leviathan, the United Nations.Eugene Kontorovich: Five puzzles about occupation and settlements: questions for Geneva
From November 24, 2014 until December 5, 2014, UN human rights headquarters in Geneva mounted a public exhibit that was pure incitement. UN-driven antisemitism that takes the form of seeking to demonize, disable and ultimately destroy the Jewish state.
The exhibit was entitled: “La Nakba: Exode et Expulsion des Palestiniens en 1948” – or “The Nakba: Exodus and Expulsion of the Palestinians in 1948.” The occasion was the annual UN Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. Solidarity Day marks the adoption by the General Assembly on November 29, 1947 of the resolution that approved the partitioning of Palestine into an Arab and a Jewish state.
The partition resolution was rejected by Arab states and celebrated by the Jewish people. Thus the Arab war to deny Israel’s right to exist began.
But in 2014, the UN overtly jettisoned the usual diplomatic lie that the 1967 occupation is the root cause of the Arab-Israeli conflict. The exhibit focused on the alleged crime of creating a Jewish state in 1948 and openly justified the rejection of the partition resolution.
Today, Switzerland convened a conference of State Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention, to discuss the law of occupation as it pertains to Israel. There have been just a couple of previous occasions when Geneva convened the signatories of its eponymous treaty, and every single one has been about Israel. (Jerusalem, Washington, Ottawa, and Canberra have announced they will snub the confab.)
Yet there is nothing wrong with an international conference to discuss the Fourth Geneva Convention, and to attempt to better understand its requirements as they apply in particular situations. Art. 49(6)’s prohibition of “deportation and transfer” into occupied territory could certainly do with elucidation. (The “deport or transfer” ban is commonly referred to as “settlement building.”)
Indeed, an examination of movement into occupied territory in Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Western Sahara, and Cyprus would be both timely and instructive. Needless to say, this is not what the state parties will be discussing. They are, sadly, not interested in the Geneva Conventions, but only their possible use against Israel. But if the State Parties were to want an interesting agenda, here are some questions they might ask.
1. The first relates to the ICRC’s own definition of occupation (a precondition to the applicability of the “deport or transfer” norm). The state parties apparently regard Israel as occupying Gaza, to say nothing of all of the West Bank, despite the removal of Israeli troops from those areas and the existence of an independent Palestinian administration there. However, occupation in all other contexts requires the occupying power to displace and actually function as the governing authority, conditions that do not apply in Gaza and large parts of the West Bank (Area A).
Indeed, an ICRC manual excludes areas like Gaza:
Occupation ceases when the occupying forces are driven out of or evacuate the territory. (emphasis in the original)
How Israel’s occupation squares with the ICRC’s own definition of the term would be a useful subject for the state parties.
Netanyahu: Palestinians want to take us to the ICC? That's Chutzpah
The prime minister then went on to criticize the Palestinian Authority for threatening to make unilateral diplomatic moves against Israel in various international bodies.Canada, Australia boycott ‘anti-Israel’ Geneva conference
"As we speak here, the Palestinian Authority intends to go to the International Criminal Court (ICC) and blame us for war crimes. What Chutzpah!" Netanyahu said.
"The Palestinian Authority, which praises low-life terrorist murderers, accuses the IDF, the most moral army in the world, of war crimes," he added.
Netanyahu told the soldiers that they had nothing to worry about and that Israel would not let them succeed.
Last week, Israel voiced strong opposition to the Swiss government’s decision to convene the conference, saying the move brought into question Bern’s historic neutrality.Legal impact of Geneva panel on settlements, ICC likely only symbolic
Baird said that the conference risked undermining the credibility of the Geneva conventions.
“Canada is deeply disappointed by the convening of this one-sided and politicized conference, which serves only to single out one country, Israel, for criticism. Canada has complete faith in the strength of the rule of law in Israel, and we believe the Israelis are capable of investigating matters surrounding the events that took place in Gaza in the summer of 2014.”
“Such a misguided approach will neither serve the cause of peace nor bring the parties closer to a negotiated settlement.”
Australia’s ambassador to Israel Dave Sharma tweeted Tuesday night that his country would also stay away from the conference.
Senior Israeli officials told the Haaretz daily last week that they expected the US to boycott the summit.
Former IDF international law division head Col. (res.) Liron Libman said that Switzerland itself has dampened expectations and media coverage of the conference, having been pushed into holding it, despite not really wanting to.Netanyahu: We expect the EU to put Hamas back on the terror blacklist immediately
Libman stated that legally speaking, Palestine joining the convention mostly creates obligations on the Palestinians more than it empowers them.
The former top IDF officer added that in any event, “the vast majority of the world already says Israel is the occupying power in the West Bank and is under the obligations of the Fourth Geneva Convention,” with many international lawyers even still viewing Gaza as occupied after Israel fully withdrew in 2005.
In other words, the legal situation, from critics’ perspectives, can’t get much worse on the settlements issue, absent Palestine fully joining the Rome Statute and actually filing complaints with the ICC, or UN Security Council full recognition, neither of which is directly connected to the conference.
Netanyahu responded to the decision by saying that Israel was “not satisfied” with the explanations of the EU that Hamas's removal is only a technical matter.JCPA: Is the Arab World Turning Its Back on the Palestinians?
According to the “technical issue” argument, Hamas was removed from the list because the evidence used to place the organization on the list did not meet European standards. Two central EU countries have already been working on a dossier providing the court with the evidence that will satisfy it.
“The burden of proof is on the EU and we expect them to immediately return Hamas to the list where everyone realizes they should be,” Netanyahu said. “Hamas is a murderous terrorist organization whose charter says that its aim is to destroy Israel. We will continue to fight it with determination and strength so that it will never realize its aims. "
Other MKs and ministers were more critical in their reactions to the EU decision.
Economy Minister Naftali Bennett said that if anyone thinks that sacrificing Israel can save Europe, they are mistaken.
"The corrupt law of the EU court gives license for the shedding of Jewish blood everywhere and demonstrates the loss of a moral path," he said.
"Israel is strong and can defend itself from its enemies, but Europe itself will be the one to suffer from the strengthening of terrorist organizations," he added.
American efforts to avoid vetoing a UN Security Council resolution on a Palestinian state, and earlier expressions of displeasure by the U.S. Administration over Israel’s settlements may be based on the assumption that the “Palestinian problem” was dear to every Muslim and Arab around the globe. It was and is believed by some that the way to win over Muslim sympathy and gratitude to the United States was through championing the Palestinian cause and statehood.2014 at the UN: 21 resolutions against Israel, 4 on rest of the world
This may have been true when President Barack Obama began his tenure in office six years ago. Back then, the Palestinian problem was dear to many Arabs, but the unbridgeable rift between Hamas and Fatah had already triggered a process of distancing many Arabs from the “Palestinian problem.” The issue lost its centrality in Arab public awareness which had already begun to look inward at their own domestic hardships rather than at the Palestinian cause. It was the self-immolation of a peddler in Tunisia that ignited the “Arab Spring” and not “save Palestine” or “rescue al-Aqsa,” and certainly not “stop the settlements.”
In countries now suffering from the consequences of the “Arab Spring” (that became the “Arab Storm”) not only has the Palestinian problem completely lost the attention of the Arab peoples, but many Arabs and their governments display outright animosity toward the Palestinians.
Jerusalem (A/RES/69/24)Kerry says US has made 'no determinations' on Palestinian statehood as UN bid on tap
Vote: 144 Yes, 6 No, 10 Abstain
Extract: “Reiterates its determination that any actions taken by Israel, the Occupying Power, to impose its laws, jurisdiction and administration on the Holy City of Jerusalem are illegal and therefore null and void and have no validity whatsoever, and calls upon Israel to immediately cease all such illegal and unilateral measures…”
The Syrian Golan (A/RES/69/25)
Vote: 99 Yes, 6 No, 57 Abstain
Extract: “Determines once more that the continued occupation of the Syrian Golan and its de facto annexation constitute a stumbling block in the way of achieving a just, comprehensive and lasting peace in the region…”
Assistance to the Palestinian people
Extract: “Gravely concerned at the difficult living conditions and humanitarian situation affecting the Palestinian people, in particular women and children, throughout the occupied Palestinian territory… ”
US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday the United States had made "no determinations" about any possible UN Security Council resolutions to end the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.Report: U.S. Will Veto Palestinian Resolution for U.N.-Imposed Peace Plan
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that he had sought reassurances from Kerry that Washington would block separate efforts by Palestinians and Europeans to set a time frame for a Palestinian statehood.
After meeting Netanyahu in Rome, Kerry held talks with European counterparts from France, Britain and Germany in Paris, and later discussed the moves with Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat and officials from the Arab League in London.
A senior State Department official said the London meetings "agreed to continue their consultations going forward."
The U.S. will use its veto power at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to block an upcoming Palestinian resolution that asks the UNSC to outline the territorial terms of a peace deal with Israel, Yedioth Ahronoth reported Tuesday, citing Palestinian sources familiar with the content of a meeting between Kerry and chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat.Kerry Recycles Discredited Claim That West Bank Mosque Fire Was ‘Indefensible Price Tag Attack’
But when he spoke to reporters on Tuesday in London, the site of his meeting with Erekat, Kerry stopped short of assuring the U.S. veto.
Kerry was speaking in London, where he told journalists about his efforts to “help solve the challenges of the Middle East and of other places of extremism and of terrorist activity, because we know too well that while it’s difficult work, it’s also the only course that has any possibility of taking us towards stability, towards prosperity, towards a future.”Merged French-Palestinian UN resolution said to strike mention of Jewish state
Addressing the Israeli-Palestinian dimension of the conflict, Kerry stated that the “ongoing unrest of the last weeks has brought new tensions to all sides…Earlier this month, two Israelis were stabbed as they shopped for groceries in the West Bank. Two more were axed to death while praying. And we were all devastated and shocked by the acid attack against an Israeli family last week. Palestinians have mourned the death of a Palestinian official, Ziad Abu Ein, and they have suffered indefensible price tag attacks, so-called price tag attacks, including the recent burning of a mosque near Ramallah.”
Critical scrutiny of his remarks is likely to focus on his incorrect statement that two, rather than five, people were murdered during the axe attack at a Jerusalem synagogue last month, as well as his claims about the burning of the mosque. As media monitoring group CAMERA has pointed out, several media outlets have already corrected initial reports that arson was behind the mosque fire.
A draft resolution on Palestinian statehood and the ending of Israeli control of the West Bank will be submitted to the UN Security Council Wednesday, after the Palestinians agreed with France on a merged text that removes recognition of Israel as a Jewish state, Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki said.Writing a Better UN Resolution Won’t Work
Meanwhile, the US State Department said on Tuesday it did not automatically consider a UN Security Council proposal to be a unilateral measure, and said it was not true that the US vetoed all Security Council resolutions related to Israel.
Amid a lack of clarity over the final text to be submitted on behalf of the Palestinians, the US has not stated definitively whether it will use its veto.
“The draft that will be presented today (Wednesday) is the French draft based on Palestinian observations and decisions,” Maliki told AFP. “It will be presented to the Security Council as a blueprint, and could be put to a vote 24 hours after that,” he added.
A Security Council resolution that will have the effect of binding international law will not merely further stiffen the resistance of either Hamas or Abbas’s Fatah to making the sort of concessions that are required for peace; it will embolden them never to do so. Indeed, that is why the wording of the final text doesn’t matter. So long as it contains language that demands that Israel withdraw from all of the land, there will be nothing to negotiate about. The Palestinians will simply demand everything and unless it is prepared to repeat the experiment of the Gaza withdrawal in the West Bank, Israel must say no and face mounting international isolation.UN Mideast envoy: One-state reality is on the parties' doorstep if deadlock not broken
This may please some Americans, including the Obama foreign-policy team, which has always sought to pressure the Israelis into wholesale withdrawals regardless of the consequences for its security or its rights to what is disputed territory. But such a resolution is a guarantee that not only is peace impossible but that the process the U.S. has worked so hard to revive will be dead as well.
That is why the Obama administration should cease wasting time negotiating with the French over the language of the resolution and instead concentrate on ensuring that it does not get the nine voters in the Council that would force a vote. If it does come to a vote, the U.S. must, regardless of President Obama’s antipathy for Netanyahu, veto it. The alternative is the end of any hope for peace as well as of any U.S. influence over events.
A two-state solution may soon be impossible to achieve if the peace process is not resumed, UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process Robert Serry warned on Monday.Oslo Promises That Never Were
“I am deeply concerned that a one-state reality is on the parties’ doorstep if they fail to address the present deadlock,” Serry told the UN Security Council on Monday.
“I feel 2014 changed the course of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and that the future is more uncertain than ever,” Serry said. The international community, he said, must play a role in ending “the deadly diplomatic vacuum” and restarting the peace process. The number of European parliaments that have held non-binding votes to recognize Palestine as a state “serve to highlight growing impatience at the continued lack of real progress,” Serry said.
Vincent Fean, Britiani's consul-general in Jerusalem from 2010 to 2014, writes in The New York Times this week ("Signs of recognition"): "At Oslo, the Palestinians were promised statehood."EU backs recognition of Palestinian state ‘in principle’
In fact, this is sheer imagination on the part of the former British diplomat. In no way did the Oslo Accords promise Palestinian statehood. The Sept. 13, 1993 "Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements" does not mention the word "statehood." Article I states:
"The aim of the Israel-Palestinian negotiations within the current Middle East peace process is, among other things, to establish a Palestinian interim Self-Government Authority, the elected Council (the "Council"), for the Palestinian people in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, for a transitional period not exceeding five years, leading to a permanent settlement based on Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338."
Likewise, the Sept. 28, 1995 "Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip" also does not mention -- never mind "promise" -- Palestinian statehood.
CAMERA has requested a correction. Stay tuned for an update.
The European Parliament overwhelmingly backed the recognition of a Palestinian state “in principle” on Wednesday, following a series of votes on the issue in EU nations.Danish Ambassador Promotes Anti-Israel Discrimination
The motion was a watered-down version of an original resolution which had urged EU member states to recognize a Palestinian state unconditionally.
The resolution accepts “in principle recognition of Palestinian statehood and the two state solution, and believes these should go hand in hand with the development of peace talks, which should be advanced.”
Lawmakers approved the motion by 498 votes to 88 with 111 abstentions.
The resolution also urged Fatah and Hamas “to end internal divisions” and highlighted “the importance of consolidating the authority of the Palestinian consensus government.”
The issue of the European attitude toward the Israeli "settlements" shows that even that statement is not true. According to recent EU rules, none of their money should go to ventures within the Israeli "settlements", because they are considered by the EU to be in “occupied territories.” They are actually in “disputed territories.” The EU claims that since it does not recognize Israel’s sovereignty over the territories, it has an obligation to prevent its money reaching them.4 December HJS Event: 'Perpetuating Statelessness? UNRWA, Its Activities and Funding’
Eugene Kontorovich has pointed out, however, that despite these guidelines, “the EU still knowingly and purposefully provides substantial direct financial assistance to settlements in occupied territory – in Turkish-occupied Northern Cyprus, that is. So the EU funds the occupation of an EU member state. Turkey’s invasion and occupation of Cyprus in 1974 was condemned by the UN Security Council, and the EU’s official policy is that the Turkish occupation is illegitimate, and Turkey must completely withdraw. The EU does not recognize the Turkish government in Northern Cyprus. Nonetheless, the EU maintains an entire separate program to direct funds to Northern Cyprus.”
It is a clear example of how the EU discriminates against Israel by demanding higher standards from Israel than it demands from itself. The Danish ambassador’s statements serve as a good example of where Ugly Europe (the UE) and the European Union (the EU) overlap. How the Danes greatly embellish their wartime past by not mentioning the Danish mass murders of Jews in Eastern Europe is yet another story.
On the 4th December, The Henry Jackson Society hosted an event with Bassem Eid, Director of the Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group; Dr. Arnon Groiss, Deputy Director of IBA’s Arabic Radio and experienced translator of Arabic schoolbooks; and David Bedein, Director of the Center for Near East Policy Research and Founder of The Israel Resource News Agency. The three speakers brought their personal perspectives to the discussion and called for auditing of the funds allocated to UNRWA, making sure that the UNRWA curriculum stops incorporating principles of martyrdom and “right to return” through use of arms, and dismissing those UNRWA officials who have clear and proven links to Hamas.
Israeli AG: ‘Free Speech’ Protects Haaretz Journalist Over IAF ‘Death Squadron’ Slur
Israeli Attorney-General Yehuda Weinstein on Tuesday threw out a complaint of incitement against Haaretz columnist Gideon Levy, after he slammed IAF pilots for hitting Palestinian terrorists and non-combatants during Operation Protective Edge in Gaza this summer, Israel’s NRG News said.Hamas Chief Nixes Prisoner Swap for Remains of IDF Soldiers Killed During Operation Protective Edge
In July, the left-of-center Ometz Lesarev movement turned to Weinstein to check if Levy could be prosecuted for incitement to refuse military orders in the article, entitled “Lowest deeds from loftiest heights,” in which he claimed, “Israel’s ‘heroic’ pilots push buttons and joysticks, battling the weakest and most helpless of people.”
Levy asked rhetorically: “Do they understand what they are inflicting? Since, after all, it’s harder to wash out of their brains the hate and fear, and more difficult for them to sell all of Gaza as being full of animals. Yet they automatically, blood-chillingly, blindly obey as they press the right button … Is this the way? There is no one who will rescue their dignity? Not one who will refuse to take part in this death squadron?”
The column, which outraged even hardened leftists, came as Hamas and other terror groups fired hundreds of rockets at Israel.
Weinstein, in his response to the group, said, essentially, that a freedom of speech issue was at stake, and not one of incitement. (h/t
Despite the August 26 ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the terrorist group is in no hurry to execute a prisoner exchange deal in order to return the bodies of two Israeli soldiers killed and abducted during this summer’s Operation Protective Edge, Israel’s Ch. 2 News said Tuesday.Under Abbas, majority say they cannot speak freely
Hamas deputy political chief Moussa Abu Marzouk said that a deal could only be carried out after a comprehensive ceasefire agreement between the sides was reached, and that the group will not consider any deal with Israel if its demands are not met soon.
In late September, a Hamas spokesman in Gaza said the group was close to a deal with Israel to release Palestinian detainees, possibly in return for the remains of IDF St.-Sgt. Oren Shaul and 2nd Lt. Hadar Goldin, who were declared killed in action during Operation Protective Edge.
Two-thirds of Palestinians say they are afraid to criticize Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, according to a poll, and some recent actions by Abbas only seem to confirm claims that dissent comes at a price.Hamas Calls Security Cooperation with Israel “Treason”
Last month, Abbas outlawed the West Bank's largest labor union and briefly jailed its two leaders for organizing strikes. Security agents routinely monitor social media and send threats or complaints to some of those criticizing Abbas. Meanwhile, the Palestinian leader's Fatah movement continues to purge supporters of an exiled rival.
Critics say that after a decade in power, Abbas is overseeing a largely authoritarian system with shrinking room for dissent -- a claim denied by Abbas supporters, who say Palestinians enjoy more political freedoms than most in the Arab world.
Complaints of heavy-handedness come at a time of paralysis on all fronts. Abbas' strategy of setting up a Palestinian state through negotiations with Israel has hit a dead end, while the bitter rivalry between Fatah and the Islamic terrorist group Hamas continues to fester.
With his approval rate down to 35 percent, Abbas lashes out against those he views as a political threat, such as former aide Mohammed Dahlan, now based in the United Arab Emirates, and ex-Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.
The Palestinian Authority decided on Sunday to continue its security cooperation with Israel, inflaming tensions between Fatah and its rivals Hamas and Islamic Jihad, both of which demand a stop to the coordination.MEMRI: Hamas Senior Officials: We Will Not Recognize Zionist Entity Or Be Satisfied With A Palestinian State Within 1967 Borders; We Thank Iran For Supplying Us With Weapons, Missiles
The decision was made despite calls to halt security ties with Israel following the death of Palestinian official Ziad Abu Ein last week. Abu Ein collapsed and died of a heart attack following a confrontation with Israeli forces in the West Bank.
Following this decision, Hamas accused the Palestinian Authority of being unable to lead the Palestinian people, calling the continued coordination with Israel “treason in the blood of the martyrs.” Hamas official Mohammed Faraj al-Ghul said that this decision only encourages killing of more Palestinians by Israel, as recently happened in the case of Ziad Abu Ein (Arabic link).
On December 12-14, 2014, Hamas celebrated its 27th anniversary with numerous marches and rallies throughout the Gaza Strip, attended by tens of thousands of people. The central rally in the north of the Strip was reportedly attended by nearly 100,000. The anniversary celebrations also included a large military parade by Hamas' military wing, the 'Izz Al-Din Al-Qassam Brigades.Hamas Official Mahmoud Al-Zahhar: Arafat Provided Us with Weapons to Carry Out Attacks
Senior Hamas officials who spoke at the marches and rallies stressed that the movement would never recognize the Zionist entity or be satisfied with a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders, and called for continuing on the path of resistance and jihad until all of Palestine, from the river to the sea, is liberated. Al-Qassam Brigades spokesman Abu 'Ubaida thanked Iran for providing Hamas with funds, weapons and missiles and thus helping it to build its army, with its many advanced units. He also declared that Hamas would soon bring about the release of Palestinian prisoners through prisoner-exchange deals.
At the same time, the speakers warned of an impending "explosion" if Gaza does not receive the recovery funds it was promised. They did not spare the Palestinian Authority (PA) and its leaders from their criticism, calling them "traitors" and urging the people of the West Bank to rise up against them.
Jordanian Preacher: Jewish "Apes and Pigs," Shiite "Dogs and Donkeys" Seek to Take over Saudi Arabia
Alleged Hezbollah Mossad spy ‘was Nasrallah bodyguard’
An alleged Mossad agent who infiltrated Hezbollah was in the past responsible for the personal security of the head of the terror group, a Kuwaiti news report said on Wednesday.Men arrested after Isil leaflets handed out in Oxford Street
Since Hezbollah exposed the collaborator, it has also dismissed several other officials from its ranks, the report said.
A report in a Lebanese news agency on Tuesday said Hezbollah recently exposed a senior spy working for the Israeli Mossad intelligence agency within its foreign operations branch.
Two men have been arrested following a storm over extremists handing out leaflets in London’s Oxford Street urging Britons to join Isil.Iraq: Iran's "Boots on the Ground"
The men, both from Luton, were arrested on Tuesday by counter-terrorism police on suspicion of supporting a proscribed organisation.
The 37-year-old and 61-year-old are understood to be associates of the hate cleric Anjem Choudary.
The arrests follow an incident in August when dozens of leaflets were handed out on the busy shopping street saying it was the responsibility of Muslims to pledge allegiance to Islamic State and its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
It sparked fury on Twitter and calls for those responsible to be arrested.
The U.S. may not want "boots on the ground" in Iraq, but Iran sure does. In Iraqi Kurdistan, Iran's military involvement in the Kurdish governorates of northern Iraq is multi-varied and on the increase.Iran nuclear talks resume in Geneva
Kurdish Rudaw T.V. has reported on Iran's support for Kurdistan's Peshmerga (military) campaign to regain villages lost to Islamic State [IS] jihadists this past summer. Rudaw T.V. even discussed the public visits of Iran's Major General Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Revolutionary Guard's Qods Force, to the Peshmerga front line against the IS.
According to a former Iraqi General of Military Intelligence, who paid a mid-November visit to Kurdistan, the big winner politically in the multilateral effort to roll back the IS's territorial gains is Iran. General Saad al-Obaidi commented that without the presence of several pro-Iran Shia militias and Iranian artillery support, allied bombing raids against IS targets would have been for naught.
Political directors of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany — the so-called P5+1 — are holding a one-day meeting in Geneva with the Iranians, mediated by the European Union.Former U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali: Iran Has the Right to Nuclear Weapons
An EU spokeswoman in the Swiss city told AFP the talks had begun, without giving further details. No announcements are expected after the discussions conclude.
The US and Iranian delegations met on Monday and Tuesday in Geneva in preparation for the multilateral talks, led by Acting Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and Iran’s deputy foreign minister Abbas Araqchi.
Erdogan’s regime becoming more dictatorship than democracy
As to the quest to join the EU, this is “dead for the foreseeable future.”Turkey Pushes Back Against EU Condemnation of Reporter Arrests, Newsroom Raids
And asked about moving closer to the Arab world, Barkey observes that Erdogan’s government has poor relations with almost every single Arab country except for Qatar.
Erdogan is depending on Turkey’s historical strategic regional role and its strong economy to lead the region, he says.
Asked if Erdogan is going full-out Islamist, losing any liberal pretensions in his quest for power, Barkey says it depends how you define Islamist.
Surely the Turkish president is influenced by Islam and wants to shape the state in that image, “but Islamists have such negative connotations,” he said, noting that it depends how one defines the term.
The term Islamist is used to describe Islamic State, al-Qaida, and others, so Barkey prefers not to use it in this context.
A diplomatic spat between Ankara and the European Union expanded on Monday, after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan dismissed European criticism over a wave of arrests of media figures this weekend, which saw more than two dozen journalists around the country detained. Among the news outlets affected was Zaman, Turkey’s widest-circulating newspaper, whose editor-in-chief was one of the dozens arrested in the sweep. EU foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini and Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn released a joint statement calling the mass arrests “incompatible with the freedom of media, which is a core principle of democracy,” to which Erdogan responded that “[the] EU should mind its own business.”‘French Effect’ Hits Turkey as Jews Look to Future Outside of the Country
The “French effect” – increasing numbers of Jews leaving a country because of anti-Semitic harassment and hostility from the media and radical politicians – is now emerging in Turkey, where a Turkish-Jewish businessman has warned, in an oped for the Istanbul-based Jewish newspaper Şalom, that a growing number of community members are heading for the exit.Taliban Nets Silver Medal In Brutality Games (satire)
“We face threats, attacks and harassment every day. Hope is fading,” wrote Moise Gabay, a professional in the tourism industry, in an article published on December 10.
In its summary of the article, leading Turkish daily Hurriyet highlighted Gabay’s claim that “around 37 percent of high school graduates from the Jewish community in Turkey prefer to go abroad for higher education … This number doubled this year compared to the previous years.”
Pakistani Taliban competitors surprised judges and spectators alike this week by pulling off a surprise finish in the current round of the Brutality Games by attacking a school, narrowly supplanting Hamas in second place and securing the silver to the Islamic State’s gold.
With its assault on a school yesterday in Peshawar that killed more than 100 people, most of them children, the Taliban garnered enough points to surpass recent Hamas achievements in Jerusalem, including gun, knife, and automobile assaults on civilians. Analysts had expected the Pakistani Taliban to maintain the slump that had characterized its scoring of late, but today’s action put them over the top for second place. The Islamic State has maintained a consistent lead over its competitors since last year, and its brutality supremacy has not faced a serious challenge this season. As a result, would-be brutality champions have set their sights on the silver medal, which is to be awarded in Oslo next month.
Taliban Head Coach Mustafa Massikr praised his players. “No one gave us enough credit out there except us. Our guys always believed we could get the job done and show our brutality skills. They put their bodies on the line every day of the week and twice on Fridays to get us this far. The medal is a fitting testament to our stick-to-it-iveness and our only-say-die attitude,” he gushed.
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