01 June 12 Osint Levant Tracker

UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
This OSINT publication contains foreign media derived entirely from open sources in and around the CENTCOM AOR.
01 Jun 2012 EGYPT Army Lifts Three Decades-Old State of Emergency in Egypt: Al Arabiya Egypts decades-long state of emergency came to an end on Thursday after its last renewal expired, the ruling military said in a statement, vowing to continue to protect the nation, reported AFP. (Source: Dubai, UAE; Owned by MBC Group, Intl (Large Iraqi following); Neutral; Daily) Shafiqs Campaign Denies Remarks Quoted in New York Times: Al-Masry Al-Youm An official source with the presidential campaign of former PM Ahmed Shafiq denied a New York Times report that Shafiq said he would use excessive force and executions to restore security. The story has been picked up by several Egyptian newspapers and websites. (Source: Cairo, Egypt; Independent; Daily; Undetermined). Egypt Revolutionary Groups Call For Friday Rallies To Shelve Candidate Shafiq: Ahram Online Revolutionary Youth Union and April 6 call for 'Disenfranchisement Friday' rally against Ahmed Shafiq in Tahrir Square describing the presidential candidate as an unwanted reminder of a difficult past. (Source: Cairo, Egypt; Daily; Neutral) Mubarak Trial Verdict May Divide Egypt Further: Al Sharaq Al Awsat Guilty or not, Saturday's verdict in Mubarak's trial will likely deepen Egypt's polarization. Political tensions are already simmering in a heated runoff for president pitting the ousted leader's last prime minister against an Islamist from a group that the old regime repeatedly cracked down. (Source: London, England; pan-Arab daily news; Pro Arab) ISRAEL / GAZA Israeli Officials Link Tehran To Assads Massacres: Jerusalem Post The Iranian regime is in a very concrete manner lending its support to the Syrian governments murder of the Syrian people.", A day after Ali Larijani, the speaker of Irans parliament, said a Western military intervention in Syria would engulf Israel, Israeli government officials tried to shine the light on Iranian involvement in the Syrian bloodshed. (Source: Israel, Independent, Slightly right leaning / Pro West) Israeli Soldier, Gaza Gunman Killed In Border Clash: Al Masry Al Youm An Israeli soldier and a gunman from the Gaza Strip were killed in a rare border clash on Friday, the army said in a statement. (Source: Cairo, Egypt; Independent; Daily; Undetermined). Luck Of A Major General: Ynet A nerve-wracking incident occurred on Thursday when the black hawk helicopter which had GOC Army Headquarters Major-General Sami Turgeman and 10 other senior officers on board was forced to make an emergency landing in southern Israel. (Source: Israel, Yedi'ot Media Group) Medics: Israel Bombs Gaza Injuring 4: Maan News Israeli airstrikes wounded four Palestinians in the southern Gaza Strip early Friday, hours after an Israeli soldier and Palestinian militant were killed in an exchange of fire along the border. (Source: Bethlehem, Israel; Funded by Dutch and Danish Foreign Ministries; anti-Zionism / anti-West) JORDAN Tarawneh Checks On Brotherhood Leaders Health: Petra Prime Minister Fayez Tarawneh on Thursday checked on the health of Hammam Saeed, overall leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, who was admitted to hospital after he fell ill this week. (Source: Amman, Jordan; Pro-Govt)
OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 Families of Jordanian Prisoners in Israel Stage Sit-In: Petra Tens of families of Jordanian prisoners in Israeli jails on Thursday staged a sit-in in front of the National Centre for Human Rights headquarters, calling on the centre to follow up on their relatives cases and ensure their release. (Source: Amman, Jordan; Pro-Govt) Syrian Refugees Draining Water-Poor Jordan Dry: The Daily Star Tens of thousands of Syrian refugees who have fled from carnage and violence at home to neighboring Jordan are draining the desert kingdom's meager water resources, officials and experts say. (Source: Beirut, Lebanon; Independent; Daily, Except Sunday; Neutral) LEBANON Citizen Accused of Collaborating With Israel Released After 3 Years in Jail: Naharnet The Military Court released from jail on Thursday Lebanese citizen, Ziad al-Homsi, after he served time on charges of collaborating with Israeli intelligence, reported al-Jadeed television. (Source: Lebanon, English edition of A Nahar, Liberal) Lebanese Action Film Takes On Israel-Hezbollah War: The Daily Star The villain in Lebanon's new hit war movie: a cigar-smoking Israeli army colonel who sports a cowboy hat and a handlebar mustache and repeatedly orders troops to shell Lebanese villages. The heroes: residents of one such village who band together to fight Israeli troops. (Source: Beirut, Lebanon; Independent; Daily, Except Sunday; Neutral) Sleiman Heads to Saudi Arabia: Now Lebanon President Michel Sleiman departed to Saudi Arabia Friday for a one-day official visit. (Source: Beirut, Lebanon; Privately Funded / Independent; Liberal) Miqati Urges Turkey to Exert Efforts to Free Lebanese Visitors: Al Manar Lebanese PM Najib Miqati held talks with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, urging the latter to continue the efforts in order to release the 11 Lebanese visitors who were abducted in Syria ten days ago. (Source: Beirut, Lebanon; LCC; Intl; Hezbollah TV outlet) Hezbollah Wants to Move Far-Reaching Scuds from Syria: Arutz Sheva Hezbollah looking to move Scud D missiles, which can reach Eilat, and modern anti-aircraft equipment from Syria to Lebanon. According to the report, the group fears the weapons may come into the hands of the rebels against Syrian President Bashar Assad. (Source: Beit El, Israel; Independent; Identifies with Religious Zion) SYRIA Live Blog on Developments in Syria: Now Lebanon Syrian forces killed seven on Friday, Anti-regime demonstration in Al-Qamishli and Kobani, Syrian activists threatened a "volcano of rage" on Friday over the killing of civilians by government forces, Germany urged Russia to curb its support for Damascus (Source: Beirut, Lebanon; Privately Funded / Independent; Liberal) Syrian Group Claims Kidnap of Shia Pilgrims: Al Jazeera A previously unknown armed group calling itself the "Syrian Revolutionaries Aleppo Province" claims to have kidnapped a group of Lebanese Shia pilgrims in exchange for an apology from Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. (Source: Doha, Qatar; Independent; Website of the TV Network; Claim Neutrality) Iranian Arms Supplied To Assad Regime through Civilian Airplanes: Al Bawaba
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 Iran is using its airliners to send weapons and explosives to the regime of al-Assad and Hizbullah in Lebanon, said the German television channel, ZDF. Citing sources within Western intelligence services, ZDF said that the transfer of the arms shipments were made via Yas Air and Iran Air companies, which are supposed to carry passengers. (Source: Amman, Jordan; Popular Arab media; Daily; Claims Neutrality) Clinton Rejects Syria Military Intervention; Slams Russian Resistance to U.N. Action: Al Arabiya U.S. Secretary of State Clinton on Thursday laid out arguments against a military intervention in Syria despite calls for the West to take action after last weeks massacre in the town of Houla. (Source: Dubai, UAE; Owned by MBC Group, Intl (Large Iraqi following); Neutral; Daily) US Envoy Slams 'Reprehensible' Russia Arms Sales to Syria: Ahram online US envoy Susan Rice on Thursday condemned "reprehensible" Russian arms deliveries to Syria as she stepped up US calls for increased international pressure on President Bashar al-Assad. (Source: Cairo, Egypt; Daily; Neutral) Syria Rebels Issue 48-Hour Ultimatum: The Daily Star Syrian rebels gave President Bashar Assad a 48-hour deadline Wednesday to comply with an international peace plan otherwise they would renew their battle to overthrow him. The ultimatum was issued after U.N. observers reported the discovery of 13 bodies bound and shot in eastern Syria, adding to the world outcry over the massacre last week of 108 men, women and children. (Source: Beirut, Lebanon; Independent; Daily, Except Sunday; Neutral) UN Rights Body Meets over Syria Massacre: Al Jazeera The United Nation's Human Rights Committee is meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, to discuss last week's massacre in Syria that killed 108 people, many of them children. (Source: Doha, Qatar; Independent; Website of the TV Network; Claim Neutrality) EDITORIALS Syria: The Tragic Space Between the Unacceptable and the Impossible: Al Jazeera The Houla Massacre of a week ago in several small Muslim villages near the Syrian city of Homs underscores the tragic circumstances of a civilian vulnerability to brutal violence of a criminal government. (Source: Doha, Qatar; Independent; Website of the TV Network; Claim Neutrality) Can Turkey Inspire Egypt: Al Arabiya? Last week, Egyptians went to the polls to participate in the first presidential election since Mubarak's downfall in February 2011. Going forward, the new president, who will be elected in the second phase of elections in June, should look to examples from other countries that have undergone successful democratic transitions. (Source: Dubai, UAE; Owned by MBC Group, Intl (Large Iraqi following); Neutral; Daily) The Regimes Rhetoric: Al Sharaq Al Awsat Last year, the number of friends I have on Facebook doubled, I do not know most of them personally; however the Syrian revolution, with its momentum and character and tragedies has served as a basis to connect with Syrian youth and writers and other figures that we do not often hear from, thanks to the complexities in the Lebanese and Syrian situation. (Source: London, England; pan-Arab daily news; Pro Arab) Supporting Documentation: EGYPT (Top)
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 31 May 2012 Al Arabiya Army Lifts Three Decades-Old State of Emergency in Egypt
(U) Egypts military, which took charge after Mubaraks overthrow in February 2011, at first extended the law to include strikes but then said it would apply only to thuggery. (AP) Egypts decades-long state of emergency came to an end on Thursday after its last renewal expired, the ruling military said in a statement, vowing to continue to protect the nation, reported AFP. The military will continue its national and historic responsibility, taking into account that the state of emergency has ended, in accordance with the constitutional declaration and with the law, it said. Egypt has been under a state of emergency since President Anwar Sadats assassination in 1981, allowing authorities to detain people without charge and try them in emergency security courts. Parliament renewed the emergency law for two years in May 2010 when now ousted president Hosni Mubarak was still in power, but limited its application to terrorism and drug crimes. The military, which took charge after Mubaraks overthrow in February 2011, at first extended the law to include strikes but then said it would apply only to thuggery according to a report by AFP. A constitutional declaration ratified in a referendum in March last year gave the military the responsibility to protect the country but said only parliament had the right to proclaim a state of emergency, at the executives request. The military had suspended the constitution after Mubaraks overthrow. Essam Erian, the deputy leader of the Islamist Freedom and Justice Party, which has the most seats in parliament, told AFP the militarys statement indicated it would not ask parliament to extend the law. Fears of an extension Earlier there were speculations on the possibility of another extension and concerns about the stance of the Islamist-dominated parliament. According to observers, the Muslim Brotherhood and its political wing the Freedom and Justice Party will be subject to harsh criticism in case the parliament proposes an extension to the law, especially in the light of the remarkable
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 drop in the groups popularity following the performance of its members in the lower house of parliament, the Peoples Assembly. The stance of Brotherhood presidential candidate Mohammed Mursi in case he wins the elections was also brought into question. Mursis campaign was quick to respond and stress that in case Mursi becomes president, he will never seek an extension for the emergency law. Mursi has no intention to extend the emergency law and there is no need for doing that in the first place, Yasser Ali, the spokesman of Mursis presidential campaign told the Egyptian daily independent al-Watan. Ali said that with the fierce competition between Mursi and Hosni Mubaraks former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq, both of whom have reached the run-off, the first will stir clear of anything that the second represents by virtue of being an integral part of the former regime and a potential replication of all its repressive practices. Ali quoted Mursi as saying that proper application of the penal code is enough to guarantee the prevalence of security in the Egyptian street. Then there will be no need for such a notorious law. As for security during election time, Ali said that this can be done through the police working at full force. We will never go back. Citizens will no longer be subject to detention without justification, Ali concluded.
01 June 2012 Al-Masry Al-Youm Shafiqs Campaign Denies Remarks Quoted in New York Times
(U) Former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq An official source with the presidential campaign of former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq denied a New York Times report that Shafiq said he would use excessive force and executions to restore security. The story has been picked up by several Egyptian newspapers and websites. The source accused the New York Times of defamation and said that the paper mistranslated what he said during a meeting with the American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt on 15 May.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 The newspaper said that Shafiq suggested that he would use executions and brutal force to restore order within a month. The source said that a recording of the meeting, which was attended by people interested in the economy, businessmen, thinkers and a number of ambassadors from foreign countries, is available on the official websites of the chamber of commerce for reference. The source said it is illogical that the presidential hopeful would use excessive force and executions to restore order and security, adding that these claims come amid other defamation campaigns against Shafiq. Shafiq will compete against the Muslim Brotherhoods candidate Mohamed Mosy in the presidential runoff on 16 and 17 June. Shafiqs success in the first round of the presidential election has caused uproar among revolutionary forces, who have called for protests against his participation in the runoff. Shafiq was the last prime minister of the toppled Mubarak regime.
01 June 2012 Ahram Online Egypt Revolutionary Groups Call For Friday Rallies To Shelve Candidate Shafiq Revolutionary Youth Union and April 6 call for 'Disenfranchisement Friday' rally against Ahmed Shafiq in Tahrir Square describing the presidential candidate as an unwanted reminder of a difficult past The Revolutionary Youth Union has called on Egyptians to head to Tahrir Square and other cities in Egypt on 'Disenfranchisement Friday' to demand the exclusion of Mubarak-era Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq from the presidential race. The Union, an offshoot of the January 25 uprising against the ousted president Mubarak, demands the implementation of the recently passed Political Disenfranchisement Law which would bar Mubarak-era officials, including Shafiq, from holding political office for 10 years. The constitutionality of the law, which was passed by parliament in April, is being determined by the High Constitutional Court, with a verdict expected in the next few weeks. Shafiq came second in the presidential election first round on 23/24 May and will face the Muslim Brotherhood's Mohamed Mursi in the second round slated for 16-17 June. In a statement released Thursday, the Union held Shafiq responsible for the Battle of the Camel which left 11 Egyptians dead and hundreds injured on 2/3 February 2011during the uprising. Ousted president Mubarak had installed Shafiq, an ex aviation minister, as prime minister in late January 2011 in an attempt to quell the growing protests. However, only two days later, thugs on horses and camels attacked protesters in Tahrir Square. "Shafiq is the prime minister of the Battle of the Camel. He was a witness and a partner in the death of Egypt's innocent youth. He was also a partner of Mubarak in destroying the political, economic and social life of Egypt," the Union said in a statement on Thursday.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 The Union asked people to join the protests under the slogan of "No to a new Mubarak," a nod to the fact that many revolutionaries believe that if Shafiq becomes president he will resurrect the Mubarak regime. They also asked the public to snub the results of the first round of the elections. "The elections were rigged, and forced people to choose between a member of the old regime and a Muslim Brotherhood candidate," the statement continued. Eight marches will kick off from El-Estekama mosque in Giza, Mostafa Mahmoud mosque in Mohandessin, ElKhazindar mosque in Shoubra, El-Fath mosque in Ramsis, El-Saida Zeinab mosque, in addition to other marches from Maadi and Cairo University. All marches will make it to Tahrir Square after Islamic midday prayers. Protesters are then planning to stay in Tahrir Square till 4 pm then kick off again to the general prosecutor's office. April 6 Youth Movement is among the movements calling for this protest and it will kick off its march to Tahrir from El-Fath mosque. "We are calling for the implementation of the disenfranchisement law to exclude Ahmed Shafiq from the runoffs," Tarek El-Khouli, the spokesperson of April 6 Youth Movement (the Democratic Front) told Ahram Arabic language website. Moreover, April 6 Youth Movement said it is against the reluctance by government officials to investigate the former Ahmed Shafiq on corruption charges and refusal to apply the disenfranchisement law on him.
01 June 2012 Al Sharaq Al Awsat Mubarak Trial Verdict May Divide Egypt Further Guilty or not, Saturday's verdict in Hosni Mubarak's trial will likely deepen Egypt's polarization. Political tensions are already simmering in a heated runoff for president pitting the ousted leader's last prime minister against an Islamist from a group that the old regime repeatedly cracked down. The 84-year-old Mubarak, the first Arab leader to be tried by his own people, faces charges of complicity in the killing of some 900 protesters during last year's uprising that forced him from power. If convicted, he could face the death penalty. He also faced separate corruption charges along with his two sons one-time heir apparent Gamal and wealthy businessman Alaa and a family friend who is on the run. "We are so eagerly awaiting the verdict," said George Ishaq, who gained nationwide fame as a vocal critic of Mubarak's rule. "An innocent verdict will trigger a horrific reaction." His trial mesmerized the nation, with images of him lying on a hospital gurney inside a defendants' cage of iron bars and barbed wire taken by most Egyptians to symbolize both their triumph over tyranny and the humiliation of a dictator who ruled for close to 30 years. He rarely spoke and when it was time for him to address the court in his own defense, he chose to submit a letter in which he pleaded his innocence. While in progress, the trial dominated the national conversation and fed tension in an already turbulent transitional period under the tutelage of the ruling generals who took over from him; with many convinced the process was just for show to appease protesters who demanded that Mubarak answers for his actions.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 Mubarak loyalists frequently fought with relatives of dead protesters outside the court, a lecture hall in a police academy once named after him. Lawyers seeking damage for the victims' families, as well as publicity, occasionally chanted slogans against him in court. The verdict comes just days after electoral officials announced that Mubarak's last prime minister and one-time protg Ahmed Shafiq is one of two candidates who made it into a presidential runoff slated for June 16-17. Like his mentor, Shafiq is a career air force officer. He and Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood emerged from last week's first round vote as the top vote-getters in a field of 13 candidates. Morsi's candidacy has raised serious concern among many Egyptians that he would inject more religion into government if he wins. Others fear Morsi's Brotherhood, empowered after spending the best part of the last 60 years as an illegal organization, will become the nation's new dictatorship, a possibility that's intensely propagated by some in the official media. Shafiq's own presidential run is scaring many who fear he would recreate the old regime, pardon Mubarak, his sons, and regime stalwarts in jail awaiting trial. They fear he may also revive the widely hated Mubarak-era alliance between government and business. A guilty verdict on Saturday, some believe, could endear Shafiq to more voters and, in some ways, lend credence to his pledge that he will not recreate the old regime if elected. Shafiq ran on an anti-revolutionary platform, frequently making disparaging comments about the youth groups behind last year's uprising, but he changed tack after his second-place finish, speaking of the "glorious revolution" and that there was no turning back the clock. An innocent verdict for Mubarak, however, would send protesters out on the streets to demand "revolutionary justice" for the former president and seriously undermine Shafiq's chances of winning the land's highest office. "The Mubarak legacy continues to impact the country's politics," said Negad Borai, a lawyer and a rights activist. "The 15 months since his ouster are not enough to remove him from the scene. After 30 years in power, it may take five or more years for that to happen." In many ways, the Morsi-Shafiq contest mirrors the enmity between Mubarak and the Brotherhood during the last three decades. And a Morsi triumph would be the realization of Mubarak's oft-repeated prophecy that the Brotherhood would take over after he is gone. Egyptians remain fascinated by what Mubarak does and says. The independent Al-Watan newspaper has tapped into that interest by publishing partial accounts of Mubarak's life in prison hospitals and the time he spends at the courthouse with his sons and fellow defendants. The authenticity of those accounts cannot be verified, but some of the comments attributed to him are exactly what Egyptians grew accustomed to hearing from him during his long rule. "These guys are so incompetent, they will bankrupt a cigarette kiosk if they run one," he was quoted as saying of the 13 presidential candidates. "Good riddance, he wrecked (Egypt) and left," he was quoted as saying when told that top reform leader and Nobel Peace laureate Mohamed ElBaradei pulled out of the presidential race. The Mubarak trial, which began 10 months ago, is likely to be remembered as a defining event in the Arab Spring uprising that has swept across the Middle East and North Africa.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 But the process has been less than perfect, according to legal experts. It was held in a charged atmosphere. Lawyers for the victims' families behaved chaotically and the prosecutor's case was generally seen as weak. "On the whole, the trial was rushed and politicized," said Nasser Amin, a legal expert. Feeding widely held suspicions that ruling generals, led by Mubarak's defense minister of 20 years, have only grudgingly put Mubarak and his sons on trial, the former leader has since his arrest in April last year stayed in luxury hospitals, first in his favorite Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh and later at a military hospital east of Cairo. His sons swagger without handcuffs into the courtroom from the armored vans that bring them from prison. Some police officers salute Mubarak's co-defendant and former security chief Habib el-Adly when he arrives in court wearing designer sunglasses and a blue baseball cap matching his prison uniform. Like Mubarak, el-Adly, who led the hated police force, faced charges of complicity in the killing of the protesters. Four top police commanders are also on trial in the same case. Just days before the verdict were set to be delivered, the Mubarak sons were slapped with new charges of insider trading along with seven other people. The prosecutor general's office said on Wednesday the two made illicit gains in the millions of Egyptian pounds from the sale in 2007 of a bank in which they secretly held a controlling stake without informing authorities. The new case, which was referred to trial, was interpreted as a timely attempt by Egypt's military rulers to assuage anger over the possible ascent to the presidency of Shafiq. ISRAEL / GAZA (Top) 01 June 2102 Jerusalem Post Israeli Officials Link Tehran To Assads Massacres
(U) Photo: Morteza Nikoubazl / Reuters The Iranian regime is in a very concrete manner lending its support to the Syrian governments murder of the Syrian people.", A day after Ali Larijani, the speaker of Irans parliament, said a Western military intervention in Syria would engulf Israel, Israeli government officials tried to shine the light on Iranian involvement in the Syrian bloodshed. The Iranian regime is in a very concrete manner lending its support to the Syrian governments murder of the Syrian people, and this is part of their very aggressive and dangerous behavior in the region, one official said.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 If this is what Iran does without atomic weapons, the official added, what would Iranian behavior look like if they had nuclear capabilities? Meanwhile, a US think tank has published satellite images that it says underscore suspicions that Iran is trying to destroy evidence of nuclear weapons-related research at a site that UN inspectors have not been allowed to visit. Earlier this week, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said that Syria was brutally slaughtering its people with, of course, the assistance of Iran and Hezbollah real assistance, not just political support, but assistance in murder. The Tehran Times quoted Larijani as warning that US military officials probably have a poor understanding of themselves and regional issues because Syria is in no way similar to Libya, and [the effects of] creating another Benghazi in Syria would spread to Palestine, and ash rising from the flames would definitely envelop the Zionist regime. Larijani said it seemed as if the US and the West were seeking to pave the way for a new crisis. Larijani also said that US officials should be aware of [the nature of] their dangerous game. Isnt it necessary that they take measures in response to the military occupation of Bahrain? The question is why they are preventing the reform plan in Syria from moving forward. The Iranian parliamentarian was quoted as saying that certain reactionaries in the region take pride in the fact that they have used money and weapons to destroy and incite a civil war in Syria. He also declared that the Iranian parliament supports democratic reforms in Syria that will help uphold the peoples rights, condemns terrorist actions and opportunistic interference by certain countries in Syria as well as the hawkish and unwise messages of the United States, and warns that it may seem easy to embark on such an act of adventurism, but it will definitely be difficult to end it. Former Mossad head Meir Dagan, who has questioned the wisdom of an Israeli military strike on Irans nuclear facilities, did say on Wednesday that he senses that now the time is ripe to weaken the position of Iran in the world and in the area. Dagan said that Iran puts everything into Syria and Hezbollah, which it uses as proxies against Israel and the West. He said that a situation where Assad would fall, and the Sunnis would rise in Syria, would automatically weaken Hezbollah in a dramatic way and reduce the impact of Iran in the area. The Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security posted the satellite photos on its website hours after the UN nuclear watchdog showed diplomats similar images that Western envoys said indicated a cleanup at the Parchin military facility. Parchin, which Iran says is a conventional military complex southeast of Tehran, is at the center of Western allegations that Iran has conducted experiments possibly a decade ago that could help develop atom bombs. The new satellite images appear to back Western suspicions that Iran is cleaning the site of any incriminating evidence, such as traces of uranium or other materials, before possibly allowing the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to go there. Western diplomats who attended Wednesdays closed-door briefing by the IAEA in Vienna told Reuters that two small buildings at Parchin had been removed, and the Institute for Science and International Security said its pictures from May 25 showed that they had been completely razed.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 Iran is worried that the agency might find something there. Otherwise, it wouldnt be going through the sanitization process, a senior Western official said. The pictures were published after inconclusive talks last week between Tehran and six world powers that aim to end a nuclear standoff in which the West has intensified sanctions on Iran, and Israel and the United States have threatened military strikes to stop the Islamic Republic from getting the bomb.
01 June 2012 Al Masry Al Youm Israeli Soldier, Gaza Gunman Killed In Border Clash
Unclassified An Israeli soldier and a gunman from the Gaza Strip were killed in a rare border clash on Friday, the army said in a statement. It said the gunman, who was not immediately identified, crossed the fortified boundary into Israel from the Palestinian enclave and opened fire on troops, who shot back. Palestinian witnesses heard an explosion and shooting near Abassan, a border village in southern Gaza that is also close to the Egyptian frontier. They said Israeli forces set off smoke bombs to obscure the view as helicopters circled. Gaza's Islamist Hamas rulers and other militants are hostile to the Jewish state, and the enclave saw a surge in cross-border fighting in March. But violence had otherwise abated as rival Palestinian factions negotiate powersharing deals and monitor political developments in Egypt. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the cross-border raid, but the Israeli army blamed Hamas. "The Hamas terror organization is solely responsible for any terrorist activity emanating from the Gaza Strip," it said.
01 June 2012 Ynet
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 Luck Of A Major General
(U) Ground Forces Commander Major General Sami Turgeman A nerve-wracking incident occurred on Thursday when the black hawk helicopter which had GOC Army Headquarters Major-General Sami Turgeman and 10 other senior officers on board was forced to make an emergency landing in southern Israel. Major-General Turgeman left the Bahad-1 Officers Training Base for the Kastina Ground Forces headquarters. During the trip, a bird hit the helicopter's main blade. Two air force pilots announce an emergency situation and landed the helicopter smoothly, in spite of the severely damaged blade. No injuries were reported in the incident. An air force technical team was dispatched to the landing site to fix the damages after which the helicopter returned to base. The officers were forced to walk to the nearest road where they were picked up by an IDF car. Senior IDF officials noted that luckily, the incident occurred when the helicopter was flying at a low altitude. Had it been flying at a higher altitude, they said, the incident would have had a tragic end. This is the fourth time the Major general Turgeman has escaped some sticky situations caused by accidents or serious safety mishaps during IDF training exercises in the last few years.
01 June 2012 Maan News Medics: Israel Bombs Gaza Injuring 4 Israeli airstrikes wounded four Palestinians in the southern Gaza Strip early Friday, hours after an Israeli soldier and Palestinian militant were killed in an exchange of fire along the border. Witnesses said Israeli aircraft bombed an auto rickshaw east of Khan Younis. Medical spokesman Adham Abu Salmiyah said four people were wounded, and two were in a critical condition. An Israeli army spokeswoman told Ma'an that aircraft targeted what she described as a terrorist squad that had fired a rocket at Israeli soldiers. She said a hit was confirmed. The official added that the Israeli military would continue to operate "against anyone who uses terror against the residents of the State of Israel. The Hamas terrorist organization is responsible for any terrorist activity emanating from the Gaza Strip."
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 Earlier, a Palestinian gunman breached the southern Gaza border and opened fire on Israeli soldiers, who returned fire, the Israeli army said. A soldier and the Palestinian were killed. A Gaza radio station close to Islamic Jihad named the man killed as 22-year-old Ahmad Abu Naser. It said the group's armed wing had claimed responsibility for the attack. But a spokesman for the Al-Quds Brigades, Abu Ahmad, denied any involvement in the attack. Palestinian sources in the Gaza Strip told Ma'an that the attack appeared to have been aimed at luring Israeli forces into the area in an attempt to capture a soldier. JORDAN (Top) 01 June 2012 Petra Tarawneh Checks on Brotherhood Leaders Health Prime Minister Fayez Tarawneh on Thursday checked on the health of Hammam Saeed, overall leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, who was admitted to hospital after he fell ill this week. In a telephone call with Hamzah Mansour, the Islamic Action Front secretary general, the premier wished Saeed a speedy recovery.
01 June 2012 Petra Families of Jordanian Prisoners in Israel Stage Sit-In Tens of families of Jordanian prisoners in Israeli jails on Thursday staged a sit-in in front of the National Centre for Human Rights headquarters, calling on the centre to follow up on their relatives cases and ensure their release. Mother of Jordanian prisoner Rafat Assous, sentenced to 20 years in prison since 2002, demanded the right to visit her son and check on his condition, calling on the centre to pressure the government to speed up the release of her son and other Jordanian prisoners.
01 June 2012 The Daily Star Syrian Refugees Draining Water-Poor Jordan Dry
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012
(U) Jordanians and Syrian refugees take part in a demonstration against Syria's President Bashar Assad in Amman May 30, 2012. (REUTERS/Ali Jarekji) Tens of thousands of Syrian refugees who have fled from carnage and violence at home to neighboring Jordan are draining the desert kingdom's meager water resources, officials and experts say. It is a new challenge for Jordan, one of the world's 10 driest countries, where desert covers 92 percent of its territory and the population of 6.7 million is growing by 3.5 percent a year. The tiny Arab country has given refuge to waves of Palestinian and Iraqi refugees because of regional conflicts over the past decades, and now the kingdom is hosting up to 120,000 Syrians. "The majority of Syrian refugees are concentrated in the northern cities of Mafraq, Irbid, Ramtha, Jerash and Ajlun. All of these areas already suffer from water shortage," Fayez Bataineh, secretary general of the Water Authority, told AFP. "They add pressure to our limited water resources, and we need to be extra careful and wisely manage these resources." Years of below-average rainfall have created a shortfall of 500 million cubic meters (17.5 billion cubic feet) a year, and the country forecasts it will need 1.6 billion cubic meters of water a year by 2015. "Each Syrian refugee needs at least 80 liters of fresh water a day, so 9,600 cubic meters per day for 120,000 people. The cost of this subsidized water supply is 13,000 dinar ($18,000) a day, not to mention other related expenses," said Adnan Zubi, assistant secretary general of the Ministry of Water and Irrigation. "It is not the first time that Jordan hosted forced migrants, but our water resources and infrastructure are already overburdened." Struggling to battle a chronic water shortage, Jordan is mulling controversial plans to extract water. It is tapping into a 300,000-year-old aquifer, despite concerns about high levels of radiation, while studying ways to build a canal from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea. "When my family and I fled to Ramtha from Homs several months ago, we could not find enough drinking water," said Abu Eid, who has two sons and four daughters. "Sometimes, I avoided eating in order not to go to the toilet later because there was no water to wash. But we have adapted to the situation."
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 Maher, another Syrian refugee living in the border town of Ramtha, said he needs to buy water every day. "We have water shortages all the time. I shower once every 10 days," he added. But Basma, a 25-year-old Syrian refugee woman in Irbid, disagreed. "I did not face any water problems in Jordan. I think the Jordanians are doing what they can to help us and things are fine thank God," she told AFP. According to the U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR), more than 20,000 Syrian refugees are registered in Jordan. Aoife McDonnell of UNHCR Jordan told AFP that the U.N. organization is aware that "hosting such large numbers of 'guests' ... severely strains already scarce resources, particularly in relation to water availability and consumption, waste management, sewage systems, energy, health and education." Jordan provides free medical services to U.N.-registered refugees, while more than 5,500 Syrian students have enrolled in public schools. "This reliance on local services and infrastructure also brings increasing pressure on the already vulnerable host populations of Jordan, as it is coupled with major water scarcity in the region, rising temperatures and a resulting negative impact on food production," McDonnell said, urging international support for the kingdom. Jordan's average annual water consumption stands at around 900 million cubic meters, but more than 60 percent of this water goes to agriculture, which contributes 3.6 percent to gross domestic product, according to official figures. "The Syrians came from water-rich areas to almost parched parts in Jordan," said Abdelrahman Sultan of the Jordanian-Israeli-Palestinian non-governmental group Friends of the Earth Middle East. "They consume water here the same way they used to consume water in their country." The Ministry of Environment said demand for water is expected to increase. "This requires better infrastructure in order to ensure a healthier environment for the refugees, a project that would cost a lot," Ahmad Qatarneh, the ministry's secretary general, told AFP. The government says it is still difficult to determine the cost of hosting Syrians in Jordan. "It goes without saying that it is high, but we cannot say for sure at the moment because Syrians are still fleeing to Jordan," said government spokesman Samih Maayatah. More than 13,000 people have been killed, most of them civilians, since the uprising against President Bashar Assad's regime erupted in March last year, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. "We did not wonder whether we would get enough water or not in Jordan. We just ran for our lives," said Abu Eid. LEBANON (Top) 31 May 2012 Naharnet Citizen Accused of Collaborating With Israel Released After 3 Years in Jail
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012
Unclassified The Military Court released from jail on Thursday Lebanese citizen, Ziad al-Homsi, after he served time on charges of collaborating with Israeli intelligence, reported al-Jadeed television. Homsi was accused in December 2010 of collaborating with Israel and he was sentenced to 15 years in jail with hard labor. He was released after some three years in jail and causes for his release have not been disclosed. Homsi is the former mayor of the Bekaa town of Saadneyel and he was serving as its deputy mayor at the time of his arrest in 2009. He has been released shortly after retired Brigadier General Fayez Karam was released from jail after serving time on charges of collaborating with Israel. Karam was arrested in 2010 and set free last April, benefitting from the reduction of the prison year.
01 June 2012 The Daily Star Lebanese Action Film Takes On Israel-Hezbollah War The villain in Lebanon's new hit war movie: a cigar-smoking Israeli army colonel who sports a cowboy hat and a handlebar mustache and repeatedly orders troops to shell Lebanese villages. The heroes: residents of one such village who band together to fight Israeli troops. The film, 33 Days, tells the story of the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah in one front-line village and glorifies "the resistance" - shorthand among many Lebanese for Hezbollah and other groups that fight Israel. The movie is unlikely to screen in Israel or the West. But in Lebanon, still officially at war with the Jewish state, it has drawn large crowds since opening on April 19. Audiences often cheer when Hezbollah rockets smash into Israeli tanks, indicating the hatred still aimed across the border six years after a war that began with a cross-border Hezbollah raid and killed 160 people in Israel and about 1,200 in Lebanon, reducing parts of south Beirut and many southern villages to rubble.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 The film also reflects Iranian influence in Lebanon that goes beyond the increasingly sophisticated weapons it gives to Hezbollah, which has parlayed that support into a position as the most powerful political and military force in Lebanon, dictating the makeup of the country's current government. The film's director and much of its funding and crew came from Iran. Although Hezbollah played no official role in producing it, the film serves as a feature-length advertisement for the anti-Israel struggle. Ali Bouzeid, chairman of the film's Lebanese production company, denied that the film is political, comparing it to footage of workers in a bank fighting off armed robbers. "If I get the footage of that and show it, is that a political film?" he asked. "It's a reality that happened." Others see it differently. "These films strengthen the culture of resistance among people, encourage them and make them sympathize with the resistance in all of Lebanon," actor Bassem Mughniyeh said in a promotional video released online. Iran's quasi-governmental Farabi production company provided more than half of the film's $4 million budget, Bouzeid said. A Farsi-language version opened late last year in Iran, and the original Arabic is now showing in theaters across Lebanon. Bouzeid said he is negotiating distribution elsewhere in the Arab world and Turkey. The film was shot in a 5,000-square-yard (meter) set built to represent the south Lebanon village of Aita al-Shaab. Most of the set was destroyed in the film's production, just like the real village during the war. The actors are Lebanese, Bouzeid said, but most of the crew were Iranian. With a focus on battle scenes, the filmmakers used more than 2,000 extras, 30 Lebanese army vehicles and dozens of explosions - one of which wounded seven people. The movie opens with blurry footage of Israeli troops panicking - apparently after Hezbollah crossed the border, killed three soldiers and captured two others, the event that sparked the war. Cut to an Israeli military base: Col. Avi, the villain, lights a hotdog-sized cigar and orders troops to shell Aita alShaab, where the raid originated. Then to the village itself, which is preparing for a wedding when word comes of the raid. The villagers mobilize for the Israeli response that soon arrives in a shower of shells. Some residents flee; the heroes remain. One scene shows Um Abbas, a veiled Muslim woman, handing an armful of rifles to surprised young fighters. A series of flashbacks soon reveal her history with Avi: He killed her son and husband years earlier, and she repaid him with a slash on his cheek, now a deep scar. As Avi orders up more shelling, the casualties mount. A drone strike kills a man carrying medicine. After visiting his pregnant wife in an underground bunker, a leading fighter is surrounded by Israeli soldiers but detonates a hand grenade to kill himself and the Israelis instead of being taken prisoner. Then the tide turns: Avi is addressing Israeli soldiers as a number of the nearly 4,000 rockets that Hezbollah fired during the war fly overhead. In Beirut's Abraj Theater during a recent screening, most of the 150 spectators burst into applause.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 In the next scenes, roadside bombs and shoulder-fired missiles destroy Israeli tanks; village fighters rout an Israeli advance, sending terrified soldiers fleeing; and Umm Abbas emerges from a building with a sniper rifle as Avi falls dead in the street - all to huge applause. The cheering continues when a baby is heard crying in the bunker - until the camera reveals its dead mother. But the village celebrates anyway, and the credits roll as families return to their homes. Not all Lebanese like the film. Some reviewers criticized the script as too simple. Bassem Alhakim lauded its special effects, but faulted it for reducing the Israeli colonel's war aims to a personal vendetta. "In the film, he did not come to carry out an Israeli plan to destroy Hezbollah and disband the resistance," he wrote in the Al-Akhbar newspaper. The audience at Abraj, however, was pleased. Abu Asim Bazzeh, who brought his wife and three sons, aged 5, 12 and 14, praised the film's message. "What really impressed me was the determination of the resistance to hang on to their land and be victorious, because that is what happened," he said. When asked about his favorite part, his son Mahdi, 12, said, "the missiles." The theater's manager, Raymond Chaanine, said the film had outsold everything else since it opened and that most who see it are Hezbollah supporters. He had not seen it, adding that not everyone wants to remember the war. "It's all about taste," he said. "There are some Lebanese who don't want to see anything that has to do with war. Others love it."
01 June 2012 Now Lebanon Sleiman Heads to Saudi Arabia President Michel Sleiman departed to Saudi Arabia at 11:30 a.m. on Friday for a one-day official visit, the National News Agency reported, Sleiman will meet with Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdel Aziz to discuss bilateral relations and Arab and regional developments, the NNA said, adding that Public Works and Transportation Minister Ghazi Aridi accompanied the president.
01 June 2012 Al Manar Miqati Urges Turkey to Exert Efforts to Free Lebanese Visitors Lebanese Prime minster Najib Miqati held talks with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, urging the latter to continue the efforts in order to release the 11 Lebanese visitors who were abducted in Syria ten days ago. Mr. Erdogan stressed that Turkey will continue to exert intensified efforts to rescue the Lebanese citizens held in Syria, Miqatis press office said in a statement issued after the meeting.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 Erdogan underlined Turkeys support for Lebanons independence, sovereignty and political stability, stressing that he continues to back the responsible approach endorsed by all parties towards preserving stability and civil peace in Lebanon, Miqatis office added. Erdogan later threw a dinner banquet in honor of Miqati and the accompanying delegation, which included Interior Minister Marwan Charbel and Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour. On the other hand, Turkish daily Todays Zaman reported that Erdogan released a joint written statement, saying that the Turkish PM told Miqati that Turkey would continue to put efforts to help rescue the kidnapped Lebanese citizens. The daily added that the two men detailed talks on bilateral relations and regional affairs. Both leaders reaffirmed their will to improve their relations, the statement added.
01 June 2012 Arutz Sheva Hezbollah Wants to Move Far-Reaching Scuds from Syria Hezbollah looking to move Scud D missiles, which can reach Eilat, and modern anti-aircraft equipment from Syria to Lebanon. The Hezbollah terror group wants to move Scud D-type missiles and modern anti-aircraft equipment from Syria to Lebanon, Channel 2 News reported on Thursday. According to the report, the group fears the weapons may come into the hands of the rebels against Syrian President Bashar Assad. The report said that Hezbollah has recently been considering moving to Lebanon the modern weapons it already owns but which are being kept in the groups bases in Damascus. Channel 2 noted that the Scud D missiles are considered quite sophisticated and have the ability to reach as far as the city of Eilat. Hezbollah is reportedly concerned over a possible attack by the armed rebel forces in Syria on its weapons arsenal in Damascus. The group fears that the rebel Free Syrian Army may loot the weapons stockpile. A Jordanian news site reported in early May that western spy satellites have recently spotted movements of Syrian heavy missile launchers northward and southward, toward Syria's borders with Turkey and Israel. The site said hundreds of high-caliber launchers are being moved, and that these could only be long range Scud missile launchers. Syria has threatened in the past that in the event of foreign military intervention on its soil, it will not hesitate to fire missiles at Israel and Turkey in order to ignite a large scale regional war. The IDFs Northern District Commander Yair Golan warned on Wednesday that the battle being waged in Syria between opponents of the Assad regime and Assad loyalists may have an effect on what is happening in Israel. Al-Qaeda related factors that are active there now and working against the regime may operate against us over time, Golan said. The Syrian threat to Israel requires attention. It will not happen tomorrow morning, but it can occur within a few months.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 Golan added, Syria has weapons of mass destruction along with a very heavy arsenal of weapons, including surface-to-ground missiles and chemical weapons. The fact that Syria is a storehouse of weapons which fuels terrorists in the region is very unsettling. Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah recently threatened to strike multiple targets in Israel, including Tel Aviv. We are capable of not only hitting specific targets in Tel Aviv but also any place in occupied Palestine, he said. The era has come when we survive while they will be doomed to extinction, Nasrallah added. For every building that is destroyed in the southern suburbs, several buildings will be destroyed in Tel Aviv in return. The German broadcaster ZDF reported Wednesday that Iran is using commercial aircrafts to smuggle weapons and explosives to Syria and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Citing Western security sources, ZDF said that Iran Air and Yas Air have repeatedly used aircrafts designated as passenger planes to transport weapons to the Assad regime and Hezbollah. SYRIA (Top) 01 June 2012 Now Lebanon Live Blog on Developments in Syria 12:58 Syrian forces killed seven people on Friday; Al-Arabiya television quoted the Local Coordination Committees as saying. 12:57 Al-Jazeera broadcast live footage on Friday showing an anti-regime demonstration in Al-Qamishli. 12:33 12 Syrian workers were killed in new massacre, activists told AFP on Friday. 12:19 Syrian activists threatened a "volcano of rage" on Friday over the killing of civilians by government forces as a deadline set by rebel fighters passed for Damascus to honor a UN-backed ceasefire. 12:07 an anti-regime protest began in Kobani. Protesters are chanting for overthrowing the regime. (S.N.N.) 11:57 The UN Human Rights Council will on Friday debate a call for an independent probe into the massacre in the Syrian town of Houla that triggered global horror and outrage. 10:36 Germany on Friday urged Russia to curb its support for Damascus, ahead of President Vladimir Putin's visit to Berlin and Paris that is set to be dominated by the escalating Syrian crisis. 10:12 Syrian security forces tanks raided the town of Dael in Daraa; Al-Arabiya quoted activists as saying on Friday. 9:09 President Vladimir Putin is expected to face pressure for Russia to drop its resistance to UN action on Syria when he meets the leaders of two of Europe's key powers on Friday. 8:32 US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Thursday that any military action in Syria would need backing from the United Nations, but called recent violence "intolerable."
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 7:53 China and Arab nations Thursday jointly urged Syria's warring parties to fully implement a tattered UN and Arab League ceasefire plan.
01 June 2012 Al Jazeera Syrian Group Claims Kidnap of Shia Pilgrims
Unclassified Armed "revolutionaries" from Aleppo say Lebanese hostages in good health and will be released after Nasrallah's apology. A previously unknown armed group calling itself the "Syrian Revolutionaries - Aleppo Province" claims to have kidnapped a group of Lebanese Shia pilgrims in exchange for an apology from Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. "The kidnapped Lebanese are being looked after by us and are in good health," the group said in a statement received by Al Jazeera. "Negotiations for their release are possible as soon as Nasrallah apologizes; our problem is not with any particular community but with those who assist in the suppression of the uprising." Hezbollah, the leading force in the current ruling coalition in Beirut, has close relations with the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Iran. Since the dozen or so returning pilgrims went missing on May 22 on their way back from Iran, Nasrallah has called for restraint and urged his followers to refrain from sectarian revenge attacks against Syrian Sunnis. On Sunday, the outgoing head of the opposition Syrian National Council, Burhan Ghalioun, said the pilgrims were still being held in Syria. Earlier reports said they had resurfaced in Turkey. "We spoke with some parties who had contacts with the group and we offered our assistance to have them freed," Ghalioun said. The rebel Free Syrian Army, a loose coalition of armed groups that communicate with the SNC, has denied any involvement in the kidnapping.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 31 May 2012 Al Bawaba Iranian Arms Supplied To Assad Regime through Civilian Airplanes Iran is using its airliners to send weapons and explosives to the regime of Bashar al-Assad and Hizbullah in Lebanon, said the German television channel, ZDF. Citing sources within Western intelligence services, ZDF said that the transfer of the arms shipments were made via Yas Air and Iran Air companies, which are supposed to carry passengers. Turkish security officials have discovered, according to ZDF, weapons and explosives on board of a Yas Air aircraft in March 2011 whose final destination was Damascus. According to the sources of German television, the Revolutionary Guards stand behind this operation. The type of weapons sent to Syria has not been specified. On Monday, the British newspaper The Guardian reported that a senior official of the Revolutionary Guards had acknowledged that Iranian forces were operating in Syria to support the regime of Assad. According to the Guardian, Ismail Gha'ani, vice commander of the al-Quds force, the armed wing of the Revolutionary Guards, said in an interview with the semi-official ISNA News Agency: "If the Republic Islamic was not present in Syria, massacres have been taken in a much broader scale. " "Before we intervene, too many people were killed by the opposition, but through the physical and nonphysical presence of the Islamic republic, great massacres have been avoided". According to the Guardian, the interview published last weekend, was removed from ISNA website
31 May 2012 Al Arabiya Clinton Rejects Syria Military Intervention; Slams Russian Resistance to U.N. Action
(U) U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (R) speaks alongside television host Johannes Langkilde during a townhall forum with students at The Black Diamond in Copenhagen, Denmark. (Reuters) U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday laid out arguments against a military intervention in Syria despite calls for the West to take action after last weeks massacre in the town of Houla. Speaking to Danish students, Clinton got tough questions on what might motivate the United States and other nations to take military action in Syria, where President Bashar al-Assad is battling a 14-month-old anti-government uprising. Fridays
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 massacre of more than 100 civilians, many of them children, in Houla has triggered calls for the West to take more robust action in Syria, despite Russian and Chinese opposition. However, Clinton rehearsed U.S. arguments against armed intervention for now in contrast with Libya, where Western-led air strikes last year helped bring an end to Muammar Qaddafis rule. Clinton said Syria had a more diverse society with greater ethnic divisions, no unified opposition, stronger air defenses and a much more capable military than Libyas. Above all, she stressed there was no international support because of Russian and Chinese opposition at the U.N. Security Council, where they have twice vetoed resolutions on Syria. A lot of people are trying to figure out what could be an effective intervention that wouldnt cause more death and suffering, she said, arguing Syrias population density increased the odds of civilian casualties in any armed action. We are thinking about all of this. There are all kinds of both civilian and humanitarian and military planning going on but the factors are just not there, she said. Clinton said she had not given up on the possibility of persuading Russia to support stronger action against the Assad government, saying she had made the case that the chances of a full-blown civil war were higher if the world failed to act. The dangers we face are terrible, she said, saying the violence between government forces and pro-Assad militias against the opposition forces would turn into something much worse. (That) could morph into a civil war in a country that would be riven by sectarian divides, which could then morph into a proxy war in the region because remember you have Iran deeply embedded in Syria, she said. We know it could actually get much worse than it is. Clinton criticized Russias resistance to U.N. action on Syria, warning that its policy could contribute to a civil war. The Russians are telling me they dont want to see a civil war. I have been telling them their policy is going to help contribute to a civil war, she told a mainly student audience on a visit to Copenhagen. We have to bring the Russians on board, said Clinton, who is in Denmark on the first leg of a Scandinavian tour. Clinton warned that unless unchecked, the deadly violence in Syria could lead to civil war or even develop into a proxy war because of Irans support for the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Remember you have Iran deeply embedded in Syria - their military are coaching the Syrian military. The Quds Force, which is a branch of the military, is helping them set up these sectarian militias, she said. Clinton did not describe any alternatives to United Nations-Arab League envoy Kofi Annans efforts to try to stop the violence. We are trying to keep pushing all the pieces to support Kofi Annan as an independent voice because the Syrians are not going to listen to us, she said. They may listen, maybe, to the Russians, so we have been pushing them.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 The Houla massacre, allegedly by government-backed forces, and the discovery of new execution-style killing since then has raised the pressure for international action. But Russia has adamantly refused to go against its close ally Syria with President Vladimir Putin warning Thursday that Moscow will not change its position under pressure. Russias position is well-known. It is balanced and consistent and completely logical, Interfax quoted Putins spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying. Syrian rebels have warned they will resume their defense of civilians if the government does not return to the peace plan by Friday.
31 May 2012 Ahram online US Envoy Slams 'Reprehensible' Russia Arms Sales to Syria US envoy Susan Rice on Thursday condemned "reprehensible" Russian arms deliveries to Syria as she stepped up US calls for increased international pressure on President Bashar al-Assad. The US ambassador to the United Nations also accused the Damascus government of stating a "blatant lie" by denying it was involved in a massacre in which 108 people were killed. A Russian ship carrying arms arrived in the Syrian port of Tartus last weekend, according to media reports and rights groups. Russia is Syria's last main international ally and has defended Assad in UN Security Council debates on the uprising against him. Russia's main Mediterranean naval base in Tartus. "With respect to the reported docking of a ship carrying Russian arms, this is obviously of the utmost concern given that the Syrian government continues to use deadly force against civilians," Rice told reporters at UN headquarters. "It is not technically, obviously, a violation of international law since there is not an arms embargo, but it is reprehensible that arms would continue to flow to a regime that is using such horrific and disproportionate force against its own people," Rice said. Russia's UN ambassador Vitaly Churkin has rejected criticism of the arms sales insisting they are legal and have no influence on the Syria conflict. "The weapons we may have provided to Syria under various contracts, which were concluded a long time ago, are fully in line with international law and do not contribute to the current armed violence in Syria," Churkin told reporters on Wednesday. Rice also condemned the Syrian government's denials of involvement in a massacre in the town of Houla last week in which at least 108 people died. The ambassador dismissed the Syrian government's statement that the massacre was carried out by "armed groups." "I think quite simply it's another blatant lie," she said. "There is no factual evidence, including that provided by the UN observers that would substantiate that rendition of events." Rice reaffirmed US demands that Assad must stand down under any deal to end the 15-month old Syria conflict.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 But she did not repeat a statement that the United States and its allies may have to consider acting outside of the United Nations if the Security Council does not press Assad to end the battle against protesters and opposition groups. The US ambassador said there were three main scenarios for the conflict, the best of which would be for Assad to comply with UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan's six point peace plan -- which includes ending attacks on towns and starting talks on a political transition. Rice said the United States fully supports Annan's efforts. "If they are going to succeed, what is clear at this stage is that the government of Syria is going to have to feel much greater pressure, particularly from its partners and supporters to fulfill its commitments," Rice said. "Up to date it has not felt sufficient compulsion to do so," she added. The second scenario would see the 15-nation Security Council take joint action. "It is the obligation of the Security Council to come together and apply that pressure in a collective way on the government of Syria," she said. Russia has so far blocked any UN move to put sanctions on Syria or permit military action. Rice said the third and worst scenario is a wider "proxy" conflict dragging in other countries in the region. "If in fact we are all united and we don't want to see that scenario, then we had better do something to change the current dynamic because that is the direction in which we seem to be heading if the status quo persists," said Rice.
01 June 2012 The Daily Star Syria Rebels Issue 48-Hour Ultimatum
(U) A Syrian woman carries her injured son who was shot in the hand by a Syrian border guard. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla) Syrian rebels gave President Bashar Assad a 48-hour deadline Wednesday to comply with an international peace plan otherwise they would renew their battle to overthrow him. The ultimatum was issued after U.N. observers reported the discovery of 13 bodies bound and shot in eastern Syria, adding to the world outcry over the massacre last week of 108 men, women and children.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 The latest developments emphasized how the peace plan drafted by U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan had failed to stem 14 months of bloodshed or bring the Syrian government and opposition to the negotiating table. Colonel Qassim Saadeddine of the rebel Free Syrian Army said its leadership had set a deadline of 0900 GMT Friday for Assad to implement the peace plan, which includes a cease-fire, deployment of observers, and free access for aid and journalists. If it fails to do so we are free from any commitment and we will defend and protect the civilians, their villages and their cities, Saadeddine said in a statement posted on social media. Both sides in the conflict have violated a tenuous cease-fire over the past two months but Assads forces have been by far the worst offender, according to U.N. monitors. Outrage at last Fridays massacre in the town of Houla led a host of Western countries to expel senior Syrian diplomats Tuesday and to press Russia and China to allow tougher action by the U.N. Security Council. Major General Robert Mood, the Norwegian head of the observer mission, said the 13 corpses found Wednesday in Assukar; about 50 km east of Deir al-Zour, had their hands tied behind their backs. Some had been shot in the head from close range. Mood called the latest killings an appalling and inexcusable act and appealed to all factions to end the cycle of violence. He did not apportion any blame but Syrian activists said the victims were army defectors killed by Assads forces. Video footage posted by activists showed the bodies face down on the ground, hands tied behind their backs, with dark pools of blood around their heads and torsos. U.N. peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous said in New York Tuesday that the Syrian army and Shabbiha militiamen supporting Assad had probably been responsible for killing the 108 people in Houla with artillery and tank fire, guns and knives. The government denied any responsibility and blamed Islamist terrorists its term for rebel forces. The uprising began last March with street protests against Assad, who succeeded his late, authoritarian father Hafez 11 years ago to perpetuate the family dynasty. While initially a pro-democracy movement, the struggle has grown into an armed struggle increasingly involving sectarian rivalries pitting the Sunni Muslim majority against the Alawite sect, to which the Assad clan belongs. Assads forces have killed 7,500 people since it began, according to a U.N. toll. The government, which says the unrest is the work of foreign-backed terrorists, says more than 2,600 soldiers or security agents have been killed. Annan, trying to save his peace plan from collapse, told Assad in Damascus Tuesday that Syria was at a tipping point. The pro-opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said more than 100 people had been killed the same day. Syrias state news agency said pumping had been halted to an oil pipeline in eastern Syria after a bomb attack Wednesday.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 Diplomats said the U.N. Human Rights Council would meet in Geneva Friday to consider the Houla massacre, the fourth time Syria has faced such scrutiny since the anti-Assad revolt broke out in March 2011. Assad has so far proved impervious to international scolding and Western sanctions for his crackdown and has failed to return troops and tanks to barracks, as required by the Annan plan. However, the U.N. observers sent in to monitor a notional cease-fire were able to verify the horrors in Houla, which produced a wave of world revulsion. Assads heavyweight international allies, China and Russia, stuck to their rejection of any intervention or U.N.backed penalties to force him to change course. Asked if Western and Arab countries were pressing Moscow to change its position, President Vladimir Putins spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday: Russia is a country with a consistent foreign policy and any pressure is hardly appropriate. The West is itself averse to military intervention, although French President Francois Hollande said Tuesday that this could change if the U.N. Security Council backed it. But that is not possible unless veto-wielding members Russia and China allow it. Turkey joined other countries including the U.S., Britain, France and Germany in expelling Syrian diplomats in protest at the Houla massacre, saying unspecified international measures would follow if crimes against humanity continued. Stung by the expulsions, Syria told the Dutch charge daffaires to leave. She was one of the few senior Western diplomats left in Damascus. Despite the diplomatic deadlock, Annan is pressing on with his mission. It is important to find a solution that will lead to a democratic transition in Syria and find a way of ending the killings as soon as possible, he said after talks in Jordan Wednesday. With goodwill and hard work, we can succeed. It is hard to see where a breakthrough might come from. China reiterated that it opposed military intervention and did not support a forced change of government. Russia also reasserted its hostility to military action or to any further Security Council measures beyond a nonbinding statement condemning the Houla killings. We believe consideration in the Security Council of any new measures to influence the situation now would be premature, Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said. Russia and China have twice vetoed Western-backed Council resolutions condemning the crackdown. Annans deputy Jean-Marie Guehenno told the Security Council that direct engagement between government and opposition was impossible at the moment.
01 June 2012 Al Jazeera
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 UN Rights Body Meets over Syria Massacre
Unclassified The United Nation's Human Rights Committee is meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, to discuss last week's massacre in Syria that killed 108 people, many of them children. The council will call on Friday for a full UN inquiry into the carnage in Houla, a cluster of villages in the centre of the country, after putting initial blame on government bombardment and gunmen loyal to President Bashar al-Assad. The incident was one of the deadliest incidents since the uprising against Assad's regime started in March last year, and has drawn global condemnation. Countries including the United States, Britain, Australia, and France expelled Syrian diplomats in protest. A draft resolution, circulated late on Thursday, condemns the "killings confirmed by UN observers" in attacks that involved "the wanton killings of civilians by shooting at close range and by severe physical abuse by pro-regime elements and a series of government artillery and tank shelling of a residential neighbourhood". The rights committee, which has repeatedly condemned Syria for its crackdown on dissent, is likely to adopt the resolution by a wide margin, even if countries including China, Cuba and Russia may vote against it as in the past, diplomats said. 'Summary executions' The office Navi Pillay, the UN high commissioner for human rights, said on Tuesday that most victims were civilians and entire families were shot in their homes. Witnesses told UN investigators that most died in summary executions carried out by militiamen loyal to Assad, known as shabiha. But Syria said its preliminary investigation had shown that up to 800 anti-government gunmen carried out the massacre with the aim of igniting sectarian strife and encouraging foreign military intervention. Susan Rice, the US ambassador to the UN, dismissed the Syrian investigation's conclusion as "another blatant lie", telling reporters in New York "there is no factual evidence ... that would substantiate that rendition of events". UN observers deployed to Syria traveled to Houla the day after the attack and confirmed the massacre [Reuters] Damascus has announced that special prayers for the victims would be held at mosques across the country on Friday.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 At a news conference on Thursday, Qassem Jamal Suleiman, who headed the Syrian government's investigation into the massacre, categorically denied any regime role. He said hundreds of rebel gunmen carried out the slaughter after launching a co-ordinate attack on five security checkpoints. "Government forces did not enter the area where the massacre occurred; not before the massacre and not after it," he said, adding that the victims were families who refused to oppose the government or carry arms. Opposition activists have confirmed that checkpoints were attacked by rebels, but say it happened after security forces opened fire on a demonstration. The area is still under attack, according to activists who said government forces focused shelling on Thursday on the Houla village of al-Tibeh. 'Systematic rights violations' The UN council draft text condemns the killings as violating Security Council resolutions and accuses Syrian forces of "repeated and systematic violations of human rights". It calls for an existing team of UN rights investigators to "conduct a comprehensive, independent and unfettered special inquiry consistent with international standards into the events in Houla, to publicly identify those responsible for these atrocities and hold them to account". But the EU is seeking stronger language on accountability, including a possible call for action by the UN Security Council, and has proposed amendments, according to diplomats. "The question is whether to try to keep the Russians on board or sacrifice some of the stronger language. Some would like to create a more pragmatic approach with an eye to New York, ultimately," a Western diplomat said, referring to Russia's veto in the UN Security Council. Russia is a staunch ally of the Assad government and one of its main weapons suppliers. A Russian cargo ship that Western officials say was heavily laden with weapons for the government of Syria reportedly docked at the Syrian port of Tartous last weekend.
01 June 2012 Now Lebanon Twelve Syrian Workers Executed On Eve of UN Watchdog Meet Syrian government forces summarily executed 12 civilians on their way home from work in a fertilizer factory in Qusayr, activists in the central town told AFP by telephone on Friday. The reported killings late on Thursday afternoon came on the eve of a special meeting of the UN Human Rights Council called to discuss the conflict. "The workers were on a bus when they were forced to stop at a checkpoint on the outskirts of Qusayr," said Salim Kabbani of the Local Coordination Committees, which organize protests on the ground. "Regime forces tied their hands behind their backs and shot them."
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 He said abuses had become routine in Qusayr, a town southwest of the flashpoint central city of Homs. "The checkpoint where the workers were killed is dangerous, and people are often tortured there." Several areas of rebel bastion Qusayr have been under non-stop shelling by government forces, Kabbani said. "We have a very high number of wounded, and we fear many of them will die because we don't have the medical materials we need to treat them." The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it had asked the UN military observer mission in Syria to visit Qusayr to investigate the latest killings. The Observatorys head Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP that the persistent bloodshed made a mockery of the UNbacked ceasefire that was supposed to take effect from April 12. "The ceasefire has been dead for a month," he said. "In Qusayr, the regime has shelled incessantly in recent days because it is trying to regain control of an area it has lost control of to rebels." REGIONAL EDITORIALS (Top) 31 May 2012 Al Jazeera Syria: The Tragic Space between the Unacceptable and the Impossible By Richard Falk
(U) 50 of the 108 civilians who died in Houla were children below the age of 10 [Reuters] The Houla Massacre of a week ago in several small Muslim villages near the Syrian city of Homs underscores the tragic circumstances of a civilian vulnerability to brutal violence of a criminal government. Most of the 108 civilians who died in Houla were executed at close range in cold blood, over 50 of who were children under the age of 10. It is no wonder that the Houla Massacre is being called a tipping point in the global response to Syrian violence that started over 15 months ago. The chilling nature of this vicious attack upon the most innocent among us, young children, seems like a point of no return. What happened in Houla, although still contested, seems confirmed as the mainly the work of the Shabiha,
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 the notorious militia of thugs employed by Damascus to deal cruelly with opposition forces and their supposed supporters. This massacre also represents a crude rebuff of UN diplomacy, and the ceasefire its 280 unarmed observers were monitoring since it was put into effect on April 12. In this regard the events in Houla reinforced the impression that the Assad regime was increasingly relying on tactics of depraved criminality and state terror to destroy the movement that has been mounted against it. Such defiance also challenged the UN and the international community to do more when confronted by such evil, or face being further discredited as inept and irrelevant. Tragedy or tipping point? But is not the Syrian situation better understood as a tragic predicament rather than presented as a tipping point that is raising false expectation that external initiatives can somehow redeem the situation? What kind of hitherto unimaginable action plan undertaken by the UN or NATO could hope to stop the violence and change the governing structure of Syria for the better? There has long existed an international consensus that the Syrian response to a popular uprising should be effectively repudiated, but this awareness was coupled with a growing realization that there were no good options. Even those who supported the Annan Plan in the UN acknowledged from its inception that it was a desperate last resort with almost no chance of succeeding. Cynics claimed that it was accepted by Assad to gain time, and mute outside pressures. There was a widely shared sentiment at the UN that it was unacceptable to stand back and watch further crimes against humanity take place, something must be done, but what? Remembering the awful failure of the world to stop the genocide in Rwanda in 1994 or the massacres in Srebrenica in 1995, there existed the feeling that the developments in Syria were building up to a comparable humanitarian catastrophe, already more than 10,000 Syrians had died, that must somehow be stopped. A scarcity of viable solutions Diplomacy had been arduously pursued since the outset, originally by Turkey, then the Arab League, and finally by Kofi Annan, the Envoy of the UN Secretary General, each phase with a seeming receptivity in Damascus but clearly without noticeable effects on its violent tactics. The parties, including Bashar al-Assad sweet talked international emissaries, announced their willingness to stop the killing and other abuses, and even accepted monitoring arrangements, but then before the negotiators had even left the country the two sides resumed their brutal combat as if nothing had happened, and for this, the opposition led by the Syrian Free Army deserves a share of the blame. In effect, diplomacy has been given multiple chances, and continues to be put forward as the only way to make a difference in the conflict, and yet it clearly lacks the capacity to stop the bloodshed and suspend the political struggle for control of the Syrian state. This naturally turns our attention to more coercive options. Russia has been blamed for preventing stronger action being endorsed by the UN Security Council. Indeed Russia has used its veto to block such initiatives as the imposition of an arms embargo or sanctions on Syria, and is under great pressure to join the current buildup of support for the exertion of increased outside pressure. Amnesty International, for instance, has issued an appeal to the Security Council to call upon the International Criminal Court to issue indictments against the Syrian leadership for their role in the commission of severe crimes against humanity, culminating in the Houla Massacre. Making matters worse
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 Military intervention has been strongly advocated for several months by some irresponsibly belligerent political figures in the United States, most notably by John McCain, but there seems little appetite for such a military undertaking even at the Pentagon, and certainly not according to the court of public opinion. Also Syria has no substantial coveted oil reserves. The logistics and politics surrounding such a proposed intervention in Syria make it an unrealistic option. There is not the political will to mount the sort of major military operation on the ground that would combine regime change with an enforced stability until normalcy could be established by a new national leadership. Unlike Libya where NATOs reliance on air power turned the tide decisively, if destructively, in favour of rebel forces, this scenario is viewed as not workable in Syria where there continues to exist more public support for the regime and more substantial military and paramilitary resources at its disposal, especially if it continues to receive assistance from Iran. All in all, the military option would likely make matters worse for the Syrian people, increasing the magnitude of internal violence without having the effect of bringing the conflict to a desirable end. The dilemma exposes the weakness of empathetic geopolitics in a world that continues to be dominated by territorially supreme sovereign states. In the Syria situation this tragic reality is revealed in all its horror. It is unacceptable in a media wired world where events are reported visually almost as they are occurring, or immediately thereafter, there is no way to avert the gaze of the outside world. It is morally unacceptable to stand by, watch, and do nothing. But the UN lacks the authority and capability to impose the collective will of international society except when it can mobilize an effective geopolitical consensus as it did in Libya (but by way of deceiving Russia and China as to the scope of the response contemplated by the authorization of force in March of 2011). For reasons explained above, plus the lingering resentment due to the Libyan deception on the part of Russia and China, there has not emerged a geopolitical consensus favoring military intervention, and none is likely. Just as doing nothing is unacceptable, mounting a military intervention is unrealistic, and hence, impossible. Does a solution exist? What is left to fill the gap between the unacceptable and the unrealistic is diplomacy, which has proved to be futile to this point, but hanging on to the slim possibility that it might yet somehow produce positive results, is the only conceivable way forward with respect to the Syrian situation. It is easy to deride Kofi Annan and the frustrations arising from the repeated failures of Damascus to comply with the agreed framework, but it remains impossible to find preferable alternatives. If diplomacy is finally admitted to be a deadened as seems so likely it raises serious questions as to whether in a globalizing world the absence of stronger global institutions of a democratic character is not a fatal flaw. Moral awareness without the political capacity to act responsively points up a desperate need for global reform, but the grossly unequal distributions of power and wealth in the world makes such adjustments impossible to make within the foreseeable future. And so the peoples of the world go on living in this tragic space between the unacceptable and the impossible. It will take a miracle to close this gap!
01 June 2012 Al Arabiya Can Turkey Inspire Egypt? By Mustafa Abdelhalim Last week, Egyptians went to the polls to participate in the first presidential election since Mubarak's downfall in February 2011. Going forward, the new president, who will be elected in the second phase of elections in June,
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 should look to examples from other countries that have undergone successful democratic transitions. When asked what leader outside their own country they most admired, a recent poll from the University of Maryland found that 63 percent of Egyptians answered Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, indicating that Egyptians may be interested in learning from Turkey. Turkey can serve as a relevant model because it has successfully dealt with three key challenges facing Egypt the relationship of the army to a civilian government, economic growth and fostering positive international relations. In terms of the first of these issues, Egypt is currently struggling with what role the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) should play in the new government, and how much power it should hold. While the situations of Egypt and Turkey are different, Turkey provides a useful model when it comes to checking the armys power through the rule of law, rather than violence. Turkeys ability to curtail the armys influence has generally been judged to be a success. The army in Turkey appointed itself the guardian of Turkish secularism and has ousted four governments since 1960 when military leaders said that the government was failing to uphold secular values. However, when a plot was disclosed that army generals were attempting to topple current Prime Minister Erdoans government in 2008, everyone (including members of the army) was held accountable to the law. The police are investigating the case, detaining suspects, including army officials such as former Chief of General Staff General lker Babu, while the courts and Parliament monitor the process to ensure fairness. Even in this time of transition, Egypt has demonstrated the importance of upholding the rule of law. The Administrative Courts recent decision to suspend the newly formed constituent assembly because of the lack of diversity demonstrates that there are indeed checks and balances in Egypts system. The country can build on this foundation going forward. The second key challenge is the economy. Turkeys Justice and Development Party (AKP), an Islamic political party, has managed to maintain power primarily through its economic policies, rather than religious ideology. Although the Reuters news agency calls it "Islamic-leaning" and media often focus on this aspect of its identity, AKP leaders insist that the party should be judged by policies and not ideology. This approach has proved to be a recipe for economic development. Rather than focusing on creating an Islamic state like the Al Nour party in Egypt, which calls for Islamic law to serve as the guiding principles for political, social and economic issues AKP leaders main focus has been raising standards of living. This interest is not altruistic, but based on practical political goals. The AKP is aware that people will only re-elect the party if it can prove its value. This decision will not be made based on religious arguments, but economic achievement. Turkeys GDP grew 9 per cent in 2010, suggestive of this models success. Egypt, whose GDP increased by approximately 1 per cent in the past year, can adopt the same attitude. Some leaders, such as Muslim Brotherhood presidential candidate Khairat el-Shater, have made strides in this direction by emphasizing the need to increase private investment in development. What is needed now is to move past rhetoric and implement such proposals. When it comes to the third challenge, fostering positive international relations, Egypt can learn by following Turkeys lead on middle ground policies. Turkey is a member of the Council of Europe, but is also a leading member of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, evidence of its middle ground policy between Europe and the Middle East.
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 Egypt is well-situated to take similar actions. Geographically, Egypts Suez Canal links Africa and Asia, making it ideally situated for exports. Egypt has the potential workforce for manufacturing, as one of the worlds youngest countries with two-thirds of its population under 30. Just as Turkey exports appliances to Europe, Egypt has enormous potential to reach African and Middle Eastern markets. Egypt and Turkey share many things in common, and it would benefit Egypt to take the best lessons from its neighbors success story, creating its own.
31 May 2012 Al Sharaq Al Awsat The Regimes Rhetoric By Diana Moukalled Last year, the number of friends I have on Facebook doubled. I do not know most of them personally; however the Syrian revolution, with its momentum and character and tragedies has served as a basis to connect with Syrian youth and writers and other figures that we do not often hear from, thanks to the complexities in the Lebanese and Syrian situation. The walls of Facebook are full of opinions, pictures and comments on the situation in Syria, and Facebook has served as a space to get to know others and discuss issues and put forward views and opinions. The walls of my Facebook friends now serve as a space to monitor inter-Syrian discussions on the revolution. These discussions sometimes turn tearful or angry, whilst at other times they burst with laughter and sarcasm. After every massacre or bombardment or arrest or video depicting death and torture, Facebook is filled with fierce debates that were timid or conservative during the first weeks of the revolution, but which have become fiercer and more violent with the escalation of the violence and brutality of the Syrian regime. Such debates see Syrians trade comments like: I am not saying this because I am a Sunni. The Alawites have nothing to do with this. The sect must decide. What do you mean? Have you now understood the issue! and even you are partners in the crimes that are taking place, and you must now pay the price for this! Day after day, the discussions on Facebook are being overshadowed by an atmosphere that is full of mutual suspicion and fear of the other. This is something that is perhaps understandable, for what is taking place in Syria is beyond any reason, logic or conscience. There can be nothing worse or more brutal than the massacre that took place in Houla, particularly as this served as a clear and frank message [from the regime]. We were then told: Alawite pro-regime Shabiha militia attacked Sunni families and completely destroy them, whilst the worst thing they did was take part in the wholesale slaughtering of children! Does this not represent a clear and frank inciting of civil conflict in Syria? This was an open message implemented and promoted by the regime, and it has, unfortunately, been taken up by many section of society, including the Syrian elite. In reality, this incitement has intensified and Facebook is now the scene for exchanging angry sectarian views and opinions by those who previously swore they would never reach this level of division and incitement. Whilst it is true that this is due to the anger and rage that has been incited by the slaughtering of children, still
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO
The CENTCOM
01 Jun 2012 Despite the horrifying brutality that we witnessed in Houla and Hama, and prior to this in Karm el-Zaytoun, this does not justify such discourse, particularly as we are talking about civilians with high or at least middling levels of education and culture. Cracks have begun to appear in once strong friendships, whilst in reality all parties are the victims of this regime and its discourse, which has convinced everybody, and which portrays the revolution as the intransigent party. The Syrian street may have seen individual sectarian events alongside the deliberate practices that are being carried out by the regime, but there is something that is beginning to creep into discourse, culture and relations, and this is the mixing of religion and politics. Therefore slogans and discourse have become sectarian, whilst those who should have addressed and responded to this are falling into its trap!
UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO

01 June 12 Osint Levant Tracker

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

01 June 12 Osint Levant Tracker

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

01 June 12 Osint Levant Tracker

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

01 June 2012 Ynet

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

01 Jun 2012 Luck Of A Major General

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

01 June 2012 Al Jazeera Syrian Group Claims Kidnap of Shia Pilgrims

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

01 June 2012 Al Jazeera

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

01 Jun 2012 UN Rights Body Meets over Syria Massacre

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

OSINT Phone #: 813.827.1441 - Email: CCJ2-OSINT@CENTCOM.SMIL.MIL

You might also like