IN THEIR OWN WORDS: "IS and Saudi Arabia follow the same thought"

Written by

Maha Hamdan

A former imam of the Grand Mosque in Mecca has said that the Islamic State (IS) group follows the same brand of Islam as officially espoused by Saudi Arabia.

Footage translated by British think tank Integrity UK on Wednesday showed leading cleric Sheikh Adel al-Kalbani speaking to the Dubai-based channel MBC about what he believes are the roots of IS.

“We follow the same thought [as IS] but apply it in a refined way,” he said. “They draw their ideas from what is written in our own books, from our own principles.”

The cleric said that “we do not criticise the thought on which it (IS) is based".
Kalbani repeated the oft spread conspiracy that unnamed intelligence agencies had played a role in the rise of IS.

He said intelligence agencies had “exploited” those who followed the ultra-conservative Salafist brand of Sunni Islam.

“Intelligence agencies and other countries might have [helped] Daesh to develop, providing them with weapons and ammunitions, and directing them,” he said, using an Arabic acronym for IS.

 

 

Kalbani was refused a visa to visit the UK in 2013. Although no official reason was given for the refusal, it was reported at the time that it may have been linked to televised comments he made calling Shia Muslims apostates.
Apostasy is a term used to describe Muslims who have left Islam.

In his MBC interview, which was broadcast on 22 January, Kalbani said IS and Salafists in Saudi Arabia shared the same opinion on apostasy, which is that those who leave Islam should be executed.

Kalbani also spoke about the killing of journalists by IS, including Americans James Foley and Steven Sotloff, which drew global condemnation in September 2014.

He said “their blood was shed according to Salafist fatwas (religious edicts) not outside the Salafist framework.”

Saudi Arabia has regularly been compared with IS, in so much that both appear to stipulate similar punishments for crimes that include apostasy, adultery, and drinking alcohol.

However, Riyadh has rubbished such claims, and fought back by saying they face a domestic threat from IS and are working hard to round up supporters of the group in the kingdom.

IS has repeatedly said it wishes to topple the Saudi royal family and the group has declared a province in the kingdom.

IS has also claimed responsibility for several bombings in Saudi Arabia since the beginning of 2015, including multiple attacks on the Saudi Shia community and on police in the country’s southern region.

AP FACT CHECK: GOP claims on carpet bombs, Kurds and economy

An international monitoring group says people around the world demonstrated to governments in 2015 that they must become more transparent and tackle the large-scale corruption that continues to plague so many countries and hinder their development.

In its 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) released on January 27, Transparency International ranked 168 countries based on perceived levels of public-sector corruption, with Denmark edging out Finland to win the title as the least corrupt country in the world and Somalia and North Korea being declared the most corrupt.

The high levels of corruption in Afghanistan -- which was ranked 166th -- Iraq (161st), Turkmenistan (156th), and Uzbekistan (153rd) placed them all near the bottom of the index.

Central Asian countries as a whole did poorly, with Tajikistan tying with Nigeria for 136th place and Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan seen as equally corrupt and listed 123rd on the index.

"All five countries of Central Asia are…at the bottom of the CPI table," said Svetlana Savitskaya, Transparency International’s regional coordinator for the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in Europe and Central Asia, told RFE/RL.

"[The low score] is a signal that corruption is endemic, it is deeply ingrained, and it has a systemic nature [in Central Asia]," she said.

Savitskaya said there have been no big changes or improvement in corruption levels in any of the Central Asian countries since 2012, saying the situation is one of "stagnation all over the region."

She said the situation is similar in several other former Soviet republics such as Russia (119th), Ukraine (130th), Moldova (103rd), Armenia (95th), and Azerbaijan (119th).

"If you analyze what is going on as far as anticorruption reforms [in Ukraine], not so much is going on," Savitskaya said. "The political will is pretty weak -- the government doesn’t demonstrate that it is so committed to perform well on [taking] anticorruption [actions]."

Savitskaya said Transparency International (TI) has not seen any positive changes in Russia in recent years, even though the government has declared that it is trying to fight corruption.

"[Russian authorities] continue to limit space for civil society; they continue to press nongovernmental organizations – including [Transparency International – Russia]; to exert pressure on investigative journalists, on independent media," she said.

Savitskaya said Transparency International "has not registered any tangible changes [in Russia regarding corruption] – when you speak to ordinary citizens they don’t sense any positive change yet."

She said Belarus (107th) recently adopted a new anticorruption law which envisages regulations on conflicts of interest, public officials making income and asset declarations, and the participation of civil society in anticorruption efforts.

"It will be interesting to see how this will materialize in real life because this country doesn’t have any freedoms like political or civic liberties; it doesn’t have independent media…and these things are very important for qualitative anticorruption work," Savitskaya said.

Corruption is currently one of the leading topics in Moldova, which is embroiled in a political crisis due to the disappearance of more than $1 billion from state banks and numerous reports of corruption among the country’s political leaders and oligarchs.

TI’s office in the Moldovan capital, Chisinau, said in a statement that "as never before, the link between corruption and state capture has become visible."

It added that there has been a delay in the approval of several laws addressing "the system of integrity and the failure in taking a prompt action against those responsible for overseeing the security of the banking sector."

Turning to the Caucasus, Savitskaya said "Georgia (ranked 48th on the CPI) as usual is the champion, it is the best performer of all in the whole region."
She added that there has been no change in Azerbaijan’s score and that Armenia had actually gone down from 2014 to 2015.

Savitskaya pointed out that "in most of the countries of the former Soviet Union – Belarus, Moldova, and [those in] Central Asia – there exists this nexus, this link between political parties and businesses is so strong [and] which causes huge political corruption."

The Transparency International report says that "a failure to tackle corruption is feeding ongoing vicious conflicts" in Afghanistan (186th) and Pakistan (117th).
It points out that the setting up of anticorruption commissions in these countries and others in the region is a good first step, but such efforts are often undermined by “political interference and inadequate resources.”

Iran is in a stagnant position (130th) and Iraq checks in as one of the 10 worst countries on the Corruption Perception Index (161st).

Mass public demonstrations in several Iraqi cities in 2015 resulted in pledges by Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi to reduce government largesse and to implement several other reforms, but the actions thus far seem to have not satisfied the people or some important religious leaders.

A minimum of three opinion polls among residents of a country on their perception of public corruption is needed for Transparency International to secure a "score" for a country on the Corruption Perception Index.

As the report points out, no country came close to achieving a perfect score, and it lists a string of corruption scandals that occurred in Denmark -- considered the world’s least corrupt country -- and fellow upstanding countries Finland, Sweden, and Norway.

The report says the way to fight corruption is to attack graft within politics and to reform a country's financial sector.

But it points out that these things are impossible unless a country's civil society and the media are "genuinely free" -- preconditions that are unfortunately missing in many of the countries in RFE/RL's broadcasting regions.

Saudi Arabia: “The Final Nail In The Coffin For The Credibility” Of UN Council

Robert Fantina


According to its own website, the United Nations Human Rights Council is “responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights around the globe.”

At the opening of the 4th UNHRC session on March 12, 2007, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said: “All victims of human rights abuses should be able to look to the Human Rights Council as a forum and a springboard for action.” Pretty words, indeed, but lacking any real power, the council is mainly symbolic.

In what can only be seen as another strange example in the bizarre environment of world politics, last September, Faisal bin Hassan Trad, Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva, was elected as chair of a UNHRC panel that selects independent experts to draft international human rights standards and write reports on violations. Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch, a Geneva-based NGO which monitors the international body, described the appointment as “the final nail in the coffin for the credibility” of the UNHRC.

In the FAQ section on the council’s website is the question: “What are the expectations of the members to the Council?” The answer: “When voting for members of the Council, member states take into consideration a candidate’s contribution to the promotion and protection of human rights.”

The violations of the basic human rights of the Saudis by their government are countless. On Jan. 4, the country started the new year by carrying out its largest mass execution since 1980, killing 47 people, including four by firing squad and 43 by beheading. Many of those killed were targeted for speaking up against the Saud regime. But this is only one of the more widely-publicized examples of Saudi barbarity.

In its 2015 world report, Human Rights Watch, summarizing the situation in Saudi Arabia, asserted:

“Saudi Arabia continued in 2014 to try, convict, and imprison political dissidents and human rights activists solely on account of their peaceful activities. Systematic discrimination against women and religious minorities continued. Authorities failed to enact systematic measures to protect the rights of 9 million foreign workers. As in past years, authorities subjected hundreds of people to unfair trials and arbitrary detention. New anti-terrorism regulations that took effect in 2014 can be used to criminalize almost any form of peaceful criticism of the authorities as terrorism.”

Likewise, Amnesty International, in its report of 2014/15, also noted restrictions on freedom of expression, including violent crackdowns on dissent, extensive use of the death penalty, torture of detainees, and flogging.

Partners in crime

One must wonder, then, how a nation with such barbaric practices joined the UNHRC. The application for the appointment came just days after Saudi Arabia posted an advertisement for eight new executioners, apparently to keep pace with an increase in execution orders (by November, the kingdom had executed 151 people, the highest number in 20 years).

As might be expected in any situation involving a quest for power, it seems that Saudi Arabia could only ascend to the human rights panel with some outside assistance. The United Kingdom, also seeking a seat on the council, sent a memorandum to Saudi Arabia, which was then forwarded to the foreign ministry. The memorandum requested that Saudi Arabia vote favorably for the U.K. to be admitted to the UNHRC. It was then suggested by the Saudi delegation that initially received the request that the foreign ministry could obtain the U.K.’s vote, if Saudi Arabia agreed to the U.K.’s request.

And what of the United States? Surely that self-proclaimed beacon of freedom and liberty would not associate itself with such a barbaric regime, and would bring all possible political pressure to bear, to force it to change its ways.

Invading the country to force U.S.-style democracy there would not be unprecedented.

But no, that is not the case. The U.S. maintains full diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia. In October, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met with Saudi King Salman for official talks on Middle East issues. About a week prior to the meeting, 28 Muslims had been beheaded by the Saudi regime for their alleged involvement in a stampede at the Holy Mecca in March.

Yet when U.S. humanitarian aid worker Peter Kassig was beheaded by Daesh (the Arabic acronym for the terrorist group commonly known as ISIS or ISIL) in November, President Barack Obama said it was “an act of pure evil by a terrorist group that the world rightly associates with inhumanity.”

It is interesting to note that, while the U.S. gets most of its oil from Canada, its second largest supplier is Saudi Arabia. Daesh is reportedly selling oil, making an estimated $1 million to $1.5 million a day. At present, the U.S. is not buying Daesh’s oil, although the group’s markets include Turkey, Syria and Israel, either directly or through third-party brokers. One cannot help but wonder if, should the U.S. decide to trade with Daesh, perhaps officials from Daesh will then have state meetings with the U.S. Secretary of State, and its beheading of political prisoners will be overlooked?

Saudi Arabia is not only a major source of oil for the U.S.; it is also a major market for that most American of all products: weaponry. In November, the U.S. approved arms sales to Saudi Arabia totalling $1.29 billion. Human rights violations in its own country and possible war crimes committed in Yemen might, any thinking person would be excused for believing, perhaps cause the world’s self-designated leader of freedom to pause before providing the Saudis with more weaponry to oppress their own people and kill their neighbors. But in the U.S., politicians have many gods, and chief among them is the almighty dollar. Last year, the defense industry spent in excess of $95 million dollars lobbying the U.S. government. The sales to Saudi Arabia represent a very nice return on that investment, indeed.

Those seeking redress should look elsewhere

So, in the context of the UNHRC, the inmates are running the asylum. It seems to follow the U.S. model, where the incursion of U.S. ships into Iranian waters, followed by the capture, humane treatment and quick release of the sailors, was roundly condemned by many U.S. politicians, who seemed to overlook the torture of U.S. political prisoners by U.S. service personnel in Iraq. Apparently, territorial waters are only territorial when the U.S. deems it so.

Saudi Arabia’s membership on the UNHRC draws to a close this year. And while it will do little material damage in that time, its membership, and the fact that its ambassador is the current chair on an important panel, will only serve to destroy what little credibility the council may ever have had.

Individuals around the world looking for redress for the horrific human rights abuses they are experiencing will, as always, have to look elsewhere.

BACKGROUNDER

Saudi has been in the news for the last few weeks, not only for their involvement with ISIS and the Yemen, but for a very home grown reason.
Firstly, for the advertisement for 8 more executioners to keep up with demand and then shockingly for the death penalty figures so far this year.

law Of The Land over there I decided to do some researching and even I was blown away by the strictures put down in this Monarchist dictatorship. I cannot in my wildest dreams imagine a human being who would wish to live under such a lack of human kindness. I have been reading up on Sharia Law for some months now and it doesn’t make for good reading.

On Monday 15th June 2015, they beheaded their 99th and 100th prisoner respectively.

Ismael al-Tawn – A Syrian – convicted of drug trafficking of amphetamines
Ram al-Khadi – A Saudi – for murder

The Saudi Press Agency said in a news release that only 14 of the 100 prisoners were convicted of a crime which in Islamic Law mandates the death penalty, the others were based on the Judges discretion. Of the 100 executions 57 have been Saudi’s the other 43 have been of foreign descent with Pakistan (14) being the second largest number to be executed.

To put this into perspective in the whole of 2014 the execution count was 88. They are well on their way to beat their previous highest count of 192 in 1995. At present the countries with the highest tally of executions as of 2014 are as follows:-

IRAN – 289
* SAUDI ARABIA – 88
IRAQ – 61
UNITED STATES –35

It is believed the country to top the charts would be China which has a yearly figure estimated to be in the 1,000’s but there are no official figures reported. Iran has executed 340 prisoners so far this year with 98 hangings alone between 9th-28th April.

*Saudi Arabia has the smallest population of the other listed countries.

CONSTITUTIONAL LAW

Saudi Arabia is an Absolute Monarchy and has no legally binding written constitution. In 1992, the Basic Law of Saudi Arabia was adopted by Royal Decree. It declares that the King must comply with Sharia Law and that the Quran and Sunna (traditions of Mohammed) are the country’s constitution.

MODIFIED SHARIA LAW

Most Muslim countries that retain or adopt Sharia usually determine which parts will be enforceable and modernise them. Unlike other Muslim countries, Saudi regards an unmodernised Sharia in its entirety as the law of the land and refuses to interfere with it.

CRIMINAL LAW

There are no jury trials in Saudi and courts observe few formalities. A criminal procedure code was introduced in 2001, but in a Human Rights Watch report in 2008, it noted

the Judges were either ignorant of the code or were aware of it but routinely ignored it
Criminal law within Sharia has three categories namely :-

QISAS – Eye-for-an-eye punishment (i.e murder or involving bodily harm)
HUDUD – fixed Quranic punishments for specific crimes
TAZIR – which represents most other cases ( bribery,drug trafficking etc)

A conviction requires proof in one of three ways :-

A confession
*Testimony from 2 male witnesses
Affirmation or denial by oath.
* At this point let me clarify who the Judge will take for testimony if there are not 2 male witnesses. Women’s evidence normally carries half the weight of a man in Sharia courts, however,in criminal trials a woman’s evidence is not allowed at all. Testimony from Non-muslims or Muslims whose doctrines are considered unacceptable ( e.g. Shia) and may be discounted.

FAMILY LAW

Men can divorce their wives at any time, without needing recourse to legal avenues. The divorce is final immediately, a woman can only obtain a divorce with the consent of her husband and in reality this is very rare, it is almost impossible for a woman to do so. In the event of a divorce father’s have automatic custody of sons from the age of 7 and daughters from the age of 9.
Polygamy is permitted for men to have up to four wives at any time so divorce is very common and makes for unlimited polygamy for the men. The divorce rate among marriages in Saudi is 50%.

Women have almost non existent political and social rights. There is no law criminalising violence against women and in fact Saudi is 131 of 135 countries with a gender parity, they are ahead of Syria, Chad, Pakistan and Yemen.
PENAL CODE

There is no penal code in Saudi


WHAT JUSTIFIES THE DEATH PENALTY IN SAUDI

Murder
Apostasy
Blasphemy
Idolatry
Homosexuality
Sedition
Witchcraft and Sorcery ( a Lebanese fortune teller was given the death sentence in 2008 later reprieved
Adultery
Drug Trafficking
HUMAN RIGHTS IN SAUDI ARABIA
MUTAWA

The religious police enforce the Islamic code of behaviour. There are estimated to be 20,000 Mutawa who are untrained in law enforcement, their job is to keep the sexes separate in public, that business’s close at prayer times and pressures women to wear traditional dress and prevent them driving cars.
In 2002, 15 schoolgirls died in a fire at their school in Mecca after the Mutawa prevented male rescuers from entering because the girls were not veiled.

CENSORSHIP

Saudi censorship is one of the most restrictive in the world. After protest in 2011 the government banned all public demonstrations and marches.
No political parties or national elections are permitted in Saudi. there is no legal protection for freedom of speech and any public criticism of the government, Islam or the royal family is punishable. The Saudi Press is strictly censored.

LGBT

Homosexuality is punishable by death. However, there have been no executions for homosexuality since 2002. There have been arrests at ‘gay parties’ and where ‘men were acting as women’ but the penalties have been limited to imprisonment and/or flogging.

RELIGIOUS FREEDOM

imageNo faith other than islam is allowed, there are no churches of non-muslim places of worship. Even private prayer is forbidden in practice and the Saudi Police regularly search the houses of christians. foreign workers must observe Ramadan and are not allowed to celebrate Easter or Christmas etc.

In 2014, the Saudi authorities issued a Royal Decree branding all atheists as terrorists and are now being put on trial in the terrorist court. We are all aware of the terrible history Raif Badawi has has had with the Saudi Courts and the criticism of Saudi around the world.

SAUDI SEEKS TO HEAD UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL
Yes, you heard it here, Saudi are trying to move to assume leadership over the Human Rights Council after Germany relinquishes it in 2016.

This would of course be the final nail in the coffin for the credibility of the the UN Human Rights Council.They shouldn’t even be on the council to begin with , how can a regime that oppresses women, other religions, LGBT amongst many other human rights violations and imprisons an innocent man for blogging!

Saudi rates as the highest in human trafficking and the United States currently designates it as a “country of particular concern”, regarding religious persecution.

Iranian Navy Drone, Submarine Gather Intel on US Aircraft Carrier in Persian Gulf

FARSNEWS

The Iranian Navy's unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and a submarine recorded images of a US aircraft carrier on the third day of the main phase of the massive wargames underway along the country's Southeastern Makran seashores on the rims of the Persian Gulf on Friday.

The Navy's drone captured a video during the surveillance mission over the US aircraft carrier.

Meantime, a Qadir-class submarine also belonging to the Iranian Navy was also deployed close to the US aircraft carrier with a mission to gather intelligence and capture video of the US vessel's moves.

The Iranian submarine managed to take clear pictures of the aircraft carrier without catching the attention of the staff on board.

In a relevant development on Wednesday, the US Navy warship received a serious warning from several Iranian destroyers to keep away from their drill zone near the Strait of Hormuz, an incident that can keep frictions high after Iran captured 10 US marines in the Persian Gulf earlier this month.

Iran is running major naval wargames in its waters in the Persian Gulf. The high-profile Velayat exercises by the Iranian Navy is an annual event and all shipping lines and Naval vessels in the region are informed of the area of the drills according to international maritime and naval standards that require all foreign ships and vessels to keep some 5 nautical miles away from the wargames zone.

The USS MONTEREY (CG 61), a TICONDEROGA class cruiser, was sailing near the Strait of Hormuz where the Iranian forces were staging the main phase of the Velayat 94 massive wargames along the country's Southeastern Makran seashores on the rims of the Persian Gulf on Wednesday.

According to the Iranian Army, the US warship left the region immediately after receiving the warning.

Iran's Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said the warship seemed to be planning to spy on Iranian vessels and weapons.
"Some still seem to be holding no belief in Iran's naval power; hence they attempt to come close to get informed of our moves and capabilities," the Admiral said.

The incident was the second naval showdown between the United States and Iran in Persian Gulf waters in just two weeks.

On January 12, nine men and one woman from the US Navy strayed into the Iranian territorial waters near the Farsi Island in the Persian Gulf. They were immediately captured by the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC).

Their boats were equipped with 50mm caliber machine guns and other light and semi-heavy weapons. Many regional analysts have also praised the IRGC's brave reaction to the US aggression.

The IRGC freed the 10 a day later and after it was proved that the US marines had strayed into Iranian waters only due to the failure of their navigation devices and equipment.

US and UK have spied on Israeli army for 18 years

JTA


U.S. and British intelligence services have reportedly spied on Israel for 18 years after cracking its army’s encryption for communication between fighter jets, drones and army bases.

The information was reported Friday by The Intercept and the German newspaper Der Spiegel based on documents that came into the possession of Edward Snowden, the whistleblower who worked for U.S. intelligence before publishing classified material and fleeing to Russia.

Britain and the United States have reportedly used this access to monitor Israel Defense Forces operations in the Gaza Strip, watch for a potential strike on Iran and keep tabs on the drone technology that Israel exports.


Israel said later Friday it was disappointed but not surprised by the revelations.

“This is an earthquake,” an anonymous senior security source told Ynet. “It means that they have forcibly stripped us, and, no less important, that probably none of our encrypted systems are safe from them. This is the worst leak in the history of Israeli intelligence.”

According to the reports, the breaking of the drone encryption allowed Britain and the United States to view images and videos broadcast to Israel Defense Forces commands during drone operations in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and near the Jewish state’s northern border.

The tracking has been done from a Royal Air Force installation in the Troodos Mountains, near Mount Olympus, the highest point on the island of Cyprus.


The IDF encryption code was cracked as part of a major intelligence operation conducted by the U.S. National Security Agency, or NSA, and its British counterpart, the GCHQ, since 1998, according to Ynet.

In the photos leaked by Snowden, shots from video recordings taken by Israeli aircraft can been seen in detail, as well as slides prepared by members of the U.S. and British intelligence organizations explaining the significance of the findings.

“This access is indispensable for maintaining an understanding of Israeli military training and operations and thus an insight to possible future developments in the region,” The Intercept quoted a GCHQ report from 2008 as stating. “In times of crisis this access is critical and one of the only avenues to provide up to the minute information and support to U.S. and Allied operations in the area.”

That year, NSA analysts had “collected video for the first time from the cockpit of an Israeli Air Force F-16 fighter jet,” which “showed a target on the ground being tracked,” The Intercept reported.

Although Israeli drone strikes have been widely reported, officially the government refuses to confirm the use of armed drones.

ISIL sets sights on overthrowing governments in Morocco, Tunisia

Geo-Stratgey

Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) is calling on Muslims in Morocco and Tunisia to join its ranks and overthrow the two countries' "apostate" governments.

ISIL on Jan. 12 launched a new media campaign directed at Muslims in the Islamic Maghreb, urging potential jihadist to join ISIL strongholds in Tunisia, Libya, Mali and Algeria in order to oust the democratic governments of Tunisia and Morocco and replace them with an Islamic regime based on Sharia law.

ISIL believes the governments of Morocco and Tunisia are attempting to "westernize" Muslims by "cultivating Western lifestyles" which contradict Islamic tradition.

A jihadist speaking in one of the ISIL videos urges Muslims to attack Tunisia, saying:

"Follow in the footsteps of your brothers in Paris. Is it easier to bypass the security measures in Paris than in Tunisia? No. But we know Tunisia and we know its coward policemen. Hence, you can do twice as much as your brothers have done in France."

The terror organization's campaign against Tunisia and Morocco comes amid growing civil unrest in both countries. In Morocco, police dispersed a mass protest of teacher trainees that took place on Jan. 7. In Tunisia, nationwide protests of unemployed people have taken place in recent weeks.

Sexual Assault and the Migrant Crisis in Europe

MITPRESS


Joseph Bock, author of The Technology of Nonviolence, wrote previously on how smartphones be used to help the migration crisis in Europe. In this post, he explains how a digital map can be a tool in the prevention of sexual assault on women.

When I was a Fulbright specialist in Greece last December, I was touched when I spoke with volunteers on the Greek island of Lesvos—some of whom are involved in rescue to prevent drowning, others who offer shelter, dry clothes, and food. Some of them look through their binoculars for hours, trying to spot overloaded or sinking boats, as they sit on the beach between Lesvos and Turkey, where the short distance across the water makes it one of the main entry points into Europe.

More recently, after reading a series of articles, I was reminded that in humanitarian emergencies one often encounters the very best of humanity…and the very worst of humanity. The articles were about the sexual abuse of migrants, on the one hand, and sexual assaults of Europeans allegedly by migrant men, on the other. Migrant women are being raped, sometimes as payment for the services of smugglers. In other cases, local men prey on migrant women, assuming their lack of citizenship makes prosecution for committing the heinous crime less likely. European women in Cologne, Germany have been sexually assaulted by groups of men they claim to be from the Middle East or northern Africa, causing violent retribution.


I looked into what was being done about violence against women and came across a digital map developed by The City in a Time of Crisis project, which is built on a web-based platform called Crowdmap. Their map lists instances of violence against migrants in Athens, Greece. When there is a sexual assault, it can be entered into the map’s accompanying data base. Events are categorized, usually checked for validity, and then placed on the map.


 The map provides a visual representation of what is happening where.
The staff of The City in a Time of Crisis entered events from November 2009 through May 2015 (when they ran out of funding), during which 211 instances of violence were documented. Sources of this information includes people within Athens, blog postings, and news stories.

These maps can be useful to get a general picture of what is happening. They can also help in allocating resources to specific locations—such as when police officials focus more time and attention on “hot spots” to arrest sexual predators.

But a map like this can also support various programs designed to prevent sexual assault and rescue women trapped in sexual slavery. Harrassmap—another Crowdmap application that was originally created in Egypt but which has been replicated in roughly 28 countries—is not only tracking events, it is organizing citizens to take action to prevent sexual abuse. Harrassmap staff and volunteers create safe areas, offer employment opportunities to victims, mobilize citizens to report abuse, train people to stand up to sexual harassment, provide counseling and legal advice, and advocate for policies to address the problem.

When I go back to Athens in February, I plan on discussing how something like the Harrassmap program can be implemented. The map could serve as a centerpiece, a rallying point, for the good people of Athens to step forward and build programs around it designed to prevent abuse and sexual violence.
It is tragic and horrific that some men feel it is acceptable to take advantage of women. And women who have traveled across borders, who have and are seen to have an acute sense of vulnerability, are victims of sexual predators at much higher rates than the norm.

But do women have to put up with this? No, they can fight back! I’ve seen this first hand. I worked for American Refugee Committee when Fern Holland, a lawyer who had no fear, convinced rape victims in refugee camps in Guinea, West Africa, to file legal charges against the perpetrators. Although they feared retribution, a handful of victims agreed to press charges. Fern worked with local attorneys to prosecute. The rapists went to jail, and rape was no longer considered “a normal part of life” in those refugee camps.

Fern decided to set up a similar legal aid clinic in Iraq. I’m sorry to say that, tragically, Fern was killed there.

Migrant women. European women. Vulnerable women. Men showing the very worst of humanity. The Fern Hollands of the world showing the very best of humanity.

ISIS: The 'Islamic State' between Orientalism and the Interiority of MENA’s Intellectuals

Amal Ghazal and Larbi Sadiki


Is ISIS all about Islam, or about geopolitics? This dualism has framed the debate about ISIS among Western analysts, especially American ones. They have formed two camps, one sees in ISIS and its practices an irrefutable evidence of the “true face of Islam”; another insists that ISIS has nothing to do with “real Islam” and reduces it to a telltale backlash against imperialism and Western policies in the Middle East and North Africa (hitherto MENA).

This dichotomous approach is one of a few angles through which ISIS has been dissected and analyzed in the United States,[i] but it has more significance than others because it is more common and involves high profile American polemicists, activists and intellectuals who have shaped the contours of this debate. Yet both camps of the ISIS debate, we argue, evoke Orientalism as a discourse that privileges Western knowledge of the East and sidelines or patronizes voices from the MENA region. Their concerns are Eurocentric, revolving around Islamophobia, with the first camp promoting it and the second fearing and battling it, thus turning the ISIS debate into one about the West and its own battles and polemics.


This piece aims to deconstruct the polarized analysis of ISIS as either political or religious, either sacred or worldly, and suggests that, in fact, it could be both. By shedding light on some of the intensive debates raging in MENA concerning ISIS, we argue that ISIS is both a product of MENA’s politics, both local and foreign, and a symptom of a specific religious culture that reflects current developments, clashes and debates within the abode of Islam.

These derive their potency from a legitimacy crisis within a fragmented Sunni authority since the collapse of the Ottoman state, rising sectarian politics, and amateur literal interpretation of religious texts, etc. All are major concerns threatening the MENA region and beyond, and with which Arab and Muslim scholars, intellectuals, politicians and activists in MENA have been deeply engaged. To invoke these modern historical crises is not meant to render the rise of ISIS inevitable or self-evident but dismissing them and the debates in MENA about them is dangerous and shortsighted, and has led to the polarized impasse in the West on how to understand the rise of ISIS. It is time we move away from religious and geopolitical essentialisms, and take seriously MENA’s contested intellectual and political ground on which ISIS has been operating.


Thus, the purpose here is not to devise the endgame of the ISIS debate, declaring whether ISIS is more about politics or about religion, especially as the debate has unfolded in the West. ISIS, we contend, does not only exist to pander to its opponents of different forms and shapes both inside and outside MENA, but is also made, unmade and constructed by Arabs and Muslims in relationship to Islamic history, Islamic theology and regional politics, altogether.


The Double-Edged Sword of Orientalism

As aforementioned, the analysis of ISIS in the United States has mostly pursued simplified schema (is ISIS political or religious?), with analysts sharply divided between two opposite camps. One, fixated on ISIS as a religious phenomenon, uses ISIS to bash Islam and Muslims, intentionally overlooking the fact that a poll after another show the unpopularity of ISIS among Arabs and Muslims.[ii] This camp reduces the complexities of MENA’s politics to pure religious and cultural factors while overlooking the wider context in which such violent movements emerge. Worst, it adopts “a holier than thou” attitude, ignoring not only the West’ s own history of violence but also the West’s current practices of violence (or complicity in such practices) around the world, not least in MENA. This camp’s knowledge of MENA societies is very remote, superficial and impressionist at best. Its crudest articulations come from right wing pundits such as Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Ann Coulter et al who are best described as Islamophobes whose rhetoric is rooted in racism, intolerance and prejudice, rather than in a desire for open discussion. Not to underestimate or disregard their influence, we seek to open a discussion which transcends these limitations. Neither does it aim to engage with the New Atheist movement, another group within this camp.


Championed by the late Christopher Hitchens, Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris and others, this movement has been particularly hostile to Islam and Muslims after 9/11. Harris’ statement that “Islam right now is the mother lode of bad ideas,” and Dawkins’ characterization of Islam as “the greatest force of evil today,” are products of Orientalist thinking in the Saidian sense. At their worst, the New Atheists, with their cultural supremacy and patronizing language, disguise an imperialist chauvinism. Asef Bayat qualifies this type of knowledge production in the West about the Muslim Middle East in particular as “neo-Orientalism,’” describing it as “more entrenched, multi-faceted, and harmful than its predecessor; it has fed into what is currently called ‘Islamophobia’.”


The other camp, alarmed by rising Islamophobia in the West and its poisonous and divisive rhetoric, sidelines Islam and the religious culture altogether from the discussion, foregrounding instead the analysis almost exclusively in MENA’s politics and economics, and in the Western powers’ foreign policies in the region. This camp is characterized by deeper knowledge of MENA’s history and societies and the complex nature of its contemporary politics. It consists of academics, journalists and online activists, both Muslims and non-Muslims.


Yet this camp falls short of capturing all sides of the story informing the making of ISIS and does not cut deep enough into the various religious and intellectual milieus brewing in MENA. This can be due to ideological positions dismissing the significance and importance of religious worldviews, or to limited or partial experiences with the daily realities of MENA’s societies, or simply to lack of access to the different forms of local production of knowledge. Yet perhaps the main reason this camp is adamant about negating any connection between Islam and ISIS is the fear of pandering to Islamophobes. From that perspective, this camp risks practicing its own form of Orientalism in the way it discusses ISIS not so much as a problem in MENA but one about the West, its concerns, and internal politics. It speaks as an “authority” on the subject while overlooking voices and opinions from MENA that better represent the realities on the ground and offer a more critical analysis of ISIS that goes beyond the geopolitical dimensions. In sidelining such voices, this camp is denying the interiority that MENA’s intellectuals and scholars provide and is also painting a homogenous picture of MENA’s intellectual landscape, suppressing the variety and diversity of opinions and different levels of engagement in the region.


A good example of this camp’s narrative remains the debate that followed the March 2015 publication of the Atlantic article “What ISIS Really wants.” The article itself, with its generalizations and analytical shortcomings, suffers from crude Orientalism. For example, the author’s statement that “the religion preached by [IS]’ ardent followers derives from coherent and even learned interpretations of Islam,” is extremely flawed as it does not allow for different qualities of Islamic thought. To the contrary, ISIS’ interpretations are neither coherent nor learned, fall outside of juristic consensus and betray historical precedents. The author’s emphasis on ISIS’ “medieval religious nature” fails to see the complicity of modernity and modern institutions in the creation of phenomena like ISIS. But this article also revealed the shortsightedness of American critical commentary in general. The author, while acknowledging that nearly all Muslims reject the Islamic State, warns not to pretend “that [ISIS] isn’t actually a religious, millenarian group, with theology that must be understood to be combatted.” This characterization of ISIS as a religious group with a theology drew fierce criticism and raised the ire of many analysts, especially in the United States. Among those was the Iranian-American scholar Hamid Dabashi at Columbia University. His rebuttal best showcases this camp’s well-intended yet misleading and flawed analysis, and best captures how the IS debate in the West is not really about ISIS per se and MENA’s daily realities; it is more about the West’s internal politics and its own forms of knowledge production regarding MENA. Dabashi asked: “What utter stupidity might cause a person to ignore the world in which we live, and in which we have lived, and engage in the mind-numbing banality of searching for a ‘theology’ for the IS group?”[iii] That theology would even be considered as part of the identity and overall ideology of ISIS is an affront to him; it is dismissed out of hand. Surely, theology is not the main or only drive behind ISIS, but denying its existence denies reality. Regardless of the regional and foreign politics shaping the emergence of ISIS, ISIS defines itself in religious terms, it vies for and fiercely rivals other groups over religiously sanctioned authority, and dutifully and conscientiously anchors itself and its vision in religious texts. ISIS’ worldview, even if cultic, is a religiously-informed one par excellence while at the same time ISIS remains, first and foremost, a political organization with political goals. Not to acknowledge the presence of theology is not only an exercise in self-denial; it is also an outright dismissal of ISIS’ victims who are enslaved, maimed, tortured and executed, all in the name of the theology – as particular or extreme as it may be -- that ISIS adopts.

Dabashi’s refutation was purely reactionary, lacking engagement and insight.

It seems he wanted to deny ISIS a theology to challenge the Islamophobes nodding approvingly, for their own sinister goals, at the Atlantic article.


ISIS and the Debate Within
To be sure, one can find parallel narrati

ves in MENA to those in the West, insofar as they emphasize the political or the religious. While there is no shortage of voices in MENA that argue, not unlike many analysts in the West, that ISIS does not represent Islam, a closer look at the debates about ISIS among intellectuals in MENA reveals richer discussions that do not neatly fit the analytical categories of the political and the religious, the modern and the medieval produced in the West. They offer more self-critical analyses than, say, an official –and largely discredited- institution like al-Azhar does, and do not shy away from questioning the essence of the religious worldview informing ISIS and the significance of certain religious texts and interpretations --regardless of any lack of consensus around them-- in shaping groups such as ISIS.


Some of those critics belong to religious establishments but most of them do not; some of them are wedded, personally, to a religious worldview while others not necessarily so. Yet they all draw on discussions and terminology deeply engrained in Islamic history, jurisprudence and theology. They include Adonis, Sa‘d bin Tifla al-‘Ajami, al-Tahir Amin, Aziz al-Azmeh, Khalid Ghazal, Hasan Hanafi, Rosa Yasin Hasan, Ibtihal al-Khatib, ‘Amir Muhsin, Muhammad Shahrour, Sayyid al-Qumani, and others. The periodical Al-Awan alone, edited by George Tarabishi, has a whole slate of articles by Arab intellectuals dissecting the theological underpinnings of ISIS.


For these critics, theology is foundational to ISIS (as ISIS itself professes it to be) rather than decorative, thus continuing historically informed debates among Muslims regarding the tension between `aql (reason) and naql (transmission of knowledge), between a literal and an analytical interpretation of religious texts, and the influence of Wahhabism and proto-Salafi movements on contemporary Muslim societies. None of those analysts ignores or dismisses the impact of political and economic factors on the emergence of political violence in MENA, currently most strikingly embodied by ISIS, but they have no qualms identifying and criticizing the theology driving ISIS’ vision, and the religious culture that shapes and informs its acts, policies and behavior. Their analysis is built on the intertwining of politics and theology, not their dualism.


The arguments the authors make are not ad hoc or new. They are weighing in on a wider and older discussion concerning the authority of the religious text in Islam, the heavy weight of the religious heritage in the present, and the dangerous intertwining of religion and politics in Islam. While they may differ one from the other on some details, they are taking part in ongoing discussions about Islam and politics in MENA since the fall of the Ottoman order. One can trace a genealogy of this critical thought to the early history of Islam. But in more practical and pertinent terms, one can start with ‘Ali ‘Abd al-Raziq (d. 1966) and his book al-Islam wa Usul al-Hukm (Islam and the Foundations of Governance), in which he refuted the idea of religious governance in Islam. This chain of reformist thought includes many, such as ‘Abd Allah al-‘Alayli (d. 1996), Nasr Hamid Abi Zayd (d. 2010), Muhammad Arkoun (d. 2010), Jamal al-Banna (d. 2013), Muhammad ‘Abid al-Jabiri (d. 2010), Nawal al-Sa‘dawi, and many others, Islamists or seculars, who have criticized both the sacredness with which the religious heritage is held and the dangerous implications of a theology tangled with politics.

An acknowledgment of the current criticism by Arab authors of the theological underpinnings of ISIS should be seen as a tribute to a long-standing reformist thought indigenous to MENA and concerned about the region’s present and future.


MENA societies are too diverse for one or more groups to represent them, and their opinions too varied and too variable to be captured by one view or the other, by one writer or another. Therefore measuring the influence as well as the level of representation of those critical voices is a futile exercise. But what those debates and opinions reveal is a diverse and rich discussion of contemporary Islam and Muslim societies that defies the homogenous image of MENA portrayed by some of those who speak on behalf of the region in the West and that reflects Western concerns rather than local ones. Moreover, such a consideration betrays a critical analysis of MENA’s intellectual landscape at a time of colossal crisis in the region and preempts the desperate need for an appreciation of critical thought in MENA. In fact, ignoring or dismissing those voices not only undermines the scale of the crisis –and the reactions to it - within the abode of Islam but also perpetuates an Orientalist view of Muslim societies as static, apathetic and lethargic, as if lacking in a critical intellectual tradition that can engage contemporary problems in contemporary terms. By paying attention to what intellectuals in MENA are saying about ISIS, scholars and commentators in the West can develop a far superior framework for understanding and engaging ISIS than the two camps have managed.


[A longer version of this article will appear as a co-authored chapter by Amal Ghazal and Larbi Sadiki, in The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Middle-Eastern and North African History, edited by Amal Ghazal and Jens Hanssen (Oxford: Oxford University Press, forthcoming).]

THE ENVITABLE: Europe's police warn ISIS will strike again

Megan Speca


Law enforcement officials all across Europe believe the Islamic State, a terror group also called ISIS or Daesh, has changed its approach to warfare.

The new tactics mark a shift towards a broad, global terrorism strategy that leaves the continent vulnerable to an increasing wave of deadly attacks. The report, released Monday by Europol, the European Union's law enforcement agency, said there is "every reason to expect" the group, or extremists inspired by the group, will attempt an attack targeting civilians in Europe, particularly in France, again in future.

The report said the Nov. 13 attacks in Paris, which were orchestrated by the group and targeted a concert hall, a restaurant and a cafe, as well as the national stadium, marked the shift, in which ISIS began focusing its efforts outward, instead of a series of battles for land in Syria.

A total of 130 people lost their lives in Paris.

In the new report, Europol points to intelligence that suggests the group's leadership has developed a "special forces" group to orchestrate attacks around the globe, and said it has intact "terrorist cells" that are currently operating throughout the European Union.

The report also worked to clarify some common misconceptions about ISIS terrorists, including the inaccurate claims that they have used the flow of refugees to enter the continent.


" There is no concrete evidence that terrorist travellers systematically use the flow of refugees to enter Europe unnoticed There is no concrete evidence that terrorist travellers systematically use the flow of refugees to enter Europe unnoticed," read the report, but warned that people living in Europe may become radicalized. "A real and imminent danger, however, is the possibility of elements of the (Sunni Muslim) Syrian refugee diaspora becoming vulnerable to radicalisation once in Europe and being specifically targeted by Islamic extremist recruiters."


Coinciding with the report's release, Europol launched a new European Counter Terrorism Centre on Monday meant to combat the new threats. "Our ambition is for the European Counter Terrorism Centre to become a central information hub in the fight against terrorism in the EU, providing analysis for ongoing investigations and contributing to a coordinated reaction in the event of major terrorist attacks,” said Europe Director Rob Wainwright speaking during the launch on Monday.

Just one day before the report was release, ISIS posted its latest propaganda video targeting European nations.

On Sunday, a 17-minute long video was posted by the group featuring nine men who had links to the planning and execution of the November attacks.
The video confirms what French authorities have said from the beginning — that the attacks were planned in Syria. The propaganda footage is also intended as a recruitment tool for other potential followers.
All nine men seen in the video died in the Paris attacks or their aftermath. Seven of the attackers — four from Belgium and three from France — spoke fluent French. The two others — identified by their noms de guerre as Iraqis — spoke in Arabic.

Seven of the militants, including a 20-year-old who was the youngest of the group, were filmed standing behind bound captives, described as "apostates," who were either beheaded or shot in the clips.

After the video emerged, French President Francois Hollande reiterated call for an extension to the nationwide state of emergency put in place after the Paris attacks and set to expire on Feb. 26. "No threat will give France pause in what it must do against terrorist. And if I have taken steps to extend the state of emergency, it is because I am aware of the threat and that we will not concede," Hollande said in response to the video.

But the state of emergency in the country has drawn criticism from human rights groups and the UN, who warned it may be hindering fundamental freedoms. The UN shared its concerns with the French government last week, noting that the state of emergency imposed in the country after the Paris attacks "impose excessive and disproportionate restrictions on fundamental freedoms."

The video was apparently filmed before the men slipped back into Europe and contains no footage shot by the attackers.

Instead, it was assembled from news video, amateur video and material shot before the men left for Paris. The video did not specify where the nine men were filmed, but it was believed to have been in IS-controlled territory in Syria.

One of the suicide bombers that night, Brahim Abdeslam, is seen at a makeshift shooting range. Abdeslam, whose brother Salah fled Paris that night and remains at large, blew himself up at a Paris cafe where he was the only victim.

Salah Abdeslam is not seen in the video, and he remains on the run.

Afghan Army Being Restructured Ahead of Taliban Offensive

After months of ferocious fighting, Afghan army units battling the Taliban in southern Helmand province are facing major restructuring and leadership changes, with several key commanders being replaced, a U.S. military official said.

Helmand has been a fierce battleground since last Autumn, with fighting taking place in 10 districts. At times, the insurgents have laid siege on army bases and threatened to overrun large chunks of territory. Local officials have called for help from central authorities and complained publicly over corruption that includes syphoning off salaries, food, fuel and equipment.

U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Wilson Shoffner, the head of public affairs for the U.S.-NATO mission, said that the Afghan army corps in Helmand is now being “rebuilt” and that senior officers are being replaced.

The reasons for the changes in the Afghan army’s 215 Maiwand Corps “are a combination of incompetence, corruption and ineffectiveness,” Shoffner said. The corps’ commander has been replaced, along with “some brigade commanders and some key corps staff up to full colonel level,” he said.

Helmand is a strategic region for the Taliban, as it as it shares a border of more than 250 kilometers (155 miles) with Pakistan. It grows large quantities of opium, used to produce most of the world’s heroin. The harvest is worth up to $3 billion a year, and helps fund the insurgency.

The Afghan Defense Ministry confirmed the changes in Helmand. It said veteran army Gen. Moheen Faqiri was appointed to lead the corps and took over two months ago.

Gen. Dawlat Waziri, the ministry’s spokesman, said brigade commanders have also been rotated out and replaced.

“Soon, other army units will have new commanders there,” Waziri said.
In October, a meeting of the National Security Council discussed the worsening situation on the ground. In the presence of President Ashraf Ghani and U.S. Army Gen. John F. Campbell, commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, the NSC heard that Afghan security forces were badly led, poorly equipped and in the previous three months had suffered 900 casualties, including 300 dead.

Minutes of the Oct. 29 meeting, show that Helmand was described by the former head of the intelligence agency, Rahmatullah Nabil, as “the biggest recruiting pool for the Taliban” and the insurgents’ “primary source of revenue” from poppy for heroin and marble smuggling.

Another concern is the Afghan police who are fighting on the front-lines across Helmand, often without the equipment and backup of the army, which means casualties are higher.

Last Wednesday, Gen. Abdul Rahman Sarjang, the Helmand provincial police chief, said the Afghan security forces were “exhausted” and in dire need of reinforcements. He also said that a lack of coordination between the army and police was hampering progress in the fight.

The Taliban have made serious stands in seven Helmand districts Sangin, Gereshk, Khanashin, Musa Qala, Nawzad, Washer and Marjah and at least three districts of Lashkar Gah are also under threat, Sarjang said.

The changes in Helmand reflect that Afghanistan’s civilian and military leaders are learning the limitations of the security forces as they take on the Taliban alone following the drawdown of the international combat mission at the end of 2014. The U.S. and NATO maintain 13,000 troops in Afghanistan, mostly in an advisory and training capacity.

In a most serious illustration of the dire battlefield situation in Helmand, the district of Sangin was besieged for weeks and in late December fears escalated that it would completely fall to the insurgents. The United States conducted airstrikes on Taliban positions, the British rushed special forces advisers to the area, and the Afghan military dropped food and ammunition to soldiers and police who were surrounded in their base.

Nabil told the NSC meeting there were about 12,000 Taliban fighters in Helmand, up to 60 percent of them from other parts of the country, evidence the insurgents had reinforced their numbers for the fight. Nabil also said Afghan forces’ morale was “extremely low” and discipline had broken down with “junior commanders openly defying their superiors.”

“Helmand is in a crisis,” Nabil told the meeting.

Shoffner, the U.S. general, said troops had been moved from other parts of the country to reinforce Helmand and that strategies have to change.
The notion that there is a “fighting season is outdated,” he said, as the Taliban offensives which in the past occurred in the warmer, summer months have escalated even in colder weather.

Afghan authorities do not release the casualty tolls for their combat forces. In 2014 that figure was estimated to have been about 5,000.

Nigeria: My Advice for Boko Haram - Afghan President

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has advised Boko Haram insurgents in Nigeria to sheath their swords. He gave the advice when Nigeria's Ambassador to Afghanistan, Dauda Danladi, presented his letters of credence in Kabul, the Afghan capital recently.

He called on the Boko Haram members to lay down their arms if they were true Muslims and embrace amnesty offered by federal government, noting that no religion preaches violence.

"Boko Haram should stop burning schools, Mosques, Churches in the name of Islam. You should not destroy your country if you are true Muslims. You should protect lives because in Islam if you kill one, it is as if you have killed the whole of humanity and if you save life, it is as if you have saved the whole of humanity."

He said Afghans had seen the futility of violence and put behind them the ugly past and had now embraced peace through dialogue.

He recalled the activities of the Taliban's in Afghanistan, saying it was externally motivated and the people were used by the Talibans to commit suicide bombing without knowledge that they would be committing suicide.
He said in most cases suicide bombers were given jackets containing bombs and on wearing it somebody who followed them would detonate it on reaching their targets.

Afghanistan first deputy minister of defence, Saran Pooh-Enayatullah Nazari, while receiving Ambassador Danladi, advised Boko Haram members not to emulate the Talibans because they were supported by external forces to cause problems which created more than half a million orphans and widows in Afghanistan.

He added that Afghanistan lost over two million people, while one million were disabled, saying he hoped his country's experience would be a lesson to fundamentalists in Nigeria to stop any actions that would destabilise the country.

"War is not good. It is like a flame and will destroy both the good and the bad. Whoever makes efforts to stop it, God will reward him and whoever tries to aggravate it will destroy everything and will be held accountable before God," Nazari stated.

He suggested the need for Nigeria to open its doors for Afghan young officers to attend some basic training in Nigeria. He hoped that Nigeria would not go through the same problem experienced by Afghanistan before embracing peace through dialogue.

The deputy chairman of the Higher Peace Council, Abdul Hakim Mujahid, who was a former Taliban Ambassador to United Nations (UN), also said that contrary to the perception of many, Islam is a religion of peace.

While calling for religious tolerance, Mujahid quoted the Holy Quran Chapter 8 verse 72 which states "... We have created you into different nations and tribes so that you can understand one another; the best among you in the sight of Allah is he who fears Allah most."

He said if Allah wanted to make all nations Muslims or Christians, he has the power to do so, but noted that in his wisdom, he chose not to do so.

Danladi who is Nigeria's non-resident ambassador to Afghanistan commended the efforts of President Karzai's administration.

He assured that Nigeria's transformation agenda initiated by President Goodluck Jonathan on the international scene was global peace and economic diplomacy.

He said issues of manpower development, capacity building and institutional strengthening would be forwarded to relevant authorities in Nigeria for consideration under an enabling environment.

Afghan Army Being Restructured Ahead of Taliban Offensive

After months of ferocious fighting, Afghan army units battling the Taliban in southern Helmand province are facing major restructuring and leadership changes, with several key commanders being replaced, a U.S. military official said.

Helmand has been a fierce battleground since last Autumn, with fighting taking place in 10 districts. At times, the insurgents have laid siege on army bases and threatened to overrun large chunks of territory. Local officials have called for help from central authorities and complained publicly over corruption that includes syphoning off salaries, food, fuel and equipment.

U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Wilson Shoffner, the head of public affairs for the U.S.-NATO mission, said that the Afghan army corps in Helmand is now being “rebuilt” and that senior officers are being replaced.

The reasons for the changes in the Afghan army’s 215 Maiwand Corps “are a combination of incompetence, corruption and ineffectiveness,” Shoffner said. The corps’ commander has been replaced, along with “some brigade commanders and some key corps staff up to full colonel level,” he said.

Helmand is a strategic region for the Taliban, as it as it shares a border of more than 250 kilometers (155 miles) with Pakistan. It grows large quantities of opium, used to produce most of the world’s heroin. The harvest is worth up to $3 billion a year, and helps fund the insurgency.

The Afghan Defense Ministry confirmed the changes in Helmand. It said veteran army Gen. Moheen Faqiri was appointed to lead the corps and took over two months ago.

Gen. Dawlat Waziri, the ministry’s spokesman, said brigade commanders have also been rotated out and replaced.

“Soon, other army units will have new commanders there,” Waziri said.
In October, a meeting of the National Security Council discussed the worsening situation on the ground. In the presence of President Ashraf Ghani and U.S. Army Gen. John F. Campbell, commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, the NSC heard that Afghan security forces were badly led, poorly equipped and in the previous three months had suffered 900 casualties, including 300 dead.

Minutes of the Oct. 29 meeting, show that Helmand was described by the former head of the intelligence agency, Rahmatullah Nabil, as “the biggest recruiting pool for the Taliban” and the insurgents’ “primary source of revenue” from poppy for heroin and marble smuggling.

Another concern is the Afghan police who are fighting on the front-lines across Helmand, often without the equipment and backup of the army, which means casualties are higher.

Last Wednesday, Gen. Abdul Rahman Sarjang, the Helmand provincial police chief, said the Afghan security forces were “exhausted” and in dire need of reinforcements. He also said that a lack of coordination between the army and police was hampering progress in the fight.

The Taliban have made serious stands in seven Helmand districts Sangin, Gereshk, Khanashin, Musa Qala, Nawzad, Washer and Marjah and at least three districts of Lashkar Gah are also under threat, Sarjang said.

The changes in Helmand reflect that Afghanistan’s civilian and military leaders are learning the limitations of the security forces as they take on the Taliban alone following the drawdown of the international combat mission at the end of 2014. The U.S. and NATO maintain 13,000 troops in Afghanistan, mostly in an advisory and training capacity.

In a most serious illustration of the dire battlefield situation in Helmand, the district of Sangin was besieged for weeks and in late December fears escalated that it would completely fall to the insurgents. The United States conducted airstrikes on Taliban positions, the British rushed special forces advisers to the area, and the Afghan military dropped food and ammunition to soldiers and police who were surrounded in their base.

Nabil told the NSC meeting there were about 12,000 Taliban fighters in Helmand, up to 60 percent of them from other parts of the country, evidence the insurgents had reinforced their numbers for the fight. Nabil also said Afghan forces’ morale was “extremely low” and discipline had broken down with “junior commanders openly defying their superiors.”

“Helmand is in a crisis,” Nabil told the meeting.

Shoffner, the U.S. general, said troops had been moved from other parts of the country to reinforce Helmand and that strategies have to change.
The notion that there is a “fighting season is outdated,” he said, as the Taliban offensives which in the past occurred in the warmer, summer months have escalated even in colder weather.

Afghan authorities do not release the casualty tolls for their combat forces. In 2014 that figure was estimated to have been about 5,000.

Iran, China agree strategic ties, $600 billion trade revival of ‘Silk Road’

WorldTribune

Rohani made the announcement following Jan. 23 talks in Tehran with Chinese President Xi Jinping, the first major world leader to visit the Islamic republic since the easing of international sanctions on Jan. 16 under a deal between Tehran and global powers aimed at curbing Iran’s nuclear program.

Xi met later with Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was quoted as saying that “Tehran seeks cooperation with more independent countries” because “Iranians never trusted the West.”

At a news conference with Xi broadcast live on state television, Rohani said that “Iran and China have agreed to increase trade to $600 billion in the next 10 years.”

He added that the two countries “have agreed on forming strategic relations [as] reflected in a 25-year comprehensive document.”

Khamenei praised the agreements and lambasted the United States in comments on Twitter.

“Agreement on ’25-year strategic ties’ between #Iran and #China is correct and wise, must become effective with follow-up of both sides,” one tweet said.

“Among western countries, U.S. policies toward Iran are worse & more hostile; it makes Iran pursue development of ties with independent states,” said another.

Iran and China signed 17 accords on Jan. 23, including on nuclear cooperation and reviving the ancient Silk Road trade route, known in China as One Belt, One Road.

China is the top buyer of Iranian oil. Trade between the countries was valued at $52 billion in 2014, but fell slightly last year due to declining global energy prices.

Xi is the second major world leader to visit Iran since Tehran signed the nuclear deal with world powers in July. Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the Islamic republic in November.

Xi also became the first Chinese leader to visit Iran in 14 years. He visited Saudi Arabia and Egypt prior to arriving in Tehran.

Following his meeting with Rohani, Xi met with Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iranian state TV quoted Xi as saying: “In cooperation with the Iranian side and by benefiting from the current favorable conditions, China is ready to upgrade the level of bilateral relations and cooperation so that a new chapter will start in bilateral relations.”

In comments posted on his official website, Rohani said that China “has always stood by the side of the Iranian nation during hard days.”

China is among the world powers — along with the U.S., Germany, France, Britain, and Russia — that signed a landmark deal with Iran in July in Vienna to lift international sanctions in exchange for restrictions on Tehran’s nuclear program.

The deal was implemented last week after the UN’s nuclear watchdog confirmed that Tehran had fulfilled its commitments under the agreement.

U.S. and other sanctions that were not imposed due to Iran’s nuclear actvities remain in place, and Khamenei has stressed that the deal does not mean ties with the United States will improve.

"SOCIAL MEDIA HELPS SPREADING TERRORISM "

Social media, for all the benefits it brings, makes it easier than ever before for terrorist organizations to spread their hateful messages, Sheryl Sandberg of Facebook told participants. 

We have already seen how the hateful and highly provocative messages in the Internet discussion groups and blogs could lead to the death of hateful preachers, founders and writers.

Perhaps, more frightening than a terrorist organization or a hateful website that spreads hatred around the globe with a global reach is the idea that the technology could one day lead to humanity’s demise.

Already world-known experts are warning about the artificial intelligence (AI). Consider, e.g., Professor Stephen Hawking who warned last year that artificially intelligent machines could kill us because they are too clever. Such computers could become so competent that they kill us by accident, Hawking has warned.

According to Angela Kane, Sr. Fellow of Vienna Center for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation, “The monopoly of the conduct of war could soon be taken out of the hands of humans.”

“Mistaken Identity” Victim at Guantanamo Cleared for Release

By Adelma Jakupovic

Yesterday the Guantanamo parole board approved the release of Yemeni national Mustafa Abd al-Qawi Abd al-Aziz al-Shamiri, who was detained in Guantanamo for over thirteen years as a victim of mistaken identity. That’s 13 years of imprisonment as an enemy combatant without charge or trial.


The government initially claimed he was a member of al Qaeda and received militant training in both Yemen and Afghanistan. It also alleged that Al-Shamiri was involved in military operations against the United States and coalition forces in Afghanistan in 2001. The Guantanamo Review Task Force appointed by President Obama in 2009 even recommended him for continued detention.


But at his Periodic Review Board hearing (PRB), on December 1, 2015, government officials admitted that they wrongly believed al-Shamiri played a more significant role because he was confused with other extremists. The government file states, “It was previously assessed that YM-434 also was an al-Qaida facilitator or courier, as well as a trainer, but we now judge that these activities were carried out by other known extremists with names or aliases similar to [al-Shamiri’s].”


This goes directly against the myth that all remaining Gitmo detainees are “the worst of the worst.” And al-Shamiri isn’t the first case of mistaken identity. His case demonstrates exactly why holding timely PRB hearings is so important. Forty-four more Gitmo detainees are eligible for a PRB hearing.


Sixteen detainees have been released so far this year, reducing the number of detainees at Guantanamo below 100 for the first time since it opened. The Obama Administration should ensure that the remaining PRBs are held without delay and that the 34 prisoners who have been approved for release are transferred quickly.

"DAESH" FIGHTERS: Marry Me or Else....

AhlulBayt News Agency

/ سالار قاسم – أربيل

هدد تنظيم الدولة الإسلامية أمس الجمعة، أهالي محافظة دير الزور شرقي سوريا الخاضعة لسيطرته، بتزويج فتياتهم من عناصره إن لم يسرعوا بتزويج من هنّ في سن الزواج.

نشطاء في حملة ‹دير الزور تذبح بصمت› المناهضة لتنظيم الدولة الإسلامية، نشرت مساء الجمعة على حسابها في موقع التواصل الاجتماعي ‹تويتر›، أن «تنظيم ‹داعش› (تنظيم الدولة الإسلامية) أبلغ المدنيين في عدة قرى بريف دير الزور بعد صلاة الجمعة بضرروة تزويج كل فتاة في سن الزواج لأحد أقاربها أو ستزوج لأحد عناصر التنظيم».

كما أشار نشطاء من دير الزور، أن «ظاهرة تزويج الفتيات من عناصر تنظيم الدولة الإسلامية، وخاصة القاصرات منهن، انتشرت بشكل كبير مؤخراً، خاصة في أرياف البوكمال والميادين بريف المحافظة».

الناشط الحقوقي عبد المجيد سلقيني، قال معلقاً على الموضوع لـ ARA News «ومن أين يأتي أهالي الفتيات بالشبان ليزوجوا بناتهم، بعد أن ضاع أكثر من نصف شباب المناطق الواقعة تحت تنظيم الدولة الإسلامية بين الهجرة أو التجنيد أو الموت»، لافتاً أن «هذا الإجراء ليس إلاّ لشرعنة تزويج فتيات المحافظة من عناصر التنظيم بالإكراه».

العديد من التقارير الحقوقية تحدثت عن حالات غصب تنظيم الدولة الإسلامية سكان المناطق الواقعة تحت سيطرته على تزويج بناتهم من عناصره، وملاحقة ومعاقبة الرافضين بالكثير من الحجج.

Girls from a province in eastern Syria are being forced by extremists to marry ISIS militants or be put to death.

Islamic State leaders in Syria’s Deir ez-Zor province released a statement last week demanding that parents allow their young daughters to wed ISIS militants or face severe consequences.

According to a report from AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA News), an activist belonging to the ‘Deir ez-Zor Is Being Slaughtered Silently’ campaign, said more than 30 forced child marriages have taken place within the span of a week and that the forced child marriage trend has sharply increased in ISIS-seized areas over the past few months.

“The militant group has legalized those marriages through its court,” the activist added.

ABNA’s source also reports that two fathers have already been executed for denying their daughters’ hands in marriage to ISIS militants.T

The ‘Deir ez-Zor Is Being Slaughtered Silently’ campaign has been active for almost two years, chronicling ISIS’ human rights violations in the area.

US Interests In Eastern Mediterranean: Geopolitics Trump Control Of Energy Resources

By Matthew Bryza*


The United States has important national interests at stake in the Eastern Mediterranean. This is the region where the U.S.’ two most serious national security threats converge – ISIS and a revanchist Russia. It is also where two of Washington’s most important allies, Turkey and Israel, once enjoyed a strategic partnership, which may now be rising again after collapsing 5 years ago.

Additionally, while four decades of political conflict in Cyprus have aggravated tensions between NATO members Greece and Turkey and obstructed military cooperation between NATO and the EU, Cyprus settlement talks may be approaching a breakthrough. Finally, two of the world’s largest natural gas discoveries in the past 15 years are located in the Eastern Mediterranean: the Leviathan field in Israel and the Zohr field in Egypt.


While many observers worry that Turkey’s shooting down of the Russian air force fighter on November 24 threatens to engulf the region in a war between Russia and NATO, in reality, Russia’s response has been restrained. Moscow’s sanctions against Ankara have been relatively mild, while President Putin has never termed Turkey’s action an “act of war,” calling it, instead, a “stab in the back” and a “hostile action.” Futher, despite crude language accusing Ankara of doing Washington’s bidding, President Putin received U.S. Secretary of State Kerry on December 15 in search of cooperation on Syria issues.


President Putin knows his case against Turkey is weak. Ankara repeatedly warned Moscow to stop its violations against both Turkish airspace and its bombing of ethnic Turkomen in northern Syria. The Russian President realizes he cannot object too much to Ankara’s claimed right to protect these ethnic Turks who found themselves on the Syrian side of the border after the Ottoman Empire collapsed, lest he risk undermining his own justification for invading eastern Ukraine and annexing Crimea, namely, to protect Ukraine’s Russian minority.


Thus, Mr. Putin’s crude belligerence has done nothing to advance Russia’s strategic interests. On the contrary, his actions have cleared the way for a Russian strategic defeat and the normalization of relations between Turkey and Israel. Ankara and Tel Aviv now recognize they share a strategic interest in helping Turkey reduce its energy dependence on a potentially unreliable Russia by buying Israeli natural gas. They are, therefore, eyeing a potential pipeline connecting Israel’s Leviathan field with Turkey’s growing gas market, which would translate diplomatic commitments into tangible economic and strategic benefits for both countries. Furthermore, an Israel-Turkey gas pipeline could also enable Cyprus to export its future natural gas production to Turkey’s lucrative market, which, in turn, could help cement a comprehensive settlement regarding the Cyprus Question.

The combination of Israel-Turkey rapprochement and a comprehensive Cyprus settlement would create powerful new strategic vectors in the Eastern Mediterranean that would strengthen the cohesion of an extended Euro-Atlantic community stretching from the United States to the Levant. This would undermine President Putin’s reckless attempts to weaken transatlantic solidarity since invading Ukraine in February 2014 through overt military operations, hybrid warfare, and harassment of NATO airspace.

Washington is keenly interested in helping its critical ally, Israel, bolster its national security by using natural gas exports to improve relations with many of its Muslim-majority neighbors. Thanks in part to strong but quiet U.S. 
encouragement, Israel will likely export a portion of the Leviathan field’s gas to Jordan, with modest volumes also delivered to Israel’s Palestinian population.

However, to ensure the development of the giant Leviathan field is commercially viable, significantly more gas must be exported than Jordan’s market can bear.


Egypt provides another option. Cooperation between Israel and Egypt has been a cornerstone of U.S. policy in the Middle East since the historic Camp David accords of 1979, and remains crucially important today, given all three countries’ shared interest in countering ISIS and the Muslim Brotherhood. At first glance, Egypt’s underutilized natural gas export terminals seem to offer a commercially attractive way to export Leviathan gas to European and global markets. In reality, however, the economics may not be so attractive. To finance exports of Leviathan gas to Egypt’s LNG terminals, banks may require terminal operators (e.g., British Gas and/or Royal Dutch Shell) to sign long-term take-or-pay contracts, which the operators may be unwilling to sign.


Turkey, on the other hand, provides a more attractive export market for Israeli natural gas. Turkey has the largest and fastest growing gas market and the most creditworthy buyers in the Eastern Mediterranean. Unlike in Egypt, a consortium of creditworthy Turkish companies with European partners are prepared to put in place all necessary contractual commitments to secure the financing of natural gas production and export projects.


Thus, a natural gas pipeline from Israel to Turkey makes commercial sense; it would also be highly attractive to Washington for geopolitical reasons, given the U.S.’ desire to see its two friends in the Eastern Mediterranean restore their strategic partnership. Until recently, political animosity between Ankara and Tel Aviv had blocked progress on an Israel-Turkey pipeline. But, at the time of writing in mid-December, Turkey and Israel seemed on the verge of a breakthrough in their bilateral relations, catalyzed both by Russia’s antagonism of Turkey and by recognition of the commercial and strategic benefits of an Israel-Turkey natural gas pipeline.

Cyprus poses both a challenge and an opportunity to such a project. An Israel-Turkey pipeline would need to cross the Exclusive Economic Zone of Cyprus. Though international law, specifically the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, is ambiguous on whether Cyprus could legally block such a pipeline, Cypriot permission would likely be required by banks to finance such a project. On the other hand, if a breakthrough can be reached in negotiations on the comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus Question, the Cypriot government will likely welcome an Israel-Turkey pipeline and its prospect of incorporating significant volumes of Cypriot gas, which are expected to be discovered in the near future, for export to Turkey.

It should therefore be clear that conspiracy theories assuming control of hydrocarbon resources is what drives U.S. foreign policy are incorrect. Eastern Mediterranean natural gas will have little direct impact on U.S. energy security. No major U.S. oil companies have shown interest in developing natural gas prospects in Israel, Cyprus, or Egypt. Indeed, the only U.S. commercial entity in the game is Noble, a mid-sized company that is a world-class driller but not an oil major experienced in exploration and production.


Rather, Washington views recent discoveries of natural gas in the Eastern Mediterranean as relevant to key U.S. geopolitical interests, namely, strengthening Israel’s relations with Turkey (as well as Egypt), and catalyzing a Cyprus settlement. An Israel-Turkey pipeline, which could incorporate future gas exports from Cyprus as well as Egypt’s mammoth Zohr field, could be marketed not only in Turkey, but perhaps also in the EU via the Southern Corridor, thereby linking the U.S.’ key Middle Eastern region, the Caspian, and European friends and allies.

Ambassador (ret.) Matthew Bryza Non Resident Senior Fellow The Atlantic Council of the United States and Board Member of Turcas