Hashemite Kingdom of Palestine key to end conflict in Middle East

 

Visits to Saudi Arabia this past week by Jordan’s King Abdullah, PLO President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh could be the prelude to negotiations with Israel to implement the Saudi-based 2022 Hashemite Kingdom of Palestine solution (Saudi Solution) and end 100 years of unresolved conflict between Jews and Arabs.

These three visits - coming within days of each other - have taken place amidst dizzying diplomatic and economic activity over the last six weeks that have seen an easing of tension in the Middle East - including:

• Saudi Arabia and Iran agreeing in March to re-establish diplomatic relations after a 7 years break - promising:

“keenness to exert all efforts towards enhancing regional and international peace and security”

• Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus on April 18  - coming days after Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad visited Saudi Arabia on the first such trip since the Syrian civil war broke out in 2011.

• Qatar and Bahrain announcing on April 12 that they would resume diplomatic relations

• Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman launching four new special economic zones in Saudi Arabia on April 14 - offering opportunities for knowledge-sharing and creating tens of thousands of jobs.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu believes these Abbas and Haniyeh visits to Saudi Arabia and the rapprochement with Syria and Iran are:

“Maybe to tell them they are going to have to prepare themselves - maybe to try to tell them to stop doing the kind of terror they foment”

The Saudi Solution achieves that outcome - calling for:

• The merger of Jordan, Gaza and part of Judea and Samaria (West Bank) into one territorial unit under Hashemite rule to be called The Hashemite Kingdom of Palestine - with its capital to be Amman - not Jerusalem.

• Citizenship in the new entity being granted to all stateless Palestinian Arabs no matter where they presently reside.

• Jerusalem being recognised as Israel’s sole capital and

• Sovereignty in part of Judea and Samaria (West Bank) being vested in the Jewish people for the first time in 3500 years.

The common denominator existing between King Abdullah, Abbas, Haniyeh and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) since the publication of the Saudi Solution on June 8, 2022 has been their failure to expressly reject the Saudi Solution - even though it trashes separate policies and agendas espoused by each one of them for decades.

For MBS in particular - the Saudi Solution:

• Shreds Saudi policy pursued since 2002 and adopted as the Arab Peace Initiative: Creating an independent Palestinian State between Israel and Jordan with its capital located in East Jerusalem (two-state solution)

• Terminates Saudi Arabia’s endorsement of United Nations Security Council resolution 2334 in 2016 seeking a two-state solution.

Successfully implementing the Saudi Solution will establish a conflict-free zone in Israel, Gaza and Judea and Samaria (West Bank)  - complementing MBS’s amazing economic plans for Saudi Arabia -dubbed Vision 2030 - including trillion-dollar investments in mega-developments Neom and Diriyah.

King Abdullah, Abbas and Haniyeh have also unsuccessfully pursued the two-state solution since the 1993 Oslo Accords. Implementing the Saudi solution offers them a return to what actually existed  - and worked - between 1950 and 1967.

Three major hurdles to implementing the Saudi Solution have been resolved in principle in the Saudi Solution:

• Who governs the newly-merged entity
• Where the capital of that new entity will be located
• Recognition of Israeli sovereignty claims to part of Judea and Samaria (West Bank)

Security control of all the territory west of the Jordan River is the last major issue requiring resolution.

Ending conflict in the Middle East - not perpetuating it - has become Saudi Arabia’s diplomatic agenda.

Please join my Facebook Page: “Hashemite Kingdom of Palestine supporters”

Author’s note: The cartoon--commissioned exclusively for this article--is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”--one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators--whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades

Al Jazeera and AP cover up destruction of Hamas media mouthpiece

Al Jazeera and Associated Press (AP) reports on Israel’s demolition of the 14 storey building in which their respective offices were located - illustrates media anti-Israel bias that seeks to denigrate and delegitimise the Jewish State in much of the media reporting coming from the Gaza Strip.

Al Jazeera’s report claimed:

“A building that housed international media offices including Al Jazeera’s in the Gaza Strip has been hit by an Israeli air raid that demolished the structure… The building also housed The Associated Press news agency bureau.”

AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt released the following statement:

“We are shocked and horrified that the Israeli military would target and destroy the building housing AP’s bureau and other news organizations in Gaza. They have long known the location of our bureau and knew journalists were there. We received a warning that the building would be hit.

The Israeli government says the building contained Hamas military intelligence assets. We have called on the Israeli government to put forward the evidence. AP’s bureau has been in this building for 15 years. We have had no indication Hamas was in the building or active in the building. This is something we actively check to the best of our ability. We would never knowingly put our journalists at risk.”

Both these media outlets failed to report that one of the other media offices located in the building was Middle East Eye (MEE) – exposed as the alleged media mouthpiece for Hamas in this 2017 report:

“Middle East Eye (MEE) — an increasingly prominent web portal — often obscures its finances, but it increasingly fills the gap as Qatar’s chief agent of influence. Groups like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International incorporate MEE stories, as do newspapers like the New York Times and the Washington Post.

Delving into the details of MEE, however, show that it acts far less as a traditional journalistic outlet and far more as an English-language front for Qatari-supported groups like the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas. British corporate records, for example, show that Jamal Awn Jamal Bessasso, a former official for both Al Jazeera in Qatar and the Hamas-affiliated al-Quds TV in Lebanon, owns and operates MEE through M.E.E. Ltd.  A CV for Jamal Bessasso, since scrubbed from the internet, shows previous stints as director of planning and human resources for the Al Jazeera satellite network in Qatar and director of Human Resources for the Samalink Television Production Company in Lebanon. Samalink is the registered agent for Al Quds TV’s website. While David Hearst, MEE editor-in-chief, told the United Arab Emirates’ The National paper that Bessasso was “a colleague and the head of human resources and the legal director,” he denied that Bessasso was the MEE owner, despite his listings on corporate records. Neither Hearst, former news editor Rori Donaghy (in a tweet now deleted), nor other MEE employees, however, would identify who owned MEE if not Bessasso…

… The Hamas links run as deep. A former official of Interpal, a United Kingdom-based charity designated by the US Treasury Department as a financial supporter of Hamas, registered the Middle East Eye website. Prior to joining MEE, Donaghy worked for organizations founded by Hamas (such as the House of Wisdom in Gaza) and the Muslim Brotherhood (Emirates Center for Human Rights, which was set up with financing and assistance from the Cordoba Foundation, a Muslim Brotherhood entity).”

David Hearst – in an apparent brain explosion – has just published a virulent anti-Israel article in MEE conveniently omitting to include MEE’s location:

“Its [Israel’s] air force may bomb the building housing AP and Al Jazeera.”

Designed to whip up anti-Israel hatred? You be the judge.

Author’s note: The cartoon—commissioned exclusively for this article—is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators—whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades.

Netanyahu's feats merit his being Israel's next Prime Minister

 

If results count for anything - Bibi Netanyahu will again be Israel’s next Prime Minister—heading a Government which hopefully will be more stable than the three previous short-lived coalition Governments he formed after elections held in April 2019, September 2019, and March 2020.

Netanyahu has told voters:

“I pledged to take care of the citizens of Israel and I do so with a deep mission. I brought vaccines and four peace agreements, there are four more on the way,”

This is not the self-promoting rant of a desperate politician seeking re-election—but an accurate description of what Netanyahu has personally done to protect the health, safety and security of every Israeli citizen—Jew and Arab—irrespective of their political or religious beliefs.

Sigal Atzmon—founder and CEO of Medix Global – has lauded Israel’s successful vaccine program:

“Firstly, Israel’s vaccine program is the envy of the world. As of Mar. 14, 59.7% of the 9.3 million population had received at least one dose of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine.

Secondly, the successful rollout means that Israel is confident enough to start reopening its economy again. Citizens who have had both shots, or who have recovered from COVID-19, are eligible to download an app developed by the Ministry of Health. This gives them a unique QR code, which lasts for six months. Scanning it gains citizens entry to gyms, theatres, restaurants and bars. It is also helping to encourage greater vaccine take-up.”

Pfizer’s Chief Executive Officer - Albert Bourla — revealed Netanyahu’s personal involvement in achieving this spectacular result in this Bloomberg article:

”Pfizer Inc. chose Israel for a nationwide Covid-19 vaccination study, supplying enough shots to quickly inoculate the entire eligible population, after dozens of phone calls from its prime minister, sometimes in the middle of the night.

The country’s relatively small size and electronic health records that cover more than 99% of residents were two important reasons for siting the study in Israel, Pfizer Chief Executive Officer Albert Bourla said in an interview late Thursday with Israel’s Channel 12 news. But what tipped the scales in Israel’s favor was Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s persistence, which Bourla termed an “obsession.”

“He called me 30 times,” Bourla said. “He would ask me about the variants, what data we have. And I would say, ‘Prime Minister, it’s three o’clock.’ And he said, ‘No, no, don’t worry, tell me.’ Or he would call me to ask about the children, ‘I need to vaccinate the schools.’ Or to ask about pregnant women. So he convinced me, frankly, that he would be on top of it.”

Netanyahu’s unique personal relationship forged with President Trump has seen:

• The United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco establishing diplomatic relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords. 

• Kosovo - one of the few Muslim countries in Europe - establishing an embassy in Jerusalem. 

• The UAE announcing the setting up of a $10 billion fund to invest in Israel. 

• Israelis visiting Dubai in their tens of thousands

• Several more Arab countries reportedly on the brink of joining the Abraham Accords: Oman, Qatar and Mauritania. 

• Normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel beginning with Saudi Arabia granting overflight rights to Israel and allowing an Israeli racing team to participate in the Dakar Rally. 

• An offer of Gaza, 70% of Judea and Samaria (West Bank) and areas of Israel’s sovereign territory being made to—but rejected by - the Palestine Liberation Organisation - for the creation of a second Arab State—in addition to Jordan—in the territory formerly comprised in the Mandate for Palestine.

Denigrators and detractors contesting Netanyahu’s re-election face an uphill battle.


Author’s note: The cartoon—commissioned exclusively by the author —is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators – whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog.com

 

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Trump pulls off another miracle in the Middle East

President Trump appears to have been instrumental in pulling off yet another miracle in the Middle East with the announcement that Saudi Arabia would be reopening its airspace and land and sea border with Qatar.

The announcement — which comes on the eve of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit on 5 January — is the catalyst that will see the resolution of a political dispute that led Saudi Arabia and its allies – Bahrain, United Arab Emirates and Egypt — to impose a diplomatic, trade and travel boycott on Qatar in June 2017.

Qatar was then accused of having ties with Iran that were deemed too close.

Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani will attend the GCC summit – having received a formal invitation from Saudi King Salman to the six-nation summit.

The Saudi News Agency has reported Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman stating: 

 “that the upcoming GCC summit shall be a summit to close the ranks and unify the stance and to enhance the march of the good and prosperity, adding that we will translate through the summit,”

White House senior adviser Jared Kushner had visited Saudi Arabia and Qatar last November in an attempt to secure such a reconciliation agreement.

One week earlier—Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was reported to have secretly met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Saudi Arabia denied the meeting took place — but Israel didn’t.

Mr. Netanyahu’s meeting with Mohammed bin Salman – reportedly in the seaside corner of northwest Saudi Arabia — coincided with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s visit. Yossi Cohen—the director of Israel’s spy agency Mossad — reportedly accompanied Netanyahu.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud had hinted a rapprochement with Qatar was very near when he told the MED 2020 Rome forum on 4 December 2020:

“We’ve made significant progress in the last few days, thanks to the continuing efforts of Kuwait but also thanks to strong support from President Trump and US administration towards bringing all parties closer”

The significance of such a looming reconciliation was summed up by al Khalej Today:

“an extraordinary Saudi movement has emerged in the direction of promoting the achievement of a reconciliation that has become within reach, as the Kingdom’s Foreign Minister, Faisal bin Farhan, has already mentioned. A reconciliation in which Riyadh is happy, as it believes, as well as its ally Washington, that the Gulf reunification will constitute, if Israel is annexed to it, a united front in the face of Iran, which will stand as an impregnable barrier to any step that contradicts the policy of “maximum pressure”.

GCC Secretary General Nayef Mubarak Al Hajraf has welcomed the reopening of airspace and land and sea borders between Qatar and Saudi Arabia:

“The step, which comes ahead of the 41st GCC summit in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, reflects the great interest and sincere efforts being made to ensure the success of the summit, which is held in light of extraordinary circumstances,”

 Kushner will reportedly be attending the signing ceremony to end the blockade of Qatar.

Anwar Gargash — UAE’s minister of state for foreign affairs — describing the upcoming summit as “historic” – stated:

“We stand before a historic summit in Al-Ula, through which we restore our Gulf cohesion and ensure that security, stability and prosperity is our top priority. We have more work ahead and we are moving in the right direction,”

Could these developments herald more Arab states soon joining Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Sudan and Morocco in recognizing Israel?

President Trump keeps continuing to pull more rabbits out of the hat.

PLO and Hamas must hold elections or let their citizens emigrate

 [Published 22 September 2020]

The PLO’s continuing refusal to negotiate with Israel on President Trump’s Peace Plan — whilst also denouncing the peace treaties signed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain with Israel —sees West Bank and Gazan Arabs remaining captive to accepting these disastrous PLO decisions without any rights to vote or emigrate.

These disenfranchised, beleaguered and long-suffering populations have seen the PLO reject proposals for peace flowing from:

1. 1993 Oslo Accords,  

2. 2000 Camp David Summit,  

3. 2003 Bush Road Map,  

4. Israel’s unilateral disengagement from Gaza 2005 

5. 2007 Annapolis Conference, 

6. 2014 Kerry negotiations and  

7. Trump’s 2020 deal of the century — reportedly endorsed by Qatar

Financial assistance to improve their miserable lives has been lost—including:

1. $750 million annually from direct American aid 

2. $360 million per annum in American aid to UNRWA  

3. America terminating its payment of 22% of UNESCO’s annual budget following UNESCO’s admission of the “State of Palestine” as a member contrary to American domestic law and in contravention of UNESCO’s own constitution 

4. $28.5 billion that would have flown from international donors at the Manama Conference held on June 25/26, 2019 if the Trump Peace Plan was implemented

The UAE voiced its support for the Manama Conference and what it hoped would be achieved:

“The UAE supports all international efforts aimed at supporting economic progress and increasing opportunities in the region, and alleviating the suffering of people in the region, particularly our brothers in Palestine… It (the Conference) aims to lift the Palestinian people out of misery and to enable them for a stable and prosperous future,”

Hamas and the PLO violently opposed and boycotted the Manama Conference.

Hamas — which turned Gaza into a hell hole following Israel’s unilateral disengagement in 2005 — had the gall to warn the Manama Conference Arab attendees:

“We warn Arab states against the malicious activities aimed to pave the way for normalisation with the Israeli occupation and involvement in the deal of the century,”

The UAE and Bahrain wisely rejected this advice at the White House last week.

PLO spokesman Saeb Erekat—expressed his opposition to the Manama Conference claiming:

“there will be no economic prosperity in Palestine without the end of the occupation.”

Tens of millions of desperate people have fled their birthplaces for economic reasons in recent years seeking to enter other countries illegally.

Policies espoused by both Hamas and the PLO in relation to Israel have wrought disaster:

1. Materially affecting West Bank and Gazan Arabs’ personal lives and

2. Wrecking hopes for peace and a brighter future for themselves and their families.

Many West Bank and Gazan Arabs would want to emigrate after Erekat’s depressing prediction —especially to Arab countries prepared to accept them legally.

Employment, economic prosperity and better lives tantalisingly beckon West Bank and Gazan Arabs in:

1. Saudi Arabia’s NEOM project—a planned US$500 billion mega city. 

The project includes a bridge spanning the Red Sea, connecting the proposed city to Africa.

Some 25,900 square kilometers — the size of Israel — has been allocated for the project — which will be close to the borders of Jordan and Egypt.

2. The planned relocation of the Egyptian Government offices from Cairo to a new $58 billion administrative capital city 45 km east of Cairo covering an area of 741 square km.

West Bank and Gazan Arabs — caught up in three decades of disastrous decisions and continuing internecine in-fighting between their corrupt governments — should be allowed to vote with their feet and move — with international financial assistance — to other countries willing to accept them.

The PLO and Hamas should be spurned world-wide until they let their citizens emigrate.


Author’s note: The cartoon — commissioned exclusively for this article — is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog

Saudi Arabia and Bahrain use soft diplomacy to placate Trump

[Published 7 September 2020]

Saudi Arabia and Bahrain’s decisions to allow their airspace to be used by commercial Israeli planes flying the Israel-United Arab Emirates (UAE) route are the first of what could be termed continuing acts of soft diplomacy by Arab and other Islamic states to help end the 100 years old Jewish-Arab conflict.

Soft diplomacy avoids Arab loss of face in having to jettison the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative in favour of President Trump’s 2020 deal of the century — allowing peace to evolve without peace treaties being signed now.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has welcomed Saudi Arabia and Bahrain’s historic air space concessions which are highly significant stepping stones on the path to Arab-Jewish reconciliation.

Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) broke the ice on 2 September when approving the request from the UAE General Civil Aviation Authority to allow flights coming to and departing from the UAE to all countries to pass through the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s airspace.

Saudi Arabia’s announcement meant that commercial flights by Israeli airlines to the UAE and return would be allowed over Saudi air space for the first time in history — reducing flying time between Israel and the UAE from seven hours to about three and a half hours.

However Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan warned that:

“The Kingdom’s firm and established positions towards the Palestinian cause and the Palestinian people will not change by allowing the passage of the Kingdom’s airspace for flights coming to and departing from the United Arab Emirates to all countries, and the Kingdom appreciates all efforts aimed at achieving a just and lasting peace in accordance with the Arab Peace Initiative.”

Bahrain quickly followed suit on September 3, with an official source at the Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunications announcing that Bahrain had approved the request from the UAE General Aviation Authority to allow all flights coming to and departing from the UAE to all countries to cross Bahrain’s airspace.

Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa reportedly told US Secretary for State Mike Pompeo in August that — contrary to the Trump Peace Plan — Bahrain remained committed to the Arab Peace Initiative — which calls for Israel’s complete withdrawal from all the territories captured in 1967 —including the Golan Heights and East Jerusalem — in exchange for peace and the full normalization of relations.

Trump needs the Arab states to continue making more concessions to persuade Israel continuing its major concession: postponing the immediate application of Israeli sovereignty in 30% of Judea and Samaria (West Bank) designated in Trump’s peace plan.

Concessions by Arab States could include:

• Attending the signing of the Israel-UAE Peace Treaty at the White House—which seems certain to occur before the US Presidential election on 3 November.
• Participating in a follow-up Conference similar to the historic one held in the White House on  — attended by Israel, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar and the UAE — that discussed solutions to the worsening humanitarian and economic conditions in Gaza. That Conference became the catalyst leading to the Israel-UAE peace deal and greatly improved political and personal relationships between Jews and Arabs today. Representatives from the United Nations, European Union, Office of the Quartet, Canada, Cyprus, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom also attended the Gaza Conference.
• Following the UAE lead in ending Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions against Israel.

Arab States building mutual trust with Israel by incrementally advancing the peace process will keep Trump’s Peace Plan alive whilst placating Trump’s desire to see its implementation concluded.

Author’s note: The cartoon — commissioned exclusively for this article — is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog

Trump takes high road as Abbas, PLO and Hamas implode

[Published 22 March 2018]

President Trump’s soon-to-be released “ultimate deal” – aimed at resolving the 100 years old Arab-Jewish conflict – seems set to see Trump not offering the PLO a seat at the negotiating table with Israel.

This possibility follows two extraordinary outbursts by PLO Chairman Mahmoud Abbas:

1. attacking Hamas – ending any prospects of reconciliation between the PLO and Hamas and

2. publicly disparaging US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman – whom Abbas called “son of a dog”

The wheels fell off the much-publicised Hamas-PLO reconciliation at a PLO leadership meeting in Ramallah on 19 March when Abbas accused Hamas of being responsible for the assassination attempt against Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah and chief of intelligence Majid Faraj in Gaza the previous week.

Abbas threatened retaliatory action against Hamas which was undisguised and unequivocal:

“I have decided to take national, legal and financial measures to protect our national project. We never thought of punishing any Palestinian citizen, not in the West Bank or Gaza. But we have to say where the wrong is and where the crime is. This situation is not acceptable.”

Abbas accused Hamas of sabotaging all efforts for reconciliation – saying that either the Palestinian government takes full charge of everything in Gaza or the de facto authority (Hamas) remains fully responsible for it:

“We did all we can to make the reconciliation a success, but, unfortunately, the result for empowering the government was zero. We have been working hard for six months and got nothing, not the government, not the crossings, not security, nothing. It’s all hypocrisy. They don’t want reconciliation … There aren’t two sides to the division, rather only one side that is consolidating it and enforces an illegal de facto situation”

Abbas said he would not wait for Hamas’investigation into the assassination attempt “because we know that they, Hamas, are behind it” – adding that assassinations are not new to Hamas whose history is full of similar acts – warning that the attempt will not go without reaction.

This latest bout of in-fighting between the PLO and Hamas highlights the bitter internecine conflict they have engaged in since 2007 for control of the hearts and minds of the Gazan and West Bank Arab populations. It underscores the continuing refusal of Hamas and the PLO to give these long-suffering populations any say in their own future for the last 11 years. It haunts the utter inability of the PLO to conclude a peace agreement with Israel after negotiations spanning the last 25 years.

Free and fair elections in Gaza and the West Bank are long overdue. Yet not a word is heard from the United Nations or the European Union calling on both Hamas and the PLO to replace bullets with ballots.

America designated Hamas as a terrorist organisation in 1987 – so believing that the PLO can play any constructive role in resolving Gaza’s future without succeeding in violently overthrowing Hamas is illusory.

Trump’s recently assembled coalition comprising Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, UAE, and Oman offers far better hope that Trump’s proposals might be ultimately translated into a binding Arab-Jewish peace treaty – with Arab recognition finally of the Jewish State 70 years after its establishment.

Trump will not take kindly to Abbas’s personal denigration of Ambassador Friedman. Trump should not be surprised if he, UN Ambassador Haley and Trump’s Middle East envoys Kushner and Greenblatt are soon on the receiving end of similar epithets.

Trump is taking the high road to possible peace – leaving Abbas, the PLO and Hamas wallowing on the murky low road engaging in further conflict and becoming politically irrelevant.

[Author’s note: The cartoon appearing with this article is the work of Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators – whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades]

Netanyahu will be Israel's next Prime Minister - with Trump's help

[Published 4 June 2019]

The abrupt termination of Israel’s 21st Parliament with new elections being called for 17 September has seen the New York Times claiming that Israel has been plunged into unprecedented political chaos.

A more sober assessment — based on comparing Israel’s 2015 election results with the April 2019 results — provides a different picture — in which Prime Minister Netanyahu will be returned once again as Israel’s next Prime Minister.

In an article written by me in March — I opined:

“The cards have certainly been stacked against Benjamin Netanyahu being Israel’s next Prime Minister after three recent major developments — but he is by no means down and out.”

Those developments were:

1. Israeli Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit’s decision to pursue Netanyahu for alleged criminal offences.

2. Three political parties coalescing into the Blue and White Party - promising that two of the three previous leaders — former Chief of Staff Benny Gantz and Yesh Atid’s Yair Lapid — would each be Prime Minister for half of the next Government’s term of office.

3. Netanyahu’s role in precipitating a marriage of convenience between Jewish Home, National Union and an extreme right wing party Otzma Yehudit with alleged links to the assassinated Rabbi Meir Kahane’s banned political party Kach

I pointed out that:

“The 2015 election results provide a useful guide as to the likely impact these three developments might have on Netanyahu’s chances:

1. the Likud Party only received 23.4% of the vote — hardly a ringing endorsement for Netanyahu and
2. 72% of those eligible voted — very high when compared to America’s 58.1%.

Likud’s low supporter-base seems unlikely to desert Netanyahu.

Voter turnout would have to increase dramatically or huge swings away from other right-wing parties would be needed to give Blue and White the nod needed to be invited by President Rivlin to form a coalition Government ahead of Netanyahu.

The unknown elephants in the room are the number of terrorist attacks and international political developments affecting Israel in the next five weeks that will concentrate voters’ minds — when actually casting their votes — on who can best safeguard their personal safety and Israel’s security"

Netanyahu won that race - the April 2019 election results revealing:

1. Voter turnout went down from 72% to 68%

2. Netanyahu’s Likud party vote went up from 23.4% to 26.46%

3.The party forcing the fresh September elections by refusing to join a Likud-led coalition — Yisrael Beiteinu headed by Avigdor Lieberman — saw its vote reduced from 214,906 to 173,004

These results should become more pronounced after voters evaluate the outcome of the Conference to be co-hosted by President Trump and Bahrain in Manama on 25/26 June to be attended by Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Qatar — with Egypt, Jordan and Israel (represented by Netanyahu’s caretaker Government) and other regional Arab states expected to also attend.

The US State Department has confirmed the Conference will go ahead notwithstanding Israel’s snap elections in September.

Add to this the likely possibility that before the September elections:

1. Trump could recognise Israel’s political claims to sovereignty in Judea and Samaria (West Bank) as he did in the Golan Heights prior to the April elections;

2. There could be further terror attacks against Israel from Gaza and the West Bank followed by swift Netanyahu-directed responses.

Trump has already pronounced his feelings on Israel’s September elections:

“Bibi got elected. Now, all of a sudden, they’re going to have to go through the process again until September? That’s ridiculous.”

Netanyahu — based on the April 2019 election results and Trump’s anticipated pro-Israel decisions — is the odds-on favourite to be Israel’s next Prime Minister.

Author’s note: The cartoon — commissioned exclusively for this article — is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog

Freedom from PLO and Hamas rule awaits Gaza and West Bank Arabs

[Published 29 May 2019]

The announced participation of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar in the “Prosperity for Peace Conference” in Manama on 25-26 June - jointly convened by President Trump and Bahrain (“Manama Conference”) — promises to offer unique opportunities for Gaza and West Bank Arabs to emigrate to other Arab countries to seek better lives for their families.

Tens of millions of desperate people have fled their birthplaces in recent years seeking entry illegally into other countries. There is no reason to believe that Gaza and West Bank Arabs would not similarly want to emigrate if offered the opportunity to do so legally.

Gaza and West Bank Arabs have personally suffered under the oppressive rule of Hamas in Gaza since 2006 and the Palestine Liberation Organization in the West Bank since 1993. They have not been given the opportunity at any time to determine their own future in free and fair elections — except in 2006 when the PLO refused to accept the result. A bitter internecine struggle since then has ensued between Hamas and the PLO for political control of the Gaza and West Bank Arab populations that still remains unresolved. Elections are not even being contemplated to resolve this impasse.

The policies espoused by both Hamas and the PLO in relation to Israel have wrought disaster on Gaza and West Bank Arabs both in regard to their personal lives and economic prospects for themselves and their children.

The UAE has voiced its support for the Manama Conference and what it hopes will be achieved:

“The UAE supports all international efforts aimed at supporting economic progress and increasing opportunities in the region, and alleviating the suffering of people in the region, particularly our brothers in Palestine… It (the Conference) aims to lift the Palestinian people out of misery and to enable them for a stable and prosperous future”

Hamas and the PLO are both violently opposed to the Manama Conference and have indicated they will not be attending. They are well aware of the threat an exodus from Gaza and the West Bank would pose to their hold on power and financial privilege.

Hamas — which has turned Gaza into a hell hole since Israel unilaterally disengaged from there in 2005 — had the gall to declare:

“We warn Arab states against the malicious activities aimed to pave the way for normalization with the Israeli occupation and involvement in the deal of the century”

Saeb Erekat — secretary general of the PLO — expressed his opposition against the Conference claiming:

“there will be no economic prosperity in Palestine without the end of the occupation.”

Among the many exciting initiatives expected to be presented at the Conference is Saudi Arabia’s already announced NEOM project — a planned US$500 billion mega city.

The project includes a bridge spanning the Red Sea, connecting the proposed city to Africa. Some 10,000 square miles (25,900 square kilometers) — the size of Israel - have been allocated for the project - which will be close to the borders of Jordan and Egypt.

The opportunities for work and the prospects of enjoying happier and safer lives in being part of NEOM and other to-be announced projects would prove irresistible for Gaza and West Bank Arabs - fed up with decades of deprivation and suffering supposedly pursuing the goal of “ending the occupation” by creating another Arab State.

Hamas and PLO threats, objections and non-attendance will not see the Manama Conference cancelled.

Hamas and the PLO will be left to hang out to dry — having been responsible for prolonging the Jewish-Arab conflict that should have been resolved decades ago.

Author’s note: The cartoon — commissioned exclusively for this article — is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog

Trump chooses Arab League over PLO to end conflict with Israel

[Published 23 May 2019]

President Trump has finally given up on the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) negotiating with Israel to end the Jewish- Arab conflict by decisively moving to involve the Arab League to fill that negotiating void.

This development follows the issue of a Joint Statement by President Trump with the Kingdom of Bahrain on May 19:

“The Kingdom of Bahrain, in partnership with the United States, will host the “Peace to Prosperity” economic workshop in Manama on June 25 and June 26, 2019. This workshop is a pivotal opportunity to convene government, civil society,

“Peace to Prosperity” will facilitate discussions on an ambitious, achievable vision and framework for a prosperous future for the Palestinian people and the region, including enhancements to economic governance, development of human capital, and facilitation of rapid private-sector growth. If implemented, this vision has the potential to radically transform lives and put the region on a path toward a brighter future.”

US Secretary to the Treasury —Steve Mnuchin —spelled out who could be involved:

“I look forward to these important discussions about a vision that will offer Palestinians exciting new opportunities to realize their full potential. This workshop will engage leaders from across the entire Middle East to promote economic growth and opportunity for the people in this important region,”

Bahrain Minister of Finance and National Economy Sheikh Salman bin Khalifa Al Khalifa was equally as positive:

“The ‘Peace to Prosperity’ workshop underscores the close strategic partnership between the Kingdom of Bahrain and the United States as well as the strong and shared interest in creating thriving economic opportunities that benefit the region”

The workshop is the culmination of a process begun on March 13, 2018 when President Trump hosted a conference at the White House with representatives from 20 countries to discuss the deteriorating humanitarian and economic conditions in Gaza. Israel and seven Arab states were present — Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan,Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates - but not the PLO - which refused to attend.

The process was further developed during the 14th Middle East Security Summit in Manama in November 2018 - when Oman’s Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs Yousef Bin Ali declared what — apart from the Jordan and Egypt peace treaties with Israel - had been taboo for 70 years in the Arab League:

“How can we involve Israel and prompt it to contribute to the affairs of the region? I am going to say something that I say for the first time. Israel is a state that is present in this region. We all understand this, we know this; the world is also aware of this fact. But despite that, Israel is not being treated by the other countries as it is treating the other countries. Maybe it is time for Israel to be treated the same and it should also bear the same obligations as other countries. Why? Those are really facts. History says that the Torah saw the light in the Middle East, that the prophets of Israel were born in the Middle East, and that the Jews also used to live in this area of the world.”

The future of the region seems set to discard the belligerent and rejectionist policies of the PLO.

Trump’s “ultimate deal” could now increasingly see Israel negotiating with an Arab delegation to replace the PLO — comprising representatives of those seven White House Arab States — 5 of whom have never had diplomatic relations with Israel — who had the courage to publicly meet and talk with Israel at Trump’s conference.

Building on this reality has become the key to ending the Jewish-Arab conflict.

Trump exposes United Nations as world’s epicenter for Jew-hatred

[Published 3 April 2019]

President Trump’s Proclamation recognizing Israel’s sovereignty in the Golan Heights — and the condemnation issued by the United Nations Security Council in response - has exposed the United Nations (UN) as the world’s epicenter for rabid Jew-hatred.

Jews do have ancient, historic and legal claims to sovereignty in the Golan Heights that cannot simply continue to be dismissed by a UN media release headed “Security Council Members Regret Decision by United States to Recognize Israel’s Sovereignty over Occupied Syrian Golan”.

The “Occupied Syrian Golan” is UN diplomatic doublespeak contrived after Israel:

1. Captured the Golan Heights in the 1967 Six Day War from Syria,

2. Passed an Act in 1981 declaring that the law, jurisdiction and administration of Israel applied to the Golan Heights - which was immediately rejected by Security Council Resolution 497.

Circumstances have since changed as Israel now faces Syria and its “invitees” Russia, Iran and Hezbollah across this very strategic piece of territory — whilst the UN remains powerless to end the carnage and displacement of Syria’s citizens by its ruler Bashir Assad during the past eight years.

Thirty-eight years of unbroken UN refusal to recognise Jewish sovereignty in the 1150 square kilometers Golan Heights has finally been called out and trashed by Trump.

The UN’s continuing anti-Israel and pro-Syrian bias in 2019 is the product of a structured regional-representation system which has seen decisions of its 193 member states impacted for decades by:

1. 16 member States that have never recognized Israel

2. 11 member States that have had no diplomatic relations with Israel for decades

3. 30 member States (in addition to those in 1 and 2) that are members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) — hardly a Jewish fan club

4. 77 member States that fraternize and associate with the above 57 Jew-hating States in a 134 member voting bloc at the UN called the G77 — guaranteeing an automatic majority for any resolution in the UN General Assembly — no matter how dismissive or contemptuous of Jewish rights and claims.

The Security Council’s current 10 non-permanent members include 3 OIC members — 2 of whom — Indonesia and Kuwait — have never recognized Israel.

The Commission on the Status of Women currently includes among its 45 members: 6 that have never recognised Israel — Algeria, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.

The current 49 members of the Human Rights Council include: 9 States that do not recognise Israel — Afghanistan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Iraq, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and Tunisia — and another 19 who are both OIC and G77 members or only G77 members.

These States regularly denigrate and delegitimise the Jewish people under the guise of civilized debate and constructive discussion on solving the worlds’ problem — most of which are remarkably sheeted home to the actions of the Jewish State of Israel and its Jewish majority population.

This toxic hate-filled potpourri has created a climate of unbridled UN-sponsored Jew-hatred that has permeated through other UN agencies including UNESCO and UNRWA.

A UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People exists — but no similar UN Committee for the Jewish People.

UN Jew-hatred will be re-ignited when Trump inevitably focuses his attention on Judea and Samaria — the UN’s falsely-designated “Occupied Palestinian Territories” — where the UN still misleadingly claims that Jews have no vested legal rights to reconstitute their biblical and ancient national home there as recognised by:

1. Article 6 of the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine and

2. Article 80 of the United Nations own Charter.

Endemic Jew-hatred throughout the UN must be eradicated if the UN is to regain any credibility or relevance.

Author’s note: The cartoon — commissioned exclusively for this article — is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog

False narrative haunts PLO and UN as Trump courts Arab States.

[Published 28 June 2018]

Nabil Abu Rudeineh - spokesman for Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas — has angrily reacted to President Trump’s intensive diplomatic efforts seeking to enlist Egypt, Jordan, Qatar and Saudi Arabia in advancing Trump’s long-awaited “deal of the century” to end the Arab-Jewish conflict.

Rudeineh fulminated:

“The American delegation should abandon the illusion that creating false facts and falsifying history are going to help it sell those illusions.”

Creating false facts and falsifying history has been the province of the PLO and the United Nations (UN) for decades.

The 1968 PLO Charter declared the 1917 Balfour Declaration, the 1922 Mandate for Palestine and everything subsequently based on them to be null and void.

The United Nations publication “The Origins and Evolution of the Palestine Problem 1917-1988” (“Study”) - published by the Division for Palestinian Rights of the United Nations Secretariat for, and under the guidance of, the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People - falsely claimed:

“After investigating various alternatives the United Nations proposed the partitioning of Palestine into two independent States, one Palestinian Arab and the other Jewish…”

The UN proposal—Resolution 181(II) - actually referred to:

“Independent Arab and Jewish States”...

Resolution 181(II) clearly denied the existence of any distinctly identifiable Palestinian people in 1947 — yet the Study falsified this narrative.

The Study also omitted to mention that 78% of Palestine had already become an independent Arab State in 1946 and been renamed the Hashemite Kingdom of Transjordan.

Creating a separate state for the “Palestinians” - never identified as a separate people by the international community in 1947 — is seen by that same international community in 2018 to be the only solution capable of ending the conflict between Jews and Arabs.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Two peoples — the Jews and the Arabs — already have their own independent States in former Palestine - named Israel and Jordan.

Rudeineh continued:

“Despite the burden of regional issues, there are things that cannot be weighed with gold and humanitarian aid, or solutions that try to cut from a more than 100-year-old historical conflict.”

This is the first time the PLO has ever acknowledged that the Jewish-Arab conflict originated in the events following the Balfour Declaration in 1917 — not the events following the 1948 Arab-Israel War.

UN Secretary-General Guterres helped perpetuate this falsehood when recently referring to the “Israeli/Palestinian conflict”.

There were no “Israelis” or “Palestinians” 95 years ago when the preamble to the Mandate for Palestine declared:

“Whereas the Principal Allied Powers have also agreed that the Mandatory should be responsible for putting into effect the declaration originally made on November 2nd, 1917, by the Government of His Britannic Majesty, and adopted by the said Powers, in favor of the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, it being clearly understood that nothing should be done which might prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine , or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country; “

British reversal of this policy in 1922 saw Transjordan — today called Jordan — totally closed to Jewish settlement to prevent the reconstitution of the Jewish National Home there. The 1937 Peel Commission counted for nothing.

Forty crucial years in Palestine’s history until 1948 were shredded by the PLO and materially altered by the UN Study in propagating the “Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People”.

Rudeineh’s statements mark a welcome return to reality.

Getting other Arab interlocutors to replace the PLO in negotiations with Israel remains Trump’s crucial starting point to ending the Arab-Jewish conflict.

Mattis-Bolton accord can sway Trump to dump PLO for Jordan

[Published 2 April 2018]

President Trump’s possible call for Jordan to replace the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) as Israel’s negotiating partner under Trump’s soon-to-be-released “ultimate deal” will be considerably strengthened if Trump’s newly-appointed National Security Adviser - John Bolton - and Secretary of Defense - James “Mad Dog” Mattis - concur on such a move.

Bolton has supported this strategy since 2009– telling Eric Shawn on 21 January 2018:

“I hope at some point the Administration recognizes and perhaps it is already quietly – that the two-state solution isn’t going anywhere. If anything I would say to King Abdullah of Jordan – “Be prepared to reassert Jordanian sovereignty over part of the West Bank – negotiate with Israel”. I think that’s a far better outcome than the continued pursuit of a mythical – I believe – unattainable viable Palestinian state”

Mattis has favoured the Obama-Kerry strategy – pointing out to the Aspen Security Forum in July 2013:

“We have got to find a way to make the two-state solution that Democrat and Republican administrations have supported, we’ve got to get there. And the chances for it, as the king of Jordan has pointed out, are starting to ebb because of the settlements and where they’re at, are going to make it impossible to maintain the two-state option.”

Mattis further reasoned:

“I paid a military security price every day as the commander of CentCom because the Americans were seen as biased in support of Israel and that moderates all the moderate Arabs who want to be with us, because they can’t come out publicly in support of people who don’t show respect for the Arab Palestinians. So he [Secretary of State John Kerry] is right on target with what he’s doing. And I just hope the protagonists want peace and a two-state solution as much as he does.”

Kerry however failed miserably – being unable to get the PLO back to the negotiating table after a PLO walk-out in April 2014 following nine months of unsuccessful negotiations on proposals specifically formulated by Kerry to resolve the long-running conflict.

Today:

1. Moderate Arabs – Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Oman - have come out publicly - joining Jordan and Egypt in meeting with Israel in the White House – without PLO participation - to discuss Gaza’s deteriorating situation.

2. The PLO refuses to resume negotiations with Israel on the two-state solution: creating a second Arab State – in addition to Jordan – in the territory covered by the 1922 League of Nations Mandate for Palestine.

3. The PLO will no longer accept America as sole mediator and is demanding an international conference be convened by mid-2018

The media have castigated Trump for appointing Bolton – typified by highly-credentialled columnist George Will claiming:

“Bolton will soon be the second-most dangerous American.”

Yet Will himself had written in the Washington Post on 17 April 1987:

“May 14 will be the 30th Anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel, June 6 will be the 20th anniversary of the Six Day War. The West Bank has been held by Israel longer than it had been held by Jordan, the 1967 aggressor, which ever since has presented itself as the aggrieved party. Today, as every day since 1948, the key to peace is direct negotiations between Jordan and Israel, not a committee”

Mattis’s jocular remarks on meeting Bolton at the Pentagon - caught in an off-microphone exchange – signals Mattis could have already changed his thinking:

"I heard you're actually the devil incarnate and I wanted to meet you"

A Mattis-Bolton accord on Jordan replacing the PLO in future negotiations with Israel will undoubtedly reinforce Trump’s preparedness to make this long-overdue call.

Trump gets Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, UAE, and Oman talking

[Published 18 March 2018]


President Trump has amazingly managed to cut through 100 years of Arab-Jewish antagonism by hosting a conference at the White House on 13 March with representatives from 20 countries - including Israel and seven Arab states (“Conference”).

Ostensibly called to discuss solutions to the worsening humanitarian and economic conditions in Gaza – this Conference also has very significant ramifications for Trump’s soon-to-be-released proposals to end the 100 years-old Arab-Jewish conflict.

Convened by White House Senior Advisor Jared Kushner, Special Representative for International Negotiations Jason Greenblatt, and members of the National Security Council (NSC) staff and the Department of State – the Conference was attended by representatives from the United Nations, the European Union, the Office of the Quartet, and the following countries: Bahrain, Canada, Cyprus, Egypt, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Netherlands, Norway, Oman, Qatar, Sweden, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom.

Shamefully the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) - claiming to be the sole spokesperson for the Gazan Arabs since 1974 - could not set aside its enmity for Trump to attend this truly-international Conference designed to relieve the hell-hole that Gaza has become since Israel’s unilateral Disengagement in 2005.

PLO chief Mahmoud Abbas could well rue his decision to boycott this Conference following his virulent reaction to Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and move the US Embassy there in May on the occasion of Israel’s 70th anniversary.

The White House Readout makes no bones about where Trump wanted this Conference to go:

“The Administration of President Donald J. Trump believes that deteriorating humanitarian conditions in Gaza require immediate attention. The situation in Gaza must be solved for humanitarian reasons and for ensuring the security of Egypt and Israel. It is also a necessary step toward reaching a comprehensive peace agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians, including Palestinians in both Gaza and the West Bank.”

The PLO no-show at the White House could see Abbas being excluded from any new negotiations with Israel under Trump’s eagerly-awaited proposals. Trump does not take kindly to such PLO grandstanding. After unsuccessful negotiations between Israel and the PLO spanning the last 25 years – Abbas’s latest Presidential rebuff is the height of arrogance and stupidity.

Trump’s “ultimate deal” could see Israel negotiating with an Arab delegation to replace the PLO - comprising White House attendees Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrein, UAE, and Oman – Arab States that have no diplomatic relations with Israel - but who had the courage to publicly meet with – and talk to - Israel at the Conference.

They would join the other two Arab States that attended the Conference – Egypt and Jordan – who have enjoyed diplomatic relations with Israel since respectively signing peace treaties in 1979 and 1994.

For far too long the PLO has sought to define the 100 years old unresolved Arab-Jewish conflict as one involving only “Palestinians” and “Israelis” - when no “Israelis” existed until 1948 and no “Palestinians” existed until 1964.

This false PLO narrative has been swallowed hook line and sinker by the United Nations and the European Union. Their on-going support has enabled the PLO to remain sole Arab negotiator with Israel over the last 25 years – with Arab League backing - seeking to create a second Palestinian Arab State - in addition to Jordan – in former Mandatory Palestine.

Trump’s Conference has junked such thinking, shown there are seven other Arab interlocutors ready to negotiate with Israel under American auspices and seen the PLO commit political suicide.

Those who continue to pillory Trump and underestimate his unique skills as an incredible circuit breaker are becoming increasingly irrelevant.

Trump and Putin must co-operate to defeat Islamic State

[Published 2 March 2017]


President Trump made his intention to destroy Islamic State crystal clear in his stirring address to the Congress on 28 February:

“As promised, I directed the Department of Defense to develop a plan to demolish and destroy ISIS — a network of lawless savages that have slaughtered Muslims and Christians, and men, women, and children of all faiths and beliefs. We will work with our allies, including our friends and allies in the Muslim world, to extinguish this vile enemy from our planet.”

The Department of Defense plan had already been delivered to members of the National Security Council’s Principals Committee - and Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis was due to brief the committee on 27 February.

Whether this plan recommends co-operation with Russia still remains under wraps.

Certainly President Obama’s decision in September 2014 to degrade and destroy Islamic State by forming a broad international coalition of 68 States without:

1. Including Russia and
2. first securing a Security Council resolution endorsing such action

has proved both catastrophic and very expensive.

The State Department trumpeted that the breadth and diversity of America’s coalition partners demonstrated the global and unified nature of Obama’s endeavour.

Yet Islamic State today remains undefeated in Syria and Iraq.

Support for — and pledges of allegiance to — Islamic State by over 30 radical Islamic terrorist groups world-wide are creating horrific humanitarian problems — some far removed from the Middle East.

Defeating Islamic State in Iraq and Syria will see these “lawless savages” joining such disparate groups in their drive to establish the restoration of the Caliphate and the implementation of Sharia law world-wide.

Members of the US-led Coalition have not been contributing their fair share towards dealing with Islamic State — leaving the burden to fall squarely on America.

Australian Prime Minister — Malcolm Turnbull — declared last week that Australia was in fact the second largest international contributor to the US led coalition after the United States — shaming NATO countries like Germany, France and the United Kingdom and Middle East members Saudi Arabia, Qatar and United Arab Emirates.

The remaining 125 UN member States have escaped sharing the cost and responsibility of confronting and defeating Islamic State.

Trump’s reprimand of NATO would indicate he considers the Obama-led coalition has been a very bad deal for America.

Trump can rectify this situation by jointly co-sponsoring with Putin a United Nations Security Council resolution authorising the use of force against Islamic State under Chapter V11 of the UN Charter.

Russia and America have previously expressed their willingness to involve the Security Council.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made this clear on 18 November 2015:

“The Security Council needs to give preferential attention to the task of creating a solid legal foundation for the fight against this evil [Islamic State] and for the mobilization of an actual global coalition in response to this common uncompromising challenge for us all.”

President Obama preached a similar mantra in St Petersburg on 6 September 2013:

“And I respect those who are concerned about setting precedents of action outside of a U.N. Security Council resolution. I would greatly prefer working through multilateral channels and through the United Nations to get this done.”

Mentioning any relationship with Russia is a very sensitive issue in American politics today.

However Trump may well have had Russia in mind when he told Congress:

“America is willing to find new friends, and to forge new partnerships, where shared interests align. We want harmony and stability, not war and conflict.”

Defeating Islamic State is a shared interest of Trump and Putin.

Co-operation in the United Nations Security Council will materially advance that objective.

Obama, Putin And Rouhani Can Do Deal On Destroying ISIL

[Published 26 September 2014]


President Obama’s sudden about face in deciding to attack ISIL in Syria on 21 September - without express approval of Syria or a resolution of the United Nations Security Council - has provoked a strong response from Russia and Iran - President Assad’s main supporters in his three years struggle to remain in power in Syria.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on 23 September:

“Such actions must be carried out exclusively within the boundaries of international law. That means not formal unilateral ‘notification’ of strikes but the clearly expressed approval of the government of Syria or the passage of a decision by the United Nations Security Council.”

Iranian President - Hassan Rouhani - reportedly said the U.S-led airstrikes were illegal and constituted an attack on Syria - while also condemning Islamic State militants as “barbarians.”

Their strictures were issued following the admission made to Chuck Todd on Meet The Press by America’s ambassador to the United Nations - Samantha Power - on 19 September - that training of moderate rebels in Syria would help both U.S. efforts to destroy ISIL as well as the rebels’ ongoing struggle against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad:

“But may I add, the training also will service these troops in the same struggle that they’ve been in since the beginning of this conflict against the Assad regime,”

Putin and Rouhani would have been very concerned that the US led attacks on ISIL in Syria were undertaken with the active support of Jordan, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia — all members of the “London 11” — whose communique released on 22 October 2013 had declared:

“We agree that when the TGB {Transitional Governing Body--ed] is established, Assad and his close associates with blood on their hands will have no role in Syria. There must be accountability for acts committed during the present conflict."

It is clear Assad will not be inviting anyone into Syria if there is any suspicion that they are there to preside over his demise. It is equally clear that when someone like the Iranian President calls ISIL "barbarians" - that international action must be taken to eliminate ISIL at the earliest possible opportunity.

Rouhani did not directly condemn the US-led air strikes against ISIL in Syria when addressing the United Nations on 25 September - but issued the following warning:

“I believe if countries claiming leadership of the coalition are seeking to perpetuate their hegemony in the region, they’d be making a strategic mistake. Democracy can’t be delivered in a backpack. It’s not a commodity to be exported from west to east. It needs a foundation”

Rouhani offered this sage advice:

“Obviously, since the pain is better known by the countries in the region, better they can form coalition, and accept to shoulder the responsibility of leadership to counter violence and terrorism. And if other nations wish to take action against terrorism, they must come to their support.

I warn that if we do not muster all our strengths against extremism and violence today, and fail to entrust the job to the people in the region who can deliver, tomorrow the world will be safe for no one.”

Boris Kalyagin - international journalist and professor at Moscow’s Higher School of Economics - told Pravda.Ru on 23 September:

“We believe that no decision related to such major international questions as the struggle against aggressors, particularly terrorist regimes, can be taken without a UN resolution. The United States has repeatedly demonstrated that it takes actions bypassing UN decisions, that’s why they want to deprive us of our voice, to feel like masters at the Security Council.”

Russia and Iran’s ground rules are very clear - if Obama wants to degrade and destroy ISIL he needs to act under the authority of a Security Council Resolution passed under Chapter VII of the UN Charter.

America and Russia dealt with the issue of destroying Syria’s chemical weapons stockpile by navigating Resolution 2118 through the UN Security Council — preventing threatened air strikes by America on Syria to degrade its chemical weapons.

That resolution weakened Assad’s position — but nevertheless Assad understood that was the price he had to pay for Russia and Iran’s continuing support.

Two Security Council Resolutions condemning some activities of ISIL - 2170 and 2178 - have already received American and Russian backing.

They have been inadequate however to stop ISIL and the Al-Nusrah Front in their tracks.

Withdrawal of American plans to train moderate rebels to destroy ISIL in Syria whilst assisting them to overthrow Assad - at best a mindless pipe dream — can be ended by America and Russia jointly procuring the passage of a Security Council resolution:

1. Deploring the illegal acquisition by ISIL and the Al-Nusrah Front of parts of the sovereign territory of Syria and Iraq.

2. Condemning their cruel and inhumane conduct in murdering civilians and displacing entire communities in Syria and Iraq

3. Calling on them to surrender control over those parts of Syria and Iraq occupied by them to a duly constituted United Nations Force within 72 hours.

4. Reserving the right to take such further action as it considers fit in the event of non-compliance

Obama, Putin and Rouhani have their problems with other pressing issues — Ukraine and nuclear weapons.

On ISIL and Al-Nusrah Front their national interests are identical.

The UN Security Council stands ready to help them cut a deal.

Israel Invited To Help Destroy Chemical Weapons In Syria

[Published 29 September 2013]


The passage of Security Council Resolution 2118 (2013) on 27 September calling for the collection and destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons - is a welcome breakthrough in ending the deadlock that has paralysed the Security Council’s ability to act constructively to end the civil war in Syria for the past thirty months.

It also signifies that diplomacy United Nations style is indeed the art of the possible - aimed at finding the lowest common denominators shared by the five permanent members of the Security Council.

Whilst a protocol has been put in place to destroy Syria’s chemical weapons - the Resolution also offers something of substance to prevent anti-Assad forces using chemical weapons in Syria and to committing the United Nations to search for and locate any such chemical weapons.

Russia has maintained anti-Assad forces used the sarin gas that resulted in the deaths of 1429 civilians on 21 August - but has been unable to conclusively substantiate that claim.

America has made it clear that it considers Syria responsible for the atrocity - as President Obama again made abundantly clear in his address to the General Assembly on 24 September;

“The evidence is overwhelming that the Assad regime used such weapons on August 21st. U.N. inspectors gave a clear accounting that advanced rockets fired large quantities of sarin gas at civilians. These rockets were fired from a regime-controlled neighborhood and landed in opposition neighborhoods.

It’s an insult to human reason and to the legitimacy of this institution to suggest that anyone other than the regime carried out this attack.”

President Obama has certainly not done his own credibility any good by continuing to publicly castigate Syria - asserting it is an insult to human reason and the legitimacy of the United Nations for anyone to think otherwise - but then immediately agreeing to Resolution 2118 three days later without any mention of Syria’s culpability.

Yet Russia and America have managed to agree on inserting the following mechanism in Resolution 2118 to try and find out whether the anti-Assad forces were indeed the culprits.

“Decides that Member States shall inform immediately the Security Council of any violation of resolution 1540 (2004), including acquisition by non-State actors of chemical weapons, their means of delivery and related materials in order to take necessary measures therefore; “

The United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 1540 (2004) under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter on 28 April 2004 - which affirmed that the proliferation of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and their means of delivery constituted a threat to international peace and security. The resolution obliged States to refrain from supporting by any means non-State actors from developing, acquiring, manufacturing, possessing, transporting, transferring or using nuclear, chemical or biological weapons and their delivery systems.

The idea that any member state violating Resolution 1540 would now immediately notify the Security Council and incriminate itself is laughable.

However Resolution 2118 contains three further obligations:
(1) In underscoring:

”that no party in Syria should use, develop, produce, acquire, stockpile, retain, or transfer chemical weapons;”

(2) In reaffirming:

“that all Member States shall refrain from providing any form of support to non-State actors that attempt to develop, acquire, manufacture, possess, transport, transfer or use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons and their means of delivery, and calls upon all Member States, in particular Member States neighbouring the Syrian Arab Republic, to report any violations of this paragraph to the Security Council immediately;

(3) Demanding that:

“ non-State actors not develop, acquire, manufacture, possess, transport, transfer or use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons and their means of delivery, and calls upon all Member States, in particular Member States neighbouring the Syrian Arab Republic, to report any actions inconsistent with this paragraph to the Security Council immediately"

Singling out all member States neighbouring the Syrian Arab Republic to report any such activities by non-State actors in Syria is particularly intriguing.

There are eleven UN member states - known as the London Eleven - providing military and financial aid to the Syrian Free Army. Six of these States are Syria’s neighbours - Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and UIA Emirates.

Are any of them aware that the Syrian Free Army has acquired chemical weapons? If so - they are unlikely to disclose their information and consequently be forced to withhold further aid - besides explaining why they continued supporting the Syrian Free Army knowing they held chemical weapons.

However - one of Syria’s most immediate neighbours - Israel - is not a member of the London Eleven and is vitally interested in the Security Council taking steps to collect and destroy such weapons.

Resolution 2118 requires Israel to disclose to the Security Council any information it holds on chemical weapons acquired by any anti- Assad forces in Syria. Israel is widely assumed to have extensive knowledge of the existence of such chemical weapons in Syria.

Israel can deny it has any information - but risks being in breach of Resolution 2118 if information in its possession is subsequently revealed.

Russia has cleverly forced the Security Council to determine the truth of Russia’s claim - whilst any evidence supplied by Russia and Israel will be critical in collecting and destroying those chemical weapons.

The impotence of the Security Council in ending non-State actors using chemical weapons in Syria has been brilliantly circumvented by this latest Resolution.

Such is the way convenient marriages are made in the Security Council.

Syria - London Eleven Need Help From Heaven

[Published 22 September 2013]


Only divine intervention now seems likely to justify continuing support for the anti- Assad forces in Syria by the group known as the London 11 - United States, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

An unnamed Pentagon official has made this very clear in a Sunday Times article on 15 September headlined “Who’s calling the shots”:

“What everyone’s missing here is that the US has effectively chosen to back Assad,” a Pentagon official said. “There won’t be airstrikes in the foreseeable future and the administration has made clear that any help for the moderate opposition will be, to use Secretary Kerry’s words, unbelievably small. The facts on the ground are that Assad — who is still being armed by Russia — is winning.”

The Syrian opposition is clearly teetering on the ropes - indicating the failure of the London 11 strategy announced on 22 June:

“Doha, Qatar (CNN)—Foreign ministers from 11 countries meeting here cited the presence of foreign fighters in the country and the alleged use of chemical weapons by Damascus in agreeing Saturday to increase arms shipments to the rebels.

In a statement, the ministers representing the “London 11,” an offshoot of the “Friends of Syria,” said they would “provide urgently all the necessary materiel and equipment to the opposition on the ground, each country in its own way in order to enable them to counter brutal attacks by the regime and its allies and protect the Syrian people.”

The weapons are to be funneled through the opposition Free Syrian Army’s Supreme Military Council (SMC).

The alleged use of chemical weapons, which President Bashar al-Assad has denied, and the involvement of Hezbollah and Iran left the participants no choice:

“but to provide greater assistance of one kind or another, each nation making its own decision as to what it is comfortable doing, but all of them committing to do more to help the Syrian opposition,” U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told reporters.”

Exacerbating Syria’s agony is the growing number of foreigners fighting alongside the Free Syrian Army - undoubtedly causing great concern among the London 11 as disclosed in this disturbing report in The Telegraph on 15 September:

“Opposition forces battling Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria now number around 100,000 fighters, but after more than two years of fighting they are fragmented into as many as 1,000 bands.

The new study by IHS Jane’s, a defence consultancy, estimates there are around 10,000 jihadists - who would include foreign fighters - fighting for powerful factions linked to al-Qaeda.

Another 30,000 to 35,000 are hardline Islamists who share much of the outlook of the jihadists, but are focused purely on the Syrian war rather than a wider international struggle.

There are also at least a further 30,000 moderates belonging to groups that have an Islamic character, meaning only a small minority of the rebels are linked to secular or purely nationalist groups…

...Fears that the rebellion against the Assad regime is being increasingly dominated by extremists has fuelled concerns in the West over supplying weaponry that will fall into hostile hands. These fears contributed to unease in the US and elsewhere over military intervention in Syria”

Certainly the western nations among the London 11 would have been appalled at the following remarks appearing in the Sunday Times article by a resident in the largely Christian town of Maaloula - following the entry of anti- Assad forces:

“These people are not after Bashar [al-Assad]. Their main aim and goal is to establish an Islamic caliphate. We have been living for 40 years as Christians under Assad. Now they place a gun to our head and say we have to convert to Islam.”

Another distraught resident declared:

“They broke into homes, stole things. They broke crosses and destroyed holy books. They fired at homes, ransacked, looted and destroyed anything with Christian symbols”

Moral imperatives might certainly have motivated the London 11 to initially take sides in the Syrian civil war.

However with this war claiming over 100000 deaths and seven million displaced Syrian civilians during the past 30 months - the time for the London 11 to call it a day must surely be approaching.

As the USA, Britain and France haggle with Russia in a vain attempt to procure face-saving terms for a United Nations Security Council Resolution to destroy all chemical weapons in Syria - the prospect of a ceasefire enabling their collection continues to evaporate given the disparate forces now fighting against Assad.

Intervention in Syria by the London 11 has been disastrous - as the increasing human casualties make so starkly clear.

The Pentagon official’s assessment declaring Assad the emerging winner is being increasingly confirmed with each passing day.

This conclusion may be unpalatable to the London 11 - and the group must shoulder some responsibility for the catastrophic humanitarian outcome.

A ceasefire between Assad and the SMC accompanied by an offer of safe passage and political asylum for SMC fighters and their families to the London 11 countries - would isolate the foreign jihadists - forcing them to exit Syria or die fighting Assad’s forces.

Assad would see off his armed opponents - Russia would see its pro-Assad stance justified - and the London 11 would have acted honourably to save those it supported.

These attainable goals - backed by Russia and America - represent a heaven-sent opportunity to end Syria’s hell and destroy its chemical weapons.