mintpressnews--2020-08-11--Christian Nationalists and Christian Zionists March Lockstep to Secure Another Four Years for Trump

Two thousand years ago , Jesus taught an oppressed , occupied people the ways of mercy and nonviolent resistance .
In the intervening centuries , some strains of Christianity have transformed themselves from these humble roots into dominant , imperial forces .
Their “ Christian ” voices speak the language of the Bible , but their ideologies have little to do with the Bible ’ s message .
Their followers – knowingly or unknowingly – encourage authoritarianism and racism with a stamp of approval from God .
These groups – Christian Nationalists and their cousins , Christian Zionists – have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ power , and may be the key to another four-year term for arguably the most catastrophic president in history .
Nationalism , according to the Oxford Dictionary and “ Political Ideologies , ” is “ identification with one ’ s own nation and support for its interests , especially to the exclusion or detriment of the interests of other nations , ” which “ aims to build and maintain a single national identity.
” Christian Nationalism , then , promotes the interests ( and perhaps , doctrines ) of a particular strain of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ single Christian national identity – to the exclusion of the interests of other Christian groups in the nation and the interests of other nations .
Christian Zionism is a Christian movement that similarly promotes the interests of certain types of Jews in Israel , aiming to support them as they build a single , privileged Jewish national identity – to the exclusion of the interests of other groups in Israel and the interests of other nations .
Friends of Sabeel North America ( FOSNA ) , an international movement seeking a just peace @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Jonathan Brenneman , the communications coordinator for FOSNA , described Christian Zionism to MintPress as : Christian Zionists see themselves as the only people who understand God ’ s plan , and they have the duty to implement it at any cost.
” Sounds crazy ?
These groups are not fringe .
They are plentiful and powerful , to the point that they may have won Trump the election in 2016 , and may do so again in 2020 .
As Pew Research reported in March 2020 , half of Americans hold the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have a “ great deal ” or “ some ” influence over U.S. laws ( though they might not label it as such ) .
Some 28 percent believe that “ if and when the Bible conflicts with the will of the American people , the Bible should have more influence on the laws of the land.
” In addition , roughly 70 million Americans profess the Christian Zionist beliefs that “ God ’ s promise to Abraham and his descendants was for all time , ” and that the creation of modern @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the return of Jesus Christ .
As the U.S. has become more diverse and secular , the relative numbers of Christians – especially white Christians – has been declining .
White Christians have “ lost their perceived standing as the country ’ s decision-makers amid their declining status , ” driving many to Christian Nationalism as a path back to power .
Many of these Christian Nationalists heard in Candidate Trump ’ s MAGA slogan a promise to return America to its former greatness – the good old days when we “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , everybody pulled his weight.
” Trump also promised to move the American Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem , pull out of the treaty with Iran , and support Israeli settlements on Palestinian land – all wildly popular with Christian Zionists .
Some 80 percent of evangelicals voted for Trump – either to save America or to usher in the second coming of Christ .
Trump ’ s evangelical fan club had a dilemma on its hands as his skeletons kept tumbling out of the closet .
He was a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
In a piece for Salon , Paul Rosenberg goes so far as to suggest that a righteous candidate would have been a bad idea , writing that “ When push comes to shove , the more vicious the leader , the better .
The moral restraints of the deeply pious are the last thing you want for the job.
” Every day brought a new crisis – and a new rationalization : “ Only God knows what is in Trump ’ s heart.
” “ Democrats have baggage too.
” “ He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ We ’ re all sinners.
” Under the new , Trump-inspired Christianity , some leaders portrayed him as “ God ’ s choice , ” and instructed followers to stand with him no matter what .
Robert Jeffress , the pastor of the oldest megachurch in the U.S. , demonstrated this just before the 2016 election when he quite literally contradicted the words of Jesus in defense of Trump : The Trump campaign , and then administration , has always included a large number of evangelical leaders – including Christian Zionists .
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but according to Trump advisor Mike Evans , to have “ a seat at the table.
” Christian Zionists in Trump ’ s inner circle use their access to present their interpretation of scripture as potential foreign policy .
And Apparently Trump listens .
Evans has been part of that inner circle .
He was in on private briefings with the president before the unveiling of the so-called Deal of the Century – Trump ’ s “ peace plan ” for Israel and Palestine , which heavily favors Israel .
“ Israel just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said of the plan .
“ I am not referring to Donald Trump as God , but I am saying he has Divine inspiration.
” Trump ’ s actions on behalf of Israel , which are often reckless and violations of international law and human rights , are understood as obedience to Genesis 12:3 , “ I will bless those who bless you [ Abraham ] , and whoever curses you I will curse.
” The most powerful guest at the table has to be CUFI – Christians United For Israel – an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the quintessential mechanism of Christian Zionism .
At the CUFI ’ s helm is John Hagee , who teaches as fact his dispensationalist interpretation of the situation in Israel and Palestine .
As Hagee puts it , “ Israel exists because of a covenant God made with Abraham , Isaac , and Jacob 3,500 years ago – and that covenant still stands , ” and “ From a biblical , historical , and legal perspective , Israel owns , and does not occupy , the Holy Land .
And one can not be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( The global community almost unanimously disagrees with the second statement , based on international law . )
Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo themselves self-identify as Christian Zionists and Pence has even visited Israel on CUFI ’ s dime .
Both have spoken at CUFI ’ s annual summit .
At least three other high-level members of the Trump administration attended as well .
The organization is effective .
The Hill listed at least five congressional seats and one governor that CUFI helped flip from blue to red @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are ready to “ show up at the polls and cast their ballot for the candidate that is best for the Jewish state.
” How ?
According to Sandy Hagee Parker of the CUFI Action Fund , “ With approximately 50 events nationally per month , CUFI ’ s field staff is in constant education mode… ” “ CUFI members don ’ t see Israel as a political issue , but as an exercise in their faith – and that will never change , ” Hagee Parker boasts .
CUFI members can be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , visit a Congress member , attend a town hall meeting – whatever is needed to keep the agenda moving forward .
Bottom line , in John Hagee ’ s own words : Iran is public enemy number one to Christian Zionists , who believe that the end times must be preceded by war and bloodshed .
Iran is more than just a geopolitical enemy – it is , as religious historian Diana Butler Bass explains , “ sort of a prophetic dog whistle to evangelicals…they ’ re eager for Christ to return @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Iran and Israel has to happen for their larger hope to pass.
” And so John Hagee – a pastor , mind you – has repeatedly called for Iran to be hit with a “ maximum pressure campaign , ” including at one point a preemptive strike .
In 2017 , Christian Zionists pestered Trump to move the American Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem .
According to the Christians United For Israel website : The embassy move took place in May 2018 amid peaceful protests that resulted in dozens of Palestinian deaths @ @ @ @ @ @ @ side of the story ?
Just 40 percent of Jews living in Israel believe that God gave them the land ; meanwhile , 82 percent of white American evangelicals believe it .
How is that possible ?
Brenneman explained that because there is no visible counter-argument against the damaging narrative of Christian Zionism , “ Most people don ’ t even realize that they hold a Christian Zionist perspective.
” While mainstream media will never give a completely accurate picture of world events , it does manage to contradict Trump on a regular @ @ @ @ @ @ @ truths by delegitimizing them as “ fake news ” and , as Kellyanne Conway famously gave us , the phrase “ alternative facts.
” His flock follows suit .
In the arena of accurate news on Israel and Palestine , many sources committed to rigorous reporting and educating are routinely denounced as “ anti-Semitic ” for daring to show Israel ’ s human rights abuses against Palestinians .
Most Americans are thus not exposed to the truth about the injustice that Christian Zionism is inflicting on Palestinians through its support of Israel .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump a one-term president , evangelicals and conservatives are resolute about winning him four more years .
They are also well-organized and well-funded .
Data analysts are scouring statistics nationwide , looking for new conservative voters to register and recruit .
Thousands of conservative , and also often evangelical radio stations , sing Trump ’ s praises ; tens of millions of churchgoers are faithful to him .
Mike Evans , a Trump advisor , pointed out that the evangelical bloc “ gave ” Trump the presidency because of his pro-life stance and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ same group has the power to “ fire ” him if he does not continue to toe the line .
The current test will be if Trump endorses Israel ’ s planned annexation of parts of the Palestinian West Bank , a move deemed illegal under international law .
When asked about Trump ’ s re-election prospects , Evans explains how pro-Israel policy translates into votes : In fact , according to a 2019 Public Religion Research Institute poll of Trump supporters , 31 percent of white evangelicals said there is essentially nothing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vote .
“ Stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody ” ?
Apparently he can do no wrong .
Feature photo | Attendee sing worship songs during a President Donald Trump campaign event courting devout conservatives by combining praise , prayer and patriotism , July 23 , 2020 , in Alpharetta , Ga. John Amis | AP Kathryn Shihadah writes for MintPress News and If Americans Knew .
She speaks regularly about the injustice and demonization Palestinians face at the hands of Israel with complicity from the United States , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lived in the Middle East for ten years and has traveled extensively .
She blogs at PalestineHome.org .

Two thousand years ago, Jesus taught an oppressed, occupied people the ways of mercy and nonviolent resistance. In the intervening centuries, some strains of Christianity have transformed themselves from these humble roots into dominant, imperial forces.
Their “Christian” voices speak the language of the Bible, but their ideologies have little to do with the Bible’s message. Their followers – knowingly or unknowingly – encourage authoritarianism and racism with a stamp of approval from God.
These groups – Christian Nationalists and their cousins, Christian Zionists – have made their way into the halls of power, and may be the key to another four-year term for arguably the most catastrophic president in history.
The ideologies
Nationalism, according to the Oxford Dictionary and “Political Ideologies,” is “identification with one’s own nation and support for its interests, especially to the exclusion or detriment of the interests of other nations,” which “aims to build and maintain a single national identity.”
Christian Nationalism, then, promotes the interests (and perhaps, doctrines) of a particular strain of Christians, and aims to build a single Christian national identity – to the exclusion of the interests of other Christian groups in the nation and the interests of other nations.
Christians Against Christian Nationalism, a broad coalition of faith groups, adds:
Christian Nationalism demands Christianity be privileged by the State and implies that to be a good American, one must be Christian. It often overlaps with and provides cover for white supremacy and racial subjugation.
Christian Zionism is a Christian movement that similarly promotes the interests of certain types of Jews in Israel, aiming to support them as they build a single, privileged Jewish national identity – to the exclusion of the interests of other groups in Israel and the interests of other nations.
Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA), an international movement seeking a just peace for Palestinians, opposes Christian Zionism. Jonathan Brenneman, the communications coordinator for FOSNA, described Christian Zionism to MintPress as:
An ideology which uses Christianity in the name of hate. Their mission is to increase their “Christian” influence on U.S. policy…upholding U.S. and Christian supremacy in its support of Israel’s worst practices.”
Christian Zionists see themselves as the only people who understand God’s plan, and they have the duty to implement it at any cost.”
Sounds crazy? These groups are not fringe. They are plentiful and powerful, to the point that they may have won Trump the election in 2016, and may do so again in 2020.
As Pew Research reported in March 2020, half of Americans hold the Christian Nationalist belief that the Bible should have a “great deal” or “some” influence over U.S. laws (though they might not label it as such). Some 28 percent believe that “if and when the Bible conflicts with the will of the American people, the Bible should have more influence on the laws of the land.”
In addition, roughly 70 million Americans profess the Christian Zionist beliefs that “God’s promise to Abraham and his descendants was for all time,” and that the creation of modern Israel is a fulfillment of prophecy leading to the return of Jesus Christ.
MAGA and Israel
As the U.S. has become more diverse and secular, the relative numbers of Christians – especially white Christians – has been declining. White Christians have “lost their perceived standing as the country’s decision-makers amid their declining status,” driving many to Christian Nationalism as a path back to power.
Many of these Christian Nationalists heard in Candidate Trump’s MAGA slogan a promise to return America to its former greatness – the good old days when we “didn’t need no welfare state, everybody pulled his weight.”
Trump also promised to move the American Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, pull out of the treaty with Iran, and support Israeli settlements on Palestinian land – all wildly popular with Christian Zionists.
Some 80 percent of evangelicals voted for Trump – either to save America or to usher in the second coming of Christ.
The awkward issue of (Trump’s) sin
Trump’s evangelical fan club had a dilemma on its hands as his skeletons kept tumbling out of the closet. He was a hot mess, but they needed him.
In a piece for Salon, Paul Rosenberg goes so far as to suggest that a righteous candidate would have been a bad idea, writing that “When push comes to shove, the more vicious the leader, the better. The moral restraints of the deeply pious are the last thing you want for the job.”
Every day brought a new crisis – and a new rationalization: “Only God knows what is in Trump’s heart.” “Democrats have baggage too.” “He is the spirit of Cyrus.” “We’re all sinners.”
Under the new, Trump-inspired Christianity, some leaders portrayed him as “God’s choice,” and instructed followers to stand with him no matter what. Robert Jeffress, the pastor of the oldest megachurch in the U.S., demonstrated this just before the 2016 election when he quite literally contradicted the words of Jesus in defense of Trump:
I don’t want some meek and mild leader or somebody who’s going to turn the other cheek. I’ve said I want the meanest, toughest SOB I can find to protect this nation.”
From Bible to policy
The Trump campaign, and then administration, has always included a large number of evangelical leaders – including Christian Zionists. They were not there only to pray, but according to Trump advisor Mike Evans, to have “a seat at the table.” Christian Zionists in Trump’s inner circle use their access to present their interpretation of scripture as potential foreign policy. And Apparently Trump listens.
Evans has been part of that inner circle. He was in on private briefings with the president before the unveiling of the so-called Deal of the Century – Trump’s “peace plan” for Israel and Palestine, which heavily favors Israel. “Israel just got kissed by God,” Evans said of the plan. “I am not referring to Donald Trump as God, but I am saying he has Divine inspiration.”
Trump’s actions on behalf of Israel, which are often reckless and violations of international law and human rights, are understood as obedience to Genesis 12:3, “I will bless those who bless you [Abraham], and whoever curses you I will curse.”
Meet CUFI
The most powerful guest at the table has to be CUFI – Christians United For Israel – an organization boasting eight million members, and the quintessential mechanism of Christian Zionism.
At the CUFI’s helm is John Hagee, who teaches as fact his dispensationalist interpretation of the situation in Israel and Palestine. As Hagee puts it, “Israel exists because of a covenant God made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob 3,500 years ago – and that covenant still stands,” and “From a biblical, historical, and legal perspective, Israel owns, and does not occupy, the Holy Land. And one can not be an occupier on land it owns.” (The global community almost unanimously disagrees with the second statement, based on international law.)
Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo themselves self-identify as Christian Zionists and Pence has even visited Israel on CUFI’s dime. Both have spoken at CUFI’s annual summit. At least three other high-level members of the Trump administration attended as well.
The organization is effective. The Hill listed at least five congressional seats and one governor that CUFI helped flip from blue to red in 2018. Their millions of members are ready to “show up at the polls and cast their ballot for the candidate that is best for the Jewish state.”
How? According to Sandy Hagee Parker of the CUFI Action Fund, “With approximately 50 events nationally per month, CUFI’s field staff is in constant education mode…”
“CUFI members don’t see Israel as a political issue, but as an exercise in their faith – and that will never change,” Hagee Parker boasts.
CUFI members can be mobilized as needed to support legislative action, visit a Congress member, attend a town hall meeting – whatever is needed to keep the agenda moving forward. Bottom line, in John Hagee’s own words:
We’re not another paper-shuffling, hand-clapping group of Christians…We are 4.5 million people who are organized in every state, every city, every voting district.”
War with Iran
Iran is public enemy number one to Christian Zionists, who believe that the end times must be preceded by war and bloodshed. Iran is more than just a geopolitical enemy – it is, as religious historian Diana Butler Bass explains, “sort of a prophetic dog whistle to evangelicals…they’re eager for Christ to return and they think that this war with Iran and Israel has to happen for their larger hope to pass.”
And so John Hagee – a pastor, mind you – has repeatedly called for Iran to be hit with a “maximum pressure campaign,” including at one point a preemptive strike.
In 2017, Christian Zionists pestered Trump to move the American Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. According to the Christians United For Israel website:
CUFI has made moving the embassy to Jerusalem a central focus of its 2017 agenda…Pastor John Hagee, has used White House audiences with Pres. Trump and Vice Pres. Mike Pence to urge them to move the embassy. Days before Pres. Trump’s inauguration, the CUFI Action Fund held a Washington fly-in during which more than 260 leaders representing 49 states urged that the embassy be moved. And CUFI members have sent more than 137,000 emails to the White House in support of moving the embassy to Jerusalem.
The embassy move took place in May 2018 amid peaceful protests that resulted in dozens of Palestinian deaths by Israeli sniper fire.
The only side of the story?
Just 40 percent of Jews living in Israel believe that God gave them the land; meanwhile, 82 percent of white American evangelicals believe it. How is that possible?
Brenneman explained that because there is no visible counter-argument against the damaging narrative of Christian Zionism, “Most people don’t even realize that they hold a Christian Zionist perspective.”
Like all extremist ideologies, it is built upon ignorance and insularity to perpetuate a warped perspective about Palestinians and what is happening in Palestine… People passively hold these views because they are shielded from seeing devastating humanitarian and environmental consequences of their beliefs. Christian Zionism [presents a binary construct in which] Israelis are good and barbaric Palestinians are bad, [and] places good “Western” Israelis against evil “Eastern” Muslims.”
The concealed truth
While mainstream media will never give a completely accurate picture of world events, it does manage to contradict Trump on a regular basis. He deals with these inconvenient truths by delegitimizing them as “fake news” and, as Kellyanne Conway famously gave us, the phrase “alternative facts.” His flock follows suit.
In the arena of accurate news on Israel and Palestine, many sources committed to rigorous reporting and educating are routinely denounced as “anti-Semitic” for daring to show Israel’s human rights abuses against Palestinians. Most Americans are thus not exposed to the truth about the injustice that Christian Zionism is inflicting on Palestinians through its support of Israel.
What about 2020?
As determined as progressives are to make Trump a one-term president, evangelicals and conservatives are resolute about winning him four more years. They are also well-organized and well-funded.
Data analysts are scouring statistics nationwide, looking for new conservative voters to register and recruit. Thousands of conservative, and also often evangelical radio stations, sing Trump’s praises; tens of millions of churchgoers are faithful to him.
Mike Evans, a Trump advisor, pointed out that the evangelical bloc “gave” Trump the presidency because of his pro-life stance and his support for Israel – and that same group has the power to “fire” him if he does not continue to toe the line. The current test will be if Trump endorses Israel’s planned annexation of parts of the Palestinian West Bank, a move deemed illegal under international law.
When asked about Trump’s re-election prospects, Evans explains how pro-Israel policy translates into votes:
I have 68 million Facebook followers. When the president blesses Israel, they feel strongly that God is going to bless us – He won’t get 90 percent; he will get 100 percent of this base.”
In fact, according to a 2019 Public Religion Research Institute poll of Trump supporters, 31 percent of white evangelicals said there is essentially nothing he could do that would lose their vote.
“Stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody”? Apparently he can do no wrong.
Feature photo | Attendee sing worship songs during a President Donald Trump campaign event courting devout conservatives by combining praise, prayer and patriotism, July 23, 2020, in Alpharetta, Ga. John Amis | AP
Kathryn Shihadah writes for MintPress News and If Americans Knew. She speaks regularly about the injustice and demonization Palestinians face at the hands of Israel with complicity from the United States, especially to Christian audiences. Kathryn has lived in the Middle East for ten years and has traveled extensively. She blogs at PalestineHome.org.


mintpressnews--2020-08-11--US, Israeli Media Scramble to Blame Hezbollah for Deadly Beirut Explosion

The narrative that puts Hezbollah in the hot seat for the devastating explosion of ammonium nitrate , allegedly stored by the thousands of tons in one of the busiest ports in the eastern Mediterranean and which killed over two hundred people has a few holes in it , to say the least .
As the mainstream U.S.-led international media beats the drums of war with commercial breaks in between , they are relying on a few key stories to hang Lebanon ’ s most popular political body and lock mainstream news consumers ’ sights squarely on Hassan Nasrallah , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ party , Hezbollah , as the ultimate target of the next modern-day crusade in the Middle East .
The through-line of the stories is the insinuation that Hezbollah has been “ stockpiling ” the explosive agent for years , ascribing the jurisprudential concept of “ opportunity ” to the grassroots militant Lebanese resistance movement in the imaginary courtroom melodrama unfolding in the minds of cable news junkies .
A May report from The Times of Israel spotlighted a local TV news segment about a “ months-long delicate operation ” by Mossad to expose @ @ @ @ @ @ @ operations in Germany , ” which resulted in a raid on warehouses with stashes of ammonium nitrate tied to an “ Iranian-backed… Shiite terrorist organization.
” The raids concentrated on four mosque associations in Berlin , Dortmund , Bremen , and Münster with alleged allegiance to Hezbollah .
The details of Mossad ’ s role in the raids were made public only after the Teuton state officially banned “ all Hezbollah activities ” from the country on April 30 , 2020 .
According to a German newspaper , however , the order for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a preemptive move meant to “ secure evidence before it could [ be ] destroyed ” as a result of the announcement .
Actual evidence about alleged Hezbollah-related activities has yet to surface .
When a member of the local parliament of the German state of Bavaria – where the alleged cold packages containing ammonium nitrate had been stored – asked for confirmation from the Bavarian interior ministry , the ministry ’ s spokesperson denied having any information on the matter .
Other stories being propagated in the interest of framing Hezbollah for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and even more ephemeral .
Such is the case of Atris Hussein ; a Lebanese-Swedish citizen who was convicted in 2013 for “ possessing a large amount of fertilizer that could be used to make explosives.
” Hussein had been accused of hiding about three tons of ammonium nitrate for nefarious purposes .
The 49-year old man had been arrested at the Bangkok airport just after a “ terror warning ” in the Thai capital had been issued by the U.S. and claims of a “ possible attack by Hezbollah ” from Israeli @ @ @ @ @ @ @ links to terrorist organizations , was eventually sentenced to two and a half months for illegal possession of fertilizer materials .
The court found no evidence “ to back the authorities ’ claims that Hussein had ties to Hezbollah.
” The main piece at the center of the Hezbollah blame game is one that covers the actual stash of ammonium nitrate ( NH4NO3 ) that ignited earlier this month in the Port of Beirut .
The 2,750 tons of NH4NO3 said to be stored at the port was the result of a curious @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
According to Eurasianet.org , a ship flying a Moldovan flag called Rhosus was on its way to Mozambique with the tons of ammonium nitrate when it had to make an emergency call on the port of Beirut .
The ship is owned by a “ rough-and-tumble businessman ” from Russia named Igor Grechushkin who conducts business from the notorious tax-havens of Cyprus and the Marshall Islands .
After Lebanese authorities inspected Grechushkin ’ s vessel and deemed it unseaworthy , the Russian abandoned the boat and its contents in the Port of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ material behind , material which was subsequently stored at a port warehouse where it reportedly “ languished ” for years without proper maintenance .
The ammonium nitrate cargo , itself had been produced by the largest manufacturer of nitrogen-based fertilizers in the South Caucasus region ; a company called Rustavi Azot in the Republic of Georgia .
Rustavi Azot has received substantial support from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development ( EBRD ) over the years , including a $ 155 million financing package in 2016 .
The EBRD is a loan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ collapse of the Soviet Union to help Eastern bloc countries “ transition away from centrally-planned economies ” and serves as a conduit for “ EU accession ” for Eurasian countries like Georgia , which also houses the Lugar Center ; a DoD-funded facility exposed as a cauldron for U.S. biological and chemical weapons experimentation .
Israeli TV , meanwhile , is riling up the Jewish state with claims that the tons of ammonium nitrate stored at the port were being stockpiled for a “ Third Lebanon war ” against Israel .
Former Israeli @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , added fuel to the fire by claiming that he had “ been aware of the material ’ s presence there and [ that Hezbollah ] had control over the port ” and that the explosion of a “ Hezbollah weapons depot ” at the port had preceded the igniting of the ammonium nitrate .
But skeptics point out that the location of the port , which is in a Christian neighborhood , would preclude Hezbollah from operating any kind of weapons depot in the area .
Doubts about whether ammonium nitrate had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
A renowned Italian explosives expert told Corriere Della Sera that he doesn ’ t believe the claimed amount of ammonium nitrate was present at the port and favors military weaponry as the real cause of the blast .
Hassan Nasrallah , the leader of Hezbollah , has categorically denied having any knowledge of stockpiling ammonium nitrate at the port of Beirut and a Lebanese intelligence official has outright blamed Israel for the conflagration .
“ For 37 years , Hezbollah has been murdering innocent people , ” wrote U.S .
Ambassador to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ editorial published in Die Welt .
The diplomat targeted mosques as the places where “ Hezbollah sympathizers meet ” and “ tolerate terrorist propaganda in support of Hezbollah and the Iranian regime.
” Grenell repeatedly called for the proscription of Hezbollah ’ s presence in the European nation .
But his insistence had so far failed to overcome the lack of political will to do so .
That changed when the opportunity to justify the ban materialized with mosque raids in April 2020 , in an operation with eerie similarities to the events @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the UK government in January , when it officially classified the Lebanese political organization as a terrorist organization .
Just as was the case in Germany , it was the Mossad who provided British officials with the “ intelligence ” leads .
At the end of the day , the consistent pressure by the U.S. and Israel on other nations to demonize Hezbollah and discredit them in the eyes of their supporters may well be the only provable fact surrounding the tragic incident that took place in Beirut last week .
Unfortunately , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Israel will stop at nothing – even lies – to perpetuate a geopolitical paradigm that is guaranteed to produce even more tragedy .
Feature photo | Women stand in their damaged house as they look at the aftermath of an explosion that hit the seaport of Beirut , Lebanon , Aug. 10 , 2020 .
Bilal Hussein | AP

The narrative that puts Hezbollah in the hot seat for the devastating explosion of ammonium nitrate, allegedly stored by the thousands of tons in one of the busiest ports in the eastern Mediterranean and which killed over two hundred people has a few holes in it, to say the least.
As the mainstream U.S.-led international media beats the drums of war with commercial breaks in between, they are relying on a few key stories to hang Lebanon’s most popular political body and lock mainstream news consumers’ sights squarely on Hassan Nasrallah, the third leader of Lebanon’s anti-Zionist party, Hezbollah, as the ultimate target of the next modern-day crusade in the Middle East.
The through-line of the stories is the insinuation that Hezbollah has been “stockpiling” the explosive agent for years, ascribing the jurisprudential concept of “opportunity” to the grassroots militant Lebanese resistance movement in the imaginary courtroom melodrama unfolding in the minds of cable news junkies.
A May report from The Times of Israel spotlighted a local TV news segment about a “months-long delicate operation” by Mossad to expose a supposed Hezbollah-linked group’s “operations in Germany,” which resulted in a raid on warehouses with stashes of ammonium nitrate tied to an “Iranian-backed… Shiite terrorist organization.” The raids concentrated on four mosque associations in Berlin, Dortmund, Bremen, and Münster with alleged allegiance to Hezbollah. The details of Mossad’s role in the raids were made public only after the Teuton state officially banned “all Hezbollah activities” from the country on April 30, 2020.
Mossad gave Berlin intel on Hezbollah ops on German soil ahead of ban https://t.co/Ry3kLhpUsf — Magnus Ranstorp (@MagnusRanstorp) May 3, 2020
According to a German newspaper, however, the order for the raid of the suspected mosques was a preemptive move meant to “secure evidence before it could [be] destroyed” as a result of the announcement. Actual evidence about alleged Hezbollah-related activities has yet to surface. When a member of the local parliament of the German state of Bavaria – where the alleged cold packages containing ammonium nitrate had been stored – asked for confirmation from the Bavarian interior ministry, the ministry’s spokesperson denied having any information on the matter.
Other stories being propagated in the interest of framing Hezbollah for the blast in Beirut are much older and even more ephemeral. Such is the case of Atris Hussein; a Lebanese-Swedish citizen who was convicted in 2013 for “possessing a large amount of fertilizer that could be used to make explosives.” Hussein had been accused of hiding about three tons of ammonium nitrate for nefarious purposes. The 49-year old man had been arrested at the Bangkok airport just after a “terror warning” in the Thai capital had been issued by the U.S. and claims of a “possible attack by Hezbollah” from Israeli officials. Hussein, who denied any links to terrorist organizations, was eventually sentenced to two and a half months for illegal possession of fertilizer materials. The court found no evidence “to back the authorities’ claims that Hussein had ties to Hezbollah.”
Flagship propaganda
The main piece at the center of the Hezbollah blame game is one that covers the actual stash of ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) that ignited earlier this month in the Port of Beirut. The 2,750 tons of NH4NO3 said to be stored at the port was the result of a curious chain of events that occurred in 2013. According to Eurasianet.org, a ship flying a Moldovan flag called Rhosus was on its way to Mozambique with the tons of ammonium nitrate when it had to make an emergency call on the port of Beirut. The ship is owned by a “rough-and-tumble businessman” from Russia named Igor Grechushkin who conducts business from the notorious tax-havens of Cyprus and the Marshall Islands.
After Lebanese authorities inspected Grechushkin’s vessel and deemed it unseaworthy, the Russian abandoned the boat and its contents in the Port of Beirut, leaving tons of the explosive material behind, material which was subsequently stored at a port warehouse where it reportedly “languished” for years without proper maintenance. The ammonium nitrate cargo, itself had been produced by the largest manufacturer of nitrogen-based fertilizers in the South Caucasus region; a company called Rustavi Azot in the Republic of Georgia.
Rustavi Azot has received substantial support from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) over the years, including a $155 million financing package in 2016. The EBRD is a loan and equity finance institution formed after the collapse of the Soviet Union to help Eastern bloc countries “transition away from centrally-planned economies” and serves as a conduit for “EU accession” for Eurasian countries like Georgia, which also houses the Lugar Center; a DoD-funded facility exposed as a cauldron for U.S. biological and chemical weapons experimentation.
Israeli TV, meanwhile, is riling up the Jewish state with claims that the tons of ammonium nitrate stored at the port were being stockpiled for a “Third Lebanon war” against Israel. Former Israeli defense minister, Moshe Ya’alon, added fuel to the fire by claiming that he had “been aware of the material’s presence there and [that Hezbollah] had control over the port” and that the explosion of a “Hezbollah weapons depot” at the port had preceded the igniting of the ammonium nitrate.
Israel TV: Hezbollah apparently wanted Beirut’s ammonium nitrate for Israel war https://t.co/JCecb0qo2Q — The Times of Israel (@TimesofIsrael) August 7, 2020
But skeptics point out that the location of the port, which is in a Christian neighborhood, would preclude Hezbollah from operating any kind of weapons depot in the area. Doubts about whether ammonium nitrate had any role at all have also emerged. A renowned Italian explosives expert told Corriere Della Sera that he doesn’t believe the claimed amount of ammonium nitrate was present at the port and favors military weaponry as the real cause of the blast.
Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, has categorically denied having any knowledge of stockpiling ammonium nitrate at the port of Beirut and a Lebanese intelligence official has outright blamed Israel for the conflagration.
An old tall tale
“For 37 years, Hezbollah has been murdering innocent people,” wrote U.S. Ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell in a 2019 editorial published in Die Welt. The diplomat targeted mosques as the places where “Hezbollah sympathizers meet” and “tolerate terrorist propaganda in support of Hezbollah and the Iranian regime.” Grenell repeatedly called for the proscription of Hezbollah’s presence in the European nation. But his insistence had so far failed to overcome the lack of political will to do so.
That changed when the opportunity to justify the ban materialized with mosque raids in April 2020, in an operation with eerie similarities to the events that preceded a ban on Hezbollah by the UK government in January, when it officially classified the Lebanese political organization as a terrorist organization. Just as was the case in Germany, it was the Mossad who provided British officials with the “intelligence” leads.
Hezbollah stockpiled chemical behind Beirut blast in London and Germany https://t.co/10PkOkC4g1 — Amir Tsarfati (@BeholdIsrael) August 5, 2020
At the end of the day, the consistent pressure by the U.S. and Israel on other nations to demonize Hezbollah and discredit them in the eyes of their supporters may well be the only provable fact surrounding the tragic incident that took place in Beirut last week. Unfortunately, it is also clear that the U.S. and Israel will stop at nothing – even lies – to perpetuate a geopolitical paradigm that is guaranteed to produce even more tragedy.
Feature photo | Women stand in their damaged house as they look at the aftermath of an explosion that hit the seaport of Beirut, Lebanon, Aug. 10, 2020. Bilal Hussein | AP
Raul Diego is a MintPress News Staff Writer, independent photojournalist, researcher, writer and documentary filmmaker.


mintpressnews--2020-08-12--Anti-Laundering Bill Targeting Shell Companies Stalled in Senate as Big Banks Caught Cooking Books

Money laundering and cooking the books are usually treated as separate things when discussing white collar crime , even though the latter is often the mechanism through which the former is carried out .
In the world of corporate banking , hedge funds and the host of satellite market services that underpin the financialized economies of the U.S. and U.K. , tax haven jurisdictions allow money flowing in from all sorts of highly profitable illicit activities , shell companies and brass plate trusts to become an asset on the books of massive institutions like JPMorgan Chase , Deutsche Bank , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been embroiled in massive money laundering scandals .
Real account holders ’ names escape regulatory scrutiny thanks to the anonymity the current rules of the game allow them to enjoy .
But , that might soon come to an end if a bill passed by the House of Representatives makes it past the Senate .
The Anti-Money Laundering Act was tucked inside the House ’ s version of the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act and mandates the creation of a “ beneficial ownership ” record which would force the public disclosure of any @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thought of the real names behind the plethora of shell companies and other shady instruments of finance being exposed must have sent a shiver down the back of more than one Senator , because the bill has been excised from the Pentagon ’ s annual budget authorization by the upper chamber , placing the proposed legislation in a state of limbo for the time being .
A beneficial ownership record would seriously curtail tax haven entities from operating in complete darkness , as they do now .
The U.K. created its register in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Brussels to have one up and running by 2020 .
The legislation , which has earlier iterations known as the Illicit Cash Act and Corporate Transparency Act , was passed by a large majority in the lower house and reportedly has widespread support in the Senate , as well .
Despite the already semi-opaque structure of the current bill , members of the Senate still want more .
Unlike the U.K. version , which makes the data publicly available , the U.S. version would be controlled by the Treasury Department ’ s Financial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only be accessible to law enforcement agencies .
The Senate Banking Committee has , reportedly already agreed on the bill ’ s language and only the funding source is a question mark , at this point .
It is clear that the legislation has accrued momentum and will likely pass at some point .
42 Attorney Generals have urged the federal government to pass it and in June , the U.S. Chamber of Commerce sent a letter in support to the Banking Committee .
As usual , the words sound very nice and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ doing the right thing .
But , history does not show a promising outcome .
The measures put in place after 2008 in order to restrain the impulses of the “ too-big-to-fail ” financial institutions are being manipulated and , in some cases , completely ignored .
Banks like JP Morgan Chase and HSBC – two of the biggest money launderers on earth – all seem to have a gentlemen ’ s understanding with the Federal Reserve about how the new rules are applied .
After the crash of 2008 , the Federal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on banks and other financial institutions that had then been deemed “ too big to fail ” .
A formal list has been compiled since 2011 and they are now called by their official designation , Global Systemically Important Financial Institutions ( G-SIFIs ) .
These banks and insurers must report their levels of exposure to the Fed , which then assesses the need for more or less control over the institution ’ s financial activity or penalties through the results of a stress test ( simulations run on their balance sheets ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ published by the Fed , which includes the capital requirements of each institution .
But , it has now come to light that virtually all of the G-SIFI banks – JP Morgan Chase , HSBC and Deutsche Bank among others – have been cooking the books to fool the stress test in order to reduce their capital requirements .
A “ bombshell ” report by the American central bank reveals that the Fed is aware of the pattern being followed by the big banks to game the stress test ; which they do @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by Trillions of dollars every fourth quarter and just as magically having it restored by the end of the following first quarter of the next auditing period .
The practice , which seems to be tolerated by the Fed “ as a legitimate means of reducing its capital requirements ” makes a mockery of the entire point for stress testing , which is to mitigate systemic risk .
Feature photo | An activist displays a newspaper headlining the ‘ Panama Papers ’ revelations during a banking managers meeting , in Paris , France @ @ @ @ @

Money laundering and cooking the books are usually treated as separate things when discussing white collar crime, even though the latter is often the mechanism through which the former is carried out. In the world of corporate banking, hedge funds and the host of satellite market services that underpin the financialized economies of the U.S. and U.K., tax haven jurisdictions allow money flowing in from all sorts of highly profitable illicit activities, shell companies and brass plate trusts to become an asset on the books of massive institutions like JPMorgan Chase, Deutsche Bank, and HSBC; all of which have been embroiled in massive money laundering scandals.
Real account holders’ names escape regulatory scrutiny thanks to the anonymity the current rules of the game allow them to enjoy. But, that might soon come to an end if a bill passed by the House of Representatives makes it past the Senate. The Anti-Money Laundering Act was tucked inside the House’s version of the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act and mandates the creation of a “beneficial ownership” record which would force the public disclosure of any U.S.-based company’s ownership.
The thought of the real names behind the plethora of shell companies and other shady instruments of finance being exposed must have sent a shiver down the back of more than one Senator, because the bill has been excised from the Pentagon’s annual budget authorization by the upper chamber, placing the proposed legislation in a state of limbo for the time being.
A beneficial ownership record would seriously curtail tax haven entities from operating in complete darkness, as they do now. The U.K. created its register in 2016 and Europe has been directed by Brussels to have one up and running by 2020. The legislation, which has earlier iterations known as the Illicit Cash Act and Corporate Transparency Act, was passed by a large majority in the lower house and reportedly has widespread support in the Senate, as well.
Transparency is too risky
Despite the already semi-opaque structure of the current bill, members of the Senate still want more. Unlike the U.K. version, which makes the data publicly available, the U.S. version would be controlled by the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and only be accessible to law enforcement agencies.
The Senate Banking Committee has, reportedly already agreed on the bill’s language and only the funding source is a question mark, at this point. It is clear that the legislation has accrued momentum and will likely pass at some point. 42 Attorney Generals have urged the federal government to pass it and in June, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce sent a letter in support to the Banking Committee.
As usual, the words sound very nice and a lot of people seem to be doing the right thing. But, history does not show a promising outcome. The measures put in place after 2008 in order to restrain the impulses of the “too-big-to-fail” financial institutions are being manipulated and, in some cases, completely ignored. Banks like JP Morgan Chase and HSBC – two of the biggest money launderers on earth – all seem to have a gentlemen’s understanding with the Federal Reserve about how the new rules are applied.
Gaming the system
After the crash of 2008, the Federal Reserve instituted so-called “stress tests” on banks and other financial institutions that had then been deemed “too big to fail”. A formal list has been compiled since 2011 and they are now called by their official designation, Global Systemically Important Financial Institutions (G-SIFIs).
These banks and insurers must report their levels of exposure to the Fed, which then assesses the need for more or less control over the institution’s financial activity or penalties through the results of a stress test (simulations run on their balance sheets). An annual stress test report is published by the Fed, which includes the capital requirements of each institution. But, it has now come to light that virtually all of the G-SIFI banks – JP Morgan Chase, HSBC and Deutsche Bank among others – have been cooking the books to fool the stress test in order to reduce their capital requirements.
A “bombshell” report by the American central bank reveals that the Fed is aware of the pattern being followed by the big banks to game the stress test; which they do by magically dropping their over-the-counter derivatives exposure by Trillions of dollars every fourth quarter and just as magically having it restored by the end of the following first quarter of the next auditing period. The practice, which seems to be tolerated by the Fed “as a legitimate means of reducing its capital requirements” makes a mockery of the entire point for stress testing, which is to mitigate systemic risk.
Feature photo | An activist displays a newspaper headlining the ‘Panama Papers’ revelations during a banking managers meeting, in Paris, France. Francois Mori | AP
Raul Diego is a MintPress News Staff Writer, independent photojournalist, researcher, writer and documentary filmmaker.


mintpressnews--2020-08-12--Podcast: The Beirut Explosion, Economic Terror and the Drumbeat of War Against Hezbollah

Welcome to MintCast — an interview series featuring dissenting voices the establishment would rather silence– I ’ m your host Mnar Muhawesh Adley .
Lebanon is reeling from a blast that destroyed much of the capital Beirut on Tuesday , August 4 .
2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate in the city ’ s port is thought to have caught fire and exploded , killing at least 157 people and injuring thousands more .
The blast , believed to be one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history , destroyed much of the city and has left an estimated 300,000 people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ usual suspects within Western media and government including the United States and Israel who are beating the drums of war as they try to blame Lebanon ’ s resistance movement Hezbollah for the massive explosion .
Joining us today to discuss this and what this means for the region and world are two independent journalists and analysts who lived through the blast , Laith Marouf , and Marwa Osman .
Laith Marouf is a journalist , geopolitical analyst , and activist who has served as Canadian National Chair of the group , Solidarity @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Executive Director of Concordia University Television in Montreal and currently lives in Beirut where he saw first hand the devastation caused by the August 4 explosion .
Marwa Osman is a lecturer at the Lebanese International University and Maaref University .
She ’ s also the host of the MidEaStream broadcasted on Al-Etejah English Channel .
Her writing focuses primarily on Middle Eastern issues and can be found in a wide range of outlets , including Press TV .
Like Marouf , Osman is a resident of Beirut .
The explosion could @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for Lebanon , which is suffering through an economic meltdown , with a collapsing currency , rampant inflation , employment difficult to come by , and food becoming increasingly scarce .
Worse still , the country ’ s Economy Minister Raoul Nehme confirmed that grain silos at the port , containing around 15,000 tons of wheat , were destroyed .
As a result , the country has barely a few weeks of food in reserve .
Hospitals , already feeling the strain due to the worsening coronavirus outbreak , have been overwhelmed , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many arriving for urgently needed medical care .
With the city destroyed , roads closed and vehicles upended , most of Beirut ’ s residents have had little option other than to stay where they are , begin to clean up , even as clouds of toxic fumes engulf the area .
The blast occurred in a context of rapid economic decline , increasing public outrage over corruption — including from Washington — and Western economic sanctions that have squeezed the country dry .
This program is 100 percent listener supported !
You @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who make this show possible by becoming a member on our Patreon page .
Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes , Spotify , and SoundCloud .
Please leave us a review and share this segment .
Mnar Muhawesh is founder , CEO and editor in chief of MintPress News , and is also a regular speaker on responsible journalism , sexism , neoconservativism within the media and journalism start-ups .

Welcome to MintCast — an interview series featuring dissenting voices the establishment would rather silence– I’m your host Mnar Muhawesh Adley.
Lebanon is reeling from a blast that destroyed much of the capital Beirut on Tuesday, August 4. 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate in the city’s port is thought to have caught fire and exploded, killing at least 157 people and injuring thousands more. The blast, believed to be one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history, destroyed much of the city and has left an estimated 300,000 people homeless.
Exploiting this tragedy are the usual suspects within Western media and government including the United States and Israel who are beating the drums of war as they try to blame Lebanon’s resistance movement Hezbollah for the massive explosion.
Joining us today to discuss this and what this means for the region and world are two independent journalists and analysts who lived through the blast, Laith Marouf, and Marwa Osman.
Laith Marouf is a journalist, geopolitical analyst, and activist who has served as Canadian National Chair of the group, Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights. He was the Executive Director of Concordia University Television in Montreal and currently lives in Beirut where he saw first hand the devastation caused by the August 4 explosion.
Marwa Osman is a lecturer at the Lebanese International University and Maaref University. She’s also the host of the MidEaStream broadcasted on Al-Etejah English Channel. Her writing focuses primarily on Middle Eastern issues and can be found in a wide range of outlets, including Press TV. Like Marouf, Osman is a resident of Beirut.
The explosion could barely have come at a worse time for Lebanon, which is suffering through an economic meltdown, with a collapsing currency, rampant inflation, employment difficult to come by, and food becoming increasingly scarce. Worse still, the country’s Economy Minister Raoul Nehme confirmed that grain silos at the port, containing around 15,000 tons of wheat, were destroyed. As a result, the country has barely a few weeks of food in reserve.
Hospitals, already feeling the strain due to the worsening coronavirus outbreak, have been overwhelmed, and have been forced to turn away many arriving for urgently needed medical care. With the city destroyed, roads closed and vehicles upended, most of Beirut’s residents have had little option other than to stay where they are, begin to clean up, even as clouds of toxic fumes engulf the area.
The blast occurred in a context of rapid economic decline, increasing public outrage over corruption — including from Washington — and Western economic sanctions that have squeezed the country dry.
This program is 100 percent listener supported! You can join the hundreds of financial sponsors who make this show possible by becoming a member on our Patreon page.
Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Spotify, and SoundCloud. Please leave us a review and share this segment.
Mnar Muhawesh is founder, CEO and editor in chief of MintPress News, and is also a regular speaker on responsible journalism, sexism, neoconservativism within the media and journalism start-ups.


mintpressnews--2020-08-12--The Politics of War: What is Israel’s Endgame in Lebanon and Syria?

On August 4 , hours before a massive explosion rocked the Lebanese capital , Beirut , Israeli Prime Minister , Benjamin Netanyahu , issued an ominous warning to Lebanon .
“ We hit a cell and now we hit the dispatchers .
I suggest to all of them , including Hezbollah , to consider this , ” Netanyahu said during an official tour of a military facility in central Israel .
Netanyahu ’ s warning did not bode well for Israel when , hours later , a Hiroshima-like blast devastated entire sectors of Beirut .
Those who suspected Israeli involvement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reason to point fingers at Tel Aviv .
In politics and in war , truth is the first casualty .
We may never know precisely what transpired in the moments preceding the Beirut blast .
Somehow , it may not matter at all , because the narrative regarding Lebanon ’ s many tragedies is as splintered as the country ’ s political landscape .
Judging by statements and positions adopted by the country ’ s various parties and factions , many seem to be more concerned with exploiting the tragedy for trivial political @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Even if the explosion was the unfortunate outcome of an accident resulting from bureaucratic negligence , sadly , it is still inconsequential .
In Lebanon , as in much of the Middle East , everything is political .
What is almost certain about the future , however , is that the political discourse will eventually lead back to Israel versus Hezbollah .
The former is keen at undermining the group ’ s influence in Lebanon , while the latter is insistent on thwarting Israel ’ s plans .
But what is Israel ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trying to destroy the Lebanese group , the Israeli government is keenly aware that eradicating Hezbollah militarily is no longer feasible , certainly not in the foreseeable future .
The Lebanese group has proven its prowess on the battlefield when it played a major role in ending the Israeli occupation of Lebanon in May 2000 .
Subsequent Israeli attempts at reasserting its dominance on Lebanon ’ s southern border have , thus far , proven futile .
The failed war of 2006 and the more recent conflagration of September 2019 are also two @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in inviting another Israeli war on Lebanon , either .
The country is on the verge of economic collapse , if it has not already collapsed .
While Lebanon has always been in the throes of political division and factionalism , the divisiveness of the current political mood in the country is more destructive than it has ever been .
Losing hope in all political actors , the Lebanese people have taken to the street demanding basic rights and services , an end to the endemic corruption and a whole new social and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in politics are somewhat ordinary occurrences , political deadlocks can be calamitous in a country on the brink of starvation .
The Hiroshima-like cloud of explosives that shocked the world was a perfect metaphor for Lebanon ’ s seemingly endless woes .
Former Israeli Knesset member , Moshe Feiglin , was among many jubilant Israelis who celebrated the near-demise of the Arab city .
Feiglin described the horrendous explosion as a ‘ day of joy ’ , giving a ‘ huge thank you to God .
“ If it was us , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ explosion , “ then we should be proud of it , and with that we will create a balance of terror.
” Regardless of whether Feiglin is speaking from a position of knowledge or not , his reference to ‘ balance of terror ’ remains the basic premise in all of Israel ’ s dealings with Lebanon , and Hezbollah , in particular .
The convoluted war in Syria has expanded Israel ’ s war of attrition , but has also given Israel the opportunity to target Hezbollah ’ s interests without registering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It is much easier to target war-torn Syria and escape unscathed rather than to target Lebanon and pay a price .
For years , Israel has bombed many targets in Syria .
Initially , it was unforthcoming about its role .
Only in the last year or so , it has begun to openly brag about its military conquests , but for a reason .
The embattled Netanyahu is desperate to gain political credits , as he is dogged by multiple corruption charges , which have tarnished his image .
By bombing Iranian @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Israeli leader hopes to garner the approval of the military elite , a critical constituency in Israeli politics .
Netanyahu ’ s comments before the Beirut explosion were in reference to a series of incidents that began on July 21 , when Israel bombed an area adjacent to the Damascus International Airport , killing , among others , a senior Hezbollah member , Ali Kamel Mohsen .
This incident placed Israel ’ s northern borders on alert .
The state of emergency was coupled with massive political and media hype , which helped @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ongoing corruption trial .
But Israel ’ s strategic interests in the Syria conflict go beyond Netanyahu ’ s need for a cheap victory .
The outcome of the Syria war has the potential of yielding a nightmare scenario for Israel .
For decades , Israel has argued that an ‘ axis of terror ’ – Iran , Syria and Hezbollah – had to be dismantled , for it represented Israel ’ s greatest security threat .
That was long before pro-Iran forces and militias began operating overtly in Syria , as a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Israel argues that its recurring bombardment of Syria is aimed largely at Hezbollah targets – the group ’ s military cache and Iranian missiles on their way to Lebanon via Syrian territories – Israel ’ s war in Syria is largely political .
As per Israeli logic , the more bombs Israel drops over Syria , the more relevant a player it will become when the conflicting parties engage in future negotiations to sort out the fate of that country .
However , by doing so , Israel also risks igniting a costly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ neither Tel Aviv nor Hezbollah can afford at the moment .
Israeli policymakers and military planners must be busy trying to analyze the situation in Lebanon , to understand the best way to exploit Lebanon ’ s tragedy in order to advance Israel ’ s strategic interests .
The future of Lebanon is , once more , in the hands of war generals .
Feature photo | Israeli soldiers drive military vehicles during an exercise in the Israeli occupied Golan Heights , Aug. 4 , 2020 .
Ariel Schalit | AP Ramzy Baroud @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Palestine Chronicle .
He is the author of five books .
His latest is “ These Chains Will Be Broken : Palestinian Stories of Struggle and Defiance in Israeli Prisons ” ( Clarity Press , Atlanta ) .
Dr. Baroud is a non-resident Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Islam and Global Affairs ( CIGA ) , Istanbul Zaim University ( IZU ) .
His website is www.ramzybaroud.net

On August 4, hours before a massive explosion rocked the Lebanese capital, Beirut, Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, issued an ominous warning to Lebanon.
“We hit a cell and now we hit the dispatchers. I suggest to all of them, including Hezbollah, to consider this,” Netanyahu said during an official tour of a military facility in central Israel.
Netanyahu’s warning did not bode well for Israel when, hours later, a Hiroshima-like blast devastated entire sectors of Beirut. Those who suspected Israeli involvement in the deadly explosion had one more reason to point fingers at Tel Aviv.
In politics and in war, truth is the first casualty. We may never know precisely what transpired in the moments preceding the Beirut blast. Somehow, it may not matter at all, because the narrative regarding Lebanon’s many tragedies is as splintered as the country’s political landscape.
Judging by statements and positions adopted by the country’s various parties and factions, many seem to be more concerned with exploiting the tragedy for trivial political gain than in the tragedy itself. Even if the explosion was the unfortunate outcome of an accident resulting from bureaucratic negligence, sadly, it is still inconsequential. In Lebanon, as in much of the Middle East, everything is political.
What is almost certain about the future, however, is that the political discourse will eventually lead back to Israel versus Hezbollah. The former is keen at undermining the group’s influence in Lebanon, while the latter is insistent on thwarting Israel’s plans.
But what is Israel’s plan anyway? After decades of trying to destroy the Lebanese group, the Israeli government is keenly aware that eradicating Hezbollah militarily is no longer feasible, certainly not in the foreseeable future. The Lebanese group has proven its prowess on the battlefield when it played a major role in ending the Israeli occupation of Lebanon in May 2000.
Subsequent Israeli attempts at reasserting its dominance on Lebanon’s southern border have, thus far, proven futile. The failed war of 2006 and the more recent conflagration of September 2019 are also two cases in point.
Hezbollah is uninterested in inviting another Israeli war on Lebanon, either. The country is on the verge of economic collapse, if it has not already collapsed.
While Lebanon has always been in the throes of political division and factionalism, the divisiveness of the current political mood in the country is more destructive than it has ever been. Losing hope in all political actors, the Lebanese people have taken to the street demanding basic rights and services, an end to the endemic corruption and a whole new social and political contract – unsuccessfully.
While stalemates in politics are somewhat ordinary occurrences, political deadlocks can be calamitous in a country on the brink of starvation. The Hiroshima-like cloud of explosives that shocked the world was a perfect metaphor for Lebanon’s seemingly endless woes.
Former Israeli Knesset member, Moshe Feiglin, was among many jubilant Israelis who celebrated the near-demise of the Arab city. Feiglin described the horrendous explosion as a ‘day of joy’, giving a ‘huge thank you to God. “If it was us,” meaning Israel being involved in the deadly explosion, “then we should be proud of it, and with that we will create a balance of terror.”
Regardless of whether Feiglin is speaking from a position of knowledge or not, his reference to ‘balance of terror’ remains the basic premise in all of Israel’s dealings with Lebanon, and Hezbollah, in particular.
The convoluted war in Syria has expanded Israel’s war of attrition, but has also given Israel the opportunity to target Hezbollah’s interests without registering yet another aggression on Lebanese territories. It is much easier to target war-torn Syria and escape unscathed rather than to target Lebanon and pay a price.
For years, Israel has bombed many targets in Syria. Initially, it was unforthcoming about its role. Only in the last year or so, it has begun to openly brag about its military conquests, but for a reason. The embattled Netanyahu is desperate to gain political credits, as he is dogged by multiple corruption charges, which have tarnished his image. By bombing Iranian and Hezbollah targets in Syria, the Israeli leader hopes to garner the approval of the military elite, a critical constituency in Israeli politics.
Netanyahu’s comments before the Beirut explosion were in reference to a series of incidents that began on July 21, when Israel bombed an area adjacent to the Damascus International Airport, killing, among others, a senior Hezbollah member, Ali Kamel Mohsen.
This incident placed Israel’s northern borders on alert. The state of emergency was coupled with massive political and media hype, which helped Netanyahu by distracting ordinary Israelis from his ongoing corruption trial.
But Israel’s strategic interests in the Syria conflict go beyond Netanyahu’s need for a cheap victory. The outcome of the Syria war has the potential of yielding a nightmare scenario for Israel.
For decades, Israel has argued that an ‘axis of terror’ – Iran, Syria and Hezbollah – had to be dismantled, for it represented Israel’s greatest security threat. That was long before pro-Iran forces and militias began operating overtly in Syria, as a result of the ongoing war.
While Israel argues that its recurring bombardment of Syria is aimed largely at Hezbollah targets – the group’s military cache and Iranian missiles on their way to Lebanon via Syrian territories – Israel’s war in Syria is largely political. As per Israeli logic, the more bombs Israel drops over Syria, the more relevant a player it will become when the conflicting parties engage in future negotiations to sort out the fate of that country.
However, by doing so, Israel also risks igniting a costly military conflict with Lebanon, one that neither Tel Aviv nor Hezbollah can afford at the moment.
Israeli policymakers and military planners must be busy trying to analyze the situation in Lebanon, to understand the best way to exploit Lebanon’s tragedy in order to advance Israel’s strategic interests.
The future of Lebanon is, once more, in the hands of war generals.
Feature photo | Israeli soldiers drive military vehicles during an exercise in the Israeli occupied Golan Heights, Aug. 4, 2020. Ariel Schalit | AP
Ramzy Baroud is a journalist and the Editor of The Palestine Chronicle. He is the author of five books. His latest is “These Chains Will Be Broken: Palestinian Stories of Struggle and Defiance in Israeli Prisons” (Clarity Press, Atlanta). Dr. Baroud is a non-resident Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Islam and Global Affairs (CIGA), Istanbul Zaim University (IZU). His website is www.ramzybaroud.net


mintpressnews--2020-08-12--Former McCain Advisor and Iraq War Advocate Niall Ferguson Warns TikTok Is a Chinese Imperial Plot

Writing in Bloomberg , Niall Ferguson , Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University and named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world , warned that TikTok was not simply a popular Chinese-owned video app , but “ Xi Jinping ’ s imperial panopticon , ” and a “ superweapon ” for Chinese domination of the world .
Ferguson applauded the Trump administration ’ s decision to force the company to sell up to an American corporation or face a complete ban within 45 days .
“ TikTok is not just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of humiliation between the Opium Wars and Mao ’ s revolution .
It is the opium — a digital fentanyl , to get our kids stoked for the coming Chinese imperium , ” he claimed .
Even more questionably , he argued that the service was already brainwashing the 100 million mostly Generation Z Americans who use the platform into becoming soldiers of Beijing ’ s new revolution .
Unable to decide on a drug , Ferguson said that “ like crack , TikTok is dangerous , adding that during the Chinese cultural @ @ @ @ @ @ @ children denounced their parents for rightist deviance .
In 2020 , during the COVID-19 lockdown and the Black Lives Matter protests , American teenagers posted videos of themselves berating their parents for racism .
And they did it on TikTok.
” “ If you doubt that China is seeking to take over empire 1.0 and turn it into empire 2.0 , based on China ’ s illiberal civilization , ” he concluded , “ then you are not paying attention to all the ways this strategy is being executed.
” For somebody so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Chinese ) empire , Ferguson appears strangely supportive of American power .
Indeed , in his biography of the U.S. the war planner , Henry Kissinger was called “ The Idealist , ” wherein he defended him against accusations of genocide , brushing the millions of Latin Americans and Asians killed as mere deaths in “ marginal countries.
” Thus , the former Oxford , Harvard and New York University professor is far from a principled anarchist or anti-war libertarian .
Indeed , Ferguson has devoted his entire life to defending Western power @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Made the Modern World , ” he describes the British as “ the world ’ s first liberal empire , ” arguing that their empire was , “ clearly was a force for good , ” exporting “ superior ” forms of governance around the world .
Western Africa , he contends , “ clearly ” benefited from French rule .
Meanwhile , in “ Civilization : The West and the Rest , ” he defends the Israeli occupation of Palestine on the grounds that Israelis are the superior civilization due to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Ferguson , who served as an advisor to 2008 Republican presidential candidate John McCain , also continues to support the Iraq War and advocates for more intervention , claiming that , “ if the effect of that is to bring people in that country economic and political freedom , to raise their standard of living , to increase their life expectancy , then don ’ t rule it out.
” “ If you are ahead I will ban you ” Ferguson ’ s warnings echo those of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the app would send Americans ’ data straight to the Chinese Communist Party .
( TikTok has strenuously denied that it works with the Chinese government , claiming that American users ’ data is stored in the U.S. , with strict controls on employee access ) .
The Trump administration has also been pressurizing other countries to reject Huawei — another Chinese tech company — and its 5G infrastructure .
This has produced mixed results ; Boris Johnson ’ s U.K. government , moving increasingly closer to Trump , announced it would phase @ @ @ @ @ @ @ prime minister Mahathir bin Mohamad rejected Washington ’ s orders out of hand , characterizing Trump as a bully : “ If you are ahead I will ban you , I will send warships to your country…That is not competition , that is threatening people , ” he said .
The U.S. government also funds a network of think-tanks that advise big media companies like Facebook and Twitter on how to spot and control the tide of fake news from fake accounts .
Unsurprisingly , it is usually Washington ’ s enemies who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ June , a U.S.-backed think tank advised and ultimately succeeded in convincing Twitter to delete over 170,000 Chinese accounts on its platform .
While it is perfectly possible to be genuinely concerned about the motives of the Chinese state , particularly those in Kashmir , Tibet , Hong Kong or Xinjiang , the loudest voices in the public sphere not only don ’ t share the same concerns when it comes to the United States or its allies , they are very often directly in the service of empire itself .
This suggests @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and academics like Ferguson may not be sounding the alarm about China ’ s rise out of a genuine concern for the freedom of the peoples of the world , but rather because they are worried about losing some degree of control over it .
Alan MacLeod is a Staff Writer for MintPress News .
After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books : Bad News From Venezuela : Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age : Still Manufacturing Consent .
He has also contributed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Guardian , Salon , The Grayzone , Jacobin Magazine , Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary .

Writing in Bloomberg, Niall Ferguson, Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University and named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world, warned that TikTok was not simply a popular Chinese-owned video app, but “Xi Jinping’s imperial panopticon,” and a “superweapon” for Chinese domination of the world. Ferguson applauded the Trump administration’s decision to force the company to sell up to an American corporation or face a complete ban within 45 days.
“TikTok is not just China’s revenge for the century of humiliation between the Opium Wars and Mao’s revolution. It is the opium — a digital fentanyl, to get our kids stoked for the coming Chinese imperium,” he claimed. Even more questionably, he argued that the service was already brainwashing the 100 million mostly Generation Z Americans who use the platform into becoming soldiers of Beijing’s new revolution. Unable to decide on a drug, Ferguson said that “like crack, TikTok is dangerous, adding that during the Chinese cultural revolution (1966-1976), “Chinese children denounced their parents for rightist deviance. In 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdown and the Black Lives Matter protests, American teenagers posted videos of themselves berating their parents for racism. And they did it on TikTok.”
“If you doubt that China is seeking to take over empire 1.0 and turn it into empire 2.0, based on China’s illiberal civilization,” he concluded, “then you are not paying attention to all the ways this strategy is being executed.”
Mere deaths in “marginal countries
For somebody so apparently concerned with the threat of (Chinese) empire, Ferguson appears strangely supportive of American power. Indeed, in his biography of the U.S. the war planner, Henry Kissinger was called “The Idealist,” wherein he defended him against accusations of genocide, brushing the millions of Latin Americans and Asians killed as mere deaths in “marginal countries.” Thus, the former Oxford, Harvard and New York University professor is far from a principled anarchist or anti-war libertarian. Indeed, Ferguson has devoted his entire life to defending Western power. In “Empire: How Britain Made the Modern World,” he describes the British as “the world’s first liberal empire,” arguing that their empire was, “clearly was a force for good,” exporting “superior” forms of governance around the world. Western Africa, he contends, “clearly” benefited from French rule.
Meanwhile, in “Civilization: The West and the Rest,” he defends the Israeli occupation of Palestine on the grounds that Israelis are the superior civilization due to the greater number of patents registered in Israel. Ferguson, who served as an advisor to 2008 Republican presidential candidate John McCain, also continues to support the Iraq War and advocates for more intervention, claiming that, “if the effect of that is to bring people in that country economic and political freedom, to raise their standard of living, to increase their life expectancy, then don’t rule it out.”
“If you are ahead I will ban you”
Ferguson’s warnings echo those of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who told Fox News that using the app would send Americans’ data straight to the Chinese Communist Party. (TikTok has strenuously denied that it works with the Chinese government, claiming that American users’ data is stored in the U.S., with strict controls on employee access). The Trump administration has also been pressurizing other countries to reject Huawei — another Chinese tech company — and its 5G infrastructure. This has produced mixed results; Boris Johnson’s U.K. government, moving increasingly closer to Trump, announced it would phase out Huawei by 2027. But Malaysian prime minister Mahathir bin Mohamad rejected Washington’s orders out of hand, characterizing Trump as a bully: “If you are ahead I will ban you, I will send warships to your country…That is not competition, that is threatening people,” he said.
The U.S. government also funds a network of think-tanks that advise big media companies like Facebook and Twitter on how to spot and control the tide of fake news from fake accounts. Unsurprisingly, it is usually Washington’s enemies who get targeted. For instance, in June, a U.S.-backed think tank advised and ultimately succeeded in convincing Twitter to delete over 170,000 Chinese accounts on its platform.
While it is perfectly possible to be genuinely concerned about the motives of the Chinese state, particularly those in Kashmir, Tibet, Hong Kong or Xinjiang, the loudest voices in the public sphere not only don’t share the same concerns when it comes to the United States or its allies, they are very often directly in the service of empire itself. This suggests that the higher-ups in the State Department and academics like Ferguson may not be sounding the alarm about China’s rise out of a genuine concern for the freedom of the peoples of the world, but rather because they are worried about losing some degree of control over it.
Photo | Shutterstock
Alan MacLeod is a Staff Writer for MintPress News. After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books: Bad News From Venezuela: Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age: Still Manufacturing Consent. He has also contributed to Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, The Guardian, Salon, The Grayzone, Jacobin Magazine, Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary.


mintpressnews--2020-08-12--Yemen: State Department Clears Bomb Peddler Pompeo of Wrongdoing in Civilian Deaths Investigation

It looks like the United States government is ready to move on from the internal squabble that erupted over an $ 8.1 billion arms sale to Saudi Arabia and other client Arab states embroiled in the war on Yemen and continue the policy of arming and funding the Saudi-led coalition of anti-Houthi forces propping up the “ internationally-recognized ” government of Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi .
In a final report issued by the U.S. State Department ’ s Inspector General on the investigation into the arms deal that Congress requested in May of last year , Secretary of State Miko Pompeo @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the multi-billion-dollar transaction , which according to the same unreleased report , “ heightened the risk of civilian casualties ” in a war that has claimed the lives of close to a quarter-million people , nearly half of them civilians .
Pompeo , who yesterday kicked off a five-day tour of Central Europe in the Czech Republic , washed his hands of the whole matter during a press conference in Prague .
“ We did everything by the book , ” Pompeo told reporters and boasted about the “ really good outcome ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ country with more bombs before directly contradicting the Inspector General ’ s findings by asserting that the weapons deal had , in fact , “ prevented the loss of lives.
” The arms deal , which Trump forced via executive privilege , has been at the center of the speculation over the recent firing of Inspector General Steve Linick , who had been conducting the inquiry into the arms sale in addition to other , direct allegations of abuse of power and corruption against Pompeo and his wife .
With Linick gone and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the obvious , yet failing to hold officials accountable , the State Department resumes destabilization efforts in the region by selling more war materiel to fuel the conflict in Yemen despite evidence that the guns and ammo aren ’ t going to the parties stipulated in the contract .
The war in Yemen began in the middle of Barack Obama ’ s second term in office as the administration was in the midst of negotiating the Iran nuclear deal .
The price of getting the Saudis to “ begrudgingly ” go along with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gulf state coalition ’ s back against the Yemeni insurgents , who had toppled the puppet regime of their country .
Since then , Obama-era aides and appointees like Middle East “ point man , ” Robert Malley , have lobbed some after-the-fact mea culpas and generally decried the escalating tensions in Yemen .
But , like the Inspector General ’ s report , they are rhetorical tools designed for the extension of political careers and of little use to the suffering hordes of Yemenis who continue to be the victims of war @ @ @ @ @ @ @ worst refugee crises in history , with 3.6 million internally displaced and hundreds of thousands abroad .
The plight of the regular Yemeni citizen is captured in the sentiments of Labib Nasher , who was granted political asylum in the U.S. back in February .
“ It ’ s a horrible thing , ” Nasher said of his situation .
“ You ’ re not a human being anymore , ” he reflected , “ Nobody wants you.
” He , of course , is one of the lucky ones who had the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ large majority of people in Yemen , the U.S.-backed war has led to the verge of starvation .
The impasse between the Saudi-led coalition and their uncomfortable allies in Yemen – the Southern Transitional Council ( STC ) – appears to have been smoothed out as well .
The pivotal separatist group “ rescinded ” a declaration of self-rule and allowed for some of the terms of the stalled “ Riyadh agreement ” to be implemented , such as the appointment of a new governor and police chief in the disputed territory of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Khalid bin Salman was pleased by the development , tweeting out that the move by the STC “ reflects the serious desire for dialogue ” ; while the UAE also called for a renewed purpose among coalition members .
On Monday , the internationally-recognized government of Yemen practically channeled Pompeo by demanding that the UN extend the arms embargo against Iran .
The news , no doubt , will also buoy the mood in the boardrooms of General Dynamics , Boeing , and Raytheon who all have profited to the tune of hundreds @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seen their stock soar since the start of the conflict .
“ Most of the weapons that we have found and been able to identify in strikes that appear unlawful have been U.S. weapons , ” said Human Rights Watch ( HRW ) researcher , Priyanka Motaparthy .
“ Factories have been hit .
Farmlands have been hit with cluster bombs .
Not only have they killed civilians , but they have also destroyed livelihoods and contributed to a dire humanitarian situation.
” Despite the ‘ positive ’ signals for the interests of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , signs are emerging that the dire humanitarian situation is beginning to trickle up .
Just this morning , the Middle East Monitor reported that Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi will be traveling to the U.S. for a week-long medical treatment .
Yesterday , the director of Yemeni PM Maeen Abdul Malik ’ s office , was arrested in Egypt , the country that brokered the rapprochement between the STC and the coalition .
The high-ranking Yemeni official was trying to smuggle $ 1 million dollars through the diplomatic cover .
Feature photo @ @ @ @ @ @ @ prepares to board a plane at the King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital Riyadh , before his departure on Feb. 21 , 2020 .
Andrew Caballero-Reynolds | Pool via AP

It looks like the United States government is ready to move on from the internal squabble that erupted over an $8.1 billion arms sale to Saudi Arabia and other client Arab states embroiled in the war on Yemen and continue the policy of arming and funding the Saudi-led coalition of anti-Houthi forces propping up the “internationally-recognized” government of Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi.
In a final report issued by the U.S. State Department’s Inspector General on the investigation into the arms deal that Congress requested in May of last year, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was cleared of any wrongdoing for executing the multi-billion-dollar transaction, which according to the same unreleased report, “heightened the risk of civilian casualties” in a war that has claimed the lives of close to a quarter-million people, nearly half of them civilians.
Pompeo, who yesterday kicked off a five-day tour of Central Europe in the Czech Republic, washed his hands of the whole matter during a press conference in Prague. “We did everything by the book,” Pompeo told reporters and boasted about the “really good outcome” he claims resulted from flooding the war-torn country with more bombs before directly contradicting the Inspector General’s findings by asserting that the weapons deal had, in fact, “prevented the loss of lives.”
The arms deal, which Trump forced via executive privilege, has been at the center of the speculation over the recent firing of Inspector General Steve Linick, who had been conducting the inquiry into the arms sale in addition to other, direct allegations of abuse of power and corruption against Pompeo and his wife. With Linick gone and the IG’s final report admitting the obvious, yet failing to hold officials accountable, the State Department resumes destabilization efforts in the region by selling more war materiel to fuel the conflict in Yemen despite evidence that the guns and ammo aren’t going to the parties stipulated in the contract.
Lip service to peace
The war in Yemen began in the middle of Barack Obama’s second term in office as the administration was in the midst of negotiating the Iran nuclear deal. The price of getting the Saudis to “begrudgingly” go along with the Iran deal was to have the gulf state coalition’s back against the Yemeni insurgents, who had toppled the puppet regime of their country.
Since then, Obama-era aides and appointees like Middle East “point man,” Robert Malley, have lobbed some after-the-fact mea culpas and generally decried the escalating tensions in Yemen. But, like the Inspector General’s report, they are rhetorical tools designed for the extension of political careers and of little use to the suffering hordes of Yemenis who continue to be the victims of war crimes and are undergoing one of the worst refugee crises in history, with 3.6 million internally displaced and hundreds of thousands abroad.
The plight of the regular Yemeni citizen is captured in the sentiments of Labib Nasher, who was granted political asylum in the U.S. back in February. “It’s a horrible thing,” Nasher said of his situation. “You’re not a human being anymore,” he reflected, “Nobody wants you.” He, of course, is one of the lucky ones who had the means to escape. But for a large majority of people in Yemen, the U.S.-backed war has led to the verge of starvation.
Projected profits
The impasse between the Saudi-led coalition and their uncomfortable allies in Yemen – the Southern Transitional Council (STC) – appears to have been smoothed out as well. The pivotal separatist group “rescinded” a declaration of self-rule and allowed for some of the terms of the stalled “Riyadh agreement” to be implemented, such as the appointment of a new governor and police chief in the disputed territory of Aden.
Saudi Vice Minister of Defense Khalid bin Salman was pleased by the development, tweeting out that the move by the STC “reflects the serious desire for dialogue”; while the UAE also called for a renewed purpose among coalition members. On Monday, the internationally-recognized government of Yemen practically channeled Pompeo by demanding that the UN extend the arms embargo against Iran.
The news, no doubt, will also buoy the mood in the boardrooms of General Dynamics, Boeing, and Raytheon who all have profited to the tune of hundreds of millions from the war and have seen their stock soar since the start of the conflict. “Most of the weapons that we have found and been able to identify in strikes that appear unlawful have been U.S. weapons,” said Human Rights Watch (HRW) researcher, Priyanka Motaparthy. “Factories have been hit. Farmlands have been hit with cluster bombs. Not only have they killed civilians, but they have also destroyed livelihoods and contributed to a dire humanitarian situation.”
Despite the ‘positive’ signals for the interests of America and its partners in the region, signs are emerging that the dire humanitarian situation is beginning to trickle up. Just this morning, the Middle East Monitor reported that Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi will be traveling to the U.S. for a week-long medical treatment. Yesterday, the director of Yemeni PM Maeen Abdul Malik’s office, was arrested in Egypt, the country that brokered the rapprochement between the STC and the coalition. The high-ranking Yemeni official was trying to smuggle $1 million dollars through the diplomatic cover.
Feature photo | US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo prepares to board a plane at the King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital Riyadh, before his departure on Feb. 21, 2020. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds | Pool via AP
Raul Diego is a MintPress News Staff Writer, independent photojournalist, researcher, writer and documentary filmmaker.