LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِMarch
23/2011
Biblical Event Of The
Day
Matthew 23/1-12: " Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to his disciples, 23:2
saying, “The scribes and the Pharisees sat on Moses’ seat. 23:3 All things
therefore whatever they tell you to observe, observe and do, but don’t do their
works; for they say, and don’t do. 23:4 For they bind heavy burdens that are
grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will
not lift a finger to help them. 23:5 But all their works they do to be seen by
men. They make their phylacteries broad, enlarge the fringes of their garments,
23:6 and love the place of honor at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues,
23:7 the salutations in the marketplaces, and to be called ‘Rabbi, Rabbi’ by
men. 23:8 But don’t you be called ‘Rabbi,’ for one is your teacher, the Christ,
and all of you are brothers. 23:9 Call no man on the earth your father, for one
is your Father, he who is in heaven. 23:10 Neither be called masters, for one is
your master, the Christ. 23:11 But he who is greatest among you will be your
servant. 23:12 Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles
himself will be exalted.'
Latest
analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases
from
miscellaneous
sources
Is there a Chavez terror network
on America's doorstep?/Washington Post/March
22/11
Iran Continues to Change the
Balance of Power in Middle East/Family Security Matters
Canada
Condemns Ongoing Violence
in Yemen, Bahrain and Syria/March
22/11
Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for March
22/11
The Libya no-fly zone
mission runs down. Just 6 warplanes aloft/DEBKAfile
Protests spread in southern Syria
as police move on mosque/AP
Syria’s Daraa hit by fifth day of
protests/Now Lebanon
2
Percussion Bombs Tossed near Free Lebanon Radio Adonis HQ/Naharnet
Hariri Slams Nasrallah for
'Harming' Lebanon's Ties with Arabs Through Iranian Policies/Naharnet
Leaked U.S. cables spur more controversy in Lebanon/Daily Star
Protesters march in south Syria
for fifth day/Reuters
Shooting of civilians
"unacceptable," EU's Ashton tells
Syria/Monsters and Critics
Human Rights Concerns In Yemen,
Bahrain And Syria/Newsroom
America
Erdogan warns Assad to make
democratic reforms/Now Lebanon
New Israeli raid on Gaza City kills
three/Now Lebanon
Israel arms tanks with new defense
system/UPI
The Unraveling Middle East, Part II/FrontPage
Hamas digging 'terror tunnels' along
border with Israel/J.Post
Israel Faces a Culture of Hatred
and
Violence/U.S. News & World Report
Aoun
accuses Lebanon president of obstructing cabinet formation/Ya Libnan
Israel
Kidnaps 2 Lebanese Shepherds/Naharnet
Beirut Justice Palace
Evacuated After Hoax Bomb Threat/Naharnet
Agreement to Speed up
Cabinet Formation, But Lack of Consensus Over Shares/Naharnet
Jumblat Says he Sought to
Unify March 8 Vision During Talks with Aoun/Naharnet
Aridi Says Aoun-Jumblat
Meeting Doesn't Mean Cabinet Will be Formed/Naharnet
WikiLeaks: Feltman Said
Destroying 'Maronistan' Passageways Would Deal a Blow to Embassy/Naharnet
WikiLeaks: Geagea Said
Disarming Hizbullah Key to Toppling Lahoud/Naharnet
Berri Urges Fast Cabinet
Formation, Denies Accusations Against Syria/Naharnet
Safadi Warns Those Who
'Betrayed' him: Silence is Not a Form of Weakness/Naharnet
Jumblat Denies Remarks on
Banking Sector, Salameh Confirms Banks Not Targeted/Naharnet
Report: Suleiman Reportedly Said No
Cabinet Soon Due to Local, Regional Obstacles/Naharnet
Aoun Denies Obstructing Govt
Formation, Accuses Suleiman of Crippling Institutions/Naharnet
The Libya no-fly zone mission
runs down. Just 6 warplanes aloft
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report March 22, 2011, Four days after
the Western-Arab coalition decided Saturday, March 19 to enforce a no fly zone
over Libya, only six Western warplanes - American, British, Canadian and French
- are in the sky at any one time, debkafile's military sources disclose. This is
just enough to enforce the no-fly zone over Benghazi – not the rest of Libya. It
is also wholly inadequate tor collecting the basic intelligence over Tripoli and
other parts of Libya for launching an offensive against Muammar Qaddafi's
forces.
The assault therefore ran out of steam after the first barrage of 112 Tomahawk
cruise missiles fired from the sea. Monday, a dozen Tomahawks were fired – and
only at Qaddafi's coastal compounds for lack of intelligence about the rest of
the thirty-one targets first postulated.
The military momentum was slowed substantially also by the haziness of the
directives coming down from the coalition members' governments about the
offensive's objectives. As the political leaders in Washington, London and Paris
stumbled about and contradicted each other, the military commanders responded by
confining their mission to the letter of UN Security Council Resolution 1973 of
Friday, March 18.
The disagreements between Washington, London and Paris over the essential nature
of the operation and its goals brought to light the uncomfortable fact that
neither the UK nor France, alone or together, possesses the air power or crews
for maintaining the no fly zone. Unless the US expands its aerial participation,
most of Libyan air space will remain wide open for Qaddafi's air force to resume
operations. By Tuesday, March 22, there was no sign that Washington was willing
to deliver – just the reverse. The Obama administration made it clear that its
participation would be confined to support functions, such as advanced
electronic surveillance craft – no more warplanes.
The US Africa commander Gen. Carter Ham announced from his base in Stuttgart,
Germany, that Qaddafi and his regime were not part of "our mission." He pointed
out that the Security Council resolution addressed only protection of civilians
and not support for the opposition. In London, the British government insisted
that Muammar Qaddafi as head of his armed forces was a legitimate target of the
coalition offensive. Both UK premier David Cameron and French President Nicolas
Sarkozy, who spearheaded the coalition assault on Libya, have pinned their
political hopes on their success in removing Qaddafi from power. They are
pushing hard for this end in contrast to Washington.
The Cameron government has even found itself up against the supreme commander of
British forces, Gen. Sir David Richards, who openly questioned Qaddafi's
legitimacy as a military target. The Obama administration, for its part, has
worked itself into a jam: an acerbic argument has developed in the United States
over the Libya operation's immediate and final goals.
In his latest comment, President Barack Obama Monday, March 21, stood by this
opaque definition: "The goal of the United Nations-sanctioned military action in
Libya is to protect citizens, not regime change – but the goal of US policy is
that Muammar Qaddafi has to go."
Obama did not explain how or when he proposed to achieve this goal, although for
now it is receding. In London this week, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates
announced the US will hand over control and command of the Libya operation
"within days." But who would pick up the ball? Neither France nor Britain has
the military or logistical resources for taking a lead role in the coalition
offensive and, anyway, who would they support? debkafile's military sources
stress that the colorful depictions of jubilant Libyan rebels encouraged by the
falling Tomahawks to resume their offensive against Qaddafi's forces Monday were
misleading at best. According to our sources, their wild talk about retaking
Adjabiya on the road to Benghazi referred to a single government A-Saiqa
commando platoon, which defected in Benghazi in the early stages of the
anti-Qaddafi uprising last month, and was able to drive just 50 kilometers
southwest of the town before halting in the desert at a loss where to go next.
That platoon is the only organized force the rebels command.
Therefore, to have any chance of their revolt against Qaddafi succeeding, these
insurgents would have to rely on American, British and French ground troops
fighting government forces on their behalf. That is not going to happen. The US
has made it perfectly clear that no American ground forces will be used in
Libya, and all Britain and France can command are small commando units. The
rebels must therefore be satisfied with holding Benghazi downtown and a few
sectors for as long as they can.
leaving the coalition without its Arab component
The Arab component of the Western-Arab anti-Qaddafi coalition, the pre-condition
for NATO participation, has faded away since the Arab League's Secretary Amr
Moussa developed cold feet after his initial wholehearted support for the
operation. In any case, only one Arab country, Qatar, was willing to put up four
warplanes for the no-fly zone. Based in Italy, the Qatari pilots have since been
directed by Emir Sheikh Al-Thani to cross the Mediterranean only up to the point
where the Libyan coast is visible – not an inch further. The United Arab
Emirates, initially reported as offering to take part in the Libya mission, has
not sent a single plane.
Syria’s
Daraa hit by fifth day of protests
March 22, 2011 /The Syrian town of Daraa saw a fifth straight day of anti-regime
protests on Tuesday, an activist said. "Around one thousand protestors gathered
in and around the Omari Mosque shouting anti-regime slogans, amid a heavy
security and army presence," said the activist in Daraa, 100 kilometers south of
Damascus. The demonstrators formed a human shield around the mosque to prevent
security forces from approaching it, he added. An AFP photographer and
videographer in Daraa said their car was stopped in the old town of the city and
they were beaten by security forces, who seized their equipment. After being
taken in for questioning, they received an apology from the authorities, but had
still not received their equipment back. The photographer said soldiers were
manning checkpoints at all entries to the town and were cross-checking the
identity cards of travelers with a list of names they had compiled.
Syria, which is still under a 1963 emergency law banning demonstrations, has
witnessed a string of small but unprecedented protests demanding the end of the
ruling regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for one week now. Daraa, a
town that is home to large tribal families, has been the focal point of the
rallies, the latest in a string of uprisings against long-running autocratic
regimes in the Arab world. Six people have been killed in a security crackdown
on the Daraa demonstrations, including an 11-year-old boy who died after on
Monday inhaling tear gas the day before.-AFP/NOW Lebanon
Protests
spread in southern Syria as police move on mosque
By The Associated Press
Protests spread in southern Syria Tuesday as hundreds of people marched to
demand reforms in a previously peaceful village, witnesses and activists said.
Troops and protesters faced off in a nearby city outside a mosque where
demonstrators have taken shelter. The government sought to contain the first
serious intrusion of the Arab world's political unrest by firing the governor of
the southern province of Daraa, where security forces killed seven protesters in
the main city of Daraa over the weekend. The governor's dismissal failed to
quell popular anger and the protests reached the village of Nawa, where hundreds
of people marched demanding reforms, an activist told The Associated Press. The
activist said troops were trying to reach the mosque in Daraa's historic center
where protesters have sought protection. He said protesters placed large rocks
in the streets near the al-Omari mosque to block the troops. There was a heavy
security presence and most of the shops were closed elsewhere in the old quarter
of Daraa, witnesses said.
A clip posted on YouTube showed several hundred villagers in Sanamein, near
Daraa, chanting "Freedom!" while another showed dozens gathered in the Hajar
Aswad neighborhood of the capital. Syrian activists who reported the protests
said they took place Monday evening. The activists spoke on condition of
anonymity because they feared government reprisals. The authenticity of the
videos could not be independently verified. Protests also spread Monday to the
towns of Jasim and Inkhil near Daraa, witnesses said.
Many demonstrators demanded the departure of provincial governor Faisal Kalthoum
after security forces used tear gas, water cannons and later live ammunition to
disperse the crowds, which first gathered on Friday. Enraged residents then set
fire to several government buildings in a startling outburst of unrest in one of
the Middle East's most repressive countries.
Kalthoum was fired on Tuesday, a Syrian official said, speaking on condition of
anonymity in line with regulations barring him from being identified by name.
Daraa residents accused Kalthoum - in office since 2006 - of corruption and
during a demonstration Monday many chanted, "The people want to bring down the
governor!"
The Damascus-based National Organization for Human Rights in Syria said
authorities were continuing arbitrary and random arrests in areas that witnessed
protests, adding that families of detainees said none have been freed. Like most
Syrian cities, Daraa is home to ultra-orthodox Sunni Muslims. In 2006, security
agents arrested 16 Syrians during a three-day sweep in Daraa province, accusing
them of membership to the banned Muslim Brotherhood. In Geneva, the UN's human
rights office urged Syria to investigate the death of protesters in Daraa.
Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the Geneva-based office, said the government
should carry out an independent, transparent and effective investigation into
the killings. Colville said Tuesday that protesters had the right to express
their grievances and be heard by the government.
Erdogan warns Assad to make democratic reforms
Now Lebanon/March 22, 2011 /Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan told
Hurriyet daily on Tuesday that he warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to
“make democratic reforms,” amid the growing protests in the latter’s country.
The Turkish daily added that Erdogan fears “the protests could turn into a
sectarian clash.”“I told him to take lessons from what has been happening in the
region,” the newspaper quoted the Turkish PM as saying. Syria, which is still
under a 1963 emergency law banning demonstrations, has witnessed a string of
small but unprecedented protests demanding the end of the ruling regime of
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for one week now. Daraa, a town that is home to
large tribal families, has been the focal point of the rallies, the latest in a
string of uprisings against long-running autocratic regimes in the Arab world.
Six people have been killed in a security crackdown on the Daraa demonstrations,
including an 11-year-old boy who died after on Monday inhaling tear gas the day
before.-NOW Lebanon
2 Percussion Bombs Tossed near Free Lebanon Radio Adonis HQ
Naharnet/Two percussion bombs were thrown Tuesday from a speeding car near the
HQ of Free Lebanon Radio in the Keserwan neighborhood of Adonis. The state-run
National News Agency said four unidentified individuals in a black SUV tossed
the bombs a few meters away from the radio station's building. The incident
sparked panic among the area's residents, especially that there is a school in
the vicinity of the station's building. Beirut, 22 Mar 11, 17:02
Beirut Justice Palace Evacuated After Hoax Bomb Threat
Naharnet/Several halls at Beirut's Justice Palace were evacuated on Tuesday
after a bomb threat which turned out to be a hoax, the state-run National News
Agency reported.
It said a man made an anonymous phone call saying a bomb was planted in one of
the halls. However, a bomb disposal squad did not find any explosives after a
thorough search.
"Things went back to normal," NNA added. In December last year, Baabda's Justice
Palace also received a hoax bomb threat. Beirut, 22 Mar 11, 12:39
New Israeli raid on Gaza City kills three
March 22, 2011/Three Gazans were killed and another was wounded late on Tuesday
in an Israeli air strike on Gaza City, a spokesperson for the Palestinian
emergency services said.
"Three people were killed and one person was wounded in an air strike on the
Zeitun district," Adham Abu Selmiya told AFP, referring to a neighborhood in the
eastern part of the city.
An Israeli military spokesperson confirmed an attack on "a group of terrorists
who were preparing to fire rockets towards Israel."Earlier in the evening, four
Palestinians, two of them minors, were killed and another 12 people were wounded
when the Israelis opened fire towards a house in another neighborhood in eastern
Gaza, near the border with Israel.-NOW Lebanon
Hariri Slams Nasrallah for 'Harming' Lebanon's Ties with Arabs Through Iranian
Policies
Naharnet/Caretaker Premier Saad Hariri has criticized Hizbullah leader Sayyed
Hassan Nasrallah for claiming to be "the spiritual leader of revolutions in the
Arab world."
"Hizbullah's leadership is seeking to make changes in the Arab world via the
Iranian way and wants the Lebanese to agree on turning their country into an
arena that exports revolutions," Hariri told al-Mustaqbal and Beirut families
that visited him at Center House on Monday night. "This policy is rejected by
the majority of Lebanese," the Mustaqbal movement leader said.
He slammed Nasrallah for pushing Lebanon into partnering with Arab divisions and
for interfering in Bahrain's affairs.Hariri also accused the Hizbullah chief of
implementing the policies of foreign countries, in reference to Iran, by
verbally attacking Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the rest of the Gulf Cooperation
Council countries. "This harms the interest of the Lebanese and their historic
relations with the Arabs," Hariri said. Beirut, 22 Mar 11, 14:34
Report: Suleiman Reportedly Said No Cabinet Soon Due to Local, Regional
Obstacles
Naharnet/President Michel Suleiman has reportedly ruled out the formation of the
cabinet anytime soon, saying that Lebanon has missed investment opportunities
over the deadlock.
"Lebanon is missing big economic and investment opportunities over the continued
impasse in the formation of the government, particularly at a time of security
shakeups in Arab countries," Suleiman's visitors quoted him as saying. They told
al-Mustaqbal newspaper in remarks published Tuesday that the president has
stressed the cabinet will not be formed soon "over local and regional
obstacles." Suleiman "is hoping for the inclusion of all parties in the
government but believes in (the need to) procrastinate in order to study the
regional situation and its repercussions," the visitors said. However, As Safir
daily quoted Suleiman's visitors as saying that the cabinet should be formed
immediately to "consolidate the country" at a time of turmoil in the region.
They said the president has reiterated that he wouldn't sign a cabinet decree
that would create precedence. Beirut, 22 Mar 11, 07:43
Agreement to Speed up Cabinet Formation, But Lack of
Consensus Over Shares
Naharnet/Premier-designate Najib Miqati has said contacts on the formation of
the government are making progress and stressed all problems could be solved.In
remarks to As Safir newspaper published Tuesday, Miqati said: "The channels of
contact are open in all directions and are making progress.""All problems can be
solved and the atmosphere is more comfortable and better than before," he added.
Miqati's circles stressed to As Safir and An Nahar dailies that the
premier-designate was waiting for local consensus and agreement on shares,
denying that the formation of the cabinet needed a Syrian-Saudi deal. "We are
only waiting for an internal agreement to form a balanced and productive
government," they said. Refuting claims that Miqati was waiting for the Syrian
green light, the circles said the regional turmoil should be "an incentive to
speed up the formation of the cabinet."Despite rumors that the prime minister-designate's
task is facing many obstacles, a March 8 official told An Nahar that Miqati is
now discussing with involved parties the distribution of portfolios."We are
confident that Miqati has no choice but to take steps forward and not to back
off from his mission," the official said. However, he stressed that no specific
date was set for the formation of the cabinet. "All we can say is that the
(government's) birth is approaching." Beirut, 22 Mar 11, 09:40
Aoun Denies Obstructing Govt Formation, Accuses Suleiman of Crippling
Institutions
Naharnet/Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun on Tuesday denied that he
was behind the delay in forming the new cabinet, accusing President Michel
Suleiman of "crippling governance and state institutions."Briefing reporters
after the weekly meeting of the Change and Reform parliamentary bloc, Aoun said
that "whatever the shape of the new cabinet may be, it remains the cabinet of
the new majority." "That's why we should not act against ourselves. Everyone
must realize that this cabinet is being formed by parties belonging to the same
camp," he added. "There's nothing new concerning the cabinet formation process
and we are hearing ambiguous remarks about the subject. If they want
technocrats, we have qualified candidates," Aoun went on to say. He stressed
that Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati still enjoys the FPM's trust.
Addressing the latest alleged WikiLeaks cables published by Al-Akhbar newspaper
about supposed meetings between U.S. diplomats and FPM officials, Aoun said: "I
bore full responsibility for my alliance with Hizbullah and I succeeded and we
did not incite against anyone during the July 2006 war." "We did not join an
electoral coalition to win the parliamentary majority and then betray our allies
like the Mustaqbal Movement did," Aoun said of the infamous quadrilateral
electoral coalition that comprised Mustaqbal Movement, Progressive Socialist
Party, Hizbullah and AMAL Movement during the 2005 parliamentary elections.
Aoun also slammed the rally organized by the March 14 forces to commemorate the
6th anniversary of the Cedar Revolution. "Under which constitution are you
organizing rallies for the sake of power? If you want the law of force, we are
ready and no one can blame us," Aoun said. On the other hand, he noted that his
meeting with Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat on Monday was
aimed at evaluating the regional situations. "Because they are of concern to
us," Aoun told reporters. Beirut, 22 Mar 11, 19:18
Aridi Says Aoun-Jumblat Meeting Doesn't Mean Cabinet Will be Formed
Naharnet/Caretaker Minister Ghazi Aridi confirmed on Tuesday that the meeting
between National Struggle Front leader Walid Jumblat and Free Patriotic Movement
chief Michel Aoun was a continuation to previous talks held between the two
parties. Jumblat's meeting with Aoun "doesn't necessarily mean that the cabinet
will be formed," Aridi told Voice of Mada radio station. In answering a question
about Monday's talks in Rabiyeh, Aridi denied media reports that Jumblat was a
mediator between Aoun and Premier-designate Najib Miqati. He called for "direct
communication between all the parties, especially between Aoun and Miqati, to
end the bickering" over the cabinet. Concerning an invitation to the Progressive
Socialist Party leader to visit Tehran, Aridi said: "Jumblat will visit Iran at
the appropriate time." Beirut, 22 Mar 11, 11:18
Safadi Warns Those Who 'Betrayed' him: Silence is Not a Form of Weakness
Naharnet/Caretaker Minister of Economy and Trade Mohammed Safadi criticized on
Monday those who accused him of "betrayal" after Prime Minister-designate Najib
Miqati's election, warning that they should not consider his silence as a sign
of weakness.He said: "We are the most eager to adopt a position that would unite
Lebanon's Sunnis. We are the most eager to uncover the truth behind the
assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and we will confront anyone
who tarnishes his image.""Why haven't they equipped the army enough so that it
would be able to protect the country?" he asked. "We support the legitimate
arms, but given that the army is not being strengthened, we will not present a
free gift to Israel and we will not deprive Lebanon of a power that we want
incorporated into a defense strategy," the minister added. "We support the
resistance against the enemy and we have never shied away from condemning the
use of weapons on the internal scene and we reject any justification for such an
action," he continued. Safadi demanded a halt to "accusations of treason, the
falsification of facts, and manipulation of people's feelings.""We reject strife
even if they lure us into it and we insist on dialogue as the only way to settle
disputes," he stressed. Beirut, 21 Mar 11, 18:41
Minister Cannon Condemns Ongoing Violence in Yemen, Bahrain and Syria
http://www.international.gc.ca/media/aff/news-communiques/2011/113.aspx
(No. 113 - March 21, 2011 - 5 p.m. ET) The Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister
of Foreign Affairs, today issued the following statement concerning the
situations in Yemen, Bahrain and Syria:
“Canada vigorously condemns the increasingly frequent and violent attacks on
demonstrators in Yemen. We urge the Yemeni authorities to immediately take
measures to prevent any further violence against civilians.
“Canada is also deeply concerned by the recent actions taken by the Government
of Bahrain in response to protests in that country. We urge the authorities to
promptly restore an environment favourable to open dialogue among all Bahraini
stakeholders. Canada condemns reported human rights abuses against the Bahraini
population and violations of international humanitarian law.
“Canada deplores the multiple deaths and injuries following protests in several
Syrian cities over the weekend. We urge the Government of Syria to respect the
fundamental human rights of its people and to immediately stop using force
against peaceful demonstrators.
“Canadians are urged to read Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada’s
travel reports for Yemen, Bahrain and Syria as well as to visit the Security
Situation in the Middle East and North Africa page for travel advice applicable
to the region.”
The Proxy Battle in Bahrain
Lynsey Addario for The New York Times
By MICHAEL SLACKMAN
Published: March 19, 2011
CAIRO — King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has demonstrated one lesson learned from
the course of pro-democracy uprisings across the Middle East: The world may
cheer when autocrats resign, but it picks carefully which autocrats to punish
for opening fire on their citizens.
Fleeing The clashes between the Bahraini police and protesters have put the
United States in a difficult spot.
That cynical bit of realpolitik seems to have led the king to send troops last
week over the causeway from Saudi Arabia to Bahrain, where they backed up a
violent crackdown on unarmed protesters by Bahrain’s own security forces.
The move had immediate consequences for Middle East politics, and for American
policy: It transformed Bahrain into the latest proxy battle between Iran and
Saudi Arabia for regional dominance. And it called into question which model of
stability and governance will prevail in the Middle East, and which Washington
will help build: one based on consensus and hopes for democracy, or continued
reliance on strongmen who intimidate opponents, sow fear and co-opt reformist
forces while protecting American interests like ensuring access to oil and
opposing Iran. For Saudi Arabia, the issue in Bahrain is less whether Bahrain
will attain popular rule than whether Iranian and Shiite influence will grow.
Iran and Saudi Arabia have sparred on many fronts since the Iranian Revolution
of 1979 — a Shiite Muslim theocracy in Tehran versus a deeply conservative Sunni
Muslim monarchy in Riyadh — in a struggle for supremacy in the world’s most
oil-rich region. The animosity was evident in Saudi Arabia’s support for Iraq
during its war with Iran, and it still shows in Iran’s backing for Hezbollah in
Lebanon.
Now, after a decade that seemed to tilt the regional balance toward Iran, Saudi
Arabia decided that Bahrain was the place to put its thumb more heavily on the
scale. It sent troops under the auspices of the Gulf Cooperation Council to help
crush pro-democracy demonstrations because most of the protesters were Shiites
challenging a Sunni king.
“If the political opposition in Bahrain wins, Saudi loses in this regional
context,” said Mustafa el-Labbad, director of Al Sharq Center for Regional and
Strategic Studies in Cairo. “Saudi is regarding itself as the defender of
Sunnis. And Iran is trying to defend Shiites in the region.”
The problem for the United States, however, is that Bahrain, at Saudi urging,
chose to resolve its fears with force, rather than by addressing the protesters’
demands for democratic reform, as American officials had publicly encouraged.
And for that reason, the military deployment may now have a profound impact on
the United States and its primary strategic interest in Bahrain, the Navy base
it maintains there.
Because Washington did not ultimately support the protesters’ demands — as it
came to do in Egypt and as it has now, very late in the game, come to back
foreign intervention in Libya — many protesters believe that the Saudi troops
were sent in with American complicity, or at least with an expectation of
American acquiescence. So, among the protesters, who turned out by the tens of
thousands, the crackdown may well yield animosity toward America and its Navy
when events finally settle down.
One American expert in the Persian Gulf who advises policymakers in Washington
said the Saudi king’s action was taken without regard for what might happen if
it fails — if the violence leads only to more violence. The Saudi policy, he
said, “is risky and could potentially draw us into conflicts we have not looked
for.”
“What if the Bahrain venture fails, who will bail them out? It will have to be
us.”
Saudi Arabia’s supporters acknowledge that this confrontation can escalate, but
they tend to place the responsibility on Iran. “It can lead to that direct
conflict if Iran were to interfere and use this as an excuse to interfere,” said
Abdulaziz O. Sager, chairman of the Gulf Research Center, which is based in
Dubai. “I hope Iran can understand that any interference will not be
acceptable.”
There has been no evidence that Iran played a part in Bahrain’s uprising, which
was led by young Bahrainis from the Shiite majority. Still, many protesters have
said, it is reasonable to expect Shiites to be more receptive to Iran if they do
gain power. There is little doubt, they also say, that a Shiite-led government
would be less receptive to the Saudis.
Times Topic: Bahrain News — The Protests (2011)Even some of the Iranian regime’s
harshest critics are saying the Saudi military venture in Bahrain will change
the narrative of the region in Iran’s favor. Abbas Milani, an Iranian who went
into exile after the 1979 revolution and is now director of Iranian studies at
Stanford University, put it this way: “Iran, as the most brutal authoritarian
regime in the region, will now have the chance to seem to stand with the
democratic aspirations of the people, and against authoritarians clinging to
power.”
The Saudi king’s decision to back King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa’s crackdown in
Bahrain also underscored the challenge the United States often faces with its
closest allies in the Middle East, where some interests align — like protecting
the flow of oil — and others do not, like financing global terrorism. Saudi
Arabia has moved aggressively to cut off radical Islamic terrorism within its
own borders, but it has addressed the global phenomenon with far less
conviction, many American experts have said.
One of those experts was Richard C. Holbrooke, the United States special envoy
to Pakistan and Afghanistan. Shortly before his death last year, he was asked if
heroin was the top source of funds for the Taliban. The answer was no. “It’s the
gulf,” he said, meaning cash from sources in Saudi Arabia and another American
ally, Kuwait.
One effect of the crackdown was to underscore President Obama’s failure to close
the gap in expectations between his talk of democracy during his historic speech
in Cairo in 2009 and his actions on the ground. The contortions needed to
preserve the old model of stability while supporting aspirations for democracy
were strikingly evident in a comment by Senator John Kerry, an ally of the
president. “They are not looking for violence in the streets,” the senator said
of the Saudi troops moving into Bahrain. “They would like to encourage the king
and others to engage in reforms and a dialogue.”
Time quickly proved him wrong. The violence started the next day, and it was not
only Iran that blamed Washington. “Where are the Americans, where are the
Americans, why are they allowing this, they are killing us with heavy guns,
where are the Americans?” shrieked Hussein Muhammad, 37, a bookstore owner and
political activist, in a breathless phone call Wednesday from Manama.
When the tear gas cleared, the streets of Manama were littered with canisters
that said, on their side, that they had been made in the United States.
While Washington has pressed for restraint, it has also continued to support the
monarchy.
“My guess is that there are probably very significant parts of our government
that were happy with this,” said Daniel C. Kurtzer, a professor at Princeton who
was ambassador to Egypt under President Bill Clinton, and to Israel under
President George W. Bush. “Although they are not able to say it, because other
parts of our government see it as destabilizing. I think parts of our government
are looking at the Iranian threat and the possibility of Bahrain being the first
dominoes in the gulf to fall.”
Mr. Kurtzer pointed to an irony in that line of thought: the decision to support
Bahrain’s king this time may undermine short-run interests the United States
thought it was protecting. For 60 years, the United States has based the Navy’s
Fifth Fleet in Bahrain. It operates openly, and its personnel have enjoyed
largely unrestricted freedom of movement around the kingdom.
But last week, the Navy authorized family members and nonessential personnel to
leave. The question now is: How safe will United States ships and personnel be
surrounded by a population that may see Americans as complicit in the crackdown?